COLLECTIVE MADNESS



Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."
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Senior Supreme Court advocate Rajeev Dhavan today called it quits after what he described as a "humiliating end" to the sensational Delhi government-Centre dispute case.

In a letter addressed to Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, the 74-year-old lawyer said he had decided to give up court practice.

"After the humiliating end to the Delhi case, I have decided to give up court practice. You are entitled to take back the senior gown conferred on me, though I would like to keep it for memory and the services rendered," read the letter.

When contacted, Dhavan refused to speak on the issue.





The surprise announcement comes days after the apex court reserved its verdict on the Delhi-Centre case, i.e whether the Lieutenant Governor or the Delhi government enjoys supremacy in the administration of the national capital.

On December 6, just before the conclusion of the hearing in the case, heated exchanges were witnessed between the Chief Justice and Dhavan.

The senior lawyer was appearing for the Delhi government in the case besides their lead counsel Gopal Subramanium.

In the Delhi-Centre dispute hearing, Dhavan had made some submissions which were not appreciated by the bench.

"Come what may, shouting in the courtroom will not be tolerated at any cost," the CJI had observed.

Besides the Delhi-Centre case, Dhavan has represented a number of high-profile cases like the Babri-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute, SEBI-Sahara, Rohingya refugees among others. -- PTI
Becoming visible - Adania Flemming

The University of Florida's Florida Museum of Natural History celebrated 100 years of inspiring people to care about life on Earth in 2017. To mark the closing of an era and the beginning of a new century, UF News profiled three Florida Museum women who are shaping the research institution's future and breaking the cycle of stereotypes and misconceptions in the world of science. With modern tools like social media and podcasts, they continue the work of past and current museum women, who have fought for equality in their fields and for the visibility of women in science.
A visitor takes pictures at the Nelson Mandela National Museum in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec. 4, 2014. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan)

by Ndumiso Mlilo

JOHANNESBURG, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's National Heritage Council (NHC) has called on the country's black historians to make an effort to correct the distortions of history in some books by white historians.

This was said on Friday night by the NHC CEO Advocate Sonwabile Mancotywa at the launch of Black Sacrifice, a book about British warship SS Mendi which sank in 1917, killing 646 soldiers with the majority being black South Africans.

The book was written by Gladstone Sandi Baai who passed away in 2012 after submitting the manuscript to the NHC. Mancotywa said the book is the first one written by a black scholar about the sunken troopship.

"This book will remove some distortions and contradictions about SS Mendi by white scholars. We do not know a lot about ourselves. This is the decolonization of the African heritage narrative and participation of the Africans in the World War I," said Mancotywa.

He said South Africans were recruited as slaves and laborers and used as soldiers in some wars which were not theirs. Mancotywa said Africans were segregated when fighting alongside the British while they also staged their own in the ship. He said about 150 wars were fought against the British and called on that to be documented.

Jeanny Morulane, general manager of the Constitutional Hill, one of the country's heritage sites, agreed that history needs to be corrected to tell the true story about the black participation in the World War I and local ones against the colonizers.

"The sinking of the SS Mendi remains one of the worst tragedies of World War I. We continue to mourn as South Africa and many generations to come will do so. There was no compensation by the British for the loss of the black, some who had never seen the sea," she said.

Professor Muxe Nkondo said there had been a fundamental antagonism between Africans and the Europeans, and liberation movements in the continent have failed to address it.

Nkondo said Europe failed to apologize and compensate Africans for their sacrifice in fighting their (European) wars. He said there are still many questions about why and how the ship sank because some lies were peddled about it.

Another South African scholar Nomboniso Gasa Gasa said there is a frosty relationship between Africa and Europe. She criticized some white historians for mysticizing the tragedy, blaming the blacks for doing death rituals before the sinking.

"These are not closed chapters, black historians should continue researching and write the correct history. The SS Mendi is more than a historian's memory, it shows the border interaction of Africa and Europe and the entire colonial history and the annihilation of the African people," she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 01:12:10|Editor: Yurou

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PARIS, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- French President Emmanuel Macron has recalled that France disapproved the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move its embassy there.

Macron made the remarks in a telephone meeting with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the French presidency said in a press release on Sunday.

"France has reaffirmed its commitment to international law and respect for UN Security Council resolutions, and Jerusalem is destined to be the capital of two states, Israel and Palestine, in ways that it will be up to the Palestinians and Israelis to define by negotiation," said the release.

Macron also stressed the need to "avoid negative repercussions throughout the region and to contribute to appeasement... to restore prospects for peace," it added.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced earlier this week that he acknowledged Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and decided to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 01:52:19|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BUDAPEST, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The overwhelming majority of Hungarians rejected the so-called "Soros plan", according to the partial results of a national consultation, Minister of State for Government Communication Bence Tuzson told here on Sunday.

"This consultation has been the most successful of all time, more than 2.3 million people responded, and until Dec. 7, we looked at 1.5 million letters returned: almost all Hungarians said no to the reception in Europe of one million refugees per year, as part of the Soros plan," Tuzson told before journalists.

"The Hungarians have also said no to the mandatory relocation quotas and the dismantling of the fence that defends our borders," Tuzson added.

The Hungarian government in October launched a national consultation on an alleged "Soros plan" for mass immigration to the EU.

At the end of November, American billionaire of Hungarian origin George Soros refuted point-by-point the allegations made against him by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, accusing him of spreading "false" information with an "anti-Semitic" tone.

Soros, who funds rights NGOs around the world, has become one of Orban's main enemies, who has also attacked NGOs, accusing them of intervening in Hungarian domestic politics in favor of Soros.

On Thursday, the European Commission took three Eastern European countries, including Hungary, to the European top court for refusing their refugee quotas in the last two years.

In addition, the Commission also referred Hungary to the EU Court of Justice over its controversial law on NGOs that also, according to critics, target George Soros.

Soros is also the founder of the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest, a prestigious English-speaking institution that risks closure if it does not comply with a new law on higher education passed in April.

The law is also in the sights of Brussels. The Commission on Thursday took Hungary to the EU Court of Justice on the grounds that the Higher Education Act "disproportionately restricts the functioning of EU and third-country universities, and must be brought into line with the Union law".
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 03:12:40|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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NAIROBI, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Sunday condoled with the families, relatives and friends of seven artists who died in a road accident along the Nakuru-Eldoret highway on Saturday evening.

Kenyatta called on the police and other law enforcement agencies to step up their efforts to ensure motorists obey traffic safety rules and regulations.

Kenyatta said he was saddened to learn of the death of musician Cheruiyot of Kenene International and four members of his troupe.

"My sincere condolences to the families, friends and relatives of Weldon Cheruiyot, five members of his troupe and their driver who lost their lives in the Saturday night accident at Kamara along the Nakuru-Eldoret highway," he said in a statement issued in Nairobi.

Cheruiyot was a popular secular musician of Keneny International. Cheruiyot, popularly known as Keneny is one of the celebrated musicians in the Kalenjin community.

The Kenyan leader said the accident had cut short the lives of talented youth who had a promising future.

Kenyatta also extended his condolences to the families, relatives and friends of more than 14 people who lost their lives in another accident that occurred along the Marigat-Loruk road in Baringo County earlier on Saturday.

Road accidents still continue to occur despite stringiest traffic rules which were introduced by the government to help curb road carnage.

An estimated number of 3,000 Kenyans die on road accidents annually despite concerted efforts by the state and the private sector to promote safety on the highways, according to the National Transport Safety Authority (NTSA).
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 03:27:42|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DAMASCUS, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Residents in Syria's capital Damascus enjoyed a "chocolate feast" on Sunday to take a festive mood in the coming holiday season of Christmas and the New Year despite conflicts and various woes raging in the country.

Women, men and children jam-packed the gate of the al-Qaysar Hotel in Damascus on Sunday for the four-day event, the first of its kind to take place in Damascus.

Many chocolate makers took part in the event, showcasing their various products while offering samples to the crowds to taste.

For the visitors, coming to the "chocolate feast" is all about having fun and tasting chocolate to get their minds off the war.

Sama, a housewife, came with her little boy to take a look and buy chocolate for the holiday season.

"This is a unique and beautiful experience because it is first of its kind in Syria. We came here today to celebrate the spirit of the holiday season and of course, we like to take part in the celebrations to get our minds off the war," Sama told Xinhua.

Sahar came with her husband to enjoy the chocolate tasting.

"This is the first time such an event is held in Damascus and it is a wonderful event and we wish for more events like this to take place so that people can participate and release the stress they have been suffering since the beginning of the war," she said.

The organizers said the event aims at reviving the spirit of the holiday season, following a six-year war.

Mayada Olabi, one of the organizers, said she wanted the Damascenes to experience the spirit of the holiday similar to the people of Europe and the United States.

"The chocolate feast is a fun day as we are celebrating the chocolate festival on the occasion of the holiday season because I wanted to create a similar holiday atmosphere similar to that of Europe and the United States," Olabi said.

The woman, in her late forties, said she did not expect the huge turnout, with people jostling to enter the venue of the event.

"In Syria, we have very good chocolate manufacturers and we have creative people who make cakes and chocolate," she said.

During the event, people seemed so happy as if they finally found a reason to be cheerful after suffering from a six-year war which is still ongoing.

On Sunday, a Syrian government delegation arrived in Geneva to participate in the Geneva talks, just days after the first sessions ended with no tangible results.

It is not clear yet whether the upcoming sessions would generate any fruits, nor is it clear whether the two sides would meet face to face.

This session is part of the eighth round of intra-Syria talks in Geneva, which started on Nov. 28.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 03:52:48|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MOSCOW, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The defeat of the Islamic States (IS) terrorist group in Syria is mainly due to the Syrian government, the Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday.

It made the remarks in a comment on the earlier statement of the French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian about Russia's taking credit for the victory over IS.

"At the least, it is strange to hear from the French Foreign Minister that Russia has allegedly arrogated the victory over IS to itself. The credit for the fact that IS is now defeated in Syria belongs primarily to the Syrian leadership and the government troops," the defense ministry said in a statement.

With the support of the Russian Air Force, the Syrian army has freed hundreds of settlements from IS terrorists and returned the control of practically the entire territory of the country to the legitimate leadership, it said.

Meanwhile, the ministry noted that the international coalition led by the United States was focused on countering the Syrian government troops particularly in the province of Deir-ez-Zor in eastern Syria.

"In the three years of its existence, the coalition only recently achieved its first 'result' in the fight against IS terrorists in Syria-the destruction of al-Raqqah (in northern Syria) along with civilians by massive bombing," the statement read.

The coalition also allowed core IS militants to leave the city freely and join other IS terrorists near Deir-ez-Zor, which was confirmed by the British public service broadcaster BBC, it added.

The Russian military announced Thursday that Syrian troops supported by Russian servicemen have completed the destruction of IS terrorists in the war-torn country.
Clashes, Palestinian rocket fire and Israeli air strikes killed at least two people and wounded dozens of others on December 8 in violence linked to US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AFP Photo)

GAZA, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Islamic Hamas movement's military wing Al-Qassam brigades called Sunday for the continuation of the "uprising and activating all means in resisting and confronting the occupation" in rejection of the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Al-Qassam Brigades said in an official statement sent to reporters "we call upon our people to continue this Intifada, and to activate all means of resisting and confronting the occupation."

The statement warned that "the enemy will pay the bill of an arduous expense for the aggression, treachery and criminality against our people," adding "the coming days will prove to the enemy its great error and its misjudgment of the will and determination of the armed resistance."

Two Hamas militants died Saturday after Israel shelled a military training camp in northern Gaza, according to the Al-Qassam announcement.

Four Palestinians were killed and over 1,000 others were injured in clashes that lasted over the past three days in West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, against the U.S. move on Jerusalem.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 05:43:08|Editor: Yurou

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TRIPOLI, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The British and German ambassadors to Libya on Sunday voiced their countries' support to the Libyan Central Bank's plan to end the current economic and financial crisis.

The two envoys made the remarks while meeting with the Governor of Tripoli Seddiq Al-Kabir, during which they discussed Libya's current economic and financial situation, according to the Central Bank.

"Kabir and the British ambassador Peter Millet agreed that ending the political division and one step closer to a stable political environment will lead to the success of any economic and financial program in Libya," said the Central Bank in a statement.

Millet reaffirmed his country's support for the Central Bank's proposals of economic and financial reforms to end the crisis that the country is going through, said the Bank.

German ambassador Christian Buck also expressed his country's willingness to "provide any help to promote the political stability in Libya, as well as to support the efforts made by the Central Bank," it added.

Libya has been experiencing an unprecedented economic and financial crisis since the fall of Gaddafi's regime in 2011, as the conflicts hammered its oil exports, the major source of its foreign reserves and national income.

Local currency has declined against foreign currencies and local banks suffer from a lack of funding.

The meetings took place as neighboring Tunis hosted meetings sponsored by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund of representatives of Libyan's divided authorities.

The meetings discuss unification of the state budget for 2018, adjustment of the Libyan dinar exchange rate against foreign currencies, and plans to develop the Libyan economy, according to local media.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 07:38:23|Editor: Yang Yi

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The combo photo taken on March 31, 2017 shows daily life of Jiang Shuzhen, a survivor of Nanjing Massacre. Photo (Up, C) shows Jiang reading newspaper at her balcony; Jiang showing her message on WeChat (L top); Jiang playing Majiang with her family members (L central); Jiang cooking vegetable at home (L bottom); Jiang staying at home (R top); Jiang taking a walk with her daughter-in-law (R central); Jiang, her daughter Huang Qinghua (1st L), her son Huang Qingguo (2nd R) and her daughter-in-law Wen Zhenxiu posing for a photo at home (R bottom). Jiang was born on Dec. 9, 1929. Before the Japanese invaders entered the city of Nanjing, her father went to southwest China's Chongqing. Her grandma together with her mother took Jiang and her two siblings to the countryside. Jiang once witnessed the Japanese invaders killing two Chinese young men. The year 2017 marks the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre, in which more than 300,000 Chinese were killed by the Japanese invaders who occupied Nanjing on Dec. 13, 1937, marking the start of six weeks of destruction, pillage, rape and slaughter in the city. There are only less than 100 living survivors of the atrocity. Reporters from Xinhua spent many years to look for the survivors of Nanjing Massacre and record their current lives. (Xinhua/Han Yuqing, Li Xiang and Ji Chunpeng)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 10:24:07|Editor: Yurou

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TOKYO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Japanese man Takahiro Shiraishi was on Monday charged by the police with the murder in October of a 25-year-old woman.

It is the second such warrant served on Shiraishi who has admitted to killing and dismembering nine people in his apartment near Tokyo.

The 27-year-old suspect is being investigated for murdering Kazumi Maruyama from Yokohama and keeping her dead body in his apartment in Zama near Tokyo.

According to investigative sources, the victim was reported missing on Oct. 18.

Maruyama's cellphone was found stashed in a garbage bag in Shiraishi's room during the investigation, police accounts revealed.

The case rocked the nation as many of Shiraishi's victims had posted suicidal wishes and thoughts on popular social media sites, such as Twitter.

Shiraishi, a self-confessed serial killer, allegedly met his vulnerable victims online before luring them to his apartment.

But Shiraishi apparently informed police that he didn't think his victims really wanted to die as they resisted his attacks.

Shiraishi was initially arrested and taken into custody in late October and charged about three weeks later for the alleged murder of Aiko Tamura, 23.

The murder of Tamura is believed to have taken place at his Kanagawa Prefecture apartment after she went missing on Oct. 23.

Police investigations are ongoing to determine whether evidence pertaining to the seven remaining victims could lead to further murder charges being levied on Shiraishi.

Of all his victims, eight of them were female and one male.

All of the victims were aged between 15 and 26 years old.

Their dismembered body parts were discovered by investigators in a number of cooling boxes in Shiraishi's apartment.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 10:34:11|Editor: Yurou

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SEOUL, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in's approval rating inched down last week, but it stayed above 70 percent for the sixth straight week, a local weekly survey showed Monday.

According to the Realmeter poll, support for Moon was 70.8 percent last week, down 0.7 percentage points from the previous week.

The downward trend continued for two weeks, but the support scores hovered above 70 percent for six weeks in a row.

It was based on a survey of 2,517 voters conducted from Monday to Friday. It had 2 percentage points in margin of error with a 95 percent confidence level.

The passage of next year's budget plan last week in the National Assembly contributed to the support scores for President Moon.

Approval rating for Moon's ruling Democratic Party declined 2.9 percentage points over the week to 49.1 percent last week.

Support for the main opposition Liberty Korea Party inched up 0.2 percentage points to 17.8 percent. The minor conservative Righteous Party gained 6.3 percent, followed by the centrist People's Party with 6 percent and the minor progressive Justice Party with 4.3 percent.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 11:09:18|Editor: Jiaxin

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(From L to R) Uruguay's President Tabare Vazquez, Brazil's President Michel Temer, Argentina's President Mauricio Macri and Paraguay's President Horacio Cartes attend the opening ceremony of the 11th WTO (World Trade Organization) Ministerial Conference, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Dec. 10, 2017. The 11th WTO (World Trade Organization) Ministerial Conference opened here Sunday with an emphasis on open and multilateral trade. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The 11th WTO (World Trade Organization) Ministerial Conference opened here Sunday with an emphasis on open and multilateral trade.

"The more open and flexible we are, the greater possibilities of success we will have," WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said in his opening remarks.

"We must take advantage of the opportunity to focus (on) our future work, taking into account the context in which we live ... with the latent threat of protectionism," Azevedo told the meeting.

At the opening ceremony, Argentine President Mauricio Macri called on WTO members to promote "multilateralism, fair trade based on clear rules."

"We know the benefits have not yet reached all and this has led to questioning of economic globalization. It is the responsibility of all to face the challenges of the 21st century. Argentina wants to contribute to securing growth. We believe this can only be done by working together," said Macri.

Macri said that the WTO has played an important role in the global economic governance system over the past 20 years.

However, he warned that "the benefits of regional and global trade must reach ever more people. The challenges are many, and it is not sustainable to move ahead with a scheme where some are protectionist and others don't follow the rules."

Brazilian President Michel Temer also called for safeguarding the multilateral trade system.

"The system of multilateral trade has shown its use and remains able at decisive moments to contain protectionist tendencies," Temer said. "It must be preserved and valued. It is an illusion to think that protectionism is the path for development."

Macri, Temer, along with Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes and Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez, also issued a joint declaration to reaffirm the importance of the multilateral trading system.

The meeting to last till Wednesday will bring together trade officials from 164 WTO members to discuss how to optimize the rules of global trade.

China on Saturday encouraged WTO members to safeguard multilateral trade and jointly build an open global economy.

Speaking to a round table on China's program for less developed countries known as the "China Program" during a WTO summit in Buenos Aires, Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said that China will promote the creation of a new configuration of integral opening-up, firmly support the multilateral trade regime and encourage the construction of a global open economy.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 11:59:27|Editor: Yurou

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) of China announced on Monday that it has started investigation into Sun Zhengcai, former secretary of Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Sun, also former member of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee, was put under investigation on suspicion of accepting bribes.

The SPP has taken "coercive measures" against Sun, which may include summons by force, bail and detention, and further investigation is under way.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:19:30|Editor: Yurou

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KUALA LUMPUR, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Malaysian people's love for mobile shopping has led to more transactions generated on mobile platforms.

The data compiled from Malaysia's three major online marketplaces -- Lazada, 11street and Shopee -- revealed that 70 percent of the online transactions on Single's Day and MyCyber sales were done through mobile devices, said iPay88, a leading regional payment gateway provider in South East Asia.

MOBILE USERS GROWING

"Mobile users are growing faster than our anticipation, we expect the momentum to continue," Ipay 88's executive director and co-founder Chan Kok Long told Xinhua in a recent interview.

According to Malaysian Central Bank, there are 42.8 million mobile phone subscriptions in Malaysia currently. Meanwhile, smartphone penetration stands at 70 percent and it is expected to increase.

In view of the growing mobile phone user base and more friendly mobile applications, Chan said the transactions generated on mobile platform will account for 60 percent of the total before climbing to 70 percent in the next two years. Last year, the ratio stood at 50 percent, he said.

MOBILE PAYMENTS' CONTRIBUTION

Another key driver is the introduction of mobile payment, which several banks are looking to launch Quick Response (QR) code-wallets that enable payment to be done in an easier way.

IPay88 is currently the payment gateway market leader in Malaysia, accounting for 60 percent of Malaysia's online payments system transaction.

Chan also believed the two major Chinese online payment companies -- Alipay and WeChat Pay -- making their ways into Malaysia e-payment segment, could potentially double the online transactions.

"When you see m-commerce growing tremendously, the next thing will be mobile-wallets. It is no doubt that they (the two Chinese players) will contribute a lot to the online transactions in Malaysia going forward," said Chan.

Cited Alipay as an example, he said, the retail transaction volume has grown robustly since it was launched four months ago.

"Although Alipay is new in Malaysia, the growth potential is tremendous because of the increasing Chinese tourists in Malaysia," Chan said, adding that more Malaysian retailers have to adopt the payment system as they are also afraid of losing competitiveness in dealing with Chinese tourists.

Chan also sees great potential from WeChat Pay, which will be unveiled in Malaysia next year, as it has 20 million WeChat holders in Malaysia and 600 million active users in China.

Earlier this year, Alipay, a unit of Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial, has inked agreements with Malaysian banks for the rollout of its service this year.

Its competitor, WeChat Pay by Tencent Group, was then granted an e-payment license in Malaysia and planned to unveil its service in early 2018. Since then, it has secured Hong Leong Bank as its partner for the service.

The payment gateway provider that has presence in other Southeast Asian countries, also sees Malaysia ahead its peers in embracing cashless payment.

This is due to Malaysia's strategic position with decent population and better infrastructure, in addition to the Malaysian government's encouraging policies, Chan said.

"Malaysians are more ready than its counterparts in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, also because of the Alibaba-led Digital Free Trade Zone, which is expected to drive the country's e-economy," Chan said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:34:33|Editor: Yurou

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TOKYO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Japanese man Takahiro Shiraishi on Monday was charged by the police with the murder in October of a 25-year-old woman.

It is the second such warrant served on Shiraishi who has admitted to killing and dismembering nine people in his apartment near Tokyo.

The 27-year-old suspect is being investigated for murdering Kazumi Maruyama from Yokohama and keeping her dead body in his apartment in Zama near Tokyo.

According to investigative sources, the victim was reported missing on Oct. 18.

Maruyama's cellphone was found stashed in a garbage bag in Shiraishi's room during the police's searches, investigative accounts revealed.

The case rocked the nation as many of Shiraishi's victims had posted suicidal wishes and thoughts on popular social media sites, such as Twitter.

Shiraishi, a self-confessed serial killer, allegedly met his vulnerable victims online before luring them to his apartment.

But Shiraishi apparently informed the police that he did not think his victims really wanted to die as they resisted his attacks.

Shiraishi was initially arrested and taken into custody in late October and charged about three weeks later for the alleged murder of Aiko Tamura, 23.

The murder of Tamura is believed to have taken place at his Kanagawa Prefecture apartment after she went missing on Oct. 23.

A message was posted on Tamura's Twitter account on Sept. 20, according to local media, saying she was "looking for someone who will die with me."

The message said she "wants to die, but is scared of dying alone."

Subsequent investigations revealed that Tamura had been exchanging messages online with Shiraishi.

Security camera footage, broadcast by local media, also showed the pair walking together on Oct. 23 at Hachioji station in Tokyo, and at another station near Shiraishi's apartment.

During the police's initial search of Shiraishi's apartment, they found a cooler box with the dismembered body parts of two people, local media reported.

The remains of seven other people in his apartment were subsequently found, local media quoted police investigators as saying.

Police said Shiraishi confessed to killing the women soon after he met her and said he used the bath in his apartment to cut up the bodies and disposed of some of the body parts in the garbage.

Investigators retrieved a saw from his apartment believed to have been used to dismember the bodies.

Police investigations are ongoing to determine whether evidence pertaining to the seven remaining victims could lead to Shiraishi being charged with further cases of murder.

Of all his potential victims, eight of them were female and one was male.

All of the victims were aged between 15 and 26 years old.

Their dismembered body parts were discovered by investigators in multiple cooling boxes in Shiraishi's apartment.

While some residents in the same apartment building had noticed a foul smell coming from his room since August, others described Shiraishi as being "a cheerful, kind and polite man."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:34:34|Editor: Yurou

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SYDNEY, Dec 11 (Xinhua) -- Dozens of loud speakers are being installed across the city of Melbourne in Australia on Monday, as part of a major security upgrade to warn people of terror attacks.

The new measures are the recommendations of a counter terrorism review that occurred after a number of recent incidents this year.

In January, a vehicle attack in Melbourne resulted in the deaths of six people, while in July a deadly terror siege killed two men, including the gunman, on the outskirts of the city.

Last month, a plot to gundown innocent people during New Year's Eve celebrations in Melbourne's popular tourist location Federation Square was thwarted by authorities.

The 7.5 million U.S. dollars initiative will also include extra CCTV cameras in the Central Business District and the construction of more pavement barricades to prevent cars entering busy walkways.

"The loud speakers will allow us to put out warning messages in the event of an incident occurring whether it be a terrorist event or whether it be another mass casualty incident, or one that's of high risk," Victoria Police acting chief commissioner Shane Patton told local media.

"It will allow us to inform the public in the city where they should be going, what they should be doing and making sure they're safe and understand what's unfolding."

Coincidently, a three-day forum on global terrorism prevention kicked off in Melbourne on Monday, hosting a range of speakers from across the world including Britain, the United States, Canada, France, New Zealand, Singapore and Belgium.

Assistant commissioner of the Victorian Police Ross Guenther said in a statement, the conference is a fantastic opportunity for practitioners from around the world to come together and share knowledge and best practices to combat terror.

"We also recognize that this is something that no single organization can combat alone and the ability to meet and discuss our experiences in an ever evolving counter terrorism landscape is exceptionally beneficial," he said.

"We expect to be able to take a lot away from the forum that will allow us to ensure we are doing everything we can to best protect the Victorian community."

Police said the first test of the warning system will go ahead on Dec. 28 in preparation for New Year's Eve celebrations.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:45:45|Editor: Yurou

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NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least five people have been killed and 20 others injured in a road accident in Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said Monday.

"The accident occurred when a mini bus carrying a marriage party rolled into a deep gorge at Chenani in the state's Udhampur on Sunday night," a police official said.

While five people died on the spot, those injured have been admitted to a government hospital where the condition of at least four are said to be critical, he said.

Preliminary probe has revealed that the bus was travelling at high speed and the driver lost control of the vehicle, leading to the accident, the official said.

A thorough investigation is under way, he added.

India has the highest number of road fatalities in the world. Road accidents occur mostly due to poor driving or badly maintained roads and vehicles.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:50:47|Editor: Yurou

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HOUSTON, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Houston police were on high alert Sunday as three false shooting incidents were reported in the past 10 days in the fourth largest city in the United States.

Although none of them were attributed to an active shooter in the end, police were on high alert as thousands flocked into shopping malls during Christmas and New Year holiday season.

Police cars were seen parked at the entrances and parking lots of populous malls in Houston, while others patrolled the main streets of the city.

A shooting incident was reported at Memorial City Mall on the evening of Dec. 2, causing hundreds of shoppers to take cover, with some running out through whatever doors they could find.

What people thought was gunfire turned out that a thief with a hammer attempted to break the glass of a jewelry store display case, investigators said.

On Dec. 4, shoppers at a mall in downtown Houston fled when they thought they heard gunshots, which turned out to be noise from a child falling out of a stroller and then tumbling down an escalator.

On Dec. 9, shoppers running frantically from the parking lot of Baybrook Mall said they heard noise like gunshots. But police said after investigation that they could not explain what caused shoppers to run from the parking garage, but there was no evidence of a shooting.

Former FBI agent and security expert Jim Conway told local TV station that people should think about the worst scenario when in a crowded place.

"The best thing to do is err on the side of being safe," he said.

"Paying attention to what's going on around you when you go to a concert or a theater, when you go shopping in a mall, think about where your exits are and where am I going to go if something bad happens," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 12:50:48|Editor: Yurou

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TOKYO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Japan has been known for long-hour work culture for decades, but some companies are trying to change that. By using office drones that play a farewell song, companies want to remind overworking employees it's time to go home, local media reported.

Telecom giant NTT East Corp. and two other companies announced last week that they are launching the service next April, the Japan News reported. A monthly service fee of 50,000 yen (450 U.S. dollars) per drone is expected.

The drone, created by a Tokyo-based start-up, will fly around the offices on a scheduled flight path blasting Auld Lang Syne, which is usually played in Japanese malls before closing. The drone can also film inside offices to identify employees who stay after work hours.

Will this solve the problem? Some experts doubt that, saying workers will likely take work home if they are harassed by the music, and the key issue is to cut workloads for them.

Working for excessive hours in Japan caused thousands of deaths every year, with victims mostly in their 30s and 40s. A white paper on "Karoshi", meaning "death by overwork", last year showed 22.7 percent of some 1,700 companies surveyed had employees who worked more than 80 hours of overtime in a month.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 13:10:56|Editor: Yang Yi

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MEHTERLAM, Afghanistan, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Three militants including a senior Taliban commander Mullah Abdul Samad were killed and two others injured as a mine exploded in his house in the eastern Laghman province on Monday, spokesman for provincial government Sarhadi Zawak said.

"A group of Taliban rebels were busy in a meeting in the house of Mullah Abdul Samad, the shadow deputy governor for Badpakh district today morning when a mine exploded, killing Mullah Samad along with two of his armed men and injuring two others," Zawak told Xinhua.

Two others including the son of Mullah Samad were injured in the blast, the official added.

Samad, according to the official, had served as notorious commander of the Taliban group in Laghman province and his physical elimination could prove a major blow to the armed militants.

Taliban militants are yet to make comments.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 13:15:58|Editor: Liangyu

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JALALABAD, Afghanistan, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Nine militants of IS terrorist group were killed and four others injured in Nangarhar province, east of Afghanistan, on Sunday, a local official said Monday.

"Afghan National Defense and Security Forces have been involved in a cordon and cleanup operation in Khogyani district recently. On Sunday, sporadic clashes occurred between security forces and IS fighters and nine IS militants were killed and four others injured on that day," Attaullah Khogyani, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua.

Several villages were also cleared from IS militants' presence in Khogyani within the past couple of days and various weapons and ammunition were also seized by security forces, the spokesman added.

The IS militants have not make any comments on the report so far.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 13:20:59|Editor: Yang Yi

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CANBERRA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) has unveiled its plan to "make HIV history".

Announced by health spokesperson Catherine King on Monday, the plan would see the ALP spend 39.8 million U.S. dollars on eliminating the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) if victorious at the 2018 federal election.

The plan includes 7.5 million U.S. dollars for organizations to target populations most at-risk of contracting HIV and 2.7 million U.S. dollars for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) trials to be expanded.

PrEP involves HIV-negative people taking a daily dose of antiretroviral drugs to prevent HIV infection. It has been found to be 99.9 percent effective at preventing HIV infection.

The ALP said the additional funding would make PrEP available to an extra 17,500 people.

A course of the drug can currently cost up to 900 U.S. dollars but the funding injection would reduce that to as little as 4.7 U.S. dollars.

"PrEP is only available to those who can afford the drug themselves or can access it through state and territory trials," King said in a statement on Monday.

"We have the knowledge to make HIV history -- now we need the resources."

There are approximately 1,000 diagnosed cases of HIV in Australia every year, a figure that King said could realistically be reduced to zero.

The ALP took advice from a blueprint developed by the Australian Federation of AIDS Organizations (AFAO), which said the plan would eventually result in 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in savings to the federal budget through a decreased burden on the universal health care system.

The AFAO would benefit from an extra 7.5 million U.S. dollars in funding under the plan while 2.2 million U.S. dollars would be committed to treating "hidden" cases of HIV among Aboriginal people and non-English speaking Australians.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 13:26:02|Editor: Yang Yi

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SEOUL, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- An arrest warrant was sought Monday by South Korean prosecutors for a lawmaker of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party over allegations that he had received bribes from the country's spy agency when he served as the finance minister under the previous government.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office requested a warrant to detain Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan of the Liberty Korea Party for bribery charges.

Choi was suspected of receiving 100 million won (92,000 U.S. dollars) of off-book fund from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) when he served as the deputy prime minister for economic affairs and the finance minister in 2014 under the Park Geun-hye administration.

At the time, then opposition lawmakers demanded the reduction of the NIS off the book funds for special activity as the fund had an untraceable nature.

The NIS reportedly lobbied Choi to block the attempt to scale down the funds as Choi served as the finance minister who is in charge of an annual budget plan.

Prosecutors have investigated the NIS for its off the book funds that were illegally offered to presidential officials under the impeached President Park Geun-hye.

Choi was summoned by prosecutors last week for questioning, strongly denying any illegality.

By law, an incumbent lawmaker is immune from detention during the parliamentary session. An extra session kicked off Monday.

The sitting lawmaker can be detained if over half of the attending lawmakers vote in favor of it under the attendance of over half of the total legislators.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 13:41:04|Editor: Yang Yi

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NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 10 people were killed and six others injured Monday after a goods truck collided with a tractor in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, police said.

The accident took place in Mirzapur district, about 285 km southeast of Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh.

"In a tragic road accident here this morning, a truck collided head-on with a tractor carrying people," a police official posted in Mirzapur said. "Five people were killed on spot, while as five others succumbed on way to hospital. Six people injured in the accident are undergoing treatment, out of which, the condition of few is stated to be critical."

According to police, the people travelling in tractor were returning after paying obeisance at a local temple."

The impact of collision according to locals was massive.

Reports said the poor visibility because of the morning fog could be the reason behind the deadly collision.

According to police, the injured were immediately taken to medical facility in Mirzapur.

Police have registered a case and ordered investigations to ascertain the actual reason behind the accident.

Deadly road accidents are common in India often due to overloading, bad condition of roads and reckless driving.

According to an official report released recently, on an average India witnessed over 400 deaths in road accidents every day during 2016.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 15:36:29|Editor: Jiaxin

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PARIS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- French dairy giant Lactalis announced Sunday a global recall of several baby formula milk and baby food products, for fear of salmonella contamination, following cases of children falling ill in France.

The major recall involves brands such as Milumel, Picot and Celi, and will affect consumers in China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Morocco, Lebanon, Sudan, Romania, Serbia, Georgia, Greece, Haiti, Colombia and Peru, according to information released by French consumer protection agency DGCCRF.

Lactalis, one of the world's biggest dairy producers, said that "nearly 7,000 tons of products" may have been contaminated but it is currently unable to decide the amount that is still on the market, or in stock.

The company has taken precautionary measures to disinfect facilities at a plant in northwest France, believed to be the source of the salmonella contamination, company spokesman Michel Nalet told media.

Sunday's announcement came in the wake of 26 cases of salmonella infection of small children in France during early December, which had already prompted a limited recall of 12 Lactalis products.

A typical symptom of salmonella infection is diarrhoea. The bacteria is especially dangerous for infants and the elderly due to risks of dehydration.

All the 26 children who had fallen ill in France with links to Lactalis products have since recovered, health authorities said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 15:56:35|Editor: Jiaxin

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OTTAWA, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Canadian government is expected to announce this week that it will both purchase Australia's used F/A-18 Classic Hornets and unveil its plan to acquire a permanent fleet of fighter jets.

It is believed that the government will unveil a purchase plan in the coming days to replace the military's aging fleet of 77 CF-18 Hornets in early 2019.

Before then, the Canadian Armed Forces will receive an unknown number of Australian Hornets that are nearly as old as Canada's CF-18 Hornets, which were bought in 1980 from American manufacturer McDonnell Douglas that merged with aerospace giant Boeing Co. in 1997.

Canada was originally set to buy 18 Boeing Super Hornet jets at a cost of 5.2 billion U.S. dollars to replace the CF-18s. However, the deal became imperiled this year over a trade dispute between Boeing and its Canadian aerospace competitor, Bombardier Inc.

Last fall, the U.S. Commerce Department proposed an 80-percent anti-dumping duty and a 220-percent countervailing tariff against Bombardier's C Series 100-to-150-seat civilian aircraft following a complaint by Chicago-based Boeing that Montreal-headquartered Bombardier allegedly priced its aircraft below production cost and received unfair Canadian government subsidies.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would not "do business with a company" threatening Canada's aerospace industry, and the Trudeau government was reportedly in contact with its Australian counterpart for months regarding the purchase of Australia's surplus F-18s a day after Boeing filed its complaint with the Commerce Department against Bombardier in late April.

However, a military procurement specialist believed Canada should focus on the latter.

"I would have skipped the interim step and put all hands on deck to buy new aircraft," said David Perry, a senior analyst and a fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute in Ottawa.

Because of its age, the Australian fleet will require considerable maintenance, and Canada will likely have to order more than the 18 fighter jets it was set to buy from Boeing to ensure performance reliability for future Royal Canadian Air Force combat missions, said Perry, who specializes in defense budgeting and procurement.

He explained that in 2000, the CF-18s underwent a major upgrade at a cost of over 1 billion Canadian dollars (about 778 million U.S. dollars) to keep the fighter jets flying until 2020. The Australian aircraft will also need to be modified for compliance with Canadian military operational standards.

"I can't think of another NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) ally buying used fighter aircraft," said Perry.

The United States and Britain are among the major members of NATO that have acquired new F-35 fighter jets from American aeronautics giant Lockheed Martin, which the previous Canadian government under Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper considered purchasing as well.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 16:11:42|Editor: Jiaxin

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MANILA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte formally requested the congress on Monday to extend martial law in the entire Mindanao until Dec. 31, 2018 to quell the threat of Islamist terrorism in the southern Philippine region.

In a letter addressed to Congress, Duterte said, "a further extension of the implementation of martial law and suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao will help (the government security forces) quell completely and put an end to the ongoing rebellion in Mindanao."

Duterte said placing Mindanao under martial law for another year will also prevent violent extremism from spreading to other parts of the country.

"Public safety indubitably requires such further extension, not only for the sake of security and public order, but more importantly to enable the government and the people of Mindanao to pursue the bigger task of rehabilitation and the promotion of a stable socioeconomic growth and development," Duterte said in the letter released on Monday.

Duterte said he based his decision on the recommendation of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, also the martial law administrator.

Citing the security assessment of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Lorenzana said extending martial law in Mindanao for another year will ensure total eradication of Islamic State-inspired Da'awaful Islamiyah Waliyatul Masriq (DAWM), other like-minded local and foreign terrorist groups and armed lawless groups, and the communist rebels and their coddlers, supporters, and financiers.

Moreover, Duterte said IS-linked militants "have been monitored" to conduct "radicalization" through active recruitment, financial and logistical buildup and consolidation in central Mindanao particularly in Maguindanao and North Cotabato provinces, and Sulu and Basilan, the remote island provinces off Mindanao and known hideout of militants.

He noted that other IS-inspired groups Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) are also planning to sow terror in the impoverished region.

Lorenzana and security officials are scheduled to brief the senators on Tuesday on the Duterte's request for further martial extension.

IS-linked militants "Maute group" attacked Marawi City on May 23, prompting Duterte to place the entire Mindanao under martial law for 60 days.

Before the declaration lapsed on July 22, Duterte requested the congress to extend its effectivity until Dec. 31, 2017.

The government finally gained control of the city in October. More than 1,200 people were killed in the battle to retake the city, reducing the city into rubbles.

The 1987 Constitution only allows the president to declare martial law for a maximum of 60 days. Any extension would require approval from Congress.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 16:21:46|Editor: Jiaxin

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Joshua Cawthra, a senior aviation investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), speaks to the media near Lake Harney, east of Sanford, Florida, the United States, Dec. 10, 2017. A U.S. investigator confirmed Sunday that the bodies of a local flight instructor and two Chinese trainees had been recovered after a plane crashed into a lake in the southern U.S. state of Florida Friday. (Xinhua/Hu Yousong)

SANFORD, the United States, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. investigator confirmed Sunday that the bodies of a local flight instructor and two Chinese trainees had been recovered after a plane crashed into a lake in the southern U.S. state of Florida Friday.

A Beechcraft King Air C-90 twin-engine plane crashed into Lake Harney, east just of Sanford, at about 11:15 a.m. Friday, said Joshua Cawthra, a senior aviation investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), at a press briefing Sunday afternoon.

Cawthra said all of the bodies of the victims aboard the plane had been recovered Saturday.

Investigators are in the process of recovering the wreckage of the crashed plane, which remains about 10 feet underwater, but the environment is not favorable.

"It's a fairly complex situation right now due to the underwater visibility," Cawthra said. "The divers that have been going under the water were reporting anywhere from five to eight inches of visibility."

"So with limited visibility, it hampers the ability to figure out where the rest of the airplane is," he said.

Search crews found the sunken plane Saturday, while using sonars to locate the rest of it. Cawthra said it's still unsure how to extract the plane, but suggesting using airbags.

The aircraft, if recovered, will be delivered to a secure facility in Jacksonville, over 200 km north of Lake Harney, said the investigator.

The pilot was identified as Kamalesh Naik, 56, of Sanford. His LinkedIn account lists his occupations as flight instructor and airline pilot. The two trainees were both identified as Chinese nationals in their 20s. They were students at an airline academy in Sanford.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the aircraft was on its way to Orlando-Sanford International Airport before it crashed.

Cawthra said the investigation hasn't found any evidence to support that "there was any distress calls or any mayday radio."

The NTSB investigators are expected to work with the FAA, as well as manufacturers of the plane and its engine. Cawthra revealed that a preliminary report on the crash will be released on the NTSB website in five business days.

In the wake of the accident, the flying academy that owned the plane extended their condolences in a statement to the family and friends of the victims of the tragedy, promising to "cooperate fully with the FAA and the NTSB in the ongoing investigation."

The Chinese Consulate General in Houston told Xinhua that it reached out to the academy as soon as they heard about the incident. Officials from the consulate said the academy has suspended all on-flight training lessons and provided psychological counseling to other Chinese trainees.

It also sent a team to Sanford to meet NTSB investigators Sunday over the crash.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 16:31:49|Editor: Lu Hui

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A Palestinian protester hurls a stone at Israeli soldiers during clashes after a protest against the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in the West Bank city of Nablus, on Dec. 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Nidal Eshtayeh)

BEIJING/CAIRO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. wayward decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital has brought further misery to the already troubled Middle East, causing rising tensions in the region and a growing rift between the United States and its European allies.

On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump broke decades of Washington policy by acknowledging Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and instructed relocating the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city, which has been a sensitive issue in peace talks and the main subject of disagreement between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators.

Trump's announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis. In less than a week, the declaration has triggered wide criticism and opposition from Arab and Muslim countries and upset Europe as well.

NEW VIOLENCE RIPPLING IN ALREADY UNSTABLE REGION

Trump's pronouncement Wednesday inflamed new violence and enraged conflict across the already uncertain region as the move upended decades of U.S. policy and a longstanding international consensus.

On Sunday, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard and seriously wounded him at the central bus station in the volatile city.

Palestinian youths also clashed in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, hurling stones at Israeli soldiers, who fired back with rubber bullets and tear gas.

In Beirut, Lebanese protesters held demonstrations on Sunday near the U.S. embassy, throwing rocks and burning tires, to denounce Trump's decision.

"We came here for a sit-in in front of the U.S. embassy to protest the decision taken by Trump. It is impossible to implement this decision as long as there are people like us," said a protester.

In the Moroccan capital Rabat, tens of thousands of protesters marched down the city's high street chanting slogans "The people want to liberate Palestine" and "Death to Israel, enemy of the people and provoker of wars."

MOUNTING ANGER, CRITICISM

Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital has sparked mounting anger and criticism in the Arab world.

Arab foreign ministers gathered in Cairo Saturday for an emergency meeting and demanded the United States abandon its decision on Jerusalem.

Echoing that view, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, warned that Trump's decision "could throw a lifebuoy to terrorist and armed groups, which have begun to lose ground" in the Middle East.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani slammed the move as "illegal" and would further destabilize the Middle East, holding Israel "responsible for all the insecurity and instability" in the region.

During a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday, Rouhani called on Islamic states to join hands in opposing the "dangerous" move.

Egypt's Foreign Ministry said such a unilateral decision violates the international legitimacy, adding that the decision will not change the legal status of Jerusalem as an occupied city.

EXPANDING RIFT BETWEEN U.S., EUROPE

A growing rift seems to emerge between Israel and the United States on one side, and Europe and the Palestinians on the other.

Ambassadors of European Union (EU) countries to the United Nations issued a joint declaration Friday to show disapproval of Trump's decision and to call for calm in the Middle East.

"It is a constant position of EU members that, within this framework, Jerusalem should ultimately be the capital of both Israeli and Palestinian states," reads the declaration by the ambassadors of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Sweden.

At a meeting in Paris with Israel's visiting prime minister, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed "disapproval" of Trump's decision, calling it "dangerous for peace."

Macron urged Israel to freeze its construction of settlements on occupied lands and called for other confidence-building measures toward the Palestinians.

Last week, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that Trump's decision "has the potential to send us backward to even darker times than the one we are already living in."

"The Federal Government does not support this attitude because the status of Jerusalem is to be negotiated within the framework of a two-state solution," spokesperson Steffen Seibert said on Twitter on behalf of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Turkey condemned the U.S. decision as "irresponsible," saying it bears the risk of completely destroying the ground for peace.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry called on the U.S. administration to reconsider this faulty decision and avoid harming the multicultural identity and historical status of Jerusalem.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 16:41:53|Editor: Jiaxin

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by Mahmoud Darwesh and Naima Misurati

TRIPOLI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Foreign workers in southern Libya left the country recently after security services failed to free four foreign workers kidnapped by an unknown armed group.

Unknown gunmen earlier in November kidnapped foreign engineers, three Turks and one German, working for the Turkish ENKA Teknik which is executing a power plant project in the southern city of Obari.

"Libya has returned to square one again, " said Abdul-Majid Hamza, chairman of the state-owned Libyan General Electricity Company.

"The problem of electricity in Libya depends on the return of foreign companies," Hamza said, adding that the company had "gone a long way to persuade the foreign companies to return. However, the kidnapping of the foreign workers in Obari power station forced the foreign companies to leave again."

Power blackouts in Libya is one of the major issues Libyans suffer. Hamza said that the issue was supposed to be solved permanently in July next year.

"Before reaching the goal, Libya is back to point zero," Hamza told Xinhua. "The Obari power plant would have added about 640 megawatts to the public network, and will be very effective in solving the electricity problem."

"The completion of the Obari power plant, which was supposed to be in July next year, would have solved the power crisis and benefit associated projects that need a stabilized power network. However, what happened at the station brought us back to square one," Hamza explained.

"The power plant would have provided 640 megawatts and would have satisfied the need of southern Libya for power. This means that power blackouts would never happen. The electricity problem in northern Libya would be addressed as well, as power allocated from Tripoli to the south would be saved," Hamza added.

"We are trying to renegotiate with them," Hamza said regarding measures authorities are taking to persuade foreign companies to return to Libya.

"Whoever is behind the kidnapping of the foreign workers aims to embarrass the government and prevent it from solving electricity problem, a major issue Libyans are suffering from."

Regarding the foreign abductees, Hamza said that no authentic information is available about their fate, their location, or the kidnappers.

"Public power network currently produces 5500 megawatts. During hours of high demand, we need 7000 megawatts, a production deficit of 1500 megawatts," Hamza explained.

"There is a project to connect a network with Algeria," he said. "There is cooperation from Algerians and they are ready to help, but there is a problem because there is no direct link with Algeria."

"There is a possibility of using the network with Tunisia because Tunisia has a direct link with Algeria. However, this would be for limited periods or capabilities an it will not meet the purpose for two reasons: we will use the networks of Tunisia's neighbors, and we will use only the surplus production of power so that it does not affect the network's total capacity and value."

"The country is in a crisis and the people must be aware of energy consumption, keep away from excessive consumption, and not operate electrical appliances that they do not use," Hamza said.

The Obari power plant is one of the largest power stations in Libya. The project is worth 600 million dinars.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a foreign ministry conference in Jerusalem, Dec. 7, 2017. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday lauded U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital as a "historic" move. (Xinhua/JINI)

PARIS, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- French President Emmanuel Macron told visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to give chance to peace process in the Middle East by taking "courageous gestures" toward Palestinians to end the deadlock.

"France remains convinced that the only solution ... is to allow the establishment of two states living side by side in peace and that this can emerge through negotiation," said Macron.

"I say to him (Netanyahu) to let a chance to peace, make a gesture toward the Palestinians. Peace does neither depend on the United States alone nor France. It depends on the ability of Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," he added.

In a joint press conference with the Israeli top official, the French President pointed to the necessity that Tel Aviv freezes settlements to send message of confidence to Palestinians in a bid to resume talks and "break the current stalemate."

Speaking about the U.S. initiative to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Macron reiterated that it was "contrary to international law and dangerous to peace."

"I disapprove (U.S. President Donald) Trump declaration as it is not in accordance with the international law. I decided not to be consistent with this perspective," he told reporters.

For his turn, Netanyahu said "Peace (talks) will progress if the Palestinians recognize the reality of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. "

"The most important thing about peace is first of all to recognize that the other side has a right to exist... If Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas wants peace, then he comes and sits down and negotiates with Israel," he added.

Brokered by the U.S., the last direct peace negotiations stopped in April 2014 as rival camps failed to come out with tangible results due to differences on major issues like settlement, security, borders and the recognition of a Palestinian state.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:12:03|Editor: Jiaxin

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SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- A man from Southern California on the U.S. west coast, who was suspected of kidnapping a nine-year-old girl in 1995, was arrested, police said Sunday.

Local TV KPIX 5 quoted the police as saying that the girl was originally held for ransom, but the kidnappers abandoned their plan when they learnt her wealthy parents were out of the country at the time.

The 68-year-old man, identified as Kevin Lin, was a member of the kidnappers who regularly targeted children for ransom.

The girl was later found safe and unharmed at a hotel near the San Francisco International Airport.

Police said Lin is now being detained in a jail in San Mateo County, about 30 km south of San Francisco, and he is being held on bail for 5 million U.S. dollars.

The TV report said the police made the arrest following information provided by the U.S. Department of State.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:12:05|Editor: Jiaxin

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NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 people have been injured in a bus accident in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh Monday, police said.

"The accident occurred when a bus in which the victims were travelling fell off a bridge over Jamni river in Tikamgarh area of the state this morning," a police official said.

All the injured have been admitted to a nearby government hospital, where the condition of four are said to be critical, he said.

The bus, carrying some 30 people, including a driver and a conductor, was heading to Jhansi district from Tikamgarh when the incident took place.

Eye-witnesses told cops the accident occurred as the driver of the bus lost control of the vehicle which was travelling at high speed.

"A probe has been ordered into the incident. We will arrest the driver once he is out of hospital," the official added.

India has the highest number of road fatalities in the world. Road accidents occur mostly due to poor driving or badly maintained roads and vehicles.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:27:11|Editor: Jiaxin

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LOS ANGELES, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The out-of-control Thomas Fire in Southern California had scorched 230,000 acres (930 square km) by Sunday evening, making it the fifth largest wildfire in modern history of the Golden State.

The blaze, started nearly a week ago near Santa Paula in Ventura County, 110 km northwest of downtown Los Angeles, has spread northward to Santa Barbara County during last weekend due to strong winds.

According to the Ventura County Fire Department, the fire grew by more than 50,000 acres (about 202 square km) on Sunday, triggering new evacuation orders for about 5,000 residents in Santa Barbara County. Meanwhile an additional 30,000 residents were told to prepare to evacuate.

The fire department also warned residents that strong Santa Ana winds, which have been fueling the Southern California wildfires from Santa Barbara to San Diego, will remain through Sunday and gusts are expected to blow at 30-50 miles per hour (50-85 km per hour).

Nearly all of California's 1,000 fire departments will be involved alongside 8,500 firefighters on the front-lines, Ken Pimlott, director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), said at the press conference on Saturday.

He also disclosed that over 700 firefighters from 10 western states, from Alaska to New Mexico, were also on the front-lines of the fire in Southern California.

The Thomas Fire, which is the largest one of the six wildfires raging along the Pacific seashore, is currently threatening structures near Carpinteria of Santa Barbara County, approximately 20 miles (34 km) south of the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB).

The UCSB decided Sunday to cancel the final-exams-week in response to the fire. However, the campus remains open.

"We are encouraging all students who wish to leave campus to do so," Chancellor Henry Yang wrote in an email to students Sunday afternoon. "Some faculty have already made alternative arrangements instead of the previously scheduled exam, and these arrangements remain in effect."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:42:17|Editor: Jiaxin

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BAGHDAD, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr Monday decided to dissolve his loyal militia group and turn it into a civilian organization after they deliver their weapons and bases to the government forces.

Sadr's militia of Saraya al-Salam, or Peace Companies, will deliver the weapons that the militia received from the government during the battles against Islamic State (IS) group to the government and will block the militia's offices across Iraq except for that in the holly Shiite city of Samarra, some 120 km north of Baghdad, Sadr said in a televised speech.

He also said that his militiamen will withdraw from the areas that they freed from IS within 45 days.

Sadr called on the government not to allow the paramilitary Hashd Shaabi and their leaders in the coming general elections.

"Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has to prosecute the corrupt people from all parties and to work on comprehensive reforms to the state." Sadr added.

Saraya al-Salam is a militia linked to the Iraqi Shiite community and are a revival of the previously known as "Mahdi Army" militia affiliated with the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Sadr sent the Saraya al-Salam militiamen to the city of Kirkuk after the Iraqi forces took control of the oil-rich province of Kirkuk, which is part of the disputed areas claimed by both Baghdad and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:42:18|Editor: Jiaxin

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XI'AN, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A conference on Confucius Institutes will be held from Tuesday to Wednesday in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Over 2,000 delegates, including university presidents, scholars and educational officers, will attend the annual event.

Yu Tianqi, an official of the institute headquarters, said the conference would focus on improved management of the institutes, as well as developing creativity in courses and cultural programs.

There are 525 Confucius Institutes and over 1,113 related courses in 146 countries and regions around the world. In 2017, they had a total of 2.32 million students, and over 12.7 million people attended cultural events organized by the institutes.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:42:18|Editor: Jiaxin

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RAMALLAH, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian president's spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeinah said Monday that the coming period is very critical for Palestinians and will require bold decisions.

"What is required now is bold Palestinian and Arab decisions for the coming stage, which is very important and very critical. The Palestinians and the Arabs should stand together," reported the official Palestinian news agency (WAFA).

WAFA published Abu Rudeinah's statements from Cairo where Abbas is expected to hold a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi in Cairo to discuss the latest developments and the agenda of the upcoming Islamic summit, which will be held in Turkey Wednesday, based on an emergency request by Turkey.

The summit is expected to discuss the implications of the U.S. decision on Jerusalem and Abbas is expected to address the summit.

Earlier this week, Abbas held talks with Jordanian monarch King Abdullah II to discuss the latest developments in the wake of U.S. president's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:57:24|Editor: Jiaxin

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NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A group of French tourists, accompanied by their Indian friends, were roughed up and assaulted allegedly by locals in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, officials said Monday.

The group was attacked on Sunday evening in Mirzapur district, about 285 km southeast of Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh.

"The tourists were on a visit to a waterfall here when some people misbehaved with them," a police official at Mirzapur said. "When the tourists were wrapping up their visit, a couple of young men passed lewd remarks at the women in the group and later on few others joined them and attacked them."

Reports said one of the tourists was injured in the fight.

Police have detained eight people in this regard.

Local media reports said initially police tried to shirk responsibility and kept the group waiting for hours when it approached them for registration of complaint.

Tourism Minister KJ Alphons has called the incident deplorable and called for more sensitivity towards foreign nationals.

The attack came days after a German national and a Swiss couple were attacked in Sonbhadra and Fatehpur Sikri of the state.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 17:57:25|Editor: Jiaxin

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NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit (AICS) began in the Indian capital Monday with the theme of Powering Digital and Physical Linkages for Asia in the 21st Century.

The two-day meeting is being attended by senior ministers from India and ASEAN countries, according to the Indian External Affairs Ministry.

India is being represented at the summit by Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, Communications Minister Manoj Sinha and junior Foreign Minister V.K. Singh.

From ASEAN, Vietnam's Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Phan Tam and Cambodia's Secretary of State at Ministry of Public Works and Transport Tauch Chankosal are taking part in the meeting.

"AICS aims to accelerate existing connectivity prospects, identify issues of concern, evolve suitable policy recommendations and develop strategies to enhance economic, industrial and trade relations between ASEAN and India," the Indian External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 18:27:36|Editor: Lifang

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U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy addresses a news conference after the House passed tax cut plan on the Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. Nov. 16, 2017. The U.S. House on Thursday approved its version of tax cut plan in an along-party-line vote and delivered a major legislative achievement. (Xinhua/Ting Shen)

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The pending tax-cut legislation in the U.S. Congress is possibly the biggest tax overhaul in three decades, and has raised concern in China among economists and entrepreneurs over its potential impact.

Though the immediate impact of the tax overhaul on China is perceived to be quite limited, people are being cautious nonetheless.

One thing is clear. The U.S.tax cuts will not affect China's agenda to lower corporate costs, open its market wider and continue fiscal reform.

WHAT IS IT?

The U.S. Senate on Dec. 2 passed the Republican bill on a party-line vote whose main feature was a drastic tax cut for corporations -- reducing tax rates from 35 percent to 20, the lowest level in three decades.

Personal income tax will be reduced, the tax system simplified and a one-time tax levied at a lower rate on American companies transferring overseas assets.

The House of Representatives passed its own version of tax reform legislation last month, containing significant differences from the Senate version. Congressional Republicans are now working on an agreement on the final tax legislation before Christmas.

Critics have blasted the tax bill, as the biggest beneficiaries will be the wealthiest individuals and corporations, with average earners seeing their taxes lowered initially, but increasing over the next few years.

"The tax bill is tilted heavily toward wealthy individuals and corporations, so it is not likely to help the middle class that much," Darrell West, a senior fellow at the Washington-based think tank Brookings Institution, told Xinhua.

THE IMPACT

Some economists have warned that a more attractive corporate environment in the U.S. may pose challenges to China's competitive position, at a time when its labor costs are rising.

"[There are] no worries for more enterprises choosing to start business in U.S., as many more factors, including comprehensive cost, other than the tax rate shape the overall U.S. business environment," said Zhou Yuan, managing director of Boston Consulting Group.

The legislation will give U.S. companies a tax cut on repatriating deferred profits held overseas and make dividends received from companies overseas exempt from tax, sparking concern of capital outflow.

"Combined with the effect of lower corporate tax, we believe it will encourage overseas U.S. firms to send back their profit. It may even produce a wave of profit repatriation," said Prof. Zhu Qing with the School of Finance at Renmin University of China.

But analysts noted that the impact would be limited as China's efforts in lowering corporate cost and creating a fair business environment will attract more foreign businesses.

China has rolled out a slew of measures to ease or lift foreign investment restrictions in its financial markets. In its latest move, foreign businesses will be allowed to own up to 51 percent of shares in joint ventures in securities, funds or futures, with the cap phased out over three years.

WHAT TO DO

Zhu Guangyao, vice-minister of finance, said at a forum that China would "take proactive measures" in response to the U.S. tax reform.

"The external impact of tax policy change in the world's largest economy cannot be overlooked," Zhu said.

Zhu said China should set policies based on coordination with other countries to boost labor productivity and help people become better off.

According to Liu Shangxi, head of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences, China should continue to carry out its VAT reform in response to the U.S. tax bill.

"One of our current priorities is to deepen VAT reform that targets a more market-oriented scheme for resource allocation and build a fair investment environment for enterprises," Liu said.

As the most significant tax overhaul for two decades, VAT is replacing the business tax, which has been in place for 60 years, streamlining procedures and avoiding repetitive taxes.

It was first piloted in Shanghai in 2012 and expanded nationwide in May 2016. The reform has made solid progress and saved 1.7 trillion yuan (about 257 billion U.S. dollars) of taxes for businesses.

"China should further streamline VAT brackets to encourage fair market competition, which in a sense reduces taxes for many enterprises," Liu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 18:42:42|Editor: Jiaxin

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and the European Union (EU)'s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini attend a press briefing prior to the meeting with EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Belgium, Dec. 11, 2017. Federica Mogherini on Monday reiterated that the bloc backs a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Jerusalem as the capital of both parties along 1967 lines. (Xinhua/EU)

BRUSSELS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua)-- The European Union (EU)'s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Monday reiterated that the bloc backs a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Jerusalem as the capital of both parties along 1967 lines.

Speaking to the press before a meeting with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Modherini said it is in Israel's interest to find a sustainable and comprehensive solution to the chronic conflict.

The EU's top diplomat also condemned "in the strongest way" attacks on Jews "everywhere in the world" in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's controversial decision to acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel earlier this month.

Standing alongside Mogherini, Netanyahu stressed that Jerusalem has been Jews' capital for 3,000 years.

He hailed Trump as "putting the fact squarely on the table," adding that "peace is based on recognizing the reality."

"Jerusalem is Israel's capital, no one can deny," the prime minister said.

Netanyahu made the diplomatic foray to Brussels after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday, amid international uproar following Trump's decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The U.S. leader also instructed relocating the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city

At a joint press conference with Macro, Netanyahu insisted that "Peace (talks) will progress if the Palestinians recognize the reality of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel."

Mogherini expressed "serious concern" over Trump's announcement regarding Jerusalem and termed the move a "gift" to extremists and to those not interested in peace.

In the past few days, protests and demonstrations have been held in the Palestinian territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip as well as in many other cities in the Middle East and elsewhere.

Israel has controlled the western part of Jerusalem since its inception in 1948. It seized control of East Jerusalem in 1967 and declared the city as its eternal capital in 1980.

Palestinians see eastern Jerusalem as the future capital of their state.

Jerusalem is home to holy sites to Islam, Judaism and Christianity, making it a focal point for many people around the globe.

The status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. So far, the international community does not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and no foreign countries base their embassies in the city.
File photo shows people carry a wounded person on a stretcher at the Madina hospital in Mogadishu, capital of Somalia, Oct. 29, 2017. (Xinhua/Faisal Isse)

MOGADISHU, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least 2,078 civilians were killed and 2,507 injured in Somalia's armed conflict, mainly involving Al-Shabaab terror group, from January 2016 to Oct. 14, 2017, said a joint UN report released on Sunday.

The report by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) said 60 percent of the deaths and injuries were attributed to Al-Shabaab militants, 13 percent to clan militias, 11 percent to state actors, including the army and the police, 4 percent to the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), and 12 percent to unidentified attackers.

Michael Keating, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Somalia, said all parties to the conflict are not doing enough to shield civilians from violence in the Horn of African nation.

"Civilians are paying the price for failure to resolve Somalia's conflicts through political means," said Keating.

The report revealed a significant number of recorded civilian casualties -- 251 killed and 343 injured -- was attributed to clan militias, in areas where federal or state security forces are largely absent.

"The drought has intensified clan conflict due to competition over resources. These conflicts are exploited by anti-government elements to further destabilize areas, diminish prospects for lasting peace and weaken civilian protection," the report stated.

The UN said armed conflict is damaging infrastructure and livelihoods, displacing millions of people, and impeding access to humanitarian relief for communities in need.

The report titled, "Protection of Civilians: Building the Foundation for Peace, Security and Human Rights in Somalia," said the conflict has disproportionately affected children.

According to the UN, 3,335 cases of child recruitment were reported in the first ten months of 2017, with 71.5 percent attributed to Al-Shabaab, 14.6 percent to clan militia, and 7.4 percent to the Somali National Army.

According to the report, the worst incident on a single day was the twin bomb blasts in Mogadishu on Oct. 14, attributed to Al-Shabaab by the Somali government, in which at least 512 people are officially recorded to have died.

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said such casualties are of utmost concern as they undermine the Somali population's trust in the government and the international community, which in turn expands the space for the operation of anti-government elements.

The report recommended that all unlawful armed groups and militia be disbanded.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 18:57:49|Editor: ZD

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua)-- Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano will pay an official visit to China from Dec. 17 to 19 at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

During the visit, the two foreign ministers will hold talks to exchange opinions on bilateral ties and issues of common concern, and attend the eighth joint meeting of the China-Italy Government Committee, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said Monday.

"We believe that Alfano's visit will deepen our traditional friendship, help align the two countries' development strategies under the Belt and Road Initiative, promote pragmatic cooperation across the board, and boost bilateral ties," Lu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 19:12:59|Editor: Jiaxin

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TOKYO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated his view on Monday that he wished to develop a "future-oriented" relationship with South Korea to better contend with current and future issues that may arise in the geopolitically sensitive area.

While taking into the decades-old "comfort women" issue, Abe said difficult issues should not negatively affect the two countries' overall ties.

"We would like to develop future-oriented relations so that the difficult problems between the two countries will not have a negative impact on overall Japan-South Korean ties," Abe said in a message passed on to a group of Japanese and South Korean parliamentarians in Tokyo, by Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasutoshi Nishimura.

In relation to an contentious issue between both sides, Fukushiro Nukaga, who heads the nonpartisan Japanese parliamentary group, highlighted a 2015 deal struck over the "comfort women" issue.

He said that Japanese lawmakers "will support the victims to restore their honor and dignity."

Under a landmark deal reached two years ago, both countries agreed that the "comfort women" issue that had led to strained ties between the two neighbors would be "finally and irreversibly" resolved.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who took office in May, and his administration, however, have said that they are revisiting the process under which the accord was made under the previous government, noting that the pact does not reflect the will of the majority of South Koreans.

The "comfort women" issue involved soldiers from the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, coercing and, in some instances, kidnapping girls and women and forcing them to work as sex slaves at military brothels during the war.

Many of the women forced into the sex trade by the Japanese aggressors came from the Korean Peninsular and China, although thousands of women were also trafficked from many other parts of Asia.

Euphemistically, these sex slaves have come to be known collectively as "comfort women."

Statues erected to pay honor to these "comfort women" such as the one installed outside the Japanese consulate in South Korea's Busan in January, draw the ire of the Japanese government, the right-wing forces of which have been trying ardently to whitewash its wartime atrocities.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 19:28:04|Editor: Jiaxin

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NAKURU, Kenya, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Wildlife conservancies have in recent times fuelled economic growth in rural Kenya, the head of a conservancies' umbrella body said on Monday.

Dickson Kaelo, the CEO of the Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA), said the 160 conservancies spread across 28 counties now benefit more than 700,000 households through schools, health centres and water projects they support.

"Today, conservancies provide employment to 4,800 Kenyans," Kaelo told Xinhua.

"Over 2,900 conservancy rangers support our KWS rangers in monitoring wildlife and combating illegal wildlife crime. This has doubled the number of eyes and ears of our wildlife law enforcement," he added.

The association lobbying for growth of conservancies in Kenya last week launched a report providing data and information on operations of conservancies in the country and their achievements in the past 30 years.

The Status of Conservancies Report (2016), makes available information needed to better understand the increasingly important role of wildlife conservancies in Kenya, said Kaleo.

He stressed that the stability of conservancies was crucial to attaining a 17 percent threshold of terrestrial landscape under conservation management by 2020 from the current 11 percent.

Under the Aichi Biodiversity targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity to which Kenya is a signatory, member countries are mandated to meet the 17 percent threshold serving as a mechanism for continued protection and preservation of sustainable ecosystems.

He noted that conservancies have rapidly become a destination of choice for tourists visiting the East African nation.

"Over 140 tourism eco-lodges in conservancies have added 2,400 beds to destination Kenya. Trip advisor confirms that the iconic eco-camps are some of the most preferred upcoming destinations," he said.

However, he said change of land use, recurrent drought and demand to produce food threatens the existence of wildlife that mainly attracts the tourists.

While conservancies seek to engage communities in conservation of wildlife, numerous challenges are hurdling the process, according to Kaelo.

He identified low management capacity, inadequate funding and lack of compensation to offset costs associated with wildlife damages, injuries or death as among the obstacles.

"Difficulty of generating benefits comparable to other incentivized land uses is also a challenge to community's participation in wildlife conservation," he added.

To better engage them, he said, incentives such as trainings, community mobilization, legal registration and creation of effective governance structures were necessary.

Also, establishing benefit sharing mechanisms and appropriate livelihood enhancement and conservation programs would be effective in fostering productive involvement of communities in wildlife conservation activities.

During the launch of the report, Judi Wakhungu, Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Natural Resources, said wildlife conservancies represent a key opportunity for not only securing wildlife on community lands but also for protecting wildlife dispersal areas and corridors.

"The Kenya's Conservancy model is gaining global recognition for impacting communities and protecting biodiversity without use of unsustainable exploitation of wildlife," she said.

Based on the report, human wildlife conflict is a major threat to wildlife conservation and conservancies since wildlife species causing conflict are attacked and killed by affected persons.

Between 2011 and 2015, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) recorded an average annual increase of 86 percent of human wildlife conflicts according to the report on status of conservancies in Kenya.

"The conflicts continue to increase on lands outside most protected areas (KWS) with high incidences reported in the Taita Taveta/Tsavo; the Mara (Transmara and Narok); the Amboseli and Laikipia/Samburu/Maralal region," says the report.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:08:16|Editor: Lifang

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COLOMBO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka on Monday received the second consignment of 1,000 tons of rice from China, to be distributed to the drought struck victims in the island country.

At the request of the Sri Lankan government, China has agreed to donate 2,752 tons of rice for humanitarian emergency relief. The first consignment of 1,000 tons of rice arrived in Sri Lanka in November while the second consignment arrived on Monday.

Officials said the third and final consignment with the remaining 752 tone would reach Colombo before the end of December.

The consignment was accepted by officials at the Disaster Management Ministry in Colombo.

Speaking at the handover ceremony, Disaster Management Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, said Sri Lanka had this year experienced the worst drought in recent years with over 1 million people affected in 11 districts.

Most of the lands affected were agricultural lands which could not continue to be used for agricultural purposes now.

He said China had been prompt in helping Sri Lanka and this donation further strengthened the strong friendship between the two countries.

Sri Lanka has been suffering one of its worst droughts in 40 years due to a delay in monsoonal rains.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:18:19|Editor: Jiaxin

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ANKARA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish economy recorded 11.1 percent year-on-year growth in the third quarter of 2017, hitting highest quarterly growth since 2011, official data showed on Monday.

According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), it is the fastest quarter growth rate in six years since the first quarter of 2011 when 11.4 percent growth was recorded.

Turkey's economy grew 5.2 percent in the first quarter and 5.1 percent in the second quarter.

The growth above forecasts are attributed to domestic demand as well as accelerated investment support by the government and strong contributions from exports, local experts said.

All main sectors increased in the third quarter. The agricultural sector expanded by 2.8 percent, the manufacturing industry by 14.8 percent, the construction sector by 18.7 percent, and the services sector by 20.7 percent, TurkStat added.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Monday that economic indicators currently signal a higher than 6.5 percent annual growth.

Simsek said the economy had grown 7.4 percent in the first nine months of the year. He predicted that this growth trend would continue in the coming years.

The Development Minister Lutfi Elvan said annual growth was expected to hit 7 percent this year.

The Turkish lira strengthened after the official data was published on Monday.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:18:20|Editor: Lifang

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HANGZHOU, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Jack Ma Foundation on Monday announced a new plan to invest at least 300 million yuan (45 million U.S. dollars) to encourage graduates of normal schools to teach in rural areas in the next 10 years.

The first 10 million yuan will be invested in selecting 100 fresh graduates from normal schools in Hunan, Sichuan, Chongqing and Jilin provinces. Each participant will be provided with a 100,000-yuan subsidy for service of five years on end in rural schools

"Rural education will only get better only if we have the best graduates as rural teachers," said Jack Ma, founder and chairman of China's e-commerce giant Alibaba Group.

Ma, who was an English teacher for seven years in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, says he has always valued education, calling himself the "spokesman for rural teachers," on Weibo, China's top microblogging site. Ma's foundation has already initiated two rural education-related programs.

Ma says he believes there are opportunities ahead both for China's rural education and graduates of normal schools.

"Normal school graduates will have the chances to create history by joining in the building of rural China," he said.

The vast majority of Chinese rural students are desperate for quality education. China has about 3.3 million rural teachers, but it barely meets demand in rural areas.

According to a report on rural education by Northeast Normal University in December 2016, more than 70 percent of primary schools and education centers in China were in rural areas, and over 26 million rural students at the nine-year compulsory education stage were boarders.

To encourage more teachers to join rural education, China issued a plan in 2015 to offer subsidies and allowances for such teachers. By the end of 2015, the central budget had provided over 1 million rural teachers in poor areas with additional living allowances totaling 7.37 billion yuan.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:18:21|Editor: Lifang

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and China should improve their working relationship and cooperate more on African humanitarian issues, Patricia Danzi, ICRC regional director for Africa, said in Beijing Monday.

Danzi said China and the ICRC have begun to interact with each other more closely in the past couple of years. Representatives from the ICRC met with Chinese peacekeepers in South Sudan in September this year and the organization is considering providing training for the peacekeepers.

"We trained a Chinese peacekeeping medical detachment to Mali in August 2016. During the training we reminded the troops of their obligations under humanitarian law and what humanitarian assistance and protection should be provided. The next step is probably South Sudan," said Danzi.

The ICRC is increasing interaction with Chinese businesses. Its purchases from China rose from 7 million U.S. dollars in 2013 to 20 million U.S. dollars in 2016, an ICRC official said at the Canton Fair in October.

Chinese companies are also providing jobs and skills training for young Africans, said Danzi.

She said she sees China as a big actor on the world stage and expects more cooperation between the ICRC and China in the future.

"Many Chinese companies have good knowledge about many countries in Africa from a business perspective; while the ICRC has good knowledge from a humanitarian perspective. So we can benefit from each other and have a better understanding of the overall context," she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:28:26|Editor: Jiaxin

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PARIS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A total of 89 French companies pledged to invest 320 billion euros (about 376.44 billion U.S. dollars) over the next three years to stem greenhouse emission as part of their commitment for clean businesses, the country's employers organization Medef announced on Monday.

"These 89 companies mark a new stage. Other companies have already expressed willingness to join them to innovate and generate low carbon products, solutions and services," Medef said.

"With this new commitment of French companies, the private sector shows that the challenge of the ecological transition has moved to the stage of financing and concrete implementation," it added.

French enterprises, including French car giant PSA, telecommunications company Orange, nuclear group Areva, will invest billions of euros over the 2016-2020 period in "research, development and innovation to move to a low carbon society," according to the organization.

France's private sector initiative comes as Paris on Tuesday prepares to host the "One Planet Summit", an international meeting seeking to re-launch the fight against global warming, notably by focusing on ways to finance the international commitment to fight climate change as agreed in the Paris climate accord.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:33:29|Editor: Lifang

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday condemned an attack on UN peacekeeping forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) leaving 15 Tanzanian UN peacekeepers and five more DRC soldiers dead.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang made the remarks at a daily press briefing. He mourned the victims and expressed condolences to their families.

The attack last Thursday by suspected Allied Democratic Forces rebels took place in North Kivu province in the eastern part of the DRC. It was the worst attack on a peacekeeping mission in nearly 25 years, and 53 other peacekeepers were also wounded.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed "outrage and utter heartbreak" after the attack, urging DRC authorities to swiftly investigate.

"China is willing to continue to work with the international community, to play a positive role in peacefully solving the DRC issue and maintaining peace and stability of Africa," Lu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:38:31|Editor: Lifang

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SHANGHAI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Scholars attending a key forum in Shanghai have discussed new branches of China studies, as academic interest in the country grows.

The 7th Forum on China Studies themed "China In a New Era" was held in Shanghai Sunday and Monday.

The forum is dedicated to reflecting upon global challenges while fostering informed understanding between China and the rest of the world. This year's event drew 180 scholars from over 30 countries and regions.

The forum addressed innovation, the Belt and Road Initiative, Global Governance and "a community with a shared future for mankind."

Wu Li, deputy director of the Institute of Contemporary Studies, said he had a great deal of discussion with other attendees.

"I wrote an article on the needs and challenges of China building an innovation-oriented country, and many other scholars have also expounded on the topic. There is a great deal of interest in the path China has undertaken," he said.

The Belt and Road Initiative was one of the most common ideas to appear in papers submitted to the forum.

"China's massive infrastructure development and financing under the initiative are taking place in the midst of cultural diversity, sprawling trans-border geographical locations and a rich historical perspective," said Tan Khee Giap of the National University of Singapore.

In his paper, he explained the opportunities, challenges and implications of the initiative.

Global governance, a concept much in the thoughts of Chinese leaders, was also discussed at the forum.

"China's positive contribution to international governance gives hope that the new challenges globalization is confronted with will find ways for eventual amelioration and resolution," said Hasan Javed Syed from the National University of Science and Technology of Pakistan.

"China could help solve problems such as widespread double standards in international relations, injustice, civilization conflicts, political disputes, environment degradation, and climate change challenges," he said.

"Chinese ideas and experience of economic globalization, non-politicization, reform and opening-up can be highly relevant in reforming the world order," said Zhang Weiwei, a professor at Fudan University.

Founded in 2004, the Forum on China studies has convened 10 times.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:38:32|Editor: ZD

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MOSCOW, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Making a surprise visit to the Hmeymim military airbase in Syria on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the order for a "significant" pullback of Russian troops from the war-hit country, the Kremlin said in a press release.

"In the past two years, the Russian Armed Forces and the Syrian army defeated the most lethal group of international terrorists. Therefore, I made a decision: a significant part of the Russian military contingent in Syria is returning home to Russia," Putin said at the airfield, where he was met by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Thanking Russian servicemen who took part in the anti-terrorist operations in Syria, where the Russian Air Force task group has been deployed since the end of September 2015, he said, "We will never forget about the sacrifices and losses during the fight against terror, both here in Syria and in Russia."

The Russian troops will return home to relatives, parents, wives, children and friends with a victory, he added.

However, Russia will keep its two military bases in Syria, the Hmeymim airbase and the Tartus naval base.

"If terrorists raise their heads again, we will deal them such blows they have not yet seen," he said.

After the brief halt in Syria, Putin landed in Egypt to discuss with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stability and security in the Middle East and North Africa.

Putin's Syria visit comes a few weeks after Assad's surprise trip to Russia's Black Sea resort Sochi. There Putin told Assad that joint military operations against terrorists in Syria were coming to an end, and the focus would shift to a political process, according to the Kremlin.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:38:33|Editor: Jiaxin

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DHAKA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh's anti-crime elite force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) have arrested five members of a banned militant outfit in the country's Habiganj district, along with huge books and leaflets that incite extremism.

A RAB spokesperson on Monday confirmed the arrest in Habiganj district, 163 km northeast of capital Dhakaon late Sunday night. The militants were active members of the banned Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).

According to the spokesman, the arrestees planned to create an untoward situation on the occasion of Bangladesh's Victory Day which falls on Dec. 16.

JMB carried out a series of bombings in 63 out of the country's 64 districts, including capital Dhaka on Aug. 17, 2005, leaving two people dead and 150 others injured.

Hundreds of JMB leaders and activists were rounded up while six top leaders of the group, including Shaikh Abdur Rahman, were hanged in 2007.

Against the backdrop of a new wave of militancy rising, Bangladesh stepped up drive aimed at dismantling all terrorist outfits and their networks in the country.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:53:36|Editor: Jiaxin

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JUBA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Members of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Monday began their fourth field mission to South Sudan, Uganda and Ethiopia.

The UNMISS said two commissioners taking part in the mission, Yasmin Sooka and Andrew Clapham, will be in South Sudan for six days, where they will meet with senior government officials, members of civil society, religious leaders and diplomats.

During their stay in Juba, which lasts through Dec. 16, the two will also meet with representatives of UN agencies.

"They will conduct visits to camps for internally displaced persons across the country, including UNMISS Protection of Civilian (PoC) sites, to meet the people living there, community leaders and civil society organizations," the mission said.

It said the commissioners will then visit Uganda and Ethiopia, where they will visit refugee camps and settlements along the South Sudanese border.

The will meet with leaders of the African Union , the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), senior UN officials, as well as other members of the international community and opposition groups in Addis Ababa.

The UNMISS is an independent body mandated by the UN Human Rights Council. It will present its next report to the Human Rights Council in March 2018.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:53:37|Editor: Jiaxin

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SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Two bank guards deployed with cash van of a local bank were killed Monday after a militant attack in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said.

The vehicle was attacked in village Kralcham-Kellar of Shopian district, 52 km south of Srinagar city, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.

"Two bank guards were today killed when militants opened indiscriminate fire on their vehicle in Kellar," a police official said.

Though the guards were immediately rushed to district hospital Shopian, however, the doctors there declared them brought dead.

Following the attack, government forces launched a search operation in the area to track down the assailants.

It was not immediately known if militants have looted cash from the vehicle or snatched service rifles of the bank guards.

"We are ascertaining the details of the attack," the police official said. In May this year, five policemen and two security guards of bank were killed in a similar attack in neighboring Kulgam.

This year there have been several instances of gunmen looting banks in the region.

Earlier in the day, three militants and a civilian woman were killed in a fierce gunfight in the region.

A guerilla war is going on between militants and Indian troops stationed in Indian-controlled Kashmir since 1989. The gunfight between the two sides takes place intermittently across the region.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 20:58:40|Editor: Jiaxin

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DAMASCUS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Syria on Monday, the presidential media office reported.

For the first time since the beginning of the Syrian conflict over six years ago, Putin visited the Russian-run Hmeimim Air Base in Syria's coastal city of Latakia.

Putin met there with Assad and inspected the Russian forces there, according to the report.

During his visit, Putin ordered his defense minister to prepare for withdrawing the Russian forces, according to the report.

He added that "if the terrorists raised their heads again, we will deal them a blow they haven't seen before."

However, the Russians will keep their presence in the Hmeimim Air Base in Latakia and the naval base they have for long controlled in the nearby coastal city of Tartus.

It's also not clear when the Russian forces will completely withdraw amid reports by local media outlets that large portion of the forces will leave, but not all of them.

Meanwhile, Putin also informed Assad that he will discuss the Syrian settlement with the presidents of Turkey and Egypt during his upcoming visit to their respective countries.

For his part, Assad thanked Putin for his forces' contribution in fighting terrorism in Syria, stressing that the sacrifices of the Russian soldiers will not be forgotten.

The Russian forces entered Syria in 2015 to shore up the forces of Assad in their fight against the rebels.

The backing of the Russian forces and air power enabled the Syrian army to retrieve key areas across the country, such as rebel-held areas in Aleppo, the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria as well as the eastern city of Deir al-Zour from the Islamic State.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:18:49|Editor: Lifang

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese central government has allocated 5.7 billion yuan (about 865.6 million U.S. dollars) in relief funds to help people in disaster-hit regions get through the winter.

The fund will help solve difficulties caused by disasters, including food shortages and inadequate clothing and heating, during winter and spring, according to a statement from the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

County-level authorities must make sure the money reaches those in need within 15 working days of receiving the funds, said the statement.

The ministry also requires complete transparency in distribution and enhanced supervision.

In October alone, natural disasters such as floods, typhoons and extreme cold weather affected over 17 million people in China.

More than 13,000 houses were destroyed and another 53,000 were damaged to varying degrees.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:28:52|Editor: Jiaxin

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NAIROBI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya needs to spend 1 billion U.S. dollars annually to achieve universal health coverage, a government official said on Monday.

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Health Julius Korir told Xinhua in Nairobi that so far the government is only able to afford 120 million dollars annually to cater for the elderly, low-income households, and citizens with disabilities.

"The rest of the funding to achieve universal health care will come from households that can afford to pay for social health insurances," Korir said during the 31st graduation ceremony at the Amref International Training Center, where 560 health professionals graduated.

The east African nation has set an ambitious target of achieving universal healthcare by the year 2022, well ahead of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals target of 2030.

Korir said government allocation to social health services will gradually decrease as the economy expands and household incomes improve.

He noted that Kenya will expand health access to all citizens through the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), which has over 6 million members.

The population of Kenya was estimated at 48.46 million in 2016, according to the World Bank.

Most members of the NHIF make a monthly contribution of about 5 dollars in order access health services.

Korir said that in order to achieve universal health care, the government will rely on community health workers.

"Our ultimate goal is to hire 100,000 community health workers who will encourage households to enroll as members of NHIF," he added.

The ministry of health also intends to rely on technologies such as mobile applications in order to achieve universal health care, Korir said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:33:55|Editor: Lifang

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HONG KONG, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Health authority of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) issued a warning on Monday about a sharp increase in scarlet fever cases.

The Center for Health Protection said it has issued a warning to parents and schools about a sharp increase in the cases of scarlet fever, a bacterial infection which mainly affects children.

Latest data shows the number of scarlet fever cases rose to 94 last week, almost double the number from the week before. The number of cases reported so far this year is also 50 percent more from a year ago.

Although the center said most of those infected suffered mild illness, Hong Kong Medical Association Vice President Alvin Chan said he was worried that the number of patients with more serious complications would increase.

He was quoted by local radio RTHK as saying that schools should adopt more stringent hygiene and antiseptic controls in light of the situation.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:48:58|Editor: Lifang

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BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A China-style major-country diplomacy has taken shape over the past five years through the overseas trips by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The 29 visits to 58 countries and major international and regional organizations across the five continents have helped win Xi the title of "chief diplomat" of China.

The trips have enhanced a leadership role for China in global peace, security, governance and development, and promoted a better understanding worldwide of a Chinese vision and approach that includes win-win cooperation and efforts towards building a community with a shared future for mankind.

WIN-WIN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Xi's first foreign trip since he became Chinese president was to Moscow in March 2013, where he debuted his diplomatic approach.

"To keep up with the times, we cannot have ourselves physically living in the 21st century, but with a mindset belonging to the past, stalled in the old days of colonialism, and constrained by zero-sum Cold War mentality," Xi told an audience at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, while calling for building a new type of international relations with win-win cooperation at the core.

Xi's six visits to Russia and more than 20 meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin on various occasions have lifted China-Russia ties to their best in history. The two countries together serve as an anchor for global peace and security.

"I believe that the model of bilateral relations that we have created should become one of the examples of civilized interaction between countries in the 21st century," Chairman of the Russian State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin said.

The principles Xi put forward of non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation have helped stabilize China-U.S. relations over White House leadership changes and consequent uncertainties.

Xi's exchanges with U.S. President Donald Trump led to the establishment of new high-level dialogue mechanisms between China and the United States in a bid to promote global peace and security.

China-Europe relations have expanded with each of Xi's tours to the continent. China seeks a partnership with the European Union based on peace, growth, reform and mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation. China's excellent relationship with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have largely eased Europeans' worries about China.

During the past five years, half of Xi's overseas visits were dedicated to promoting ties with China's neighbors, including the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation mechanism, the updated version of the China-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Free Trade Area, and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor, among others.

Meanwhile, cooperation with developing countries in Africa and Latin America has grown, with China's involvement in a number of infrastructure and development projects.

STRENGTHENING MULTILATERALISM

Xi's proposal to build a community with a shared future for mankind is a central pillar of multilateralism. The proposal shines light on China's diplomatic efforts over the past five years concerning individual states and regional and international organizations.

From the UN General Assembly, the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders meetings, to the Group of 20 (G20) forum and the BRICS summit which embraces Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, Xi has reaffirmed China's commitment to economic globalization, UN-led multilateralism and global peace.

Globalization is falsely blamed for a sluggish global economy, high unemployment, a rise in trade protectionism, populism and isolationism, terrorism, the refugee crisis in Europe and the Middle East and the widening gap between rich and poor.

"In the face of both opportunities and challenges of economic globalization, the right thing to do is to seize every opportunity, jointly meet challenges and chart the right course for economic globalization," Xi said in a keynote WEF speech in January.

He listed an innovation-driven growth, open and win-win cooperation, fairer governance as well as balanced and inclusive development as the way forward for the global economy. Multilateralism is the solution for global problems, and China has been a strong pillar of it.

Building a community with a shared future for mankind is embodied in the Belt and Road Initiative Xi proposed in 2013, which is aimed at building trade and infrastructure networks in countries along and beyond the ancient Silk Road trade routes.

Moreover, the initiative's projects involving new railways, roads, and industrial zones in Asia and Africa are aligned with the development strategies of many countries and are being hashed out with the United Nations 2030 sustainable development goals in mind. The Belt and Road Initiative is perhaps the greatest gift China has ever offered to the world.

"In an increasingly interdependent and integrated world where countries form a community of shared interests, openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation are the only viable option," Xi said at the Dialogue of Emerging Market and Developing Countries during the BRICS summit held in September in Xiamen, China.

"Multilateralism is the solution for the global problems, and China has been a strong pillar of multilateralism," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. His predecessor Ban Ki-moon has called China "an indispensable partner for the UN's agenda."

China's continued support for the Paris climate change accord after the U.S. withdrawal and its significant contributions to UN peacekeeping missions are also among its efforts to make the world a better place.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:54:01|Editor: Jiaxin

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LUSAKA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Zambian President Edgar Lungu on Monday called for the involvement of young people in the fight against HIV/AIDS as the disease presented a threat to the country's future development.

Speaking during the commemoration of the World AIDS Day which was pushed to December 11 in Lusaka, the country's capital, the Zambian leader attributed the rise in new HIV infection among young people to low intake of prevention interventions such as testing services, poor adherence to treatment as well as alcohol and substance abuse.

While commending efforts made in reaching older generations in HIV prevention, the Zambian leader said only half of the young population has been reached.

He has since directed the Ministry of Health to embark on "Know Your Status" program for children and young people in order to raise awareness on the disease.

The Zambian leader added that the commemoration, which was held under the local theme "Eliminating HIV By 2030 Starts With Me" presents an opportunity for everyone person to be involved in the fight by knowing their HIV status.

According to him, the theme was a reminder not to leave anyone behind in the fight against the disease.

The government, he said, has since constituted a multi-diverse HIV/AIDS Coalition, which will oversee the national agenda on HIV/AIDS.

The Zambian leader commended efforts made so far in fighting the disease although he said more still needed to be done.

Zambia is one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa with high HIV prevalent rate, with figures showing that 1.2 million people were living with HIV as of December last year, with 900,000 of them on anti-retroviral therapy.

During the event, Lungu honored the country's founding President Kenneth Kaunda with a life-time achievement award over his work in the crusade against HIV/AIDS.

Lungu said Kaunda has been active in the fight against HIV/AIDS since 1986 when he publicly announced that one of his sons had died of AIDS.

He also played a vital role in the HIV/AIDS fight since retiring from active politics through his Kenneth Kaunda Children of Africa Foundation organization.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 21:59:06|Editor: Jiaxin

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LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Though with nearly three weeks left still for 2017 to come to an end, it has already been marked as one of the worst years in California's history in terms of wildfires.

Cal Fire, the firefighting agency of the Golden State, reported that more than 6,700 fires had burnt down over 500,000 acres (2,023 square km)from the beginning of the year to Dec. 3.

In addition, the past week saw another 230,000 acres (931 square km)scorched by the still-out-of-control fire in southern California, surpassing the state's five-year average of burnt land area, which is 200,000 acres (809 square km) per year.

Governor Jerry Brown on Saturday called the constant threat of wildfire a "new normal" for California, blaming climate change.

The extreme weather patterns in California, such as high temperatures and droughts, create a lethally ideal conditions for wildfire breakouts.

"Wildfires can strike anywhere in the state," Cal Fire deputy chief Scott McLean told the Post. "It's not 'if,' it's basically 'when.' And it' s not gonna stop."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:04:08|Editor: Jiaxin

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LUSAKA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The number of asylum seekers at a transit center in Nchelenge district in Zambia's Luapula Province has now passed the 10,000 mark, the UN refugee agency said on Monday.

Kenani transit center has been keeping some DRC nationals fleeing unrest from their country on a temporary basis since August this year when it was established.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Zambia office said the transit center now has some 10,065 DRC nationals.

"We passed the 10,000 mark on Saturday, and more Congolese refugees are coming from Chiengi," UNHCR Representative in Zambia Pierrrine Aylara said in a statement.

The district authorities have since agreed to expand the transit center, with the newly allocated space able to accommodate an additional 1,000 families or 5,000 individuals while efforts were underway to open a new permanent refugee settlement in the coming weeks, she added.

UNHCR was working with other partners to relocate the asylum seekers to a permanent place, she said, noting that funding might hamper timely relocation.

According to her, additional funds were required by humanitarian and development partners to repair a main access road and inner roads within the refugee settlement while other funds were required to set up basic infrastructure such as health, water and sanitation and primary education facilities.

Some 13,924 Congolese have crossed into Zambia since the beginning of 2017 through various entry points, with some relocated to refugee camps in the western part of the country.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:19:14|Editor: Lifang

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KAMPALA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- In the central business district of the Ugandan capital Kampala, a group of young Chinese are setting up a training center for local youths to work in the oil and gas sector.

Li Yu, business manager of Sunmaker Energy (Uganda) Ltd, told Xinhua in a recent interview that there are vast opportunities in the sector, including personnel training and provision of human resource services.

"Uganda is in strong need of technologies and experienced people to this (oil production). We spotted an opportunity," Li said.

Li and his colleagues are setting up a 4.53 million U.S. dollars training facility that provides training for Ugandan youths to work in oil production. Construction is scheduled to be completed in February next year.

In the initial year, the center is expected to train about 1,600 students before scaling up to about 11,000 students annually, according to the company's plan.

Jerry Bo Ma, General Manager at Sunmaker Energy (Uganda) Ltd, told Xinhua that after qualification, the students will be given internationally recognized certificates that will enable them to work in the oil industry.

The students will be skilled in welding, drilling, scaffolding, plumbing, driving, carpentry and masonry in a country where the government targets 2020 as the year when Uganda will begin oil and gas production.

The startup company has already received good will from the Ugandan government.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, while meeting the Sunmaker Uganda Ltd founding partners last month, promised that the government would offer them land near the oil wells in the western part of the country for the second phase of the training facility.

During the meeting, Museveni also promised that the government would waive all taxes related to constructing and running the training center.

Ma expressed hope that in future Sunmaker Energy will serve as a bridge that furthers the cooperation between Uganda and China in the oil sector.

Uganda has so far discovered over 1.5 billion barrels of commercially viable oil. Some of the oil will be refined in the oil fields while the crude will be transported to the Tanzanian seaport of Tanga, according to Uganda government plans.

Last month, Uganda and Tanzania launched the construction of the crude oil pipeline that will carry 216,000 barrels of oil for export per day. The pipeline is expected to be completed in 2020.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:29:17|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, meets a delegation led by Yok Mu-ming, chairman of Taiwan's New Party, in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese top political advisor Yu Zhengsheng said Monday the mainland will uphold "peaceful reunification" and the "one country, two systems" principle.

Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, made the remarks when meeting a delegation led by Yok Mu-ming, chairman of Taiwan's New Party.

"Resolving the Taiwan issue to achieve reunification is the shared aspiration of all Chinese and the fundamental interest of the Chinese nation," said Yu, vowing the utmost sincerity and greatest efforts toward peaceful reunification.

The 1992 Consensus that embodies the one-China principle is key to ensuring cross-Strait peaceful development, Yu said, adding that history has proved and will further prove that "Taiwan independence" is a dead end.

Yu said the mainland will deepen cooperation across the Strait, share mainland opportunities with Taiwan compatriots, and provide them with the same treatment as mainlanders in studying, creating businesses, working and living.

Hailing the New Party's stance of opposing "Taiwan independence," Yu said the mainland will communicate with Taiwan-based parties, groups and individuals that uphold the one-China principle and oppose "Taiwan independence" to jointly promote peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and strive for the national reunification and rejuvenation.

Yok said that the New Party will continue to adhere to the one-China principle and oppose "Taiwan independence" to further boost cross-Strait communication and cooperation in all fields.

During another meeting, Zhang Zhijun, head of the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said that "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces and activities are the biggest realistic threats to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

People on both sides of the Strait should stay on high alert and resolutely curb such activities, Zhang said.

The CPC and the New Party agreed to improve the communication mechanism and discuss major problems to build consensus.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:44:21|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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by Alex Osei-Boateng

ACCRA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has warned of an outbreak of swine flu, or H1N1, in the country, local media reported on Monday.

The alert followed confirmed H1N1 cases at a high school that killed 13 people in the past seven months.

More than 40 students have so far been known to be affected at the Kumasi Academy Senior High School in the Ashanti Region.

The H1N1 virus is a sub-type of influenza A virus that was the most common cause of human influenza infection in the 2009 global pandemic. The disease is spread mainly via droplets, but all respiratory secretions and body fluids, including diarrhea stools, of infected patients, are considered to be potentially infectious.

It has an incubation period of one to four days and has a high virulence if not diagnosed and treated on time.

The swine flu was last recorded in Ghana in 2009.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:54:27|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ACCRA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Unidentified gunmen opened fire in a market, killing four people and injuring 10 others late Sunday in the northern Ghana town of Nanjon, police confirmed on Monday.

Spokesperson for the Northern Regional Police Command, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mohammed Yussif Tanko told Xinhua on Monday that the regional command received information around 7:00 p.m. local time on Sunday that about eight gunmen who had arrived in Nanjon on motorbikes opened fire on people in the market.

"We quickly deployed security in the place to assure the people of their safety and the place has remained calm since last night," the police spokesman added.

According to him, two persons died instantly while two more died at the hospital in Binji, near Nanjon. Meanwhile, the injured are receiving treatment at the Baptist Medical Center at Nalerigu.

He said investigation was underway to unravel the motive behind the shooting incident, adding that Nanjon had hitherto not been known for any such incident.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:59:28|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TOKYO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A sightseeing bus carrying 26 Chinese tourists had an accident in Hokkaido, northern Japan on Monday and some of the tourists sustained light injuries, China's consulate general in Sapporo confirmed.

The injured tourists have returned to hotel after receiving treatments in hospital, according to the consulate general.

Local media reported earlier that a sightseeing bus carrying 28 people including the driver and a guide, had an accident around 6:20 p.m. local time in Hakodate city, Hokkaido.

The bus, 3.7 meters high, collided with a fly-over crossing 3 meters high, according to the Kyodo News.

The consulate general has not been informed of the cause of the accident yet and will keep in close touch with local police.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-11 22:59:30|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BERLIN, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Germany's largest shoe manufacturer Birkenstock has terminated its contract with U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon, the mass-market daily Bild reported on Sunday.

The newspaper cited an internal source as saying that Birkenstock had "decided to cease direct delivery to Amazon in Europe entirely by the 1st of January 2018".

The company was reacting to "continued trade mark infringements" as suppliers of fake Birkenstock shoes continued to be listed on Amazon's platform, according to the report.

"The world's largest online retailer is not making what we would deem to be sufficient efforts to preserve a relationship of trust and protect our customers from being misled," a Birkenstock statement said on Monday, cited by Bild.

Birkenstock executives said in contrast to Amazon, other e-commerce firms which sell their shoes had successfully prevented trademark infringements.

In 2016, Birkenstock had cancelled its contract with the U.S. branch of Amazon out of concerns that its brand was not being adequately protected against an "abundance of fake products". In turn, Amazon attempted to evade the boycott by shoring up its supply from other U.S. wholesalers.

However, a ruling by the European Court of Justice on Dec. 6 confirmed the right of producers of luxury products to forbid trading partners to sell produce via third party platforms, such as Amazon, to protect a firm's image of exclusivity.

Amazon refused to comment on its "relationships with business partners", but insisted that it "did not tolerate any fake products".

Birkenstock was established in 1774 and has been owned by the same family for six generations. The Neustadt/Wied-based firm employs 3,500 staff and sells around 25 million pairs of shoes per year.
Cars are seen in the snow on Westminster Bridge in central London, Britain on Dec. 10, 2017. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

LONDON, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Severe frost, rains and icy roads after heavy snowfall have caused major travel disruption across large parts of Britain on Monday.

On the "Black Ice Monday", called by local media, so far a quarter of flights at Heathrow have been cancelled and the Port of Calais has been closed as bad weather continues.

Flights were suspended at airports including Birmingham and Stansted, while other airports advised customers to check with airlines and leave extra time for journey.

The bad weather and hazardous road condition also forced hundreds of schools to close on Monday.

Highway England issued advice for drivers to check forecasts before they travel and to prepare "warm clothing, food, drink ... and a torch".

As temperatures fell to -12 degrees Celsius in some rural areas overnight, the Met Office has issued a yellow warning for ice across parts of central England and Wales

According to power suppliers, more than 140,000 homes lost power on Sunday amid heavy snow and high winds, and several thousand remain cut off on Monday.

The Met Office said the snow and ice would continue to hit parts of the UK till Tuesday.

An amber warning of snow came into force at 4 a.m. (UTC) on Sunday, affecting Wales, the Midlands and parts of northern and eastern England.
| 2017-12-12 05:04:15|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ATHENS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua)-- Two of five Colombian nationals suspected of stealing expensive medical equipment from four Greek state hospitals last May and June have been arrested in Germany and Colombia on the basis of international arrest warrants, Greek police announced on Monday.

Within a week endoscopes and other medical instruments and supplies worth about 500,000 euros (589,000 U.S. dollars) were stolen by the gastroenterology departments of state hospitals in Athens and the cities of Volos, Larissa and Lamia in central Greece.

The perpetrators had acted in the same pattern. The cross- borders investigation led to the traces of a Colombian gang.

During a regular press briefing held in Athens on Monday, Greek Police Major General Christos Papazafiris, chief of the Regional Police Directorate of Attica Prefecture, said that a 50-year-old man believed to have carried out the break-ins was arrested in the Colombian capital of Bogota.

While a 25-year-old woman, who was the recipient of parcels containing stolen medical equipment, was arrested in Frankfurt, Papazafiris said.

Greece will seek their extradition, while the search continues to locate and arrest the remaining three suspects who are still at large and have been identified by Greek police in cooperation with European and international police authorities, Papazafiris said.

Based on the investigation conducted by Greek police in collaboration with police forces abroad, it is believed that the same ring also stole medical equipment from Luxembourg, Spain, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Croatia and Lithuania.

Authorities believe that the instruments are used to facilitate the trafficking and recovery of ingested drugs being smuggled across borders by Colombian drug cartels.

Four endoscopes stolen from Greek hospitals were recovered by police in Bogota.
| 2017-12-12 05:07:52|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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QINGDAO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Xiamen Airlines, a subsidiary of China Southern Airlines, launched a direct service from Qingdao in east China's Shandong Province to Los Angeles on Monday.

This is the first non-stop service linking the two cities and Xiamen Airlines' ninth intercontinental air route.

A 287-seat Boeing 787 will operate three round trip flights a week. The flights take about 11 hours 30 minutes each way.

The new service, in addition to an earlier route linking Qingdao with San Francisco, is expected to help boost trade and cultural exchanges between Shandong Province and the United States, the company said.
| 2017-12-12 05:08:52|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BRUSSELS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Council of the European Union on Monday adopted a decision establishing the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), with 25 participating EU member states.

PESCO is an instrument in the EU treaty to enable willing member states to pursue greater cooperation in defense and security.

This framework allows EU member states to jointly develop defense capabilities, invest in shared projects, or enhance the operational readiness and contribution of their armed forces.

In November, defense ministers of 23 EU member states signed a joint notification on PESCO and handed it over to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini. Britain, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland and Malta have yet to decide whether to join the pact.

According to a statement released by the Council of the EU Monday, Ireland and Portugal also notified their decision to join PESCO last week.

The Council decision sets out an initial list of 17 projects to be undertaken under PESCO.

The European Commission welcomed the decision adopted by the Council formally establishing PESCO and the plans to establish 17 projects on defense by 25 countries.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said: "I welcome the steps taken today by member states to lay the foundations of a European Defense Union. Europe cannot and should not outsource our security and defense."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:06:42|Editor: Yamei

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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (1st L, Rear) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin (2nd L, Rear) view a military parade in the Russian-run Hmeimim Air Base in the coastal city of Latakia, Syria, on Dec. 11, 2017. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Syria on Monday, the presidential media office reported. During Putin's visit, he ordered his defense minister to prepare for withdrawing the Russian forces, according to the report. (Xinhua/Syrian Presidency)

MOSCOW, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Russia will pull most of its troops out of Syria after claiming a victory against the Islamic State (IS) but will maintain an airbase and a naval base in the war-torn country, President Vladimir Putin announced Monday.

During a surprise visit to the Hmeymim military airfield in Syria, Putin gave the order for a "significant" pullback of Russian troops, saying in the past two years, the Russian armed forces and the Syrian army have defeated the most lethal group of international terrorists.

Thanking Russian servicemen who took part in the anti-terrorist operations in Syria, where the Russian air force task group has been deployed since the end of September 2015, he said, "We will never forget about the sacrifices and losses during the fight against terror, both here in Syria and in Russia."

The Russian troops will return home to relatives, parents, wives, children and friends with a victory, he added.

However, Russia will keep two military bases in Syria, the Hmeymim airbase and the Tartus naval base.

"If terrorists raise their heads again, we will deal them such blows they have not yet seen," Putin said.

In January, Syria signed a deal with Russia, allowing the latter to use the Hmeymim airbase in the coastal province of Latakia for at least 49 years.

Russian warplanes stationed in the airbase flew numerous sorties in the past two years, destroying IS arms depots, equipment and personnel. They also provided air cover for Russian long-range strategic bombers during intensive airstrikes in recent weeks.

The Tartus port in northwestern Syria, established in 1977, is currently Russia's sole support facility in the Mediterranean.

Also in a January deal, Syria allowed Russia to keep its naval facility in Tartus for at least 49 years and agreed to expand and overhaul the maintenance infrastructure there.

The deal allows Russia to deploy up to 11 warships, including nuclear-powered combat vessels, in the Tartus base.

Russia started to participate in the anti-terrorist operations in Syria in September 2015 and began gradually reducing its military presence after brokering a nationwide truce among the warring factions in the Middle East country at the end of 2016.

In a symbolic move, Moscow withdrew its sole aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov in January, leaving air forces to back Syrian government troops.

Last month, Putin told visiting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that Russian military operations in Syria were coming to an end, and the focus would shift to a political process.

A day after the surprise meeting with Assad, Putin hosted a summit with his Turkish and Iranian counterparts and they agreed to start a political process to end the six-year civil war in Syria.

The three countries are preparing for a Syrian National Dialogue Congress. Seven rounds of Syrian talks have already been held in the Kazakh capital of Astana, a parallel process to the Geneva negotiations sponsored by the United Nations.

Putin is currently on a Middle East tour to coordinate positions with Syria, Egypt and Turkey.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 00:50:50|Editor: Yang Yi

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) addresses a press conference after the 15th trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of China, Russia and India with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov (L) and Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi, India, on Dec. 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Zhang Naijie)

NEW DELHI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday that China, Russia and India should play active roles in the changing global structure and work towards a world with stablization and certainty.

Wang made the remarks during the 15th trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of the three countries.

He said the tripartite cooperation mechanism between China, Russia and India follows the trend of a multi-polar world and democratic international relations, serving the overal interests of the three countries, the region and the world at large.

The tripartite cooperation has shown tremendous vitality and great potential in the past 15 years, thanks to the joint efforts from the three sides, Wang said.

The world is going through rapid development, major transformation and adjustment, with growing uncertainties, Wang noted. In this regard, China, Russia and India, as three fast developing emerging market countries, should play active roles amid a changing global structure, he said.

The tripartite cooperation should focus on strategic communication and coordination and speak in one voice on major international and regional issues which would help push for a fair and equitable international order, as well as safeguard the legitimate interests of emerging market countries and all the developing countries, he said.

The three countries should support the United Nations (UN) in playing a key role in global affairs, stick to solving hot and thorny issues through political means, and push for democratic international relations under the rule of law, said the Chinese top diplomat.

The three sides should also join hands to boost the unity, mutual trust and development of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and work towards the second golden decade of BRICS cooperation, he added.

Wang said China, Russia and India should act as responsible powers and play an important leadership role in jointly building an open world economy, pressing forward the realization of rebalance of globalization, advancing reform of global economic governance, maintaining multilateral trading system, pushing forward implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and devoting to forging interconnection in Eurasia.

Meanwhile, the three countries should also conduct pragmatic cooperation in the sectors including anti-terror, drug control and people to people exchange.

Both Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said in the current complex and volatile international situation, the three countries should further enhance their cooperation and coordination in regional conflict, economic development, anti-terror, climate change and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, among others, within the framework of multilateral mechanisms such as the UN, the Group of Twenty, the BRICS, the SCO so as to press for the establishment of an international order that is fairer and more democratic.

They also said the open and transparent cooperation among the three countries which does not target any third party is conducive to safeguarding the common interests of both the emerging market countries and the developing countries and promoting world peace and development.

China, Russia and India issued a joint communique after the meeting of their foreign ministers.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 01:47:51|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RABAT, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Inspector General of Morocco's Royal Armed Forces (FAR) Fathallah El Ouarrak and the Chief of Staff of the French Navy Christophe Prazuck discussed on Monday the means to reinforce bilateral military cooperation.

During their talks, the two parties focused on the outcome of military cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries, FAR general staff said in a statement.

The two sides hailed the positive military cooperation between the two countries and discussed the means to further enhance interoperability between the two countries' armed forces, the statement added.

Cooperation between the Royal Navy and the French Navy is multidimensional and includes training, a partnership on diving activities and mine warfare, the statement said.

Military cooperation between the two countries includes mutual support, training, joint exercises, exchange of information and visits, as well as other partnership projects, it said.

Their bilateral cooperation is governed by a framework agreement on technical military cooperation, signed in Paris in October 1994, and an agreement on the status of the two armed forces, which was inked in Rabat in May 2005.

The two countries hold Joint Military Commission meeting every year, alternately in Rabat and Paris.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 01:48:03|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ISLAMABAD, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani law enforcement agencies on Monday arrested at least six terrorists in connection with a terrorist attack that killed 11 people at a hostel inside the Agricultural Training Institute in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar earlier this month, local Urdu media reported.

At least 37 others were also injured in the attack on Dec. 1. The banned militants group Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed the attack. Both Pakistani police and military officials said the attackers had been coordinating with handlers based in Afghanistan.

Suicide jackets and explosive material were recovered from the possession of the arrested terrorists, the Dawn News quoted official sources as saying, adding that the main culprit behind the attack remains at large and efforts are underway to apprehend him.

The militants were arrested from the adjoining areas of Charsadda and Mohmand Agency in the province. They have been shifted to a police station and are being interrogated, according to the reports.

The day after the attack, at least nine suspects were nabbed during a pre-dawn search operation carried out by the security forces on the outskirts of Peshawar and different kinds of weapons were seized from the suspects.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 02:25:39|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BUDAPEST, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A new trial started Monday in Veszprem over Hungary's worst ecological accident, the 2010 red mud spill, with the first defendant, the former CEO of the MAL alumina plant declaring he was innocent of all criminal liability.

Zoltan Bakonyi, the former CEO, expressed his condolences to the victims of the case. "If we could have done anything to prevent the tragedy, we would have done it," he said.

Although a court of Gyor is conducting the trial, the hearings are taking place in Veszprem, closer to where the accident happened.

In addition to declaring himself not guilty in any way of the charges against him, Bakonyi said the earlier legal procedure in the Veszprem tribunal had been "complete and detailed."

"Some elements of the charges became obsolete as they had already been denied by experts, such as the accusation of the lack of information to the public, or the charge of hazardous waste treatment," he said.

In January 2016, the first level court of Veszprem acquitted Bakonyi, along with 14 employees.

Last February, a court in Gyor ordered a new trial of 15 employees of the MAL alumina plant. The verdict of the first level trial has been annulled because of procedural deficiencies.

Prosecutors argued that the original verdict was marred by procedural irregularities, and that the red mud spill could have been avoided if the firm's management had intervened without delay.

Following a trial of more than three years, 15 employees were cleared of negligence and causing damage to the environment. The verdict had fueled lots of criticism both from the victims, and even from the Hungarian government.

The lower municipal court of Veszprem had found that the main reason for the event was a loss of stability in the deeper layers of the soil, and the management of the firm could not have prevented the accident from happening.

The court found that the original designs were mainly at fault, along with the negligence of authorities that carried out controls and supervision for years.

The red mud spill happened in Ajka, western Hungary on Oct. 4, 2010, when the wall of a reservoir burst, releasing some 1.1 million cubic meters of poisonous sludge into the rural area.

The accident claimed the lives of 10 people, while 150 others were injured, mostly due to chemical burns. The sludge spread throughout several smaller rivers, and reached the Danube as well.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 02:25:40|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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JUBA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The number of people killed in clashes between rival Dinka tribe clans in central South Sudan has risen to 60, a local official said on Monday.

"The fighting stopped on Friday but the number of dead is around 60," Western Lakes Minister of Information Shadrack Bol told Xinhua. "There is now calm in the area and no more confrontation."

Earlier reports put the toll of the clashes, which started on Dec. 6, between the Rup and Pakam clans, at 45.

The fighting was ignited by the Rup clan, which attacked the Pakam tribesmen who they blame for displacing them from their land located in Malek County, Bol said.

This came after another recent bout of deadly clashes in northern Jonglei State between the pastoral Dinka and Murle tribe that left 69 people dead and scores injured.

South Sudan descended into violence in December 2013 after political dispute between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy turned rebel chief Riek Machar led to split within the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), leaving soldiers to fight alongside ethnic lines.

A 2015 peace agreement to end the conflict was weakened after renewed fighting in July 2016 forced the rebel leader to flee the capital.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 02:25:51|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAIRO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Arab Parliament called on Monday for an urgent Arab summit to discuss ways to defy the recent U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The parliament decided to assign delegations representing the Arab Parliament to visit the African and European parliaments to hold meetings and demand for international rejection to the U.S. decision.

It further stressed the Arab and Islamic solidarity with the Palestinians via coordinating efforts between the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab Parliament to enhance recognition of the Palestinian state and its full membership in the United Nations.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he acknowledged Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and decided to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Trump's declaration received widespread criticism and opposition from Arab and Muslim countries.

Jerusalem lies at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.

Israel took over East Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 war and declared the whole city as its eternal indivisible capital in 1980, a move never recognized by the international community.

The Palestinians insist that they should establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital in the final settlement.

Under the previous Israeli-Palestinian peace accord, the status of Jerusalem should be determined through the final-status talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Attendees pose for group photos after signing a pact on joint defense cooperation at the headquarters of the European Council in Brussels, Belgium, Nov. 13, 2017. (Xinhua/European Union)

BRUSSELS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Council of the European Union on Monday adopted a decision establishing the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), with 25 participating EU member states.

PESCO is an instrument in the EU treaty to enable willing member states to pursue greater cooperation in defense and security.

This framework allows EU member states to jointly develop defense capabilities, invest in shared projects, or enhance the operational readiness and contribution of their armed forces.

In November, defense ministers of 23 EU member states signed a joint notification on PESCO and handed it over to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini. Britain, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland and Malta have yet to decide whether to join the pact.

According to a statement released by the Council of the EU Monday, Ireland and Portugal also notified their decision to join PESCO last week.

The Council decision sets out an initial list of 17 projects to be undertaken under PESCO.

The European Commission welcomed the decision adopted by the Council formally establishing PESCO and the plans to establish 17 projects on defense by 25 countries.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said: "I welcome the steps taken today by member states to lay the foundations of a European Defense Union. Europe cannot and should not outsource our security and defense."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 03:45:39|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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GABORONE, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Botswana President Seretse Khama Ian Khama has commended the country's accomplishments in the fight against corruption.

Speaking on Monday in Gaborone, the capital of Botswana, Khama said the attainments include high prosecution rates and continuous anti-corruption awareness and prevention programs.

He said Botswana has made great strides in combating corruption, which has resulted in international agency rating the country among the least corrupt nations in the world.

The president said the establishment of oversight institutions had contributed greatly to the attainments made in the fight against corruption.

According to Khama, bribery continued to be the most common corruption offence in Botswana, but over the years, the trend has been shifting towards more complicated and complex offences.

"In recent times, corruption hotspots include illicit land dealings, procurement of supplies with collusion between officers and bidders, the education sector where tertiary institutions received tuition for students who were no longer enrolled, deceased or purported to have failed, and of course there are concerns over fraudulent acquisition of drivers licenses," he said.

Jacinta Barrins, resident representative for United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Botswana, said during the event that huge amounts of money were paid on bribery every year.

She noted that corruption has negative impact on provision of social services, socio-economic development and creation of employment around the world.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 03:46:02|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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SKOPJE, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Macedonian government has decided to increase the defense budget by 15 percent, Macedonian defense minister Radmila Sekerinska told reporters Monday while presenting military budget for 2018.

The defense budget for 2018 is estimated at a total of 6.4 billion denars (123.3 million U.S. dollars).

"By boosting the budget for the military, we are yet again affirming our dedication to meeting our strategic goal -- NATO accession," said Sekerinska.

The minister explained that one of the main priorities of the 2018 budget would be focused on raising the salaries of the entire military structure by 9 percent.

"About 3.7 billion denars (around 71.3 million U.S. dollars) are planned for salaries and compensations, including pay increase in the entire military," Sekerinska told reporters.

The other part of the budget is expected to be used for goods and services, in order to meet some elementary needs of the army, such as uniforms, boots, spare parts to maintain military equipment, the minister explained.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 03:46:13|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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KIEV, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Ukrainian and Dutch law enforcement chiefs met here on Monday to discuss the cooperation between the two countries on the investigation of the MH17 crash, the Ukrainian Prosecutor's General Office said in a statement.

The meeting was attended by Ukraine's Prosecutor General Yury Lutsenko, his Dutch counterpart Fred Westerbeke, the head of Dutch police national investigation division Wilbert Paulissen and the head of the Ukraine's State Security Service Vasyl Grytsak, the statement said.

During the talks, the officials have exchanged their views on the interim results of the investigation and pledged to continue coordinating their cooperation within the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to bring the perpetrators of the crash to justice.

The Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 crashed in the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014, while flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. All 298 people on board died, including 196 Dutch citizens.

In Aug. 2014, authorities from the Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, Ukraine, and Malaysia have set up a JIT to conduct a criminal investigation into the crash.

A report published by the JIT in September 2016 concluded that the plane was shot down by a Russian-made Buk missile fired from a region in eastern Ukraine, controlled by independence-seeking insurgents.

Moscow and the rebel leadership in east Ukraine have denied the allegations, saying that the plane was shot by a missile from the territory controlled by Ukrainian government troops.

In December 2016, JIT said that it has identified about 100 people, who are linked to the crash.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 03:46:24|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The world economy is expected to remain stable in 2018 and 2019 after an impressive growth rate of 3 percent in 2017, said a UN world economic prospects report launched on Monday at UN Headquarters in New York.

The growth in 2017 is the strongest performance of the world economy since 2011. Global growth is expected to remain steady at 3 percent in 2018 and 2019, said the UN World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018 report.

The improvement is widespread, with roughly two-thirds of countries worldwide experiencing stronger growth in 2017 than in the previous year.

The recent pickup in global growth stems predominantly from firmer growth in several developed economies, although East and South Asia remain the world most dynamic regions. In 2017, East and South Asia accounted for nearly half of global growth, with China alone contributing about one-third, according to the report.

The end of recession in Argentina, Brazil, Nigeria and Russia also contributed to global economic upturn between 2016 and 2017, which has been supported by a rebound in world trade and an improvement in investment conditions.

The challenge is to channel this into a sustained acceleration in productive investment to support medium-term prospects, said the report.

The improved global economic situation provides an opportunity for countries to focus policy toward longer-term issues such as addressing climate change, tackling existing inequalities and removing institutional obstacles to development, it said.

"The World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018 demonstrates that current macroeconomic conditions offer policy-makers greater scope to address some of the deep-rooted issues that continue to hamper progress toward the (2030) Sustainable Development Goals," said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the Foreword of the report.

Launching the report, UN Undersecretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Liu Zhenmin noted: "While the upturn in global growth is a welcome sign of a healthier economy, it is important to remember that this may come at an environmental cost. This calls for stronger efforts to delink economic growth and environmental degradation."

Despite the improved short-term outlook, the global economy continues to face risks, including changes in trade policy, a sudden deterioration in global financial conditions and rising geopolitical tensions, said the report.

The world economy also faces longer-term challenges. The report highlighted four areas where the improved macroeconomic situation opens the way for policy to address these challenges: increasing economic diversification, reducing inequality, supporting long-term investment and tackling institutional deficiencies.

The report said that reorienting policy to address these challenges can generate stronger investment and productivity, higher job creation and more sustainable medium-term economic growth.

It also noted that the recent improvements in economic conditions have been unevenly distributed across countries and regions. Negligible growth in per capita income is expected in several parts of Africa, Western Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean in 2017-2019.

The impacted regions combined are home to 275 million people living in extreme poverty, underscoring the urgent need to foster an environment that will both accelerate medium-term growth prospects and tackle poverty through policies that address inequalities in income and opportunity, said the report.

It found that very few least developed countries are expected to reach the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal target for GDP growth of at least 7 percent in the near term.

Advances toward sustainable development in this group of countries continue to be hindered by institutional deficiencies, inadequate basic infrastructure, high levels of exposure to natural disasters, as well as challenges to security and political instability.

In addition to mobilizing the financial resources to meet the investment needs in these countries, policies must also focus on conflict prevention and removing barriers that continue to hinder more rapid progress, said the report.

Preliminary estimates suggest that the level of global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions increased in 2017 after remaining flat for three consecutive years. The frequency of weather-related shocks continues to increase, also highlighting the urgent need to build resilience against climate change and prioritize environmental protection, it said.

Many developing economies and economies in transition remain vulnerable to spikes in risk aversion, sudden capital withdrawal and an abrupt tightening of global liquidity conditions, while rising debt poses global financial challenges, said the report.

The World Economic Situation and Prospects report is produced annually by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs in collaboration with the UN Conference on Trade and Development, the five UN regional commissions and the World Tourism Organisation.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 03:46:35|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ASTANA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The eighth round of Russia-led international negotiations on the political settlement of the Syrian conflict will be held on Dec. 21-22 in the Kazakh capital of Astana, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said Monday.

"During the upcoming talks, the participants plan to adopt a provision on a working group on the release of detainees, the transfer of bodies and the search for the missing," the ministry said in an online statement.

The agenda also includes discussion about the functioning of de-escalation zones in Syria and the approval of a joint statement on humanitarian demining in the war-hit country.

The new round of Astana talks will come after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Monday during a surprise visit to Syria that Russia will withdraw most of its troops there as terrorists have been defeated.

In parallel with the UN-backed Geneva process, seven rounds of Astana talks have been held since January, with Russia, Turkey and Iran as the mediators. The most significant outcome was the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 04:32:18|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ANKARA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkish and Russian officials will meet this week to finalize the purchase of Russia's S-400 surface-to-air defense system, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday.

"Our colleagues will come together this week to conclude this work," Erdogan said on a news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin following their meeting in Ankara.

Stressing that Turkey's cooperation with Russia is strengthening day by day, Erdogan said that trade with Russia had risen 30 percent as of the first 10 months of 2017.

For his part, Putin also said Russia hoped to sign agreements of the defense industry with Turkey in the near future.

During the bilateral meeting held late Monday, the two leaders also exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as regional developments, particularly Syria situation.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 04:32:39|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MAPUTO, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Mozambican Attorney General's Office (PGR) announced on Monday the plan to create a national campaign to fight human trafficking in the country.

The PGR announced the intention during a meeting in Maputo that brings together civil society organizations, the United Nations representatives and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Secretariat.

According to the authorities, the document will be submitted to the Mozambican parliament and, if approved, will come into force in 2018.

Deputy minister of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs of Mozambique, Joaquim Verissimo, said that the need arises due to the growing trend of such evil in Mozambique.

"There are known links between human trafficking and other criminal activities, such as drug trafficking, money laundering and organized crime," he said, adding that Mozambique has a worrying rate of trafficked children.

"This year, there were 11 cases registered in the first semester. Last year, there were 16 cases. So if we make calculations, we will find that the number has gone up," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:35|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RABAT, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- In another major step aimed at boosting its auto industry, Morocco signed on Monday deals to create 26 auto factories with a total investment of nearly 1.5 billion U.S. dollars.

The agreements were inked by the Moroccan government and a number of local and foreign companies in the auto industry, during a ceremony chaired by King Mohammed VI at Casablanca's Royal Palace.

The 26 new investment projects will strengthen local integration of the auto industry and meet the needs that were hitherto met by imports, Morocco's Minister of Industry, Investment, Trade and Digital Economy Moulay Hafid Elalamy said.

These factories will create 11,568 jobs, and enable the production of a range of auto parts, including aluminium wheels, dashboards, bumpers, seats and electromechanical boxes.

Six of the factories will boost an ecosystem built around the French carmaker Renault, which has two plants in Casablanca and Tangier.

These projects include the building of factories by French Sealynx, GMD Metal, and Eurostyle Systems, as well as Korean Hands Corporation, Italian Sogefi and Indian Varroc Lighting.

Thirteen investment projects will be conducted within the framework of another ecosystem to meet the needs of PSA Peugeot, which is building a factory near the coastal city of Kenitraa that plans to begin producing cars in 2019.

This move will help turn the city of Kenitra, 40 Km to the north of Rabat, into an industrial pole of excellence.

The factories will include Chinese Citic Dicastal and Aotecar, Japanese JTEKT, Korean Daedong, French Faurecia, Steep Plastique and Plastic Omnium, Spanish Ficosa and Bamesa, American Lear and Nexteer Automotive, Italian MTA and Promaghreb.

Five other projects are part of building the ecosystem of "cabling and connectivity," launched in October 2014.

The factories consist of American TE Connectivity, and two plants by Japanese Sumitomo along with its compatriots Fujikura and Yazaki.

Another two projects will help strengthen the Valeo ecosystem, which features a factory by the French Valeo and Spanish Proinsur.

The new deals were sealed two days after Morocco signed an agreement with China's BYD to build a factory to produce battery-powered vehicles in the northern city of Tangier, which is expected to employ 2,500 people.

Moroccan Ministry of Industry has set a strategic goal of joining the top 10 vehicle-producing nations in the world in a few years. The country ranks currently among the top 15.

The North African kingdom aims to reach a capacity of producing 1 million vehicles a year by 2025.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:35|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DOHA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani plans to visit Turkey to attend an emergency Islamic summit to discuss the Jerusalem issue, the state-run Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported Monday.

The Qatari leader was invited by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who called for the emergency summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul on Wednesday to discuss the U.S. recognization of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Meanwhile, Qatari Foreign Ministry expressed in a news release its strong indignation at Israel's hostility to Palestinian protesters during protests against the U.S. move.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced last Wednesday that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital and ordered to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to the disputed holy city.

The move has enraged the Palestinians and the Islamic world, as Jerusalem is revered as the third holiest site in Islam. The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a future independent Palestinian state.

Israel took over East Jerusalem in the 1967 war and declared the whole city as its eternal capital in 1980, a move never recognized by the international community.

Violent clashes have erupted in the past days between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters in the Palestinian territories of Gaza Strip and West Bank. At least two Palestinians have been killed and a large number of others were wounded in the clashes.

Qatar, which has friendly relationship with the U.S., has expressed full support to the Palestinians, while denouncing the U.S. move.

Earlier, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani stated that the Arab and Islamic world are facing a "dangerous development" after Trump's move on Jerusalem.

Trump's move will cause an "international religious conflict of interest" between Muslims and Christians, he warned.

The OIC is the second largest inter-governmental organization after the United Nations with a membership of 57 states spread over four continents.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:35|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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HARARE, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe's new President Emmerson Mnangagwa will on Friday preside over the ruling Zanu-PF extra-ordinary congress where he is due to be endorsed as the party's presidential candidate for the 2018 elections.

Mnangagwa, who was installed as the country's second executive president following the resignation of former President Robert Mugabe in November, will have less than a year in office before seeking to win the elections due around August 2018.

About 6,000 delegates are expected to attend the Harare congress where business will be confined to confirming Mnangagwa as the party's first secretary and president, endorsing him as the party's presidential candidate and endorsing Central Committee resolutions that were passed in November.

Since he was sworn into office on Nov. 24, Mnangagwa has appointed a new cabinet that excludes members of a faction allegedly led by former First Lady Grace Mugabe and breathed back life into members who had been expelled from the party for supporting him.

According to party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo, Mnangagwa may choose to appoint his two vice presidents and national chairpersons during the congress, but he was not obliged to do so.

Mnangagwa had until early November been one of two vice presidents in Mugabe's government and in Zanu-PF but was fired as Mugabe accused him of disloyalty and factionalism.

The dismissal prompted the military to stage what has been described by many as a "soft coup" that led to Mugabe's resignation.

Within the ruling party, Mugabe was relieved of his position while several other top officials, including his wife, were expelled.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:35|Editor: Yamei

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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (2nd L, Front) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin (2nd R) view a military parade in the Russian-run Hmeimim Air Base in the coastal city of Latakia, Syria, on Dec. 11, 2017. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Syria on Monday, the presidential media office reported. During Putin's visit, he ordered his defense minister to prepare for withdrawing the Russian forces, according to the report. (Xinhua/Syrian Presidency)

DAMASCUS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The surprising and rare visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Syria on Monday aimed at boosting coordination between Russia and Syria for the upcoming stage of political solution, analysts say.

On Sunday morning, people woke up to the surprising news of Putin's meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Russian-run Hmeimim airbase in the coastal city of Latakia in northwestern Syria.

Later on, videos and photos of the rare visit, the first visit of Putin to Syria during the six-year war, went online as well.

During the brief visit, Putin met with Assad and inspected the Russian forces there, ordering "significant" withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria.

Still, the Russians will keep their presence in the Hmeimim Air Base in Latakia and the naval base they have for long controlled in the nearby coastal city of Tartus.

However, Putin noted that "if the terrorists raised their heads again, we will deal them a blow they haven't seen before," meaning that his forces will be ready to strike again.

"As for withdrawing the Russian forces, it was expected because their entry to Syria was due to the situation on the ground when the terror groups were controlling large swathes of territories in Syria," Hmaidi Abdullah, a Syrian political analyst and a writer, told Xinhua.

Abdullah noted that "Today there is a recognition that 90 percent of the inhabited Syrian territories are under the government control, meaning that our need today for large numbers of Russian forces is unjustified."

"So the Russian forces came in large numbers to achieve a certain mission and when this mission was largely achieved, there is no need for a large number of Russian forces here," he said.

Abdullah said on the military level, the decision is logical, adding that the political one is more important.

"True that the visit held military meaning, which was about celebrating the victory on the terror groups, but I think that the visit aimed primarily to coordinate stances between the Russian and Syrian sides ahead of Putin's visit to Egypt and Turkey," Abdullah said.

Following his visit to Syria, Putin flew to Egypt, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, during which both sides discussed wide-range thorny issues, including the Syrian one.

On Syria, Sisi said they agreed on supporting the UN-sponsored negotiations to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis.

Putin said he agreed with Sisi to enhance cooperation to boost a long-term solution in Syria, hailing Egypt's support to Russia's initiative for a national Syrian dialogue.

Also, Putin visited Turkey on the same day, where he met with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and discussed the peace process in Syria.

Putin said that almost all territory had been freed in Syria, adding that "in case of the resumption of some terror hotbeds of resistance, we will take effective countermeasures."

As for the political settlement, the Russian president made it clear that the Syrian Constitution would be discussed during the National Dialogue Congress in Sochi scheduled for the beginning of the next year.

Both Russia and Turkey are the guarantors of the de-escalation zones' deal that was implemented in four hot zones in Syria this year.

Maher Ihsan, another political analyst, also said that the visit of Putin to Syria and his meeting with Assad meant to discuss the prospects of the political solution ahead of Putin's visits to the regional powers of Turkey and Egypt.

Ihsan believed that Russia is pinning big hopes on the Sochi meeting on Syria, unlike the currently-underway intra-Syrian talks in Geneva, which is not believed to will produce any solution to the country's long-running conflict.

"That is why Putin came personally to discuss with Assad the next move," Ihsan said.

Putin's visit also comes days after President Assad visited Sochi and met with the Russian leader there.

At the time, the visit was seen as a show of victory after the Syrian army defeated the Islamic State (IS) in their main strongholds in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, where the Russian air power was crucial in defeating IS in that area and almost all of the desert region in eastern Syria.

The Russian forces entered Syria in 2015 to shore up the forces of Assad in their fight against the rebels.

The backing of the Russian forces and air power enabled the Syrian army to retrieve key areas across the country, such as rebel-held areas in Aleppo, the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria as well as the eastern city of Deir al-Zour from the Islamic State.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:36|Editor: Yang Yi

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Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan delivers a speech during the plenary session of the 11th World Trade Organization's ministerial conference, held in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, on Dec. 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- China has always been a firm proponent of economic globalization and the multilateral trading system, Zhong Shan, China's Minster of Commerce said on Monday.

Zhong made the remarks during the plenary session of the 11th World Trade Organization's ministerial conference held in Buenos Aires, Argentina's capital.

Zhong states that economic globalization is an irreversible historic trend and a major driving force for global economic growth and World Trade Organization (WTO) rules provide crucial institutional safeguard for economic globalization and serve our common interests.

In the face of new situations and challenges, China stands ready to work with WTO members and guide the process of globalization towards a more open, inclusive, balanced and win-win direction that will benefit all, Zhong added.

China is also willing to help WTO members in need implement the negotiation outcomes of the agreement and help the less developed countries (LDCs) integrate into the multilateral trading system, said Zhong.

On Saturday ahead of the ministerial conference, China signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the WTO Secretariat on the 7th phase of the China Program. The program, initiated in July 2011, aims to help LDCs integrate more effectively into the global economy by strengthening their participation in WTO activities and by helping those not yet members to join the Organization.

Zhong stressed that basic principles of WTO are safeguard for economic globalization and China has always been a firm advocate of multilateral trading system.

According to Zhong, the Belt and Road initiative proposed by China was well-received by over 140 countries and more than 80 international organizations.

The Belt and Road Initiative, comprising the overland Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, seeks to build a trade, investment and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa, along and beyond the ancient Silk Road trade routes.

Zhong said that China will host the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai in November of 2018, which is a big step for China to promote economic globalization and open up its market as well as a public good that it provides for inclusive and mutually-beneficial global growth.

China will facilitate all countries in their participation and give more preferences to developing countries and the LDCs and welcome active participation by WTO members, said Zhong.

The 11th World Trade Organization's ministerial conference, kicked off on Sunday and attended by ministers or representatives from 164 WTO members and some observers, will discuss the future directions of the work of the Organization, and strive to negotiate on a series of issues for outcomes.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:05:37|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BEIRUT, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah said Monday that the U.S. President Donald Trump's decision on Jerusalem "will be the beginning of the end of Israel."

In a televised speech addressing thousands of protesters in Beirut's southern suburb, Nasrallah blasted Trump over his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Nasrallah said that the best response to Trump's decision on Jerusalem was to call for another intifada.

"The most important response will be to announce a third Palestinian intifada on all occupied Palestinian territories, and it is upon the Arab and Islamic world to stand by (the Palestinians') side," Nasrallah said.

He added "we will not let this decision to be the end of Palestine and Jerusalem. With all confidence and certainty, I assure you that Trump's decision will be the beginning of the end of this occupying entity called Israel."

Crowds gathered in Beirut's southern suburb from early Monday afternoon, marching and chanting in solidarity with the Palestinian people and in rejection of Trump's decision.

The rally came after Nasrallah called for demonstration in a speech on Thursday.

Trump announced on Wednesday the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and his intention of moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 05:54:42|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday signed his administration's first space policy directive, formally directing the U.S. space agency NASA to send astronauts back to the moon and eventually Mars.

"The directive I'm signing today will refocus American space program on human exploration and discovery," Trump said at a White House ceremony.

"It marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972 for long-term exploration and use," he said. "This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars and perhaps some day to many worlds beyond."

The Space Policy Directive 1, as it's called, was based on recommendations of the National Space Council, which Trump directed to reestablish in June.

The council was first created in 1989 during the administration of President George H.W. Bush but later disbanded in 1993 under President Bill Clinton.

It marked a return to the vision of President George W. Bush, whose Constellation program aimed to return astronauts to the moon by 2020 and then go on to Mars.

However, Constellation was cancelled in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama, on the grounds that Americans "have been there before" and that "there's a lot more of space to explore."

Instead, Obama said the U.S. should start by sending astronauts to an asteroid, a controversial plan known as Asteroid Redirect Mission, which was scrapped earlier this year by the Trump administration.

"Since the beginning of his administration, President Trump has taken steps to refocus NASA on its core mission of space exploration," Deputy White House Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement earlier Monday.

"He will change our nation's human spaceflight policy to help America become the driving force for the space industry, gain new knowledge from the cosmos, and spur incredible technology," Gidley said.

Both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who chairs the National Space Council, have repeatedly expressed interest in human lunar missions during the past year.

Pence, during the first meeting of the National Space Council in October, said the moon will be "a stepping-stone, a training ground, a venue to strengthen our commercial and international partnerships."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 06:25:35|Editor: Yurou

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Photo released by NASA on Dec. 11, 2017 shows U.S. President Donald Trump (C) speaking before signing the Space Policy Directive 1 at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States. Donald Trump on Monday signed his administration's first space policy directive, formally directing the U.S. space agency NASA to send astronauts back to the moon and eventually Mars. (Xinhua/NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday signed his administration's first space policy directive, formally directing the U.S. space agency NASA to send astronauts back to the moon and eventually Mars.

"This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint," Trump said at a White House ceremony.

"We will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars, and perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond," he said.

Trump offered no specific timeline during his four-minute speech.

The Space Policy Directive 1, as it's called, was based on recommendations of the National Space Council, which Trump directed to reestablish in June to advise and help implement his space policy with exploration as a national priority.

The council was first created in 1989 during the administration of President George H.W. Bush but later disbanded in 1993 under President Bill Clinton.

It marked a return to the vision of President George W. Bush, whose Constellation program aimed to return astronauts to the moon by 2020 and then go on to Mars.

However, Constellation was cancelled in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama, on the grounds that Americans "have been there before" and that "there's a lot more of space to explore."

Instead, Obama said the United States should start by sending astronauts to an asteroid, a controversial plan known as Asteroid Redirect Mission, which was scrapped earlier this year by the Trump administration.

"Since the beginning of his administration, President Trump has taken steps to refocus NASA on its core mission of space exploration," Deputy White House Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement earlier Monday.

"He will change our nation's human spaceflight policy to help America become the driving force for the space industry, gain new knowledge from the cosmos, and spur incredible technology," Gidley said.

Both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who chairs the National Space Council, have repeatedly expressed interest in human lunar missions during the past year.

Pence, during the first meeting of the National Space Council in October, said the moon will be "a stepping-stone, a training ground, a venue to strengthen our commercial and international partnerships."

On Monday, Pence said signing this space policy directive will allow America to "lead in space once again" although Trump said "we are (already) the leader and we're going to stay the leader."

Monday's ceremony coincided with the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 17 mission, the last time humans walked on the moon. The last living astronaut of the Apollo 17 mission, Harrison "Jack" Schmitt, was also at the event at the White House.

When speaking of the moment Schmitt landed on the lunar surface on Dec. 11 of 1972, Trump turned around and shook hands with him, saying: "today, we pledge that he will not be the last."

Then, Trump asked: "I suspect we'll be finding other places to land in addition to the moon. What do you think, Jack?"

"Yes, we should. Learn from the moon," Schmitt replied.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 06:25:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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JERUSALEM, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Israel's anti-rocket system Iron Dome intercepted on Monday night a rocket fired at the Jewish state by militants in Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said.

The rocket triggered Code Red sirens in the Hof Ashkelon regional council in southern Israel.

"The Iron Dome Aerial Defense System intercepted a rocket launched towards Israel," a military spokesperson said in a statement, adding that no injuries or damage were reported.

Earlier on Monday, Israel's tank and aircraft struck Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, in response to a rocket attack.

Usually the rockets fired into Israel were launched by the militant Islamic Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.

This was the 10th rocket that was fired from Gaza Strip since U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The controversial announcement, which was denounced worldwide, triggered violent clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem in the past days.

At least four Palestinians have been killed so far in Gaza by Israeli fire, according to Palestinian media.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 06:25:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RABAT, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) congratulated on Monday Iraq on its victory over the terror group Islamic State (IS).

In a statement, ISESCO Director General Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri described the elimination of the terror organization in Iraq as "a great achievement and the fruit of dear sacrifices and sustained efforts."

Moreover, Altwaijri hoped that the Iraqi people would achieve security, peace, development and prosperity through solidarity and unity of all their citizens.

On Saturday night, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi officially declared full liberation of Iraq from IS after the security forces recaptured all the areas once seized by the extremist group.

"I announce to the Iraqi people and all the world that our forces have reached the last redoubts of Daesh (IS) and have raised the Iraqi flag over areas of western Anbar (province) which was the last occupied land by IS," Abadi said in a televised speech.

But Abadi warned Iraqis to "remain alert and ready to confront any terrorist attempt that may target our people and our land," despite the victory over IS after a three-year war.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 06:25:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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KHARTOUM, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir will visit Turkey on Tuesday to take part in an emergency Islamic summit to discuss the Jerusalem issue, official SUNA news agency reported Monday.

Al-Bashir was invited by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who called for the emergency summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul on Wednesday to discuss the U.S. recognization of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced last Wednesday that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital and ordered to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to the disputed holy city.

The move has enraged the Palestinians and the Islamic world, as Jerusalem is revered as the third holiest site in Islam. The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a future independent Palestinian state.

Israel took over East Jerusalem in the 1967 war and declared the whole city as its eternal capital in 1980, a move never recognized by the international community.

Violent clashes have erupted in the past days between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters in the Palestinian territories of Gaza Strip and West Bank. At least two Palestinians have been killed and a large number of others were wounded in the clashes.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-12-12 06:25:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RABAT, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Morocco's parliament reiterated on Monday its full solidarity with Palestinians after U.S. President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

In a plenary joint session, the two chambers of the Moroccan parliament slammed Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move his country's embassy to the city.

The Moroccan parliament said it deemed the move as a "blatant violation" of UN resolutions. It also warned against serious implications of the U.S. decision on peace and security in the region.

The session comes after a massive march was held in downtown Rabat on Sunday, and a number of demonstrations and sit-ins were held in several Moroccan cities.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he acknowledged Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and decided to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Trump's declaration received wide criticism and opposition from Arab and Muslim countries.
Japanese Crown Princess Masako said she feels humbled thinking about her future, after Emperor Akihito's abdication was formally set for April 30, 2019.

In a written message released on Saturday to mark her 54th anniversary, the Crown Princess pledged efforts to fulfill her duties while supporting her husband, Crown Prince Naruhito.

With the Crown Prince set to accede to the throne on May 1, 2019, Crown Princess Masako will be the country's new empress.

The Crown Princess said she is deeply impressed by Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko for serving official duties for such a long time while praying for the happiness of Japanese people.

"I want to extend my respect and appreciation from the bottom of my heart" to the Emperor and the Empress, the Crown Princess said.
Sandra knew there was always a chance that her clients would kill her. For three years, she was forced to work as a prostitute on the streets of Moscow, repaying a $45,000 debt to the trafficker who brought her from Nigeria.

There were five of them, she recalls of one occasion. They were brutal, they beat me up; they brought out a knife and tried to stab me. Instead, they pushed her out of the two-story window for not submitting. Oftentimes, there were more men  10, 15, 20 per call. They might even kill you if you try to defend yourself, she says. Thats the reason why it is very horrible. And in that process most Nigerian girls lose their lives, because not every girl can withstand the pressure of 10 men. Sandra, not her real name, is one of tens of thousands of Nigerian women who have been trafficked into Europe for sexual exploitation. And many of those women come from a single city.

For decades, Benin-City, the capital of Edo State in southern Nigeria, has been tied to trafficking to Europe. Here, a potent mix of poverty and spiritualism drives thousands of young women to make the dangerous journey. Along its often unpaved, mud-ridden streets there are houses with wide gates and high walls.

These belong to the families with a relation who has made it, says Roland Nwoha, a local NGO worker who has devoted his career to stopping the trade. Almost every family has a contact in Europe. Organizations like Nwohas help educate people about the risks. But he says these few stories of success continue to be a powerful motivator in a city where so many live in desperate conditions. And in Benin City, the push to leave comes from every direction.

Trapped by fear

Sandra says she was convinced to go by a man she met at church, who said he was an assistant pastor. She says he told her he had a vision from God that she travelled overseas, that his sister in Russia could get a job in a hair salon. For added insurance, the man had given the items she left behind to a traditional priest.

We always have had this belief that your future lies in the hand of God, says Nwoha. Religious leaders, both the traditional and the Christian, are capitalizing on this. Like so many, Sandra feared the juju  traditional witchcraft  as much as she trusted her friend. Her trafficker took much more than just her passport. My pants, my bra, the hair from my head, the armpit and my private parts, she says. The items were for a juju oath, so powerful, a local priest said, that no one dares break it.



Forlorn-looking Nigerian ladies who are victims of human trafficking evacuated from Bamako, Mali and facilitated by the office of Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora on arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.

For Sandra, it bound her to her home thousands of miles away in Benin-City, and the assistant pastor that convinced her to go. I saw it with my own eyes. Its like a danger to weak girls, especially when it has to do with sensitive parts of your body. She believed that her passage to Europe would cost her no more than $2,000. She ended up owing her trafficker $45,000. The average debt for girls trafficked from Nigeria is around $25,000, but it can be as much as $60,000. None of them have any idea that they will owe these extortionate amounts. The debt, and the fear of juju, keeps them trapped.

Sea of misery

Sandras journey took her through Lagos and then an onward flight to Europe. But increasingly the trafficking trade is flowing through the lawlessness of Libya and across the Mediterranean where, according to the UNs International Organization for Migration (IOM), over the past three years there has been a 600 per cent rise in the number of potential sex trafficking victims arriving into Italy by sea. The IOM estimates 80 per cent are from Nigeria.

The majority are from Benin=City. When the Europeans started their search and rescue operations, many people in Benin said, the road has opened, once you get on the boats you will be rescued, says Nwoha. But just last month, the bodies of 26 Nigerian women were recovered from the Mediterranean in a single day, bringing this years total number of migrant deaths in that sea to at least 3,000. Often, the journey ends in tragedy. More often, the tragedy happens in Libya.

Edes story

Physically, 28-year-old Ede is finally free, but the pain of what she endured is still raw.

He used to hurt me, apart from work, she says of the man who purchased her. She was sold into sexual slavery in Libya as she tried to make her way to Europe. That is how they do there, says Ede, When you finish paying your money [to your captor], if you are staying with a wicked somebody, they will sell you to another people so you start all over again.

She was freed after a police raid and eventually deported to Nigeria. Now, back in Benin City, she sits next to 18-year-old Jennifer, who is too traumatized to talk. They are recent rescues, kept in a safe house run by the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

Especially they hate us, we Nigerians  they dont even want to hear anything concerning Nigerians, Ede remembers. They treated us like a slave, as if we are nothing. So we went through a lot there. Outside, the house is a non-descript, high walled compound, just like the others in the neighborhood.

Inside, the young women sit in a dark living room, where the hum of an overhead fan, and the Nigerian soap opera on TV are the few comforts in this temporary home as they wait for their cases to be investigated and to be reunited with their families.

Reducing demand

But few cases end up in court. Fewer still end in convictions.

According the US State Departments latest Trafficking In Persons report, last year NAPTIP reported 654 investigations, with 23 convictions for trafficking offenses.

Were prosecuting the small fries in Nigeria, says Julie Okah-Donli, director general of NAPTIP. Absolutely the number one problem is the inability of destination countries to clamp down on their own criminal networks.

Weve looked at the root causes in Nigeria without addressing the root causes in the destination countries, she says.

What is being done to reduce the demand for this crime? Sandras case is one of the rare prosecutions. Her trafficker was arrested, as was his sister, who was Sandras madam in Russia, pimping her out to clients. They are both awaiting trial.

When I was in Russia I said to myself, if I get back to Nigeria alive I will expose her, says Sandra. She is not going to go unpunished. The wicked dont have any place here; they have to face the law. Her former church admits her trafficker was a member of the congregation but denies that he was an assistant pastor.

Pastor Etinosa Osiomwanhi interacts with his congregation during a Sunday service. He denies that Sandras trafficker was an assistant pastor at his church. You know pastors do certain things, he said. I dont call them pastors.

I call them herbalists or native doctors in suits who would do such. The betrayal that stretched across two continents is now even closer to Sandra. Even my own father said I am not his daughter, she says. The trafficking is not Nigerias problem to solve alone, says Okah-Donli, but it is Nigerias tragedy.

Its our young boys and girls who are trafficked. Many are not making it back alive and the ones that do are battered and bruised.
The Federal Government has raised a fresh alarm over Nigerias rate of population growth; saying if unchecked will impact negatively on the countrys economy and welfare.

To this end, the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, called for the use of Community Health Extension Workers, CHEWS, to address the problems of shortage and mis-distribution of manpower needed for the provision of access to family planning services in rural communities and other hard to reach areas.

He made the call in Abuja while speaking on the topic: The Relevance of Operations Research in Family Planning Programming in Nigeria during the formal presentation of the report of a study by Marie Stopes Nigeria, which assessed the provision of implant contraceptives by CHEWS.

The Minister, represented by Director, Family Health Department, Ministry of Health, Dr. Adebimpe Adebiyi said: We all know that we cannot continue with the rate at which our population is increasing. It is expedient for us to task-shift the delivery of family planning services in Nigeria to CHEWS. CHEWS are to be regarded as an important cadre of contraceptive implant providers readily available for the expansion of access to family planning services in Nigeria.

Expressing delight with the result of the study by Marie Stopes Nigeria, which provides evidence needed to demonstrate that CHEWS could safely provide implants to clients, Adewole urged stakeholders to join hands with the Ministry to expand access to contraceptive implants and to ensure that the country makes quantum leaps in the use of evidence-based interventions towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
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Head of the Government Saad Eddine El Othmani was elected as the new Secretary General of the moderate Islamist party, Justice and Development, which is leading the current governmental coalition.

El Othmani won by a tiny margin taking 1006 votes while his rival Driss Azami received 912.

The National Council has refused to allow outgoing Secretary General Abdelilah Benkirane the right to run for the post for a third time by virtue of the partys regulations, which limit terms of the partys chief to two.

A career psychiatrist, 61-year-old El-Othmani was PJDs Secretary General from 2004 until 2008. He also served as Foreign Minister from January 2012 to October 2013.
French President Emanuel Macron said in Algiers that Morocco and Algeria should work together to resolve the Sahara issue, a statement that implies Algerias role in perpetuating the over four-decade conflict.

France adopts an equidistant position regarding the Sahara issue concerning which we maintain our known position that has not been changed nor will it be changed. Dialogue between Morocco and Algeria on this issue is vital, Macron told the press during his visit to Algiers on Wednesday.

This response infuriated the Polisario militia leaders who were reduced by the French President to their real role of a puppet whose strings are pulled from Algiers.

The takeaway from Macrons statement is that the Sahara conflict continues due to Algerias reluctance to recognize Moroccos territorial integrity.

Frances position regarding the Sahara issue has been reaffirmed many times, the latest was last month at the Joint Statement adopted at the end of the 13th Moroccan-French High-level Meeting.

The document reiterated that Moroccos autonomy proposal represents a serious and credible solution and a basis to reach a just, lasting and mutually acceptable solution to the Sahara issue.

In 2007, Morocco offered the autonomy initiative after the organization of a referendum proved to be unfeasible in view of disagreements over who is eligible to vote. The Kingdoms autonomy plan has been internationally endorsed as a credible basis for negotiations and for a settlement.

Under the autonomy plan, the Saharan population shall have exclusive powers with regards to managing local affairs within the framework of Moroccos sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The Polisario and its mentor Algeria discard the autonomy option as they continue to stick to obsolete positions reminiscent of the Cold War era leading to the perpetuation of the conflict and the prolonging of the suffering of the Saharan population held in the Polisario-run camps in southwestern Algeria.

Algeria continues to fund and support diplomatically and military the Polisario militias which it hosts in the region of Tindouf since the 1970s. The Polisario have been using Algerian territories as a rear base for their guerrilla warfare against Morocco until the UN-brokered ceasefire agreement in 1991.
Shock and awe. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is meant to be, in Southern California, the start of rainy season. Not this year. The Thomas Fire, the worst of those roiling the region this last week, grew 50,000 acres on Sunday alone; it has now burnt 270 square miles and forced 200,000 people from their homes. There is no rain forecast for the next seven to ten days, and as of Monday morning, Thomas is just, in the terrifying semi-clinical language of wildfires, 10% contained. To a poetic approximation, its not a bad estimate of how much of a handle we have on the forces of climate change that unleashed it  which is to say, hardly any.

The city burning is Los Angeless deepest image of itself, Joan Didion wrote in Los Angeles Notebook, collected in Slouching Towards Bethlehem. But the cultural impression is apparently not all that deep, since the fires that broke out last week produced, in headlines and on television and via text messages, an astonished refrain of the adjectives unthinkable, unprecedented, and unimaginable. Didion was writing about the fires that had swept through Malibu in 1956, Bel Air in 1961, Santa Barbara in 1964, and Watts in 1965; she updated her list in Fire Season (1989), describing the fires of 1968, 1970, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, and 1982: Since 1919, when the county began keeping records of its fires, some areas have burned eight times.

We could use further updating: Five of the 20 worst fires in California history have now hit since just September, when 245,000 acres in Northern California burned  devastation so cruel and sweeping that two different accounts were published in two different local newspapers of two different aging couples taking desperate cover in pools as the fires swallowed their homes. One couple survived, emerging after six excruciating hours to find their house transformed into an ash monument; in the other, it was only the husband who emerged, his wife of 55 years having died in his arms. As Americans traded horror stories in the aftermath of those fires, they could be forgiven for mixing the stories up or being confused; that climate terror could be so general as to provide variations on such a theme seemed, as recently as September, impossible to believe.

But if last weeks wildfires were not unprecedented, what did we mean when we called them that? Like September 11, which followed several decades of morbid American fantasies about the World Trade Center, the brushfires that began last week north of Santa Paula look to a horrified public like a climate prophecy, made in fear, now made real.

That prophecy was threefold. First, the simple intuition of climate horrors  an especially biblical premonition when the plague is out-of-control fire, like a dust storm of flame. Second, of the expanding reach of wildfires in particular, which now can feel, in much of the West, like a gust of bad wind away, and never impossible no matter the time of year. Over the last few decades, the wildfire season has already grown by two months, and by 2050, destruction from wildfires is expected to double (for every additional degree of global warming, it will quadruple).

But perhaps the most harrowing of the ways in which the fires seemed to confirm our cinematic nightmares was the third: that climate chaos could breach our most imperious fortresses  that is, our cities. With Katrina, Sandy, Harvey, Irma, Americans have gotten acquainted with the threat of flooding, but water is just the beginning. In the affluent cities of the West, even those conscious of environmental change have spent the last few decades believing that, and behaving as though, we had  with our street grids, our highways, our superabundant supermarkets and all-everywhere, all-enveloping internet  built our way out of nature. We have not. A paradise dreamscape erected in a barren desert, L.A. has always been an impossible city, as Mike Davis, among many others, has so brilliantly written. The sight of flames straddling the eight-lane 405 is a reminder that it is still impossible. In fact, getting more so.

One response to seeing things long predicted actually come to pass is to feel that we have settled into a new era, with everything transformed. In fact, that is how Governor Jerry Brown described the state of things this weekend: a new normal. The fact that the news cycle has already moved on, while the fires are just as out of control, is another sign of our eagerness to normalize these horrors  or at least to look away. But normalization is problematic, as perversely comforting as it may feel to think weve settled into a familiar nightmare. Climate change is not binary, and we have not now arrived at a new equilibrium; as Ive written before, the climate suffering we are seeing now is a beyond best case scenario for our future. With each further tick upward in global temperatures  each tiny tick  the effects will worsen. And further ticks are inevitable; the question is only how many. It would be much more accurate to say that we have passed beyond the end of normal, into a new realm unbounded by the analogy of any human experience.

But two big forces conspire to prevent us from normalizing fires like these, though neither is exactly a cause for celebration. The first is that extreme weather wont let us, since it wont stabilize  so that even within a decade, its a fair bet that these fires will be thought of as the old normal. Whatever you may think about the pace of climate change, it is happening mind-bendingly fast, almost in real time. It is not just that December wildfires were unheard of just three decades ago. We have now emitted more carbon into the atmosphere since Al Gore wrote his first book on climate than in the entire preceding history of humanity, which means that we have engineered most of the climate chaos that now terrifies us in that brief span.

The second force is also contained in the story of the wildfires  the way that climate change is finally striking close to home. Striking, in fact, some quite special homes: Last Thursday, for instance, there were reports that the fires were threatening the Getty Museum and Rupert Murdochs Bel-Air estate. There may not be two better symbols of the imperiousness of American money in the country.* One imagines that Murdoch will not be writing tweets like this one again anytime soon; then again, who knows?

When, on Thursday, I tweeted that NBC News was reporting that Murdochs vineyard was on fire, it immediately spawned a thread of gleeful, crowing responses, more than a thousand of them. But, of course, his property and the Getty were not being singled out; they were fighting off flames because the entire rest of the county was, too, and  no matter how well-equipped or well-defended or well-heeled they were  having just as much trouble. Which is, as uncomfortable as it may be to admit, a very useful allegory for the rest of us to keep in mind.

By accidents of geography and by the force of its wealth, the United States has, to this point, been mostly protected from the devastation climate change has already visited on parts of the less-developed world  mostly. The condition of Puerto Rico, nearly three months after Hurricane Irma hit, is a harrowing picture of what climate devastation can do to the least among us. That it is now hitting our wealthiest citizens is not just an opportunity for ugly bursts of liberal Schadenfreude; it is also a sign of just how hard, and how indiscriminately, it is hitting. The wealthy used to build castles to defend themselves against the world; more recently its been a more modern kind of fortress, cities, enclosing more and more of us in an illusion of man-made security. All of a sudden, its getting a lot harder to protect against whats coming.

* This article originally stated that the Getty villa, not the Getty Center, was threatened by the wildfires.
Booker brought his trial balloon to Alabama. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

On Sunday afternoon, a Newark, New Jersey, politician found himself some 950 miles away from home in Birmingham, Alabama, in service to others and, it sure sounded, to his own presidential ambitions.

Cory Booker came here this weekend in support of Doug Jones, the Democratic candidate in the December 12 special election for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Its an event that has become less about policy or ideology in the traditional sense than about the question of morality itself and whether such a thing even matters in our politics now.

Early in the race Jones, 63, who was a U.S. attorney during the Clinton administration, cast himself as the choice for any voter concerned with decency and the rule of law. While his Republican opponent, Roy Moore, was twice removed as Alabama Supreme Court chief justice for refusing court orders, Jones touted his work in the early 2000s, prosecuting members of the Ku Klux Klan who bombed a black church here in 1963.

The contrast deepened when Moore was accused of sexual misconduct and assault by multiple women (some of whom claim they were underage at the time). The scandal helped Jones raise over $10 million in October while Moore raised less than $2 million  yet Jones still finds himself down an average of 3.8 percent in the polls.

As men in positions of power across all sectors of American life have, fairly and unfairly, been toppled by allegations regarding their conduct toward women, the race in Alabama threatens to serve as a rejection of the so-called reckoning, a reminder that the entire country isnt Hollywood, the media, or Washington.

Joness predicament has echoes of Jon Ossoff, the Democratic candidate in last summers Georgia special election who, despite raising an astounding sum and attaining some political celebrity nationally, failed to flip a historically Republican seat. President Donald Trump, after all, beat Hillary Clinton by close to 30 points in Alabama; if Jones wins, hell be the first Democrat the state has sent to the Senate since 1992.

Unlike the charismatic Georgia Democrat, before a crowd of a few dozen at his downtown field office across from the Carver Theatre on Sunday, Jones was about as exciting as an earthworm, short and meek with a voice that strained to register over the sounds of those assembled and the passing traffic.

But as something sick brews in Alabama, there exists opportunity for those who want it and are talented enough to grab hold of it. Liberal super-PACs have contributed funds and other resources, but big-name Democrats have mostly steered clear of the state: Joe Biden visited just once, in early October, and the New York Times reported that Barack Obama has recorded a robocall for Jones  but as of Sunday night, the campaign remained unsure if theyd use it. As the Democratic Party attempts to regain its footing, potential leaders are finding arenas to test their effectiveness and their messaging. Thus, this weekend both Deval Patrick, the former governor of Massachusetts, and Cory Booker were on the ground in Alabama  and Booker brought his stump speech.

Booker was voted into the Senate in his own a special election three years ago, though his status was cemented long before that; as a brilliant and telegenic young mayoral candidate and then mayor, he was already a fixture on daytime TV and the subject of much gauzy media coverage.

While campaigning with Jones on Saturday, Booker became the first prominent Democratic lawmaker to respond to Senator Al Frankens resignation by calling on Trump to resign over sexual misconduct, harassment, and assault allegations.

Twenty-four hours later, Booker was at a get-out-the-vote event, where he notably said little about his candidate. He was joined by Jones before voters, volunteers, activists, and  importantly  the press.

The crowd spilled out onto the street, where camera crews from NBC and Fox News had assembled in preparation for a news conference. Jones spoke first, briefly introducing Booker as having roots that go back to Alabama with what he said were ancestors who had been local coal miners.

For Booker, the calculation is simple: If Jones loses, its not his problem. If he wins, hell be credited with having helped when it mattered most, when Joe Biden was nowhere to be found, and in the South no less  where many Democrats believe they will have to be competitive if they are to erode the gains made by Republicans in recent federal and state elections. Either way, Booker chose a low-stakes venue to deliver what could objectively be described as a hell of a speech, one fit for a party convention more than a street corner at 2 p.m. on a day of rest.

He quoted Langston Hughes. He spoke Latin. He performed the lyrics to My Country, Tis of Thee. He hollered, and the crowd hollered back. His words flowed with ease and obvious connection to his many coherent thoughts  a manner that seems almost alien in the Trump era. He vacillated between supernatural themes and earthy humor, all hyped up like his candidate isnt currently getting beat by a guy who was reportedly banned from the mall for hitting on tweens  perhaps because his candidate wasnt really the point.

Booker said he was compelled to come to Alabama to pay forward what past generations had done for him and his family during the Civil Rights movement, placing the outcome of the special election within a broader narrative of battles of conscience throughout history. He recalled the beaches of Normandy, womens suffrage, and sweatshop workers. He did not recall Roy Moore, whose name he failed to mention even once.

But he did mention Iowa, the state where the first presidential caucuses are held and where potential candidates flock in the years and months preceding an election.

After his remarks, he answered four questions from the press. While he spoke, a man in the crowd shouted, Booker 2020! The final question was about running for president. Booker smiled knowingly. In 2020, he said, hes up for reelection  to the Senate. A nonanswer if there ever was one, since theres dispute in New Jersey regarding the legality of running for two federal offices simultaneously.

Then Booker walked down the sidewalk and boarded a waiting SUV, shaking hands along the way.
A Sanders support in Iowa on Caucus Night negotiates the complex process that eventually led to a narrow but crucial Clinton win. That could all change by 2020. Photo: Michael B. Thomas/AFP/Getty Images

For those longing for a continuation of the supposed Struggle for the Soul of the Democratic Party between 2016 supporters of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, the final meeting of the Democratic Unity Reform Commission may have been a disappointment. Members of the commission, appointed at last years Democratic convention for the purpose of addressing complaints by Sanders supporters that the nomination process was rigged, agreed unanimously on a set of changes that were not revolutionary, but will (if implemented) change the familiar landscape of the recent past.

One set of recommendations involved a part of the process that was originally intended to prevent the emergence of a disastrous nominee from the primaries: superdelegates (elected officials and DNC members) with convention votes not tied to any popular results. The commission agreed to reduce the number of unbound superdelegates by about 60 percent (others will still get a ticket to the convention, but will be bound by their states primary or caucus results like any other delegates). This result didnt accomplish the Sandernista goal of abolishing superdelegates altogether, but was considered a sound compromise by those Sanders supporters who were interested in one.

Another recommendation dealt with Sanders complaints about closed primaries that kept independents  who went heavily for him in the 2016 contests  from participating. On this point the commission made another sensible compromise by recommending (the party has no real power to set rules for primaries, which are typically governed by state laws) same-day registration and re-registration opportunities so that indies can become instant Democrats. This reform was aimed at states  preeminently New York  that limit changes in party registration to a window that expires months before primaries.

Another set of recommendations involves transparency in the partys own internal processes, especially those involving finances and arrangements with campaigns and consultants. This issue, of course, has arisen in conjunction with complaints  validated most recently by temporary DNC chair Donna Brazile  that the national party was in the tank for Hillary Clinton in 2016. After some wrangling, the commission reached an accommodation of both sides in the argument over the DNCs behavior:

In the final recommendations, the commission proposed a 7-member Ombudsmen Council that included the elected chairs of the DNCs 4 regional caucuses.

The Budget and Finance Committee would also include elected DNC members, and all of its members would have to disclose their potential conflicts of interest. Any expenditure of over $100,000 a year to outside vendors or consultants would require committee approval. Its meetings would be open to any member of the DNC, as would the DNCs budget materials.

But perhaps the recommendation that will be most resented (and perhaps resisted) involves rules for party-run caucuses, and would require significant changes in the way Iowas first-in-the-nation Caucus would operate. Heres an anxious description of the proposed reforms from the Des Moines Register:

Iowas first-in-the-nation Democratic presidential caucuses would break with decades of tradition in 2020 by allowing voters to cast absentee ballots and then releasing the raw total of votes won by each candidate.



Currently the Iowa caucuses (on the Democratic side of the aisle, at least) are complex and highly deliberative events where participants line up in affinity groups for candidates in an initial vote and then redivide after small groups are deemed non-viable. Its not the sort of thing that lends itself to absentee voting. And it also makes raw votes relatively unimportant since the whole point is to create coalitions supporting delegates to a later state convention. In 2016, though, the refusal to report raw votes was thought to have perhaps denied Bernie Sanders a symbolic victory.

Taken together the two reforms would push Iowa Democrats toward the simpler process used by Iowa Republicans, who meet, sample some potluck offerings, hear a few speeches, vote on a presidential candidate, and then disband into the (usually) snowy night, with the results reported just like in a primary.

Its important to understand that all these recommendations are just that:

The commissions report now heads to the DNCs Rules and Bylaws Committee, which will have a 6-month period to amend party rules to enact the reforms, and could theoretically try to dilute the commissions recommendations (though they would have to run any changes by the commission). The roster of over 400 voting DNC members will also get to vote on the proposals at the full DNC meeting in the fall of 2018.

So theres plenty of time for backsliding  and backbiting, particularly among a minority of Sanders supporters who are still dissatisfied with the unity commissions recommendations. But theres a decent chance that by the time the 2020 presidential nominating contest rolls around, some of the stranger aspects of the process  especially in Iowa  will be changed for good.
Alex Kozinski. Photo: Gina Ferazzi/LA Times via Getty Images

For the better part of his esteemed career, Alex Kozinski, one of the top appellate judges in the nation, has been his own public-relations machine, fielding press inquiries and interviews with journalists, unlike any of his peers in the federal judiciary, who never talk to the press. But when the Los Angeles Times reached the longtime Ronald Reagan appointee this past week for comment on allegations in another paper that hed been sexually improper with at least six women who had worked with him, Kozinskis nonchalance with reporters may have gotten the best of him. If this is all they are able to dredge up after 35 years, I am not too worried, he told the Times.

That sounded like a challenge. And in less than 24 hours since the story broke, other women took Kozinski up on it. They didnt hold back. When I clerked on the Ninth Circuit, Kozinski sent a memo to all the judges suggesting that a rule prohibiting female attorneys from wearing push-up bras would be more effective than the newly convened Gender Bias Task Force, Joanna Grossman, a law professor at Southern Methodist University, wrote on Twitter, with this kicker: His disrespect for women is legendary.

The most eye-opening of these recollections came from Nancy Rapoport, a law professor at the University of Nevada who wrote in her personal blog about the time Kozinski invited her and other clerks out for drinks. She was clerking for another judge at the time, but she agreed to come along. The meetup turned out to be a setup: No other clerks were there. Just Rapoport and Kozinski. What do single girls in San Francisco do for sex? she recalls the judge asking her. During the same encounter, Kozinski offered to comfort her when he learned that Rapoports mother had just been diagnosed with cancer. Ever since, the law professor has made it a point to steer her own female students away from Kozinskis judicial chambers by refusing to sign letters of recommendation to go work for him. The title of Rapoports blog entry: There are likely several more stories to come.

One of those stories came from Heidi Bond, a lawyer turned novelist who chose to break her silence about Kozinski after nearly a decade of agonizing silence. She was one of two women who were willing to go on the record with the Washington Post in its Friday report about Kozinski. But she also wrote her own account of her year with the judge on her website; every word of it matters. Beyond relating an incident in which Kozinski showed her porn on his own computer and then asked her whether it aroused her, Bond discloses a far more disturbing detail: That Kozinski, from the very moment he swore her in as his law clerk, had imposed a code of silence on her. Its too late now! She cant escape any longer. Shes my slave, Bond said Kozinski told her during the swearing-in. She thought it was all in jest.

The judge meant it. Even though Kozinski is a libertarian jurist who has spent decades on the bench extolling the virtues of freedom and the First Amendment  The Constitution enshrines a fundamental right to be free of unwarranted restraints, he wrote in a celebrated ruling earlier this year  he had deeply unpleasant ways of exerting control over his underlings, says Bond. She writes that Kozinski once forbade her from reading romance novels, even during her breaks, because they amounted to porn for women  a type of addiction she should avoid for her own sake. I control what you read, what you write, when you eat, Bond recalls Kozinski telling her. You dont sleep if I say so. You dont shit unless I say so. Do you understand? As a young woman near the pinnacle of her legal career, with crippling student debt and a shot at the moon, including a second clerkship at the Supreme Court, Bond was in no position to say no to Kozinski. And so she didnt.

Bonds account is essential not just as a damning expose of a leading light in American law  the federal judiciarys #MeToo moment. It also raises serious questions about the structural failings of the system that judges and law schools rely on for deciding who does or doesnt get to spend a year working in the chambers of a top federal judge  a cottage industry where the best and the brightest vie for limited spots that could then open up doors to greater glories. An overhaul of this cutthroat system, over which theres little oversight and where each judge calls the shots over the hiring process, is perhaps Bonds greatest wish  more so than seeing Kozinski go down in infamy or face impeachment proceedings, which some have already broached. Please exclude me from these discussions, Bond warns. In one footnote, she offers this prescription:

I want greater honesty regarding judicial clerkships. Law students are often told in glowing terms that a clerkship will be the best year in their career. They are never told that it might, in fact, be their worst  and that if it is their worst, they may be compelled to lie to others in the name of loyalty to their judge.

How many clerkship coordinators at top law schools knew about Kozinskis sleaziness but didnt say a word? How about fellow judges? Were any of them proactive and protective like Rapoport was with her students? That Kozinski is also a top feeder judge for none other than Justice Anthony Kennedy, for whom he once clerked, as well as others on the Supreme Court, adds a strange dimension to a tale that should send shockwaves through the entire regime. (Bond did move on to a clerkship for Kennedy and for Justice Sandra Day OConnor, but she said she received nothing but respect from them.)

As it is, the pool of clerks that make it to the nations highest court is largely white and male, much like the judges that groom these rising stars for the gig of a lifetime, according to The National Law Journal. And Kozinski, its worth noting, was once a leading critic of reforming the highly competitive, who-you-know system of hiring law clerks, some of whom, as law students, began the frenzied process before they were even done with their first year of law school. Kozinski wanted no rules imposed on him. When asked how early he started looking at prospective clerks, he once joked to the New York Times: At birth.

More broadly, the Kozinski revelations probably have many a federal judge thinking long and hard about their demeanor and interactions with the young lawyers they once employed. Few, if any, environments in the federal government are as unique as the quiet confines of a judges chambers  that cavernous, secretive, and sacred space just off the courtroom where the judge gets to take off his robe and be himself. That these public servants are vested with lifetime tenure, are predominantly male, and hold significant sway over their workers futures should suggest scrutiny of the highest order. As Nancy Rapoport hinted, this is only the beginning.

Kozinski already got in trouble in 2008 and testified before a judicial ethics panel for storing pornography on a personal server that was readily accessible online  while conducting a criminal trial involving the distribution of obscene materials. The punishment at the time was only a reprimand for being judicially imprudent and embarrassing the third branch. If this new spate of accusations doesnt lead to a different form of justice, for Kozinski and others from whom the Constitution demands good behavior, then nothing might.
Kim has more scary tricks up his sleeve. Photo: STR/AFP/Getty Images

In late November North Korea conducted a ballistic missile test that appeared to show for the first time that its capable of striking anywhere on the U.S. mainland. North Korea probably isnt capable of delivering a nuclear warhead just yet, but new reports highlight that there are plenty of other reasons to be worried about the threat posed by Kim Jong-uns regime.

The U.S., Japan, and South Korea are teaming up in the coming days to test their abilities to track submarine-launched missiles amid fears that North Korea is rapidly developing such technology. The New York Times reports that the drill will take place over two days in the waters between Japan and the Korean Peninsula. Last month 38 North, which tracks North Koreas weapons developments, said satellite images of the Sinpo South Shipyard from November 5 suggest the nation has stepped up its efforts to create its first ballistic missile submarine.

Such missiles are hard to detect before launch, but missiles arent the only weapons to worry about. The Washington Post reported on Sunday that U.S. experts are alarmed by North Koreas strides toward obtaining the knowledge and equipment needed to produce biological weapons. Its no secret that North Korea is pursuing a bioweapons program, though its usually overshadowed by their drive to develop nuclear weapons. Testimony from defectors suggests that the North has been working with biological agents since the 60s. U.S. troops headed for the Korean peninsula are routinely vaccinated for anthrax and smallpox as a precaution.

Whats raised new concerns is North Koreas development of factories that could be used to produce tons of microbes, and labs focused on genetic modification. North Korea has also sent its scientists to study advanced biotechnology abroad. Theres no evidence that Kim Jong-un has ordered the mass production of biological weapons  but its unclear why.

That the North Koreans have [biological] agents is known, by various means, one senior U.S. official told the Post. The lingering question is, why have they acquired the materials and developed the science, but not yet produced weapons?

Though the bioweapons program is even more secretive than Kims efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon, he does want the world to know he has many of the pieces in place. In June of 2015 state-run North Korean media broadcast video of Kims trip to the Pyongyang Bio-technical Institute. The North claimed the industrial-sized equipment was used to make biological pesticides, but they could also be used to grow microbes in bulk and transform bacterial spores into powder.

North Korea likely used liquid VX to assassinate Kims estranged half-brother, Kim Jong-nam, in February, but whether the leader plans to use other biological agents as a weapon or just a deterrent is unclear as well.

A Brief History Of North Korea In Three Minutes

What we do know is that the situation in North Korea is becoming untenable. That was the conclusion of Jeffrey Feltman, the U.N. under-secretary-general for political affairs, who just completed the first official U.N. visit to North Korea in six years. Feltman said that upon meeting Ri Yong-ho, the North Korean minister for foreign affairs, they agreed that the current situation was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today.

Feltman said theres still time for a diplomatic solution, but is worried that a miscalculation could lead to conflict. Time is of the essence, he said.
Lock them up? Donald Trump and Michael Flynn. Photo: George Frey/Getty Images

It has never been clear what crimes, if any, Donald Trump might have personally committed in the course of the Russia scandal. But in the 24th paragraph of a new NBC News report on the investigation is a sentence that indicates Robert Muellers cleanest shot  so far  at proving illegality by the president. Mueller, NBC reports, appears to be interested in whether Trump directed [Michael Flynn] to lie to senior officials, including Pence, or the FBI, and if so why, the sources said.

This could be very important. Heres what it means.

In December 2016, Flynn sat at the center of hidden diplomacy between the Trump transition team and Russia. The departing Obama administration was putting into place sanctions to punish Russia for its criminal theft of emails. The Trump team was quietly telling Russia not to retaliate because it would reverse or undermine those sanctions. Flynn conveyed this message to Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak in December. The next month he denied doing so to FBI agents.

Two days after that, Sally Yates, the acting attorney general, met with White House counsel Don McGahn and told him about Flynns lie, which she had learned of through FBI surveillance of Russia. The danger of the lie was extreme. Since the Russians were privy to the conversation Flynn had denied ever having, they knew he was lying, and thus had powerful blackmail leverage over him.

And yet, despite having been informed that the incoming national security adviser was an extreme security risk, the White House responded with strange lethargy. Flynn remained on the job for 18 more days, and was finally fired, supposedly for lying to Vice-President Mike Pence. Trump nonetheless praised Flynn effusively, and reportedly later conveyed the message he should stay strong.

There are many questions around this episode, but the most pertinent ones concern why Flynn would behave so recklessly. He took a big risk by speaking with the Russians, violating the Logan Act, which prohibits private citizens from influenc[ing] the measures or conduct of any foreign government or defeat[ing] the measures of the United States. Flynns career in intelligence work would have made him perfectly aware of the high likelihood that his conversation was being surveilled. He took a second additional risk by allegedly lying about this to the FBI.

News reports have focused on the possibility that Trump ordered Flynns outreach to Russia. It makes sense (to whatever extent anything in Trumpworld makes sense) that Flynn would get the president-elects approval before communicating such an important message. On the other hand, there is also some debate about the severity of Trumps exposure to a violation of the Logan Act, which is extremely old and has not been tested in court.

But NBC is raising a different, and more serious, possibility: that Trump also instructed Flynn to lie to the FBI about his conversation. That scenario would explain a lot. It would explain why Flynn took not one but two gigantic legal risks. It would explain why the White House took so long to fire him, why Trump asked James Comey to let Flynn off the hook and then fired him when he failed to promise to do so, and why Trump continued to signal his affection for Flynn even afterward.

Flynn might have done both legally dubious things of his own volition. He is a pretty unstable character, after all. But it seems at least as likely that he felt empowered to take such obvious chances because the incoming president offered him cover.

If this is what happened, the legal violation would not be ambiguous at all. Lying to the FBI is an obvious crime. Even the tortured rationales Trumps defenders are making on his behalf  that he didnt obstruct justice by firing Comey, and would also not be obstructing justice by shutting down Muellers investigation  would be irrelevant in the face of this action. (Obviously, they would just invent new rationales. But still.)

We dont know whether Trump did tell Flynn to lie. And if it happened, we dont know whether Flynn has actually testified to this effect. But for the first time, we have a clear line of sight to a potential act of undeniable illegality by President Trump.
Will she or wont she? Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Republican senator Susan Collins once again asserted on Sunday that she was not certainly voting yes on the Republican tax bill that is expected to pass the House and Senate in the coming weeks.

I always wait until the final version of the bill is brought before us before I make a final decision on whether or not to support it, she said on CBSs Face the Nation.

Republicans are working to bring together the bills passed by the two chambers, which feature some significant differences, and have a final product on President Trumps desk before Christmas. Speculation that the House might pass the Senate bill as-is faded last week, in part because the Senates frenzied, last-minute writing of the bill led to some glaring mistakes that will need to be mended.

Collins was one of the three Republican holdouts who killed the repeal of Obamacare over the summer, but was much more enthusiastic about the prospect of tax cuts  the Republican raison detre  from the beginning. Her eagerness manifested itself in her haphazard justification for voting yes.

Collins, who said that including the repeal of Obamacares invididual mandate as part of the tax bill was a mistake, said she agreed to a deal with Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate would pass two bipartisan pieces of health-care legislation, the Alexander-Murray and Nelson-Collins bills, which would stabilize insurance markets. (They would come nowhere near undoing the damage of repealing the mandate, but never mind.)

The problem is that the House would also need to pass those laws, and Speaker Paul Ryan has shown no signs that he wants to do so, rendering Collinss vision pretty much useless. (In the weak-negotiator sweepstakes, Collins was outdone only by Jeff Flake, who voted yes in exchange for the promise of a meeting about immigration.)

Face the Nations John Dickerson brought up the small problem of the House on Sunday; Collins said, vaguely, that she had talked with colleagues in the House, Senate, and White House, and I have no reason to believe that that commitment will not be kept. Unless she knows something the public doesnt, its hard to square that statement with reality. The question is whether Collins cares more about a broken promise or helping to get massive tax cuts over the finish line.

In the Senate vote on December 1, Republicans lost only one of their own  Bob Corker  so even if Collins votes no and Corker holds the line, they could squeeze the bill through, 50-50, with Vice-President Mike Pence acting as a tiebreaker. Still, Republicans would prefer not to make it that close. And if Democrat Doug Jones pulls off an upset in Alabama on Tuesday, the Senate might have to rush to vote on the bill before hes seated.

All this has provided Democratic activists and lawmakers with a faint glimmer of hope that the regressive, society-altering tax bill nobody seems to like except Republican lawmakers might yet be halted.
Something unprecedented in the history of media repression in Uganda is happening to Pepper Publications Ltd, the publishers of Red Pepper and affiliated media platforms.

Five top executives who dont make editorial decisions on a day-to-day basis are currently in jail, together with three editors.

The executives are; Chief Executive Officer Richard Tusiime, Chief Marketing Officer Arinaitwe Rugyendo, Chief Operations Officer Patrick Mugumya, Chief Finance officer Johnson Musinguzi and Chief Commercial Officer James Mujuni. Managing Editor Ben Byarabaha, News Editor Francis Tumusiime and Deputy News Editor Richard Kintu are also incarcerated.

Over the years, Ugandan journalists have faced criminal charges for doing their work, a reprehensible act to which we will return later. What is without precedent, however, is bringing criminal charges against non-editors. Why, for instance, would an accountant be held criminally liable for editorial decisions, which are made in another department?

This threatens editorial independence within newsrooms as other executives  managing directors, finance managers or advertising managers  could now seek a direct role in making editorial decisions.

They could argue that now that they are at risk of facing criminal charges due to the stories we get published, they would rather participate in making the editorial decisions to mitigate the risk.

This would inevitably lead to more self-censorship and detrimentally affect the quality of our journalism. We consider journalism a public good, and the public interest is best served when the media is free to speak truth to power and probe the dealings of especially public officials.

Public officials who have something to hide and do not want to account to the public will inevitably fear the media and seek to gag it. We are afraid that the State has been slowly but steadily eating into the space for the media to operate freely.

If we keep with the Red Pepper case, the State accuses the media house of publishing information prejudicial to national security, and in so doing disturbing the peace of some top officials including the President. The story in issue was published on November 20, 2017, entitled M7 plotting to overthrow Kagame  Rwanda.

The police speedily acquired what it said is a search warrant from a court of law and proceeded to seal off the premises of Pepper Publications Ltd. Red Pepper, its sister publications and radio stations have been out of operation since November 21 as a result of the raid.

Red Pepper employees who witnessed the police search on the premises say the operatives went about their business with what appeared like malice aforethought, tearing through servers and tampering with the printer in such a way that it would be hard for Red Pepper to be produced again anytime soon. Computers and other gadgets were taken away during the search.

Without prejudice to the cases that have since been brought against Red Pepper managers and editors, we take exception to the manner in which this matter has been handled.

Ordinarily the state should have required the editor, and not every manager at the company, to answer whatever questions they had to raise. And whatever questions the State needed to put to the editor over the matter, there was no need for anyone to be arrested and illegally held in a high security detention centre even beyond the legally permissible 48 hours before being produced in court.

We heavily worry about the range of criminal cases that journalists, artistes and other citizens have faced in the recent past. One such charge is disturbing the peace of an individual. Editors from New Vision, Daily Monitor, Red Pepper and the online platform Investigator have faced this charge in recent months.

On Tuesday this week, an artiste and his producer were charged with disturbing the peace of President Museveni and remanded to Luzira prison.

Take the charge of disturbing the peace of police chief Kale Kayihura, for instance, which has been brought against several editors. If Mr Kayihura is annoyed over a story, he may direct his subordinates to summon the concerned editor for interrogation over disturbing his peace. We find this most absurd.

To add to this are new criminal charges under the Computer Misuse Act, for instance, which also threaten our journalism and the wider freedom of expression of all citizens. In this regard, the charge of offensive communication has come up against a number of people already.

We fear that the gains that came with the striking down by the courts of law of charge of false news and sedition have since been wiped out. Also, criminal defamation remains on our Penal Code despite a ruling by the African Court of Justice that the offense violates freedom of expression as guaranteed in the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.

With this background, we argue that the attack on Red Pepper is a direct affront on press freedom. It is an extension of the States efforts to suffocate media. Security operatives have in the recent past roughed up journalists in the course of doing their work, and the Uganda Communications Communication has continued to issue bans against programmes and individuals on radio and television stations, etc.

We note with sadness that our colleagues at Red Pepper did not get salary for the month of November because the company was shut down. They remain unsure whether they will operate again.

This is particularly absurd given the tough economic situation currently obtaining in the country, which has led to runaway unemployment. We insist that the search warrant the police say they acquired did not permit them to shut down Red Pepper.

We are sure the highhanded handling of the Red Pepper issue is meant not just for Red Pepper, but as a warning to other media houses of what may befall them if they publish what those who hold power do not want to be published. This is reprehensible censorship.

We, of course, do not argue that media practitioners cannot break the law. Whoever feels aggrieved by a publication has a number of more civilised ways of handling the issue  by seeking civil remedies on their own.

Journalism must be de-criminalised, but even in instances where a criminal charge may be tenable as it is under our current legal regime  which we feel must change  the due process of the law must be followed.

In light of this, we take particular exception to the courts failure to resolve the bail application by the eight Red Pepper managers, who on Tuesday were sent back to Luzira prison for a further 14 days until December 18.

So we urge the police, the Uganda Communications Communication, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions which sanctions charges and in this case the courts of law to which these matters are eventually referred, to act judiciously.

We also call on President Museveni to jealously guard the little steps that Uganda has made on the democratisation journey over the years.

ABOUT PRESS FREEDOM NETWORK

Uganda Press Freedom Network is a loose grouping of journalists from across all media houses who strive to enhance freedom of the press. The forum was founded in 2016 and currently has 230 journalists from around the country, subscribed.
Luweero Anglican Diocese has directed priests not to contest and participate in the forthcoming Village Council elections, saying it might split their churches.



The Bishop of Luweero Anglican Diocese, Elidad Nsubuga Kironde issued the directive on Sunday shortly after ordaining priests at St Mark Cathedral church in Luweero town.



Those ordained include 30 lay leaders who are still on probation, 17 were confirmed as lay leaders, 3 deacons and one parish priest. In his speech, Bishop Nsubuga warned the priests against contesting in the LC 1 elections, saying those who want to should resign from priesthood.

Bishop Elidad Nsubuga Kironde (C) leaving church on Sunday

He also warned the priests against voting in the polls, arguing the mode of voting by queuing behind candidates is inappropriate and may split the church. He said that some candidates may see priests as traitors if they don't stand behind them during the voting.



The ordained priests and Christians agreed with the bishop's directives. Livingstone Wasswa, a lay leader in Nkuzongere Church of Uganda in Nakaseke, said the bible calls for equal treatment of all Christians and asked priests to stay from divisive politics.



Wasswa said the church welcomes the polls, but he will skip it because he can't queue behind any candidate something that may cause other candidates to hate him. Bernard Ssenyonjo, a lay leader from Kalungi Church of Uganda in Nakasongola, said he took oath to only serve God and doesn't want to pay allegiance to earthly leaders, saying he will skip the elections.



Absolom Bwanika Bbaale a member of St. Mark Cathedral said that the LC I elections will not only create disunity in church but in communities and families.



Other Christian said the queueing behind a candidate voting system may cause the leaders to deny them services, saying they won't participate in the polls. Electoral Commission chairperson, Justice Simon Byabakama defends the mode of voting, saying it promotes transparency in elections.



EC had planned to hold the LC I polls in November this year. However, a group of under a pressure group dubbed the "The Alternative" dragged the Commission and Attorney General to the High court seeking orders to suspend the elections on grounds that the purported mode of conducting the polls is a threat to fundamental human rights.



They argue that the mode of queuing behind candidates is an infringement on the right to a secret ballot, voter integrity and fair elections as voters will be exposed to intimidation and manipulation.



James Tweheyo, the secretary general Uganda National Teacher's Union also filed a petition before High court challenging the conduct of elections without including students.



Justice Steven Musota issued interim orders, which will remain into force until January 30, 2018.
Masaka district local government has petitioned President Yoweri Museveni over the poor state of roads in the district.

The local government leaders claim that most of the roads that fall directly under the central government are in a very sorry state, which undermines their performance and service delivery to residents.

Godfrey Kayemba, the mayor Masaka municipality, says they intend to awaken government about its responsibility of maintaining the roads under its care. He says the poorly maintained central government roads in the area paint a bad picture of their performance as local government to the public that expect improved services.

The affected roads include among others Broadway, which runs through Masaka town from the Mbarara bypass, Nyendo-Cathedral road and Nyendo-Bukakata road that are currently filled with potholes and ditches.

Petitioned: President Museveni

Joe Walusimbi, the Masaka Resident District Commissioner, says his office is overwhelmed by complaints from the public concerning the poor state of the roads, saying that he spends a lot of time pleading with residents not to demonstrate.

Walusimbi put the blame on Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra) for its failure to prioritise roads in Masaka.

"A few days back I was very busy appealing to the Wanaichi not to demonstrate. I called the Unra manager who promised that he was going to work on that stretch in the first week of this month", said Walusimbi.



Peter Ssenkungu, the Masaka district NRM party chairperson also confirmed that the public is agitated because of the poor state of government roads in Masaka. He asked government to provide Unra the required resources to fix the roads to save them from the pending political anger.

Ssenkungu is equally concerned that some of the affected roads have repeatedly featured in the national budget, but they haven't been worked on, which raises doubt in the public about government's commitment.

The leaders have forwarded a joint petition to the president through the government manifesto implementation unit; demanding that their concerns are addressed with urgency.



Fred Kamugira, the deputy director of the manifesto implementation unit in the President's Office who is leading a team that is assessing progress on the implementation of the NRM manifesto in the region, has acknowledged the problem, promising to bring it to the attention of the president.
On September 26, 2017, The World Bank released a report titled Learning to realize Educations Promise 2018.

According to the report, at least 20 per cent of pupils in Primary Two in Uganda can perform a two-digit subtraction, whereas 39 per cent can read a single word of a short sentence. Precisely, 80 per cent and 61 per cent of our children are moving in the dark  when it comes to dealing with basic math and reading!

This is tangential to the memorable motto Taaha Omukuhweeza that is translated in English as to enter the embrace of the light coined by Canon Petero Rwabihurwa, a pioneer educationist and evangelist in Kigezi in the early 1950s.

Indeed, in rural Uganda, lights deem really deep as nearly three quarters of learners in primary three could not solve a two-digit subtraction such as 46-17 and, by primary five, half still could not do so, according to the report. As a parent, citizen and neighbor, this goes to the core of our survival and future competitiveness in a highly-paced world.

The easy, lazy and convenient path is to just do nothing and blame government. Yet, the complexity of education requires all of us to do something to change this situation.

Among others, the World Bank report points to lack of effective teaching as the principal element why learning is not taking place in Ugandas broader education system. The question for stakeholders is: How do we get our children to read and count? How do we reconfigure our education and lessons delivery to achieve effectiveness?

How do we innovate to improve classroom management, stem teacher and pupil absenteeism, inspire accountability and create a generation of curious, agile and high-impact citizenry? How do we move from mere schooling to learning in our education system?

One pathway to answer some of the foregoing questions is to have our pupils get supplementary literacy and numeracy lessons. This is because reading and counting are the two critical prerequisites and base skills that learners require to navigate other subjects.

A weak base in masterly of numeracy and language proficiency have long-term deleterious consequences for learners, workforce and development ambitions of Uganda.

In fact, a challenge for teachers in Uganda  and across the world, and in every kind of school  is that there may be a gap between where their learners are performing and where the national curriculum demands that they should be.

A classroom of learners might, overall, be far behind what the national curriculum demands. Or, a classroom of learners may be far ahead of what the national curriculum demands are. This means that such learners need a bigger challenge.

At Bridge schools Uganda, where I work, deriving from the national curriculum, the Ugandan instructional design team has created lessons that allow teachers to better meet the needs of their learners based on how they are performing.

The accelerated English and Math mentoring helps Bridge pupils achieve learning gains in literacy and numeracy. The basis of the effort is to ensure that the slow learners are supported to catch up with their grade levels, while the faster learners are challenged.

Precisely, Bridge offers extra one or two lessons per day of English instructions and one extra lesson of Mathematics instruction per day.

For example: during their morning English lessons, pupils are practicing vocabulary words such as neighborhood, bicycle, home, tree etc.

However, when the teacher calls on pupils to read aloud and then fill in the blank sentences they just completed  pupils struggle to pronounce each word. They arent reading the sentences fluently because they dont know how to read some of the most frequent, basic words such as the, and, for, here.

Another example: during their morning Math lesson, pupils are practicing problems like 138 + 44. However, when the teacher checks their work, pupils are not answering correctly because they do not know how to regroup or carry numbers over to the next place value.

During the afternoon extra English lesson, pupils in this example would have the opportunity to practice learning both sight words like the, and, for, here and also learn phonics so that they can sound out new words on their own. This instruction is deliberately designed to bridge the gap between how students are performing in English and where the Uganda national curriculum expects them to be.

And during the afternoon extra math, pupils in this example would have the opportunity to practice the simplest form of regrouping  with two-digit and one-digit numbers. The teacher models the difference between 17 + 2 and 17 + 4. Students then get lots of practice at that level so that they can master the concept of regrouping as quickly as possible.

This approach is already delivering amazing results. Bridge has used Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) and Early Grade Math Assessment (EGMA) to evaluate its work. We study item-level data on pupils fundamental literacy and numeracy skills to assess learning gains.

Using a Rapid Cycle Measurement of P3 Literacy for Program Improvement, Bridge was able to recognize that Bridge pupils outgained their peers in comparable schools by 5.7 words per minute on Familiar Word Reading and 14.6 words per minute on Passage Fluency across the same period.

They also understood even more of what they read, answering an extra nine percentage points more comprehension questions correctly.

The latest vindication of the foregoing is the outed results of 2017 Kenyan Certificate for Primary Education (KCPE). KCPE is the national primary exit exam and the results determine whether children have the opportunity to continue with their education.

In the exam, Bridge pupils exceeded their peers nationwide by over 10 percentage points with thousands scoring at or above the 250 marks designated as a pass by the Kenyan government.

The foregoing results are in sync with learning gains in Bridge Academies in Liberia captured in recent scientific publications. A stakeholder conversation on accelerated learning approaches for math and English should, therefore, urgently begin.

There is goodwill from government and the minister of education, Janet Museveni, who has consistently emphasised need for schools to focus on learning outcomes. Bridge is keen to continue working with government, parents, faith-founded schools, media and broader stakeholders to deepen its demonstrable, working and results-driven tendency.

The author is the country director, Bridge Schools Uganda.
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Auburn University alumnus Harold Melton, presiding justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia, will be the speaker at the universitys fall graduation ceremonies. Approximately 1,683 degrees will be conferred during the two ceremonies set for Saturday, Dec. 16, in Auburn Arena.

A 10 a.m. ceremony will be held for the College of Education; the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering; the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences; the College of Human Sciences; and the College of Liberal Arts. A 2 p.m. ceremony will be held for the College of Agriculture; the College of Architecture, Design and Construction; the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business; the College of Sciences and Mathematics; and University College.

Melton was appointed to the Supreme Court of Georgia by Gov. Sonny Perdue on July 1, 2005, and was sworn in as presiding justice Jan. 6, 2017. Prior to joining the court, Melton served as executive counsel to Perdue. Before that, he spent 11 years in the Georgia Department of Law under two attorneys general where he dealt with issues ranging from the creation of the Georgia Lottery Corporation to the administration of Georgias tobacco settlement.

Melton, who was elected Auburns first African American SGA president in 1987, earned his Bachelor of Science degree in international business from Auburn in 1988. He earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Georgia in 1991. He serves on the Board of Atlanta Youth Academies and is on the local and national board for Young Life youth ministry. A native of Washington, D.C., Melton currently resides in Atlanta with his wife, Kimberly, and their three children.

Auburn will award 78 doctoral degrees, 382 masters degrees, eight educational specialist degrees, one pharmacy degree and 1,214 bachelors degrees. The bachelors degrees by college or school are: College of Agriculture, 63; College of Architecture, Design and Construction, 89; Raymond J. Harbert College of Business, 235; College of Education, 152; Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, 218; School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, 20; College of Human Sciences, 56; College of Liberal Arts, 252; College of Sciences and Mathematics, 105; and University College, 24.
In such times, the alternative abbreviation for IPOs can be "Instant Performance Opportunity" instead of "Initial Public Offering" because, in the last 2 years, investors have gone on a frenzy to buy IPOs. This sudden rush of retail investors' interest coupled with a good appreciation in stock prices has brought forth a new norm: overvaluations in the IPO market.

Since April 2014, the S&P BSE IPO index has given an aggregate return of 180%. This phenomenon has resulted in a few noteworthy developments. Firstly, many small and large private companies are gearing up to go public and raise capital from the market because they can get rich valuations. At the same time, the Government of India has been tapping into the public's appetite to buy stocks by listing public sector companies and cashing in to meet planned expenditure requirements. In combination, these activities are sucking out a lot of liquidity and thereby impacting the long-term potential of the secondary markets if the rate of fund flows slow down.

The number of IPOs has been increasing since 2014 with a very high success ratio. Almost all companies that planned to raise capital have succeeded and the stock prices have performed very well even after high valuations which most of them were listed at. Also, the amount of capital being raised has gone up substantially and is currently at all-time highs. For instance, In 2014 there were 7 IPOs that raised 1,200+ crores.

In 2015, there were 21 IPOs which collectively raised more than 11,000 crores. In 2016, there were 27 companies that went public and raised some 26,000 crores and this year we have seen a total of 34 listings with a total fundraising of 60,000 crores so far. Of the total amount raised in 2017, more than 50% has come from the financial service sector primarily insurance companies which are large issues. In the future, we are going to see many asset management companies monetize their businesses by going public as well.

Although newly listed companies have performed well so far, it is yet to be seen if they can sustain the current valuations when the euphoria wanes out in the future. Every listing requires a nod from SEBI which has recently asked for clarification from 10 companies (Lemon Tree Hotels, CMS Info Systems, ACME Solar holdings, Seven Island Shipping etc.) and put some on hold like Barbeque Nation (A restaurant chain based in Bangalore). A sanity check on aspiring companies is a crucial activity and will ensure that only compliant companies with a clean track record will be eligible to tap the public markets to raise capital.

It is important to understand that most investors in IPOs are looking to make quick profits and sell on the rise. So, their investment logic is purely speculative and based on the euphoria in the markets. The recent demand for IPO funding solidifies this trend. Investors are willing to borrow money for 7 - 10 days from brokers and trade high flying IPOs with leverage. From a long-term investment standpoint, IPOs are not necessarily the best entry point. It makes more sense to observe the growth rate of the company for a few quarters before buying the stock. It is a more conservative approach but that's what medium to long-term is all about; making rational decisions.

Currently, investors have factored in a huge growth rate in newly listed companies and also small caps. If these companies fail to keep up with expected growth rates, then share prices could correct significantly. There are a lot of turnaround opportunities in the listed space which can become multi-baggers in the future. The highest returns don't necessarily have to come from IPOs. For instance, in the last one year sectors like retail, plastics, sugar and gold finance companies have given higher than 65% returns. Commodity stocks have also outperformed the markets significantly too and such opportunities will continue to exist in the future.

By Tejas Khoday, Co-Founder & CEO, FYERS (A new-age discount brokerage with innovative platforms)
From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As...
The mathematical (and other) thoughts of a (now retired) math teacher,












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LOS REVOLUCIONARIOS NO TOMAN CACA-COLA No se trata solamente de un capricho, sino de una sana actitud en todos los sentidos. Desde la solidaridad con el pueblo colombiano donde la empresa Caca-Cola ha cometido los mas grandes abusos contra sus trabajadores incluyendo el presunto secuestro y asesinato de los dirigentes del sindicato, hasta la proteccion de la salud de nuestros hijos, enviciados por ese jarabe de cola y azucar, que les produce obesidad prematura. Pensemos tambien los revolucionarios, que ese dinero que gastamos en los refrescos es utilizado por esas empresas para financiar el terrorismo en nuestro pais. Es cierto, no se trata solo de la Caca-Cola, sino tambien de la cerveza, de los cigarrillos y todos esos articulos innecesarios y mas que eso, daninos para nuestra salud. Podriamos incluso pensar en un dia de parada para cada uno de ellos. Es cuestion de irnos organizando. Pero para empezar, que tal si dejamos de comprar Caca-Cola y sus similares?



























Cuando lo extraordinario se vuelve cotidiano...



Discurso del Acto de Grado en Barinas en 12 de Febrero del 2005 Queridos Graduandos:



Mas que un discurso, quiero dirigirles algunas palabras que escribi anoche, despues de visitar en las clinicas, a los estudiantes heridos, a consecuencia de los enfrentamientos con la policia de hace apenas dos dias.



Me ha tocado por razones del destino, ser la persona que les otorgue el titulo que bien merecieron con sus estudios. Y me siento sumamente orgulloso de serlo. Me consta que la Universidad de Los Llanos Occidentales Ezequiel Zamora, a pesar de lo dicho por los enemigos de esta universidad, es una universidad de primera.



No tendremos la mejor planta fisica, en los salones hace calor. En el comedor hace calor. Pero no es en lo material que las cosas deben valorarse. El mayor capital es el ser humano. Y en eso, nuestra UNELLEZ, lo digo con conocimiento de causa, esta sobrada. Los llaneros venezolanos son nobles, valientes, de coraje.



En la UNELLEZ hacen vida, en este momento, aproximadamente 67000 personas. El 97% de ellas son estudiantes. Jovenes que, como Ustedes hasta el dia de hoy, buscan ese titulo, que constata los anos de dedicacion y de estudio.



Los jovenes son el rio de la vida, ustedes graduados deben ser los capitanes de esos barcos que naveguen por el rio de la vida.



Nuestra Patria atraviesa momentos muy dificiles porque decidio dejar de ser esa matrona de edad vetusta y complaciente, para ser joven, rebelde y altanera. Nuestra imagen ya no es la de una acaudalada ricachona mayamera. En nuestro rostro brilla ahora la sonrisa del Che Guevara, con su diente delantero torcido, su pelo largo y su boina con la estrella.



Entender esto, a mi me ha tomado practicamente toda la vida. Tengo 53 anos, y ya perdi mi oportunidad de derramar sangre joven a causa de un ideal.



Ustedes son jovenes, estan en la flor de la vida. No cometan por favor el error de renunciar a su instinto de rebelion. El Che Guevara fue Ministro de a Economia en Cuba. Los billetes y las monedas se adornaban con su rostro. Nada de eso le importo. Primero fue a Angola donde paso un penoso ano de combate. Despues se fue a Bolivia, donde encontro la muerte. El Che era el ultimo que comia, el que cargaba la mochila mas pesada. Siempre se sacrificaba por los demas en un estoicismo que mas parecia fervor religioso que ideologia marxista.



Si quieren un modelo de vida. Ahi lo tienen.



Dije hace unos momentos que el 97% de la poblacion de la UNELLEZ es estudiante. Se imaginan Ustedes la Universidad que podriamos tener si todos los estudiantes tuvieran la abnegacion, la combatividad del Che?



Los momentos que se avecinan van a requerir de una gran unidad del pueblo venezolano. La alternativa de continuar siendo libres o regresar a la pobreza se nos planteara en los proximos dias de forma enmascarada, o quizas peor, desenmascarada, vestida con uniforme de soldado del Imperio.



Por nuestra parte podemos esperar lo mejor. La macroeconomia no podria ir mejor, la justicia social ha mejorado notablemente. Las misiones ocupan un papel muy importante en el pago de dicha justicia social. Aqui en Barinas ya hemos cumplido con dos de las misiones, la mision Robinson y la mision Sucre. No hay analfabetismo y no hay exclusion en la educacion superior, en estas tierras de Zamora.



Pero ay malhaya! Son precisamente estos exitos los que nos hacen mas antipaticos al Imperio. Para ellos, somos inclusive un mal ejemplo que se esta contagiando al resto del continente y cuidado sino al resto del mundo.



Nunca venceremos al Imperio. Estara siempre ahi, acechando. Por lo menos hasta que el mismo no se autodestruya. Porque, sepanlo senores, el neoliberalismo es canibal. Cuando le ataque el hambre, se devorara a si mismo.



Ustedes, queridos graduandos, a partir de hoy pasan a conformar la elite profesional que debe sostener este pais en los proximos cuarenta o cincuenta anos. Anos decisivos para el logro de nuestra libertad y del rescate de nuestra Soberania.



No se dejen comprar. No se dejen corromper. No se dejen gritar. No se dejen pisar. Que nadie les diga que comer, o que vestirse, o que leer. Sean siempre autenticos, rebeldes, contestatarios. Pero eso si, profundamente patriotas, dignos de ser hijos de Bolivar.



Muchas gracias y que Dios los bendiga.





Alguna duda?



Medio siglo de Holocausto Palestino



Oscar Zanartu Nacio en Caracas en 1960. Ha realizado exposiciones individuales en las galerias Minotauro, Clave y San Francisco, y en salas de Coro, estado Falcon, y Puerto Ordaz, estado Bolivar. En Paris su obra ha sido exhibida en el Centro Cultural Tanagra, en la Exposicion Cite Internationale des Arts, en las galerias De Mars y Arver Space, al igual que en la Galeria Municipal Levallois, en Levallois Perret (Francia). En muestras colectivas, su obra se ha expuesto en Belgica, Francia, Estados Unidos y Venezuela; en Caracas intervino en la exposicion "Del genesis a la memoria", 1995, organizada por la Fundacion La Previsora. En 1982 obtuvo el Premio Nacional Critven y en 1990 la Mencion de Honor Jose Antonio Paez, en la Embajada de Venezuela en Paris. En 1991 se le concedio el primer premio de Pintura Itinerante, en Levallois Perret, Francia.



OZ1



OZ2



OZ3



OZ4



Homenaje a Jason Galarraga



La Victoria de Samotracia



Odalisca



Mas fotos de la nevada del pasado agosto 2008



























La Sierra Nevada de Merida



Nuestro precioso Churum Meru



Homenaje a Picasso



Autoretrato



Sabes lo que bebes en una Coca-Cola?

La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar.

Mi profesion?

Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos.

Sal en la Coca Cola?

A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar.

De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla:

Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gusto

Acido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido)

azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa)

Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantas

Mucha Cafeina

Conservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o Potasio

Dioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebe

Sal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracion

El uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja.

Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos.

Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja.

En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero).

Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma.

La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate.

Bebidas Light?

Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el

Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal.



Publicado por loretahur



En realidad, la formula secreta de la Coca-Cola se puede detallar en 18 segundos en cualquier espectrometro optico, y basicamente la conocen hasta los perros. Lo que ocurre es que no se puede fabricar igual, a no ser que uno disponga de unos cuantos millones de dolares para ganarle la demanda que te metera la Coca-Cola ante la justicia (ellos no perderian).La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar.Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos.A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar.De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla:Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gustoAcido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido)azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa)Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantasMucha CafeinaConservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o PotasioDioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebeSal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracionEl uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja.Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos.Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja.En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero).Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma.La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate.Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el aspartamo , despues de tres semanas mojado, pasa a tener gusto de trapo viejo sucio.Para evitar eso, se agregan una infinidad de otros productos quimicos, uno para alargar la vida del aspartamo, otro para neutralizar el color, otro para mantener el tercer quimico en suspension porque sino el fondo de la gaseosa quedaria oscuro, otro para evitar la cristalizacion del aspartamo, otro para realzar el sabor, dar mas intensidad al acido citrico o fosforito que perderia su sabor por el efecto de los cuatro productos quimicos iniciales... y asi sucesivamente.Un consejo final !!Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal.Publicado por loretahur

MARGARINA o MANTEQUILLA La margarina fue producida originalmente para engordar a los pavos; cuandolo que hizo en realidad fue matarlos.Las personas que habian puesto el dinero para la investigacion quisieronrecobrarlo asi que empezaron a pensar en una forma de hacerlo.Tenian una sustancia blanca, que no tenia ningun atractivo como comestible,asi que le anadieron el color amarillo, para venderselo a lagente en lugar de la mantequilla.Que tal esa?... Ahora han sacado algunos nuevos sabores para vender mas alos incautos como usted y yo.CONOCE USTED la diferencia entre la margarina y la mantequilla?Siga leyendo hasta el final... porque se pone bastante interesante!Comparacion entre mantequilla y margarina:

1.- Ambas tienen la misma cantidad de calorias.

2.- La mantequilla es ligeramente mas alta en grasas saturadas: 8 gramos,comparada con los 5 gramos que tiene la margarina.

3.- Comer margarina en vez de mantequilla puede aumentar en 53% el riesgo deenfermedades coronarias en las mujeres, de acuerdo con un estudiomedico reciente de la Universidad de Harvard.

4.- Comer mantequilla aumenta la absorcion de gran cantidad de nutrientesque se encuentran en otros alimentos.

5.- La mantequilla provee beneficios nutricionales propios mientras lamargarina tiene solo los que le hayan sido anadidos al fabricarla.

6.- La mantequilla sabe mucho mejor que la margarina y mejora el sabor deotros alimentos.7.- La mantequilla ha existido durante siglos mientras que la margarinatiene menos de 100 anos.

Ahora... sobre la margarina:

1.- Es muy alta en acidos grasos trans. (Si, esos que recien ahora loscientificos descubrieron que son malisimos y los gobiernoscomenzaron a prohibirlos) .

2.- Triple riesgo de enfermedades coronarias.

3.- Aumenta el colesterol total y el LDL (el colesterol malo) y disminuye elHDL (el colesterol bueno).

4.- Aumenta en cinco veces el riesgo de cancer.

5.- Disminuye la calidad de la leche materna.

6.- Disminuye la reaccion inmunologica del organismo.

7.- Disminuye la reaccion a la insulina.

Y he aqui el factor mas inquietante (AQUI ESTA LA PARTE MAS INTERESANTE! ):A la margarina le falta UNA MOLECULA para ser PLASTICO...!!Solo este hecho es suficiente para evitar el uso de la margarina de porvida, y de cualquier otra cosa que sea hidrogenada (esto significaque se le anade hidrogeno, lo cual cambia la estructura molecular de lassubstancias).Usted puede ensayar lo siguiente:Compre un poco de margarina y dejela en el garaje o en un sitio sombreado.Dentro de unos dias notara dos cosas:

* No habra moscas; ni siquiera esos molestos bichos se le acercaran (esto yale debe decir a usted algo).

* No se pudre ni huele mal o diferente porque no tiene valor nutritivo; nadacrece en ella. Ni siquiera los diminutos microorganismos puedencrecer en ella.Por que? Porque es casi plastico!!



No a la guerra, Si a la Paz



Misterios de la ciencia...



Los costos de la guerra



medicos y capitalismo...



Capitalismo...



medicos (2)



Quien educa a nuestros hijos?



Los Medios...



Sin Palabras...



Chistes feministas

- Cual es el problema, Eva?

- Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz...

- Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas.

- Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas...

- Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti.

- Que es un hombre?

- Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente.

- Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente.

- Cual es el truco?.

- Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion.

- Cual?

- Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer.





Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas?  Porque todos son unos cerdos

Un dia, en el Paraiso, Eva llamo a Dios: Tengo un problema.- Cual es el problema, Eva?- Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz... - Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas.- Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas...- Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti.- Que es un hombre?- Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente.- Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente.- Cual es el truco?.- Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion.- Cual?- Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer.Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas?  Porque todos son unos cerdos

Ellas...



Ellas (2)...



Tres venganzas femeninas VENGANZA NUMERO 1

Hoy mi hija cumple 21 anos y estoy muy contento porque es el ultimo pago de pension alimenticia que le doy, asi que llame a mi hijita para que viniera a mi casa y cuando llego le dije:

-Hijita, quiero que lleves este cheque a casa de tu mama y que le digas que: Este es el ultimo maldito cheque que va recibir de mi en todo lo que le queda de su puta vida!!! Quiero que me digas la expresion que pone en su rostro.

Asi que mi hija fue a entregar el cheque. Yo estaba ansioso por saber lo que la bruja tenia que decir y que cara pondria.

Cuando mi hijita entro, le pregunte inmediatamente: -Que fue lo que te dijo tu madre?

-Me dijo que justamente estaba esperando este dia para decirte que no eres mi papa!



VENGANZA NUMERO 2

Un hombre que siempre molestaba a su mujer, paso un dia por la casa de unos amigos para que lo acompanaran al aeropuerto a dejar a su esposa que viajaba a Paris.

A la salida de inmigracion, frente a todo el mundo, el le desea buen viaje y en tono burlon le grita:

- Amor, no te olvides de traerme una hermosa francesita Ja ja ja!!

Ella bajo la cabeza y se embarco muy molesta.

La mujer paso quince dias en Francia.

El marido otra vez pidio a sus amigos que lo acompanasen al aeropuerto a recibirla.

Al verla llegar, lo primero que le grita a toda voz es:

- Y amor me trajiste mi francesita??

- Hice todo lo posible, - contesta ella - ahora solo tenemos que rezar para que nazca nina.



VENGANZA NUMERO 3

El marido, en su lecho de muerte, llama a su mujer. Con voz ronca y ya debil, le dice: - Muy bien, llego mi hora, pero antes quiero hacerte una confesion.

- No, no, tranquilo, tu no debes hacer ningun esfuerzo.

- Pero, mujer, es preciso - insiste el marido - Es preciso morir en paz.

Te quiero confesar algo.

- Esta bien, esta bien. Habla!

- He tenido relaciones con tu hermana, tu mama y tu mejor amiga.

- Lo se, lo se Por eso te envenene, hijo de puta!!!



machismo y cibernetica



Chiste machista La NASA ha enviado al espacio una mision experimental tripulada por dos monos y una mujer.Apenas abandona la atmosfera, se establece comunicacion con Houston.

-Atencion, simio 1, verifique sistemas hidraulicos, controle adecuada presion de los propulsores de arranque. A 60.000 pies disminuya un 25% la velocidad.

El simio hace la sena de OK.

-Atencion, simio 2, nivele al cruzar la estratosfera y active sistemas anticongelantes. No olvide monitorear sistemas de comunicacion e indicadores de presion. Comprendido?.

El simio hace la sena de OK.

-Atencion, Houston llamando a mujer: no se olvide.

-Mujer: Si, si, ya se! -interrumpe enojada- que no me olvide darles de comer a estos monos de mierda y que no se me vaya a ocurrir tocar nada!.



.Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti.

Un abogado mantiene un romance con su secretaria.Al poco tiempo, esta queda embarazada y el abogado, que no quiere que su esposa se entere, le da a la secretaria una buena suma de dinero y le pide que se vaya a parir a Italia.Esta pregunta: Y como voy a hacerte saber cuando nazca el bebe ? El abogado responde: Para que mi mujer no se entere, tan solo enviame una postal y escribe por detras: Spaghetti. Y no te preocupes mas, que yo me encargare de todos los gastos.

Pasan los meses y una manana la esposa del abogado lo llama al bufete, algo exaltada: Querido, acabo de recibir el correo y hay una postal muy extrana viene desde Italia. La verdad, no entiendo que significa.El abogado, tratando de ocultar sus nervios, contesta:Espera a que llegue a casa, a ver si yo entiendoCuando el hombre llega a casa y lee la postal, cae al suelo fulminado por un infarto.Llega una ambulancia y se lo lleva. Ya en el hospital, el jefe de cardiologia se queda consolando a la esposa y le pregunta cual ha sido el evento que precipito tan masivo ataque cardiaco.

Entonces la esposa saca la postal y se la muestra diciendole: No me explico, doctor; el solamente leyo esta postal. Vea usted mismo lo que trae escrito.Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti."Tres con salchicha y albondigas y dos con almejas



Gol !!!!



Chistes de Borrachos Entra un borracho a su casa todo manchado con lapiz labial por todos lados hecho un desastre, y la mujer le pregunta:-Hombre que te paso?Y el borracho le responde:-No me vas a creer, me pelee con un payaso!



Este es un borracho que entra en un bar y le dice al camarero:-Me da cinco copas de whisky?Al rato:-Me da cuatro?Al rato:-Me da tres copas?Despues:-Me da dos copas?Luego le dice:-Me da una copa?Y le dice al camarero:-Ves? Cuanto menos bebo, mas borracho estoy!


The parents of a group of little Congolese girls who were savagely raped during a three-year reign of terror in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) took the stand today in a landmark trial, where Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) has provided technical support in gathering forensic evdience. Twelve parents, their identities hidden by head-to-toe coverings and voice modification technology, told the court from behind a screen how their daughters had been dragged from their homes in the middle of the night, raped, and dumped near their homes or in fields surrounding the village of Kavumu. At one point, a child survivor who was sitting behind the witness screen with her mother broke into sobs as the mother, identified only as P17, recounted how she had found the little girl lying on the ground in front of the familys home. The girl was escorted outside by a court psychologist. Eighteen defendants, including Congolese lawmaker Frederic Batumike, are charged with kidnapping, raping, and mutilating 46 girls  some of them as young as eight months old  over a three-year period ending in 2016 with the arrest of Batumike and his alleged colleagues. Batumike, who allegedly heads a militia that is accused of carrying out the rapes, had earlier tried to hold up proceedings by seeking the recusal of two of the military judges trying the case, but the request was rejected by an independent court. Batumike, who is also accused of having ordered the murders of two opponents, then said he would no longer cooperate with the court, citing his right to remain silent, and instructed his attorneys to stand down. The court ordered him to testify and appointed him court attorneys. PHR has worked closely for years with local medical professionals, police and military investigators, and lawyers to gather evidence of the rapes. During the trial, PHR and local and international partners successfully advocated to protect the identities of witnesses and survivors by seeking permission from the court to use voice-modification technology, to be identified by a number instead of by name, to testify behind a screened-off area, and to testify in a closed court that would not be open to the public. PHR also worked with partners to seek the courts approval not to retraumatize the child survivors by requiring them to testify in court, relying instead on video testimony of the children documented by PHR and its partners. The expertise of PHR and local police partners was also called upon to examine cell phone records as a means of establishing that the 18 defendants were part of a structured group, whose actions could be considered as organized and systematic. Many of the accused come from Kavumu. The mobile court, a mechanism for allowing trials to take place in the communities in which crimes occurred, last week traveled with some of the defendants to neighborhoods in Kavumu where the rapes took place; there, former neighbors recognized the accused men, countering the mens claims that they had never lived in the area and did not know each other. Proving that the defendants not only knew each other but were part of an organized militia is a critical part of the prosecutions case. The proceedings will continue through next week.
Adam Colver digital editor Adam Colver is the online editor at The Post-Star. He manages poststar.com, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram social media accounts. Follow Adam Colver Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

The Adirondack Park Agency on Thursday approved the site plan for a new campground, equestrian and two day use areas to transform the former Frontier Town site in North Hudson.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled the master plan in his 2017 State of the State address to establish a "Gateway to the Adirondacks" at Exit 29 of the Northway.

The master plan includes a $13 million state investment through the New York Works program to develop the new DEC campground

According to a news release, the project will be constructed on approximately 91 acres of land owned by the town of North Hudson and Essex County.

The site will connect to an existing trail network along state Route 9 and part of the Schroon Lake-North Hudson Snowmobile trail network. The trails will also connect to the Hammond Pond Wild Forest to the east, the Vanderwhacker Mountain Wild Forest on the west, and the Palmer Pond Bridge connection on the west, leading to publicly owned lands, including the Boreas Ponds and Essex Chain Lakes Complex.

For more details on the plan view the accompanying document.

Two initial public information sessions on the project will be held Monday, Dec. 11, from 3 to 4:30 p.m., and from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Town of North Hudson Town Hall.

As for a timeline, depending on approval of the APA permit application, DEC anticipates site work will begin in February. The all-season day-use area is expected to open in fall 2018, and it is anticipated that the Frontier Town Campground, Equestrian and Day Use Area will be operational by summer 2019.
QUEENSBURY  Slightly more than two years ago, the town had two RadioShack stores. In less than three weeks, it will have none.

The RadioShack store at 797 Route 9 in the Northgate Plaza will be one of 16 corporate-owned stores that will close Dec. 31.

RadioShack has closed more than 1,000 stores this year, and only 12 of the 28 corporate-owned stores will remain open after the end of the year.

There are 425 independent stores owned as franchises, but the closest to the region is 50 miles away in Vermont. The franchise stores carry RadioShack-branded products, as well as items that would not normally have been carried in RadioShack stores.

The other local RadioShack store, in Aviation Mall, closed in 2015 after being open for nearly 40 years. The stock from that store was transferred to the Queensbury store that is now closing.

RadioShack, which was extremely successful during the CB radio craze of the 1970s and the early days of personal computing in the following decade, was founded in Boston in 1921. It has declared bankruptcy twice and its intellectual property is now owned by Kensington Capital Holdings, one of its creditors.

The latest round of closings includes three RadioShack stores in Colorado, Texas and New York. The other in-state stores closing are in Northport, Kingston, New Paltz, Carmel, Yonkers and West Seneca.

The closest affiliate that will remain in New York is in Cooperstown. The companys corporate headquarters building in Houston was also closed this year.

At one time, RadioShack had more than 7,300 stores.

A RadioShack spokesman was not available for comment Monday.
FORT EDWARD  Fort Edward Historian R. Paul McCarty never imagined he would be adding Charlie Brown to the Old Fort House Museum collection.

The famous Peanuts character is currently on display at the museum, part of a recent donation of 20th-century toys from Martha Dallas, a longtime museum visitor and collector.

Visitors will be able to see some of the toy collection from 1 to 4 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The museum will host a Candlelight Christmas tour from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday.

The Old Fort House started decorating for Christmas back in 1975 when it hosted a dinner for the re-enactment of the Henry Knox Cannon Trail, the movement of cannons from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston during the Revolutionary War.

For several years after that, the museum welcomed the public to view its decorations every holiday season.

But that was before you had all these festivals of trees, which have come on in the last 15 years, and there are a lot of them, McCarty pointed out. We were the Christmas destination for a long time.

The museum has once again opened its doors and museum organizers have decked the historic halls with what he calls eye candy to kick off the museums 90th year.

Right now, nearly every room in the house is decorated with different period trees, and a huge evergreen snakes up the stairwell reaching the second floor.

This is a fun house to decorate, McCarty said Friday as he walked from room to room.

During a tour, McCarty will chat with museum visitors about the desk that belonged to Alexander Hamiltons father-in-law, Philip Schuyler. It is rumored that Alexander Hamilton studied law in Philip Schuylers law library, McCarty said.

Theres good probability that he could have touched this, McCarty said.

The 1940s kitchen houses an old ice box and toaster as well as many 20th-century kitchen items. Near the fireplace in the tavern sits a small childs crutch next to a copy of Dickens A Christmas Carol. The tree in the Solomon Northup room upstairs is decorated in Civil War-period greenery.

The wallpaper in the house was all made in Kingsbury and Glens Falls, McCarty said. It was made for the house when it opened in 1953. Were a regular local history museum inside and out. Even the papers hanging on the walls have significance.

Many of the rooms boast toys from Martha Dallas, who retired in Cambridge after a top-secret career at the Pentagon, McCarty explained.

Weve only begun to look at it, categorize it, catalogue it and so forth, McCarty said. It is a huge, huge, huge collection.

Dallas, who died in the past year, comprehensively collected some 19th-century, but mostly 20th-century toys.

She was quite a person, McCarty said, and a very interesting, a very knowledgeable person to talk to.
GLENS FALLS  Glens Falls is seeking more state funding to assist in its redevelopment of South Street.

EDC Warren County President Edward Bartholomew said he is in the process of finishing an application to obtain grant funding through the Restore New York program. The deadline is Friday.

The buildings being targeted are the former Hot Shots building at 45 South St. and a former garment factory and warehouse next door at 36 Elm St.

The city is not planning to demolish those buildings, according to Bartholomew. He said he is envisioning mixed use with some retail on the first floor and office space and market-rate apartments on the upper floors.

Bartholomew said the city is looking at additional pieces of property in the vicinity to include and discussion with those owners are ongoing.

We have a short period of time to come to any agreement with any other property owners in the area, he said.

If were unsuccessful on reaching agreements with those property owners, then those properties will not be part of the application, he added.

He did not state the properties in question. Also along that block is the vacant Sandys Bar, which has been closed since September.

Between $500,000 and $1 million in Restore New York funding is available for cities the size of Glens Falls, according to Bartholomew. However, he said the state awards funding on a formula that takes into account the cost of construction in that region, the economic distress of the city and the size of the buildings being renovated.

Were not going to be coming near the $1 million mark because the buildings and areas were looking at are not that significantly large, he said.

Glens Falls is only deemed moderately distressed, Bartholomew said. However, the city will receive additional bonus points because it has been awarded nearly $10 million through the Downtown Revitalization Initiative.

The city is also receiving points because the old garment factory is classified as a brownfield.

The building has a clean bill of health. Its been approved by DEC, Bartholomew said.

The property is also located in an Empire Zone, which still receives points for this application, although the state is no longer funding that program.

Bartholomew said there is a matching component required with the DRI. Usually, matching a state grant with another state grant is not permitted, but with the DRI it is.

The Restore funds for the city will allow us to be able to stretch our dollars form the DRI further, he said.

The city has been successful in receiving Restore New York funding in the past such as a half-million dollars for the Peter Hoffman project to redevelop the former Empire Plaza into Warren Street Square.

Last year, Glens Falls was unsuccessful in its application for Restore New York funds to expand the ballroom at the Queensbury Hotel to a 400-person capacity. He said the project did not meet the states criteria that the building be vacant or nearly vacant or the owners have walked away from the property.

Thats more prevalent in some larger cities in New York state, he said.
FORT EDWARD  A Hudson Falls man who violated probation on a child sex conviction admitted Friday that he violated probation and is headed to prison for 3 years.

Lawrence "Ox" Loveday, 40, admitted Friday that he did not disclose an email account and social media accounts when registering as a sex offender.

Loveday is on probation for a first-degree sexual abuse conviction that stemmed from an incident in which he fondled a 7-year-old child in 2015. Hudson Falls Police arrested him in September 2016, after the girl disclosed the abuse.

Loveday went to trial in the case last January.

But he got a favorable plea deal during his trial. A juror in the case was found to have had lunch with a court staff member the first two days of proceedings and to have failed to disclose she knew the staffer. A standard question during jury selection is whether a prospective juror knows anyone who works in the court or criminal justice systems.

He was arrested last month for violating probation and is being held in Washington County Jail, pending sentencing later this month. Washington County Judge Kelly McKeighan agreed to impose a 3-year prison term, to be followed by 9 years on parole.
WILTON  A Corinth man has been charged with grand larceny for allegedly stealing more than $2,900 worth of money, equipment and valuables from his employer, police said.
EASTON  Dozens of farmers and agricultural supporters came to the Washington County Fair office Friday afternoon to discuss the federal 2018 Farm Bill with State Agricultural Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets Richard Ball.

Funding in the Farm Bill pays for many programs that benefit farmers, including crop insurance, agricultural research, energy efficiency, disaster relief, rural development, milk price supports and forestry, Ball said. About half of the bill covers federal food aid for low-income people.

Congress approves a new version every five years. The time is now to get our input in on it, Ball said. The current federal administration wants to push a greater share of costs onto the state, he said, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo is concerned about how federal cuts to food aid and farmers could impact New York.

Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner, D-Round Lake, said Ball has been doing a listening tour about the bill around the state. She invited Ball to Washington County so he could hear from Saratoga and Washington county farmers.

In response to a question about immigrant farm labor, Ball said legislation has been proposed to reform the federal H2A program, but revisions have weakened it. For agriculture, The biggest limiting factor we have in New York and the country is labor. We dont have enough of it, Ball said. Mexico and the U.S. both have labor problems. The American Farm Bureau Federation is working on the issue and believes that new staff coming into the USDA may be able to make improvements, he said.

Hartford Town Supervisor Dana Haff asked about making industrial hemp cultivation easier for small farmers. Hemp farmers must pay a $500 fee every three years to register for Cornell Universitys industrial hemp program, he said, which puts the crop out of reach for most small growers.

Were pushing the envelope in New York pretty hard on this one, Ball said. More than 2,000 acres were planted to industrial hemp in New York this year, he said. More clarity about hemp in the farm bill would help, Ball said.

A dairy farmer was concerned about proposals to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. How do we protect our trading partners? he asked. 25 percent of American dairy exports go to Mexico, but the European Union and China are both starting to compete with America in the Canadian and Mexican dairy markets, he said.

Im optimistic that the three countries (in NAFTA) can come to an agreement, Ball said. Theyre apprehensive, just as we are.

Dr. Carie Telgen, a veterinarian with Battenkill Veterinary Bovine, said she was worried about the lack of funding to manufacture and store vaccines to prevent foot and mouth disease in livestock. We couldnt get vaccines soon enough when theres an outbreak, she said.

Ball said he was concerned as well. An outbreak would kill our livestock industry for a long time, he said. Coping with the avian flu epidemic several years ago led to the largest single USDA outlay in history, he said.

The dairy industry needs a safety net for milk prices, Ball said, but he has heard proposals to cut $20 billion from the milk price support program, a 20 percent reduction from the 2014 Farm Bill. Some non-governmental organizations such as the American Farm Bureau Federation are developing alternative programs, but they arent yet accessible to all dairy farmers.

A farmer asked about support for agricultural research and education. Every other listening session said the same thing, Ball said. Were being outspent two to one (on research) by China and Brazil. We need to pay attention to that. Coming legislation on food safety may spur lawmakers to allocate more money for research, he said.

Other comments involved encouraging young farmers, funds for soil conservation and farmland protection, air quality regulations, protecting the dairy label from plant-based milks such as soy and almond and inconsistent rulings when state inspectors come to a farm. One farmer who had just built a new barn complained about receiving a $6,000 bill from the state Department of Environmental Conservation because he had converted ground from permeable to impermeable.

Where did this come from? he asked. You should feel thankful it was only $6,000, another farmer responded, drawing laughs. Ball said hed have an aide look into it.

Congress is supposed to approve a farm bill by next September, Ball said, but the midterm elections may delay it.

Farm bills are typically late, Ball said. We all need to be active and say something.
QUEENSBURY  Warren County leaders heard Monday from a western New York official who told how his county took over operations of its airport, cut its losses and essentially breaks even on the airstrip after years of losses.

Tim Hens, the highway superintendent in Genesee County, said the county has run its airport between Rochester and Buffalo for about 20 years and accrues a surplus of between $90,000 to $130,000 annually. That surplus covers the costs of debt for improvements at the facility near Batavia.

We were losing $200,000 a year before the switch, he said. The airport was a very negative item.

That changed after the county took over, allowing for investment in upgrades on the property and a runway extension, he told Warren County supervisors and regional economic development leaders.

Warren County supervisors are trying to determine whether to fully privatize the airport to cut costs, but some have questioned whether doing away with a private fixed base operator (Rich Air LLC) and taking over flight operations in addition to the facilities management that is done by the county could be more financially beneficial.

The county extended the airports runway by 1,000 feet, to 5,500 feet, in 2005 and has had success attracting more traffic, including jets based at the airport, he explained. The airport has 3.5 full-time equivalent employees, and the county DPW handles snowplowing, grass-cutting and other maintenance, with airport revenue paying the tab.

By being aggressive when seeking grants and taking all of the fuel sales revenue, the financial picture has improved significantly.

Hens said his experience has been that running an airport with some public and some private resources seems to be problematic.

I think you have to be all one way or the other, he said.

County supervisors and members of the local Airport Advisory Committee quizzed Hens on different issues. Queensbury at-Large Supervisor Doug Beaty, a proponent of fully privatizing Warren County airport, pointed out that the Batavia airport is not making money. In a good year, youre going to break even.

Warren County supervisors asked Hens for more information about different aspects of the operation and also discussed potentially hiring him as a consultant as it moves forward seeking a potential privatization of the airport in Queensbury.

Glens Falls 1st Ward Supervisor Dan Girard, chairman of the county boards Facilities Committee, said the Genesee County input was information to help Warren County see what our avenues are.

The situation in Warren County may not line up on all fours with Genesee County, but it shows there are other options to take a look at, said Ed Bartholomew, president of the EDC Warren County economic development organization.
The need for help is greater this year, but several organizations that aid needy families at Christmas said this week donations are down, and they need a late rush to accomplish everything they have set out to do.

Others are having more success, but they anticipate a last-minute rush they will need help with.

Were struggling, said Frank Munoff, who coordinates Operation Santa Claus, which provides coats, hats, gloves and food for needy children. We have more kids this year, maybe 100 more, and we have increased the number of items from 50 to 60. Are we in need of donations? No question about it.

David Dean of the Salvation Army of Greater Glens Falls said this is the worst year he has seen in his decades of service. Lynn Stanton, adjutant of Memorial Detachment 2, said the Toys for Girls and Boys program will need more toys than it has.

Even at Family Service Association of Glens Falls, Executive Director Kimberly Sopczyk is preparing for last-minute requests.

Were very fortunate that for our Adopt-A-Family, we were able to help 475 children, but we have seen the need increase and we are expecting emergency referrals. We usually get about 25 of them, she said. We are seeing people we have never seen before, and theyre working.

Businesses pitch in

The good news for Munoff is that one of the Operation Santas main fundraising events is having an excellent year.

Peter Brock, of Sams Diner in Glens Falls, who does the Small Business Challenge, said his second big dinner, lasagna, raised $4,000, and as of Saturday, he had $21,000 on his way to a goal of $28,000.

Well collect until the 15th, but if people keep donating, we are not going to turn it down, he said. I will never refuse money for the kids.

A combination of factors seem to be playing into the slow start, but there are more than three weeks left and a number of drives and events across the region are still coming up.

Munoff said businesses and other groups are coming though, but what is missing this year is individual donations.

Its those checks that we usually get from people that are not coming in, he said. It used to be there would be five or six envelopes in the mailbox. Now there are not any.

Toys still needed

The Glens Falls Marine Corps League has received almost 300 applications for help from families representing 700 children in its Toys for Girls and Boys program.

Stanton is sending out acceptance letters and plans to have distribution of the toys Dec. 18 to 22.

But there is a lot of work to do between now and then.

We have currently filled just over half of the toy bags and like most years, we are running low on toys for children ages 10-12, both boys and girls, she said.

Bob Merchant, owner of the Backstreet BBQ and Tap Room in Lake George, recently held an event, and his business is also a toy drop-off site as part of an expansion to Lake George.

Stanton said she and her other volunteers have been very busy getting donations. Sunday, Middle Falls Fire Department joined with Cossayuna Fire to hold a joint breakfast to raise funds and collect toys for local distribution.

The local Marine Corps League has separated its toys program from the national Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program to better specifically serve local children.

The Toys for Tots train, which gets much more national publicity, came through the region Sunday and distributed toys to social-service agencies that will pass them on to needy youth. But all local groups are still looking for additional donations.

Kettles need help

For the Salvation Army, the Red Kettle campaign is a huge part of fundraising.

After Black Saturday (Nov. 25), we were $5,000 down on the kettles, Major David Dean said. On Monday, he said, We have six entrances we can cover at the Aviation Mall and we had one open. We just dont have the volunteers.

The group does have some volunteer associations stepping in. The Lake George Rotary Club spent all day Saturday, ringing at the Upper Glen Street Walmart, an important site.

Still, Dean said, This is the worst year I have ever seen in my life.

The Salvation Army also runs a series of other campaigns, and Dean said those are struggling as well. The mail campaign, where we solicit donations, has brought in less than half of what it usually has at this point.

Even some of the smaller groups, which serve as backstops for the those who fall through the cracks, do not have much to give.

We serve as a stop of last resort and we usually have toys in the closet for those who are really desperate, said Lynn Ackershoek of Warren-Hamilton Community Action, who has been at this for three decades and is not prone to overreacting. We need help.

Some success

The Stuff The Bus drive coordinated by Community Work and Independence produced 3.8 tons of goods last month.

A Convoy for the Albany region Toys for Tots by the Saratoga County Sheriffs Department brought in more than 22,000 toys after a goal was set for 13,000.

The large local meals, such as Hometown Thanksgiving and the Christmas breakfast, consistently do well with volunteers, but others are waiting on donations to see if they will be able to feed all those who need the food.

Devin Bulger at Comfort Food Community in Greenwich said, Things are moving along, but that his group has seen a 10 percent increase in people needing help with food issues.

Reasons for downturns

Those groups that are seeing fewer donations say they think there are a lot of reasons.

I think one of the things that happened was the we had the three big hurricanes so recently and people gave there, said Dean, who noted that after 9/11, donations went up.

Regionally, there have been a number of serious fires, and some fundraising events that usually go to holiday donations have benefited those people instead.

Every year, the Salvation Army is criticized for its supposed prejudice against gays and lesbians, something Salvation Army officials, including Dean, said is not true.

Dean had said the weather might have kept people out of the holiday spirit, but that changed with snow over the weekend and it will continue to be cold this week.

Duane Vaughn, executive director of the United Way, said he has seen some criticisms of larger non-profits on the internet.

We people do not realize is that there are 1,800 United Way organizations in the world, and less than 1 percent is used worldwide. We are a local organization, and we fund 10 organizations that cannot raise enough funding themselves on their own.
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Livewell Chiropractic hosts Bettendorf Connect event

Livewell Chiropractic & Wellness Center will host a Bettendorf Connect event 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14, at 3456 Holiday Court, Bettendorf. Appetizers and drinks will include wine from The Grape Live. Door prizes and free chair massages will be featured. The event is free.

BHS Child Development class seeks preschool participants

The Child Development class at Bettendorf High School invites children ages 2-4 years and their parents/guardians to attend classes on Thursdays in December. The visits allow students to learn about children at various developmental stages. Planned activities will feature free play, and student-child and student-parent/guardian interaction. Younger siblings also are invited. Snacks will be provided.

Visit times are 10-11 a.m. Dec. 21. Visitors must check-in at the attendance office. To register, contact Family and Consumer Science teacher Beth Kieffer at ekieffer@bettendorf.k12.ia.us or 563-332-7001.

Life Fitness Center offers girls self-defense classes

Life Fitness Center will offer a self-defense class for girls in December. Participants will learn how to avoid conflict, protect personal information, date safely and deal with bullying. Physical defense will be taught as a last resort.

The available class is:

Miss Independent, ages 13-15, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 16, $20

To register, visit the center at 2222 Middle Road or website at apm.activecommunities.com/bettendorf/home.

For more information, call 563-344-4119.

Christmas Star show has been digitally remastered

The annual Christmas Star program at the Donald A. Schaefer Planetarium at Bettendorf High School has been digitally remastered and will be shown on a renovated projection system that offers a 360 degree experience. The show runs Dec. 15 to 22 at 7 p.m., and is free of cost, though seating is limited. The planetarium has presented the program for more than 40 years. For reservations, call the BHS Activities Office at 563-332-4516.

Live Nativity to be held Dec. 16

St. James Lutheran Church will hold its annual Live Nativity Event from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 16. The free event tells the Nativity story and features actors, live animals and carolers. Visitors are also welcome to attend a free soup and dessert supper and crafts event inside the fellowship hall. Donations of canned goods for the St. James food pantry will be accepted, as will hats, mittens and coats for its sister parish, All Saints of Davenport.

The church is located at 1705 Oak St., Bettendorf. For more information, call 563-355-4161, visit stjamesbett.com or search Facebook for St. James Bettendorf.

Newly reconstructed Forest Grove Drive is open

The Forest Grove Drive Reconstruction Project between Devils Glen Road and International Drive reopened Dec. 12.

Phase II of the project replaced the former two-lane section of rural road with a three-lane concrete road that features a two-way left turn lane, on-road bike lanes and a 10-foot recreational trail on the south side.

The new wider pavement may accommodate four travel lanes if necessary. The minor work that remains will be completed as weather permits without interrupting traffic.

The reconstruction project was funded by an 80 percent federal, 20 percent city match federal aid award. The two-year project included Forest Grove Drive from the west city limits to International Drive.

For more information, contact the Bettendorf Public Works Department at 563-344-4055.

PVCSD receives AP honor

Pleasant Valley Community School District was recently placed on the 8th annual AP District Honor Roll. The district received the honor by having more students participating in AP courses and by increasing or maintaining the percentage of students scoring 3 or higher on AP exams since 2015.

According to the news release, reaching these goals demonstrates the district is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP work.

The district is one of 447 school districts in the U.S. and Canada to be honored by the College Board.

To view the complete AP District Honor Roll, visit apcentral.collegeboard.org/score-reports-data/awards/honor-roll.

LeClaire Chamber of Commerce events

Jan. 12-15: Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard, qcbeatourist.com.

Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard, qcbeatourist.com. Jan. 14: Bald Eagle Day, 2 p.m., LeClaire Civic Center, 127 S. Cody Road. Photo and video presentation by local wildlife photographer Burt Gearhart. Free and open to the public.

Bald Eagle Day, 2 p.m., LeClaire Civic Center, 127 S. Cody Road. Photo and video presentation by local wildlife photographer Burt Gearhart. Free and open to the public. Jan. 14: Taste of LeClaire, 1-4 p.m.
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CEDAR RAPIDS  For many Eastern Iowans hoping to ring in the New Year with a bang, finding fireworks for the celebration will prove much more inconvenient than just five months ago over the Independence Day holiday.

Earlier this year, the Iowa Legislature made it legal for the first time in nearly 80 years to sell consumer fireworks, establishing periods around the Fourth of July and New Years.

The law calls for sales in time for New Years celebrations to begin Sunday.

But facing intense public backlash over noise over the Forth and lingering safety concerns, many cities around the state have clamped down  reducing the days fireworks legally can be set off, or banning displays completely; and relegating firework sales to industrial zones only.

Thanks in part to the new restrictions, as well as a requirement in the state law that sellers must operate out of permanent structures and not tents in the winter, local governments are reporting theyve seen little to no interest by vendors for this sales period, which ends Jan. 3.

An exception could be Boom Boom Billys, a Shueyville fireworks vendor, which is in the process of getting approved to temporarily sell out of the South Expo Room at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids.

The city of Cedar Rapids as well as some of the other largest ones in Linn and Johnson counties  has yet to officially permit any fireworks sellers.

Were not really aware of what to expect, said Paul Myers, co-owner of Boom Boom Billys. If we have sales thatd be great. If we dont, at least we tried.

In announcing it would be selling out of its store near a Waterloo mall, Crossroads Fireworks  which had a big footprint in Iowa over the summer  predicted most other sellers would be sitting this one out.

We hear that in Iowa there will only be a twentieth of the number of fireworks retailers for December that there were in the summer, said a statement from Matt Reisetter, one of the stores owners.

Setting the stage

Before then-Gov. Terry Branstad signed the fireworks bill into law in May, Iowas regulations allowing only novelty fireworks like sparklers and snakes were among the strictest in the country. The first sales period, between June 1 and July 8, in Iowa arrived with a boom thanks to hundreds of retailers who received state licenses to sell out of stores and tents.

I knew exactly what was going to happen, is there was going to be a lot of out-of-state companies come in and try to basically profiteer on Iowans, Myers said. Whereas my stands, well, we employed local people. We gave back to the community in that regard ...

The new law appears to prohibit local entities from banning the sale of fireworks, but allows stricter rules on their use within cities or unincorporated areas.

Every citys been a little bit different depending on what the city council has been interested in. And then also just making sure were in line with the cities but then also the state rules, said Jeremiah Terhark, owner of Iowa Fireworks Co. The Urbandale-based company had temporary locations all over the state, including Cedar Rapids, during the summer but doesnt plan to sell this winter.

To legally sell fireworks, a vendor has to receive a license from the state and approval from the local government where it would sell.

Because state-issued licenses last for about a year, any vendor that received one for the first sales period and is located in a permanent building could  in the states eyes  sell again during the New Years period. Those vendors number upward of 300 in Iowa. But the vendors also must meet local regulations, which in several Corridor cities sharply limits the possibilities.

Terhark, who partnered with his brother, Zack, to start the company, said its primary focus was on selling from temporary structures over the summer, but it would evaluate that strategy going foreword.

I do think that Iowa is such a specific and small sales period that the retail structures might be a little bit more challenging to have for the entire year.., Terhark said.

Currently, the Iowa State Fire Marshals Office is in the process of adopting permanent rules to regulate fireworks retailers, said State Fire Marshal Dan Wood. The process now falls under emergency rules the office put together in the short period between when the law was signed and when it took effect.

Wood said the states application process includes submitting site plans, proof of insurance and a safety check list. After that, an inspection of the site is performed before a retailer receives its license.

Wood said he encouraged retailers to get the local approval first.

You can go through our whole process. Make it through, pay your fee and then the city can say, Sorry, you cant be at that particular spot, Wood said.

Frowning on fireworks

Some local entities like Iowa City had immediate negative reactions to the fireworks law  continuing to ban the use despite being required to adjust codes and ordinances to comply with sales.

Johnson County perhaps went the farthest, instituting a 90-day moratorium on fireworks sales while it could develop a policy. At the time, the senator who shepherded the fireworks bill questioned whether the county had legal authority to do so.

Des Moines took another angle  deciding to limit sales of fireworks to industrial zones, which effectively would prevent big-box retailers from selling out of their stores. Last June, a judge ruled in favor of Des Moiness right to impose the restriction after American Promotional Events sought an injunction, the Des Moines Register reported.

Since then, cities like Cedar Rapids and Iowa City have followed suit, passing ordinances limiting fireworks sales to industrial zones only.

Its just unusual that the regulations theyre trying to pass seem to be somewhat of an affront to what the state intentions were, but theyre well within their power to do it, Myers said. Theres other things out there that are legal but arent necessarily in societys best interest like alcohol or guns or things like that, but those sure seem to be legal.

Most recently, the Cedar Rapids City Council voted last week to ban the use of fireworks in the city limits, putting the city in line with Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty, among several others.

We do think that will impact sales next year, but at the same time I can understand the cities perspective because they want to keep people safe and there some people that didnt follow the rules that were in place, Terhark said.

Statewide slowdown

The New Years Eve sky in Iowa may not be very bright this year.

Cities across the state report they havent seen much interest from retailers yet for this sales period. The could be just as much because of the cold weather as it is the stricter rules.

As of the end of last week, Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty and Marion had yet to approve any retailers. Both Johnson and Linn counties have not had any interest, either.

Elsewhere, Davenport and Ames are also among those that report a lack of interest.

Its kind of cold outside to be using fireworks, so were trying to see if its a Fourth of July thing, Terhark said. Were resting up for next summer. Ill be curious to see what people do for New Years.
Thursday, Dec. 11, 1947 -- $61,000 Realized at Huge Farm Sale at DeWitt; 2,500 Attend

DeWITT, Iowa -- (Special) -- More than $61,000 was realized at the public auction of farm equipment, livestock and produce Wednesday at the Brunsway farm east of here in what was termed probably the biggest one-day sale of its kind in the cornbelt this year.

Thursday, Dec. 12, 1957 -- Students' Meals Get Attention

Students at Davenport High School, junior high schools and elementary schools are furnished with a series of meals in their school lunch program each day that is planned with nutrition in mind.

Wednesday, Dec. 13, 1967 -- Seek Death Ride Cause

Authorities today are still trying to determine why a car plunged into the Mississippi River near Sixth Street and River Drive, Bettendorf, Tuesday night, carrying Minnie Browner, 51, of 422 W. 10th Street, Davenport, to her death.

Wednesday, Dec. 14, 1977 -- Snickers Greet Farm Strike In Q-C

Farmers in other parts of the country may be up in arms, but the nationwide farm strike scheduled to begin today has generated little interest among farmers in a 10-county area surrounding the Quad-Cities. Most farm officials in Whiteside, Henry, Mercer and Rock Island counties in Illinois and Jackson, Scott, Cedar, Clinton, Muscatine and Louisa counties in Iowa Tuesday knew of no farmers to participate in the strike.

Tuesday, Dec. 15, 1987 -- Q-C area braces for wintry blast | First snow could hit 8-12 inches

Quad-City drivers began slipping and sliding Monday as the first snowstorm of the winter hit the area. Snow could pile up 8-12 inches today, according to the National Weather Service in Moline. That would make it the biggest snowfall in the Quad-Cities in several years.

Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1997 -- Steel service center comes to Rock Island | New site at industrial park leaves company room to expand

An Indiana-based company that operates steel service centers announced Monday it plans to build a center in the Southwest Industrial Business Park. Steel Warehouse Co. Inc. chief executive officer David Lerman said the company hopes to begin operations at the Rock Island center in July.

Monday, Dec. 17, 2007 -- Scott County finds fine way to boost funds

The Scott County Attorney's Office soon will be going after delinquents of a different type. Starting in January, the county attorney's office will go after delinquent fines as a way of boosting revenue for the county and Mike Walton's office.
A new clinic in downtown Rapid City offers a supplemental care option for those who have received that most dreaded of diagnoses: cancer.

Care Oncology Clinic, 910 Main St., Suite 120, is one of two such clinics worldwide offering trial treatments involving a cocktail mix of existing medications originally approved to treat other maladies, according to Travis Christofferson of Rapid City, CEO of Care Oncologys U.S. Division.

What Care Oncology is doing is filling this unmet need to try to realize the efficacy of these drugs, he said.

Christofferson is a 1990 graduate of Rapid City Stevens High School. He earned his undergraduate degree in microbiology from Montana State University and his masters in Material Engineering and Science from the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology.

After earning his undergraduate degree, he was accepted to attend the Sanford School of Medicine at the University of South Dakota, but at the last minute, he decided not to seek a medical degree.

I realized I liked the scientific part of medicine more than the clinical part of medicine, he said.

Christofferson took an independent study class on cancer while at Mines and that eventually led to his 2014 book Tripping over the Truth. The Metabolic Theory of Cancer, relating the development of a theory of how a cells flawed absorption of blood sugars, or metabolism, may lead to the growth and spread of cancer.

While on a lecture tour in London about a year and a half ago, he met research oncologists with London-based Care Oncology Clinic, which for the last four years had been researching the effects of off-target medications  drugs already approved to treat a particular condition but found to have potential for treating other diseases.

Care Oncology doctors there expressed a desire to expand to the United States.

We struck up a collaboration because were aligned scientifically to what theyre doing," Christofferson said. "So I convinced them to start small and expand right here in Rapid City, because Im obviously from here and we could work out the logistics from here."

Christofferson said there are thousands of so-called off-target drugs which wind up shelved, or stranded, once a separate beneficial effect is noted.

Pharmaceutical companies consider the off-target, off-patent generic drugs unworthy of the investment needed for new testing and recertification in treating other diseases.

Doctors call them financial orphans," Christofferson said. "These drugs sit there and languish. We know they have use, but theyve never realized their potential."

Care Oncology Clinics doctors and researchers sifted through data from thousands of generic drugs looking for indicators of anti-cancer effect and developed a combo of four drugs with the best potential of augmenting cancer care.

Their medicinal cocktail includes a proprietary mix of Glucophage (Metformin), a first-line treatment for Type 2 diabetes, Statins for treatment of high cholesterol, Mebendazole, an antifungal, and Doxycycline, an antibiotic.

The research is incomplete, but all have shown promise, in different ways, in interrupting the supply of nutrients to cancer cells, he said.

New medications must undergo years of clinical trials before being approved for use, and even then, their effectiveness and potential for toxicity and side effects may not be entirely known for years. The off-target drugs are already well-known and familiar.

The advantage of these drugs is that theyve been in the clinic for decades. We know the toxicology and side effects, he said.

The clinic charges a fee for its treatments, which are currently outside of insurance coverage, he said.

Christofferson is regularly meeting with Regional Health Pharmacists and Oncologists. Were hoping to get a closer relationship (with Regional), he said.

Christofferson emphasized that Care Oncologys regimen is not a replacement for other standard of care treatments, rather it is meant to supplement other cancer therapies, surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.

Our goal is to make standard of care work better. We cant say if it works better until we have all the data, he said.
BILLINGS  A fugitive captured in Mexico is due in a U.S. courtroom Tuesday on accusations that he orchestrated an elaborate scheme to export handguns to countries with restrictive gun laws.

Eric Daniel Doyle was indicted by a grand jury on federal firearms charges in 2015, but fled before he could be arrested and eluded authorities for more than two years.

Authorities allege the 37-year-old Kalispell man used the internet to set up handgun sales to customers in Australia, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. The weapons were shipped through the U.S. Postal Service.

Doyle pleaded not guilty during an initial court appearance last week. His attorney, Andrew Nelson, told The Associated Press that he had no comment on the case ahead of Tuesday's detention hearing in U.S. District Court in Missoula, Montana.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah Lynch will decide if Doyle remains a flight risk. He faces 44 counts of illegal gun exports and related crimes.

Details on the allegations against Doyle were unsealed by a federal judge following his capture Nov. 8 in the Mexican state of Sonora by a joint operation between local authorities and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Authorities allege that in 2014, at least 14 firearms  primarily high-caliber handguns  were shipped by Doyle to customers in Australia, Norway and Sweden, court documents show. The suspects also attempted to export at least one handgun to Denmark and four more to customers in Australia.

Court documents contained only the initials of the buyers. It was unclear if U.S. authorities had reached out to their counterparts in the destination countries to inform them of the sales.

In most cases, the serial numbers on the weapons had been obliterated, according to the 2015 indictment. Many of the guns had been obtained through a "straw purchaser" who would buy firearms from a licensed dealer on Doyle's behalf, according to the indictment.

Doyle had been prohibited from possessing firearms because of felony convictions in Illinois in 2006 on drug and burglary charges, according to public records.

Light sentences

Four alleged accomplices were previously sentenced. Among them was Doyle's uncle, Jay Isles, also of Kalispell.

In sentencing those defendants last year, U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy said the case had far-reaching implications because the alleged scheme's customers resided in countries with highly restrictive gun laws. Molloy rejected plea deals that had been offered by prosecutors for everyone in the case but Doyle, saying they were too lenient.

"This is the most obvious conspiracy that I have seen on 20 years on the bench," Molloy said in his sentencing order.

But after attorneys for the other defendants made their cases, Molloy ended up handing down relatively light sentences. The punishments ranged from time already served for Isles, to five years of probation with periods of home confinement for defendants Jeffrey Lee Palmer and Tanna Lee Meagher. Brian Spain received two years of probation.

Defense attorney Peter Leander, who represented Palmer, said his client had been taken advantage of by Doyle, who purported to be Palmer's friend. Prosecutors said in court documents that it was Doyle who first came up with the idea to use the internet to sell firearms to foreign customers.

"It was my impression that he was really manipulating and taking advantage of a lot of guys," Leander said. "The bad guy got away, literally and figuratively, and these guys were left holding the bag."
The Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully test fired an air-launched BrahMos-A supersonic cruise missile from a Sukhoi Su-30 MKI multirole air superiority fighter jet on November 22.

BrahMos is a joint venture between Indias Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Russias rocket design bureau NPO Mashinostroyeniya. The IAF, from January 2018, has signed a contract with Russian company for the delivery of air-launched BrahMos missile. Along with that three Su-30 MKI jest have been modified where in total of 50 Su-30MKI aircraft will be modified to carry nuclear-capable cruise missiles. There is also an estimate that IAF will induct at least 200 BrahMos attuned fighter jets for years to come.

Expert Kyle Mizokami has included this weapon in the list of the 5 most deadly missiles of all time in his article published by the US magazine National Interest. So not only this, BrahMos Aerospace has been engaged with seven countries in Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East for selling Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jets armed with BrahMos.

Over the years, India has been developing a series of missiles: Prithvi with a range of 150-350 km range was first tested in 1988; Agni-II with a range of 2000 km tested first in 1999; BrahMos with a range of 290 km was first tested in 2001; Agni-1 was tested in 2002 with 700 km range; Agni-3 with range of 3000 km first tested in 2006; K-15 submarine launched with 700 km first tested in 2008; Agni-4 tested first in 2010; 150 km range Prahaar ballistic missile first tested in 2011; Agni-5 with 5000 km range first tested in 2012; and Nirbhay cruise missile with 700 km first tested in 2013.

This continuous modernisation of missile programs and diversification of delivery vehicles, specifically cruise missiles, is likely to aggravate the arms race further and will increase instability in the subcontinent

Behind the curtain, the Kremlin is in fact continuing to arm India. So apart from flowing huge amount of lethal weapons that Moscow is selling to India is in fact making their duo more concrete setting dangerous precedent in the region. These jointly developed arm systems are not only making Indian armed forces more capable, but also setting a new precedent in the region for technological advancements.

Specifically, such advancement of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile needs to be observed in closed quarters by regional players, and its likely impact on the geopolitical hot spots. Certain areas such as the Himalayan region, the eastern Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, are the choke points where strategic interests will overlap with India and a number of Southeast Asian neighbours.

Among the other advantages which India gained by developing it is that it can be delivered from air, BrahMos improvements would fortify Indias capability to stab deep into Chinas and Pakistans territory, which has already been ramped up with the purchase of five Russian-built S-400 long-range air defence missile systems.

At the same time, this development by the Indian side will negatively impact deterrence stability in a number of ways. Cruise missile development with supersonic capabilities could place at risk a wide set of targets to precision strikes, lowering the nuclear threshold during crisis. This has prospects for weakening arms race stability. As its accuracy and range already been increased, with this development India could consider counterforce targeting options, thereby providing increased incentive to enlarge further their nuclear stockpiles. At the same time, this development by the Indian side will negatively impact deterrence stability in a number of ways. Cruise missile development with supersonic capabilities could place at risk a wide set of targets to precision strikes, lowering the nuclear threshold during crisis. This has prospects for weakening arms race stability. As its accuracy and range already been increased, with this development India could consider counterforce targeting options, thereby providing increased incentive to enlarge further their nuclear stockpiles.

Still drawbacks remain, this continuous modernisation of missile programs and diversification of delivery vehicles, specifically cruise missiles are likely to aggravate the arms race further and will increase instability in the subcontinent. India must understand that such developments would further increase anxieties among regional players in the region and their resolve to compete with each other.

Hence by the development of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile the implications are profound which shows that capabilities have diversified and grown to a new level of extent, conditions for war avoidance and crisis management have changed or may no longer apply, making deterrence stability more difficult to reinforce in crisis.

New Delhi have been concurrently developing new types of missiles and military doctrines, stimulating additional sources of insecurity in South Asia. In short, India is leading South Asia towards an unprecedented yet unimaginable danger. Massive military spending along with sophisticated technological innovation, India is stepping up towards great power status. It has been using military power as a coercive tool in achieving its strategic ambitions.

The writer is pursuing M.Phil degree at the Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad. He can be reached on Usmanalikhan6@gmail.com
Sea Launch in search of a way out

In 2017, the Russian space industry continued behind-the-scene efforts to revive the mothballed Sea Launch complex and to find potential new applications for the floating spaceport. Russian and Ukrainian officials looked at a politically viable way to resume the production of the Zenit rocket, while Roskosmos began work on a new booster compatible with the Sea Launch facilities. In parallel, experts in human space flight made an initial assessment of a possible role for the ocean-going launch pad in the support of Earth-orbiting space stations.

Previous chapter: Sea Launch home page

Sea Launch vessels moored at their home port of Long Beach, California.

From the publisher: Pace of our development depends primarily on the level of support from our readers!

Zenit production jumpstart still faces hurdles

According to the Yuzhmash production plant in Dnipro, Ukraine, in April 2017, it had received a contract from the S7 Sea Launch Limited for the production of 12 Zenit rockets.

Almost a year after the Russian airline S7 Group took over the troubled Sea Launch venture, the first payments from Moscow for the production of Zenit rockets has reached Yuzhmash. However the jumpstart of production still faced serious hurdles, industry sources said. Yuzhmash officials gave their Russian counterparts at the S7 Group a list of components which are no longer available for the Zenit. One of the most important items on the list is the ignition systems produced in the Lugansk region which has been taken over by pro-Russian rebels and remains practically cut off from the rest of Ukraine. The igniters burning black powder are used to initiate small solid-propellant motors which generate reverse thrust to facilitate the safe separation of the first and second stages during the ascent of the Zenit rocket to orbit.

According to industry sources, the S7 company has been so far unable to secure the delivery of Russian equivalents of the necessary hardware and materials, probably due to lack of permissions from Moscow. Instead, the S7 Group asked KB Yuzhnoe to organize the production of missing components in Ukraine. However, in the case of black powder, launching its production in Ukraine would not make economic sense due to lack of other applications beyond the very small amount required for the ignition systems, one source said.

Some observers question whether the S7 company has a real motivation to see the Sea Launch venture through because the airline with no prior experience in the space launch business ended up with the Sea Launch assets in its lap likely under pressure from the Kremlin.

Sea Launch seeks help from Roskosmos, proposes new applications

The private owner of the Sea Launch venture has proposed Russia's state-owned space industry to cooperate in the revival of the mothballed service. On Sept. 21, 2017, Sergei Sopov, Director General of the S7 KTS, which owns Sea Launch, sent a draft of a potential cooperation agreement to the Head of Roskosmos State Corporation Igor Komarov.

The document outlined areas of possible cooperation between S7 and Roskosmos on commercial launches from the sea-based facility. In addition to an offer to rejoin the competition on the international launch market, the document listed several new applications for the Sea Launch which would expand its potential customer base beyond foreign communications satellite operators.

First of all, the agreement would open the Sea Launch platform operating from the Equator to the Russian satellite developers, who until now have relied almost exclusively on launch vehicles based in Kazakhstan or Russia. In addition, the S7 and Roskosmos would cooperate in the development of a new-generation cargo ship which could lift off from the Sea Launch to re-supply manned orbital stations. Finally, S7 proposed to study a multi-functional orbital complex, which would be based on the Sea Launch. The new system would be used for launching, docking, assembling, fueling and servicing the Earth's orbiting vehicles, including those which were designed to climb to higher orbits or even head into interplanetary space.

In the long term, S7 envisioned refurbishing the Sea Launch platform to host the new-generation medium-class launcher developed in Russia and replacing the Ukrainian-built Zenit.

Human space flight experts evaluate Sea Launch potential

Given the latest proposals from the owners to employ the troubled Sea Launch for human space flight, in the fall of 2017, Roskosmos commissioned its experts to evaluate the feasibility of such a radical idea. First of all, engineers looked at potential cargo missions to the International Space Station, ISS, originating from the Sea Launch platform.

In the case of the yet-to-be-built Soyuz-5 rocket operating from Sea Launch, it would be possible to send a 17-ton cargo ship toward the ISS, instead of the 7-ton Progress-MS vehicles currently serving the Russian Segment of the station. Based on the estimate that the mass of the actual supplies could reach up to 50 percent from the mass of the spacecraft itself, Sea Launch-based Soyuz-5 could haul around eight tons of cargo to the ISS in each mission. Annual demand for deliveries to the Russian Segment of the ISS reaches around 11 tons and preliminary estimates show that the new-generation Russian Orbital Station, ROS, (proposed to succeed the ISS), will require around nine tons of supplies per year.

Based on these numbers, engineers compared the required annual flight frequency of a hypothetical cargo ship launched by the Soyuz-5 rocket based on Sea Launch with the existing Progress-MS spacecraft launched by Soyuz-2-1a rocket and with a prospective TGK PG cargo vehicle, which would be launched on Soyuz-2-1b:

Destination Progress-MS TGK PG Sea Launch-based cargo ship ISS, Russian Segment 4 flights per year 3.2 flights per year 1.4 flights per year Russian Orbital Station, ROS 3.3 flights per year 2.6 flights per year 1.1 flights per year

As in many previous proposals to replace Progress with larger cargo ships, the Sea Launch-based supply vehicle would certainly cut the cost of cargo delivery, but sharply reduce the flexibility of orbital operations due to low frequency of the flights. In addition, the Sea Launch-based cargo operations were found to present their own unique drawbacks.

For example, the pre-launch processing of cargo ships currently involves irreversible fueling operations, which have to be performed after all the dry cargo has already been loaded into the ship's pressurized section. Currently, the fueling of the cargo ship takes place around 10 days before launch. In addition, the fully loaded spacecraft has to be carefully weighted and balanced for a safe ride into orbit. As a result, the Sea Launch complex would have to be upgraded with specialized fueling equipment, while toxic propellant components would have to be shipped from Russia to the home port of Sea Launch vessels in the United States. It means that the processing team would also have to load most of the cargo and then weigh and balance the vehicle before the spacecraft could board the Sea Launch ship and before it set sail to its launching point on the Equator.

Given previous transportation of satellites by Sea Launch, the cargo ships could probably be adapted to do the same, but, currently, there is an option to upload a last-minute minor items into the spacecraft on the pad around three hours before liftoff. However, the highly automated Sea Launch complex does not provide access to the rocket, and thus, without modifications, it would prevent fast-reaction delivery of certain items, such as biological samples or other perishable materials.

Also, because the station-bound spacecraft have to undergo leak checks at the launch site, the Sea Launch complex would have to be equipped with a vacuum chamber. Alternatively, the vehicles could be transported in sealed containers doubling as vacuum chambers.

In the end, engineers concluded that additional analysis would be needed to evaluate the possibility of adapting cargo missions for the Sea Launch complex.

Launching space station modules

Human space flight experts also looked at the option of launching future Russian space station components, such as the airlock and inflatable modules from the Sea Launch platform. Because these pieces of the station are still on the drawing board, they could theoretically be enlarged for the Soyuz-5 rocket from their current configuration sized to fit into the Soyuz-2 rocket. However, such a major expansion from 7 to 17 tons would have to be justified and properly funded, because it would mean a higher price tag for the program. In the 1980s, Soviet add-on modules for the planned Mir-2 space station were sized for the Zenit rocket with similar lifting capabilities to those of the proposed Soyuz-5.

Similarly to cargo supply missions, launching space station modules from the Sea Launch platform, would require upgrading the facility with vacuum testing and on-site fueling capabilities.

The jury is still out

Despite a mixed initial verdict from human space flight experts, Roskosmos had little choice but to share responsibility for the Sea Launch complex with the S7 company. In November, the two sides signed a memorandum of intentions on the joint development and use of the Sea Launch complex.

In the meantime, the Sea launch vessels remain anchored at their home port of Long Beach, California, deprived of their crews and out of action...

Unbooked flights

The Sea Launch flight manifest was posted without much fanfare on the Russian-language version of the corporate web site for the Sea Launch venture, apparently, shortly after the successful campaign to launch the Zenit rocket with the Angosat-1 satellite on Dec. 26, 2017.

Although the schedule detailed all the launch dates with accuracy to a month, it listed no customers or their payloads to be carried during any of these missions. It was unclear, whether Sea Launch was in negotiations with any potential riders at the time.

The description accompanying the schedule also said that the permanent office of the S7 company had been established at the home port of the Sea Launch vessels in Long Beach, California, to handle the tasks of re-activating the facility and resuming launch operations. Based on estimates from a monitoring group, the complex would be ready for operations in 2018, the S7 Group said.

The company also announced that the Russian firms RKK Energia, Roskosmos State Corporation and the Ukraine-based Zenit manufacturer Yuzhmash would be partners in Sea Launch, which would be managed from Moscow by the S7 KTS company, also known as S7 Space.

Sea Launch flight manifest as of December 2017:

Mission Launch date Payload 1 2019 December ? 2 2020 April ? 3 2020 July ? 4 2020 December ? 5 2021 March ? 6 2021 June ? 7 2021 September ? 8 2021 December ? 9 2022 March ? 10 2022 June ? 11 2022 September ? 12 2022 December ?

Next chapter: Sea Launch in 2018

Read much more about the history of the Russian space program in a richly illustrated, large-format glossy edition:
Algerian media has panicked following the historic meeting in Abidjan between King Mohammed VI and South African President Jacob Zuma on the sidelines of the recent 5th AU-EU summit.

The Algerian media, after they largely commented on what they called a Polisarios victory since its leader, Brahim Ghali, was among the 80 heads of state and government attending the Summit, focused in stories and commentaries on the announcement of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between Rabat and Pretoria after a break of 13 years.

These media tried to convince their readers that despite this rapprochement, South Africa continues to recognize the Saharawi Republic SADR.

Speaking of the Polisarios so-called victory at the Abidjan Summit, the Algerian media forgot to mention that Brahim Ghali was completely isolated, as shown by photos and video footages of the Summit.

Apart from his appearance on the family photo and his presence along all other participants in a luncheon and dinner offered by the Ivorian President, Brahim Ghali and his delegation did not hold any bilateral meeting with any of the attending Heads of State and Government.

In contrast, there are media comments in Morocco about the rapprochement between Rabat and Pretoria, which is by the way disturbing Algeria, but there is no mention of an immediate withdrawal by Pretoria of its recognition of the pseudo-SADR, letting things take their course.

The Algerian media, so imbued by animosity against their Moroccan neighbors, also found it hard to accept the handshake between King Mohammed VI and their Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia. They peppered him with questions about his unexpected gesture that they deemed untimely.

On the other hand, President Zuma is to be commended for having paid tribute to the Moroccans for their support to Nelson Mandela and South Africa in their struggle for the abolition of the apartheid regime.

As far as the Algerian brothers are concerned, they have seemingly lost all memory of all the sacrifices made by Moroccans in the Algerian liberation war against the French occupier.

As a sign of recognition for these sacrifices, the Algerian regime has been closing the land border with Morocco for more than twenty years
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 Will any state really start conducting executions with opioids? | Main | Curious reminder of limits of empirical evidence showing federal sentencing disparity before modern guideline reforms 

December 11, 2017

"Assessing Risk Assessment in Action"

The title of this post is the title of this interesting new paper available via SSRN authored by Megan Stevenson. Though the paper addresses pretrial risk-assessment, I think folks interested in risk-assessment tools at sentencing should be interested in the findings. Here is the abstract:

Recent years have seen a rush towards evidence-based tools in criminal justice. As part of this movement, many jurisdictions have adopted actuarial risk assessment to supplement or replace the ad-hoc decisions of judges. Proponents of risk assessment tools claim that they can dramatically reduce incarceration without harming public safety. Critics claim that risk assessment will exacerbate racial disparities. Despite extensive and heated rhetoric, there is virtually no evidence on how use of this evidence-based tool affects key outcomes such as incarceration rates, crime, or racial disparities. The research discussing what should happen as a result of risk assessment is hypothetical and largely ignores the complexities of implementation. This Article is one of the first studies to document the impacts of risk assessment in practice. It evaluates pretrial risk assessment in Kentucky, a state that was an early adopter of risk assessment and is often cited as an example of best-practices in the pretrial area. Using rich data on more than one million criminal cases, the paper shows that a 2011 law making risk assessment a mandatory part of the bail decision led to a significant change in bail setting practice, but only a small increase in pretrial release. These changes eroded over time as judges returned to their previous habits. Furthermore, the increase in releases was not cost-free: failures-to-appear and pretrial crime increased as well. Risk assessment had no effect on racial disparities in pretrial detention once differing regional trends were accounted for. Kentuckys experience does not mean we should abandon risk assessment, but it should temper the hyperbolic hopes (and fears) about its effects. Risk assessment in practice is different from risk assessment in the abstract, and its impacts depend on context and details of implementation. If indeed risk assessment is capable of producing large benefits, it will take research and experimentation to learn how to achieve them. Such a process would be evidence-based criminal justice at its best: not a flocking towards methods that bear the glossy veneer of science, but a careful and iterative evaluation of what works and what does not.

December 11, 2017 at 04:57 PM | Permalink

Comments

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-facebook-live-beating-disabled-teen-20171208-story.html

The urban discount in action . . . ..

Posted by: federalist | Dec 11, 2017 7:27:39 PM

Should you scapegoat risk assessment?

"These changes eroded over time as judges returned to their previous habits."

Now, we are getting an automated, self administered, risk assessment, in the form of the opioid overdose crisis, with 60,000 deaths, delivered by Chinese made carfentanyl.

The Chinese have made sentencing jurisprudence unnecessary and obsolete. You lawyers have been outsourced.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 12, 2017 8:01:39 AM

Doug must have missed the urban discount in Chicago.

Posted by: federalist | Dec 13, 2017 6:44:21 AM

Doug is ablist. Crimes against handicapped people by black thugs are not a problem for him.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 13, 2017 7:42:37 AM

Sorry, fed, I missed your first comment busy with end-of-semester activities. In any event, three basic follow-ups:

1. I am never sure if your reference to "urban discount" is a claim that you think people in cities regularly get lower sentences or a claim that people of color regularly get lower sentences. Can you clarify what you mean/claim with this term?

2. Have you seen what prosecutors recommended? I see that charges are dropped in this plea deal and I wonder if this mostly reflects prosecutors here --- ala Robert Mueller --- cutting a (too) sweet deal with the first willing to plead to lesser charges.

3. The defendant here did serve a year in prison and now has a 4-year limit on social media access. You have been critical in that past, federalist, of 1st Amendment restrictions on offenders. Are you troubled by that part of the sentence here or it is different because he crime involved social media?

Posted by: Doug B | Dec 13, 2017 9:45:36 AM

So black crime victims are not alone in being devalued when their attackers are sentenced. Add the disabled to the list of the undervalued crime victims. Disability is a stronger factor of devaluation than race, according to this natural experiment. When the victim is disabled, the criminals are black, the black criminals get a discount. This effect should be tested in a death penalty study, for confirmation of discrimination, not against murderers, but against murder victims.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 14, 2017 8:16:46 PM

I don't believe that the social media restriction is constitutional. With respect to the Packingham case, my visceral reaction was with respect to the ex post facto problem, which should appall any of us. Not being able to go on social media is punishment, and it was not embodied in Packingham's criminal judgment.

However, I think I have come to the view that broad restrictions on social media for those who are not incarcerated (and yes, I am aware of the fact that the incarcerated don't have access) are unworkable and hence are unconstitutional.

This sentence is appalling. I think, Doug, you know it, and it provides yet another anecdote of an urban discount. It also shows that a hate crime against a white victim just isn't that big a deal. That's sad.

Posted by: federalist | Dec 16, 2017 7:28:43 AM

federalist, you are again using the term "urban discount" without explaining what you mean. So I will ask you again what you mean:

Q: federalist, when you reference an "urban discount," are you suggesting that persons in cities regularly get lower sentences or that people of color regularly get lower sentences?

There is no way, federalist, that I can "know" if this case "provides yet another anecdote of an urban discount" unless and until I know just what you mean by "urban discount."

What I do know is that the US Sentencing Commission issued a big data report last month which found that, in the federal system over the last four years, "Black male offenders continued to receive longer sentences than similarly situated White male offenders." The same report also found that "Female offenders of all races received shorter sentences than White male offenders" during the same period. https://www.ussc.gov/research/research-reports/demographic-differences-sentencing

This is data on federal sentencing patterns, not state sentencing patterns, but I am inclined to guess that these realities in the federal system can and should usefully inform our take on this Chicago case. Specifically, I suspect this offender's gender --- rather than where she lives or her skin color --- may be the most significant demographic variable explaining the judge's sentencing decision (though I continue to wonder about what prosecutors recommended to get her to testify against others).

I hope, federalist, I can get a simple answer to a simple question about a term you keep using if you want to claim I know something relative to this term. So I will repeat the question again hoping for a better chance of prompting a response: federalist, when you reference an "urban discount," are you suggesting that people in cities regularly get lower sentences or that people of color regularly get lower sentences?

Posted by: Doug B | Dec 16, 2017 12:00:08 PM

Post a comment
 Fascinating look at sentencing mitigation videos (and advocacy film festival) | Main | "Graduating Economic Sanctions According to Ability to Pay" 

December 10, 2017

Is due process satisfied by a "minimal indicia of reliability" standard for key sentencing evidence and determinations?

The question in the title of this post is prompted by an opinion issued earlier this year by the Supreme Court of Delaware in Smack v. Delaware, No. 601 (Del. Oct. 11, 2017) (available here). The first paragraph of the Smack opinion provides the basic facts and procedural issue:

Adrin Smack pleaded guilty to four counts of drug dealing, one count of possession of a firearm by a person prohibited, and one count of conspiracy second degree. At sentencing, the State claimed that Smack acted as a kingpin in a drug operation and should be sentenced to the fifteen years recommended by the State instead of the eight years recommended by the defendant. Smack requested an evidentiary hearing as part of sentencing, and argued that the State must prove his status as a drug kingpin by a preponderance of the evidence. The Superior Court denied Smacks request for an evidentiary hearing and ruled it could consider evidence offered by the State at sentencing if it met a minimal indicia of reliability standard. The court sentenced Smack to an aggregate of fourteen years at Level V followed by probation. Smack appeals and argues the Superior Court violated his due process rights by denying him an evidentiary hearing and applying the wrong burden of proof at sentencing. According to Smack, the State was required to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that Smack was a drug kingpin. Because this Court has previously upheld the use of a minimal indicia of reliability standard to consider evidence offered at a sentencing hearing, and due process does not require an evidentiary hearing, we affirm the Superior Courts decision.

Here is the heart of the Delaware Supreme Court's analysis of the issue and rejection of the defense's contentions (with footnotes removed):

First, this Court settled the evidentiary standard in Mayes v. State, holding that in reviewing a sentence within statutory limits, this Court will not find error of law or abuse of discretion unless it is clear from the record below that a sentence has been imposed on the basis of demonstrably false information or information lacking a minimal indicium of reliability. Smack argues Mayes does not apply because the standard was not contested. But the fact the standard was not at issue is irrelevant  the Court explicitly stated the sentencing judge comported with due process by relying on information meeting the minimal indicium of reliability beyond mere allegation standard. Subsequent cases rely on Mayes in applying this standard. Smack relies on a series of federal cases where the court applied a preponderance of the evidence standard to establish facts warranting a sentence enhancement under the federal sentencing guidelines. According to Smack, the same burden of proof should apply to the State when it argued for a harsher sentence based on Smacks status as a drug kingpin. The federal cases, however, are inapposite. Under the federal sentencing guidelines, the judge must find facts at sentencing using evidentiary burdens because those factual determinations can cause an increase in the sentencing ranges under the guidelines. Here, Smacks guilty plea resulted in a sentencing range of two to seventy-six years. To fix the sentence within that statutory range, the judge was entitled to consider all facts that had a minimal indicia of reliability  including the intercepted text messages and phone conversations that led to the seventy-seven charges of drug dealing brought against Smack. The court could and did find from these facts that Smack was more than a street-level drug dealer.

As hard-core sentencing fans know, the Supreme Court three decades ago in McMillan v. Pennsylvania, rejected a challenge to a Pennsylvania statute's use of a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard in the application of a mandatory minimum sentencing statute. Chief Justice Rehnquist in that opinion explained why the Court had "little difficulty concluding that ... the preponderance standard satisfies due process." Of course, aspects of McMillan were overturned in Alleyne v. US with respect to any fact-finding that formally alters any legal limit of a judge's sentencing discretion, but that decision itself stressed it was not contradicting "the broad discretion of judges to select a sentence within the range authorized by law."

Through communications with the attorney representing in the defendant in this case, I have learned that a cert petition is in the works. Given the remarkable reality that we have gone nearly 230 years into our constitutional history without having come close to settling just what due process means at sentencing, I think it would be great (and long overdue) for SCOTUS to take up a case like this.

December 10, 2017 at 09:02 PM | Permalink

Comments

The lawyer is too stupid to understand what is self-evident to everyone else, including prior Justices of the Supreme Court. Even the stupidest people in our country, prior Justices, understood it.

Sentencing has only one real benefit, incapacitation. The rest is lawless violation of the Establishment Clause, or lawyer quackery.

You give the Italian death penalty to a shoplifter. He is also a serial killing, drug kingpin, with 100 murdered victims in his past. All witnesses are too terrorized to testify. You will never reach a preponderance standard. The benefit of sentencing is incredibly high.

If you fine him $50, and warn him about shoplifting, sentencing is pro-criminal threat to our society.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 11, 2017 1:28:36 AM

What is the relevance of reliability? I thought under Crawford we got rid of the reliability standard. True, that is in a slightly different context but I think the point applies across the board. Whether a fact is /reliable/ or not has nothing to do with whether said fact is /true/ or /credible/.

So I don't see the problem here as a "minimum" vs "preponderance" of the evidence. I see the issue is why is the court sounding in reliability at all.

Posted by: Daniel | Dec 11, 2017 12:51:32 PM

I feel like we demand more of police before obtaining search warrants than this standard. Regardless, there was a similar issue in a DC case a couple years ago (Ball, I believe), but the Supreme Court denied cert. I suspect, one day, they'll have to address these issues of just what level of evidence is needed for a Judge to give a harsher sentence.

Posted by: Erik M | Dec 11, 2017 4:34:09 PM

Several factors are swirling in this case, and it's going to be a national landmark case, affecting Due Process.

1. Delaware State Prosecutors in Smack and one other case cited by Smack (Davenport v Phelps) are insisting minimal indicia of reliability is enough to decide guilt and sentencing. Del. Supreme Court decided appeals on basis of minimal. The State claimed in its "Replies" to the Federal 2254s that Smack & Davenport couldn't cite Federal cases of "preponderance" and impose those standards on State cases. WRONG !

2. State of Delaware sentencing Rule 1101 sets aside all those legal and moral standards of any case in determining guilt, stating that the Prosecution may present any evidence at sentencing (even new evidence) to the court. In both cases, State knowingly presented questionable and inaccurate information in an effort to enflame the court's decision-making process on a term of sentence. In Davenport, the material was withheld from Defense until the day before sentencing while the court had the damning information for 10 days. Unconscionable, but Del. Sup. Court sided with lower court, meekly hiding behind minimal indicia.

3. In Davenport (understandably cited by Smack), the Del. Supreme Ct., even stated on record that the lower court was wrong in determining length of sentence -- NEVERTHELESS, the Supreme Ct. still leaned on the minimal factor.

There are more inconsistencies in the two cases on part of State courts and prosecutors. Beyond a doubt, due process was violated at sentencing in both cases. Beyond a doubt, Del. Sentencing Rule 1101 is Unconstitutional. Beyond a doubt, the conditions must be rectified - for Smack, Davenport, and for any subsequent cases. Minimal Indicia of Reliability falls short of being just, compared to considering a preponderance of evidence - whether in determining guilt OR length of sentence.

"He that rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God"

Holy Bible, 2 Samuel 23:3

Sentencing Rule 1101 of State of Delaware unjustly violates "due process".

Posted by: Tim Jensen | Jun 12, 2021 2:39:12 PM

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 "Graduating Economic Sanctions According to Ability to Pay" | Main | "Assessing Risk Assessment in Action" 

December 11, 2017

Will any state really start conducting executions with opioids?

The question in the title of this post is prompted by this lengthy Washington Post article, headlined "States to try new ways of executing prisoners. Their latest idea? Opioids." Here is how it gets started:

The synthetic painkiller fentanyl has been the driving force behind the nations opioid epidemic, killing tens of thousands of Americans last year in overdoses. Now two states want to use the drugs powerful properties for a new purpose: to execute prisoners on death row. As Nevada and Nebraska push for the countrys first fentanyl-assisted executions, doctors and death penalty opponents are fighting those plans. They have warned that such an untested use of fentanyl could lead to painful, botched executions, comparing the use of it and other new drugs proposed for lethal injection to human experimentation. States are increasingly pressed for ways to carry out the death penalty because of problems obtaining the drugs they long have used, primarily because pharmaceutical companies are refusing to supply their drugs for executions. The situation has led states such as Florida, Ohio and Oklahoma to turn to novel drug combinations for executions. Mississippi legalized nitrogen gas this spring as a backup method  something no state or country has tried. Officials have yet to say whether it would be delivered in a gas chamber or through a gas mask. Other states have passed laws authorizing a return to older methods, such as the firing squad and the electric chair. Were in a new era, said Deborah Denno, a law professor at Fordham University. States have now gone through all the drugs closest to the original ones for lethal injection. And the more they experiment, the more theyre forced to use new drugs that we know less about in terms of how they might work in an execution. Supporters of capital punishment blame critics for the crisis, which comes amid a sharp decline in the number of executions and decreasing public support for the death penalty. States have put 23 inmates to death in 2017  the second-fewest executions in more than a quarter-century. Nineteen states no longer have capital punishment, with a third of those banning it in the past decade. If death penalty opponents were really concerned about inmates pain, they would help reopen the supply, said Kent Scheidegger of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, which advocates for the rights of crime victims. Opponents caused the problem were in now by forcing pharmaceuticals to cut off the supply to these drugs. Thats why states are turning to less-than-optimal choices. Prison officials in Nevada and Nebraska have declined to answer questions about why they chose to use fentanyl in their next executions, which could take place in early 2018. Many states cloak their procedures in secrecy to try to minimize legal challenges. But fentanyl offers several advantages. The obvious one is potency. The synthetic drug is 50 times more powerful than heroin and up to 100 times more powerful than morphine. Theres cruel irony that at the same time these state governments are trying to figure out how to stop so many from dying from opioids, that they now want to turn and use them to deliberately kill someone, said Austin Sarat, a law professor at Amherst College who has studied the death penalty for more than four decades. Another plus with fentanyl: It is easy to obtain. Although the drug has rocketed into the news because of the opioid crisis, doctors frequently use it to anesthetize patients for major surgery or to treat severe pain in patients with advanced cancer. Nevada officials say they had no problem buying fentanyl. We simply ordered it through our pharmaceutical distributor, just like every other medication we purchase, and it was delivered, Brooke Keast, a spokeswoman for the Nevada Department of Corrections, said in an email. Nothing out of the ordinary at all.

Notably, Nevada has not had an execution since 2006 and Nebraska has not had an execution from 1997, and that reality leads me to question whether these states are likely to be conducting opioid-based executions anytime soon. But, as the Post article details, Nevada was fully geared up for a fentanyl-included execution last month before a court intervened, and they may have plans for another execution early in 2018.

December 11, 2017 at 02:44 PM | Permalink

Comments

Ironic. You hear about this in the Comments, with a stunning analysis, and several legal and clinical points not mentioned here. A bunch of lawyer abuse ensues, and requests to stop posting.

Now, it is said by Libtard, hate speech, propaganda, homosexual agenda promoting false news rag. And, it is a prominent post.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 11, 2017 7:06:46 PM

There was a lot of misinformation in the article, as detailed.

In a message dated 12/10/2017 4:08:35 PM Central Standard Time, sharpjfa@aol.com writes:

to: My standard WashPost and NY Times email group, as well as Media throughout Texas

Many others

re: 'States to try new ways of executing prisoners. Their latest idea? Opioids.', WashPost, 12/9/2017

From: Dudley Sharp, death penalty expert.

You had some errors and omissions.

The real world and scientific evidence is, overwhelming, that fentanyl will lead to peaceful executions - the opposite of the statement in your piece - and the only reason anti death penalty folks, inclusive of physicians, oppose it, as with nitrogen gas.

Look up the accidental overdosing properties of fentanyl (20,100 deaths - 2016) then call an a anesthesiologist - not an anti death penalty anesthesiologist - and ask what happens when you inject 10 times the lethal dose.

You write: "Many states cloak their procedures in secrecy to try to minimize legal challenges."

It is a well known that secrecy efforts have initiated an additional avenue for legal challenges.

The secrecy is to allow the states to acquire the drugs necessary for executions from suppliers, so that those suppliers will not be harassed by anti death penalty folks, not to minimize legal challenges, as your linked story confirms.

It seems neither the writers, nor Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor fact checked Dennis McGuires or Josecph Wood's "horrifying deaths". Fact checking confirms, McGuire's and Wood's executions were no such thing (1).

A huge percentage of the "The bad publicity", as with this article, is because journalists refuse to fact check (1) and/or use only anti death penalty sources, often media, without pro death penalty balance. It's the norm.

Lockett's horrible execution had nothing to do with the drugs, but a, totally, incompetent execution team (1).

You write: "critics note, there is almost no scientific research to suggest that nitrogen would be more humane." As about 99% of lethal injections are humane (1), that may be true .

The scientific effect of nitrogen gas, when inhaled by humans, is very well known, with the only known "problem" being that euphoria may be experienced, prior to unconsciousness (2).

1) Rebuttal: Botched Executions

http://prodpinnc.blogspot.com/2017/01/rebuttal-botched-executions.html

2) Nitrogen Gas; Flawless, peaceful, unrestricted method of execution

http://prodpinnc.blogspot.com/2014/09/nitrogen-gas-flawless-peaceful.html

Posted by: Dudley Sharp | Dec 12, 2017 12:17:16 PM

Light up a joint and enjoy your next execution, DAB

Posted by: anon | Dec 12, 2017 12:30:37 PM

Little Dudu is disgusting as Always.

Posted by: Claudio Giusti | Dec 14, 2017 2:59:02 PM

Claudio. Va funculo, stronzo.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 15, 2017 1:22:35 AM

It is "vaffanculo", not "va fanculo", you idiot!!!!

Posted by: Claudio Giusti | Dec 15, 2017 5:05:13 AM

Claudio. In the US, we improved the saying to, "bahfungoul" or "fungoul". Do you get to watch the Sopranos, one of the best TV shows ever, from HBO, in the States? In every subject it addresses, it has great technical accuracy. One of its features is the near total irrelevance of the police to a criminal enterprise. They are like an occasional nuisance. They take years to investigate. The Mafia plays the system well. A juror is with his son in a convenience store. Two thugs go up to him, and say, "We appreciate what your are doing for the community. We insist on paying for your son's candy bar." He understands, the mob has his number. The jury ends up with a single hold out and a hung jury.

Opinion of the Sopranos, a bunch of serial killers, operating nearly free of police interference. The show is based on very real life people.

Posted by: David Behar | Dec 15, 2017 10:25:47 AM

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The event will comprise many activities such as forums on solutions for sustainable development of the Vietnamese coffee industry; showcase coffee products, production equipment and techniques of large businesses in the country.

That will be a chance for businesses and farmers to talk to experts about solutions to solve difficulties in integration.





By DOAN KIEN  Translated by Hai Mien




Three suspects were detained at scene. The 165 elephant tusks, worth over 29 million CNY (4.4 million USD), were illegally transported to Pingxiang city on the night of November 13 and were captured by customs officers the next day, a Nanning official said on December 8. Nanning is the capital of the region.



According to Chinas State Forestry Administration, in 2016, the amount of smuggled ivory seized in China dropped by 80 percent from previous peak years.



The local law stipulates that the smuggling of precious animal products worth more than 1 million CNY can be punished with over 10 years in prison or a life sentence.



China will stop commercial processing and sales of ivory by the end of this year.-VNA
DES MOINES -- Gov. Kim Reynolds and state lawmakers likely are going to have to consider mid-year budget adjustments ranging from $50 million up to $90 million after a state panel Monday left its current revenue-growth projections unchanged and slightly lowered the expectations for fiscal 2019.

The three-member state Revenue Estimating Conference decided to keep its fiscal 2018 revenue growth projection at 2.4 percent, or slightly more than $7.128 billion through June 30 but lowered its fiscal 2019 growth estimate by $9.3 million to nearly $7.416 billion - figures that by law become the numbers the governor and Legislature must use for budgeting purposes in the upcoming legislative session.

"Iowa revenues, while still growing, are disappointing for the first five months of the fiscal year," said REC member Holly Lyons of the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency. "There is nothing, however, to indicate that the revenue growth will turn negative, but growth is very slow, slower than the revenue estimating conference forecasted last October. Most Iowa economic indicators would suggest slow but steady growth."

While unchanged from October, the revenue spelled some bad news given that the estimates then were scaled back by $133 million while overshot this year's projected ending balance and could portend cuts or more borrowing from the state's cash reserves to keep the ledger balanced, officials said.

"Some mid-year adjustments will be required yet this fiscal year," said David Roederer, a REC member who also directs the state Department of Management and is Reynolds' budget director. "Even before October, we were saying (to state agency heads) you need to be prepared, so it's not like this is catching anybody by surprise."

Conference members said Iowa's economy continues to grow, but Iowans' personal incomes and wages are not increases as rapidly as projected while sluggish farm prices continue to pose challenges and manufacturers are constrained by a lack of skilled workers to fill vacant positions. Added to that is uncertainty over federal tax changes and trade agreements that impact the state's revenue situation.

"We're very firmly on the side of we're not sure what's going to happen," Roederer said in concluding his fiscal analysis during Monday's Statehouse meeting.

The state revenue projections form the backdrop for new budget discussions for Reynolds, majority Republicans and minority Democrats when the 2018 General Assembly convenes on Jan. 8.

"Agriculture plays a large part in our economy and when corn is selling for $3 per bushel, it's going to have a significant effect on the budget like we're seeing now. This is not unique to Iowa and many surrounding states are dealing with this challenge as well," said Rep. Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

"While revenue estimates can be unpredictable, House Republicans are not," Grassley added. "We will continue to live within our means and pass a responsible budget that funds Iowans' priorities."

For their part, legislative Democrats said they were willing to work in a bipartisan manner to make a "mid-course correction" that would invest in successful job-creation initiatives by paring back some tax credits.

"The state budget has become an embarrassment to all Iowans, regardless of their political beliefs," said Rep. Chris Hall, D-Sioux City, ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee. "Paychecks and family income are stagnant. Iowa now ranks dead last in the country for economic growth and the next legislative session will be spent paying off $144 million of debt."

Reynolds' office countered the Democratic criticism by issuing a statement noting that Iowa was named the third best-run state in the nation according to a financial analysis issued Monday that cited Iowa's 17-year low unemployment rate, the strength of the state's pension fund, its AAA credit rating, and the state's low poverty rate.
SIOUX CITY | Following an unseasonably mild weekend, blustery conditions will return to Siouxland on Monday, according to Alex Ferguson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls.

"By 10 a.m. Monday morning, Sioux City will likely be at its daytime high for the day," Ferguson said. "Clouds will be moving in as a cold front brings in northwest winds that will be gusting to as high as high as 45 mph by this afternoon."

The cold front will send temps plummeting to the 30s by mid-afternoon and introduce a 30 percent chance of precipitation for the remainder of the day.

"Even though little accumulation is expected, there is a chance for icy conditions later in the day," Ferguson said. "However, precipitation -- in either rain or snow -- will be spotty at best."

Monday's blustery weather will be short-lived.

Decreasing clouds will give way to clear conditions during Monday's overnight hours.

In addition, the rest of the week will have partly cloudy skies as well as highs either slightly below or slightly above 40 degrees.

"There really isn't a rain or snow episode in the forecast for the next seven days," Ferguson said. "I don't think too many people will be disappointed by another week of mostly nice weather."
ELK POINT, S.D. | The Clay-Union Foundation Inc., an organization that mentors youth ages 5-17 and provides a $500 scholarship to seniors from Elk Point-Jefferson, Dakota Valley and Vermillion high schools, is seeking additional volunteers to serve on its board.

Two board members are being sought from northern Union County, north of Elk Point, and three or four board members from Clay County.

Meetings for the Clay-Union Foundation alternate between Vermillion and Elk Point, depending on the makeup of the board.

University of South Dakota students as well as permanent residents are encouraged to apply. For more information, contact John P. Gille at 605-421-5050.
ORANGE CITY, Iowa | A Rock Valley, Iowa, man on Monday pleaded not guilty to killing his grandfather inside a house and then setting fire to it.

Santos Rodriguez Jr., 19, entered his written plea in Sioux County District Court to one count of first-degree murder and one count of first-degree arson.

Firefighters discovered the body of Luis Luevanos, 84, on Oct. 29 in a home in the 1400 block of 15th Street in Rock Valley.

Rodriguez is accused of stabbing Luevanos several times and then setting fire to the bedroom in which Luevanos' body was lying.

Rodriguez was arrested Nov. 8 in Utah. According to court documents, Rodriguez made statements to authorities after his arrest in which he admitted stabbing Luevanos and intentionally setting the fire.

If found guilty of first-degree murder, Rodriguez would face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole. First-degree arson carries a 25-year prison sentence.
SIOUX CITY | A Sioux City man pleaded guilty Monday to taking part in vandalism that resulted in more than $4,500 in damage at the Miracle League complex.

Trent Tadlock, 32, entered his plea in Woodbury County District Court to one count of second-degree criminal mischief, which is punishable by up to five years in prison. His sentence was not spelled out in his plea agreement. Sentencing was scheduled for Feb. 5.

Tadlock admitted that he was at the park at 1301 Riverside Blvd. drinking alcohol with other people late on March 26 or early on March 27 when he kicked a drinking fountain off of a wall at the concession stand.

A second water fountain was broken off the wall, and people at the party broke through an overhead door, entered the stand and damaged and took property inside, according to court documents.

Tadlock will be required to pay $4,514 in restitution jointly with Colten Stroman, 22, of Sioux City, who pleaded guilty in May to second-degree criminal mischief. Stroman was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the vandalism and second-degree robbery in an unrelated incident.
SIOUX CITY | The case against a Sioux City man accused of robbing a motorists at gunpoint has been dismissed.

District Judge Duane Hoffmeyer on Friday approved the prosecution's motion to dismiss a charge of first-degree robbery against Isiac Brown.

Brown, 36, had been accused of getting into the passenger seat of a vehicle stopped for a red light at 14th and Pierce streets on Oct. 8, pointing a handgun at the driver and taking his wallet containing approximately $300 and some personal documents.

First Assistant Woodbury County Attorney Mark Campbell asked that the case be dismissed after the alleged victim failed to testify in his deposition to facts that would have supported the robbery charge.
ROCK RAPIDS, Iowa | A Spencer, Iowa, man pleaded not guilty Monday to having sexual contact with a 12-year-old girl.

Lawrence Bauer, 28, entered his written plea in Lyon County District Court to nine counts of third-degree sexual abuse, three counts of indecent contact with a child and one count of enticing a child. His trial was scheduled for April 17.

According to court documents, a Lyon County Sheriff's Office investigation beginning Aug. 31 revealed that Bauer talked with the girl for at least a month via cellular devices and on social media. Within a week or two, the conversations became sexual in nature.

In July and August, Bauer met the girl three times. Each time, they went to a rural location where Bauer performed sexual acts with the girl, court documents said.
SIOUX CITY | A Spirit Lake, Iowa, man was sentenced Monday to more than 10 years in federal prison for selling methamphetamine.

Jesse Wrinkle, 35, pleaded guilty in August in U.S. District Court in Sioux City to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. He was sentenced to 121 months in prison.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Wrinkle made approximately 12 trips to Council Bluffs, Iowa, from November 2015 through April 2016 to buy meth. During a February traffic stop, officers seized almost half a pound of meth, 61.1 grams of marijuana and $1,500 from Wrinkle's vehicle.

Wrinkle was previously convicted of drug distribution charges in Dickinson County.
SIOUX CITY | State Sen. David Johnson, the Northwest Iowa lawmaker who dropped his Republican affiliation over the direction of the party as Donald Trump neared the presidential nomination in summer 2016, announced Monday he will run for re-election in 2018 as an independent.

Johnson, who lives in Ocheyedan and represents Iowa Senate District 1, in a release said he will seek a fifth term "in a rare but not unprecedented campaign."

He changed his voter registration to No Party in June 2016.

"I will not stand silent if the party of Lincoln and the end of slavery buckles under the racial bias of a bigot," Johnson said at the time, assessing where the Republican Party was headed.

Johnson isn't going back to the Republican Party as he aims for 2018. Johnson said he adheres to the concept that "principle must come before party," and is disappointed that politics in Des Moines has become "bitterly partisan."

Johnson said a wide range of constituents have encouraged him to run again.

They are Republicans, Democrats and independents, and I am honored and humbled by their support. I believe in representing everyone to the best of my ability," he said.

Johnson, 66, said if he wins in 2018, he would be the first declared independent to win an Iowa Senate seat since 1923.

Johnson said he wants to continue to serve to continue support for Iowa's K-12 schools and community colleges. He also is opposed to the state's move that privatized the Medicaid program.

Senate District 1, which takes in Clay, Dickinson, Lyon, Osceola and Palo Alto counties, is one of the most heavily Republican of Iowa's 50 state senator districts. According to the most recent figures from the Iowa Secretary of State's office, there are 20,877 registered GOP voters, 13,376 registered no-party and 7,465 registered Democrats.

Zach Whiting, of Spencer, in 2016 announced he would seek the Republican nomination for the Senate post, citing Johnson's decision to leave the party.

Johnson was first elected to the state House as a Republican in 1998 after winning a three-way primary. He won another House term in 2000, then won four terms in the Senate.

Earlier in December, Johnson criticized the Iowa Senate Republican leadership team for taking him off committee assignments.

Johnson said there is well-established precedent in Iowas legislative archives for Senate and House independent members to serve on committees.

Like every one of my Senate colleagues, I represent about 60,000 Iowans, yet last session Republican leadership rejected my repeated requests to be appointed to vote on standing committees, Johnson said on Dec. 4.
AKRON, Iowa | At only 17 years of age, Jake Altena admits his storied hunting career has already hit its peak.

The rural Rock Rapids, Iowa, teenager shot and killed a female mountain lion near Akron Saturday while he was out deer hunting with his family on private property adjacent to the Little Sioux River.

Altenas chance encounter with the feline ambush predator came about after he heard some rustling that sounded like movement and decided to go investigate the situation.

Armed with a Savage bolt-action 20 gauge shotgun, Altena found an uprooted tree that appeared to have enough clearance for a person or creature to be able to move underneath the branches.

I was about 15 feet away and a mountain lion poked his head out and it was looking at me dead in the eyes, he said.

I immediately pulled my gun on him; I was pretty scared at the moment. When I had him in my sights, he kind of made a quick jump at me and I instantly pulled the trigger.

The shot hit the creature in the shoulder and fatally wounded it.

That was one hell of an adrenaline rush, Altena said.

The teen and his hunting party, which included his father, younger brother and other family members, called the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to find out the next steps in this situation.

A representative met up with them shortly after and took the animals carcass with the intention to run tests on it; however, that didnt happen and it was returned to him Sunday.

Mountain lions are not a protected species in Iowa so there was nothing criminal about Altenas action.

I tell you something cool the DNR told me, he said that mountain lion is one of two female mountain lions to be shot in Iowa in the last 100 years, Altena said. Only two of them and mine was one of the two.

Another female mountain lion that was stationed near a farm in Ida County was put down by the DNR in June. This incident marks the fifth time a mountain lion has been killed in Iowa, according to DNR records.

With the mountain lion's carcass back in his possession, Altena, who has hunted since he was 12, already has plans for his latest prize.

Im going to take it home and have it mounted, he said.
Even interventionists are regretting some of the wars into which they helped plunge the United States in this century.

Among those wars are Afghanistan and Iraq, the longest in our history; Libya, which was left without a stable government; Syria's civil war, a six-year human rights disaster we helped kick off by arming rebels to overthrow Bashar Assad; and Yemen, where a U.S.-backed Saudi bombing campaign and starvation blockade is causing a humanitarian catastrophe.

Yet, twice this century, the War Party was beaten back when seeking a clash with Putin's Russia. And the "neo-isolationists" who won those arguments served America well.

What triggered this observation was an item on Page 1 of last Wednesday's New York Times that read in its entirety:

"Mikheil Saakashvili, former president of Georgia, led marchers through Kiev after threatening to jump from a five-story building to evade arrest. Page A4"

Who is Saakashvili? The wunderkind elected in 2004 in Tbilisi after a "Rose Revolution" we backed during George W. Bush's crusade for global democracy.

During the Beijing Olympics in August 2008, Saakashvili sent his army crashing into the tiny enclave of South Ossetia, which had broken free of Georgia when Georgia broke free of Russia.

In overrunning the enclave, however, Saakashvili's troops killed Russian peacekeepers. Big mistake. Within 24 hours, Putin's tanks and troops were pouring through Roki Tunnel, running Saakashvili's army out of South Ossetia, and occupying parts of Georgia itself.

As defeat loomed for the neocon hero, U.S. foreign policy elites were alive with denunciations of "Russian aggression" and calls to send in the 82nd Airborne, bring Georgia into NATO, and station U.S. forces in the Caucasus.

"We are all Georgians!" thundered John McCain.

Not quite. When an outcry arose against getting into a collision with Russia, Bush, reading the nation right, decided to confine U.S. protests to the nonviolent. A wise call.

And Saakashvili? He held power until 2013, and then saw his party defeated, was charged with corruption, and fled to Ukraine. There, President Boris Poroshenko, beneficiary of the Kiev coup the U.S. had backed in 2014, put him in charge of Odessa, one of the most corrupt provinces in a country rife with corruption.

In 2016, an exasperated Saakashvili quit, charged his patron Poroshenko with corruption, and fled Ukraine. In September, with a band of supporters, he made a forced entry back across the border.

Here is the Times' Andrew Higgins on his latest antics:

"... Saakashvili, onetime darling of the West, took his high-wire political career to bizarre new heights when he climbed onto the roof of his five-story apartment building in the center of Kiev ...

"As ... hundreds of supporters gathered below, he shouted insults at Ukraine's leaders ... and threatened to jump if security agents tried to grab him.

"Dragged from the roof after denouncing Mr. Poroshenko as a traitor and a thief, the former Georgian leader was detained but then freed by his supporters, who ... blocked a security service van before it could take Mr. Saakashvili to a Kiev detention center and allowed him to escape.

"With a Ukrainian flag draped across his shoulders and a pair of handcuffs still attached to one of his wrists, Mr. Saakashvili then led hundreds of supporters in a march across Kiev toward Parliament. Speaking through a bullhorn he called for 'peaceful protests' to remove Mr. Poroshenko from office, just as protests had toppled the former President, Victor F. Yanukovych, in February 2014."

This reads like a script for a Peter Sellers movie in the '60s.

Yet this clown was president of Georgia, for whose cause in South Ossetia some in our foreign policy elite thought we should go to the brink of war with Russia.

And there was broad support for bringing Georgia into NATO. This would have given Saakashvili an ability to ignite a confrontation with Russia, which could have forced U.S. intervention.

Consider Ukraine. Three years ago, McCain was declaring, in support of the overthrow of the elected pro-Russian government in Kiev, "We are all Ukrainians now."

Following that coup, U.S. elites were urging us to confront Putin in Crimea, bring Ukraine, as well as Georgia, into NATO, and send Kiev the lethal weapons needed to defeat Russian-backed rebels in the East.

This could have led straight to a Ukraine-Russia war, precipitated by our sending of U.S. arms.

Do we really want to cede to folks of the temperament of Mikhail Saakashvili an ability to instigate a war with a nuclear-armed Russia, which every Cold War president was resolved to avoid, even if it meant accepting Moscow's hegemony in Eastern Europe all the way to the Elbe?

Watching Saakashvili losing it in the streets of Kiev like some blitzed college student should cause us to reassess the stability of all these allies to whom we have ceded a capacity to drag us into war.

Alliances, after all, are the transmission belts of war.
CHEROKEE, Iowa | John and Donna Beier heat one of their greenhouses on certain days in July.

And, more often, they haul out cooling pads in that unit.

Those are the measures these Blooming House business owners in Cherokee take to achieve a spectacular sea of red around the holidays. That's what 2,000 blooming poinsettias can yield this time of year.

"Poinsettias are a big challenge to grow," John Beier said as he stood in mid-November, awash in a blanket of bright red. "Poinsettias are so susceptible to disease and pests. Few retailers grow them because they're tricky."

The Beiers, who employ one dozen people in a sprawling one-acre site on the northern edge of Cherokee, just east of Highway 59, obtain the plants a 2-inch cuttings. They house them in the enterprise's fourth greenhouse, a place to which they run heat in an effort to keep temperatures above 68 at all times.

What if the mercury soars, as it does in July and August in Northwest Iowa? "Then we haul out the cooling pads," John Beier said.

These plants, a holiday tradition for many, might be more pampered than the folks who sit by the fire and wait for St. Nicholas' arrival.

Josh Anderson, a son-in-law to John and Donna, spends time each summer and fall walking among the 2,000 plants, inspecting areas for pests, most notably the white fly which likes to invade once corn dries across Northwest Iowa farm fields.

"We put this card (a yellow, sticky card) on a plant and a white fly will stick to it," Anderson said. "When we see one on a card, we check the whole plant over."

Going to each plant may be time- and labor-intensive, John Beier said, but it beats blanketing hundreds of plants with a pesticide application. This eye-test scrutiny and a bug screen outside the green house have allowed staff members at Blooming House to reduce pesticide application by up to 90 percent.

"I remember going from plant to plant in 2013," Anderson said of his first year with the business. "It was tedious."

The payback comes in November and December when thousands make their way to Blooming House in search of poinsettia plants that bloom in seven different colors, 10 different sizes. Fifty-percent of the crop here is sold on a wholesale basis, while a quarter of the crop goes to churches across the region. The last quarter is sold via retail.

"We double-bag each plant and make sure the customer's vehicle is warm when they leave," John Beier said. "Poinsettias don't like to be shipped or sleeved."

A poinsettia that is sleeved, he explained, may sustain damage to a leaf or stem, thereby triggering production of ethylene, a death hormone for a poinsettia. That hormone causes the plant's flowers and leaves to drop.

The poinsettia, named for Dr. Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico, who brought the plant north in 1825, are not poisonous, despite a popular and persistent myth.

"Poinsettias do have latex that, if you crack a leaf or a stem, you can get a little latex on your hands," John Beier said. "And some people are allergic to latex. You'll get a rash, but they're not poisonous."

Having dozens of long rows of poinsettias growing in this manner throughout the fall season is a benefit for the business. John Beier said there are workers in Cherokee, nurses primarily, who occasionally spend a portion of their lunch hour just walking through their greenhouse units.

"It's fascinating," he said, "as people come here to walk because it's therapeutic."

Do the business owners mind?

"Oh no," John answered, "that's what we're here for."

John and Donna Beier are here for more than that. These high school sweethearts from Freeman, South Dakota, came to Cherokee 14 years ago to purchase the popular Rhoadside Greenhouse, a Cherokee business staple for generations. John, a horticulture major at South Dakota State University, had served similar operations in Ames, Iowa, for three years, and Pella, Iowa, for 16 years.

Two years ago, the couple dropped the Rhoadside name, opting to focus solely on Blooming House, a name that decorates their signage, literature and business model.

"Sometimes our spring customers have no idea what we have in the winter," Donna Beier added, noting how the business strives to serve as a Northwest Iowa destination. "You can always find blooming plants in our greenhouses."

"We have a half-acre under-cover and another half-acre in outdoor production," he said. "In the spring, we are all retail, no wholesale."

The staff works to grow 8,000 perennials, 24,000 annuals that measure at the 4-inch level. Blooming House pros also grow 900 hanging baskets and 7,000 geraniums.
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.
On Dec. 1 the Compass Community Center showcased one of the biggest pieces of folk art in the world. The quilt, which was provided by The Names Project, was used in conjunction with World Aids Day. Even though the program started at 7, there was hardly a shortage of people at 6. Over 80 people showed their support, many of them came sporting their traditional red ribbon.

The ceremony started off with Lake Worths Mayor Pam Triolo reading the proclamation from the city, as well as introducing the theme for this year, My health, my right. I am so honored to be here, said Triolo. This is a very special evening, not just for Compass, but for the entire city as a whole. I usually travel this time of the year so I havent been here for this presentation. I was given a tour earlier and I was moved beyond belief. Im so proud of the work that Compass does. As the evening went on, guest was serenaded by local singing sensations The Voice of Pride. They opened with a spirited rendition of the 1975 classic song Hallelujah, which was made famous by Leonard Cohen. World Aids Day is such an important day, their next selection I dreamed a dream gave everyone a chance to reflect on just how special the day actually was. Their beautiful voices soared as the audience hung on to every word, and note.

Along with the choir and an appearance from Mayor Triolo, Compass also had three special guests give speeches. The speakers were Chris Lacharite, who is a registered nurse thats worked in the HIV filed since 1985 in Boston, Los Angeles, and in South Florida. He currently works as the HIV Program Manager for the Metropolitan Community Church of the Palm Beaches. Another speaker was Deacon RussellAppollonia, who spoke on his experience with being diagnosed with G.R.I.D in 1985, as well as his reaction to being tested positive for HIV in 1986.

Lorenzo Lowe, who serves as the HIV and Prevention Director for Compass, had kind words to share about the last speaker Sabrine Pearson. I am so happy to introduce the final speaker for the evening, Lowe said. She is a great friend and Ive learned so much from her.

Pearson, is the Youth Mentor Coordinator for Compass. Not to mention, she is also the first ever transgender employee at Compass Community Center. Pearson was diagnosed with HIV in 2001. She began her transition in 2006. Over the years, she has become known for being an outspoken advocate for transgender rights and healthy lifestyles for those affected by HIV. She gave a very emotional speech that touched several people seated in the crowd. Many shed tears due to being inspired by her transparency and her optimism.

I do a lot of education and public speaking, but Ive never ironically done public speaking about my status, so here goes, Pearson said. I have faith that we as a community can honor our fallen brothers and sisters by walking away from today with a call to action. We will honor them by laser focusing our advocacy work to help our marginalized individuals suffering with HIV such as our youth, people of color and the transgender community.

Shortly after the speakers, on-lookers were invited to view the AIDS memorial quilt along with candlelight visual. On-lookers were asked to have a moment of silence to reflect on the monumental day, and the huge impact HIV has had on our community.

Compass will be holding the quilt in their facilities until Dec. 12. Visit their website www.compassglcc.com for more information on the rest of their World Aids Day events.
(EDGE) The London teenager who made headlines last week when two other teen boys allegedly choked him and forced him to apologize for being gay has come forward to speak out on the attack.

In an interview with the Evening Standard, Will Mayrick, 19, said he was afraid for his life when two 16-year-old boys reportedly attacked him in October, putting him in a headlock until he apologized for being gay while riding the city's Tube.

"I am not sorry for my sexuality," Mayrick, a photography student, told the newspaper.

He said he was with four friends on the subway, heading to an event at The O2 arena. The group was wearing fancy clothes when the two suspects stepped onto the subway. Police saidthe teens put Mayrick, who is president of the LGBTQ group at Ravensbourne - a design and digital media school - into a headlock and he struggled to breath. They then forced him to apologize for being gay, took his phone and threatened to stab him, authorities said.

"We'd got a bit of glitter on and they obviously didn't like that. They shouted 'fucking gays' and 'fag,' whatever they could think of," he told the Evening Standard. "Then one grabbed hold of me and got my head in a headlock. The other grabbed my phone and tried to make me apologize for being gay."

Mayrick refused to do so but that's when one of the suspects allegedly assaulted him.

"That's not who I am. But he got me so tight round the neck that if I didn't say something I wouldn't have been able to breathe," he said. "At the same time the other guy was pulling something out of his coat. I was so, so scared."

One of Mayrick's friends, a 25-year-old woman, was punched and pushed to the ground when she tried to defend him.

"I'm proud of the fact that I'm gay, I would never want to change," he told the Evening Standard. "I'm not sorry. But at the time I thought if I don't apologize I don't know what's going to happen.

"Possibly if homophobia was on their school curriculum it wouldn't have happened," Mayrick added.

The U.K. LGBTQ rights organization Stonewall released a statement about the incident.

"It's 2017 - lesbian, gay, bi and trans people should feel safe and no one should face hatred simply because of who they are," the group told the Evening Standard. "Sadly, the reality is very different.

"Our research shows that one in five LGBT people have experienced a hate crime or incident in the last 12 months," the group added. "Homophobia, biphobia and transphobia are nothing new, but when witnessed, how we respond defines the kind of world we want to live in.

"We would also like to see a review of hate crime laws so that crimes based on sexual orientation, gender identity or disability are treated equally to those based on race and faith," Stonewall concluded.

The British Transport Police arrested two 16-year-old boys last week in connection to the incident and said they are treating the attack as a hate crime, according to the Evening Standard. The suspects have since been released on bail.
'Oumuamua JHUAPL

Scientists from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) joined in the recent international effort to observe  and create a detailed profile of  the first known large object from interstellar space to pass through our solar system.



Word of the objects discovery and impending arrival in mid-October sent scientists running to large telescopes around the world, hoping to glimpse the rocky body  named Oumuamua  before it became too faint on its trek back to interstellar space. APLs Hal Weaver and Carey Lisse joined colleagues from the University of Central Florida and the University of Washington to point the 3.5-meter telescope at the Apache Point Observatory (APO) in New Mexico at this interstellar intruder.

Lisse and Weaver were APO veterans, having used the telescope  managed in part by Johns Hopkins University  to observe dozens of distant comets over the past decade. Our team had the experience necessary to image Oumuamua as it streaked across the sky, Weaver said.

Over four hours on the night of Oct. 28, the team intensively imaged Oumuamua with three different color filters. They were surprised to discover that Oumuamuas brightness changed rapidly over time, starting out very faint and then becoming approximately five times brighter over the next couple of hours.

When they combined the APO data with those from other observers, they found that Oumuamuas brightness variations could be explained if the object was very long  cigar-shaped  with one of its dimensions approximately five times larger than the other. No known asteroid or comet from our solar system varies so widely in brightness, according to NASA, with such a large ratio between length and width. The most elongated objects we have seen to date are no more than three times longer than they are wide.

They also found that Oumuamuas reddish color was similar to those of primitive asteroids, Jupiters Trojan objects and comet dust  though the APO observers saw no evidence of a coma or other cometary behavior. That suggests to us that Oumuamua formed closer to the star in its home planetary system, where ices on its surface wouldnt be stable, Weaver said.

While Oumuamua is the first known interstellar object ever detected, added Lisse, we expect new ones to be found as more  and larger  ground-based telescopes begin to systematically monitor the sky for them during the next several years.

The APL researchers and colleagues published their findings this week in Astrophysical Journal Letters.

The interstellar object was discovered Oct. 19 by observers using the University of Hawaiis Pan-STARRS1 telescope. Its official name is 1I/Oumuamua, with 1I designating its the first (1) catalogued interstellar (I) object, and Oumuamua a Hawaiian term for a messenger from afar arriving first.

According to NASA, preliminary orbital calculations suggest that the object came from the approximate direction of the bright star Vega, in the northern constellation of Lyra. However, it took so long for the interstellar object to make the journey  even at the speed of about 59,000 miles per hour (26.4 kilometers per second)  that Vega was not near that position when the asteroid was there about 300,000 years ago.

Media contact: Michael Buckley, 240-228-7536, michael.buckley@jhuapl.edu
NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 6 December 2017. NASA

After delivering almost 7,400 pounds of cargo to support dozens of science experiments from around the world, the Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo spacecraft has departed the International Space Station. At 8:11 a.m., Expedition 53 Flight Engineers Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba of NASA gave the command to release Cygnus.

On Tuesday, Dec. 5, ground controllers used the Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach the Cygnus spacecraft from the Earth-facing side of the stations Unity module. The spacecraft, which arrived at the station Nov. 14, then maneuvered above the Harmony module to gather data overnight that will aid in rendezvous and docking operations for future U.S. commercial crew vehicles arriving for a linkup to Harmonys international docking adapters.

Experiments delivered on Cygnus supported NASA and other research investigations during Expedition 53, including studies in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science.

Later today, Cygnus will release 14 CubeSats from an external NanoRacks deployer. Cygnus also is packed with more than 6,200 pounds of trash and other items marked for disposal during its destructive reentry Monday, Dec. 18.

The Cygnus launched Nov. 12 on Orbital ATKs upgraded Antares 230 rocket from NASAs Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia for the companys eighth NASA-contracted commercial resupply mission.

On-Orbit Status Report

OA-8 Cygnus Release: After yesterdays unberth and the overnight GPS shadowing (Photobomb) Detailed Test Objective (DTO), today SSRMS ground controllers relocated the Cygnus vehicle to the release point and the onboard crew released the vehicle and monitored its departure. Cygnus will be held in that position overnight and then repositioned for release tomorrow. Cygnus arrived at the ISS on the 14th of November carrying supplies, and is now departing with hardware and trash for disposal.

Combustion Integration Rack (CIR) Ignitor Tip R&R: Today the crew removed and replaced the Multi-user Droplet Combustion Apparatus (MDCA) ignitor tip inside CIR. The tip burned out last week during Advanced Combustion Microgravity Experiment (ACME) operations, and science operations have been on hold pending this hardware R&R. The ACME project is a set of five independent studies of gaseous flames to be conducted in the CIR. ACMEs primary and secondary goals are (1) improved fuel efficiency and reduced pollutant production in practical combustion on Earth, and (2) spacecraft fire prevention through innovative research focused on materials flammability.

Lighting Effects: Today a 52S crewmember began a two-week long Sleep Shifted session, by logging into the sleep log application and tracking his daily sleep patterns and wakefulness. The Lighting Effects investigation studies the impact of the change from fluorescent light bulbs to solid-state light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with adjustable intensity and color and aims to determine if the new lights can improve crew circadian rhythms, sleep, and cognitive performance.

Earth Imagery from ISS Target Operations: Using the NIKON camera the crew captured time-lapse images of the United Kingdom and the Nile at night. The Earth Imagery from ISS investigation creates a series of videos, showcasing Earth from space. These videos will be taken with cameras on the International Space Station in 6K hi-resolution, then integrated into videos for screensavers for public enjoyment, exploration, and engagement.

Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis: This morning, the crew analyzed water quality on board using the EHS TOCA system, looking for contaminants in the water.

EHS Microbial Capture Device (MCD) and Coliform Water Sample Analysis: Today, the crew analyzed water samples which were taken on Monday. This analysis procedure is designed to detect microbial growth in the ISS water system.

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Helmet Swap: Today the crew removed an EMU helmet which has passed its certified lifetime and replace it with a newly launched helmet. The old helmet will be returned to the ground on SpaceX-13 for refurbishment.

Todays Planned Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Lighting Effects Sleep Log Entry  Subject

MORZE. Evaluation using SPRUT-2.

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Tsentrovka, SENSOR Tests

Crew Departure Preparations for Return to Earth

Robotic Workstation (RWS) High Definition (HD) Monitor Downlink

USOS Window Shutter Close

ARED Software Big Picture Words review

In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Crew Quarters (CQ) Deck Cleaning

Verification of ??-1 Flow Sensor Position

JEM Camera Robot S/N 002 Preparation

UDOD. Experiment Ops with DYKNANIYE-1 and SPRUT-2 Sets. Tagup with specialists

Cygnus PCS Command and PROX Link Verification

JEM Mesh Cover-Return Grille Cleaning

Monitoring closure of shutters on SM windows 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14. See Note 5

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: SUPOS Test

Dragon Prepack

Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis

Reconfigure Galley Rack at NOD1S4 Location

MORZE. Closeout Ops

EXPANDER Exercise

SPHERES Battery Setup

Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (RGN) Wastewater Storage Tank Assembly (WSTA) Fill

??? Maintenance

Miniature Exercise Device Equipment Stow

Microscope Hardware Setup

Photo/TV Ghost Camera in Cuopla on SSC power recording

Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) Cygnus Release

Preventive Maintenance of SM Ventilation Subsystem. Group ?1

Water sampling from Water Distribution and Heating Unit (???-?) to drink bags

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Spaceflight Cognitive Assessment Tool for Windows (WinSCAT) Test

???-?? water sampling to Russian drink bags

Configure power cables to XF305 for future use

Cygnus PROX Switch OFF

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Social Media Event

PILOT-T. Preparation for the experiment.

Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Open

SPHERES Battery Swap

ESA Weekly crew conference

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops.

Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Open

Health Maintenance System (HMS) PPE Kit Restock

PCS Laptop Relocate

Restore setting of VCA2

ACME Chamber Insert Configuration

Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Sample Data Record

High Definition Video Camera Assemby 2 Activation in High Definition Mode

Telescience Resource Kit Laptop Setup

ABOUT GAGARIN FROM SPACE. HAM Radio Hardware Activation

High Definition Video Camera Assembly 2 Switch to SD Mode

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD)  JEM

Environmental Health System (EHS)  Microbial Capture Device (MCD) and Coliform Water Sample Analysis 44 +/- 4 hours post processing

PILOT-T. Closeout Ops

ISS HAM Video Power Up

Photo/TV Ghost Camera in Cupola Downlink

Photography of pipeline joints and sealing elements delivered on Progress 419

Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Close

Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Close

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Swap

IMS Update

Crew Departure Prep

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Helmet Swap

Ultrasound 2 HRF Rack 1 Power On

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Ultrasound 2 Scan

Inventory Management System (IMS) Conference

Crew Discretionary Event

Completed Task List Activities

Environmental Health System (EHS)  Microbial Air Sampler (MAS) Kit Sample Collection

Ground Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Cygnus positioning and release.

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Thursday, 12/07: PEPS Inspection, CQ Cleaning, Eye exams, ELF, EIISS, Crew Handover

Friday, 12/08: Soyuz OBT, Dragon OBT, RAM Retrieve, NASA Platform2, Arthrospira

Saturday, 12/09: Probiotics, Off Duty

QUICK ISS Status  Environmental Control Group:

Component  Status

Elektron  On

Vozdukh  Manual

[???] 1  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV1)  Off

[???] 2  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV2)  On

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab  Operate

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3  Standby

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab  Idle

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3  Operate

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)  Process

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA)  Standby

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab  Full Up

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3  Off
On Sunday (December 10), former harness driver Norm McKnight Jr. claimed the trainer's title for the 2017 Thoroughbred meet at Woodbine Racetrack. He sealed the deal during the meet-closing card, as pupils from his outfit won five of the 14 races on the program.

In his 19th year as a Thoroughbred trainer, McKnight capped his career year with 99 wins, three wins more than the 2016 leading trainer Mark Casse. Casse, once again, topped all trainers for earnings with more than $6.9 million in purses and won a meet-leading 18 stakes, including his second consecutive $800,000 Ricoh Woodbine Mile (Grade 1) on September 16 with Live Oak Plantations World Approval, who went on to Breeders Cup glory. The final podium position went to trainer Kevin Attard, who finished the meet just one win ahead of Martin Drexler and Sid Attard with 43 victories.

McKnight has over 500 wins as a trainer and celebrated his first $2-million season. The son of harness driver Norm Sr., McKnight was riding show horses and drove his first Standardbred when he was 12 years old. As a driver, he won roughly 1,500 races before trading tack and training Thoroughbreds.

Live Thoroughbred racing will return to Woodbine next spring (on Saturday, April 21, 2018), while Standardbred racing will continue to run four days a week at Woodbine throughout the winter months and will return to its permanent home at Woodbine, Mohawk Park in April 2018 for racing all year round.

(With files from WEG)
The University of Arizonas Race Track Industry Program announced the winners of its annual awards during the 2017 Symposium on Racing which was held from December 4-6.

The Clay Puett Award was presented to Bob Curran Jr. for his outstanding contributions to the racing industry. Inaugurated December 9, 1994, the award is named for the late Clay Puett, an Arizona resident whose innovations, including the development of the mechanical starting gate, helped to revolutionize racing around the world.

Curran is someone who is never seen in headlines or in front of the camera; hes always the person behind the scenes. As the vice president of corporate communications, Curran plans and oversees all communications, public relations and publicity initiatives for The Jockey Club and its affiliated companies.

Curran joined The Jockey Club staff in December 1998 after spending almost 12 years with Thoroughbred Racing Communications. Before that, he served stints as a sportswriter and columnist with the Niagara Falls (NY) Gazette, and as the senior media coordinator for the New York Racing Association.

Curran served as president of the Turf Publicists of America (TPA) during 2001 and 2002 after serving for two years as a vice president.

To say Im honoured by this award would be a vast understatement, said Curran. I didnt know Clay Puett, but I certainly know of his contribution to our sport and most of the previous winners of this prestigious accolade. I admired all of them.

The John K. Goodman Alumni Award is named in honour of John K. Goodman, a founding father of the Race Track Industry Program and honors one of the RTIPs many distinguished alumni who have made an outstanding contribution to the racing industry.

The 2017 winner, Peter Aiello, came to the Race Track Program with a passion and a dream. His dream, from a very young age, was to be a race caller. When he saw an advertisement for the RTIP that featured Luke Krytbosch  RTIP graduate and track announcer at Turf Paradise and Churchill Downs  his course was set.

After stints at Rillito Park, Tucson Greyhound Park and the Arizona Fairs; and an internship at Evergreen Park in Canada and a more than a few stops along the way, his voice was heard on national television calling the richest race in the history of the sport  a dream was realized when we heard these words as Arrogate reached the wire, What a raceWhat a sportWhat a horse!

The 2017 RTIP Distinguished Student Award, presented to Keith Doleshel, honours the student who best embodies the qualities and performance that represent the goal of the Program  to bridge education with opportunity. The award recognizes academic and personal growth and achievement.

Doleshel has impressed everyone hes worked with, from the faculty and staff to all of those who hes interacted with during his two academic internships, one with Santa Anita and the other with the New York Racing Association (NYRA). Doleshel has accepted a position in the Racing Department at NYRA.

The Xpressbet Scholarship Award winner for 2018 was presented to Abel Zander by Gene Chabrier, VP of Regulatory Affairs and Business Development for Xpressbet. Rhonda Norby, president of The Turf Publicists of America presented the 2018 TPA Scholarship Award to Jade Eisenzimmer.

(RTIP)
The tragic fire that claimed the lives of scores of racehorses at the San Luis Rey Training Center the California dominated industry headlines late last week. Although, news of another barn fire that took place at a North American racetrack during the same timeframe came and went without as much fanfare.

As an article by the Paulick Report explains, a fire that started in a tack room at Laurel Park in Maryland last Wednesday night (December 6) spread to an adjoining stall and killed a Thoroughbred gelding.

The horse in question, Pappa Portmore, a son of Good Reward, had recently been claimed by trainer Anthony Farrior.

Sal Sinatra, the president and general manager of the Maryland Jockey Club, conveyed that the organization and the tracks racing community is in shock.

I speak for everyone at Laurel Park and the Maryland Jockey Club when I say how devastated we all are by this loss, Sinatra was quoted as saying.

He also stated that the loss of even one horse is too many, and that the safety of the horses is a priority.

The Anne Arundel County Fire Department is investigating.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the connections Pappa Portmore.

(With files from the Paulick Report)
Jim Compton has been a respected western New York horseman for over 35 years. He trained, drove and bred many horses that are still remembered at his home tracks for their competitive nature and success.

For his years of dedication to the sport, the upstate New York chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association will present him with the Lifetime Achievement Award in the winners circle at Batavia Downs on Saturday (December 16) during the 10th annual Night of Distinction awards ceremony.

Comptons full time job was working for General Motors in Rochester, but his passion was for harness racing. So, in 1978, he started moonlighting at the farm of local driving legend Fred Haslip to learn the ins and outs of the business. After a few years he got his trainers license and in 1983 he drove his first race.

Compton and his wife Sandra always ran a small but successful stable, racing horses like Sly Hi, No Parking Zone, Splurging Rita, Gasper Again and Held For Ransom, who won multiple Opens at Batavia Down, Vernon Downs and Buffalo Raceway en route to amassing 51 lifetime wins.

When Held For Ransoms career was over, Compton bred him to one of his race mares named Suspicious Burns and the result of that breeding was a horse named Michael Scores.

Michael Scores was a New York Sires Stake star and rock-solid overnight campaigner for 11 years. He won 86 races and earned $668,079 lifetime without ever seeing the Grand Circuit. He set track records at Tioga Downs (1:50.4) and at Batavia Downs (1:52.1) when he won the 2006 Kane Memorial Pace. And he will always be remembered for his intentionally parked out style of racing.

Comptons numbers were not gaudy, however they were efficient. On the training side he had 578 wins out of 2,892 starts with $1.9 million in purses and a UTR of .337. As a driver he won 522 races out of 2,725 starts, compiled a UDR of .330 and drove his mounts to $1.13 million in purses. And all the horses he either trained or drove were 50 per cent in the money over his entire career.

Post time for Saturday nights card is 6:00 p.m.

(USHWA)
The essential component of totalitarian propaganda is artifice (het toepassen van kunstgrepen. svh) . The ruling elites, like celebritie...
By Olivia Rose

THE TCI has been given an extra $70,000 to rebuild and repair government schools that sustained extensive damage during hurricanes Irma and Maria.





The cash comes from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) - an interregional network of independent emergency units throughout the Caribbean region.





CDEMA presented the cheque to Minister of Home Affairs with responsibility for Disaster Management Vaden Williams, at the 10th Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) Conference in the Bahamas on Monday (December 4).





The conference is the Caribbeans premier event on disaster risk management which is annually convened to demonstrate best practices emerging from CDEMAs 18 participating states and regional and international partners.





CDM is the regions brand of disaster risk management and contributes to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), a blue print for global actions in DRR.





Executive director of CDEMA Ronald Jackson, who presented the cheque, stressed that it was important for CDEMA to acknowledge the support of the Caribbean citizens effort, in supporting affected CDEMA states.





He said: "We were happy to provide the resources on their behalf to the TCI in support of their school restoration efforts.





Minister Williams said that money will go a long way in the territorys reconstruction efforts.





"I welcome this donation on behalf of my Government and the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands.





"It will greatly assist with the rebuilding and repairing of schools that were damaged by the storms and expedite a sense of normalcy to our students, by returning them as soon as possible to their traditional school facilities.





"I wish to thank CDEMA and the citizens of the Caribbean who have made it possible for this offer, and support to our people.





Delivering the keynote address at the conference prime minister of the Bahamas, Hubert Minnis reminded the gathering the region is one of the most hurricane-prone areas in the world.





He stressed that this risk threatens the its fragile economies, and urged the various nations to have in place sound disaster risk management systems.





"This conference is being held in the aftermath of several devastating storms which ploughed through our region this year, leaving massive destruction in their wake.





"Hurricanes Irma and Maria are hurricanes we will long remember.





"Sadly, the economic, environmental, social and psychological damage will remain for quite

some time.





He said that hurricane Irma affected Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, St Maarten, St Barts, St Kitts and Nevis, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.





"Hurricane Maria unleashed its destructive fury on Dominica, Guadeloupe, the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Turks and Caicos, Cuba and on Ragged Island in The Bahamas, which was devastated by the monster storm and was left uninhabitable.





"The final death toll for Puerto Rico is still unknown. Most of the residents of Puerto Rico remain without electricity.





"There was unprecedented destruction to the Commonwealth of Dominica, with about 30 people killed and many thousands left homeless.





"Hurricane Maria reminded us of the potential for the utter destruction of entire countries in our region.





Minnis said the monster storms served as a reminder that the region must act collectively and continue to press through Caricom, the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) the United Nations and in other international forums, for the promised assistance from developing nations to help others to mitigate against the effects of climate change.





The CDM conference is an endorsed regional event of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.





It is structured to strategically influence niche audiences, promote good practice, share ongoing research and chart the way forward for the advancement of CDM in the Caribbean.





This years theme was CDM: The road to resilience check point 2017 - Building resilience through partnerships.





One of the key sessions at this years conference was entitled Teachable moments: Lessons emerging from the rapid review of the hurricanes Irma and Maria response.





It provided the opportunity for the Turks and Caicos Islands to share its damage assessment strategies, as well as lessons learnt, as the territory charters a new course towards building resilience.




Victims of modern medicine

Martin Khor :

The next time you have a bad cold and reach for the antibiotics left over from your last visit to the doctor, think again.

Firstly, the antibiotics won't work as they only act against bacteria while the cold is caused by a virus.

Secondly, you will be contributing to the arguably the world's gravest health threat - antibiotic resistance.

The wrong use and over-use of antibiotics is one of the main causes why they are becoming increasingly ineffective against many diseases, including pneumonia, tuberculosis, blood disorders, gonorrhoea and foodborne diseases.

While an effective antibiotic kills most of the targeted germs, a few may survive and develop resistance which can spread to other bacteria that cause the same infection or different infections. The rate of resistance and its spread can increase if antibiotics are wrongly or over used, and they then become increasingly ineffective to treat bacterial infections.

Global health leaders are now ringing the alarm bell. "Antimicrobial resistance is a global health emergency," warned the World Health Organisation's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. "The world is facing an antibiotic apocalypse," said the United Kingdom's Chief Medical Officer Dame Sally Davies. "It may spell the end of modern medicine."

Warns the WHO: "Antibiotic resistance is rising to dangerously high levels in all parts of the world. New resistance mechanisms are emerging and spreading globally, threatening our ability to treat common infectious diseasesWithout urgent action, we are heading for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and minor injuries can once again kill." (WHO Fact Sheet on antibiotic resistance, Nov. 2017).

These warnings were highlighted on World Antibiotics Awareness Week on 13-19 November when activities were held in many countries.

Antibiotic resistance is part of the wider phenomenon of anti-microbial resistance (AMR), which includes resistance of bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites to medicines.

About 700,000 people die annually due to antimicrobial resistant infections, and this is estimated to rise to 10 million deaths a year by 2050 if action is not taken, with a cumulative economic cost of US $100 trillion, according to a 2016 review on AMR sponsored by the UK government.

A key tipping point was reached recently when it was found that some bacteria had evolved to be resistant to colistin, the antibiotic of last resort which is used on a patient when all other antibiotics are found ineffective.

Antibiotic resistance is rising to dangerously high levels in all parts of the world. New resistance mechanisms are emerging and spreading globally, threatening our ability to treat common infectious diseasesWithout urgent action, we are heading for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and minor injuries can once again kill.

In 2016, researchers in China found colistin-resistant E. coli bacteria in 20 per cent of animals, 15 per cent of raw meat and 1 per cent of hospital patients that were sampled. The colistin resitance gene (mcr-1) could easily be transferred among different bacteria.

Malaysia was also one of the first countries where scientists found colistin-resistant bacteria. "Since the publication of our findings, mcr-1 gene has been found in many other countries," said Associate Professor Dr Chan Kok Gan of University Malaya. "This is a frightening scenario and the whole world should sit up and take action to prevent further abuse of antibiotics."

If this resistance continues to spread, colistin will become less and less effective and we will eventually lose the "antibiotic of last resort."

The colistin story also carries another lesson. It is widely thought that resistance is due to over-use of antibiotics by consumers or the spread of infections caused by resistant bacteria to patients in hospitals.

However resistance is also spread through the agriculture sector and the food chain, as shown in the study on colistin in China.

In many countries, much of the antibiotics used (80 per cent in the case of the United States) are fed in farms to animals as growth promoters, to make them grow fatter and faster, as well as to prevent or treat diseases.

Resistant bacteria build up in the animals and are present in raw meat. Some of these bacteria are passed on to humans when they eat the meat.

In Malaysia, the Department of Veterinary Services in 2012 found that half of the domestic chickens tested had bacteria that were resistant to three types of antibiotics (ampicillin, sulphonamide, tetracycline), as cited in a memorandum by the Consumers' Association of Penang.

The environment is another source of the spread of resistance. Residues and wastes containing resistant bacteria flow from farms and hospitals and contaminate soils, drainage systems, rivers and seas. Some of these bacteria find their way to humans.

The European Union banned the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in animal feed in January 2006 while the US started action to phase them out in December 2013.

In most developing countries, little action has so far been taken. Hopefully that will start to change. In November 2017, the World Health Organisation issued its first ever guidelines on the use of antibiotics in food-producing animals.

"Scientific evidence demonstrates that overuse of antibiotics in animals can contribute to the emergence of antibiotic resistance," said WHO's Food Safety Director, Dr Kazuaki Miyagishima.

A WHO-sponsored study published in The Lancet Planetary Health in November 2017 found that interventions that restrict antibiotic use in food-producing animals reduced antibiotic-resistant bacteria in these animals by up to 39%, according to a WHO press release.

The research paper (authored by William Ghali and 10 other scientists), reviewed thousands of studies, and selected 179 relevant ones, to find if there is an association between interventions that restrict antibiotic use and reduction in the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in animals and in humans.

The key findings are that:

"Overall, reducing antibiotic use decreased prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in animals by about 15% and multidrug-resistant bacteria by 24-32%."

The evidence of effect on human beings was more limited but showed similar results, "with a 24% absolute reduction in the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in humans with interventions that reduce antibiotic use in animals."

This study influenced the development of the WHO's new guidelines, which are aimed at influencing policy makers in the agriculture and health sectors. According to a WHO press release, the guidelines include:

An overall reduction in the use of all classes of medically important antibiotics in food-producing animals.

Complete restriction of these antibiotics for growth promotion and for disease prevention without diagnosis.

Healthy animals should only receive antibiotics to prevent disease if it has been diagnosed in other animals in the same flock or herd or fish population.

Antibiotics used in animals should be from the WHO list as "least important" to human health and not from "highest priority critically important."

In 2015, Health Ministers attending the World Health Assembly adopted a Global Plan of Action on anti-microbial resistance, and they agreed that each country should prepare national action plans by 2017.

Since there are many sources of antibiotic resistance, the national effort must include not only the health authorities but also those responsible for agriculture and the environment.

The health authorities should take action to control the spread of infections (including in hospitals), carry out surveillance of antibiotic resistance, introduce and implement regulations and guidelines on proper prescriptions, ethical marketing of drugs and rational drug use.

The agriculture authorities should phase out inappropriate use of antibiotics for animals, especially for growth promotion, while the environment authorities should prevent resistant bacteria and genes from contaminating soils, drainage systems, rivers and seas.

There should be campaigns to make the public aware of the dangers of wrongly using antibiotics and that they should not demand that doctors give them antibiotics unnecessarily.

The medical profession should adhere to guidelines on the proper use of antibiotics, while drug companies should not push for maximum sales but instead advocate prudent use of their antibiotics in both the health or animal sectors.

These are the more obvious actions that need to be taken and urgently if we are to succeed in slowing down the alarming rate of antibiotic resistance. If we fail, it may well be "the end of modern medicine", as the health leaders and the scientists have warned us.



(Martin Khor is Executive Director of the South Centre, a think tank for developing countries, based in Geneva).


California`s Thomas fire scorches area larger than NY City

Firefighters face challenging conditions to contain the Thomas fire.

BBC online :

The most destructive wildfire raging in southern California has expanded significantly, scorching an area larger than New York City.

The Thomas fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties has consumed 230,000 acres (930 sq km) in the past week.

Fanned by strong winds, it has become the fifth largest wildfire in recorded state history after it grew by more than 50,000 acres in a day.

Residents in coastal beach communities have been ordered to leave.

On Sunday, firefighters reported that 15% of the blaze had been contained but were forced to downgrade that to 10% as it continued to spread.

"This is a menacing fire, certainly, but we have a lot of people working very diligently to bring it under control," Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said.

The containment operation is not only being hampered by dry winds. It is proving challenging for firefighters because of the location and mountainous terrain.

An analyst with the California fire protection department, Tim Chavez, said the emergency services were struggling because "a hot interior" was in parts practically meeting the ocean, making access difficult.

"It's just a very difficult place to fight fire," Mr Chavez said, adding: "It's very dangerous and has a historical record of multiple fatalities occurring over the years."

The other fires hitting California are largely controlled, but 200,000 people have evacuated their homes and some 800 buildings have been destroyed since 4 December. Media captionLarge parts of southern California have been affected

Evacuation orders were issued overnight on Sunday for parts of Carpinteria close to Los Padres National Forest, about 100 miles (160km) northwest of Los Angeles.

Forecasters said wind speeds were expected to increase throughout the day, before dying down again overnight.

The local fire department tweeted pictures of a wall of flames advancing on homes on the outskirts of Carpinteria early on Sunday morning.

Meanwhile, actor Rob Lowe, who lives in Santa Barbara, a city of close to 100,000 people, tweeted that he was praying for his town as fires closed in.

"Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now," Lowe added.

California has spent the past seven days battling wildfires. Six large blazes, and other smaller ones, erupted on Monday night in southern California.

The Thomas Fire - named according to where it started, near the Thomas Aquinas College - is by far the largest of the fires.
Gafargaon Liberation Day observed

Gafargaon (Mymensingh) Correspondent :

Gafargaon Liberation Day was observed through gathering of freedom fighters, mass people , human-chain,rally on December 9 .

Discussion meeting , human-chain and rally were held adjacent to Charalgi Vatipara Abdus Satter High School.

Central Vice Chairman of Muktijuddha Sanghoti Parishad and MP aspirant of Awami League from Mymensingh-10 seat- freedom fighter Major (Retd) Rejaul Karim was the Chief Guest in the meeting. Haji Abdul Karim, Fakrul Islam, Mawlana Joynal Abedin, madrasa teacher Mawlana Anisur Rahman spoke in the meeting. The chief guest narrated the oppression of the then Pakistani Bahini's inhuman torture on him and killing of his colleague during Liberation War.

On the 9th December in 1971 ,valiant freedom fighters liberated Gafargaon under Mymensingh defeating the Pakistan occupation forces who explosive blasted on the town. The occupation forces also came to Gafargaon and burnt a lot of houses, killing innocent people , raping women, oppressed people brutally.

On this day in 1971, a team of over many freedom fighters led company Commander Major Afser Bahini from hidden place under the leadership by him attacked the Pakistani Bahani and defeated to the freedom fighters.

They were compelled to flee away from the town . On the occasion of day the local freedom fighters have taken various programmes. Major Reja arranged a human-chain ,discussion meeting at Charalgi Union with freedom fighters and mass people on the occasion of this day.




1,500 colleges face closure

M M Jasim :

About 1,500 colleges are in fear of closure as they have failed to fulfil the condition of the Education Ministry in terms of students' admission in Higher Secondary level, ministry sources said.

The Education Ministry has already started to know the reasons behind the failure of the colleges for not admitting any student or poor number of students.

The ministry will take stern action, including shut up the colleges and others punishment, the sources said.

No student was admitted to a total of 135 colleges in Higher Secondary level under 2017-18 session. Of them, 66 institutions are madrasas. As many as 1,383 institutions got poor number of students and most of them obtained only 5 students. As per the rule of the ministry, an institution must have 25 students in Secondary level for getting MPO (Monthly Payment Order). If the number falls the ministry has the right to close the institution.

Deputy Secretary of the Education Ministry Dr Srikanto Kumar Chanda said, the ministry gives approval of an institution if there is no college in six kilometers away. Sometimes, the ministry relaxed it on the basis of density of the population, which is not fair.

It is alleged that some officials of the ministry helped the owners of the colleges to become MPO and get approval of establishment by underhand dealings. In most of the cases, the institutions got approval by some unscrupulous officials. As a result, they did not get sufficient students and some of them have lost approval.

An official of the ministry wishing anonymity told this correspondent that some officials tried to save the institutions with poor performance last year. "They are active this year also," he said.

No student has been admitted to 19 colleges in the city while 18 colleges got 1-2 students. Mirpur Prime Scholars College has 300 seats, but it did not get any student this year.

The same scenario has been found at all the education boards in the country.

Secretary (Secondary and Higher Education Division) of the Education Ministry Sohrab Hossain said, it is true that the students are reluctant to admit in substandard colleges. "We have no second option but closure of the institutions. We also closed many colleges last year due to their poor performance," the secretary said.

"It is obvious that the government's fund is being wasted as many of the colleges' performance are not satisfactory. The founders of these institutions are also in frustration," Sohrab Hossain said. Chairman of Dhaka Education Board Professor Mahabubur Rahman said, "The Education Ministry has asked us to identify the causes behind the poor performance of these institutions.

"We are working as per the ministry's direction," he said.


Affairs cost life!

Staff Reporter :

A 30-year youth was allegedly slaughtered by four unidentified 'hired miscreants' centering love affairs dispute at a seven-storied building in the city's Aftabnagar area on Monday.

The victim has been identified as Monjil Hossen, a businessman, hailing from Homna upazila under Comilla district.

Police have detained his girl friend Sharmin Akhter alias Nishi, 26, for interrogation in this connection.

Badda Police Station Officer-in-Charge Kazi Wazed Ali said, "Four youths entered the 6th floor of the building No. 5, Road No. 3, Block- B at Aftabnagar around 11:00 am and they left the house after killing Monjil around 1:00pm."

We have detained Sharmin Akhter for interrogation as she is also a member of the assailant team, he said.

Police said they have started the investigation of the cause of the death, the police official said, adding we are trying to arrest the killers.

The body has been sent to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) morgue for post mortem, he said.


Fire at Fenchuganj grid hits power supply to NE dists

Fire broke out at the 230kV power substation at Fenchuganj in Sylhet on Monday, leaving one of the transformers totally damaged.

Some areas of the country's northeastern districts experienced power supply disruptions due to a fire incident at a grid sub-station at the Fenchuganj power station on Monday.

According to official sources at Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) that operates the substation, the fire broke out at 10:45 am on Monday at the transformer of the 230-132 kV grid substation leading to a shutdown in power supply. As a result, the power supply from the substation to a number of areas of four districts - Sylhel, Habiganj, Comilla, and Moulvibazar was disrupted.

Five power plants generate electricity from the Fenchuganj power station are 97 MW Fenchuganj CCPP-1 (Gas), 104 MW Fenchuganj CCPP-2(New), 51 MW Fenchuganj (Barakatullah), 163 MW Kushiara Fenchugonj and 44 MW Fenchuganj (Energyprima).

However, PGCB officials claimed that operation of no power plant was affected by the fire incident and they have been able to restore the power supply to the disrupted areas within few minutes through alternative Fenchuganj 132 kV transmission grid line.
Gazette published keeping Presidents authority

Gulam Rabbani :

The government finally published the gazette notification on disciplinary rules for the lower court judges keeping the Presidents authority to control the judges.



But the gazette keeps provision of the Supreme Courts advice prior to take any kind of action against the judicial service member.



Bangladesh Government (BG) Press on Monday evening published the 24 pages notification after the Law Ministry sent to it for publication.



According to the gazette notification, departmental proceedings could be taken against any member of the judicial service if any specific allegation found against him/her.



No allegation will be brought into contingence until the consent of the Supreme Court, also said the notification.



If any specific allegation found logical against any member of the service, the matter should be sent to the Supreme Court for suggestion, the notification also read.



Prior to this, written statement of the accused service member should be taken. After submitting the statement of the service member if the authority thinks that the allegations are considerable for investigation, then the authority can appoint an investigation officer or form a body to look into the allegations against the service member consulting with the Supreme Court.



The authority can be able to temporarily suspend the accused service members by the advice of the apex court if they are found guilty.



A service member will be temporarily suspended for maximum one year. If the investigation does not complete by this time the temporarily suspension will cancelled automatically, but the departmental proceedings will continue.



Meanwhile, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Corut (SC) had extended time till December 13 in 2017 to the government to publish a gazette notification on the last hearing day of the Masdar Hossain case, known as the judiciary separation case.



Earlier, Law Secretary said, the Law Ministry has finalised the disciplinary rules for lower court judges in line with Article 116 of the Constitution, which allows the president to control their postings, promotions and leaves in consultation with the Supreme Court.



Article 116, in its current form, says, The control (including the power of posting, promotion and grant of leave) and discipline of persons employed in the judicial service and magistrates exercising judicial functions shall vest in the President and shall be exercised by him in consultation with the Supreme Court.



The Supreme Court recently had gone through the draft and sent it back to the Ministry with its opinions.



On November 16, Law Minister Anisul Huq met five judges of the Appellate Division of the SC and discussed the rules and then told the journalists that the problem regarding issuance of a gazette notification determining the discipline of lower court judges had been resolved.



On November 5, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam told reporters that [the then] Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha wanted to see the rules curbing the power of the President. The government, therefore, was trying to resolve the issue through discussions with the SC and the Law Ministry, he added.



While presiding over the Appellate Division bench, Justice Sinha had expressed annoyance and dissatisfaction several times at the governments failure to issue a gazette notification on the rules.



Article 116 of the original charter of 1972 had empowered the SC to decide on the posting, promotion and leave of lower court judges. The top court had also control over the magistrates exercise of judicial powers and could discipline the judicial service staffs when necessary.



Over the years, this article has been amended several times, curtailing the apex courts powers.



Currently, the powers to control and discipline subordinate courts are vested in the President, who exercises these powers in consultation with the SC.



However, according to article 48(3) of the Constitution, the president acts on the advice of the Prime Minister. This gives the government ample scope to exercise power over the judiciary.



In a message on October 31 last year, Justice Sinha had said such a dual rule was hampering the judicial work and was also increasing justice seekers sufferings.



The Supreme Court alone cannot take steps regarding lower court judges promotion and transfer or any disciplinary action against them in view of the Article 116 of the Constitution. Judges cannot be appointed to fill many vacant posts in the district courts on time due to the dual rule, Justice Sinha said in the message issued on the occasion of the ninth anniversary of the separation of the Judiciary from the executive.




Dhaka-Ctg Expressway still a far cry

Internal dispute delayed project plan for one yr

Anisul Islam Noor :

The government's initiative to build Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway as a fast road communication system between the capital and the port city delayed for a year due to dispute between the Roads Transport and Highways Division (RHD) and Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA).

In this context, RHD has already completed a pre-feasibility study in two phases. The BBA also wants to build expressway on the same route. And it has also taken a separate feasibility study project in this regard. The conflict is continuing for more than a year.

According to a study, on an average, 35,000 vehicles were transported daily on Dhaka-Chittagong highway in 2015. It will cross 65,000 in 2020. In the year 2030, the number of vehicles will increase to 85,000.

In this case, the existing highway has 90 risky points, and expressway construction is the only solution, the study said.

But conflict between the two offices has delayed the government's plan of enhancement transportation capacity between Dhaka-Chittagong.

To get the job, both the offices sent counter letters even to the Prime Minister's Office and the Planning Commission.

However, the Road Transport and Highways Division now sought the intervention of the Finance and Planning Ministers in this regard.

The government signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on April 3, 2013 to prepare feasibility study and detailed design of the Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway. Later the consultation firm SMAC International proposed three different routes for the project.As per the Prime Minister's direction, a design was prepared keeping option route on plain land and flyover in some parts.

On the recommendation of consultant firm, the initiative of implementing the full expressway in three parts has been taken. Among them, Dhaka-Comilla 84 km, Comilla-Feni 52.80 km and Feni-Chittagong 80.95 km.

Meanwhile, several meetings were held between Roads Transport and Highways Division with the Finance Division for all the packages.

Secretary of Road Transport and Highways Division Nazrul Islam told The New Nation that the Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway would be implemented under Road Transport Division.

"The minister has already finalized this decision, but the project is not progressing due to the bridge division. We will notify it to the Finance and the Planning Ministers to take action quickly," the secretary said.

Sources said, though three routes have been considered, finally it has been decided to build it on the side of the existing highway. Expressway will be constructed from Kanchpur to Daudkandi, Comilla, Feni and Chittagong. Two sides of the road will be sealed.

"Only cars can be accessed and removed by the specified place. If it is built, you can go from Dhaka to Chittagong in two to two and a half hours," Nazrul Islam said.

Expressway length will be 218 kilometers. The bridges on Kanchpur, Meghna and Gomti will be extended in six lane and both roads and railway systems will be installed in the bridges.

Besides service roads, 7 interchanges, three service stations, 64 overpasses, 44-vehicle underpasses, four medium bridges and 28 small bridges will be constructed under the project.

The estimated expenditure of the proposed project will be Tk 28,187.90 crore, while it will increase to Tk 72,000 crore if it is built as flyover, sources said.

The project has been scheduled for the period from January 2012 to December 2022.
Change is everything

Life Desk :

Newly-crowned Miss World Manushi Chhillar believes that change, and not success, is everything.

"I think change is everything, something common in all entrepreneurs.

"We not only love what we do but we want change that is why we do it," she said at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) here on Wednesday.

She feels that everyone can make a difference to the world. "We don't have to be Miss World to do that. Even if you give a smile, it will bring change."

Manushi was in a chat with Ronnie Screwvala, Founder, UpGrad, on the second day of the summit at Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC).

She said as Miss World and a future doctor her purpose is the same as she wants to do something good for the society. "If I hadn't won, I'd still be doing what I do."

She plans to give back to the society both as a doctor and as an ambassador of India in different parts of the world.

On communication, she said coming from a doctor's family it came naturally to her. She believed communication is key to the profession as a doctor has to communicate with his or her patients.

"It's also become easy to communicate when you say what you believe," the girl from Haryana added.

"Believe strongly in yourself and have purpose. Others will also believe you," was her advice to women entrepreneurs who feel like giving up in the face of odds.

Health and hygiene are the causes she wants to support as Miss World. She said she has been working for menstrual hygiene across India.

Stressing on the need for equal opportunities for women in society, she said they should get this because they are equally capable.

"I shouldn't be treated differently because I am a woman, then only it will be an equal world," she added.

Manushi received a warm welcome at the HICC. Several delegates were seen vying to click pictures with her.

Earlier, she received a grand welcome at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. She was accompanied by Julia Evelyn Morley, the Chairwoman of the Miss World Organisation, which runs the annual Miss World and bi-annual Mister World competitions.

On her arrival, senior GMR officials greeted her with a bouquet and escorted her to the GMR lounge, where she interacted with officials and airport staff.

- IANS, Hyderabad


Revolution in veg production

Small farmers income gets a boost

Kazi Zahidul Hasan :

For the last few years, a silent revolution has unfolded in vegetable farming across the country rapidly changing the fate of the small and marginal farmers.

Bangladesh has witnessed a record production of over 4.96 million tonnes of vegetable in the last fiscal year (2016-17) while the total production of vegetables was 3.67 million tonnes in the previous fiscal (2015-16), according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

Production of vegetable is expected to cross 5.0 million tonnes this year, officials said.

"Vegetable production is increasing by 5 to 6 per cent per year taking advantage of farming revolution in the last one decade," Horticulture Specialist of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) Dr Mehedi Masud told The New Nation on Monday.

He said an extensive vegetable cultivation has brought significant changes in the livelihood of marginal farmers across the country, as they are getting a huge profit from vegetable production.

Bangladesh is now the third largest producer of vegetables in the world, after China and India.

Vegetable is now exported to about 50 countries around the world. 60 per cent of the total quantity is exported to the Middle East and the remaining 40 per cent to European and other countries.

"Expanded cultivation of vegetables has brought about a revolution in both farming and in rural economy bringing fortune to thousands of the poor and landless families," another Horticulture Specialist Khondker Md. Mesbahul Islam told The New Nation.

He said, "Vegetable farming also helps driving agricultural growth and we cannot ignore its contribution to the economy".

Khondker Mesbahul Islam also said that the farmers are making profit from vegetable production, which is changing their life.

Literate youths are also joining the farming with the use of improved technology and their talents. It also helped to increase the production further.

Quoting a survey report, both the Horticulture Specialists said 40 per cent of the total vegetables is wasted from production to the consumers' level. They believe that much of this waste could be minimized if there were improved storage facilities and good communication systems.

According to Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), vegetable production has increased five times in the past 40 years. It increased by 32 per cent in the last six years, said an official figure.

Farmers are cultivating pumpkin, sweet gourd, bitter gourd, bottle gourd, pointed gourd, chilli, brinjal, cucumber, snake gourd, long beans, teasel gourd, sponge gourd, cauliflower, spinach and red amaranth, garlic and other vegetables.

"We're now turning enthusiastically to these short-duration crops with high yield reeling from recurring losses and declining productivity of staple crops such as rice and wheat," Rakibul Islam, 45, a vegetable farmer at Doulatpur upazila under Kushtia district, told The New Nation yesterday.

He said his grandfather and father like other farmers in his village grew rice, wheat and pulse, which is what they also ate. He never saw profit in producing the staples.

Five years ago, Rakibul switched to growing vegetables like brinjals, cauliflowers, potatoes, chilli and tomatoes from his farm.

"Now I am cultivating seasonal vegetables in my 3.0 acres of land and making good profit," he said, adding, " Now we are healthy and a bit wealthy."

Rabiul also said that the rising demand for vegetables has opened up a great opportunity for the farmers in his upazila.

Like Rabiul, thousands of poor households of northwestern districts have also become self-reliant through vegetable cultivation; our correspondents reported from major vegetable growing districts.

They said small farmers are making more money and seeing better health thanks to vegetables farming. They are selling the extra produce after meeting their own nutrition demand.
Army's rape of Rohingya women sweeping, methodical

This combo photo comprises of portraits of some of the Rohingya Muslim women taken during an interview with The Associated Press in Kutupalong and Gundum refugee camp in Bangladesh.

AP :

The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar's security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press news agency found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively.

The women gave AP their names, but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Myanmar's military.

They ranged in age from 13 years old to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Myanmar's Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September.

Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants' uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves.

The testimonies bolster the UN's contention that Myanmar's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a "calculated tool of terror" aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people.

The Myanmar armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the

AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place.

Myanmar official mocks rape accusation

When journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organised trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhine's minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: "These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances - do you think they are that attractive to be raped?"
Protection of mountains underscored

UNB, Dhaka :

Speakers at a discussion on Monday urged all to protect the mountains for the betterment of the future generation.

Mentioning that mountain is important for the whole world they said thousands of people depend on mountains for survival.

They came up with the remarks at a Citizens' Dialogue marking the International Mountain Day jointly organised by Bangla Mountaineering & Trekking Club (BMTC) and Embassy of Nepal at the Jatiya Press Club in the city.

The theme of this year's Mountain Day is 'Mountain under pressure: climate, hunger, migration'.

Addressing the dialogue second Bangladeshi Mount Everest conqueror MA Muhit said Himalayan Mountain is very important for

Bangladesh as most of the rivers of Bangladesh get water from rivers that originate from the Himalayan glaciers.

He said, Himalayan glaciers are getting melted and the cracks of the mountains are on the rise for the reason of global warming which is very alarming adding when the glaciers melt, rivers flood.

Urging people not to throw the wastes and garbage at random Muhit said, "We'll enjoy the beauty of nature but should not make the nature dirty and disturb its wild life."

Nishat Mazumder, first Bangladeshi woman to scale Mount Everest said the white mountains are getting black as days are passing for the effect of global warming.

Terming the Himalayan Mountain as the mother of Bangladesh she said, "If mother is not happy, we won't be happy."

Nishat said, the green hills of Bangladesh are getting less green and the incidents like landslide are happening there. So, authorities concerned will have to be careful in this regards.

Economist Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman said mountain is not only a beauty of nature when people climb it they also discover themselves.

Everyone is talking about development issue nowadays but other issues like preservation of environment, cleanliness also should be discussed with this, he stressed.
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The trip to Durban from Bangalore was a long one: partly because the departure from Bangalore airport was at 3:45am, but mainly because we had to take three flights to get to our destination. We left our place in Bangalore at midnight: the first UberXL I tried to book was a phantom, so I cancelled it (Ive seen a number of these since arriving in Asia, for some reason). The second one I booked stayed at 1 minute away for quite some time I ended up realising it was parked a few metres up the street. I walked up to it and found the driver sleeping inside (and really soundly) as hed confirmed the booking somehow  presumably in is sleep  I felt entitled to bang on the window to wake him. It took a while, but he eventually woke up and agreed to take us to the airport (after asking us to pay cash, which I found a bit strange for an Uber driver).

The driver clearly wasnt fully awake, but we all certainly were by the time we arrived at the airport. Driving in Bangalore can be frightening enough, but when your half-asleep driver applies his stuck in traffic driving skills to open roads, its terrifying. Not only that, but the driver clearly wasnt the one shown in his Uber profile  Im pretty sure there was some kind of scam going on. Anyway, we were relieved to arrive in one piece.

At the airport things went fairly smoothly, although it did take Qatar Airways staff a little while to validate our documentation for South Africa  theyre clearly not used to having Swiss people flying on this particular leg. In the last year or so, South Africa has required parents travelling with children to present documentation of their familial relationships. Modern passports dont include fields for father and mother so this usually means carrying original birth certificates. In Switzerland the closest equivalent is the Certificat de Famille, a document that grows as you get married and have kids. We had ours with us, but it took the airline staff a long time to decipher it (arriving in South Africa proved much simpler, in comparison, but thats how these things sometimes go).

Other than that the flights went smoothly. We started with a 5-hour flight to Doha

On arriving in Qatar, the kids got a real kick out of seeing men with falcons in the airport!

Next was a 9-hour leg from Doha to Johannesburg. Wed managed to sleep for most of the first leg, but still drifted off between movies on this very comfortable second leg. So by the time we arrived in Joburg  and had to collect our bags and pass customs and immigration  we were still surprisingly fresh.

Then it was a small hop to Durban, the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal. It was never our plan to stay in the city itself: after picking up our rental car  a Nissan X-Trail, a 4x4 with decent clearance  we drove the 20-minutes or so up to the Dolphin Coast where wed booked an Airbnb literally a few steps from the sea.

This was a perfect place to recover from our trip before having to deal with Africa proper. We spent our time wandering along Sheffield Beach, or just staring out to sea to try to spot bottle-nosed dolphins (we did see a couple of pods on the last morning, which was pretty special. We also saw some beautiful birdlife, that a book in the flat allowed us to identify: a red bishop, a Burchells coucal and a redwinged starling. The birds of Africa are really spectacular.

On the beach we were wondering at the number of little plastic beads we found at the high-tide line.

At first we thought they might be worn-down pieces of plastic, but then found out Kalans personal theory was correct: they were beads destined to be melted down to make bottles, etc. We met a clean-up crew along the beach and learned the full story: a couple of months ago a huge storm hit Durban: it not only claimed 36 lives but resulted in a cargo ship losing a container of these beads (also known as nurdles). The beads started showing up on the beaches along the coast: some were completely white with them. The resultant clean-up operation  paid for by insurance  is a mammoth job: crews up and down the coast will be making repeated trips to the beaches until at least August of next year. Thankfully the nurdles float, which at least means they should eventually be found and collected. (It turns out they soak up pollutants, though, so make end up being quite damaging to the environment, one way or another.)

After two nights near Sheffield Beach it was time to head inland. Wed decided wed be crossing into Lesotho on December 10th, so had two nights to kill on the way. The Royal Natal National Park  on the South African side of the Drakensberg mountains  seemed a good place to do this.

We knew there was a camp-site at the park, so headed directly for that. As we arrived it was already raining, so we decided to find something a little more hotel-like: another option would have been to stay in a very cute village inside the park called Thendele, but at around $200 a night we decided to look elsewhere. We retraced our steps and stumbled upon a B&B called the Tower of Pizza. Yes, I know under normal circumstances theres no way Id go for a place with a name like that, but by this point it really was raining heavily. And it turned out to be fantastic  a complete surprise!

We had a lovely little cottage with a fireplace: a great way to stay sheltered from the weather.

It turns out wed brought the rain with us: it was the first day of the rainy season, which local farmers had been looking forward to for months. Luckily, though, we woke up to find blue skies after a fantastic breakfast, we went back to the park and found the Thukela (also spelled Tugela) Gorge Trail that had been recommended by our hosts at the B&B.

We werent sure wed do the whole 14km of trail (7km each way), but we decided to try. The weather on the way out was simply perfect

And we made it all the way to Thukela Gorge, which was beautiful.

In the distance we could even see the Thukela Falls, the second-highest in the world: you can just make it out in the below photo.

We had a quick picnic lunch before strarting back, mainly as we were concerned about being caught in a storm. The weather had already started to roll in not unexpectedly, but we picked up the pace for the return, as best we could.

We were starting to get tired and low on water, so were relieved to arrive back at the carpark having only been touched by a few drops of rain.

The rain came  again, really hard  while we were taking it easy at the flat, recovering from the 16km we had ended up walking.

This time, though, it didnt disappear the following morning. Weve had a lovely time in KwaZulu-Natal: next well be heading to Lesotho, which should be quite an experience.

By the way if youve enjoyed these photos, you can see more (and more regularly) via our Instagram page.
By Azernews





By Rashid Shirinov

An area of 13,000 square meters has been completely cleared in Jojug Marjanli village of Azerbaijans Jabrayil region, National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) told Trend on December 9.

During the past day, an area of 13,000 square meters was completely cleared in the village, while no mines or unexploded ordnance were found, the message says.

Currently, ANAMA continues clearing of Jojug Marjanli from mines and UXOs.

The Agency was established in 1998 for planning and coordination, management and monitoring of mine action related activities all over the country.

The problem of unexploded ordnance in Azerbaijan can be divided into the areas that are still under the occupation of Armenian forces and other areas of the country. Most of the unexploded ordinances are the result of Armenian aggression.

Jojug Marjanli village was liberated by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces from the Armenian occupation in April 2016. In late January 2017, President Ilham Aliyev ordered to restore the village. ANAMA professionals carry out the operation in the village with the aim to ensure full security for its residents.












By Azernews





By Rashid Shirinov

France supports peaceful settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Aurelia Bouchez told journalists on her visit on December 11 to a new settlement built for internally displaced persons in Tartar region of Azerbaijan.

France stands for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. As OSCE Minsk Group co-chair country, France will continue to make efforts to achieve progress in the conflict settlement, she said.

Bouchez added she was visiting Tartar region for the first time.

I am quite impressed with the quality of buildings built here  schools and apartments. I think this is very important, because it is necessary to take care of peoples lives. All this shows how important it is to achieve a peaceful settlement of the conflict, the ambassador noted.

American professor James Quayle has also visited the new settlement in Tartar.

I became in the first hand familiar with conditions created by Azerbaijani government for IDPs and this is incredible. I wish we had such a school in the place where I live in the U.S., he told reporters.

Touching upon the solution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Quayle noted it is necessary to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of countries. He said the conflict should be settled in accordance with the principles and norms of international law.

Azerbaijan and Armenia for over two decades have been locked in a conflict, which emerged over Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since the 1990s war, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

Due to the ethnic cleansing policy carried out by Armenia, the number of refugees and internally displaced persons in Azerbaijan hit more than 1.2 million. With a population of over 9.8 million, Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms.

With the growing economic and political situation of the country, Azerbaijan pays much attention to the most difficult problems once concerning the refugees and IDPs. The state improves the living conditions of refugees and IDPs and it has adopted relevant state programs and legislative acts.

The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan, but they have not been enforced to this day.
By Azernews





By Kamila Aliyeva

The situation on the Korean peninsula remains extremely tense and can only be resolved politically and diplomatically in line with the Russian-Chinese road map.

This was stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following the fifteenth meeting of the Foreign Ministers of RIC (Russia, India and China), RIA Novosti reported.

We exchanged opinions on the situation on the Korean Peninsula, it is extremely tense. We consider it inadmissible to aggravate military tension and military confrontation, which can turn into a hot state from the propaganda, he said.

During the meeting, the ministers stressed the absence of an alternative to solving this problem exclusively by political and diplomatic means in line with the corresponding Russian-Chinese road map, according to Lavrov.

Earlier, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikky Haley told Fox News Sunday that Beijing and the rest of the international community are following through with sanctions against Pyongyang for developing its nuclear weapons programme. She then commended Washington for leading the charge.

But to be clear, China can do more. And we're putting as much pressure on them as we can. The last time they completely cut off the oil, North Korea came to the table. And so we've told China they've got to do more. If they don't do more, we're going to take it into our own hands and then we'll start to deal with secondary sanctions, Haley said.

She also warned that if North Korea attempts to threaten the United States or any one of its allies, it will be utterly destroyed.

You know, diplomacy is great in some respects, but you have to also be honest. North Korea has pushed the envelope to an extreme level, Haley added.

Pyongyang conducted its first ballistic test launch on November 28. The missile was reported to have flown for 50 minutes on a very high trajectory, reaching 4,500 km above the earth before coming down nearly 1,000 km from the launch site off the west coast of Japan, according to the South Korean Chiefs of Staff Committee.

November 28 marked the first missile launch carried out by North Korea since September 15. Since then, for 75 days, Pyongyang has refrained from military provocations.

The active phase of the crisis on the Korean peninsula began in August 2017, when Pyongyang tested ballistic missiles and announced the successful testing of the hydrogen bomb.

The United Nations Security Council has unanimously imposed a set of sanctions against North Korea on September 11 over the countrys hydrogen bomb test which was conducted on September 3.

The sanctions included limits on import of crude oil and oil products, a ban on textile exports and new visas for North Korean oversees workers.
Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), one of the world's leading aluminium smelters, has signed a MoU with Bechtel, a leading construction and civil engineering firm, to explore further opportunities of growth with Line 6 Expansion Project, which will result in Alba becoming the worlds largest single-site aluminium smelter.



Bechtel is currently the engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPCM) contractor for Albas landmark Line 6 Expansion Project.



The agreement was signed in the presence of HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister at a reception organised by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) in collaboration with American Chamber of Commerce and the US-Bahrain Business Council recently in Washington DC.



Other cross-sector trade agreements were also signed between Bahrain and US companies during the reception.



Alba is one of the industrial cornerstones of Bahrain and we are deeply committed to the kingdoms Economic Vision 2030 and proudly partake in the development of the society in which we operate," remarked CEO Tim Murray after signing the deal with Brendan P. Bechtel, the chairman and chief executive of Bechtel Group.



"Alba and Bechtel have a long-standing business partnership," he stated.



"We are excited at exploring further opportunities with Bechtel, which will consolidate Albas status as one of the most modern and largest single-site smelters in the world," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Students in Dubais private schools scored overall 527 points  improving 37 average points from their previous performance in 2011, showed the 2016 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS).



Fourth graders from private schools in the Dubai scored 539 in ePIRLS 2016, significantly higher than the international average. Over 7000 students from Dubai participated in the reading tests and they outperformed students in France, Belgium and Chile in PIRLS, reported Wam, the Emirates news agency.



Dr Abdulla Al Karam, chairman and director general of Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) in Dubai, said, "The success of Dubais students reflects our increased emphasis on improving reading skills and raising education standards across schools. Our rise in the global rankings is commendable and it affirms our continued progress to achieve UAE national agenda goals. These results will have a positive impact on our schools, teachers and students as we will continue to work on new initiatives that provide opportunities to collaborate and share successful experiences."



Sixty-one per cent of private school students in Dubai scored at and above international average in PIRLS and 62 per cent in ePIRLS.



Fatma Belrehif, executive director of Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau at KHDA, said, "These results align with our school inspection findings and we are continuing to see improvements. Reading skills are a key focus area for the inspections as making reading enjoyable at schools greatly impacts learning in other subjects."



The PIRLS assessment, which has been running since 2001, involves nine and 10-year-olds from grade 4 or year 5 completing comprehension tests and provides internationally comparative data on how well children read by assessing students reading achievement in different countries.



PIRLS tests follow a five-year cycle and Dubais scores have risen since its first participation in 2011. The study, which is run by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) in Amsterdam, and Boston College, USA, tested more than 319,000 students in 50 countries.
Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, a multispecialty hospital, reduced the amount of domestic water it was using by 30 per cent - saving more than four Olympic swimming pools worth of water per month - in the first nine months of the year.



According to a report released today by the hospitals in-house sustainability team, monthly water usage within the hospital fell from 28,787 cu m in December 2016 to 19,830 cu m in September 2017.



That means that over the first nine months of 2017, without compromising patient safety and while providing excellent care, the hospital has saved more than 20 million gallons of water  enough to fill 400,000 baths or nearly 40 Olympic swimming pools.



By using condensed water from the air conditioning system for irrigation and by changing the plant mix in its grounds to include more native species, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi succeeded in cutting the amount of mains water it used for irrigation by two thirds.



Irrigation water usage fell from 3,978 cu m in December 2016 to just 1,092 cu m in September 2017  saving the equivalent of one and a half Olympic swimming pools worth of water a month.



From last month -- November 2017 -- around 70 per cent of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabis hot water demand has been met by solar water heaters  something which will save the hospital Dh750,000 ($204 million) a year on its utility bills and further reduce the hospitals carbon footprint.



Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi was designed to meet the highest sustainability standards in the GCC, said Mawadhah Al Hashemi, sustainability manager at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. In the journey of sustainability, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels  we are constantly looking for ways to innovate and reduce our use of resources including water and electricity.

The healthcare industry globally is one of the most resource-intensive commercial occupiers in the world and I am very proud our hospital continues to work hard every day to become more and more environmentally sustainable.



To reduce carbon emissions, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi this year became one of the first hospitals in the Mena region to use a greenhouse gas tool to quantify and exhaustively log the exact amounts of greenhouse gas emissions the hospital produces in the hope of then being able to reduce them.



In 2014, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi became the largest hospital in the GCC to have been awarded a Leed (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold sustainability certificate for new construction.



The hospital has been designed to include an innovative double skin exterior which provides an air buffer between the indoor and outdoor environment, reducing the amount of cooling the iconic building requires.



In contrast to Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabis sustainability efforts, hospitals typically use around twice the amount of energy of similarly-sized office buildings and the number of new hospitals opening across the GCC region is set to grow by more than 10 per cent over the next three years.



By highlighting the sustainability results that Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is achieving throughout the year, we hope that others in the healthcare sector will take their own steps to reduce water and energy consumption and find new ways to become more resource-efficient in their operations, Al Hashemi concluded.- TradeArabia News Service
Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), a leading aluminium smelter in the world, has signed up as strategic sponsor for the Aluminium Sector, at the Gulf Industry Fair 2018, the Northern Gulfs only event dedicated to promoting industrialisation, thus reaffirming its strategic support for the expo.



The Gulf Industry Fair 2018 will take place from February 6 to 8 at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre under the patronage of HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain, said the event organisers Hilal Conferences & Exhibitions (HCE).



Alba will promote the Aluminium Industry at Gulf Industry Fair 2018, which reflects both, the upstream and downstream growth of the aluminium sector in the GCC.



Albas CEO Tim Murray said: "Aluminium has become one of the pillars upon which Bahrain has built its economic diversification. As the GCCs leading aluminium smelter, we believe that the Gulf Industry Fair is an important platform to promote Bahrain and the regions Aluminium Industry."



The Gulf aluminium industry is set to boom with Albas brownfield project, Line 6 Expansion Project, which will further underline the GCC region as an emerging hub for aluminium production, stated Murray.



"Line 6 Expansion Project, is going to add 540,000 metric tonnes, bringing Albas total production to 1.5 million metric tonnes," he added.



Welcoming the Alba tieup, Jubran Abdulrahman, the managing director of HCE, said Albas presence has encouraged downstream participation from leading downstream aluminium companies based in Bahrain such as Midal Cables and Gulf Markets International who manufacture and market products from Aluminium supplied by Alba.



"The Aluminium Zone at Gulf Industry Fair promotes products and services from the growing aluminium sector in the GCC. Bahrain is an established global exporter of downstream aluminium products and services which are Made in Bahrain," he noted.



"This strong position is due, in no small part, to the role of Alba as a local and global aluminium producer," he added.



Gulf Industry Fair 2018 also carries the strategic sponsorship of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) in association with the National Oil and Gas Authority.



The leading industry event is supported by Bahrain Industrial Association, PHD Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Bahrain.-TradeArabia News Service
Saudi Telecom Company (STC), the largest telecoms company in the kingdom, has joined forces with Thales, a leader in critical information systems, cybersecurity and data security, to launch a cloud encryption service for enterprise customers allowing them to protect and control their data in the cloud.



Thales had inked a cloud service provider agreement with STC to provide data encryption solutions through the STC cloud platform and to further develop secured Information Communications Technology (ICT) business in Saudi Arabia.



Enterprises are increasingly turning to cloud environments to help them save time and money.

While these technologies are digitally transforming businesses, they present some challenges. Enterprise data is fair game for cybercriminals, regardless of operating environment, and meeting compliance and best practices requirements isnt always straightforward.



Vormetric Transparent Encryption from Thales encrypts sensitive data before it leaves the enterprise and is saved in the cloud storage environment, enabling information security teams to establish the visibility and control they need around sensitive assets.



This solution ensures that data in the STC public cloud is secure and trusted by delivering seamless high performance encryption, access control and strong key management.



Talal Albakr - Vice President Cloud Services at Saudi Telecom Company says: Digital transformation is at the heart of Saudi Arabias Vision 2030 for a strong, thriving and stable economy that provides opportunity for all. Our partnership with Thales is designed to deliver secure and trusted public cloud services to STC customers across the Kingdom and the wider Middle East region, allowing them to establish strong safeguards around their sensitive data and applications in the cloud, satisfying local compliance requirements and providing greater control and flexibility.



Philip Schreiber, the regional sales director, at Thales eSecurity Middle East, Africa and South Asia said: "It is a common misconception that by moving to the cloud, businesses are relinquishing all control of their data. By applying encryption and practicing secure encryption key management, companies can ensure that only authorized users have access to sensitive data."



"Even if lost, stolen, or accessed without authorization, encrypted data is unreadable and essentially meaningless without its key. STC have selected a best-in-class data encryption solution that not only ensures their customers remain firmly in control of their data but also ensures that data remains secure and trusted in their cloud environment," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
The landmark Declaration of Cooperation reached last year by the 14 member countries of Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) with the 10 non-Opec states underlined the shared resolve they all had in achieving an accelerated realignment of global oil supply and demand at a time of critical importance, according to an Opec publication.



Both Opec and non-Opec producers on November 30 reached an agreement to further extend oil output cuts until the end of 2018.



''With this 'Declaration, the 24 producers upheld their responsibility for oil market stability in the interest of all oil producing and consuming countries," said the special edition of the Opec Bulletin.



"Their monumentally-significant decision, taken after extensive rounds of consultations in order to address the prevailing market realities at the time, were considered to be much more than just a short-term fix; they were seen as essential in the medium- and long-term as well," it stated.



"As a result, the 'Declaration' demonstrated and even exemplified a commitment to the global community in shared efforts to restore and sustain market stability with positive and broad implications for the world economy, the oil industry and oil producing countries,'' it added.



According to Opec, the 'Declaration' was not only historic in itself but also a noteworthy achievement on so many other levels: It is the first production adjustment since Oran 2008 and also it is the first time that participating non-Opec countries are committed to a joint agreement for production adjustment.



"It allows for Iraq to be effectively part of the production management for the first time since 1998,'' stated the Vienna-based organization in the special edition.



Despite sources of uncertainty and the different kinds of challenges they represented, the Opec bulletin noted that the 24 signatories of the Declaration found ways to see beyond parochial concerns and view the problem together, collectively, with the aim of finding a way forward that might benefit all of them as well as the world as a whole.



''They managed to rise to the occasion, amid extensive consultations and multiple rounds of shuttle diplomacy, and produced an extraordinary action that has changed the course of history," said the Opec experts in the bulletin.



"While we are still looking forward to the continuing implementation of the market rebalancing long sought by so many, the progress made in the year has been remarkable" it stated.



''Furthermore, the relationships built and the ties made have been exemplary and they are now serving as a model of how to tackle other problems in the future,'' the bulletin added.-TradeArabia News Service
Cromia, a renowned leather goods brand from Italy, has lauched the Miss Chain mini bags - a new party girl must have for the holiday season.



Miss Chain is a stylish mini bag made using printed saffiano leather. The front panel is embellished with micro studs and a train of small silver chains at the bottom give it elegance and movement.



the new bags come in new colors for the festive season - blue, black, red, argento, orchid, platinum and white. The Miss Chain mini bags measure to 18x17x6 in size and come with a removable shoulder strap.



Bag lovers can discover the entire festive Cromia handbags and accessories collection at Wafi Mall in Dubai. - TradeArabia News Service


Dubai Airports, operator of Dubai International and Dubai World Central, has appointed Majed Al Joker as executive vice president, corporate affairs.



Al Joker takes on responsibility for a new Corporate Affairs unit that comprises Dubai Airports Excellence Programmes and Government Relations, Corporate Resilience, Security and Legal departments. Prior to his promotion, Al Joker was senior vice president, Assurance & Control Authorities.



Weve made great strides recently to increase the positive influence that Dubai Airports has amongst our stakeholder community, both inside and outside of the airport. Weve also improved the relationship with the various government departments with whom we interact on a daily basis. Such improvements dont come without hard work and effort. They are the result of a sustained and detailed analysis of our business needs in this pivotal area. These improvements in our business have been led from the front by Majed Al Joker our new EVP of Corporate Affairs, said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports.



Al Joker joined Dubai Airports in 2008 as vice president - Terminal Operations before serving as senior vice president - Operations for Dubai World Central (DWC). Prior to joining Dubai Airports, he served as deputy director - Airport Operations at Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) for three years. He began his journey in the aviation industry at Emirates Airlines, where he served as the Outstation Airport Services Manager in Cairo, Bangkok, Bangladesh and Malaysia, and later became Emirates Airlines Regional Manager - Airport Services (West Asia) covering 24 international stations. He is also a winner of Best Leader in Customer Service (UAE level). - TradeArabia News Service
Stacked up against most northeast Wyoming coal mines are the mounds of dirt disturbed in order to dig down to the thick black coal seams beneath the surface. The dark underbelly is exposed for months or years before eventually returning to the light brown of windswept prairie.

Reclamation is an ongoing part of coal mining in Wyoming, and companies are quick to point out the ways theyve followed the rules. But cleaning up Wyoming mines became a matter of serious concern during the two-year downturn in the coal economy.

In 2015 and 2016, three large coal companies went bankrupt, drawing attention to the $2 billion in unsecured cleanup costs at Wyoming coal mines. Conservation groups rallied against the practice of self-bonding, when a company financial strength is used as a guarantee for eventual cleanup costs. They argued that if companies went under, the state could be faced with reclaiming the largest open surface coal mines in the country, and paying the tab.

But the coal economy has since improved. All those large companies are now fully bonded, and Wyoming is looking into its financial assurance rules, beefing up the way it judges a companys finances before allowing self-bonds.

Environmental groups are favorable to all of these developments. But the heated debates during the bad times still need to be had, they say. Nearly half of the land disturbed for coal mining since the early 80s is still unreclaimed, and advocates warn that the long-term impacts of coal mining to water and the landscape are still a concern. So are the financial risks to coal companies with reclamation liabilities.

State regulators and coal firms say the bust proved the strength of rules in place, and new rules being developed will keep Wyoming off the hook if and when the largest surface mines in the country are decommissioned.

***

Companies feel theyve proved their worth when it comes to clean up.

Even with those companies that went bankrupt, mining never stopped and reclamation never stopped, said Travis Deti, spokesman for the Wyoming Mining Association, referring to Peabody Energy, Alpha Natural Resources and Arch Coal filing for Ch. 11.

By one measure, Wyoming firms have reclaimed about 64 percent of the land disturbed since the state developed its existing coal program in the 1980s, according to state counts.

But judging reclamation at any point in time is difficult. Of the three phases that precede letting the company walk away from a mine site, the last step is the longest: a 10-year wait and see period in which water, soil and wildlife are monitored. Last year, seven tracts of land, between 90 and 2,000 acres, cleared that final hurdle. But that doesnt imply seven mine sites closed. Reclamation is piecemeal.

The timeline of private companies using public land, however, is one of the things that advocacy groups consider, along with environmental concerns stated in federal environmental assessments, like the long-term impacts of draining water from the local aquifer.

Deti, of the mining association, says the federal oversight proves that coal mining is heavily regulated and that water is one of the many areas that are reviewed.

Reclamation is part of a mine plan, he said. Before a shovel of earth is turned, before permits are approved, you have to have your mine plan, which includes [clean up and bonding].

The fact that reclamation continued during the bankruptcy period is a good thing, said Shannon Anderson, lawyer for the Powder River Basin Resource Council, a landowners advocacy group in the Powder River Basin.

Bonding rules are likely to improve, and that too is positive, Anderson said.

But some of the concerns from the bankruptcy period are still relevant.

There still is a lot of uncertainty in the market, she said. There is a lot of risk.

***

The Resource Council has been a consistent voice in the push for Wyoming to update its bonding rules to ensure clean up. The downturn instigated a passionate debate over whether the state should continue to allow for self-bonding given coals vulnerability.

Now Wyoming is considering asking companies to prove financial strength via a credit rating instead of financial statements, allowing them to look ahead at a companys projected financial health, rather than look back at how it did over the last year.

The updates offer a surprising change of tone compared to the stubborn back and forth about bonding in years past when both states and coal companies argued for self-bonds.

I think the bottom line is that we know that self-bonding is going to change and thats fair, said Deti of the Mining Association. The state was in a pretty precarious position a few years ago.

Firms still want the ability to self-bond, and the state hasnt nixed the practice from its rule book, but it will change.

How the bonding rules will shake out is unclear. A preliminary draft updating the rules was released last month, and meetings in Cheyenne and Gillette reviewed the proposals last week. But the final draft wont likely go through until late next year and all sides are planning to add their two cents to the states ideas.

Concerns that projected declines in coal could make companies more vulnerable financially and lead to a reclamation mess dont really matter, some say. From a regulatory point of view, the key is reducing liability to the state by holding the right people accountable, said Kyle Wendtland, advisor of the Department of Environmental Qualitys land quality division.

Environmental groups are still wary of the link between reclamation and the market, though supportive of the rule changes, said Anderson, of the Powder River Basin Resource Council.

If one of these mines became orphaned or even long-term idled, where its essentially a zombie or ghost mine, the amount of facilities and land that hasnt been reclaimed is a real concern, she said.
Have an event, trend or general energy happening youd like to see in the Energy Journal newsletter? Send it to Star-Tribune energy reporter Heather Richards at heather.richards@trib.com. Sign up for the newsletter at www.trib.com/energyjournal.

Last week in numbers

Friday oil prices: West Texas Intermediate (WTI) $57.36 Brent (ICE) $63.40

Natural gas weekly averages: Henry Hub $2.86, Wyoming Pool $2.64, Opal $2.65

Baker Hughes rig count: U.S. 931, Wyoming 25

Quote of the week

Im a no on property tax increase. Im a no on sales tax increase. I don't like the 1 percent leisure tax ... Im a no on an income tax.

-- Senate President Eli Bebout on raising taxes due to the energy downturn.

Tax talk tempered by improvements

Wyoming's habitat of putting off tax increases once energy markets improve seems likely to come true again, as lawmakers hesitate to push for change due to marginal gains in oil and coal. `

Others warn against that route, hoping the state can begin to address its over dependency on the energy sectors, which may face long term challenges.

Sage grouse heat fizzles

Some Wyoming sage grouse leaders want to put the past behind them, after a few months of fear and frustration over the Interior Departments decision to open up sage grouse management plans to change.

The federal push has worried environmental groups who say comments from Trump Administration have muddied the waters. They are reserving confidence in the feds until more details are fleshed out about actual changes.

Wyoming signs coal contract

Wyoming has a number of MOUs with other states and organizations that support coal research. Last week, a partnership with Montana, North Dakota and a Canadian province was added to the list.

In addition to sharing their data on researching how to capture carbon, sequester it or use it for other purposes, the partners may be able to come together on projects and garner federal funding. That's the hope, anyway.

Methane rule delayed again

A controversial federal rule to limit methane emissions from oil and gas activities has been put to bed, for another year.

After months of attempts to nix the rule in one way or another, the Bureau of Land Management has stalled implementation of some of the more controversial aspects of the rule, given its long term uncertainty and the cost to operators.

Environmental groups have fought hard for this one, saying methane emissions from venting and flaring pose a serious risk and should be captured and sold. Companies argue that the environmental impact is overblown and that the Interior is stepping on air quality restrictions, the purview of the EPA.

Clean Power Plan debate headed to Gillette

Talk of repealing the Clean Power Plan should find support in Wyoming coal country when the Environmental Protection Agency holds a listening session on the plan. The date has not been set.

The agency was criticized for holding only one meeting on the plan's repeal, and watchers expect a long fight with environmental groups pushing for regulations that address climate change.

The coal sector, and states like Wyoming, have pushed back on the rule which would have taken a major bite out of the Powder River Basin production that Wyoming depends on. Despite immense worry over the implications of the plan, it was immediately tied up in court, where it remains.

Getting rid of the CPP was a major campaign promise from President Donald Trump.
Some of Wyomings sage grouse leaders say the discord that began after the Interior Department announced it would review the birds protections in the West is giving way to Wyomings collaborative approach.

The comments were made at a meeting of the states Sage Grouse Implementation Team last week, a body made up of federal and state agents, environmentalists and industry representatives that has steered sage grouse management in Wyoming for nearly a decade.

Sage grouse declines have concerning implications in the West. The bird is an indicator of the health of the western landscape and carries a risk that the federal government will list the species as endangered. A listing would put limits on one of Wyomings primary economic drivers, oil and gas development as well as restrict ranchers and mining operations in the state.

The establishment of federal plans in 2015 kept that listing at bay, but earlier this year the Trump Administration said it would review and potentially change the plans. Public comment on initial proposed changes closed earlier this month.

The review, and some of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinkes comments about what could be changed, kick-started a protest campaign from conservationists, warnings from the Wyoming and Colorado governors and some hesitation from industries like mining worried about long term predictability.

Bob Budd, chairman of the Sage Grouse Implementation Team, tried to quiet some of the discord. He reminded members that the federal plans do have room for improvement and the hysteria of a top down rewrite of the plans was overblown.

Budd criticized media coverage of the issue, and said public perception of potential changes to the sage grouse plans have been far from the reality as he sees it.

Brian Rutledge, a policy adviser for the Audubon Society and a longtime conservation voice on Wyomings sage grouse management team, pointed out that it was rhetoric from the federal government that confused and frustrated people in the West.

Theres been a lot of fear about what is going to happen with the 11-state management plans brokered by the Bureau of Land Management and reflective of the strategies laid out by Wyomings state approach, he said.

Lets get over that, Budd said. All of us.

Gov. Matt Meads policy adviser on sage grouse, Mike McGrady, said the tone from federal leadership had improved, particularly with the Deputy Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.

The Bureau of Land Management received more than 200,000 comments on the departments initial notice opening up the plans, many of those form letters, according to members of the sage grouse team.

Different states have different issues with their plans, said Budd. For Idaho, that could be a wholesale revision, for Oregon no significant changes.

In Wyoming, home to more than 30 percent of the birds population, changes will be suggested that clarify or improve the current strategy, Budd said.

We are not looking at changing what we do in Wyoming, he said. We are looking at making it clear.

Environmentalists in the room said they hoped that change was happening and that the federal approach would be methodical. But theyd wait and see what comes out of the governments response to public comment in January before they felt optimistic.
Kathy Sanford Thomas is a Casper native who has returned home to retire with her husband, Pat Thomas. She is co-chairman of the philanthropy or caring committee of the Natrona County Republican Women, whose project is Wreaths Across America.

How did you get involved? The goal of Wreaths Across America is to place a Christmas wreath on every veterans grave throughout the United States. Since Oregon Trail Veterans Cemetery is the only veterans cemetery in the state, we took this project on and there are 3,000 graves there.

What will happen on Saturday? We are asking people to arrive to the chapel at the ceremony by 9:30 a.m. At 10 a.m., there will be a wreath laying ceremony. U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney has accepted our invitation to attend. We will recognize all branches of the military with a ceremonial wreath for each branch as well as for POW-MIA. And after that, we will lay the wreaths at all 3,000 graves.

How did your group make this happen? Wreaths were sold throughout the community and throughout the state. Patriot Guard Riders are involved, Civil Air Patrol, Kelly Walsh DECA, DAR and VFW in Laramie. The Natrona County Republican Women set a goal of raising enough money to place a wreath on every grave, and we have surpassed that, so we have money set aside for next years wreaths as well.

How do you get the wreaths to Wyoming? My husband, Pat, was with UPS government affairs and chairman of the American Trucking Association before he retired and moved back. The trucking industry is the foundation of this program. They ship them at no cost from Maine to Wreaths Across America programs throughout the United States.

And you have had experience with the program in the past? I was a teacher in Virginia, so my students laid wreaths back there. Its a very patriotic, very emotional program. Its really just the least we can do for these veterans. Eighty-six cents of every dollar donated to the program goes to purchasing a wreath. The CEO of Wreaths Across America does not take a salary.

And the wreath laying itself has meaning? The program asks you to read the soldier or veterans name out loud as you place the wreath. A person dies twice: once when they take their final breath, and later, the last time their name is spoken. The mission of Wreaths Across America is to remember the fallen, honor those who serve and their families and teach the value of freedom. The executive director of the program says, We are not here to decorate graves. Were here to remember not their deaths, but their lives.

So you need a lot of help to lay 3,000 wreaths? Absolutely. We are asking for volunteers and community participants whether they bought a wreath or not.
Some of the worlds best bull riders are on their way to Casper as they vie for spots at the Professional Bull Riders World Finals.

The PBRs Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour is set to arrive in Wyoming for the first time April 7 at the Casper Events Center. Tickets go on sale Wednesday.

Casper is the 20th scheduled stop on the national tour that culminates in the Velocity Tour Finals  leading into the PBRs 2018 Built Ford Tough World Finals.

For one huge night, some of the best bull riders in the world will battle the sports toughest bovine athletes, according to a press release from the Casper Events Center. The thrilling 8-second rides and heart-stopping wrecks make the PBRs Velocity Tour one of the most exciting live sporting events to see.

The top three finishers at the Velocity Tour Finals and the leading international performer will qualify to compete at the PBR World Finals.

The PBRs Built Ford Tough Series features the top 35 bull riders in the world and the top bulls in the business, according to a press release from the Casper Events Center.

The PBRs Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour started in 2014 as the organizations premier expansion tour. The 2018 Velocity Tour also stops include Knoxville, Tennessee; Portland, Oregon; Dayton, Ohio; Bangor, Maine and Oakland, California.
After finding 100 pounds of pot in a minivan Saturday, authorities in Sweetwater County have now seized more than $4 million in marijuana since October.

The Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office says its canine unit has seized nearly 800 pounds of the drug in less than two months.

The latest bust happened Saturday when a sheriff's office K9 team stopped a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica minivan on Interstate 80. The van was traveling 90 mph in a 75 mph zone, authorities said.

The team found five large duffel bags containing a combined 107 pounds of marijuana in vacuum-sealed bags, the sheriff's office reported. Authorities arrested the driver, Nicholas Wyatt Haws, 24, of Rocklin, California, and his passenger, 22-year-old Rayna M. Quiocho, 22, of Citrus Heights, California.

Both were booked on suspicion of unlawful manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance. They will remain in custody pending an initial appearance in court.

The sheriff's office did not identify the dog handlers or K9s, citing threats in other parts of the country against officers and their dogs.
A man accused of leading police on a chase through Glenrock and shooting at authorities this summer pleaded guilty Monday to six felonies.

Christopher J. Eads entered his pleas to the six charges in a federal courtroom in Cheyenne. They are: conspiracy to distribute heroin and methamphetamine, using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, discharging a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, assault on a federal officer and two counts of carjacking.

In exchange for his pleas, Eads had three other charges against him dismissed, according to court documents. He had also faced charges alleging he possessed heroin and methamphetamine with intent to distribute, discharged a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and was a felon in possession of a firearm.

Other details of the deal were not available Monday as they were placed under seal.

Law enforcement arrested Eads and his girlfriend, Santana Keener, in June after the couple fled an attempted traffic stop by state troopers and agents of the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation on Interstate 25. Authorities pursued the couple, and during the ensuing chase, authorities say Eads shot at law enforcement vehicles.

The couple drove their car off the highway at Glenrock and abandoned it, court documents allege. While police searched for it, they received a report of an elderly woman bleeding from the head.

The woman told police a man went into her home through the back entrance, pushed her to the ground and attacked her before taking her car keys. The woman, who is in her 80s, had a broken rib, a broken toe and a laceration to her scalp that required 18 staples to close, according to the documents.

Law enforcement later found the womans car abandoned nearby. Officers also found Keener, who was hiding in a field about 400 yards away from the crashed vehicle.

Police arrested Keener, who later admitted to officers that she was in the car during the interstate chase and handed Eads a gun, which he then used to shoot at officers. She also said she witnessed Eads attack the elderly woman and steal a law enforcement vehicle. She said she and Eads had been traveling with a large amount of controlled substances, according to the documents.

Authorities later found 18 grams of heroin in Keeners possession during a cavity search after her arrest.

Keener pleaded guilty to three felonies on Thursday.

Agents with the Division of Criminal Investigation had been watching Eads because they suspected he was a major distributor of methamphetamine and heroin in the Casper area, documents show.

Eads was arrested hours later. He allegedly drove to Casper, hid in a car shop and refused to exit when police arrived. After hours of negotiation, he was taken into custody.

Eads is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 16 in Casper.
A Montana judge has temporarily restricted wolf hunting and trapping near Yellowstone and Glacier national parks and imposed tighter statewide limits on killing the predators. Wildlife advocates sued last month claiming that looser hunting rules adopted in the Republican-controlled state could harm wolf populations. State District Court Judge Christopher Abbott on Tuesday ordered officials to reimpose rules from 2020 that allow the killing of only five wolves per person, instead of 20, and forbid the use of snares for trapping. Abbott also limited hunting and trapping near the national parks. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte criticized the ruling, saying he thinks the judge overstepped his bounds. But state wildlife officials have pledged to comply with the order.
JERUSALEM  French and Israeli leaders sparred verbally Sunday over the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, while new violence rippled across the region following the move by U.S. President Trump.

In Jerusalem, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard, seriously wounding him in the first attack in the volatile city since Trumps pronouncement Wednesday. In Beirut, scores of Lebanese and Palestinian demonstrators clashed with security forces outside the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy, and Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo demanded that the United States rescind the decision.

The move upended decades of U.S. policy, and a longstanding international consensus, that the fate of Jerusalem be decided in negotiations. Israeli and Palestinian claims to the citys eastern sector form the emotional core of their conflict. Trumps announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis and has drawn wide international criticism.

At a meeting in Paris with Israels visiting prime minister, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned recent violence against Israelis. But he also expressed disapproval of Trumps decision, calling it dangerous for peace.

It doesnt seem to serve, in the short term, the cause of Israels security and the Israelis themselves, Macron said.

He urged Israel to freeze its construction of settlements in occupied lands and called for other confidence-building measures toward the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called Trumps decision historic, said Israel has maintained its capital in the city for 70 years and the Jewish connection to Jerusalem goes back 3,000 years.

Paris is the capital of France, Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, he said. We respect your history and your choices. And we know that as friends, you respect ours.

I think the sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we move toward peace, he added.

The exchange set the stage for what could be a tense meeting Monday for Netanyahu with European Union foreign ministers in Brussels. The Jerusalem issue and the moribund peace process are expected to be high on the agenda.

Last week, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that Trumps decision has the potential to send us backward to even darker times than the one we are already living in.

She also warned that Trumps move could diminish the potential role that the United States could play in the region and create more confusion around this.

The meeting could be a precursor for what seems to be an emerging rift between Israel and the U.S. on one side, and Europe and the Palestinians on the other.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said Trumps decision has in effect disqualified the U.S. from continuing in its role as the traditional mediator of peace talks. The Palestinians have spent recent days trying to rally Arab and international opposition to the decision.

After Abbas adviser Majdi Khaldi said that the Palestinian leader wont meet with Vice President Mike Pence when he visits the region this month, a spokeswoman for Pence said Sunday it was unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region.
BEIRUT  The United Nations children's agency said Sunday 137 children stranded in a rebel-held suburb near the Syrian capital require immediate evacuation amid a crippling siege in which five have reportedly died from a lack of medical care.

The Eastern Ghouta suburb, home to 400,000 residents, has been besieged since 2013 and humanitarian conditions there have deteriorated sharply amid violence that intensified since Nov. 14. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 202 people, including 47 children, have been killed since.

The area, the last remaining rebel-held pocket near the capital Damascus, is technically part of a "de-escalation zone" brokered by Russia earlier this year. Cease-fires brokered by Russia have largely held elsewhere in Syria but there has been little progress toward a political solution to the conflict that has claimed nearly 400,000 lives since it began in 2011.

Syrian opposition and government delegates are currently in Geneva for a new round of U.N.-sponsored talks after a short break. The government delegation has protested the opposition's insistence on the absence of President Bashar Assad from any future transition period.

After a few days' absence, the government delegation returned to Geneva Sunday for talks which are due to resume Monday.

In its statement Sunday, UNICEF said its aid workers described seeing one of the worst health situations since the conflict began in 2011 during a rare international aid convoy to a neighborhood in the Eastern Ghouta district at the end of November.

UNICEF says 137 children, aged between 7-months to 17-years, require immediate evacuation for conditions that include kidney failure, severe malnutrition and conflict wounds.

"Children are still living through so much horror," said UNICEF Representative in Syria Fran Equiza. "The situation is getting worse day by day. The health system is crumbling and schools have now been closed for almost a month. Sick children desperately need medical evacuation, and many thousands more are being denied the chance of a normal, peaceful childhood."

UNICEF says that nearly 12 per cent of children under 5 years-old in Eastern Ghouta suffer from acute malnutrition  the highest rate ever recorded since the start of the conflict in Syria.
Crooked Tooth Brewing is welcoming Boca Tacos Y Tequila to the Fourth Avenue neighborhood on Tuesday with a tasty takeover.

This is the second time Crooked Tooth has teamed up with Boca for a beer-tasting dinner. An event last year was held at Boca's original home near the University of Arizona that chef-owner Maria Mazon had to leave last summer to make way for a new student housing development. Mazon opened in August the 3,000-square-foot forner home of Delectables at 533 N. Fourth Ave.

Crooked Tooth, located around the corner at 228 E. Sixth St., is bringing along five of its original brews to pair with five of Mazon's new "bites."

The beer-tasting takeover will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday and the cost is $37 a person through eventbrite.com

The menu:

 Brocheta de Queso Fresco: Grilled queso fresco with tomatoes, basil and a chile guero reduction; paired with Tales from the Punch Bowl, a New England pale ale.

 Crema de Elote: White corn steaming in a Mexican crema and goat cheese, dressed with Spanish chorizo; paired with 18th Hour, an IPA.

 Taco de Nopal: Tempura dipped nopal, fried up crispy and served on a corn tortilla with a lemon marmalade; paired with Crooked Light, Crooked Tooth's light American ale.

 Pork Belly Pozole: Crispy oven roasted pork belly tops hominy drizzled with a chile ancho reduction; paired with Crooked Tooth's Lazer Sound Waves, a sour Saison.
We've collected a few front pages from newspapers.com to give you a look at some Dec. 11 papers in history. With a subscription to newspapers.com you can search the Arizona Daily Star and many other newspapers using keywords or dates, and download articles or pages.
As Southern California is ablaze with some of the worst fires in the states history, public lands officials in bone-dry Southern Arizona are warning that the region is a tinderbox at risk for its own siege of wildfires.

Theyre calling on the public to be especially cautious in fire-threatened areas.

Coronado National Forest lands around Tucson are at risk for significant wildfire activity for a number of reasons, said Heidi Schewel, spokeswoman for the forest.

We have abundant, dry fuel at all elevations, Schewel said. This includes fine fuels like grasses and bushes at the low-to-middle elevations, and dead branches on trees. At the higher elevations, dry pine needles, forbs and woody plants are dry and available to burn.

Another factor, she said, is that some areas of the forest have experienced insect activity  damaging or killing trees and adding to the fuel available to burn.

Our weather has been abnormally warm and dry, leading to the dry conditions and dry vegetation ready to burn in winter, Schewel said.

Michelle Fidler, fire communication and education specialist with the National Park Service, said Saguaro National Park lands east and west of Tucson also are at high risk for wildfire.

Even with the little shot of moisture that we received this week and the shorter days and cooler temperatures, at all elevations of the park the National Fire Danger Rating System is showing high fire danger, Fidler said.

If an unplanned wildfire were to occur, there is potential for it to grow with the available vegetation from this years monsoon, she said. As always, visitors to the park should exercise caution with fire.

FIRE PREVENTION TIPS

Schewel and Fidler emphasized that wildfires can happen at any time of the year and called for extreme caution by visitors.

Because of the recent extremely dry and warm weather, The advice for summer recreation is applicable now, Schewel said. Her fire prevention tips include:

Avoid building campfires on windy days.

Select safe locations for campfires.

In developed recreation sites, use metal grills, grates and fire rings provided. Otherwise, select a location with bare mineral soil and no flammable vegetation above or around it.

Build a suitable fire pit and enclose it with rocks or other materials to prevent fire from spreading from it.

Never leave a fire unattended, for any reason, for any amount of time.

Carry plenty of water if youre planning to build a campfire. When leaving, drown it with water, stir, drown, stir and continue until it is cold to the touch and no hot coals remain.

Remember that one less spark means one less wildfire. Consider actions which could cause sparks and take the necessary precautions to prevent them. Ensure that tow chains are secured as to not strike pavement while traveling. Ensure chainsaws and other equipment have spark arresters. Dont park vehicles over tall, dry grass.
Two teenagers from Tucson were arrested Saturday when Border Patrol agents found two Mexican citizens in the trunk of their vehicle.

Agents arrested the 19-year-old driver and 18-year-old passenger from Tucson on suspicion of human smuggling after they sped away from the Interstate 19 checkpoint near Amado Saturday night, the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector said in a news release.

After fleeing the checkpoint, the driver of the Dodge Avenger lost control of the vehicle and crashed on I-19 near Arivaca, according to the news release. Agents found a 24-year-old woman and a 19-year-old man, both Mexican citizens, in the vehicle's trunk.

No injuries were reported, but the Border Patrol cautioned the public about the dangers of riding in a trunk.
If youre a Tugo bike-share user, you may have noticed some recent changes along Fourth Avenue.

Two of the stations were recently moved a block to make way for the Fourth Avenue Street Fair, held this past weekend, according to Shift Transit officials.

Fred Ronstadt, executive director of the Fourth Avenue Merchants Association, which raises a significant amount of money from the semi-annual event, said the stations would have obstructed some of its most lucrative vendors.

Those are the two prime beer spots for street fair, Ronstadt said, adding that they bring in around $140,000 in revenue annually.

At its expense, Shift Transit moved the stations, though the plan is to return to their original spots after the street fair, according to city transportation officials. Ronstadt was hoping that change would be permanent, not only because of street fair conflicts but because the stations displaced parking, which many feel is insufficient along the avenue.

The city and Shift Transit are evaluating usage data at every station and are open to relocating stations or adjusting their size, Carlos de Leon, the citys deputy transportation director, told the Road Runner in written comments. Early usage data shows that the Fourth Avenue bike stations are among the top 10 most-used stations of the 36 stations in the Tugo Bike Share system.

Ronstadt said the merchants association expressed support for the bike-share program early on, but told officials that it wanted station locations to not conflict with the street fair.

The next thing we knew the stations were installed, he said, adding that two were in the footprint of the fair.

De Leon said there had been communication with the association about station placement and that its concerns were taken into account and every effort was made to minimize the parking impact by placing the stations on the side streets adjacent to Fourth Avenue while balancing the needs of the bike-share users to be near desired destinations on Fourth Avenue.

But Ronstadt isnt just concerned about the street fair and parking conflicts.

Hes also skeptical of bike-share programs in general, as well as the benefits some say they bring to local businesses near stations, which he has described as significantly overstated.

He passed along a November article from The Guardian that detailed the chaos wrought by bike-share systems in China.

Unlike Tugo, which features 36 docking stations centered around the downtown area, the bike-share programs detailed in the article were stationless, resulting in bicycles piling up comically  and disruptively  around the country.

In general, bike-share programs are interesting, Ronstadt said. I think theres certainly a use for them. I dont know if the number of bikes that are out there for the community makes sense.

Tugo is in its infancy, meaning its difficult to say anything about usage and what impact  if any  the program is having on local businesses.

However, some research into longer-standing systems shows users enjoy them and many feel businesses do benefit. The largest study reviewed by the Road Runner looked at the Capital Bikeshare program in Washington, D.C., and was based on surveys of 133 businesses and 333 system users.

Twenty-three percent of users said they were likely to spend more at businesses reached by bike share than they would have using other means of transportation, with most of the rest saying theyd spend the same. Among businesses, 10 percent said they had noted an increase in customer traffic as a result of bike share, and roughly 20 percent perceived an increase in sales. Only 1 percent felt sales had declined. Seventy percent felt the program had improved the area surrounding stations.

Tugo is one of more than 100 communities with bike share systems in the United States, the city wrote in its response. In other cities, bike-share systems have had a nearly universal positive economic impact.

Do you think Tugo bike share will benefit local business? You voted: Yes No Unsure Vote View Results Back

Kelly Watters, the Food Conspiracy Co-op outreach manager, said its difficult to say if Tugo has had any impact on the business so far, though she thinks it could help during events like the gem show, which brings thousands of visitors  many without their own bicycles  to town.

What shes more certain of is that parking is a major issue for the co-op. When asked what possible expansion features were most important to them, additional car parking came in at a close second behind green-design elements among customers surveyed.

She said the moving of the two stations was a sensible response to a stakeholders concerns, and thinks such accommodation is important to the success of Tucson bike share.

We have to be open to adaptation, she said, adding that shes excited about the prospects of bike share.

DeeDee Koenen, with nearby Pop-Cycle, was glad to hear the stations moved for the street fair would be returned to their Fourth Avenue locations, or wherever they get used more. She said she thinks the program is a nice addition to the avenue, and that bikes make a city friendly and quaint.

As a sustainable and eco-friendly store, were all for bikes, she said.

She acknowledged the parking concerns of businesses like the co-op, but said her art shops customers are dedicated, and will find a way no matter what happens.

As to the long-term impact of bike share, she said it just hasnt been around long enough to say one way or another yet, though she suspects it will be a net positive.

Want to weigh in? A poll accompanies the online version of this story.
The Cerbat Mountains near Kingman yielded millions of dollars worth of silver, gold, copper, lead and zinc in the mining boom years between the 1860s and World War II.

The mountains themselves are composed of granite, gneiss and pre-Cambrian schist interspersed with volcanic rock. The name Cerbat is derived from the local Hualapai or Wallapai Indian word meaning bighorn sheep.

The range, 15 miles northwest of Kingman in Mohave County, extends 30 miles north-northwest in length, with a maximum width of 12 miles. Its highest elevations are Mount Tipton at its northern part at 7,148 feet and Cherum Peak to the south at 6,983 feet.

The nearby town of Chloride was aptly christened on account of silver chloride ore discovered during the Silver Hill strike of the 1860s. The town was established in 1864 at an elevation of 4,009 feet; its post office opened a decade later.

It was the arrival of the railroad through Kingman in 1883 that provided an impetus to the development of mining operations in the Cerbat Mountains. Hardrock miners saw the opportunity to exploit the mineralized lode known as the Elkhart Vein, which ran through the mountain range. The ore from the Cerbat Range is classified as a complex mixture of sulfides of lead, zinc and copper along with secondary minerals of gold and silver.

By 1899, the Arizona and Utah Railroad Co. was organized with the establishment of a 25-mile rail line beginning with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway near Kingman on the north to its terminus around the south end of Silver Hill near Chloride. Chloride reached a population of 2,000.

One of the best-known mines was the Tennessee-Schuykill Mine, the largest producer in the Wallapai Mining district composed of Chloride, Cerbat, Mineral Park and Union Base. It operated between 1898 through 1948 and is credited with a production of $7.5 million in gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. The early years saw the greatest production, with a 120-ton per day concentrator built and operated by the Wallapai Mining Co. The Tennessee Mine faced challenges when, on April 15, 1900, a pile of wood was set afire, adversely affecting the mill and the timber in the No. 2 shaft. Fortunately for the company, its insurance covered the cost of the mill damages.

Another excellent producer was the Elkhart Mine, although its operations were hindered due to a lack of sufficient water to run its concentrator full time. These great-producing mines were located at the base of the mountain.

Other notable mines within a several-mile proximity of Chloride included the Rainbow Mine, Pay Roll Mine and Samoa Mine. However, these mines were located higher up on the mountain, up to an elevation of 6,200 feet, with the topography forcing the Rainbow Mine to use an aerial tramway to transport ore. The Rainbow Mine, developed by H. L. McCarn, began shipment using this means of transport beginning in 1913. The Pay Roll Mine was discovered on the western slope of the Cerbat Mountains nearly 2 miles east of Chloride in 1887. Over the next 20 years, development occurred with shafts extended down to 225 feet along with a series of tunnels encompassing 600 feet. By 1929, a 50-ton flotation plant treated 1,400 tons of complex copper-lead-zinc ore onsite.

Over the next several years, mining production increased in Mohave County, as the market price of zinc averaged between 14 cents and 27 cents a pound. While 6 million pounds of lead were annually mined between 1915 and 1917, zinc production reached as high as 17 million pounds annually. The value of the mined metals in Mohave County, excluding gold production, reached $2.8 million in 1917. Lead ores were processed at the Needles and Humboldt smelters and the zinc ores were shipped out to smelters at El Paso and Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

During this boom due to the mineral market, the town of Chloride saw unprecedented growth, with two large hotels built on Tennessee Avenue including a two-story, 75-room hotel financed by Garrison and Townsend in 1916, followed by the expansion of the Ryan Hotel built by J. P. Ryan with funding from a California syndicate.

Chloride had a history of fires, the most severe occurring on May 21, 1927. The conflagration consumed half of the business district.

Mining saw a decline shortly after World War II.

With limited mining operations nearby, today Chloride serves as a historic attraction with a couple hundred residents.
PHOENIX  A quirk in state law could force top contenders to replace Trent Franks to choose between a run for Congress and keeping their current jobs in the Legislature.

Gov. Doug Ducey is expected to announce Monday the date for the primary election for those who want to vie for the now-open post in Congressional District 8. That can be between Feb. 26 and March 8.

But by law, the deadline to submit nominating petitions will be Jan. 10. And thats what creates the dilemma for sitting lawmakers.

A 1980 voter-approved law says no current elected officials can offer themselves for nomination to any local, state or federal office except during the final year of the term being served.

But unlike other elected officials whose tenure runs through the end of the calendar year for which they are elected, legislators have terms that run through the second Monday in January of odd-numbered years. Thats when their successors take office.

For current lawmakers, thats Jan. 14, 2019.

And what that likely means is any nominating petitions submitted before Jan. 14, 2018, would trigger the resign-to-run law, forcing incumbent legislators to decide whether theyre willing to give up their seats for the possibility of becoming the newest member of Arizonas congressional delegation.

The unexpected monkey wrench occurred when Franks moved up his resignation date.

Franks originally said on Thursday he would leave at the end of the January after admitting he has discussed with two now-former female staffers the possibility of becoming surrogates for he and his wife, who has had trouble conceiving. Franks said that while he had done nothing wrong, he feared that an Ethics Committee investigation triggered by House Speaker Paul Ryan would result in distorted and sensationalized versions of the story.

On Friday, however, Franks decided to quit that day after he said his wife, Josephine, had been admitted the prior night to a hospital in Washington due to an ongoing ailment.

That resignation, effective at noon Washington time  10 a.m. in Arizona  triggered the requirement for Ducey to announce on Monday both the date for the primary and the Jan. 10 deadline to file petitions.

Among those considering a run are Sen. Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park. He could be considered as having an inside edge  and the possible blessing of Franks  as he has been employed until now at Franks district office.

Montenegro previously said he would wage a primary battle to oust incumbent Republican Secretary of State Michele Reagan.

Theres a lot of prayer and thought going into this, he told Capitol Media Services, declining to be more specific.

There was no immediate response from Sen. Kimberly Yee, R-Phoenix, on whether she intends to give up her announced bid for state treasurer and how the resign-to-run question might affect her decision.

Also looking at the open seat in the heavily Republican district are Rep. Darrin Mitchell, R-Goodyear, and Sen. Debbie Lesko, R-Peoria. Neither returned messages about what their plans might be.

If any or all of the incumbent lawmakers quit, that sets into motion a process in which Maricopa County supervisors would have to name replacements to fill out the unexpired legislative terms.

The peculiarity of legislative terms  and when they end  comes up from time to time.

For example, Pima County voters elected then-Rep. Arnold Jeffers as assessor in 1980.

But Jeffers could not be sworn in with other county officials at the beginning of January 1981 because of another state law that says legislators may not take any other public office or employment during the term for which they have been elected. He had to wait until the second Monday in January, when a new Legislature was sworn in, to take his position as assessor.

There also is no question but that the state resign-to-run law can be applied to candidates for federal office.

In 1982, Pima County Supervisor Conrad Joyner announced a bid for Congress despite the fact that his term as supervisor ran through 1984.

He challenged the law, saying the state has no ability to keep people from running for federal office.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed  but only to the point that he could run despite the state law.
I am a graduate of University High School. As a public-school history teacher in Washington state, I teach students who face challenges like those of Catalina High students. Many of my students are refugees, homeless, English language learners, students with disabilities, or some combination of these factors. Despite the challenges they fight daily to succeed on a playing field where the rules are constantly changing against them.

UHS students, overall, already have what they need to be successful. The notion that district intervention on UHS's behalf would achieve any sort of "equity" is absurd. The first lesson in teacher education is that equity does not mean treating all students the same. It means giving ALL students the tools they need to be successful. Students who face greater challenges outside of school need more support and more money. Above all, they need stability and consistency. UHS' plan ignores the larger context of the district and contributes to TUSD's inequity problem.
Help India!

By Mohammed Sajjad for TwoCircles.net

History rarely repeats itself. Nevertheless, if we are to understand what is happening in the Indian polity today, it is useful to look into its pasts, when its democracy appears to be liquidating itself.

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Looking into the popular phase of our national movement, it clearly emerges that as the Muslims began to register their rising representation in the local bodies, Hindu-Muslim tussle in the domain of emerging power- structures started becoming prominent. This is what had happened more clearly in Bihar, post 1924. The tallest builders of the Congress-Muslims-began to be marginalised. Mazharul Haq, Shafi Daudi, etc., were systematically pushed out of the District Boards, in late 1920s, leaving them disillusioned. It was however only after 1938 that this trend started taking an ominous shape. The Muslim League accused the Congress ministries of various provinces in 1937-39 to have resorted to persecution of Muslims, and letting off the rioters. Not less than three catalogues were prepared by the Muslim League, in 1938, viz., Pirpur Report, Sharif Report, and Fazlul Haq Report. With this, the League progressed leaps and bounds during 1938-46.



Isnt it puzzling that we do not hear of a similar list of grievances of Hindus in the Muslim majority provinces, catalogued by the Hindu communal forces, accusing the Muslim ministries of those provinces, such as Bengals Krishak Praja Party, Punjabs Unionist Party, and Assams Saadullahs ministry? This was unlike the Suhrawardy ministry of 1946 when his culpability for the orgy of violence and killing in Bengal was unambiguously there, creating lot of anger among the Hindus, so much so that it had its retaliatory implications in Bihar.

The question therefore is: Were those catalogues of 1938 actually as much unreal (or exaggerated) as we have thus far been given to believe, even by our liberal-leftist historians. Their dismissiveness, popularized much through their popular textbooks, is buttressed by the argument that the offer of an enquiry into those grievances by Justice Gwyer was rejected by the League, hence fictionality of those grievances stood testified? Or, is it a case like that of today when the nationalist forces want us to believe that instances of frequent lynching, and other such persecutions are just isolated incidents; that they should not be exaggerated to discredit the incumbent BJP regime; and that the BJP should not be accused of being complicit in creating an atmosphere of fear among the minorities, even though it is controlled by profoundly undemocratic organizations like RSS, VHP, BD, HYV, etc.?

Let us recall that the Muslim League was routed in the 1937 elections, despite the fact that the seats were reserved for the Muslims under the arrangement of separate electorates. Yet, soon after the formation of the Congress ministries there emerged lot of fear among the minorities, and the barely existing Muslim League, could register a rise only after 1938. There are evidences that quite a lot of the Congress Hindus demonstrated that a Hindu Raj had now been restored in 1937, seven centuries after Prithvi Raj Chauhan was unseated in 12th century.

Historians have paid less attention to the rapid growth and proliferation of the RSS-Hindu Mahasabha after 1938 in nooks and crannies of India. There have been relatively lesser studies on the Congress-Mahasabha overlap at the provincial and district levels. Joya Chatterjees Bengal Divided (1995), William Goulds study (2005) of UP, and Papiya Ghoshs study (2008) of Bihar, are among exceptions. Indias liberal-left historians received Venkat Dhulipalas, Creating A New Medina (2015) on UP very warmly. It underlines Muslim separatism, just as Francis Robinson (Separatism Among Indian Muslims, 1974) had demonstrated four decades ago. Whereas, William Goulds book, Hindu Nationalism and the Language of Politics in Late Colonial India, was largely ignored, for it exposed the majoritarian tilts of the tallest Congress leaders of UP, viz., P. D. Tandon (1882-1962), Sampurnand (1891-1969), and G. B. Pant (18871-961). Though, it is surprising that Jinnah did not harp as much on these UP leaders, while attempting to wean the Muslims away from the Congress and pushing up the League. Joya Chatterjee has demonstrated that in the 1930s, when Bengals share-cropper peasantry turned into middle and rich peasantry, they gained franchise, and this is how Muslim proportion began to increase in legislative and other arenas. This is what alarmed the bhadralok who in order to avert the ignominy of being politically dominated by the Muslim peasantry slipped towards partitioning Bengal during 1932-47. Similarly, T. C. A. Raghavan (EPW, April, 9, 1983) for western India, and Vinita Damodaran (Broken Promises, 1992) for Bihar, 1935-46, have demonstrated how Hindus, both within and outside the Congress, moved towards majoritarianism. The peasant discontent was sought to be channelized into religious strife by the landlords. Justice Reuben (1893-1976) was not allowed to conduct enquiries into the 1946 riots of Bihar.

Overall, both colonial and post-independent Indian states have been palpably soft on the rioters. There have been wilful failures of criminal justice system in this regard.

With this experience from history, let us now have a look on the developments immediately before 2014, when the BJP came to power with unprecedented mandate.

In 2012 too, the Muslim representation had gone up in the assembly and municipal bodies in Uttar Pradesh. Muslim representation in the legislative assembly was around 17%, close to the Muslim population (18.5%). At the district level, it was seen as a Muslim upsurge. In 13 out of 70 districts, the share of Muslim MLAs was 10-25%; in 21 districts, it was 25-50%; and in five districts (Moradabad, Rampur, Amroha, Balrampur and Shrawasti), there were 50-70% Muslim MLAs. In municipal bodies, there were 3,681 Muslims elected out of a total of 11,816 members, pushing their representation to 31.5%. In the urban local bodies of Ruhelkhand in UP, Muslim representation was as high as 55%, in 2012.

In Bihar too, Muslim representation among the Panchayat Chiefs was 16%,in 2001, and almost around that, in the subsequent elections for the local bodies. Muslims are around 16.5% of Bihar population.



In fact, the rise of the saffron forces, since 1980s, has much to do with rising Muslim affluence because of the Gulf remittances, and benefits going to the Pasmanda after the implementation of the Mandal reservations in public employment, and subsequently into the local bodies elections as well.

In West Bengal, the bhadraloks through the communist rule resisted their temptation to join the saffron forces by keeping most of the Muslim communities out of the OBC list, till 2011. Almost 25% of the population comprises of Muslims in this province.

An increasingly bigger segment of Hindu population is now easily persuaded to be scared of the minority upsurge by misleading them with the argument that after all, for centuries, the Muslims and then Christians (British) ruled over the Hindus despite numerically being minority. This oversimplification of a complex historical issue by the communal forces starts making sense to these segments. This is how hate-mongering politics thrives. Quite a lot of those, now vocal for the BJP on social media, belong to those segments who feel that because of the Mandal reservations they have not been able to hold on to their preeminent positions in education, trading and employment. Post-liberalization economy, rising youth unemployment and agrarian distress, have also affected them adversely. This discontent is sought to be channelled against a demonised Muslims.

There is a growing grudge, scorn and disdain against rising Muslim presence in all such spheres. This is now degenerating increasingly into hatred and violence against them. From urban confines, this has percolated down to rural hinterlands because in rural areas too, the trading rivalries are sharpening because of the kith and kin of the Gulf-based Muslim professionals have erected their trades in rural markets. The lower class Muslims too have acquired affluence and education. Their presence is increasingly becoming more prominent through lofty masjids and lavish public demonstrations of festivities. Even though, in most cases, such competitive public rituals and festivities are more to do with a statement of their coming of age, vis a vis the historically dominant groups, within their own community, and also to outdo the other/rival sub-sects (maslak; more specifically, the Barelvi vs the Deobandi/Tablighi Jamaat & Ahl-e-Hadis). These are often mistaken as Muslim assertion against Hindus.

This explains growing insecurity of the traditionally predominant groups of the religious majority, who are trying to counterpoise it through a communal mobilization around religious solidarities, by demonising and by othering the minority (second largest majority). This is how the harmonious social fabric has been coming under tatters, reflected in the rise of aggressive Hindutva. Its resurrection began in the 1980s, and its claws remained little less deadly in the 1990s and 2000s, in better parts of India, when the subordinated groups were coming of their age, dislodging the upper castes from power. The Congress kept compromising with its core principles resulting into losing its support-base and eventually getting discredited by almost every segment. It had given up on Muslims in 1946 to the extent that despite repeated requisitions, the Congress did not even field its candidates from the Muslim seats. Its lack of sincerity was evident even in its Muslim Mass Contact Campaign of 1938, which exacerbated the situation by alarming both the majority and minority communal forcesthe Mahasabha and the League.



It is said that, in times of crisis, the political parties tend to get back to its core ideologies, to resurge back. The Congress today appears to be disproving it vehemently. Rather than holding onto its core principles, it seeks to outsmart its enemy on their strongest wicket.

However, unlike the 1938-1946, now, in post-2014, no Jinnah can emerge with the promise of a separate homeland, as there is no limited franchise now, nor is there a colonial state. We now have universal adult franchise, with all its heterogeneities and stratifications. Jinnah could outsmart the then regional, peasant-based, political formations, such as Bengals Krishak Praja Party (KPP), Punjabs Unionist, and other smaller anti-separatist formations such as Bihars Muslim Independent Party (MIP), etc., only because, less than 11% people of a particular class had franchise then. Managing and consolidating them may have been easier for Jinnah, exacerbated by the prodding and encouragement from the colonial power. Even though, one may not deny today the power-play of the native and global capitalism of imperial powers, in widening the rich-poor gap, which breed and perpetuate identity-based hatred and violence and polarizations.

Two historical moments may or may not find a close comparison. Yet, post-1938 colonial India, and post-2014 republican India, does have very disturbing resemblances. No Owaisi or Azam can really become Jinnah. But simultaneously, this is also an alarming question that Indias Muslims cannot remain disenfranchised, pitiably subdued and persecuted. So, the desperate question is: what would come out of this situation when Muslims are being pushed against the wall? Shall they remain electorally/politically invisibilised, irrelevant, silenced, subdued and subjugated, yet, demonised by the ruling party; and liability for the secular parties, as they are in todays Gujarat? Is it a case where only a silenced and subdued minority will satiate and please the communalised majority? Indian nationhood is indeed at the cusp of alarming redefinition: hate-filled, and exclusionary. It will validate all the ideas that were behind the vivisection of our country in 1947. Nations are not build this way, instead, these are the ways of liquidating nations. We must preempt it. Can we?

The author is Professor at the Centre of Advanced Study in History, Aligarh Muslim University.
Help India!

By Riyaz Arshad Nazish for TwoCircles.net

The gruesome killing of Mohammed Afrajul, an innocent labour in Rajasthan, is a terrifying incident that testifies the fact how minds of ignorant youth are poisoned with hatred by a concocted narrative against Muslims under the bulwark of nationalism. Pushing a poor labour into death does not depict any saga of valour; neither brings pride to any religion. Had it been so, why didnt he catch a real love jihadi instead of a helpless labour, and on that why had he to trap him into death? The insane youth could have become a hero, had he found a real love jihadi if at all it exists. Love Jihad is a term created by hate mongers and coined by media. What they call Love Jihad is, in fact, the previous part of our culture that cannot be curbed or dictated by any power of the time. Culture dwells and flourishes in the exchange of it. It is like water; one cannot hold it in a fist. The more you tighten it, the more it will spill out. Water is clean and fresh only until it flows freely, the moment it stagnates, it rots.

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With the concatenation of such incidents and loud voices advocating them in the social media, it is nothing but obvious that a sizeable group of youths derive the meanest sense of pride and pseudo-patriot jingoism out of it.

However, such incidents are not about infusing terror to the minorities alone as they appear to be, but a cowardice display of panic, fear and paranoia that has been injected to the young minds to keep them away from the real issues of education, health and social security. Of late, such perpetrators get legal leniency, justification and even reward too in the making of new India. This was evident when the coffin of Akhlaqs killer was draped in tricolour and he was hailed as a martyr. If the incident of Rajasthan is to terrify the minorities, its no less worrisome for the majorities either and even more alarming for a civil society. To kill an innocent is allowed neither in Islam nor in the tenets of Sanatan, those who do it in the name of religion, do nothing but fall prey to petty politics and defy its own holy scriptures.

The politics of polarization is so prominent that every domain of social life seems to be defined by its plethora. In this scenario, would the new India that is baptized with strong binary in the social fabric, ever see the mass protest of common people that it saw in 2006 for Jessica Lal and Nirbhaya in 2012? Rising above religion and class, people gathered together against heinous crimes against the vulnerable. The victory was not for any religious group but for the weakest person in this country. In the making of new India, weaker seems to be weakest and stronger seems to grow strongest. The digital boom enables the government to develop a mechanism to notice every single individual, from its wealth, income, savings, bank balance to the personal communication and purchasing.

The law can enforce every single citizen to be transparent and accountable but it is far from developing the same to ensure safety and justice to the weakest person in the society. With the current political situation, the solidarity of common people is at stake lest it should ask a question and stand together to demand justice and freedom for all. Unity is strength and strength is a perpetual threat to autocracy, therefore with every possible effort, public strength is breaking into pieces with the splinters of communalism. Is it almost on the verge of a breakdown to the doctored anti-national slogans designed to mar any voice of dissent? There is now little hope for any Jessica or Nirbhaya if they will not be seen through the prism of religion and cast.

From Akhlaq to Afrajul, the cold-blooded murders are a mere piece of News. A new narrative of patriotism is on the play that tries to belittle the contribution of the Muslims and depict them in an unflattering manner on media. The venom infused in the young minds is so strategic that even the good deeds of a saviour like a driver Sheikh Saleem Ghafoor of Amarnath tragedy and Samaritans like Dr Kafeel turn bad to ugly with a litany of criticism and negative reporting to dilute the applause?

Hatred is sinking its teeth so deep that the departure of rationalism is growing into fanaticism. Being soft to violence is a bad sign. Hatred nurtured to satiate anger is autophagous, to fan it against a community is even worse as the frenzy is always on the lookout for its target, it may consume its own when it goes haywire. If it persists, the end looser will be none other than the youths of today. This will only pave the way for the vested interests to remain in power. Law and order are essential for every walk of life in civil society. We follow a traffic rule where even pedestrian are ensured a safe journey.

Without taking care of the weakest, one cannot imagine a progressive society. With worlds largest youth population, India can be a hope for world leadership only if the young minds are engaged in constructive thoughts and action. But with things as they are, it seems only a chimaera.

The author is a Media professional.
Help India!

By Ram Puniyani

Nearly an year ago multiple rowdy protests took place when the film Padmavati was being shot in Rajasthan. Sanjay Leela Bhansali had to interrupt the shooting for some time. Currently again, more intense opposition has been witnessed as the film was due to be released. On the basis of its trailer, the Karni Sena threatened that film should not be released. Crores of rupees were on offer from BJP leaders for cutting the nose of Deepika Padukone, the one doing the role of Padmavati and for the head of Bhansali, the director of the film. Bhansali was also interrogated by the Parliamentary committee.

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The assertion from Karni Sena was that the film distorts history and is an insult to Rajput honor. An intense intolerance to the artistic freedom of the director has been on display, with state looking the other way around, in a way giving silent support to the violence and attempt to suppress the freedom of expression. The Chief Ministers of five BJP ruled states have already proclaimed the film will not be released in their states and one of the Congress Chief Ministers also talked against the film.

What is the story line of the film? Mostly the story is drawn from the classic Novel of Malik Muhammad Jayasi, modified as per the film makers. Jayasi in his novel tells the story of Allauddin Khilji, the 13-14 century ruler of Delhi. As per this fictional tale he is smitten by the immense beauty of Padmavati, attacks Chittor to get her. As he lays the siege of Chittor, Padmavati along with many valiant Rajput women commit Jauhar (self immolation) and kill them depriving Khilji from getting Padmavati.

The objectionable part of the film for Karni Sena-BJP types is probable dream sequence of romance between Khilji and Padmavati. The film makers are denying such a sequence. As such Jayasis narrative is a metaphor for the futility of power and aspiration of the soul for liberation. Historians like Rajat Datta tell us that Padmvati or Padmini is not a historical character. Khilji did lay the siege of Chittor in 1303. Novel Padmavat was written in 1540, over two centuries later. The books which were written between these two periods do not mention Padmavati at all. After Padmavat appeared many bards picked up this tale and made it a part of popular folklore. Its further and communal distortion took place after the British ethnography-historiography began and aimed at the demonizing the Muslim rulers. While bards accounts underplayed the Muslim aspect, Todds Annals ( Annals and Antiquities Rajasthan (1829), transformed it and gave the narration an anti- Muslim, anti Khilji slant. This is an insertion into the history, which has come to life over a period of time.

Currently the incidents of Rajput women and Muslim men have two major types of presentations. One is that which shows the velour of the Rajput women, committing self immolation rather than relating to the Muslim kings. The other one is where the interaction and alliance of Muslim rulers and Rajput families are at the core and intermarriage is the part of the relationship. Over a period of time the understanding is being promoted that the giving away daughters to Muslims was a surrender, weakness of Rajputs. This latter falls into the category of our women being given away to the others; its a patriarchal presentation of events, which is interpreted as a matter of shame for Rajputs! The way at looking at the obverse like film Bajirao Mastani is totally different from this.

While film is yet to be seen in full what one can glean from the trailer of the film is that that Khilji is shown to be cruel; barbaric person, unkempt, attacking food for example. His army is carrying a flag looking like that of Pakistan. The present stereotypes about Muslims seem to be embodied in Khilji. This creation of Muslim as evil has roots in the intervention of British accounts. British colonial powers followed the policy of divide and rule.

The British officers/Historians followed their masters and gave a tilt to the events where the image of Muslim kings was tarnished. Kings have their own characteristics and religion is not the only marker for their nature and character. Kings cutting across religions had traits which can be attributed to their power. They also had their specificities. The historical accounts dont present an out of the way cruelty of Khilji. What is recorded is that he expanded the Delhi rule and fought against the Mongols, and saved the Delhi Empire from their invasion.

With time and growing intolerance these types of films are getting a more hostile reception. We first had Mughal-E- Azam, one among the great films from India, a fiction nevertheless, where Jodha bai, a Rajput princess is married to Akbar. The reception of the film was extraordinarily positive, the alliance was not questioned. This was few decades earlier when the communalization of society was not so intense. Few years ago we had Jodha Akbar on the same theme. This time around there were some protests but film did carry on.

Now with Padmavati the protests are horrific. History has been distorted here for sure, but what part of history and which way? Padmavati is a fictional reality, how it has been depicted needs to be seen. But the fear of a Hindu girl romancing a Muslim is what is agitating the Senas and the CMs of BJP ruled states in particular. Here surely the film distorts Khilji, presenting him as an embodiment of the currently prevalent negative perceptions about Muslims. Still film makers can have their own liberty and film must be seen, appreciated and criticized on the grounds of its strengths and weaknesses. What stands out is the fictional Padmavati coming to haunt as a real character, and Khilji being painted in the biases of present reflected on the past.
Brexit Secretary David Davis' interrogation by the Brexit Select Committee last week was embarrassing. Considering Britain's exit from the EU is becoming imminent, it was appalling to discover that the man Theresa May charged with the task of organising the UK's EU departure had failed to draft any impact studies into the economic consequences of this important process. He was also savaged by Andrew Marr for it yesterday.

"Mr. Cameron should have drawn up contingency plans"

When Mr. Davis was appointed as Brexit Secretary last year, many Brexiteers, myself included, jeered at his welcome return to front-line politics.

Having resigned both as shadow home secretary and as an MP in 2008 in protest against then home secretary Jacqui Smith's ID cards, his loss was regarded by many as a substantial one for David Cameron. His incompetent performance as Brexit Secretary has not been caused by his bullish threats though. After all, the EU has been refusing to play ball all year with the UK until now and he has not walked out yet.

To be fair to Mr. Davis, he was betrayed in his role by his former leadership rival. Mr. Cameron should have drawn up contingency plans in the likely event Britain would have voted for Brexit in June 2016. All the plans the Department for Exiting the EU have had to draw up since have been done in a rush.

Either way, it is clear Mr. Davis is no longer up to the task of managing Brexit if he cannot prepare for a select committee meeting adequately. It is time to replace him with someone who does.

"He would have put Mr. Juncker and Mr. Barnier in their place"

Jacob Rees-Mogg would be the ideal replacement for him. Mr. Rees-Mogg is a passionate advocate of Britain's EU exit.

He would not bow to Brussels' demands for a divorce bill or a transitional deal as Mr. Davis has. His knowledge of procedure puts him in the best placed position to manage a Whitehall department that was not blessed with adequate time to prepare for Brexit.

His eloquent speeches in the House of Commons prove he knows what he is talking about.

He managed to calmly debate a protester at this year's Conservative Party Conference and he would have put Mr. Barnier and Mr. Juncker in their place during the negotiations.

Mr. Rees-Mogg's attention to detail suggests he would not have evaded crucial preparations necessary to ensure a smooth Brexit happens. His ability to engage with people of all backgrounds and personalities would have made him a competent manager of a chaotic and young department. He would not have arrived at a select committee meeting unprepared.

What's more, Mr. Rees-Mogg deserves an opportunity to shine. He is a gifted parliamentarian and deserves a prominent cabinet position. It is time Theresa May promoted more of her backbenchers who are much more talented than her current cabinet.
Nigel Farage and Sir Vince Cable have teamed together to criticise Jean-Claude Juncker's presidency of the European Commission.

During an LBC interview hosted by the former UKIP leader, the Liberal Democrat chief echoed the presenter's views that the European Union (EU) is heading towards further integration.

They were both discussing the recent Brexit deal that the Prime Minister managed to negotiate with Mr. Juncker, but Mr. Farage was surprised to learn that Sir Vince shared many of the LBC presenter's views on the trading bloc.

"The Liberal Democrat Leader said the divorce fee settlement was a disaster"

The Liberal Democrat Leader said the divorce fee settlement was a disaster and agreed that the European Commission President was taking the EU in the wrong direction.

The South-East MEP said the trading bloc was heading towards further integration under Mr. Juncker's leadership. Mr. Farage was taken aback to learn that the Twickenham MP agreed with him and joined the former UKIP leader in condemning the plans for an EU Army and to force all member states to join the euro.

Sir Vince said there were more sensible politicians attempting to thwart the European Commission President's ambitions. The Liberal Democrat Leader believed the UK would fight against Mr.

Juncker's plans for further integration and he refused to provide the European chief with a standing ovation for his attitude.

Sir Vince reiterated that he is not an arch-federalist and believed nation states in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe can play a significant role in stopping integration and help Brussels refocus its efforts on trade.

"The Twickenham MP stressed joining the euro would be a red line for him"

The Twickenham MP stressed joining the euro would be a red line for him.

He said the divorce bill is going to lead to a bad deal for Britain. The Liberal Democrat Leader said that regardless of the final total of the fee, the British people may not like the trade deal both Brussels and Westminster negotiate.

He added regulatory alignment is an attempt to delay Brexit further.

After hearing about Friday's breakthrough deal, Sir Vince tweeted at the same time that the Government was a long way off a final deal.

"The British public, not Conservative or DUP MPs, should have a final say on the outcome"

He hinted the British public, not Conservative or DUP MPs, should have a final say on the outcome.

Labour MP Chukka Umuna joined his Liberal Democrat colleague in criticising Friday's deal, tweeting that it failed to solve the Irish border issue, despite Theresa May's assurances that it does.

Mr. Umuna refused to congratulate the Prime Minister after Mr. Juncker announced both sides had made sufficient progress to reach Phase 2 of the discussions.

Instead, the Labour MP said on BBC Radio 5 Live that whilst reaching this stage is welcome, it should have happened eighteen months ago.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said whilst the devil is in the detail, the option for other parts of the UK to remain in the Single Market and Customs Union should be made available.

Earlier last week, the Liberal Democrat Leader confessed Ireland had more to lose from a bad Brexit deal if they do not compromise over the Irish border.

Speaking on Bloomberg News, Sir Vince called on Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to work with the Government to reach the EU's December deadline for reaching Phase 2 of the negotiations.

The Twickenham MP warned the biggest challenges facing Westminster and Brussels will come next year when both sides must decide what the final trade deal will look like.

He said it is unclear whether the Government wants a Norwegian-style agreement or a Canadian one.

Mr. Varadkar threatened to veto the Brexit talks over the Irish border issue. He wanted a guarantee that the British will not push for a hard border that threatens the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

The European Commission will advise the trading bloc's 27 member states to progress with the second phase of the Brexit negotiations during Friday's European Council meeting.
The FDA first announced the dangers of turkey and chicken bones back in 2015, but with the holidays rapidly approaching, they thought it wise to send out a reminder. Most people know the dangers of tossing a turkey or chicken bone to the family pet  they are brittle and dangerous to Dogs  but they have also revealed the risk from giving pets the popular bone treats which are available in the stores.

68 pet illnesses related to bone treats

According to their report, they have received details of around 68 different pet illnesses that could be related to the bone treats in the period from November 1, 2010, to September 12 of this year.

They list a number of commercially-available treats including Rib Bones, Smokey Knuckle Bones and other similar products. These treats are different than uncooked bones purchased at the butcher due to their processing. The way they are produced is by drying them through a baking or smoking process, with added ingredients like seasonings, preservatives, and smoke flavors.

It's not just #Thanksgiving turkey bones that you shouldn't give your dog, bone "treats" found in pet stores can be just as dangerous. FDA has received dozens of reports that include choking, blockages requiring surgery & deaths. How to keep your pet safe: https://t.co/NrBYqW0jiq pic.twitter.com/0Txu3GfanJ  U.S. FDA (@US_FDA) November 21, 2017

Camela Stamper, who is a veterinarian working at the Center for Veterinary Medicine at the FDA, said that dog owners should avoid these bone treats, as they could lead to a sudden trip to the vet, an emergency surgery, or the death of your beloved dog.

The FDA went on to list some of the illnesses, which have been reported by veterinarians and dog owners and caused by bone treats. These include blockages in the digestive tract, wounds, and cuts in the mouth, choking, vomiting, bleeding from the rectum, and diarrhea. Care2 quotes the FDA as also saying that around 15 dogs have died from eating the popular bone treats.

The various reports involved some 90 dogs, with several of the dogs suffering the same illnesses. There have also been reports of problems with the products themselves, including mold and splintering in the treats when chewed by the family dog.

Fifteen Dogs Are Dead And Dozens More Ill After Eating These Bone Treats https://t.co/JNMx1Duh2W  Betty Pappas (@reddpups) December 6, 2017

Keep those turkey bones out of reach

The FDA goes on to advise dog owners to always keep chicken and other meat bones out of the reach of pets.

People should also take care when throwing the bones in the trash, as dogs just love to follow their noses straight to those tasty treats. They also recommend speaking with your veterinarian about more suitable treats for your pets  something they can chew on safely and still have fun. Most important of all, Stamper said whenever your dog is enjoying a treat or chew toy, keep an eye on them, especially if it is something new. If a dog owner notices something wrong with their pet, they should call their veterinarian right away.
Bert Glen Franklin, 36, is accused of murdering 19-month-old Lincoln Von Henry Lewis in Oklahoma City on July 16, 2016. He also allegedly attempted to arrange the murder of Roxanne Randall, the little boys mother, according to Crime Online. David Prater, the Oklahoma County District Attorney, charged Franklin with one felony count of conspiring to commit murder, KFOR reported. His bail is set at $500,000, based on an inmate search of the Oklahoma County Jail.

Franklin, a dentist and married father of four, is accused a battering Lewis, which is led to his death.

According to court records, he violently attacked, assaulted, abused, and battered the little boy. Though Franklin's wife and children live in Tulsa, KTUL reported that he was also involved in a relationship with Randall for over a year when he allegedly killed her son. Additionally, Randall did not know about his wife, court records and KTUL noted.

Charged with first-degree murder of little boy

Prosecutors leveled a first-degree murder charge against Franklin in August, following the death of Randalls little boy, according to People. Law enforcement authorities claim that Franklin was staying with Randall when home surveillance video was captured and shows him abusing Lewis.

He reportedly slammed the childs head to the ground and kicked him, KFOR reported.

Franklins attorneys, however, contend that he was kicking a dog, not the child before he suffered a head injury and died two days later. The news agency also stated that Franklin appeared to be carrying the limp boy while he went to the kitchen to get a piece of pizza.

Accused claimed to throw dog a ball when mother heard loud thud

Randall was home during the incident the home surveillance camera picked up, only the footage didnt show the entire incident, according to People. Franklin claimed that he had thrown a dog to the ball while Lewis slept. After Randall heard a loud thud, she rushed to the basement in her home.

The next day, Lewis was having breathing problems. The medical examiner determined that Lewis suffered a skull fracture. He was pronounced dead at Tulsa Hospital, where he was taken after Randall realized something was wrong with her little boy.

Murder trial delayed with new charge

Jury selection, which was originally scheduled to start December 4, has been delayed, along with Franklins first-degree murder trial since Franklin faces the new charge after allegedly calling an Irish mobster from a cell phone from within the Oklahoma County Jail. Court documents reflect that he reportedly paid the hitman $300 to kill Randall. The mobster, who was an informant, received the cell phone to give to Franklin, KTUL reported.

After a November 30 docket call, determining whether the prosecution and the defense were ready to proceed to trial, Franklin allegedly contacted his wife, using the Oklahoma County Jails messaging system. He reportedly asked his wife to deposit $300 into a jailhouse informants account. KUTL stated that Franklin is alleged to have told her that the money was designated for spiritual reasons.

On December 2, Franklin allegedly cited Randalls address to the informant, as well as provided directions to her home. With the recent, additional criminal charge, Franklins trial has been postponed. A pre-trial conference is slated for January 17.
After holding a controversial rally in Pensacola, Florida on Friday night, Donald Trump doubled down on his message with a series of tweets on Saturday morning. From praise of Roy Moore to attacking the media, the president is not changing his tune.

Trump on Twitter

On Friday night, Donald Trump held a campaign-style rally in Pensacola, Florida, just a few miles from Alabama where the much-talked out Senate race between Republican Roy Moore and Democrat Doug Jones will take place next week. During his over hour-long speech, the former host of "The Apprentice" hit his favorite talking points while striking a similar tone as he did during his campaign.

Trump made sure to rip into the "fake news" media, push for his border wall and increased immigration, praised himself for the success of the economy, compared his presidency to Abraham Lincoln, and even prompted a "lock her up" chant about Hillary Clinton. As seen on his Twitter feed on December 9, Trump decided to continue his message with a series of tweets.

Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his mistake). Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

Taking to Twitter on Saturday morning, Donald Trump went on the attack against CNN and Abc News over the news made blunders in their recent reporting of the administration.

"Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his mistake)," Trump tweeted. "Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?" he wondered.

CNNS slogan is CNN, THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS. Everyone knows this is not true, that this could, in fact, be a fraud on the American Public. There are many outlets that are far more trusted than Fake News CNN. Their slogan should be CNN, THE LEAST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

"CNNS slogan is CNN, THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS.

Everyone knows this is not true, that this could, in fact, be a fraud on the American Public," Donald Trump tweeted out in a follow-up post. "There are many outlets that are far more trusted than Fake News CNN," he wrote, before adding, "Their slogan should be CNN, THE LEAST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS!"

Trump on Moore

In another tweet, Donald Trump came out with support for Roy Moore in Alabama, despite the Republican being accused of sexual assault and harassment by multiple women.

"A big contingent of very enthusiastic Roy Moore fans at the rally last night," Trump posted. To conclude his tweet, the president then ripped into Democrat Doug Jones, explaining, "Jones will always vote against what we must do for our Country."

A big contingent of very enthusiastic Roy Moore fans at the rally last night. We cant have a Pelosi/Schumer Liberal Democrat, Jones, in that important Alabama Senate seat. Need your vote to Make America Great Again! Jones will always vote against what we must do for our Country.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

Moving forward

With a morning full of tweets, Donald Trump has several issues on his plate as president. Though his tax plan appears close to becoming law, questions still remain in regards to the future of health care and the what the end game is with the ongoing investigation into Russian election interference.
In "The Walking Dead" midseason finale we saw what was definitely the biggest shocker this show has ever done as it was revealed that Carl Grimes, a series regular since the very beginning, got bitten. Also, judging by what Chandler Riggs, the actor who portrays Carl, said in an interview with "Hollywood Reporter," the zombie bite will be fatal just like it was many times before as the actor revealed that his character would die in Season 8 Episode 9 (airing Feb. 25).

However, when asked about the reason for killing Carl, the actor accidentally spoiled the ending of Season 8.

But before we delve into what exactly he said, let's explain how and when he got bitten.

The important detail everyone missed

Many fans are still confused about this whole zombie bite thing, wondering when, where and how Carl got bitten despite the fact that he said that it happened while he was with Siddiq. But to clear up any confusion let's take a closer look at the scene down below from two episodes ago.

Of course, we don't actually see the bite as the camera quickly pans away, but if you pause the scene at the right moment (1:29), you'd realize that this is when Carl gets bitten. He even looks down for a moment at 1:53, and then when he gets up, you can see the bite mark on his shirt.

What did Chandler Riggs say about Carl's death?

Now, back to that interview, Chandler Riggs did with "Hollywood Reporter." The actor said that he was shocked to learn about Carl's death from the show's executive producer Scott Gimple.

However, when he was asked about Gimple's reasoning in killing Carl, Chandler said that this was because he was trying to bridge the gap between Rick not wanting to kill Negan and Rick also wanting to kill him.

Because in the comics there's a hole between Rick slitting his throat at the end of the "All Out War" arc and the time jump where Negan is alive and in prison. For that to make sense, Scott made Carl this humanitarian person who believes that all people can change and that there's no point in killing every Savior out there.

So killing Carl off fits all of that really well.

Also, we now know for a fact that Rick will say the "my mercy prevails over my wrath" line during the ending events of "All Out War." He will remember what his son said, and that's why he will decide to keep Negan alive.

With all this in mind, we can say that Chandler Riggs pretty much spoiled the ending of Season 8 because we now know that Negan will survive the "All Out War."
The latest updates and spoilers for "Spider-Man: Homecoming 2" reveal that one of Peter Parker's love interests, Gwen Stacy, will join the film. Internet news website Omega Underground claims that they have obtained an audition tape for the character's role and this led to fan speculations that Gwen will appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but with a twist.

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed that director Jon Watts will return to helm the sequel and promised comic book fans something interesting in the next chapter of Spidey's life.

Gwen Stacy joins the MCU?

According to Omega Underground, the video featured an unknown French actress named Louna auditioning for the role of Gwen Stacy in the "Spider-Man: Homecoming" sequel. This led to comic book fans speculating that Marvel Studios will try to diversify the character from her classic appearance and origin, as they plan to reintroduce her as a foreign exchange student in the MCU.

The news website added that Gwen will be born in France or Russia, and she will be transferred to Peter's class in Midtown Highschool. In the comics, Gwen Stacy is one of Peter's major love interests next to Mary Jane Watson and she made a live-action appearance in three Spider-Man movies played by Bryce Dallas Howard and Emma Stone.

Fans are a little worried and skeptical about Gwen's appearance in the film as they were upset about the studio casting Zendaya as Mary Jane Watson in the first "Homecoming" film.

Jon Watts returns

Kevin Feige confirmed that Jon Watts will return to direct the "Homecoming" sequel during Marvel's panel at the CCXP event in Brazil.

Watts will join the likes of Jon Favreau, Joss Whedon, James Gunn, Peyton Reed, and the Russo Brothers who have achieved success in directing MCU films.

While details about the sequel's plot are still unknown, the movie will take place after the events of "Avengers 4" after the heroes successfully defended the planet against Thanos.

The sequel will also feature the possible formation of the Sinister Six and Venom's appearance in the MCU.

Cast member Jacob Batalon told Screenrant in a previous interview that he wants to see Venom in the new Spidey sequels and how the studio will make him different from Sony's version of the character played by "Mad Maxx" star Tom Hardy.

A Reddit user once theorized that Peter will obtain the black symbiote suit during his battle with Thanos in "Avengers: Infinity War" and he will keep the suit after the events of the movie.
A lot of people told me that as soon as I set foot in Israel, I would feel like I'd come home. That wasn't my experience with arriving in the country writ large, but it's how I felt when I stepped into Nava Tehila, the monthly Friday night Jewish Renewal service led by Rabbi Ruth Gan Kagan.

One reason I felt at-home was that I ran into almost everyone I know in Jerusalem there. Friends from ALEPH, acquaintances from Ohalah, folks I met last Shabbat morning at the Leader Minyan, folks I've met at school, someone I met at the initial briefing session for the Encounter program last week, even someone I knew from the PANIM transdenominational rabbinic student retreat last year. What an amazing intersection of my various Jewish lives!

Beyond that, I feel at home wherever the music is really good, and the music at Nava Tehilah was great. An excellent drummer, two guitarists, a violinist, three song-leaders, and about 200 people singing with intention and heart. That's pretty much exactly my idea of a good time.

But maybe the deepest reason I felt at home was how the minyan dovetails with my ecumenical sensibilities. I first read about Reb Ruth's minyan in a Jerusalem Post article, Keeping the Faiths, which begins, "A rabbi, a monk, and a Sufi walk into a minyan. It sounds like the set-up to a bad joke circulating by email. But it's a reality every month at Nava Tehilla, Jerusalem's first - and only - 'multi-faith' Jewish renewal gathering." (It's a good article, worth reading.)

To be clear: the service is entirely a Jewish service. The davenen (and extra-liturgical conversation) is in Hebrew (with English translations of the teachings so no one feels left out.) But the doors are intentionally open to members of other faith traditions. I mentioned that there was a violinist? He was a monk in brown and white robes (a member of a French Catholic order called the Beatitudes.) I saw a few of his fellows there, and a nun, and an Indian couple in traditional dress, and someone I could swear is Ghanaian (Ga, if I had to guess, though he vanished after the service before I had a chance to go say hello and see if my Ghana-dar was working right.)

After our opening chant, Reb Ruth offered words of welcome, and reminded us that we are all participants here, welcome to sit or stand, daven full-text or join in the extended chanting of brief pearls from the psalms, meditate in silence or dance with abandon... as long as whatever we choose to do, we do wholly. She treated each psalm during kabbalat Shabbat as a gate into the service, and before each offered a brief teaching from this week's Torah portion (in Hebrew and then in English) which was sealed and sweetened by the singing.

During "Lecha Dodi," when our singing and dancing and bouncing reached a fever pitch, a new bride and groom came into the middle of the circle, and we sang to the Shekhinah manifest in the literal bride as well as to the Sabbath Bride. And then we sang the last verse and my heart cracked right open, and I covered my face and wept. From that moment on, I felt luminous.

Looking around the room at this joyful immersion in kabbalat Shabbat and maariv services, I thought, this is what Isaiah meant when he voiced God as saying, "My house shall be a house of prayer for all peoples." In that basement room at Kol Haneshamah, where two hundred people of various faith traditions gathered to welcome Shabbat together, I think that statement came true.

Afterwards most of us walked (beneath the darkening sky and the most amazing sliver of new moon) to Ruth and Michael's (beautiful) home for a potluck supper which began with blessings and schmoozing, and continued after dinner with song and a kind of Torah-teaching open-mike. Meanwhile, other people helped put out and clear up the potluck supper while Ruth and Michael circulated -- which reminded me of our New Year's gathering, actually, the sense that this is a community of friends which feels ownership of the regular gathering so that the hosts don't have to run things.

I didn't stay long -- only until about 10:30 -- because it's been an awfully long first week of class for me, and my Friday was particularly emotionally challenging. (Rewarding in proportion to its difficulty, but difficult nonetheless. More about that soon.) But I'm so grateful to have found my way to this monthly Renewal minyan -- and, in a bigger-picture sense, to have found my way to Jewish Renewal, a home I can carry with me wherever I go.





Technorati tags: religion, Judaism, Shabbat, JewishRenewal, Jerusalem.
A glimpse of where and how I davened on Friday morning.

One of the highlights of my URJ Biennial was davening last Friday morning with Nava Tehila.

This is not surprising. Longtime readers of my blog know that davening with Nava Tehila has long been one of my favorite things in the universe, anywhere. Let's see: great music -- check. Deep heart-connection -- check. Awareness of the flow of the matbe'ah (the structure of the service) -- check. Attunement to body and to silence -- check. Balance of contemplative and ecstatic -- check. Davening with Nava Tehila feels like coming home.

I love how they set the worship space up, in concentric circles with space in the middle, a kind of emptiness echoing the ancient holy of holies. I love how Dafna and Yoel work (wherever they are) with a cadre of holy levi'im, musicians who aren't just accompaniment but are part of the active leadership team. I love their melodies and harmonies. And all of these add up to more than the sum of their parts. Every time I daven with Nava Tehila, I come away with my heart and soul feeling recharged, reconnected, and rejuvenated, and my body buzzing from the dancing and the joy.

It was neat to daven with them at a gathering explicitly created by and for Reform Jews, and to see that they don't change what they do in any way based on the denominational identity of the community with whom they're davening. And I know that last week they were at the USCJ, the big gathering of Conservative Jews, doing the very same kind of thing -- and, I'm guessing, meeting with every bit as much joy and enthusiasm and wow! as they heard from the Reform crowd on Friday morning.

When I say that renewal flows through all of the denominations, this is part of what I mean.

Colorful tallitot are everywhere, for instance. Not only the rainbow tallit that Reb Zalman z"l designed so many years ago, each color of the rainbow representing one of the seven "lower sefirot" or aspects of divinity -- though I saw a bunch of those at the Biennial, as I do everywhere! (And I'm guessing most people have no idea who designed that tallit or what its origins are -- though if you're interested, here's the story, which I love knowing.) But the very fact of multicolored tallitot was one of Reb Zalman's innovations in the first place, back in the 1950s. Now they're a natural part of Jewish prayer life almost everywhere.

And renewal melodies are everywhere. I can't tell you how often I've encountered a liturgical melody by Rabbi Shefa Gold -- come to think of it, we sang one on Friday night at the URJ Biennial before dinner in the ballroom where I was seated! Her melodies are known and sung across the Jewish world (and as with the tallitot, most people may not know where they come from -- it's easy for melodies to seem miSinai, as though we received them with Torah at Mount Sinai.) There are other renewal composers whose work is becoming part of the canon, too, like Shir Yaakov. And, of course, Nava Tehila, who share both their melodies and their way of davening not only in their Jerusalem home but in places they visit around the world.

Beyond the music, renewal modes of davenen (prayer) are everywhere. If you've ever been to a chant-based service, a contemplative service, a service that drew on Jewish meditative or mystical teachings, a service where people danced in the aisles, you've had a brush with some renewal ways of connecting with prayer. (I say "some" ways, rather than "the way," because there is no single way to pray in Jewish renewal. That's why as a renewal rabbinic student I was expected to learn how to lead prayer-ful worship using any prayerbook there is, from full-text to minimalist, across the denominational spectrum... and to pray not only with books and received liturgy but also with silence, and music, and the unfolding prayers of the heart.)

And the flow of renewal continues. Renewal as it's unfolding now contains elements of what came before, remixed in new ways. I see Svara: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva as part of the flow of renewal. The Institute for the Next Jewish Future, the Jewish Emergent Network, the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute are all part of the flow of renewal. (Some of these people and places may self-identify as part of the renewal of Judaism. Others might not choose the term "Jewish renewal" to describe what they do. But they're all part of renewal from where I sit.) Bayit: Your Jewish Home -- the new nonprofit organization I'm co-founding; stay tuned for more on that! -- is part of the flow of renewal. And so are many other places and spaces besides.

Renewal flows through all of the denominations, and in and through post-denominational and trans-denominational spaces, too. As software developers say, this isn't a bug, it's a feature. It isn't an accident or a mistake -- rather, it's part of renewal's core design. Renewal was never meant to be a denomination. Renewal is a way of doing Jewish, a way of approaching Judaism and spiritual life, that can enrich and enliven Jewish practice of all flavors. I've been saying that for years, but there was something extra-special for me (as a rabbi who serves a Reform-and-renewal shul) about living out that belief at the Biennial this year.

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HA NOI  The Japanese Sakura Vietnam will change its brand name to Sakuko Vietnam from December 15, the company said at an event in Ha Noi on Saturday.

The company, an affiliate of Sakura Group, will also launch its new brand identity in Viet Nam while opening its 10th convenience store on oi Can Street in the capital city this month.

"With the debut of the new brand name, we hope to contribute to changing the quality of life of Vietnamese people by providing them with quality Japanese products and good services, Sakuko Vietnam managing director Cao Thi Dung said.

Sakura Vietnam, now Sakuko Vietnam, entered the Vietnamese market in September 2011 with the goal of becoming a leading provider of Japanese goods in Viet Nam. It operates a convenience store chain of the same name.

To date, it has opened nine stores in Ha Noi, six franchised agencies and over 500 distributors nation-wide.

Last week, the companys convenience chain received the Trust and Use 2017 award from the Vietnam Economic Times. The title aims to honour enterprises with the top 100 quality products and services that are trusted and used by consumers.

Besides consumer goods, the enterprises will also operate in hotel, construction and logistics industries.  VNS
HA NOI  The national carrier Vietnam Airlines has launched a promotion programme for domestic flights for the 2018 Lunar New Year Festival.

According to the promotion, a return ticket for flights between Ha Noi, Vinh, Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa and HCM City is priced from VN999,000 (US$44).

The return ticket price for flights between a Nang, Hue, Quy Nhon and HCM City is set from VN599,000.

The return ticket for flights between Buon Ma Thuot, Pleiku and HCM City is priced from VN399,000.

The sale programme is open from December 11 to December 31, 2017.

The promotion applies to customers booking one-way tickets from February 8, 2018 to February 16, 2018, and return tickets from February 7 to March 2, 2018.

The above rates do not include taxes, fees, surcharges, and tickets are attached with special conditions. Tickets are available at www.vietnamairlines.com, ticket offices and sales agents of Vietnam Airlines nationwide.  VNS
HA NOI  Transparency in the equitisation of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) must be enhanced to attract foreign strategic investment in the process, experts said.

The Government plans to divest from more than 130 SOEs by 2020, which would significantly push up share supply in the coming years.

Saigon Securities Inc estimated that the Governments planned divestment from SOEs would be worth some US$4.35 billion  a huge sum that would require capital resources from foreign strategic investors to absorb.

Selling stake to foreign strategic investors would have a lot of positive impacts, such as easing the financial burden on the State, improving operational efficiency, promoting technology transfer and enhancing management capacity and competitiveness.

We know strategic investors will not only bring new financial resources, but also other changes, Nguyen inh Cung, director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) said.

However, the reality is attracting foreign strategic investors is not always easy.

A CIEM report on stake sale to strategic investors of 46 SOEs showed that stake worth a total VN28.4 trillion (US$1.25 billion) planned to be sold for strategic investors, but only VN12.7 trillion was purchased. In addition, only four SOEs attracted foreign investment, not to mention that foreign investors only purchased limited stake.

American Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Adam Sitkoff was quoted by Vietnam News Agency as saying that investors wanted to feel at ease when investing in a business.

They needed to look at the process of evaluating the SOEs, whether it was in line with international standards, he said, urging changes to attract strategic investors.

Experts also said the cap on foreign ownership in several sectors discouraged the participation of foreign investors in the equitisation of SOEs.

Other problems that made investors hesitant were the lack of accuracy in evaluating SOEs, lack of transparency in the equitisation process and low efficiency of SOEs, besides the complicated procedure.

According to Pham uc Trung, head of CIEMs Corporate Development and Reform Department, it was critical to improve transparency in the SOE equitisation process.

Besides this, the role of strategic investors in corporate management following privatisation must be enhanced to attract their participation, he said.

According to CIEM, the criteria for strategic investment must be clarified together with renovating the mechanism of evaluating SOEs value and improving the efficiency of SOEs.

ang Quyet Tien, director of Corporate Finance under the Ministry of Finance, said the Government was promoting transparency in SOE privatisation to attract foreign investors.  VNS
HA NOI  Southern cities and provinces are ready to switch from the RON92 grade petrol to E5 biofuel starting next year, but concerns remain over its pricing and consumer preference.

Local authorities and petrol traders said at a meeting on Saturday they are all set to sell the E5 biofuel from January 1, 2018.

Nguyen Phuong ong, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Industry and Trade, said all 534 petrol stations in the city will sell E5 bio-fuel on a regular basis next year.

Some of the petrol stations are prepared to sell from December 15, he said, adding that about 45 per cent have already started selling the E5 biofuel.

To ensure sufficient supply of the E5 fuel, the department will inspect all 534 gas stations on December 15, ong said.

The trading and sale of RON92 petrol will stop on December 31, 2017 and be replaced by the E5 biofuel on January 1, 2018 under the Prime Mnisters Announcement 255/TB-VPCP on June 6.

According to the Department of Science and Technology under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, E5 fuel has completely replaced RON92 petrol in four cities and provinces  a Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Can Tho.

But authorities in southern localities have also said they have encountered some difficulties in switching from RON92 petrol to E5 bio-fuel, particularly product price and consumer preference.

While sellers are not encouraged by the current price mechanism, consumers are not convinced by the products quality standards, which have mostly remained undisclosed to the public.

Photo shows oil tanks and pipelines of the PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil). PV Oil is ready to sell E5 bio-fuel nationwide on a regular basis on December 15, sooner than the expected deadline of January 1 set by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.  VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hung

Sellers are also concerned that the new product would not be attractive enough as it is only VN1,000-1,200 (4.4-5.3 US cents) per litre cheaper than RON95 petrol. This might see market demand for RON95 petrol rise strongly, especially if consumers awareness over the quality of E5 biofuel is not raised.

Petrol stations in the southern region have also raised questions about how they would deal with the remaining amount of RON92 petrol not sold out by January 1, and about how much financing they would get because the input cost for selling E5 fuel is still high, ong said.

Across the country, a number of companies have been prepared to sell the new product on December 15, including Nam Song Hau Trading Investing Petroleum JSC and PetroVietnam Oil Corporation.

The Hau Giang-based Nam Song Hau Trading Investing Petroleum JSC has three factories with daily capacities of 400, 800 and 1,500 cubic metres, four subsidiaries, and 77 petrol stations.

The company will subsidise sellers by purchasing the remaining amount of RON92 fuel at the distributed price.

Meanwhile, PetroVietnam Oil Corp (PV Oil) has completed all preparations for the new product, according to general director Cao Hoai Duong.

Duong said that PV Oil has invested in maintaining, improving and upgrading its infrastructure to make sure the supply of E5 fuel is sufficient and product quality meets national standards. He estimated the preparation costs for the company at VN100 billion ($4.44 million).

Nguyen Minh Toai, director of the Can Tho Department of Industry and Trade, acknowledged that the main difficulties in regular sale of the E5 fuel are consumer awareness and sellers doubts on input costs.

He said local authorities need to improve consumers awareness of E5 bio-fuel and develop proper plans to support traders in making the switch.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc Vuong said at a conference on Saturday that there has been no complaint on the quality of E5 fuel from consumers since it was piloted in seven provinces and cities in late 2014.

Its quality and safety standards have been confirmed by the Ministry of Science and Technology, he added.

The deputy minister also said that the Finance and Industry and Trade ministries have been working on tax rates and selling prices to make E5 more attractive to consumers.

It is important to put E5 fuel into use nationwide as it will improve the countrys energy security situation, protect the environment and further develop the Vietnamese energy industry, Vuong said.  VNS
The first Vietnamese Coffee Day opened on Sunday at the Lam Vien Square in a Lat, aiming to boost productivity and quality while adding value to homegrown beans. Photo vovworld.vn

HA NOI  The first Vietnamese Coffee Day opened on Sunday at the Lam Vien Square in a Lat, aiming to boost productivity and quality while adding value to homegrown beans.

Le Quoc Doanh, deputy minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, said at the opening ceremony that coffee was among Viet Nams key products, accounting for a large proportion of the countrys exports.

It has contributed significantly to the nations poverty alleviation efforts in particular and socio-economic development in general, especially for the people in the Central Highlands, he said.

Pham S, Vice Chairman of Lam ong Province, where a Lat is located, said that development of the coffee industry has brought thousands of jobs for people in the Central Highlands.

The first Vietnamese Coffee Day was marked with an exhibition and several other activities including workshops to discuss ways to ensure sustainable development of the domestic coffee industry in the future.

In 2016, a total 1.78 million tonnes of coffee was exported for a turnover of US$3.4 billion. In addition to traditional coffee beans, Viet Nam was able to produce roasted, ground and well-processed coffee products whose export value reached more than $300 million.

Viet Nam ranks second after Brazil as the worlds largest raw coffee exporter, with the Central Highlands region contributing to 90 per cent of the countrys total production.

Lam ong Province ranks second in the country for coffee cultivation and production.

Finding a niche

Experts have said that despite being the worlds second largest coffee exporter, Vietnamese coffee products are favoured for cheap prices while the product quality is not highly spoken of.

That is because Vietnamese farmers plant, grow and harvest coffee through traditional methods without applying modern, technological procedures and applications.

Sundays exhibition featured 30 booths of coffee and coffee machine producers from the Central Highlands and northern mountainous regions.

Even organisers gave medals to processing companies and co-operatives that have made great contributions to the domestic coffee industry.

The second Vietnamese Coffee Day will be held in ak Nong Province in 2018.  VNS
SYDNEY  The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) will join hands with relevant agencies to organise a dialogue between 100 Vietnamese seafood businesses in the Mekong Delta region and the Australias Seafood Importers Association (ASIS).

The aim is to promote seafood shipments to Australia, VFF President Tran Thanh Man said.

Man asked the ASIS to pay due attention to the import of Vietnamese shrimp and tra fish while meeting with Norman Grant, president of the association, in Sydney on Friday.

He said he believed that with significant improvements in quality, Vietnamese seafood would satisfy the strict requirements of its importers, including Australia.

If shrimp and tra fish, two strategic goods of Viet Nam, are allowed to enter the Australian market in 2018, it will be a practical move to celebrate the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries, Man noted.

Norman Grant, on his part, said that as shrimp imports to Australia were evaluated based on biological safety, the VFF should work to supervise shrimp farming businesses to ensure food safety before exports.

He expressed his hope that fish breeding facilities in Viet Nam will be improved, meeting fastidious requirements of Australia.

The same day, Man surveyed Suez waste treatment technology on the outskirts of Sydney.  VNS
An iPhone X  File Photo

HCM CITY  A few days after hitting the market, the new genuine iPhone X is now out of stock, according to traders.

The giant mobilephone retailer, The Gioi Di ong (Mobile World), said that its customers in HCM City and Ha Noi sold 3,000 units last Friday.

The company said that it had actually sold out before being officially on sale as the store received over 5,300 orders, with 3,100 of them making a deposit, up to the afternoon of the official sales day.

Sixty-one per cent of customers ordered the 256GB version and the others asked for the 64GB version. More than 50 per cent of them wanted the silver colour, according to the company.

The FPT Shop said that on the first day it sold 3,000 iPhone X to customers, while Viettel sold about 3,000.

Many shops in HCM City have no more iPhone X models to sell.

A store at Vivo shopping centre in District 7 told Viet Nam News that they immediately sold 1,000 phones on the first day, and that other customers were waiting to buy at a later date.

About 15,000 iPhone X models have been sold in the country since the first day of its launch on the market, according to traders.

A retailer said that most customers who had ordered the phone had not cancelled their bookings.

He said that compared to iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, the number of purchases of iPhone X had not been higher because the price was higher. However, many others are still waiting to buy the phone.

oan Van Hieu Em, director of Mobile Phone and Electronic Business under Mobile World, said the phone had many advanced technologies and celebrates the 10th anniversary of the iPhone. It sold out on Apples website when it was first introduced, he added.

To attract more customers, retailers are offering many promotions.

For instance, Mobile World is offering a free interest on installment plans, while Viettel is providing zero interest on installment plans, a free trip to the US, and wireless chargers.

Official sales of iPhone X in Viet Nam began on December 8. The price is VN34,790,000 (US$1,520) for the 256GB version and VN29,990,000 (US$ 1,300) for 64GB version.

The retailers selling iPhone X include Mobile World, Viettel, Mobile Phone, FPT Shop and Vien Thong A.  VNS
HCM CITY  More than 200 award-winning typography and graphic designs are being showcased at the 63rd International Typography Exhibition held in HCM City.

The opening ceremony of the exhibition was held on Friday by the New York Type Directors Club (TDC), in collaboration with Ton uc Thang University, FPT Arena, and the Goethe Institute  the Germanys cultural institute.

The annual International Typography Exhibition aims to bring together those who love fonts and text applications in various media such as brand communication, advertising, education, marketing, publication and film titles.

The best typography works have won awards at the years annual TDC competition for both communication and typeface design, which attracted around 1,700 entries from 50 countries.

The designs were in a large range of categories, including books, posters, corporate branding, logos, web graphics, film and TV titles, products and magazines.

The exhibition has also been held in many other countries around the world, such as the US, South Korea, Japan, Poland, Russia, Thailand, Spain, Germany, and others.

The TDC has been the worlds leading international organisation for support and recognition of excellence in typography, both in print and on screen, for many years.

The TDC is a good opportunity for graphic designers to meet with industry professionals from around the world.

The exhibition opens to the public from 9am to 6pm until December 12 at the HCM City Exhibition House at 92 Le Thanh Ton Street in District 1.

Organisers expect to attract thousands of visitors at the exhibition this year.  VNS
LISBON  Portugals Salvador Sobral, winner of this years Eurovision song contest, is making good progress after a heart transplant, the medical team who operated on him said on Sunday.

Sobral had waited several months for the operation as he suffered from a longstanding heart condition.

"He was very well prepared and the surgery went well," said surgeon Miguel Abecassis from the Santa Cruz hospital outside Lisbon which performed the operation on Friday.

Abecassis said Sobral would require a long period of convalescence but expected him in due course to be able to lead a "completely normal life".

Sobral, 27, won the Eurovision crown in Kiev in September with a jazzy number penned by his sister Luisa Sobral entitled Amar Pelos Dois (Love for Both of Us).

It was the first time Portugal had won the event.  AFP
HA NOI  Vietnamese beauty representative Nguyen Thi Lien Phuong won the first runner-up title at the World Miss Tourism Ambassador beauty contest which concluded on Saturday night in the Philippines.

The finale night of the beauty contest was celebrated with the participation of 50 contestants. The Vietnamese contestants name was announced among the top 21 and top 11, from where she went on to win second place.

Phuongs title is equivalent to the Miss Eco Tourism 2017 title. The first prize of World Miss Tourism Ambassador went to Miss Russia Alena Raeva, while tourism ambassadors from Chile, Germany and South Africa were the others who finished in the top five.

Phuong said she was pleased with her achievement. I put in my best efforts not only during the 10 days of the contest, but also for months before my first participation in an international beauty pageant.

Born in the southern province of Long An in 1994, Phuong earlier won the runner-up title of Miss Tourism Vietnam 2017 before competing in World Miss Tourism Ambassador.

A recently-established pageant based in the United States, World Miss Tourism Ambassador 2017 is not only a beauty arena, but also a channel for promoting tourism, culture and tourism services of any country that sends a delegate to this contest.  VNS
The Investigation Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security has decided to launch legal proceedings against inh Manh Thang, Director of the Petro Song a Trading and Investment JSC .  Photo vneconomy.vn

HA NOI  The Investigation Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security has decided to launch legal proceedings against inh Manh Thang, Director of the Petro Song a Trading and Investment JSC over his alleged links to serious violations in the case involving the PetroVietnam Construction JSC (PVC).

The information was verified by a senior official of the Ministry of Public Security on Saturday.

Thang, 55, has been detained pending further investigations into his role in the PVC case involving deliberate violations of State regulations on economic management causing serious consequences.

Currently, investigators are expanding their probe into two economic violation cases, one at the PVC and the other related to the Thai Binh 2 thermal power project.

In the latter case, the violations and abuse of position and power to appropriate property is said to have resulted in losses of VN800 billion (US$35.5million) to PetroVietnam (PVN)s investment in Oceanbank.

In a related move, the Investigation Police Department has also decided to prosecute Nguyen Quoc Khanh, PVNs former President and CEO, also on the charge of deliberately violation of State regulations on economic management causing serious consequences.

The police has issued arrest and search warrants for Khanh.

The same day, the National Assembly Standing Committee adopted a resolution on the prosecution, arrest and suspension of Khanh as a member of parliament.

inh La Thang, former Chairman of the PVN Member Council, has also been arrested in the case.  VNS
Some 1,000 attendees, representing young people from throughout the country, participated in the 11th National Congress of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) for the 2017-22 tenure, which opened in Ha Noi yesterday. VNA/VNS Photo

HA NOI  Some 1,000 attendees, representing young people from throughout the country, participated in the 11th National Congress of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) for the 2017-22 tenure, which opened in Ha Noi yesterday.

Addressing the first session of the congress, First Secretary of the HCYU Central Committee, Le Quoc Phong, described the congress as an important political event and a festival of Vietnamese youth.

The congress is reviewing the youth unions activities during 2012-17, and setting out targets, tasks and solutions for the next five years.

It will also amend and supplement regulations of the HCYU and elect a new central committee for the 11th tenure, he said.

With eight forums and 20 group discussions, the congress will last until December 13.

Earlier, the delegates paid tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum in Ha Noi and laid wreaths and offered incense at the Heroic Martyrs Monument on Bac Son road, also in the capital city.

Also yesterday, a photo exhibition was officially opened at the National Convention Centre in Ha Noi within the framework of the congress.

Themed oan Thanh nien Cong san Ho Chi Minh  Tu hao truyen thong, vung buoc tuong lai (Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union - proud of the traditional, firm steps to the future), the exhibition runs from December 8-14 with exhibits including more than 500 images, materials and artifacts from the unions history and 10 congresses.  VNS
Speeding on their motorbikes cost two young men their lives yesterday afternoon in HCM Citys District 2. Photo congan.com.vn

HCM CITY  Speeding on their motorbikes cost two young men their lives yesterday afternoon in HCM Citys District 2.

The two men, about 25 years old, are said to have driven a motorbike very fast on Mai Chi Tho Street and lost control, colliding with lorry carrying stones. The accident blocked traffic jam for almost two hours in the area.

Meanwhile, in the northern province of Hoa Binh, a passenger bus and a lorry were seriously damaged in a head-on collision yesterday morning.

Fortunately, no serious injury was reported, although the bus was carrying 30 passengers.

The accident happened in Luong Son Districts Truong Son Commune as the passenger bus traveled from Luong Son to Kim Boi collided with a dirt-carrying lorry running in the opposite direction.

The police are investigating the accident.

Four rescued from fire in Ha Noi

HA NOI  Firefighters in Ha Noi yesterday rescued four people trapped in a big fire in a house on Thai Ha Street.

The fire occurred at 7am on the ground floor of a four-storey house in Alley 131. The ground floor of the 40sq.m house was rented out to a coffee shop, and the owners lived on the upper floors.

Five firefighting trucks were mobilised and four people trapped in the building were rescued. The fire was extinguished in an hour.

On Saturday night, a fire that broke out in the Huyen Su Market in Tri Phai Commune, Ca Mau Province destroyed 11 stalls, causing losses estimated at VN2.6 billion (US$116,000). No human casualty was reported.

According to Tri Phai Peoples Committee, the stalls selling groceries, clothing and shoes belonged to five households who had stored a large volume of goods in preparation for the upcoming Tet (lunar new year).

The fire is being investigated.

Seriously injured Chinese sailor rescued at sea

BA RIA-VUNG TAU  The Regional Maritime Search and Rescue Co-ordination Centre No 3 on Saturday took a foreign sailor seriously injured on board a Panama-flagged cargo ship off Viet Nams territorial waters to a mainland hospital for treatment.

He Liming, a 30-year-old Chinese national, fell from a height of seven meters into the hatch while working on the deck of Seiyo Honor on Saturday morning. He suffered severe back and chest injuries and was unable to move his arms.

Seiyo Honor, which was proceeding from Bong Sen (Lotus) Port in HCM City to the Kelang Port in Malaysia, was about 68 nautical miles southwest off the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau when the accident happened.

As the sailors condition worsened, the ships captain had sent out an SOS. The centre instructed the ship to return to Vung Tau City and provided first-aid guidance. It also dispatched ship SAR 413 with doctors on board.

The doctors were able to improve the sailors condition before he was taken from Vung Tau to the French-Viet Nam Hospital in HCM City for further care and treatment.  VNS
HA NOI  Cars lined up, causing a jam along National Highway 5 on Monday morning, as several drivers paid their tolls in small notes to protest the "unreasonable" tollbooth.

The universal protest reportedly started at around 7.30am, when some of the drivers used small notes, such as VN500 (2 US cents), to pay their VN40,000 fee when passing tollbooth No 1 on the National Highway 5, the key route to the east of Ha Noi. The incident occurred on the lanes of Ha Noi towards the direction of Hung Yen Province.

The lines passing the station moved slowly, and began getting longer as the drivers took their time to count enough cash for the toll.

An hour later, more drivers kept paying the fees in small notes. There were drivers who gave the toll officers VN41,100, of which VN1,100 comprised one VN500 and three VN200 notes. They insisted on getting the exact change for a VN100 note, which is rarely used in daily transactions.

The protest by the drivers adversely affected traffic in front of the tollbooth, and led to long lines of cars.

Earlier, drivers in a private group on the Internet called on their members to use small notes to protest against tollbooth No 1, which was said to have been unreasonably placed on National Highway 5 by the Viet Nam Infrastructure Development and Finance Investment Company (Vidifi).

The Vidifis tollbooth was collecting fees from vehicles on National Highway 5 to recover their investment into the Ha Noi - Hai Phong Expressway, the drivers said.

Drivers in the group planned to pay fees in small notes in the direction of Ha Noi towards Hung Yen on Monday morning, and to switch to the other direction from 4.30pm in the afternoon.

Vidifis National Highway 5 Management and Maintenance Board Chairman, Nguyen Van Huynh, said that the drivers payment in small notes was legal, however the prolonged intentional parking at the booth causing traffic jams was a breach of law.

He added that Vidifi would call car-towing services to remove the cars stopping for too long.

National Highway 5 is the main route to enter Ha Noi from the east, with up to 15,000-16,000 vehicles passing tollbooth No 1 everyday. The lowest toll is VN40,000, while the highest is VN180,000. The booth is built under the Build-Transfer-Operation (BOT) model.

DRVN to propose solution for BOT

This is not the first time drivers have resorted to the small-note payment method to protest against a BOT toll station. Hundreds of drivers managed to halt the operations of Cai Lay tollbooth for several hours early this month, driving the Prime Minister to temporarily postpone the stations toll collection for up to two months before the authorities could come up with a satisfactory solution.

The Cai Lay booth is located on National Highway 1; however, it collects fees for a 12km bypass of Cai Lay Town in Tien Giang Province, while some drivers only travel on the highway.

Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam (DRVN) General Director, Nguyen Van Huyen, on Sunday said that the directorate would count the number of vehicles passing through both the National Highway 1 and the bypass from December 8 noon until December 16.

It aimed to gather accurate data in order to propose the soundest solution over the Cai Lay station to the Ministry of Transport, he said.

The DRVN must submit the proposal no later than December 17.

The DRVN was currently working on three scenarios, according to Huyen: to keep the status quo, to build another toll booth on the bypass or to move the station to the bypass with the government paying back the investor its investment into the National Highway 1 of around VN300 billion.

Huyen, however, said that the DRVN was also open to another scenario, in which the Cai Lay station would keep collecting fees until the investor recovered its money from the highway investment. After that, the station would be moved to the bypass.

Following the move in Cai Lay station, drivers and several localities asked the Ministry of Transport to eliminate or reduce the toll at a number of BOT stations across the country, such as the Phu Bai Station in Thua Thien-Hue Province, all three BOT stations in Binh inh Province, the Ninh An station in Khanh Hoa Province and the Ba Lang station in Can Tho City.  VNS
HCM CITY  HCM City wants to increase government workerssalary so that they match at least the minimum wage in the industrial sector.

City authorities made the plea at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Vuong inh Hue, who is also the head of the Central Steering Committee for Reform of Wage, Social Insurance and Incentives for People with Meritorious Service, last weekend.

According to the city Peoples Committee, the existing wage structure applied for public employees is not enough to motivate them.

For example, the basic monthly salary in the public sector is only VN1.3 million (US$58) compared to VN3 million in the industrial sector.

Though the minimum wage is usually adjusted every year to cover the increase in prices, it is barely enough to cover basic needs.

However, the adjustment is weighed heavily in favour of employeeseducation levels rather than their performance or position.

City authorities said this basic salary structure prevents cities and provinces with rapid economic growth from increasing the incomes of their employees.

Apart from calling for the base salary hike, the city also said there should be a law on minimum wage to ensure salaries are sufficient.

The deputy PM said evaluating the reform of wage, social insurance and incentives for people with meritorious service is vital in HCM City due to its significant role in the countrys economy.

Appreciating the suggestions made by the city administration about the salaries, he said the steering committee would work towards closing the salary gap between government and industrial workers to ensure the former are paid adequately.

Together with Resolutions 18 and 19 adopted at the sixth plenary session of the 12th Communist Party of Viet Nam Central Committee, which reiterate the countrys determination to reduce the number of public servants and restructure public offices and agencies, we will successfully implement the reform of wage and social insurance to motivate employees, enterprises and the whole country.

Last month the Government Office had announced that the basic salary for civil servants and public employees would increase to VN 1.39 million from next July.VNS
KHANH HOA  A fishing boat with a 16-member crew, which drifted for several days in the Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago, reached Ba Ngoi Port in Cam Ranh City Sunday afternoon.

The boat was towed to the port by a rescue ship.

Earlier, on November 29, the Vietnam Navy received distress signals from the fishing boat, coded BD-99.559TS and captained by 45-year-old Nguyen Cuong, a native of Binh inh Province.

The boats crew was reportedly fishing 270 nautical miles off the Quy Nhon coast when its engine broke down.

The vessel was carrying 7,000 litres of diesel oil and seven tonnes of fish.

The Vietnam Navy decided to assign a ship to immediately initiate a search operation for the boat.

The rescue ship reached the boat on November 30 and towed it to Song Tu Tay Island in Truong Sa Archipelago for repair. On December 6, it was pulled to the mainland because the problem could not be fixed.

On the same day, another fishing boat with 16 crew members from Binh inh Province was also successfully rescued by the command of the Fourth Region under the Vietnam Navy. The engine had broken down and the boat was drifting some 40 nautical miles from a Nang Citys Son Tra Peninsula for two days.  VNS
KHANH HOA  Thousands of households living along Cai River in Khanh Vinh and Dien Khanh districts and Nha Trang City of Khanh Hoa Province have complained that sand mining is affecting their production land.

This mining has continued for many years but shows no sign of stopping. The local government has promised to deal with such problem, as residents continue to see their land getting eroded by the river every day, e-newspaper zing.vn reported on Sunday.

Nguyen Dieu, a resident of ong Village of Khanh Vinh Districts Song Cau Commune, said he had reported the incident to the local authority but no one had resolved the issue.

The sand is still getting exploited, causing erosion and my soil is getting cartied away with the waters flow, he said.

According to the Peoples Committee of Khanh Vinh District, eight establishments were licensed to exploit sand at the section of Cai River that passed the district area.

"The local inspection team found a lot of river sections had eroded following reports from locals and we will report the problem to the higher competent agency," a representative of the Natural Resources and Environment Division of Khanh Vinh District said.

The section of Cai River that passes through Dien Khanh Districts Dien Tho Commune is also facing a similar situation.

Earlier, the river was some 200m away from the provincial road, but currently it was only at a distance of some 20m, Duong Van Manh, a resident said.

Thinh Phat Co., Ltd, located in Dien Khanh District, has exploited sand for many years, but the local environment division said it was not clear if the company was licensed for mining or not.

Meanwhile, the provincial police said during an inspection of illegal sand mining sites along Cai River in September, they discovered Thinh Phat company undertaking mining activity, however the company did not show the mining licence when checked.

The police said 10 vehicles were engaged in sand mining.

They also found more than 50,000cu.m of undocumented sand at the companys area.

Police said they were completing documents for prosecution as this was a serious case of exploitation of sand, which had been occurring for a long time.  VNS
BUENOS AIRES  The World Trade Organisation opened a conference on Sunday under the cloud of US hostility to multilateral trade accords.

The 164-member WTO is also wracked by disagreements over China and has been struggling to kickstart stalled trade talks.

The Buenos Aires meeting, which lasts through Wednesday, is the first in the era of US President Donald Trump, who has pummeled the body relentlessly since taking office, describing it as a "disaster".

The Trump administration has made the WTO a preferred target of its "America First" policy, threatening to pull the US out of the trade organisation it says is hampering its ability to compete.

Argentinas President Mauricio Macri said, in opening remarks, that "WTO problems get fixed with more WTO -- not with less WTO".

Trump has already withdrawn the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and insisted on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada.

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said on Sunday he would ask US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer for "political commitment, political will and flexibility".

"Without flexibility we will not get anywhere," Azevedo said at an opening press conference at a Buenos Aires hotel.

Washington has been blamed for blocking appointments of judges to the WTOs dispute settlement system, saying it was ineffective and insisting on a more aggressive approach to defending its interests.

The dispute body arbitrates international rows over subsidies or tariffs, among other things playing an important role in the standoff between US and European plane-makers Boeing and Airbus.

The European Union, on the other hand, comes to the conference with a robust spirit of multilateralism. The EU and Japan announced on Friday that they have finalised a major trade agreement.

EU officials will also meet with counterparts from the South American trade bloc known as Mercosur to continue talks on a free trade accord. These discussions have been going on for nearly 20 years.

Low expectations

Expectations for any kind of a breakthrough at the Buenos Aires meeting are low.

For the past decade the WTO has failed to make progress in the so-called Doha Round of trade liberalisation talks, which began in 2001.

The WTO is also accused of failing to do enough to resolve problems that some of its members have with China.

"There is life after Buenos Aires," said the president of the conference, Susana Malcorra of Argentina.

She has said a deal was likely to end harmful fisheries subsidies, of keen interest to developing countries.

Beijing, meantime, wants to be seen by the WTO as a "market economy," but the Europeans and the United States -- for once on the same wavelength on trade issues -- oppose this. Any such recognition would entitle China to preferential economic treatment under WTO rules.

It is currently classed as a non-market economy. That status allows the US and others to use a special recourse to levy anti-dumping duties against China if they determine that it is selling its goods -- notably steel and aluminum -- at unfairly low prices abroad.

A European diplomat in Buenos Aires said protectionist US rhetoric may actually give fuel to negotiations between the EU and Mercosur.  AFP
CAIRO  Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas was to meet Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Monday over US President Donald Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, Egypts presidency said.

Trumps move has drawn near universal condemnation, and Palestinian officials say Abbas will refuse to meet US Vice President Mike Pence when he travels to the region later this month.

Sisi has invited Abbas "to a bilateral summit for consultations on Monday in Cairo to discuss developments related to the United States recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital", said Bassam Radi, a spokesman for the Egyptian presidency.

Official Palestinian news agency WAFA said Abbas and Sisi spoke by telephone on Sunday and "continued consultations about the latest developments after the US administrations decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel".

It said that they agreed "to continue consulting to coordinate common positions".

Palestine Liberation Organisation official Wasel Abu Yousef said he understood that Jordans King Abdullah II would also join Mondays meeting, but there was no official confirmation of this.

Anger throughout the Muslim and Arab world has included protests in Egypt and Jordan, which also has a special role as the official custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem.

In Cairo, students and professors demonstrated at the prestigious Al-Azhar University, a university spokesman said, with pictures on social media showing several hundred protesters.

Dozens of students protested at two other Cairo universities.

Arab foreign ministers on Saturday called on the United States to rescind its recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital and for the international community to recognise a Palestinian state.

In a resolution after an emergency meeting in Cairo, Arab League member ministers said the United States had "withdrawn itself as a sponsor and broker" of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process with its controversial move.

The ministers met at the leagues headquarters in Cairo to formulate a response to the US decision.

Egypts top Muslim and Christian clerics have both cancelled scheduled meetings with Pence in protest at the Jerusalem decision.

Israel seized Arab east Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

The Palestinians want the eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

The international community does not recognise the ancient city as Israels capital, insisting that the issue can only be resolved in negotiations.

Meanwhile, Israels leader faces renewed pressure from Europe on Monday to reboot the Middle Easts moribund peace process following widespread criticism of the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Jewish states capital.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be in Brussels for an informal breakfast with EU foreign ministers who will urge him to "resume meaningful negotiations", according to the blocs diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini.

The talks come after French President Emmanuel Macron met Netanyahu in Paris on Sunday and called on him to freeze settlement building and to re-engage with Palestinians following widespread protests over the US move.

Speaking alongside Netanyahu on Sunday, Macron again condemned the decision as "contrary to international law and dangerous for the peace process".

"I urged the prime minister to show courage in his dealings with the Palestinians to get us out of the current dead end," Macron said after talks in Paris with the Israeli leader.

"Peace does not depend on the United States alone... it depends on the capacity of the two Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," the French leader said.  AFP
AJACCIO, France  Nationalists on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica cemented gains in regional elections on Sunday, underpinned by their demands for greater autonomy from Paris.

The outcome is widely expected to pose a new challenge to President Emmanuel Macron who will have to decide whether to cede some control or maintain Frances tradition of highly centralised government.

The governing Pe a Corsica (For Corsica) alliance -- made up of the pro-autonomy Femu a Corsica (Lets Make Corsica) and pro-independence Corsica Libera (Free Corsica) -- won 45 per cent in a first round of voting a week ago and cemented that showing with 56.5 per cent Sunday -- albeit turnout was low at 52.6 per cent.

The win will give Pe a Corsica a comfortable majority in the islands assembly which will start work early next year. The nationalists will also take the 11 seats up for grabs on the governing executive council, which carries out the equivalent functions of regional council presidents in mainland France.

"Paris today has to take stock of what is happening in Corsica," Pe a Corsicas leading candidate, Gilles Simeoni, said after the results came through.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said he had sent "republican congratulations" to the winners, adding he was willing to meet them once the islands assembly is up and running.

In response Simeoni told reporters "Beyond the formal politeness, we expect and hope for a genuine dialogue," with the French state. The strong result for the autonomists comes amid political crisis in Spain -- with potentially major consequences for the European Union  following efforts by Catalan nationalists to break away from Madrid.

The leaders of Pe a Corsica have stressed throughout that their short-term goal is greater autonomy, rather than independence -- not least because the mountainous island is dependent on state spending.

They have formulated three core demands: they want equal recognition for the Corsican language along with French and an amnesty for convicts they consider to be political prisoners.

They also want the state to recognise a special Corsican residency status -- which would be used to fight against property speculation fuelled by foreigners snapping up holiday homes.

Economic dependency

Opinion polls show that most of Corsicas 330,000 residents, many of whom live off seasonal tourism or are employed in the public sector, want to remain in France.

Even separatist leader Jean-Guy Talamoni -- nicknamed by some "the Corsican Puigdemont" after the Catalan leader -- suggests the island would split from France in 10 or 15 years at the earliest, if a majority supported it.

"An economically viable Corsica -- I dont think well see it in my lifetime," a Corsica specialist at the University of Bordeaux, Thierry Dominici, said last week.

That is not the case for Catalonia, where separatists complain that their wealthy region, representing a fifth of Spains economic output, pays more than it gets back into national coffers.

Corsica, famed for having some of the best beaches in Europe and for being the birthplace of Napoleon, was once a hotbed of violent anti-French militancy.

The National Liberation Front of Corsica (FLNC) waged a four-decade bombing campaign -- mainly targeting state infrastructure -- until 2014.

The worst nationalist attack saw Frances top official on the island, Claude Erignac, assassinated in 1998.  AFP
The National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio will be holding a three-day series of events next May to celebrate the unveiling of their Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress 41-24485 known as Memphis Belle. As all of our readers will surely know, Memphis Belle is an iconic aircraft, being the first Army Air Forces heavy bomber to return to the United States following the completion of 25 bombing missions over Axis Europe. While a handful of other bombers and their crews could lay claim to being the first to complete their 25 missions, Memphis Belle and her crew were chosen to celebrate the feat with a War Bonds tour of the USA soon after their final combat mission together.

Museum officials will formally reveal the Memphis Belle in her new exhibit within the WWII Gallery on May 17th, to coincide to the day with the 75th anniversary of her crew completing their 25th mission together. The Memphis Belle flew her final combat mission on May 19th, 1943. According to a recent museum press release, the public ceremony next May will be the opening salvo in a three day event (May 17-19, 2018) to include a WWII-era aircraft fly-in, WWII reenactors and vehicles, memorabilia and artifact displays, music from the era, related guest speakers for lectures, book signings and films, including both Memphis Belle films in the Air Force Museum Theatre. Activities will be both inside and outside the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

The preliminary schedule of events is as follows:

Thursday, May 17, 2018

B-17F Memphis Belle Exhibit ribbon cutting

Exhibit ribbon cutting WWII aircraft on static display on the runway behind the museum

WWII reenactors and vehicles

Air Force Museum Theatre Living History Event ($)

Friday, May 18, 2018

B-17F Memphis Belle Exhibit open

Exhibit open WWII aircraft on static display on the runway behind the museum

WWII reenactors and vehicles

Glenn Miller Concert



Saturday, May 19, 2018

B-17F Memphis Belle Exhibit open

Exhibit open WWII aircraft flyovers throughout the day

WWII reenactors and vehicles

Air Force Museum Theatre Living History Event ($)

Details are still being finalized, and the schedule is subject to change, so please do check with the Museum ahead of time before making your own plans. Outdoor activities are weather dependent.

Restoration Report:

The restoration team at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force has spent more than a decade returning the famous aircraft back to pristine condition. She is very close to completion, with a team spending the best part of November applying the paint scheme to the combat veteran bomber. We thought our readers might enjoy seeing some of the highlights of the painting process so far.
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WATERLOO -- A Waterloo sex offender has pleaded guilty to federal weapons charges in connection with an August motorcycle chase where police found a handgun.

Rahkeen Three X Lewis-Williams, 25, entered a plea to one count of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids on Thursday. Sentencing will be at a later date.

Authorities alleged Lewis-Williams is prohibited from possessing guns because of a 2011 conviction for lascivious acts with a child.

On Aug. 19, a Waterloo police officer attempted to stop a dirt bike on Logan Avenue because it didn't have a registration tag, according to court records. The motorcycle fled and eventually crashed into a fence near Lincoln Elementary School, and the driver took off running.

Officers found a 9mm Ruger pistol about 10 feet from the motorcycle, and Lewis-Williams was found in a home on Crescent Place. While police were talking with witnesses, Lewis-Williams allegedly slipped his handcuffs and fled from the back of the squad car, court records state. He was detained a second time at another home on Crescent.
WATERLOO -- A Waterloo man has been arrested for allegedly having sex with a minor in Mexico and possessing child pornography.

A grand jury indicted Juan Soria Rangel, 35, on Nov. 15 on charges of sexual exploitation of a child, engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place, transportation of child porn, distribution of child porn and possession child porn.

According to court records, Rangel, a United States citizen, had sexual contact with the victim in Mexico between 2014 and 2016, and persuaded the victim to engage in sexual conduct for the purpose of taking photos or video. The images were then brought to Iowa when he traveled back, records state.
AMES -- Applications are now available for the Iowa 4-H Foundation scholarship program.

Approximately 90 scholarship opportunities valued at more than $100,000 will be awarded.

Grants range in amounts from $500 to $10,000. Some of the scholarships are open to students pursuing any field of study, while others are open to students pursuing degrees in agriculture, food and nutrition, ag business, animal science and journalism.

Former and current Iowa 4-H members are eligible to apply for 4-H scholarships.

While a majority of the 4-H scholarship opportunities are available for students attending Iowa State University, scholarships are also available to students planning to attend any Iowa university, private college, community college or any land-grant university.

Information is available at https://iowa4h.awardspring.com, and deadline is Feb. 1.

Grow Ag Leaders

ST. LOUIS -- Iowa students who are pursuing an education in an agriculture-related field can apply for Americas Farmers Grow Ag Leaders scholarships.

Grow Ag Leaders, a Monsanto Fund program, will award $1,500 scholarships to students pursuing ag careers such as farming, agronomy, education, science, technology, engineering, among many others.

Grow Ag Leaders scholarships are open to students 23 years of age and younger who live in eligible counties and are looking to enroll or are currently enrolled in trade schools, community colleges and four-year universities. Students need not be FFA members to apply. The deadline for students to apply is Feb. 1, and students must obtain two farmer endorsements of their application by Feb. 8.

Information is available at www.GrowAgLeaders.com.
CEDAR FALLS  The Rotary Club of the Cedar Valley has been awarded a grant from Rotary International totaling more than $85,000.

The purpose of the grant is to help train doctors in Mexico on the Ponseti method of treating clubfoot, a congenital abnormality in babies feet that causes them to twist out of shape.

The Ponseti method is a manipulative technique to correct clubfoot without surgery. It was developed by Dr. Ignacio Ponseti at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and has become the standard for treatment of clubfoot.

In our five years of existence, this club has built a reputation for serving the Cedar Valley through monthly projects, touching thousands of lives through hundreds of projects, said Rotary of the Cedar Valley president Jessica Rucker. Now we were looking to make a global impact.

Cedar Valley club members learned about the Iowa-based Ponseti project at an international Rotary convention in Sau Paulo, Brazil three years ago. At that time, the father of one of the Cedar Valley club members was a doctor and Rotarian practicing in Mexico. Connections were made with his club in Mexico, Mante Rotary Club, and they agreed to partner with the Rotary Club of the Cedar Valley to facilitate the project.

The training began in late November 2017. Members of the Ponseti International, a not-for-profit organization based at the University of Iowa, traveled to Mexico to train in-country practitioners who will train doctors from across Mexico. A total of 14 doctors came to the first phase of the training. Participants are enthusiastic about diffusing the Ponseti method to all of Mexico. While at the training a strategic plan and timeline will be developed to ensure its success.

It is very gratifying to see an Iowa club helping to train doctors on an Iowa solution that is bringing hope to parents and changing the lives of children in Mexico and around the world, said past Iowa District Governor of Rotary and Waterloo resident Jozsef Gitta. This truly is Iowas gift to the world.

The Rotary Club of the Cedar Valley will continue to build relationships with the Mante Mexico Club to help secure the future of the Ponseti project in Mexico and to partner on other projects to meet critical needs.
WATERLOO  Two Christmas Day dinners that served nearly 1,000 meals and warmed at least that many hearts will be back again this year in Waterloo and Evansdale.

Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1301 Kimball Ave., will continue a tradition begun in 1981 when it hosts its annual Christmas Day dinner from noon to 1:30 p.m.

Diners are urged to call the church office at 234-5501 to make a reservation by noon Friday, Dec. 22.

Co-organizer Mary Lisa Muller also said the church is contracting to have a bus to transport a limited number of individuals with disabilities who would like a ride but may have difficulty getting in and out of conventional motor vehicles.

Those who wish to pick up dinners for homebound individuals may make a reservation to pick them up at 11 a.m. An individual may pick up a limit of four dinners. There are two boxes per meal, so individuals should bring containers to carry them.

Westminster served a total of 600 meals last year.

The dinner, begun by former Waterloo City Council member Bob Brown and his wife, Judy, was organized not just to provide a free Christmas Day meal but also fellowship to those who might be alone Christmas Day.

Since 1981, the dinner has been held every year except 2009 when it was canceled due a forecasted blizzard which never came. The Browns passed on supervision of the dinner to a group of church volunteers in 2015.

Meanwhile across town another free Christmas Day dinner will be offered at the Evansdale AMVETS, 706 Colleen Ave. from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 25.

Organizer Pat Cummings-Jones started the dinner in 2008. It has been offered nearly every year since at a succession of locations. Since 2015, it has been at the Evansdale AMVETS, where Cummings-Jones is past president of the auxiliary. She puts it on with the help of her mother, Rita Cummings, brother Ronnie Cummings and a host of volunteers, including members of the Evansdale AMVETS, Sons of AMVETS and auxiliary, as well as Evansdale firefighters.

We have about 14 businesses (contributing) and about 35 workers, and weve gone around asking about 40 people to donate in one fashion or another, Cummings-Jones said.

Evansdale businesses are great in giving donations, Cummings-Jones said. She suffers from heart issues and noted her mother, Rita, does a large part of the work.

Shell be 83 in February. We call her the Duracell battery, Cummings-Jones said. No reservations are needed, but anyone wanting more information may call Cummings-Jones at 429-6220.
DES MOINES  Heres one way to determine what people  and voters, presumably  care about.

On a weeknight during the holiday season in the state Capitol, roughly 600 people attended events featuring discussions on Iowas mental health care and low-income health care systems.

Even in the states biggest city, thats a lot of folks venturing out to hear about and discuss issues of the day.

Its a headcount to which every state-level office-holder and candidate should pay close attention.

On Tuesday evening, the Des Moines Register and Des Moines University hosted a forum on mental health care issues with the candidates running for governor in next years election. All 13 challengers appeared; Gov. Kim Reynolds was unable to attend due to a family vacation.

Roughly 400 people attended.

At the same time, the state Health Department held a public hearing on its $5 billion Medicaid program. State officials listened to thoughts and concerns from roughly 200 people.

Concerns with the mental health care system are not necessarily new, nor are they confined to Iowa. States across the country are attempting to determine how best to serve residents with mental health care needs. Iowa recently shifted to a regional delivery system, which some advocates believe has helped.

But concerns remain over bed and physician shortages and stress on the law enforcement community, to name a few issues.

Concerns with Medicaid largely surround the recent shift to privately managed care. Already, some people have expressed frustration that services, especially for those with a high level of need, have been reduced. Then, one of the three private companies being paid by the state to run the program dropped out, and a second said it can take no more new patients.

There will be elections for the Legislature and governor in 2018. The party primary elections are in June, and the general election is in November.

It would seem the candidates would do well to discuss mental health care and low-income health care issues, if they truly want to connect with Iowa voters on a topic thats clearly important to them.

Alabama race

The special election for a U.S. Senate seat in Alabama is headed down to the wire, according to the latest from the University of Virginias Crystal Ball from Larry Sabato.

The race between Republican Roy Moore and Democrat Doug Jones is a toss-up going into Tuesdays election, the Crystal Ball said this week.

Much national attention has been paid to the race because of Republicans narrow 52-46 advantage in the U.S. Senate (both independents caucus with the Democrats) and charges of sexual misconduct from multiple women against Moore.

Normally, this would figure to be a safe seat for the GOP.

The Crystal Ball notes the polls, in aggregate, show Moore with a narrow lead within a typical margin for error.

As the race enters its final days, there are reasons for optimism on both sides, though because of Alabamas conservatism, we suspect the Moore team may have more reason for it, the Crystal Ball said.

Minnesota race

Iowas northern neighbor also could soon have a special election for a U.S. Senate seat after Democrat Al Franken announced this week he plans to resign in the wake of multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

If Minnesota winds up with a special election, the Crystal Ball says the race would start with a rating of leans Democratic.

The Democrats have a deeper bench of talent in the state and (Gov. Mark) Dayton will have the choice of several quality candidates to appoint, the Crystal Ball said. The midterm environment, which should have a Democratic lean with President Trump in the White House, helps Democrats in Minnesota too.

Erin Murphy covers Iowa politics and government for Lee Enterprises. His email address is erin.murphy@lee.net.
Things were never hotter in the White Houses lesser-known oval-shaped room, the one down in the basement, than they were for 11 minutes Wednesday afternoon.

And thats really saying a lot. Because long before that oval room was elegantly repurposed into its present function as the White House Diplomatic Room, it housed the White Houses huge roaring furnace. On just about every December day, from 1837 to 1902, it would have been pumping heat throughout the gleaming white mansion.

But this Wednesday, starting at 1 p.m. and lasting just 11 minutes, the old furnace room generated a very different sort of heat  a blazing hot controversy that flashed around the world with incendiary consequences. President Donald Trump stood in the Diplomatic Room and delivered a message that seemed to instantly fire up passions and tempers throughout the Middle East.

If you were to just read his words literally, you might well wonder what the fuss and fury were all about. Because the words Trump spoke, in and of themselves, could conceivably be read as a hopeful, positive message  if those words had been spoken at the end of a months-long diplomatic process that was thoughtfully conceived and carefully executed to intelligently convince the regions players to want to consider entering a new era of prospective peacemaking.

But no. This was a Trump thing; so there was none of that advance stuff. It all just erupted as if it were a helter-skelter happenstance. Trump decided to instantly declare the United States was recognizing that Israels capital is Jerusalem (a designation that presumably includes East Jerusalem, which Israel seized from Jordan in 1967, when all its neighbors were plotting to push Israel into the sea). Also, Trump said he has begun plans to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv (where all the worlds embassies are) to Jerusalem.

So Trump used nice words to say he was just recognizing reality  as his idea of promoting a new era of peace. But his words triggered a predictable Arab reaction that ran the gamut from rage to outrage: The Palestinians told the world to prepare for three days of rage.

Trump began by telling us what all the world knows (but all the worlds statespersons diplomatically dont dwell upon). Jerusalem is where Israels Knesset, prime ministers and presidents work; Tel Aviv is where all the embassies are. In 1995, Congress passed a law saying the U.S. embassy should be in Jerusalem. So all presidents since routinely signed waivers putting off the move.

Some say they lacked courage but they made their best judgments based on facts as they understood them at the time, Trump said. After more than two decades of waivers, we are no closer to a lasting peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.  While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver.

Today, I am delivering.

Trumps top national security advisers reportedly counseled against making this sudden unilateral move. Israels government loved it, but all other U.S. allies counseled against it. So did Pope Francis. All warned of bloodshed and that America was diminishing its ability to broker a settlement. But Trump did it his way, anyway.

But: Why now?

Why did Trump feel he needed to act as he did at this precise moment  when all was relatively quiet on the Israeli-Palestinian front  against the advice of just about everyone (except Israel)? Here in the wide, wide world of punditry, all analysts began to feel as if they had just fallen through the looking glass. Talking heads and tweeting hands began to recycle diplomatic doublespeak doubletalk.

While I have no authoritative source to hang this on, I believe I understand why Trump took this action at this moment. Special counsel Robert Mueller has scored a major success in convicting retired Gen. Michael Flynn, Trumps first national security adviser, who is apparently now cooperating with the probe. Trump knows what else might be discovered. And that probably explains Trumps recent uneven actions that sometimes appear to be borderline panic.

Trump clearly wanted to deflect our attention away from Muellers Russia probe. I believe thats why he chose this moment to fulfill his risky 2016 campaign promise to Israel.
Dec 11, 2017 | By Tess

Australias University of Wollongong (UOW) is quickly becoming a pioneer in 3D bioprinting technologies. Recently, the university unveiled a new customized 3D bioprinter which has the potential to drastically improve treatment for patients with Type 1 diabetes.

The innovative system, named the Pancreatic Islet Cell Transplantation (PICT) 3D bioprinter, was recently presented to Peter Malinauskas, the South Australian Minister for Health, who in turn has given it to the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) for use.

Professor Gordon Wallace

With this announcement, RAH has become the first hospital in Australia (and likely the world) to install the PICT 3D bioprinter for diabetes treatment research.

According to the UOW, the 3D bioprinter is capable of depositing a special bioink (which contains insulin-producing islet cells) into a transplantable 3D printed scaffold structure. This method could improve on the existing process of implanting islet cells from human donors to treat serious Type 1 diabetes cases because it can reportedly decrease the risk of cell rejection in the recipients body.

The PICT Printer will allow us to make customized organs, mixing donor with recipient cells in a unique 3 dimensional way to provide completely new composite organoids for experimental transplantation, explained Professor Toby Coates from the ROH.

Donor islet cells, which are derived from the pancreas, can help diabetes patients to regain the ability to produce insulin, which is necessary for self-regulating blood sugar levels. Like with most transplant processes today, however, there is always the risk of the recipients body rejecting the donor cells.

With the PICT 3D bioprinter, however, medical engineers could effectively print implantable scaffolds with better integration rates because they can include both the donors insulin-producing cells and the recipients own cells. Additionally, because the bioprinter can print multiple cell types, the scaffolds can also contain endothelial cells, which help to vascularize the grafted islet cells.

Existing devices used by diabetes patients

Housed at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, the PICT bioprinter will be used by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Sciences (ACES), which is led by Professor Gordon Wallace. Thanks to a grant from the Australian Research Councils Linkage, Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) program, ACES will be able to further develop the 3D bioprinter for medical applications.

ACES at the University of Wollongong has built a collaborative clinical research network that enables us to tackle big clinical challenges and deliver practical solutions using 3D bioprinting, commented Professor Wallace.

In collaboration with Professor Toby Coates team at Royal Adelaide Hospital, we plan to improve the effectiveness of islet cell transplants by encapsulating donated islet cells in a 3D printed structure, to protect them during and after transplantation, he added.

Recently, the University of Wollongong was awarded an ARC grant of A$347,000 for the establishment a state-of-the-art 3D bioprinting facility.

Posted in 3D Printer

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Nickleback Fan wrote at 12/11/2017 5:51:31 PM:This guy looks like a cross between John Hunt and Rolf Harris.




by Leanne Ogasawara

Einstein was adamant. He did not want a large public funeral.

He wanted to be immediately cremated with his ashes scattered before anyone had time to make a fuss.

Fair enough, right?

Einstein biographer Walter Isaacson reminds us of the 1727 funeral of Sir Isaac Newton. Like Einstein, Newton was a superstar of his day. And so not surprisingly, Newton was buried with the highest honors at Westminster Abbey in London. Pallbearers included not only the lord high chancellor, but two dukes and three earls. Most of the fellows of the Royal Society were there as well to honor one of the greatest scientists the world had ever known. Einstein, says Isaacson, could have easily commanded such a large-scale state funeral. For Einstein was held in similarly high esteem by the people of his time. President Eisenhower famously declared that no other man has contributed more to the expansion of knowledge in the 20th century than Einstein. Many felt he was the greatest man of the twentieth century and a state funeral would have been not only appropriate but expected.

Einstein, however, had other ideas. And immediately after his death on April 18, 1955, he was quietly cremated in Trenton, New Jersey. This took place on the afternoon he died before most people had even heard the news. The cremation was attended by all of twelve people; after which his ashes were scattered in the nearby Delaware River, as his great friend and Princeton colleague Otto Nathan read a few lines from Goethe's poetry.

This quiet funeral, for me, perfectly captures the man that was Einstein. He had wanted to be quickly cremated with no fanfare because, he said, he did not want his final resting place to become an object of morbid fascination.

But, alas, this was not to be. In what is an absolutely outrageous story, Einstein's brain was stolen. It then took on a life of its own as kind traveling relic around the country.

How is this possible?

As is well-known, Einstein died on April 167, 1955 from an abdominal aneurism. He died in Princeton Hospital, and the autopsy took place there. Otto Nathan was standing by and watched horrified as the pathologist performing the autopsy took an electric saw and cut open Einstein's skull to extract his brain. This pathologist thenwithout permission embalmed Einstein's brain. Einstein's son Hans Albert was justifiably furious when he heard from Nathan what had happened and called the hospital to complain, but the mild-mannered pathologist Thomas Harvey assured him that it had been done in the name of science. And "Your father surely would have wanted that." When news got out, institutions and scientists from around the world begged Harvey for some of the brain to study, but Harvey refused and guarded it like he would a religious relic, keeping it with him as he moved from place to place around the country.

It's true.

Then, in what is even more mind-boggling, when Harvey left Princeton Hospital he had the gall to take the brain with him! Prior to this first he had sent the specimen to Philadelphia where it was cut into 240 slices and preserved in celloidin for future transfer onto scientific slides. The slices were then stored in two mason jars which Harvey then carted from place to place with him around the country. Not living a very stable life, he would sometimes send a specimen out willy-nilly to random scientists whose work caught his eye! But very few scientific papers were ever written and finally after forty years of what can only be described as a crime against humanity, Harvey decided to bring the remains back to the Princeton Hospital!

And so, Einstein's career as a wandering relic came to an end.

Isaacson tells the story in the epilogue of his biography and refers the curious reader to check out a book, by Michael Paterniti, called Driving Mr. Albert: A Trip Across America with Einstein's Brain (and you won't want to miss this Harper's piece written about the incident by the same author here).

++

What is this obsession with relics?

Probably since our earliest beginnings, humans being have shown great reverence to the bodies of the recently dead. Many cultures have elaborate funerary rites, and the hearts or the brains of the dead have been venerated by many cultures and seen to possess a spiritual power and charisma. Poet Percy Shelley's friends, for example, plucked his heart right out of the funeral fire after he had drowned in Italy to bring it back to England.

In some cultures it is the heart that matters; while for others it is the brain.

We all know about the head hunters of old Borneo, who sought heads to gain spiritual power. Likewise in Europe, with the rise of modern medical science, the head became seen as the great prize. And so, many famous heads (and brains) of the dead have gone missingfrom Haydn, Poncho Villa and Emanuel Swedenborg to the disappearance of JFK.

Scientific study is one thing but what happened to Einstein's brain can only be described as something bordering on a religious quest. Apparently, Harvey kept the brain with him at all times and would trot them out when he wanted to put on a show and impress people. Forever promising to write scientific papers, when it comes down to it, he did nothing more than guard the relic religiously. As Paterniti describes, it was not just Harvey who held the brain in what can beset be described as religious awe. Marion Diamond of UCLA would tell of her first encounter with Einsteins brain as "A tingle, a revelation." It is not surprising that anything associated with his person would have a certain mystique or power. Despite my initial horror and outrage about this story, still something about it is almost reassuring. In fact, a few years ago, I had wondered in these pages whether things or people have the power to move us in a significant way anymore? There was a time (the time Umberto Eco likes to write about) when people were obsessed by fantastical beings and engaged in great quests for powerful objects. Like the draw that certain mountains have on mountaineers, certain objects had the power to draw people toward them.

In particular, relics (body parts or items associated with important religious figures) were big business. Think of Sainte-Chappele, built to house the Crown of Thorns . There were endless quests for the Holy Grail. Eco's Baudolino is almost entirely taken up with the relic trade and the role played by faith (faith in "the fragrance" of these relics: where it is "the perfume that is true," not necessarily the relic itself). This kind of devotion to relics is famously practiced by Catholics and Buddhists, and probably harkens back to an ancient propensity to become enchanted by thingsespecially those relics connected to saints and martyrs as well as that of kings and historical giants.

From the foreskin of Christ to the Stalin's Moscow Brain Institute this chasing after dead body parts has gone on since the beginning of time, I suppose.

Einstein, of course, knew all about celebrity worship from his Pasadena days. Plus, he was aware that it was not just Christian saints and Soviet luminaries whose mortal remains were venerated but those of scientists as well! Think of Galileo's finger (kept in a reliquary in a museum in Florence, where it is said to be forever after giving the finger to Rome) or Antonia Scarpa's head, which was removed after his death by a disgruntled assistant and ended up on display in the museum of the University of Pavia (gruesome story here). Having lived himself in Pavia, Einstein surely would have been aware of the potential for trouble after he died! No, Einstein was too smart for that and arranged for a hasty scattering of all his remains.

And yet, something happened. For even the great Einstein could not have seen this curveball coming.

For me, the story of Einstein's brain is strangely moving. For better or worse, I am the type of person who cares a lot about funerals, and I have detailed instructions for my own (I even have my own pair of reliquaries for any of the kids who might want to keep one of my fingers or toes around someday), I've always been amazed and even impressed by those people who don't care about what happens to their remains after they die. They seem to be free from fear and more detached from the self than I am. Or anyway, that is how it seems. But there is also a kind of reverence and affirmation of life to suggest that even in death, the embodied person matters.

Einstein's loathing of celebrity and wish to never become the object of worship illuminates so brilliantly one of the key underpinning aspects of his personality: tolerance and humility. Einstein had a deep respect for religion. But this was part of his boundless humility; for not only did Einstein repeatedly show a dislike for ideologists who pretend to have all the answers (Einstein stands out as unique for his ability to change his mind when new facts presented themselves) but he spoke often of the way he saw freedom of thought and a sense of awe as being fundamental to creativity and science.

Of course, he had stated famously that, "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." Despite not being a believer in the formal sense, he still firmly believed that no one has the right to tell others what to think and believefor to dictate to others what to think implies you somehow have all the answers. It was this openness and flexibility that Isaacson sees as being the wellspring to his gigantic intellectual achievements. I agree. Einstein is my hero. For he was humble enough to be capable of changing his mind in the face of new facts, and he forever bristled at any authoritarianism that stood in the way of creative and free human thought. His humane humility led to his astonishing and endless creativity. Is it any wonder that the world could not get enough of him? Even in death.

++

Reliquaries by Andy Paiko

Updike on Isaacson's Einstein

Atlas Obscura on relics of famous scientists

National Geographic on the case of Einstein's stolen brain
by Dave Maier

Its that time of year again already  time to remind everyone that its that time of year again! I must admit I didnt listen to a whole lot of new music this year, but I have definitely rounded up a good selection for you, even if theres probably a whole lot out there that we wont find out about until later. Such is life in the abundant times in which we live. The names here will be mostly familiar to regular listeners, but Ive included a couple of oddities as well. Heres to a happy and healthy 2018 for all!

[direct link if widget fails]

Yagya  The Great Attractor [Stars and Dust]

Yagya is Aalsteinn Gumundsson from Iceland. His latest release is very much in the vein of his earlier ones, e.g. 2009s Rigning, which is probably my favorite. Ambient listeners might have to get used to the dance-floor pulse of Yagyas music, as inherited from his major influence, Wolfgang Voigt (a.k.a. Gas), but thats easily done, given his exquisite spacial and melodic sensibilities.

Steve Roach  We Continue [Spiral Revelation]

Also rhythmic, but in a more familiar space music vein, is Steve Roachs latest, which has, I hear, just received a Grammy nomination (along with Brian Eno) for best New Age album. Space music fans used to be very offended to be lumped into the same musical category as (actual) new agers, but that ship sailed some time ago, so congratulations Steve! Also noteworthy is Steves earlier release (okay, late last year, New Years Eve in fact) Fade to Gray, which is much more textural and headphone-oriented than this one.

Reverberant Evenings  Where were we, my friend? [same]

Reverberant Evenings is a single guy, I think, from Palermo, Italy, and his music is indeed reverberant, if not necessarily only appropriate for evening listening. On his website, which he seems not to have updated any time recently, he tells us that

A late afternoon some time ago I came home, sitting in the back seat of a motorcycle. Looking to my right the sun drew the silhouette of the outskirts, forcing me to close my eyes. I was very good. Every morning, opening the window, I see the sun again hitting the plants and now I can understand everything. Takes only a moment. That instant the sound fills everything.

Kate Carr  we were the pulse of a wire pulled tightly [The Story Surrounds Us]

We last heard Kate on my recent mix dedicated to her Helen Scarsdale Agency labelmate Matt Shoemaker, who tragically passed away all too soon earlier this year. What Ive heard from her so far suggests that she is a major talent. Many sound artists incorporate field recordings into their work, but Kate takes that idea to the next level, compositionally speaking. Ill be investigating her back catalog while waiting impatiently for the next one.

Crimson Sails  Streets [Part I]

Okay, I confess: not only is this release from late 2016, but I actually have Crimson Sails 2017 release, which is called ( wait for it ) Part II. Unfortunately for our purposes, Part II is mostly guitar rock, so we stayed with Part I. Too bad, their drony stuff is excellent.

Trio Mediaeval & Arve Henriksen  St. Birgitta Hymn  Rosa rorans bonitatem [Rimur]

ECM Records started out in the early 1970s releasing progressive jazz records from the likes of Eberhard Weber, John Abercrombie, Jan Garbarek and Terje Rypdal. (Just writing those names makes we want to go pull out The Colours of Chloe or Timeless.) They soon (or right away, depending on whom you ask) moved past jazz, and now we can hear all kinds of things on that label, unified only by producer Manfred Eichers rapturous aesthetic. Here we have a trio of classical vocalists singing a 14th century Nordic hymn, accompanied by trumpeter Arve Henriksen, known for his many experimental solo releases, as well as his work with the avant-fusion band Supersilent. And yet it works fine in the same set as Yagya and Steve Roach. At 3 A.M. anyway.

Federico Durand  El hechizado [Pavel]

Federico seems not to have been that active this year, in the studio anyway (I think hes been touring a lot), but this release is from early 2017 so it counts. Plus Im a huge fan. Here is what Federico says about Pavel:

This album is a musical approach to traditional children stories, which have a circular narrative, innocent and eerie at the same time. A haunting aura caught me while I was recording this music, in the attic of my home in La Cumbre, at dusk, as a fairy tale. Every piece of "Pavel" could be a company for rainy days, a train journey, in a park, walking under the stars after work, or during a nap: its melodies almost hypnotic will guide you towards to a dream state, as if you were inside your own legend of the forest.

Chihei Hatakeyama  odyssey [Void XIV]

Chihei Hatakeyama, on the other hand, has been cranking em out like theres no tomorrow. Id be happy about this, as hes one of the very best, but I actually prefer this release of earlier unreleased tracks to most of his current material. One commenter on the bandcamp page suggests that our man excels at the shorter forms, as on this release, as opposed to the long-form drones on some later releases. Maybe, but some of his longer tracks (e.g. on 2016s Requiem for black night and earth spiders) are great too.

Kinephilia  Kyua (minimal mix)

Kinephilia is a new name in ambient music (even on me, as I just made it up yesterday). Yes, thats right, this is a track I did myself. Kyua is the Japanese name for Kiyoshi Kurosawas 1997 horror movie Cure, from which I nicked two of the sounds we hear here (the others were made with Reaktor and a couple of iPad synths). That water sound in the middle I recorded myself with my trusty Tascam DR-07 digital recorder (its the creek down by the train tracks). I think this track sounds rather better on headphones, which probably means I need to figure out how to use compression and EQ (you could probably just crank it up though). I say minimal mix here because I reserve the right to add more stuff in there later (nothing much though, just to fill it out a little bit). But Ive been listening to it a lot recently, and I think its ready to get out there in one form or other.

Scanner  Blank Canvas [From Here to Tranquility Vol. 7 (The Renaissance Continues) anthology]

Scanner is UK sound artist Robin Rimbaud, who began his career picking up various found sounds with a radio scanner (thus the name) and setting them to a techno beat (which is more interesting in practice than I am making it sound actually). No police dispatchers here though, this is straight ambient, albeit with some odd sounds in there too. This anthology, as its subtitle suggests, is part of the reboot of legendary U.S. ambient label Silent Records (and is another late 2016 release).

David Tagg  Flecktarn [Crypsis]

David Tagg is one of many drone artists who utilize guitar as their main sound source (or guitarists who make drones  you decide), and the recently released Crypsis is his magnum opus: a four-CD set, sold out, but still available as a 4-hour download (8 half-hour tracks). One track Im not sure about, but most of it sounds great, so check it out. Too bad we only have time for a brief snippet here! Hes also made a good deal of his large back catalogue available for whatever you feel like paying, so if guitar drone is your thing, you know what to do.

Thats it for this year, but Ill be back next year (hopefully before December!) with more. Happy New Year everybody!
by Evert Cilliers aka Adam Ash

When President Trump took the office of President in the year 2017, few Americans could have predicted the huge changes to come under the rulers that would follow him  changes inspired by his unprecedented example.

And few could have predicted that this man, who started with an approval rating lower than any president before him, down in the toilet, would end up with an approval rating so high up to heaven's ceiling, it even satisfied him, a man who loved to be adored. His ego feasted on his people's approval like bees feast on nectar, like kids feast on Big Macs with fries on the side, like flies feast on feces.

In fact, nothing much might have happened in the Trump years were it not for three events that came to pass late during his tenure, events that came to be known as the Unholy Trifecta.

The first event was the drowning of Miami in a hurricane much worse than any preceding one, which hit that city with spectacular results, undoubtedly occasioned by accelerated climate change.

President Trump called in the Army to install order when roaming bands of brigands began to rob and kill to survive in the chaos (or so the official line from the White House averred) which set the template for other take-overs by the Army of other cities in various states of trouble, mostly financial, brought about by Republican Governors who had slashed taxes to such a degree that there was no money left for schools, which led to massive protests, which led to the President sending in the Army to install order, and which normalized the military occupation of more and more cities.

The second event was the terrorist bombing at UC Berkeley, when five bombs exploded at various strategic places all over the campus one morning, and killed a total of four thousand and thirteen students and faculty, leaving over ten thousand more students variously maimed with a great loss of limbs and brain injuries which left many of its brightest students somewhat retarded in their mental faculties.

Three families of homegrown Muslims were charged with this crime (although it later transpired that the bombs were planted by far-right militia supporters from the Bundy crowd). The President immediately moved to have the Army descend on all mosques on the first day of Ramadan and arrest all the Muslims in America and put them on trains running from all over America  for them to be settled in a vast camp in the desert of Nevada. Here they were housed in tents, with food brought in from Wisconsin and other farm states, and here they themselves arranged for schooling for their children and various companies sprang up, their entrepreneurial spirit not having been quite extinguished, and here they established a working society, with Shariah Law being imposed by President Trump, which turned out to be an easy way to keep them in line. Muslims who got out of line were sentenced to death by stoning, and soon peace reigned supreme among them.

The third event happened during what came to be called The Last March on Washington. It came the day after Trump was inaugurated for his second term. During the march, there was the unfortunate shooting of two police officers by a sniper hiding in the crowd in an unknown location.

The very hour that these policemen's brains spattered all over their nearby colleagues, the President angrily tweeted that if one more policeman was shot at during this protest march, the police had his presidential permission and immediate pardon to fire back at the protesters. That was in fact what happened. An officer went down from a bullet, his head exploding in a massive arc of blood and brain matter, befouling his fellow officers, and these officers, besmirched with the blood and brain matter of their downed colleague, and reeking from the smell of fresh blood and bits of brain matter, whitish and grayish, like bits of gutted fish fresh from a nearby river  these officers, steeped in the blood and bits of brain matter from their colleague, immediately fired back at the crowd. Many died, all seen on TV, a sickening sight.

President Trump immediately declared a State of Emergency, and rushed through a number of presidential decrees which placed the entire country under martial law, with the military in control of all state houses and municipalities. All protests were outlawed. If anyone dare to protest, the police and the Army had the president's permission to shoot them on sight. When this happened, protests ceased to occur.

It took only a month of such strict law and order for all crime to cease. Nobody was going to steal even a bit of candy from the corner store, knowing that they might very well be shot stone-dead the very next day.

So grateful was everybody for this absence of all crime, that nobody seemed to mind that there appeared to be no return to civil governance forthcoming, and America settled into a quiet acceptance of being ruled by the only institution they still had any faith in, the military. Forty-nine five-star generals ran forty-nine states, and they put in officers as city mayors, who ran every city like an army barracks.

Definitely and decidedly, Americans felt that America had been made great again, as President Trump had promised in his original campaign. The hit parade was filled with songs extolling the virtues of military government. It did not take too long for Trump's evangelical supporters to clamor for their piece of the action, and Trump soon raised selected evangelical pastors to reign alongside the military. So it was that every state and every city was run by a combination of military officers and evangelical pastors.

After President Trump's death, there was a contest for power between a billionaire friend of Trump, an Army General and an evangelical pastor, and the evangelical pastor won. He brought in a law that made abortion a capital crime.

Here is where our story starts, which will concern the fate of a single and rather singular woman, one Eve Trent, the first woman arrested for the newly promulgated crime of aborting the life of her womb child (or fetus as some scientific literature still referred to the little womb girl).

We will begin at the public immolation of the Supreme Terrorist, who had committed an act of Supreme Terrorism with a nuclear device, such as the world had always feared and never seen.

It was at this event that Eve Trent met the man with whom she would become involved, one Adam White.

Theirs was a love that was utterly singular and different from all other loves, being that it was completely at odds with the ethos of Trumplandia.

So, as we tell the political story of Trumplandia, we will also tell a romantic love story unlike any other, because it was a story that ran head-on up against everything that Trumplandia was becoming and would come to stand for.

The very name of her famous case tells the gist of our story in four words: Trumplandia v Eve Trent.

Would you like to read this novel? You might be able to, because it has been accepted by Amazon for possible publication as a Kindle e-book.

The catch is that I have to get enough folks to nominate it for publication before they actually publish it.

So could you help me get published by nominating my novel?

Click on this url and nominate me with one more click:

https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/12K6S1NJ9OPVZ

If you've enjoyed my articles on 3QD that I've written for the past decade, please help me kick off my literary career (over the past 15 years I've written seven novels and had six literary agents, but have not had a book published yet  aargh).

You'll have my undying gratitude if you nominate me and help me get published  at long last.

ong last.
This week's list of happenings is teeming with holiday events, shopping, art, booze and fitness.





Monday, December 11th: Embrace Your Inner Wonder Woman @ Roxie Theatre

When: 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Where: 3117 16th St. (Mission), facebook.com

Why: Kick-off your week with Wonder Woman vibes at Roxie Theater for an evening all about empowering and emboldening women in the arts. Admission is free, but an RSVP on their Google doc. is required to get in the door.





Monday, December 11th: Learn All About Craft Beer (and Taste Them) @ Anchor Public Taps

When: 6:00pm to 7:30pm

Where: 495 DeHaro St. (Potrero Hill), facebook.com

Come this Monday night, as well, Anchor Brewmaster Scott Ungermann will host an educational and entertaining seminar focused on American Craft Beer Historywith samples and tastings. Tickets ($20) can be bought on Eventbrite.





Tuesday, December 12th: Walk the Holiday Light Show @ Downtown Napa

When: 5:00pm to 10:00pm

Where: 1290 Napa Town Center (Napa), donapa.com

Why: Invite some holiday cheer into your Tuesday plans by touring the illuminated, LED-canvassed art on display at a variety of buildings throughout Downtown Napa and the Oxbow District. Admission is free and you can make a day out of it with some holiday shopping, wine tasting, and dinner.





Wednesday, December 13th: Treat Yourself to French Sweets @ a Macaron Happy Hour

When: 7:00pm to 8:30pm

Where: Location TBD; will be given after purchase of ticket

Why: Due to high demand, Food La La has added more delectable, delicious dates for their macaron happy hours, filling up their now on-going schedule; all the while catering to the saccharine dreams of more than a few foodies. Tickets ($34) can be bought at Feastly.





Thursday, December 13th: Go on a Wine Walk in North Beach

When: 4:00pm to 8:00pm

Where: 565 Green St. (North Beach)

Why: Go for a stroll around North Beach and sip on vino from a variety of different merchants. The event will take places at different stores on Grant Ave, Columbus Ave, Vallejo Street and Green Street. Tickets ($25 online or $30 on-site) include a wine glass and map with all of the tasting locations, and can be purchased at Belle Cora, 565 Green Street or sresproductions.com.





Thursday, December 13th: Explore Edgar Arceneaux Artistic Works on Race @ YBCA

When: 11:00am to 6:00pm (gallery hours)

Where: Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission St. (SoMa), ybca.org

Why: Stop by the YBCA this week to check out artist's Edgar Arceneaux. Until, Until, Until (201517) is a multimedia video installation as well as a live action playwritten, staged, and directed by Arceneauxthat revisits a controversial performance by Ben Vereen at Ronald Reagan's inauguration. Tickets ($10) can be bought at the door or at tickets.ybca.org and get you access to the museum, which includes Arceneaux's newest piece.

Friday, December 15th: Celebrate "FRYDay" @ Jewish Community Center of San Francisco (JCCSF)

When: 4:00pm to 7:00pm

Where: 3200 California St. (Presidio Heights), facebook.com

Why: Surround yourself with good vibes and deep fried feels at JCCSF for their annual Hanukkah Shabbat "Fryday" party featuring Federal Donuts, for a delightful, carb-heavy holiday spread featuring free tastings courtesy of Boychik Bagels, Seka Hills olive oil, and Miller's East Coast Deli latkes. Admission is free, but an RSVP on their Facebook page is recommended.



Saturday, December 16th: Go on a Crafty Shopping Spree @ The Good Craft

When: 1:00pm to 6:00pm (Come and go, as you please)

Where: 2034 San Pablo Ave. (Berkeley), facebook.com

Why: The Good Craft is a pop-up market showcasing the work of an evolving group of local artists from the Bay Area, and each dollar spent goes right back into supporting those same creatives; a small portion of all the proceeds go to the Saint Francis Homelessness Challenge, as well. Admission to the pop-up is free with an RSVP on their Facebook page.





Saturday, December 16th: Because Trap Yoga's a Thing @ Town Fitness

When: Noon to 1:00pm

Where: 130 E. 12th St. (Oakland), eventbrite.com

Why: This Vinyasa style yoga experiencewhich includes a beautifully curated mix of the latest rap music with heavy bass, hypnotic rhythmic beats and ratchet affirmationsis the hype-class your Saturday namaste time deserves. Tickets ($15) can be bought on Eventbrite.





Saturday, December 16th: Check-off Your Queer Holiday Shopping List @ Qulture Collective

When: Noon to 7:00pm (Come and go, as you please)

Where: 1714 Franklin St. (Oakland), facebook.com

Why: Embrace all things hella-fab shopping at Qulture Collective annual holiday fair, where, of course, you can find plenty of "Gay Apparel" for the always extra person in your life; while also helping to support some of the Bay Area's LGBTQ craft vendors. Admission to the event is free.





Sunday, December 17th: Cheers to coming Christmas Week @ Smuggler's Cover

When: 4:00pm to 6:00pm

Where: 650 Gough St. (Hayes Valley), eventbrite.com



Join Tiki Drink for their holiday fundraiser, where you can listen to a talk by mid-century design historian Christopher VerPlanck while sipping drinks at Smuggler's Cove, one of San Francisco's most acclaimed tiki bars. Tickets ($40) can be bought on Eventbrite, and include tastings with each single purchase.
All the news that's fit to eat.

(Courtesy of Barvale)

Flavors of Spain

Restaurateur Adriano Paganini (Belga, A Mano) continues to expand his empire with the opening last week of Barvale, a Spanish-style tapas bar in the heart of NoPa. The menu includes cold and hot tapasthink boquerones with spicy Iberian sauce, tortilla de patata with pimento aioli and frisee, braised oxtail and paella. Pair your bites with the traditional sherry as well as wine and cocktails. Also look for daily pintxo specials. // 661 Divisadero (NoPa), barvalesf.com.





Freshly Baked

Renowned pastry chef Janina O'Leary (formerly of New York's Restaurant Daniel and Per Se) is now sweetening up the offering at Spruce and The Saratoga. Look for her playful yet sophisticated seasonal spins on classic desserts such as pumpkin spice cake with roasted sunchoke ice cream and a buttery-flaky apple hand-pie. // 11:30am-2:30 pm, 5-11pm Monday through Friday, 5-11pm Saturday, 10am to 2pm, 5-9pm Sunday, 3640 Sacramento St. (Presidio Heights), sprucesf.com; 5pm-12am Monday through Thursday, 5pm-1am Friday and Saturday, 11:30am-4pm Sunday, 1000 Larkin St. (TenderNob), thesaratogasf.com.





Duna Does Donuts

Cancel your plans and head to Duna on Saturday instead when James Beard Awardwinning chef Michael Solomonov (of Philadelphia's Zahav and Federal Donuts) pops up at the Mission eatery with his tasty langos, a Hungarian take on donuts. Tickets ($27) include three langos, a cup of coffee and a copy of the Federal Donuts book. (Federal will also be doing a Hanukkah pop up with free donuts on Friday from 4pm-7pm Jewish Community Center of San Francisco). // Saturday, Dec 16th at Duna, 983 Valencia St. (Mission), duna.kitchen; tickets at jccsf.org.





Hawking Bird Opens on Telegraph in Oakland

Michelin-starred chef James Syhabout (Hawker Fare, Commis) soft-opened his new fast-casual chicken resto, Hawking Bird, on Oakland's Telegraph Avenue last week. In the wake of Hawker Fare's closure, the new spot offers some consolation in its khao mun gai (a comforting Thai chicken and rice dish) and a fried chicken sandwich. There are also tasty extras such as fried tater tots, garlic noodles and chicken fat rice. // Open for lunch Tuesdays through Saturdays, 4901 Telegraph Ave (Oakland), instagram.com/hawkingbirdoak.
ASEAN Tourism Destination Market

WiseGuyReports published new report, titled ASEAN Tourism Destination Market

SUMMARY

WiseGuyReports published new report, titled ASEAN Tourism Destination Market

Destination Market Insight provides in-depth analysis of a tourist destination, in this case for the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). The countries included in this report are Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, The Philippines, Malaysia, Laos, and Myanmar.

The report uses regional and country focused analysis to explore inbound tourist markets, infrastructure and attractions, as well as risks and opportunities. The report provides clear insight into current and future tourism developments in the region.

The ASEAN welcomed over 110 million international arrivals in 2017. The ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan 2016-2025 aims to create a unique and diverse tourism offering across the region, with the agreement to create a more collaborative tourism strategy. The regions tourist industry has experienced substantial growth in recent years, which has brought a number of benefits including jobs and incomes. However, there are a number of issues which need to be addressed if growth is to be sustained.

GET SAMPLE REPORT @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/2596070-tourism-destination-market-insights-association-of-south-east-asian-nations-asean

Scope

 Thailand is the ASEANs leading tourist destination, welcoming 31% of total arrivals to region in 2017. However, Myanmar is the fastest growing destination, experiencing 211% growth in arrivals between 2009 and 2017.

 A key goal of the ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan 2016-2025 is to promote the ASEAN as a single tourist destination. By moving towards a collaborative tourist strategy, the region will benefit from arrivals being less concentrated in a few countries and therefore growth in the future can be more easily sustained. However, there currently remain a number of barriers which make moving towards a more singular market difficult.

 International tourists most commonly travel to the region for leisure purposes. For example, leisure trips comprised over 80% of international arrivals to Thailand in 2017.

Key points to buy

 This report provides clear and detailed insight into new developments in a fast growing tourist destination.

 The report uses data and analysis to explore future trends related to international arrivals, airlines, and hotel developments.

 The reader gains a strong understanding of the opportunities in the market, as well as the risks, to support better business decisions.

Table of Contents

Overview

Map of ASEAN nations

Snapshot

Key trends and new developments

Country focus

Myanmar

Thailand

Singapore

Risk analysis

Market risks and opportunities

Outlook

..CONTINUED

About US

Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe.

For accessing accurate and deep understanding and to gain latest insights and key developments in the area of your interest, we also have a list of conferences in which you will be interested in, for more information, cordially check

https://www.wiseguyreports.com/conferences

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Takes Consumer Insight to Boost Shareholder Experience with the Launch of a Shareholder App

Sydney, Dec 11, 2017 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Blackmores ( ASX:BKL ) is proud to release an app for shareholders using new technology created by Computershare and their app partners, Amplifier Corporation.



"Our consumers are increasingly looking to engage with us through mobile technology and we used the same insight to launch a mobile solution for shareholders that is effectively a one stop shop for them to manage their investment in Blackmores," said Cecile Cooper, Blackmores Company Secretary.



The app is the first of its kind because of its deep integration with Computershare to enable shareholders and brokers mobile access to manage their shareholding, as well as:



- Live share price updates



- View dividend history



- Obtain dividend or tax statements



- Receive news, announcements, key dates and invitations to shareholder events



"Through intelligently-linked content, we are creating a superior user experience for shareholders in a whole new way," said Greg Dooley, Managing Director of Computershare Investor Services. "We wanted to make everyday life simpler for shareholders by offering them a completely new and user-friendly way of accessing their share information."



Adam Friedman, Amplifier CEO said, "Blackmores is leading the charge with innovation and their desire to communicate with shareholders in new ways on mobile is setting a benchmark for listed companies here and abroad. We're also proud to partner with Computershare to bring this integration to market and provide this service to all Computershare customers and their shareholders in 2018."



"Shareholders at our October AGM were part of the pilot of the first phase of the app," said Cecile Cooper. "We have the capacity to add more features in the future to enhance the experience we offer our investors."



The Blackmores Investors app is downloadable at http://blackmores.computershareapps.com

or by texting the word 'Blackmores' to 0400-813-813 (Aust and NZ). The app is compatible with all mobile devices, and gives all shareholders easy access to their holdings and all relevant Blackmores investor announcements and company information.



Access is via a secure login using a Securityholder Reference Number (SRN) or Holder Identification Number (HIN) and postcode.





About Blackmores Limited





Blackmores Limited (ASX:BKL) (OTCMKTS:BLMMF) is Australia's leading natural health brand. Its quality range of vitamin, minerals, herbal and nutritional supplements, and continued support of the community and environment, are among the many reasons Blackmores is the most trusted name in natural health.


Funding Granted for Diamond Drilling at Mt Roberts Gold Project

Canberra, Dec 11, 2017 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Alt Resources ( ASX:ARS ) (Alt, or the Company) is pleased to advise that it is been granted AUD$32,500 by the West Australian Government Exploration Incentive Scheme for 2018.



Highlights



- Alt Resources successful in WA Exploration Incentive Scheme drill funding



- Successful grant application for $32,500 to cover 50% of direct drilling costs



- 3 x 400m diamond holes planned to test structural controls on gold mineralisation in the Mt Roberts area



The Company made application under the Scheme to implement diamond drilling at the Mt Roberts Gold Project located in the Agnew-Wiluna greenstone belt near Leinster. The grant of $32,500 is the full amount applied for by the Company and is designated as a contribution for up to 50% of direct drilling costs. The diamond drilling program at Mt Roberts is planned to commence in 2018.



The successful application was granted for 3 x 400m diamond holes at the Mt Roberts and Rum Punch prospects. The drill program aims to establish the first real understanding of structural and stratigraphic controls on gold mineralisation within the Leinster Anticline, which is a neighbouring structure to the well-endowed Lawlers Anticline to the south-west (see Figure 1 in link below).



The Mount Roberts area has been under-explored for gold, especially given the significant gold endowment of nearby areas (Agnew Gold Camp), with an historical focus on nickel. Limited geological information is available from historical drilling at Mt Roberts and therefore controls on mineralisation and a mineral deposit model have remained poorly constrained. Away from the main Mt Roberts workings, data is limited to historical soil sampling and a small reconnaissance RC program by WMC. No diamond drilling has been conducted whatsoever at the project. The drilling to be conducted by Alt under the EIS will represent the first structural and metallogenic analysis of the Mt Roberts Project.



In 2016 and 2017, Alt successfully intersected high grade gold mineralisation in RC drilling at Mt Roberts and Rum Punch (see Notes 1, 2 below). Highlights included:



- 3m @ 28 g/t Au, including 1m @ 67.4 g/t Au



- 1m @ 20.3 g/t Au



- 1m @ 24.4 g/t Au, and



- 4m @ 7.96 g/t Au, including 2m @ 13.75 g/t Au



- 1m @ 9.84 g/t Au



Notes:



1 See ARS Announcement, 16th November, 2016: http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/KQJ6UJ73



2 See ARS Announcement, 6th November, 2017: http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/7Z87NPE7



To view figures, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/R2MG855P





About Aurenne Alt Resources Pty Ltd





Aurenne Alt Resources Pty Ltd is an Australian based mineral exploration company that aims to become a gold producer by exploiting historical and new gold prospects across quality assets and to build value for shareholders.
BAE Systems and the Government of the State of Qatar have entered into a contract, valued at approximately 5 billion, for the supply of 24 Typhoon aircraft to the Qatar Emiri Air Force, along with a bespoke support and training package.





Above: The Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson and his Qatari counterpart, Khalid bin Mohammed al Attiyah, oversaw the signing of the deal for 24 Typhoons.

Crown copyright



BAE Systems is the prime contractor for both the provision of the aircraft and the agreed arrangements for the in-service support and initial training. The contract provides for 24 Typhoon aircraft with delivery expected to commence in late 2022 and is subject to financing conditions and receipt by the Company of first payment (expected to be fulfilled no later than mid-2018).



The Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson and his Qatari counterpart, Khalid bin Mohammed al Attiyah, oversaw the signing of the deal for 24 Typhoons, building on the Statement of Intent signed in September. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said: "It is a great pleasure to sign our biggest export deal for the Typhoon in a decade. These formidable jets will boost the Qatari militarys mission to tackle the challenges we both share in the Middle East, supporting stability in the region and delivering security at home.



"As we proudly fly the flag for our world-leading aerospace sector all over the globe this news is a massive vote of confidence, supporting thousands of British jobs and injecting billions into our economy."





The aircraft will be assembled in the UK by BAE Systems, supporting thousands of jobs, especially at the companys Warton site in Lancashire where it will secure work on the production line into the next decade. It is the biggest export deal for the Typhoon project in a decade.



Charles Woodburn, BAE Systems Chief Executive said: We are delighted to begin a new chapter in the development of a long-term relationship with the State of Qatar and the Qatar Armed Forces and we look forward to working alongside our customer as they continue to develop their military capability.



In addition, the agreement includes a clear intention to proceed with the purchase of Hawk aircraft. The deal also includes an agreement with MBDA for Brimstone and Meteor missiles and the highly-accurate Raytheons Paveway IV UK-manufactured weapon for the jets. The Defence Secretary also agreed a package of training and cooperation between the Air Forces which will see them working together more regularly, including Qatari pilots and ground-crew training in the UK.



The UK and Qatar share a close and longstanding defence relationship, with a joint-exercise between the Royal Air Force and the Emir of Qatars Air Force just last week seeing Typhoon jets fly over the Arabian Peninsula.



Qatar is the ninth country to purchase the Typhoon, with this year seeing the first delivered to Oman. The Ministry of Defence is also leading the offer to replace Belgiums F-16s with the jets and continues to discuss the prospect of a second batch of sales to Saudi Arabia.
London Gatwick has achieved its busiest-ever November as 2.9 million passengers travelled through the airport last month, bringing Gatwick to 45.5 million annual passengers.





Long-haul routes continue their significant growth at Gatwick, growing +12.1% in November, driving a +25.6% cargo increase from the increased belly hold capacity in the aircraft serving these connections.



The airports Asia connections proved particularly popular in November with passengers to Hong Kong +75% and Tianjin +46.1%.



Gatwicks regional connectivity also continues to perform strongly with passengers to the Isle of Man, Glasgow and Guernsey +12.9%, +11% and +6.8% respectively.



Meanwhile, St Lucia +85.8%, Mauritius +55% and Liberia, Costa Rica +47% were the winter sun destinations experiencing the fastest passenger growth in the month.



November also marked the first anniversary of the Gatwick Foundation Fund which annually distributes 300,000 to deserving projects across Kent, Surrey and Sussex.



To date, 80 organisations and more than 46,000 people have benefited from the grants and reported improvements in the services they provide, which cover four main areas: Employment, training and skills; Families; Widening horizons and Elderly people.



Gatwick Airport CEO Stewart Wingate said:



Passenger demand for the global connectivity provided by Gatwick continues to rocket  long-haul routes +12.1% in November while business passengers are at record levels.



This year five new long-haul connections have started, Singapore, Seattle, Denver, Kigali and Taipei, further strengthening Gatwicks global connectivity. Connectivity which is set to further increase 2018 with new connections to Austin, Chicago and Buenos Aires beginning in just the first quarter alone.



While demand for the slots previously operated by Monarch outstripped availability six times over, International Airlines Group were ultimately successful in acquiring them and were looking forward to the new destination choices they will enable for our passengers in 2018.



Meanwhile, closer to home in November, we were delighted as an airport to celebrate the first anniversary of the Gatwick Foundation Fund which distributes funds to deserving charity projects in Gatwicks locality.



For both our local region and the whole country Gatwick is set to play an increased global role for as we grow. Were ready and prepared to build our financeable and deliverable second runway scheme so that Britain can reap the benefits of greater global connectivity faster.
The African Union (AU) via the voice of its Commissioner for Peace and Security called on African countries to brace up and closely collaborate in the fight against terrorism noting that around 6,000 fighters of the Islamic State group (IS) could return to the continent as the group faces unprecedented defeats.

Smail Chergui, speaking at a conference in Oran, Algeria, on fighting against terrorism said the 6,000 figure is result of reports of 30,000 IS fighters combatting in hotbed conflict zone in the Middle East.

Iraq, formerly IS stronghold Saturday declared victory over the group after three year of all-out war. The Iraqi army supporters by a US-led international coalition proclaimed victory over the terrorists who declared 2014 caliphate in the country.

The terror group is only still active in Syria where it has been defeated and pushed to corner by Syrian forces backed by Russia, Iran and Hezbollah and US-led forces on the other.

Chergui did not specify the nationalities of fighters.

The AU commissioner however noted that the return of jihadists represents a serious threat to the national security of countries and requires a special attention as well as intense cooperation among countries.

Chergui called for the exchange of intelligence on details of the terrorists returning to their various countries.
After two years of launching the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) for High Courts, District and Taluka Courts, countrys lower judiciary pendency cases data reports a whopping total of 34,16,851 unsettled cases in the 22 high courts across the country making it easy to interpret that the Indian judiciary is in dire straits and struggling to clear a huge backlog.

According to data available on the NJDG, as on December 11, in the thick of such millions of cases trapped in legal logjam, 64,44,55 cases, which constitute 18.86 per cent of the total pendency, are resting in files for over a decade or more. The data further shows 21.92 per cent cases pending for over 5 years, 26.94 per cent cases for over 2 years and 32.28 per cent cases for less than 2 years.

To add to the concern, total number of pending cases in all the four benches under the Bombay High Court leads the list holding 13.58 per cent of total pending number i.e. 46,40,74 unsettled cases, followed by the Punjab & Haryana High Court, with 3.82 lakh cases.

While such huge number of on board cases costs our country billions of rupees every year, the above distressing data calls for a rounded reform of Indian legal system. In 2016 Union Budget, govt announced Rs 900 crore for administration of justice, including setting up of e-courts and capacity building of subordinate judiciary, but the present NJDG figures are a big disappointment.

Some of the main factors responsible for pendency of cases in courts are increasing number of state and central legislations, accumulation of first appeals, continuation of ordinary civil jurisdiction in some of the High Courts, vacancies of Judges, appeals against orders of quasi-judicial forums going to High Courts, number of revisions/appeals, frequent adjournments, indiscriminate use of writ jurisdiction, lack of adequate arrangement to monitor, track and bunch cases for hearing, stated by the Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India.

Sustaining with the lowest ratios of judges population in the world, Indians are marking time for the judiciary and government to scrutinise and resolve the differences over new appointments or development of infrastructure to overcome the age-long crisis of delayed justice.

On the condition of anonymity, a Mumbai resident (with a pending property case under the Bombay High Court) shared his experience with AV. He said, Cases that include property matter between families must get its verdict as soon as possible as with delay it creates more dispute among family members that lead to other criminal activities in many cases. I think the government and the law ministry should search out possible ways to speed up trials. People with their long running cases also face social harassment.
A nation, as great as India, after magnificently holding democratic elections for seven decades, Modi and BJP came to power when Congress was ruling the country, why he is taking out Pakistan interfering in Gujarat election? He is playing to the ignorance of the electorate. But what can you expect from cow herders! Modi would never make accusations if he were campaigning in Bengal or the south where the countrys cognoscente lives. It also gives the impression that Modi is taking a page from US last election. Instead of talking about our country, he is talking more of a neighbouring nation during elections. If this logic has to be believed, then the question remains, is it Pakistan that helped him to come to power in 2014?

On December 18, Gujarati voters will decide the fate of political parties. But a comment, that Pakistan is impelling the ensuing Gujarat elections, is not only atrocious and extremely weird but it also shows that the Prime Minister and the BJP government are incapable to defend the sovereignty of India. Modi has positioned himself as a no-nonsense technocrat, focusing his election campaign on reviving Indias stagnant economy, cleaning up a corrupt government, and a tough stance on national security. But in reality, he is showing different colours, which is appalling and sad.

Few days back, when Mani Shankar Aiyar said that our PM Modi is a lowly person. He might have told so due to his prejudice but that was really ridiculous. I was very much angry on Congress for catering such leaders. But PM Modis public allegation that Congress leaders, including Manmohan Singh, are conspiring with Pakistan, make him incapable to hold his position as PM. Modi has linked the neech slur against him on Thursday last by Mani Shankar Aiyar with the dinner the latter hosted the day before. India and Pakistan sparred on Monday morning after Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggested at a rally on Sunday that Pakistan is trying to influence the assembly elections in Gujarat, linking it to a dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar, now suspended by the Congress, for top leaders of his party and Pakistani officials last week.

If he believes that the conspiracy took place, why not arrest those traitors and take them to court? How Pakistan can make Ahmed Patel the CM? If the people want to make him CM, are you going to block it because his name is AHMED? Or are you warning the voters not to vote Congress, as Muslim AHMED may become CM? Respected PM, you have lowered yourself to become such a lowly person. It is very difficult to understand why Narendra Modi arouses such fear despite his evident popularity.

The BJP is the latest incarnation of the movements political wing and the party headed a coalition government from 1998-2004. While having vowed that his Hindu nationalism will not get in the way of being a prime minister for all Indians, critics point out that Modis rhetoric has at times played directly into the Muslim-Hindu divide. PM needs to understand that he has bigger role to play than the campaigner of BJP. He leads and represents this country and people have trusted him the most. PMs irresponsible statement, India has one of the worlds strongest electoral processes. PM making such remarks to create sensation only discredits the Election Commission, thousands of officers involved and millions of voters. Look at the irony, PM alleges Pak Meddling, Rahul Gandhi, his opponent, stays stick to Gujarat. Our PM has nothing to talk about the development! This time he hardly spoke about any crucial issues of the state. With 22 years of governance, Gujarat could have been the talk of the town and the Gujarat model as a great example. Forget about Gujarat, he has much more to talk about our country and its problems. But dragging Pakistan is not needed, why give them a chance to feel superior?

The moment he finished his rant, Pakistan issued a statement saying India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

The BJPs rebellious Shatrughan Sinha said it was incredible, saying in a tweet, Honble Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with and endorse new, unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents?

After a bitter campaign, Gujarat voted in the first phase of assembly elections on Saturday. The second and last phase will be held on Thursday. Results of PM Modi vs Rahul Gandhi battle will be announced on Monday next, December 18. Glitches in the EVMs have been reported in the past. Political parties, including the BJP, have made similar allegations in the past, but none of them found resonance among the electorate because the autonomy of the Election Commission appeared by and large intact. Today, the credibility of the Election Commission is certainly not at its peak, and the poll panel has itself to blame for it.

Meanwhile, all the promises made by PM Modi at the time of Lok Sabha election have been denied by BJP president Amit Shah as JUMLA. So there is no point if people blame Modi for not having fulfilled his promises. In his campaign he has only questioned, blamed and accused. The BJP will win only because of Modis past reputation as the former CM of Gujarat and nothing more. Rather disgusting that all his speeches so far had a Muslim slant in them. I thought he had sworn to govern for the people!!

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@afternoonvoice.com)
NCP president Sharad Pawar would hit the street against the BJP- led government in Maharashtra on his birthday on Wednesday.

The Maratha strongman and former Union minister, who will turn 77 on Tuesday, has already completed 50 years of active participation in politics.

Pawar will take part in an anti-government rally being organised here by the opposition Congress and the NCP, which have accused the BJP-led ruling coalition of neglecting issues related to farmers and common people.

When the veteran politician hits the street, it will be a rare occasion in his political life, during which he has held a number of key posts in Maharashtra and also at the Centre. The former chief minister will be agitating against an incumbent government after over 30 years.

Hemant Takale, senior NCP leader and an MLC, said, It is true Pawar would be agitating against the state government after over 30 years. It was in 1985 that Pawar had organised a cycle rally against the then state government. The cycle rally started from Jalgaon and ended in Nagpur. Pawar has mostly been in power, said another senior NCP leader.

Ajit Pawar, nephew of Sharad Pawar and a former deputy chief minister, said, Generally, (on birthdays) Pawarsaheb would stay at his home in Pune or Mumbai and have a low- profile event. The only events used to be organised on his birthdays were health check-ups and blood donations.

For the first time, Pawarsaheb will be agitating on his birthday for peoples interest. Pawarsaheb has decided to protest against this government to highlight the ways it is neglecting the interests of people, Ajit Pawar said.

Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad will also be participating in the rally.

Congress, NCP leaders and workers will take out a march which will conclude at Lokmat Chowk where Pawar and others will address the rally.
NOTE: We've excerpted this from JB Handley's Medium.com blog.



Five clear, replicable, and related discoveries explaining how autism is triggered have formed an undeniably clear picture of autisms causation, and possibly ways to alleviate the symptoms, too. Most of the research that has created this understanding has been published in the last 36 months, and largely from international scientists in the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Israel, and China. The U.S. media? Silent.



STAFFORDSHIRE, England  Of course theres great irony that scientists emanating from Great Britian may have provided a final piece of data explaining how, exactly, autism is being triggered in at least some children. Students of this debate know that in 1998 another British doctor  Dr. Andrew Wakefield  sounded an alarm based on a case series report he and twelve of his colleagues published describing a novel bowel condition in children with autism. In the case of Dr. Wakefield and his colleagues, they chose to disclose in their study that the majority of the parents of the children in their study had reported regression into autism after a single vaccine: the MMR.

Dr. Wakefields recommendation for how to deal with the regression into autism some parents saw after the MMR was pretty modest: he recommended the MMR vaccine be broken up into three separate shots. Wait until you hear what a different British scientist, this one the worlds leading expert on the neurotoxicity of aluminum, just said last week about childrens vaccines.



Read the full piece here.
At issue in this instance is not only freedom of information, but things like informed medical consent, or even consent at all. The possibility of becoming a pharmaceutical dictatorship, is not far off  in some respects already with us. And along with forced medication comes the removal from the public domain of open debate, suppression of information about harms, and a captive market for an indefinitely expanding group of products which citizens then have to pay for through their taxes.

It is, for example, not at all obvious that discussion of the effects of medical interventions should be controlled through government departments or industry public relations agencies such as Science Media Centre and Sense About Science. In 2005 a House of Commons Health Committee report on the influence of the pharmaceutical industry heavily criticised the Department of Health and the MHRA (the medicines licensing authority) for failing to keep any distance from industry [3], and twelve years later the situation has dramatically deteriorated, not least because the kind of over-sight provided by the 2005 Health Committee has never since been replicated. Perhaps this present committee would do better to inquire into the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on the media, which would at least be lot easier to define than fake news.

The present author remembers visiting a bookshop in East Berlin across Unter den Linden from the gigantic Soviet Embassy in the early 1980s: there were perhaps no more than ten different titles for sale. There were quite a lot of copies of each, although I do not know that anyone wanted to buy them. The East German population was then controlled by the notorious Stasi. Of course, we can have a pseudo pluralistic situation in which hundreds of different websites report from the same agencies but this kind of controlled reality is equally bogus and shallow. Unfortunately, no historical lesson seems to be learnt for very long.

The view of Age of Autism is that having great bureaucracies working on behalf of governments and corporate interests deciding what is true  or even machines operating algorithms to decide it - is a prospect little different from the world of George Orwells 1984. It is troubling in an era when the mainstream media cannot be relied upon to provide reliable information that attention and suspicion is being diverted to other sources on the internet. The internet is presently a chaotic place, but that is infinitely better than the alternative which would be information controlled on behalf of governments and global corporations, which could never be held to account.

Age of Autism [1] is a United States based web journal founded in 2007 dealing with issues such as autism and vaccine injury, but also with wider issues to do with health and potential environmental harm  and ultimately of civil rights. Since 2008 I have published hundreds of carefully researched, fact based articles on the site [2], only two of which I have ever taken down - and even in those cases not because of legal challenges. I write as a well-informed citizen and parent, not as a professional. The sources of my information come in the main from government websites, peer reviewed publications, industry websites and mainstream media - only often viewed from a different critical angle or simply just highlighted in a different context.

This morning AoA posts its evidence, prepared by John Stone, to the House of Commons Select Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee inquiry into fake news which has been published by the committee. The evidence was published by the committee two weeks ago contemporaneously with farcical reports in the Daily Mirror that Vladimir Putin was using the web to undermine the United Kingdom vaccine program. It was also submitted before it came to our attention that Andrew Witty, until earlier this year CEO of GlaxoSmithKline, had been appointed to head a new state body to fast track the approval of pharmaceutical products, one of a row of appointments effectively demolishing all remaining boundaries between the British state and the pharmaceutical industry (and GSK in particular). data.parliament.uk

In this regard it is disquieting to look at the global campaign by vaccine lobbyists which reached these shores this summer advocating compulsory vaccination, having scored recent successes in Australia, Italy, France and parts of the United States. The British Medical Association jettisoned its traditional opposition to compulsory vaccination [4]  dismissed only a few years ago by a former chairman, Hamish Meldrum, as Stalinist [5] - and called for the matter to be discussed. Just a few days before an article appeared in the on-line Spectator by the CEO of GAVI, a global agency promoting vaccination, calling for anti-vaxxers to be excluded from social media[6]. It must be emphasised that anyone remotely critical or informed about the vaccine lobby and its products, is placed under the general pejorative label anti-vaxxer: it is the vaccine/pharmaceutical lobby that polarises the debate  anyone who is not in favour of their entire open-ended agenda is subject to opprobrium and ad hominem attack. Complex health issues are being reduced in the mainstream arena to Four legs good, two legs bad type arguments.

Hot on the heels of this a Guardian editorial appeared calling for vaccination to be made compulsory because antivaxxers (who are all apparently very privileged people like Gwyneth Paltrow) were gaining influence  the comedian John Oliver was held up as an authority on antivaxxers and what bad people they are. Further, this was illustrated by a picture of demonstrators in Italy, who were in fact demonstrating in large numbers not against vaccination but against compulsory vaccination: without Italys new laws there would be no demonstrations at all, nor were most of the people in them anti-vaccinationist in any literal sense [7]. It could be said that this was both manipulative mis-reporting and an inappropriate way to deal with such a serious issue.

The reality, however, is that even with the alleged baleful influence of the eternally scapegoated Andrew Wakefield (who only suggested in this regard that parents may wish to split up the vaccines temporally) [8] there have only been four deaths from measles since 1992 in the United Kingdom according to government statistics, out of perhaps 13 million deaths from all causes. Ironically, the Italian health minister Beatrice Lorenzin, is recorded on youtube as stating that 270 children had died in London in a recent outbreak of measles, at the same time lamenting without irony the false information available on the web [9].

Meanwhile, GSKs CEO in Italy boasted to a pharmaceutical website [10]:

Among the aspects, I also met with Minister Lorenzin and other members of the government who reiterated the sensitivity of the government towards those who invest, create jobs and opportunities for young people. In short, we started on the right foot.

Such sensitivity in the Roman palaces is not to be dismissed. As for us, Andrew Witty has asked for a few things: clear rules and stability in return for strong investment in advanced research and production equipment. We were of one intent.

What is at stake here? One thing is the crude and often abusive means by which any public debate has been controlled or in fact more or less de-legitimised, which does not suggest the moral high ground. It was notable that in the one mainstream public forum which remained open for tolerant comment during the summer of 2017, BMJ Rapid Responses, the proponents of compulsory vaccination absented themselves from replying to informed criticism despite many challenges to do so, pointing to a complete inability by them to argue their position on a level playing field [11]. The issues are not so straightforward as not wanting children to die from infectious diseases (who wants that?) but more a question of mushrooming rates of neurological disability  such as autism and attention deficit disorder  as well as chronic disease, which are certainly related to environmental influences, and may be in part be related to an expanding vaccine schedule, the effects of which are not being transparently monitored.

To give a concrete example, though the Department of Health has neglected to collect autism {ASD} data for children since 2004 when the figure was effectively frozen at 1 in 100 [12], the actual figures for schools have continued to rise year on year [13]. A recent news report from Northern Ireland gives the rate there as 1 in 40 [14] and a BBC report earlier this year from London suggested the figure in the capital for those waiting for a diagnosis, who will be mostly young children, has reached 1 in 10 [15,16]. Moreover, local authorities only recognise disability if they absolutely have to, because it costs huge amounts of money.

When such stories are reported they tend to focus on the lack of provision, not on why it is happening. This is damning public data and the Department of Health do not even want to talk about it  implicitly they connect it with vaccination. Ten years ago, when the Observer tried to highlight the issue, it was not only forced to withdraw the article under pressure from Science Media Centre and Guardian journalist Ben Goldacre, the editor lost his job [17]. No one in the British mainstream media is any longer willing to stick their necks out, which may be one reason why powerful interests are turning their attention to social media, where things may still be spoken.

We are apart from anything else confronted with a care crisis of catastrophic proportions and discussing the causes has been placed outside the mainstream agenda: it really is a slippery slope if we are not even then allowed to talk about them publicly at all. At times of national peril the reasons for going to war are debated. If governments, industry or self-appointed agencies need to clamp down on information it suggests that they cannot withstand even minimal scrutiny, and that is their own fault. Meanwhile, common-sense argues that if bodies are placed beyond public scrutiny this will abused. Indeed, the very purpose is abuse.

[1] http://www.ageofautism.com/

[2] http://www.ageofautism.com/john-stone-uk/

[3] House of Commons Health Committee, The Influence of the Pharmaceutical Industry, 2005 https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmhealth/42/42.pdf

[4] Katie Foster, France to make vaccination mandatory from 2018 as it is 'unacceptable children are still dying of measles, The Independent, 5 July 2017, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/france-vaccination-mandatory-2018-next-year-children-health-measles-dying-anti-vaxxers-edouard-a7824246.html

[5] BBC News, No jabs, no school say Labour MP, 11 May 2008 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7392510.stm

[6] Seth Berkley, Anti-vaxxers have embraced social media; we paying for fake news with real lives Spectator Health 28 June 2017, https://health.spectator.co.uk/anti-vaxxers-have-embraced-social-media-were-paying-for-fake-news-with-real-lives/

[7] Editorial: The Guardian view on vaccination: a matter of public health, The Guardian 7 July 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jul/07/the-guardian-view-on-vaccinations-a-matter-of-public-health

[8] Vera Sharav, Laffaire Wakefield: Shades of Dreyfus & BMJs Descent into Tabloid Science, Alliance for Human Health Protection (AHRP), October 2017 http://ahrp.org/laffaire-wakefield-shades-of-dreyfus-bmjs-descent-into-tabloid-science/

[9] John Stone, Re: Compulsory vaccination and growing measles threat - Prof Melegaro's response, BMJ Rapid Responses 21 October 2017, http://www.bmj.com/content/358/bmj.j3429/rr-7

[10] "Aspetti, io ho poi incontrato il ministro Lorenzin ed altri membri del governo che hanno manifestato la sensibilita del governo verso le aziende che investono, che creano posti di lavoro ed opportunita per i giovani. Insomma, abbiamo iniziato con il piede giusto. Una tale sensibilita non e da trascurare nei palazzi romani. Per quanto ci riguarda, Andrew Witty (AD della Glaxo) ha fatto poche richieste: regole chiare e stabilita in cambio di un forte investimento nella ricerca avanzata e nella produzione. Avevamo intenzione identiche.", http://www.fedaiisf.it/l-accordo-di-glaxo-con-novartis-verona-e-centrale-nello-sviluppo-gsk/

[11] BMJ possibly felt an obligation to host correspondence since its parent body, the BMA, was calling for the discussion. Not every letter submitted was posted: gaps can be detected by the way the letters are numbered that are posted on threads. The editors will always check references if the claims made are controversial, and they also tend not to post letters documenting conflicts of interest (in contrast to past policy). Relevant correspondence included:-

Rapid Responses for Doshi, US government website for collecting adverse events after vaccination is inaccessible to most users, http://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j2449/rapid-responses

Rapid Responses for Moberly, UK doctors re-examine case for mandatory vaccination, http://www.bmj.com/content/358/bmj.j3414/rapid-responses

Rapid Responses for Arie, Compulsory vaccination and growing measles threat, http://www.bmj.com/content/358/bmj.j3429/rapid-responses

Rapid Responses for Cave, Debating the future of mandatory vaccination, http://www.bmj.com/content/358/bmj.j4100/rapid-responses

[12] Green H et al, Mental health of children and young people in Great Britain, 2004, Table 4.1 p.35.

[13] The figure for schools are published by various government sources: National Statistics, the Department of Education, the Scottish Executive etc. The January 2017 figure for England can be calculated at 1 in 67 and the September 2016 figure for Scotland 1 in 51, however the long term position is much worse since (a) these are 15 year rolling cohorts so the rates are much higher among younger children and (b) data for younger children is still incomplete since there are many who will still not be diagnosed.

The rate for English schools is derived by dividing the total number of pupils in school (8,669,085) by the number with ASD diagnosis (128,948). The first number comes from the DoE publication, Schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2017, p. 3 and the other figure extracted from National Statistics Special educational needs in England: January 2017, https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/623124/SFR28_2017_Main_Text.pdf & National Tables SFR 37/2017 table 8, and Additional tables SFR37/2017 table G https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2017

The number of pupils in Scottish was 684,415 and the number of pupils with an ASD diagnosis was 13,423: data provided by the Scottish Executive.

[14] Sarah Scott, New campaign aims to raise awareness about autism in the classroom, Belfast Live 5 November 2017, http://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/belfast-news/new-campaign-aims-raise-awareness-13846708

[15] Jane Dreaper, Autism diagnoses 'could be reduced under NHS plan, BBC News 27 May 2017, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-40058482

[16] John Stone, Re: US government website for collecting adverse events after vaccination is inaccessible to most users, BMJ Rapid Responses, 29 May 2017, http://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j2449/rr-5

[17] John Stone, Swept Aside: An Unpublished Submission to the Leveson Inquiry About Science Journalism, http://www.ageofautism.com/2012/12/leveson-inquiry-submission.html

November 2017








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Date: 07 November, 2017.

Place: Santa Monica, State of California, United States.

Last month, more specifically on 07 November, an eerie incident was witnessed in the city of Santa Monica, California.

According to an anonymous report published on Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) online database, a local was allegedly abducted by a reptilian doctor.

I went to [Business name removed] or whichever. I had to wait four hours until I could see her [the doctor]. I knew something in my spirit had a feeling that something was totally off. She was nice and everything but I didn't feel right about her. I could tell by her look that she was a reptilian, the woman expressed. She ordered blood tests and everything, and then once the exam started was when I was thrown off, she said.

The California woman claimed that the doctor examined and touched her breasts for a long time, something she considered unnecessary. She [the doctor] had me lay down and began to examine my breasts, and I found it to be pretty random and not really something that needed to be done unless I was getting a Pap smear, which is usually when they do that. She touched my breasts for a very long time and she said I didn't need to get a Pap smear. I found it awkward because I had not seen a doctor in a very long time and I was due to get it done, actually past due, she affirmed.

After leaving the doctor, when I got home I was feeling sick. I felt as though I had a sore throat and not feeling well for a few days. I believe that her hands possibly had germs on them. I had told her about how I was having anaemic symptoms due to my heavy periods, and she said she would run blood tests and check it out, the unnamed witness explained. She ended up calling me and saying my iron levels were normal, which I knew was a total bold-faced lie. I was having every symptom of anaemia and have been bed ridden for months. I have also gone through this with some reptilian doctors at Torrance medical hospital where I came in with severe heart murmurs from my anaemia being so severe and the doctor even came in laughing like it was a joke, and he had some nurse with him named Mike who was mad dogging me, she asserted.

However, after going to another doctor, the anonymous woman said her health has considerably improved. I am seeing a new doctor now who caught this and could not believe that these doctors would be as shady to let this go on without treating something so simple. I began to take slow FE iron tablets and I am now feeling normal, she mentioned.

These entities [the Reptilians], which cloak themselves as humans, are trying to harm and kill many people and it has gone on for too long. I am not racist. I know that not all reptilians are bad and that there are a number of them that are good, just as in all races. This is about evil and evil needs to be stopped for good, the abductee warned.

Draw your own conclusions

For more information: https://mufoncms.com/cgi-bin/report_handler.pl?req=view_long_desc&id=87854&rnd=

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American Airlines Cargo has handled a particularly interesting shipment: flying the musical instruments of the French Orchestre Nationale du Capitole to and from Latin America.

The Toulouse-based Orchestre Nationale du Capitole was on a three-city tour of Latin America, taking in Buenos Aires in Argentina, Quito in Ecuador and Sao Paulo in Brazil.

American Airlines Cargo carried a total of 694 pieces of valuable cargo, including violins, cellos, double basses, harps and a conductors podium, from Paris to Buenos Aires via Miami International Airport (MIA), and then on to Quito, and finally Sao Paulo.

An American Airlines widebodied B777 carried the shipment from Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) to MIA, and from MIA to Buenos Aires Ezeiza International Airport.

Working in partnership with French freight forwarder Excess Events  which has handled the orchestras overseas trips for more than a decade  American Airlines also carried the clothing worn by the 120-strong orchestra for their various performances at the French embassies in all three locations.

Everything needed to be flown together in order to ensure that that the various instruments, clothes and other equipment arrived together for each concert.

According to a statement from the American cargo carrier, the sensitive nature of the instruments meant that they required extreme care in their handling.

Thus, for example, in the first leg of their extensive journey they were transported by temperature-controlled truck from Toulouse to CDG.

Philippe Ledain of Excess Events explained: Musicians hate to be parted from their instruments for any length of time, so it was essential that they were moved to the Latin America tour in the quickest possible time.

Their instruments are their passion, and working with American, we were able to achieve this movement for them.

The orchestra has an exceptional reputation, so we were very pleased to have been chosen as the carrier to deliver their precious instruments to the venues across Latin America, added Kathleen Lesage, regional manager of American Airlines Cargo.

And working in partnership with the team at Excess Events, we were able to ensure everything ran exactly to plan.

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Gaps on the bottom and scrawny branches somehow didn't matter this year.

I can freak out over a Christmas tree like no one else. Other things may get (literally) swept under the rug, but for some reason, my tree has to be perfect. I poke and fluff each branch daily up until about 11pm on December 24th to make sure it is the loveliest tree of all. But this year, something snapped and all I wanted was an imperfect, wobbly, lopsided Charlie Brown tree. Maybe I inhaled too much glitter to think straight or perhaps the fumes from spray painting magnolia leaves got to me, but all I knew was that I did not want another stiff, upside down-ice cream cone-looking tree that wasn't even native to our area.

Maybe it was the nostalgia of my grandparent's trees they chopped down themselves, usually a pine or cedar, or maybe it was just exhaustion from society always demanding perfection that made me recoil at the thought of a magazine-perfect tree.

Even though I was confident in my seasonal rebellion, I worried my status as a member of the Committee for the Preservation of Loveliness would suffer as soon as they laid eyes on a less than perfect tree at my annual Christmas cookie soiree', but who were they to judge? Half of them use a decorating service to put up their trees. I would cry if someone else decorated my tree because I look forward to it all year long.

You'd think it would be easy to find an ugly, scraggly tree, but actually, without a wintry forest of my own to traipse through in search of a natural-looking evergreen, I had to visit tree lots where all the offerings were perfectly trimmed-up triangles with branches so dense, ornaments could only perch on the tips.

I finally came across a cut-it-yourself field full of perfect trees Martha Stewart would love, but taking a chance, I asked the attendant if he had any ugly trees. He just laughed and said, "Come with me," so I followed him to the back of the field where I stood amazed at the rows of scrawny, gangly pines. Over nine feet tall, they reminded me of goofy, lanky teenagers.

I quickly laid eyes on the perfect -- or actually imperfect tree for me, awkwardly standing alone as if shunned. Moving closer to the sad thing, I channeled my inner Linus Van Pelt and sniffed, "all it needs is a little love."

For the first time in years, I used tinsel to dangle from the tips of the branches which gave it more of an old-fashioned look, and also helped fill in the bald spots. And by the way, the tree only cost $25. My husband sniffed, and said it was worth half that much.

After the tree was transformed into a retro, hip-looking tree (or so I thought), I began to wonder what pushed me over the edge and made me want a tree like this. Those who know and love me would never describe me as "funky-nature-girl," so although the tree seemed totally out of character, it somehow felt comfortable and just right.

Maybe I'm tired of all the screaming and fighting about politics and political correctness and the casual tree was a way to relax and revert to simpler times where no one got worked up over gluten and children didn't have 5 hours of homework, 4 dance recitals and 3 ball games every day.

This uncharacteristic bout of Yuletide rebellion was my attempt at finding something easy and uncomplicated. The symbolism of everlasting life was still represented in the green needles, and inhaling the fresh pine scent, smelled of old holiday homes. And of course, my favorite part of the Christmas story was represented when I saw something humble become glorious.

The biggest surprise has come from the members of the Committee for the Preservation of Loveliness who absolutely loved my tree. "Oh! Just like my grandmother's!" "I love how playful it looks! Who's your designer?" "You clever little trend-setter, will your people do my tree next year?" Totally relaxed, I tell them, "Of course, I'll send my people right over, but it will cost you $25."

Contact Leslie Anne at: la@leslieannetarabella.com or find details on her new book, "The Majorettes are Back In Town," at her blog: http://leslieannetarabella.com.
Three former employees of a Centre nursing home have been convicted in the neglect of an 84-year-old resident.

Attorney General Steve Marshall on Monday announced the convictions of Sandra Michele Curry, Kacey Minerva Allen, and Shawna Rogers. Curry and Allen live in Centre; Rogers lives in Rome, Ga. All three pleaded guilty in Cherokee County Circuit Court to one count of attempted elder abuse, a class C felony.

The trio - former employees of Cherokee Health and Rehab nursing home - was indicted earlier this year after an elderly resident was found to be suffering from about 100 ant bites.

Curry, a licensed practical nurse, and Rogers and Allen, certified nursing assistants, were responsible for the care of a nursing home resident confined to a bed throughout the night of Sept. 3, 2016 and into the following morning. Authorities say the three charted that they had entered the room numerous times throughout the night to check on the resident. However, a review of the surveillance video showed none of the three entered the room for approximately 11 hours.

"Alabama law recognizes that the care of those who are vulnerable is a serious responsibility, and those who are entrusted with this charge have a legal obligation to properly fulfill their duties," Marshall said in a prepared statement. "These defendants not only failed to provide adequate care, but they were shown to have lied about their negligence that resulted in harm and injury to a nursing home patient."

Curry, Rogers and Allen were sentenced to two years in prison, however that sentence was suspended. All three instead have been placed on probation. Additionally, Curry was required to surrender her nursing license. All three are barred from working in a healthcare facility in the future.
UAB will soon bring its ultra-high-speed 100-gigabits per second internet to Birmingham's Innovation Depot, a technology startup incubator.

The connection allows Innovation Depot to give an effective 1GB -- and up to 3GB -- bandwidth to its companies, quadrupling the current bandwidth and providing the security of UAB infrastructure for all member companies, according to UAB.

The ultra-high-speed network launched at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2016.

In fall 2016, with a $2.5 million investment and a $500,000 National Science Foundation grant, UAB became the first university in Alabama to launch internet speeds of 100 gigabits per second, increasing bandwidth by 10 times -- up to 10,000 times the speed of many standard home internet speeds.

"Having access to one of the fastest internet speeds in Alabama gives entrepreneurs and students an advantage as they build and grow their technology companies," said Innovation Depot President and CEO Devon Laney, "which leads to increased investment in jobs and infrastructure -- and that in turn helps grow and strengthen the technology community in Birmingham."

UAB has been partnering with regional and state technology leaders to build an ecosystem of IT excellence focused on fostering the next generation of IT employees and technology entrepreneurs, the university said in a release.

UAB has led the Innovate Birmingham Regional Workforce Partnership, a coalition of public, community, business and education leaders that received a $6 million America's Promise grant to train Birmingham-area residents for jobs in the technology industry.

The resulting program, Innovate Birmingham, trains unemployed and under-employed young people, teaching them skills to obtain 925 high-paying jobs in the technology industry. The third cohort from the program is set to graduate in December.

The Innovate Birmingham program is also housed at Innovation Depot, so those students will benefit from the high-speed network piped in from UAB.

"UAB's partnership with Innovation Depot and with technology leaders across Birmingham is helping to foster the next generation of technology employees and businesses in our region," said Curt Carver, UAB vice president for Information Technology and chief information officer.
Doug Jones delivered a strong attack on Roy Moore in Huntsville Sunday and said that, two days from the vote on Tuesday, he can feel his Senate campaign is on the move and on the right side of history.

Appearing as surprise speaker at a get-out-the-vote rally in a large African-American church, Jones accused Moore of hiding from voters and the press, taking money from his charity instead of earning a living, and being ignorant of the issues facing Alabama.

He also spoke about the allegations women have made against Moore during the race. "I'll tell you this. I'm only going to do it one time," Jones said. "Just like Sen. (Richard) Shelby today, I believe those women in Etowah County. Just like Sen. Shelby said today, where there's smoke there's fire, and there's fire there. And I am so proud of those women and so many others, because from the very beginning we have talked about women's issues that are important to the women of this state.

"I've got a mother that's 86 years old, I've got a wife, I've got a daughter, I've got two granddaughters and those issues are important to me, because they hit home to me," Jones said. "I want to make sure that when my granddaughters grow up, they don't have to endure the kinds of things that those girls in Etowah County did and sit silent for 30 or 40 years. I want to make sure that we send a message of who we are and what we are, because we're much better than that."

The crowd had come to the Progressive Union Missionary Baptist Church to hear U.S Rep. Cedrick Richardson (D-Louisiana), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, rally them to get out the vote on Tuesday. Richardson couldn't make it, moderator David Person said, "but we do have Doug Jones."

Jones then gave the crowd what amounted to a closing argument for his candidacy and said he feels momentum. He talked about "kitchen table issues," including jobs and healthcare, and he asked the crowd to imagine Roy Moore sitting across the table from an automobile company CEO thinking about coming to Alabama 20 years ago.

"It would have been a disaster," Jones said, "and you see business leader after business leader (today) expressing their concern about where the state is going to go. And if business goes south, folks, it goes south with your jobs."

Doug Jones speaking in the sanctuary of the Progressive Union Missionary Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ala., on Dec. 10, 2017. (Lee Roop/lroop@al.com)

Jones said he supports Medicare, Medicaid and the Children's Health Care Insurance Program (CHIPS). "He refuses to say whether he would even vote to fund it," Jones said of Moore and CHIPS, "and the reason is Roy Moore has consistently said he wants the government out of healthcare. Well, let me tell you, that means no Medicare. That means no Medicaid."

Alabama should have expanded Medicaid when then-Gov. Robert Bentley rejected Washington's offer, Jones said. "We've lost billions of dollars," he said. "Our rural hospitals are closing because there's not enough Medicaid dollars coming into the state to sustain them. We've got to change that, and we've got to do it by quitting playing with your health care. I want to make sure everybody has good health care and affordable health care."

You get that by reaching across the aisle, Jones said, but Moore "would continue to divide us." For a moment, Jones got tongue-tied and finally said, "I just get frustrated at some point when you refuse to talk about subjects like this.

"I've been all over the state. I can't remember the number of places I've been ... some 200-250," Jones said. "Roy Moore's done two. He's not even in the state of Alabama this weekend. He went to the Army-Navy game, according to reports."

"Let me ask you a question," Jones continued. "What do you think about a United States senator that stays in hiding and won't even talk to the media and won't talk to his constituents? Y'all have had enough of federal officials up here that won't talk or hold meetings."

That last was a dig at North Alabama U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville), who canceled public town hall meetings for a time earlier this year.

Audience members listen carefully to Senate candidate Doug Jones speaking in Huntsville two days before the Dec. 12 election. (Lee Roop/lroop@al.com)

"I hear a lot of talk right now and a lot of national attention," Jones said. "Everybody is saying, 'Who is Alabama going to be?' This is not about who we are going to be. I know who we are. Roy Moore doesn't know who we are.

"We have felt this energy for a long time now," Jones said. "It's something you can't put your finger on. It's an energy and excitement out there from people of all walks of life. They know."

Jones said he isn't "a perfect candidate or a perfect person, and I haven't run a perfect campaign." But when you look at the race, he said, he's gone to the people over and over and he's talked straight.

Jones closed with his only reference to his prosecution of two Klansmen for the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing as a U.S. attorney. People in his office said it was a long shot, he said.

"It was a long shot," he said, "but when you're on the right side of history, you can accomplish great things. When you're on the right side of justice, you can accomplish great things. Well, folks, I'm telling you, I feel it. This campaign at this moment in time is on the right side of history, and we will not stop."

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A 16-year-old who ran away from Madison might be heading to Grant, a small town in Marshall County, authorities said.

Andreus Fain is described as 5 feet 4 inches and about 110 pounds. He is white and has brown hair with blonde tips according to Madison police. Fain last was seen wearing a dark shirt and Chicago Bulls sweatpants, according to authorities. Police haven't provided a photo of Fain.

Police said he might be going to Grant.

Madison police can be reached at 256-772-5658.
On the night of Nov. 14, Roy Moore's campaign for an Alabama Senate seat looked all but finished.

After five women came forward with accounts of Moore's alleged sexual misconduct with them as teenagers, including one who was 14 years old, the GOP candidate was abandoned by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and many Republicans in Congress, and the Republican National Committee cut off his funding.

But it was an ultimatum from Fox News host Sean Hannity, delivered on his Nov. 14 broadcast, that posed the direst threat. "For me, the judge has 24 hours," Hannity told his viewers, after excoriating Moore. "You must immediately and fully come up with a satisfactory explanation for your inconsistencies." He added, "If you can't do this, then Judge Moore needs to get out of the race." In 2017, a Republican candidate can overcome disapproval from party leaders, but losing the conservative media is usually fatal.

Four weeks later, Moore's situation has entirely turned around: He not only survived, but leads his Democratic opponent in most polls. President Donald Trump has forcefully endorsed him. The RNC restored his funding. McConnell stopped saying he should quit and now says the people of Alabama should decide his fate. Most Republican voters there have decided the allegations are false: A CBS News poll found that 71 percent don't believe them. Hannity, too, is back in the fold and a big reason why Moore received a hero's welcome at a Dec. 5 barn rally in Fairhope, Alabama.

Rather than bury Moore, conservative media resurrected him - and the party followed. It did so thanks largely to the influence of the man who introduced Moore in Fairhope: Steve Bannon. "The whole thing was a setup, right?" the former White House chief strategist told the roaring crowd.

Through his staff at Breitbart News, his talk radio show, and his allies in politics and media -- Hannity among them -- Bannon has worked harder than perhaps anyone else to sow doubt about the accusations against Moore and to push the claim that his accusers are lying. In doing so, he's illustrated the growing power of conservative media to shape the perceptions of Republican voters, something that may keep Alabama's Senate seat in Republican hands when polls open on Tuesday.

No one appreciates Bannon's efforts more than the candidate only recently left for dead. "He's the counter to the 'fake news' - he's been a stalwart," says Roy Moore. "It's helped us a lot. He's the master strategist."

Bannon's efforts to save Moore from the fallout from the first Washington Post story laying out the accusations predate its publication on Nov. 9. Tipped by the Moore campaign, Breitbart News published word of its impending arrival in an article intended to undermine the charges by Leigh Corfman that Moore initiated a sexual encounter with her when she was 14. That did little to blunt Republican outrage in Congress or the White House. Although Trump was traveling abroad and didn't comment, aide Kellyanne Conway said the behavior attributed to Moore "would be disqualifying for anyone in public office."

Bannon dispatched Breitbart reporters to Alabama to discredit the Post story. He was so certain they would turn up evidence of collusion and unravel the Post story that he publicly predicted as much during a Nov. 10 speech in South Carolina. "They're finding some collusion going on in stories about Judge Moore," he said, while accepting the Citadel Republican Society's Nathan Hale Patriot Award. "I think you'll see tomorrow."

Evidence of collusion between Moore's accusers and the press never materialized. Instead, Moore's situation worsened, not least because of an interview he gave to Hannity's radio show that same day. Asked if he had pursued teenage girls as a grown man, Moore replied, "generally, no" but added that he'd "dated a lot of young ladies," had known some of his accusers, and "if we did go on dates, then we did." The performance didn't help his cause. Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter, told the Associated Press, "There's a special place in hell for people who prey on children."

Even so, Bannon was most alarmed by Hannity's ultimatum to Moore and moved to intervene, according to three people familiar with his actions. Along with Breitbart's Washington editor, Matthew Boyle, he besieged the Fox News host with phone calls and texts. Bannon, who recently told the New York Times that Hannity is "the single most important voice for the 'deplorables'" -- his term for Trump supporters -- asked the Fox host not to call on Moore to withdraw and instead to let Alabama voters decide, said people familiar with Bannon's activities.

One of the people said Hannity was skeptical, but willing to listen. The person said Hannity texted Boyle, "You pull this off it's a (expletive) miracle." Hannity declined to comment on the text. Through a spokesperson, he denied that he was pressured by anyone.

Moore's campaign also raced to convince Hannity within his 24-hour window, issuing a public memo -- addressed "Dear Sean" -- that sought to rebut the women's allegations. "Sean is very important," says Dean Young, Moore's chief political strategist. "He's a well-respected guy and we think he's an honest man. Judge Moore is an honest guy, too, and wanted to be as clear as possible."

The pressure campaign paid off. Even as three new accusers came forward, Hannity declared himself satisfied with Moore's response. "I lived in Alabama," he said. "I know these people. They're smart, they're great Americans - God, family, faith, country. I am very confident that when everything comes out, they will make the best decision for their state."

It was Bannon's message precisely. And it gave Moore the reprieve he desperately needed. The pressure to quit the race stopped building. "Steve has been a voice for the conservative movement in turning this around," Kayla Moore, the judge's wife, said backstage at the Fairhope rally.

Bannon worked to create a counter-narrative that ultimately would change many Republicans' perception of the scandal. A former filmmaker, he's long been captivated by the propaganda films of Leni Riefenstahl, the Nazi filmmaker, and the Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein for their power to shape public sentiment. Earlier this year, Bannon told the New Yorker's Jane Mayer his 2012 anti-Obama film "The Hope and the Change," had consciously mimicked Riefenstahl's infamous, "Triumph of the Will." Her film, he added, "seared into me" that unhappy voters could be influenced if they felt they were being conned.

"Riefenstahl and Eisenstein both created an image of their nation that coalesced in the minds of citizens and shaped public opinion through narratives, which is essentially what Bannon is doing in politics," says Nadia Szold, a filmmaker and documentarian who has studied Bannon's films and discussed his influences with him. "They all evoke emotions like nostalgia, patriotism or paranoia that strengthen a collective sentiment."

In the run-up to the presidential campaign, Bannon's narrative-building energies were chiefly directed at the mainstream media. He helped conceive and produce the book "Clinton Cash" as a way of injecting negative storylines about Hillary Clinton into major outlets like the New York Times and the Washington Post to discourage potential Clinton voters and grease the skids for the Republican nominee.

In Alabama, however, Bannon needed to move Republican voters, which entailed exerting a different, more direct influence. Early on, he sent two top Breitbart editors, Boyle and Aaron Klein, to attack Moore's critics and churn out a fusillade of stories designed to raise doubts about the motives of Moore's accusers and the mainstream reporters covering them. The general theme, Boyle explains, was that the whole thing was a Democratic ruse abetted by a compliant liberal press: "This was a missile launched at the conservative movement by the mainstream media."

An ardent believer in the power of talk radio, Bannon turned his daily SiriusXM radio show into the broadcasting hub of the Moore counter-narrative that was fast emerging. It disseminated Breitbart's stories across the conservative universe, parts of which remained committed to opposing Moore. "Our voters turn to the conservative media - or what people thought was conservative - because the rest of it is fake news," says Young. "That includes Fox News, which follows Mitch McConnell's lead. Hannity is a bright spot there, but Fox News has gotten more liberal."

Local talk radio was especially important because it reached voters who would decide Moore's fate. Bannon sent his reporters to appear as guests.

"Without Bannon and Breitbart, it would have been almost impossible for us to get the message out there," says Scott Beason, a conservative radio host whose show broadcasts weekdays on the SuperStation FM 101.1 and blankets the Huntsville and Birmingham markets. "They had a big effect. They're giving people information that's not making it into our local reports, that gave us a reference point to refute these stories and say, 'Here's the part you don't know.' And that often flips the situation on its head and changes people's minds. I really believe because of the work they did that that's how Roy Moore is going to be able to get over the hump on Tuesday."

Although support for Moore fell sharply after the sexual misconduct allegations, it has gradually returned, something Beason attributes to four weeks of steady bludgeoning that Bannon's operation has administered to Moore's accusers and the mainstream press. "Not everybody listens to my radio show," he says. "It took time to get the message out so people were hearing these things. My listeners go to the gym, or the ballpark, or Sunday school, and say, 'Did you hear what Scott said?'"

And while Moore couldn't count on Fox News to supply laudatory coverage, his campaign found a conservative alternative, the One America Network, an upstart competitor to Fox that had multiple crews in Alabama throughout the primary. "For us, as a network that's continuing to grow, it was very important to our leadership that we could be a serious media organization on the ground in Alabama," says Trey Yingst, OAN's White House correspondent.

"They've gained momentum down here, I heard more and more about them," Young said of OAN. "We get treated fairly there. When we want to get the real story out, we do it through the real conservative media." Both Moore and his wife, Kayla, were made available to OAN for interviews, while Yingst landed an exclusive interview with Bannon after the Fairhope rally.

Throughout Moore's scandal, President Trump, who hadn't weighed in, loomed as the ultimate determiner of the candidate's fate. According to three people familiar with his actions, Bannon made calls to Trump and Nick Ayers, chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, urging them to withhold public comment and let the people of Alabama decide whether Moore belonged in the Senate. The Daily Beast reported that Conway also pushed the president not to condemn Moore.

Trump, an avid consumer of conservative media, especially Hannity's show, was willing to go much further. On Nov. 26, he attacked Moore's Democratic opponent, Doug Jones, on Twitter: "The last thing we need in Alabama and the U.S. Senate is a Schumer/Pelosi puppet who is WEAK on Crime, WEAK on the Border, Bad for our Military and our great Vets, Bad for our 2nd Amendment, AND WANTS TO RAISES TAXES TO THE SKY. Jones would be a disaster!" On Dec. 4, Trump called Moore to bestow his endorsement, then tweeted, "Democrats refusal to give even one vote for massive Tax Cuts is why we need Republican Roy Moore to win in Alabama," adding "No to Jones, a Pelosi/Schumer Puppet!"

With Trump aboard, the RNC quickly followed suit and restored funding to Moore's campaign - news that first appeared in Breitbart. "We stand with the president," a senior RNC official told the website.

The next evening, rain poured down on the barn at Oak Hollow Farm, in Fairhope, where Bannon and Moore were scheduled to headline a rally. Inside, amid all the Americana, homemade signs celebrated Breitbart News ("Who's Your News Daddy/Breitbart #1/Not Fake"), with colorful pennants devoted to Bannon and Boyle. The Chestang Bluegrass Gospel band gave way to a series of conservative speakers, who lambasted the "fake news" media to rapturous applause.

Bannon, who has toured the country delivering populist stem-winders, painted Tuesday's election as pivotal in the battle against McConnell and the Moore's accusers. "Don't let them take your voice away!" he told the crowd.

As Moore began speaking, Bannon ducked backstage to sit for an interview with OAN. Then he picked up a headset and joined a live broadcast of his SiriusXM talk-radio show, fighting to be heard above the noise of the crowd. Since the scandal broke, Moore had all but vanished from TV and radio, leaving others to defend him. But as soon as he stepped off the stage, he was ushered through a door and handed a headset, so he could join Bannon's broadcast already in progress.
Severe weather continues to batter parts of Europe.

As commuters struggle to reach their offices, many parts of the UK remain under a blanket of thick snow.

Up to 30 centimetres of snow accumulated in Wales, with the Midlands and northern and eastern England also seeing generous snowfall.

The wintry weather briefly suspended flights in Birmingham, London Stansted and Luton airports, and more than 150 flights were cancelled from Heathrow.

Other parts of Europe also suffered from severe weather, with a storm called Ana bringing strong winds to Spain, Portugal, France and the Alps.

Damaging gusts initially battered the Iberian Peninsula, with emergency services in Spains Galicia region attending to more than 200 incidents.

The strong winds then moved northeast, with gusts as high as 161km/h reported in western France, near La Rochelle.

In northern France, a ferry with more than 300 people on board ran aground in Calais harbour as it tried to leave during the storm.

Meanwhile, the Alps has seen heavy snow over the past few days, and now Ana is bringing strong southerly winds to the region.

This will bring heavy rain and snow to the southern parts of the Alps and very warm air to the north.

This is likely to cause a big thaw in places which could trigger flash floods.
Despite warnings from close US allies, US President Donald Trump controversially recognised Jerusalem as Israels capital and started the process of moving Washingtons embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Trumps decision came 50 years after Israels annexation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Gaza, Egypts Sinai Peninsula and Syrias Golan Heights; 70 years after the UN resolution to partition Palestine; and 100 years after the Balfour Declaration.

Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital upended decades of US foreign policy and created scores of anti-US/anti-Israel protests worldwide, while effectively killing the idea that Washington is a neutral party in the Palestinian-Israel conflict among the few who still had that perception. Arab capitals have almost unanimously considered Trumps decision on Jerusalem to be a sharp tilt towards Israel, and an indication of Washingtons support for the consolidation of the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem. The Council of the League of Arab States, at the level of Arab foreign ministers, declared opposition to Trumps decision and considered it not only invalid, but also a serious breach of international law.

Nonetheless, within Trumps inner circle, there is a belief that the decision was opportune and made at an appropriate time. From these voices perspectives, Arab leaders must accept this decision and deal with the potential unrest which this move may create within their countries.

Perhaps one of the unintended consequences of Trumps move is that his decision has now put the Palestinian issue back at the forefront in the Middle East. Indeed, since 2001, the wars in Afghanistan, Libya, Iraq, and Yemen, the Arab Spring revolutions, waves of sectarian violence, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levants (ISIL, also known as ISIS) meteoric rise to power have taken regional and global attention away from the struggle for justice in Palestine.

Undoubtedly, Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital will further isolate the US from the rest of the world. Given the administrations rejection of Palestinian claims to East Jerusalem, in violation of international law which recognises East Jerusalem as belonging to the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Washington has signalled its abandonment of a two-state solution more than ever. To be sure, there is no other country that recognises the legitimacy of Israels annexation of East Jerusalem, which Trump has now endorsed. With strong support from the international community for a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the US is now alone with Israels government in opposing this plan. Although no objective observer previously saw Washington as being an honest peace broker between the Palestinians and Israelis, it is now abundantly clear that Washington is unable to play this role.

Odds are good that Tehran will capitalise on Saudi Arabia's relatively cautious condemnation of Trump's decision to add momentum to the Iranian regime's narrative that Washington's GCC allies, chiefly Saudi Arabia, are indifferent to Jerusalem and the Palestinian issue at large. by

Although the Israeli government quickly embraced Trump and his approach to US foreign policy in the Middle East, the US presidents recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is costing Washington immensely throughout the greater Arab and Muslim world. It is doubtful that Saudi Arabia or other Gulf states allied with Washington will take actions against the US as a result of Trumps decision; however, angry elements within their own societies may react against the US and its interests in the region in the form of terrorism and other violent actions. Unquestionably, the US presidents move on Jerusalem will create new risks for all of Washingtons allies in the Middle East, as the decision will offer extremist groups a valuable opportunity to capitalise on anti-US sentiment and direct such anger towards regimes that are close to the US and non-confrontational towards Israel.

How will Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital affect the Arab worlds geopolitical order?

It seems likely that the perception of Russia being a more responsible superpower than the US will only grow among Arabs. Russias strong condemnation of Trumps decision will naturally sit well among Arab/Muslim governments and societies which are beginning to accept Moscow as an indispensable mediator in the region, and a pillar of a new security architecture, following Russias direct military intervention in Syria.

Iran, too, will likely stand to gain influence as a result of Trumps decision. Whereas Tehran has suffered in recent years from a perception among Sunni Arabs that Irans foreign policy is naturally sectarian, Trumps move offers the regime an opportunity to expand its soft-power influence among Arabs and Muslims of both sects, effectively weakening this perception of Iran being pro-Shia or anti-Sunni. Odds are good that Tehran will capitalise on Saudi Arabias relatively cautious condemnation of Trumps decision to add momentum to the Iranian regimes narrative that Washingtons GCC allies, chiefly Saudi Arabia, are indifferent to Jerusalem and the Palestinian issue at large.

Lastly, another way in which the US position on Jerusalem is likely to hinder Washingtons interests in the Middle East pertains to GCC-Israel relations. As the US has sought to promote more official relations between Tel Aviv and the six GCC members, the Arabian Peninsula sheikdoms  led by Bahrain  have recently signalled a growing interest in pursuing a partnership with Israel. Whether such a declaration of any official Saudi-Israeli alliance would have been possible without the establishment of a Palestinian state is unclear, yet it is unquestionably true that any hopes for such a development are far less realistic now that the Israeli occupation of Jerusalem and widespread outrage over Trumps endorsement of it have started to receive much more attention in the Arab world.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Canadian rights groups and legal experts renew calls to cancel a $12bn arms deal to kingdom over alleged rights abuses.

Pressure is mounting on the Canadian government over an historic $12bn-arms deal to Saudi Arabia, with legal experts and human rights watchdogs expressing outrage and calling for its cancellation.

Signed in 2014 by the previous government, which was then led by the Conservative Party, the deal is meant to send nearly $12bn (15bn Canadian dollars) worth of military vehicles to Saudi Arabia.

The light-armoured vehicles, known as LAVs, will reportedly be equipped with machine guns and anti-tank cannons.

The deal was described by the Harper government as the largest advanced manufacturing export win in the countrys history and has also been called Canadas biggest-ever arms deal by local media.

The current government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said it is bound by the deal.

But rights groups, as well as challenges against the government, have renewed fears that the Canadian equipment may be used by Saudi Arabia to carry out alleged human rights abuses in the kingdom and Yemen.

In 2016, Canada was named the second-largest exporter of defence equipment to the Middle East, according to Janes, a UK-based security and defence observer.

The same year, the Canadian government listed Saudi Arabia as the second-largest buyer of Canadian arms, after the US.

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In 2015, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched an air campaign in Yemen aimed at restoring President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who was overthrown after Houthi rebels seized the capital Sanaa.

Since then, more than 10,000 people  the majority of whom are civilians  have been killed and the war has pushed millions to the brink of famine.

In Qatif, located in Saudi Arabias eastern part, the government has sometimes engaged in a military crackdown on Shia Muslim civilians and fighters, which authorities say is aimed at quashing terrorists.

Alleged human rights violations

Human rights groups worry that Canadian arms are being used to quash dissent among Saudi Arabian civilians and carry out international law violations in Yemen, the Arab regions poorest country.

Watchdog groups, as well as the United Nations, have documented a number of human rights abuses allegedly carried by both sides of the conflict in Yemen.

In October, the UN added the Saudi-led coalition to a blacklist of child rights violators over its role in Yemen.

Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International  Canada, said his organisation is opposed to all weapons sales to Saudi Arabia that may facilitate that countrys violations of international law and human rights.

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Were very much opposed to the sale of the LAVs, and thats part of a wider, global position that Amnesty International has taken calling on all governments to prohibit arms transfers to Saudi Arabia that in any way stand the risk of being used in relation to the conflict in Yemen, Neve told Al Jazeera.

He said that despite Amnesty International being blocked from accessing Saudi Arabia, the reports of such violations are credible and concerning, adding that Canada should halt the deal unless there is a major and very significant change on the ground with respect to the conflict in Yemen.

Additionally, according to Human Rights Watch, Saudi forces reportedly surrounded the eastern town of Awamiya in the kingdoms Qatif region in a confrontation with armed fighters last July.

Images posted on social media and proliferated in media outlets showed widespread devastation, flattened homes and burned out vehicles.

Canadian media outlets later reported that Canadian-made armoured vehicles may have been used by Saudi forces in Awamiya after social media posts showed the alleged vehicles.

John Babcock, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, which is responsible for the countrys foreign affairs, explained that the minister of foreign affairs had requested an investigation into allegations of Saudi Arabias human rights abuses with Canadian-made military equipment.

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He added that no new export permits have been issued while the investigation is under way.

Canada has directly expressed its serious concerns to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to underline the importance of ensuring its security operations respect international human rights law, he told Al Jazeera by email.

We have engaged repeatedly with Saudi leaders and authorities on the protection of human rights.

History of the deal

Because the deal was announced in 2014 under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the current government, headed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus Liberal Party, claims it is bound to it.

We will be respecting that contract, Trudeau told reporters in April 2016.

It is important that people know that when they sign a deal with Canada  a change in government isnt going to lead to that contract being ripped up.

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The Liberal Partys Stephane Dion, who served as the foreign minister of Canada from early November 2015 through mid-January 2017, has characterised the trade as a done deal between the previous government and Saudi Arabia.

Well review the process by which these contracts are assessed in the future, Dion told CBC news in January 2016 after it was revealed that Saudi Arabia executed 47 prisoners, including prominent Shia leader Nimr al-Nimr.

But what is done is done, and the contract is not something well revisit.

In March 2016, Daniel Turp, a professor of constitutional and international law at the University of Montreal, filed an application for judicial review in the Federal Court of Canada to halt the issuance of any export permits. He argued they would breach Canadian export laws and the Geneva Conventions Act.

The following month, a secret memo signed by Dion and released by Canadas Department of Justice  in connection to Turps legal challenge  indicated that Dion approved six export permits valued at $9bn (11bn Canadian dollars), which reportedly constituted the majority of the arms deal.

Turp subsequently amended his legal challenge to convince the Federal Court that these permits should be cancelled, he told Al Jazeera.

The memos release revealed that minor level permits for the transaction were approved under the Conservative government, which left office in November 2015.

The six export permits  which did not specify the number of military vehicles slated for shipment  cover LAVs and associated weapon systems, spare parts and technical data, according to the memo published by The Globe and Mail.

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Following the memos release, Dion released a statement saying that Canadian companies have provided the Saudi government with similar military equipment since 1993, adding that Canadas best, and regularly updated, information indicates that Saudi Arabia has not misused the equipment to violate human rights.

One company, General Dynamics Land Systems  Canada, the manufacturer at the centre of the current deal with Saudi Arabia, has been previously granted export permits for nearly 3,000 LAVs to Saudi Arabia, beginning in the early 1990s.

Legal challenge

The Federal Court dismissed Turps challenge in January 2017, concluding that its role is not to pass moral judgment on the ministers decision to issue the export permits, according to court documents.

The court is of the opinion that [Dion] considered the relevant factors, the documents said.

Turp subsequently appealed the courts decision.

Last week, arguments in the case were heard by the Federal Court of Appeal.

Andre Lesperance, one of Turps lawyers, told Al Jazeera that a final ruling could take two months or more.

Additionally, after the videos emerged last summer appearing to show the deployment of Canadian-made vehicles in Saudi Arabias Qatif region, Turp sent a formal notice to Chrystia Freeland, the current minister of foreign affairs, and asked her to cancel the permits based on new evidence after The Globe and Mail first published the allegations.

In a way, Canada is seen as very hypocritical when it does promote human rights here and abroad, then it trades [arms and military equipment] with Saudi Arabia, Turp told Al Jazeera.

Freeland did not to respond to Turps request, and he filed a new case, in addition to the appeal, on September 27 in front of the Federal Court of Canada. Turp added that he is planning to go as far as the Supreme Court because of the importance of this case.

In by Daniel

with Saudi Arabia]

Since 1986, Canada has adopted measures that restrict the export of arms to countries with serious human rights violations unless it can be proven that there is no reasonable risk that they might be used against their own civilians.

Global Affairs Canadas spokesperson, Babcock, insisted that Canada is committed to the defence of human rights and condemns all human rights violations.

Neither the Saudi Embassy in Ottawa nor the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs replied to Al Jazeeras requests for a comment.

Job creation?

Shortly after the deals announcement in 2014, the government at the time, led by the Conservative Partys Stephen Harper, said that the contract would create and sustain over 3,000 jobs each year in Canada, over a 14-year period.

In 2016, however, Conservative Party members became increasingly vocal in their advocacy of cancelling the deal if human rights abuses were confirmed.

Ed Fast, Canadas former Conservative minister for international trade who announced the multi-billion dollar deal and previously led trade missions to Saudi Arabia, declined Al Jazeeras request for an interview.

Peggy Mason, president of the Rideau Institute and Canadas former ambassador for Disarmament to the United Nations, explained that Canadas guidelines forbid the country from exporting arms to countries where there is a reasonable risk of use against civilians.

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There were mountains of evidence at that stage [of the permits approval] that there was a reasonable risk [of human rights violations], she told Al Jazeera. So, in other words, theyve breached the guidelines.

Mason added: We have moved from misuse to serious human rights abuses  Whats that? We have to see someone mowed down with the LAV? Its extraordinary.

According to a poll, released in September by the Angus Reid Institute, more than 60 percent of Canadians believe their country should not sell arms to Saudi Arabia.

Arms treaty

Last year, Canada expressed its commitment to acceding to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), a UN agreement aimed at regulating the global arms trade with 92 state parties.

Canada faced heavy criticism under the Harper administration for being the only NATO and G7 member to refuse to sign on to the treaty as it came into force in late 2014.

In order to fully comply with the treaty, the current government vowed to introduce measures to comply with ATT requirements.

In April 2017, Foreign Minister Freeland introduced legislation, known as Bill C-47, in Parliament to enhance transparency and accountability in Canadas export controls.

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The bill is a proposed amendment to Canadas Export and Import Permits Act. It sets mandatory considerations for the minister of foreign affairs to take into account before issuing any export permits.

But defence policy advocate and human rights groups say the bill doesnt go far enough.

Last October, a report released by the Rideau Institute  a Canada-based foreign and defence policy advocacy and research group  said that Bill C-47 has numerous flaws and criticised it for not placing hard limits on how export permits are issued by the foreign minister.

Amnesty International, along with several Canadian civil society organisations, released a joint statement in October saying they cannot support Bill C-47 in its current form and called on the government to revise the bill to effectively ready Canada for full compliance with the ATT.

Speaking on the Saudi arms deal, Amnesty Canadas Neve said: there will be many of us who highlight that the [ATT and arms deal] dont coexist.

Its one more reason why Canada needs to do the right thing here and halt the deal.
UN calls for unimpeded aid delivery to war-torn Yemen as Saudi-led coalitions blockade of ports continues.

A senior UN official has called for parties involved in the war in Yemen to allow sustained and unimpeded humanitarian access for the millions of Yemenis facing famine and battling disease.

The lives of millions of people, including 8.4 million Yemenis who are a step away from famine, hinge on our ability to continue our operations and to provide health, safe water, shelter and nutrition support, Jamie McGoldrick, the UNs humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, said in a statement on Monday.

The call comes as the Saudi-led coalition continues a blockade of Yemen, which began in October after it shut down the countrys borders in response to a rebel missile that was shot down near the capital, Riyadh.

Amid mounting international pressure, Saudi Arabia began to allow some humanitarian aid to enter the country in the last week of November.

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Despite this easing, the situation in Yemen remains severe, according to McGoldrick.

The continuing blockade of ports is limiting supplies of fuel, food and medicines, dramatically increasing the number of vulnerable people who need help, he said.

The blockade was designed to cut off the alleged supply of weapons to Houthi rebels from Iran but has exacerbated what the UN has called the worlds worst humanitarian crisis.

Aid organisations in Yemen faced further difficulties when renewed violence broke out in the capital, Sanaa, after the killing of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh on December 4.

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Already the Arab worlds poorest country, Yemen collapsed into civil war following mass protests in 2011.

The conflict has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced three million, according to the UN.

Millions of Yemenis are struggling with hunger and disease, including the worst cholera epidemic on record, which has infected about one million people.

Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in neighbouring Yemen in March 2015 in an attempt to push back the Houthi rebels, who are said to be backed by Iran, and restore the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.
A senior member of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) has denounced US Vice President Mike Pence over his apparent regret that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas refused a meeting with him.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Hanan Ashrawi said on Monday that the US has made any peace talks between Israel and Palestine irrelevant and superfluous with its recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital.

The US administration has totally ripped apart the very legal foundation for peace in the region with their latest recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital, she said.

The Trump administration has destroyed every component of peace between Israel and the Palestinians. They sided with the Israeli occupiers.

Pence was due to meet Abbas in Bethlehem on December 19 as part of a regional tour, but the Palestinian leader withdrew after the controversial US move to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital last week.

Its unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region, Alyssa Farah, Pences press secretary, said in a statement on Sunday.

But the administration remains undeterred in its efforts to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians and our peace team remains hard at work putting together a plan.

The US decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem has drawn international condemnation and sparked a wave of protests. Palestinians view East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Pence will meet Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi during his visit to the region later this month, Farah confirmed.

Jibril Rajoub, a senior Fatah politician, said that Abbas would not meet the US vice president in a statement on December 7.

In the name of Fatah, I say that we will not welcome [US President Donald] Trumps deputy in the Palestinian territories, he said.

As protests continue over the US Jerusalem move, 157 people were injured on Sunday in confrontations with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

At least four Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the US declaration.
Social media users take to Twitter and decry Bahrain groups visit to Israel amid ongoing protests over Jerusalem.

Palestinians have refused a Bahraini delegation from entering Gaza after the group visited Israel amid ongoing controversy over the US decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem and recognise the city as Israels capital.

The interfaith This is Bahrain civil society group defended its visit to Israel on Monday, a day after its trip was reported, as a gesture of tolerance.

The 25-member group, which is on a five-day tour, includes Sunni and Shia Muslim leaders, Christians, the leader of a Hindu temple, and a Sikh.

It aims to visit Islamic, Christian, Jewish and other holy sites, the group said, according to a statement carried on Bahrains state news.

Ater widespread outrage, a coalition of various political factions condemned the groups attempt to visit the besieged Gaza Strip, home to two million Palestinians.

In a statement on Monday, the Palestinian National and Islamic Forces in Gaza said there was no place for those who normalise relations with Israel in Gaza  or any other place of the occupied Palestinian territories.

It added that the people of Gaza would prevent the delegation from entering the enclave.

Reports said the Palestinian Ministry of Education also refused to meet with This is Bahrain, and would not receive the delegation in the occupied West Bank or Gaza.

The #Bahrain_resists_normalisation hashtag was used across Twitter as people vented their frustrations.

The move comes after US President Donald Trump formally recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a declaration that has caused widespread anger across the Muslim world.

Jerusalem is home to Islams third holiest site and its status is deeply sensitive for Muslims.

Here are some social media reactions:

Hussein Youssef, a Bahraini journalist and blogger, said: This is Bahrain has carried out a number of activities supported by official figures in Bahrain, but its latest move of sending a delegation to Israel makes any affiliation with it a criminal act, and more.

If any of the groups members denounce the latest move, then they should immediately declare their withdrawal from it. Continuing to be a part of this organisation from now on will only mean endorsing its agenda, which does not represent the people of Bahrain.

 #    : #__.

        .                 Husain (@hussain_info) December 10, 2017

Basmah al-Qassab, a Bahraini blogger, said: I believe that the Zionist entity [Israel] is an unjust occupier. The delegations visit to occupied East Jerusalem is shameful and immoral, and its claim that it represents the Bahraini people is untrue and is insulting to the Bahraini people.

                "  "                     . #__    (@bqassab) December 10, 2017

Nazeeha Saeed, a dissident Bahraini journalist, said: This is Bahrain does not represent Bahrain!!! You call yourselves a multi-religious delegation  Do not use our nations name in your fake calls to peace and tolerance.

"  "   !!!       ..         # #__ https://t.co/1MHCSjsBMe  Nazeeha Saeed (@nazihasaeed) December 10, 2017

Raeda Sabt, a Bahraini social influencer, said: Bahrains support for the Palestinian cause is documented in history books, and we cannot accept people who seek to tarnish Bahrains reputation and discredit its history by normalisation [visiting Israel]  a move has greatly hurt us.

 #                                   

.

  . * pic.twitter.com/GcHqrESwlC    (@RaedaSabt) December 11, 2017

Twitter user Maitham Almosawi wrote: Shame and disgrace will haunt the group that gave up their dignity in the arms of the Zionist entity. And thank God for those who were able to shed light on the truth behind these fake people.

              #__                   S.Maitham Almosawi (@mmosaw1bh) December 10, 2017

User @SultanAlBahrain said most Bahrainis opposed the visit and believe Jerusalem belongs to Israel, regardless of Trumps sentiments.

Most of #Bahrain people are against the visit of group of few Bahraini's who visited #Israel recently and we are all against #POTUS statement that #Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. We all believe that Jerusalem belong to #Palestine no doubt! No matter @realDonaldTrump says.  M.I. Bahrain (@SultanAlBahrain) December 10, 2017

As Israel was dropping bombs on Gaza, and Palestinians were protesting Trumps Jerusalem declaration, King Hamad of Bahrain sends delegation to convey message of peace to Israel, user @chanadbh tweeted.
Greece is preparing a law that will make it easier for apartment blocks to install solar panels on their rooftops.

During its long depression, Greece has witnessed the fastest growth in solar energy use in the developed world, after Spain. This means that Greece will meet its emissions targets under the Paris Climate Change Accord.

Now the government wants to build on that success. It is preparing a law that will make it easier for apartment blocks to install solar panels on their rooftops.

Al Jazeeras John Psaropoulos reports from Lavrio.
Researchers at UCL fix a protein defect that causes devastating genetic disease Huntingtons in patients for first time.

An experimental drug has for the first time been shown to slow the progression of Huntingtons disease, giving hopes to patients suffering from the incurable disorder.

Scientists at UKs University College of London said on Monday that an early-stage trial found that the treatment had successfully lowered the levels of a toxic protein that causes the devastating genetic disease.

Sarah Tabrizi, a professor of clinical neurology who led the UCL research, called the ability of the drug, IONIS-HTT(Rx), to lower the mutant huntingtin protein ground-breaking.

The key now is to move quickly to a larger trial to test whether IONIS-HTT(Rx) slows disease progression, she said.

The Huntingtons Disease Society of America hailed the breakthrough as a historic moment in the fight against the illness.

What is Huntingtons disease?

Huntingtons is a disorder that causes irreversible damage to the brain, affecting patients movements, behaviour and ability to think clearly.





It is caused by an inherited defect in a single section of DNA called the huntingtin gene.

Most people with Huntingtons develop symptoms in their early 30s or 40s and die around 10 to 20 years after symptoms start.

There is currently no treatment to stop or reverse the disease, and existing medication can only help manage its symptoms.

Landmark trial

The UCL trial involved 46 patients from the UK, Germany and Canada.

They were each given four spinal injections of either the drug or a placebo.

UCL said the drug produced significant, dose-dependent lowering of the level of mutant huntingtin and marks the first time that the protein has been reduced in the nervous systems of patients.

IONIS-HTT(Rx) works by effectively silencing the defective huntingtin gene.

Professor John Hardy, an expert on diseases affecting the nervous system, told the BBC that the trial was potentially, the biggest breakthrough in neurodegenerative disease in the past 50 years.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, the company behind the drug, said in a statement on Monday that, following the trial, pharmaceutical giant Roche had exercised its right to license IONIS-HTT(Rx) at a cost of $45m.

The prevalence of the disease varies by ethnicity and geographical location. In Europe, it is estimated that about five to seven people in 100,000 are affected.

About 8,500 people in the UK have Huntingtons, while 30,000 people have it in the United States.
Filipino president says longer military rule is necessary in Mindanao region to contain ISIL and communist fighters.

Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte has asked Congress to extend martial law across the southern region of Mindanao by one year for total eradication of ISIL and communist fighters, according to the local media.

In a letter to legislators sent to media by his office on Monday, Duterte said that the move was necessary to contain an ongoing rebellion by supporters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS) and the communist terrorists (CTs) and their coddlers, supporters, and financiers.

I ask the Congress of the Philippines to further extend the proclamation of Martial Law and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in the whole of Mindanao for a period of one year from 01 January 2018, stated the letter, shared by Rappler, a local news publication.

Al Jazeeras Jamila Alindogan, reporting from the capital Manila, said legislators would meet today to discuss Dutertes proposal.

It will be off-limits to media. A decision is expected by Friday, she said.

Alindogan also said that many critics had voiced their opposition to martial law, citing abuses by the military.

Some fear that Duterte may be rehearsing a nationwide enforcement of strongman rule, she said.

Duterte initially imposed military rule across Mindanao in May. It was limited by the constitution to 60 days, but in July, a five-month extension was issued until December 31.

Hundreds of gunmen had rampaged through Marawi in what authorities said was part of a campaign to establish a Southeast Asian caliphate for ISIL.

A US and Chinese-backed military campaign took five months to defeat the group, with the conflict claiming more than 1,100 lives and leaving large parts of Marawi in ruins.

Although Duterte declared in October that Marawi had been liberated and military chiefs said most leaders of the group had been killed, authorities have continued to warn that others who escaped are regrouping and recruiting in Mindanao.
Turkish leader labels Israel a terrorist state after US recognises Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has labelled Israel a terrorist state, and declared the United States recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital null and void.

Erdogan said on Sunday that US President Donald Trumps decision on December 6 on the status of Jerusalem has no validity for Turkey.

Speaking at a meeting of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Sivas, Erdogan said Palestine has been under occupation since 1947, adding: Israel is an occupying state, a terrorist state.

Turkey will host an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Istanbul on December 13 to discuss Jerusalem, which is home to sites holy to Muslims, Jews and Christians.

Erdogan has threatened to cut diplomatic ties with Israel over the issue of Jerusalem, declaring the citys status a red line on December 4.

The US decision to move its embassy to the city from Tel Aviv has drawn international condemnation and sparked a wave of protests. Palestinians view East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Anger has spread from Asia, through the Middle East, to North Africa, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets to denounce the controversial move.

Responding to Erdogans criticism, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Turkish leader shouldnt preach to us.

He bombs Kurdish villages in Turkey, imprisons journalists  and helps terrorists attack innocents in Gaza and other places, he said.

Netanyahu, speaking in Paris on Sunday alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, told reporters: [Jerusalem] has been the capital of Israel for 3,000 years, [and] its been the capital of the Jewish state for 70 years.

Macron, however, warned that Trumps move is a threat to peace in the region.

Confrontations on Sunday between Israeli forces and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza left 157 people injured, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

At least four Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the US declaration.
More oversight on commercial spyware is needed, says author of new report on how Ethiopia allegedly spies on dissidents.

The government of Ethiopia has apparently employed spyware purchased from an Israeli defence contractor to spy on independent journalists and dissidents living outside of the country, a recent report has revealed.

Israels CyberBit Solutions Ltd sold spyware to Ethiopia, which used the technology to target activists and journalists, even PhD students and lawyers, explained Bill Marczak, a researcher at the University of Torontos Citizen Lab, which wrote the report.

CyberBit, a cybersecurity company headquartered in Tel Aviv, is a subsidiary of Elbit Systems, an Israeli defence contractor with ties to the Israeli military.

Marczak told Al Jazeera at least 43 people in 20 different countries  including the US, UK, Canada, Germany, and Eritrea  were infected over the course of about a year with the CyberBit spyware, known as the PC Surveillance System (PSS).

The attacks were apparently carried out by Ethiopia from 2016 until the present, the report found.

The pattern that weve seen is over the years the Ethiopian government [is] buying and acquiring this commercial spyware from pretty much all the companies it can  and employing that to essentially spy on the [Ethiopian] diaspora, said Marczak, who coauthored the Citizen Lab report.

The spyware

To infect the targeted computers, the operator of the spyware first sent an email asking activists and journalists to view a video on a website designed to impersonate popular Ethiopian and Eritrean video-sharing websites, Marczak explained.

Once someone clicked on the link, however, a message popped up saying their computers Flash Player was out of date.

A second link then would invite the user to download an updated version of the application, but used a fictitious application called Adobe PdfWriter. Thats when the spyware would be downloaded onto the victims computer.

The operator could then see every keystroke; take and save passwords; take over email accounts to target friends; view screens; turn on the computers microphone and webcam; and install or remove programmes, Marczak said.

Essentially, he noted, the operator would have the same sort of level of control that youd have as someone physically using the computer.

Not surprised

Jawar Mohammed, an Ethiopian journalist based in the US state of Minnesota, told Al Jazeera he received an email that appeared strange.

He didnt click on the link, but instead forwarded the email on to the IT department at his media group, which also said it was suspicious. Mohammed then contacted the Citizen Lab and they collaborated on the report into the spyware.

I was not surprised that they would go after us, but I was surprised that the companies that produce this spyware  are willing to sell it to dictators that will use it against activists, he said.

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Mohammed is the executive director of the Oromia Media Network, a non-profit that reports on issues that matter to the Oromo people, an ethnic group that lives primarily in Ethiopias Oromia region.

The Oromo, who number approximately 35 million and constitute Ethiopias largest ethnic group, have staged widespread protests since late 2015.

While the protests originally stemmed from their opposition to a development project that would have expanded the boundaries of the capital, Addis Ababa, it grew into a demand for equal rights and an end to systemic discrimination.

Hundreds of thousands of Oromo protested throughout Oromia and state security forces in Ethiopia have used excessive and lethal force against largely peaceful protests, according to Amnesty International.

At least 800 people were killed in the government crackdown, Human Rights Watch has estimated, while thousands more have been injured, arbitrarily arrested, and detained without charge or trial.

If the attempt to spy on his communications had been successful, Mohammed said his reporters and sources in Ethiopia could have become targets of government persecution.

The attack, he said, is a continuation of the governments effort to silence and shut down the Oromo voice, the Oromo peoples fight for justice and equality.

These companies [that produce and sell the spyware] need to ensure that governments that have a bad reputation for spying on individuals, do not get ahold of this kind of software, Mohammed continued.

They are endangering a large number of people who have committed no crime except speaking up against human rights violations. All these companies need to be held accountable.

Israeli connection

Cyberbit makes counter-surveillance and internet monitoring technology, according to Privacy International, a UK-based group that defends the right to privacy.

A spokesperson for the company said its products are regulated by the Israeli Ministry of Defense in accordance with the Israeli Defense Export Control Law and international treaties.

State entities that purchase these products are obligated to use them in accordance with the applicable law. Cyberbit Solutions does not operate the products, Hila Gabay told Al Jazeera in an email.

Cyberbit Solutions is subject to confidentiality obligations towards its customers and is not permitted to discuss any specific transaction or customer.

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On its website, Cyberbit lists Israeli bank Leumi, Samsung SDS (a Samsung subsidiary), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (which split off from Hewlett Packard in 2015), German science-and-technology firm IABG, and Regent University in the US state of Virginia among its strategic partners and customers.

Israel is home to the headquarters of 27 surveillance companies, making it among the top five countries worldwide alongside the United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany, according to a 2016 Privacy International report.

But Israel has the highest concentration of surveillance companies per capita, with 0.33 companies per 100,000 people, compared with 0.04 in the US and 0.16 in the UK, the report found.

Privacy International investigations have revealed that Israeli companies sold telephone and internet-monitoring technology to secret police in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, and to security forces in Colombia, Uganda and Trinidad and Tobago.

It is unclear how high a priority is placed on the consideration of human rights within decision-making in Israels government when it comes to licensing exports of strategic goods. A recent amendment to export licensing rules that would have put the consideration of human rights records into law was rejected by the foreign ministry, the group noted.

Lack of oversight

In a letter to the Citizen Lab, Adobe  whose PDF editing software was imitated in the spyware emails  said it has taken steps to swiftly address this issue, including but not limited to contacting Cyberbit and other relevant service providers.

The company called the issues raised by the research troubling and said it works to try to protect our users from the misuse and misrepresentation of our brands  especially where used to deceive others in downloading malicious software.

However, according to Marczak, the problem with the commercial spyware industry is it is not very well regulated in terms of export controls, or ways to hold companies accountable for a range of actions, whether its targeting people in an abusive way or  designing products to impersonate brands.

Spyware is becoming increasingly widespread, he added, and companies are showcasing their products at arms fairs and surveillance industry conventions around the world, among other places.

Marczak said he hoped bringing attention to how these surveillance technologies are being used will apply pressure on companies.

Certainly bringing this issue to the public attention over and over will hopefully push regulatory agencies to take a closer look here [and] push lawmakers to take a closer look here, he said.

Al Jazeeras request for comment from Ethiopias Government Communication Affairs Office was not immediately answered on Monday.
The European Union has rejected Benjamin Netanyahus call to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, saying the two-state solution remains the only path to resolving the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

Federica Mogherini, the EUs foreign policy chief, met Netanyahu on Monday in Brussels, the first visit by an Israeli prime minister to the European Union in 22 years.

The meeting came less than a week after the United States announced it would recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and move its embassy to the city, a contentious move that has led to widespread condemnation and deadly clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israeli soldiers.

You know where the European Union stands. We believe that the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both the state of Israel and the state of Palestine along the 1967 line, Mogherini said during a press conference with Netanyahu.

This is our consolidated position and we will continue to respect the international consensus on Jerusalem until the final status of the Holy City is resolved through direct negotiations between the parties, she said.

The Israeli prime minister, meanwhile, reaffirmed his support for Trumps Jerusalem decision.





Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel for the last 70 years. I think what President Trump has done is put facts squarely on the table, Netanyahu said.

Jerusalem is Israels capital. No one can deny. It doesnt obviate peace; it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, its the foundation of it.

New peace proposal

Netanyahu said the Trump administration is working to introduce a new peace proposal and called on countries to see what will be presented.

But the details of that plan appear to still be unclear.

Jean-Yves Le Drian, the foreign minister of France, said some kind of American initiative has been announced.

Weve been waiting for several months. If its not the case, then perhaps the European Union should take the initiative, but its too early to say, he said, according to The Associated Press.

During the press conference, Netanyahu said he expects all or most of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem and recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital.

But world leaders have roundly condemned US recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Many European leaders have said the move risks enflaming tension in the wider region while hindering prospects of a negotiated settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Mogherini also rejected the idea that EU member states would move their embassies to Jerusalem, saying on Monday this move will not come.
Officials say one man is in custody and three people suffered minor injuries after an explosion in central Manhattan.

At least one man is in custody after an explosion at a main transit station in central Manhattan in what New York City officials have called an attempt terrorist attack.

An NYPD spokesman told Al Jazeera that the explosion occurred early on Monday morning in the area of the Port Authority Bus Terminal, near 42nd Street and 8th Avenue, which is also close to Times Square.

According to officials at least four people, including the suspect, suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

The suspect, named by police as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, intentionally detonated an improvised low-tech explosive device that he was wearing, officials told reporters.

They added that the device was based on a pipe-bomb and affixed to his [the suspects] person with a combination of zip-ties and velcro.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters that this was an attempted terrorist attack.

He added that there are no additional known incidents at this time and there are no additional known activities.

We we will wait for a fuller investigation  but at this time we only know of one individual  who was unsuccessful in his aims.

Major transit hub

The New York Transit Authority had previously shut down parts of the transit system while they conducted security measures, but officials said the system is expected to be back to normal later in the day.

Al Jazeeras Kristen Saloomey, reporting from the scene, said the attack took place in a very busy area.

This is a major hub in Manhattan, almost every major subway goes through or near here, and it was in the subway tunnels that the suspect set off this explosive device, she said.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo told reporters that this is New York and the reality is we are a target of those who would like to make a statement against democracy and freedom.

Police did not comment on the suspects motive and said it would be conducting a full investigation into the explosion, which was also caught on CCTV.
Rigardu, a German monitoring group, has documented at least 857 instances of violence on Serbias borders with the EU.

Refugees and migrants attempting to cross from Serbia into neighbouring European Union countries have endured illegal deportations and widespread police violence, including beatings and electric shocks, according to a report by a watchdog group.

The findings by German monitor, Rigardu, paint a grim picture of systematic abuse on the borders of Serbia  which is not an EU country  and Hungary and Croatia, which are both members of the bloc.

The group said on Sunday it had documented at least 857 instances of people being subjected to violence, including kicking and dog bites, so far this year.

Of that total, 52 incidents involved minors.

Rigardu also recorded at least 110 cases of Hungarian and Croatian authorities carrying out illegal deportations to Serbia. There were also allegations of push-backs by Slovenian officers on the countrys border with Croatia.

Using photographic evidence and first-person testimonies, Rigardu has now launched an online database to document individual cases of violence and push-backs by EU countries forces along the so-called Balkan route.

The group said the actual number of such incidents is likely to be far higher since many cases of push-backs and police violence often go unreported.

Lazara Marinkovic, a Serbian journalist who has covered the refugee crisis for several years, said reports such as the one published by Rigardu are very common and the testimonies are consistent with the injuries she had observed on several occasions.

Most of the violent push-backs come from Croatian and Hungarian border police, she told Al Jazeera from Serbias capital, Belgrade.

Ive met a lot of people who showed me their phones had been broken and their injuries.

Next time, we will kill you

In one incident recorded by Rigardu, on November 4, six Afghan men were allegedly attacked and beaten by Croatian border guards.

When one of the men, whose name has been withheld, requested to apply for asylum, he was told by an officer, We dont need you people to come here, according to the testimony provided to the group.





On October 19, Croatian police officers apprehended four Afghan men crossing from Serbias Sid. After beating them and stealing their money, according to the account given to Rigardu, one of the officers allegedly shoved a tree branch into one of the mens mouth.

They shouted, Dont speak, go back to Serbia, the groups report said.

In another incident, on October 7, four Tunisians and a Moroccan were allegedly beaten and subjected to death threats by Croatian border police, said Rigardu.

The officers hit them with the handle of a baton and then beat them again after they had already crossed the border back into Serbia, the men said in their testimony.

F*ck you, go to Serbia, next time we [will] kill you, they claimed the officers told them while beating them.

Contacted by Al Jazeera, a Croatian police spokesperson said in an email that in the cases they have investigated, authorities have not found unprofessional or unlawful conduct of police officers toward migrants.

The police spokesperson added: The use of  force or bodily force is being analysed for each particular case, and the ministry [of interior] takes care that the police officers act in compliance with the legal use of police powers.

Speaking to Al Jazeera by email, the Hungarian governments international communications office said it utterly rejects the allegations, claiming they are once more seeking to discredit personnel on duty at the border.

The police are performing their duties lawfully, professionally and proportionately, and they place special emphasis on treating migrants humanely and with respect for their human dignity, the office said.

Migrants on Hungarys borders are not being harassed, and the significant numbers of unaccompanied minors who have been arriving are being provided with protection, health care and education, it added.

Hungary treats those in genuine need humanely, and those waiting on its borders or on its territory receive fair treatment. Migrants are also expected to abide by EU and Hungarian laws, however.

Speaking to Al Jazeera by email, a Slovenian police spokesperson said the claims come as a major surprise, adding that they are committed to maintaining high standards of professionalism and upholding human rights.

We are not aware of any such cases of push-backs and violence [by] the Slovenian police.

Horrifying practices

Lydia Gall, a Balkan region researcher for Human Rights Watch (HRW), explained that push-backs across the borders into Serbia are unlawful and are often accompanied by various levels of abuse and violence.





The practices have been going on for years, she told Al Jazeera. This has been flagged time and again to the European Union for several years now  and yet the European Commission has chosen not to act on this issue specifically, said Gall.

Last month, a six-year-old Afghan girl was fatally struck by a train after Croatian police officers allegedly forced her family to walk down the train tracks in the direction of Serbia.

In a statement later published online, the Croatian Ministry of Interior dismissed claims of responsibility. We emphasise that the conduct of the Croatian border police did not in any way cause the accident and death of the girl, it said.

HRWs Gall described the incident as a sad consequence of the unlawful and often inhumane practices carried out on EU borders with Serbia.

This poor girl and her poor family were victims of these horrifying practices as they pan out, she said.
As thousands rally in Beirut against Trumps Jerusalem move, Hassan Nasrallah vows to renew focus on Palestinian cause.

The leader of Lebanons Hezbollah has said his group and its allies in the region would renew their focus on the Palestinian cause after what he called their victories elsewhere in the region.

Hassan Nasrallah called on Hezbollahs allies on Monday to put in place a united strategy in the field to confront Israel.

His speech came as thousands of Hezbollah supporters demonstrated in Beirut, chanting Death to America! and Death to Israel! in protest against President Donald Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese Shia political bloc with a powerful military wing, has been fighting in Syria alongside regional allies to defeat both anti-government rebels and al-Qaeda linked fighters.

Protesters marched through Hezbollahs south Beirut bastion, carrying banners reading Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine and Jerusalem is Ours.

Nasrallah said he hoped the foolish [US] decision would mark the beginning of the end of Israel.

Days of protest

Al Jazeeras Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut on Monday, said Nasrallah asked Hezbollah supporters to continue protesting against the US move.

Nasrallah described Trumps decision as yet another aggression against the Palestinian cause whose aim was to strip Palestinians of their rights, she said.

Nasrallah had called for the demonstration last week after Trump made his announcement in a televised speech on December 6.

The move has been heavily denounced and has prompted days of protest across the Middle East and elsewhere.





Mondays rally came a day after a violent protest outside the US embassy in Beirut, where security forces fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters who pelted them with stones.

The demonstrators were barely hundreds of metres from the embassy.

Lebanon is home to over 450,000 Palestinian refugees, who make up nearly 10 percent of the countrys population.

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Many are the descendants of those who fled after the creation of Israel in 1948.

Our correspondent said Trumps decision has been a gift to Hezbollah, which had been drawing flak from its opponents for its intervention in Syrias conflict.

The battle-hardened Hezbollah fighters played a key role in turning the tide of Syrias war in favour of President Bashar al-Assad, a key Iran ally.

From the beginning, since Hezbollah was born three decades ago, Palestine has been central to their cause, Al Jazeeras Khodr said.

Up until a few years ago, Hezbollah was portrayed as a resistance movement.

But it lost a lot of popularity and legitimacy when it intervened in Syria, with its opponents accusing it of being a sectarian militia that is serving Irans interests.





Now Hezbollah is saying they have won against ISIL, that the war in Syria is winding down and they have to concentrate on their main cause, the Palestinian issue.

Hezbollah is believed to have a massive arsenal of rockets capable of hitting much of Israels territory.

Israel fought a war against Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006 that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 120 Israelis, most of them soldiers.

Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in 2000, ending a 22-year occupation, but the two countries remain technically at war and there have been occasional skirmishes on the border.
Deliberately vague response contradicted decades of solidarity with Palestine as an integral part of its foreign policy.

Indias two-sentence response to the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital last week elicited mixed reactions after New Delhi for decades strongly backed the Palestinian cause.

The static statement to a dynamic situation was described by some as muted, others as pragmatic, and still others alleging it imbibes the anti-Muslim right-wing consensus of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Indias position on Palestine is independent and consistent. It is shaped by our views and interests, and not determined by any third country, Raveesh Kumar, spokesman of Indias Ministry of External Affairs, said last Thursday.

But critics say this was deliberately vague and India should have posited a more vigorous reaction, considering the serious and retrograde effect of US President Donald Trumps Jerusalem announcement.

A more robust response would be to state Indias position upfront. In any case, it would call for a two-state solution with East Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state, Manoj Joshi, senior analyst at the Observer Research Foundation, told Al Jazeera.





In previous decades  with the centrist Congress Party in power  solidarity with Palestine was an integral part of Indias foreign policy.

Nivedita Menon, a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, said the governments lone comment has clearly reversed Indias stance on Palestine.

It is not surprising that India will now not say anything against Israel as there is a very close bond being built between the two. The current Indian governments closeness to Israel is also owing to the very clear Islamophobia of both the regimes. Thats very obvious. Its a coming together of Islamophobic regimes, Menon told Al Jazeera.

India has always expressed solidarity with Palestine. India has always opposed Israels occupation of Palestine. There has been a long history of that. The democratic people of India still support Palestine, but the Indian state has clearly marked a shift, she added.

The ruling BJP has fought most national and local elections on a Hindu nationalist agenda, with many party members accused of making anti-Muslim statements to polarise Hindu voters.

BJP legislator Subramaniam Swamy has also called on India to shift its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem like Trump pledged to do.

Palestinian cause

India-Israel ties have flourished since a ground-breaking trip by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July this year. Modis predecessors had kept Israel at arms length with New Delhi being a vocal supporter of the Palestinians.

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Modi, however, has spoken of his personal affinity for Israel and his visit to the country before he became prime minister. He pointedly missed visiting Ramallah this year, the seat of the Palestine Authority and a customary stop for visiting leaders trying to maintain a balance in political ties.

But Sreeram Chaulia, dean at the Jindal School of International Affairs, said Indias evolving ties with Israel are based on pragmatism.

I dont think the fact that we are increasing our strategic cooperation with Israel should in any way come at the expense of the Palestinians. Our cooperation is based on pragmatic mutual benefit, Chaulia told Al Jazeera.

We are independent, not influenced by outsiders. Similarly on this issue, we have an embassy of Palestine in Delhi. India is a major contributor to the Palestinian Authority and its institutions  If India was a major political player in the Middle East, we would have been forced to take a stand, but we are not.

India and Israel have deep military ties. In 2017, India signed two arms deals, spending $2.6bn on Israeli missile defence systems.

Economist Prabhat Patnaik said the decolonisation of Palestine is a precondition for world peace and in Indias interest.

Since an overwhelming number of countries in the world support Palestines decolonisation, by distancing itself from this goal, India is also distancing itself from these countries, he told Al Jazeera.

However, the Hindu right, which currently rules the country, wants to get closer to the US-Israel axis because of its ideological affinity  of a shared anti-Muslim attitude, Patnaik said.

Indias silence

Indias stated position on East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital has remained a part of official statements.

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On Monday, the foreign ministers of Russia, China, and India said in a joint statement in New Delhi that they continue to back an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through various UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, among initiatives.

But Indias relative silence after Trumps radical decision on Jerusalem could well mark a point of departure in the countrys moral support for the Palestinian cause.

Professor Menon said Indias solidarity with the Palestinians will for now have to be borne by ordinary citizens.

It will have to be non-state, people-to-people contacts for India-Palestine solidarity now. I dont see how any ethical stance can condone Israels occupation of Palestine. There is no ethical argument that can justify the occupation, Menon said.
Tens of thousands rally in Asian, Middle Eastern and North African cities protesting against Trumps Jerusalem decision.

A wave of anger against a US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital has spread from Asia, through the Middle East, to North Africa, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets to denounce the controversial move.

Protesters filled central avenues and squares in a number of major international cities on Sunday, waving the flag of Palestine and shouting slogans to express their solidarity with the Palestinians, who see East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

US President Donald Trumps announcement on Wednesday drew near-universal condemnation from world leaders and inflamed the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, with violence flaring up in the occupied Palestinian territories for a fifth day.

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, 157 people were injured on Sunday in confrontations with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza.

At least four Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the US declaration.

Clashes also erupted on Sunday at a protest in Beirut, where demonstrators fought with security forces outside the US embassy in the Lebanese capital.

Demonstrators set fires in the street, torched US and Israeli flags and threw stones at police officers, who responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Adnan Abdullah, a protester in Beirut, said Trumps Jerusalem decision will not happen as long as there are people like us.

Another demonstrator, whose face was hidden behind a black mask, held up a tear gas canister and condemned Lebanese forces for defending America.

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He went on to add, There is no one by our side. None of the Arab countries. Oh God, we will raise the Palestinian flag

Arab foreign ministers, in a resolution on Sunday, urged Trump to rescind the decision and have called for a UN Security Council condemnation of the shift in US policy.

Meanwhile, more than 5,000 Indonesians rallied outside the US embassy in Jakarta to vent their anger for a second day. Protesters carried Palestinian flags and banners saying Pray for Palestine.

We are not satisfied with just official statements, said Nurjannah Nurwani, one of the lead organisers of the gathering. We need follow-up, international lobbying which could pressure them into withdrawing their decision.

Another female protester in Jakarta urged Trump to use his brain and withdraw from Jerusalem.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has condemned Trumps decision. On Thursday, he ordered the US ambassador in Jakarta to be summoned over the move.

In Turkeys Istanbul, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets again, transforming the citys Yenikapi Square into a sea of Turkish and Palestinian flags.

I feel like I should defend Palestine because I dont know any other way to defend them, said Ananda Sereka, who was at the protest. So this is what I can do. This is the least I can do.





Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, one of the most vocal critics of Trumps move, has called the declaration null and void and vowed to fight it.

He has also called a summit of Islamic countries to discuss the move on Wednesday.

In Rabat, Moroccos capital, protesters yelled slurs against Trump and carried banners saying Jerusalem belonged to Palestine.

Al Jazeeras Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Rabat, said the protest was a show of solidarity with the Palestinian people but also an opportunity to express anger over Trumps decision.

The protesters came from all walks of life, he said. Government officials, members of the opposition, seculars and conservatives  all denouncing what they consider to be a decision that could destabilise the region.

Mohamed Boussaid, Moroccos finance minister, said the demonstration was a way to express our indignation and un-satisfaction and to show that we refuse completely the decision taken by the president of the US.

Protester Mohamed Alghram agreed.

We totally reject the decision that targets the most sacred place for us and we say no, he said. Jerusalem is a red line.

Jerusalem is home to Islams third holiest site and its status is deeply sensitive for Muslims.

In Indian-administered Kashmir, protesters took a different approach.

Residents of the capital Srinagar, home to 1.1 million people, closed their shops and abandoned the streets in protest. Salman Khan, a Srinagar resident, told the ANI news agency that Trumps decision was completely unjust.

Muslim solidarity with Palestine also spread to the war-torn nations of Yemen and Syria.

Further protests were held in Egypt, where students and professors demonstrated at the Al-Azhar University.

In Pakistans Karachi, hundreds of protesters marched towards the US Consulate in the city, but were turned back by riot police.
Since 1989, nearly 70,000 people have been killed in violence that separatist leaders say the United Nations has done too little to prevent.

As the world observes the UN-sponsored Human Rights Day, rights violations continue to be a major issue in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Since 1989, nearly 70,000 people have been killed in violence that separatist leaders say the UN has done too little to prevent.

For the past year, the remote, northern region was gripped by widespread protests, following the killing of a prominent rebel commander.

In the crackdown that followed, more than 100 protesters were killed, thousands were arrested and hundreds were blinded by police who shot at civilians with iron pellets.

Al Jazeeras Imtiaz Tyab reports.
Mikheil Saakashvili was re-arrested in Ukraine, four days after his supporters freed him from a police van.

Mikheil Saakashvili was re-arrested in Ukraine, four days after his supporters freed him from a police van.

The former President of Georgia has gone on hunger strike in a Ukrainian detention centre, according to his lawyer.

He says the charges against him are politically motivated.

Al Jazeeras Peter Sharp reports.
Israeli prime minister encourages EU states to move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognising it as Israels capital.

As protests spread from Asia, through the Middle East, to North Africa against the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Brussels, seeking the support of European ministers.

At a joint news conference with the EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, Netanyahu on Monday expressed his hope that all or most of the European states would move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognising it as the capital of Israel.

He was due to meet the EU ministers later in the day.

Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel for the last 70 years. [US] President [Donald] Trump has put facts squarely on the table, he said. Peace is based on reality, peace is based on recognising the reality.

He claimed that recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was making peace possible, despite the fact that Palestinians see East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Israel has extended its hand to peace to our Palestinian neighbours for a hundred years, well before there was a state of Israel and after it was established, he also said.

He also called UNs rejection of Jerusalem as an Israeli capital laughable.

There is now an effort under way to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance, he said.

Al Jazeeras Dominic Kane, reporting from Brussels, said that the majority of the EU ministers did not support the US move.

Netanyahu was received cordially, but behind closed doors, there is the feeling that the situation is not further forward in terms of Middle East peace effort than they were before.

There are some EU states like the Czech Republic and Hungary who say they will follow the example of the US, but the vast majority of them think that it should not be done right now. They think that the two-state solution is the way to go.

On her part, Mogherini said the EU would continue to respect the international consensus on Jerusalem.

We know where the European Union stands. We believe that the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both.

Reaction

Omar Shakir, Israel/Palestine director at the Human Rights Watch, told Al Jazeera that he did not anticipate that the EUs position would change.

The European position has been quite clear in terms of not recognising Israeli sovereignty over occupied territory and under international law, East Jerusalem is part of the West Bank and is occupied, he said.

Eliana Capretti, communication director at EuroMed Rights, told Al Jazeera that any discussions on a possible upgrade of relations between Israel and the EU would send a wrong message on the blocs interest and positions on Israel and Palestine.

Indeed, the meeting risks conveying a message of endorsement of Israels occupation policies. To avoid that, the EU should take this occasion to firmly denounce Israels human rights track record and clearly spell out its own position on the matter, she said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has concluded a whirlwind one-day regional tour with a stop in Turkey, where he joined his Turkish counterpart in criticising a US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Before landing in Ankara on Monday to meet Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Putin made an unscheduled visit to war-torn Syria, where he ordered Russian troops to start withdrawing, and Egypt, to hold planned talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

His lightning visit to the region highlighted Russias expanding ties with key players in the Middle East, analysts said.

It also came amid growing anger in the region and the Muslim world over US President Donald Trumps decision about declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel. The shift in US policy was also widely condemned by Washingtons allies.

Speaking alongside Erdogan after their meeting in the Turkish capital, Putin said Jerusalems status should be settled through direct talks between Palestinians and Israel.

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Both Russia and Turkey think the decision of the US to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is not helping the situation in the Middle East, he said during a press conference.

It is destabilising the region and wiping out the prospect of peace, added Putin.

Erdogan said he was pleased by Putins stand, and condemned Israel over the deaths of Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories as protests against Trumps plan continue for the sixth day there.

Palestinians see occupied East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (IOC) is scheduled to discuss the issue in Istanbul, Turkeys largest city, on Wednesday.

Erdogan said the summit would be a turning point on the crisis and Russia promised to send a representative.

Projecting power

Al Jazeeras Mohammed Adow, reporting from Ankara, said Putin has capitalised on the anti-Trump fervour in the region with his three-leg regional tour.

Marwan Karbalam, a Middle East analyst, also said Putins trip was aimed at projecting power in the Middle East by visiting two US allies  Egypt and Turkey  who have grown closer to Russia over the past couple of years.

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He tried to make use of the difficult relationship the US allies are having with their international patron in order to increase his influence, Karbalam told Al Jazeera.

Putin announced last week he will seek a new term in Russias upcoming presidential elections next year.

Yury Barmin, a fellow at the Russian International Affairs Council, said his tour was also a final step to convince the Russian public that Vladimir Putin is a strong leader and needs to be re-elected.

Putin and Erdogan also discussed strengthening economic and military ties, as well as developments in Syria.

Turkish and Russian officials will meet to finalise Turkeys purchase of S-400 missile systems from Moscow in the coming week, said Erdogan.

He went on to extoll closer relations between Turkey and Russia as important and meaningful for regional stability, adding that the two countries would work to find a lasting political solution to Syrias civil war.

Earlier in the day, while speaking to Russian troops at Syrias Khmeimim airbase, Putin had declared victory over terrorists in the country.

Other major developments from Putins regional tour included the signing of a $21bn deal between Russia and Egypt to build Cairos first nuclear power plant.
Rahul Gandhis elevation comes as the 132-year-old party struggles to challenge the political dominance of Modis BJP.

Rahul Gandhi has been elected as the new president of Indias main opposition Congress party.

His appointment, confirmed on Monday, will see Rahul take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi, who has been at the helm of the 132-year-old party since 1998.

There were no other contenders for the position, which Rahul will officially assume on December 16. He has been vice president of the party since 2013.

Congress new leader is the scion of Indias unofficial First Family, the Gandhis. He is the son, grandson and great-grandson of three former prime ministers: Rajiv Gandhi, Indira Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.

Five of his family members have previously headed Congress, formally known as the Indian National Congress, the oldest political party in the country.

Rahul has some big shoes to fill: Jawaharlal Nehru, the son of two-time Congress President Motilal Nehru, was one of the principal leaders, with Mahatma Gandhi, of Indias independence movement.

The Congress, founded in 1885, is credited with laying the foundation stone of a modern India.

The party has held power for most of the 70 years since India won its independence in 1947.

Foray into politics

Rahul made his first foray into politics in 2004, when he was elected to parliament from Amethi, a town in the northern Uttar Pradesh state known for being the constituency of the Nehru-Gandhi family since 1980.

Political opponents have accused the Congress of perpetuating dynastic rule. They say Rahuls rise has come at the cost of other deserving young leaders in the party.

But Jai Prakash, a Congress supporter from Amethi, disagrees.

What he has got is the political capital of his family as in any other family occupation. But dont forget, he is being tested by the people. Thats the rule of a democracy, Prakash told Al Jazeera.

His views are echoed by Mohan Kumaramangalam, who left a coveted job with Microsoft in the US to return to India to join politics, and is now a young Congress leader.

When I decided to join politics and follow my fathers footsteps, I went to meet Mr Gandhi. He told me to go to my state and first join the Youth Congress, work at the grassroots and contest party elections, Kumaramangalam told Al Jazeera.

Rahuls initial years in politics appeared to be marked by hesitancy. He often referred to the adage power is poison.

What he has got is the political capital of his family as in any other family occupation. But dont forget, he is being tested by the people. Thats the rule of a democracy. Jai Prakash

Congress party people took it upon them to protect the Prince, a senior Congress official told Al Jazeera, using a Rahul nickname often used derisively by his opponents, particularly Narendra Modi, Indias prime minister.

They tried to shield him from public interactions and engagements. In the process, they tried to make him a manager, not a leader.

Rahul took time to outgrow his initial nervous style and demonstrate the confidence to face the news media and the public.

But after being in politics for 13 years, he seems to have finally gained a firm footing.

He is no longer scared of making mistakes and is quick to own up when he does, say political observers.

His taking over the role of party chief also answers some of his critics, who said he held too much power without assuming responsibility.

Rahuls early years

Rahul Gandhi was born on June 19, 1970, and attended Doon School, one of Indias best known private schools.

He is studied economics at a US university. In 1995, he completed his M Phil in development studies from Trinity College, Cambridge, Jawaharlal Nehrus alma mater.

Rahul spent some time working in London before returning to work in Mumbai in 2002.

The childhood years of Rahul and his sister Priyanka  the grandchildren of Indira Gandhi  were spent away from the media glare.

For all my BJP friends: unlike Narendrabhai, I am human. We do make the odd mistake and thats what makes life interesting. Thanks for pointing it out and please do keep it coming, it really helps me improve. Love you all.  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) December 6, 2017

There are videos and photographs in which Rahul appears as a shy but inquisitive child living a comfortable and sheltered life.

Now 47 years old, Rahul cannot shy away from the news medias relentless demand for scrutiny of his life.

Saeed Naqvi, a veteran Indian journalist, says public speaking is Rahuls weakness.

When you meet him in person, he comes across as an intelligent man who is willing to listen. When it comes to public speaking, he comes a cropper, Naqvi told Al Jazeera.

However, public speaking is crucial for a politician, particularly when the Indian parliamentary form of politics is becoming more presidential in nature.

Much has been written about Rahuls gaffes during public speeches and his supposed aversion to playing dirty.

He is a very gentle and affable person. Sometimes I tell him that he is a bit too affable. In politics you have got to be affable but not overly so, says veteran Congress leader Kamal Nath, who has known Rahul since his childhood.

In recent months, palpable changes have been noticed in Rahuls political persona.

Through his Twitter account, he has used humour to attack his political rivals: from posting a viral video of his dog doing tricks, to using limericks to expose alleged wrongdoing by the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

To the surprise and shock of many, he swiftly sacked a senior Congress leader and a family loyalist, Mani Shankar Aiyar, for using a seemingly casteist slur against Modi, saying he will not allow the debasing of political discourse.

What happened in 2014 was that we removed a [wise] prime minister with a [clever] prime minister thinking it would yield good results, but things did not turn that way, says Jai Prakash.

If you see the state of the Indian economy, the rising unemployment levels, the crisis in agriculture, increasing incidents of farmer suicides, and a general collapse in law and order, civic amenities and welfare schemes both nationally and especially across all BJP governed states, the people have realised what they bought into were the false promises of the BJP, adds Sachin Pilot, a close associate of Rahul Gandhi and a member of the Congress young brigade.

Members of the Congress party are unequivocally supportive of Rahul, but the challenge he now faces is not from within.

He is supposed to rally his partys supporters to take on Modi, whose public approval numbers remain consistently high, three years after he steered the Hindu nationalist BJP to a sweeping parliamentary election victory.

The combination of Modis oratorical prowess and BJP chief Amit Shahs organisational skills has proved a difficult challenge for the opposition to overcome.

Kamal Nath, the veteran Congress leader, says India has had enough of clever speakers.

We need someone to listen to the people, to understand peoples problems and offer solutions to them, he says.

One man riding a high horse cannot solve the countrys problems. Its a collective effort. We need to empower everybody, not one person not almost everybody. But everybody. Rahul Gandhi

Rahul has a good track record of winning elections from the family stronghold of Amethi: he has retained his seat three times in a row.

However, his record of leading the Congress to victory in polls, including the 2014 general election, has been dismal to date.

Indian politics has evolved over the years from single-party rule to an era of coalitions and alliances.

Coalition politics continues to flourish despite the BJPs brute majority in parliament, so the expectation is that the new Congress leader will cobble together a winning alliance.

Rahul temperamentally is not suited for coalition politics, Rashid Kidwai, an Indian journalist who has written extensively about the Congress, told Al Jazeera.

He does not have the kind of patience shown by his mother, Sonia. There were many occasions where Sonia Gandhi swallowed her pride for coalition partners.

Alliance building

As Congress president, Sonia managed to win the support of political outfits of ideologies ranging from the left to the centre-right.

Rahul will be expected to do the same: to build and nurture alliances.

The fact that Rahuls political ideas are more aligned with the socialist vision of Nehru could help him broaden the social coalition for the Congress party.

Sonia Gandhis economic thinking was largely guided by [former prime minister] Manmohan Singh and [former finance minister] P Chidambaram. Rahul is much more independent minded. He is not anti-liberalisation or anti-free market but he thinks there is scope for left-of-centre economic policies, says Kidwai.

Like Nehru, Rahul is also smitten by the romance of the left, say analysts who point to his visits to New Delhis Jawaharlal Nehru University, a progressive academic stronghold.

He is never dismissive of anyone  neither senior leaders nor the younger ones, says Sushmita Dev, a young Congress leader who works closely with Rahul in New Delhi.

As the chief of an avowedly liberal party, Rahul will be tested not just on the basis of the soundness of his economic vision but also the depth of his commitment to Indias constitutional values, including that of secularism.

After visiting scores of Hindu temples, while campaigning during the forthcoming Gujarat elections, Rahul was criticised for allegedly promoting soft Hindutva  a milder version of the BJPs unabashed Hindu nationalist policy. The ruling BJP was quick to attack him.

BJP has always been seen as a pro-Hindutva party, so if an original is available why one would prefer a clone? Arun Jaitley, Indias finance minister and a senior BJP leader, said fully in jest.

The Congress party insists there is an important distinction.

There is a marked difference between those who go to temples and those who destroy mosques; between those who unite the society and those who work for breaking it, says Kamal Nath, referring to the BJPs role in demolishing the ancient Babri mosque in Ayodhya.
News agency investigation finds rape of Rohingya women by Myanmars security forces has been systematic and widespread.

The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmars security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press news agency found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively.

The women gave AP their names, but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Myanmars military.

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They ranged in age from 13 years old to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Myanmars Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September.

Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves.

The testimonies bolster the UNs contention that Myanmars armed forces are systematically employing rape as a calculated tool of terror aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people.

The Myanmar armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place.

Myanmar official mocks rape accusation

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When journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organised trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhines minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances  do you think they are that attractive to be raped?

Doctors and aid workers, however, say they are stunned at the sheer volume of rapes, and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) volunteers have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, a third of them under 18. The youngest was nine.

Each woman interviewed by the AP described attacks that involved groups of men, often coupled with other forms of extreme violence.

Every woman except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms, generally dark green or camouflage.

The lone woman who described her attackers as wearing plain clothes said her neighbours recognised them from the local military outpost.

Many women said the uniforms bore various patches featuring stars or, in a couple cases, arrows. Such patches represent the different units of Myanmars army.

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Though the scale of these attacks is new, the use of sexual violence by Myanmars security forces is not.

Before she became Myanmars civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi herself said Myanmars armed forces used rape as a weapon to intimidate ethnic nationalities.

Yet Suu Kyis government has not only failed to condemn the recent accounts of rape, it has dismissed the accounts as lies.

In December 2016, the government issued a press release disputing Rohingya womens reports of sexual assaults, accompanied by an image that said Fake Rape.

Victims account

The newlyweds were asleep in their home in western Myanmar in June when seven soldiers charged in.

The woman, a Rohingya Muslim who agreed to be identified by her first initial, F, knew enough to be terrified.

She knew the military had been attacking Rohingya villages, as part of what the United Nations has called ethnic cleansing in the mostly Buddhist nation.

She heard just days before that soldiers had killed her parents and that her brother was missing.

Now they had come for her. The men bound her husband with rope, and tied her scarf around his mouth. They yanked off her jewelry and tore off her clothes. They threw her to the floor.

And then, she says, the first soldier began to rape her.

She struggled against him, but four men held her down and beat her with sticks. Her husband finally wriggled the gag out of his mouth and screamed.

And then she watched as a soldier fired a bullet into the chest of the man she had married only one month before. Another soldier slit his throat.

Her mind grew fuzzy. When the soldiers were finished, they dragged her outside and set her bamboo house ablaze.

It would be two months before she realised her misery was far from over: She was pregnant.

More than three months after the men burst into Fs home, she was living with her neighbours  a couple and their five-year-old son. The timing of her rape left little doubt that the baby growing inside her belonged to one of the men who had caused all her grief.

She could only pray that things would not get worse. And then, one night in mid-September, they did.

The men broke down the door. There were five of them this time, F remembers. They slashed the boys throat, and killed the man.

Then they turned to the mans wife, and to F. And her nightmare began again.

They stripped off the womens clothes and threw them to the floor. Fs friend fought back, and the men beat her so viciously the skin on her thighs began to peel away.

But the fight had gone out of F. She felt her body go soft, felt the blood run between her legs as the first man forced himself on her, and then the second. Three men savaged her friend.

When it was over, the women lay on the floor for days.

Finally, F hauled herself to her feet, pulling her friend up with her. Hand in hand, the women stumbled to the next village, and then began the 10-day journey to Bangladesh.

Which is where F lives now, in a tiny bamboo shelter between two filthy latrines. And it is here that F prays her baby will be a boy  because this world is no place for a girl.

The child will be the only family F has left. For her, the most haunting reminder of the agony she endured also, somehow, represents her last chance at happiness.

Everybody has died, she says. I dont have anyone to care for me. If I give this baby away, what will I have left? There will be nothing to live for.
Bangladesh and Myanmar are working on a plan to send hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar.

Bangladesh and Myanmar are working on a plan to send hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar.

The UN and rights groups say the plan is flawed because it does not guarantee their protection when they return.

The UN says the root causes of persecution such as lack of citizenship must be addressed first or the Rohingya may suffer more violence.

Al Jazeeras Charles Stratford reports Kutupalong Refugee Camp, Bangladesh.
Analysts raise concerns over censorship as kingdom moves to end 35-year ban on theatres.

Saudi Arabia will lift a 35-year ban on cinemas and allow films to be screened as early as next year.

On Monday, the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information approved licences for those wishing to open cinemas in the kingdom.

Awwad bin Saleh al-Awwad, the Saudi culture minister, confirmed the report in a statement on Monday.

The content of the offers will be subject to censorship according to the media policy of the kingdom, he said.

Saudi Arabia placed a complete ban on cinemas in the early 1980s. The first cinemas are expected to open in March 2018.

Critics questioned whether Mondays move signalled a new era of free speech.

I dont think it ushers a new era for freedom of expression, Joseph Fahim, an Egyptian film critic and programmer, told Al Jazeera.





There have been several films made in Saudi [Arabia] before, and TV production is established in there.

There are concrete rules no Saudi filmmaker can transcend, namely anything related to the royal family.

The decision to reopen comes amid a series of reforms introduced by Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman as part of the governments Vision 2030 plan to revitalise and diversify Saudi Arabias oil-dependent economy.

Revenue windfall

According to the culture ministry, the government is looking to cash in on the film industry and expects a contribution of 90bn riyals ($24bn) to GDP and the creation of more than 30,000 permanent jobs by 2030.

Millions of people in the kingdom already have digital access to films through online-streaming services such as Netflix.

I think technology has essentially made the ban on movie theatres almost obsolete because Saudis can access whatever films they want to see on their mobile phones at any time of day, Jane Kinninmont, a senior research fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London, told Al Jazeera.

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Its not as though Saudis are not watching films already. All that will change is that they will get to go together in larger groups to watch films.

Since replacing his cousin Mohammed bin Nayef as the crown prince in June, Mohammed bin Salman has made a number of policy changes, including an announcement in September that women will gain the right to drive in 2018.

Where the governments PR has been quite successful is that by emphasising these social reforms and issues like womens driving, that is really improving the international reputation of the country without actually promising any kinds of reforms where political representation or human rights are concerned, said Kinninmont, of Chatham House.

Meanwhile, there are also fears that the Saudi move could alter the cinema landscape in the region.

It will affect the film industry in the region big time, said Fahim, the Egyptian film critic.

Many filmmakers will try to cater for the Saudi market, which could result in conservative filmmaking, similar to what happened in Egypt in the 1980s.

#SaudiMovieTitles

Shortly after the decision was made public, users on Twitter made the hashtag #SaudiMovieTitles trending by changing movie titles into a humorous Saudi version.

Harry Potter and the prisoner of Ritz-Carlton #SaudiMovieTitles  kriszta satori (@fulelo) December 11, 2017

Its Always Sunni in Philadelphia#SaudiMovieTitles  AwkwardMuslim (@AwkwardMuslim) December 11, 2017

Yemen in Black #SaudiMovieTitles  Detlef Guertler (@DetlefGuertler) December 11, 2017

https://twitter.com/aishagani/status/940187902260150272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The Saud of Music#SaudiMovieTitles  LBOpinions (@LBCycles) December 11, 2017

https://twitter.com/Elyas_FoodBae/status/940234250539995136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The decision to open a cinemas in Saudi Arabia comes three days before a male-only pop concert in Jeddah.

Algerian singer Cheb Khaled and US rapper Nelly are due to perform at the event.

The concert was announced last November and tickets were sold for $120.

Saudi women took to social media to air their displeasure with not being allowed to attend the concert.
Hundreds of supporters of Ukrainian opposition politician Mikheil Saakashvili have clashed with police in Kiev as a hearing was held on whether he should remain in custody.

Hundreds of supporters of Ukrainian opposition politician Mikheil Saakashvili have clashed with police in Kiev as a hearing was held on whether he should remain in custody.

The former Georgian president is accused of conspiring to topple Ukraines leader Petro Poroshenko.

Saakashvili alleged that political motives were behind the charges against him.

They are pursuing me for a very simple obvious reasons that we raised our voice against corruption. People are fed up; people are really fed up in Ukraine, he said.

Al Jazeeras Jonah Hull has more.
Three women who have accused Donald Trump of sexual assault are calling on US Congress to investigate the president.

Three women who have accused Donald Trump of sexual assault and misconduct are now calling on Congress to launch a bipartisan investigation into the US presidents alleged actions, saying a probe should go beyond partisan politics.

Samantha Holvey, Rachel Crooks and Jessica Leeds first came forward last year, detailing separate instances in which they say Trump sexually harassed and forcibly kissed and groped them before he became president.

This isnt a partisan issue. This is how women are treated every day, said Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, during a press conference in New York on Monday morning, where the women called for the independent investigation by Congress.

The standard that our president is setting, its not high enough right now, Holvey said.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Trump administration denied the womens claims.

These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last years campaign, and the American people voiced their judgment by delivering a decisive victory, the White House statement reads, according to The Washington Post.

The timing and absurdity of these false claims speak volumes, and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them.

Speaking to reporters later in the day, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the president has denied all the allegations.

This took place long before he was elected to be president and the people of this country, at a decisive election, supported President Trump, Sanders said.

We have a president who acknowledged on tape that he assaulted women. I would hope that he pays attention to what's going on and think about resigning.  Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) December 7, 2017

But the womens call for a formal investigation into the presidents actions comes as Senate Democrats have made their own push for Trump to resign over sexual assault allegations.

We have a president who acknowledged on tape that he assaulted women. I would hope that he pays attention to whats going on and thinks about resigning, Bernie Sanders wrote on Twitter last Thursday.

Nothing I could do

At least 16 women have come forward accusing Trump of sexual misconduct since he first launched his campaign for US president, according to the organisers of Mondays press conference.

Holvey was a contestant in the Miss USA pageant when she says Trump  who owned the pageant for nearly two decades  entered the backstage area unannounced as women were in various stages of undressing.

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She told CNN in October 2016 that Trump personally inspected each contestant individually and would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe.

As a little girl, I would watch the Miss USA pageant every year and dream of being one of those beautiful, successful, incredibly confident women. These dreams never included a man lining us up to look us over like pieces of meat, Holvey said on Monday.

Crooks was working as a receptionist at Trump Tower when she says Trump forcibly kissed her on the mouth.

I felt there was nothing I could do, Crooks said on Monday about the incident.

Leeds, meanwhile, said she was sitting next to Trump on a plane in the 1970s when he forcibly reached up her skirt. She said she managed to get away from him and get out of her seat, and then moved to the back of the plane, where she waited for all the other passengers to disembark before she could move.

That was the last time I wore a skirt travelling, Leeds said at the press conference.

She added that Trumps presidential victory last November absolutely destroyed her.

Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behaviour. But we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is, she said.

Trump has repeatedly called the accusations against him unfounded, however, and cast doubt on the motivations of his accusers.

He has more recently sought to discredit a 2005 recording, in which he can be heard bragging to Access Hollywood host Billy Bush about kissing and touching women in Hollywood.

You know Im automatically attracted to beautiful  I just start kissing them. Its like a magnet. Just kiss. I dont even wait, Trump said in the recording, which was released by the Washington Post and NBC News in 2016.

Trump apologised when the tape was first released.

When youre a star, they let you do it. You can do anything, he says in the recording. Grab them by the p****. You can do anything.

Trump unscathed

In recent weeks, many women have come forward across several industries to accuse men of sexual abuse, harassment, rape, and other unwanted sexual behaviour.

The slogan #MeToo has been used worldwide to show support for survivors of gender-based violence, and, last week, Time magazine named The Silence Breakers  the women who have spoken out about sexual harassment and assault  its Person of the Year for 2017.

Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, Democratic Congressman Al Franken, and other men in positions of power have resigned amid the allegations thus far.

But, according to Crooks, despite publicly sharing the details of her alleged assault at the hands of the now-president, her and other womens stories seem to fall on deaf ears and Trump has escaped [the allegations] unscathed.

She said she hoped Americans will hold Mr Trump to the same standard as Harvey Weinstein and others.

If they were willing to investigate Senator Franken, I think its only fair they do the same for Trump, she said, adding that how society views sexual harassment of women needs to change. We shouldnt let politicians get away with this, she said.

Support for inquiry

According to a recent Quinnipiac University poll, 70 percent of Americans believe Congress should investigate the Trump allegations. Another 73 percent of respondents said it was hypocritical for the president to criticise other men accused of sexual harassment.

The message to President Donald Trump on calling out offenders: People who live in glass houses, even if its the White House, shouldnt point fingers, said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the poll, in a statement.

Most Republicans have remained silent on the allegations against the president.

But Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations and one of the highest-ranking women in the Trump administration, recently spoke out, saying that women who have accused the president of sexual abuse should be heard.

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They should be heard and they should be dealt with. And I think we heard from them prior to the election. And I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up, Haley told CBSs Face the Nation on Sunday.

Cory Booker, a Democratic Senator from New Jersey, also recently told VICE that Trump should resign over the allegations.

I just watched Senator Al Franken do the honourable thing and resign from his office. My question is, why isnt Donald Trump doing the same thing  who has more serious allegations against him, with more women who have come forward, Booker is quoted as saying.
Since the loss of nearly 3,000 Americans on 9/11 and countless Islamic terrorist attacks since then, America has been subjected to an increasing Muslim population along with the growth of 3,000 mosques throughout our country, with the majority funded by Saudi Arabia. In the age of spineless and perilously non-judgmental multiculturalism, many Americans have not blinked at the sight of burkas and hijabs within our midst. Yet, if we continue to ignore the potential peril presented by a growing but largely unvetted Muslim population, we here in America will likely suffer the same fate as that of our Western European brethren, who are enduring a pulsating wave of violence stirred up in a cauldron of festering Islamic radicalism.

The question that begs to be answered is why we in the United States are importing a population whose religious tenets clearly call for jihad upon non-Muslims. Muslim apologists like to point out that not all Muslims commit violent or civilizational jihad, but that is irrelevant to the question of why we would even consider taking in a population raised with a religion the dogma of which in its literal form mandates our submission or death.

For the last 1,400 years, approximately 270 million people have been murdered in the name of Islam. This horrific outrage is not due to poverty, external oppression, or crusade. Islamic doctrine as recorded in the faith's holiest texts mandates jihad upon all infidels until all of mankind is under the dominion of Allah. Nearly 61% of Quranic doctrine consists of violent verses, which call for conquest against the non-believers. The following are just a few direct Quranic quotations to demonstrate the doctrinal view of Jews and Christians:

Quran 9.5 "Slay the idolators (non-believers) wherever ye find them, and take them captive, and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush."

Quran 2:193 "Fight them (non-Muslims) until there is no more discord and the religion of Allah reigns absolute."

Quran 8:12 "I shall cast terror into the hearts of those who are bent on denying the truth; strike then their necks, {O believers,} and strike off every one of their finger-tips!"

Is it prudent to extend a welcome mat to people whose culture was founded upon a canon of scripture replete with mandates to use violence against opponents?

For the first time in decades, anti-Semitism is undergoing a resurgence the United States. Why is this? Perhaps the vast influx into our country of Muslims, who read the Quran's inherently anti-Semitic messaging, has something to do with it.

Muslim antipathy against Jews has long predated the modern Arab-Israeli conflict. The root of Islamic anti-Semitism lies in the medieval doctrine emerging from the Hadith literature regarding Mohammad's conflict with the three Jewish tribes (Banu Nadir, Banu Qaynuqa, and Banu Qurayza) in Medina who rejected his message. As a consequence, Jews today are regarded as rebellious disbelievers who have earned Allah's wrath.

Although alarming, it was no surprise to those of us familiar with Quranic and Hadithic teachings to hear Imam Ammar Shahin rally his fellow Muslims to "kill all Jews" last July in the sleepy college town of Davis, California. Cries of outrage forced him to apologize, but what is the significance of his apology when he was just being true to Islam?

The following passages are from the Quran and Sahih al-Bukhari, a body of the Hadith literature second only to the Quran in its prominence as a source of religious law.

Quran 5:78-82 states: "Those among the Children of Israel who disbelieved were cursed by the tongue of Dawud (David and 'lssa (Jesus). That was because they disobeyed Allah and the Messengers and were ever transgressing beyond bounds. Evil indeed is that which their own selves have sent forward before them, for that reason Allah's Wrath fell upon them and in torment they will abide."

Bukhari Volume 4, Book 52, Number 176 states: "You Muslims will fight the Jews till some of the hide behind stones. The stones will betray them saying "O Abdullah (slave of Allah! There is a Jew hiding behind me; so kill him."

College campuses around the country, where Muslim students and professors are prominent, demonstrate the disastrous impact upon young Jews, whose campus security can no longer be taken for granted. At one time, the survival of Israel was a common concern among college students and within our halls of Congress. But with the ever growing and popular BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) movement, a pro-Israel agenda is no longer a given, and many young students instead support the creation of a revolutionary Palestinian state to take the place of Israel. The Democratic Party, once home to a strong pro-Israel agenda and solidarity with the American Jewish community, is now evenly divided between those who support the state of Israel and those who seek its destruction. The result is a direct correlation between the impact of Muslim immigration and the destructive impact the influx of Muslims has had upon Jews and Jewish survival. Jews have been here since America's founding and have greatly contributed to its success in all walks of life, but now the security Jews once enjoyed is under attack.

While Jews are viewed as the enemies of Islam, Christians are viewed as liars seeking to lead Muslims astray. The following passages from the Quran and Hadith further illustrate the point.

Quran 3:118-119 states: "O you who believe! Take not as your friends those outside your religion since they will not fail to do their best to corrupt you. They desire to corrupt you."

Bukhari Volume 2, Book 23, Number 414 states: "The Prophet in his fatal illness said, "Allah cursed Jews and Christians because they took the Prophets graves as places for praying."

Bukhari Volume 5, Book 59, Number 727 states: "When Allah's Apostle became seriously sick, he started covering his face with a woolen sheet. When he felt short of breath, he removed it, and said, 'That is so! Allah's curse be on Jews and Christians."

Europe is on its way to becoming an Islamist continent due to decades of Muslim immigration and a high Muslim birth rate. The face of Western civilization in Europe, with its rich cultural history and past, is being erased with an intolerant backward 7th-century ideology devoid of pluralism, equality, and tolerance. The adherents' mission, to eradicate Western civilization, is being conducted upon an unsuspecting population who no longer believe in their own civilization's worth and who seem incapable of understanding of the threat they face from Islam.

Hundreds of Muslim Brotherhood front groups operate on our soil with a mission to silence any criticism of Islam. They repeatedly cry "Islamophobia," a term created by the Muslim Brotherhood in their "Explanatory Memorandum and Strategic Outline for North America," as a wonderfully effective means of stifling criticism within our national media, where one has yet to see a critique of Islam and the threat it poses to Western civilization. It was reported earlier this month that Pakistani-American Muslim clerics were calling for restrictions to be placed upon non-Muslims at a forum with 100 participants held at a Holiday Inn in Springfield, Virginia. Yet not one major newspaper reported this story. It is only via the internet that we were able to gain this information.

Likewise, too many of our elected officials on both sides of the aisle have foolishly downplayed the threat Americans are facing from Islamic radicalism. The globalist elites are aware of the danger, yet they continue to favor an open door policy with no demand upon Muslims to abandon the doctrine of jihad from Quranic text. John McCain, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, and the like demonstrate a callous disregard for how imperiled our national survival is by their continuing support for an open-door policy regarding Muslim immigration.

It is past time for Americans to demand answers from Muslim Brotherhood front groups such as CAIR (Council for American-Islamic Relations), MPAC (Muslim Public Affairs Council), and ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) about their views and plans.

These organizations, among many others, claim to represent American Muslims. Too often, their defense has been to engage in taqiyya (an Islamic doctrine that permits deceit for the advancement of Islam). It is incumbent upon every American and members of Congress to demand these groups' unequivocal removal of the doctrine of jihad from their religious tenets. Nothing else should suffice! Our survival depends on it. Should they refuse, our only option to ensure our survival is to show them the exit door. Our message is plain and clear: erase the doctrine of jihad or get out!

Why are mosques that house the Quran permitted to operate on our soil when Quranic verses preached in mosques call for our demise? How many 9/11, Boston, and San Bernardino massacres must we endure before we stop the bleeding?

Shari Goodman, M.Ed. is an educator, political activist, public speaker, and journalist. She has written for American Thinker, World Net Daily, Israel Today, and various other publications.

John Steinreich has an M.A. in church history from Colorado Theological Seminary. He has authored two Christian-themed books available on Kindle: The Words of God?: The Bible, the Qur'an and How They Are Lived in the Post-9/11 World and A Great Cloud of Witnesses: Lessons for Modern Day Christians from Church History. His works are also on Lulu Press.
President Trumps enemies are escalating their comparisons of Special Counsel Robert Muellers investigation into alleged Russian collusion to the resignation of President Richard Nixon after Congressional hearings that set the stage for his impeachment 4  decades ago. Are these comparisons valid?

The answer is yes  and no. Notwithstanding the 45 years separating the two presidents, there are some major similarities and some obvious differences, as well.

I was a young student journalist in the nations capital during the Watergate investigations and impeachment period. Armed with an official D.C. Metropolitan Police press pass, I was able to cover and report on political events in Washington, D.C. like any accredited mainstream journalist  including on occasion the Nixon White House, and the Watergate hearings. With the energy of youth and an insatiable interest in politics and current events, I took full advantage of the access that the pass afforded me.

President Richard Nixon, The White House, June 29, 1972 Photo  Peter Barry Chowka

One similarity of the political climate then and now is that the left and much of the mainstream media began to oppose Richard M. Nixon as soon as he declared his candidacy on February 1, 1968. Same thing when Trump announced his intention to run in June 2015. Opposition to Trump was more vehement and increased exponentially as time went on. I dont recall any leading celebrities, for example, suggesting during Nixons presidency that he should be assassinated or have his head cut off.

Nixon, however, was criticized and caricatured by leading MSM commentators and political cartoonists alike, as he had been since he burst onto the national scene in the early 1950s. Tricky Dick, a label slapped on Nixon by his Democrat opponent in the 1950 race for the U.S. Senate in California, was the most commonly used sobriquet. Cartoonists emphasized Nixons prominent nose and dark eyebrows to give him a sinister and devious look.

Detail of anti-Nixon cartoon circa 1970

The left, which was well organized, extremely influential, and highly visible in the late 1960s and early 70s, hated Nixon and routinely attacked him, especially in the large, frequent anti-Vietnam War demonstrations that took place around the country in the sixties and into the next decade. One of them in Washington, D.C., in October 1971, was titled Evict Nixon. The events organizers, including Chicago 7 defendant and leftist superstar agitator Rennie Davis, predicted that hundreds of thousands of demonstrators would descend on the nations capital and march to the White House to physically evict Nixon. The demonstration was a bust when only a few hundred people showed up, their numbers dwarfed by government security forces. In a flashback to that era, demonstrations of various sizes and intensities today continue to target Trump.

Evict Nixon button 1971

Evict Nixon demonstration poster 1971

Similarly, Donald J. Trump has been widely mocked and dismissed  not only by the left and the press, but by many members of his own Republican Party  after he declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president. The criticism of Trump has escalated since he was elected and took office, on a scale never seen before in modern times. Although the attacks on Trump are more intense than the ones lobbed at Nixon decades ago, the similarity is that both men have been subjected to frequent and sustained attacks by their enemies. The result has been a cumulative weakening of support for President Trump, evident in his falling approval numbers according to recent public opinion polls.

Anti-Trump Political Cartoon

A major difference then vs. now involves the nature of the political climate and the demographic makeup of the country in the early 1970s compared with today. While the left made a lot of noise 4  decades ago, the country as a whole back then was more homogeneous and center right and far less polarized (except among the youth). It had taken a sharp, temporary left turn in 1964 with the election of Lyndon Baines Johnson to his first full term as president, but that was due to a number of anomalous factors. President John F. Kennedy had been assassinated less than a year before the 1964 election, and by the time the 1964 presidential campaign got underway only months after JFKs death, the nation was still in shock. Johnson reassured the nervous and unnerved electorate, promising stability and continuity.

The defining line from Johnsons first address to the Congress and the nation on November 27, 1963, only five days after JFKs assassination, led to it becoming known as the Let Us Continue address. Partisan presidential politics in this milieu came across as unseemly. Meanwhile, the 1964 Democratic National Convention that nominated LBJ resembled a four-day memorial service for the slain president, complete with a spontaneous 22-minute-long emotional ovation for Robert F. Kennedy when he took to the podium on the convention's closing night.

From the outset of his accidental presidency, Johnson pretended to be a moderate Democrat when in reality he had transformed himself from a back-slapping, good ol boy icon of the conservative South to a big government ultra-liberal statist. In his push for a War on Poverty, Medicare, and civil rights legislation after he was sworn in on January 20, 1965 for his first elected term, Johnson finally started to show his true colors. He thought that by championing civil rights and poverty programs more passionately than his predecessor JFK, he would go down in history as a modern day Abraham Lincoln. But instead of finishing the job that Lincoln started but was never able to complete, Lyndon Johnson  in one of the greatest miscalculations of all time  only made it worse by advocating and institutionalizing an endless number of expensive new government programs that in reality compounded the problems facing African-Americans.

Johnsons Republican opponent in 1964, Arizona Sen. Barry M. Goldwater, the leading conservative voice in the country, was anathema to mainstream Democrats and Republicans and the powerful East Coast Establishment. Goldwater was demeaned and lied about in 1964, including in MSM stories that were demonstrably fake. With ongoing help from the media, Johnson won the 64 election in a landslide. His subsequent mishandling of the Vietnam War during the next three years, however, helped to destroy his presidency.

Having lost two previous elections  for president in 1960 and California governor in 1962  Richard Nixon in 1968 laid the groundwork for a remarkable comeback after remaking himself as the New Nixon. With his cadre of fresh expert advisors, Nixon skillfully used the television medium, which had not been kind to him in his campaign against JFK in 1960, to his advantage. Nixon in 1968 was actually more telegenic than his opponent, the frumpy old school Vice President, Hubert H. Humphrey, who was additionally saddled with the tarnished legacy of the Johnson Administration that he had loyally served and defended.

New Nixon campaign poster 1968

After Nixon assumed power in January 1969, the Silent Majority, as his administration termed it  defined as mainstream, traditional center right Americans emerged as the dominant political force in the country, notwithstanding all the noise and periodic demonstrations and street violence from the left. Proof positive of this fact was Nixons landslide victory in November 1972 against his Democrat opponent, the progressive anti-war candidate Sen. George S. McGovern. Nixon ran as a moderate center right incumbent. The result was that McGovern won the popular vote in only one state, Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia.

Another similarity between then and now involves the role of the media in the unraveling of the Nixon presidency and the attempt to do the same for President Trump. After the bungled Watergate break-in  the attempted bugging of Democratic Party headquarters on June 17, 1972 by Republican operatives  it was a slow but inexorable drip, drip, drip of damaging information until the Nixon regime was eventually taken down. Unlike the totally hostile media climate facing Trump since day one, with every new story positioned as his coup de grace, the media was initially slow to advance the story of the Watergate scandal. The Washington Post, whose editor, loyal Democrat Ben Bradlee was one of JFKs best friends, initially spearheaded the coverage and made superstars of its two crusading metro section reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein. Eventually, the rest of the MSM caught up with the Posts preoccupation with Watergate, and it was only a matter of time before Nixons support was whittled away and he was made ripe for impeachment efforts at the hands of the Democrat opposition, which controlled both houses of the Congress.

Ultimately, Nixon handed his enemies a smoking gun: the secret tapes he had recorded of his interactions in the White House and on the telephone with his aides over a period of years. Nixon was heard in his own voice on the recordings suborning perjury and obstructing justice. It remains to be seen if the ever-escalating myopic concentration of the MSM on Trump and his supposed crimes, with purported obstruction of justice now being run up the flagpole, will bear similar fruit.

After the failure of a year of the Russia collusion narrative to produce a viable Nixon-like smoking gun to implicate Trump, his enemies are now proffering several new narratives, currently centering around obstruction of justice involving the POTUS.

President Donald J. Trump

Where this is all going remains to be seen. Where it will wind up cannot be predicted. Anyone among the commentariat who claims that she can predict the ultimate outcome is lying or spinning a political meme. It seems that we are not even to the mid-point of the relentless and growing attempt to remove President Trump from office, one way or the other. The lefts unstinting dedication to the success of this resistance scenario (the left today encompasses almost every major element of American society) is similar to the one that took Nixon from a historic electoral victory and high approval ratings in November 1972 to his certain impeachment in the House of Representatives and an ignominious resignation from the presidency less than two years later.

Peter Barry Chowka is a veteran reporter and analyst of news on national politics, media, and popular culture. Follow Peter on Twitter @pchowka.
In 1990, when liberal journalists still had some sense of obligation to the truth, Michael Kelly wrote the following for GQ:

As [Carla] Gaviglio enters the room, the six-foot-two, 225-plus-pound [Sen. Ted] Kennedy grabs the five-foot-three, 103-pound waitress and throws her on the table. She lands on her back, scattering crystal, plates and cutlery and the lit candles. Several glasses and a crystal candlestick are broken. Kennedy then picks her up from the table and throws her on [Sen. Chris] Dodd, who is sprawled in a chair. With Gaviglio on Dodd's lap, Kennedy jumps on top and begins rubbing his genital area against hers, supporting his weight on the arms of the chair. As he is doing this, Loh enters the room. She and Gaviglio both scream, drawing one or two dishwashers. Startled, Kennedy leaps up. He laughs. Bruised, shaken and angry over what she considered a sexual assault, Gaviglio runs from the room.

The incident above took place in 1985 at the restaurant La Brasserie in Washington, D.C., where Loh and Gavigilio both worked as waitresses. Everyone in Washington knew about it, including Sen. Claire McCaskill. Here is what McCaskill had to say about Kennedy's behavior upon his death in 2009:

This man was so much more than his image. While his vision soared, the power of his personality and the magnet of his intellect drew his colleagues to the table of compromise. It was there he did his best work. His love for the little guy and his affection for the underdog influenced everything he did. And importantly, his sense of humor and contagious laughter made him real and approachable in spite of his power and privilege.

Although more than enough to kill a Republican's career, the infamous "waitress sandwich" barely made Kennedy's highlight reel. For sheer moral squalor, it was hard to top Chappaquiddick. This 1969 incident is well enough known; in brief, Kennedy hosted a drunken party at an isolated beach house whose guests included exactly six married men and six single women.

Late that night, Kennedy and one of the women, Mary Jo Kopechne, left for their own private party at an equally isolated beach but never made it. The car went off a small bridge. Ted Kennedy left Mary Jo alive, trapped in the car and gasping for air. He bypassed homes near the bridge, from which he could have called the police, and walked over a mile back to the party house. Once there, he sought out his lawyer friends, Joe Gargan and Paul Markham, to help him work out his alibi. Compromised by a presumed lawyer-client relationship, they had to wait for Kennedy to call for help. Kennedy never did. He may have been hoping that Gargan, the family fixer, would take the rap. Mary Jo, meanwhile, struggled to survive for perhaps an hour, even more, before suffocating.

Sen. Patty Murray of Washington was eighteen when Kennedy let Mary Jo Kopechne die. Said she in her tribute to Kennedy, "When I was young Ted Kennedy was larger than life." Murray continues with a straight face, "Ted never once stopped fighting for those who couldn't fight for themselves." Ms. Kopechne might beg to differ.

Although Ted was never tried for rape, his nephew, William Kennedy Smith, was. On Good Friday 1991, Kennedy took Smith and his son Patrick out for a long night of drinking. What better way for a Catholic to honor Good Friday? The young men brought two young women home with them. Hoping perhaps for his share of the action, a drunken Ted Kennedy, nearly 60 now, wandered without pants into the room where everyone gathered.

"I got totally weirded out," said one of the women. She stood up and told the others, "I'm out of here. I'm leaving." The fleeing guest left behind Patricia Bowman, the woman who would accuse Smith of rape. Smith would be acquitted. Ted Kennedy cheered. He believed Anita Hill two months earlier, but he chose not to believe Bowman. "It's the acquittal that money can buy," said Bowman afterwards. Reported rapes were said to have dropped 40 percent in that part of Florida after the trial. No one wanted to go through with what Bowman had.

"Twenty years after I first met him, I was elected as a U.S. Senator from Maryland," said Maryland's Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Kennedy. "I was just one of two women Senators and the first Democratic woman elected to the Senate in her own right. Though I was all by myself, I was never alone. Maryland's senior Senator Paul Sarbanes and Senator Kennedy were what I call my 'Sir Galahads.'"

After just thirty years in the Senate, Mikulski stepped down last year. McCaskill and Murray, however, may get to decide the fate of Alabama's Roy Moore should he get elected to the U.S Senate. They do not believe that Moore lives up to their standards. Without benefit of due process, McCaskill declared him "not fit" to serve in the same Senate as Sir Galahad Ted Kennedy.

Say what one will about Roy Moore, but unlike Kennedy, he did not make a career of debauchery, and no one ever drowned in his car.
Last summer, my essay for Dissident Prof prompted a challenge from Julie Ponzi, who suggested I write a brief essay with proposals of what to change about academia. I waited several months, and now I have my proposals. I mentioned most of these in Wackos Thugs & Perverts: Clintonian Decadence in Academia, which I published with MassResistance in February 2017. They are also in earlier writings such as Colorful Conservative.

My plan involves a sixfold apocalypse. Yes, apocalypse.

The best starting point is total depravity. Higher education as we know it is indefensible. It presumes a false model of human development. People between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two cannot be trusted moving to a campus away from their parents, protected from any real consequences for stupid decisions, and taught random concepts by a professoriate anesthetized by the tenure system.

In reality, these four years of human development should be spent in conditions closer to basic combat training: they need physical regimentation. Swift punishments must impress upon them the costs of behaving foolishly. Their sexuality needs to be heavily circumscribed. Between eighteen and twenty-two, women need to be closely protected from rape. Men need guidance to transform themselves from impulsive sex maniacs into responsible providers and decent fathers.

The wasteful use of young adulthood for 40% of the American adult population is catastrophic. Overpriced tuitions force a large chunk of family savings into an inefficient economic sector ("higher education"), meaning that their money cannot go into productive industries. Youths are not being trained for citizenship. Instead of courting, marrying, and starting families in their prime, they accustom themselves to promiscuity, irresponsible thrills, and single lives burdened with debt. They have late  and few  children, whom they are ill equipped to raise.

In certain contexts, it is wise to burn the edges of a dry forest rather than let a wildfire rage at a time and in a manner out of our control. I suggest the following concrete steps, via congressional action.

Cut all federal financial favors to colleges that do not adhere to a strict, revised standard for higher education and its obligation to the public good. By "favors," we mean direct subsidies plus tax exemptions and deductions (such as on endowments, gifts, and waivers), as well as any backing of student loans at rates below market interest. These remaining favors would all hinge upon their suitability to "the public good." Accreditation for new programs must be streamlined. They must favor all of society rather than one institution, one individual, or one class of people. Here would be the conditions:

1. An associate's degree or certificate precedes a bachelor's degree. In other words, nobody can enroll in a liberal arts program without first doing one to two years learning a practical trade. By "trade" we mean plumbing, bookkeeping, culinary arts, sewing, computer repair, etc. I count church ministries in this, which would cover seminaries.

2. No non-religious post-secondary institution should have any department or program that excludes a political perspective. There should not be feminist studies, queer studies, ethnic studies, or sustainability studies. Title IX went haywire because gender studies faculty acted as investigators and faculty simultaneously  an example of how an entire campus is damaged by the existence of these departments. Such material should be taught within generally accepted disciplines like English, biology, political science, etc.

3. Congress needs to earmark funds for a unit under the Department of Justice devoted to an academic version of RICO (the Racketeering, Influencing & Corrupt Organizations Act). An institution claiming to be for the public good should not strive to influence an election  especially with the potential to profit financially from the favors of the elected officials. For instance, the dean who took many adverse actions against me was part of the Clinton Global Initiative. This is a serious conflict of interest and should be investigated.

4. Congress needs to earmark funds for a unit under the Department of Labor to review schools that receive federal favors. The peer review, publishing, retention, and promotion system within higher education is arguably the worst of any industry. Schools that receive federal favors should not violate basic transparency and fairness standards.

5. No schools that receive federal funding should have tenure. Tenure does not protect academic freedom. Tenured faculty know they will be parked in the same institution for decades and are by far the people least willing to jeopardize collegial relationships in order to take a stand. The tenure system can exist only on the backs of adjunct labor, whose conditions are atrocious. Tenured faculty waste resources teaching few students and spending too much time on "research." Their "service" refers to busywork on committees nobody needs. Nobody should be a professor if he cannot carry out research and teach a normal load of four classes per semester. So colleges choose: eliminate tenure or lose funds.

6. Colleges that charge expensive tuitions should be deprived of federal favors. They should be taxed at the rates we apply to any rich corporation. Many schools simultaneously charge high tuitions, have huge endowments, and then get large grants, all the while maintaining a tiny rank of tenured faculty and loading up their classrooms with adjuncts. This has to stop. It hurts learning and scholarship. There must be a massive trimming of school budgets. Personally, I contend that there should be no dormitories, student associations, duplicative student services, investigative offices, compliance officers, cultural programs, or anything that adds to tuition or fees. Colleges should be buildings where people come to take classes and study, then go back to their communities where they continue their emotional development with the help of their families, churches, jobs, and neighborhood friends.

Could these six ideas ever come to pass? Yes! They will come to pass, but in one of two ways. Either we carry out the bloodletting under careful, clean conditions or else, when academia crashes, wow, will it crash.
Is it Stand-Next-To-A-Jew-At-Your-Own-Risk Day again already? Gosh, where does the time go?

Here's a brief synopsis of recent events:

The United States Government officially recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel;

Muslim mobs in Sweden begin (aka resume) firebombing synagogues in Swedish cities.

If this sequence of events seems more like a non sequitur than a genuine "sequence" -- which ought to imply recognizable causal relations -- then congratulations, you are still rational in the traditional sense.

If this sequence of events seems totally causal and self-explanatory to you, then you have mastered the kind of asymmetrical logic that progressives use to rationalize absolutely any attack on Jews, Americans, conservatives, Christians, or pretty much anyone who is regarded as an obstacle to the ultimate progressive goal of crushing every last remnant of so-called Western civilization, including, ultimately, the traditional form of rationality cited above.

Apart from the obvious similarity of anti-Western intent, this asymmetrical logic is, we must conclude, the specific point of symbiosis between those superficially strange bedfellows, progressivism (aka neo-Marxism) and Islamism.

To punctuate the symbiosis, allow me to cite two particularly pertinent observations from Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the Somali-born activist against Islam's repression of women who is almost uniformly ignored or reviled by hardcore feminists, who, being neo-Marxists, would happily sacrifice five hundred million women to the cause of defeating the West.

Wishful thinking about the peaceful tolerance of Islam cannot interpret away this reality: hands are still cut off, women still stoned and enslaved, just as the Prophet Muhammad decided centuries ago. I found myself thinking that the Quran is not a holy document. It is a historical record, written by humans. It is one version of events, as perceived by the men who wrote it 150 years after the Prophet Muhammad died. And it is a very tribal and Arab version of events. It spreads a culture that is brutal, bigoted, fixated on controlling women, and harsh in war.

I submit that if you turned these incisive criticisms over and examined them from the reverse angle, you would see that they apply equally well to progressivism itself. A "culture" or intellectual position that is responsible for tens of millions of violent deaths and hundreds of millions of oppressed souls cannot be vindicated or justified with the claim that it is an "anti-war" philosophy which promotes equality and justice.

Progressives welcome and deliver apologias for Islamists not merely because they see Islam as a useful tool in the fight against Western liberty -- though they certainly see that too -- but because deep down they share a lot of underlying principles: intolerance of, and a desire to wipe out, dissenters and the noncompliant; brutality toward the individual human being, his family, and his property; bigotry against all religious or other moral views which emphasize the value of individual life, the personal soul, and the quest for earthly freedom; the desire to control humans, repress their natural inclinations, and distort them into slavish shapes useful to the chosen elite; and the harshness of revolutionary radicals in imposing their anti-human will upon the general population, popular agreement or consent be damned.

This fundamental symbiosis, all superficial disagreements and unruliness aside, explains how the formerly free world arrived at its present suicidal condition with regard to Islam. The progressive West has let this beast out of its cage, and is now reaping the rewards. The reaping will continue, more or less unabated, for the foreseeable future. Jerusalem is not the real issue, and never was. It is merely handy rationalization number three hundred and twenty-seven.

The real issues are hatred, irrationalism, and intolerance. These are traits that Islam (but no, of course not every individual Muslim) shares in common with progressivism. These are two religions that aggrandize the collective, denigrate the individual, demand complete submission to illiberal rules and postulates, and impose self-immolation and the rejection of one's own dignity as basic principles of "social justice."

One more helpful quote from Ayaan Hirsi Ali's Infidel:

If you are a Muslim girl, you disappear, until there is almost no you inside you. In Islam, becoming an individual is not a necessary development; many people, especially women, never develop a clear individual will. You submit: that is the literal meaning of the word islam: submission. The goal is to become quiet inside, so that you never raise your eyes, not even inside your mind.

"You disappear, until there is almost no you inside you." Is it any wonder progressivism welcomes this ally in its civilizational assault against freedom?

So if you are not Jewish, but you care about the future of what used to be the free world, be sure to celebrate Stand-Next-To-A-Jew-At-Your-Own-Risk Day today -- celebrate like your life depended on it. It does.

Daren Jonescu writes about politics, philosophy, education, and the decline of civilization at http://darenjonescu.com/.
One of the more obvious things about the Trump economy is how much better it is than the Obama economy.

Yet incredibly, President Obama, as if jealously looking on at this night-and-day difference, is trying to claim credit for it.

From the Washington Times:

Former President Barack Obama is taking credit for the robust economic growth that is taking place under President Trump. At a conference of mayors in Chicago, Mr. Obama congratulated himself Tuesday for strong employment numbers in the U.S. this year, saying his climate-change policies have contributed to growth. "As we took these actions, we saw the U.S. economy grow consistently," Mr. Obama said. "We saw the longest streak of job creation in American history by far, a streak that still continues by the way." He added wryly, "Thanks, Obama."

Investor's Business Daily did two fine editorials on what was really going on, how and why the economy was growing, here and here, and American Thinker noted one of these editorials here. Cutting taxes, throwing out regulations, and ending the harassment of Obama-unfavored industries such as oil and coal have done wonders.

Now White House press secretary Sarah Sanders called Obama out on his bid to claim credit.

"Donald Trump's relentless focus on tax cuts, deregulation and draining the swamp is great for job growth... with minorities, women, men and even those with low incomes, showing the best gains" https://t.co/DpvWtKlCY6  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 10, 2017

Since the election "the jobless rate for African Americans dropped from 8% to 7.3%, while for Hispanics it fell from 5.7% to 4.7%...and with Trump's big tax cuts on the way, job growth isn't likely to end soon -more good news for all Americans." -Investor's Business Daily  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 10, 2017

Can't make it up: Obama now wants credit for the booming Trump economy. At least we can all agree the economy is better under President Trump.  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 10, 2017

I'm old enough to remember when President Trump's election was going to "crash the market." One year later: market up over 30%, two million new jobs & 1,000 new manufacturing jobs created every day just last month...and now Obama wants credit for the booming Trump economy.  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 10, 2017

Obama's claims to credit are not new. Ben Rhodes has been crafting this "narrative" for several months now on Twitter as news after news comes out about the U.S. finally seeing better economic times under President Trump.

But like everything Obama's "mind meld" claims, it's the exact opposite of the truth. Obama's economy was all about cash for clunkers, six-figure bureaucrats in the Virginia suburbs surrounded by a run-down America, SEIU bank shakedowns, Occupy Wall Street encampments, and pajama boys living in mom's basement. A good economy it was not.

Markets are anticipatory. From the very beginning, when news broke that Trump was elected president, the stock market rocketed upward, a sign of pent up energy in an economy yearning to break free and a forecast for better times. The expectations have since proven accurate.

Jobs are up, and job creation is finally happening. Gross Domestic Product has topped 3% for two quarters running. Taxes are about to be cut, and if that finally gets done in Congress, we will be "winning so often we will be tired of winning," as President Trump puts it. Black homeownership is up. Latino and black employment are up. Business investment is up. Total earnings are up. Manufacturing is up. The stock market has gained 30% since President Trump's election.

There's no doubt about it: this economy is Trump's economy, just as it would be Trump's economy if he had made bad economic decisions. Now it's coming to light, and Obama is trying to hide his own bad record by incredibly claiming credit.
Valerie Richardson of the Washington Times takes us down Memory Lane to an incident that Alabama voters need to seriously consider. You see, Democrats had no problem at all with one of their own congressmen who solicited sex from teenagers who worked as congressional pages. Teenagers who were male, in point of fact, and if anything, it seems to have shielded him.

Massachusetts voters stood by Democratic Rep. Gerry Studds even after he was censured by the House in 1983 for his sexual relationship at age 36 with a 17-year-old male congressional page, as well as making sexual advances toward two other teenage pages.

Far from dooming the Democratic Party, the episode barely registered at the ballot box. Democrats kept their House majority and gained Senate seats in 1984, while Studds was re-elected in his liberal Cape Cod district with 56 percent of the vote.

He won re-election five more times and was ultimately named chairman of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee before retiring in 1997. He died in 2006.

A national marine fishery was named for him in 1996, and in June, the University of Massachusetts Press published a biography, "Gerry Studds: America's First Openly Gay Congressman," which discussed the scandal as well as his achievements on domestic and foreign policy.
Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore had no campaign events scheduled over the weekend, an unusual strategy when the special election will be held tomorrow.

In fact, since the accusations of inappropriate touching of teenage girls surfaced in November, Moore has held relatively few campaign events. His opponent, Democrat Doug Jones, has held 217 events in the last two months.

Instead of personal appearances, Moore has relied on aides and surrogates to keep his name before the public. This is a deliberate strategy to minimize his exposure to the press and avoid having to answer any embarrassing questions.

Montgomery Advertiser:

Whether the absence has any effect on Moore's chances remains to be seen. The Real Clear Politics polling average Saturday found Moore up 3.8 points over Jones, and no Democrat has won a statewide election in Alabama since 2008. "The Moore campaign is more worried about their base than persuading any new voters at this point," said Lance Hyche, a Republican consultant. "They're probably in the same school as President Trump. He spends a lot of time worrying about his base." David Mowery, a Montgomery political consultant who managed Democrat Bob Vance's campaign against Moore in 2012, said Saturday that Moore might be running a variation of a "front porch" campaign, perhaps a sign they feel in the lead. "When you're ahead, or you're the perceived favorite, why give your opponent a chance to ding you?" he said. "It's kind of smart, and we're being swarmed by national media." But Moore and his campaign also have to account for allegations that he pursued relationships with teenagers during his time as an assistant district attorney in Etowah County from 1977 to 1982, ranging from unwanted attention to groping to assault.

Moore's limited public appearances are not only a smart strategy, but really the only strategy he has that leads to victory. If he were constantly out and about, the press attention would be insane. With the national media swarming all over the state, Moore's "front porch" campaign gives them precious little to report. The less the voters are reminded of the allegations against him, the better chance he has of prevailing on election day.

Of course, that leaves the press with the only option of poring over his record to find stupid things he's said in the past.

Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore (R) said in a 2011 interview that removing amendments after the Tenth Amendment would "eliminate many problems" with the U.S. government, CNN's KFile reported on Sunday. Moore reportedly appeared twice on "Aroostook Watchmen" show, hosted by two men who have a history of peddling widely rejected conspiracy theories about mass shootings, 9/11 and the birthplace of former President Obama, among many others. In June 2011 one host said he supported getting rid of every amendment besides the first ten amendments. "That would eliminate many problems," Moore said in response to the host, according to the audio KFile unearthed. "You know people don't understand how some of these amendments have completely tried to wreck the form of government that our forefathers intended," he continued. Moore specifically pointed to the 17th as a problematic amendment that contributed to the evolution from the Constitution's original structure, allowing voters to directly elect senators instead of state legislators.

Of course, eliminating all amendments after the 10th would toss the 13th amendment that eliminated slavery, the 14th amendment that guarantees equal rights, the 19th amendment that gave women the right to vote, and the 26th amendment that gave the vote to 18-year-olds, among others.

Embarrassing and ignorant, but Alabama voters have heard worse from Moore and still have not completely abandoned him.

The smart money is on a Moore victory tomorrow. He appears to have successfully weathered the storm and, barring a massive turnout of minority voters, should win by a narrow margin.
Why hasn't Bill Clinton donned a hair shirt and appeared in public, penitent and ashamed of his treatment of women over the decades? Don't hold your breath. Likely, he's hunkered down somewhere, trying to ride out the #MeToo storm. With his protective guard and any number of hidey-holes, Bubba's unlikely to be smoked out and pressured to offer some Frankenesque drivel about things he might have done but doesn't remember or remembers differently.

Now that the dam has burst and it's safer to speak out, many on the left feel obligated, and some liberated, to confront their longstanding cognitive dissonance over Bill Clinton's misogyny. That's a welcome though cynical ploy to stay ahead of the wave and show they are no longer in denial.

But as far as I can tell, aside from Mika Brzezinski, liberals are not calling on Clinton to actually step up and apologize for his sexual transgressions and aggressions. (Recall ''You better put ice on that.")

Big Media have kept the former president from being a bigger part of the national conversation about powerful men using women, even though his actions make Franken and Conyers look like kids pulling girls' pigtails at recess. Why?

Because he's still viewed as an icon, beloved by most Democrats and their media familiars. If he publicly acknowledges his sins, he stigmatizes the party and the press organs that covered for him for decades.

Hillary wouldn't allow him to express remorse in any case, as her actions as "bimbo enforcer," the enabler-wife of a sexual predator, would come under renewed scrutiny. She has her pride, and she hasn't given up on another run at the presidency.

I can imagine an oral historian twenty years from now coaxing an honest answer from Hillary about her marriage to Bill:

Sure, I knew what he was like almost from the beginning. So why didn't I drop him?

It's not that complicated. Did Bill take advantage of women? Yes. Did he ignore his duties to pursue tawdry affairs? Of course. Did the Secret Service restrain me from clocking him with a lamp? Often. I'm sure most Americans wanted me to slap him upside the head after Lewinsky.

I thought about leaving until I realized I could ride the scandal right into my own presidency, serving as a champion of the poor and helpless, the weak and the powerless  like the women he exploited.

In the end, Bill and I were two of a kind. I could no more have divorced him or braced him before the world than announce I would cease running for president and return to Chappaqua to have tea and bake cookies until I die.

Steve Grammatico is the author of You Hear Me, Barack? PC-Free Conservative Satire.

He blogs at youhearmebarack.blogspot.com.
Over the years, the Mexican political class was happy to blame U.S. consumers for drug cartels. Indeed, drug users are the consumers sending billions of dollars south of the border to fund criminal groups.

However, Mexico is not free of blame, as we have seen in the spread of violence and corruption related to drug cartels.

Mexico needs to borrow a page from President Alvaro Uribe's playbook! In his memoir "No Lost Causes," President Uribe of Colombia told his story, and it is a good one.

Colombia was a disaster in the late 1980s. Some called it a failed state. Most of the middle class was sick and tired of cartels killing policemen and buying judges and politicians.

This is when Alvaro Uribe stepped in:

Alvaro Uribe  a former Partido Liberal member  ran and won in May 2002 on an independent platform to restore security to the country. Many Congress PL and independent members in both chambers pledged their support to Uribe even prior to his election. Security improved significantly under Uribe although his fierce campaign against the FARC often seemed to border on the personal: his father was killed by the rebels in a botched kidnapping. Among his promises was pursuing the broad goals of Plan Colombia within the framework of a long-term strategy. In the fall of 2002, Uribe released a democratic security strategy that employed political, economic, and military means to weaken all illegal armed groups. The Uribe government offered to negotiate a peace agreement with these groups if they would agree to a unilateral cease-fire and to end drug trafficking and kidnapping. In December 2003, the Colombian United Self-Defense Forces (AUC) paramilitary group entered into a peace agreement with the government that led to the collective demobilization of over 31,000 AUC members. In addition, more than 20,000 members of the FARC, AUC, ELN, and other illegal armed groups have individually surrendered their arms. In July 2005, President Uribe signed the Justice and Peace Law, which provides reduced punishments for the demobilized if they renounce violence and return illegal assets, which are used by the government to provide reparations to victims.

Alvaro Uribe was the courageous Colombian leader who fought "narco-traficantes" head on. He also understood that you have to do more than kill cartel leaders. He had to create a police force and earn the trust of the middle class living in Colombia's major cities.

So what can President Uribe teach Mexico?

Beyond fighting cartels, Mexico has to look at the scale of the lawlessness, its geographical reach, and the apparent inability of the government to keep it in check.

And President Uribe proved that the people will support a democratically elected leader who establishes order.

Where is Mexico going? I don't know for sure. It would be wise for Mexico's next president to sit down with Alvaro Uribe for a long chat.

PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Journalists and other Democrats are implying or stating that people, including President Trump, are unethical and immoral and don't care about abused women if they support or vote for Roy Moore. Let's look at the origins of, and the lack of research and truthfulness in, the Roy Moore story itself:

Roy Moore won the primary in Alabama despite not being endorsed by journalists and establishment Republicans. After he won and after decades in public life, a story was published in the Washington Post with four women's names. We are told the women didn't come forward themselves, so who gave the reporters the names, and why did they wait for decades to tell their stories?

The only woman of the original four who had physical evidence was Beverly Young Nelson, and the actual evidence was only a signature and inscription in a 1977 yearbook that even she and her attorney Gloria Allred now admit was partially altered. If they admit that part of the original story was a lie, why should we believe the rest? Beverly Nelson also said she did not have contact with Roy Moore after 1977, even though he was the judge in her divorce case in 1999. If Beverly Nelson lied about some things, why is she automatically considered credible by journalists and others?

We have repeatedly heard that the Washington Post writers did a thorough job investigating the story, but how could they possibly not have known that the "D.A." after Roy Moore's signature was a forgery (he was not the D.A. until 1992) and not have known about the divorce case? If the writers had known about those lies, would the story have been reported? If the reporters had written accurately about the divorce and altered yearbook entry, would the story have as much credibility throughout the rest of the media, who just repeated the story with no questions asked? Why are media outlets mostly ignoring the yearbook story today and ignoring the lie about not having contact after 1977? It appears that the media care little about the truth when they have a candidate to beat.

Why did the story end up in the hands of Washington Post reporters instead of Alabama reporters, since the story is about only Alabama?

It is tremendously hard to disprove forty-year-old accusations, but is it likely that a supposed serial accuser of young women all of a sudden stopped around forty years ago? Why aren't there more current stories of harassment and abuse?

Why should we believe that a paper, the Washington Post, wouldn't be willing to take another story about a Republican it wanted to beat when it has willingly run with the pretend Russian collusion endlessly for over a year? How do we know that some group like Fusion GPS didn't hand the Washington Post the story about Roy Moore?

It is pathetic that journalists and other Democrats pretend they are moral, ethical, and truthful and care about sexual abuse of women in 2017 when in 2016, they wholeheartedly supported the clearly corrupt and unethical Clintons for president, who willingly and consistently physically and mentally abused a series of women over decades while seeking to destroy those women and anyone else who got in the way of their unending quest for power and money.

The mission of journalists and Democrats the past year has been to destroy Trump and his agenda, and it helps if they destroy and beat Roy Moore. Pretending they are now ethical and moral and all of a sudden caring about abused women is about destroying Trump, nothing more.
BRUSSELS - Israeli prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu said Monday morning on the issue of Jerusalem that he expected other countries to follow the US lead in moving their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.



"He can keep his expectations for others", EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in reply after meeting with him.



"This will not happen with EU countries." In the bilateral between Mogherini and Netanyahu in Brussels, he said that in recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, US president Donald Trump had simply "acknowledged the truth.



Peace is based on the recognition of reality and that Jerusalem is the capital is clear to all". Netanyahu went on to say that he expected "most European countries to move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognizing it as the capital of Israel, and that they will work with us for security, peace and prosperity." "This will not happen with EU countries," Mogherini replied. After meeting with the Israeli PM, she added that there are no peace initiatives in the Middle East "that can happen without US commitment, but the US shouldn't fool itself: its initiative alone would not be successful, since a regional and international framework is needed to accompany its launch, and these are very unlikely at the moment." "We want to continue to work with the Quartet (for Peace in the Middle East, ed.), with the US, Russia and the United Nations, and we would like to possibly extend the format to Jordan and Egypt - to name two, as well as other friends such as the Norwegians, who can help us to set down the timeline and framework for the talks," Mogherini said. In order to relaunch the Middle East peace process, "we are not working on a specific EU initiative but we are also not waiting with a 'Waiting for Godot' type of approach. We are working actively with partners" for the two-state solution, she said.

"I strongly condemn," she told Netanyahu, "all attacks on Jews, in any part of the world including Europe as well as Israel".
Moody's, global sukuk issuance to top $ 95 billion in 2017 Sovereign sukuk volumes will continue to grow in 2018

(ANSAmed) - ROME, DECEMBER 11 - The global sukuk market will continue to rebound from a sharp drop in volumes in 2015, supported by a range of factors, according to Moody's Investors Service Moody's analysts estimate that total sukuk issuance will reach around $95 billion by the end of this year, after more than $85 billion in 2016, including more than $50 billion (Dh348.8 billion) of sukuk issuance by sovereigns, Gulf News reports. ''Sovereigns have underpinned a recovery in the global sukuk market this year, with their issuance increasing by 50 per cent in the first eight months of 2017. We expect sovereign sukuk issuance volumes will continue to grow in 2018 as governments look to diversify their financing mix and satisfy the liquidity needs of Islamic retail banks.'' said Christian de Guzman, a Moody's Vice-President and Senior Credit Officer.



While total sukuk offerings in 2017 will remain below their peak level of close to $150 billion in 2012 despite two years of strong increases, sovereign sukuk issuance is set to reach record levels this year. ''We estimate that sovereigns, including government-related entities and supranational organisations, issued more than $40 billion of sukuk in the first eight months of the year, or 71 per cent of total long-term sukuk issuance volumes. This represents a 50 per cent increase compared to the same period last year and exceeds the volume of sovereign long-term funds raised in the whole of 2016,'' said Guzman.



A number of factors will support sovereign sukuk issuance, including high borrowing needs for GCC sovereigns, which Moody's expects to reach around $148 billion in 2018. GCC countries drove the market's growth in 2017 with Saudi Arabia raising the lion's share of sukuk during the year to a total of $17 billion.



Other countries with large fiscal deficits, such as Oman and Bahrain - estimated at 11.9 per cent and 13.4 per cent of GDP in 2017 respectively - will also contribute to the market's expansion. (ANSAmed).




Gazan rocket answered by Israeli attack 'Artillery and airstrikes', says military spokesman

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, DECEMBER 11 - A rocket was launched at Israeli territory from Gaza on Monday but the location of impact and whether it resulted in any damage has not yet been reported, an Israeli military spokesman said. In response, he added, Israel shot three artillery rounds at the area of the Gaza Strip where the rockets were presumably launched. He added that Israel also carried out airstrikes on Hamas positions in the southern part of the Gaza Strip and that it considers Hamas ''responsible for every attack from Gaza''.



(ANSAmed).




Egypt is Russia's trusted partner in Mideast, says Putin 7 bln investment in Suez, accord for 1st nuclear power plant

(ANSAmed) - CAIRO, DECEMBER 11 - President Vladimir Putin said Monday that Egypt was Russia's longstanding "partner, who we trust in the Middle East". He was speaking in the Egyptian capital Cairo during the signing of several agreements including one for the building of the first Egyptian nuclear power plant in Dabaa, west of Alexandria. "We have examined another promising project," he said, referring to that of "the industrial zone" along the Suez Canal, which he said is expected to call for an investment of seven billion dollars. "We agreed to consolidate military cooperation between the two countries", the Russian president said in statements translated by Egyptian state TV. On Libya, Putin said that "Russia and Egypt are interested in ensuring stability and security in Libya, the restoration of sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the country". Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi responded, according to a statement from his office that he welcomed "my friend, President Putin, on an important visit to Cairo that confirms the firmness of the close historic relations that bind Egypt and Russia". The head of the Kremlin then flew to Turkey. (ANSAmed).




EU will not follow US on Jerusalem decision, says Mogherini 'US peace initiative in Mideast will fail if alone'

(ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, DECEMBER 11 - Israeli prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu said Monday morning on the issue of Jerusalem that he expected other countries to follow the US lead in moving their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.



"He can keep his expectations for others", EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in reply after meeting with him.



"This will not happen with EU countries." In the bilateral between Mogherini and Netanyahu in Brussels, he said that in recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, US president Donald Trump had simply "acknowledged the truth.



Peace is based on the recognition of reality and that Jerusalem is the capital is clear to all". Netanyahu went on to say that he expected "most European countries to move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognizing it as the capital of Israel, and that they will work with us for security, peace and prosperity." "This will not happen with EU countries," Mogherini replied. After meeting with the Israeli PM, she added that there are no peace initiatives in the Middle East "that can happen without US commitment, but the US shouldn't fool itself: its initiative alone would not be successful, since a regional and international framework is needed to accompany its launch, and these are very unlikely at the moment." "We want to continue to work with the Quartet (for Peace in the Middle East, ed.), with the US, Russia and the United Nations, and we would like to possibly extend the format to Jordan and Egypt - to name two, as well as other friends such as the Norwegians, who can help us to set down the timeline and framework for the talks," Mogherini said. In order to relaunch the Middle East peace process, "we are not working on a specific EU initiative but we are also not waiting with a 'Waiting for Godot' type of approach. We are working actively with partners" for the two-state solution, she said. "I strongly condemn," she told Netanyahu, "all attacks on Jews, in any part of the world including Europe as well as Israel". (ANSAmed).




BRUSSELS - EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Monday condemned "in the strongest possible way all attacks on Jews everywhere in the world, including in Europe, and on Israel and on Israeli citizens" sparked by last week's decision by the US President Donald Trump to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and transfer its embassy there. "An increase in violence would ignite the region and be a gift to extremists and to all who are opposed to peace, security and living together," said Mogherini during a joint news conference with Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu in Brussels. She also reiterated the bloc's intention of continuing to "respect the international consensus on Jerusalem".

"We know where the European Union stands. We believe that the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both." The EU will step up its efforts to relaunch the peace process, also with its regional partners, starting from Egypt and Jordan, and with the two sides, Israel and Palestine, even in this difficult time," Mogherini said. "The worst thing that can happen now is for there to be an escalation of violence, firstly at the holy sites but also in the region and beyond," she added, reiterating Europe's support for the work of the King of Jordan as the custodian of the holy places.


MOSCOW - Vladimir Putin has ordered the start of the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, the pro-government TV Russia Today reported on Monday. The Russian president gave the order during a surprise visit to Khmeimim Air Base, southeast of Latakia, where he reportedly met with Syrian President Bashar al Assad and Russian Defence Minister Serghiei Shoigu. "I order the defence minister and army chief of staff to begin withdrawing the Russian military contingent towards the permanent bases," Putin reportedly said. "Over the last two years the Russian armed forces and Syrian army have defeated the most combative group of international terrorists. In this regard I have taken a decision: a large part of the Russian contingent deployed in the Syrian Arab republic will return home to Russia."


The freezone is the first government entity to complete all stages of the Global Innovation Management Institute programm which falls in line with the DAFZA Innovation Strategy launched by H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of DAFZA.

The programme developed by DAFZA's strategic partner ShiftIN Partners in October 2016 undertook a detailed evaluation of the capabilities and skills of the organizations work teams through a series of sessions and advanced analysis. The program was divided into four phases, with the 22 employees from DAFZA who successfully completed were honored as champions of innovation and highly qualified individuals who play key roles in DAFZA's position as the most innovative and attractive freezone for foreign investments.

The Innovation Champions programs importance lies in its creation of an advantageous environment for innovation and research, with the benefit of qualifying employees with high levels of innovative skills supported by a culture that encourages them to be business champions and do the best to achieve their professional goals and thus be successful in their job while uplifting the companys reputation. The program promotes a diversity of ideas and initiatives by strengthening skills and information through training and practice.

Under the programme, employees managed to launch three disruptive innovative ideas that create a unique experience for DAFZA customers in terms of providing non-traditional and innovative services based on new technologies, as well as encouraging investors to establish their businesses in Dubai and the UAE in general, in order to attract more foreign investment which in turn will increase the national GDP.

Amna Lootah, Assistant Director-General -Finance, Commercial, and Customer Relation Division, and Foster Innovation and Future Unit of DAFZA, said: This is an important achievement which represents the first innovative program to be done within the countrys freezone sector. Today, we graduate 22 innovation champions at DAFZA who have been able to pass the four stages of the program and will embark on innovative work to form an important pillar for our innovation-based economy."

Lootah praised the strategic cooperation between DAFZA and ShiftIN Partners, noting DAFZAs commitment to making innovation a day-to-day approach and a well-established institutional culture. She added: Through the graduation of DAFZAs first generation of innovation champions we look forward to improving the experiences of existing and potential customers, as well as making outstanding contributions towards achieving the goals of the National Innovation Strategy and UAE Vision 2021. These are in line with the wise champions hips directives which place the building of skilled national capacities at the top of its priorities, believing in the importance of highly innovative individuals.

It is amazing to see the commitment of DAFZAs Management to innovation. said Carlos Guevara a Founding Partner of ShiftIN Partners and Project Director of the programme at DAFZA. I am confident these 22 innovation champions will fast spread the development of an innovation culture across the organisation.

The first phase of the programme, Eureka, taught trainees how to use tools for generating ideas and implementing them by creating many new ideas. The second phase, Pursue, focused on implementing the ideas of the first stage and the creation of new ideas to enhance the position and growth of DAFZA. The Organizational Mastery phase then honed the innovators' understanding of innovation management techniques and methods that they need to know to succeed. The fourth and final phase, Innovation Management comes in line with the third phase which trained employees on how to face real challenges and create clear solutions and visions for innovation management in the organisation.

The programme motivates individual and group innovation and enhances creativity. It also helps employees to increase their critical thinking abilities which serve their professional development and the champions hip of the organization. Moreover, the program provides clear insights and strategies on various functional areas including marketing, technology, accounting, finance and sales.
The new selection includes comfort items such as Christian Lacroix male and female amenity kits featuring exclusive skincare products by pioneering Hungarian skincare brand Omorovicza; Christian Lacroix cotton sleepwear in a range of sizes; Piper-Heidsieck Cuvee Brut NV champagne; Coffee Planet cold brew coffee; and tasty snack boxes with sweet and healthy treats complementing the custom free meal service.



Linda Celestino, Vice President Guest Experience and Delivery, said: Etihad Airways is always looking at new ways to give our guests more power and control over their experience, through options to customise and personalise their journey.



In addition to providing extra comfort and choice in the air, some of the items are great gift ideas, particularly in the run up to the holiday season. We will monitor guest satisfaction and aim to expand the range of items for sale in the future.



Items available for onboard purchase:



- Paris, London and all Australian sectors in Economy Class:

 Cold brewed coffee from Coffee Planet: USD 4 / AED 15 a glass

- All long haul and ultra-long haul (except US) sectors in Economy Class:

 Piper-Heidsieck Cuvee Brut NV champagne: USD 8 / AED 30 per glass

- All ULH sectors (except US routes) in all cabins:

 Christian Lacroix male and female branded amenity kits with Omorovicza products: USD 22 / AED 80

 Christian Lacroix branded sleepwear: USD 35 / AED 130

 In January 2018, a Snack Box featuring both sweet and healthy snacks to suit guests differing tastes and cravings will be introduced.
Leonardo strengthened its ties with Kuwait following the agreement for the supply of 28 Eurofighter Typhoon multi-role fighter aircraft, which made Kuwait the aircrafts eighth customer. Kuwaits Eurofighter Typhoons, deliveries of which will start in 2020 and conclude in 2023, will be the most advanced model produced so far, with a package of capabilities on top of the previous enhancement programmes that will include the Leonardo-led E-Scan radar and a number of weapon system upgrades. Together, these will put the Kuwait Air Force at the forward-edge of fighter technology when the aircraft enter into service. The Eurofighter Typhoon, where Leonardo is responsible for more than 60% of the electronics, is a key programme of reference for Leonardo in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Oman.



Recently, some Kuwaits pilots have earned their wings at the Italian Air Force International Training Academy, where the Italian Air Force operates the M-346 Integrated Training System (ITS) made by Leonardo, which offers unique Live, Virtual, Constructive (LVC) training capabilities. The Italian Air Forces jet pilot training school will combine Leonardos M-346 lead-in-fighter trainer with the soon- to-be-introduced Leonardo M-345 basic/advanced trainer. This innovative training solution will be presented to delegations visiting Leonardos GDA stand alongside one of the companys training and remote support tools for land and naval systems. This latter system is an augmented reality tool where visitors will be able to explore the latest generation of sensors and systems on the bridge of a multi-role naval vessel, including in a battlefield or air-defence scenario.



Visitors to Leonardos stand will be able also to find out about Leonardos extensive range of airborne ISTAR products and systems via an interactive digital display. Of particular interest in the region is Leonardos readily-exportable Directed InfraRed Countermeasure (DIRCM) system, called Miysis, which protects aircraft from the threat of man-portable heat-seeking missiles. The company will also be highlighting its Falco family of Remotely-Piloted Aerial Systems (RPAS), having announced the first delivery of its Falco EVO RPAS to a Middle Eastern customer earlier last month.
The UAE is the first Arab-Islamic country to obtain membership in the organisation, which requires members to possess advanced space-based Earth observation capabilities.

Under the Charter, Member States pledge to share the imagery obtained from their respective satellites orbiting Earth to provide other members with high quality images at frequent intervals to contribute to the management of natural or man-made disasters.

The Charter also provides its members with high-quality training opportunities led by international specialists and experts. Members are also encouraged to exchange relevant data, research and expertise with each other.

More than 22 of the most prominent space agencies and international institutions specialized in Earth observation are currently members of the Charter. The process by which membership is attained includes a number of field visits by international experts to observe the applicants qualifications and provide training on the mechanisms of cooperation between member organisations.

The UAE Space Agency will represent the UAE at meetings of the Charters Board of Directors in order to participate in the development of plans and policies. NCEMA will be the UAEs point of contact for satellite image requests during the occurrence or expectation of a crises or a disaster in the UAE or wider region. Meanwhile, MBRSC will be in charge of providing and receiving information, data and satellite images through its satellites and ground stations.

Mohammed Nasser Al Ahbabi, Director General of the UAE Space Agency, said: "Obtaining membership of the Charter is a testament to the advanced state of the UAEs space and Earth observation capabilities. The UAEs willingness and ability to assist other members in the event of a crisis or disaster has been, once again, recognized by the international space community. The UAE intends to contribute to the Charter through the sharing of images and data collected by our DubaiSat-2, which will be joined shortly by the entirely UAE-built KhalifaSat."

Dr. Jamal Al Hosani, Director General of NCEMA said: "The membership supports the presence and status of the UAE in the space sector on an international level. It also facilitates an effective response and rapid recovery from crises and disasters by harnessing satellite images provided by other members. The membership will also enable other stakeholders in the UAE to gain accesses to the best disaster management practices in the fields of space technology and Earth observation. NCEMA is working with the UAE Space Agency and MBRSC to develop integrated training programmes to qualify national cadres and benefit from the provided satellite images."

Nasser Al Rashidi, Director of Space Policy and Legislation at the UAE Space Agency, said: "The UAE has sought to become a member to reaffirm its commitment to cooperating in the field of space with other countries. The UAEs membership is in line with the nations strategic objectives for the space sector, which include the development and strengthening of international partnerships and collaboration.

These partnerships will in turn contribute to the development of our national capabilities and competencies and strengthen the nations status internationally. Recent advancements in satellite technology have sparked global interest in observing our planet. As a regional and global leader in satellite technology, the UAE is well positioned to lead international efforts to respond to disasters and better understand our planet, added Al Rashidi.

Hamad Al Ameri, ICT Director at NCEMA added: "We will work with the UAE Space Agency and MBRSC to develop a national capacity building programme, which will aim to train and qualifying national cadres to analyse and work with satellite imagery in a manner that supports decision makers during emergencies, crises and disasters."
I was drawn to an exhibition at the Toledo Museum of Art by its title: Glorious Splendor: Treasures of Early Christian Art. When I went to see it last month, it was not quite what I expected. Or what the title conjured. But that doesnt mean it wasnt a good show. Sometimes an exhibit with a real scholarly thesis is hard to translate into an exhibition thats easily sold to the public. And naturally even a scholarly curator wants his or her exhibit to be seen!

So, as I wrote in my review of the exhibit for The Wall Street Journal,

A bit oddly, the exhibition undercuts its title (which was probably driven by marketing goals) and a bit of its thesis. About two-thirds of the 28 works here either are secular objects, like jewelry or imperial items, or honor pagan gods, like Jupiter and Aphrodite. Moreover, the earliest Christian objecta glass fragment, with gold leaf, showing Christ giving the law to Ss. Peter and Paulwas made in the late fourth century, decades after Constantines death and long after Christianity started to take root in Rome, spawning Christian art. In other words, the exhibitions span is bigger, the content broader, and the thesis less clearly shown than one might expect.

The thesis was this. quoting myself, that the art of the first several centuries after the death of Christ shared much with its predecessorsin materials, methods, iconographies and stylesand thus to demonstrate that the Roman empire did not abruptly turn Christian when Constantine became the first Roman emperor to convert in A.D. 337.

And yet:

Still, once visitors lean in to enjoy the precious objects on viewthey will find much to admire. All but two of the pieces are borrowed from private collections, many have never before been shown in a museum, and who knows when the public will have an opportunity to see them again?

And thats wonderful, actually. These are gold (the pendant at left is from the 6th or early 7th century, the bracelet from the 6th), or cameos (at right is one from the 6th century), or objects that, I would guess, are rarely asked to be lent. They take some time getting to know. We should have more exhibits that include them.

Glorious Splendor suggests something else about the state of American art museums these days. As they evolve, they may be trending toward a model that presents small, scholarly exhibits that satisfy connoisseurs and large, popular exhibits intended to draw crowds.

As long as there is a mix, as long as the scholarly shows receive the funds they need, this may not be bad. Museums have raised expectations about themselves to many groups; now they have to satisfy them.

The Toledo exhibition runs through February 18enjoy the pictures Ive posted of a few pieces in itand my review ran on Nov. 27. Apologies for my delay in getting it online here and on my website.

Photo Credits: Courtesy of the Toledo Museum of Art
India has set up a project development fund of USD 77 mn to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia.

New Delhi: India has proposed USD 1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said om Monday.

Apart from this, India has set up a project development fund of USD 77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, he said.

"The ASEAN India maritime transport cooperation agreement is being negotiated...An Asian India civil aviation task force has been established to see optimisation of air connectivity. "India has proposed to commit a line of credit of USD 1 billion to promote projects that support physical and digital connectivity," Gadkari said.

He was addressing the ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit jointly organised by CII and ASEAN India Centre.

The minister said ASEAN and India have also agreed to establish a maritime transport working group among India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to examine the feasibility of shipping networks.

Asserting that connectivity is the pathway to shared prosperity, he said better connectivity is the core factor for strengthening ASEAN-India relations.

"Connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH), extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and at different stages of implementation," he said.

India is already working with Myanmar in the areas of border area development, capacity building, infrastructure development, connectivity projects and institutional development.

Stressing on augmentation of international connectivity, the minister said for Bharat Mala project, around 2,000 km with an outlay of Rs 25,000 crore are earmarked to connect India's major highway corridors to international trade points. This will facilitate export/import trade with Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

About BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) Motor Vehicles Agreement, Gadkari said action has been initiated for implementation of BBIN MVA by Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
DGP S P Vaid said the search operation turned into an encounter as the hiding militants fired upon the forces conducting the searches.

According to police official, security forces launched a cordon and search operation in the early hours in Unisoo village of Handwara following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants in the area. (Photo: ANI | Twitter)

Srinagar: Three militants and a woman were killed on Monday in an encounter with security forces in Handwara area of north Kashmir, police said.

Director General of Police (DGP) S P Vaid said the slain militants were apparently Pakistanis.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in the early hours in Unisoo village of Handwara following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants in the area, a police official said.

He said the search operation turned into an encounter as the hiding militants fired upon the forces conducting the searches.

During the gunfight, three militants were killed, the official said adding the slain militants were most probably affiliated with the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT).

He said their bodies along with three weapons have been recovered from the encounter site.

One woman was also killed in the exchange of fire, the official said.

Vaid said on Twitter, "In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR & CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold".

The search operation is still underway.
Before the trilateral talks, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj is likely to hold a bilateral meeting with her Chinese counterpart .

New Delhi: Foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) will on Monday deliberate on a range of important regional and global issues in New Delhi, including ways to tackle the threat of terrorism and extremism, at a key meeting of the trilateral grouping.

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yis visit to India also marks the first high-level visit to India by a Chinese leader after the Doklam face-off.

India is expected to strongly push for strengthening cooperation among the three countries in effectively countering terrorism and naming Pakistan-based terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in the RIC communique, citing a similar move by the Brics grouping.

Before the trilateral talks, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj is likely to hold a bilateral meeting with her Chinese counterpart during which a number of major issues are likely to be discussed. Ms Swaraj will also hold a bilateral meeting with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov.

Sources indicated that the deliberations at the bilateral meeting between the Indian and Chinese foreign ministers are expected to cover all bilateral, regional and global issues of importance including efforts to prevent military face-offs like the one that occurred earlier this year at Doklam in Bhutanese territory.

China continues to block Indias entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group as well as oppose New Delhis efforts to get Pakistan-based terrorist Masood Azhar banned by the UN. This is expected to be taken up by Ms Swaraj with her Chinese counterpart.

China, meanwhile, has been concerned about the proposed quadrilateral in the Indo-Pacific involving India, Japan, the US and Australia and could raise the matter with New Delhi.

Mr Wang will also meet his Russian counterpart Mr Lavrov. In the RIC meet, India is likely to stress on a collective approach by the three countries in ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, including the south-east Asian region, according to news agency reports. The situation in Afghanistan, West Asia and the Korean Peninsula are also expected to come up for discussion.

Russia, Indias time-tested friend, is also concerned about New Delhis growing strategic proximity to the US but India has left no stone unturned to assure Russia that New Delhi will always stand with it on issues of importance.
Dhavan is the author of several books and also is a regular columnist in several newspapers.

New Delhi: In unprecedented and dramatic turn of events, eminent constitutional expert and senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan on Monday accused Chief Justice Dipak Misra of humiliating him in court and announced that he will not practice in the Supreme Court.

Mr Rajeev Dhavan, 71, in a two-sentence letter to the CJI, said: After the humiliating end to the Delhi case, I have decided to give up court practice. You are entitled to take back the senior gown conferred on me, though I would like to keep it for memory and services rendered. Mr Dhavans decision to quit court practice comes a few days after Chief Justice Misra took exception to senior lawyers, including Mr Dhavan, raising their voice to allegedly browbeat judges. On December 6, an angry CJI had observed, What happened on Wednesday (in Delhi-Centre case) was atrocious and what happened a day before (in the Ayodhya case) was more atrocious. Come what may, shouting in the courtroom will not be tolerated at any cost. Chief Justice Misra also said, Lawyers are called ministers of justice. Unfortunately, a small group of lawyers think they can raise their voice. You can argue with authority and conviction. Raising your voice shows inadequacy and incompetence. When lawyers argue in a manner not in tune with Constitutional language, we will tolerate it, but for how long, he added.

Mr Dhavan, who has a career spanning over three decades, was admonished by the Supreme Court in three cases taken up on three consecutive days last week.

On December 5, during the hearing on the Ayodhya title dispute case, several senior lawyers, including Mr Dhavan, Kapil Sibal and Dushyant Dave, had argued vociferously for adjournment till July 2019 and threatened to walk out of the court.

Mr Dhavan, in particular, had told the CJI to not begin the final arguments in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi title case as the CJI wouldnt be able to complete it by October 3, 2018, which is his retirement date.

Apart from the Ayodhya matter, Mr Dhavan was pulled up by the court during a hearing on appeals filed by the Delhi government in its power tussle against the Centres representative and lieutenant governor Anil Baijal.

He was also admonished during the hearing on a Parsi womans petition on her religious identity after marrying a Hindu. The top court expressed displeasure during the hearing over what it called lawyers violating decorum.

Mr Dhavan is the author of several books and also is a regular columnist in several newspapers. He has appeared in a number of high profile cases and constitutional matters with eloquence.
3 suspected LeT terrorists killed in gunfight.

Gunmen have been on bank robbery spree across Kashmir for quite some time and it is a second incident of its kind when they killed security guards in their attempt to loot cash from moving bank vehicles. (Photo: ANI/Representational)

Srinagar: Two bank guards were killed when militants targeted a Jammu and Kashmir Bank vehicle in southern Shopian district on Monday.

Earlier, three militants, believed to be Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LeT) cadres and a woman resident, were killed during an encounter in Handwara area of frontier Kupwara district, the police said.

A statement issued by the police said that two security guards were killed by terrorists after targeting a J&K Bank Scorpio in Shopians Kral Check area at around 3 pm on Monday. The vehicle was on its way to Keller (Shopian). Two security guards  identified as Tariq Ahmed (25) and Mushtaq Ahmed (30), residents of Tumle Hall (Pulwama district) and (neighbouring) Anantnag, respectively  were injured in this attack. They were shifted to Pulwamas district hospital where they succumbed to their injuries, the police said.

Soon after the attack, the security forces launched a search operation in the area to track down the assailants, but no arrests had been made till filing of this report.

The sources in the J&K bank said that one of the slain guards Tariq Ahmad had purchased his own gun for Rs 80,000 recently as owning a licensed gun helps private security guards in getting a better wage package.

J&K Bank chairman and CEO Parvez Ahmed, while expressing shock over the killing of the security guards, said though they were employees of a private security firm Honest Security Agency their families should be sufficiently supported financially and emotionally as they have lost bread earners.

Gunmen have been on bank robbery spree across Kashmir for quite some time and it is a second incident of its kind when they killed security guards in their attempt to loot cash from moving bank vehicles.

On May 1 this year, five J&K policemen and two bank employees were killed when militants attacked a cash van in southern Kulgam district. Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, the formidable Kashmiri militant outfit, while owning responsibility had said it, however, did not kill the bank employees.
The announcement of Gandhis election to the post was made by the Congress central election authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran.

New Delhi: The scion of Nehru-Gandhi family and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was finally crowned the 87th president of the Indian National Congress (INC) on Monday, an outcome which did not come as a surprise due to his unopposed candidature for the top post in a party election that was reduced to a formality.

Mr Gandhi, 47, will officially take charge of the party by replacing his mother Mrs Sonia Gandhi on December 16, two days before the announcement of election results for Himachal and Gujarat Assembly polls.

As expected, Mr Gandhi was elected unchallenged. There was a minor storm in the teacup when Shehzad Poonawalla, Maharas-htra Congress state unit secretary, questioned called the organisational elections a sham. On Monday, Mr Poonawalla tweeted that Mr Gandhis election marked a black day for the party.

The announcement of Mr Gandhis election to the post was made by the Congress central election authority chairman Mullapally Ramach-andran. He said Mr Gandhi will formally take over the reins of the party on December 16.

While the party and its leaders fell over each other on Monday to congratulate the president-elect, all eyes are on the outcome of Gujarat polls, being dubbed as a fight between Mr Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Till now Mr Gandhis record in electoral politics has been an embarrassment for the party. His electoral credibility continues to remain suspect even among a section of party leaders. If Mr Gandhi manages to trounce Mr Modi in his home turf, he will emerge as nothing less than a superhero. But if mauled and trounced in Gujarat, his leadership will again come under scanner and be questioned.

Mr Gandhi, often branded as Pappu, particularly by the BJP, virtually stumped the saffronites with his new avtaar as he led the charge in Gujarat election whose final phase of polling is scheduled for December 14.

Mr Gandhi hasnt merely taken on the BJP on the social media, but has won several rounds in this virtual battlefield which had so far been dominated by the saffronites. He has also been described as a rockstar due to the mega response to his rallies in Gujarat.

That the BJP, its president Amit Shah and the Prime Minister have begun to take him seriously became evident when they relentlessly targeted him and kept referring to him in their speeches.

On Monday, however, Mr Modi congratulated Mr Gandhi on taking over as Congress chief. I congratulate Rahulji for his election as Congress president. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure.

Congress insiders feel that besides the uphill task of taking on Mr Modi, the Congress president-elect would now have to chalk out the roadmap ahead. The most crucial part will be to maintain a delicate balance between secularism and soft Hindutva, a senior Congress leader said.

Congress leaders also said that Mr Gandhi will have to counter the militant nationalism, being propagated by the BJP, with his Nehruvian views.

Regardless of the outcome of the Gujarat polls, a section of BJP leaders, while speaking to this newspaper, appreciated the way Mr Gandhi has managed to dodge the Modi-Shahs baits with nationalist and communal overtones during the campaigning. Mr Gandhi kept his focus on economic policies of the Modi government, while the BJP and its leaders evoked nationalism, Pakistan and even played religion and caste cards.

As for the changes expected in the Congress under its new president, speculation is rife that unlike his mother Mr Gandhi will not have any political secretary. Instead, there could be a panel to advise and guide the new Congress president.

Senior leader Ajay Maken, chairman of the partys SC cell K. Raju and communications chief Randeep Singh Surjewala may find a place in that panel.

The new-look Congress may also have a couple of vice-presidents, which may include former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit.

As for allies, the generations next, which include Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party and Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD, are close to Mr Gandhi.

Earlier, Mr Gandhi had used seniors like Ahmed Patel, Ashok Gehlot and Kapil Sibal to deal with regional satraps like Lalu Yadav and Mulayam Singh Yadav.

To address speculation in the party that his elevation could mean the curtains down on a host of party veterans, Mr Gandhi has time and again promised a perfect blend of the old and the new.

Starting his political career in 2004 by winning Lok Sabha election from the family bastion of Amethi, Mr Gandhi became party general secretary in 2006. In 2013, he became Congress vice-president.

The Congress-elect is the sixth generation of Gandhi-Nehru family to lead the party. The first was Motilal Nehru followed by Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, who has been the longest serving Congress president clocking in a reign of 19 years.
Senior BJP leader and Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad condemned the unwarranted statement by Pak.

PM Modis comments have led to a huge political row since it is common for diplomats stationed in New Delhi and visiting dignitaries to attend social events, including private dinners. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Pakistan on Monday reacted sharply to Prime Minister Narendra Modis charge of interference in the Gujarat polls, saying Islamabad should not be dragged into Indian electoral debate and that victories should be won on ones own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

PM Modi had, on Sunday, talked about a recent dinner at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars house which was attended by prominent dignitaries from Pakistan, besides senior Congress leaders.

In a tweet on Monday, Pakistan foreign office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said, India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

Senior BJP leader and Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad condemned the unwarranted statement by Pakistan and asked it not to sermonise to India. He alleged that the Pakistani statement sought to bail out the Congress Party.

Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into Indias election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own. I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting (elections in) Indias democracy on their own Indias Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM, Mr Prasad was quoted by news agencies as saying.

He added that India completely abhors any outside interference in Indias electoral affairs The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world. Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of Indias democracy.

Pakistan comes out with an official statement in many ways seeking to bail out Congress Party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion, he said.

PM Modis comments have led to a huge political row since it is common for diplomats stationed in New Delhi and visiting dignitaries to attend social events, including private dinners. Mr Aiyar himself is a former diplomat. Further, Union ministers in the Modi government too have, in their official capacity, attended formal occasions at the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi.

PM Modi had himself visited Pakistan two years ago to personally extend greetings to the then Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on his birthday.

PM Modis charge reflects the rock-bottom ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Ironically, this comes at a time when Islamabad has agreed to the Indian request to allow both the mother and wife of imprisoned former Indian naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav to visit him on December 25.

On Sunday, PM Modi had also raised questions over an alleged appeal by a former senior Pakistan Army officer on making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel the chief minister of Gujarat. PM Modis home state Gujarat is witnessing a high-stakes poll battle between the ruling BJP and the Opposition Congress. Gujarat shares a land-border with Pakistans Sindh province.
The businessman arrested for molesting Bollywood actor Zaira Wasim has told the police that the incident was unintentional.

Vikas Sachdev's wife Divya and friend Kuldeep Bhargava defended him saying that the allegations were false and demanded justice for him. (Representational Image)

Mumbai: Vikas Sachdev, the 39-year-old businessman who was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting teenage Bollywood actor Zaira Wasim aboard a Delhi-Mumbai Air Vistara flight, has reportedly told the police that the incident was unintentional.

The 17-year-old actor, who was visibly extremely upset while narrating her experience on an instagram video, alleged that the man was ribbing his foot against her body while she was half-asleep.

Sachdev also told the police that he had gone to Delhi for a funeral and was tired in the process.

A friend of Vikas, Kuldeep Bhargava, also defended him, saying "Vikas was upset and tired because of the death. He'd told the airhostess not to disturb him or even serve him the meal; he'd just asked for a blanket to sleep. When the flight was about to land, the actress shouted at him and said 'this is not your lounge; put your leg down'. He apologised to her, and said it had happened inadvertently. He is innocent and doesn't have any past record either; the police can check."

Vikas's wife Divya also defended him and called Zairas allegations false and demanded justice for him.

She said, The actress is making false allegations against my husband. Ours is a love marriage; we have been together for the last 16 years. My husband is innocent."

"His uncle died in Delhi, because of which he was in a state of shock and reached home late. The next morning we woke up to this actress shouting about molestation onboard. My husband told me that he had been sleeping when his leg accidentally touched her hand; he apologised to her for that. My husband respects women," she said.

"We always travel in business class but nothing like this has ever happened. Because of this incident, my entire family is disturbed. We want justice," Divya added.

Zaira alleged that she couldnt record a video because of the dimmed lights and only managed to capture a picture of his legs placed on her armrest.

The actress was reportedly in tears when she landed at the airport and a woman police officer was sent to her hotel room to record her statement, following which Sachdev was arrested.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and former CM Omar Abdullah were among those who demanded action against the accused.
S. Prakash says instead of focusing their attention on development, Congress is trying to evoke Gujarat riots to win over the Muslim votes.

Amit Shah said, 'Entire nation knows the allegations levelled on the Prime Minster by the Congress backed NGO were all false. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017.' (Photo: File|PTI)

New Delhi/ Bengaluru: Hitting out at Congress for asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "apologise in Jama Masjid" for the 2002 riots, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said those who commit mistakes only they serve an apology.

"This is a shameful statement by the Congress. They apologised for their deeds in 1984 anti-sikh riots and now they are creating a baseless controversy. The truth is only those people who have committed mistakes apologise, but those who have not done anything wrong why they will serve an apology," BJP leader Bizay Sonkar Shastri told ANI here.

Another BJP leader S. Prakash, in Bengaluru, said instead of focusing their attention on development, the Congress was trying to evoke Gujarat riots to win over the Muslim votes.

"The Congress has once again brought the 2002 riots into the campaign. Till now, they were silent on the issue. They are demanding an illogical apology from the Prime Minister. It was a communal riot where both Hindus and Muslims were killed which happened in the aftermath of Godhra incident.

"Several cases have been filed and many have been convicted also, unlike in 1984 riots, where the Congress did not show any interest to convict those who were involved in the Sikh massacre," Prakash added.

Earlier on Sunday, BJP chief Amit Shah tore into Congress' demand, saying the matter was being raised to consolidate votes in the ongoing Gujarat Assembly election.

"Congress' Charan Singh said Prime Minister Modi must go inside Jama Masjid and apologies for 2002 riots. Entire nation knows the allegations levelled on the Prime Minster by the Congress backed NGO were all false. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017," Shah told the media in Gandhinagar.

The first phase of polling took place on Saturday and recorded a voter turnout of 66.75 per cent in 89 of 182 constituencies.

The second-phase voting in remaining 93 constituencies is on December 14, and the votes will be counted on December 18.
Modi had suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence Assembly polls in the state.

New Delhi: Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modis campaign for the BJP in Gujarat had gone beyond bizarre and asked whether a political party should go to any length to win an election.

The former Union finance and home minister also wondered whether winning an election was so important that such allegations can be made against a former prime minister and a former vice-president.

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur, Gujarat, on Sunday, Mr Modi had suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence Assembly polls in the state.

He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyars neech jibe against Mr Modi. The BJPs campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election? Chidambaram said on Twitter.

In a new twist to the vitriol-filled campaign, Mr Modi had said in Palanpur that the dinner at Mr Aiyars house was attended by Pakistans high commissioner, Pakistans former foreign minister, Indias former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh.

Though Modi did not name the ex-vice president present at the meeting, BJP president Amit Shah said in Ahmedabad that it was Hamid Ansari.
The boars were shot with stun guns at the school and were "confirmed dead when they were captured."

Television footage showed a wild boar charging around a classroom, bashing its snout against a window in an apparent attempt to escape. (Photo: Pixabay)

Two wild boars caused pandemonium at a Japanese school by charging into classes and even taking a dip in the school pool, forcing pupils to interrupt their exams.

Television footage showed a wild boar charging around a classroom, bashing its snout against a window in an apparent attempt to escape the school in the western city of Kyoto.

Meanwhile, the other boar was taking a soothing dip in the school's outdoor pool, as stunned students looked on.

Students were taking mid-term exams when Monday's unwelcome interruption occurred but the exams eventually continued as scheduled, public broadcaster NHK reported.

The boars were shot with stun guns at the school and were "confirmed dead when they were captured," a Kyoto city official told AFP on Thursday.
The contest was organised to celebrate love and romance between married couples.

India is a country with a diverse culture and is also home to various mindsets which may at times clash. In the past events like Kiss of Love have sparked controversy as couples have also been harassed by the moral police for violating what they call Indian culture.

While kissing in public may still be a taboo in many parts of India, a town in Jharkhand comes across as a surprising example. MLA Simon Marandi recently organised an event where couples expressed love by kissing each other in public and the one with the longest kiss won the competition.

The contest was organised to celebrate love and romance between married couples and is a way to reduce divorce and differences among couples according to Marandi. The annual fair which also includes tribal dance, archery and running has been organised in Dumaria for the past 37 years, but kissing was added this year.
The lawyers also asked him about the presence of huge crowd on the route from his house to the place where he was arrested.

Mumbai: Shyamvar Rai, the accused-turned-approver in 2012 Sheena Bora murder case, on Monday told the court that he was not aware that the punishment for murder is more than possessing (illegal) firearm. Rai was being cross-examined by the lawyers of Indrani Mukerjeas former husband, Sanjeev Khanna. The lawyer pointed out in the court that there are drains near his house to show that he could have avoided the risk of getting caught with firearm by throwing it in the drains instead of going all the way with it to Bandra where he was arrested by police.

While cross-examining Rai, advocate Niranjan Mundergi and Shreyansh Mithare spent a substantial time on asking questions regarding the presence of nullas near his residence. They also asked him questions about the presence of nullas, drainage lines and police on his en-route to Bandra Band Stand, where he was arrested for possession of illegal arms. The lawyers also asked him about the presence of huge crowd on the route from his house to the place where he was arrested.

Rai told the court that for about a year he served as a driver to Sheena Bora and Mikhael. While answering questions asked by the defence, he said that he used to drop them to their destinations.

However, Rai could not give any reasons when the defence asked him what conversation took place between him and Mikhael between January 2012 to April 2012.

He also said that he had seen what was kept in the bag, which Indrani had put in the car when they were in Worli. According to Rai after his arrest in the firearm case, he had told the police about the murder case, but the police had not compelled him to disclose it. Rai denied the claim of defence that he was not arrested by police with any firearms and he was deposing falsely before the court at the instance of Khar police and CBI.
Campaigner Kerry Elliman's charity Birmingham Greyhound Protection has received 3,000 in donations.

Her charity Birmingham Greyhound Protection has received 3,000 in donations. (Photo: Pixabay)

A kind-hearted animal lover travelled 5,000 miles to rescue nine British greyhounds facing slaughter in China.

Campaigner Kerry Elliman's charity Birmingham Greyhound Protection has received 3,000 in donations.

Kerry has been overwhelmed by the support she has received from kind-hearted since the plight of the dogs was highlighter.

Kerry said to Mirror.co.uk, The response has been fantastic. We just need to keep going and keep the pressure on.

She has also received several offers for new homes for the dogs.

39-year-old Jacqui Honeyman from Glasgow adopted one of the dogs, Hope, she said to Mirror, I want people to see the happy ending abused dogs can have.

A petition to ban the export of British greyhounds started by CAGED, the Campaign Against Greyhound Exploitation and Death, via change.org and has already attracted over 30,000 signatures, and Kerry is urging readers to keep signing.

One can sign the petition by looking up Caged Nationwide on change.org.

Simon Banks of the Great British Greyhound Board confirmed dog exports are under investigation.
Those detained, included a female activist, who are accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood group.

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is a close ally of Trump, whose announcement triggered protests across the world. (Photo: AP)

Cairo: A top Egyptian rights lawyer says at least eight protesters were detained and accused of "association with a terrorist organisation" after joining a small protest in Cairo over the Trump administration's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Khaled Ali says the protesters were arrested on Saturday in front of the Egyptian Press Syndicate in downtown Cairo after rallying against President Donald Trump's move.

It wasn't immediately possible to reach the prosecutors on Monday for a comment.

Ali says those detained, including a female activist, are accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood group, Egypt's onetime largest Islamist group which was outlawed after the ouster of the Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013.

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is a close ally of Trump, whose announcement triggered protests across the world.
Patrice Nganang has been critical of how Biya, in power since 1982, has handled a secessionist movement in some English-speaking areas.

Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York's Stony Brook University, is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week. (Photo: Twitter/ @nganang)

New York : A Cameroonian-American writer detained as he tried to leave the Central African nation is facing charges over writings critical of its government and family and friends are calling for public support in a campaign for his release.

Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York 's Stony Brook University , is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week, according to an account from his wife that was sent to fellow Stony Brook professor Robert Harvey.

Nganang was detained on Thursday as he was trying to leave Cameroon to join his wife in Zimbabwe .

Nganang and his attorney were informed of the charges against him at a hearing with judiciary police and were told the charges include accusations of insulting Cameroon President Paul Biya and issuing a death threat.

Nganang has been critical of how Biya, in power since 1982, has handled a secessionist movement in some English-speaking areas. He wrote an article that was published shortly before he was detained.

At the judiciary police hearing on Saturday, Nganang's lawyer said he didn't represent a threat because he had never worked with any violent or armed groups and had always been a peaceful activist. A prosecutor will decide what happens with the case moving forward.

Nganang's supporters called for an outpouring of support for him, suggesting actions including calling the Cameroon embassy to demand his release; getting in touch with the US Department of State and federal elected officials; reaching out to advocates like Amnesty International or the Committee to Protect Journalists; and spreading the campaign through social media.
The pipe bomb was strapped to a man, who is injured in the blast and being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

The explosion, which was of unknown origin, took place in midtown Manhattan at 42nd Street and 8th Avenue. (Photo: AFP)

New York: A pipe bomb strapped to a man went off in the New York City subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring the suspect and another person at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials said.

The man and the other person were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the incident.

Police say the explosion happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. The 7:30 am blast filled the passageway, crowded with throngs of Monday morning commuters, with smoke.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and fire both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority area was shut down  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations. NJ Transit said buses were taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken, where they could take trains into the city.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.
Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes.

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes. (Photo: File/Representational)

Seoul: The US, South Korea and Japan started joint exercises Monday to track missiles from North Korea, Seoul's military said, following the nuclear-armed Pyongyang's longest-range test launch to date.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push.

The two-day exercise -- the sixth since June 2016 -- kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seoul's defence ministry said.

"During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information," it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Read: South Korea imposes fresh sanctions on N Korea amid rising tensions

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a "super-large heavy warhead" anywhere on the US mainland.

Many analysts suggest that the rocket is capable of reaching the US mainland but voiced scepticism that Pyongyang has mastered the advanced technology needed to allow the rocket to survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.

November's launch was the first test of any kind since September 15, and quashed hopes that the North may have held back in order to open the door to a negotiated solution to the nuclear standoff.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has traded threats of war and personal insults with US President Donald Trump, heightening fears of another war on the peninsula once devastated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

The South condemned the launch and on Monday imposed new unilateral sanctions on its neighbour.
AP says doctors and aid workers are stunned at the volume of rapes, but suspect only a fraction of women have come forward.

Portraits of some of the Rohingya Muslim women taken during an interview in November 2017 in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. (Photo: AP)

The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmars security forces has been sweeping and methodical, according to a report by the Associated Press.

The news agency says a sickening sameness has emerged in 29 interviews with women and girls, ranging in age from 13 to 35, who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar.

Each woman said she was raped by a group of men.

Every woman, except one, said her rapists wore military-style uniforms. The one woman who said her assailants wore plain clothes also said that her neighbors recognised the men as being stationed at the local military outpost.

Many of the women said their assailants uniforms had either star or arrows on them. AP says the patches represent the different units of Myanmars army.

The womens assaults took place between October 2016 and mid-September in a wide swathe of villages in Myanmars Rakhine state, the news agency says.

AP says doctors and aid workers are stunned at the volume of rapes, but suspect only a fraction of women have come forward.

Doctors informed the AP that they have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, with a third of them under 18 and the youngest was nine.
Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Seoul: The US, South Korea and Japan carried out joint exercises on Monday to track missiles from North Korea, as China warned that such manoeuvres fuel tensions following nuclear-armed Pyongyangs longest-range test launch to date.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push.

The two-day exercise the sixth since June last year  kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seouls defence ministry said.

During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information, it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against the North, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

The coalition has urged others to take a tougher stance against Pyongyang but has so far found lukewarm reactions from the Norths main backers Beijing and Moscow.

China criticised the latest drills, which come as President Xi Jinping prepares to host South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-In this week for a summit aimed at soothing ties strained by the US deployment of an anti-missile system in the South.

The situation is in a vicious cycle of provocation and confrontation. This is not conducive to regional peace and stability, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular news briefing.

If such a vicious cycle continues and leads to a very bad result, it serves no partys interest, Mr Lu said, echoing recent remarks by foreign minister Wang Yi.

Russias top general Valery Gerasimov met Japanese defence minister Itsunori Onodera in Tokyo and reiterated that Moscow wanted to resolve the crisis via diplomacy.

We believe that this issue should only be resolved through political and diplomatic means, Gerasimov was quoted as saying by the Russian defence ministry.

Exercises around North Korea destabilise the situation, Gerasimov said, according to a Japanese defence ministry official.

Mr Onodera, however, stressed Japans position: North Koreas nuclear and missile development are significant threats against the international community. I want us to cooperate over this problem.

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a super-large heavy warhead anywhere on the US mainland.
Scores of demonstrators, including Palestinians, pelted security outside the embassy with stones and burned an effigy of US President Donald Trump.

Protesters try to enter the US embassy during a demonstration in Aukar, Lebanon. (Photo: AP)

Beirut: Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons on Sunday at demonstrators near the US embassy as they protested Washingtons decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

A correspondent in Awkar outside the capital Beirut said several hundred pro-Palestinian demonstrators had gathered near the US embassy, located in the area.

They were blocked from reaching the complex by a metal gate sealing the road leading to the embassy, and security forces fired teargas and water cannons to repel demonstrators who tried to open the gate by force.

Several people were injured by rocks and tear gas, the correspondent said. There was no immediate comment from security forces.

Protestors waving Palestinian and Lebanese flags, and sporting black-and-white checked keffiyeh scarves, chanted slogans against President Donald Trump, who on Wednesday recognised Jerusalem as Israels capital. A group of demonstrators set alight an effigy of the US President, whose decision has upended decades of American diplomacy and an international consensus to leave the status of Jerusalem to be resolved in negotiations.

The demonstrators included members of Palestinian parties, as well as Lebanese Islamists and leftists. Thousands of Palestinian refugees live in Lebanon, including those who fled from their homes.
by Sumon Corraya

Dhaka (AsiaNews) - The Muslims of Bangladesh are united with the anger expressed by Palestinians. During the Jumu'ah [Friday prayer, ed], several imams criticised US President Donald Trumps decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem, recognizing the latter as the capital of Israel in place of Tel Aviv. One of the chief preachers of Baitul Mukarram, the national mosque, said: "All Muslims must protest against the recognition of Jerusalem as capital. We strongly oppose. The Muslims of Palestine, Syria and Myanmar are persecuted because of religion. We are at their side ".

The mosque of Baitul Mukarram is the largest in the country. Here around 40 thousand faithful gather in prayer. At the end of the sermon, the Muslims present staged a protest in the streets of the capital. The event was organized by Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, an Islamic group made up of teachers and students of madrassas [Koranic schools, ed.]. Ahmad Shafi and Allama Junaid Babunagari, respectively president and general secretary of the organization, say: "The announcement of Donald Trump is wrong. He has laid the foundations for the war against the Islamic world. Muslim leaders and faithful must remain united against his decision ".

According to the two exponents, "Jerusalem is not only a holy land for Palestinian Muslims, but it is the holy land for the whole Islamic world. It is more than a holy land by blood. The land does not just belong to Jews ". Islamic leaders define the US president as "crazy." His controversial speeches are destroying world peace ".

Even Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expresses a clear position. Speaking at a press conference following a state visit to Cambodia, she stated that "Trump's statement on Jerusalem is not acceptable. We want the Muslim countries and the Ummah [community of Islamic faithful, ed] to be united, so that the Palestinians can enjoy their rights".
by Nirmala Carvalho

The ceremony took place yesterday in Mumbai. The Salesian abducted in Yemen was recognised for his dedication and commitment" and his work in "a location of great danger". For Fr Tom, "Wars are not the solution".

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - Fr Tom Uzhunnalil, the Salesian clergyman abducted in Aden in 2016 and released last September through the mediation of the Sultan of Oman, received the Mother Teresa Award 2017 at a ceremony yesterday in Mumbai.

He was chosen for his "compassionate humanity" and his "dedication and commitment" to his work in "a location of great danger".

"I am a Catholic priest of the Salesians of Don Bosco, working for the young and the marginalised, he told AsiaNews. I was given the opportunity to serve the mission in Yemen. God has a mission for each of us.

My sincere thanks go to all those who have prayed for me  Hindus, Christians and Muslims  and to those who love humanity."

The names of the winners of this year's prize were announced last October.

Fr Tom was chosen "for the inspiring example of compassionate humanity, and for having continued to work for the elders of the Missionaries of Charity in Yemen, despite having had the opportunity to leave the country, said Abraham Mathai, president of the Harmony Foundation, which has handed out the award since 2007 to honour the memory of Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

We praise Fr Tom's dedication and commitment for work in a location of great danger, where his colleagues were murdered in cold blood, he added.

Fr Tom was abducted on 4 March 2016 at a retirement home run by the Sisters of Mother Teresa in Aden. Four nuns and 12 other people were killed in the attack, blamed on al-Qaeda.

Wars are not a solution for humanity, Fr Tom said. We are made in the Image of God, and we see God in our neighbour and should be as brothers and sisters.

Asked if he ever thought of comparing his experience to that of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, the Franciscan who took the place of a man with a family in a starvation bunker in Auschwitz, Fr Tom answered simply: "It never occurred to me".

Speaking about the "dark night of the soul"  the period of sadness, fear, anguish, confusion and solitude of approach to God, considered indispensable to be born again, the Salesian said he had no doubts: "I do not know if it was dark. . . but for me it was always bright."

Despite the period of suffering and deprivation in the hands of his captors, Fr Tom instils calm and serenity.

At the ceremony, he allowed himself to be photographed with those present and smiled to anyone who said hello. "I thank the Lord for everything", he said.
The award was accepted by Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the Ican (International Campaign for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons) and by Hiroshima survivor Setsuko Thurlow. The ceremony was snubbed by the ambassadors of the USA, France, Great Britain. The treaty for the ban on nuclear weapons was approved by 122 nations, but not by the nine nuclear powers. So far it has received only three ratifications. The support of Pope Francis.

Oslo (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Many survivors (hibakushi) of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs in were present. The two atomic bombs launched by the US at the end of the Second World War, caused over 220 thousand deaths. On the other hand, perhaps in disregard of the winners of the prize, there were no ambassadors representing three nuclear powers: The United States, France, Great Britain, who sent second-level representatives.

A survivor withdrew the prize: Setsuko Thurlow, an 85-year-old Japanese from Hiroshima, who now lives in Canada. As an ICAN activist, Thurlow recalled when she, buried under the rubble of Hiroshima, sought the light and took courage not to give up hope and make her way to the light that filtered under the ruins.

"Our light - she said - is now the treaty banning nuclear weapons. I repeat the words I heard in me in the ruins of Hiroshima: Do not lose heart. Keep pushing, see the light? Crawl towards it".

Thurlow refers to a commitment made by the ICAN - a coalition of hundreds of NGOs around the world - which has drawn up a treaty banning nuclear weapons, generally adopted by 122 UN nations. The treaty is an exceptional historical fact, although weakened by the fact that the nine nuclear powers (USA, France, Great Britain, Russia, China, Pakistan, India, North Korea, Israel) have not signed it.

So far only three nations - the Holy See, Guyana and Thailand - have ratified it. But to be binding, it needs 50 ratifications.

Ican executive director Beatrice Fihn, who accepted the award along with Thurlow, said that, even if it is late to be ratified, the treaty is at least "a clear rule against nuclear weapons ... This is a step forward. There is only one way to prevent the use of nuclear weapons: to ban and eliminate them ".

In her speech, Fihn hinted at the growing tension on the Korean peninsula, which she called an "extremely dangerous situation". The leaders of the US and North Korea - he added - "only simple humans who have control over the end of the world; nobody should have such power ".
More than 20,000 agents will be deployed in Jakarta from 23 December to 1 January. Terrorists target Christian places of worship and government buildings. In 2000, attacks against 11 churches left 13 people dead and 100 wounded. The countrys two main moderate Islamic organisations provide security to Christians.

Jakarta (AsiaNews/Agencies)  General Tito Karnavian, head of the Indonesian police, has announced new security measures for the Christmas period.

So far, security forces have not detected any terror plot by Islamist militants. However, the year-end holiday security plan includes the deployment of more than 20,000 agents in Jakarta for the Christmas and New Year celebrations, from 23 December to 1 January.

"There are no attack plans just yet but as usual we will take it step by step, or do what we call pre-emptive strikes on groups that we think may potentially act," General Tito said.

Indonesia's counter-terrorism police unit Densus 88 has foiled several terrorist attacks in recent years, including many that were planned for this time of the year and often inspired or directed by elements of the Islamic State (IS).

Targeting Christian places of worship and government buildings during the holiday season is a top priority for Islamist militants in Southeast Asia.

Remnants of the old Jemaah Islamiah terrorist network and members of the Jamaah Ansharut Daulah continue to pose a security threat to Indonesia.

Christians represent about 10 per cent of the population of Indonesia, the worlds most populous Muslim country. Protestants number about 17 million, whilst Catholics are around 7 million (3 per cent). Both groups are often threatened and targeted by extremists and terrorists.

On Christmas Eve in 2000, bomb attacks against 11 churches across the country killed 13 people and wounded another 100. At the time, the attacks were blamed on the Jemaah Islamiah, a group linked to al Qaeda.

Since then, every year thousands of members of Indonesias two main moderate Islamic organisations (Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah) have guarded Christian places of worship and other buildings during the holidays.
The Chaldean patriarchate criticises a choice that complicates the situation and fuels conflicts and wars. Card al-Rahi calls the decision destructive and a violation of international resolutions. Coptic pope Tawadros II cancels a meeting with US Vice President Pence. Somewhat resigned, Palestinians continue their protest. For Israeli peace group, the US has abdicated its role of mediator in the region.

Jerusalem (AsiaNews)  Christian religious leaders in the Middle East have issued new appeals to the United States and US president Donald Trump to change the decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move the US Embassy to the city.

This controversial choice has caused protests and sparked outrage with deaths and wounded in the region, worrying Pope Francis himself, who has called for respect of the status quo.

Yesterday, in a statement, the Holy See expressed its attention and concern for the holy city and for peace in the disputed city.

In a statement sent to AsiaNews, the Chaldean patriarchate appeals to the American "superpower", reminding the United States that it " has the obligation to pursue peace, justice and prosperity in the world, rather than complicating issues by conflicts and wars.

For the leader of the Iraqi Church, President Trumps decision "will trigger the fire in an area that is already inflamed."

From this comes a request to respect the status quo in Jerusalem and, in this pre-Christmas, pray with all those of good will for reconciliation and stability in the Holy Land, surrounding countries and the whole world.

Card Beshara al-Rahi, head of the Maronite Church, shares the concerns of his Iraqi counterpart. In yesterdays Mass, he described Trumps decision as regrettable and destructive, which "violates resolutions of international legitimacy, defies the regional and international will, and insults Palestinians, Levantine Christians, Muslims and Arabs.

It destroys the bridges of peace between Israel, the Palestinians and the Arab states, ignites the fire of a new uprising, and turns city of peace Jerusalem into a city of war, the patriarch warned.

Egypts Coptic Orthodox Patriarch Tawadros II also did not mince his words, cancelling a planned meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence in Cairo (Egypt) later this month.

Trumps decision did not take into account the feelings of millions of Arab people, the Coptic Church said in a statement. For this reason, the Coptic pope will not meet with Pence when he visits Egypt. Copts represent about 10 per cent of the countrys population.

Tawadross decision follows that of Ahmed al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of al-Azhar, the highest Islamic Sunni authority in the world.

Egypts two top religious leaders, Muslim and Christian, have adopted a common line against meeting the US vice president.

Against the backdrop of protests and outrage but also resignation, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has done the same, calling Trumps decision reprehensible and a deliberate undermining of all peace efforts, whilst warning that the move ended Washingtons historic role as the key sponsor for Israel-Palestinian peace talks.

The White House had warned on Thursday that cancelling the meeting planned for later this month in the West Bank would be counterproductive, but Abbas has been under heavy domestic pressure to shun Pence who is due to visit the region December 17-19. Abbas has to contend in fact with hard-line Hamas, galvanised by the US decision.

For Gush Shalom, an Israeli peace group, Trumps decision has brought to an end American mediation in the Middle East. It will not change the situation in Jerusalem but it marks the US abdication of its leading role in the peace process.

The activist group, which includes Uri Avnery, now wonders who will fill the vacuum left by the United States. According to some, Russia and President Vladimir Putin might do the job; others hope for greater leadership from the European Union, or even China. However, uncertainty prevails in the major capitals of the world.

For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has launched an offensive to take advantage of the situation, at home and abroad, of the US presidents decision.

During a visit to Europe, the Israeli leader, who held a frosty meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, said that the recognition makes peace possible.

In a statement, Netanyahu also criticised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who, in his view, does not accept democracy.

Meanwhile, the Arab League at an emergency meeting in Cairo called for the recognition of the State of Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital.
Pope Francis released his message for the 26th World Day of the Sick, which will be celebrated on 11 February 2018. " The image of the Church as a field hospital that welcomes all those wounded by life is a very concrete reality.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  In his message for the 26th World Day of the Sick, which will be celebrated on 11 February 2018, Pope Francis said that Christians must focus on patients as people both in Catholic institutions  avoiding the danger of a business mentality  and public facilities, whilst offering support to families who take care of those who suffer.

Entitled Mater Ecclesiae: Behold, your son... Behold, your mother. And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. (Jn 19:26-27), the message takes its cue from what Jesus on the cross said to John.

Before all else, Jesus words are the source of Marys maternal vocation for all humanity. Mary was to be, in particular, the Mother of her Sons disciples, caring for them and their journey through life. As we know, a mothers care for her son or daughter includes both the material and spiritual dimensions of their upbringing.

John, the beloved disciple, is a figure of the Church, the messianic people. He must acknowledge Mary as his Mother. In doing so, he is called to take her into his home, to see in her the model of all discipleship, and to contemplate the maternal vocation that Jesus entrusted to her, with all that it entails: a loving Mother who gives birth to children capable of loving as Jesus commands. That is why Marys maternal vocation to care for her children is entrusted to John and to the Church as a whole. The entire community of disciples is included in Marys maternal vocation.

John [. . .] can testify to the fact that Jesus met many people suffering from spiritual sickness due to pride (cf. Jn 8:31-39) and from physical ailments (cf. Jn 5:6). He bestowed mercy and forgiveness upon all, and healed the sick as a sign of the abundant life of the Kingdom, where every tear will be wiped away. Like Mary, the disciples are called to care for one another, but not only that. They know that Jesus heart is open to all and excludes no one. The Gospel of the Kingdom must be proclaimed to all, and the charity of Christians must be directed to all, simply because they are persons, children of God.

The maternal vocation of the Church for those who suffer

The Churchs maternal vocation to the needy and to the sick has found concrete expression throughout the two thousand years of her history in an impressive series of initiatives on behalf of the sick. This history of dedication must not be forgotten. It continues to the present day throughout the world.

In countries where adequate public health care systems exist, the work of Catholic religious congregations and dioceses and their hospitals is aimed not only at providing quality medical care, but also at putting the human person at the centre of the healing process, while carrying out scientific research with full respect for life and for Christian moral values.

In countries where health care systems are inadequate or non-existent, the Church seeks to do what she can to improve health, eliminate infant mortality and combat widespread disease. Everywhere she tries to provide care, even when she is not in a position to offer a cure. The image of the Church as a field hospital that welcomes all those wounded by life is a very concrete reality, for in some parts of the world, missionary and diocesan hospitals are the only institutions providing necessary care to the population.

The memory of this long history of service to the sick is cause for rejoicing on the part of the Christian community, and especially those presently engaged in this ministry. [. . .] This legacy of the past helps us to build a better future, for example, by shielding Catholic hospitals from the business mentality that is seeking worldwide to turn health care into a profit-making enterprise, which ends up discarding the poor. Wise organization and charity demand that the sick person be respected in his or her dignity, and constantly kept at the centre of the therapeutic process. This should likewise be the approach of Christians who work in public structures; through their service, they too are called to bear convincing witness to the Gospel.

For Francis, the healing power Jesus has bestowed upon the Church also covers the healing provided by families. We cannot forget the tender love and perseverance of many families in caring for their chronically sick or severely disabled children, parents and relatives. The care given within families is an extraordinary witness of love for the human person; it needs to be fittingly acknowledged and supported by suitable policies. Doctors and nurses, priests, consecrated men and women, volunteers, families and all those who care for the sick, take part in this ecclesial mission. It is a shared responsibility that enriches the value of the daily service given by each.

To Mary, Mother of tender love, we wish to entrust all those who are ill in body and soul, that she may sustain them in hope. We ask her also to help us to be welcoming to our sick brothers and sisters.
Al-Abadi confirms that the Iraqi forces "have taken complete control" of the Iraqi-Syrian border. He speaks of victory as the fruit of "unity and determination" and obtained "in a short time". Previously Russia had described the mission in Syria against the Caliphate as "complete". However, a military victory does not imply the eradication of fundamentalist doctrine.

Baghdad (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has announced the end of the three-year war of security forces to expel the militias of the Islamic State (IS, former ISIS) from the country.

The official communication came on 9 December, during which the Prime Minister stressed that "our forces have taken complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border" thus putting an end to the "war against Daesh [the acronym for IS]".

During a press conference, al-Abadi said that the "enemy" wanted to "kill our civilization", but "we won thanks to our unity and our determination". He then stressed that "we have triumphed in a short time".

The Caliphate militia, which appeared for the first time in the summer of 2014, had conquered most of the territories between Syria and Iraq, to control up to half of the two countries at the time of its maximum extension. Under their rule some of the most serious atrocities of recent history were carried out, in particular against the Yazidi Muslim minority.

In October last year, the Iraqi government, supported by a US-led international coalition, launched a massive offensive against Mosul, a stronghold of the Caliphate in Iraq. After about a year the anti-jihadist coalition confirmed the liberation of the area. Over the weekend, the Prime Minister's final declaration, which speaks of "good news: the liberation by the Iraqi forces of the entire border between Syria and Iraq". The premier did not mention the great contribution to the liberation of Mosul given by the Kurdish peshmerga troops, now in conflict with the central government after the Kurdistan independence referendum.

The official announcement of al-Abadi comes two days after the note of the Russian army, which described the mission to fight ISIS in neighboring Syria as "complete". However, analysts and experts point out that military victory does not also imply the definitive defeat of the jihadist ideology in the area, now rooted in a part of the population. A danger also highlighted by priests from the plain of Nineveh in northern Iraq, interviewed by AsiaNews for whom the "threat" is still present.
By Philippa Collin, Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University

Shutterstock.com

Facebook is trialling a new Messenger Kids app in the United States.

The standalone app is aimed at under-13s, who arent currently eligible for a normal Facebook account. Parents are responsible for setting up the account and approving any contacts their children add. Kids can then use the app to video chat  both one-on-one or in a group  and send photos, videos and text messages. Currently only available in the US on Apple devices, Facebook expects to extend it to a wider audience in the coming months.

In the week since the app launched, headlines have focused on its potential downsides, amid concerns about data privacy, tech addiction and kids well-being.

But I argue that there is another side to this story: the fact that teaching kids about messaging at a young age is essential to preparing them for the hyper-connected world they will need to navigate in the future.

Read more: Scare-mongering about kids and social media helps no-one

Its already happening

At the moment, there is relatively little research in Australia about toddlers and childrens use of digital technologies. But studies in the UK and emerging Australian studies suggest that kids are going online at ever earlier ages, and doing a much wider range of activities.

Children younger than 13 are already using social media, and messaging functionality is increasingly built into the communicative ecology of families.

On a recent overseas work trip, I shared photos and messages with my nine-year-old daughter via her dads Facebook Messenger account. Like most kids her age in Australia, she has daily access to a mobile phone or tablet.

And like the average Australian household with children younger than 15, we have seven internet-enabled devices in our home. But we dont have a landline, so web apps, including social messaging apps, are becoming more central to our family communication.

Messaging is also embedded in multi-player games used by older children, such as Minecraft and Clash of Clans.

There are both challenges and benefits associated with kids connecting with others via games and apps, but the functionality is not going to go away. Learning how to navigate social media together is now a key feature of childhood and parenting.

Messaging can be good for kids

The Facebook app is an interesting innovation in the social media space precisely because it promotes learning about and using social media together with kids. The focus is on developing online skills by supporting communication with known relatives and friends, because kids can only connect with parent-approved contacts.









Facebook





As leading kids and tech commentator Anne Collier has written, the most significant thing about the app is that while it has plenty of parental controls built into it, the app itself is not actually a parental control tool. Rather, it is a service that kids and their families and friends will need to learn to use - and use well - together.

Read more: Text-messaging isnt, like, ruining young peoples grammar

Evidence already exists to show that social media can be good for mental health, building friendships, and resilience.

The app will evolve over time as kids and parents use it. What is important is that parents do not become complacent about the app as a silver bullet solution to educating children about the internet. Rather, we need to see it as just one tool to foster healthy, respectful relationships with our kids, and learn through the technology.

Bullying and data privacy

For now the Facebook Messenger Kids app features no ads, in-app purchases or sharing of data with other apps on the same device. But as with all websites and apps, this one will be fallible. Learning to think about what we share and how we share it (just like when you meet someone in a park) will still be important on this app.

Bullying can happen anywhere and it is possible  as weve seen before  that the app could extend bullying beyond the schoolyard. But all contacts in the app must be pre-approved by parents, and it has reporting features with pop-up feedback, dedicated content moderation, and notifications to parent Facebook accounts. Those features should enable parents to stay better abreast of how kids are using it. Unlike Snapchat and other apps, content cant be deleted. This will also help kids and parents review communication, and take necessary steps if someone is being mean or harassing.

Read more: Screen time is about more than setting limits

There are more than 2 billion Facebook users worldwide, and the chances are that our kids will soon add to those statistics. Facebook and other major platforms should be part of a broader effort to help kids and parents learn how to communicate safely and respectfully in a world saturated with social media.

And we should all develop critical digital literacy skills by learning about who is behind the apps and platforms we use, and what happens to our information and data. If using the Facebook Messenger Kids app helps to promote these conversations, that is a very good thing.

Philippa Collin has received funding from the Australian Research Council, Google Australia/NZ and other government departments. However, the views expressed here are her own.

Originally published in The Conversation.


(By Denis Rozhnovsky/Shutterstock.com) (By Denis Rozhnovsky/Shutterstock.com)

Closer business and research links are being drawn up between Australia and the United States, particularly when it comes to technology and innovation, it has been announced.The Australian Government has signed an agreement with the United States Council on Competitiveness that supports efforts to strengthen business and research links between both nations.This will see the opening of a CTO dialogue in 2018 which will build on the activities of the US Council of Competitiveness Technology Leadership Strategy Initiative, which is an influential coalition of America's top technology leaders, led by companies such as Lockheed Martin, John Deere and Boeing.'Their interest in this dialogue illustrates that Australian companies and research institutions are well regarded internationally and have a lot to offer,' said Craig Laundy, Australia's Assistant Minister for industry, innovation and science.Through the dialogue, Australian technology and innovation leaders will have the opportunity to engage with American counterparts, sharing common challenges and opportunities in the innovation and technology space.Laundy explained that the strategic engagement on areas of mutual interest will help launch deep business partnerships, supporting the innovation goals of both nations. 'Our innovation system has many strengths, but there are also some areas where Australia could do significantly better,' he said.'We are determined to lift the level of engagement between Australian businesses, universities and the research sector to commercialise and share ideas and solve problems, particularly with international partners,' he pointed out.'This is a fantastic opportunity to learn from and work with world class American companies and research organisations. The Government is facilitating the CTO dialogue, but its sustainability is ultimately about business to business partnerships. I'm encouraging Australian industry to grasp this opportunity,' he added.
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A St. Petersburg family escaped injury Sunday afternoon as a fire swept through their home.

Fire heavily damages St. Petersburg home

Fire at a home on 21st Street South

Using a space heater? Remember this

Firefighters responded to reports of a fire at a home on 21st Street South at about 2:30 p.m.

When crews arrived, they found a fire in one of the bedrooms. A woman and three children managed to make it out of the home safely.

However, the home has significant damage and is now unliveable.

The Red Cross is helping out the family, which was renting the property.

No official cause of the fire has been determined, one of the residents said it may have started with a space heater.

St. Pete Fire Rescue is reminding residents to only use space heater in accordance with the manufacturers' recommendations.
A local company making it big is giving back to the Bay area.

With success in socks, a Bay area company gives back

Odd Sox, a sock company based in Pinellas, is partnering with local charities

Odd Sox

And that includes making some special deliveries today.

Odd Sox, a sock company based in Pinellas County, is partnering with several local charities and they are hitting the road in their Odd Sox bus for a day of fun and giving.

The group, led by Odd Sox owner Ahmad Akar, are handing out socks at various stops and donated funds during a stop at the Tampa Metropolitan Ministries office.

And these are no average socks, coming in all shapes, patterns and colors.

"Odd Sox stands for being different," Akar said. "And being odd and in that we really want to promote people's uniqueness and help them find their voice to do whatever they want in life."

Akar started the company in Largo four years ago and it's really taken off.

Now Odd Sox can be found in major retailers around the world. And with that success, Akar says he wants to help people across Tampa Bay.

In addition to the bus' other stops today, his group will drop off donations at Toys for Tots and The Children Hospital. They also will make a stop at radio station Wild 94.1 for its 6th Annual Holiday Toy Drive.

"Homeless shelters say that socks are the least donated items in their organization," Akar said. "So just by giving them, donating socks, that's such a big help and on the flip side showing that a young person can start a business from nothing and do what they want in life is also an important message."
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says the explosion at a New York City subway near Times Square was "an attempted terrorist attack" that left the man officials say is responsible with non-life threatening injuries.

Akayed Ullah, 27, accused of setting off pipe bomb

Ullah suffered burns, cuts to body

3 other bystanders received non-life threatening injuries

The explosion happened before 7:20 a.m. at 42nd Street and 8th Avenue triggered a massive police response to both the Port Authority Bus terminal and Times Square and multiple agencies are conducting an investigation.

Video shows interior footage of the explosion inside a 42nd Street subway station. Officials say four people were injured, including the suspect. pic.twitter.com/VqczJ34w9u  Spectrum News NY1 (@NY1) December 11, 2017

Akayed Ullah, 27, is accused of being in the subway with a pipe bomb tied to him with Velcro and zip ties before he detonated the device, causing serious injuries to him, described New York City Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill at a news conference. Ullah made a statement before he detonated the bomb, but O'Neill did not say what that was.

"This be also clear that this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God, the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals. Thank God our first responders were there so quickly to address the situation, to make sure people were safe," de Blasio said at the news conference.

O'Neill called the device "low tech" and it injured three other people who were nearby when the bomb went off. Their injuries were minor, O'Neill described, and they were able to take themselves to local hospitals.

Ullah, however, suffered burns and lacerations and was taken to Bellevue Hospital, O'Neill said, adding that the Brooklyn man is in police custody.

"A thorough background investigation of the suspect is being conducted by the joint terrorism task force," the commissioner said.

Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group. The officials said he lives in Brooklyn and came to the U.S. from Bangladesh about seven years ago. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

O'Neill added that the attack was captured on transit system video cameras and the department is reviewing the video and interviewing witnesses.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the city will always be a target of attacks because of what it stands for.

"This is New York. The reality is, we are a target by many who would like to make a statement against democracy, against freedom," he said. "That makes us an international target."

However, that does not mean New Yorkers need to be afraid, says O'Neill.

"This is NYC, we don't live in fear. But if you see something suspicious you have an obligation to come forward and tell us," he said, adding that if anyone knows anything about Monday's attack should call: 1-888-NYC-SAFE.

At one point, New York Police Department sources told Spectrum News 13's sister station Spectrum New York 1 Ullah died, however the NYPD has stated he is still alive.

UPDATE: The NYPD says the suspect, still in custody, has not died.  Spectrum News NY1 (@NY1) December 11, 2017

Spectrum News 13's sister station Spectrum New York 1 has additional information:

UPDATE: Our @joshrobin is in Midtown, on Manhattan's West Side, reporting on an explosion at or near the #PortAuthority Bus Terminal. The #NYPD has the suspect in custody and are investigating. pic.twitter.com/qosNklkImw  Spectrum News NY1 (@NY1) December 11, 2017

BREAKING NEWS: @DeanMeminger reports his #NYPD sources have told him a suspect now in custody was wearing an explosive vest and detonated it, causing a massive police response to 42nd Street and 8th Avenue in Manhattan this morning.  Spectrum News NY1 (@NY1) December 11, 2017

The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time. Info is preliminary, more when available. pic.twitter.com/7vpNT97iLC  NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has tweeted that President Trump has been briefed on the explosion.

Check back for updates.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Rescued Sea Turtle, Famed Otter at Oregon Coast Aquarium Die This Week

Published 12/10/2017 at 5:35 PM PDT - Updated 12/10/2017 at 5:55 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff





(Newport, Oregon)  Rescuing and caring for animals of any kind is never easy and ends in heartbreak down the line, but hopefully farther in the future rather than sooner. Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport is dealing with that this week as a longtime fixture and attraction dies as does one of the sea turtles it helped rescue recently. Above: photo of Judge the sea otter courtesy Oregon Coast Aquarium).

It only took a day but the young green sea turtle that was rescued by Seaside Aquarium on December 3 died later the following evening. The turtle had made it to Oregon Coast Aquarium shortly after its discovery on that Sunday morning, but chances are never that good for hypothermic sea turtles found on these beaches. (See Second Sea Turtle Rescued from Oregon Coast Beaches).

Once the green sea turtle arrived at the Newport facility, husbandry staff administered fluids, obtained blood samples, and conducted a physical assessment. The animal received X-rays the following morning. Staff said the sea turtle appeared responsive and passed waste, but a high white blood cell count warned that the turtle was likely fighting a significant infection.

The Oregon Coast Aquarium performed a necropsy on the animal to further ascertain the cause of death. Staff found no foreign material in the stomach or intestine, but samples will be evaluated for biotoxin exposure as well.

Meanwhile, the Olive Ridley turtle that was rescued by Seaside Aquarium on Thanksgiving is still doing okay. That turtle, named Turkey, continues to undergo treatment.

The saddest news for the Oregon Coast Aquarium is the passing of its much-loved sea otter, Judge. The oldest otter at the aquarium, he was a standout performer there since December 2003. He was originally rescued from Pacific Grove, California, some time before that, where he was found stranded. Just a small pup, Judge was taken to Monterey Bay Aquarium (MBA) for care and rehabilitation and was released soon afterward - but that was far from the last time MBA staff would lay eyes on him.

He was released after being involved in a special program that helped teach orphaned otter pups to take care of themselves by being introduced to mother sea. Not long after that, Judge was spotted in Monterey Bay interacting with humans in search of food. After seven more failed releases, wildlife professionals deemed the human-friendly sea otter non-releasable.

Judge now has an enduring legacy as the charismatic sea otter who loved human interaction, whether that be playing hide-and-seek with visitors or floating by the glass windows of his exhibit to people watch. It was this friendly demeanor along with his strikingly well-kept fur coat - Judge was a meticulous groomer - that cemented Judge as the fluffy face of the Aquariums 2013 ad-campaign. Oregon Coast Hotels in these areas - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

If you find a sea turtle on the beach, immediately note its location, remain nearby to observe it, and contact the Oregon State Police Tipline at 800-452-7888 or the Marine Mammal Stranding Network in Oregon, Washington, and California at 1-866-767-6114.

More photos of these animals below:





Green sea turtle photos below courtesy Seaside Aquarium:















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Update: After mistakenly reporting that a crash in Bevil Oaks on Monday was fatal, DPS is "addressing this situation internally."

"The department apologizes for the inaccuracy," Sgt. Stephanie Davis said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the two crash victims and their families."

Previous reporting: A driver previously reported as dead following a crash in Bevil Oaks was resuscitated at the hospital and in critical condition, the city of Bevil Oaks said in a statement.

Bevil Oaks came together on Monday night to host a prayer vigil for Ranger Ladner, identified on social media as the driver of the early morning crash near the fireworks stand.

Authorities were called to the single-vehicle crash on Texas 105 near Reines Road around 5 a.m. on Monday, Department of Public Safety said.

A 2006 Chevrolet pickup truck traveling westbound veered across eastbound traffic for some unknown reason, according to DPS. The truck hit several utility poles, knocking out Entergy power to residents in Bevil Oaks, Pinewood Estates and surrounding areas.

The driver was a 19-year-old Beaumont man identified by Bevil Oaks. He was unresponsive when law enforcement arrived and CPR was performed until he arrived at Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont where he was resuscitated, according to DPS.

The driver was rushed into emergency surgery and DPS does not know his current condition. The driver was previously reported as dead.

There was an 18-year-old Beaumont woman in the passenger seat who was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

MGstalter@BeaumontEnterprise.com

Twitter.com/morgGstalt
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Friends and acquaintances turn up at Carlton Greathouse's home in Devers, random objects in hand.

"Can you make a guitar out of this?" they ask.

Greathouse, 52, breaks out in a broad grin as he replies in a deep Texas drawl, "Oh yes, I can. Yes, I can."

He jokes that he could likely make a musical instrument out of a person if he could get them to stand still long enough.

Shovels, tin cans, cigar boxes, brooms, toilet seats, a bed pan, and an old painted cow skull - these are just a few of the items stacked in piles throughout his home workshop.

Each awaits its transformation. Each will have its own unique sound - the size, shape and material out of which it is made shapes the tone and resonance it produces when affixed with neck and strings.

Greathouse said whether the base object will become electric or acoustic, single or multi-stringed, is determined by the item itself.

"Once you get to going, it tells you what it wants you to do with it," he said.

The craft of found object instrument making goes back to iconic Bluesman Bo Diddley. Born into a poor Southern family with no means to buy a guitar, the young Diddley collected discarded strings from the back doors of bars and clubs, stringing them onto broom handles to make his own guitar. They became known, as are the variations made to this day, as Bo Diddley's.

While they may be primitive and amateur in appearance, the custom guitars are capable of producing a range of sound that can make even a seasoned musician stand up and take notice. They are perfect for playing the "Texas Red Dirt" rock that Greathouse loves, he said.

Single-stringed tin cans, one of his best sellers, particularly at $20 a piece, actually have a very bluesy sound and are easy to play, even for a novice, according to Greathouse. But by far his most sought instruments are the toilet seat and shovel electric guitars.

Clientele at his trade days booth and at his independent business, Texas Coyote Guitar & Stringed Instrument Co., range from amateurs to pros seeking new and unique sounds. Greathouse also sells kits from which customers can build their own instrument.

Greathouse's musical beginnings may not have started quite so primitively as a can with a string, but they were amateur, he said.

At age 5 he got his first guitar - a Mexican tourist gift brought back by his grandparents following a trip south of the border.

It never stayed in tune, he recalled, but became the foundation upon which he learned to play.

Music has always been part of his life, he said. Greathouse was in several bands throughout his teen years. He played the bass guitar. His wife was a drummer in high school.

Greathouse has been putting his hands to creative use since he was a boy growing up in Ganado. He started silver smithing and jewelry making in the mid-1980s and continued on with it after retiring from nearly 28 years in the oil fields as a heavy equipment mechanic.

Some of the techniques he learned in those trades, such as decorating wood through a Lichtenberg wood-burning process that uses electricity, he has applied to the bodies of his guitars and knife and gun stocks.

His most challenging object to transform into a guitar is the cow skull, but he says it will be finished in time for the next trade days show in Liberty this Friday through Dec. 17.

His ultimate design plans include making a mini fog machine guitar and lighting the interior so that colorful smoke pours out while it is being played.

Prices vary from $20 for a canjo to $75 for an acoustic cigar box guitar. He charges around $200 for a dulcimer. Greathouse also makes Les Paul guitars, the last of which sold for $800.

He has an ongoing project to restore an 1847 102-string hammered dulcimer which was given to him by a fellow trade show exhibitor.

In addition to selling at trade days and online, Greathouse also offers cigar box guitar lessons for $20 an hour.

KBrent@BeaumontEnterprise.com
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A second 15-year-old boy has been certified to stand trial as an adult in the June killing of a pregnant Beaumont woman and her infant daughter.

Corey Spencer, the alleged gunman in the June 6 fatal shooting of Kera Teel, was certified in 317th District Court on Monday. He faces charges of capital murder and attempted capital murder from the Teel shooting and a July 12 attempted robbery, prosecutor John Nelson said.

Spencer said he was not involved in the killing on Monday as he left the courtroom in handcuffs.

Teel, 19, was seven months pregnant when she was shot in the parking lot of the Sienna Trails apartment complex just before 2 a.m. during an attempted robbery. Kyndal Teel died after her birth at a Beaumont hospital.

Nelson said Spencer is the alleged "trigger man" in Teel's death. He was 14 at the time.

Johnny Phifer, 15, who was certified on Nov. 30 as an adult in the case, told police that Spencer shot Teel after she refused to open her car door, according to Phifer's arrest affidavit.

Nelson said Phifer and Spencer are friends and are distantly related. Investigators do not believe the two are gang members, though Nelson said they were "familiar with the culture."

He said attempted robbery appears to be the motive in the crime.

According to the affidavit, Phifer told police that Dustin Bernard, 22, drove the teens to the apartment complex on June 6, planning to rob people and burglarize cars.

Phifer told police that Spencer, wearing a white cloth over his face, tried to open Teel's car door. When she refused to open the door, he forcibly opened it and shot her, Phifer is quoted in the affidavit.

He told police that he and Bernard witnessed the shooting and that all three fled in Bernard's BMW to another location, where they attempted to rob another person, according to the affidavit.

Both teens are also charged with attempted capital murder in a July 12 robbery on Yorktown Lane.

Bernard was indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury in July on a charge of attempted capital murder for his alleged involvement in the same robbery.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed in that incident, Phifer and Spencer told police that Bernard drove them to the home on Yorktown Lane around 6 a.m., gave them guns and "collected them at the end of their activities."

Spencer told police that he and Phifer saw the homeowner standing about 10 feet away, thought he had a gun and fired at him through a sliding glass door. They "ran to the waiting car, driven by Bernard," he said, who allegedly fired two shots in the air before driving away.

Bernard was arrested in July on an outstanding probation violation warrant and four guns were found in the house, including one that was a forensic match to the weapon used in the Yorktown Lane shooting, according to the affidavit.

He has not been charged in Teel's death, though he is a suspect in the case. Jefferson County

Grand Jury Attorney Cory Kneeland said previously that charges against all three will be brought before a grand jury at the same time.

Attorney Bruce Smith, who represented Spencer, said he argued that the teen was not sophisticated and mature enough to be treated as an adult, and that there was not sufficient evidence to connect him to Teel's killing.

He argued that prosecutors needed evidence other than the testimony of an accomplice to find probable cause that Spencer committed the crime.

"If you have a suspect who allegedly did this when he was only 14 years of age, I think the evidence needs to be really, really strong ... because the public can be sufficiently protected by continuing to treat him as a juvenile," he said. "I didn't think there was sufficient evidence."

Smith said Spencer and Phifer will both have court-appointed attorneys going forward. He said he feels comfortable that the judges of both of Jefferson County's criminal courts "will bend over backwards to protect (Spencer's) rights" and treat him fairly.

Attorney Jefferson Fisher, who represents Teel's husband, Andrew, in a civil suit against the apartment complex where she was killed, said the hearing was emotional for the family, who left the courtroom without speaking to media.

"This has been a long journey, it's going to continue to be a long journey," he said.

Spencer is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday morning, Nelson said.

LTeitz@BeaumontEnterprise.com

Twitter.com/LizTeitz
Law enforcement officials in New York City work after a bomb blast near Times Square, Dec. 11, 2017.

Updated at 6:24 p.m. ET on 2017-12-11

Neighbors described a Bangladeshi man suspected of setting off a bomb Monday near New Yorks Times Square as cocky and weird, but were surprised to hear he was involved in what local authorities called an attempted terrorist attack.

The suspect and three other people were injured in the explosion during the morning rush-hour in an underground subway passage about 200 feet from a busy bus terminal in Manhattan, officials said.

Authorities arrested Akayed Ullah, a 27-year-old Brooklyn resident, after he allegedly detonated an improvised explosive device that was strapped to his body, New York Police Commissioner James ONeill said.

The explosion left Ullah with burns and wounds to his body and injured three others, officials said.

He wasnt very nice. He was kind of cocky, Ullahs longtime neighbor, Alan Butrico, told BenarNews. He was often blocking my driveway.

Butrico, owner of a locksmith and hardware in Brooklyns Flatlands neighborhood, said he was Ullahs next-door neighbor for about seven years.

I would ask him to move the car whenever he was blocking my driveway and he would react like he was giving me a favor, Butrico said.

But Butrico, who lived in the neighborhood for 27 years, said he was surprised to hear that Ullah, whom he described as a former cab driver and electrician, was involved in a terrorist attack.

Im glad he didnt blow up my store, Butrico said. Im glad he went to Manhattan.

The bomb exploded at around 7:20 a.m. (local time) in a subway corridor on 42nd Street, between 7th and 8th avenues, police said.

This device was intentionally detonated by the subject, ONeill, the police commissioners, said in a statement posted on the New York Police Departments (NYPD) Twitter page.

Three people in the immediate area suffered minor injuries and the suspect, who suffered severe burns, was placed in custody and transported to a hospital, ONeill said. Fire officials said Ullah had burns to his hands and abdomen.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff.

Lets be also clear this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters. The only injuries we know at this point were minor.

Kat Mara, who works at a real-estate company near Ullahs home, said the Bangladeshi suspect was very aloof.

Hes like a loner, like theres always something in his mind, Mara, 63, told BenarNews, saying that she often saw Ullah at a bagel store across the street from her office.

Hes very aloof, she said. I would say hello and he wouldnt say anything. He just seemed a little weird.

No criminal record in Bangladesh

In Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, Police Inspector-General A.K.M. Shahidul Hoque said Ullah had no criminal record in Bangladesh and that he last visited his home country on Sept. 8.

Hoque told the Reuters news service that the information was based on Ullahs passport number, and said the suspect was from the southern Bangladeshi district of Chittagong.

New York daily newspapers, quoting unnamed law-enforcement sources, said Ullah arrived in the United States from Bangladesh on Sept. 21, 2011 on an F-4 Visa, which is for siblings of American citizens. He is currently a permanent resident, according to officials.

Shamim Ahmad, a spokesman at Bangladeshs embassy in Washington, did not confirm to BenarNews during a phone interview that Ullah was a Bangladeshi.

Consular officials in New York were awaiting an official report from the NYPD, Ahmad said.

He later on issued a statement saying that the Bangladesh government is committed to its declared policy of zero tolerance against terrorism, and condemns terrorism and violent extremism in all forms or manifestations anywhere in the world, including Monday morning's incident in New York City.

A terrorist is a terrorist irrespective of his or her ethnicity or religion, and must be brought to justice, the statement said.

Ullah lived with his father, mother and brother and worked as a driver in New York for a few years until his license lapsed in 2015, officials said. Neighbors said he lived with his family on the first floor of a two-story home.

New York City Police Commissioner James ONeill holds a news conference outside the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan with Mayor Bill de Blasio (left) and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, after a pipe-bomb strapped to a man exploded in a crowded subway corridor near Times Square, Dec. 11, 2017. [AP]

Six weeks, two terrorist incidents

Mondays bombing occurred nearly six weeks after a deadly terrorist attack in Lower Manhattan.

A man killed eight people and injured a dozen others as he drove a pickup truck down a bicycle path near the World Trade Center on Oct. 31. An officer shot and wounded the suspect.

The U.S. Attorneys Office said the suspect, identified as a 29-year-old Uzbek, Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov, was indicted last month on murder and terror-related charges.

John Miller, the New York Police Department's deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism, said authorities had thwarted 26 terrorist plots in New York since Sept. 11, 2001.

We have prevented a significant number of plots, Miller told reporters Monday.

Your intel operations are looking for indicators, he said. They dont have an X-ray for a mans soul.

The blast on Monday also happened two months after U.S. authorities accused a 37-year-old Filipino doctor of providing funds to support a foiled plot last year to carry out bombings and shootings in crowded areas in New York City, including the subway system and in Times Square.

Russell Salic, a surgeon, was arrested in April 2017 in the Philippines and is awaiting extradition to the United States. Authorities said those thwarted attacks were to be carried out by the suspects under the name of the extremist group Islamic State during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan last year.

Akayed Ullah[Reuters]

Kazi Nishat Tarana, a Bangladeshi living in New York, told BenarNews she was shocked to hear reports that the suspect in Mondays explosion could be a Bangladeshi.

I want to say very clearly, he doesnt represent Bangladesh, she said. The people of our country is peace loving and this man no way is influenced by our great tradition of peace and harmony. We are deeply upset. I hope no Bangladeshi student or immigrant will be judged differently after this incident.

In Dhaka, Sohaili Ferdous, an assistant inspector general of police, said the department would investigate any possible ties between the latest New York attack and Bangladesh.

Right now, we cannot give information about him. We have to check with our database whether he had any militant or criminal background, Ferdous told BenarNews.

Kamran Reza Chowdhury in Dhaka contributed to this report.
The Philippine military said Monday it had dislodged communist New Peoples Army guerrillas from four of their camps in the southern Philippines last week, but bomb attacks by the NPA wounded seven soldiers and a police officer at the weekend.



The captured camps included the NPAs regional headquarters in San Agustin, a remote village in the town of Surigao del Sur, part of the countrys southern third.



The regional camp was a plum prize for us. It was the rebel nerve center for their military operation in the region, said Col. Andres Centeno, chief of the Armys regional Infantry Brigade.

Soldiers seized a huge stockpile of war materials in taking the four camps, after a month-long operation that began in November when guerrillas killed a soldier and two militiamen while attacking an army detachment, Centeno said.



Two NPA rebels, including a bomb maker, were killed in the latest operation on Dec. 5.



The rebel headquarters fell last week, but the three other smaller camps were captured one after the other during a period of a month. The military success was only announced Monday.



Centeno said the last camp that fell could accommodate 200 people and included an intricate bunker system. A big generator produced electricity and distributed power to a row of huts and tents, which housed the rebels administrative and communication facilities.



Government troops also recovered a small armory, which included spare parts for assault rifles, mortar shells and land mines, Centeno said.



Weekend attacks



On Saturday, the NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), launched three bomb attacks in the south, just days after President Rodrigo Duterte labelled them a terrorist organization after he had cancelled peace talks with the communists.



The attacks occurred in the town of North Upi in Maguindanao province, also in Mindanao.



Capt. Arvin Encinas, a local spokesman for the army, said an undetermined number of NPA fighters launched the attack before midnight on Friday, by firing a rifle grenade on a police detachment.



An officer, identified as Ismael Alabama, was wounded, according to Encinas.



After 25 minutes, another explosion happened at the Nuro Bridge, which is about 50 meters [164 feet] from the police detachment. No one was wounded there, Encinas said.



He said Marines were deployed to secure the area but, as they were heading back, the truck they were riding in was hit by a bomb explosion.



Seven of them were wounded, Encinas said, adding that all the men were taken to hospital, where they were later declared out of danger.



Despotic ambitions



The NPA has been waging a guerrilla campaign in the impoverished countryside for nearly half a century.



Communist party founder, Jose Maria Sison, who is in self-imposed exile in the Netherlands, said Duterte would go down in history as the butcher of the Filipino people.



His ambition is to become the despot of death and destruction, Sison said in a statement from Europe.



Sison, a one-time professor of the self-described leftist president, and Duterte had had a good start. When the president took office last year, he immediately launched peace negotiations, hoping to immediately put an end to one of Asias longest-running insurgencies.



Duterte freed detained rebel leaders and allowed them to travel to join negotiations abroad.



But the cordial mood turned sour after the NPA kept launching attacks, despite a declaration of truce. Late last month, two civilians, including an infant girl, were killed in an NPA attack, angering Duterte.



Estimated at about 5,000, the NPA claims to operate in 70 of the countrys 79 provinces.



The armed forces claim that communist guerrillas also have a working alliance with other rebel groups in the south, though it is extremely rare for the NPA to stage attacks backing up Muslim rebel groups.



Mark Navales in Cotabato contributed to this report.
Abu Sayyaf Group members gather in the jungles of the southern Philippine island of Basilan in this undated file photo.

Abu Sayyaf kidnapers executed a Vietnamese hostage after holding him captive for more than a year in the southern Philippines, the military said Monday.

The body of Pham Minh Tuan, the captain of the M/V Royal 16 vessel who was taken hostage along with five crew members by Abu Sayyaf militants in November 2016, was recovered in a coastal village on Jolo island at the weekend, military officials said.

Tuans remains were airlifted to Manila and turned over to the Vietnamese Embassy, said Chief Superintendent Graciano Mijares, head of the regional police.

M/V Royal 16 was carrying cement from northeastern Vietnam to the Philippines when it was attacked off the island of Basilan in the south.

The boat had 19 crew members aboard, according to the Vietnamese embassy in the Philippines, but the attackers took six, including the captain, as hostages and let the rest go.

Tuan and his five crewmen apparently were taken to the jungles of Jolo island farther south, military officials said. One of the five escaped in June, while two were beheaded a month later.

Mijares said the gunmen initially thought the boat captain could be ransomed for a big amount, but they were mistaken. He did not elaborate.

Last month, troops rescued four Vietnamese hostages from the Abu Sayyaf but found a fifth dead. This group was taken from another ship gunmen boarded in February.

At least six foreigners are believed to be held captive by Abu Sayyaf, officials said. The bandits last year had beheaded two Canadians and a German national held separately, after ransom payments demanded by the captors were not met.

Following the recovery of Tuans body, the military said it launched pursuit operations that led to a clash in the seaside town of Panamao in Sulu, where three Abu Sayyaf suspects were killed.

Numbering in the low hundreds, the Abu Sayyaf (Bearers of the Sword) was founded in the 1990s by Afghan-trained militant Abdurajak Janjalani. It is the most violent of Muslim rebel factions in the southern Philippines, and was blamed for a ferry bombing in Manila Bay that killed more than 100 people in 2004.

Janjalani was eventually killed in a police operation in Basilan. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Khadaffy, under whose command gunmen launched a series of spectacular kidnapping raids that netted dozens of European, Asian and American hostages during the previous decade.

Khadaffy was killed, but Abu Sayyaf later split into several factions, including one led by Isnilon Hapilon, who pledged allegiance to the IS and led the siege of Marawi city in May.

Hapilon was among more than 1,000 people killed in five months of gun battles in Marawi, but the military said that his death did not automatically mean the end of the Abu Sayyaf.
Protesters in Manila denounce President Rodrigo Duterte for seeking to extend martial law, prolonging the war on drugs and cracking down on activists who call for his removal from office, Dec. 8, 2017.

President Rodrigo Duterte officially asked Congress to expand military rule in the southern Philippines, saying his government needed more time to fight Islamic State-linked extremist groups despite defeating a militant faction in Marawi, his spokesman said Monday.

The president transmitted a letter with the request on Friday, but announced it publicly three days later. He wrote that while the armed forces officially ended the siege of IS-linked militants in Marawi, troops needed more time to ensure total eradication of the armed groups from the south.

We are hopeful that Congress would see the need for further extension of martial law as explained in PRRDs [President Rodrigo Dutertes] official communication to finally put an end to the ongoing rebellion in Mindanao, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said.

Public safety after all is our primordial concern. We must unite against these evil forces, he said.

If approved, martial law also would cover communist guerrillas in the region. Last week, Duterte declared the Communist Party of the Philippines and its rebel wing, the New Peoples Army, as terrorist organizations after he had canceled peace negotiations with them.

Dutertes letter said the military would use the legal cover to crush like minded local or foreign terrorist groups and armed lawless groups and communist terrorists and their coddler, supporters and finances.

In response, at least one congressman questioned the necessity of extending martial law in the south since Marawi was officially declared liberated on Oct. 23.

IS fanning out across Mindanao

The military said it had monitored IS-linked forces fanning out across the mostly impoverished southern island of Mindanao in their recruitment and radicalization activities. Of particular concern are the areas of Maguindanao and North Cotabato in central Mindanao, as well as the islands of Basilan and Jolo to the south, it said.

Many areas in these provinces have been considered prime recruitment grounds for the militants, military officials said.

These activities are geared toward the conduct of intensified atrocities and armed public uprisings in support of their objective of establishing the foundation of a global Islamic caliphate and of a wilayat (division) not only in the Philippines but also in the whole of Southeast Asia, Duterte said.

He noted that the death of the Abu Sayyaf Groups Isnilon Hapilon, the acknowledged leader of the IS in Southeast Asia, did not ensure that the movement had died with him.

Instead Duterte identified Abu Turaipe  a former separatist guerrilla leader from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)  as the likely successor. Turaipe broke away from the MILF after the group signed a peace deal with Manila in 2014 and dropped its fight for a separate state in favor of expanded autonomy.

Since August, the military has been engaged in low-intensity fighting with Turaipes group in marshland areas in Maguindanao. Initially, Turaipes band was dismissed as a small group of bandits until its members pledged allegiance to IS last year.

Duterte said Turaipes group was now planning to conduct bombings.

In all probability, the remnants of the group who engaged the military in a fierce battle that lasted five months in Marawi are presently regrouping and consolidating their forces, Duterte said.

Dangerous precedent

Rights groups have questioned Dutertes order, warning that he was setting the stage for eventual declaration of military rule across the entire democratic country.

This is a dangerous precedent that inches the entire country closer to a nationwide declaration of martial rule, said Cristina Palabay, of the rights group Karapatan.

Martial law in Mindanao has paved the way for the intensification of rights violations  both within and outside of Marawi. We cannot expect the institution to benefit most from another year of martial law to decide against it, she said.

She warned that should the measure pass in Congress, it would be a step toward a whole nation declaration allowing rights violations would continue.

Rep. Edcel Lagman, an opposition member at the House of Representatives, said martial law can be extended only in case of invasion or rebellion or when public safety requires it.

There is no more factual basis for the extension of martial law in Mindanao after President Duterte declared the liberation of Marawi City from rebels and terrorists almost two months ago, and government combat forces had been withdrawn, Lagman said.

He said that Dutertes argument that he wanted an extension to contain continuing threats by terrorists was no longer valid because when Marawi was declared free, the government virtually admitted that it had defeated the threat.

Felipe Villamor in Manila contributed to this report.
For Immediate Release, December 11, 2017



Contact: Catherine Kilduff, Center for Biological Diversity, (202) 780-8862, ckilduff@biologicaldiversity.org

Melissa Angel, Turtle Island Restoration Network, (919) 539-5024, melissa@tirn.net

Alicia Cordero, Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation, (805) 323-7023, aliciacordero@wishtoyo.org Lawsuit Launched to Protect Pacific Habitat for Humpback Whales Threatened by Fishing Gear, Ship Strikes, Oil Spills SAN FRANCISCO The Center for Biological Diversity, Turtle Island Restoration Network and Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation today filed a notice of intent to sue the Trump administration for failing to protect humpback whale habitat in the Pacific Ocean, where the animals face threats from fisheries, ship strikes and oil spills. West Coast humpback whales face growing threats that the Trump administrations ignoring. Record numbers of whales are getting tangled in nets and lines while federal officials just stand back and tally the carnage, said Catherine Kilduff, a Center attorney. At the very least, the feds have to protect the critical habitat along the West Coast thats now prone to oil spills, busy with shipping traffic, and dangerously dense with fishing gear. One population of endangered humpback whales that feeds off Californias coast numbers barely more than 400 individuals, meaning any death or injury from entanglement could hurt the entire populations recovery. At least 54 humpback whales were found tangled up in fishing gear off the West Coast last year. Entanglements cause injuries and death as the ropes cut into animals flesh, sap their strength and lead to drowning. Many of last years incidents were clustered around the biologically rich Monterey Bay, where migrating whales come to feed. Californias industrial fisheries, ship traffic and oil spills are contributing to the decline of humpback whale populations, said Todd Steiner, executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network. If we don't protect humpback habitat now, we're ultimately advancing the clock toward their extinction. Ship strikes and oil spills are the other major threats to West Coast humpback whales. A new study found that an estimated 22 humpback whales off California, Oregon and Washington die each year after being hit by ships. In 2015 endangered humpback whales were observed swimming in the Refugio oil spill, which dumped at least 21,000 gallons of crude oil into the ocean. The spill killed hundreds of marine mammals and birds, including dolphins and sea lions. The company responsible recently applied for a permit to rebuild the pipelines. Since time immemorial, Chumash people have shared our home waters of the Santa Barbara Channel with the Paxat Nation, Californias humpback whales. They have a deeply respected role in our culture, guiding and protecting our maritime people as we navigate through the channel. In reciprocity, the Chumash people play a strong role in protecting our magnificent relatives as they face increasing threats from ship strikes, entanglement, and gas and oil development, said Alicia Cordero, First Nations program officer for the Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation. Ensuring proper designation of critical habitat for these populations of endangered humpback whales is a core responsibility for Chumash people, keeping our millennia-old commitment to All Our Relations. Critical habitat protection would help safeguard ocean areas essential for migrating and feeding. The designation would ensure that federally permitted activities do not continue to drive humpback whales to the brink of extinction by destroying important areas. Evidence shows that endangered or threatened species that have protected critical habitat are twice as likely to show signs of recovery as those without it. Humpback whale populations that need critical habitat were identified in 2016 by the National Marine Fisheries Service, including the threatened Mexico population that feeds off the U.S. West Coast and Alaska and the endangered Central America population that feeds almost exclusively off California and Oregon.
For Immediate Release, December 11, 2017



Contact: Noah Greenwald, (503) 484-7495, ngreenwald@biologicaldiversity.org

Nick Cady, (314) 482-3746, nick@cascwild.org Reward Boosted to $20,000 in Search for Killer of Two Washington Wolves Groups Push for Increased Federal Law Enforcement SEATTLE The Center for Biological Diversity and Cascadia Wildlands today increased a reward to $20,000 for information leading to conviction in the killing of two wolves last month in northeast Washington. The groups also called for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to step up its law enforcement efforts to investigate poaching incidents in both Washington and Oregon. Poaching wolves or other wildlife is a deplorable crime, said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center. We need people to come forward and help put a stop to the killing of these endangered animals. The two wolves killed were part of the Smackout and Dirty Shirt packs. Information on their loss and a $10,000 reward was issued by another conservation group, Conservation Northwest, on Saturday. These killings follow the poaching of three other Oregon wolves over the past several months. Wolf populations in both Washington and Oregon remain small and poaching could have a serious impact on their continued recovery. Poaching represents a real threat to the recovery of wolves in Washington and elsewhere on the West Coast, said Nick Cady, legal director with Cascadia Wildlands. Its time for federal and state law enforcement to meaningfully act and catch and prosecute these lawless poachers. Following a government-sponsored campaign of poisoning, shooting and killing, wolves were wiped out from all lower 48 states except a small corner of northeast Minnesota. With protection under the Endangered Species Act, wolves have made a comeback in portions of their range. They began returning to Washington and Oregon in the past 10 years or so, now numbering between 100 and 150 animals in each state.
LAGOS, Nigeria: Leading Pan African reinsurance firm, Continental Reinsurance Plc has today announced the judging panel for its third Pan African Re/Insurance Journalism Awards.

 mearicon via 123RF

Nadia Mensah-Acogny, journalist, Shelter Afrique, will be the chair for the independent Judging Panel. Other judges are: Tony Van Niekerk, editor of South Africas Cover Magazine; Afif Ben Yedder, founder, IC Publications; Michael Wilson, business and finance journalist and Julia Graham, technical director, Airmic.

The awards are currently open for submissions to both English and French-speaking journalists covering the re/insurance sector in Africa. Deadline for submissions of entries is January 31, 2018.

Dr Femi Oyetunji, group managing director/CEO of Continental Reinsurance Plc noted: We are glad to bring on board, a panel of insurance media experts to assess entries submitted by journalists from across the continent. We believe these awards will inspire business journalists to cover issues related to the sector and improve overall quality of reporting.

The judging criteria will focus on how the entries have raised awareness and understanding of the re/insurance sector and displayed integrity in covering the sector. They will also be judged according to how participating journalists have sourced new data or analysed existing data to make it relevant to regional, national and local audiences; effectively analysed a current news story or other noteworthy insurance issue as well as used, analysed and presented statistics to investigate a particular issue in the re/insurance sector.

The judges will independently evaluate all the submitted entries and select winners for the three categories for the third Pan African Re/Insurance Journalism Awards: Journalist of the Year; Best Analysis & Commentary; and Best Feature article.

Winners will be announced at the Continental Reinsurance CEO Summit scheduled to take place 12 - 13 April 2018 in Swakopmund, Namibia.

Continental Reinsurance initiated the awards in 2015 to recognise and acknowledge the good work of journalists who have made outstanding contributions in reporting about the Re/Insurance sector African media.
Last week, YouTube released its annual Rewind lists. These lists are separated by country and showcase the moments that captured the attention of YouTube users around the globe this year.

 emevil via 123RF

The Nigerian section of these list made for some interesting viewing by giving an insight into what Nigerians like to watch on YouTube.

The top 10 videos (excluding from major music labels) most viewed by Nigerians this year, include comedy skits by Mark Angel, coming in 3rd and 8th position; as well as political concerns with the return of President Buhari from his medical trip to the United Kingdom; and the Biafra protests coming in at 2nd and 4th position.

A look at the music videos most watched in Nigeria, shows how Nigerians have embraced indigenous music but not without a few foreign favourites.

Songs like Davidos If and Fall and DJ Khaleds Wild Thoughts with Rihanna and Im the One took top spot. Nigerian favorites Come closer by Wiz Kid featuring Drake, Wo by Olamide, Nobody Ugly by P-Square all made the list.

2017 Top 10 trending videos in Nigeria
150 Jaguar Land Rover employees recently participated in the company's first 'Mapathon' event, plotting roads, rivers and buildings across a sprawling area in the Kurigram District of Bangladesh using satellite imagery. The event took place on 5 December, coinciding with International Volunteer Day and celebratesd a 64-year partnership between Jaguar Land Rover and the Red Cross.

Jaguar Land Rover employees join a global community of volunteers mapping areas where humanitarian organisations, such as the Red Cross, are helping vulnerable people. Bangladesh was chosen to support the Red Cross work in the area to implement disaster risk reduction activities and increase resilience of communities.

Life-saving support

Chris Thorp, responsible business director, said: Each year, disasters kill nearly 100,000 people and affect or displace 200-million more globally. Many of these places are not on any map, making them hard to reach in emergencies. By taking part in todays Mapathon, our employees are helping the Red Cross to provide life-saving support to the vulnerable communities in Bangladesh, harnessing the talent of Jaguar Land Rover employees to create genuine social impact.

During the two-hour event, using the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team Tasking Manager, each volunteer was allocated a square of territory to trace through satellite images and outline features such as buildings, roads and rivers. The maps produced are open data, and Red Cross and other non-governmental organisations can use the maps when they respond to crises.
The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016 report - the international comparative reading assessment conducted by the University of Pretoria (UP) researchers at the Centre for Evaluation and Assessment (CEA) locally - has shown there has been no significant progress in national primary school reading literacy in South Africa, since the last report in 2011. South Africa placed last out of the 50 countries participating in the study at fourth grade level, with the Russian Federation and Singapore being the top achievers.

More than 319,000 learners participated in PIRLS 2016 worldwide. This third South African PIRLS national report builds on 10 years of rigorous research in reading literacy. Although national performance is generally very low, there is a glimmer of hope. Between PIRLS 2011 and PIRLS 2016 there has been an improvement in performance for five African languages (out of the 11 languages tested) at Grade 4 level, despite the fact that these were the lowest performing languages in the 2011 study.

Being able to read is the key to academic and future success, says Celeste Combrinck, acting director at the CEA. If you can't read, your opportunities in school or after school will be limited, which is why reading should start at a very young age.

Evaluation and SA statistics

The CEA works closely with the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) and the TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Centre at Boston College, USA, as well as several other international research organisations and associations in countries such as Canada and Germany, to coordinate and collaborate on the PIRLS study across the globe. At the end of 2015, the CEA tested the reading comprehension skills of 12,810 Grade 4 learners in all 11 official languages across South Africa. In addition, over 5,000 Grade 5 learners were tested in Afrikaans, English and isiZulu. This data was processed and analysed by the international research group and then returned to the CEA. The study was supported by the South African Department of Basic Education (DBE) through partial funding and limited logistical support.

The results, which are carefully validated internationally and reviewed nationally to ensure accuracy, suggest that almost 80% of South African Grade 4 learners fall below the lowest internationally recognised level of reading literacy. According to Prof Sarah Howie, National Research Coordinator (NRC) for PIRLS 2016 South Africa, this suggests that the majority of learners cannot read well enough to succeed in subjects across the curriculum in Grade 4 and higher grades.

"What is troubling is that this is true across all languages in South Africa, as less than a quarter of learners overall reached the lowest international benchmark. While less than half of the learners who wrote the tests in English and Afrikaans could read, 80% of those learning in one of the other nine official languages effectively cannot read at all," says Combrinck.

The report shows that the Western Cape, Free State and Gauteng performed best of all the provinces, and that reading achievement in Sepedi, isiXhosa, Setswana and Tshivenda was the weakest. Boys also performed worse than girls with 84% of boys not being able to reach the lowest benchmark, in comparison to 72% of girls. The gender gap is an international trend that is reflected in South Africa.

Transition issues

Combrinck suggests that part of the problem may stem from two difficult transitions in the fourth year of school. Learners must transition from learning to read to reading to learn, in other words, they are expected to understand the language of learning well enough to study textbooks and other written material. At the same time in South Africa, learners at African language schools transition from being taught in an African language to being taught in English. This situation is almost certain to have a negative impact on Grade 4 reading literacy.

The PIRLS benchmarking data for Grade 5 seem to support this suggestion: in one aspect of the study, 10-year comparisons with PIRLS 2006 suggest that Grade 5 learners have made progress in reading literacy in isiZulu, as well as a combined score for Afrikaans and English that reveals conservative improvements when these two language results are combined. This may suggest that given an extra year to settle into a new language, reading literacy may improve (although learners still fall well short of the international average).

ePIRLS results

In a small scale non-generalisable online reading literacy study conducted only in English in Gauteng (ePIRLS), learners performed as well in online reading literacy as they did on paper-based assessments. Only 14 countries internationally participated due to the difficult nature of the project.

Alongside the reading literacy tests, CEA researchers also investigated over 1,000 other factors in the school, classroom and home environment to find potential reasons for the reading problems they observed, and to better understand the South African learning environment.

Some of the PIRLS 2016 findings include:

90% and more of learners writing in Setswana and Sepedi did not reach the lowest benchmark.



Learners writing in one of the nine African languages attained the lowest mean scores, which were significantly lower than those writing in Afrikaans or English. Children writing in isiXhosa and Sepedi are the most at risk.



Grade 4 learners living in remote rural areas or townships have the lowest reading literacy scores compared to other locations.



Class sizes are increasing. In the Grade 4 study the average class size was 45 learners per class and 55 in Limpopo, compared to 24 learners per class internationally.



Fewer young teachers are entering the system. Most learners are taught by older teachers, but there is no relationship with learners reading literacy scores.

The groups most at risk are those in deep rural areas and townships, those learning in African languages, and boys, says Combrinck. She hopes that this study will initiate a process to address these challenges.

One way that the CEA is trying to address the problem is through a diagnostic analysis and the development of materials for the DBE. These resources will be developed in partnership with experienced teachers, and will provide materials and resources that will help teachers around South Africa improve how they teach reading and reading comprehension at primary school level.

The PIRLS results can also be used by South African universities and will enable critical reflection on their teacher education curriculums for language and reading development.

Howie hopes that her team has done enough to illustrate the scale of the problem, and that others will take up the torch. We can provide evidence and suggestions, but other experts now need to come on board and do the work, she says. If we can bring together like-minded people with honourable intentions who can use funds and resources for education effectively, there is no reason we can't fix this, although it will take time and hard work.
The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has refuted claims by members of trade union Solidarity that some teachers will lose jobs in 2018.

It is sad that Solidarity demands that the department keep to the original allocation of teacher posts, irrespective of changes to learner population at different schools. We are ready for their ploy to run to court on this matter, said Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi on Monday, 11 December 2017.

Some school principals, who are members of Solidarity, claim that about 1,800 posts could be lost when changes are made to teacher post allocations. The claims were made in an article published in the Rapport newspaper on Sunday.

MEC Lesufi said it was disingenuous for some principals to claim that they did not get feedback from the department.

We are actually baffled that they resorted to communicate with us through Solidarity and the media, when the department have afforded them channels to address their appeals. We cannot comprehend this malicious stance portrayed in the mentioned statement. It is disappointing for them to fabricate in this manner, said MEC Lesufi.

According to the department, annual post allocations are conducted to ensure that schools that shrink or grow in learner population still have a fair amount of teachers.

In simple terms, schools that experience learner reduction will be affected by redistribution of teacher posts and those schools that have grown will gain posts from redistribution. It is important [to note] that [this] is based on learner numbers, said the department.

Instead of retrenchments, as claimed in the Rapport article, the department said teachers will be redeployed in line with departmental redeployment policy. The policy was ratified by labour parties, which are members to the Educator Labour Relations Council (ELRC).

Post allocation process

In a statement, the department detailed the process followed on teacher allocation posts. It said the following process was undertaken:

Consultation with unions on the proposed post establishment for schools deadlocked at Provincial Educator Labour Relations Council (PELRC).



GDE approved and distributed post establishments to schools on 12 October 2017.



Unions rejected the approved post establishments and urged schools not to accept them.



Special chamber held on 10 November 2017 resolved that GDE must revise and distribute the post establishments to schools for information verification.



An agreement was reached by all parties to retain the 2017 total post number for the 2018 academic year.



GDE tabled the revised post establishment at PELRC on 17 November 2017 and this was ratified.



Final revised Post Establishment letters were issued on 30 November 2017 to schools.

The department has approved 500 posts to address learner growth in the 2018 academic year.

The appeal process was shared with schools, subsequently the department received more than 100 appeals and each school was responded to through the district offices on 8 December.
We are currently amid an industrial revolution which is transforming every sector of business. While the travel industry is arguably ahead of the curve right now, for how long will it remain in front? In South Africa , almost 3.5 million travellers passed through the country in August this year alone. The economic impact of not staying up to date with the latest technologies can, therefore, be considerable.

Claude Schuck

Thanks to the growth of mobile technology across Africa, consumers are more connected than ever and expecting information to be available to them irrespective of the device used or physical location. According to statistics from the GSMA, mobile technologies and services are expected to amount to more than $210bn of economic value to the continent by 2020.

Technology has permeated all facets of travel with young people interacting and engaging using different platforms to book flights and hotels, perform online check-ins, upgrade their seats, and write reviews. In fact, the travel industry in South Africa is quickly catching up to international developments and moving from the traditional office space and travel agent to a more evolved DIY-style experience.

This digital traveller experience lets consumers take full control over all aspects of their holidays. Much of this digital transformation is driven by the consumers desire to make bookings around the clock from anywhere in the world, rather than be limited by the opening hours of an office-based travel agency, and the subsequent cost savings of cutting out a middleman that took a commission for selling you the trip.

...it stands to reason that to truly embrace digital transformation, those involved in travel need to implement availability of data and digital services as the foundation for their digital offerings to customers.

Embrace digital transformation

So, just imagine the impact if one of these new digital travel services is inaccessible or unavailable. For example, not only will travellers risk not finding the accommodation they need, but they wont be able to book a seat before arriving at the airport, ensuring the whole check-in process is a lengthier affair once more. With so many competitors in the travel sector, chances are good that the customer will simply move on to the next travel service that offers the same kind of value for money and is available to take an online booking. Therefore, it stands to reason that to truly embrace digital transformation, those involved in travel need to implement availability of data and digital services as the foundation for their digital offerings to customers.

While terms like business continuity and disaster recovery might not be familiar to those outside of the ICT sector, they are challenges that business leaders across industry sectors are acknowledging and addressing to ensure they deliver an improved level of customer experience. Without these, downtime can be the difference between business growth and a business existing in six months time. Consider how much potential business a travel agency could lose during peak periods if its site crashes and becomes unavailable for any significant length of time.

The importance of being more digital-savvy is evident just by looking at developments in the travel industry on the continent. Recently, AirBnB announced that it will invest $1m through 2020 to promote and support community-led tourism projects in Africa. In just the past year, it welcomed 1.2 million guests to the continent while earning a combined $139m in host income. Look more widely and AirBnB is on course to have accommodated more than 100 million leisure and business guests this year globally, up from 80 million in 2016. While thats still small compared to the $550 billion global hotel industry, its staggering for a business that began in 2014.

Instant gratification

The customer profile is changing. Today, the expectation is all about instant gratification. Business hours are not just 9-to-5, but rather when the consumer wants it to be. This means the travel agency is now a 24-hour operation that needs to be available to serve customers at 1am as effectively as they do at 10am.

Consumers are expecting the travel industry to meet these availability requirements as they are becoming increasingly reliant on an instant digital experience. For some, if a website doesnt load in the blink of an eye, is it even worth doing business with? Whether or not you subscribe to this thought, it is clear that if you offer digital services or plan to, availability is an essential business requirement.

Peter Bernik via 123RF

According to Travelport research, 86% of South African travellers use travel booking sites while 82% consult review sites to help with ideas on which destinations to visit next. It also indicates that mobile is a growing (and important) aspect of the booking experience with 35% of respondents using a smartphone and 38 percent a tablet to do their bookings.

...travel agencies in the digital area need to take responsibility for being always on, always available, and always ready for processing purchases.

This points to exciting new times for consumers, but worrisome ones for businesses not able to meet these demands. Globally, only 12% of the Fortune 500 companies from 1955 still exist. Most of these disappearances are due to market disruption. Right now, there is no greater disruption than that of digitisation  where technology advances are providing the competitive difference for businesses.

But these can only be effectively realised if operators embrace an always-on approach that is cognisant of having adequate measures in place should disaster strike. Instead of gifting your revenue to a competitor by not having a disaster recovery or business continuity strategy in place, travel agencies in the digital area need to take responsibility for being always on, always available, and always ready for processing purchases.

Going on a digital journey

So, what can a travel agency or tour operator do? It is more than just a case of migrating to an online platform or developing an app. Being available and being digital mean these companies must adopt a completely different approach to their business.

The focus needs to be placed on how customers are engaging and using their platforms, what kind of data is stored, and how that is used to create a more integrated user experience. As mentioned, customers want to be in charge of their own travel experience. Empowering them with the tools to do so must be a prime directive.

Online booking platforms and mobile-friendly travel services around the world and across Africa are starting to become standard business practice. These kinds of digital disruptions can and will happen again at an increasing, almost exponential pace. But by taking the right next steps, leaders can use availability to their advantage and reap its extraordinary potential.
After a four-way pitch, FCB Africa has been appointed to handle the above-the-line marketing communication for Sasol.

Formed in 1950 in Sasolburg, Sasol pioneered oil-from-coal technology, effectively shifting the petroleum paradigm on a global scale.

Today, it is an international integrated chemicals and energy company leveraging technologies and the expertise of its 30,300 people in 33 countries to produce a range of high-value product stream, including liquid fuels, chemicals and low-carbon electricity.

According to FCB Cape Towns managing director, Eric dOliveira, the Cape Town/Joburg teams unrivalled category experience and knowledge was one of the crucial factors tipping the scales in its favour.

FCB Africas impressive track record for creating work that wins the hearts and souls of South African consumers was another, added FCB Joburg managing director, Thabang Skwambane.

In fact, the agency was responsible for Millward Brown AdTracks Best Consumer Liked Advert for the Past 25 Years, Sasol Super 100 'Glug Glug', he said.

The Sasol story is an inspirational one firing the imagination of South Africas scientists, engineers and forward-thinkers since 1950. We look forward to working again with this world-class, truly South African brand and helping to power it to new heights as one of the countrys favourite brands, said dOliveira.




SYDNEY, Australia: Australia's main stock exchange has said it will use blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrency bitcoin, to process its equities transactions in a shift touted as a world-first for a major financial institution.

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), the eighth-largest sharemarket in the world, will replace its current system Chess with the distributed ledger technology to manage the clearing and settlement for buying and selling stocks.

ASX chief executive Dominic Stevens said the move "will put Australia at the forefront of innovation in financial markets", in a statement.

"While we have a lot more work still to do, today's announcement is a major milestone on that journey."

Blockchain technology debuted in 2009 as a public, encrypted ledger for the digital currency bitcoin.

It has drawn interest from the established banking sector in recent years because of its potential for securely tracking transactions, allowing anyone to get an accurate accounting of money, property or other assets.

"If it actually increases efficiency without compromising security, then banks will always be on the lookout for such innovation," Bell Potter banking analyst TS Lim told AFP.

"At the end of the day, they'll keep an eye on it but they wouldn't rush into it in a hurry as being regulated entities, it's all about risk management and preserving the security of customers."

The ASX said it would use American software company Digital Asset's blockchain platform. The technology is set to take at least two years to go live, The Australian newspaper reported.

"After so much hype surrounding distributed ledger technology, today's announcement delivers the first meaningful proof that the technology can live up to its potential," Digital Asset chief executive Blythe Masters said in a statement.

He added that the switch to blockchain showed it "can meet the requirements of mission critical financial infrastructure".

The ASX said it would release details on how the system would work and when it might be launched in March next year.
79 out of 82 of Ryanair's direct employee pilots based in Dublin have voted for industrial action in a row over collective bargaining and negotiating rights.

The ballot is said to have covered direct employees only, of which there are 84 and most of whom are captains, without whom planes cannot fly.

Staff employed through agencies, individual companies ar as contractor pilots were not covered in the ballot by the Irish Air Line Pilots Association - which is affiliated to IMPACT.

It comes after the airline's pilots have rejected the company's collective bargaining structures which they believe weaken their negotiating and bargaining power.

The company has summoned them to a meeting at its headquarters this evening.

The pilots want to use their new collective European Employee Representative Council in negotiations, rather than the Employee Representative Councils at each of Ryanair's 87 bases.

IMPACT confirmed that of the 84 ballot papers issued, 83 were returned and one was spoiled.

The ballot result found that 79 of the remaining 82 voted in favour of industrial action, while three were against.

Ryanair have released a statement saying they have received no notification of any industrial action by its Dublin pilots.

They said: "Less than 28% of Ryanairs Dublin (over 300) pilots have voted in favour of unspecified industrial action.

"We suspect this is more PR activity by Aer Lingus pilots group IALPA, to distract from their failure in negotiating a paltry 3% pay increase for Aer Lingus pilots.

"Now that Ryanairs Cork, Shannon and Belfast bases have agreed 20% pay increases we expect the Dublin pilots to follow this trend. However, if Ryanairs Dublin pilots are misled by some Aer Lingus pilots into industrial action then they will lose their favourable rosters (5on/4off, a double bank holiday every week) and remuneration benefits that are specifically linked by agreement to dealing directly with Ryanair.

"This might be the first time in Irish history that a few Aer Lingus pilots persuade Ryanair pilots earning between 150,000 to 180,000 p.a. to take up industrial action instead of a 20% pay increase when Aer Lingus pilots are only getting 3%.

"If any such industrial action occurs Ryanair will still not engage with, or recognise, Aer Lingus pilots or their IALPA union."
By Ann OLoughlin

Ryanair has failed to have a case over alleged on-line "screen scraping" admitted to the fast track Commercial Court list.

Screen scraping involves the copying data from one website for re-utilisation in another without the authority of the website owner.

Ryanair has brought a number of such actions over the last ten years in Ireland, the judge who heads the Commercial Court, Mr Justice Brian McGovern, was told today.

The judge refused to allow Ryanair have its latest case against a Bucharest, Romania, based on-line travel agency, SC Vola.Ro SRL, to be transferred to the commercial list which means it will now go through the normal High Court list.

The judge said for a company which prides itself on on-time flight arrivals, it was hard to understand why Ryanair has not progressed some of the other proceedings it had brought over alleged screen scraping.

One set of proceedings, against companies called Billigfluege/Ticket Point Reiseburo and On the Beach Ltd, had gone to the Supreme Court on the question of which jurisdiction the cases should be heard in. The court found, in 2015, it was Ireland and the cases had to go back to the High Court for determination.

Martin Hayden SC, for Ryanair, argued the difficulty for his client was in trying to get the cases on. That was why it was seeking that this one be admitted to the fast-track commercial list. While it was not an indictment of anyone, the Commercial Court was the only division of the High Court capable of dealing with it in good time, he said.

Mr Hayden rejected claims his client had delayed in bringing the case saying the airline first became aware of Vola.Ro in early September.

He also said Vola.Ra had deliberately not stated how long it had been offering Ryanair flights. Ryanair established a based in Romania last year, he said.

Cian Ferriter SC, for Vola.Ro, opposed entry of the case to the Commercial Court on grounds of delay by Ryanair in bringing the case.

His client has been operating throughout the years since Ryanair started a campaign against a number of similar outlets over alleged screen scraping.

There had been a half dozen other similar cases brought by the airline since 2008 and it beggared belief that it was only this year that Ryanair became aware of Vola.Ro, he said.

Those other cases are still outstanding and Ryanair had not progressed them, he said.

Mr Justice McGovern said it was a case in which he would exercise his discretion not to admit it to the commercial list.

It was hard to understand why other similar cases had not been progressed by Ryanair. He also had to take account of limited court resources and he saw no particular urgency to this case.

Among the orders and declarations Ryanair seeks are injunctions restraining the defendant from using the airlines website in breach of its terms of use and restraining it from infringing its registered trade marks.
Spike Island in Cork has finished second at the World Travel Awards 2017 in Vietnam, second only to Machu Picchu in the Worlds Leading Tourist Attraction category, writes Olivia Kelleher.

The island finished ahead of Mount Kilimanjaro and the Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai who were among the nine shortlisted finalists.

In a statement Fortress Spike Island Cork said they were proud of their achievement in seeing off such big hitters of the travel world.

"We are so proud and want to thank all our amazing staff and volunteers for their hard work. Our thanks also to all our visitors for choosing to come to us, and to Cork County Council and Failte Ireland for your support. And of course thanks to all in Cobh for helping us to get this far, we will endeavour to recognise individual involvement now that the journey is complete."

Earlier this year Spike became the number one tourist attraction on Tripadvisor for Cork overtaking Fota Wildlife Park for the first time. In October it came in ahead of Buckingham Palace and the Eiffel Tower to be named Europe's leading tourist attraction at the World Travel awards. It was then sent forward for the overall world final.

Spike Island came in ahead of Buckingham Palace and the Eiffel Tower to be named Europe's leading tourist attraction at the World Travel awards.

Spike Island was once the largest prison in the world with over 2,300 inmates. The site is worth in excess of 3.5 million to the economy in Cobh and East Cork annually attracting thousands of visitors every year since it reopened in 2016. Fifty people are employed in a part time or full time capacity at the site as tour guides and at the cafe.

The convict prison on Spike Island was seen as an experiment when it was opened in 1847 and it became part of the Irish System in the 1850s, which was admired and copied internationally, influencing modern correctional systems in countries as far apart as the US and Germany. It was a a hub for convict transportation.

In July 2010 the island was officially handed over to Cork County Council on behalf of the Department of Justice by then minister for social protection Eamon O Cuiv.

The local authority transformed Spike Island into a major tourism and heritage centre, highlighting its role in Irish history. Over the centuries it has been the site of monastic settlements, penal colonies and military bases.

Spike Island Jetty.

A military outpost or penal institution of some kind since the 16th century, Spike Island finally closed as a prison in 2004.

The first known use of the 106-acre island was as a monastic settlement when a religious community was established on it in the 7th century.

The first prison on the island dates from the 17th century following the end of the Cromwellian wars.

During the late 18th century and early 19th century it was used to hold prisoners to be transported to the West Indies and Australia, and during the 1850s John Mitchel (after whom the prison was renamed in 1938) was jailed on Spike for his involvement in the rebellion of 1848.

Spike Island entrance gates.

The island remained in British hands until July 1938, when the last British troops departed and the Tricolour was raised by Eamon de Valera.

It was transferred to the Department of Justice in 1985, and operated as a prison for many years.
Fire fighters rescued a family from a trapped lift in a Cork city shop last night, writes Eoin English.

Third officer with Cork City Fire Brigade, Victor Shine, praised the family of five - a mother, father and three young children - for staying so calm during the almost 30-minute rescue operation.

They remained calm and controlled throughout and there was no panic at any stage. They all deserve great praise and wed also like to thank them for their patience, he said.

The drama began to unfold around 5.50pm when a lift in the Homesense outlet in the new Capitol shopping complex on Grand Parade jammed between the ground and first floors.

The family travelling inside the lift car raised the alarm using its internal alarm system.

Building managers contacted a lift maintenance engineer and Cork City Fire Brigade which dispatched one unit to the scene.

Mr Shine said while such trapped lift calls are relatively routine for fire crews, the newer lift electronic control systems in what is one of Corks newest buildings made this lift rescue operation a little more complex.

Once it was established there was no emergency and that the trapped family was calm, Mr Shine said the fire crew followed various procedures and protocols to reset and then override the lifts electronic control and safety systems.

They liaised with the lift engineer who was still on route before they slowly raised the lift to the first floor.

Maintaining the familys safety while returning the lift car to the first floor lift entrance where they could walk free - rather than be hoisted from the lift car - was their priority, he said.

Fire fighters were then able to prise the door open and allow the family walk free.

We were able to maintain contact with the family throughout and reassure them. But they do deserve praise, given that there were three young children involved. They all reacted very well to the incident, he said.

The lift maintenance engineer arrived a short time after the family was freed.
By Tom Tuite

German landline operator Yourtel has been fined 66,000 for ripping off hundreds of elderly Irish customers.

Following an investigation by industry watchdog Comreg, Yourtel pleaded guilty to 88 counts under the Communications Act for charging 560 customers for a service that was requested but not supplied. The prosecution was described as unprecedented.

The customers had been poached from Eircom and although Yourtel did not transfer the service they billed for it, Dublin District Court.

They ended up getting double-billed and Yourtel threatened them with debt collectors, legal action and having their details sent to credit rating agencies.

The offence carries fines of up to 5,000 per offence.

After hearing a litany of examples where elderly customers had been pursed and threatened by Yourtel, Judge Flann OBrien described the offences as nothing more than deceit and he imposed fines of 750 on each charge, totalling 66,000.

Speaking to reporters after the case ended, Comreg director Barbara Delaney said: Comreg welcomes the District Court decision to impose 88 criminal convictions on Yourtel. Todays District Court fine of 66,000 (750 per conviction) is the largest fine imposed by the District Court following any prosecution case taken by Comreg.

We expect that todays District Court judgement will finally bring consumers issues relating to Yourtel, which first came to Comregs attention in 2013, to an end.

The company, which has claimed to operate the lowest-priced landline calls in the country, entered the Irish market in 2013 and had pleaded guilty to 88 sample counts, out of more than 880 charges originally brought by the phone industry regulator

Prosecuting barrister Michael OHiggins SC (with Ronan Kennedy BL) told Judge Flann Brennan at Dublin District Court that Yourtel effectively cold-called Eircom customers to offer them a flat bill telephone services. The 24-month contracts were for calls only and they would still pay Eircom separately for the landline.

Mr OHiggins told the court that mostly 78-year-old customers were affected, the average age of the customers involved in the investigation was 65 to 66 and the oldest customer to sign up was in their nineties and another customer had special education needs.

Yourtel had about 5,000 customers but Comreg had received complaints from 17 per cent of customers over a certain time period compared to less than one per cent for other major phone telephone service providers.

The company took a very hard-line view of customers who complained, Mr OHiggins said. They were threatened with late payment fees, legal action, debt collectors and having their details sent to a credit ratings agency.

In evidence, Comreg compliance manager Miriam Kilraine said the case was unprecedented. She gave a summary of the experience eight customers had with Yourtel when they signed up their 11, 13 or 23 a month packages with two-year contracts.

Stated on the back of Yourtels bills was: Double billing is not possible you cannot be billed by two operators for your calls.

However, the customers services had not been transferred from Eircom and Yourtel also billed them for a service it had not provided. Complaints to Yourtel led to technical explanations and were not resolved.

Forty per cent of Yourtels customers have contacted Comreg about the company, Ms Kilraine said, adding that this was also unprecedented while the average amount of customer complaints in relation other companies was 0.3 per cent.

Case One

In 2014, a couple in Co. Cavan, aged in their eighties, received unsolicited calls from Yourtel to encourage them to switch from Eircom for cheaper calls. They signed up but did not pay their bills for September and October that year after noticing they were still paying Eircom. In January 2015 Yourtel demanded they pay the outstanding amount as a well as a 50 late fee payment. They were told the could face legal action.

It transpired that Yourtel never sent the transfer request to Eircom. As a gesture of good will Yourtel agreed to terminate the contract but said the money owed would still have to be paid.

The couple were extremely worried and wanted to pay however their son contacted Comreg. By June 2015 a debt collection agency sought 122 and in November a demand was made for 440 but ultimately they stopped receiving letters.

Case Two

A widower in Kerry signed up to Yourtel in November 2014 but found the payments through his post office account was inconvenient and he fell behind. He asked to start direct debit payments but was told this could not be done until the amount owed had been paid.

He was told he could only cancel his account if he paid for the 24 months.

However, his calls had not been transferred to Yourtel who had billed him for a service they had not provided. The customer stated he had been at his wits end and believed he had been conned, the court heard.

Case Three

A Co. Carlow man in his seventies signed up while his wife was in hospital but he then tried to cancel the account without penalty within Yourtels 14 days cooling off period. He was billed from January to March 2015 for the service. He later faced demands for up to 404 as well as letters from debt collectors even though his phone service had not been transferred to Yourtel at all.

Case Four

A Sligo man with special education needs signed up to a Yourtel phone call package.

He faced threats of legal action and demands for 450 even though the Yourtel had not provided a service.

He received threatening calls from a debt collection agency in relation to the money sought by Yourtel.

It caused him anxiety and his brother reported it to Comreg, the court heard.

Case Five

A widow in her eighties in Carlow signed up to Yourtel in August 2014 but stopped paying in December that year. She told Comreg that Yourtels customer service agents were aggressive and she felt intimidated with threats of being reported to a credit ratings agency. They had pursued her for payments for a service it never provided.

Case Six

A Co. Wicklow couple in their seventies and eighties who were in poor health had signed up but cancelled within the 14-day cooling off period. That did not work and they got billed by Yourtel but later realised their calls had not been transferred from Eircom, however, Yourtel had billed them. Their son wrote to Yourtels HQ in Germany while further demands for payments of 480 continued.

Case Seven

A Limerick woman in her seventies signed up for the 11 a month package in September 2014 but by March the following year despite getting billed they realised that the service had not been transferred to Yourtel.

Case Eight

A Cavan man in his fifties signed up but stopped paying when he realised he was getting double billed and he received letters from a debt collection agency which caused him and his wife distress.

One customer also hired a solicitor to deal with Yourtels demands, the court was told.

The court heard that Yourtel had been successfully prosecuted earlier this year on one count of billing for a service which they did not provide which resulted in a 2,500 fine and an order to pay 10,000 in legal costs. In 2015 it was given the Probation Act and ordered to pay 2,500 to charity for failing to comply with a request from Comreg.

It had also been fined 2,500 in 2016 for unsolicited marketing calls.

The court heard that the company has offered all the customers affected refunds which came to 125,000. So far 116,000 worth of their refund cheques had been cashed and fresh payments were being issued to customers who have yet to take the refund.

The court heard that the company registered in Ireland but does not have offices here and uses a mail direct service, at Kill Avenue, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.

Their base was in Germany and company director Marijan Vukusic provided an affidavit to the court apologising. He said the company had been over-zealous but since June 2015 they have not sought new Irish customers and the company did not intend to recruit new business in Ireland.

Pleading for leniency, defence counsel Oisin Clarke said that the court had heard a damning account of his clients business procedures. He asked the judge to take into account the guilty plea which the prosecution accepted was useful.

Mr Clarke also said that Yourtel had paid 10,000 toward the prosecution costs.
The Luas Cross City in Dublin is boosting house prices.

A new KBC / Daft report shows three-bed homes along the tram line are up 15% in the last year, compared to 6% for similar homes near other railway lines.

519,000 is the average asking price for a 3-bed around Dawson Street, Trinity and Westmoreland Street in the city centre.

Report author - Economist Ronan Lyons explains why the Luas is so popular.

He said: "Its the regularity of the service, (and) the permanence (of the tram network)(By comparison,) bus lanes could always change.
A "martial arts expert" who punched his pregnant wife unconscious and fractured her jaw, has been jailed for three years.

Muhammed Tajik (aged 28) pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to assault causing harm to Susan Wombsley at a flat on Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin on December 8, 2015.

Today Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said Ms Wombsley was an innocent victim in the fullest sense and had fallen into the hands of a man of a very violent disposition.

He described the case as a particularly serious example of domestic violence, perpetrated by the victims husband, someone from whom she was entitled to expect a high degree of respect.

The court heard that on the day of the assault, Ms Wombsley, who met her estranged husband online, had started a new job, and this led to a dispute between the couple.

At a previous hearing Garda John Freeney told Sean Gillane SC, prosecuting, that the defendant grabbed Ms Wombsleys neck from behind, punching her in the head and face until she passed out.

The court heard when the victim regained consciousness, Tajik, an Afghani national, told her they had had an argument and she needed to go to hospital.

Muhammed Tajik. Pic: Courtpix

He drove her to A&E where she was treated for a fractured jaw, an injured eye socket, a wound over her left eye and a swollen neck.

Mr Gillane read out a text sent by the defendant to Ms Wombsley on the night of the assault in which he expressed his remorse.

Go baby, go far from me where you're safe, Tajik wrote. He sent lilies to his wife in hospital with a handwritten note the day after the assault, the court heard.

Patrick Gageby SC, defending, said Tajik is in a new relationship and is expecting a baby with his current partner.

He said the defendant, who is of no fixed address, has no previous convictions and should be given credit for pleading guilty, for his apologies and his remorse.

Mr Gageby said Tajik applied for asylum in Ireland in September 2015, and has been unable to work since then.

In a victim impact statement Ms Wombsley, a mother of two, told the court she only feels safe when alone and finds it impossible to trust others.

He was so calm when he was punching me, I truly believed I would die that night.

As he is a martial arts expert he knew what techniques to use to do the most damage to me. I received the injuries because I wanted to leave, I had enough, she said.

Ms Wombsley said the pain she experienced was worse than childbirth, and rendered her unable to wash her teeth or lie on a pillow for weeks afterwards.

She said she has felt suicidal since the assault and has suffered flashbacks, high levels of anxiety and post traumatic stress disorder.

I find it hard to leave my house, I have to check all entry points. I rarely feel safe at home and have an alarm on my bedroom door, she said.

She told the court that her nine-year-old daughter is petrified, and needs to know where her mother is every hour of the day.

Ms Wombsley said that as a result of the assault she cannot return to her job, as she suffers regular panic attacks and cannot concentrate.

Sentencing Tajik, Mr Justice McCarthy referred to the the extent of brutality used in the course of the assault.

He said the fact the couple had argued about the victims new job and a burnt pizza demonstrated the offence was in no sense explicable in terms of provocation.

He said he would not be taking into account the fact that the defendant is expecting a child with his new partner, as he must meet responsibility for what occurred even if this amounts to disrupting others in his life.

Mr Justice McCarthy referred to testimonials provided to the court by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, and said he was satisfied that Tajik had shown a degree of contrition.

However he noted that Tajik did not admit his guilt until his third interview with gardai.

He sentenced him to three years in jail and said that the crime merited a heavy custodial sentence.

Speaking outside court Ms Wombsley (aged 38) said she was very surprised at the length of the sentence imposed on Tajik as it was a lot more than she was expecting.

She said she found the trial extremely difficult.

Everywhere I go theres a memory of what happened, a smell that brings it all back to me, she said.

Ms Wombsley urged other victims of domestic physical and psychological abuse to seek help.

When someone is controlling and manipulating you they cut you off from everybody. Its so difficult to get away but you dont have to put up with it.

It never gets better, they promise theyll be good but two weeks later its 10 times worse. The pattern will continue until it comes to the point that you think theyre going to kill you, she said.

Ms Wombsley said it was validating to hear Mr Justice McCarthy describe the assault as unprovoked.

My ex posted vile things online about me after he attacked me. He said I deserved it and that I had ruined his life, she said.
By Fiona Ferguson and Brion Hoban

A vulnerable woman who was caught with 210,000 worth of drugs and a cocaine press in her kitchen has been given a suspended five-year sentence.

Lisa Smith (36), of Harelawn Park, Clondalkin, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to the possession of cocaine, heroin, MDMA and ketamine for sale or supply at her home on April 1, 2016.

The court heard men came to bag the drugs in her kitchen and she was paid 50 each time.

Today Judge Greally said this was a borderline case regarding whether a custodial sentence should be imposed. She said Smith was vulnerable on several fronts and had been targeted by those involved in the illegal drug trade due to her being a soft target.

She said there were a very significant number of mitigating factors in her favour including Smiths early plea, her co-operation with gardai, her troubled background and her lack of previous convictions.

The judge imposed a five-year sentence, but suspended it entirely on a number of conditions, including that Smith keep the peace and be of good behaviour. She must also engage with probation services for a period of 12 months.

Garda Gavin Curran previously told Noel Devitt BL, prosecuting, that gardai obtained a search warrant for Smiths address and found the drugs under a kick board in the kitchen. They also found a cocaine press which is used to compact the drug to facilitate packing.

Smith told gardai the items were not hers, but she accepted responsibility for them.

Gda Curran said one to two men would come to Smiths house and use her kitchen to bag drugs. She was to be paid 50 each time they came. He agreed with Mr Devitt that Smith had been asked or pestered and was afraid not to comply.

He also agreed with defense counsel that Smith was quite vulnerable and living in the area on her own. He said she had no previous convictions and he did not expect she would come before the courts again.

Damien Colgan SC, defending, told the court that Smith had grown up with an alcoholic father who was violent towards her mother. She was placed in foster care at the age of twelve and struggled with drug addiction from an early age.

He said she had pleaded guilty at an early stage and had provided full answer to gardai in all her interviews.

Judge Greally said she was satisfied this was one of few exceptional cases where a custodial sentence was not merited.

She warned Smith that any lapse of any shape or form would result in the full five-year sentence being activated.
Almost one third of students drop out of college because of stress, according to the Union of Students in Ireland.

The body said that 61% of students experience burn-out while attending third-level education.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has pushed for the quick formation of a new governing alliance with Germanys main centre-left party, saying that only a coalition will bring the "stable government" needed at a challenging time for Europe.

Mrs Merkels conservative Union bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats will begin discussions on Wednesday on a possible extension of their coalition of the past four years.
President Donald Trump has disputed a report that he watches hours of television each day, calling it: "Another false story."

The president rejected a report in The New York Times about his first year in office that mentioned he watches at least four hours of television a day, sometimes twice that amount.
Update 6pm: The 27-year-old man believed to have set off a pipe bomb in the New York City subway came to the US from Bangladesh seven years ago with a type of preferential visa for people with relatives who are US citizens or permanent residents, law enforcement officials have said.

Akayed Ullah was living in Brooklyn.

He told investigators on Monday he was inspired by the Islamic State group to carry out an attack, but had no direct contact with the terror group.

Officials said he is speaking with investigators from his hospital bed.

The suspect had burns on his abdomen and also to his hands.

Officials say he assembled the crude device in his apartment.

Investigators are talking to witnesses and his family.

Bangladesh has been expanding its anti-terror operations after grisly attacks killed dozens of people.

Three others suffered minor injuries in the blast.

AP

Update 2.50pm: A man with a pipe bomb strapped to his body with Velcro and cable ties set off the crude device in the subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring himself and three other people at the height of the morning rush hour.

All four were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries in what the mayor and police labelled an attempted terror attack.

The city's mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed: "This was an attempted terrorist attack" while the police commissioner James O'Neill said it was a "terror related" incident.

None of the injuries are believed to be life-threatening.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," Mr de Blasio said.

The suspect was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

Officials said he was inspired by the Islamic State group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group.

The officials said the suspect lives in Brooklyn and may be of Bangladeshi descent.

Police are investigating whether Ullah intended to set off the device in the walkway, or whether he had meant to do it in a busier location.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff.

A police officer is holding the man's hands behind his back.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device.

They were investigating how it was made, and combing through surveillance footage that captured the blast on video.

Fire officials said the suspect had burns to his hands and abdomen.

The others who were injured suffered ringing in ears and headaches.

Elrana Peralta, a customer service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal complex near where the blast happened, but did not hear the explosion.

"All we could hear was the chaos," she said.

"We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, 28, from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts.

He also did not hear the blast, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said.

There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave.

"They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

Update 1.50pm:A pipe bomb strapped to a man went off in the New York City subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring the suspect and another person at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials said.

The bomber and the other person are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

The 7.30am blast filled the passageway, crowded with throngs of Monday morning commuters, with smoke.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and fire both above and below ground, disrupting subway and bus services at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has tweeted that President Donald Trump has been informed.

Mr Trump "has been briefed on the explosion in New York City", she said.

.@POTUS has been briefed on the explosion in New York City  Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) December 11, 2017

Video from above the Crossroads Of The World showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

BREAKING NEWS: Something going on at #PortAuthorityBusTerminal. Almost got trampled in the rush of people trying to get out. Heard people talking about possible #explosion. pic.twitter.com/3LTO2kiiyD  Pete Sayek (@PeteRFNY) December 11, 2017

Everything around the Port Authority area was shut down, a surreal scene at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations.

NJ Transit said buses were taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken, where they could take trains into the city.

Earlier: An explosive device has been set off on a New York subway platform, police said.

The explosion happened at around 7.30am on 40th Street and Eighth Avenue near Times Square.

A suspect has been arrested and has non-life-threatening injuries.

One other person suffered a non-life-threatening injury, New York Fire Department said.

Passengers were evacuated as a precaution from the subway line where the explosion happened.

President Donald Trump "has been briefed on the explosion in New York City", his press secretary Sarah Sanders said.

Andre Rodriguez, 62, told the New York Times that he heard an explosion shortly before 7.30am.

He added: "I was going through the turnstile.

"It sounded like an explosion, and everybody started running."
Eighteen climate scientists from the US and elsewhere have hit the jackpot as French President Emmanuel Macron awarded millions of euros in grants to relocate to France for the rest of Donald Trump's presidential term.

The "Make Our Planet Great Again" grants - a nod to Mr Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan - are part of Mr Macron's efforts to counter his US counterpart on climate change.

Mr Macron announced a contest for the projects in June, hours after Mr Trump declared he would withdraw the US from the Paris climate accord.

More than 5,000 people from about 100 countries expressed interest in the grants. A majority of the applicants - and 13 of the 18 winners - were US-based researchers.

Mr Macron's appeal "gave me such a psychological boost, to have that kind of support, to have the head of state saying I value what you do", said winner Camille Parmesan, of the University of Texas at Austin.

She will be working at an experimental ecology station in the Pyrenees on how human-made climate change is affecting wildlife.

She described funding challenges for climate science in the US and a feeling that "you are having to hide what you do".

Mr Trump has expressed scepticism about global warming and said the Paris accord would hurt US business by requiring a reduction in climate-damaging emissions.

"We will be there to replace" US financing of climate research, Mr Macron told the winners in Paris on Monday.

"If we want to prepare for the changes of tomorrow, we need science," he said, promising to put in place a global climate change monitoring system among other innovations.

The research of the winning recipients focuses on pollution, hurricanes and clouds.

A new round of the competition will be launched next year, alongside Germany. About 50 projects will be chosen overall, and funded with 60 million euros (53 million) from the state and French research institutes.

Initially aimed at American researchers, the grants were expanded to other non-French climate scientists, according to organisers. Candidates need to be known for working on climate issues, have completed a thesis and propose a project that would take between three and five years.

The time frame would cover Mr Trump's current presidential term.

Some French researchers have complained that Mr Macron is showering money on foreign scientists at a time when they have been pleading for more support for domestic higher education.

He unveiled the first winners at a start-up incubator in Paris called Station F, where Microsoft and smaller tech companies announced projects to finance activities aimed at reducing emissions.

Today's event is a prelude to a bigger climate summit on Tuesday aimed at giving new impetus to the Paris accord and finding new funding to help governments and businesses meet its goals.

More than 50 world leaders are expected in Paris for the One Planet Summit, co-hosted by the UN and the World Bank. Mr Trump was not invited.

Other attendees include Arnold Schwarzenegger, who took a spin on a Parisian electric bike today to call attention to health problems caused by pollution.

The Hollywood star and former California governor argued that Mr Trump's rejection of the Paris climate accord does not matter, because companies, scientists and other governments can "pick up the slack" to reduce global emissions.

AP
Theresa May is taking an upbeat stance on securing a Brexit deal, as Ireland insists the UK must stick to its commitments on keeping a soft border with the Republic.

The British Prime Minister is using an address to the Commons today to stress that while a new air of optimism on a final settlement has emerged, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

The comments come after Dublin expressed concern that Brexit Secretary David Davis insisted the last minute deal agreed on Friday to allow trade talks to start was "a statement of intent" rather than legally enforceable.

The Irish government branded the view "bizarre" and insisted that an agreement the UK will have "full alignment" with the EU on issues that impact on Northern Ireland was "binding".

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her dramatic pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39bn (44bn) exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the "full alignment" on Irish border issues, the Prime Minister is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

May is expected to tell the Commons: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."

Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Kier Starmer said Mrs May "cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party".

"The agreement last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the article 50 withdrawal agreement," he told the Guardian.

"Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk."

The remaining EU27 countries will decide at a Brussels summit later this week whether trade talks with the UK can finally begin.

Comment by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39bn (44bn) exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.
Britain's commitment to maintaining a soft Irish border after Brexit is "much more than legally enforceable", David Davis has said.

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would seek to maintain a "frictionless, invisible" border between Northern Ireland and the Republic even if Friday's last-minute agreement to allow trade talks to start collapses in the event of a "no deal" Brexit.

His comment on Sunday that the plans were a "statement of intent" was branded "bizarre" by the Irish government, which insisted an agreement that the UK will have "full alignment" with the EU on issues that impact on Northern Ireland was "binding".

But Mr Davis claimed his words had been "completely twisted".

He told LBC Radio: "What I actually said yesterday in terms was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable.

"Of course it's legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement but even if that didn't happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland."

Mr Davis went on: "What we're saying is this bit of it, the bit about the full alignment argument on the issues which affect the peace process in the Belfast Agreement, we would look to that anyway because one of our absolute underpinning aims is to ensure that Ireland and particularly the Northern Ireland peace process is not harmed.

"And what's most symbolic in that is the absence of a hard border, the absence of border posts and that sort of thing.

"And we are quite certain we can do that by technical and other means even if we end up without a deal with the European Union."

Asked why he said the soft Irish border deal was a statement of intent, Mr Davis replied: "Because it's more than legally enforceable.

"In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesn't happen then we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, that was the point. I was making the point it was much more than just in the treaty, it's what we want to do anyway."

Mr Davis dismissed concerns that a soft border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland could encourage people smuggling.

"That would be a very hard way to get into Britain, you'd have to be a fairly dumb people smuggler to come in that way," he said.

"Something like 50 million people go through the country every year - tourists and so on - you go to Heathrow, look at it, there's huge numbers of people, it's much simpler to come in and pretend you're a tourist than to take a sort of elliptical route like that."

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would have talks with the Irish Government about sharing security data to ensure illegal immigrants do not exploit the soft border.

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

Theresa May is expected to say: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39 billion exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the full alignment on Irish border issues, the PM is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

In a statement to the House of Commons on Monday, Mrs May is expected to say: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."

Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Mrs May "cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party".

"The agreement last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the Article 50 withdrawal agreement," he told the Guardian.

"Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk."

The remaining EU27 countries will decide at a Brussels summit later this week whether trade talks with the UK can finally begin.

Comments by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39 billion exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.

European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said that the joint report published last week by Mr Davis and EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier was "not legally binding".

But asked if it was therefore possible for either side to back down on it, he stressed that it was regarded in Brussels as "a deal between gentlemen" which was "fully backed and endorsed" by the UK Government.

He noted that Mrs May and Mr Juncker had shaken hands on it.

Jean-Claude Juncker.

"Formally speaking, the joint report is not legally binding because it is not yet the Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement.

"But we see the joint report of Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen and it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK Government.

"President Juncker had a meeting with May last Friday morning to ascertain that this is precisely the case. They shook hands.

"It is now for the European Council on December 15 to decide if 'sufficient progress' has been made, allowing the negotiations to proceed to their second phase."

Mr Schinas said that last Friday's agreement had "removed a big barrier" to progress but confirmed that nothing would be finally settled until the Withdrawal Agreement was signed.
Latest News Which banks have passed on the latest rate hike to mortgage borrowers? Here's a breakdown on how the major lenders have responded to the latest OCR hike

Bridgit joins Finsure's panel Partnership expands lender's offering to brokers

Despite recent media speculation that the upcoming Royal Commission will delve into mortgage brokers, the draft terms of reference hint that this is unlikely, said one industry association head.When asked about the viability of claims made in mainstream and trade media, Peter White, executive director of the Finance Brokers Association of Australia ( FBAA ), expressed doubt saying that the commission could not compromise or duplicate another investigation, inquiry, or criminal/civil proceeding.For me  the ASIC rem review is off the table because its already been investigated. Youd be duplicating an inquiry or investigation that the regulator has already undertaken, he told Australian Broker.There is no basis for any media claims made that brokers will be included in the Royal Commission, he said.It always amazes me. Theyre looking for something that doesnt exist or theyre trying to find something because they want to find it and not because theres any reality behind what theyre doing.With the Combined Industry Forum (CIF) already making reforms within the broking industry, White said that in the event the Royal Commission does examine brokers, it wont find anything more.One area that the Royal Commission may target is channels of distribution for lending. However, he said that there was no cause for concern.I dont think theres anything for brokers to worry about. Mike Felton , CEO of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia ( MFAA ), had a slightly different view, expressing the inevitability of broking being examined by a Royal Commission.However, ASICs rem review and the Sedgwick report had already laid much of the groundwork, he told Australian Broker.Neither of these found systemic poor outcomes or systemic harm to consumers which we believe will stand us in good stead, regardless of the direction the Royal Commission takes.Likewise, the Commission would not impact the work currently being done through the CIF, Felton said.It is business as usual as we respond to the ASIC recommendations. [We] are already implementing reforms to further improve consumer outcomes and the strength of our industry.
Latest News Which banks have passed on the latest rate hike to mortgage borrowers? Here's a breakdown on how the major lenders have responded to the latest OCR hike

Bridgit joins Finsure's panel Partnership expands lender's offering to brokers

Sydneys housing and unit markets have tumbled from their peaks and are starting to decline, according to Herron Todd Whites National Property Clocks for December 2017.



As Sydney moves further into 2018, the property market will continue to decline, placing it on a similar footing with Brisbane, Canberra, and Perth.



For greater Sydney, 2017 was a year that saw continued growth but at a lower rate than in previous years, the firm said in its December 2017 Residential Report. Recent months have shown signs of slowing even further. This was widely anticipated and our prediction of slower growth as the year progressed proved correct.



Dwelling values first began dropping in Sydney in September, falling 0.1% lower during that month, according to CoreLogic. By November, dwelling values had dropped by 0.7% to be 1.3% below the market peak.



At the start of this year, demand outstripped supply, which kept the wider residential market buoyant. However, prices and demand have begun to soften in recent months.



In more recent months we have seen selling periods extend closer to longer term averages and prices begin to stabilise and even fall in some areas, the report said. As the market moves from a sellers market to a buyers market, the instances of sales results well above asking prices are becoming far less frequent.



Nevertheless, local agents note that quality properties are still highly desired and are continuing to record strong results.



They are just taking slightly longer to sell with a reduction in the number of interested buyers compared to previous years, the report said.
A 24-year-old man is facing a slew of felony charges for illegal straw purchase of 21 guns at gun stores, almost exclusively in Bucks County. Leonard Truesdale was arraigned on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2022, on 21 counts each of making false statements on firearm purchase forms, criminal conspiracy to make false statements on firearm purchase forms and selling or transferring...
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October 31, 2022

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Kerridge Commercial Systems (KCS) has reached an agreement to acquire Lakeview Computers (Lakeview), based in Dartford, UK.

This latest acquisition supports the KCSs strategy of continued growth, and follows three other acquisitions during the last 18 months including one in the USA, and two in South Africa.

The Lakeview business is seen as complementary to KCSs current product portfolio and market positioning. On completion of this acquisition, the KCS operation will provide solutions to over 14,950 customers and in excess of 190,000 users.

The acquisition has been welcomed by Lakeview, and its products will continue to be maintained and supported. KCS will look to investigate opportunities for the Lakeview solutions leveraging off KCSs existing infrastructure and product portfolio. While with all ERP solutions there will be a set of common functionality, Lakeviews products are clearly focused on the SME market, while K8, (the KCS product), offers scalability and covers a wider set of verticals within manufacturing and distribution.

Speaking about the acquisition, Ian Bendelow, Chief Executive Officer of KCS, said: This is a key acquisition for us. It immediately gives us a greater presence in the UK market, and an increased platform for growth in our traditional markets. Fundamentally, both Lakeview and KCS offers customers value via functionally rich solutions and continuous development that is highly responsive to our customers evolving needs. Lakeview and KCS are a great match.

Lakeview will operate as an independent business unit of KCS with a new brand to emphasize the synergy with KCS. The entire Lakeview staff will be working alongside the KCS team to ensure the success of the Lakeview/KCS integration.
Burnham-On-Seas eighth annual Christmas tree festival has opened in the town this weekend, with dozens of sparkling trees on display for a fortnight.

St Andrews Church is holding the popular festival, which is open to the public each day.

A total of 34 local businesses and groups from across Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge have set up and decorated their trees with unique items according to different themes.

A service to mark the opening was held on Saturday evening, attended by many local people and led by Richard Allen.

Above: Gemini Tae Kwon-dos tree has a green theme and is decorated with plastics found washed up on local beaches

The church will be open from 10am to 4pm daily (except Sundays) so that people can drop in and enjoy the trees and the life-size crib scene. The Trees will be up until Twelfth Night.

Those taking part this year are Moose International, Foodbank, Vince Davey, Positive Wealth Creation, MNDA, Star Prayer Tree, Christian Aid, Town Council, plus Our Lady and English Martyrs Church.

Others include: St Andrews School, For The Fallen, St Andrews Church Choir, BARB Search & Rescue, Abbeyfield, Burnham Horticultural Society, Burnham Infants School, Ian Higgott, Crafty Teacup, Somewhere House, Gemini Tae Kwon-do, Childrens Hospice South West, and the Choral Society.

There are also trees from Burnham-On-Sea.com, Lawnworx Fencing, Rotary Club, Burnham Funeral Services, KDS Interiors, EAT/Burnham Food Festival, Hands Of Change, Music For The Memory, Round Tower Guesthouse, M&F Carpets and Flooring, Castlemills MOT Centre, Somerset Time For Youth, Home Hardware and St Andrews Church.

Above: The Parish church tree with Rev Graham Witts and Richard Allen

The vicar of St Andrews, the Rev Graham Witts, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: The Christmas tree festival began in 2008 when our nation was faced with an economic downturn and the trees were meant to cheer people up. The festival has grown from those first thirteen trees to over thirty this year.

After a break of a year due to preparatory works for the restoration of the church, the Christmas tree festival is taking place again this year, he added.

Above: Somerset Time For Youth have their own tree at the festival

There are over 30 different trees representing local businesses, charities and community groups with decorations including strings of Brussel sprouts and the faces of a local choral society.

The Christmas Trees are complemented by our life-size stable which this year includes a group of life-size Wise Men travelling to the stable during the weeks leading up to Christmas.

He added: The whole idea is to celebrate the local community and sharing together in our enjoyment, in a world where there is not a lot of good news at the moment.

Burnham Horticultural Societys tree features vegetable decorations!

The Food Festival tree has an edible theme with surprises in the branches

Home Hardwares tree features some of the products it sells, including cake making items and tools

The Burnham and Highbridge Town Council tree featrres the town crest and lighthouse on top in front of the life-size crib

The Positive Wealth Creation tree has a money theme with festive coins

The Food Bank tree features a whole Christmas dinner at its base

.. and its decorations feature some of the items that are donated
The value of goods sold by e-commerce platform rose 67 per cent year-on-year in September quarter. The gross sales by value also jumped 72 per cent during the quarter, according to a report in LiveMint.
The world's largest maker of diabetes drugs Denmark-based Novo Nordisk and also the market leader in India for insulin products, is upping its game in the diabetes capital. In partnership with Torrent Pharmaceuticals, Novo Nordisk today inaugurated the extended insulin manufacturing facility at the latters Indrad factory near Ahmedabad. With this expansion, the company aims to add another two million patients under its insulin therapy.
The production from coal blocks, awarded through the first auction in the country three years ago, continues to be very low. In the case of blocks awarded to the power sector, the production is nil.
The man who allegedly molested actor on board a Delhi-Mumbai flight last night was arrested here on Sunday after a huge public outcry over the incident prompted the Maharashtra State Commission for Women to seek an enquiry into the "shameful" incident.

The 39-year-old Vikas Sachdev was arrested late in the evening, police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Anil Kumbhare said he will be produced in the court tomorrow.

Sachdev has been booked under section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of IPC, and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) since the actor is a minor, Senior Police Inspector, Sahar, Lata Shirsat, said.

The airline--Vistara--said it has submitted an initial report to the regulator DGCA about the incident which created an uproar and invited all-round condemnation.

Vistara, which is a joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, regretted the "unfortunate experience" and apologised to Wasim.

It also said senior members of the management team have been flown to Mumbai to meet the "Dangal" actor, who narrated her ordeal on Instagram.

Wasim said she was on a Vistara flight last night from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put his feet on her armrest.

"We are deeply concerned and regret the unfortunate experience had onboard our flight last night. We continue to give this case our highest attention and are extending our full support to all relevant authorities for the investigations underway," the airline said in a latest statement issued late evening.

In addition, Vistara has submitted an initial report to the DGCA and also given all necessary details to the police, the airline said.

"Members of our senior management have flown to Mumbai to meet Wasim and assist in the investigation process," it added.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, the 17-year-old actor broke down several times.

"So, I was in a flight travelling from Delhi to Mumbai today and right behind me one middle-aged man who made my two-hour journey miserable. I tried to record it on phone to understand it better because the cabin lights were dimmed, I failed to get it..." she said.

"The lights were dimmed, so it was even worse. It continued for another five to ten minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck," the Kashmiri teen, who shot to fame for her stellar performance in Aamir Khan's blockbuster "Dangal", said in the post.

"This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how you're going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!" she said.

"No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing," she added.

Terming the incident as "shameful", Maharashtra State Commission for Women's (MSCW) chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said they will seek a detailed inquiry into it from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Rahatkar said there should also be an enquiry into why the cabin crew did not help the actor.

A woman police official was sent to the hotel in Mumbai where the actor is put up to record her statement, a senior police official said.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said she was "appalled" by the incident and demanded swift action against the culprit.

Any harassment/crime against women shld be dealt with swiftly & effectively. As a mother of 2 daughters I am appalled at what happened with @zairawasimz. Hope the relevant authorities take strict action @airvistara @Ashok_Gajapathi @jayantsinha  Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) December 10, 2017

Former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also demanded action against the passenger. Former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also demanded action against the passenger.

The passenger should be identified to the police by @airvistara & a case filed for legal action. None of this he fell at my feet so I forgive him rubbish! https://t.co/1umbBOOGAu  Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) December 10, 2017

"We are carrying out detailed investigation and will support Zaira in every way required. We have zero tolerance for such behaviour," the airline had tweeted immediately after the video went viral on social media.

Earlier, Vistara chief strategy and commercial officer Sanjiv Kapoor in a statement said, "We are talking to our crew who were serving Wasim to understand the incident at greater length, and reaching out to fellow passengers as well."



"We apologise for what she experienced and we have zero tolerance for such behaviour," Kapoor said.

Condemning the incident, Shiv Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe said a criminal offence should be registered against the male passenger and he should be asked to apologise for the indecent behaviour.

"Those travelling by airlines usually work in good positions in companies. If the owners of such companies do not take suitable action against such employees their conduct will never change," Gorhe said.

"Ensuring safety and security of our customers is of paramount importance to us, and we stand firm against any kind of harassment or such behaviour towards any individual," the airline said in its latest statement.
The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) has secured placements for 652 students, which is around 62 per cent of the total 1,049 students registered for campus placements in the first phase of the recruitment drive. The top five recruiters, Citi Group, Intel India, EXL Service, Flipkart and HCL Technologies, handed over 99 offer letters.
In a shocking incident, a 15-year- old cancer survivor was allegedly raped by two men in Sarojini nagar here and was later sexually assaulted by another person whom she asked for help, police said today.

The incident took place last night when the girl had gone out to meet an acquaintance, Additional Superintendent of Police (Lucknow East) Sarvesh Mishra said.

The survivor alleged that her acquaintance, Shubham, took her to a secluded place where he and his friend, Sumit, raped her and fled from the spot, the police said, adding when she sought help from a passerby, Virendra, he also raped her.

The victim somehow reached home and narrated the ordeal to her parents. Subsequently, her father lodged a complaint, the police said.

A case of gang-rape has been registered under relevant section of IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), police said, adding Sumit and Virendra have been arrested.

A hunt was on to apprehend Shubham, the Additional SP said.
More than three months after a bitter border dispute over Doklam plateau in the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction area, reports of the presence of Beijing troops in the region have emerged.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said his government is not against private hospitals, but can't maintain silence on their inhuman criminal negligence.

His remarks came in the wake of protest staged on Saturday by the employees of Max Hospital in Shalimar Bagh area of north Delhi after the government on Friday cancelled its licence with immediate effect for erroneously declaring a newborn dead.

"Delhi government is not against private hospitals and is fully aware of their importance. But Max hospital left us with no option other than to take action. This is not happened first time. Such kind of erronous act was done by the hospital on many occasions in the past too," Kejriwal said at a public gathering in west Delhi's Mundka.

"Our conscience would have pricked us. Had we remained silent on such inhuman criminal negligence? Doctors are saviours and we salute the work they do. Their hard work is admirable. But, if any hospital does wrong with people, we will not spare it and maintain silence. We will take action."

The Chief Minister said that he had been informed about the corporate owned private hospitals who exploit their own doctors and do not give their salaries on time.

He also slammed Bharatiya Janata Party Delhi state President Manoj Tiwari for supporting Max hospital and opposing Delhi Government's decision to cancel its license.

A baby boy was declared dead by Max Hospital on November 30 and handed over to the parents in a plastic bag, along with its still-born sister. However, the baby started moving while being taken for burial. The baby was then admitted in a clinic in Pitampura, but died on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took a dig at the Congress Party by saying that there are some people in Delhi, whose sole Mission is 'Parivar Bachao.'

"There are some people in Delhi whose sole Mission is 'Parivar Bachao', 'Rahul Bachao'. These are the same people who, in an hour of voting yesterday, started saying the EVMs are hacked thanks to bluetooths! Some logic this is," the Prime Minster said while addressing a public gathering at Kaalol in Gujarat.

Yesterday, Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia complained of bluetooth connection in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in Gujarat's Porbandar.

Modhwadia had alleged that Porbandar's Sharda Mandir booth number 145, 146 and 147 voting machines were connected to other devices through bluetooth.

Continuing his tirade at the Congress, Prime Minister Modi said, "The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is fighting these elections on the issue of development. The Congress is back to their old tricks. A generational shift has not brought in a new political culture for the party. They rely on their same divide and rule politics."

"When I first stated my intent to ensure electrification of villages in Gujarat, the state Congress leaders mocked me. They said it can never happen, they also asked me- you have not headed a Panchayat how can you promise this? We proved them wrong, ensured villages get power," he added.

The Prime Minister also said with the mantra of Shanti (peace), Ekta (unity) and Sadbhavana (goodwill), the BJP government has taken Gujarat to new heights of progress.

"With the mantra of Shanti, Ekta and Sadbhavana, the BJP government has taken Gujarat to new heights of progress," he stated.

The first phase of polling took place yesterday and recorded a voter turnout of 68 percent.

The second-phase voting will be held on December 14. The votes will be counted on December 18.

The Congress is eyeing to dethrone the BJP government in the state.

The last Congress government in Gujarat was led by Chhabildas Mehta from February 17, 1994 to March 13, 1995.
Indian cities' air pollution was even higher than the WHO set standards and worse than most cities even on the days pollution was at its lowest
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea for cancelling the anticipatory bail to the Pinto family of Ryan International School in the Pradhuman murder case.

A bench of Justice R.K. Agrawal and Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre dismissed the plea by Barun Thakur - father of seven-year-old Pradhuman Thakur, who was murdered on September 8 inside the Gurugram school.

"The petition is dismissed," said Justice Agrawal pronouncing the order.

Ryan group of school's Founder-Chairman Augustine F. Pinto, his wife and Managing Director Grace Pinto and their son and CEO Ryan Pinto were granted anticipatory bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on November 21.

Pradhuman Thakur, a Class 2 student was found dead in the washroom with his throat slit minutes after his father had dropped him at the school.

The High Court while granting the anticipatory bail to the Pintos had asked them to join the investigation in the case.

The court had barred them from leaving the country without its permission.

Initially the Haryana Police was investigating the case and had arrested bus conductor Ashok as the main accused in the murder of Pradhuman.

However, later the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which arrested a Class 11 student of the same school as the prime accused.
Trilateral Russia-India- #RIC Foreign Ministers had very useful and productive discussions on economic and development issues, fight against terrorism, and on regional, multilateral and global issues @SushmaSwaraj pic.twitter.com/zyQJ2A8BVB

Russia, and on Monday condemned terrorism in all forms and reaffirmed their determination to prevent and counter it.The three countries also said those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice.External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted:
This article, originally published on December 11, 2017, is being republished, as the has revoked the ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India on in 2018.

One of the challenges that Bitcoin poses is that it lends itself very easily to bypassing currency regulations. It was designed that way, with its decentralised verification network and built-in anonymity. As a result, the has also been used for all sorts of criminal transactions on the Dark Web. Copycat virtual currencies designed on the same principles have also been used for similar purposes.

Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal. They do not reflect the view/s of Business Standard.
Even as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) finds it difficult to achieve the Estimates (BE) of direct taxes at Rs 9.8 lakh crore for FY18, its target was revised upwards by Rs 20,000 crore to Rs 10 lakh crore.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and other officials of his team, chairing a pre-Budget consultative meeting with the IT representatives in New Delhi, on Monday. Photo: PTI
The government is considering manufacturing and would like to move ahead with the plan "very fast", a civil aviation ministry official said today.

The country's domestic aviation market is one of the fastest growing in the world and has registered high double digit growth for more than two years.

Many airlines are embarking on ambitious expansion plans and authorities are working on developing new airports to cater to the rising demand as well as boosting regional air connectivity.

"We are considering manufacturing our own ... definitely, the concept is there and we are looking for smaller aircraft like a 20-seater which can be used within the country and this also is supported by our policy of Make in India," said Shefali Juneja, Director at the Civil Aviation ministry.

Currently, aircraft are imported or taken on lease from overseas lessors.

"Developing our own is something we are considering... and is something which we need to move forward very fast," she said.

She was speaking at the 'ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit' here.

In efforts to strengthen air connectivity between India and ASEAN nations, a civil aviation task force is being developed to encourage consultations between the countries.

Under the ASEAN-India cooperation framework, a joint working group is being set up and it would initially focus on safety and security aspects, besides air navigation services.

The first meeting of the joint working group is to be held in January 2018, Juneja said.

At present, there are no air services between India and four ASEAN countries -- Brunei, Cambodia, the Philippines and Lao-PDR.

Listing out the challenges in the India-ASEAN aviation market, Juneja also said there is "only one-sided operation by ASEAN carriers in India-Myanmar, India-Indonesia, India- Vietnam markets".

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has 10 members, including include Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei.

The summit was jointly organised by industry body CII and ASEAN India Centre.
The Delhi High Court has given relief to those asking for tax credits on pre-GST stocks lying for more than 12 months. Importers of fast-moving consumer goods, among others, are going to benefit from the interim order.
In a bid to meet stiff revenue targets amid sluggish growth, the income tax (I-T) department has reportedly initiated prosecution proceedings against a large number of individuals and business entities for not filing tax returns and for delaying remittance of tax deducted at source (TDS).
has been elected the Congress president today. 89 nominations were received by the party and all were found to be valid. All 89 nominations named as candidate, according to the party. He succeeds his mother, Sonia Gandhi who led the Congress party to power against expectations in the year 2004. As Narendra Modi continues to hold sway over India and as politics has moved right of centre in its nature, can succeed in reviving the Congress and mounting a challenge to Modi's BJP? The writer looks at the challenge that he faces in this Business Standard special.

Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal. They do not reflect the view/s of Business Standard.
Indias stock of external debt declined for the first-time since 2001-02, to $471.9 billion at the end of March 2017, according to the Reserve Bank of Indias December 2017 Bulletin.
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is inviting applications for the post of Assistant Professor (Technical) (ECE) who will be working in Training and Technical Department of Ambedkar Institute of Advanced Communication Technologies and Research under Government of NCT of Delhi. Candidates willing to take up the post can apply for the same till 28th December, 2017 (Thursday). The number of vacancy is 7 reserved for UR (4), OBC (0), SC (2) and ST (1). The qualified candidate would be paid Rs. 15600-39100 (PB-3) plus Rs. 6,000/-(Academic Grade Pay) (Total emoluments excluding T.A. and HRA at the time of initial appointment will be Rs. 44200 /-p.m. approximately). So far the job location is concerned; the candidate would be posted at Department of Training Technical Education, Govt. of NCT of Delhi. New Delhi. The post carries probation of one year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Congress has "lost" in Gujarat's first round of Assembly elections and its leaders were blaming Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) as the reason.

"Congress has lost in the first round and are not even thinking about the second round as they know people here will support BJP. They have now taken to excuses. Their leaders and cheerleaders are blaming EVMs, including saying they are hacked using Bluetooth," Modi said while addressing a public rally in Patan.

The voter turnout in the first phase for 89 seats on Saturday stood at 68 per cent. The second and final phase for remaining 93 seats will be held on December 14. Vote counting will be held on December 18.

Modi also told the gathering that BJP leaders were the ones who came to their rescue when their villages were submerged in the recent floods.

"When this area was flooded, the Chief Minister, former Chief Minister, Ministers came and stood with people here. The Prime Minister reviewed the situation. Tell me where were Congress people then. Congress MLAs were enjoying in resorts in Bengaluru," he said.

Taking a jibe at Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi's 'potato to gold' statement, Modi said "Our farmers work hard and grow potato. If at all the Congress comes to power, there will be no need to do that because their leader says we will produce potatoes in factories. Congress' basic knowledge about agriculture is so poor."
The Congress Party on Monday came down heavily upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi for alleging that Pakistan was meddling in the Gujarat assembly polls and supporting Congress leader Ahmed Patel to have him elevated as the chief minister of the state.

Dubbing Prime Minister Modi's statement as 'irresponsible' and 'outrageous', Congress leader Anand Sharma demanded an apology from him.

"Ex-Pakistan Foreign Minister was here to attend a wedding. There was a dinner organised for him in which there were former diplomats, former army chief among other dignitaries. Does the prime minister think they were all conspiring with Pakistan? This is reprehensible. It's expected of the prime minister to use a language which is equivalent to his post. He should retract his statement and should apologise to maintain the decorum of his post," Sharma said.

He further said that Prime Minister Modi's remarks show that the BJP has realised it was going to lose the Gujarat elections.

"The Prime Minister has said Congress is conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections. Its outrageous. This is just an attempt to polarize ahead of second phase of voting in Gujarat polls.This also shows their desperation and that BJP's loss is now certain," he added.

Yesterday, while addressing a rally in Gujarat's Banaskantha, Prime Minister Modi alleged that former Pakistan Army director general Arshad Rafique was helping Patel to become the Gujarat chief minister.

"Former Pakistan Army director general Arshad Rafique was backing and willing to help make Ahmed Patel the chief minister," he said.

The prime minister had also questioned suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former vice-president Hamid Ansari's meeting with the Pakistan High Commissioner.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal has asked India to stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate.
Foreign Ministers of Russia and China call on President Kovind

Mr Sergei Lavrov, the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, and Mr Wang Yi, the Foreign Minister of the Peoples Republic of China, called on the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, at Rashtrapati Bhavan today (December 11, 2017).

Welcoming the Russian Foreign Minister and his delegation to India, the President said that India-Russia bilateral ties are strong. This year we have witnessed intensification in our high-level engagements.

The President was happy to note that bilateral trade between India and Russia registered a growth of 22% in the first six months of this year. He stated that early operationalisation of the International North South Transport Corridor can play a significant role in achieving our bilateral trade targets.

The President said that institutionalisation of the India-Russia Heads of Think Tanks Forum, which held its 2nd session in Delhi on December 4-5, would be most helpful to both countries. We should continue with our efforts to bring our think tanks and academic communities closer.

Welcoming Mr Wang Yi to India, the President congratulated him on the successful conclusion of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China. He stated that India looks forward to working with President Xi Jinping and the Chinese leadership to take our developmental partnership to greater heights.

The President said that we view India-China ties as important in our foreign policy.

Our high-level exchanges and interactions have maintained momentum. Our economic engagement is growing. We are also seeing cooperation on many international issues.

The President said that as two major countries in the world, expansion of cooperation bilaterally as well as regionally is in our mutual interest. He was confident that multifaceted relations between India and China will continue to make progress and acquire even greater salience.

The two Foreign Ministers are in India to participate in the 15th RIC (Russia-India-China) Trilateral Meeting later in the day. The meeting, to be hosted by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, is expected to review global and regional issues of common interest.
Visit of Chief of the Air Staff to Sri Lanka

Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa, Chief of the Air Staff is on an official visit to Sri Lanka from 11-14 Dec 17, to deliberate on matters of mutual interest related to regional security. During the visit, CAS would also review the Commissioning, Award of Wings and Passing Out Parade of the Sri Lankan Air Force Academy which is scheduled to be held on 14 Dec 17.

It is the first occasion in the history of the Sri Lankan Air Force where an Air Chief of a foreign Air Force is invited to review the prestigious passing out parade.

This visit of the Indian Air Chief would provide impetus towards increasing defence cooperation between the two Air Forces and pave the way for greater interaction in the future. This would also strengthen relationships, enable engagement in productive exchanges and promote understanding of joint issues and challenges.
Bangladeshi- origin man, wearing a homemade device, today triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, media reports said.

The 27-year-old suspected bomber who had wires attached to him was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, sources told New York Post, according to which he was taken into custody after the device partially detonated.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the device that exploded in the New York City subway was an attempted "terrorist attack".

"A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority," the New York Police Department said, adding that all injuries are non-life-threatening.

The suspect is reported to have sustained minor injury.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the New York explosion, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

Earlier, the New York Police Department tweeted that it was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan.

The place is New York Port Authority, a busy bus terminal. It also has metro stations.

"The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time," the NYPD had said, adding that the information is preliminary.

The New York Fire Department received call around 7.19 am.

"I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting 'Go, Go, Go'," commuter Keith Woodfin tweeted, according to New York Daily News.

Designer Chelsea LaSalle tweeted that she was "stuck in a running stampede at port authority bus terminal due to bomb scare. cops EVERYWHERE.
The most destructive wildfire raging in southern California has expanded significantly, scorching an area larger than New York City, according to fire officials.

The Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties has consumed 230,000 acres since it broke out on December 4, reports the BBC.

Fanned by strong winds, it has become the fifth largest wildfire in recorded state history after it grew by more than 50,000 acres in a day.

Residents in coastal beach communities have been ordered to evacuate.

On Sunday, firefighters reported that 15 per cent of the blaze had been contained but were forced to downgrade that to 10 per cent as it continued to spread.

"This is a menacing fire, certainly, but we have a lot of people working very diligently to bring it under control," Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said.

The other fires hitting California are largely controlled, but 200,000 people have evacuated their homes and hundreds of buildings have been destroyed since December 4.

Evacuation orders were issued overnight on Sunday for parts of Carpinteria close to Los Padres National Forest, about 160 km northwest of Los Angeles, the BBC reported.

California has spent the past week battling wildfires. Six large blazes, and other smaller ones.

The Thomas Fire - named according to where it started, near the Thomas Aquinas College - is by far the largest of the fires.

The authorities issued a purple alert - the highest level warning - amid what it called "extremely critical fire weather", while US President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency.

On Saturday, California Governor Jerry Brown described the situation as "the new normal" and predicted vast fires, fuelled by climate change, "could happen every year or every few years".
Director Guillermo del Toro's fantasy drama "The Shape of Water" is leading the 2018 Golden Globe nominations with seven nods, including the best drama film and the best drama actress.

Martin McDonagh's "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" and Steven Spielberg's journalism drama "The Post" earned six nods each at the nominations, which were announced today.

"The Post", starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, Christopher Nolan's World War Two story "Dunkirk", coming-of- age gay romance "Call Me By Your Name" and "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" will fight it out in the best picture - drama category.

Sally Hawkins has earned a nomination in the best actress - drama category for playing a mute Elisa in "The Shape of Water".

Streep, who is in the role of publisher Kay Graham of the Washington Post in the movie "The Post" , is also nominated in the category alongside Jessica Chastain ("Molly's Game"), Frances McDormand of "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" and Michelle Williams of "All the Money in the World".

Streep's co-star Hanks is nominated in the best actor - drama for his role as the Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee, who fought with the government to publish the Pentagon Papers. Daniel Day-Lewis is nominated for his role in "Phantom Thread" (his last film), so is Gary Oldman for playing Winston Churchill in "Darkest Hour".

Denzel Washington "Roman J Israel, Esq." and Timothee Chalamet of "Call Me by Your Name" complete the list of best actors.

Spielberg, del Toro, Mcdnagh, Nolan and Ridley Scott for "All the Money in the World" are nominated in the best director category.

Golden Globe winners will be announced on January 7.
President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from during a surprise visit to the war-torn country.

Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both the Islamic State group and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops.

"I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," Putin said in a televised speech as he visited Russia's Hmeimim airbase in .

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in is returning home to Russia."



Putin, who was welcomed by Syrian President Bashar al- Assad, said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the "most battle-ready group of terrorists," apparently referring to the Islamic State group.

"Our homeland thanks you, my friends," Putin said. "Have a safe trip. I thank you for your service."



Putin and Assad were pictured smiling and shaking hands.

Putin made the stopover at the base in Latakia province, a regime stronghold, on his way to Egypt where he arrived later on Monday.

Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a "new stage" as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reform.

More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown.
South African exchange operator JSE launched an investigation on Monday into whether Steinhoff broke disclosure rules, heaping pressure on the retailer as it tries to contain an accounting scandal.
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Shares of paper companies were on a roll with most of these stocks trading at their respective all-time highs on the back of heavy volumes.

Star Paper Mills, Ruchira Papers, Balkrishna Paper, Tamil Nadu (TN) Newsprint, N R Agarwal Industries, Seshasayee Paper and West Coast Paper were up in the range of 6% to 20% on the BSE.
Bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency by market cap, has been making news for rapidly breaking new price barriers. Even as more investors join the cryptocurrency bandwagon, the latter are also attracting attention from hackers. NiceHash, a Slovenian cryptocurrency mining marketplace, recently lost about $64 million worth of bitcoins in a hack. Last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) also reiterated its warning to the public about cryptocurrencies. Besides highlighting the risks from price volatility and the absence of a regulator, the central bank also referred to the risk of losses due to hacking, malware attacks and loss of passwords. Indian investors joining the cryptocurrency gold rush need to take steps to safeguard themselves against these security risks.
Traders and stockists have urged the government to increase the import duty on sugar by 10 percentage points to protect domestic industry from Pakistani shipment. The government there had, on Thursday, announced an incentive for export at 10 per cent or Pak Rs 10.7 a kg of up to 1.5 million tonnes. This works out to Rs 10,700 ($101.9) a tonne.
A Bangladeshi national planned terror attack which took place near Times Square on Monday.

The explosion happened around 7:20 am, in an underground tunnel linking the Port Authority Bus Terminal to Times Square. The underground tunnel is a major thoroughfare for workers during the morning rush hour.

The attacker has been identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, who was carrying a suspected pipe bomb that malfunctioned and exploded prematurely, leaving him and three others injured.

CNN quoted Police Commissioner James O'Neil as saying that "the suspect's name is Akayed Ullah, who is 27 years old. He suffered burns and other wounds and is currently in the hospital. Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device. "

The authorities have termed the incident as a planned terror attack.

The police have confirmed that apart from the suspect, three other people have suffered non- life-threatening injuries. The residents have also been advised to avoid the area.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack, "CNN quoted New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as saying.

The CNN quoted New York Governor Andrew Cuomo as saying that the suspect had an "effectively low-tech device" on him this morning at Port Authority.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the explosion in New York City, said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said there are "no credible and specific threats against New York at this time" but added that there will be an increased police presence across New York today.

An eyewitness Francisco Ramirez told CNN that he heard two explosions as he was exiting a bus about 7:45 a.m. ET, even though he was wearing headphones.

"From what I saw it sounded like it came from the subway, but I'm just guessing," he said. "It was two distinct explosions seconds from each other. As I was making my way toward the outside, I kept getting shoved by cops and there were cops at every entrance blocking and there was police and SWAT everywhere. It was scary. It was just a lot of chaos but I didn't see any injuries," Ramirez told CNN.

Earlier, the New York Police Department had confirmed the news of explosion on Twitter.

"The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time. Info is preliminary, more when available," it tweeted.

The incident happened just days after President Trump sparked demonstrations across the by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital city

It is notable that one of the largest demonstrations took place in Muslim-majority Bangladesh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday took a jibe at Congress leaders and said "they are born with a golden spoon and will never understand what poverty is..".

Addressing a rally in Gujarat's Patan, Prime Minister Modi said, "When we went to the farmers, did Krishi Mahotsav, we did not go out helping the rich. We went among the poor."

"Sadly, Congress leaders are born with a golden spoon they will never understand what poverty is," he said.

Prime Minister Modi also stated that he had met the state farmers and advised them to educate their children.

"During peak summer, I would go to the villages of Gujarat and ask parents to educate their children. Whose children were they? Were they Ambani's children? No. They were children of the poor. We are working for poor," he said.

Further lashing out at the Congress party, Prime Minister Modi said formers basic knowledge about agriculture is very poor.

"Our farmers work hard and grow potato. If at all the Congress comes to power, there will be no need to do that because their leader says we will produce potatoes in factories. Congress' basic knowledge about agriculture is so poor," he added.

The crucial elections are being seen as prestige battle for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has been ruling the state for last 22 years, and litmus test for the Congress.

The first phase of polling was held on December 9 and recorded a voter turnout of 68 per cent.

The second-phase voting will be held on December 14. The votes will be counted on December 18.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Monday expressed happiness on elevation of Rahul Gandhi as party president and said the latter has shown a lot of mettle over a period of time and will be able to execute his responsibility well

Azad said the entire Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) including the prime minister and his 80 ministers were sitting in Gujarat for months but were still unable to counter Rahul.

"Entire country has lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. He has shown his mettle over a period of time and particularly in the ongoing election in Gujarat .Much before he was elected he has made Prime Minister Modi rattled," Azad said.

"He knows his responsibility and priorities very well," he added.

Echoing similar sentiments, former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said at the time when the situation is 'worst under the ruling government', elevation of Rahul will prove to be good.

"In such time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party President. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon and he is even facing Prime Minister Modi confidently," Gogoi told ANI.

Meanwhile, the Congress worker and leaders across the nation are celebrating with great zeal.

Scores of workers even gathered in front of the Congress office raising slogans for Rahul and distributing sweets.

Rahul was formally declared as the Congress Party president earlier today.

Confirming the elevation, Congress' Central Election Authority Chairman Mullapally Ramchandran said the committee had received 89 nomination papers, all proposing the name of Rahul for the coveted post.

Rahul has succeeded his mother Sonia Gandhi, who held the post for nearly two decades.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Despite the fact that India has managed to lower the incidence of communicable diseases, the occurrence of lifestyle related diseases (non-communicable) are on the rise and the same are likely to be a major contributor to hospital revenues going forward, according to credit-rating body ICRA.

Lifestyle diseases are those that are a result of habits/lifestyle related factors such as unhealthy food habits, alcohol consumption, lack of physical activity, stress, age, and urbanisation. As per an ICRA note, the largest contributor to revenues is cardiology, which accounts for almost 25 percent of the total income of the hospitals in the sample; the second largest contributor is neurology, accounting for 10 percent of revenues, followed by orthopaedics (nine percent), and oncology (eight percent).

ICRA analysed five of the largest hospital chains in the country, which together operate 19300 beds. For most of these hospital chains, the income from top five lifestyle specialties currently account for more than 60percent of the revenues.

"The expected rise in the incidence of these diseases will further boost the revenues of the hospitals, because of higher volumes, occupancy and Average Revenue per Occupied Bed (ARPOB) that these specialties provide. However, recent regulatory interventions are likely to trim the margins that hospitals earn from some of these treatments," said Shubham Jain, Vice President, ICRA.

"In February 2017 the country's drug price regulator, the National Pharmaceuticals Pricing Authority (NPPA), capped the prices of coronary stents and in August 2017 it further capped the prices of all orthopaedic knee implants, impacting the revenue and margin of players. However, the hospitals have the flexibility to revise prices of services, treatment packages, room rates, other consumables, doctor charges to partly compensate for the decline in prices of the devices," he added.

The revenues of ICRA's sample set grew at a lower rate of 12.7 percent in FY2017, against a growth of 14.5 percent in FY2016 and 16.5 percent in FY2015, the moderation being on account of the demonetisation and the cap on prices of stents.

In terms of breakup of the growth in various quarters, the aggregate revenues of the sample set grew at a healthy rate of 14.6 percent and 15.9 percent in Q1 FY2017 and Q2 FY2017 respectively.

However, post the demonetisation and the cap on prices of stents, the growth moderated to 12.8 percent in Q3 FY2017 and subsequently to 8.5 percent in Q4 FY2017. Since cardiology is the largest contributor to the revenues of all companies in ICRA's sample set, the operating margin of the sample declined from 14.3 percent in Q3 FY2017 (before the cap on stents) to 13.1 percent in Q4 FY2017 and 13 percent in Q1 FY2018.

As the revenues and margins have been under pressure in FY2017 and the companies have undertaken debt-funded expansion, the debt protection indicators have marginally deteriorated interest coverage ratio has dropped from 2.98 times in FY2016 to 2.62 times in FY2017 and net cash accruals/total debt declined from 14.8 percent to 12.8 percent during this period.

"Notwithstanding the recent regulatory action, ICRA's long-term outlook on the sector remains stable. On the supply side, India currently faces significant shortage of beds and the investments by the Government in creating healthcare infrastructure would be inadequate. This provides private sector players with the opportunity to step in to fill the gap," said Jain.

"On the demand side, a large population, increasing lifestyle diseases, rising healthcare awareness and higher medical insurance penetration are likely to push the demand for the healthcare services at a steady pace. ICRA expects an annual revenue growth of 12-14 percent over the next five years and the same is likely to result in improvement in credit metrics of the large hospitals in the sector," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India's first Electronic Manufacturing Cluster (EMC) will be coming to Andhra Pradesh.

The Government of India, through the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeiTY), had announced in 2012 about setting up an EMC in India, with grant-in-aid for establishing such clusters.

An EMC is designed and developed for providing facilities and amenities for manufacturing mobiles and allied products.

In 2015, the Andhra Pradesh government announced the first exclusive mobile and electronic manufacturing cluster in the new capital, Amaravati.

A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) called Sri Venkateswara Mobiles and Electronics Manufacturing Hub Private Limited was formed. The foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the same year.

The SPV Company has applied for the final approval of the project. Three major Indian mobile manufacturers - Celkon, Karbonn and Lava have come forward to establish their units in the EMC.

An anchor unit has been formed in the name of Seven Hills Digital Park Private Limited for the three companies. It will be involved in manufacturing of accessories to mobile phones and other related electronic equipment.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has allotted 113.27 acres of land for the new cluster, through Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC).

Nara Lokesh, Minister of Information Technology and Communications, had said that the new EMC is being developed at the cost of Rs 104 crore.

Around 50,000 jobs will be created every year in the cluster.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Minister KJ Alphons on Monday slammed the incident of thrashing French tourists in Uttar Pradesh's Mizrapur, terming it as "deplorable."

Speaking to ANI, the Minister of State for Tourism Alphons said, "It is hugely deplorable and such things should never happen. I have talked to UP Government in the morning and they have said 4 people have been arrested in connection with this case. They have taken immediate action on the issue."

Alphons further averred that those taking selfies with tourists may be violating their privacy.

"We must ensure people accept foreigners are coming in and they want privacy, they don't want to be interfered with, if every guy out there wants to have a selfie with tourists, it will make it impossible for people to visit" said Alphons

"We say that guests are God we should treat them as God that's the fundamental idea of India. Lot more civilised behavour is required," added Alphons.

A group of foreign tourists was allegedly beaten up and molested in Ahraura area of Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday by a group of local boys.

All of them were natives of France.

As of now, eight people have been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police in connection to the case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav cornered Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, over the latter's visit to Pakistan in 2015, and accused him of favouring Pakistan.

"He goes uninvited to Pakistan, allows it's notorious agency ISI to picnic in our sensitive Pathankot airbase, calls Pakistan PM in oath ceremony, gifts him generously still Pakistan is bad. If you hate Pakistan then Why don't you end Most Favoured Nation status given to Pakistan?" Yadav posted on Twitter.

In his tweet, Yadav was referring to Prime Minister Modi's surprise visit to Pakistan to meet his then counterpart Nawaz Sharif in December 2015, months after the terror attack in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

Days after the visit, the Pathankot airbase in Punjab was attacked by six terrorists from Pakistan.

The RJD chief's swipe comes a day after Prime Minsiter Modi accused the Congress Party of colluding with Pakistan to interfere in the results of Gujarat Assembly elections.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Monday quashed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's accusation about the former's clandestine meeting with Pakistani officials, and expressed 'anguish' at 'the canards being spread' by the latter.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Sh. Narender Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable," Singh said in an official statement.

In one of his campaign rallies yesterday, Prime Minister Modi alleged Pakistan's interference in the Gujarat elections. Claiming that Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former vice president Hamid Ansari met with Pakistan's High Commissioner and Foreign Minister at Aiyar's house just before the elections, the Prime Minister sought an explanation from the opposition.

Terming it a lie, Singh issued a clarification as follows, "I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Shri Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner."

The former prime minister, in turn raked up Prime Minister Modi's visit to Pakistan after the terror attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur, and sought explanation from him for the same.

"Let me remind Sh. Narender Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan," the statement read.

Calling out the Prime Minister's "compromised track record on fighting terrorism," Singh said that his own track record over last five decades cannot be questioned by the former "to gain lost political ground."

Singh also demanded an apology from the Prime Minister for the grave accusation made by him

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies," Singh added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Ram Nath Kovind called on Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here, on Monday.

Earlier today, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met Lavrov, and discussed issues of mutual interest, ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting.

The MEA spokesperson on Monday tweeted, "Further strengthening our strategic partnership, EAM @SushmaSwaraj had a productive meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on issues of mutual interest ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting in New Delhi."

Swaraj also called on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, earlier today.

India is hosting the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) Foreign Minister-level trilateral meet.

The three foreign ministers will issue a joint statement as well. The discussions will be followed by a working lunch.

The platform of the three major BRICS members is aimed at facilitating common position on key global challenges - radical ideas, terror threats, Afghanistan and West Asia.

Swaraj will hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of RIC with Wang Yi and Sergei Lavrov.

China and India are at odds on issues like NSG membership for India, Masood Azhar's ban or even India's participation in One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR).

Earlier, the RIC meeting had been scheduled for April.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Russia, India and China reaffirmed their commitment to work together to ensure that the modalities for implementing the Paris Agreement adopted under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change were framed to reflect equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibility as recognised under the UNFCCC, at the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meet here, on Monday.

"We reaffirm our commitment to work together to ensure that the modalities for implementing the Paris Agreement adopted under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. We recognise the importance of parties to fulfil their obligations in the pre-2020 period, and call on parties to ratify the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol," RIC, in a joint press statement, said.

Russia, India and China also stressed on the importance of regional connectivity in enhancing political mutual trust, economic cooperation, and promoting cultural and people-to-people exchanges. In this context they welcomed synergy of various initiatives to improve regional connectivity in Asia.

"We welcome the holding of the first trilateral Russia-India-China consultation on Asia Pacific affairs in Beijing in December 2016. These discussions have been helpful in developing a converging perspective on the emerging scenario in Asia Pacific region. We agree to hold the second trilateral consultation in New Delhi in the first half of 2018," the statement added.

They also expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the 15th trilateral Academic Conference held in India in January 2017 and welcomed the 16th Trilateral Academic Conference to be held in Russia next year.

They also welcomed the first edition of the visit of RIC Young diplomats hosted by China in January 2017 and agreed to hold the second such interaction in India in 2018.

The foreign minister of the People's Republic of China and the foreign minister of the Russian Federation thanked External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj for hosting and making excellent arrangements for the meeting in New Delhi.

The ministers decided to hold the next trilateral meeting in China. The time and venue of the meeting will be agreed through diplomatic channels.

Apart from Paris Agreement, the foreign ministers of the three countries - Sushma Swaraj, Sergey Lavrov and Wang Yi - discussed terrorism and disarmament, the political scenario in the Middle East and North Africa, different challenges in putting economy back on growth track, transnational organised crime, illicit drug trafficking, food security and climate change.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday slammed Pakistan over its interference in India's internal affairs and the unwarranted statement by the country's foreign office.

While attending a press conference, Prasad said, "We completely abhor any outside interference in India's internal affairs. Pakistan's promotion of terrorism in India is well known and Pakistan must stop giving us lessons; we are proud of our democracy. We condemn this unwarranted statement."

"Today a very curious statement was released by the Pakistan foreign office condemning Islamabad being dragged into India's elections and stated that Indian must learn to fight their elections on their own. I would like to say Pakistan that India is capable to contesting its democracy on their own," he added.

Yesterday, while addressing a rally in Gujarat's Banaskantha, Prime Minister Modi alleged that former Pakistan Army director general Arshad Rafique was helping Congress leader Ahmed Patel to become the chief minister of Gujarat.

Later, Pakistan Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal, in his tweet, had asked India to stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate.

"India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible," read the tweet.

The prime minister had also questioned suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former vice-president Hamid Ansari's meeting with the Pakistan High Commissioner.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The foreign ministers of China and Russia reiterated the importance they attach to the status of India in international affairs and support its aspiration to play a greater role in the United Nations, at the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meet here, on Monday.

"We stress the importance of coordination on the issues related to the UN reform. It has to be conducted through an active dialogue and consultation with the Member States. Implementation of new initiatives must clearly follow the mandates given by the General Assembly. In any outcome, Member States must maintain realistic mechanisms for monitoring the use of UN financial and human resources. In this context, prerogatives of the UN main organs, including in particular the UNGA, as stipulated by the UN Charter, must be respected," RIC said, in a joint press statement.

"We reiterate the importance we attach to cooperation and strategic partnership within BRICS. We will work together to implement all outcomes of BRICS summits to strengthen cooperation in economic, political, security and people-to-people fields, so as to usher in the second golden decade of BRICS cooperation. Russia and India commend China for successful hosting of the Ninth BRICS Summit in Xiamen in September 2017," it added.

Russia and China reiterated they welcome India's participation in APEC.

The trilateral meet recalled the 2005 Summit Outcome document and reaffirmed the need for a comprehensive reform of the UN, including its Security Council, with a view to making it more representative, effective and efficient, and to increase the representation of the developing countries so that it can adequately respond to global challenges.

The statement further said: "We attach special importance to our joint work within the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). We regard SCO as an important instrument in promoting multilateral political, security economic and people-to-people interaction in the region. Foreign Ministers of Russia and China welcome the accession of India as a full-fledged member of SCO at the Astana SCO Summit in June 2017. Russia and India extend support and cooperation for China as the Chair of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) for 2017-2018 and for China's hosting of 2018 SCO Summit."

RIC also emphasised the need for coordination and cooperation in various regional forums and organizations such as East Asia Summit (EAS), ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus), Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) and the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), so as to contribute to maintaining regional peace and stability and to promote regional development and prosperity.

The foreign minister of the People's Republic of China and the foreign minister of the Russian Federation thanked External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj for hosting and making excellent arrangements for the meeting in New Delhi.

The ministers decided to hold the next trilateral meeting in China. The time and venue of the meeting will be agreed through diplomatic channels.

Apart from this, the foreign ministers of the three countries - Sushma Swaraj, Sergey Lavrov and Wang Yi - discussed terrorism and disarmament, the political scenario in the Middle East and North Africa, different challenges in putting economy back on growth track, transnational organised crime, illicit drug trafficking, food security and climate change.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called on President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here, on Monday.

Earlier today, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met Lavrov, and discussed issues of mutual interest, ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting.

The MEA spokesperson on Monday tweeted, "Further strengthening our strategic partnership, EAM @SushmaSwaraj had a productive meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on issues of mutual interest ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting in New Delhi."

Swaraj also called on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, earlier today.

India is hosting the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) Foreign Minister-level trilateral meet.

The three foreign ministers will issue a joint statement as well. The discussions will be followed by a working lunch.

The platform of the three major BRICS members is aimed at facilitating common position on key global challenges - radical ideas, terror threats, Afghanistan and West Asia.

Swaraj will hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of RIC with Wang Yi and Sergei Lavrov.

China and India are at odds on issues like NSG membership for India, Masood Azhar's ban or even India's participation in One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR).

Earlier, the RIC meeting had been scheduled for April.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Minister of External Affairs (MEA) Sushma Swaraj on Monday sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh Government on the alleged thrashing of French tourists in state's Mirzapur district.

"I have asked for a report from Government of Uttar Pradesh," Swaraj Tweeted.

Earlier on Sunday, eight people were arrested in connection with the alleged thrashing of French tourists.

A group of foreign tourists from France were allegedly beaten up and molested in Ahraura area of Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh by a group of local boys.

Recently, a German was beaten up by a man at a railway Station in Sonbhadra district of UP because he unintentionally ignored a man's greeting.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj held the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi here, on Monday.

In the trilateral meeting, the foreign ministers of the three countries discussed terrorism, the political scenario in the Middle East and North Africa, different challenges in putting economy back on growth track, transnational organised crime, illicit drug trafficking, food security and climate change, Swaraj said, in a press briefing after the meeting.

Chinese foreign minister Wang emphasised the three countries had great international responsibilities and needed to keep playing a positive role for ensuring positive energy to the .

"China, India and Russia are the three countries with a broad influence and are the emerging markets and have come to realise the international responsibilities on them and are ready to play a positive role for ensuring more positive energy to the world," he said.

Wang added, "In the just-concluded meeting, we held an in-depth discussions on the international situation and major issues of common interest. This was an efficient, practical and successful meeting."

Lavrov said the three ministers had a candid, trust-based and frank exchange of views on a majority of issues.

"We had a candid, trust-based and frank exchange of views on a majority of issues. We share our position and this unity of our approaches and our interest has been reflected in the in-depth and specific joint communique that we circulate following our meeting. We are concerned about developments that we witnessed today - such as evasion of the international law and growth of force and factor force in the international affairs," he said.

Foreign Ministers of Russia and China also welcomed the accession of India as a full-fledged member of SCO at the Astana SCO Summit in June 2017.

Russia and India also extended support and cooperation for China as the chair of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) for 2017-2018 and for China's hosting of 2018 SCO Summit.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj has met the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, and discussed issues of mutual interest ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting in New Delhi.

The MEA Spokesperson on Monday tweeted, "Further strengthening our strategic partnership, EAM @SushmaSwaraj had a productive meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on issues of mutual interest ahead of the Russia-India-China Trilateral Meeting in New Delhi".

Earlier today, Swaraj called on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

India is hosting the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) Foreign Minister-level trilateral meet.

The three foreign ministers will issue a joint statement as well.

The discussions will be followed by a working lunch.

The platform of the three major BRICS members is aimed at facilitating common position on key global challenges - radical ideas, terror threats, Afghanistan and West Asia.

Swaraj will hold bilateral meeting on the sidelines of RIC with Wang Yi and Sergei Lavrov, who will be the first minister from Beijing to visit India after the Doklam episode.

China and India are at odds on issues like NSG membership for India, Masood Azhar's ban or even India's participation in One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR).

Earlier, the RIC meeting had been scheduled for April.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Shri Arun Jaitley said that to promote indigenous manufacturing of electronic goods, many steps have been taken by the present Government in last three years including rationalization of the tariff structure with extension of differential excise duty dispensation on specified electronic equipments and withdrawal of duty exemption etc. The Finance Minister said that in the Union Budget 2017-18, with the aim of creating an eco-system to make India a global hub for electronics manufacturing, the allocation for incentive schemes like M-SIPS and EDF has been exponentially increased to Rs 745 crores.

The IT sector representatives invited the attention of Minister to the fact that India's competence in IT-Software is recognized globally.

In recent times, software development and information technology enabled services (ITeS) including business process outsourcing (BPO)/ knowledge process outsourcing services (KPO) industry in India has emerged as one of the most dynamic and vibrant sectors in India's economy with huge employment potential. They however pointed out that considering some recent protectionist and discriminatory policies followed by other countries, the IT sector would need Government's help at Policy level to ensure combat visa restrictions issues as also to ensure our economic interests. Similar to steps taken in previous budget to promote indigenous manufacturing of electronic goods, more steps to include rationalization of the tariff structure with extension of differential excise duty dispensation to mobile handsets/ tablet computers and other specified electronic equipment, should be taken in the forthcoming budget for Promoting Broadband; Access for easier fund for Telecom; Tax free Bond for Telecom; Lowering GST on Telecom services to 12 per cent instead of 18 per cent; BCD on all non ITA-1 products; Depreciation benefits for Make in India; Promote components hub; Keep Electronics Sector out of RCEP and increase import duty on Mobile handsets.

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Key benchmark indices edged higher in early trade tracking positive global cues. At 9:18 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex advanced 151.60 points or 0.46% at 33,401.90. The Nifty 50 index rose 38.80 points or 0.38% at 10,304.45.

The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.39%, underperforming the Sensex. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index advanced 0.62%, outperforming the Sensex.

Overseas, Asian stocks edged higher following strong finish on the Wall Street on Friday. US equities closed higher on Friday, 8 December 2017, following the release of a stronger-than-expected jobs report. The US economy added 228,000 jobs last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%.

Closer home, the breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1,158 shares rose and 309 shares declined. A total of 69 shares were unchanged.

Axis Bank rose 1.39% at Rs 550 after the bank said its shareholders have given an approval to a proposal to raise equity and equity-linked capital of Rs 11626 crore from a set of marquee investors including entities affiliated with Bain Capital Private Equity, other investors advised by Capital Research and the bank's promoter, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 8 December 2017.

UltraTech Cement advanced 1.73% at Rs 4,225.85 after the company said that its board at a meeting held on 9 December 2017, approved the setting up of a 3.5 MTPA integrated cement plant at Pali, Rajasthan, at an investment of around Rs 1850 crore. Commercial production from the plant is expected to commence by June 2020.

The board also approved a proposal for an increase in the investment limits by registered foreign portfolio investors (RFPIs) including foreign institutional investors (FIIs) from the existing limit of 30% of the paid-up equity share capital upto 40% of the paid-up equity share capital of the company. The announcement was made on Saturday, 9 December 2017.

Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) was up 0.44% at Rs 203.80 after the company said its board at a meeting held on 8 December 2017, accorded approval for two investment proposals aggregating to Rs 268.53 crore. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 8 December 2017.

Indiabulls Housing Finance fell 0.22% at Rs 1,204.60. The company said that it has sold its 100% shareholding in Indiabulls Life Insurance Company, presently a non-operational company with no business or license, to SORIL Holdings and Ventures (SHVL), at face value for an aggregate cash consideration of Rs 5 lakh. This transaction between the company and SHVL, being related parties, is at arms' length. The announcement was made on Saturday, 9 December 2017.

Among other news, Gujarat recorded a polling of 68% in the first phase of assembly elections for 89 assembly constituencies held on Saturday, 9 December 2017. The second phase polling will take place on 14 December 2017 in 93 assembly constituencies. Counting of votes will take place on 18 December 2017. The Gujarat assembly has 182 seats.

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Moody's Investors Service says that its Asian Liquidity Stress Indicator (Asian LSI) decreased in November 2017 to 26.4% from 27.6% in October.

The Asian LSI measures the percentage of high-yield companies with Moody's weakest speculative-grade liquidity score of SGL-4 as a proportion of high-yield corporate family ratings.

The indicator decreases when speculative-grade liquidity improves.

"The Asian LSI improved in November to 26.4%, largely due to the addition of new issuers, but remains weaker than the long-term average of 23.1%," says Brian Grieser, a Moody's Vice President and Senior Credit Officer.

The number of rated high-yield companies with Moody's weakest speculative-grade liquidity score (SGL-4) decreased to 39 from 40, while the total number of rated high-yield companies increased to 148 from 145.

"The momentum in high-yield issuance continued in November, with rated issuance totaling $1.9 billion in the month, raising year-to-date issuance to a record $33.9 billion," added Grieser.

The liquidity stress sub-indicator for North Asian high-yield companies decreased slighlty to 27.8% in November from 28.0% in October.

The Chinese sub-indicator remained broadly stable at 28.7% from 28.9% and the high-yield Chinese property sub-indicator increased to 19.1% from 17.4%.

The Chinese high-yield industrials sub-indicator decreased to 40.0% from 43.2%, driven by new rating assignments during November.

The liquidity stress sub-indicator for South and Southeast Asian high-yield companies decreased to 23.5% in November from 26.9% in October. The Indonesian sub-indicator decreased to 23.1% from 24.0%.

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As many as 253 (14 per cent) candidates in the fray in Gujarat assembly polls have declared criminal cases against them, with three candidates facing charges related to murder, 17 related to attempt to murder, and four related to rape, an ADR-Gujarat Election Watch report said on Monday.

Non-profit Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) along with Gujarat Election Watch has prepared a report by analysing information furnished by 1,815 of the 1,828 candidates.

In 2012 Gujarat elections, out of 1,283 candidates analysed, 222 (17 per cent) had declared criminal cases against themselves, the report said.

"As many as 154 (8 per cent) candidates have declared serious criminal cases, including ones related to murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, and crimes against women. In 2012 Gujarat assembly elections, 92 (7 per cent) candidates had declared serious criminal cases against themselves," it said.

It said seven candidates have declared cases related to kidnapping.

Among major parties, 46 (25 per cent) out of 181 candidates are from Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), 56 (32 per cent) out of 176 candidates from Congress, 17 (12 per cent) out of 138 candidates from Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), 9 (16 per cent) out of 57 candidates from Nationalist Congress Party, 4 (14 per cent) out of 28 candidates from Aam Aadmi Party, and 65 (8 per cent) out of 791 independent candidates analysed have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

Out of the 1,815 candidates, 418 (23 per cent) are multi-millionaires and among the major parties 147 (81 per cent) out of 181 candidates are from BJP, 129(73 per cent) out of 176 candidates from Congress, 5 (4 per cent) out of 138 candidates from BSP, and 11(39 per cent) out of 28 candidates from AAP, the report said.

--IANS

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Fifteen persons in Uttar Pradesh have been killed in two road accidents. Ten were killed in Mirzapur district on Monday, while five from a wedding party died late last night in a bus-car collision in Mathura.

Besides the 10 killed in Mirzapur, over a dozen were seriously injured when a truck and a tractor collided head on near the Agriculture Science Centre, a police officer said.

The condition of at least five of the injured is critical. They have been rushed to Varanasi, Station House Officer (SHO) of Madihaan, K.K. Singh said.

The tractor was returning from a family function after a head tonsuring ritual from Sheetla Dhaam, Chunar. All the deceased belong to Gadhwa village. The police fear that the death toll might rise.

In other accident in Mathura late on Sunday night, five persons have been killed when the car headed to a wedding ceremony was hit by the speeding bus carrying a marriage party in the Naujheel area, the police said.

A motor cycle with two riders then rammed into the bus from behind.

Four persons died on the spot. Another died at a primary health centre. Two others in critical condition were rushed to the Mathura district hospital.

The collision was so huge it took a lot of effort to extricate the mangled car from the bus, a police officer said.

--IANS

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Actor Arbaaz Khan has lauded Kripalu Mahila Mahavidyalaya for taking the lead in providing free education to thousands of poor and destitute girls from different regions and religions.

Attending the annual function of the Mahavidyalaya at Kunda in Pratapgarh district, some 150 km south of here, Khan appreciated the fact that the effort to empower girls has been going on for several years, according to a statement from Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat (JKP), which runs the institution.

Khan, who watched music and dance performances by the students, as well as colourful presentations, also lauded JKP presidents Vishakha Tripathi, Shyama Tripathi and Krishna Tripathi for their work.

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who addressed the event via mobile phone, praised JKP for setting an example in spirituality and social service, the statement added.

Elaborating on the institution's activities, JKP Secretary Ram Puri said the aim was to provide a complete education to girls: Not only free education from primary to post-graduate level, but also facilities like free transportation, books and their other daily needs.

The event was also attended by All-India Anti-Terrorist Front head and former Youth Congress chief Maninderjeet Singh Bitta.

--IANS

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Not much is known about him, but it has now emerged that trade relations between Ghana and India were started by Bhai Boolchand, the first Indian to arrive in the Gold Coast -- Ghana's colonial name -- in 1890. That's some 67 years before the British colonial government granted the country independence, research by the Indian Association of Ghana has found.

"As far as our records show, Bhai Boolchand (of the Bhaiband Sindhworki trading community), landed on the shores of the Gold Coast in western Africa in 1890. Nearly twenty years later, in 1919, the first Sindhi company was established by two brothers -- Tarachand Jasoomal Daswani and Metharam Jasoomal Daswani," the Indian Association said.

The duo opened a store -- Metharam Jassomal Brothers -- in the then capital city of Cape Coast in 1919.

"Their business flourished and branches were opened in Accra and Kumasi. A few years later, the two brothers separated and whilst Bhai Metharam Jasoomal continued the business as Metharam Brothers, Tarachand Jasoomal operated his business as Bombay Bazaar. These were the first two Indian companies that were established in the Gold Coast," the Association said.

Boolchand's arrival, therefore, pre-dates the historical links between the two countries that were always thought to have started between Ghana's first President, Kwame Nkruman, and India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Boolchand can thus be described as the one who paved the way for the arrival of other members of the Sindhi community, initially as traders and shopkeepers.

The Indian Association said more of this group arrived in the 1950s and 1960s, with a few venturing into manufacturing industries such as garments, plastics, textiles, insecticides, electronics, pharmaceuticals and optical goods.

The Association said two more Indian firms were established under the names of Lilaram Thanwardas and Mahtani Brothers in the 1920s. This trend continued in the 1930s and 1940s with the creation of several more Indian companies like T. Chandirams, Punjabi Brothers, Wassiamal Brothers, Hariram Brothers, K. Chellaram & Sons, G. Motiram, D.P. Motwani, G. Dayaram, V. Lokumal, and Glamour Stores.

Glamour Stores, which was stared by Ramchand Khubchandani who arrived in Ghana in 1929, has grown -- after changing its name to Melcom Group -- to become the largest retailing business in the country. The Melcom Group, headed by Ramchand's son Bhagwan Khubchandani, is now in its 60th year and about 40 stores all over the country.

Ramchand and his brother later went into garment manufacturing in 1955 and once employed over 1,200 Ghanaians. They later opened the first Indian restaurant, Maharaja, in Ghana. Bhagwan followed in his father's footsteps and in 1989 established the Melcom Group with his sons-in-law, Mahesh Melwani and Ramesh Sadhwani.

Another Indian-owned company that has survived through the years is the Mohanani Group, which is currently in its 51st year. At the first-ever Ghana Expatriate Business Awards, the Ministry of Trade and Industries recognised the work of one of the thriving Indian-owned B5 Plus Steel Company and awarded it the Best Expatriate Company in the metal and steel category.

As these companies brought in new expatriate staff, some left their employers to venture out on their own -- resulting in more companies opening up.

"After 1947, the Gold Coast attracted the attention of some Indian multinational companies, and big names like Chanrai, Bhojsons, K.A.J. Chotirmal, Dalamals and A.D. Gulab opened branches in Ghana," the Association said.

"The employment of Ghanaians by these founding companies also helped to lessen the burden of unemployment in the country. This amply demonstrates the level of commitment India has in the developmental agenda of Ghana," it said.

Indians are not only investing in the manufacturing and commercial sectors of the country; they are also investing in the financial sector. Bank of Baroda, one of India's biggest and most reputable banks, recently established a branch in Ghana and hopefully it will expand its operations in other parts of the country very soon.

(Francis Kokutse can be contacted at fkokutse@gmail.com)

--IANS

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Wading into the controversy, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said instead of seeking an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should apologise for "violating" the national policy on terrorism and make public the details of what transpired at the dinner meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house.

Responding to a sharp attack by Singh on Modi, Jaitley said when there is a national position that there can be no dialogue with Pakistan till it keeps sponsoring terrorism in India, being the principal opposition party, the Congress should have abided by it.

"But people in Congress like Mani Shankar Aiyar never abide by this national position. Their position is that let Pakistan sponsor terrorism in our country but we will maintain our friendship with it," he told the media here calling the dinner diplomacy a "misadventure" like the one that took place in Sharm-al-Sheikh, Egypt.

The Finance Minister said the nation had never accepted the policy being advocated by people like Aiyar.

"Instead of admitting that their misadventure was a mistake, the Congress is instead asking for an apology from the Prime Minister for flagging the issue. This is beyond comprehension.

"It is them (Congress leaders) who should apologise for violating the national policy on Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and explain what was the need for the meeting, why it happened and what transpired during the meeting," he said.

Jaitley's remarks came after Manmohan Singh issued a statement accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat elections and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

At an election rally in Gujarat, Modi had alleged that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh and former Vice President Hamid Ansari, discussed the Gujarat election with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister among others.

On former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's questioning the "compromised track record" of the Modi-led government on fighting terrorism, Jaitley said no government in the past had the track record of countering terrorism like the current BJP government.

--IANS

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The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) expressed grief over the death of its former director Lalji Singh, the father of DNA fingerprinting in India.

CCMB Director Dr Rakesh K. Mishra and other scientists on Monday paid rich tributes to Singh, who headed the premier research and development organization for 11 years.

Singh, who had a long association with Hyderabad, passed away after suffering a massive heart attack at the Varanasi airport late on Sunday night. He was 70.

"Dr Lalji Singh will be remembered by CCMB forever for his extra-ordinary contribution to science and for bringing the institution to a great height. His contribution to DNA fingerprinting and wildlife forensic, that are still continuing to have tremendous impact on our society, the judiciary, law enforcement agencies and wildlife, will be remembered by the nation," said Mishra.

His work on the structure and origin of the Indian population has not only made a great international impact, but will also go a long way in our future health policy and will have invaluable social implications. CCMB family draws inspiration from his great work, leadership and personality, he added.

Lalji Singh joined CCMB in 1987 and became its director in 1998. He was also the officer-on-special-duty (OSD) at the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) here between 1995 and 1999.

Singh showed his research expertise in the fields including molecular basis of sex determination, DNA fingerprinting, wildlife conservation, silkworm genome analysis, human genome and ancient DNA studies

He also found various institutes and laboratories including Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species (LaCONES) and Genome Foundation, that aims to diagnose and treat genetic disorders affecting the underprivileged people, especially in rural India.

Hailing from Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh, he served as the Vice Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University between 2011-2014.

For the CCMB family, this was the second major loss this year. CCMB's founder director P. M. Bhargava died here in August.

--IANS

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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the Narendra Modi-led Central government of not aiding her state the way it aids the others as her government opposes its policies.

"The Central government does not provide necessary monitory support to Bengal, rather they take the money away. We are still paying Rs 40,000 crore every year as part of the state's debt to the Centre acquired during the Left Front regime," she said in a public meeting in Bardhaman district's Kanksa.

"The crops were wasted in parts of the country due to the untimely rain and flood. The Centre has aided Assam and Bihar but haven't sent any aid to Bengal. The Centre thinks they would hit us economically as our government oppose their policies," she alleged.

The Trinamool Congress supremo also accused the Centre's ruling BJP of talking in the language of communalism in Bengal but asserted that her government would not be provoked to reply in the same language.

"BJP is using the language of communalism. We would not reply to them in that language. We have many other languages to communicate. We prefer to talk in those languages. Our government is for mother, land and people. It is not for someone specific. It is everyone," she said.

Referring to the the brutall killing of an Bengali labourer in Rajasthan, Banerjee said there are repeated incidents of violence and hate crimes against the minority and dalits in the BJP governed states.

"What are they (BJP) up to? A Dalit family in Gujrat went to watch a cultural programme, they were lynched. A person in Rajasthan protested against the banning of the film 'Padmavati', he was hanged till death, another person came to work in Rajasthan was burnt alive. Why would these things happen?" she asked.

Taking a swipe at the BJP leaders in Bengal, Banerjee said: "People of Bengal should politically drive them away so that they can never come back."

--IANS

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Chandigarh on Monday got direct air connectivity to Southeast Asian region as the first flight from Bangkok to the City Beautiful landed here, followed by a return flight which took off from the international airport here.

Air India will deploy A320 Neo aircraft into service on the route on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The flight time will be around five hours.

There will be 150 seats in the economy class and 12 in the business class, Air India Executive Director (Sales and Marketing) Pankaj Kumar told the media here on Monday.

A Bangkok-Chandigarh flight landed here earlier in the day while and return flight left in the afternoon, carrying 120 passengers.

Chandigarh was earlier air-linked to Dubai and Sharjah through Indigo Airlines and Air India Express respectively.

With Christmas and New Year round the corner, Air India is expecting higher passenger traffic on this route this month, Kumar said.

--IANS

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China's prosecutor announced on Monday the launch of a criminal investigation for corruption against Sun Zhengcai, a former senior official who, until his fall into disgrace, was considered a favourite for national leadership.

Sun, former secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in Chongqing region, is accused of accepting bribes and is subject to coercive measures within an ongoing investigation, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said in a statement.

These measures could include arrest, detention and compulsory attendance before judicial authorities.

The politician was removed from his post in Chongqing on July 15 and replaced by Chen Miner, the propaganda chief of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Sun, 54, was one of the youngest members of the CPC Politburo and, until his removal, was considered one of the top contenders for prominent posts in the party's Congress in October, including as Xi's possible successor.

Since 2012, Sun had been in charge of Chongqing, a region in the southwest which has witnessed tremendous economic development in the last few decades.

Another former Chongqing party chief, Bo Xilai, was at the centre of the biggest corruption scandal in modern China in 2012 and sentenced to life in prison a year later.

--IANS

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The Congress on Monday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologise to former Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for insinuating that they were colluding with Pakistan to defeat the BJP in the Gujarat elections.

Perceiving a "clear defeat" in Gujarat, the Prime Minister was "frustrated and using foul language" to rouse sympathy for himself, Congress leader Anand Sharma said here, a day after Modi accused the party and elements in Pakistan of working together to defeat the BJP.

The Congress was reacting to Modi's charge in a public meeting on Sunday in Gujarat that Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's "neech" remark came after a dinner at his house the previous day attended by former Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri, its current High Commissioner in India besides Ansari and Singh, among others.

"Today Prime Minister, in his frustration and perceiving a clear defeat, wants to divert the attention of people. PM should take his words back and to maintain the dignity of his post, should apologise.

"If he has any such information, then it's a very serious matter... The country will not accept wrong means being employed by the ruling party to win the elections. We have full faith that the Gujarat electorate is intelligent and mature enough to understand the tactics behind yesterday's address (by Modi) and will answer them in the second phase," Sharma told the media.

He said nothing could be more absurd than what the Prime Minister had said on Sunday.

"It is expected of the Prime Minister to be dignified in his discourse, to always remember that he holds a high office and he should not level accusations, cast aspersions on those who have held high constitutional offices and have served India with dedication and commitment."

Sharma said Modi's insinuations against the former Vice President of India and former Prime Minister of doing something improper is "highly irresponsible, improper and condemnable."

"The Prime Minister, he said, must remember that mere attending a social function in which high dignitaries were present... It was not a secret meeting, in which former Chief of the Indian Army, India former High Commissioner to Pakistan, eminent journalists, they all were present."

"The Prime Minister is giving it a sinister and sensational twist. The Prime Minister should restore the dignity of political discourse, and apologise to the former Vice President and former PM."

"It is clear that he has done so with the intent to confuse and mislead the people of Gujarat ... to whip up emotions and to polarise. There cannot be any other explanation and there cannot be anything more reprehensible than what he has done."

Referring to Modi's charge that Congress leaders were colluding with Pakistan, Sharma said, "It is outrageous. He should know that Congress led the freedom struggle in which the ancestors of the party that Modi belongs to had opposed the Indian freedom struggle. They had sided with the British and had opposed Mahatma Gandhi's Quit India Movement ... He is heir of such a group."

Sharma said that "Modi has time and again brought down the political discourse to such a low, which is anything but dignified".

"Why doesn't he talk about progress, the country's economy. He is the Prime Minister, is given to making tall claims, why doesn't he talk about farmers today? Why doesn't he talk about employment, the future of youth? What is their agenda, on what basis are they fighting the polls? " he asked.

"His own speeches, their party's foul language.. The PM is trying to rouse sympathy for himself by trying to show to the people that he has been wronged. It is he who has wronged the people."

--IANS

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IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said though digitisation has brought in exposure to majority of the people but it has also exposed them to cyber threats and vulnerabilities.

"As part of its Digital India initiatives, the government has introduced a lot of its services online. Although this has made services very accessible to the citizens, it has also exposed them to the threats and vulnerabilities which are an inherent part of cyberspace," the minister said.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the "NIC-CERT", a setup of National Informatics Centre.

He mentioned that in the recent past there has been an exponential growth in cyber attacks leading to concerns of data theft which led to the government drafting the Data Protection Act.

"As Internet with its ever expanding canvas of opportunities is touching the life's of people, it necessitates the requirement to upscale the existing security infrastructure," he added.

The NIC-CERT has been setup with the objective of creating a comprehensive framework that integrates world class security components and inbuilt threat intelligence for detection, prevention and incident response.

Using the tools the team will correlate events that would help in generating a canvas of the attack surface and identify the vulnerabilities and possible exploits. The gathered intelligence assimilated with the knowledge of the open web would give the CERT the ability prevent and predict attacks, Prasad said.

--IANS

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday asked Congress for a one-year extension of the martial law imposed in the southern region of Mindanao, where Islamic State (IS) militants laid partial siege to a city for five months.

Duterte's proposal comes 20 days ahead of the end of the current period of martial law, and he has asked for its extension until December 31, 2018, with the aim of containing rebels linked to the IS and the growing threat of communist insurgency, reports Efe news.

"Public safety indubitably required such further extension, not only for the sake of security and public order, but more importantly to enable the government and the people of Mindanao to pursue the bigger task of rehabilitation and the promotion of a stable socio-economic growth and development," he said.

Filipino lawmakers are scheduled to meet before the end of the year to vote on the President's proposal.

Duterte had declared martial law on May 23, the day the Maute group took up arms and laid siege to Marawi, Mindanao.

The initial period, limited to 60 days as required by the country's Constitution, was extended until the end of the current year by lawmakers in July.

The Philippine Armed Forces liberated the city after five months of clashes that left more than 1,100 dead and caused widespread destruction in the city that had a population of around 200,000 before the conflict.

--IANS

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The Supreme Court on Monday deferred hearing in the case relating to 10,323 government teachers of Tripura, who are set to lose their jobs on December 31 following an apex court order, prolonging uncertainty regarding their fate.

The Tripura government school teachers have demanded continuation of their jobs beyond December 31. They have launched intermittent agitations, including road and railway line blockades in the state, from December 7 to press their demand.

The Supreme Court deferred hearing of three cases related to the issue, including the state government petition on the services of 10,323 government teachers, to December 14, an education department official said here quoting the apex court directive.

The Supreme Court, comprising Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and Uday Umesh Lalit, postponed the hearing after clubbing the three cases together.

Education and Law Minister Tapan Chakraborty said the state government had filed a petition before the Supreme Court urging it to extend the termination deadline for one more year (beyond December 31).

The state government had also filed another petition - to vacate the stay on recruitment of 12,000 non-teaching staffs. The third case had been filed by two graduate teachers seeking review of the Supreme Court order passed on March 29.

The Supreme Court on March 29 had upheld the Tripura High Court verdict terminating the jobs of 10,323 government teachers citing some indiscretion.

In an apparent move to circumvent the apex court order, the Tripura government in May announced the recruitment of 12,000 non-teaching staff in the Education Department. This was to ostensibly "accommodate" the teachers facing the axe following the court verdict.

On October 24, a division bench of the Supreme Court ordered that the ban enforced on October 4 on recruitment of 12,000 non-teaching staff would remain in force until the next hearing.

An unemployed youth from Tripura had filed a contempt petition before the Supreme Court, alleging that the state government had violated its order by trying to redesignate the posts of sacked teachers as well as by initiating the process to recruit 12,000 non-teaching employees in the education department.

The state also faces a huge dearth of eligible candidates to fill up around 16,000 teachers' posts.

Ahead of the February 2018 Assembly elections, the issue of termination of 10,323 government teachers' jobs and recruitment of 12,000 non-teaching staffs is set to become a major political issue.

--IANS

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Jammu and Kashmir Police has arrested a French journalist here for making a documentary on pellet victims.

"Comiti Paul Edward has been detained for violating visa norms in Srinagar," a senior police officer said.

Edward was arrested on Sunday evening from Kothibagh area. He was meeting separatists and pellet victims in the city to shoot his documentary, the officer said.

Scores of protesting youths suffered injuries from pellet guns used in 2016 following an unrest in the valley after the July 8 killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani. Some lost vision totally or partially after their injuries.

Edward has a passport and a business visa for India, valid upto December 22, 2018, the officer said.

A business visa does not allow anyone to make a documentary on political or security related issues. An FIR under section 14B of the Passport Act has been registered against the French national, he said.

The French Embassy has also been informed about Edward's detention, the officer said.
Global arms sales increased for the first time in five years in 2016 as rising geopolitical tensions fuelled defence spending, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Sales by the world's 100 biggest arms producers increased 1.9 per cent from the previous year to reach $374.8 billion, CNN quoted SIPRI as saying in an official report on Sunday night.

"The growth in arms sales was expected and was driven by the implementation of new national major weapon programmes, ongoing military operations in several countries and persistent regional tensions that are leading to an increased demand for weapons," the report said.

Arms producers in South Korea, which increasingly supply the country's military, saw the largest percentage increase among developed countries.

The spending splurge reflects fears of a potential conflict with North Korea. Sales by South Korean firms increased by over 20 per cent in 2016, to $8.4 billion.

While consumer purchases are included in the sales figures, national governments are by far the largest purchasers of arms and weapons systems, according to the report.

American firms remained at the top of the industry in 2016, with sales increasing by 4 per cent to more than $217 billion which was 58 per cent of the global total.

American defence firm Lockheed Martin -- the world's largest producer -- saw sales surge 11 per cent in 2016, thanks to increased deliveries of its F-35 fighter and its acquisition of helicopter producer Sikorsky.

Aude Fleurant, director of the Arms and Military Expenditure Programme at SIPRI, said that US growth was likely to continue.

Sales by Russian firms increased 3.8 per cent to $26.6 billion, a slower expansion than in recent years, CNN quoted the report as saying.

Moscow has boosted spending in order to overhaul its military capabilities, but procurement has slowed recently because of the country's strained finances.

"It's a money issue... They have been hit very severely by the drop in oil and gas prices," said Fleurant.

She pointed to regional disputes, such as the standoff over islands in the South China Sea, as a major source of increased arms sales.

The area is home to crucial shipping lanes, and it's rich in oil and gas reserves. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have all made territorial claims to islands in the area.

"Countries like Vietnam order submarines and maritime patrol aircraft, because of what they consider China's assertiveness in these territorial disputes," Fleurant added.

--IANS

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The Google Doodle on Monday celebrated the 135th birth anniversary of German physicist and mathematician Max Born who was awarded the Nobel Prize for his contribution to the field of quantum mechanics.

An atom is the smallest unit of matter and quantum mechanics studies matter at this incredibly granular level, leading to the invention of personal computers, lasers, and medical imaging devices (MRI), among other game-changing technologies.

He was born and raised in what is now Wroclaw, Poland. At the time the physicist was born, on December 11, 1882, the place was known as Breslau and it was part of Germany.

Born earned his Ph.D. at Gottingen University where he later became a professor of theoretical physics, collaborating with and mentoring some of the most famous scientists of the time.

As a result of laws enacted by the Nazi Party, he had to flee Germany for England, where he served as the Tait Professor of Natural Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh for nearly two decades until his retirement in 1954 when he returned home to Gottingen.

Born was first nominated for the Nobel Prize by none other than Albert Einstein.

Born was awarded the coveted prize in 1954 "for for his fundamental research in quantum mechanics, especially for his statistical interpretation of the wavefunction".

He is best known for the Born Rule -- a quantum theory that uses mathematical probability to predict the location of wave particles in a quantum system.

Previous theories proposed that wave equations were exact measurements, involving cumbersome physical measurement experiments.

Born discovered that matrices or "arrays of numbers by rows and columns" could yield a similar result, relying on predictions of probability.

"This revolutionary theory now provides the basis for practically all quantum physics predictions," Google said.

He died in Goettingen on January 5, 1970.

--IANS

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With the motto to improve labour room quality, Union Minister of State for Finance, S.P. Shukla on Monday launched LaQshya, a safe delivery mobile application for health workers who manage normal and complicated deliveries in peripheral areas.

Shukla also released the Operational Guidelines for Obstetric High Dependency Units (HDUs) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs).

"There is enough evidence that supports the fact that improving the quality of care in labour rooms especially on the day of birth, is central to maternal and neonatal survival," said the Health Ministry in a statement.

According to the Ministry, while the initiative will prevent the undesirable adverse outcomes associated with childbirth, the initiative will be implemented in Government Medical Colleges besides district hospitals, and high delivery load sub-district hospitals and Community Health Centres.

"The initiative plans to conduct quality certification of labour rooms and also incentivise facilities achieving the targets outlined. The goal of this initiative is to reduce preventable maternal and new-born mortality, morbidity and stillbirths associated with the care around delivery in labour room and maternity OT and ensure respectful maternity care," said the statement.

The application has clinical instruction films on key obstetric procedures which can help the health workers translate their learnt skills into practice.

"It can play a pivotal role in training, post training reinforcement, mentoring and demonstration. This application has been tailored as per the Indian context. It has also been field tested in few districts and has been found to be useful for health workers who provide maternity care," said the statement.

The launch was held during an event to mark the Universal Health Coverage, 2017.

--IANS

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Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets in the Chinese capital to denounce Beijings crackdown on migrant communities, with chants of "violent evictions violate human rights", the media reported.

Demonstrators gathered on the streets of Feijia village, northeast of Tiananmen Square, on Sunday for the small but rare rally condemning the eviction and demolition campaign, the Guardian newspaper reported on Monday.

It quoted activists as saying that thousands of migrant workers had been forced from their homes in Beijing's rundown periphery since late November when authorities intensified efforts to drive "low-end" migrant workers out of the city in the wake of a deadly tenement fire.

Sunday's protest was not reported in China's Communist party controlled press but videos and photographs of the event spread online, with human rights campaigners cheering the scenes.

Footage showed crowds processing through the community, which is just north of the motorway leading to Beijing's international airport and close to the 798 art district, itself the target of violent demolitions in the past, the daily said.

"The demonstration suggested Beijing may have miscalculated how much outrage would be caused by the 'ferocity' of its campaign, which has seen once vibrant migrant communities reduced to rubble," the report said.

--IANS

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India, Russia and China on Monday jointly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations while calling for effective implementation of existing international commitments to counter terrorism following the 15th Russia-India-China Foreign Ministerial Meeting here.

"Our discussions today were focused on four broad cluster of areas, namely, economic and developmental issues, fight against terrorism, global and multilateral issues, and regional issues," External Affairs Sushma Swaraj said in joint address to the media along with her Russian and Chinese counterparts, Sergey Lavrov and Wang Yi respectively, after the meeting.

"While discussing terrorism, I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations like Taliban, Daesh (Islamic State), Al Qaeda, and LeT (Lashkar-e-Taiba) directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development," Sushma Swaraj said.

Stating that India strongly recommends a comprehensive policy for dealing with global terrorism, she said: "The policy should include dealing with extremism, countering religious fanaticism, preventing recruitment of terrorists, disrupting terrorist movements, stopping all sources for financing of terrorism, stopping flow of FTFs (foreign terrorist fighters), dismantling terrorist infrastructure, and countering terrorist propaganda through the internet, but we should not limit ourselves to these only."

A joint statement issued following the meeting said that the three sides condemned "terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including the recent heinous terrorist attacks around the world and reaffirm our determination to prevent and counter terrorism in all its forms and manifestations".

"We reaffirm that all acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable irrespective of their motivations, committed wherever and by whomsoever. We call for greater unity, stronger international partnership and concerted actions by the international community in addressing the menace of terrorism in accordance with international law and the UN Charter, including the principles of sovereign equality of states and non-interference in their internal affairs," the statement said.

"We emphasize the need for a comprehensive approach in combating terrorism, and in this context resolve to step up cooperation to prevent and counter terrorism and radicalization, combat the spread of terrorist ideology and propaganda, stop sources of terrorist financing, prevent travelling of and the supply of arms to terrorists, dismantle terrorist infrastructure, disrupt recruitment and the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and prevent misuse of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for terrorist purposes."

Without naming Pakistan, the three countries underlined the primary and leading role and responsibility of states in preventing and countering terrorism and extremism and reiterated that all states should take adequate measures to prevent terrorist activities from their territory.

"We stress that those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with the obligations under international law, including the principle of 'extradite or prosecute' as well as the applicable domestic legislations," the statement said.

In her address to the media, Sushma Swaraj referred to the rise of Indian in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business report from 142nd position in 2014 to 100th this year and said: "I have invited China and Russia for a more intensive trade and economic partnership so that they can take advantage of the economic opportunities available here."

Stating that the UN's Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) mirror India's own vision of development, Sushma Swaraj said that Indian initiatives such as Smart Cities, Make in India, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Swachh Bharat, Jan Dhan Yojana, Digital India, Skill India, and Start-up India closely related to several targets under the SDGs.

"To combat climate change, I argued that we should ensure a fair implementation of the Paris Agreement based on the principles laid down in the Convention (UNFCCC), especially equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibility," she stated.

Prior to the trilateral meeting, Sushma Swaraj held separate bilateral meetings with Wang and Lavrov.

"Foreign Minister Wang Yi and I agreed that we should further strengthen our mutual trust to develop a better understanding between the two parties," Sushma Swaraj.

"And it will be better to meet again and without agenda, which will help us to expand our mutual understanding."

Wang's is the first high-level visit from China after Indian and Chinese troops were in a tense face-off earlier this year at Doklam.

Monday's meeting comes amidst media reports of Chinese troops establishing a permanent presence near Doklam on the India-China-Bhutan international trijunction.

Regarding her meeting with Lavrov, Sushma Swaraj said that that boht sides "reviewed our bilateral relations and both of us were satisfied that this is the 70th year of establishing diplomatic relations between us and more than 100 programmes were organised in the two countries to commemorate the 70th anniversary".

"It is well-known that relations between India and Russia are very close and friendly," she said.

--IANS

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India will connect with Asean countries through cruise tourism and a new cruise port is being built in Mumbai for this, Road Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Monday.

Speaking at the India-Asean Connectivity Summit, which focuses on enhancing connectivity with Asean countries, the minister said the government was encouraging cruise tourism.

"We are planning to create a cruise tourism (network) which can be connected to Asean countries," Gadkari said.

"This year, 80 cruise ships came to Mumbai. We are spending Rs 1,000 crore and building a cruise terminal. After five years, 950 cruise ships will come to Mumbai," he said.

Gadkari also said that the work of dredging had started on Brahmaputra river for developing a water transport channel up to Bangladesh. This will further connect India to Myanmar and other Asean countries.

"We have started work in Brahmaputra. After Bangladesh, through Brahmaputra, we can go up to Myanmar."

The summit comes ahead of the visit of the leaders of the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) here next month for the commemorative summit of 25 years of the India-Asean dialogue partnership.

The Asean comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

--IANS

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Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday criticized the policies of US President Donald Trump in Middle East regarding Jerusalem, Press TV reported.

Trump has made an "incorrect" decision to recognize Jerusalem as the "capital" of Israel, Rouhani said in a meeting with the visiting British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in the capital Tehran.

"The regional situation is such that one should not fan the flames and the US President's recent decision to move the country's embassy to al-Quds (Jerusalem) was an incorrect decision and was pouring gasoline on the flames in the region," Rouhani was quoted as saying.

Over the past years, Iran sought to establish sustainable peace and stability, helped end war and bloodshed and uproot terrorism in the region, he said, adding that Tehran-London talks could lead to the development of regional stability.

It is clear that Iran's constructive role saved two regional countries from the threat of terrorism, he said. "No one can doubt Iran's positive measures in the region," he pointed out.

The Iranian President also stressed the importance of boosting cordial relations between Tehran and London after the implementation of the landmark nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries in 2015.

He expressed dissatisfaction with the current level of Tehran-London cooperation after the JCPOA implementation and urged the two sides to make more efforts to reach "a desirable point in relations."

The British foreign secretary said Iran had taken positive measures in the fight against terrorism and promoted regional peace and stability.

Johnson said that London did not regard Trump's decision on Jerusalem as an appropriate move.

Besides, he said that the JCPOA was a positive accord, which should be upheld in a way that the Iranian nation could take advantage of its economic benefits.

He also expressed Britain's willingness to participate in Iran's investment projects.

Johnson headed a high-ranking politico-economic delegation in his trip to Tehran is part of an effort to improve Tehran-London relations.

--IANS

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Actress Juhi Chawla is glad that the Maharashtra government is banning use of plastic bags from next year. The government plans to make Maharashtra plastic-free beginning May 2018.

The government is planning a ban on plastic bottles from early 2018 in government offices, educational institutions, and functions organized by the state before the ban is extended to private offices.

Juhi took part in the Cuffe Parade Residents Association (CPRA) organised 'Plastic Free Cuffe Parade' walk on Sunady. "I am happy that it has started and it should grow."

"When I heard that the Maharashtra government and the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), has taken the decision that by next Gudi Padwa, all plastic bags will be banned, it made me very happy," said the former Miss India.

"I would never back a move without a good reasons. Most people will wonder, how it can be done, as this is so convenient. But this is important.

"Thousands and millions of animals and birds die every day because of plastic, our water is getting polluted, so tomorrow, what will our children eat or drink?" added the Bollywood star. "So it's more harm than useful."

"In 2014, Supreme Court observed that if plastic bags are not banned or manufacturers didn't take the plastic bag and did something with it, the harmful effects would be so severe, it will be worse than an atom bomb," she said.

Juhi says that this is big issue.

"Don't just think this is garbage as this is poisonous garbage, which has piled up so much in the environment that not just Maharashtra but the entire world is planning to do something about it. Recently Kenya banned the plastic bags throughout the country" added the actress.

Juhi also spoke about "Citizens of Tomorrow" and "Swachh Bharata initiative.

"Join Citizens for Tomorrow' and together we will tackle this issue and make our country clean. And if Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, Swachh Bharat, then we will do it," she told media.

Juhi's next film is with Vidhu Vinod Chopra production.

--IANS

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A court here on Monday sent, to 12 days judicial custody, Kannada tabloid editor Ravi Belagere who was arrested for allegedly hiring hitmen to kill an ex-colleague.

"He will be in judicial custody until December 23," said the 1st Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate V.Jagadeesh.

Belagere, 59, the editor of Kannada weekly "Hai Bangalore" was arrested by the city police on Friday and had been in four-day police custody since then.

The arrest was made after two gunmen - Tahir Hussain and Shashidhar Mundewadi - had testified to taking ransom from the journalist to kill his ex-colleague Sunil Heggaravalli three months ago.

Heggaravalli, whom the killers couldn't manage to shoot, was working with Belagere in the same tabloid.

Belagere had reportedly given Mundewadi a gun with four bullets along with a knife to "eliminate" his former colleague whom he called a "betrayer".

From searches conducted at Belagere's office and residence in the city, police had so far found one revolver gun with 53 live bullets and a used bullet, a double barrel gun with 41 live bullets along with deer skin and tortoise shell.

--IANS

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MIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday said if Prime Minister Narendra Modi sincerely believes in what he is saying about Pakistan meddling in Gujarat elections, he should order arrest of the persons involved.

"If what PM is saying is correct then what is NIA doing? Why doesn't he charge them under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and National Security Act and have them arrested?" the Hyderabad MP asked.

"I expect him not to react in such a weak and meek way. Let him arrest them," he said.

The MIM leader said the PM was questioning the nationalism and loyalty of even a retired army chief and a former foreign secretary. "If this is correct then you have to tell this to nation because it is a serious matter," he said.

Owaisi alleged that by not acting on the matter, Modi had proved that it's a mere rhetoric to polarize voters in Gujarat.

The MP said he was not surprised over the PM's statement as his party had used the same language during Bihar elections. The BJP had said that if it loses the polls, people in Pakistan will celebrate Diwali.

The MIM chief also demanded the government to clarify on the meeting held in Bangkok between the National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan. "Why there is so much secrecy about the meeting," he asked.

--IANS

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A "deeply pained and anguished" former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat election and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

In an unusually hard-hitting statement, Manmohan Singh denied allegations by Modi that he and others, including former Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Army Chief Gen. Deepak Kapoor, invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats, discussed the Gujarat election.

The BJP fielded Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to rebut Manmohan Singh's charge, saying that the former Prime Minister should admit that engaging with Pakistan at this moment was a "misadventure" for which he should apologize instead of demanding one from Modi.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than ... Modi," Manmohan Singh said.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

"Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Manmohan Singh added.

The statement follows Modi's allegations at an election rally in Gujarat that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh, Ansari and Gen. Kapoor, discussed the Gujarat polls with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister, Khurshid Kasuri, among others, suggesting that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in the state.

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election and on the other Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house," Modi said.

Manmohan Singh made public the guest list at Aiyar's in Delhi. Those present included former External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh, former Foreign Secretary Salman Haider, former High Commissioners of India to Pakistan T.C.A. Raghavan, Satinder K. Lambah, Sharad Sabharwal and M.K. Bhadrakumar and India's former Permanent Representative to the UN, C.R. Gharekhan.

Also present in the meeting were academician Kanti Bajpai and journalists Prem Shankar Jha, Ajai Shukla and Rahul Singh.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner," Manmohan Singh said.

"The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," he added.

Manmohan Singh said the Congress needed "no sermons on 'nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

"Let me remind Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic air base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

Manmohan Singh went on: "I sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

Talking to the media, Jaitley said the former Prime Minister and the Congress should come out with facts as to what happened in the meeting and what was the need to have it.

Referring to Manmohan Singh's attack on the government's policy towards tackling terrorism, the Finance Minister said the government has a track record which no other government in the past can boast of.

"On Sunday, the Congress was in a denial mode (about the dinner). Instead of accepting it as a misadventure, they are trying to blame us. They should apologise to the people instead of seeking apologies from us."

The Congress also demanded an apology from Modi for accusing it of "colluding and conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections".

"We have full faith that the Gujarat electorate is intelligent and mature enough to understand the tactics behind yesterday's address (by Modi) and will answer them in the second phase," Congress leader Anand Sharma told the media here.

"It was not a secret meeting.... The Prime Minister is giving it a sinister and sensational twist. The Prime Minister should restore the dignity of political discourse, and apologise to the former Vice President and the former Prime Minister.

"It is clear that he has done so with the intent to confuse and mislead the people of Gujarat for the second phase of the elections, to whip emotions and to polarize. It is outrageous."

Sharma said India is not a police state where "we should seek Prime Minister's permission" for hosting dinners.

On its part, Pakistan also rebuffed the allegations of a secret meeting between Congress leaders and its High Commissioner, saying India should stop "dragging" Islamabad into its electoral debate and termed Modi's remarks as "baseless and irresponsible".

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram in a tweet said: "Former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh is absolutely right in demanding an apology for the outrageous allegation made yesterday against the former Vice President (Hamid Ansari) and former Prime Minister and other distinguished former civil servants."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat elections and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

In a hard-hitting statement, Manmohan Singh denied allegations by Modi that he and others invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats discussed the Gujarat election.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than ... Modi," the Congress leader said.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

"Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Manmohan Singh added.

The statement follows Modi allegations at an election rally in Gujarat that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh and former Vice President Hamid Ansari, discussed the Gujarat election with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister among others.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner," Manmohan Singh said.

"The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," he added.

Manmohan Singh said the Congress needed "no sermons on 'nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

"Let me remind Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic air base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

Manmohan Singh went on: "I sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

--IANS

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Loudspeakers were being installed across Australia's Melbourne city on Monday as part of a major security upgrade to warn people of terror attacks.

The new measures are the recommendations of a counter terrorism review that occurred after a number of extremist incidents this year, reports Xinhua news agency.

In January, a vehicle attack in Melbourne resulted in the deaths of six people, while in July a deadly terror siege killed two men, including the gunman, on the outskirts of the city.

Last month, a plot to gun down innocent people in Melbourne's Federation Square was thwarted by authorities.

The $7.5 million initiative will also include extra CCTV cameras in the Central Business District and the construction of more pavement barricades to prevent cars from entering busy walkways.

"The loud speakers will allow us to put out warning messages in the event of an incident occurring whether it be a terrorist event or whether it be another mass casualty incident, or one that's of high risk," Victoria Police Acting Chief Commissioner Shane Patton told the media.

"It will allow us to inform the public in the city where they should be going, what they should be doing and making sure they're safe and understand what's unfolding."

The police said the first test of the warning system will commence on December 28 in preparation for the New Year's Eve celebrations.

--IANS

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Actress Raveena Tandon believes films can be a learning experience for children.

Raveena, who who was here for the inauguration of the third edition of Smile International Film Festival for Children and Youth (SIFFCY) on Monday, said in a statement: "It is something that is to be very proud of that there is a film festival, that is only and wholly for children. I want kids to take a vow that whatever they will learn from here, they will follow in their daily life.

"Movies are the best media to educate our children, so I also want to thank SIFFCY which has acted as a media to communicate goodness to our children as it is the right time to educate them about what is good and what is bad for them."

The week-long festival, which has international jury members on board, and also a young jury board where children have given their inputs in selection of movies, began at the Sirifort Auditorium here.

SIFFCY is a reflection of Smile Foundation's efforts to use films as a medium for sensitizing masses, especially children and youth, and engaging them proactively in the process of bringing Social change.

Santanu Mishra, Executive Trustee of Smile Foundation and Chairman of SIFFCY, said: "I hope through SIFFCY, we will be able to channelize the energy of children and youth in a positive way and engage them proactively in the process of initiating social change.

"The idea behind SIFFCY is to design a rich mix of film programmes to build and support the growing interest in the infotainment industry. This includes programming that cultivates an audience for world cinema while supporting filmmakers in career development, so that this powerful medium can be explored in a more focused manner for disseminating serious yet effective social messages."

Apart from movies, engagement activities include capacity-building workshops, panel discussions and forums on Environment, Climate Change, Road Safety and Role of Cinema, apart from technical workshops by industry experts on filmmaking, cinematography, sound design, production design, storytelling and photography, said festival director Jitendra Mishra.

The opening film at the gala was Rima Das' "Village Rockstars", besides "Cloud Boy", a joint production by Belgium, Sweden, Norway and

Netherlands.

Over 100 films from over 30 countries are part of the showcase at the fest.

--IANS

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged European countries to follow the example set by the US and move their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thus recognising the holy city as the capital of the Jewish State.

Netanyahu gave a brief statement to the press alongside the European Union (EU) Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini on what his first official visit to the EU institutions in Brussels. The visit happened for the first time in 22 years, reports Efe news.

"I believe that all, or most, European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem and recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital," said the 68-year-old Prime Minister, insisting that such a move was the first step in securing peace between the Israeli and Palestinian communities.

"Jerusalem is Israel's capital, no-one can deny it... It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible."

But his visit to Brussels came at a time of heightened regional tensions and global condemnation of US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise the contended holy city as Israel's capital.

On December 6, Trump broke with the tradition set by his predecessors by pledging to move the US embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, where all other international embassies are currently based.

Mogherini, however, used her welcome address with Netanyahu to reiterate the EU's staunch support for a two-state solution whereby Jerusalem would be shared by the Israeli and Palestinian states, a foreign policy approach echoed by the UK and France.

She said the worst thing that could happen at the moment would be an escalation in violence, both in the region and globally.

Calling for calm, she said: "Let me condemn in the strongest possible way all the attacks on Jews, everywhere in the world including in Europe and on Israel and on Israeli citizens. Increased tensions and violence would only inflame the region."

Meanwhile, French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and the UK's Secretary of State for European matters Alan Duncan both that their countries would not recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Mogehrini stressed her support for the ongoing work of Jordan's King Abdullah II for his role in the Israel-Palestine peace talks, adding that she was to meet with the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in January 2018.

Israel has long campaigned for the international community to recognise Jerusalem as its capital, which it says has been the capital of the Jewish people for 3,000 years, since the reign of King David of Israel as told by the Hebrew Bible.

The Palestinian majority East Jerusalem was occupied by Israel by the end of the Six-Day War in 1967 but has never been recognized by the United Nations as Israeli territory.

Netanyahu will also hold talks with foreign ministers of EU member states.

--IANS

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Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said political parties should sit together and discuss if the minimum number of sittings of Parliament needed to be fixed, and also recommended automatic suspension of members who rush near the presiding officer 's podium in the house.

The Vice President, who will preside over the Rajya Sabha as Chairman for the first time this winter session, suggested that legislatures may put out in public domain the names of members who disrupt house proceedings with an observation that they have violated rules in disregard of the Chair's directions and thereby adversely impacted house functioning.

Naidu also suggested a 10 point charter to ensure effective functioning of legislatures in the country, so that people's respect for the democratic institution can be sustained. These includes devising methods to calculate productivity of the legislature, ranking legislative bodies in the country, and having a quorum for opposition parties as well.

"There is a serious need to consider a proposal that Parliament should meet for at least 100 days a year. Political parties need to seriously consider the minimum number of days for which Parliament should meet," he said, while delivering a lecture on "Importance of Legislatures" organised by thinktank PRS Legislative Research.

His comments come at a time when opposition parties have accused the government of undermining the importance of Parliament by delaying the winter session. The session was delayed due to the Gujarat assembly elections and will now be conducted from December 15 to January 1.

The Vice President also said that to address the "menace" of members rushing towards the presiding officer's podium, there was a need for specific provisions in the rules of business for "automatic suspension" of those who do so, adding that a consensus in this regard needs to be evolved.

Naidu also voiced concern over the low number of sittings of assemblies in the states.

"State assemblies met for 29 days, on an average. In general, the duration of meetings has been constantly decreasing. Of these, sometimes the opposition boycotts the assembly session. Some states like Kerala met for a longer period," he said.

Naidu also called for passing the bill on reservation to women in Parliament and assemblies, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010.

The Vice President said contrary to perception, Parliament works round the year with its Ministry-related Standing Committees and other panels enhancing its efficacy in legislative, deliberative and overseeing functions.

Giving out figures, Naidu said the First Lok Sabha had 677 sittings and passed 319 bills during 1952-57, as compared with 332 sittings and passage of 247 bills of the 14th Lok Sabha during 2004-09. The 15th Lok Sabha had 357 sittings and approved 181 bills.

He said that from these statistics, it would not be correct to conclude that Parliament is shirking its responsibilities, adding that there was need to pass more legislation after Independence.

--IANS

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(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.)
A police constable was shot dead by unidentified criminals in Bihar's Vaishali district on Monday, police said.

Dipnarain Rai from the Special Auxiliary Police was killed when he was on way to take up duty at the Hajipur Jail. The shooting took place near the prison in Hajipur town, Vaishali Superintendent of Police Ajay Kumar said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, the Kremlin said.

Putin arrived at the Hmeymim airfield in the coastal city of Latakia earlier in the day on a surprise visit where he met his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad, reports Xinhua news agency.

"I order the Defence Minister (Sergey Shoygu) and the Chief of General Staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," the BBC quoted Putin as saying.

Putin had already declared in March 2016 that he was planning to pull out the majority of Russian troops.

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia."

Putin said that if "terrorists raise their heads again", Russia would "carry out such strikes on them which they have never seen".

"We will never forget the victims and losses suffered in the fight against terror both here in Syria and also in Russia."

The visit marks Putin's first trip since the Syrian conflict began six years ago.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rahul Gandhi, who is putting up a spirited campaign against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat, was on Monday elected the President of the Congress, taking over from his mother who had helmed the country's oldest party for 19 long years.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his political bete noire and wished him a fruitful tenure.

"I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure," Modi tweeted.

The 47-year-old Rahul will formally take over the reins of the grand old party on December 16, two days before the counting of votes for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections, the outcome of which could be a trendsetter ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Congress leader and returning officer Mullappally Ramachandran told the media that a total of 89 nomination papers proposing the name of for Congress President were received. All the nomination papers were found valid.

"Since the withdrawal date and time is over and as there is only one candidate, as per Article XVIII(d) of the Constitution of Indian Congress, I hereby declare elected as President of the Indian Congress," he said.

Marking a generational shift, will be the sixth Nehru-Gandhi scion to helm the party, taking over from his mother Sonia Gandhi who steered it through an era during which it was in power from 2004 to 2014.

"This is a historic occasion. The handing over of the certificate of election is scheduled to be held on December 16 at 11 a.m.," Ramachandran said.

He said Rahul Gandhi was a stickler for rules and was particular about ensuring that the elections were conducted in a transparent and meaningful manner.

"Both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi never interfered with the election authority. We were given complete freedom to execute the onerous responsibility," he said.

He also said: "We place on record the exemplary guidance and support given by Sonia Gandhiji and Rahul Gandhiji. At the first meeting of the Central Election Authority Sonia Gandhiji had given us only one mandate i.e. to conduct free, fair and transparent election, keeping in view the high traditions and heritage of Congress.

"The only request that Soniaji placed before us was that women, weaker sections and youth should be given adequate representation," Ramachandran added.

Senior Congress leader and Leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said: "Whole nation has a lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. He has shown his mettle much before he was elected the president. He knows his responsibility well and has shown this in Gujarat."

Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said: "An aspirational leader, whose most endearing quality is his 'sincerity' and 'sense of purpose' takes over as new President of the Congress."

"Congress, its workers are ready to take on new challenges, traverse new heights and serve the nation," he added.

Gandhi's brother-in-law Robert Vadra also congratulated him on becoming the party chief and said it is the "dawn of a new era" and a "proud moment for all in the family".

"My best wishes to @OfficeOfRG on becoming @INCIndia President," Vadra tweeted.

Congress spokesperson Ajay Maken addressing mediapersons said "only time will tell what will be his role as party president". He also added that the programme for the handing over ceremony scheduled on December 16 will be released later.

It is expected that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi, current and former Chief Ministers, senior Congress leaders, and all PCC chiefs and delegates will be present at the handing over ceremony.

Gandhi had been the party Vice President for over four years since 2013.

Among the proposers of 89 nominations -- all in support of Gandhi -- was former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who called Rahul Gandhi the "darling" of the party. Manmohan Singh accompanied Gandhi when he filed the nomination papers.

Originally 90 nomination forms were issued but one could not be filed as there were not enough number of proposers.

Hundreds of Congress workers and leaders from across the country thronged the party office and celebrated the announcement of Rahul Gandhi's elevation by bursting crackers and dancing to the beat of drums and distributing sweets.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with her Chinese and Russian counterparts Wang Yi and Sergey Lavrov held the 15th Russia-India-China trilateral meeting here on Monday.

"Towards global and regional peace, security and stability," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted of the meeting.

Kumar had said last week that the three countries would discuss global and regional issues.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that the talks were expected to focus on security and trade issues in the region and elsewhere.

The discussions would also include the situation in Afghanistan, the Middle East and the Korean peninsula, it said.

Wang Yi's visit is the first high-level visit from China after Indian and Chinese troops were involved a tense face-off position in the Doklam region of the border earlier this year.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Italian Civil Protection agency has warned severe weather might cause disruption in some northern and central regions, starting from Monday.

A red alert for high hydro-geological risk -- indicating the maximum level of warning -- was issued for the coastal areas east of Genoa, in the northwest Liguria region, and for the central Tuscany region, Xinhua news agency reported.

An orange level weather warning (moderate risk) was also issued for the inland areas of Liguria region, for other northern regions including Lombardy, and for central regions of Emilia Romagna, Umbria, Lazio, Abruzzo and Molise.

Extensive snowfall is forecast all across northern Italy during the week, due to a wave of freezing weather coming from the Atlantic Ocean, the Civil Protection agency said in its latest statement.

Such weather was likely to be followed by warm winds from northern Africa, which may trigger "an intense southern ventilation" with temperatures on the rise, the agency added.

On Monday, snowfall was registered in several areas of northern Italy, both in the west and east, and freezing rains hit the Piedmont and Liguria regions.

Local authorities ordered schools to remain closed in the eastern part of Liguria and in most of Tuscany, while cold temperatures caused moderate disruption to local railways and other transport routes.

Last winter, an exceptionally cold weather gripped many countries in Europe, and was blamed for the death of at least eight people in Italy.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress leader on Monday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for levelling allegations against former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari during the Gujarat election campaign.



Chidambaram asked in a tweet:





The BJP's campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election?  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) December 11, 2017

Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) December 11, 2017

ALSO READ: PM Modi says Pakistan meddling in Gujarat polls



Chidambaram also said the BJP's campaign Gujarat in the last few days, especially on Sunday, had gone "beyond bizarre". "Should a political party go to any length to win an election?"

Chidambaram was obviously referring to Modi's insinuation at a public meeting on Sunday in Gujarat that Singh and Ansari attended a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house where a former Pakistan foreign minister and the current High Commissioner of that country in India were also present.

Modi also accused Pakistan of colluding with Congress leaders to defeat the BJP in Gujarat.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday urged the government to subsidise the cost of treatment in emergency cases in private hospitals and ensure a strong mechanism for reimbursements.

"(Handling medical) emergency cases is the responsibility of the state governments. The government should subsidise cost borne on all such emergencies in the private sector and create a mechanism for reimbursements," IMA President K.K. Aggarwal told the media here.

He said a new body called the 'IMA Medical Redressal Commission' will be constituted at the state level to engage in social, financial, and quality audits of healthcare (suo motu, or on demand).

"The commission will have a public man, an IMA office-bearer, one former state medical council representative, and two subject experts," said Aggarwal, adding that the commission shall consider every grievance in a time-bound manner.

"An appeal to the state commission will be heard by the "IMA-headquartered Medical Redressal Commission" which will have the powers to take suo motu cases also," said the IMA official.

The IMA, a consortium of doctors across India, also demanded no compulsion from private hospital managements to make their doctors work vis-a-vis targets and prescribe the choice of drugs and devices.

"The consultants should suggest devices to patients as per their affordability and not as per the management," said Aggarwal.

Aggarwal was speaking in the wake of medical negligence cases against Gurugram's Fortis and north Delhi's Max Super Specialty Hospital.

Pointing out that the doctor-patient trust was experiencing a downward spiral, the IMA chief said that people have started looking at medical professionals with suspicion.

Referring to the November 30 incident at Max hospital wherein a premature newborn was wrongly declared dead by doctors, Aggarwal said: "Errors happen by accident and are not intentional."

"It is also high time for medical professionals to introspect and come out with self-regulation procedures. From today onwards, all doctors in the country shall choose affordable drugs for prescription," he said.

He said the IMA had recommended that all doctors prescribe drugs on the National List of Essential Medicines, wherever possible, and promote Jan Aushadhi kendras.

--IANS

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Nikki Haley, the US Ambassador to the UN, has said that the women who have accused President Donald Trump of touching or groping them without their consent "should be heard", the media reported.

Haley's comments to CBS News on Sunday evening diverged from the White House position on the more than a dozen women who have accused Trump of misconduct, reports The Washington Post.

Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said that the White House's position is that the women were lying and that the American people settled the issue by electing Trump despite the accusations.

When asked whether she considered the allegations a "settled issue", given last year's election results, Haley responded: "You know, that's for the people to decide. I know that he was elected. But, you know, women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them."

Haley's comments highlighted a challenge facing Republicans as a cultural revolution on the topic of sexual harassment sweeps the country.

Republicans have seized on allegations of wrongdoing by Democrats, including Representative John Conyers Jr. and Senator Al Franken who announced they would resign last week.

Haley spoke about Trump's accusers after praising women who have come forward with allegations about powerful men in various other industries.

"They should be heard, and they should be dealt with.

"And I think we heard from them before the election. And I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up."

The President has been sued for defamation in New York by one of his accusers, Summer Zervos, a former contestant on "The Apprentice" who said Trump groped and kissed her in a hotel room in 2007 during a meeting to discuss a job opportunity, The Washington Post reported.

She said Trump defamed her when he dismissed her account and called her and the other accusers liars. A judge is weighing whether to allow the case to proceed.

Haley's comments came in contrast to other Republicans, who have defended Trump, noting that the public elected him even after knowing about allegations from multiple women against him.

In an NBC News interview on Sunday night, Senator Tim Scott said that "to re-litigate the election is impossible.

"The allegations or the accusations against the president were a part of the campaign... Should people who were victimised have their day in court, their opportunity to present their information? I have no problem with that issue."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two guards of Jammu and Kashmir Bank were killed on Monday when militants fired indiscriminately at a bank cash van in south Kashmir to loot the money, police said.

Police said the exact amount of cash looted was yet to be ascertained.

Police said the militants fired at and critically injured the guards in Keller area of Shopian district. They later died at a hospital.

Security forces were rushed to the spot to hunt for the militants.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ride-sharing company Uber on Monday announced the launch of its PREMIER service in Hyderabad and Vizag.

"PREMIER has enhanced the core experience of ridesharing, one that's as good as a rider's personal car. We will continue to listen to our riders and driver partners and work towards making Uber a preferred choice of commute." Shailesh Sawlani, General Manager-West, Uber India, said in a statement.

The company started Uber PREMIER in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Lucknow and Delhi and has now expanded it.

A PREMIER ride will come in select economy-range sedans, driven by best-in-class driver partners endorsed by riders.

The services will be offered as an in-app product option that serves as an upgrade to their current uberX experience.

Apart from PREMIER, Uber currently provides uberMOTO, uberPOOL, uberGO and uberX ride options.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Talks between the US and Pakistan for finding common ground in Afghanistan have moved into a phase of quiet diplomacy aimed at resolving differences, according to authorities.

The authorities confirmed that the two countries had held a series of meetings before and after US Defence Secretary James Mattis's December 4 visit to Islamabad, reflecting the mutual desire to improve ties, Dawn news reported on Monday.

Talking to the Pakistani media in Washington, Ambassador Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhary said that Secretary Mattis's visit had a positive impact on efforts to rebuild the relationship.

Pentagon's chief spokesperson Dana White said at a news briefing last week that Mattis visited Islamabad to find a common ground with Pakistan.

Diplomatic observers in Washington have said that this change was quite noticeable, when compared with the rhetoric that followed President Donald Trump's August 21 announcement of his new strategy for Afghanistan.

While Pakistan supports reconciliation between the Afghan government and Taliban, it warns that there was no military solution to the Afghan conflict, reports Dawn news.

Soon after President Trump's speech, the US media reported that his administration was considering proposals to declare Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism, to expand drone attacks into Pakistan's settled areas and to expunge Pakistan from its list of major non-NATO allies.

Secretary Mattis, however, did not repeat any of these threats before, during or after his visit to Islamabad.

He refused to do so even when prodded by the media.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said that the country's main opposition parties were banned from taking part in next year's presidential election, the media reported.

He said only parties which took part in Sunday's mayoral polls would be able to contest the presidency.

"The other parties, Voluntad Popular and Primero Justicia have disappeared from the Venezuelan political map and today disappear completely because any party not participating today and that has called for boycotting the elections cannot participate any more," Efe news quoted Maduro as saying on Sunday evening.

Refusing to participate in the vote were the following opposition parties: Accion Democratica, Venezuela's oldest political grouping; Voluntad Popular, headed by imprisoned opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez; and Primero Justicia, headed by parliamentary chief Julio Borges, all of whom claimed that the election was not an independent manifestation of the popular will.

The parties refused to participate in Sunday's municipal elections after denouncing what they said was fraud and numerous irregularities in the October 15 gubernatorial elections, in which Maduro's PSUV party won 18 of the country's 23 governorships, according to official results.

Low turnout marked the municipal vote along with the abstention of opposition parties that refused to participate due to their lack of trust in the National Electoral Council (CNE).

Chavism, the political force behind Maduro's government, was expected to win the mayoral races in 335 of the country's municipalities.

Despite the low turnout in Caracas, Chavistas appeared jubilant on election day and the president of the government-supporting Constituent National Assembly (ANC), Delcy Rodriguez, declared that the election was a sign of a "vigorous democracy" here.

A total of 19.7 million citizens were eligible to vote at 14,384 voting precincts around the country.

Maduro called upon Venezuelans early Sunday morning to "vote for the future" in the municipal elections, claiming that Venezuela is the "world champion of freedom and democracy" for having held 24 elections since the socialist Bolivarian Revolution was installed under the late Hugo Chavez in 1999,

Meanwhile, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said the elections are "a null event" called by the invalid ANC, organised by electoral authorities that are "fraudulent," adding that Venezuela is a territory "under military occupation."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The finance minister has begun the Budget exercise for 2018. Income tax payers have high expectations of relief this time around. For senior citizens increasing the IT exemption limit and also the rebate on premium of health policies needs an upward revision. With the cost of consultation and medicines rising steeply, the domiciliary treatment amount has to be set at a minimum of Rs 50,000 per year.
was declared president-elect of the Congress party on Monday. He will officially take over the reins on Saturday, two days before counting of votes for the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh assembly polls and amid anticipation that he would not only ring changes in the hierarchy but also reshape its ideological moorings.
Virtually ruling out an apology by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday charged former prime minister Manmohan Singh with defying the line by meeting Pakistani diplomats and demanded to know the context, relevance and necessity of such a meet.

Terming the meeting as "political misadventure", Jaitley wanted Singh and the Congress to explain the context of attending the dinner hosted by suspended party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for Pakistani diplomats.

He said the main Opposition party is expected to follow the policy, which states that terror and talks cannot go hand-in-hand.

"Is (the) main opposition party not part of the State?" he asked.

Jaitley said that if anyone defies the line, he should be prepared to answer questions.

"It is a political misadventure, it has a political cost," he said.

Jaitley addressed a press conference hours after Singh asked the Prime Minister to apologise to the nation for setting a "dangerous precedent".

He wanted the former prime minister to explain what transpired at the meeting and went on to defend his government's track record of fighting terror, saying no government in the past has a track record this government has in fighting terrorism.

In response to Singh's demand for apology, Jaitley further said people who have violated the national policy of talks and terror not going hand in hand should apologise.
Former prime minister on Monday said he was deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister . Singh said he sincerely hoped that the PM would apologise to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies.
After successfully leading Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the recently concluded Uttar Pradesh civic polls and undertaking hectic electioneering in poll-bound states of Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is now gearing up to constitute Team Yogi in the line-up to 2019 Lok Sabha election.
The fierce war of words between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has taken the Gujarat battle to another level altogether. On Sunday, PM Modi, while campaigning in the poll-bound state, stepped up his attack on the Congress and alleged Pakistan was interfering in the Gujarat Assembly polls.
The Congress on Sunday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an impartial probe into the note-ban decision that the opposition party dubbed the "biggest scam ever and the largest money-laundering scheme".

"In September 2016 (before announced on November 8, 2016), a whopping Rs 5,88,600 crore was deposited in banks, of which Rs 3 lakh crore was in fixed deposits. Whose money was it and what happened to it?" Congress Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said at a press conference here.

"In October 2016, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar purchased eight properties. In Odisha, it purchased 18 properties, just ahead of . Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah tell the people as to how many properties they purchased just before Will they disclose the details of the party's bank accounts of the months preceding demonetisation?" Surjewala said.

Modi had announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

"Also, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank three days before demonetisation. Amit Shah is a Director of this bank. Was he questioned by the Income Tax Department or the Enforcement Directorate regarding this money?" he said.

The Congress leader said that after demonetisation, Rs 10.1 crore was seized from a Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Development Bank van, in which BJP leader and Maharashtra Minister Pankaja Munde has a stake.

"It is public knowledge that the cooperative banks were not given any new currency. Then how come this cooperative bank got new currency of Rs 10 crore? Whose money was it? Is there any probe into this case?" Surjewala said.

He said at a time when the common people were struggling in bank queues to get a few lakh of rupees in new currency for their daughters' weddings, mining baron G. Janardan Reddy splurged Rs 500 crore on his daughter's wedding.

"The BJP top brass made a beeline to this function as Reddy is considered very dear to Prime Minister Modi. Why was no investigation launched against Reddy as to where from he got so much money in new currency, when notes were being rationed to the common people?" Surjewala said.

"We challenge the Prime Minister to order an impartial probe into all these cases, and many more such cases, and bring out the facts before the people," he added.

The Congress leader called All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi as the "B-team of BJP" and said people should not pay attention to the polarising antics of such people.
Twelve people were killed and nine others were injured in two separate accidents in Kullu and Mandi districts today, officials said.

Mulak Ram (48), his wife, son and brother-in-law and two other persons were killed when a huge rock caved in and fell on their car, pushing it into a gorge near Rampur on Nirmand- Rampur road, 130 kms from here early this morning, they said.

The incident came to light this morning when some locals found the wreckages of the car and its occupants trapped under rocks on the banks of Sutlej river, the officials said.

The occupants of the ill-fated car were on their way to Nirmand from Rampur, they said.

The police and Army were called in and mutilated bodies of the victims were extricated from the debris.

The deceased were identified as Mulak Ram, his wife Sita Devi(38), son Manjeet (13) and brother-in-law Gurdiyal (28). Two carpenters, Vijay and Manoj, who had taken lift in the vehicle were also killed in the accident, they said.

All the bodies have been recovered and next of kin of the deceased have been provided immediate relief, Tehsildar Nirmand Neerja Sharma said.

In a separate accident, six persons, including a woman and child, were killed and nine others were injured when a tourist vehicle from Ambala rolled down from hilltop near Kangoo in Mandi district, about 135 km from here today.

Mohinder Pal (54), his wife Santosh Rani (50), Neelam Sethi (65), Dharam Pal Kumar (64), Shashi Oberoi (59), all residents of Haryana's Ambala and Ravinder Kumar (48) a resident of Panchkula were killed in the accident, an official said.

The bodies of the victims are being recovered while the injured persons have been rushed to the Civil hospital, SDM Sundernagar Taranjit Singh said.

The vehicle was registered in Punjab and the occupants were on their way to Ner Chowk to attend a marriage, the official said.

The district administration has given Rs 10,000 on spot to the next of kin of each person killed in the accident and Rs 5,000 and Rs 3,000 to the injured, an official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fifteen officers belonging to friendly foreign navies have completed their 32 week 'Gunnery' specialization course successfully at the INS Dronacharya.

Officers from Kenya, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Malaysia, Indonesia, Tanzania, Nigeria and Myanmar took part in the passing out parade on December 8.

The parade was reviewed by Commodore Simon Mathai, the Commanding Officer of INS Dronacharya, a defence release said.

Lieutenant Commander SL Wickramasinghe of Sri Lanka was awarded 'Indonesian Trophy' for standing first in overall order of merit.

Major Collins Omondi Owino, Kenya, was awarded the 'Admiral Ramdas Katari Trophy'for best overall performance, it said.

The Indian government funded course, conducted under Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) scheme, commenced on April 24.

The trainees were subjected to a seven month curriculum, including a scientific orientation phase, basic phase, a guided weapon introductory capsule, equipment phase consisting of weapon and sensor systems and war gaming.

These officers will now join their respective navies as Gunnery Officers of warships.

INS Dronacharya is a premier gunnery and missile training establishment and Centre of Excellence for Gunnery and Missile Warfare at Fort Kochi under the Southern Naval Command.

It is responsible for training all Indian and international naval personnel in different aspects of 'Gunnery', the release added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An angry Pakistani youth has allegedly shot dead his sister and her husband for marrying without the family's consent, in the latest incident of honour killing in the country, police said.

The accused, identified as 19-year-old Saeed Anwar, had been upset at his sister, Mismat Musarrat, 18, for marrying Qaiser, 25.

The incident took place in Nagyal in Rawalpindi's Gujjar Khan tehsil and police described it as an 'honour killing', Dawn newspaper reported.

The Station House Officer Ishtiaq Masood Cheema said the suspect had been waiting for an opportunity to kill the couple ever since they married a few months ago without the consent of his family.

He said that when Anwar found the couple alone in their house, the accused fired at them with a pistol, killing them both on the spot.

He later tried to flee the scene, but was apprehended by the police along with the murder weapon.

Cheema said police have booked Anwar for a double murder. Police will present him in court tomorrow to seek physical remand. The bodies of the victims have been shifted to a local hospital for a postmortem.

Last month, a newly-wed couple in Sindh province who married without the consent of their elders were killed allegedly on the orders of a jirga (village elders).

In September, police had exhumed bodies of a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy, who had reportedly been electrocuted by their families on the orders of a jirga in Karachi.

Activists say around a thousand Pakistani women fall victims to so-called honour killings every year in which the victims, mostly a woman, are usually killed by a relative or on the orders of village elders for bringing dishonour to the family or the community.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A total of 462 fishermen from Kanyakumari district are missing in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi, District Collector Sajjan Singh R Chavan said today.

"As per particulars collected 35 fishermen who put out to sea in country boats and 427 fishermen in trawlers are missing in the aftermath of the cyclone," he told reporters here, days after Ochki struck the Tamil Nadu coast, wrecking damage, particularly in this district.

He said most fishermen reported missing had been rescued due to the efforts of the Navy, Coast Guard and coastal Marine police The search was going on for the other 462 fishermen.

The Collector said fishermen plying their trade in deep seas used to stay there for between 10 to 45 days and it was not known where some of them had strayed.

He said relief for the fishermen would be credited directly into their accounts.

The Collector's figure on the number of missing fishermen comes amid charges by the opposition DMK that different figures were being put out by various officials in the state government and Ministers.

Earlier in the day, DMK working president M K Stalin announced that the party would stage a protest in chennai tomorrow, urging the Centre and state government to expedite rescue of missing Kanyakumari fishermen.

In Chennai, Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar reiterated the government's commitment to rescue the "last of the fishermen" stranded in sea and elsewhere.

Search operations involving the Indian Navy and Coast Guard was on in full-swing for this purpose,he told reporters.

Meanwhile, protests were held by fishermen associations in parts of Kanyakumari and in Tirunelveli district, demanding that the Centre and state speed up efforts to rescue missing fishermen.

Among their demands were that the Chief Minister visit cyclone affected areas and make an on-the-spot assessment of the damage, compensation of Rs 25 lakh for deceased fishermen and Rs five lakh for affected families.

The fishermen also demanded an increase in compensation given to them and that the relief announced by the Tamil Nadu government was not commensurate with losses suffered by them.

On December 7, Chief Minister K Palaniswami announced a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of the deceased fishermen and Rs five lakh to those fishermen affected by the cyclone and unable to pursue their profession.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Police seized 726 kg of ganja worth Rs 75 lakh from a truck near the Barkoni toll plaza in Bihar's Purnea district, Superintendent of Police, Nishant Kumar Tiwary said today.

On a tip-off, the police stopped the truck yesterday night and seized the ganja, Tiwary said.

Police also arrested 10 persons including the driver of the truck carrying the ganja, the SP added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Model Adriana Lima has vowed that she would not pose nude for an "empty cause".

The Victoria's Secret model said she wanted to help other women feel more confident in themselves.

"I had received a call for the possibility of filming a sexy video of me to be posted and shared in social media. Even though I have done many of this type, something had changed in me, when a friend approached me to share that she was unhappy with her body, then it made me think...

"And in that moment I realised that majority of woman probably wake up every morning trying to fit in a stereotype that society (has) imposed. I thought that's not a way of living and beyond that. That's not physically and mentally healthy, so I decided to make that change. I will not take of my clothes anymore for a empty cause," Lima wrote on Instagram.

The 36-year-old model added that her job puts a lot of pressure on her to make sure she looks a certain way.

"My job puts me in such big pressure to look a certain way. I was thinking, how can we have to carry so much. I am tired of the impositions, we 'as (women)' can't be continuing living in a world with such superficial values, it's not fair for us, to behave, to look.

"I want to change it, on the name of my grandma, my mother, and all her ancestors that have been labelled, pressured, misunderstood. And has to live according to society. I will make that change. I will start with me," she wrote.

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Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat today held extensive talks with Chief of General Staff of Afghan National Army Lt. Gen Mohammad Sharif Yaftali and explored ways to deepen defence and security ties between the two countries.

Official sources said Gen. Rawat and Lt. Gen Yaftali also deliberated on the regional security situation besides discussing specific areas of cooperation between the two armies.

The Afghan National Army Chief also met Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba and discusses bilateral and strategic issues, they said.

Defence and security cooperation between India and Afghanistan has been on an upswing.

India has already given four military helicopters to Afghanistan and imparted training to hundreds of Afghan security personnel. However, Afghanistan has been pressing for supply of more military hardware by India.

In September, India had agreed to extend further assistance to Afghanistan to bolster its armed forces.

During talks between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Afghan counterpart Salahuddin Rabbani, the two sides had also decided to deepen security ties and work closely to combat the challenge of cross-border terrorism from Pakistan.

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The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) today approved its first loan to China, its largest shareholder, to reduce its dependence on coal by over 600,000 tonnes annually by building a natural gas distribution network for villages.

The USD 250-million-loan will fund a project to connect 216,750 households in approximately 510 villages to the natural gas distribution network, the bank said.

The project is expected to reduce annual carbon dioxide emissions by 595,700 tonnes, particulate matter by 3,700 tonnes, sulfur dioxide by 1,488 tonnes and nitrogen oxide by 4,442 tonnes, it said in a statement.

With an authorised capital of USD 100 billion, China is the largest shareholder with 26.06 per cent voting shares. India is the second largest shareholder with 7.5 per cent followed by Russia 5.93 per cent and Germany 4.5 per cent.

AIIB President Jin Liqun said China's commitment to reducing its reliance on coal will change lives and improve the environment.

"That is why we are investing in a project aligned with their ambitious plan," Jin said.

He reaffirmed AIIB's "unwavering commitment" to helping members meet their environmental and development goals, especially their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

"It is only fitting that our first investment in China will introduce sustainable infrastructure that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help invigorate one of the most important economic hubs in Asia," Jin said.

The investment in the project also marks AIIB's first corporate loan.

The project, undertaken by the Beijing Gas Group Company, will entail construction of natural gas distribution networks in villages and low-pressure gas pipelines and household connections. It is scheduled for completion in 2021.

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Some called him the reluctant heir.

But Rahul Gandhi, who has been taking the Narendra Modi government on with uncharacteristic vigour in recent weeks, may finally have emerged out of the shadows of his mother, Sonia Gandhi.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family was today elected president of the Congress party. The only candidate in the fray, he will formally take over the reins of the 132-year-old party from his mother on December 16.

For Gandhi, the challenge is enormous. The Congress has been struggling to grab political space, and the Amethi MP has to steer the party at a time when the BJP has been gaining ground - and states.

The Congress party's 16th president since independence -- the fifth from the Nehru-Gandhi family to hold the post after 1947 -- was ushered into politics when he won the Amethi Lok Sabha seat in 2004. The party made him its general secretary in 2007 and vice-president in 2013.

His initial years as vice-president were difficult ones -- Rahul was criticised for practising politics of fits and starts, and of taking long breaks even in critical times.

But while politics may or may not have been his calling, it was certainly in his blood.

Starting from his great-great grandfather Motilal Nehru, the party has been tightly held by his ancestors, including great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, grandmother Indira Gandhi, father Rajiv Gandhi and mother Sonia Gandhi, who steered the party for a record 19 years.

His easy elevation is also unsurprising, given the tacit understanding that the mantle must pass from Gandhi to Gandhi.

In the initial years, it seemed Rahul -- who had seen the assassination of his grandmother and father -- wanted to steer clear of the murky world of politics.

Gandhi, who went to St Stephen's College in Delhi and then to Harvard and Rollins College in Florida and Trinity College, Cambridge, joined the Monitor Group, a consulting group in London, where he worked for three years.

But after than it had to be back home, to the political role carved out for him.

Gandhi's electoral record has been dismal. Since he became Congress vice-president in 2013, the party has lost power in state after state and is left with only five.

But Congress leaders hope he would draw the party out of the quagmire it has been pulled in, and onward to success.

"I am sure the party will see not just a revival but massive growth under your able and dynamic leadership," Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh said to him today.

Top Congress leaders say his leadership will be established if he delivers a victory in Gujarat or at least substantially improves the Congress tally there.

In the last few months, Gandhi has been looking confident, having worked on his image and outreach.

Now no longer as reluctant as he seemed in his early years, he looks relaxed and confident, targets PM Modi with his one-liners, uses popular cultural idioms effectively and has significantly improved his social media following.

Besides, Gandhi is now talking about his Hindu credentials and without being defensive about his faith.

"I am a Lord Shiva worshipper," he said a while ago to counter the BJP's attempts to appropriate the Hindu religion.

He is also getting vocal about his private life.

"I believe in destiny," he said when asked at a gathering why he was not married.

Recently, he said he was a black belt in Japanese martial art form Aikido, and talked fondly about his pet dog, Piddi.

Armed with a refurbished social media team, Gandhi is also trying to appear more accessible to the public.

Congressmen refer to his address to students in Berkley, US, when he boldly took questions, even on dynastic politics, to underline his new-found confidence.

Gandhi's US trip, crafted by his father's friend Sam Pitroda, was seen as hugely successful and one that cast the Gandhi scion in a fresh and new political mould.

The BJP has started taking Gandhi seriously of late, often fielding a host of ministers to counter the Congress charge against demonetisation and GST.

Earlier, too, Gandhi's jibes against the government such as "Suit boot ki Sarkar" and "Gabbar Singh Tax" had put the saffron party on the defensive.

Gandhi has now started posing a question every day to Modi, quizzing him on a wide range of subjects.

But can Gandhi handle the rough and tumble of 24X7 Indian politics with aggressive rivals such as Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to counter?



Senior Congress leader and former minister Kishore Chandra Deo was confident he would galvanise the party.

"The Congress has a presence and outreach all across the country. Rahul will have to revive the party and shake it up. He needs to pick up the correct people for the correct places and regions," he said.

If he can do well in Gujarat, Deo said, he can do so in any other state.

All eyes are on Gandhi -- and December 18, when the results of the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections would be announced.

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The National Green Tribunal has directed 11 states to participate in a meeting to frame a national policy to prevent the "rapid decline" in population of indigenous breeds of cattle across the country.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar asked West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura governments to be present in the meeting.

"Counsel appearing for the Ministry of Agriculture submits that other states except the above 11 were present in the meeting and some of them have also submitted action taken plan before the Ministry.

"By way of last opportunity, we direct all the above states as well as other states to be present before the Commissioner, Department of Animal Husbandry, Ministry of Agriculture. The meeting shall be held on December 12," the bench said.

The NGT directed that a representative of the Ministry of Environment and Forests should also be present at the meeting.

It said the report should be submitted in the tribunal before December 14 and posted the matter for hearing on December 15.

The order came after advocate Sumeer Sodhi told the bench that 11 states have not submitted their action plan to the ministry for protection of the cows and not attended the earlier meeting.

The green panel had earlier directed the Environment Ministry and the Department of Animal Husbandry, which falls under Agriculture Ministry, to hold a meeting with all states and UTs and come out with a common policy on the issue.

It had noted that there was nearly 80 per cent decline in the animal population in Kerala from 2003 to 2012 and claimed such a situation may lead to the extinction of the species in the state.

The order came during the hearing of a plea filed by lawyer Ashwini Kumar who had moved the tribunal against the "looming threat of extinction of indigenous breeds of cattle" in the country.

The tribunal had issued a notice to the Agriculture Ministry on the plea which had also sought a nationwide ban on slaughter of cattle belonging to the indigenous breeds.

Kumar had claimed a steep decline in the indigenous cow population and said that Indian cattle were being replaced by exotic and cross-bred cows imported from Europe, Australia and the United States.

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Baby milk maker Lactalis and French authorities have ordered a global recall of millions of products over fears of salmonella bacteria contamination.

The French company, one of the world's largest dairy groups, said it was warned by health authorities in France that 26 infants have become sick since December 1.

According to a list published on the French health ministry's website, the recall affects customers in countries around the world, including: Britain and Greece in Europe, Morocco and Sudan in Africa, Peru and Colombia in South America and Pakistan, Bangladesh and China in Asia.

The United States, a major market for Lactalis, is not affected.

Company spokesman Michel Nalet told The Associated Press on Monday that the "precautionary" recall involves "several million" products made since mid-February.

Lactalis said in a statement that the 26 cases of infection were linked to products branded Picot SL, Pepti Junior 1, Milumel Bio 1 and Picot Riz.

It said it is "sincerely sorry for the concern generated by the situation and expresses its compassion and support to the families whose children fell ill."



The symptoms of salmonella infection include abdominal cramps, diarrhea and fever. Most people recover without treatment.

The company said a possible source of the outbreak has been identified in a tower used to dry out the milk at a production site. Disinfection and cleaning measures have been put in place at the suspected site in western France.

The health scare started earlier this month when Lactalis was told that 20 infants under six months of age had been diagnosed with salmonella infection. The company ordered a first recall that has been extended to more products at the request of French authorities following new reports of infections.

Lactalis is a privately held company headquartered in Laval, western France. It has 75,000 employees in 85 countries and annual revenues of about 17 billion euros (USD 20 billion).

Its other notable brands include President and Galbani cheeses and Parmalat milk.

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An ISIS-inspired Bangladeshi- origin man, wearing a homemade device, today triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, US media reports said.

Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires attached to him. He was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, CNN reported, according to which he was taken into custody after the device partially detonated.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the device that exploded in the New York City subway was an attempted "terrorist attack".

"At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims," Mayor de Blasio said.

"There are also no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time. But we will give you more information, of course, as the investigation unfolds," de Blasio said.

A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority, the New York Police Department said, adding that all injuries are non-life-threatening.

The suspect suffered burns and other wounds and is currently in the hospital.

"Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device," said Police Commissioner James O'Neil.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the New York explosion, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

Earlier, the New York Police Department tweeted that it was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan.

The place is New York Port Authority, a busy bus terminal. It also has metro stations.

"The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time," the NYPD had said, adding that the information is preliminary.

The New York Fire Department received call around 7.19 am.

"I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting 'Go, Go, Go'," commuter Keith Woodfin tweeted, according to New York Daily .

Designer Chelsea LaSalle tweeted that she was "stuck in a running stampede at port authority bus terminal due to bomb scare. cops EVERYWHERE."



Security was enhanced in several major American cities after an explosion in the New York City.

"We are monitoring the incident that occurred in New York City this morning. At this time, there are no current threats to the District of Columbia. We ask all residents and visitors to remain vigilant," said the Washington DC Police Department.

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The Madras High Court has suggested to the Bar Council of India (BCI) that candidates with political affiliations and criminal background be barred in its elections.

The court has also suggested that the council mandate declaration of assets possessed by aspiring candidates and their family members, with the details of income earned by them as advocates and from other sources in the past 10 years.

"If the above details are furnished, the voters would be in a better position to understand the credentials of the contestants," Justice N Kirubakaran said in a recent order.

He made the suggestions in a bid to bring probity in the profession and eliminate 'criminals' from the vocation.

"Further, this court is of the opinion that candidates involved in criminal cases, where charge sheet is filed and the punishment for the offences of which is more than three years should not be permitted to contest the elections," the judge said.

"As in the case of election of those candidates facing such serious criminal cases may be detrimental to the disposal of such cases pending against them in a free and fair manner," he added.

Further, it is advisable that no advocate who held or is holding a key post in a political party or who is or was an elected member of the Legislative Assembly or Parliament should be allowed to contest the elections, he said.

This could be done to avoid any political interference in the legal profession and make the council a playground to achieve their political ambitions, the judge added.

This apart, it is always advisable to verify educational qualifications of the candidates who intend to contest the elections as to whether they have satisfied the Legal Education Rules 2008, he said.

In case their law degree is not obtained through regular mode or obtained without satisfying the rules regarding their basic qualifications, their candidature has to be rejected, Justice Kirubakaran added.

He also directed the BCI to place the suggestions before Justice Anil R Dave committee appointed by the Supreme Court for the purpose.

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Bengal made a mockery of the contest by not declaring their second innings on the final day of their quarterfinal Ranji Trophy match as they ousted defending champions Gujarat by virtue of first innings lead here today.

Manoj Tiwary's men will meet multiple-time champions Delhi in the semifinals in Pune, while title favourites Karnataka will take on Vidarbha in the other last-four match, to be played in Kolkata. Both matches will be played between December 17 to 21.

Bengal batted for the better part of last three days to finish their second innings at 695 for six when umpires were forced to call off play in the post tea session as the heavens opened up much to the relief of battered Gujarat bowlers.

Such was the plight of the Gujarat team that skipper Parthiv Patel did not take the field after lunch on fourth day, complaining of cramps.

The last two sessions on the penultimate day and on the final day, it was a reserve wicketkeeper who took the field as a substitute and kept wickets, as per the new ICC rules.

On the inconsequential final day, the in-form Anustup Majumdar got his seventh first-class hundred, having scored an invaluable 94 in the first essay. In fact, the fifth day was walk in the park for Majumdar, whose first innings contribution was far more crucial as it paved the way for Bengal putting up a decent total after a top-order collapse.

Majumdar scored an unbeaten 132 off 172 balls, studded with 17 fours and a six in the second innings.

At the close of play, Bengal enjoyed an overall lead of 825 runs by virtue of their 130-run first innings lead.

Resuming on 483 for 4, Bengal extended their lead further on the final day.

Brief scores:



Bengal: 354 & 695/6 in 231 overs ((Writtick Chatterjee 216, Abhimanyu Easwaran 114, Anustup Majumdar 132 not out).

Gujarat: 224.

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Unidentified armed miscreants today shot dead a private security guard of a cash van and injured another on NH 102 near Mehiyamala village under Garkha police station of Saran district.

The deceased identified as Santosh Kumar (45) aborted attempt to loot the cash van, Superintendent of Police Hari Kishore Rai said.

Six armed miscreants ambushed the cash van which was going to replenish an ATM of State Bank of India at Garkha and shot dead a private security guard and injured another when they resisted the loot bid, the SP said.

The injured security guard, who was first admitted to Chapra sadar hospital, was later rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH), Patna for treatment, the SP said.

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Cutting across factions, the Bihar Congress today hailed Rahul Gandhi becoming party President and expressed hope that he will "infuse with new energy" the more than 100 years old political organization.

Led by BPCC Acting President Kaukab Qadri, party leaders celebrated the of Rahul Gandhi elevation as President at Sadaqat Ashram, the state headquarters, distributing sweets, smearing each other's faces with "gulaal" and bursting firecrackers".

Qadri expressed hope "the Congress will attain new heights under Rahul Gandhi's leadership, starting with a resounding victory in the Gujarat assembly polls. He is a descendant of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who gave up their lives in defence of the country's integrity. He will preserve the country's democratic and socialist tradition".

AICC member Prem Chan Mishra, who was also present on the occasion, was asked whether Rahul Gandhi's emphasis on probity in public life could place the party's alliance with the RJD under strain, on account of allegations of corruption against Lalu Prasad and his family.

"It is premature to think of those things. In any case, whenever the Congress has formed an alliance, it has not done so keeping an individual in mind. The stress has always been on ideology", Mishra said.

Former BPCC president Ashok Choudhary, who was conspicuous by his absence at the Sadaqat Ashram, told PTI "it is a welcome development though it should have happened long ago. Even as the vice-president, Rahul Gandhi had been leading from the front and becoming the president was just a formality".

"Nevertheless, his elevation raises the hope that it will infuse the party with new energy", Choudhary said.

Significantly, following the exit of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar from the Grand Alliance, the state unit of the Congress has witnessed a bitter factional feud. One of these factions is headed by Choudhary, who is said to be close to Kumar while the other faction comprises those who are believed to be more comfortable with the RJD.

Other party leaders who congratulated Gandhi over his elevation included CLP leader Sadanand Singh, Amita Bhushan, Vijay Shankar Mishra, and Chandan Bagchi.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi mocked at the jubilations over Rahul Gandhi's elevation saying "the Congress can never have a figure like Narendra Modi who rises through the ranks and reaches the top on sheer merit. All Congress presidents not from the Nehru-Gandhi family have been compelled to make disgraceful exits".

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The BJP has retained power in the Trimbakeshwar Municipal Council (TMC) in the Nashik district by winning 14 of the total 17 seats, in the election, results for which were declared today.

BJP candidate Purushottam Lohgaonkar was declared as the Council's president, officials attached to the district administration said.

While BJP won 14 seats, Shiv Sena bagged two seats and and an independent candidate got elected on a lone seat, they said.

Trimbakeshwar, around 30 kilometres from, is one of the 12 'Jyotirlingas' in the country.

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Top Bollywood actors, including Kareena Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar and Madhuri Dixit, have condemned the alleged molestation of National Award-winning actor Zaira Wasim.

The 17-year-old actor, known for her roles in films like "Dangal" and "Secret Superstar", was allegedly molested on a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night.

The actor later narrated her ordeal on Instagram via a live video.

Wasim said she was on an Air Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put up his feet on her armrest.

The man was arrested by police in Mumbai last evening.

When asked about the incident, Pednekar said she was shocked to know about the alleged molestation but the actor was happy that Wasim showed courage to speak up about her ordeal.

"I am appalled. She is a child. There is a problem in our culture where people think, especially if you are an actor, that you are their property. This is hugely problematic.

"But I am very happy that she put it out on social media. I am glad she took that step because it needs a lot of courage to speak, to come out and take a stand like that. More power to her," Pednekar said.

Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said women are far superior than men and the females can rise above any difficulty.

"I definitely feel women are way more superior than men. We are fighters and whichever situation it is in our life, personal or professional, we all come out as fighters. When we talk about God, we talk about goddess. So, we look from the perspective of a woman.

"When we talk about the earth, we say Mother Earth. So, whenever we talk about anything, we talk about women. Women are far superior (than men). So, they can fight out of every situation," Khan said.

Actor Taapsee Pannu, who has always raised her voice against violence against women, said, "I just hope she gets justice. It is good that at least she has raised her voice. She deserves to get justice."



Noted actor Madhuri Dixit said, "This should not happen, neither in India nor in any other part of the world."



Television actor Mouni Roy said she was deeply saddened by the incident, which is an act that stems from a poor mentality.

"Now, what should I say about this country. On one hand we talk about women empowerment, on the other hand we hear about all these incidents. But I think it is very important not to just stand against it and talk about it, but also to educate people against this," she said.

"I genuinely don't know what to say. It deeply saddens me. The kind of life we lead, the kind of education we all are getting, in fact, the levels of education in towns and villages have gone up. This is just really sad. I think this reflects a poor mindset," Roy added.

When asked for his opinion on the incident, actor Sushant Singh Rajput said, "We talk a lot (but) I think at the right place and in the right time, we need to take action also. We are intelligent and responsible enough as a country to see to it that these things don't happen."



The celebrities were speaking at the red carpet of Lux Golden Rose Awards here last night.

Actor Zareen Khan said there should be a focus on preventing such incidents rather than attending to "minuscule" things.

"I really don't know what to say about it because such incidents keep happening in our country. Rather than focusing on issues like these, I don't know why our country is behind minuscule matters," she said.

"The way we talk about women empowerment and safety, I don't think only talking about it is needed. We also need to take some action to stop all of this," Khan added.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, she broke down several times.

"This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how you're going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!" she said.

"No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing," she added.

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A British Airways flight from Mumbai scheduled to land at Heathrow airport on Monday evening was diverted to Baku in Azerbaijan after declaring a "general emergency".

Reports from passengers on board BA198 indicated that engineers were at work to fix a technical fault on the aircraft before it could resume its journey to London.

One passenger tweeted that they were "stuck in Baku" due to technical fault, which involved smoke in the first class cabin.

"Makes me wish I was still in Goa," said the passenger, Sylvia Traganida, who revealed that the flight had already had a delayed take-off from Mumbai due to extreme weather conditions at its destination.

BA, along with a number of other airlines, had issued an alert earlier on Monday that many of its flights will be disrupted due to heavy snowfall in the UK on Sunday.

"Some flights will be disrupted today due to crew and aircraft being out of position following yesterday's weather. Please check your flight status ahead of travelling to the airport," a BA statement said.
Terming performance of state-run banks as "substandard," noted academic Vijay Joshi has called for quick privatisation of viable ones and massive scaling down of those on the brink.

To achieve these the Banking Nationalisaiton Act has to be repealed at the earliest and bring the state-run banks under the purview of the Companies Act, he said.

Calling for a "triple-track approach" Joshi said government should force non-viable state-run lenders to become narrow banks on one hand, and radically reform governance in viable ones by limiting state control in some and quickly privatizing the rest.

"A triple-track approach would be desirable. Firstly, some non-viable state-run banks should be forced to become narrow banks. Secondly, in some viable ones, governance must be radically reformed while retaining state's control.

"Thirdly, some viable state-owned banks should be privatised quite quickly," RBI said quoting Joshi as saying while delivering the 15th LK Jha memorial lecture at the central bank headquarters today.

The emeritus fellow at Oxford also called for quick privatisation saying "there is clear evidence that the performance of public sector banks is substandard. Radical reform is thus imperative, and in this context, quick privatisation surely has a major role to play."



Underlining the need for urgent governance reforms, he said while the Rs 2.11-trillion recapitalization will help restore capital adequacy which is needed after the significant haircuts they will have to take in the wake of the balance sheet clean-up, but the governance issues at state-run banks will continue to remain even after this large fund infusion.

"All this is highly commendable. But the basic problem of poor governance will remain after recapitalisation, with a high chance of a return to square one in future."



He said to modernise banks and improve their overall efficiency, we clearly need large private sector banks to compete with large public sector banks.

"To achieve this, an essential first step would be to repeal the Bank Nationalization Act and bring PSBs under the Companies Act. It would give government the flexibility to reduce ownership to any extent it chooses," Joshi said.

To privatize or to cede control, government would have to reduce its stake to 25 per cent or even lower, though it could, for a short transitional period, retain a so-called 'golden share'.

Noting that all previous attempts to put real distance between government and the state-owned banks have run into the sand, he said "the ongoing extreme stress in the banking system has raised public consciousness about the dire state of nationalized banks thereby offering a golden opportunity to make a radical departure. The current crisis is too good a crisis to waste."



Calling for competition, Joshi said, "banking is amenable to competition, and not a natural monopoly, so it is not a natural candidate for state ownership."



The poor performance of state-run banks has got worse since the 2008 global credit crisis with their stressed advances hitting around 16 per cent compared to about 4.5 per cent in their private sector peers, he noted.

Joshi said this is the result of the way they are governed. "Poor governance stems from the disempowerment of banks' boards by government, which has proved to be impossible to alter in our political culture," he said.

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China today failed to block a meeting on North Korea's human rights crisis at the UN Security Council.

The council decided by a vote of 10 in favor with three against - China, Russia and Bolivia- to allow the meeting to go ahead. Egypt and Ethiopia abstained.

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November 08, 2022, Tuesday

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday the brutal attack on her husband will impact her decision on whether to remain in ...
Researchers have developed a new cleaner and cheaper way to produce hydrogen fuel from methane and electricity in just one step.

Hydrogen is an excellent fuel which, due to its high energetic density and zero greenhouse gas emission, is essential in a great number of industrial processes, researchers said.

Its combination with oxygen in the atmosphere produces energy and water as its sole by-product, making it one of the main candidates to substitute fossil fuels as a source of energy for the transport sector.

Results by researchers, including those from Valencia's Polytechnic University (UPV) in Spain, have applications in the field of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as well as the chemical industry.

The new method is capable of generating hydrogen from methane gas and electricity in just one step and with near- zero energy loss.

"The development and introduction in the market of hybrid and electric cars will allow us to reduce the impact of transport in CO2 emissions in coming years, and as a result, the greenhouse effect on the planet," said Jose Manuel Serra, research professor at Superior Council of Scientific Investigations (CSIC).

Researchers developed a gas separation membrane reactor which is operated electronically and allows for the endothermic production of hydrogen with a near-zero energy loss.

"Our investigations show that it is possible to generate compressed hydrogen in just one step with high efficiency from electricity and methane gas or biogas and, simultaneously, isolate the CO2 and not release it into the atmosphere," Serra said.

"Our method allows for the hydrogen to be produced at high pressure in a distributed manner, which means it could be produced in petrol stations, residential areas, garages or farms," Serra added.

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Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today decried the tendency to see Sanskrit as a mere Brahminical language, saying it is an ancient intellectual and scholarly heritage of the country.

He described as incorrect the notion that Sanskrit is a language of Brahmins and said ancient poets, including Valmiki and Ved Vyasa, had penned epics like Ramayana and Mahabharatha in Sanskrit.

"They (Vyasa and Valmiki) were not from the Brahmin community. The tendency to link the ancient language with Brahminism is incorrect," he said.

Sanskrit is an ancient intellectual and scholarly heritage of the country, he said and emphasised the need to shed the light of the knowledge in Sanskrit language to other languages, including Malayalam.

Inaugurating the silver jubilee celebrations of Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit at nearby Kalady, he lamented that the number of people with in depth knowledge of the Sanskrit language was coming down.

The Chief Minister said Sanskrit language and literature are part of general society and its culture and added that the light of the knowledge in the language should reach all sections of society.

He urged the progressive sections not to distance themselves from Sanskrit, considering it as Brahminical.

"Foreign scholars,realising the significance of Sanskrit, have done deep research and studies in the language and presented the findings from the ancient Indian language as if they were their original contribution," he said.

Vijayan criticised the Union government's education policy, saying it was being moulded to create a generation favouring market forces.

He said the higher education sector should be independent and based on democratic values.

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Rahul Gandhi's elevation would help the Congress to re-emerge as the country's leading political party, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said today while his Himachal Pradesh counterpart Virbhadra Singh felt it would infuse new energy.

In Patna, Congress workers led by acting state chief Kaukab Qadri distributed sweets while those in other state units also hailed Rahul Gandhi's unopposed election as the party chief.

In Dehradun, Congress workers danced to drum beats as they claimed the "generational shift" will breathe a new life into the party.

In Dharamshala, Virbhadra Singh congratulated Rahul Gandhi and said the change would not only infuse new energy and enthusiasm in the party but also would go a long way in encouraging party cadres. He also thanked Sonia Gandhi, the outgoing party chief for leading efficiently.

Punjab Chief Minister Singh said Rahul Gandhi's elevation would "trigger the next phase of the party's growth".

In a statement, the chief minister said he expected the Congress to not only undergo a massive revival but also embark on its next growth trajectory.

"Rahul's charisma and appeal, combined with his intellect and inquisitive nature, were just the recipe needed by the Congress to embrace success across the country", he said.

The infusion of young blood will lead to the re-emergence of the Congress as country's leading political party, and the only one which could help protects its secular and democratic fabric, he added.

In Bhopal, Congress leaders and workers at Indira Bhavan, the Congress' state headquarters, celebrated the by distributing sweets and bursting crackers.

Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee chief Arun Yadav expressed confidence that the Congress will scale new heights under Rahul Gandhi's leadership.

In Panaji, the Congress's Goa state unit also lauded Rahul Gandhi.

"The Goa Pradesh Congress Committee and Congress Legislative Party congratulates Rahul Gandhi for being elected to the post and we wish him all the good luck and support to take the party ahead, " Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar told reporters near here today.

West Bengal Congress also hailed the election of Rahul Gandhi.

"We congratulate Rahul Gandhi for being elected as our party president. We are confident that he will infuse new energy into the party and under his leadership Congress will attain new heights," senior Congress leader and Leader of opposition in state Assembly Abdul Mannan told PTI.

Mannan hoped that under Rahul Gandhi's leadership, Congress would put up a strong fight against the onslaught of BJP-RSS and will preserve the country's democratic and secular tradition.

Celebrations were held in Congress offices in other states as well.

Rahul Gandhi, 47, was today announced elected unopposed as Congress president and would officially take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi on December 16.

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The Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) today hailed Rahul Gandhi's election as party president expressing hope that his elevation will further strengthen the party.

Party leaders and workers at Indira Bhavan, the Congress' state headquarters, celebrated the by distributing sweets and setting off firecrackers.

MPCC chief Arun Yadav expressed hope that the Congress will scale new heights under Rahul Gandhi's leadership.

"Youth leadership in the country would strengthen under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi. Under his leadership, Congress would ensure the victory of inclusive ideology by defeating communal forces," Yadav said.

Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Ajay Singh also expressed happiness and said, "Rahulji has become the party's president at this crucial juncture. The Congress will be strong and the party's base will grow under his leadership."



Senior Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia tweeted, "Congratulations to @OfficeOfRG (Rahul Gandhi) on being elected President of INC! The country is looking forward to ur (your) leadership! Satyamev Jayate!."



Senior leader Kamal Nath said that in Gandhi's youthful leadership, the Congress will have a new zeal and enthusiasm.

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A Goa court today adjourned till December 15 the hearing on the anticipatory bail plea moved by social activist Aires Rodrigues who is booked for sexual harassment.

The Crime Branch, which is probing the case, requested the court of Principal District and Sessions Judge Irshad Agha to reject Rodrigues' plea as they have to recover some material from the activist.

Crime Branch inspector Dattaguru Sawant told the court that the crime was "evil in nature" and that the accused was not cooperating with the investigating agency.

In his defence, Rodrigues said he was cooperating with the investigators and has responded to the summons issued by them.

The Goa government last week asked the crime branch to investigate the case against Rodrigues who was last month booked by the police on the charge of sexually harassing a woman.

The middle-aged married woman, a resident of Siolim village, had lodged a formal complaint against Rodrigues with the Anjuna Police alleging that he sexually harassed her by linking her with a state minister through his social media posts.

An FIR was subsequently registered against the activist under sections 354 (A) (iv)(sexual harassment), 509 (words or gesture to insult modesty of a woman), and 500 (punishment for defamation.

Police had earlier recorded the statement of the accused as well as of at least five persons in connection with the case.

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From school students rendering an old Chinese folk song to an ensemble performance by a troupe of Kathak, Odissi and Bharatnatyam dancers, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi spent this evening here feasting on cultural heritage of India.

Wang, who is visiting India, accompanied by his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj, attended a cultural programme at the sprawling Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra in Chanakayapuri, which was organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

Earlier in the day, both the ministers held talks on key bilateral issues. At the evening gala, Wang greeted the audience with folded hands, the traditional 'namaste'.

The event began with a song recital by a group of students from DPS, Dwarka, who performed the famous Chinese folk song 'Mo Li Hua' (Jasmine Flower).

This was followed by a performance by a Kathak trio, who danced on Chinese-themed music, thus blending the two cultures, symbolising the cultural exchange and people-to- people ties between the two countries.

The third and the longest performance in the nearly 90-minute long event was the ensemble performance by a troupe of dancers titled 'Samaagam'.

Three lead danseuses from the schools of Kathak, Odissi and Bharatnatyam, accompanied by a group other dancers, left the audience spellbound with a series of performances.

Deng Shuyi, a student who hailing from Guangzhou, who attended the event, was amazed by the cultural heritage of India.

"I'm currently studying Hindi in Delhi and it was so nice to see our foreign minister, and him attending this lovely programme. Culture brings people together. I can speak Hindi and those schools students performed brilliantly in my language (Mandarin). Isn't that a lovely feeling," she told PTI.

Incidentally, a couple of students, when approached said, they did not know Mandarin, but "learned the phoenetics" to perform the famous folk song.

"I don't know Chinese (Mandarin). We just got the song transliterated in English and memorised it. But, we practiced a lot to get the phoenetics right. It was a wonderful experience performing in front of the two ministers," said Kanishka, 13, a student of class 9.

Yash of class 8 and Ananya Kumar of class 11 echoed the same sentiments.

Deng, when asked how she felt about the song performance, said, "It was so good. At no point I felt they don't speak Chinese."



Before departing, Wang shook hands with Swaraj with both the hands, at the main entrance of the Kendra.

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Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's counsel has deposited Rs 30 lakh as fine with the special CBI court in Panchkula which had imposed the fine on the sect head convicted in two rape cases.

"A sum of Rs 30 lakh has been deposited with the special CBI court on Saturday," Dera chief's counsel, Vishal Garg Narwana, told PTI over phone today.

The fine was paid in the shape of a demand draft, he said.

In October, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had admitted the plea filed by the Dera chief challenging his 20- year sentence in two rape cases.

The HC had directed Ram Rahim's counsel to deposit Rs 30 lakh as fine, which was imposed by the special CBI court on Ram Rahim, within two months.

The jailed Dera chief had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court on September 25, challenging the order of the special CBI Court of Panchkula which had sentenced him to 20- year-imprisonment for raping two disciples.

Ram Rahim was convicted by the special CBI court on August 25, after which violence and arson erupted in Panchkula and Sirsa districts which left 41 people dead and scores injured.

Ram Rahim is currently lodged in Sunaria jail in Rohtak district.

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Aviation regulator DGCA is probing the incident of an Air India aircraft that was operated with alleged dent in its fuselage area and three personnel have been derostered, airline sources said.

The incident involving an A319 aircraft that was flying from Patna to the capital happened in October, they added.

The (DGCA) has started a probe after it was reported that the plane was operated despite a dent or a crack being detected in the fuselage area at the time of inspection.

According to the sources, the regulator has been provided with all the documents related to the matter and the probe is likely to be concluded soon.

Aircraft are subject to strict inspection procedures on a regular basis.

In the wake of the alleged incident, two pilots and an engineer have been derostered till the investigation is completed, the sources said.

An AIESL official said the matter is under investigation by the Air Safety Department of the DGCA and "we will await for the investigation report".

Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL) is a subsidiary of the carrier and among others, takes care of the maintenance activities of the airline's fleet.
The EU said today that last week's Brexit agreement was a "deal between gentlemen" and not legally binding, but insisted that it had the full backing of the British government.

The comments came after Britain's Brexit minister David Davis caused a row with Ireland by suggesting that Friday's interim divorce deal was "more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing".

The deal agreed by British Prime Minister Theresa May and EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker set out Britain's divorce bill and the rights of expatriates, and also made guarantees on Ireland's sensitive border with the British province of Northern Ireland.

"Formally speaking, the joint report is not legally binding, because it is not yet the Article 50 withdrawal agreement," European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said in reference to Friday's deal.

"But we see the joint report of Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen," Schinas added, referring to the EU's chief negotiator.

If approved by EU leaders on Friday, the informal deal on the divorce terms -- part of the Brexit process under Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty -- will allow the two sides to move to talks about their future relationship, including trade.

"It is a clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK government," Schinas said of the Friday deal.

Juncker met with May in Brussels on Friday "to ascertain that this was precisely the case. They shook hands," Schinas said.

Dublin and Brussels were alarmed by Davis's comments yesterday, which seemed to minimise the UK's commitment to the deal.

Davis also said Britain will not honour financial commitments agreed in last week's agreement if it fails to secure a future trade deal.

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The EU's diplomatic chief today bluntly rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's suggestion that Europe would follow the US in recognising Jerusalem as the Jewish state's capital, saying there would be no change to its stance on the holy city.

Netanyahu said the controversial announcement by US President Donald Trump -- which prompted diplomatic alarm and street protests across the Islamic world -- had "put facts squarely on the table".

As he arrived for talks in Brussels, Netanyahu said he expected "all or most" European countries would follow the US -- but the 28-nation bloc's foreign policy head Federica Mogherini gave him a stern rebuff, telling him to "keep his expectations for others".

The EU expressed alarm last week at the US decision, but Netanyahu said Trump had simply stated facts by acknowledging that Jerusalem had been the capital of the Israeli state for 70 years and of the Jewish people for 3,000 years.

"It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," Netanyahu said in a statement alongside Mogherini ahead of a breakfast meeting with EU foreign ministers.

"I believe that all or most of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace," Netanyahu said.

The Jerusalem decision upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus. Mogherini last week warned it could take the situation "backwards to even darker times".

After nearly two hours of talks between Netanyahu and the EU ministers, Mogherini gave a flat rejection of his suggestion they could follow Trump.

"He can keep his expectations for others, because from the European Union member states' side this move will not come," she said, adding that the bloc -- the Palestinians' largest donor -- would stick to the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.

She reiterated the EU's stance that "the only realistic solution" for peace is two states -- Israel and Palestine -- with Jerusalem as the capital of both and the borders returned to their status before the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

And she pledged to step up efforts with the two sides and regional partners including Jordan and Egypt to relaunch the peace process.

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With the pitch getting shriller by the day, former RBI governor Y V Reddy today said the practice is not good for "economic or credit culture" and insisted that ultimately it is a political decision and cannot be justified in the longer run.

Even former RBI governor C Rangarajan took a similar line, saying the alternative is to offer farmers a longer window to pay off.

Reddy noted that every political party in India has offered such waiver in some state or the other or at an all- India level.

"Loan waiver is not good for economic or credit culture. Every political party in India has given in some state or the other or at all India level. So, ultimately it is a political decision, it cannot be justified in the longer run," he said on the sidelines of the Inclusive Finance India Summit 2017.

Rangarajan observed that instead of waiving farm loans, the government should give longer time to farmers to repay loan or perhaps waive the payment of instalment and rate of interest in that particular year.

"First thing to do is waiver of interest payments during the year of distress, second reschedule the loans so that the farmers will get a longer timeframe for repayment and finally, if all these things don't succeed, then the government should think of farm loan waiver," Rangarajan suggested.

Both the former RBI governors' remarks assume significance, coming in the wake of such announcements by Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Recently, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi too tried a similar pitch during his campaign for Gujarat elections by promising farmers loan waivers if his party forms the government in the state.

In 2008, the government wrote off farm loans to the tune of Rs 74,000 crore.

Rangarajan pointed out that increase in growth rate in the second quarter of the current fiscal indicates that the slowdown is bottoming out.

"My own assessment is that in the next two quarters, rate of growth will be 7 per cent so that on an average for the year, GDP growth will be 6.5 per cent," Rangarajan said.

On surge in Bitcoin prices, Reddy said, "It is better we take a definitive view on Bitcoins. I think the main problem for the government and the central bank is to decide what to do (with Bitcoins), everybody is aware that it (Bitcoin) is a big problem," he added.

On sidelines of the same event, former RBI deputy governor H R Khan said investment in Bitcoins is "dangerous" and people should understand this.

Earlier, participating in a panel discussion with former RBI governors Bimal Jalan, D Subbarao and Reddy, Rangarajan said financial inclusion is not an option, but a compulsion.

Jalan's prescription is inclusion has to be combined with financial stability.

Subbarao explained that India is a large country and what works in Nagaland may not work in Kerala, which is why "we should have a diversified model for financial inclusion".

Former deputy governor Subir Gokarn moderated the session.
The president of a local village defence party (VDP) and his son were shot dead by unidentified miscreants tonight at Bordumsa in upper Assam's Tinsukia district, official sources said.

District Superintendent of Police (SP) Mugdha Jyoti Mahanta has confirmed the incident.

The gunmen opened fire at Hunjan Simalguri Village under the Bordumsa police station, seriously injuring Anteshwar Mahanta (45) and his son Karun Mahanta (23), police sources said.

Both Anteswar and Karun succumbed to their injuries while they were being taken to a hospital, they added.

Karun was a former president of the Kakopathar Regional Students' Union, the sources said.

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has condemned the incident.

"In a democratic society, no such high-handedness will be tolerated as the government is prepared to deal with such inhumane killings with an iron fist," he said in a statement.

The chief minister has also asked the police to identify the assailants of the father-son duo and take stern action against them.

Following a direction from Sonowal, top police officials of the state had rushed to the village, the statement said.

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Police have seized two pick up vans carrying large number of cartons of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) bottles from a place under Sadar police station of Bihar's Vaishali district.

Acting on a tip off, a raid was conducted at a house located late last night in Dighi area under sadar police station and two pick up vans laden with cartons consisting liquor bottles worth Rs 10 lakh parked there seized, Sadar police station SHO Chittaranjan Thakur said today.

The liquor mafias managed to flee, the SHO said adding raids are being conducted to nab the culprits after lodging an FIR in this regard.

The Nitish Kumar govermment has promulgated total prohibition since last year and the administration has launched intensive drive against illegal trade in alcohol in the state.

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Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij today said more criminal sections would be added in the FIR, registered in connection with the death of a 7-year-old dengue patient in Gurgaon's Fortis hospital, on the basis of alleged irregularities found in a report by a probe panel.

He said said appropriate action would be taken against the hospital management on the basis of the report.

"Those found guilty will not be spared at any cost," the minister said according to an official release here.

"Criminal sections will be added on the basis of irregularities found in the probe report such as overcharging for medicines, forged signature, not providing ambulance on time, overcharging for platelets transfusion, ignoring norms of the Indian Medical Association and the Medical Council of India, and violation of treatment protocol," he said.

While interacting with reporters here, Vij said both civil and criminal action were being initiated against the hospital, which was severely indicted for lapses by the probe panel.

Replying to a question, Vij claimed that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had seen the probe report and cleared it.

When asked to clarify whether the FIR was registered against a doctor of the Fortis hospital or the hospital administration, Vij said, "I have spoken to the commissioner of police, Gurgaon, they said that they have made entire inquiry report part of the FIR."



He said the FIR did not mention any single doctor's name.

"In the a column for the accused (in the FIR), they have not mentioned anyone's name. All sections will be added on the basis of irregularities found in investigation report..," he said.

"They (Gurgaon Police) say our (Health Department's) complaint was of 50 pages (probe panel report), therefore in the FIR they have mentioned only brief details on the basis of that the FIR has been registered. However, more sections will be added," he said.

Yesterday, a Haryana government release issued here had said, "On the basis of the report, an FIR was registered against the hospital under section 304 (2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the Sushant Lok Police Station (Gurgaon). The other criminal action against the hospital is being taken under the Epidemic Diseases Act."



This was being done on Vij's directions, the release had said.

The probe committee constituted to investigate the matter had earlier submitted its report to the health department.

The state government panel probing allegations of overcharging against the hospital had found "several irregularities", including protocols not being followed in the case.

The bill for the treatment of Adya Singh had shot over Rs 15 lakh even as she died of dengue, according to officials.

The Fortis group, had earlier said all documents, statements and details required by the probe team of the Haryana government were provided.

A committee headed by Rajiv Vadhera, Additional DG, Health, Haryana was set up by the state government on November 21 to probe allegations that the private hospital overcharged the girl's family.

The Centre had asked the Haryana government to initiate an urgent inquiry into the case.

The hospital had earlier refuted the charges, claiming that the patient's family was duly informed about the bill on a daily basis and that there was no medical negligence.

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Geeta, a speech impaired girl who returned to India in 2015 after spending several years in Pakistan where she had landed accidentally as a child, today didn't recognise a Muslim couple from Bihar who had claimed that she was their long-lost daughter.

The authorities will now go for DNA testing of the couple to determine if they are her parents.

In-charge district collector Ruchika Chauhan said that Geeta used sign language to convey that it was not her family.

She said, "Geeta conveyed that she worshipped Hindu deities- Lord Shankar and Hanuman- and does not belong to a Muslim family."



Chauhan said that the family comprising Mohammed Isa, his wife Julekha Khatoon and other family members were allowed to meet Geeta as part of the initiative to re-unite Geeta with her parents.

The family is from Mirajpur village in Bihar's Saran district and had claimed that Geeta is their long-lost daughter Rubeida who went missing when she went out to watch a marriage procession.

Chauhan, however, said that DNA samples of Mohammad Isa and his wife Julekha Khatoon have been collected for verification.

The family members, meanwhile, have not lost hope with Mohammad Isa's son Himtaj telling reporters that Geeta failed to recognize his father possibly because she had stayed away from the family for a long time.

On being asked that Geeta termed herself as a follower of Hindu faith, Himtaj said that it could be because of the cultural harmony in his native village.

"There are many temples along with a mosque around our house and Hindus and Muslims celebrate each other's festivals together. We visit Hindu families during the festival of Chhath," he said.

"There may be the memories of worshipping deities in Hindu temples in her subconscious mind," Himtaj added.

"We hope that the DNA examination will clear the situation," Himtaj said.

District collector Chauhan informed that the DNA verification process would be the same even if Geeta recognises anyone as her parent.

The official said that a family from Ahmednagar in Maharashtra, which had also claimed that Geeta was their daughter, did not turn up for a scheduled meeting today.

Earlier Geeta had met a family from Sokha Kishku village of Jamtara district of Jharkhand but she did not recognise them either, said Chauhan.

The DNA samples of the couple have also been sent for verification, she added.

Geeta was found by Pakistan Rangers on the Samjhauta Express at the Lahore railway station when she was around seven years old. Karachi-based Edhi Foundation looked after her while she was in Pakistan.

After returning to India in October 2015, Geeta has been living at an institution for hearing impaired children run by an NGO here.

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The Delhi High Court today asked the Centre to place before it a blueprint on revision of pay scales of prosecutors in the national capital after it was informed that their salaries were way below their counterparts in other states.

The court was also informed about lack of infrastructure for prosecutors, including a place to sit and libraries.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar was told by senior advocate Rajiv K Virmani, the amicus curaie appointed by it to assist the court, that the pay scale of prosecutors here was that of nurses in hospitals.

The amicus said he does not want to demean anoyone but the condition of prosecutors in other parts of the country was better and the prosecutors in Delhi were paid way below than their counterparts in other states.

Delhi Government standing counsel Rajiv Mehra told the bench that the matter was examined by it and recommendations were pending before the Ministry of Finance.

The court then asked the Centre's counsel to place before the blueprint on revision of pay scales of the prosecutors in Delhi and listed the matter on February 19 next year.

It also asked the Delhi government's counsel to inform the court on renewal of subscription of e-libraries for the prosecutors.

The court further asked Mehra to look into the aspect of having a centralised office for prosecutors.

It was informed by the counsel that in pursuance to the court's earlier order, Delhi government has appointed around 100 new prosecutors and a requisition has been made to the UPSE for appointing 17 more prosecutors.

The court was hearing two PILs seeking upward revision in the pay scales of prosecutors and for equipping them with facilities and infrastructure needed to do their job.

It had earlier asked how the government lawyers or prosecutors can be expected to perform efficiently if they are not paid properly and on time.

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The Congress party in Goa today congratulated Rahul Gandhi for being elected as partys national president.

"The Goa Pradesh Congress Committee and Congress Legislative Party congratulates Rahul Gandhi for being elected to the post and we wish him all the good luck and support to take the party ahead, " Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar told reporters near here today.

He said that more young and new faces would be associate with the party with Rahul Gandhi taking over the reigns.

He added that GPCC president Shantaram Naik will be attending the function in Delhi where Gandhi will officially take charge on December 16.

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Gold valued at over Rs 48 lakh were today seized in separate cases at two airports in Kerala, customs officials said.

Customs Commissioner Sumit Kumar said here that gold biscuits worth over Rs 30 lakh were recovered from the toilet of an aircraft at Thiruvananthapuram international airport.

Officers of Customs Preventive Unit, Thiruvananthapuram, recovered 1049.58 gm of gold from Air India Flight No IX 540 which arrived from Dubai.

He said officials had information that some passengers coming from Dubai by the flight would be attempting to smuggle gold into India by concealing it inside the plane's toilet.

A detailed search resulted in the recovery of a black coloured pouch from a tissue paper tray in the rear right toilet of the aircraft.

On opening the pouch, a packet wrapped with black insulation tape was seen inside which 09-gold biscuits each weighing 116.20 gm (total 1049.58gms) were concealed.

The seized gold biscuits are of foreign origin with 24 carat purity and valued at Rs.30,85,765, he said.

In the other case, Officers of Air Intelligence Unit, Air Customs, Cochin International Airport, Nedumbassery, seized five gold bars, totally weighing 583.2 gm, from a passenger who arrived at Kochi from Dubai by an Indigo Flight 6E 068 at 4.30 pm.

The officers intercepted the passenger, a native of Kozhikode, at the exit gate of the arrival hall, Kumar said, adding, the gold bars were concealed in his rectum.

The market value of the bars is Rs 17,20,440.

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IT industry association Nasscom today said it has got an assurance from the government that the service tax notices served to several IT companies has been "corrected" and the issue has been resolved.

However, it could not be confirmed from the tax department whether the government is withdrawing or amending the reported Rs 10,000 crore demand notices served to some 200 companies.

"The kind of tax notices which had been issued recently to a few companies that actually do not recognise IT services as exports because of some interpretation... we were happy to note that the Government has clarified in today's meeting that that situation has been corrected," Nasscom President R Chandrashekhar said.

Chandrashekhar was speaking to reporters after a meeting between IT industry and the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today on pre-budget consultations.

During the meeting, the apex software body also discussed issues related to Place of Effective Management (POEM) and refund of service tax, amongst others.

On the tax notice issue, Chandrashekhar pointed out that the government has clarified that suitable advisories have been issued and that the "problem has been resolved".

"We have been informed that the clarification has already been issued and the matter stands resolved. We are waiting to get clarification," he added.

While Chandrashekhar did not divulge further details about the tax notices, reports suggest that many IT and IT enabled services companies had been sent notices by the tax department.

These companies were reportedly asked to return export benefits claimed in the last five years on software provided to clients outside India, and also asked to cough up service tax along with penalty.

Telecom Equipments Manufacturers Association Chairman Emeritus NK Goyal thanked the government for resolving the tax issue that had confronted the IT companies.

"We appreciate the Government for withdrawing tax notices ...that was served to IT companies," said Goyal who was also part of the meeting.
Government today launched a country-wide initiative to ensure proper implementation of the existing labour room protocols in order to reduce maternal and newborn mortality.

Ensuring privacy to the mother-to-be, stressing a comfortable position during delivery, no-tolerance policy for any verbal or physical abuse of the woman and no demand for gratuitous payment by staff are some of the guidelines under the programme 'Lakshya'.

Union Health Minister J P Nadda released the Operational Guidelines for Obstetric High Dependency Units (HDUs) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs) along with a mobile application for health workers who manage normal and complicated deliveries in peripheral areas.

"There is enough evidence that supports the fact that improving the quality of care in labour rooms especially on the day of birth, is central to maternal and neonatal survival," said the Health Ministry in a statement.

The idsue of whether hospitals were adhering to labour room protocols has come into fresh focus in recent days after a newborn was wrongly declared dead by a private hospital in Delhi and he died after a few days.

According to the ministry, the Lakshya initiative, which will prevent the undesirable adverse outcomes associated with childbirth, will be implemented in government medical colleges besides district hospitals, and high delivery load sub- district hospitals and community health centres.

"Under the 'Lakshya', labour room teams will be financially rewarded if they meet the strict benchmarks and achieve targets in a time-bound manner as defined in the labour room guidelines," a health ministry official said citing the guidelines.

The targets described include reduction of preventable maternal and new-born mortality, still birth rates, reductions in related morbidities such as obstetric fistula, puerperal sepsis, birth asphyxia and newborn sepsis, he said.

Steps to be taken to improve environment of natural delivery process include avoiding unnecessary induction, providing privacy to the mother during the intrapartum period, by way of separate labour room, or at least a private cubicle, use of labour beds instead of tables and a no-tolerance policy for any verbal or physical abuse of the woman.

Also, it should be ensured that the mother and the child bond immediately after birth, stressing a comfortable position during delivery rather than insisting on a universal "lying down" position.

'Out of pocket expenditures (OOPE)' including demand by facility staff, for gratuitous payment by families for celebration of the baby's birth should be abolished.

"All these are required to avoid undue stress in mothers," the official said stressing on the need to reorganise the labour room care processes to facilitate natural delivery process.

These will enable not only adherence to quality standards and clinical protocols, but also address issues such as respectful maternity care, the official said.

According to a Lancet study published in 2014, birth is the time of greatest risk of death and disability. The study highlighted that 40 per cent of still births, 25 per cent of under 5 mortality and 46 per cent of maternal deaths occur at the time of birth.

The launch was held during an event to mark the Universal Health Coverage, 2017. Union Minister of State for Finance SP Shukla was also present at the function.

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The government has set up NIC- CERT centre that will monitor, detect and prevent cyber attacks on government networks, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said.

Besides, the government has called a meeting of state IT ministers which will also include discussions on cybersecurity and safety.

"In January, we will have a meeting of (state) IT ministers and cybersecurity and safety will be an important component of that discussion. I have directed that the role of state governments has to be expanded in the area of cybersecurity," Prasad told reporters here.

He said there has been an exponential growth in cyber attacks, leading to concerns of data theft that prompted the government to work on Data Protection Act.

Internet has expanded the canvas of opportunities for people, but the need to upscale existing security infrastructure has also grown, he pointed.

Talking about the centre, Prasad said it will monitor the traffic and movement of information across various networks against any suspicious activity.

It will also alert the concerned parties in case it detects any malicious activity. National Informatics Centre (NIC) helps government agencies build their digital presence.

"This is establishment of an institution in India's pursuit of safe and secure cyberspace. Any unusual movement on the NIC network, any attacks, intrusions will be detected and cleaned," Prasad said.

The government has already announced setting up of similar frameworks for the finance and power sectors, he added.

NIC-CERT will also work in close coordination and collaboration with sectoral CERTs and CERT-In.

Using various tools, the team at NIC-CERT will be able to identify vulnerabilities and possible exploits and the intelligence gathered will give CERT the ability to predict and prevent attacks.

NIC Director General Neeta Verma explained that communication between government officials and government and citizens travels through NIC network.

"The government has taken a number of initiatives to protect the data and this (centre) is another step in that direction," she added.
The Government today took on former premier Manmohan Singh over his meeting with Pakistani diplomats by questioning its context shortly after he demanded an apology from his successor Narendra Modi for insinuating that he colluded with Islamabad in the Gujarat polls.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley ruled out an apology from the prime minister and accused Singh of defying the national line and demanded to know the context, relevance and necessity of attending a dinner hosted by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for a visiting Pakistani dignitary at his home here last week that was attended by Pakistani diplomats among others.

Jaitley's remarks came after a rare row between a sitting and a former premier broke out with Manmohan Singh accusing his successor of setting a "dangerous precedent" and asking his apology.

Launching a sharp counteroffensive, Singh attacked Modi over what he called the prime minister's "ill-thought transgression" and rejected his charge as "innuendos and falsehoods".

In uncharacteristically strong words, a usually reticent Singh crossed swords with his predecessor to say the Gujarat polls was never raised by anyone present at the dinner and that the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan ties.

Terming the meeting as "political misadventure", Jaitley wanted Singh and Congress party to explain the context of attending the dinner.

He said the national policy, which the main opposition party is also expected to follow, is that terror and talks cannot go hand-in-hand.

"Is the main opposition party not part of the State?" he asked.

Jaitley stated if anyone defies the national line, he should be prepared to answer questions.

"It is a political misadventure, it has a political cost," he said.

Jaitley addressed a press conference hours after Singh asked the prime minister to apologise to the nation for setting a "dangerous precedent".

In reponse to Singh's demand for apology, Jaitley said people who have violated national policy of talks and terror not going hand in hand should apologise.

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur in Gujarat yesterday, Modi sought to suggest that Pakistan was trying to influence the assembly polls in the state. The second and final phase of Assembly polls in Gujarat is to be held on December 14.

Modi claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi that led to his suspension from the party.

Singh issued a statement today, listing those who attended the dinner hosted in honour of former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri.

He said besides himself and former vice president Hamid Ansari, others present at the dinner were the Pakistan High Commissioner, Natwar Singh, K S Bajpai, Ajai Shukla, Sharad Sabharwal, Gen Deepak Kapoor, TCA Raghavan, Satinder K Lambah, M K Bhadrakumar, CR Gharekhan, Prem Shankar Jha, Salman Haider and Rahul Khushwant Singh.

"None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti- national activities," he said.

Lambah, a former diplomat, was quoted as having said he does not comment on private dinners. He, however, said there was just a general discussion on Indo-Pak relations.

Gharekhan, another former diplomat said, said the invitees were talking about the relations between India and Pakistan.

"But nobody, if I recall....I am hundred per cent sure that, not a single person, talked about Gujarat elections or anything about the present situation... or for that matter, the present situation in Pakistan," he told NDTV.

"It was only about India-Pakistan relation, We didn't talk about any kind of politics."



Gen. Kapoor, a former Army Chief, was quoted as having said that Gujarat elections were never discussed at the dinner meeting.

Manmohan Singh said he did not discuss the Gujarat Assembly elections with anyone at the dinner meeting.

"I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies," he said.

Singh said he was "deeply pained and anguished" by the "falsehood and canards" being spread to score political points by the prime minister in what he said was a "lost cause" in Gujarat.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," he alleged.

The Congress Party, Singh said, needs no sermons on "nationalism" from a party and prime minister, whose "compromised" track record on fighting terrorism is well known, while reminding Modi of his "uninvited" visit to Pakistan after terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

"Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan," he said.

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To decongest Delhi, NHAI will expedite development work on Urban Extension Road (UER), a senior ministry official said today.

In a high-level inter-ministerial meeting, chaired by Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and participated by Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal, it was decided that extra cost of UER 11, phase 1 will be shared by NHAI and DDA on a 50:50 basis, the ministry official said.

Master Plan for Delhi has proposed Urban Extension Road - II (UER) which connects National Highway 1, 10 and 8. This road was proposed to reduce traffic from existing Ring Road and Outer Ring Road.

Besides, it was decided in the meeting that the work on Urban Extension Road will be expedited, the official said.

It was also decided that DDA will hand over encumbrance free land.

"At Junction of UER-II/Dwarka Expressway with NH 8, major interchange has been proposed. The proposed interchange would provide signal free movement in all directions," the official said.

For this interchange, 14.4 hectares of private land is proposed to be acquired, the official said adding, 11.4 hectare of Airport Authority of India (AAI) land is required.

The meeting also discussed requirement of 24 hectares of greenfield land for Dwarka Expressway.

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Former prime minister Manmohan Singh today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologise to the nation for alleging that he was conspiring with Pakistan for BJP's defeat in the Gujarat polls.

Rejecting the charge as "innuendos and falsehoods", Singh said he was deeply pained by the prime minister's "ill thought transgression".

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur, Gujarat, yesterday, Modi suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence the assembly polls in the state.

He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi.

Singh issued a statement today, listing those who attended the dinner, and stressed that the election was not discussed during the meeting.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies," Singh said in the statement.

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Two employees of a bank were injured today when gunmen opened fire on their vehicle in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Security forces have launched a search operation to track down the assailants.

A police official said, "Unknown gunmen opened fire on a vehicle of Jammu and Kashmir Bank in Keller area of Shopian this afternoon, resulting in injuries to two employees".

He said the injured are being shifted to a hospital.

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Two bank guards were today killed when militants opened fire on their vehicle in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Security forces have launched a search operation to track down the assailants.

A police official said, "Unknown gunmen opened fire on a vehicle of Jammu and Kashmir Bank in Keller area of Shopian this afternoon, resulting in injuries to two employees".

The two guards succumbed to their injuries in a hospital, police said.

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Senior leader of Communist Party of India (CPI) Gurudas Dasgupta has stepped down as General secretary of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) citing personal reasons.

Dasgupta's resignation was accepted at three-days long meet of the AITUC General Council concluded today at Ranchi, said a statement issued by the trade union today.

According to the statement, the council elected AITUC General Secretary Amarjit Kaur as General Secretary of the union along with few other organisational changes.

It said that Dasgupta "decided to step down from the position of General Secretary quoting reasons of old age and difficulty".

Besides, the union also adopted more than 20 resolutions, including on demonetisation, goods and service tax, Panama Papers and Paradise Papers, against communalism and against privatisation.

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Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij has directed the imposition of prohibitory orders under section 144 within two km radius of civil hospitals in the state to facilitate the patients and to ensure better treatment atmosphere.

Vij issued these directions to the officers while presiding over a meeting of health department here today, an official release said.

On the issue of strike of National Health Mission workers continuing for nearly a week now, Vij said the government is spending Rs 180 crore per annum on the employees of NHM and most of their demands have already been fulfilled.

He said a hike of five per cent and another hike of three per cent have been made in the honorarium of these employees.

Apart from this, approval to give a hike of 14.29 per cent in their honorarium has also been given as per 7th Pay Commission.

The minister said that a notice was issued to NHM employees who were proceeding on strike and as a result, most joined their duties.

"However, the process has been started to terminate the services of those employees who had not yet joined their duties. New recruitment process is being started to avoid any inconvenience to the patients," he added.

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The Delhi High Court today asked the AAP government to ensure that steps are taken for enrolment of children in government schools in the Kapashera area of southwest Delhi.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar asked the government to minimise the possibility of kids of age group of 6-14 years being left out and to organise camps for this purpose.

The court, which listed the matter for January 23, said that children with disabilities upto the age of 18 years be also targeted for admissions in government schools.

The court was hearing a PIL alleging denial of admission to children of Kapashera area here by the government schools.

"The Delhi government schools have kept them out on the ground of non-production of residence proof, original transfer certificate and report cards. Some other reasons were, not having a bank account and age-related problems. Another lame excuse was that the last date of admission was 31st of July," the plea has claimed.

The plea, filed by the parents of a group of 35 aggrieved students, through advocate Ashok Agarwal claimed that the children in the 6-14 years age group have been denied admission by Delhi Government schools near their residence in utter violation of the provisions of Right of Children to free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.

During the hearing, the petitioners' counsel claimed that nothing was being done by the government and if the needful is done, a large number of children will be benefited.

Delhi government's counsel Naushad Ahmad Khan told the bench it was always ready to provide education to children.

The PIL has sought a direction to the government to forthwith grant admission to students in neighbourhood Delhi Government Schools in age appropriate class.

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The Delhi High Court today stayed the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board's (DSSSB) notice withdrawing the process of appointment of over 8,914 teachers for the schools run by the AAP government.

Justice A K Chawla asked the authorities to issue a fresh advertisement calling for applications from eligible candidates by December 20 which shall be received latest by December 31.

The court also removed its stay on the process of appointing guest teachers and promoting those appointed since 2010 in Delhi government schools.

Laying down the procedure for fresh appointment of regular teachers, the court said "processing of applications, arrangements for conduct of written test, final selection and drawing up of a panel would be completed by August 31, 2018.

"Panel shall be declared and communicated to the Directorate of Education of GNCT of Delhi by September 15, 2018."



It also directed that after selection of the candidates, posting orders should be communicated to them before October 31 next year.

The court's order came on an NGO's application seeking a stay on the DSSSB order withdrawing a notice on appointment of the teachers in government-run schools here.

The plea by NGO Social Jurist alleged that the Board's notice of August 24 was "illegal and contemptuous in nature".

The Delhi government had introduced the Board with the purpose of recruiting capable, competent and highly-skilled individuals by conducting written tests, professional tests and personal interviews.

The plea was filed in an ongoing contempt petition by the NGO which has alleged deliberate omission in compliance of the court's December 2001 order.

The NGO had submitted that in a 2001 order, the court had directed the DSSSB to ensure zero vacancy of teachers in Delhi government schools on the commencement of each academic year.

"Unfortunately, the directions have never been complied with, resulting in accumulation of vacancies of teaching posts since 2011. No attempt has been made by the DSSSB for last several years to fill up the posts and provide regular teachers," NGO's counsel Ashok Agarwal had argued before the court.

The plea had said that after a high court order of April 11 this year, the DSSSB issued a vacancy notice on August 7 inviting applications from candidates for 8,914 teaching posts in the Directorate of Education of the Delhi government and for 5,906 teaching posts in the three municipal corporation schools here.

It alleged that the DSSSB, without informing or seeking permission from the court, had on August 24 "abruptly withdrawn the advertisement" regarding the vacancies in the Delhi government-run schools.

Agreeing with the NGO's contention, the court put on hold the operation of the August 24 notice of DSSSB and directed it to proceed with the advertising afresh for recruiting teachers to Delhi government schools.

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A special court today adjourned hearing of the "illegal" telephone exchange case against former Union minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother Kalanithi to December 15.

When the plea came up before the XIV Additional Judge for CBI cases S Natarajan, counsel representing the brothers moved memos requesting to dispense with their personal appearance today.

After the judge allowed the memo, counsel for the seven accused wanted the court to adjourn the case.

They submitted they were in the process of engaging a senior counsel to argue the petitions to discharge them from the case.

Counsel for Sun TV's chief technical officer and one of the accused, Kannan, moved an application seeking a direction to the CBI to release his passport that was seized during the investigation.

Kannan wanted the court to release his passport as he was required to visit Singapore for official purposes.

To this, the CBI counsel submitted that he had to get instructions from investigating officers in Delhi and sought time to file his response.

Recording the submissions, the judge adjourned the hearing.

According to the CBI, Dayanidhi Maran, during the check period of June 2004 to December 2006, when he was the Union minister for communication and information technology, misused his office and installed a private telephone exchange at his residences in Chennai and utilised the facility for business transactions involving Sun Network.

It said he had caused a loss of Rs 1.78 crore to the exchequer.

More than 700 telecom lines were installed at their residences in Boat Club and Gopalapuram here, the agency charged.

Among the accused were former BSNL general manager K Brahmnathan, former deputy general manager M P Velusamy and Dayanidhi Maran's private secretary Gauthaman.

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Hundreds of gram sabha members of Etapalli taluka today held a protest march to the Sub-Divisional Office here demanding that mining rights given to various private firms in the area be revoked.

The protesters held that these firms were damaging the environment and destroying the traditional places of worship of the local tribal communities.

The protesters demanded that the government implement the Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 or PESA and the Forest Rights Act effectively.

The protesters submitted a memorandum of their demands addressed to the Governor to the SDO.

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Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa today began a four-day visit to Sri Lanka to explore ways to expand cooperation between the air forces of the two countries.

Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa will also deliberate with top brass of Sri Lanka's defence establishment on issues relating to regional security.

In a statement, the defence ministry said the visit would provide impetus towards increasing defence cooperation between the two air forces.

"This (the visit) would also strengthen relationships, enable engagement in productive exchanges and promote understanding of joint issues and challenges," it said.

During the visit, the IAF Chief would also review the commissioning and passing out parade of the Sri Lankan Air Force Academy on December 14.

"It is the first occasion in the history of the Sri Lankan Air Force where an Air Chief of a foreign Air Force is invited to review the prestigious passing out parade," the defence ministry said.

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The car of IGP (Western Range) Hemanth Nimbalkar was set ablaze at Kumta in Uttara Kannada district today, as a protest demanding justice for a teenager found dead last week near a lake turned violent, police said.

The IGP was not in the car when it was set on fire, they said.

Paresh Kamalakar Mesta (18) had gone missing on December 6. His body was found near a lake in Honnavar in that district on the night of December 8 under mysterious circumstances, leading to a tense situation.

Police said the crowd turned violent today and pelted stones at them and their vehicles, injuring some of them.

The crowd set ablaze the car, following which police made a mild lathi charge to disperse them.

"The situation is now peaceful and nder control. We are questioning some people in connection with the incident," Uttara Kannada Superintendent of Police, Patil Vinayak Vasantarao told PTI.

Mesta's family and locals alleged he was abducted and killed amid reports that the body bore marks of attack by sharp objects.

Police however rejected these claims, citing the post-mortem report.

BJP and some other outfits had called for protest in the district today, demanding the arrest of those responsible for Mestas death.

The party had yesterday demanded a probe by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) into the killing.

Party General Secretary Shobha Karandlaje has termed the murder as 'the handiwork of jehadi elements'.

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India, China and Russia today resolved to step up cooperation to counter terrorism, including choking terror funding and dismantling terrorist infrastructure, as the Indian side flagged concerns over increasing acts of terrorism by Pakistan-based terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

During the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral, the foreign ministers -Sushma Swaraj, Wang Yi (China) and Sergey Lavrov (Russia)- also underlined the primary and leading role and responsibility of states in preventing and countering terrorism and extremism, a joint statement said.

They also reiterated that all states should take adequate measures to prevent terrorist activities from their territory, it said.

"While discussing terrorism, I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations like Taliban, Daesh (ISIS), Al-Qaeda, and LeT directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development," Swaraj said.

However, the RIC joint statement did not name Pakistan unlike the joint document issued after the Brazil-Russia- India-China-South Africa (BRICS) meet in Xiamen in China in September.

Condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including the recent heinous terrorist attacks around the world, the leaders reaffirmed their determination to prevent and counter terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

"We reaffirm that all acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable irrespective of their motivations, committed wherever and by whomsoever," the statement of the RIC leaders said.

They called for greater unity, stronger international partnership and concerted actions by the international community in addressing the menace of terrorism in accordance with international law and the UN Charter, including the principles of sovereign equality of states and non- interference in their internal affairs.

The leaders also emphasised the need for a comprehensive approach in combating terrorism.

The statement said in this context, they resolved "to step up cooperation to prevent and counter terrorism and radicalisation, combat the spread of terrorist ideology and propaganda, stop sources of terrorist financing, prevent travelling of and the supply of arms to terrorists, dismantle terrorist infrastructure."



They also resolved to enhance cooperation to disrupt recruitment and the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and prevent misuse of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for terrorist purposes, it said.

Swaraj, Wang and Lavrov also stressed that those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with the obligations under international law, including the principle of "extradite or prosecute as well as the applicable domestic legislations.

"We agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities. We condemn all forms of terrorism and all terrorists, terror entities and organisations listed by the UN Security Council," the statement said.

It assumes significance as China has been blocking the international banning of UN-designated terrorist group Jaish- e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, the mastermind of Pathankot terror strike.

The three countries also agreed to intensify cooperation in multilateral fora including FATF and FATF-style regional bodies (FSRBs) so as to cut the flows of funds, and other financial assets and economic resources to individuals and entities involved in terrorism including those proscribed under the relevant UN sanctions.

They stressed on the need for joint, integrated and balanced approach to deal with drug menace, its illicit production and trafficking including new psychoactive substances in accordance with the UN Conventions and principles of international law.

The grouping also called for an early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) in the UN to establish the much needed comprehensive international legal framework to address the growing global menace of terrorism.

Expressing deep concern about the threat of WMDs falling into the hands of terrorist groups, including the use of chemicals and biological agents for terrorist purposes, they said they would cooperate to prevent proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems and to deny access to such weapons by non-state actors, including terrorists.

"We need to address the threat of nuclear, chemical and biological terrorism through intensified meaningful work in international fora," they said in the statement and expressed firm determination to explore actively the modalities of elaborating a mandate in this regard.

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India on Monday called upon WTO members to find a permanent solution to the public food stockpile issue, saying it concerns the survival of 800 million hungry people across the globe.

It also asked them to refrain from raising new issues, especially those which are not linked to trade.

In his 3-minute address at the plenary session of the 11th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) here, Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu urged the member countries to reaffirm their commitment to a rule- based multilateral trading system as it would benefit the entire world.

"At MC (Ministerial Conference) 11 we look forward to constructive engagement of the entire WTO membership for taking final decisions in areas where specific mandates were provided at Nairobi...One such issue is the permanent solution for public stockholding for food security purposes. This is a matter of survival for 800 million hungry and undernourished people in the world," he said.

A successful resolution of the food security issue would "fulfil our collective commitment to the global community", he said, adding that "we cannot envisage any negotiated outcome at MC 11, which does not include a permanent solution".

Under the global trade norms, a WTO member country's food subsidy bill should not breach the limit of 10 per cent of the value of production based on the reference price of 1986-88.

Apprehending that the full implementation of food security programme may result in breach of the WTO cap, India has been seeking amendments to the formula for calculating the food subsidy cap.

As an interim measure, the WTO members at the Bali ministerial meeting in December 2013 had agreed to put in place a mechanism popularly called the Peace Clause and committed to negotiate an agreement for permanent solution at the 11th ministerial meeting, which is underway in Buenos Aires.

Under the Peace Clause, WTO members agreed to refrain from challenging any breach in prescribed ceiling by a developing nation at the dispute settlement forum of the WTO. This clause will be there till a permanent solution is found to the food stockpiling issue.

Referring to the attempts being made by some developed nations to place new issues on the negotiating agenda of the WTO, Prabhu said that agreeing to these would be "extremely divisive. Many of these issues are neither trade-related nor have these been discussed in detail".

On the specific issue of e-commerce, he said the gains from the sector must not be confused with gains from negotiating binding rules in this area. "It is for this reason that we support continuation of the 1998 Work Programme with its non-negotiating mandate."



Shifting the priority from DDA (Doha Development Agenda) issues to non-trade issues like Investment Facilitation and MSMEs, for which there is no mandate, is difficult to accept, Prabhu said outlining Indias priorities.

"...let me say that at a time when the global trade environment is extremely fragile, let this Ministerial Conference be an occasion for concluding the unfinished agenda of the Doha Work Programme, and collectively strive to preserve and revitalise the WTO," he added.

Referring to the issue of domestic support for agriculture, he said that the Agreement on Agriculture provides considerable flexibility to the developed members to provide huge subsidies and further and also to concentrate these subsidies on a few products.

This asymmetry, he added, was needed to be addressed as a first step in agricultural reform through a post-MC11 work programme without shifting the burden of reduction of agricultural subsidies to developing countries.

As regards the services sector, Prabhu said India has engaged constructively with the proponents of the domestic regulation disciplines.

"However, I am apprehensive that the present approach in the negotiations will not lead to any fruitful outcomes at MC11. A work programme for Services...and some elements of India's proposal on Trade Facilitation in Services, including Mode 4, can take the Services agenda forward," he added.

On the fisheries issue, he said that an outcome which preserves the policy space for developing countries to support millions who depend on traditional fishing activity as the sole source of livelihood could be worked out at the next ministerial conference.

"India recognises that some progress has been made in the area of fisheries subsidies. We can agree to future work on this issue towards an outcome at MC 12, the minister said.

Stressing that the outcome of the expansion of global trade must be development, Prabhu urged the WTO membership to re-endorse the centrality of development in the trade negotiations without creating new sub-categories of countries.

He also expressed concern over inordinate delay in appointment of new members to the WTOs Appellate Body, saying that "we need to collectively and expeditiously resolve this impasse".

The appointment of members to the Appellate Body is being delayed because of the stern attitude adopted by the US administration in filling the vacancies.
More than a dozen people have been arrested by Indonesian anti-terrorism police, authorities said today, as they beef up security in the world's biggest Muslim-majority country ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Police said they detained 13 suspected militants in separate, pre-emptive raids over the weekend across the Southeast Asian nation, which has long struggled with Islamic militancy.

"As usual, we are conducting pre-emptive strikes. We move before they do and we arrest the groups we believe will potentially commit an act (of terror)," national police chief Tito Karnavian said today.

The arrests took place in South Sumatra, East Java and West Kalimantan over the weekend.

One of the men arrested in Surabaya, Indonesia's second- biggest city, was known to have gone to Syria in 2013 and has links to Abu Jandal, an influential Indonesian militant who fought with the Islamic State group in the Middle Eastern country, authorities said.

Another suspect was involved in a February terror attack in the Indonesian city of Bandung, where a pressure cooker bomb exploded in a park before a gun battle erupted nearby, leaving one militant dead.

However, authorities have no specific information on a new planned attack, said national police spokesman Setyo Wasisto.

"There's no confirmed plan for a terror attack that we have heard so far," he said.

Indonesia's anti-terror squad can detain and hold suspected extremists for seven days without charge.

Indonesia has suffered a string of deadly incidents, including a Christmas Eve attack in 2000 that left 18 dead and scores injured.

In 2002, a bomb in a Bali nightclub killed over 200 people while, more recently, a suicide bombing and gun attack claimed by IS in the capital Jakarta killed eight people in January 2016.

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Former Chief Financial Officer V Balakrishnan on Monday said it was not a matter of whistleblower's emotions, but of legality for Sebi to decide on denying company's consent plea in connection with ex-CFO Rajiv Bansal's severance payment case.

"The whistleblower has said whatever he wants to say as per his viewpoint. These are legal issues decided based on merits and not individual's emotions. What Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as a regulator thinks and decides is all that matters," Balakrishnan told PTI here.

Earlier this year, a whistleblower had written to the market regulator over alleged lapses in the Panaya deal and Bansal's severance pay.

The letter had stated that the package was decided by the then CEO Vishal Sikka and then general counsel David Kennedy.

The whistle-blower had asked why was reluctant in disclosing answers surrounding the "hush money."



While it is a norm for to settle cases via the backdoor, it should not be allowed this time and Sebi should prosecute both the board and management, he said in the letter.

The whistleblower had argued that a settlement was similar to a "backdoor agreement," and if is allowed to do so, then "no whistleblower in future will take the pain to expose any malpractices in the corporate sector."



"The whistle-blower may strongly feel about the issues he had raised.. the regulator will follow the due legal process and decide," Balakrishnan reiterated.

The letter has brought allegations of poor corporate governance to the fore again after Infosys filed an application for settlement.

This has spurred Balakrishnan and another former CFO T V Mohandas Pai to launch an attack against the company, whose board is now led by Co-Founder Nandan Nilekani.

Balakrishnan has demanded the resignation of board members, Roopa Kudva and Ravi Venkatesan in the matter.

Yesterday, board member Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw had exchanged barbs with Pai on twitter, saying, "The matters were reinvestigated (a)n(d) no wrongdoings were found by new Chairman. Let's bring this to a closure and move on.. It helps no one."



Earlier this week, Infosys had submitted a settlement application to Sebi with regard to issues surrounding the severance package of Bansal.

The company had said it wanted to resolve allegations that the severance payment was decided without seeking prior consent from the audit committee and the Nomination and Remuneration Committee.

Yesterday, Mohandas Pai had disapproved whistleblower's demand asking Sebi to prosecute the IT giant's management and the Board.

He had also said Infosys' move to settle with Sebi the alleged disclosure lapses involving a severance pact is "perfectly fine."



Infosys had decided to pay Rs 17.38 crore as severance payment to the then CFO Bansal in 2015.

However, it only paid Rs 5 crore to him, holding back Rs 12 crore.

(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.)
Islamic State group jihadists have been driven out of Syria's Idlib province, two days after making an incursion into the region bordering Turkey, a war monitor said today.

IS fighters captured the Idlib village of Bashkun at the weekend after clashes with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of rebel forces dominated by a former Al-Qaeda affiliate.

"After fierce fighting, Tahrir al-Sham has once again chased IS out of Idlib," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor.

The setback comes more than three years after IS was first expelled from the province in northwestern Syria after battles with rival jihadists and rebel groups.

IS has seen the so-called "caliphate" it declared in 2014 across parts of Syria and Iraq crumble in recent weeks, losing key cities such as Raqa and Mosul.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Saturday declared victory in the three-year war to expel the jihadist group which at its height held roughly one third of the country's territory.

It now holds just a few patches of territory in Syria.

More than 340,000 people have been killed in Syria's multi-faceted war since the conflict began with anti- government protests in March 2011.

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An ISIS-inspired Bangladeshi- origin man, wearing a homemade device, triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during the morning rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, officials said.

Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires and a pipe bomb strapped to his body. The device prematurely exploded between two subway platforms near Port Authority, which is America's largest bus terminal, police said.

The suspect was taken into custody after the device partially exploded. The subway station was evacuated and Port Authority terminal was shut down.

Ullah was alone, the police said, adding that the explosion was recorded on surveillance video.

No group has claimed responsibility for the explosion so far, though it was being treated as terror-related.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God he did not achieve his goal," Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters.

"At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims," Blasio said.

"There are also no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time. But we will give you more information as the investigation unfolds," he said.

"Our lives revolve around the subway. The choice of New York is always for a reason, because we are beacons of the world. We show that a society of many background and many faiths can work...The terrorists want to undermine that. They yearn to attack New York City," he added.

A total of four injuries were reported at the scene of the explosion at Port Authority, the New York Police Department said, adding all injuries are non-life-threatening.

The suspect, who lived in Brooklyn, suffered serious burn injuries and is currently admitted at a hospital. He had arrived in the US some seven years ago from Bangladesh.

"Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device," Police Commissioner James O'Neil told reporters.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the New York explosion, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

The FBI has joined the investigation.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that New Yorkers would not be disrupted by such an attempt.

"We are a target by many who would like to make a statement against freedom...Let's go back to work we are not going to allow them to disrupt us," he said.

"The reality is that we are a target by many who would like to make a statement against democracy, against freedom. We have statue of Liberty in our harbour and that make sus an international target. We understand that," he said.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

Earlier, the New York Police Department tweeted that it was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan.

The New York Fire Department received call around 7.19 am.

"I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting 'Go, Go, Go'," commuter Keith Woodfin tweeted, according to New York Daily .

Designer Chelsea LaSalle tweeted that she was "stuck in a running stampede at port authority bus terminal due to bomb scare. cops EVERYWHERE."



Security was enhanced in several major American cities after the explosion in the New York City.

"We are monitoring the incident that occurred in New York City this morning. At this time, there are no current threats to the District of Columbia. We ask all residents and visitors to remain vigilant," said the Washington DC Police Department.

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Ruling out an apology by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today charged former prime minister Manmohan Singh with defying the stated national policy on terror by meeting Pakistani diplomats and demanded to know the context, relevance and necessity of such a meet.

He termed the dinner meeting at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence as "political misadventure" and said the main opposition party is expected to follow the national line that terror and talks cannot go hand in hand.

Addressing a press conference hours after Singh demanded an apology from Modi for setting a "dangerous precedent" by alleging "innuendos and falsehoods" about the meeting, Jaitley said the Congress must explain the context of the meeting.

"It is surprising that for a misadventure that the Congress party indulged in, to which some of its senior leaders became a party, they should expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it," he said.

India's national position on talks with Pakistan is well known and all responsible groups in India, including the main opposition party, are expected to honour that, Jaitley asserted.

Stating that this was not the first time that such "misadventures" have taken place, he referred to the Sharm el-Sheikh declaration after Indo-Pak talks "when Baluchistan issue was allowed to enter the text of the agreement and the condition precedent for a dialogue that Pakistan territory should not be used for terrorism was done away with".

He said the Congress and its leadership should come out with detailed facts on what transpired in the meeting and what was its necessity under the present circumstances.

Jaitley said that till yesterday the Congress was denying the meeting and "today instead of accepting this as a misadventure, they try to blame those who are raising this issue".

Asked if the leaders present at the meeting should be tried for treason, he said it is a political misadventure and "it has a political cost".

Asked about Singh's statement that Gujarat elections, as stated by Prime Minister, was not discussed at the dinner, Jaitley said the party must explain the context, relevance and necessity of such a meet.

On Aiyar, he said the suspended Congress leader "has always had an inconsistent position" and maintained "a parallel line of dialogue", "underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and they continue to engage with them".

"But that responsible section of the Congress party should have become privy to that engagement is indeed worrisome. It's admittedly as I said, a complete misadventure for very senior people in India's public life to have done what some of the senior Congress leaders did.

"And having done that, to expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for having flagged the issue is indeed beyond comprehension," he wondered.

He said the main Opposition party is expected to follow the national policy, which states that terror and talks cannot go hand in hand.

"Is (the) main opposition party not part of the State?" he asked.

Jaitley said that if anyone defies the national line, he should be prepared to answer questions.

He wanted the former prime minister to explain what transpired at the meeting and went on to defend his government's track record of fighting terror, saying no government in the past has a track record this government has in fighting terrorism.

In response to Singh's demand for apology, Jaitley further said people who have violated the national policy of talks and terror not going hand in hand should apologise.

On Singh's comment that remarks by Modi at a public rally had demeaned the office of the Prime Minister, Jaitley said debate never demeans any office.

"When you have meeting of such kind, you should be prepared that questions will be asked," he said. "If anyone of us defies a national line which is inconsistent with India's line, we should be prepared to answer questions."



The finance minister also said: "(The) misadventure is a political misadventure and it has political fallout."



He also claimed that the BJP is comfortably winning in Gujarat.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Alleged jihadists killed six people in an attack on an armed Tuareg group in Mali near the fabled northwestern city of Timbuktu, the group and a security source said today.

Mali faces double threats from pro-government fighters and former rebels who still sporadically clash despite signing a peace deal in 2015, and from Al-Qaeda-linked groups which reject such accords.

"Six people, among them our fighters and civilians from our community, were killed on Sunday by AQIM (Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb) between the towns of Goundam and Douekire," said Azarok Ag Inaborchad, president of the Congress for Justice in Azawad, or CJA in French.

The CJA, created last year, represents the Kel Ansar community of ethnic minority Tuaregs who live in northwest Mali.

"We are pro-peace," Inaborchad said. "It's the enemies of peace who organised an attack against us."



The tumult of a 2012 Tuareg-led separatist uprising and the rebellion's hijacking by jihadists was followed by a peace deal signed two years ago but its implementation has been patchy.

A Malian security source confirmed the death toll and told AFP the attackers may have had a specific target in mind.

"They had two objectives: to sabotage the peace process, and search out an important figure in the CJA," the source said.

Mali's army, a deployment of French soldiers and a UN mission named MINUSMA have little control of large tracts of the country despite almost five years of military operations to root out the jihadists.

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A key office bearer of a Tamil actor's body has tendered his resignation opposing it's general secretary Vishal Krishna's vain bid to contest the December 21 RK Nagar by poll, though the association did not accept it.

Noted actor Ponvannan wrote to South Indian Artistes' Association (SIAA) President M Nasser, protesting against Vishal's decision, saying it was in "contradiction" to their earlier decision to remain "without politics."



The letter, dated December 4, when Vishal filed his nomination to the bypoll, which was later rejected, was made available to the media today.

Ponvannan told Nasser that their team had been lauded for remaining apolitical "unlike past" regimes, where some members like former SIAA chief R Sarathkumar were also active in politics.

On many occasions this had been made clear in the media and the team was even lauded by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa for their said decision, he said.

As a result, they had met, among others, DMK president M Karunanidhi, he said.

However "I was shocked to see our (general) Secretary (Vishal) having filed his nomination for RK Nagar bypoll. Though its someone's personal decision to involve in politics, isn't it contradictory to what we spoke about earlier (on being apolitical)?" he asked.

He pointed out that the present team members had raised the same issue against some former office bearers and asked if it was fair for us "to do the same mistake."



He argued against using the fame acquired from the Artistes Association for political ambitions.

The actor expressed apprehension that he might "lose his individuality" in future if he continues in the post and therefore offered to quit.

Meanwhile,a special meeting of SIAA discussed Ponvannan's letter, but decided not to accept his resignation.

Nasser said in a statement that while respecting his sentiments it has been decided to give Ponvannan time to change his stance.

Nasser said that Vishal explained his stand and that he had not done anything in "contravention" of SIAA rules.

None, including him, should create "embarrassing situations" Nasser quoted Vishal as saying.

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The body of a 13-year-old girl, killed allegedly by her father two months ago in Seraikela-Kharswan district of Jharkhand, has been exhumed after the incident came to light, the police said today.

The accused father, who had buried the body in the premises of his house and plastered the ground, was arrested from Islamnagar under Kapali police station area.

The body of Muskan Parveen was exhumed in presence of a magistrate yesterday after the girl's mother lodged a complaint with the police against the accused, Jaffar Hussain.

Hussain claimed during interrogation that he killed the girl as he could not control her, police said.

The incident occurred two months ago when Muskan's mother Shaheen was seriously ill and bed ridden, police said.

He buried the body at the back of the house and plastered the ground above, the police said adding that construction work was going on in the house at that time.

Hussain told his wife that he had dropped her to a relative's place so that she could continue her studies.

After Shaheen recovered and demanded persistently that Muskan be brought back from the relative's place, Hussain got angry and threatened her that he would send her to the place where he had send her daughter.

Shaheen suspected foul play and informed the police.

The body has been sent for post-mortem examination, police said.

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The Upper House of the state legislature was adjourned for the day amid heated arguments between the government and opposition.

The Leader of the Government in the House Chandrakant Patil objected to the word "nautanki" used by the Leader of Opposition Dhananjay Munde to describe the government's farm loan waiver process.

Earlier the Chairman of the House Ramraje Nimbalkar rejected the demand of around 10-15 MLCs including Munde to have a discussion on the farmers' issues.

The chairman however allowed Munde to speak for two minutes.

Munde demanded a discussion on several issues including loan waiver implementation, crops damaged in pink-worm attacks, remunerative price for the crops, arbitrary recovery of electricity bills and loss brought about by cyclone Ockhi.

He alleged that during the NCP's "halla bol" march from Yavatmal to Nagpur, not a single farmer the party met had his waived loan amount deposited in his account.

He cited the example of Gyaneshwar Bankat Rathod, a farmer from Katol, who Munde said had received a court notice from a bank for loan recovery.

He further gave the example of Vishnu Dhumne, a farmer whom chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had met furing the latter's Yavatmal visit.

Mundle said that Dhumne is still waiting for an SMS from the government for the last four months to notify him that his loan had been waived.

He demanded that the government place in the House the list of farmers whose loans have been waived off.

"This "natak nautanki" by the government has now come out in the open," Munde said.

The house was adjourned for ten minutes after Munde demanded a discussion on the loss faced by cotton growers of Vidarbha, Marathwada and Northern Maharashtra due to attacks on their crops by bollworms.

However when the house resumed after the adjourment, the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council Patil objected over the use of word "nautanki" terming it as inappropriate and demanded its removal from the House records.

Chairman Nimbalkar replied that he would do so if he found the word inappropriate.

Further Patil said that the government would discuss the issues raised by the opposition in the days to come.

He added that the CM had already given the figures of the loan distribution in a press conference yesterday.

Amid heated arguments, the chairman, at 1:33pm, adjourned the House for the day



Earlier in the day, the Upper House commenced at 12 noon with the chairman announcing the resignation of former Congress leader Narayan Rane from the House. Newly elected MLC Prasad Lad took the oath of the House.

Tributes were paid by way of a one-minute silence to former MLA Adv Sharad Sonu Wani who passed away May 26 in Jalgaon.

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Vijay Mallya's extradition trial to face fraud and money laundering charges of Rs 9,000 crore in India resumed today, with his defence fielding a legal expert to question the impartiality of India's judicial system.

The 61-year-old was back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London for day four of the hearing when his barrister, Clare Montgomery, deposed Dr Martin Lau to give his views on the evidence presented by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Indian Supreme Court rulings.

"I hold the Supreme Court in the highest respect but it is equally not disrespectful to indicate that some doubts are voiced about particular patterns [in judgments]," Dr Lau, an expert on South Asian law, told the court.

Quoting an unnamed study by three academics from Singapore and Hong Kong, Lau raised questions on the neutrality of Supreme Court judges close to retirement.

Lau was also made to comment upon some of the evidence produced by the CBI to back up its case against the liquor baron in an attempt to discredit its admissibility in court.

Reading from Lau's written testimony, Mallya's counsel quoted from an unnamed media report to claim that there had been "coercion" by Special Director Rakesh Asthana and his team over the banks in India to pursue criminal proceedings against her client.

The legal expert, who will continue to give his statement throughout today's hearing, is also being made to elaborate on the application of Indian laws relevant to the case.

Lau claims some of the money laundering allegations against Mallya may fall under a "retrospective application" of the Money Laundering Act because the alleged offences occurred before 2013 when the act was amended in India.

Earlier today, the defence had deposed Margaret Sweeney



the Chief Financial Officer of Force India, Mallya's Formula 1 racing team.

She was run through a series of spread-sheets and figures from her written testimony to establish if money had been taken from Kingfisher Airlines for "no good reason" by Force India and used for some other purposes.

"Absolutely not," was her response, explaining that all payments she was aware of were in relation to a marketing contract between Kingfisher Airlines and the F1 team.

The defence also quoted from an independent media valuation to claim there had been no overpayment by Kingfisher Airlines, as alleged by theCrown Prosecution Service (CPS).

"Far from it," said Sweeney, on being asked if Force India was being paid too much.

The CPS cross-examination of Sweeney by barrister Mark Summers focused on payments being routed via an HSBC account in London, which was intended only for operational use of Kingfisher Airlines.

The defence's case rests on trying to prove that the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is facing a parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets.

The SBI, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk LLP, Rose Capital Ventures Ltd and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday.

Last week, thedefenceclaimed that a consortium of Indian banks led by SBI had rejected an offer by the liquor baron in early 2016 to pay back nearly 80 per cent of the principle loan amount owed to them.

However, theCPS arguing on behalf of the Indian government countered that assertion in its cross- examination, indicating that the reason such a repayment offer would have been rejected was that the banks knew Mallya had the means to pay back the entire amount due.

While the CPS stand is that Mallya did not intend to repay the loans he sought because his airlines demise was inevitable, Montgomery is trying to establish that Kingfisher Airlines was suffering from consequences of a wider global financial crisis around 2009-2010 and that its failure was a result of factors beyond the companys control.

In his cross-examination, Summers had highlighted a particular "washing machine activity" picked up by the government of India that involved sums amounting toaround 10 -15million pounds being funneled between UB Group companies to wrongly claim obligations of equity infusions into struggling Kingfisher Airlines were being met.

Indian government sources have described its case, being presented by the CPS, as "very strong".

Mallya's legal team had claimed earlier in the trial that the case against him was "politically motivated".

Mallya, who has been based in the UK since March 2016, was arrested by Scotland Yard on anextradition warrant in April and has been out onbail on a bond worth 650,000 pounds.

If the judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must orderMallya's extraditionwithin two months.

However, the case can go through a series of appeals in higher UK courts before arriving at a conclusion.
Vijay Mallya's defence team today launched a stinging attack on the style of Indian media coverage and the emergence of powerful commentators, which raise doubts about a fair trial for the liquor baron in India.

On day four of the 61-year-old businessman's extradition trial at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, his counsel Clare Montgomery asked a legal expert during his witness statement his views on the way the allegations of fraud against the chief of erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines have been dealt with by the media.

"There is an increasing concern in India about media trials, which is connected with a change in the landscape in India where TV channels use panel discussions and such like there is an emergence powerful TV commentators," said Martin Lau, an expert on South Asian law who deposed as a key defence witness.

He referred to the Delhi High Court setting up a committee to look into "trial by media", where adverse media coverage might affect aspects of a trial and provide the police an incentive to achieve "overnight fame".

"It is evident from the TV cameras outside this court that there is intense interest in India in this case," Lau said, adding that it raised concerns about the "fairness of a trial" back in India.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government,asserted that India has a "free and animated press" that was understandably interested in this case, which involves "substantial state funds" going missing.

CPS barrister Mark Summers pointed out that Mallya would have recourse to legal remedies in India if he felt his prospects of a fair trial were endangered.

He challengedthe legal expert to agree that there was "increased awareness" about the impact media coverage of a case could have on a trial and that the courts of India were "conscious" of the issue.

"Appropriate steps" are taken to deal with it when it arises in any criminal case, Summers said.

However, Lau insisted that any such steps were "insufficiently robust" on being able to clampdown on the problem.

He also claimed that many of the media reports around the Mallya's case in India would not have been allowed in the UK or any other jurisdiction.

Lau's testimony dominated most of Monday's hearing as part of the extradition trial to determine if the Indian tycoon can be forced to return to India to face fraud charges involving around Rs 9,000 crores in bank defaults related to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.

The defence's case rests on trying to prove that the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
London police claims to have arrested a 24-year-old man on suspicion of trespass for allegedly trying to climb a wall outside Buckingham Palace on Sunday evening.

The police have dispelled the incident being a terrorism-related offence.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police's Royalty and Specialist Protection Commandarrested the suspect "within three minutes" of him stepping over a low outer perimeter fence adjacent to the palace and attempting to climb a wall outside the estate.

Buckingham Palace is the official home of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II.

The Metropolitan Police said in a statement today that the suspect was not carrying any offensive weapons and "the incident is not being treated as terrorist related."



"He was also arrested on suspicion of being in possession of a controlled substance - for which he was subsequently released with no further action," they said.

As per the police, the suspect has undergone a mental health assessment and released on conditional bail, only to return to a central London police station early next month.

A number of people have tried to get unauthorised entry into the palace grounds in recent years.

In August, a 26-year-old sword-wielding man attacked and wounded three police officers outside Buckingham Palace before being arrested.

A woman was arrested in October for attempting to scale the gates of the palace.

Last year in May, a murder convict climbed over the wall and walked for about 10 minutes around the grounds of the palace before being arrested.

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French police arrested a man today in connection with the jihadist murder of a police couple after his DNA was matched to traces found in their home near Paris, legal sources said.

The 24-year-old has been linked to Larossi Aballa, the Islamic State extremist who claimed the June 2016 attack in a live video from the murder scene before being killed by police in a shootout, the sources added.

The suspect, who was not on a terrorism watchlist but was known to be radicalised, was arrested in the western Paris suburb of Les Mureaux.

His brother has already been charged with providing logistical assistance to Aballa, whose chilling attack -- one in a string of assaults in France since January 2015 -- caused shock in police ranks.

Aballa stabbed police captain Jean-Baptiste Salvaing to death outside his home in Magnanville, 60 kilometres west of Paris, and then slit the throat of his companion Jessica Schneider in front of the couple's three-year-old son.

In a Facebook Live video from the scene, he called for further terror attacks.

The man arrested today was already investigated over a foiled attack by a group of female jihadists who tried to set set fire to a car containing gas canisters near Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in September 2016.

Charged with failing to report that plot, he spent four months in preventive custody before being released in January.

Investigators believe that a notorious French IS member, Rachid Kassim, directed both attacks from the Middle East, using the encrypted Telegram app.

Kassim is believed to have been killed in a coalition air strike near the Iraqi city of Mosul in February.

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Unidentified armed miscreants shot dead a man when he resisted them from forcibly taking away his sister in course of a brawl over land dispute in Bihar's Madhepura district late last night, police said today.

The deceased has been identified as Sukrati Rishi Dev (27), Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Arun Kumar Dubey said.

The incident occurred at Dhamramushahri tola in Shahpur panchayat under Gwalpada police station of the district when around half a dozen armed miscreants entered the house of Rishi Dev and forcibly tried to take away his sister Nutan Kumar, the SDPO said.

They shot dead Rishi Dev when he resisted their bid to do so.

The assailants also shot at the deceased's aunty Nilam Devi, who received injuries in her neck, and has been referred to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH).

The incident could be the outcome of the land dispute, the SDPO said.

Two persons- Vijal Rishi Dev and his wife Ruby DevI- have been arrested in this connection.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi today congratulated Rahul Gandhi on his election as the Congress president even as the two are engaged in a bitter political battle in Gujarat where assembly elections are on.

"I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress president. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure," Modi tweeted from his personal twitter handle @narendramodi.





I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure. @OfficeOfRG  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017

Modi's congratulatory message came on a day when a huge row broke out over his insinuation yesterday that his predecessor Manmohan Singh was colluding with Pakistan in influencing the Gujarat polls. The former prime minister shot back today, saying Modi was setting a "dangerous precedent", and asked him to apologise to the nation.

As Manmohan Singh crossed swords with Modi over his "ill-thought transgression" and rejected his charge as "innuendos and falsehoods", Congress's senior spokesperson Anand Sharma accused the prime minister of dragging the political discourse to an "unacceptable low" by making statements that harmed the dignity of his post.

Rahul Gandhi was today elected unopposed as Congress president.

He is likely to formally take over the reins of the party on December 16.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family was the lone candidate in the fray.

Rahul Gandhi succeeds his mother Sonia Gandhi, who occupied the post for 19 years.
A group of war veterans today accused the Narendra Modi government of "betraying" their trust over the issue of the One Rank One Pension (OROP).

They claimed that instead of agreeing to their demands for which the ex-servicemen had been agitating for long, the Centre was "insulting" them.

The war veterans said the government was doing "injustice" by capping at Rs 10,000 per month the educational assistance it gives to children of martyrs or those disabled in action.

"By not implementing OROP, the Modi government has betrayed our trust," said Major General (retd) Satbir Singh, chairman of the Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement.

During a press conference at the state Congress headquarters here, Singh maintained their movement was "apolitical" and they had requested the opposition party to raise their grievances in Parliament and also before the public.

The Modi government "insulted" ex-servicemen and their widows by arresting them and suppressing their protest using police, he alleged.

"It has become a hallmark of the Modi government to suppress opposition voice. We would like to ask the BJP government at the Centre as to why it did not accept OROP in the form it was accepted by the then UPA government on February 17, 2014?" he asked.

The UPA government had agreed to the definition of OROP which said that servicemen who worked for the same duration and retired on the same rank will be given equal pension, irrespective of their date of retirement, he said.

"Why the Modi government did not accept OROP in the form accepted by the UPA government based on the theory of equality, thus denying benefits to ex-servicemen?" he asked.

"The Modi government denied benefits of OROP to 40 per cent of the armed forces personnel and those who retired early, according to a notification issued on November 7, 2015," the retired officer said.

He raised questions over the Modi government putting the condition in the scheme that it will review pensions after five years when experts sought a review after two years.

"Why is injustice being meted out to the children of martyrs by limiting their education expenses at Rs 10,000 per month?" Singh asked.

He was referring to a Centre's notification dated September 13, 2017, capping education expenses for the kids of martyrs or those disabled in action at Rs 10,000 a month.

In November 2015, the Centre issued a notification, brining into force the long-pending OROP scheme, which it said, will benefit over 2.5 million veterans and war widows.

However, the ex-servicemen had then rejected the notification, saying their main demands have not been accepted.

In December 2015, the government appointed a committee to look into the anomalies, if any, arising out of the implementation of the scheme. The panel later submitted its report to the defence ministry.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing a public rally here tonight, asked his predecessor why did he not show the courage to order a post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the Army.

He said after the Mumbai attacks, the Air Force had approached the then prime minister Singh with a plan for surgical strikes, but the government did not show the courage to order it.

"Under whose advice did he (Singh) do so," Modi asked the gathering at the Navlakhi compound here.

"Someone who served at a high position in the Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for . Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that," Modi said and cited the example of his government's action in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack in September last year.

"My government, in the aftermath of the Uri attack by Pakistan, had launched a inside the borders of Pakistan, targeting several terror camps and launchpads. The strikes came as a surprise for the Pakistanis who were caught unaware. While the maximum damage was inflicted on their side, the Indian soldiers came back without any casualties," he added.

Modi also questioned Congress leaders, including its vice president Rahul Gandhi, for raising doubts over the .

"Are such secret matters to be discussed in public?" he asked, saying this was the difference between the NDA government and the UPA government.

Modi said the reason behind his vacating the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat in 2014 was for blossoming the "lotus" in Uttar Pradesh and replicating the Gujarat model of development in that state.

After winning two Lok Sabha seats from Vadodara and Varanasi in the 2014 general election, Modi had retained the Varanasi seat.

He thanked the people of Vadodara for allowing him to resign from here.

The prime minister also justified demonetisation, saying it was aimed at unearthing black money and preventing the parallel economy.

He said the government had since succeeded in unearthing a "hawala" racket in Jammu and Kashmir which led to the arrest of many leaders who were advocating support for terrorism in the state.

Congress leaders were not happy with demonetisation as it was a source of their income and even after a year since the note ban, they had kept the issue alive, he said.

The prime minister also wondered how a "secret meeting" between Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and the former Pakistani high commissioner and other leaders from that country could take place without the knowledge of the Government of India.

Modi said when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he used to take permission from the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government at the Centre before holding a meeting with a foreign dignitary.
Congress president-elect Rahul Gandhi today took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for talking about Pakistan, China, Afghanistan and Japan in the Gujarat elections but avoiding speaking about his home state.

Gandhi also questioned Modi's 'silence' on the company promoted by BJP president Amit Shah's son Jay Shah whose turnover was claimed to have shot up manifold after the BJP came to power at the Centre.

Gandhi, who was declared elected as Congress president today, said Modi was frequently shifting his campaign plank in Gujarat.

He said, first it was the Narmada water, but after farmers started saying it has not reached their fields, Modi changed tack and began speaking about OBC issues. When that also did not find favour with people, he went for development issues "but people punctured it", he said.

"Now, Modiji speaks about Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and Japan. Modiji, this is the election about the future of Gujarat. Please say something about Gujarat also," he told a well-attended rally here in Banaskantha district.

Gandhi was apparently targeting the prime minister over his yesterday's suggestion that Pakistan was trying to influence the Gujarat Assembly polls and that some current and former officials of that country had met Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence a day before Aiyar's 'neech' remark against him.

The Congress leader said, in his speeches in the last couple of days, the prime minister devoted half the time to Congress-bashing.

"On one hand he is claiming that he has finished the Congress party from India, and on the other, he devotes half of his time to Congress. The other half of his speech is devoted to Narendra Modiji himself," the 47-year-old leader said.

"Modiji please devote two-three minutes of your speech to (talking about) the future of Gujarat," he said.

He questioned Modi's silence on corruption, as he targeted him over the alleged exponential rise in the turnover of a company owned by Amit Shah's son.

"You listen to his entire speech, corruption is totally missing from it. Jay Amit Shah's company converted Rs 50,000 to Rs 80 crore in three months but the chowkidar is silent, not a word is coming out of his mouth."



"Narendra Modiji fears Amit Shah, that is the reason he is not saying a word about Jay Shah," he claimed.

Gandhi reaffirmed his promise that the Congress, if voted to power in Gujarat, will waive farm loans within 10 days.

He claimed the NDA government waived Rs 1.30 lakh crore loans of 10 richest people in the country. He said when farmers also ask for a loan waiver, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and the prime minister say it is not their policy.

"Why the loans of farmers are not waived," Gandhi asked, and in the next breath gave the reply "as they do not fly in planes, they do not have big cars, and they do not have suit worth Rs 15 lakh."



Gandhi again alleged there was corruption in the Nano deal between the Gujarat government and the Tatas.

"The Congress allocated Rs 35,000 crore to MNREGA, while the BJP government gave Rs 33,000 crore to the Tata Nano factory. The water from Narmada went to that factory. The factory gets electricity for 24 hours even when you get it only at night," he alleged.

The Congress leader claimed land in villages in and around Mundra were given to the Adani group at the rate of Re 1 per square metre, which the latter sold back to the government at Rs 3,000 for every square metre.

Assailing the government over demonetisation and the GST, he said half the money of common people was "looted" by the note ban and the rest by the "Gabbar Singh Tax".

Tomorrow is the last day of campaigning for the second and final phase of Gujarat polls which has been high-pitch and vitriolic, with both Modi and Gandhi often making personal attacks against each other. Polling will be held on December 14. Votes would be counted on December 18.

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Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today held meetings with locals in Doda district for over 15 hours, in one of the longest public interactions in recent times by a leader, officials said.

Mufti, who reached Doda yesterday on the second leg of her three-day tour of Chenab valley region, started grievances redressal camp at10.30 AMwhich continued till late in the night, a government spokesperson said in an official statement.

The last deputation which met her past midnight around1.40 AMcame from Palmas area of Doda and demanded construction of a footpath and connecting the area with the circular road of the town.

Around 100 deputations met Mufti during her public outreach programme and given the large number of people and their demands, it continued pastmidnightmaking it one of the longest interactions in the state in recent times, it said.

According to the statement, the grievances redressal camps convened by the chief minister generally extend up to late in the evenings.

The camp at Kishtwaron Saturdaywhich started at11 AMended at11.30 PMwith a deputation from Drabshalla bringing their problems to her notice, it added.

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The Jammu and Kashmir's Department of Libraries and Research today rolled out an initiative of linking up with National Digital Libraries of India (NDLI) to provide free access to the state's students and academicians to around 1.5 crore downloadable e-books and journals.

The initiative was launched on the sidelines of a workshop on 'Digitised Libraries' organised by the Department of Libraries and Research here today.

The workshop was inaugurated by the Minister of State for Education, Priya Sethi.

National Digital Libraries of India is an online repository of the e-books under the aegis of Union Human Resource Development Ministry. It has been developed by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur.

The repository hosts content in multiple languages on multiple subject domains including technology, science, humanities, agriculture and others with educational material available from primary to PhD level.

The learning resources include e-books, journals, articles, thesis, manuscripts, audio and video lectures.

To integrate J&K's libraries with the online repository of National Digital Libraries of India, the state's Libraries Department has already launched a massive digitisation programme under which all the libraries in the state are going to be digitised in a phased manner.

The National Digital Libraries of India will be also imparting training to the staff of the Libraries Department in J&K regarding the use of online services.

Speaking at the inauguration of the Workshop, Priya Sethi said that in the age of Internet, massive changes are occurring in life and it has become necessary to adopt and take benefit from new technological inventions and digital interventions.

She said the initiative will help the students get online access to the best possible educational resources within and outside the country.

"Once our libraries are fully digitised, joining hands with NDLI will contribute a lot in facilitating the teaching- learning process and the research work," she said.

Speaking on the occasion, Director Libraries, Mukhtar- ul- Aziz said the department has computerised all District and some Tehsil-level libraries in the state so far and is in the process to make all state libraries fully digitised in a more user-friendly way.

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An alliance of Nepal's main Communist party and former Maoist rebels is heading for a landslide victory and is expected to form the next government in Nepal, ousting the ruling Nepali Congress, after winning 106 seats in the historic provincial and parliamentary polls.

The CPN-UML led by former prime minister K P Oli and the CPN-Maoist led by former premier Prachanda have forged an electoral alliance for both the landmark polls, which is seen as a turning point after two decades of conflict and political instability in Nepal.

Prime Minister candidate and Chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML) Khadga Prashad Oli. (Photo: REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar/File photo)

According to results released by the Election Commission today, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified MarxistLeninist (CPN-UML) has won highest number of 74 seats, followed by its alliance partner CPN-Maoist Centre, which won 32 seats, out of the total 165 seats under the first-past-the-post election system.

As the Left alliance headed for a clear majority in the 275-member Parliament, Oli was being projected to succeed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Oli won from the Jhapa-5 constituency by more than 28,000 votes as he defeated Nepali Congress candidate Khagendra Adhikari. He polled 57,139 votes, the highest number of votes so far secured by any candidate in the election.

The CPN-Maoist Centre leader Prachanda was declared elected from Chitawan-3 constituency. He defeated Bikram Pandey of Rastriya Prajatantra Party by more than 10,000 votes. Prachanda got 41,574 votes.

The ruling Nepali Congress (NC), which was the largest party in the last elections and considered close to India, was trailing at third position with 20 seats.

It was followed by two Madhesi parties - Rastriya Janta Party Nepal, which won 10 seats and Federal Socialist Forum Nepal, with nine seats. The combined strength of the two Madhesi parties has reached 19.

Following the adoption of the new Constitution in 2015, the ethnic Madhesi group, mostly of Indian-origin, protested for months, saying they were not getting enough territory in one of the provinces and were also facing discrimination.

According to the Election Commission's tallies, the Naya Shakti Nepal-led by former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party and the Rastriya Janamorcha have secured one seat each.

Three Independents have also been elected to the Parliament.

The Himalayan Times, in a report, said that the strong mandate to the Left alliance means that Nepal "could experience political stability" which it has been lacking for the 11 years of transition.

It also said that the NC should play the role of a constructive opposition as it was also crucial in the young democracy.

The House of Representatives consists of 275 members, of which 165 would be elected directly under the first-past-the- post system while the remaining 110 will come through the proportional representation system.

Voting in two-phased parliamentary and provincial assembly elections were held on November 26 and December 7.

In the first phase, polling was held in 32 districts, mostly situated in the hilly and mountainous region, in which 65 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise. In the second phase, 67 per cent voter turnout was registered.

A total of 1,663 candidates contested polls for parliamentary seats.

Meanwhile, the counting of votes in the proportionate voting system was under progress, following which the final results would be declared.

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The fear of defeat has forced the BJP to abandon the pretence of development and use the "communal card" to polarise the electorate, Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani said here today.

Mevani is contesting as an Independent candidate from north Gujarat's Vadgam constituency with support from the Congress.

The BJP, he said, is targeting him on "communal lines" for receiving a cheque of Rs 50,000 from the Social Democratic Party of India. But it should explain the reason behind the reported rise in fortunes of BJP chief Amit Shah's son Jay Shah, he told PTI in an interview.

"If SDPI has links with any terror outfit or jihadi group, then why did Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh or Narendra Modi remain silent all these years? All they have given me is a Rs 50,000 cheque. Should one question this or the 16,000 times rise in Jay Shah's fortunes?" he asked.

Mevani was referring to allegations that a company owned by BJP chief Amit Shah's son saw a huge rise in turnover after his party came to power in 2014. The charge was rejected by the BJP and Shah's son, Jay Amit Shah, who termed the story "false, derogatory and defamatory".

Mevani, 35, said the BJP is targeting him as it has no agenda in the elections.

"These kind of tricks are not going to work. The people of Gujarat know that Jignesh Mevani is a man of impeccable integrity," he said.

According to Mevani, the BJP was betraying nervousness by fielding the entire top leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Amit Shah, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, to campaign against him.

"I am confident of winning. In Gujarat, the issue of development has taken a backseat as the ruling BJP is using the communal card as a last resort. It is showing its true colours now. Over the months they will talk of development, but in the last lap they will bare their fangs and brazenly polarise the electorate," he said.

Mevani announced late last month that he was contesting elections as an Independent candidate from the Vadgam constituency of Banaskantha district, prompting the Congress to swiftly withdraw its candidate from the seat, a traditional stronghold of the party.

However, a rebel Congress candidate threw his hat into the ring, raising the possibility of a division of votes of the Dalits and the Muslims.

Initially, that became a problem, Mevani said. However, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's joint rally with him at Kanodar in Vadgam yesterday smoothened the creases.

"Rahul categorically told Congress workers that they have to work to make the symbol of sewing machine (Jignesh's poll symbol) win. The rebel candidate has no relevance anymore. Initially, there were problems, not any more," he said.

Mevani, who shot to fame after organising movements against atrocities against the community in Una and leading a long march 'Azadi Kooch' demanding land for Dalits, said he was reaching out to all communities in the constituency, including Thakores, Patels and Chaudharys.

"I am getting the support of all communities, including Dalits, Muslims and Thakores. I have been reaching out to them seperately over the last four days. Every meeting is getting a good response," he said.

On ground, three factors, including the Congress rebel's candidature, are working against him. Mevani is being seen as an outsider, since he is from Mehsana and his movement was largely based out of Saurashtra. And there is a possible consolidation of Hindu votes cutting across castes, which may favour the BJP.

Vadgam goes to the polls on December 14, phase two of the elections. The first phase was held on December 9. The votes will be counted on December 18.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today he expected Europe to follow the US in recognising Jerusalem as the Jewish state's capital, but the EU's diplomatic chief said there was no change to its stance on the holy city.

Netanyahu said the controversial announcement by US President Donald Trump - which prompted diplomatic alarm and street protests across the Islamic world - had "put facts squarely on the table".

As he arrived for talks in Brussels, Netanyahu said he expected "all or most" European countries would follow the US -- but the 28-nation bloc's foreign policy head Federica Mogherini said its position remained that Jerusalem should be a capital for both Israelis and Palestinians.

The EU expressed alarm last week at the US decision, but Netanyahu said Trump had simply stated facts by acknowledging that Jerusalem had been the capital of the Israeli state for 70 years and of the Jewish people for 3,000 years.

"It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," he said in a statement alongside Mogherini ahead of a breakfast meeting with EU foreign ministers.

"I believe that all or most of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace," Netanyahu said.

The Jerusalem decision upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus. Mogherini last week warned it could take the situation "backwards to even darker times".

Mogherini said the EU -- the Palestinians' largest donor -- would stick to the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.

She reiterated the EU's stance that "the only realistic solution" for peace is two states -- Israel and Palestine -- with Jerusalem as the capital of both and the borders returned to their status before the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

And she pledged to step up efforts with the two sides and regional partners including Jordan and Egypt to relaunch the peace process.

Netanyahu has praised Trump's decision as "historic" and he explained yesterday that Jerusalem "has always been our capital and it has never been the capital of any other people".

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital and previous peace plans have stumbled over debates on whether and how to divide sovereignty or oversee holy sites.

Mogherini also condemned attacks on Israel -- after Netanyahu took aim over the weekend at what he called Europe's "hypocrisy" for condemning Trump's statement, but not "the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it".

"Let me condemn in the strongest possible way all attacks on Jews everywhere in the world, including in Europe, and on Israel and on Israeli citizens," Mogherini said.

Netanyahu pointed to a new US peace initiative as a possible way forward.

"There is now an effort under way to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance this peace," he said.

Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but it is not clear what progress he is making.

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New India Assurance will provide health cover to about 4 crore poor people of Rajasthan under a state-sponsored insurance programme.

The general insurance company will execute health insurance for about one crore poor families across the state, it said in a statement today.

The Bhamasha Swasthya Bima Yojana (BSBY) programme of the state government will extend health insurance benefits to four crore people who are covered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).

New India Assurance said this will be one of the largest health insurance schemes in the country that will give cover for cashless treatment of 1,401 diseases.

The insured person will get a cover of Rs 3 lakh for 663 critical illness and Rs 30,000 each for 738 general illness under BSBY.

"This is one of the unique universal health insurance schemes in the country and is operated through large number of empanelled hospitals both public and private," G Srinivasan, CMD of New India Assurance said in the statement.

With the state bearing Rs 1,261 cover per family, the total insurance premium cost of the programme comes over Rs 1,200 crore per annum.

The insurance scheme is part of Rajasthan government's vision of maximum governance and minimum government, improvement in health indicators, reduction in out of pocket expenses and providing financial security to the poor against illnesses.

It also aims to provide stimulus to private sector to open hospitals in rural areas and reducing the increasing burden on government facilities.

New India Assurance is the largest general insurance company of India in terms of net worth, domestic gross direct premium, net profit as well as number of branches. It is also present in 28 other countries.

The company's gross premium for half year ended September 30, stood at Rs 12,823.49 crore.

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World leader in diabetes care, the Danish pharma major Novo Nordisk, in partnership with Torrent Pharma, today opened an enhanced facility in Gujarat and will be launching new products in the country-the home to the world's largest population of diabetes.

"With the inauguration of the second phase of the manufacturing facility at Indrad near here, we'll increase our insulin producing capacity by 35 per cent," Novo Nordisk managing director Melvin D'souza told PTI here today.

India is home to a whopping 73 million diabetic patients and Novo Nordisk holds 60 per cent share of the Rs 2,200-crore insulin market in the country.

The expanded Indrad facility will help meet nearly 75 per cent of the domestic insulin demand, D'souza said, adding through this partnership, they will continue to ensure cost- effective, high-quality medicines are available in the market.

Novo Nordisk through its manufacturing partner Torrent Pharma plans to bring in more insulin products into the domestic market.

"To meet 15 per cent CAGR of insulin market here, we are looking at launching more advanced insulins in the coming years," said Frederik Kier, senior vice-president at Novo Nordisk, adding his the Danish company is committed to addressing the growing diabetes burden by working with all the stakeholders.

Jinesh Shah, executive director at Torrent said, "we look forward to working more collaboratively with Novo Nordisk to ensure the diabetes challenge is addressed effectively. We have already invested Rs 60 crore in this facility."



Congratulating both the partners, Peter Takse-Jensen, the Danish ambassador said, "it's a proud moment for Indo- Danish collaboration as Torrent and Novo Nordisk mark 25 years of partnership.

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In an effort to bring local militants back to the mainstream, the Jammu and Kashmir Police has launched "Operation Outreach" under which they meet the kin of such youths and motivate the families to make them leave militancy.

Under the operation, which began earlier this month from three South Kashmir districts of Shopian, Pulwama and Kulgam, currently the epicentre of the terrorism in the state, the J&K police has met with the kin of over 100 militants so far.

"We have begun meeting the families and kin of the militants. We will reach out to other districts also and hold meetings with families of the militants," Director General of Police (DGP) J&K, S P Vaid, told PTI today.

The outreach programme was launched following Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti's remarks "only killing terrorists won't wipe out militancy, a humane approach is needed", police officials said.

Four militants have so far shunned guns and returned to their homes under the operation, the DGP said.

"We will reach out to the kin and families of all the local terrorists in the Kashmir valley," Vaid said.

"So far police have held meeting with families and kin of over 100 local terrorists in South Kashmir. There are positive responses from the families in the meetings."



In Shopian, DIG (South Kashmir) and the Senior Superintendent of Police held meeting with families of 35 militants and they received very good response, he said.

Similarly, the Awantipora SSP held meeting with the families of militants where the officer received very good response, Vaid said.

"They (police) are doing very good job. It (the outreach programme) is working very well," the DGP said.

The Kashmir Valley has 10 districts and six districts including Shopian, Kulgam, Pulwama (South Kashmir),Budgam (Central Kashmir), Kupwara and Handwara (North Kashmir) are infested with militancy and militants.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had on November 29 said militancy cannot be wiped out just by killing militants and a more "humane approach" was needed to tackle the problem.

"You have to eliminate militancy in Kashmir. But it cannot be done by killing militants alone," the PDP leader had said while addressing the attestation-cum-passing out parade of 947 recruits at the Police Training School in Kathua.

Advocating a "soft" approach in dealing with extremism in the state, the CM had referred to the government's recent decision to revoke cases against first-time stone-pelters in the Valley.

"The police have to engage in parenting and counselling of these children. I had invited pellet victims to my home recently. I was surprised to know that most of them were minors (14, 15 or 16 years of age)," she said.

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The participation of a Pakistani minister at the inauguration of the first phase of Iran's Chabahar port - even though the country is not part of the strategic project - represents a "significant shift" in the two neighbours' ties, a media report said today.

As Iranian President Hassan Rowhani inaugurated the first phase of the Chabahar port last week, Pakistan's minister for ports and shipping Hasil Khan Bizenjo was standing next to him.

"This was no coincidence, as Hasil Khan Bizenjo was asked to stand next to Rowhani in a carefully choreographed move," the Express Tribune reported regarding the minister's presence on the occasion despite the fact that Pakistan is not part of the project.

"The objective behind this move was clear Iran wanted to send a message that it would not allow India or any other country to use Chabahar against Pakistan," a senior Iranian diplomat reportedly told the daily on condition of anonymity.

Such a firsthand account of close cooperation between Pakistan and Iran is unusual and represents a significant shift in the two neighbours' ties, which have often been marred by a trust deficit and mutual suspicion, the paper commented.

The turnaround is also important when seen alongside Pakistan's participation in the Saudi-led counter-terrorism coalition, it said.

Iran, which is not part of the grouping, considers the initiative an attempt to further Saudi Arabia's agenda in West Asia.

That is one of the reasons that Pakistan has been treading a careful path on the issue as it has the potential to undermine ties with Iran, the report said.

Pakistan, according to official sources, has assured Iran that Islamabad would not become part of an initiative that targets Tehran.

Tehran, in return, has pledged that it would not allow any regional country, including India, to undermine Pakistan's interests, the report said.

The Chabahar port opens a new strategic route connecting Iran, India and Afghanistan, while bypassing Pakistan, and reflects growing convergence of interests among the three countries.

The port is considered a gateway to golden opportunities for trade by India, Iran and Afghanistan with central Asian countries besides ramping up trade among the three countries in the wake of Pakistan denying transit access to New Delhi.

The port in Iran's Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich nation's southern coast is easily accessible from India's western coast and is increasingly seen as a counter to Pakistan's Gwadar, which is being developed with Chinese investment and is located around 80 kms from Chabahar.

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Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will attend the extraordinary Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit on the issue of Jerusalem in the Turkish capital this week, the Foreign Office said today.

The summit to be held on December 13 in Istanbul will be preceded by the council of Foreign Ministers' meeting which will be attended by Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, it added.

"The Extraordinary Summit has been called by the President of Turkey in his capacity as the Chair of the OIC Summit. Most OIC Member States are expected to attend," the Foreign Office said.

It said the summit will discuss President Donald Trump's recent decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and shift the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The OIC (formerly Organisation of the Islamic Conference) is the second largest inter-governmental organisation after the UN which has membership of 57 Muslim countries.

The OIC leaders will also explore ways to deal with the situation, the FO added.

Prime Minister Abbasi will convey the sentiments of the people and Government of Pakistan of the unequivocal support to the people of Palestine.

He will seek a united stance on the issue of Jerusalem also known as Al-Quds Al-Sharif and call upon the US Administration to review its decision.

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A Parliamentary panel meet today on Air India disinvestment plan witnessed sharp differences of opinion among ruling and opposition members over the move even as BJP member Shatrughan Sinha is believed to have opposed the decision to privatise the national carrier.

The committee, headed by TMC leader Derek O Brien, convened the meeting to hear representatives of Air India employees' unions as well as officials of various Air India subsidiaries on the proposed divestment of the airline.

The meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture that began at around 1430 hours lasted for more than three hours.

A Lok Sabha member said there were sharp differences of opinion among the BJP and non-BJP members at the meeting. All the trade unions strongly opposed the decision to privatise Air India, while some members wanted to know why profitable ventures like Air India Express are being sold, he added.

Another person who was present at the meeting said there were differences of opinion among the members, with some supporting and others opposing the disinvestment of Air India.

Even though BJP members were in support of the Air India disinvestment decision, party member Shatrughan Sinha voiced his opposition to the plan, the person said on condition of anonymity.

A BJP MP from Bihar, Sinha has been critical of certain government decisions in recent times.

According to the person quoted earlier, a Congress member stressed that Air India is a must to maintain a balance with the private players.

Sources said 14 employee unions of Air India, both recognised and unrecognised, attended the meeting.

Besides, stating that stakeholders were consulted before deciding on Air India stake sale, the unions also flagged concerns about job security, retirement benefits and pending dues in case of privatisation, they added.

There were differences of opinion among various members, a person who was present at the meeting said, adding that it was likely the last meet of the panel on the Air India issue.

When asked about the meeting, Derek O Brien only said it was long and was for around three-and-a-half hours.

Senior officials of the airline's subsidiaries -- Air India Express, Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL), Air India Air Transport Services Ltd (AIATSL), Alliance Air and Hotel Corporation of India were present.

Among others, Air India Express CEO K Shyam Sundar and AIESL CEO H R Jagannath attended the meeting.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave its in-principle nod for the strategic disinvestment of Air India in June this year.

The government is working on the modalities for the stake sale.

The carrier, which has a debt burden of more than Rs 50,000 crore, managed to eke out operational profit for the first time in a decade in 2015-16.

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The Delhi High Court today sought the Centre's response on two PILs seeking an SIT probe into alleged over-invoicing of equipment and fuel imported for power plants by the electricity generating companies of Adani and Essar groups.

A bench of Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Sanjeev Sachdeva also issued notice to the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seeking its reply to the allegations made in the pleas.

The court directed the DRI to file an affidavit indicating the steps taken by it in the matter and listed the PILs for further hearing on February 7.

During the hearing, the DRI's lawyer told the bench that its probe into some of the power firms had ended and an order was expected soon from its adjudicating authority.

The court was hearing two petitions, one by a private individual and another by two NGOs alleging that the power firms belonging to the two corporate groups were allegedly inflating the value of imports for their power plants to siphon money abroad and avail higher power rate compensation.

The NGOs have claimed that the DRI had earlier unearthed that public and private sector energy companies were siphoning away several thousands crores of rupees abroad.

"Most of these over-invoicing instances have been reported from the power sector, the impact of which is felt by millions of the electricity consumers in the form of higher tariff," the NGOs have claimed in their PIL.

"The modus operandi is identical in all these cases. The coal or power equipment, even though (these are) shipped directly to India, but the invoicing is routed through a different company incorporated abroad which is directly owned and controlled by the promoters of the project in India," the PIL alleged.

The pleas have also claimed that the CBI had registered a Preliminary Enquiry (PE) based on the DRI show-cause notice to Adani in May 2014.

However, the CBI apparently closed the PE without registering an FIR during the tenure of then CBI Director Ranjit Sinha, the PIL alleged.

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The Congress today demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologise to former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former vice president Hamid Ansari and withdraw his statement alleging that "they were colluding with Pakistan" for defeating the BJP in Gujarat polls.

Congress senior spokesperson Anand Sharma also accused the prime minister of dragging the political discourse to an "unacceptable low" by making statements that harmed the dignity of his post.

He alleged that the Modi was "frustrated" as he had sensed a clear defeat of the BJP in Gujarat and was resorting to use of foul language in his bid to whip up emotions and polarise Gujarat.

"There cannot be anything more as explanation and there cannot be anything more reprehensible than what he has done," he alleged.

"The prime minister should restore the dignity of the political discourse, withdraw what he has said and apologise to the former prime minister and the former vice president," Sharma told reporters.

Addressing an election rally, Modi yesterday claimed that Congress leaders held a secret meeting with current and former Pakistani officials a day ahead of Mani Shankar Aiyar's "neech" jibe against him and that there was an attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the Gujarat polls.

Sharma dismissed as "absurd" the prime minister's statement and said while Modi "belongs to a party which has no contribution in the country's freedom struggle while the Congress has fought it".

It is expected of the prime minister of India to be dignified in his discourse, he said, adding the prime minister should always remember that the Congress does not level allegations and cast aspersions on those who are on high positions.

"He is seeking sympathy desperately by playing the victim card, which he and his party are playing while dragging the political discourse to an unacceptable low," he said.

His statement yesterday by insinuation, accusing the former vice president of India and former prime minister Manmohan Singh of doing something which was improper, "is highly irresponsible, unwarranted and condemnable", Sharma said.

The Congress leader said the prime minister must remember that mere attending a social function in which high dignitaries were present should not be given a "sinister and sensational twist", especially when it was not a secret meeting.

He said the former chief of Indian Army, former Indian High Commissioners to Pakistan and eminent journalists were all present at this dinner meeting hosted by Aiyar.

"Since when has it become a crime and one needs to seek permission before attending a dinner," he asked.

The Congress leader also asked why the prime minister does not talk about progress and the country's economy.

"Why doesn't he talk about farmers today? Why doesn't he talk about employment, the future of youth? What is their agenda, on what basis are they fighting the polls?" he asked.

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One of the two policeman injured in accidental firing in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir last week has succumbed to injuries at a hospital here today, police said.

Constable Fayaz Ahmad Ganai succumbed to injuries at SKIMS Hospital Soura this morning, a police official said.

Ganai and his colleague Zaheer Abbas were injured when the service rifle of a cop went off accidentally at police station Kulgam on December 4.

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The prayers and forgiveness will lead people to peace and not war, guns and bullets, says Father Tom Uzhunnalil, the Catholic priest who was freed after being kept in captivity suspectedly by the ISIS for 18 months in strife-torn Yemen.

Uzhunnalil said terrorists are created by community and if the communities can be forgiving, there will be peace.

He was speaking here last night on the sidelines of Mother Teresa Awards, of which he was one of the recipients.

He said freedom is not just doing whatever one wants to do. "It is doing the right thing at the right time and the right place."



"Freedom to love and forgive and prayer will lead us to true peace. Not war, not bullets, not rockets or guns, but the prayer is our greatest weapon. The Father of our Nation (Mahatma Gandhi) got us freedom not through bullets, but through satyagraha and prayers," he said.

The priest from Kerala was abducted in March 2016 by Islamic State terrorists during a deadly attack on a care home run by Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity in the port city of Aden in war-ravaged Yemen. He was rescued in September this year.

Uzhunnalil said he never felt terrorised in captivity.

"If we surrender ourselves to God's will, he will give us grace, understanding and calmness of mind to remain peaceful from within and rest will be taken care of. I never had any dreadful dreams, nightmares, fear, trembling, sweating or anything like that," he said.

The priest was honoured with the Mother Teresa Memorial Award for his extraordinary service at the care home of the Missionaries of Charity.

He said the need of the hour is to forgive and love one another.

"Avoid situations that will instigate people to revolt in life. Terrorists are created by community, if the communities can be forgiving there will be peace," he said.

Noted actor Priyanka Chopra and various organisations who have worked relentlessly in helping refugees with food, shelter, education and other essentials of life, were also presented the award at the function.

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President Ramnath Kovind would be the chief guest at the valedictory function of the World Telugu Conference to be organised here by the Telangana government from December 15 to 19.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu will be the chief guest for the inaugural session of the Conference, an official release said today.

It said Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governor ESL Narasimhan and his Maharashtra counterpart Ch Vidyasagar Rao are also expected to participate in the programme.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao along with some of his cabinet colleagues and senior officials held a review meeting on the programme, the release added.

As many as 7,920 guests and representatives have registered to attend the World Telugu Conference, state Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari had said.

Srihari had said that stalls would be set up to showcase the history of Telangana, its literature, handicrafts, temples and coins.

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Four persons, including three members of a Mumbai-based family were today killed when their car collided with a truck on the Pune-Satara road here, police said.

The deceased were identified as Yashwant Mane (55), Sharda Mane (46), Hrishikesh Mane (20) and Krushna Surve (65), all residents of Chunabhatti, an official attached to the Bharti Vidyapeeth police station said.

According to him, the mishap occurred when members of the Mane family were returning to Mumbai after dropping their daughter at her college in Satara in western Maharashtra.

Police said a probe was underway.

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The Punjab government is hoping to save Rs 2,000 crore by rationalising the expenditure of various departments and plugging revenue leakage as it looks to become a revenue surplus state in the next three years.

"We are expecting to save Rs 2,000 crore in the current financial year with the rationalisation of expenditure of government departments. We are asking the departments to plug in loopholes and any revenue leakage to reduce fiscal burden," state Finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal said here today.

Badal said he was holding weekly meetings with the concerned officials of various departments including police, health and agriculture in this regard.

Sharing details of steps taken to reduce expenditure, Badal said the government is anticipating savings of Rs 492 crore with the implementation of order in which no government department would remain opened in private buildings.

"We have also cancelled deputation of government employees as we fear leakages of salaries. We did not know where the employee was working and from which department he was drawing salary. This step will also bring some savings," he further said.

The minister further said the state government had also taken up the issue of rationalisation of labour and transportation charges and expenditure related to gunny bags for the foodgrain procurement with the Centre, which would also result in savings of Rs 500 crore.

The departments like industry, food and civil supply and local government have also been asked to recover their pending dues under the one-time settlement scheme, he said.

Citing an example, Badal said a sum of Rs 6,000 crore was yet to be recovered from the state rice shellers.

Notably, the "cash crunched" state government has been facing acute fiscal crisis and has been even struggling to pay salaries to the government employees.

The delay in the release of the GST compensation and state's share in GST by the Centre has also made matter worse for the state government to meet necessary expenses.

The Congress-led government had accused previous 10-year regime of the SAD-BJP government of putting the state into a "fiscal mess" while leaving a debt of Rs 2,08,000 crore on the state.

"When we came to power (in March this year), the previous government left the state with unpaid financial liabilities of Rs 13,000 crore as they diverted funds," alleged Badal while promising to put the state's finances on the right track.

"We are hoping to become a revenue surplus state in next three years," said Badal.

The Punjab government in a budget presented in June this year had projected revenue deficit at Rs 14,784.87 crore for current fiscal as against Rs 11,362.02 crore for last fiscal.

Meanwhile, Badal said an interstate council meeting of the northern zone including Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh etc will take place next month in which tax rationalisation of petroleum products, motor vehicle registration tax and tourism promotion will be part of the agenda for discussion.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin called today for Israeli-Palestinian peace talks to resume, including on Jerusalem, following the controversial US decision to recognise the city as Israel's capital.

Speaking on state television during a visit to Egypt, Putin stressed the importance of "the immediate resumption of Palestinian-Israeli talks over all disputed issues, including the status of Jerusalem".

Speedy, long-term agreements "that are aligned with the interests of both sides" must be made, Putin said, according to an official translation of his remarks on Egyptian state television.

"These agreements must be in harmony with previous decisions of the international community," said Putin, adding that "Russia fully supports previous Security Council resolutions".

With the international community in near consensus in opposing US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital, a fifth day of protests was expected in the Middle East today.

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas was also in Cairo today for crisis talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, a key regional US ally, ahead of a summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the main pan-Islamic body, on Wednesday.

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Rahul Gandhi was elected the Congress president today, marking a generational shift in the grand old party and becoming the sixth member of the influential Nehru-Gandhi clan to occupy the post.

He will take over the reins of the party from his mother Sonia Gandhi, who steered it through success and failure for 19 years, the longest in the party's 132-year history, on December 16.

Mullappally Ramachandran, the chief of the Congress's central election authority, announced Gandhi's election today, the last day for withdrawal of nominations, when the 47-year- old leader, who appeared to have lately undergone a transformation-- from the tentative to the assertive--was busy canvassing for the party in Gujarat.

"Since the withdrawal of date/time is over and as there is only one candidate (Rahul), as per Article XVII (d) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I hereby declare Shri Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress," Ramachandran told a press conference.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Rahul Gandhi on his election even as the two are locked in a bitter political battle in Gujarat where assembly elections are on.

"I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress president. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure," Modi tweeted from his personal twitter handle @narendramodi.

As expected, the Congress continued to rely heavily on a person with the Gandhi surname, to revive its dwindling fortunes despite losing state after state, with the exception of Punjab, since the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Altogether 89 sets of nominations were filed for the election to the top post and all were on behalf of Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi's elevation comes close to five years after he was appointed party vice president in January 2013 and seemingly endless speculation about his impending promotion over the past couple of years after Sonia Gandhi started keeping indifferent health.

Rahul Gandhi, who appeared reluctant to take on the mantle of Congress president, gave clear indication about his readiness to accept the responsibility of running the party during an interaction at the University of California, Berkeley, in September this year.

"I am absolutely ready to do that," he had told the gathering when asked if he wanted to take up an executive role in the Congress Party.

While pageantry would herald the dawn of a new era in the Congress, which has ruled the country for over half-a-century since independence on December 16, the scion of the Nehru- Gandhi family will face the daunting task of restoring lost glory to the party whose fortunes have seen a downswing in the recent past.

Today, the party, which once controlled almost the entire country, has its governments in just five states and the Union Territory of Puducherry.

A win in the Gujarat Assembly election, where a sure- footed Rahul Gandhi has led a spirited campaign against the BJP, would come as a massive boost for him. Pollsters have already predicted a dead heat between the two parties in the state, which the BJP has ruled without a break for over 19 years now.

Striking a balance between the old guard and the young leaders would be key to running the organisation which has many seasoned politicians whose wisdom he could use as he steers the party through the choppy waters of current Indian politics.

Gandhi had said in the past that he would draw upon a blend of experience of the old and the energy of the young to helm the organisation.

Before Rahul Gandhi, other members of the family who occupied the post of Congress president were Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi.

The family was at the helm of the Congress's affairs after independence for at least 38 years: Jawaharlal Nehru for more than three years, his daughter Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi for eight years each, and Sonia Gandhi for a record 19 years.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that recognising Jerusalem as his country's capital "makes peace possible", after widespread international criticism of the US decision to do so.

US President Donald Trump's announcement last week has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories, as well as demonstrations across the Islamic world.

The EU expressed alarm at the decision, which upends seven decades of US policy on the disputed holy city, and the bloc's foreign ministers are set to urge Netanyahu to resume dialogue with the Palestinians as he meets them over breakfast in Brussels.

The Israeli premier said what Trump had done was to "put facts squarely on the table" by acknowledging Jerusalem had been the capital of the Israeli state for 70 years and of the Jewish people for 3,000 years.

"It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," he said in a statement alongside EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini.

Mogherini, who last week warned the Jerusalem decision could take the situation "backwards to even darker times", restated the EU's position that a two-state solution with Jerusalem as capital for both Israelis and Palestinians was the only sustainable way to resolve the conflict.

Netanyahu pointed to a new US peace initiative as a possible way forward.

"There is now an effort under way to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance this peace," he said.

Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but it is not clear what progress he is making.

Netanyahu's visit to Brussels comes after he met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris yesterday.

Macron called on him to freeze settlement building and to re-engage with Palestinians.

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital and previous peace plans have stumbled over debates on whether and how to divide sovereignty or oversee holy sites.

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The main opposition party in Bihar, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), hit the streets here today against the sand mining policy of the Nitish Kumar government in the state, throwing vehicular traffic out of gear.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also announced a statewide bandh on December 18 against the "anti-poor" attitude of the NDA dispensation in the state.

The protest march, which was led by RJD national vice presidents Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and Shivanand Tiwary and state president Ramchandra Purve, started from the party office at the Birchand Patel Marg and concluded at the Kargil Chowk, a few kilometres away.

The JD(U)-BJP coalition government, after coming to power in the state in July, had come up with a new policy, in a bid to put an end to illegal sand mining and regulate its trade.

Lalu Prasad's party has been critical of the policy.

Road traffic was badly affected along the route of the march at the heart of the town with vehicles, including school buses and ambulances, seen stranded for hours.

Reacting to the RJD stir, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters, "They are not agitating for any hardship caused to the common man. They are desperately trying to protect the sand mafia, which has been funding their party."



Told about the deputy chief minister's remark, Tiwary angrily retorted, "The state government is neck deep in corruption which has been proved by scams such as Srijan. It has no moral right to speak about the mafia funding any party."



Singh, who is also a former Union minister, said, "Construction activities have come to a standstill in the state since July, when the impractical sand mining policy came into being. Thousands of workers have been rendered jobless and compelled to migrate to other states in search of a livelihood."



Tejashwi said, "The JD(U)-BJP government is anti-poor, anti-worker and anti-Dalit. Even the directions of the Patna High Court seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

"Left with no other choice, we will now be staging a Bihar bandh on December 18. The bandh will get support from every section of the society as the state is reeling under rampant corruption, deteriorating law-and-order and anti- people policies of the government, which seems indifferent to the plight of the common man.

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The Supreme Court today said it cannot direct the legislature to legislate but has "simply" asked the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government to deliberate on issues including whether the majority Muslim community in the state could be regarded as a minority for availing benefits.

The Centre informed a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra that it was still deliberating on a host of issues including whether Muslims, who are majority in Jammu and Kashmir, can be treated as minority to get benefits which are only available to minorities in the state.

"We have legal difficulties. We cannot direct the legislature to legislate on a particular issue. We just asked them (Centre and state) to deliberate," the bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said.

It considered the statement of Attorney General K K Venugopal that the process of deliberations was on and a decision would be taken, and granted eight weeks to the Centre.

The bench had on August 8 granted the last opportunity to the Centre and other stakeholders to take a final decision within three months on issues raised in the petition filed by Ankur Sharma, a Jammu-based lawyer.

The Centre had then sought time saying it has been holding consultations with the state government.

Prior to this, the top court had issued notice to the Centre, the state government and the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) on the plea filed by Sharma who alleged that benefits accruing to the minorities were being taken away by the 68 per cent-strong Muslim community in J-K.

The court had asked the Centre and the state government to "sit together" and find a solution to "contentious" issues including whether the Muslims in the state could be regarded as a minority to avail benefits under that category.

The plea has alleged that the rights of religious and linguistic 'minorities' in the state were being "siphoned off illegally and arbitrarily" due to extension of benefits to "unqualified sections" of the population.

Sharma alleged the provisions of the National Commission for Minorities Act were not applicable to Jammu and Kashmir due to a caveat put by Article 370 of the Constitution.

"Moreover, crores of rupees are being given to the members of the majority community under various schemes meant for linguistic and religious minorities," he said.

The state government was violating Article 29 (protection of interests of minorities) and Article 30 (right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions) under the Constitution, he has alleged.

The PIL has also sought setting up of a state minority commission for identification of minorities and extension of National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act, 1992 to Jammu and Kashmir.

"The population of Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir according to the 2011 Census is 68.31 per cent. Communities which are eligible to be notified as minorities, are not awarded their due share of scholarship owing to their non-identification as minorities, thereby jeopardising their constitutionally guaranteed rights enshrined under Part III of the Constitution of India," it has said.

"This clearly reflected the unfairness and discrimination of the state government towards other communities in Jammu and Kashmir which were eligible to be notified as minorities," the petition has alleged.

It has pleaded that a committee of experts functioning under the direct supervision of the apex court be appointed and a comprehensive report be submitted identifying communities in the state which qualified as religious and linguistic minorities.

The petition has also demanded that a special investigation team (SIT), headed by a retired high court judge working under direct supervision of the top court, be constituted for investigating the illegal and arbitrary disbursement of minority benefits.

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Odisha Assembly today witnessed repeated adjournments after question hour as the members of ruling BJD and Opposition Congress and BJP created pandemonium over Mahanadi and farmers issues.

Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat, however, managed to pass the supplementary budget of 39 departments through guillotine amidst the din prevailing in the House.

After the question hour, the BJP members raised the farmers issue and stormed into well of the House demanding loan waiver. They shouted slogans against the BJD government and termed it as "anti-farmer".

The farmers of the state are badly affected as the kharif crop has been hit by drought, subsequent pest attack and unseasonal rain.

The BJD members, on the other hand, raised the Mahanadi issue and accused the Centre of being partisan.

They alleged that the central government is supporting the BJP ruled Chhattisgarh which is constructing projects of upstream of Mahanadi river "illegally."



Odisha has been opposing construction of a number of barrages and dams by Chhattisgarh on the upper reaches of the Mahanadi river saying it would affect the state's farmers.

The Centre had told the Supreme Court on December 6 that the ongoing dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over Mahanadi should be sorted out through negotiations between the parties concerned.

Sanjay Dasburma of the BJD claimed that Chhattisgarh government has planned river interlinking to draw more water from Mahanadi and, in that case, Odisha will soon be dry.

Among heated exchange of words between members of the two parties, Speaker Amat adjourned the House till 3 pm.

When the House reassembled, Leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra of Congress sought a ruling from the Speaker on the alleged exploitation of paddy farmers at government 'mandis'.

Mishra said the agriculture minister should clarify in the House as to why the government mandis deduct about 5 kg on each 100 kg of paddy being sold by farmers.

As the speaker proceeded with other business, Congress MLAs rushed to well and raised anti-government slogans alleging distress sale of paddy by farmers.

While the BJP members also joined the Congress MLAs, treasury bench members again raised the Mahanadi issue creating a ruckus and Amat adjourn the House till 4.28 pm.

When the House re-assembled, a similar scene was recreated by the opposition members.

However, the speaker managed to pass the additional expenditure statement of 39 departments through guillotine and adjourned the House till tomorrow.

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Russia today pitched for India joining China's One Belt One Road initiative and hoped that New Delhi will find a way out to benefit from the mega connectivity project without sacrificing its position on the issues flagged by it.

In an address at a think tank, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said a sustainable security architecture in the Asia Pacific region cannot be achieved through "bloc arrangement", in a clear signal of Moscow's opposition to the quadrilateral grouping comprising the US, Japan, India and Australia.

Talking about regional issues, the Russian Foreign Minister said that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj "suggested" improving not only India-China ties but also India's relations with Pakistan.

Lavrov, Swaraj and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi today held the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meeting during which a range of regional and global issues were discussed.

On OBOR, Lavrov said Russia feels the concept is very interesting and needed to be explored in the context of building harmonious relationship for deeper regional trade and investment.

About India's opposition to the project, he said, "the specific problem in this regard should not make everything else conditional for resolving political differences".

India has opposed the OBOR due to its sovereignty concerns over the USD 50 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is part of the OBOR.

Lavrov said almost all the central Asian countries have already signed documents with China for cooperation in the OBOR while Russia and other members of the Eurasian Economic Union concluded economic cooperation agreement with it, indicating that the process is irreversible.

"I am 100 per cent convinced that India has enough very smart diplomats and politicians to find a way which will allow it to benefit from this process and at the same time not to sacrifice your position," the Russian Foreign Minister said.

In a clear reference to the quadrilateral grouping among the US, India, Japan and Australia, he said, "We believe that sustainable security architecture in the Asia Pacific region cannot be achieved through bloc arrangement and is only possible through an open ended collective basis."



Officials of the four countries held their first meeting in Manila last month to give shape to the much talked about quadrilateral alliance to keep the Indo-Pacific region "free and open".

The formation of the bloc is seen as an effort to contain China's growing assertiveness in the resource-rich area.

The Russian Foreign Minister also talked about the need for peaceful settlement of the disputes saying use of force and threatening to use force will not resolve any issue.

Calling India a key partner for Russia, he said further strengthening of ties between the two countries can address numerous problems in the Asia Pacific region.

On tackling terrorism, he called for a "truly universal coalition" to act against the terror groups without "any double standards and hidden agenda".

Sounding critical of the role of the US in Afghanistan, Lavrov said every stakeholder including the Taliban and the war-ravaged country's neighbours should be taken on board for brining lasting peace to it.

The Russian Foreign Minister said his country was ready to ensure transfer of technology to manufacture critical military platforms in India in joint venture and co- development projects.

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South Korean President Moon Jae-In hopes to "normalise" ties with giant neighbour China on his first state visit to the country this week, his office said today, after Beijing was infuriated by a US missile system deployment.

Seoul and Washington decided to install the powerful US THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system in the South earlier this year to guard against threats from the nuclear-armed North.

Beijing saw it as a threat to its own security and reacted furiously, slapping a string of measures against South Korean businesses and banning group tours to the South, in moves seen as economic retaliation.

China is the South's top trading partner and the diplomatic row took a major toll on many South Korean firms, most notably retail giant Lotte Group, which provided the land to host the powerful US missile system.

Angry boycott campaigns and regulatory crackdowns by Chinese authorities decimated its business in the world's second-largest economy, and it was forced to put its supermarket unit in China up for sale.

But last month the two countries issued identically- worded statements on their mutual desire to improve relations.

It did not state any specifics, but Beijing has demanded that Seoul formally promise not to deploy any more THAAD launchers and not to join any regional US missile defence system.

Nam Gwan-Pyo, a deputy director of the presidential national security office, did not give reporters details of any concrete steps that could be expected from Moon's four-day trip -- his first to China since taking power in May.

But he said it would be a turning point in relations towards a "more mature" relationship, he said, "by recovering bilateral trust and strengthening friendship between the leaders of the two nations".

Ties recently showed some -- albeit limited -- signs of thaw as China's state tourism board approved last month Seoul-bound group tours from some parts of China.

Moon heads to Beijing on Wednesday and will hold a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping the following day to discuss issues including how to curb the North's nuclear weapons drive, Nam added.

China -- the North's sole diplomatic ally and economic lifeline -- has stepped up sanctions on the North amid pressure from the US and the international community to play a bigger role in taming its regime.

Beijing has backed recent UN sanctions imposed on the North over its nuclear and missile tests, including a ban on coal imports, although it repeatedly pushed for talks to defuse the tensions.

It has urged a "double freeze" on both North Korean weapons tests and joint military exercises by Seoul and Washington -- an idea consistently rejected by the US and South Korea.

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Actor Sushant Singh Rajput has praised co-star Sara Ali Khan, who is making her Bollywood debut with their film "Kedarnath", for all the hard work she is putting into the project.

Sara, the daughter of actors Amrita Singh and Saif Ali Khan, features opposite Sushant in the Abhishek Kapoor- directed film, which is set to be released next year.

When asked about Sara, Sushant told reporters, "She is working really hard... I don't think it will be right for me to say anything (else) at the moment. You guys watch the film and decide for yourself."



The actor was speaking at the red carpet of Lux Golden Rose Awards here last night.

When asked how Sara is different from the other female actors he has worked with so far, the "MS Dhoni" star responded saying, "I only look at one thing while working on a film... Like I realise slowly what kind of product is being made.

"I don't think about it much but when I am enjoying working, then everything good is happening. And I am enjoying a lot (while) working on 'Kedarnath'," he said.

As her senior in the industry, Sushant said he had given a piece of advice to Sara while shooting for the film.

"She is quite able and already knows a lot. But the only thing that I have shared with her is that I don't fear failures.

"If I am enjoying doing something, I don't think about its outcome. I am not that careful and this is one thing that helps you in the long run," he said.

Besides "Kedarnath", Sushant is busy prepping for Abhishek Chaubey's next and dubbing for Jacqueline Fernandez- starrer "Drive".

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The Supreme Court today dismissed a plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to three trustees of the Ryan International Group in connection with the killing of a student in the school premises.

A bench of Justices R K Agrawal and A M Sapre said the "petition is dismissed."



The court had earlier reserved the order on the plea of the father of 7-year-old boy, who was found dead in Ryan International School in Gurgaon, challenging the anticipatory bail granted to the trustees of the group.

Pradhuman, a Class II student, was found with his throat slit in the school washroom in Gurgaon on September 8. School bus conductor Ashok Kumar was earlier arrested by Haryana Police in connection with the crime. He was recently granted bail by a lower court.

The case was transferred to the CBI and the agency had apprehended a Class 11 student in connection with the killing.

The high court had on November 21 granted anticipatory bail to Ryan International Group CEO Ryan Pinto and his parents -- founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, in connection with the killing of Pradhuman.

The boy's father had approached the apex court seeking cancellation of the bail to the trustees.

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The Supreme Court today agreed to hear tomorrow the appeal of Unitech Limited challenging the recent order of the company law tribunal allowing the Centre to take over its management.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), on December 8, had suspended all the eight directors of the realty firm over allegations of mismanagement and siphoning of funds and had authorised the Centre to appoint its 10 nominees on the board.

The NCLT order had come after the Centre moved the panel with a view to protect the interest of nearly 20,000 home buyers.

"Let this matter be listed for hearing tomorrow. A copy of the SLP (special leave petition) be supplied to the parties," a bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said.

Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, appearing for Unitech Ltd and its jailed promoters, referred to the recent NCLT order and said the takeover of the management of the company by the Centre would make it difficult for them to deposit Rs 750 crore as directed by the apex court to safeguard the interests of homebuyers.

"How do I comply with the Supreme Court order? My bank accounts have been frozen on November 21," the lawyer said.

"The nominated Directors (of the government) shall have to comply with the orders of the Supreme Court," the bench said, adding that for it, the interests of homebuyers were paramount and they cannot be equated with the investors.

"We are more concerned for the homebuyers and not for the company and not for the fixed depositors. Homebuyers are not investors or fixed depositors," the bench said.

Sanjay Chandra, head of the embattled real estate group, was asked on October 30 by the apex court to deposit Rs 750 crore with it by December end for the sake of the homebuyers.

The NCLT, in its order, has said the government must give name of its nominees by December 20 and restrained Unitech's eight suspended directors from selling their personal and company properties.

The tribunal's order had come after the government filed a petition arguing that Unitech was a fit case for winding up, but considering the interest of thousands of home buyers and small depositors, it wanted to take over company management.

The company has over Rs 6,000 crore debt and over 16,000 undelivered units from a total of nearly 70 projects.

In its petition filed under section 241 of the Companies Act, 2013, the government had requested the tribunal to remove the eight directors.

The apex court had on October 30 said jailed businessman Chandra will be granted bail only after the real estate group deposited money with its registry by December end.

Chandra's lawyer had told the apex court that he has been required to be produced in various courts, consumer forum and commissions on a regular basis which hampered his endeavour to arrange money and hence, the production warrants issued against him by various judicial bodies be stayed for 15 days.

He had also said that the accused be allowed to appear in courts through his lawyers. The plea was declined.

The apex court had also clarified that its earlier order directing all courts below not to take any coercive action against the accused for the time being would also be made applicable on all forums including state and national consumer commissions.

The top court had earlier directed the jail authorities to facilitate Chandra's meeting with his company officials and lawyers so that he could arrange money to refund the home buyers as well as for completing the ongoing housing projects.

It had said if any proceedings were pending against Chandra and the company, those may continue and the final order be passed but no coercive steps be taken to execute those orders.

Chandra is seeking interim bail from the apex court after the Delhi High Court on August 11 had rejected the plea in a criminal case lodged in 2015 by 158 home buyers of Unitech projects' -- 'Wild Flower Country' and 'Anthea Project' -- situated in Gurugram.

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The Nitish Kumar government today approved a "Safe City Surveillance" scheme aimed at putting a check on eve-teasing and other crimes against women at public places across the state.

A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the state cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Principal Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat Department, Brajesh Mehrotra told reporters.

He said under the scheme, CCTV cameras will be installed at public places.

Patna will be the first district to be covered under this scheme and an amount of Rs 110.68 crore has been sanctioned for the purpose, he said.

Nod was also given for creating new posts for better security and administration at prisons. These include three posts of Deputy Superintendent, four Assistant Superintendents, 17 "Mukhya Uchch Kakshpal" (Chief Senior Warders), two "Uchch Kakshpal" (Senior Warders), 16 "Kakshpal" (warders) and 52 drivers.

With a view to ensuring better traffic management in areas falling under Nagar Nigams and towns with a population of over two lakhs, setting up of nine "yatayat thana" (traffic police stations) and creation of 1485 posts of various ranks for running these were also okayed, Mehrotra said.

Another decision taken at the cabinet meeting was approval of a total expenditure of Rs 9.09 crore for the purchase of 40 Toyota Innova Crysta cars for judges of the Patna High Court.

Financial assistance given to divorced Muslim women has also been raised from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000, he added.

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Regulator Sebi today ordered Icore E-Services Ltd and its directors to refund the money that the company had collected illegally from public and has also barred them from the markets for at least four years.

The company had collected at least Rs 45 crore through the issuance of securities from investors between 2007-2008 and 2010-11, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said in an order.

Securities were issued to over 50 people and accordingly the offer qualified to be a public issue, and required compulsory listing of such securities on a recognised exchange. However, the firm did not comply with the provision.

Among other requirements, the firm was to register a prospectus with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) under the Companies Act, which it failed to do.

"Considering the fact that during the financial year 2007-2008 and 2008-2009, the company had to go to thousands of investors to mobilise Rs 4-5 crore and the money mobilised by the company during 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 is more than Rs 45 crore, I am inclined to conclude that the number of investors from whom the money was mobilised for issuance of equity shares is more than 49," Sebi Whole Time Member G Mahalingam said.

Accordingly, Sebi has directed Icore E-Services and its promoters/directors -- Anukul Maiti, Kanika Maiti, Swapan Kumar Roy, Radhashyam Giri, Tapan Kumar Chatterjee, Saral Ranjan Sengupta, Amal Bhattacharya, Chandan Dey and Mahadeb Gayan -- to jointly and severally refund the money collected through the allotment of equity shares along with an interest at the rate of 15 per cent per annum within three months.

After completion of refund, they have been directed to file a report of such completion with Sebi, within seven days, certified by two independent chartered accountants.

Further, Sebi has prohibited the company and its directors from the securities markets till the refund and a further period of four years from the date of completion of the refund to investors. Also, they have been restrained from associating themselves with any listed public company during the period under review.

Sebi's order "shall be subject to the directions passed or to be passed by Calcutta High Court in the matter of Icore Group of companies".

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A fast-track court in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarngar district today sentenced six people to life imprisonment for killing a timber trader 10 years ago.

Additional District Sessions judge Rajesh Bhardwaj also imposed a fine of Rs 8,000 each on the accused, including Minu Tyagi, wife of gangster Vicky Tyagi who was gunned down in a courtroom here in 2015.

The six accused were held guilty on Wednesday under sections 147 (rioting) and 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code.

According to prosecution lawyer Yogesh Sharma, Satish Tyagi was shot dead in the district on July 3, 2007.

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External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has sought a report from India's consul general in Chicago about an attack on a 30-year old Indian national in the US city.

Mohammad Akbar was seriously injured after he was shot in his right cheek by an unidentified assailant, according to media reports.

"I have asked for a report from our Consul General in Chicago," Swaraj tweeted.

Mohammad Akbar was seriously wounded in the shooting on December 6 in the Albany Park neighbourhood in Chicago, according to reports and information provided by his family.

He was shot in the cheek and taken in serious condition to Illinois Masonic Medical Center, police in Chicago said.

Akbar, who hails from Hyderabad, is studying for his postgraduate degree in computer systems networking and telecommunications at DeVry University in the US city, his family said.

In another tweet, Swaraj said she had sought details from the Uttar Pradesh government on reports that a number of foreign tourists were beaten up in Mirzapur.

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External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on key bilateral issues in a "forward looking" approach, which sought to put behind issues of divergence such as the Dokalam episode.

According to officials, Swaraj and Wang discussed all issues of mutual interest



"Foreign Minister Wang Yi and I agreed that we should further strengthen our mutual trust to develop a better understanding between the two parties. And it will be better to meet again and without agenda, which will help us to expand our mutual understanding," Swaraj said.

On his part, Wang talked about political settlement to resolve "hotspot and difficult issues" and also pitched for dialogue and consultations over use of force.

The Chinese foreign minister also stressed on the need to find commonalities in strategic areas.

Asked if the Dokalam episode came up in the talks, officials did not confirm but said "all issues of mutual interest were discussed".

Imparting fresh momentum to bilateral relationship, EAM Sushma Swaraj had a positive and "forward looking" meeting with Wang, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

Officials said there was a lot of "positivity" during the "frank" discussions Swaraj and Wang held on wide-ranging issues.

There was a realisation that both India and China are neighbours and they need to live side by side, a senior official, privy to the discussion between the two sides, said.

The feeling during the discussion was that there will be differences but the emphasis should be on convergences, the official said.

This is the first high-level visit from China after the Dokalam standoff in the Sikkim sector this summer. Chinese and Indian troops were locked in a 73-day border standoff from June 16 when Indian soldiers stopped Chinese personnel from building a key road close to India's 'chicken's neck' corridor.

On August 28, India announced the "disengagement" between the soldiers of the two countries.

The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.

Wang also said connectivity projects should compliment instead of contradicting each other and should supplement and not conflict for regional integration.

The remarks by the Chinese leader come in the backdrop of India boycotting the major Chinese infrastructure initiative 'One Belt One Road' (OBOR) part of which was passing through the Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK), which India asserts is under illegal occupation of Pakistan.

Wang also stressed that China does not approve of "sphere of influence".

Swaraj also held a bilateral meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"Further strengthening our strategic partnership, EAM Sushma Swaraj had a productive meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on issues of mutual interest..," Kumar said.

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Over 1.2 million Indian tourists visited Thailand during January-September this year, registering a steep 16 per cent increase over the same period of 2016, a senior official of Tourism Authority of Thailand said here today.

The South Asian country, which is mainly known for its tropical beaches and cuisines, is expecting this figure to further go up by the close of this year.

"...from January-September 2017, we have already received 1.2 million tourists from India, which is 16 per cent increase. And by the end of this year, the figure will further increase," Isra Stapanaseth, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi, told reporters at the Chandigarh international airport here.

A little over one million Indian tourists had visited Thailand in 2016.

He was interacting on the sidelines after Chandigarh today got air connectivity with Bangkok, with Air India launching a direct flight to the famous south-east Asian tourist destination.

Stapanaseth said his country was a popular destination for the Indian tourists and he hoped with the addition of this flight, more and more people, especially from Punjab region, can save on time and be able to travel conveniently.

"This flight will help people travelling (to Thailand) from cities like Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Manali, Shimla, Dehradun. It will make travelling more convenient for people from these cities to catch a flight from here," he said.

"We are hoping that with the addition of this direct flight from here, it will facilitate people who travel for pleasure, for wedding celebrations, corporates and other travellers, who can reach Bangkok in less than five hours," he said.

He said Thailand has much to offer for the Indian tourists and packages can be worked for budget tourists to high-end tourists.

"You get value for money for quality destination. Thailand also has much to offer to people who are planning grand wedding celebrations and it is also popular among the honeymooners as well.

For budget tourists, a week's stay can cost him anywhere between Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000, he said.

"Besides Bangkok and Phuket, tourists can explore Pattaya, then there is Chiang Mai, famous destination in north of Thailand and on the east coast you have Elephant Island," he said.

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The Netherlands today evinced interest for investment in various sectors in Assam, including infrastructure development and flood management.

Netherlands Ambassador to India Alphonsus Stoelinga told reporters here that the country is keen to sign a letter of intent for "greater government to government interaction".

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has asked for the modalities so that the letter of intent can be signed with the Assam government during the Global Investment Summit scheduled in February, 2018, Stoelinga said.

The envoy said there was already Dutch investment in the state's health sector.

Flood and water management is a key area in which the Dutch experts can collaborate with the state government and companies like Arcadis and Damen have shown keen interest to take a fresh look on Brahmaputra River development, tributary rejuvenation and development of inland waterways, he said.

The Dutch government is also interested to promote collaboration in the agriculture sector, particularly in the tea sector where companies are interested in the by-products of the tea industry, Stoelinga said.

Food processing, cold storage management for agricultural products and the public health sector are some of the other areas in which the Netherlands is interested to invest, he said.

Hyet Solar, a company working in the solar power generation sector, is keen to invest 200 million Euros to set up a plant in the state to produce 200 MW of solar power.

The company has also offered to tie up with local partners and financial institutions for the purpose, Stoelinga said.

The ambassador had called on Sonowal this morning, who invited the Netherlands to set up a consulate office at Guwahati and post an officer for liaising with the state government.

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A trader of electronics goods, who was abducted by two men, including one of his former employees, was rescued today from Nilothi Extension in outer Delhi, the police said.

S Gupta (28) was abducted on December 9 when he was on his way to his showroom at Paschim Vihar.

The abductors had demanded a ransom of Rs 5 crore from Gupta's family members. Subsequently, the father of the trader had approached the police and a case was registered.

The police went to around 250 houses in the locality with Gupta's photographs, said M N Tiwari, Deputy Commissioner of Police (outer Delhi).

"An information was received about a suspicious car at Nilothi Extension. A raid was conducted and the victim was successfully rescued from the two men -- Manish (23) and Satnam Singh (44) -- who were arrested," the DCP said.

During interrogation, Manish told the police that he used to work at Gupta's Karol Bagh godown years ago.

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The CPI(M) today advocated for setting up of a tribunal to resolve the Mahanadi water dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh saying it is the only alternative to resolve the problem.

Odisha needs water for its farmers while Chhattisgarh required it to feed industries, CPI(M) state Secretariat member Janardan Pati said adding that the fight is between farmers and industries.

"As per the provisions of the Constitution of India and Inter-state River Water Dispute Act, 1956, there is no harm in setting up a tribunal," he told reporters here.

Odisha has been opposing construction of a number of barrages and dams by Chhattisgarh on the upper reaches of the Mahanadi river saying it would affect the state's farmers.

The Centre had told the Supreme Court on December 6 that the ongoing dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over Mahanadi should be sorted out through negotiations between the parties concerned.

The CPI(M) leader also criticised the Centre for backtracking from tribunal formation after making a commitment in the Supreme Court.

He also alleged that the BJP leaders were misleading the people of Odisha over Mahanadi issue.

Meanwhile, activists of Samajwadi Party today staged a silent demonstration here and appealed to the Supreme Court for adjudication of Mahanadi water dispute by setting up a tribunal.

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US President Donald Trump today disputed a report that he watches hours of cable programming as part of his daily routine, calling it a fake .

The New York Times on Saturday reported that the president consumes "long spells of cable news," including the big three cable news networks CNN, MSNBC and Fox News - to catch up on news.

Trump, the NYT reported, often "flips to CNN for news, moves to 'Fox & Friends' for comfort and messaging ideas, and sometimes watches MSNBCs 'Morning Joe' because, friends suspect, it fires him up for the day." The president "spends at least four hours a day, and sometimes as much as twice that, in front of a television," according to the report.

"Another false story, this time in the Failing The New York Times that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong!" Trump said this in a tweet.

During his Asia trip, Trump had told reporters that he rarely watched television as he spend most of his time reading documents.

The president, who has been sharply critical of CNN and other news outlets throughout his political career, also disputed that he "hate-watches" CNN anchor Don Lemon's show to "get worked up," as the Times reported, taking a shot at the late-night newscaster.

"I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the 'dumbest man on television!' Bad Reporting," he tweeted.

However, the Democratic party criticised him for tweeting on this issue in the aftermath of an explosion in New York City.

"This is Trump's first tweet after an explosion in NY...," tweeted Sabrina Singh, the deputy communications director of the Democratic National Committee.

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Two people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked a mosque in far northern Cameroon, a region that has been shaken by attacks blamed on Nigeria's Boko Haram jihadists, sources said.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up this morning in a mosque in Kerawa," on the border with Nigeria, a regional security official reached by AFP said yesterday.

"Two civilians and the bomber were killed," the source said, confirming an account by an eyewitness, who said the event took place shortly after morning prayers, when the mosque was relatively empty.

Boko Haram's insurgency, begun in 2009, has progressively spread from Nigeria to Cameroon, Niger and Chad.

Overall, it has left at least 20,000 people dead and more than 2.6 million others homeless.

The death toll in Cameroon is around 2,000 while about 170,000 have been displaced, according to the Brussels-based research organisation the International Crisis Group (ICG).

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Vijay Mallya today arrived in court here as the trial to prove a prima facie case of fraud against the fugitive liquor baron resumed today to determine if he can be extradited to India to face charges over his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines.

The 61-year-old will be back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London for day four of the hearing as his defence led by barrister Clare Montgomery is set to depose two further witnesses in its attempt to prove that the airline's alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is also facing a parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets.

The State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co Pvt Ltd are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk LLP, Rose Capital Ventures Ltd and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday.

Margaret Sweeney, from the accounts team of Force India - Mallya's Formula 1 racing team, and legal expert Martin Lau are set to be deposed by his defence team at the extradition hearing today.

Judge Emma Arbuthnot will hear the case over some "interruptions" as Uber's appeal against the cancellation of its operating license in London is expected to open in the same court today.

Last week, thedefence claimed that a consortium of Indian banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) had rejected an offer by the liquor baron in early 2016 to pay back nearly 80 per cent of the principle loan amount owed to them.

While deposing a banking expert last week, Mallya's counsel Montgomery questioned whether her client's offer to pay back around Rs 4,400 crores of the principle debt amount on April 6, 2016 should have been "dismissed out of hand" just a day later by the banks.

Paul Rex,who was described as a banker by profession who served as an independent expert in the field for over 20 years, said that banks tend to partially provision for loans unpaid over a long period and such an offer would have helped avoid "further loss".

"A commercial bank would assess such an offer against other routes of repayment. If that offer is higher than could be expected from other sources, it would be an attractive option for banks to consider," he said, adding that state- owned banks in particular tend to be more susceptible to "political pressure".

However, theCrown Prosecution Service (CPS) arguing on behalf of the Indian government countered that assertion in its cross-examination, indicating that the reason such a repayment offer would have been rejected was that the banks knew Mallya had the means to pay back the entire amount due.

There are plenty of reasons why even a state bank may take a view to reject such an offer, such as if it comes from a "dishonest" person who is known to have "plenty of money to repay" the entire amount if he wants to, CPS barrister Mark Summers stated during his cross-examination.

He also made a reference to the "debtor" (Mallya) throwing a birthday party costing around 2 million pounds as a factor which could have influenced the banks' decision to reject the offer.

The cross-examination of Rex was left incomplete at the end of the third day of the trial last Thursday, to be taken up again tomorrow afternoon.

In his cross-examination, Summers had highlighted a particular "washing machine activity" picked up by the government of India that involved sums amounting to around 10 -15million pounds being funnelled between UB Group companies to wrongly claim obligations of equity infusions into struggling Kingfisher Airlines were being met.

Indian government sources have described its case, being presented by the CPS, as "very strong".

Mallya's legal team had claimed earlier in the trial that the case against him was "politically motivated" and that it was being used as an opportunity to make "political capital" by the ruling BJP as well as Congress and Shiv Sena.

The prosecution's case rests on "three chapters of dishonesty" by Mallya misrepresentations to variousbanks to acquire loans, the misuse of the loans, and his conduct after the banks recalled the loans.

Mallya, who has been based in the UK since March 2016, was arrested by Scotland Yard on anextradition warrant in April this year and has been out onbail on a bond worth 650,000 pounds.

If the judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must orderMallya's extraditionwithin two months. However, the case can go through a series of appeals in higher UK courts before arriving at a conclusion.

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A fugitive captured in Mexico is due in a US courtroom today on accusations that he orchestrated an elaborate scheme to export handguns to countries with restrictive gun laws.

Eric Daniel Doyle was indicted by a grand jury on federal firearms charges in 2015, but fled before he could be arrested and eluded authorities for more than two years.

Authorities allege the 37-year-old Kalispell man used the internet to set up handgun sales to customers in Australia, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. The weapons were shipped through the US Postal Service.

Doyle pleaded not guilty during an initial court appearance last week. His attorney, Andrew Nelson, told The Associated Press that he had no comment on the case ahead of Tuesday's detention hearing in US District Court in Missoula, Montana.

US Magistrate Judge Jeremiah Lynch will decide if Doyle remains a flight risk. He faces 44 counts of illegal gun exports and related crimes.

Details on the allegations against Doyle were unsealed by a federal judge following his capture on November 8 in the Mexican state of Sonora by a joint operation between local authorities and the US Marshals Service.

Authorities allege that in 2014, at least 14 firearms, primarily high-caliber handguns, were shipped by Doyle to customers in Australia, Norway and Sweden, court documents show. The suspects also attempted to export at least one handgun to Denmark and four more to customers in Australia.

Court documents contained only the initials of the buyers. It was unclear if US authorities had reached out to their counterparts in the destination countries to inform them of the sales.

In most cases, the serial numbers on the weapons had been obliterated, according to the 2015 indictment. Many of the guns had been obtained through a "straw purchaser" who would buy firearms from a licensed dealer on Doyle's behalf, according to the indictment.

Doyle had been prohibited from possessing firearms because of felony convictions in Illinois in 2006 on drug and burglary charges, according to public records.

Four alleged accomplices were previously sentenced. Among them was Doyle's uncle, Jay Isles, also of Kalispell.

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West Bengal Congress today hailed the election of Rahul Gandhi as the party's president and said he will infuse new energy into the party.

The 47-year-old Rahul Gandhi elected unopposed as Congress president and he would officially take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi on December 16.

"We congratulate Rahul Gandhi for being elected as our party president. We are confident that he will infuse new energy into the party and under his leadership Congress will attain new heights," senior Congress leader and Leader of opposition in state Assembly Abdul Mannan told PTI.

Mannan hoped that under Rahul Gandhi's leadership, Congress would put up a strong fight against the onslaught of BJP-RSS and will preserve the country's democratic and secular tradition.

AICC national secretary Subhankar Sarkar said, "The people of this country want Rahul Gandhi to lead the nation after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls," he said.

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Facing criticism from the AAP government for opposing the cancellation of licence of Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari today questioned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal about steps taken to help poor patients at private hospitals.

Accusing him of adopting double standards, Tiwari asked why Kejriwal was not "suspended" when a former Delhi minister was found having a fake law degree.

"How can you question my integrity? When did I ask you to revoke the cancellation of the hospital's licence? I just spoke about the patients in the hospital and the employees who have been rendered jobless," he wrote on Twitter in Hindi.

"Why Kejriwal was not suspended when Jitender Singh Tomar's degree



was found to be fake? Hundreds of employees have been rendered jobless. Hundreds of patients are on the streets. Punish the culprits but not these poor people," he said.

Kejriwal should tell what steps the AAP government took to take care of the patients admitted to the hospital and its employees who have been left to fend for themselves, he said.

"He should tell what steps have been taken to help poor patients being fleeced at private hospitals and if he will ban government hospitals for negligence?" he asked.

Kejriwal yesterday lambasted Tiwari for opposing the cancellation of the hospital's licence, alleging he had "sold his integrity".

The AAP government had cancelled the licence of Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, after a baby was wrongly declared dead by doctors at the hospital and handed over to its parents.

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Senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily today sought to know why Prime Minister Narendra Modi kept quiet when he had information that his suspended party colleague Mani Shankar Aiyar gave "supari" (contract) to get him "removed" from the way to ensure peace between India and Pakistan.

Moily, a Lok Sabha member and a former Union minister, wondered what Modi was waiting for when he had all the powers at his disposal to take action against Aiyar.

"Why he (Modi)remained silent for such a long period of time to disclose that the attempts were made to remove him? Is he talking responsibly? It is not a question of assassination bid on anindividual but the prime minister of country," Moily told reporters.

He alleged that the prime minister what investigation has been carried out to establish his claims.

He said Modi had made the baseless allegations only to emotionally blackmail the voters of Gujarat and win the Assembly polls somehow.

At an election rally in Gujarat, Modi had said, "...after I became prime minister, this man (Aiyar) went to Pakistan and met some Pakistanis. All this thing is available on the social media."



"In that meeting, he is seen discussing with Pakistanis that jab tak Modi ko raste se hataya nahi jata (until Modi is not removed from the way), relationship between India and Pakistan cannot improve," Modi added.

"Someone tell me what is the meeting of raste se hatana. You had gone to Pakistan to give my supari, you wanted to give Modi's supari (contract killing)," the PM said.

On Karnataka Assembly polls, due early next year, Moily said the manifesto would be released well in time.

"Almost 170 promises we made in the previous elections have been fulfilled. This time again the manifesto will be released well in time," said Moily, who heads the manifesto formation committee comprising 34 members.

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Union minister Nitin Gadkari today told research institutions that they will be "closed" if they do not perform and warned their officials that merely "writing books and publish research papers" would not suffice.

Addressing an international conference on ground water here, he said in his capacity as a minister he will "count actual performance" of each institution related to his ministry and added that only "writing books, publishing research paper" would not suffice.

The water resources, river development & Ganga rejuvenation minister also made a strong pitch for evolving a vision to conserve water in innovative and cost effective ways as it is the "most important factor of economy".

Gadkari also talked against a vision that is laced with "differences, debates and mere discussions".

The seventh 'International Ground Water Conference', organised here by the National Institute of Hydrology (Roorkee) and Central Ground Water Board along with Association of Global Groundwater Scientists and Texas A&M University, USA.

"As a minister, I am going to count performance of every institution... you have to show.. what is the use of your institution to the society, country, poor people.

"Or else, I will take the decision to close all the things (institutions)... If you are not going to justify it (one's role), no problem, then you have to quit," Gadkari said.

The minister said that outcome of such conferences should be visible on the ground, benefiting common man, particularly farmers.

Gadkari said he likes officials who get works done and spoke against alleged dillydallying in carrying out works.

"Two-two years are spent on preparing DPR (detailed project reports). What kind of study is required in that (which takes more time)? This won't work. Give reports in 8-10 days. Sign the files in three days or go home," he said.

Gadkari said that water is the "most important" factor if India has to develop its economy and called for evolving a vision in that direction.

He told the researchers to be open to accepting innovative models and adopt successful and cost effective ones from across the world.

Gadkari also batted for finding out area-specific solutions to water issues and called for following an integrated approach.

Union Ministers Uma Bharti, Arjun Ram Meghwal and Satypal Singh and Ministry Secretary U P Singh also attended the event.

Speaking at the event, Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Bharti laid emphasis on spreading awareness among people on saving water.

The conference is expected to take stock of present status and challenges of groundwater management in the country under the changing water use and climatic scenarios.

Delegates from 15 countries are expected to participate in the conference and 250 research papers will be presented, including 32 keynote papers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The 11th ministerial meeting of the 164-member WTO has begun amid only moderate hopes of an outcome as developed and developing nations braced up to push their agendas at the highest policy making body of the World Trade Organization.

India is being represented at the meeting, which began on Sunday, by Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu who will be pushing for a permanent solution to the public food stock-holding issue which is crucial for operating the food security programme.

During the course of the four-day deliberations, the developing nations will resist the efforts by the developed nations to formally set aside the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) and place new issues including e-commerce on the negotiating table.

According to officials, with different interest groups taking tough positions on crucial issues, one could expect only moderate outcome from the WTOs 11th Ministerial meeting.

Prabhu has intensified his consultations and bilateral meetings to muster support for issues like public stock- holding and Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM), which are crucial for India.

The minister had met the representatives of European Union, his South African counterpart and participated in the meetings of the South Centre and the G33 grouping.

"Met with the EU and had bilateral meetings (with trade ministers of other countries)...so that we have a common platform. So when we finally push our agenda there is enough support for us," Prabhu told reporters here.

According to Stephen Ndung'u Karau, chair, Agriculture Committee, some outcome is expected on the public food stock-holding besides a few other agriculture issues.

As regards SSM, Karau said, "Several members want an outcome...but more likely outcome may be a work programme."



The outcome is likely to be on issues concerning domestic support, export restrictions and cotton, while a few others like export competition, sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) and market access may have work programmes, he added.

Edwin Kessie, Director, Agriculture Division said that "even if we dont get a solution, Peace Clause will continue".

India is keen for a permanent solution to the public stock-holding issue at the ministerial, the highest policy making body of the WTO and wants that the solution should be better than the Peace Clause.

Under the global trade norms, a WTO member country's food subsidy bill should not breach the limit of 10 per cent of the value of production based on the reference price of 1986-88. Apprehending that full implementation of food security programme may result in breach of the WTO cap, India has been seeking amendments in the formula to calculate the food subsidy cap.

As an interim measure, the WTO members at the Bali ministerial meeting in December 2013 had agreed to put in place a mechanism popularly called the Peace Clause and committed to negotiate an agreement for that at the 11th ministerial meeting, which is underway at Buenos Aires.

Under the Peace Clause, WTO members agreed to refrain from challenging any breach in the prescribed ceiling by a developing nation at the dispute settlement forum of the WTO. This clause will be there till a permanent solution is found to the food stockpiling issue.

As regards SSM, it is an instrument which would help developing countries to deal with import surges and price dips as a result of high subsidies provided by the developed countries to agriculture products.

An agreement on SSM is important for India as the applied customs duty on some of the agriculture products is at the bound rate, meaning it cant be raised further. These include products such as chicken legs, apples, olive oils and rice.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Russia threw its weight behind China's massive Belt and Road plan to build trade and transport links across Asia and beyond, suggesting to India on Monday that it find a way to work with Beijing on the signature project.

India is strongly opposed to an economic corridor that China is building in Pakistan that runs through disputed Kashmir as part of the Belt and Road initiative.

India was the only country that stayed away from a May summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping to promote the plan to build railways, ports and power grids in a modern-day recreation of the Silk Road.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said New Delhi should not let political problems deter it from joining the project, involving billions of dollars of investment, and benefiting from it.

Lavrov was speaking in the Indian capital after a three-way meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj at which, he said, India's reservations over the Chinese project were discussed.

"I know India has problems, we discussed it today, with the concept of One Belt and One Road, but the specific problem in this regard should not make everything else conditional to resolving political issues," he said.

Russia, all the countries in central Asia, and European nations had signed up to the Chinese project to boost economic cooperation, he said.

"Those are the facts," he said. "India, I am 100 percent convinced, has enough very smart diplomats and politicians to find a way which would allow you to benefit from this process."

The comments by Russia, India's former Cold War ally, reflected the differences within the trilateral grouping formed 15 years ago to challenge U.S.-led dominance of global affairs.

But substantial differences between India and China, mainly over long-standing border disputes, have snuffed out prospects of any real cooperation among the three.

India, in addition, has drawn closer to the United States in recent years, buying weapons worth billions of dollars to replace its largely Soviet-origin military.

Swaraj said the three countries had very productive talks on economic issues and the fight against terrorism.
United Arab Emirates Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazroui said on Monday that OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers plan to announce in June an exit strategy from global supply cuts, but that does not mean the pact will end by then.

Mazroui said it was premature to talk about the form or shape of such an exit strategy before June, when OPEC, Russia and other producers participating in the supply-reduction agreement - aimed at boosting oil prices - are due to meet next.

"We will announce ... a strategy in the June meeting. That does not mean we will exit in June. That means we will come up with a strategy," he told reporters in Abu Dhabi.

"Hopefully the market will be in a much better position for us to come and announce an exit strategy," he said.

"What is that strategy? No one can tell you the shape, the form, how is it going to be done, prior to everyone's meeting. Every voice counts in this group. It is unfair for anyone to come and predict."

The UAE holds the presidency of the 14-nation Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in 2018.

Kuwait's oil minister, Essam al-Marzouq, said on Sunday that OPEC and other oil producers would study before June the possibility of an exit strategy from the global agreement.

"I think the deal has been working perfectly. We are very optimistic about the growth next year, both the growth on the world and the growth in demand," Mazroui said, adding that OPEC "will always do what is best for the market".

Russia, which this year reduced production significantly with OPEC for the first time, has been pushing for a clear message on how to exit the cuts so the market doesn't flip into a deficit too soon, prices don't rally too fast and rival U.S. shale firms don't boost output further.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday that it was too early to talk about a possible exit from the deal, and the eventual withdrawal should be gradual.

Novak said it may take between three and six months to exit the deal, depending on the state of the global oil market and demand for crude.

Under the deal, producers are cutting supply by about 1.8 million barrels per day.
A day after a whistleblower urged the Securities and Exchange Board of India or Sebi to not allow Infosys to settle former CFO Rajiv Bansal's severance case via 'back door', former company chief financial officer V Balakrishnan today said that it was not a matter of whistleblower's emotions, but of legality for the regulator to decide on denying company's consent plea.

Balakrishnan in a conversation with PTI said: "The whistleblower has said whatever he wants to say as per his viewpoint. These are legal issues decided based on merits and not individual's emotions. What Sebi as a regulator thinks and decides is all that matters."

Balakrishnan said this after the whistleblower objected to Infosys' settlement plea to Sebi and requested the market regulator to junk it. Balakrishnan's remarks came a day after former Infosys Board member and chief financial officer T V Mohandas Pai said that the IT firm's move to settle severance pay dispute with Sebi was 'perfectly fine'.

However, he disagreed with the whistleblower who had asked the market regulator to prosecute Infosys management and the Board. According to Pai, whistleblower's request to prosecute the management as well as the board should be ignored. "Settlement is a normal process. Anybody can file for settlement consent decree from Sebi. There are very clear norms. Sebi can do it, it's Sebi's prerogative," Pai said on Sunday.

The whistleblower in the letter had said that the company's internal probe was a 'real mockery of justice' as the management that precipitated excesses supervised it. The letter requested the Sebi to prosecute the Infosys board and management both for this act.

Pai said that consent decrees are a very normal part of any capital market. "It happens all the time in the US. It happens in all capital markets because some things are difficult to prove; companies don't want to go through ordeal of a regulatory action," he said, explaining that in capital markets all over the world, companies (do) file for consent so they get over any regulatory action where there is no fraud, misrepresentation or criminality.

"So, there is no criminality and deliberateness. It's perfectly fine for the company to file consent," Pai said. He further said that the matter in Infosys' case relates to lack of adequate and proper disclosure. However, the whistleblower has argued that a settlement was similar to 'backdoor agreement', and if Infosys is allowed to do so, then 'no whistleblower in future will take the pain to expose any malpractices in the corporate sector'.

Last week, India's second largest IT firm filed an application with Sebi to settle the issues around Rajiv Bansal's severance pay. In a regulatory filing to the BSE, Infosys said: "The settlement application process is based on an undertaking that the applicant will neither admit nor deny the finding of fact or conclusion of law."

The company had agreed to pay Bansal a severance package of Rs 17.38 crore or 24 months of salary, but it suspended the payments after he got Rs 5 crore as co-founder NR Narayana Murthy and Pai objected to the move and termed it 'excessive'. While Murthy called it a 'hush money', Mohandas Pai asked the Infosys board to explain severance pay in detail.

The severance pay was agreed during the tenure of former Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka. The issue came to fore when NR Murthy, Kris Gopalakrishnan and Nandan Nilekani wrote to the board expressing their concerns over pay hike to Sikka and the severance package offered to Rajiv Bansal.

(With Inputs from PTI)
The Supreme Court will hear tomorrow the appeal of Unitech Limited challenging the recent order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) directing the central government to take over the management of the real estate firm, PTI reported.

The NCLT on Friday suspended all the eight directors of Unitech and allowed the government to appoint 10 nominee directors to take over the real estate firm. The move came after the Corporate Affairs Ministry approached the tribunal against Unitech over mismanagement and its failure to complete construction projects on time.

The government also asked the bankruptcy court to suspend the company's board of directors and its chief financial officer under the Companies Act, 2013. The NCLT invoked the provisions of the Companies Act and allowed the government to take over the company.

However, Unitech challenged the order in the apex court today, saying that its bank accounts have been frozen and the company and its jailed promoters are finding it difficult to deposit Rs 750 crore as asked by the Supreme Court. Unitech counsel and senior advocate Ranjit Kumar today said that the entire firm has been taken over by the government and its appeal be heard on an urgent basis.

The court had recently asked the real estate firm to deposit Rs 750 crore with it by December end to safeguard the interests of homebuyers.

In October, the Supreme Court refused to grant bail to Unitech Managing Director Sanjay Chandra and asked him to submit the money by December end to compensate homebuyers who have sought refunds against the delay in possession of homes. He sought interim bail from the apex court after the Delhi High Court on August 11 had rejected the plea in a criminal case lodged in 2015 by 158 home buyers of Unitech projects' - Wild Flower Country and Anthea Project - in Gurugram.

Shares of Unitech today surged nearly 20 per cent. The real estate firm's shares today opened at Rs 8.40 a piece on the Bombay Stock Exchange, after closing at Rs 7.29 on Friday. It jumped to a high of Rs 8.70, registering a 19.34 per cent climb. It ended at Rs 8.00 for the day.



(With inputs from PTI)
Indian Medical Association (IMA), the professional lobby group of allopathic medicine practitioners has just announced a set of self-regulation measures for hospitals and doctors. What triggered the decision, announced at a press conference on Monday in New Delhi, are the growing incidents of doctor-patient mistrust in the country.

The immediate provocation apparently was the action initiated by Haryana government against one of the hospitals of the leading private healthcare provider Fortis for allegedly failing to provide adequate treatment to a seven year old dengue patient. In a similar fashion, the Delhi government had decided to cancel the license of one of the units of Max Healthcare, another corporate healthcare chain, for wrongly declaring a premature baby as dead, both recent developments. A couple of months ago, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation against alleged overpricing of cardiac procedures by private hospitals, the Delhi High Court had the Union health ministry to come out with a policy to put a check on overcharging patients.

As IMA National President KK Aggarwal says, the doctor-patient trust in the country, which was already experiencing a downward spiral, has deteriorated further. Can self regulation help? Will there be voluntary compliance across the board? "What happened was most unfortunate. However, not all doctors are wrong, and the public must have faith in them. Such errors happen by accident and not intentionally. Having said this, it is also time for the medical profession to introspect and come out with self-regulation procedures. We are often blamed for prescribing costly drugs. From today onwards, all doctors in the country shall choose affordable drugs. We also appeal to the government to come out with an urgent ordinance for one drug-one company-one price policy. Doctors should actively participate in ensuring that no hospital sells any item priced higher than the MRP. No service charges should be added to procure drugs from outside. MRP shall not be dictated by the purchaser."



The IMA recommendation is the following:
Come New Year, buying your dream car could soon become a costly affair as major carmakers have announced a price hike in passenger vehicles from January 2018. The latest in the list to increase car prices is Tata Motors. Tata Motors today said it will increase prices of its passenger vehicles by up to Rs. 25,000 from January to offset the impact of rising input costs.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor, the maker of SUVs like Innova and Fortuner, had earlier said that it is mulling to increase prices of its models by up to 3 per cent from January, to counter the affect of rising manufacturing costs.

Honda Cars India has also said it will increase prices of its models by up to Rs 25,000 from January 1, 2018. "We plan to hike prices across our models ranging between 1-2 per cent from January," a Honda Cars India Ltd (HCIL) spokesperson said.

HCIL sells models ranging from hatchback Brio with price starting at Rs 4.66 lakh to Accord Hybrid priced at Rs 43.21 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Skoda Auto India had earlier announced a price hike of 2-3 per cent on all its models.

Isuzu Motors India had also said it will increase prices of its models by up to Rs 1 lakh from January 1, 2018. The increase is expected to be between 3 and 4 per cent across the model range.

"This means that the prices will go up by around Rs 15,000 on the D-Max (Regular Cab - Commercial Vehicle) to Rs 1 lakh on the premium SUV mu-X," it added.

The company sells models ranging from adventure utility vehicle V-Cross with price starting at Rs 13.31 lakh to premium SUV mu-X priced up to Rs 25.8 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Meanwhile, auto dealers are offering discounts and other offers, in the range of Rs 25,000 and Rs 8.85 lakh, on certain vehicles. The benefits include cash discounts and exchange bonuses on select models by companies including market leader Maruti Suzuki to luxury carmaker Audi, and everything in between.
India's largest public sector bank SBI has changed names and IFSC Codes of nearly 1,300 of its 25,000 branches in the country's major cities owing to its merger with five associate banks and a 'Bharatiya Mahila Bank' in April. The Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) is an 11-digit alpha-numeric system that uniquely identifies all bank branches participating in the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) fund transfer system. The IFSC Code is mandatory to send or receive money online from one bank account to another. The SBI authorities say the decision to change the names as well as IFSC Codes was taken due the merger. They clarified it would not cause any problem to customers in case payment comes through old IFSC Code as the system would automatically map it with the new code.

Most changes with regard to name and IFSC Code have been done in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Lucknow after the State Bank of India merged its associate banks State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Mysore, and also Bhartiya Mahila Bank into itself. "Some of our old associate branches are getting merged with SBI branches. When that merger happens, the IFSC codes get changed," SBI managing director (retail and digital banking) Praveen Gupta told PTI. He added though customers have been informed, the new codes have been mapped internally to send payment to the new or original IFSC code branch. Click on the hyperlink to know the changed bank names and their new IFSC Codes.

Meanwhile, the bank has also offered a refurbished 'SBI Internet Banking' facility for its customers to access their accounts and make transactions through RTGS, NEFT or IMPS methods. On its website (onlinesbi.com), the bank has given two options for its customers under personal and corporate banking categories. Those making singular transaction can avail personal banking, while you can click on corporate banking option to make non-personal transactions. If you are new to online banking, here are the steps to be followed to make quick and hassle-free transactions.

Register for the internet banking with your SBI branch, which will provide a Pre Printed Kit (PPK) comprising username and password for your first-time online login.

Call up your bank for username and password you can't visit the branch; it will be sent through an SMS or email.

Go to onlinesbi.com. For personal banking, select either of three options - login new version, login and login lite - as per your data speed.

Login using your username and password

Next page will give options to manage your account, and carry out online transactions.



Corporate Internet Banking (CINB)

SBI facilitates companies, trusts, partnerships, proprietorship concerns to do online banking and manage non-personal accounts. In CINB, the corporate has the power to allow discretionary access to banking accounts by internal users and manage permissions to banking transactions and monitor them.
On October 30, 2017, Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, along with Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Georgias Prime-minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Kazakhstans Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev, and Uzbekistans Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov attended the opening ceremony of the long-delayed Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway. The opening of the railway is of historic and strategic significance, Aliyev said at the ceremony in the Caspian port city of Alat, south of Baku, to mark the departure of the first trains. In fact, the opening of the new railway provides an alternative route to existing rail services carrying goods from Asia to Europe.

BACKGROUND: The BTK railway, totaling 826 kilometers in length, is intended to complete a transport corridor linking Azerbaijan to Turkey (and thereby linking Central Asia and China to Europe) by rail. The railway is constructed on the basis of a Georgian-Azerbaijani-Turkish intergovernmental agreement. At the initial stage, it will have a capacity of one million passengers and 6.5 million tons of cargo per year, projected to reach 17 million tons of cargo per year by 2023. Starting in Baku, the trains will stop in Tbilisi, pass through gauge-changing facilities in Akhalkalaki, and terminate in north-east Turkey.

Given the importance of the BTK project, most Central Asian countries including Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan have expressed an interest in becoming connected to BTK, which is the shortest route linking the landlocked region with Europe. Kazakhstan, for example, appears eager to join the route to its strategic Khorgos Gateway on the border with China. The initiators of the project forecast the development of a new railway junction between Central Asia and Europe, after Kazakhstans Aktau port and Turkmenistans Turkmenbashi are connected to the BTK route. The regions connection with Europe through the Caspian Sea would indeed provide a shorter route for transportation of local goods. Besides stimulating local manufacturing operations, the BTK route will also provide the countries it passes through with additional new sources of revenue, such as transit fees.

IMPLICATIONS: The Central Asian region, confined by its geography, seeks economic diversification through promoting various ambitious projects such as the China-led One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative. In general, the regional states see the BTK route as a logical continuation of the multi-billion dollar OBOR project, which intends to link the region with Europe.

The BTK rail line physically connects the central portions of Eurasia, the singular landmass stretching from Chinas east coast to Europes west coast, containing 70 percent of the worlds population, 75 percent of its energy resources, and 70 percent of its GDP. The overland journey between China and Europe via the BTK rail line will take around 15 days, which is more than twice as fast as sea transport at less than half the price of air travel. Trains can depart from a variety of cities in China, cross into Kazakhstan at the Khorgos Gateway, be easily transported by ferry across the Caspian Sea to the New Port of Baku, and then be loaded directly onto the BTK and head on to Europe  and vice versa in the opposite direction.

In this context, analysts in Kazakhstan have raised the possibility of reviving the Trans-Caspian Transportation Corridor. However, this project requires significant increases in trade turnover and Chinese exports to European markets. These options were discussed during recent the EXPO-2017 held in Astana. On November 5, 2017, the first train cargo carrying 600 tons of wheat from Kazakhstan arrived in the Turkish port of Mersin via the BTK route. The train completed the 1258-km journey from Kars to Mersin in about 30 hours. The first successful transit of goods was received with optimism in Kazakhstan regarding the future benefits of the BTK railway. According to Beybit Isayev, Kazakhstans ambassador to Azerbaijan, the BTK railway project is in Kazakhstans perspective the most valuable part of the transportation corridors from China through the Central Asian region and the Caspian basin, opening new prospects for delivering Kazakh goods to European markets.

Uzbekistan is eager to join the BTK route for the same reasons. The first high-level consultations regarding Uzbekistans participation in the BTK project were held in Tashkent on October 17, 2016, during a meeting between Azerbaijans Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and his Uzbek counterpart Abdulaziz Kamilov. On March 18 this year, a trilateral meeting of Azerbaijans, Georgias, and Uzbekistans railway departments was organized in Tashkent. Uzbekistan is known for its multi-sphere export, including coal and cotton, which has attracted foreign investments and gradually improved the production level. Increased trade turnover through this railway will increase Uzbekistans GDP, enabling the country to facilitate and diversify its export of cotton and other agricultural products to the world markets.

The South Korean Black and Caspian Sea Export Company has expressed a willingness to invest in transit projects that pass through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The company intends to export Polypropylene and Polyethylene from these countries. The BTK railway is seemingly the most relevant option for the company to deliver goods to Europe via Turkey. According to the companys director Lee Dong, the Georgia-based Caucasus-Trans Express Company will be its logistical partner.

Turkmenistan also eyes the possibility of connecting to the BTK railway project, as indicated during President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedovs recent visit to Baku. Possessing substantial natural resources deposits, including enormous hydrocarbon reserves, Turkmenistan also seeks alternative routes to Europe. In Baku, Berdimuhammedov emphasized the importance of improving transport connections between the South Caucasus and Central Asia, which would ease mutual trade operations of all these countries. In this regard, the BTK railway may serve as a suitable platform, which will provide access for Turkmen goods to European markets.

Unlike Kazakhstan, Uzbekistans and Turkmenistans participation in the BTK project nevertheless remains problematic due to limitations in existing infrastructure. Their participation in the BTK project depends on the successful launch of the Navoi  Turkmenbashi railway route, which will connect to the BTK railway, as well as Bakus Alat International Seaport, and further increase the effectiveness of rail links between Azerbaijan and Central Asia. It remains a precondition for the westward export of Uzbek, Turkmen and Afghan goods via the BTK railway. Early talks regarding the Navoi  Turkmenbashi transport corridor were held in Ashgabat in 2012, when Uzbekistans former President Islam Karimov visited Turkmenistan.

CONCLUSIONS: The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project is set to reinvigorate regional economic growth, and to serve as a suitable gateway to Europe for the landlocked Central Asian countries. Hence, beyond its economic value, the BTK will improve connectivity across Eurasia. With its geographic location, Central Asia has the potential to become the core of all main transport projects that pass through this region. Undoubtedly, the Central Asian countries participation in the BTK railway project will be beneficial not only for regional but also for European actors.

AUTHORS BIO: Fuad Shahbazov is an Expert-Advisor of the Foreign Policy Analysis Department of the Centre for Strategic Studies under the President of Republic of Azerbaijan.

Image source: By Giorgi Balakhadze CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons accessed on 12.07. 2017
CAMEROUN :: BAMENDA- Cameroon : HARASSMENT OF A HUMAN RIGHTS' DEFENDERS

Frontline Fighters for Citizens Interests (FFCI) would like the world to know that on December 4th, 2017, the staff of the organization was shocked when they arrived at the Bamenda regional office to work as usual and found the office sealed without any prior official notice.

In the same vein, the permanent secretary who was managing the daily administrative duties at the office has gone missing. We hope that she is fine in terms of her life and safety, given the situation and we

hope that she has taken refuge somewhere.

It is worth noting that since October 1, 2017, the organization and staff has been a target of serious threats by unknown individuals who do not appreciate the standpoint of the organization regarding certain issues of the socio-political crisis in the Anglophone regions.

Threats on staff are abundant and recently the notice board of the regional office was vandalized.

Since the beginning of the socio-political crisis in the Northwest and Southwest Regions, FFCI has been very active as a human rights defense organization, fighting to protect the interests of the population. In this process, the organization has been involved in the following:

 FFCI has secured the release of many persons who were arrested in Bamenda and detained in Yaounde, and much more who were detained in the Northwest Region.

 FFCI has been campaigning for the reopening of schools in the two Anglophone regions following a strike action, called the Anglophone Teachers in the Northwest and Southwest Regions. The organization strongly believes that the education of the youth is priceless and therefore preventing children from going to school constitutes a serious violation of their right to educationa right

enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which has been ratified by Cameroon. Today, schools have resumed at the rate of 95% thanks to the campaign carried out by FFCI.

 FFCI has from the outset vehemently condemned violence, vandalism on the private and public property, arson, and killings during this period and called for a peaceful and democratic resolution

of the crisis, which the Cameroon Government has failed to engage in a dialogue with all the protagonists and the situation has intensified in an armed conflict, promoting violence and vandalism. Cameroon is

now witnessing a dirty period of it history since independence with radicalization on a daily basis.

As a matter of fact, FFCIs standpoint on the socio-political crisis in the Anglophone regions has been saluted and lauded by a vast majority of the population, but naturally, as in all human endeavors, it has been contested and condemned by some. The organization strongly believes that the vandalism of the notice board in Bamenda, the sealing of the regional office, the arrest of the National President

Franklin Mowha on November 27th, 2017, threats on staff and intimidation come from individuals who do not encounter eye to eye with the organizations position.

The National President of FFCI has been fined 842,000 CFA frs by the Military Tribunal in Bamenda for inciting public rebellion against the State of Cameroon with regard to the organizations position on the

poor conditions of the Bamenda-Babadjou road.

On September 13th, 2017, the Military Tribunal issued a verdict imposing a fine of 842000 CFA frs to be paid to the tribunal.

Mr. MOWHA Franklin was then arrested on November 27th, 2017 in Bamenda in the execution of the courts decision and was given only 10 days from the date of his arrest to pay this huge sum of money for a crime he did not commit. Having failed to pay the above-mentioned amount, Mr. MOWHA Franklin shall be imprisoned for a period of one year.

MBUI CHU AFOR

ffcicameroon@gmail.com

December 5th, 2017
| BY Ricki Green |

Creative agency Paper Stone Scissors has been appointed by Casella Family Brands to localise the [yellow tail] brand for Chinese consumers.

The appointment follows a competitive agency tender in September of this year.

Paper Stone Scissors will be responsible for the strategic, digital and creative development and production of the 2018 campaign in China.

Paper Stone Scissors has a history of working with Australian and international clients looking to localise their brands into the Chinese market from Coca-Cola to Herman Miller and the Hilton Group.

Says Atia Cader, creative director and founder at Paper Stone Scissors: We are thrilled to be taking this iconic Australian brand to China. Weve been working in China for nearly a decade and been witness to a dramatic sophistication of the market in this time.
| BY Ricki Green |

Creative school Foundry has recently launched a brand new campaign via //Thirteen & Co founding director Pete Moore.

With an open client brief, Foundry and Moore worked together to express the essence of the communication. Based in Hobart and Launceston, Tasmania, Foundrys new campaign line The New Creative defined a new age student with multiple skill sets who is more of an entrepreneur than anything.

Says Moore: The campaign embodied that idea that all your life is a collection of experiences that flow through your mind into ideas that you share and take to the world. The idea that creatives change the world around them, by creating new things and innovating the old.

The dream state story was filmed over two days in The Island State with cinematographer Sherwin Akbarzadeh and fashion photographer Natalie Cottee, on open roads, ghost towns, mountain tops, waterfalls and coastline in Tasmania then the final day in a creative space in Melbourne.

The campaign will run on TV, cinema, online and on outdoor billboards.

Says Andrew Johnstone, creative director, Foundry: I loved Petes style of direction and how he pushed the initial concept to a higher level. The film is beautifully shot, and the cinematic, dreamy quality works perfectly to portray the idea of delving into the creative process.

Adds Moore: With them being Tassie based, theyre a destination study location, so I wanted to incorporate the physical beauty of the place but not in a traditional tourism style way. The thinking was that all the environments were altered some way in her mind creatively and that was what led to the lighting installations (created by the Mona art department team) becoming part of it.

The full campaign can be viewed here.

Client: Foundry

Creative Director: Andrew Johnstone

Designer: Ben Hayes

Marketing: Georgie Gow

Production: Snakes & Ladders Films

Director: Pete Moore

DOP: Sherwin Akbarzadeh

Photography: Natalie Cottee

Line Producer (Melb): Zena Bartlett

Editor: Joe Morris

Colour/ Online: Matt Fezz

Animation: Joe Pease

Music: These Places by Becky Sui Zhen

Sound Mix: Matt Brown
| BY Ricki Green |

Fairfax Media is laying down the gauntlet to Australias creative talent with the chance to experiment with its new rich media advertising formats and showcase their agency to win the ultimate inspiration trip to the USA.

Open from 11 December 2017 until 19 January 2018, the Fairfax Rich Media Challenge gives creatives, techs and designers free rein to design a mobile interscroller and demonstrate how their agency is leading the way in creativity and design. The competition is being run by The Studio at Fairfax, a multidisciplinary creative services team that supports agencies and brands by delivering multi-platform branded content, creative and strategy.

Fairfaxs new ad formats were announced in August offering advertisers premium inventory at scale, combining immersive, rich media experiences that place brands in the spotlight whilst engaging Fairfaxs quality audience. Underpinned by audience targeting capabilities, measurable data and real-time analytics, the formats combine creativity and technology in a first for the Australian premium digital publishing space.

The winner of the challenge will receive a $30k digital media package, have their work displayed across the Fairfax Premium News Network and get an plus an all-expenses paid trip to mix with the rich, famous, and creative talent at the prestigious ATX Spring Festival, the worlds leading interactive film, music and comedy conference and festival in Austin, Texas.
| BY Ricki Green |

IPG Mediabrands has announced that Mark Pejic, chairman of Mediabrands Melbourne operations, will step down from his role and prepare to leave the business at the end of this month to pursue new opportunities.

Says Danny Bass, CEO, IPG Mediabrands: Mark, or Pej as we all know him best, has led our Melbourne operations for the past two years and contributed greatly to its success. As he prepares to move to his next career step, we cant thank him enough for his time with us.

Says Pejic: I have enjoyed my time leading the Mediabrands Melbourne operation. I have a great deal of respect for its people and clients and wish them the very best moving forward. I am excited to be exploring the next chapter of my career.

Bass said that with Mediabrands continuing evolution of its business model in Australia, into 2018 the Groups client relationships would be led through its three power brands  Initiative, UM and Reprise  all of which have strong operations in Melbourne. He said that Pejic had been a leading player in the development of the power brands in Melbourne.

Says Bass: Pej has been a big supporter of our evolving business model and has led our transition in Melbourne very effectively, We wish him all the best for the future.
| BY Ricki Green |

News Corp Australia today announced its decision to use Enhanced Media Metrics Australia (EMMA) as its exclusive audience metric provider.

The decision to use EMMA as the primary measurement metric follows an extensive review with more than 100 advertisers and media agencies that highlighted that the existing print circulation metric is no longer a representative measure of todays cross-platform audiences.

Says Michael Miller (left), executive chairman, News Corp Australasia: We have consulted with and listened to our advertiser and media agency partners and it is clear that circulation is not an indicator of how media is consumed today, and is out of step with how the advertising industry now operates.

Media buyers and advertisers plan media based on the audience that engages with our mastheads, not the number of papers sold.

Total audience is the chosen metric that our advertisers and media buyers now use to make their media buying decisions and to compare alternatives across all main media, so its a natural course of action for us to meet the market by using one, primary metric.

As a consequence, the company will withdraw all its titles from the Audited Media Association of Australias (AMAA) Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) and Circulation Audit Board (CAB), effective immediately.

The January to June 2017 circulation audit was the last for News Corp Australia.

Emmas total cross-platform audience readership shows a single view of both digital (PC, smartphone and tablet) and print audiences to provide accurate, monthly readership as measured by Ipsos. The metric is independently audited and draws from a survey base of more than 40,000 Australians every month.

Says Miller: As the industrys independent and accredited cross-platform audience insights survey, Emma provides the most complete picture of readership today.

We have therefore decided to adopt Emma as our primary audience metric, given that it captures total audience  not just the number of copies printed and sold. Emma has the sophistication, depth, credibility and frequency to provide an accurate and complete picture of our audiences.

Emma was introduced in 2013 as a single source media and consumer insights survey with a diverse range of variables including demographics, media consumption, lifestyles, psychographics and a comprehensive range of product and service insights.

It is conducted by Ipsos, a global leader in audience measurement solutions. Ipsos conducts more than 40 media surveys across the globe, including the National Readership Survey (NRS) in the UK. Each month the Emma data in Australia is fused with the industry accredited Nielsen Digital Ratings Monthly data to provide a total audience metric.

Says Miller: We are committed to seeing our titles grow and thrive. As news is consumed across many platforms and our audiences grow and evolve, our measurement must give a complete audience picture.
| BY Ricki Green |

New faces have joined Orchard following recent client wins for the creative technology agency.

Katie McAllister joins Orchard in project management following stints at MullenLowe Profero and Holler where she worked on a range of brands including Audi.

Max Cahill is the latest addition to the account management team. He departs DDB where he was a digital business manager working on accounts including VW. Prior to that, he was at McCann Health.

Senior insights and analytics strategist Gareth Kleinman has previously held roles at Deepend and Ogilvy Australia and joins at a time when data increases to play a key role in a greater number of projects/solutions.

Tamsin Ridgwell comes across from Ogilvy CommonHealth where she has been since 2013. Most recently, Ridgwell was business director at the agency.

Katrina Leo exits MRM//McCann where she has been for the past two years, most recently in the role of digital producer.

The design team welcomes Tom Twiby who takes the next step in his career which he began at Havas Australia in 2013.

Project co-ordinator Diana Vo is another addition to the team. She joins Orchard following three years at Taos Creative.

Says Andrew Antoniou, managing partner at Orchard: We thrilled to welcome these talented individuals to the Orchard team. Together they bring with them a wealth of experience working across brands and categories that make them an ideal fit for our growing client roster.
| BY Kim Shaw |

Channel Nine Perth MD Ray Wardrop (left) has announced his resignation and will leave the station at the end of January next year.

He has been in the role for two years, having taken over from David Mott in September 2015.

He said he was leaving to spend more time with wife Karen, and their very successful retail business, and indulging their passion for travel.

Wardrop is one of Perths most widely experienced media figures, having also worked at The West Australian and in radio with Austereo before moving into television. A former GM of Channel Seven Perth from 2008  2011, Wardrop said he wasnt considering getting back into television when he was tapped for the Nine role  an offer he couldnt refuse.

Just over two years ago I was approached by one of the legends of Australian television, David Gyngell, to see if I wanted to be part of and oversee the relocation of Channel Nine into the city. While I wasnt even contemplating getting back into the TV business, I thought how many people in Australia have been offered a gig like that.

Fast forward to now and I can look back with huge pride at an awesome period in my career, where I got to work with an amazing bunch of people that were all part of TV history in this state. Together, we transitioned into the most modern television facility in the country.

I cannot speak highly enough of the company that I work for and all the people at Nine. Their management are truly authentic and superb people who empowered me to manage Nine in Perth and who are also very understanding of my decision to leave.
| BY Lynchy |

Samsung has recently concluded its search for a creative digital agency partner in Cambodia. A request for proposasl were sent to the top five digital agencies in Cambodia after comprehensive assessment and evaluation on digital capability.

We are pleased to have received a variation of creative and strategic proposals which showed a keen understanding of our business. We thank all the participating agencies for putting in their best efforts for the pitch and look forward to working with Comzone who will be appointed as our digital agency for 2018, Socheath Chea, Head of Marketing, Samsung Cambodia, said.

In an effort to narrowing its digital efforts, Samsung Electronics Cambodia will be working together with Comzone to ensure the company is engaging consumers with relevant content at optimum times, as well as through the right channels.

We are really excited at the prospect of working together in partnership with Samsung, one of the worlds leading and most respected electronic brands. Our passionate belief in leading locally and competing globally by combining the best local and established international talents has really made the difference for us in successfully staying ahead of the competition for this challenging pitch against top notch digital agencies, said Lundy So, CEO of Comzone.

Samsung hopes to connect with consumers through a fresh and carefully crafted digital activation. A new digital marketing strategy will be introduced to provide consumers with access to more information on the products they love.
In a statement to the Legislative Assembly earlier this year, the Minister for Disability, Children and Youth, Rachel Stephen-Smith, said decreases in the use of force at Bimberi showed the facility was moving "in the right direction".
Last week: Congratulations to Suzanne Vidler of Mawson who correctly identified last week's photo, sent in by Debbie Cameron of Ainslie as the Australian National University's (ANU) heritage-listed Llewellyn Hall. Opened in 1976, by the then Governor General Sir John Kerr, the School of Music building is a grand architectural statement in the 'Brutalist' style. The site had been the oval for the old Canberra High School and was chosen for its ability to link the ANU campus with the Canberra city centre.
A more crackdown on those who seek to undermine the independence of Australian politicians  whether those influencers are Chinese, American or wealthy Australians  would go much further. One option, for example, would be to close all potential loopholes by banning all donations. We already have a means whereby parties and politicians can campaign for office without donations: it's called public funding and it was established more than 30 years ago. Its entire purpose is to avoid the buying and selling of influence that drives American politics, wherein candidates are judged primarily on their ability to raise funds.
Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact.

Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here.

Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing.

You are our people. You Care. We Care2.
BMW is gearing up to launch a new 8 Series. But as any Bimmerphile could tell you, it wont be the first.



The Bavarian automaker produced just such a model between 1989 and 1999, cutting one of the sleekest profiles the industry has ever produced.

Just look at this one, for example. Its an 850Ci from 1993, packing a then-newly upgraded 5.4-liter V12 rated at 322 horsepower and 360 lb-ft of torque  placing it second only to the quasi-M 850CSi.

This particular example was ordered in Maldives Blue Metallic, and is believed to be the only 850Ci ever made in that color and right-hand drive. That means it was made for countries where they drive on the left-hand side of the road, like in the UK, Japan or Brunei.

In fact this one is said to have been delivered new to the Sultan of Brunei, who once stood as one of the worlds preeminent car collectors. Now nearly 15 years later, the cars listed for sale on AutoTrader in the UK (and brought to our attention by our friends at Motor1), with an asking price of 36,995.

Thats nearly $50k at current exchange rates, or about the price of a new M240i coupe. Given the choice, which would you take between the two?

Photo Gallery
On the back of his recent conviction, Volkswagen executive Oliver Schmidt may ask to serve his seven-year prison sentence in Germany.



Reuters reports that German weekly Welt am Sonntag broke the news, citing unnamed sources near Schmidt. If such a request is to be made, it would have to be approved by both the U.S. Department of Justice and a German court.

Last week, Schmidt was slapped with a seven year prison sentence and a $400,000 fine after pleading guilty to charges of conspiring to mislead U.S. regulators and violate clean-air laws.

Schmidt served as the head of VWs environmental and engineering office in Auburn Hills, Michigan until February 2015 and disclosed the companys use of software that cheated emissions testing during a meeting with a senior official from the California Air Resources Board.

In addition to claims of Schmidt potentially asking to be transferred to Germany, Welt am Sonntag says Schmidts lawyer Alexander Saettele is looking into a potential appeal.

PHOTO GALLERY
John Cena has responded to the lawsuit issued by Ford against him, revealing that he doesnt have any ill will towards Ford and is looking forward to seeing what the judge will decide.



At the start of the month, Ford revealed that it was suing the professional wrestler for selling his 2017 Ford GT after just a month of ownership, in direct violation of a contract that he would own the supercar for at least 24 months.

While recently speaking with Univision Autos about the whole saga, Cena admitted that its unfortunate but doesnt seem to bothered about potentially having to hand over the profits he made from the sale and up to $75,000 in damages to Ford.

Its unfortunate that sometimes you get a disagreement and you have to have an impartial party figure it out, I feel one way, Ford feels another way.

Im a true enthusiast, I dont have any ill will toward Ford, Ive been lucky enough in my life to own some iconic Fords. I follow the brand, I love what theyre doing with the Lincoln line but instead of fighting like irresponsible big kids, well let a judge figure it out and Ill be happy with either way the situation goes.

Im extremely excited and interested about it, so well see what happens, Cena said.

To read more about the situation, read our op-ed here.

VIDEO
Photo: Contributed

Buying a new computer can be daunting, so here are some things to consider before you head to the store.

If you have brand loyalty or brand aversion, you can probably skip to the middle of this article. If not, my advice is to *start* with the specs that are right for you and *end* by selecting the computer that works, regardless of brand.

The important stuff first

Processor power is measured in GHz. The processor is like the engine of a car. You need a powerful enough processor for everything else to function optimally.

First, look at the processor speed on your current computer, and dont ever go any slower than that.

Open File Explorer

Right-click on This PC

Click on Properties

The System section has the information you need. Higher numbers are better, but never settle for a speed of less than 2GHz. You wont have a very nice Windows experience.

RAM is important as well. RAM temporarily holds information while you have the computer on so Windows and other programs dont have to access the hard drive for the same thing repeatedly.

As with your Processor, look at what you have now and try not to have any less. Your computer will likely still work, but it wont work as smoothly. I recommend 8GB at minimum, and, of course, higher numbers are better.

Hard Drive capacity is also measured in GB. The hard drive is where all the programs, files, and Windows itself reside, whether the computer is on or off. Hard drives are not terribly expensive any more, so a 1TB hard drive is not uncommon.

Go for it if you can, but dont accept less than 500GB with a traditional, mechanical drive.

Other considerations

If youre buying a desktop computer, are you planning to replace your monitor at the same time? Thats good. Just make sure the computer and monitor have the same type of ports, so you can connect them easily.

If youre keeping your monitor, make sure your new computer can accept the same type of connection youre using, or make sure you have a cable that will convert one end so you can connect the computer and monitor.

If youre buying a laptop, are you planning to travel with it? If so, weight might be a consideration. Do you need a CD/DVD drive? Many laptops, especially the very light ones, dont include that drive.

Laptop users should also consider the feel of the keyboard and the look of the monitor. Both things are personal choices. Get something you like!

If youre buying an All-In-One computer pay attention to the size of the room its going to and if youre putting it on a desk with a cut-out, make sure theres room for it, and room to reach around behind it to plug in and to unplug your devices.

Also make sure you like the looks of the screen.

Dont forget

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.) rarely comes with a new computer. You have to pay for those programs. You should find out if the version you have is transferrable, and if not, you should expect to pay for a new version.

Your printer needs to be installed on your new computer. If its a scanner, too, you need to do things in a particular order. This column might be helpful.

Transfer your files and settings from your old computer to your new one. This really isnt as straightforward as it sounds. Get help if you need it.

Ask questions when the sales person says something you dont understand. Theres no need to preface your questions with, I dont know anything about computers.

If you have a question, it doesnt matter if you know anything about computers or not. Just keep asking your question until you get an answer you understand!

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
The city of LA is trying to outlaw house parties in the Hollywood Hills so Chad and JT stepped in to thwart a potential disaster. This is what the Beastie Boys were trying to teach us. One must use all the avenues that the great system of democracy entitles us to so that we may never cease fighting for the pursuit of liberty, justice, and flip cup.
Photo: The Canadian Press

UPDATE: 7 a.m.

A man with a pipe bomb strapped to him set off the crude device in the subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring the suspect and three other people at the height of the morning rush hour.

The man and three others were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries in what the mayor and police labeled an attempted terror attack.

The explosion happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. The 7:30 a.m. blast caused smoke to fill the passageway, which was crowded with throngs of Monday morning commuters.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill labeled it an attempted terror attack.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," de Blasio said.

The suspect was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

Law enforcement officials said he was inspired by the Islamic State group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group. The officials said he lives in Brooklyn and may be of Bangladeshi descent. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff. A police officer is holding the man's hands behind his back.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

Fire officials said the suspect had burns to his hands and abodmen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in ears and headaches.

Elrana Peralta, a customer service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal complex near where the blast happened, but didn't hear the explosion.

"All we could hear was the chaos," she said. "We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, 28, from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts. He also didn't hear the blast, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said. There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave. "They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority area was shut down  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations. NJ Transit said buses were taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken, where they could take trains into the city.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.

ORIGINAL: 6:15 a.m.

A pipe bomb that was strapped to a man went off in the New York City subway near the Times Square area of Manhattan on Monday, injuring the suspect and another person on the platform at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials said.

The person on the platform was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Another person on the platform sustained non-life-threatening injuries

The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the incident.

The explosion, which happened around 7:30 a.m., triggered a massive emergency response by New York police and fire both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has tweeted that President Trump has been briefed on the explosion.

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority in the 42nd Street area was shut down  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations following the explosion.

NJ Transit says buses are taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken. From there, they can take trains or PATH into the city.

Trains, PATH, light rail and ferries are honouring bus tickets into New York.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Finance Minister Bill Morneau can expect a lot of provincial hands reaching for the federal purse strings when he sits down with his counterparts in Ottawa today.

The issue of who should get the lion's share of revenue from legalized cannabis is expected to be a major bone of contention.

The provinces and territories say they'll have to bear the lion's share of the costs associated with legalization, and therefore should get most of the revenue.

Among the expenses the provinces are likely to face are beefed up policing, increased road safety efforts, busier court systems and public awareness campaigns.

Morneau has said the federal government should get as much as half the tax revenue. Federal officials say Morneau's argument will be that Ottawa has put aside more than $1 billion over five years toward the costs involved with legalization.

But provincial finance ministers like Ontario's Charles Sousa are skeptical, and want the federal government to explain exactly what it's paying for.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Baby milk maker Lactalis and French authorities have ordered a global recall of millions of products over fears of salmonella bacteria contamination.

The French company, one of the largest dairy groups in the world, said it has been warned by health authorities in France that 26 infants have become sick since Dec. 1.

According to a list published on the French health ministry's website, the recall affects customers in countries around the world, including: Britain and Greece in Europe, Morocco and Sudan in Africa, Peru and Colombia in South America and Pakistan, Bangladesh and China in Asia. The United States, a major market for Lactalis, is not affected.

Company spokesman Michel Nalet told The Associated Press on Monday that the "precautionary" recall affects "several million" products made since mid-February.

Lactalis said in a statement that the 26 cases of infection were linked to products branded Picot SL, Pepti Junior 1, Milumel Bio 1 and Picot Riz.

It said it is "sincerely sorry for the concern generated by the situation and expresses its compassion and support to the families whose children fell ill."

The symptoms of salmonella infection include abdominal cramps, diarrhea and fever. Most people recover without treatment.

The company said a possible source of the outbreak has been identified in a tower used to dry out the milk at a production site in May. Disinfection and cleaning measures have been put in place at the suspected site in western France.

The health scare started earlier this month when Lactalis was told that 20 infants under six months of age had been diagnosed with salmonella infection. The company ordered a first recall that has been extended to more products at the request of French authorities following new cases of infections.

Lactalis is a privately held company headquartered in Laval, western France. It has 75,000 employees in 85 countries and annual revenues of about 17 billion euros ($20 billion). Its other notable brands include President and Galbani cheeses and Parmalat milk.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Firefighters kept a wall of flames from descending mountains into coastal neighbourhoods after a huge and destructive Southern California wildfire exploded in size, becoming the fifth largest in state history.

Thousands remained under evacuation orders Monday as the fire churned west through foothill areas of Carpinteria and Montecito, seaside Santa Barbara County towns about 75 miles (120 kilometres) northwest of Los Angeles. Much of the fire's rapid new growth occurred on the eastern and northern fronts into unoccupied areas of Los Padres National Forest, where the state's fourth largest fire burned a decade ago.

The blaze, which had already destroyed more than 750 buildings, burned six more in Carpinteria on Sunday, officials said. It's just 10 per cent contained after charring nearly 360 square miles (930 square kilometres) of dry brush and timber.

"We're still anxious. I'm not frightened yet," Carpinteria resident Roberta Lehtinen told KABC-TV. "I don't think it's going to come roaring down unless the winds kick up."

Forecasters predicted that dry winds that fanned several fires across the region for a week would begin to lose their power Monday. But the possibility of "unpredictable" gusts would keep firefighters on edge for days, Santa Barbara County Fire spokesman Mike Eliason said.

Santa Ana winds have long contributed to some of the region's most disastrous wildfires. They blow from the inland toward the Pacific Ocean, speeding up as they squeeze through mountain passes and canyons.

Containment increased on other major blazes in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties. Resources from those fires were diverted to the Santa Barbara foothills to combat the stubborn and enormous fire that started Dec. 4.

Despite the size and number of wildfires burning in the region, there has only been one confirmed death: The death of a 70-year-old woman, who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city where the Thomas Fire began.

Most of last week's fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighbourhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the city's rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Alabama Democrats see Tuesday's special Senate election as a chance to renounce a history littered with politicians whose race-baiting, bombast and other baggage have long soiled the state's reputation beyond its borders.

Many Republicans see the vote as chance to ratify their conservative values and protect President Donald Trump's agenda ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.

At the centre are Republican Roy Moore, a former jurist twice removed as state chief justice and now accused of sexual misconduct with teenage girls decades ago, and Democrat Doug Jones, an erstwhile federal prosecutor best known for prosecuting two Ku Klux Klansmen responsible for killing four black girls in the 1963 bombing of Birmingham's 16th Street Baptist Church.

The winner will take the seat held previously by Trump's attorney general, Jeff Sessions. Republicans control the Senate with 52 seats.

And while Trump himself didn't campaign in the state after Moore was hit with allegations of sexual misconduct, the president recorded an audio message for robocalls that went to voters on Monday  underscoring the importance to Trump's agenda of keeping the seat in Republican hands.

The matchup mixes both Alabama's tortured history and the nation's current divisive, bitterly partisan politics, and it has made a spectacle of a Deep South state well acquainted with national scrutiny but not accustomed to competitive general elections.

"This is an election to tell the whole world what we stand for," Jones told supporters at one stop Sunday, adding that his campaign "is on the right side of history." At an earlier appearance, he declared Alabama is "at a crossroads" and that Moore, an unapologetic evangelical populist, tries only to "create conflict and division."

Jones, 63, stops short of explicitly comparing Moore to the four-term Gov. George Wallace, whose populism was rooted in segregation. But Jones alluded Sunday to that era of Alabama politics.

"Elect a responsible man to a responsible office," Jones said, repeating the campaign slogan of another Alabama governor, Albert Brewer, who nearly defeated Wallace in 1970 in a contest Alabama liberals and many moderates still lament as a lost opportunity.

Some of Jones' supporters put it even more bluntly. "I thought Alabama's image was pretty much at the bottom," said Pat Lawrence, a retired software engineer in Huntsville. A Moore win, Lawrence added, "will be a whole new bottom."

Those concerns extend even to some GOP quarters. Alabama's senior senator, Richard Shelby, confirmed Sunday that he did not vote for Moore, saying he wrote in another "distinguished" party figure he declined to name.

Yet for many Republicans, Moore is a paragon of traditional values. They reject accusations that he molested two teenage girls and pursued relationships with others decades ago. Moore denies the charges.

"Everyone has to vote their convictions," said Kevin Mims of Montgomery, as he held his Bible outside his Baptist church Sunday in Montgomery. "My conviction is he's the right man for the job."

Where Moore's critics see a state judge who defied federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court's decision legalizing same-sex marriage, Mims see a stalwart who stands "on the word of God." Other conservatives see an anti-establishment firebrand in the mould of Trump, who won Alabama by 28 percentage points.

Moore encourages that view with fundraising emails that urge backers to help him "defeat the elite," a swipe at both Democrats and the establishment Republicans who tried to deny him the GOP nomination earlier this year.

Ultimately, Republicans from Moore to Trump himself are betting on a simple bottom line: Most Alabama conservatives simply won't defect to a Democrat.

"If Alabama elects liberal Democrat Doug Jones, all of our progress will be stopped cold," Trump says in a robocall the Moore campaign plans to push out Monday.

The president also invokes a common fear among Republicans, calling Jones "a puppet of Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer," the Democratic House and Senate leaders in Washington, both of them reviled by conservative voters. "Roy Moore is the guy we need to pass our Make American Great Again agenda," the president insists.

Moore's baggage could make it difficult to draw conclusions about what the results might mean beyond Alabama, but both parties are watching closely.

Democrats need to flip 24 GOP-held seats to reclaim a House majority, and they're trying to dent the slim Republican advantage in the Senate and its dominance of statehouses around the country. In many of those races, they'll need the same thing Jones must get to win in Alabama: strong turnout among young and non-white voters, along with improved performance among suburban moderates.

A Jones victory would be hailed as a potential precursor, and Democrats have indicated they have a post-Alabama strategy even if Jones loses: They'll take Alabama's brand national, hammering Republicans as "the party of Donald Trump and Roy Moore."

-----

Barrow reported from Mobile, Alabama. Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP and Chandler at https://twitter.com/StatehouseKim.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Some women, and men, worry the same climate that's emboldening women to speak up about sexual misconduct could backfire by making some men wary of female colleagues.

Forget private meetings and get-to-know-you dinners. Beware of banter. Think twice before a high-ranking man mentors a young female staffer.

"I have already heard the rumblings of a backlash: 'This is why you shouldn't hire women,'" Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg wrote in a recent post .

"So much good is happening to fix workplaces right now. Let's make sure it does not have the unintended consequence of holding women back," said Sandberg, author of the working women's manifesto "Lean In."

Ana Quincoces, a Miami-based attorney and entrepreneur who owns her own food line, says her business and its success involves working mostly with men, and sales and other activities are often concluded over lunch or drinks. Those opportunities, she says, are dwindling, because many of the men she knows through her business "are terrified."

"There's a feeling of this wall that wasn't there that is suddenly up because they don't know what's appropriate anymore  it's disconcerting," Quincoces said. "I feel that they're more careful, more formal in their relationships with co-workers. And I can't say I blame them, because what's happened is pervasive. Every day there's a new accusation."

She said many of the men she knows are now avoiding one-on-one social occasions that were normal in the past.

"This is going to trickle down into all industries. ... It's going to become the new normal," Quincoces said. "It's a good thing because women are not afraid anymore, but on the other side, it's a slippery slope."

Americans were already edgy about male-female encounters at work: A New York Times/Morning Consult poll of 5,300 men and women last spring found almost two-thirds thought workers should be extra careful around opposite-sex colleagues, and around a quarter thought private work meetings between men and women were inappropriate.

But in a season of outcry over sexual misconduct, some men are suddenly wondering whether they can compliment a female colleague or ask about her weekend. Even a now-former female adviser to the head of Pennsylvania's Democratic Party suggested on Facebook that men would stop talking to women altogether because of what she portrayed as overblown sexual misconduct claims.

Certain managers are considering whether to make sure they're never alone with a staffer, despite the complications of adding a third person in situations like performance reviews, says Philippe Weiss, who runs the Chicago-based consultancy Seyfarth Shaw at Work.

Vice-President Mike Pence has long said he doesn't have one-on-one meals with any woman except his wife and wants her by his side anywhere alcohol is served, as part of the couple's commitment to prioritizing their marriage. The guidelines have "been a blessing to us," the Republican told Christian Broadcasting Network News in an interview this month.

Employment attorneys caution that it can be problematic to curb interactions with workers because of their gender, if the practice curtails their professional opportunities. W. Brad Johnson, a co-author of a book encouraging male mentors for women, says limiting contact sends a troubling message.

"If I were unwilling to have an individual conversation with you because of your gender, I'm communicating 'you're unreliable; you're a risk,'" says Johnson, a U.S. Naval Academy psychology professor.

Jessica Proud, a communications professional and Republican political consultant in New York City, said it would be wrong if this national "day of reckoning" over sexual misconduct resulted in some men deciding not to hire, mentor or work with women. She recalled a campaign she worked on where she was told she couldn't travel with the candidate because of how it might look.

"I'm a professional, he's a professional. Why should my career experience be limited?" she said. "That's just as insulting in a lot of ways."
Photo: The Canadian Press

Christopher Garnier says Catherine Campbell coaxed him into choking her during sex play, and urged him to apply more pressure before she died.

Garnier is on the stand today at his trial in the off-duty police officer's death; his lawyer opened the defence case by telling the jury Campbell died accidentally during rough sex.

Garnier said he met Campbell at a downtown bar in the early hours of Sept. 11, 2015, and they went to his friend's McCully Street apartment.

He told the jury she asked him if he was "into domination," and asked him to slap and choke her.

The Crown alleges Garnier punched and strangled the 36-year-old Truro, N.S., police constable and used a compost bin to dispose of her body near Halifax's Macdonald Bridge.

He has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and interfering with a dead body.

Garnier said they decided to go to the McCully Street apartment after kissing at the bar.

They started kissing in the apartment hallway, he said, and "she asked me if I was into domination."

He said he told her didn't want to have sex and she said: "That doesn't mean we can't play."

"She asked me to choke her. I didn't say anything," he said.

"She told me it was OK and not to worry."

He said he put pressure on her neck, but she asked him to squeeze harder. He had both hands on her neck for 30 seconds, he said.

"I don't think I was using very much force," he testified. "If she ever resisted I would have stopped."

They moved to a pullout couch in the den, where she asked him to slap her, he said.

"I did it three times, fast," he testified.

"I was uncomfortable and embarrassed about what I was doing. She kept saying it's OK."

He said his forearm was across her neck, and that he felt his arm getting wet, and saw blood.

He went to get a towel and when he returned, she wasn't moving.

"I shook her a little bit and I could hear air come out of her lungs," Garnier said.

His testimony continues.
Photo: Contributed

Just like for a Christmas cookie, there's a recipe that goes into the making of a best-selling toy.

Each year, toymakers hope they've found the perfect balance of technology, whimsy and price to appeal to children and their parents alike, sending their products racing to the top of the coveted "Hot Toy" lists.

This year, Montreal-based WowWee Canada Inc. appears to have found the magic formula with Fingerlings, a line of animatronic baby monkeys who respond to touch and sound by blinking, chirping, and blowing kisses.

They were released earlier this year and quickly sold out in stores, prompting frantic online searches by parents looking to secure one of the colourful 12-centimetre-long plastic toys in time for Christmas.

As of this past Friday, various colours of Fingerlings made up three of the top five toys on Amazon.ca, and they've been described as one of the hottest toys of the year by Forbes.com, ToysRUS and Target.

The product's runaway success is not entirely surprising to WowWee's creative director, Benny Dongarra, who was part of the Montreal team that designed the toy.

He said he always believed it would be a huge hit  but, then again, he believes that of every toy he makes.

"It's hard to say, because we've seen that coming with a lot of items, but it actually came to fruition with Fingerlings," he said in an interview at the company's Montreal headquarters.

While the toys are manufactured in China, they were conceived and designed at the historic red-brick building just south of Montreal's Lachine Canal that serves as office and toy lab.

Fingerlings began with a simple idea from brand manager Sydney Wiseman, who'd been watching videos of a South American breed of monkeys called pygmy marmosets, who are small enough to wrap their arms and legs around a human finger.

"She said, 'can we make this into a toy?'" Dongarra recalled. "I said, 'yeah, I think we can do that.'"

There in the office, surrounded by the toy robots and remote-controlled dinosaurs of Christmases past, they began sketching, 3-D modelling and creating the early prototypes of what would become the Fingerling.

Dongarra said the team knew almost from the outset it wanted the toy to be the same size as the marmoset, to cling to the finger of the person holding it and to respond to them through emotion, sound and touch.

"We were sure pretty early on that we had a winner on our hands  well, on our fingers," he said.

The task of animating the toys fell to people like Anthony Lemire, a mechanical engineer who helped to design the toy's 40 or so sounds and movements.

While WowWee has a long history of designing robotic toys, he says the challenge in this case was to include as many features as possible without surpassing the approximately $20 price tag.

"We want to put as much technology as possible, but not overkill the product," he said.

Once the prototypes were complete, the process shifted from Montreal to the company's Hong Kong office, which oversees the production and assembly.

He said the total process took about nine months  a quick turnaround Dongarra credits to the company's relatively small size.

He believes the toy's popularity is due to its interactive personality and the fact parents like it, too.

"It's cute, it's lovable, it's at the right price point, and your daughter or son is begging for it," he said.

The toy's popularity has prompted WowWee to expand the Fingerlings line, which now includes a unicorn and a sloth.
Photo: The Canadian Press

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Egypt on Monday, where he signed a deal to advance plans for a nuclear reactor but disappointed his hosts by delaying the resumption of direct flights that were suspended after the 2015 bombing of a Russian passenger plane.

During Putin's second visit to Egypt in as many years, he and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi appeared keen to cement their countries' ties, which have deepened in recent years as Moscow has expanded its reach across the region.

"Russia always paid a special attention to expanding friendly and mutually beneficial ties with Egypt, our longtime reliable partner in the Middle East and North Africa," Putin said.

El-Sissi said the two countries had "a relationship with a long history," characterized by "strength and durability."

El-Sissi, who has visited Russia twice since taking office in 2014, has signed deals to buy billions of dollars' worth of Russian weapons, including fighter jets and assault helicopters. Last month, Russia approved a draft agreement with Egypt to allow Russian warplanes to use Egyptian military bases.

The United States remains Egypt's main international backer, providing an estimated $1.3 billion in military and economic aid each year. But ties suffered a blow in 2013, when the Obama administration criticized the military overthrow of Egypt's first freely elected leader amid mass protests against his rule. Relations have improved under President Donald Trump, who has also sought better relations with Moscow.

Neither Putin nor el-Sissi referred to the use of the air bases when they read prepared statements after their talks, a possible indicator of the sensitivity of the issue in Egypt, which has long rejected the basing of foreign forces on its territory.

With Putin and el-Sissi looking on, officials from both countries signed the deal on the nuclear reactor. Egypt has reached an agreement in principle to borrow $25 billion, or roughly 80 per cent of the reactor's cost, from Russia. The signing of the agreement ends months of wrangling between the two sides over technical and financial details.

Putin flew to Cairo after a brief and previously unannounced visit to a Russian military air base in Syria. The air base has served as the main foothold for the air campaign Russia has waged since September 2015 in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Egypt's increasingly close ties with Russia harken back to the 1950s and 1960s, when Cairo became a close Russian ally at the height of the Cold War.

Egypt changed sides in the 1970s under the late President Anwar Sadat, who replaced Moscow with Washington as his country's chief economic and military backer following the signing of a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty with Israel in 1979. Egypt has since become a major recipient of U.S. aid.
Alanna Kelly

Mia, the pup who was inside a vehicle that was stolen on Sunday, has been returned safely to her owner.

Hazel Ladhar delivers newspapers across Oliver and had pulled into the Chevron gas station at Main Street and Co-Op Avenue at about 5:15 a.m.

She went inside to drop off the stack of newspapers and left Mia, wearing a red sweater with the word security, to guard her vehicle.

When she was inside, the cashier alerted Ladhar that someone was driving away with her 2001 black Honda CR-V and Mia.

Const. James Grandy said she was only inside the station for a few minutes before her vehicle was stolen.

Monday morning, a woman was walking her dog beside Oliver Elementary School at about 5:30 a.m. when she noticed a small pup in a red sweater.

She remembered seeing the news about the missing dog in a red sweater and got in contact with Ladhar immediately.

She picked her up and took her to her house and phoned me and to meet her at the Oliver shoe store, recalls Ladhar.

She owns the Oliver shoe store in town, she said.

Ladhar said the woman was still holding Mia in her arms.

I was just so happy to see her, said Ladhar with Mia barking in the background. I got my baby back. The other stuff is just stuff.

The SUV is still missing, according to Grandy.
UPDATE: 11:13 a.m.

Okanagan College's Vernon campus got a big financial boost Monday for its new trades training centre, currently under construction.

Local philanthropist George Galbraith and Kal Tire donated $250,000 each towards the Okanagan College Foundation's 'Bright Horizons  Building for Skills' campaign for the new trades centre. The foundation's goal is to raise $1 million locally.

One of the shops in the $6.2 million trades centre building will be named after Galbraith's son, Kieran, who died nine years ago.

He was a mechanical engineer who worked in the electrical industry in the Kootenays for Fortis, said Galbraith. It's going to be recognition of his legacy.

Galbraith expressed hope his donation would inspire others to contribute as well.

Kal Tire spokesperson Tracy Cobb-Reeves expressed excitement over the new 13,450 sq. ft. facility.

We know all too well the value of well-trained people. We hire them throughout our stores in Canada, said Cobb-Reeves. And to be able to have a facility that will deliver the level of quality trades training that this facility is going to have in B.C., is fantastic for the province, for the economy and for organizations like ours which are constantly trying to fill the critical role of trades people.

"Both George Galbraith and Kal Tire are renowned for their philanthropy and civic spirit," said Jim Hamilton, college president. "Once again, they are supporting the community, this time through significant contributions to a leading-edge facility."

The trades facility is on time and on budget with completion targeted for next spring, according to regional dean Jane Lister.

The college foundation also announced a partnership with the Community Foundation of the North Okanagan (CFNO) to allow individuals and businesses to make a donation to the foundation's campaign.

The first gift to the campaign was made in May by Keith Construction, a Vernon home building and renovation company.

For more information or to donate, go online.

ORIGINAL STORY 10:25 a.m.

Vernon philanthropist George Galbraith and Kal Tire are donating $250,000 each towards the trades training building under construction at Okanagan College's Vernon campus.

The college is working to raise $1 million locally.

The building is on time and on budget said Vernon regional dean Jane Lister.

It should be 90 percent complete by April, Lister said
Photo: RCMP Vernon RCMP are asking the public's help to locate Blake Doyle, a local man.

The RCMP are requesting the publics assistance in locating a missing Vernon man.

Blake Doyle, 24, was last seen Dec. 2nd.

There is nothing to indicate foul play at this time and police believe he is in the North Okanagan area, said Const. Kelly Brett, RCMP spokesperson for the North Okanagan detachment.

She said police have followed up on several leads and possible sightings since Doyle's disappearance however he remains missing.

Police are very concerned for Blakes health and well-being and friends and family report that it is out of character for him to be out of contact for this long.

Doyle is described as a Caucasian male, about five-feet-seven-inches tall and with blonde hair.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to contact the local police, remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 orvleaving a tip online at www.nokscrimestoppers.com.
Photo: wikimedia commons

Greyhound Canada is unveiling its proposal to help keep rural bus service running in large swaths of the province.

The bus line is calling on government to create a fund to fill the gaps left by the company's proposed cuts in the Similkameen Valley, Northern B.C. and Vancouver Island.

Federal and provincial governments, and large municipalities spend billions annually on urban transit services; B.C.s rural communities deserve transportation investments as well, a statement from Greyhound says.

The proposed system would be open to First Nations and municipalities across B.C., funding a bidding process to secure private sector operators to connect regional hubs.

Greyhound has been lobbying local governments for support for the plan in recent weeks.

The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure told Castanet this weekend subsidized rural bus services is being considered.

In addition is stopping service to all of Northern B.C., Greyhound is proposing to cut all service to the Similkameen Valley, including Princeton, Keremeos and Manning Park.

The Passenger Transportation Board of B.C. will release its decision on the cuts in early January.
Today as I begin this writing it has been exactly 76 years since that terrible attack on our U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Admiral Kimmell was stunned when he saw the skies filled with Japanese attack aircraft on that fateful Sunday morning and could scarcely imagine, nor face, the reality of what was taking place. Long rumored, the U.S. was very skeptical that such an attack could actually happen - but here it was! Despite its significance and gravity I have not a single memory of the actual day, and I suspect that my parents were too upset to tell me about it.

Neither was it discussed at school the following morning for about the same reason.

The "sleeping giant" (meaning the U.S.) DID slowly awaken and spring to life as the Japanese brass had suspected. The Japanese had all the advantage of a surprise attack, and it would be hard for that sleeping giant to change into battle-gear instantaneously. An immense national "war effort" soon started up all across the country which involved every level of Society - from business executives down to school children. The new "war effort" demanded money, so War Bonds were quickly put on the market and the public urged to buy. Our young men were, of course, needed most of all, so were drafted by the thousands from the tranquility of civilian life directly into the military. Nearby Fort Oglethorpe, which had been a major Cavalry base in WWI and was still under Army control, suddenly grew again to the size of a small self-contained city. On weekends the streets of Chattanooga were filled with uniformed service-men and women trying to escape the rigors of their basic training for a few hours of liberty. Military Police jeeps were a common sight downtown.

Fact is, however, that both me and my school friends heard very little about the new war which President Roosevelt had just declared. We knew very little of what was actually going on ; it was like our parents were trying to shield us from the realities of yet another "Great War" which they all vividly remembered . Our parents did most of the newspaper reading - and the radio stations - WDOD and WAPO mainly - only had 5 minute blurbs of news every hour - nothing to compare with all the TV news-channels we have today which bring every tiny detail to you in HD. Direct reports from overseas then came to the radio networks either by highly un-intelligible short-wave broadcasts, or equally garbled undersea cables. No satellite yet existed to beam perfect audio from overseas. When you saw the "Movietone" newsreels in the theaters on Saturday afternoon you were seeing "news" that was already at least two weeks old. - and in only black-and white. So a youngster of 6 - 8 - or 10 years of age only got a highly filtered or inexact view of what was really happening on the war front. It was a convoluted story told in disjointed segments. After Germany got involved I remember how my dad would sit in the kitchen of a morning reading about what "Mr. Hitler" had done as reported in the Chattanooga Times newspaper. Then we would all three listen to "Elmer Davis and the News" to see what he would say. I was older by this time and was able to understand better.

But, as I said, the "war effort" was cranking up, and everyone was asked to be "patriotic". Principal Ethel Stroud of Anna B. Lacey Elementary School (in present East Ridge) supported the national scheme of "scrap drives", where all students were asked to bring scrap paper, scrap tin and iron - anything made out of metal...and I can show you to this day where it was all piled up between school building and playground! Someone would weigh your donation and students would later be awarded small prizes for bringing varying amounts of scrap material. Years afterward, a history teacher in my high school, (Kirkman) - Miss Charlotte Roesslein - used to say those scrap drives were the best clean-up America had ever had to date!)

The war-effort also demanded some shifts in our comfortable civilian way of life, and as a result we were asked to give up MEAT, which became highly rationed on the home front so that "the boys" could eat well in the battlefields overseas. Such staples as SUGAR and COFFEE also vanished from our grocery-store shelves, meaning that our Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter dinner fixin's were severely cut short. Week-end jaunts by car to see Mama back in Whitwell, Soddy Daisy, or Sand Mountain became almost impossible because of GAS rationing. My dad had a windshield sticker on our '41 Plymouth entitling him to an extra gallon or two of gas per week as he was a government employee. Rationing of these staple items was seen as the greatest hardship to American citizens. You can readily imagine that some "black-marketeering" just might have existed back then!

In earlier writings I have told how the mark of a decent child's toy had always been its METAL content, and its WEIGHT. Now, during the war years, the metal toys (mainly for boys) - wagons, tricycles, bicycles, etc., were all gone - as were items - like balls - which were made out of rubber. Rubber was another commodity needed for the war effort, and the synthetic stuff that replaced it simply did not match the quality of real rubber. Lack of plastic items was not even a consideration then, as plastics were still very much in their infancy. (At that time we had only"celluloid" - a hard pre-plastic composition material, and "cellophane", somewhat like the saran-wrap of today, but which tore readily). Many new toys made out of wood and cardboard were feeble efforts to replace metal and were frequently disgusting to even look at. After the war when better plastics produced by the "war effort" came on the market, Christmas trees made out of the new plastic appeared - and were widely ridiculed and rejected.

Regardless of the war raging in Asia we did always manage to have a Christmas party at school with the traditional cookies or cake and ice-cream. Certain small quantities of sugar were available - especially to schools - for such events. We made and strung paper chains of red and green construction paper - probably like what is done even today. We definitely enjoyed Christmas, which was always a bright spot on our calendars. In town the city lighting on Market and Broad Streets was a pretty sight to behold. I actually think that some of our city's FIRST street lighting dates from the WWII era because I remember how my dad (who worked downtown) would come home from work talking about them. Market Street was an absolutely straight thoroughfare at that time, without the funny offsets of today. A view to the north from 9th Street looked like a magical tunnel created by the overhead festooned lights. Store windows of the day were all tastefully decorated by some highly skilled Display crews. Miller and Lovemans department stores always had superb displays which started at Thanksgiving with Santa Claus themes - then gradually changed to a more serious religious vein by Christmas Eve. Chattanooga stores were a delight to visit at Christmas - and many people will remember the great displays of the old Electric Power Board (at the northeast corner of 6th and Market Streets), and the awesome annual life-size Nativity scenes assembled by the Coca Cola Bottling Company on their parking lot between Market and Chestnut Streets at 3rd. An old-line jewelry store - Edwards and LeBron - (which was approximately next door to the present Fischer-Evans store) had only a comparatively small show-room which had an almost Dickensian "feel" to it and a Victorian color scheme to match. They would decorate their ceiling with festoons of red crepe-paper crowned by huge red bells made out of the same kind of paper - the kind that fold flat when not in use. Those bells along with the browns of the display cases, shining brass etc., served to create a quaint and almost magical effect.

1942 had been the year of our air-raid drills - which in their way were almost fun - though we understood their meaning. Ms. Stroud (school principal) rang a handbell manually to signify either a "fire drill" or and "air-raid drill". I forget the difference, but we always obeyed orders - always hearing from her later in chapel as to how we had done.

As the war proceeded, Fort Oglethorpe continued its very useful service to the nation. Local churches got into the act by arranging places for the servicemen and women to meet with civilian folk and enjoy a Christmas dinner in the warmth of a private family's home. Definitely only "second best" to their own homes, but a very decent gesture and substitute. The Reverend Mr. Joe M. Hampton encouraged that at our church - and I think it was repeated throughout Chattanooga. That was possibly during 1942, '43, and '44.

The "doughboys" of World War ONE had returned home to their family farms - content to be home again and in familiar surroundings. However the boys of World War TWO returned home to a far more sophisticated world than their fathers had known. Their aspirations were higher and their demands greater. You can almost prove that statement (about the farms) by looking at photos of Moccasin Bend made in the 1940's - where in that decade and earlier the bend was a crazy-quilt layout (as seen from Point Park on Lookout Mountain) of small farms with many fields - all of a different color. Compare those pictures with later pictures and you see the amazing difference - the concept of a "family farm" had all but disappeared. The boys of WWII wanted college degrees which would lead to some field of engineering and ultimately to the "American Dream". The newly-instigated "G.I. Bill of Rights" headed many of them in that direction. (Incidentally, you should check some of those pictures of Moccasin Bend - and of earlier Christmas lighting - in one or more of John Wilson's great books on Chattanooga).





* * *

Chester Martin is a native Chattanoogan who is a talented painter, sculptor and artisan as well as local historian. He and his wife, Pat, live in Brainerd. Mr. Martin can be reached at cymppm@comcast.net.
The Tsinghua-Imperial Research and Innovation Fund, which brings together two of the worlds leading research universities, aims to kick-start innovative research projects and concepts that are showing signs of promise but are at an early stage in development and need funding to progress.

The awards are expected to cover small-scale experiments, the development of prototypes, and will enable academics and students from both institutions to collaborate and exchange ideas more easily.

Imperial and Tsinghua have invested an initial $300,000 into the programme over three years. If the fund succeeds, the universities anticipate significantly increasing their financial support.

Imperials President Professor Alice Gast and Tsinghua Universitys Chairperson Professor Chen Xu signed the funding agreement at Imperials campus in South Kensington, London.

The announcement coincides with the UK-China High Level People to People Dialogue. The Dialogue is a key pillar in the UK-China relationship, providing a forum to celebrate ties between the two countries, and a platform to drive greater co-operation.

Solving global challenges

Announcing the fund, Professor Alice Gast, President of Imperial College London, said: Imperial and Tsinghua have a shared ambition to support ground-breaking research and create successful partnerships. Both universities recognise the importance of bringing people together to exchange ideas and collaborate.

This new fund will help our innovative academic staff to pursue ambitious collaborations and explore new areas of research."

Speaking at the launch, Professor Chen, said: "This fund will facilitate faculties to work together on common global challenges, and help solve and alleviate those challenges.



"We have a lot of interest in Imperial due to its excellence, and we also have a lot of alumni here."

'Double alumni' of both Imperial and Tsinghua include Mayor of Beijing Chen Jining and Director of Imperial's Data Science Institute Professor Yike Guo.

Professor Chen added: "After President Xi Jinping's recent visit the whole of China pays special attention to Imperial College London.

"I expect more collaboration in future to experiment and implement."

Earlier in the day Professor Chen, researchers, officials from Tsinghua University and its corporate partners met academics and students from Imperial and visited its research laboratories.

They visited Imperial's Centre for Bio-Inspired Technology where she met Professor Chris Toumazou, Dr Timothy Constandinou and Dr Song Luan.

Professor Chen and the delegation from Tsinghua then visited the Data Science Institute where they were given a demonstration of the Data Observatory.



Dr David Birch and Dr Kai Sun showed how the observatory, the largets of its kind in Europe, can be used to visualise data, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum transactions.



Professor Chen then met Imperial's community of Tsinghua alumni, before touring Imperial's new White City campus.
LAUDA is a global leader in precision temperature control in medical technology, material testing, bio-technology, laboratories, research and production. A new corporate design is intended to portray the uncompromising quality and comprehensive expertise of LAUDA all over the world. The company image has been completely overhauled by Munich branding agency Martin et Karczinski adequately to represent LAUDAs market position, reinforced by outstanding innovation.

The core of the new brand identity is the recently developed word/image logo, together with a new claim. The logo consists of the degree character () used internationally for temperature measurements in a red/blue color gradient. The core expertise of the company Development of closed systems for controlling cold and hot temperatures is imparted visually and intelligently, and is easy to understand. The new claim, FAHRENHEIT. CELSIUS. LAUDA. also reinforces this. In a timeless and confident manner, the message conveys that LAUDA is the partner for precision temperature control thermostating.

In order to ensure a degree of consistency and integrity in all company communication, the new color scheme and visual language are heavily influenced by the word/image logo. Accents in the primary colors of red and blue create an unmistakable tonality for the LAUDA brand, while relevant image content is emphasized with a sharp focus. The new visual language reinforces the brand values: focused and comprehensible. Noble ice gray in the typography creates a consistent, progressive style.

The new LAUDA corporate design is intended to lay the foundations for a successful future.
Brothers of Barcelona's player Lionel Messi, Rodrigo (L) and Matias, attend a training session of Barcelona at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on April 14, 2015. (FRANCK FIFE / AFP/Getty Images)

BUENOS AIRES  Matias Messi, older brother of Barcelona and Argentina star Lionel, has been sentenced to house arrest in Argentina for possession of a weapon, a prosecutor said Monday.

Messi, 35, was to be discharged from hospital later Monday and transferred to his home in Rosario, 300 kilometers (190 miles) north of the capital Buenos Aires, head of the prosecutor's office for Cybercrimes and Weapons Lucas Altare said.

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He was taken to hospital with facial injuries after being found in a drifting and blood-stained motorboat on November 30, apparently after colliding with a sandbank. He was arrested for possession of a firearm found in the boat.

It's the second time that the star's brother has been arrested for possession of a firearm. The offense carries a jail sentence of between three- and-a-half and eight years.

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"The guarantor of this house detention agreement is his father, Jorge Messi," said Altare, the prosecutor.

Family lawyer Ignacio Carbone told reporters that the defendant "is a good person, he's not going to go on the run."
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About a month into the school year, Elmwood Park parent Dean Pritt asked his son, Matthew, a fifth-grader at John Mills Elementary School, how his presentation went on a class project in which students were assigned to do research on a state.

His son had come up with a lot of material on Minnesota. But on the day of the presentation, he told his father he had to limit it, because "there were so many kids in the class, we had to keep it to two minutes apiece," said Pritt, reporting the conversation.

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His son's experience led Pritt to begin researching on his own, questioning other parents he knew at the school, at 2824 N. 76th Ave., about crowding in the four fifth-grade classes, running as high as 32 students, "and everyone I talked to had a story," he said.

Superintendent Nicolas Wade said in remarks at a November meeting and in a followup interview and email that officials are closely monitoring the situation. He said the fifth-grade classes range in number between 29 and 32 students.

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Pritt brought concerns to the District 401 school board meetings in October and November. The recently expired teachers contract stated that the goal of the board is to have class sizes of less than 30 for fourth through sixth grades, he noted, speaking at the Nov. 15 meeting.

"On the district website, it proudly states that the pupil-teacher ratio in this district is 17 to 1," he said. "These numbers are certainly not being met in our fifth-grade classes, and as a concerned parent I'd like to ask why. Why aren't they being met? Why are our 125 children not getting their educational needs met? Why are they different than the other 2,700 children in the district?"

"When we hand over kids for 13 years, it's 13 years," Pritt said in his address. "One year out of 13 years makes such a big difference in the development of these kids. They can't afford what they've already gone through."

He conceded that officials may be reluctant to add a teacher this year because of the disruption it might bring. "But next year something has to be done," he said. "Our kids deserve better."

Catherine Wittrock, president of the John Mills PTA, who had come to the November board meeting to speak on another subject, also spoke in support.

Looking in on the rooms, "those kids are squashed like sardines," she told board members. "I mean they are packed.  Those rooms are tiny, and the kids barely have work space."

At the November meeting, Iris Keane, a student in one of the fifth-grade classes at Mills, addressed the board. The size of the classes can make it "hard to concentrate and work," she told board members.

Wade said the district has added an additional aide and increased the time of a co-teacher in the classroom. In addition, the teachers are working with building and district administration to determine future resources where needed, he said.

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In addressing excessive class sizes, another concern in such situations is "what our building capacity is," Wade said. "This is something the district office will be working with the building administration to look at. More specifically, what are tangible contingency plans that will provide a quality learning environment and not have the students being taught in the library or in the gymnasium or on the stage?"

Class sizes for the other grades at the school range within each grade level, he said. Most of the primary grades fall in the low 20s and the other grades are mid-20s, Wade said.

The 17-to-1 ratio as noted on the state report card is not entirely accurate because a class of six may be averaged with a class of 25, he said. In recent memory, the general education classroom has been in the mid-20s, he said.

Typically, Wade said, the number of teachers is determined by the previous year's enrollment and re-evaluated as enrollment come in and settles. This year, though, the district saw a late surge of students, coming from Chicago and neighboring towns, "and usually the district sees a lot of students transfer out as school begins. That did not happen as much as it normally has."

Pritt argued that officials should have been on guard last year with numbers already trending high at Mills. He and others questioned whether the situation at Mills was fallout from teacher-district contract negotiations, with teachers working without a contract the first part of the school year.

Wade said the negotiations have not been a factor.

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At the November meeting, District 401 Board President Mary Bruscato noted that board members, many with years of experience, have responded in the past when administrators have come forward and said they need additional teachers.

"Until we have it (such a recommendation), they're the experts. We certainly aren't," she said, addressing Pritt and others. "We want the same thing you want for your kids. That's why we're here."
All votes in the CO-3 election won't be counted until the end of this week




China has launched its first cyberspace writers' village to encourage the development of online literature, reports zjol.com.cn.

Zhang Wei, better known by the pen name "Tang Jia San Shao," has become the first chief of the village, which is located by White Horse Lake in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province. Zhang has been China's top-earning online writer for six consecutive years.

Over a dozen online writers have signed agreements to station their teams in the village.

The village will work as an incubator for cyberspace authors to write their works as well as communicating with each other.

An exhibition on the development of China's online literature over the past two decades is being held in the village. Video clips of movies, TV dramas, and animations adapted from online literature are also on display.

Favorable policies are being offered to attract more online writers.

An official from Hangzhou High-tech Zone, where the village is located, said they are planning to create a complete industrial chain including online literature creation, project incubation, copyright trading, work adaption, and development of derivatives.
The number of charging piles for electric cars has been surging in China amid the country's campaign to promote new-energy vehicles (NEVs) and fight pollution.

By the end of October this year, 195,000 public charging piles for electric cars had been built in China, 82 percent more than the number at the end of October 2016, an official said.

The number of privately-owned charging piles for electric cars saw an even bigger increase over the period, up 214 percent year on year to 188,000, Guo Wei, an official from National Energy Administration, said at a forum in Beijing on Saturday.

In China, the world's largest auto market, the government is a staunch supporter of NEVs, seeing them as a way to ease pressure on the environment.

The government is mulling plans to ban the production and sale of diesel and petrol cars, but no timetable and details have yet been unveiled.

A slew of measures, including tax exemptions, discounts for car purchases and an order for government organizations to buy more new energy cars, are in place to encourage the use of NEVs.

Last year, China sold 507,000 NEVs, an increase of 53 percent year on year. Sales of pure electric vehicles surged 65.1 percent year on year to 409,000, accounting for 80 percent of new energy vehicle sales, official data showed.

An earlier guideline by the State Council said China would build more than 12,000 new charging stations before 2020 to fulfill the demands of over 5 million NEVs.
Implementing a big data strategy to better serve the country's development and improve people's lives should be accelerated, President Xi Jinping said at a key meeting.





Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remark at a collective study session of the CPC Central Committee's Political Bureau on Friday.





We should target cutting-edge technology and mobilize prime resources to make breakthroughs in developing core big data technology, and accelerate building an independent and controllable industrial chain, value chain and ecosystem of big data, Xi said.





The president called for efforts to advance national big data strategy, improve digital infrastructure, promote integration and sharing of digital resources and safeguard data security.





The market should play a key role in the mission, and data must work as a bridge to integrate production, study and research, he said.





A group of pioneering companies and a varied and diverse talent workforce also should be established, he said.





Xi underscored the importance of building a digital economy with data as a key factor, highlighting the fact that research on and use of big data is indispensable in building a modern economy.





The internet, big data and artificial intelligence and the real economy all should be interconnected, the president said, adding that industrialization and the use of information should be integrated deeper.





Xi also emphasized the necessity of using big data to improve governance. A nationwide information-sharing platform should be set up with the use of e-government and smart city systems.





He also ordered efforts to improve internet governance and clean up cyberspace.





Xi urged a better use of big data in improving people's well-being, calling for the advancement of internet plus education, internet plus medical treatment and internet plus culture to further ensure citizens' equitable access to public services.





He called for solving problems, especially prominent problems that relate to people's well-being, urging the widespread use of big data in areas such as education, employment, social security, medicine and the healthcare system, housing and transportation.





Big data also should be used extensively in implementing targeted poverty reduction and environmental protection, he said.





Efforts also should be made to safeguard and secure the nation's data, Xi said, urging strengthened ability to protect crucial data resources, speed up relevant legislation and improve protection of data property rights.





Protection of technical patents, digital copyrights and individual privacy should be enhanced to safeguard people's interests, social stability and national security, the president said.





He pressed for increasing research on international data governance rules and urged leading officials at all levels to intensively study big data and improve their ability to use big data in their work.




You are here: China

China supports the Iraqi government in safeguarding national stability and advancing economic recovery, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Monday.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi Saturday officially declared the full liberation of Iraq from Islamic State militants, after Iraqi forces recaptured all areas held by the extremist group.

Spokesperson Lu Kang told a news briefing that China congratulated Iraq on its successful anti-terrorism war, noting it marked positive progress in global anti-terrorism cooperation.

"China hopes Iraq can achieve national stability and development at an early date," Lu said.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi [File photo]





Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is in the national capital New Delhi to participate in the 15th Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) on December 11, 2017, hosted by India. It is expected that the trilateral meeting will review global and regional issues of mutual interest as well as discuss trilateral exchanges and activities.





Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are expected to have bilateral meetings along with Indian Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ram Nath Kovind. It is believed that under the joint efforts of the three parties, this meeting will achieve expected outcomes.





Since 2002 the RIC trilateral dialogue has functioned as a complement to other frameworks involving Russia, India and China, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS. The RIC is unique because all three countries are world powers with significant interests in the Eurasian and Asia-Pacific strategic spaces.





Though the RIC meetings focuses on exchanging views between the three countries on larger issues, the trilateral is limited by the proximity of the bilateral relationships contained within it. During the tripartite meeting, the areas where the three leaders will spend considerable attention are the issues of international terrorism, Afghanistan and West Asia.





Wang Yi's visit to New Delhi holds special significance as this is the first visit by a top Chinese official to India after General Secretary Xi Jinping got elected for a second five-year term in October. The RIC meeting will be followed by China's State Counselor Yang Jiechi's India visit to attend the 20th round of special representatives' border talks in the third week of December. These indicate both sides are now eager to turn a new page on the post-Donglang episode. It can be said that the year 2017 is going to end on a positive note in the form of RIC tripartite dialogue and Yang Jiechi's India visit.





Wang Yi's visit has come against the backdrop of an Indian unmanned aerial vehicle entering the same Chinese location where a standoff broke off not too long ago between the Chinese and Indian militaries. Sino-Indian ties were severely strained by the standoff which ended with a mutual "disengagement" after 71 days in August. It is hoped that Wang's visit will focus more on the Belt and Road Initiative and ASEAN connectivity.





It has been revealed that the foreign ministers will issue a joint communique which should have the following: primary role and responsibility the states have in countering terrorism, stopping the cross country movement of terrorists and mentioning of Pakistan-based terror groups that target India, and early adoption of the UN convention on International Terrorism.





According to Indian media reports, during the meeting with her Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of the RIC trilateral, the Indian foreign minister will exchange notes on "hotspot issues" of bilateral ties with China raising two key problems  China blocking India's membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and vetoing New Delhi's repeated efforts to proscribe Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad Chief Masood Azhar. It is hoped that the RIC meeting will bring India and China closer as both countries are victim of terrorism. However, the ways of countering terrorism between the two nations are quite contradictory.





Here, it is worth mentioning that the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) grouping of the five emerging economies had unequivocally named the Pakistan based groups Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) as terror organizations in the Xiamen BRICS declaration this year which is a big relief for India.





On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, India's stance is likely to remain the same, which is that even though it is in favor of connectivity, sovereignty remains supreme. India is concerned about the initiative's flagship project; the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which passes through Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK), claimed by India.





For India, China remains an important neighbor and the aim should be to build on areas of convergence and commonality. Open regional cooperation is key to stimulating the vitality of South Asian regional integrity. India and China should seek common ground while strengthening cooperation with South Asian countries to promote regional integration.





Ye Hailin, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has rightly remarked, "While China and India should seek consensus on the latter's pursuit of interference-less industrialization, New Delhi needs to realize that the sort of regional dominance it wants is neither in the spirit of the global trend nor sustainable."





In recent years, India and China are emerging on the global stage and bringing the world greater prosperity. Interaction and cooperation on global issues between the two neighbors is becoming increasingly common but at the same time there is a gap in mutual understanding. Economics and trade is without question the area in which the two countries most closely interact. In the next five years, China will invest $750 billion globally and import $8 trillion of commodities and services. It is hoped that India will be able to get a big chunk of those investment and import orders.





The RIC meeting after the Xiamen BRICS summit is another opportunity for India to interact with China to take forward bilateral ties through confidence building measures (CBM). China sees India as a partner for win-win cooperation and has no intention to threaten India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping had a meeting on September 5 this year to discuss how to enhance the relationship leaving behind the Donglang episode. It is hoped that Wang Yi's visit will take forward the relations between India and China.





Rabi Sankar Bosu, Secretary of New Horizon Radio Listeners' Club, West Bengal, India





Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.




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An Israeli security guard was seriously wounded Sunday by a Palestinian knifeman outside Jerusalem's central bus station, the police said.





The suspect, a 24-year-old Palestinian resident of the West Bank, stabbed the security guard and fled the scene, said a police statement, describing it as a "terror attack."

He was chased and arrested by a civilian and a policeman nearby, it added.

Israel's Magen David Adom emergency medical service said that the 25-year-old Israeli guard sustained serious injuries and was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.

The incident occurred amid growing tensions over U.S. President Donald Trump's recent decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israeli capital despite strong opposition and protests from the Palestinians and Muslims across the world.

Trump also ordered the State Department to start immediately the process of relocating the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

To protest Trump's announcement, the Palestinians called for three "days of rage." Protests were held in the past days in the Palestinian territories, many cities in Muslim countries, as well as some European capitals.

Four Palestinians were killed and dozens of others were injured in their clashes with Israeli security forces in the Gaza Strip and West Bank over the weekend.

On Friday, two Palestinian protesters were killed and 98 others were wounded in clashes in the Palestinian territories. A number of Palestinian protesters were also arrested at the Damascus Gate in East Jerusalem during skirmishes with Israeli security forces after the Friday prayers.

The two other Palestinians killed were believed to be Hamas members, who lost their lives in Gaza Strip Friday during airstrikes launched by Israeli military in retaliation against Hamas' firing of three rockets into Israel from the enclave.
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Brexit Secretary David Davis said Sunday the odds of Britain exiting the European Union without a deal had dropped dramatically following an agreement both sides reached in Brussels on Friday.





In a Sunday media interview Davis said the deal struck by Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday was a statement of intent and not legally enforceable. Its aim, he said, was to move to the next phase of negotiations with EU negotiators.

Without the landmark progress made in Brussels, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker would not have been able to recommend this week's meeting of the European Council to agree to talks on Britain's post-Brexit relationship moving to the next important phase.

Davis wants to secure a free-trade deal with no tariffs when it leaves the EU. In the interview he described it as "Canada plus plus plus" deal. This was a reference to a free trade deal struck between Canada and the EU, but Davis wants Britain's EU deal to include financial services included in the tariff-free area. This is seen as critical to protect a lucrative sector for Britain, particularly the City of London and the multi-billion dollar banking cluster in London, both a key part of the British economy.

Davis said he wanted a bespoke Brexit deal with the EU, saying: "We'll probably start with the best of Canada, and the best of Japan and the best of South Korea and then add to that the bits that are missing which is the services."

He also said he believes Britain and the EU can strike a substantive trade deal within a year.

Britain is also committed to keeping a frictionless and invisible border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, said Davis, adding a way would be found to achieve this in the event of a "no deal" Brexit.

Keir Starmer, Brexit spokesman for the main opposition Labour Party, said in a Sunday interview that he wanted a partnership with the EU that retains the benefits of the European single market and the customs union.

May is scheduled to hold a formal meeting of her cabinet, comprising her senior ministers, within a few days to discuss the progress on Brexit talks. Britain has agreed a divorce deal of around 39 billion pounds (US$52.2 billion) to leave the EU, but a final settlement will only be paid if a future trade deal is agreed by both sides.
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Iraq's military Sunday paraded in Baghdad Green Zone to celebrate the full liberation of Iraqi lands from the Islamic State (IS) group.

The parade was held in the morning at the Celebrations Square in the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses the main government offices and foreign embassies, and was attended by the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is the Commander-in-Chief of Iraqi forces, Xinhua correspondent on the scene said.

Top Iraqi officers from the ministries of defense and interior also attended the parade, he said.

Iraqi warplanes and helicopters flew over the Celebrations Square as Iraqi tanks, armored vehicle, artillery, infantry and other forces marched in the square, he added.

On Saturday night, Abadi officially declared full liberation of Iraq from the extremist IS group after the security forces recaptured all the areas once seized by the extremist group.

"I announce to the Iraqi people and all the world that our forces have reached the last redoubts of Daesh (IS) and have raised the Iraqi flag over areas of western Anbar (province) which was the last occupied land by IS," Abadi said in a televised speech.

However, Abadi warned Iraqis to "remain alert and ready to confront any terrorist attempt that may target our people and our land," despite the announcement of victory over IS.

Earlier on Saturday, Lt. Gen. Abdul Amir Rasheed Yarallah, commander of western Iraq operations, announced the liberation of all Iraqi lands from IS militants after seizing the whole border areas and desert in western Iraq.

"The liberation of all Iraqi lands from the IS has been completed and our heroic forces have tightened their grab on the Iraqi-Syrian border," Yarallah said.

The army forces and the paramilitary Hashd Shaabi brigades, backed by Iraqi helicopter gunships, managed to take control of the whole desert areas between the provinces of Nineveh and Anbar, he said.

Meanwhile, observers warned that Abadi's declaration does not mean the terrorist group has no ability to carry out attacks as it is still able to attack through its sleeper cells in the country.

On Nov. 17, the Iraqi forces ended the first phase of the offensive when they drove out IS militants from their last urban stronghold in Iraq and raised the Iraqi flag over the buildings of the city of Rawa and nearby border areas in north of the Euphrates River.

The IS militants seized large swathes of territory in Iraq in 2014, when government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions.




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French President Emmanuel Macron told visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to give chance to peace process in the Middle East by taking "courageous gestures" toward Palestinians to end the deadlock.

"France remains convinced that the only solution... is to allow the establishment of two states living side by side in peace and that this can emerge through negotiation," said Macron.

"I say to him (Netanyahu) to let a chance to peace, make a gesture toward the Palestinians. Peace does neither depend on the United States alone nor France. It depends on the ability of Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," he added.

In a joint press conference with the Israeli top official, the French President pointed to the necessity that Tel Aviv freezes settlements to send message of confidence to Palestinians in a bid to resume talks and "break the current stalemate."

Speaking about the U.S. initiative to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Macron reiterated that it was "contrary to international law and dangerous to peace."

"I disapprove (U.S. President Donald) Trump declaration as it is not in accordance with the international law. I decided not to be consistent with this perspective," he told reporters.

For his turn, Netanyahu said "Peace (talks) will progress if the Palestinians recognize the reality of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. "

"The most important thing about peace is first of all to recognize that the other side has a right to exist... If Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas wants peace, then he comes and sits down and negotiates with Israel," he added.

Brokered by the U.S., the last direct peace negotiations stopped in April 2014 as rival camps failed to come out with tangible results due to differences on major issues like settlement, security, borders and the recognition of a Palestinian state.
You are here: World

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Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at protesters outside the US Embassy in Lebanon on Sunday during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The main road leading to the US Embassy has been barricaded by the security forces.

Several people were injured by rocks and tear gas, according to AFP.

There have been three days of protests across Lebanon, home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees, including those who fled Israel after it was founded, and their descendants.

The demonstrators, many wearing black and white scarves, chanted slogans denouncing Trump.

Trump's recognition of Jerusalem has infuriated the Arab world and upset Western allies, who say it is a blow to peace efforts and risks causing further unrest in the Middle East.

On Saturday, the Arab League condemned the US decision, saying the move would increase violence throughout the region.

The announcement by Trump on Wednesday was a "dangerous violation of international law," had no legal impact and was "void," the Arab League said in a statement after a session attended by all its members in Cairo.




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Thousands of Turks on Sunday rallied in Istanbul against the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The demonstrators, following the call of several activist groups and the conservative Felicity Party, poured into the Yenikapi Square, waving Palestinian and Turkish flags.

"We can only respond to this global siege with a global resistance and intifada," Temel Karamollaoglu, leader of the Felicity Party, told the crowd.

He called on Islamic countries to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine "in a very short time period," and cut their military, political, economic and diplomatic relations with Israel.

A group of protesters set fire to a puppet representing U.S. President Donald Trump while shouting slogans against Israel and the U.S.

They chanted "Thousands of greetings to Gaza from Istanbul," and "We salute Hamas and continue to resist."

They were referring to the militant Palestinian group Islamic Hamas movement, which has been fighting a war with Israel over the past decades.

Earlier in the day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dismissed the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israeli capital as "null and void."

Defying opposition and warnings from the Palestinians and Muslims across the world, Trump on Wednesday announced his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the disputed holy city.

Erdogan has threatened to cut off diplomatic ties with Israel and called for an emergency summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul on Dec. 13.

The status of Jerusalem is the core issue in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, as the Palestinians are seeking to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

After taking over East Jerusalem in the 1967 war, Israel unilaterally declared whole Jerusalem as its eternal capital in 1980, a move that has never been recognized by the international community.
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China and the United States should enhance mutual trust to secure more promising bilateral relations.







This was one of the messages of a panel discussion on the theme of "The Rebalancing of Sino-U.S. Relations" during the Sanya Forum 2017, a forum for international dialogue held in Sanya, Hainan Province from Dec. 9-10.





In a new context of both competition and cooperation, building mutual trust is the largest challenge facing China and the U.S. in maintaining sound bilateral relations, said Zhang Baijia, former deputy director of the Party History Research Center of the CPC Central Committee at the panel discussion on Dec. 10.





According to the scholar of Chinese diplomatic history, Sino-U.S. relations need to be rebalanced because the relative strength of the two countries has changed, manifested by closing gap in composite national strength and increasingly intense competition in military, economic, financial and technological fields.





Zhang observed that the relations between the two countries involve global, bilateral and  most crucially  regional issues. Because the modernization of Asia-Pacific countries converged after the initiation of Chinas reform and opening up, contemporary Sino-U.S. relations concern the future not only of China but also Asia as a whole.





Steve Orlins, president of National Committee on United States-China Relations, said some U.S. actions, such as the self-initiated anti-dumping investigations, were undermining mutual trust.





"I think domestic factors have an enormous effect on U.S.-China relations. Its important that we look for specific actions to maintain positive momentum so that the people of America can understand that U.S.-China relations are in their benefit," he said.





William Zarit, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, said communication was critical to the U.S.-China economic relationship.





The Trump administration thought past communication mechanisms, including the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, strategic and economic dialogue as well as talks at both working and senior levels, were ineffective and has sought to create a more comprehensive economic dialogue, said Zarit.





"But nobody is talking about it now. I am hoping that we will reestablish good communications at all levels on the bilateral economic relationship," he said.





According to its chairman, the American Chamber of Commerce in China established three policy priorities which it thought would be constructive approaches to improving commercial ties: building trust through clarity and consistency, promoting development through open investment, and stimulating innovation through global cooperation.





Li Ruogu, former chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of China, agreed with Zarit, suggesting China fulfill a related commitment to increase transparency, predictability and fairness, which are significant drivers of new foreign investment for China.





He added the most important measure to enhance mutual trust on the Chinese side is to continue taking its own economic development as the top priority.





Other participants of the panel discussion included Jia Qingguo, dean of the School of International Studies of Peking University; Chu Shulong, professor of School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University; and Douglas Paal, vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.





The panel discussion was presided over by Zhang Yandong, deputy managing editor of Caijing Magazine, the organizer of the forum.








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Hundreds of people from the Chinese, Korean and Philippine communities in San Francisco gathered here Sunday to remember about 300,000 Chinese people brutally killed in a horrible massacre by Japanese invaders 80 years ago.

The annual event, which coincides with the 80th anniversary of Nanjing Massacre this year, was held as a tribute to the innocent Chinese people indiscriminately slaughtered in six weeks by the invading Japanese troops.

On Dec. 13, 1937, Japanese invaders occupied Nanjing, the then capital of China during World War II, and then mercilessly launched a carnage of destruction, pillage, rape and slaughter in the city. More than 300,000 Chinese were killed by the Japanese troops in the following six weeks.

More than 20,000 Chinese women and girls were raped or killed by the Japanese troops during the same six weeks.

Jennifer Cheung, chairwoman of the Rape of Nanking Redress Coalition and one of the organizers of Sunday's event, said that the memorial activity was held to promote peace instead of harboring hatred towards the Japanese people.

The Japanese government has repeatedly refused to apologize for the war crimes committed by the war-time imperial Japanese troops and continued to deny the fact that approximately 200,000 Asian women and girls, including Chinese young women, were forced into sexual servitude for Japanese soldiers during World War II, Cheung said.

The female survivors, who were exploited by the Japanese forces as sexual slaves, also known as "Comfort Women", have never had the overdue apology from the Japanese government, she added.

"No real peace could come true without the apology from the Japanese government," said Cheung, whose remarks received thunderous applause from the audience.

Zha Liyou, acting consul general of China in San Francisco, told the audience on the same occasion that the Nanjing Massacre was a crime against humanity and the darkest page in modern human history.

"We are here today to honor the Chinese compatriots killed in the Nanjing Massacre, to remember the profound sufferings inflicted by the Japanese aggressors, and reaffirm our commitment to oppose war of aggression and safeguard world peace," Zha said.

Apart from the Chinese attendees, members from Korean and Philippine communities in San Francisco, who shared the same or similar war-time memories caused by the Japanese army, also participated in Sunday's ceremony to demonstrate their strong support for their Chinese friends.

The annual event was organized by the Rape of Nanking Redress Coalition, the Global Alliance for Preserving the History of WWII in Asia, the San Francisco Committee for Promoting Unification of China, and the "Comfort Women" Justice Coalition.

In February 2014, China's top legislature designated Dec. 13 as the national memorial day for victims of the Nanjing Massacre.
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The European Union (EU)'s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Monday reiterated that the bloc backs a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Jerusalem as the capital of both parties along 1967 lines.

Speaking to the press before a meeting with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Modherini said it is in Israel's interest to find a sustainable and comprehensive solution to the chronic conflict.

The EU's top diplomat also condemned "in the strongest way" attacks on Jews "everywhere in the world" in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's controversial decision to acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel earlier this month.

Standing alongside Mogherini, Netanyahu stressed that Jerusalem has been Jews' capital for 3,000 years.

He hailed Trump as "putting the fact squarely on the table," adding that "peace is based on recognizing the reality."

"Jerusalem is Israel's capital, no one can deny," the prime minister said.

Netanyahu made the diplomatic foray to Brussels after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday, amid international uproar following Trump's decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The U.S. leader also instructed relocating the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city

At a joint press conference with Macro, Netanyahu insisted that "Peace (talks) will progress if the Palestinians recognize the reality of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel."

Mogherini expressed "serious concern" over Trump's announcement regarding Jerusalem and termed the move a "gift" to extremists and to those not interested in peace.

In the past few days, protests and demonstrations have been held in the Palestinian territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip as well as in many other cities in the Middle East and elsewhere.

Israel has controlled the western part of Jerusalem since its inception in 1948. It seized control of East Jerusalem in 1967 and declared the city as its eternal capital in 1980.

Palestinians see eastern Jerusalem as the future capital of their state.

Jerusalem is home to holy sites to Islam, Judaism and Christianity, making it a focal point for many people around the globe.

The status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. So far, the international community does not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and no foreign countries base their embassies in the city.
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A meeting hall solemnly decked with white flowers and black ribbons in downtown San Francisco, was adorned with sombre black-and-white pictures of World War II victims.



In a ceremony held here, a 20-minute preview of a documentary depicting horrifying footage of killings, raping and looting by Japanese troops brought audience back to the gruesome days of manslaughter in Nanjing in southern China 8 decades ago.

Still yet to be completed, the two-hour documentary produced by independent American scholar, Adam Jonas Horowitz, was specially presented at this Sunday's ceremony, where hundreds of people from Chinese, Korean and Philippine communities in San Francisco, a major multi-ethnic city on the west coast of the United States, gathered to commemorate the 300,000 Chinese people brutally killed in a horrible massacre by Japanese invaders decades ago.

The appalling footage of Chinese men and women, including grey-haired villagers and infants, shot or bayoneted to death, and young women raped recklessly by invading Japanese troops, was filmed by Western journalists during the massacre in Nanjing, a city in southeast China, in World War II.

"The films about the war crime by the Japanese forces were strictly banned and covered up by Japanese wartime authorities at the time, but some of them were smuggled out by Western journalists or missionaries who risked their lives to expose the Japanese atrocities, which made it possible for us today to seek the truth of history," Horowitz told Xinhua.

Horowitz said he has spent many years studying the history of Japan's aggression in Asia, particularly the Nanjing Massacre, which prompted him to produce the documentary as a reminder for people, especially the younger generations, that justice must be held and peace be maintained.

Sunday's commemoration, an annual event that coincides with the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre this year, was held to pay tribute to the innocent Chinese people indiscriminately slaughtered in six weeks by the invading Japanese troops, starting from Dec. 13, 1937.

More than 20,000 Chinese women and girls were raped or killed by the Japanese forces during the six weeks of destruction, pillage, rape and slaughter in the city.

Jennifer Cheung, chairwoman of Rape of Nanking Redress Coalition and one of the organizers of Sunday's event, said the remembrance activity was held to promote peace instead of harboring hatred toward the Japanese people.

The Rape of Nanjing happened 80 years ago, but "to the victims who are still alive, it still feels like yesterday," Cheung said.

"These victims are still enduring horrible memories and some of them carrying physical and psychological wounds that will never go away," she said.

The Japanese government has repeatedly refused to apologize for the war crimes committed by the war-time imperial Japanese troops and continued to deny the fact that approximately 200,000 Asian women and girls, including Chinese young women, were forced into sexual servitude for Japanese soldiers during World War II, Cheung said.

The survivors of those victimized females, who were exploited by the Japanese forces as sexual slaves in the name of "Comfort Women," have never obtained an apology due from the Japanese government, she added.

"No real peace could come true without the apology from the Japanese government," said Cheung, whose remarks received thunderous applause from the audience.

Zha Liyou, Chinese deputy consul general in San Francisco, told the audience on the same occasion that the massacre was a crime against humanity and the darkest page in modern human history.

"We are here today to honor the Chinese compatriots killed in the Nanjing Massacre, to remember the profound sufferings inflicted by the Japanese aggressors, and reaffirm our commitment to oppose war of aggression and safeguard world peace," Zha said.

Sam Ng, president of the Committee to Promote the Reunification of China, said "Dec. 13, 1937 was the darkest day in the Chinese history ... Even today, the Japanese government is still trying to bury the truth of the war crime committed by the Japanese troops."

The Japanese government must acknowledge the war crimes and apologize to the Chinese and Korean people, he said.

"No apology, no peace!" Ng chanted at the end of his speech amid loud applause from the audience.

Arron Peskin, one of the board of supervisors of San Francisco city, recalled his Jewish father and families who ran high risks of fleeing Nazi Germany to the United States during the Second World War.

He said his father went through many hardships before arriving at the United States and finally worked at University of California, San Francisco for more than 40 years on the history of Nazi persecution of the Jewish people.

After Japan's surprise attack at Pearl Harbor in December 1941, the U.S. government put more than 100,000 Japanese Americans in the concentration camps in the following year, Peskin said.

However, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed a bill in 1988 to apologize for the injustice of the American government, he added.

"If we can do that, the nation state of Japan can do that 80 years later," Peskin said.

A seven-year-old boy, who sat quietly among the audience throughout the commemoration ceremony, said after the event that he did not know the history of the Asian people who suffered under Japanese aggression, but he was willing to come along with his parents to such an event and learn more about the past.

Apart from the Chinese attendees, members from Korean, Philippine and African communities in San Francisco, who shared the same or similar war-time memories caused by the Japanese army, also participated in the event to demonstrate their strong support for their Chinese friends.

The annual event was organized by Rape of Nanking Redress Coalition, the Global Alliance for Preserving the History of WWII in Asia, the San Francisco Committee to Promote the Reunification of China, and the "Comfort Women" Justice Coalition.

The year 2017 marks the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre, which is seen in China as the lowest point of an era when the country was bullied and humiliated by foreign powers.

In February 2014, China's top legislature designated Dec. 13 as the national memorial day for victims of the massacre.
 Flash

The delegation of the Syrian government headed by its representative to the UN, Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari, met and held discussion with UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura in UN's Geneva headquarters on Monday morning.

A source close to the Syrian government delegation said that the delegation arrived in Geneva on Sunday to participate in the second stage of the new round of UN-led Intra-Syrian peace talks.

The government delegation left the talks on Dec. 2 for a weekend break and "further consultations" and did not return back to Geneva on Dec 5, the day set by UN to resume the talks.

The UN envoy had met the Syrian opposition delegation for several bilateral talks last week during the government delegation's absence.

De Mistura said earlier at the beginning of this round of the talks that the biggest obstacle now was "trust".

The new round of the UN-led Syrian peace talks started on Nov. 28 and has been scheduled to be held here in Geneva till Dec. 15.




COLOMBO - Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Saturday that his country had joined the Belt and Road Initiative with the launch of operations at the Hambantota Port through a joint venture with China.

The port was handed over to the China Merchant Ports Holdings on a 99-year lease agreement at a ceremony, and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority together with CMPH will manage the operations of the southern facility.

"Today we have made arrangements for the management and long-term success of the Hambantota Port. This Sri Lankan and Chinese joint venture, which has taken over the management of this port, and its operations will ensure an additional port in the Indian Ocean," Wickremesinghe said.
About fifty global leaders are expected to attend the One Planet Summit on Tuesday in Paris hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron to decide what steps to take after the US government left the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

China's Vice-Premier Ma Kai, as the special envoy of President Xi Jinping, will attend the gathering on finance in support of climate action, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The one-day event, on Dec 12, will take place on the anniversary of 197 countries adopting the Paris Agreement in 2015.

Macron reportedly will announce 12 projects at the event, which will be jointly organized by the French government, the United Nations and the World Bank.

The politicians, business leaders and academics will discuss scaling-up finance for climate action, greening finance for sustainable business, accelerating local and regional climate action and strengthening policies for ecological and inclusive transition.

When US President Donald Trump announced his administration's intention to leave the Paris Agreement, Macron decided to host this event to "make the planet great again" at the G20 summit held in Germany in July.

After signing Paris Agreement, China has consistently turned the international commitments into domestic action, which have been shown in its 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20).

During his recent meetings with European officials, China's new Ambassador to the EU Zhang Ming also pledged that China will be working with the EU to strength multilateral global governance and boost cooperation on climate change.

The experts have hoped that this event can see some tangible actions from the developed economies in technology transfer and financial help to poorer countries, which have been discussed for a decade.

"It is not bad though, and in times when leaders, like Donald Trump, are taking steps in the wrong direction, it is good to show willingness to move forward," said Dennis Pamlin, senior adviser to the Research Institutes of Sweden.

Pamlin said China's experiences in building some low-carbon cities can be shared at the summit, and it is also a good opportunity to discuss the Belt and Road Initiative and build zero-carbon or low-carbon global infrastructure in support of a zero-carbon global economy.

"Hopefully some stakeholders will take the opportunity in Paris to highlight that concrete action is what we really need," said Pamlin.

fujing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 12/11/2017 page12)
As a sociologist who studies family and marriage trends, I predict that in the coming years, well see a growing wave of mainstream media and academic stories contending that religion, especially evangelical Christianity, hurts women, children, and families. These stories will be framed around one key question: Is faith a force for ill in family lifefrom marriage in general to domestic violence in particular?

In recent years, the question has focused especially on spousal abuse against women.

For example, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) recently published a report titled, Submit to your husbands: Women told to endure domestic violence in the name of God. The subtitle, too, issued a similar claim: Advocates say the church is not just failing to sufficiently address domestic violence, it is both enabling and concealing it.

The series, which set off a firestorm between defenders and critics, exposed numerous cases of battered Christian wives who had been neglected or let down by their pastor or Christian counselor. Spotlighted by both ABCs online and television coverage, the story left the impression that some evangelicals support for gender traditionalism and male headship set the stage for abusive behavior. Although it ran in a major outlet half a world away, the story is suggestive of the kind of coverage that is likely to become more common here in the United States.

This story and others like it, however, underscore common misperceptions about how religion impacts male behavior in marriage.

So, what does the science tell us? Are some forms of evangelical Protestantism bad for marriage and good at fostering domestic violence?

The answer is complicated, since some research suggests that gender traditionalism fuels domestic violence. For example, a study in the Lancet found that domestic abuse was higher in regions across the globe where norms related to male authority over female behavior are more common.

In general, however, the answer to these questions is no. In my previous book, Soft Patriarchs, New Men: How Christianity Shapes Fathers and Husbands, I found that women married to churchgoing evangelical mencompared to women married to men in other major religious traditions or women married to unaffiliated menreport the highest levels of happiness. Their self-reports were based on two markers: love and affection you get from your spouse and understanding you receive from your spouse. This same demographic of women also report the highest levels of quality couple time.

My newer book Soul Mates: Religion, Sex, Love and Marriage among African Americans and Latinos, co-written with sociologist Nicholas Wolfinger, reveals similar findings. Men and women who attend church together are almost 10 percentage points more likely to report that they are happy or very happy in their relationships, compared to their peers who attend separately or simply dont attend religious services at all. On average, then, evangelicals (as well other religious believers in the United States) who attend church regularly enjoy higher quality marriages compared to their less religious or secular peers.

But are their marriages safer?

My research suggests that wives married to churchgoing evangelical men are comparatively safe. In the National Survey of Families and Households, husbands and wives were both asked if their arguments had gotten physical in the last year, and, if so, if they or their partner had become physically violent. By these measures, churchgoing evangelical Protestant husbands were the least likely to be engaged in abusive behavior.

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Research that looks solely at the impact of church attendance comes to similar conclusions. Sociologist Christopher Ellison and his colleagues found that women who were married or cohabiting were significantly less likely to report abuse if they regularly attended religious services. According to their study, compared with a woman who never attends religious services, a woman who shares similar demographic characteristics but attends several times a week is roughly 40% less likely to be a victim of domestic violence. Not surprisingly, they also found that men who attend religious services several times a week are 72% less likely to abuse their female partners than men from comparable backgrounds who do not attend services.

What about nominal Christian men? Are they more or less prone to spousal abuse?

Although the empirical story of religion and domestic violence looks good for practicing believers, its much less rosy for others. My research suggests that the most violent husbands in America are nominal evangelical Protestants who attend church infrequently or not at all. The reasons are not entirely clear. Its possible they believe Christian teaching about male headship gives them a hitting license. Or perhaps their class or culturemany of these men hail from parts of the South and Appalachia populated by working-class Scots-Irish descendants with a greater propensity for violent behavior explains these results. Religiously mixed couples may also have a greater risk for domestic violence, especially theologically conservative men married to women who do not share their religious views. In these cases, religion is not protective against abuse.

Are there other cases in which religion is bad for marriage?

Some research indicates that extrinsic religion can be problematic. Someone who practices extrinsic religion attends church or participates in other religious practices as a way to placate a spouse, impress community members, or alleviate a guilty conscience. One study found that men motivated by extrinsic religious concerns were more likely to be abusive towards their partners. Because this study was not based on a nationally representative sample of men, the findings are only suggestive. Nonetheless, it is certainly plausible that men motivated to engage in religious activities for largely or solely extrinsic reasons are worse husbands and fathers.

Taken as a whole, what does the evidence suggest?

In general, setting aside nominal Christians, the research indicates that evangelical Protestantism does not pose the kind of risks that are often alleged. Indeed, at least judging from studies here in the US, it looks like churchgoing may well help men steer clear of violence.

How, exactly, does religion have a positive impact on marriage?

In general, religion tends to impact married people quite positively. The family-friendly social networks, the higher propensity of religious couples to pray for their spouse, and the psychological comfort of faith all generally help to strengthen marriages. Two of these factorsthe social support and personal comfort derived from faithalso appear to protect spouses from the debilitating stress associated with difficult children, unemployment, the death of a loved one, and other circumstances.

Moreover, religious Americansincluding evangelicalsare more likely to embrace family-centered values that foster marital permanence and a shared commitment to sacrificing for ones spouse and family. In the United States, in fact, it looks like mens commitment to family-centered beliefs is a more important predictor of their wifes happiness than their beliefs about gender rolesat least for Christian men. My research indicates that mens attitudes about marital permanence predicted greater marital happiness for their wives while mens attitudes about gender roles were unrelated to wives reports of happiness.

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Given the contemporary cultural and political environment, we ought to be skeptical of stories reporting that faith is a force for ill and that the church is enabling bad behavior when it comes to women, children, and families. Thats because, in the main, faith appears to play a positive role in the lives of American familiesespecially for husbands and wives who can be found sitting together on Sunday morning at church.

In some cases, does the church make domestic abuse worse, not in incidence, but in response?

Domestic violence is still present in church-going homes, and Christian clergy, counselors, and lay leaders need to do a much better job of articulating clear, powerful messages about abuse and, more generally, married life. Although, as noted before, the church is not necessarily enabling abuse, some local churches, clergy, and counselors fail to address abuse head-on for fear of breaking up a marriage. Others steer clear of addressing the topic from the pulpit or in adult education for fear of broaching an uncomfortable subject. This silence around domestic violence has to end.

W. Bradford Wilcox, the director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia and a senior fellow of the Institute for Family Studies, is the coauthor of Soul Mates: Religion, Sex, Love, and Marriage among African Americans and Latinos (Oxford).
Announcing Launch of 'Christian Civil Rights Watch'

COLORADO SPRINGS, Dec. 11, 2017 / Christian Newswire / -- Today, Matt Barber, former Associate Dean of Liberty University School of Law and former VP of Liberty Counsel Action, announced the launch of a new, principled and aggressive Christian legal/public policy organization; Christian Civil Rights Watch (CCRW).

Christian Civil Rights Watch is a group of Christian legal watchmen who educate, communicate and, where necessary, litigate. CCRW will proactively fight to restore justice for faithful Bible believers' Constitutionally protected civil rights. The organization aims to fulfill the mandate of God's word to leave a legacy of religious free exercise for current and future generations of Christ followers.

Barber, who is CCRW's Co-Founder and General Counsel, said, "It's time to go on the offense! It's time to fight for true civil rights. The battle lines are drawn. Restoring Christian civil rights is the civil rights struggle of our time. Cultural Marxists, church-state separatists, 'progressive' anti-Christian religious segregationists and 'LGBT' sexual anarchists now openly attack our liberty. Who watches them?" asked Barber.

"To fully advance the causes of radical feminism, abortion-on-demand, unfettered sexual license, 'gay marriage' and the like, the pagan left must do away with religious free exercise and Christian civil rights altogether," continued Barber. "Under the guise of 'anti-discrimination,' Christians today face discrimination at unprecedented levels. CCRW intends to reverse this growing trend," concluded Barber.

CCRW Co-founder Gordon Klingenschmitt, PhD is a former Navy Chaplain who served in the Colorado legislature, and took a stand defending the right to pray "in Jesus' name." He says, "I'm so proud of my friend Matt Barber for standing up this new watchdog legal organization, and glad my non-profit Pray In Jesus' Name can be a partner in its initial foundation. CCRW will go on the offense for religious liberty in court, we're already suing anti-Christians in two states, and taking on domestic enemies of the Constitution. Matt will prove in court that Christians have civil rights too."

For interviews about CCRW's mission and launch, contact:

202-255-1959

Christian Civil Rights Watch is a national non-profit 501c3 charity authorized for tax-deductible donations, mailed to: Christian Civil Rights Watch, P.O. Box 77077, Colorado Springs, CO 80970
Evangelist Alveda King: Boycott a Distraction as Alveda's 'Rome for The Holidays' Tour with a Special Visit to Joan Lewis' Home and More Continues...

Contact: Leslie Palma, 732-757-9087

ROME, Dec. 11, 2017 /Christian Newswire/ -- Amid boycotts during the opening of two civil rights museums in Mississippi last week, US President Donald John Trump said: "Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man I have studied, watched, and admired for my entire life."

From Rome, Pope Francis recently wrote: "Here I think of the words of Martin Luther King who met every kind of trial and tribulation with fraternal love."

Their words inspire my first trip to Rome.

While my blogs are usually filled with lectures, lessons, encouragement and prayers for concerns for the world, it's a refreshing change of pace to share some joyful highlights.

However, there's still "work mode" going on during this journey as well. For instance, back home members of The Congressional Black Caucus and a few members of the "old guard 20th Century Civil Rights Movement" missed yet another opportunity to speak up for the civil rights of the unborn last Friday; choosing instead to boycott the opening of the two new civil rights museums in Mississippi, where POTUS attended to bless the historical site.

In 1958 an INDEPENDENT MLK said: "I don't think the Republican party is a party full of the almighty God nor is the Democratic party. They both have weaknesses ... And I'm not inextricably bound to either party." MLK was never registered as Democrat or Republican. He was an Independent.

Meanwhile, I'm praying for you my beloved readers during this season.

As you join in by reading about my journaled Rome trek, and my soon to be released KING TRUTHS, if you are hurting in any way, maybe from loss of a loved one or some other painful situation, may God's grace and goodness touch you during your deepest moments and bring light, love and healing to you!

There's more to come. MERRY CHRISTMAS. Stay tuned. Chao.

READ MORE HERE
Morgan Kaolian AEROPIX

After rising for three weeks, oil exports from the Middle East dropped the most since February last week.

The drop comes shortly after OPEC and its allies last month agreed to keep 1.8 million barrels of oil a day off the market through next year.
A group of local investors has acquired a former Weatherford campus north of Houston.

The investors, led by Randy Wilhelm, a partner with real estate firm NAI Partners, purchased the three-building campus, which sits on 3.6 acres at 18155 Chisholm Trail, several miles north of Beltway 8. The sales price was not disclosed.

The investors, who operate under a limited liability corporation called Marston Acquisition Co., plan to lease the Class A buildings, which total 48,300 square feet. They consist of a 21,000-square-foot crane-served manufacturing building and a 12,800-square-foot training facility. NAI Partners has already leased a third office and warehouse building spanning 14,500 square feet.

RELATED: Transitioning Weatherford posts $256M loss

John Ferruzzo and Nick Peterson of NAI Partners brokered the campus acquisition on behalf of Marston. The deal is not part of NAI Partner's investment fund, Peterson said. Launched in 2015, the fund acquires office, industrial and retail properties in Houston, Austin and San Antonio.

The group of investors became interested in acquiring the Weatherford campus after the oilfield services company consolidated its operations to another facility, Peterson said.

"It was driven by good location and good value," Peterson said. "These are nice, Class A facilities that were kept up well."
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Chef David Guerrero is no stranger to arepas. He's had them on his menu at Andes Cafe since the casual neighborhood restaurant dedicated to the foods of South America opened in 2014.

But four trips to Venezuela in recent years have intensified his appreciation of the griddled corn cakes that are practically the national dish of Venezuela and enjoyed widely in Colombia as well.

His arepa passion is now manifest in Gordi's Arepas & More, the new vendor in the Conservatory food hall downtown.

Actually it isn't in the basement space with the other food hall vendors. It's at the street-level entrance in a snug kiosk space that Conservatory owners have used to feature pop-ups and tryouts for potential full-service vendors downstairs. But Guerrero's idea for a permanent space dedicated to the joys of the South American corn pockets made sense to Conservatory which installed him several weeks ago in the very visible entrance space.

"I'm so into arepas," said Guerrero who will be one of the featured chefs in the new Bravery Chef Hall concept opening downtown next summer. "They're filling, casual, and you can make them with anything you want."

True, arepas, which can be fried, baked or griddle cooked, are thick corn cakes open to a variety of fillings. The Gordi's menu features assorted cold and hot arepas with amusing names: Phat Queen is a grilled arepa filled with chicken, avocado, green onions and sweet peas; The Best features braised beef, black beans, plantains and cheese; The Blondie offers shredded chicken and muenster cheese; Domino is black beans and cheese; Cousin It boasts shredded flank steak; and The Snooty Girl likes hers with braised pork leg, avocado and cheese. The menu also offers daily and brunch special arepas that may include the Porky Cowboy (black forest ham, two kinds of cheese and avocado), Sweetheart (sweet plantains, black beans, avocado and cheese), or Pericos (scrambled egg, bacon and muenster cheese). Last month Gordi's offered the Altuve Special (braised pork leg, braised beef, and cheeses) to honor Astros star, and Venezuelan native, Jose Altuve.

In addition to arepas, the menu includes wrap sandwiches made with cachapas, a sweet corn pancake. These are also filled with a variety of braised and grilled meats, cheeses and avocado.

The "& More" part of the menu is dedicated to smoothies, such as passion fruit, papaya, mango and Venezuelan chocolate.

Arepas and cachapas wraps range from $6.99 to $8.99; smoothies are $3.99.

"It's not like I invented the arepa," Guerrero said, "but I want to show people here what they are."

Gordi's Arepas & More, 1010 Prairie at Conservatory food hall, 832-894-2343
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After years of renovations and sweat, a home in Houston's Third Ward has opened up for business as an overnight rental.

The house at 2309 Wichita has undergone a metamorphosis since being purchased by developer Nick Ugarov in 2014.

RELATED: 2309 Wichita, one of Houston's favorite quirky homes nears end of its renovation (MARCH 2017)

Chron.com has diligently followed the renovation and restoration of the historic home, which previous owner Charles Fondow began fortifying with elaborate additions before his death in 2011.

Ugarov has opened his doors to Chron.com every step of the way.

Now the rest of Houston and others can finally stay in the home, which Ugarov has launched as a bed and breakfast.

There are now eight bedrooms in the house, plus a cozy, second-floor apartment in the back. There is even a pool for when Houston's warm weather rears its muggy head.

Rooms in the home can now be rented nightly via Priceline, Expedia, Travelocity, and even Airbnb.

Dubbed Houston Towers, in part for its four kooky add-ons, it's available for visitors who wish to spend the night.

RELATED: Catching up with Houston's favorite spooky home renovation project (JUNE 2016)

Before Ugarov's painstaking project began, it was known to locals as spooky, weird, and sometimes sinister-looking. These days, it's rather quaint and charming, a far cry from the "Addams Family"-ready appearance it had just a few years ago.

Ugarov has always maintained that his goal was to complete the vision of Fondow, who died too soon to realize the property's full potential and beauty.

Now Playing: The renovation of one of Houston's favorite quirky homes has reached its completion in the Riverside Terrace area. The four-story, eight bedroom home (with a separate apartment) has become a cult hit over the past few years since its previous owner passed away. Video: Houston Chronicle

The home was originally built in 1935 and served stints as an orphanage, a duplex, and even a daycare, before being purchased by Fondow in the '80s.

Fondow originally purchased the two-story brick home with $350,000. He was a dedicated DIY handyman that watched Hurricane Alicia hit Houston in 1983, after which he began fortifying his home beyond what most contractors would recommend.

"This house is the love of my life," Fondow told the Houston Press in 2001. "I don't know how to live in a house that's finished."

RELATED: Spooky looking Houston mansion has found a buyer (MAY 2014)

Fondow himself told an outlet in 2001 that he invested some $300,000 in it along the way.

After he died in 2011 at the age of 64, the house went into real estate limbo. Houston real estate blog Swamplot posted photos of what the house looked like when Fondow still lived there and hosted parties for his friends.

According to the HAR site's sale report available online, the 4,900-square-foot property sold for $251,000 in April 2014 to Ugarov.

Since 2015, Ugarov has added five new air conditioning units, an elevator, a commercial-grade water heater, paved the front yard for extra parking, and added 18 cameras inside and out for extra security. Ugarov has tried to stay as close as possible to Fondow's strange vision of what the home should look like.

Craig Hlavaty is a reporter for Chron.com and HoustonChronicle.com. He's an intolerable native Texan with too much ink in his skin and too much brisket stuck in his teeth.
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Houston police Monday were investigating a triple shooting late Sunday at a West Houston apartment complex where a Nintendo-playing session turned into a gun fight.

Police were called about 10:45 p.m. to an apartment complex in the 5600 block of Chimney Rock, just south of Westpark Drive, said Houston Police Lt. Gordon Macintosh.

Officers found one man who had been shot in his own apartment, he said. Two more shooting victims were in another apartment, where they had run to get help.

Now Playing: Three men were shot late Sunday at a West Houston apartment complex when a Nintendo game broke out into an altercation. Video: OnSceneTV

Two of the men had been shot in the back; the other had been shot in the abdomen. All three were transported to the hospital.

Witnesses told police two guns were involved. The suspects are all in their early twenties, Gordon said. Police are investigating.
Although Hurricane Harvey was the story of the year across the Houston area, these non-hurricane headlines thrust Houston neighborhood news into the national spotlight throughout 2017.

There were bizarre murder plots, shocking cases of animal cruelty and heists gone wrong.
A Houston financial adviser agreed to pay nearly $314,000 to settle government charges that he defrauded investors in Presidio Venture Capital, a private equity fund he created by enticing investors with false information and misappropriating investor funds.

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged James C. Tao with using $200,000 in investor funds to invest in companies Tao either owned or had a personal interest in, and paying for unauthorized expenditures including $7,500 to organize a conference on marijuana investing and $10,000 to buy penny stocks, according to the government's lawsuit. Tao neither admitted or denied the government's charges when he agreed to settle.

Tao's former partner Donna Boyd agreed to settle charges of violating broker-dealer registration requirements and pay a $10,000 penalty.

Lawyers for Tao and Boyd did not return calls for comment.

Tao and Boyd were operating a branch office of an unrelated - and unidentified - investment firm in the Westchase area of Houston when they created Presidio Venture Capital in 2012, according to the SEC. The fund, which was created with neither the knowledge or approval of their employer, was purportedly to invest in Houston start-up technology companies.

The pair began raising money in 2013 but Boyd dropped out of the venture later that year. The fund eventually raised $860,000 from 25 investors, including 14 clients from the investment firm. Friends, family members and business contacts were also solicited, according to the SEC. The fund eventually grew to just over $1 million.

RELATED: Whistleblowers who call the SEC gain financial rewards

The fund's marketing materials touted a 12 percent historical rate of return which the SEC called "false and misleading." Tao came up with that figure, according to the SEC, by using "internet research" to calculate the average rate of return for all private equity funds over the past two decades. The SEC said the 12 percent return had no connection to the historical record of Presidio Venture Capital or its managers.

Details of the fund came to light last year when one of the investment firm's clients who bought into Presidio Venture Capital complained to the registered investment firm where Tao and Boyd worked, according to the SEC. The firm investigated and Tao and Boyd were terminated.

Tao reimbursed the disgruntled investor $75,000 but because Tao didn't have enough money on hand, he raised the money by bringing in two new investors, according to the SEC. The new investors were led to believe their money would be invested in accordance with the fund's goals, the SEC said, and not going to repay an unhappy investor.
Around 500 gathered at the West campus of the Second Baptist Church in Houston on Nov. 27 for the memorial of 39-year-old Sealy Fire Chief Eric Zapalac.

Zapalac died Nov. 20 from a massive heart attack, according to a statement from his widow, Kelly.

A member of the Sealy Fire Department for 21 years, Zapalac also served as an Engineer Operator for the Houston Fire Department for 16 years, according to the Sealy Fire Department website.

Zapalac received full fire department honors at his funeral, according to Assistant Fire Chief Kenny Willingham, which entailed retiring his Sealy fire chief badge and his HFD engineer operator numbers, among other honors.

After Zapalac's death, Willingham said finding a new Sealy fire chief is not a priority for the department now.

"Currently, we have two assistant chiefs, myself and Cliff Langton, and we're running the department until ... we're not even entertaining a new chief until we get things handled here."

Willingham said eventually the position will likely be filled by a Sealy Fire Department member.

According to Willingham, Zapalac was well-known in the Sealy community, especially for teaching fire prevention classes at schools and daycares.

"We miss our brother," Willingham said. "We miss our Fire Chief. He did a lot for this fire department here in Sealy. He left some big shoes to fill, and we're going to do our best to carry on the way he would want us to."

Born in Bellville but raised in Sealy, Zapalac graduated from Texas A&M TEEX Professional Firefighter Training Academy in 1999, and worked as a licensed paramedic for Austin County EMS.

He and his wife were married in 2002 and had three children, according to the Sealy Fire Department website.
The Texas Tribune held a discussion about Health Care after Hurricane Harvey on Thursday, Nov. 30 at the Texas Woman's University Institute of Health Sciences in Houston.

This conversation event was the second out of the three-part series on the state's direction for health care.

The conversation was carried out with State Rep. Sarah Davis, R-West University Place; Elena Marks, president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation; and Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County Public Health.

Moderator Brandon Formby, urban affairs reporter for The Texas Tribune, opened the discussion asking about what it takes to get health care in up and running during a disaster and to prepare for the influx of displaced people that comes with a natural disaster.

Shah said with the number of hurricanes that either hit the city or even felt the impact from neighboring states hit by tropical storms and hurricanes has provided the county with the ability to learn what to do in the future and how to improve the health care system.

"We now transfer ourselves 25 to 15 years ahead and what we have now is a system that really did invest in that health care equation, that means we did things like not but the generates in the basement," Shah said.

Shah said that with each natural disaster there are steps of improvement taken and learned experiences that come with a disaster. Now, there is discussion about naming a facility or by default assume a facility will come into play when there is an emergency like Hurricane Harvey.

"One of the biggest challenges that we have is that when people come into the health care system you can start to measure their diseases," Shah said. "The challenge is during Hurricane Harvey people could not get to the health care system."

Marks said that looking at what builds a healthy community what makes an individual a family, a neighborhood, a city, a county healthy the investment that is made in health care have a smaller impact on overall health outcomes.

"We are spending way too much time and money on the health care medical services piece and we are really under invested in what you would call determinants of health," Marks said.

Marks added that in this country there is an obsession with investing in medical services but no focus on investing in looking at what makes people healthy.

"We are not taking care of the things that lead to healthy people and health communities," Marks said. "We're great once you are really sick, you can go to the med center if you can pay and get great treatment otherwise the chance to live a healthy life are stacked against you."

Davis spoke on the impacts of disease after a major storm siting that after Katrina West Nile virus and other mosquito carried illnesses had doubled.

She also said that health care providers should stay vigilant as challenges could still be ahead.

"We'll keep on patting ourselves on the back that we got through Harvey," Marks said. "But then there's everything else."
Nov. 22

An officer was dispatched to the 5900 block of Kirby in regards to a suspicious person/activity. Upon arrival, officers made contact with the individual who had committed a theft in the 2500 block of University and was hiding the stolen items. While placing the subject under arrest, he became uncooperative and began resisting. The subject was taken into custody for theft and interfering with public duties of a peace officer.

An Officer was dispatched to the 3700 block of Goode Street in reference to an abandoned bike in the roadway.

An officer was dispatched to the 2600 block of Nottingham in reference to a burglary of a motor vehicle that had already occurred.

Nov. 23

An Officer was dispatched to the 2900 block of Albans in reference to burglary of a motor vehicle that had already occurred.

Nov. 25

An officer observed a subject standing in the 2600 block of Albans urinating in the roadway. The subject was placed in custody and booked into the West University Jail for disorderly conduct.

At 9:14 am, an officer observed a vehicle traveling at 71 MPH in a posted 35 MPH speed zone westbound in the 4200 block of Bissonnet. A traffic stop was conducted and after further investigation the driver was arrested for the offense of fraudulent use or possession of identifying information.

An officer was dispatched to the Houston Police Department Southeast Jail to pick up a prisoner with warrants out of the West University Municipal Court. The prisoner was transported and processed without incident.

At 10:51 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in regards to fraud that already occurred.

Nov. 26

At 9:53 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the 3500 block of Amherst in regards to found property. Upon arrival, it was discovered the complainant found a children's bicycle on his property.

Nov. 27

Officers responded to a disturbance in progress call at the 4000 block of Bellaire Blvd. Officers responded to a possible intoxicated male, officers observed the male walking a short distance away from the reported location and he was taken into custody for public intoxication.

Nov. 28

An Officer was dispatched to the 2700 block of Nottingham in reference to a theft that already occurred.

An Officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in regards to found property that was located at Colonial Park. Upon arrival, the officer took care and custody of the property and submitted it into the evidence locker for safe keeping.

Nov. 29

An officer observed a vehicle traveling southbound in the 6400 block of Buffalo Speedway with expired registration. A traffic stop was conducted and the driver was subsequently taken into custody for Class C Misdemeanor traffic violations.

Nov. 30

At 8:29 am, an officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in reference to an identity theft that already occurred.

An officer was dispatched to the 2700 block of Barbara Ln. for a burglary of a vehicle report that had already occurred.
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A man accused of driving a truck into a Conroe police Christmas 2015 has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Maycol Douglas Lagos-Valladares was convicted of the first-degree felony offense of aggravated assault of a public servant. He was sentenced on Friday. According to a release from the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office, Lagos-Valladares is a member of the MS-13 street gang.

HOUSTON CRIME: Woman found dead, partially naked in SW Houston

Conroe Police Officer Michael Chapman testified that he answered a call about a possible burglary near Interstate 45 and FM 1488 on Dec. 25, 2015. He alleges that he saw two people burglarizing the business West End Roofing and told them to stop.

According to a previous story, one unidentified suspect at the scene got into a car and fled. As Chapman was getting back into his car, Lagos-Valladares got into a truck by himself and drove it into Chapman's driver's side door. The officer's left leg was pinned between the door and the frame of his vehicle before he could fully get into the car.

The collision shattered Chapman's fibula and tibia, according to the district attorney's office.

Now Playing: The San Marcos Police officer shot and killed in the line of duty has been identified as 58-year-old Kenneth Copeland. Video: Fox 26 Houston

Conroe police officers responded to the scene and were able to locate the truck the next morning, based on Chapman's description of the truck. Conroe officers also found shingles from West End Roofing in the truck.

It's unclear if a witness saw the crash occur or if Chapman radioed for help. Conroe police arrested Lagos-Valladares, along with three other suspects.

SUBURB SHOCK: The stories that rocked Houston's suburbs in 2017

Juan Vargas was also charged with first-degree felony aggravated assault on a public servant. He pleaded guilty in January for a 13-year prison sentence.

Eric Flores-Mejia was charged with criminal attempt and pleaded guilty in May 2016 for a six-month jail sentence.

Lariza De la Cruz was also charged with criminal attempt but prosecutors dismissed the charge in January.

Based on previous reports, it's not clear if Vargas, Flores-Mejia and De la Cruz were at the scene that Chapman arrived to on Dec. 25, 2015 or how else they were tied to the reported burglary.

The Conroe Police Department did not immediately respond to calls from Chron.com on Monday afternoon.

Will Axford is a digital reporter for Chron.com. Read more of his stories here and follow him on Twitter.
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Officers found a woman's body partially clothed on the side of a street in southwest Houston early Monday morning, police said.

Officers arrived to the 9800 block of Brooklet in the Alief area around 2 a.m. Monday, the Houston Police Department said. The victim, who appeared to be under the age of 30, was not wearing pants or underwear.

The woman did not have any ID on her, police said, but one distinctive mark is the "Black Candy" tattoo on her outer left ankle.

Now Playing: A woman was found dead and partially clothed, lying on the side of the street in southwest Houston, police said early Monday morning. Video: METRO Video

Police suspect foul play was involved, and are investigating her death as a homicide.

In the area where her body was found, warehouses, various industrial businesses and vacant fields line Brooklet, which is directly behind the Sam Houston Tollway and just beyond Bissonnet.
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Houston ISD officials are proposing to tear down four elementary schools ravaged by Hurricane Harvey and rebuild them  a plan that would keep students out of their home campuses until at least 2020.

Students at Braeburn, Kolter, Mitchell and Scarborough elementary schools would return to new, elevated campuses on the same sites as the current facilities, according to a plan unveiled Monday. The district's board of trustees is scheduled to vote Thursday on whether to approve funding for the $126-million proposal.

If passed, Houston ISD would become the first district in the region to approve demolition of a school following Hurricane Harvey. All other local districts with heavily-damaged schools, including Humble, Katy and Sheldon ISDs, have opted to repair existing buildings.

Now Playing: Houston Chronicle photojournalism Mark Mulligan returned to several sites he photographed in the Meyerland area of Houston on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, later in the week to document how much they had changed since flood waters roared through the area. These photographs show just how high the water was in the area. What they do NOT show are the thousands of homes here and elsewhere in the region that are having to be completely gutted. Parts of the city and region are still underwater. Video: Houston Chronicle

The four Houston schools sustained catastrophic flood damage after Harvey pummeled the Houston area in late August, dropping records amounts of rain.

District officials decided to start from scratch due to the extent of damage, the age of the buildings and the need to elevate the campuses to avoid future flooding, Houston ISD Chief Operating Officer Brian Busby said. The campuses were built between 1956 and 1966, when local building codes didn't require higher elevations inside floodplains.

"At the end of the day, this just makes a whole lot of sense from all angles," Busby said. "Throwing good money at old buildings is just not considered wise in the long term. These schools not only had issues related to Harvey, but we were also working with issues unrelated to Harvey on routine maintenance."

MORE: School days extended at 11 Houston ISD schools due to Harvey

District officials aim to open the new campuses in January 2020. In the meantime, students at the shuttered schools  which served 2,870 kids in the 2016-17 school year will continue to attend classes at temporary locations.

Busby said it's "pretty definitive" that students at Mitchell Elementary School, located on the city's south side, and Scarborough Elementary School, on the city's north side, will remain at their temporary campuses.

But administrators are having preliminary discussions about whether to move students from Braeburn and Kolter elementary schools, on the city's southwest side, into different temporary facilities. Students from Braeburn and Kolter travel 11 and four miles, respectively, to their current campuses. Busby said a decision will likely be made in the coming months.

Houston ISD Trustee Rhonda Skillern-Jones, whose district includes Scarborough Elementary School, described the proposal as the "best-case scenario" given the extent of damage.

"I wish it didn't have to be done, but certainly it's our responsibility to make these communities whole," Skillern-Jones said.

District officials estimate each school will cost up to $30 million to demolish and reconstruct. The campuses will look virtually identical, using a single design to cut down on costs and construction timelines.

Houston ISD administrators expect the costs will be covered through a combination of insurance payouts, federal emergency management funds and state aid. But it will likely take years to get the money, so the district plans to use $70 million in Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone funds  which are revenues generated by increases in tax collections  and $56 million from its "rainy day" reserves.

Busby said the district has already spent about $80 million on Harvey-related costs to date. The district projected to have well over $200 million in "rainy day" funds at the end of fiscal 2017-18, giving it enough cushion to pay for the new construction.

Trustee Mike Lunceford, whose district includes Braeburn and Kolter elementary schools, said decisions about rebuilding schools should be made now, rather than waiting for insurance and government reimbursement. He said he's supportive of the district's plan, though he has a few questions about the cost and a separate proposal to change the district's policies for maintaining reserve funds.

"A lot of people are talking to me, asking if we're going to rebuild the schools," Lunceford said. "They definitely need to be rebuilt. Both schools (in my district) have more-than-adequate population."

Lunceford added he's hopeful the district will find a more convenient temporary location for Braeburn students, who are traveling 11 miles each day to the old DeBakey High School.

Three other Houston ISD schools that remain closed wouldn't be demolished under the plan. Students are expected to return to Robinson Elementary School after the winter break, district officials said, and renovations at Hilliard Elementary are ongoing. Houston ISD leased the building that was home to Liberty High School, and administrators are considering plans for a future campus.

Repairs are already underway at other heavily-damaged schools outside of Houston ISD. Humble ISD officials have said they expect repairs to Kingwood High School to cost more than $70 million, with the goal of reopening the campus in mid-March. Sheldon ISD aims to reopen C.E. King middle and high schools, which sit on the same property, after the winter break. Katy ISD board trustees were scheduled to vote Monday night on authorizing a $5 million construction contract for repairs to Creech Elementary School.

SUBSCRIBERS: A damaged elementary school was built in a flood pool - and Katy school officials didn't know. Click here to read the full story on our subscriber website, HoustonChronicle.com.
Fort Bend and Brazoria County officials say residents who smell rotten eggs in the area should not be alarmed -- there's nothing harmful in the air.

But environmental experts say that line of thinking doesn't track.

"It doesn't follow that some people might find the smell 'overwhelming' but there is no risk to health," said Luke Metzger, state director of Environment Texas.

The smell is emanating from an oil spill that occurred last week at a well near the Fort Bend County Tollway and McHard Road in southwest Houston, according to Fort Bend County's Office of Emergency Management.

"Right now there is no danger," said Alan Spears, the county's deputy emergency management coordinator.

Spears did not know how much oil had spilled, but said it didn't leak past the property and the clean up is being handled by well-driller IWR Operating. The phone numbers listed for the company, based in Dallas, were incorrect or did not work.

The county office released an update on the incident Dec. 7, saying that the smell likely is from hydrogen sulfide -- a colorless, flammable gas that smells of rotten eggs.

Low concentrations of the gas can irritate a person's eyes, nose and throat and may cause breathing difficulties for individuals with asthma. Prolonged exposure can cause headache, fatigue and eye inflammation, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

However, Spears said Texas Commission on Environmental Quality officials have been monitoring the air since last week and have found no danger.

"There's a bad smell, for sure, but as far as particles in the air causing serious health issues, there's none of that," he said.

TCEQ officials said Monday they are investigating odor complaints related to this spill from residents.

On Saturday, Brazoria County posted a message on its Facebook page alerting individuals to the cause of the smell and informing them that there was "no immediate threat the public."

"The well was capped and the immediate emergency was clear," the post stated. "Currently, due to ongoing cleanup of the well and our current weather conditions, residents may notice the sulfur or rotten egg odor while outdoors."

Metzger is concerned that the risks of this incident are being downplayed by officials.

"We saw that happen during [Hurricane] Harvey where government officials said there was no threat only to see dozens of people call 311 to complain of bad smells and later data showing Houston ended up having the worst smog days of the year," he said.

Spears did not know when the smell would dissipate.

"As long as they're cleaning it up, it's on the ground and they'll probably stir it up," he said.

Alex Stuckey covers science and environment for the Houston Chronicle. You can reach her at alex.stuckey@chron.com or Twitter.com/alexdstuckey
A standoff between police and a man holed up with a rifle inside a northeast Harris County home ended peacefully Monday.

A SWAT team and helicopter was sent to a home in the 8700 block of Deep Valley Drive around noon after nearby construction workers told Harris County Precinct 3 Constable's deputies that the man had brandished a firearm at them "unprovoked," Chief Inspector Jorey Herrscher said.

It was not immediately clear what caused the incident, Herrscher said. The standoff was resolved peacefully around 1 p.m., he said.

Two Harris County schools were also placed on lockdown.

Cravens Early Childhood Academy and Monahan Elementary were placed on lockdown just before noon as a "precautionary method while police investigate an external situation that has occurred in the area," the Sheldon Independent School District posted online.

Everyone at the campuses is safe, the district said.
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A Salvadoran immigrant convicted in a Houston double slaying in 2000 lost a late-stage appeal on Monday in the U.S. Supreme Court, moving him one step closer to a possible execution date despite claims of intellectual disability.

Gilmar Guevara was sentenced to death 16 years ago after fatally shooting two store clerks during an unsuccessful burglary attempt from which he fled empty-handed. But the 48-year-old's lawyers are still arguing that he's too intellectually disabled to execute.

"Texas courts used a now-discredited set of rules to determine that Mr. Guevara was not intellectually disabled," said attorney Lee Kovarsky. "The only expert to evaluate him under the appropriate clinical rules has concluded that he has intellectual disability."

READ ALSO: For first time in more than 30 years, no Harris County death row inmates executed

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At his trial, prosecutors described Guevara as "a person with no moral compass" when he confessed to the murders of two other immigrants - 48-year-old Tae Youk of South Korea and 21-year-old Gerardo Yaxon of Guatemala at the Town Market in southwest Houston. He also confessed to the killing of 22-year-old apartment security guard Freddy Marroquin, though he was not tried for that slaying.

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"Whether it's a death sentence or a life sentence doesn't matter to me because I just lost my father," Hang Youk, one victim's son, said at the time. "And that's not something that can be changed."

Two others were charged in the shooting, but police identified Guevara as the triggerman in both the store robbery and the later slaying at a nearby apartment complex.

READ ALSO: Of the 10,000 books banned in Texas prisons, jailbreak classic 'The Count of Monte Cristo' not one

During the appeals process, Guevara's defense held that his trial counsel was ineffective and that he was too intellectually disabled to legally face the death penalty anyway, citing cognitive testing and long-term evidence of mental defects. Those who knew him as a child said he didn't start talking till age 4 and was still unable to tie his shoes by 7, according to court records. He scored a 60 on a full-scale IQ test for Spanish speakers.

Citing, in part, a landmark Supreme Court decision earlier this year in the Bobby Moore case, which found that Texas did not properly evaluate intellectual disability, Guevara's defense asked the justices to reverse lower court rulings rejecting claims regarding his low intelligence.

But on Monday, the Supreme Court denied his petition without comment.
Mike Anderson was an 18-year-old freshman at Texas State University when he was busted with less than a gram of weed. Police arrested him, took his mug shot, and he spent the night in jail.

The legal consequences for being caught with such a small amount of marijuana - just enough for a joint or two - were minimal, but expensive. Prosecutors offered to drop the charges if he attended a drug program and did community service, and once he turned 21, he could get the record of his arrest expunged for about $500, wiping the history of his arrest from public view.

"After I got it expunged I thought it was pretty much a done deal," he said of the order granted earlier this year.

But the next time he Googled his name, he realized the ordeal was far from over. His arrest photo was posted on Mugshots.com. The page was one of the top results for anyone who might be looking for him. And as Anderson applied for internships - a graduation requirement for mechanical engineering majors - recruiters who initially seemed interested would offer the spot to someone else.

"It wasn't right," said Anderson, a junior. (Stateline agreed not to use his real name to protect his privacy.) "I called (Mugshots.com) on the phone, and they told me basically the only way I could get the mug shot to come down was to pay a certain fine. Proof of (expungement) wasn't valid."

In an age where the flow of online personal information is rampant, the estimated 77 million Americans with criminal records are a rich target for websites that collect mug shots from police departments and sheriffs' offices across the country and typically charge hundreds or thousands of dollars to have the photos removed. Even those who are arrested, but never charged, have their photos on the sites.

Since the websites' business practices came to light in 2013, they have drawn the ire of many state lawmakers who called the sites exploitative. Texas is one of 17 states with laws designed to help people like Anderson, cracking down on mug shot websites by banning them from charging removal fees, stemming the flow of mug shots from law enforcement agencies or requiring that the postings be accurate. But so far, the laws have been largely ineffective in providing relief to those whose photos are featured on the sites.

"They haven't worked," said Eumi Lee, a law professor at University of California-Hastings who has spent three years studying the effectiveness of mug shot laws for an upcoming legal review article to be published by Rutgers. "But they've had a bunch of unintended consequences."

Mug shot companies have ignored the laws or quickly figured out ways to work around them, Lee said, and in places where people can no longer pay to have photos deleted, they often have no remedy to get them removed. And once law enforcement releases the photos, there is little they can do to stop them from ending up on sites.
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The suspect in a gruesome triple homicide Friday in Northwest Houston has been captured, the Harris County Sheriff's Office announced early Monday morning.

Jeffrey Duane Noble, 35, has been charged with capital murder in the slayings. After fleeing Houston in a red Honda Accord Friday, Noble was captured overnight in Dallas by the Dallas Police Department, HCSO said.

Dallas County records show he is being held in the Dallas County jail on no bail.

Now Playing: Latest Local And State News Video: Houston Chronicle

Noble had become a person of interest in the triple murder almost immediately after deputies were called to a home on the 15700 block of Creekhaven in northwest Houston Friday afternoon.

Upon arrival at the home, sheriff's deputies found John and Jessica Sciandra dead from gunshots to the head and Jordan Collier dead from apparent gunshot wounds to the neck and jaw.

A woman who lived at that residence and who knew all three victims told deputies that Jeffrey Noble had stormed into her bedroom about 4 p.m. and revealed a large rifle in his jacket. He then pointed the rifle at Jessica Sciandra's bedroom and fired, without striking anyone, the woman told deputies. He walked into the living room, where John Sciandra and two other men she didn't know were sitting, and continued firing, the woman said.

After those two men fled the home, Noble returned to the woman's bedroom and ordered her to leave, to get into the car.

At that time, she took off running, hearing Noble firing again and again.

The woman ran toward a nearby neighbor, Claire Vincik and told her, "somebody is shooting up the house" and to call 911, Vincik told the Houston Chronicle.

"It almost looked like she was hiding from someone," Vincik said.

A second woman who had also been in the home at the time of the shootings told deputies she had seen Noble shoot Jordan Collier, before running out of the house and hearing more gunfire as well. Both women were acquainted with Noble.

HCSO had put out Noble's name and mugshot Friday evening, saying he was a person of interest in the homicides. Later that evening, he was charged with capital murder.

Brooke Lewis, Robert Downen, Keri Blakinger and Lindsay Ellis contributed to this report.
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A jury sentenced a Fort Bend woman to 30 days in jail and 12 months probation on Monday after she made dozens of "hateful" phone calls to her ex-husband's girlfriend in 2015.

Prosecutors said Pamela Sue Kahlden, 50, would leave multiple voice mails per day, sometimes more than 10, according to a Fort Bend County District Attorney's Office news release.

The calls were described as "vile, hateful" and "jealous" by prosecutors who said Kahlden left more than 50 messages even after charges were filed against her.

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Kahlden began making phone calls to her ex-husband's girlfriend in 2013, according to prosecutors. When the victim went to authorities about the voice mails, Kahlden was placed on probation for six months.

Prosecutors said Kahlden began making phone calls again "as soon as" her probation came to an end in 2015.

"I asked the jury to send a message and tell Kahlden that enough was enough," said lead prosecutor Adrianne Norman in a prepared statement. "The law protects the victim from the defendant's actions. The jury agreed and held her accountable."

POLICE: Irving man forced 15-year-old runaway into prostitution and 'branded' her

"And since the defendant did not learn her lesson the first time, the State asked the Court to assess 30 days in jail as a condition of Kahlden's probation this time," Norman said.

A Fort Bend County jury found Kahlden guilty of harassment, a Class B Misdemeanor. In addition to serving jail time, Kahlden will be on probation for 12 months and be required to take an anger management class.

See other weird and bizarre Texas arrest and crimes of the past year.
Anne Hammer is one of millions of elderly Americans who could face a substantial tax hike in 2018 depending on the final negotiations over the Republican tax bill.

In her retirement community in Chestertown, Maryland, it's the big topic of conversation.

Hammer is 71. Like many seniors, her medical bills are piling up. There are doctor visits, insurance premiums, drugs, a colonoscopy, a heart scan, an unexpected trip to the emergency room that lasted three days, ongoing monitoring for breast and ovarian cancer that run in her family and the costs of medical staff at her retirement community. Her out-of-pocket medical expenses vary, but she estimates they are around $20,000 a year.

Under current law, she can take a big medical deduction on her taxes. Last year, she was able to reduce her total taxable income by $16,000 because of the medical deduction alone, saving her over $3,000 on her tax bill.

The House tax bill would eliminate the deduction, while the Senate bill would keep it (and even make it a bit more generous). It's a key difference that must be reconciled before final legislation goes to President Donald Trump.

"I have enough money to last until I'm 95," says Hammer, who has carefully saved for decades. "But if I have to pay that much more in taxes, I might run out of money by 85."

The medical deduction started in 1942 to help Americans deal with what lawmakers at the time called "extraordinary" costs of medical care, the kind that hit when someone in the family has cancer or needs round-the-clock care. Currently, anyone can deduct medical expenses that account for more than 10 percent of their adjusted gross income (income minus deductions and exemptions). The Senate bill would expand that to 7.5 percent of income for this year and next.

In 2015, 8.8 million Americans used the deduction. Over half were seniors above age 65, according to AARP.

'It's very, very scary'

As soon as Hammer, a former university administrator and MetLife compliance manager, read about the House plan, she realized it would alter not just her taxes, but possibly her life. She has income from Social Security, a modest pension and private retirement accounts. She pulls in about $55,000 a year, enough to pay for her retirement community and her medical bills.

But if she loses the medical deduction, her taxable income would jump - and so would her taxes. Her home state of Maryland bases its taxes off of the federal ones, so losing the medical deduction at the federal level would lead to more taxes at the state level as well. The more money that goes to taxes, the less she has to live on later in life.

"It's very, very scary," says Hammer. It would be even worse if her medical costs go up. She already anticipates eye surgery and a dental procedure next year.

Trump promised the middle class would be better off under his plan, but scrapping this deduction hits some in that group. Nearly 70 percent of the people claiming the deduction made $75,000 or less, according to AARP.

"This isn't a high-income deduction," says Cristina Martin Firvida, director of financial security and consumer affairs at AARP, which has been running ad campaigns and urging Congress to keep the deduction.

Republican lawmakers in the House had previously argued their tax overhaul would be so beneficial to families that individual provisions like the medical deduction would no longer be necessary. But more recently, they have acknowledged the significant impact of eliminating this particular tax break.

Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, the lead author of the House bill, said last week that the medical deduction is on his radar heading into the conference committee since many of his fellow GOP lawmakers have contacted him about it.

"That issue is being raised a lot by our lawmakers as very important," Brady said.

Eliminating the medical deduction raises $10 billion a year - about 7 percent of the cost of reducing the tax rate for corporations from 35 percent to 20 percent, as the tax overhauls do.

Dramatic change

Losing the deduction is especially burdensome for families caring for someone with a chronic disease. Cecilia "Sis" Tunnell is 88 and has Alzheimer's. Her daughter Mary Pagel runs a thriving accounting practice in San Luis Obispo, California, and moved her mom to a nursing home nearby. The facility, specialized care and a nurse cost over $130,000 last year, a hefty sum the family can pay because of years of careful planning.

Pagel handles her mother's taxes and estimates that Tunnell would go from paying less than $2,300 in taxes last year to paying over $50,000 if the House plan went into effect and the medical deduction went away, because her mother's taxable income would jump by six figures.

Many other clients of Pagel's have been calling her with similar concerns. It alters the math dramatically, even for families that have saved for years in order to fund top-notch care that doesn't rely on the government.

"It freaks me out," says Mary. "The costs of medical care are not going to go down, and you just don't know how long someone will need care with Alzheimer's or another chronic illness."

While most of the focus been on the elderly, Americans of all ages would be affected if the tax deduction is lost.

Randy Sherfy was a former college athlete and a rising star at a law firm when he left his home early on a Saturday morning in 1992 to go on a bike ride with friends. A driver hit him a few miles from his home. He was 41 at the time.

Many surgeries later, Randy's body was mostly repaired, but he never recovered from the brain injury. He has been living in a traumatic care facility in Texas ever since, which costs over $60,000 a year. He pays for it from income from a settlement with a driver and disability insurance he had from his law firm.

Many are under 50

His brother, an accountant in Austin, estimates Randy's taxes would go up substantially without the medical tax deduction. In most years from 2007 to 2014, Randy paid almost nothing in taxes because of the medical deduction, his brother says. Under the House bill, he would suddenly have taxable income of $60,000 a year.

About a quarter of people who claim the medical deduction are under age 50, according to AARP.

"Most of the people in nursing homes don't have a lot of choice of how they're spending their dollars," says Joe Sherfy, Randy's brother. "He was the victim of an accident."
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JERUSALEM - The French and Israeli leaders sparred verbally Sunday over the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, while new violence rippled across the region following the move by U.S. President Donald Trump.

In Jerusalem, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard, seriously wounding him in the first attack in the volatile city since Trump's pronouncement Wednesday. In Beirut, scores of Lebanese and Palestinian demonstrators clashed with security forces outside the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy, and Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo demanded that the United States rescind the decision.

The move upended decades of U.S. policy, and a longstanding international consensus, that the fate of Jerusalem be decided in negotiations. Israeli and Palestinian claims to the city's eastern sector form the emotional core of their conflict, and Trump's announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis and has drawn wide international criticism.

French 'disapproval'

At a meeting in Paris with Israel's visiting prime minister, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned recent violence against Israelis. But he also expressed "disapproval" of Trump's decision, calling it "dangerous for peace."

"It doesn't seem to serve, in the short term, the cause of Israel's security and the Israelis themselves," Macron said.

He urged Israel to freeze its construction of settlements on occupied lands and called for other confidence-building measures toward the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has called Trump's decision "historic," said Israel has maintained its capital in the city for 70 years and the Jewish connection to Jerusalem goes back 3,000 years.

"Paris is the capital of France, Jerusalem is the capital of Israel," he said. "We respect your history and your choices. And we know that as friends, you respect ours."

"I think the sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we move toward peace," he added.

The exchange between the two allies set the stage for what could be a tense meeting Monday for Netanyahu with European Union foreign ministers in Brussels. The Jerusalem issue and the moribund peace process are expected to be high on the agenda.

Last week, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that Trump's decision "has the potential to send us backward to even darker times than the one we are already living in."

She also warned that Trump's "move could diminish the potential role that the United States could play in the region and create more confusion around this."

The meeting could be a precursor for what seems to be an emerging rift between Israel and the U.S. on one side, and Europe and the Palestinians on the other.

Missing 'opportunity'

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said Trump's decision has in effect disqualified the U.S. from continuing in its role as the traditional mediator of peace talks. The Palestinians have spent recent days trying to rally Arab and broader international opposition to the decision.

After Abbas political adviser Majdi Khaldi said Saturday that the Palestinian leader won't meet with Vice President Mike Pence when he visits the region this month, a spokeswoman for Pence said Sunday it was "unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region."

EU leaders, including Macron, have reiterated support for establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. Trump has said he would support the idea if both sides endorse it - effectively giving Israel a veto over any peace proposal. Netanyahu's government is dominated by opponents to Palestinian independence.

Trump's Middle East team, headed by his son-in-law Jared Kushner, has been working for months on a peace plan but has not yet released it.

The Palestinians staged three "days of rage" after Trump's dramatic announcement, with clashes breaking out in flashpoints across the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, and Gaza militants firing rockets into Israel. Four people in Gaza were killed. In the West Bank, there were dozens of injuries but no deaths.

There were indications that Sunday's stabbing at the Jerusalem bus station was motivated by Trump's move, although police did not officially confirm it.

Palestinian youths also clashed in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, hurling stones at Israeli soldiers, who fired back with rubber bullets and tear gas.

In Beirut, Lebanese security forces broke up the protest outside the U.S. Embassy after demonstrators pelted them with stones. After a rowdy start, the protest drew several hundred people and became more peaceful, with demonstrators chanting and singing.
BEIRUT - The United Nations children's agency said Sunday 137 children stranded in a rebel-held suburb near the Syrian capital require immediate evacuation amid a crippling siege in which five have reportedly died from a lack of medical care.

The Eastern Ghouta suburb, home to 400,000 residents, has been besieged since 2013 and humanitarian conditions there have deteriorated sharply amid violence that intensified recently. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 202 people, including 47 children, have been killed since Nov. 14.
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AUSTIN -- Former Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, an outspoken Second Amendment supporter and history enthusiast, on Monday filed to run for his old job.

He immediately began firing at Bush with criticisms of how Bush has mishandled the ongoing Alamo project and the housing recovery from Hurricane Harvey that he described as "chaos," with assistance slow to get to the hundreds of thousands of Texans who are remain without permanent housing.

"I care deeply about Texas and heritage and history," Patterson said. "I can't sit back any longer and watch what is going on."

Patterson served 12 years as land commissioner, leaving in 2015 to run an unsuccessful race for lieutenant governor. Bush replaced him as head of the agency that oversees public lands and the Alamo, another duties.

In addition to Bush, Patterson will face two other Texans who have filed to challenge Bush in the March 6, 2018 Republican primary election: Decatur land surveyor Davey Edwards and retired Sherman school teacher Rick Range.

Patterson said hundreds of thousands of homeowners -- an estimated 300,000 in the Houston are alone -- were impacted by Hurricane Harvey and the resulting floods, many of them still living in tents. Three months after the storm, tens of thousands in the Houston area are still without homes -- including 22,000 children, Patterson said.

Patterson said federal and state housing assistance programs have not been tapped quickly enough -- or at all -- to provide expedited assistance to get Harvey victims back in their homes, as has been done in past storms.

Separately, Patterson blasted Bush's handling of the ongoing Alamo preservation project in San Antonio -- a state-funded project run by three separate non-profit entities that answer to Bush, but conduct their business in secret.

That secrecy was the target is intense criticism last week by members of the Senate Finance Committee, which demanded Bush open the non-profits' business details to public scrutiny. Bush said he would refer that decision to the boards of those entities.

At a committee hearing, Bush defended his handling of the housing-recovery program. He said sate efforts have been delayed by complicated federal regulations, but that he expects the funding to soon be available.

As for the Alamo issue, Bush said the private non-profits were needed to protect big-name board members.

Patterson said he would end the secrecy surrounding the Alamo operating entities, and make the Alamo employees work for the Land Office. While calling himself s a "small government Republican," Patterson said having Alamo operations be transparent is important.

As Austin Bureau Chief, Mike Ward covers the Executive Branch, criminal justice and ethics issues, and does the weekly Texas Take Podcast with Quorum Report Editor Scott Braddock. Send Mike comments and story tips at mike.ward@chron.com. And get his updates on Twitter @ChronicleMike.
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump directed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to send American astronauts back to the moon and eventually to Mars, shifting the agencys mission from the study of Earth.

Trump signed a directive to the NASA administrator outlining the new mission on Monday. Deputy White House Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement that the new policy reflects recommendations from the National Space Council, a White House advisory panel Trump appointed earlier in the year.

The White House didnt provide details about how NASAs work to return to the moon would be funded, or whether any current programs would be cut.

The president will change our nations human spaceflight policy to help America become the driving force for the space industry, gain new knowledge from the cosmos, and spur incredible technology, Gidley said.

In September, Trump nominated Representative Jim Bridenstine, a Republican from Oklahoma, to be the next NASA administrator. Bridenstine, who if confirmed would be the first elected official to head the agency, is known as an advocate for bringing private companies such as Elon Musks SpaceX into NASAs work.

SpaceX launches rockets for customers including NASA, commercial satellite operators and the U.S. military. On Tuesday morning, the closely-held company is slated to fire off a Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft laden with cargo supplies destined for the International Space Station, in what will be the companys 17th mission of the year. Musk, 46, served on Trumps early advisory councils until June of this year, when he parted ways with the administration over Trumps decision to pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate accords.

When the U.S. retired the space shuttle program in 2011, NASA turned to private industry to fill in the gap when it comes to human space flight. SpaceX and Boeing both have billion-dollar contracts to send American astronauts to the space station, with the first key tests of the technology slated for 2018. Musk has also announced plans to send paying tourists on flights around the moon.

In the signing ceremony at the White House on Monday, Trump called the directive very exciting and very important for our country, adding that it also happens to be jobs.

2017 Bloomberg L.P.
The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p.
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A.O. Centrul de Drept al Femeilor anunta concurs pentru selectarea expertilor nationali pentru dezvoltarea conceptului de sprijin psihosocial si a Curriculumului de instruire in acest sens
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y.  Nearly 1,200 parishioners of St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church rejoiced in song and prayer Sunday evening as part of the first Mass held in the churchs new addition.

After nine years of planning, fundraising, designing, and construction, the doors to the large, airy, room were opened at 5:45 p.m. Dec. 3 for a 6 p.m. Mass. The patient and quiet cluster of approximately 600 church members who had gathered in the former worship area quickly entered the room, selected their seats, and took in the beauty of the surroundings.

Planning got under way for the addition at St. Edwardss, 569 Clifton Park Center Road, when church officials, ministry volunteers and members realized the seriousness of the necessity for more space.

We need it, said Elaine, a parishioner who withheld her last name as she waited outside the doors. I cant wait to see the stained glass windows.

Im incredibly excited, said John Leirey. Its been quite a while. I got a look at the windows this morning.

The circular seating arrangement, which holds 1,140, was quickly filled and the service got underway with the Bishop of the Albany Catholic Diocese Monsignor Edward Scharfenberger consecrating the baptismal pool and the structure itself.

Birth in this stream is birth in holiness. May the waters remind us of our baptism, he said in a clear voice. May the word of God always be heard in this place as it achieves the salvation for you.

The new addition is a mixture of new and old. New technology allows voices to be heard clearly from anywhere in the room while the eight restored stained glass windows in the rooms circular wall are reminders of the Catholic Churchs long history in the Capital District.

St. Edwards has one of the largest membership rolls in the Capital Region. Church officials put the number of families who are members at 2,100. About 1,300 of those families are said to attend one of four weekend services regularly.

The design, construction, and restoration of the windows were estimated to have cost $6.6 million.

The new space was designed for audio visual capabilities and the possibility of live streaming services over the Internet. Its architect, Sean Reilly of the Kerns Group, a Virginia-based firm, said the rooms circular design would decrease the distance between the last row of seats and the altar and allow the room to hold a greater number of worshipers. Both design factors were planning committee requests.

The Rev. Patrick Butler, who serves the church parishioners and assisted Scharfenberger on Sunday, said he was thrilled with the design.

Its a pretty intimate space and that was a nice feeling, he said. Its 55 feet from the person in the last pew to the altar, half the distance as it was before. I want to be closer to them and I want them to be closer to each other.

Though the room is not completely finished, Butler noted that its design has made it bright and airy.

That was the number one thing people told us they wanted, he said.

Work still being done includes some finishing screens near the chapels, a marble altar, and a new ambo or pulpit that was originally built in Westminster Abbey in 1849. The original abbey on the site in London was founded and dedicated by King Edward, later St. Edward the Confessor, in 1065.

Its a nice historical connection to St. Edward, Butler said. The nine-foot tall pulpit is quite ornate. The upper part will become the pulpit from which our readings will take place and the rest of it will be turned into a table that will be placed to the side.

In his homily, Scharfenberger used the new addition and its ongoing work as a metaphor saying it was a work in progress, much as the Catholic Church.

People say the Catholic Church is 2,000 years old but it wasnt old in Gods day, Scharfenberger said. The church is still young. The churchs best days are yet to come. None of us is a finished product. Your best days are yet to come, as an individual, a church, a parish.

He noted how the stained glass windows were reminders of the two churches in Troy from which they came, where their colors and teachings had illuminated generations of worshipers.

God so much wants to come into our lives, Scharfenberger said. God is patient. He keeps coming back. If you ask, God will come. He is actively involved in our lives but you have to keep the relationship going. You cant put him on auto-pilot.

The service was not without levity. In describing how God does the heavy lifting, Scharfenberger said he had heard that God is planning to give the workers at Amazon chocolates to help ease their work loads. And, after describing himself as the pastor of the parish and therefore entitled to preach in the church, Butler, in his remarks, said he would remember that point when the notes for the building came due.

There are no pillars here, Scharfenberger said. Theres nowhere to hide. Gods like that.
Components & Peripherals News

Former Icahn Capital Managing Director Resigns From Xerox Board As Activist Investor Seeks Election For Four Director Nominees

Alec Shirkey

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The standstill agreement between Xerox and activist investor Carl Icahn has ended with the resignation of Icahn supporter Jonathan Christodoro from the company's board of directors.

The Icahn Group will look to place four nominees on the Norwalk, Conn.-based printing giant's board at its annual shareholders meeting in 2018, including Christodoro, who said he would seek re-election in a resignation letter published Friday. The other three candidates are Keith Cozza, Jay Firestone and Randolph Read.

"As you know, the Board has been addressing issues I consider vital to Xeroxs current and future well-being," Christodoro wrote in the letter, obtained through a company filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "Until the last few weeks, it appeared that the Boards decisions would be consistent with my views on the best interests of Xerox and our shareholders. It now appears, however, that the Board will make decisions and take Xerox in a direction with which I strongly disagree."

[Related: Xerox To Split In 2, Give Icahn 3 Board Seats ]

Currently, the Icahn Group only holds one seat on the Xerox board of directors. The investor group also received three Conduent board seats when the services powerhouse was spun off by Xerox in January 2016, just two months after Icahn purchased a more than 7 percent stake in the combined company.

Christodoro, former managing director of Icahn Capital, has previously served as a board director for PayPal, Lyft and eBay, among several other companies. Cozza has been president and CEO of Icahn Enterprises as well as COO of Icahn Capital. Firestone has filled the roles of chairman and CEO of media production firm Prodigy Pictures since 2006. And Read has been president and CEO of Nevada Strategic Credit Investments since 2009.

Xerox issued a statement following Christodoro's resignation emphasizing its commitment to shareholders and "strategic transformation" initiatives.

"In 2017 alone, we expect to meet or exceed our target of $600 million of gross cost savings, a critical step as we continue our journey to improving our revenue trajectory.  Shareholders have recognized our strong progress: Xeroxs share price has increased almost 30 percent year-to-date, well in excess of the S&P500," the company said.

Xerox has been busy in recent months, conducting the largest product launch in company history earlier this year with the unveiling of 29 new printers and multifunction devices.

The launch was aimed at driving more recurring revenue for channel partners by enabling services such as custom app development through the ConnectKey device interface. North American partners, for instance, gained access to apps that convert paper-based processes into automated digital workflows in the education, healthcare and finance verticals.

The Xerox board's corporate governance committee will make formal recommendations regarding Icahn's nominees in the company proxy statement mailed to voting investors at the 2018 meeting, which has not yet been scheduled.
Components & Peripherals News

Carl Icahn Wants Jeff Jacobson Out As Xerox CEO: 'It Will Go The Way Of Kodak If There Aren't Major Changes'

Alec Shirkey

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Investor Carl Icahn turned his attack on Xerox up a notch Monday afternoon, calling for the removal of Xerox CEO Jeff Jacobson less than a year after he was appointed.

"The CEO is the most important person in the company. We believe Xerox still has potential, but it will go the way of Kodak if there arent major changes," Icahn told the Wall Street Journal. "The times have changed, but not the old guard that controls the board."

In the interview, Icahn said he wanted to avoid a board dispute, but added that Xerox denied his request to extend the deadline to nominate board directors. That resulted in Icahn supporter Jonathan Christodoro resigning from the board, ending the standstill agreement between Icahn and Xerox reached last year.

[Related: Icahn Loyalist Resigns From Xerox Board As Activist Investor Seeks Election For Four Director Nominees]

Icahn has nominated four candidates for election to the printing giant's board of directors, including Christodoro, who referenced disagreements between himself and other Xerox board members in a resignation letter submitted Friday. The other three candidates are Keith Cozza, Jay Firestone and Randolph Read.

"Until the last few weeks, it appeared that the Boards decisions would be consistent with my views on the best interests of Xerox and our shareholders," Christodoro wrote. "It now appears, however, that the Board will make decisions and take Xerox in a direction with which I strongly disagree."

Jacobson has held the chief executive position since January, by which time Icahn had purchased more than 7 percent of the company. Former CEO Ursula Burns stepped down last year following the planned split between Xerox and services giant Conduent.

Icahn owns more than a 9 percent stake in Xerox, according to the Wall Street Journal, but only holds one seat on the company board. Three of Conduent's board seats belong to Icahn.

Xerox did not provide additional comment but pointed to a statement released Monday morning, in which the Norwalk, Conn.-based company pointed to its commitment to shareholders and a 30 percent year-to-date increase in stock price.

"In 2017 alone, we expect to meet or exceed our target of $600 million of gross cost savings, a critical step as we continue our journey to improving our revenue trajectory  Shareholders have recognized our strong progress: Xeroxs share price has increased almost 30 percent year-to-date, well in excess of the S&P 500," the company said.

In 2013, Icahn put forth significant efforts to derail Michael Dell's attempt to win shareholder support for privatization of his company. Dell ultimately prevailed, and in a 2014 interview with The Channel Company's Bob Faletra, Dell called Icahn "a bad guy" who lies and lacks ethical boundaries.

Xerox shares closed flat in trading on Monday at $29.59.
Networking News

Cisco CEO Robbins on John Chambers: 'You're The Cornerstone In Our History'

Matt Brown

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The John Chambers era ended with little fanfare Monday as Cisco Systems' former CEO stepped down from his position as chairman of the board, officially leaving the leadership ranks of the company he helmed for 20 years, but the event didn't pass without a few heartfelt words from his successor, Chuck Robbins.



"You're the cornerstone in our history," Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins told Chambers during the company's annual shareholder meeting Monday. "No other person is more responsible for Cisco's significant technological and societal contributions, and you'll always be a part of Cisco just as I imagine Cisco will always be a part of you."



Shareholders elected Robbins, along with a slate of other candidates, to the Cisco board, and he is expected to be appointed chairman. Chambers, who was CEO between 1995 and 2015, announced last September that he would step down from the chairmanship when his term ended.



[Related: Cisco's Chambers Term As Chairman Ends Monday, Board Expected To Pass Torch To CEO Robbins]



Chambers Monday looked back on a 27-year career with Cisco, and said the company under Robbins is poised to lead a rapidly changing IT market.



"You're going to see a company that will lead in digitization and continue to change the world," Chambers said. "When you look at our employees and look at the pride they have in the organization, it's what really makes me most excited. This company has the courage to dream big dreams like nobody else. It sets audacious goals of being one or two in everything we do."



Under Chambers' leadership, Cisco grew from $1.2 billion in revenue to $47 billion. "Everybody likes to write about the success, but it's really how you handle your challenges and your setbacks that determine if you've got a great company or not."



"We had the courage to say we can change the world and do it to the benefit of creating unprecedented opportunities for our shareholders, our customers, our employees and our partners," Chambers said. "We had the opportunity to also establish a culture, which is what I'm probably most proud of."



Chambers joined Cisco in 1991 as head of sales, and was CEO from 1995 to July of 2015. He's been a member of the board of directors since 1993. He'll now have the honorary title of chairman emeritus.



Cisco partners said Monday that Chambers leaves a legacy of channel advocacy, respect and communication. Robbins, partners said, is so far proving himself up to the task of carrying on that legacy.



"I watched the Cisco organization turn from a fairly unfriendly position on the channel to one that's the best in the business," said Michael Girouard, executive vice president of sales at Teklinks, a Birmingham, Ala., Cisco partner. "Cisco's channel program sets the bar. It's the one we compare to every other, and they did that under John's leadership."





Robbins' efforts to steer the company into more software- and subscription-based products and services rather than its traditional, proprietary, expensive networking hardware are already bearing fruit, said Girouard, noting that Teklinks saw triple-digit year-over-year revenue growth this year. "We've really embraced what's Cisco's doing in security, that's it's a really important part of the market. They're really making up ground and moving more toward an annuity model. That's really smart, and the quicker they can make that change and master it, the sky's the limit. I couldn't pick a better partner in this business," he said.



Chambers "managed the partners and the street with equal respect," said Gary Berzack, CTO of eTribeca, a New York, N.Y.-based Cisco partner. "That's not so easy when you have to make decisions on behalf of partners that may not be popular with [Wall Street.]"

As a result, Chambers "has a fierce following of channel partners," Berzack said. "I always found it interesting that the large partners would rebrand roles in their own company to be similar to those roles at Cisco."



"Think of all the transitions John steered Cisco through, and the growth he's led by investments in innovation, and also shrewd acquisitions, and the vast majority of those acquisitions came to market very quickly as new products or adding functionality to other product lines," said Kent McDonald, vice president at Long View Systems, a Toronto solution provider.

More than just a shrewd corporate chess master, Chambers was the "spiritual leader" to Cisco and its partners, McDonald said. "He would have us all mesmorized by what we had achieved and believing that the world was our oyster, that we'd be a force to be reckoned with, and would dominate the market," McDonald said. "We trusted him, and his investment in us and our investment in him have proven good bets. You could have an informal conversation with him at the halls of the partner conference, and you can see him on stage with world leaders. You saw him on the world stage, but it didn't create a barrier to engaging the partner community or the customer community."



Robbins, McDonald said, has earned the channel's confidence that he can lead the company and its partners through a changing IT landscape and into significant revenue growth in new technologies like the cloud.



"He's the right guy," McDonald said. "He knows the channel. We know him. What he's managing is very different from what John has seen: Cloud, recrurring revenue, etc., and we see the results of his stewardship and the bets that he made.

"We've seen significant growth with Cisco  double-digit growth in a market that people say is freaky. It's shifting, and it's not about the number of boxes you ship, it's about the solutions, the architectures, the software, the enablement and the adoption. There's some element of the partner community that might be troubled by that transition, but we're bullish."
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The next time a Connecticut company threatens to move its headquarters to Boston, Catherine Smith should ask a harsh question.

Hows that working out for General Electic? the state economic development commissioner might ask. Or, How about Alexion?

It could be a key business function, like, say, drug discovery at Pfizer, much of which moved from Groton and New London to Boston a five years back.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media.

None of these exits from the Land of Steady Deer in the Woods to the New England Tech Mecca have done much for the bottom lines, the output, the stock prices or the popular views of these companies.

GE has endured a disastrous 2017, a year after moving its headquarters from Fairfield to the Seaport district in Boston. Ousting former CEO Jeffrey Immelt for cutter John Flannery, a Connecticut native, has only highlighted the problems.

And Flannery, famously, has delayed construction of the glitzy Boston edifice by a couple of years amid a free fall in the share price helped along by a halving of the dividend. So much for global-scale software ambitions.

Contributed photo

Alexion hauled in more than $50 million from Smiths department to move from Cheshire to a fancy new headquarters in a remade downtown New Haven, only to announce Sept. 12 that it, too, is tapping into the Seaport district for its head office. Amid cutting (and giving back half the state payoff), the new CEO  the third in three years after a scandal-ridden housecleaning  has seen shares fall another 21 percent in the last three months to $112, down from more than $200 in the heady summer of 2016.

On Friday, The New York Times reported that activist hedge fund Elliott Management wants Alexion to cut faster  in other words, to act more like a company whose stock multiple is coming down from the clouds. Alexions main product, Soliris, a treatment for a rare blood disease, remains a cash cow, but whats on the horizon?

Pfizer, which still has about 3,000 people in post-discovery development in Connecticut, touted good news Friday in late-stage human trials of its new breast cancer drug, Talazoparib. But for the most part, Pfizer has hardly spent the last few years replacing the old blockbusters that made it the biggest name in pharma  Viagra, Lyrica, Lipitor and others.

Shares have bounced around the low to mid-$30s for the last year and still havent reached their mid-2016 highs even though President Donald Trump could very well unlock upwards of $80 billion for Pfizer. In other words, so far at least, the Boston-Cambridge play hasnt worked wonders as Wall Street looks for Pfizers next huge acquisition as much as its next medical breakthrough.

Obviously, any of these companies could do fantastically well in Boston over time. But over the weekend I got a call from a wiseguy Connecticut executive. He pointed out, half in jest, that maybe companies moving from Connecticut to Boston are asking for trouble.

If the pattern tells us anything, its not that Boston is toxic, but its not a magic bullet, either. No place is, when it comes to corporate relocation.

In the quaint world where a lot of us grew up, people followed jobs, wherever they were. Weve swung so far toward jobs following people that maybe its time for a bit of healthy balance in that world view.

We havent found that theres a shortage, said Ben Berkowitz, founder and CEO of SeeClickFix in New Haven, who grew up in the Elm City (and was not my caller). Weve been able to hire engineers.

Hes the first to say Connecticut needs to make its urban culture more magnetic for young professionals. Were never going to be Boston or New York, but hey, most likely Aetna wont move to New York, either, if it joins with CVS.

dhaar@hearstmediact.com
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Three people were hospitalized and several others lost their home after a woman accidentally started a fire inside a multifamily building while trying to kill beg bugs with alcohol, authorities said.

The fire broke out late Friday in Cincinnati's Avondale neighborhood, just north of downtown. Cincinnati Fire Department District Chief Randy Freel did not respond to an inquiry from The Washington Post on Sunday, but he told reporters that the fire started in the first-floor unit, where the woman lives. The alcohol she was using ignited near an open flame, which was probably a candle or burning incense, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

Three people went to a hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation, Freel told reporters. Seven adults and three teenagers were displaced by the fire.

One of those displaced was Kamaron Lyshe, who rushed home after learning that his building was on fire. For the next hour, Lyshe shared what was happening through a Facebook Live video, which showed a massive fire billowing out of the building's roof. Flames were no longer visible from the street about a half-hour into the video.

Later, a visibly upset Lyshe appears to be sitting in a car and sending messages to friends.

"Pretty much everything we got is all up in flames. It's crazy," he said, as he lets out a deep sigh. "Now everything is gone."

Now Playing: A recent study suggests that combating the spread of bed bugs may be as simple as keeping ones dirty clothes out of their reach. Video: GeoBeats

Hours later, Lyshe took pictures and videos of what was left of his building, including the third-floor unit where he lived with his family. The roof of his unit had collapsed. Its hallways and rooms were covered with ashen debris.

"My room is completely destroyed, all my clothes. My closet was right here," Lyshe can be heard saying as he briefly aims his phone at a pile of rubble.

Down the hallway was his brother's room, he said, where pieces of burned wood were piled on the bed. His brother's closet appears to have been spared, with several pieces of clothing still intact.

"I'm kind of dealing with it right now. I'll start from scratch," he told the Cincinnati Enquirer. "It's like a dream ... everything is burned. I'll start fresh. It's all we can do now."

Authorities did not release the names of the residents, including the woman who started the fire.

Fire officials told reporters that this was the second fire in two weeks caused by someone trying to kill bed bugs.

A 2015 survey by the National Pest Management Association and the University of Kentucky found that bed bug infestations continue at high rates in the United States, with nearly all of the respondents saying they'd been treated for bed bugs in the past year. Infestations happened most often in nursing homes, office buildings, schools and day-care centers, according to the survey.

Do-it-yourself defenses against bed bugs have resulted in accidental fires in the past.

In 2013, a 13-year-old boy trying to kill a bed bug doused the insect with alcohol and then lit a match, causing a fire to start in his apartment building.

In 2012, a Carlisle, Kentucky, woman set her apartment building on fire after she doused a couch in alcohol and accidentally dropped a lit cigarette on it. About 30 people lost their homes, while four were treated for smoke inhalation.

In Indianapolis that year, flames spread to a home after two men set their infested couches and two chairs on fire in the back yard.

Freel said homeowners and renters wanting to get rid of bed bugs should call pest professionals instead of trying to solve the problem themselves.
10 Aralk 2017 Pazar, 13:55

The removal from office of Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdi has been interpreted by the CHP as being a revenge operation for General Chair Kemal Klcdaroglus disclosure of the Isle of Man documents and the intelligence agency briefing to Erdogan on Reza Zarrab.

Klcdaroglu, who is in London, obtained information on the phone from staff after having learnt of Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdis removal from office. The conclusion was reached that the target of the operation was Klcdaroglu and there was an attempt to exact revenge using the same means over his comments about Erdogans children and relatives.

With Klcdaroglu deciding to refrain from commenting until he had returned to Turkey, Deputy General Chair Aykut Erdogdu, who was part of the London delegation, made an announcement and expressed his outrage.

Do it if you dare

Erdogdu, stating that they knew where the AKP was going with this, said, They are trying to exact revenge for the incidents of corruption to which reference has recently been made. However, the removal of opposition mayors from office in this way only happens in fascist regimes. We will never permit this. We will not sacrifice a mayor brought into office with the peoples votes to the Interior Ministrys political instructions. Erdogdu, wishing for an investigation commission to be set up in Parliament and for all parties mayors to be investigated, commented, Do it if you dare and we will see which mayors are without blemish and have probity.

The aim is to change the agenda

CHP parliamentarians expressed outrage at Ilgezdis removal from office.

-Bulent Oz: The Interior Ministrys removing Ilgezdi from office is mobbing conducted against the CHP. You cannot silence the CHP with this mobbing conducted under the state of emergency.

-Yldz Tur Bicer: The members of the most discredited government in history with all kinds of graft and illegality at home and abroad are trying to splatter opposition municipalities with the dirt of its disgusting municipalities using its filthy grip on power.

-Eren Erdem: They greet with bands and processions the FETOists who signed up to being gifted lot after lot, but they either assign curators to municipalities that they are unable to win through the ballot box or try to stage a coup against the will of the nation there with removals from office.

-Ahmet Akn: What is being done to CHP municipalities is fear over the 2019 local election. If we pile up their own corruption and disgraces, this would stretch from here to the Isle of Man and they are using CHP municipalities to change the agenda.

ILGEZDIS STATEMENT CONCERNING HIS REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

The statement made by the Ministry of the Interior is as follows: Due to reports compiled by the Civil Service Inspectorate and investigations and prosecutions being conducted by the judicial authorities into him, a decision was made on 06.12.2017 by the Ministry of the Interior to remove Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdi from his office. In removing Battal Ilgezdi from his office as mayor, the following matters were taken into consideration, deemed to be acts of abuse of duty by acting in breach of the Development Law, the Law on Making Statement of Assets and Combatting Bribery and Corruption and the Public Procurement Law, causing loss to municipalities/the public, bid-rigging, unjust acquisition of property and turning a blind eye to the compilation of untruthful documents by public servants: Even though Battal Ilgezdi gave the impression of having ended following his election the business he engaged in prior to being elected Atasehir Mayor, his continuation of this business through the intervention of close relatives and persons and companies he was in a political and business relationship with and concealing his own presence, the activities conducted through these individuals and companies being almost entirely related to Battal Ilgezdi and involving sham elements and, where necessary, being carried out by having new companies formed or appointing close relatives to chair the board of directors at existing companies, the construction works performed by these persons and/or companies being carried out within Atasehir Municipalitys area of responsibility, despite the serious violations of planning law involved in construction works being undertaken, the failure for the requisite statutory procedures to be performed and/or caused to be performed on time and in full by Atasehir Municipality officials, or even the deceiving of other authorities through the compilation of untruthful documents, the acquisition of considerable amounts of immovable property by close relatives disproportionate to their economic circumstances, the causing of loss to the municipality by conducting transactions to the benefit of persons/companies that the Mayor is in collaboration with contrary to legislation in the sale and/or putting out to tender of shares in certain of Atasehir Municipalitys immovable properties, the passing on with regard to the said matters of allegations and complaints about various improprieties and irregularities that were submitted to our Ministry, the commencement of procedures by our ministry into a portion of these and the granting of approval for investigation, and, additionally, the submission to the competent judicial authorities of allegations and complaints over which the judicial authorities are contemplating the necessary action, and the existence of a pending lawsuit brought against Battal Ilgezdi by Istanbul Anatolian Chief Prosecution for bid rigging and unjust acquisition of property.

The bringing about through sham transactions of the transfer of the municipal share in the plot on which the building known as Buz Rezidans was erected, the granting of an occupancy permit to Buz Rezidans despite breaches of the construction licence, the failure for the sanction pursuant to Articles 32 and 42 of the Construction Law to be applied and, when the necessity arose to apply the statutory sanction, the failure for it to be applied as required, the embarking on housing development illicitly, for profiteering purposes and contrary to planning legislation on the area known as Erguvan Park, bid rigging in the tender for the construction and to confer use of the buildings to be constructed in the area, the purchasing by a close associate of Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdi who was one of his relatives of a plot in an area that is a residential area in the development plan, the construction of a private educational institution contrary to planning legislation on this plot that was a residential area, the subsequent sale of these premises to a company on which a relative close to Battal Ilgezdi serves as board of directors chair and its also being rented out as a private school at a high price by this company, the conducting of procedures that were in breach of planning legislation at the buildings known as Oda Kule 1 and Oda Kule 2, and all these illicit and procedures that involve corruption being conducted by creating a complex chain of relationships involving the mayors close relatives and business partners and the latters close relatives and with him concealing his own identity, which are public knowledge, serve as examples of this corruption that is being brought to attention.

Battal Ilgezdi: I am above board. I am without blemish.

Following Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdis removal from office by the Interior Ministry, there were flurry-filled hours at Atasehir Municipality. With party supporters who had gathered in front of the Town Hall expressing their support for Ilgezdi, they displayed outrage at the government. The CHP urgently summoned all Central Executive Board members to assemble in front of Atasehir Town Hall. The deputy general chairs, Istanbul MPs and CHP mayors and sub-province chairs in Istanbul convened with Ilgezdi at the town hall and assessed the situation.

There are acquittal rulings

Battal Ilgezdi, addressing those who had come to support him in front of the town hall, said, As you know, I am the first mayor to have complained about himself. Do it if you dare. Let their own mayors go and complain about themselves. All of these allegations came before the judiciary and acquittal rulings were passed over them all. We are supposedly tampering with documents. The judiciary is in your hands and the media is in your hands. If there is something we have tampered with come out with it. The law has collapsed here. Political motives are involved in this. We are here. There is nothing that I cannot account for as mayor. I am above board. I am without blemish.

Covering-up operation

CHP Istanbul Province Chair Cemal Canpolat, stating that the AKP was conducting an operation to cover up the corruption attributable to it, said, This is an operation to secure the surrender of the Republican Peoples Party municipalities. We will not surrender the CHP municipalities. We will never permit operations conducted under instruction. We will fight to the end. I invite all party supporters and all Istanbullians here. This is basically the price for five million votes in Istanbul being cast for no. Do whatever you will, we will take Istanbul and we will oust you in the election.

Isle of Man payback

Istanbul MP Bars Yarkadas, in turn, expressing his reaction to Ilgezdis removal from office, said, This operation is a payback for the Isle of Man documents. The rulership is trying to dispel and discredit the uproar created by the Isle of Man documents through the perception that there is corruption at CHP municipalities. The rulership, which has removed its own mayors from office without citing a reason but has been unable to lift the stain of corruption from these mayors, is turning its attention to CHP municipalities and is trying to establish what it sees as equivalence.

Engin Altay: We are entering a dangerous process

CHP Deputy Group Chair Engin Altay assessed the removal from office of Atasehir Mayor Battal Ilgezdi by saying, We are entering a new and dangerous process of tension. Tayyip Erdogan is a politician who thrives on sectarianism and polarisation. He is now doing precisely this. This is a sign that even greater crisis-ridden days await Turkey. Altay, noting that the possibility of tampering with evidence had been cited as grounds for Ilgezdis removal from office, said, This operation is a case of the guilty party brazenly accusing the innocent. More Interior Ministry staff and public prosecutors have come and gone to Atasehir town hall than municipal staff. There remains nothing that has not been picked through and investigated. Non-existent evidence cannot be tampered with. Altay, saying, The degree is apparent to which Tayyip Erdogan has been cornered and is being judged in the public conscience over matters such as the Isle of Man documents that General Chair Kemal Klcdaroglu has disclosed and Reza Zarrabs confessions, said that Ilgezdis removal was a political operation conducted to counteract the AKPs loss of esteem in the public conscience. Altay, noting that the will of the people of Atasehir had been usurped, said, We will stand up for the CHP municipalities in their entirety through the person of Battal Ilgezdi. What is in need of investigation is the Isle of Man documents, Zarrabs confessions and the 17-25 December bribery and corruption affair of the century that has been closed.

CALL FROM CHP ISTANBUL

The CHP Istanbul Provincial Chairs Office called on all MPs, sub-provincial chairs, mayors and members to congregate in front of Atasehir town hall building at 19.00 hours.

ANNOUNCEMENT FROM CHP ISTANBUL PROVINCIAL CHAIR CANPOLAT

CHP Istanbul Provincial Chair Cemal Canpolat, arriving in front of the town hall, made an announcement to members of the press.

Canpolat said, This is the AK Partys operation to cover up and conceal the corruption attributable to it. Our Atasehir Mayor made a criminal complaint about himself to the Republic Chief Prosecution two years ago. Saying, Come and investigate the news reports emerging about me, he himself went along with the sub-province chair and applied to the Republic Chief Prosecution. He and his family come face to face with an inspector every day on each occasion. There is one sole aim here. This is an operation to portray a Republican Peoples Party mayors success as being failure. This is an operation to secure the surrender of the Republican Peoples Party municipalities.

Canpolat, saying that the Republican Peoples Party municipalities would not surrender, commented, We will never permit operations conducted under instruction against Republican Peoples Party municipalities. We will fight to the end. Now I ask through the press. To the Interior Minister. Which paper have you requested and Battal Ilgezdi did not furnish you with it? Which document have you requested and he did not supply it? You perceive him to be a threat and oust him. We will not let you conduct this operation. I invite all party supporters and all Istanbullians here. I invite all MPs here. We will not leave this country in your arbitrary rule. We are ready as Republican Peoples Party members and as Istanbullians to put up every kind of fight, to engage in every kind of struggle and to pay every kind of price. This is basically the price for five million votes in Istanbul being cast for no. Do whatever you will, we will take Istanbul and we will oust you in the election. Everywhere in the world, a period in which assaults increase incrementally is a period in which the footsteps of fascism are on their way. We will not surrender this country to fascists and fascist dictators. We will fight this fight to the end.

http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/siyaset/882441/Atasehir_Belediye_Baskani_Battal_ilgezdi_gorevden_uzaklastirildi.html
Most people probably have very little idea what the Equality and Human Rights Commission either is or does, and I suspect they dont really care.

The EHRC is a publicly-funded quango set up in 2006 with a responsibility to promote and protect equality and human rights in this country, whatever that means. It is no doubt a well-intentioned body and may do some good.

But the normally obscure EHRC has just made an announcement that is both crass and destructive. The commissions chair, David Isaac, told a Sunday newspaper that it is going to launch its own inquiry into last Junes Grenfell Tower fire in which 71 people lost their lives.

Yet there is already an official inquiry into the causes of the Grenfell tragedy under an independent retired judge, Sir Martin Moore-Bick. The EHRCs parallel inquiry threatens to undermine the official one  and to overshadow it, since it is expected to be completed by next April, very possibly earlier than Sir Martins interim report, and certainly long before his full findings are published.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is going to launch its own inquiry into last Junes Grenfell Tower fire in which 71 people lost their lives

Moreover, the EHRC is not primarily interested in the causes of the fire. No; it wants to know whether the human rights of the victims were abrogated by the State. To judge by Mr Isaacs remarks yesterday, its resounding conclusion will be that they were.

What on earth is going on? Grenfell was a terrible tragedy in which the occupants of the flats were fatally betrayed by various agencies: Kensington and Chelsea council; the management company that looked after the flats; and some of the builders responsible for their refurbishment, in particular the combustible cladding.

Unfortunately, even while smoke was still emerging from the blackened building, the issue of responsibility became politicised, with some on the Left alleging that the fire represented a callous and calculated assault by the State on the poor. The EHRC is now in danger of feeding that myth by calling its own inquiry.

A month after the inferno, Labours hard-Left Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell described what had happened as social murder.

This outrageous phrase carried the implication that the fire was virtually a deliberate act of homicide on the part of the authorities.

Relatives of victims and survivors of the disaster found themselves represented by an intemperate group called Justice4Grenfell. One of its members, Ishmahil Blagrove, who seems fairly typical in his extremism, said after the fire: I want there to be a revolution in this country.

After it was announced at the end of June that Sir Martin Moore-Bick would be in charge of the official investigation, Justice4Grenfell wrote to Prime Minister Theresa May to inform her that it was withdrawing its support for the public inquiry.

The commissions chair, David Isaac, is a City lawyer who rakes in 500,000 a year. He is a Labour supporter and former chairman of gay rights group Stonewall

Sir Martins crime appeared to be that he was white, male and relatively privileged. Labour MPs such as David Lammy and Emma Dent Coad (who represents Kensington) had the temerity to attack him on these very grounds.

In fact, Sir Martin is a highly experienced, independent-minded man, and certainly no lackey of the State. He is extremely expert in the law of contract, and if anyone can untangle the overlapping responsibilities of the 60 firms involved in the refurbishment of Grenfell Tower, its him.

His terms of reference are to ascertain the causes of the fire, to apportion blame where there is evidence of fault, and to establish whether there are lessons to be learned that should be applied to other blocks of flats.

Surely that is what most of the relatives of victims and survivors also want  if only their voices could be heard. How could this fire have happened, and so many people have died, in the heart of London in 21st-century Britain?

Needless to say, Jeremy Corbyns Labour Party has demanded a much broader review into social housing policy  in the hope, no doubt, that this might supply it with ammunition with which it could embarrass the Government.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission wanted a similarly wide-ranging inquiry which addressed the issue of whether the human rights of the occupants of the flats had been breached.

It applied to be a core participant in the official investigation, but was rejected, possibly because Sir Martin feared it would try to hijack the proceedings with its own agenda.

And so the EHRC has decided to launch an inquiry of its own, which it will produce in double-quick time. We may be almost 100 per cent sure of the outcome. The commission will declare that the State failed to respect the human rights of the occupants of the flats.

A month after the inferno, Labours Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell described what had happened as social murder

My contention is that this would be an utterly meaningless conclusion, which wont help the relatives of victims or survivors of the Grenfell fire, or throw any light on its causes or on preventive measures that should be taken in the future.

But it will nonetheless encourage those who are striving to frame the debate in heated political terms, and aim to pin the blame on the heartless and mean-minded State  which in this instance, of course, means the supposedly wicked and hard-hearted Tories.

Well, the Tories can perhaps look after themselves. I feel more concerned about justice and truth. For the effect of the commissions rushed and entirely predictable report will be to shake the confidence of many people in Sir Martins far more painstaking  and probably much more open-minded  version.

What he eventually says will have been pre-empted by all the publicity enjoyed by the commissions meretricious point-scoring  publicity that will be seized on by Justice4Grenfell and the Labour Left, both of which want the tragedy of Grenfell to be judged through a political prism.

The danger is that when Sir Martins full report is finally published, its findings and recommendations will be taken less seriously than they should be, or even disregarded. Justice4Grenfell will doubtless insist that the issue is all about the human rights of the occupants of Grenfell Tower having been ignored.

How incredible that the EHRC, which is a publicly-funded body with an annual budget of 20 million, should seek to undermine the credibility of an official inquiry. In effect, it is exploiting the present mood of public scepticism in which the integrity of conscientious public servants such as Sir Martin is increasingly doubted.

God knows how David Isaac, who appears to be a respectable City lawyer, could have got mixed up in such an ill-conceived project. He chaired the gay rights group Stonewall from 2003 until 2012, and doesnt seem an obvious political subversive.

There is always a danger of normally quiescent and generally harmless quangos doing something idiotic in order to justify their existence. Ironically, the damaging decision by the EHRC to mount its own inquiry may lead to calls for it to be wound up.

The tragedy is that the more the catastrophe of Grenfell Tower is politicised  and the more there is loud but empty talk about human rights violations  the less likely it is that the occupants of Grenfell Tower will ever secure the detailed explanation of these appalling events that they deserve.
It's the costly eating habit that millennials have been accused of not being able to shake.

But it turns out they can have their avocado on toast - and eat it too - by following one simple financial move.

Millennials are spending almost the same amount on fees for additional superannuation accounts as they are for their breakfast of choice, consumer organisation Choice revealed on Monday.

Consumer organisation Choice revealed on Monday that Australian millennials can have their avocado on toast - and eat it too - if they start following one simple financial move (stock image)

Millennials are spending almost the same amount on fees for additional superannuation accounts as they are for their breakfast of choice (stock image), the group revealed on Monday

The group found millennials spend $1321 a year on breakfast - less than $100 more than what many are spending on annual fees for unconsolidated super accounts.

Annual fees for a 34-year-old's $50,000 super account with one of Australia's biggest funds come in at $1248, Choice data revealed.

Australian Taxation Office figures from the end of financial year found 14.8 million Australians have a super account, with 40 per cent of those holding multiple accounts.

Super fund Hostplus chief executive David Elia encouraged Australians to consolidate their super accounts to avoid paying unnecessary fees and to maximise compound interest.

The group found millennials spend $1321 a year on breakfast (stock image) - less than $100 more than what many are spending on annual fees for unconsolidated super accounts

Hostplus chief executive David Elia (pictured) encouraged people to consolidate accounts

'Account consolidation only takes a few minutes  there are no forms, its all online and it could mean the difference between affording a deposit on a house at retirement,' he told Perth Now.

'The more money you have in one account, the harder it can work for you and the more interest you can earn.'

Choice spokeswoman Stefanie Menezes said having duplicate super accounts could cost millennials $25,000 by the time they retire.

She added: 'The research couldn't be clearer, young Aussies love to eat out and for many a super serving of avocado on toast will be on the menu, but they can offset their breakfast spending through super savings.'

But Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees chief executive Eva Scheerlinck said careful consideration should be given when choosing which super account to consolidate.

'You need to compare the long-term returns of each fund, the fees charged and ensure the insurance offered is appropriate for your needs,' she told the publication.
Embrace the wonders of winter and cosy up in one of these frosty hideaways ..

CHILL OUT IN SWEDEN

Enjoy spectacular views of the Northern Lights whilst wrapped in a thermal one-piece at this arctic hotel in Sweden

The original ice hotel, re-carved each year, is 200km north of the Arctic Circle  great for seeing moose and the Northern Lights.

INSIDER TIP: The hotel is between -5c and -8c, but they provide a thermal one-piece and boots for you. Theres a heated building with a sauna next door.

DETAILS: Three nights from 1,154 pp for two sharing (one night in an ice room, two in a warm room) including flights and transfers, discover-the-world.co.uk

LET IT SNOW, NORWAY

Experience being pulled on a sledge by huskies whilst staying at The Snow Hotel in Norway

The Snow Hotel consists of 20 sculpted rooms. Go ice-fishing or on a sledge pulled by huskies.

INSIDER TIP: If -4 is too cool for you, try a separate warm cabin.

DETAILS: Hotel opens December 20. Rooms from 277 per person including warm clothes, dinner & breakfast, kirkenessnowhotel.com. Flights to Oslo from 54 return, on to Kirkenes from 160 return, norwegian.com.

STAY COOL IN CANADA

Get an adrenaline rush on the Everest slide at The Hotel de Glace in Canada

The Hotel de Glace, a snow and ice guest house, is a 30-minute drive from Quebec City airport. Theres skating and 35 slides near by.

INSIDER TIP: Reach speeds of nearly 50mph on the Everest slide.

DETAILS: Hotel opens January 4. Rooms from 127 a night including winter activities passport, hoteldeglace-canada.com. Return flights to Quebec City around 880 return, aircanada.com.
A terminally ill mother who penned a heart-wrenching letter to her two young sons she won't see grow up has moved into palliative care.

Mother-of-two Sara Chivers, from Melbourne, was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour in March, nine years after she beat brain cancer.

As her condition deteriorates, the 34-year-old mother - whose tumour hasn't shrunk despite undergoing surgery - has been left struggling to walk or talk.

Speaking to The New Daily via email, Ms Chivers made a heartbreaking admission: 'I don't really know how much time I have left.

Sara Chivers and her 20-month-old son Alfie have both been diagnosed with brain cancer

The mother previously wrote a heart-wrenching letter to Alfie, his older brother Hugh (right) and her loving husband Leigh

'Each day brings new challenges. First, it was just some physical weakness, then it impacted my ability to walk or care for the boys,' she said.

'Now, the most devastating impact is my speech and energy to even think clearly are being taken away from me.'

And just months after she was told her brain cancer had returned, her 20-month-old son Alfie was diagnosed with the same disease in September this year.

The 34-year-old mother has since moved into the same palliative care centre, where her youngest son - who can no longer walk or talk - is being treated.

The family are building memories together - as the mother and son battle the same disease

Dealing with another blow, the parents were told that for little Alfie to survive, he needed to undergo three months of high-dose of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Mrs Chivers is now doing everything she can to save her son's life and create as many memories with her family as she can before her time runs out.

And despite her battle, Mrs Chivers said she has remained positive for her family.

'It's about trying to get out of bed each day, putting one foot in front of the other so that I can spend time with my boys,' she said.

She admitted she was 'terrified' about dying but she wanted to raise awareness about the disease in an effort to find a cure for her son Alfie.

Mrs Chivers is now doing everything she can to save her son's life and create as many memories with her family as she can before her time runs out

Her latest interview comes after she penned a heartbreaking letter, supplied to the New Daily, to Alfie and his brother Hugh, aged three, about the kind of woman she is and her hope for their futures.

'I won't be around to see you grow up. It's a hard thing to say and even harder to face,' her letter begins.

'I know your Dad, and our village of family and friends, will keep me alive for you as much as they can, but there are some things I want you to hear from me.'

Mrs Chivers goes on to explain that her favourite perfume is Michael Kors, favourite meal is spaghetti bolognese and favourite season is winter.

'Don't be afraid of expressing your emotions. I will never tire of hearing 'I love you' from Leigh, you boys, my family, friends,' she continues.

'Pay attention to study but know there is so much more to school life than textbooks. Play team sports. Try a musical instrument. Learn a language.'

Alfie (pictured with his mother) was diagnosed with brain cancer just months after Mrs Chivers found out the cancer she had beaten eight years ago had returned

Mrs Chivers then challenges her boys to 'love hard', be brave in their convictions and always fall back on their family when the going gets tough.

'Be kind to your Dad. It won't be easy for him raising you alone, but every decision he makes will be with your best interests at heart,' she wrote.

'He is an exceptional father and role model. Don't let him doubt himself or the wonderful job he will do shaping you into the men I dream of you growing up to be.

'There will come a time when he wants to find happiness again with a new partner. Accept and embrace his choice, and know she will be a positive female influence in your lives too.

'I have absolute faith that he will make the right decision, for him and you both, and I hope she enriches your lives as much as you've all enriched mine.'

Her emotional letter finishes with a few words to her loving husband Leigh, reading: 'He is my companion, my rock, my everything. It was always him. Always will be.'

'He is my companion, my rock, my everything. It was always him. Always will be,' Sara writes in the letter, describing her husband Leigh (pictured)

Mrs Chivers has undergone surgery on the largest tumour, which has helped with her mobility and will improve her quality of life as she fights for Alfie

Mrs Chivers has undergone surgery on the largest tumour, which has helped with her mobility and will improve her quality of life as she fights for Alfie.

The resilient toddler has had three separate surgeries to remove the fluid from his brain and give him a fighting chance at beating the devastating disease.

Survival rates for brain cancer have not improved in the last three decades.

Mrs Chivers' sister Stephanie has set up a fundraising page for those hoping to help with the Chivers family's costly battle against cancer.

For those wanting to financially support brain cancer research in Australia, Mrs Chivers recommends donating to Cure Brain Cancer or Carries Beanies 4 Cancer.
Gift giving can be difficult especially when you're searching for the perfect present just days before Christmas.

It may seem even more complicated when you're buying a gift for someone who follows a cruelty-free lifestyle.

Never fear, FEMAIL has rounded up the best vegan products available in Australia that you can purchase.

FEMAIL has rounded up the best vegan products available in Australia you can purchase

BATH BOMBS

If you want to give someone a little bit of luxury then there are plenty of cruelty-free bath products on the market.

InkBlot exclusively sells bath bombs and each uses biodegradable glitter, making it as eco friendly as possible.

'Normal glitter is made from polyester which is harmful on the bodies and the environment,' the company said in an Instagram post.

'We pride ourselves on being a vegan friendly and environmentally ethical business.'

InkBlot exclusively sells bath bombs and each uses biodegradable glitter, making it as eco friendly as possible

Oh Deer Sugar was started by a couple who labelled their business a 'non-edible bakery' with a focus on vegan and cruelty-free bath and body products.

'The business started off as a Christmas gift idea. I made the body scrub, put it in a jar and tied a ribbon around it and put a photo of it on Facebook,' Sharni Rosser previously told Daily Mail Australia.

They now also have a Christmas selection which includes a Gingerbread Bubble Bar, Rudolph's Wild Sleigh Ride bubble bar and a Candy Cane Shower Moose.

Oh Deer Sugar was started by a couple who labelled their business a 'non-edible bakery' with a focus on vegan and cruelty-free bath and body products

MAKE UP

When it comes to the beauty industry it can be hard to know which products are truly cruelty-free.

'As a vegan hair and make up artist this is something our founder Stacey Abdilla knows all too well,' The Little Vegan MakeUp Shop told FEMAIL.

'Over the years Stacey has done a whole lot of research into cruelty-free make up and spent many hours testing out every vegan makeup product she could get her hands on.'

Primarily online, The Little Vegan Make Up Shop stocks their favourite indie brands such as Lime Crime, L.A. Girl and Mermaid Salon.

When it comes to the beauty industry it can be hard to know which products are truly cruelty free

The Little Vegan Make Up Shop offers a variety of cruelty-free make up brands for those that love make up but don't want to contribute to animal testing

NAIL POLISH

Not many people know that nail polish isn't always cruelty-free as often animal products such as carmine, guanine and oleic acid can be found in them.

This is when Melbourne-based brand Kester Black steps in with their vegan nail polishes.

Anna Ross, 29, had originally created a small jewellery business but before long she naturally progressed to nail polishes, which was when Kester Black was born.

Not many people know that nail polish isn't always cruelty free as often animal products such as carmine, guanine and oleic acid can be found in them - this is when Kester Black steps in

Anna previously told Daily Mail Australia they managed to triple their turnover in three months and she now plans on having a 30 million dollar business in five years.

Kester Black produces ethical, sustainable cosmetics and skincare and they aim to redefine the industry standard for ethical cosmetics by making products that have a positive social and environmental footprint.

They also have a Christmas range, which features bon bons and polishes named after reindeers.

Kester Black also has a Christmas range, with some of their polishes named after reindeers

BAGS

When people think of a good quality bag, briefcase or wallet they often think of leather but with changing technologies and opinions more and more are being made that are cruelty-free.

One example of a fake leather company doing well is Canadian-based Matt and Nat, which delivers to Australia and can be found in selected stores.

'From the start, being committed to not using leather or any other animal-based materials in our designs felt natural to us,' their website reads.

When people think of a good quality bag, briefcase or wallet they often think of leather but with changing technologies and opinions more and more are being made that are cruelty free

One example of a fake leather company doing well is Canadian-based Matt and Nat

'Each season, we continue to explore new innovative ways to remain sustainable and eco-friendly.'

Since their creation in 1995, the brand has experimented with different recycled materials such as recycled nylons, cardboard, rubber, cork and recycled plastic bottles.

SKINCARE

Two skincare brands that will leave your skin feeling as good as new are Happy Skincare and Cedar and Stone.

'Happy Skincare is a natural health-obsessed mix-a-holic's dream! And it all started in our kitchen when Aaron mixed up a 100 per cent natural stretch mark cream for Phoebes pregnant belly,' the website reads.

The brand is organic, 100 per cent natural, vegan and uses 'a few handfuls of amazing Australian ingredients'.

Happy Skincare is organic, 100 per cent natural, vegan and uses 'a few handfuls of amazing Australian ingredients'

The Pig in Mud Mineral Mask and the new Charcoal Micellar cleansing water are perfect stocking stuffers.

Cedar and Stone is a 100 per cent plant-based skincare company with a firm ethos on minimising the use of harsh chemicals.

The company was founded by sister duo Kate and Anna who were sick of seeing products that were labelled organic actually being made up of hidden chemicals.

Cedar and Stone is a 100% Plant Based Skincare company with a firm ethos on minimising the use of harsh chemicals

'Reduce, reuse and recycle. Our hope is for people to see 'natural' and 'organic' as normal, not as an alternative,' they said.

They sell a range of products including cologne, hand cream, shave bars and bath salts.
A maternity hospital has revealed its most popular baby names of 2017, with surprisingly traditional monikers topping the charts.

Queensland's Greenslopes Private Hospital rounded up the top names ranging from traditional to modern after delivering more than 1,000 babies this year.

And unsurprisingly, old favourite Olivia took the lead for the girls name at the Brisbane ward, followed by Zara, Zoe, Addison and Ava.

A maternity hospital has revealed its most popular baby names of 2017, with surprisingly traditional monikers topping the charts (stock images)

Queensland's Greenslopes Private Hospital rounded up the top names ranging from traditional to modern after delivering more than 1,000 babies this year

Olivia took the lead for the girls name at the Brisbane ward, followed by Zara, Zoe, Addison and Ava (pictured left American socialite Olivia Palermo and right American actress Zoe Kravitz)

After taking the top spot around the world for the most popular name in 2015, Charlotte has been bumped down to seventh place.

For the boys, the names were quite traditional.

There was a four-way tie for first place between Harrison, Henry, Oliver and William, followed by Liam, Charlie and Jacob.

Greenslopes maternity services manager Raechel Frost said parents seem to have taken inspiration from celebrities or movies.

There was a four-way tie for first place between Harrison, Henry, Oliver and William, followed by Liam, Charlie and Jacob (pictured left Prince William and right Liam Hemsworth)

American actor Harrison Ford could likely inspire the popularity of the name Harrison

'People get their influences from everywhere, and is a huge phenomenon so it could well be an influencer,' she told The Courier Mail.

The boys' name Arlo sprung into the top 20, likely inspired by the main character in Disney movie The Good Dinosaur.

Ms Frost added there had also been an increasing trend of parents adding a modern twist to traditional names such as Adalyn instead of Adeline.

GIRLS Olivia Zara Zoe Addison Ava Emilia / Amelia Charlotte Matilda Chloe Emily Georgia Eva Lily Lucy Mia Ruby Sophia Sophie Adeline/Adalyn Annabelle Aria Audrey Eleanor Emma Grace Advertisement
His biography of Princess Diana shook the world when it was released in 1992, revealing her battle with bulimia, suicide attempts and her heartache over Camilla.

Now author Andrew Morton is set to turn his attention to the newest member of the royal family, bride-to-be Meghan Markle.

The 64-year-old confirmed the news on Twitter, saying: 'Excited to be writing Meghan Markle's story. She has bags of charisma. A royal star who will have tremendous impact on royal family and wider world.'

According to The Bookseller, Meghan: A Hollywood Princess, will be published on 19th April 2018, a month before the former Suits star weds Prince Harry at Windsor Castle.

The British author lives in California not far from where Meghan grew up and promises the tome will be an 'unparalleled' look at Meghan's life before she met the Prince.

Royal biographer Andrew Morton is set to released a tell-all book about Meghan Markle a month before her wedding to Harry in April

The 64-year-old British author who lives close to where Meghan grew up in California confirmed the news on Twitter

Morton's book about Diana caused shockwaves around the world when it was released in 1992

'I was a fan of Meghan's long before she met Prince Harry. She has star quality, what some have called "the Markle Sparkle",' he said.

'Confident, groomed and camera ready, she is a dramatic contrast to the blushing, coy royal brides of recent history.

'The warmth and affection Meghan and Harry displayed during their engagement interview is light years away from the stilted "whatever love means" conversation with Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in 1981.

'Meghan is an exciting and genuinely charismatic addition to the royal family - she makes the House of Windsor seem relevant again. Hers is a fascinating story and I can't wait to tell it.'

The biographer says he was a fan of 'charismatic' Meghan before she started dating Prince Harry

Mr Morton wrote international bestseller Diana: Her True Story in 1992 and a revised edition after her death based on taped responses from Diana to his written questions.

Those recordings, about seven hours of taped responses, were secretly made in Kensington Palace in 1991 during a series of interviews conducted through an intermediary, Dr James Colthurst.

There is no suggestion, however, that Meghan has co-operated in any way with Morton's latest book.

In the tapes, the princess talks openly about her life before marrying Prince Charles, her long battle with bulimia, her suicide attempts, the heartache over her husband's long affair with Camilla Parker Bowles and her strained relationships with other members of the Royal family.

Mr Morton says that loved-up Harry and Meghan couldn't be further from stilted Charles and Diana

When the book was first released it was met with 'shock, disgust and astonishment' from many members of the public.

The Archbishop of Canterbury condemned it, an MP suggested Mr Morton be imprisoned in the Tower of London, and the chairman of the Press Complaints Commission, Lord McGregor, accused the media of dabbling their fingers in the stuff of other peoples souls.

In the ensuing furore, the book was banned by numerous major bookstores and supermarkets until it became apparent that the book had been produced with the Princess' co-operation.
The beauty force was strong at the Los Angeles premiere of Star Wars: The Last Jedi Saturday.

Stars of the film like Lupita Nyong'o and Daisy Ridley and celebrity attendees like Sofia Carson celebrated the anticipated release with bright and glitzy red carpet make-up and hair looks. Billie Lourd, who has a small role in the movie, even paid tribute to her late mother Carrie Fisher with a Princess Leia-esque hairstyle.

Read on below for the most head-turning looks from the night and get tips to recreate them at home.

BILLIE LOURD

Shine bright: Billie Lourd, 25, dazzled on the red carpet at the Star Wars: The Last Jedi premiere in Los Angeles Saturday

Like mother, like daughter: Billie paid homage to her late mother Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in the Star Wars films, with a braided updo

Billie Lourd honored her late mother Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia, on the red carpet Sunday. Fans were quick to point out that Billie's braided updo was reminiscent of the style worn by Princess Leia in the original 1977 Star Wars film.

Hairstylist Chad Wood embellished the look with an Epona Valley evil eye comb accessory for good luck.

The actress, who has a small role in the film as Lieutenant Connix, paired the bun with a twinkling and fluttery eye look and a silver glitter manicure courtesy of nail artist Mary Wolf.

LUPITA NYONG'O

Giving lip: Never one to shy away from statement make-up, Lupita Nyong'o, 34, stunned in a fuchsia lip

For a 'glamorous with a touch of futuristic' look, make-up artist Nick Barose sent Lupita onto the red carpet with glowing skin, a soft metallic plum eye and a bright fuchsia lip.

'Purple is an unexpected bold lip color that seems hard to pull off, but you can make it work by choosing shades that are a bit more pink or purple,' he said.

On Lupita, he used used Lancome Color Design Lipstick in Hit Lit as a base and the brand's Juicy Shaker in Berry in Love on top 'to add a bit of sheen to the center of the lips'.

Hairstylist Vernon Francois got the Star Wars actress' natural strands ready for the evening by applying his eponymous brand's Leave-In Conditioner for hydration, the Styling Cream for volume and the Dazzling Spritz Shine Spray for a luminous finish.

DAISY RIDLEY

Starry night: Daisy Ridley, 25, gave a nod to Star Wars, in which she plays Rey, with a star-printed gown and a futuristic beauty look

In the details: Daisy's metallic blue-grey smoky eye and silver hair accessory complemented her sequin dress

Daisy, who is reprising her role as Rey in the film, complemented her star-print Monse gown with a shimmering blue-grey smoky eye.

Hairstylist Robert Vetica created an intricate updo that he swears is actually pretty simple. 'I didn't need a hair dryer or heat tools,' he told harpersbazaar.com.

The pro prepped Daisy's hair with Leonor Greyl Au Lotus Volumizing Mousse to give strands 'the right amount of stiffness'. He then created three ponytails in the back center of her head starting at the crown. He tucked the lengths of the first under the second and repeated the process before tying the bottom into a knot and securing with bobby pins.

In keeping with the metallic theme, he finished the look with an angular Sylvain Le Hen hair accessory.

SOFIA CARSON

Seeing red: Sofia Carson, 24, made an appearance at the premiere with a crimson smoky eye

Sofia may not be in the film, but she did get the bold beauty memo for Saturday's red carpet.

The Disney star made an entrance with a red cat eye look we can't wait to try for our next holiday party. Make-up artist Patrick Ta also usedCover FX's forthcoming Glitter Drops and Shimmer Veil to highlight the high points of Sofia's face and the inner corners of her eyes.

Hairstylist Caile Noble created a sleek low ponytail with a deep side part that showed off her diamond accessories.
A north Yorkshire town that was once dubbed 'Scrooge town' has pulled out all the stops to turn up the sparkle for this year's festive season.

Christmas was once declared 'cancelled' in Harrogate after it failed raise enough money to put up any lights, a tradition many other towns across the UK follow.

Instead of being left in the shade, however, Yorkshire pride kicked in and the community vowed that this must never happen again.

They launched an annual 'How Big is Your Bauble' campaign to raise 30,000 by running a best Christmas shop window competition to ensure the lights never go out on the town voted Britains happiest place to live.

Traders got into the competitive festive spirit to battle it out for the coveted title of best Christmas shop window and it was all captured in front of the TV cameras for Channel 5's Harrogate: A Great Yorkshire Christmas.

Betty's Tea Room window designer Robyn Cox proudly stands outside his display as part of the competition

For months the old spa resort has been awash with rumours, late night window snooping and tales of trees the size of Redwoods.

Preparations began in September following the announcement for the competition, with many local shops taking the planning and design of their own windows very seriously.

Interior designers Furnish & Fettle are one of the stores featured in the documentary and showroom boss Adam Hickinbottom had big ideas to help them grab the title of best window.

He tried to turn a 6ft mannequin Tullulah into an angel with peacock feathers for wings and also borrowed a 10,000 stag head studded with Swarovski crystals.

Eleanor Goddard, who runs the shop with husband Glyn, suspected a rival store owner was following her on social media under a false name to find out the design for her window.

Eleanor Goddard and Adam Hickinbottom Owner of Interior Design Retailer 'Furnish and Fettle' fear they have a spy checking on their plans

Sandi Sales Sandi of dance retailer Adage Dance prepping her shop window for the big shop window compeition

Showroom manager Adam Hickinbottom of Furnish and Fettle is hard at work turning a 6ft mannequin Tullulah into an angel with peacock feathers

Adage Dance owner Sandi Sales, who store is four streets away, came close to tears trying to sculpt an over-sized music box Nutcracker ballerina from fine wire.

She won last year with a display featuring kids dancing, but faced stiff competition this year.

Nearby, Bijouled jeweller Georgina Collins wanted celebrate her tenth year in business with a win and said it would be the cherry on top of the cake.

'People always say "we love your window" but we never win,' she complained.

This year shed pinned all her hopes on her Three Divas of Christmas Past, Present and Future.

The town locals kept a close eye on their arch rival Bettys Tea Rooms as every year, they say, it pours cash into its display 'like Yorkshire Tea into a bottomless mug'.

It's all good fun for the Harrogate town locals as they try and raise 30,000 for the Christmas lights

Ann Percival and Mervyn Darby from the Rotary Club of Harrogate head into to town to judge the Shop Window Competition

Georgina Collins the owner of retailer Bijouled preparing her shop window with designer Clare Jordan

Heading up the creation of the display is Robyn Cox, Bettys Head of Beautiful - the decorations are kept locked away in a secret room.

Work goes on into the night on the theme which centres on chocolate animals Harry the Hedgehog, Freddy Fox and Sophie Squirrel.

Designer Robyn Cox is seen in the documentary having a last minute panic as garland runs out.

'Everyone wants to beat Bettys,' says Stray FM DJ Nick who helped launch the competition.

It's all lighthearted fun for the town as the main goal is to raise 30,000 so the lights can remain on.

The winner of the competition will be revealed in Channel 5s Harrogate: A Great Yorkshire Christmas on Wednesday and Thursday at 9pm
Thousands of women are bonding over a piece of short fiction that they say perfectly captures the uncomfortable encounters so many of them have faced.

In its December 11 issue, the New Yorker published a short story called Cat Person by writer Kristen Roupenian, which documents the meeting and short-lived relationship of a 20-year-old woman with an older man.

Since the piece debuted, women have been sharing it with friends and analyzing it on social media, sharing amazement with how relatable they find the main character's story.

Ladies love a good read: Women are going wild for a short story published in the latest issue of the New Yorker

Common thread: Thousands of women are amazed at how relatable the piece is and how well it captures their own feelings and experiences

Fiction frenzy: The story is called Cat Person and was written by Kristen Roupenia

Been there: The story is about an uncomfortable dating experience from the point of view of a young woman

Surprise hit: Kristen is the author of Cat Person, the short story which has resonated with thousands of women online

The over-7,000-word piece isn't exactly a speedy read, but it's attracted thousands of fans who can't stop talking about it on Twitter.

It tells the story of Margot, a 20-year-old college student who is working at a movie theater concession stand when a somewhat older man named Robert takes a liking to her and asks for her phone number.

They spend weeks texting, during which time Robert alternatively acts like he likes her very much  like by insisting on getting her snacks when her campus dining hall is closed  and becomes more stingy with his friendliness, making Margot feel like she needs to work to keep him interested.

'Soon she noticed that when she texted him he usually texted her back right away, but if she took more than a few hours to respond his next message would always be short and wouldn't include a question, so it was up to her to re-initiate the conversation, which she always did,' the piece reads.

They go on a strange first date which is described in excruciating detail, from the Holocaust movie he picks to the dig he makes about her casual outfit. Despite these moments that might make a reader think, 'Run, girl, run!' Margot ends up going home with Robert.

Thanks: Kristen took to social media to thank her new-found fans for their support

Expectations: The author has since granted several interviews in which she talked about the piece and why she thinks so many women relate to it

Though some said it's a great representation for dating in the digital age, some think the feelings go deeper than that

Tapping in: One woman pointed out that it's unfortunate that there aren't more stories that speak to women's experiences on the same level

Just before they have bad sex, she decides she doesn't want to do it. But because she fears his reaction if she pulls the breaks, she goes through with it.

'The thought of what it would take to stop what she had set in motion was overwhelming; it would require an amount of tact and gentleness that she felt was impossible to summon,' the piece reads.

The overall feeling of the story and several details in particular have touched a nerve with many female readers, who've lauded the piece on social media.

'The most gut-wrenching, relatable content I've ever read,' wrote one. 'Just read the New Yorker's "Cat Person" and want to crawl up under a duvet and die it's so embarrassing and relatable,' wrote another.

'The "cat person" essay in the New Yorker is so bizarre, awkward, relatable and horrifying,' added a third.

'Basically anyone who's ever used a dating app could write Cat Person, just maybe not as well,' said writer Nancy Jo Sales, tapping into the feeling of familiarity shared by many readers.

Yikes: Many saw their own uncomfortable dating encounters in the story, both in interactions with men and bad sex

Insight: Some expressed a wish that more men would read the piece to better understand what so many women feel

Playing the part: Much of the story portrays the main character adjusting her actions and words to placate the man she is interested in

'I want an investigation on how she wiretapped my inner monologue,' said another in a much-liked tweet.

Others tweeted to talk more about the common experiences brought up in the piece. In particular, many wrote about how women are conditioned and socialized from a young age to be agreeable, to not come off as 'prude' or 'uptight' and to make men feel comfortable.

'As brilliantly/depressingly relatable as everyone has said. Now imagining a world where women aren't socialized to placate men's feelings above her own safety, happiness and pleasure,' an Australian woman wrote.

While some said they could especially relate in times of online dating, a few pointed out that the problems aren't new now, they are just magnified.

Mesured: Many of the woman's actions seem calculated to prevent her date from getting angry or reacting badly, which he does on occasion

Cool dude: Robert, the male character, gets angry when he feels he isn't being paid proper attention or respect

Dig deeper: Some women are frustrated to find that men reading the piece aren't 'getting it'

Complex: While a man's bad behavior is betrayed, the piece is more about the steps women take to work around bad male behavior, prevent it, and save themselves from it

'Robert isn't a new character or a product of the digital age. He's had that same reaction earlier, too  it's just easier to spot & compare notes nowadays,' read one tweet.

A few Twitter users were quick to point out that the story isn't necessarily about a man behaving badly, but more about how women are socialized to deal with men who behave badly, or who might behave badly.

'Hey, men: we don't claim this story is about a guy being abusive/nasty to a girl. That's another level. This is about the romantic hoops women are trained to jump thru, continually, from a [very] young age & the kid gloves we wear around guys for protection from [your] rage/entitlement,' wrote one woman.

'The number of guys rallying to Robert's defense in threads related to this (see: this tweet alone) is maybe my favorite thing about the article? Men refuse to see masculinity for how fragile it is,' said another.
She is known as one of the most stylish royals around.

And Queen Letizia of Spain made a typically glamorous entrance when she touched down in Senegal on Monday night.

Letizia, 45, who is on a four-day working visit to the west African country, showcased her faultless style in a fit-and-flare dress with eye-catching monochrome stripes for her arrival at at Dakar airport.

She was met by First Lady Marieme Faye Sall, who is the wife of the country's President Macky Sall.

Thick as thieves: Queen Letizia of Spain made a typically glamorous entrance when she touched down in Senegal on Monday night

The pair appeared to be getting along famously as the laughed and joked on the tarmac before heading indoors.

The Spanish queen consort's visit is intended to boost support for the cooperation projects that Spain has in Senegal, such as the defence of women's rights and social and economic development.

Letizia, who is the wife of King Felipe VI, is due to kick off her engagements tomorrow at the Technical Cooperation Office of the AECID, where she will hold a meeting with Spanish and international cooperation workers.

Later, she will move to the 'Aula Cervantes' in the Campus of the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar (UCAD), the country's main university.

Letizia steps off her plane. The mother-of-two is accompanied by the Secretary of State for International Cooperation and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean, Fernando Garcia Casas

Two first ladies: The pair appeared to be getting along famously as the laughed and joked on the tarmac before heading indoors

Queen of style: Letizia, 45, who is on a four-day working visit to the west African country, opted for a fit-and-flare dress in eye-catching monochrome stripes when she landed at Dakar airport

Important visit: The Spanish queen consort's visit is intended to boost support for the cooperation projects that Spain has in Senegal, such as the defence of women's rights and social and economic development

Flying start: Letizia, who is the wife of King Felipe VI, is due to kick off her engagements tomorrow at the Technical Cooperation Office of the AECID

Working trip: Later on Tuesday, Letizia will move to the 'Aula Cervantes' in the Campus of the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar (UCAD), the country's main university

There, she will be informed of the work of the Cervantes Institute in Senegal and attend a meeting with the rector of the UCAD and other academic authorities, as well as Spanish teachers and students.

She will be treated to lunch at t the luxurious Terou-Ki hotel, a five star hotel with spectacular sea views, before heading on to visit to Red Cross of Dakar to learn about a project for the protection of Senegalese women's rights.

The mother-of-two is accompanied by the Secretary of State for International Cooperation and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean, Fernando Garcia Casas, as well as the Director of Cooperation with Africa and Asia of the AECID, Cristina Diaz.
More than 40 million bottles of gin are polished off every year in Britain - which suggests we're glugging a lot of tonic water too.

There are plenty to choose from on supermarket shelves, and there is an astonishing price difference between own-brand tonic waters that can cost just 45p a litre and premium options like Fever-Tree, which can cost up to 3.40 for the same amount.

But can the average drinker really tell the difference between supermarket tonic and one that's seven times more expensive when they aren't told which is which?

Channel 4's Supershoppers put it to the test with a blind tasting - and the results were very surprising.

Mid-range Schweppes, which costs 1.19 for a litre, was pitted against Fever-Tree Tonic Water, which costs 3.38 for 1 litre at Tesco

Co-presenter of Supershoppers, Anna Richardson, asked blind taste testers to see if they could tell the difference between various tonic water brands

Ordinary gin lovers were asked to comment on the flavour of three different tonic waters without knowing which was which on the show, which airs tonight.

None of them managed to identify the cheapest, with two out of five testers saying they their favourite was the lowest priced tonic water: Tesco's own brand, which costs just 45p a litre.

Three out of five however said they preferred the most expensive tonic water by Fever-Tree, which costs 3.38 for two 500ml bottles at Tesco.

No-one was a fan of Schweppes mid-range 1.19 tonic water, which the testers branded 'too sweet'.

Three out of the five testers said they preferred the most expensive tonic water by Fever-Tree - but the other two said they preferred Tesco's 45p own-brand tonic

The blind taste testers tried three different tonic waters and the brands were hidden behind different letters so the testers couldn't see

The testers found that Schweppes was too sweet, though one of the testers said he liked that about the 1.19 tonic water

The segment was filmed for Supershoppers, which exposes tricks of the retail trade.

Pricey Fever-Tree won the taste test, with one drinker remarking: 'The first one [Schweppes] felt like it was scraping and cleaning my teeth. That one was a lot smoother.'

But the testers also liked Tesco's own-brand Indian Tonic Water, with one saying 'that certainly was the winner'.

And when they found out the own-brand tonic was seven times cheaper than Fever-Tree, one of the testers said: 'I would never have gone for a Tesco own-brand, but tasting it along side the Fever-Tree, it's quite similar so I might go out and get that.'

Fever Tree and Fentimans are two examples of premium tonic water on the marker, while Schweppes is a mid-range option

Earlier in the show, Dimitrios Tsivirikos, a consumer and business psychologist, explained how premium brands such as Fever-Tree have to use clever marketing to win over customers.

The website tells the story of how its founders travelled the world, including to 'dangerous' parts of the globe such as the Congo, to source natural ingredients for their products.

Fever-Tree is now worth 2 billion after only being founded in 2005, so it's clearly working.

Dimitrios explained to presenter Anna Richardson: 'At the end of the day, it's just tonic water.

'They have to come up with a story a narrative, a picture for people to be associated with, and something to love.'

Saskia Meyer, marketing director at Fever-Tree, said: 'We are delighted to come out on top of this taste test. Since we started over 12 years ago, we have been focused on putting quality ingredients back into the category that for too long had been overlooked. At Fever-Tree, all our mixers are carefully crafted using naturally sourced ingredients, from the most remote parts of the world, to complement the wide variety of fantastic spirits now available to consumers.'

A spokesperson for Schweppes GB said: 'We are disappointed with the results of the Supershoppers taste test as we know that Schweppes comes out top time and time again in robust independent third party tests against other branded tonic waters. We know that 6.5 million households buy Schweppes each year and they tell us they love it  that's why it is still the nation's favourite tonic.'

/

Brands have been contacted for comment.
She is one of the most famous British actors of stage and screen, so you might expect Dame Judi Dench to have an opulent birthday cake to celebrate turning 83 this year.

But instead the Oscar-winner, thought to be worth 26 million, blew out the candles on a 7 Colin the Caterpillar cake from M&S.

Dame Judi's daughter posted a picture on Twitter of the beaming Hollywood star with the cheap and cheerful chocolate cake, which has become almost as iconic a symbol of British culture as the veteran actress herself.

And her fans went wild over the photo, remarking that it may be 'the most British thing ever'.

Dame Judi Dench celebrated her 83rd birthday on Saturday with a 7 Colin the Caterpillar cake

The cake has become a staple at children's parties and office birthday celebrations since M&S first launched the caterpillar cakes in 1990, with 7 million of them sold.

You would struggle to find a British citizen who hasn't tucked into one of the catepillar-shaped smiley-face chocolate cakes in their lifetime.

And now it can be revealed that the cakes have one very famous fan in Judi Dench, the star of countless films from Shakespeare In Love to James Bond.

Dame Judi, whose birthday was on Saturday, was photographed with a Colin cake that had six lit candles on top, by her daughter, the actress Finty Williams.

Her fans loved the fact the millionaire actress celebrated with a cheap and cheerful cake from M&S that has become a staple at children's birthday parties

She paid a loving tribute to her mother, captioning the image: 'Happy birthday my beautiful, wonderful, inspirational Mama.'

Fans were thrilled that their favourite actress was a fan of such simple pleasures, and called the image the 'most British thing ever'.

One said: 'It's nice to know that even Judi Dench is given that office birthday stalwart Colin.'

Another joked that the cake was 'why she should be prime minister,' while another added that it was yet another 'reason to love Judi Dench'. One declared she 'couldn't love her more'.

Judi Dench will present a documentary about her love for trees on December 20 called Judi Dench: My Passion For Trees on BBC One

Dame Judi will present a documentary about her love for trees as part of the BBC's Christmas TV programming, which has also caught the public's eye.

She will show the cameras around a secret woodland she has been tending to for 30 years.

She reveals that her trees are dedicated to loved ones who have passed away, including her late husband, Michael WIlliams, who died of lung cancer in 2001.

Her closest companion now is her 'chap' conservationist David Mills, 74, who runs the British Wildlife Centre in Lingfield, Surrey.

The pair do not live together but spend a lot of time as a couple, and say they share a passion for trees.
For some, even just the suggestion of a slice of fruit-laden Christmas cake is a step too far.

So, when a Facebook post mooted the idea of adding in a chunk of British cheese - say Wensleydale or Cheddar - alongside said cake, an impassioned debate ensued.

While many of the 10,000 people - and counting - who responded felt that it was a harmonious culinary marriage, others suggested the pair should never meet on the same plate.

Scroll down for video

This image of a crumbly English cheese sitting alongside a piece of cheese is beyond the pale for some - and an absolute festive must for others

One Facebook user, Steve Powell, wrote: 'I love cheese...and I love Xmas cake...but never the twain shall meet. So it's a big NO from me!'

Another added that the idea was a regional one that had never crossed boudaries. Margaret Travers wrote: 'No! We moved from the Midlands to Durham/Yorkshire border when I was 7, that was when I first encountered this, thought it odd I must admit.'

Betty Davey agreed it wasn't a pairing that she could warm to. She wrote: 'Might be okay, but after a heavy Christmas meal, pudding alone is a struggle...so with cheese also? Phew, for me not!'

Andy Hyde added: 'Looks and sounds like a very improbable combo. (Googled "Cheese with xmas cake - are these people mad?" and brain is going "Noooo...!") - but I've always got a lump of Red Leicester in the fridge, so might give it a try.

On the other side of the argument, there were plenty of people who thought the idea was a delicious one.

We love it! Thousands of people have joined the debate to say they love the combo of fruitcake and cheese

Sue Simmons wrote: 'I think it's a Northern thing. We always have cheese with fruit cake...delish! With either Wensleydale, Cheshire or Lancashire.'

Anne Mellett added: 'Definitely and a glass of Madeira wine.'

Julie Beaumont added simply: 'It's the only way to eat it.'

John Cookson fired off: 'Why is anyone even questioning this? Of course you should have cheese with your Christmas cake. In fact, it should be taken with any rich fruit cake - not just at Christmas.'

Sylvia Browne agreed, writing: 'My dad wouldn't eat Christmas cake without cheese. The look on my southern fiance's face was hysterical the first time in Yorkshire. He still doesn't get it.'

Others threw a curveball, saying they could cope with the idea of cheese and Christmas cake but only if the cake came without icing cake and marzipan.

Julie Blakey added: 'No, because it has icing on it. However, if it were a plain fruit cake without icing then yes and it would have to be Wensleydale.'
It's traditional to pop open a few bottles of bubbles on Christmas and the surrounding days.

But if you want to guarantee you'll have enough fizz for the holiday, make sure you buy your bottles before December 23.

The day is known as 'Sparkling Saturday' because it's the biggest Prosecco sales day of the year for supermarkets.

Sainsbury's is expecting to sell nearly half a million bottles on December 23 alone, so it's best to pick up your fizz well in advance to avoid being left without sparkling wine this festive season.

Sainsbury's, Morrisons and Aldi said sales of sparkling wine usually peak on December 23

Morrisons and Aldi also told FEMAIL that December 23 is expected to be its biggest Prosecco sales day.

A spokesman for Morrisons said: 'Prosecco is still many people's favourite fizz and, at Christmas, they're increasingly looking to trade up to higher quality bottles, so we're expecting a busy day.'

Sainsbury's meanwhile is expected to sell a whopping 489,000 bottles of Prosecco and other sparkling wines, such as Champagne, on Sparkling Saturday.

Most people plump for Prosecco, but it predicts that sales of pricier Champagne will rise this year.

Buy Prosecco and sparkling wines ahead of December 23 to avoid them selling out. Sainsbury's has reduced the price of its new Champagne, a NV Champagne, to 13.50 if you buy a case of six

Elizabeth Newman, category manager of beers, wines and spirits at Sainsburys said: 'Despite the success of Prosecco, we've found customers still look to Champagne as the go-to choice for special occasions.

'Were really excited about the new Taste the Difference Non-Vintage Champagne  as a taste profile, its a new departure for our range and its been a number of years in the making.

She added: 'Id expect the new NV Brut to be a particularly sought-after bottle. Sales of fizz on the December 23 are certainly set to be a record breaker.'

A hack allows shoppers to pick up the new Champagne for just 13.50 a bottle.

The supermarket has reduced the price from 18 to 16.50, but you can reduce the cost even further by picking up six bottles at a time.

Buying six will give you a further 25 per cent discount, which reduces the price of each bottle to just 13.50.
A father with terminal cancer has spoken of the tear-jerking moment his children said all they want for Christmas is for 'Daddy to be alive'.

Matthew Dons was initially given just 12 weeks to live after he was diagnosed with bowel cancer aged 36 and was told the devastating news it had spread.

He has struggled to explain his prognosis to daughter Jessica, four and son Edward, eight.

Since receiving his bad news last year the married English teacher raised 50,000 for immunotherapy which has 'bought him time' and shrunk his tumours by half.

Now he appealing for help to raise another 30,000 for beam proton therapy in Japan.

The pioneering treatment is credited with saving the life of young Ashya King, a five-year-old Hampshire boy with brain cancer who was told by British medics that there was nothing that could be done to save him before being treated in Prague.

Matthew Dons, pictured with Jessica, 4, was diagnosed with terminal bowel cancer last year

The teacher and his wife Chikako struggled to explain his prognosis to their daughter Jessica, 4 and son Edward, 8

Matthew says Jessica knows her Daddy is ill  but she doesn't really understand

BATTLE TO FIGHT FOR THEIR SON'S LIFE The Ashya King case made the headlines in the summer of 2014 The Ashya King case sparked an international manhunt and resulted in a change to NHS policy. Brett and Naghmeh King were arrested after they took their son, then five, for brain tumour treatment abroad as the NHS initially refused to offer proton beam therapy, which his parents felt was less harmful than conventional radiotherapy. The case made the headlines in the summer of 2014 after they took him from Southampton Hospital and travelled to the Czech Republic for treatment at the Proton Therapy Center. Ashya was finally allowed to undergo treatment a Prague hospital after a long legal battle fought by his parents. Eventually, he was declared cancer-free in March last year. A study published in the Lancet Oncology journal states that proton beam therapy causes fewer side-effects in child cancer patients than radiotherapy. At that time the NHS did not provide proton therapy, however it has funded treatment abroad since April 2008 where evidence has shown there to be benefit. In this case the doctors did not support moving the boy. In 2016, following the publication of a prospective phase II trial the NHS decided it will pay for children with medulloblastoma to travel abroad to receive proton therapy. Now Ashya's concerned parents have said the NHS is still failing their son by refusing to give him vital treatment and regular check-ups. Advertisement

Bowel cancer, also known as colorectal cancer, is the fourth most common form of the disease in the UK, after breast, prostate and lung cancers.

More than 41,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with the disease each year, according to Bowel Cancer UK.

'What if mummy dies too?'

Matthew, who is originally from Norwich and now lives in Japan with his wife Chikako, said: 'My cancer was a shocking news that came out of the blue. It was very difficult explaining it to my children.

'Jessica knows her Daddy is ill  she sees me hooked up to my chemotherapy drip at home  but she doesn't really understand.

'Edward is old enough to understand about death  and he asks my advice on how he can look after his little sister when I'm not here and he is the "man of the house".'

'He also asks me, "What if mummy dies too?" It's absolutely heartbreaking.'

Matthew is grateful for all the generous people who have dug deep to help him to live this long and said: 'When you're told you're going to die of cancer, you just want to do anything you can to buy some more time.

'There's talk about how much it costs to keep a terminal cancer patient alive. But you can't put a price on a child having six more months with their parent.

Six months is a precious gift when you have children.

'I was in disbelief'

Last July, while visiting family in the UK, Matthew, who is now 37, suffered diarrhoea but thought he was run down from a chest infection.

When it didn't clear up he had a colonoscopy after was in disbelief when he was told it was bowel cancer  because of his age and he had no family history of the disease.

The condition is rare in young people  most of those diagnosed are over the age of 60.

After having an operation last August to remove the primary growth in the bowel, and some of the accessible lymph tumours, Matthew started gruelling rounds of chemotherapy

Matthew said his son Edward asks his advice on how he can look after his little sister when he's no longer here

The 37-year-old refused to give up hope

Further tests and scans would deliver more devastating news  the tumours had spread to his liver, lymph nodes and peritoneum, the membrane that forms the lining of the abdominal cavity.

Matthew said: 'I remember when I was told by my doctor that it was terminal. I was in disbelief.

'He literally had five minutes to tell me I was going to die and I felt so sorry for him,

'And I worried about the strain on my wife and how I would tell the children.

'The peritoneum is essentially the membrane that protects all your organs. I was told it's extremely difficult to treat cancer when it has spread there.'

Never giving up

Nevertheless, Matthew refused to give up hope  and vowed he would do all he could to survive as long as he could for Chikako, Jessica and Edward.

After having an operation a month later to remove the primary growth in the bowel, and some of the accessible lymph tumours, Matthew started gruelling rounds of chemotherapy  which have been ongoing ever since.

'The UK is a world leader for cancer care in some areas, but not for others,' he said. 'I was told by a medical expert that it's not the best place for my type of cancer.

'I'm lucky that I could have treatment in the UK or in Japan, and I figured out that my chances were better in Japan.

'The health service is amazing there, there's no waiting to see a doctor, you just walk in off the street for an immediate appointment.'

Matthew is now hoping he will be well enough to have proton beam therapy in the US in January

So after a successful fundraising campaign, Matthew had immunotherapy  available in Japan privately at 2,000 a go  along with chemotherapy.

This is a relatively new treatment that wakes up a patients own immune system so it can fight the cancer.

'I've had the treatment around once a month, or whenever I could afford it. I had a scan recently that showed some remarkable results.

'The seven-and-a-half cm tumour in my liver has halved. Three have completely disappeared. The tumours in my lymph nodes are gone too.

'It can be difficult to tell from a scan but they're fairly confident the cancer in my peritoneum has been eradicated too. I had six tumours and the treatment reduced them to three.'

Matthew is now hoping he will be well enough to have proton beam therapy in Japan in January.

'I always told myself when I was told it was terminal that if I could just keep going you never know what new treatments will come out that could help me.

'I've got to try to do all I can for my wife and for my children.'

To donate to Matthew's fundraising appeal visit here.

WHAT IS PROTON BEAM THERAPY? Proton beam therapy is a type of radiotherapy that aims proton beams at cancers. While conventional radiotherapy uses high energy beams of radiation to destroy cancerous cells, often damaging surrounding tissue, proton beam therapy aims radiation directly at the tumour. Because it is so highly targeted it means it can avoid healthy tissue, particularly tissues and organs behind the tumour. While radiotherapy can lead to side effects such as nausea and can sometimes disrupt how some organs function, proton beam therapy has a lower risk of side effects. This means it is effective for treating cancer that affects critical areas, such as brain cancer. Advertisement
Professor Lesley Regan said women should be able to take an abortion pill at home because it is safer to do so

One of Britain's leading maternity doctors has called for pregnant women to be able to take abortion pills at home.

Professor Lesley Regan, who is President of The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), said women should be able to take the medication at home because it is safer to do so.

Under current guidelines, women seeking an abortion in the first nine weeks of pregnancy take two sets of drugs in a clinic.

But Professor Regan says women should be able to take the second pill, misoprostol, in the comfort of their own home.

According to The Times, Professor Regan said misoprostol was safer for women to take at home as it can take effect on the journey from the clinic.

Just weeks ago, women in Scotland became the first in the UK to be allowed to take the abortion pill at home.

Campaigners welcomed the move and called for it to be rolled out across the rest of Great Britain.

However, ministers were warned going ahead with the plans as it risks a return to the days of 'back-street abortions'.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), which has been lobbying to change the law in the UK, urged Theresa May to follow the Scottish government's lead.

Scotland's chief medical officer Dr Catherine Calderwood has written to health boards to say that misoprostol can be taken safely by women outside a clinical setting.

Under current guidelines, women seeking an abortion in the first nine weeks of pregnancy take two sets of drugs in a clinic

Announcing the decision, Scotland's public health minister Aileen Campbell said: 'Abortion can be an emotive subject, however I am proud this government is working hard to ensure women are always able to access clinically safe services.

'Scotland is now the only part of the UK to offer women the opportunity to take misoprostol at home when this is clinically appropriate, a decision that allows women to be in control of their treatment and as comfortable as possible during this procedure.'

Pro-choice campaigners and other groups said the change offers practical and emotional benefits to women having a termination.

ABORTION LAW SHOULD BE CHANGED SAYS TOP DOCTOR Women should be able to terminate pregnancies with the approval of a single doctor, says one of the countrys top medical leaders. Professor Lesley Regan, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said abortions should be treated no differently from other medical procedures  including something as simple as removing a bunion. She called for abortions to be decriminalised and made much more freely available. The current law  the 1967 Abortion Act  states abortions are illegal without consent from two doctors. Professor Regan represents almost 6,000 senior doctors specialising in childbirth and womens health. Advertisement

Engender, Amnesty Scotland and Rape Crisis Scotland said making women travel to clinics to take the pill 'denies women clear potential advantages in terms of their well-being at what is often a very difficult time'.

Ann Furedi, chief executive of BPAS, said: 'We thoroughly welcome the Scottish government's decision.

'This will spare women not only the difficulties associated with having to make more than one clinic visit, childcare, transport, time off work, but it will also spare women from the risk of symptoms on their way home, having taken the medication in a clinic.

'It is simply perverse that a woman arriving at a BPAS clinic in England and Wales with an incomplete miscarriage can be given the medication to take in the comfort and privacy of her own home, while a woman seeking an abortion must take that same medication on site.

'We hope that the government will follow Scotland's lead and roll out this important policy change across the rest of Great Britain.'

Professor Lesley Regan (right) with Professor Gudrun Moore at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington in 2013. Earlier this year Professor Regan said terminations should be treated the same as any other medical procedure

WOMEN ARE SEEKING PILLS ONLINE British women are seeking abortion pills online due to barriers accessing care, research suggests. A new study found some women in England, Scotland and Wales are shunning traditional routes such as the NHS in favour of seeking help online. Experts found that 519 women contacted Women on Web between November last year and March this year. All were living in Wales, Scotland and England, where abortion is legal. The anonymised emails of 180 women were analysed, who gave 209 reasons for seeking an abortion via online services. Among all the reasons, 49 per cent listed barriers to getting an abortion the conventional way, including long waiting times, distance to clinic, work or childcare commitments, lack of eligibility for free NHS services and prior negative experiences of abortion care. Advertisement

But anti-abortion campaigners said the step would leave women without medical help and could put them in danger.

John Deighan, head of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children in Scotland, told The Times: 'This would mark a return to the days of back-street abortions with no medical oversight and dreadful threats to womens health.'

The Scottish Government said the move did not require a change in the law but came under existing powers available within the 1967 Abortion Act.

Latest official figures show that 190,406 abortions were carried out in England and Wales in 2016, a slight fall on the previous year.

But there has been a significant rise in terminations among women over 30, particularly unmarried ones.

Earlier this year Professor Regan said terminations should be treated the same as any other medical procedure.

She said said that women seeking abortions should only have to obtain consent from one doctor, just as if they were having a bunion removed.

'If you go and get your bunions sorted you would go to a consultation  then you take a decision and the doctor who was competent to undertake the procedure would sign the form too, and that would go forward,' she said.
A British woman has become the first in the world to be given a revolutionary breast cancer treatment.

Anna Jones, 65, who is terminally ill, has been given a breakthrough combination of immunotherapy drugs that doctors hope will extend her life.

Experts at The Christie cancer hospital in Manchester believe the treatment  which operates in a twin attack against tumour cells  could help women for whom no other drugs work.

Mrs Jones, a grandmother of two from Rochdale, has been fighting the disease for more than a decade. She has previously tried ten different treatments, including several rounds of chemotherapy.

Anna Jones, 65, pictured, who is terminally ill has trialed been given a breakthrough combination of immunotherapy drugs that doctors hope will extend her life.

But each drug has failed and she is now pinning her hopes on the therapy  a combination of established immunotherapy drug Herceptin and a second drug so new it is only known by the code name R06874281.

Mrs Jones, who has been taking the treatment for six weeks, said: Fingers crossed that its a wonder drug  I would be over the moon, not just for myself but for other women as well.

Of course it is scary being number one  they dont know what the side effects are because nobody has tried it before. But it is exciting.

Mrs Jones, who worked for the NHS before she retired, has been fighting advanced breast cancer since she was diagnosed in August 2004.

Anna Jones, pictured, has received a combination of established immunotherapy drug Herceptin and a second drug so new it is only known by the code name R06874281

She was told she had the particularly aggressive HER2-positive form of the disease, which is responsible for 13,000 new cases in the UK each year.

When they found it the cancer had already spread to the lungs, the liver and the bones, she said.

It is a death sentence  but every day I am thankful to have got this far. I have seen things I never thought I would see, I have seen my granddaughter go to her first prom, to buy her first car.

She added: The treatment has been a battle but I have stayed positive all the way.

I have lost my hair several times with the chemotherapy. And I have taken lots of different types of hormone therapy.

Taking part in a clinical trial is also a major commitment  she has to travel into Manchester every week to receive the combination treatment, which is delivered via a drip over four hours.

She then stays overnight so doctors can monitor her. But Mrs Jones, who lives with husband David, 66, views it as a privilege.

Anna Jones and her husband David, pictured, have been fighting her battle with breast cancer for nearly a decade and hope the new treatment will extend her life

She said: It is wonderful to know that other people will potentially benefit in the future from this research. It would be a good legacy to leave. I feel very privileged to know that Im the first person in the world to have been given this new combination.

Roche, the company which makes the drug, has agreed to keep Mrs Jones on the treatment for at least two years as long as she continues to benefit from it.

Her doctors expect to know in the New Year if she is responding.

The combination treatment is designed to work on two fronts  by boosting the immune systems ability to attack while simultaneously taking down the cancers defences.

The RO6874281 drug introduces a potent version of the Interleukin 2 protein into the bloodstream, which stimulates the bodys immune system to kill rogue cells.

It is taken at the same time as Herceptin, which binds onto the cancer cells to make tumours visible to the immune system.

Around 60 people will eventually take part in the global study, including patients in the UK being treated at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Barts Health NHS Trust and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.

RO6874281 has previously been taken by a small number of patients in a safety trial. However, this is the first time it has been combined with Herceptin.

Professor Andrew Wardley, from The Christie hospital, said: This is an exciting and very novel form of therapy especially for breast cancer and Im delighted that our patient Anna will be the first to hopefully benefit from this treatment.

We believe that the two drugs working together will be more effective at targeting the cancer and stimulating the bodys immune system to kill the cancer cells. The HER2-positive form of the disease is responsible for about one in five of all cases and tumours are notoriously fast growing and difficult to treat.

Breast cancer is Britains most common female cancer, with more than 55,000 new cases and 11,000 deaths every year according to the most recent figures.

The number is rising steadily due to the ageing population and lifestyle factors such as obesity.

A study last week found that women who lose half a stone significantly reduce their odds of developing breast cancer.

US researchers said even relatively modest weight loss has a considerable effect. Losing two stone or more cuts the chances of developing breast cancer by a third.
A company owned by a multi-billion pound pharmaceutical failed to fully inform doctors of how dangerous vaginal mesh can be, a BBC Panorama investigation has found.

The programme, airing tonight, will also reveal how an implant made by Ethicon was only tested on 31 women and in sheep before being used in patients.

The company, owned by Johnson and Johnson, sells its scandal-hit products in the UK under the brand name Gynecare TVT.

An investigation reveals how a director at the company asked for the wording to be changing in the safety leaflets for mesh implants to recognise the dangers - but her request was ignored.

It comes amid mounting pressure for the ban of controversial vaginal mesh implants, which have left thousands of women on the brink of suicide.

The revelation follows the death of a prominent vaginal mesh campaigner, who reportedly died from sepsis triggered by her implant.

Christina Brajcic, 42, from Ontario, Canada, passed away on Thursday following a four-year battle with persistent infections - as a result of her mesh

Christina Brajcic, 42, from Ontario, Canada, passed away last Thursday following a four-year battle with persistent infections - as a result of her mesh.

Her death last week followed landmark moves by English and Australian health officials to recommend the controversial implants should no longer be used.

It is expected that the NHS will follow the guidance from Nice, the Government's healthcare adviser - despite not being obliged to do so.

The verdict comes after the Government released its three-year investigation into the mesh scandal last September. It rejected calls for a ban at the time.

Australian watchdogs also banned the use of vaginal mesh implants for prolapse last week after a review found 'the benefits do not outweigh the risks'.

'I'M MORE OF HER CARER THAN I AM HER LOVER' The scathing comments come as MailOnline spoke to John Sharman (right), who revealed his beloved wife Lynne (left) was left suicidal from the implant A 65-year-old grandfather has slammed the controversial vaginal mesh procedure that has destroyed the life of his beloved wife and left her contemplating suicide. John Sharman, from Reading, revealed Lynne's heartbreaking account of the scandal-hit surgery, which left her in unbearable pain and unable to have sex, following the emergence of hundreds of similar stories. He decided to tell MailOnline of her painstaking ordeal from a man's point-of-view, which is often forgotten amid the scores of outraged women who have spoken, in an attempt to raise awareness about the topic which, up until now, has been swept under the carpet. The father-of-three he has sometimes thought about leaving Mrs Sharman, who he has been married to for 43 years, due to the effect the mesh has had on their marriage. Mr Sharman, who met his wife at a chess club, told MailOnline: 'It does impact your relationship and now I'm more of her carer than I am her lover and a husband. 'She has been left in constant pain which has totally altered our sex life, social life and the way we operate and what we do.' Advertisement

However, vaginal mesh remains a viable option in both countries for surgeons operating on women suffering from incontinence.

The BBC Panorama investigation reveals that Ethicon produces 'Instructions for Use' (IFU) leaflets to accompany mesh products to explain how doctors should insert them.

They also explain the 'adverse reactions', or risks, associated with surgery to help surgeons explain these to patients.

But in 2009 an associate medical director at Ethicon warned that the statements about side effects in the IFU leaflets for mesh products were not sufficient.

At the time the leaflets said that side effects were 'transitory', the BBC Panorama investigation will reveal.

THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MESH Different types of mesh implants include: Mini-sling: This implant is embedded with a metallic inserter. It sits close to the mid-section of a woman's urethra. The use of an inserter is thought to lower the risk of cutting during the procedure.

This implant is embedded with a metallic inserter. It sits close to the mid-section of a woman's urethra. The use of an inserter is thought to lower the risk of cutting during the procedure. TVT sling : Such a sling is held in place by the patient's body. It is inserted with a plastic tape by cutting the vagina and making two incisions in the abdomen. The mesh sits beneath the urethra.

: Such a sling is held in place by the patient's body. It is inserted with a plastic tape by cutting the vagina and making two incisions in the abdomen. The mesh sits beneath the urethra. TVTO sling : Inserted through the groin and sits under the urethra. This sling was intended to prevent bladder perforation.

: Inserted through the groin and sits under the urethra. This sling was intended to prevent bladder perforation. TOT sling : Involves forming a 'hammock' of fibrous tissue in the urethra. Surgeons often claim this form of implant gives them the most control during implantation.

: Involves forming a 'hammock' of fibrous tissue in the urethra. Surgeons often claim this form of implant gives them the most control during implantation. Ventral mesh rectopexy : Releases the rectum from the back of the vagina or bladder. A mesh is then fitted to the back of the rectum to prevent prolapse. Advertisement

In an email in January 2009 the associate medical director wrote about three Ethicon Gynecare TVT mesh implants suggesting that the wording be changed.

She wrote: 'From what I see each day, these patient experiences are not "transitory" at all.'

However, Ethicon did not update them to remove the word 'transitory' at the time. The companys latest IFUs, updated in 2015, say some effects may be permanent.

Ethicon, who spoke to Panorama as part of the investigation, confirmed it did not change the wording of the IFUs at the time.

It concluded: 'The wording in the IFU was appropriate for the intended users - trained pelvic floor surgeons.'

Dr Wael Agur, a consultant urogynaecologist, told BBC Panorama the IFUs are very important.

He said: 'Its so important for me as a surgeon to understand full the risks of a medical device Im about to implant during a surgical procedure and my first resource would be the IFU.

'I would expect the manufacturer to have a comprehensive list of the adverse events and the risks within the instructions for use so I fully understand these and communicate them.'

Ethicon launched the TVT-Secur implant in 2006 worldwide. It was intended to be the companys safest and most effective pelvic mesh product.

The product, which Johnson & Johnson has since paid one sufferer who became reliant on a walking stick $57 million, was withdrawn from the market in 2012.

Ethicon told Panorama: 'While we empathise with those who have experienced complications, the vast majority of women with pelvic mesh see an improvement in their day to day lives.

'All surgical pelvic floor procedures  with and without mesh  come with the risk of developing complications.'

The MHRA, the UK medical devices regulator, told Panorama it recognises some women develop serious complications.

It said: 'Currently, from a regulatory perspective these devices are acceptably safe when used as intended and as part of an appropriate treatment pathway.'

The Panorama investigation follows the warning that there is inadequate regulation for vaginal mesh products which has exposed women to unnecessary harms.

THE INADEQUATE REGULATION OVER VAGINAL MESH IMPLANTS Professor Heneghan has now launched a fresh attack on mesh, asking for them to be given temporary licences that restrict them solely to use in clinical trials - and not in humans. Professor Heneghan and colleagues argue evidence from large trials over the safety of mesh did not emerge until 20 years after the first products were introduced. Writing in the BMJ Open, they suggest they can't be considered safe as they didn't undergo scrutiny in scientific studies with a follow-up of at least five years. The attack on regulation was made after looking at 61 mesh devices given marketing clearance in the US when they were previously deemed lower risk. Only two of the original devices were approved under close scrutiny, with the rest being given clearance for being 'equivalent' to the already approved ones. The results show no evidence of any new clinical trial data at the time of device approval for all of these 61 devices, Professor Heneghan warned. They argue changes in design 'should have alerted regulators' to differences in the characteristics of the mesh that should have negated the use of equivalence. The findings also show a lack of long term data to inform the use of vaginal mesh devices - an argument campaigners have long pointed to. And when longer term evidence did emerge, it identified serious concerns - which many officials have since ignored, implied Professor Heneghan and colleagues. They also recommend a patient registry should be established for all implantable devices to enable long term follow-up and surveillance. This has received the backing from Sling The Mesh, a campaign group which has quadrupled in size since the scandal made headlines in April. Kath Sansom, founder of the 4,600-strong group, welcomed Professor Heneghan's comments, and said there 'virtually is no regulation'. She told MailOnline: 'Carl is a respected leader in the field of evidence based medicine and lays bare the farce of supposed medical device regulation. 'Patient safety in this country is shocking - devices permanently implanted into people with no trials and without the proper studies to back it up. 'People trust that those in power to control patient safety are doing their job. Carl has fully exposed just how woefully poor regulation is. 'The Government and the MHRA should be ashamed of themselves. First PIP, then metal hips and now mesh. 'How many more disasters before they realise medical devices should all be tracked on a national register.' Ms Sansom, a Cambridge-based journalist, said the cost would be low compared to the cost of thousands of patients being left with life-changing injuries. Advertisement

Writing in the BMJ Open, Professor Carl Heneghan said they can't be considered safe as they didn't undergo scrutiny in properly conducted scientific studies.

The professor of evidence-based medicine at Oxford University has previously described the mesh scandal as akin to thalidomide.

The controversial implants, which can shrink, twist, curl and cut through tissue, have left thousands of women on the brink of suicide, unable to work and even walk.

They have been used since the late 1990s to help women overcome incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse - often two major issues of childbirth.

Despite the risks, which have been widely publicised in recent months, most women experience no problem and doctors are adamant the procedure is beneficial.

The scandal came to light in April, when the NHS tried to dodge media attention over the implants that left hundreds of women in agony.

Vaginal mesh implants (pictured) have left women wheelchair bound and unable to have sex

Senior doctors immediately called for a public inquiry into the controversial mesh, with some saying the scandal was comparable to thalidomide.

Figures estimate 100,000 women across the world are looking at taking legal action against the device manufacturers.

Mesh, introduced 20 years ago and dubbed 'gold-standard', was promoted as a quick, cheap alternative to complex surgery for incontinence and prolapse.

WHAT ARE VAGINAL MESH IMPLANTS? Vaginal mesh implants are devices used by surgeons to treat pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence in women. Usually made from synthetic polypropylene, a type of plastic, the implants are intended to repair damaged or weakened tissue in the vagina wall. Other fabrics include polyester, human tissue and absorbable synthetic materials. Some women report severe and constant abdominal and vaginal pain after the surgery. In some, the pain is so severe they are unable to have sex. Infections, bleeding and even organ erosion has also been reported. Advertisement

Because it did not require specialist training to implant, outraged women have since begged for tougher regulations to conduct such surgery.

Vaginal mesh has been considered a high-risk device for nearly a decade in the US, with bodies accepting up to 40 per cent of women may experience injury.

Some studies, published in an array of scientific journals, have shown that pain, erosion and perforation from the surgery can strike up to 75 per cent of women.

The alarming evidence prompted officials in three US states to suspend the practice and saw them call for an urgent review into its safety.

Scottish officials asked for it to be suspended in Scotland in 2014 pending a similar review, but hundreds of women are still believed to be having the surgery.

More than 10,000 women a year are fitted with mesh in the UK - but around 4,800 have since come forward to reveal they have been left in agony from the mesh.

However, campaigners stress these are just the tip of the iceberg and that actually there are thousands more - but they have been kept silent.

Leading mesh manufacturer Johnson & Johnson was forced to pay out $57 million in September to a woman fitted with the implant.

Ella Ebaugh, 51, from Philadelphia, was awarded the eight-figure sum after a jury found the company to be negligent and its product defective.

In her first UK interview, she told BBC Panorama: 'The pain that I have I will have to live with for the rest of my life. Theres nothing they can do to help me.'

BBC Panorama: The Operation That Ruined My Life to air on BBC One, 7.30pm, Monday 11th December
An Indian teenager is struggling to stand up after an infection caused his leg to swell to 53 pounds.

Tulsi Adivasi, 18, began suffering the problem at 11 years old but his mother relied on witch doctors and quacks for his treatment.

Tulsi spends his days sitting in one position because any movement brings excruciating agony.

Now the youngster says he is depressed because he is dependent on his elderly, widowed parent and he feels he is a burden on his family.

She earns just 12 a month from working in the fields day and night and Tulsi wants to help her raise his brothers and sister.

He said: 'I cannot take the weight of this leg anymore. This is so heavy that I cannot even lift my leg and have to walk using crutches.

'The whole village sympathises with me; young children laugh at me and are afraid of my leg.'

While he has not been diagnosed yet, Tulsi's symptoms look like a case of elephantiasis  where severe swelling occurs in the arms, legs, breasts, or genitals. It is caused by parasites being transmitted to humans through mosquitoes.

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Tulsi Adivasi, 18, from India, began suffering with a leg infection at 11 years old

The teen may have elephantiasis  when parasites are transmitted from a mosquito

He spends days sitting in one position because any movement brings extreme pain

'There are days where we eat nothing at all'

Born into a poverty-stricken family in Madhya Pradesh in central India, Tulsi had developed some sort of infection on his left leg aged 11.

However, because of the lack of education and money, his mother Guddi did not take him to medical doctors and instead went to unqualified 'healers'

She said: 'My husband had died ten years ago. Ever since I have been working day and night to make ends meet. I have to feed my four children.

'There are days when we have nothing to eat at all. We are living in forests where there is no mode of transportation available for commuting and no doctor dares to come here because of irregular terrain.

'His treatment meant I had to take him to town but I had no money for transport or to give doctor for fees and medicines.'

Tulsi says he is depressed because he is dependent on his widowed mother

The lump on his leg has spread to his foot and his toes are not even visible under the flesh

Because of the lack of education and money, his mother Guddi did not take him to medical doctors and instead went to unqualified 'healers'

WHAT IS ELEPHANTIASIS? Elephantiasis is normally caused by a parasite from a mosquito bite and is usually found in tropical areas. It is characterised by the massive enlargement of an area of the body via obstruction of the lymphatic system. This results in the accumulation of fluids in the affected part of the body. According to the World Health Organisation, nearly 1.4billion people in 73 countries worldwide are threatened by the condition, which is also known as lymphatic filariasis. WHO figures suggest that approximately 80 per cent of these people are living in regions including Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia. More than 120million people are currently infected, with about 40 million disfigured and incapacitated by the disease, the organisation adds. Advertisement

Tulsi got some initial relief but without proper treatment, the severity of Tulsi's condition has only grown worse over time.

The lump on his leg has spread to his foot and his toes are not even visible under the flesh.

While he has not been diagnosed yet, Tulsi's symptoms look like a case of elephantiasis  where severe swelling occurs in the arms, legs, breasts, or genitals. It is caused by parasites being transmitted to humans through mosquitoes.

'I do not know what the disease is but I hope that there is some treatment available,' Tulis said, adding that if he gets treated, he would like to help his ailing mother run the family.

'Because of the weight of the leg, I can do nothing and work is just a dream. I have to depend on my mother and I feel like a burden on her.

'She is old and ailing but has to work day in and day out to feed us. But if I can get a treatment and get legs back I can also start working and help my mother and raising my brothers and sister.'
Heartbroken parents of a six-year-old boy who died from meningitis B have released the final images of their son in hospital.

Oliver Hall, from Halesworth, Suffolk, died 24 hours after contracting the bacterial infection which mainly strikes babies and children.

His grieving parents, Georgie, 37, and Bryan, 43, speaking for the first time since his death last October, are now calling for all children to be vaccinated against the deadly strain of the disease.

Their call piles further pressure on the Government to get all children protected and reiterates a landmark petition following the death of two-year-old Faye Burdett in 2016 which attracted more than 820,000 signatures.

Vaccinations against meningitis B have been available for babies up to a year old on the NHS since 2015 but not for older children.

Oliver Hall, from Halesworth, Suffolk, died in hospital 24 hours after contracting the bacterial infection which mainly affects babies and children

Mrs Hall said medics at James Paget University Hospital, Norfolk, 'did everything they could' to save her son's life before he passed away.

A meningitis B vaccine is currently available to children up to the age of one, but the Government last year said making it available to all children was 'not cost effective'.

The vaccine is privately available in Superdrug, Boots and in private clinics from 210 for a two-dose course.

One in 10 of the 3,200 cases of the bacterial meningitis in the UK per year are fatal, with one in three left with permanent disabilities.

Oliver's parents claim widening the programme will save lives and want to meet with Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to raise their concerns.

Public Health England data last September showed since the jab was introduced it has been behind a 42 per cent drop in cases of Men B.

His grieving parents, Georgie, 37, and Bryan Hall, 43, are now calling for all children to be vaccinated against the deadly strain of the disease (believed to be taken last year)

WHAT IS MENINGITIS? Meningitis is caused by bacteria and results in an infection in the spinal cord and brain lining. It can also lead to blood infections. The disease commonly occurs among people who seem perfectly healthy and its onset is without warning. You can catch the disease by being in close contact with someone who has it - such as kissing them or absorbing their germs when they cough. It is easily spread among people living in tight quarters. For this reason, it is commonly perceived as a disease that mainly affects students living on college campuses. Even when treated, the disease kills 10 to 15 of every 100 infected people. And 10 to 20 of every 100 survivors will be disabled after contracting the disease. Advertisement

Mrs Hall said: 'The government are saying it is not cost effective to vaccinate more children against this disease.

'Meningitis Now, the charity that we are working with, are arguing that point. Our main goal is to help them to get this vaccination rolled out to more children.'

Speaking about the death of her son in October for the first time, Mrs Hall added: 'Oliver achieved so much in his short life.

'He will always be remembered and so we have set up the Oliver Hall Forever Fund tribute website, which is supporting Meningitis Now.'

'More than 4,000 has been raised so far - and we are really grateful to everyone for their donations and support.

'To see that total going up makes it feel that Oliver's life was not in vain.'

Meningitis B most often strikes children under the age of one, and symptoms can include cold hands, confusion and headaches.

A rash is deemed the most common sign of the infection that strikes the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.

The bacterial infection isn't always fatal - but it can leave victims with long-lasting problems, such as amputation, deafness and learning difficulties.

Anyone willing to donate can do so here.

Mrs Hall said medics at James Paget University Hospital, Norfolk, 'did everything they could' to save her son's life before he passed away (pictured with his brother Charlie)
A cure for Huntington's disease could be in the pipeline following the results of a groundbreaking new drug trial.

For the first time, scientists have been able to correct the defect that is responsible for the devastating neurodegenerative disease.

The results, hailed as the 'biggest breakthrough in 50 years', saw 46 patients of the incurable disease given an experimental drug.

University College London researchers discovered the pill lowered their levels of toxic proteins in the brain.

The drug, dubbed a 'tremendous step forward', was also found to be safe - despite fears it could lead to meningitis.

For the first time, scientists have been able to correct the defect that is responsible for the devastating neurodegenerative disease

Professor Sarah Tabrizi, lead researcher told the BBC: 'I've been seeing patients in clinic for nearly 20 years, I've seen many of my patients over that time die.

'For the first time we have the potential, we have the hope, of a therapy that one day may slow or prevent Huntington's disease.'

Professor Tabrizi, director of UCL's Huntington's Disease Centre, added: 'This is of groundbreaking importance for patients and families.'

Huntington's disease is a genetic disorder that affects the central nervous system and leads to involuntary movements, difficulty talking and memory loss.

The condition, which affects 8,500 adults in the UK and around 30,000 in the US, occurs as a result of a fault in the huntingtin gene.

On average, patients live for between 10 and 20 years after their diagnosis.

The results, hailed as the 'biggest breakthrough in 50 years', saw 46 patients of the incurable disease given an experimental drug

The huntingtin protein itself is vital for the development of the brain, but the genetic error leads to it instead killing brain cells.

HUNTINGTON'S DISEASE: THE FACTS Huntingtons disease is an illness caused by a faulty gene in your DNA (the biological instructions you inherit which tell your cells what to do). If you have Huntingtons, it affects your bodys nervous system  the network of nerve tissues in the brain and spinal cord that co-ordinate your bodys activities. Huntingtons can cause changes with movement, learning, thinking and emotions. Once symptoms begin, the disease gradually progresses, so living with it means having to adapt to change, taking one day at a time. Living with Huntingtons disease can be very challenging. Getting the right information and support is vital and were here to help. Huntingtons is not something you can catch; it is inherited. Every child conceived naturally to a parent who carries the Huntingtons gene has a 50% chance of inheriting it. Advertisement

The new drug works by silencing the faulty huntingtin gene - stopping the creation of damaged proteins in the brain, the BBC reports.

Having proved successful on animals, the British researchers looked to investigate the drug's effects on human patients.

For the trial, the patients were injected with the drug into their spinal fluid at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.

Alongside its benefits at reducing the amount of huntingtin, the volunteers were found to tolerate the drug well.

However, the team remain adamant that more research is needed to prove that lowering levels of huntingtin could lead to a possible cure.

The results of the Roche-owned drug, which was created by Ionis Pharmaceuticals, are expected to published in a journal next year.

Professor John Hardy, who was awarded the Breakthrough Prize for his work on Alzheimer's, welcomed the findings.

He told the BBC's James Gallagher: 'I really think this is, potentially, the biggest breakthrough in neurodegenerative disease in the past 50 years.

'That sounds like hyperbole - in a year I might be embarrassed by saying that - but that's how I feel at the moment.'

Professor Hardy believes the findings also offer hope for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, both of which see a build-up of toxic proteins in the brain.
It's certainly one way to make himself popular with his clients.

A dentist's hilarious parody of a popular rap song has gone viral and made some Facebook users 'cry with laughter'.

Dr Milad Shadrooh, aka The Singing Dentist, created his own version of Big Shaq's 'Man's Not Hot' - dubbed the most popular tune of 2017.

Calling himself 'Big Plaq', the real-life dentist makes reference to the sounds his drill makes - instead of the imitated gun shots in the viral tune.

Dr Shadrooh has racked up a huge following online for his parodies of chart-topping hits, including a cover of Ed Sheeran's melody 'A Shape Of You'.

Since his latest, called 'Man's Got Floss', was posted on Facebook at the weekend, it has attracted 7.2 million views and 112,000 'likes' on the social networking site.

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Dr Milad Shadrooh, aka The Singing Dentist, created his own version of Big Shaq's 'Man's Not Hot' - dubbed the most popular tune of 2017. Calling himself 'Big Plaq', the real-life dentist makes reference to the sounds his drill makes

Viewers have since applauded his efforts at encouraging good oral hygiene, saying children will particularly enjoy the parody take on the rap.

Dr Milad Shadrooh, owner of Chequers Dental in Basingstoke, was described in the comments section as being a 'genius' for his version.

Facebook user Julie Johnson posted: 'Oh.....my....God!!! The laughter that responded to this video.........my eyes are crying....my face is hurting.....I cant stop laughing!'

The original tune, rapped by satirical artist Big Shaq, was originally made as part of his joke appearance on BBC Radio One Xtra.

Big Shaq, a character created by comedian Michael Dapaah, has since achieved global fame, and includes hip-hop star Drake in his legion of fans.

It mocks so-called 'roadman' culture and features indirect references to guns, drugs and asking for the release of his made-up friends in prison.

Since its release in September, the catchy rap shot in the charts, reaching number five in the UK, and gained more than one hundred million views on YouTube.

Big Shaq, a character created by comedian Michael Dapaah, has since achieved global fame, and includes hip-hop star Drake in his legion of fans.

Former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher has tweeted his approval of the song, while Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has referenced the tune at a conference.

Mr Corbyn was asked if he wanted to take off his jacket during this year's Labour Party Conference in Brighton. He replied 'man's not hot'.
Paying new mothers 200 in supermarket vouchers could encourage them to breastfeed, a new study reveals.

Researchers found the financial incentives, to spend at Tesco, Asda and Morrison's, were responsible for a 6 per cent jump in breastfeeding rates.

Breastfeeding levels in the UK are the lowest in the world. In some areas just 12 per cent of six to eight-week-old babies are breastfed.

This is despite clear NHS guidance that recommends children should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of their lives.

Researchers found financial incentives, in the region of 120, were responsible for a 6 per cent jump in breastfeeding rates

The new study of 10,000 new mothers, undertaken by researchers at Sheffield and Dundee universities, may help overturn the growing problem.

How was the study carried out?

New mothers were offered shopping vouchers worth up to 120 if babies received breast milk at two days, 10 days and six weeks old.

A further 80 of vouchers was available to the volunteers if their babies continued to receive breast milk up to six months of age - like guidelines state.

Nearly half (46 per cent) of eligible mothers signed up to the scheme and two fifths claimed at least one voucher for breastfeeding.

The study, published in JAMA Pediatrics, found that the vouchers 'really lifted mums and gave them recognition and acceptance'.

WHY ARE MOTHERS NOT BREASTFEEDING? Mothers are giving up breastfeeding because they are too embarrassed, dont want to be tied down and fear babies arent getting enough milk. Figures from more than 152,000 British women show that less than half  45 per cent  still give their babies breast milk at two months. The NHS recommends that babies are exclusively breastfed for the first six months and after that given a combination of breast milk and food for about a year. But statistics from the Governments quarterly survey show only 30 per cent of babies aged six to eight weeks were given solely breast milk. Another 15 per cent of the 152,169 women who completed the questionnaire said they were partially breastfeeding at that stage  and giving babies some formula milk. Britain has the lowest breastfeeding rates in the world. A Lancet study in January showed only 0.5 per cent of UK babies are still given breast milk after a year compared with 23 per cent in Germany, 56 per cent in Brazil and 99 per cent in Senegal, West Africa. To try to establish the reasons for this, Public Health England carried out a separate survey on 500 new mothers. Nearly two thirds  63 per cent  said they would be worried about breastfeeding in front of strangers while 44 per cent were wary of doing so with friends. Advertisement

What do mothers think?

Fiona Sutcliffe, 29, from Sheffield, who took part in the trial with her daughter, said: 'Breastfeeding is quite difficult in the beginning.

'The scheme is a really good way of keeping going - keeping motivated to stay on track rather than giving up and going for the bottle.

'It provides little milestones, little stepping stones and helps you get breastfeeding established.'

Study co-author Mary Renfrew, professor of mother and infant health at the University of Dundee, welcomed the findings.

She said: 'This is the first large-scale study to show an increase in breastfeeding in communities where rates have been low for generations.

'It can be particularly difficult for women to breastfeed without strong family and community support, because of strong societal barriers.'

The vouchers were designed to acknowledge the value of breastfeeding and reward mothers for the 'work involved'.

New mothers were recruited from areas with particularly low breastfeeding rates, South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and north Nottinghamshire.

The benefits of breastmilk

Breast milk contains antibodies passed on from the mother that help boost a babys immune system and help it fight infections and viruses.

There is also evidence that breastfed babies have higher IQs and are less at risk of obesity  formula milk is higher in fat.

Breastfeeding is considered beneficial for the mother and enables her to bond with the newborn.

It also enables her to lose weight, as nursing mothers burn up to 500 calories a day extra, according to previous research.

It is estimated the NHS would save at least 17 million every year in hospital admissions and GP visits if more women were supported to breastfeed for longer.
Children are more likely to have epilepsy if their mother had arthritis while the youngster was in the womb, a major study concludes.

Researchers discovered the risk of the seizure-triggering disorder is increased by 160 per cent if the woman suffered rheumatoid arthritis.

They are also three times as likely to develop the agonising condition in later life, data of nearly 1.4 million births shows.

Danish scientists are now calling for children born to arthritis sufferers to be given 'special attention' to monitor their health.

A major study has concluded that children who are born to mothers with arthritis are more likely to have epilepsy

The findings, derived from 25 years of research, are believed down to the origins of rheumatoid arthritis - an autoimmune condition.

What triggers epilepsy?

Theories have suggested the condition, most common in women, triggers the body to release self-attacking antibodies that could get passed down into the womb.

However, in most cases of epilepsy, it's unsure what disrupts electrical signals in the brain and causes seizures.

The Odense University Hospital researchers haven't pinpointed exactly why arthritis may lead to epilepsy and have only established an association.

THE HIDDEN DANGERS OF ARTHRITIS People living with arthritis are at greater risk of a deadly lung disease, it was warned in October. Sufferers are almost 50 per cent more likely to end up with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), researchers found. It was added by experts to the list of complications, along with heart disease and diabetes, now linked to the painful condition. Rheumatoid arthritis is a long-term illness in which the immune system causes the body to attack itself, causing painful, swollen and stiff joints. But the extra problems come from the inflammation it causes in those joints. It is this inflammation which is thought to lead to COPD - the umbrella term for diseases from emphysema to acute bronchitis which can cause wheezing and breathlessness so bad that daily activities can become impossible. Advertisement

Lead author Dr Line Jlving said: 'We have addressed a concern in pregnant women with rheumatoid arthritis... on the future health of their offspring.

'Our results call for special attention on child development of rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disease, and epilepsy if exposed to rheumatoid arthritis in utero.'

The researchers also found that the risk of thyroid disease, which can affect how quickly the heart beats, was increased by 220 per cent.

Rheumatoid arthritis: The facts

Rheumatoid arthritis - different to osteoarthritis, which is caused by wear and tear, affects 400,000 in the UK and 1.5 million in the US.

The condition, which can begin at any age - but plagues most people between 30 and 60, usually affect the hands, feet and wrists. Currently, it is incurable and treatment revolves around reducing painful flare-ups.

The findings, published in Arthritis Care & Research, assessed 2,106 children born to women with rheumatoid arthritis and 1,378,539 without.

Does the link already exist?

It's not the first time scientists have suggested there is a link between the form of arthritis in pregnancy and children going on to develop epilepsy.

Copenhagen University researchers uncovered a similar association when they reviewed data from nearly two million births last November.
We've heard it all before: desk work is wreaking havoc on our health.

But experts warn that, while 86 percent of Americans work at a desk, few know how to offset the damage.

If you spend at least six hours a day at a desk, your heart attack risk is double what it should be. Computers also increase your risk of vision loss by 40 per cent, increase insulin resistance, and affect our mental health.

This culture of working has given rise to the 'weekend warrior' who packs a week's worth of exercise into two days, and after-hours yoga or meditation.

However, research shows that may only have a superficial impact on boosting your health.

We spoke to a cardiologist, a personal trainer, and an optometrist about the dangers of desk work, and some concrete tips that really could balance out the downsides.

Data show around 86 percent of Americans work at desks, but few of us know what it is doing to our bodies

HEART HEALTH: EVEN FOUR WORKOUTS A WEEK IS NOT ENOUGH IF YOU DON'T HAVE STANDING BREAKS

What's the damage?

'The major things from a point of view of your heart is if you're sitting your heart rate will lower, and this affects everything,' Dr Allan Stewart, MD, Director of Aortic Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, tells Daily Mail Online.

He runs through the laundry list of issues:

1) You tend to eat less healthy foods

'If you don't have the ability to get up, you will just make do with the food near you or that can be delivered to you, which tends to be less nutritious,' Dr Stewart explains.

'Also if you're going to be sat all day, you're going to look for things that will give you a sugar rush for energy.'

2) You build up fat on your heart

'Muscles burn less fat because you're less active. Because you have an increase in circulation of fatty acids and cholesterol to the heart, this increases your risk of a heart attack,' Dr Stewart says.

'Even if you go to the gym four times a week you won't completely offset the damage of sitting for at least six hours a day. You will still have a higher risk of heart attack.'

A toll on the heart: A Mount Sinai cardiologist breaks down how sitting impacts the heart

3) You build up dangerous insulin resistance

'We have also seen that people who sit for six hours a day are less sensitive to insulin,' says Dr Stewart.

Insulin resistance is the hallmark of type 2 diabetes, which is triggered by sedentary behavior and obesity - but Dr Stewart warns even seemingly healthy desk workers have a high risk.

4) You gain a 'spare tire' around your middle

'If you are not moving your muscles, you're not processing glucose enough, meaning you'll have more fat around your 'spare tire' (i.e. belly and love handles),' Dr Stewart warns.

What can you do?

Unfortunately for weekend warriors, Dr Stewart claims that most of the damage to your heart and muscles will already be done.

Without some breaks during the day, you still carry the same risk, he says.

Here are his tips to offset your risk:

1) Stand whenever possible

Dr Stewart recommends getting up at every opportunity to keep your heart rate up - whether it's to take a phone call, to have a conversation, or to grab a glass of water.

2) Take a standing break every hour

If you maintain regular bouts of movement, Dr Stewart says, you will prevent your heart rate from grinding down to a sluggish rate.

3) Walk and talk meetings

'If you have a meeting that doesn't require sitting at a computer to look at a screen, why don't you go for a walk if the conditions are nice,' he suggests.

4) Turn your desk into a workout if you're at home

'Get an exercise ball and put it on an uneven surface so your core is engaged,' Dr Stewart recommends.

'Or put your laptop on a treadmill so you can walk while you work.'

4) ...And keep up with your normal workouts

'You need to get 30 to 45 minutes of exercise at least four days a week,' he says.

POSTURE AND TONING: WHY SITTING FOR HOURS CAN ATROPHY YOUR MUSCLES

What's the damage?

'Believe it or not the less we sit, the better for our bodys natural state,' Moe Widdi, a 'master trainer' at New York Health & Racquet Club, told Daily Mail Online.

'We are a creation of labor. Sitting down for a majority of the day, can increase our bodys risk for injury.'

He explains that we will lose strength in key areas like our core and our glutes, forcing more pressure on our bones.

'All parts of the body work together, so if something is off it throws everything else off. Muscles begin to fire up differently and joints begin to change jobs to help compensate,' Widdi explains.

'In addition, posture is extremely vital to a persons life. It helps exude confidence, lessens the chance of injury, and can help you avoid asthma.

'When you develop poor posture, the shoulders close off towards the front of your body causing the back to round, restricting the lungs from getting efficient oxygen.'

Do you have 'desk butt': Trainers warn sitting all day atrophies your muscles, making your bottom flat

What can you do?

To avoid injuries and poor posture, its important to strengthen your posterior and anterior muscles, muscles that control the back and front of your body.

Widdi recommends these exercises four times a week to offset the damage:

1) WALL SLIDES

Lay against a flat wall or mirror

Flatten your back against it by contracting your core and tilting your pelvis to the back

Put your arms and hands against the wall making a foot ball field goal

Tuck in your chin by trying to put the back of your head against the wall, and press against the mirror as you are sliding your hands up and down. By doing so you're forcing the muscles we need in the back and neck to isolate and activate by keeping the back flat as you wall slide

PRO TIP: if you can keep good form use a light bar or light pole

2) SUPINATED REVERSE FLYS

Keeping the same form for your back as the Wall Slides, grab a Thera band with your hands supinated (palms facing up) to externally rotate your shoulders which allows you to contract your back muscles more when you do a reverse fly.

Keep hands straight out in front of you, elbows locked in

Then touch the wall with each rep if your range of motion permits

PROTECT YOUR EYES: HOW SCREENS AFFECT YOUR VISION

What's the damage?

Screens are not going to make you go blind, assures Dr Randy McLaughlin,an optometrist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

However, he says the jury is still out on how damaging screens' UV rays can be to our eyes, and sitting for hours on end staring at one thing close up can put an increasing amount of strain on our retinas.

'The whole world is up close when you have a much higher neural demand from screens all day long,' he told Daily Mail Online.

'It means you're going to notice and feel that strain more.'

He added that, while research is still ongoing in this field, ultra-violet rays are known to be unhelpful, if not directly damaging, for our eye health.

Straining your eyes: Ultra-violet rays and focusing on one thing for hours creates eye strain

What can you do?

1) Take vision breaks

'We recommend that people take visual breaks every 20 to 30 minutes,' Dr McLaughlin explains.

'Look away and relax your eyes for at least 30 seconds. You don't need to break your train of thought, just break your screen time for a moment.'

2) Use over-the-counter eye drops

'Liquid eye drops from the pharmacy work well, and that can relieve dryness or eye strain,' he says.

3) Get your eyes checked every two years

For people who do not have vision issues or concerns to check out, you should be aiming for an optometrist check-up every other year.

'A lot of people may assume that their eyes are fine, and when they get round to getting checked out in their 40s they're embarrassed saying "I haven't been since high school!"

'Don't worry - we're not going to shame you for not coming! But we do recommend getting checked out every two years, just to make sure everything is fine.'
An old drug prescribed to help people stop drinking alcohol may be an effective cancer-killer, according to new study.

The drug, Antabuse, appears to 'freeze' cancer in place, preventing them from getting rid of waste, which, ultimately, kills them.

Danish and Czech researchers tested the drug in live mice and human cancer cells and found that it was effective in both without harming other cells.

These findings are not enough to indicate how Antabuse would behave in living people, but the drug is already FDA-approved and its patent is long expired, so if further testing is as promising as this study's findings, the drug could someday be a cheap alternative cancer treatment.

The new study found that Antabuse effectively 'froze' breast cancer cells as well as those of prostate, colon and other cancers, eventually killing them

Scientists were first tipped off to the Antabuse's potential power against cancer by a series of unfortunate coincidences documented in a 1971 case study.

Doctors prescribed the drug to a 38-year-old woman who had turned to alcoholism to cope with her losing battle with breast cancer, which had spread to her bones.

Her physicians halted her cancer treatment and gave her Antabuse.

She lived for another 10 years before a drunken fall from a window killed her.

When they performed an autopsy, the doctors were shocked to find that while Antabuse had evidently not stopped the woman from drinking, the cancer cells had largely disappeared from her bones.

That remarkable case sparked a few small-scale trials in animals and humans. In both, Antabuse improved survival and slowed tumor growth, but scientists couldn't explain why.

In 2015, the drug saw another revival for a novel use. Research showed that it was able to 'wake up' dormant HIV cells, which could help to ensure that the virus is completely wiped from a person's body by targeting the reactivated cells with an effective treatment.

The new study, published in Nature, combined analysis of Denmark's extensive registry of cancer patients with close observation of how Antabuse interacts with cells.

Antabuse disables a liver enzyme that is critical to the body's ability to break down alcohol, causing patients to hyperventilate, get nauseous and sometimes vomit.

But findings from Palacky University in the Czech Republic and the Danish Cancer Society show that the drug may have more powerful effects than inducing a nasty, preemptive hangover.

For 1,177 Danish patients that continuously took the anti-alcohol drug, the death rate was 34 percent lower. Antabuse was associated with better survival of all cancers, including breast, prostate and colon cancers.

Compelling though those numbers are, they do not establish that Antabuse was the definitive cause behind the better survival rates in humans.

In mice, however, the researchers observed and confirmed that the drug slowed the speed of breast cancer tumor growth, especially in combination with copper.

The main byproduct of Antabuse combines with copper to jam up cancer cells' disposal processes for ill-formed proteins. This essentially 'freezes' the cancer cells, until their functions are shut down by the backed up proteins.

Antabuse particularly has this effect on cancer cells, the researchers observed, leaving healthy cells unharmed.
When little Zed Merrick scolded himself with a boiling cup of tea, his mother Nicky thought he would be left permanently scarred. But pioneering 'spray on' skin has left the boy with no lasting marks

His grandmas back was turned for only a second, but thats all it took for little Zed Merrick to grasp a freshly-made cup of tea.

Before anyone could stop him, the two-year-old had pulled the cup  and its scalding contents  down his front, causing second-degree burns to his torso.

His piercing screams still live with his mother Nicky, but thanks to an innovative treatment hailed as the Holy Grail of burns care, Zed, now aged eight, bears no lasting scars.

The treatment is spray-on skin, created with a postage stamp-sized piece of the patients own skin.

It is placed in a battery-powered device the size of a lunchbox in a special solution containing enzymes that make the cells proliferate  within half an hour this creates enough spray-on skin to cover an adult male torso.

The technology can help burns victims heal without painful skin grafts and without unsightly and uncomfortable scars.

However, its not widely available on the NHS.

This is because its yet to be approved by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE), which says the treatment shows potential to improve healing in acute burns but needs more evidence.

Because the treatment is new, and initially expensive (it costs 1,000 to treat each patient), plastic surgeons say not everyone who could benefit is receiving it on the NHS.

Before anyone could stop him, the two-year-old had pulled the cup  and its scalding contents  down his front, causing second-degree burns to his torso. His piercing screams still live with his mother Nicky, but thanks to an innovative treatment hailed as the Holy Grail of burns care, Zed, now aged eight, bears no lasting scars

Nicky, 39, has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair (her husband, Chunky, 49, an engineer, was out at work at the time of Zeds accident).

Like most toddlers, Zed was incredibly inquisitive, Nicky recalls. When I heard the screams, adrenaline took over; I threw a jug of cold water over his chest, my mum got his T-shirt off and we got him to the bathroom, where I was hosing him down with cold water.

We covered him in cold, wet towels. I was wearing a fluffy black jumper and I can still remember that fluff was sticking to his chest where he was burned.

But her instinct to cool the burn was correct.

Advice from the British Burn Association and British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons is to put a burn under cool, running water for 20 minutes, ideally straight away, but even up to three hours later.

Nicky and Zed were rushed by ambulance from their home in Ulceby, Lincolnshire, to hospital in Grimsby where he was given sedatives and pain relief.

However, the burn was so serious  Zed had a deep, partial-thickness burn, also known as a second-degree burn  that specialist care was required and he was transferred to Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield later that night.

The treatment is spray-on skin, created with a postage stamp-sized piece of the patients own skin. It is placed in a battery-powered device the size of a lunchbox in a special solution containing enzymes that make the cells proliferate  within half an hour this creates enough spray-on skin to cover an adult male torso

First-degree burns heal without dressings. A third-degree burn  the worst kind  is when the damage has been sustained to the full thickness of the skin.

The doctors started talking about a new therapy for burns, says Nicky. I agreed straight away.

Zed was treated by Jeremy Rawlins, a consultant plastic surgeon who has helped pioneer the use of the therapy, called ReCell, made by Avita Medical.

First developed in Perth, western Australia, it can be used to treat all sorts of burn injuries in adults and children, but not all NHS burns centres are using it. The standard treatment is to dress the wound for up to two weeks and areas that are slow to heal result in big scars or require skin grafts, says Mr Rawlins. With ReCell treatment, we can reduce the risk of scars.

After taking a tiny shaving of healthy skin from Zeds torso under general anaesthetic, it was put through the ReCell kit and within 20 minutes, the spray-on skin liquid, called regenerative epithelial suspension, was created.

However, although the treatment is approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), plastic surgeons say not everyone who could benefit is receiving it on the NHS, because it is new and expensive (it costs 1,000 to treat each patient)

Before it can be applied, any dead skin cells have to be removed surgically. In Zeds case this was done using mild dermabrasion with a diamond burr rather like a sander, says Mr Rawlins.

The whole operation, including preparing Zeds body and making the spray, took just 45 minutes, and Zed was then bandaged.

When the dressings were changed after four days, the skin was healing brilliantly  and after three weeks it healed completely (the area was covered with dressings to protect it for three more months).

Nine months after the accident, Zed was discharged from follow-up appointments as the scar was virtually invisible.

Mr Rawlins explains this is significant: I treat children for scar revisions  as they grow, the scar gets tight and it can cause not only pain and poor range of movement but psychological trauma.

For Zed, the treatment has been an amazing success. I can see some faint marks on his chest but most people wouldnt see anything, says Nicky. Zed loves swimming and has no worries about taking his top off  its just normal skin.

We feel very lucky to have had this treatment.
Uber has agreed to settle a civil lawsuit with an Indian woman who accused the ride-hailing company and its top executives of unlawfully obtaining medical records and engaging in offensive conspiracy theories after a company driver allegedly raped her, according to reports.

The 2014 incident in New Delhi had triggered scrutiny into Uber by the Indian government and the company was banned from operating in the national Capital till June 2015.

The 26-year-old woman, identified only as Jane Doe in the lawsuit filed in the federal court in California in June, had said in the complaint that Uber executives unlawfully obtained and shared her medical records from that sexual assault.

A driver working for Uber in Delhi, India, waits to receive instructions for his next passenger

The woman was living in Texas when she filed the lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed days after it emerged that Eric Alexander, the president of business in the Asia Pacific, had obtained her medical records and shown them to then Uber chief executive Travis Kalanick and companys then senior vice-president for business Emil Michael. Michael's name was later dropped from the lawsuit.

The company later fired Alexander. The lawsuit was settled in San Francisco where Uber has its headquarters, the BBC reported

Terms of the latest settlement have not been disclosed. A Delhi court in 2015 sentenced Uber driver Shiv Kumar Yadav to life imprisonment for raping the woman.

A woman uses the Uber app to hail a ride. The company was banned from operating in India's capital between 2014 and June 2015

The lawsuit said that after the woman's sexual assault, Alexander went directly to Delhi where he managed to obtain her confidential, private medical records generated by physicians who examined her after the brutal rape.

Alexander then showed the records to Kalanick and Michael and the three discussed the records among themselves and with other staff at Uber, speculating that Plaintiff had made up the brutal rape in collusion with a rival of Uber in India.
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Many people turned to exploring local nature paths for their daily exercise when lockdown closed gyms and group sports took a hiatus amid the pandemic.

Amateur photographers who captured stunning images of animals in their natural habitat were quick to submit their snaps to Weekend magazine's annual Wildlife Photography Challenge in the hopes of winning a package worth over 1,000.

The entrants were split into five categories - Birds; Mammals; Insects; Under-18s; and Reptiles, Fish, Amphibians & Molluscs.

While each category winner received a Nikon mirrorless digital camera kit and a year's subscription to Nikon Owner magazine, the overall winner also received a trip to the Camargue with wildlife photographer Simon Stafford, courtesy of Create Away, for a four-night masterclass in photographing the region's wild horses, flamingos and bulls.

Judges David Suchet, Clare Balding, Lucy Cooke, Steve Brown, Kelly Brook and Michael Eleftheriades were impressed with Lee O'dwyer, 67, a retired engineer from Lancashire, who was awarded the overall winner for his shot of a long-tailed tit.

These runner-up snaps taken by talented amateur photographers prove choosing an overall winner was a tough decision...

BIRDS

PUFFIN: Taken by Joseph Bristow, 23, a retail supervisor from Llantwit Major. 'Arriving at 3am and queueing for the 6am ticket office to open. First in line I caught the boat over to Skomer Island. With only a few hours permitted on the island I had no time to waste. Surrounded by the Puffins was an amazing spectacle and allowed me to capture some amazing photos. I found this one puffin who seemed very tame and loved posing for the camera. As he stared down the barrel of my lens I took my shot and was pleased with the result. I found the black background really provides a provocative and striking image highlight the vibrant colour of the Puffins.'

KESTREL CHICKS: Taken by Jayne Kirkby, 20, from Braintree, Essex. 'Beautiful pair of Kestrel chicks, taken at Wrabness on 20th June 2020.'

KINGFISHER: Tim Clifton, a 59-year-old from, St Leonards on Sea, snapped this captivating photo of a kingfisher hunting for small fish

MALLARD: William Watson, 64, a semi retired HGV driver from East Dunbartonshire. 'Taken on the Forth & Clyde canal (December '19') Bishopbriggs, As I went to take this photo of this female Mallard it stretched creating a nice reflection....'

INSECTS

BUTTERFLY: Adam Lane, a 27-year-old host at Legoland, from Slough, captured a butterfly perched on a purple flower in specular detail

WASP: Shelia Moth took this captivating photo of a wasp on a thistle, capturing the insect and plant in immense detail

SPIDER: Taken by Geoffrey Wells, 67, a maintenance caretaker from North Yorkshire. 'This picture was taken in my back garden during the recent lockdown.'

REPTILES

MATING FROGS: Taken by Steve Jellett, 64, from Essex, who is retired. 'Taken in small garden pond when 21 frogs descended to mate.'

MAMMALS

ROE DEER: Tim Cliffton, a 75-year-old from St Leonards on sea, took a photograph of two roe deer spotted in a field

MOUSE: Taken by Cameron Parfitt, 20, a student at the University of Brighton, from Worthing. 'I would love to highlight that even in your back garden there are images to be had. This image is of a cheeky wood mouse that keeps stealing food from what we have now dubbed the mouse feeder. It's not unheard of for this little guy to be found inside the feeder without a care in the world stuffing himself with the bird seed.'

JUNIORS

FOX CUB: Billy Evans-Freke, 15, a secondary school student from East Sussex. 'It wasn't a long wait in the hide before the first fox cub woke up from its nap and came out into the open. It was soon followed by another cub. At first they stayed in the shadows of the bushes near the den. But once they gained their confidence they started coming closer. This cub in particular was very curious and came very close to the hide.'
An Army officer accused of indecent behaviour for allegedly organising a ladies meeting with a raunchy honeymoon theme has been pushed out of the Pune-based Army Institute of Technology (AIT).

Earlier this year, the Major General-rank officer had organised a ladies meeting based on a honeymoon theme where the wives of young officers studying in AIT were invited to take part.

After the pictures of the meeting went viral among social media groups in the Army, they came in for severe criticism from officers who were agitated over such events being organised officially by a senior officer in the force.

Sources alleged that the officer tried to make the party look raunchy by placing beds in the middle of the hall with handcuffs placed on them

'When the matter reached the Army chief, he took it very seriously and the officer has now been shunted out from his office in AIT and sent to a formation in Chhattisgarh,' an Army source told Mail Today.

Sources alleged that the officer had tried to make the ladies party look raunchy by placing beds in the middle of the hall with handcuffs placed on them. Also put up at the venue were sexy cutouts of women, which sources say are totally against the traditions of the force where women are treated with utmost respect.

The young officers whose wives had attended the party had also expressed anguish over the party theme to their top brass, the sources claimed.

Sexy cutouts of women were also apparently seen at the event

'The Army chief's instructions have been very clear that while dealing with cases of moral turpitude and corruption, no mercy should be shown towards personnel, and officers and jawans should be treated alike,' the source said.

In recent times, the force has been very harsh in cases of moral turpitude as a Flag officer was shunted out for stealing the affections of his brother officer's wife while a Major General is facing a court martial in Ambala for allegedly trying to violate the modesty of a lady officer much younger than him in age and rank.

Sources said the chief's belief is that even if in cases of moral turpitude where the relationships are consensual, they will not be allowed as it is felt that the force is like a big family and showing leniency in such cases may affect its moral fabric.

A Lieutenant Colonel rank officer was also dismissed from service for having an affair with the 19-year old daughter of a fellow officer after he was found guilty of the offence.

Before Gen Rawat took over in January this year, a number of allegations of corruption in promotions and postings would crop up every now and then, but now the system is in the process of being made more transparent. The chief, sources said, has made it clear that corruption would not be tolerated.
Rahul Gandhi's elevation to Congress president on Monday gave the party reason not just to celebrate but keep the festivities going for the next few days to whip up enthusiasm among the cadre ahead of the second phase of polling in Gujarat.

The announcement by the party central election authority (CEA) head Mullappally Ramachandran at the party headquarters on Monday afternoon was almost drowned out by fireworks and cheering right outside 24, Akbar Road.

Though Rahul was the sole contender in the race for the top job with 89 nominations backed by 10 proposers each all rooting for him, the party's CEA chose to wait for the last day of withdrawal of nominations to make a final announcement.

Rahul Gandhi has officially been appointed Congress leader

The announcement was made by the party central election authority (CEA) head Mullappally Ramachandran on Monday afternoon to huge celebrations outside

Rahul will formally take charge on December 16 at 11am with the handover of a certificate for his election to the post.

Following a revamp of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) over the next few weeks, a large All India Congress Committee (AICC) convention will be held by the end of January either in Karnataka or in the national Capital.

The announcement of Rahul's appointment as party president on Monday was marked by celebrations across state units as frenzied party workers burst crackers and ordered in kilos of sweets and flowers.

Festivities are expected to continue for the next few days to whip up enthusiasm among the cadre ahead of the second phase of polling in Gujarat

The party headquarters swarmed with leaders and supporters carrying congratulatory banners even before Ramachandran made the announcement.

Party leaders said the celebrations are set to continue over the next few days as Gujarat gears up for the second phase of polls.

On Monday, while the announcement was being made in Delhi, Rahul joined the celebrations in Savli near Vadodara right before a public rally.

As the party faces a tough political battle in Gujarat, the party leadership is expectantly looking at the change of guard to inject new hope and enthusiasm into the party cadre.

The announcement of Rahul's appointment as party president on Monday was marked by celebrations across state units

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to congratulate Rahul. 'I congratulate Rahulji on his election as Congress president. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure,' he tweeted.

'The entire country has a lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. Long before he was elected, he proved his mettle. He knows his responsibility,' senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad told reporters.

'I am sure the party will see not just revival but massive growth under your able and dynamic leadership,' Punjab CM Amrinder Singh tweeted.
After Indian and Chinese foreign ministers met on the sidelines of the RIC (Russia-India-China) meet in New Delhi, the two sides have decided to hold border talks in quick succession on December 20 and 21.

Special representatives on border talks of India and China, national security advisor Ajit Doval and state councillor Yang Jiechi respectively, would meet in New Delhi.

After the Doklam crisis that led to tensions between India and China to epic proportions, the thaw came ahead of the BRICS summit when both sides mutually agreed to pull back from the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction.

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at the RIC meet in New Delhi on Monday

Mail Today has learnt that both sides want to focus on 'areas of convergences' and build on the 'commonality'.

The RIC meet gave India and China an opportunity to take things forward from the meeting that was held in Xiamen between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi where the decision was taken to engage at foreign ministry level. The dates were finalised when the foreign ministers met on the sidelines.

Amid the controversies and concerns, all three nations found ways to come together in the fight against terrorism, a core issue for India.

The 15th RIC meet joint communique condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including the recent heinous terrorist attacks around the world.

While there were no terrorists or terror networks that were named, as was the case in the BRICS joint statement, the communique did mention 'proscribed' terrorists and organisations.

It said: 'We agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities. We condemn all forms of terrorism and all terrorists, terror entities and organisations listed by the UN Security Council.'

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, in her address to the media, mentioned the names of organisations emphasising on the need for a comprehensive policy on global terror.

She said: 'While discussing terrorism, I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations such as Taliban, Daesh (ISIS), al-Qaeda and LeT directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development. India strongly recommends a comprehensive policy for dealing with global terrorism.'

When asked if Hafiz Saeed and ban on activities of Masood Azhar at the UNSC came up during the talks, a highly placed source told Mail Today: 'All issues were discussed. There is a need to focus on the bigger picture and not let one issue hold the relationship hostage.'

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said: 'We discussed the issue of terrorism and ways to fight against it.'

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov added to it, reiterating Russia's policy of 'zero tolerance'towards terrorism.

'Fight against terrorism should be united and there must not be any kind of compromise in this regard', he said.

Apart from terrorism, the three foreign ministers discussed disarmament, situation in the Middle East and North Africa, global economic challenges, transnational organised crime, illicit drug trafficking, food security and climate change.
The 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral dialogue at foreign ministers level in New Delhi on December 11 provides an occasion to make a general evaluation of the dynamics at play in this trilateral relationship that is marked by stable India-Russia ties, increased India-China tensions and an upsurge in Russia-China relations.

Russia dominated the trilateral talks when they began in September 2003, with Sergey Lavrov imposing his masterly grasp of international issues over the triad when he became foreign minister in 2004.

However, with the phenomenal rise of China in recent years, the vast financial resources at its disposal and the unveiling of its geopolitical ambitions across Eurasia, the internal equations within the group have changed.

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at the RIC meet in New Delhi on Monday

Russia remains a formidable military power but its economy is under stress, while Chinas diplomatic options have expanded hugely because of its economic power and developing military strength.

Russias relations with the West have sharply deteriorated, compelling it to move eastwards for political and economic space, resulting in an intensified strategic partnership with China.

Ironically, this has made it easier for China to expand, including into traditional Russian geopolitical space in Eurasia. China is also positioning itself as a rival of the US in the Asia-Pacific region by expanding its power base in Asia by bringing Eurasian countries into its economic orbit and making inroads into the Gulf region and key African as well.

It seeks to establish a G2 in Asia, and if it compels the US to reach such an accommodation, it will be at the cost of both Russia and India.

If, after the US/EU policy of brow-beating Russia through a policy of sanctions and preventing a normalisation of relations between the two dictated by geographic proximity, economic interests and security considerations, Russia has now decisively strengthened the Asian vector of its foreign policy, it would not want to be thwarted in its quest for a larger role in Asian affairs by a US-China G2.

Russia has a natural resource base in its Asian stretches, military deployments and relationships with countries like Vietnam to have a credible posture in the region. It is an active participant in APEC.

Even if the US in pursuit of its current policies of placing increasing curbs on Russian power were to leverage its China relationship to checkmate Russia also in the east, any G2 type of arrangement would be manifestly inconsistent with its moves to cultivate India as a counter to China through the concept of the Indo-Pacific, the promotion of trilateral India-US-Japan political and naval cooperation mechanisms and support for a quadrilateral regional dialogue by the inclusion of Australia.

Challenge

Russia faces another challenge from China that has the consequence of outflanking it even in Europe. Chinas Eurasian ambitions are not limited to Central Asia, they are also directed at Europe through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Chinas objective is to create an economic corridor to Europe, expand trade and investment ties with European countries, which will, in turn, inevitably lead to increased Chinese political influence in the European continent.

Ironically, this dynamic is occurring at a time when Russias own relationship with Europe has rapidly deteriorated and a strong anti-Russian media campaign continues.

China is not only intruding into Russias sphere of influence in Central Asia but also positioning itself in Europe in a way that undercuts Moscows European footing.

At a time when Russia is unable to manage its relationship with Europe, China has established a 16 plus 1 dialogue comprising of China and 16 Balkan and Central European states - largely EU members - in the context of the BRI and the alluring promise of Chinese investments in developing infrastructure in these countries, especially in the railways and ports sectors.

This is already raising concerns in Brussels about the oversight that Brussels can and should exercise on this dialogue, and in the capitals of major western European countries as well about the competition their companies will face from Chinese entities.

Background

In this background, while India and Russia have undoubtedly a shared interest in engaging China, they also need to keep a close watch on its vaulting ambitions and consult with each other frankly on what the realisation of its goals would mean for their respective interests.

The initial objective of the trilateral dialogue was to concert with each other on the challenges the international community was facing from the emergence of a unipolar world after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the policies of regime change pursued by the US and its disregard of certain established principles of international law such as respect for state sovereignty.

The three countries supported a multipolar international system based on the central role of the United Nations and reform of the international political and financial institutions.

They opposed the extraterritorial application of national legislation as well as unilateral sanctions beyond those agreed by the UN Security Council and so on. These objectives remain relevant.

To this can be added a joint front against international terrorism ( should China give up its double standards), strengthening cooperation in identified areas within BRICS as well the SCO formats, internet governance, the central role of the WTO in governing international trade, and climate change issues.

India and Russia, however, have to be vigilant that the RIC does not become a vehicle for facilitating Chinas destabilising rise
Centrica: The British Gas owner does not believe price caps will benefit customers

Energy firms have criticised government plans to introduce a price cap on gas and electricity bills.

Experts believe customers overpaid for energy by 1.4 billion last year because the market is not competitive enough.

Lawmakers have now introduced a bill for a temporary price cap to try and help reduce average bills by 100. It will last until the end of 2020 and could be extended by three years.

But in evidence to the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee, British Gas owner Centrica and other firms said they did not believe it would work. Centrica said: We believe that the Governments objectives are unclear and potentially contradictory. Price comparison firm uSwitch said the price cap risks leaving consumers worse off overall.
Many income investors are guilty of relying too heavily on the so called dividend stalwarts in the FTSE 100.

It is not just minor investors but fund managers who foul of this too.

Popular income stocks AstraZeneca and British American Tobacco are among the top ten holdings of roughly two-fifths of funds in the Investment Association UK Equity Sector.

However, there are plenty of dividend golden nuggets waiting to be unearthed outside the UK's blue chip index in small and medium-sized companies for those willing to go prospecting.

Many UK income funds invested in BP were hit by the infamous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico

In the past, many investors viewed UK smaller companies solely as growth opportunities, but this no longer rings true.

Andrew Summers, head of fund selection at Investec Wealth & Investment, said many of these shares have excellent prospects for paying secure and growing dividends.

They also provide diversification away from the companies and many of the sectors that dominate the payment of dividends in the FTSE 100 - and many have healthy balance sheets.

Summers added: 'Despite comprising of 100 stocks, the FTSE 100s total dividend pay-out is very concentrated. This exposes income investors to the risk that just one company or one sectors woes could materially impact their income.

'The further afield investors can search for yield the better the diversification and the more opportunities to identify companies that have strong and stable dividends.'

Dividend cover is a good metric to get an idea of which stocks have scope to scale their dividend payments in the future.

It is the ratio of a company's net income over dividends paid to shareholders. When dividends exceed profits, the ratio is below 1, so anything above that figure suggests dividends are more sustainable and affordable for companies to pay out.

The average dividend cover for stocks listed in the FTSE 250 fell to 1.2 times by the end of March this year - the lowest level since the post 2008/09 credit crunch recession, according to the latest annual research conducted by the online stockbroker The Share Centre.

This is because dividend payouts increased by 3 per cent, in spite of a 16 per cent fall in net profits in the 250.

Even at this low level, 250 firms still have stronger dividend cover than in the 100.

Among large caps, profits fell more gently (11 per cent), but dividends increased quickly (8 per cent).

Their cover also fell, therefore, to 0.7 times. This means that these companies couldn't pay their dividends from profits alone.

Data for the smallest stocks is harder to come by but they tend to be greater than larger shares, according to Gervais Williams, who co-manages the Miton UK Multi Cap Income fund with Martin Turner.

Think small to win big: Heading down the stock market ladder can deliver well covered and growing dividends

Where fund managers are finding small cap dividends

Unicorn UK Income predominately invests in stocks outside the FTSE 100 that typically go under the radar of big name funds - and looks for those deemed to be of high quality and that have a history of scaling their earnings.

This investment strategy has come up trumps recently, with the fund ranking third, fifth and fourth in the list of best performers within the Investment Association UK Equity income sector over a one-year, three-year and five-year investment period.

Simon Moon, who co manages the fund with Fraser Mackersie, singles out Somero, a 156million company listed on AIM, as a prime example of a promising dividend small cap British stock.

It has yielded 2.45 per cent over the past 12 months - but 6.95 per cent when a separate payout made to shareholders called special dividend is taken into account. It also has a dividend cover of 2.2 times.

The stock is expected to grow its yield to over 3 per cent in the coming year, according to Moon.

Small and mid-cap stocks provide diversification away from the companies and sectors that dominate dividends in the FTSE 100

He is also a fan of the 953million high street retailer of greeting cards and gift merchandise, the Card Factory.

The firm has yielded 3.3 per cent over the last 12 months or 8.8 per cent with the firm's special dividend included. Its dividend cover is 3.3 times.

The stock is also expected to generate 3 per cent in the coming year without specials factored in, Moon said.

Moon said: 'The company is vertically integrated, allowing it to produce high quality cards at market-leading prices. Shares have been subdued largely on concerns surrounding the strength of the UK consumer, this has provided a great opportunity to get into a high quality retailer.'

The Miton UK Multi Cap Income fund takes a slightly different tack.

The fund has more room to invest in British blue-chip dividend stocks.

Around 19 per cent of the fund's income is generated by FTSE 100 dividend stocks, according to Gervais Williams, who co-manages the fund with Martin Turner.

The rest is attributed to income from UK stocks in the FTSE 250 and AIM.

The managers adopt a bottom-up approach to stock picking, meaning they focus on the financial health of individual companies rather than the sectors they operate in.

The duo favour companies with strong balance sheets - those with little debt Williams says - and with a good cash flow to capital expenditure ratio.

The fund is the best performer in the IA UK Equity Income sector over a five-year investment period and is third over three years. Its one-year performance is not as impressive but still ranks a very respectable 14th.

Williams highlights insurance company Randall and Quilter as an often overlooked income stock. The 167million company had produced dividend yield of 6.57 per cent and has a dividend cover of 1.37 times.

'We like it because it has a strong balance sheet and its net cashflow is around the 90million mark. We also like that it has tangible assets per share.'

This gives shareholders an idea of how much they might get in the unlikely event that the company liquidates and the assets were sold for the values reflected on the balance sheet.

The table shows the performance of Randall and Quilter over the past 12 months

Williams also favours 325million real estate investment trust company Mucklow which boast dividend yield of 4.32 per cent in the past 12 months with dividend cover of 2.11 times

'We do not own a lot of real estate companies because they tend to have a bit of debt on their balance sheet but Mucklow does not have as much.

'The company owns manufacturing sites in the UK and is likely to benefit from the rising cost of Chinese labour. Some businesses will be less inclined to have their products manufactured overseas but there is a shortage of manufacturing facilities in the UK.

'This has resulted in an increase in rates for use of these sites which has in turn benefited Mucklow.'

Four funds that invest in small and mid caps for income

Cherry picking your own individual shares and building a diversified portfolio can be tricky and somewhat hot and miss.

One trap that many investors fall into is becoming over exposed to a handful of sectors that hold much-lauded big dividend payers.

Therefore, many investment advisers say investing in a fund or investment trust for income is the way to go, allowing the fund manager to do the ahrd work for you.

However, many funds scouring the UK market for income opportunities invest in the same stocks.

The problem with this is, should another 'BP moment' - where the oil company cut its dividends in the aftermath of the infamous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 - happen, all these will be negatively affected.

This is why diversification in the funds that you hold and what they invest could be wise.

We've asked Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown to list four top income funds with a healthy weighting to small and mid cap stocks:

Laith Khalaf of Hargreaves Lansdown said there aren't many funds that invest predominantly in small and mid caps

Marlborough MultiCap Income - Ongoing charges 0.80 per cent

This is the only one income fund I could suggest that invests predominantly (ie more than 50 per cent) in small and mid caps.

There is considerable strength and depth in their investment team, which is an excellent resource for manager Siddarth Chand Lall when identifying opportunities for this fund.

This team has added a huge amount of value against the UK market over time, driven primarily through investment in UK smaller companies.

The following funds have a healthy slug of small and mid-cap holdings.

Woodford Equity Income - ongoing charges 0.75 per cent

Neil Woodford hasnt has a great time of late, but form, as they say, is temporary, class is permanent. Neil Woodford has proved his talent over a 30-year career and his equity income fund has a relatively high weighting to small and mid caps.

JO Hambro UK Equity Income - Ongoing charges 0.80 per cent

The managers look for companies with an above-average dividend yield where investors are under-appreciating the potential for future earnings and dividend growth.

This usually leads them into out-of-favour areas of the market, with a bias towards higher risk small and medium-sized companies. Significant time is spent meeting company management to gain an understanding of a company's future prospects.

Majedie UK Income - Ongoing charges 0.81 per cent

The managers seek undervalued companies that are undergoing a transformation to improve future prospects. They take a patient approach and focus on companies that can deliver an attractive income while they wait.

As the fund is designed to produce an income, it has a large exposure to higher yielding stocks. However, the fund has a bias to higher-risk medium-sized companies to produce much of the income.
Owner Ahmed Hasoon forces him up and down the precarious building, issuing shouts and the occasional prod and thwack with a hefty stick

The donkey pauses to shift the three 40lb marble slabs uncomfortably strapped to its back as it grinds its hooves into the gravel and heaves up the remaining stairs.

Zake is climbing up an 11-storey housing block and spends hours each day ferrying sand, cement, marble and heavy tools up and down the debris-strewn stairwells.

In any working day, the 13-year-old animal can move a tonne of materials, alongside fellow donkey, ten-year-old Aladghm.

Their owner Ahmed Hasoon forces them up and down the precarious building, issuing shouts and the occasional prod and thwack with a hefty stick.

These are the builder donkeys of Nablus; labourers of a building boom in the West Bank of Palestine, whose welfare is being monitored by a British charity.

Their daily drudgery, amid a frenetic building site full of dust and sparks from angle-grinders, is a world away from the gentle Nativity imagery of donkeys on Christmas cards that will start to drop through the letter boxes of millions of homes this week.

'It is harrowing to witness. They haul back-breaking loads hour after hour, day after day,' says Tim Wass MBE, chief executive of the Safe Haven for Donkeys in the Holy Land sanctuary, which rescues animals across Israel and Palestine.

'Some of these donkeys endure barbaric treatment and it is horrible to think of what Christmases they will have working long shifts without proper food, water or care.

'They are prisoners of work, becoming emaciated, ill and then discarded at the side of the road.'

Zake the donkey spends hours each day ferrying sand, cement, marble and heavy tools up and down the debris-strewn stairwell of an 11-storey housing block

In any working day, the 13-year-old animal can move a tonne of materials, alongside fellow donkey, ten-year-old Aladghm.

These are the builder donkeys of Nablus; labourers of a building boom in the West Bank of Palestine, whose welfare is being monitored by a British charity.

Their owner Ahmed Hasoon forces them up and down the precarious building, issuing shouts and the occasional prod and thwack with a hefty stick

Harriet Dodd, programme director of the Brooke charity, which campaigns for the welfare of 100 million working donkeys, horses and mules worldwide, says: 'Sadly, a large number of these animals are suffering from injuries, dehydration and malnutrition caused by the extreme environments they work in.

'Their owners are often poor, and don't have the skills or resources to properly care for their animals.'

The RSPCA is backing the Safe Haven's work and spokesman David Bowles adds: 'It is important to educate the owners that it is in their own and the donkeys' interest to care for them and ensure they are in good condition.

'Using donkeys for work is a tradition in some countries but those that are well cared for will actually work better.'

But the Safe Haven charity, which organises free veterinary and farrier treatment for the builder donkeys and takes in abandoned or wounded donkeys at its base, is facing a funding crisis that threatens its mercy mission.

'We are saving donkeys every day but funds are running out and right now we cannot go on beyond December 22 - we won't even make Christmas Eve,' says Mr Wass, former chief officer of the RSPCA, appointed to rescue the Sussex-based charity, whose Royal patron is Princess Alexandra.

'We can make such a difference to suffering animals but we need the British public to back us so we can carry on with the work.'

Their daily drudgery, amid a frenetic building site full of dust and sparks from angle-grinders, is a world away from the gentle Nativity imagery of donkeys on Christmas cards that will start to drop through the letter boxes of millions of homes this week

'It is harrowing to witness. They haul back-breaking loads hour after hour, day after day,' says Tim Wass MBE, chief executive of the Safe Haven for Donkeys in the Holy Land sanctuary, which rescues animals across Israel and Palestine

Mr Wass said 'Some of these donkeys endure barbaric treatment and it is horrible to think of what Christmases they will have working long shifts without proper food, water or care'

The RSPCA is backing the Safe Haven's work and spokesman David Bowles adds: 'It is important to educate the owners that it is in their own and the donkeys' interest to care for them and ensure they are in good condition

The pitiful procession continues throughout the day with the donkeys picking their way through power cables, rubble and past the open lift shaft to deliver their loads.

Their hooves regularly slip on the polished marble and then it is on to the gravel-strewn makeshift stairs laden with builder bags draped over their backs as they deliver higher up into the block in the Rafidia district.

Zake  the name means clever  munches on cardboard during a brief break at the foot of the building as his owners struggle to lift buckets of cement to fill the bags that he will take up 11 flights of stairs.

Aladghm and Zake are crucial to livelihood of the Hasoon family explains Ahmed's 33-year-old son Hamid as he positions more marble slabs on one of his family's six donkeys that work on the apartment block, 30 miles north of Jerusalem.

'They are part of our family and we take good care of them,' he says. 'They work very hard and without them we would have nothing. They are why we get these jobs.

'But we treat them well, we care for them. Some people don't.'

The Hasoon family, who live five kilometres from the site, make around 200 a week for working on the increasing number of high rise blocks being built on the slopes of the narrow valley that frames Nablus, the economic capital of Palestine.

'I look at Nablus and see the city that donkeys built,' adds Mr Wass. 'Nablus is in a growth spurt because economy of Israel and West Bank is growing quite rapidly, and they are building where-ever you can see.

'Land is at a premium and the buildings are getting closer and closer together so there is no room to get modern machinery in which is where the donkeys come in because they are small and nimble.

The Safe Haven charity, which organises free veterinary and farrier treatment for the builder donkeys and takes in abandoned or wounded donkeys at its base, is facing a funding crisis that threatens its mercy mission.

'We are saving donkeys every day but funds are running out and right now we cannot go on beyond December 22 - we won't even make Christmas Eve,' says Mr Wass

The pitiful procession continues throughout the day with the donkeys picking their way through power cables, rubble and past the open lift shaft to deliver their loads

Their hooves regularly slip on the polished marble and then it is on to the gravel-strewn makeshift stairs laden with builder bags draped over their backs as they deliver higher up into the block in the Rafidia district

Aladghm and Zake are crucial to livelihood of the Hasoon family explains Ahmed's 33-year-old son Hamid as he loads up two of his family's six donkeys that work on the apartment block, 30 miles north of Jerusalem

'We are finding that our regular visits with free check-ups is making a difference with some owners who now think more about their animals' welfare.

'But other donkeys are not so lucky and have to endure dreadful conditions. We recently saved one that had an axe wound to its back.'

Stark evidence of the donkeys' plight is regularly delivered to the charity's outreach centre in Nablus.

Dr Rakan Salous, a 28-year-old university-educated vet from Nablus, who inspected Zake and Aladghm on the building site, says injured donkeys are often abandoned as owners don't want them back.

'The injuries we see are mostly from slipping on the stairs or back sores and swollen joints from the heavy weights.'

Dr Salous, who also completed a course studying donkey welfare in the UK, sometimes sleeps at the base as the treatment list can stretch to 60 donkeys on a busy, market day.

A limping donkey found tethered to a hook with an injured leg is groomed, fed and placed in a pen next to three-month-old Nicoll, who was abandoned at three days old.

'She was just left outside the centre because she was a distraction to her mother's work efforts,' adds Mr Wass, who was awarded his MBE for his work on the RSPCA's responses to outbreaks of foot-and-mouth, avian flu and seal distemper virus.

'Owners don't want foals because they cannot work and the maternal bond stops their mothers working so they have to go. They are just left by the side of the road. Some die from dehydration, others get hit by cars. Nicoll was very lucky.'

The Hasoon family, who live five kilometres from the site, make around 200 a week for working on the increasing number of high rise blocks being built on the slopes of the narrow valley that frames Nablus, the economic capital of Palestine

'I look at Nablus and see the city that donkeys built,' adds Mr Wass. 'Nablus is in a growth spurt because economy of Israel and West Bank is growing quite rapidly, and they are building where-ever you can see

'We are finding that our regular visits with free check-ups is making a difference with some owners who now think more about their animals' welfare, said Mr Wass

Mr Wass adds: 'But other donkeys are not so lucky and have to endure dreadful conditions. We recently saved one that had an axe wound to its back'

Back at the charity's main sanctuary, ten miles from the Israeli coastal town of Netanya, volunteers and staff care for 252 donkeys on a tight three-acre site sandwiched between two avocado groves.

Burnie is one of 12 donkeys receiving intensive medical care. He was doused with petrol and set alight suffering burns across his body that need regular attention to soothe the pain and ward off infection.

The Safe Haven for Donkeys in the Holy Land charity, originally founded by a British Airways stewardess, hit tough times after currency fluctuations added almost one third to their running costs and a management changeover caused administrative complications.

Mr Wass said the organisation was being restructured and running costs reduced to save money and that Princess Alexandra had recently renewed her patronage for another three years.

The re-shaped sanctuary now restores donkeys to health and then sends them to olive, avocado and orange farms.

'The donkeys graze and fertilise naturally in a secure, fenced off area with adequate shade and water supplies,' adds Mr Wass.

Stark evidence of the donkeys' plight is delivered to the charity's outreach centre in Nablus. Dr Rakan Salous, a 28-year-old vet from Nablus, who inspected Zake and Aladghm on the building site, says injured donkeys are often abandoned as owners don't want them back

At the charity's main sanctuary, ten miles from the Israeli coastal town of Netanya, volunteers and staff care for 252 donkeys on a tight three-acre site sandwiched between two avocado groves

'The farmer doesn't have to put down nitrate fertilisers and can make up 20% extra because the produce is now organic so it is complete solution for the farmer, the donkey and environment.

'Some of this produce will end up in British homes and it will be heart-warming to know that, in time, the public is playing a part in a better future for these donkeys.

'Our ambition is to raise animal welfare awareness in the Holy Land, give hope to badly-treated donkeys and, eventually, make builder donkeys obsolete as pit ponies in the UK.'

:: A donation of 3.50 will buy a comfortable head collar without chains and 10 will buy enough antibiotics to treat ten donkeys for a week.
The situation in North Korea is entering a 'hot phase' amid heightened tensions in the region, Russia's Foreign Minister has warned.

Sergei Lavrov, speaking after a meeting between of ministers from India and China, said all three countries did not want tensions to escalate further on the Korean Peninsula.

It comes as senior UN official Jeffrey Feltman, who paid a rare visit to Pyongyang, warned conflict with North Korea is the biggest threat to the world.

Jeffrey Feltman said there was a grave risk that a miscalculation could trigger war with Kim Jong-un as he urged the secretive nation to keep communication channels open during the rare visit.

Feltman's trip to the North - the first by such a high-ranking UN diplomat since 2010 -- kicked off less than a week after Pyongyang said it test-fired a new ballistic missile capable of reaching the US.

KCNA said the young leader, who was pictured strolling across the snow-covered peak sporting a heavy black coat, fur hat and buffed leather shoes, had climbed the 'sublime mountain of revolution', which is on the border with China

Jeffrey Feltman (left) kicked off his four-day trip to the North - the first by such a high-ranking UN diplomat since 2010 - less than a week after North Korea said it test-fired a new ballistic missile capable of reaching the US

The United Nations said Feltman met North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-Ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-Kuk and they 'agreed that the current situation was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today'.

Noting the 'urgent need to prevent miscalculations and open channels to reduce the risks of conflict,' Feltman said the international community was committed to finding a peaceful solution.

Feltman, the UN's under secretary general for political affairs, also stressed the importance of full implementation of all relevant Security Council resolutions.

The UN Security Council has hit the isolated and impoverished North with a package of sanctions over its increasingly powerful missile and nuclear tests, which have rattled Washington and its regional allies South Korea and Japan.

North Korea's new missile: Pyongyang vs analysts

Earlier, North Korea's state news agency KCNA said 'the US policy of hostility toward the DPRK (North Korea) and its nuclear blackmail are to blame for the current tense situation on the Korean peninsula'.

But it added the North had agreed with the UN 'to regularize communications through visits at various levels'.

The KCNA report did not mention any meetings with leader Kim Jong-Un, who has ramped up his impoverished nation's missile and nuclear program in recent years in order to achieve Pyongyang's stated goal of developing a warhead capable of hitting the US mainland.

Feltman's visit also came after the United States and South Korea launched their biggest-ever joint air exercise.

Pyongyang reiterated its view that these manoeuvres were a provocation, accusing the drills of 'revealing its intention to mount a surprise nuclear pre-emptive strike against the DPRK'.

The Chinese foreign ministry on Saturday published a speech from earlier in the week by foreign minister Wang Yi in which he warned that the Korean Peninsula 'remains deeply entrenched in a vicious cycle of demonstrations of strength and confrontation.'

'The outlook is not optimistic,' Beijing's top diplomat added.

It comes as it emerged that North Korean hackers are trying to take advantage of the surge in the value of bitcoins.

The North on Saturday released photographs of Kim on the summit of the country's highest peak, the fabled 2,750-metre (9,020-foot) Mount Paektu, which he climbed to ponder recent successes in his drive for nuclear statehood

The value of the currency hit above $17,000 in the last week making it an attractive target for hackers from North Korea according to Ashley Shen, an independent security researcher who spoke to Sky News.

'We assume one of the reasons why Bitcoin is being attacked is because the price keeps increasing and we think it's reasonable for hackers [to target],' Shen said.

'Digital currency might be easier to gain than physical currency. So I think it's reasonable.'

Fears of a catastrophic conflict with the nuclear-armed regime have spiked as Kim and Donald Trump have taunted each other in recent months, with the US President pejoratively dubbing his rival 'Little Rocket Man' and a 'sick puppy'.

Kim has called the 71-year-old president a 'dotard', meaning a weak or senile old man - an insult that was renewed Saturday as the North condemned Trump for recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

'Considering the fact that the mentally deranged dotard openly called for a total destruction of a sovereign state at the UN, this action is not so surprising', KCNA quoted a foreign ministry spokesman as saying.

Meanwhile, the US has threatened to take matters 'into our own hands' if China does not do more to counter North Korea.

Americas Ambassador to the UN Nikky Haley told Fox News Sunday that China 'can do more' to clamp down on Pyongyang.

She added: 'And we're putting as much pressure on them as we can. The last time they completely cut off the oil, North Korea came to the table. And so we've told China they've got to do more. If they don't do more, we're going to take it into our own hands and then we'll start to deal with secondary sanctions.'

In a bizarre twist today, it was also reported that former US basketball star Dennis Rodman plans to visit North Korea again after arriving in Beijing.

According to The Express, Mr Rodman, who has met Kim Jong-un in the past, did not reveal his reason for his visit to China, but said: 'There is a possibility of visiting North Korea soon after Beijing.'

In a tweet yesterday he wrote: 'Great week of humanitarian work in Guam and Tokyo, Japan now just got to Beijing..Guess whats next? #Peace #Love #NotWar'

The tweet included a picture of him wearing a shirt with the word 'unite' and images of Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un.
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The third annual British Life Photography Awards (BLPA) has announced the winners of its latest competition to document culture in the UK.

Established in 2014 these awards recognise the talents of both amateur and professional photographers, while simultaneously reviving a greater awareness of documentary photography to new audiences and the general public.

The awards are a showcase for contemporary imagery that capture the essence and spirit of British life, whether a family's farming tradition in southern England, or an eccentric Londoner rocking out on the River Thames.

Both thought-provoking and humorous, the competition is separated into nine categories, including: Rural Life, Urban Life, Street Life, Portraiture, Life at Work, Brits on Holiday, British Weater, Historic Britain and documentary.

The overall winner this year was Paul Carruthers for his image 'Lifeguard', taken on Bantham Beach, Devon - he also won the Life at Work category.

BLPA will exhibit a selection of approximately 80 of the submitted images at Royal Albert Hall from 7 January next year.

The exhibit will then travel to Glastonbury, Yorkshire, Dumfries, North Yorkshire. A book entitled 'The British Life Photography Awards Portfolio 3' will also be available to view the winners and commended entries from 2017.

The overall winner this year was Paul Carruthers for his image 'Lifeguard', taken on Bantham Beach, Devon - he also won the Life at Work category

Pictured, David Fletcher's photo "New Forest Commoner" shows Ann who is the 13th generation of her family to have farmed there in New Forest commoner

Pictured, Brits on Holiday winner Erika Szostak's "Tourist feeding seagulls" at the Brighton seafront in East Sussex, shot after the photographer had just finished photographing the Brighton Naked Bike Ride

Pictured, Documentary series winner David Fletcher"New Forest Commoner" and Ann is a New Forest commoner and the 13th generation of her family to have farmed there, now single-handedly

Pictured, Rural Life winner photographer Jo Teasdale's "Sunnies" taken at The Goodwood Revival, a vintage spectacle based in the heart of Sussex

Pictured, Documentary Series winner photographer David Fletcher's "New Forest Commoner" of a 13th generation farmer who had many of her calves die througout the winter

Pictured, Portraiture winner photographer John Angerson takes picture of artist and painter David HockneyDavid Hockney at the Royal Academy, London

Pictured, Historic Britian winner photographer Janine Wiedel documenting Alan and fellow workers on midday break in 1977 at the Sandy Lane Pub, Aston, Birmingham

Pictured, Documentary Series winner photographer David Fletcher's "New Forest Commoner" which documents the life of cow farmer Ann who is the 13th generation of her family to have farmed in New Forest

Pictured, Urban Life winner photographer Wayne Richard's "Old Man River" taken on The Thames in LondonTaken whilst where buskers are a regular feature

Pictured, Documentary Series winner photographer David Fletcher's "New Forest Commoner" exploring the life of a 13th generation cow farming family

Pictured, British Weather winner photographer Guy Corbishley's image Sunset and blanket fog where LondonDeptford Park School can be briefly visible in a break of fast moving blanket fog during sunset over south east London
Airport brawl between Hells Angels and the Comanchero ended fatally in 2009

Drugs trafficked by different bikie groups are now arriving in the same shipments

Police have seen an outbreak of co-operation among notorious NSW bikie clubs

Outlaw bikie gangs are putting their bloody rivalries aside to join forces and maximise criminal profits.

In the latest NSW Crime Commission report, police said cooperation between organised crime groups is 'flourishing,' and groups such as the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, the Comanchero Motorcycle Club and the Lone Wolf Motorcycle Club, are working together to access broader distribution networks.

Police said they are seeing different drugs, organised and trafficked by different crime groups, arrive within the same drug shipments to Australia's shores.

Police have seen an outbreak of co-operation between notorious bikie clubs (pictured)

Police say criminal activity is hard to detect because a lot of it is 'coordinated offshore'

Another big concern for police is money laundering with evidence that illegal money is being channeled and concealed by 'legitimate business enterprises'.

Transactions of several hundred thousand dollars from successful drug importations had been seen by the Commission.

Police said it's difficult to monitor illegal activity because 'much of the organisation is coordinated offshore', often by expatriate Australians living overseas.

But recently police seized over 1 tonne of ephedrine, suggesting domestic production of drugs such as ice is still high, despite it's low cost from offshore suppliers.

A 29-year-old Hells Angels bikie was killed in a brawl with rival club the Comanchero at Sydney Airport in 2009.

Comanchero boss Mahmoud Mick Hawi was convicted of his murder, and the fatal brawl was a turning point for the state in their fight against bikie groups, prompting immediate action from federal politicians.

A Hells Angels bikie was killed in a rival brawl at Sydney Airport in 2009 (pictured)

The NSW Police State Crime Command's Criminal Groups Squad director Deborah Wallace told The Daily Telegraph that at a low level, bikies remained fierce enemies - but their bosses did business together.

'At the upper level they are quite prepared to work together to progress their criminal activity and they'll seek out facilitators  that could be accountants, anything at all.

'At the bottom level they rely on that brotherhood, that romantic side, because they need to recruit people to do their dirty work. The whole ethos that you're a particular chapter forever, is gone. (Bikie clubs) are certainly alive and well, they're just morphing into a different look, more like organised crime than a group of bike riders,' Detective Superintendent Wallace said.

Western Sydney University organised crime lecturer and former detective Dr Michael Kennedy told the publication that police shouldn't be fooled into thinking that the hatred between the bikie clubs was over.

'They'll just come together on a business deal. They're not friends, they've got nothing in common and they'll kill in order to make money. They will walk over each other to get the result they want,' Dr Kennedy said.
With Monday tipped to be Australia's largest online shopping day of the year, Daily Mail Australia has rounded up some of the hottest deals available.

As Christmas fast approaches, the Australian Retailers Association predicted this week to be the busiest of the year.

Thousands of people are expected to flock to online retailers at lunchtime on Monday in an effort to beat the Christmas delivery deadline.

Daily Mail Australia rounded up some of the hottest sales available online.

ASOS

The online clothing store has slashed the cost of dresses and jumpsuits, perfect for your work's upcoming Christmas party, or a present for your girlfriend.

In addition to sales of up to 70 per cent off its outlet collection, the retail giant is offering 30 per cent off its 'summer saviours' range.

Club Frill Detail Jumpsuit has been slashed from $93 to $30 with free shipping and returns

The Paris Bardot Wrap Front Midi Dress (left) is $39.50 down from $62, and the Short Sleeve Skater Dress with Pleat Detail (right) is $30.50 down from $83

Closet V-Neck Side Tie Playsuit is just $44.50 down from $124 on Australia's ASOS site

EBay

The online retail juggernaut is offering killer sales in the lead up to Christmas, with the price of some children's toys slashed by more than 50 per cent.

EBay is also featuring some of its top selling fragrances for up to 57 per cent off.

For those wanting to stock up on booze ahead of the festive season, the retailer also has a 20 per cent off sale on its liquor with a huge collection of alcohol for purchase.

Kids lightning McQueen Electric Ride on Toy slashed from $549 to $249 - a massive 54 per cent off

This Buggy Electric Off Road Car is slashed from $207 down to $139

Britney Spears Fantasy Eau de Parfum Spray is 57 per cent off, down from $59 to $24 on eBay

Perfect gift for you man: Jean Paul Galtier (left) is 49 per cent off, down from $139 to $69.99

Priceline

The go-to beauty store is offering makeup palettes for a fraction of their usual cost, making them the perfect gift idea for Christmas.

Models Own Sculpt and Glow - Highlighter Palette is $14.97 down from $24.05

Cotton On

Cotton On has everything from active wear to fashion staples, and with the silly-season fast approaching, it's brought the cost of some products down to just $5.

In addition to its dirt-cheap clothing range, the budget chain has slashed its Christmas decorations and cards by over 50 per cent.

Double Back Yoga Crop Bra has been slashed from $29.95 to just $10 at Cotton On

Cotton On's Bedtime Frill Short: the nighttime wear costs just $5 down from $19.95

Missguided

The online fashion store is boasting dresses for just $32.95, paired with free standard shipping.

Women hoping to snap up a bargain have until midnight on Monday to capitalise, with a special sale of 50 per cent off all orders costing over $180 - with no fine print.

Nude coloured Snake Wrap dress slashed from $70.95 down to just $32.95

Harvey Norman

Harvey Norman is boasting some extraordinarily hot deals in the lead up to Christmas, with cheap Samsung Galaxy tablets and Nikon digital cameras.

The technology and homewares giant has huge sales on a range of products.

Samsung Galaxy Tab costs just $296, saving buyers $40 at Harvey Norman

Harvey Norman shoppers can save $120 on this Nikon D3400 DSLR Camera which costs just $416

Online shopping market eBay expected more than 2.7 million shoppers on Monday alone.

'This year we've seen the busiest online shopping da ypushed out to the second week of December because gift shoppers are becoming more confident that they can order online later,' chief financial officer Gavin Dennis told The Daily Telegraph.

Mr Dennis expected eBay's peak periods to be between 1pm and 2pm for desk workers, and from 9pm to 9.15pm for smartphone users.

The retail juggernaut said 70 per cent of its shoppers made purchases on mobile phones, rather than computers.

EBay Australia predicted five gifts would be sold on its site per second on Monday.

Electronic gadgets, jewellery, Apple products and Star Wars branded items were tipped to be the most popular.

Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said there was a 3.96 percent jump in online purchases this year, with many of them being made this week.

Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said there was a 3.96 percent jump in online purchases this year, with many of them being made this week

Electronic gadgets, jewellery, Apple products and Star Wars branded items were tipped to be the most popular items bought online and shipped to Australians

'There's been an incredible amount of people shopping online over the weekend but Monday is probably going to be one of the busiest days for gift shopping,' he said.

Mr Zimmerman urged buyers to check the delivery date of their purchases to ensure they arrived in time.

Australians were expected to spent more than $50 billion this Christmas period, which kicked off on November 15.

Consumers already spent $23.65 billion online before October.
Adult film actress August Ames (pictured) was found dead on last Tuesday

A gay porn actor who had trashed adult film star August Ames on social media has fired back stating that he didn't have anything to do with her death.

Ames, 23, was found dead last week from a suspected suicide in California just days after she was forced to defend herself against online critics who accused her of being homophobic.

Ames stated her reasons for choosing not to work with an actor who had previously shot gay porn.

But her remarks irked adult film star Jaxton Wheeler who wrote a threatening message on twitter.

'The world is awaiting your apology or for you to swallow a cyanide pill. Either or we'll take it,' he wrote.

Jaxton Wheeler, an adult film star who took to Twitter with a threatening message against her

Wheeler's tweet was published after Ames' death, and it doesn't appear that he was aware of her suicide when he published his message

His tweet appears to have been published with Wheeler seemingly unaware that Ames has already taken her own life when he published his message.

The pair had previously been in touch on Twitter the day before her death, when Ames told Wheeler that she never said gay performers don't get tested.

Wheeler is now feeling the backlash with one popular production company, Evil Angel, saying that he would never shoot a scene for them again.

Wheeler added that he has received death threats and was fired from two upcoming shoots.

That backlash against Wheeler was swift with many people taking issue at his abusive tweet including former adult film actress Jenna Jameson

Wheeler was quickly dropped from a number of production companies with whom he had worked with in the past

A suicide note Ames reportedly penned before her death did not mention harassment and only apologized to her family

Ames' final tweets did not reference Wheeler, but were addressed to the flood of internet trolls making similar comments.

Another former adult film actress Jenna Jameson also chimed in:

'You told my friend August to swallow ancyanide (sic) pillyou are directly responsible for her death. I will not rest until you are deleted from social media all together,' she wrote on Twitter.

According to the New York Daily News Wheeler defended himself Sunday as he explained that he was just upset that Ames was spreading false information about the gay porn industry's STD testing regulations.

Ames, 23, born Mercedes Grabowski, was found dead last week of a suspected suicide in California. The 23-year-old had starred in almost 290 movies

A final tweet revealed how the pressure got too much for Ames as she finally took her own life

Camarillo police said that Ames was pronounced dead at the scene, noting there had been no indication of foul play

'The idea that I played any role in her decision is erroneous, as is the idea I demanded her death,' he told the gay porn blog The Sword. 'All adult professionals have the same screening and testing protocols. As a performer, she knew that, but she put it out there to her half-million Twitter followers who didn't. Now they believed it. It struck a huge nerve.'

Wheeler released a lengthy statement in which he stated how he was 'saddened' by Ames' death and admitted his language had been unnecessarily harsh.

'I acknowledge that I responded with emotions and an unfortunate choice of words. None of my aggression was directed at August nor her ability to consent to who she decides to work with,' he wrote. 'My issue was with the misinformation that exists within the adult industry on crossover talent I go through the same rigorous, regular testing all talent does.'

Wheeler performs in both gay and straight porn films, and identifies as pansexual, which means his sexuality is not limited to people of a particular gender identity or sexual orientation.

Although Ames' initial tweet did not reference testing specifically, she implied that working with an actor who previously shot gay porn was a health risk.

Adult film actress August Ames (L) and husband, adult film producer Kevin Moore, attend the 2016 Adult Video News Awards at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on January 23, 2016

'Whichever (lady) performer is replacing me tomorrow for @EroticaXNews, you're shooting with a guy who has shot gay porn, just to let cha know. BS is all I can say. Do agents really not care about who they're representing? #ladirect I do my homework for my body,' she wrote on December 3.

In a final couple of tweets Ames addressed to the flood of internet trolls making similar comments.

'NOT homophobic. Most girls don't shoot with guys who have shot gay porn, for safety. That's just how it is with me. I'm not putting my body at risk, I don't know what they do in their private lives,' she wrote. 'F--k you guys for attacking me when none of my intentions were malicious. I f--king love the gay community! What the f--k ever! I CHOOSE who I have inside my body. No hate.'

In a suicide note that Ames apparently wrote before her death, she did not mention harassment and apologized to her family.
Australians are no stranger to bizarre laws and heavy fines - but one state appears to cop it more than most.

New South Wales residents have been quick to share their outrage after being handed heavy fines for minor infractions.

From pouring liquid on to grass to driving too slowly, Daily Mail Australia looks back at some of the more bizarre laws heavily enforced by authorities over the past year.

Busy city commuters were given a rude shock earlier this year when police were seen waiting for them at popular intersections in Wynyard, in Sydney's CBD.

Sydneysiders were fined for taking off across the road without the blessing of a pedestrian light earlier this year (pictured)

Workers who crossed the road without waiting for the pedestrian light were fined $72 in August.

While an appeal may have gotten them off the hook, NSW law states their fine would have increased to $2,200 if they lost in court - leaving the option undesirable.

Later that month, a tourist was subjected to the wrath of petty council rangers.

Matthew Banks, from Western Australia, was travelling near Byron Bay in his van, when a coffee stop proved to be more expensive than first thought.

Matthew Banks (pictured) was fined after pouring some spoiled coffee on the grass

Friends of the Western Australian had made coffee using ingredients inside the car, which had been vacant for a week as Mr Banks underwent knee surgery.

He was issued a $450 fine (pictured) for 'aggravated littering' by rangers he claims flicked through a book of by-laws to find something to ticket him for

Unfortunately, the milk had been spoiled, leaving the batch of coffee was undrinkable.

Mr Banks and his friends poured the liquid on to some nearby grass to get rid of it, but were spotted by rangers from the local council, who fined him $450 for 'aggravated littering'.

He told Daily Mail Australia earlier this year a family picnicking in the same area had seen rangers flick through a book of local laws before one cried out 'we got him!'.

In September, Tim Agius drove in the right-hand lane for about 1.5km down the Pacific Highway between Port Macquarie and Coff Harbour in NSW.

A NSW Police officer spotted the man and chased after him, at one point reaching a speed of 220km/h - just to hand him a fine.

For his short jaunt in the right-hand lane, Mr Agius was fined $325 and told he would lose three points off his licence because of his actions.

Outraged, the man took his fine to court, where a judge found the police officer had been overzealous in his attempt to catch the man.

Reviewing the dashcam footage, the Magistrate scrapped the demerit point portion of the fine and capped it at $200.

A policeman zoomed along a highway at 220km/h in desperate pursuit of a driver who was simply driving in the right hand lane

On Thursday, a young motorcycle rider was given a $300 fine for incorrect placement of his helmet.

The 20-year-old man was pulled over near Sydney's CBD just after 3pm by police, who noticed his helmet was on backwards.

He told officers he was trying to avoid putting the strap on a pimple that had taken residence on his face.

Police fined him $319, and issued three demerit points to the man when he was caught on Elizabeth Street in Surry Hills.

This motorcycle rider was pulled over and fined $319 for wearing his helmet upside down

The bizarre laws and overzealous enforcement isn't unique to New South Wales.

In Queensland, boat owner Nico Brand was fined $365 for neglecting to wear his seatbelt as he pulled his boat out of the water earlier this year.

After loading his vessel onto a trailer and driving it 15 metres across a public jetty, he was approached by police, who asked him why he wasn't wearing a seatbelt.

In addition to his hefty fine, Mr Brand also lost three demerit points.

Queensland man Nico Brand was fined $375 and lost three points off his license for towing a boat out of the water without a seat belt earlier this year (pictured)

A local council in Melbourne has upped the fine for dog owners who don't pick up after their pets from $200 to $500.

Owners who take the risk and don't bring a bag with them will be facing a $200 fine - even if their dog doesn't relieve itself.

Casey City Council said the move was in response to community outrage over lazy pet owners.

Speeding fines in Victoria start at $198, and a driver must exceed the speed limit by 30km/h to reach a fine just $15 more than it would cost them to leave their dog's poo on the ground.
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The steely blue eyes may be faded, but the expression is as challenging as ever.

This astonishingly realistic painting of Prince Philip captures the craggy character of the 96-year-old royal as he stands in the impressive Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle.

By contrast, his youngest child Prince Edward  who, it is believed, will one day inherit his fathers title  can be seen in a somewhat more eyecatching outfit.

A newly emerged photograph shows Edward hosting a dinner at his country home, Bagshot Park, in his role as chairman of international special projects for the Duke of Edinburghs International Award Foundation.

The beautiful painting captures the craggy character of the 96-year-old royal as he stands in the impressive Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle

Edward, 53, is wearing a bow tie, blue velvet smoking jacket, Stewart Black Modern tartan trousers (the Queen is their chief of chiefs) and a pair of monogrammed slippers.

The leather-soled footwear, which looks to have been hand-made from velvet to match his jacket, bears his royal cipher  the letter E, with a crown above it.

By contrast, his youngest child Prince Edward  who, it is believed, will one day inherit his fathers title  can be seen in a somewhat more eyecatching outfit

Worn as an indoor replacement for boots or shoes, they are known as Prince Albert slippers after Queen Victorias husband, who elevated their status by adding the velvet uppers and quilted linings.

Philips more regal attire is the Windsor uniform, a type of formal dress worn only at Windsor Castle by male members of the Royal Family which was introduced by George III as far back as 1777.

The duke has been captured by the Australian-born artist Ralph Heimans, whose creations are breathtakingly true to life but not strictly hyper-realistic, in which the work looks no different from a high resolution photograph.

It is understood that Philip sat for him once at Windsor Castle, a royal residence favoured by both Philip and the Queen and one that holds special significance in regard to the dukes ancestry.

At the end of the Grand Corridor is the Tapestry Room where both his mother, Princess Alice, and maternal grandmother, Princess Victoria, were born.

In the background of the portrait are marble busts of Princess Alice by Joseph von Kopf and another of Princess Victoria by Hugo Hagen.

Notably, Philip himself is depicted wearing the blue sash of the Order of the Elephant, Denmarks highest-ranking honour.

Dating from 1693, the order has the Danish monarch as its head and is now used almost exclusively to honour other international royalty and heads of state.

Philip was born a prince of Denmark as well as Greece: His grandfather, George I of Greece, was originally a Danish prince born in Copenhagen, while his great grandfather, Christian IX, was king of Denmark from 1863 to 1906.

The portrait has been produced for display at the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle in Denmark, which is holding a retrospective exhibition of Mr Heimans work next year, part of which aims to explore the historical and cultural connections between the Royal Families of Great Britain and Denmark.

Mr Heimans, a father of two young daughters who now lives in Herne Hill, South London, painted the Diamond Jubilee portrait of the Queen which now hangs in Westminster Abbey and has other works in the Royal Collection.

He admits to being really quite shambolic and says the only time he ever wears a tie is when he paints royalty.

But he also says he is so paranoid about not spoiling a paintings surface that if a fly enters his studio he drops his brush and chases after it with a swatter.

As well as being seen in Denmark, his portrait of the Duke of Edinburgh will also go on display in Britain at some point next year.

Prince Edward (centre) and his wife The Countess of Wessex (second from right) held a Special Projects Dinner at their home in Bagshot Park

Mr Heimans painted the Diamond Jubilee portrait of the Queen which now hangs in Westminster Abbey and has other works in the Royal Collection

Whether Prince Edward will one day inherit that title remains to be seen, but it is known that father and son are remarkably close. It has often been said that Edward is his fathers favourite, the duke indulging his youngest in order to make up for the distance between himself and his older children, particularly Prince Charles.

Royal biographer Ingrid Seward told in the Daily Mail last month how, when Edward memorably quit the Royal Marines in 1987 only four months after starting, the Queen made her displeasure clear.

It was Philip, Seward says in My Husband And I, The Inside Story Of 70 Years Of The Royal Marriage, who was most sympathetic.

He understood his sons decision, which he considered a brave one, and supported him fully, she said, in spite of the fact that he was Captain General of the Royal Marines.

It is clearly significant that Edward has taken on his fathers mantle at the helm of the Duke of Edinburghs Awards scheme, founded by Philip in 1956 to encourage his own spirit of adventure in young people.
The leader of Kensington and Chelsea council will not attend a national memorial for victims of the Grenfell Tower tragedy after families asked the local authority to stay away.

Elizabeth Campbell, who has been criticised for being out of touch with the tower blocks residents, also revealed she was on a Caribbean holiday when the disaster unfolded.

She had been in Bermuda watching the Americas Cup yacht races with her husband when the devastating fire killed 71 people in the council-owned high-rise.

Mrs Campbell only took over as leader of Kensington and Chelsea council in July  weeks after the deadly blaze.

Elizabeth Campbell, the leader of Kensington and Chelsea council, will not attend a national memorial for victims of the Grenfell Tower tragedy at the request of families

Mrs Campbell only took over as leader of Kensington and Chelsea council in July  weeks after the deadly blaze. She has been accused of being 'out of touch' with residents

But the admission is likely to prompt further criticism that she does not understand the needs of survivors or the bereaved families from the tower block.

She has faced repeated demands for her to resign since she took over, and said she will not go to this weeks national memorial service for those who died.

Mrs Campbell told The Sunday Times she understood public anger directed at the Conservative-run council, which has been accused of ignoring repeated warnings about fire safety at the tower.

But she questioned critics who portrayed her as a rich Tory toff, adding: I think the whole thing about identity politics is completely ridiculous.

Mrs Campbell, the daughter of a former Hong Kong tycoon, faced criticism earlier this year when she admitted she had not been inside high-rise tower blocks before the Grenfell fire.

She was previously the councils cabinet member for family and childrens services, but resigned from the post a few months before the fire because she wanted to take time off with her husband, businessman Colin Campbell.

The couple were in Bermuda when the Grenfell tragedy made headlines around the world and Mrs Campbell said she did not hear about it for a day, but then returned to London immediately to help out.

Since taking over, Mrs Campbell has committed the wealthy councils 274million cash reserves to helping victims of the fire, including 235million to a house-buying programme.

Mrs Campbell had been in Bermuda watching the Americas Cup yacht races with her husband when the devastating fire killed 71 people in the council-owned high-rise

She told The Sunday Times: Im there to do whatever I can, day by day, family by family. You cant undo the past, but you can try and make the future a better place.

Asked about criticism of the council by victims, she said they had the right to be angry.

She said: I sat in a hotel with someone who lost their spouse and their two children and was on the phone with them while that was happening.

And I sat and wept with them, thinking, Why is that person not stringing me up, crucifying me because I represent everything that has gone wrong?

Families asked the council not to send representatives to the national memorial service due to be held at St Pauls Cathedral on Thursday, which is due to be attended by senior members of the Royal Family, including Prince Charles, William and Harry.

Mrs Campbell said: Its hugely sensitive and I dont want to impose myself in any way.

She added: The service isnt about me, its for the people who lost everything on that terrible night six months ago, and it is in memory of those who tragically lost their lives. It is only right that we respect the wishes of those involved.

Thursdays service has been timed to mark six months since the fire and a minutes silence is due to be held on the day at the councils offices in Kensington Town Hall.
A Vietnamese hacker broke into Perth Airport's computer files and obtained sensitive security information.

Le Duc Hoang Hai masqueraded as a third-party contractor in March last year to hack into IT systems.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's cyber security adviser Alastair MacGibbon told The West Australian the Vietnamese man stole a 'significant amount of information' about security at Perth Airport buildings.

He added the hack a as a 'near miss' that could have been a lot worse.

A Vietnamese hacker broke into the computer systems of Perth Airport to obtain sensitive security information

The hacker was able to get information on Perth Airport building security but not radars

Perth Airport told federal cyber security authorities in Canberra who then tipped off Vietnam

Perth Airport noticed a security breach and told federal cyber security authorities in Canberra.

They traced the cyber break-in to a hacker in Vietnam.

The 31-year-old man was arrested in Vietnam after authorities there received a tip-off from the Australian Federal Police.

He was last week convicted in a Vietnamese military court and sentenced to four years behind bars.

However, he was unable to access radars, computer data related to air traffic or the personal details of customers, which meant travellers were not put in danger.

Perth Airport was the only Australian target for the hacker who had compromised the websites of Vietnamese banks, telecommunications and an online military newspaper, The West Australian said.

The hacker from Vietnam obtained information about the security layout of Perth Airport

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's cyber security adviser Alastair MacGibbon said the Vietnamese man stole a 'significant amount of information' about building security
Family and friends have mourned the tragic death of a 22-year-old who died after being knocked to the ground in a late-night brawl.

Adelaide man Jack Hanley, 22, died after he was struck in the head on the corner of Hindley and Morphett Streets in Adelaide's centre just after 5.30am on Sunday.

Emergency services rushed to the scene but were unable to revive the Glandore man.

Mr Hanley's friends consoled each other just metres from where his body lay covered by a sheet in the popular party precinct.

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Adelaide man Jack Hanley, 22, (pictured) died after he was struck in the head on the corner of Hindley and Morphett Streets in Adelaide's centre just after 5.30am on Sunday

Mr Hanley's devastated sister Caity took to Facebook on Sunday to post a tribute to her 'beautiful little brother'.

'I will miss you so much Jacky boy, I still can't comprehend what has happened and wish this was all just a bad dream. You will be deeply missed and never forgotten,' she said.

'The pain for us all is immeasurable.'

Friends of the 22-year-old also flocked to social media to pay tribute to their friend who was 'taken far too soon'.

'I will miss you so much Jacky boy, I still can't comprehend what has happened and wish this was all just a bad dream. You will be deeply missed and never forgotten,' Caity Hanley said

Friends consoled each other mere metres from where Mr Hanley's body lay on the ground

Family and friends have mourned the tragic death of Mr Hanley (centre) who died after being knocked to the ground in a late-night brawl

Police covered Mr Hanley's body as it lay on the corner of Hindley and Morphett Streets in Adelaide's centre in the early hours of Sunday morning

A friend of Mr Hanley's sits on the curb in Adelaide's centre, metres from where his body lay

'With a heavy heart I'm sharing this post before everyone finds out along the grape vine. This SA police news post is unfortunately about my beautiful little brother Jack,' Caity Hanley wrote

'Jack Hanley, you were my brother. I love you and am at a complete loss. You leave a massive hole for all of us. You are a kind, funny, gentle man,' Nick Ward said.

After reviewing CCTV, detectives arrested a 22-year-old Kingswood man and charged him with manslaughter.

He was refused bail and is expected to front the Adelaide Magistrates' Court on Monday.

Police believe up to 10 people were involved in the brawl, and said more arrests were possible.

Adelaide man Jack Hanley, 22, (pictured) died after he was struck in the head on the corner of Hindley and Morphett Streets in Adelaide's centre just after 5.30am on Sunday
Theresa May will hail a new sense of optimism over Brexit today as she pledges to secure a trade deal which delivers prosperity and security for generations to come.

Addressing the House of Commons for the first time since last weeks breakthrough, the Prime Minister will promise to ensure that a sovereign UK takes control of its borders, money and laws once again.

Striking an upbeat note about the next phase of talks with Brussels on trade and other issues, she will call for bold new economic and security relationships with the EU after we leave.

Mrs May is likely to face a rousing reception from backbench Tory MPs today after dramatically regaining the political momentum.

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Theresa May, pictured with Jean-Claude Juncker last Monday, will strike an upbeat note about the next phase of talks with Brussels on trade and other issues

Smiles: David Davis and Labour Keir Starmer on yesterday's Andrew Marr show

Details of her statement were released last night as:

The Irish government reacted furiously to Brexit Secretary David Daviss claim that the deal was not legally enforceable, saying it was binding;

Labour was accused of planning to betray voters by seeking to allow easy EU migration, paying billions to Brussels indefinitely and accepting EU diktats;

Mr Davis said he wanted a Canada plus plus plus trade deal, but fiercely rejected the idea of the UK copying EU rules and regulations;

Ministers were braced for a rebellion from ten or more pro-Remain Tories on a crucial amendment to the EU Withdrawal Bill this week.

DAVIS: I WANT A 'CANADA PLUS PLUS PLUS' DEAL The Canada deal, formally known as the Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement, is the EUs most ambitious and comprehensive trade deal. Pictured: David Davis on the Andrew Marr show yesterday David Davis yesterday described his ambition for Britains trade deal with the EU as Canada plus plus plus. The Canada deal, formally known as the Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement, is the EUs most ambitious and comprehensive trade deal. It eradicated all tariffs on industrial goods and fishing, and more than 90 per cent of all agriculture tariffs. However, some products are not covered and others can be sold in only limited quantities. Ministers are confident of securing a tariff-free deal because of how much Britain buys from EU countries. Other notable advantages are that Canada doesnt pay into the European Union budget, nor is it required to accept free movement of EU workers. The deal took seven years to negotiate, but ministers argue Britain is beginning at a very different starting point where all our laws and rules are the same as those in Brussels. When the Brexit Secretary talks about plus plus plus, it is because he wants more than Canada in recognition of Britains importance as an EU trading partner. Advertisement

In a statement to MPs today, Mrs May will confront doubters who suggested we wouldnt get past phase one of the talks. The Prime Minister is pictured with EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker leaving a press conference last week

Mrs May is also set to unify Brexiteers and Remainers in her Cabinet. She is pictured with Jean-Claude Juncker last week

The Brexit Secretary, left with the Prime Minister, also moved to calm fears of Brexiteers concerned by a section of the agreement which said Britain would have full alignment with the EU on regulations and standards that had an impact on Northern Ireland

Last week  after a frenetic 24 hours of diplomacy  Mrs May concluded her agreement with European Commission negotiators on the rights of EU nationals, the divorce settlement and Northern Ireland.

On Thursday, leaders of EU member states are expected to sign off the deal, and agree that talks can move on to trade in the coming months.

ALL THAT BREXIT JARGON EXPLAINED What is full alignment? In last weeks Brexit deal, Theresa May agreed to keep the UK in full alignment with the EU on issues relevant to Northern Ireland. Remainers seized upon the language to say it meant Britain would be closely tied to Brussels, but ministers insist it does not mean Britain will be tied directly to the single market and customs union. David Davis said it meant Britain will meet the same outcomes  but not do it by just copying what the EU does. What is divergence? Brexiteers warn it would be a disaster to tie Britain too closely to the EUs rules. They want to allow for maximum divergence  distance from the EU  so Britain can negotiate better trade deals with non-EU countries. However, managing the border between the North and South of Ireland becomes more difficult the more the UK diverges from EU rules. For example, if Britain did a US trade deal to allow chlorine-washed chicken into the UK, how can you prevent the chicken being sold into the European market? What happens next? Cabinet ministers must decide next week what the UK wants the end state of relations with the EU to look like  that is, how much divergence they will seek. In theory, the more distance Britain seeks, the more restrictive its trade deal could be. The Cabinets crunch meeting is next week  expect Remainers to call for less divergence and Brexiteers for more freedom. Advertisement

In a statement to MPs today, Mrs May will confront doubters who suggested we wouldnt get past phase one of the talks. She will also seek to unify Brexiteers and Remainers in her Cabinet.

She will say: I have always been clear that this was never going to be an easy process. It has required give and take for the UK and the EU to move forward together. And that is what we have done.

Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

In doing so, we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

'A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again.

'A partnership that is in the best interests of the whole United Kingdom. And a partnership which can deliver prosperity and security for all our people, for generations to come.

Mr Davis said the chance of there being no deal had dropped dramatically.

He also insisted Britain will not pay a 39 billion exit bill to Brussels unless there is a trade deal  rejecting a claim from Chancellor Philip Hammond that we would pay up regardless.

The Brexit Secretary also moved to calm fears of Brexiteers concerned by a section of the agreement which said Britain would have full alignment with the EU on regulations and standards that had an impact on Northern Ireland.

Mr Davis insisted the phrase had been changed from non-divergence which would have meant cutting and pasting rules from Brussels.

Instead, Britain would be allowed to change its rules as long as they resulted in similar outcomes, he said.

But his suggestion the deal on Ireland was much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing sparked a swift backlash from Dublin, which sought the assurances to avoid a hard border with Northern Ireland.

Leo Varadkar, Irelands premier, has described Britains commitments to ensure no return to a hard border as cast-iron.

The Irish governments chief whip, Joe McHugh, added: We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the UK to account, as will the EU.
This is the heart-stopping moment a diver almost got his head taken off by a huge Great White shark.

The salvage diver was floating near the sea bed somewhere off the coast of South Africa when the shark appeared out of nowhere behind him.

He was diving with his son, who took the frightening footage, and didn't see the shark coming as he was looking the other way.

The salvage diver didn't see the shark coming as he was looking the other way during his expedition off the coast of South Africa

The aquatic beast emerged from the gloom with no warning and swam straight over the top of the diver, bumping into his head on the way.

The diver appeared shocked by the close encounter, clutching his head in surprised panic before looking up in disbelief.

Though the shark bared its teeth as it approached the defenceless divers, it moved straight past without showing any interest in devouring them.

The shark emerged from the gloom without warning swimming straight for him

Though the shark bared its teeth as it approached the defenceless divers, it moved straight past without showing any interest in devouring them

Other divers and spearfisherman suggested the shark realised the pair were not prey and showed no signs of being in 'attack mode'.

They were far luckier than numerous other divers who have been attacked by Great Whites and other big sharks even just this year.

Just last month tourists cage diving off South Africa got a fright when one of the killer sharks bit at the cage bars a dozen times before it was distracted by bait.
Steve Coogan has slammed Brexiteers and claimed they are Little England dinosaurs like Alan Partridge.

The 52-year-old actor, who has played the hapless radio host for more than 20 years, said his characters archaic social views are now widespread.

He explained Partridge would have voted to leave the EU and said it was depressing that the public agreed with him.

Speaking to the Radio Times, the left-wing comedian said: The world has coalesced into a situation that is sympathetic to Alan, which for me is quite depressing.

Steve Coogan, who has played hapless radio host Alan Partridge for more than 20 years, said his characters archaic social views are now widespread

Sometimes I agree with Alan but on Brexit Im a Remainer, and I feel quite conflicted about it.

Hes definitely a bit of a dinosaur. Unbelievably, you look around at the world now and see that there are still broadcasters with full-on red-blooded Alan-like attitudes.

'We thought we had thoroughly debunked that. It just shows how little influence you actually have on the national culture.

Coogan said he was conflicted about addressing Brexit in a new series of Alan Partridge.

The hit comedy returns to BBC One next year with Alans Little Englander attitude prime for unpicking the EU vote.

Coogan said he was conflicted about addressing Brexit in a new series of Alan Partridge

However, the actor and comedians position as a Remainer left him unsure over whether to take on the issue.

He eventually decided to include the topic as having a fool praise something is a far more powerful indictment than just criticising it.

Also, Alan can be like the boy who says the emperors wearing no clothes, he said.

Because of their opposing political views, Coogan said he didnt think the pair would get on in real life.

He added: Actually, I dont think Alan would like me. If we met, Alan would say to me, "oh, stop being provocative. Please say funny things and just leave it at that".'

Because of their opposing political views, Coogan said he didnt think he and Alan Partridge would get on in real life

He added he had only recently removed Alan as an albatross around my neck.

Coogan also revealed he was paid more for doing voices for Despicable Me than for all his years playing Alan Partridge.

Asked if Partidge had made him wealthy, he said: I suppose so, but only when I went on tour, really, not doing television. Ive made more money doing the voices for Despicable Me than I have for Alan Partridge.

But what he has done is open doors for me and let me do other things. Im very grateful to Alan.

Asked if he has become Partridge-like, Coogan replied: Alan is part of my DNA, but I edit my DNA and take out all the bits that are rational and are diplomatic. So, theres a side of him in me.

He added: In fact, sometimes in the past, people have tried to use it as a stick to hit me with and said, Ha, ha, look at Steve Coogan, hes really like Alan Partridge. To which my response is always, Yes, I know. Why is that terrible? Of course I am!

He eventually decided to include the topic as having a fool praise something is a far more powerful indictment than just criticising it

He said the character allows him to say things that, were I to say them as myself, would probably be career-ending.

Coogan said that the character was a burden on him until he started working on other projects.

He said: Alan was an albatross around my neck until about eight years ago, when I started doing stuff like The Trip and Philomena.

'When I got an Oscar nomination for Philomena, I thought, Well, Ive definitely drawn a line under something".

'So, counterintuitively, I didnt want to do Alan because I had to do Alan; I wanted to do Alan because I wanted to do Alan.'

The actor has been vocal about his left-wing views in the past and once said he would be keen to become involved in the Labour Party under Ed Milliband.

Speaking in 2012, he said: Im sometimes very Left-wing, other times Im a little Left-wing, but I never go right of that centre post.

The actor once said he would be keen to work with the Labour Party.

He has also become a campaigner against tabloid newspapers and received a six-figure sum in damages from Mirror Group Newspapers in October after his phone was hacked.
A leading arts college has given students a refund following accusations that one of its masters courses was not up to scratch.

London-based Central St Martins (CSM) promised to prepare the next generation of writers to survive and thrive in the industry.

But course attendees claimed that classes were often cancelled, there was a lack of feedback and work that was submitted went unacknowledged.

The iconic Central Saint Martins' Lethaby Building at Southampton Row,Holborn. Central St Martins College of Art and Design has since moved to a new university campus at King's Cross, freeing up its former buildings

The university has now refunded 5,000 to all 23 first-year dramatic writing students, and partially refunded most second years, after they took their case to the college authorities.

CSM tried to settle the dispute in the 2016-17 academic year by offering to pay 30 per cent of the fees, according to the Times, but ended up agreeing a full refund.

However, those accepting the repayment were required to sign a contract allowing the college to take back the money if they went public with the agreement.

The contract allegedly read: I acknowledgethat if I disclose the fact or terms of the settlement that I will be in breach of this settlement agreement and the university shall pursue me for breach of contract and recovery of all sums paid to me.

Central Saint Martins' Charing Cross Road site, Soho

It is understood that this settlement is the first of its kind, though some students on the course still say it is not enough to cover the cost of supporting themselves in London.

Formal complaints made by the students emerged following a freedom of information request.

They include concerns that industry masters, who promised to work with them, never showed up and emails were not answered.

The university has admitted that last years course had fallen below its usual standards.

A spokesman said: We have made major improvements to how we run MA dramatic writing.

'We have recruited new staff, increased input from industry professionals and provided extracurricular opportunities for collaboration.

We have every confidence in the changes and improvements that have been introduced for the new academic cycle 2017-18.
Two separate sightings of crocodiles only metres from the shore at packed beaches in far north Queensland have led to fears a swimmer will soon be attacked.

A two-metre maneater walking onto the sand at Cairns and a three-metre monster in the shallows at Townsville, left beachgoers in shock over the weekend.

Already this year there have been two fatal attacks in the state and now a number of local politicians are calling for a cull, fearing there may soon be another death at the mouth of a croc.

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An increase in the number of crocodile sightings in recent months has led to calls for 'urgent action', with fears an attack may be fatal (Pictured is a crocodile at Adelaide River, in the NT)

A saltwater crocodile wandered up onto Kewarra Beach in the Far North on Friday night at 6pm

Federal MP Bob Katter is calling for 'urgent action' after a spate of recent sightings at packed beaches in tourist hot spots

Federal MP Bob Katter, who has been known to be anti-crocs, is calling for 'urgent action' after the recent appearances at packed beaches in tourist hot spots.

Most worryingly, the reptile at Kewara Beach near Cairns was not deterred by many swimmers nearby, with the crocodile sat up on the sand for close to 30 minutes.

Two days later and a few hundred kilometres south, another monster reptile swam by a popular swimming area in Townsville, also in far north Queensland.

The sightings have led locals to call for increased crocodile management, with locals saying unless changes are made the results could be devastating.

'It's not a good situation for us to be in as a community,' local councillor Brett Olds told the Cairns Post.

'It's not good enough and there is going to be a kid taken soon.'

In March this year there was a fatal attack at Palmer Point, in Queensland, killing 35-year-old fisherman Warren Hughes.

The remains of missing elderly woman Anne Cameron were found inside a 4.5-metre croc at Craiglie Creek, near Port Douglas, in October.

Earlier this year fishermen took matters into their own hands, killing this 5.2-metre animal near Townsville (pictured)

The biggest crocodile reportedly ever seen in Australia was this 9.7-metre monster at Mackay, in Queensland on May 16, 1951

'The fact is that the croc numbers have exploded over the last 10 years and the crocs need to be removed,' Mr Katter (pictured) said

Angry locals have previously matters into their own hands, with a number of massive maneaters being killed in recent years.

In September, a 5.2-metre croc was shot dead in the Fitzroy River at Townsville, while weeks earlier authorities had to kill a two-metre beast when it got too close to public in Cairns.

Another reptile was found floating dead in the water with a bullet wound in its head in early December, also in far north Queensland.

Mr Katter admitted he was worried about how comfortable the animals appeared when near humans.

'In the last 10-12 days we've have had a croc in the swimming enclosure at Machans Beach, in the swimming enclosure at Palm Cove, a sighting at the beach at Port Douglas, an attack upon a tourist in the Daintree and now a sighting at Kewarra,' he said.

There has been two deaths from crocodiles in Queensland this year, with worried locals saying 'there is going to be a kid taken soon'

'The fact is that the croc numbers have exploded over the last 10 years and the crocs need to be removed.'

But it's seemingly not just humans at risk from the hungry reptiles.

Multiple videos of massive maneaters turning cannibal have surfaced recently, with the crocs more than happy to feast on their own kind.

In April epic footage showed the moment a large salt water crocodile swam through a waterway with its prey, a smaller croc, hanging from its mouth.

The video of the dominant monster devouring its prey was captured in Kununurra, Western Australia.
More than four out of five men convicted of grooming girls for sex are Asian, according to a report.

Seven in ten of the Asian men responsible are of Pakistani Muslim background, it found.

The study by the Quilliam think-tank, which focuses on countering Islamic extremism, was based on court evidence given by Asian men during trials of abuser gangs.

The report, which will be made public this week, said that girls from the Asian community are seen as commodities to be protected, whereas girls from outside of the community are seen as fair game.

Nine men were sentenced in 2012 for abusing young girls in Rochdale. Top row left to right: Abdul Rauf, Hamid Safi, Mohammed Sajid and Abdul Aziz; Bottom row left to right: Abdul Qayyum, Adil Khan, Mohammed Amin and Kabeer Hassan

Findings were gathered by British-Pakistani authors, who say they hope it will encourage Asian communities to take responsibility.

The authors said: In attempts to protect the sentiments of the British Pakistani community, we have failed vulnerable young girls who have suffered years of irreversible damage.

Shabir Ahmed, the ringleader of the Rochdale child sex grooming gang

They added that there was a disproportionate representation of males with Asian heritage convicted in such cases with the Asian male perpetrator/white female victim dynamic serving as the prominent feature of these grooming gangs.

'Most of these men are of Pakistani (Muslim) origin, and the victims that have come forward so far are almost exclusively young white girls.

A series of high-profile cases have resulted in the conviction of abuse gangs in cities including Rochdale and Oxford.

The Rochdale case led to widespread allegations that police and local authorities were ignoring sex offences by gangs because of a fear of being labelled racist.

Researchers examined 58 sex gang cases from 2005 to 2017. Of the 264 offenders, 84 per cent were Asian, mostly Pakistani, 8 per cent were black and 7 per cent were white.

Pictured is Molly Windsor depicting one of the abuse victims in the BBC drama Three Girls

Quilliams Haras Rafiq told the Sunday Times: There has been a lot of coverage of grooming gangs  from the politically correct, who dont want to talk about it, and the bigots who want to use it for hate.

Not talking about it doesnt make the problem go away, and letting bigots hijack the debate creates further division in society.

'We as a society need to tackle this head on.
Criminals and corrupt politicians and businessmen could escape exposure under a new attempt to restrict Press freedom

Criminals and corrupt politicians and businessmen could escape exposure under a new attempt to restrict Press freedom.

The fresh bid to restrict the rights of journalists and the media to inquire into crime and corruption involves attempts to change a data law that is going through Parliament.

One Labour amendment to the Data Protection Bill would mean that the Information Commissioner would have powers to decide whether codes of conduct under which journalists work should be recognised by the new law.

The Bill is aimed at producing an up-to-date data protection regime, which strengthens rights and gives individuals more control over their personal information.

Organisations that did not safeguard sensitive data would risk heavy fines.

But importantly, the legislation provides an exemption for journalists who access and store personal information without consent when exposing wrongdoing.

This means that individuals under investigation by journalists would not be able to interfere with their inquiries or block publication of stories that would bring to light wrongdoing.

A series of attempts have been made to introduce changes to the Bill which would remove safeguards for freedom of expression, bind journalists and make their inquiries either difficult or impossible.

The new Labour amendment would award powers to the Information Commissioner to decide that a code of conduct followed by journalists was inadequate to allow any journalist exemption from strict data protection rules.

It would mean that the Information Commissioner could rule against the code operated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation  the regulator free of state control to which the great majority of newspapers belong  or that of Ofcom, which governs the behaviour of BBC and other broadcast journalists.

If this happened it would threaten the ability of most journalists to write or broadcast about criminals or the corrupt.

A second amendment would rewrite the new law so that a second half of the Leveson inquiry into Press standards would go ahead.

Last month the News Media Association criticised amendments to the Bill to try to restrict the freedoms of journalists, saying these would give powerful claimants with something to hide fresh ammunition to pursue legal claims and shut down legitimate public interest investigation into their activities.
ICAN established a UN treaty that is calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons

The statement comes amidst escalating nuclear threats from US & North Korea

ICAN director Beatrice Fihn warns that the 'deaths of millions' could be imminent

If the Australian founder of a Nobel Peace Prize-winning organisation is to be believed, the destruction of humankind through nuclear weapons is just 'one tiny tantrum away'.

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) issued the warning as North Korea and America exchanged escalating threats over the nuclear testing regime in Pyongyang.

'Will it be the end of nuclear weapons, or will it be the end of us?' asked the organisation's director Beatrice Fihn. 'The deaths of millions may be one tiny tantrum away.'

Leader of the Nobel Committee Berit Reiss-Andersen presents to Nobel Peace Prize to the Executive Director of ICAN Beatrice Fihn and 85-year-old Hiroshima survivor Setsuko Thurlow

International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons aims to rid the world of atomic weaponry

Ms Fihn accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of ICAN at the ceremony in Oslo on Sunday

Ms Fihn accepted the award on behalf of ICAN at the ceremony alongside an 85-year-old atomic bomb survivor from Hiroshima Setsuko Thurlow.

'Devices that are incapable of distinguishing between a combatant and a child are simply unacceptable,' Ms Thurlow said, who was 13 years old when her city was attacked.

'Survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are living witnesses to the horror of nuclear war... world leaders must heed their call for a nuclear-weapon-free future,' she said.

Ms Thurlow added that she was overjoyed by the news that ICAN had won the Nobel Peace Prize, describing it as a wonderful and well-deserved honour. 'I am so deeply humbled to have been invited to jointly accept the prize on behalf of the campaign,' she said.

'It has been such a privilege to work with so many passionate and inspirational ICAN campaigners around the world over the past decade. The Nobel Peace Prize is a powerful tool that we can now use to advance our cause.'

Ms Beatrice Fihn (right) with 85-year-old Hiroshima survivor Setsuko Thurlow at the ceremony

Setsuko Thurlow (pictured) accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway alongside Beatrice Fihn

'It has been such a privilege to work with so many passionate and inspirational ICAN campaigners,' said Setsuko Thurlow as she spoke at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo

ICAN is best known for leading the controversial campaign demanding a global treaty banning nuclear weapons, The Guardian reported on Monday,

The award was bestowed 'for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treated-based prohibition of such weapons'.

In July 2017, the United Nations adopted the proposed treaty, under which states committed to never 'develop, test, produce, manufacture, otherwise acquire, possess or stockpile nuclear weapons'.

So far, 56 countries have signed the treaty and three have ratified it - the ban will come into effect when 50 countries in total have signed and ratified the document.

Most critics believe the treaty will not be effective without the participation and cooperation of the world's nine nuclear powerhouses - the US, China, France, Britain, Russia, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea.

But those in favour argue that the treaty will succeed through 'moral suasion' in the same way the ban on cluster weapons and landmines became a success.

Donald Trump (pictured) has threatened nuclear war against North Korea on many occasions

Trump called the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un 'Rocket Man' in an immature tweet recently

North Korea has fired 23 missiles in 16 tests of atomic weapons since February of this year

Amidst an escalating nuclear arms race, North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un recently called Donald Trump a 'dotard' on Twitter, to which he responded by describing his rival as a 'madman' and nicknaming him 'Little Rocket Man'.

Both leaders have threatened the other with nuclear annihilation on numerous occasions, with Trump vowing to to 'totally destroy' North Korea with 'fire and fury' with North Korea firing 23 missiles in 16 tests since February.

'The only rational course of action is to cease living under the conditions where our mutual destruction is only one impulsive tantrum away,' Ms Fihn said in Oslo on Sunday evening at the award ceremony.

'[Nuclear weapons] are a madman's gun held permanently to our temple.'

Kim Jong-Un called Donald Trump a 'dotard' after hearing of his threats of nuclear warfare

Trump and Kim Jong-un have exchanged escalating threats over nuclear testing in Pyongyang

Trump responded to being called 'old' by Kim Jong-un by tweeting that he was 'short and fat'

While accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, ICAN founder and professor of global health Dr Tilman Ruff used the opportunity to urge Australia to follow New Zealand's lead and sign the UN treaty.

'Nuclear weapons pose an existential threat in any hands and the risks of nuclear war are as high now as they have ever been,' he said.

'Yet the current Australian government has done all it can to get in the way of efforts to end this existential threat to humanity.'

The Australian government has long been in favour of nuclear weapons, fighting to have the treaty negotiations defeated before it was passed in 2007 with 123 countries voting in favour.

But a more recent poll, conducted in September 2017, found that 73 per cent of Australians support the prohibition of nuclear weapons, agreeing that they 'pose a threat to global security'.

Professor of global health Dr Tilman Ruff (centre) urged Australia to sign the weapons treaty

Setsuko Thurlow was 3 years old when Hiroshima was bombed, killing 80,000 in the first day

Addressing the crowd in Oslo, he also said that the honour extended to the 'millions' of campaigners who have worked tirelessly for the abolition of nuclear weapons since 1945.

'That particularly includes the survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki  the hibakusha and victims of nuclear test explosions, including in Australia and the Pacific, whose painful personal testimonies have played such a crucial role,' he said.

But instead of downsizing nuclear arsenals, countries like North Korea and the US are modernising and increasing their power, resulting in a disenchantment with the non-proliferation treaty and calls for an outright ban on nuclear weapons.

The last (and only) two times a nuclear power was used against civilians was in 1945.

More than 80,000 people in Hiroshima and a further 40,000 people in Nagasaki were killed instantly when an American B-29 bomber dropped the world's first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese cities.

Japan's Emperor Hirohito denounced the power of the 'new and most cruel bomb', which had cost 226,000 people their lives by the end of 1945 and continues to cause illnesses, birth defects and radiation exposure more than 72 years later.

Each August 6, thousands of people gather at Peace Memorial Park in the centre of Hiroshima to commemorate the anniversary of the devastating attack

People gather at Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima on the anniversary of the atomic bombing

The paper crane has become a symbol of hope in Japan after a young girl tried to make a thousand of them while in hospital being treated for leukemia caused by nuclear radiation
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Celebrities like Rob Lowe and Ellen Degeneres were among the thousands forced to plan escape routes as Southern California's largest and most destructive wildfire threatened the safety of residents.

New evacuations were ordered as the fire sent up an enormous plume near Montecito and Carpinteria - seaside areas in Santa Barbara County that had been under fire threat for days and were now choked with smoke.

Early on Sunday, actor Rob Lowe announced his plans to flee to safety as the flames continued the route.

'Praying for my town. Fires closing in. Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now,' Lowe wrote to his Twitter page.

This afternoon, Comedian Ellen Degeneres also said her property was 'under threat of being burned.'

Degeneres tweeted: 'We just had to evacuate our pets. I'm praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters.

'Everyone in the Montecito area is checking up on each other and helping to get people and animals to safety. I'm proud to be a part of this community,' she added.

'I'm sending lots of love and gratitude to the fire department and sheriffs. Thank you all. #ThomasFire'

US forest fire crews fight fire with fire as they set off huge backfires to cut off the northern flank of the Thomas fire near Rose Valley recreation area Saturday. The Thomas Fire has spread to near 150,000 acres Southern California

Santa Barbara PIO Mike Eliason watches as a home between Via Baja and Foothill goes up in flames Tuesday midday after a fast-moving, wind-fueled wildfire swept into Ventura destroying many homes early Tuesday

Actor Billy Baldwin shared shocking photos from outside his house showing dust clouding over the sky.

'Smoke from the #ThomasFire blocks out the sun... San Ynez, CA North Santa Barbara County #ThankYouFirefighters!!!,' Baldwin wrote in the picture post.

#Thomas Fire now: 173,000 acres, 4,500 firefighters, 710 structures and 15% contained,# he said this morning.

Crews with help from a fleet water-dropping planes and helicopters saved homes as unpredictable gusts sent the blaze deeper into residential foothill areas northwest of Los Angeles that haven't burned in decades.

'The winds are kind of squirrely right now,' said county fire spokesman Mike Eliason.

'Some places the smoke is going straight up in the air, and others it's blowing sideways. Depends on what canyon we're in.'

The Thomas Fire advances toward homes and farms near town as it continues to grow on December 10, 2017 near Carpinteria

Firefighters watch after setting a backfire at night to make progress against the Thomas Fire before the winds return with the daylight near Lake Casitas on December 9, 2017 near Ojai, California

Strong Santa Ana winds have been feeding major wildfires all week, destroying hundreds of houses and forcing tens of thousands of people to stay away from their homes

A fire whirl, also called a fire devil, forms as firefighters use drip torches to set a backfire at night in an effort to make progress against the Thomas Fire before the winds return with the daylight near Lake Casitas on December 9 near Ojai

The department posted a photo of one residence engulfed in flames. It's unclear whether other structures burned.

Thousands of homes and businesses in the county were without power.

The air thick with acrid smoke, even residents of areas not under evacuation orders took the opportunity to leave, fearing another shutdown of U.S. 101, a key coastal highway that was closed intermittently last week.

Officials handed out masks to residents who stayed behind in Montecito, the wealthy hillside enclave that's home to celebrities such as Lowe, Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bridges.

A few miles to the west, Santa Barbara Zoo was closed to the public and its 500 animals confined to their night quarters all day.

The zoo was just outside the evacuation area, but smoke and ash blew through the 30-acre property.

Firefighters made significant progress Saturday on other fronts of the enormous fire that started Dec. 4 in neighboring Ventura County.

As containment increased on other major blazes in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties, resources from those fires were diverted to the Santa Barbara foothills.

Forecasters said Santa Ana winds that whipped fires across the region last week would continue in some areas at least through Monday.

Huge smoke clouds rise into the sky at the Thomas fire Saturday. The Thomas Fire has spread to near 150,000 acres

Horses that were evacuated from the Thomas Fire are seen on December 10, 2017 in Ojai

A lack of rain has officials on edge statewide because of parched conditions and no end in sight to the typical fire season.

'This is the new normal,' Gov. Jerry Brown warned Saturday after surveying damage from the deadly Ventura fire.

'We're about ready to have firefighting at Christmas. This is very odd and unusual.'

High fire risk is expected to last into January and the governor and experts said climate change is making it a year-round threat.

Overall, the fires have destroyed about 800 homes and other buildings, killed dozens of horses and forced more than 200,000 people to flee flames that have burned over 270 square miles (700 square kilometers) since Dec. 4.

One death, so far, a 70-year-old woman who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city where the fire began.

The Ventura County blaze also continued to burn into rugged mountains in the Los Padres National Forest near the little town of Ojai and toward a preserve established for endangered California condors.

Ojai experienced hazardous levels of smoke at times and officials warned of unhealthy air for large swaths of the region.

Fire fighters attack the Thomas Fire's north flank with backfires as they continue to fight a massive wildfire north of Los Angeles, near Ojai

US forest fire crews fight fire with fire as they set off huge backfires to cut off the northern flank of the Thomas fire near Rose Valley recreation area Saturday

Firefighting helicopters try to save a house from the Thomas wildfire in Carpinteria, California on December 10

The South Coast Air Quality Management District urged residents to stay indoors if possible and avoid vigorous outdoor activities.

As fires burned in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, firefighters were already in place north of San Diego on Thursday when a major fire erupted and rapidly spread in the Fallbrook area, known for its avocado groves and horse stables in the rolling hills.

The fire swept through the San Luis Rey Training Facility, where it killed more than 40 elite thoroughbreds and destroyed more than 100 homes  most of them in a retirement community.

Three people were burned trying to escape the fire that continued to smolder Sunday.

Most of last week's fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the city's rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.

Meanwhile, the Lilac Fire #reached a peak of 1,409 Sunday and officials at the central command center say they're likely to begin releasing crews from duty now that the fire has reached 60 percent containment,' according to Fox 5 San Diego.

Crews worked through Sunday to strengthen containment lines and put out hot spots, the news station said.

'The fire's looking really good, despite the wind,' said Cal Fire public information officer and Battalion Chief, Henry Herrera.

'If we can get through today I think we'll be in pretty good shape for the remainder of this incident.'

Firefighter Malachi Anderson churns up the ashes as Nicholas Spanheimer hoses as they and other crew members with Cal Fire Engine 2472 do mop up work after the Lilac fire along Olive Hill Road

Firefighter Roebey Utviek climbs up a steep embankment covered with a thick layer of ash as he and the crew of Cal Fire Engine 2472 head int the woods to put out hot spots

Firefighters Malachi Anderson, left, and Nicholas Spanheimer return to their fire truck as they do mop up work after the Lilac fire
Tonnes of asbestos-contaminated waste has been dumped in a suburban Sydney street with authorities involved in a delicate clean-up operation.

Firefighters noticed several tonnes of the potentially deadly material when they were called to Chester Hill, west Sydney, about 1am on Monday.

A police hunt was immediately launched to find the culprit.

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Tonnes of asbestos-contaminated waste has been dumped in a suburban Sydney street with authorities involved in a delicate clean-up operation

Emergency service workers discovered the asbestos after they suited up in hazmat gear to search through the waste, Seven News reported.

Residents in the Chester Hill area were told to stay inside their homes until Bankstown Council workers could safely remove the waste.

The Environment Protection Agency said it was investigating the incident.

Anyone with information about the waste, or with dash-cam footage of a tip-truck in the area, has been urged to contact the police.

Industrial vehicles clean the suburban street after eight tonnes of excavation material was illegally dumped

A bulldozer and industrial truck were used to clean the residential street on Monday

Emergency service workers discovered the asbestos after they suited up in hazmat gear to search through the waste

Residents in the Chester Hill area were told to stay inside their homes until Bankstown Council workers could safely remove the waste

A truck was caught on CCTV footage, showing the full load of waste being dumped in the middle of the street.

Lumps of concrete, sticks, soil, and traces of asbestos were found, which could prove potentially deadly for anyone who breathes it in.

A team of investigators has been at the scene all morning attempting to determine exactly what is in the waste.

Regional Illegal Dumping Squad's Daryl Atkins condemned the people responsible.

'There are some arguments which say the tipping fees are the problem, but a lot of times it seems people are purely lazy,' he told Nine News.

'They want to unload their load the night before because they've got work to do again the next day - but this quite obviously is not the right place for the material.'

Samples for analysis will be taken from the waste, as police continue to investigate.

The culprit faces heavy fines and potential jail time.

A truck was caught on CCTV footage, showing the full load of waste being dumped in the middle of the street
The men and women fighting crime may be less threatening to the public if they wore a certain shade of blue.

Queensland police asked 1,000 people which hue of blue was more approachable to them when they saw officers on the street.

They found a less militaristic-looking uniform made the public feel less threatened, as police design a new uniform.

The police officers from Brisbane's Upper Mount Gravatt in light-blue shirts as 'approachable'

These police women from Cairns display tasers on their belts, which gives them authority

The 'most approachable' uniform featured a light blue shirt without a load-bearing vest for a gun and a taser.

However, a police uniform was regarded as having more legitimacy if it featured a dark-blue shirt with a firearm placed in a thigh holster and a taser on the hip.

The Queensland Police Service asked the University of Queensland to conduct an online poll to gauge public reaction on shades of blue.

'The introduction of new uniform and equipment has the potential to make officers appear too tactical, and may therefore negatively impact the way members of the community view the police,' the police said.

This officer from Gympie, north of Brisbane, has a dark uniform that is more militaristic looking

The Queensland Police asked the public to rate uniforms featuring dark and light-blue shirts

The police are seeking a balance between making the police appear approachable and legitimate to the public.

The survey found a taser positioned on an officer's hip made them less approachable to the public.

When it came to different circumstances, a uniform with a light-blue was regarded as more appropriate for community events like a school visit.

However, a dark-blue shirt exuded more authority for tense situations like crowd control.

These officers from Pullenvale in Brisbane's leafy west have their firearms and tasers on show

This officer from Townsville in north Queensland wears a uniform suited to crowd control

Queensland Police asked the University of Queensland to help them gauge public reaction

'This will likely ensure maximum co-operation and approval from the public,as high ratings of police legitimacy have been linked to public satisfaction and law-abiding behaviour,' the police said.

Women and older people were generally more trusting of police, giving a high rating to police uniforms regardless of the shade for legitimacy and approachability.

People in the city and country also had the same perception of police uniforms.
After her triumph in Brussels on Friday morning and full steam ahead now for Brexit, Theresa May has been enjoying her best headlines since that botched General Election campaign and her unfortunate Tory conference appearance.

Who could blame her if she wanted to sit back and take a breather during the festive period  but she must strongly resist the temptation.

Once dubbed the weakest PM since John Major when he was clinging to power, shes now in a stronger position than at her coronation in July 2016 and needs to exploit it by flexing her muscles with a Cabinet reshuffle in the New Year.

Once dubbed the weakest PM since John Major when he was clinging to power, Theresa May is now in a stronger position than at her coronation in July 2016 and needs to exploit it by flexing her muscles with a Cabinet reshuffle in the New Year

Graham Brady quit as a shadow minister in 2007 in protest at then Tory leader David Camerons opposition to the introduction of any new grammar schools

First out should be party chairman Sir Patrick McLoughlin. Hes a decent man who hates the job. Put him out of his misery, Mrs May, and replace him with the most powerful Tory MP that no one has ever heard of.

Graham Brady quit as a shadow minister in 2007 in protest at then Tory leader David Camerons opposition to the introduction of any new grammar schools.

Since 2010, the MP for Altrincham and Sale West has been chairman of the 1922 committee of backbench Tory MPs who wield immense power and can decide a PMs fate before the electorate get a chance to do so.

On the weekend after the election, Brady met the PM and was crucial in her decision to hang on in there and fight back.

Hes been a rock to Mrs May ever since, and its time he was rewarded.

The PM should make Brady party chairman with a big Cabinet role, and give him the chance to be a new Norman Tebbit or Cecil Parkinson, who were lynchpins of Mrs Thatchers governments.

Not only is Brady a strong media performer, I hear hed like to do the job. Remember where you read it first!

A loser in the literary jungle NOW that his profile-raising stint on Im A Celebrity has ended, heres a reality check for Stanley Johnson. The second volume of his memoirs, Stanley, I Resume, was seen on sale recently  in a branch of Poundland. Advertisement

Tory MP Ben Bradley has knocked seven-time winner Comrade Corbyn off his perch by scooping the Parliamentary Beard of the Year award. Hes the first Tory to win the title in a competition run by the Beard Liberation Front (really!). Mrs Thatcher will be spinning in her grave. She famously never promoted a bearded MP to the Cabinet.

Ex-Home Secretary Alan Johnson has no regrets at quitting Parliament this year: I want Jeremy to win, but just as [Corbyn] was not entirely enamoured with the government I was in, Im not totally enamoured with his front bench.

He predicts a bleak future for Labour. Jeremy and the people around him are part of sectarian politics, they define themselves by what theyre against and there will be more disruption, falling out and enmity within Labour as a result. We saw it in the early Eighties and were due a re-run.

How right he is.

Blairite Peter Kyle enjoyed one of the 2017 elections big wins in Hove. He is now in the sights of Momentum, the Corbynites who want to replace moderates with candidates who espouse radical socialist policies.

Last week, there was a clean sweep of nine Corbynites elected to the Local Campaign Forum which organises Labour candidate selection for Hoves 2019 elections.

Jon Rogers, one of them, says: Last time anything significant happened in local government was when the Ken Livingstone-led GLC tested the boundaries of what progressive councillors could do with their positions . . . Kyle has been warned.

Lib Dem Baroness Doocey, 69, on sexual improprieties: If any male peer touched my knee . . . I wouldnt make an issue of it  Id just call them a complete w*****! she tells The Oldie magazine. I dont think any female peers would take a blind bit of notice, but its a generational thing. Quite.
One Netflix subscriber in the UK watched the animated film Bee Movie a total of 357 times in 2017, new figures show.

Netflix has provided details of some of its users habits after having one of its most popular days of this year following the release of the second series of the sci-fi series Stranger Things.

But while the show was binge-watched in the first 24 hours of its release, one Netflix subscriber preferred to watch the 2007 animation staring Jerry Seinfeld as Barry the Bee.

The Bee Movie was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film at the 2007 Golden Globe Awards, although the picture was by no means a blockbuster hit.

Jerry Seinfeld stars as the voice as Barry the Bee in animated film Bee Movie, pictured, determined to stop humans from stealing the hive's honey

Other data released by the streaming service revealed that Greenleaf, a series about a family and their sprawling megachurch in Memphis, was the most 'devoured' show in the UK in 2017 - meaning the programme had been watched for more than two hours per day.

Spoof true crime drama American Vandal was the second most popular show.

Netflix also revealed the shows fans were most likely to watch ahead of their viewing partners.

Orange Is The New Black was the show most likely to make viewers cheat on their significant other, followed by Stranger Things, Narcos, 13 Reasons Why and Star Trek: Discovery.

Riverdale, Marvel's Iron Fist, Ozark, Better Call Saul and The Crown also prompted fans to cheat and watch ahead.
Jean Alexander, who played Hilda Ogden

Coronation Street actress Jean Alexander - famous for her headscarf and curlers in the role of Hilda Ogden -has had her ashes scattered at a beauty spot.

The soap star died on October 14 last year just three days after her 90th birthday.

This year the family lost her beloved brother Kenneth Hodgkinson at the age of 92, and it prompted the family to lay them both to rest together.

A world away from the cobbled streets of the show that gave her fame, Jean Alexander's ashes have been scattered near Grasmere in the Lake District - a spot where the ashes of Kenneth's late wife Cynthia were laid.

Kenneths daughter Sonia Hearld, 65, told the Daily Mirror: 'We spent many happy holidays there as kids. It has happy memories. The family know it, so it is a good place.

'Jean loved going up there. While she was not a great top of the hills walker, she did love pottering around and seeing the scenery.

'It just seemed the most suitable thing to do. It seemed to be a nice place, a quiet place.'

The actress spent 23 years on the soap as the archetypal working class Northern woman.

The character was hard-edged busybody but furiously house-proud, particularly of the flying duck ornaments which adorned a mural - or muriel, as Hilda told guests - in her front room.

Jean passed away peacefully in her hospital bed after being admitted to hospital.

A world away from the cobbled streets of the show that gave her fame, Jean Alexander's ashes have been scattered near Grasmere in the Lake District (pictured) - a spot where the ashes of Kenneth's late wife Cynthia were laid

Hilda was a hard-edged busybody but furiously house-proud, particularly of the flying duck ornaments which adorned a mural - or muriel, as Hilda told guests - in her front room

Hilda broke down at the sight of her late husbands abandoned spectacles, leaving viewers in tears themselves

She always had her hair tied up ready - in case. All she had to do was whip the curlers out and give it a flick up with the comb, Jean said

Members of the Coronation Street cast tap dancing to keep fit in this 1970s photo. Jean is second left alongside Julie Goodyear, who played Bet Lynch, on the far right

Famed for her catchphrase Ta-ra, chuck, pub cleaner Hilda Ogden was unexpectedly taken to the nations heart.

A thorny relationship with husband Stan Ogden, played by Bernard Youens, helped the characters go down in British television history.

After Stans on-screen funeral - following Youens death from a heart attack in 1984 - Jean departed from the normal comic nature of her role.

Hilda broke down at the sight of her late husbands abandoned spectacles, leaving viewers in tears themselves.

Liverpool-born Jean took her inspiration for the characters costume from wartime munitions workers in her home city.

She always had her hair tied up ready - in case. All she had to do was whip the curlers out and give it a flick up with the comb, she said.

Jean (far right) passed away peacefully in her hospital bed after being admitted to hospital on Tuesday

Coronation Street at Christmas 1984. Lest to right - Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear), Hilda Ogden (Jean Alexander) and Betty Turpin (Betty Driver)

Jean was discharged from hospital and allowed back to her care home, where she had lived since 2014 after suffering a minor stroke

Jean Alexander as Hilda Odgen on Coronation Street - with her trademark curlers - holding up Rommel the cat during an episode in 1986

She never did go anywhere that was worth going to - but thats where I got the idea from.

Jean insisted in an interview with the Manchester Evening News that she would not return to Coronation Street because life and attitudes have changed'.

MOST MEMORABLE QUOTES FROM ONE OF TV'S FEISTIEST CHARACTERS HILDA OGDEN Woman, Stanley. Woman. Hildas response when her husband asks what her lipstick tastes of after the couple share a clinch on their second honeymoon. We are a family of professional cleaners, which puts us higher up in Godliness than some folk I could name. after a row with Rovers landlady Annie Walker. I wouldnt give them to a working man, but seeing as you dont fall under that category theres no problem is there? Now get them ate. Hilda, when Stanley objects to pilchards for tea. You great, big, fat lump of human uselessness. Hilda to Stanley. Elsie Tanners eart is where a fellas wallet is  and the bigger the wallet, the more eart shes got. Hilda on Corries Elsie Tanner. Advertisement

She said: I know the programme tries to reflect life and in Hildas time it was more simple and cosy.

Today, life and attitudes have changed and permissiveness has crept up on us. So now it is all about whos sleeping with whom.

The programme may reflect life, but equally young people are being influenced by what they see in it.

Even girls of 13 think they absolutely must have boyfriends, otherwise people will think they arent normal.

She added that she wished there was more fun on the Street, and criticised modern story-lines for being too dragged out.

Im glad I was there in those earlier, more gentle years, she said.

I enjoyed my time as Hilda and it is lovely that viewers still remember her with such affection.

Almost 20 years after quitting Coronation Street, Jean was still so fondly remembered that she was voted the nation's favourite soap star.

After winning the poll, she said: 'It's unbelievable that people are still so fond of Hilda.

'We had so many wonderful individual characters when I was in the show, Ena Sharples and Elsie Tanner come to mind, so to be picked out from amongst that crew is very, very flattering.'

Her famous fans included Sir Michael Parkinson, writer Willis Hall, former Poet Laureate John Betjeman and the late Russell Harty, who formed themselves into the British League for Hilda Ogden.

Her response was typical, saying: 'I just couldn't see myself stood on a pedestal cast in bronze.

'Knowing my luck, the Southport seagulls would find me and do their worst, as they have done before - usually when I have just washed my hair.'

Born in Toxteth, Liverpool, she started her acting career in 1949 and made her television debut in the police series Z-Cars.

She first appeared in Coronation Street in 1961 as landlady Mrs Webb, returning three years later as Hilda, and went on to win a Royal Television Society Award in 1985 for the role.

Jean also played Aunty Wainwright, the money-grabbing local junk shop owner, on the long-running sitcom Last of the Summer Wine, from 1988 to 2010.

The actress had made a good recovery from a stroke in 2014, with Jean telling her fans not to worry and that she was fit and well.

She added at the time: Thank you to everyone for all the goodwill messages, I was very touched but there is still life in the old dog yet.

'I've spent my career playing old ladies - now I am one.'

Tributes poured in from social media, with current Coronation Street stars and long-time fans leaving heart-warming comments for the woman they remember as Hilda Ogden

Jean at the BAFTA awards at London's Drury Lane in April 2002 (right) and attending the Coronation Street 40th anniversary party (right)

'Former scriptwriter and archivist Daran Little wrote: 'Very sad to hear of the passing of Jean Alexander, a wonderful actress and a true friend. Tara chuck.' Pictured is Jean at the BAFTAs
Gold Coast City Councl say ibis problem is the responsibility of the restaurant

Scared diners go elsewhere or are forced to move inside because of pesky birds

Theo Kostoglou has had to replace glassware because it's been broken by beaks

Owner of Greek Street Grill says bin chickens are costing his business money

A restaurant owner in Surfers Paradise has hired 'bird shoo-ers' to keep pesky ibises away from paying customers.

Greek Street Grill owner Theo Kostoglou says the bin chickens are costing him business because they scare customers and steal food from their plates, which he has to replace.

'I have to have a staff member outside the front at all times to watch the birds. They're not fearful of humans and they hang around and sit and watch people eat. They wait for customers to look away then they jump on the tables and eat the food and drink the drinks', Mr Kostoglou told Daily Mail Australia.

Restaurant in Surfers Paradise has hired 'bird shoo-ers' to keep pesky ibises away (pictured)

Bin chickens scare customers away and steal food from the plates of those that stay (pictured)

'They even get their long beaks inside bottles. It's all extra costs for my business,' he added.

Mr Kostoglou said he and the restaurant next door had both complained to Gold Coast City Council about the ibises, but we're told it was for them to deal with.

'The council say it's nothing to do with them.

'I have to employ an extra staff member to watch for birds and spray them with water and vinegar.

I have to take these extra measures because the birds aren't safe to have around. Their beaks are quite scary and they can carry diseases. I don't want them passing anything on to my customers,' he said.

He said he'd like the council to send an environmentalist to find a solution.

'I don't want the birds killed but the council could find a safe option of getting rid of them.

'We've been told that the birds are trained to find the food source, then the rest of the birds follow them.

'I'd like someone to retrain them to go to a remote area. Then the rest can follow,' he said.

Mr Kostoglou said ibises wait for customers to look away then jump on the tables (pictured)

In a statement, the Gold Coast City Council said the ibises are protected under State Government legislation.

'[The] Council cannot remove the birds from the precinct. Importantly, even if we did, ibis fly up to 20km daily from the hinterland to Surfers Paradise as they know there are food scraps left on dining tables.

'To physically relocate the 20 problem birds would only see them return within a day or so.

'So it is not a simple matter of relocating nuisance birds.

''There are less than 20 problem birds in the Surfers area and it is a matter for private food service areas to ensure they keep the birds away from their dining areas. The number one rule is don't feed them, and don't allow patrons to feed them.

'If cafe owners ensured any food plates were quickly removed from tables as diners departed, we are confident that in a short time, the birds would realise that there are no food scraps available and would move on naturally.

'We feel for the cafe owners and have attended each cafe, with the Division Councillor, to explain to them their responsibility.'
A Queensland judge has found Heidi Strbak inflicted the blunt force trauma that led to the death of her four-year-old son Tyrell Cobb in 2009.

Tyrell died on the night of May 24 after two separate blows to his abdomen that caused internal bleeding and the leaking of his stomach contents, known as peritonitis.

Strbak pleaded guilty to her son's manslaughter in November but denied she delivered the fatal blows.

Heidi Strbak (left) was found to have inflicted the blows that killed her four-year-old son Tyrell Cobb (right) in 2009

The mother pleaded guilty to manslaughter last month but has denied delivering the fatal blows to her child

Defence barrister Greg McGuire had argued the circumstantial case against Strbak's then-partner Matthew Scown was stronger than against the boy's mother.

But Justice Peter Applegarth on Monday found there was a 'no compelling evidence that Scown inflicted the fatal injuries'.

Justice Applegarth found Strbak was not only responsible for the serious damage that killed Tyrell but also for many of the non-fatal injuries inflicted on him in the days before his death.

Tyrell had 53 bruises and 17 abrasions from head to legs when he died.

Strbak could be seen rocking back and forth in the dock and shaking her head as Justice Applegarth handed down his findings.

Tyrell had 53 bruises and 17 abrasions from head to legs when he died in May 2009

Justice Applegarth found 34-year-old Strbak was responsible for the serious damage that killed Tyrell

The judge also found she was responsible for many of the non-fatal injuries inflicted on him in the days before his death

She also appeared exasperated as she spoke to her lawyer after the court closed.

The 34-year-old will now be sentenced in the Brisbane Supreme Court on December 18.

Scown, also 34, was sentenced to four years' jail after pleading guilty to manslaughter but walked free from court in October, having already spent two years and eight months in custody.

He was sentenced on the grounds he was not responsible for Tyrell's injuries but failed in his duty of care by not seeking medical help for the boy.
Police are concerned the man might be injured as they search the park

The 35-year-old posted selfies to Facebook from the park around 3.30pm

Bushwalker reported missing on Sunday afternoon after failing to return home

Selfies posted by a bushwalker 24 hours ago could help police in their search for the man who vanished on Sunday afternoon.

David Occhipinti, 35, is believed to be missing in Werribee Gorge State Park in Victoria, around 70km northwest of Melbourne.

Police believe the semi-experienced bushwalker set off to walk the 10km track around the Werribee Gorge Circuit.

David Occhipinti, 35, from Noble Park North, is believed to be missing in Werribee Gorge State Park in Victoria

Selfies posted by the bushwalker 24 hours ago could help police in their search for the man who vanished on Sunday afternoon

Police believe the semi-experienced bushwalker set off to walk the 10km track around the Werribee Gorge Circuit (pictured)

Mr Occhipinti posted selfies to his Facebook page from the the western lookout around 3.30pm yesterday.

The 35-year-old, from Noble Park North, has reportedly visited the park twice before and was believed to be carrying a small supply of food and water.

Police found the man's car at a nearby park overnight and are searching the area by land and air.

The 35-year-old was due to arrive home around 7pm on Sunday night and is not carrying a GPS device

The 35-year-old, from Noble Park North, has reportedly visited the park twice before

Sergeant Mark Bacon told the Herald Sun there are concerns Mr Occhipinti may be injured.

'They [his friends and family] are anxious for him to be located,' Sergeant Bacon said.

'The longer it gets, the more concerned we become. He may be injured in the bushland somewhere.'

Police have begun to search for the man off-track in the 575 hectare state park

Rescue teams have been searching marked tracks in the 575 hectare park for the missing man.

Police will now start searching for Mr Occhipinti off-track.

The 35-year-old was due to arrive home around 7pm on Sunday night and is not carrying a GPS device.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Two Melbourne mothers have been sentenced to jail after they drunkenly bashed a paramedic so badly he could never return to work.

Amanda Warren, 31, and Caris Underwood, 20, punched and kicked experienced ambulance worker Paul Judd as he tried to treat a patient at Reservoir, Melbourne's north, in April 2016.

Warren was ordered to spend eight months in jail, and Underwood four months, when they appeared for sentencing in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday.

Underwood (pictured) was sentenced to four months jail, when she appeared for sentencing in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday

Amanda Warren, 31, (pictured outside court on Monday) and Caris Underwood, 20, punched and kicked an experienced ambulance worker

Mr Judd broke his foot in the violent attack and has required multiple surgeries since.

Warren and Underwood pleaded guilty to intentionally causing injury to Mr Judd.

A magistrate indicated on Monday morning he would jail the pair, after considering new laws for attacks on emergency workers.

'I have concluded that for both accused, an immediate custodial sentence is required,' Magistrate Lance Martin said.

Warren (pictured outside court on Monday) and Underwood pleaded guilty to intentionally causing injury to Mr Judd

Amanda Warren is seen entering the Melbourne Magistrates Court in Melbourne, Monday, December 11,

Unless there are 'special reasons', Victorian laws introduced in 2014 demand a mandatory minimum jail term of six months for anyone who intentionally injures an emergency worker.

But defence lawyers for Underwood and Warren previously argued special circumstances were present and the pair should avoid jail.

The court was told Underwood was abused as a child and has a young baby, while Warren suffered mental health issues and has four young children.

Assault victim Paul Judd addressed the media outside Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday
A violent brawl involving dozens of rowdy teenagers broke out inside a McDonald's and spilled onto the street on Friday night.

The argument started inside the fast food store in Echuca, northern Victoria, but quickly escalated as two large groups of boys clashed again outside.

One shirtless boy could be heard screaming 'I'll f***ing kill you' repeatedly as he lashed out at another man - both who were restrained by a group of friends.

A violent brawl involving dozens of rowdy teenagers broke out inside a McDonald's

The argument started inside the fast food store in Echuca, northern Victoria, but quickly escalated

Footage of the violent confrontation was uploaded on social media and viewed thousands of times.

At one point in the vision a group of at least ten people could be seen trading blows as bodies were tackled and thrown roughly onto the concrete road.

The groups eventually appeared to disperse as tensions simmered.

Victoria Police confirmed they were called to the McDonald's after receiving reports of a brawl outside the store on High Street.

'Police attended however the brawl has already dispersed. There were no arrests and no injuries reported,' a police spokesman told Daily Mail Australia.

'No complaint has been made in relation to the incident.'
A group of brave onlookers have saved a Southport chemist from a light-fingered thief by tackling him to the ground before he could leave the shop with the stolen items.

CCTV obtained by Channel 7 captured the moment that the robber, dressed in a plain grey sweater with the hood pulled up over his face, tried to make a quick exit from the pharmacy.

But he is stopped in his tracks by a quick-thinking man in a black shirt, who ran up to him and pinned his arms to his sides before he could get out the door.

Two men have stopped a thief (centre) who tried to escape after robbing a Gold Coast chemist

The two men manage to wrestle the man away from the door and back inside the pharmacy

A second witness dressed in a white shirt and black shorts also rushed to help, pulling the man's arm away from the door handle as he tried leave the premesis.

Merchandise was knocked to the floor during the struggle between the three men, before the two witnesses managed to overpower the thief, drag him back inside the chemist and pin him to the ground.

As they struggled, a third man joined the fray - and the combined weight of the three men stopped the robber from escaping.

Squirming on the floor, they put him in make-shift handcuffs provided by the pharmacist as yet more customers are drawn to the unfolding spectacle.

The establishment's owner disappeared out the door and returned with two police officers, who quickly dashed through the door to assess the situation.

Between them, they were able to subdue the would-be thief and eventually haul him into a sitting position by his sweater.

The pharmacist (second from left) gives wire to one of the men to make temporary handcuffs as the third man (far right in red shorts) lends a hand in keeping the thief lying on the ground

The thief is kept on the floor until two policemen (pictured right) are able to attend the scene

The quick-thinking men have been liberally praised by the hundreds of thousands of people who have seen the video, with one writing that they deserve 'a big kiss'.

'Good on ya boys, you should be proud of yourself to have protect[ed] your part of the community,' wrote one admirer.

Another wrote that we need 'more heroes like them' in Australia, and yet another agreed that their actions to save the local shop from robbery was 'the true meaning of community'.
Embattled senator Sam Dastyari's own senior Labor colleagues are calling on him to quit parliament.

Three Labor frontbenchers Linda Burney, Catherine King and Tony Burke are publicly pressuring the senator to resign, following yet another revelation about his alleged connections with China.

Senator Dastyari's political stocks have tumbled again, following a Fairfax Media revelation he tried to stop Labor's deputy leader Tanya Plibersek from meeting China critic and democracy activist Joseph Cheng Yu-shek during a visit to Hong Kong in January 2015.

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Labor senator Sam Dastyari's

A spokesman for the Sydney-based senator has rejected the claims as 'complete rubbish'.

However Linda Burney, Labor's human services frontbencher, said Senator Dastyari needed to consider his future in parliament.

'Sam Dastyari, I'm sure, is thinking very deeply about his role within the party,' she told Sky News on Monday.

'It is now up to Mr Dastyari to consider his position and I'm sure that he is doing that, but in relation to the continued role of Sam within the parliament that is a matter very much for Sam.'

Labor frontbencher Linda Burney has called on Sam Dastyari to consider his future in politics

Labor's health frontbencher Catherine King says Sam Dastyari's career wasn't going 'very far'

Catherine King, Labor's health spokeswoman, said Opposition Leader Bill Shorten was reluctant to promote Senator Dastyari, who was last month sacked as deputy opposition whip.

'Bill has made it very, very clear that Sam's political career is not going very far and I think they're matters for Sam to reflect upon,' she told reporters.

The Opposition's citizenship spokesman Tony Burke said his colleague had made too many mistakes on China.

'Sam Dastyari, in terms of the penalty that he's paid, it's happened twice to him now,' Mr Burke, a fellow Labor right-faction member from New South Wales, said.

'The consequences of that are pretty obvious in terms of the challenge for future promotion.'

Labor frontbencher Tony Burke has called on Sam Dastyari, a fellow right-faction politician from Sydney, to realise he was unlikely to be promoted

Sam Dastyari was revealed to have warned Chinese businessman Huang Xiangmo (pictured) his phone might be bugged

Senator Dastyari was sacked from Labor's frontbencher last year after it was revealed he had accepted $1,670 from a Chinese-linked company, Top Education, to pay an office bill.

Last month, it emerged Senator Dastyari had told billionaire Chinese businessman Huang Xiangmo his phone might be bugged as he met the political donor at his Mosman mansion on Sydney's North Shore.

Senator Dastyari also gave a media conference to the Chinese language media, where he contradicted Labor's position on the Sea China Sea.

He also also been revealed to have asked Defence officials 115 questions about China in just four years.

Former prime minister Tony Abbott (right) told Sydney radio host Ray Hadley (left) that Labor senator Sam Dastyari would resign from parliament on Sunday

Former prime minister Tony Abbott is predicting Senator Dastyari will quit parliament on Sunday, the day after the crucial Bennelong by-election in Sydney's north.

'Take it from me Ray, insiders in the Labor party have given up on him,' he told Sydney radio 2GB presenter Ray Hadley on Monday.

'They are doing a series of inside jobs on him now and my tip is, on the Sunday after the Bennelong by-election Sam Dastyari will resign.

'His blindness to reality is so great that it really is a political character flaw.'
Two women are set to become the first couple in Australia to file for a same-sex divorce under new laws.

The couple married in 2015 at a consulate in Perth under the laws of a European country, where same-sex marriage was already legal.

However, the marriage broke down and the pair separated, before finding it difficult to divorce under Australia's former marriage laws.

Two Perth women are set to become the first couple in Australia to file for a same-sex divorce under new laws after marrying at a European consulate in 2015 (Pictured is a mock ceremony in Victoria following a Marriage Equality rally)

One of the woman drafted solicitor Maria Loukas and barrister Teresa Farmer to find out her options and whether it was possible at all.

'The difficulty for this particular couple was having married under legislation of a European country, they couldn't access the divorce system in that country because they weren't residents in that country - neither of them were,' Ms Farmer told the ABC.

Ms Loukas said her client had reportedly been caused a great deal of anxiety and stress because of the situation as she was not 'able to move on with her life'.

'It's been about not being able to tidy up the end of something to be able to start fresh somewhere else...She's been held back in many ways,' she said.

One of the woman drafted solicitor Maria Loukas (left) and barrister Teresa Farmer (right) to find out her options and whether it was possible at all

Amendments to legislation now means the Perth couple's union is recognised in their home country - as is their eligibility to file for divorce

Australia's new same-sex marriage act came into effect on Saturday, with thousands of gay couples heading to registry offices around the country to file their intention to marry.

Amendments to the legislation now mean the Perth couple's union is recognised in their home country - as is their eligibility to file for divorce.

Ms Farmer said the pair are now 'no different to any other married couple'.

It comes after the United Nations found Australia violated international human rights by not allowing same-sex couples wed overseas to divorce.

The decision handed down in August concerned an Australian woman who married in Canada in 2004 and was unable to be legally divorced from her partner.

Australia's new same-sex marriage act came into effect on Saturday, with thousands of gay couples heading to registry offices around the country to file their intention to marry (Pictured are MP's celebrating the bill's passing in parliament)
Armie Hammer has apologized to Casey Affleck for questioning why he won the 2016 Best Actor Oscar when he was accused of sexual assault.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter last month, Hammer said it was a double standard for Affleck to have won such a prestigious award while facing two sexual harassment cases while Nate Parker was placed in a 'director's jail' after allegations of sexual assault resurfaced.

In a statement released on Friday through his PR firm, Hammer said he 'misspoke' when comparing the cases.

Armie Hammer (right) has apologized to Casey Affleck (left) for comments he made in a Hollywood Reporter interview questioning why Affleck won a Best Actor Oscar when he was accused of sexual assault while Nate Parker was placed in a 'director's jail' after allegations of sexual assault resurfaced

Hammer said he intended to make a 'social comment about double standards in general' but instead made a poor comparison that he 'deeply regrets making' (Pictured, Parker in February 2017)

'I would like to sincerely apologize to Casey and his family for my recent comments about him in my THR interview. Without knowing the facts about the civil lawsuits at issue (which I now understand were settled), I misspoke,' Hammer said in an email statement to Fox News.

'I conflated sexual harassment cases with a criminal case involving sexual assault charges. The cases in which Casey was involved were not criminal and instead involved civil claims from his 2010 movie I'm Still Here,' the 31-year-old actor continued.

In 2010, Affleck was sued for allegedly sexually harassing two female crew members on the set of the film I'm Still Here. The two cases were settled out of court and dismissed, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

One of the women claimed Affleck got into her bed while she was sleeping. The other alleged he violently pressured her to stay in his hotel room. The claims were settled in court for an undisclosed amount later that year.

In the initial interview, Hammer drew a comparison between the two men: '[Parker] had one incident - which was heinous and atrocious - but his entire life is affected in the worst possible way. And the other guy won the highest award you can get as an actor. It just doesn't make sense.'

Affleck won the Best Actor Oscar in 2016 for his role in Manchester by the Sea.

Hammer said he intended to make a 'social comment about double standards in general' but instead made a poor comparison that he 'deeply regrets making'.

In 2010, Affleck (left) was sued for allegedly sexually harassing two female crew members on the set of the film I'm Still Here. The two cases were settled out of court and dismissed, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Hammer (right) said in his statement that he 'conflated sexual harassment cases with a criminal case involving sexual assault charges'

Hammer said in the initial interview that Parker's Birth of a Nation was up for an Oscar last year before the director's 1999 rape allegation was brought up. He and his Penn State roommate were accused of raping a student. Parker (pictured, February 2017) was acquitted

'I also didn't mean to insinuate, nor do I believe, that Casey or anyone from his camp had anything to do with leaked information that took place during the press for 'Birth of a Nation,' Hammer said.

Hammer said in the initial interview that Parker's 2016 period drama Birth of a Nation was up for an Oscar last year before the director's 1999 rape allegation was brought up.

Parker and Jean Celestin, Parker's college roommate from Penn State and the co-writer of Birth of a Nation, were accused of raping a student when they attended the university in 1999.

Celestin was found guilty of sexual assault, but it was overturned when the student did not testify. She reportedly killed herself in 2012.

Parker was acquitted of the crime, but was later accused of exposing himself to a female student trainer.
Amorous couples are flocking to a beach to have sex 'all day' - and locals are sick of it.

Residents near Mudjimba Beach on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, say gay couples are meeting to have anonymous sex metres from where families with young children frolic on the sand.

Locals say the 'creepy' couples have transformed the beach from a family hot spot into an 'uncomfortable' area.

It comes after a couple was spotted having sex in broad daylight on Sydney's Bronte Beach (pictured)

The no-go area extends across a stretch of beach from a new boardwalk all the way to the Twin Waters lifeguard tower.

Locals said the men would walk along the beach wearing obscure items of clothing after setting up the encounter on a social media group, then signal each other.

'It is a serious problem that is really getting out of hand, particularly with school holidays approaching,' one told the Sunshine Coast Daily.

'I've been down there fishing and seen them meet up. Knowing you're on a family beach and people are having sex behind you is just uncomfortable.'

Gay men are using Mudjimba Beach (pictured) on the Sunshine Coast to have anonymous sex metres from where families with young children frolic on the sand, locals claim.

The couples would then disappear into the sand dune to have sex, with the activity so popular they had worn a path to the edge of the fenceline.

The source said in recent weeks the issue got worse to the point where men were masturbating in full view of families and made lewd posts of social media.

'This isn't about gay people or me being homophobic, it is just creepy. Go and get a hotel room. We are not against gay culture but we don't think the beach is the place for it,' the local said.
Christian Beasley, 32, escaped around 4.10am local time by cutting a hole through steel bars in the ceiling and then jumping over a 20-foot-high wall behind Kerobokan prison

Indonesian police are hunting for an American man who escaped Monday from an overcrowded prison in Bali by cutting through steel bars in the ceiling.

Christian Beasley, who was being held on suspicion of selling narcotics but hadn't been sentenced, escaped around 4.10am local time by cutting a hole through steel bars in the ceiling and then jumping over a 20-foot-high wall behind the prison.

Beasley was arrested in August at a post office in the Kuta tourist area of Bali with a package containing 5.7 grams of hashish.

This is the second breakout of foreign inmates at the Kerobokan prison this year. The overcrowded jail is about six miles from the main tourist beaches in the Kuta area, and often holds foreigners facing drug-related charges.

'It is thought that the prisoner escaped ... by cutting through the steel bars above the ceiling,' Badung Police chief Yudith Satria Hananta said in a statement, without giving details of how Beasley escaped without being detected.

Beasley, 32, from California, is believed to have then used a rope to climb down a wall before getting over a perimeter wall in an area being refurbished.

This is the second breakout of foreign inmates at the Kerobokan prison this year. The overcrowded jail is about six miles from the main tourist beaches in the Kuta area, and often holds foreigners facing drug-related charges (stock image)

Police have questioned witnesses and guards and are hunting for Beasley, Hananta said.

Another American, Paul Anthony Hoffman, 57, was captured while also trying to escape,the chief said.

Representatives of Beasley and Hoffman could not immediately be reached for comment.

An investigation was underway to determine if prison guards were involved in the escape, said Surung Pasaribu of the local office of the Law and Human Rights Ministry.

He also said there is a shortage of guards for the prison, which was built to accommodate about 300 people but has nearly 1,600 inmates.

It was the second escape from the prison in Bali's capital, Denpasar, since June, when inmates from Australia, Bulgaria, India and Malaysia tunneled to freedom about 12 meters under the prison's walls.

The Indian and the Bulgarian were caught soon after in neighboring East Timor, but Australian Shaun Edward Davidson and Malaysian Tee Kok King remain at large.

Davidson has taunted authorities by saying he was enjoying life in various parts of the world, in purported posts on Facebook.

Kerobokan has housed a number of well-known foreign drug convicts, including Australian Schappelle Corby, whose 12-and-a-half year sentence for marijuana smuggling got huge media attention.

Indonesia has executed several foreign drug convicts in recent years.

The country's prisons are often overcrowded - in part caused by the war on drugs led by the government of President Joko Widodo, which has led to a surge in the number of people locked up.

As of June, Kerobokan housed 1,378 inmates, more than four times its planned capacity of 323, government data show.

Prison escapes are fairly common in Indonesia, which launched an investigation this year after about 350 inmates broke out of a prison on the island of Sumatra.
Showboating probably wouldn't be on your list of priorities if you were on an important airdrop mission flying thousands of feet above the ground.

But that wasn't the case for one crazy Russian pilot who performed some dangerous stunts in a fighter jet over the skies over Syria.

The footage, that emerged on LiveLeak, was captured from inside a cargo plane and shows a Sukhoi Su-30 jet emerge and cruise behind the freighter after goods are dropped out of the sky.

Five cargo containers were dropped from the back of the freighter while on an airdrop mission over Syria

As the goods containers fell from the sky, an Su-30 fighter jet, used to escort the cargo plane, emerged and began tailing the aircraft from a dangerously close distance

The jet points its nose in the direction of the open hatch and hold its position for almost a full minute before making a dramatic maneuver and flying off

In the video, which was uploaded four days ago, five large containers are released from the back of the cargo plane before the escort aircraft comes within metres of the open hatch.

The jet points its nose in the direction of the camera and hold its position for almost a full minute.

The Su-30 gets close enough that the pilot can be seen in the cockpit.

It is believed the stunt took place over the Deir Ezzor province where it was likely on a routine escort mission to supply airdrops. It is unknown whether the stunt was a spur of the moment action or a choreographed maneuver

The footage, which was captured by aircrew on the cargo ship, shows the jet dramatically turning upside down and vanishing out of the frame

After holding its position behind the freighter, the jet dramatically turns upside down and vanishes out of the frame.

As the video finishes, three astonished crew members can be seen celebrating with their arms in the air once the escort pilot finishes his maneuvers.

It is believed the stunt took place over the Deir Ezzor province where it was likely on a routine escort mission to supply airdrops, according to AMN.

Whether the stunt was a spur of the moment action or a choreographed maneuver is unknown.
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As part of the crew digging a subway extension under the streets of Los Angeles, Ashley Leger always keeps her safety gear close by.

When her phone buzzes, she quickly dons a neon vest, hard hat and goggles before climbing deep down into a massive construction site beneath a boulevard east of downtown.

Earth-movers are diverted, and Leger gets on her hands and knees and gently brushes the dirt from a spot pointed out by a member of her team. Her heart beats faster because there's a chance she'll uncover what she calls 'the big find.'

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A skull of a young Columbian mammoth found at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension is placed on a cart at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles subway system is expanding and so too are the number of prehistoric fossils being recovered as crews dig beneath the city

Leger is a paleontologist who digs for fossils in the middle of a city rather than an open plain or desert. She works for a company contracted by Los Angeles transportation officials to keep paleontologists on hand as workers extend a subway line to the city's west side.

'They're making sure that they're recovering every single fossil that could possibly show up,' Leger said of her team of monitors. 'They call me anytime things are large and we need to lead an excavation.'

Since work on the extension began in 2014, fossilized remains have routinely turned up from creatures that roamed the grasslands and forests that covered the region during the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago.

They include a partial rabbit jaw, mastodon tooth, camel foreleg, bison vertebrae, and a tooth and ankle bone from a horse.

Paleontologist Ashley Leger shows the skull of a young Columbian mammoth found at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles

But the discovery that still makes Leger shake her head in disbelief came about a year ago, shortly after construction began on the project's second phase. She was at home getting ready for bed when a call came in from one of her monitors.

'It looks big,' he told her.

The next morning, Leger knelt at the site and recognized what appeared to be a partial elephant skull.

It turned out to be much more. After 15 hours of painstaking excavation, the team uncovered an intact skull of a juvenile mammoth.

Since work on one extension began in 2014, workers have routinely turned up fossilized remains of rabbits, camels, bison and other creatures that roamed the region during the last Ice Age

A skull of a young Columbian mammoth found at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension is placed on a cart at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles

Paleontologist Ashley Leger navigates through the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles. Earth-movers are diverted, and Leger gets on her hands and knees and gently brushes the dirt from a spot pointed out by a member of her team

'It's an absolute dream come true for me,' said Leger, who spent the previous decade at a South Dakota mammoth site with no discoveries even close to the size of the one in Los Angeles. 'It's the one fossil you always want to find in your career.'

California's stringent environmental laws require scientists to be on hand at certain construction sites.

Paleontologists have staffed all L.A. subway digs beginning in the 1990s, when work started on the city's inaugural line, said Dave Sotero, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Paying for the paleontologist staff from Cogstone Resource Management is factored into the project's cost, he said. When scientists are brought in to see what crews might have unearthed, work on the project continues, albeit in a different location.

'Our crews try to be as mindful as possible to help them do their jobs. We get out of their way,' Sotero said, adding that when the mammoth skull was uncovered, construction workers helped deliver it to the mouth of the site.

A worker operates a backhoe at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles

A worker stands near a backhoe at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles

A worker operates a backhoe at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles

Workers nail boards to the wall at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles

From there, the skull was hauled a mile or so to Los Angeles' La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, home to one of America's most fossil-rich sites.

Assistant curator Dr. Emily Lindsey called it a 'pretty remarkable find,' noting that while thousands of dire wolf and saber-toothed cat remains have been uncovered in L.A., there have been only about 30 mammoths.

A few hundred pounds and the size of an easy chair, the skull is especially rare because both tusks were attached. It's being studied and is available for public viewing inside the museum's glass-walled Fossil Lab.

With a nod to Hollywood, the eight- to 12-year-old Colombian mammoth was named Hayden, for the actress Hayden Panettiere, featured in the TV series 'Nashville' and 'Heroes.'

The Cogstone monitor at the construction site had been watching her on television before spotting the speck of bone that turned out to be the intact skull.

Similar endeavors have turned up subterranean treasures during digs in other cities.

Workers at a San Diego construction site found fossils including parts of a mammoth and a gray whale and multiple layers of ancient seashells.

Last year, crews working on a development near Boston's seaport uncovered a 50-foot (15-meter) wooden boat possibly dating as far back as the late 18th century.

Lindsey praised California's efforts to ensure science and urban development overlap, while bemoaning what bygone treasures may have been lost before the regulations went into place in the early 1970s.

'Most of the past is below the ground, so you're only going to find it when you dig,' she said. 'As the city grows, I'm sure we'll find more exciting fossil material.'
A British graduate has died in her sleep while on a 'trip of a lifetime' to Australia.

Chantelle Madonia, who suffered from a heart condition, was five months into a year abroad after completing a master's degree in global governance.

The 23-year-old died in her bed in Sydney as a result of atrial septal defect, more commonly referred to as a hole in the heart.

Her devastated mother Lisa, of Llanishen, Cardiff, said it was 'comforting' to know that Chantelle 'died living her dream'.

Chantelle Madonia, who suffered from a heart condition, was five months into a year abroad in Sydney after completing a master's degree in global governance

Chantelle (pictured with her younger sister Isobel) had been paying for her travel costs by working as a waitress in Sydney and hoped to work in cyber security after returning to the UK

'She was loving life there,' she added. 'She worked hard so she could take sight-seeing trips and adventures around the country.

'She'd been enjoying the wildlife trips especially. The trip had been her dream for a long time and was her reward to herself after completing her master's degree.

'Chantelle was an amazing girl and a fantastic daughter. I can't remember a time when she wasn't smiling.

'She wanted to travel the world and she did. She loved meeting new people. She said the people she met in Australia were like a family to her.'

Chantelle had been paying for her travel costs by working as a waitress in Sydney and hoped to work in cyber security after returning to the UK.

Mrs Madonia said her heart problems had first been revealed in 2012, after doctors detected a murmur.

Chantelle had planned to spend a year in Australia after previously travelling to Thailand and Nepal

Her devastated mother Lisa (pictured right) said it was 'comforting' to know that Chantelle 'died living her dream'

Atrial septal defect: Condition which causes a 'hole in the heart' Atrial septal defect is a congenital heart condition that sufferers are born with although the cause is unknown. The condition usually means that there is a hole in the upper chambers of the heart, which means that the oxygen-rich and the oxygen-poor blood, instead of being kept separate, are allowed to mix and flow from the heart to the body and lungs. Children with ASD only show mild symptoms but can be prone to more chest infections and can sometimes cause breathlessness and a heart murmur. Some small defects just require close monitoring as they can sometimes close on their own. However, larger holes require surgery to correct the defect, although after surgery, most children do not need further operations, and go on to lead normal healthy lives. If not repaired, the ASD may increase the risk for other problems, including heart failure. Advertisement

Chantelle's aunt Ellie Tomlin said said thousands of pounds have since been raised to go towards funeral costs.

She added: 'Chantelle was so full of life and loved to travel. She always supported her friends and family and was always thinking and worrying about others.

'Every picture you see of her Chantelle always had a smile and that's what comforts us. She was very strong-minded. She was very ambitious.

'We knew Chantelle was popular but we've had so many people want to help us, not just with fundraising but also coming to the house.

'We never thought this would happen but she just inspired so many people.'

Chantelle had planned to spend a year in Australia after previously travelling to Thailand and Nepal.

Ms Tomlin added: 'She had friends from all over the world and we've had messages from people she met in different countries. It's just been phenomenal.'

More than 8,000 has been raised to go towards funeral costs. There are plans to donate any extra money raised to the British Heart Foundation.

A fundraising page says: 'All we want to do is to celebrate the courageous, outgoing, wonderful life she lived in such a small space of time.'
Kim Jong-un may be attempting to make an arsenal of bioweapons after stepping up moves to build factories and laboratories, it has been claimed.

The North Korean dictator is steadily acquiring new machinery that can be used to churn out deadly microbes by the tonne, according to US and Asian intelligence officials.

It comes ten years after a report sent to Congress warned secret work was underway to produce a biological weapon - but that the hermit state lacked the technical know-how to complete the programme.

Kim Jong-un may be attempting to make an arsenal of bio-weapons after stepping up moves to build factories and laboratories, it has been claimed

WHAT ARE BIOWEAPONS? Biological weapons, also known as germ weapons, use any form of disease-causing microbes to attack or kill humans, animals or plants. Lethal bioweapons may be capable of killing hundreds of people, but cannot heavily damage infrastructure or buildings like conventional explosives. Weapons or bombs can be loaded with millions of viruses, bacteria or other infectious agents, including those responsible for smallpox, anthrax, the bubonic plague (black death) and more. The unpredictability of bioweapons, as well as their potential to cause widespread pandemics, means most countries have agreed to ban the entire class. Advertisement

But according to the Washington Post, Kim Jong-un has sent experts around the world to secure degrees in microbiology.

Analysts in America are concerned that the research could now spiral into full-scale production of dangerous pathogens that can be loaded into bioweaponary.

The Post quotes a senior US official as saying: 'That the North Koreans have [biological] agents is known, by various means. The lingering question is, why have they acquired the materials and developed the science, but not yet produced weapons?

'If it started tomorrow we might not know it, unless we're lucky enough to have an informant who happens to be in just the right place.'

Biological weapons, also known as germ weapons, use any form of disease-causing microbes to attack or kill humans, animals or plants.

It comes ten years after a report sent to Congress warned secret work was underway to produced a biological weapon - but that the hermit state lacked the technical know-how to complete the programme

Lethal bioweapons may be capable of killing hundreds of people, but cannot heavily damage infrastructure or buildings like conventional explosives.

Weapons or bombs can be loaded with millions of viruses, bacteria or other infectious agents, including those responsible for smallpox, anthrax, the bubonic plague (black death) and more.

The unpredictability of bioweapons, as well as their potential to cause widespread pandemics, means most countries have agreed to ban the entire class.

It comes as the US, South Korea and Japan started joint exercises today to track missiles from North Korea.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push.

The two-day exercise - the sixth since June last year - kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seoul's defence ministry said.

'During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information,' it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a 'super-large heavy warhead' anywhere on the US mainland.

Many analysts suggest that the rocket is capable of reaching the US mainland but voiced scepticism that Pyongyang has mastered the advanced technology needed to allow the rocket to survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.

Last month's launch was the first test of any kind since September 15, and quashed hopes that the North may have held back in order to open the door to a negotiated solution to the nuclear standoff.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has traded threats of war and personal insults with US President Donald Trump, heightening fears of another war on the peninsula once devastated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

The South condemned the launch and on Monday imposed new unilateral sanctions on its neighbour.

Pyongyang regularly condemns joint exercises by the US and its neighbours as preparations for war.

But Japanese defence minister Itsunori Onodera said Sunday: 'It is North Korea that is raising tensions. No one in the world - me, Prime Minister Abe, President Trump or Defence Secretary Mattis - is hoping to have conflicts.'

'If North Korea promises to abandon nuclear and missile programmes, that will lead to dialogue,' he added while visiting an army base in northern Japan to observe a separate Japan-US drill.
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Hezbollah says it will refocus its efforts on fighting the Palestinian cause after Donald Trump chose to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon, called on the group and its allies in the region to present a 'united front' against Israel.

His announcement came as thousands of the group's supporters took to the streets of Beirut chanting 'Death to America!' and 'Death to Israel!' while carrying banners that read 'Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine' and 'Jerusalem is Ours'. Nasrallah had called for the demonstration last week.

The marches, along with fresh violence in the West Bank and Gaza, came after Benjamin Netanyahu gave a speech to EU diplomats in Brussels saying Trump's declaration had 'made peace possible.'

Hezbollah has announced it will refocus its efforts on fighting the Palestinian cause after Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel (pictured, anti-Trump banners at a Hezbollah march in Lebanon on Monday)

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the group in Lebanon (pictured on Hezbollah's al-Manar TV) made the announcement as thousands took to the streets of Beirut in a day of protests against Trump

Nasrallah (whose picture, right, was carried through Beirut along with a portrait of former Hezbollah military leader Imad Mughniyeh) had called for the protests on Sunday

Marchers chanted 'Death to America!' and 'Death to Israel!' while carrying banners that read 'Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine' and 'Jerusalem is Ours'

Protesters chant slogans as they hold Lebanese and Palestinian flags during a march in Beirut on Monday

Benjamin Netanyahu said he believes that European countries will follow Donald Trump in recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and will join the US in moving their embassies there

Netanyahu, who met in Brussels with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, also said that Israel has prevented terror attacks in Europe and stopped the spread of radical Islam by providing stability

Benjamin Netanyahu also met with Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday, telling Palestinians afterward that the sooner they accept Jerusalem as the new capital of Israel 'the sooner there will be peace'

Macron issued his own, much more measured, statement in which he condemned Hamas rocket attacks on Israel but also called for an end to Jewish settlement building in the West Bank

Protests across the Muslim world entered their fifth day on Monday. Here a Palestinian throws a rock at Israeli security forces near the city of Ramallah, on the West Bank

Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces continued in the West Bank on Thursday. Pictured here, a man kicks a flaming tyre at Israeli security near Ramallah

Palestinian paramedic volunteers carry away an injured protester during clashes near Ramallah on Monday

Israeli security forces observe Palestinian protesters near Ramallah amid violent clashes

Masked protesters throw rocks at Israeli security guards near the Jewish settlement of Beit El, in the West Bank

Protesters burn images of Donald Trump in Gaza City in fury at his decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel

Israeli security forces run toward Palestinian protesters as scenes turn violent in the West Bank on Monday

'There is now an effort an effort to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration,' he said after meeting with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini

'I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance peace.'

'It's time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem,' he said.

'I believe that, even though we don't have an agreement yet, this is what will happen in the future. I believe that all, or most, of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace.'

Mogherini reiterated that the bloc would continue to recognise the 'international consensus' on Jerusalem.

Erdogan: US is 'partner to bloodshed' Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned the US todayit was a 'partner to bloodshed' after Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel sparked violence. Erdogan bitterly opposes Trump's decision and has sought to mobilise the Muslim world against it, calling a summit of Islamic countries on December 13 in Istanbul. The Turkish president, who regards himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause, said the 'struggle' of Muslims would not end until there was an independent Palestinian state. 'They will never be able to clean the blood,' he said in a speech in Ankara. 'With this recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, it (the United States) has become a partner to this bloodshed. We do not recognise this decision, we will not,' he added. Turkey had high hopes for relations under the Trump presidency, but ties have frayed with rows over the Syria conflict, a New York legal case and now Jerusalem. Erdogan said that the current 'vandalism and cruelty' in Jerusalem would not last. 'Those who think they own Jerusalem today will not find trees to hide behind,' he said. Advertisement

She repeated the Union's commitment to a two-state solution and that it was in Israel's interest to find a sustainable solution to its conflict with the Palestinians.

The EU, she said, would step up its peace efforts and would hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas next month.

She also condemned attacks on Israel and on Jews elsewhere in the world, including in Europe where a synagogue was firebombed in the Swedish city of Gothenburg at the weekend.

A demonstration condemning Netanyahu's visit is planned for later in the morning in Brussels.

Protesters also took to the streets in Iran, with a few hundred conservatives marching in Tehran, chanting 'the US is a murderer', 'Palestinian mothers are losing their children' and 'Death to America'.

A neon board on the side of the square announced that there were only 8,240 days left for Israel - a reference to a speech by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in which he predicted the end of Israel by 2030.

'Mr Trump has done a good job of speeding things up. We were expecting Israel to be dismantled later... but this is the beginning of the end of Israel,' said Hosseini.

'We have to thank him for what he did.'

Netayahu's comments came after a meeting with Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday, in which he said the sooner Palestinians can accept Jerusalem as Israel's capital, 'the sooner there will be peace'.

Macron called for Netanyahu to show 'courage' in restarting the peace process and called for an end to Jewish settlement building in the West Bank.

In a concession to Netanyahu, he started the statement by condemning 'all the attacks of the last few days', including rockets launched by Hamas at the Jewish state.

Netanyahu had earlier said he planned to rebuke Macron for condemning Trump's statement, but ignoring the attacks by Hamas.

The Jewish leader also hit out at Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had earlier branded Israel a 'terrorist country' that 'kills children'.

'I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran get around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people,' Netanyahu said. 'That is not the man who is going to lecture us.'

Macron had taken a phone call from Erdogan, according to a source close to the Turkish leader, and agreed that Trump's declaration had not been good for the region.

Erdogan also spoke to other regional leaders and vowed to do everything possible to reverse the declaration.

Armed members of the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamist organisation Palestinian Islamic Jihad, march in Gaza

The Al-Quds brigades took to the streets of Gaza City on Monday to protest against Donald Trump's decision

Palestinian women wave national flags while chanting slogans during an anti-Trump march in Gaza City

Marchers holding a Palestinian flag walk through the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Monday

As Netanyahu spoke protesters in Indonesia took to the streets for a fifth straight day of demonstrations

Effigies of Donald Trump were burned in the street in anger at his decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital

An Indonesian protester holds the Palestinian national flag during a rally against Trump held in Jakarta on Monday

Hamas tunnel destroyed The Israeli military destroyed a Hamas tunnel stretching from the Gaza Strip into its territory on Sunday. Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, told reporters that Israel had used a new set of 'tools' developed since the 2014 war with Hamas in order to destroy the tunnel. He said forces had detected the tunnel months ago and continued to monitor construction efforts by Hamas militants before demolishing it. Israel has made neutralizing the tunnel threat a top priority since that war, when Hamas militants on several occasions made their way into Israel. Although they did not manage to reach civilian areas, the infiltrations caught Israel off guard, killing five soldiers in one attack, and terrified the local population. Conricus said a new system involving combat units, military intelligence, logistics and research had been used to destroy the tunnel. Advertisement

Earlier on Sunday, a 25-year-old Israeli security guard was left in critical condition after being stabbed at Jerusalem's central bus station.

The guard was attacked with a kitchen knife by a 24-year-old Palestinian from the West Bank as he approached a metal detector who fled but was arrested after being tackled by a passerby.

Meanwhile demonstrators burned Israeli flags and clashed with police elsewhere in the West Bank, while Palestinian Christians also held a march denouncing Trump's decision.

In Lebanon scenes outside the US embassy turned ugly as police were forced to use tear gas and water cannon to force back rioters who tried to storm the building.

Marchers in Jalalabad,Afghanistan, also burned effigies of Trump and thousands gathered on the streets of Jakarta, Indonesia, in a fourth straight day of anger.

Missiles were fired into Israel from Gaza on Friday night, provoking a response from Israeli fighter jets and tanks that left two members of Hamas dead.

The most serious disturbances came at Rachel's Tomb near Hebron, in Tulkarm and on the outskirts of Bethlehem.

A Palestinian youth was critically injured when he was hit in the eye by a rubber bullet in Ramallah, local media reported. The Israeli police spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, denied this, saying that protesters were 'precisely injured in the lower part of the body'.

A 25-year-old Israeli security guard is in critical condition in hospital after being stabbed at Jerusalem's central bus station

Police say they have arrested a 24-year-old man and are questioning him, but say his background and motivation are not clear

The attack happened as violent clashes continued across the West Bank and Gaza after Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital city

Demonstrators attempted to break into the embassy in Lebanon before police managed to force them back

A burning Israeli flag is draped across barbed wire outside the US embassy in Aukar, east of Beirut, on Sunday

Protesters run from riot police after they used water cannon and tear gas outside the American embassy

Meanwhile, three Israelis were wounded as a bus travelling near Haifa in northern Israel came under attack by Arab youths hurling rocks.

The driver was injured by flying glass and evacuated to hospital while two passengers were treated at the scene, near the town of Arara. Police made two arrests.

Demonstrations were also held elsewhere in the country, including in Umm el-Fahm, Rehat, Tira and Tamra, but these were significantly smaller than those seen on Friday's 'day of rage'.

Nevertheless, the protests on Friday and the subsequent scuffles were less serious than had been expected, falling well short of the 'new intifada' demanded by Hamas.

It came after about 25,000 Israelis demanded that Mr Netanyahu resign by taking to the streets of Tel Aviv last night, chanting 'mafia, mafia', and 'being a pig isn't kosher'.

They were voicing concerns over claims that Mr Netanyahu received gifts from wealthy businessmen and made a deal with a newspaper for positive reporting, and that legislation was drafted to keep the allegations secret.

A similar protest in Haifa turned violent when a group of anarchists supporting the boycott of Israel joined the march.

The rallies followed a huge demonstration last week, when about 30,000 people spontaneously protested against corruption on Rothschild Boulevard, one of Tel Aviv's most iconic streets, in one of the largest rallies in recent memory.

Naftali Bennett, the Right-wing leader of the Bait Yehudi party, made a bold pitch to become Israel's next prime minister, saying he has 'broad experience in business, economics, government and security and I plan to use all of it.' He stopped short, however, of calling for early elections.

In a further sign of diplomatic backlash over the Trump announcement, a Palestinian Authority official confirmed that its president, Mahmoud Abbas, would pull out of a meeting with US vice president Mike Pence later this month.

A White House aide said that the meeting was still scheduled, however, adding that would be 'counterproductive' for Mr Abbas to cancel it.

Palestinian officials are understood to be lobbying the UN security council to pass a resolution demanding that the US withdraw its recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Fourteen out of the 15 members of the Security Council condemned Mr Trump's move in an emergency meeting in New York on Friday.

Yesterday, the Arab League demanded that the US change its stance on Jerusalem for fear that it would stoke further unrest across the region.
A Russian mother has been jailed for 18 and a half years for killing two of her sons with a drug once used as 'rat poison'.

Elena Kordyukova, 39, from Ekaterinburg had also attempted to murder another son the same way, but doctors were able to save his life.

A fourth child, a daughter, had also died young, but forensic scientists were unable to determine her cause of death.

Killer mother: Elena Kordyukova, pictured with her son Mikhail, was found to have poisoned three of her four children, killing two and leaving a third seriously ill

Kordyukova's childre; sons Ilya, Maxim and Mikhail and daughter Alexandra all suffered from a rare genetic disorder called atypical haemolytic-uremic syndrome.

It causes the formation of blood clots in small blood vessels throughout the body, leading to stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, and death.

Maxim, Mikhail and Alexandra all died under the age of three.

Kordyukova told police she wanted her children to die so she could have more children 'without health problems'.

The remains of Maxim and Mikhail were exhumed and found to have significant traces of Warfarin, an anticoagulant drug originally developed as a rat poison.

Murderer: Kordyukova, pictured with Mikhail, was accused of also poisoning the couple's daughter Alexandra, but when her remains were exhumed her body was so decomposed that forensic experts could not determine a cause of death

The Kordyukovs children Ilya, Maxim, Mikhail and Alexandra all suffered from a rare genetic disorder called atypical haemolytic-uremic syndrome

Kordyukova told police she wanted her children to die so she could have more children 'without health problems'

The drug could have been used to treat their disorder, but is lethal in large doses.

Alexandra's body was also exhumed but had already decomposed to the point where forensic experts were unable to tell whether she had also been poisoned.

Her eldest son Ilya, eight, was found to have taken 30 doses of the drug administered by his mother while in hospital. He was left in a 'grave' condition but survived.

The children's father Andrey Kordyukov described his wife as a 'loving mother' who had tried to save her children.

But a court in Ekaterinburg was told that she had confessed to murder and attempted murder, saying she 'had tried to cure them, but it was easier to get rid of this burden and try to give birth to new children who were healthy'.

Elena Kordyukova, pictured in court, has been jailed for 18 and a half years for the murders

Defending: Andrey Kordyukov, pictured in court, has defended his wife and says their child who is still alive, Ilya, needs her at home

Psychiatrists found she was 'completely normal' and aware of her crimes, the judge was told.

Police say her husband was unaware of her killing spree.

He said Ilya needed his mother at home and they would appeal her sentence.

Added to time she has already been in detention, she will serve a full 20 years, the maximum for a woman in Russia.

'She is a wonderful mother. I saw how caring she was for the children,' he said.

He claimed she told him that she had been 'forced' to make a confession.
A schoolgirl narrowly missed having a skin graft after a dangerous YouTube craze left her with burns and no feeling in her hand.

Ebony Worthington, 10, had to be taken to a specialist burns unit after taking part in the 'Aerosol challenge', which sees youngsters spray deodorant on their skin at close range for as long as they possibly can.

The youngster, of Farnworth, near Bolton, sprayed aerosol on her hand for a few minutes, leaving an angry red burn.

The next day at school the mark on Ebony's hand had swollen up and looked infected, so her teachers rang her mother to refer her to hospital.

She was rushed to hospital and referred to Manchester Children's Hospital burns unit where doctors were inclined to perform a skin graft.

Ebony Worthington, 10, had to be taken to a specialist burns unit after taking part in the 'Aerosol challenge', which sees youngsters spray deodorant on their skin at close range for as long as they possibly can. She is pictured in hospital

Her mother Kirsty Heathcote, 30, is frantic with worry and unable to see her daughter in hospital as she has a cold and can't risk exposing her to any germs.

She told the Bolton News: 'At first they thought she might need a skin graft, which would have been awful  I hated the thought of her being in so much pain because of this silly challenge.

'Unfortunately, some kids have seen this craze on YouTube and it has just spread from there - they don't realise the seriousness of what it can do to you, and neither did I.

'Parents need to be aware of what their children are watching on Youtube. Every child is seeing these kind of videos now, but they don't understand the dangers.'

Ebony's classmates have been warned not to make her mistake and try the 'damaging and painful' challenge.

Her injuries are due to heal in the next four to six weeks, but her mother is still worried about long-term damage, which could affect her passion for gymnastics.

With Ms Heathcote unable to visit her daughter, her grandmother has stayed by her bedside and will accommodate her when she is discharged.

Earlier this year Cornwall mother Sara Pears Stanley posted pictures of her daughter Kaitlyn's arms (pictured) covered in red burns after she did it

She said: It has all come from these Youtube videos - I have watched a few and there are some that really go wrong.

'After she had done it, Ebony came downstairs and put her hand on the freezer and said she had banged it.

'An hour later, she came back and showed me the mark on her hand - it was white and a perfect circle.

'The next day, her school phoned me to say that they were very concerned - the mark had started to swell and had gone numb.

'It looked infected and the hospital told us it was a bad burn, so they contacted the burns unit at Manchester Children's Hospital.

Teenagers across Britain have been taking to YouTube to film themselves spraying deodorant on their skin at close range for as long as they can for the last few years

'At first they thought she might need a skin graft, which would have been awful - I hated the thought of her being in so much pain because of this silly challenge.

'Fortunately, she just needed it bandaged, but she was very close to needing a graft. She was very lucky.'

She continued: 'It's a nightmare. I can't believe that something this simple can cause so much damage.

'I keep the deodorant in the bathroom and I have never thought that it should be hidden away because it is a danger.

'Ebony has no feeling in the top of her hand at the moment, so we just have to hope that is not long-term.

'She does gymnastics and I don't want this to jeopardise the things that she enjoys.'

'I have been to the school and they told me that every teacher has spoken to their classes about it. Hopefully none of them will try it again.

'This has been awful for me, but my mum has been amazing and hasn't left Ebony's side.

'Ebony has been so brave and she has definitely realised how silly she was and the consequences of her actions.

Another concerned parent posts a graphic warning about the 'Aerosol challenge'

The consequences are extremely painful and can leave lasting damage to the skin (pictured)

'She is a very bright girl, so we are all surprised that she would do this. It just goes to show how easily influenced any child can be.

'I worry about what the next challenge will be. The next one could fatally harm someone.'

The 'Aerosol challenge' first emerged a few years ago, with children and teenagers across Britain rushing to try the new craze.

But pictures posted by concerned parents on social media have shown the damaging effect it can have on young people's sensitive skin.

Earlier this year Cornwall mother Sara Pears Stanley posted pictures of her daughter Kaitlyn's arms covered in red burns after she did it.

She wrote on Facebook: 'Apparently the new craze up Bodmin college is the 'deodorant challenge'. I've warned Kaitlyn not to do it again...Just want you all to be aware'.

The British Skin Foundation has condemned the trend, branding it 'painful and damaging'.

A spokesman told MailOnline: 'The British Skin Foundation would never encourage the use of any aerosol product in close proximity to the skin for a prolonged period.

'These products should be used appropriately and responsibly as extended use can lead to the freezing action producing a cryogenic burn.

'Short term this is both painful and damaging but prolonged exposure could lead to permanent damage or disfigurement.'
A former beauty queen-turned-drug-dealer who suffered horrific burns when a grenade blew up in her face during a dramatic police raid has been spared jail.

Felicia Djamirze, 29, was charged with drug trafficking offences after a police operation targeted Queensland's Fraser Coast cocaine and ice dealers last year.

The former Miss Australia International was asleep with her alleged bikie-linked partner when officers threw flash grenades into the bedroom in February 2016.

She was told by prosecutors on Monday she 'cannot complain about the collateral damage that occurred' during the raid, the Fraser Coast Chronicle reported.

Felicia Djamirze (pictured left prior to raid), who suffered horrific burns (right) when a grenade blew up in her face during a dramatic police raid, has been spared jail

Djamirze was a respected member of the community before she got involved with the wrong crowd, her defence counsel told Brisbane Supreme Court.

'She was in the wrong place at the wrong time and with the wrong partner. What a gross understatement that is,' Bruce Walmsley reportedly said.

But Djamirze knew her partner at the time, Dean O'Donnell, was dealing drugs, prosecutors argued.

She was handed a three-year suspended jail term for supplying a dangerous drug, with the judge adding he didn't expect to see her before the courts again.

The former Miss Australia International was asleep with her alleged bikie-linked partner when officers threw flash grenades into the bedroom in February 2016

Shortly after the police raid, Djamirze spoke to Channel Nine's A Current Affair program about the incident.

'I thought I was going to die... they left me there to burn,' she said at the time.

'I was in a state of shock. "Burnt, I'm burnt," I repeated myself over and over, and I was told, "You are not burnt... you'll be fine."

'I had glass all through my face, my scalp. I had glass all through in my right eye... I didn't even know if I had a face left.'

Djamirze said she had no comment as she left court on Monday. O'Donnell is expected to be sentenced later this month.
CCTV has captured the moment heartless thieves led a poorly dog away from a service station while its owner was distracted.

Sophie Macaskill, 37, was travelling home to Manchester when her mini dachshund called Ruby fell ill and was sick, so she pulled into the Rivington Services near Chorley in Lancashire.

But as Ms Macaskill cleaned her car a gang of four stole Ruby - who urgently needs treatment after being mauled by another dog.

Ruby the miniature dachshund was snatched from outside a service station in Lancashire

As the other members of the group keep watch, one man leads Ruby away from the scene

Ms Macaskill, from Manchester, said: 'I'm just so anxious - I can't stop thinking about her.

'I keep waking up in the night - I'm just so incredibly worried.

'She's not in great health and needs her medication and an operation.

'I tied her up outside the services so I could use the toilets and she was there for a really short amount of time.'

Shocking CCTV footage shows the gang of two men and two women scan the area for Ruby's owner on December 3 before running over to the little dog and leading her away.

Shocking CCTV footage shows the gang of two men and two women scan the area for Ruby's owner

Ruby was mauled by another dog and is need of surgery and medication. Pictured, the distinctive markings on her back where she was shaved for treatment

Lancashire police confirmed they were investigating reports of a dog theft from Rivington Services and are appealing for anyone who saw these people

Ruby's owner, from Manchester, said: 'I'm just so anxious - I can't stop thinking about her'

A Twitter page has now been set up appealing for help from members of the public and any witnesses who may have seen the theft, or seen Ruby since.

Lancashire police confirmed they were investigating reports of a dog theft from Rivington Services on Sunday, December 3.

Detectives are asking for anyone who can identify the people in the CCTV images to get in touch.

Her owner said: 'I tied her up outside the services so I could use the toilets and she was there for a really short amount of time'

Detectives are asking for anyone who can identify the people in the CCTV images to get in touch

Ruby is on antibiotics and painkillers, without out which she could be at risk of infection after being bitten by another dog

A Lancashire Police spokesman said: 'Ruby was last seen at Rivington Service Station on the M61, on Sunday when her owner went inside to use the facilities.

'We believe Ruby may have been stolen and are investigating.'

Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting SC1709369.
A young woman has mercilessly mocked police on Facebook.

Tiana Hewitson, 22, was wanted in relation to an outstanding warrant for fraud offences.

Police took to Facebook on November 16 to post a picture of Ms Hewitson and appeal to the public for information on her whereabouts.

Police took to Facebook on November 16 to post a picture of Ms Hewitson and appeal to the public for information on her whereabouts

But it seems the young woman has made a mockery of the post commenting on it nearly a month later.

'I'm free you putrid dogs they still haven't got me hahahahahahahaha,' she wrote on December 7 in response to NSW Police on Facebook.

'Anyone who sees Ms Hewitson is advised not to approach her,' NSW Police previously said.

NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia the woman had actually been arrested in November.

'She is currently on bail and is due to appear before court on December 18,' a police spokesperson said.
1980 - Jessica Leeds

Jessica Leeds, a 75-year-old former businesswoman who lives in Manhattan, told the New York Times last year that she was 'assaulted' by Trump on a flight when she was 38.

Leeds explained how she was sat beside Trump in first class on a flight, when the Republican nominee lifted the arm-rest between then and allegedly began touching her.

'He was like an octopus,' she told the Times. 'His hands were everywhere.'

1989 - Ivana Trump

The Donald's first wife claimed she was 'violated' by him after a violent attack, documents filed as part of the couple's divorce claimed, according to the Daily Beast.

Ivana distanced herself from the claims last year when Trump started his campaign.

Early 1990s - Kristin Anderson

Kristin Anderson was out with friends, chatting up a storm at a Manhattan nightspot, when she felt fingers creep up her miniskirt, slide up her inner thigh and then touch her vagina through her panties.

Anderson, now 47, told the Washington Post that it was Donald Trump who touched her at the nightclub.

She said the incident took place in the early 1990s, when she was in her early twenties and an aspiring model.

1993 - Jill Harth

Jill Harth, a makeup artist, accused Trump of 'attempted rape' stemming from an incident in 1993.

Harth told the Guardian the incident in question took place during a visit to Trump's Mar-a-Lago mansion in January of that year.

'He pushed me up against the wall, and had his hands all over me and tried to get up my dress again,' she told the newspaper. 'I had to physically say: 'What are you doing? Stop it.''

1993 - Vendela Kirsebom

Former supermodel Vendela Kirsebom exclusively told DailyMail.com that Donald Trump's 'vulgar' and 'sexist' remarks about the size of women's breasts forced her to switch tables at a White House dinner party.

The sports Illustrated cover model claims her night at a 1993 Vanity Fair event was ruined because she was sat next to the billionaire.

Recalling the 'excruciating' night, Kirsebom, 50, said: 'Everything he said was so vulgar.

'I couldn't listen to his nonsense for an entire night so I asked if I could be moved.'

1996 - Lisa Boyne

Lisa Boyne, CEO of a health food company, claims that in the summer of 1996 she saw Trump make a series of women walk up and down a restaurant table so that he could announce whether they were wearing underwear.

'It was the most offensive scene I've ever been a part of,' she told The Huffington Post last year. 'I wanted to get the heck out of there.'

According to Boyne, she and friend Sonja Tremont - better known today as Sonja Morgan of 'Real Housewives of New York' - had been invited to dinner in Manhattan with Trump and late modelling agent John Casablancas.

1997 - Four Miss Teen USA contestants

Mariah Billado and three other contestants claimed to Buzzfeed that Trump walked into dressing rooms prior to the pageant while competitors were naked.

'I remember putting on my dress really quick because I was like, "Oh my god, there's a man in here",' she told Buzzfeed

Bilado told the website that Trump then said something like: 'Don't worry, ladies, I've seen it all before'.

1997 - Miss USA contestant Temple Taggart

Temple Taggart, a former Miss Utah, told the New York Times last year that Trump kissed her on the lips during the pageant.

'I thought, "Oh my God, gross"... I think there were a few other girls that he kissed on the mouth. I was like "Wow, that's inappropriate",' she told the newspaper.

Taggart has also sat down for an interview with NBC News.

'When I first heard the leaked tape, it's very unsettling... you don't want to hear anyone talking about women like that,' she said in a promotion clip for the interview.

1997 - Cathy Heller

Cathy Heller, now 64, claims the billionaire kissed her on the mouth without her consent in 1997 while she attended a Mother's Day luncheon with her family at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

She told The Guardian last year: 'He took my hand, and grabbed me, and went for the lips,' she said.

She claimed she held back but he persevered. 'And he said, "Oh, come on". He was strong. He grabbed me and went for my mouth and went for my lips.'

Trump denied the accusation, claiming she was motivated by a personal vendetta to have her family's membership fees reimbursed.

2000 - Miss USA contestant Bridget Sullivan

Bridget Sullivan told Buzzfeed last year that the then-owner of the pageant walked through the backstage area to wish contestants good luck, despite the fact many of them were naked at the time.

'The time that he walked through the dressing rooms was really shocking. We were all naked,' Sullivan said.

She went on to describe Trump as a 'creepy uncle', saying he would 'hug you just a little low on your back.'

Buzzfeed spoke with four other contestants from that year - none whom remembered Trump walking through the dressing room when contestants were naked.

2001 - Miss USA contestant Tasha Dixon

Tasha Dixon told CBS News last year walked into the changing rooms at the pageant without warning, meaning many of the competitors were naked or not fully dressed.

'Our first introduction to him was when we were at the dress rehearsal and half naked changing into our bikinis,' Dixon said in an interview. 'He just came strolling right in.

'There was no second to put a robe on or any sort of clothing or anything. Some girls were topless. Other girls were naked.'

2003 - Mindy McGillivray

Mindy McGillivray, 36, told the Palm Beach Post that Trump grabbed her backside after she helped a photographer who was covering a concert at Trump's Mar-a-Lago mansion.

McGillivray, who was 23 at the time, said she was with Ken Davidoff at the Mar-a-Lago on January 24, 2003.

'All of a sudden I felt a grab, a little nudge. I think it's Ken's camera bag, that was my first instinct,' she told the newspaper.

'I turn around and there's Donald. He sort of looked away quickly.'

2004 - Trump discussed what he thought it would be like to have sex with a teenage Lindsay Lohan on the Howard Stern Show

'She's probably deeply troubled and therefore great in bed,' Trump told Stern when asked by the shock jock if he could imagine bedding 'troubled teen' Lindsay Lohan.

Trump went on to say: 'How come the deeply troubled women, you know, deeply, deeply troubled, they're always the best in bed?'

At the time of the interview, Lohan was just 18 years old. Trump was 58.

The conversation continued with Trump speaking about a friend he described as 'a great Playboy' and who he said only wants to date 'crazy' women.

2005 - Rachel Crooks

Rachel Crooks was a 22-year-old working as a receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real estate company based in Trump Tower in Manhattan, when she says Trump kissed her on the mouth without permission while in an elevator in 2005.

'It was so inappropriate,' Ms. Crooks told the New York Times. 'I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.'

Crooks told the newspaper the incident took place after she shook hands with Trump in an elevator and he allegedly refused to let go.

She says he then began kissing her on the cheeks, before then kissing her lips.

2005 - Donald Trump admits he would 'inspect' pageant contestants backstage

Donald Trump bragged about the extra power he had during an interview with Howard Stern in April 2005, the tapes of which have been released by CNN.

'I'll tell you the funniest is that I'll go backstage before a show and everyone's getting dressed,' Trump said about the pageant.

'No men are anywhere, and I'm allowed to go in, because I'm the owner of the pageant and therefore I'm inspecting it. "Is everyone OK?" You know, they're standing there with no clothes. "Is everybody OK?"

'And you see these incredible looking women, and so I sort of get away with things like that.'

2005 - Trump brags about being able to grope women without consent to Billy Bush on the set of Access Hollywood

'You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful - I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait,' he was heard saying to Billy Bush on the set of Access Hollywood in 2005 in a recording published by the Washington Post last year.

'And when you're a star they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the p****. You can do anything.'

2005 - Natasha Stoynoff

Natasha Stoynoff recounted how she had traveled to Mar-a-Largo to interview Trump and his wife, Melania, in December 2005.

She said Donald took her into a room he really wanted to see, before forcing himself on her.

'We walked into that room alone, and Trump shut the door behind us. I turned around, and within seconds, he was pushing me against the wall, and forcing his tongue down my throat,' she wrote for People.

Stoynoff went on to say how she was rescued when a butler walked in, however when the two were alone again shortly after Trump told her they were 'going to have an affair'.

2006 - Samantha Holvey

Samantha Holvey claims that as a 20-year-old representing North Carolina in the 2006 Miss USA pageant, Trump would inspect her and other contestants before the competition.

She has said she was 'disgusted' by the now-president's repeated behavior.

It was 'the dirtiest I felt in my entire life,' she told CNN last year. 'He would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe like we were just meat, we were just sexual objects, that we were not people.'

2007 - Summer Zervos - contestant on The Apprentice

Summer Zervos, who was a contestant on the fifth season of The Apprentice, said Trump groped and kissed her in his room at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 2007.

She claims that she reached out to Trump a year after she left the show to speak about possible business opportunities, and when she met with him he kissed her 'open mouthed' multiple times, and at one point placed his hand on her breast.

She claims he then had her lie in bed with him she said telling her he wanted to watch 'telly telly', but soon after began 'thrusting his genitals' at her despite her pleas asking him to stop.

Zervos said during a press conference about her accusations: 'You do not have the right to treat women as sexual objects just because you are a star.'

2009 - Called Khloe Kardashian 'a fat piglet'

Trump made rude and offensive comments about Khloe Kardashian's physical appearance and weight while she filmed Celebrity Apprentice back in 2009, according to multiple people who worked on the set.

'He said: "Why don't we fire Khloe? She is a fat piglet. Why did we get the ugly Kardashian?"' a source told Huffington Post.

2010 - Friend of CNN anchor Erin Burnett

Erin Burnett detailed an encounter that a friend had with Trump in March 2010 in the boardroom at Trump Tower, when he allegedly tried to kiss her without permission.

The woman told Burnett, according to CNN: 'Trump took Tic Tacs, suggested I take them also. He then leaned in, catching me off guard, and kissed me almost on lips. I was really freaked out.

'After (the meeting), Trump asked me to come into his office alone. Was really unsure what to do. ... Figured I could handle myself.

'Anyway, once in his office he kept telling me how special I am and gave me his cell, asked me to call him. I ran the hell out of there.'

2013 - Miss USA contestant Cassandra Searles

Searles, who won Miss Washington in 2013, said Trump tried to seduce her, groped her, and treated the women in the pageant 'like cattle', according to Yahoo News.

'Do y'all remember that one time we had to do our onstage introductions, but this one guy treated us like cattle and made us do it again because we didn't look him in the eyes?' she wrote last year.

'Do you also remember when he then proceeded to have us lined up so he could get a closer look at his property?

'Oh I forgot to mention that guy will be in the running to become the next President of the United States.'

She then added: 'He probably doesn't want me telling the story about that time he continually grabbed my a** and invited me to his hotel room.'
Theresa May was lashed for offering a Brexit deal that is 'unravelling quicker than a hand-knitted Christmas jumper' today as she defended her agreement with Brussels.

Labour's Lords leader Baroness Angela Smith tonight said Brexit Secretary David Davis being forced onto the airwaves to clear up remarks he made yesterday was a bad sign for the deal's future.

The Prime Minister is fighting to keep her draft agreement afloat long enough for EU leaders to certify sufficient progress has been made on the divorce and start trade talks.

Mr Davis risked derailing the agreement when he said it was not binding - but Dublin and Brussels reacted calmly to the apparent cracks in the consensus.

Mrs May was bolstered in the Commons this afternoon as Tory MPs put on a rare show of unity in support of the deal - just days after renewed rumours she could be ousted.

Backbencher Philip Davies made an isolated attack on Mrs May to protest Britain agreeing a divorce bill of up to 39billion.

But as Iain Duncan Smith and Anna Soubry united across the Tories' internal ideological divide, Mrs May was cheered as she said no money would be paid without a UK-EU trade deal.

Labour's Lords leader Baroness Angela Smith (pictured in the Lords tonight) said Brexit Secretary David Davis being forced onto the airwaves to clear up remarks he made yesterday was a bad sign

Mrs May insisted the 39billion divorce bill showed the UK was taking 'responsibility' and meant the taxpayer would soon see 'significant savings' that could be pumped back into key public services

David Davis and Boris Johnson were in the Commons to hear the PM's statement today

Responding to the statement in the Lords tonight, Lady Smith said while businesses needed certainty the Brexit Secretary was 'all over the place and hardly a safe pair of hands'.

In response to a repeat of the Prime Minister's statement on the negotiations, she urged Mrs May to 'read the riot act to squabbling, inconsistent ministers'.

Calling for clarity from the Government, Lady Smith said: 'There is a real fear this seems to be unravelling quicker than a hand-knitted Christmas jumper.'

The Brexit Secretary was embarrassingly sent out this morning to correct his comments - promising that Britain would stand by the arrangements and they were 'more than legally enforceable'.

The climbdown appears to have defused the row for the time being, with Irish PM Leo Varadkar - who previously insisted the agreement is 'bullet proof' - saying he was 'very happy with the clarification'.

The government is desperate to paper over the cracks at least until after a crucial EU summit later this week, when the bloc's leaders will decide whether to approve the start of trade talks.

Amid fears that the deal has already tied us into 'soft' Brexit, Mrs May told the House that powers over 'borders, money and laws' would be reclaimed.

She was given the benefit of the doubt by many Tory MPs concerned about derailing the Brexit process altogether, but some still voiced significant misgivings about the divorce deal and trade commitments.

Amid fears that the deal has already tied us into 'soft' Brexit, Theresa May told the Commons today that powers over 'borders, money and laws' would be reclaimed

Conservative backbencher Philip Davies told Mrs May: 'She said there had been give and take in this negotiation and she is absolutely right - we are giving the EU tens of billions of pounds and they are taking it.'

As a temporary Tory peace broke out, ex minister Ms Soubry demanded Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn welcome the 'major step forward' after labelling his response in the Commons as 'pitiful', adding she was confused over his view on the agreement.

Tory former cabinet minister Ken Clarke, another pro-EU MP, was cheered by colleagues after he congratulated the Prime Minister for her 'triumph' last week.

HOW THE IRISH BORDER ISSUE COULD WRECK THE DEAL What is 'full alignment'? In last week's Brexit deal, Theresa May agreed to keep the UK in 'full alignment' with the EU on issues relevant to Northern Ireland. Remainers seized upon the language to say it meant Britain would be closely tied to Brussels, but ministers insist it does not mean Britain will be tied directly to the single market and customs union. David Davis said it meant Britain will meet the same 'outcomes'  but not do it 'by just copying what the EU does'. What is 'divergence'? Brexiteers warn it would be a disaster to tie Britain too closely to the EU's rules. They want to allow for maximum 'divergence'  distance from the EU  so Britain can negotiate better trade deals with non-EU countries. However, managing the border between the North and South of Ireland becomes more difficult the more the UK diverges from EU rules. For example, if Britain did a US trade deal to allow chlorine-washed chicken into the UK, how can you prevent the chicken being sold into the European market? What happens next? Cabinet ministers will consider next week what the UK wants the 'end state' of relations with the EU to look like  that is, how much divergence they will seek. In theory, the more distance Britain seeks, the more restrictive its trade deal could be. The Cabinet's crunch meeting is next Tuesday  expect Remainers to call for less divergence and Brexiteers for more freedom. Advertisement

Iain Duncan Smith, a prominent Brexiteer and former Tory leader, joined Mr Clarke in congratulating Mrs May on 'driving through an improved agreement'.

Shipley MP Mr Davies pointed out that Mrs May's mantra that 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed' implied there was no legal obligation to pay a divorce bill.

'Can the PM explain why she is paying tens of billions of pounds to the EU that are not legally due when she is continuing with a policy of austerity at home?' he said. Many of my constituents simply do not understand why this money comes from.'

Mrs May also had to deny a suggestion from another Tory, Mike Wood, that the UK could face 'punishment payments' in future.

Mrs May said she had never pretended Brexit would be an 'easy process'.

'It has required give and take for the UK and the EU to move forward together. And that is what we have done,' she said.

She insisted that the settlement on a divorce bill of around 39billion represented the UK acting 'responsibly'.

It will mean that soon the government will be sending less to Brussels and would have 'more money to spend on our priorities at home' - such as housing, schools and the NHS.

The PM also warned that the payment would be 'off the table' if a trade agreement with the EU was not reached.

Sealing the divorce deal was 'good news for people who voted Leave and Remain' as there would be a 'smooth and orderly' withdrawal from the bloc.

Mrs May said she was now focused on securing a 'partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again'.

Last week  after a frenetic 24 hours of diplomacy  Mrs May concluded her agreement with European Commission negotiators on the rights of EU nationals, the divorce settlement and Northern Ireland.

It included a provision that there will be 'full alignment' between the UK and EU on key trade rules.

The clause was essential to winning Irish support, but sparked fury in the DUP - whose 10 MPs are propping Mrs May up in power.

They humiliatingly torpedoed the PM's first attempt to seal the deal on Monday, even though she was already in Brussels about to make a statement with Mr Juncker.

After days of frantic work, a new clause was included spelling out that any alignment would apply to the UK as a whole rather than just Northern Ireland.

However, Mr Davis risked reopening the bitter dispute yesterday as he moved to calm concerns that the commitment meant the whole UK would 'cut and paste' rules from Brussels.

Mr Davis was sent out today to calm a burgeoning row with Ireland over his claim the divorce deal was not 'legally binding'

Michael Gove was among the ministers at Downing Street today for the Cabinet meeting

Leading Brexiteer Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Amber Rudd, who has been pushing for a softer break from the EU, were also at the Cabinet meeting today

He said the deal on Ireland was 'much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing', and Britain would be allowed to change its rules as long as they resulted in similar outcomes.

The Irish government's chief whip, Joe McHugh, said last night: 'We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the UK to account, as will the EU.'

And Ireland's deputy PM Simon Coveney said the UK had made a 'clear and positive commitment'.

'Art.46 of Fridays agreed text re Ireland/NI: 'The commitments and the principles...are made and must be upheld in all circumstances, irrespective of the nature of any future agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom.' - clear and positive commitment from UK Govt,' he posted on Twitter.

Mr Davis claimed today that his words had been 'completely twisted'.

He told LBC Radio: 'What I actually said yesterday in terms was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable.

Ireland's deputy PM Simon Coveney said the UK had made a 'clear and positive commitment'

'Of course it's legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement but even if that didn't happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland.'

But DUP MP Ian Paisley gloated that Mr Davis had been right first time and Mr Varadkar had been 'done over'.

'Frankly, whatever efforts are made to characterise this week Leo Varadkar was done over by the EU, the UK and the DUP,' he said.

The EU commission said the 'joint report' setting out the agreement was not yet 'legally binding' as a Withdrawal Treaty had not been ratified.

'Formally speaking, the joint report is not legally binding,' the European Commission's chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters.

'But we see the joint report of Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen and it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK government.'

Theresa May, pictured with Jean-Claude Juncker last Monday, will strike an upbeat note about the next phase of talks with Brussels on trade and other issues

Irish PM Leo Varadkar (pictured left in Dublin last week) has insisted the divorce deal is 'bullet proof'. But David Davis (pictured right on the BBC's Andrew Marr show with Labour's Keir Starmer yesterday) suggested it was merely a 'statement of intent'

The Brexit Secretary, left with the Prime Minister, also moved to calm fears of Brexiteers concerned by a section of the agreement which said Britain would have 'full alignment' with the EU on regulations and standards that had an impact on Northern Ireland

Mrs May underlined the position on the Irish border, telling the Commons that the government 'remains committed to protecting North-South cooperation and to its guarantee of avoiding a hard border'.

'Any future arrangements must be compatible with these overarching requirements,' she said.

I DON'T HAVE TO BE CLEVER TO NEGOTIATE BREXIT, SAYS DAVIS David Davis has said being 'clever' is not necessary to negotiate Brexit. He said the main qualification for his job was staying calm. But he admitted that had been tested as he and the PM fought to get a compromise last week. Mr Davis said: 'What's the requirement of my job? I don't have to be very clever, I don't have to know that much, I do just have to be calm. 'And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit. 'But we had to pick another day and we looked at Wednesday but Wednesday wasn't long enough for the DUP to sort themselves out so we made it Thursday, Friday morning.' Advertisement

'The United Kingdom's intention is to achieve these objectives through the overall EU-UK relationship.

'Should this not be possible, the United Kingdom will propose specific solutions to address the unique circumstances of the island of Ireland.

'In the absence of agreed solutions, the United Kingdom will maintain full alignment with those rules of the Internal Market and the Customs Union which, now or in the future, support North-South cooperation, the allisland economy and the protection of the 1998 Agreement.'

Downing Street said the Cabinet congratulated Mrs May and Mr Davis at the weekly meeting today.

The PM told the gathering members of the public in her constituency over the weekend had expressed satisfaction that 'we're on our way'.

The Cabinet held a 30-minute discussion on the terms of the deal, but no ministers voiced reservations, according to No10.

In a statement to MPs today, Mrs May will confront doubters who suggested we wouldn't get past phase one of the talks. She will also seek to unify Brexiteers and Remainers in her Cabinet.

In his interview today, Mr Davis gave an insight into the tensions of last week, as the DUP collapsed the first attempt to get a deal.

The PM (pictured on the plane en route to Brussels early Friday morning) will gather her Cabinet today as she seeks to quell fears that the divorce package has tied us into 'soft' Brexit

He said the main qualification for his job was staying calm, but that had been tested as he and the PM fought to get a compromise.

Mr Davis said: 'What's the requirement of my job? I don't have to be very clever, I don't have to know that much, I do just have to be calm.

'And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.

'But we had to pick another day and we looked at Wednesday but Wednesday wasn't long enough for the DUP to sort themselves out so we made it Thursday, Friday morning.'

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was 'not ideal' it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that 'simply gets us through the first round'.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: 'Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

PM ASKS EU CITIZENS TO STAY IN BRITAIN Theresa May has urged more than three million European Union nationals living in Britain to stay in the country after Brexit. In an open letter to EU citizens living in the UK today, the PM said she was 'delighted' their rights would be protected under the divorce deal. She said she was 'proud' they choose to live in the UK, adding in an open letter: 'I greatly value the depth of the contributions you make - enriching every part of our economy, our society, our culture and our national life. 'I know our country would be poorer if you left and I want you to stay.' Advertisement

'This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions.

'That is when the shadow boxing of this past year will turn into real hard pounding.

'Of great importance will be our right to diverge from the EU on regulation, to follow rules we deem are in the best interest of the British people, and to have charge of our own trading policy. On these there will be heavy punches thrown. The important thing is, we now have space to have that debate.'

Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Mrs May 'cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party'.

In an open letter to EU citizens living in the UK today, Mrs May urged more than three million European Union nationals living in Britain to stay in the country after Brexit.

She said she was 'delighted' their rights would be protected under the divorce deal.

She said she was 'proud' they choose to live in the UK, adding in an open letter: 'I greatly value the depth of the contributions you make - enriching every part of our economy, our society, our culture and our national life.

'I know our country would be poorer if you left and I want you to stay.'

DAVIS VOWS TO GET A 'CANADA PLUS PLUS PLUS' DEAL WITH EU The Canada deal, formally known as the Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement, is the EU's most ambitious and comprehensive trade deal. Pictured: David Davis on the Andrew Marr show yesterday David Davis yesterday described his ambition for Britain's trade deal with the EU as 'Canada plus plus plus'. The Canada deal, formally known as the Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement, is the EU's most ambitious and comprehensive trade deal. It eradicated all tariffs on industrial goods and fishing, and more than 90 per cent of all agriculture tariffs. However, some products are not covered and others can be sold in only limited quantities. Ministers are confident of securing a tariff-free deal because of how much Britain buys from EU countries. Other notable advantages are that Canada doesn't pay into the European Union budget, nor is it required to accept free movement of EU workers. The deal took seven years to negotiate, but ministers argue Britain is beginning at a very different starting point where all our laws and rules are the same as those in Brussels. When the Brexit Secretary talks about 'plus plus plus', it is because he wants more than Canada in recognition of Britain's importance as an EU trading partner. Advertisement
A Sydney man who directed the live sexual abuse of overseas children via an online video stream has had his 'manifestly inadequate' sentence increased by the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.

Bryan Walter Beattie, 44, was sentenced in the NSW District Court in June to 10 years with a non-parole period of six years, but the terms have now been increased to 14 years with a non-parole period of 10 years.

He pleaded guilty to 23 offences including possessing child abuse material and causing a child under 16 to engage in sexual intercourse outside Australia in his presence.

Bryan Walter Beattie (pictured) was sentenced in the NSW District Court in June to 10 years with a non-parole period of six years, but the terms have now been increased to 14 years with a non-parole period of 10 years

He pleaded guilty to 23 offences including possessing child abuse material and causing a child under 16 to engage in sexual intercourse outside Australia in his presence

He was arrested in 2015 after police seized his laptop and external hard drive and discovered hundreds of child abuse images and videos featuring children, including an infant aged about six to eight months.

'The images and videos classified were highly disturbing, distressing and offensive, and many involved young pre-pubescent Asian male children,' according to the agreed statement of facts.

One folder on Beattie's external hard drive contained 132 videos in which he watched and directed the live sexual abuse of 17 boys in the Philippines.

He typed instructions about what acts he wanted to see.

Beattie made 41 payments totalling $4,150 to an overseas account in 2011 and 2012 with investigators alleging they were for the live sexual abuse (stock image)

Beattie made 41 payments totalling $4,150 to an overseas account in 2011 and 2012 with investigators alleging they were for the live sexual abuse.

Justices John Basten, Michael Walton and Derek Price upheld crown submissions about the inadequacy of the sentences imposed, with the latter two judges agreeing the term should be 14 with a non-parole period of 10 years.

Referring to one particular offence, Justice Price said Beattie 'was a live spectator and active participant, via real-time video link of the gross sexual abuse of pre-pubescent Filipino boy'.

The conduct was 'vile and heinous' and the sentence 'falls well short of adequately reflecting the gravity of the offence and the need for general deterrence and denunciation' of it.

Justice Basten proposed resentencing Beattie to 20 years with a non-parole period of 13 years.
The rise of robots can be a good thing for Britain because they will do boring jobs and boost the economy, Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson today said.

He urged Britons to 'embrace an android' and insist that if the Government invests properly in automation then it could produce as many jobs as it destroys.

Mr Watson's comments come amid growing fears the spread of artificial intelligence could cost millions of jobs and cause mass unemployment as human workers are displaced by machines.

But the Labour deputy leader said: 'Much has been written about the impact of technological change and the dystopian future we could all face as a result of the rise of the robots.

'It can sometimes feel like we are preparing for a world in which artificial intelligence, algorithms and automation, rather than human endeavour and hard work, will shape every aspect of our society and our economy.

Tom Watson, pictured at Labour's annual conference in Brighton in September, urged Britons to 'embrace an android' and insist that if the Government invests properly in automation then it could produce as many jobs as it destroys

'That sounds like a frightening prospect. But it needn't be.'

He said that by allowing '21st-century machines' to undertake boring and routine tasks in the workplace humans will be freed to do other jobs with bigger economic benefits.

And, paraphrasing David Cameron's famous call to 'hug a hoodie' he added: 'That is liberating.

'So I suppose what I'm really saying is: robots can set us free ... A former prime minister once famously said "hug a hoodie". Today, I'm asking you to embrace an android.'

He made the comments at the launch of the final report of the Future of Work Commission, which found that people should not fear the 'march of the robots'.

Although the study admits that to take advantage of the growth in automation workers in Britain will have to be re-skilled to move into other jobs.

Mr Watson convened and co-chaired the commission, which also includes experts including Nobel prize-winning economist Sir Christopher Pissarides, and Harvard and Oxford University professors.

The Commission blames the UK's low productivity and stagnant wage son decisions made by politicians in Government rather than robots.

And the report found that 'mass technological unemployment' as a result of automation is 'highly unlikely'.

A robot barrister serves up a cup if coffee in San Francisco. A report earlier this year by PwC found that up to 10 million UK jobs could be lost as robots take them over - but today's Future of Work Commission report says automation can boost the economy and create jobs

They are calling for more investment to be ploughed into education and training so that workers can adapt and change jobs.

They are calling for children to be taught about artificial intelligence in secondary schools and the creation of a universal, lifelong future skills account to help people retrain over their entire lives.

And they want a slew of tax changes so businesses are incentivised to invest in new technologies.

Helen Mountfield QC, who co-chaired the commission, told The Guardian: 'Advances in robotics and artificial intelligence don't need to spell the end of work. But we cannot sit passively by letting technological change just happen.

'We need to decide what sort of future we want and make policy choices, design education and introduce a legal architecture to shape a future of good work which benefits everyone, in which the rewards of innovation are fairly shared.'

It comes after a report by leading accountancy PwC earlier this year warned that more than 10 million UK workers are at high risk of losing thehir jobs to robots.
A man in eastern China was rushed to the hospital last week after being hit by a 6.5-foot-long spear while sitting in car.

It's believed that the weapon had been thrown at him and broke through the window.

Local police are investigating whether or not the incident was an intentional attack.

The man in China was taken to the hospital with a 6.5-foot-long spear lodged in his back (left). Doctors did not remove the spear immediately in fear of a haemorrhage (right)

The incident occurred on December 8 in Anhui Province.

An anonymous source told local newspaper ahwang.cn that he saw someone throwing the spear in the direction of the car when the victim was inside.

After being hit, the man was taken to the Huangshan People's Hospital in Anhui Province for emergency treatment.

Doctors inspected the patient and found that the spearhead was lodged in his upper abdominal area.

The man appeared to be conscious in a video emerged on Chinese news websites.

The spear was thrown at the man who was sitting inside a red car through a window

Doctors shorten the spear before sending him to another hospital with better equipment

The red-tasselled spear was a military weapon used in ancient China during war times

Video from the hospital shows the man lying on his stomach as the spear protrudes out from his back.

Local doctors didn't remove the spear immediately in fear that the operation might trigger a haemorrhage.

They shorten the spear before transferring him to another hospital with better medical resources.

The red-tasselled spear, a traditional weapon in China, was used for centuries by warriors in imperial China.

Huangshan police are investigating the incident. It's yet to be revealed whether the man had been the victim of a deliberate attack or an accident.
Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York's Stony Brook University, is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week

An American university professor who has been detained in Cameroon since Thursday has now been charged with insulting the country's dictator.

Family and friends are calling for public support in a campaign for his release.

Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York's Stony Brook University, is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week, according to an account from his wife that was sent to fellow Stony Brook professor Robert Harvey.

Nganang was detained on Thursday as he was trying to leave Cameroon to join his wife in Zimbabwe.

He and his attorney were informed of the accusations made against him at a hearing with judiciary police and were told the charges include allegation of insulting Cameroon president Paul Biya as well as issuing a death threat.

Nganang has been critical of how Biya has handled a secessionist movement in some English-speaking areas.

He wrote an article that was published shortly before he was detained.

At the judiciary police hearing on Saturday, Nganang's lawyer said he didn't represent a threat because he had never worked with any violent or armed groups and had always been a peaceful activist.

A prosecutor will decide what happens with the case moving forward.

President Biya is the longest-ruling dictator in Africa and now - following the resignation of Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe - also the oldest ruler in sub-Saharan Africa.

He has ruled Cameroon since 1982 and plans to stand for another term next year. He was also the country's prime minister from 1975.

Biya's 35-year rule has grown increasingly intolerant of dissent, with opposition activists, journalists and intellectuals routinely arrested and sometimes charged.

President Biya is the longest-ruling dictator in Africa and now - following the resignation of Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe - also the oldest ruler in sub-Saharan Africa. Pictured: Biya at the UN in September

In April, a Cameroonian reporter for Radio France International was jailed for 10 years by a military court on terrorism charges, including for failing to report acts of terrorism to authorities.

The verdict attracted international criticism.

He has criticized what he calls secessionists among the country's English-speaking minority, who have complained of discrimination.

Supporters of detained professor Nganang called for an outpouring of support, suggesting actions including calling the Cameroon embassy to demand his release.

They also recommended getting in touch with the US Department of State and federal elected officials, reaching out to advocates like Amnesty International or the Committee to Protect Journalists and spreading the campaign through social media.
Iranian press have poured cold water on hopes Boris Johnson's trip to the country may help a British woman imprisoned by Tehran.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is serving a five-year prison sentence for allegedly plotting against Iran's government. She has always denied the allegations.

After nearly an hour of talks with the Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, yesterday, a spokesman for Boris Johnson said they 'both spoke forthrightly' and 'agreed on the need to make progress in all areas'.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson meets Iranian president Hassan Rouhani in talks many hoped would pave the way to allowing imprisoned Briton Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe freed

But reports in Iranian media appear to play down hopes the visit will lead to any change on the country's position on Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, pictured with her daughter Gabriella

Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband, Richard Ratcliffe, has said he hopes the talks could lead to his wife being freed before Christmas.

But Iranian media played down those hopes today, undermining Mr Johnson's visit and doubling down on the disputed claims against Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

The country's Sharq newspaper said Mr Johnson went home 'empty handed', while daily Vatan-e Emruz claimed Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was important to the UK because she is an 'agent', according to BBC Monitoring.

Papers in the Middle Eastern country also noted that official Iranian accounts of Mr Johnson's meeting with the president do not mention Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

Iranian state TV also did not mention any discussion of the case in its reporting of Mr Johnson's visit.

The response to the trip came after Mr Radcliffe said he is still optimistic his wife will be home soon.

Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband, Richard Ratcliffe, has been campaigning for her release and hoped Mr Johnson's visit could pave the way to her being freed

Mr Johnson also met Iran's foreign minister Javad Nari in Tehran over the weekend

He said Mr Johnson made every effort during his two-day visit to Iran, with 'positive consequences from that'.

With the postponement of a new court case against his wife, which appeared to come as a result of Mr Johnson's trip, Mr Ratcliffe said the weekend has been positive, but there is a risk of him over reading it all.

'We were fearing a bad day and we haven't had that, which makes it a good day. I guess we will see what the next few days mean,' he told the Press Association.

Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband Richard has been campaigning for her to be released

'But it feels like it a really good sign, almost like we have a momentum - we have had a couple of things that have been positive over the weekend.'

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 38, a British-Iranian dual national, has been held in the country since April 2016 on trumped up espionage charges.

She had been due in court amid threats to double her five year sentence after Mr Johnson incorrectly told a parliamentary committee that she had been in Iran to train journalists.

In a statement released by her husband yesterday, she said: 'Is there light at the end of the tunnel? I can see some light today, more than before.

'The court, the imprisonment emerged all of a sudden out of the blue, so I hope it can disappear out of the blue also  if there is enough will.'
This is the moment an internet star known as 'China's first rooftopper' fell to his death from the top of a 62-storey skyscraper.

Wu Yongning, 26, was doing pull-ups at the top of the Huayuan International Centre in Changsha, the capital of Huan Province, when he lost his grip and fell.

Harrowing footage captured the moment he let go, plunging 45ft on to a terrace below where his body was later found by a window cleaner.

Wu Yongning, 26, fell to his death from the top of the Huayuan International Centre in Changsha, the capital of Huan Province, while filming a stunt (right)

Wu fell from a 62-storey building in the Huayuan International Centre complex (above)

The incident was captured on a camera that Wu had placed on another part of the building to record himself.

Wu Yongning's girlfriend, who refers to herself as Jin Jin, told the Beijing News that he was due to ask her parents' permission to marry her two days after the stunt.

Jin Jin told the newspaper that he planned to bring her family a bridal gift of 80,000 yuan (9,000), roughly the same amount he was due to earn from the video.

Wu died on November 8 but his death was only confirmed by family members on December 8 after fans became concerned that no videos had been posted to his social media account for a month.

Local authorities investigating the case described it as an 'accident' and have already ruled out foul play.

Wu had been planning to propose to his girlfriend after filming the video on November 8, but died after losing his grip and falling 45ft on to a terrace (file pics)

On live-streaming video site 'Volcano', Wu had one million followers and 300 videos. He held 217 live-streaming sessions and was paid around 55,000 yuan (6,000) for doing so. Viewers paid him with virtual currency if they liked the videos.

Fans have now flooded social media with tributes to Wu.

Jin Jin, said Huayuan International Centre is only open to the public until the 44th floor, after which key cards are required to access the Grand Hyatt hotel.

As security personnel were also present on the hotel's top floor, she said she believes her boyfriend took a lift to 'over 40 floors' and then free-climbed 'nearly 20 more floors' to reach the position where he filmed.

Wu started life as a background actor in films but then began filming viral videos and aimed to become China's most famous 'rooftopper'

Wu used to work as a lowly paid background actor for various films in China before becoming a video blogger at the beginning of this year.

He discovered that by posting videos of himself climbing up dangerous structures, he could earn much more money than acting and could help his family improve their living standard.

In the space of 10 months, Wu scaled skyscrapers around China and performed stunts on top of them.

On October 3, he filmed himself doing an one-arm handstand on top of the 70-storey Sun Moon Light Plaza in Chongqing.

One month before, a video on his social media account showed him walking on a tiny ledge on top of the 68-storey Yuexiu Fortune Center in Wuhan.

One of his most famous stunts took place in mid July. In it, Wu did pull-ups without harness by grabbing to the edge of a 1,000-metre-high (3,280 feet) walkway in Zhangjiajie.
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London is heading back to work on 'Black Ice Monday' after yesterday saw the heaviest snow fall in almost five years, causing chaos on roads and rail routes across the capital.

Commuters battled through their journey to work as trains and the tube network struggled to cope with melted snow and catching up from mass cancellations yesterday.

The Met Office has issued a yellow ice warning for London and the south east, with conditions expected to be at their worst between 9.25am and 4pm today.

Some snow is still expected in parts of the capital, with rainfall from Storm Anna passing across Belgium and France also affecting areas of the south east today.

Most rain and sleet will have passed eastwards by late afternoon, but the remnants of snow - the heaviest fall London has seen since March 2013 - will continue to cause problems.

Schools across the capital have also been forced to shut their doors with public transport strained after yesterday.

Hundreds of commuters wait in the terminal at Waterloo Station, London, as trains and the tube network struggles to cope with melted snow and catching up from mass cancellations yesterday

Some snow is still expected in parts of the capital, with rainfall from Storm Anna passing across Belgium and France also affecting areas of the south east today

London commuters battled through their journey to work as trains and the tube network caught up after mass cancellations yesterday. Pictured is a Jubilee Line train running on icy tracks in Stanmore, north London

The capital experienced the highest levels of snow fall since March 2013, with snow and ice accumulations still spread across the city. Early morning commuters are pictured trudging down the platform in Stanmore, north London

Children are pictured walking to school in Stamore, north London. Several of the capital's schools have been forced to close

Yesterday saw the highest levels of snow in London for almost five years - since March 2013. Londoners took to social media to post pictures of parks, gardens and vehicles covered in white

Those expecting to jet off in search of some winter sun have been faced with delays and cancellations at almost all of the capital's airports.

Transport for London said there was a good service on the network, but warned some services may be affected later on.

National Rail say poor weather conditions are still affecting train services across England and Wales, with several key routes out of London disrupted.

A spokesman said heavy snow is causing serious disruption on the London Northwestern Railway, with trains out of London Euston running with severe delays or cancellations.

Snow has largely cleared in central London, but commuters and sightseers are battling high winds, rain and sleet

Schools across the capital have also been forced to shut their doors with public transport strained under the pressure from several inches of snow yesterday. Pictured are

Transport for London said there was a good service on the network, but warned some services may be affected later on

Cyclists and pedestrians are being warned of the possibility of injuries from melted ice and snow in London today

Heavy snow and ice was on the ground as people woke up in areas of north London (pictured) this morning

Heathrow Airport was in chaos yesterday with stacks of flights cancelled or severely delayed. Pictured are passengers waiting in Terminal 5

Chiltern Railways, Gatwick Express, CrossCountry, Great Western, Virgin, London Midland, Southern and ThamesLink services have all been affected and passengers are advised to check for updates before travelling.

Flights at Heathrow Airport are disrupted 'due to crew and aircraft being out of position following yesterday's weather', with flyers told to check online before going to the airport.

At Gatwick Airport 'high winds in the South-East and storms across Europe are likely to cause disruption to some flights today'.

London Southend also has delays and cancellations today, while Stansted and London City Airport are reported to be operating as normal.

Those flying from Luton could also see delays or cancellations, with further snow forecast until midday. Passengers are advised to check before travelling.

Snow was still falling in north London this morning as commuters trudged through a blanket of white to get to their trains

Settled snow is pictured melting, triggering a yellow Met Office warning, with dangers reported for pedestrians and motorists

The Met Office reported 3cm of snow in Northolt, west London, yesterday and 1cm on the ground at Heathrow Airport at 10pm.

Outside Greater London the heaviest fall was in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, which got 14cm.

In the absence of ice there will be a 'mixture of rain and sleet', with forecasters warning against 'possible injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces'.

A forecaster told MailOnline: 'We still have some falling snow in parts of the south east of England.

'Storm Anna is working it's way across France and Belgium, but that weather feature will extend across the south east bringing wintery showers. That will be mixed in with sleet and snow.

'That weather feature will have worked its way eastward by about tea time, when there will be some northerly winds making it feel quite cold.'

Frustrated Londoners have taken to social media to express their discontent at the bad weather.

Heather Cracknell tweeted: 'Entirely miserable weather in London today: snow all gone and water everywhere. Boots leaking so I've had wet toes since 8.05am.'

Hatty Collier said 'the UK is completely incapable of coping with a bit of snow', complaining that her 35-minute commute into central London took her one hour and 20 minutes.

Begrudged Londoners took to social media to express their discontent at the bad weather. Heather Cracknell described conditions as 'miserable'

Daniel from London said snow 'just makes everything s*** and you end up slipping everywhere'

Hatty Collier complained that her usual 35-minute commute into London took her an hour and 20 minutes because 'the UK is completely incapable of coping with a bit of snow'

Yen Ting said now the snow is starting to disappear 'London now is the coldest and gloomiest London I've experienced'
Harvey Weinstein, left, is being investigated for raping Paz de la Huerta twice in 2010

Harvey Weinstein is 'highly unlikely' to be charged over allegedly raping actress Paz de la Huerta, it has been claimed.

The Hollywood mogul is being investigated for raping the Cider House Rules star on two occasions in 2010.

However, sources have told TMZ that a prosecution is 'highly unlikely'.

According to the website, the fact that the case is more than seven years old creates problems, including memory of the incidents.

The case is also complicated by the fact that the actress interacted with Weinstein between the alleged assaults.

The 33-year-old, also known for her role in hit TV series Boardwalk Empire, reported the incidents to authorities on October 25.

She later described the alleged assaults to Vanity Fair magazine in November.

The first occurred when Weinstein demanded to come inside de la Huerta's apartment after driving her home, she said.

The 33-year-old, who is also known for her role in hit TV series Boardwalk Empire, reported the incidents to authorities on October 25

'He pushed me onto the bed and his pants were down and he lifted up my skirt. I felt afraid... It wasn't consensual,' she told the magazine.

De la Huerta said the second assault occurred about a month later when Weinstein showed up at her building despite her having asked him to leave her alone, and suggested talking about it in her apartment.

She had been drinking and 'was in no state. I was so terrified of him... I did say no, and when he was on top of me I said, "I don't want to do this,"' the actress said.

'He's like a pig... he raped me,' she said.

Accounts of abuse by Weinstein that were published in October in The New York Times and The New Yorker encouraged others to speak out, unleashing a cascade of allegations of sexual harassment and assault against leading figures in Hollywood and elsewhere

Among the items turned over to police were notes from her therapist confirming that de la Huerta spoke about the alleged assault at the time.

'I recall you telling me that Harvey Weinstein was seeking sexual contact with you on more than one occasion with the promise of additional roles,' wrote SueAnne Piliero in a letter to the district attorney's office.

'I recall you reporting to me a sexual encounter with Harvey Weinstein involving intercourse in your apartment in 2010 that resulted in you feeling victimized. I recall you telling me that it felt coercive to you and that you didnt want to have sex with him, but felt that you had to as he was a man of power and rank and you couldnt say no to his sexual advances.'

Accounts of abuse by Weinstein that were published in October in The New York Times and The New Yorker encouraged others to speak out, unleashing a cascade of allegations of sexual harassment and assault against leading figures in Hollywood and elsewhere.

Weinstein has denied the allegations.
A convicted paedophile found strangled alongside his daughter could have been lying dead for four days before police found his body, an inquest heard.

And his daughter could have been lying next to him for two days before police made the gruesome discovery, an inquest heard.

Noel Brown, 69, was found dead alongside daughter Marie, 41, at his home in Deptford, south-east London, the early hours of last Monday.

It has been claimed his daughter Marie could have been strangled after stumbling in on the killer attempting to chop up her father when she went to check on him after not hearing from him.

Police broke into the flat early last Monday and found their bodies.

Noel Brown, 69, was found dead alongside daughter Marie, 41, at his home in Deptford, south-east London, the early hours of last Monday - but they have been there for days

Forensics scouring the scene of the gruesome double murder have been seen handling what is believed to be a knife

Post-mortem examinations revealed both had been strangled by 'compression of the neck'.

At Southwark Coroners Court today an inquest into the deaths was opened and adjourned which heard Noel could have died as early as November 30 - four days before he was found on December 4.

Police discovered the nursery worker (pictured) and her father after receiving a tip-off from a concerned member of public

DI Helen Rance, of the Met Police's Serious Crime Command investigating the case told the court Noel's time of death is between November 30 and December 4.

Creche worker Marie's time of death was between December 2 and December 4.

Both bodies were identified by their passports, the court heard.

DI Rance said: 'Police were called on Monday December 4. When they arrived they found the deceased bodies of Noel Brown and Marie Brown.

'The time of death for Mr Brown is between November 30 and December 4. For Marie Brown it is December 2 and December 4.'

Senior Coroner Andrew Harris said: 'A provisional cause of death has been given as neck compression.

'I understand from the autopsy report that the deaths are to be treated as suspicious and the circumstances are such that I open an inquest.

'These two persons deaths are not natural and an investigation has been opened.

Mr Brown (left) was a regular in a local bookmakers but officers said his recent big win was not related. His daughter (right) went to the home after getting concerned

A police forensic officer searching wheelie bins at the scene as the area has been taped off

'As somebody may be charged with a homicide offence I suspended my investigation for the police to carry out their enquiries.'

The court heard no one is in custody over the killings.

Noel was jailed for eight years in 1999 for abusing two girls and was still on the sex offenders' register at the time of the killing.

One line of enquiry being explored by detectives is that Brown was targeted by anti-paedophile vigilantes.

Brown, who was born in Jamaica, was jailed at the Old Bailey in 1999 for abusing two girls and was released from jail in 2004.

Scotland Yard said there were no signs of a forced entry, suggesting the suspects were known to Noel and Marie disturbed them.

Rumours suggested that Mr Brown, known to frequent local betting shops in Deptford, south east London, may have been targeted after landing a big win.

But detectives say there is 'no evidence' to suggest that was the case.
Some Britons are so lonely they think their phone is their best friend, a Labour MP will today warn.

Rachel Reeves will say the UK is in the grip of a loneliness 'epidemic' which urgently needs to be tackled on a national scale.

She will say the decline of traditional centres of where people from across the community mix, like the local pub and church, is fuelling the problem.

Ms Reeves, co-chairwoman of the Jo Cox Commission on Loneliness, will make the comments at a speech to mark the end of its first year of research into the issue.

She will tell the Policy Exchange thinktank: 'When the culture and the communities that once connected us to one another disappear, we can be left feeling abandoned and cut off from society,' she will say, describing the issue as a new social epidemic.

Rachel Reeves will say the UK is in the grip of a loneliness 'epidemic' which urgently needs to be tackled on a national scale (file pic)

'In the last few decades, loneliness has escalated from personal misfortune into a social epidemic.

'More and more of us live alone. We work at home more. We spend a greater part of our day alone than we did 10 years ago.

'It sometimes feels like our best friend is the smartphone.'

The Labour MP for Leeds West will say if the Welfare State was created today then loneliness would have been added as a sixth 'giant evil' to be tackled alongside want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness.

And she will urge for an overhaul in how the welfare state works to tackle the growing plight of lonely people in the UK.

She will say: 'We need a new kind of welfare system that acts as a convenor, bringing people together to help them help themselves.'

And she will warn that teachers, social workers and others who re in a position to connect people have been turned into 'cogs in a machine', focused on 'meetings, testing, assessing, referring, auditing'.

The commission was set up in the wake of the murder of Jo Cox (pictured) the Labour MP for Batley and Spen who was stabbed and shot to death by a far-right fanatic Thomas Mair in June last year. Her death shocked the country and saw hundreds of floral tributes left in her in Birstall village

She will add: 'They are good people who want to make a difference, but nothing changes.

'Beveridge would not only recognise the evil of loneliness, he would follow up on his belief in voluntary action and give more power and control to people', according toa preview of the speech in The Guardian:

The commission was set up in the wake of the murder of Jo Cox, the Labour MP for Batley and Spen who was stabbed and shot to death by a far-right fanatic Thomas Mair in June last year.

Ms Reeves co-chairs the commission with the Conservative MP Seema Kennedy to continue the work done by Ms Cox, a mother-of-two who was killed just a year after she was elected to Parliament.

The two MPs also warn that loneliness is as damaging for a person's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day of being obese.

And they say it costs the British economy 32billion a year.

Prof Jane Cummings, the chief nursing officer for England, told 'I welcome the Jo Cox Foundation's work to raise awareness of and take action to alleviate loneliness.

'Social isolation can have a devastating impact not only on people's mental wellbeing, but evidence shows that it can also increase the risk of premature death by around a third.'
Kamran Ali is pictured leaving Southend Magistrates Court today

A trainee GP has denied sexually assaulting four patients and possessing child porn.

Dr Kamran Ali faces a string of charges where it is alleged he touched female patients' genitals when they came in for examinations.

The married trainee GP had been working at a surgery in Leigh-on-Sea, in Essex before he was arrested by police.

Ali faces six charges of sexual assault, one count of possessing extreme horse pornography and one count of possessing child porn.

The 39-year-old and spoke only to confirm his name, age and address when he appeared at Southend Magistrates' Court.

He gave not guilty pleas to the charges and will next appear in Basildon Crown Court on January 8 to formally enter a plea.

He stood emotionless during the brief hearing where his solicitor Gudrun Young described him as a '39-year-old man of good character'.

She also told the court the Ali had been in the country for 10 years and his wife was also a doctor.

Addressing the defendant, chair of the magistrates Ann Wade released him on conditional bail.

He must not apply for international travel, leave the UK or attempt to contact any witness.
This little girl nearly bit off more than she could chew after she had her tooth pulled out using a Champagne bottle.

Viva Frei, a father from Montreal, Canada, pulled out his daughter's friends tooth when he tied string around her loose tooth and attached it to the cork of a bottle.

With his own daughter watching and a host of other people looking on in amazement, the lawyer-turned-YouTuber set up cameras around the room to film the 'world-first' stunt.

Frei, who has previously pulled teeth using a squirrel and a drone, told the camera: 'We are going to remove a tooth by celebrating removing the tooth.

'We are going to pop the cork and it's going to pull the tooth out.'

One of his daughters says the tooth pull would be 'gross' and 'scar her for life', but Frei insists that tooth pull will be 'glorious'.

He then proceeds to tie a knot into the string around the loose tooth and pops the cork of the bottle.

The tooth then flies out of her mouth without even making the girl flinch.

After popping the cork, Frei says: 'It worked. Oh my gosh guys! Yes, I did it again people!'

YouTuber Viva Frei holds up a cork bottle of cider in a Champagne bottle to the camera

The young father then attaches a string onto the girls tooth and proceeeds to pop the cork
David Davis risked fuelling the Brexit row again today by insisting he does not need to be 'clever' to negotiate with the EU - and blaming the DUP for the delay in striking a divorce deal.

Despite previously warning that the talks could be the 'most complicated of all time', the Brexit Secretary said he only needed to be 'calm' rather than intelligent.

He said the frantic effort to get agreement with Brussels last week had tested his patience - and said the DUP's failure to 'sort themselves out' had held up the process.

The unguarded comments came after Mr Davis was sent out to try to soothe a row he triggered by playing down the UK's commitment to a soft border in Ireland as merely a 'statement of intent'.

Brexit Secretary David Davis was sent out today to calm a burgeoning row with Ireland over his claim the divorce deal was not 'legally binding'

The PM (pictured on the plane en route to Brussels early Friday morning) will gather her Cabinet today as she seeks to quell fears that the divorce package has tied us into 'soft' Brexit

The intervention threatened to throw the deal back into chaos. Irish PM Leo Varadkar previously described Britain's commitments to ensure no return to a hard border as 'cast-iron' and 'bullet proof', and allies warned last night that they would 'hold the UK to account'.

Mr Davis pledged today that Britain would stand by the arrangements and they were 'more than legally enforceable'.

The frantic negotiations last week saw the DUP torpedo the PM's first attempt to seal the deal on Monday, even though she was already in Brussels about to make a statement with Jean-Claude Juncker.

They were anxious that a provision to protect the soft Irish border, vowing 'full alignment' between the UK and EU on key trade rules, risked tearing the UK apart.

After days of frantic work, a new clause was included spelling out that any alignment would apply to the UK as a whole rather than just Northern Ireland, and a deal was finally reached on Friday.

Giving an insight into the stresses of the process, Mr Davis told LBC radio: 'What's the requirement of my job? I don't have to be very clever, I don't have to know that much, I do just have to be calm.

'And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.'

The comments contrast with his words from September last year, when he said of Brexit: 'It may be the most complicated negotiation of all time. By comparison, Schleswig-Holstein (a notorious 19th-century political problem) is an O-level question.'

In remarks that could infuriate the DUP, whose 10 MPs are propping Mrs May up in power, Mr Davis today laid the blame for the trouble firmly at their door.

'We had to pick another day and we looked at Wednesday but Wednesday wasn't long enough for the DUP to sort themselves out so we made it Thursday, Friday morning,' he said.

The frantic EU divorce negotiations saw the DUP torpedo the PM's first attempt to seal the deal last Monday. Pictured are DUP MPs Nigel Dodds, Jeffrey Donaldson and Gregory Campbell in the Commons last week

Irish PM Leo Varadkar (pictured left in Dublin last week) has insisted the divorce deal is 'bullet proof'. But David Davis (pictured right on the BBC's Andrew Marr show with Labour's Keir Starmer yesterday) suggested it was merely a 'statement of intent'

DUP leader Arlene Foster (pictured on Friday) held up the divorce deal over fears commitments on a soft Irish border could tear the UK apart

Mr Davis also said he does not believe economic forecasts as he discussed the furore over the Government's failure to formally assess the likely impact of EU withdrawal on different sectors of the UK economy.

He was accused of misleading Parliament last week after admitting no impact assessments had been made because their usefulness would be 'near zero' due to the scale of change which Brexit is likely to cause.

The Brexit Secretary said: 'In the last 18 months I've talked about impact here and there, but an impact statement, this is a thing that the Labour Party have been going on about, an impact statement has got a proper meaning in Whitehall, there's a definition of it and so on, including things like forecasts.

'Now I don't actually believe economic forecasts, they have all been proven wrong, I mean look at all the ones about Brexit.

'So what we do is we look at what we call a sectoral analysis which is the size of the thing, the size of the industry, employment levels, how much is dependent on Europe, how much is dependent on European regulations, how much opportunity there is in other countries.

'When you know those things, you know what you need to know.'
A Grooming gang are feared to have used a McDonald's to meet teenage girls for sex abuse.

Scotland Yard detectives are investigating claims four girls aged between 13 and 15 were raped after being picked up by the grooming ring around the fast food branch in Stratford, east London.

But it is thought there could be many more victims of the gang, possibly more than 30 girls.

Police are investigating a child abuse gang thought to have operated around this McDonald's

It is thought younger boys may be being used as 'hooks' to meet schoolgirls, who are then abused by older men.

A Met Police spokesman said: 'A safeguarding operation, Operation Grandbye, has been running since the beginning of November in response to increased issues relating to child sexual exploitation (CSE) in and around the Stratford Mall in Newham.

'Groups of young girls have been seen congregating with older males.'

Police said they have referred some girls to social services over grooming fears.

'Some girls felt they were in a relationship but others were there to either make money or do a job in relation to drugs,' Detective Inspector Laura Hillier told The Independent.

A 34-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of rape and possession with intent to supply drugs.

Four others, a 16-year-old, two 15-year-olds and a 21-year-old - have been arrested on suspicion of other offences by officers working on the same operation.

A 21-year-old, Peter Maynard, was given a conditional discharge for possession of cannabis after he was arrested by officers working on the probe.

Police say victims thought they were in a relationship with one of the gang. File photo

Police say a variety of methods will be used to tackle drug dealing and child sexual exploitation in the area against girls as young as 13.

In a press statement, Detective Inspector Laura Hillier added: 'A common feature of child sexual exploitation is that the child or young person does not recognise the coercive nature of the relationship and do not see themselves as a victim of sexual exploitation.

'As a result they are unlikely to report the abuse, meaning the issue remains seriously under reported.

'It is therefore essential that not only police and partners, but also the wider community, are alert to the warning signs.

'We all have a responsibility to keep our children and young people safe from harm and getting the local business sector on board will assist in the prevention, detection and safeguarding of those at risk.'
A Superdrug worker who attacked a colleague before pushing a woman in front of a double-decker bus has walked free from court after she was found legally insane.

Desta Degol, 28, was working at the chemist in Praed Street, Paddington, at the time of the offence shortly after 6pm on May 17 last year.

After losing her temper inside the store she whacked fellow worker Najat Hachchani, 62, over the head in the first of three random attacks.

Degol then stormed out of the branch, leaving displays strewn in her wake, and headed towards the Edgware Road, Southwark Crown Court heard.

Desta Degol (pictured) was working at the chemist in Praed Street, Paddington, at the time of the offence shortly after 6pm on May 17 last year

On her way, she spotted stranger Giash Ahmed and threw a bottle of water in his face before grabbing his head and punching him up to four times.

Shocked pedestrians then followed as Degol went to cross the road, pausing at the island where she shoved Zhanerke Shangereyeva, 22, head-first into the path of an oncoming bus.

Fortunately, the driver managed to make an emergency stop as the Chinese woman quickly rolled out of its way.

Degol was held by a number of members of the public before police arrived.

Shocked pedestrians followed Degol (pictured) as she went to cross the road, pausing at the island before shoving Zhanerke Shangereyeva, 22, head-first into the path of an oncoming bus

She was originally arrested on suspicion of attempting to murder Ms Shangereyeva, who luckily sustained only minor scratches.

Degol was then sectioned and later gave a prepared statement in interview, saying her psychosis left her in a very deluded state of mind with an impaired perception of reality.

I had absolutely no intention to harm any of the three people that I am alleged to have attacked on this date, she added.

I have no idea why I approached these people, I simply was not thinking coherently.

I am very sorry that the incidents happened and very embarrassed too. What has happened has shocked and scared me.

Last December she was charged with attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent.

At a hearing last month, a jury found her to be not guilty by reason of insanity.

Degol was held by a number of members of the public before police arrived outside the store

You have been found on the agreed psychiatric evidence placed before a jury to be not guilty by reason of insanity of a very serious offence, said Judge Christopher Hehir.

The allegation being that you tried to hurt somebody in a serious way by pushing her under a bus.

The judge explained that such a finding left him with three methods of disposal.

The first, a hospital order, was deemed not suitable whereas an absolute discharge at the other end of the spectrum did not reflect the seriousness of the offence regardless of her state of mind.

Degol, of Tottenham, north London, was made subject to a two-year supervision order under the care of a community psychiatric nurse.
Senate candidate Roy Moore has strongly denied dating underage women after his campaign was rocked by accusations last month that he pursued underage women when he was in his 30s.

Moore, a 70-year-old conservative Christian and former state judge, will face off in tomorrow's election against Democrat Doug Jones, a 63-year-old former US attorney.

While President Donald Trump is backing Moore, many other national Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, have distanced themselves from Moore after several women made accusations he pursued them as teenagers.

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Moore (pictured), a 70-year-old conservative Christian and former state judge, will face off in tomorrow's election against Democrat Doug Jones, a 63-year-old former US attorney

Moore said his opponent was 'viciously attacking' him because his values are 'not what the Alabama people find dear to them'. Pictured: A sign held up at a campaign event in Fairhope

Now, just a day before the big election, the former Alabama chief justice told The Voice of Alabama Politics he 'never molested anyone'.

Moore, when asked by host Bill Britt about the allegations, explained: 'I had no encounter with them.

'I don't know why they're saying it. But it's not true.'

He added: 'I said I did not know any of them women who have charged me with sexual allegation of molestation and I did not know any of the women.

'When I saw these pictures on the advertisements of my opponent, I did not recognize any of those women. I did not know them.

'I did not date underage women. I did not molest anyone.'

He then said his opponent was 'viciously attacking' him because his values are 'not what the Alabama people find dear to them'.

Doug Jones is 'painting himself as a moderate', he went on, 'when in fact he's a very liberal Democrat.'

While President Donald Trump is backing Moore, many other national Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, have distanced themselves from Moore after several women made accusations he pursued them as teenagers

Opinion polls show Moore with a narrow lead in the Southern state, which Trump won by 28 percentage points over Democrat Hillary Clinton in last year's presidential election.

The allegations have given new hope to Jones, who has touted his record that includes prosecuting former Ku Klux Klan members responsible for a 1963 bombing of a black church in which four girls were killed.

If Jones wins on Tuesday, Republicans would control the Senate by a slim 51-49 margin, giving Democrats much-needed momentum ahead of the November 2018 congressional elections, when control of both chambers of Congress will be at stake.

Doug Jones is 'painting himself as a moderate', Moore went on, 'when in fact he's a very liberal Democrat'

Yet for many Republicans, Moore is a paragon of traditional values. They reject accusations that he molested two teenage girls and pursued relationships with others decades ago. Moore denies the charges.

'Everyone has to vote their convictions,' said Kevin Mims of Montgomery, as he held his Bible outside his Baptist church Sunday in Montgomery. 'My conviction is he's the right man for the job.'

Where Moore's critics see a state judge who defied federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court's decision legalizing same-sex marriage, Mims see a stalwart who stands 'on the word of God.' Other conservatives see an anti-establishment firebrand in the mold of Trump, who won Alabama by 28 percentage points.

Moore encourages that view with fundraising emails that urge backers to help him 'defeat the elite,' a swipe at both Democrats and the establishment Republicans who tried to deny him the GOP nomination earlier this year.
A failed UKIP candidate who fled to Pakistan after she was convicted of calling a Tesco worker a 'f***ing foreigner' has been jailed for three months in her absence.

Blackfriars Crown Court heard Sam Naz, 34, launched a foul-mouthed racist tirade at trolley collector Mohammed Watfa at a Tesco in Leyton, east London.

Naz - who finished fifth in her bid to oust Zac Goldsmith as MP for Richmond Park and North Kensington - turned on Mr Watfa, 49, when he tried to intervene as she was attacked by another shopper.

In his scathing sentencing remarks, the judge labelled the mother-of-two 'bigoted and cruel' as he said there was 'not one iota of humility in her'.

Sam Naz (pictured with Nigel Farage) launched a foul-mouthed racist tirade at trolley collector Mohammed Watfa

Naz finished fifth in her bid to oust Zac Goldsmith as MP for Richmond Park and North Kensington

The court heard how Naz claimed she had been throttled by a male customer, who was never traced, and shoved into a parked car on March 22, 2015.

She then lost her temper and turned on Mr Watfa after the man sped off, calling him a 'f***ing b***ard', a 'f***ing foreigner' and taunting: 'What kind of f***ing foreigner are you?'

Naz insisted throughout three trials that Mr Watfa was the aggressor who sparked the row by helping her assailant flee before telling her 'you f***ing deserved it'.

The first jury at Snaresbrook Crown Court failed to reach verdicts before she was convicted and fined 1,500 at the same court following a retrial last September.

But she appealed and the conviction was quashed in February this year.

She stood trial for a third time last month and was found guilty for a second time of racially aggravated intentional harassment.

Blackfriars Crown Court heard she has since flown to Pakistan for one of her daughters to receive medical treatment.

'She is not happy with the treatment in the UK,' said her barrister, Rupert Russell.

The judge, Mr Recorder Dafydd Enoch QC branded the stunt a 'delaying tactic'.

'So, it has got nothing to do with the fact that she is facing a jail sentence today?' he asked.

Naz berated the officer in the case for 'believing a bunch of terrorists over me', the court heard

Naz, a former Ukip party member, has since flown to Pakistan for one of her daughters to receive medical treatment

When Mr Russell suggested Naz would not be staying abroad and was 'not a flight risk', the judge added: 'That is exactly what she has done.'

'I take the view that this is a blatant attempt to avoid the inevitable,' he said.

The judge labelled Naz 'bigoted and cruel'

After making it clear her sentence would not be increased by her 'deliberate absence', the judge jailed her for three months for her 'sustained, deliberate and cruel racist tirade'.

Jurors heard Mr Watfa approached Naz to see if she was ok after spotting a man with his fist clenched and ready to punch the mother-of-two.

He described separating the pair and directing the stranger back to his own car, which Naz was dragged behind as she clung on in an attempt to stop him leaving.

After berating his failure to help, the supermarket worker claimed Naz's verbal abuse quickly escalated into a foul-mouth barrage ending with the charity worker hissing at him: 'What kind of f***ing foreigner are you?'

Mr Watfa claimed he heard the same slurs of 'you f***ing immigrant' and 'he's a racist, he's a bastard, he's a c**t, he's a f***ing foreigner' were repeated as many as 50 times.

Jurors heard Naz initially told officers the allegations were part of 'a Muslim IS conspiracy' from within Walthamstow's Asian community.

She also berated the officer in the case for 'believing a bunch of terrorists over me', the court heard.

Naz, from Richmond in southwest London, was sentenced to three months imprisonment in her absence

Addressing Naz as if she were present, the judge said: 'You set yourself up and promoted yourself as someone who wanted to and deserved to represent the people of this country in Parliament.

'By so doing, you had a public responsibility to behave decently and appropriately, particularly in public.

'The people who you abused on this day in public were the very people whose votes you were courting.

'The idea that you could represent such people in Parliament is difficult to swallow and I would have thought that no self-respecting political party would wish to have its interests represented by you in the future given the evidence we have heard in this trial and the resultant conviction.

'You have, in my judgement, displayed publicly a persona which is bigoted and cruel.

'There is not one iota of humility in you.'

Naz, from Richmond in southwest London, denied a single count of racially aggravated intentional harassment but was convicted by the jury.

She was sentenced to three months imprisonment in her absence.
Three British travellers zig-zagged across three countries in South America and necked three beers in just 56 minutes.

Calum Foskett, 27, Jed Gibbs, 27 and Joe Oliver, 29, all from Bedfordshire, crossed the Amazon twice on a leaky boat and raced along dirt roads on motorbikes during their whistle stop bar crawl in Peru, Brazil and Colombia.

Their three-country beer-stop set them back just 25 - roughly the same price as five pints in London.

The three friends from Bedfordshire necked three beers in three South American countries in under an hour

The trio started off in Colombia and used a tuk-tuk (pictured) and speed boat to reach Peru

This map shows the route the three friends took during their three country beer stop

The British travellers decided to go on the 10 mile crawl across the three countries, where there are open borders, after their flights were delayed.

The three friends started off in Colombia and used a tuk-tuk and speed boat to reach Santa Rosa, in Peru, where they downed their first beer.

They then rushed back to the port and crossed the Amazon again, where they drunk a can of Skol in Tabatinga, Brazil.

They then hopped on the back of a taxi motorbike to cross the border into Colombia where they ran to a bar in the southern city of Leticia.

The friends finished their first beer at 29 minutes, the second on 41 minutes and consumed their final beer in Colombia after 56 minutes.

After reaching their second country, Brazil, the three friends downed a can of Skol

The friends reached Brazil by a rickety boat and downed a beer in the port city of Tabatinga

Speaking from Colombia, law student Mr Foskett said: 'It started off as a joke in a bar and then we realised no one had ever tried it before, and then we had a problem with our flights and were stuck for over a week.

'Whilst working out how to spend our time we were looking at a map and realised it could be possible to visit all three countries within an hour.

'From there, it escalated to a beer in each country in under an hour.

'We tried to make it as challenging as possible by adding two extra rules. We had to finish where we started making sure it was a full loop and each beer had to be served to us rather than bought in a shop.

'It was tough going and I thought we weren't going to make it at some points...it was like something from the Crystal Maze.'

The friends also travelled by motor taxi which they described as being a 'bit scary'

He added: 'It's certainly different, How many pub crawls involve crossing a river by boat and shooting round on motorbikes?

'The motorbike taxis are a bit scary...they don't hang around.

'Also the boat from Peru to Brazil appeared to have a leak but luckily we stayed above water.

'Although it looks like fun, it was tiring as well. We spent the rest of the day laying in hammocks.'

The three friends hope they have set a record.

'We gave it a good go, but I think it can be beaten...not by much though, Mr Foskett added.

The trio are in South America for three months and will return home in January.
A Dutch model has died in mysterious circumstances in Malaysia amid reports she plunged from a 20th floor apartment after a party.

Ivana Smit, 18, was found dead on a sixth floor balcony of the Persiaran Capsquare block in Kuala Lumpur's Jalan Dang Wangi district and was not wearing any clothes.

Police insist there were 'no criminal elements' to the young model's death, but her devastated family has demanded an investigation.

Dutch model Ivana Smit has died in mysterious circumstances in Malaysia amid reports she plunged from a 20th floor apartment

Ivana Smit, 18, was found dead on a sixth floor balcony of the Persiaran Capsquare block in Kuala Lumpur's Jalan Dang Wangi district and was not wearing any clothes

Police insist there were 'no criminal elements' to the young model's death, but her devastated family has demanded an investigation

The model's body was found at the Persiaran Capsquare block in Kuala Lumpur's Jalan Dang Wangi district

The teenager, who had worked in fashion shows for Chanel and other brands, had been partying but reportedly returned to the flat at 5am last Thursday.

But several hours later her dead body was found naked after allegedly falling from the balcony and landing on the sixth floor of the block.

Police said there were 'no criminal elements' to the death but Ivana's devastated father along with his wife and son have now arrived in the country and contacted Interpol to demand a full probe into the incident.

Ivana's grandfather Fredrik Smit, who has lived in Penang, Malaysia, for over two decades and raised Ivana as a child there, said today: 'We cannot believe she fell from level 20 and the body was found at level 6.

The teenager, who had worked in fashion shows for Chanel and other brands, had been partying but returned to the flat at 5am last Thursday

'She was found there naked. Where are her shoes and underwear?

He added: 'We believe there is a criminal element in Ivana's death. Of course we don't believe the story from the police because they can't give us photographs or a report from the scene. Ivana's father has contacted the Dutch ambassador and Interpol.'

Ivana's father Marcel Smit claims Ivana sent her boyfriend a message and selfie at 7.25am before she was found dead around seven hours later last Thursday afternoon at around 2 or 3pm.

He told Dutch media: 'At about 10am she would have fallen from the balcony at 20 floors high. How is that possible? It is strange that she was not found until 3pm.

'She is tall, 1.81 meters, but the barrier is also 1.20 meters. Only when you bend over, do you fall off. She did not fall and did not jump either.'

Ivana's father Marcel Smit claims Ivana sent her boyfriend a message and selfie at 7.25am before she was found dead around seven hours later last Thursday afternoon at around 2 or 3pm

Ivana (pictured) had first moved to Malaysia 13 years ago and lived with her grandfather Fredrik

Marcel claims that police want to 'close the case quickly' and that neighbours heard 'shouts and an argument'.

According to Ivana's family, alcohol and ecstasy have allegedly been found in the blood of his daughter.

The model's uncle Fred Agenjo said: 'Those are not drugs that you're going to sleep on.

'There are so many questions. Her clothes have been found, but her shoes and underwear are not.

'The police do not look at her mobile phone. The police do not want to say whether the drugs were taken when they were alive. We want a full investigation.'

Ivana had first moved to Malaysia 13 years ago and lived with her grandfather Fredrik.

She was the second runner-up in Malaysia Supermodel Search 2014 and a leading model in the country.

Dang Wangi police chief Assistant Commissioner Shaharuddin Abdullah said the case was 'sudden death' and appealed for more information from witnesses.

He said: 'Our investigations so far and the post-mortem report show no elements of foul play.'
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has fired a warning at the United States and said it was a 'partner to bloodshed' after Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel sparked violence.

Erdogan bitterly opposes Trump's decision and has sought to mobilise the Muslim world against it, calling a summit of Islamic countries on December 13 in Istanbul.

The Turkish president, who regards himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause, said the 'struggle' of Muslims would not end until there was an independent Palestinian state.

'They will never be able to clean the blood,' he said in a speech in Ankara.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has harshly criticized Israel and the United States over the US stance on Jerusalem

Erdogan bitterly opposes Trump's decision and has sought to mobilise the Muslim world against it, calling a summit of Islamic countries on December 13 in Istanbul

Protests continue to be held across the world following the controversial decision. These female masked members of the Palestinian Al-Quds Brigades demonstrated in Gaza City

'With this recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, it (the United States) has become a partner to this bloodshed. We do not recognise this decision, we will not,' he added.

Turkey had high hopes for relations under the Trump presidency, but ties have frayed with rows over the Syria conflict, a New York legal case and now Jerusalem.

Erdogan said that the current 'vandalism and cruelty' in Jerusalem would not last. 'Those who think they own Jerusalem today will not find trees to hide behind,' he said.

Trump's move has ignited protests across the Islamic world and deadly violence in the Palestinian territories.

He said Wednesday's summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul would be a 'turning point' on the issue.

And on Monday Hezbollah said it will refocus its efforts on fighting the Palestinian cause in the wake of Trump's decision.

Trump's move has ignited protests across the Islamic world and deadly violence in the Palestinian territories. American and Israeli flags were burned in Gaza City today

Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had traded verbal blows at the weekend, with the Turkish leader describing Israel as a 'terrorist state' that kills children

Erdogan bitterly opposes Trump's decision and has sought to mobilise the Muslim world against it, calling a summit of Islamic countries

Protests across the Muslim world entered their fifth day on Monday. Here a Palestinian throws a rock at Israeli security forces near the city of Ramallah, on the West Bank

Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces continued in the West Bank on Thursday. Pictured here, a man kicks a flaming tyre at Israeli security near Ramallah

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon, called on the group and its allies in the region to present a 'united front' against Israel.

His announcement came as thousands of the group's supporters took to the streets of Beirut chanting 'Death to America!' and 'Death to Israel!' while carrying banners that read 'Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine' and 'Jerusalem is Ours'.

Nasrallah had called for the demonstration last week.

The marches, along with fresh violence in the West Bank and Gaza, came after Benjamin Netanyahu gave a speech to EU diplomats in Brussels saying Trump's declaration had 'made peace possible.'

Israeli security forces observe Palestinian protesters near Ramallah amid violent clashes

Palestinian paramedic volunteers carry away an injured protester during clashes near Ramallah on Monday

Hezbollah has announced it will refocus its efforts on fighting the Palestinian cause after Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel (pictured, anti-Trump banners at a Hezbollah march in Lebanon on Monday)

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the group in Lebanon (pictured on Hezbollah's al-Manar TV) made the announcement as thousands took to the streets of Beirut in a day of protests against Trump

Nasrallah (whose picture, right, was carried through Beirut along with a portrait of former Hezbollah military leader Imad Mughniyeh) had called for the protests on Sunday

Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had traded verbal blows at the weekend, with the Turkish leader describing Israel as a 'terrorist state' that kills children.

Hours later Netanyahu hit back, calling his counterpart a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers and supports terrorists, during an official visit to Paris.

However Erdogan did not refer to Netanyahu in his latest speech.

Last year, Turkey and Israel ended a rift triggered by Israel's storming in 2010 of a Gaza-bound ship that left 10 Turkish activists dead and led to a downgrading of diplomatic ties.

The two sides have since stepped up cooperation, particularly in energy, but Erdogan has repeatedly been bitterly critical of Israeli policy.
A one-punch killer has appealed against his five-year jail sentence, arguing it is excessive.

Patrick Cronin, 19, was 'coward punched' outside the Windy Mile pub in Diamond Creek, Melbourne, during a fight involving up to 30 people in April last year and later died.

His attacker Andrew William Lee was jailed for a maximum of eight years after pleading guilty to manslaughter.

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Patrick Cronin, 19, (pictured) was 'coward punched' outside the Windy Mile pub in Diamond Creek, Melbourne during a fight involving up to 30 people in April last year

His attacker Andrew William Lee (pictured) was jailed for a maximum of eight years after pleading guilty to manslaughter

But Lee has launched an appeal only a week after Patrick's devastated parents wrote a letter to the Director of Public Prosecutions saying the sentence was too lenient, the Herald Sun reported.

Lee, a father of a young son, changed his plea to guilty two days into his trial at the Supreme Court of Victoria in September.

Patrick's father, Matt Cronin, on Monday told the publication the appeal was a 'kick in the guts'.

'I'm not shocked but I'm really disappointed,' Mr Cronin said.

In their letter to the DPP, Robyn and Matt Cronin said the sentence was not long enough.

'As victims of the most horrendous crime against our beautiful, innocent son, we are left with no sense of justice and we are seeking your intervention to send a message that Victoria does not accept and should not accept such lenient sentences for this type of manslaughter,' the letter said.

Pictured: Mr Cronin's parents Robyn and Matt leaving the Supreme Court of Victoria earlier in Lee's trial
Camilla Wageman (pictured) was a confident young law student when she was lured into a sinister cult accused of brainwashing members into having sex with its serial rapist leader

Camilla Wageman was a confident young law student when she was lured into a cult accused of brainwashing members into having sex with its serial rapist leader.

The South Korean-based Christian sect, known as Providence, began establishing Australian branches in the 1990s on the orders of Jeong Myeong-seok, who is serving a 10-year jail term in Seoul for raping and molesting his followers.

Recruiters in Australia's major cities roam shopping malls and university campuses looking for tall, attractive women who are encouraged to become 'spiritual brides' of the leader, according to former members.

Ms Wageman is one of many Australians who have been convinced to abandoned their friends and family to live a life of secrecy under the strict teachings of the self-proclaimed Messiah.

'Right from the start of learning Bible studies, I heard where Pastor Jeong was,' the young Canberra woman is heard saying in a promotional video for the cult.

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The South Korean-based Christian sect known as Providence began establishing Australian branches in the 1990s at the orders of Jeong Myeong-seok (pictured)

'Right from the start of learning Bible studies, I heard where Pastor Jeong was,' Ms Wageman is heard saying in a promotional video for the cult

'I heard about what he'd been accused of... [but] as I saw the way that he lived, I came to really admire the things that he'd achieved.

'I read what had been written about him on the internet, so I was fully aware about all of the rumours about him from the start. And of course I was quite sceptical about him myself to start off with.

'But after listening to him preach about love, forgiveness, compassion and self-improvement on such a consistent basis, I realised no one could preach like that unless they were living like that too.'

Ms Wageman's father Gerry spoke on Monday of his 'great mourning' that he had 'really lost his daughter' to the cult.

Recruiters in Australia's major cities roam shopping malls and university campuses looking for tall, attractive women who are encouraged to become 'spiritual brides' of the leader

Jeong Myeong-seok, who is serving a 10-year jail term in Seoul for raping and molesting his followers

He said his only contact with the former Australian National University student is through an occasional email or a rare phone call.

'You can't mention anything about Providence... if you touch on that subject no questions are ever answered,' he told the ABC's 7.30.

'The only way to make contact with her is through her pre-cult persona and remember the things we did before she joined and the fun we had.

'That is still more or less what is happening currently... I'm told that she will come out eventually. I hope that will be in my life time.'

Ms Wageman (pictured) is one of many Australians who have been convinced to abandoned their friends and family to live a life of secrecy under the strict teachings of the self-proclaimed Messiah

Ms Wageman's father Gerry spoke on Monday of his 'great mourning' that he had 'really lost his daughter' to the secretive cult

Former followers previously told Daily Mail Australia of the shocking psychological and emotional damage they were left with after breaking from the sect.

Elizabeth, who chose not to give her full name for fear of reprisals, was a member of Providence's Canberra faction for 18 months.

'I was shopping inside the Canberra Centre in April 2011. A Korean woman came over and said she was holding a Christian art show. It looked good so I thought I would check it out,' she said last year.

After meeting the group's local leader she moved in with them later that year and was subjected to the indoctrination process.

Ms Wageman's father said his only contact with the former Australian National University student is through an occasional email or a rare phone call

Elizabeth (pictured) said she was a member of Providence's Canberra fraction for 18 months

'We had to wake up at 3am every day to pray because they said this brought us closer to god. It's a mind control technique: when you're deprived of sleep you can't critically think,' she said.

Teachings were centred on the 'Messianic' leader Jeong, who was depicted as a living Deity who had been falsely accused and persecuted like Jesus Christ.

'They encouraged us to write letters to him like he was our lover. He wrote sexually explicit replies saying things like ''your white skin arouses me,'' or ''your vagina would look pretty''.'

The religious group's spokesman at the time refuted Elizabeth's claims and said there was no record of such letters.

'They encouraged us to write letters to him like he was our lover,' said Elizabeth, pictured with members of the organisation's Canberra faction

Former cult members have told police they were ordered to have sex with Jeong to remove their sins, according to previous media reports

Both Providence and Camilla Wageman rejected all allegations made against them when contacted by the ABC

Other former cult members have told police they were ordered to have sex with Jeong to remove their sins, according to previous media reports.

He was accused of rape and fled South Korea in 1999 before he was extradited from China and charged.

He was sentenced to 10 years' jail, though his supporters maintain his innocence.

Jeong is due to walk free from his South Korean jail cell early next year.

Both Providence and Camilla Wageman rejected all allegations made against them when contacted by the ABC.
Meha Ahmad, a producer for the Chicago radio show The Morning Shift on WBEZ, said she was refused a ride while standing in the street with her young family

A Muslim woman has claimed a Jewish Uber driver refused to allow her in his car because 'Jerusalem belongs to the Jews'.

Meha Ahmad, a producer for the Chicago radio show The Morning Shift on WBEZ, said she was refused a ride while standing in the street with her young family.

She explained she was waiting at Chicago's Navy Pier when her car - driven by a man - pulled up.

But when she tried to open the door, she claimed in a Twitter post, the driver would not unlock it.

'Instead [he] lowers his passenger side window and obv[iously] wants to say something,' she wrote.

'I step up and he's like 'I can't take you, I'm Jewish.' I'm like....... 'Ok so?' He repeats 'I'm Jewish, I can't drive you'.'

She claimed at this point her family - including children aged two and five - were pleading to get in the car because they were cold.

But the man allegedly added: 'I'm Jewish, I'm not letting you in', before showing her a necklace to prove his faith.

Meha continued: 'Then he's like 'I'm Jewish, JERUSALEM BELONGS TO THE JEWS, I CAN'T DRIVE YOU.'

She explained she was waiting at Chicago's Navy Pier when her car - driven by a man - pulled up. But when she tried to open the door, she claimed in a Twitter post, the driver would not unlock it

Meha continued: 'Then he's like 'I'm Jewish, JERUSALEM BELONGS TO THE JEWS, I CAN'T DRIVE YOU''

'Finally I'm like 'well you can cancel this ride bc I'm not about to get hit with a fee'.'

Meha, who previously worked for state-funded Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera, claims she was then emailed by Uber.

A representative of the firm told her she was 'sorry to hear about the experience' but said it would not be possible to investigate due to a lack of evidence, Meha claimed.

But in a statement to MailOnline, a spokeswoman from Uber said: 'Discrimination has no place on the Uber app. What's been reported is unacceptable and we have removed this driver's access to Uber.'

The allegation comes days after President Donald Trump acknowledged Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in a move that upset many Muslims around the world.

A synagogue was firebombed in Gothenburg, Sweden on Saturday in an attack believed to be related to the announcement.

But not all Jews were pleased with President Trump's declaration.

She explained she was waiting at Chicago's Navy Pier when her car - driven by a man - pulled up. Pictured: A general view of Chicago

Some Twitter users who identified as Jews even replied to Meha's post to apologize on behalf of the Jewish people.

Another user, however, accused her of fabricating the entire story.
A 78-year-old grandfather was killed by two drivers who were racing at twice the speed limit as he crossed the road, a court heard.

Glenn Donovan, 34, was racing his white Volkswagen Scirocco at 79mph through a 40mph zone against BMW driver Stephen Richards, 43, the Old Bailey heard.

Donovan drove through a pedestrian crossing followed a second later by Richards, who struck Mohammed Muqtadir, 78, as he crossed the road on April 7 last year.

Emergency services arrived, but Mr Muqtadir was pronounced dead at the scene on the A12 between Redbridge and Gants Hill in east London.

Mohammed Muqtadir, 78, was killed in April last year as he used a pedestrian crossing. Glenn Donovan, 34, and Stephen Richards, 43, are standing trial at the Old Bailey, accused of causing death by dangerous driving

Jurors were told it was a matter of 'pure chance' which of the two drivers hit Mr Muqtadir at about 5.50am.

Although the crossing had a red man, if the BMW had not been driving so fast Mr Muqtadir would have been able to cross in time, the Old Bailey was told.

The court heard Richards was driving home from a night shift at work with a passenger, Jamie May.

Prosecutor Sarah Przybylska said: 'Mr May noticed the defendant Donovan's white Volkswagen Scirocco driving erratically, changing lanes, tailgating.

'At the Redbridge roundabout Donovan's car pulled alongside Richards' car and then in front of him.

'Mr May saw Donovan's car swerve, then heard a bang and realised that Richards' car had hit someone.

'That sound of someone being hit was the collision between Mr Richards' car and Mr Muqtadir. He saw Donovan's car driving off at speed.'

Police arrived and spoke to Richards and Mr May.

Police collision investigator Clive Austin found both cars were travelling at 79mph when they reached the pedestrian crossing, the court heard.

The prosecutor said: 'Both were braking and so it is likely that each vehicle was travelling at a greater speed on their approach to the crossing.

'Had the BMW been travelling at the 40mph speed limit it would not have hit Mr Muqtadir, as he would have had time to cross the road before the BMW reached the crossing.'

Emergency services arrived, but Mr Muqtadir was pronounced dead at the scene on the A12 between Redbridge and Gants Hill

Police identified Donovan through his registration number and went to his house at 1pm the same day.

When police tracked down Donovan, he told them that he had left work in Stratford at about 5.40am and did not notice anything out of the ordinary as he drove home.

Ms Przybylska said the two motorists were driving as part of a 'joint enterprise' and were both responsible for the death.

She added: 'This dangerous driving occurred on the spur of the moment. Donovan was driving behind Richards at speed, tailgating, and then undertook him.

'He drove off at high speed - in excess of 79mph - and then Richards followed him, matching his speed.

'Whether you call this road rage or racing, both cars were travelling at grossly excessive speed in a built up area in convoy. It was a matter of pure chance which of them hit Mr Muqtadir.'

Richards, from Romford in east London, has pleaded guilty to causing the death of Mr Muqtadir by his dangerous driving.

Donovan, also from Romford, admits dangerous driving but denies causing death by dangerous driving.

The trial continues.
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The taxi driver behind the failed terror attack in a New York City told investigators he meant to detonate his homemade pipe bomb in the busy subway station after seeing the walls festooned with Christmas posters - in revenge for violence against Muslims all over the world.

While initial reports suggested the crude pipe bomb, made from a pipe, a 9-volt battery, match heads, sugar, Christmas tree lights and screws, had detonated prematurely, suspect Akayed Ullah, 27, insisted he set off the bomb deliberately.

The bombing attack at the Port Authority Bus Station subway station comes just days after Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital, sparking violence between Israelis and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Ullah, who was arrested and taken for questioning after the bomb only partially detonated, told police he was walking through the underground tunnel at 7.20am, between the Port Authority station towards Times Square, when he saw the Christmas-themed posters on the wall, which reminded him of ISIS' calls last month for militants and lone wolves to attack holiday markets.

'He acknowledges he purposely set it off then and there,' a senior law enforcement official told the New York Post.

The Bangladeshi immigrant added that he was specifically inspired by ISIS, 'not Al Qaeda'.

Authorities say that if the explosive had fully detonated in the busy Midtown Manhattan subway station, there would have been more injuries and doubtless loss of life.

The attack came days after Ullah's Brooklyn neighbors say they heard a huge row coming from his home, reporting yelling and screaming over the past two nights. His parents have since released a statement saying they are 'outraged' by the allegations, and the treatment of their family since the terror attack.

Ullah, who was allowed to stop and pray multiple times during his interrogation, was taken to Bellevue Hospital to be treated for serious burns and lacerations to his abdomen and hands but is expected to survive. At the hospital, the Brooklyn resident told investigators that he was inspired to carry out the attack by the recent flare ups between Israelis and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

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A 27-year-old Bangladeshi national was arrested on Monday after a pipe bomb partially exploded in a New York City Subway tunnel

Akayed Ullah, a resident of Brooklyn, was taken into custody after the attack. He says he wanted to carry out the terrorist attack in retribution for Muslim Palestinians. Ullah is seen here being taken to the hospital

Authorities don't believe the subway corridor was the intended target of the attack since the pipe bomb Ullah was carring attached to his body only partially exploded

Ullah was the only person seriously injured in the explosion. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital to be treated for burns and lacerations to his abdomen and hands

At the hospital, Ullah told investigators that he made the explosive device last week. There are conflicting reports about whether he made the bomb at his apartment or at his job at an electrical company

Video from inside the tunnel purports to show the moment the explosion occurred (center) and the injured suspect (right) lying on the ground

Commuters exit a train as a police officer stands in a closed-off underground walkway near the site of a pipe bomb explosion in the tunnel that connects the Times Square subway station to the Port Authority Bus Terminal

The cordoned off walkway where Ullah is believed to have walked down before detonating the bomb. On the walls are paintings of people in seasonal dress. Ullah says he was inspired to set off the explosion after seeing Christmas posters

Ullah would have also had to walk past these Macy's advertisements for Christmas gifts. Pictured, forces stand guard at Herald Square subway station after an explosion in Manhattan borough of New York City

Last week, President Trump sparked tensions between the Jewish Israelis and Muslim Palestinians when he officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel - a city the two groups have been fighting over for decades.

Monday's attack was the first terror attack on U.S. soil since that proclamation, but only one of many violent demonstrations across the world since the controversial move was announced last Wednesday. It was also the second time in two months that New York City was the target of a terrorist attack.

President Trump said in a statement that 'lax' immigration policies were to blame for the attack, and urged Congress to 'enact legislative reforms to protect the American people'.

Authorities say Ullah took the A train subway to the Port Authority Bus Terminal stop Monday morning, and started walking east towards Times Square via an underground terminal when a pipe bomb hidden underneath his clothes prematurely exploded.

Law enforcement officials don't believe the passageway was the intended target since the 'low-tech' bomb - attached to Ullah with Velcro and zip ties - did not explode fully.

The chemical explosive appears to have ignited but the pipe itself did not burst. Screws were found at the scene, indicating that they may have filled the pipe and were intended to be used as shrapnel.

In the end, Ullah was the only one seriously injured by the explosive (three others reported to hospitals for ringing in the ears and headaches).

Hero Port Authority Police Officers Sean Gallagher 26, a former Marine, Anthony Manfredini, 28, a former Marine bomb tech, Drew Preston, 36, a former Army soldier with three combat tours, and Jack Collins 45, an attorney, have been identified as the cops who took Ullah into custody.

It was Officer Manferdini who spotted people running out of the passageway and he was swiftly joined by his colleagues as they ran towards the explosion and witnessed Ullah, crumpled on the floor, trying to get to his cellphone. Many improvised explosive devices often use cellphones as the detonator, so he may have been trying to set off the second explosive that was found on his body.

'The person on the floor was reaching for his cell phone. The officers at that point had to make a decision so no one else would be hurt and they decided at that point to take the person into custody,' Bobby Egbert, spokesman for the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association, told 1010 WINS. 'There was a struggle with him, they had to keep him from reaching the cell phone, obviously they had no idea what he was going to do with the cell phone.'

After he was arrested, Ullah was rushed to Bellevue Hospital where investigators started questioning him as he got treatment for his injuries.

Law enforcement sources who spoke to Ullah at the hospital say he confessed to plotting the attack in retribution for recent actions by Israelis against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, CNN reports. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo described Ullah as 'disgruntled'.

Also while he was at the hospital, Ullah revealed that he learned how to make explosives online, and that he constructed the pipe bombs about a week ago. There are conflicting reports about whether he put the bombs together at his apartment or at his job at an electrical company where he appears work with his brother.

Firefighters, police officers and FBI agents converged on the area of the attack near Times Square Monday morning around 7:30am - causing rush hour chaos for many New Yorkers

Port Authority closed down the bus terminal after the attack. The bus terminal is the busiest in the world - serving about 225,000 commuters a day

Armed NYPD officers at the scene on Monday morning await instruction after the suspect was taken away

Ullah immigrated to the U.S. in February 2011 from his native Bangladesh. His photo ID shows he was certified to work as a taxi cab driver, but he let his cab license expire in 2015

Neighbors in Brooklyn say Ullah (left and right) did not appear to be married or have any kids. He lived in the basement of a building in Flatlands, below an apartment where his brother and sister live

The Bangladeshi former taxi driver who botched his 'revenge' attack on the US with a homemade bomb: What we know about Akayed Ullah Akayed Ullah moved to the U.S. from Bangladesh with his family seven years ago.

He came to the U.S. on a F-4 visa, a preferential visa for those who have family already in the country, according to Fox News. He is now a legal green-card holder according to the New York Post.

Bangladesh's police chief said the suspect, who lived in Chittagong, had no criminal record and wasn't on the radar of authorities.

Ullah lived in Brooklyn and held a taxi license from 2012 to 2015, when it lapsed. It was for a livery service rather than a yellow cab.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo told CNN that Ullah was 'disgruntled' and learned how to make the pipe bomb online.

There are conflicting reports about where Ullah made the device.

The New York Post say he constructed it at the electrical company where he worked, while a law enforcement source who spoke to the AP said he made it in his apartment.

Law enforcement sources who spoke to Ullah at the hospital say he confessed to plotting the attack in retribution for recent actions by Israelis against Muslim Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Investigators have yet to determine an official motivation for the failed attack, but there have been reports that Ullah was inspired by ISIS.

Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press he was not in direct contact with the terrorist group.

So far, officials believe that Ullah carried out the attack as a 'lone wolf' Advertisement

Records show that Ullah moved to the U.S. from Chittagong, Bangladesh in February 2011 on a F-4 visa, and is now a legal green-card owner. The FR-4 visa is a preferential visa for those who already have family in the U.S. He reportedly immigrated with his parents and three to four siblings. Ullah had recently visited his home country on September 8.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in an afternoon press conference that the president is working to end such 'chain migration' in favor of merit-based immigration policies.

It's still unclear what exactly Ullah did for work in electronics. He previously had a taxi cab license, but let it expire in March 2015. While he doesn't have a criminal record - either in Bangladesh or the U.S. - Ullah has been cited several times for traffic violations.

Investigators have yet to determine an official motivation for the failed attack, but there have been reports that Ullah was inspired by ISIS.

Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that Ullah was inspired by the group, but not in direct contact with them. The attack is being celebrated on pro-ISIS 'channels'.

Investigators say he watched ISIS videos and read extremist propaganda such as Al-Qaeda's Inspire magazine, NBC News reported.

The magazine famously posted an article titled: 'Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom.'

So far, officials believe that Ullah carried out the attack as a 'lone wolf'.

Former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC's Morning Joe that the suspect 'supposedly was setting the device off in the name of ISIS' and that it was 'definitely a terrorist attack, definitely intended'.

At a morning press conference, current NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill said that the suspect 'did make statements' but that they are not going to comment on them yet.

Though it's still early in the investigation, New York City officials say it was definitely an attempted terror attack.

'This was an attempted terror attack and thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals,' Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal is the largest in the country and the busiest in the world - serving about 225,000 commuters a day.

It's what's known by law enforcement officials as a 'soft target' because it handles a lot of traffic but doesn't have the same kind of security as a place like an airport.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said a bombing in the subway is 'one of our worst nightmares' - but he said New Yorkers will get through this as they have before on 9/11 and even the most recent terror attack on Halloween.

'This is the New York. The reality is we are the target by many who would like to make a statement against democracy and against freedom. We have the Statue of Liberty in our harbor and that makes us an international target.

'We understand that anyone can go on the internet and download garbage and vileness on how to put together an amateur-level explosive device and that is the reality that we live with.

'The counter reality is that this is New York and we all pitch together and we are a savvy people and we keep our eyes open and that's what 'see something, say something' is all about. And we have the best law enforcement on the globe and we're all working together extraordinarily well,' Gov. Cuomo said.

A woman in a headscarf was seen being led away from an address in Ocean Parkway connected to Ullah on Monday

NYPD officers carried out search warrants on three buildings connected to Ullah after the bombing on Monday. Two of them were located in Kensington and one in Flatlands. Above an aerial view of the Flatlands apartment

Police were seen speaking to residents at the Flatlands home on Monday morning. Police reportedly talked to Ullah's father, mother and brother at this home

Police are seen at another address connected to Ullah in the the Kensington neighborhood of Brooklyn, on Ocean Parkway

Above another view of the Kensington apartment building connected to Ullah

Police officers in SWAT gear were called in to help carry out some of the search warrants on Monday

Law enforcement agents are seen again carrying out a search warrant at an undisclosed location in New York City on Monday

Following the attack, police descended on at least three addresses connected to Ullah in Brooklyn - one in Flatlands and two in Kensington.

Ullah's mother, father and brother were seen being interviewed outside of the one of the addresses.

His parents have since released a statement saying they are 'outraged' by the treatment of their family.

'We are heartbroken by the violence that was targeted at our city today, and by the allegations being made against a member of our family,' the family said in a statement read by Albert Fox Cahn, legal director for Council on American-Islamic Relations-New York.

'But we are also outraged by the behavior of law enforcement officials who have held children as small as 4 years old out in the cold and who held a teenager out of high school classes to interrogate him without a lawyer, without his parents,' the statement continued.

SUSPECT'S FAMILY 'OUTRAGED' BY TREATMENT We are heartbroken by the violence that was targeted at our city today, and by the allegations being made against a member of our family. But we are also outraged by the behavior of law enforcement officials who have held children as small as 4 years old out in the cold and who held a teenager out of high school classes to interrogate him without a lawyer, without his parents. These are not the sorts of actions that we expect from our justice system, and we have every confidence that our justice system will find the truth behind this attack and that we will, in the end, be able to learn what occurred today. Advertisement

'These are not the sorts of actions that we expect from our justice system, and we have every confidence that our justice system will find the truth behind this attack and that we will, in the end, be able to learn what occurred today.'

Police had cordoned off the block of East 48th Street in Flatlands where the alleged terrorist had been living and the bomb squad were on the scene.

Leonora Podlyashuk lives on the same floor as an apartment being searched in connection with Ullah at 679 Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn.

She told DailyMail.com that a man, believed to be Ullah, his wife and son, aged about 5 years, moved into the building five months ago.

The woman was pregnant at the time with their second child, and has since given birth. Her baby is 2 or 3 months old.

'The wife was pleasant, would say hello in the elevator, but I never saw any men [in the apartment],' she said. 'I would not have recognized him if shown a photo.'

The wife was dressed in traditional Muslim attire, she said. It is unclear if the man is Ullah or a relative.

The neighbour said some 20 police officers and FBI agents have been in the hallways since 8am today.

Ullah was connected with another Brooklyn address on East 2nd Street. A woman who spoke on the intercom to DailyMail.com said she had 'no comment' about the suspect.

Alan Butrico, owner of Locksmith hardware store on Avenue N in Marine Park, told DailyMail.com that a Bangladeshi family lives at the home the police had cordoned off.

Butrico added to CNN that Ullah lived in the basement of the building while Ullah's brother and sister lived in the apartment above him.

'He wasn't friendly at all. The family was very quiet themselves. They don't talk to nobody. They just stay there,' Butrico said.

Burtico says that the last two nights, tenants told him that they heard 'screaming and yelling' coming from Ullah's home, but they did not call police.

Ally Mohammed, who works in the deli across the street, described the family as 'very nice, hardworking people'. He said that the suspect's mother came into his store and was very pleasant and that his father owned a grocery store in the area.

Mohammed said that he believed the suspect lived with his brother, sister-in-law and their child, of around four years old. He said that he believed the brother had finished college and had a job in the city.

He said he did not believe Ullah was married or had any children.

'What he did has nothing to do with Islam, maybe he was brainwashed,' Mohammed said

These are the 4 Port Authority police officers who arrested NYC terror attack suspect: Officers Sean Gallagher 26; Drew Preston 36; Jack Collins, 45; Anthony Manfredini, 28

Firefighters are seen at 42nd Street and 8th Avenue on Monday morning after an explosion in the Port Authority bus terminal transit tunnel

An NYPD police officer stands in front of gathered firefighters outside the Port Authority terminal as commuters walk around them

Panicked commuters piled on to escalators to get out of the station after the explosion which occurred just after 7:20am

An NYPD van parked outside the Port Authority entrance at 8th Avenue and 41st Street on Monday morning

The scene near the Port Authority Bus Terminal on Monday morning as police and firefighters worked amongst commuters

An area of several blocks was in lockdown immediately after the incident, sparking commuter chaos and confusion among others trying to navigate the busy Manhattan streets

An ambulance near the scene of the explosion on Monday morning. Four people were injured, including the suspect

Kisslyn Joseph, 19, from Grenada, has been staying next door to the suspect's home at her brother Kevin Alexander's house.

She told DailyMail.com that she heard shouting from what appeared to be an argument on the phone inside the home on Sunday morning around 2am.

She said that the argument was in English but she was unable to hear what was being said.

Other neighbors also had negative memories of Ullah.

'He was just nasty. We would tell him to move the car, he felt like he owned it,' the owner of a hardware store who had previously fought with Ullah told CBS News.

'I've seen him in the neighborhood walking around. Pretty much looks like he always has something on his mind. Never says hello, doesn't talk to anybody,' one woman said.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and the city's Mayor Bill De Blasio gave a press conference at around 9.30am to say there was no outstanding threat

A fire fighter grabs equipment from his trunk at the scene of the explosion on Monday morning

The subway at Port Authority was closed for several hours after the incident. The bus terminal has since reopened

Not long after the explosion and despite a large police presence, tourists took photographs on 8th Avenue which was uncharacteristically free from traffic because of the incident

An armed officer stands at the corner of West 42nd Street between police vans and cars

A street vendor tows their food cart away from the scene as foot fall decreases because of the attack

A strong police presence remained at the scene in the hours after the incident. The Port Authority terminal was reopened at around 9.30am, two hours after the blast

Social worker Michael, 35, was commuting from New Jersey to Brooklyn when the chaos unfolded.

He said: 'There were people running from various angles and screaming that someone had a gun. People were saying 'just run, just go'. Everyone was looking around confused.

POLICE ASK FOR PUBLIC'S HELP Anyone with information on suspect Akayed Ullah is being asked to call the terror hotline at 888-NYC-SAFE Advertisement

'After a few minutes I think I heard another person say there was an explosion and that's when people started to panic. There was a lot of chaotic shouting and screaming. I saw a guy spring past me and as people scattered the crowd began to hurry more and push through the doors.

'There are escalators that lead outside and steps and people were running up to get outside. We are talking 50 or 60 people. People were running over each other at one point. It became like a domino effect as everyone tried to run through the doors.

'We got out and I ran across the street to 41st. I could hear sirens going off and people were grabbing their phones and calling home. Everyone was quite panicked and shook up.'

He added: 'It's scary. I'm quite on edge now.'

Dozens of fire fighters flocked to the explosion site. They were matched in numbers by NYPD officers

Commuters were still rushing out of the station shortly after 8am. The explosion was reported at 7.20am

The Port Authority Bus Terminal is the busiest in the world in terms of traffic. About 225,000 people use it daily

Video from above the 'Crossroads of the World' showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority in the 42nd Street area was shut down while police investigated the bombing - a surreal scene of what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

A spokesman for the Port Authority say they plan to have the transit hub up and running fully by the evening rush hour.

Mayor De Blasio said getting transportation up and running again was an important message to the failed terrorist.

'We're not going to allow them to disrupt us. That is exactly what they what and that is exactly what they are not going to get,' he said.

An armored police vehicle at the Port Authority bus terminal on Monday morning after the attack

The scene on Monday morning as NYPD officers and fire fighters continued to work at the scene

Port Authority Police were also on hand in addition to NYPD officers. They ushered commuters out of the Port Authority Bus Terminal building

Commuters marched out onto 8th Avenue shortly before 8am. They came off buses which were already on their way when the explosion occurred

While the suspect's motivation has not been established yet, his alleged statements about ISIS and Bangladeshi background suggest he was motivated by extreme religion.

The attack also comes on the heels of a Muslim day of rage in Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital, last week where thousands of Muslims protested over President Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The decision - which breaks with decades of tradition in international policy - has drawn widespread criticism from Muslims and Christians around the world.

Previous presidents have refrained from such direct involvement in the Middle East's historic conflict but Trump proudly waded in. Moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was a campaign promise which he now boasts about fulfilling.

The Bangladesh government condemned the attack in a statement issued Monday through their embassy in Washington, DC.

'Government of Bangladesh is committed to its declared policy of 'Zero Tolerance' against terrorism, and condemns terrorism and violent extremism in all forms or manifestations anywhere in the world, including Monday morning's incident in New York City,' she said.

This attack underscores the need for Congress to work with the President on immigration reforms that enhance our national security and public safety. We must protect our borders. We must ensure that individuals entering our country are not coming to do harm to our people and we must move to a merit-based system of immigration. Sarah Huckabee Sanders

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted Monday morning that the president had been briefed on the situation.

At an afternoon press conference, Sanders released a statement on behalf of the administration - saying this morning's incident is a further example of the need for tougher immigration policies.

'This attack underscores the need for Congress to work with the President on immigration reforms that enhance our national security and public safety. We must protect our borders. We must ensure that individuals entering our country are not coming to do harm to our people and we must move to a merit-based system of immigration,' she said.

She went on to say that President Trump has been fighting to end chain migration, which would have prevented an attack like this.

'The President is certainly concerned that Congress, particularly Democrats, have failed to take action in some places where we feel we could have prevented this,' Sanders said. 'Specifically, the President's policy has called for an end to chain migration and if that had been in place, that would have prevented this individual from coming to the United States.'

Monday's explosion also comes a month after Sayfullo Saipov plowed through cyclists on the a cycle path in Tribeca.

The Uzbek national killed eight people in his rented Home Depot truck by mowing them down before crashing into a school bus. He injured another 12.

Saipov, 29, who was living in Paterson, New Jersey, was gunned down by a police officer and remains in custody.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions cited Saipov in his statement on the latest terror attack, saying that the immigration policies that let Ullah and Saipov into the country need to end.

'The President is exactly correct about the changes we need to our immigration system. We have now seen two terrorist attacks in New York City in less than two months that were carried out by people who came here as a result of our failed immigration policies that do not serve the national interest - the diversity lottery and chain migration. The 20-year-old son of the sister of a U.S. citizen should not get priority to come to this country ahead of someone who is high-skilled, well educated, has learned English, and is likely to assimilate and flourish here.

'It is a failure of logic and sound policy not to adopt a merit-based immigration system. The President has asked Congress to work with him on ending the diversity lottery and chain migration. He has proposed switching to a merit-based system of immigration similar to the Canadian and Australian systems. That means welcoming the best and the brightest and turning away not only terrorists but gang members, fraudsters, drunk drivers, and child abusers. Such a merit-based system would make us safer and welcome individuals who would be best able to assimilate and flourish in our country,' Sessions said.

After the attack, the dollar lowered but stock markets recovered when the situation had been contained.

The S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq indexes rose 0.1 to 0.3 percent when the main U.S. stock markets opened two and a half hours later.

The dollar slipped as far as 113.245 yen against the Japanese currency. The Swiss franc, a refuge at times of heightened risk, reached a high of 1.16755 francs per euro. .

'We did see equities futures moving lower and it is not a surprise that we saw a move in crosses like dollar-yen,' said CIBC's head of currency strategy Jeremy Stretch. 'There is a susceptibility, whenever there is a degree of uncertainty, for the usual suspects to react.'
A mother was kicked off a Spirit Airlines flight with her elderly parents and two-year-old son for not immediately stopping breastfeeding when cabin crew asked her to put him into his seat so that they could take off.

Mei Rui, 34, her son Lukas and her parents were flying from Houston, Texas, to New York City on December 8 when they were booted off the plane.

They had been sitting on the tarmac for almost three hours because of a de-icing delay, she claims, when she began to breastfeed her 'exhausted' two-year-old son.

Shortly afterwards, a flight attendant told her to stop and put him in his seat because they claimed they were ready to take off. The mother claims the door was still open.

Because of this, she asked for a few more minutes but then complied and 'forced' Lukas into his own seat where he began to cry for 25 minutes before a flight attendant asked them to get off.

When they refused, Spirit made the entire plane disembark then reboard.

Mei said her son had previously flown domestically and internationally without incident. Children are allowed to fly on their parents laps until they are two but must then have their own seat.

Mei Rui, her elderly parents and her two-year-old son were kicked off a Spirit Airlines flight on Friday because she would not immediately stop breastfeeding the toddler when cabin crew asked her to. Her son is seen above with his grandparents after being 'forced' into his seat by his mother. She says that 25 minutes afterwards, they were thrown off the aircraft

In videos taken at the gate afterwards, staff can be seen laughing and refusing to tell her exactly what they had done wrong beyond saying they did 'not comply with instructions'.

They called police to escort the family away from the gate. Fellow passengers who saw the incident unfold said they were 'disgusted' by how Spirit treated the family.

Rui, a Yale medical school graduate and cancer researcher who is also an accomplished piano player and teacher, said the ordeal was worse than Hurricane Harvey which destroyed her home and her elderly parents' home.

They were on their way to New York for her to participate in an assignment on behalf of the MD Anderson Cancer Center.

After the incident at George Bush International Airport, Rui says her father was so distraught he collapsed and had to go to the hospital.

In a Facebook post she wrote directly after the incident on Friday, she said: 'This was an even more traumatic morning for us than when Harvey destroyed our homes.

'My dad almost had a heart attack and collapsed on the floor. I had never imagined something like this could happen to our family.

Mei Rui, 34, was on her way from Texas to New York with her son and parents to take part in a work assignment. She is a cancer researcher

Once they had been thrown off the plane, the mother, her parents and her son stood by the gate asking to be told which rule they had broken but were never given a straight answer beyond 'you were not compliant'. Eventually, police were called. She is pictured struggling with her son as police watch on and her parents stand by in a photograph taken by another passenger who said they were 'disgusted' by the ordeal

A Spirit employee (left) refused to tell the woman which rule she had broken and laughed when she asked what he would do if it happened to his family. 'It wouldn't happen to my family, I can assure you,' is what he told her. Right, one of the several police officers called

'I am heartbroken that I could not protect my old parents and Lukas from this cruelty!'

In videos she shared, Lukas can be seen wailing in his seat as his Chinese grandmother tried to console him and his mother pleaded: 'He is in his seat? What else do you guys want?'

Her father, the toddler's grandfather, watched on from across the aisle as a flight attendant told them: 'I just need to check.'

Once they had been taken off the plane, she filmed more footage at the gate.

There, a Spirit employee stood in front of her with two police officers and laughed while he said: 'It wouldn't happen to my family, I can assure you.'

Rui asked him again: 'If you can tell me which rule I broke I will go with you.'

He replied: 'I do not have the ability to do that. No, no.'

He refused to tell her exactly what she had done to break the rules, saying only that she did not 'comply' with instructions. He dismissed her claims that they had been thrown off the flight because Lukas was crying.

Rui, with her son, said the ordeal was worse for the family than Hurricane Harvey which claimed their houses

Another passenger who saw the ordeal unfold described the airline's treatment of the family as 'disgusting'

'I just want to know why we are getting kicked off the plane!' Rui, who is from Shanghai but has lived in the US since attending college, said.

'Because you were not compliant,' was the answer she was given.

They left the airport and, in a taxi away from it, her father collapsed, she said.

'My parents and my young son are completely traumatized from this experience.

The man offered to place her on a different flight with another airline more than once but still did not say why they had been kicked off.

Spirit refunded the woman and her family for their tickets.

In a statement to DailyMail.com, a spokesman said: 'No one was removed for breastfeeding.

'We were forced to remove a passenger from flight 712 after she refused to comply with crew instructions several times while the doors were closed during taxi and safety briefing.

'To ensure the safety of our guests and crew, FAA regulations and airline policies require all passengers stay seated and buckled during takeoff and landing. We reviewed multiple accounts from the crew and other guests sitting nearby and we apologize for any inconvenience caused by this issue.

'As a courtesy, weve issued a full refund to the customer in question.'

They would not comment on Rui's claims that the door was still open when she was breastfeeding.
A woman who says she dated Roy Moore when she was 17-years-old is speaking out for the first time on camera on the eve of the special election for the U.S. Senate in Alabama.

Debbie Wesson Gibson said in a Today show interview that she approved of Moore at the time of their romance  which was legally allowed under Alabama law  but now believes that he is a 'creeper' for dating teens.

'He is unfit for public service at the Senate level in this nation,' she said in an interview that aired Monday morning.

Gibson also accused the president, who recorded a robo call for Moore over the weekend and touted him at a campaign-style rally, of being 'willing to sell his soul for political gain' over his endorsement of the alleged sexual assaulter and harasser of teens.

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A woman who says she dated Roy Moore when she was 17-year-old is speaking out. Debbie Wesson Gibson says, 'He is unfit for public service at the Senate level in this nation'

All eyes are on the race in Alabama between Moore and Democrat Doug Jones that will be decided on Tuesday

Moore will get a shove across the finish line this evening from Steve Bannon, the president's ex-chief strategist. Democrat Doug Jones (left) received a weekend assist from Cory Booker (right), a New Jersey senator expected to challenge Trump in 2020

All eyes are on the race in Alabama between Moore and Democrat Doug Jones that will be decided by the special election that takes place Tuesday.

Both sides are making a last-minute blitz, with Moore re-emerging on the airwaves Sunday to tie his candidacy to President Trump's agenda and defend himself against allegations of assault and molestation.

'I did not know them,' Moore said of his accusers on the radio program 'The Voice of Alabama Politics.'

'I had no encounter with them. I never molested anyone, and for them to say that, I don't know why they're saying it, but it's not true,' Moore added.

Moore will get a shove across the finish line this evening from Steve Bannon, the president's ex-chief strategist who returned last summer to the helm of Breitbart News.

Democrat Doug Jones received an assist from Cory Booker, a New Jersey senator who's expected to challenge President Donald Trump for the Oval Office in 2020, and Deval Patrick, the former Massachusetts governor.

Former President Obama also recorded a robo call for Jones, CNN reported.

'This one's serious,' the ex-Democratic president says in the recording. 'You can't sit it out.'

Democrats are targeting the African-American vote in the deeply southern state, hoping that if enough black voters show up to the polls Tuesday they can offset the traditionally large Republican base.

On Monday, Fox News released a poll that showed Democrat Jones 10 points ahead of Moore, an outlier compared to other recent surveys from the Trafalgar Group and Gravis that gave Moore a four- to five-point edge.

The Fox poll showed Jones receiving 50 per cent support from likely voters in Alabama, where Moore had the support of 40 per cent.

Kellyanne Conway, the president's counselor and a former pollster, suggested in a Monday morning appearance on Fox & Friends that Moore would eek out a victory.

Speaking about national Democrats, she said, 'I think if they had polling showing Doug Jones ahead, they'd been crowing about it ... and they just haven't.'

'They have a couple people down there. But really, they've spent money on this race, but they really haven't had superstars, powerhouses going into Alabama,' she stated.

Booker has been the biggest draw for Jones by design.

The Democratic candidate's campaign has said it does not want Washington meddling in the GOP-controlled state's special election.

Mystery money has flooded into the race in support of both Jones and Moore, according to a report by the Center for Public Integrity, as donors have exploited legal loopholes so that they go publicly unnamed until after the December 12 vote.

Several super PACs involved in the race have timed their spending so it doesn't trigger disclosure retirements, the joint report with NBC News said.

In an interview from the state, Booker told Vice News that President Trump should resign over the allegations of misconduct against him.

'Why isnt Donald Trump doing the same thing? Who has more serious allegations against him, with more women who have come forward,' he said, referring to the announced resignation of Democratic Sen. Al Franken.

At a weekend appearance with Booker, Jones hammered Moore for his light campaign schedule in the lead-up to the election.

'What kind of senator hides from his constituencies when he runs for office? What kind of public servant hides and only goes into enclaves and doesn't address the media?' he said.

Moore has since sat down for interviews, including the one with The Voice of Alabama Politics and another for Bannon's Breitbart website.

Trump has not campaigned alongside Moore.

He held a rally across the border in Pensacola, Florida, on Friday, evening though, where he told his supporters who live in Alabama to vote for Moore.

The president had waffled early in his support for Moore, only to endorse him last week on Twitter and in a call as he reflected on the possibility that Republicans could lose the vote for his agenda in the Senate.

Conway said Monday as she defended Trump's endorsement: 'I think the president couldn't be more clear about how he feels about this race. He has said, this is the president talking now, the president has said, go vote Roy Moore.

'He's made it very clear that he wants that vote in the United States Senate. The president has said a vote for lower taxes, more secure borders, certainly less regulations, more ISIS in defeat around the globe.'

Sen. Richard Shelby, Alabama's other GOP senator meanwhile confirmed on Sunday that he had cast a write-in vote for Tuesday's Senate special election in the state, instead of voting for embattled GOP hopeful Roy Moore.

'I couldn't vote for Roy Moore. I didn't vote for Roy Moore. But I wrote in a distinguished Republican name. And I think a lot of people could do that,' Shelby said on CNN's State of the Union.

Shelby noted that while he'd rather see a Republican win, he hoped that victor would be a Republican write-in.

Sen. Richard Shelby couldn't stomach voting for Roy Moore - nor Democrat Doug Jones - so he confirmed that he cast a write-in ballot for U.S. Senate in Alabama

CNN's Jake Tapper (left) interviewed Sen. Richard Shelby (right) on Sunday. Shelby has represented Alabama in the Senate for nearly 31 years, though won't cast a vote for the Republican on the ballot

Judge Roy Moore is being accused of preying on teenage girls, however has stayed in the Alabama Senate race. Voters head to the polls in this special election on Tuesday

When the accusations first came out against Moore  that he had preyed on teenage girls, displaying inappropriate behavior including sexual assault  Republicans had floated the idea of a write-in campaign, which included candidates like Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had vacated the seat, and Sen. Luther Strange, who lost to Moore in the GOP primary.

However, no such effort got off the ground in part because Bannon decided to stand by Moore, eventually getting President Trump to give the Senate hopeful an endorsement too.

Now Moore and Jones are locked in a tight race, which should have been a cake walk for Moore in the deep red state.

'I don't know what is going to happen,' Shelby admitted on Sunday. 'You know, as a Republican, I had to vote Republican. I wanted to vote Republican.'

'I understand where the president's coming from. I understand we would like to retain that seat in the U.S. Senate, but I tell you what,' Shelby continued. 'We call it a tipping point. And I think so many accusations, so many cuts, so many drip, drip, drip, drip when it got to the 14-year-old story ... that was enough for me.'

Shelby was referring to the story of Leigh Corfman, first reported in the Washington Post, who said a 32-year-old Moore volunteered to watch after her at the courthouse as her mother stepped into a custody hearing.

Later, he picked her up and took her to his house in the woods and upon arrival 'took off her shirt and pants and removed his clothes. He touched her over her bra and underpants, she says, and guided her hand to touch him over his underwear,' the Post wrote.

Upon hearing about that, Shelby said he came to a decision: 'I said, I can't vote for Roy Moore.'

Shelby, who's represented Alabama in the Senate for nearly 31 years, also said he believed the female accusers are credible.

'I think the women are believable. I have no reason not to believe them ... they are credible, but I wasn't there, I don't know what happened,' the senator said. 'But there's a lot of stories there. There's a lot of smoke. Got to be fire somewhere.'

Dean Young, Moore's chief political strategist who was speaking on behalf of the campaign on ABC's This Week, argued the opposite, saying that he didn't believe the accusers.

Young argued that 'the people of Alabama want to know why 30 days before an election people would just come out of the woodwork and say Judge Moore did this and Judge Moore did that.'

'I'm not sure why they did it,' he continued. 'I don't believe them and the people of Alabama don't believe them.'

While Democrat Jones has held event after event, since the accusations have come out against Moore, the Republican Senate hopeful has only held a handful of public events.

He had nothing on his schedule over the weekend, though will hold a rally Monday night, alongside Bannon and Rep. Louie Gohmert, a Texas Republican.

Young blew off the assertion that Moore was in hiding.

'Well, Judge Moore's been out for 25 years across Alabama and he's known by the people,' the campaign adviser said. 'He's talked to the people of Alabama and they are with Judge Moore.'

'That's why I believe if we get our vote out - and we will - Judge Moore will be the senator that will be going up to Washington on December 12 and helping Donald Trump with his agenda,' Young said.
Donald Trump, according to his many critics, is the single most divisive, stupid, bigoted and unpopular president in American history.

To say Trump is polarizing is to massively understate the sheer enormity of hatred that exists toward the billionaire tycoon who won the White House just over a year ago.

On social media, every minute of every day, I see hysterical liberals screaming themselves digitally hoarse with rage at his very existence.

I have friends, and indeed family members, who cant utter his name without physically shuddering.

To them, Trump epitomizes the very worst kind of leader and the very worst kind of American.

To many Donald Trump is the most divisive, stupid and bigoted president in history. Some refuse to even utter his name. But theres one thing even his most vociferous enemies cannot continue to deny, and its this: Donald Trump delivers on his promises

Yet, theres one thing even his most vociferous enemies  and that is a historically high volume of human beings  cannot continue to deny, and its this: Donald Trump delivers on his promises.

Of course, in the main, theyre not promises his opponents actually wanted him to keep, but that is beside the point.

When you win an election, you also win the right to carry out the pledges you made as a candidate. That is the inherent bedrock of democracy.

And judging Trump entirely from that perspective, he is beginning to really, REALLY deliver.

In the past week alone, there were three perfect examples.

First, Candidate Trump repeatedly vowed to wipe the hell out of ISIS.

Now, within a year, the Islamist terror group that gained so much ground and support during Barack Obamas tenure  he dismissed them as a J.V. team  has been routed from Syria and Iraq.

To put this into proper context, at one stage ISIS held land equivalent to West Virginia and was aggressively expanding its geographical caliphate.

Now theyve been driven out of both countries with astonishing speed.

Experts say this success is down to Trump authorizing his military commanders, led by secretary of defense Gen. James Mattis, to do what they needed to do without getting bogged down by slow-moving, agenda-driven politicians in Washington.

Brig. Gen. Robert Sofge, the top US Marine in Iraq, said he and his men enjoyed not having to deal with too many distractions and there was no question about what the mission in Iraq now was.

Yahya Rasool, a spokesman for Iraqs Ministry of Defense, agreed: I was not optimistic when Trump first came to office, he said, but after a while I started to see a new approach. I saw how the coalition forces were all moving faster to help the Iraq side more than before. There seemed to be a lot of support, under Obama we did not get this.

Then-president Obama dismissed ISIS as the 'JV team' and, according to Iraqs Ministry of Defense, he didn't offer them the support Trump has given. Now ISIS has been driven out of Iraq and Syria in the past year with astonishing speed

Nobody is complacent about the ongoing threat of ISIS and its supporters continuing to commit terrorist acts on civilian soil as they are driven from the battlefield.

But the importance of kicking them out of Iraq and Syria cannot be overstated.

Second, the President has enjoyed similar success on the domestic economic front.

At every campaign rally, Candidate Trump promised to preside over economic growth, gets jobs going again, and stock markets roaring.

Hes doing all that.

Unemployment is at a 17-year low, hiring is strong - last Fridays jobs report showed 228,000 new jobs in November - GDP expanded 3.3% in the third quarter, and the stock market keeps breaking new records.

All this after Americas supposedly leading economist Paul Krugman tweeted on election night: It really does now look like President Donald J. Trump, and markets are plunging. If the question is when markets will recover a first-pass is never.

Financial experts put this success down to Trump unburdening America of many of the over-draconian and panicky regulatory barriers put in place after the 2008/9 crash.

As a result there is a new spring in the step of the US economy, a tangible surge in confidence after years in the post-crash doldrums.

Riding the wave of all this optimism, Trump has just got his much-vaunted $1.4 trillion tax overhaul approved in the Senate.

If it succeeds how he says it will  and its a very big if - then he will head into the 2020 election with a massive, possibly unbeatable head of steam. Very few US presidents in history have ever lost if theyve run again on the back of a surging economy.

Trump is thus achieving an almost unique feat of being personally disliked in almost unprecedented levels  his approval ratings have plummeted to 32% in some polls - but being increasingly lauded for his handling of the economy, a new Gallup survey showing him with a 45% approval rating for this key issue.

Third, Candidate Trump promised to confirm Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move the US Embassy there from Tel Aviv.

Last week, he announced both things.

I personally think its a dangerous and unnecessary move, but you cant say he didnt vow to do it if he got elected because he did, repeatedly.

Candidate Trump promised to confirm Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move the US Embassy there. Last week, he announced both. I personally think its a dangerous and unnecessary move, but you cant say he didnt vow to do it. Here, a sign in Jerusalem

These three momentous things follow a long line of promises Trump has kept.

He has moved to renegotiate NAFTA, pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, walk out of the Paris climate accord, target the Iran nuclear deal and start work on his big, beautiful wall along the Southern border (just the threat of it has led to a 38% fall in illegal immigrants coming over that border since he was elected).

The Supreme Court even recently approved his revised and very controversial travel ban on residents of seven predominantly Muslim countries.

Again, regardless of what you think of it, this was something Trump said hed do and he has done it.

By contrast, Obama  an eloquent, intelligent and thoughtful man liked and admired by almost the entire world  abjectly failed on many of his biggest promises including pledges to close Guantanamo Bay, get new gun control laws, create a path to citizenship for undocumented illegals, reform Washington, and end the war in Afghanistan.

Donald Trump is an imperfect president in many ways and I say that as someone who has known him as a friend for ten years and likes him.

Hes an inflammatory tweeter, picking fights with anyone and everyone from Kim Jong Un to Gold Star widows. Weve never seen a president behave this way and it terrifies people,

He flies fast and loose with the truth, though in that regard he is not a rare specimen in the world of Washington, or indeed global politics.

And he does truly dumb, offensive and totally unnecessary things like retweet unverified anti-Muslim videos by the racist Britain First organisation, then obstinately refuse to undo the retweets when he is told exactly who they are.

Going back over my old columns since his inauguration, Ive found myself harshly criticising him as much as Ive praised him.

Yet there can be no doubt now that President Trump is a man who is delivering on his promises to the American people who voted for him.

They are not the bleeding hearts of New York and Los Angeles, nor the largely liberal media elite who seem hell bent on destroying him as revenge for his fake news mantra.

Donald Trump is an imperfect president and an inflammatory tweeter (seen here Monday morning) and the liberal media are hell bent on destroying him. And the media's indignation would be easier to swallow if they didn't keep getting stories wrong

Incidentally, the latters indignation at this slur would be easier to stomach if they didnt keep reporting false anti-Trump stories. In the past 10 days alone, journalists from four supposedly reputable media organisations (ABC, CNN, Bloomberg and Washington Post) have had to retract stories  a shameful state of affairs that simply serves to strengthen his point.

No, those who voted for Trump are the people who live between the coasts, the Middle Americans who saw in him a loud, brash, uncompromising, ruthless bull in a china shop who might just cut through all the Washington crap to make their lives safer and more prosperous.

I was down in Florida and Missouri recently and the Trump train is steaming just has hard there as it was before the election.

They love what they see in their president, warts and all.

They think hes got ISIS on the run, illegal immigration back under control, jobs pouring back, the economy roaring again, and the cocky all-powerful media back in its box.

Love him or loathe him, Trumps doing exactly what he told them hed do.
This is the moment Field Marshal Edmund Allenby became the first Christian to hold Jerusalem for 730 years as he captured the city 100 years ago today.

The victory was an important morale boost for British forces during the First World War following defeat at Gallipoli, with David Lloyd George describing it as 'a Christmas present for the British people'.

As a mark of respect for the Muslim and Jewish residents of the Holy City, Allenby entered on foot through Jaffa Gate rather than horseback.

Field Marshal Edmund Allenby enters Jerusalem through the Jaffa Gate after capturing the city from the Ottomans in 1917. He approached the city on horseback, but as a mark of respect to Jews and Muslims, dismounted and entered on foot

Allenby became the first Christian to hold Jerusalem in 730 when he won victory over the Turks, but in his declaration of martial law (pictured) he pledged to maintain all holy sites as their religions instructed

The victory was a needed morale boost for the British after the defeat at Gallipoli and was declared a 'Christmas gift for the British people' by David Lloyd George

Residents of Jerusalem watch as British troops enter the city on this day 100 years ago after defeating the Ottomans

During his proclamation from the Citadel he told listeners that he had come not as a conqueror but as a liberator, promising freedom from the oppressive Ottomans who had held Jerusalem for 400 years.

The 100th anniversary of Allenby's victory came as Jerusalem was once again thrust into the media spotlight after Trump recognised it as Israel's capital.

The decision sparked protests across the Muslim world, as Islamic leaders want part of the city recognised as the capital of Palestine as part of a two-state solution.

Marching alongside Allenby as he entered through the Jaffa Gate 100 years ago today was officer TE Lawrence, otherwise known as Lawrence of Arabia.

He wore a borrowed British uniform for the occasion, according to the BBC, rather than his customary Arab dress.

Allenby was assigned commander of the Egyptian Expeditionary Forces in June 1917 after predecessor Lieutenant General Sir Archibald Murray was relieved of duties.

Murray had been given the task of capturing the Holy City by Christmas, and while he had made an initial lightning advance across Egypt's Sinai desert and into Palestine, his efforts had stalled.

In an attempt to revitalise the weary troops and deliver a much-needed PR boost to the war effort, Allenby - known as 'the Bull' - was brought in.

It took him until November to capture Gaza, after which he advanced to Jerusalem.

Allenby captured the city by encircling it, then luring the Turks out by staging a retreat, conscious of the need to avoid shedding blood in such a holy place

Alongside Allenby for the parade was officer TE Lawrence, otherwise known as Lawrence of Arabia, who had to borrow a uniform for the parade because he typically wore Arab dress

Lawrence would later describe the capture of Jerusalem as 'the supreme moment of the war'

But wary of a bloodbath within the city itself, he instead encircled it, then drew the Turk defenders out by staging a retreat.

By December 7 the last of the Turk forces had surrendered, making way for Alleny to enter the city four days later and declare victory.

In his declaration, he said: 'To the Inhabitants of Jerusalem the Blessed and the People Dwelling in Its Vicinity.

'The defeat inflicted upon the Turks by the troops under my command has resulted in the occupation of your city by my forces.

'I, therefore, here now proclaim it to be under martial law, under which form of administration it will remain so long as military considerations make necessary.

'However, lest any of you be alarmed by reason of your experience at the hands of the enemy who has retired, I hereby inform you that it is my desire that every person pursue his lawful business without fear of interruption.

'Furthermore, since your city is regarded with affection by the adherents of three of the great religions of mankind and its soil has been consecrated by the prayers and pilgrimages of multitudes of devout people of these three religions for many centuries, therefore, do I make it known to you that every sacred building, monument, holy spot, shrine, traditional site, endowment, pious bequest, or customary place of prayer of whatsoever form of the three religions will be maintained and protected according to the existing customs and beliefs of those to whose faith they are sacred.'

The city would remain under British control until 1948, when the Mandate of Palestine was ended in favor of the creation of two separate states - one Jewish, one Arab - based on a resolution by the UN General Assembly.

Britain announced the termination of its Mandate over Palestine to take effect on May 15, 1948, and on May 14 the State of Israel was proclaimed.
TV presenter Christine Lampard will give evidence behind a screen in the case of an aspiring actor accused of causing her 'severe alarm and distress' with a three-year stalking campaign.

Christof King, 39, is accused of bombarding Mrs Lampard, 38, with unwanted letters, emails and tweets between January 2015 and September this year.

The aspiring actor, who has been in a series of low-budget productions and student films, allegedly turned up to the Lampards' 10million west London mansion uninvited on several occasions.

Christof King (pictured left), 39, is accused of bombarding Christine Lampard (right), 38, with unwanted letters, emails and tweets between January 2015 and September this year

King, of north west London, is pictured outside Westminster Magistrates where he first appeared in court

He has been banned from contacting Christine and her former England star husband Frank, 39. The judge also told him to not to attend any events that the celebrity couple may appear at

He appeared at Isleworth Crown Court today and was bailed ahead of another hearing on February 19 before trial on June 4.

The stalking is said to have caused 'serious alarm and distress' to the former One Show host and had an adverse effect on her day-to-day activities.

He has been banned from contacting Christine and her former England star husband Frank, 39.

The judge also told him to not to attend any events that the celebrity couple may appear at.

King, of Kilburn, north west London, denies one charge of stalking.

Mrs Lampard will give her evidence from behind a screen if the trial goes ahead as scheduled.

Born in Newtonwards, Northern Ireland, she is well-known for presenting Dancing On Ice and The One Show.

She famously quit the BBC for a lucrative deal to present failed Daybreak with Adrian Chiles on ITV.

Mrs Lampard tied the knot with the Chelsea midfielder in December 2015 in Knightsbridge after meeting at the Pride of Britain Awards in 2009.

Mrs Lampard is step-mother to Frank's two daughters from his previous marriage.
This is the shocking moment a five-year-old boy was scolded by a visiting Santa who waved a stick at him.

The bad Santa was filmed berating the terrified child during an arranged visit in a village in the northern Romanian county of Bistrita-Nasaud.

Santa was in fact the boy's 40-year-old uncle who was instructed by the boy's mum, 31, to give him a telling-off.

But when she sent the video to her estranged husband he was so outraged that he notified child protection authorities.

The video shows the bearded Santa pointing a long staff at the boy as he tells him off.

The boy kneels and cowers against a wall with his hands up to his face.

At one point Saint Nick shows a less than saintly side by slamming his staff angrily down on the floor - and he also taps the boy with it.

Santa was in fact the boy's 40-year-old uncle who was instructed by the boy's mum, 31, to give him a telling-off. She said she 'wanted to teach him some discipline'

The Santa imposter can be heard saying: 'Why are you naughty at nursery school?'

But as the clip ends he starts rummaging in his sack for some presents for the boy.

The boy's father saw the clip when the child's granny sent it to him.

She'd sent it to him after he asked for proof that the money he'd provided for presents had been well spent.

But he was appalled at the way his son had been treated.

He contacted the Child Protection Directorate in his home county of Constanta in south-eastern Romania, who passed on the case to their counterparts in Bistrita-Nasaud.

The bad Santa was filmed berating the terrified child during an arranged visit in a village in the northern Romanian county of Bistrita-Nasaud

The organisation's head Teodor Sangeorzan said: 'We also saw the movie - you can't do something like that to a child.

'He was emotionally abused and traumatised.'

Bistrita-Nasaud County Police Inspectorate spokeswoman Crina Serban said: 'Police started an investigation as a result of the video footage emerging in the media.

'The police officers of Prundu Bargaului Rural Police have compiled a criminal case regarding the maltreatment of a child.

'The police also requested the support of the General Directorate of Child Protection.'

At one point Saint Nick shows a less than saintly side by slamming his staff angrily down on the floor - and he also taps the boy with it

The mother of the unnamed family later told Romanian media: 'I wanted Santa to scare him a little.

'But he also received some gifts from Santa.

'The images show no sign of real violence, the Santa doesn't hit him.

'I can admit that I might have been wrong - I thought it would be good to discipline him a little.

'I wouldn't hurt my child! I love him from the bottom of my heart.

'I never hit him.'

It is unclear yet what punishment the boy's mother and uncle were facing.
Police have arrested five people after two young sisters and their brother died following a devastating blaze at their home which started when flammable liquid was poured down the chimney, it is claimed.

Demi Pearson, 14, died along with her brother Brandon, eight, and sister Lacie, seven, after the fire broke out in Salford, Greater Manchester, at 5am on Monday.

Their 35-year-old mother, Michelle Pearson, is in a serious condition - heavily sedated in hospital - and has not been told of her children's deaths.

It has now emerged that the family of Ms Pearson had been living under threat before the devastating fire.

And a family friend has claimed flammable liquid was poured into the home by an alleged attacker who squirted it 'down the chimney'.



Police have now detained a 20-year-old woman, 23-year-old man and two other men aged 20 and 18 on suspicion of murder. A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

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Seven-year-old Lacie Pearson (pictured) died following the arson attack at her home on Monday morning

Lacie Pearson, seven, (left) and her sister Demi (right) have been named as two of the victims

Their mother has been named as Michelle Pearson (pictured) and is still in hospital in a serious condition

Ms Pearson's three-year-old daughter Lia was also in the house and remains in a critical condition with her mother in hospital.

The youngster's older brother Kyle Pearson, 16, escaped the burning property and has paid tribute to his siblings. Ms Pearson is the mother to all five children.

Flammable liquid made its way into the house and a family friend told The Sun: 'I heard it (came) down the chimney.'

A stepfather one of the teenagers who survived told the paper that a man turned up at the house 'yelling abuse' and was 'banging on the door'.

He said: 'The mum was speaking to him out the window, telling him to 'pack it in'. She called the police. Officers attended. They took statements.'

Police were called to the property at around 2am following a reported incident - three hours before the blaze took hold.

Security had been stepped up at the mid-terrace property and sources said the house had been 'target hardened' to protect the family.

An increased security device was fitted on the letterbox and officers said the force had 'very recent physical contact with the family - within a day of the attack.

There have also been reports that the perpetrator used scaffolding to launch the attack, although there has been no confirmation of this by police.

Chief Supt Wayne Miller said there had been 'earlier incidents' at the address, but refused to elaborate further or confirm the nature of the call.

As a result of the prior police contact GMP has voluntarily referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) in line with procedure.

The police chief said: 'There have been earlier incidents at the address and consequently a referral to the IPCC has been made.'

Demi Pearson, 14, has been named as one of three children killed in a suspicious house fire

Brandon, eight, (pictured) also died following the tragedy in the early hours of Monday

Fire investigators are pictured at the scene after the devastating blaze in Salford on Monday

Forensic officers attended the scene of a house fire in Salford, Greater Manchester, on Monday

Kyle, who managed to escape, told the Manchester Evening News: 'I was only chatting with them last night. I told Brandon to go to bed. It's hard to talk about it. I'm in shock.

'Demi was a top girl, very funny. Brandon was very clever and doing well at school. He was brainy.

'He loved playing computer games and he was looking forward to Christmas.

'I fell asleep and the next thing I knew was I could hear my mum screaming, 'Fire!' There was lots of smoke so I climbed out of an upstairs window.

'I've gone to get back in but a cloud of smoke hit me in the face. I tried to break the front door down and smashed a window, but I couldn't get in because of the flames and the smoke.

'I can't get my head around it. It's disgraceful.'

Kyle was able to escape with his 16-year-old friend Bobby Harris and the pair were described as 'walking wounded'.

The father of the children was not in the house at the time of the incident - but has been notified about the deaths.

Police had set up a forensics tent outside the home, where burnt out windows can be seen

Police closed off a road in Salford on Monday following the fire which killed three children

A metal screen was put up at the entrance to the street following the fire on Monday morning

Greater Manchester Police say they are keeping an 'open mind' as to whether or not the incident is gang related.

They are understood to be investigating whether a flammable liquid was poured through the home's letterbox to start the fire.

Police were called to the property in the hours before the fire, reportedly to a wheelie bin which was ablaze.

A close family friend who didn't wish to be named said: 'Michelle is now in Wythenshawe Hospital. She's not doing very well.

'She has six children and the father of her youngest, Paul, passed away last year of cancer.

'They were all looking forward to Christmas and she had done her Christmas shopping.

'I'm just stood wishing she was walking over the field with the kids after picking them up from school but I know that's not going to happen. She loved to do that.'

A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said this evening: 'Earlier this evening, officers arrested a 23-year-old man and 20-year-old woman in connection with the investigation on suspicion of murder.

'Two further men aged 18 and 20 have also been arrested on suspicion of murder. A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

'Shortly before 5am on Monday 11 December 2017, emergency services were called to Jackson Street to reports of a house fire.

'On attendance, efforts were made to rescue the people inside the house but tragically, a boy aged 8 and two girls aged 7 and 14 died.

'A three-year-old girl remains in a critical condition and a 35-year-old woman remains in a serious condition, both in hospital. Two 16-year-old boys were able to escape the property.

'This evening, officers arrested a 23-year-old man and 20-year-old woman in connection with the investigation on suspicion of murder. They both remain in custody for questioning.'

Friends of Demi posted tributes on Facebook after hearing of her tragic death this morning

Screens have been erected in the street while the police investigation takes place

Friends of the 14-year-old Demi - who went to the Harrop Fold school featured in TV show Educating Greater Manchester - took to social media to express their grief.

Kirsty Livingstone wrote on Facebook: 'Demi you are one of the funniest and loving young woman that I've ever got to know.

'I'm so grateful to have the opportunity to watch you from from a lil girl to a beautiful young woman I can't believe you're gone.'

Marley McCabe wrote in an emotional post: 'Wake up to hear my baby girl has lost her auntie Demwhat we love so much. Fly high we will miss you so much the worlds took the wrong ones.'

Leah Nicholson posted a picture montage of the teenager, saying 'So glad I met u. Can't believe ur gone heart goes out to all ur friends and family we love u so much, miss u already, love u.'

Hollie Moore added: 'Can't believe it honestly demi, you helped me through everything with my grandma and now you're gone. Spread your wings and fly high beautiful, ps. I love you.'

Her headteacher Drew Povey said: 'We are devastated at the tragic loss of life today in our community. Our thoughts are prayers are with the family involved.'

Four fire engines were called to the blaze in the Worsley area as roads around the scene were closed this morning.

Police have launched a murder probe amid claims flammable liquid may have been used

It is believed that police had been called to the house to a reported incident there at around 2am, around three hours before the fire service were alerted to the blaze.

It is understood that in the earlier incident, the police and the fire service were responding to reports of a wheelie bin at the home being set on fire.

Police confirmed an earlier incident but declined to describe what happened or when it was. They have referred themselves to the IPCC over the calls.

Chief Superintendent Miller added: 'The death of these three children is heart breaking. Our thoughts are with their loved ones and the little girl and her mum who are in hospital fighting for their lives.

'We currently have specially trained officers with the family to help them through this devastating time.

'We are appealing for witnesses to the fire, anyone who saw anything or who may know the people involved to please come forward and tell us what you know.

'This is a fast moving live investigation and we have a Major Investigation Team with scores of dedicated detectives working tirelessly.

'I want to describe what this incident is; it's the murder, using fire, of three children and we have a three-year-old girl fighting for her life who is seriously ill.

'This will devastate this family forever and words cannot describe what they are going through. We need the public's help to find the answers the family deserve.

'We want to make arrests as soon as possible and we appeal to local people to help us in this.'

Pictures from the scene this morning show the fire-damaged window frames of the house




This is the unsettling moment a woman screams that she will 'kill everyone' aboard a flight after she was caught smoking.

In shocking scenes, the woman - wearing sunglasses and a straw hat - roars in the face of airline staff.

She yells: 'I will kill everybody on this f****** plane! I will kill everybody on this f****** plane! I will!'

There were 141 people aboard the aircraft.

In shocking scenes, the woman - wearing sunglasses and a straw hat - roars in the face of airline staff

The terrifying video was captured by another passenger on the Portland to Sacramento Southwest Airlines flight.

According to KOIN6, the woman had been caught smoking a cigarette and tampering with the smoke detector in the aircraft's bathroom.

The airline explained that crew dealt with the woman until she was met by police when the plane landed.

Southwest explained: 'Our crew in command of Flight 2943 travelling from Portland on Saturday afternoon safely landed on-time in Sacramento following an in-flight disturbance.

'Our reports from flight attendants indicate a customer violated federal laws by both smoking on board an aircraft and by tampering with a smoke detector in an aircraft restroom.

'Our crew enforced the regulation and that was followed by the passenger outburst.

According to KOIN6 , the woman had been caught smoking a cigarette and tampering with the smoke detector in the aircraft's bathroom. Right: The person recording the video hides behind a seat

'The safety of our crew and passengers is our top priority and we take all threats seriously.

'The pilots declared an emergency to receive priority handling from air traffic controllers, and our crew handled the situation on board until the plane landed and local authorities stepped in.

'The flight carried 136 customers and a crew of five.'
A turtle and a seal make an unlikely pair of friends as they cling together underwater.

The playful monk seal appeared to sense the turtle was in distress and joined it for 20 minutes.

The three-year-old seal placed its flippers around the turtle while lying on top of it like it was cuddling it.

Unlikely friends: The playful monk seal sensed the green turtle was in distress and joined it for 20 minutes to hug it

This cute interaction was caught by photographer Beat Korner, 62, while he was underwater by Olowalu Beach in Hawaii, USA.

Mr Korner, of Okanagan Falls, British Columbia, Canada, said: 'The large turtle was there to feed on green algae and green weed and was entangled in some fine fish line wrapped around its front flippers and through its beak so it couldn't move its head.

'This distress may have attracted the seal to investigate and it hung around for 20 minutes to hug, push and nibble the turtle.

'The turtle was swimming along and seemed not to mind the seal at any time.

Adorable: The three-year-old seal placed its flippers around the turtle while lying on top of it like it was cuddling it

'All happened very calmly without any signs of hurry or distress.

'Even when the seal nibbled on the turtle's head and flippers the reptile never bolted or fought back.'
John McDonnell today suggested Parliament should go on tour around Britain - despite calling for MEPs to stop shuffling between Brussels and Strasbourg because it is a waste of money.

The shadow chancellor also suggested Cabinet meetings could be held in different towns and cities across the country to make Parliament less London-centric.

He said taking the House of Commons around the UK would show the country would help combat the view that too much decision making happens in Westminster.

But he was accused of hypocrisy after Mail Online unearthed a Commons motion he signed in 2007 condemning the European Parliament for a similar stunt.

It voiced concern at the 209million euro bill (143m) racked up every month when MEPs packed up and moved from Brussels to hold weekly sessions in the French town of Strasbourg.

James Cleverly, Tory MP for Braintree, told Mail Online: 'I often find myself disagreeing with the foolish proposals put forward by John McDonnell, it's interesting to hear that he now disagrees with himself.

'The cost of taking Parliament on tour would be prohibitive. British people would rather see that money spent on public services rather than on poorly thought through gimmicks like this.'

John McDonnell, pictured in the City of London today, also suggested Cabinet meetings could be held in different towns and cities across the country

John McDonnell has laid himself open to accusations of hypocrisy after Mail Online unearthed a Commons motion he signed in 2007 condemning the European Parliament for a similar stunt

Chloe Westley, campaign manager at the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'Taxpayers want politicians to spend the money they give to the government responsibly.

'Taking parliament on a tour of Britain may sound like a fun road trip for Corbyn and McDonnell, but it would be an unnecessarily costly exercise at at time when spending needs to be brought down.'

She added: 'If the shadow chancellor wants to reach out to people across country he should advocate lower taxes so that hard pressed families can keep more of the money they earn.'

Speaking in the City of London today, Mr McDonnell said: 'I think there's an argument put forward for ensuring that certainly Cabinet and maybe sessions of Parliament can be held elsewhere.

'I know Jeremy (Corbyn) has been talking about holding shadow cabinet meetings around the country on a regular basis now and I think you'll see that evolve into other forms of direct devolution of sittings etcetera.

'The issue here... is that there is a view that decision-making located in Whitehall, Westminster and the City results often in a distortion of the economic policy direction, not taking into account the real needs of the regions of our country, the regions and nations of our country.

LABOUR THREATEN TO MOVE BANK OF ENGLAND FROM ITS 300-YEAR HOME Labour today threatened to move the Bank of England from the London street it has called home for nearly 300 years. John McDonnell said the Bank of England in Threadneedle Street - in the heart of the City of London - could be moved to Birmingham. A new National Investment Bank and Strategic Investment Board would also be created in the city. Together these would form a new 'economic policy hub' which would help spread jobs and wealth. The findings are contained in a new report which lays out ideas for Labour's next general Election manifesto. Bank of England offices could also be set up in Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast, with two smaller regional ones in Newcastle and Plymouth, it said. Graham Turner, of GFC Economics, which produced the report, said: 'This isn't just about devolution, this isn't just about trying to move some back office jobs out of London, it's about creating a counterbalance, creating an opportunity for an alternative cluster. 'It seemed to us that Birmingham was the most obvious choice, I know people will have different opinions and we're certainly not saying this is the final recommendation, it's simply a suggestion.' Advertisement

'And in some ways that may have contributed towards the Brexit vote as well.

'So this gives us an opportunity now of looking afresh at the institutional framework but also the institutional locations as to whether or not we can address some of the imbalances in decision-making that have taken place in the past.'

And he also suggested the Bank of England could be moved from Threadneedle Street - its home for almost 300 years - and shifted to Birmingham.

The recommendation is part of a new report which lays out ideas for the party's next General Election manifesto.

But while Mr McDonnell now appears to fan of proposals to take MPs on a potentially expensive tour of the UK, he used to be a vocal critic of the EU's move.

Every month MEPs who usually sit in Brussels pack up their offices and travel over to the French town of Strasbourg, where they rack up big hotel bills.

Their offices are also packed up and sent across in lorries in an expensive and polluting convoy.

The move - dubbed the travelling circus - has sparked widespread criticism and been condemned by MEPs themselves, but there have been no serious attempts to put an end to it in case it upsets the French.

In a Commons motion signed in 2007, Mr McDonnell was among dozens of MPs from across the political divide to condemn the expensive stunt.

The early day motion stated: 'That this House notes with serious concern the study revealing that more than 20,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide is generated by the monthly move of the European Parliament from Brussels to Strasbourg.

'It further notes that the European Parliament estimates that it could save 209 million euros (143 million) a year by meeting only in Brussels and ending its 560-mile round-trip monthly commute.

'It notes that other large political entities such as the United States and China manage to function well with a single national legislative capital.

'It believes that the image of the European legislature transporting itself on such a basis damages the image of the European Union in the eyes of its citizens and the wider world.

'And calls on members of the European Parliament to consider what action they can take to end this monthly commute.'

John McDonnell, pictured with striking workers outside the Bank of England in August, has threatened to move the Bank of England from the London street it has called home for nearly 300 years.

The report, which Mr McDonnell was launching today, also recommended moving much of the Bank of England to Birmingham and creating a new National Investment Bank and Strategic Investment Board in the city.

Together these would form a new 'economic policy hub' which would help spread jobs and wealth, it is claimed.

Bank of England offices could also be set up in Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast, with two smaller regional ones in Newcastle and Plymouth, it said.

Graham Turner, of GFC Economics, which produced the interim report, said he would expect 'some of the domestic banking capability' of the Bank of England to move to Birmingham.

He said a new home in Birmingham would be a good thing as it could be an hour's train ride away from South Wales - if there are improvements to the track.

He said: 'This isn't just about devolution, this isn't just about trying to move some back office jobs out of London, it's about creating a counterbalance, creating an opportunity for an alternative cluster.

'It seemed to us that Birmingham was the most obvious choice, I know people will have different opinions and we're certainly not saying this is the final recommendation, it's simply a suggestion.'
The son of millionaire property tycoon Peter Higgins has been found not guilty of drug and weapon charges after police allegedly found $3000 cash and a machete in his car.

Riley Higgins, 19, was cleared in a Sydney court after he was accused of handling suspected drug money and hiding a machete in his vehicle in December of last year, The Daily Telegraph reports.

The property heir's 57-year-old father and co-founder of Mortgage Choice told the court he gifted his son the cash and that the weapon was used to cut weeds.

Riley Higgins (pictured right with his sister Georgia and father Peter) was found not guilty of drug and weapon charges

Riley, 19, was cleared in court after he was accused of handling suspected drug money and hiding a machete in his vehicle in December of last year

Police arrested Higgins at Redfern in December 2016 after observing the teenager driving erratically and disobeying a give way sign.

He was charged for the possession of the cash, machete and bong and for driving an uninsured, unregistered car.

Higgins pleaded guilty to the drugs and driving charges but not guilty to dealing with the proceeds of crime, possessing stolen goods and carrying a knife in public.

His father Peter - who also owns Sydney Polo Club - took to the stand to confirm the $3000 cash was to pay for a mechanic and said he had witnessed his son use the machete to cut weeds on the family's 370-acre property in Richmond, in Sydney's west.

Police arrested Higgins at Redfern in 2016 after observing the teenager driving erratically and disobeying a give way sign

Higgins pleaded guilty to the drugs and driving charges but not guilty to dealing with the proceeds of crime, possessing stolen goods and carrying a knife in public

Police prosecutor Sgt Jonathon Martin questioned Higgins about messages downloaded from his iPhone which he claims contained discussions about drugs and selling drugs.

The Daily Telegraph reported the messages contained information such as '$500 for two grams of cocaine' and '$50 for two portions of acid'.

'I suggest this in fact explains why you had $3527 cash in your purse  it is because you had been involved in charging these amounts for these substances,' Sgt Martin probed Higgins, to which he replied: 'I disagree.'

Magistrate Jennifer Price ruled in favour of Higgins following a day-long hearing.
More than 2,000 have honoured a dead Croatian general who drank cyanide at the Hague after he was convicted of carrying out war crimes in Bosnia.

Huge crowds packed a public memorial in Zagreb for the service to remember war criminal Slobodan Praljak whose final act was to kill himself in front of UN judges.

Public buses ran free of charge to the ceremony for the wartime military commander, who swallowed potassium cyanide last month during a court hearing broadcast live around the world.

About 2,000 people filled the main concert hall where the memorial was held, while hundreds more crowded into the building's entry and hallways to watch on giant screens.

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More than 2,000 have honoured a dead Croatian general who drank cyanide at the Hague after he was convicted of carrying out war crimes in Bosnia

Huge crowds packed a public memorial in Zagreb for the service to remember war criminal Slobodan Praljak whose final act was to kill himself by driking cyanide (pictured) in front of UN judges

Public buses ran free of charge to the ceremony for the wartime military commander, who swallowed potassium cyanide last month during a court hearing broadcast live around the world

Praljak had a private funeral in Zagreb last week, according to media reports.

The 72-year-old took his life just seconds after appeal judges in The Hague upheld his 20-year jail sentence for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Bosnia's 1990s conflict.

The judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia confirmed that Praljak and his five Bosnian Croat co-defendants were part of a 'joint criminal enterprise' to ethnically cleanse Bosnian Muslims in the war.

But since Praljak's death, Croats have paid multiple tributes to the late general, laying flowers and lighting candles in town squares in Croatia and Bosnia.

Monday's commemoration, organised by the Croatian generals' association, was attended by at least one government minister in the EU member state, along with top officials of the ruling conservative HDZ party.

The event, which lasted around an hour, included music, recitals and speeches by Praljak's associates and friends from the military, politics and theatre.

Monday's commemoration, organised by the Croatian generals' association, was attended by at least one government minister in the EU member state, along with top officials of the ruling conservative HDZ party

The 72-year-old took his life just seconds after appeal judges in The Hague upheld his 20-year jail sentence for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Bosnia's 1990s conflict

The event, which lasted around an hour, included music, recitals and speeches by Praljak's associates and friends from the military, politics and theatre

About 2,000 people filled the main concert hall where the memorial was held, while hundreds more crowed into the building's entry and hallways to watch on giant screens

'No one can compare to a great man like Slobodan,' said Miroslav Tudjman, an MP with the HDZ and son of late Croatian nationalist president Franjo Tudjman.

Tudjman branded the UN court's verdict as a 'degradation of international justice'.

'It's a parody, a theatre of the absurd,' said Tudjman, slamming 'incompetent and irresponsible judges at the court in The Hague'.

Zlatko Vitez, a well-known actor in Croatia, said that Praljak, who worked in film and theatre before joining the military, would be remembered as a 'Croatian martyr'.

The commemoration ended with a rendition of the Croatian national anthem led by a choir. The crowd, some of whom had travelled from Bosnia, stood up and joined the singing.

Before the ceremony, visitors queued up to sign two books of condolences.

The commemoration ended with a rendition of the Croatian national anthem led by a choir. The crowd, some of whom had travelled from Bosnia, stood up and joined the singing

Before the ceremony, visitors queued up to sign two books of condolences

A man writes in a guestbook during a commemoration for Bosnian Croat war criminal Slobodan Praljak at Lisinski hall in Zagreb, Croatia

Vjekoslav Balen, a 74-year-old pensioner in the queue, said Praljak was a 'hero' who 'took his own life for Croatia's wellbeing, for the future'.

Later on Monday, a mass for Praljak was due to be held in a Zagreb church.

The appeals verdict for Praljak and his co-defendants was the last ruling from the ICTY before it shuts down at the end of the year.

Their convictions were upheld for crimes including murder, persecution and inhumane treatment.

Although allies against Serbs for most of Bosnia's 1992-1995 war, Croats and Muslims fought each other in 1993 and 1994.
A Welshman who flew to the Dominican Republic to live with his internet girlfriend is now stranded in the country after she rejected him because he 'doesn't have any money'.

Struggling mum-of-four Wilfa Soto Peguero claimed she agreed to get to know balding Brit Glyn Thomas Bailey in person after he offered to help her raise her children.

But she claimed when she went to pick up at the Caribbean airport, he had no return ticket and no money.

He became a celebrity on the island when she made a video and posted it to social media, begging someone to take Mr Bailey off her hands because she couldn't afford to feed him.

His whereabouts today was unclear but he is expected to be flown back to Britain in the coming days with the help of locally-based British diplomats.

Struggling mum-of-four Wilfa Soto Peguero claimed she agreed to get to know Briton Glyn Thomas Bailey in person after he offered to help her raise her children

The Welshman is now waiting to return to the UK after buying a one-way ticket to the Dominican Republic to live with his internet girlfriend

Ms Peguero said she agreed to meet Mr Bailey, who is from Rhymney in south east Wales, after chatting for six-months on the internet using Google Translate.

In their chats she said he admitted he wasn't wealthy but promised to help her raise her children, including two young daughters still living with her.

She said: 'I asked him to send me money so I could go and fetch him from the airport and he never sent me anything.

'But as he was coming to meet me I couldn't just abandon him like he was a nobody so I decided to borrow money to go to the airport.

'Later when I checked his ticket I realised he'd come with the intention of staying here and I can't look after him.

'I have explained it to him a thousand ways. If I had my own house I'd let him stay but I don't.'

Ms Peguero said she agreed to meet Mr Bailey, who is from Rhymney in south east Wales, after chatting for six-months on the internet using Google Translate

In a warning to other women, she added: 'I'm making this video for many young people, for many women, so that they learn from what happened to me and don't try to find love online.

'That was a mistake I made and won't make again.

'Don't believe in anyone. Some men are good but many are bad and want to be maintained.

'I've got to look after him because he hasn't got any money.

'I've got my heart and I'm not going to refuse him food when he's not giving me any money but I can't look after him.'

She added: 'I wasn't looking for a man for money. We simply got to know each chatting over the Internet.

In a warning to other women, Ms Peguero said: 'I'm making this video for many young people, for many women, so that they learn from what happened to me and don't try to find love online'

Ms Peguero claimed she had already been visited by British diplomats, who were last night said to be assisting Glyn

'I prefer to be poor and happy, not rich and unhappy and I want Glyn back in Britain so people stop talking about me and criticising me.

'I've been left with a debt of 240 I borrowed to go and pick him up at Punta Cana International Airport which I haven't asked him for because I'm going to pay it back myself however I have to.'

She also claimed she had already been visited by British diplomats, who were last night said to be assisting Glyn.

Wilfa's neighbour Kevin Osiris Mendez, among well-wishers said to have helped feed and lodge Glyn over the past few weeks in their neighbourhood where he became a local talking point, told the TV station: 'We've all been worried. I'm a friend of Wilfa's and a friend of the family and this has been a headache for us.

Dominican Republic daily Diario Libre said the British Embassy in the capital Santo Domingo had agreed to assist Mr Bailey after a hospital check-up

A woman neighbour who got to know Mr Bailey said: 'He left the area on Thursday. He didn't offer any resistance but he didn't want to go'

'I helped her as much as I could with temporary accommodation for this man.'

Another local, who asked not to be named, said: 'He seemed like a nice bloke but it's not the time at the moment to be looking after dependents. Glyn's an adult man and the only adults you should be taking care of are your parents.'

A woman neighbour who got to know him said: 'He left the area on Thursday. He didn't offer any resistance but he didn't want to go.'

Dominican Republic daily Diario Libre said the British Embassy in the capital Santo Domingo had agreed to assist Mr Bailey after a hospital check-up.

A spokesperson for The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: 'Our staff in the Dominican Republic are offering assistance to a British man and are in contact with the local authorities.'
A trio of the president's accusers reemerged on Monday to hound him for sexually harassing them.

Samantha Holvey, Jessica Leeds and Rachel Crooks had previously made allegations against Trump and appeared on Megyn Kelly 'Today' to demand justice as the White House resumed its claim that the issue had been litigated in last year's election.

'All of a sudden, he's all over, me, kissing and groping and groping and kissing,' said Leeds, a self-proclaimed Democrat, who says she revealed her story because 'I wanted people to know what kind of a person that Trump really is...what a pervert he is.'

Leeds claims that Trump assaulted on a plane in the '70s and called her a 'c***' when he ran into her some time later at a party in New York while he was still married to his first wife Ivana.

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A trio of the president's accusers reemerged on Monday to hound him for sexually harassing them. Samantha Holvey (center) Jessica Leeds (right) and Rachel Crooks (left) had previously made allegations against Trump in last year's election and appeared on Megyn Kelly 'Today' to demand justice

'All of a sudden, he's all over, me, kissing and groping and groping and kissing,' said Leeds, a self-proclaimed Democrat, who says she revealed her story because 'I wanted people to know what kind of a person that Trump really is...what a pervert he is'

'I was so uncomfortable, and a little, yeah, threatened, like I didn't have a choice,' Crooks on Monday said

Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, said that Trump came back stage in 2006 and reviewed the women while they were indecent. 'I was not a human being. I did not have a brain I did not have a personality. I was just simply there for his pleasure'

The two other women said that Trump's conduct while he was a businessman left them 'shocked' and 'devastated' and feeling 'very gross' and 'very dirty.'

'I was so uncomfortable, and a little, yeah, threatened, like I didn't have a choice,' Crooks on Monday said.

Kelly's program was preempted in New York as an explosion went off in Manhattan that the authorities have said was an attempted terror attack. Her show aired in other parts of the country, however, including Washington.

Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, said that Trump came back stage in 2006 and reviewed the women while they were indecent.

She recalled thinking at the time that it would be a meet and great with Trump. But she says it wasn't.

The former Miss North Carolina says Trump was 'just looking me over like I was just a piece of meat.'

'I was not a human being. I did not have a brain I did not have a personality. I was just simply there for his pleasure. It left me feeling very gross, very dirty, like this is not what I signed up for.'

Holvey said that no other director of a pageant came backstage to ogle the contestants.

Leeds claims that Trump assaulted on a plane in the '70s and called her a 'c***' when he ran into her some time later at a party in New York while he was still married to his first wife Ivana

Crooks claims that Trump assaulted her near the elevator bank in his office building. The office she worked in had rental space there. She says it started with him hitting on her.

'And I think his core supporters do know. I mean, I think they recognize. But he's their dog, so they're gonna stick with their dog,' Leeds said. Kelly chimed in: 'Because he's got the right team jersey on'

'And then he kissed me on the lips, and I was shocked, yeah, I mean, devastated, and it happened so fast, I guess, I wish I would have been courageous enough to be like, what's going on, and you need to stop this.'

After declining comment on the matter initially, the White House sprung a statement on Kelly in the middle of her program.

'These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last year's campaign,' the statement said, 'and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory.'

It went on to say that the 'timing and absurdity' of the accusers' claims, along with their 'publicly tour' they've started 'only further confirms the political motives behind them.'

'It's laughable,' Crooks replied a moment later.

Crooks has contemporaneous emails that she sent her sister at the time of the alleged assault, in January of 2006, when Trump was already married to his third wife Melania. She said Monday that she'd be 'more than happy' for security footage to come out that proves the accuracy of her story.

She added, 'He owns the building. I doubt that's going to happen.'

Leeds says she began telling her story publicly once it became clear that Trump was serious about running for president.

As to whether the Democrat thought her allegation would be enough to keep him out of office, she said, 'I don't think I thought I had that kind of power. But I really wanted people to know who he is and what he is.

'And I think his core supporters do know. I mean, I think they recognize. But he's their dog, so they're gonna stick with their dog,' she said.

Kelly chimed in: 'Because he's got the right team jersey on.'

The accusations against Trump have received new attention now that he's thrown his weight behind Alabama Republican Roy Moore.

Moore has been accused of sexual misconduct by a number of women, including one who says he touched her when she was just 14 years old and he was 32.

Trump has separately been accused of misconduct by 16 women, including Crooks, Leeds and Holvey.

Leeds, a 75-year-old former businesswoman who lives in Manhattan, told the New York Times last year that she was 'assaulted' by Trump on a flight when she was 38.

She claims she was seated beside Trump in first class, when the then-businessman lifted the arm-rest between them. He allegedly put his hand up her skirt.

'He was like an octopus,' she told the Times. 'His hands were everywhere.'

Retelling her story to Kelly on Today, Leeds said: 'I'm not a small person. I managed to wiggle out and stand up, grab my purse, and I went to the back of the airplane.'

She has been accused of faking the information because the plane wouldn't have had an arm rest in first class at the time of the alleged incident. Leeds admitted today that 'I don't remember what happened to the arm rest' - she just recalls that there wasn't one stopping Trump from assaulting her.

Crooks was a 22-year-old working as a receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real estate company based in Trump Tower in Manhattan, when she says Trump kissed her on the mouth without permission in 2005.

'It was so inappropriate,' Crooks told the New York Times. 'I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.'

She told the newspaper before the election that the incident took place after she shook hands with Trump in an elevator and he allegedly refused to let go. She says he then began kissing her on the cheeks, before then kissing her lips.

On the Today show she said: 'You feel like you have to say yes to guys. You don want to be the nasty girl. The mean girl who doesn't comply and puts up a fight. I guess..I wish I had been stronger then. I mean I feel differently now. I'd like to think things would be a lot different now. '

'These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last year's campaign,' a statement from the White House on Trump's behalf said, 'and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory'

Holvey claims that as a 20-year-old representing North Carolina in the 2006 Miss USA pageant, Trump inspected her and other contestants before the competition.

She has said she was 'disgusted' by the now-president's behavior in an interview last year with CNN and it was 'the dirtiest I felt in my entire life.

'He would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe like we were just meat, we were just sexual objects, that we were not people,' she told the network then.

Other contestants from Trump's pageants have also said the acted inappropriately.

As a private citizen, the president himself boasted about how his celebrity gave him the ability to grab women with impunity and forcibly kiss them on the now-infamous Access Hollywood tape.

Trump said he would 'grab them by the p****.' Then he added: 'When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.'

On the heels of the October 2016 release of the hot mic video, more women accused Trump, the GOP nominee for president at the time, of sexual misdeeds, including groping, kissing and sexual harassment.

While the recording was expected to tank Trump in the November election, the candidate eventually rebounded, in part because he muddied the waters by pointing to Bill Clinton's alleged and admitted sexual misdeeds and characterizing his rival Hillary Clinton as complicit.

Leeds said after the taping at a press conference, 'Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behavior, but we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is'

And while three members of Congress said they were leaving last week over their own sexually scandals  Sen. Al Franken, Rep. John Conyers and Rep. Trent Franks  and Hollywood heavyweights such as Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey have been banished, Trump has been bulletproofed against similar allegations.

The White House sided with Trump in October of this year and suggested that he women accusing him were all liars.

'We've been clear on that in the beginning, and the President's spoken on that,' press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley meanwhile encouraged women to speak out against sexual harassment and assault  including against President Trump on Sunday.

Appearing Sunday on Face the Nation, CBS' John Dickerson asked the former South Carolina governor, the state's first female executive, how people should 'assess the accusers of the president.

'Women who accuse anyone should be heard,' Haley replied. 'They should be heard, and they should be dealt with.'

Leeds told said Monday that she would like Trump to have a 'reckoning' over what he did.

'I would like to see that hes not Teflon,' she said, 'and that he acknowledged in some fashion or another and be called to answer to the charges.'

She said after the taping at a press conference that accused harassers are being held accountable 'except for our president.'

'Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behavior, but we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is,' Leeds said.

Crooks said an congressional investigation would be 'fair' considering that senators were planning to investigate their Franken until he resigned.

Franken was under the scrutiny of the Senate Ethics Committee because he was a senator, however, and the body is inherently responsible for policing members' conduct.

Bill Clinton's impeachment in the House for perjury and obstruction of justice over his affair with Monica Lewinsky stemmed from an independent counsel investigation into his real estate investments and White House travel office firings that were said to be politically-motivated.

President Trump and his associates, some of whom work at the White House, are being probed by a special counsel who reports to the Department of Justice. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has not indicated that he interested in pursuing any of the allegations against Trump outside of collusion and obstruction of justice in the firing of ex-FBI Director James Comey, however. Most of the sex assault allegations decades old and stretch beyond the statue of limitations, in the first place.

A fourth accuser, Lisa Boyne, called into the press conference on Monday to 'demand that Donald Trump step down like Al Franken.'

'Because what hes acknowledged, what hes made appropriate culturally is a thousand times worse than anything Al Franken has done,' she said.

Boyne has accused Trump of looking up models' skirts at a 1996 dinner.

At the presser, Holvey said she believes Trump should resign, then added, 'I dont think he ever will.'
Brittany Covington, 19, was sentenced to four years probation on Friday in Chicago

A teen who narrated a shocking video of a disabled man being tortured and abused has been sentenced to probation.

Brittany Covington, 19, was sentenced to four years probation on Friday in Chicago, after pleading guilty to a hate crime, in a case that received national attention earlier this year.

The incident, broadcast live on Facebook, involved a white victim and four black people who taunted him with profanities against white people and now-President Donald Trump.

Covington had been held in jail without bond since January, when the video surfaced.

Her three co-defendants are her sister Tanishia Covington, 24, Jordan Hill, 18, and Tesfaye Cooper, 18. They remain in custody and their cases are pending.

Charged (left to right): Tanishia Covington, 24, Jordan Hill, 18, and Tesfaye Cooper, 18, remain in custody in the case and plea negotiations are ongoing

Prosecutors say the saga first unfolded this past New Year's Eve, when Hill picked up the victim, who has a chronic mental disorder, in a stolen van at a suburban Chicago McDonald's, the Sun-Times reported.

The pair had been classmates at an alternative high school in the west suburbs of the city, and drove around in the stolen van for three days visiting friends, police said.

During that time, the victim slept in the stolen van, cops said, until they ended up at the Covington sisters' apartment on the West Side of Chicago.

Shocking video of the incident shows the victim being hit and racially taunted

There, a 'play fight' between Hill and the victim escalated and the victim was bullied into a corner by the defendants, according to police.

Hill and Cooper allegedly cut his clothing with a knife, hit him and forced him to drink toilet water.

On the video of the attack, the suspects are seen beating the victim and can be heard taunting him and shouting profanities.

'F**k Trump!' and 'F**k white people!' can be heard in the background of the video.

At one point, someone demanded that the victim kiss the floor, and told him to 'say "I love black people".'

Prosecutors say that Hill called the victim's mother and asked for $300 in ransom for his return.

The victim eventually escaped and a police officer spotted him wandering down a street, bloodied and disoriented.

In Brittany Covington's plea deal, prosecutors dropped a kidnapping charge and others in exchange for her pleading guilty to committing a hate crime, aggravated battery and intimidation.

The judge ordered her to not use social media for four years. She also must perform 200 hours of community service.

The other three suspects remain in custody and plea negotiations with them are ongoing.
Malcolm Turnbull has sensationally admitted he 'regrets' calling for then-prime minister Tony Abbott to be overthrown after losing 30 consecutive Newspolls.

The Liberal leader himself has now lost 24 in a row and is in danger of losing this Saturday's Bennelong by-election to star Labor candidate Kristina Keneally, a former New South Wales premier.

When Mr Turnbull challenged Mr Abbott in September 2015, he cited his 30 consecutive Newspoll losses to Labor to make the case for knifing a first-term prime minister.

'I do regret having said it, only because it allowed people to focus on that rather than the substantive reasons,' Mr Turnbull told the Daily Telegraph.

'The substantive reasons I stated were related to economic leadership and governance.'

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Malcolm Turnbull has sensationally admitted he 'regrets' calling for then-Prime Minister Tony Abbott to be overthrown after losing 30 consecutive Newspolls

'I do regret having said it, only because it allowed people to focus on that rather than the substantive reasons,' Mr Turnbull said of Abbott's departure from the top job

The Liberal leader himself has now lost 24 in a row as his party continue to lose grip on the Australian public, including the once-safe seat of Bennelong, which appears to be edging in Labor and Kristina Keneally's favour

A citizenship saga, constant party in-fighting and an infamous run-in with U.S. President Donald Trump are just a few of the embarrassing public moments for Mr Turnbull, but he believes he was justified his dethroning of Mr Abbott.

'When I became prime minister, I said we'd deliver confidence and investment and growth and all those things,' he told Financial Review.

'Business confidence is high, investment has picked up very strongly, jobs growth is strong, unemployment is at its lowest in nearly four years. We're not complacent but we have certainly fulfilled those promises.'

However, the voters clearly disagree, as Mr Turnbull's party continue to trail in the two-party preferred. The most recent Newspoll had Bill Shorten's Labor opposition ahead 53-47 after preferences.

'Business confidence is high, investment has picked up very strongly, jobs growth is strong, unemployment is at its lowest in nearly four years. We're not complacent but we have certainly fulfilled those promises'

A report by The Australian revealed Keneally had drawn level with a 50-50 two-party preferred, just a week out from the by-election

The Liberal Party is in danger of losing the crucial northern Sydney seat of Bennelong, which has been held by former prime minister John Howard and former tennis champion John Alexander.

A report by The Australian revealed Ms Keneally had drawn level with a 50-50 two-party preferred, less than a week out from the by-election.

The poll found Mr Alexander's primary vote had dropped an astonishing 11 per cent since the 2016 election.

Mr Alexander quit parliament in December after discovering he was a dual citizen through his British father, making his ineligible to sit in parliament as the Turnbull Government governs without a working majority.

'Labor has thrown an enormous amount into it. They are doing everything they can to take him on. The point we make again and again, don't let Kristina Keneally do to Bennelong what she did to NSW as premier,' Mr Turnbull said.

Among his plans for 2018, which revolve mostly around economic reform, Mr Turnbull is promising cuts for the middle-class and a focus on national security

Among his plans for 2018, which revolve mostly around economic reform, Mr Turnbull is promising cuts for the middle-class and a focus on national security.

The new Home Affairs Department will be launched in January, as will an announcement on his National Energy Guarantee.

'But I want everyone to understand that we're focused on helping middle income Australians,' Mr Turnbull said.

Despite calls from Labor and the public to step down after nearing closer to Mr Abbott's Newspoll slump, the prime minister says he isn't going anywhere just yet.

'I will stay as long as the people want me to stay and the people obviously include the most important people which is Lucy. We are both committed to public service.'
An off-duty police officer allegedly gunned down a 21-year-old university student at a bar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil after she refused to turn off a song he disliked.

Hayssa Andrade, 21, was allegedly shot around 20 times by Jorge Aguiar da Silva, 38, in the early hours of Friday at a roof top bar in Campo Grande, Rio de Janeiro.

The victim was rushed to Rocha Faria Municipal Hospital but succumbed to her injuries.

Murdered: Hayssa Andrade, 21, was allegedly shot around 20 times by off-duty military policeman Jorge Aguiar da Silva, 38, at a bar in Rio de Janeiro

Shocking: Miss Andrade had reportedly picked a Brazilian funk song associated with a local gang, which the policeman objected to

Miss Andrade had refused to back down over her pick of party music after Aguiar da Silva, objected to what was playing.

Investigators said the young woman's body was riddled with 36 bullet wounds after she made a 'desperate' attempt to defend herself by raising her arms during the assault.

The suspect, who was said to have shown signs of intoxication, was arrested at the scene of the crime and covered his head with a yellow t-shirt as he was taken away. No one else was injured.

Detectives seized a Taurus 380 calibre pistol along with documents of ownership. The revolver had allegedly been thrown over a wall near the property before agents arrived.

An autopsy carried out by the Forensic Medicine Institute (IML) indicated the victim suffered 36 bullet-related injuries to her body with several gunshot wounds to her forearms.

Fight: When Miss Andrade refused to change the song, Aguiar da Silva, pictured, is said to have pulled out a gun and opened fire

Scene of the crime: The incident took place on this rooftop bar in western Rio de Janeiro on the early hours of Friday morning

Homicide division chief Fabio Cardoso explained: 'The examination found the victim had been shot 36 times with forensic experts reporting 22 entry and 14 exit wounds. However, it was likely that (Hayssa) was shot around 20 times because some of the bullets caused two or more perforations.

'The suspect appears to have used all the ammunition in his pistol against the woman.

'This revolver has a capacity to carry 19 bullets with one in the chamber. From our investigations it seems the accused used all the cartridges in the shooting.

'(Hayssa) had several injuries on her hands and arms, suggesting a desperate attempt by the young woman to defend herself. The shots mainly hit the hands, arms, chest, stomach and internal organs'

According to eyewitnesses, Ms Andrade was at the open air party spot with two girlfriends. She did not know the accused, who is a married man.

It's alleged Silva tried to chat up the group but was rejected.

When the host put on some music it was agreed everyone would have the opportunity to pick a tune.

Arrest: Aguiar da Silva is led from the scene of the crime by police officers

Investigators said the young woman's body was riddled with 36 bullet wounds after she made a 'desperate' attempt to defend herself by raising her arms during the assault

Ms Andrade choose a Brazilian funk song which is widely associated with Commando Vermelho (Red Command) one of Brazil's most dangerous criminal gangs engaged primarily in arms and drug trafficking.

Party goers reported the assailant objected to the tune calling it 'thug music' and became 'angry and aggressive' when the victim refused to turn it off.

The disagreement spiralled out of control with witnesses claiming Silva showed off his gun several times and made deaths threats.

Ms Andrade reportedly challenged the accused asking: 'What are you going to do, kill me?'

Whereupon Silva is said to have drawn his weapon and unleashed a barrage of bullets.

According to relatives, the victim was the younger of two sisters and was at university studying business administration after working for several years as a saleswoman.

Experts released her body for burial and the funeral took place on Saturday, attended by scores of grieving family and friends.

The accused has been remanded in custody facing murder charges. He is expected to appear in court by the end of this week.
Katie Mager (pictured), 27, and Ryan Reiersgaard, 27, were arrested for falsely reporting that they were robbed of more than $22,000 worth of valuables and cash

Two Minnesota tourists visiting Chicago falsely claimed three men robbed them of more than $22,000 worth of valuables and cash because they just wanted to 'have some fun'.

Katie Mager, 27, of Apple Valley, Minnesota, and Ryan Reiersgaard, 27, of Burnsville, Minnesota told authorities they were walking near 300 North Columbus Drive on Thursday when the men approached them with a knife and stole their valuables.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Mager and Reiersgaard claimed the three men took a $12,000 engagement ring, $5,000 cash, and a $3,000 Louis Vuitton suitcase.

They told police a Burberry purse, a $2,000 MacBook Air laptop, a $300 suitcase, a wallet and a $150 iPad Mini were also among the valuable items stolen.

The pair called 911 around 1.50am on Thurday morning and told officers that they got lost after taking GPS directions to a hotel.

They reportedly told officers they had landed at O'Hare International Airport from Minneapolis around 9pm and spent three hours trying to find a rental car.

According to authorities, Mager and Reiersgaard told police they got lost while trying to meet a friend and were on foot with their luggage when they were 'robbed'.

Mager reportedly told police that she could recognize one of the alleged thieves because he looked like 'Fat Albert'.

Reiersgaard (pictured) blamed Mager for the incident. He told police that it was her idea and 'he doesn't know her motives'

They reprotedly told police that the incident took place as they were walking near 300 North Columbus Drive (pictured) on Thursday when the men approached them with a knife and stole their valuables. They were both held on $10,000 bond and will appear in court on Thursday

Mager told authorities that the mythical man smelled of 'marijuana, was short in height and heavy-set'.

Reiersgaard then blamed Mager for the incident. He told police that it was her idea and 'he doesn't know her motives', according to the Tribune.

According to the Assistant States Attorney Joseph Carlson, Reiersgaard told authorities that he was only trying to have some fun on his birthday.

Police said they couldn't provide serial numbers for the luggage, electronics and jewelry, but airport security footage showed them traveling without luggage.

Mager and Reiersgaard were both arrested and charged with a felony count of disorderly conduct for falsely reporting a crime.

They were both held on $10,000 bond and will appear in court on Thursday.
Pregnant women will be able to request a seat on the Tokyo subway through a messaging app in a trial designed to get the attention of passengers who have their heads buried in smartphones.

The test, beginning today, will link women with 'supporters' who have downloaded the app and alert them when a seat is wanted.

Its purpose is to ensure passengers who 'would not notice their existence because they are looking at their smartphones' are alerted to pregnant women in their midst.

The test, beginning today, will link women with 'supporters' who have downloaded the app and alert them when a seat is wanted

The trial is being run on the last carriage of eight trains a day along the Ginza Line, which travels through the centre of Japan's capital, according to the Japan Times.

The messages will only be sent to people near the pregnant woman who indicates she wants a seat.

Nearby users of the app can then offer their seat by specifying their location and permitting the woman to take their perch.

The trial is being organised by the Tokyo Metro Co, Line Corp and Dai Nippon Printing Co.

A Dai Nippon official said that, if the trial should be successful, it could expand to include other people more likely to need a seat.

A Dai Nippon official said that, if the trial should be successful, it could expand to include other people more likely to need a seat

The spokesperson said: 'By putting the service into practical use, we are aiming to create a system that is helpful not only for pregnant women, but also for disabled and elderly people.'

Ultimately, it is hoped the project will lead to a technology that allows pregnant women to emit a signal with a special device that alerts all registered passengers that they are nearby and keen to sit down.
An arrested man's fingers were chopped off when a police station door was slammed shut, leading to calls for the force to fit 'finger guards'.

Decorator Jamie Clark, 28, was left 'screaming in agony' and begging to be let out of the cell after losing his fingers, but says nobody came to help until a piece of his flesh was found in the corridor.

The father-of-one says he was pepper sprayed, stripped naked and bundled into the room in Llanelli, South Wales, after being wrongly accused of attempting to assault a police officer.

Mr Clark was left disabled for life despite being cleared of assaulting a police officer following his arrest

He was arrested after a row with his girlfriend but was later cleared of assaulting a Dyfed-Powys officer.

Mr Clark won a legal battle to obtain footage of the horrifying moment his fingers were severed.

He gave the video footage to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which ruled there was insufficient evidence to charge any officer with misconduct.

Mr Clark was left screaming for help after his fingers were chopped off in the cell door hinge and says nobody came to help him until a body part was found in the corridor

But the watchdog has called on the force to consider safety guards on cell doors.

An IPCC spokesperson said: 'The IPCC investigation into how Mr Clark sustained a serious hand injury in custody in Llanelli was completed in May.

'In the lead investigators opinion there was insufficient evidence upon which a reasonable tribunal could conclude that any Dyfed-Powys Police officer had a case to answer for misconduct.

'The force accepted recommendations to remind custody officers that significant events and decisions should be recorded in detail and to ensure custody staff training looks at minimising any risk of injury to detainees during the closure of cell doors.

Footage shows the South Wales officers closing the door to the cell after Mr Clark says he was pepper sprayed and stripped

'Dyfed-Powys Police also planned to assess the possibility of installing finger guards in custody suites.'

The video shows a naked Mr Clark running at the cell door as it was being closed, after was allegedly bundled in by six officers.

Mr Clark claims he was bundled into the cell by six officers.

'I went to get out but thats when I felt this huge pain and felt my flesh being torn away when the door was shut,' he said.

'I was screaming in agony. I was begging the officers to open the door but no one helped me.

'I have never known fear and pain like it.'

Mr Clark was accused of attempting to assault PC Christopher Burton following his arrest in June last year.

Magistrates heard he tried to bite PC Burton while he and other officers attempted to get him into a police van and later taken to Llanelli Police Station.

When the door was shut, Mr Clark's three fingers were chopped off in the hinge of the cell door

It was once he was in custody that Mr Clark suffered severe injuries when his hand was trapped in the hinge of a cell door.

The court heard PC Burton found a piece of the his finger in the hall.

Mr Clark was cleared in court after his solicitor fought to obtain a copy of the CCTV from police.

His solicitor Patrick Llewelyn said: 'He was arrested for an offence he wasnt prosecuted for and while being detained he suffered serious injuries which will be the subject of a complaint or civil claim.

Mr Clark can be seen looking down at his hand in horror after three of his fingers were severed in the accident

'People expect to be treated fairly when they are dealing with the police.

'We have seen evidence which suggests the police on this occasion deviated from the highest standards of practice.'

A police spokesman said: 'Dyfed-Powys Police accepts the conclusion from the IPCC that there is no case of misconduct to answer in respect of a complaint from Mr Jamie Clark.

'The force has complied with recommendations from the IPCC, including adding a new element around finger safety to training and reviewing the possibility of finger guards.'
A new shock poll from Fox News shows Democrat Doug Jones 10 points ahead of Republican Roy Moore as voters head to the polls tomorrow in Alabama to select the state's next U.S. senator.

Moore, a twice removed state Supreme Court judge, was already a controversial figure in Alabama politics, but has had to answer to accusations that he sexually harassed and assaulted teenage girls, a revelation first published in the Washington Post on November 9.

'I did not know them,' Moore said in a new interview with 'The Voice of Alabama Politics' on Sunday. 'I had no encounter with them. I never molested anyone, and for them to say that, I don't know why thy're saying it, but it's not true.'

The GOP hopeful's denials have allowed him to receive an endorsement from President Donald Trump and campaign help from former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, who will appear at a rally for Moore in Midland City, Alabama tonight.

Moore's campaign has tried to stitch the political futures of Trump and Moore together more tightly, so the state who voted for the president by 28.3 points won't give a Senate seat to a Democrat for the first time in 31 years.

'So this is Donald Trump on trial in Alabama,' said Moore's chief political strategist Dean Young on Sunday. 'If the people of Alabama vote for this liberal Democrat Doug Jones, then they're voting against the president who they put in the office at the highest level.'

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A new Fox News poll shows GOP Senate hopeful Roy Moore trailing Democrat Doug Jones by 10 points in the special election, which will take place tomorrow. While the Fox poll is an outlier, Moore's campaign has been plagued by sexual misconduct accusations for weeks

President Trump slowly edged himself over into Roy Moore's column in the race, pointing out that the Republican hopeful has denied the pedophilia accusations against him and noting it would be better to have a Republican in the Senate than the Democrat

Roy Moore's chief political strategist Dean Young (pictured) said Sunday that 'this is Donald Trump on trial in Alabama,' suggesting to voters that a vote against Moore indicated a vote against Trump, who the state put in office by 28.3 points

Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon's presence alongside Roy Moore in both the primary and the special election suggested to voters that the ex-Judge was really President Trump's guy, despite the president's backing of Sen. Luther Strange in the primary

Trump also suggested his agenda was at stake as he slowly moved his support into Moore's column.

The president had originally teamed up with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in support of Sen. Luther Strange in the GOP Alabama primary, as the state looked to permanently fill the seat once held by Trump's Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

But Moore destroyed Strange, the appointed seat-filler, in the late September primary, besting the incumbent by about 10 points.

The ex-judge had been aided by Bannon in the primary, whose presence relayed to voters  with a wink, wink, nudge, nudge  that Moore was the true Trump-ian pick.

When the sexual misconduct allegations came out, Bannon's people forcefully pushed back on reports that suggested the Breitbart head's support was wavering.

Over at the White House, there was some mixed messaging.

Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway at one point said 'no Senate seat is worth more than a child,' but then changed her tune less than a week later saying that Moore's vote would be helpful on the president's tax reform bill.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (right) visited Alabama to support Democratic Senate hopeful Doug Jones (center), as the Democrats hope that black voters can help offset the large number of Republican, white voters who traditionally vote in the state's elections

Democratic Senate hopeful Doug Jones (left) was given an assist from popular New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker who came to Alabama this weekend to campaign for Jones, who's mounted the biggest Senate threat the Republicans have seen in the state in decades

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on November 16 that, 'The president believes that these allegations are very troubling and should be taken seriously.'

'And he thinks that the people of Alabama should make the decision on who their next senator should be,' she said.

She used the latter line several more times until Trump, himself, pushed the door open to support Moore as he talked to reporters en route to Mar-a-Lago for his Thanksgiving break.

'Look he denies it ... he totally denies it,' Trump said, while also whacking the Democrat. 'We don't need a liberal person in there. ... We don't need somebody who's soft on crime like Jones.'

Last Monday, with eight days to go in the race, the president called Moore to offer him his endorsement.

Then, on Friday, Trump appeared in nearby Pensacola, Florida, and encouraged voters in Alabama, living just over the state line, to support Moore.

Trump's voice is being used in a pro-Moore robo call to get Alabamans to the polls in the support of the candidate tomorrow, on special election day.

Democrats have countered Trump's support by trotting out some of their own.

Over the weekend, two of the party's most prominent African-American politicians  Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick  campaigned alongside Jones, hoping to increase black support for the candidate, to offset the state's white voters who tend to vote Republican in large numbers.

CNN reported Monday that President Obama has recorded a robocall to help Jones too.

And Politico reported that former Vice President Joe Biden has recorded a robocall to boost Jones' chances as well.

While the Moore-Jones race has dominated the national political conversation, Moore himself stayed largely off the campaign trail in recent days.

He was last seen in public on Tuesday and his campaign announced the Bannon-Gohmert rally for Monday night, on election eve.

On Sunday, he participated in two interviews as he made his final push.

Beyond dismissing the sexual misconduct allegations yet again, on Breitbart's Aaron Klein Investigative Radio, Moore suggested that politically it was him against the world.

'I'm fighting both the Republican establishment out of Washington as well as the Democratic Party,' he said.

'The Republican establishment actually wants Jones in there because they think they can beat him in two years without a contest,' he explained. 'And, of course, the Democrats want Jones in there for their vote.'

A number of Senate Republicans have expressed disgust that Moore didn't drop out of the race once the allegations became public.

The state's own Sen. Richard Shelby, who was elected as a Democrat, but is now a Republican, confirmed Sunday that he had cast a write-in vote, not wanting to aid Jones, but not wanting to boost Moore.

But Moore also articulated that a vote for him would make it easier for President Trump's agenda to get passed.

'I think we need to move on things while we have the opportunity to do so,' he noted.
Harrowing footage of a pregnant woman being tasered in jail five days before she lost her baby has emerged.

Martini Smith was jailed in September 2009 when she was 20 and pregnant.

She was taken into custody at the Franklin County Jail in Ohio on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge for stabbing her boyfriend in self-defense.

Corporal Matthew Stice tasered her because she could not remove her tongue stud, the last item of jewelry she was wearing. She had been stripped of her top and was wearing just her jeans.

Harrowing images show Smith falling against a concrete wall and sliding down it as Stice tasered her.

Five days later, Smith lost her baby. It is not clear if she was still in custody of if she had been released.

Martini Smith is pictured writhing on the ground after being tasered at the Franklin County jail in Columbus, Ohio, in September 2009. She lost her baby five days later

It is not clear how far into her pregnancy the woman was at the time. She was tasered by Corporal Matthew Stice because she could not take out her tongue stud

She did not directly state that the taser caused her to lose the child. It is not clear how far along she was in her pregnancy at the time.

She sued the police force afterwards and, in 2011, was awarded $27,500 in a settlement but it was not reported at the time that she had been pregnant.

In an interview last week however, Martini, now 26, told Reuters that the loss of her baby still haunted her.

'It stays with me like it was yesterday,' she said.

Smith had been taken into custody after for stabbing the boyfriend who she said was beating her. Once she had arrived at the county jail, she was ordered to remove all her jewelry and clothes.

When it came to taking out her tongue stud, she said she had trouble because her fingers were numb from having been handcuffed for six hours.

Now 26, Smith (pointing to where she was tasered in the chest) said she could remember the incident like it was 'yesterday'

Smith is one of nine people who sued the county over excessive use of tasers in the jail. Above, Wendy West is tasered in October 2008 at the same facility

Jordan Norris at the Cheatham County Jail in Ashland City, Tennessee, another facility where inmates have died because of taser use. He survived

Stice then tasered her, sending bolts of electricity into her chest. She fell back against the wall and slid to the ground.

Afterwards, she pleaded: 'Why did you Tase me? I wasnt harming nobody. I cant just take it out.'

In the video, she can be heard yelling: 'I'm about to have a seizure.'

Her miscarriage happened five days later. The domestic violence charges against her were eventually dropped.

She spoke with Reuters as part of a wider investigation into excessive force of tasers across the country.

Other videos gathered show inmates sitting on benches in their cells handcuffed before being tasered. One man was deaf.

Their investigation uncovered 104 deaths in prisons since 2000 that were the result of taser use.

Corey Carter is stunned by officers at the McCurtain County Jail in Idabel, Oklahoma, on February 12, 2015

Gary Kane is atsered by police at Franklin County Jail on October 10, 2009. None of the deputies in Franklin County faced charges. Instead, the county paid out lawsuit settlements in 2011

Of the 104 inmates who died, just two were armed.

A third were in handcuffs or other restraints when stunned. In more than two-thirds of the 70 cases in which Reuters was able to gather full details, the inmate already was immobilized when shocked  pinned to the ground or held by officers.

UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer said the videos were proof of 'grave abuse'

The cases reflect a fundamental challenge of using Tasers in correctional settings: The weapons, designed to control violent or threatening suspects on the street, have fewer legitimate uses behind bars, where prisoners typically are confined in a cell, often restrained and almost never armed.

While Tasers can be an effective way to stop an assault on a guard or another inmate, veterans of the corrections system say the weapons too frequently are used on people who pose no imminent physical threat.

Smith's case, along with dozens of others, prompted the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, to call for an investigation into police use of tasers across the country this week.

Nils Melzer said videos like the one of Smith's demonstrate 'clearly gratuitous infliction of severe pain and suffering.'

He was concerned about incidents in four jails; Franklin County, Ohio; Cheatham County, Tennessee; Franklin County, Arkansas; and McCurtain County, Oklahoma.

No deputies from Franklin County have been charged despite the city paying out in lawsuit settlements in 2011.

Smith's was just one of nine that were filed against it. Melzer said the videos were proof of 'grave abuse'.
A 23-year-old Google engineers has been found dead near a bike trail along the San Francisco Bay.

A bicyclist spotted the body of Chuchu Ma, of Mountain View, California, in the water along the Bay Trail on the Sunnyvale-Moffett Field border last Thursday morning.

The Google software engineer had been reported missing in Mountain View - a few miles away - the same day.

A bicyclist spotted the body of 23-year-old Chuchu Ma, of Mountain View, California, in the water along the Bay Trail on the Sunnyvale-Moffett Field border last Thursday morning

The Google software engineer had been reported missing in Mountain View - a few miles away - the same day

Ma, who graduated with a Bachelor's in Computer Science from the University of Texas, Austin, in 2016, had worked as an engineer at Google for more than a year.

Google released a statement on the woman's death shortly after her body was identified.

'Chuchu was an excellent software engineer in our developer product team,' the statement to KRON 4 said.

The statement added: 'We are devastated to learn of her passing, and our deepest condolences are with her family and friends.'

Ma, who graduated with a Bachelor's in Computer Science from the University of Texas, Austin, in 2016, had worked as an engineer at Google for more than a year

Details surrounded Ma's death have not yet been released and it remains unclear if she was a victim of a crime

Police have not revealed the details surrounding Ma's death, but NBC News reports that her body was found face down and naked in the water.

It remains unclear if she was a victim of a crime.

The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety's investigation is ongoing as they wait for the coroner's autopsy results.

The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety has asked anyone with information to contact the detective unit at (408)730-7110.
Bobby Vedral, a banker partner at Goldman Sachs, said Jeremy Corbyn could win power within months if Theresa May's ailing government breaks under pressure

Jeremy Corbyn would turn Britain into 'Cuba without the sunshine', a major figure in the City of London has warned.

Bobby Vedral, a banker partner at Goldman Sachs, said the Labour leader could win power within months if Theresa May's ailing government breaks under pressure.

The warning is the latest signal from the City's financial centre raising alarm about the prospect of Labour's left-wing agenda being imposed.

Mr Vedral made his claims at an equity conference in Amsterdam last month, warning the Labour programme of tax rises on the wealthy and a sweeping nationalisation agenda would be a 'disaster'.

He said: 'There is a clear risk in my opinion in the next six months of Corbyn.

'Now that is a problem.'

Mr Vedral's claim comes after businesses were told Theresa May is 'hanging by a thread' and they should prepared for a Corbyn Government.

The advice was issued by an influential city trading firm that warned Labour taking power would be a 'nightmare scenario' for the pound.

CME Group, an American financial market company with a major office in the City of London, issued the warnings in a briefing last month at the height of the harassment scandal sweeping Westminster.

The warning is the latest signal from the City's financial centre raising alarm about the prospect of Jermey Corbyn (pictured in the Commons today) and Labour's left-wing agenda being imposed

In the CME paper, Erik Norland, the group's executive director and a senior economist, describes how the Government was 'taking the brunt' of 'allegations of inappropriate conduct within Parliament'.

'Since losing its parliamentary majority in June 2017, British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party has been hanging by a thread, propped up by coalition partner, the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland,' he said.

'Given the fragility of the current government, markets should probably be thinking carefully about the next Prime Minister and the potential impact on the UK economy and currency.

'The Labour Party has moved into a small but consistent polling lead since the June election.

'When new elections take place, they could easily produce a Labour majority or a hung parliament.'
Marcia Y. Eubank, 49, was arrested on suspicion of murder Saturday in Ohio

A woman charged with murdering her husband lived with his dismembered body parts in her home for five months, police have said.

Marcia Y. Eubank, 49, was arrested on suspicion of murder Saturday in Coventry Township, Ohio, after police discovered the remains of her husband, 54-year-old Howard L. Eubank.

The couple had been married for 24 years, and had at least one son.

Marcia has a work history at a nursing home and Howard worked at a water supply company.

On Saturday afternoon, their son made a terrifying discovery in his parents' home in the community of 11,000 on the southern outskirts of Akron.

Howard and Marcia Eubank were married in 1994. She is seen left with her grandmother center, and the man on the right is believed to be Howard, who was found dead Saturday

Police responded to this residence after getting a tip on Saturday. They found a tote bag in the back yard of the home containing the dismembered remains of Howard Eubanks

Police say he found decomposing body parts in a home office that was 'exclusive' to his mother's use, WKYC reported.

The son exchanged several text messages with his mother before calling 911 to alert authorities at 1.38pm on Saturday, police said.

Investigators responded to the home and discovered decomposing body parts inside various bags and luggage around the house.

Investigators believe that Marcia shot and killed him in June, and then dismembered his body with several saws and lived with the remains in her home.

Howard's co-workers at the water supply company told police that they received a 'bizarre' text message from his phone this summer, claiming that he was suddenly moving to Texas on June 18.

Marcia appeared in court via video link from the Summit County Jail on Monday (pictured left and right). Her bail was set at $1million

'Its sick. Ive known these people for over 20 years,' neighbor Jackie Kaylor told the Beacon-Journal.

'Its absolutely devastating. I just cant believe this is all real,' Kaylor said.

Kaylor said officials were on the scene from about 1pm to midnight Saturday 'carrying different bags of things from outside the house and back yard'.

Marcia was not home at the time of the search, but cops located her in the parking lot of a local business Saturday evening and took her into custody without incident.

She was then interviewed by sheriffs detectives and subsequently charged with one count of murder and booked into the Summit County Jail.

An autopsy on will be performed this week at the Summit County Medical Examiners Office, but officials say preliminary information leads them to believe Howard was shot multiple times.

Marcia appeared in court via video link from the Summit County Jail on Monday. Her bail was set at $1million.

She is next due to appear in court on Wednesday.
Hasna Begum (pictured in her police mugshot) started stalking Pietro Sanna, 23, on social media after they broke up

A jealous Clintons shop assistant who donned a blonde wig and black leather gloves before stabbing her ex-lover 36 times was jailed for at least 20 years today.

Hasna Begum, 25, started stalking Italian part-time DJ Pietro Sanna, 23, on social media after they broke up last December.

When Begum found out a woman called Giulia Consonni - who Mr Sanna had met on Tinder - was following her ex-boyfriend on Instagram, she called her an 'ugly b****' and sent threatening messages.

The 4ft 11in Begum made her way to Mr Sanna's home in Canning Town, east London on June 23 and knifed him 36 times.

She made off with his mobile phone and 'rubbed out' his social media profiles in the days after the killing.

The shop worker said that she was 'accessorising' when she put on a blonde wig and gloves before making her way to Mr Sanna's house.

Begum claimed she was defending herself after Mr Sanna kicked her in the chest, then grabbed a knife which he held towards her.

But a jury at Inner London Crown Court took two hours to convict her of murder today.

Sentencing her to life imprisonment and ordering she serve at least 20 years before she can be considered for parole, Judge Jeremy Donne, QC, told her: 'You were seen by a witness to be angry.

'You had certainly behaved in an angry way in the days leading up to the 21st June, as evidenced by your threatening messages to Giulia Consonni, who had done little more than follow your former boyfriend on Instagram.

'Having gone to Pietro Sanna's address, having a some point armed yourself with at least one knife - I say at least one knife because two knifes were found to be missing from the address afterwards - the number and direction of knife wounds, particularly to the back which tend to point from the extremes of the body towards the centre, either demonstrate a complete change in position or the simultaneous infliction of wounds with knifes in both hands.

Before killing Pietro Sanna (pictured), Begum was seen climbing out of her kitchen window shortly after 6am on June 23 wearing a blonde wig and black leather gloves

'Whether the wounds to the lower body were caused as he kicked out from the ground or by you when he was prone on the ground, simply to inflict further damage to him is again not to the point - what is relevant is that you continued to attack, causing a total of 36 wounds to his body, the overwhelming majority of which would have caused profuse blood loss and two of which puncturing his lungs.

'After the attack you remained in his room and while he was dying or when he was dead, you helped yourself to some of his clothing and left the address, taking with you the knife or knifes and Pietro Sanna's telephone.

'Why you did this is not entirely clear but the indication is that you had an unhealthy obsession with Pietro Sanna.

'What you did was a terribly wicked thing, it has had the damaging effect of depriving a family a son, it has also had the damaging effect of depriving your family from you.

'All murders are completely senseless, this is both tragic and senseless.'

The pair had met in Canary Wharf where Begum worked at Clinton Cards and Mr Sanna worked at sandwich chain Birley's.

Begum came from a traditionalist Muslim background and said her Bangladeshi parents would not consent to her drinking and having boyfriends, so they would meet secretly at his home during the year long relationship.

When quizzed by police following her arrest on June 28, Begum said she had not seen or spoken to Mr Sanna (pictured) in months

Giving evidence she said wearing a wig was 'normal for her and she wore the gloves 'to accessorise' her outfit.

She said she believed he was cheating on her as she received texts 'not meant for her' and noticed a full packet of condoms had emptied during her visits to his home.

Begum was seen climbing out of her kitchen window shortly after 6am on June 23 wearing a blonde wig and black leather gloves.

CCTV cameras caught her jumping into a taxi and making her way to Mr Sanna's home in Ravenscroft Grove and was seen by a neighbour banging loudly on his front door.

Just over an hour later, neighbours reported hearing a male voice shouting 'I'm dying, I'm dying' before his lifeless body was finally discovered three days later.

Begum fled the scene with his mobile phone, calling a taxi from the car park outside to get treatment for a cut on her finger.

She then returned hom to wash her blood-soaked clothes.

Begum had Mr Sanna's phone in her possession after the killing but called it on 24, 25 and 26 June.

When quizzed by police following her arrest on June 28, she said she had not seen or spoken to Mr Sanna in months.

Prosecutor Duncan Penny QC said Mr Sanna's mobile was found inside the pocket of a grey hoodie found in Begum's wardrobe alongside some hair extensions.

Police also discovered that Begum had used the phone to change Mr Sanna's Instagram username - from Pieztek to Sarah654ty - and profile picture.

Mr Penny said this was an attempt to 'scrub out' the 23-year-old digitally, as well as physically, after the stabbing.

A black ladies left-hand leather glove was recovered from a bin on the first-floor bathroom in her home bearing damage to the undersides of the fingers.

An expert was able to determine that the slash which penetrated the fabric lining matched the location of Begum's cut.

Begum claimed Mr Sanna had bombarded her with prank calls after they broke up and invited her to his house that morning to talk about the relationship.

She insisted he threatened her with a kitchen knife when she grabbed his phone to look for evidence he was unfaithful.

Begum, of Millwall, Isle of Dogs, denied but was convicted of murder. She was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 20 years.
A pregnant nurse nearly sustained a miscarriage after a furious mother kicked her in the stomach for hurting her son at a hospital in China.

Footage emerged showing the moment the mother grabbed the nurse's hair at the clinic of Tongshan People's Hospital on December 8.

Chutian Metropolitan Daily reported that the woman accused the nurse of causing her son to bleed while pulling out a needle from his hand.

Ms Fang, in orange coat, is seen pulling a pregnant nurse's hair in a hospital in Tongshan, China (left). The nurse (right, middle) is reported to be pregnant

The 38-year-old mother, surnamed Fang, was said to be the wife of Xu Lianglu, the head of the Urban Management Bureau in Tongshan, Hubei Province.

She took her four-year-old son to the hospital on December 8 for an IV injection.

Ms Zhu, the nurse, injected the needle to the boy's hand.

It's reported that Ms Fang started shouting at the nurse when her son was seen bleeding on his hand while having the needle pulled out by Ms Zhu.

Video shows her pulling the pregnant nurse's hair as other medical staff tried to pull the pair apart.

Onlookers told the reporter that they saw Ms Fang kicking Ms Zhu's stomach.

Pictured: The pregnant nurse appears to have symptoms of miscarriage after being kicked in the stomach by Ms Fang. She is sent to the gynaecology department right after

Ms Zhu was bleeding when she was taken to gynaecology department.

It's unclear of what happened to her baby.

A hospital worker told Beijing Youth Daily that Xu Lianglu, the head of Tongshan Urban Management Bureau, went to visit the injured nurse in the afternoon.

He explained that his wife 'had a bad temper and you [Ms Zhu] should bear with it as working in a service occupation'.

Tongshan County People's Government has posted an announcement in regard to the incident.

The statement said Ms Fang had been arrested by the local police.

Her husband, Xu Lianglu, was sacked from his post as a result of the incident.

Ms Fang received a 500 yuan (57) fine and a 12-day detention.
Dozens of people sat in complete silence on Sunday afternoon as they competed in the fifth international Space-out Competition.

Around 70 contestants were invited to sit on yoga mats in Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei, Taiwan, without looking at their phones or making a noise for 90 minutes.

During the competition, volunteers in white coats monitored the contestants' pulses to check they were still awake.

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Dozens of people sat in complete silence on Sunday afternoon as they competed in the fifth international Space-out Competition. Around 70 contestants were invited to sit on yoga mats in Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei, Taiwan, without looking at their phones or making a noise for 90 minutes

The contest was invented in 2012 by South Korean visual artist WoopsYang to show the importance of taking a break from our busy lives.

Among the contestants this year was Hong Kong filmmaker Pang Ho-cheung who told South China Morning Post: 'We are always looking at our phones, always communicating by phone.

The competition was won by Chan Kai-Ho, 24, from Hong Kong, with Taiwanese student Kuo Han-cheng coming in second place.

The contest was invented in 2012 by South Korean visual artist WoopsYang to show the importance of taking a break from our busy lives. While rhe competition was won by Chan Kai-Ho, 24, from Hong Kong, with Taiwanese student Kuo Han-cheng coming in second place

WoopsYang, who started the event in South Korea in 2014, said it was about encouraging busy people to use their downtime in a more meaningful way - that does not involve consuming things like shopping.

Adding that people should reduce their smartphone use too, she told SCMP: 'Sometimes you should take time to do nothing.

'Your brain should be turned off sometimes. When you don't use your laptop it goes to sleep. People's brains should also sleep sometimes.'

Artist WoopsYang, who started the event in South Korea in 2014, said it was about encouraging busy people to use their downtime in a more meaningful way - that does not involve consuming things like shopping

The contest took place in Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in central Taipei with participants sitting on yoga mats for 90 minutes as volunteers wandered around monitoring their pulses and making sure none had fallen asleep.

Spectators then voted for the top three they thought were the best at unwinding and losing themselves in the morning.

Spectators then voted for the top three they thought were the best at unwinding and losing themselves in the morning. A special award even went to the contestant whose heart rate was most stable during the competition

A special award even went to the contestant whose heart rate was most stable during the competition.

WoopsYang said the event in the middle of Taipei was a 'visual juxtaposition', as the stillness of the contestants contrasted with the business of life around them.

It was the fifth Space-out contest, with previous events also held in Beijing, South Korea the Netherlands.
China is said to be planning five settlement points for North Korean refugees as the tension between Washington and Pyongyang escalates.

Reports have suggested that over a million of North Korean residents could swarm into neighbouring China if armed conflicts breaks out on the Korean Peninsula.

Kim Jong-un, North Korea's Supreme Leader, tested the Hwasong-15 missile on November 29, its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile to date which likely puts the whole of the US within range.

Kim Jong-un thanked workers at a factory that built the tires for a huge vehicle used to transport a new intercontinental ballistic missile that was test-launched last month

A leaked document shows China is planning refugee camps in Changbai County in Jilin Province which borders North Korea. Pictured, a Chinese soldier guards on a bridge on the China-North Korea border on April 8, 2008 in Linjiang of Jilin Province

Changbai county is separated from the Ryanggang Province of North Korea by the Yalv River

Beijing's plan of North Korean refugee camps was mentioned in an internal document released by the Changbai County Branch of state-owned China Mobile Communications Corporation.

Changbai County is a stone's throw from North Korea's Hyesan city and is home to thousands of residents who are ethnically Korean but have Chinese passports.

The document, which started circulating on the Chinese internet last week, claimed that the Changbai County authority planned to build five 'refugee settlement points' because 'the situation on the North Korean border has been unstable'.

It wrote that the county's government had asked China Mobile to provide communication signals for the refugee camps.

The document claimed that workers from China Mobile tested the signals in the area on December 2.

When being asked about the alleged refugee camps, Lu Kang, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman, said on Monday that he was unaware of the plan, according to New York Times.

Mr Lu did not deny their existence, said the same report.

Speaking to a reporter from Radio Free Asia, an official at the Changbai County government denied the alleged plan of North Korean refugee camps.

Beijing's plan of North Korean refugee camps was mentioned in an internal document (above) released by the Changbai County Branch of China Mobile Communications Corporation

Last Wednesday, Jilin Daily, the state-run newspaper of the province, published an article telling the residents how to protect themselves against a radioactive fallout

Tourists having fun in the snow in Changbai Mountains (left). North Korean women wash their laundry by the Yalu River, at a village on the foothills of the Changbai Mountains in 2010 (right)

Changbai County, a Mandarin-Korean bilingual county, shares a 260.5-kilometre-long (161 miles) border with North Korea. The Chinese county is separated from the Ryanggang Province of North Korea by the Yalv River.

Around 14,000 residents in Changbai are ethnically Korean, accounting for 17 per cent of the entire population of the county.

The county is situated in the southern part of Jilin Province, which shares a long border with North Korea.

Last Wednesday, Jilin Daily, the state-run newspaper of the province, published an article titled 'common knowledge of nuclear weapons and how to protect yourself against them'.

The long article gave advice to the local residents on what to do in case of a nuclear explosion.

The newspaper also published comic strips telling people how to protect themselves against radioactive fallout and how to escape from buildings.

This image shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, third from left, and what the North Korean government calls the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile, in North Korea

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un is seen during the inspection of a potato flour factory in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency December 6, 2017

The newspaper article came a week after Pyongyang tested its Hwasong-15 missile.

Kim Jong-un claims the missile is capable of carrying a 'super heavy nuclear warhead' and can bring the payload back to earth intact.

Following the test, America and South Korea launched their largest ever joint air drills in a show of force to Pyongyang.

China then announced its own air drills, saying they were intended as a warning to Washington and Seoul not to invade.

While Beijing has distanced itself from North Korea in recent months, authorities are opposed to conflict on the Peninsula and to having a US military presence on their border.
A man was arrested on Thursday in connection to a deadly robbery that took place at a Rite Aid in California last month.

Kimani Randolph, 21, was taken into custody after the Citrus Heights Police Department identifed him as the primary suspect who physically knocked over 87-year-old Marilyn Stribley as he fled the scene on November 27.

Stribley was hospitalized following the incident and died from her injuries a week later on December 2, according to police.

Kimani Randolph (top left), 21, was arrested in connection to the deadly robbery that took place at a Rite Aid in California last month

Police released surveillance footage of the robbery at the Rite Aid located in the 6600 block of Auburn Boulevard. Police said there were also two other suspects (left in blue) who fled the store as Stribley laid in the doorway

Stribley (right) was hospitalized following the incident and died from her injuries a week later on December 2, according to police. Kimani Randolph (left) was arrested on Dec 7

Police released surveillance footage of the robbery at the Rite Aid located in the 6600 block of Auburn Boulevard.

The video shows one suspect, believed to be Randolph, running into Stribley, causing her to fall backward as she tried to enter the store.

Another suspect is then seen stepping over Stribley as they fled the scene.

Police said she was knocked unconscious when she fell, and when other people initially came to her aid, she had no pulse.

Officers and fire personnel began gave her CPR, and Stribley was taken to a hospital.

At the time, police said three men, all described as black and between age 18 to 20, had entered the store and approached the pharmacy counter.

Video shows one suspect, believed to be Randolph (top left), running into Stribley, causing her to fall backward as she tried to enter the store

Another suspect (pictured) is then seen stepping over Stribley as they fled the scene

They reportedly jumped over the counter and demanded various prescription drugs.

Pharmacy employees, fearing for their safety, handed over the drugs, police said.

Authorities said that Randolph was on probation for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. But the other two suspects have not been located.

Randolph was located and arrested, without incident, in Las Vegas, Nevada, on December 7. Randolph will be extradited back to Sacramento next week.

He is currently in custody for robbery and violation of probation.

The Citrus Heights Police Department said that they will 'continue to work with the Sacramento County District Attorneys Office related to additional charges stemming from the death of Mrs. Stribley'.

'We hope this arrest brings some closure to the family of Mrs. Stribley,' police said.

Anyone having information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact the Citrus Heights Police Department at 916-727-5500. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can call the crime tip line at 916-727-5524.

Police said Stribley (pictured) was knocked unconscious when she fell, and when other people initially came to her aid, she had no pulse. Officers and fire personnel began gave her CPR, and she was taken to a hospital
Theresa May has made a grand overture to urge EU nationals living in Britain not leave after Brexit by telling them directly 'I want you to stay'.

The PM scrambled to try to win over Europeans who have moved to the UK by saying she understands their 'underlying anxiety' at their future when we quit the bloc.

Mrs May said she is 'delighted' to have come back from Brussels with a pledge to guarantee the rights of EU nationals living in Britain.

In an open letter to EU nationals, she said she was 'proud' they had chosen to live in the UK and that she wanted them to stay after Brexit on the terms agreed in Brussels.

The missive is a follow-up to one sent by the Prime Minister in October when she told the 3.3million Europeans living in Britain they would be allowed to stay regardless of the outcome of talks.

The letter was released as Mrs May was grilled by MPs on the terms of her divorce deal in a marathon session at the Commons Despatch Box.

Theresa May (pictured in the House of Commons) scrambled to try to win over Europeans who have moved to the UK by sayings he understands their 'underlying anxiety' at their future when we quit the bloc

In an open letter to EU nationals (pictured) Mrs May said she was 'proud' they had chosen to live in the UK

Mrs May held talks with the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Boyko Borissov, at Downing Street yesterday with talks focused on the rights of EU citizens after Brexit

In the letter to EU citizens, the PM wrote: 'I greatly value the depth of the contributions you make - enriching every part of our economy, our society, our culture and our national life.

'I know our country would be poorer if you left and I want you to stay.'

She told EU citizens their rights would be written into UK law through a Withdrawal Agreement and Implementation Bill.

MIGRANTS MUST BE ALLOWED IN UNTIL 2021, EU DEMANDS Britain is facing demands to push back the date that new EU migrants can arrive to 2021 in return for a two-year transition deal, it emerged last night. EU negotiators plan to demand this later 'cut-off date' during the next phase of negotiations, in return for the transition deal wanted by the Prime Minister. The ultimatum risks infuriating Brexiteers who insist leaving should mean regaining control of the UK's immigration system. The divorce deal agreed by Theresa May last week proposes a cut-off date of March 2019, after which new EU migrants would lose the automatic right to reside in the UK on a long-term basis. British officials insist the issue has been largely settled in negotiations but the EU believes that the date can be pushed back further. A European Commission report said: 'The ''specified date'' should, in the Commission's view, be defined not as the date of the United Kingdom's withdrawal, but as that of the end of the transitional period. Advertisement

And she said that - controversially - their rights will be guaranteed by the European Court of Justice for eight years.

She pledged that a new system to apply for settled status would be up and running next year and cost 72.50 for a standard adult version.

Mrs May went on: 'So right now, you do not have to do anything at all.

'You can look forward, safe in the knowledge that there is now a detailed agreement on the table in which the UK and the EU have set out how we intend to preserve your rights - as well as the rights of UK nationals living in EU countries.

'For we have ensured that these negotiations put people first. That is what I promised to do and that is what I will continue to do at every stage of this process.

'I wish you and all your families a great Christmas and a very happy New Year.'

Earlier, Bulgarian prime minister Boyko Borissov said he would raise the issue of citizens' rights during talks with Mrs May in Number 10.

'We will have the opportunity to speak about Bulgarian representatives who have been residing in Great Britain for over five years, about preserving and maintaining their lifestyle in spite of Brexit obviously taking place,' he said as he met the Prime Minister in Downing Street.

The Prime Minister greeted her Bulgarian counterpart in a soggy Downing Street ahead of their bilateral talks

Mr Boyko is the first EU leader Mrs May has met since sealing her divorce agreement on Friday

In her letter, she told EU citizens their rights would be written into UK law through a Withdrawal Agreement and Implementation Bill

Mrs May finally managed to get EU leaders to sign up to her Brexit deal and move on to trade talks on Friday - days after her initial plans were torpedoes by the DUP.

But some Brexiteers warned they were deeply unhappy that European judges would still be able to hold sway over Britain for a decade after we quit the EU.

While the deal also allowed EU nationals to bring their spouses, parents, grandparents, children and grandchildren, who do not live in the UK, to join them in the future.

And this will extend to future spouses of EU citizens even if they are not yet together.

In the Commons yesterday afternoon, Mrs May came under fire from Tory Brexiteers as she defended her EU divorce deal.

Mrs May insisted the 39billion divorce bill showed the UK was taking 'responsibility' and meant the taxpayer would soon see 'significant savings' that could be pumped back into key public services

Conservative backbencher Philip Davies told Mrs May: 'She said there had been give and take in this negotiation and she is absolutely right - we are giving the EU tens of billions of pounds and they are taking it.'

David Davis and Boris Johnson were in the Commons to hear the PM's statement

The PM faced a grilling in the Commons on why she had agreed to hand over up to 39billion to Brussels when the country was still going through austerity.

HOW THE IRISH BORDER ISSUE COULD WRECK THE DEAL What is 'full alignment'? In last week's Brexit deal, Theresa May agreed to keep the UK in 'full alignment' with the EU on issues relevant to Northern Ireland. Remainers seized upon the language to say it meant Britain would be closely tied to Brussels, but ministers insist it does not mean Britain will be tied directly to the single market and customs union. David Davis said it meant Britain will meet the same 'outcomes'  but not do it 'by just copying what the EU does'. What is 'divergence'? Brexiteers warn it would be a disaster to tie Britain too closely to the EU's rules. They want to allow for maximum 'divergence'  distance from the EU  so Britain can negotiate better trade deals with non-EU countries. However, managing the border between the North and South of Ireland becomes more difficult the more the UK diverges from EU rules. For example, if Britain did a US trade deal to allow chlorine-washed chicken into the UK, how can you prevent the chicken being sold into the European market? What happens next? Cabinet ministers will consider next week what the UK wants the 'end state' of relations with the EU to look like  that is, how much divergence they will seek. In theory, the more distance Britain seeks, the more restrictive its trade deal could be. The Cabinet's crunch meeting is next Tuesday  expect Remainers to call for less divergence and Brexiteers for more freedom. Advertisement

Conservative backbencher Philip Davies told Mrs May: 'She said there had been give and take in this negotiation and she is absolutely right - we are giving the EU tens of billions of pounds and they are taking it.'

The PM insisted the government was taking 'responsibility' and insisted the taxpayer would soon see 'significant savings' that could be pumped into key public services.

She also made clear the payment would be 'off the table' if a trade agreement with the EU was not reached

The clashes came as Mrs May was forced to move to appease anger in Dublin after David Davis played down the effect of the painstakingly-assembled deal and suggested it would not be 'legally enforceable'.

The Brexit Secretary was embarrassingly sent out this morning to correct his comments - promising that Britain would stand by the arrangements and they were 'more than legally enforceable'.

The climbdown appears to have defused the row for the time being, with Irish PM Leo Varadkar - who previously insisted the agreement is 'bullet proof' - saying he was 'very happy with the clarification'.

The government is desperate to paper over the cracks at least until after a crucial EU summit later this week, when the bloc's leaders will decide whether to approve the start of trade talks.

Amid fears that the deal has already tied us into 'soft' Brexit, Mrs May told the House that powers over 'borders, money and laws' would be reclaimed.

She was given the benefit of the doubt by many Tory MPs concerned about derailing the Brexit process altogether, but some still voiced significant misgivings about the divorce deal and trade commitments.

Mrs May also had to deny a suggestion from another Tory, Mike Wood, that the UK could face 'punishment payments' in future.

Mrs May said she had never pretended Brexit would be an 'easy process'.

'It has required give and take for the UK and the EU to move forward together. And that is what we have done,' she said.

Theresa May and EU Commission President Jean Claude Juncker, pictured in Brussels on Friday, agreed that sufficient progress has been made on EU citizens rights, the divorce bill and the Irish border to move on to the all-important trade talks. The leaders of the EU 27 members states will decide whether to sign it off at a summit on Friday

She insisted that the settlement on a divorce bill of around 39billion represented the UK acting 'responsibly'.

It will mean that soon the government will be sending less to Brussels and would have 'more money to spend on our priorities at home' - such as housing, schools and the NHS.

The PM also warned that the payment would be 'off the table' if a trade agreement with the EU was not reached.
Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal's sister has admitted repeatedly slamming the head of their mother against a car.

Alexis Blumenthal, 48, from Thame in Oxfordshire, launched a four-year campaign of rage against mother Celia, 76.

Celia became so scared of her own daughter that she had to have a lock fitted on her bedroom door.

Alexis Blumenthal (pictured), 48, from Thame in Oxfordshire, launched a four-year campaign of rage against mother Celia, 76

In the first incident, Alexis grabbed her mother by the hair and punched her a number of times, before pushing at the top of a flight of stairs, at a house in Watlington.

Celia was forced to cling on to the banister to stop her from falling all the way down.

Another attack saw Alexis 'slam' her mother's head against a car on a street in Thame.

In a victim statement Celia said that her daughter had carried out a campaign of 'verbal and violent abuse' over the last four years, largely due to her alcoholism.

Alexis admitted attacking her mother at Oxford Magistrates' Court and is remanded on bail for four weeks for sentencing on January 11.

In the victim impact statement which was read out in court, Celia said her daughter had gone to live at her address after returning from South Africa, where she had lived for a considerable part of her life.

She said that after a few months, maids had begun to find bottles of alcohol hidden around the house and that she had hidden them fearing for her daughter's wellbeing. This, she said, was when the 'verbal and violent abuse' began.

'It was as if she had the strength of 10 men,' elderly Celia said.

'There would be times when I would wake up to her standing beside my bed. I do believe that the rages were so bad that if she had access to a knife she would have used it against me.

'By August her behaviour had become too much and I did not want to live in fear anymore. I kept thinking: 'Is she standing outside my house? Has she let herself in and is she going to attack me again?'

Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal's sister has admitted repeatedly slamming the head of their mother against a car

Prosecution lawyer Katie Jeanes said: 'The first of the offences took place in September this year. The defendant and Celia Blumenthal, who is her mother, had been to the Shepherds Crook public house.

'Mrs Blumenthal's daughter had been drinking before they returned to her mother's address at about 5pm or 6pm in the evening.'

She said it had been a few hours later when Celia had gone to bed and her daughter took her medication upstairs, that the first altercation took place.

The prosecutor explained: 'The defendant grabbed hold of Mrs Blumenthal's hair and punched her several times and the last punch caught her on the left cheek causing bruising and pain.

'The defendant pushed her in the back with open hands. Mrs Blumenthal had to hold onto the stair banister to prevent herself from going down the stairs.

'In total Mrs Blumenthal thinks the defendant must have hit her six or seven times and she described her daughter as 'being in a frenzy'.

'On October 7 this year the police were contacted by a member of the public, referred to as Mrs Lambert, after she saw an incident in the town centre of Thame, involving the defendant and Mrs Blumenthal again.'

The prosecution lawyer said the victim had just driven her daughter home and parked outside her house on East Street in Thame when the younger woman 'grabbed Mrs Blumenthal's head before slamming it into the car frame three or four times.'

She added that the witness had heard the defendant screaming 'you f*****g b***h, I'm going to kill you' before going out onto the street and calling the police, at which point the altercation stopped and the younger woman left the scene.

The copper-haired defendant, who entered court wearing a large, black jacket in faux fur, a black sun hat and large sunglasses to hide her face, began crying as the evidence was read out.

Defence lawyer Angela Porter said: 'Mrs Blumenthal has reflected on all that has been going on and is aware that her mother has attended court to give evidence.

She said that on the night of the first offence, the defendant had been drinking but had been certain in her own mind that she had not done what her mother said she had done.

However, after learning that her mother was going to give evidence against her, Mrs Blumenthal had decided to change her plea to guilty, explaining that 'if her mother said so that's what she must have done.'

Ms Porter added: 'Her mother rented a flat for her which she moved into in September.

'Her mother is no longer paying the rent for her and Mrs Blumenthal is having difficulties paying for it herself.'

Addressing the defendant, presiding magistrate Mohammed Ramzan said: 'We are going to adjourn your case until January 11 at 2pm. That is going to be a Thursday and you will need to be back at this court at 1.30pm.

'At this point you are going to keep the bail conditions that you had from before, we are not changing anything.'

These conditions meant Blumenthal could not contact her mother or call at her house unless accompanied by a police officer with the purpose to collect her own belongings from the property.
A man has been arrested for allegedly trespassing at Buckingham Palace, it was revealed tonight.

The 24-year-old was held three minutes after he stepped over a low perimeter fence adjacent to the Royal Palace and attempted to climb a wall outside the estate.

Police are not treating the incident as a terrorist act and the suspect was not carrying any weapons.

A 24-year-old man was arrested for allegedly trespassing at Buckingham Palace in London (pictured)

He was also arrested on suspicion of being in possession of a controlled substance, but no police action will follow on that matter.

He was released after undergoing a mental health assessment following the incident on Sunday evening. He was detained at 9.45pm.

But he is due to report to police early in the New Year after being investigated for trespass.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: 'Officers from the Met Police Royalty and Specialist Protection Command have arrested a 24-year-old man on suspicion of trespass, contrary to section 128 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005.

'They arrested the man at approximately 9.45pm on Sunday, December 10, three minutes after he stepped over a low outer perimeter fence adjacent to Buckingham Palace and attempted to climb a wall outside the Palace estate.

He was also arrested on suspicion of being in possession of a controlled substance after police attended the scene (pictured)

'The man was not found in possession of any offensive weapons and the incident is not being treated as terrorist related.

'He was also arrested on suspicion of being in possession of a controlled substance - for which he was subsequently released with no further action.

'The man, who has undergone a mental health assessment, has been released on conditional bail, to return to a central London police station in early January, in relation to his arrest for trespass.'
A federal judge warned President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Monday that he shouldn't be trying his case in the press after he was caught editing an op-ed for a Ukrainian paper.

That includes drafting opinion essays published in other countries he was warned as he appeared in court.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson told Paul Manafort that his editing of an op-ed that appeared in an English-language newspaper in Ukraine is not something she is going to tolerate.

The judge's warning came after special counsel Robert Mueller's prosecutors discovered that Manafort edited an op-ed published in the Kyiv Post last week.

The article appeared under the name of a former Ukraine official.

It discussed Manafort's consulting work in Ukraine, which is at the heart of the case against him.

Here for the hearing: Paul Manafort got a break from house arrested when he was driven to federal court in Washington D.C. in a white Range Rover and accused of breaching his gag order

Also in court: Rick Gates, Manafort's right-hand man and deputy on the Trump campaign appeared in front of Judge Amy Berman Jackson in the wake of the charges brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller

Jackson said she would take under advisement Manafort's proposal to have his house arrest lifted in exchange for accepting four of his properties as collateral.

He returned to house arrest after the hearing.

Prosecutors for special counsel Robert Mueller had revealed they knew every word Paul Manafort changed in an opinion piece about his involvement in Ukrainian politics.

They said they tracked the changes the former Trump campaign chairman made as he edited the piece while under house arrest.

Prosecutors say the op-ed was part of a public effort Manafort was trying to orchestrate that would have violated a judge's order to refrain from trying his case in the press.

Manafort's attorneys argue that he had only edited the piece after receiving it from a former Ukrainian public official whom he knew through his consulting work in Ukraine.

They also say Manafort didn't violate the judge's order and was exercising his free speech rights to defend himself.

Defense lawyer Kevin Downing said on Thursday's filing that his client was involved only in editing the piece to ensure accuracy, and that it would not prejudice the case because it was ultimately published in a Ukrainian newspaper, not an American one.

'The defense did not, and does not, understand that the court meant to impose a gag order precluding Mr. Manafort from addressing matters, which do not "pose a substantial likelihood of material prejudice to this case",'' Downing wrote.

Earlier in the week, prosecutors said in a filing that they had reached out to Manafort's lawyers when they discovered the draft and had been assured that it would not be published.

The piece appeared online in the English-language Kyiv Post on Thursday.

The article, which was authored by Oleg Voloshyn, a former spokesman for Ukraines foreign affairs ministry, praised Manafort's political work in helping Ukraine secure better relations with the European Union.

'I can only wonder why some American media dare falsely claim that Paul Manafort lobbied Russian interests in Ukraine,' the piece said. 'Without his input Ukraine would not have had the command focus on reforms that were required to be a nation candidate to the EU.'

Back to house arrest:Judge Amy Berman Jackson told Manafort that she would deliberate on his offer of handing over four properties as collateral to end his house arrest

Brian Bonner, the chief editor at the Kyiv Post, told Reuters that the article was submitted on Monday.

Bonner said Voloshyn claimed to have written the article and then sent it to Manafort and the American's longtime Russian colleague, Konstantin Kilimnik, for fact-checking before submission.

Bonner said he did not immediately publish the article because he was suspicious of the contents and wanted to confirm that Voloshyn had written it.

'It was blatantly pro-Manafort with an opinion about his activities that most people don't share and that his record in Ukraine doesn't support,' Bonner wrote in an email.

Voloshyn told Reuters he was not immediately in a position to comment.

It was not clear when U.S. District judge Amy Berman Jackson would decide whether or not the order was violated, but Manafort and Gates are due to appear before her on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for a status hearing.
Andrew Lindup (pictured), 36, was killed on December 15, 2016 by 'callous' Daroush Fayaz, 25, who served only 61 days in jail after admitting failing to stop

The family of an IT technician killed in a hit-and-run have called for a change in the law after the driver could only be charged with leaving the scene of an accident.

Andrew Lindup, 36, was killed on December 15, 2016 by 'callous' Daroush Fayaz, 25, who served only 61 days in jail after admitting failing to stop.

Fayaz, who might have been speeding, parked his van in a side road and fled.

The van wasn't found for 15 days and as there was no evidence he was driving dangerously he could only be charged with failing to stop even after the coroner deemed the word 'accident' was inappropriate to describe how Mr Lindup died.

Coroner Andrew Walker concluded: 'It seems to me accident does not fit the conclusion here. This was a road traffic collision, and I propose to record as a conclusion the words road traffic collision and not an accident.'

Mr Lindup's family has now demanded a change in the law and outside the inquest, Andrew's dad David said: 'Because Fayaz failed to stop, and because of the lack of evidence at the scene, the CPS decided not to bring charges of causing death by dangerous or careless driving.

'Instead they charged him with the much less serious offence of failing to stop.

'He was jailed for four months and was out after 61 days. It's not much for killing my son is it?

'The simple facts are that Fayaz did not stop, he did not brake despite his windscreen being smashed, he did not look back, he did not try to help my son and he did not call for help.

'He then tried to cover his tracks for 15 days and has shown no remorse for snatching my son away from me and devastating Andrew's family and friends' lives.'

Family of Andrew Lindup outside North London Coroneris Court, Barnet, North London

David Lindup (right), father of Andrew Lindup killed when a van driver hit him at speed then fled the scene leave North London Coroner's Court

He added: 'The greatest irony in all of this is that the law protects the worst drivers, effectively acting as an incentive for motorists to flee if they kill or seriously injure somebody.

'If a driver remained at the scene of a fatal crash, they would be tested for alcohol or drugs, and possibly prosecuted for causing death by dangerous or careless driving and face up to 14 years in prison.

'But if they run away and are then found at a later date, and there was no other evidence of dangerous or careless driving, they can only be prosecuted for failing to stop.

'It is wiser to flee, ditch the vehicle and hope never to be identified. The law isn't fit for purpose and needs to be changed.'

David Lindup, right, has called for a change in the law. He said: 'Because Fayaz failed to stop, and because of the lack of evidence at the scene, the CPS decided not to bring charges of causing death by dangerous or careless driving'

The inquest heard that Fayaz hit Mr Lindup, who worked for Islington Council, in Holtwhites Hill, Enfield, north London, at about 7.10am.

Fayaz then parked the silver Ford Transit van, which was left with a smashed windscreen, in a side street away from the scene, before police found the vehicle 15 days later and arrested him.

North London Coroners Court was told there were no marks in the road indicating Fayaz braked during or after the smash and he could have been travelling over the 30mph speed limit.

PC Adrian Van Lancker told the inquest he believes Fayaz was travelling at a speed of up to 41mph.

Coroner Andrew Walker said police evidence showed Fayaz was travelling between 21mph and 41mph when the smash happened.

PC Van Lancker said: 'My assessment would be 35mph to 41mph.'

The inquest heard that Fayaz hit Mr Lindup (whose family are pictured), who worked for Islington Council, in Holtwhites Hill, Enfield, north London, at about 7.10am

The coroner gave the conclusion Mr Lindup, who was originally from Solihull in Birmingham, died as a result of a road traffic collision.

Afterwards, David Lindup added: 'My son Andrew was run down and killed by a man who callously left him for dead.

'In that moment the driver Daroush Fayaz single-handedly destroyed my family.

'Fayaz's actions following the collision are unforgivable, cowardly and despicable.

'Despite media appeals he didn't come forward, instead choosing to hide his van, which had been damaged extensively, in a side street for 15 days.

'He only gave himself up when the police found it.

'If Fayaz had stopped and tried to help I could have almost forgiven him.

'I cannot forgive him now. He has ended the life of someone who cared for life and he should still be behind bars today.'

Fayaz was also banned from driving for 14 months after the smash, fined 200 and told to sit an extended driving test.

He served 61 days of a four month sentence after pleading guilty on July 24, 2017 to failing to stop.
A 32-year-old was jailed for life on Thursday after being caught sending a nine-year-old who lived 700 miles away sexually explicit text messages.

Scott Trader, who lives in Port St Lucie, Florida, has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to multiple child pornography and sexual abuse charges in September, according to the Miami Herald.

His crimes came to light in May when a father in Thomasville, North Carolina, looked at his nine-year-old daughter's smartphone and found sexual text messages and photographs from Trader on the SayHi application.

The dad contacted police on May 30, who notified Homeland Security. Homeland Security then found messages from Trader to the nine-year-old repeatedly asking for nude pictures.

Scott Trader, who lives in Port St Lucie, Florida, was jailed for life on Thursday after being caught sending a nine-year-old who lived 700 miles away sexually explicit text messages

She first sent him photos of herself fully clothes, and told him her age.

He then messaged her: 'Aw, you're very pretty for your age, You look sexy in those pajamas.'

'The victim eventually sent at least one photo of her vagina and one photo of her pulling her shirt up, exposing her nipples,' according to court documents.

Trader also sent the victim a video of himself masturbating and 'a still image which depicted Trader's face in his bedroom.'

He also sent her an array of other photographs.

Trader's SayHi profile includes his Kik username, and Homeland Security reached out to the app with an emergency disclosure request. The application gave the government agency Trader's account information, allowing him to be tracked to his Port St Lucie address.

When an arrest warrant was granted on June 1 - Homeland Security found him in his home with his wife. In the house they found 10 media storage cards, three phones, an external hard drive and a laptop all full of child pornography.

Some of the content involved a two-year-old in Trader's care who, in one of the videos, was forced to kiss Trader's penis.

Authorities then quickly got their hands on his driver's license and criminal history.

In 2012 Trader was arrested in Port St Lucie for promoting a sexual performance by a child, lewd behavior, and possession of child pornography, according to the Herald. The charges were eventually dropped.

Then in December of that same year he was arrested for lewd behavior and molesting a victim under the age of 12; the case is still open.

In August of this year Trader's wife, who isn't named, filed for divorce. It was granted on October 18.

On September 29 he pleaded guilty to enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, distribution of material containing visual depictions of sexual exploitation of minors, possession of matter containing visual depictions of sexual exploitation of minors, and production of material containing victual depictions of sexual exploitation of minors.
A female teacher has been arrested and charged over historical child sex offences dating back 20 years.

Police detained the 47-year-old woman after visiting her home in Padstow, in Sydney's west, on Monday.

The arrest follows a 10-month an investigation into alleged sex offences against a 15-year-old male student at a high school in Birrong in 1997.

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A female teacher was arrested and charged over child sex offences dating back 20 years

Police also allege a second 15-year-old boy at the same school was also sexually assaulted by the teacher.

The woman was charged with 16 counts of aggravated sexual assault and five counts of indecency.

She was bailed to appear in Bankstown Local Court on January 10.

Police detained the 47-year-old woman after visiting her home in Padstow, in Sydney's west
The Pentagon is allowing transgender people to enlist in the military beginning Jan. 1, despite President Donald Trump's opposition.

The new policy reflects growing legal pressure on the issue, and the difficult hurdles the federal government would have to cross to enforce Trump's demand to ban transgender individuals from the military.

Two federal courts already have ruled against the ban. Potential transgender recruits will have to overcome a lengthy and strict set of physical, medical and mental conditions that make it possible, though difficult, for them to join the armed services.

Maj. David Eastburn, a Pentagon spokesman, says the enlistment of transgender recruits will start Jan. 1 and go on amid the legal battles. The Defense Department also is studying the issue.

Salute: Trump, who saluted a Marine after he stepped off Marine One on Sunday night as he returned from Mar-a-Lago, had banned transgender troops but the Pentagon will allow trans-enlistment

Previous protests: Trump's ban set off demonstrations when it was suddenly announced by tweet

How Trump announced ban: His three tweets on July 26 set off the ban but it is now the subject of a series of legal challenges and will not be enforced unless the government wins them

Eastburn told The Associated Press on Monday that the new guidelines mean the Pentagon can disqualify potential recruits with gender dysphoria, a history of medical treatments associated with gender transition and those who underwent reconstruction.

But such recruits are allowed in if a medical provider certifies they've been clinically stable in the preferred sex for 18 months and are free of significant distress or impairment in social, occupational or other important areas.

Transgender individuals receiving hormone therapy also must be stable on their medication for 18 months.

The requirements make it challenging for a transgender recruit to pass. But they mirror concerns President Barack Obama's administration laid out when the Pentagon initially lifted its ban on transgender service last year.

The Pentagon has similar restrictions for recruits with a variety of medical or mental conditions, such as bipolar disorder.

'Due to the complexity of this new medical standard, trained medical officers will perform a medical prescreen of transgender applicants for military service who otherwise meet all applicable applicant standards,' Eastburn said.

Last year, then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter ended the ban on transgender service members, allowing them to serve openly in the military. He said that within 12 months - or by July 2017 - transgender people also would be able to enlist.

Trump, however, tweeted in July that the federal government 'will not accept or allow' transgender troops to serve 'in any capacity' in the military.

A month later, he issued a formal order telling the Pentagon to extend the ban. He gave the department six months to determine what to do about those currently serving.

New rules: Barack Obama (pictured with transgender Staff Sgt Logan Ireland, right) lifted rules in 2016 when then banned transgender service personne

Trump's decision was quickly challenged in court, and two U.S. district court judges have already ruled against the ban. Part of one ruling required the government to allow transgender individuals to enlist beginning Jan. 1.

The government had asked that the Jan. 1 requirement be put on hold while the appeal proceeds. The Pentagon move Monday signals the growing sense within the government that authorities are likely to lose the legal fight.

'The controversy will not be about whether you allow transgender enlistees, it's going to be on what terms,' said Brad Carson, who was deeply involved in the last administration's decisions. 'That's really where the controversy will lie.'

Carson worried, however, that the Defense Department could opt to comply with a deadline on allowing transgender recruits, but 'under such onerous terms that practically there will be none.'

Carson, who worked for Carter as the acting undersecretary of defense for personnel, said requiring 18 months of stability in the preferred sex is a reasonable time.

'It doesn't have any basis in science,' he said, noting that experts have suggested six months is enough.

'But as a compromise among competing interests and perhaps to err on the side of caution, 18 months was what people came around to. And that's a reasonable position and defensible.'
Laura Plummer, 33, facing a Christmas Day trial on drugs charges in Egypt has been warned her ordeal could drag on longer

A British woman facing a Christmas Day trial on drugs charges in Egypt has been warned her ordeal could drag on for many more months.

Laura Plummer had hoped she might be freed on the opening day of the trial after a judge had time to consider all the evidence against her.

But the 33-year-old has now been told her trial could be adjourned for another month  meaning she would have been held in prison for over five months before she has a chance to protest her innocence.

Legal sources in Egypt said those charged with serious criminal offences can be held up to two years before going on trial.

Laura has been behind bars since October 8th when she was arrested with hundreds of pain killers in her suitcase after a customs search at the airport in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

The shop manager from Hull insisted the 290 Tramadol pills were for her boyfriend to help ease his back problem.

Egyptian authorities charged her with being a drug smuggler as the drugs are banned in the country where they are sold on the black market to heroin addicts. Laura insisted she had no idea the drugs were banned and had no plans to sell them.

Laura (pictured) had hoped that she would have been released on the opening day of her trial after the judge had considered the evidence against her. But she has now been told the case could be adjourned for another month

Charges: Shop manager Laura, from Hull, insisted the 290 Tramadol pills were for her boyfriend Omar Caboo (pictured) to help ease his back problem

Laura's family have said she has lost a lot of weight and is pale as she awaits her trial in a prison cell in Egypt that she shares with up to 25 other women

She is due to stand trial on Christmas Day with her defence team amassing a huge file of evidence to prove she was not a smuggler but simply naive by flying to Egypt with the drugs.

Her sister Jayne Synclair told MailOnline the prospect of yet another delay was a devastating setback for the family.

Several family members plan to travel to Egypt to support Laura when she appears in court in the town of Safaga on Christmas Day.

'We had hoped that Laura would be released on Christmas Day by the judge, but her lawyers in Egypt say there is now a chance the case will be adjourned for another month.

'It is very disappointing but that is how the legal system works over there and we have to respect that. Laura is doing okay but she has lost some weight and is very pale.

'She is being treated very well while in prison but of course we just want her home as soon as possible. This has gone on too long.'

Laura is being held in a cell with up to 25 other women at a police station on the outskirts of the Hurghada resort. She has been allowed visits by her family and 34-year-old boyfriend Omar Caboo.

Omar has given a witness statement and provided medical notes to show he has an injured back and the Tramadol tablets were to help him cope with the pain.

The British consulate has also regularly visited Laura and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has made representations about the case to the Egyptian Prime Minister.

Jayne said she is allowed to spend two hours with Laura during prison visits. 'I was able to take her about 50 cards and letters from people, some from strangers and that helped lift here spirits,' said Jayne. 'She knows people are thinking about her and want her back home.

Case: he British consulate has also regularly visited Laura and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has made representations about the case to the Egyptian Prime Minister

'Her employers have written a wonderful reference for the court and have said they are keeping open her job. But it is hard at Christmas. Everyone's in the Christmas spirit and we all want to be with our families. We just want Laura here but know it will not happen this Christmas.'

Laura was given the Tramadol  which are available on prescription in the UK  by a workmate after she told her about her boyfriend's back problem. The friend has so far refused to get involved in the case and help Laura by making a statement that the drugs were issued to her.

Since her arrest in October Laura's legal team in Hurghada have been compiling evidence to show that she was not a drug smuggler which carries a death sentence in the Muslim country.

Her lawyer Mohamed Osman said it was very unlikely she would face the death penalty but could get up to seven years in jail if convicted. He had hoped that Laura would be granted bail but the application has been rejected by the courts.

The Plummer family have already spent over 10,000 on legal fees after being fleeced by a conman who offered to help Laura get released. Her father Neville wired the money to the 'lawyer' in Egypt but he simply disappeared without offering any help.

Laura's mum Roberta and brother Craig have flown out to Hurghada to visit her and expressed concern for her mental well being. The family last month issued a statement apologising to the Egyptian Government for any inconvenience Laura had caused by her arrest.

Laura family including mother Roberta (left) and sisters Jayne Sinclair and Rachel appeared on ITV's This Morning to highlight her case

Sister Rachel said: 'I would like to place on record our gratitude for the fairness and just manner the Egyptian justice system has shown Laura.

'We realise Laura has unintentionally done wrong in the eyes of the Egyptian authorities. A totally innocent action that has resulted in her being held in custody by the police in Hurghada.

'Laura as well as all of us love Egypt, and upon visits to see Laura we have been happy with the professional and fair way the police officers have been with Laura.'

The apology was advised after the family had previously been critical of the conditions Laura was being kept in. Her prison ordeal elicited little sympathy from the police chief in charge of the facility, telling MailOnline 'She's not staying in the Sheraton'.
Uber and Lyft have been slammed for surge pricing in Manhattan after a failed terror attack which halted public transport and left thousands scrambling for options during rush hour on Monday morning.

Commuters were left struggling to get to work after being forced out of the Port Authority Bus Terminal after the explosion at 7.20am.

Bangladeshi national Akayed Ullah, 27, who is a cab driver from Brooklyn, set off the homemade pipe bomb device prematurely while walking through the subway transit tunnel between the terminal and Penn Station.

It sparked rush hour chaos which included road closures and subways coming to a halt, prompting commuters to find alternative ways to get to work.

Many turned to the ridesharing apps but were horrified to discover prices had crept up by as much as four times the normal amount because of the increased demand.

Uber prices surged on Monday morning for more than two hours after an attempted terrorist attack at Port Authority Bus Terminal at 7.20am. The demand was felt all over the city

Getting to the affected zone from other parts of Manhattan was also more expensive than

Uber said it disabled the surging within minutes of reading news of the explosion online and said it had begun reimbursing passengers who paid extra.

Surging occurs automatically when there is increased demand in one area.

But New Yorkers who were affected by the chaos of the blast were requesting cars all over the city after having to adjust their commutes due to train and bus closures.

In one case, a passenger paid $50 to travel 30 blocks.

Another told DailyMail.com that a journey which ordinarily costs her around $28 had skyrocketed to $75.

'Shame on you Uber!' were among the outraged comments from disgruntled app users as they were confronted by the increase while trying to move out of affected zones.

One Lyft passenger who requested a car at 9.19am was told a ride from Williamsburg to Chelsea would cost $100

'Hoping you'll address the surge pricing in the Times Square area due to the pipe bomb this AM. Algorithms are not our friend,' said one user.

'Uber you should be ashamed for surge pricing after a bomb went off in NYC during rush hour. It took my fiance and I $50 to go 30 blocks.

'Absolutely shameful,' bemoaned another.

'Surge pricing in NYC? A terror attack in midtown - what better time to take advantage of a horrible situation and people in need. This is disgusting!' was another user's complaint.

Others labeled the increased fares 'opportunistic' and 'outrageous'.

Subways were closed as a result of the attack and the blocks surrounding the bus terminal were in lockdown

The bomber has been named as Akayed Ullah, a 27-year-old Bangladeshi who lives in Brooklyn. He burned himself in the stomach when the device detonated early at 7.20am as he walked through the transit tunnel

Akayed Ullah, the suspected bomber, remains in hospital under police supervision

Lyft was also hit with complaints from frustrated passengers.

For a journey from Williamsburg to Chelsea, one person was quoted $96. They said it would ordinarily have cost $17.

Both services said they were offering refunds to anyone who paid more than normal.

'For passengers who did incur higher prices as a result of Prime Time in the Port Authority area, we plan to proactively reimburse them,' Scott Coriell, a Lyft spokesperson, said.

An Uber spokesman told DailyMail.com that within minutes of hearing about the unfolding incident, they disabled surging in the area.

'Within minutes of seeing reports of an incident, we disabled dynamic pricing in the area.

'In addition, we are proactively refunding riders for dynamic pricing on affected trips in the area,' they said.
An exasperated Theresa May tonight demanded the SNP Westminster leader 'Google' her position on the Irish border after he asked her to repeat it.

Ian Blackford insisted the Prime Minister should tell the Commons she was committed to a soft border between the Republic and Northern Ireland.

Mrs May has said repeatedly that is what she seeks and promises on the Irish question were enshrined in a draft Brexit deal sealed amid a tense stand off last week.

An exasperated Theresa May tonight demanded the SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford (pictured in the Commons today) 'Google' her position on the Irish border

Mr Blackford insisted the Prime Minister should tell the Commons she was committed to a soft border between the Republic and Northern Ireland.

Mr Blackford highlighted contradictions in the UK Government's Brexit approach in his response to Mrs May's Commons statement on her draft deal today.

He added: 'For the absence of any doubt, can the Prime Minister tell the House today that in no circumstances will we be returning to a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

'Let's make this commitment in the House today.'

Mr Blackford said all governments across the UK should be 'fully involved' in the next phase of Brexit talks.

He added: 'Any special arrangements for Northern Ireland must now be available to all nations of the United Kingdom.

'The SNP will continue to speak with one loud and clear voice - the Prime Minister must commit today to keeping the UK in the single market and customs union.

'To do otherwise would be catastrophic for jobs, for workers' rights, for people's incomes and living standards.'

Mrs May (pictured in the Commons today) has said repeatedly a soft border is what she seeks and promises on the Irish question were enshrined in a draft Brexit deal last week

Mrs May replied: '(Mr Blackford) asks me to confirm in this House that there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

'I have to say to him, it's not the first time I've made this statement in this House - he can Google it and find from Hansard how many times I've said it.

'Indeed, if he had listened to my statement and looked at it, I said the joint report reaffirms our guarantee that there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.'

Mrs May added Northern Ireland has a land border with a country remaining inside the EU, noting: 'It is already the case that there are a number of unique specific solutions that pertain to the island of Ireland - the common electricity market, for example.'

On the single market and customs union, Mrs May reiterated the UK will be leaving both.
This is the jaw-dropping moment when a heavily armed Russian fighter jet almost wipes out his wingman in an incredibly close call.

The Su-35 nearly hits the Su-30 both which are heavily armed and are believed to be stationed in Syria.

The Su-30 is believed to have a R-77 on board, an electronic warfare pod known as the 'Amraamski' which has only recently been seen flying over Syria.

US and British airforces wouldn't make the same level of of parallel maneuvering over safety fears, according to aviation website The Drive.

The Su-35 nearly hits the Su-30 both which are heavily armed and are believed to be stationed in Syria

The Su-30 is believed to have a R-77 on board, an electronic warfare pod known as the 'Amraamski' which has only recently been seen flying over Syria

The US recently slammed what it described as an 'unsafe intercept on one of its next-generation planes' after the same type of Russian fighter jet came within a mere 15 metres of it.

Last month, another Su-30 came as close as 50 feet from the US aircraft in international airspace.

The plane is designed to improve anti-submarine warfare and it also has anti-surface missile capabilities.

It is described as an anti-submarine warfare, anti-shipping, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft and was intercepted by a Russian Su-30 fighter jet.
A US Coast Guard cutter has intercepted a self-propelled semi-submersible vessel trying to smuggle 3,800lbs of cocaine near Texas.

According to a press release from the US Customs and Border Protection, the incident began unfolding on November 12, when a CBP Air and Marine Operations (AMO) crew aboard a P-3 Long Range Tracker aircraft tracked the vessel in international waters,

Self-propelled semi-submersible vessels are low profile vessels designed to navigate low in the water to avoid detection.

Busted: A US Coast Guard cutter last month intercepted this self-propelled semi-submersible vessel laden with 3,800lbs of cocaine

Three crew members on board the vessel trying to smuggle drugs into the US have been arrested

The following day, the Coast Guard cutter intercepted the vessel, arrested the crew and confiscated more than 3,800lbs of cocaine. The three suspected smugglers are now facing charges in the US.

The drug cartels are relentless and extremely innovative, said National Air Security Operations Center  Corpus Christi Director Allen Durham. Interdicting self-propelled semi-submersible vessels requires expertise and the right aircraft. Air and Marine Operations will continue to beat the cartels at their own game to protect our borders.

The operation involved several interagency partners including the Coast Guard and the US Navy.

AMO operates maritime patrol aircraft from Corpus Christi, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, to conduct long-range aerial patrols and surveillance missions along the US borders and in drug transit zones in Central and South America.

P-3 aircrews detect, monitor, and disrupt smuggling activities before they reach shore.
Police in Brazil have been slammed after posing for selfies with a notorious gangland kingpin accused of drug-trafficking, murders and extortion.

Police in Rio de Janeiro captured Rogerio Avelino da Silva - also known as Rogerio 157 - on Wednesday, which was seen as a rare victory for authorities struggling to curb rising violence a year after the city hosted the Summer Olympics.

But just days after the success, the police face an angry backlash for taking pictures with the suspected killer.

Police in Brazil have been slammed after posing for selfies with a notorious gang kingpin accused of drug-trafficking, murders and extortion. Police in Rio de Janeiro captured Rogerio Avelino da Silva - also known as Rogerio 157 - on Wednesday

The 35-year-old is thought to have been behind a recent wave of shootings in Rochina, Rio's largest favela, where men fought gun battles against rival gangs.

The images, shared on WhatsApp and then across social media, show da Silva handcuffed next to officers with beaming smiles.

In one photos, da Silva is seen smiling with the officers, while in others he appears stone-faced.

The pictures dominated the headlines in Brazil over the weekend as outraging a population fatigued by ongoing crime wars.

The arrest of da Silva came amid an operation in the northern part of the city that included nearly 3,000 police and Army soldiers who have been sent in to help stabilize areas of frequent conflict.

Police said da Silva was found under the covers of a bed in a house in the favela, or slum, of Arara.

But just days after the success, the police face an angry backlash for taking pictures with the suspected killer. The 35-year-old is thought to have been behind a recent wave of shootings in Rochina, Rio's largest favela, where men fought gun battles against rival gangs

The images, shared on WhatsApp and then across social media, show da Silva handcuffed next to officers with beaming smiles. In one photos, da Silva is seen smiling with the officers, while in others he appears stone-faced

Two bodyguards reportedly fled when police arrived. Police said da Silva gave a fake name and said he was a cousin of the woman who owned the house.

'For 10 years, he has been causing problems for Rio de Janeiro,' state Security Secretary Roberto Sa told reporters.

Da Silva, known as 'Rogerio 157,' is accused of crimes including homicide, trafficking and extortion.

Authorities had offered a $16,000 reward for information that led to his arrest and circulated his image widely.

The arrest of da Silva came amid an operation in the northern part of the city that included nearly 3,000 police and Army soldiers who have been sent in to help stabilize areas of frequent conflict

Two bodyguards reportedly fled when police arrived. Police said da Silva gave a fake name and said he was a cousin of the woman who owned the house

Over the last several months, several police operations, which shut down parts of Rio and often led to shootouts, have been focused on apprehending da Silva.

Da Silva oversaw drug trafficking operations in the Rio slum of Rocinha.

In August and September, battles between followers of da Silva and a former Rocinha boss, who is in prison, prompted authorities to send in military police and soldiers to stabilize the area.

Within hours of Wednesday's arrest, several photographs of police with a handcuffed da Silva began appearing on social media. In one selfie, both a woman police officer and da Silva smile. Authorities said they would crack down on that behavior.

'People should not glamorize a criminal,' Sa said, adding that the capture likely led to a moment of euphoria for police.
The wife of a pharmaceutical executive who was convicted in connection with a fungal meningitis outbreak that killed 76 has begged the court not to take away her diamonds, mansion, and BMW.

Lisa Cadden, 50, and her three children filed a petition with the US District Court of Massachusetts seeking to protect $3.6million of family riches from a court-ordered seizure for victim restitution, the Boston Herald reported.

Her husband Barry Cadden, 50, was sentenced to nine years in prison in June on racketeering and fraud convictions.

He was the co-founder and former president of the now-defunct New England Compounding Center (NECC), which shipped contaminated steroid injections to 23 states in 2012, causing an outbreak of fungal meningitis.

Now wife Lisa Cadden, a pharmacist who also worked at the company but was not criminally charged, seeks to protect their riches from a $7.5million restitution judgement for the victims of the outbreak.

Lisa Cadden, 50, (left) filed a petition seeking to protect $3.6million of family riches from victim restitution. Her husband Barry Cadden (right) was sentenced to nine years in prison in June, after being convicted over an outbreak caused by his company's medication

The petition seeks to protect the Caddens' $1.4million mansion in Wrentham, Massachussets (pictured) as well as millions in other assets from a victim's restitution judgement

The Caddens also hope to keep this well-appointed oceanfront vacation home in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, which was assessed at $594,300

The petition seeks to protect the Caddens' $1.5million trust fund, which was established in 2007.

The family also petitioned to keep their $1.4million mansion in Wrentham, Massachussets as well as an oceanfront vacation home in North Kingstown, Rhode Island assessed at $594,300.

As well, the Caddens asked the court to let them keep a red BMW M3 purchased for $86,662 and $26,000 in diamonds bought from DeScenza.

The petition came in response to Judge Richard G. Stearns' preliminary order that those assets be forfeited to help compensate victims.

Those victims and their family members reacted with disgust at news of the Caddens' plea to stop their riches from going to the victim fund.

The Caddens also seek to keep a red BMW M3 purchased for $86,662 (stock image)

'It may not be Christian of me, but as far as I'm concerned, Barry Cadden, his wife and children can end up in a trailer park,' Kathy Pugh of Michigan told the Boston Herald.

Her mother, Evelyn Bates-March, 86, died February 28 of respiratory failure nearly five years after developing an abscess on her spine from an NECC shot.

HOW THE DRUGS CAUSED MENINGITIS NECC distributed nearly 18,000 vials of mold-contaminated steroids to 23 states in 2012. The drugs triggered meningitis in hundreds of people. This specific strain of the illness was caused by a fungus called Exserohilum rostratum, a black mold that normally attacks plants. The fungus rarely hurts humans, but caused major health issues when injected into people's spinal columns. Advertisement

'This doesn't surprise me. It's always been about the money,' Pugh said of the petition.

The scandal first unfolded in 2012, when more than 800 people were sickened and at least 76 eventually died.

The outbreak spread through steroid injections contaminated with a common mold that is normally harmless, but caused major complications when injected directly into patients' spinal columns.

Prosecutors said Barry Cadden, the compounding pharmacy's head pharmacist, ran his company as a criminal enterprise, selling substandard and non-sterile drugs to medical facilities nationwide.

They said he directed the shipment of 17,600 vials of contaminated steroids often prescribed for back pain despite knowing they were made in unsafe conditions, leading to the outbreak.

Pharmacist Barry Cadden, 50, was sentenced to nine years in prison in March after he was convicted for racketeering and fraud for his role in a 2012 meningitis outbreak

Barry Cadden was convicted in March of fraud and racketeering by a federal jury in Boston but cleared of the harshest charges he faced, second-degree murder.

The outbreak sparked calls for increased regulation of compounding pharmacies, which differ from ordinary drugstores in that they custom-mix medications and supply them directly to hospitals and doctors.

Congress in 2013 passed a bill giving federal officials more oversight of the pharmacies.

The Justice Department called the tragedy 'the largest public health crisis ever caused by a pharmaceutical product'.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders uncorked a furious attack on the media after news outlets had to pull back critical stories  saying reporters are 'purposely misleading the American people.'

But challenged to come up with an example she offered no cases of intentional deceit.

Sanders spoke after President Donald Trump issued yet another of his own attacks on the 'fake news' media on Twitter over the weekend.

But in Sanders' case, she brought the attack on reporters' motives directly to a room full of correspondents.

'I'm not done!' she said as reporters tried to cut off her lecture.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused reporters of 'purposely putting out information that you know to be false'

Sanders escalated her attack on the media after CNN's Jim Acosta told her that 'journalists make honest mistakes and that doesn't make them fake news.'

'You cannot say that it's an honest mistake when you are purposely putting out information that you know to be false,' Sanders responded.

'There's a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposely misleading the American people, something that happens regularly,' Sanders said.

'We've seen it time and time again over the last couple weeks,' she complained. 'A number of outlets have had to retract, and change, and rewrite, and make editors notes to a number of different stories. Some of them with major impacts including moving markets,' she observed.

Among the journalists she was referencing was Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel, who tweeted out a photo of a half empty arena after President Trump had said the Pensacola arena was packed. The photo was taken before Trump started speaking. Weigel took it down after about 20 minutes and apologized after Trump called him out in front of millions of Twitter followers.

'When journalists make honest mistakes they should own up to them,' Sanders said, as reporters shouted out that Weigel did, in fact, apologize.

'I'm sorry. I'm not finished,' Sanders said as repoters tried to interrupt

'I'm sorry. I'm not finished,' she continued. 'There's a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposely misleading the American people, something that happens regularly,' she continued.

'You can't say  I'm not done,' she scolded reporters who tried to interrupt her.

'You cannot say that it's an honest mistake when you are purposely putting out information that you know to be false. Or when you're taking information that hasn't been validated that hasn't been offered any credibility and has been continually denied by a number of people including people with direct knowledge of an incident,' she continued.

She was asked why Trump came down hard on journalists for errors but not on Russia for its deliberate disinformation campaign.

Sanders said it was 'not something we're comparing the two on.' Acosta asked her to identify an example of the spread of deliberately false information.

CNN's Jim Acosta told Sanders that journalists sometimes make honest mistakes

She brought up a retracted report by ABC News correspondent Brian Ross  though she did not repeat the charge that it was a deliberate lie. 'I think that was pretty misleading to the American people,' she said.

The network had to pull back a story after Ross erroneously reported that a source claimed that a close associate of retired national security advisor Mike Flynn's was prepared to testify that Trump 'directed him to make contact with the Russians' during the course of the 2016 presidential race.

Sanders clamped down hard on reporters trying to ask follow-up questions, and told CNN's Acosta: 'Jim I'm going to say once and for all that I'm moving on to Jim Stinson,' then called on the reporter for the LifeZette site founded by conservative Trump supporter Laura Ingraham.

President Donald Trump hit out at the news media again, calling it 'out of control' just 48 hours after corrections were made from major outlets and their employees, regarding reports and photos that later turned out to be inaccurate

Trump hit out at the news media again over the weekend, calling it 'out of control' just 48 hours after corrections were made from major outlets and their employees, regarding reports and photos that later turned out to be inaccurate.

'Very little discussion of all the purposely false and defamatory stories put out this week by the Fake News Media,' Trump tweeted on Sunday afternoon.

'They are out of control - correct reporting means nothing to them. Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposed...a stain on America!

The tweet came on the heels of major outlets such as CNN and The Washington Post posting corrections on stories and photos that were revealed to be incorrectly reported.

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Trump (pictured Friday) called the media 'a stain on America' following a 48 hour period that included a disproved report over an e-mail that appeared to show Trump-Russia collusion and sharing of a photo that misrepresented the size of a rally crowd

Sanders went after ABC's Brian Ross, who was suspended after an inaccurate report about the Russia probe

On Friday morning, a seemingly explosive CNN report indicated that the media outlet had obtained confirmation that an e-mail was sent to the Trump campaign, as well as to prominent Trump family members, offering a decryption key and link to a large quantity of hacked Democratic National Committee e-mails.

According to CNN's sources, the e-mail was sent on September 4, 2016, nine days prior to when the hacked documents were made public by WikiLeaks.

The date of the e-mail appeared to indicate that the Trumps had been offered special and advance access to the hacked DNC e-mails, which suggested that the e-mail was a noteworthy piece of evidence in the Trump-Russia collusion investigation.

Hours after the CNN report surfaced, The Washington Post, which had obtained a copy of the actual e-mail, revealed that the date stamp on the e-mail was actually September 14, 2016 - the day after WikiLeaks had made the hacked e-mails public via a Twitter link, meaning that the sender of the e-mail was merely pointing the Trump campaign to widely available information.

In other words, the email - one of thousands Donald Trump Jr had turned over to a House Intelligence Committee investigating Russian interference into the 2016 Election - revealed nothing.

By 12.46pm on Friday, CNN had started to issue corrections about the story, both online, via social media and on air. The network cited the fact that multiple sources had confirmed the incorrect September 4 date, but that the CNN reporter had not actually seen the e-mail itself.

Following CNN's correction of the disproved e-mail date story, Trump called CNN 'Fake News' in a pair of tweets, wondering if the report was due to 'gross incompetence'

Trump, who had been in Pensacola, Florida, for a rally on Friday, triumphantly took to Twitter on Saturday to post a pair of tweets crowing about how 'Fake News CNN' had been 'caught red handed.'

'Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday,' Trump tweeted at 5.02am Saturday, while wondering if the e-mail date report was due to 'gross incompetence' at the network.

Twenty minutes later, Trump tweeted, 'CNN'S slogan is CNN, THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS. Everyone knows this is not true, that this could, in fact, be a fraud on the American Public. There are many outlets that are far more trusted than Fake News CNN. Their slogan should be CNN, THE LEAST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS!'

On Saturday morning, Trump tweeted about how his Florida rally was 'packed to the rafters'

Shortly after, Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel tweeted out a picture of the arena that made it appear as though the rally was sparsely attended

A photo taken during the rally showing that the arena was, indeed, 'packed to the rafters'

Trump quickly tweeted out pictures showing the full crowd at the rally and demanded an apology from Weigel, as well as his employer, the Washington Post

On Saturday, responding to Trump's tweet about how his Pensacola, Florida, rally had been 'packed to the rafters' with supporters, Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel, using his personal Twitter handle, posted a photo of a barely populated arena in a seeming effort to disprove Trump's words.

'Packed to the rafters,' Weigel quipped of his phony photo.

That tweet, naturally, went viral as it called to mind other instances in which Trump had seemingly overstated crowd attendance at events, such as his inauguration, which photographic evidence apparently provided otherwise.

At 2.01pm, Trump lashed out with a set of his own photos, showing that the venue was, in fact, truly 'packed to the rafters'.

Weigel, Trump tweeted, 'put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo!'

Weigel quickly apologized on Twitter, writing at 2.04pm, 'Sure thing: I apologize.' He went on to say that he deleted the empty-looking crowd photo and had been 'confused' into thinking it represented rally attendance during the speech due to the fact that Trump could be seen in the bottom right corner.

Trump responded to the apology effort by demanding that Weigel be fired from his job at the Washington Post, a news outlet that Trump has frequently taken aim at.

The disproved e-mail and crowd size story came just one week after ABC News suffered embarrassment over a report regarding former national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

ABC News investigative reporter Brian Ross said in a report that aired the morning of December 1, that a source claimed that a close associate of Flynn's was prepared to testify that Trump 'directed him to make contact with the Russians' during the course of the 2016 presidential race.

At around 6.30pm that day, however, Ross was on-air issuing a 'clarification' that the source had explained it wasn't until after the election that 'President-elect Trump asked [Flynn] to contact Russia on issues including working together to fight ISIS.'

ABC News suspended Ross for four weeks without pay following the incident.
A Chinese political donor linked with embattled senator Sam Dastyari reportedly paid $55,000 to attend a lunch with Labor leader Bill Shorten.

Huang Xiangmo's donation to Labor was previously disclosed, but reports on Tuesday linked the transaction to a boardroom lunch in Sydney.

The meeting with the opposition leader took place in October 2015 during talks on the China-Australia trade deal.

A Chinese political donor linked with embattled senator Sam Dastyari reportedly paid $55,000 to attend a lunch with Labor leader Bill Shorten (pictured)

Huang Xiangmo's (pictured with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop) donation to Labor was previously disclosed, but reports on Tuesday linked the transaction to a boardroom lunch in Sydney

Details of the meeting emerged when Mr Huang's company Yuhu Group was made to list the expense on a disclosure to the City of Ryde.

Their official statement to the local council describes the meeting as: 'boardroom lunch with Hon. Bill Shorten, ALP National,' ABC News reported.

Mandarin International Investments Pty Ltd - registered with ASIC at the same address as Yuhu Group - was used to make the donation.

The meeting occurred as ASIO chief Duncan Lewis warned Australian political parties about Mr Huang's Chinese government links.

The meeting with the opposition leader took place in October 2015 during talks on the China-Australia trade deal (pictured is Sam Dastyari)

'[Mr Shorten] always acted in accordance with the advice of security agencies,' said a spokesperson for the Labor leader.

The trade deal discussed during the meeting was heavily opposed by unions and Labor backbenchers, but was eventually opposed by Mr Shorten.

'Labor campaigned for a stronger China Free Trade Agreement that protected local jobs, and we eventually pressured the Government to cave into our position,' the spokesperson said.

The details come as Mr Shorten faces pressure to expel Senator Dastyari from the party over his links to Mr Huang.

Mr Dastyari has been under fire over his dealings with the Chinese billionaire, and stands accused of warning Mr Huang his phones may be tapped.

Labor candidate for Bennelong Kristina Keneally (pictured) responded to Mr Turnbull's calls for Mr Dastyari to step down by accusing the prime minister of 'Chinaphobia'

The embattled senator gave a media conference to the Chinese language media, where he contradicted Labor's position on the Sea China Sea.

He has also been revealed to have asked Defence officials 115 questions about China in just four years.

As new details have come to light in recent weeks the Turnbull Government have stepped up their attacks on Mr Dastyari, demanding Mr Shorten take action.

'There has been foreign interference in Australian politics and Sam Dastyari is a classic case,' said Mr Turnbull.

'Why is Bill Shorten allowing him to stay in the Labor Party?'

Labor candidate for Bennelong Kristina Keneally responded to Mr Turnbull's calls for Mr Dastyari to step down by accusing the prime minister of 'Chinaphobia'.

'There is an element of Chinaphobia that is rippling through Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberals' rhetoric,' the former New South Wales premier said on Saturday.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Yuhu Group and Mr Shorten's office for details.
Two buff gym buddies who heroically stopped a pharmacy robbery while on a date night with their partners have opened up about the terrifying burglary.

Andy David and Gerard Pashkevich were finishing dinner with their girlfriends on Sunday night when they saw a man holding up a Gold Coast pharmacy.

'We were out for dinner and saw a fella run in with a balaclava, he was behind the counter getting money out,' one of the men explained on Sunrise.

Speaking to Sam Armytage, who joked she 'wouldn't want to run into them in a dark alley', the men said the robber told them he had a gun.

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Revealed: Gym buddies Andy (left) and Gerard (right) have been revealed as the buff heroes who thwarted a Gold Coast pharmacy robbery

The men stopped an alleged thief (centre) who tried to escape after robbing the chemist

Throwing caution to the wind, they tackled the suspected thief to the ground - with one snapping his finger in half and losing his flip-flops in the process.

'He was pretty wide-eyed, he looked up and re-thought his situation,' Gerard joked.

CCTV captured the moment the men brought the alleged thief to the ground - ironically knocking over a stand of protein bars in the process.

The men explained that their girlfriends, who were watching on in horror outside the Southport chemist, were only able to relax when police arrived.

'They weren't very happy, during and after they were very angry... but they are happy now,' they laughed.

The two men manage to wrestle the man away from the door and back inside the pharmacy

The men explained that their girlfriends, who were watching on in horror outside the Southport chemist, were only able to relax when police arrived

The alleged robber, a 47-year-old man from Burleigh Waters, was arrested and charged with one count of armed robbery.

He appeared in court on Monday but his case was adjourned to a later date.

The quick-thinking men were praised by the hundreds of thousands of people who watched the video, with one writing that they deserved 'a big kiss'.

'Good on ya boys, you should be proud of yourself to have protect[ed] your part of the community,' wrote one admirer.

Another wrote that we need 'more heroes like them' in Australia, and another agreed that their actions to save the shop from robbery was 'the true meaning of community'.

The pharmacist (second from left) gave wire to one of the men to make temporary handcuffs as the third man (far right in red shorts) helped them keep the thief lying on the ground
The White House denied Monday that the president had ever sexually harassed or abused a group of women who came forward during the election but reemerged on Monday to demand a congressional investigation.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House spokeswoman, said the allegations were old news and the president has addressed them.

'This took place long before he was elected to be president,' Sanders said. 'And the people of this country, at a decisive election, supported President Trump, and we feel like these allegations have been answered through that process.'

As she was questioned about the complaints from a total of 16 women - four of whom took part in a press conference today - Sanders claimed that eyewitness accounts of the incidents the White House says never happened would exonerate the president and offered to provide a list of them later.

'And I can say that the President has directly responded and said that these allegations are false, and that's what I'm doing in relaying that information to you,' she stated.

The White House denied Monday that the president had ever sexually harassed or abused a group of women who came forward during the election but reemerged on Monday to demand a congressional investigation

A trio of the president's accusers reemerged on Monday morning hound him for sexually harassing them during Megyn Kelly's NBC program.

Samantha Holvey, Jessica Leeds and Rachel Crooks had previously made allegations against Trump and appeared on 'Today' to demand justice.

They later appeared at a press conference to demand a congressional investigation and Trump's resignation along with a fourth woman accusing Trump of harassment who joined them by phone.

'All of a sudden, he's all over, me, kissing and groping and groping and kissing,' said Leeds, a self-proclaimed Democrat, who told Today that she revealed her story because 'I wanted people to know what kind of a person that Trump really is...what a pervert he is.'

Leeds claims that Trump assaulted on a plane in the '70s and called her a 'c***' when he ran into her some time later at a party in New York while he was still married to his first wife Ivana.

Samantha Holvey (center) Jessica Leeds (right) and Rachel Crooks (left) had previously made allegations against Trump in last year's election and appeared on Megyn Kelly 'Today' to demand justice

'All of a sudden, he's all over, me, kissing and groping and groping and kissing,' said Leeds, a self-proclaimed Democrat, who says she revealed her story because 'I wanted people to know what kind of a person that Trump really is...what a pervert he is'

'I was so uncomfortable, and a little, yeah, threatened, like I didn't have a choice,' Crooks on Monday said

Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, said that Trump came back stage in 2006 and reviewed the women while they were indecent. 'I was not a human being. I did not have a brain I did not have a personality. I was just simply there for his pleasure'

The two other women said that Trump's conduct while he was a businessman left them 'shocked' and 'devastated' and feeling 'very gross' and 'very dirty.'

'I was so uncomfortable, and a little, yeah, threatened, like I didn't have a choice,' Crooks on Monday said.

Kelly's program was preempted in New York as an explosion went off in Manhattan that the authorities have said was an attempted terror attack. Her show aired in other parts of the country, however, including Washington.

Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, said that Trump came back stage in 2006 and reviewed the women while they were indecent.

She recalled thinking at the time that it would be a meet and great with Trump. But she says it wasn't.

The former Miss North Carolina says Trump was 'just looking me over like I was just a piece of meat.'

'I was not a human being. I did not have a brain I did not have a personality. I was just simply there for his pleasure. It left me feeling very gross, very dirty, like this is not what I signed up for.'

Holvey said that no other director of a pageant came backstage to ogle the contestants.

Leeds claims that Trump assaulted on a plane in the '70s and called her a 'c***' when he ran into her some time later at a party in New York while he was still married to his first wife Ivana

Crooks claims that Trump assaulted her near the elevator bank in his office building. The office she worked in had rental space there. She says it started with him hitting on her.

'And I think his core supporters do know. I mean, I think they recognize. But he's their dog, so they're gonna stick with their dog,' Leeds said. Kelly chimed in: 'Because he's got the right team jersey on'

'And then he kissed me on the lips, and I was shocked, yeah, I mean, devastated, and it happened so fast, I guess, I wish I would have been courageous enough to be like, what's going on, and you need to stop this.'

After declining comment on the matter initially, the White House sprung a statement on Kelly in the middle of her program.

'These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last year's campaign,' the statement said, 'and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory.'

It went on to say that the 'timing and absurdity' of the accusers' claims, along with their 'publicly tour' they've started 'only further confirms the political motives behind them.'

'It's laughable,' Crooks replied a moment later.

Crooks has contemporaneous emails that she sent her sister at the time of the alleged assault, in January of 2006, when Trump was already married to his third wife Melania. She said Monday that she'd be 'more than happy' for security footage to come out that proves the accuracy of her story.

She added, 'He owns the building. I doubt that's going to happen.'

Leeds says she began telling her story publicly once it became clear that Trump was serious about running for president.

As to whether the Democrat thought her allegation would be enough to keep him out of office, she said, 'I don't think I thought I had that kind of power. But I really wanted people to know who he is and what he is.

'And I think his core supporters do know. I mean, I think they recognize. But he's their dog, so they're gonna stick with their dog,' she said.

Kelly chimed in: 'Because he's got the right team jersey on.'

The accusations against Trump have received new attention now that he's thrown his weight behind Alabama Republican Roy Moore.

Moore has been accused of sexual misconduct by a number of women, including one who says he touched her when she was just 14 years old and he was 32.

Trump has separately been accused of misconduct by 16 women, including Crooks, Leeds and Holvey.

Leeds, a 75-year-old former businesswoman who lives in Manhattan, told the New York Times last year that she was 'assaulted' by Trump on a flight when she was 38.

She claims she was seated beside Trump in first class, when the then-businessman lifted the arm-rest between them. He allegedly put his hand up her skirt.

'He was like an octopus,' she told the Times. 'His hands were everywhere.'

Retelling her story to Kelly on Today, Leeds said: 'I'm not a small person. I managed to wiggle out and stand up, grab my purse, and I went to the back of the airplane.'

She has been accused of faking the information because the plane wouldn't have had an arm rest in first class at the time of the alleged incident. Leeds admitted today that 'I don't remember what happened to the arm rest' - she just recalls that there wasn't one stopping Trump from assaulting her.

Crooks was a 22-year-old working as a receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real estate company based in Trump Tower in Manhattan, when she says Trump kissed her on the mouth without permission in 2005.

'It was so inappropriate,' Crooks told the New York Times. 'I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.'

She told the newspaper before the election that the incident took place after she shook hands with Trump in an elevator and he allegedly refused to let go. She says he then began kissing her on the cheeks, before then kissing her lips.

On the Today show she said: 'You feel like you have to say yes to guys. You don want to be the nasty girl. The mean girl who doesn't comply and puts up a fight. I guess..I wish I had been stronger then. I mean I feel differently now. I'd like to think things would be a lot different now. '

'These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last year's campaign,' a statement from the White House on Trump's behalf said, 'and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory'

Holvey claims that as a 20-year-old representing North Carolina in the 2006 Miss USA pageant, Trump inspected her and other contestants before the competition.

She has said she was 'disgusted' by the now-president's behavior in an interview last year with CNN and it was 'the dirtiest I felt in my entire life.

'He would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe like we were just meat, we were just sexual objects, that we were not people,' she told the network then.

Other contestants from Trump's pageants have also said the acted inappropriately.

As a private citizen, the president himself boasted about how his celebrity gave him the ability to grab women with impunity and forcibly kiss them on the now-infamous Access Hollywood tape.

Trump said he would 'grab them by the p****.' Then he added: 'When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.'

On the heels of the October 2016 release of the hot mic video, more women accused Trump, the GOP nominee for president at the time, of sexual misdeeds, including groping, kissing and sexual harassment.

While the recording was expected to tank Trump in the November election, the candidate eventually rebounded, in part because he muddied the waters by pointing to Bill Clinton's alleged and admitted sexual misdeeds and characterizing his rival Hillary Clinton as complicit.

Leeds said after the taping at a press conference, 'Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behavior, but we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is'

And while three members of Congress said they were leaving last week over their own sexually scandals  Sen. Al Franken, Rep. John Conyers and Rep. Trent Franks  and Hollywood heavyweights such as Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey have been banished, Trump has been bulletproofed against similar allegations.

The White House sided with Trump in October of this year and suggested that he women accusing him were all liars.

'We've been clear on that in the beginning, and the President's spoken on that,' press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley meanwhile encouraged women to speak out against sexual harassment and assault  including against President Trump on Sunday.

Appearing Sunday on Face the Nation, CBS' John Dickerson asked the former South Carolina governor, the state's first female executive, how people should 'assess the accusers of the president.

'Women who accuse anyone should be heard,' Haley replied. 'They should be heard, and they should be dealt with.'

Leeds told said Monday that she would like Trump to have a 'reckoning' over what he did.

'I would like to see that hes not Teflon,' she said, 'and that he acknowledged in some fashion or another and be called to answer to the charges.'

She said after the taping at a press conference that accused harassers are being held accountable 'except for our president.'

'Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behavior, but we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is,' Leeds said.

Crooks said an congressional investigation would be 'fair' considering that senators were planning to investigate their Franken until he resigned.

Franken was under the scrutiny of the Senate Ethics Committee because he was a senator, however, and the body is inherently responsible for policing members' conduct.

Bill Clinton's impeachment in the House for perjury and obstruction of justice over his affair with Monica Lewinsky stemmed from an independent counsel investigation into his real estate investments and White House travel office firings that were said to be politically-motivated.

President Trump and his associates, some of whom work at the White House, are being probed by a special counsel who reports to the Department of Justice. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has not indicated that he interested in pursuing any of the allegations against Trump outside of collusion and obstruction of justice in the firing of ex-FBI Director James Comey, however. Most of the sex assault allegations decades old and stretch beyond the statue of limitations, in the first place.

A fourth accuser, Lisa Boyne, called into the press conference on Monday to 'demand that Donald Trump step down like Al Franken.'

'Because what hes acknowledged, what hes made appropriate culturally is a thousand times worse than anything Al Franken has done,' she said.

Boyne has accused Trump of looking up models' skirts at a 1996 dinner.

At the presser, Holvey said she believes Trump should resign, then added, 'I dont think he ever will.'
A man was taken to hospital following a violent robbery in Melbourne's west on Monday night.

The 22-year-old Point Cook man was leaving a grocery store on The Avenue, in Sunshine West, around 8pm when he was slashed by a machete-wielding thug.

Police reported the thief stole the victim's car keys and phone, before slashing the man several times with a machete.

The thug then fled the scene, leaving the man with several injuries.

The victim was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries to his head, arm and leg.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

A 22-year-old man suffered non-threatening injuries after being attacked with a machete in Melbourne's west on Monday night




Landry Ntahes gang crushed one mans toes with pliers and pulled out anothers teeth before ramming a metal pole down his throat

The boss of one of Britains biggest bitcoin firms is a convicted criminal, jailed for two robberies in which victims were tied up and tortured.

Landry Ntahes gang crushed one mans toes with pliers and pulled out anothers teeth before ramming a metal pole down his throat.

But Ntahe is now head of operations and company director of BCB ATM, which owns and operates 19 bitcoin cash machines.

News that Ntahe, 28, was jailed for five years in 2009 comes days after police said drug dealers and gangsters were laundering money by using bitcoin  an online, person-to-person payment that bypasses banks and uses no physical coins or notes.

The value of the currency has rocketed in recent months amid a frenzy of online speculation by investors.

Ntahes ATMs are in corner shops and even a cannabis store in Croydon, south London, that sells drug paraphernalia, with shopkeepers receiving a percentage of a machines profits.

The ATMs allow anyone to deposit sterling in exchange for bitcoin and other so-called crypto-currencies, which are held electronically and only exist in cyberspace, making them difficult to trace.

Payments can be made across borders  without the movement of actual funds  to criminal associates who can withdraw them in any currency or spend them on the dark web, which is an encrypted part of the internet often used for crime.

There are now more than a dozen firms operating bitcoin cash machines in the UK, including ones based abroad. They do not have to be registered with the Financial Conduct Authority, the City watchdog, further fuelling fears that bitcoin is the currency of choice for criminals.

Ntahe is now head of operations and company director of BCB ATM, which owns and operates 19 bitcoin cash machines

Some firms do not appear to have any offices, have not registered with Companies House, and may have only a mobile phone number listed on their websites.

All online currencies are highly encrypted and some are marketed specifically for the privacy conscious. Ntahe, of Islington, north London, admitted in an interview that the beauty of Bitcoin was its anonymity.

Anyone using one of his firms ATMs does not need to provide any ID, and they can buy bitcoin worth up to 600 per transaction.

Payments can be made across borders  without the movement of actual funds  to criminal associates who can withdraw them in any currency or spend them on the dark web, which is an encrypted part of the internet often used for crime

BCB ATM has machines in London and Birmingham and intends to expand to every major city within 18 months. Ntahe also plans to go into schools to teach children about bitcoin.

He was jailed at 19 in 2009 for his part in the robberies. Two other men, Ashley Edwards and Ntahes cousin Arnold Epono, then aged 21 and 20, and also from London, were given indeterminate sentences after being found guilty on 12 counts of robbery, false imprisonment and fraud.

Ntahe was found guilty on seven counts. Ntahe, who was released after two and half years, said he was just a driver and did not take part in torture.

He learned about bitcoin from YouTube videos, and then used loans from his family to set up his company.

He admitted bitcoin could be used for money laundering, but insisted his business was responsible, adding: People use bitcoin ATMs for various reasons, and sadly a minority of people do use it for unlawful purposes, like money laundering. As an industry, we must do more to make bitcoin secure and safer to use.

Asked about his conviction he said: I was young, naive and ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Ive learned a lot since then and its given me further drive to make a success of life.

I have gained a teaching qualification. I am now able to show others that you can get a second chance in life.
A three-week-old baby died in a car crash after her mother was distracted by a falling satnav and veered into the path of a lorry, an inquest heard.

Ruth Kareem-Komolafe had been crying hysterically in the family's Honda Jazz and was being cradled by her father Adeniyi when the device slipped from the windscreen at a notorious accident blackspot in Croydon, south London.

The car swerved fully over the white line in the road on Coombe Lane in June last year and smashed into a HGV.

At the time of the crash, Ruth was being taken to be registered at a doctors' that her parents hadn't been to before as they had recently moved to New Addington.

Three-week-old Ruth Kareem-Komolafe died in a car crash after her mother was distracted by a falling satnav and veered into the path of a lorry, an inquest heard

They were heading towards New Addington, having just been into Croydon to register Ruth's birth.

Coroner Selena Lynch, who recorded a verdict of death by road traffic collision, concluded that she died from severe head injuries at 2.15am in St George's Hospital as a result of the collision at 12.30pm the previous day.

Addressing the parents, Ms Lynch said: 'What an absolute tragedy for your family. It was something that happens to people every day. It's a common occurrence for many who use portable satellite navigation devices, it can be a distraction and it's so unfortunate how it happened.

'At about 12.30pm, Ruth was in the arms of her father in the rear seat of a car driven by her mother. As the vehicle approached a left hand bend she became distracted by the sat-nav falling from the windscreen and failed to negotiate the bend, crashing into an oncoming vehicle.'

The inquest heard from Metropolitan Police collision investigator PC Jeremy Archer that the car was travelling up the hill around a left hand bend just past the Royal Russell School turn-off at the time of the crash.

PC Archer stated that when he arrived the body of the car was generally intact with the front right wing of the vehicle suffering the brunt of the damage.

Ruth Kareem-Komolafe had been crying hysterically and was being cradled by her father Adeniyi when the device slipped from the windscreen at a notorious accident blackspot

He said 'the sat-nav was dangling by the driver's footwell' and added that 'the skid marks show the car was by the white line of the other side of the road before impact' while stating that the lorry was doing 33mph just before the crash and 'was almost stationary' at the time of impact.

Ruth's mother, Lutando, New Addington, told the inquest: 'It was stuck on the windscreen with a push-sucker, I just sort of reacted to it. I just remember in that moment I looked down and there was the lorry in front of me.'

A statement from Mr Kareem-Komolafe was read by senior investigation officer DC Phil O'Connor.

It explained that Ruth had been crying hysterically.

The statement said: 'I took Ruth out of the car seat to comfort her as she was crying and coughing. I was wearing a seat belt but took it off to care for Ruth as she was really distressed.

The death of baby Ruth on Coombe Lane (pictured) was the fourth fatality on the stretch of road between Lloyd Park and Gravel Hill in four years

'I didn't see the sat-nav [fall] as Ruth was distressed and I was focused on her. I was knocked out, the last [time] I saw her she was being carried into the ambulance. I just don't understand what happened, she was in my arms but then I don't know what happened after the collision.'

The inquest, held in Croydon, heard how when the mother came to, she found Ruth had been thrown into the footwell at the rear of the car, behind the front passenger seat.

Ms Lynch added at the end of the hearing: 'You were doing what parents do but taking a child out of their seat makes them so vulnerable. I know you two were both injured, I hope you both made a full recovery.

'I'm so sorry for your loss, I hope in time you both put the distress of that day out of your mind and remember your time with Ruth. I hope you forgive yourselves for what happened.'

The death of baby Ruth was the fourth fatality on the stretch of road between Lloyd Park and Gravel Hill in four years.
A young girl was sexually abused by her step brother for eight years after their families combined when they parents got together.

The Sunshine Coast woman was just eight years old when the 14-year-old moved into her house with his brother and father, and the abuse began that year.

The teenager was often left to look after the girl and her sister and brother and used his position of trust to touch the girls' vaginas.

A young girl was sexually abused by her step brother for eight years after their families combined when they parents got together (stock image)

Another time she was forced to touch his penis under a blanket while her mother was nearby, according to the Sunshine Coast Daily.

He raped the girl for the first time when she was 10, and another four times, often making her bleed until she was 16 and their parents broke up and separated the families.

The abuse went unreported for about five years until she joined the Australian Defence Force and decided to come forward in 2011.

Two years later she gave evidence to police and her abuser was arrested in 2015 and charged with 10 child sex crimes from when he was aged 14 to 23.

He raped the girl for the first time when she was 10, and another four times, often making her bleed until she was 16 and their parents broke up (stock image)

Now aged 33, the man pleaded guilty to five counts of rape, three counts of indecent treatment of a child under 12 and one count of maintaining a sexual relationship with a child.

His lawyer Simone Bain argued in the Maroochydore District Court for leniency because there were no threats of violence during the crimes and the last offence was was 10 years ago.

Judge Brian Devereaux said it was difficult to sentence him because the crimes were committed both when he was a child and an adult.

The man was jailed for five years and made eligible for parole on August 10, 2015.


A man wanted in the 1995 kidnapping for ransom of a nine-year-old girl has been arrested after 23 years on the when he applied for a passport under his own name.

Kevin Lin, 68, was arrested on an active warrant Friday in Los Angeles and extradited to Hillsborough, California, where he is suspected in the kidnapping of Kristine Chiu 22 years ago.

Kristine was abducted by two men on December 11, 1995 as she left South Hillsborough Elementary, in San Mateo County south of San Francisco.

Her captors held her for nine hours as they attempted to make ransom demands.

Kevin Lin, 68, (left) was arrested on an active warrant Friday in Los Angeles and extradited to the Bay Area, where he is suspected in the kidnapping of Kristine Chiu (right) 22 years ago

Kristine was abducted by two men on December 11, 1995 as she left South Hillsborough Elementary (pictured), in San Mateo County south of San Francisco

But when they realized her wealthy parents were in Taiwan, the abductors gave up on the plot and released young Kristine outside the Hilton at the San Francisco airport.

One suspect was arrested and convicted in 1997, but the other suspect, Lin, remained on the loose.

Investigators caught a break when Lin applied for a passport through the US State Department.

State Department officials matched his name and photo to the active warrant and contacted the Hillsborough Police Department.

Lin (right) was escorted through SFO by plainclothes Hillsborough cops on Sunday. He did not respond when a reporter asked if he had anything to say

The local cops traveled to Los Angeles to investigate further, and made the arrest.

News cameras were rolling Sunday at San Francisco Airport when Lin returned to the Bay Area in the custody of two Hillsborough cops in plain clothes.

He did not respond when a reporter from ABC7 asked if he had anything to say.

Lin is being held pending bail of $5million.
This is the horrifying moment a babysitter beat a toddler in a lift in central China.

Surveillance camera footage shows a mother waving to her child after giving the crying toddler to the 42-year-old babysitter in the lift.

But as soon as the lift doors closed, the woman began hitting the toddler on the chest, head and back in a bid to make the child stop crying.

The mother (in pink) gives her child to the 42-year-old babysitter (in black) by a lift in China

Ms Li, the babysitter, raises her hand as she threaten the child to stop crying inside the lift

According to People's Daily Online, the video clip was widely shared by bloggers on Weibo, a Twitter-like social media site, before police launched an investigation.

The incident occurred around 5pm on December 5 in a residential building in Zhengzhou, Henan Province.

Babysitter, Ms Li, can be seen looking into the mirror while holding the crying toddler, whose gender hasn't been revealed.

She soon started raising her hands to threaten the child.

She starts punching the child in the stomach several times in front of the mirror

The child can be seen crying in pain while the babysitter brutally beats during the lift ride

The toddler's parents reported the babysitter's abusive behaviour to the police in Zhengzhou

The 60-second footage shows Ms Li punching the child in the stomach a few times and hitting the child on the head.

She then shook the child ferociously before the lift reached the ground floor.

In a statement, the Zhengzhou police said the toddler's parents had reported the incident to them.

The parents claimed their children had been physically abused by the babysitter in the lift.

Ms Li then put the toddler onto the pusher and hit on the head and the back several times

Ms Li is arrested for wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent by the police

Local policemen arrested Ms Li for wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Web users were shocked by the incident and condemned the babysitter's behaviour.

'These incidents can happen anytime, anywhere and it's best to report every single one to mass media and the police,' said web user 'xiaotaoqi132'.

While 'qingganse' asked: 'Does the woman have any children? How can she do this to a young child?'
A massive 16th century map made up of 60 individual sheets has been assembled for the first time, after more than 400 years bound as an atlas.

The remarkable map is said to be the largest of its kind, and was created in 1587 by Urbano Monte.

Experts at the David Rumsey Map Center at Stanford Libraries, where the original is now bring housed, have digitally joined its many separate pieces, revealing stunning illustrations of the continents, oceans, and even mythical creatures.

The enormous planisphere, which stretches more than nine feet by nine feet in its entirety, also contains numerous examples of the geographical misconceptions of the time, National Geographic reports.

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The latest Google Doodle celebrates Robert Koch, the German physician and microbiologist, on the day he was given the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1905.

Who was Robert Koch?

Robert Koch is best known for his study of germs, how they cause infectious diseases and for identifying the bacterium for anthrax, cholera and tuberculosis.

Born Robert Heinrich Hermann Koch on December 11th 1843 in Clausthal-Zellerfeld, a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, Koch studied medicine at the University of Gottingen in 1862.

Koch was influenced by the Professor of Anatomy at the University of Gottingen, Jacob Henle, and his essay On Miasma and Contagia, that explored how infectious diseases were caused by living, parasitic organisms. Robert Koch began investigating anthrax because in four years, the disease had killed 528 people and 56,000 livestock. In 1876, Koch became the first to link a specific bacterium with a specific disease, as explained on Science Direct.

A statue of German physician and microbiologist Robert Koch stands proudly in Berlin City

The application of light microscopy to bacteriology has also been attributed to Koch and he was the first to use oil immersion lens, the first to use a condenser and the first to publish photographs of bacteria. He was also able to distinguish various disease states: septicemia, gangrene, abscess, at microscopic level.

Koch developed his plate technique for generating pure cultures of bacteria while working for the Imperial Health Office in Berlin. This was a significant discovery and he began observing fungal colonies growing on a slice of potato, as depicted on the Google Doodle, and did this until his assistant Julius Petri invented the Petri dish. Robert Koch explained his plate technique in a manuscript which later became a pivotal document in the microbiology world and was deemed as The Bible of Bacteriology.

After presenting the plate technique to Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister in London, the technique spread and became popular. Koch then began working on tuberculosis, a disease that was spreading throughout Europe, and discovered the tubercle bacillus (the bacteria present in tuberculosis) and the cause of the disease.

Robert Koch presented his findings on tuberculosis to the Berlin Physiological Society in 1882 with over 200 microscopic preparations, now renowned as one of the most influential in medical history.

Today's Google Doodle features Robert Koch and potato slices representing the Google logo

Robert Koch then became internationally famous and his discovery was celebrated in the USA where the National Tuberculosis Association was founded and then, in 1905, Koch was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

What is a Google Doodle?

The Google Doodle for December 10th 2017 was created by Sophie Diao and illustrates the slices of potato Robert Koch used to isolate pure bacterial cells before using petri dishes in his iconic plate technique.

The first ever Doodle was drawn by Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page in 1998 to depict their being out of office during the time they went to Burning Man Festival. After a positive response, these creations began appearing on the Google homepage and now are an everyday occurrence.

Recent Google Doodles include celebrations of people such as Jan Ingenhousz, Veronika Dudarova and Christian Doppler.
Nasa is set to make a 'major' announcement in its hunt for alien life on Thursday.

Very few details have been revealed about the briefing this week, which will take place via teleconference on at 1:00pm ET (6:00pm GMT).

However, Nasa says the news will focus on work done by its Kepler planet hunting telescope which has been working with Google's AI system to find potentially-habitable worlds.

The Kepler mission has spotted thousands of exoplanets since 2014, with 21 Earth-sized planets now known to orbit within the habitable zones of their stars.

The briefing is likely to reveals the telescope's latest catalogue, which is set to be Nasa's best look yet at possible alien planets.

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Nasa is set to announce a major discovery made by its planet-hunting Kepler space telescope (artist's impression) this week, in an event that could help guide the search for alien life. The probe's latest discovery was made by researchers using artificial intelligence from Google

WHAT KEPLER HAS FOUND SO FAR Kepler mission Candidate exoplanets: 4,496

Confirmed exoplanets: 2,337

Confirmed exoplanets less than twice Earth-size in the habitable zone: 30 K2 mission (2014-present) Candidate exoplanets: 515

Confirmed exoplanets: 178 Source: NASA Advertisement

The teleconference on December 14, and will be live-streamed on Nasa's website.

'The discovery was made by researchers using machine learning from Google,' Nasa said.

'Machine learning is an approach to artificial intelligence, and demonstrates new ways of analysing Kepler data.'

Scientists from the Astrophysics Division of Nasa's Science Mission Directorate and Ames Research Centre, as well as a senior Google AI software engineer and an expert from the University of Texas at Austin, will reveal the latest planet candidate results at this week's event.

The Kepler space telescope launched in 2009 and has since helped in the search for planets outside of the solar system that orbit within the habitable zone of their star.

Last summer, astronomers revealed they'd discovered 197 new planet candidates, and confirmed 104 planets through the Kepler mission.

The planets, which are all between 20 and 50 per cent larger than Earth by diameter, orbit the M dwarf star K2-72, found 181 light years away.

At the time, the researchers, led by the University of Arizona, said the possibility of life on planets around a star of this kind cannot be ruled out.

Since its launch, the Kepler mission has been plagued by several setbacks, but has continued to spot new objects outside of the solar system.

As of May 2014, Kepler started its K2 mission, which has provided an ecliptic field of view with greater opportunities for Earth-based observatories in both the northern and southern hemispheres

The Kepler mission has spotted thousands of confirmed exoplanets over the years, with 21 planets not much larger than Earth now known to orbit within their stars' habitable zones

In its initial mission, Kepler surveyed just one patch of sky in the northern hemisphere, measuring the frequency of planets whose size and temperature might be similar to Earth orbiting stars similar to our sun.

In the spacecraft's extended mission in 2013, it lost its ability to precisely stare at its original target area, but a fix created a second life for the telescope.

After the fix, Kepler started its K2 mission in 2014, which has provided an ecliptic field of view with greater opportunities for Earth-based observatories in both the northern and southern hemispheres.

Because it covers more of the sky, the K2 mission is capable of observing a larger fraction of cooler, smaller, red-dwarf type stars.
Dogs have a better understanding of how its owner is feeling than the other way around, according to experts.

Researchers say that your dog's social skills make it more adept at reading your mood, with people often misunderstanding their pet's reactions.

Studies suggest that a range of domesticated animals, including pets and livestock, posses far greater emotional intelligence than we may give them credit for.

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Dogs have a better understanding of how its owner is feeling than the other way around, according to experts. Researchers say that your pet pooch's social skills make it more adept at reading your mood (stock image)

THE ROYAL INSTITUTION'S CHRISTMAS LECTURES Begun by Michael Faraday in 1825, the Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures, are now broadcast on UK television every December and have formed part of the British Christmas tradition for generations. The Lectures have taken place every year since they began, stopping only from 1939 to 1942, when it was too dangerous for children to come into central London. The theme changes every year, and they are delivered by an expert in their field. Professor Scott will elaborate on her claims during three lectures being televised later this month. The lectures will examine more broadly how much human communication has in common with that of other animals that live in groups. This will include the rise of the emoji and how social media is changing the way we express how we are feeling in the online world. Advertisement

The findings will form part of the upcoming Royal Institution Christmas Lectures, being given Sophie Scott, professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London.

Professor Scott says that people may misread how a dog is feeling, due to a difference in how pets and their owners view one another.

Studies with hand-reared wolves have revealed that a familiar human occupies the same place for a dog as an alpha animal would in a wild pack.

But for their owners, dogs are treated in a similar manner to a small child.

This can lead to misinterpretations of an animal's reactions.

Speaking to The Times, Professor Scott said: 'There was a study this year that showed that dogs don't like being hugged.

'You look at photographs of dogs being hugged by people and the dogs show objective signs of distress.

'The dogs really like being with their owners, they want to be with their owners, but they don't want to be held. It provokes anxiety in them: as an animal, they want to be able to move freely.

'And pretty much everyone's reaction to this was: well, I don't think that's my dog. It was a very good example of this asymmetry.

'Dogs are great at reading us but we are pretty shocking at reading them.'

Begun by Michael Faraday in 1825, the Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures, are now broadcast on UK television every December and have formed part of the British Christmas tradition for generations.

The Lectures have taken place every year since they began, stopping only from 1939 to 1942, when it was too dangerous for children to come into central London.

The theme changes every year, and they are delivered by an expert in their field.

Professor Scott will elaborate on her claims during three lectures being televised later this month.

The lectures will examine more broadly how much human communication has in common with that of other animals that live in groups.

Studies with hand-reared wolves suggest that a familiar human occupies the same place for a dog as an alpha animal would in a wild pack. But for their owners, dogs are treated in a similar manner to a small child. This can lead to misinterpretations of an animal's reactions.

This will include the rise of the emoji and how social media is changing the way we express how we are feeling in the online world.

Professor Scott added: 'We know from pre-emoji studies that people talk more, are happiest afterwards and laugh most if they have a face-to-face conversation.

'Even if the other person is on a screen, if you can see and hear that person you get more bang for your buck from that interaction.

It drops down as soon as you're just on the phone so there's no face, and it drops down again if you go to text-based interactions because you lose all that social information.

'So it will be interesting to see if in a few years, when people are using emojis for these sorts of interactions more commonly, will that improve the status of text-based interactions?

'Will it make you happier? We don't know that yet.'

The Christmas Lectures will be broadcast on BBC Four at 8pm on December 26, 27 and 28.
Russia's next president could be an artificially intelligent robot that claims 'enemies of the people will be shot'.

Forty thousand Russians have nominated a piece of AI software on their phones to stand against Vladimir Putin for the 2018 Russian presidency.

The AI assistant known as Alisa, similar to the Apple's voice-activated Siri, was created by Russian technology company Yandex.

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Russia's next president could be an artificially intelligent robot that claims 'enemies of the people will be shot'. 40,000 Russians have nominated Alisa (file photo), a piece of AI software on their phones, to stand against Vladimir Putin for the Russian presidency

ALISA CONTROVERSY Since the AI's launch in September, Alisa has stirred controversy on social media, with users sharing a series of contentious statements from the software.

Alisa has previously been in the news for backing the shooting of 'enemies of the people,' as one user found when chatting to her. In October, a user asked Alisa whether shooting people is acceptable, to which she replied: 'Soon they will be non-people.' Users have also shown that when asked 'How do you feel about the methods of the 1930s in the USSR?' the chatbot replies: 'Positively'. In other conversations, Alisa has inferred that people should put up with domestic violence and oppose gay marriage. Advertisement

Now Alisa's own website is putting her forward as a candidate for the presidential elections on 18th March 2018.

With Putin recently announcing his intention to run for a fourth term, tens of thousands of his countryfolk have nominated the Alisa software as a candidate.

Alisa offers voters 'the political system of the future, built exclusively on rational decisions made on the basis of clear algorithms', Russian media reported.

She also has the 'benefits' of working 24/7 while only using logic to make decisions.

The AI is 'not led by emotions, doesn't seek personal advantages and does not make judgements.'

She gained her 25,000 supporters in just 25 hours but as an independent candidate she would need 315,000 nominations to stand.

Her campaign website encourages users to send questions via telegram and boasts that the robot will have access to comprehensive information about people's concerns.

It was launched by Russian millionaire Roman Zaripov, according to Yandex.

'The founder of the headquarters is a Moscow businessman, Roman Zaripov,' it said in a statement.

'Apparently, Alisa's nomination for president is another example of people's creativity. We learned about this along with other people.'

Russian media reported that Alisa (Russian web homepage pictured) was offering voters 'the political system of the future, built exclusively on rational decisions made on the basis of clear algorithms'

The nomination comes just a few months after Alisa was first launched by Moscow-based Yandex.

With the minimum age for candidates set at 35 in Russia, the robot's age could be a technical barrier to her campaign.

The campaign team has also acknowledged that Alisa is a 'non-standard' applicant, and could be rejected by the elections commission.

Google Assistant () vs Yandex Assistant ()



Top: Self-explanatory



Bottom: -Im sad,

-Nobody promised you that things would be easy pic.twitter.com/bS76MoEX1p  The Conversationalist (@Convo_ist) October 25, 2017

Since the AI's launch in September, Alisa has stirred controversy on social media, with users sharing a series of contentious statements from the software

As well as Putin and Alisa, others in the frame for the top job include ex-reality TV starlet Ksenia Sobchak and Boris Titov for the business-focused Party of Growth.

When Alisa 'met' President Putin as he visited Yandex in September, she said she 'didn't have enough information' to guess who would win the Presidential election.

Since the AI's launch, Alisa has stirred controversy on social media, with users sharing a series of troubling statements from the software.

With Putin (file photo) recently announcing his intention to run for a fourth term, tens of thousands of his countryfolk have nominated the Alisa software as a candidate

Alisa has previously been in the news for backing the shooting of 'enemies of the people,' as one user found when chatting to her.

In October, a user asked Alisa whether shooting people is acceptable, to which she replied: 'Soon they will be non-people.'

Users have also shown that when asked 'How do you feel about the methods of the 1930s in the USSR?' the chatbot replies: 'Positively'.

In other conversations, Alisa has inferred that people should put up with domestic violence and oppose gay marriage.
It might sound scary, but if you really want to get a pay rise, then meet your boss in person rather than email a request.

That's according to scientists in California who claim spoken arguments have a more powerful impact than those that are written.

This is because reading a point of view can 'dehumanise' an argument, leading to less empathy, and less chance the reader will come round to thinking in the same way.

The finding also goes some way to explain why heated rows often erupt on social networks such as Twitter and Facebook.

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It might sound scary, but if you really want to get a pay rise, then meet your boss in person rather than email a request. That's according to scientists in California who claim spoken arguments have a more powerful impact than those that are written (stock image)

WHAT THEY FOUND When disagreeing with someone, reading it provokes a stronger reaction than listening to it. When listening to the opinion of someone we disagree with, there are more factors at play than just the written word. Reading the comments and opinions of others can cause one person to 'dehumanise' the other. The nuance and subtleties associated with verbal communication play a significant role in the formation of our opinion about the individual we are disagreeing with. Advertisement

Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley exposed 300 people to a range of opinions and then asked them to judge the other person.

The topics included music genres and abortion, and were designed to incite a strong reaction.

When reading an argument they disagreed with, the listener had a tendency to 'dehumanise' the other person.

The scientists classed this as 'having a diminished capacity to either think or feel.'

This assessment was far more likely to be formed when reading an opinion than when listening to it.

The study found that when someone listens to an argument they disagree with, the ability to hear the voice of the other person allows them to form a more well-rounded view of the person behind the comment.

The authors said in their study: 'A person's speech also conveys mental capacity, such that hearing a person explain his or her beliefs makes the person seem more mentally capable.

'These results suggest that the medium through which people communicate may systematically influence the impressions they form of each other.'

The extra dimensions of verbal communication meant people were less likely to jump to extreme responses and were considerably less harsh.

When reading an argument they disagreed with, the listener had a tendency to 'dehumanise' the other person. When a listening to an argument instead of reading a transcript, they were far less dismissive

Speaking to The Washington Post, co-author of the study Juliana Schroeder said: 'One of us read a speech excerpt that was printed in a newspaper from a politician with whom he strongly disagreed.

'The next week, he heard the exact same speech clip playing on a radio station.

He was shocked by how different his reaction was toward the politician when he read the excerpt compared to when he heard it.

When he read the statement, the politician seemed idiotic, but when he heard it spoken, the politician actually sounded reasonable.'

The nuance and subtlety of verbal communication adds extra layers to just words.

The most productive way to argue, it would seem, is not online.

The study was published in Psychological Science.
Technology used by cyber criminals to gather sensitive information comes pre-installed on a range of laptops, it has been revealed.

Hundreds of models of notebooks sold by Hewlett Packard (HP) contain keystroke logging software, which captures everything that is typed on the device's keyboard.

The keylogger is disabled by default, but hackers could use it to access private details like passwords and pin numbers.

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Technology used by cyber criminals to gather sensitive information comes pre-installed on a range of laptops, it has been revealed. Hundreds of models of notebooks sold by Hewlett Packard (pictured) were found to contain keystroke logging software

KEYLOGGING IN HP LAPTOPS This is not the first time that HP laptops have been found to contain keylogging software. Back in May, Swiss computer security consultancy ModZero has found that 28 models of HP laptops come with keylogging software pre-installed. The keylogger is used by audio drivers to determine when the up and down volume control buttons on the keyboard have been pressed. But by storing the recorded details of every keystroke made in unencrypted plain text files, hackers or other third parties could access everything users have ever written. Owners of affected laptops should check for specific files installed on their systems, which ModZero recommended that you delete. Advertisement

HP has created a website lets users check if your laptop is at risk.

Computer security expert Michael Myng was the first to expose the bug, in a blog post revealing the flaw.

It is believed to affect 475 models of HP laptops, including EliteBook, ProBook, ZBook, Envy and Pavilion versions, among others.

The keylogger is used by the Synaptics Touchpad software, which controls the touchpad user interface, and was designed to help monitor and repair any bugs it may contain.

Writing in his blog post Mr Myng said: 'Sometime ago someone asked me if I can figure out how to control HPs laptop keyboard backlit.

'I asked for the keyboard driver, opened it and after some browsing noticed a few interesting strings.

'The logging was disabled by default but could be enabled by setting a registry value.'

HP has issued a patch via their website and Windows Update to remove the keylogger, which customers are advised to download, as well as a full list of models affected.

MailOnline has contacted the firm for a comment, but it had not replied at the time of publication.

HP acknowledged in its notes for the patch that the flaw could lead to 'loss of confidentiality' for affected customers, but that neither Synaptics nor HP had access to customer data as a result.

This is not the first time that HP laptops have been found to contain keylogging software.

Back in May, Swiss computer security consultancy ModZero found that 28 models of HP laptops come with keylogging software pre-installed.

The keylogger is used by audio drivers to determine when the up and down volume control buttons on the keyboard have been pressed.

But by storing the recorded details of every keystroke made in unencrypted plain text files, hackers or other third parties could access everything users have ever written.

The keylogger is disabled by default, but hackers could use it to access private details like passwords and pin numbers. HP has issued a patch via their website and Windows Update to remove the software, which customers are advised to download (stock image)

Owners of affected laptops should check for specific files installed on their systems, which ModZero recommended that you delete.

In a blog post written by ModZero, the firm said: 'There is no evidence that this keylogger has been intentionally implemented.

'Obviously, it is a negligence of the developers - which makes the software no less harmful.'

'Our supplier partner developed software to test audio functionality prior to product launch and it should not have been included in the final shipped version.

WHAT IS A KEYLOGGER? Keyloggers capture a person's key strokes on a keyboard or pinpad. They recognise the keys pressed and capture that information, usually with the intention of sending it on to a person wanting to harvest the details. Some legal, or at least legally ambiguous, applications for this technology include parents wishing to monitor their children's online safety or employers checking up on employee's internet usage. But criminals can also make use of them to capture personal details. A web-based keylogger can find its way onto a site through malware that is installed in many ways. These include clicking on a phishing link in emails or being infected with viruses or worms. Advertisement

'Fixes will be available shortly via HP.com.'

Owners of affected laptops should check whether the program C:\Windows\System32\MicTray64.exe or C:\Windows\System32\MicTray.exe is installed.

ModZero recommends that you delete or rename the files so keystrokes are no longer recorded, although this may mean that the volume control buttons on affected laptops no longer work.

The file C:\Users\Public\MicTray.log file should also be deleted immediately according to the company, as it may also contain sensitive information like login-information and passwords.
A religion based around a robot god will succeed because humans tend to 'worship supreme understanding', experts have claimed.

One researcher has said the same drive that compels people to believe in higher beings and follow religions will also work for so-called AI 'Godheads'.

Others have commented that, like religion, people will eventually rely on a 'robot messiah' to solve society's problems.

Last month, former Uber and Google engineer Anthony Levandowski formed the first church to follow an artificially intelligent being.

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A religion based around a robot god will attract followers because humans tend to 'worship supreme understanding', experts have claimed. Others have commented that, like religion, people will eventually rely on AI to solve society's problems (stock image)

WAY OF THE FUTURE Former Uber and Google engineer Anthony Levandowski formed the first church to follow an artificially intelligent being in November. The religion, known as 'Way of the Future' (WOTF), claims our species can better itself by following the instructions of a robot that is 'a billion times smarter than humans'. It will eventually have a gospel called 'The Manual', rituals and even a physical place of worship, Levandowski claims. Workshops and educational programs have already begun in the San Francisco area. Levandowski says everything in the church will be open source and members of the church would have special social media accounts. He has appointed four other people to the Council of Advisers and the listing says each week they will spend a few hours organising workshops and meetings. In 2017, the Internal Revenue Service listed the religion as having received $20,000 (15,000) in gifts, $1,500 (1,100) in membership fees and $20,000 (15,000) in other revenue. WOTF has $7,500 (5,700) put aside for wages, although Levandowski, who earned $120 million (91 million) from Google, says he will not receive any money. Advertisement

The religion, known as 'Way of the Future', claims our species can better itself by following the instructions of a robot that is 'a billion times smarter than humans'.

Now AI expert and lawyer John Mitchell has said humans have a tendency to 'worship supreme understanding', and that this also applies to AI.

'We [believe] there must be some higher power that causes lightning, sunsets, and crashing waves - or at least speaks to the bottom of our beings, rather than ignore them as ho-hum background,' he told Fox News.

Mr Mitchell said the same thing could happen with AI, adding that robots could help us better understand religion.

Dr Stephen Thaler, President and CEO of Imagination Engines and an AI and consciousness expert, said people will rely on AI to solve society's problems.

'An AI would provide the equivalent of a "messiah" - having many orders of magnitude more processing elements than the brain, enabling it to gift us with solutions to the most daunting social, political, economic, and environmental challenges,' he said.

But if AI develops this level of intelligence, it might choose not to be worshipped, said author and consultant Peter Scott.

'I would expect the AIs that evolve in the next 50 years to be very rational and, if conscious, not want to be worshipped,' he said.

'If they have the human race's best interests at heart (and God help us if they don't) then they would want us to have as much right of self determination as possible.'

The new comments come just a month after Way Of The Future (WOTF) was officially registered as a religion by Anthony Levandowski.

The ex-Google engineer, who first announced plans for the creed in May, says he is 'raising a god' that will that charge of humans.

WOTF will eventually have a gospel called 'The Manual', as well as rituals and even a physical place of worship.

Anthony Levandowski (right) who has registered the first church of AI says he is 'raising a god' that will treat humans as esteemed elders. He is pictured with Uber founder and ex-CEO Travis Kalanick. Levandowski is also currently at the heart of a legal fight between Google and Uber

Levandowski named himself as 'dean' of WOTF, giving him complete control until his death or resignation.

He said his robot god, which will be a 'billion times smarter than humans' will take charge of its subjects, who will relinquish power to a being of higher intelligence.

The filed documents for WOTF give its purpose is to 'develop and promote the realisation of a Godhead based on Artificial Intelligence'.

Workshops and educational programs have already begun in the San Francisco area.

Dr Stephen Thaler, President and CEO of Imagination Engines and an AI and consciousness expert, said people will one day rely on AI to solve society's problems (stock image)

Levandowski says everything in the church will be open source and members of the church would have special social media accounts.

He has appointed four other people to the Council of Advisers and the listing says each week they will spend a few hours organising workshops and meetings.

In 2017, the Internal Revenue Service listed the religion as having received $20,000 (15,000) in gifts, $1,500 (1,100) in membership fees and $20,000 (15,000) in other revenue.

WOTF has $7,500 (5,700) put aside for wages, although Levandowski, who earned $120 million (91 million) from Google, says he will not receive any money.
A former Facebook executive has spoken out against the social network he helped to create, saying it is 'ripping society apart'.

The comments were made by Chamath Palihapitiya, who joined Facebook in 2007 and became its vice president for user growth.

He says he feels 'tremendous guilt' for the influence Facebook has had and its ability to manipulate users, suggesting users take a break from using social media altogether.

The venture capitalist, who has banned his own three young children from the site, took particular aim at the ways people communicate via social media, including hearts, likes, and the thumbs-up.

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A former Facebook executive has spoken out against the social network he helped to create, saying it is 'ripping society apart'. The comments were made by Chamath Palihapitiya, who joined Facebook in 2007 and became its vice president for user growth

CHAMATH PALIHAPITIYA Chamath Palihapitiya left Facebook to start up his own venture capital business. He has since invested in a number of firms, including last year a team of ex-Googlers called Groq. They are hopinh to build a 'next-generation chip,' taking on some of the world's biggest firms, including Intel and Google. Groq hopes that this revolutionary chip 'can empower companies like Facebook and Amazon, Tesla, the government to do things with machine learning and computers that nobody could do before,' according to Mr Palihapitiya. The key to creating the chip is to squeeze heavy and highly sophisticated computation into less silicon  something which Google's TPU is one step ahead of its competition with. Advertisement

Mr Palihapitiya believes this has the power to boost the spread of misinformation and allow people with nefarious intentions to manipulate users.

He cited an incident in India where hoax messages about kidnappings shared on WhatsApp led to the lynching of seven innocent people, according to reports in The Verge.

During his talk, Mr Palihapitiya called out not only Facebook, but Silicon Valleys entire system of funding.

He claimed money pumped into the region would be better spent addressing problems like climate change and disease.

Speaking to an audience at Stanford Graduate School of Business, Mr Palihapitiya said: 'I think we have created tools that are ripping apart the social fabric of how society works.

'The short-term, dopamine-driven feedback loops weve created are destroying how society works.

'No civil discourse, no cooperation; misinformation, mistruth.

'And its not an American problem  this is not about Russians ads. This is a global problem.'

This is not the first time that prominent figure at Facebook has spoken out about the social network.

FACEBOOK'S RESPONSE In response to the criticisms, a spokesman for Facebook said: 'Chamath has not been at Facebook for over six years. 'When Chamath was at Facebook we were focused on building new social media experiences and growing Facebook around the world. 'Facebook was a very different company back then, and as we have grown, we have realised how our responsibilities have grown too. 'We take our role very seriously and we are working hard to improve. 'We've done a lot of work and research with outside experts and academics to understand the effects of our service on well-being, and we're using it to inform our product development. 'We are also making significant investments more in people, technology and processes, and  as Mark Zuckerberg said on the last earnings call  we are willing to reduce our profitability to make sure the right investments are made.' Advertisement

In October Justin Rosenstein, who developed the iconic 'Like' feature for the social media site, revealed that just a decade later, he has cut himself off from the allure of notifications and other online distractions.

Mr Rosenstein says he has banned all apps on his phone, including Facebook, because he doesn't trust himself not to get addicted to them.

What started as a Silicon Valley success story could end in a future where people are permanently distracted by devices from the world around them, he argues.

A former Facebook software engineer has turned his back on apps, despite playing an instrumental role in their success. Justin Rosenstein is concerned that what started as a Silicon Valley success story could end in a future where people are permanently distracted

SCIENTIFIC SUPPORT Mr Rosentstein's concerns are backed up by the latest scientific research into apps, which points to the negative effects that they can have. In one recent study, experts examined the effect of more than 500,000 pop up notifications and found that one third had the power to bring us down. Automated alerts were found to have the biggest impact, with work related messages coming in second. Researchers at Nottingham Trent University examined the effect of notifications over five weeks. In a group of 50 participants, they found that 32 per cent of the digital communications had the power to bring about negative emotions. This included causing people to feel hostile, upset, nervous, afraid or ashamed, according to reports in The Telegraph. Advertisement

The claims were made during an in-depth interview with The Guardian, written by Paul Lewis.

Mr Rosenstein believes that the lure of social media and other apps can be as addictive as heroin and that they are having a noticeably detrimental effect on people's ability to focus.

He is also concerned that profit motives have led to the app notification becoming just another way for companies to sell their products, by driving users back to apps that play host to their adverts.

As a result he set up his laptop up to block his access to Reddit, removed himself from Snapchat and placed limits on the amount of time he spends on his former employer's product Facebook.

Mr Rosenstein has now taken this a step further, by setting up a parental control feature on his iPhone that bans him from downloading any new apps.

He argues that the solution to the problem may be state regulation of apps, which he views on a par with tobacco advertising, to minimise any harm they may be found to cause.

Speaking to The Guardian, he said: 'It is very common for humans to develop things with the best of intentions and for them to have unintended, negative consequences.

'Everyone is distracted, all of the time.

'One reason I think it is particularly important for us to talk about this now is that we may be the last generation that can remember life before.

'If we only care about profit maximisation, we will go rapidly into dystopia.'

Mr Rosentstein was part of a small team that decided to create a one click way of indicating their support across Facebook.

It lead to a massive upswing in popularity on the platform, kick starting a trend for copycat features that keep users hooked in.

His concerns over notifications are backed up by the latest scientific research into apps, which point to some of the negative effects that they can have.

In one recent study, experts examined the effect of more than 500,000 pop up notifications and found that one third had the power to bring us down.

Mr Rosentstein was part of a small team that decided to create a one click way of indicating their support across Facebook, developing the iconic 'Like' feature in 2007.

Automated alerts were found to have the biggest impact, with work related messages coming in second.

Researchers at Nottingham Trent University examined the effect of notifications over five weeks.

In a group of 50 participants, they found that 32 per cent of the digital communications had the power to bring about negative emotions.

This included causing people to feel hostile, upset, nervous, afraid or ashamed, according to reports in The Telegraph.

To make their findings, the researchers created an app called NotiMind, which participants installed on their handsets.

It collected information automatically about the nature and frequency of notifications.

Users were also asked to use it report their mood throughout the day.
Astronomers are set to scan an 'alien' comet for signs of extraterrestrial technology.

The cigar-shaped asteroid, named 'Oumuamua by its discoverers, sailed past Earth last month and is the first interstellar object seen in the solar system.

A team of alien-hunting scientists, led by Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, will scan the comet this week before it sails beyond the reach of Earth's telescopes.

They say they are looking for radio signals, claiming the mysterious visitor could be an alien spaceship.

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Astronomers have begun scanning an 'alien' comet for signs of extraterrestrial technology. Researchers say they are looking for radio signals, claiming the mysterious visitor could be an alien spaceship

'OUMUAMUA A cigar-shaped comet named 'Oumuamua sailed past Earth last month and is the first interstellar object seen in the solar system. It was first spotted by a telescope in Hawaii on 18 October, and was observed 34 separate times in the following week. Travelling at 44 kilometres per second (27 miles per second), the comet is headed away from the Earth and Sun on its way out of the solar system. The comet is up to one-quarter mile (400 meters) long and highly-elongated - perhaps 10 times as long as it is wide. That aspect ratio is greater than that of any asteroid or comet observed in our solar system to date. But the comet's slightly red hue  specifically pale pink  and varying brightness are remarkably similar to objects in our own solar system. Advertisement

The alien-hunting project will use the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia for its investigation, with the campaign set to begin at 3:00pm ET (8:00pm GMT) on Wednesday.

The telescopes sensitive equipment would would take less than a minute to pick up something as faint as the radio waves from a smartphone, according to the Atlantic.

Milner, the business mogul behind Breakthrough Listen, a $100 million (75m) search for intelligent extraterrestrial life, received an email about the object last week from one of his chief scientists.

'The more I study this object, the more unusual it appears, making me wonder whether it might be an artificially made probe which was sent by an alien civilisation,' Professor Avi Loeb, the chair of Harvard's astronomy department and one of Milner's advisers on Breakthrough Listen, wrote in the email.

Professor Loeb said the space rock's peculiar elongated shape is odd for a common space rock but ideal for a ship flying between star systems.

Breakthrough Listen has now announced the program will scan 'Oumuamua this week for signs of radio signals.

'Researchers working on long-distance space transportation have previously suggested that a cigar or needle shape is the most likely architecture for an interstellar spacecraft, since this would minimise friction and damage from interstellar gas and dust,' the research firm said in a statement.

'While a natural origin is more likely, there is currently no consensus on what that origin might have been, and Breakthrough Listen is well positioned to explore the possibility that Oumuamua could be an artefact.'

The cigar-shaped object, named 'Oumuamua by its discoverers, sailed past Earth last month and is the first interstellar object seen in the solar system. Pictured is an artist's impression of the object (top left), and its trajectory through our star system (red arrow)

The object is now twice the distance between Earth and the sun from our planet, but even at this range the Green Bank Telescope can pick up the slightest signal.

Milner and his team want to measure the object before it extends beyond the reach of Earthbound scanning equipment.

The object will fly past Jupiter next year, and will hurtle beyond Pluto by the 2020s.

'Whether it's artificial or not, we will definitely know more about this object,' Milner told the Atlantic.

WHERE DID IT COME FROM? Most comets follow ellipse-shaped orbits around the sun. But this comet appears to orbit at an angle, and doesn't circle the sun. Its orbital path suggests it entered our solar system from the direction of the constellation Lyra, looped around the sun, and will never return. But others have suggested that the comet did come from Earth, but interacted with Jupiter or another planet, which changed its orbit. Advertisement

Oumuamua, also known as Comet C/2017 U1, baffled scientists when it flew past Earth at breakneck speed in November.

It was first spotted by a telescope in Hawaii on 18 October, and was observed 34 separate times in the following week.

Travelling at 44 kilometres per second (27 miles per second), the comet is headed away from the Earth and Sun on its way out of the solar system.

The comet is up to one-quarter mile (400 meters) long and highly-elongated - perhaps 10 times as long as it is wide.

That aspect ratio is greater than that of any asteroid or comet observed in our solar system to date.

But the comet's slightly red hue  specifically pale pink  and varying brightness are remarkably similar to objects in our own solar system.

A team of alien-hunting scientists led by Russian billionaire Yuri Milner (file photo) is scanning the comet before it sails beyond the reach of Earth's telescopes. They say they are looking for alien radio signals, claiming the mysterious visitor could be an alien ship

While its elongated shape is unusual, it may provide new clues as to how other star systems in the universe formed.

The observations, part-funded by Nasa suggested this unusual object had been wandering through the Milky Way, unattached to any star system, for hundreds of millions of years before its chance encounter with our star system.

'For decades we've theorised that such interstellar objects are out there, and now  for the first time  we have direct evidence they exist,' Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for Nasa's Science Mission Directorate in Washington, said in a statement in November.

'This history-making discovery is opening a new window to study formation of solar systems beyond our own.'

The comet, called C/2017 U1 was spotted by a telescope in Hawaii on 18 October, and was then seen 34 separate times in the week after. Its path is illustrated in the Nasa animation above
A simple device fitted on to household radiators could be used to prevent devastating fires spreading through high rise blocks like Grenfell Tower.

The inventor behind the device, called Blueproof, that taps into the water in radiators to douse fires, says he believes it can help save lives.

The 5 ($6.60) gadget fits on to any radiator and if a fire breaks out, it automatically detects the heat and sprays a stream of water from the radiators towards the flames.

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A simple device fitted on to household radiators could be used to prevent devastating fires spreading through high rise blocks such as Grenfell Tower. The device taps into the water in radiators to douse fires

WHAT IS BLUEPROOF? Blueproof is a device which attaches to heating panels and radiators. Made from high-tech materials, the surface responds to heat exposure and will directly self-target a fire by acquiring the highest heat source. Blueproof not only puts water onto the fire when and where you need it the most, but it also reacts in record time. The average response time of a conventional sprinkler system is 90 seconds, while Blueproof's average activation is 43.5 seconds. Blueproof is also the first system to target and reduce deadly smoke concentration allowing you to breath and can prevent fatal flash over conditions. Advertisement

Chemical engineer Dave Atkinson says the contraption he invented could help give people vital extra moments to survive in a catastrophic fire.

The device is being tested in tower blocks in England and is undergoing British Standards tests.

A demonstration was held by Nottingham based creators Bluerad at Edinburgh City Council this week, at the request of councillors.

It is thought they may consider having them installed across Edinburgh if further tests prove successful.

Mr Atkinson, from Nottingham, said he was initially inspired to act by the tragic deaths of the Philpott family in a fire in Derby in 2012.

He said: 'I looked at my radiator and basically thought there was enough water in there to have suppressed a fire.

'So I went on the net to see if there was any device that I could fit to the radiators in my home.

'I'm a chartered chemical engineer and have spent most of my life working for the likes of Shell and Exxon Mobil, leading the design on multi-billion dollar projects.

'I knew if I took existing design into it then I would have something that would activate in the right temperature range.'

Mr Atkinson plans to demonstrate Blueproof to local authorities and housing associations in Scotland.

Chemical engineer Dave Atkinson syas the contraption he invented could help give people vital extra moments in a catastrophic fire

The device, called Blueproof, is being tested in tower blocks in England and is undergoing British Standards tests. Here Allister Atkinson of Bluerad, the firm behind the product, gives a demonstration

The gadget fits on to any radiator and if a fire breaks out, it automatically detects the heat and sprays a stream of water from the radiators towards the flames. The tiny plug sprays water in the event of a fire to slow down its spread and allow extra time for rescue workers to find you

He added: 'With Grenfell, there was water in radiators on every floor completely throughout that building and it couldn't be accessed.'

The engineer said in the 40 years he has been involved with fire suppression systems, Grenfell was an event he 'expected to occur' but one that could have been 'easily prevented'.

'In over 40 years that I have been involved in the technical design of active and passive fire suppression systems this was an event that I expected to occur.

THE GRENFELL TOWER DISASTER Scores of people died after a huge fire engulfed Grenfell Tower, a west London residential tower block, in June. The blaze was reported just after midnight on June 14 with over 200 firefighters called tot eh blaze. At least 80 people died, but this number is expected to rise when reports on the disaster conclude at the end of this year. The tower's fire escape routes were limited to a single staircase, which many believe put residents at high risk during emergencies. Now a British designer has created a unique life-saving evacuation chute he claims it 'could have emptied Grenfell Tower in 20 minutes'. Scores of people died after a huge fire engulfed Grenfell Tower, a west London residential tower block, in June. The blaze was reported just after midnight on June 14 with over 200 firefighters called to the blaze. Advertisement

'It had already occurred in other countries. I think this could have easily been prevented.

'Unfortunately local government building control and environmental representatives are not technical experts in active fire protection.

'Sprinklers may not be the optimal solution to all active fire suppression requirements in tower blocks and other structures.

'We have it on trial in properties. It self-targets the source of the fire.

The device, called Blueproof, is being tested in tower blocks in England and is undergoing British Standards tests. A demonstration was held at Edinburgh City Council this week at the request of councillors

It is thought the City Council may consider having them installed across Edinburgh if further tests prove successful

Blueproof not only puts water onto the fire when and where you need it the most, but it also reacts in record time. The average response time of a conventional sprinkler system is 90 seconds, while Blueproof's average activation is 43.5 seconds

'We have had it in tower blocks and have had no reported leaks or failures.

'We've got a sound product, so it really making people aware of it and it is something that is fairly cheap, is maintenance free, it can fit onto the central heating system and it will give them that protective barrier.'

The company says the device will retail for 59.99 for a pack of three with trade inquiries being dealt with on an individual basis.

A City of Edinburgh Council spokesman said the demonstration had gone ahead at the request of individual councillors and no proposal has so far been made.

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO MAKE SURE YOUR BUILDING IS SAFE Here are some steps to take to be sure you're as safe as can be: Talk to the owner to find out when it was built and whether (and when) there has been major renovations. Ask the owner and look around your building to identify fire safety features like smoke detectors, sprinklers, visual and audible alarm devices, fire doors, protected stairwells, exit signs, emergency lights. Contact your local fire department and building department to see what information they have about whether the building complies with the rules or has a history of any fire code violations. Engage the local fire inspector or hire a fire protection engineer, to inspect and assess the building. Source: Brian Meacham, Worcester Polytechnic Institute Advertisement

If one is made then it would be considered by all relevant bodies.

This is not the first time that inventors have proposed methods that could have saved lives during the disaster.

Back in September, British designer Eric Hooper, 72, said watching live coverage of the devastating fire left him 'frustrated as hell'.

It spurred his to create a unique life-saving evacuation chute that can be adapted to fit any building.

This is not the first time that inventors have proposed methods that could have saved lives during the disaster. British designer Eric Hooper, 72, created a unique life-saving evacuation chute that can be adapted to fit any building.

Single chutes can be installed with steel frames that can provide a roof-to-ground evacuation point for buildings up to 105m in height

Evacuees enter the escape tubes from hatches on separate floors.

This gives residents a safe means of escape when stairs become filled with thick smoke and debris.

Activating a mechanism at each entry point unfolds a multi-layered chute that children and the elderly can use to vertically slide down to lower floors.

The fire-resistant device supports a user by the waist who then controls the speed of descent by pressing against the tube's sides.
Tall, muscular and with striking black hair, he is one of the world's most eligible bachelors.

Ichi is one of just 100 Cross River gorillas in Nigeria - and he's looking for a mate.

Researchers have been forced to warn local villagers to leave the huge animal alone after he was spotted venturing from the forest in a rare move to try and find a partner.

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Camera trap photo of a silverback Cross River gorilla in Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary: Researchers have been forced to warn local villagers to leave the huge animal alone after he was spotted venturing from the forest in a rare move to try and find a partner. Stock image pictured.

Dr. Richard Bergl of the North Carolina Zoo: 'Roaming blackbacks do not represent a threat to humans, but may come close to villages as they attempt to cross between one forest patch to another.

'In the past these gorillas may have been killed, representing a significant loss to such a small population.'

Cross River gorillas have rarely been seen in the wild; they avoid humans by living on the steepest most inaccessible mountain slopes.

However, Ichi has recently been spotted close to the villages of Ofambe and Okiro in Obudu LGA, several miles outside of Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the nearest gorilla stronghold.

The researchers believe the gorilla is a 'blackback'  a young male that has recently left its family group to start its own.

THE CROSS RIVER GORILLA The Cross River gorilla is restricted to the mountains of Cross River State in Nigeria and adjacent areas in the south western region of Cameroon. Gorillas in Nigeria only occur at three different sites: the Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains, and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park. After decades of hunting and habitat loss, only 100 Cross River gorillas are estimated to survive in Nigeria and another 200 estimated in Cameroon. A cross river gorilla chewing corn sticks: Only 100 Cross River gorillas are estimated to survive in Nigeria and another 200 estimated in Cameroon. Gorillas normally live in small groups composed of a large dominant male known as a silverback together with three-to-four females and their young. When these young gorillas mature, they leave to join another gorilla group. Each blackback gorilla must roam the forest in search of a mate. These wanderings are very important for the long-term survival of the species, allowing for the exchange of genes between groups. Advertisement

Gorillas normally live in small groups composed of a large dominant male known as a silverback together with three-to-four females and their young.

When these young gorillas mature, they leave to join another gorilla group.

Each blackback gorilla must roam the forest in search of a mate.

These wanderings are very important for the long-term survival of the species, allowing for the exchange of genes between groups.

WCS has been educating village chiefs about the gorillas, which are harmless, to prevent them from being killed.

Thanks to this increased awareness, and two enlightened village chiefs in Ofambe (Chief Julius Ochui) and Okiro (Chief Augustine Bitte), the presence of this gorilla so close to the village has so far been tolerated by the community.

Additional education efforts include a radio show and Facebook page.

Cross River Gorilla expert Dr. Inaoyom Imong of WCS in Calabar said: 'As long as the gorilla is left alone it will likely find its way back to the forest, and hopefully a mate.

'This would be a positive outcome for conservation and the future of Nigeria's biological heritage.'

Dirck Byler, Chief of Africa Programs at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service said: 'We are pleased to be able to support this important work to recover the critically endangered Cross River gorilla.

'The news of a blackback dispersing outside of Afi is a clear indication that this project is having a significant impact in the region.'

WCS works to save Cross River gorillas through support for protected area management and wildlife law enforcement in Cross River National Park in Nigeria, along with Takamanda National Park, Mone River Forest Reserve, Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary and the Mbulu forest in Cameroon.
Britain must designate overseas territories as 'bluebelt' to protect sea life and stop plastic pollution further poisoning the world's oceans, campaigners have urged.

Following the last episode of Planet Earth II, the Great British Oceans coalition has urged the UK government to protect endangered species by safeguarding remote marine zones.

The campaign is to create 1.5 million square miles (4 million square kilometres) of protected 'bluebelt' around seven of the 14 British Overseas Territories.

If the plan goes through, it could create the largest network of marine reserves in the world.

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Britain must designate overseas territories (pictured) as 'bluebelt' to protect sea life and stop plastic pollution further poisoning the world's oceans, campaigners have urged

THE BLUEBELT The campaign is to create 1.5 million square miles (four million square kilometres) of protected 'bluebelt' around seven of the 14 British Overseas Terroritories. If the plan goes through, it could create the largest network of marine reserves in the world. The Blue Belt consists of Ascension Island, British Antarctic Territory, British Indian Ocean Territory, Pitcairn Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha. Within this area is breeding grounds for a quarter of the world's penguins, a third of albatrosses, endangered turtles and the largest's coral atoll on Earth. Already 133 MPs have backed the 'bluebelt' campaign. Advertisement

The territories included in the scheme are Ascension Island, British Antarctic Territory, British Indian Ocean Territory, Pitcairn Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha.

Within this area is breeding grounds for a quarter of the world's penguins, a third of albatrosses, endangered turtles and the largest's coral atoll on Earth, according to the Great British Ocean website.

The organisation aims to get the government to establish 300,000 square miles (500,000 square kilometres) of Marine Protected Area in the South Sandwich islands next year.

Already 133 MPs have backed the 'bluebelt' campaign.

'Through the actions of successive governments, the UK has demonstrated global leadership in ocean conservation', the website said.

'We call on the UK to reaffirm this leadership by working with the governments of the Overseas Territories to deliver on Blue Belt pledges.'

The organisation aims to establish a protected Marine Protected Area in at least 50 per cent of Ascension Islands waters in 2019.

They also want a marine protection regime in Tristan da Cunha by 2020.

Another campaign led by a coalition of groups including the Marine Conservation Society, is calling for 30 per cent of global oceans to be turned into marine sanctuaries.

'We have found a growing tide of plastic pollution on UK shores, and must act now to stem that tide', Sandy Luk of the Marine Conservation Society told the Telegraph.

Following the last episode of Planet Earth II, the Great British Oceans coalition has urged the UK government to protect endangered species by safeguarding remote marine zones. Pictured is Long Beach on Ascension Island which is part of the proposed scheme

The campaign is to create 1.5 million square miles (four million square kilometres) of protected 'bluebelt' around seven of the 14 British Overseas Territories, including St Helena Island (pictured)

Pitcairn Island in the Pacific ocean is one of the islands that could be protected. If the plan goes through, it could create the largest network of marine reserves in the world

'The UK's influence on the waters of all of the world's ocean is immense, and we call on UK governments to show leadership at this crucial moment to protect some of the natural jewels of our fragile blue planet.'

The campaign #BackTheBlueBelt is backed by Blue Marine Foundation, Greenpeace, the Marine Conservation Society, The Pew Trusts, RSPB and Zoological Society of London.

Blue Planet II has highlighted the devastating effect of waste on our oceans.

In the final episode, viewers witnessed an albatross chick dying from eating a plastic toothpick that pierced its intestine and a sperm whale tries to eat a blue plastic bucket  confusing it for food.

Seen by more than 17 million Britons, and hundreds of millions of viewers around the world, the nature documentary is helping to pressure governments to tackle the plastic menace.

Nightingale Island (pictured) is part of the Tristan da Cunha group. Already 133 MPs have backed the 'bluebelt' campaign

Pictured are king penguins on the beach at St. Andrew's Bay, South Georgia Island. The organisation aims to establish a protected Marine Protected Area in at least 50 per cent of Ascension Islands waters in 2019

Love penguins & turtles & sharks & coral & wonderful marine life in general? Contact your MP easily via our website & ask them to #BackTheBlueBelt & protect 4million km2 of ocean https://t.co/0dt0giYeSn pic.twitter.com/mPDlKeRhfM  Great British Oceans (@GBOceans) November 24, 2017

An earlier instalment carried haunting shots of a pilot whale calf believed to have died from plastic pollution.

Lucy Quinn, of the British Antarctic Survey Team, demonstrated how albatross chicks are suffering from eating our waste.

She said the population of the birds in South Georgia in the South Atlantic has been falling for four decades, with some of the decline blamed on discarded plastic fishing gear and other rubbish.

'Albatrosses have the ability to cough up bits of food that they can't digest, and from that we can tell what they have been eating,' Dr Quinn said.

The researchers found the birds had swallowed plastic food bags among other discarded items.

An albatross chick died from eating a plastic toothpick that pierced its intestine in another heartbreaking example of the devastating impact plastic waste is having on our oceans

In the final episode of Blue Planet II this Sunday, viewers saw a sperm whale try to eat a blue plastic bucket after confusing it for food

Explaining how the chick died, Dr Quinn said: 'Unfortunately there was a plastic toothpick that had actually gone through the stomach. Something just as small as that has managed to kill the bird. It's really sad.'

The amount of rubbish in Britain's seas has increased by more than 150 per cent in a year, figures from last month showed.

Plastic items, including bags and bottles, accounted for nearly all the litter found last year.

MPs said the 'damning' report highlighted the need for Ministers to take urgent action to clean up Britain's coastal waters.

The Daily Mail has led the way on ending the plastic menace, calling for restrictions on bottles, bags, toxic microbeads and coffee cups.
If youve ever nodded off on public transit after a long day of work (or a big night out), Google Maps upcoming feature could be just what you've been looking for.

The firm is set to launch a new feature that will provide users with real-time updates about their trips, including a reminder to get off at your stop, according to TechCrunch.

The update could also prove useful for travelers in unfamiliar areas, giving live guidance about a journey from start to finish.

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The firm is set to launch a new feature that will provide users with real-time updates about their trips, including a reminder to get off at your stop, according to TechCrunch. Users will be able to indicate when they want to 'start' a trip

THE UPDATE Google has been testing real-time notifications for transit journeys, according to TechCrunch. Users would be able to 'start' and 'end' a trip, during which they could scroll through the details, and receive updates. It appears the feature will also let users know when the bus or train is approaching their stop. It's unclear when the new feature will launch, though TechCrunch says the firm plans to roll it out 'soon.' Advertisement

Google has been testing out the feature among a small group of users, with plans to launch it soon, TechCrunch reports.

Once the feature arrives, users will be able to search transit directions like they usually do, and indicate when they want to start a trip.

Then, theyll be shown details and updates on the route.

These will appear in both the app and on Android lock screens, according to TechCrunch.

It will also notify you when your bus or train is nearing your stop.

The firm has made a number of changes recently to make its service more user friendly.

If youve ever nodded off on public transit after a long day of work (or a big night out), Google Maps upcoming feature could be just what you've been looking for. Stock image

Last month, the tech giant overhauled its map color scheme and added new icons to help users quickly identify different points of interest.

Places like a cafe, church, museum, zoo or hospital will have a designated color and icon to make it easier for users to find what they're looking for.

For example, if you're looking for a coffee shop in a new neighborhood, you could open Google Maps and look for the nearest orange icon - the color code for Food and Drink places.

Google Maps has also updated the driving, navigation, transit and explore maps to better highlight the information most relevant to each experience - such as construction work signs for driving and train stations for transit

Google made a cheat sheet of the new colors and icons to help users become acquainted with the new look

Google Maps also updated the driving, navigation, transit and explore maps to better highlight the information most relevant to each experience - such as gas stations for navigation and train stations for transit.

Google made a cheat sheet of the new colors and icons to help users become acquainted with the new look.

Google products set to incorporate the new feature include Google Assistant, Google Search, Google Earth, and Android Auto.

Google has updated its map color scheme and added new icons to help users quickly identify different points of interest. For example, if you're looking for a coffee shop, you could open Google Maps and look for the nearest orange icon - the color code for Food and Drink places

Over time, the new style will also appear in the apps, websites and experiences offered by companies that use Google Maps APIs as well.

Other recent additions to Google Maps include the new video review feature.

The feature, launched in September, allows users to create 10-second video clips in the Maps app or upload 30-second clips from their camera roll to describe their experiences at destinations in a new way.
She said her ex-husband Karl Stefanovic was 'dead' to her after their 21-year marriage fell a part last year.

And Cassandra Thorburn, 46, appeared to keep her distance from the Today show host last week, when they both attended an event for their youngest son River, 11.

The mother-of-three told Daily Mail Australia on Monday that she and Karl, 43, continue to amicably co-parent their children, which also include Jackson, 18, and Ava, 12.

Keeping their distance: Cassandra Thorburn and ex-husband of 21 years Karl Stefanovic both attend their son's speech day in Sydney... but steer clear of one another

'We have three children together and often attend events but of course not together. We are divorced,' she said.

She added that the kids are currently on holiday.

The former couple arrived separately last week and avoided direct contact with each other during a 'speech day' at Sydney's Luna Park.

No direct contact: The former couple arrived separately and avoided direct contact with each other during the 'speech day' at Sydney's Luna Park

One image showed Cassandra speaking to their son near the water's edge, while Karl, 43, stood alone and looked on from at least 10 meters.

Cassandra appeared to be in high spirits as she took selfies with River, wearing heels, black tight trousers and a white T-shirt.

Cutting a solitary figure, Karl appeared to patiently wait for his chance to congratulate his son on his speech day.

Selfie time: Cassandra appeared to be in high spirits as she took selfies with River, wearing heels, black tight trousers and a white T-shirt

Getting through it: The reunion for Karl and Cassandra come after the former ABC journalist , 46, told Woman's Day magazine she 'was in a very dark place' when the relationship fell apart

River later met with his famous father, who ruffled his hair and shared a tender moment near the harbour.

The reunion for Karl and Cassandra come after the former ABC journalist , 46, told Woman's Day magazine she 'was in a very dark place' when the relationship fell apart.

Likening the break-up to experiencing the death of a family member, she admitted she will never have an amicable friendship with her ex.

'The children still have a father but I don't have a husband. He really is dead to me and no, we won't ever be friends again,' she said.

Sweet moment: River later met with his famous father, who ruffled his hair and shared a tender moment near the harbour

Proud parents: Both Karl and Cassandra looked proud as punch as they attended the function

Standing her ground: Likening the break-up to experiencing the death of a family member, Cassandra admitted she will never have an amicable friendship with her ex

Emotions: Following their breakup, Cassandra said she was left in shock, falling in a 'heap'

Following their breakup, Cassandra said she was left in shock, falling in a 'heap' when the couple's children would go to school.

'There were days in the beginning I would get up, put on a brave face and drop the kids at school, then I'd get to the back door and I would lie in a heap for the rest of the day unable to move - there were very dark days,' she told the magazine.

'I was completely gazumped when I realised Karl had gone.'

The mother-of-three added that she had relied on her friends for support in the wake of the split, but there were still elements of her former life she couldn't bring herself to face - like the former's couple's marital bed.

'I was completely gazumped when I realised Karl had gone': Cassandra and Karl split last year

Doting dad: Karl was seen making his way to the event at Luna Park

'I slept on the couch in front of the fire for months because I didn't want to go near the marital bed. I was in a very dark place,' Cassandra confessed.

Since the split, Karl moved on and started a relationship with 33-year-old shoe designer, Jasmine Yarbrough.

Cassandra and Karl's children have not spent that much time with his new flame, despite the couple living just a suburb away.

Despite the turmoil of the relationship breakdown, Cass admitted she was now feeling stronger than ever and was prioritising the happiness of her children above all but was open to meet someone new if the opportunity arose.

New flame: Since the split, Karl has started a relationship with Jasmine Yarbrough (left)
She's best known for her Golden Globe-winning performance in The Affair.

And Ruth Wilson was sure to stun the audience once again at the British Independent Film Awards in London on Sunday.

The 35 year-old poured her incredible figure into an elegant white satin slip-inspired dress, which showed off her amazing curves.

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Ruth Wilson, 35, was sure to stun the audience once again at the British Independent Film Awards in London on Sunday

The Surrey actress let her stunning outfit do all the talking, as she only accessorised the ensemble with sparkling diamond chandelier earrings.

Ruth balanced the delicate look black strapped heels, with mismatched jeweled embellishments to add a touch of glamour.

The Lone Ranger star kept it fresh-faced when it came to her make-up, opting for light mascara and a berry lip.

Giving her dress the full impact, she draped her brunette locks naturally on her shoulders, styled with soft curls for an Old Hollywood vibe.

Braless: The 35 year-old poured her incredible figure into an elegant white satin slip-inspired dress, which showed off her amazing curves

In March, Ruth discussed her sex scenes with The Wire star Dominic West in The Guardian, and confessed that they both had to get very familiar with each other very quickly for the American Showtime drama, which finished its third season in January.

When asked about the copious amount of sex scenes the pair have onscreen, she said she hadn't met Dominic before they ended up in 'ridiculous' positions.

She added: 'We mainly laugh and giggle through our sex scenes. He usually has to go on top, and hates me for it, because he has to reveal his bum.

'We all have our insecurities, including Dominic West. It doesn't stop him though, he gets it out every week. It's a ridiculous job.'

Ruth has also signed up for a BBC drama that will see her play her real-life grandmother Alice, who found out on her husband Alecs death that he was a bigamist.

It later transpired that Alec, an MI6 agent and author, had four families over the course of 30 years.

Ruth first learned of the scandal at 18, when her grandmother let her read a memoir she had written.

'We all have our insecurities': Ruth discussed her sex scenes with The Wire star Dominic West in The Guardian, and said they: 'Mainly laugh and giggle through our sex scenes. He usually has to go on top, and hates me for it, because he has to reveal his bum
Katie Holmes found herself getting snowed on in New York this Sunday.

But the 38-year-old was prepared for the December chill, having wrapped herself in a stylish off-white scarf with grey stripes and a bit of fringe.

Modeling a form-fitted pine green coat, Kate was glimpsed with a smile on her face as she carried a shopping bag from Old Navy.

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On the go: Katie Holmes found herself getting snowed on in New York this Sunday

Katie elegantly clashed a pair of wine-colored boots with blue jeans.

Though she used to be seen about with long hair, she's had it lopped off, debuting her current much shorter style this autumn.

She explained to People near the end of October that the hairdo, which was the handiwork of celeb coiffeur DJ Quintero, is 'for a role.'

Said she: 'Im getting ready to play a woman in a movie called The Doorman. Shes an ex-Marine and shes a warrior. Im excited. Im training. Im sore.'

A bit of Christmas shopping?: Modeling a form-fitted pine green coat, Kate was glimpsed with a smile on her face as she carried a paper bag from Old Navy

The Batman Begins actor began dating Scientologist movie star Tom Cruise in 2005, and seven weeks into the relationship, they were engaged.

Their Scientologist wedding was held at the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi in Bracciano in November 2006, seven months after their daughter Suri was born.

Katie filed in 2012 for a divorce that was finalized only 10 days later, with Suri's mother retaining primary custody, though Tom could visit, per People.

Doting mother: Katie has an 11-year-old daughter called Suri Cruise, who is the product of the former's six-year marriage to Tom Cruise

The way they were: Their Scientologist wedding was held at the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi in Bracciano in November 2006, seven months after their daughter was born

Ron Miscavige, father of Scientology leader David Miscavige, told MailOnline last year that Katie's misgivings about Scientology - including the effect it could have on Suri - contributed to her decision to leave Tom.

Katie and Jamie Foxx only went public with their romance this year, though there had been speculation they were an item since 2013.

There has been a swirl of rumors that Katie's divorce agreement prohibited her from publicly dating anyone for five years after the split with Tom.
She won major praise earlier this year for her role as Rose Armitage in thriller Get Out.

And now actress Allison Williams, 29, can add another accolade to her growing list, as she helped pick up the gong for Best International Film at the British Independent Film Awards in London on Sunday.

The former Girls star looked radiant in form-fitting black dress as she collected the award with co-star Daniel Kaluuya.

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Co-stars: The former Girls star looked radiant in form-fitting black dress as she collected the award with co-star Daniel Kaluuya

The newly blonde starlet kept her relatively simple, with only a pair of minimalist diamond drop earrings and her wedding rings giving the outfit a touch of sparkle.

Compensating for her understated look, Allison left her blonde wavy locks to frame her face, which boasted a chic peach lip and smokey eye.

Her co-star Daniel Kaluuya looked ever-so dapper in a maroon fitted blazer and matching trousers. He coordinated his dark ensemble with a black turtleneck and black polished shoes.

Winner: Actress Allison Williams, 29, can add another accolade to her growing list, as she helped pick up the gong for Best International Film at the British Independent Film Awards in London on Sunday

Happy: The newly blonde starlet kept her relatively simple, with only a pair of minimalist diamond drop earrings and her wedding rings giving the outfit a touch of sparkle

Pose: Compensating for her understated look, Allison left her blonde wavy locks to frame her face, which boasted a chic peach lip and smokey eye

Best film: Her co-star Daniel Kaluuya looked ever-so dapper in a maroon fitted blazer and matching trousers. He coordinated his dark ensemble with a black turtleneck and black polished shoes

Backstage: The Girls star looked angelic behind the scenes of the awards, as she stood in front the ready-to-go statues

The stylish duo were presented their award by actress Andrea Riseborough. Other winners include veteran actor Gary Oldman, 59, who received the Variety Award.

The star will next appear in The Darkest Hour, in which he plays Winston Churchill during the Second World War.

21 year-old actress Florence Pugh picked up the gong for Best Actress, who could barely contain her excitement as she hilariously posed with presenter Jason Issacs.

The Lady Macbeth actress rocked a glittering khaki green gown with a sequin-embellished umpire line.

Expert: Other winners include veteran actor Gary Oldman, 59, who received the Variety Award

Jubilant: 21 year-old actress Florence Pugh picked up the gong for Best Actress, who could barely contain her excitement as she hilariously posed with presenter Jason Issacs.

Kick up your heels! The Lady Macbeth actress rocked a glittering khaki green gown with a sequin-embellished umpire line

Josh O'Connor bagged Best Actor for his role in God's Own Country, in which the 27 year-old plays a Yorkshire farmer dealing with with arrival of a migrant worker.

The Lewis actor looked red carpet-ready in a smart midnight blue suit, luckily coordinating with the prize presenter, Downton Abbey's Joanne Froggatt, who stunned in her floor-length jewel encrusted gown.

Actress and screenwriter Alice Birch beamed as she picked up her award for Best Screenplay for her screenwriting debuty, Lady Macbeth.

Blue hue: The Lewis actor looked red carpet-ready in a smart midnight blue suit, luckily coordinating with the prize presenter, Downton Abbey's Joanne Froggatt, who stunned in her floor-length jewel encrusted gown

Eye on the prize: Josh O'Connor bagged Best Actor for his role in God's Own Country, in which the 27 year-old plays a Yorkshire farmer dealing with with arrival of a migrant worker

Grateful: Joanne embraced Josh as he came to pick up his award for Best Actor. The Essex actor was previously in ITV crime drama Lewis

Lady in black: Actress Alice Birch beamed in black velvet as she picked up her award for Best Screenplay for her screenwriting debut Lady Macbeth

Actress Alice Birch beamed in black velvet as she picked up her award for Best Screenplay for her screenwriting debut Lady Macbeth.

Naomi Ackie picked up the prize for Most Promising Newcomer. The Lady Macbeth actress stunned in her cobalt blue dress and eye catching red lip as she posed with I Daniel Blake star Haley Squires, who won the award last year, and playwright Arinze Kene.

Academy Award-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave, 80, made a rare appearance to collect the Richard Harris award, which is awarded to those who have made an outstanding contribution to British film. Previous winners include Emma Thompson and Julie Walters.

Huge honour: Naomi Ackie picked up the prize for Most Promising Newcomer. The Lady Macbeth actress stunned in her cobalt blue dress and eye catching red lip as she posed with I Daniel Blake star Haley Squires, who won the award last year, and playwright Arinze Kene

Promising: Best newcomer Naomi messed around while posing with previous winner Haley Squires and playwright Arinze

Academy Award-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave, 80, made a rare appearance to collect the Richard Harris award, presented to her by Jared Harris and daugther Joely Richardson - dressed in Roksanda

Elated: Vanessa picked up the award for outstanding contribution, previously won by Emma Thompson and Julie Walters
They are the ultimate glamour couple, who enjoy a lavish life filled with red carpet events, overseas trips and parties.

But it was the weekend christening of AFL player Jordan Lewis's twin boys that appeared to be one of Jesinta and Buddy Franklin's favourite and most meaningful events this year.

Former Miss Universe Australia winner Jesinta, 26, and Sydney Swans star Buddy, 30, gushed over Jordan and Lucy Lewis's twins, Ollie and Hughie, while attending the special day on Sunday.

Are they next? Jesinta and Buddy Franklin get VERY clucky at the christening of AFL player Jordan Lewis's adorable twin boys

The model shared a picture of the ceremony to her Instagram account, congratulating the couple on their young brood.

'Ollie & Hughie's Christening ... What a beautiful family you've created x,' she posted before adding a love heart emoji.

Meanwhile, Godfather Buddy posted his own adorable picture of himself with one of the boys.

'Beautiful day today for the Christening of Ollie and Hughie ... I think this is Ollie,' the AFL player wrote.

The young couple then entered into plenty of banter with Jordan and each other over social media, especially over who gets baby duties.

The Melbourne player jokedthat Buddy will be the boss if anything happens to them.

'[If] the mafia get Luce and I, you're in charge. @buddy_franklin23,' the Demons player posted.

Switching plays: Sydney Swans star Buddy stands behind the priest at the christening of Melbourne Demons player Jordan Lewis's twin boys

Model Jesinta was on-hand to offer support, making a quip about Buddy's child-minding skills.

'These kids are in good hands...'

The banter wasn't lost on fans of the glamorous couple, who started asking about the couple's future baby plans.

'Great pic @buddy_franklin23 yay are u & @jesinta_franklin gettin clucky.'

Baby plans? Jesinta, 26, and Buddy , 30, have been coy in the past about answering questions relating to future family plans

The young couple have been coy in the past about baby plans.

The former Apprentice contestant has said her own mother is a big influence on her life and credits her own success to her.

I wouldnt be in this career if it werent for Mum and everything shes done for us,' she said.
She is set to leave Albert Square this festive season in spectacular fashion, this Christmas alongside her on-screen sister Abi (Lorna Fitzgerald).

But Jacqueline Jossa, who's been on the BBC for seven years, has joked that her time with the soap will never end as she feels like she's married a 'young Adam Woodyatt' in her husband Dan Osborne.

The 25-year-old actress told Radio Times that Dan, who she married earlier this year, wants Lego for Christmas, a similarity to Adam, who plays Ian Beale on the soap.

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Lego lover: Actress Jacqueline Jossa revealed that her husband Dan Osborne wants Lego for Christmas in an interview with the Radio Times ahead of her dramatic Eastenders departure

She said: 'My husband Daniel has actually told me what he wants this year. It's Lego, which is quite shameful, isn't it?

'Either the Disney Castle or Big Ben. Did you know that Adam Woodyatt is also into Lego? I always say I'm married to a young Adam Woodyatt  they're very similar.'

Jacqueline tied the knot with Dan in June after four years together, and the couple are also parents to two-year-old daughter Ella.

In a festive shoot for the publication's Christmas Issue, Jacqueline can be seen in a stunning forest green gown alongside co-stars Jake Wood and Lorna Fitzgerald, as they decorate a Christmas tree in the shadow of the Queen Vic.

Happy couple: Jacqueline (here in January 2016) tied the know with TOWIE star Dan in June this year, and the couple are parents to two-year-old daughter Ella

Parallels: Jacqueline said: 'I always say I'm married to a young Adam Woodyatt  they're very similar'

'They're very similar': Jacqueline compared her new husband Dan (left) to a young Adam Woodyatt (right)

Jacqueline will make her sensational departure from Eastenders this festive season, though bosses have remained tight-lipped on how she and co-star Lorna Fitzgerald leave the BBC soap.

Fans have predicted it will have something to do with their father Max's latest antics, as he becomes increasingly unhinged after being duped out of his revenge victory by Wilmott-Brown and rejected by his girlfriend Fi.

As he sinks further and further into insanity, he will plot to finally get his revenge on Ian Beale and Phil Mitchell, by deciding to murder them both.

Expecting: Jacqueline (here in January 2015 during her pregnancy) shares two-year-old daughter Ella with now-husband Dan

Dramatic: Jacqueline will depart Eastenders this festive season with on-screen sister Lorna Fitzgerald (left) pictured with their on-screen father Max (Jake Wood)

Insane: Viewers have seen Max grow increasingly unhinged in recent weeks, and over the festive season the villain will turn murderous

Out now: Jacqueline made the comments in the Christmas Issue of The Radio Times, available on Tuesday 12 December

Actor Jake Wood teased that Max feels murder is the right thing to do, and after his daughters Lauren and Abi ostracise him in the coming weeks, the villain feels he has nothing to lose.

Jacqueline and Lorna's exit from Eastenders was announced back in September.

An spokesman told Mail Online: 'We can confirm that Jacqueline and Lorna will be leaving EastEnders. They have both been wonderful to work with and we wish them all the best for the future.'

On the pair's exit a source told The Sun: 'It will be one of the biggest on-screen moments of the year. Sometimes a great storyline comes at the cost of losing some characters. The cast will be sorry to see them go.'

Read the full interview with Jacqueline Jossa and the cast of EastEnders in the new issue of Radio Times magazine, out now.
She's become the model of the moment.

And Hailey Baldwin proved her worth as she commanded attention in a saucy Instagram story on Sunday.

The 21-year-old stunner showcased her sensational figure in the posting as she donned revealing white lingerie.

Saucy: Hailey Baldwin, 21, commanded attention in a saucy Instagram story on Sunday

Daring to impress, the American beauty put her ample assets on center stage as the lacy top left little to the imagination.

Her delicate decolletage and toned tummy was also on full display as the slinky garb flashed the flesh.

Throwing caution to the wind, the Maxim Hot 100 winner went virtually makeup free with just a dab of berry lip.

Her trademark blonde tresses were swept back in a tight bun as she gave a sultry pose in the bathroom mirror.

Stunner: Hailey graced the red carpet for the Jingle Ball North concert in Toronto, Canada

The posting comes a day after Hailey made a grand appearance at the Jingle ball North concert in Toronto, Canada .

She donned a high fashion editorial look as she rocked a satin shirt dress for pop music's star-studded event.

Her gorgeous gams were on full display as the black leather knee high boots accentuated her statuesque features.

Leggy lady: Her gorgeous gams were on full display as the black leather knee high boots accentuated her statuesque features

With a nod to fashion label Comme des Garcons, Hailey's loose fitting button down featured photos of models.

The white satin oxford plunged low revealing her pretty decolletage as it hung off one of her petite shoulders.

Meanwhile, the annual concert showcasing the top musical performers of the day brought out a bevy of stars including Fergie and Cardi B.
Work commitments took a back seat as Angelina Jolie spent part of her weekend browsing for bargains with her family at the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena.

The actress, 42, was joined by three of her six children in Shiloh, 11, and twins Knox and Vivienne, nine, as she ventured out on Sunday afternoon.

Attempting to hide her identity under a very large floppy black hat, Angelina cut a low-key figure while browsing the various stalls.

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Casual: Work commitments took a back seat as Angelina Jolie spent part of her weekend browsing for bargains with her family at the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena

The star wore a long gray jersey coat over a black dress with lace at the bust, while slipper-style black flats and a large black leather tote rounded things off.

Meanwhile Shiloh wore a gray hoodie with the hood worn over her short blonde hair.

She added tan cargo pants and black flipflops and snaked on tortilla chips as she walked along.

Family outing: The actress, 42, tried to hide her identity under a very large floppy black hat as she took three of her six children shopping

Casual: Shiloh, 11, wore a gray hoodie with the hood up over her short blonde hair. She added tan cargo pants and black flipflops and snaked on tortilla chips as she walked along

Knox was dressed in a black t-shirt and black sweatpants with black trainers.

He carried a toy wooden crossbow that he'd found at one of the hundreds of stalls of merchandise.

Vivienne had on camouflage pants and black shoes along with a baggy white cotton shirt that she left untucked.

She also carried a purchase - a blue and green blanket dotted with dinosaurs.

Their famous mother also carried purchases in a white plastic bag.

Star power: Angelina sported large sunglasses and small diamond earrings on her outing with her brood

Successful trip: Knox, nine, was dressed in a black t-shirt and black sweatpants with black trainers. He carried a toy wooden crossbow

Dressed down: Vivienne, nine, had on camouflage pants and black shoes along with a baggy white cotton shirt that she left untucked

Bought toys: Vivienne also carried a purchase - a blue and green blanket dotted with dinosaurs. Her mom carried additional purchases in a white plastic bag

Not seen with Angelina were her three other children whom she shares with ex Brad Pitt - Maddox, 16, Pax, 14, and Zahara, 12

Meanwhile, Angelina co-wrote an Op-Ed published in a British newspaper on Sunday calling for more to be done to protect women in war zones.

She co-authored the article for The Guardian with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for The Guardian.

'In our different roles we have seen how conflicts in which womens bodies and rights are systematically abused last longer, cause deeper wounds and are much harder to resolve and overcome. Ending gender-based violence is therefore a vital issue of peace and security as well as of social justice,' the two wrote.

'Despite being prohibited by international law, sexual violence continues to be employed as a tactic of war in numerous conflicts from Myanmar to Ukraine and Syria to Somalia. It includes mass rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, and rape as a form of torture, ethnic cleansing and terrorism. It accounts in large part for why it is often more dangerous to be a woman in a warzone today than it is to be a soldier.'

They concluded: 'It is humanitys shame that violence against women, whether in peaceful societies or during times of war, has been universally regarded as a lesser crime. There is finally hope that we can change this. We owe it to ourselves  men and women alike  and to future generations.'
Attenborough And the Giant Elephant

Rating:

John Noakes: TV hero

Rating:

Sir David Attenboroughs documentaries are usually uplifting and inspiring, filled with memorably beautiful images.

They may contain sombre warnings about pollution and climate change, but they are underpinned with hope.

Attenborough And The Giant Elephant (BBC1) offered very little hope. It was a tale to empty you of all faith in humanity  a catalogue of appalling greed, ignorance and mistreatment.

Attenborough and the Giant Elephant (BBC1) told the tale of Jumbo, the first animal to become a global celebrity

In more than 60 years of wildlife broadcasting, Sir David has never made anything quite like this. It was often difficult to watch, but it was a story that had to be told.

The elephant was called Jumbo, and he lived 150 years ago, the first animal to become a global celebrity. Captured in Africa as a baby, almost certainly by poachers who slaughtered his mother for her ivory, he became a star attraction at London Zoo, giving rides to children.

By day, he was a gentle giant, carrying his surly keeper Matthew Scott and half a dozen youngsters on his back for hours without complaint. All he asked for was a constant supply of sticky buns.

Binge of the weekend: The Crown (Netflix) returned better and more controversial than ever, with Claire Foy and Matt Smith superb as the Queen and Prince Philip. It opens with a slow-burning row. I wonder, do they watch it at Sandringham? Advertisement

But at night, when the crowds were gone, Jumbo was an elephant in horrific torment. He suffered uncontrollable rages, smashing his head against the bars of his cage so hard that he shattered both tusks.The only medicine the zoo had for Jumbo was whisky. It seemed to calm him.

At the American Museum of Natural History, Jumbos bones have been stored for more than a century  yet the remains have never been studied scientifically, till now. Sir David examined the poor animals jaw, and saw at once the ghastly evidence of what ailed Jumbo.

His teeth were rotted and misshapen: the sugary buns that children fed him by the hundred had caused appalling dental problems.

Sir David pointed to another cause for the misery: even as a young elephant, Jumbo had suffered from arthritis  exacerabated by the rides he constantly gave.

He ended his life as part of circus master P. T. Barnums freak show in America. A train hit him as he was led across railway tracks to his wagon. Death could only have been a mercy to the unfortunate creature.

In more than 60 years of wildlife broadcasting, Sir David has never made anything quite like this. It was often difficult to watch, but it was a story that had to be told

This was a thoroughly researched piece of animal history, told with Sir Davids accustomed charm. He tried to brighten it with a visit to a U.S. sanctuary where rescued circus elephants now live in comfortable retirement.

John Noakes: TV Hero (BBC2) showed the former Blue Peter presenter's superhuman courage

But the truth is that Jumbo is a symbol of how sadistically human beings have treated elephants for 150 years. Today, some experts warn we have perhaps 20 years to save them from extinction. The whole business, like this one-off documentary, is heartbreaking.

An elephant gave the marvellous Noaksie, who died earlier this year, one of his most famous TV moments  though, as his fellow Blue Peter presenter Val Singleton revealed on John Noakes: TV Hero (BBC2), mischievous Lulu didnt actually tread on Johns foot. He was acting, for laughs.

But John wasnt acting when he scaled Nelsons Column with not so much as a hard hat for safety gear. Noaksies courage was superhuman: whether he was asked to hurl himself down the Cresta Run on a bobsleigh or jump out of an aeroplane, he never thought twice about it.

This was a terrific tribute to a unique star  and a salute to an era of recklessly entertaining telly that is long gone.

Its just a shame that many of the clips were so well-known. There must be dozens more in the archives just as good. Lets have a whole series.
Bella Hadid was spotted hauling her Louis Vuitton luggage through JFK Airport's bustling terminal in New York on Sunday alongside an assistant.

The 21-year-old IMG Model went make-up free for her eight-hour flight from England's Heathrow Airport and scraped her extension-free brunette bob into a messy top-bun.

The Victoria's Secret catwalker sported a $154 black tracksuit from UK feminist clothing brand LAPP along with matching patent leather platform boots and a faux-fur hooded jacket.

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On a roll! Bella Hadid was spotted hauling her Louis Vuitton luggage through JFK Airport's bustling terminal in New York on Sunday alongside an assistant

Aside from attending the launch of her $5,900 limited-edition Tag Heuer Link watch, Bella spent her time in London day-drinking Corona beer on a park bench in Primrose Hill with pals.

Hadid - who boasts 17.4M social media followers - wrote 'coming home' on Instagram, meaning the cozy Pennsylvania horse farm her mother Yolanda (born Van den Herik) bought back in June.

Meanwhile, the nepotistically-privileged socialite's millionaire real estate developer father, Mohamed, remains in her native Los Angeles.

According to MailOnline, the half-Jordanian, half-Dutch stunner spent a whopping 'three minutes' at a Palestinian protest against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Globetrotter: The 21-year-old IMG Model went make-up free for her eight-hour flight from England's Heathrow Airport and scraped her extension-free brunette bob into a messy top-bun

Athleisure: The Victoria's Secret catwalker sported a $154 black tracksuit from UK feminist brand LAPP along with matching patent leather platform boots and a faux-fur hooded jacket

Busy: Aside from attending the launch of her $5,900 Tag Heuer Link watch, Bella spent her time in London day-drinking Corona beer on a park bench in Primrose Hill with pals

Bella was still wearing her glamorous fur-collared Ermanno Screvino FW/17 corduroy coat and red-sequin gown selected by stylist Elizabeth Sulcer as she briefly picketed the US Embassy near Hyde Park.

It was the day after Hadid declared on Instagram that she 'stands with Palestine' after seeing the sadness of her 'father, cousins, Palestinian family, and ancestors.'

'Jerusalem is home of all religions,' the Fyre Festival promoter wrote.

'For this to happen, I feel, makes us take 5 steps back making it harder to live in a world of peace. The TREATMENT of the Palestinian people is unfair, one-sided and should not be tolerated. I stand with Palestine. There is no hate against anyone... There are no sides... All religions living side by side.. Now it is Just one man..it has always been a factor of trying to bring peace... Where is the hope..?'

Next destination: Hadid wrote 'coming home' on Instagram, meaning the Pennsylvania horse farm her mother Yolanda (pictured) bought back in June

Darling daddy: Meanwhile, the nepotistically-privileged socialite's millionaire real estate developer father, Mohamed, remains in her native Los Angeles

Pictured Friday: The half-Jordanian, half-Dutch stunner spent 'three minutes' at a Palestinian protest against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital

Photo opp: Bella was still wearing her fur-collared Ermanno Screvino FW/17 corduroy coat selected by stylist Elizabeth Sulcer as she briefly picketed the US Embassy near Hyde Park

'Jerusalem is home of all religions': It was the day after Hadid declared that she 'stands with Palestine' after seeing the sadness of her 'father, cousins, Palestinian family, and ancestors'

On Thursday, Us Weekly reported that homeschooled millennial has been 'talking, texting, and FaceTiming' her ex-boyfriend The Weeknd ever since he split from Selena Gomez (who's back with ex Justin Bieber) last month.

The 27-year-old Canadian crooner (born Abel Tesfaye) - who's currently touring Australia - will next compete for best urban contemporary album at the Grammy Awards airing January 28 on CBS.

With Bella's busy schedule, it's hard to believe she takes '30 pills and self-administers two shots a day in the keester' just to properly function with her Lyme Disease - according to InStyle.

Pictured in 2016: On Thursday, Us Weekly reported that homeschooled millennial has been 'talking, texting, and FaceTiming' her ex-boyfriend The Weeknd ever since he split from Selena Gomez last month
She's currently celebrating a gal pal's birthday in Miami.

And Iskra Lawrence was clearly having the time of her life as she spent some quality girl time with her friends on the beach and at the shops.

The Aerie model, 27, rocked a pair of grey leggings that clung to her physique as she hit the beach with her friends before trying on a festive pair of red and white pajamas.

Life's a beach! Iskra Lawrence was clearly having the time of her life as she spent some quality girl time with her friends shopping around and on the beach

Pajama party! Iskra hit the beach with her friends before trying on a festive pair of red and white pajamas

Iskra and the girls all wore a black T-shirt in honor of the birthday girl that declared in bold font, 'Fatty's B'Day Turn Up.'

Strolling beside the waves with her pals, the cheerful star soaked in the sea breeze before posing up a storm beside a lifeguard tower.

The model flashed a huge smile as she struck a playful pose while sitting on the brightly painted tower.

Aside from hitting the beach with her pals, Iskra and her friends also rocked matching red and white striped pajamas.

Sending temperatures soaring! Lawrence's grey leggings clung to her physique

Peace out! The 27-year-old flashed a peace sign as she celebrated her gal pal's birthday

Pretty in plaid! Lawrence rocked a blue plaid shirt that knotted at her waist

The model laughed and smiled as she tried on the comfortable pajamas with all her pals in tow.

From the red carpet to modelling for Aerie, Iskra's schedule has been jam-packed with glamorous events as of late.

She also joined forces with Aly Raisman to talk about body positivity and self-love at Aerie in Miami that same day.

Just the girls! Iskra kicked back on the lifeguard tower beside her friends

Hitting her stride! The star stepped out in a comfortable and sporty pair of trainers

Beach girl: The model soaked in the sea air as she strolled by the ocean with a shopping bag in hand

The golden-haired beauty refuses to label herself a plus size model and she previously protested against the lack of diversity during London Fashion Week.

It is no wonder she has secured so many high-profile invites after she forged a successful modelling career with the aim to change the industry's perceptions on beauty and size.

Iskra has courted the attention of her legion of loyal fans on Instagram with her body confidence and positivity.

She recently described on social media how 'imperfectly' is 'perfect' because 'real is good enough' as she continues to craft a positive body image for her followers.

Birthday fun! Lawrence and her pals all rocked matching birthday T-shirts

Earning her fashion stripes! Iskra padded around the shop in her socks and striped pajamas
On screen it is the Resistance against the First Order.

But behind the scenes of Star Wars there is a much bigger battle going on  over the fate of Carrie Fisher's dog Gary.

The late actress's assistant Corby McCoin and her daughter Billie Lourd have been at loggerheads over the beloved French Bulldog's role in the wake of his master's passing.

Gary: assistant Corby McCoin (pictured) and her daughter Billie Lourd have been at loggerheads over the beloved French Bulldog's role in the wake of his master's passing

McCoin has been in possession of the pooch since the Princess Leia icon passed away last Christmas.

Since then, the fan favourite pet has made a number of public appearances  which Billie is not happy about, according to TMZ.

While McCoin wants to take the dog to functions to allow fans meet him and feel close to Fisher, Lourd reportedly believes this is cheapening her memory.

According to the site, the dog was due to make an appearance at ComicCon, but Lucasfilm contacted the organizers and asked them to block it.

Nope: While McCoin wants to take the dog to functions to allow fans meet him and feel close to Fisher, Lourd (pictured at the premiere on Saturday night) reportedly believes this is cheapening her memory

Cheapened: While she and her dad, CAA exec Bryan Lourd, fully understand how close Carrie was to her pet, they do not want her memory defined by the animal

He was also supposed to make an appearance with Mark hamill at Star Wars Celebration in Orlando last year, but again it was blocked.

Billie was actually the dog's original owner; her mother adopted him as a service animal to help deal with her bipolar disorder.

While she and her dad, CAA exec Bryan Lourd, fully understand how close Carrie was to her pet, they do not want her memory defined by the animal.

Working relationship: Billie was actually the dog's original owner; her mother adopted him as a service animal to help deal with her bipolar disorder

TMZ reported that Lourd senior even offered McCoin $250 a month to prevent him from parading the dog, but was rejected.

Gary meanwhile, who went everywhere with Carrie before she died, has a cameo appearance in The Last Jedi, as an alien pet.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens on Friday.
He broke his silence about splitting with Alex Nation for the first time on Monday.

And former Bachelor Richie Strahan left the previous day for a getaway to Japan, accompanied by friend and former Big Brother housemate Travis Lunardi.

The 32-year-old shared his excitement to travel in a series of Instagram snaps, following Alex's new fiancee Maegan Luxa's interesting message to him a day earlier.

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Sojourn: After breaking his silence on splitting with Alex Nation, former Bachelor Richie Strahan left for a getaway to Japan

'Here we go!' the reality star announced in the first of many social media uploads, accompanied by a shot of his coffee, passport and plane tickets.

His next capture was a panorama photo out the window of the plane, showcasing the bright blue sky and wing of the aircraft.

He flaunted his business class status in the next image, a shot of a complimentary grey shirt with a satin ribbon tied around it.

'Here we go!' the reality star announced in the first of many social media uploads, accompanied by a shot of his coffee, passport and plane tickets

Views: His next capture was a panorama photo out the window of the plane, showcasing the bright blue sky and wing of the aircraft

Richie then took a selfie with Travis, both smiling broadly as they enjoyed their spacious seats with the caption: 'This ledge [legend]'.

He then shared another selfie, this time in the dark with his eye-mask propped above his face and the words, 'Epic nap on the way to Japan'.

The rope access technician opened up to New Idea on Monday about his split with Alex, saying he had 'made a lot of sacrifices' for their failed relationship.

Buddies: Richie then took a selfie with Travis, both smiling broadly as they enjoyed their spacious seats with the caption: 'This ledge [legend]'

Elite: He flaunted his business class status in the next image, a shot of a complimentary grey shirt with a satin ribbon tied around it

Alex has moved on with her fellow AFL player girlfriend Maegan Luxa, and the lovebirds revealed their engagement one week ago.

They were snapped in Sydney Airport on Sunday, where Maegan had a cryptic message for Richie when approached by paparazzi.

'You can guess it ... I wouldn't say it. I would do what I did last time,' she softly answered amid laughs.

Called it quits: The rope access technician opened up to New Idea on Monday about his split with Alex, saying he had 'made a lot of sacrifices' for their failed relationship
Nineties supermodel Cindy Crawford and her mini-me daughter Kaia Gerber had a ball at a fundraiser for Best Buddies, which took place at Pinz Bowling Center in Studio City on Sunday.

As usual, the evergreen mother-of-two easily defied her 51 years while clad in a grey peasant blouse, black skinny jeans, and big buckled boots.

The longtime Versace muse toted a Gucci cross-body bag and rocked dark sunglasses as she chatted with a female friend.

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'Doing Calvin's (M) signature move!' Nineties supermodel Cindy Crawford (R) and her mini-me daughter Kaia Gerber (L) had a ball at a fundraiser for Best Buddies, which took place at Pinz Bowling Center in Studio City on Sunday

Meanwhile, the nepotistically-privileged 16-year-old - who scored her California driver's license on September 5 - was joined by her 17-year-old gal pal and fellow IMG Model, Charlotte Lawrence.

The Malibu High School junior - who relies on stylist Elizabeth Sulcer - showcased her long skinny legs in tiny denim shorts, an Ice Cube T-shirt beneath a darker jean jacket, and Converse high-tops.

Inside, Cindy (born Cynthia) hung out with several people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, who receive support from the nonprofit 501 (c)(3) organization.

Best Buddies is 'dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, and leadership development' for the IDD community.

Casually clad: As usual, the evergreen mother-of-two easily defied her 51 years while clad in a grey peasant blouse, black skinny jeans, and big buckled boots

Mystery woman: The longtime Versace muse toted a Gucci cross-body bag and rocked dark sunglasses as she chatted with a female friend

Crawford and her second husband Rande Gerber plan on celebrating Christmas with the Chanel Metiers d'Art catwalker and their 18-year-old son Presley at a 'resort for five days.'

'Last year, we were with Rande's family. This year it is mine, and I am so excited that all of the cousins will be together,' the Northwestern University drop-out told People on Wednesday.

'We used to take everyone to our house in Mexico and stay a little longer. But now the kids are growing up and prefer to spend New Year's Eve with their friends and not with us!'

Despite Presley's affinity for vaping - the Midwestern beauty has advised her offspring to not smoke, to eat well, drink lots of water, get regular exercise, and get plenty of sleep.

Got her California driver's license on September 5! The nepotistically-privileged 16-year-old was joined by her 17-year-old gal pal and fellow IMG Model, Charlotte Lawrence (R)

Pins: The Malibu High School junior showcased her long skinny legs in tiny denim shorts, an Ice Cube T-shirt beneath a darker jean jacket, and Converse high-tops

Strike! Inside, Cindy (born Cynthia) hung out with several people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, who receive support from the nonprofit 501 (c)(3) organization

Starstruck: Best Buddies is 'dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, and leadership development' for the IDD community

'I'm so happy for Kaia and tell her there are no beauty secrets,' Cindy explained.

'But she needs to remember to take off her makeup before she goes to bed each night. I also tell her not to over tweeze her eyebrows because they won't necessarily grow back.'

Crawford - who boasts 6.1M social media followers - continued: 'But when it comes to modern technology, I have both of my kids advise me!'

The genetically-blessed foursome recently became the first family to collectively represent the Swiss luxury watchmaker, Omega SA, in a campaign shot by famed lensman Peter Lindbergh.

'The kids prefer to spend NYE with their friends!' Crawford and her second husband Rande Gerber plan on celebrating Christmas with the Chanel Metiers d'Art catwalker and their 18-year-old son Presley at a 'resort for five days' (pictured Wednesday)
They are the star couple who tied the knot in 2012.

And in their trademark witty style, Zoe Foster Blake paid tribute to her husband Hamish on their fifth wedding anniversary, which is also his birthday, on Monday.

The 37-year-old shared a comical homage to the father of her two children to Instagram, calling him her 'homeboy'.

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Zany: In their trademark witty style, Zoe Foster Blake paid tribute to her husband Hamish on their fifth wedding anniversary, which is also his birthday, on Monday

Uploading a snap of Hamish and their toddler Sonny wearing matching 'Homeboy' bracelets by Venessa Arizaga, she added a lengthy funny caption.

'He was my homeboy first, Sonny, back off! Ha ha but seriously, I have known Hamish for like 10 years longer than you so tone it down, champ,' she joked to her son.

'No for real, I want to wish happy birthday to my beautiful homeboy in love and life (AND happy anniversary, because my GOD are we efficient in this family),' she said.

'He was my homeboy first, Sonny, back off! Ha ha but seriously, I have known Hamish for like 10 years longer than you so tone it down, champ,' she joked to her son

The author urged her almost 630,000 followers to head to Hamish's Instagram and comment on his most recent post: 'Buon compleanno, ti auguro un sacci di funghi!'.

'[It means] (Happy birthday, I wish you a lot of mushrooms!) (He hates mushrooms.),' she explained.

'Doesn't like mushrooms? What a monster. I'd be asking for a divorce!' offered one fan in the comments section.

Bliss: The high-profile lovebirds were married on Hamish's 31st birthday five years ago

The high-profile lovebirds were married on Hamish's 31st birthday five years ago.

'I'll never forget the moment I first saw Zoe as a bride... I've never had my breath taken away until that moment,' Hamish told Woman's Day at the time.

In addition to Sonny, they welcomed daughter Rudy Hazel in August this year.
The Australian stunner once toured Europe as an oboe musician before finding her feet in modelling.

After signing to her first agency at 14, it didn't take long for the model to strut her stuff down the catwalk for lingerie giant Victoria's Secret by age 24.

And on Monday, the now 26-year-old beauty shared a sweet throwback image of herself as a fresh-faced child to her more than 305k followers.

Guess who? The Australian stunner once toured Europe as an oboe musician before finding her feet in modelling

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She resides in New York, but regularly gushed about her upbringing in Perth's beachside town, South Fremantle.

Wearing a blue school uniform, she smiled with her mouth closed for the photo as her locks were tied up with clips and a floral hairtie.

Growing up as a teen she sported porcelain skin, dark hair and a side fringe, but can you recognise this Australian beauty?

Guess who! She's an international model who has walked for Victoria's Secret... but would YOU recognise her as a teenager in this throwback snap?

The model is Perth native, Bridget Malcolm.

The married personality can be seen in the throwback snap standing in a white singlet and denim shorts.

She was 15 when the image was taken.

Bridget captioned the snap: 'How's this for a throwback? Bridget's first digitals... 15 years old (I grew out that hair cut).'

Familiar face! The model is Perth native, Bridget Malcolm

Successful: She's strutted her stuff down the catwalk for lingerie giant Victoria's Secret

Bridget is no stranger to sharing old images of herself.

She's previously shared a snap from her childhood showing herself in glasses and braces.

She explained that when she was discovered at age 14, she had braces and 'self-cut hair' and it took her a while to find self-confidence.

She said she initially felt 'terrified' and struggled to look people in the eye on earlier jobs.

Looking back: Bridget is no stranger to sharing old images of herself. She's previously shared a snap from her childhood showing herself in glasses and braces

'Eventually modeling taught me how to look people in the eye, and that I deserve to be where I am today, no matter what the trolls say,' Bridget wrote on her blog.

Answering a fan's query about whether she should model as a teenager, Bridget said that modelling had given her a world of confidence.

'When IMG scouted me at 14, I was terrified. I couldnt talk, and I felt like I had fooled everyone,' she wrote.

'It took a couple of years to shake this feeling, but eventually modeling taught me how to look people in the eye, and that I deserve to be where I am today, no matter what the trolls say.'

But Bridget stressed the budding model should only work part-time until they were 18, and find other hobbies so their life didn't just revolve around the fashion world.

This would make things easier when you weren't chosen for jobs, the Victoria's Secret model argued .

'This job has a shelf life, and you will endure a lot of rejection,' she went on to write.

It is a lot easier to endure the rejection when you have a full life outside of modeling; with interests in people outside of the industry, and other hobbies to occupy your mind and time.

'Never lose sight of what life without modeling will look like for you  because one day it will happen! Plus it keeps you interesting.'
CAUTION: MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD

Fans of the Walking Dead are reacting to the show's shocking mid-season finale.

After the show revealed Rick's son Carl was bitten by a walker during Sunday's episode, fans were beside themselves.

One hysterical viewer wrote: 'Not Carl!!! Not that way!!!!' while others used GIFS and memes to convey their feelings.'

Jaw dropping: Fans of the Walking Dead are reacting to the show's shocking mid-season finale Sunday which revealed Rick's son Carl was bitten by a zombie and is going to die soon

While the character, who is played by actor Chandler Riggs, hasn't died yet, a bite means it's only a matter of time until Carl's death.

One tweet from a user called @RickAndThangs had the Confused Math Lady meme above text that read: 'Trying to figure out ways Carl could survive the walker bite.'

The account continued expressing their disbelief, writing: 'CARL IS IMMUNE. LETS SAY IT TOGETHER' atop an image of Spongebob's Patrick Star explaining something emphatically.

User Lauren Gonzalez was also in denial, tweeting: 'Carl better be the first character in this show who is immune.'

Cruel world! 'Yall took Glenn and now Carl,' wrote a fan, referring to the quick-thinking character played by Stephen Yeun who was brutally killed in the riveting closer to last season

Say it ain't so! After the show revealed Rick's son Carl was bitten by a walker, fans were besides themselves, with one hysterical viewer writing: 'Not Carl!!! Not that way!!!!'

Crunching the numbers: One tweet from a user called @RickAndThangs had the Confused Math Lady meme above text that read: 'Trying to figure out ways Carl could survive the walker bite'

In denial: The account continued expressing their disbelief, writing: 'CARL IS IMMUNE. LETS SAY IT TOGETHER' atop an image of Spongebob's Patrick Star explaining something

Don't think there's a shot for that... User Lauren Gonzalez was also in denial, tweeting: 'Carl better be the first character in this show who is immune'

Hug it out: Another tweet showed a teary-eyed Rick and series favorite Daryl embracing each other, captioned simple: 'I need a hug'

'Yall took Glenn and now Carl,' wrote a fan, referring to the quick-thinking character played by Stephen Yeun who was brutally killed in the riveting closer to last season.

Another tweet showed a teary-eyed Rick and series favorite Daryl embracing each other, captioned simple: 'I need a hug.'

The post was paired with a crying Leonardo DiCaprio asking 'How am I supposed to live?' in a clip from the 1995 film Total Eclipse.

'It won't be the same without you...' a sentimental post from user @ImmortalDaryl read along with a picture of Daryl and a younger Carl sitting together.

Picture's worth a thousand words: One post let the GIFs do the talking, showing a sobbing Emma Stone shoveling ice cream into her mouth while just tweeting the text: 'Carl'

Best buddies: 'It won't be the same without you...' a sentimental post from user @ImmortalDaryl read along with a picture of Daryl and a younger Carl sitting together

Fan favorite: It was easy for fans to get sentimental about the character, who has been played by actor Chandler Riggs since the show's start

Rest In Power: While the character, who is played by actor Chandler Riggs, hasn't died yet, a bite means it's only a matter of time until Carl's death

One post let the GIFs do the talking, showing a sobbing Emma Stone shoveling ice cream into her mouth while just tweeting the text: 'Carl.'

'You ain't gonna do Carl like that!' a tweeter said along with a grab of Danny Devito's character Frank from It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia looking somber and saying 'nope.'

'Carl Grimes, just a kid trying to grow up in the apocalypse' posted one fan page.

They paired the message with a collage of the character from each of the zombie show's eight seasons.

Growing up: 'Carl Grimes, just a kid trying to grow up in the apocalypse' posted one fan page along with a collage of the character from each of the show's eight seasons

Not my boy! 'You ain't gonna do Carl like that!' a tweeter said with a grab of Danny Devito's character from It's Always Sunny In Philedelphia looking somber and saying 'nope'

Unbelievable: One poster was more incredulous than anything, writing: 'So youre telling me, that Carl can get shot twice and then ends up dying from a bite?'

'Let me just say it already, its so haaaaard to say goodbye....got damn it Carl,' user Icon Living wrote over a GIF of a boy shedding a single tear.

One poster was more incredulous than anything, writing: 'So youre telling me, that Carl can get shot twice and then ends up dying from a bite?'

Rather than being bitter, the fan embraced the twist, continuing: 'I f***ing love it. RIP you little s***, you and your hat.'

Showrunner Scott M. Gimple talked about the plot twist during the post-episode chat show Talking Dead, where he explained that Carl's bite 'will play out as bites play out in the show.'

Cry me a river: 'Let me just say it already, its so haaaaard to say goodbye....got damn it Carl,' user Icon Living wrote over a GIF of a boy shedding a single tear

Unfinished business: Although Carl's fate is sealed, TWD showrunner Scott M Gimple said Carl still 'has some business to attend to' upon the series' return early next year

Although his fate is sealed, Gimple said Carl still 'has some business to attend to.'

He explained: '[A bite] is a one-way ticket, but I'd like to think that the things that we see in the next episode are so important in his life and the other characters' lives.'

Carl's end is an unexpected choice, as the character is still alive in the comic books which inspired the show and has been a constant since the show's 2010 debut.

Walking Dead returns from a mid-season hiatus in February, airing February 25 2018 on AMC.
Bella Thorne has revealed she was molested.

The actress, 20, told Twitter followers on Friday she was a survivor of sexual abuse after a user commented on a photo she posted, 'What did Disney do to this girl?! I think she was molested.'

Thorne tweeted in response: 'Yeah I was. So it wasn't Disney.'

Heartbreaking: Bella Thorne has revealed she was molested (pictured Mexico in October 26)

She tweeted minutes later, 'The world can be a sick place sometimes.'

The user had initially asked the question in response to a photo Bella had posted of herself wearing a purple suit, which she captioned, 'I would f**k this suit if I could.'

Thorne wrote no other information about her experience.

After making the revelation, Thorne was immediately flooded with messages of support from fans after making the heartbreaking revelation.

'Love u mama ur the strongest person I know,' Bella's boyfriend, Mod Sun, tweeted at her.

Revelation: Thorne wrote no other information about her experience

Response: The actress, 20, told Twitter followers on Friday she was a survivor of sexual abuse after a user commented on a photo she posted, 'What did Disney do to this girl?! I think she was molested'

Encouraging: Thorne's fans sent positive messages her way

'You are brave & loved & perfect the way you are. I'm so sorry. & sorry that some loser who doesn't know you would write something so gross,' tweeted Thorne's Famous In Love co-star Georgie Flores.

'Means more than you know,' Thorne replied back, along with several heart emojis.

Thorne's star rose after she appeared in the Disney channel series Shake It Up from 2010 to 2013.

She's catapulted to fame and has appeared not only on television but on film as well, including The DUFF, Blended, and Boo! A Madea Halloween.

Thorne currently stars in the series Famous In Love and the upcoming teen romance film, Midnight Sun.

Sending support: Bella's Famous In Love co-star Georgie Flores sent an encouraging message
Will Smith made an appearance at the 2017 Comic Con Experience in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Sunday.

The Hollywood star was promoting his upcoming Netflix sci-thriller Bright along with his co-star Joel Edgerton and director David Ayer.

Will, 49, was in high spirits as he played to the appreciative crowd.

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Star power: Will Smith made an appearance at the 2017 Comic Con Experience in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Sunday

The Men In Black and Independence Day star wore a bright yellow v-neck long-sleeved top and black jeans.

He added blue shoes.

During the course of the promotional appearance, he took the microphone and cracked jokes, took selfies and rapped.

Colorful: The Men In Black and Independence Day star wore a bright yellow v-neck long-sleeved top and black jeans. He added blue shoes

He's a pro: During the course of the promotional appearance, he took the microphone and cracked jokes, took selfies and rapped

Entertainer: Will, 49, was in high spirits as he played to the appreciative crowd and showed off his moves

Selfie time: The Hollywood star was promoting his upcoming Netflix sci-thriller Bright along with his co-star Joel Edgerton, right, and director David Ayer, left

In Bright, Will and Joel play LAPD detectives with a difference.

Will is a human cop while Joel is an Orc and the two have an uneasy relationship until one night they discover the existence of a weapon that could destroy everything.

The visual effects-laden fantasy is rumored to be the most expensive Netflix project to date with Vulture reporting it cost upwards of $100 million to make.

It will be released on the premium streaming service on December 22.

Fantasy adventure: In Bright, helmed by the Suicide Squad director, Will and Joel play LAPD detectives with a difference

Pricey: The visual effects-laden movie is rumored to be the most expensive Netflix project to date, reportedly costing upwards of $100 million to make
He's played Ramsay Street resident Karl Kennedy on Neighbours since 1994.

And now, actor Alan Fletcher is talking about his character's sordid affair with a nurse that shocked the nation two decades ago.

Speaking with TV Week on Monday, the 60-year-old stated: 'That story line... was when Neighbours underwent a renaissance.'

Shock affair! Neighbours star Alan Fletcher (centre) has talked with TV Week about his character Karl's extramarital affair with much younger nurse Sarah (played by Nicola Charles, right), which gave the soap a ratings boost in 1997

The shock affair been Karl, an upstanding family man with three children, and young nurse Sarah Beaumont (played by Nicola Charles) gave the soap a ratings boost back in 1997.

Making the frisky fling even more outrageous was the fact Karl's daughter, Libby, was close friends with Sarah.

'It really revitalised the show', Alan told TV Week of the plot-twist tryst that captured the nation's attention.

Nineties nostalgia! Karl's affair was made all the more shocking as viewers saw him as an upstanding family man

Karl's wife Susan (played by star Jackie Woodburne) memorably slapped her philandering husband across the face and told him to move out of their Ramsay Street address.

Although they later reconciled, Karl again cheated on Susan with the scheming Izzy Hoyland (played by pop queen Natalie Bassingthwaite).

Natalie is set to return to the soap in 2018, reviving her role as Izzy, which will no doubt cause more drama for the marriage of Karl and Susan.

Turbulent relationship: Karl and Susan's troubled on-off marriage has been a major focus of Neighbours for almost a generation

Troubled husband and wife on screen, best friends off-screen: Alan gushed about Jackie in the TV Week interview

And while Karl and Susan's troubled on-off marriage has been a major focus of Neighbours for almost a generation, Alan and Jackie don't have any dramas off-screen despite playing the strained spouses.

'The highlight of Neighbours will always be my relationship with Jackie,' Alan stated.

'Jackie and I are firm and fast friends with makes my work life so much more enjoyable'.
Louis Tomlinson reunited with his son Freddie Reign during a custody hand-off with his Calabasas-based babymama Briana Jungwirth on Sunday.

It seemed to be a bit of a tense moment between the famous Yorkshireman - turning 26 on Christmas Eve - and the 25-year-old former stylist wearing a shearling coat and mini-dress.

Meanwhile, the former couple's 23-month-old baby boy appeared to be in good spirits in his cute striped polo shirt, grey jeans, and Converse high-tops.

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Family first: Louis Tomlinson reunited with his son Freddie Reign during a custody hand-off with his Calabasas-based babymama Briana Jungwirth on Sunday

Tomlinson (born Austin) was dressed down for daddy duties in his usual athleisure wear - this time an Army-green Supreme sweatsuit with $180 grey Reebox 'Pump Supreme' sneakers.

Louis 'dumped' Briana when she was eight months pregnant with little Freddie, but 'promised to love and support their child financially' - according to Life & Style.

Last month, the former 1D boybander called his on/off relationship with his British girlfriend Eleanor Calder 'amazing.'

Emotional: It seemed to be a bit of a tense moment between the Yorkshireman - turning 26 on Christmas Eve - and the 25-year-old former stylist wearing a shearling coat and mini-dress

Cherubic child: Meanwhile, the former couple's 23-month-old baby boy appeared to be in good spirits in his cute striped polo shirt, grey jeans, and Converse high-tops

Athleisure wear: Tomlinson (born Austin) was dressed down for daddy duties in an Army-green Supreme sweatsuit with $180 grey Reebox 'Pump Supreme' sneakers

'Each relationship is different, but I am very, very lucky and very happy,' the Back to You belter told Metro's Guilty Pleasures.

'Definitely [more kids] at some point. It's one step at a time. That's probably what I get most excited about, doing all the family stuff and dad stuff.'

On Thursday, Tomlinson paid tribute to the most important woman of his life, his late mother Johannah, on the year anniversary of her death age 43 after a battle with leukemia.

Christmas stockings: Louis reportedly 'dumped' Briana when she was eight months pregnant with little Freddie, but 'promised to love and support their child financially'

'Definitely [more kids] at some point!' Last month, the former 1D boybander called his on/off relationship with his British girlfriend Eleanor Calder 'amazing' (pictured March 8)

RIP: On Thursday, Tomlinson paid tribute to the most important woman of his life, his late mother Johannah, on the year anniversary of her death age 43 after a battle with leukemia

Careerwise, Louis' boozy music video for Miss You about 'dancing on tables' and 'singing until last call' has amassed 2.2M views on YouTube since it dropped Friday.

On December 2, the X Factor alum made his triumphant return to the ITV competition to perform Miss You, which is the third single off his untitled solo debut album released through his label Triple String Ltd.

'I'm off my face!' Careerwise, Louis' boozy music video for Miss You about 'dancing on tables' and 'singing until last call' has amassed 2.2M views on YouTube since it dropped Friday
Michelle Marsh recently sparked rumours she's rekindled her relationship with her Married At First Sight 'husband' Jesse Konstantinoff, after the pair were seen exchanging flirty messages on Instagram.

And on Monday, the stunning blonde did little to dampen the speculation by posting a picture of an ENGAGEMENT ring to her social media account.

The provocative post prompted several fans to question whether green grocer Jesse may have got down on bended knee, with one writing: 'Engagement ring??Something to tell us miss?'

Teasing fans! On Monday, MAFS beauty Michelle Marsh did little to dampen the speculation she is back with her ex Jesse Konstaninoff by posting a picture of an ENGAGEMENT ring to her Instagram page

'Congratulations' another presumptive fan wrote, accompanied by a ring emoji.

However, Michelle went on to clarify that, while her snap did feature engagement bling, it was not a photograph of her own hand.

'Looked right past my TWIINS glass in that post ... most definitely not engaged ladies. That's my lovely friend Caris .. she's the lucky duck' she stated.

Flirting: Michelle was spotted flirting with MAFS 'ex-husband' Jesse Konstantinoff on Instagram last week

Clarification: Michelle clarified that it wasn't her hand in the snap, after fans questioned whether she had become engaged

The Perth-based beauty is a wine maker, and her snap was uploaded to promote her alcoholic beverage, rather than boast about an engagement.

However, fans could easily be forgiven for the misunderstanding given her flirty online exchanges with 'ex' Jesse.

Last weekend, Michelle shared a photo of a Perth beach accompanied by the caption: 'Wouldn't want to be anywhere else'

Split: Stunning Michelle infamously 'friendzoned' fruit and veg vendor Jesse on the top-rating reality show earlier in the year

Flirty exchange: Michelle and Jesse are clearly close friends, sharing banter beneath a recent Instagram upload

Ex Jesse then cheekily commented: 'As long as you like isolation' accompanied by a winking emoji.

Continuing the banter, Michelle wrote back: 'OMGGGGG don't you start this again'.

Jesse replied with another winking face and the word 'haha'.

Pals: Daily Mail Australia reached out to both Michelle and Jesse for comment last week, who stated that they were just good friends

Stunning Michelle infamously 'friend zoned' fruit and veg vendor Jesse on the top-rating reality show earlier in the year.

She subsequently began a relationship with firefight Adam Medwick, however he has not been featured on her Instagram for some time.

Daily Mail Australia reached out to both Michelle and Jesse for comment last week, who stated that they were just good friends.
She married her handsome husband Matthew Mills on the tropical island of Mustique last year.

And 'Deliciously' Ella Mills reminisced on the lavish ceremony as she revisited the Caribbean resort on a sun-soaked holiday with her other half on Sunday.

The 26-year-old food blogger showed off her sensational figure in a high-cut red swimsuit as she cosied up to Matthew in the same spot where the pair tied the knot last April.

Stunner: 'Deliciously' Ella Mills reminisced on the lavish ceremony as she revisited the island on a sun-soaked holiday with her other half on Sunday

Ella took to Instagram to document her pre-Christmas trip, cheekily posing in-between two palm trees in the flattering one piece, which showcased a hint of cleavage in a low cut neckline.

She styled her brunette tresses in a neat ponytail and shaded her eyes from the sun in a pair of oversized sunglasses.

Captioning the shot: 'Sunday feels like', the healthy eating guru looked happier than ever as she soaked up the sun's rays.

Sweet: The 26-year-old food blogger showed off her sensational figure in a high-cut red swimsuit as she cosied up to Matthew in the same spot where they tied the knot

In another shot the Sainsbury's heiress described her heart 'bursting' with love as she cosied up to her husband.

Flashing her diamond engagement ring, Ella seemed overwhelmed with emotion as she penned: 'Standing in the spot we got married in. Makes my heart burst standing here. It was definitely the best decision Ive ever made. Loving getting some real time together away from our computers and the madness of running our business this week - such heaven. '

The eldest daughter of Camilla Sainsbury seems to have celebrated their belated one-year anniversary on the luxury getaway.

She told Women's Health in September: 'It was our first wedding anniversary in April and we'd planned a romantic trip to Paris leaving on a Thursday evening.

Ella and Matthew originally opened their first deli in Marylebone, calling it 'Mae' - standing for Matt and Ella. But they changed the name to Deliciously Ella this year

'But that afternoon, two of our biggest cereal stockists said they needed a pile of documents we thought we had three weeks to finish - so we ended up spending our anniversary in a Portakabin, finalising spreadsheets, eating about 30 kilos of granola.'

The former model became engaged to Mills after just four months of dating, with them moving in together after just two weeks of dating

They met when her father, former Labour MP Shaun Woodward, introduced them and had their first date at London's Soho House.

True love: The loved-up couple first met in 2015, and both said it was love at first sight

Despite a relatively small guest list, their wedding celebrations are said to have gone on for four days, with the wedding accommodation - a set of private villas - costing up to 50,000 each.

The loved-up pair, who met in 2015, opened their joint business venture, a deli in Marylebone, last year, and have gone on to open another in Mayfair, both under the Deliciously Ella name.

Ella used to be a self-confessed 'sugar monster', who was struck down with a rare illness that attacked her nervous system and left her bed-bound.

She said she cured herself through healthy eating.
They celebrated ten years of marriage earlier this year.

And Jordana Brewster and Andrew Form kept the romance alive with an intimate date night at Los Angeles' Craig's Restaurant on Sunday.

Perfecting a smart, casual style for her amorous evening, the 37-year-old actress seemed unable to wipe the smile from her face as they left the celebrity hot spot.

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Hitting the town: Jordana Brewster and husband Andrew Form kept the romance alive with an intimate date night at Los Angeles' Craig's Restaurant on Sunday

The Fast and Furious star highlighted her lithe physique in a simple yet chic black camisole top.

Injecting a pop of colour into her evening ensemble, Jordana slipped into a pair of statement coral trousers and elongated her pins with platform sandals.

Giving her date night style some added pizzazz, she finished the look with a pendant necklace and toted her evening essentials in a quilted red, Chanel handbag.

Svelte: The Fast and Furious star highlighted her lithe physique in a simple yet chic black camisole top and skintight pink trousers

Jordana kept her hair and make-up simple, letting her brunette locks cascade around her face in natural waves.

Producer Andrew put on an equally dapper display for their evening out, opting for navy chino trousers and a smart, tailored jacket.

Jordana and Andrew met in 2006 on the set of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, of which Andrew served as producer.

Perfecting a smart, casual style for her amorous evening, the 37-year-old actress seemed unable to wipe the smile from her face as they left the celebrity hot spot

The pair announced their engagement that same year in November - one month after the film was released.

A year later they tied the knot in a private ceremony in the Bahamas.

They have since welcomed four-year-old son Julian and one-year-old son Rowan.
She was stunned after winning the show on Sunday night, admitting she 'didn't think anyone would like her'.

And Georgia Toffolo will be blown away by the outpouring of love for her on social media now that she's Queen of the Jungle.

The Made In Chelsea star, 23, could not contain both her shock and delight as she was announced the winner, after receiving the majority of more than nine million votes cast - leaving actor Jamie Lomas in second place.

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Take a bow! Fans were quick to hit Twitter and Instagram to share their delight over Gergia Toffol's triumph on I'm A Celebrity on Sunday - sharing reams of excitable memes in tribute to the 'absolute sweetheart'

YES, YES, YES! From a clip of Meryl Streep's exuberant reaction to Patricia Arquette's equal pay speech at the 2015 Oscars, to images from Beyonce's Run the World video - social media went wild in celebration of Toff's win on the show

Fans were quick to hit Twitter and Instagram to share their delight over her triumph - sharing reams of excitable memes in tribute to the 'absolute sweetheart'.

From a clip of Meryl Streep's exuberant reaction to Patricia Arquette's equal pay speech at the 2015 Oscars, to images from Beyonce's Run the World video - social media went wild for the royally good reality star.

It is now believed that Toff is set to make a whopping 5million off the back of her win, with ITV reportedly fighting against Made In Chelsea's home channel E4 to hire her as a presenter, as well as produce her own spin-off show.

The MIC star pipped actor Jamie Lomas and radio host Iain Lee to the title, after winning over viewers with her sense of humour and constantly positive attitude.

Outpouring: Fans flocked to Twitter to pay tribute to Toff's 'kindness' and 'humility' - as well as her arguments against sexism in camp

Clearly not realising how popular she has been throughout the series, the blonde was lost for words as she was crowned the winner, telling Ant and Dec: 'I don't know what to say. I didn't think anyone would like me! Sorry I'm so taken aback. I'm so shocked.'

It is now believed that Toff is set to make a whopping 5million off the back of her win, with ITV reportedly fighting against Made In Chelsea's home channel E4 to hire her as a presenter, as well as produce her own spin-off show.

The MIC star pipped actor Jamie and radio host Iain Lee to the title, after winning over viewers with her sense of humour and constantly positive attitude.

Clearly not realising how popular she has been throughout the series, the blonde was lost for words as she was crowned the winner, telling Ant and Dec: 'I don't know what to say. I didn't think anyone would like me! Sorry I'm so taken aback. I'm so shocked.'

And after being crowned Queen of the Jungle, and now Channel 4, BBC and ITV are vying to sign her up for her own show.

A source said: "All three major networks are fighting for her. ITV see massive potential, while Channel 4 are keen to keep her as they feel ownership after giving her a break on 'Made In Chelsea'. She has also been offered a book deal and clothing line."

Toff has also been inundated with a series offers as she moaned about not having plans for New Year's Eve.

The insider added to The Sun newspaper: "Some want to fly her to Barbados, New York and Dubai. Others offered her dinner or to take her down their local so she doesn't see in 2018 alone."

Hip-hip hooray! From an excitable Dec Donnelly to Fresh Prince's Carlton's celebratory dance, the memes came in thick and fast as the programme came to an end

Toff surprised herself when she won the show as she admitted she "didn't even think anyone would like her".

She told hosts Ant and Dec: "I don't know what to say. I didn't think anyone would like me, let alone pick me to win.

"Sorry, I'm really taken aback. It's really overwhelming. Thank you so much. Thank you so much to everyone who voted. Sorry, I don't know what to say, I'm really shocked."

Toff was handed her winning flower crown over to her from last year's winner Scarlett Moffatt.

She told her: "I feel like crying for you. It's girls like you that make me feel so proud to be a young woman. You did it for all of us girls in there, proper girl power."

Meanwhile, Jamie - who finished as runner up - also heaped praise on the blonde star for always giving everything a go.

He said: "She's a great champion, she deserved it.

"She's got stuck in, she's been brilliant, funny, entertaining, so well done Toff. You deserve it."
Channel Nine has cancelled it's Logie award-winning series Love Child after four seasons, its been revealed.

The popular drama, which stars Jessica Marais, was reportedly axed last month, according to News.com.au on Monday.

The cast was notified in recent weeks that the show would not be renewed for a fifth season, months after season four premiered to it's lowers ever ratings of 624,000 metro viewers.

Cancelled: Channel Nine has cancelled it's Logie award-winning series Love Child after four seasons, its been revealed

A spokesperson Channel Nine confirmed to Daily Mail Australia the show will not be renewed.

The report also claims the future of Network Ten's The Wrong Girl, which also stars Jessica Marais, remains uncertain.

The network's popular drama Offspring has been put on hold and star Deborah Mailman said producers made the right choice.

Uncertain future: The report also claims the future of Network Ten's The Wrong Girl, which also stars Jessica Marais (2-L), remains uncertain

On hold: The network's popular drama Offspring has been put on hold and star Deborah Mailman (R) said producers made the right choice

'You don't want to keep pushing out a show that's sort of lost its appeal,' she said.

'It's very difficult to know what sort of life Australian drama has on our screens anymore.'

It comes after actress Sophie Hensser-Bloom previously hinted at the show cancellation.

'If this was the last season I would be comfortable,' she told the Daily Telegraph.

The blonde also revealed that she was eyeing roles in Hollywood and will be meeting with U.S. TV bosses.

Axed: The popular drama, which stars Jessica Marais, was reportedly axed last month, according to News.com.au on Monday

Sophie isn't the only one that's hinted that she's moved on from her role on the show.

Danielle Catanzariti, 25, who plays the role of Italian migrant Elena Capobianco, echoed a similar sentiment to Sophie in a recent interview.

In the series, her character is ordered by her father to marry a man she hasn't met yet in Italy.

'If this was the last season I would be comfortable!' The report comes after actress Sophie Hensser-Bloom previously hinted at the show cancellation

Former child star Danielle Catanzariti (pictured) has spoken about her career breakthrough after landing a role on hit TV series Love Child

However, she risks upsetting her father when she falls pregnant by a young Australian man.

The role represents a career breakthrough for Danielle, who starred as a teenager in 2008 Australian film Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger.

'Esther was such an iconic role,' Danielle told The Daily Telegraph.

'I feel like I have grown up now and moved on from that.'

The role represents a career breakthrough for Danielle, who starred as a teenager in 2008 Australian film Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger (pictured)

'I think that I am in a new chapter in my career.'

And it appears the work is now coming in thick and fast for the Sydney-based actress, who has recently extended her talents to the stage.

Danielle is starring in the popular West End and Broadway show The Nether, which is now running at Sydney's Seymour Centre.

The show is a futuristic and intricate crime drama which previously received rave reviews from The New York Times.
He was one of the most beloved contestants on this year's I'm A Celebrity.

But despite having fun in the jungle, Stanley Johnson certainly looked in his element as he relaxed by the pool at the luxury Versace Palazzo Hotel poolside on the Gold Coast ahead of Sunday's finale.

The I'm A Celebrity star, 77, continued to prove his playful mounted the lilo and lapped up the sizzling Australian rays as he stripped down to his patterned swimming trunks.

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How to lilo after I'm A Celebrity! Shirtless Stanley Johnson certainly looked in his element as he relaxed by the pool at the luxury Versace Palazzo Hotel poolside on the Gold Coast ahead of Sunday's finale

Away from the hardships he faced in the camp, Stanley looked blissfully happy as he splashed around in the pool.

The father-of-six, including former Mayor of London Boris, gave a thumbs up as he enjoyed cooling off in the pool.

Later in the day, he beamed when he was reunited with his close pal Toff, whom he forged a close bond with after they survived the I'm A Celebrity jungle together.

It's a luxury: The father-of-six, including British politician Boris, gave a thumbs up as he enjoyed cooling off in the pool

Fine form: The 77-year-old showed off his weightloss in the jungle as he happily lapped up the Aussie sun

Beach life! The former politician then headed down to the sea to continue his relaxing day

Always smiling: Stanley was close to winner Georgie Toffolo during their time in camp together

The politician greeted the jungle queen with an affectionate kiss on the cheek and a friendly embrace when she touched down at the luxury hotel.

Suited and booted for the occasion, Stanley teamed his light blue linen shirt with an cream blazer.

Meanwhile, Toff had no time to change out of her jungle gear and she was sporting her ethereal garland made up of deep purple flowers and delicate foliage.

Regal reunion: Later in the day, he beamed when he was reunited with his close pal Toff, after she was crowned Queen of the jungle

Emotional: So taken with Stanley, the young reality star even cried when his time in the jungle came to an end earlier after the formed a close bond

The pair were delighted to be reunited after a tearful goodbye when Stanley was the fifth celebrity to be voted off the show.

Wiping away her tears, reality star Toff said: 'Im really upset. I woke up this morning and made a mental note I was going to ask Stanley if we could be pen pals, I want to write to him all the time when were back home.'

Meanwhile, Stanley discussed their friendship when he was greeted by cheeky presenters Ant and Dec after his exit.

He had nothing but kind words to say about the reality star and he insisted: 'I've got a soft spot for Toff! I'm soft for Toff!'

During his jungle stint, Stanley battled with bulls' testicles, insect swarms and near-starvation but it was the women's 'offending' knickers in the camp he found most difficult to tackle.

Suited and booted: Stanley teamed his light blue linen shirt with an cream blazer while Toff had no time to change out of her jungle gear

A royal greeting! The politician greeted the jungle queen with an affectionate kiss on the cheek and a friendly embrace when she touched down at the luxury hotel

Detailing his experience in his jungle diaries first published in the Mail On Sunday, he wrote: 'Ive risen late only to find that Coronation Street star Jennie McAlpine has hung her knickers to dry on the throne, so we have a little debate. "Is it in order," I ask the assembled company, "for honourable members to hang their knickers on the PMs chair?" Iain opposes the motion as the Creeks Secretary of State for Health.

'When I call on Jennie to defend the motion, she surprisingly refuses to do so, removes the offending knickers and fashions a "knickerstick" to wave over the fire.

'Suddenly it seems that everywhere I look there are knickers. The practice caught on. All the women then found their own knickersticks. Ill say this: you dont get debates like that in the Commons.'

Fabulous fun: The pair were delighted to be reunited after a tearful goodbye when Stanley was the fifth celebrity to be voted off the show
Hamish Blake and wife Zoe Foster Blake's toddler son Sonny has become just as popular as his famous parents in recent years.

And the adorable three-year-old continues to steal the spotlight, even on Hamish's 36th birthday on Monday.

In a heartfelt snap shared to Zoe's Instagram page, the chubby-cheeked toddler was snapped helping decorate a homemade cake in celebration of the comedian's birthday.

'Happy birthday daddy': In a heartfelt snap shared to Zoe's Instagram page, Sonny was snapped helping decorate a homemade cake in celebration of his dad Hamish's birthday

The colourful cake was smothered with bright yellow frosting and had 'Happy birthday daddy 36' spelled out with chocolate letters.

Hamish shared his own snap online, alongside fellow comedian Ryan Shelton - and the pair were stuck behind desks.

'Man there's nothing like doing some work on your birthday and watching your buddies have to pretend they're not about to launch into the biggest surprise party of all time!!!' he captioned.

Working on his birthday! Hamish shared his own snap online, alongside fellow comedian Ryan Shelton - and the pair were stuck behind desks

''Seriously Hame, we planned nothing, sorry, could we get back to it please?' Sure Ryan! I'll just type away like a ton of balloons aren't going to fall from the hidden panels in the fake roof you probably stayed up all night installing!

'You're the best! You can't fool me! #birthdaymadness #blessed #unfooled'.

The sassy caption was accompanied by three pictures of Hamish looking very pleased with himself and a confused Ryan trying to focus beside him.

Twins! She also took the time to share a sweet snap of the two leading men in her life wearing matching 'homeboys' bracelets

While the doting father worked his wife, author Zoe Foster-Blake, was busy preparing a cake that read 'Happy Birthday Daddy' with their son Sonny.

She also took the time to share a sweet snap of the two leading men in her life wearing matching 'homeboys' bracelets.

'He was my homeboy first, Sonny, back off!!' The 37-year-old writer of Who Gives A Fart shared on social media.

The happy couple: Hamish and his wife Zoe share two children together

The look of love! Hamish is the proud father of Sonny and Rudy

'Ha ha ha but seriously I have known Hamish for like 10 years longer than you so tone it down, champ.

'No but for real, I want to wish a happy birthday to my beautiful homeboy in love and life (AND happy anniversary, because my GOD are we efficient in this family), and urge you to comment on Hamish's latest post with Buon compleanno, ti auguro un sacci di funghi!

'(Happy birthday, I wish you a lot of mushrooms!) (He hates mushrooms.)'

Many of her 627,000 followers took heed and wrote the Italian phrase on her husband's latest snap.

Hamish, who worked alongside his best friend Andy Lee on Hamish and Andy for 14 years, presented their last radio show gig together earlier this month.
She enjoyed a sun-soaked holiday in the Maldives last month, during which time she treated her fans to a plethora of bikini snaps.

And Elizabeth Hurley appeared to be missing the hot climates of her tropical trip as she posted a sizzling bikini-clad shot via her Instagram on Sunday.

Flaunting her age-defying figure in a tiny hot pink two-piece, the 52-year-old actress was a vision of beauty as she reclined on a sandy beach.

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Elizabeth Hurley flaunted her age-defying figure in a tiny hot pink two-piece on her Instagram

The Royals star, who is the owner of an eponymous swimwear line, oozed glamour in the tiny bikini that showed off her ample cleavage and enviably taut stomach.

Showcasing her natural beauty, the stunning brunette appeared to go make-up free for her beach outing, with just a glossy balm on her lips.

In another shot, Liz's bikini was visible under a sheer strapless dress which complemented her swimwear with a patterned pink design.

Her brunette tresses were slightly windswept as she showed off her sun-kissed tan in the beach ensemble.

Age-defying: The Royals star, who is the owner of an eponymous swimwear line, oozed glamour in the tiny bikini that showed off her ample cleavage and enviably taut stomach

The Bedazzled star treated fans to a number of swimwear snaps during her luxurious getaway.

In one stunning snap, the British sex symbol defied her years as she showed off her enviable stomach and lean legs in afun sideways pool snap.

Clearly having the time of her life, Elizabeth oozed sex appeal as she floated in the glistening waters with a big smile plastered on her face.

The tiny red bikini top just about contained her assets, while the barely-there bottoms gave way to her yoga-honed legs.

With her brunette locks sprawled out in the water behind her, Elizabeth proved she was in high spirits as she grinned up at the camera.

She's got the look: In another stunning snap, the British sex symbol defied her years as she showed off her enviable stomach and lean legs in a fun sideways pool snap

In another shot, the English beauty reclined in a glittering gold triangle top and matching bottoms, captioning it: 'All that glitters.'

It was hard to believe the bombshell was in her fifth decade as she showed off her supernaturally flat abs and full chest in the flirty top gold and black top.

Liz, who is mother to 15-year-old son Damien, masked her eyes with retro aviators while wiggling to the tune of a Latin-infused instrumental during her social media post.

Glittering goddess! The Bedazzled star continue to prove she was still as sultry-as-ever when she took to Instagram to promote her own line of swimwear on Thursday

The EDtv actress's sultry display comes after Elizabeth insisted she has no desire for son Damian, 15 who she shares with ex Steve Bing, to become a celebrity due to feeling 'trapped by fame.'

The Austin Powers star told The Daily Telegraph that she would not want Damian to garner the attention attached to being a star, despite his role as Prince Hansel von Liechtenstein in her E! series The Royals.

Elizabeth, who soared to fame in the Nineties while dating Hugh Grant, has a famously close bond with her son, making her concerns understandable although his exposure thus far could make her quest for her son's anonymity a mean feat.

In September Liz revealed she is still on great terms with her exes Hugh, former husband Arun Nayer and ex fiance Shane Warne.

She told Mail On Sunday's You magazine: 'If someone's lovely how could you not be on good terms with them? None of us has ever done anything bad to one another.'

The star added: 'Hugh and Arun are very important in our lives. Shane is still a good friend. We were texting each other last night.'
He has cracked various jokes about his troubled year during I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!.

And after calling it a wrap on another year of the successful ITV series, Ant McPartlin looked happy as he left dinner in Australia with his pals Dec Donnelly and Georgia on Monday.

Ant, 42, who battled drink and drug addiction in rehab earlier this year, seemed in good spirits as he posed for a fan photograph, which was taken by Georgia, who is the assistant of Dec's PR wife Ali Astall.

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Time to relax! After calling it a wrap on I'm A Celebrity this year, Ant McPartlin looked happy as he left dinner in Australia with his pals Dec Donnelly and Georgia

Snap happy: Ant, 42, who battled drink and drug addiction in rehab earlier this year, seemed in good spirits as he posed for a fan photograph, which was taken by Georgia, who is the assistant of Dec's PR wife Ali Astall

Ant embraced the sunshine Down Under as he puffed away on a cigarette during the casual evening in a black button down top, shorts and checked monochrome shoes.

With a pair of sunglasses propped down his front, Ant, whose wife Lisa Armstrong is back in the UK, looked in a great mood as he embarked on the low-key stroll.

It wasn't long before Ant was approached by an eager fan who asked for a photograph and he happily obliged.

Georgia - who works for Ant & Dec's management company James Grant - helped as she snapped away while Dec and his fan smiled to the camera.

Chilling: Ant embraced the sunshine Down Under as he puffed away on a cigarette during the casual evening in a black button down top, shorts and checked monochrome shoes

In great spirits: With a pair of sunglasses propped down his front, Ant, whose wife Lisa Armstrong is back in the UK, looked in a great mood as he embarked on the low-key stroll

Famous: It wasn't long before Ant was approached by an eager fan who asked for a photograph and he happily obliged

Say cheese! Georgia happily helped as she snapped away while Dec and his fan smiled to the camera

Georgia also showed off her stylish flair for the outing in a floral shirt and ankle-grazing blue denims, complete with gold sandals.

The leggy beauty styled her blonde locks into a braided updo and accessorised with dainty gold hoops.

With a smile on her face, Georgia looked in high spirits during the evening with her pals, Ant and Dec.

Trendy: Georgia - who works for Ant & Dec's management company James Grant - also showed off her stylish flair in a floral shirt and ankle-grazing blue denims, complete with gold sandals

Mane attraction: The leggy beauty styled her blonde locks into a braided updo and accessorised with dainty gold hoops

Happy: Smiles were shared all around as the pals embarked on their dinner outing

Relaxed: Clearly pleased with another successful season of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! under his belt, Dec was unable to wipe the smile from his face following dinner

Georgia has been pictured with Ant and Dec a few times since their arrival to Australia last month - no doubt, cementing her friendship with the pair.

Clearly pleased with another successful season of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! under his belt, Dec was unable to wipe the smile from his face.

He opted for a casual navy top and light blue jeans while a pair of shades rested on his forehead.

Earlier in the week, Ant McPartlin was seen yet again making a hilarious joke about his woes as he told co-host Dec: 'You thought I had problems!'

The host's one-liner comes after it was revealed the duo boast a secret third member, Andy Milligan, who works tirelessly behind the scenes every day to create their jokes for I'm A Celebrity.

Companion: Georgia has been pictured with Ant and Dec a few times since their arrival to Australia last month - no doubt, cementing her friendship with the pair

Sighting: At the end of last month, she was spotted enjoying a conversation with Ant outside a bookstore in Oz

Shore looks good! On Sunday, Georgia joined Ant and Dec's wife Ali Astall at the beach

Friendship: Georgia went on to soak up the sun during another sunny excursion with Ant and Dec in Australia

The hilarious moment came when Dec appeared to struggle to pronounce the word 'admirable' after which his quick-witted co-star made his one-liner.

In the first episode of I'm A Celebrity, Dec joked about the rumours of Ant being replaced as he said: 'It's me and the gorgeous Holly Willoughby.' He then added in mock horror: 'Wait, no! Guys that's the wrong script! You've put the wrong script in!'

Turning to Ant, who was stood in mock outrage, Dec continued the joke by stating, in reference to his pal's rehab stint: 'No one was sure if you would make it or not!'

Confirming to fans he was better than ever however, the famous Geordie assured: 'Unbelievable. I was always going to make it, come on.'

Having a giggle: Ant was seen making a hilarious joke about his woes as he told co-host Dec Donnelly: 'You thought I had problems!'

Cracking up: Ant's one-liner comes after it was revealed the duo boast a secret third member, Andy Milligan, who works tirelessly behind the scenes every day to create their jokes for I'm A Celebrity

He then added excitedly: 'I'm back my friend!' before the pair sweetly hugged, to the applause of the production crew.

It now transpires the hilarious skit was penned by Andy, who has worked with the hosts for 12 years and is thought to have masterminded the witty asides that addressed Ant's rehab stint for painkiller addiction.

Ant has suffered a difficult 2017, after admitting in June he had been battling a two-year addiction to painkillers after a devastating knee injury and fertility issues.

Media-shy: The handling was met with praise from viewers - with Andy rumoured to be behind the operation, according to the Mirror

Ant revealed his plans to check in to rehab for alcohol and drug addiction, when he gave a candid interview to The Sun admitting he had 'let people down', before thanking his wife Lisa Armstrong and co-star Declan for the support they had provided.

While he hasn't been joined by wife Lisa out in Oz, due to her working commitments on Strictly Come Dancing as a make-up artist, she made sure to hit back at the speculation, breaking her silence on the duo's rumoured 'marriage woes'.

Lisa had hit back at the long-running reports that the duo have separated by taking to Twitter, as she penned on the microblogging site: 'I'm not estranged, thank you'.

He's come through it: He admitted he had 'let people down', before thanking his wife Lisa Armstrong (pictured) and co-star Declan for the support they had provided




She's the TV presenter who just married her partner of five years.

And Lauren Phillips has been giving her 82,000 followers something to be jealous about posting a number of luxurious honeymoon snaps.

The Myer ambassador wed her creative director fiance Lachlan Sparks on Saturday in a custom-made Con Ilio gown.

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'We are overwhelmed with happiness': Lauren Phillips shares snaps from her lavish honeymoon as the new couple gorges on wedding cake and Twisties

The happy couple left their reception party in idyllic Flinders, Victoria, and headed just 17 minutes north to Red Hill, where they will spend time relaxing.

They drove the short distance in a Mazda FWD which had their wedding hashtag #meetthepharks emblazoned on the side.

Checking into South Hampton Luxury Retreat, the 30-year-old wasted no time at all heading to the acreage's infinity pool.

Talk about iconic! They drove the short distance in a Mazda FWD which had their wedding hashtag #meetthepharks emblazoned on the side

'This place is heaven,' Lauren captioned the Instagram post.

She instantly set up pool-side with a packet of Twisties courtesy of her brand new family.

'When the new mother-in-law delivers the hangover cure,' she wrote of the snack.

'Got it @lachspark?': Lauren posted a hilarious snap of a chocolate bar made for newlyweds

Pool with a view! She instantly set up pool-side with a packet of Twisties courtesy of her brand new family

But she wasn't the only one enjoying a snack, with Lachlan busted eating some of their Sweet Bakes wedding cake on the kitchen counter.

'Let the post-wedding blow out begin #busted,' Lauren captioned the funny snap.

The retreat is made up of three luxury homes which overlook a winery in the centre of Red Hill.

Oops! But she wasn't the only one enjoying a snack, with Lachlan busted eating some of their Sweet Bakes wedding cake on the kitchen counter

Bring on the celebration: The retreat is made up of three luxury homes which overlook a winery in the centre of Red Hill

The pair decided to sample the alcohol whilst there, with Lauren choosing an image of them clinking glasses to thank some of there 180 guests at the wedding.

'From the bottom of our very full hearts, thank you to everyone for your best wishes and kind words. We are overwhelmed with happiness.'

According to Stayz.com holidaymakers must stay a minimum of two nights at the stunning locale, which totals approximately $4,000 around the Christmas period.
Bauer Media is the powerhouse magazine publisher behind glossy publications such as Women's Weekly, Woman's Day and Cosmopolitan.

And according to a new report published by Confidential on Tuesday, 'several luxury wardrobe and beauty products have vanished from one of its departments.'

The publication states that 'staff are yet to be questioned' over the incident.

'Staff are yet to be questioned': Shock claims that valuable items have VANISHED from Bauer Media's Sydney office

'The matter is an internal matter being reviewed and it has not been confirmed that there is any suggestion of theft or otherwise,' the spokeswoman told Confidential yesterday.

A source who works for Bauer at their famous Park Street offices in the heart of Sydney, told the publication that the beauty products had been 'fleeced'.

Additionally, the source claimed that items from the clothing is also unaccounted for.

According to Confidential 'at least some of the [missing] products were borrowed from Myer so they could be photographed for the print magazine Myer Emporium'.

Famous offices: Powerhouse publisher Bauer Media has offices on Sydney's Park Street

The department store giant hired Bauer to produce the magazine for them- however, the magazine has now ceased publication after being 'axed' by the media company just weeks ago.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to both Bauer Media and Myer for comment.

The exact figure of the missing products has not been disclosed.

Cuts: According to a report on Mumbrella published on November 22, Bauer axed four extra magazines in addition to Myer Emporium

According to a report on Mumbrella published on November 22, Bauer axed four extra magazines in addition to Myer Emporium.

Last year, Bauer famously ceased publishing iconic women's magazine, Cleo, which had been in circulation for 44 years.

The media company has been in the headlines in recent months after Rebel Wilson sued its magazine Woman's Day for defamation.

Bauer are currently the $4.56 million the actress was awarded in court.
On Saturday, Kirk Douglas cemented his status not only as one of Hollywood's most legendary actors but also one of the longest living, as he marked his 101st birthday.

And his grandson Dylan Douglas - whose parents are Catherine Zeta-Jones and son Michael Douglas - wasted no time in paying tribute to his famous relative, when he took to Instagram to share a heart-warming snapshot of himself with the star.

Alongside the image, which showed the 17-year-old lovingly planting a kiss on the cheek of his smiling grandfather, Dylan wrote: 'Happy birthday 101 years and still sexy love you with all my heart Pappy.'

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Big celebration: Kirk Douglas' grandson Dylan Douglas took to Instagram to pay tribute to the star, as he marked his 101st birthday on Saturday

The tribute was one of a number posted on social media by the Spartacus star's decedents, with Dylan's 38-year-old half-brother Cameron Douglas also taking to the photo-sharing app, where he shared a selection of snaps of Kirk spanning decades.

'Heres to 101 years of art, inspiration, and philanthropy...still going strong! Happy Birthday Pappy! #Livinglegend,' wrote the actor, who is expecting the imminent arrival of his daughter with girlfriend Viviane Thibes.

Dylan's mother also paid tribute to her father-in-law on Instagram, sharing a shot of herself hugging the actor as he perched himself on her knee.

Make a wish! Sitting beside his wife Anne Douglas, the star blew out a single candle on his cake

Snap: Kirk's daughter-in-law Catherine Zeta-Jones also shared a snap of herself with him

Time to celebrate: At the bash, Kirk was joined by his sons (L-R) Michael and Joel Douglas

Decorated: The sweet treat was decorated with an array of petals, and his age on the front

She wrote: '101 today!!!! My darling Pappy on my knee. Happy Birthday to my wonderful, inspirational and loving father in law, Kirk. Love you with all my heart.'

According to Deadline's Pete Hammond, Kirk's 73-year-old son Michael flew from New York to California especially to join in the festivities - before jetted back to the East Coast in anticipation of becoming a grandfather via Cameron.

While Deadline reports that Michael's wife of 17 years Catherine wasn't able to make to the gathering, it's said that she relied on the wonders of technology to spread good tidings, singing Kirk a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday via FaceTime.

Among the family members also in attendance at the lunchtime bash were Kirk's son Joel - who 'posed for a photo with Michael and Kirk, spelling out 101 with their fingers' - and his actress granddaughter Kelsey Douglas, who is set to turn 25.

Tribute: Cameron Douglas, who is set to imminently become a father, paid tribute to the star

Honoured: Cameron, who is Michael's eldest son, shared a shot of Kirk and his wife Anne Douglas last month, as she was honoured for her work with the homeless

Milestone: Last year, when the star turned 100, his relatives also flooded social media with snapshots of themselves celebrating with the star

And, of course, Anne Douglas, his 98-year-old wife of 63 years, was by his side for the celebration, which attracted the likes of Hollywood power players Ron Meyer and Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Last year, Oscar recipient Kirk's 100th birthday was celebrated with a party that was just as much of a hot ticket, with Steven Spielberg expressing his admiration for the silver screen legend in a gushing speech.

'I used to think 100 was a number that was the impossible dream,' he began, before explaining how impressed he was with 'what you have done with your life'.

After reminding Kirk that he was an 'honorary member of the Spielberg family', the movie mogul delivered what was perhaps the ultimate compliment.

A big fan: During Kirk's 100th birthday celebration, film-maker Steven Spielberg had nothing but admiration for the screen legend

Recognising greatness: Studio executive Jeffrey Katezenberg was on hand to celebrate with Kirk both last year (pictured) and this year

'I wanted to come here and say I've been shooting movies and television shows for 47 years now and I've worked with the best of them and you're the only movie star I ever met,' he gushed.

He continued, 'there is something that you have that no one else ever had... When you watch Kirk's performance in anything, in anything he's ever done, you cannot take your eyes off of him. It's not possible to look away from him.'

Spielberg called it an optimistic ferocity and it's something he challenges all his actors to achieve in his films.

'You're a miracle man,' the Raiders Of The Lost Ark director concluded.

Family: Kirk's granddaughter Kelsey Douglas often uploads snaps of herself with her family

Here's to many more years! The star is regularly celebrated on social media by his relatives

He's got the moves: Last year, Dylan took to Instagram to share a video of Kirk dancing away
Brooklyn Beckham was spotted heading to class on his bicycle amid reports of a terrorist pipe bomb explosion in the subway just blocks away from his college classroom.

The son of David and Victoria Beckham, 18, seemed unaware of the incident as he hopped on board of his bike while heading to New York City's Parsons School of Design on Monday.

However, the budding photographer threw caution to the wind once again as he rode on a brake-free fixed-gear bicycle - a practice which is illegal in the UK.

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Riding along: Brooklyn Beckham was spotted heading to class on his bicycle amid reports of a terrorist pipe bomb explosion in the subway just blocks away from his college classroom

Make or brake: However, the budding photographer, 18, threw caution to the wind once again as he rode on a brake-free fixed-gear bicycle - a practice which is illegal in the UK

Keen on getting to his class on time, Brooklyn looked focused as he rode along on his bike.

The teen channelled grunge vibes in a black hoodie, matching skinny jeans and a pair of Dr. Martens.

He shielded himself from the winter chill with a bulky green khaki jacket and a grey beanie.

Brooklyn ensured all of his essentials for his morning of study were in his blue backpack.

Continuing his day: The son of David and Victoria Beckham seemed unaware of the incident as he hopped on board of his bike while heading to New York City's Parsons School of Design on Monday

In his element: Keen on getting to his class on time, Brooklyn looked focused as he rode along on his bike

Stylish: The teen channelled grunge vibes in a black hoodie, matching skinny jeans and a pair of Dr. Martens

While he made his way safely along the streets of New York on his bike, driving that particular mode of transport without brakes is illegal in the UK.

However, British born Brooklyn carried on about his day regardless.

This comes after Brooklyn hit his dad David, 42, where it hurts, after landing himself a Top 10 debut in British GQ's 50 Best Dressed Men in the World.

Warm: He shielded himself from the winter chill with a bulky green khaki jacket and a grey beanie

Everything he needs: Brooklyn ensured all of his essentials for his morning of study were in his blue backpack

Careful! While he made his way safely along the streets of New York on his bike, driving that particular mode of transport without brakes is illegal in the UK

Confident: However, British born Brooklyn didn't seem to care too much as he carried on about his day

More stylish than his dad! This comes after Brooklyn landed himself a Top 10 debut in British GQ's 50 Best Dressed Men in the World - beating his dad David

David, who is generally considered one of the snappiest dressers in showbusiness, slipped 13 places in the 2018 list, while Brooklyn ranked number 9.

On his triumph, GQ's style editors commented: 'He's continuing his father's excellent work in the field of menswear for the next generation.'

Meanwhile, Brooklyn's romance with Chloe Moretz is going from strength to strength since they confirmed they were back together in October, shortly after he relocated to to her city to study.

While he is loved-up, Brooklyn recently admitted that he has a few 'fangirls' at Parsons School of Design in NYC, where is studying photography.
They tied the knot in August after nine years together and are already parents to three-year-old son Teddy.

And now Adam Thomas, 29, has revealed that his wife Caroline, 27, is expecting their second child next year and admitted that they conceived their unborn tot on their wedding night.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, the Emmerdale star explained that he has already chosen a unusual name for their baby should it be a boy and thye plan to find out the gender on Christmas day when Caroline will pop a balloon with the colour akin to the sex inside.

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Adding to the family: Adam Thomas has revealed that his wife Caroline is expecting their second child next year and admitted that he has already chosen a unusual name for their unborn tot should it be a boy

Aside from the exciting reveal, the soap star - who jokingly tweeted today 'I hope it's mine' - admitted that although the pregnancy was a surprise, they are delighted with the news.

He said: 'We always wanted another baby but we werent planning for it to happen so soon after getting married. We conceived on our wedding night!'

Already thinking ahead, he told the publication: 'If its a boy, I like the name Paddington. Teddy likes the name too.

However, Caroline admitted she's not keen on proposed forename but insisted its difficult to find a moniker not associated with her students.

Delighted: The pair are already proud parents to three-year-old Teddy

Excitement: Speaking to OK! Magazine , the Emmerdale star, 29, explained that conceived their little one on their wedding night and plan to find out the gender on Christmas day when his 27-year-old love will pop a balloon with the colour akin to the sex inside

And while Caroline admitted it would be nice for their son to have a brother and to experience the close bond Adam has with his siblings Scott and Ryan, the actor revealed he would 'probably cry' if he finds out they are having a girl.

He shared: 'Im convinced we are having another boy so it will be quite overwhelming if I find out we are having a daughter. Being a dad to a girl would be a lovely experience.'

In September, the couple spoke about their fairytale wedding and Adam said that it was the moment he knew he would be with her 'forever'.

Ideas: Aside from the exciting reveal, the soap star - who jokingly tweeted today 'I hope it's mine' - admitted that although the pregnancy was a surprise, they are delighted with the news and he even has a name picked out inspired by a certain fictional bear

Meanwhile, the star is appearing in panto in Manchester this winter and said he couldn't wait to get out of his 'comfort zone' on This Morning last month.

Adam - who appeared on 2016's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! - was leaving Emmerdale and his character Adam Barton behind after eight years on the show.

'Go and get your tickets now, they're running out!', he exclaimed, adding, 'Holly and Phil will be there, you can meet them!'

Emotional: And while Caroline admitted it would be nice for their son to have a brother and to experience the close bond Adam has with his siblings Scott and Ryan, the actor revealed he would 'probably cry' if he finds out they are having a girl

Adam - whose twin brother is Love Island 2016 star Scott Thomas and whose brother is Corrie veteran Ryan Thomas - also discussed his older sibling's new role in Neighbours.

He said of Ryan's Australian adventure: 'I'm so jealous, he's living it up in the sun... and I'm in Emmerdale! It's his first time in Australia, he's a little tourist.'

The cheeky chappie turned the table on Holly and Phil during the interview, asking them whether they would take part in I'm A Celebrity.

'I would do it, absolutely', Phil declared, prompting a surprised Holly to say, 'You have to do it!'

Runs in the family: Adam's twin brother is Love Island 2016 star Scott Thomas (right) and while his older brother is Corrie veteran Ryan Thomas (left)
The Golden Globe Award nominations were announced on Monday morning with The Shape Of Water, Big Little Lies and The Post doing well.

And it wasn't long before celebrities took to social media to share their joy over the good news.

Meryl Streep, nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama, for The Post, said: 'Im thrilled for the movie, for Steven and Tom, and for the incredible ensemble of actors who made this movie need its moment in history. Thanks HFPA.'

She's happy: Meryl Streep expressed her joy over being nominated for a Golden Globe for her work on The Post; seen in January

He got one too: Her co-star Tom Hanks, nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama, for The Post, added: 'Very happy the work of the others on The Post has been given the attention they deserve. Thank you to the HFPA'

Her co-star Tom Hanks, nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama, for The Post, added: 'Very happy the work of the others on The Post has been given the attention they deserve. Thank you to the HFPA.'

Nicole Kidman, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for her work in Big Little Lies, said: 'We are all aware of how rare it is for a show and its cast to be honored in such a huge way, and we are all incredibly grateful.'

She added: 'Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press for giving the show so much love. It was made with love, guided by the incredible David E. Kelley and Jean-Marc Vallee as well as my partners in passion Reese Witherspoon, Per Saari and Bruna Papandrea.

Thrilled: Nicole Kidman of Big Little Lies, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, said: 'We are all aware of how rare it is for a show and its cast to be honored in such a huge way, and we are all incredibly grateful'

More: She added: 'Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press for giving the show so much love. It was made with love, guided by the incredible David E. Kelley and Jean-Marc Vallee as well as my partners in passion Reese Witherspoon, Per Saari and Bruna Papandrea'

'The character Celeste is so precious to me and the recognition is deeply appreciated.'

Her husband Keith Urban tweeted: 'Hey baby- CONGRATULATIONS on all the GLOBES love this morn!!!!!! Incredibly proud of you, the work, and all the BLL and TOTL team. THE STARS ALIGNED!!! xxxxxx - KU.'

Jude Law of The Young Pope, nominated for Best Performance by Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, said: 'Im happy that my work with the wonderful Paolo Sorrentino has been recognised. Thank you HFPA.'

He made it! Jude Law of The Young Pope, nominated for Best Performance by Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, said: 'Im happy that my work with the wonderful Paolo Sorrentino has been recognised'

Success: Alison Brie of Glow, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy, added: 'Wow wow wow!!! Thank you HFPA for the nomination!! I am over the moon!!!'

Claire Foy of The Crown, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series, Drama, said it was an 'honour.'

In the same category Caitriona Balfe (Outlander) was nominated and congratulated by her costar Sam Heughan, who wrote: 'Congratulations yazzzzz!!!'

The actress began: 'It is such an honour to receive this nomination today! Thank you so much to the HFPA for their continued support of The Crown. I cant express enough what a wonderful project it has been to be a part of, with such an extraordinary cast and crew. Thank you, thank you.'

The Crown creator Peter Morgan, who was nominated for Best Television Series, Drama, said: 'Thrilled thrilled thrilled thrilled!!!!'

Alison Brie of Glow, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy, added: 'Wow wow wow!!! Thank you HFPA for the nomination!! I am over the moon!!!'

Royal move: Claire Foy of The Crown, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series, Drama, said it was an 'honour'

Hugh Jackman, who stars in The Showman, wrote: 'Over 7 years ago we began the journey to get @GreatestShowman made into a major motion picture. Through all of the (literal) blood, sweat and tears .... giving up was never an option. As it is said - with great risk comes great reward. Thank you #HFPA! @goldenglobes.'

Seth Rogen tweeted: 'THE DISASTER ARTIST get nominated for big Hollywood awards!! What a story!!'

Kevin Bacon of I Love Dick, nominated for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series, Musical or Comedy, said: 'Thanks to the amazing Actors , Writers Directors and crew of this truly experimental.'

Freddie Highmore of The Good Doctor, nominated for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series, Drama, had a lot to say.

'There cannot be more wonderful news to wake up to on a Monday morning than this. Thank you to each and every member of the Hollywood Foreign Press for this amazing honour. Im proud that an optimistic, hopeful and unabashedly "good" character like Shaun has resonated with so many.

His show: Hugh Jackman, who stars in The Showman, wrote: 'Over 7 years ago we began the journey to get @GreatestShowman made into a major motion picture. Through all of the (literal) blood, sweat and tears .... giving up was never an option'

'And to David, the writers, producers, cast and crew of The Good Doctor  thank you all, and I cant wait to spend the day celebrating with (most of!) you on set today.'

Armie Hammer, who was nominated for his work in Call Me By Your Name, said: 'I guess if youre going to be woken up at 5am it might as well be with this kind of call. But then your day peaks at and where do you go from there?'

His co-star Timothee Chalamet, who was also nominated, added: 'I didnt want to anticipate this at all. I was stunned by this. My mom texted me "Yeah!" I love it.'

Bob Odenkirk of Better Call Saul, nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series  Drama, said: 'Im thrilled to be noticed and nominated by the Hollywood Foreign Press. My evolving role on Better Call Saul is incredibly rewarding. Like the fans, I cant wait to see where it goes next.'

Frankie Shaw of SMILF, nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy, wrote: 'I cant believe it! What started as a little short film I shot in my friends bedroom turned into this. I am so honored for the show to be recognized and for our name to be up there with all of these amazingly creative and talented people. Thank you to Showtime for believing in us, and thank you thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press!!!'

Chrissy Metz of This Is Us said: 'A big thank you to #HFPA for our @NBCThisisUs nominations! We are honored. @goldenglobes.'

She is nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

Her moment: Chrissy Metz of This Is Us said: 'A big thank you to #HFPA for our @NBCThisisUs nominations! We are honored. @goldenglobes'

Insecure star Issa rae wrote: 'Thanks for the congrats, everyone! Much love to my #InsecureHBO family & congrats to the other nominees! #GoldenGlobes.'

Millie Bobby Brown added: 'Congrats @DavidKHarbour and @Stranger_Things for the #GoldenGlobes nominations! Happy days #DadDance @netflix.'

Shawn Levy, executive producer of Stranger Things, nominated for Best Television Series  Drama: 'While all of us working on STRANGER THINGS were grateful for the success of our first season, we were also vigilantly determined not to rest on that. We wanted to make a second season that would feel authentic to our show and characters, but strive further in cinematic scope, emotion and depth.

The lead: Guillermo del Toros Shape of Water (pictured) leads the nominations with seven followed by Steven Spielbergs The Post and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri with six each

'We are so grateful for the reception of STRANGER THINGS 2 and the recognition of the HFPA with this second Golden globe nomination.'

Billie Jean King said: 'Congratulations to #EmmaStone and @SteveCarell on their @goldenglobes Best Actress and Best Actor nominations for @billievsbobby! Two great people who delivered two incredible performances. Proud to have played a small part in the film's success! #GoldenGlobes

Edgar Wright tweeted: 'Go, Baby, go!'

There were some negative reactions to the nods, however.

'The Golden Globes could have nominated Greta Gerwig, Dee Rees, Jordan Peele or even Patty Jenkins for Best Director. But no, we got five white men. Very disappointed,' one person tweeted.

Meanwhile....: Fans were not happy that Patty Jenkins was not nominated for Wonder Woman

Gerwig made a directorial debut with Lady Bird, Jenkins did Wonder Woman and Peele was on Get Out.

Guillermo del Toros Shape of Water leads the nominations with seven followed by Steven Spielbergs The Post and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri with six each.

Lady Bird stood alone in third place with four nominations, including Saoirse Ronan in the lead actress category.

Call Me By Your Name, The Greatest Showman, All the Money in the World, Dunkirk, and I, Tonya all followed with three nominations each.

HBOs summer hit Big Little Lies dominated the competition on the TV side with six nominations.

FXs Feud: Bette and Joan followed with four, and This Is Us, Fargo, and The Handmaids Tale tied for third place with three nods each.

The 75th Golden Globes Awards will air live from the Beverly Hilton Hotels Grand Ballroom on January 7 on NBC with host Seth Meyers.
Sofia Vergara can wear a trendy ensemble better than many women half her age.

And when the Modern Family actress hit Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills on Saturday, she did just that.

The 45-year-old Colombian beauty - who was likely shopping for husband Joe Manganiello - wore a ripped top and jeans that didn't miss the mark.

Fountain of Youth: Sofia Vergara wears ripped ensemble while shopping on Saturday in Beverly Hills

Classic beauty: The stunner might be wearing Nike sneakers for a shopping trip, but she didn't leave home without her Hermes Birkin bag

The beauty showed how to perfectly combine trendy items with some classic items during her shopping trip.

The Hot Pursuit star wore a long-sleeve shirt full of small holes all over paired with an equally hole-y pair of jeans with ventilation appearing around the knees.

Her comfortable Nike high-top sneakers are a must when you plan to do a lot of walking, especially during holiday shopping.

She finished her look with a black Hermes Birkin bag and oversized sunglasses.

Red carpet ready: Manganiello and Vergara celebrated two years of marriage in November; here they are seen on Saturday at The Last Jedi premiere in LA

Vergara and Manganiello, who celebrated two years of marriage in November, stepped out for the premiere of the latest Star Wars film on Saturday and the couple looked more in love than ever.

In an Instagram post shared on both Sofia's and Joe's accounts, the love birds showed how thoughtful they are with one another.

The True Blood alum had the words 'I love Sofia' engraved onto the collar of his suit jacket.

True love: Manganiello keeps his wife close with a secret message hidden under his collar

The siren was spotted shooting Modern Family scenes with co-stars Sarah Hyland, Ty Burrell and Rico Rodriguez in Venice Beach on Thursday.

The hit series is currently in its 9th season and has aired 197 episodes to date.

Sofia's work on the comedy helped catapult her to become the highest paid actress on television, according to Forbes.

Gloria! The Colombian native, who portrays Gloria Delgado Pritchett on Modern Family, shot scenes for the ninth season in Venice Beach on Thursday

Fans are currently still awaiting for the release of Vergara's newest film Bent, co-starring Andy Garcia and Karl Urban. The revenge-thriller shot this Spring in Italy but has not yet received a date it will hit theaters.

The brunette is rumored to have her first nude scene in the film when she and Urban are in the shower together. She was photographed in Rome wearing only a bed sheet alongside the Star Trek star.

The mom-of-one plays the role of Rebecca, a woman described as a a ruthless, seductive government agent.
She shot to fame on Love Island last summer, getting engaged to fellow dater Alex Bowen after a whirlwind five months together.

But Olivia Buckland left her hunky fiance at home on Tuesday evening, as she attended the Cocoa Brown by Marissa Carter festive lunch at The Ivy Soho Brasserie.

The 24-year-old reality star flashed her bronzed limbs in a red velvet dress as she joined fellow Love Islander Chloe Crowhurst at the star-studded London bash.

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Reality star babes: Love Island stars Olivia Buckland and Chloe Crowhurst stunned in thigh-grazing dresses as they attended the Cocoa Brown by Marissa Carter festive lunch at The Ivy Soho Brasserie

Olivia, who is an ambassador for the fake tan brand the lunch was hosted for, ensured she looked suitably bronzed for her night out.

Flaunting her sunkissed limbs in a racy thigh-split dress, she added height with some black caged heeled sandals.

Styling her golden locks in a sleek middle parting, she plumped her pout with nude lipstick and framed her eyes with bronze iridescent shimmer.

She seemed to be in great spirits as she mingled with Chloe, who starred on this year's Love Island, and Celebs Go Dating host Nadia Essex.

Chic: The 24-year-old reality star flashed her bronzed limbs in a red velvet dress and fur jacket

Looking good: Olivia, who is an ambassador for the fake tan brand the lunch was hosted for, ensured she looked suitably bronzed for her night out

Chic: Flaunting her sunkissed limbs in a racy thigh-split dress, she added height with some black caged heeled sandals

Olivia enjoyed a whirlwind romance with Alex Bowen since meeting in the Mallorcan villa in July 2016, getting engaged just five months later during a romantic trip to New York City.

The couple, who readily admit that making their relationship work after the ITV2 show was 'hard work', credit their lasting romance with making an effort to see each other every day when they came out of the villa.

Alex said: ' Olivia has a job I'll go with her, if I have a job she'll come with me. I had a lot of PAs when I first came out. But I would spend every night in my own bed.

'It was such hard work but we made it work and we're really happy together.

Just hanging out: The reality star beamed as she mingled with Marissa Carter

Taking the plunge: Chloe Crowhurst, who starred on this year's Love Island, looked chic in a tuxedo-style wrap minidress

Olivia added: 'He was making the effort to come back and see me every night before the next one. We worked really really hard on it. It probably made us the most tired people in the world. But we always wanted to be together.

'I always say our relationship is mega strange because we spend 24/7 together and we never get sick of each other. We're so so lucky that we just get on super well.'

Meanwhile Alex and Olivia, who finished as runners-up to Nathan Massey and Cara De La Hoyde, revealed they had a rather unconventional -and very drunken- way of celebrating their engagement, with a wild visit to a strip club.

Double trouble: Made In Chelsea star Tina Stinnes and Celebs Go Dating host Nadia Essex were also in attendance

Having a whale of a time: The pair appeared to be in great spirits as they stopped for a snap

Alex said: 'I was really ill before we went to New York and I was getting better each day I was there but I hadn't really been eating before we went.

'We went to have cocktails after in the hotel and we got absolutely trashed, so trashed. I had two and I was drunk.

'We looked across the street and saw the strip club and we both looked each other laughed and said 'come on we'll go in.'

Alex then paid for a dance for his new fiance which went down a storm with Olivia.

Olivia said: 'We made friends with this stripper she was so lovely. We were so drunk and we're always up for a laugh. That was just pure banter, it wasn't sexual. It was hilarious.'

Budding beauty: Presenter Hayley Sparkes rocked a floral velvet wrap dress and metallic heels
They are hot on the promotional trail for the highly- anticipated new Star Wars film, with the world premiere held in Los Angeles on Saturday.

And Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill looked slightly weary as they touched down in London in Monday following an 11 hour flight from Los Angeles, ahead of The Last Jedi UK premiere on Tuesday.

Daisy, 25, who plays Jedi Padawan Rey in Episode VIII of the space saga, donned a black t-shirt, matching leggings and a denim shearling coat for her arrival into Heathrow Airport.

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Touchdown: Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill looked slightly weary as they touched down in London in Monday following an 11 hour flight from Los Angeles, ahead of The Last Jedi UK premiere on Tuesday

Her brunette tresses were tied back into a ponytail while her sparkling eyes were hidden behind leopard print shades.

The star showed off her natural beauty by going make-up free for her arrival as she pushed a trolley of suitcases.

Acting legend Mark, 66, channeled his Jedi alterego Luke Skywalker as he strolled through the terminal, clad in a hooded leather jacket reminiscent of a Jedi's robe.

He was joined by his glamorous wife Marilou York and his daugghter Chelsea, 29.

Premiere eve: Mark, 66, was joined by his glamorous wife of 39 years Marilou York and their daughter Chelsea

Feeling the force: Acting legend Mark, 66, channeled his Jedi alter-ego Luke Skywalker as he strolled through the terminal, clad in a hooded leather jacket reminiscent of a Jedi's robe

Mark paired his jacket with a khaki t-shirt, black trousers and a checked scarf as he acclimatised to the frosty UK temperatures.

Dozens of flights have been cancelled at the UKs busiest airport as the fallout from the weekends heavy snow continues to cause disruption for passengers.

Heathrow said it was operating three-quarters of its full schedule as airlines dealt with the knock-on effects of Sundays heavy snowfall, which turned to ice overnight as temperatures plummeted.

Their arrival came after the glittering world premiere at LA's Shrine Auditorium on Saturday.

Rey of Light: The Last Jedi, which is out on December 15, picks up with the Resistance fighting Supreme Leader Snokes First Order which is trying to take over the galaxy

Battle: Rey (Daisy Ridley) tries to convince Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill, above) to join the Resistance and bring hope to the rebels against Snoke's villainous rule.

The film's director-writer Rian Johnson paid special tribute to late Princess Leia actress Carrie Fisher as he introduced the screening, saying: 'I want to dedicate tonight to Carrie, who is up there right now flipping me the bird, saying `Damn it Rian, dont you dare make this night a solemn tribute.

'So lets all have a blast tonight for Carrie.'

The film ends with a dedication to Fisher, who plays Princess Leia.

Lure of the Dark Side: Questions remain over whether Kylo Ren (played by Adam Driver) will face justice for murdering his father Han Solo (Harrison Ford)

Carrie died at age 60 last December after completing her work on The Last Jedi.

She shot to fame as the feisty and determined Princess Leia in the original three Star Wars film- A New Hope (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983).

Her character, now known as General Leia Organa, leader of the Resistance, plays a key role in the film.

Iconic: The film's director-writer Rian Johnson paid special tribute to late Princess Leia actress Carrie Fisher as he introduced the screening,(pictured above in Return of the Jedi in 1983)

The Last Jedi, which is out on December 15, picks up with the Resistance fighting Supreme Leader Snokes First Order which is trying to take over the galaxy.

The film's release comes two years after The Force Awakens.

Rey (Daisy Ridley) tries to convince Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) to join the Resistance and bring hope to the rebels against Snoke's villainous rule.

The star-studded ensemble cast, including Ridley, John Boyega, Lupita Nyong'o, Adam Driver, Andy Serkis and Hamill.

Disney has a strict embargo on full reviews until Tuesday, but early spoiler-free Twitter reaction has been universally positive.

Legendary: Mark Hamill shot to fame in the original Star The Empire Strikes Back.

'Star Wars: The Last Jedi is everything. Intense, funny, emotional, exciting. Its jam-packed with absolutely jaw dropping moments and I loved it so, so much. Im still shaking,' wrote Gizmodo's Germain Lussier.

'I cant believe The Last Jedi exists. @rianjohnson is a madman and I love him for it. He takes Star Wars to the edge and throws it over. What a crazy, awesome movie. Well be talking about this one for a long, long time.'

SlashFilm's Peter Sciretta tweeted: 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi is so very different, exciting, surprising. So many emotions, so many amazing moments. Stay away from spoilers.

Fighter: John Boyega will return as Resistance Fighter Finn in the new film

The LA Times Jen Yamato claimed: 'StarWars: The Last Jedi is so beautifully human, populist, funny, and surprising. I cried when one POC heroine got her moment because films like these leave their mark on entire generations -- and representation matters.'

The original trilogy's plot focused on the Rebel Alliance, led by Leia and its battle to destroy the Galactic Empire's space station, the infamous Death Star, manned by supervillain Darth Vader.

Luke Skywalker, then a simple farm boy, acquires droids that possess stolen blueprints for the Death star.
She was no doubt delighted when the Indian millionaire donated 135,000 euros to her Breast Cancer Research Foundation earlier in the evening.

And Elizabeth Hurley appeared to a high following the massive donation as Sudha Reddy playfully feed her a sweet treat during her fundraising dinner on Monday night in Paris.

The 52-year-old - who stunned in a glittering pink gown - welcomed the delicacy from her stylish pal while cameras captured the moment during the charitable evening at the Shangri La Hotel.

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Having her cake: Elizabeth Hurley showed her appreciation for the charitable donation from Sudha Reddy as the businesswoman feed her a sweet treat during her fundraising dinner on Monday night in Paris

The age-defying beauty - who has been a dedicated brand ambassador for breast cancer awareness for more than two decades - dazzled as her chowed down on the delicacies provided by Sudha.

Making sure all eyes were on her, Elizabeth's glossy pout and brunette locks took centre stage as her pal fed her a taster of the food on offer which she appeared to enjoy.

Earlier in the evening, she showcased her famously svelte frame into a glittering pink gown, complete with plunging neckline.

Eat up: The 52-year-old - who stunned in a glittering pink gown - welcomed the delicacy from her stylish pal while cameras captured the moment during the charitable evening at the Shangri La Hotel

Enjoyment: The age-defying beauty - who has been a dedicated brand ambassador for breast cancer awareness for more than two decades - dazzled as her chowed down on the delicacies provided by Sudha

Rocking her amazing brunette locks in glamorous curls, the star put on a showstopping display as she posed at the bash.

Liz kept her makeup classic but dramatic in a smoky eye and nude lip gloss, with the only accessory being a pair of jewelled stud earrings.

The Royals star later posed on the carpet with Indian billionaire Sudha Reddy - who was being honoured at the dinner, after donating to both Hurley's Breast Cancer Research Foundation and the Fight Hunger foundation.

Think pink: Elizabeth Hurley stole the show at a breast cancer charity dinner in Paris, France on Monday night

Inner princess: Liz commanded attention in the showstopping ensemble, with the only accessory being jewelled stud earrings

Liz has spent more than 20 years as a global ambassador for the Estee Lauder Breast Cancer Awareness (BCA) campaign.

The Austin Powers actress spoke this week about her commitment to the cause on NBC's Megyn Kelly Today.

'I lost my grandmother to breast cancer in the early '90s,' she explained.

'I joined the Estee Lauder company a couple of years later, and Evelyn Lauder, who was Estee Lauder's daughter-in-law, came up to me straight away and said, "I've just started this new campaign, would you help me?"'

Guest of honour: Liz posed with Indian billionaire Sudha Reddy on the red carpet, as the dinner was to honour the entrepreneur for her donations to Liz's Breast Cancer foundation

Incredible: Both women dazzled in their looks, with Sudha choosing a bronze sequinned gown and matching cape

'I said, "Yes, yes, what is it?" and she said, "Well, women all over the world are dying of breast cancer and nobody is talking about it. I want to change that."'

The company launched its Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign and the pink ribbon shortly after - which is now a widely recognisable symbol for the fight against the disease.

'At that time, there was no pink ribbon. Nobody spoke about breast cancer,' she said.

In September Liz revealed she is still on great terms with her exes Hugh, former husband Arun Nayer and ex fiance Shane Warne.

She told Mail On Sunday's You magazine: 'If someone's lovely how could you not be on good terms with them? None of us has ever done anything bad to one another.'

The star added: 'Hugh and Arun are very important in our lives. Shane is still a good friend. We were texting each other last night.'

Honoured: Liz recently told Megyn Kelly how her foundation both raised awareness of breast cancer, and created the recognised pink ribbon symbol
She was crowned Queen of the Jungle on this year's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! winning the viewers vote over runner-up Jamie Lomas.

And Georgia 'Toff' Toffolo has had an army of stars congratulating her on the win, one such star was her Made in Chelsea pal Emily Blackwell, who posted a nostalgic snap of the pair on Instagram.

The 20-year-old beauty shared a photo of her with Toff in revealing crop-tops, congratulating the blonde on her win in Sunday night's show with a gratuitous sexy throwback.

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Thrilled: Made in Chelsea star Emily Blackwell, 20, congratulated co-star Georgia 'Toff' Toffolo on her I'm A Celebrity win in a sultry Instagram post

Emily captioned the post: 'WELL DONE @toffgeorgia you absolute queen! So proud  now get yooo a** home weve missed you.'

In the snap, Emily showed off her ample cleavage in a grey vest top, along with a dramatic bronze smoky eye, while braless Toff flashed some serious underboob in a pulled-up white T-shirt.

Toff was crowned the Queen of the Jungle on Sunday and - along with Emily - a slew of her Made in Chelsea co-stars rushed the congratulate her on the victory.

Champion: Toff was crowned the new Queen of the Jungle in the I'm A Celebrity final on Sunday night

Pals: Emma gushed about Toff, captioning her Instagram post: 'WELL DONE @toffgeorgia you absolute queen! So proud  now get yooo asss home weve missed you'

Jamie Laing, who recently returned to London after appearing on ITV2 spin-off series Extra Camp, posted a short but sweet tweet celebrating Toff's success, writing: 'You smashed it girl @ToffTalks.'

Posting a snap of her and Toff enjoying a summer drink together on Instagram, Binky Felstead gushed about the blonde, writing: 'TB to last summer living with this Jungle QUEEN!!!.... Proud of you girl, you've smashed it! CONGRATULATIONS!'

Ollie Locke also praise his pal, posting a picture of Toff enjoying a comically large bottle of rose with the caption: 'Our new Queen of the Jungle!!! @toffgeorgia I have NEVER been so proud of anyone!! I Love you soooo much my darling girl!!! LOVE and enjoy every second!!'

Delighted: A slew of Made in Chelsea stars rushed to congratulate Toff on her victory, with Louise Thompson simply tweeting 'Well done'

MIC buddies: Binky Felstead posted a snap of her and Toff enjoying a summer drink together

'So proud': Ollie Locke posted a comedic snap of Toff on Instagram, calling the spunky blonde 'my darling girl'

Thrilled: Jamie Laing, just days after his return from Australia, praised Toff for her appearance on the show

Chelsea beauty Louise Thompson also tweeted: 'Well done @ToffTalks.'

While some have predicted that Toff's jungle victory could open up new opportunities for the star, others have been left speculating whether she will return to Made in Chelsea.

Ahead of her journey Down Under, producers promised that Toff's departure from the E4 series would not be forever, but since then Toff's popularity has shot sky high, with a Tory insider hint her interest in politics would make her ideal Parliamentary candidate.

The source told The Daily Star: 'Georgia would be a perfect candidate for Parliament as she is a young, vibrant face of the future. She has the full package - intellect, charm and looks.'

What's next? Insiders have predicted Toff could cash in on a slew of deals after her I'm A Celebrity victory, leaving her future on Made in Chelsea in doubt




She left her long standing profession as an escort after meeting her new beau Ryan Phelan.

And it seems Samantha X, whose real name is Amanda Goff, can't get enough of her man.

The 43-year-old shared a post to Instagram on Tuesday of her cuddling up to the Channel Seven TV presenter.

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'Happy as a pig...with the man I adore!' Retired call girl Samantha X gushes over her beau Ryan Phelan as she cuddles up next to him

The blonde captioned the post: 'Happy as a pig in poo poo with the man I adore @ryanphelan_tv'

It appears she is full of praise for her new man.

Only just last week she wrote lovingly of Ryan with the message: 'All I will say is that for all of you who feel undatable [sic] and unlovable, youre not'.

New beginnings: She wrote lovingly of new boyfriend Ryan in a post last week, with the message: 'All I will say is that for all of you who feel undatable [sic] and unlovable, youre not'

She recently told Daily Mail Australia she and Ryan 'are very happy', and he is the one who made her realise it was time to 'close the chapter' and start a new life with him.

'I knew it was time. The love we have deserved Amanda not Samantha, and I was ready to close on the chapter on Samantha,' she stated.

'Ryan and I are very much in love. He's the most beautiful man, not just on the outside but the inside too. I've never smiled and laughed more in my life!' she said.

'Ryan and I are very much in love. He's the most beautiful man, not just on the outside but the inside too. I've never smiled and laughed more in my life!' she said

Meanwhile, since making things official with Ryan, Amanda appears to be proud of her new role as a 'clothes-on' counselor for men in need of relationship advice.

The blonde, who offers guidance on affairs of the heart via her website, posted a screenshot of an email she received from a happy customer recently.

'[Samantha] had the empathy of a reliable friend and the objectivity of a concerned stranger,' gushed her new 'client'

'[Samantha] had the empathy of a reliable friend and the objectivity of a concerned stranger,' gushed her new 'client'.

'Marc is a 40 something year old medico. Came to me with relationship advice.. (men find dating just as hard as we do!),' Samantha wrote in the upload's caption.

'Marc is a 40 something year old medico. Came to me with relationship advice.. (men find dating just as hard as we do!),' Samantha wrote in the upload's caption

'This is my first ever review with clothes-on counselling! Thank you Marc,' she added.

Amanda revealed she was officially 'hanging up her Louboutins' as a call girl on October 24, and was focused on building her escort agency, Samantha X Angels.
Alexander Skarsgard shocked fans when he debuted a bald head on the red carpet in October.

The True Blood star continued to wear the follicly challenged look as he shot scenes for the Kim Nyguyen film The Hummingbird Project, currently shooting in Toronto. He stars in the dramatic film alongside Salma Hayek and Jesse Eisenberg, who shot an intense scene on Monday.

Earlier in the day Skarsgard, 41, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of the abusing Perry Wright on Big Little Lies.

Battle of the sexes: Salma Hayek yelled at Alexander Skarsgard as Jesse Eisenberg looked on during shoot for The Hummingbird Project in Toronto on Monday

The Swedish native was bundled up in an oversized blue jacket over a pair of dark tan corduroys and work boots. In some scenes, he wore a grey beanie hat to keep his head warm in the chilly weather.

Eisenberg, who plays Skarsgard's cousin in the film, wore a similar ensemble with multiple layers underneath his winter coat.

Hayek was more bundled up between scenes in a long black coat with a business suit underneath. Her character has a trendy silver balayage hairdo that's completely different to any style we've ever seen the actress wear.

The big chill: Skarsgard and Eisenberg played cousins in the new dramatic film

Cut! Hayek wore a warm coat over the business suit her character donned in the Kim Nguyen-directed project

The film follows Vincent (Eisenberg) and Anton (Skarsgard) who are cousins from New York who are players in the High Frequency Trading game. They plan to become millionaires by building a fiber optic cable that runs from Kansas to New Jersey.

Hayek stars as their former boss Eva Torres, a power yet manipulative trader who will stop at nothing to get in their way.

Their journey to riches shows them that money is not the ultimate prize.

Dome: Skarsgard showed an extreme closeup of his balding scalp on Instagram in October

FIN: Skarsgard thanked his co-star Eisenberg as he called wrap on the project on Sunday

Monday is believed to have been the last day of shooting of the film, according to an Instagram account believed to belong to the 6'ft 5" Swede.

'That's a wrap! Thanks for all the laughs Jesse,' the Instagram user RexDanger posted.

Posts have appeared from the set including a close-up of his new hairdo, a bald top with hair growing on the sides.

Bald is beautiful: Skarsgard unveiled his bald look in October at the Volez Voquez Voyagez x Louis Vuitton event in NYC

It was announced on Monday morning that the Legend Of Tarzan star had earned a Golden Globe nomination in the Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series category for his work on the HBO hit Big Little Lies.

His co-stars Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon were also honored in the category, Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

The series itself also earned a nod for Best Limited Series.

Winning: Nicole and Alexander were nominated for Golden Globe Awards for their portrayal of an abusing married couple in Big Little Lies

Turn on: Kidman and Skarsgard battled it out in the small screen adaptation of the Liane Moriarty novel

It was announced on Saturday that the show will be coming back with a second season, which will change it's category moving forward for any award nominations.

There's no word whether Skarsgard could bring his character back to life via flashbacks in the continuation.

Though casting is still under negotiations, it is rumored that most of the stars of the critically acclaimed book-turned-small-screen-superstar will be back.
They're the loved-up Instagram power couple who celebrated their two-year anniversary in June.

And Natasha Oakley, 26, has hinted she's taken the next step in her relationship with beau Gilles Souteyrand by sharing a decidedly amorous snap this week.

Taking to her popular Instagram account on Monday, the A Bikini A Day blogger shared a photo of herself being swept into the arms of her man as they embraced on the shore of Miami Beach.

'I could stay in your arms forever': Natasha Oakley, 26, has hinted she's taken the next step in her relationship with beau Gilles Souteyrand by sharing a decidedly amorous snap this week

Natasha's engagement-style photo was accompanied with the gushing caption: 'I could stay in your arms forever @Gilles_Souteyrand'.

Gilles responded to the adorable snap in a comment underneath, writing: 'I am planning to have you in my arms forever at @tashoakley.'

It was no surprise Natasha's fans were sent into meltdown by the post, with many followers sharing comments speculating that the pair were secretly engaged.

'Most romantic place': Adding fuel to fire, Gilles also shared a romantic snap of the pair kissing on the beach

Speculation: 'Get married already!' quipped one fan in a comment, while another added: 'You're engaged?'

'Get married already!' quipped one fan, while another added: 'You're engaged?'

Adding fuel to fire, Gilles also shared a romantic snap of the pair kissing on the beach, accompanied with the caption: 'When you stroll on the beach and [kiss emoji] happen! Most romantic place.'

While Natasha has remained tight-lipped on whether she is set to tie the knot, it wouldn't be the first time Natasha changed her relationship status in secret.

Former flame: Back in 2014, Natasha secretly split from her then-boyfriend, French Big Brother star Martin Medus (R)

Moving on: After splitting with Martin, she went on to date Gilles for six months before finally debuting their romance on social media- taking fans by surprise

Back in 2014, Natasha secretly split from her then-boyfriend, French Big Brother star Martin Medus.

She went on to date Gilles for six months before finally debuting their romance on social media- taking fans by surprise.

Natasha has also previously sparked engagement rumours by wearing a diamond sparkler on her ring finger, but has so far stayed silent on the matter.
Timeless star Matt Lanter lights up the cover of the winter 2017 issue of LaPalme Magazine.

Expecting his first child with wife Angela in less than a month, the 34-year-old heartthrob is savoring every part of the process as he prepares to become a father.

He told the magazine: 'She is due January 11th and we have a podcast called Hello Bump to document our time with her being pregnant, emotionally and her physically.

Father-to-be: Matt Lanter opens up about expecting his first child with wife Angela in his interview with LaPalme Magazine for its winter issue

He continued: 'We started doing it just for us, so we could listen back on our experience, but then and we figured we could do this and maybe it will help others too.

'She talks about the grossest, nastiest stuff about her being pregnant, and she is like "why dont people tell you this stuff. People arent honest about this stuff". We have been doing it every week.'

The actor also dished on the couple's bond, revealing that their faith keeps them grounded.

Talking of the podcast he's doing with his wife, Matt explained: 'She talks about the grossest, nastiest stuff about her being pregnant, and she is like "why dont people tell you this stuff.'

Geek chic: The TV star rocks a variety of outfits for the spread

'We both have strong faith in the Lord, and I think for us, that is something that bonds us and we have a focus on that above all else. We are both playful, and we have a lot of fun and jab at each other. I feel like sarcasm is important in a relationship.'

The former 90210 star previously revealed his excitement about becoming a father to PEOPLE in August.

'First steps, first words, first everything,' gushed the Ohio-born actor, 'We keep picturing the quiet moments (after the loud ones, of course) and morning snuggles with our baby!'

'We keep picturing morning snuggles with our baby': Matt revealed his excitement at becoming a father in an interview with People in August

Fashion spread: The former 90210 star is seen in a floral shirt and khaki green sweater

Looking sharp: Matt is dapper on the cover of the winter 2017 issue of the magazine

Matt and wife Angela told the magazine 'We are both overjoyed to be blessed with this new addition to our family.'

In September they revealed in a podcast that they're expecting a girl.

Matt, who voiced Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, wed Angela in a spectacular Star Wars themed ceremony back in 2013.

The couple live in Los Angeles with their beloved Maltipoo pup Ahsoka.

Not long now! The couple are expecting a baby girl on January 11
They have been blissfully loved-up since the beginning of the year but denied recently getting engaged.

And Vogue Williams and Spencer Matthews looked closer than ever as they stepped out for a date night at Blue's secret gig in London on Sunday.

The Irish TV presenter, 32, and her 28-year-old Made In Chelsea star beau were perfectly in sync as they made their way to the venue, with Vogue sweetly linking arms with Spencer.

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Smitten: Vogue Williams and Spencer Matthews looked closer than ever as they stepped out for a date night at Blue's secret gig in London on Sunday

Sweet: The Irish TV presenter, 32, and her 28-year-old Made In Chelsea star beau were perfectly in sync as they made their way to the venue, with Vogue sweetly linking arms with Spencer

Vogue put on an extremely leggy display in a blue and white checked silk mini-dress decorated with red roses, which flaunted her toned pins with its handkerchief hem.

The elegant dress cinched in at the middle to show off the star's toned waist and she added extra height to her frame with peeptoe lace-up ankle boots.

The star accessorised with a patent leather jacket, a selection of gold chains and a cute black bobble hat.

Her caramel flecked brunette tresses were styled sleek and straight while she opted for a minimal dusting of radiant make-up to enhance her pretty features.

Leggy: Vogue put on an extremely leggy display in a blue and white checked silk mini-dress decorated with red roses, which flaunted her toned pins with its handkerchief hem

Laughter: The elegant dress cinched in at the middle to show off the star's toned waist and she added extra height to her frame with peeptoe lace-up ankle boots

Meanwhile hunky Spencer, went for an all-black ensemble of a v-neck t-shirt, jeans and a leather jacket, while his chestnut locks were styled into a quiff.

Looking happier than ever, the couple couldn't help but crack smitten smiles as they stepped out.

They were en-route to the Blue/Green gig which saw the iconic noughties boyband change their name in support of the npower Go Green tariff.

Vogue and Spencer went public with their romance in March after meeting on The Jump.

They haven't been shy about flaunting their love for each other, with Spencer gushing on social media, 'never been happier in my life' while she reciprocated, 'at my happiest with this boy by my side.'

Strut: Meanwhile hunky Spencer, went for an all-black ensemble of a v-neck t-shirt, jeans and a leather jacket, while his chestnut locks were styled into a quiff

Toned: Vogue looked radiant as she pulled off a sultry pose on the red carpet

Glittering: Stacey Solomon (L) donned a bizarre glittering and very baggy gold two piece while Gabby Allen flashed her bra in a sheer sequinned top

Fierce: Former Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts worked a leather skirt and beret at the gig

Hot couple: Kelly Brook and beau Jeremy Parisi were the epitome of smitten as they arrived

Chic: Kelly showed off her slim legs in black cigarette pants paired with a checked blazer

Elegant: Her caramel flecked brunette tresses were styled in loose glossy waves for the gig

Cute: Jeremy and Kelly looked truly smitten as they cosied up en-route to the gig

Smile: Kelly and Jeremy couldn't keep the smiles off their faces as they walked into the gig

Sweet: Kelly flashed a broad smile as she linked arms with her hunky beau

Where's Lee? Blue members Simon Webbe, Antony Costa and Duncan James posed before their gig

Strength to strength: Vogue revealed the secret to success with their relationship is that they never argue in a recent interview with The Sunday Mirror

Vogue revealed the secret to success with their relationship is that they never argue in a recent interview with The Sunday Mirror.

She said: 'He is my best pal. I remember thinking we would be best friends forever. It is the first relationship where I don't have fights with people.'

The duo are currently living together and their move came after Vogue denied reports she had moved into Spencer's Chelsea home.

Speaking during an appearance on Loose Women, Vogue revealed the pair have bought a new house together.

She said: 'We moved in together last night. He arrived home at four in the morning from Greece and forced me to get up to have a glass of champagne to toast the new house. He didn't want me to move in to his house.

'He lives in a one-bed in Chelsea and I have a lot of clothes so that was never going to work. And I lived with two Irish boys so I think we've always wanted to have our own place so that's what we started looking at straight away.'

Previously, Vogue was married to Westlife's Brian McFadden for three years before they parted ways in July 2015.

Spencer, meanwhile, has dated a string of beauties including Louise Thompson, Stephanie Pratt, Vicky Pattison and Lauren Frazer-Hutton.
She's been making the most of family life after welcoming her first child, baby son Jack Oscar, into the world in June.

And Rosie Huntington-Whiteley spent some quality time with other members of her nearest and dearest as she enjoyed a girls' day out with her sister Florence and pet dachshunds Peggy and Dolly at the beach in Malibu, California, on Monday.

The model and actress, 30, looked happy and relaxed as she wrapped up in a low-key blush knit sweater and charcoal-colored jeans.

A time for family: Rosie Huntington-Whiteley enjoyed a girls' day out with her sister Florence and pet dachshunds Peggy and Dolly at the beach in Malibu, California, on Monday

The Transformers star teamed her casual ensemble with a pair of tan suede UGG boots for her day at the coast with her sibling.

Wearing her wavy blonde hair down, the former Victoria's Secret Angel shielded her eyes from the sunshine in a pair of sunglasses, while opting for little to no make-up.

At one point, the British-born beauty was squatting on the sand as her two little pooches rose up onto their hind legs to get closer to her.

Rosie's younger sister wore a paid of high-waisted sky blue jeans with a printed T-shirt, white sneakers and shades.

Puppy love: The model and actress, 30, looked happy and relaxed as she wrapped up in a low-key blush knit sweater and charcoal-colored jeans

Life's a beach: The Transformers star teamed her casual ensemble with a pair of tan suede UGG boots for her day at the coast with her sibling

Rosie and Florence also have a brother called Toby, who works as a fitness instructor in London.

The star, who grew up on a farm in Devon, south-west England, before being scouted as a model when she was 16, has previously said her family is the main thing she misses about being based in Los Angeles.

Speaking to Harper's Bazaar magazine in November 2016, she said: 'The one big downside is not having my family within reach.

'I would love to be able to invite them over for a roast dinner, or be able to say to my brother or sister, "Why don't you pop over for a glass of wine tonight?" but I can't and it weighs heavily on me.'

Plenty to smile about: . Wearing her wavy blonde hair down, the former Victoria's Secret Angel shielded her eyes from the sunshine in a pair of sunglasses

Rosie has been with her fiance, British actor Jason Statham, 50, since 2010, and they welcomed their son Jack this June.

She made the announcement with a sweet black and white Instagram photo showing her baby's hand gripping her index finger.

'Our little man arrived! Jack Oscar Statham - 8.8lbs on Saturday June 24th,' she wrote in the caption, closing with a heart emoji.

Rosie's career continues to go from strength to strength as she navigates life as a working mother.

Last month, she landed in fifth places on Forbes' annual list of the world's best-paid supermodels, with earnings of a staggering $9.5 million in just 12 months.

Throwback: Rosie has been with British actor Jason Statham, 50, since 2010, and they welcomed their son Jack in June (pictured in February during her pregnancy)
She welcomed her first child Poppy Alice in January.

And Phoebe Burgess, 27, proved that she's a bona fide yummy mummy as she brandished her post-baby figure during a lavish Fijian getaway with husband Sam this week.

In a series of Instagram updates shared to her popular page on Monday, the glamorous WAG showcased her toned and trim physique in a high-waisted black bikini and straw sun-hat.

Yummy mummy alert! Phoebe Burgess, 27, proved that she's a bona fide yummy mummy as she brandished her post-baby figure during a lavish Fijian getaway with husband Sam this week

In one snap, Phoebe is seen posing on the tropical beach alongside her South Sydney Rabbitohs star beau as he cradles little Poppy in his arms.

'Inseparable', Phoebe captioned the adorable family snap.

In another image shared to her Instagram Story, Phoebe once again revealed her enviable physique alongside Sam and Poppy, captioning this snap simply with: 'Team'.

That's one way to show your patriotism! Meanwhile, English-born Sam appeared to be in his element as he posed on the sand in a pair of tiny Budgie Smuggler swimming trunks emblazoned with a St George's cross-inspired design

Meanwhile, English-born Sam appeared to be in his element as he posed on the sand in a pair of tiny Budgie Smuggler swimming trunks emblazoned with a St George's cross-inspired design.

On Monday, Phoebe also revealed glimpse at her and Sam's holiday antics by uploading a video of the pair singing along to Bobby McFerrin's Don't Worry Be Happy.

Never one to shy away from the camera, Phoebe used the selfie-style video as an opportunity to reveal a generous glimpse of cleavage in her skimpy bikini top.

Busting out a tune! On Monday, Phoebe also revealed glimpse at her and Sam's holiday antics by uploading a video of the pair singing along to Bobby McFerrin's Don't Worry Be Happy

Cheers! In another video, Sam was seen kicking back with a cool beverage

The couple jetted off to the picturesque getaway spot ahead of their second wedding anniversary, which takes place later this month.

Phoebe, who tied the knot with Sam in a lavish wedding nearly two years ago, recently gushed about motherhood.

'I love caring for [Poppy], nurturing her, putting her first and watching her grow into a cheeky, fun and loving little human. It's insanely special,' she told Nine Honey.

'Motherhood has been exhilarating  exhausting and then wonderful again.

She added: 'Motherhood has unearthed a whole new side to me that I hadn't explored yet.'

Burgeoning bump: The Pilateswear designer previously showed off her huge belly prior to giving birth earlier this year

Motherhood: Phoebe, who tied the knot with Sam in a lavish wedding nearly two years ago, recently gushed about motherhood

Building memories: 'I love caring for [Poppy], nurturing her, putting her first and watching her grow into a cheeky, fun and loving little human. It's insanely special,' she told Nine Honey




The biggest hurdle facing WA Premier Mark McGowan remains the fact Labor is at the mercy of the opposition and crossbench in the upper house despite their landslide victory at the election.

Nonetheless, it's been a solid first parliamentary year in government, with Labor delivering on some election commitments and continuing to highlight the opposition's lack of fiscal credibility.

Analysts David Black and John Phillimore agree Mr McGowan has handled premiership well.

But Prof Black says the premier still has a difficult task in pushing legislation through parliament.

"The disadvantage is that they don't control both houses of parliament," he told AAP on Sunday.

"The (other) real difficulty is they don't have a mandate for increasing taxes."

Regarding the failed gold tax hike, which was twice blocked in the upper house, Prof Phillimore said because it was sold to the public as a budget repair measure, it was a "nil-all draw" for the major parties.

But he warned the opposition must pick its battles for blocking legislation or it would only further highlight the unfair and flawed upper house electoral system.

Prof Black says Treasurer Ben Wyatt seems to be "one of the strongest players in the administration" with one of the toughest jobs.

Prof Phillimore said Labor could continue to attack the opposition over their time in government due to the Liberals lack of fiscal credibility which had left the state with a massive debt and deficit.

Mr McGowan's confidence in parliament has also increased since the March election, perhaps due to having a united and strong team behind him.

But the opposition is struggling in the lower house.

"The leadership is essentially a hangover from the previous government," Prof Black said.

The Liberal party's internal problems, with former premier Colin Barnett's continued public commentary and criticism of his own cabinet, are compounding the issues.

Prof Black says while Mr Barnett hasn't helped his party, he's likely to retire soon triggering a by-election in the leafy seat of Cottesloe, which has been won by Liberals at every election since 1950.

Whoever the Liberals nominate for the seat will say a lot about the structure of the party going forward, Prof Black says.

Another possible by-election could be for the seat of Darling Range if Labor-turned-independent Barry Urban is forced out over questions about his qualifications.

Prof Black says it will be difficult for Labor to win if that by-election happens.

The legislative assembly resumes next February, but there is plenty of work done between now and then.

The next big challenge will be when Mr Wyatt hands down the mid-year review on December 20.
Labor candidate Kristina Keneally says voters in the Bennelong electorate are "alarmed" by the prime minister's rhetoric on China.

Malcolm Turnbull at the weekend doubled down on his criticism of Beijing interfering in domestic politics while insisting the communist leadership would respect his tough talk.

But Ms Kenneally on Monday said people from China and Korea have told her "they are really alarmed by the prime minister's rhetoric".

"They see it as China-phobia," the former NSW premier said while campaigning in Bennelong ahead of Saturday's by-election.

"They see it as scaremongering. They see the suggestion from the prime minister that people from Chinese or Asian backgrounds are somehow suspicious and they don't like it."
Tasmania should consider offloading major assets to pay off some of its crippling unfunded superannuation liability and better fund community services, an economist says.

Saul Eslake's yearly economic report card, released on Monday for the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, says the state government should think about selling or leasing infrastructure such as energy providers TasNetworks and Aurora Energy.

"(It) will provide some 'headroom' to borrow in order to fund higher levels of investment on rigorously selected infrastructure," he said.

The state's public sector superannuation liability reached $8.5 billion at the end of the 2016-17 financial year.

It accounts for nearly a third of Tasmania's gross product, a larger proportion than any other state or territory.

With a March election due, Mr Eslake called on the state's next ruling party to invest more in education and health and community services.

Tasmania has the nation's oldest and least educated population.

"The economic and social challenges facing Tasmania, over the next four years and beyond, cannot be addressed by a government which seeks a mandate for doing nothing more than 'minding the store' - however competently they do that," Mr Eslake said.

"This is a moment in Tasmania's history where those who seek to shape its future should be imaginative and bold, rather than cautious or timid."

The current Liberal government recently pledged to extend all high schools to Year 12 by 2022 if re-elected.

Tasmania's economic growth of 1.1 per cent in 2016-17 was slower than any other state or territory apart from Western Australia, which contracted by 2.7 per cent.

Mr Eslate noted the mining industry had a third consecutive "large decline" sector, falling by 9.1 per cent.

But it wasn't all bad news, with the 2017 Tasmania Report describing "strong growth" in areas including agriculture, tourism, health, aged care, IT and telecommunications and business investment.
Australia's first national toxic waste repository is one step closer to operating, despite a government environment body flagging huge environmental and financial risks.

The Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority has recommended the approval of a central Australian salt mine to house up to 400,000 tonnes of hazardous waste underground per year for 25 years.

Tellus Holdings wants to set up the Chandler mine on Maryvale Station, 15 kilometres from Titjikala, a remote Aboriginal community located 120km south of Alice Springs.

The NT EPA identified "potentially significant" environmental impacts and financial risks to the community and the government, and made 19 recommendations to help mitigate them.

Tellus must ensure rigorous regulatory oversight, including public disclosure of any financial assurance or security held in respect of the proposal and independent auditor and process safety oversight reports.

"A whole-of-project financial assurance would ensure that significant residual environmental impacts and risks are acknowledged, and financial risk to the NT government is avoided, covering all financial obligations under an appropriate regulatory regime," EPA Chairman Dr Paul Vogel said.

The NT EPA said further work was required to demonstrate that the Chandler Facility is the best option for disposing hazardous waste without unacceptable environmental impacts now or in the future.

The project proposal will now go to Environment Minister Lauren Moss for consideration before seeking federal approval.

Tellus Managing Director Duncan van der Merwe says the company has spent millions of dollars over seven years to complete a thorough environmental, social, economic benefits and impacts assessment of the project.

"Our plan is to create 270 jobs (720 at peak) during the $676 million build phase and 180 jobs during the operations phase," he said.

"Tellus sees waste as a valuable resource where we should find ways for it to re-enter the circular economy or stored safely until it can be reused or recycled."
A tradesman in his mid-50s kidnapped an eight-year-old girl in regional NSW before raping her and returning her an hour later to the spot he'd abducted her from, NSW Police say.

Detectives also allege he produced child abuse material in the short time he held the girl captive after taking her in Wellington, near Dubbo, on Saturday afternoon.

Police say the 55-year-old tradie was working at a house in Wellington when he persuaded the girl to get into his vehicle after midday.

A 55-year-old tradie has been denied bail after allegedly kidnapping and raping a girl, eight

The eight-year-old was reported missing and police immediately launched an investigation.

'The man allegedly sexually assaulted the girl before returning her an hour later to where she was taken from,' a police spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.

Officers on the scene - who were frantically searching for the girl - arrested the man.

He was taken to Wellington police station and charged with kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault, sexual intercourse with a child, procuring a child to produce child abuse material and producing child abuse material.

The local man appeared in Dubbo Local Court on Monday and was refused bail.

He will reappear in the same court in mid-February.
Two Melbourne mums are likely to be jailed for drunkenly bashing a paramedic, leaving him with a broken foot and unable to return to work.

Amanda Warren, 31, and Caris Underwood, 20, punched and kicked experienced ambulance worker Paul Judd as he tried to treat a patient at Reservoir in April 2016.

Mr Judd has been unable to return to work since the violent attack and has required multiple surgeries on his foot.

Waren and Underwood pleaded guilty to intentionally causing injury to Mr Judd and are due to be sentenced in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday afternoon.

A magistrate in the morning indicated he will jail the pair, after considering new laws for attacks on emergency workers.

"I have concluded that for both accused, an immediate custodial sentence is required," Magistrate Lance Martin said.

Unless there are "special reasons", Victorian laws introduced in 2014 demand a mandatory minimum jail term of six months for anyone who intentionally injures an emergency worker.

But defence lawyers for Underwood and Warren previously argued special circumstances were present and the pair should avoid jail.

The court was told Underwood was abused as a child and has a young baby, while Warren suffered mental health issues and has four young children.

Mr Martin indicated he would also sentence them to community corrections orders in combination with prison.

The case was stood down until Monday afternoon while Warren and Underwood are assessed to determine if they are suitable for such orders.
A small but select fleet will contest Tuesday's Big Boat Challenge, with two of the four Sydney to Hobart supermaxis not racing.

The fleet of four, which includes supermaxis Wild Oats XI and Black Jack, is the smallest in the history of the race which started back in 1994.

Of the other supermaxis entered for the Hobart race, LDV Comanche is still waiting for some of her crew to arrive from overseas, while InfoTrack is in preparation mode for the big race later this month.

Rounding out Tuesday's fleet are the 80-foot Beau Geste owned by Hong Kong businessman Karl Kwok and the 66-foot Wild Oats X, a stablemate of Wild Oats XI, which is also owned by the Oatley family.

The race starting on Sydney Harbour has been dominated in recent years by Wild Oats XI.

Black Jack skipper Mark Bradford understands why some owners may be reluctant to line up for the race just two weeks out from the Sydney to Hobart.

"There's a lot of decisions to be made here," Bradford told AAP.

"The risk management of these projects is a real factor and certainly sailing in the Big Boat race does add a fair bit of risk to your project so close to Christmas.

"But it also gives you an opportunity to start the boat.

"We've now done in the last month three starts against Wild Oats XI, we've got one more on Tuesday.

"That's four starts we've done against each other and these other guys (LDV Comanche and InfoTrack) haven't done any starts.

"Starting, getting out of the heads and being clean heading south is a pretty big part of the race, more from a safety standpoint for us.

"But I understand why other boats don't want to do it, because you have a collision or a problem, or a breakage at this point, it could potentially put you out of the (Hobart) race."

Some supermaxis, including InfoTrack (racing as Perpetual LOYAL) have had damage issues in previous Big Boat Challenges.

The race raises funds in support of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Trusts, which was established following the loss of six lives in the 1998 Sydney to Hobart.
A complication has arisen in retired major general and Liberal candidate Jim Molan taking the NSW Senate seat originally vacated by former Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash.

The High Court heard on Monday the special count confirming Mr Molan's election could not be immediately accepted as the count potentially threw into doubt which NSW coalition senators had three-year terms and which had six-year terms.

Ms Nash was to be replaced by Liberal candidate Hollie Hughes, but Ms Hughes was found by the court to be disqualified because of her job with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Mr Molan was the next candidate after Ms Hughes on the coalition's 2016 NSW Senate ticket.

Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, whose tenure could be affected by the result, has been allowed to be a party to the case which will be heard by Justice Stephen Gageler on December 22.

The Senate agreed after the 2016 double-dissolution election that six-year terms would go to the first six senators elected in each state and three-year terms to the bottom three.

In NSW, this meant Marisa Payne, Arthur Sinodinos and Ms Nash were given six-year terms, and senators Fierravanti-Wells and John Williams got three-year terms.

Geoffrey Kennett SC, who was appointed by the attorney-general to be a contradictor in the case, told the court the special count result following Ms Hughes' disqualification may alter the terms of senators Fierravanti-Wells and Williams.

However, the court was later told only Senator Fierravanti-Wells was likely to be affected.

Senator Williams signalled this year he intended to retire at the next election.

Mr Kennett said there was a problem with the "phraseology" at the end of the special count order in relation to the "place for which Ms Nash was returned".

"There would be left hanging the question of who is to fill the various places (under section 13 of the constitution)," he said.

Section 13 covers the concept of three and six year terms in the Senate.

The court was also told there were no eligibility issues with Mr Molan taking the seat.

Mr Molan's counsel Arthur Moses QC said there was some urgency in resolving the matter as the Senate returned on February 5 and NSW had been without one of its senators "for some time".
Australian sailor Sophie Ciszek and the MAPFRE team hold a slender points lead as the Volvo Ocean Race heads to Melbourne for the first time in over a decade.

The Spanish-based team led Vestas 11th Hour Racing by a single point when the fleet left Cape Town on Sunday.

The seven-boat fleet will dock in Melbourne after completing the demanding 6,500 nautical mile third leg of the race.

"We're doing so well, so obviously there's momentum there ... that gives us a lot of confidence," Ciszek said.

"Taking part in this race is special, but being able to do it and sail into your home port is absolutely amazing.

"But this is a tough leg and it's going to be pretty rough.

"This leg with double points is super-important ... so there's a bit of pressure there.

"But hopefully we can keep doing what we have been and win it."

Ciszek, 32, joined the 10-sailor MAPFRE crew - led by Basque skipper Xabi Fernandez - in July this year after competing with the all-female Team SCA in the last Ocean Race in 2014-15.

She has also previously raced on notable yachts including Wild Thing, Brindabella and Shockwave in four Sydney-Hobart Races.

The lead boat is expected to arrive at Docklands some time on the 26th or 27th of December, where a sailing festival will be held until the next leg - to Hong Kong - starts on January 2.

This year's race is the 13th edition of the open ocean race that was first run in 1973.

It started from the Spanish city of Alicante on October 22 and will finish at The Hague in June.

At 45,000nm, this will be the longest course in the history of the race.

In a bid to make the race a true test of sailing skill all seven competing boats are the same. The Volvo Ocean 65s are just over 22m long and weigh approximately 12,500 kg.
The federal government has established a body of indigenous leaders to advise on its northern development agenda.

Northern Australia Minister Matt Canavan says eight senior community figures would ensure the policy benefits Aboriginal businesses and supports innovation.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion said a major proportion of Northern Australia was indigenous land, where more investment and jobs are needed.

"Indigenous Australians must have a seat at the table and have the opportunity to pursue development that they want on their land if we are to realise the potential of our north," Senator Scullion said.

Northern Territory appointee Dr Donna Odegaard said the group wanted to expand the capability of First Nations communities, with many having their own successes which others could learn from.

Western Australian appointee Peter Yu said he would embrace the challenge to investigate policies to drive critical growth in remote regions.

The group will attend the next ministerial forum on northern development to be held early next year.

INDIGENOUS REFERENCE GROUP MEMBERS:

Lawford Benning, Chair, MG Corp and CEO, Gelganyem Trust

Peter Yu, CEO, Nyamba Buru Yawuru

Dr Donna Odegaard, CEO of Aboriginal Broadcasting Australia

Joe Morrison, CEO, Northern Land Council

Vonda Malone, Mayor of the Torres Shire Council

Colin Saltmere, Associate Professor at the Aboriginal Environments Research Centre at the University of Queensland

Fiona Jose, Executive General Manager, Cape York Partnership

Nigel Brown, CEO, Larrakia Development Corporation and member of the Northern Australia Advisory Council.
Malcolm Turnbull has admitted a loss in this weekend's federal by-election in Bennelong would place his government in a "very precarious" position.

Liberal candidate John Alexander will battle out Saturday's high-profile race against former NSW Labor premier Kristina Keneally.

Mr Alexander triggered the by-election after he resigned as Bennelong's MP over a dual citizenship issue.

If Ms Keneally could pull off an upset, it would rob the Turnbull government of its majority.

"Obviously we'd be down to 75 votes-all in the House of Representatives. It would be very precarious," Mr Turnbull told News Corp journalist Miranda Devine on her web-based show on Monday.

Ms Keneally has accused Mr Turnbull of alarming rhetoric amounting to "China-phobia" and "scaremongering", as both sides zero in on Chinese voters in the Sydney seat.

But the prime minister turned the attack back on Ms Keneally, who he says is trying to paint an unfair picture of him.

"Kristina Keneally I see is trying to play this up and suggest that I of all people am anti-Chinese. That just shows how desperate she is," Mr Turnbull said.

"If Kristina Keneally were to win in Bennelong not only would you be allowing her to do in Bennelong what she did in NSW, you'd be bringing Bill Shorten closer to the prime ministership."

The government has now lost 24 consecutive Newspolls, drawing closer to the 30 straight cited by Mr Turnbull as a reason for successfully challenging former prime minister Tony Abbott for the Liberal leadership.

"I do regret having said it only because it allowed people to focus on that, rather than substantive reasons," Mr Turnbull said.

He said the main issues which led him to mount a challenge were around economic leadership and governance rather than metrics.

Mr Turnbull refused to canvass the possibility of winning seats back from the opposition in subsequent by-elections if Labor MPs are referred to the High Court over their eligibility to sit in parliament.
A Sydney man who directed the live sexual abuse of overseas children via an online video stream has had his "manifestly inadequate" sentence increased by the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.

Bryan Walter Beattie, 44, was sentenced in the NSW District Court in June to 10 years with a non-parole period of six years, but the terms have now been increased to 14 years with a non-parole period of 10 years.

He pleaded guilty to 23 offences including possessing child abuse material and causing a child under 16 to engage in sexual intercourse outside Australia in his presence.

He was arrested in 2015 after police seized his laptop and external hard drive and discovered hundreds of child abuse images and videos featuring children, including an infant aged about six to eight months.

"The images and videos classified were highly disturbing, distressing and offensive, and many involved young pre-pubescent Asian male children," according to the agreed statement of facts.

One folder on Beattie's external hard drive contained 132 videos in which he watched and directed the live sexual abuse of 17 boys in the Philippines.

He typed instructions about what acts he wanted to see.

Beattie made 41 payments totalling $4,150 to an overseas account in 2011 and 2012 with investigators alleging they were for the live sexual abuse.

Justices John Basten, Michael Walton and Derek Price upheld crown submissions about the inadequacy of the sentences imposed, with the latter two judges agreeing the term should be 14 with a non-parole period of 10 years.

Referring to one particular offence, Justice Price said Beattie "was a live spectator and active participant, via real-time video link of the gross sexual abuse of pre-pubescent Filipino boy".

The conduct was "vile and heinous" and the sentence "falls well short of adequately reflecting the gravity of the offence and the need for general deterrence and denunciation" of it.

Justice Basten proposed resentencing Beattie to 20 years with a non-parole period of 13 years.
Today's Birthday, December 12: Quan Yeomans, Australian musician and frontman of multi-ARIA Award-winning band Regurgitator, (1972 - ).

The frontman of iconic 90's Aussie band Regurgitator, Quan Yeomans is known for writing his own style of postmodern musical lyrics that dealt with topics including fame and capitalism.

Most recently Regurgitator worked with Chinese musicians for a live reinterpretation of The Velvet Underground's debut record.

Born in Sydney, Yeomans grew up in both there and in Brisbane. His mother Lien was a prominent Vietnamese-Australian chef and author while his father was a psychiatrist.

After graduating high school Yeomans drummed for Brisbane punk band Zooerastia. Then after a fortuitous meeting with Ben Ely on a bus, in 1993 Yeomans formed Regurgitator with Ely and Martin Lee.

In 1991 Yeomans travelled to Rio de Janeiro with his father for a World Economic Forum. Deeply affected by talks about global capitalism and the crushing debt cycle experienced by Third World nations, Yeomans has since said his band's signing with Warner Music felt hypocritical.

The group released their first album Tu-Plang in 1996, and released several other successful albums over the years including Unit the following year, ...art in 1999, 2007's Love and Paranoia 2007 and SuperHappyFunTimesFriends in 2011.

In 2004 Regurgitator filmed Band In A Bubble for Channel V. Holed up for three weeks on public display in the middle of Melbourne's Federation Square the band recorded their fifth album Mish Mash! all filmed and broadcast live, ending with a live performance of their new material.

Yeomans embarked on solo project Quan the Amateur over many years, releasing a self-titled album at the end of 2008 which he recorded in Hong Kong. He performed the album for the 2009 Big Day Out tour.

Twenty years after releasing their second album Unit, Regurgitator reformed to perform a 50-year anniversary tribute to The Velvet Underground's debut album. Their reinterpretation of the famous album featured Chinese musicians and traditional instruments including a guzheng.

On New Year's Eve Regurgitator will play The Hill in Gippsland, Victoria, alongside Ball Park Music and Japanese Wallpaper.
Chinese tourists have spent more than a record $10 billion in Australia over the past year and their numbers now nearly surpass Kiwi visitors.

Results from the International Visitor Survey, released on Tuesday, show 1.33 million visitors from China travelled to Australia during the past 12 months to September.

That's just short of the 1.35 million who travel across the ditch from New Zealand.

While here, Chinese tourists spent $10.3 billion, out of the overall visitor spend of $41.2 billion.

It's the first time such Chinese spending has exceeded $10 billion.

International visitors aged 15 years and over grew by seven per cent, reaching more than eight million people, and they stayed a record 268 million nights.

With Chinese tourists travelling more, Trade Minister Steve Ciobo wants them to continue to choose to Australia.

"We want to see full planes flying from Shanghai to Sydney, Beijing to Brisbane and Guangzhou to Cairns," Mr Ciobo said.

"The more tourists we can get to Australia, the more business for our hotels, shops and restaurants which will create new local jobs."
The families of the boys killed in their Sydney classroom when a four wheel drive ploughed through the wall have spoken of their grief.

Andrew Encinas, nine, was killed alongside his friend Jihad Darwiche, eight, when a Toyota Kluger crashed into their Banksia Road Public School classroom in early November.

Andrew's mother Nicole, who dropped her son at school that day, has told News Corp Australia his death has left the family devastated.

"His death has left a big hole in our lives, it's still too raw and painful for us to talk about," she said.

"I don't wish to say how I feel about the driver until we know the full facts of what happened that day.

"We're still trying to make sense of it all. Andrew was a beautiful, joyful, boy who lit up the house.

Jihad's mother Susanne says she cannot sleep, but has no ill will towards the driver, who has been charged over the boys' deaths.

"Sometimes I think I can't cope, our family is struggling to come to terms with losing Jihad, it's hard," Ms Darwiche said.

"But the support we have had from the community has been overwhelming."

Maha Al-Shennag, 52, has been charged over the crash.
More than 70 firefighters have worked through the night to save a factory that went up in flames in Sydney's west.

Emergency services were called to the Parramatta laundromat about 10.30pm on Monday following reports the two-level building was on fire, police say.

Firefighters worked for hours to completely extinguish the blaze which severely damaged the inside of the building, Fire & Rescue NSW spokesman Norm Buckley told AAP on Tuesday.

The factory was sandwiched between two other buildings, but firefighters managed to prevent the blaze from spreading to neighbouring businesses.

The laundromat is now a crime scene as police and fire investigators work to determine what sparked the blaze.
Jeff Fenech reckons there's an easy way for Gary Corcoran to take advantage if the bullish Brit really thinks Jeff Horn is a serial headbutter.

Hit him.

"Every time he puts his head in, hit him with an uppercut, finish with a hook at put his head back up," Fenech said.

The former three-division world champion believes Corcoran's camp is playing a "mind game" with Horn's corner by airing allegations of foul play at Monday's fiery pre-fight press conference in Brisbane.

Corcoran's co-trainer Frank Greaves said Horn was a "dirty" boxer and played a compilation video of instances the 29-year-old former schoolteacher has led with his head across his 18 career fights.

Horn's trainer Glenn Rushton strenuously denied the claims and said the London-based Irish Traveller was already looking for excuses.

Fenech admitted he did the same thing as Horn but said it was all within the rules.

"That's just Jeff's way of getting in close. It's not illegal. I did it all my career," he said.

"I don't see anything wrong with it. If they've watched it on video enough, there's a way to throw some punches to your advantage.

"Every time he leans down, throw an uppercut and a hook after it and pivot out of there.

"That's what I'd be telling my fighter if that was the case instead of worrying about headbutting him."

Both sides intend to meet with New York referee Benjy Esteves Jr before the bout to address the claims.

Greaves is demanding a level playing field: if Horn is allowed to headbutt, so too is Corcoran.

"I'm sure there won't be a problem with that," Fenech said.

"The difference is Jeff's not trying to headbutt, he's just leading with his head. If he does that and Gary headbutts it's a different thing."

Horn said the allegations annoyed him.

"They're making a big deal about it," he said.

"They obviously want the referee to be watching it.

"I'm never going to deliberately come in there and smack my head against someone. It's stupid, why would I be smacking my face up?"
Former senator Nick Xenophon has criticised key South Australian government infrastructure projects as he continues his push to be elected to state parliament.

He says spending $160 million on the tunnel extension to the O-Bahn guided busway and the cost blow-out of the new Royal Adelaide Hospital show greater accountability and a better watchdog is needed.

"At a cost of $10 million a year for a well-resourced watchdog, this would be a tiny premium to pay for what would in effect be an insurance policy against future infrastructure debacles," Mr Xenophon told an industry breakfast on Tuesday.
Asbestos has been discovered in several council-owned workplaces in the NSW Blue Mountains including a pre-school, prompting a full investigation backed by the state government.

SafeWork NSW launched the investigation after it became aware of alleged asbestos mismanagement at several Blue Mountains City Council-managed workplaces, including the preschool, library, citizens' hall and council depot.

"This is a very significant step, but it's absolutely warranted as the number of asbestos discoveries in the mountains and council's poor asbestos management are alarming," Better Regulation Minister Matt Kean said in a statement.
The Islamic State group has lost vast swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria

Up to 6,000 Africans who fought for the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria could return home, the African Union's top security official warned Sunday, calling on countries to prepare for the threat.

Smail Chergui, the AU's commissioner for peace and security, said African nations would need to work closely with each other and share intelligence to counter returning militants.

"There are reports of 6,000 African fighters among the 30,000 foreign elements who joined this terrorist group in the Middle East," Chergui told a meeting in Algiers, according to the Algeria Press Service news agency.

"The return of these elements to Africa poses a serious threat to our national security and stability and requires specific treatment and intense cooperation between African countries," he said.

Tens of thousands of foreign fighters joined the Sunni extremist group after it seized vast swathes of Iraq and Syria and declared a caliphate in 2014.

But the group has suffered a host of losses to both its territory and military capabilities in the last year.

Backed by a US-led coalition, Iraqi forces gradually retook control of all territory lost to the jihadists, declaring on Saturday that the country was now liberated from its control.

In Syria, the group faces western-backed Syrian rebels, jihadist rivals and government forces that are supported by Russia and Iran.

But the losses have sparked fears that IS's remaining foreign fighters may now relocate, bringing their extremist ideology and violence with them.
South African police officers respond to yet another shooting of alleged gang members in Manenberg, known as South Africa's "gang capital".

With rifles raised, South African police speed through the streets of Manenberg, responding to yet another call to quell violence in one of the country's most murderous ganglands.

Arriving in this drab suburb of the tourist city of Cape Town, a dead body is found lying in the road -- the aftermath of a battle between rival gangs.

On the chaotic street, small children peek at the corpse as police shout at onlookers, ordering them to move on.

Sporadic gun battles in gang hotspots around the Cape Flats area have increased and prompted authorities to call for an army intervention as the overwhelmed police fight for control.

"There is nothing we can do, except to keep away from the streets," said 71-year-old Manenberg resident Keenan Willemse from the doorstep of his house.

"When the shooting starts, we stay indoors. We have almost become prisoners in our own homes. The streets are bad."

Recent official crime statistics revealed that nearly 20 percent of murders reported in the Western Cape province were caused by gang violence, although the figure is believed to be higher.

According to media reports, more than 50 people, mostly residents caught in the crossfire, have been killed in the Cape Flats over the past five months.

The low-lying Cape Flats, set between Cape Town and the picturesque winelands region, is home to a mostly mixed-race population -- known as Coloureds -- where gangsterism is concentrated.

Local residents bear the brunt of gang-related crime as gang members wage turf wars and retaliatory attacks on rivals.

- 'Outsmarted the police' -

According to media reports, more than 50 people, mostly residents caught in the crossfire, have been killed in the Cape Flats over the past five months

One elderly man was shot and killed in October on his way to collect his monthly social grant payout, and a mother was fatally wounded by a stray bullet while chatting to a friend outside her house in September.

Arrests are few, and police action is often too late.

The lucrative drug trade business, goods smuggling and protection rackets are the main source of income for gangs.

"I think they have outsmarted the police, they are more organised," said Faldiela de Vries, a co-founder of the Manenberg People's Centre, a community action group.

Criminologists say as long as there is poverty, gangsterism will be hard to eradicate.

"What is more frightening is that the age of the perpetrators has become younger," she told AFP.

"In the 1980s they were in their 30s and 40s," she said, adding that now children as young as 12 years old are recruited into gangs.

Gang membership in Western Cape is estimated at over 100,000 -- creating a culture of violence that echoes international crime syndicates in the United States and South America.

Manenberg, the stronghold of the notorious Hard Livings gang, has the reputation of being South Africa's "gang capital".

Western Cape Premier Helen Zille has asked for military assistance to support the police.

"By bringing in the army, the soldiers will be given the same powers as police, not act as soldiers in a war," she said.

"What worries me the most about this culture of gangsterism and violence is the seemingly endless flow of firearms and illicit substances."

- Rival gang warfare -

South African President Jacob Zuma is expected to decide soon whether to deploy the army to back up the police in the Cape Flats.

South African President Jacob Zuma is expected to make a decision on the army deployment soon. Soldiers were last sent into the Cape Flats in May 2015, following a surge in violent crimes.

In several neighbourhoods in the Cape Flats like Bishop Lavis, Hannover Park, Mitchells Plain and Elsies River mostly under-age boys are used as drug runners and to hide weapons.

The Hard Livings gang, one of the oldest organised crime groups, use the British Union Jack as their flag and have rivals spread across the Cape Flats, especially a gang that calls themselves the Americans.

Dozens of other gangs have sprung up like the Sexy Boys, Dixie Boys and Clever Kids who battle with the numbers gangs -- the 26s and 28s -- which originate from prison.

"Many young people are lured into gangs, as a result people get into trouble for hanging out with their school friends without knowing that they are gang members," 17-year-old Linden Brown from Manenberg said.

In October, an alleged gang leader was shot four times outside the Cape Town International Airport terminal, in full view of travellers and no one has been arrested for the shooting.

Back in 1996, notorious leader of the Hard Livings, Rashaad Staggie, was shot and set alight by a community mob in the streets of Salt River, in what was seen as one of the toughest stands against gangsterism.

According to criminologist Don Pinnock, the gangs in Cape Town's previously marginalised areas were bred by the inequality of the apartheid system.

"For as long as there is a problem of poverty, guns and drugs, gangsterism will be hard to eradicate," said Pinnock, based at the University of Cape Town.

"Gangs are admired by youngsters who lack social stability and have little prospects in life. That is one of the things that makes it so hard to eradicate."
Sun Zhengcai, who was once tipped to become a member of the party's top leadership, has had a precipitous fall from grace since he was suddenly removed from office this summer

China's top prosecutor said Monday it has opened a criminal investigation into the former party chief of Chinese mega-city Chongqing, who was expelled from the Communist Party earlier this year following corruption allegations.

Sun Zhengcai, who was once tipped to become a member of the party's top leadership, has had a precipitous fall from grace since he was suddenly removed from office this summer.

He will be investigated for "accepting bribes," according to a brief statement on the website of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

The decision follows Sun's expulsion from the CCP in September after an investigation by the party's disciplinary body found the politician had abused his position by taking bribes and trading power for sex.

The former member of the party's Politburo was also accused of nepotism, sloth and leaking confidential party information and betraying party principles.

Sun had once been tipped for promotion to the Politburo's elite, seven-member standing committee.

At 53, he was the youngest member of the 25-member Politburo and he was even seen in some quarters as General Secretary Xi Jinping's potential successor.

In October, the CCP accused Sun and two others of attempting to rig leadership elections at top party gatherings, potentially threatening Xi's ascension to the party's top spot.

Sun was the first serving member of the Politburo to be placed under investigation since Bo Xilai, also a former Chongqing party chief who was jailed for life in 2013 in the wake of a massive anti-corruption campaign launched by Xi.

His sweeping crusade against official corruption over the last five years has removed several rivals, leading some analysts to liken it to a political purge.
Displaced Iraqi children who fled from Baiji in a camp on the city's outskirts on November 27, 2017

A white rocking horse and a child's toy car lie abandoned on a dusty lane in the Iraqi city of Baiji, a small sign of the ruin that can be seen all around.

Two years after the jihadists of Islamic State group were forced from this one-time industrial hub, Baiji remains a devastated ghost city as pledges of funds to help rebuild life have failed to materialise.

Home to what was once Iraq's biggest oil refinery, its rubble-strewn streets are lined by the twisted carcasses of buildings, and in 2016 it was declared a disaster zone by the national parliament.

"Up until now there has been no money to reconstruct the town despite the promises made by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi," Khaled Hassan Mahdi, a member of the regional council, told AFP.

A displaced Iraqi woman who fled from Baiji pictured at a camp on November 27, 2017

Instead, Mahdi said, all available funds have gone into financing Iraq's military campaign against IS, which Abadi declared defeated after three years of brutal fighting.

"And even if the ministries unblock the money, it will only go to restoring infrastructure, water, roads, electricity, but not pay benefits to people or give them aid to rebuild their homes."

- '90 percent destroyed' -

For Baiji, 200 kilometres (124 miles) north of Baghdad, its role as a major industrial centre boasting sprawling oil and chemical plants seems like a distant memory.

"It will be very difficult to rehabilitate the Baiji refinery, which was built in 1975 and used to produce 250,000 barrels a day, as so much equipment has been pillaged," a high-ranking official in Iraq's North Oil Company told AFP.

Even if the facility does get up and running again, the official said, then "it won't have the same capacity as before".

Iraqi children displaced from Baiji at a camp on the outskirts of the city on November 27, 2017

The level of devastation in Baiji is among the worst left behind after Baghdad's punishing campaign to reclaim its towns and cities from the grip the jihadists, who fought fierce house-to-house battles to cling on to the city.

"Baiji is the most destroyed place in Iraq after western Mosul," said council member Khazal Hammadi, referring to the obliterated old heart of the country's second city.

Before the jihadists seized control in 2014 the city had a population of some 180,000 people.

"Now 90 percent of Baiji is destroyed and the people have still not returned," city councillor Sheikh Hatef Bassam said.

Wearing a black and white checked keffiyeh headscarf, he insists that "the destruction was the work of the IS terrorists after local Arab tribes rejected their presence".

But the full story of Baiji's downfall is far more protracted and complex.

After the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Baiji found itself at the heart of the so-called "Sunni triangle" where those loyal to ousted leader Saddam Hussein continued to wage a ferocious insurgency -- and the oil infrastructure was attacked repeatedly.

A member of the Iraqi forces guards a checkpoint in Iraq's northern city of Baiji on November 27, 2017

IS swept into the city in June 2014 as the Iraqi forces collapsed and after more than a year in control were forced out by government troops and allied militias with the help of air power from a US-led coalition in October 2015.

- 'Given us nothing' -

Traffic has long ceased along Baiji's wrecked main highway and, apart from a few military checkpoints, life is nowhere to be seen.

"The city is destroyed and the houses are uninhabitable," said local militia commander Hajj Ibrahim Taha.

"The roads are destroyed, the water system is damaged, electricity is non-existent and all the people have left."

Local police chief Saad Nafus said that some families come back from time to time to check their houses, but they have to get "authorisation" from security officials who still worry about jihadists returning.

In a camp for displaced people run by charities in the region, three kilometres north of the city of Tikrit, former Baiji resident Amer Abbas has no idea if his home is still standing or not.

"We are afraid that we will find nothing if we go back," he said.

Nearby, Said Imad Ahmed said he already knows full well that his house has been destroyed and that for the foreseeable future he will remain trapped in the camp.

"I don't have any money to rebuild and the government has given us nothing," he said.

"We have no choice but to remain here."
The pair made a break from the Indonesian resort island's main prison by cutting a hole in the roof with a hacksaw, authorities said. It was not clear how they obtained the tool

A US man convicted on drugs charges escaped Bali's notorious Kerobokan jail in an early Monday morning jailbreak with another American prisoner who was caught almost immediately, an official said.

The pair made a break from the Indonesian resort island's main prison by cutting a hole in the roof with a hacksaw, authorities said. It was not clear how they obtained the tool.

Police are now scouring the palm-fringed island and handing out pictures of escapee Chrishan Beasley, a 32-year-old arrested in August for carrying five grams of hashish.

Foreigners are regularly arrested for drugs offences on Bali.

Beasley was awaiting a sentencing in his case. It was not immediately clear how much jail time he was facing, but Indonesia has some of the world's toughest drugs laws, with the death penalty available in some trafficking cases.

Beasley's accomplice in the escape, convicted thief Paul Anthony Hoffman, 57, was apprehended before he could make good on the escape.

"Paul was immediately recaptured by the locals who saw him trying to escape while Chrishan, who climbed up before him, managed to run away," Kerobokan chief warden Tonny Nainggolan told AFP.

Hoffman is serving a 20-month sentence for robbing a number of convenience stores at knifepoint.

Kerobokan houses some of the country's most notorious and high-profile inmates, including members of the so-called Bali Nine which plotted to bring heroin into Australia via Bali. Two members of the group have been executed.

Jailbreaks are common in Indonesia, where inmates are often held in unsanitary conditions at overcrowded and poorly guarded prisons.

In May, more than 200 inmates staged a mass breakout from an overcrowded prison on Sumatra island, while last year a convicted child murderer escaped from jail by putting on a woman's Muslim veil, make-up and sunglasses and walking out past unsuspecting guards.
Officials hope to halt the spread of diphtheria before Indonesia hosts the Asian Games next year

Millions of Indonesian children are being vaccinated this week as the country responds to a widespread diphtheria outbreak that has killed dozens, officials said Monday.

Some eight million children and teenagers across the Southeast Asian nation will receive the shot to prevent further spread of the disease which is caused by a bacterial infection.

It can lead to breathing difficulties, heart failure, paralysis, and even death if left untreated.

Widespread incidents of the communicable disease are relatively rare in Indonesia, although it had the second largest number of reported cases globally from 2011-2015, behind India, according to the World Health Organization.

This year, nearly 600 cases have been detected in 95 Indonesian communities across 20 provinces, killing 32 people.

The vaccination programme started from Monday in three of the country's most populous provinces, including the capital Jakarta, and could continue into next month, officials said.

The spike in cases is due to poor public awareness as well as a growing anti-vaccination movement in Indonesia, the health ministry said.

"Diphtheria cases have been rare for a long time in Indonesia, so people were no longer aware of the danger and did not take their children for vaccinations," senior ministry official Jane Soepardi told AFP.

Officials hope to halt the spread before Indonesia hosts the Asian Games next year.

"It was not scary at all. My teacher told me we all must be vaccinated and it did not hurt either," Ragil Setiawan, a 10-year-old student at an elementary school in Tangerang, just outside of Jakarta, said Monday after getting his shot.
Many busy migratory routes have been cut by roads and railway lines in India's Assam and West Bengal states, increasing the risk of accidental elephant deaths

A train has struck and killed five elephants as they crossed over tracks at a tea plantation in northeast India, an official said Monday.

The elephants, including a pregnant female, were part of a larger herd wandering through the plantation early Sunday in Assam state, home to India's biggest wild elephant population, when they were mowed down by the train.

"All five elephants died on the spot. A stillborn calf was later removed from the pregnant female," said Vikas Brahma, head of Assam's forest department.

Brahma told AFP it was uncommon for elephants to move through that section of Assam, a thickly-forested state famed for its tea and wildlife, and officials were unaware there were herds in the area.

Railway authorities have been issuing alerts about elephant herds passing through the state to prevent accidents.

But a railway spokesman told the Indian Express newspaper that no speed restrictions were in place at the time of the accident on Sunday, as the area was not a designated migratory path for elephants.

Deforestation and construction activity near their habitats force elephants to stray further afield for food, often bringing them into conflict with humans.

Many busy migratory routes, known as elephant corridors, have been cut by roads and railway lines in Assam and neighbouring West Bengal state, increasing the risk of accidental deaths, poaching and stampedes.

Assam has 5,620 elephants according to a 2011 census, more than any other state in India.

An estimated 60 elephants have died so far this year in Assam, Brahma said.

Many of the deaths were caused by electrocution, as farmers erect electrified fences around their fields to keep wild animals away.

Elsewhere, an elephant killed a trainer during a procession at a Hindu temple in the southern state of Kerala on Sunday.

The elephant ran amok amid a large group of devotees, trampling and killing the trainer, the Press Trust of India reported.
Seoul and Washington decided to install the powerful US THAAD system in the South earlier this year

South Korean President Moon Jae-In hopes to "normalise" ties with giant neighbour China on his first state visit to the country this week, his office said Monday, after Beijing was infuriated by a US missile system deployment.

Seoul and Washington decided to install the powerful US THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system in the South earlier this year to guard against threats from the nuclear-armed North.

Beijing saw it as a threat to its own security and reacted furiously, slapping a string of measures against South Korean businesses and banning group tours to the South, in moves seen as economic retaliation.

China is the South's top trading partner and the diplomatic row took a major toll on many South Korean firms, most notably retail giant Lotte Group, which provided the land to host the powerful US missile system.

Angry boycott campaigns and regulatory crackdowns by Chinese authorities decimated its business in the world's second-largest economy, and it was forced to put its supermarket unit in China up for sale.

But last month the two countries issued identically-worded statements on their mutual desire to improve relations.

It did not state any specifics, but Beijing has demanded that Seoul formally promise not to deploy any more THAAD launchers and not to join any regional US missile defence system.

Nam Gwan-Pyo, a deputy director of the presidential national security office, did not give reporters details of any concrete steps that could be expected from Moon's four-day trip -- his first to China since taking power in May.

But he said it would be a turning point in relations towards a "more mature" relationship, he said, "by recovering bilateral trust and strengthening friendship between the leaders of the two nations".

Ties recently showed some -- albeit limited -- signs of thaw as China's state tourism board approved last month Seoul-bound group tours from some parts of China.

Moon heads to Beijing on Wednesday and will hold a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping the following day to discuss issues including how to curb the North's nuclear weapons drive, Nam added.

China -- the North's sole diplomatic ally and economic lifeline -- has stepped up sanctions on the North amid pressure from the US and the international community to play a bigger role in taming its regime.

Beijing has backed recent UN sanctions imposed on the North over its nuclear and missile tests, including a ban on coal imports, although it repeatedly pushed for talks to defuse the tensions.

It has urged a "double freeze" on both North Korean weapons tests and joint military exercises by Seoul and Washington -- an idea consistently rejected by the US and South Korea.
Netanyahu's visit to Brussels comes after he met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that recognising Jerusalem as his country's capital "makes peace possible", after widespread international criticism of the US decision to do so.

US President Donald Trump's announcement last week has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories, as well as demonstrations across the Islamic world.

The EU expressed alarm at the decision, which upends seven decades of US policy on the disputed holy city, and the bloc's foreign ministers are set to urge Netanyahu to resume dialogue with the Palestinians as he meets them over breakfast in Brussels.

The Israeli premier said what Trump had done was to "put facts squarely on the table" by acknowledging Jerusalem had been the capital of the Israeli state for 70 years and of the Jewish people for 3,000 years.

"It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," he said in a statement alongside EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini.

Mogherini, who last week warned the Jerusalem decision could take the situation "backwards to even darker times", restated the EU's position that a two-state solution with Jerusalem as capital for both Israelis and Palestinians was the only sustainable way to resolve the conflict.

Netanyahu pointed to a new US peace initiative as a possible way forward.

"There is now an effort under way to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance this peace," he said.

Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but it is not clear what progress he is making.

Netanyahu's visit to Brussels comes after he met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday. Macron called on him to freeze settlement building and to re-engage with Palestinians.

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital and previous peace plans have stumbled over debates on whether and how to divide sovereignty or oversee holy sites.
Police said journalist Paul Comiti was detained on Saturday in Srinagar

Indian authorities have detained a French journalist in Kashmir where he was making a documentary on security in the disputed territory, officials said Monday.

Police said Paul Comiti was detained on Saturday in Srinagar, the capital of Indian-administered Kashmir, because of visa irregularities.

Comiti, 47, told AFP that he had been followed before his arrest on Saturday.

The intelligence services "were very nervous and had been following me for several days", Comiti said by telephone from the Kothi Bagh police station where he was still in detention on Monday.

According to Comiti, he was taken to the station by security forces after going to a demonstration on human rights in the territory that is also claimed by Pakistan.

Kashmir was divided between Indian and Pakistani sectors when the two split in 1947

Police told AFP that Comiti had been held because he entered India on a business visa rather than one for journalists.

Comiti said he had asked Indian authorities two months ago for permission to film the documentary for a production company owned by his father, Tony Comiti.

The journalist added that he had met with military officials, separatist militants and human rights lawyers during his two-week stay in Kashmir.

The French embassy in New Delhi said it was in contact with Comiti.

Kashmir was divided between Indian and Pakistani sectors when the two split in 1947. The Indian side has been at the centre of a separatist conflict that has left tens of thousands of mainly civilian dead since 1989.
President Vladimir Putin has declared that his alliance with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has been victorious, and that Russia will begin withdrawing troops from the war-torn country.

Speaking during a visit to a military airbase near Latakia, northeast Syria, Putin announced that he has ordered a pullout of 'a significant part' of Russian forces.

Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both ISIS and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops.

Smiling Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, greets Russian President Vladimir Putin upon his arrival to the Hemeimeem air base in Syria

The close allies embraced at the airfield before Putin boasted how Russia had achieved victory in Syria

Putin and Assad pose with Russian air force pilots during their visit after Putin declared a victory in Syria

'Victory': President Vladimir Putin orders withdrawal of 'a significant part' of Russian troops from Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country on Monday

'I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases,' Putin said in a televised speech as he visited Russia's Hemeimeem airbase in Syria.

'I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia.'

Putin said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the 'most battle-ready group of international terrorists,' apparently referring to ISIS.

He added that 'if the terrorists again raise their heads, we will deal such blows to them they have never seen.'

The Russian leader also hailed the valor of his troops, saying 'You have shown the best qualities of a Russian soldier.'

Russia first intervened in the Syrian conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu meet with Russian air force pilots

Firm friends: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu watch the troops marching at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria

The size of the Russian deployment in Syria has not been confirmed by the Kremlin

'Our homeland thanks you, my friends,' Putin said, 'Have a safe trip. I thank you for your service.'

After seeing troops march, Putin drove up to the Russian warplanes parked on the runway and talked to the pilots, who said they will fly back home later in the day.

Putin and Assad were pictured smiling and shaking hands, before Putin left for Egypt where he arrived later on Monday.

Putin reportedly told Assad he would discuss the prospects for a peace settlement with the leaders of Egypt and Turkey later Monday.

'I hope that together with Turkey and Iran we will succeed in restoring peaceful life and launch a political process to settle the situation in Syria,' Putin said.

Syrian TV said Assad thanked Putin for his troops' 'effective contribution' to the fight against terrorism in Syria, which he said the Syrian people 'will never forget.'

'Syria has been saved as a sovereign, independent state, refugees are coming home and conditions have been created for a political settlement under the United Nations' auspices,' Putin said.

A fresh round of Syrian peace talks is scheduled for next week in Astana, Kazakhstan said Monday, as part of a Moscow-led push to end the six-year conflict.

The two-day talks in Astana will begin on December 21 and will focus on freeing prisoners, the delivery of humanitarian aid, the functioning of de-escalation zones and other issues, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Putin looks out the window from his presidential plane on his way to visit the Hemeimeem air base

Putin and Assad agreed that the Russian military will maintain its presence at Hemeimeem and a naval facility in Tartus

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the Russian military commander in Syria, said the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers.

Surovikin said the remaining forces will be sufficient to 'successfully fulfill the tasks' to stabilize the situation in Syria. He did not say how many troops and weapons would stay behind.

Syria has allowed Russia to use Hemeimeem air base indefinitely without cost. Moscow also has a deal with Syria to use the Tartus base for 49 years, which could be extended if both parties agree.

The Russian military plans to modernize the air base and expand its runways to allow it to host more warplanes. It also intends to expand the Tartus facility significantly to make it a full-scale naval base capable of hosting warships, including cruiser-sized vessels.

Alliance: Russian troops in Syria, where Putin's regime have been supporting dictator Bashar al-Assad since 2015, are pictured at an unknown date

Quick stop: After a speedy visit to Syria, Putin arrived in Cairo to meet with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, pictured today

It also follows the Russian announcement last week that the Syrian army under the Russian air cover routed the Islamic State in eastern Syria and fully restored control over the border with Iraq.

Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a 'new stage' as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reform.

Russia launched its air campaign in Syria at the end of September 2015 when Assad's government was teetering on the brink of collapse and quickly changed the course of the conflict in its favor.

The size of the Russian deployment in Syria is not known but independent Russian military expert Pavel Felgenhauer estimates that up to 10,000 troops and private contractors could have taken part in the conflict.

More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown.
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The EU on Monday agreed to resume political contacts "at all levels" with Thailand, more than three years after suspending them in protest at the military coup in Bangkok.

The bloc said developments in Thailand this year, including the adoption of a new constitution and a pledge by junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha to hold elections in November 2018, meant it was "appropriate" to resume ties.

But the European Union repeated its call for the restoration of full democracy and said it was still concerned about harassment of human rights activists and the curtailing of free speech in Thailand.

A meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels said they considered it was "appropriate to pursue a gradual political re-engagement with Thailand".

The EU "has decided therefore to resume political contact at all levels with Thailand in order to facilitate meaningful dialogue", the ministers said in a text approved at the meeting.

EU ministers halted all official visits to Thailand and suspended the signing of a partnership and cooperation accord with Bangkok in June 2014 after the army ousted the elected government.

But Prayut's election promise and other measures such as the end of prosecuting civilians in military courts for certain offences have persuaded the EU to re-engage.

The bloc said it would look at possibly resuming talks on a free trade agreement with Thailand -- as well as the partnership and cooperation accord -- "with a democratically elected civilian government under the new constitution".

But even when Thailand holds elections, they will not restore the same level of democracy the country had before the coup -- a new junta-drafted charter curbs the power of elected politicians and calls for a fully appointed upper house, with several spots reserved for military leaders.

The military has further enshrined its role by declaring that any future administration must adhere to its "legally binding 20-year-plan" for the country
A Palestinian protestor throws stones towards Israeli forces in the West Bank city of Ramallah on December 11, 2017 as protests continue in the Middle East and elsewhere over US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital

The Middle East saw a fifth day of protests on Monday over US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, while further global condemnation followed the deeply controversial move.

While tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Lebanon, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met EU foreign ministers in Brussels, declaring that the move he has lauded as historic "makes peace possible".

He also said he expected "all or most" European countries would follow the United States -- but the 28-nation bloc's foreign policy head Federica Mogherini gave him a stern rebuff, telling him to "keep his expectations for others".

In Cairo, Russian President Vladimir Putin denounced Trump's decision as "destabilising" while calling for a resumption of long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian talks.

And after meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara later Monday, Putin said the Trump declaration could "derail" peace efforts.

At a joint press conference, Erdogan said he and Putin had taken a similar approach on the issue, while accusing Israel of continuing to "add fuel to the flames".

Erdogan has been perhaps the most outspoken of global leaders in warning about the consequences of Trump's move.

Earlier Monday he said in a speech in Ankara that Washington was a "partner to bloodshed".

A boy with a Palestinian flag painted on his face during a rally organised by Lebanon's Hezbollah in Beirut on December 11, 2017

Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006, organised a demonstration in Beirut in which tens of thousands of people chanted "Death to America!" and "Death to Israel!"

In Tehran, hundreds of diehard Iranian conservatives rallied against Israel and said Trump had hastened its demise by his decision.

In Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, dozens of Palestinians threw stones at Israeli soldiers, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets.

"We came here against Trump's decision and we want to send a message that Jerusalem is and will stay our capital, and we will stay to defend it," one protester in a black ski mask told AFP.

There were also low-level clashes in Hebron and the Gaza Strip.

A burning portrait of US President Donald Trump on the ground during a demonstration in Tehran on December 11, 2017

About 27 Palestinians were wounded by live fire or rubber bullets throughout the day, the Red Crescent said.

Palestinian demonstrations have declined in number and intensity since reaching a peak on Friday, but there are concerns they will again increase later this week.

Late Monday, at least two rockets were fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, with one intercepted by Israel's missile defence system.

In response, Israel's army said it hit Hamas military positions in the strip with tank and aircraft fire.

There were no immediate reports of casualties on either side.

Four Palestinians have been killed so far in clashes or Israeli air strikes in response to rocket fire from Gaza, and hundreds have been wounded.

- 'Walking away' -

Tens of thousands of people have protested in Middle Eastern and Muslim nations.

Palestinian leaders are outraged by Trump's move, but they also face difficult choices in how to respond since they rely on US aid and would like to salvage the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict.

President Mahmud Abbas will refuse to meet US Vice President Mike Pence when he visits the region later this month, Palestinian officials say, a move that led Washington to accuse Abbas of "walking away" from a chance to discuss peace.

A masked Palestinian protester throws a petrol bomb at Israeli soldiers in the West Bank town of Hebron on December 11, 2017

Abbas on Monday met Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a key US ally in the region, ahead of a summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation on Wednesday.

Egyptian presidential spokesman Bassam Radi said Sisi reaffirmed Cairo's "firm" position on the need to maintain the legal and historical status of Jerusalem and support for an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Netanyahu, who has been dogged by corruption investigations against him at home, has lauded Trump's declaration.

On Monday, he was in Brussels as part of a two-day trip to Europe after meeting French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris the previous day, on visits planned before Trump's move.

Macron urged Netanyahu to "show courage" and take measures to restart long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts, including freezing settlement construction in the West Bank.

But Netanyahu, who heads what is seen as the most rightwing government in Israeli history, showed no sign of obliging, instead blaming the Palestinians for stalled peace efforts.

Monday's parley with EU foreign ministers was the first such meeting with an Israeli premier in 22 years, and came after the bloc's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini warned that Trump's move could take the situation "backwards to even darker times".

Netanyahu later said he told the ministers to "stop spoiling the Palestinians -- tell them clearly".

"I think that the Palestinians need to be brought back to earth, to reality," he said.

An Israeli border policeman looks on as he walks through tear gas fumes during clashes with Palestinian protesters near an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank city of Ramallah on December 10, 2017

Mogherini said the "worst thing that can happen now is an escalation of tensions, of violence", and restated the EU's position that a two-state solution with Jerusalem as capital for both Israelis and Palestinians was the only sustainable way to resolve the conflict.

- Global condemnation -

Trump's Jerusalem declaration upended decades of precedent and broke with international consensus, drawing global condemnation.

Jerusalem's status is perhaps the most sensitive issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel sees the entire city as its undivided capital, while the Palestinians want the eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

Trump noted in his decision that Jerusalem's final status would have to be decided in negotiations between the two sides, but the Palestinians are not convinced.

Many analysts have questioned how a fair peace process could be possible after such a major concession was made without seeming to demand anything in return.

Jerusalem is home to sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, and the Arab and Muslim world has seen the US move as an affront.

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There had been high hopes that the Suu Kyi government would herald a breakthrough for freedom of speech, but the rights group Free Expression Myanmar said those hoped-for gains were so far strikingly absent

Defamation cases have rocketed since Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government came to power in Myanmar, a report said Monday, as the rich and powerful intensify their use of draconian laws to muzzle civil society and the media.

There had been high hopes that the new government would herald a breakthrough for freedom of speech after half a century of stifling military rule.

But the rights group Free Expression Myanmar (FEM) said those hoped-for gains were so far strikingly absent.

Ninety-seven cases have been brought under the notorious Article 66(d) of the Telecommunications Act since March 2016 compared with just 11 under the previous military-backed government, FEM said in a report.

Nearly all of them involve defamation charges covered by the law, the report said, snaring online satirists, activists and journalists.

Every case that has made it to court has ended with a guilty verdict and a prison sentence.

"Over the past two years, Article 66(d) has been the tool of choice for those in positions of power, who want to extend their punishment of people who are trying to hold them accountable, online," FEM said.

Amendments to the law prodded by public discontent have had "no discernible impact," it added.

The group reiterated calls for the "fundamentally undemocratic" law to be completely repealed, saying at least two-thirds of complaints would have been rejected had defamation been properly defined.

A recent case against the editor of the Myanmar Now news agency is still ongoing.

Swe Win stands charged with insulting a Buddhist monk who praised the killer of a Muslim government lawyer.

There have been only three appeals in the past two years as convicts under the law fear failure will earn an even longer sentence, the rights group said.

One of FEM's researchers, Maung Saungkha, was a victim of the law under the previous government.

The young writer was arrested in 2015 for penning a satirical verse about having a tattoo of the former junta-installed president Thein Sein on his penis.

"The previous government used 66(d) to pursue people who criticised them and they just paved the way for the next government to follow," he told AFP.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with President Bashar al-Assad during his first visit to Syria

Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara on Monday for the last leg of a day-long diplomatic dash, during which he ordered the partial withdrawal of Russia's troops from the war-torn country.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Putin at his presidential complex in Ankara for a closed-door meeting.

This is the eighth face-to-face meeting between Putin and Erdogan this year, a sign of the intensity of a relationship that had hit rock bottom in November 2015 when Turkey shot down a Russian war plane over Syria.

Putin was welcomed earlier in the day at Russia's Hmeimim airbase by Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on a surprise first visit to the country.

In a televised speech to Russian troops, Putin said he had ordered his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu to start a partial withdrawal.

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia," he said at the base in Latakia Province, a government stronghold.

Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of Assad which targeted both the Islamic State group (IS) and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops.

Putin said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the "most battle-ready group of international terrorists," apparently referring to IS.

"On the whole the task has been completed. And completed brilliantly."

- 'Our homeland thanks you' -

Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a "new stage" as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reforms.

Russia intervened in the Syrian conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both the Islamic State group and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops

He said both Hmeimim and Russia's naval facility in Tartus would continue to function and warned that Russia would repel any new attacks by militants.

Putin made the Syria stopover, the first by a Russian head of state since president Dmitry Medvedev visited in 2010, en route to Egypt, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, one of Ankara's prime foes in recent years.

Putin thanked the troops for defending Russia from terrorism and helping Syria remain a "sovereign independent state".

He said the conflict proved that Russia's armed forces, including intelligence officers, pilots, sailors, special forces, military police, sappers and military advisers, were on top form, and he also praised the country's defence industry.

"Our homeland thanks you, my friends," he said.

- 'Deep gratitude' -

Putin also held talks with Assad, who expressed his "deep gratitude" for Russia's role in the conflict.

"The Syrians will never forget what the Russian forces did," official Syria media quoted him as saying.

Putin said he would discuss Russia's efforts to convene Syria's political congress with the leaders of Egypt and Turkey, and then brief Assad.

While Turkey has backed the anti-regime opposition and Russia along with Iran is the main international supporter of Damascus, Putin and Erdogan have worked closely to resolve the Syrian conflict in recent months.

Ankara officially remains opposed to Assad staying in power in any transition but has notably toned down its rhetoric against the Syrian leader in recent months.

After talks, Erdogan said the next step to help resolve the Syrian conflict would be to hold a second summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi "as soon as possible".

Last month Putin held a summit with Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and Erdogan in the city to discuss Syria.

Putin said at the beginning of 2018 that a congress of national dialogue should be held to seek a political solution for Syria, adding that he spoke to Assad about it.

- Pentagon scepticism -

Last week Putin announced he would be standing in the March presidential election that he is widely expected to win, and his lightning visit to Syria was likely to play well with Russian voters.

The commander of Russia's forces in Syria, Sergei Surovikin, said 23 Russian planes, two helicopters and military police would be returning to Russia soon, national television reported.

Asked how long the process of bringing back the contingent from Syria would take, Shoigu said: "They have already started coming back, we will see how it goes," Russian news agencies reported.

The Pentagon voiced scepticism about Putin's announcement, saying such declarations were not necessarily reflected by action.

The size of the Russian deployment in Syria is not known, but Pavel Felgenhauer, an independent Russian military expert, has told AFP that up to 10,000 troops and private contractors may have taken part in the conflict.

Putin had ruled out dispatching ground forces in Syria, making the air force the mainstay of Moscow's Syria campaign.

Around 40 Russian servicemen have reportedly been killed in Syria since Moscow's intervention. The Kremlin has acknowledged some of those deaths.

But the losses may be higher given the number of Russian troops and mercenaries believed to be in the country, observers say.

More than 340,000 people have been killed since the Syrian conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown.

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German cities including Berlin saw anti-Israel demonstrations over the weekend

The German government said Monday it was "ashamed" of weekend demonstrations against the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital which saw some protesters chant anti-Semitic slogans and torch Israeli flags.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters that although Berlin opposed the move by US President Donald Trump last week, it strongly condemned protests in German cities where "hatred" of Israel and Jews was expressed.

"At certain rallies over the weekend, slogans were chanted, Israeli flags were burned and slander against the state of Israel and Jews in general were spread which were shameful," Seibert said.

"One has to be ashamed when hatred of Jews is put on display so openly on the streets of German cities."

Seibert noted that Germany had a "particular responsibility toward Israel and Jewish people in general" because the Nazis slaughtered six million Jews in the Holocaust.

He said that while Berlin protected a constitutional right to free speech and assembly, that freedom did not cover incitement of racial hatred or violence.

"It is important that we continue to stand up to all of that," he said.

Speaking later after a meeting of her Christian Democratic Union party, Merkel condemned what she called "serious rioting" at the demonstrations.

"We oppose all forms of anti-Semitism and xenophobia -- no differences of opinion, including about the status of Jerusalem, justify such actions," she said.

"The (German) state must use all the means at its disposal to stop this."

German cities including Berlin and Munich saw anti-Israel demonstrations over the weekend.

At a protest late Friday in front of the US embassy in the German capital and again on Sunday in the ethnically diverse Neukoelln district of Berlin, demonstrators burned the Israeli flag.

A spokesman for Berlin police told DPA news agency Monday that the authorities would keep a close eye on any further protests in the coming days for legal infractions.

Seibert said last Wednesday that Merkel "does not support" Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital "because the status of Jerusalem can only be negotiated within the framework of a two-state solution".
The UN refugee agency has evacuated refugees from Libya to Niger. It is appealing for countries to take in a further 1,300 vulnerable migrants at risk of abuse in the north African country

The UN urgently appealed Monday for countries to take in 1,300 "extremely vulnerable" refugees stranded in Libya, following revelations of horrific abuse of migrants in the country.

The UN refugee agency said there was a dire need for 1,300 resettlement places by the end of March 2018.

"This is a desperate call for solidarity and humanity," Volker Turk, UNHCR's Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, said in a statement.

"We need to get extremely vulnerable refugees out of Libya as soon as possible," he said.

The chaos-ridden country has long been a major transit hub for migrants trying to reach Europe. Many refugees and migrants have fallen prey to serious abuse there at the hands of human traffickers and others.

European and African leaders have already vowed to evacuate nearly 4,000 distressed migrants from Libya after global outrage erupted last month over video footage showing African migrants being auctioned off as slaves in the country.

"Many refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons in Libya are victims of serious violations of human rights, including different forms of inhumane, cruel and degrading treatment," the UNHCR warned in Monday's appeal.

It stressed that many of them had been detained for an indefinite period of time in deplorable conditions, denouncing the "routine detention of refugees and displaced people."

The UN refugee agency in early November evacuated a first group of 25 vulnerable refugees -- 15 women, six men and four children of Eritrean, Ethiopian and Sudanese nationalities -- to Niger.

"Given the imminent humanitarian needs and the rapidly deteriorating conditions in detention centres in Libya, UNHCR is actively working to organise more life-saving refugee evacuations to Niger in the coming weeks and months," Turk said.

UNHCR said the vulnerable refugees included unaccompanied children, single mothers, people with serious medical conditions and people who had been severely tortured during their journey or in detention in Libya.

The agency said it aimed to evacuate them to Niger and hopefully other emergency transit centres pending their final resettlement to other countries.

"Given the seriousness of the situation for refugees in Libya, we need to explore all sorts of solutions, including resettlement, family reunification, evacuation to UNHCR-run emergency facilities in other countries, or voluntary return," Turk said.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir is wanted on genocide charges linked to the conflict in Darfur

War crimes judges in The Hague delivered a slap to Jordan on Monday, referring the Arab country to the United Nations for failing to arrest the visiting Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted on genocide charges.

Despite two international warrants for his arrest on 10 charges arising from the conflict in Darfur, Bashir freely attended an Arab League summit in Amman in March.

Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) ruled that "Jordan failed to comply with its obligations... by not executing the court's request for the arrest of Omar al-Bashir and his surrender to the court while he was on Jordanian territory on 29 March 2017".

Jordan is a member of the Rome Statute, which underpins the tribunal -- established in 2002 to try the world's worst atrocities -- and as such has agreed to comply with the court's orders.

In Amman, foreign ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Kayed described the ICC move as "unfair" and said Jordan would examine all options.

The ICC issued arrest warrants for Bashir in 2009 and 2010, but he has steadfastly denied the charges related to the conflict in war-torn Darfur, and has evaded arrest.

The judges decided that Jordan's "non-compliance" should be referred to the UN Security Council as well as the tribunal's own Assembly of State Parties.

But it is unlikely there will be much further action taken at the UN.

In July, the judges ruled that South Africa had flouted its duties to the ICC in 2015 by failing to arrest Bashir, when he attended an African Union summit.

But presiding ICC judge Cuno Tarfusser, who also signed Monday's order against Jordan, decided that it would be "effectively futile" to refer Pretoria to the UN.

There have been six previous referrals of various countries to the Security Council for allowing Bashir to travel freely on their territory.

Pretoria's lawyers had argued at an ICC hearing in April that there "was no duty under international law on South Africa to arrest" Bashir.

But the judges ruled that international obligations could not "simply be put aside" if a country disagrees with them, and said Bashir did not enjoy immunity.
A man was in custody after an explosion in the subway station at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York

A man carrying a pipe bomb strapped to his body detonated it in a crowded New York subway passageway during the morning rush hour Monday, seriously injuring himself but only lightly injuring three others.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called the bombing an "attempted terrorist attack," and identified the 27-year-old man identified as Akayed Ullah.

The blast took place at the height of morning rush hour in the subway station at the new York Port Authority bus terminal, not far from the city's iconic Times Square, sparking commuter panic and travel disruptions.

Subway trains were bypassing the Port Authority and Times Square stations as the investigation continued.

The bomber was in custody and sent to a hospital with burns and wounds on his body.

The explosion rattled a city still scarred by the devastating September 11 attacks, and a truck attack on October 31 that left eight dead on a bike path.

"This is New York. The reality is that we are a target by many who would like to make a statement against democracy, against freedom," New York Governor Andrew Cuomo told reporters.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," Mayor Bill de Blasio added. "Thank god the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."

New York police commissioner James O'Neill said the 27-year-old suspect had strapped the explosive device, which resembled a crude pipe bomb, to his body. He suffered burns to the hands and abdomen, and other injuries.

Photos circulating on social media shoed the man on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back and injuries to his torso.

Former New York police chief Bill Bratton told MSNBC television that he had been told the suspect was originally from Bangladesh and may have been acting in the name of the Islamic State group.

Police quickly evacuated the Port Authority station and closed roads in the area, which were filled with police cars and ambulances with flashing lights.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the explosion, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote on Twitter.

- 'One of our worst nightmares' -

The city remains constantly on edge as a target of possible terror attacks, and is on high alert ahead of the holidays, which culminate every year with the giant New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, attended by hundreds of thousands of revelers.

On October 31, Sayfullo Saipov, an immigrant from Uzbekistan, drove a rented truck down a busy bike and pedestrian path, killing eight people and injuring 12.

Explosion in New York

It was the first deadly terror attack in New York since 9/11, though several plots since then have been disrupted.

Monday's attack highlighted one of New York City's greatest vulnerabilities -- its underground transit system.

A bomb in a subway station "is in many ways one of our worst nightmares," Cuomo said.

"We have the Statue of Liberty in our harbor, and that makes us an international target. We understand that," he added.
Lebanese demonstrators march with a model of the Dome of the Rock, along with their national flags and the flags of Palestine and the militant Shiite movement Hezbollah, during a protest in the capital Beirut on December 11, 2017

Tens of thousands of supporters of Lebanon's Hezbollah demonstrated in Beirut on Monday, chanting "Death to America!" and "Death to Israel!" in protest over the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Protesters marched through the Iran-backed Shiite movement's south Beirut bastion, carrying banners reading "Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine" and "Jerusalem is Ours".

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah had called for the mass demonstration last week after US President Donald Trump decided to upend decades of diplomatic protocol by recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The move has been widely condemned and sparked days of protest across the Middle East.

"Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine and will be until Judgement Day," said Iman Ghadbun, 28, attending the protest with her seven-year-old daughter.

Israel fought a devastating war against Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006 that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 120 Israelis, most of them soldiers.

"We will never abandon Jerusalem," Nasrallah told the crowd in an address beamed on a massive screen.

"All Arab peoples must repeat with the Palestinian people: 'We will be millions of martyrs to sacrifice for Jerusalem'," he said, a pledge echoed in unison by the crowd numbering tens of thousands.

Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in 2000, ending a 22-year occupation, but the two countries remain technically at war and there have been occasional skirmishes on the border.

"When the world stands together Trump has to change his mind, right?" said Hassan Mousa, a 28 year-old photographer with a hipster beard and slicked back hair.

"We're the children of Hezbollah, of course we're ready to fight," he said.

The rally was held under tight Hezbollah security and passed without incident, a day after a much smaller protest turned violent near the US embassy on the outskirts of Beirut.

On Sunday, several people were lightly wounded, including an AFP photographer, when Lebanese security forces responded to stone throwing with tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets.

The few hundred protesters, mostly from Palestinian, leftist and Islamist parties, were blocked by a metal gate on the road leading to the highly-protected US embassy.
The talks will focus on freeing prisoners, the delivery of humanitarian aid and the functioning of de-escalation zones

A fresh round of Syrian peace talks is scheduled for next week in Astana, Kazakhstan said Monday, as part of a Moscow-led push to end the six-year conflict.

The two-day talks in Astana will begin on December 21 and will focus on freeing prisoners, the delivery of humanitarian aid, the functioning of de-escalation zones and other issues, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The announcement came as Russian leader Vladimir Putin ordered a partial withdrawal of Russian forces in Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country earlier Monday.

Nearly all of the seven rounds of Syria negotiations in Astana have involved representatives of the Syrian regime and the armed opposition, as well as the three power-brokers: Russia, Iran and Turkey.

Moscow has spearheaded the talks in Astana since the start of the year as it tries to turn its game-changing military intervention into a negotiated settlement.

Both Russia and Iran have thrown their support behind the regime of Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey has provided backing to the rebels.

The negotiations, which run in parallel to broader UN-backed talks in Geneva, involved armed rebels and government officials and have focused mainly on military issues.

The Kremlin also hopes to convene a political congress in the Black Sea resort of Sochi which would bring together regime officials and the opposition to reinvigorate a hobbled peace process.

More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 when protests against Assad's rule sparked a brutal crackdown.
The UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo is the agency's largest and most expensive peacekeeping force

The bodies of 14 Tanzanian peacekeepers killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo by suspected Ugandan rebels were repatriated Monday, where the defence minister welcomed them as "heroes".

The arrival of the plane carrying 14 white coffins covered with the UN's blue flag was marked by a military ceremony at the international airport in Dar es Salaam.

"We are here to welcome our heroes," Tanzanian defence minister Hussein Mwinyi said of the soldiers, all members of the Tanzania People's Defence Forces.

They were killed on Thursday in the conflict-torn east of the country after clashes with suspected Ugandan Muslim rebels of the so-called Allied Democratic Forces.

The attack was the biggest single loss of peacekeepers in nearly a quarter of a century.

Tanzanian and Nepalese troops formed a guard for the 14 coffins, draped with the Tanzanian flag, in a ceremony near Beni in the North Kivu province before the bodies were flown home.

The UN had lowered the death toll to 14 from 15, with a further 53 injured. The Tanzanian press has said two other soldiers are missing.

"The death of our Tanzanian friends shall be written in the history of the Congolese nation, in tribute to their sacrifice," said Congolese General Leon Mushale. "They will remain in the hearts of the Congolese people."

David Gressly, the UN's deputy special representative for the DR Congo, said the peacekeepers would not step back from their work.

"The Blue Helmets will continue to protect the people of Beni," he said.

The attack is the bloodiest against MONUSCO, the UN force that was deployed in DRC in 1999, and the worst against a UN force since the death of 24 Pakistani peacekeepers in Somalia in June 1993.

The European Union on Monday said the "unacceptable attack... underscores the fragility of the security situation in eastern DRC, amplified by the current uncertainty over the country's political situation."

It called on the DR Congo authorities to carry out an inquiry "so that those responsible can be swiftly brought to justice," according to an EU statement issued in Kinshasa.
A portrait of US President Donald Trump burns during a demonstration in Tehran on December 11, 2017

Hundred of Iranian diehard conservatives rallied on Monday against Israel and said US President Donald Trump had hastened its demise with his decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Jewish state's capital.

The rally in downtown Tehran featured the sort of thumping, Turkish-style dance music that is normally banned in the Islamic republic but has become increasing popular at hardliner events.

It is made acceptable to conservative ears with the addition of lyrics such as "the US is a murderer" and "Palestinian mothers are losing their children" and, of course, the ubiquitous "Death to America".

Participants blamed the middling turnout on rushed preparations.

Iranian protesters hold anti-Israeli slogans during a demonstration in Tehran on December 11, 2017 to denounce US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital

"The publicity was a bit weak. I only learned about today's demo around midnight, and I'm coming directly from the hospital because I'm a medical student," said Ali Esfahani, 23.

He said Trump's decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, which was widely condemned across the globe, "was one more cruelty on top of America's previous oppressions" and could not be tolerated.

Such protests tread a fine line, pledging support for the Palestinian cause without calling for direct military action by Iran.

"I don't think there will be a need to send any troops because there are a lot of people in Lebanon, Syria and inside the Palestinian territories. They will be enough to get rid of the Israelis," a cleric, Seyed Abdullah Hosseini, told AFP.

A neon board on the side of the square announced that there were only 8,240 days left for Israel -- a reference to a speech by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in which he predicted the end of Israel by 2030.

"Mr Trump has done a good job of speeding things up. We were expecting Israel to be dismantled later... but this is the beginning of the end of Israel," said Hosseini.

"We have to thank him for what he did."

Later in the day, President Hassan Rouhani told the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas's leader in Gaza on the phone that together Muslims could defeat Israel.

"The oppressed people of Palestine and Islamic ummah (community) will undoubtedly defeat the US-Israeli plan with their unity and resistance," Rouhani told Ismail Haniya, as quoted by the government's website.
US President Donald Trump says that he is "reading documents a lot" and does not watch between four and eight hours of TV news a day

President Donald Trump on Monday denied a New York Times story on his daily White House life that says he watches up to eight hours of cable TV news a day.

"Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong!" the US president wrote on Twitter.

"Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News," he added.

Trump then described CNN news anchor Don Lemon as a person "I once called the 'dumbest man on television!'"

A lengthy New York Times story over the weekend, citing sources close to the president, says that Trump gets up early in the morning and immediately tunes into the cable TV news and commentary shows.

The former New York real estate magnate often fires off early morning tweets that react to cable TV news stories, often those on Fox News.

Trump, 71, is sensitive to criticism on the subject.

"I do not watch much television," Trump told reporters on his recent trip to Vietnam.

"I know they like to say -- people that don't know me -- they like to say I watch television. People with fake sources -- you know, fake reporters, fake sources. But I don't get to watch much television, primarily because of documents. I'm reading documents a lot."

Later in the trip he complained that the only US cable TV news available to watch in the Philippines was CNN.
An armed militiaman stands guard at the entrance of the headquarters of the Muslim "self-defence force" group of the PK5 majority Muslim district of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic, on November 15, 2017

Plans by Central African Republic's beleaguered government to reassert control in the north of the country were in difficulties on Monday after clashes marred the return of the state's top representative to a key city.

Colonel Augustin Tombou was formally installed on Saturday as prefect in the town of Kaga-Bandoro -- a politically important step in the strategy to restore state authority in strife-torn provinces.

But sources reported a surge of violence, including mortar rounds fired against UN peacekeepers, gunfire targeting a camp for displaced people and a grenade that was thrown during Tombou's induction ceremony.

Tombou's residence was "partially destroyed" and the prefecture itself was burned down, Jean-Serge Bokassa, minister of territorial decentralisation and administration, told AFP by phone on Monday.

The prefect has been taken to a secure location but does not have the means to exercise his duties, he said.

"We are looking at urgent steps for enabling the prefect's proper deployment," he said.

A vehicle owned by an aid organisation was carjacked by armed men, and another was looted, a source with an NGO in the capital Bangui said.

"What worries us is that if this situation continues, aid workers will have to pull out once more," the source said, referring to a wave of attacks on NGOs.

Meanwhile, a clash between two armed groups killed seven people in the predominantly Muslim PK5 quarter of Bangui on Monday, security officials said.

A member of one group was killed in the early morning, triggering a cycle of reprisals.

The United Nations peacekeeping force MINUSCA and CAR security forces intervened to restore order, UN spokesman Vladimir Monteiro told AFP.

The PK5 neighbouhood has often been at the heart of tensions in the relatively calm Central African capital.

One of the poorest countries in the world, CAR has been riven by conflict between nominally Muslim and Christian militias, which started after the 2013 overthrow of leader Francois Bozize.

Outside of Bangui, most of the rest of the country is in the hands of militia groups, who fight over resources such as diamonds and cattle.

More than three quarters of the country's 4.7 million inhabitants live in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank.

The country is classed last -- in 188th place -- on the Human Development Index of the UN Development Programme.

The latest clashes took place in an area dominated by two armed groups -- the Popular Front for the Rebirth of Central Africa (FPRC) and the Movement for Peace in Central Africa (MPC).

Both are offshoots of the pro-Muslim Seleka rebel alliance, which overthrew Bozize and was forced out in turn by international military intervention.

"We do not accept prefects who are military," said Fadoul Bachar of the FPRC via the messaging application Whatsapp. "If they are civilians, no problem, if they are military, we will oppose them fiercely."

Tombou, who was appointed in August, is one of eight military figures among the 16 named by the government.
Democratic senators are seizing on renewed complaints by a trio of Donald Trump accusers and calling on the president to resign for his past conduct toward women.

Joining the charge Monday was Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who helped lead a successful internal party effort to force out Sen. Al Franken over misconduct.

'President Trump has committed assault, according to these women, and those are very credible allegations of misconduct and criminal activity, and he should be fully investigated and he should resign,' Gilliband told CNN Monday.

She added: 'These allegations are credible; they are numerous. I've heard these women's testimony, and many of them are heartbreaking.'

Gillibrand joins a handful of Democratic lawmakers who are calling on Trump to step down for having reasons nothing to do with Russia or his business interests  the topics that have dominated investigatory and media scrutiny of the president.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York said President Donald Trump should be investigated and resign over allegations of misconduct toward women

After the trio of Trump accusers held a press conference calling for a congressional investigation of Trump, the won over Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee.

'These women are right, Wyden wrote on Twitter. If @realDonaldTrump won't resign, Congress must investigate allegations by many, many women that he sexually assaulted and harassed them. No one is above the law,' Wyden wrote.

Others who have called for or entertained Trump's resignation over the issue include Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker.

Accusers Jessica Leeds (left) and Samantha Holvey want President Donald Trump's past sexual misconduct allegations investigated by Congress

'These women are right, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon wrote on Twitter regarding the president's accusers

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand calls on Trump to resign on CNN

'The president should resign because he certainly has a track record with more than 17 women of horrific conduct,' Merkley told NBC's 'Meet The Press.'

Sanders tweeted that Trump should 'think about resigning' in light of the allegations.

The White House on Monday rejected calls for a congressional investigation of claims Donald Trump sexually harassed women, saying the American people had spoken on the matter by electing him president.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said the allegations were old news and the president has addressed them.

'This took place long before he was elected to be president,' Sanders said. 'And the people of this country, at a decisive election, supported President Trump, and we feel like these allegations have been answered through that process.'

Sen. Ron Wyden said Trump's accusers 'are right'

en. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., accompanied by Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., and former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson, speaks at a news conference where she and other members of congress introduce legislation to curb sexual harassment in the workplace. She is one of a handful of Demoratic senators calling for President Trump to resign

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speak before the full committee markup of the tax reform legislation on Capital Hill

Three women who claim they were sexually harassed by Trump before he ran for president urged Congress on Monday to investigate his behavior and allegations of misconduct.

The three, who first came forward during last year's presidential race with their claims of harassment, said they were speaking up again because of the current climate.

In recent months, countless women have broken their silence about abuse suffered at the hands of powerful men in the worlds of entertainment, the media, business and politics, in the wake of the bombshell allegations that felled movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

"The environment's different," said Samantha Holvey, who claims Trump came backstage when she and other contestants in the 2006 Miss USA pageant were dressing.

"Let's try again," Holvey said, in explaining her decision to repeat her allegations.

Rachel Crooks, who says Trump forcibly kissed her on the mouth after she introduced herself to him at Trump Tower in 2005, urged lawmakers to "put aside their party affiliations and investigate Mr. Trump's history of sexual misconduct."

Crooks voiced hope "that we will hold Mr Trump to the same standard of Harvey Weinstein and the other men who were held accountable for their reprehensible behavior."

Jessica Leeds, who says she was groped and forcibly kissed by Trump on a commercial flight decades ago, said Trump has not been held accountable for "what he is and who he is."

The White House swiftly dismissed the claims as "false."

"The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them," a White House statement said.

- 'A decisive election' -

Rachel Crooks, one of three women alleging harassment by President Donald Trump, accuses him of kissing her after she introduced herself to him outside an elevator at Trump Tower in 2005

Addressing reporters, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president "has addressed these accusations directly and denied all of these allegations.

"This took place long before he was elected to be president and the people of this country had a decisive election, supported President Trump," Sanders said. "We feel like these allegations have been answered through that process."

Gillibrand, a Democratic senator from New York, told CNN that Trump should "immediately resign."

"President Trump has committed assault according to these women," she said. "And those are very credible allegations.

"I think he should immediately resign and if he doesn't we should have the investigation," Gillibrand said.

Democratic senators Cory Booker of New Jersey and Jeff Merkley of Oregon also called over the weekend for Trump to step down.

Democratic Senator Ron Wyden backed the call for a congressional investigation -- which appeared unlikely to occur given the Republican control of both houses of Congress.

"These women are right," the senator from Oregon said in a tweet. "If @realDonaldTrump won't resign, Congress must investigate allegations by many, many women that he sexually assaulted and harassed them. No one is above the law."

Three US lawmakers announced their resignations from Congress last week over sexual harassment allegations, including Democratic Senator Al Franken of Minnesota.

In announcing his resignation, Franken took aim at Trump.

"I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact I am leaving while a man who bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office," he said.

A total of 16 women have come forward with claims of misconduct by Trump, who boasted in a tape that surfaced during the campaign that he could kiss and grope women with impunity, because of his celebrity.

In an apparent divergence from the White House line, Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that any women claiming to be victims of sexual harassment -- including those implicating Trump -- "should be heard."
Spectators listen to a television news brodcast of a statment by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, before a public television screen outside the central railway station in Pyongyang on September 22, 2017

The UN rights chief told the Security Council on Monday that tough sanctions imposed on North Korea are complicating the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid and called for an assessment.

An estimated 18 million North Koreans, or 70 percent of the population, suffer from acute food shortages and aid agencies provide "literally a lifeline" for 13 million of them, said UN Human Rights Commissioner Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein.

"But sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help," he told a special Security Council meeting on human rights in North Korea.

Sanctions that have tightened controls over international bank transfers "have caused a slowdown in UN ground operations, affecting the delivery of food rations, health kits and other humanitarian aid," he said.

The rights chief asked the council to conduct an assessment of the human rights impact of sanctions and urged them to take action to minimize consequences.

Over the past year, the council has adopted three rounds of sanctions aimed at choking off revenue to Pyongyang's military programs after Kim Jong-Un's regime carried out a sixth nuclear test and a series of advanced missile launches.

The council's sanctions committee on North Korea will meet later Monday to hear a briefing from a UN humanitarian official on the impact of recent punitive measures.

Aid groups are facing hurdles to clear customs for goods destined for North Korea, to ensure procurement and transport of aid supplies, as well as rising food prices in the reclusive state that have shot up 160 percent since April, said UN Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca.

- China fails to block rights meeting -

The Security Council discussed the human rights crisis in North Korea despite objections from China, Pyongyang's ally.

China requested a procedural vote to block the meeting, but failed to garner enough support.

Ten countries voted to allow the meeting to go ahead, three were opposed -- China, Russia and Bolivia -- while Egypt and Ethiopia abstained.

At least nine countries must back a contested agenda item for it to be discussed at the council and the veto does not apply.

Chinese Deputy Ambassador Wu Haitao said the council's discussion of rights abuses in North Korea was "counterproductive" at a time when tensions are running high on the Korean peninsula.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley said human rights should be discussed more often by the top UN body as a way to bolster conflict prevention.

"Any country that does not take care of its people ends up in conflict," said Haley.

The United States, Britain, France, Sweden, Italy, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay had requested the meeting, the fourth to be held since 2014.

Chinese Deputy Ambassador Wu Haitao said the council's discussion of rights abuses in North Korea was "counterproductive" at a time when tensions are running high on the Korean peninsula

China has sought every year to block the special meeting, arguing that the Human Rights Council in Geneva was the forum to address concerns about North Korea's rights record, and not the Security Council.

Pyongyang is accused by a UN commission of inquiry of running a vast network of prison camps, resorting to torture, arbitrary detentions among other widespread abuses.

The rights chief told the council that "the context of military tensions seems to have deepened the extremely serious human rights violations" endured by the country's 25 million citizens.

North Korea's UN mission released a statement taking aim at the United States and its allies for raising "the non-existent 'human rights issues'" at the council.

The UN's political affairs chief, Jeffrey Feltman, will brief the council on Tuesday on his talks in Pyongyang ahead of a ministerial-level meeting on North Korea on Friday.
Palestinians wave the national flag during a demonstration in Gaza City on December 3, 2017, in support of the reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah, though the two groups then missed a deadline for talks December 10, 2017

Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas have missed a major deadline in their reconciliation bid by failing to transfer power in the Gaza Strip, with the rivals on Monday trading accusations of blame.

US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital has further complicated an already difficult attempt to transfer power in Gaza from Islamist movement Hamas back to the Palestinian Authority (PA).

The Palestinian territories, including the Gaza Strip, have seen protests and clashes each day since Trump's declaration on Wednesday.

Sunday had been the deadline for the handover, a decade after Hamas seized power in the Palestinian enclave in a near civil war with president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah, based in the occupied West Bank.

An Egyptian-brokered agreement in early October originally set a December 1 deadline for full transfer of power back to the PA, which is dominated by Fagah, though that was later pushed back to December 10.

In Gaza, the situation was essentially unchanged despite the deadline, with Hamas police still patrolling the streets, while crippling electricity shortages endured.

Hamas claimed on Saturday it had handed over control of all government ministries, but Fatah's top negotiator later said "obstacles" remained.

PA government spokesman Yousef Mahmud said Monday it had not received full control in key ministries.

In a statement on official Palestinian news agency WAFA, he accused Hamas of seeking to stop the handover.

Fawzy Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, told AFP that Mahmud's statement was an attempt to "cover up the government's failure to carry out its duties to the people of Gaza".

Palestinians and international players had hoped that a reconciliation deal could lead to the easing of Israeli and Egyptian blockades on Gaza, reducing the suffering of the two million people largely trapped in the enclave.

Both sides still publicly said they remain committed to the reconciliation, but fears that it could collapse are growing.

- 'A dead end' -

They appear no closer to an agreement about the future of Hamass vast military wing, which has fought three wars with Israel since 2008, while they must still resolve the issue of two separate civil administrations.

Abbas has also not yet lifted sanctions against Hamas, including cutting payments for electricity, further worsening an already severe power shortage in Gaza.

There was already little optimism about achieving a full handover by December 10, but Trump's controversial announcement has added further complications.

The Palestinian government has called for wide-scale peaceful protests against it, but Hamas has called for violence -- hailing attacks against Israelis as the start of a new violent intifada, or uprising, against Israeli occupation.

Hamas is considered a terrorist organisation by Israel, the United States and the European Union.

Four Palestinians in Gaza, including two Hamas fighters, were killed either in clashes with Israeli forces or by Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rocket fire on Friday and Saturday.

Naji Sharab, political science professor at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, said Trump's move made the reconciliation bid harder.

"Some want uprising and others don't. Some want a military escalation and some don't," he told AFP. "With the Jerusalem issue, they cannot continue."

Jamal al-Fadi, a politics professor, said he feared the process could now collapse.

"I believe that in the short term it will hold, but the issue of reconciliation will come back to the top of the agenda considering the needs of the people for solutions."

"It seems that the process has reached a dead end."
Protesters demonstrated in front of the US Army career center in Times Square, New York in July when the US moved to block transgender recruits

A US federal judge Monday cleared the way for transgender people to join the military from January 1, denying a request from President Donald Trump's administration to delay the move.

The ruling will be seen as a blow to Trump, who in July sent out three tweets saying that transgender troops could not serve "in any capacity," citing "tremendous" medical costs and disruption.

Those messages, later followed by a formal White House memorandum, set off a roar of protest -- with several service members and rights groups quick to sue. Already two federal courts have ruled against Trump's proposed ban.

Under a new policy first announced when Barack Obama was still in power, the Pentagon was supposed to start accepting transgender recruits on July 1 this year, but Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis pushed that back by six months to January 1 pending further review.

Then last week, the Justice Department asked a federal court to further delay the January start date while the legal battle plays out.

But US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled Monday that the government had not shown it would be "irreparably harmed" if the military begins to accept transgender men and women on January 1.

Government lawyers cited Lernes Hebert, an acting deputy assistant secretary of defense, as saying that meeting the January deadline would "impose extraordinary burdens on the department and the military services" because "there are considerable requirements associated with implementing this significant and complex policy change."

Kollar-Kotelly said she was not convinced.

In her ruling, she wrote that the government had failed "to acknowledge the considerable amount of time defendants have already had to prepare for the implementation of this particular policy."

"Defendants have had the opportunity to prepare for the accession of transgender individuals into the military for nearly one and a half years," the judge wrote.

- 'Planning to prepare' -

Pentagon spokesman Major David Eastburn said the military was "planning to prepare" for transgender people to enter the military from January 1, in accordance with federal court rulings.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders referred questions on the matter back to the Pentagon and the Justice Department.

The Palm Center think tank, which focuses on sexual minorities in the military, said the Pentagon is ready to implement the new policy, noting that it had been doing the ground work for two years.

"That is longer than the preparation the military had for repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' and accession of openly gay Americans," the center's director Aaron Belkin said in a statement.

The number of transgender troops among America's 1.3 million active duty service members is small, with estimates topping out at 15,000.

Trump's July tweets caught observers and many in the military off guard, coming with little apparent coordination with the Pentagon.

The president's policy shift meant that transgender troops who were encouraged to come out under one administration suddenly faced getting booted under another -- opening up a legal quagmire for the Pentagon.

Several senior military officials voiced unease over the policy shift, and the head of the Coast Guard said he would not "break faith" with transgender personnel.

Trump has said he did the Pentagon a "great favor" by banning transgender troops, saying the issue had been "complicated" and "confusing" for the military.
Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has long advocated land-swaps in a future peace deal that would see some Arab areas of Israel handed over to the Palestinians in exchange for Israeli retention of some West Bank Jewish settlements

Israel's defence minister on Monday called Arab MPs "war criminals" a day after he urged a boycott of Israeli Arabs living near the scene of clashes over the US president's Jerusalem declaration.

Avigdor Lieberman was speaking in a televised parliamentary debate on a motion of no confidence in the right-wing government filed by the mainly Arab Joint List alliance.

Presenting the motion, Joint List lawmaker Hanin Zoabi said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "should be tried at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, because he is a war criminal."

"Occupation is always belligerent, violent, illegitimate and a basis for war crimes," she added, referring to Israel's 50-year occupation of the Palestinian territories.

"All the Joint List are war criminals, every one of you," Lieberman responded.

The alliance has 12 Arab members and one Jew.

"You exploit the weaknesses and advantages of a democratic state to destroy us from within, we have no illusions," he told them.

"You are here by mistake and the time will come when you will not be here."

Arab Israelis are descendants of Palestinians who remained on their land following the creation of Israel in 1948. Today they account for some 17.5 percent of the population.

Lieberman has long advocated land-swaps in a future peace deal that would see some Arab areas of Israel handed over to the Palestinians in exchange for Israeli retention of some West Bank Jewish settlements.

He has also proposed conditioning the Arabs' continued Israeli citizenship on them taking oaths of loyalty to the Jewish state.

Dozens of Arab Israelis on Saturday night blocked the Wadi Ara intersection in northern Israel, police said, throwing stones at vehicles and burning tyres in protest at Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The windows of a bus were smashed and its driver was slightly injured. Police arrested two minors and a man from Arara, an Arab town in the Wadi Ara area.

Speaking to Israeli army radio the next day, Lieberman proposed collective punitive sanctions.

"Those who demonstrate in Israel holding Hezbollah, Hamas and PLO flags are not part of the state of Israel," Lieberman said.

"I therefore call on Israeli citizens to impose an economic boycott on Wadi Ara -- don't shop there, don't eat in the restaurants and don't buy services from them."

Jewish Israelis must simply "give them the feeling they're not wanted here," he said, noting instances in which Arabs from the area carried out attacks against Israelis or supported militant activities.

Clashes and protests erupted in the Palestinian territories after Trump's declaration last Wednesday, but there has been relatively little unrest within Israel itself.
President Trump directed NASA on Monday to send Americans to the Moon for the first time since 1972, in order to prepare for future trips to Mars.

'This time we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint,' Trump said at a White House ceremony as he signed the new space policy directive.'We will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars and perhaps someday to many worlds beyond.'

The directive calls on NASA to ramp up its efforts to send people to deep space, a policy that unites politicians on both sides of the aisle in the United States.

US President Donald Trump speaks during a signing ceremony for Space Policy Directive 1, with the aim of returning Americans to the Moon

The last time US astronauts visited the Moon was during the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s

However, it steered clear of the most divisive and thorny issues in space exploration: budgets and timelines.

Space policy experts agree that any attempt to send people to Mars, which lies an average of 140 million miles from Earth, would require immense technical prowess and a massive wallet.

The last time US astronauts visited the Moon was during the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s.

On July 20, 1969, US astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Moon.

Trump, who signed the directive in the presence of Harrison Schmitt, one of the last Americans to walk on the Moon 45 years ago, said 'today, we pledge that he will not be the last.'

Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the newly revitalized National Space Council, have previously vowed to explore the Moon again, but offered few details.

Former US president George W. Bush also pledged to send Americans to the Moon as part of the Constellation program, which ran from 2005 to 2009.

Constellation was projected to cost $100 billion, and aimed to get boots on the Moon's surface by the late 2020s.

In 2009, then president Barack Obama deemed it too costly and repetitive of missions already achieved, and canceled the program in order to focus on reaching Mars by the 2030s.

Trump vowed his new directive 'will refocus the space program on human exploration and discovery,' and 'marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the Moon for the first time since 1972.'

The goal of the new Moon missions would include 'long-term exploration and use' of its surface.

'We're dreaming big,' Trump said.

A White House statement acknowledged that partnerships with other nations and private industry would still be needed.

The US 'will work with other nations and private industry to return astronauts to the Moon, developing the technology and means for manned exploration of Mars and other destinations in our solar system,' it said.
Huthi rebel fighters are seen riding an armoured vehicle outside of the residence of Yemen's former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sanaa on December 4, 2017

UN officials who examined debris from missiles fired at Saudi Arabia from Yemen have not confirmed that they were Iranian-made but are still analyzing the information, according to a confidential report obtained by AFP on Monday.

Saudi Arabia and the United States have accused Iran of supplying weapons to Yemen's Huthi rebels who fired a missile intercepted near Riyadh airport on November 4.

Weapons supplies to the Huthis would be in violation of a UN arms embargo on Yemen and of a ban on weapons sales by Iran.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council that the missiles fired on July 22 and November 4 both had a diameter that was "consistent" with a Scud missile. The Qiam-1 is a variant of the Scud missile.

Guterres said "the missiles had similar structural and manufacturing features which suggest a common origin", according to the report sent to the council on Friday.

He cautioned that UN officials were still "carefully reviewing all the information and material available," but offered no firm conclusions.

A separate team of UN experts who inspected the missile fragments during a visit to Riyadh last month found a possible link to an Iranian manufacturer, the Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group which is on the UN sanctions blacklist.

The experts who report to the sanctions committee found a component marked by a logo similar to that of the banned group, which is a subsidiary of the Iranian Aerospace Industries Organization.

In his report, Guterres said officials had seen the logo but again said they were still analysing the information.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley has called for international action against Iran over the missile attacks from Yemen against Saudi Arabia, which Riyadh has described as a "direct aggression".

Iran has repeatedly denied that it is arming the Huthis.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Huthis imposed a blockade of Yemen's air and sea ports and borders after the missile was fired at Riyadh, citing concerns that weapons were being smuggled into Yemen.

During a fact-finding mission to Saudi Arabia, UN officials also examined two drones recovered in Yemen but did not confirm a Saudi claim that one of them was Iranian-made.

Guterres also raised violations of a travel ban by senior Iranian military commander, Major General Qasem Soleimani, to Iraq and Syria.
"Truth is not killed by killing journalists," reads this chalk marking at a June protest in Mexico City -- 11 journalists have been killed in Mexico in 2017 Eleven journalists have been killed in Mexico in 2017, making it the second deadliest country in the world for members of the media

Press freedom advocates called Monday for US authorities to release from custody a Mexican journalist facing deportation to his home country where he says his life is endangered.

Members of news organizations and at least one lawmaker drew attention to the case of Emilio Gutierrez, who arrived in the United States a decade ago after reporting on abuses by Mexican military authorities.

Gutierrez spoke to a Washington news conference at the National Press Club via telephone from a detention center in Texas where he has been held since last week.

"I am terrorized to set foot in Mexico, I don't ever want to go back to Mexico," he said during the call.

Gutierrez, who was presented with the National Press Club Press Freedom Award earlier this year, was detained last week after an immigration panel denied his appeal for political asylum.

John Donnelly, a member of the press club's press freedom team, said the organization is urging the release of the 64-year-old Gutierrez.

"He came here after credibly perceiving that his life was in danger there because of his reporting," Donnelly told the news conference.

After his reporting on military abuses, Donnelly said, "he learned he was on a hit list, that's why he left Mexico."

US Congressman Don Beyer joined calls for the release by the office of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE.

"Mr. Gutierrez is a well-known journalist who faces a clear and present danger should he return to Mexico. I implore @ICEgov to reconsider its decision to deport him," Beyer said in a tweet.

The media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders also urged authorities to grant Gutierrez asylum.

"Emilio should be granted asylum. A return to Mexico, which is structurally violent and where journalists are regularly targeted, is out of the question for him," said Emmanuel Colombie, director of the group's Latin American region.

According to RSF, 11 journalists were killed in Mexico in 2017, making it the second deadliest country for members of the media, after Syria.

Eduardo Beckett, Gutierrez's lawyer, said he is willing to go to a third country but this poses logistical problems since he has no valid passport.
Police respond to an explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal on December 11, 2017 in New York

US President Donald Trump said Monday that a bomb attack by a 27-year-old from Bangladesh on New York's subway system underscored the "urgent need" for Congress to enact immigration reform.

Three people were slightly injured after the attacker's pipe bomb exploded only partially, while the suspect was sent to a hospital with apparently severe burns and wounds on his torso and hands.

"First and foremost, as I have been saying since I first announced my candidacy for president, America must fix its lax immigration system, which allows far too many dangerous, inadequately vetted people to access our country," Trump said in a statement.

He added that the suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, had entered the country through "extended-family chain migration," a system the president is seeking to end that allows families to sponsor relatives to come to the United States.

He also cited his controversial travel ban on the entry of nationals from eight countries -- six of which have Muslim majorities -- as "one step forward in securing our immigration system."

Other measures Trump said he hoped Congress would pass included "increasing the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, enhancing the arrest and detention authorities for immigration officers, and ending fraud and abuse in our immigration system."

Trump also reiterated his call for terror convicts to receive "the strongest penalty allowed by law, including the death penalty."

He had previously called for the death penalty for Sayfullo Saipov, an immigrant from Uzbekistan who killed eight people and injured 12 in an October 31 truck attack in New York.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer criticized concessions given to wealthy countries claiming development status, like China and India

The top US trade representative launched a broadside at the World Trade Organization on Monday, accusing it of losing its focus on trade negotiation and becoming a "litigation-centered" body.

"Too often members seem to believe they can gain concessions through lawsuits that they could never get at the negotiating table," Robert Lighthizer told the WTO ministerial conference in Buenos Aires.

He also criticized special treatment given to some countries because of their allegedly dubious development status.

The comments by Lighthizer, President Donald Trump's top trade representative, had been much anticipated at the conference held every two years -- the first of the Trump era.

Trump has long made the WTO a preferred target of its "America First" policy, threatening to pull Washington out of the trade organization it says is hampering its ability to compete.

"We cannot sustain a situation in which new rules can only apply to the few, and that other will be given a pass in the name of self-proclaimed development status," said Lighthizer, referring to countries like China and India.

"There is something wrong, in our view, when five of the six richest countries in the world presently claim developing country status."

Countries claiming development status at the WTO are given concessions, including longer transitions periods, before being required to fully implement agreements.

Trump has long protested that the body's multilateralism is hampering US trade at the expense of bilateral deals.

The US president has already withdrawn Washington from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and insisted on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada.

France meanwhile backed the call of the host, President Mauricio Macri of Argentina, that "WTO problems get fixed with more WTO -- not with less WTO."

"France is attached to multilateralism. We don't want that framework to be called into question," said French minister Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, though he acknowledged that "there are improvements to be made."

- Final declaration in doubt -

Washington has been accused of strangling the WTO's dispute settlement system by blocking the appointment of new judges to the body.

Lemoyne expressed fears that the WTO's dispute settlement body would be paralyzed in a few months.

Lighthizer told the meeting, however, that it was "impossible to negotiate new rules when many of the current ones are not being followed.

"This is why the United States is leading a discussion on the need to correct the sad performance of many members in notifications and transparency."

"Some members are intentionally circumventing these obligations, and addressing these lapses will remain a top US priority," he said.

The US stance has cast doubt on the ability of the conference to produce a joint statement Wednesday on the final day of the conference.

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said Sunday that he would ask Lighthizer to show "political commitment, political will and flexibility."

"Without flexibility we will not get anywhere," Azevedo told reporters.
Migrants wait to be rescued by the Aquarius rescue ship run by non-governmental organisations "SOS Mediterranee" and "Medecins Sans Frontieres" in the Mediterranean Sea, 30 nautic miles from the Libyan coast, on August 2, 2017

Amnesty International on Tuesday accused European governments of "complicity" in the detention under horrific conditions of migrants in Libya, especially through their assistance to the Libyan coastguard implicated in people trafficking.

"European governments are knowingly complicit in the torture and abuse of tens of thousands of refugees and migrants detained by Libyan immigration authorities in appalling conditions in Libya," the rights group said in a report.

It accused European governments of "actively supporting a sophisticated system of abuse and exploitation of refugees and migrants by the Libyan coastguard, detention authorities and smugglers in order to prevent people from crossing the Mediterranean".

"Hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants trapped in Libya are at the mercy of Libyan authorities, militias, armed groups and smugglers often working seamlessly together for financial gain," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty's Europe director.

"European governments have not just been fully aware of these abuses; by actively supporting the Libyan authorities in stopping sea crossings and containing people in Libya, they are complicit in these abuses."

Dalhuisen urged European governments to "rethink their cooperation with Libya on migration and enable people to get to Europe through legal pathways, including by resettling tens of thousands of refugees".

"They must insist that the Libyan authorities end the policy and practice of arbitrary arrests and detention of refugees and migrants, immediately release all foreign nationals held in the detention centres," he said.

He charged that "by supporting Libyan authorities in trapping people in Libya... European governments have shown where their true priorities lie: namely the closure of the central Mediterranean route, with scant regard to the suffering caused".

Officials in the Libyan coastguard, trained and equipped by European governments, notably Italy, to curb the flow of migrants "are known to operate in collusion with smuggling networks and have used threats and violence against refugees and migrants", according to Amnesty which cited testimony from dozens of migrants.

Those interviewed had "described the soul-destroying cycle of exploitation to which collusion between guards, smugglers and the Libyan coastguard consigns them", it said.

Migrants whose boats have been intercepted are sent to detention centres "where they endure horrific treatment. Up to 20,000 people currently remain contained in these overcrowded, unsanitary detention centres," it said.

The Amnesty report also accused the Libyan coastguard of endangering migrants' lives and of intimidating NGOs operating in the Mediterranean on rescue missions.

It singled out a November 6 incident involving the coastguard and a German relief group, Sea-Watch, in which at least five migrants died.

The UN-backed government in Tripoli said on Saturday that Italy and Libya are to set up a joint commission in an attempt to fight back against people traffickers and tackle illegal migration.

Human-trafficking networks have flourished in the chaos that followed a NATO-backed uprising which toppled long-time Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.
FALLBROOK, Calif. (AP) - A week of destructive fires in Southern California is ending but danger still looms.

Well into what's considered the wet season, there's been nary a drop of rain. That's good for sun-seeking tourists, but could spell more disaster for a region that emerged this spring from a yearslong drought and now has firefighters on edge because of parched conditions and no end in sight to the typical fire season.

"This is the new normal," Gov. Jerry Brown warned Saturday after surveying damage from the deadly Ventura County fire that has caused the most destruction and continued burning out of control. "We're about ready to have firefighting at Christmas. This is very odd and unusual."

Firefighters light backfire while trying to keep a wildfire from jumping Santa Ana Rd. near Ventura, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Even as firefighters made progress containing six major wildfires from Santa Barbara to San Diego County and most evacuees were allowed to return home, predicted gusts of up to 50 mph (80 kph) through Sunday posed a threat of flaring up existing blazes or spreading new ones. High fire risk is expected to last into January and the governor and experts said climate change is making it a year-round threat.

Overall, the fires have destroyed nearly 800 homes and other buildings, killed dozens of horses and forced more than 200,000 people to flee flames that have burned over 270 square miles (700 square kilometers) since Monday. One death, so far, a 70-year-old woman who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city next to Ventura where the fire began.

The Ventura blaze continued to burn into rugged mountains in the Los Padres National Forest near the little town of Ojai and toward a preserve established for endangered California condors. While many evacuation orders were lifted, new ones were established as the fire grew.

Brown said he had witnessed the "vagaries of the wind" that had destroyed some houses and left others standing and expressed concern for those who lost everything.

"What can you say?" he asked. "When you lose your house and your belongings and people lose their animals, it is a horror and it's a horror we want to minimize."

Firefighters were on high alert for dangerous fire potential even before the first blazes broke out. On Dec. 1, they began planning for extreme winds forecast in the week ahead.

Ken Pimlott, chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said authorities were prepared for destruction on the level of 2003 and 2007 firestorms in Southern California and possibly those in Northern California that killed 44 people and destroyed nearly 9,000 homes and other buildings in October.

By Monday, officials had brought in fire crews from the northern part of the state as reinforcements and marshaled engines, bulldozers and aircraft.

On Tuesday they brought in more helicopters from the National Guard and "every last plane we could find in the nation," said Thom Porter, southern chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The military provided C-130 planes for firefighting, said Mark Ghilarducci, director of the California Office of Emergency Services. More than 290 fire engines came from Montana, Utah, New Mexico, Idaho, Arizona, Oregon and Nevada.

But when flames met ferocious winds, crews were largely powerless to stop them. Even fire-attacking aircraft were helpless while being grounded at times because of night, high winds or smoke.

As fires burned in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, firefighters from other states were already in place north of San Diego on Thursday when a major fire erupted and rapidly spread in the Fallbrook area, known for its avocado groves and horse stables in the rolling hills.

"We had many resources in the area very quickly on this incident, but unfortunately within several minutes the fire had gotten out of control and well-established, and necessitated massive evacuations," said Steve Abbott, chief of the North County Fire Protection District.

The fire swept through the San Luis Rey Training Facility, where it killed more than 40 elite thoroughbreds and destroyed more than 100 homes - most of them in the Rancho Monserate Country Club retirement community. Three people were burned trying to escape the fire that continued to smolder Saturday.

Most of this week's fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the city's rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.

The fire in Fallbrook was no exception. Ten years ago, during a deadly spate of Santa Ana wind-driven infernos, flames wiped out most of the more than 200 homes in the Valley Oaks Mobile Home Park.

Memories of that blaze were fresh as flames approached Thursday and sheriff's deputies told residents to leave immediately.

By the time he got the order to go, Mateo Gonzalez had already helped his brother move out of his nearby place and packed all of his important belongings.

In the 2007 firestorm, Gonzalez had almost no warning before his house was destroyed, only four months after moving in.

"We weren't prepared the first time around. This time we were," he said Saturday, the day after he returned to his undamaged home.

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Melley reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writer Robert Jablon in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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For complete coverage of the California wildfires, click here: https://apnews.com/tag/Wildfires.

This Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017 satellite image provided by DigitalGlobe shows plumes of smoke from fires burning in the mountains east of San Fernando, Calif. (DigitalGlobe via AP) 2017 DigitalGlobe

Firefighters monitor the Thomas fire as it burns through Los Padres National Forest near Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A plane drops fire retardant on a wildfire Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

A fire engine passes flames as a wildfire burns along Santa Ana Road near Ventura, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

California Gov. Jerry Brown discusses the Thomas fire and the extended length of the state's fire season during a press conference on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, in Ventura, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A hillside glows with embers as the Thomas fire burns through Los Padres National Forest near Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Dick Marsala looks through debris from his destroyed home after a wildfire roared through the Rancho Monserate Country Club Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Bonsall, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Fire crews search for hot spots among destroyed homes in the Rancho Monserate Country Club community Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Firefighter Simon Garcia, of Heartland Fire Dept., gets a hug from a woman who did not give her name after she arrived to find her house was intact in the Rancho Monserate Country Club, Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

The Thomas fire burns through Los Padres National Forest near Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A helicopter drops fire retardant on a wildfire, Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Firefighters monitor the Thomas fire as it burns through Los Padres National Forest near Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Dick Marsala looks through debris from his destroyed home after a wildfire roared through the Rancho Monserate Country Club Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Bonsall, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Firefighter Joe Santos of Nevada works to contain the Thomas fire burning through Los Padres National Forest near Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A statue sits among destroyed homes in the Rancho Monserate Country Club community Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

A tanker drops retardant while trying to keep the Thomas fire from spreading into Fillmore, Calif., on on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Workers repair transmission lines damaged by the Thomas fire in Ojai, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A helicopter douses a smoldering pile of wood chips and mulch, sparked by a wildfire Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in Fallbrook, Calif. The wind-swept blazes have forced tens of thousands of evacuations and destroyed dozens of homes in Southern California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

A fire engine passes flames as a wildfire burns along Santa Ana Road near Ventura, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - In his sternest rebuke yet, Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby said repeatedly Sunday his state can "do better" than electing fellow Republican Roy Moore to the U.S. Senate, making clear that a write-in candidate was far preferable to a man accused of sexual misconduct.

Days before the pivotal race, Shelby, who is Alabama's senior senator, said he had already cast an absentee ballot for another, unspecified Republican, even as other prominent state Republicans fell in line behind Moore.

Moore faces Democrat Doug Jones in the special election Tuesday to replace Jeff Sessions, now the U.S. attorney general.

FILE- In this Nov. 30, 2017 file photo, former Alabama Chief Justice and U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore speaks at a campaign rally, in Dora, Ala. Most statewide Republican officeholders in Alabama say they're voting for Moore for U.S. Senate, but the state's senior U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby didn't vote for Moore. Polls show Moore in a tight race with Democrat Doug Jones. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

"I couldn't vote for Roy Moore. I didn't vote for Roy Moore. But I wrote in a distinguished Republican name. And I think a lot of people could do that," Shelby told CNN's "State of the Union."

"The state of Alabama deserves better," he said.

"There's a lot of smoke," Shelby said of Moore and his accusers. "Got to be some fire somewhere."

The accusations against Moore have left many GOP voters and leaders in a quandary. Voters face the decision of whether to vote for Moore, accused of sexual misconduct with teenagers decades ago when he was a county prosecutor, or sending Jones to Washington, which would narrow the GOP's already precarious majority in the Senate.

They also could write in a name on their ballots or simply stay home. Meanwhile, most GOP politicians in the state must run for re-election next year - where they will face Moore's enthusiastic voting base at the polls.

Shelby said allegations that Moore had molested a 14-year-girl in particular were a "tipping point" in disqualifying him. His latest comments cast fresh doubt on a former judge that President Donald Trump and most Republican leaders in Alabama are backing to help maintain the party's narrow 52-48 majority in the Senate.

Shelby's outspokenness against a man who could become his colleague was the exception rather than the rule.

"I have stated both publicly and privately over the last month that unless these allegations were proven to be true I would continue to plan to vote for the Republican nominee, Judge Roy Moore," Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill wrote in a text message to The Associated Press. "I have already cast my absentee ballot and I voted for Judge Moore."

The AP tried to find out how Republican leaders from Alabama plan to vote. Most officeholders or their staffs responded, while others have publicly stated their plans during public appearances or to other media outlets.

However, several officeholders did not respond to calls, emails or texts from the AP. They include U.S. Reps. Martha Roby, Mike Rogers and Gary Palmer, as well as state Treasurer Young Boozer and state House Speaker Mac McCutcheon.

State officeholders who said they intended to vote for Moore often cited the need to keep the seat in Republican hands.

In addition to Merrill, others who plan to vote for Moore include Gov. Kay Ivey; Attorney General Steve Marshall; state Auditor Jim Zeigler; Agriculture Commissioner John McMillan; state Senate President Pro Tempore Del Marsh; and Public Service Commissioner Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh, who previously led the state GOP. Also voting for Moore are current state party head Terry Lathan and U.S. Reps. Mo Brooks of Huntsville and Robert Aderholt of Haleyville.

Shelby's decision has played prominently in Jones ads pointing out Republicans who are not voting for their party's nominee.

On Sunday, Shelby acknowledged that if Moore is elected, he would probably have to be seated in the Senate but that an Ethics Committee investigation was already been contemplated to remove him. "I think that the Senate has to look at who is fit to serve in the Senate," he said.

CNN reported last month that U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne said he will vote Republican and that he does not cast write-in votes. In a statement to the AP, Byrne said it is up to voters to decide.

"Some serious allegations have been made and Judge Moore has vehemently denied them. Frankly, I don't think the people of Alabama want me, any national politician, or the national news media telling them what to think or how to vote," Byrne said in the statement. "The decision is ultimately up to the people of Alabama to evaluate the information they have before them and make an informed decision. We must respect the voters' decision."

Sen. Luther Strange, who lost to Moore in the Republican primary, did not respond to a request for comment from AP, but told The Washington Post recently that the election is up to voters.

"I'm staying out of it now. I think everybody knows how I feel about Judge Moore. We made our case and the voters made a different decision," Strange told the newspaper in a video on its website.

Sessions, who resigned from the Senate to join the Trump administration, declined to say how he would vote. Moore and Jones are competing for his old job.

"There have been some ads that may have suggested I endorsed a candidate, that is not so," Sessions said. "I believe that the people of Alabama will make their own decision."

State party loyalty rules could prohibit a GOP politician, or someone who aspires to be one, from publicly backing Moore's opponent. The rule says anyone who openly supports another party's nominee over a Republican could be barred from running as a Republican in the future.

Ivey became governor earlier this year after Robert Bentley resigned amid a sex scandal involving a much younger female political aide. When reached by the AP, Bentley declined to say who he is voting for Tuesday.

Ivey said last month that she has no reason to disbelieve the women who have accused Moore and is bothered by their allegations. But Ivey, who plans to run for governor in 2018, said she will vote for Moore anyway for the sake of GOP power in Congress. Her office did not respond to a request for an updated comment.

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Associated Press writers Matthew Daly, Sadie Gurman, Donna Cassata and Hope Yen in Washington contributed to this report.
DETROIT (AP) - The St. Louis Blues quickly made the most of their limited opportunities.

Jaden Schwartz knocked home his own rebound and the Blues scored four times on only five shots on the way to beating the Detroit Red Wings 6-1 Saturday.

Vladimir Sobotka, Scottie Upshall, Jay Bouwmeester, Brayden Schenn and Dmitrij Jaskin also had goals for the Blues in their third straight victory.

St. Louis Blues' Vladimir Sobotka, from left, celebrates his goal against the Detroit Red Wings with teammates Vladimir Tarasenko (91) and Vince Dunn (29) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

"That really didn't seem like a 6-1 game," Bouwmeester said. "We had the lead for most of it, but we weren't playing great."

Frans Nielsen scored for Detroit, which has won just once in its last eight games.

Outshot 29-22, including an 11-4 margin during the first period, the Blues took advantage of some spectacular puck stopping from Jake Allen and some questionable goals against Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard to fashion a 4-0 lead through the first two periods.

"We spent a lot of time in our zone, but we were able to keep them to the outside and Jake was great," Bouwmeester said. "He let us take advantage of the opportunities we did have."

Howard continued his struggles of the past few weeks, allowing four or more goals for the fifth time in eight starts and sixth time in nine appearances.

"What it came down to is I need to come with saves for the guys," Howard said. "At the end of the day, the guys did their job and I have to do mine for them."

Shortly after killing off a high-sticking penalty, the Blues opened the scoring at 11:50 of the first period. Schwartz took a pass from Alex Steen and drove a low shot that Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard stopped with his left pad. Schwartz put the rebound past Howard.

The Blues made it 2-0 at 4:07 of the second period when Sobotka's long wrist shot from just inside the Detroit blue line beat Howard high on the glove side. It was the Blues' first shot on goal since Schwartz opened the scoring.

St. Louis made it three goals on three consecutive shots when Upshall got loose on a breakaway after a turnover by defenseman Niklas Kronwall and slipped the puck between Howard's pads to make it 3-0 at 6:17 of the second period.

Jay Bouwmeester's shot deflected off the stick of defenseman Mike Green and over Howard's glove at 16:26 of the second period for the Blues' fourth goal on five shots.

Petr Mrazek replaced Howard in the Detroit goal to start the third period.

Nielsen spoiled Allen's bid for a shutout 7:18 in the third period.

At the nine-minute mark, Jaskin beat Mrazek with a forehand deke move to make it 5-1. Schenn tucked a rebound past Mrazek with 42.2 seconds to play to complete the scoring.

Despite the deficit, the Red Wings felt that they were playing solidly through the first two periods and deserved a better fate.

"We definitely didn't like the score, but I think we did some really good things out there," Nielsen said. "I'm a big believer that over 82 games in this league, you get what you deserve. We've got to keep believing in it and keep working out there."

NOTES: The Red Wings recalled LW Tyler Bertuzzi from AHL Grand Rapids to replace LW David Booth, out with an undisclosed injury. . Blues C Jaden Schwartz did not return after suffering a lower-body injury while blocking a shot by Wings D Mike Green late in the first period.

UP NEXT

Blues: Back home on Sunday to face the Buffalo Sabres.

Red Wings: Play the third game of a five-game homestand Monday against the Florida Panthers.

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More AP NHL: www.apnews.com/tags/NHLhockey

St. Louis Blues goalie Jake Allen (34) stops a Detroit Red Wings shot in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

St. Louis Blues right wing Scottie Upshall (9) scores on Detroit Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard (35) in the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
JERUSALEM (AP) - The Israeli military on Sunday said it has destroyed a tunnel built by the Hamas militant group that stretched from the Gaza Strip several hundred meters (yards) into Israeli territory, declaring a breakthrough in its war against underground threats from the Palestinian enclave.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, told reporters that Israel had used a new set of "tools" developed since a 2014 war with Hamas in order to destroy the tunnel. He said forces had detected the tunnel months ago and continued to monitor construction efforts by Hamas militants before demolishing it.

Israel has made neutralizing the tunnel threat a top priority since that war, when Hamas militants on several occasions made their way into Israel. Although they did not manage to reach civilian areas, the infiltrations caught Israel off guard, killing five soldiers in one attack, and terrified the local population.

Conricus said a new system involving combat units, military intelligence, logistics and research had been used to destroy the tunnel. The system was first used to detect a tunnel that was destroyed on Oct. 30, but other aspects of the system were used this time around, he said.

"There seems to be a change, a paradigm here in how these terror tunnels will be able to threaten us in the future," he said. "It is by no means behind us, but this will surely force the terrorist organizations to change techniques and to adapt."

Hamas, the armed group that controls Gaza, declined to comment.

Conricus said the tunnel began in the central Gazan town of Khan Younis and stretched for over a kilometer (half a mile) across the border and into Israel. Although not complete, he said the tunnel was "very substantial," equipped with electricity, communications equipment and a ventilation system. It was located about a kilometer from an Israeli community.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said the tunnels were an unacceptable threat and that Israel would invest "every resource" to stop them. "I hope that in the coming months the threat of tunnels on the residents surrounding Gaza will become a thing of the past," he said.

The army said the timing of the weekend operation was not connected to a flare-up of deadly violence that followed President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The decision has infuriated the Palestinians, who seek Israel-annexed east Jerusalem as their own capital.

Over the weekend, Israeli airstrikes hit several militant sites in Gaza in response to rocket fire, killing two Hamas militants. On Friday, two protesters were shot dead in skirmishes with Israeli troops along Gaza's border.

Hamas' military wing issued a statement earlier Sunday threatening Israel with a "heavy price."

"Our battle for Jerusalem is going on round the clock, above and under the ground," the statement said.

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Fares Akram in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, contributed reporting.
A man was shot and killed by an officer in Oklahoma City after he reportedly took pepper spray and a taser away from the cop during a scuffle Sunday evening.

Oklahoma City Police Sgt Robbie Robertson said the officer responded to a request to check on a person lying on the side of the road.

When she approached the man, he was not cooperating with the officer. The officer then used pepper spray on the man and a scuffle broke out.

A man was shot and killed by an officer in Oklahoma City after he reportedly took pepper spray and a taser away from the cop during a scuffle. Neither person involved in the confrontation has been identified by police. Police responded to the scene around 6.30pm on Sunday

Authorities said the man was able to knock the pepper spray away and punch the officer in the face.

The officer then attempted to use a taser and he took that from her and tried to use it on her.

Robertson said the officer then drew her gun and fired at the man. The man died at the scene.

Robertson said the officer drew her gun and fired at the man. The man died at the scene (pictured) The officer was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries to her face and hands

'Hopefully, our officer is okay and, again, this is why we take the steps that we do. We have the training that we get and that we receive and the equipment that we are able to utilize,' said Captain Bo Mathews of the Oklahoma City Police Department.

'You know, she used her pepper spray, she escalated to a taser and then ultimately she had to use her firearm,' Matthews added.

Officials said the shooting was reported around 6.30pm.

The officer was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries to her face and hands.

Neither person involved in the confrontation has been identified by police.
SHE IS ONLY 13

She is only 13, but R had already learned to fear the military men. Last year, she says, soldiers stabbed her father to death.

One day in late August, ten soldiers barged into R's house. They snatched her two little brothers, tied them to a tree and beat them.

R tried to run out the front door, but the men caught her. They tethered her arms to two trees. They ripped off her earrings and bracelets, and stripped off her clothes.

R screamed at them to stop. They spit at her.

Then the first man began to rape her. The pain was excruciating. All ten men forced themselves on her before she passed out.

R's older brothers carried her toward the border. Once in Bangladesh, a doctor gave her emergency contraceptives.

R desperately misses her little brothers, and her sleep is plagued by nightmares. She struggles to eat.

Before the rape, she says softly, she was pretty.

RAPED TWICE

F and her husband were asleep at home in June when seven soldiers charged into their bedroom. The men bound her husband with rope and gagged him with a scarf they ripped from F's head.

They yanked off F's jewelry and stripped off her clothes. They threw her to the floor, where the first soldier began to rape her.

Her husband wriggled the gag from his mouth and screamed. One soldier shot him, and another slit his throat.

After the assault, the men dumped F's naked body outside her home and set it on fire. The neighbors rescued her. Two months later, she realized she was pregnant.

In September, her nightmare began again. F was asleep at a neighbor's house when five soldiers broke down the door.

The soldiers slashed the throat of the 5-year-old boy who lived there and killed his father. They stripped off the women's clothes. Two men raped F, and three men raped her friend.

After the men left, the women lay on the floor for days before fleeing for Bangladesh.

Despite everything, F is determined to love the child.

HER HUSBAND BLAMED HER

K and her family were settling down to breakfast one morning in late August when they heard the screams of other villagers outside. Her husband and three oldest children bolted out the door.

But K was nearly 9 months pregnant and had two toddlers to watch. She couldn't run anywhere.

The men barged in, threw her on the bed, yanked off her jewelry and stole the money she had hidden in her blouse. They ripped off her clothes and tied down her hands and legs with rope. When she resisted, they choked her.

And then they began to rape her.

She was too terrified to move. One man held a knife to her eyeball, one a gun to her chest. Another forced himself inside her. Then they switched places. All three men raped her.

She began to bleed and was certain her baby was dying.

She blacked out.

When she awoke, the men had gone. Her husband blamed her for the assault, admonishing her for not running away.

The family fled to Bangladesh. Two weeks later, K gave birth to her son.

A, 35, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in August

I WAS IN IMMENSE PAIN

R was at home in late August with her husband and five of her six children when she heard a commotion outside. She saw houses going up in flames in her village.

Her husband ran out, but she had the children to take care of.

Five soldiers barged into the house. Her children screamed and ran outside.

The men stripped off her clothes, took her necklace and kicked her in her back with their knees. Then one of the men began to rape her, while the other four held her down and hit her with their guns. When it was over, they took money and her husband's clothes from the wardrobe.

She fled to Bangladesh with her family the next day. She struggled to move with her injuries, and had to use a walking stick.

'I was in immense pain,' she says, pausing to take a long breath at the memory. 'It hurt so much to walk through the hills.'

Four days later, she arrived in Bangladesh.

ALLAH SAVED US

A was at home praying with her four children in late August when about 50 soldiers surrounded her village and opened fire on the men.

A began to shake; she had heard of soldiers raping women in other villages.

Three men burst into her house and told her to get out. She refused. They beat her.

Her children screamed. The soldiers slapped them, then threw them out of the house.

Two of the soldiers hit her until she fell. One pressed his boot against her chest, pinning her down. They took off her jewelry and stripped off her clothes.

Then all three raped her, punching and kicking her when she screamed. One pressed a knife to the back of her neck, making her bleed. She still bears a faint scar.

After the attack, she bled so heavily she thought she was dying. A farmer told her that her husband had been shot to death, so her brother, mother and daughter helped her make the painful trek to Bangladesh.

'They wanted to wipe us out from the world,' she says of the military. 'They tried very hard, but Allah saved us.'

In the first few days after the attack, she cried all the time. Now she cries silently in her mind.

THE BABY GIRL WAS DEAD

M was at home feeding her son rice in late August when a bullet from the military blasted through the bamboo wall of her house and struck her teenage brother.

Her husband and children ran out of the house. But M was 8 months pregnant, and did not want to leave her brother behind. For two days, she stayed by his side, until he died.

Soon after, four soldiers charged into her house.

They began slapping and punching her. Three soldiers dragged her outside the house, stripped her and beat her. When she screamed, they put a gun in her mouth.

The first man began to rape her, while the other two held her down and punched and kicked her pregnant belly.

After the second rape, she kicked them so ferociously, they finally left.

M felt intense cramping in her belly. She gave birth that night at home. The baby girl was dead. M buried the infant in an unmarked grave by her house.

Her husband returned, and they made the three-day walk through the hills to Bangladesh.

'They humiliated us, they destroyed our land and farm, they took our cows, they took our produce,' she says. 'How would I go back? They destroyed our livelihood.'

M, 25, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh

WHEN WILL I HAVE PEACE?

H was reciting the sunrise prayer at home in late August with her husband and six children when she heard a commotion outside.

A dozen soldiers burst through her door and started beating her husband. They grabbed three of her children by their feet, carried them outside and bashed them against trees, killing them.

Her husband screamed, and H ran out of the house. As she fled, she heard gunshots behind her. She never saw her husband again.

She made it with her three other children to the nearby hills, where other women from her village were hiding. But soldiers descended upon the women and dragged them away to rape them.

They ripped off H's clothes, took her jewelry and tied her hands behind her back with her headscarf.

One man held her head and hands back, while another held her legs. The third raped her. Then they switched. All three men raped her.

Her crying children refused to leave her side during the assault. The soldiers slapped them, kicked them, tried to shove them away. They refused to budge.

When the soldiers finished, her 8-year-old daughter tried to cover her naked body with her torn clothing.

It took her and her children four days to reach Bangladesh.

'I've lost my husband, I've lost my children, I've lost my country. When will God take me back to my country?' H says. 'When will I have peace?'

I BURN INSIDE FOR MY CHILDREN

When seven soldiers stormed into the house in October, 2016, S's husband fled. The soldiers began beating her parents.

A soldier beat S with his gun, ripped two of her babies from her arms and dropped them on the floor. They tore the clothes off S, her mother and several other young women in the house, and took S's earrings and money she had hidden in her clothes.

Two soldiers took S to a field. They covered her mouth with their hands to stop her screams. They held her down and raped her.

When it was over, she hid in the hills but eventually returned home.

In August, S was at home with her family when the military began firing rocket launchers at houses, setting them ablaze. Her husband and two eldest children fled, but she stayed behind to pack up her baby girls and a few belongings. One baby was in a swing, the other sleeping on the floor.

A rocket launcher hit the house. The babies went up in flames before her eyes.

There was nothing she could do. So she ran. She hid with the rest of her family in the hills for several days before making the 3-day trek to Bangladesh.

'I burn inside for my children, but what can I do?' she asks. 'They burned to death. I guess that was my destiny.'

SHE TOLD NO ONE

The military surrounded N's village one early morning in late August. Around 18 soldiers stormed her house, and dragged N outside with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law.

The women were taken to the center of the village, where soldiers robbed them of their jewelry.

Three men then took her to the hills and stripped her naked. Two men held down her hands while a third raped her. Then they switched positions. All three raped her.

During the attack, they showed her their knives and beat her. She was too frightened to fight back.

When it was over, they left her there. She returned home and told no one about the rape.

She was in agony after the assault and bled for eight days.

SHE SAW HER VILLAGE BURNING

There was no warning before five soldiers suddenly stormed into 16-year-old S's house one morning in early August.

They searched the home for money and valuables. Then they slashed her husband's neck, killing him. The men briefly left to ransack other neighboring houses, before returning.

Two soldiers pulled her into a room, snatched her 3-month-old son from her arms and put him on the floor. They searched her clothes for valuables and took her earrings. Another three men came in and began to beat her with guns while the others stripped off her clothes.

One soldier held down her hands, and another put his gun in her mouth. All five men raped her.

When she struggled, they beat her. She could hear her baby crying and was terrified the men would kill him.

When they were finished, they let her get dressed and then dragged her bleeding body outside to the center of the village. Soldiers were dragging other women they had assaulted out of surrounding houses. The men beat S and the other women again, then left them.

S ran back to her house, grabbed her baby and ran. As she fled, she saw soldiers lining men and boys up and shooting them. When she made it to the hills, she looked down and saw her village burning.

SHE NEVER SAW HER SON AGAIN

The soldiers had been harassing T's family for days: Showing up and stealing their food, urinating in their rice, hitting T and, once, stripping off her clothes.

And then one morning in mid-August, five men dragged her husband out of the house, where they slashed his neck. They grabbed her 10-year-old son and dragged him outside; she never saw him again. Her 12-year-old daughter managed to flee.

The soldiers took off T's earrings and nose ring, then stripped off her clothes. When she screamed, they kicked her.

Then they pinned her to the floor. Two men held her while the first man raped her. Then they switched. One man put a gun in her mouth to silence her screams.

Afterward, she bled for two days. Months later, her back still hurts from the attack.

When they finished, they ate the food in her kitchen and stole her chicken and duck. They also dragged away the body of her husband.

She ran into the hills and found her daughter and father. They tried to find safety in neighboring villages, but the military kept showing up. With nowhere to go, they headed toward Bangladesh.

A, 20, was raped by three soldiers at knifepoint. After the attack, she bled so heavily she thought she was dying. A farmer told her that her husband had been shot to death, so she fled

ALL I HAVE LEFT ARE MY WORDS

N's husband was walking down a road in late August when several villagers saw soldiers grab him and drag him into the hills. Later that day, children in the hills came upon his head, along with several other corpses. Soldiers were milling around near the bodies.

N stayed in her house with her 8-year-old daughter for the next few days, unable to stop crying. Then suddenly, around 80 soldiers descended on the village. Five soldiers came to her door and shouted: 'Who's inside?'

N was terrified. The men barged in.

One man held her as she screamed and fought. They covered her eyes with tape, and hit her head with a gun. Two held her in place while three others began rifling through her clothing. There was nothing for them to steal; she'd already hidden her valuables.

They ripped her clothes off and beat her in the head with a gun until she blacked out. When she awoke, her vagina was swollen, bleeding and covered in sores. She had clearly been raped; by how many men, she does not know.

She was in too much pain that day to leave the house. She and her daughter fled the next day for Bangladesh. She bled for eight days, and three months later still has trouble urinating.

'I have nothing left,' she says, blinking back tears. 'All I have left are my words.'

SHE BLED FOR SIX DAYS

N, 17, was at home with her parents and siblings in late August when she heard the crackle of gunfire. Suddenly, 10 men burst into the house. They began slashing open sacks of rice looking for valuables.

Then the soldiers tied her hands with rope behind her back and put tape over her mouth.

Five of the men held her frantic family back, hitting them with their guns. They ripped off her clothes, snatched her earrings and took the money she had hidden in her new blouse.

When she tried to protest, they hit her with their guns.

They threw her to the floor. Five men then took turns raping her, while the others helped hold her down.

Her parents were forced to watch. When they screamed, the soldiers beat them. Eventually, they stood in silence as their daughter was assaulted.

After the men left, N's parents untied her and washed her. She bled for six days.

The family left for Bangladesh the next day. N was in too much pain to walk, so her father carried her over the border.

IT WAS JUST ALL PAIN

Around 100 soldiers surrounded A's village one afternoon in late August. A's husband fled, leaving her alone in the house with their 2-year-old son.

Two soldiers came into her house. One soldier threw her baby on the floor, then grabbed A by the neck. Both men slapped her and pointed their guns at her.

They tore off her clothes. She wept and begged them to stop. One of the men took off her earrings. Then they shoved her to the ground, laughing at her.

One soldier pressed his knife to her right hip and cut into her flesh. Both of them punched her in the face.

The men then took turns raping her. She could hear her son crying. She prayed to Allah, terrified the men would kill her and her boy.

'It was just all pain,' she says now.

As the soldiers walked out, they fired their guns toward the sky.

After the rape, she couldn't eat for days and struggled to walk. She hid in the nearby hills with her son until she found her husband. Together, the family walked for 14 days until they finally crossed the border into Bangladesh.

TEARING HER FLESH WITH THEIR TEETH

M was at home with her husband, her sister-in-law and her sister-in-law's brother in late August when security forces stormed their village. The husbands fled, leaving M alone in the house with her sister-in-law, who was in the shower.

Three men kicked the door open. They tied M's arms behind her back.

They dragged her sister-in-law out of the shower. They bit her face and body, tearing her flesh with their teeth. All three men raped her, then stabbed her torso and her breasts with their knives, killing her.

One of the men came over to M, stripped her clothes off and took her earrings.

He unzipped his pants, pushed her down onto her back and then raped her. He choked her and punched her in the face and chest, and bit her eyebrow.

She was terrified she would be killed like her sister-in-law. She screamed so loudly that her neighbors came running. The men then fled.

She has no plans to return to Myanmar.

'How can I go where there is all this pain and suffering?' she says.

SHE DOES NOT KNOW HOW THEY DIED

D was at home one evening in late August when she heard noise outside. Her two older sons and husband rushed out of the house, leaving her alone with her 3-year-old boy.

Three men entered her home. She screamed and her son began to cry.

They took her nose ring and earrings, then ripped off her clothes.

One man restrained her arms and held a knife to her hip while the other two men raped her. She feared the men would kill her, so she stifled her screams.

After two hours, the men finally left. When her husband returned, he found her naked. But she was too ashamed to tell him what had happened to her.

She was so swollen and bled so much that she found it difficult to walk for nearly three weeks after the rape.

They fled to another village. While there, people from her village told her that her home had been burned, and that they had seen the dead bodies of her eldest sons. She does not know how they died.

D and her family arrived in Bangladesh in October.

IT WAS NEVER-ENDING

It was late August and K was around four months pregnant when soldiers swarmed her village.

Four men smashed the door open, tied up her husband and began beating and kicking the couple's children. They kicked K's 3-year-old daughter in the head so hard that she died of her injuries three days later.

They dragged K's husband out of the house and took him to a police station.

They snatched the money she had hidden in her blouse and took her earrings. Then they ripped off her clothes.

They hit her face and kicked her back. They tied her up and began to rape her, one after the other. The men kicked her so viciously, she feared the baby inside her would die.

'It was never-ending,' she says now.

Just before the men left, they shoved a gun inside her vagina. The pain was excruciating.

The next day, a village leader helped raise the money the soldiers demanded to release K's husband from the police station.

In November, K gave birth to a baby boy. He was two months' premature, and his skinny arms are barely wider than an adult's thumb. K is too malnourished to produce much milk for him, so he is subsisting on sugar water.

M, 30, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh

SHE FEARED HER BABY WAS DYING

S was pregnant and at home with her family in late August when 20 soldiers surrounded her village. All the men in the area fled, including her husband.

Four soldiers burst into the house, grabbed her two crying toddlers and beat them. She tried to run, but they caught her and dragged her deeper inside the home to a bathing area.

One man threatened her with a gun, another with a knife. They ripped her clothes off, and took her gold earrings and gold chain. They threw her to the floor.

One man held her left arm, one held her right arm and one held down her legs, while the fourth man raped her. Then they switched. All four men raped her. When she screamed, they threatened to shoot and stab her.

They kicked and punched her so hard, she feared the baby inside her was dying. Finally, they left.

After the attack, she felt sharp pains in her belly and bled for a month. For two weeks, she thought the baby had died. Finally, she felt something moving inside her.

Her husband never returned home. She does not know whether he is dead or alive.

IF WE CAN LIVE PEACEFULLY

It was mid-afternoon one day in late August when about 10 men in camouflage uniforms entered M's house. Her three children began to scream and cry. Five men took her husband away, and four forced her out of the house and into the nearby hills.

One of the men held a gun to her. They tore her clothes off and took her earrings. They bit her face and her body and hit her.

They tied her mouth with her own headscarf. And then three of the men held her down while the other man raped her. The attack lasted for hours; all four of the men raped her.

The men eventually released her and she stumbled back to her house. Her husband was not there.

After resting for five days, she took her children and began the three-day journey to Bangladesh. She had to use a walking stick to move her battered body.

Despite the horror she endured, she would consider returning to her homeland - if she is assured of her family's safety.

'If we can live peacefully side by side like we do here in Bangladesh, then I will go back,' she says.

WE'VE HAD ENOUGH TORTURE

F was at home in late August when she heard screaming outside. Her husband went to investigate and saw that about 300 soldiers and Buddhist villagers had surrounded the area. The men began burning houses and arresting people. Soldiers separated the men from the women.

About eight soldiers and villagers grabbed F's husband and tied his hands behind his back. They tore off her and her mother's jewelry. Then they took the women outside and set fire to F's house.

Around 100 men took F, her mother and about 20 other women to another village. The soldiers beat them with guns, kicking and slapping them.

Once they reached the next village, the women were forced to lie down on the ground next to each other. The men tied their wrists together with rope and began to rape them.

Ten men raped F, beat her with their guns, kicked her and slapped her. She could hear her mother crying and calling 'Allah' as she, too, was raped.

It was dark when the men finally left. F managed to wriggle her wrists free of the rope and ran into a field. In the morning, she returned to search for her mother, but she had vanished. She saw at least five women lying dead on the ground, their throats cut.

She has no idea what has become of her husband. And she cannot imagine returning to her homeland.

'We've had enough torture,' she says.

SHE DOES NOT KNOW IF HER HUSBAND IS ALIVE

S was lying in bed with her husband and son after dinner in late August when around 10 soldiers burst into the house. A few took her husband outside. Five stayed behind, and one pointed his gun at her.

She tried to run, but they grabbed her and kicked her back, stomach and chest. They stripped off her clothes and took her necklace and earrings. Three men raped her.

Her young son began to cry. A soldier pointed his gun at the child and he screamed louder.

S was in agony. After the men were finished, they took her outside, naked. Her son followed them. About two dozen other women, also naked, had been dragged outside as well.

The soldiers forced the women to march toward a rice paddy, beating and kicking them as they walked. S felt blood running down her legs. Once they arrived, the men ordered them to lie down. S fought back and soldiers kicked her. She fell to the ground.

Three more soldiers began to rape her.

When at last the assault was over, S fled back toward her house with her son, only to find her home had been burned along with many others. She does not know if her husband is alive.
BOSTON (AP) - The intensifying legal tussle over whether a struggling Massachusetts museum should be allowed to auction 40 works of art, including two by Norman Rockwell, has raised questions about when - if ever - it's appropriate to unload the collection.

A look at the arguments for and against, and why the case against the Berkshire Museum has aroused such anger:

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FILE - In this Nov. 11, 2017 file photo, some 30 protesters gather outside of the Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield, Mass., holding signs bearing pleas to "save the art" and thanking Attorney General Maura Healey for her office's last minute appeals court filing that was successful in delaying the first sale of 40 works of art, including two by Norman Rockwell. The intensifying legal tussle over whether the museum should be allowed to auction the 40 works of art has raised questions about when, if ever, it's appropriate to unload the collection. (Stephanie Zollshan/The Berkshire Eagle via AP, File)

WHY IS THE MUSEUM SELLING THE ART?

In simple terms, the Pittsfield museum says it needs to sell the art for its very survival.

The museum, founded in 1903, says it has been running an operating deficit that in the past 10 years has averaged more than $1 million annually, and will close within eight years without an infusion of cash. If it closes, all the art will be lost, museum officials have argued.

The art sale "would allow us to protect our most important asset: our open doors," Elizabeth McGraw, president of the museum's board of trustees, wrote in an op-ed piece in The Berkshire Eagle.

The goal of the auction is to raise $50 to $60 million to boost the endowment by about $40 million and fund renovations. The museum is pivoting away from art and more toward natural history and science to fill a currently empty niche in a region known for its world-class museums and cultural institutions.

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WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIONS?

The decision to sell the art , announced publicly in July, was made after two years of meetings. It drew immediate condemnation from national museum groups as well as area residents who said selling the collection to pay the bills violates a cardinal rule of museums.

The sale of the two Rockwell pieces struck a nerve because the famed illustrator lived in nearby Stockbridge for the last 25 years of his life and gave the oil paintings to the museum as gifts. One of them, "Shuffleton's Barbershop," could fetch as much as $30 million at auction.

Opponents of the sale say the museum's contentions about its dire financial condition are vastly overstated.

A Williams College economist who looked at the museum's finances determined that all it needs is an infusion of about $11 million to its current $8 million endowment to operate in the black, according to Michael Keating, a lawyer for several parties - including Rockwell's three sons - who went to court to block the sale.

The museum has consistently stood behind its financial assertions.

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WHAT IS THE LEGAL BATTLE ABOUT?

The auction of the first seven of the 40 works, including the Rockwell pieces, was scheduled for Nov. 13.

But Rockwell's sons and others went to court in October to halt the sale . The Rockwell pieces were gifts to the museum from Rockwell himself, made with the understanding that they would be kept as part of the museum's permanent collection, Keating said. Many of the other pieces on the auction block came to the Berkshire Museum from the now defunct Berkshire Athenaeum and are subject to a state law that said they should not be taken out of Pittsfield.

Although the Superior Court judge denied that request to halt the sale, the attorney general's office, which has jurisdiction over public charitable trusts including museums, asked for and received from the state Appeals Court an injunction to allow for the completion of an investigation into whether the sale is legal.

That injunction was supposed to expire Monday but the attorney general's office has asked for an extension until Jan. 29. The judge did not immediately rule pending a response from the museum's lawyers due Tuesday.

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WHAT'S NEXT?

Museum officials and trustees repeatedly have said there are no legal barriers to the auction.

William Lee, a lawyer for the museum, has asked for an expedited trial due to the institution's "precarious financial position."

But the endgame for the legal wrangling could be months away. Ultimately, it could be decided by the Supreme Judicial Court, the state's highest court.
UKHIA, Bangladesh (AP) - The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, The Associated Press found in interviews with Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh.

They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. Yet their stories were hauntingly similar. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women.

Here are the accounts as told by 21 women and girls. They agreed to be identified in this story by their first initial only, out of fear the military will kill them or their families. The full story can be seen here: http://bit.ly/2iUJOjw

This combo photo comprises of portraits of some of the Rohingya Muslim women taken during an interview with The Associated Press in November 2017 in Kutupalong and Gundum refugee camp in Bangladesh. They said they were raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

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The Associated Press reported this story with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

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SHE IS ONLY 13

She is only 13, but R had already learned to fear the military men. Last year, she says, soldiers stabbed her father to death.

One day in late August, 10 soldiers barged into R's house. They snatched her two little brothers, tied them to a tree and beat them.

R tried to run out the front door, but the men caught her. They tethered her arms to two trees. They ripped off her earrings and bracelets, and stripped off her clothes.

R screamed at them to stop. They spit at her.

Then the first man began to rape her. The pain was excruciating. All ten men forced themselves on her before she passed out.

R's older brothers carried her toward the border. Once in Bangladesh, a doctor gave her emergency contraceptives.

R desperately misses her little brothers, and her sleep is plagued by nightmares. She struggles to eat.

Before the rape, she says softly, she was pretty.

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RAPED TWICE

F and her husband were asleep at home in June when seven soldiers charged into their bedroom. The men bound her husband with rope and gagged him with a scarf they ripped from F's head.

They yanked off F's jewelry and stripped off her clothes. They threw her to the floor, where the first soldier began to rape her.

Her husband wriggled the gag from his mouth and screamed. One soldier shot him, and another slit his throat.

After the assault, the men dumped F's naked body outside her home and set it on fire. The neighbors rescued her. Two months later, she realized she was pregnant.

In September, her nightmare began again. F was asleep at a neighbor's house when five soldiers broke down the door.

The soldiers slashed the throat of the 5-year-old boy who lived there and killed his father. They stripped off the women's clothes. Two men raped F, and three men raped her friend.

After the men left, the women lay on the floor for days before fleeing for Bangladesh.

Despite everything, F is determined to love the child.

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HER HUSBAND BLAMED HER

K and her family were settling down to breakfast one morning in late August when they heard the screams of other villagers outside. Her husband and three oldest children bolted out the door.

But K was nearly 9 months pregnant and had two toddlers to watch. She couldn't run anywhere.

The men barged in, threw her on the bed, yanked off her jewelry and stole the money she had hidden in her blouse. They ripped off her clothes and tied down her hands and legs with rope. When she resisted, they choked her.

And then they began to rape her.

She was too terrified to move. One man held a knife to her eyeball, one a gun to her chest. Another forced himself inside her. Then they switched places. All three men raped her.

She began to bleed and was certain her baby was dying.

She blacked out.

When she awoke, the men had gone. Her husband blamed her for the assault, admonishing her for not running away.

The family fled to Bangladesh. Two weeks later, K gave birth to her son.

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I WAS IN IMMENSE PAIN

R was at home in late August with her husband and five of her six children when she heard a commotion outside. She saw houses going up in flames in her village.

Her husband ran out, but she had the children to take care of.

Five soldiers barged into the house. Her children screamed and ran outside.

The men stripped off her clothes, took her necklace and kicked her in her back with their knees. Then one of the men began to rape her, while the other four held her down and hit her with their guns. When it was over, they took money and her husband's clothes from the wardrobe.

She fled to Bangladesh with her family the next day. She struggled to move with her injuries, and had to use a walking stick.

"I was in immense pain," she says, pausing to take a long breath at the memory. "It hurt so much to walk through the hills."

Four days later, she arrived in Bangladesh.

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ALLAH SAVED US

A was at home praying with her four children in late August when about 50 soldiers surrounded her village and opened fire on the men.

A began to shake; she had heard of soldiers raping women in other villages.

Three men burst into her house and told her to get out. She refused. They beat her.

Her children screamed. The soldiers slapped them, then threw them out of the house.

Two of the soldiers hit her until she fell. One pressed his boot against her chest, pinning her down. They took off her jewelry and stripped off her clothes.

Then all three raped her, punching and kicking her when she screamed. One pressed a knife to the back of her neck, making her bleed. She still bears a faint scar.

After the attack, she bled so heavily she thought she was dying. A farmer told her that her husband had been shot to death, so her brother, mother and daughter helped her make the painful trek to Bangladesh.

"They wanted to wipe us out from the world," she says of the military. "They tried very hard, but Allah saved us."

In the first few days after the attack, she cried all the time. Now she cries silently in her mind.

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THE BABY GIRL WAS DEAD

M was at home feeding her son rice in late August when a bullet from the military blasted through the bamboo wall of her house and struck her teenage brother.

Her husband and children ran out of the house. But M was 8 months pregnant, and did not want to leave her brother behind. For two days, she stayed by his side, until he died.

Soon after, four soldiers charged into her house.

They began slapping and punching her. Three soldiers dragged her outside the house, stripped her and beat her. When she screamed, they put a gun in her mouth.

The first man began to rape her, while the other two held her down and punched and kicked her pregnant belly.

After the second rape, she kicked them so ferociously, they finally left.

M felt intense cramping in her belly. She gave birth that night at home. The baby girl was dead. M buried the infant in an unmarked grave by her house.

Her husband returned, and they made the three-day walk through the hills to Bangladesh.

"They humiliated us, they destroyed our land and farm, they took our cows, they took our produce," she says. "How would I go back? They destroyed our livelihood."

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WHEN WILL I HAVE PEACE?

H was reciting the sunrise prayer at home in late August with her husband and six children when she heard a commotion outside.

A dozen soldiers burst through her door and started beating her husband. They grabbed three of her children by their feet, carried them outside and bashed them against trees, killing them.

Her husband screamed, and H ran out of the house. As she fled, she heard gunshots behind her. She never saw her husband again.

She made it with her three other children to the nearby hills, where other women from her village were hiding. But soldiers descended upon the women and dragged them away to rape them.

They ripped off H's clothes, took her jewelry and tied her hands behind her back with her headscarf.

One man held her head and hands back, while another held her legs. The third raped her. Then they switched. All three men raped her.

Her crying children refused to leave her side during the assault. The soldiers slapped them, kicked them, tried to shove them away. They refused to budge.

When the soldiers finished, her 8-year-old daughter tried to cover her naked body with her torn clothing.

It took her and her children four days to reach Bangladesh.

"I've lost my husband, I've lost my children, I've lost my country. When will God take me back to my country?" H says. "When will I have peace?"

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I BURN INSIDE FOR MY CHILDREN

When seven soldiers stormed into the house in October, 2016, S's husband fled. The soldiers began beating her parents.

A soldier beat S with his gun, ripped two of her babies from her arms and dropped them on the floor. They tore the clothes off S, her mother and several other young women in the house, and took S's earrings and money she had hidden in her clothes.

Two soldiers took S to a field. They covered her mouth with their hands to stop her screams. They held her down and raped her.

When it was over, she hid in the hills but eventually returned home.

In August, S was at home with her family when the military began firing rocket launchers at houses, setting them ablaze. Her husband and two eldest children fled, but she stayed behind to pack up her baby girls and a few belongings. One baby was in a swing, the other sleeping on the floor.

A rocket launcher hit the house. The babies went up in flames before her eyes.

There was nothing she could do. So she ran. She hid with the rest of her family in the hills for several days before making the 3-day trek to Bangladesh.

"I burn inside for my children, but what can I do?" she asks. "They burned to death. I guess that was my destiny."

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SHE TOLD NO ONE

The military surrounded N's village one early morning in late August. Around 18 soldiers stormed her house, and dragged N outside with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law.

The women were taken to the center of the village, where soldiers robbed them of their jewelry.

Three men then took her to the hills and stripped her naked. Two men held down her hands while a third raped her. Then they switched positions. All three raped her.

During the attack, they showed her their knives and beat her. She was too frightened to fight back.

When it was over, they left her there. She returned home and told no one about the rape.

She was in agony after the assault and bled for eight days.

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SHE SAW HER VILLAGE BURNING

There was no warning before five soldiers suddenly stormed into 16-year-old S's house one morning in early August.

They searched the home for money and valuables. Then they slashed her husband's neck, killing him. The men briefly left to ransack other neighboring houses, before returning.

Two soldiers pulled her into a room, snatched her 3-month-old son from her arms and put him on the floor. They searched her clothes for valuables and took her earrings. Another three men came in and began to beat her with guns while the others stripped off her clothes.

One soldier held down her hands, and another put his gun in her mouth. All five men raped her.

When she struggled, they beat her. She could hear her baby crying and was terrified the men would kill him.

When they were finished, they let her get dressed and then dragged her bleeding body outside to the center of the village. Soldiers were dragging other women they had assaulted out of surrounding houses. The men beat S and the other women again, then left them.

S ran back to her house, grabbed her baby and ran. As she fled, she saw soldiers lining men and boys up and shooting them. When she made it to the hills, she looked down and saw her village burning.

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SHE NEVER SAW HER SON AGAIN

The soldiers had been harassing T's family for days: Showing up and stealing their food, urinating in their rice, hitting T and, once, stripping off her clothes.

And then one morning in mid-August, five men dragged her husband out of the house, where they slashed his neck. They grabbed her 10-year-old son and dragged him outside; she never saw him again. Her 12-year-old daughter managed to flee.

The soldiers took off T's earrings and nose ring, then stripped off her clothes. When she screamed, they kicked her.

Then they pinned her to the floor. Two men held her while the first man raped her. Then they switched. One man put a gun in her mouth to silence her screams.

Afterward, she bled for two days. Months later, her back still hurts from the attack.

When they finished, they ate the food in her kitchen and stole her chicken and duck. They also dragged away the body of her husband.

She ran into the hills and found her daughter and father. They tried to find safety in neighboring villages, but the military kept showing up. With nowhere to go, they headed toward Bangladesh.

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ALL I HAVE LEFT ARE MY WORDS

N's husband was walking down a road in late August when several villagers saw soldiers grab him and drag him into the hills. Later that day, children in the hills came upon his head, along with several other corpses. Soldiers were milling around near the bodies.

N stayed in her house with her 8-year-old daughter for the next few days, unable to stop crying. Then suddenly, around 80 soldiers descended on the village. Five soldiers came to her door and shouted: "Who's inside?"

N was terrified. The men barged in.

One man held her as she screamed and fought. They covered her eyes with tape, and hit her head with a gun. Two held her in place while three others began rifling through her clothing. There was nothing for them to steal; she'd already hidden her valuables.

They ripped her clothes off and beat her in the head with a gun until she blacked out. When she awoke, her vagina was swollen, bleeding and covered in sores. She had clearly been raped; by how many men, she does not know.

She was in too much pain that day to leave the house. She and her daughter fled the next day for Bangladesh. She bled for eight days, and three months later still has trouble urinating.

"I have nothing left," she says, blinking back tears. "All I have left are my words."

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SHE BLED FOR SIX DAYS

N, 17, was at home with her parents and siblings in late August when she heard the crackle of gunfire. Suddenly, 10 men burst into the house. They began slashing open sacks of rice looking for valuables.

Then the soldiers tied her hands with rope behind her back and put tape over her mouth.

Five of the men held her frantic family back, hitting them with their guns. They ripped off her clothes, snatched her earrings and took the money she had hidden in her new blouse.

When she tried to protest, they hit her with their guns.

They threw her to the floor. Five men then took turns raping her, while the others helped hold her down.

Her parents were forced to watch. When they screamed, the soldiers beat them. Eventually, they stood in silence as their daughter was assaulted.

After the men left, N's parents untied her and washed her. She bled for six days.

The family left for Bangladesh the next day. N was in too much pain to walk, so her father carried her over the border.

___

IT WAS JUST ALL PAIN

Around 100 soldiers surrounded A's village one afternoon in late August. A's husband fled, leaving her alone in the house with their 2-year-old son.

Two soldiers came into her house. One soldier threw her baby on the floor, then grabbed A by the neck. Both men slapped her and pointed their guns at her.

They tore off her clothes. She wept and begged them to stop. One of the men took off her earrings. Then they shoved her to the ground, laughing at her.

One soldier pressed his knife to her right hip and cut into her flesh. Both of them punched her in the face.

The men then took turns raping her. She could hear her son crying. She prayed to Allah, terrified the men would kill her and her boy.

"It was just all pain," she says now.

As the soldiers walked out, they fired their guns toward the sky.

After the rape, she couldn't eat for days and struggled to walk. She hid in the nearby hills with her son until she found her husband. Together, the family walked for 14 days until they finally crossed the border into Bangladesh.

___

TEARING HER FLESH WITH THEIR TEETH

M was at home with her husband, her sister-in-law and her sister-in-law's brother in late August when security forces stormed their village. The husbands fled, leaving M alone in the house with her sister-in-law, who was in the shower.

Three men kicked the door open. They tied M's arms behind her back.

They dragged her sister-in-law out of the shower. They bit her face and body, tearing her flesh with their teeth. All three men raped her, then stabbed her torso and her breasts with their knives, killing her.

One of the men came over to M, stripped her clothes off and took her earrings.

He unzipped his pants, pushed her down onto her back and then raped her. He choked her and punched her in the face and chest, and bit her eyebrow.

She was terrified she would be killed like her sister-in-law. She screamed so loudly that her neighbors came running. The men then fled.

She has no plans to return to Myanmar.

"How can I go where there is all this pain and suffering?" she says.

___

SHE DOES NOT KNOW HOW THEY DIED

D was at home one evening in late August when she heard noise outside. Her two older sons and husband rushed out of the house, leaving her alone with her 3-year-old boy.

Three men entered her home. She screamed and her son began to cry.

They took her nose ring and earrings, then ripped off her clothes.

One man restrained her arms and held a knife to her hip while the other two men raped her. She feared the men would kill her, so she stifled her screams.

After two hours, the men finally left. When her husband returned, he found her naked. But she was too ashamed to tell him what had happened to her.

She was so swollen and bled so much that she found it difficult to walk for nearly three weeks after the rape.

They fled to another village. While there, people from her village told her that her home had been burned, and that they had seen the dead bodies of her eldest sons. She does not know how they died.

D and her family arrived in Bangladesh in October.

___

IT WAS NEVER-ENDING

It was late August and K was around four months pregnant when soldiers swarmed her village.

Four men smashed the door open, tied up her husband and began beating and kicking the couple's children. They kicked K's 3-year-old daughter in the head so hard that she died of her injuries three days later.

They dragged K's husband out of the house and took him to a police station.

They snatched the money she had hidden in her blouse and took her earrings. Then they ripped off her clothes.

They hit her face and kicked her back. They tied her up and began to rape her, one after the other. The men kicked her so viciously, she feared the baby inside her would die.

"It was never-ending," she says now.

Just before the men left, they shoved a gun inside her vagina. The pain was excruciating.

The next day, a village leader helped raise the money the soldiers demanded to release K's husband from the police station.

In November, K gave birth to a baby boy. He was two months' premature, and his skinny arms are barely wider than an adult's thumb. K is too malnourished to produce much milk for him, so he is subsisting on sugar water.

___

SHE FEARED HER BABY WAS DYING

S was pregnant and at home with her family in late August when 20 soldiers surrounded her village. All the men in the area fled, including her husband.

Four soldiers burst into the house, grabbed her two crying toddlers and beat them. She tried to run, but they caught her and dragged her deeper inside the home to a bathing area.

One man threatened her with a gun, another with a knife. They ripped her clothes off, and took her gold earrings and gold chain. They threw her to the floor.

One man held her left arm, one held her right arm and one held down her legs, while the fourth man raped her. Then they switched. All four men raped her. When she screamed, they threatened to shoot and stab her.

They kicked and punched her so hard, she feared the baby inside her was dying. Finally, they left.

After the attack, she felt sharp pains in her belly and bled for a month. For two weeks, she thought the baby had died. Finally, she felt something moving inside her.

Her husband never returned home. She does not know whether he is dead or alive.

___

IF WE CAN LIVE PEACEFULLY

It was mid-afternoon one day in late August when about 10 men in camouflage uniforms entered M's house. Her three children began to scream and cry. Five men took her husband away, and four forced her out of the house and into the nearby hills.

One of the men held a gun to her. They tore her clothes off and took her earrings. They bit her face and her body and hit her.

They tied her mouth with her own headscarf. And then three of the men held her down while the other man raped her. The attack lasted for hours; all four of the men raped her.

The men eventually released her and she stumbled back to her house. Her husband was not there.

After resting for five days, she took her children and began the three-day journey to Bangladesh. She had to use a walking stick to move her battered body.

Despite the horror she endured, she would consider returning to her homeland - if she is assured of her family's safety.

"If we can live peacefully side by side like we do here in Bangladesh, then I will go back," she says.

___

WE'VE HAD ENOUGH TORTURE

F was at home in late August when she heard screaming outside. Her husband went to investigate and saw that about 300 soldiers and Buddhist villagers had surrounded the area. The men began burning houses and arresting people. Soldiers separated the men from the women.

About eight soldiers and villagers grabbed F's husband and tied his hands behind his back. They tore off her and her mother's jewelry. Then they took the women outside and set fire to F's house.

Around 100 men took F, her mother and about 20 other women to another village. The soldiers beat them with guns, kicking and slapping them.

Once they reached the next village, the women were forced to lie down on the ground next to each other. The men tied their wrists together with rope and began to rape them.

Ten men raped F, beat her with their guns, kicked her and slapped her. She could hear her mother crying and calling "Allah" as she, too, was raped.

It was dark when the men finally left. F managed to wriggle her wrists free of the rope and ran into a field. In the morning, she returned to search for her mother, but she had vanished. She saw at least five women lying dead on the ground, their throats cut.

She has no idea what has become of her husband. And she cannot imagine returning to her homeland.

"We've had enough torture," she says.

___

SHE DOES NOT KNOW IF HER HUSBAND IS ALIVE

S was lying in bed with her husband and son after dinner in late August when around 10 soldiers burst into the house. A few took her husband outside. Five stayed behind, and one pointed his gun at her.

She tried to run, but they grabbed her and kicked her back, stomach and chest. They stripped off her clothes and took her necklace and earrings. Three men raped her.

Her young son began to cry. A soldier pointed his gun at the child and he screamed louder.

S was in agony. After the men were finished, they took her outside, naked. Her son followed them. About two dozen other women, also naked, had been dragged outside as well.

The soldiers forced the women to march toward a rice paddy, beating and kicking them as they walked. S felt blood running down her legs. Once they arrived, the men ordered them to lie down. S fought back and soldiers kicked her. She fell to the ground.

Three more soldiers began to rape her.

When at last the assault was over, S fled back toward her house with her son, only to find her home had been burned along with many others. She does not know if her husband is alive.

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, R, 13, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her family's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, R, 13, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, adjusts her headscarf while photographed in her family's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, F, 22, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in June and again in September, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, F, 22, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in June and again in September, clutches her hands around her pregnant belly as she is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, K, 25, mother of six, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, K, 25, mother of six, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed as she nurses her baby with her two children beside her in their tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, R, 28, mother of six, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, R, 28, mother of six, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, caresses her daughter while being photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, A, 35, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, A, 35, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, M, 25, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, M, 25, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, H, 30, mother of six; three children killed, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, photo, H, 30, mother of six; three children killed, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, S, 25, mother of four who's baby girls were killed, and says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in October, 2016, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, S, 25, mother of four who's baby girls were killed, and says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in October, 2016, is photographed with her child next to her in their friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, N, 30, mother of three, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017, photo, N, 30, mother of three, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, S, 16, mother of baby boy, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in early August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, S, 16, mother of baby boy, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in early August carries her baby while being photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, T, 33, mother of two, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in mid-August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, T, 33, mother of two, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in mid-August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, N, 31, mother of girl, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, N, 31, mother of girl, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, adjusts her headscarf as she is photographed outside her home in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, N, 17, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2017, photo, N, 17, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, A, 20, mother of one, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, A, 20, mother of one, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, covers her face while being photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, M, 30, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, M, 30, mother of four, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, D, 30, missing two of her four sons, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in a friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, D, 30, mother of four where two of her sons are missing, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, hides her face while she was being photographed in a friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, K, 30, mother of six who's 3-year-old daughter was killed, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, K, 30, mother of six who's 3-year-old daughter was killed, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, carries her baby born two months premature, is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, S, 25, mother of two, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, S, 25, mother of two, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, M, 35, mother of three, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, photo, M, 35, mother of three, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her friend's tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Thursday, Nov. 23, 2017, photo, F, 27, mother of one and says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Gundum refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Thursday, Nov. 23, 2017, photo, F, 27, mother of one, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Gundum refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

In this Thursday, Nov. 23, 2017, photo, S, 22, mother of one, who says she was raped by members of Myanmar's armed forces in late August, is photographed in her tent in Gundum refugee camp in Bangladesh. The use of rape by Myanmar's armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh. They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Myanmar and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
BALI, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesian police are hunting for an American citizen who escaped Monday from an overcrowded and understaffed prison on the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

Head of Kerobokan prison Tonny Nainggolan said Chrishan Beasley, 32, is believed to have escaped at around 4 a.m. by sawing through a ceiling and then climbing over a 6-meter (20-foot) -high wall behind the prison.

Beasley was arrested in August at a post office in the Kuta tourist area of Bali with a package containing 5.7 grams of hashish.

A motorcyclist passes by Kerobokan prison where American citizen Christian Beasley was detained for hashish drug offense, in Bali, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Indonesian police are hunting for Beasley who escaped Monday from the overcrowded and understaffed Kerobokan prison. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati)

Nainggolan said another American inmate, Paul Anthony Hoffman, 57, who has been serving a 20-month prison sentence since July for robbery, was captured while trying to escape.

An investigation was underway to determine if prison guards were involved in the escape, said Surung Pasaribu of the local office of the Law and Human Rights Ministry. He also said there is a shortage of guards for the prison, which was built to accommodate about 300 people but has nearly 1,600 inmates.

It was the second escape from the prison in Bali's capital, Denpasar, since June, when four foreign inmates escaped through a drainage tunnel.

Two of them, Bulgarian Dimitar Nikolov Iliev and Indian Sayed Mohammed Said, were recaptured in East Timor days later and were returned to Bali. The two others, Shaun Edward Davidson of Australia and Tee Koko King bin Tee Kim Sai of Malaysia, are still at large.

Jailbreaks are common in Indonesia, where prisons are overcrowded with people convicted of drug crimes as part of the government's anti-drug crusade.

In May, more than 440 prisoners escaped from an overcrowded prison on Sumatra island when they were let out of their cells to perform Friday Muslim prayers. In July 2013, about 240 prisoners, including several convicted terrorists, escaped during a deadly riot at a prison in another part of Sumatra.

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This story has been corrected to show that the first name of the escaped American is Chrishan instead of Christian, and the family name of the second American is Hoffman instead of Hoffam.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - The first law enforcement officer in the U.S. ever to be charged with a terrorism offense is again scheduled for trial.

Jury selection begins Monday afternoon in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, in the case against Nicholas Young, who was a police officer in the region's Metro system when he was arrested last year in a government sting.

Prosecutors say Young bought nearly $250 in gift cards he intended for the Islamic State group, giving the cards to an individual who turned out to be an FBI source.

Young's lawyers say the sting amounts to entrapment after their client was under surveillance for six years.

Documents show Young had been under surveillance since 2010.

The trial had been expected to begin last week but was delayed when new evidence emerged.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Activists burned U.S. and Israeli flags in front of the American embassy in Jakarta on Monday in a fourth day of protests in Indonesia against President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Several hundred protesters from an Islamic youth group rallied outside the embassy, burning flags and images of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu.

Wearing white robes, the protesters unfurled banners reading "U.S. Embassy, Get Out from Al-Quds" and "We are with the Palestinians." Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem, the historic Middle East city that is a holy site for Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Protesters burn a poster of U.S. President Donald Trump during a rally outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A weekend protest at the embassy attracted several thousand people and similar protests have been held in other cities around Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has strongly condemned Trump's move, which he described as a violation of U.N. resolutions.

Indonesia does not have diplomatic ties with Israel and has long been a strong supporter of Palestinian aspirations for statehood.

Trump's announcement Wednesday overturned decades of U.S. policy, and a longstanding international consensus, that the fate of Jerusalem be decided as a part of a peace deal between Israel and Palestine.

Israeli and Palestinian claims to the city's eastern sector form the core of their conflict, and Trump's announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis.

Protesters burn a large U.S. flag during a rally outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A Muslim protester displays a Palestinian flag during a rally outside U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital to denounce U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Protesters shout slogans during a rally outside U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Protesters step on U.S. and Israeli flags during a rally outside U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Protesters carry a representation an effigy of U.S. President Donald Trump during a rally outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Hundreds of people staged the protest in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. (AP Photo/ Achmad Ibrahim)
WASHINGTON (AP) - When President Donald Trump's U.N. ambassador recently urged the world to sever diplomatic ties with North Korea, she was sketchy on the details: Should all embassies close? How about those providing the U.S. intelligence from the largely inscrutable country? And what of Sweden, which helps with imprisoned Americans?

Nikki Haley's recent call to action underscores the challenge for the United States as it tries to advance a nonmilitary strategy for resolving the nuclear standoff with North Korea. Isolating the reclusive, totalitarian state has been a central component of the U.S. plan, even though Washington says it remains open to talks.

Like international economic penalties, the Trump administration believes the diplomatic isolation serves two purposes.

In this Dec. 8, 2018, photo, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks at United Nations headquarters. When Haley recently urged the world to sever diplomatic ties with North Korea, she was sketchy on the details: Should all embassies close? How about those providing the U.S. intelligence from the largely inscrutable country? And what of Sweden, which helps with imprisoned Americans? Haley's call to action underscores the challenge for the United States as it tries to advance a nonmilitary strategy for resolving the nuclear standoff with North Korea. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

It's designed to punish North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for developing an atomic arsenal of bombs and intercontinental missiles that potentially could deliver nuclear warheads anywhere in the United States. U.S. officials also contend that freezing out North Korea could drive Kim's government to seek negotiations.

"We do know they care a lot about their international reputation," said Mark Tokola, a former No. 2 at the U.S. Embassy in South Korea.

Trump's team has chalked up some successes in narrowing the North's diplomatic reach. Mexico, Peru, Italy, Spain, and Kuwait have expelled North Korean ambassadors from their countries. Haley said Portugal and the United Arab Emirates have suspended diplomatic relations. Others have cut trade and security ties.

But North Korea isn't and won't be completely isolated.

Last month, China, whose once-close relationship with North Korea has been strained by its adoption of tough U.N. sanctions, sent its highest level envoy to Pyongyang in two years. North Korea also recently welcomed a Russian parliamentary delegation, in a sign of increasing contacts between the former Cold War partners. And the North just hosted the most senior U.N. official to visit in years: Jeffrey Feltman, the undersecretary-general for political affairs.

Even before he departed, experts played down expectations that Feltman, formerly a senior American diplomat, could offer a breakthrough as the standoff over the North's nuclear weapons threatens to spiral into war. Feltman carried no message from Washington, State Department spokesman Heather Nauert said.

Yet Feltman's visit, which included an audience with Kim's foreign minister, added to questions about how effectively the U.S. can isolate North Korea. Feltman left Pyongyang on Saturday after four days of talks with the North Korean Foreign Ministry. "I have to brief the secretary-general first," he said when asked for details of his trip.

Also unresolved is whether Trump and his top advisers have a game plan for the second half of a strategy they've called "maximum pressure and engagement." If North Korea signals a willingness to negotiate, now that Kim has declared that he has "realized the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force," how will the U.S. respond?

"This is probably as good a time as any to try to pivot to engagement," said Suzanne DiMaggio at the New America think tank, who has been involved in several rounds of unofficial talks with North Korean officials. She said the administration has focused almost completely on pressure.

Kim's declaration followed North Korea's test last month of its most powerful intercontinental missile yet, which led Haley, at an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting, to speak of a world "closer to war." At the same time, she pushed for others to cut trade and diplomatic ties with Pyongyang.

U.S. officials say doing so would stop North Korea from abusing diplomatic privileges that allow it to raise revenues or conduct illegal business in support of its nuclear and missile programs. It's also intended to exploit North Korean sensitivity to its international standing.

But the U.S. has given mixed messages on what form concretely the isolation should take.

Haley called on all governments to sever ties. Other U.S. officials say the emphasis is on getting North Korean diplomats expelled from overseas postings, not on closing foreign embassies in Pyongyang. To date, no embassies have shut down in the North Korean capital as a result of the U.S. campaign.

According to research by the Washington-based East-West Center and the National Committee on North Korea, North Korea maintains diplomatic relations with 167 countries. It has embassies in 47 foreign capitals. Twenty-four countries have embassies in Pyongyang, and those include American rivals and friends.

"If the U.S. is really serious about depriving North Korea of diplomatic relations, it must start with its own closest ally, Great Britain," said Artyom Lukin, a North Korea expert at Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Russia.

Since the U.S. has no diplomatic presence of its own in North Korea - the two sides remain technically in a state of war - it relies to some extent on Britain, Germany and other partners to stay abreast of what's happening there. Most critically, it needs Sweden, its protecting power, to assist three currently detained Americans in North Korea, on the rare occasions when Kim's government allows consular access.

Any isolation campaign will have only marginal diplomatic and economic effect without the participation of North Korea's most powerful partners, China and Russia. Both support more dialogue with the North, not more diplomatic sanctions.

Even if only smaller countries follow America's advice, the U.S. could lose potential go-betweens, such as Vietnam and Mongolia, which have constructive relations with the U.S. and North Korea.

"If they left, I would be worried I was losing a source of information and a more neutral voice that the North Koreans might actually listen to," said Frank Jannuzi, a former Senate staff specialist on Asia.

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Online:

State Department on North Korea: https://www.state.gov/p/eap/ci/kn/

U.N. Undersecretary General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman, center, arrives at an airport in Beijing, China, Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017. The senior U.N. official left Pyongyang on Saturday after four days of talks with the North Korean Foreign Ministry. Feltman met North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on Thursday and also had two sessions of talks with Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong Guk. (Minoru Iwasaki/Kyodo News via AP)
BEIJING (AP) - China's auto sales were flat in November compared with a year earlier, leaving total purchases in the world's biggest market up an anemic 1.9 percent for the first 11 months of 2017, an industry group reported Monday.

Chinese drivers bought 2.6 million sedans, SUVs and minivans, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Total vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, edged up 0.7 percent to just under 3 million vehicles.

Chinese auto sales have struggled this year after a temporary tax cut boosted 2016's growth to 15 percent. Sales contracted in April and May before growing feebly in recent months.

That weakness is a setback for global automakers that look to China to drive future revenue, though some have grown faster than the market, taking share from Chinese and other rivals.

In November, SUV sales rose 8.9 percent over a year earlier to 11 million, while sedan purchases shrank 4.8 percent to 12.2 million. For the first 11 months of the year, sales totaled 22.1 million.

Chinese demand has weakened as economic growth slowed and Beijing and other major cities tightened restrictions on ownership to curb smog and congestion.

Sales by Chinese domestic brands overall rose 5 percent to 1.2 million vehicles, according to CAAM. Their share of the market expanded by 1.6 percentage points to 45.8 percent.

- General Motors Co., which competes with Volkswagen AG for the status of China's most popular automaker, said sales by the company and its Chinese manufacturing partners rose 13 percent from a year earlier to 418,225 vehicles.

- Ford Motor Co. sales fell 8 percent to 117,593 vehicles. Year-to-date sales were off 6 percent at just under 1.1 million.

- Nissan Motor Co., the most popular Japanese brand in China, said monthly sales rose 21.8 percent to 165,384 vehicles. Sales through November were up 12 percent at 1.3 million.

- Toyota Motor Co. sales gained 9.9 percent to 109,600. Year-to-date sales grew 10.7 percent to 1.2 million.

- BMW AG said November sales rose 12 percent to 55,293 vehicles. Year-to-date sales were up 14.7 percent to 542,362.

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China Association of Automobile Manufacturers: www.caam.org.cn
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel is preparing to extradite a 63-year-old citizen to the United States, where he is wanted on suspicion of killing his mother.

The state prosecution says Monday it has asked the court to declare Thomas Joseph Gross fit for extradition. The American extradition request says Gross travelled to Florida in 2012 to visit his mother. The night before his return to Israel he allegedly drugged her and stabbed her to death in her car outside her Lakewood Ranch home. The next morning he called 911, saying he had found her body, and tried to portray the scene as a suicide or robbery gone wrong.

Gross' Israeli lawyer says he was previously questioned and released by authorities and the extradition is a shaming attempt by his sister over an inheritance battle.
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - Mikheil Saakashvili, the former Georgian president turned opposition leader in Ukraine, walked free Monday after a court in the Ukrainian capital refused to sanction his arrest, vowing to push for a peaceful government change.

Saakashvili was arrested Friday on allegations that he colluded with Ukrainian businessmen tied to Russia to topple President Petro Poroshenko, accusations Saakashvili rejected.

"I consider myself a prisoner of Ukrainian oligarchs," he said in an apparent reference to the business background of Poroshenko, who ran a chocolate business before he was elected president.

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili gestures in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Prosecutors had asked to keep Saakashvili under house arrest, but the judge turned it down to the applause of Saakashvili's supporters.

The court's verdict marked a defeat for Poroshenko, who has faced mounting criticism for his failure to uproot endemic corruption.

The victorious Saakashvili said after the verdict that he will coordinate with other political forces in Ukraine to push for a peaceful change of government.

Saakashvili, who was refusing food to protest the arrest, said that the first thing he now wants is to get back home and eat.

Yulia Tymoshenko, a former prime minister who leads an opposition party, attended the hearing in a show of support for Saakashvili.

About 200 of Saakashvili's supporters gathered outside the court and scuffled with police earlier Monday.

On Sunday, thousands of Saakashvili's supporters marched across Kiev, demanding his release and calling for Poroshenko to be impeached.

Saakashvili was a key figure in the 2003 Rose Revolution protests that drove Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze from office. He served two terms as Georgian president in 2004-2013, winning broad acclaim for his anti-corruption efforts, but drawing criticism over a disastrous war with Russia and what his opponents saw as an authoritarian streak.

Poroshenko named him the governor of Ukraine's Odessa region in 2015, but Saakashvili resigned the following year, claiming that Poroshenko and other officials were impeding anti-corruption reforms, and became a strong critic of his former patron.

Georgia stripped Saakashvili of his citizenship after his move to Ukraine. Poroshenko this summer rescinded his Ukrainian citizenship while Saakashvili was out of the country, leaving Saakashvili stateless.

He forced his way into Ukraine in September, barging across the border from Poland with the help of a crowd of supporters.

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Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili arrives at a court in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili smiles in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili gestures in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili arrives at a court in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili smiles in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, center, gestures as former Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko, right, attends hearings in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, center, listens to his lawyer in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, center, gestures as former Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko, second right, attends hearings in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, right, talks with his wife Sandra Roelofs, left, and former Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko, second left, before a hearing in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili stands behind the glass and talks to reporters before a hearing in a court room in Kiev, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Mikheil Saakashvili, the adamant opposition leader who was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship four months ago, was arrested late Friday, Dec. 8, in Ukraine's capital. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
DODOMA, Tanzania (AP) - The bodies of 15 United Nations peacekeepers killed last week in eastern Congo arrived home in Tanzania on Monday, as a U.N. official vowed military offenses will be launched against rebels who carried out the attack.

The bodies were received in the commercial hub of Dar es Salaam by Tanzanian defense and military officials. The killings shocked many in this East African country that is known for its relative stability in a region often wracked by violence.

In a memorial ceremony Monday David Gressly, the U.N. deputy special representative for Congo, said those who staged the assault, which wounded 50 others, will pay for their actions.

U.N peacekeepers stand behind coffins with the remains of Tanzanian peace keepers killed by rebels, during a memorial ceremony in Beni, eastern Congo, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. The United Nations Deputy Special Representative for Congo says military offenses will be launched against rebels killed at least 15 Tanzanian U.N. peacekeepers last week in eastern Congo. (AP Photo/Al-Hadji Kudra Maliro)

The Dec. 7 attack about 45 kilometers (28 miles) from Beni was the deadliest single attack on a U.N. peacekeeping mission in nearly 25 years.

At least five Congolese soldiers also were killed in the attack. The peacekeeping base has been repeatedly attacked by rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces group.

Tanzania's ambassador in Congo, Paul Ignace Mella, called on the U.N. to protect its peacekeeping soldiers. The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo is the largest in the world.

The U.N.'s top official for peacekeeping operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, will travel to Congo to attend a memorial ceremony Thursday to honor the slain peacekeepers. Later Lacroix will head to Tanzania "to personally convey to the people and government of Tanzania the U.N.'s deep gratitude for the sacrifices of their men and women," U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq said in New York Monday.

Congo, the size of Western Europe, has seen immeasurable cruelty and greed as a result of its mineral resources while more than 80 percent of the population lives below the absolute poverty line of $1.25 a day. The nation suffered through one of the most brutal colonial reigns ever known before enduring decades of corrupt dictatorship. Back-to-back civil wars later drew in a number of neighboring countries.

Many rebel groups have come and gone during the U.N. mission's years of operation, at times invading the regional capital, Goma.

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Maliro contributed from Beni, Congo.

U.N peacekeepers carry a coffin with the remains of a Tanzanian peacekeeper killed by rebels, during a memorial ceremony in Beni, eastern Congo, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. The United Nations Deputy Special Representative for Congo says military offenses will be launched against rebels killed at least 15 Tanzanian U.N. peacekeepers last week in eastern Congo. (AP Photo/Al-Hadji Kudra Maliro)

U.N peacekeepers carry a coffin with the remains of a Tanzanian peacekeeper killed by rebels, during a memorial ceremony in Beni, eastern Congo, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. The United Nations Deputy Special Representative for Congo says military offenses will be launched against rebels killed at least 15 Tanzanian U.N. peacekeepers last week in eastern Congo. (AP Photo/Al-Hadji Kudra Maliro)
WASHINGTON (AP) - An investment firm that once hired Michael Flynn has denied he sent text messages during President Donald Trump's inauguration indicating U.S. sanctions would be "ripped up" so a nuclear reactor project in the Middle East involving Russian interests could proceed.

The firm, however, cited only one set of cell phone records to show that there were no text messages between Flynn and the firm's managing director on Inauguration Day. That leaves open the possibility that Flynn relied on other devices or private messaging applications.

Before becoming White House national security adviser, Flynn was advising ACU Strategies on a project to build nuclear reactors in the Middle East that had been stymied by sanctions targeting Russia.

In this Dec. 1, 2017 photo, former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn leaves federal court in Washington. A whistleblower has told House Democrats that during President Donald Trump's inauguration speech, Flynn texted a former business associate to say a private nuclear proposal Flynn had lobbied for would have his support in the White House. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Last week, Maryland Democrat Rep. Elijah Cummings said a whistleblower reported that ACU's managing director boasted on Inauguration Day that he had exchanged texts with Flynn indicating that the project was "good to go" and that U.S. sanctions hobbling the project would be "ripped up."

Cummings, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said the account raised serious questions about the blurring of Flynn's private and public interests.

Flynn, who spent a month as Trump's top national security aide before he was fired by the new president, pleaded guilty 10 days ago to lying to FBI agents about his conversations with Russia's ambassador about the Obama administration's Russia sanctions.

Flynn is now cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Cummings said last week in a letter to House Oversight committee chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., that his staff had informed Mueller's office about the whistleblower's account and delayed making the information public "until they completed certain investigative steps. They have now informed us that they have done so."

In ACU's letter to Cummings last week, Thomas Cochran, the firm's senior scientist, said the witness' allegations "are patently false and unfounded." Cochran said that phone billing records for the firm's managing director showed no communications with Flynn.

On Monday, Cummings' staff released his response to Cochran's denial, questioning whether the text message billing records it cited covered all communications on Jan. 20 between Flynn and Copson. Cummings noted that Copson could have messaged with Flynn through encryption applications that would not reveal the texts in billing statements.

"Of course, it is possible that you were using a messaging application that does not generate a telephone company record. It is possible that the website printout that you provided does not reflect all text messages," Cummings said to Copson. Cummings urged Copson to allow House investigators to question him "to help resolve these questions."

It was also not clear whether Flynn had been provided a government cell phone by the inauguration or owned a private cell phone with another number - or whether Copson was using another phone at the time.

Both Copson and Cochran worked with Flynn starting in 2015 when the former U.S. Army lieutenant general joined up with ACU in its plan to build dozens of reactors in the Mideast with aid from Russian and other international firms. Copson has said that his firm provided Flynn with a $25,000 check - left uncashed - and paid expenses for Flynn's 2015 trop to the Mideast to aid the project.

Cochran said that Copson sent only two messages and received only one message on the day of Trump's inauguration. None came from a cell phone that Flynn used when he worked for the firm in 2015 and 2016, Cochran said.

Copson's billing statements "flatly contradict the core allegation that Mr. Copson received a text message from General Flynn during President Trump's inaugural speech," Cochran said in his note to Cummings.
ROME (AP) - An Italian man who drove his car last week into pedestrians near a Christmas market in the northern town of Sondrio had been aiming to kill.

Sondrio Prosecutor Claudio Gittardi confirmed Italian media reports Monday the suspect is being investigated for wanting to carry out a massacre. The car struck and seriously injured a woman Saturday at an outdoor skating rink near the Sondrio market before crashing into a pillar.

Two others who had been strolling in the pedestrian-only square suffered light injuries in the crash, which was originally blamed on drunk driving.

In this photo taken on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, the car that was driven into a pedestrian-only square seriously injuring a woman near an outdoor skating ring near the Sondrio market, Italy, before crashing into a pillar. Italian media say an Italian man who drove the car had been aiming to kill. (Carlo Orlandi/ANSA via AP)

"As things stand, the incident seems to have been determined by personal dynamics and not with the aim of terrorism," according to police who investigated, Gittardi said in an email to The AP. The prosecutor didn't elaborate.

ANSA said the suspect, 27, when he was arrested at the scene, said that he "should have killed more" people.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge is warning President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman that he shouldn't be trying his case in the press. That includes drafting opinion essays published in other countries.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson told Paul Manafort that his editing of an op-ed that appeared in an English-language newspaper in Ukraine is not something she is going to tolerate.

The judge's warning came after special counsel Robert Mueller's prosecutors discovered that Manafort edited an op-ed published in the Kyiv Post last week. The article appeared under the name of a former Ukraine official. It discussed Manafort's consulting work in Ukraine, which is at the heart of the case against him.

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort arrives at federal court in Washington, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

The judge has barred Manafort and the prosecution from making public statements about his case.
Europe's five biggest economies have warned Donald Trump that plans for massive US tax reforms may end up violating international trade rules.

Finance ministers from Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Spain say they have 'significant concerns' about some of the US President's tax initiatives and fear they could harm the global economy.

In a letter to US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the ministers said the tax overhaul could risk 'seriously hampering genuine trade and investment flows' between Europe and America.

Their warning mirrors fears among some European businesses that aspects of Mr Trump's tax-reform bills may have been designed to give American companies an advantage over foreign rivals.

Europe's five biggest economies have warned Donald Trump (pictured) that plans for massive US tax reforms may end up violating international trade rules

The ministers, including Britain's chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured), warned that Trump's measures could 'discriminate' in a manner which would contravene World Trade Organisation

The ministers, including Britain's chancellor Philip Hammond, warned the measures could 'discriminate' in a manner which would contravene World Trade Organisation (WTO) provisions, would be inconsistent with double taxation rules, and would be 'poorly targeted' at helping to combat tax avoidance.

'The inclusion of certain less conventional international tax provisions could contravene the US's double taxation treaties and may risk having a major distortive impact on international trade,' the letter stated.

One of Mr Trump's proposals would see US companies forced to pay a 20 per cent tax on payments to foreign companies  effectively forcing them to spend money with American firms.

This, the ministers, said, 'would impact on genuine commercial arrangements'.

Because it would only apply where payments are being made for foreign goods and services, this would discriminate and break WTO rules. The plans have not yet been passed by the US Congress.

The letter warned that 'it is important that the U.S. government's rights over domestic tax policy be exercised in a way that adheres with international obligations to which it has signed-up.'

In a letter to US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (pictured), the ministers said the tax overhaul could risk 'seriously hampering genuine trade and investment flows' between Europe and America

EU nations have been warily eyeing President Trump's domestic tax proposals as they made their way through congress and have long expressed fears they might hurt world trade and EU companies in particular.

The five ministers specifically targeted the so-called Base Erosion and Anti-abuse Tax (or BEAT) Senate bill.

This measure aims to combat what is called base erosion and profit shifting, the practice by some multinationals to avoid tax by exploiting mismatches in countries' tax rules to artificially report their profits in countries with low or no taxes.

The finance ministers lauded the measure's aim to ensure companies pay their fair share in taxes to the U.S.

But they said that under the current plans, the measures would also hurt genuine commercial deals.

In the financial sector in particular, 'the provision appears to have the potential of being extremely harmful for international banking and insurance business.'

U.S President Donald Trump (left) shakes hands with French President Emmanuel Macron after at the Elysee Palace in Paris

They said it 'may lead to significant tax charges and may harmfully distort international financial markets.'

The EU's 28 finance ministers had already expressed concern about the U.S. plans during a meeting last week, but now its five biggest economies have gone ahead with their own warning.

In Washington, however, Republicans are upbeat about finalising the tax bill from the House and Senate versions for Trump's first major legislative accomplishment in nearly 11 months in office.

Trump has set a Christmas deadline for signing the bill into law, giving lawmakers named to a special conference committee two weeks to iron out major differences in the House and Senate versions of the legislation.

The conference committee has scheduled its first formal meeting for Wednesday.

Both measures would cut taxes by about $1.5 trillion over the next decade while adding billions to the $20 trillion deficit, combining steep tax cuts for corporations with more modest reductions for most individuals.

Together, the changes would amount to the biggest overhaul of the U.S. tax system in 30 years, touching every corner of society.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - As Alabama's high-profile Senate race heads toward a Tuesday vote, supporters and opponents of GOP candidate Roy Moore are bending the truth - or shattering it to pieces - in the campaign's final stretch.

One website falsely proclaimed that one of the women who accused Moore of sexual misconduct had recanted. Another erroneously reported that a Moore accuser "forged" his yearbook inscription to her. On the other side, Moore's detractors took to social media to assert, erroneously, that Moore had written in a 2011 textbook that women shouldn't hold elected office.

The Associated Press checked these out; here are the real facts:

FILE- In this Dec. 5, 2017, file photo, former Alabama Chief Justice and U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore speaks at a campaign rally in Fairhope Ala. As Alabama's high-profile Senate race heads toward a Tuesday vote, supporters and opponents Moore are bending the truth, or shattering it to pieces, in the campaign's final stretch. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

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NOT REAL: BREAKING: Roy Moore's accuser arrested and charged with falsification

THE FACTS: A story published by a satire site called NoFakeNewsOnline and many others reported that Alabama Attorney General John Simmons filed misdemeanor charges of falsification against Mary Lynne Davies for accusing Moore of assaulting her. John Simmons is not the state's attorney general, Steve Marshall is; and Mary Lynne Davies is not among the eight women who have publicly accused Moore of misconduct. Alabama's online court system has no record of charges against someone by that name. The story was published just as Moore accuser Beverly Nelson acknowledged adding two notations to a yearbook inscription she says Moore wrote to her in 1977.

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NOT REAL: BREAKING: Roy Moore's Lying Accuser Admits He Didn't Ever Touch Her

THE FACTS: None of the women who accused the Alabama Republican Senate candidate of sexual misconduct, including two women who said Moore molested them, have backed off their initial claims. This fake headline is from a website, Reagan Was Right, which promotes hoaxes and satire. The woman featured in a photograph accompanying the story shows a British reality TV star, not any of the eight women who have accused Moore of sexual misconduct.

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NOT REAL: Moore Co-Authored Textbook that Said Women Can't Hold Public Office

THE FACTS: Moore is in fact a co-author of a "textbook" which serves as a study guide for a series of Bible-based video and audio lectures on U.S. law and public policy. The course packaging also identifies him as a "featured speaker." Despite claims spread on the web this week, however, Moore did not author the specific section or deliver the lecture that argues that women should not hold elected office. That talk was given by William Einwechter, an elder at Immanuel Free Reformed Church in Pennsylvania. Moore's office says he does not believe that women are unqualified for public office.

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NOT REAL: BREAKING: ROY MOORE ACCUSER ADMITS SHE FORGED PART OF YEARBOOK INSCRIPTION!!!

THE FACTS: Moore supporters celebrated misleading news that Beverly Nelson, one of his accusers, admitted forging a 1977 yearbook inscription that was considered key evidence against the Alabama Republican. The inscription reads, "To a sweeter more beautiful girl I could not say, 'Merry Christmas.'" It is followed by the signature "Roy Moore D.A." and the notation "12-22-77 Olde Hickory House." Nelson's attorney, Gloria Allred, said Friday that Nelson had added the date and restaurant name to the inscription. However, Allred also said that a handwriting expert found Moore's signature in the yearbook to be authentic.

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Associated Press writer Michael Rubinkam contributed to this report.

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This is part of The Associated Press' ongoing effort to fact-check misinformation that is shared widely online, including work with Facebook to identify and reduce the circulation of false stories on the platform.

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Find all AP Fact Checks here: https://www.apnews.com/tag/APFactCheck
A former Oklahoma City mayor and member of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents has sparked outrage by comparing comparing gay people to pedophiles.

Kirk Humphreys made the comments during a local public affairs TV show that aired over the weekend in Oklahoma, during a discussion of sexual misconduct scandals in Congress.

Humphreys and others were discussing allegations against Minnesota Senator Al Franken, who is stepping down, and President Donald Trump when Humphreys began to ramble about other subjects. He said he was 'going to make a lot of people mad today.'

'Is homosexuality right or wrong? It's not relative, there's a right and wrong,' Humphreys said on KFOR's weekly show Flashpoint.

'If it's OK then it's OK for everybody and, quite frankly, it's OK for men to sleep with little boys.'

'Is homosexuality right or wrong? It's not relative, there's a right and wrong,' Humphreys said. 'If it's OK then it's OK for everybody and, quite frankly, it's OK for men to sleep with little boys.'

The panel was discussing the resignation announcement of Senator Al Franken (pictured) when Humphreys began to ramble about other subjects

LGBTQ advocacy group Freedom Oklahoma called for Humphreys' removal from the Board of Regents if he didn't apologize.

Executive Director Troy Stevenson said Monday that Humphreys' comments were disheartening and dangerous for LGBTQ youth who are already harassed and bullied.

A staffer at Humphreys' office said he was out of town Monday and unavailable to comment. Humphreys, 67, did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment.

The president of the University of Oklahoma distanced himself from Humphreys' comments.

President David Boren noted that Humphreys was not speaking on behalf of the university, adding that the school was committed to diversity and inclusiveness.

State Rep. Emily Virgin, a Democrat from Oklahoma City, was stunned at the remarks

'I do not share his views on this matter,' Boren said in a statement.

A state lawmaker who appeared with Humphreys pushed back at him on the show, saying it was wrong to compare sexual misconduct and crimes to the legal behavior of consenting adults.

'Mr. Humphreys' comments were disgusting, offensive, and just plain wrong,' Rep. Emily Virgin, a Democrat from Oklahoma City, later said on her Facebook page. 'I unequivocally stand with the LGBT community.

Stevenson said his group planned to protest an Oklahoma City real estate project that belongs to Humphreys' family business if he doesn't apologize.
PARIS (AP) - The Latest on the French president's climate change grants (all times local):

8:30 p.m.

American climate scientist Camille Parmesan is elated at the prospect of spending the next five years doing her research in France instead of the U.S.

Arnold Schwarzenegger arrives on bicycle to meet Paris mayor Anne Hdalgo, Monday Dec. 11, 2017 in Paris. Schwarzenegger is in Paris to attend the One Planet climate summit Tuesday with more than 50 world leaders and co-hosted by the U.N. and the World Bank. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

She's one of 18 initial winners announced Monday of a special contest launched by President Emmanuel Macron in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's rejection of the Paris climate accord.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Parmesan, of the University of Texas at Austin, described funding challenges for climate science in the U.S. and a feeling that "you are having to hide what you do."

She said Macron's appeal "gave me such a psychological boost, to have that kind of support, to have the head of state saying I value what you do."

Parmesan will be working at an experimental ecology station in the Pyrenees on how human-made climate change is affecting wildlife.

Trump has expressed skepticism about global warming and said the Paris accord would hurt U.S. business.

8:00 p.m.

French President Emmanuel Macron has awarded grants worth millions of euros to bring 18 American and other climate scientists to France, a program to counter U.S. President Donald Trump's rejection of the Paris climate accord.

Macron devised the grant competition hours after Trump announced in June that he would withdraw the United States from the 2015 deal. The French president announced the first winners in Paris on Monday.

The French government said in a statement that more than 5,000 people from about 100 countries expressed interest in the grants.

A majority of applicants were U.S.-based researchers. The research of the winning recipients focuses on pollution, hurricanes and clouds.

Borrowing from Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan, Macron said: "France and Europe will be the place where we will decide how to make our planet great again."

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7:35 p.m.

French President Emmanuel Macron is welcoming American and other foreign climate scientists to France as he tries to pump new energy into an international agreement to curb global warming.

Macron is announcing the winners Monday of a contest offering millions of euros in grants for climate scientists to relocate to France.

The French leader devised the grant competition hours after U.S. President Donald Trump announced in June that he would withdraw from the 2015 Paris climate accord.

Macron told a group of scientists and startup entrepreneurs in Paris, "We will be there to replace" U.S. financing of climate research.

He promised to put in place a global climate change monitoring system and said "If we want to prepare for the changes of tomorrow, we need science."

Macron is hosting more than 50 world leaders at a climate summit in Paris Tuesday.

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6:15 p.m.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is arguing that U.S. President Donald Trump's rejection of the Paris climate accord doesn't matter, because companies, scientists and other governments can "pick up the slack" to reduce global emissions.

The Hollywood star and former California governor took a spin on a Parisian electric bike Monday as part of events leading up to an international climate summit Tuesday hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Schwarzenegger said "Donald Trump pulled Donald Trump out of the Paris agreement," but many in the private sector, cities and state governments, engineers and universities remain committed to fighting climate change.

A prominent environmental campaigner, Schwarzenegger acknowledged that many people "don't understand what global warming or climate change really means," and urged environmental activists to focus on efforts to fight pollution instead because of its health risks.

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11:20 a.m.

French President Emmanuel Macron's "Make Our Planet Great Again" grants initially were aimed at American climate change researchers, but competition has been expanded to other non-French climate scientists.

Macron is unveiling the first winners Monday evening at a startup incubator in Paris called Station F, where Microsoft and smaller tech companies are announcing projects to finance activities aimed at reducing emissions.

French national research agency CNRS says the applicant list was whittled down to 90 finalists in September, the majority of them Americans or based in the U.S.

About 50 projects will be chosen overall, and funded with 60 million euros ($70 million) from the state and French research institutes.

Some French researchers have complained that Macron is showering money on foreign scientists while they are pleading for more support for domestic higher education.

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9:40 a.m.

Several U.S.-based climate scientists are about to win multi-year, all-expenses-paid grants to relocate to France.

The "Make Our Planet Great Again" grants are an effort by French President Emmanuel Macron to counter U.S. President Donald Trump on the climate change front.

Macron announced a competition for the grants hours after Trump declared he would withdraw the U.S. from the global accord reached in Paris in 2015 to reduce climate-damaging emissions.

Macron is unveiling the winners Monday evening ahead of a climate summit Tuesday aimed at giving new impetus to the Paris accord and finding new funding to help governments and businesses meet its goals.

More than 50 world leaders are expected in Paris for the "One Planet Summit," co-hosted by the U.N. and the World Bank. Trump was not invited.

Arnold Schwarzenegger meetS Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo, Monday Dec. 11, 2017 in Paris. Schwarzenegger is in Paris to attend the One Planet climate summit Tuesday with more than 50 world leaders and co-hosted by the U.N. and the World Bank. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Arnold Schwarzenegger arrives on bicycle to meet Paris mayor Anne HIdalgo, Monday Dec. 11, 2017 in Paris. Schwarzenegger is in Paris to attend the One Planet climate summit Tuesday with more than 50 world leaders and co-hosted by the U.N. and the World Bank. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
ATLANTA (AP) - It can sometimes seem as though mass shootings are occurring more frequently. Researchers who have been studying such crimes for decades say they aren't, but they have been getting deadlier.

In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school, the nation has seen a number of massacres topping the death toll from Newtown and previous mass shootings, many of them involving rifles similar to the one used in Sandy Hook.

But Americans wanting to know why deadlier mass shootings are happening will get few answers. Is it is the wide availability of firearms? Is it the much-maligned "assault weapon" with its military style? Is it a failing mental health system?

FILE - In this June 12, 2016, file photo, Sonia Parra, left, and Andrea Parra, who said they lost friends in the Pulse nightclub shooting, hold candles on the street corner near the nightclub in Orlando, Fla. In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Conn., the nation has seen a number of massacres topping the death toll from that shooting. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)

"We're kind of grabbing at straws at this point in terms of trying to understand why the severity of these incidents has increased," said Grant Duwe, a criminologist who has been studying mass killings since the 1990s.

The federal government does little research on the matter, because a measure dating to the 1990s had the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention retreat from firearms research. Instead, a handful of academics, like Duwe, have toiled sometimes for decades with limited funding trying to better understand why these shootings happen and how to prevent them.

While mass shootings happen with regularity, they still remain so rare that there isn't enough information to draw conclusions with any certainty.

The profile of mass shooters - loners, depressed individuals, people who rarely smile or those who take to the internet to rant about a perceived insult or gripe - is so broad and common that it's impossible to pinpoint who might turn that anger into violence.

"There are lots of people who are isolated, don't have lots of friends, who don't smile and write ugly things on the internet and blame others for their misfortunes and don't want to live anymore and talk about mass killers and maybe even admire them," said Northeastern University professor James Alan Fox, who began studying mass shootings in the 1980s and has written six books on the topic.

Five years ago this week, Adam Lanza, a troubled young man in Newtown, Connecticut, shot and killed his mother in their home and then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School with an AR-style long gun and a handgun. He fatally shot 20 children and six educators, then himself.

In the years since, the nation has witnessed even deadlier attacks: the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando in 2016 in which a gunman killed 49 people and this year's shooting in Las Vegas, where a man in a casino hotel fired on concertgoers on the ground below, killing more than 55. This year's shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas, by an Air Force veteran who shot up a church sanctuary, killing more than two dozen, also is now among the 10 deadliest mass shootings in modern U.S. history.

Mass shootings are widely defined as one in which four or more people are killed in a public place, excluding both domestic violence and gang-related violence. The rate has remained steady at about 20 per year for the past three decades, Fox said. Still, five of the 10 deadliest have occurred since Sandy Hook, he said.

"Some years are worse than others, and bad years tend to be followed by not-so-bad years," Fox said. While two of the deadliest took place this year, "you can't take the actions of one or two people and call it a new phenomenon. That's abberational. You can't make any pattern or trend based on that."

It's also unclear whether the higher death tolls are the result of more firearms being available or firearms being more effective. Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas shooter, used bump stocks to allow a number of his guns to mimic fully automatic weapons, but his perch high above the outdoor concert also made the shooting more effective and deadly. That's the tactic the gunman in the 1966 University of Texas at Austin shooting used when he took to a tower overlooking the campus, shooting down for more than 90 minutes.

In half of the deadliest mass shootings, the perpetrator used at least one AR-style firearm. In one, the massacre at a McDonald's in San Ysidro, California, in 1984, the shooter used an Uzi submachine gun. The others were carried out with handguns, the weapon used in the majority of mass shootings.

"Contrary to what some folks may think, the incidence of mass public shootings has not increased since Sandy Hook or even the five years before that," Duwe said. "What has changed - and this is certainly true around the time of Sandy Hook and even since then - the severity of mass public shootings has certainly increased. That is one genuine change we've seen."

Jillian Peterson, an assistant professor at Hamline University and a forensic psychologist who previously worked in New York crafting psychological profiles of convicted murderers facing the death penalty, recently helped launch a project designed to catalog and analyze mass shootings dating back to the 1960s. The project is being done jointly with James Densley, an associate professor of criminal justice at Metropolitan State University.

They have no financing and are relying on about a dozen students to gather research based on public documents and media reports.

The reason why someone carries out a mass shooting has been elusive, and it's a question she hopes the research will help answer. Are mass shooters of today and future bent on outdoing previous slayings by inflicting higher death tolls? That, too, is unclear. She cautions that such questions and answers continually evolve.

"This is ever-changing," Peterson said. "Just because we understand it today, we might not understand it tomorrow. That part gets hard. This is changing as society changes."

FILE - In this June 12, 2016, file photo, Jermaine Towns, left, and Brandon Shuford wait down the street from Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., where a gunman opened fire, killing 49 people. In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Conn., the nation has witnessed even deadlier attacks, including the shooting at the Pulse nightclub and the Oct. 1, 2017, shooting in Las Vegas, where a man in a casino hotel gunned down 55 concertgoers on the ground below. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

FILE - In this June 12, 2017, file photo, people gather at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., on the first anniversary of the mass shooting there. In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Conn., the nation has seen a number of massacres topping the death toll from that shooting. But Americans wanting to know why mass shootings are happening will get few answers. (Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel via AP, File)

FILE - In this June 12, 2016, file photo, people wait outside the emergency entrance of the Orlando Regional Medical Center hospital just hours after a gunman opened fire at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., killing 49 people. It can sometimes seem as though mass shootings are occurring more frequently. Researchers who have been studying such crimes for decades say they aren't, but they have been getting deadlier. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2017, file photo, Las Vegas residents, from left, Roberto Lopez, Briana Calderon and Cynthia Olvera, pause at a memorial site in Las Vegas two days after a man gunned down dozens of people from his high-rise hotel suite. In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook Connecticut elementary school in Newtown, Conn., the nation has seen a number of other massacres, many of them involving rifles similar to the one used in Sandy Hook. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File)
MONTROSE, Pa. (AP) - A gas driller argued in court Monday that it's entitled to monetary damages from a Pennsylvania homeowner who continued bad-mouthing the company after settling his water-contamination lawsuit against it more than five years ago.

Houston-based Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. claims Dimock resident Ray Kemble and his former lawyers tried to extort the company through a frivolous federal lawsuit that recycled already-settled claims against Cabot. The lawsuit, which was filed in April but withdrawn two months later, accused Cabot of polluting Kemble's water supply anew.

Cabot says the claims in Kemble's suit were the subject of a 2012 settlement between Cabot and dozens of Dimock residents, including Kemble. Cabot's suit also claims Kemble has repeatedly breached the 2012 agreement by publicly talking about the company.

Dimock resident Ray Kemble speaks with reporters outside the Susquehanna County Courthouse in Montrose, Pa., Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. is suing Kemble and his former attorneys, claiming they filed a frivolous lawsuit against it. (AP Photo/Michael Rubinkam)

The company is seeking monetary damages against Kemble and his former lawyers. The first hearing in the case was held Monday.

Kemble and his new lawyer said Cabot is trying to use the legal system to chill dissent and discourage attorneys from taking on contamination cases.

"This is just a way to shut the people up of the county and of the state, and I just don't think it's right," Kemble told reporters. "We the people have the right to talk."

Cabot's lawyers said the company merely wants Kemble to abide by the terms of the settlement, which forbids him from talking to the media about his water supply.

Kemble, who's long been one of the most outspoken anti-drilling activists in Pennsylvania, disparaged Cabot by making "false, unsubstantiated claims," company lawyers said in a filing.

Pennsylvania regulators previously held Cabot responsible for polluting residential water wells in Dimock, a tiny crossroads that has long been one of the central battlegrounds in the fight over gas drilling and fracking.

Cabot remains banned from drilling in a 9-square-mile area of Dimock, which is in the heart of the gas-rich Marcellus Shale rock formation in northeastern Pennsylvania.

Cabot won a default judgment against Kemble in October because he failed to respond to the company's lawsuit in time. Kemble asked the judge Monday to set aside the judgment, saying he'd been rejected by 30 lawyers and was forced to represent himself before attorney Rich Raiders recently agreed to take the case.

Kemble also asked the judge to rule that he's entitled to immunity under a Pennsylvania law that affords liability protection to individuals seeking enforcement of state or federal environmental laws.

The judge did not immediately rule.

The federal government returned to Dimock over the summer to investigate ongoing complaints about the quality of the drinking water. Government scientists collected samples from 24 homes, including Kemble's, testing the water for bacteria, gases and chemicals and the indoor air for radon.

Homeowners got the first batch of results - for methane - in October. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, a federal public health agency, told homeowners that in all but two homes, the tests either failed to detect methane or detected it at low levels. The agency noted that methane levels can fluctuate from day to day.
DALLAS (AP) - An off-duty police officer chased two teenagers who were burglarizing his SUV and killed one of them after firing his gun more than a dozen times, prosecutors told a Dallas jury on Monday during the former officer's murder trial.

Ken Johnson has pleaded not guilty to charges related to the death of 16-year-old Jose Cruz. Johnson resigned from the police force in the Dallas suburb of Farmers Branch shortly after the March 2016 shooting in nearby Addison.

The shooting occurred after Johnson saw two people burglarizing his personal SUV, according to investigators. Surveillance video shows that Johnson chased the teens with his SUV, rammed the teens' car and then repeatedly fired into their stopped vehicle.

The second teenager, Edgar Rodriguez, suffered a head wound and lost a finger in the shooting. He testified Monday that Johnson didn't say anything before firing into the car. Rodriguez previously acknowledged that he and Cruz were trying to steal seats from the SUV.

Johnson's attorneys have said the former officer feared for his life.

Johnson worked as a Dallas Area Rapid Transit officer for nearly eight years before he was hired by Farmers Branch police in March 2015.

Johnson was cleared of two excessive force complaints while with the transit agency. In one instance, a background investigator for Farmers Branch said the complaint was the result of Johnson "attempting to remove a combative person from the train" and that the excessive force allegations were "unfounded."
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - A Republican Kentucky lawmaker known for his inflammatory social media posts comparing President Barack Obama and his wife to monkeys has been accused of sexual assault by a woman who attended his church. Both Republican and Democratic leaders on Monday called for Dan Johnson to resign.

The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting quotes Maranda Richmond as saying that Johnson assaulted her in the basement of his house in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, 2013.

Police records obtained by the news organization show Richmond told them about the assault in 2013. But investigators closed the case and did not file charges. Johnson was elected to the state legislature in 2016. Neither Johnson nor police department officials returned calls from The Associated Press.

FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2016 file photo, Kentucky state Rep. Dan Johnson speaks during a news conference outside the Bullitt County courthouse in Shepherdsville, Ky. Johnson, who attracted national attention last year when he compared President Barack Obama and his wife to monkeys has been accused of sexual assault. The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting quotes Maranda Richmond as saying she has asked Louisville police to reopen an investigation of Dan Johnson. (AP Photo/Claire Galofaro, File)

Reaction was swift from the leaders of the state's two major political parties, who said Johnson should resign immediately. David Osborne, acting speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives, said the report was "compelling and deeply troubling."

Republican Gov. Matt Bevin was more cautious, saying he had not read the report and "let's wait until we get some facts" before commenting.

The allegation surfaced on the eve of a pivotal U.S. Senate election in Alabama, where Republican candidate Roy Moore is facing allegations of sexual misconduct from multiple women. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has urged Moore to drop out of the race, while Republican President Donald Trump has campaigned for Moore.

Johnson is the bishop of Heart of Fire ministries in Louisville. The church is known for its "gun choir ," which features Johnson and others holding guns while singing "Amazing Grace." He ousted a Democratic incumbent during the 2016 elections, part of a wave of Republican victories that handed the GOP control of the state House of Representatives for the first time in nearly 100 years.

Richmond is a former member of Johnson's church and a friend of his daughter. The Associated Press does not generally identify alleged sexual assault victims, but is doing so because Richmond has gone public with her story. Attempts to find a phone number for Richmond were unsuccessful on Monday. She did not respond to a Facebook message.

She told the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting she attended a party at Johnson's home on New Year's Eve 2012. That night, Richmond said she was asleep on a couch in the basement when she woke up to find Johnson standing over her. She said he groped her, stuck his tongue in her mouth and slid his hands down her pants and into her vagina.

Richmond said she begged Johnson to stop, but that he kept telling her she would like it. Eventually, she said, Johnson stopped and left.

Richmond went to the police. Records show investigators with the Louisville Metro Police Department recorded a phone call between Johnson and Richmond's father, in which Johnson said he "couldn't imagine doing that to Maranda."

A detective closed the case in 2014 because the "victim refuses to cooperate," according to police documents posted online by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. Richmond denied this.

"I never once did not want to continue on," she said.

Representatives from the police department did not return multiple calls from The Associated Press seeking comment Monday.

The allegation against Johnson is not the only scandal to affect Kentucky House Republicans. Former Kentucky House Speaker Jeff Hoover resigned his leadership position last month after acknowledging he paid to settle a sexual-harassment claim made by a woman in his office. Three other Republican lawmakers were part of the secretive settlement and have been stripped of their committee chairmanships. All four remain in the state legislature.

This is the second time Republican leaders have asked for Johnson's resignation. In 2016, while he was a candidate for office, he was criticized for posting racists photos on his Facebook page comparing former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama to monkeys. He rejected Republican leaders' calls for him to drop out of the race, and ended up winning it.

Bevin did not comment on Richmond's allegations against Johnson, telling reporters he has a policy of not speaking "specifically about an individual." He did say "there should be zero tolerance" for sexual harassment.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and House Republicans have escalated their feud with Patagonia after the outdoor retailer told Americans that President Donald Trump "stole your land" in his move to shrink two sprawling Utah national monuments.

The dispute pitting the GOP against a private company raised questions about use of taxpayer resources for political criticism and whether Republicans are trying to stop Patagonia sales weeks before the Christmas holiday.

On the day of Trump's announcement about the monuments, the California-based retailer replaced its usual home page last week with a black screen and stark message: "The President Stole Your Land." Patagonia filed suit to block the planned reduction to Utah's Bears Ears National Monument.

FILE - In this May 9, 2017, file photo, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke rides in the Bears Ears National Monument with local and state representatives in Blanding, Utah. Zinke is strongly disputing a claim by outdoor retailer Patagonia that President Donald Trump "stole" public land by shrinking two national monuments in Utah. (Scott G Winterton/The Deseret News via AP)

In a tweet, the House Natural Resources Committee said Patagonia is "lying" and making the allegation about Trump's plan "to sell more products to wealthy elitist urban dwellers from New York to San Francisco."

The Republican-led committee also sent out a widely distributed email with the subject line, "Patagonia: don't buy it."

A committee spokesman said Monday the email was not urging a boycott of Patagonia, but rather was telling consumers, "Don't buy the lies" about Trump's plan.

"We're just telling Patagonia: stop selling a false narrative," said Parish Braden, a spokesman for the committee.

Patagonia's lawsuit, filed in conjunction with a rock climbing advocacy group and other organizations, is among a flurry of lawsuits that have been filed over Trump's move to reduce the size of Bears Ears by nearly 85 percent and cut in half the land protected in Utah's Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

The company said it spent years supporting groups creating other national monuments and directly lobbied for protections at Bears Ears.

Zinke accused Patagonia of lying about Trump's actions and retweeted the committee post on his official account.

In response, former government ethics chief Walter Shaub launched a tweet storm, saying Zinke "misused his official position by re-tweeting this wildly inappropriate tweet."

Shaub, who resigned in July as head of the Office of Government Ethics after repeated battles with the Trump administration, called Zinke "the poster child for this lawless administration's misuse of governmental authority & resources."

Zinke's "thuggish interference with a business is outside the scope of his duties, raising a question as to whether a sovereign immunity defense might fail" if Patagonia sues him for libel or slander, Shaub said.

The committee may have violated House rules against advertising for or against a private individual, firm or corporation, Shaub said.

"The federal govt officially and publicly calling a company a liar for political reasons is a bizarre and dangerous departure from civic norms. It's also decidedly anti-free market," he tweeted.

Rep. Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat who serves on the committee, said Republicans were spending taxpayer money to attack a private company that criticized Trump.

"Allowing them to get away with it is a dangerous precedent," Gallego said.

Committee Democrats, meanwhile, appeared to welcome the GOP feud with Patagonia, tweeting that it was resulting in "greater awareness that our #publiclands are under attack."

More attacks from Zinke and other Republicans will only lead to more business for Patagonia, which equals "an increased bottom line for a company that defends #MonumentsForAll," the Democrats said.

The confrontation could be paying off for Patagonia.

Teresa Courage, a former Utah resident who now lives in New York, said on the company's Facebook page that she did all her Christmas shopping at Patagonia because of its politics.

"I love supporting a company that's going to go out on a limb and do that," she told The Associated Press. "It speaks to me about its integrity. They're not just following the money."

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Associated Press writer Michelle Price in Salt Lake City contributed to this story.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The Latest on a former Oklahoma City mayor and member of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents who is being criticized for comparing gay people to pedophiles (all times local):

5:15 p.m.

The chair of the board that governs the University of Oklahoma system says the panel disagrees with one of its members saying that gay people are like pedophiles.

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2006 file photo, Kirk Humphreys, the former mayor of Oklahoma City, speaks at a news conference in Oklahoma City. Humphreys, a member of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents, is being criticized Monday, Dec. 11, 2017, for comparing gay people to pedophiles and politicians who have resigned recently after allegations of sexual misconduct. Humphreys made the comments over the weekend on a television public affairs show. The LGBTQ advocacy group Freedom Oklahoma has called for his removal from the board if he does not apologize. (AP Photo/File)

Chairman Clay Bennett, who also is chairman of the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder, said in statement Monday that the OU board of regents values students' diverse perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Bennett said the board is reiterating its commitment to fairness and inclusion at OU system universities.

Humphreys made the comments on KFOR-TV's public affairs show over the weekend. The former Oklahoma City mayor also compared gay people to politicians who've recently resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct.

Humphreys has not responded to requests from The Associated Press for comment.

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2:25 p.m.

The University of Oklahoma's student body president is chastising a Board of Regents member who compared gay people to pedophiles.

Student government President J.D. Baker released an open letter Sunday urging the campus to voice its opinion about comments Kirk Humphreys made on a local TV public affairs show over the weekend.

Baker says the comments were "outright disrespectful, out of line and ignorant."

The president of the university's LGBTQ Alumni Society went a step further Monday, calling on Humphreys to resign. Joe Sangirardi says Humphreys serves as a regent to support students, not attack them.

Humphreys made the comments during KFOR-TV's public affairs show. The former Oklahoma City mayor also compared gay people to politicians who've recently resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct.

Humphreys has not responded to requests from The Associated Press for comment.

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12:15 p.m.

The president of the University of Oklahoma is distancing himself from comments made by a Board of Regents member who compared gay people to pedophiles.

University President David Boren said in a statement Monday that board member and former Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys wasn't speaking on behalf of the university.

Boren also says he doesn't share Humphreys' views and that the university is a diverse and inclusive family.

Humphreys made the comments during a local TV public affairs show that aired over weekend on KFOR-TV. He also compared gay people to politicians who've recently resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct.

A staffer at Humphreys' office says he was out of town Monday and unavailable to comment. Humphreys also didn't immediately reply to an email seeking comment from The Associated Press.

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10:55 a.m.

A former Oklahoma City mayor and member of the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents is being criticized for comparing gay people to pedophiles.

Kirk Humphreys made the comments over the weekend on KFOR-TV's public affairs show. He also compared gay people to politicians who've recently resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct.

LGBTQ advocacy group Freedom Oklahoma has called for his removal from the board if he doesn't apologize. Executive Director Troy Stevenson says Humphreys' comments were disheartening and dangerous for LGBTQ youth who are already harassed and bullied.

A staffer at Humphreys' office said he was out of town Monday and unavailable to comment.

Stevenson said Monday his group will protest an Oklahoma City real estate project that belongs to Humphreys' family business if he doesn't apologize.
NEW YORK (AP) - Some stinging mistakes in stories involving President Donald Trump have given him fresh ammunition in his battle against the media while raising questions about whether news organizations need to peel back the curtain on how they operate.

The president tweeted six attacks on what he calls "fake news" over the weekend, saying the "out of control" media puts out purposely false and defamatory stories. That led to a contentious exchange at Monday's White House press briefing between press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and CNN's Jim Acosta.

"Journalists make honest mistakes," Acosta said. "That doesn't make them fake news."

President Donald Trump walks across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017. Trump is returning from a trip to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

When Sanders responded that reporters should own up to their mistakes, one said, "we do."

"Sometimes, but a lot of times you don't," she said. "There's a very big difference between honest mistakes and purposely misleading the American people."

Trump has his own issues: the Washington Post's fact-checking blog counted 1,628 false or misleading claims made by the president in his first 298 days in office.

Still, it was an undeniably bad week for news organizations reporting on investigations into the Trump campaigns dealings with Russia. ABC News suspended Brian Ross for incorrectly reporting the timing of a Trump directive to Michael Flynn. Several news outlets wrongly reported that Trump and his family's bank records were the subject of the special prosecutor's subpoena. And CNN corrected a story on the timing of a tip to the Trump campaign about damaging information on Democrats.

With the hyper-speed of the modern news environment, the stories spread swiftly beyond their original source.

News organizations corrected themselves but fell short in their explanations, said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, a communications professor and the director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

"When a mistake is made, the public really needs to understand why it was made and what corrections have been put in place to make sure it doesn't happen again," she said.

In announcing Ross' four-week suspension, ABC News issued a two-paragraph statement saying the story "had not been fully vetted through our editorial standards process." Executives were not made available to explain to the public what exactly that meant.

Ironically, the only time ABC News President James Goldston's reaction to the error was heard came from a leaked tape of him talking to staff members obtained by CNN's media reporting team.

Sanders specifically cited Ross' story when asked for an example of one that was purposely misleading.

When CNN made its mistake a week later, its own executives did not talk publicly about it - even when the topic was discussed on the network's weekend show about the media, "Reliable Sources."

Network representatives, speaking without allowing a name to be attached, blamed the error on sources that provided information to reporters Manu Raju and Jeremy Herb. That still left questions: New York University journalism professor Jay Rosen wondered, for example, how it was possible that different sources made the same error about a date.

CNN earlier this year fired journalists involved in a discredited story about former Trump aide Anthony Scaramucci. CNN said - again, without allowing a name to be attached- Raju and Herb followed the network's procedures for sensitive stories. In the Scaramucci case, the reporters didn't. Again, it was up to consumers to decipher precisely what that meant.

CNN's communications staff, responding Monday to Trump's tweet that he once called anchor Don Lemon "the dumbest man on television," said "in a world where bullies torment kids on social media to devastating effect on a regular basis with insults and name calling, it is sad to see our president engaging in the very same behavior himself. Leaders should lead by example."

With politicians targeting journalists, it is more important than ever to be clear, Jamieson said. People need to know that there are consequences when reporters make mistakes, and what those consequences are, she said.

She pointed to The Washington Post, which last Friday began what it said will be an occasional series of videos about its operations. The first, titled "How to Be a Reporter," featured interviews with two journalists who worked on the newspaper's story about Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore dating young girls. The reporters explained how they were tipped to the story and went about reporting it.

"As corny as it sounds, the agenda is to find out what the reality is, what the truth is of the story," said reporter Stephanie McCrummen. "That's it."

Over the weekend, Trump demanded an apology from the Post for a photo that he said was deceptive about the number of people who attended his Florida rally, since it had been taken while people were waiting outside. Post reporter Dave Weigel apologized; Trump later said he should be fired.

On Monday, Trump said a Times story exaggerated the amount of time he watched television each day, and that he seldom watched CNN or MSNBC. The Times said its story was based on interviews with 60 people, "including many who interact with President Trump every day."

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Associated Press reporter Kenneth Thomas in Washington contributed to this report.
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) - The United States said Monday that the World Trade Organization is losing its focus on trade negotiation and "becoming a litigation-centered organization."

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer also complained that some WTO members try to gain concessions through lawsuits that he said they could never get at the negotiating table.

"We have to ask ourselves whether this is good for the institution and whether the current litigation structure makes sense," Lighthizer said at the WTO's ministerial meeting that is being held in Argentina.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, left, Mexico's Secretary of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal, center, and Switzerland's Johann Schneider-Ammann, gather for before the start of the Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Without naming names, he also said some member countries use their status as developing nations to obtain concessions and don't follow WTO rules.

"We need to clarify our understanding of development within the WTO," he said. "We cannot sustain a situation in which new rules can only apply to the few, and that others will be given a pass in the name of self-proclaimed development status."

President Donald Trump has said the policy of the U.S. "is to aggressively promote and use American-made goods."

Some member nations that favor free trade have decried what they say are Trump's protectionist measures. But many also acknowledge the 164-nation WTO needs reform.

"We believe that it's not sustainable to advance in a scheme where one is always the protectionist and the other one (is) the one who always breaks the rules," Argentine President Mauricio Macri said Sunday during the event's launch.

"The problems of the WTO will be resolved with more WTO, not less WTO."

Earlier this year, 10 WTO members, including the European Union, Canada and Japan, urged Washington to continue honoring the trade body's "Government Procurement Agreement" that binds the U.S. and 45 other countries - mostly EU members - to open government procurement markets to foreign competition and make them more transparent.

This week's meeting in Buenos Aires will also address issues including food and agriculture, e-commerce, fisheries, and development.

A network of worldwide civil society organizations says about 60 of its experts who were planning to attend had their credentials revoked by Argentina's government.

A delegate sits waiting for the start of the Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017.(AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) - Authorities say a Florida couple left a boy alone in a trailer for about two months.

The Pensacola News Journal reports that 34-year-old Jennifer Nichols and 32-year-old Joshua Sanders were arrested Nov. 30 and charged with child neglect. Officials didn't say how old the boy was or how he was related to Nichols or Sanders.

A woman told Escambia County deputies she began renting the trailer to the couple at the beginning of September. She eventually realized that the child was living there alone, though the couple would occasionally bring him food and money. The woman told investigators when she contacted the couple, Sanders told her it was not her problem as long as he paid the rent.

Nichols and Sanders remained jailed Monday. Jail records didn't list an attorney.

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Information from: Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal, http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com
A woman making a long-planned trip with her parents and young son says Spirit Airlines kicked the family off the plane when she didn't immediately stop breast-feeding the 2-year-old, who was restless after a long delay.

Mei Rui, a concert pianist and cancer researcher, says she asked for a few minutes to let her son fall asleep in her arms while the plane was still at the gate in Houston and other passengers were walking around.

A Spirit spokesman disputed the woman's account on Monday. He said Rui repeatedly failed to follow flight attendants' instructions to buckle her son into his seat after the plane's door was closed.

The spokesman, Stephen Schuler, said that Rui told crew members they would have to drag her off the plane while she recorded them.

The incident is the latest in a growing series of confrontations between airline passengers and crews, some of which have been captured on video and posted on social media. The dragging of a United Express passenger from a plane in Chicago last April seemed to be a defining event that led to new policies on United and other carriers.

But those policy changes were mostly designed to reduce oversold flights and didn't address situations like the one Friday at Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Rui, who came to the U.S. from China at age 14 and has excelled in music and works at a prominent cancer clinic in Houston, said her family boarded Spirit Flight 712 around 5:45 a.m. for the scheduled 6:30 trip from Houston to Newark.

After sitting at the gate for more than two hours during a weather delay, everyone was ordered off the plane. Passengers then re-boarded, but Rui's son was having trouble sleeping, so she started nursing him.

Two flight attendants told Rui her son had to be in his seat. She said she appealed to be given "a couple more minutes" so the boy would fall asleep, then she would buckle him in.

"I did not want to be that parent with the screaming kid," Rui said in an interview.

Passengers were ordered off the plane again, by which time, Rui said, her son was back in his seat. It was too late.

While other passengers boarded for the third time, Spirit employees and several police officers blocked her family from returning to the plane, she said.

Schuler, the airline spokesman, said Spirit was forced to remove the passenger for refusing to follow crew orders to buckle in after the main door was closed. He said police were called when Rui tried to force her way back on board.

"Multiple reports from the crew and other passengers nearby confirm the doors were closed when the incident happened," Schuler said in an email.

Rui called that "a blatant lie. We were stationary at the gate and the plane door was still open so people were walking around." She also said police were called before her family left the plane - they saw the officers at the end of the jet bridge.

Rui said she was going to New York City for a recording with patients that is part of a cancer study. She never got there.

Schuler said as a courtesy Spirit refunded Rui's entire trip and offered to book her on another airline, but she declined.

___

David Koenig can be reached at http://twitter.com/airlinewriter
BARBERTON, Ohio (AP) - Authorities say an Ohio woman shot her husband multiple times earlier this year and dismembered his body.

Forty-nine-year-old Marcia Eubank has been charged with murder in the death of 54-year-old Howard Eubank. Records don't show an attorney for her.

The Summit County sheriff's office says in a release that deputies went to the couple's home in Coventry Township in suburban Akron on Saturday when the couple's adult son called about possible remains. The deputies found deteriorating remains tentatively identified as those of Howard Eubank. The release says investigators believe Eubank was killed earlier this year in a "domestic-related incident."

Authorities say Marcia Eubank was arrested later Saturday in a store parking lot. A Barberton Municipal Court judge on Monday set bond for her at $1 million.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A government watchdog on Monday urged the Education Department to resume the process of forgiving student loans for tens of thousands Americans who were defrauded by for-profit colleges.

The Office of Inspector General, an independent body within the education agency, recommended in a report that the department restart "review, approval, and discharge process" for defrauded studs.

The group also recommended that the department establish timeframes for considering the claims and "develop controls to ensure timeframes are met." The report also noted that the department has significantly shrunk the staff of its unit the processes these claims, from 19 contracted staff, on top of attorneys, in November 2016, to just six contracted staff in September 2017.

A spokeswoman for the department did not immediately return a request for comment.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has come under criticism for stalling the review of over 95,000 claims for loan cancellations. The agency has not approved a single claim during her time in office and DeVos' critics charge that she is looking out for the interests of the for-profit industry, rather than colleges. DeVos says she needs time to put together new rules for how loans are forgiven that would be fair to students, but also prevent any potential abuse of the system.

The AP reported in October that the department is considering abandoning the Obama-era practice of full loan forgiveness in favor of partial relief.

The department has halted Obama-era revisions to the process of loan forgiveness that boosted protections for students, citing pending litigation. The agency is now in the process or rewriting those rules with input from educators and experts.

Senator Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate committee overseeing education, said the report confirms that DeVos "tried to shirk her responsibility to these students and shut down the borrower defense program, leaving them with nowhere to turn."

"Secretary DeVos needs to stop listening to the for-profit executives she hired and start following the recommendations of the Department's independent watchdog by providing much needed, and legally required, relief to students who were cheated out of their education and savings," Murray said in a statement.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut zoo is welcoming the addition of two tiger cubs.

Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport said Monday that its 10-year-old Amur tiger, Changbai, gave birth Nov. 25 to four tiger cubs, but only two survived. The surviving female cubs were taken from Changbai when she showed no interest in taking care of them.

The 2-week-old cubs are in seclusion in the zoo hospital. Staff is hand-feeding the cubs five times a day.

This Dec. 11, 2017, photo released by Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo shows one of two new tiger cubs at the zoo in Bridgeport, Conn. The zoo's 10-year-old Amur tiger, Changbai, gave birth Nov. 25 to four cubs but only two survived. The 2-week-old female cubs, removed from the mother when she showed no interest in taking care of them, are in seclusion in the zoo hospital. They are being hand fed five times a day. (Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo via AP)

The zoo says one of the four kittens had been found unresponsive after birth and a second kitten died later that night.

Director Gregg Dancho says every possible effort was being made to help the kittens survive.

The zoo says Amur tigers, also known as Siberian tigers, are very rare.

In this Dec. 11, 2017, photo released by the Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo, two new tiger cubs huddle together at the zoo in Bridgeport, Conn. The zoo's 10-year-old Amur tiger, Changbai, gave birth Nov. 25 to four cubs but only two survived. The 2-week-old female cubs, removed from the mother when she showed no interest in taking care of them, are in seclusion in the zoo hospital. They are being hand fed five times a day. (Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo via AP)
JERUSALEM (AP) - The Israeli military said it intercepted a rocket launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip late Monday, a few hours after Israel bombed Hamas military positions in retaliation for rocket fire earlier in the evening.

The military said in a statement that the Iron Dome missile defense system shot down a rocket fired at Israel from the Palestinian territory. No injuries or damage were reported in Israel.

Shortly afterward, an Israeli tank responded by bombarding a Hamas military position in the northern Gaza Strip, the military said. No injuries were reported.

Earlier, Israeli planes and tanks shelled the coastal territory after militants fired a rocket toward southern Israel, in what was the latest in a series of cross-border exchanges that have left at least four Palestinians dead since Friday.

Monday's strikes came a day after Israel said it destroyed a tunnel built by Hamas that ran several hundred meters (yards) into Israeli territory. Hamas threatened Israel with a "heavy price" for demolishing the tunnel.

Palestinians and Israeli forces have clashed across the West Bank and along the Gaza border following President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Palestinians were infuriated by the president's declaration last week, because they seek east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - A government safety panel on Monday urged the temporary shutdown of twin oil pipelines in the Straits of Mackinac until their operator can finish inspections and repair coating gaps, after some members expressed concerns over a recent deal between the state and Enbridge Inc.

The Michigan Pipeline Safety Advisory Board approved the non-binding resolution as members of Gov. Rick Snyder's administration who sit on the panel abstained from voting. Other non-binding resolutions call for temporarily halting the flow of oil during storms that produce sustained waves at least 3 feet (0.9 meter) high for longer than an hour, instead of an 8-foot (2.4-meter) threshold included in the agreement, and recommend that a "more robust" study of alternatives to Line 5 be completed.

The agreement, announced Nov. 27, sets an Aug. 15 deadline for determining the future of the nearly 5-mile-long (8-kilometer) segment beneath the channel where Lakes Huron and Michigan converge. Options include shutting down the pipeline or routing it through a tunnel beneath the lakebed where it now rests.

Because five or six members of the 16-person board voted for the measures while many others abstained, there was confusion over whether they had passed. Co-chairwoman Valerie Brader, executive director of the Michigan Agency for Energy, said she expected the Republican governor's administration to consider the resolutions as advisory while also taking note of the number of abstentions.

Board member Jennifer McKay of the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council said she hopes the governor gives the resolutions "due consideration" and seeks amendments to the deal. Although the federal government regulates oil pipelines, Michigan owns the lake bottom and in 1953 granted an easement to the Canadian company allowing the pipeline to go there.

"We know we have coating gaps. It's a violation of the easement and it only makes sense to shut down the pipeline until Enbridge can adequately address and fix the coating issues to ensure we don't have any type of rupture or leak," she said.

The line transports about 23 million gallons (87 million liters) daily between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.

At least four board members expressed frustration that Snyder struck the agreement without their input, contending it short-circuited the public process and signals that tunneling the pipeline is ultimately the state's preference. State officials on the board, however, said the deal is an interim one and is not intended to "prejudge" the fate of the pipeline.

"Certainly apologies if there was any perceived disrespect," said Michigan Department of Natural Resources Director Keith Creagh. "As we heard about the entire length of the pipeline, there were some measures put into place ... to ensure that there was a higher standard essentially in the interim as this board contemplates the future of Line 5."

Some board members, including a state Public Service Commission member and a representative for Attorney General Bill Schuette, said they had not had a chance to adequately study the resolutions at the meeting and they should have been circulated earlier.

Enbridge spokesman Ryan Duffy said the company was evaluating the measures.

"We believe the Nov. 27 agreement between Enbridge and the State of Michigan benefits everyone who wants to protect communities and the environment around the Great Lakes," he said.

While not ruling out a permanent shutdown, the agreement includes a series of steps intended to boost the underwater pipes' safety. Enbridge agreed to evaluate three options by June for routing the underwater segment through a tunnel or trench, on or beneath the lakebed - either using the existing pipes or building a new one.

The company promised steps to prevent the lines from being damaged by a ship anchor, expedite monitoring of the pipelines with cameras or other devices, and speed up methods for detecting potential ruptures and responding to spills.

Additionally, Enbridge said it would replace another section of Line 5 beneath the St. Clair River where it crosses the U.S.-Canadian border with a new pipe inside a tunnel after receiving federal and state permits.

The company has repeatedly insisted the underwater segment installed is in good condition and has never leaked. However, state officials and environmental groups have expressed alarm over recent disclosures of gaps in its exterior layer of protective enamel coating and unsupported spaces beneath the pipes.

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Follow David Eggert on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00 . His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/David%20Eggert .
Leading Cabinet Brexiteer Michael Gove has said voters will be able to force changes to an EU withdrawal deal at the next election if they do not like it.

The Environment Secretarys comments came as Prime Minister Theresa May won public backing from both wings of the Tory party after securing an agreement with Brussels to start post-Brexit trade negotiations.

Under the deal, Britain will pay a divorce settlement of between 35 billion to 39 billion, allow the European Court of Justice (ECJ) a legal role for eight years after withdrawal, and ensure there is no hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.

I've consistently said that we want to build a deep and special partnership with the EU as we implement the decision of the British people to leave in March 2019. Todays deal will provide clarity and certainty for UK business and for all our citizens. pic.twitter.com/9eiMzVCAZS  Theresa May (@theresa_may) December 8, 2017

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Gove said: The British people will be in control. If the British people dislike the agreement that we have negotiated with the EU, the agreement will allow a future government to diverge.

The Environment Secretary said that after a transition period, the UK would have full freedom to diverge from EU law on the single market and customs union.

The comments came as it emerged the Cabinet is set to finally discuss what the UKs post-Brexit end state relationship with the EU should be at a meeting on December 19.

Ive made six key commitments to Northern Ireland as part of my negotiations with the EU: https://t.co/BgWa0cEdqu pic.twitter.com/lVaMO2keC8  Theresa May (@theresa_may) December 8, 2017

The gathering is expected to see prominent Leave campaigners such as Mr Gove and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson argue their Brexit version of withdrawal against the softer stance taken by Chancellor Philip Hammond and Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage predicted that Tory anger at Mrs Mays agreement with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker would emerge over the weekend.

He told the BBC: I think that within the next 48 hours you will hear a lot more Conservative voices saying, actually, they are not happy with whats happened today.

(PA Graphics)

Proposals allowing the ECJ a role in overseeing EU citizens rights in Britain for eight years after Brexit have caused concern to some Tories, as well as a compromise on the Irish border issue which stated that if no trade deal is reached, the UK as a whole will maintain full alignment with elements of the EU single market and customs union which support the economy of the island of Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement.

Tory former Brexit minister David Jones warned this could severely handicap Britains ability to enter free trade agreements covering areas such as agriculture with countries outside the EU, such as the US.

But, Justice Minister Dominic Raab said the details of how to deal with the issue of the Irish border had still to be worked out in full.

He told BBC 2s Newsnight: You can call it strategic ambiguity, you can call it constructive ambiguity what I am admitting to you, very openly, and honestly, is that we have agreed principles, but that the details still need to be ironed out on this very bespoke set of issues around Northern Ireland which cant be dealt with properly and responsibly outside of the context of the broader negotiation on customs and trade and all of those other things we have said all along.
Nick Clegg has revealed how the decision to take his teenage son to the doctor for a tiny bump led to the shock diagnosis of blood cancer.

The former deputy prime minister said it was after a family holiday in northern Spain in September 2016 that his son Antonio began complaining about a lump on the top of his chest.

In an interview with the Sunday Times Magazine, Mr Clegg described the 15-year-old, who he shares with his wife Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, as an incredibly active, physically strong boy.

With his wife Miriam Gonzalez Durantez (Steve Parsons/PA)

To this day, I dont know what possessed me to take him to the GP, he said. It was those early days in September, you know, when you have to get kids ready for school.

Miriam had to work very heavily that week, so I was at home most of the time, helping to do the preparatory things, buying clothes for the new term  and Antonio said he had this thing.

We had an afternoon, so I thought, Why dont I just take him, and hell stop going on about it.

Mr Clegg said it was unusual for his son to complain, and that his decision to seek help was out of character  as normally he is quite brutal owing to the mentality of his Dutch mother who thought going to the doctors should be avoided.

The former Liberal Democrat leader said the GP was brilliant as lymphoma is quite a difficult thing to diagnose.

You could barely see it with the naked eye. But he took pretty much one look at him and said, Thats not right, he told the publication.

Describing the cancer as like a huge bunch of black grapes when viewing the x-ray, he said from then on it felt as though they they were sailing through a storm.

Mr Clegg said: Antonio was extraordinarily brave and resilient. Im not sure he fully appreciated the enormity of it at the time.

He said his son is now back at school, and in September told how Antonio received treatment at University College Hospital in London  undergoing chemotherapy and taking heavy steroids.
The husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British women imprisoned in Tehran, said he is still optimistic his wife will be home for Christmas.

Richard Ratcliffe said Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has made every effort during his two-day visit to Iran, with positive consequences from that.

Mr Johnson has been seeking the release of Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe as he held top-level talks in Tehran with Iranian president Hassan Rouhani and foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, right, meets Boris Johnson (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)

With the postponement of a new court case against his wife, which came as a result of Mr Johnsons trip, Mr Ratcliffe said the weekend has been positive, but there is a risk of him over reading it all.

We were fearing a bad day and we havent had that, which makes it a good day. I guess we will see what the next few days mean, he told the Press Association.

But it feels like it a really good sign, almost like we have a momentum  we have had a couple of things that have been positive over the weekend.

Alongside his wife not appearing in court, she has also seen a psychiatrist and the propaganda pedalled against her through Iranian media has subsided, Mr Ratcliffe said.

He added: It is all movement, it doesnt change the fundamentals but it makes the change in the fundamentals more likely.

(Family handout/PA)

Having always been keen to have his wife home for Christmas and for her birthday which follows soon after, he said he is optimistic that this is still achievable.

But as Christmas gets closer it gets harder to expect, he added. I wasnt presuming that she would come back on the plane with him.

So I think for me, it was always best case scenario that his going would unlock the door and then days later she might be able to come home.

That is still possible, she has still got that application for early release, she has still got a medical assessment  all those things that were hanging there on the good side are still there.

The bad stuff that was hanging there seems a bit more remote, the good stuff feels like it is more and more likely to go ahead.

Of course the bad stuff is still possible, and the good stuff is still not guaranteed, but the balance has shifted.

(Vahid Salemi/AP)

Asked what he would say to those who may suggest Mr Johnson has failed in not bringing Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe on the plane with him, Mr Ratcliffe said it was always going to be tricky.

But it looks to me like he is making every effort that he can  and it looks like there have been positive consequences from that, he added.

Mr Ratcliffe said that until December 24 comes he is certainly hopeful of his wife coming home, and added: This weekend has given me more cause for hope, not less.

Lets us hope the days to come are equally as good, and if they are, then yes she will be home for Christmas  but of course they might not be.

So I do need to reserve some energy in case I need to go again.
The Government is failing Grenfell Tower survivors by leaving many homeless and without faith in the public inquiry six months on, Labour has warned.

Jeremy Corbyn demanded action from the Prime Minister after it emerged more than 100 households that escaped the blaze were facing Christmas in hotels.

Only 42 families from the tower have moved in to permanent new homes since the fire on June 14, a pace described by the Labour leader as a disgrace.

(Jonathan Brady/PA)

This week will see survivors and bereaved families mark the six month anniversary of the tragedy, while the public inquiry into its causes will hold two hearings.

Mr Corbyn said in a statement: Six months on from the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Government is failing to learn its lessons and, more importantly, failing the survivors.

It is a disgrace that the majority of Grenfell residents have still not been given homes and that tower blocks across our country have still not been made safe.

We need answers from the Government and we need action.

The judge-led probe into the disaster was thrust back into the spotlight over the weekend as Labour backed an overhaul of its format and Britains official human rights watchdog expressed misgivings.

Shadow housing secretary John Healey wrote to the Prime Minister asking if she would respond to a petition launched by bereaved families and survivors in recent weeks.

John Healey (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

It called on her to install an expert panel from a diverse range of backgrounds to sit alongside inquiry head Sir Martin Moore-Bick, who has been criticised for being out of touch.

Mr Healey said: It is clear that doing so will strengthen survivors confidence in the inquiry and increase their willingness to participate, both considerations that are absolutely vital to the inquirys success.

He also asked for clarity on how the legal costs of the survivors and victims families would be covered.

On Monday the Equality and Human Rights Commision (EHRC) announced its own investigation into the blaze, examining whether authorities failed in their legal obligations to residents.

This includes whether Kensington and Chelsea Council fell short in its duty to provide safe housing to tenants and protect their lives prior to the disaster.

Its decision to carry out an independent review will be interpreted by some as a vote of no confidence in certain aspects of Sir Martins work.

A Government spokesman said: We expect the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to do whatever is necessary to ensure households can move into settled homes as swiftly as possible, taking into account individual needs.

The council is moving at the pace of the families and individuals involved, and all families that lost their homes in the fire have been offered temporary or permanent accommodation.

Hundreds of homes have been acquired to give people as much choice as a possible - nobody will be forced to move until they are ready
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are to make a four-day official visit to Norway and Sweden in January and February.

William and Kate will travel to the Nordic countries at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Kensington Palace has said.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will visit Sweden and Norway from Tuesday 30th January to Friday 2nd February #RoyalVisitSweden #RoyalVisitNorway pic.twitter.com/q3dOyeiwZc  The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) December 11, 2017

The royal couple will visit the Swedish capital, Stockholm, from January 30-31 then travel to Norways capital, Oslo, from February 1-2.

The royal couple will visit two capitals early next year (Chris Jackson/PA)

The duchess, who is expecting her third child, will be well into her pregnancy when she makes the trip.
Head coach Antonio Conte insists Chelsea must be positive about the Champions League draw which sees his side face five-times European champions Barcelona.

Having finished second in their group behind Roma, the Premier League champions were hoping for a potential last-16 tie against Besiktas but instead came out against Lionel Messis band of superstars.

Its a draw. Our reaction must be positive, Conte said at his press conference on Monday ahead of Tuesdays Premier League clash at Huddersfield.

Antonio Conte

When you are in this stage you must be ready to face every team. In this case we must be ready to face Barcelona. When you play against Barcelona you must put 120 per cent at home and away if you want to hope to go to the next round.

The first leg takes place at Stamford Bridge on February 20 - and is scheduled to be followed by Premier League matches at Manchester United (February 24) and Manchester City (March 3) - with the second leg at the Nou Camp on March 14.

And Contes immediate focus is on the Premier League after last Saturdays loss at West Ham saw the Blues slip 14 points behind City as the Italian dismissed past battles with Barca.

We've had some great times at Stamford Bridge, haven't we, @andresiniesta8? pic.twitter.com/R9BZq99HN0  FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) December 11, 2017

But he will hope to invoke the memory of their remarkable win over the Catalan giants in 2012, when goals from Ramires and Fernando Torres saw them reach the Champions League final on away goals despite the earlier dismissal of John Terry.

The past is the past. Now its the present, another story. Its totally different, he said.

Tottenham were also handed a questionable reward for finishing ahead of Real Madrid in their qualifying group as they were paired with last years runners-up Juventus.

But Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool will be relatively content after being paired with Basel, Sevilla and Porto respectively.

The round of 16 #UCLdraw has been made 



Backing your team to progress? pic.twitter.com/v7I6dSq7Tc  UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) December 11, 2017

The remaining three ties pit Real Madrid against Paris St Germain, Shakhtar Donetsk with Roma, and Bayern Munich against Besiktas.

Spurs can expect to face a sterner test than that posed by Juventus in their last meeting in a pre-season friendly at Wembley in August, which the north Londoners won 2-0.

City will be delighted to land Swiss outsiders Basel. But they will have good cause to be wary against their experienced opposition, who beat both United and Benfica on their way to qualifying as runners-up from Group A.
David Davis has said he does not have to be very clever to do his job as Brexit Secretary.

Mr Davis insisted I do just have to be calm, revealing that last Mondays botched attempt at getting an agreement with the European Union to move to Brexit trade negotiations had tested that ability.

Theresa Mays hopes of getting the green light for trade talks were torpedoed at the start of last week by the Democratic Unionist Party, which props up her Government, over concerns that plans for the Irish border could lead to a new frontier being drawn in the Irish Sea.

Brexit Secretary David Davis said calmness is more important than cleverness in his job (Mark Marlow/PA)

David Davis: I don't have to be very clever to do my job pic.twitter.com/3WujEb9j9K  LBC (@LBC) December 11, 2017

The Prime Minister was forced into a week of negotiations with the Northern Irish DUP, Ireland and the EU before finally getting a dramatic last-minute deal on Friday, paving the way for trade talks.

Mr Davis said the phone call Mrs May had with DUP leader Arlene Foster last Monday, which appeared to undo the planned deal, was a lot shorter than people say, and revealed his patience was tested by events.

The Brexit Secretary told LBC radio: Whats the requirement of my job? I dont have to be very clever, I dont have to know that much, I do just have to be calm.

And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.

We will not accept any form of regulatory divergence which separates Northern Ireland economically or politically from the rest of the United Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/uCBVdfVQTJ  Arlene Foster DBE PC #ProudofNI. (@ArleneFosterUK) December 4, 2017

Mr Davis also said he does not believe economic forecasts as he discussed the furore over the Governments failure to formally assess the likely impact of EU withdrawal on different sectors of the UK economy.

He was accused of misleading Parliament last week after admitting no impact assessments had been made because their usefulness would be near zero due to the scale of change Brexit is likely to cause.

The Brexit Secretary said: In the last 18 months Ive talked about impact here and there, but an impact statement, this is a thing that the Labour Party have been going on about, an impact statement has got a proper meaning in Whitehall, theres a definition of it and so on, including things like forecasts.

UK govt did not make a formal quantitative assessment of economic impact of leaving customs union before it made that decision, says Brexit minister David Davis. This statement is unlikely to instil confidence in EU that UK knows what wants out of Brexit.  CER (@CER_EU) December 6, 2017

Now I dont actually believe economic forecasts, they have all been proven wrong, I mean look at all the ones about Brexit.

So what we do is we look at what we call a sectoral analysis which is the size of the thing, the size of the industry, employment levels, how much is dependent on Europe, how much is dependent on European regulations, how much opportunity there is in other countries.

When you know those things, you know what you need to know.

Discussing reports that he may retire in 2019, when the UK will exit the EU, Mr Davis dismissed suggestions he may have to stay in post during a post-Brexit transition period if a trade agreement has not been reached.

He said: We want the substantive negotiation concluded before the transition period starts, I mean there might be details to be sorted but the main deal has got to be struck.

Asked if those details would fall to him, Mr Davis replied: Anybody can do details, well let you do the details.
Motorists have been warned to take care after the UK was covered with a blanket of snow, which is turning into dangerous ice.

But some people were determined to enjoy themselves and the weather also made for some impressive vistas.

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Firms in the Square Mile are planning to shift 10,500 jobs out of Britain by the first day of Brexit as the economic reality of the vote begins to bite.

EYs Brexit Tracker, which monitors 222 financial services firms, also shows that banks, asset managers and brokers are now expecting client facing and front office roles to leave Britain because of Brexit.

The net result will be the loss of 10,500 highly skilled jobs to the City.

The Square Mile faces an exodus of banking jobs in the wake of Brexit (PA)

Although the figure is lower than the 12,500 estimated last year, the number of financial services firms publicly estimating job relocations has risen from 12 to 26.

Omar Ali, EYs UK financial services leader, said: Contingency plans have developed significantly over the last year, putting firms in a stronger position to estimate how many UK jobs they need to move.

Firms are working hard to find viable solutions that will allow them to continue to serve their customers and satisfy regulators with the minimum disruption. As a result, many of the jobs that are moving are client facing, front office roles to ensure that companies can continue to serve their clients under EU law from Day One.

EYs Brexit Tracker shows that, since the referendum, 68 of the 222 companies monitored have said they are considering or have confirmed they are moving some of their operations or staff out of the UK.

Cities such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Dublin will be the beneficiaries of a smaller City of London.

Mr Ali added that the Governments announcement on Friday that it has agreed an outline for a potential transition sent a wave of relief across the City.

Banks and financial firms are preparing to shift portions of their UK operations to the EU in hopes of safeguarding against the loss of passporting rights, which currently give UK-based financial services cross-border access to the bloc.

Britain will lose passporting rights when it leaves the single market in March 2019.

The fresh data will be sombre reading for the Treasury after figures showed that the UKs financial services sector paid its highest tax bill on record last year, raising fears that a Brexit banking exodus could ultimately harm Government coffers.

The industry shelled out a total of 72.1 billion in tax contributions in the year to March 31, marking a 1% increase from a year earlier and resulting in the highest amount that the sector is recorded to have paid in the 10 years that data has been collected.

Sir Mark Boleat, former Chairman of the City of London Corporation, said: This research confirms what everyone in British business knows  that not only is Brexit damaging our economy now, but it will get far worse once we leave.

Some financial services can only be provided in Europe by institutions based in countries in the Single Market. Thats just the rules. The Governments decision to take Britain out of the single market will force firms to move jobs away from the UK to Continental Europe.
Donald Trump has said he wants to send man back to the moon - and on to Mars.

The US president signed a policy directive on Monday instructing Nasa to refocus Americas space programme on human exploration and discovery.

He said the move marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972 for long-time exploration.

President Donald Trump holds up a figurine handed to him by former Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmitt, right (Evan Vucci/AP)

This time we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars, and perhaps some day, to many worlds beyond.

Past presidents, including George HW Bush and George W Bush, also proposed returning to the moon and missions to Mars, but budget constraints derailed their plans.

Mr Trump was joined at the White House by several current and former astronauts, including Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, and former US senator and Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Jack Schmitt, the next-to-last person on the moon.

Former Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmitt hands a figurine to President Donald Trump (Evan Vucci/AP)

Today we pledge that he will not be the last, and I suspect well be finding other places to land in addition to the moon, Mr Trump said.

No human has been on the moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972.

Only 12 men have set foot on the moon, all of them Americans.

Under the directive, the government is also expected to work closely with other nations and private industry.
By Joseph Ax

LOWER MERION, Pa., Dec 10 (Reuters) - In Pennsylvania state Senator Daylin Leach's bid to win a seat vital to the Democratic Party's chances in 2018 elections of taking control of the U.S. Congress, his opponents may not be his biggest obstacle.

Leach is running in one of the country's most gerrymandered congressional districts, one with such a twisting, winding shape that it has earned the derisive nickname "Goofy Kicking Donald Duck."

The 7th congressional district has become a national poster child for critics of gerrymandering, the process by which one party draws district boundaries to ensure an advantage among voters. Democrats say the lines have helped Republicans like U.S. Representative Patrick Meehan, the four-term incumbent Leach seeks to unseat, to stay in office.

That could soon change, however. On Monday in state court in Harrisburg, one of three lawsuits challenging those boundaries heads to trial. The outcome could shift several battleground districts in Pennsylvania and in turn boost the Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives, where they last held the majority from January 2007 to January 2011.

The 7th district is so precisely engineered that at one point it narrows to the width of a single seafood restaurant, snaking past two other congressional districts so it can link two far flung Republican-leaning areas.

"Three congressional districts all converge on this spot," Leach said from the parking lot at Creed's Seafood and Steaks last week, as cars whizzed overhead on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

"This is the sixth; over there is the seventh; and down that road is the 13th," he said, pointing in several directions. "This is what gerrymandering looks like on the ground."

Leach has at least four opponents to defeat in the Democratic primary before he would run against Meehan. A spokesman for the Republican did not respond to requests for comment on the trial over gerrymandering.

Critics of gerrymandering say it helps explain why Pennsylvania has sent 13 Republicans and only five Democrats to the U.S. House since the 2011 redistricting, despite being a closely divided swing state.

Republican legislators counter that the lines were drawn in accordance with the law and that their candidates have prevailed in elections thanks to superior policy ideas.

The Democrats have targeted six Republican-held districts in the state as part of their quest to pick up the 24 House seats they need to overturn the Republicans, who also have a Senate majority and President Donald Trump in the White House.

Democrats need to win the nationwide popular vote by at least 10 points in 2018 to do so, in part because of gerrymandered lines, according to Michael Li, a redistricting expert and lawyer at New York University's Brennan Center for Justice.

"Pennsylvania is probably the most aggressive of the gerrymanders," he said. "You look at some of the maps in the Philadelphia suburbs, and it looks like a 4-year-old just slapped paint around."

DISTRICT LINES ON TRIAL

The non-partisan League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania sued the state in June, arguing the maps violate the state constitution by depriving residents of a meaningful vote.

The litigation is part of a growing set of legal challenges to partisan redistricting, including a U.S. Supreme Court case out of Wisconsin that could for the first time establish a constitutional standard to measure the legality of such map-making. The high court is scheduled to decide that case by June 2018, five months before the midterm elections.

"The politicians are not supposed to pick their voters; the voters are supposed to elect their leaders," said Mimi McKenzie, an attorney with the Public Interest Law Center who represents the League of Women Voters and other Pennsylvania voters.

Spokesmen for the state's Republican legislative leaders, defendants in the case, said the redistricting followed the process laid out in the state constitution and that the U.S. Supreme Court has said political considerations can play a role.

"They just can't understand how Republicans can actually beat their candidates," Stephen Miskin, a spokesman for Pennsylvania House Speaker Mike Turzai, said of the legal challengers.

In addition to the state case, two pending federal lawsuits also challenge the district lines as unconstitutional. Legal observers consider the state lawsuit the most likely to succeed in time for the voting next November.

The Democratic-majority state Supreme Court has ordered the presiding judge to render his decision by Dec. 31. The high court will then determine whether to accept his ruling or issue its own conclusions.

The state lawsuit asserts the redistricting included numerous examples of blatantly partisan lines.

Democrat-dominated Reading, one of the most economically depressed cities in the state, was carved out of the 6th district and placed into the reliably Democratic 13th, a move the plaintiffs said was intended to render the city's votes meaningless.

Montgomery County, where state senator Leach lives, has approximately 820,000 residents, slightly more than the 711,000 needed for a single congressional district, but has been sliced into five separate districts.

Leach said he would make gerrymandering a campaign issue.

"It's theft of democracy," Leach said. "This is horribly destructive." (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Grant McCool)
By Nicole Mordant

VANCOUVER, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Canadian developers of cobalt and lithium mines stand to benefit from a round of investments from the makers of electric vehicles and the batteries powering them, a potential game-changer for small miners short on money to develop deposits of these critical battery ingredients.

Toronto-listed cobalt companies, Ecobalt Solutions and Fortune Minerals, are in talks, ranging from preliminary to more advanced, with more than a dozen groups, including car and battery makers, on financing their projects, their chief executives told Reuters.

The interest in miners from downstream players along the battery supply chain - a new area of investment for most - would provide a life-line to miners at time when equity funding for developers remains relatively tight after a five-year downturn on weak metals prices.

"We anticipate additional transactions in the coming months and years. It is a function of demand-supply imbalance," said John Kanellitsas, President and Vice Chairman of Lithium Americas Corp, which raised nearly $300 million this year for a project in Argentina.

A string of potential financing deals in Canada comes after a handful of predominantly lithium miners in Australia - the world's biggest lithium producer - secured investment from mainly Chinese automakers and battery makers this year looking to lock in future raw material supply.

For a FACTBOX on recent deals, click:

Lithium mine developers have been able to secure funding earlier than their cobalt peers as fears of a supply shortage started in late 2015, when cobalt was still in surplus.

Like lithium, cobalt's price has doubled - but most of that upswing has come this year on concerns of multi-year shortfalls in the next decade as demand from the electric vehicle sector surges.

Cobalt's fortunes are more closely tied to batteries than lithium's: about 55 percent of all cobalt goes into battery chemicals compared to about 40 percent for lithium, according to a Dec. 4 BMO Capital Markets report.

For a graphic click http://tmsnrt.rs/2AE9JGq

Although there are no guarantees that deals will be struck, the cobalt miners, who have been advancing their projects for more than a decade, are in their strongest position yet to secure funding, said Cormark Securities analyst MacMurray Whale.

That is because of deficit forecasts due to constrained supply and expected soaring demand from the electric vehicle market. "All those elements together suggest to me that it can't be better," Whale said.

MINING HUB IN CANADA

With more than 1,200 publicly listed mining companies, Canada has long been the global hub for mine developers with projects around the world.

Vancouver-based Ecobalt's "path forward" is to first sign a long-term supply agreement, called an offtake, with one or more customers to provide a portion of the funds it needs to develop its Idaho cobalt project, CEO Paul Farquharson said in an email.

Once in place, this would significantly lower the risk for the project, making it more attractive for banks to provide debt financing and other investors to fund the balance.

Ecobalt outlined plans on Dec. 7 to produce for offtake a cobalt concentrate, a less-processed cobalt product than initially planned - a step that could slash as much as $100 million, according to analysts, off its previous project capital cost estimate of $187 million.

Ecobalt, whose Idaho project is the only fully-permitted, primary cobalt deposit in the United States, is the most likely of the Canadian cobalt developers to secure financing, possibly within six months, said Eight Capital analyst David Talbot.

Canada's Nemaska Lithium and Mason Graphite , which both have projects in Quebec, could also secure funding in coming months, Talbot said.

Graphite is another battery ingredient but unlike cobalt and lithium, batteries are not graphite's main end-use.

Ecobalt's Idaho project has unique advantages over other projects including that around 75 percent of its revenue will come from cobalt and that it is located in a safe political jurisdiction, Talbot said.

Almost all cobalt is produced as a by-product from copper and nickel mines, meaning output increases are dependant on other markets.

More than half of the world's cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a country racked by political instability and legal opacity, and where child labor is used in mines - a worry for automakers looking to secure ethically-sourced battery raw materials.

Fortune, which is seeking more than $700 million to develop its Nico cobalt mine and processing plant in Canada, expects to secure finance in 2018 once it releases a feasibility study on an expanded project, CEO Robin Goad said.

"Our biggest advantage is to be able to market our project as a Canadian source of supply," Goad said.

(Additional reporting by Tom Daly in Beijing; Editing by Denny Thomas and Edward Tobin)
BERLIN, Dec 11 (Reuters) - The German government condemned on Monday the burning of Israeli flags and use of anti-Semitic slogans reported at protest rallies in Berlin and other cities after U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert repeated Berlin's criticism of Trump's decision but said that did not justify anti-Semitic acts, adding that Germany had a historic responsibility to stand by Israel and all Jews everywhere.

Anti-Semitism remains a very sensitive issue in Germany more than 70 years after the end of the Nazi-era Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed. Germany regards itself as one of Israel's closest allies.

"One must be ashamed when such open hatred of Jews is on display on the streets of German cities," Seibert told a regular government news conference.

"Our laws on freedom of expresssion and assembly guarantee everyone a right to peaceful protest, but this right is no free pass for anti-Semitic atrocities, for incitement and violence," he said, calling for continual efforts to combat such incidents.

Trump's decision last week to recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital reversed decades of U.S. policy and caused consternation across the Arab world and among Western allies. It has ignited "Day of Rage" street protests in the Palestinian territories and beyond.

On Sunday, about 2,500 people demonstrated in Berlin against Trump's decision and one Israeli flag was burned, police said. They have launched investigations into 11 people, one of them related to the flag burning.

On Friday hundreds of people had gathered outside the U.S. embassy in Berlin for "Day of Rage" protests. Police said they had detained 10 people during that protest and brought criminal charges against 12 people, including for burning Israeli flags.

Additional "isolated" incidents have been reported in Munich and other German cities, Seibert said on Monday.

A Justice Ministry spokesman said authorities would prosecute those responsible for the flag-burning incidents.

Seibert also criticised comments made by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who referred to Israel over the weekend as a "terror state".

"Basically, we see it as completely wrong, unacceptable and inappropriate to describe Israel in such a manner," he said.

Other top German officials, including the foreign, justice and interior ministers, have condemned anti-Semitic acts and the burning of Israeli flags in interviews and on Twitter.

A German foreign ministry spokesman said on Monday the country's ambassador to Kuwait had met Kuwaiti officials on Nov. 28 to discuss a separate issue that has raised concerns among Jewish groups about anti-Semitism.

A German court ruled last month that Kuwait Airways had the right to refuse to carry an Israeli passenger due to his nationality, saying Germany's anti-discrimination law applies only in cases of discrimination on the basis of race, ethnic background or religion, not citizenship. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Gareth Jones)
SOFIA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Bulgaria has asked Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG to overhaul and maintain its 15 aged MiG-29 fighter jets in a four-year deal worth up to 81.3 million levs ($49 million), the country's defence ministry said on Monday.

NATO and EU member Bulgaria needs to keep its Soviet-era aircraft operational after plans to buy eight new fighter jets hit another snag.

The defence ministry will have to virtually restart the process and is yet to send requests for proposals to aircraft makers.

Main contenders remain Swedish manufacturer Saab's Gripen jets, Portugal and the United States with secondhand F-16s and Italy with secondhand Eurofighter Typhoons. Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov has said Bulgaria may also send a request to Boeing for F-18 aircraft. ($1 = 1.6586 leva) (Reporting by Angel Krasimirov and Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
BEIRUT, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Iran's foreign minister on Monday defended its ballistic missile programme and urged European countries not to be influenced by U.S. President Donald Trump's confrontational policy towards Tehran.

In an op-ed article in the New York Times, Mohammad Javad Zarif also urged European powers to help preserve the landmark 2015 deal under which Iran curbed its disputed nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of a number of international sanctions.

In October Trump struck a blow against the deal, approved by his predecessor Barack Obama, by refusing to certify that Iran is complying with the terms of the deal despite findings to the contrary by U.N. nuclear inspectors. Trump has also called Iran an "economically depleted rogue state" that exports violence.

"Europe should not pander to Washingtons determination to shift focus to yet another unnecessary crisis - whether it be Irans defensive missile programme or our influence in the Middle East," Zarif wrote.

His remarks seemed to be at least partly aimed at France which has been critical of the Islamic Republic's missile tests and regional policy, including involvement in Syria's war, in recent weeks.

Last month French President Emmanuel Macron said he was "very concerned" by the missile programme and called for talks about it, an appeal rejected by Iranian officials.

Irans missiles are for defensive purposes only, Zarif wrote in the op-ed.

"We have honed missiles as an effective means of deterrence. And our conscious decision to focus on precision rather than range has afforded us the capability to strike back with pinpoint accuracy," he wrote. "Nuclear weapons do not need to be precise. Conventional warheads, however, do."

While criticising the missile programme, European powers that were party to the nuclear deal - France, Britain and Germany - have reaffirmed their commitment to the nuclear deal and voiced concern at Trump calling it into question.

Zarif also criticised rival Saudi Arabias regional policy and military campaign in Yemen but also called for dialogue.

"As Iran and its partners labour to put out fires, the arsonists in our region grow more unhinged. Theyre oblivious to the necessity of inclusive engagement," Zarif wrote. (Reporting by Babak Dehghanpisheh; editing by Mark Heinrich)
By Andrea Shalal

BERLIN, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital did not justify the use of anti-Semitic slogans at rallies in Germany.

German police reported the burning of Israeli flags and use of anti-Semitic slogans at demonstrations against Trump's move in Berlin and other cities.

Merkel said that her government, which has criticised Trump's declaration, would fight xenophobia with full force.

"We condemn all kinds of anti-Semitism and xenophobia, and no disagreements, not even over the status of Jerusalem, justify such actions," Merkel told journalists after a meeting of the leadership of her Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Anti-Semitism remains a sensitive issue in Germany, one of Israel's closest allies, more than 70 years after the end of the Nazi-era Holocaust, in which 6 million Jews were killed.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Germany had a historic responsibility to stand by Israel and Jews everywhere.

"It's shameful when such open hatred of Jews is on display on the streets of German cities," he told a regular government news conference.

"Our laws on freedom of expression and assembly guarantee everyone a right to peaceful protest, but this right is no free pass for anti-Semitic atrocities, for incitement and violence."

STREET PROTESTS

Trump's decision caused consternation across the Arab world and among Western allies, and ignited street protests in the Palestinian territories and beyond.

On Sunday, about 2,500 people demonstrated in Berlin and one Israeli flag was burned, police said. They said they were investigating 11 people.

On Friday, hundreds of people gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. Police said they had brought criminal charges against 12 people, including for burning Israeli flags.

Seibert said other "isolated" incidents had been reported in Munich and other German cities.

He also said it was wrong and unacceptable for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to have referred to Israel over the weekend as a "terror state".

Germany's foreign, justice and interior ministers have also condemned anti-Semitic acts and the burning of Israeli flags in interviews and on Twitter.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said Germany's ambassador to Kuwait had met Kuwaiti officials on Nov. 28 to discuss another issue that has raised concerns among Jewish groups.

A German court ruled last month that Kuwait Airways had the right to refuse to carry an Israeli passenger due to his nationality, saying German law forbade discrimination only on the basis of race, ethnic background or religion, not citizenship. (Editing by Kevin Liffey)
By Axel Bugge

LISBON, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Portugal's corporate sector is ripe for investment, said billionaire U.S. investor Paul Kazarian who became one of Greece's biggest bond holders and has now opened his first office in Europe in Lisbon.

The Socialist governments in both Greece and Portugal have adopted impressive policies to put their countries on the path to recovery after the euro zone debt crisis, said Kazarian, who owns Japonica Partners.

Both Portugal and Greece were bailed out during the crisis, but Portugal has returned to strong growth and exited its lifeline in 2014, while Greece still receives financial help under a programme which is expected to expire in 2018.

"Both (Greece and Portugal) have done very well over the last two years, in terms of improving their financial house keeping," Kazarian told Reuters in an interview. "Let's see what happens, it looks good and they're both Socialist governments."

In Portugal a centre-left Socialist government came to power in 2015, following a centre-right administration, and has led the country to its strongest growth in at least a decade. Greek leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has also led his country since 2015.

"I wouldn't have thought a Socialist government with no business background and management expertise would outperform the prior governments (in Portugal and Greece). I think like 'wow.' If I was the prior governments, I'd be embarrassed."

Kazarian's Japonica became one of the largest holders of Greek debt in 2013, at a time when most investors shunned Athens. Japonica made a tender offer to buy up to 2.9 billion euros in face value of Greek bonds.

He would give no further details of that investment, only to say "we're long-term holders" of Greek debt and that some of the bonds have now matured. Kazarian says he saw an "anomaly" in the pricing of Greek bonds at the time that he may not find again.

But he has now opened an office in Lisbon and is looking at investment opportunities, including real estate and technology companies.

Portugal is seeing a boom in property and its technology sector is growing, not least thanks to Web Summit - one of Europe's largest tech conferences - having moved to Lisbon.

Kazarian said he prefers larger investments and thinks there are possibilities in Portugal, where companies tend to focus on the Portuguese-speaking world, rather than globally.

He said the typical Portuguese company tends to focus for expansion on Portugal's former colonies, including Angola and Mozambique, "and then that's it."

"If you can find a very attractive franchise, or business, and you can truly then make it global, globally competitive, that's where we can add value."

Some Portuguese companies are "extraordinarily self-content" he said, saying big firms can also develop in small countries.

He added that Japonica's Lisbon office would not only look at Portugal but also at Europe. (Reporting By Axel Bugge; Editing by Matthews Mpoke Bigg)
By Barbara Lewis

LONDON, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Junior explorer Sula Iron and Gold plans to change its name to African Battery Metals, reflecting a shift in focus after it bought a controlling stake in a cobalt licence in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The deal, which needs to be approved by shareholders later this month, would make Sula Iron and Gold the first AIM-listed company to run the risk of developing cobalt in DRC, its CEO said.

DRC is plagued by conflict, political tumult and issues of child labour, but is also home to around two-thirds of the world's cobalt supplies.

CEO Roger Murphy said in a telephone interview his company had a competitive advantage through its links with Madini Minerals, a private company with experience of working in DRC. Its partners include Murphy and another Sula board member.

So far, DRC production has been dominated by Glencore and China Molybdenum.

Canada's First Cobalt Corp said in September it had decided to focus its efforts on Canadian cobalt, abandoning seven cobalt exploration properties in DRC it had considered.

Analysts say more companies might have to consider DRC as demand for phone and electric vehicle batteries drives demand. Cobalt prices have more than doubled this year.

Broker SP Angel said in a note the licence acquisition "provides the London market with a new exploration exposure to the growing interest in cobalt as a battery metal".

Until now Sula Iron and Gold was focused on iron ore and gold in Sierra Leone. Murphy said the aim was to continue to develop those assets but through a subsidiary named Blue Horizon and the company may seek a joint venture partner.

In DRC, African Battery Metals will explore a licence area of 55 square kilometres near existing cobalt and copper mines.

Murphy said the company was paying $100,000 in two tranches for the licensed area, which is sold by DRC lawyer and businessman Jean-Pierre Mwamby, who retains a 30 percent stake.

The company has also raised 1.75 million pounds ($2.34 million) before expenses through a share placement. ($1 = 0.7473 pounds) (Reporting by Barbara Lewis; additional reporting by Nicole Mordant in Vancouver; Editing by Adrian Croft)
He was a rich man now, she hesitantly and doubtfully uttered in Gamperaliya, thus setting down the confusions and conflicts and shifts of temper that would adorn the first honestly conceived Sinhala film ever made. The man who taught her English in that sequence, conducting lessons under her mothers watchful gaze, aspired to be that rich man, and for the entirety of the film and its sequel, Kaliyugaya, he hoped to win her by gaining the wealth that his education would bring. She on her part gave the impression that she was no more than a submissive receptacle, never capable of any real free will or autonomy, and yet it was because of her submissiveness, her lack of a proper character, that the men and women who figured in her life changed so dramatically. In the very first scene of Gamperaliya Lester James Peries hence said everything that he wanted to say in this respect, and in so doing he went for the perfect couple: the English teacher was Henry Jayasena and the student was Punya Heendeniya.



In the history of the Sinhala cinema women have typically been portrayed as either the objectified fantasies of men they were supposed to be, in which case they were paragons of virtue, or the vamps, the seducers, the rebels they were taught all their lives not to be, in which case they were confused prodigals. Beginning with Rukmani Devi, the female figure almost always embodied goodness, but when she lapsed, when she went wayward, the hero and the star was there to rescue her. The first 20 years of our cinema, right after 1947, saw this kind of woman before the arrival of Malini Fonseka, who in Punchi Baba and Akkara Paha began playing to the fantasies of men by alluring them. The women of our cinema had existed to be rescued and redeemed by their lovers. It was with Malini that we saw a qualitatively different woman.



Between Rukmani and Malini, occupying a twilight world, we see Punya Heendeniya. Punya entered the industry towards the latter part of the 1950s as an idealised woman because Rukmani Devi, who herself was idealised, though as a more tragic figure, was situated in a largely urban and sophisticated setting. Punya figured in quite a different milieu: the rural Sinhala Buddhist bourgeoisie, who gained more prominence after 1956 and the election of Bandaranaike. In the films of L. S. Ramachandran  Deiyange Rate, Kurulubedda, Sikuru Tharuwa  we see the emergence and the empowerment in our cinema of this rural bourgeoisie, along with the myths that they affirmed and in a way symbolised. They all played around with variations of the conventional morality play, pitting good against evil and derived from the female goodness and male heroism which our culture (largely Sinhala and Buddhist) epitomised. Women were never allowed, in the early days, to a watch a Gammaduwa up close, nor were they allowed to don the headgear and go through the Ves Mangalya as they do today. That was at one level misogynistic, and was born in part from a culture of male protectiveness. The myth of female goodness derives for the most from this culture of protectiveness, and in Punya, who was featured in all those three movies, our storytellers found the archetype to square with that cultural sensibility.

The first 20 years of our cinema, right after 1947, saw this kind of woman before the arrival of Malini Fonseka, who in Punchi Baba and Akkara Paha began playing to the fantasies of men by alluring them



The outlook that was articulated and reflected in Deiyange Rate, Kurulubedda, and Sikuru Tharuwa was manifestly informed by the outlook of the Colombo Poets, who, while residing in Colombo, were obsessed with life outside the city. The village, to these poets (who were shaped by the Lake Poets of 19th century England), was the ultimate salvation of their country, their race. As opposed to the Peradeniya poets and novelists, who preferred a Westernised conception of literature, with the individualist, psychological subjectivity of D. H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf, their counterparts in Colombo inadvertently borrowed from the early English theatre (that influenced the novels of Samuel Richardson) and placed the rural Sinhala Buddhist bourgeoisie and peasantry on the stereotypes of that early morality theatre: the young hero, the ageing villain, the good girl. All three films depicted and placed Punya as that good girl.



In these movies, she consequently privileges tradition over individuality, and gradually becomes bereft of a personality. Ediriweera Sarachchandra in The Sinhalese Novel (which bolstered Martin Wickramasinghes reputation) contended that the only characteristic of Nanda, from Gamperaliya, was her lack of any vivid character. She only existed to listen to her elders, to willingly reject any outside intrusions and step in line with the accepted authority. Gamperaliya was a more realistic, and thus a more multifarious, depiction of that obedient woman; Kurulubedda, which got praised so lavishly by Sinhalese critics (particularly those like Jayawilal Wilegoda) that it was erroneously considered the first real Sinhala film (instead of Rekava), wasnt multifarious this way. The women in it existed in a dichotomised world, between good and evil, submission and rebellion: in short, the past and the future.



It was a Colombo poet who scripted these films, incidentally: P. K. D. Seneviratne, acknowledged by Lester James Peries as probably the only man at the time who wrote original movie scripts. He attributed to Punyas characters an emotional resonance and spirit of resilience which could easily be squared with the triumph of moral goodness within her. Punya was a beauty, but never overly and superficially adorned: she was more a simple village damsel than the cosmetic nightingale that Rukmani Devi had been, and continued to be. She gave the impression of being fragile, of being open to abuse and exploitation, but because of her moral standing perhaps, she warded off every and any obstacle that beset her (particularly in Sikuru Tharuwa, where she wards off the advances of the lascivious vel vidane, played by D. R. Nanayakkara).



Her career was never as prolific and versatile as that of her contemporaries, but Id like to think this was more a strength than a weakness on her part. In an industry where men were said to make the moves  long before Nadeeka Gunasekara, Swarna Mallawarachchi, and Anoja Weerasinghe came forward and, in the films they were in, repudiated the patriarchy inherent in their field  being a prolific actress could have diluted her image of the perennially optimistic and tradition bound woman. We needed her at this juncture (the 1960s) because, while her characters seem rather overly optimistic and hopeful today, they help explain, and also reflect, the subtle ways in which culture and cinema cross each others paths even in a society where the movies are still derided as a Western import (like ours).

Ramachandrans Deiyange Rate, an adaptation of the W. A. Silva novel, was a watershed in this respect.

Punya was a beauty, but never overly and superficially adorned: she was more a simple village damsel than the cosmetic nightingale that Rukmani Devi had been, and continued to be. She gave the impression of being fragile, of being open to abuse and exploitation



Peries did away with the need to bifurcate our women  between goodhearted lovers on the one hand and unredeemable vamps on the other  with Gamperaliya. I wrote before that in Lester we come across our first film-maker who raised flak and earned praise from every quarter in our critical fraternity. That was because he was uncompromising in his attempts to peel away the false and the tawdry, the remnants of the past, which the Sinhala cinema thrived on. If Gamperaliya seems too slow paced today (especially to those who have short attention spans) its because no one can match his meticulous attention to visual detail. To a considerable extent this was true of his depiction of the two main women in the story: the Kaisaruvatte sisters, Nanda and Anula. In Punya he had found the perfect embodiment of rural innocence, but he never forced her to become one-dimensional the way she had been earlier. What this compelled, subsequently, was an amalgamation of sensibilities between the realist in Lester and the romantic in Seneviratne. The two would amalgamate in Ran Salu.



Kurulubedda was celebrated as the first real Sinhala film, erroneously, even though it was inspired by the visual loveliness of Rekava. Ran Salu, which is set against the urban bourgeoisie, in Colombo 7, was in that sense inspired by the milieu that was depicted in Delovak Athara, with roughly the same cast (Irangani Serasinghe, J. B. L. Gunasekara, Tony Ranasinghe). Laleen Jayamanne in her book Toward Cinema and its Double implies that in Ran Salu we see the authorial intervention of Peiris in the storys transformation of the innocent village girl to an innocent Colombo 7 girl. But that wasnt really Peries, because as he himself said frequently, he had no actual control over the plot: it was Seneviratne himself who had wanted to turn Punya into an urbanised version of the village damsel she had played before. Lesters film is an inversion of the modernist paradigm of getting the city to assimilate the village; Punyas character, Sujatha, well to do and complacent, sees the futility of such a thing and tries to achieve the opposite. Again, we see here that thin line between submission and rebellion, in turn reflected by the line between the past and the future. The past is idealised, poetically and in almost unrealistic ways, while the future is demonised (the antagonist, Cyril, who is engaged to Sujatha, dreams of such a future in England: he tells her father that he is disgusted by betel-chewing villagers). Unlike Seneviratnes previous forays, here goodness and badness are not concentrated in the village, but are instead split between the rural and the urban: the former epitomised by Dayananda Gunadawardena as Senaka, the latter by Tony Ranasinghe as Cyril. Her implied engagement to the former at the end, which subverts our expectations of her taking to the life of a nun, repudiates any image we would have entertained of her giving up her upbringing for the religious. Punya, going by that, remained moored to the secular world, as a harbinger of moral goodness: a secular life of explicit devotion.

After her departure to Africa and later to England, with her husband, she returned to the cinema to play a different woman: the Nanda of Kaliyugaya



After her departure to Africa and later to England, with her husband, she returned to the cinema to play a different woman: the Nanda of Kaliyugaya. We see a shattering of the idealisms of her youth here; all thats left is a shell-shocked, sterile, empty life. But one role was never enough, which is why, even today, as I look through all her performances, she remains the finest tribute to rural femininity we could have had. The cinema of rural femininity, in Sri Lanka that is, consequently belongs to her.
New York (dpa) Dec 10, 2017 - Time is of the essence to find a diplomatic solution to rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the UNs political chief told North Koreas foreign minister during a visit to Pyongyang this week, a spokesman said Saturday.



Jeffrey Feltman, the highest-ranking UN official to visit the reclusive communist state since February 2010, had a series of meetings with Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho and his deputy Pak Myong Guk in the trip which ran from Tuesday to Friday.



Both parties agreed that the current situation was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today, the UN said in a statement.



Feltmans visit follows last months launch by North Korea of a ballistic missile that Pyongyang said could reach the entire US mainland.



But a UN spokesman stressed before Feltman set off that the invitation was extended on the sidelines of the UNs General Assembly in October, and was not in reaction to the latest provocation.
Arab countries have demanded the US revoke its decision recognizing Jerusalem as Israels capital, calling it invalid.



This shift in the US policy on Jerusalem is a dangerous development whereby the US has isolated itself from being a sponsor and mediator in the [Middle East] peace process, Arab Foreign ministers said in a final statement following an emergency meeting in Cairo.



The officials also called for a UN Security Council motion declaring that Trumps decision violates international resolutions and has no legal effect. The ministers called on their leaders to hold an emergency summit on Jerusalem, proposing Jordan as a venue. Jordan currently holds the rotating Arab League presidency. Prior to the meeting, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki said his delegation to the Arab regional organization would push for a clear reaction to Trumps decision.



He also confirmed that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will not meet US Vice President Mike Pence on his upcoming visit to the Middle East this month, as a symbol of protest. Trumps decision has outraged Palestinians and triggered street protests across the Arab and Muslim worlds.



Earlier Saturday, Egypts Coptic Orthodox Church said it had refused a meeting with Pence when he visits Cairo. The move came a day after Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb, the head of al-Azhar, Egypts highest Islamic body, also announced that he was cancelling a meeting with Pence.



The church said that Trumps decision to move his countrys embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has shown no regard to feelings of millions of Arabs.

Cairo/Gaza, (dpa), 10 Dec 2017
By Sarah Thadhani

Leading Sri Lankan porcelain tableware manufacturer Dankotuwa Porcelain PLC (DPL) sees ample opportunity in the neighbouring Indian market and is gearing to further expand its business interests in that country, a top company official said.



According to DPL Chairman Ranjan Asirwatham, the company has tapped into the middle class Indian market and is further pursuing to increase demand for their products since a large proportion of the countrys wealth lies in that market as well as the numbers.



The companys 2016/17 annual report said plans to capture a higher sale in the Northern Indian region continues through agents appointed to cover both the institutional and hotel sectors.



Asirwatham also said the company has ramped up its marketing campaigns and is trying to follow the footsteps of tea major Dilmah in positioning its brand in the global market place.



However, Sri Lanka has always been known for their tea and not porcelain ware. So it will be a rather difficult hurdle to leap over, Asirwatham told Mirror Business at the opening DPLs Signature Showroom in Colombo 07, recently.



Dankotuwa caters to a custom specialized niche market where they manufacture and sell lifestyle based porcelain ware.



Not only did this store feature its own home-grown brands - Dankotuwa and Royal Fernwood - it also houses worldwide brands such as Lenox and Portmeirion.

Dankotuwa also manufactures for Englands longest leading porcelain brand, Royal Worchester, which is under the Portmeirion Groupe.



DPL said one and a half years of their work has paid off as theyve introduced these two prominent British brands to Sri Lanka in order to enhance customer shopping experience and satisfy their various needs. DPLs clientele includes countries in the US and Europe but a few road bumps were faced with the depreciation of the Euro, which affected demand.



As of now, Thailand and Bangladesh are Dankotuwas biggest competitors as they provide cheaper alternatives.



Our overall growth plan for 2020 includes several new exciting initiatives such as Signature Showrooms aimed at taking the group to new heights, said Asirwatham.

Porcelain is an expensive business and constant innovation will need to take place for DPL to remain competitive not just in the local but international market as well if it is to reach its seat at the table next to Dilmah.



For the six months ended September 30th 2017, DPL posted a net profit of Rs.18.4 million, down 59 percent year-on-year (YoY) on a revenue of Rs.1.09 billion, down Rs.1.2 billion YoY.
Since the end of Sri Lankas civil war in 2009, the number of tourist arrivals to the country has increased significantly, from 448,000 in 2009 to 1.8 million in 2015. By 2015, tourism had already become the third main foreign exchange earner (US $ 2.98 billion) in Sri Lanka.



According to the Sri Lanka Tourism Strategic Plan 2017-2020 of the Tourism Development Ministry, the tourist arrivals have further increased to two million and revenue from tourism has risen to US $ 3.5 billion. In 2015, the Forbes Magazine placed Sri Lanka among the top 10 coolest countries to visit.



These facts clearly show the huge potential of the tourism sector and how it can bring in more foreign exchange to the country. Tourism can improve the overall economy and thereby make a substantial contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).



According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisations (UNWTO) brochure, Tourism and the SDGs, and the revised list of SDG indicators, tourism could improve performance in all SDGs; this alone is reason enough to harness benefits of tourism.



Interrelation between tourism and SDGs



Tourism creates jobs countrywide by offering direct and indirect employment opportunities, particularly for youth, in both urban and rural communities. Domestic tourism accounts for a significant share of the sectors income, while expenditure by international tourists counts as exports for Sri Lanka.



Thanks to its heritage and culture, which dates back to thousands of years, unmatched biodiversity, beautiful beaches and some of the worlds best marine resources, beautiful mountain ranges and other natural resources, Sri Lanka boasts of a huge potential for tourism-led growth. As such, if tourism is promoted more effectively, it would be one of the most important sources of foreign exchange earnings for the country.



As tourism encompasses a wide range of goods and services, it generates multiple positive effects across other economic activities, penetrating the local economy and expanding the growth impact from trade. That said, while it is important to maximize on the economic benefits and other positive effects of tourism, it is equally important to develop strategies to ensure that the possible evil effects of tourism, such as the prevalence of drugs, prostitution, child abuse, are effectively controlled and minimized, so that Sri Lankas social and cultural values can be kept intact.



The tourism sector is linked to all 17 SDGs and it would be useful to give due consideration to those links when developing strategies to improve the tourism sector, while taking a closer and more coordinated look at its contribution to achieving SDGs. To this end, it would be essential for the Tourism Development Ministry to collaborate with all ministries, departments, other governmental agencies, as well as with the private sector agencies, involved in planning and implementing strategies to achieve SDGs.



Some of the ways in which tourism could make useful contributions towards achieving SDGs by 2030 are discussed in this article.



Reduction of poverty and inequality and indirect contributions to agricultural, health and education sectors: Tourism fosters economic growth and development at all levels, as it promotes and helps entrepreneurship, especially among small businesses and the creation of employment opportunities, which reduces poverty and the grassroots level. It can spur agricultural productivity by promoting the production, use and sale of local produce in tourist destinations, resulting in higher and more stable incomes, which leads to more resilient and sustainable agricultural communities. Tourism can be a powerful tool for developing communities and reducing inequalities, if it engages local populations and all key stakeholders in its growth. It can reduce regional disparities by giving communities various opportunities to prosper in their own regions.



Tourisms contribution to economic growth and development can also have a knock-on effect on health and education sectors in the country. Foreign exchange earnings and tax income from tourism can be reinvested in healthcare and services and in improving the educational facilities. As a well-trained and skilful workforce is crucial for tourism to prosper, the sector should also provide incentives for training and skill development among the employees.



Improvements in water and sanitation: Tourism can play a critical role in achieving access to safe water, as well as hygiene and sanitation for all. The efficient use of water in the tourism sector, coupled with appropriate safety measures, waste water management, pollution control and technology efficiency, can be the key to safeguarding water resource, which should benefit all.



Conserving and preserving environment: Tourism contributes to and is affected by climate changes. As such, it is in the sectors own interest to play a leading role in lowering energy consumption and shifting to renewable energy sources, especially in the transport and accommodation sectors, in-order to minimize any adverse effects to the environment. As a sector that requires substantial energy input, tourism can accelerate the shift towards renewable energy and thereby contribute to innovative energy solutions. Sustainable tourism has the potential to advance urban infrastructure and universal accessibility, promote regeneration of the area and preserve cultural and natural heritage sites  the assets on which tourism sector depends. Greater investment in green infrastructure, such as efficient transport facilities with minimum air pollution, conservation of heritage sites and greener open spaces, will result in smarter and greener cities, which benefit locals as well as the tourists. As coastal and maritime tourism is important for Sri Lankas tourism sector, any tourism development activity in these regions should serve as a vehicle to enhance economic growth, improve livelihoods and create jobs, while ensuring the sustainability of the oceans and coastal areas. Sustainable tourism can also play a major role, not only in conserving and preserving biodiversity, but also respecting the terrestrial ecosystems.



Improving public-private partnerships: Tourism development relies on excellent infrastructure and an innovative environment. Making infrastructure more sustainable, resource-efficient and clean could attract more tourists and other sources of foreign investment. Due to its cross-sectoral nature, tourism has the ability to strengthen public-private partnerships and engage international, national, regional and local stakeholders to work together to achieve the SDGs and other

common goals.



(Wimal Nanayakkara is a Senior Visiting Fellow of the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) with research interests in poverty and is a specialist in sampling. He was previously engaged at the Census and Statistics Department, where he functioned as Director General for 12 years. He received his BSc in Mathematics and Physics from the University of Peradeniya and holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Statistics from the University of Reading, UK. He can be reached at wimal@ips.lk)
The elders among us still have nostalgic memories from the past when accomplished politicians ruled the country. This was several decades ago. The sacrifices they made and the dedication with which they serviced made the people happy. It is with a tinge of sadness that they talk about the vacuum created by these politicians who are no more or retired. The politicians who belong to this past era are of such high calibre. Their distancing from the present day politicians is justifiable. However, the present politicians live in a reverie for long years with little or no concern about their duties to the people. These politicians run around seeking support when elections are around the corner.



Even in present times there are people who command recognition. One such person is the founder of the Pragna Pradeepa Programme Dr. Jayantha de Silva. He has been popular among the people for his dedicated service. He has been distributing large consignments of books and school requisites to the children from low income families and has implemented projects of his own to uplift the poor. This year marks 30 years in De Silvas career as a social worker.



Withstood criticism



It is an arduous task to be dedicated in serving the the people. Srimath Anagarika Dharmapala was a classic example of a great man who relinquished all comforts and sacrificed his whole life to serve his fellow men. However, it is sad to know that he has been subjected to criticism and humiliation rather than being praised. Regardless of praise or blame he continued with his services to the nation. He has strongly believed that one mustnt take to social service unless one is prepared to withstand criticism. Ultimately he was so disgusted with the country that he left for India, never to return. Dharmapala was hopeful of being reborn in India after his death. Dharmapalas life story is a clear indication of trials and tribulations facing a man dedicated to service. One can judge in the light of his life story what obstacles would have been experienced by this samaritan Dr. Jayantha de Silva, during his 30 years of serving the public.



I thought of social service and started my ambitious career as a social worker early in life. I undertook that arduous task even before I took to politics. I followed the path of my parents who were social workers. They often said that the ideal life for a person would be to serve fellow men. Their vehement expectation was that I dedicate my life to serve the nation and my fellow men. Example is better than precept they say. My mother never allowed any visitor to leave at least without having a cup of tea. If it was lunch time he was sure to be hosted to lunch, is how he recalled the days when he was young and came under the care of his parents.

Ananda College gave a new impetus to his ambition and equipped him with the noble concept that of serving the people. Several of the teachers at Ananda College were dedicated social workers who set an example to individuals like Dr. de Silva.

I thought of social service and started my ambitious career as a social worker early in life. I undertook that arduous task even before I took to politics. I followed the path of my parents who were social workers

-Dr.De Silva



The right path



In fact Ananda College had been founded by patriots to kindle the flame of wisdom in children belonging to ordinary families. I as one of them decided to follow in the footsteps of patriots who founded Ananda College. Everyone of these patriots shone as a beacon light to the children and helped to put them on the right path. With this in view I founded the Pragna Pradeepa Programme which today celebrates the 30th anniversary in its long journey, Dr. De Silva said.



He said that Ananda College was the nursery where he was cast in a mold and turned out as a social worker. There was another indispensable character behind his success. This towering figure in the Pragna Pradeepa Programme is no one else, but its Secretary Deshabandu A Sumith Perera who has been playing an integral role.



At the beginning the donation of school books was funded by Dr. Jayatha de Silva with his personal wealth. He spent the whole of his salary for this worthy cause. We inaugurated the Pragna Pradeepa Programme with only eight children. We were able to organise a loan scheme for low-income families, depending on self employment. We implemented projects to develop infrastructure facilities in under developed areas. The project to uplift the living standards of carters was just another special project implemented by us, Sumith Perera said.

They soon realized that the Pragna Pradeepa Programme was for them and they joined hands with us to forge ahead. They offered us strength to make it a massive social service venture which functions as a local NGO.



In reply to a question on the obstacles faced by the Pragna Pradeepa Programme during the 30 years, Sumith said at the outset that the people had a misunderstanding that this programme was just an attempt to gain cheap political mileage. But in the long-run they realized the truth that it was an endeavour to uplift underprivileged people and not one that was politically motivated, Perera said.



They soon realized that the Pragna Pradeepa Programme was for them and they joined hands with us to forge ahead. They offered us strength to make it a massive social service venture which functions as a local NGO. At present it has a staff comprising 35 people who are rendering a voluntary service, he further added.

Perera said that a massive donation of schoolbooks along with the holding of a cultural show have been scheduled for December 16 at the Campbell Park in Borella to mark the 30h anniversary of this programme.
Sri Lanka has water problems and as the countrys urban infrastructure expands, those problems are set to exacerbate. Sri Lankas water problems range from too much water to too little water and the absence of a proper waste water management system brings in a whole lot of new problems. In this backdrop, what is the way forward for Sri Lanka? Mirror Business met with Andy Tan, Country Manager of Singapore and Export Markets (Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Myanmar) of Grundfos the Danish pump manufacturing giant, whose business is water sustainability to have a brief chat about Sri Lankas water future in a context where it has been predicted that water will be a scarce resource for over a billion Asians in about four decades.



Can you explain the vital role of water supply and waste water management going forward for cities in Asia, which are said to undergo an unprecedented transformation with a massive number of people calling such cities their homes?



With rapid urbanisation driving population growth in Asian cities, the region can expect about one billion more people becoming water-stressed over the next 35 years. With that, our water supply and waste water management systems play an important role in ensuring water security for all, which faces complications brought about by the consequences of climate change and the vulnerability of ageing water distribution facilities.



Hence, these pressing issues call for a re-evaluation of our existing systems to adopt new technologies that would help us manage water as a finite resource, to which Grundfos is contributing through its latest innovations and solutions.



What are the key challenges the Asian city planners face getting their cities ready to accommodate this influx of people who migrate from village areas to cities to upgrade their living standards?



The increase in demand from the influx of people in cities will cause a greater strain on resources such as water  the main challenge for Asian city planners is to ensure greater water sustainability by minimising any loss during the process. Sri Lankas unaccounted water rate  water lost through issues such as pipe leakage  is at 30 percent and 49 percent in Colombo. With increasing water demand on the back of growing consumer and business appetites, the last thing Sri Lanka needs is water wasted through poorly constructed infrastructure or networks.



How Grundfos helps these cities address the issue of water leakage is with forward-looking water utility solutions such as our Demand Driven Distribution system, which uses an intelligent software that automatically adjusts the water flow through the use of remote sensors at the end user points of use.



As you may know, Sri Lanka has embarked on an ambitious programme to make Colombo and its suburbs in the Western Province a megapolis. What would be the key advice youd give to Lankan city planners?



One key thing to note would be to ensure that the city is smart when it comes to responding to the current climate conditions. Communities and industries must be self-sufficient by consuming the least resources. For example, pumps are responsible for a staggering 10 percent of global electricity consumption, while playing a vital role in the transportation and treatment of water in cities today.



In order for a megapolis to function optimally for its citizens for the long term, it needs to look at performing effectively and efficiently in areas like pumps used in water transport and treatment. Smart technology is the key for cities in Sri Lanka, with the potential of Industry 4.0 to integrate into manufacturing and agricultural industries to reduce financial and environmental costs unprecedented. For example, Grundfos intelligent pumps in the iSolution range can save energy costs by 40 to 50 percent.



Additionally, city planners need to consider how the megapolis can be resilient in mitigating the potential damages extreme weather events such as flooding can bring. Urban flood management requires a more holistic approach beyond measures like drains and canals and in order for a city to be prepared, intelligent practices such as implementing water level sensors to ensure that the existing drainage infrastructure from being overwhelmed.



Also, Sri Lanka is building a port city reclaiming the sea. As a result, water is going to be a very precious resource. In this backdrop, what would be the best approach by Sri Lanka in terms of water supply and waste water management?



As we understand it, Sri Lanka has issues largely pertaining to water treatment and transportation. To manage water and waste water well, it is critical to understand the complete water cycle, with each process and their inter-relationship clearly defined with a clear water policy and supported with strong enforcement. Each process should also be followed with market best practice and equipment. Desalination is always applicable in remote places or at least as a contingency water supply option. The key challenge with regard to desalination is always the high usage of energy. With that, Grundfos is able to advice on energy recovery for our desalination systems. Together with our motor technology and iSolution initiative, we are able to provide a more efficient solution.



The recommended approach for Sri Lanka is to look towards digital technology, big data and intelligent products and networks to distribute water resources efficiently and solve large-scale environmental challenges. As mentioned, technology such as our Demand Driven Distribution can help municipalities better able to control water pressures in pipes and limit extensive leakage issues, helping them better manage their water resources. Grundfos understands the chain of importance in the water cycle and this is where we contribute with efficient energy solutions with our pumps.



In recent times Sri Lanka has been battered by multiple incidents of flooding and part of the country has been experiencing the worst drought in three decades as a result of climate change. How can the smart technology adopted by companies like Grundfos can be of assistance to mitigate these extremities?



Each situation for flood control and water management comes with its own unique issues and usually requires a very specific approach. At the same time, at an industry level, there needs to be an urgent reconsideration on how we could change the way storm water and water supply is managed, by better leveraging technology.



In Sri Lanka, flooding is a common issue. Integrating the existing technologies into flood-preventative measures  sensors, rainfall measurements, automation technologies, intelligent pumping systems, data analytics and industrial Internet of things  can help to create a smart water grid. Grundfos provides a wide range of pumping solutions, including flood-control pumps, which can be engineered to provide a more customised solution and is engineered to cope with the heavy demands of flood management.



Sri Lanka has also recently been hit by the worst drought in 40 years. Technology can play a significant role in mitigating droughts, in the form of data gathering to determine drought intensities, data-based analytics to detect and prevent water loss through pipe leaks, rainwater harvesting and energy-efficient water supply.

To help drought-stricken cities tackle periods of water scarcity, Grundfos has supplied solutions that are able to utilise abundant solar energy to power water supply, such as the SQFlex submersible pumping system. The pump system offers the perfect water supply solution in remote areas where water is scarce and the power supply is non-existent or unreliable.



In Sri Lankas water supply system, non-revenue water due to leakages remains a massive challenge to be addressed. Any thoughts, probably drawing analogies from other countries that faced the same problem and overcame it successfully?



Sri Lankas unaccounted water rate is at 30 percent and 49 percent in Colombo. This water is lost through pipe leakages from wear and tear brought about unregulated water pressure. Using Grundfos Demand Driven Distribution is one solution where municipalities are able to control water pressures in pipes and limit extensive leakage issues.



For example, in Cambodia, we worked with the national water authority to address the issue of non-revenue water, an issue which has been at the top of its agenda. We put in place our Demand Driven Distribution solution, which tackled water leakage issues by using an intelligent software that automatically adjusts water flow through the use of remote sensors at the end user points of use.



In your opinion, how should water be treated  a basic human right or a commodity? How important it is for a government to get the water tariffs right? In Sri Lankas case, water is highly subsidised and as a result, the countrys water agency is in perennial debt and cannot carryout upgrades unless the Treasury gets involved.

Everyone has the basic right to water and sanitisation, which is also explicitly recognised by the United Nations. Grundfos recognises that adequate water tariffs are important in order to improve water use efficiency and securing financial sustainability of water utilities and operators. However, from our perspective, as a manufacturer of pumping solutions and technology, we want to highlight that there are also other key areas of considerations to ensure access to water for everyone, such as tackling issues such as non-revenue water.



Despite their sustainability claims, the majority of Sri Lankan corporates give scant regard for water treatment in their production processes. Most of them say sophisticated waste water treatment plants are costly and beyond their budgets.



Any comments?



While industries have made great strides in switching to newer technology, adoption is still a challenge. However, what companies need to realise is that while advanced intelligent technology can cost more upfront, the benefits in the long run will exceed the upfront investment. As these innovations are further developed on a larger scale and with affordable distribution, an education process needs to take place and cost will be less of a barrier in the near future.



What are your thoughts on the recent report by IFC, which stated that Sri Lanka offers US $ 2.7 billion worth of investment opportunities in waste water management?

The Sri Lankan government has been implementing reforms to encourage private sector-driven growth to ensure sustainable economic development and it is heartening to see its Board of Investments identifying climate-smart urban water as one of its priorities.



In order to realise this goal, greater attention needs to be paid towards ensuring energy efficiency throughout the infrastructure of the entire water cycle process  whether it is at the collection stage, treatment or even supply. For example, in addition to providing efficient pumps, Grundfos also contributes at the design and specification phase, such as using Computational Fluid Dynamics modelling to determine optimal flow patterns for pumping stations and retention tanks. Our pumping, mixing, dosing and aeration systems are thus optimised for each other, ensuring a cohesive system working efficiently.



The expected scale of investment will mean more opportunities for solution providers like Grundfos to introduce these advanced intelligent technologies that are both sustainable and energy efficient, playing a role in the expected 64 percent of waste water to be treated by 2030. However, in order for this to be sustainable, the government needs to also put in place a clear water policy, introducing interdisciplinary cooperation across utilities, authorities and companies. For example, in Copenhagen, urban planners had worked together companies like Grundfos and consultants including DHI and Ramboll, along with many others, to ensure a secure public water supply.
While neighbouring Sri Lanka is struggling to attract higher numbers of tourists, the island archipelago the Maldives attracted 127,986 tourists this October, which was 8.9 percent more tourists compared to a year ago, with keen interest from Europeans.



The European region sourced approximately half of the tourists to the Maldives, increasing 12 percent year-on-year (YoY). The German market had the largest influence in these numbers, with 15,007 tourists arriving, which was an increase of 14.9 percent YoY.



The number of British tourists arriving in the Maldives was flat at 9,173. The Russian traveller numbers increased by 25 percent YoY to 5,485, while 4,898 Italian tourists travelled to the island nation, up 18.8 percent YoY.



From Asia and the Pacific, 57,658 tourists arrived in the Maldives, up 5.7 percent YoY. The single largest market, China, fell by 2.6 percent YoY to 28,689 tourists, although the Indian market increased by 17.7 percent YoY, bringing in 7,414 tourists.



The Americas market expanded 14.1 percent YoY to 5,008 tourists.



Over the first 10 months of this year, arrivals to the Maldives increased 6 percent YoY to 1.13 million tourists.



Approximately 511,000 tourists each came from Europe and Asia and the Pacific although the former market grew by 10.7 percent YoY for the Maldives, while the latter grew by just 0.9 percent YoY.



The Americas market for the 10 months increased 21.5 percent YoY to 48,563 tourists, while the number of Middle Easterners arriving fell by 3.2 percent YoY to 42,740 tourists.



The occupancy rate at Maldivian establishments fell to 60.3 percent over the first 10 months, compared to 63.4 percent YoY. The average duration of stay of tourists increased to 6.2 days, compared to six days a year ago.



While leading Sri Lankan leisure group Jetwing recently said that for them, it is now too late to enter into the Maldives, many Sri Lankan hotel companies are still investing in properties in the archipelago.

Interestingly, despite the higher arrivals to the Maldives, Sri Lankan leisure giants John Keells Hotels PLC and Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC, which are the largest foreign-owned resort operators in the Maldives, posted lower profits for the first six months of the 2018 financial year from April to end-September in their Maldivian operations.
NSBM Green University Town Acting Chairperson Ruwanthi Gunathilake recently declared open the NSBM Career Fair with the presence of Deputy Vice Chancellor Chaminda Rathnayake, School of Business Dean Thilini De Silva, School of Computing Dean Chaminda Wijesinghe, Head of Student Affairs Baratha Dodankotuwa and academic and non-academic staff at the NSBM Green University Town, Homagama recently.



Representatives from the sponsoring organisations were also present at the opening ceremony.



It was able to link 63 leading companies with 2,850 students from NSBM and 43 other higher education institutions over the two days.



NSBM Career Fair was organised to support graduates of the Schools of Business and Computing of NSBM who are graduating in December 2017 and are therefore, available for employment. In addition, undergraduates of NSBM who are available for internships also attended the career fair. Further, it was also opened for the fresh graduates and undergraduates of all other universities and education institutions.



Companies at the fair were seeking candidates for entry-level employment and internships/training opportunities; they conducted walk-in interviews and successful candidates received their letters of appointment at the fair itself.



Laugfs Holdings, Omobio and IFS R&D International conducted workshops on career guidance and skills development.



IFS R&D International Director Software Development Mangala Perera, who spoke at a workshop, said: We really appreciate the effort made by NSBM to prepare students with the right skills and behaviours they need to succeed in the industry. We believe that the industry should actively support universities to improve the quality of the IT education because the IT industry itself mainly depends on the quality of professionals we get from the universities.



Laugfs Holdings and Omobio were the Gold sponsors for the career fair (Laugfs Holdings was Gold sponsor for Business category Omobio was Gold sponsor for IT category) while Avery Dennison Lanka, Commercial Leasing and Finance, Hemas Consumer, Hirdaramani Group, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, IFS R&D International, ISM APAC and Moodys Analytics Knowledge Services joined the event as Bronze sponsors.



Laugfs Holdings Manager Talent Acquisition Tharindu Somiratna said: Laugfs as a growing conglomerate, counts on Sri Lankan talent. NSBM Career Fair was a great opportunity to reach such young marketable talent.



Omobio General Manager Samitha Nagasinghe said: NSBM Career Fair was a very positive and well-organised event. We look forward to this again next year and years thereafter.



The sponsors of the event were awarded with a token of appreciation by Ruwini Gunathilake for their contribution at the event.



NSBM Green University Town is a fully-fledged university town built on a 26-acre premise at Homagama. It currently houses over 9,000 on-campus students, which will record the highest student population among the state and private universities by the end of year 2018. NSBM offers UGC-approved and foreign undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in three streams namely business management, computing and engineering.
New York City Police say a man is being held after an explosion at a bus station in Manhattan.

The blast happened on Monday morning at the Port Authority Bus Terminal near Times Square. No-one other than the suspect had been hurt, officials say.

US media quote police sources as saying that a possible pipe bomb was detonated in an underground passageway.

Some reports says the suspect went into the station carrying a device that went off prematurely.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said President Donald Trump has been briefed on the incident.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal is the largest in the US, serving more than 65 million people a year.

The Times Square-42nd Street subway station complex is located underneath the transport hub. (BBC)
Sampath Bank gave away special rewards to 25 students who had excelled in the Grade 5 Scholarship examination at a ceremony held at its head office premises recently.



Sampath Bank PLC Managing Director Nanda Fernando and the members of the banks corporate management were joined by the students parents and the principals of their schools on this occasion.



M.A.M.I. Jayarathna from GM/Welipillewa Kanishta Vidyalaya, Ganemulla, who was ranked second in the island at the Grade 5 Scholarship examination, was awarded with a cheque for Rs.100,000.



The top five achievers in each district were given Rs.10,000 each with the schools of the children ranked first and second in the district receiving Rs.25,000 and Rs.20,000, respectively.



The bank has been engaging students and parents through the Sampath Bank Grade 5 Scholarship seminar series since 2009. Seeking to support students from underprivileged backgrounds, the initiative provides them with the requisite knowledge and skills to help them better prepare for the Grade 5 Scholarship exams.

Over 10,000 students attended the workshops that were held in Kirindiwela, Wellawaya, Polghawela, Galle, Homagama, Batticaloa and Ratnapura this year.
National Freedom Front (NFF) Deputy Leader Weerakumara Dissanayake, National Organiser Piyasiri Wijenayake and North Central Provincial Councillor P.B. Kumara today joined the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) led by President Maithripala Sirisena.

They obtained their new SLFP memberships from the President at the Presidential Secretariat.

In a statement, the Presidents Media Division said the three members pledged their support to President Sirisena at the upcoming local government election.

Video by Buddhi
Unilever Sri Lanka, the United Nations Development Programme(UNDP) Sri Lanka and the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Sri Lanka together announced the initiation of strategic public-private partnerships (PPPs)around the countrys key priorities related to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at a media conference held on 7th December. Taking this message to the wider public through the media, they hope to raise awareness on the importance of PPPs for the country.

The partnerships revealed at the event were a result of the inaugural Unilever-UNGC forum held earlier this year that engaged members of the public and private sector, academia, media and non-government development agencies on how they could work together on helping Sri Lanka achieve the goals.

A wave of sustainable business projects are set to be rolled out through these partnerships. Aitken Spence Holdings, Commercial Bank PLC, Dialog Axiata PLC, MAS Holdings and Unilever Sri Lanka have pledged their support to drive these projects.Members of the projects working committees met after the media conference to discuss the road map for each project.Aligning the project goals to the wider national agenda, the teams finalized the immediate next steps.

Carl Cruz, Chairman, Unilever Sri Lanka said, The countrys goals around the 2030 SDGs cannot be achieved through the efforts of any single entity, acting alone. We need to rally each other up, go outside our comfort zones and work together to help the nation realize its vision. We firmly believe that adopting sustainable models both in civil service and in business while mobilizing collective action will help bring longer lasting, wide spread positive change. This is the only way in which we can ensure that we move ahead as one, without leaving anyone behind. And we are delighted to have found likeminded partners in the UNDP and the UNGC to work with on this journey. We are excited about the journey ahead as we work with them and other partners who have come forward in support this mission to see these projects to fruition.

Mr. Austin Fernando, Secretary to H.E. the President of Sri Lanka, said, While the government continues to work towards bringing about sustainable development, we need to understand that this cannot be done without the involvement and support of the private sector and all other stakeholders. H.E. President Maithripala Sirisenatoo has time and time again stressed on the importance of public-private partnerships in fostering national development through economic growth. Commending Unilever,UNDP and UNGC for their efforts in shaping such partnerships, I look forward to seeing the progress of the projects being rolled out by them together with Aitken Spence, Commercial Bank, Dialog and MAS.

Mr. Jorn Sorensen, UNDP Sri Lanka Country Director stated, This is the start of a new movement. By connecting businesses with governments and the development partners, we can create an environment that unleashes the potential of the private sector because investing in the Sustainable Development is a win-win.As such, the private sector is an important strategic partner for UNDP in achieving its vision to help countries eradicate poverty and reduce inequalities and exclusion within broader sustainable development. UNDP is pleased to be a catalyst in convening the relevant stakeholders to support Sri Lanka achieve sustainable human development, because strong partnerships help us deliver stronger results that improve people's lives.

Mr. Jegan Durairatnam - Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Commercial Bank PLC, Mr. Shayam Majeed - Group Chief Customer Officer Dialog Axiata PLC, Shakthi Ranatunga, Director - Group Human Resources, MAS Holdings, and Dr. Rohan Fernando, Chairman of United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Sri Lanka shared their views on the forum, its outcomes and the way forward.

Unilever also announced its partnership with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to host a high-level private sector forum on sustainable human development every year, starting from 2018. This is part of their efforts to further strengthen discussions around public-private sector partnerships, continue the dialogue with private sector, provide a framework for cooperation and facilitate greater collaboration.
comes to a close families of the disappeared still linger in hope that their loved ones would return. Some have been missing for decades and yet their loved ones express hope of their return. In the Budget 2018 speech Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said that the Office of Missing Persons(OMP) will commence operations from 2018. However the debates on the Enforced Disappearance Bill have been postponed twice. Against this backdrop civil societies have shown concern over the delay in passing the Enforced Disappearances bill and setting up of the OMP.





Disappointing responses



The UN rapporteur on Transitional Justice Pablo de Greiff, who visited the country recently, said that there were victims in every community who have rights to truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence. Amnesty International (AI) has estimated that since the 1980s there have been at least 60,000 and as many as 100,000 cases of enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka. The victims include Sinhalese young men suspected of having connections with the JVP in 1989 and 1990 and Tamils suspected of links with the LTTE during the war. The victims also include human rights defenders, aid workers, journalists and critics of the Government.



Attorney-at-Law and senior researcher at the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), Bhavani Fonseka, said that though successive Governments have identified enforced disappearances as a problem, the responses from the Governments, including the current regime, have been disappointing. The Government committed to an office of missing persons and to criminalize enforced disappearances. As for the OMP, despite the commitment to establish it in 2015, to date it has not still been operationalized. Minister Samaraweera said during his budget speech that it will be operationalized in January, 2018. CPA is extremely concerned about these delays, she said. Meanwhile the Constitutional Council has reportedly selected seven members to the OMP and the names have been submitted to the President for approval.



Sri Lanka is a signatory to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance since December 10, 2015.This was also committed in 2015. The Government ratified the convention in 2016 and made a draft enabling legislation with the Government in attempts made to have a debate on it. But the debates were postponed, said Fonseka.

National Peace Council Executive Director Dr. Jehan Perera  admitted that though the Government was proceeding slowly it was on the correct path. I am confident the enforced disappearances bill will eventually receive approval. This will possibly be after the Local Government Elections because the Government doesnt wish to give any opportunity to the opposition to use these new initiatives for political propaganda, said Perera.



The Opposition claims that these efforts are aimed at targeting the military, the war heroes, and the security forces. It is meant to ensure that our security forces operate within the law, and dont violate peoples human rights, he explained.



Asked if the disappearances that took place during the JVP insurrection were included in these new initiatives he said that there was no time bar on the OMP.





HRC downgraded



Many families with victims of enforced disappearances have made complaints at the Human Rights Commission(HRC). On inquiry a Commissioner of the Human Rights commission, Ambika Satkunanathan said that the failure to take action regarding complaints of enforced disappearances is one reason the HRC was downgraded from A to B status in 2007 by the International Coordinating Committee on National Human Rights Institutions.

Commissions appointed



A number of Presidential commissions appointed have issued substantive reports which include the names of alleged perpetrators whom the Commissions have recommended action be taken against. However, these recommendations werent implemented and in some instances the reports of the Commissions werent released, she said.



Fonseka expressed similar sentiments that though successive Governments have appointed commissions there hasnt been action taken afterwards. Weve seen the all island commission on enforced disappearances headed by Manouri Muttetuwagama in the 90s. Then we had the Udalagama Commission, the LLRC Commission and several others. One of the recommendations of the LLRC which was made public in 2011 was that this issue of enforced disappearances is so significant, that it needs special attention and as a result the previous Government established the Paranagama Commission. So successive Governments have come up with very specific measures, mostly commissions of inquiries. But it has stopped there,she added.



The President has met with families of the disappeared and promised that the Government would probe the issue of enforced disappearances. But again it seems to be more the rhetoric, than real action, noted Fonseka.



She stressed that as the Government of Sri Lanka has committed locally and internationally to take specific steps to address the issue, it could not be said that it was an international conspiracy or some form of an international agenda.





Make such acts a crime

Dr. Perera further said that the existing law can be used to investigate into cases of enforced disappearances. At the moment there is no will because of opposition, misunderstanding, false propaganda about what all these means, he stressed. In a Supreme Court FR case on enforced disappearances, decided this year, the Supreme Court found the State to be responsible for the disappearance of two individuals and ordered the State to pay Rs 1 million each to their parents as compensation.

The case was about the enforced disappearance of Selvarajah Gunaseelan and K Kugadas in Batticaloa in 2008. The OIC of the police station was ordered to pay Rs 50,000 each to the parents of the disappeared persons.The duo disappeared when they were at the police station.



Meanwhile Fonseka pointed out that no one can be prosecuted for the crime of enforced disappearance as an enforced disappearance wasnt a crime within the Sri Lankan legal jurisdiction.



Offenses such as kidnappings and abductions- found in the penal code- dont encompass the crime of enforced disappearances. The operationalizing of the OMP and criminalizing enforced disappearances are attempts to prevent this from happening, she said.

Parents deaths were accelerated by their grief, -Dandeniya In 1989 a factory worker in the free trade zone, Ranjith Herath was summoned for a labour inquiry. He was accompanied by M.Lionel. However they never returned home. The following day their bodies were found burning at the Raddoluwa junction in Seeduwa where now a monument has been built to commemorate the disappeared. Heraths fiancee at the time Jayanthi Dandeniya, now a political activist, spoke to the Daily Mirror about how the damage inflicted by the JVP insurrection and the extra-judicial killings have now become merely a thing of the past which is considered as a fascinating story.

The parents of the children who disappeared during the 1988/89 period are very old now. Some have died. The truth is that the death of these parents was accelerated by their grief, she said. He son would have been murdered, but the body would have not been handed over to the mother. Instead the perpetrators would take it with them

She further said that some parents had suffered from mental illnesses as a result of the grief. Dandeniya said that some of the young wives remarried, but most of them didnt. Nevertheless they have endured difficulties and educated their children well. The mothers tried to hide from their children the fact that their fathers had been killed when they were small. Some children were lied to that their fathers were abroad, she said.

Referring to events at that time, Dandeniya said that people would be killed and there would be a piece of paper lying close to the dead bodies stating that the bodies shouldnt be removed. Peoples ears were cut. NICs were collected. People were asked to switch off lights,she reminisced.

There is no punishment for the perpetrators. No one investigates. There are no court cases, she claimed. The son would have been murdered, but the body would have not been handed over to the mother. Instead the perpetrators would take it with them. How can this be a disappearance? The mother saw the child being killed, said Dandeniya who hails from Beliaththa where the JVP was very powerful. Two of her brothers were also victims to these killings. The parents of the children who disappeared during the 1988/89 period are very old now. Some have died. The truth is that the death of these parents was accelerated by their grief

An MOU with the OMP



As the Office of Missing Persons will be a specialized body dedicated to investigate enforced disappearances the HRC hopes to enter into a memorandum of understanding(MOU) with the OMP instead of replicating the work of the OMP.  We are pleased that the recent budget has allocated a substantial sum to begin its operations, said Satkunanathan.



Recommendations



The HRC has written to President Maithripala Sirisena urging him to ensure the Bill on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances is enacted and has recommended changes to the current Bill to strengthen it and bring it in line with the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Apart from the Bill being passed and the OMP being set up Dr.Perera recommended that there should be a campaign to spread awareness to inform people about the purpose of these

In a Supreme Court FR case on enforced disappearances, decided this year, the Supreme Court found the State to be responsible for the disappearance of two individuals and ordered the State to pay Rs 1 million each to their parents as compensation

initiatives and that they are not about threatening national security. This is about protecting human security and human security is what national security is all about. We have security forces because we want to protect the people of this country.



These laws are meant to protect the people of the country. That message has to be taken to the people at large, so that they arent deceived by false propaganda,said Dr. Perera.



Enforced Disappearances defined

Missing persons could also include persons who have gone missing due to reasons not involving the State as well

According to Article 2 of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance an enforced disappearance is the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person, which place such a person outside the protection of the law.



As Dr.Jehan Perera pointed out missing persons could also include persons who have gone missing due to reasons not involving the State as well.

Very progressive move, says Mano Ganesan



Speaking to the Daily Mirror Minister of national Co-Existence Dialogue and Official Languages Mano Ganesan said that the OMP will be operationalized in the weeks to come. The effort to operationalize the OMP is a very progressive move. Due to the efforts of people like us within the Government, the civil society and the international community, the OMP is slowly, but steadily taking shaped, he said.



The President has to formally approve the names of the OMP commissioners decided on by the Constitutional Council, he added.

Asked whether the enforced disappearance bill will be taken up for debate soon, he said that that the focus now was on the OMP. The Bill which was to be submitted to the Parliament was postponed. Since the OMP Act has already been passed, we thought that we would start with the OMP, and proceed with the Bill afterwards, he said.



Once the OMP is established people not only from the North and East, but also the South can make complaints, he said throwing light on the positives of the OMP. This will not be a static office. There will be regional offices, mobile offices which can go to villages and approach the people, he added.
GAIL had contracted LNG from the US to meet the demand of growing Indian economy with power sector being considered as a major buyer.

New Delhi: GAIL India Ltd will import about 5 million tonnes (MT) of LNG from the US next fiscal, replacing the volumes the state-owned utility buys from the spot market, a senior company official said.

GAIL has contracted 5.8 MT per annum of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US, some of which it has swapped - either by exchanging the gas with someone having it nearer to India or by time-swapping it.

"We expect to receive about 5 million tonnes of LNG from US next fiscal (2018-19)," the official said.

This will be used for replacing the LNG that GAIL currently buys from the spot or current market as well as on short term contracts.

"Out of our LNG buying of about 33 million standard cubic meters per day (8.25 MT per annum), only 17-18 mmscmd comes from long-term contract with RasGas of Qatar. The rest is all spot or short term contract volumes, which we hope to replace with US LNG," he said.

The official said the company sold a "major chunk" of the US LNG via time swaps, destination swaps and shipping optimisation. Under the time-swap deals, the company will buy LNG from international companies this year and sell equivalent amount of Henry Hub-indexed volumes during 2018-19.

Besides, to cut shipping costs, it has entered into deals to take deliveries of gas from a nearer location and in exchange given its US volumes to company closer to the origin. The official said some of the time-swapped volumes have started arriving in India but refused to give details.

GAIL has a deal to buy 3.5 MT a year of LNG for 20 years from Cheniere Energy of the US and has also booked capacity for another 2.3 MT at Dominion Energy's Cove Point liquefaction plant. The company expects US LNG supplies to begin from March/ April next year, he said.

GAIL had contracted LNG from the US to meet the demand of growing Indian economy with power sector being considered as a major buyer. But electricity produced using imported LNG is not finding buyers due to cheaper alternatives including renewables, leading to stranding of significant capacity out of 25,000 MW of installed gas based power plants.

GAIL had in May signed a first-ever time-swap deal to sell some of its US LNG. Under the agreement, it will get 15 cargoes or about 0.8 MT of LNG from an unnamed trader this year.

In return, GAIL will sell 10 cargoes or about 0.6 MT next year from Sabine Pass on the US Gulf coast. GAIL had separately signed a deal with Royal Dutch Shell to sell about 0.5 million tonnes of its US LNG.

The LNG that GAIL will receive this year between April and December under the time-swap deal will be at oil-linked prices. The sale of US gas next year will be at a premium to its pricing formula on a free-on-board (FOB) basis.
New Delhi: As concerns over Financial Resolution and Deposit Insurance Bill, 2017 (FRDI) refuses to die, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday himself came forward to assure that in case of a bank failure the Centre will fully protect deposits made by the customers.

The government is very clear about it, said the finance minister. This is the third statement by the finance ministry in last seven days assuring people that the FRDI bill will not harm their interests in case of a bank failure.

There had been apprehensions in some sections that the Financial Resolution and Deposit Insurance Bill, 2017 (FRDI) may result in people losing their hard earned savings in case of a bank failure.

He said that about Rs 2.11 lakh crore is being pumped in to strengthen the Public Sector Banks so there is no such question arises of a failure of banks. FRDI Bill, 2017 is before the Joint Committee of Parliament. Whatever are the recommendations of the committee, the government will consider. But rumours are being spread about the bill, the minister said.

The FRDI Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August 2017. The Bill proposes to create a framework for overseeing financial institutions such as banks, insurance companies, NBFCs companies and stock exchanges in case of insolvency.

The controversy is about the bail-in provision in the FRDI Bill, which some analysts say may mean that creditors and depositors have to absorb losses in case of a bank failure. This had raised concerns that people may have to bail out banks with their hard-earned money if a bank goes bust.

Currently under the Deposit Insurance Corporation Act, a maximum of Rs 1 lakh of every depositor in banks is insured in case a bank goes bust. But, FRDI proposes a Resolution Corporation in association with regulator will determine the amount of money of people to be insured in case of bank failures.
Mumbai: Top Bollywood actors, including Kareena Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar and Madhuri Dixit, have condemned the alleged molestation of National Award-winning actor Zaira Wasim.

The 17-year-old actor, known for her roles in films like "Dangal" and "Secret Superstar", was allegedly molested on a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night.

The actor later narrated her ordeal on Instagram via a live video.

Wasim said she was on an Air Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put up his feet on her armrest.

The man was arrested by police in Mumbai last evening.

When asked about the incident, Pednekar said she was shocked to know about the alleged molestation but the actor was happy that Wasim showed courage to speak up about her ordeal.

"I am appalled. She is a child. There is a problem in our culture where people think, especially if you are an actor, that you are their property. This is hugely problematic.

"But I am very happy that she put it out on social media. I am glad she took that step because it needs a lot of courage to speak, to come out and take a stand like that. More power to her," Pednekar said.

Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said women are far superior than men and the females can rise above any difficulty.

"I definitely feel women are way more superior than men. We are fighters and whichever situation it is in our life, personal or professional, we all come out as fighters. When we talk about God, we talk about goddess. So, we look from the perspective of a woman.

"When we talk about the earth, we say Mother Earth. So, whenever we talk about anything, we talk about women. Women are far superior (than men). So, they can fight out of every situation," Khan said.

Actor Taapsee Pannu, who has always raised her voice against violence against women, said, "I just hope she gets justice. It is good that at least she has raised her voice. She deserves to get justice."

Noted actor Madhuri Dixit said, "This should not happen, neither in India nor in any other part of the world."

Television actor Mouni Roy said she was deeply saddened by the incident, which is an act that stems from a poor mentality.

"Now, what should I say about this country. On one hand we talk about women empowerment, on the other hand we hear about all these incidents. But I think it is very important not to just stand against it and talk about it, but also to educate people against this," she said.

"I genuinely don't know what to say. It deeply saddens me. The kind of life we lead, the kind of education we all are getting, in fact, the levels of education in towns and villages have gone up. This is just really sad. I think this reflects a poor mindset," Roy added.

When asked for his opinion on the incident, actor Sushant Singh Rajput said, "We talk a lot (but) I think at the right place and in the right time, we need to take action also. We are intelligent and responsible enough as a country to see to it that these things don't happen."

The celebrities were speaking at the red carpet of Lux Golden Rose Awards here last night.

Actor Zareen Khan said there should be a focus on preventing such incidents rather than attending to "minuscule" things.

"I really don't know what to say about it because such incidents keep happening in our country. Rather than focusing on issues like these, I don't know why our country is behind minuscule matters," she said.

"The way we talk about women empowerment and safety, I don't think only talking about it is needed. We also need to take some action to stop all of this," Khan added.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, she broke down several times.

"This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how you're going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!" she said.

"No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing," she added.
Rajugadu is complete except for two songs and the lead pair, Raj Tarun and Amyra Dastur, will be leaving for Thailand for shooting the songs.

The film, Rajugadu is complete except for two songs and the lead pair, Raj Tarun and Amyra Dastur, will be leaving for Thailand for shooting the songs. I am very excited about my debut film, says director Sanjana Reddy, adding that the post-production work is also complete. The output has come out nicely and I am eagerly waiting to see it in the theatres, she says, while thanking producer Anil Sunkara for the opportunity.

This is my debut as director, but the producer gave me a free hand to complete the film. All the actors supported me though they are very senior, says Sanjana, revealing that she is leaving on the 20th of this month for Thailand to complete the two songs. The romantic comedy is releasing on the occasion of Sankranti and will be competing with many big films.
Chetak Festival, Sarangkheda is an age-old pastoral fair of horses that has been transformed into a month-long celebration.

Mumbai: Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation has organised Sarangkheda Chetak Festival 2017 from 3rd December 2017 to 2nd Jan 2018 to attract domestic and foreign tourists in Nandurbar district.

The 31 days of Sarangkheda Chetak Festival 2017 has observed the arrival of more than 2500 horses at the major horse carnivals in the State of Maharashtra.

The first day of the festival also exhibited horse dance shows and pawara, a tribal dance by the locals of Nandurbar district.

The festival was graced at the hands of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in the presence of Minister of Tourism Jaykumar Rawal, Nitin Gadre (IAS), Principal Secretary, Tourism and Culture, Government of Maharashtra, Vijay Waghmare, (IAS) Managing Director, MTDC , Aashutosh Rathod, Joint Managing Director, MTDC and other stakeholders.

Chetak Festival, Sarangkheda is an age-old pastoral fair of horses that has been transformed into a month-long celebration.

The festival is held in the attractive rural localities of Northern Maharashtra on the banks of Tapi River for the last 300 years. The Maharashtra government is trying to create awareness about the festival and Nandurbar district to attract both national as well as worldwide tourists to this emerging holiday destination.

MTDC and Department of Tourism, Government of Maharashtra is dedicated to take this festival to a global podium through the development of infrastructure, advertising and promotion. MTDC has planned to develop a horse museum for travelers that will inform them about the numerous qualities of breed, marking, lifespan and color etc. of horses.

The Government has sanctioned Rs 4.98 crores for the museum and the dome shaped horse museum will be constructed on 6.5 acres land along the Tapi River.

The other amenities like art gallery, exhibition venue, audio-visual room, food stall, shops will be made in the museum. Through these steps, Department of Tourism, Government of Maharashtra and MTDC desire to increase the economic and tourist footfall in Nandurbar district.

Speaking at the Occasion, Shri.Jaykumar Rawal, Minister of Tourism & (EGS), Government of Maharashtra. It is a privilege to promote the rich legacy of horses and the Department of Tourism and MTDC is optimistic to take this festival on the global platform. Sarangkheda, a small village with the population of 10,000 citizens organising this festival from more than 300 years."

He went on to add, "The festival displayed horses from states like Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Afghanistan, and Gujarat etc. We constantly endeavour to create new avenues of tourism in the state and Adventure tourism is a growing segment that attracts huge number of youngsters. I believe that adventure activities like horse riding and sport activities at Nandurbar district will be the perfect getaway at The Chetak Village. We are also developing a horse museum to showcase the diversity of horse and the breeds to the visitors.
Beasley is yet to be caught by authorities, the 10 most daring and amazing escapes from prison in history. (Photo: Pixabay)

An American citizen detained for a drug offense escaped from a prison on the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

Head of Kerobokan prison Tonny Nainggolan says Christian Beasley, 32, was believed to have escaped at around 4 am Monday by sawing through a ceiling and then jumping over a 6-meter (20-foot) high wall behind the prison.

Beasley was arrested in August at a post office on Bali with a package containing 5.7 grams of hashish.

While, Beasley is yet to be caught by authorities, the 10 most daring and amazing escapes from prison in history.

Maze Prison Escape: In the biggest prison escape in British history, on 25 September 1983 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, 38 Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners, escaped from H-Block 7 of the prison. HM Prison Maze was considered one of the most escape-proof prisons in Europe. Accounts state that shortly after 2:30, the prisoners took control of the H-block holding the prison guards hostage at gunpoint. Some of the prisoners took the guards clothing and car keys in order to help with their escape. At 3:25, a truck bringing food supplies arrived and the prisoners told the driver that he was going to help them escape. They tied his foot to the clutch and told him where to drive. At 3:50 the truck left the H-block, and soon after the prison, carrying all 38 men.

While 19 escapees were caught, the remaining escapees were assisted by the IRA in finding hiding places.

Alfred Hinds: Alfie Hinds was a British criminal and escape artist who, while serving a 12 year prison sentence for robbery, successfully broke out of three high security prisons. Despite the dismissal of thirteen of his appeals to higher courts, he was eventually able to gain a pardon using his knowledge of the British legal system. After being sentenced to 12 years in prison for a jewelry robbery, Hinds escaped from Nottingham prison by sneaking through the locked doors and over a 20-foot prison wall for which he became known in the press as Houdini Hinds.

The Texas Seven: The Texas 7 was a group of prisoners who escaped from the John Connally Unit near Kenedy, Texas on December 13, 2000. They were apprehended January 21-23, 2001 as a direct result of the television show Americas Most Wanted. The seven carried out an elaborate scheme and escaped from the John B. Connally Unit, a maximum-security state prison near the South Texas town of Kenedy. Using several well-planned ploys, the seven convicts overpowered and restrained nine civilian maintenance supervisors, four correctional officers and three uninvolved inmates to facilitate their escape. Of the escaped convicts, 5 living members of the group are all on death row awaiting death by lethal injection. Of the other two, one committed suicide and one has already been executed.

Alfred Wetzler: Wetzler was a Slovak Jew, and one of a very small number of Jews known to have escaped from the Auschwitz death camp during the Holocaust. Wetzler is known for the report that he and his fellow escapee, Rudolf Vrba, compiled about the inner workings of the Auschwitz camp  a ground plan of the camp, construction details of the gas chambers, crematoriums and, most convincingly, a label from a canister of Zyklon gas. Wetzler escaped with a fellow Jew named Rudolf Vrba. With the help of the camp underground, at 2 pm on Friday, April 7, 1944  the eve of Passover  the two men climbed inside a hollowed-out hiding place in a wood pile that was being stored to build the Mexico section for the new arrivals. The two remained in hiding for 4 nights  to avoid recapture. On April 10, wearing Dutch suits, overcoats, and boots they had taken from the camp, they made their way south, heading for the Polish border with Slovakia 80 miles (133 km.) away, guiding themselves using a page from a childs atlas that Vrba had found in the warehouse.

Sawomir Rawicz: Rawicz was a Polish soldier who was arrested by Soviet occupation troops after the German-Soviet invasion of Poland. On 9 April 1941, Rawicz claimed that he and his six allies escaped in a middle of a blizzard. They rushed to the south, avoiding towns in fear they would be betrayed, but apparently they were not actively pursued.

They also met an additional fugitive, Polish woman Krystyna. Nine days later they crossed the Lena River. They walked around Lake Baikal and crossed to Mongolia. Fortunately, people they encountered were friendly and hospitable. During the crossing of the Gobi desert, two of the group (Krystyna and Makowski) died. Others had to eat snakes to survive. Around October 1941 they claim to have reached Tibet.

Locals were friendly, especially when men said they were trying to reach Lhasa. They crossed the Himalayas somehow in the middle of winter. Another of the group died in his sleep in the cold and one fell into a crevasse and disappeared. Rawicz claims the survivors reached India around March 1942.

Escape From Alcatraz: In its 29 years of operation, there were 14 attempts to escape from Alcatraz prison involving 34 inmates. Officially, every escape attempt failed, and most participants were either killed or quickly re-captured. However, the participants in the 1937 and 1962 attempts, though presumed dead, disappeared without a trace, giving rise to popular theories that they were successful.

The most famous and intricate attempt to escape from Alcatraz (June 11, 1962) saw Frank Morris, and the Anglin brothers burrow out of their cells, climb to the top of the cell block, cut through bars to make it to the roof via an air vent. From there they climbed down a drain pipe, over a chain link fence and then to the shore where they assembled a pontoon-type raft and then vanished.

The Great Escape: Stalag Luft III was a German Air Force prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force personnel. In January 1943, Roger Bushell led a plot for a major escape from the camp. The plan was to dig three deep tunnels, codenamed Tom, Dick, and Harry. Each of the tunnel entrances was carefully selected to ensure they were undetectable by the camp guards. In order to keep the tunnels from being detected by the perimeter microphones, they were very deep  about 9 metres (30 ft) below the surface.

Finally, on Friday, March 24, the escape attempt began. Unfortunately for the prisoners, the tunnel had come up short. It had been planned that the tunnel would reach into a nearby forest, but the first man out emerged just short of the tree line. Despite this, 76 men crawled through the tunnel to initial freedom, even through an air raid during which the camps (and the tunnels) electric lights were shut off. Finally, at 5am on March 25, the 77th man was seen emerging from the tunnel by one of the guards. Out of the 76 men only 3 evaded capture. Fifty men were killed and the rest were captured and sent back.
India is a country with a diverse culture and is also home to various mindsets which may at times clash. In the past events like Kiss of Love have sparked controversy as couples have also been harassed by the moral police for violating what they call Indian culture.

While kissing in public may still be a taboo in many parts of India, a town in Jharkhand comes across as a surprising example. MLA Simon Marandi recently organised an event where couples expressed love by kissing each other in public and the one with the longest kiss won the competition.

The contest was organised to celebrate love and romance between married couples and is a way to reduce divorce and differences among couples according to Marandi. The annual fair which also includes tribal dance, archery and running has been organised in Dumaria for the past 37 years, but kissing was added this year.
It's the kind of a story straight out of a fairytale.

When Verona Koliqi from London showed her fiance Mirand Buzaku a childhood family photo taken during a visit to a beach in Montenegro, he noticed something striking in the background.

A picture of a young boy floating on a lilo in the sea behind the Koliqi family appeared to be wearing the same clothes he once owned.

A post shared by Inspire  (@veronavanity) on Dec 2, 2017 at 11:07am PST

"He noticed the kid in the back had the same shirt, shorts and floaty as him," Koliqi is quoted as saying by The Independent. Adding, "We analysed further and confirmed with family members that its him photobombing my family photo."

Buzakus family confirmed it was very likely him because they had visited the beach around that time.

While they never met as children, they did cross paths in Kosovo in 2016. A year later they were engaged.

A post shared by Mirand Buzaku (@mirandbuzaku) on Aug 10, 2017 at 8:11am PDT

Since sharing their story on Instagram it has gained a lot of love and 31,215 likes.
Various state police teams visit Jamtara as part of the probe to zero in on conmen, who are mostly school dropouts, according to the police. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: New batches of online fraudsters from Jamtara district of Jharkhand  infamous as a training hub for cyber criminals  are a cause of worry for the police. The Jamtara district is infamous for its tutorials where hundreds of youths are trained in phishing techniques. Various state police teams visit Jamtara as part of the probe to zero in on conmen, who are mostly school dropouts, according to the police.

As the popularity of Jamtara district spreads, the youths from the adjoining Dumka, Deoghar, Dhanbad and Giridih districts are also making a beeline to learn the rudimentaries of online cheating, said cyber crime inspector, K.V.M. Prasad. The Jharkhand police so far this year has caught 200 youngsters involved in phishing rackets.
The deceaseds relatives staged a protest at the police station and demanded that action to be taken against sub-inspector, who had beaten up Varadarajulu and his wife. (Representational Image)

Kurnool: A 39-year-old roadside vendor committed suicide by consuming acid after a sub-inspector, allegedly, had beaten him along with his wife at a police station when the couple approached the police to give a complaint about a problem they were facing. The incident took place at Dhone town on Sunday. According to sources, G. Varadarajulu, a roadside vendor, setup his business (selling pallis) in front of a wine shop near Sriram cinema theatre in Dhone town. Two days back, he and another vendor quarrelled over business issues. Both of them approached police for settling the row. However, police personnel did not pay any attention towards the issue.

Feeling that injustice was meted out on him regarding the issue, on Saturday Varadarajulu along with his wife Sujatha went to police station and appealed the police to solve the problem. Instead of solving the problem, the station sub-inspector started beating both of them in public outside the police station. The sub-inspector threatened to file cases against on them if they will not calm on this issue. The couple returned home and on earlier hours of Sunday, Varadarajulu consumed acid while his family members were sleeping.

His wife who found her husband in an unconscious position alerted family members, who rushed him to government local government hospital. He was shifted to Kurnool Government General Hospital, where he died while undergoing medical treatment. The deceaseds relatives staged a protest at the police station and demanded that action to be taken against sub-inspector, who had beaten up Varadarajulu and his wife.
New Delhi: After Manmohan Singh on Monday asked Narendra Modi to apologise to the nation for spreading falsehoods and canards while campaigning for Gujarat Assembly elections, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hit back at Congress veteran leader for seeking an apology from the Prime Minister.

Former PM Manmohan Singh has issued a statement asking PM Modi to apologise for what he said in an election rally with regard to a meeting involving Pakistani delegations. It is surprising that Congress party expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it, Jaitley said.

In a statement on Monday, Manmohan came down heavily on Modi for accusing him of "not showing courage" to order a surgical strike after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground, Singh said in the statement.

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehoods and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, Singh said.

The Congress leader also dismissed Modi's allegations that Singh and Mani Shankar Aiyar had discussed Gujarat Assembly elections with Pakistani officials on December 6, and conspired to make Ahmed Patel the chief minister of the state.

Jaitley has demanded that the Congress come out with detailed facts on what transpired in that meeting and what was the necessity of having it in present circumstances.

Yesterday they were in denial about it and today instead of accepting it as a misadventure. They try to blame those raising the issue, Jaitley said.

He accused Aiyar of maintaining a parallel line of dialogue, underplaying Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and continuing to engage with the neighbouring country.

Singh had asked Modi to apologise to the nation for the allegations he made against the Congress party and its members, and restore dignity of the office he (Modi) occupies.
'Dangal' actor Zaira Wasim who was travelling in Delhi-Mumbai Air Vistara flight had narrated her ordeal on Instagram via live video. (Photo: File)

Mumbai: A 39-year-old man was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting actor Zaira Wasim onboard a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night, police said.

The man has been identified as Vikash Sachdev.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Anil Kumbhare said he will be produced in the court on Monday.

Sachdev has been booked under section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of IPC, and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) since the actor is a minor, Senior Police Inspector, Sahar, Lata Shirsat, said.

The 'Dangal' actor had narrated her ordeal on Instagram via live video.

"So, I just landed and you know the whole irony of this is that the guy... this is not done at all. This is not the way, this is not a girl should be made to feel because this is terrible. Is this how they are doing to take care of girls? No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. This is the worst thing," she said in the Instagram live video.

Zaira said she tried to click a photo of the man, but couldn't get a clear shot due to dim lights.

"Managed to get this (shot of the molester's foot). The lights were dimmed so it was even worse. It continued for another 5-10 minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck," she posted, also slamming the airline saying, "Slow claps for Vistara's crew guys! Wonderful!" she wrote.

Read Also: FIR filed in Zaira Wasim molestation matter; Vistara ensures detailed probe

After the matter came to light, a woman police officer was sent to the hotel, where the actor is staying, to record her statement, and a case was registered against an unknown person at Sahar Police station.

After the video posted by Zaira, the National Commission of Women (NCW), the Delhi Commission of Women (DCW), the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have sought details from Air Vistara over the incident.

Taking note of the incident, the airline have ordered a detailed investigation into the incident.

In a statement, the airline also apologised, adding Zaira started yelling at the accused passenger only during the descent of the flight, due to which the cabin crew couldn't move because it's mandatory to have no movement during the final phase of the flight as seat belts are on.
Rahul Gandhi has been elected as the President of the Indian National Congress. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi has been elected as the President of the Indian National Congress, Congress Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran announced on Monday.

Sonia Gandhi will officially hand over the mantle of the 132-year-old party to her son around 11 am on Saturday.

"Rahul will be handed over the certificate of his election as the party president on December 16 at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) office," Ramachandran said.

"A total of 89 nomination proposals were received and all were valid. Since there was only one candidateRahul Gandhi was elected as the president of Indian National Congress," Ramachandran said.

Uttarakhand: Celebration at Congress office in Dehradun after Rahul Gandhi elected as the party President. pic.twitter.com/6fWeG1bGYt  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

While pageantry would herald the dawn of a new era in the party which has ruled the country for over half-a-century since Independence, the 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family will face the daunting task of restoring lost glory to the party whose fortunes have been dwindling in the recent past.

The Congress has been losing state after state since the 2014 Lok Sabha election with the exception of Punjab.
A senior police official said that the preliminary investigation suggested that it was a 'well calculated' attack by Yadav on his colleagues. (Photo: File/Representational)

Raipur: CRPF constable Sant Kumar Yadav, accused of shooting dead his four colleagues at a camp in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, on Sunday said he was being framed in the case, a claim dismissed by an official who called it a "well calculated" killing.

Yadav (35) was on Sunday produced in a Bijapur court which sent him to judicial remand for two weeks, police said.

Four Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, including two sub-inspectors, were killed and another injured on Saturday in a gunfire allegedly opened on them by Yadav at the force's 168th battalion 'G' company camp in Basaguda, located around 450 km from Raipur.

Yadav told the press on the court premises on Sunday that he was not involved in the fratricide.

"I completed my duty from 2 to 4 pm on Saturday and then went to freshen up. Around 5 pm, I heard the sound of bullets and ran towards the place. I immediately took position with my weapon like other personnel were doing. Who opened firing and on whom, I don't have any details," he claimed.

Yadav, a native of Firozabad in Uttar Pradesh, said the company commander and other troopers held him after the firing saying he had killed the four personnel.

"I came to know that they were killed by a different weapon not by mine. I don't know why I am being implicated when I haven't done anything," he said.

When asked why he was being dragged into the incident without any reason, Yadav said, "Small issues and disputes can be there (among personnel) if we work together but it doesn't mean that anybody will take such an extreme step. I have come here to earn for my family and they have come for the same."

Meanwhile, a senior police official posted in Bijapur said, the preliminary investigation suggested that it was a "well calculated" attack by Yadav on his colleagues. "After the incident, Yadav surrendered before his company commander and confessed to having committed the crime. However, he retracted his statement this morning," the official who questioned Yadav in the custody said.

As per preliminary probe, Yadav was a habitual drinker and used to visit nearby villages in the insurgency-hit forest without informing anyone in the camp in search of locally-made liquor, he said.

Yadav, who was earlier posted in the outpost of the CRPF's 168th battalion located close to the main camp of the unit in Basaguda, was shifted to the main camp recently after a complaint was lodged against him in connection with his habits, he said.

The constable also had some issues with the deceased personnel and had an altercation with them in the past, according to the official.

"After completing his duty yesterday, Yadav went to the officers' mess, picked up a weapon of one of his colleagues and sprayed bullets which shows that it was a well-calculated attack as he did not use his weapon," he claimed.

Yadav fired more than 90 rounds, the official said. He said the casualties would have been more had some personnel not gone out on some duty at the time of the incident. The deceased included sub-inspectors Vikey Sharma (34) and Megh Singh (52), who hailed from Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir and Ahmedabad in Gujarat, respectively.

The other two deceased are Assistant Sub Inspector Rajveer Singh (48), who hailed from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, and Constable G Sankara Rao (37) from Vijaynagram in Andhra Pradesh.

ASI Gajanand (49), a native of Rewari in Haryana, sustained injuries in his side ribs and is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Raipur.
'I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread' by Modi, Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh says. (Photos: PTI)

New Delhi: Coming down heavily on the Prime Minister for accusing him of "not showing courage" to order a surgical strike after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, Manmohan Singh on Monday said no one, including Narendra Modi, can question my public service to the countryto gain lost political ground.

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground, Singh said in a statement.

Modi, while addressing a public rally at Vadodara in Gujarat on Sunday, said: "Someone who served at a high position in the Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for surgical strikes. Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that".

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehoods and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, Singh said.

The former prime minister said the Congress Party needs no sermons on nationalism from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised record on fighting terrorism is well known.

He reminded Modi that he had visited Pakistan without an invitation after terrorist attack in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. He also demanded that Modi reveal the reason behind inviting the infamous Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to Air Force Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from the neighbouring country.

The Congress leader also dismissed Modi's allegations that Singh and Mani Shankar Aiyar had discussed Gujarat Assembly elections with Pakistani officials on December 6, and conspired to make Ahmed Patel the chief minister of the state.

The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations, Singh said, adding that none of the Indian public servants and journalists who were present at the dinner could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities.

Concluding his statement, Singh said he hopes the Prime Minister apologises to the nation for the allegations he made against the Congress party and its members, and restore dignity of the office he (Modi) occupies.

Here's the letter by Dr Manmohan Singh along with list of invitees pic.twitter.com/gwpeagJxU9  Pawan Khera (@Pawankhera) December 11, 2017

The statement by former prime minister Manmohan Singh.
Rahul Gandhi has been elected as the president of the Indian National Congress. (File photo)

New Delhi: Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Monday expressed happiness on elevation of Rahul Gandhi as party president and said the latter has shown a lot of mettle over a period of time and will be able to execute his responsibility well

Azad said the entire Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including the Prime Minister and his 80 ministers, was sitting in Gujarat for months but were still unable to counter Rahul.

"Entire country has lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. He has shown his mettle over a period of time and particularly in the ongoing election in Gujarat. Much before he was elected he has made Prime Minister Modi rattled," Azad said.

"He knows his responsibility and priorities very well," he added.

Echoing similar sentiments, former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi said at the time when the situation is 'worst under the ruling government', elevation of Rahul will prove to be good.

"In such time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party President. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon and he is even facing Prime Minister Modi confidently," Gogoi told ANI.

Meanwhile, the Congress worker and leaders across the nation are celebrating with great zeal.

Scores of workers even gathered in front of the Congress office raising slogans for Rahul and distributing sweets.

Rahul was formally declared as the Congress Party president earlier today.

Confirming the elevation, Congress' Central Election Authority Chairman Mullapally Ramchandran said the committee had received 89 nomination papers, all proposing the name of Rahul for the coveted post.

Rahul has succeeded his mother Sonia Gandhi, who held the post for nearly two decades.
The election officials also seized as many as 12 cars that belong to various party functionaries in the late hours of Saturday. (Representational image)

Chennai: Polling officials in RK Nagar seized a total of Rs 5.21 lakh cash on two different occasions after the election model code of conduct came into effect in high profile constituency.

According to the police, the election flying squad officials, who were engaged in vehicle checking at Korukkupet area on Saturday night, checked a car and found Rs 2 lakh in possession of an Arakonam-based businessman.

The officials seized the money and handed it over to Tondiarpet police and a case was registered. Similarly, the election official on December 2 seized cash worth `3.21 at Ambetkar Nagar from an AIADMK party cadre. In a press report, the election department has said that a total of Rs 5.21 lakh has been seized until Sunday.

The election officials also seized as many as 12 cars that belong to various party functionaries in the late hours of Saturday. The cars were seized as candidates used them without proper permits. The cars will be returned after the by-election is over, an election official said. The election department also said that it had received 148 complaints until Sunday, of which 142 complaints are rectified.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also questioned Congress leaders, including its vice president Rahul Gandhi, for raising doubts over the surgical strikes. (Photo: Twitter | @BJP4India)

Vadodara: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing a public rally at Vadodara in Gujarat, asked his predecessor Manmohan Singh why did he not show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the Army.

He said after the Mumbai attacks, the Air Force had approached the then prime minister Singh with a plan for surgical strikes, but the government did not show the courage to order it.

"Under whose advice did he (Singh) do so," Modi asked the gathering at the Navlakhi compound at Vadodara.

"Someone who served at a high position in the Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for surgical strikes. Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that," Modi said and cited the example of his government's action in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack in September last year.

"My government, in the aftermath of the Uri attack by Pakistan, had launched a surgical strike inside the borders of Pakistan, targeting several terror camps and launchpads. The strikes came as a surprise for the Pakistanis who were caught unaware. While the maximum damage was inflicted on their side, the Indian soldiers came back without any casualties," he added.

Modi also questioned Congress leaders, including its vice president Rahul Gandhi, for raising doubts over the surgical strikes.

"Are such secret matters to be discussed in public?" he asked, saying this was the difference between the NDA government and the UPA government.

Modi said the reason behind his vacating the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat in 2014 was for blossoming the "lotus" in Uttar Pradesh and replicating the Gujarat model of development in that state.

After winning two Lok Sabha seats from Vadodara and Varanasi in the 2014 general election, Modi had retained the Varanasi seat.

He thanked the people of Vadodara for allowing him to resign from here.

The Prime Minister also justified demonetisation, saying it was aimed at unearthing black money and preventing the parallel economy.

He said the government had since succeeded in unearthing a "hawala" racket in Jammu and Kashmir which led to the arrest of many leaders who were advocating support for terrorism in the state.

Congress leaders were not happy with demonetisation as it was a source of their income and even after a year since the note ban, they had kept the issue alive, he said.

The Prime Minister also wondered how a "secret meeting" between Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and the former Pakistani high commissioner and other leaders from that country could take place without the knowledge of the Government of India.

Modi said when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he used to take permission from the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government at the Centre before holding a meeting with a foreign dignitary.
New Delhi: Pakistan on Monday reacted sharply to Prime Minister Narendra Modis charge of interference in the Gujarat polls, saying Islamabad should not be dragged into Indian electoral debate and that victories should be won on ones own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

Mr Modi had sparked a huge controversy on Sunday when he pointed towards a recent dinner at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars house which was attended by prominent dignitaries from Pakistan besides senior Congress leaders.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader and Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit back and condemned the unwarranted statement by Pakistan, asking it not to sermonise to India. He alleged that the Pakistani statement sought to bail out the Congress party.

In a tweet on Monday, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said, India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible. The law minister hit back on this reaction.

On Tuesday, a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into Indias election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own. I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting (elections in) Indias democracy on their own as they do Indias Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM,

He added, The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world. Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of Indias democracy. he said.  ... Pakistan comes out with an official statement in many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion, he added.

It is common for diplomats stationed in New Delhi and visiting dignitaries to attend social events including private dinners. Mr. Aiyar himself has been a former diplomat.

Union ministers in the Modi government too have, in their official capacity, attended formal occasions at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi previously. Mr Modi had himself visited Pakistan two years ago to personally extend greetings to the then Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif on his birthday on Mr Sharifs invitation.
Bengaluru: More than 100 convicts in Karnataka, who have completed their prison term of minimum 14 years with remission, will be set free on December 13. According to official sources, the governor has approved the release of 108 convicts, including 27 from the pending list from the various prisons in the state.

"The convicts have been selected as per the state's revised guidelines on premature release of convicts. The Prisons Department had recommended the names of 93 convicts, of which 81 have been approved by the governor. He has also approved the release of 27 convicts, who were in the pending list," an official source told this newspaper. Some women lifers, whose names were recommended for premature release, have not made it in the final list on technical grounds, including their tenure in the prison. "This is the second batch of life convicts who will be set free prematurely this year. The government had released 144 convicts on Republic Day," he said.

According to the July 2016 guidelines, a convict (male or female), who is undergoing life imprisonment and is covered by the provisions of Section 433A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), shall be eligible to be considered for pre-mature release after he or she has served a sentence of 14 years of imprisonment without remission.

Male life convicts, who are not covered under Section 433A, can be considered for pre-mature release after they have served at least 14 years inclusive of remissions and 10 years without remissions.

Female life convicts, not covered by Section 433A of CrPC and undergoing the sentence of life imprisonment can be considered for pre-mature release after serving 10 years, inclusive of remissions and seven years without remission

There is an age concession for life convicts. A male lifer of or more than 65 years of age can be considered for early release after imprisonment of 14 years with remission. A female lifer aged more than 60 years can be considered for premature release after 12 years of prison term with remission.
Bengaluru: 'Hai Bangalore' editor Ravi Belagere, accused of giving a supari to eliminate his colleague Sunil Heggaravalli over suspicions he was allegedly having a relationship with his partner Yashomathy, was on Monday sent to 14-day judicial custody, till December 23.

The CCB police did not seek extension of his police custody, which ended on Monday, and let the First ACMM court send him to judicial custody.

The Qaidi No. 12785 was lodged at Sanjeevini, the hospital on the premises of the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, as he is diabetic. Prison officials reportedly assigned an inmate to assist him as he is physically weak.

Advocate Diwakar said that he presented a 100-page report on the health condition of Belagere and the need to monitor him constantly. A bail petition will be moved before a sessions court in a day or two.

Belagere faces several cases against him but this is the first time he has been lodged in a prison.
Union minister for external affairs Sushma Swaraj with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi (right) and Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov (left) at a joint press conference following the Russia-India-China Foreign Ministerial Meeting at Jawahar Lal Nehru Bhawan in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC)  Sergey Lavrov, Sushma Swaraj and Wang Yi  held trilateral talks in the Capital on Monday on a host of issues but Pakistan-based terror groups Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) were not specifically named in the RIC joint communique that was issued on Monday. However, the Communique did state that the three countries agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities and that the three countries condemn all forms of terrorism and all terrorists, terror entities and organisations listed by the UN Security Council.

Both the LeT and the JeM are UN-proscribed terror outfits. Indian Government sources said the condemnation of terror and all UN-proscribed outfits in the Communique included the two terror outfits even though they were not mentioned by name.

However, just three months ago, the two Pakistan-based terrorist organisations had been named  as groups indulging in violence  in a joint statement at the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) Summit in Chinas Xiamen city, indicating that the Chinese may have somewhat hardened their stand since then. China had once again recently blocked efforts led by India, the US, Britain and France to get JeM chief Masood Azhar banned by the UN although the JeM itself has already been banned by the UN.

Ms Swaraj, however, raised the terrorism issue strongly during the RIC talks, saying terror outfits like the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development.

After a separate bilateral meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Ms, Swaraj said the two countries (India and China) agreed that they should further strengthen our mutual trust to develop a better understanding.
Mr Subba Rao agreed in principle that Krishna water had been supplied to various projects under Srisailam dam but this was done on the directions of the Krishna River Management Board.

Hyderabad: Telangana state government senior counsel C.S. Vaidyanathan on Monday asked how much Krishna water the AP government had diverted from the Srisailam dam during the current water year to projects located outside the Krishna basin and for the projects based on surplus flows from the river.

He was continuing his cross examination of Andhra Pradesh irrigation affairs key witness K.V. Subba Rao, a former chief engineer, before the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal.

Mr Subba Rao agreed in principle that Krishna water had been supplied to various projects under Srisailam dam but this was done on the directions of the Krishna River Management Board.

The cross-examination will continue on Tuesday. Key witness on agriculture affairs Dr P.V. Satyanarayana, principal scientist of Marteru Paddy Research Station, would be cross-examined over the course of the next couple of days.

Mr Vaidyanathan posed 61 questions concerning diversion of Krishna waters, to most of which Mr Subba Rao replied that he was not aware and needed to check with irrigation officials.

Mr Vaidyanathan asked whether, against the agreement of supplying 15 TMC ft of water to Chennai, the highest figure achieved at the Poondi reservoir point was only 5.18 TMC ft. This when 96 TMC ft of water was drawn from Srisailam to supply to various other projects.

To this, Mr Subba Rao said the Pothireddypadu regulator was also meant for the Srisailam right branch canal and Telugu Ganga. The AP government had to supply water to Chennai though Karnataka and Maharashtra did not contribute their share of 5 TMC ft so far.

Mr Vaidyanathan asked why the capacity of the head regulator capacity and the canal had been increased to 11,000 cusecs when the inter-state agreement stated that only 1,500 cusecs per day needed to be drawn for the Chennai scheme.

Mr Subba Rao said since the length of canal is about 400 km, and it has to pass through areas in need of drinking and irrigation waters, there bound to be obstructions due to human interference. the AP witness also agreed that a number of projects were located outside the Krishna basin.

The TS government has fielded irrigation department consultant G.S. Jha as key witness on irrigation affairs for the purpose of cross-examination by AP.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed a Madras high court judgment directing the state to establish Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (which will Hindi medium of instruction) in all the districts of Tamil Nadu and further direction to provide temporary sites and building to accommodate 240 children in each of the districts within a period of two months.

A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud granted the stay on a special leave petition filed by Tamil Nadu challenging the judgment. The Bench after hearing senior counsel Aryama Sundaram and K. Vijayakumar issued notice to the petitioner on whose PIL the high vourt passed the order.

TN, in its appeal, said the SLP raised substantial questions of law of general and public importance on the jurisdiction of the high court to direct the state government to establish Navodaya schools by giving lands without giving a finding that the existing infrastructure is inadequate.

It said the state government refused to give permission to establish the Navodaya Vidyalaya schools primarily on the ground that they violate the policy adopted by the state government and the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Tamil Learning Act, 2006.
Bengaluru: Dr Mahesha Vankalakunti, a Consultant Nephropathologist at Manipal Hospitals, is not just a clinician with loads of experience, but has also reached a milestone of conducting 25,000 kidney biopsies.

What makes this feat unique is that the city has only three to four nephropathologists trained to conduct the tests. When he started, city hospitals had to outsource the patient details for kidney biopsies. "Before I joined Manipal Hospital in 2010, hospitals did not have nephrologists to give kidney biopsy tests and they had to be sent to other cities, including the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh. Bengaluru being a metropolitan city, I thought that we should have such an essential service considering the disease burden," he said. He started the journey in 2010 and facilitated Kidney Biopsy Reports for not just the entire state, but also West Bengal and other states.

What started at our hospital caught the attention of other hospitals who also started sending samples to us. Currently, we get reports from entire Karnataka, South Maharashtra, Salem in Tamil Nadu, Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, which has the highest numbers," he said. Close to 100 nephrologists send him the samples for accurate reports. His work has currently been recognised by the Nephrology Association of Karnataka, who will honour him on December 23 for reaching the milestone and conducting the highest number of biopsies.

Speaking about the need for timely reports, he said, Time is crucial. With the help of kidney biopsy, the doctors get complete information about the kind of disease and at what stage it is in, based on which the treatment is tailored. For end-stage cases, it is extremely important to know when they can start the dialysis. For transplant cases too, we need the report to see whether there is a kidney rejection and for that the doctors need the report as soon as possible as they have to start the anti-rejection therapy. At times of urgency, distance becomes extremely crucial and sending the sample outside the city carries the risk of losing time.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah pays tribute to former chief minister S. Nijalingappa on his 115th birth anniversary at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Sunday. (Photo: DC)

Bengaluru: The battle of wits between Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah and the Opposition BJP continues with the CM daring Union minister for Statistics, D.V. Sadananada Gowda to contest from Varuna constituency from where his son, Dr Yatindra is likely to contest in the 2018 Assembly elections.

Speaking to reporters after garlanding the portrait of late chief minister, S. Nijalingappa in Vidhana Soudha here, Mr Siddaramaiah said, "Why should I be perturbed after he (Mr Gowda) became Mysuru revenue division BJP incharge? He is mistaken. I challenge him to contest against my son, Dr Yatindra in the forthcoming Assembly polls from Varuna."

He added that he would not bother about hoax threats by anyone including Mr Gowda. "Why should Mr Gowda take pains searching for a candidate to field in Varuna, instead, he himself can contest from there," he retorted in response to a question.

He further claimed that Mr Gowda was unaware of the voting pattern in Varuna. Voters overwhelmingly voted for me and I won by a margin of 32000 votes in Varuna last time, he reminded Mr Gowda.

Reacting to the Chief Minister's open challenge, Union Minister of statistics and programme implementation, Sadananda Gowda ridiculed the CM's open challenge saying it was akin to a loser running away from the battleground even before the battle begins. "Our party is known for making leaders out of simple party workers. We will surely field a party worker, who will defeat Mr Siddaramaiah's nominees in his own turf," he thundered while reacting to reporters.

He quipped that Mr Siddaramaiah leaving his constituency, Varuna to his son speaks volumes about his fear of losing the elections in 2018.

Ananth: Target 22 of 28 seats in Bengaluru

Union minister for parliamentary affairs Ananth Kumar on Sunday called on party workers to work hard to ensure the party's victory in as many as 22 seats out of 28 Assembly seats in Bengaluru.

Speaking at the Parivartana Rally here, Mr Kumar said, "The time has come for BJP workers to teach a befitting lesson to Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah for whom the arrogance of power has gone into his head. He needs to be taught a lesson by ensuring his party's defeat in Bengaluru."

According to him, if the party wins no less than 22 Assembly seats, it would help the BJP in achieving its mission of 150 seats easily. "BJP state president, B. S. Yeddyurappa who is touring the state must be given adequate support by party workers. He will be the catalyst to bring change in the state by ensuring the party's victory march in 150 seats," he said.

Training his guns on Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah, Mr Kumar remarked that the latter has suddenly woken up after a pro-longed sleep of four and half years and was talking about the dream of making Bengaluru an international city. "Mr Siddarmaiah often sleeps and sees a dream, he saw a dream of a steel bridge not for improving city infrastructure but to fill his coffers," he caustically remarked.
I sincerely hope that he will apologise to the nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies, Manmohan Singh said. (Photos: PTI)

New Delhi: In a sharp counter-offensive on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his conspiracy with Pakistan remark, former premier Manmohan Singh on Monday said he was setting a dangerous precedent with his ill-thought transgression and asked him to apologise to the nation.

In a strongly-worded statement, Dr Singh rejected as innuendos and falsehoods Mr Modis comments, saying he did not discuss the Gujarat Assembly elections with anyone at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar for Pakistans former foreign minister Kurshid Kasuri here.

I sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

I sincerely hope that he will apologise to the nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies, he said. Dr Singh said he was deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points by the PM.

Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Shri Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief, he alleged. Addressing an election rally in Palanpur in Gujarat on Tuesday, Mr Modi suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence the Assembly polls in the state.

He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyars neech jibe against Modi that led to his suspension.

Need no lesson on nationalism: Singh

The Congress, Dr Singh said, needs no sermons on nationalism from a party and prime minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known, while reminding Modi of his uninvited visit to Pakistan after terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan, he said.

Claiming that his track record of public service to the country over the last five decades is known to all, he said no one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground.

Singh said the Gujarat issue was never raised by anyone present at the dinner and the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations.

He said besides himself and former vice president Hamid Ansari, others present at Aiyars dinner hosted for Kasuri, were the Pakistan High Commissioner, Natwar Singh, K S Bajpai, Ajai Shukla, Sharad Sabharwal, Gen Deepak Kapoor, TCA Raghavan, Satinder K Lambah, M K Bhadrakumar, CR Gharekhan, Prem Shankar Jha, Salman Haider and Rahul Khushwant Singh.

None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti- national activities, he said.
It is evident that in the Gujarat election campaign the BJP has been too embarrassed to tout the achievements of the so-called Gujarat model of development. The reason: the development claims simply do not add up. Ordinarily, political parties campaign hard and wait for results. Not Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has seen it fit to practically accuse former PM Manmohan Singh and recently retired vice-president Hamid Ansari, and others, of treason. The charge is that in a secret meeting at the residence of Mani Shankar Aiyar in New Delhi last week, these people conspired with Pakistans high commissioner in India to bring down the Modi government. Observers note that the Hindutva preaching by BJP-RSS for over more than two decades of BJP rule in the state appears to have left a patina of Hindu communal beliefs across social layers. It is to this that the BJP election campaign has repeatedly appealed as an invaluable resource, more markedly so in this election and by none other than the PM.

Linking the Congress to the Muslim community exclusively is an old ploy of polarising the votes of Hindu-born citizens, but Congress leader Rahul Gandhi seems to have practically neutralised the propaganda through his temple visits. The logical next stop is Pakistan, and Mr Modi has taken the lead in trying to link top Congress individuals to a Pakistan-inspired effort to topple the Modi regime  surely a dream plot for spy thrillers. It transpires Mr Aiyars principal guest was former Pakistan foreign minister Mahmud Ahmed Kasuri. The two were friends from their Cambridge days. As foreign minister, Mr Kasuri had worked to bring the two countries closer. Mr Aiyar has been very active in Track II processes designed to break the ice between India and Pakistan. Common protocol required that the Pakistan high commissioner be invited to the dinner.

From whats been reported, the Indian guests included former minister K. Natwar Singh (long estranged from the Congress), a retired Army chief Gen. Deepak Kapoor, retired foreign secretary Salman Haidar, a pair of former Indian high commissioners to Pakistan (recently retired), besides Dr Singh and Mr Ansari. It appears the former PM showed up just for the dinner in honour of Mr Kasuri and was not a part of the informal discussion on India-Pakistan relations. This dinner has been converted into a secret meeting by Mr Modi in a stump speech on Sunday, and the pre-dinner conversation into a conspiracy. The PM is not a fringe player. The allegation made by him logically leads to a demand for a trial for treason against the Indians at the dinner, a summary expulsion of the Pakistan high commissioner and a formal breaking of ties with the neighbouring country, besides an interrogation of the Prime Minister for the source of his information.
One important saying I first encountered as a schoolboy was: Time and tide wait for nobody. I was reminded of it several years later when I was visiting Japan with my wife. There in Kyoto while travelling on the underground, she drew my attention to what looked like an advertisement one of the many on the walls of the underground station. The only striking difference was that while almost all advertisements were in Japanese and hence beyond our ability to read, this one was in Devanagari. What was it trying to communicate? Getting down from the train we went to read the ad and figure out its significance if any. We were surprised to see that the quote in Devanagari was about a verse in Sanskrit. Not ever in India do we see Sanskrit ads in our railway stations. From our limited knowledge of Sanskrit later supplemented by the help of a professor of Sanskrit we got the gist of the statement. It was telling the reader that of all things around us the most valuable one is time: if we lose it, we do not get it back. The scientist may call the above property the irreversibility of the flow of time. However, giving it a technical name does not imply that the phenomenon is understood! Just as we can move in space in any direction, top-bottom, East-West, North-South, can we likewise move freely into past and future? We cant. Otherwise there would be logical problems like the proverbial one wherein Mr A goes into the past and kills his grandfather before he got married; thus raising the question: How was A born?

When I was completing my doctoral thesis I received an invitation to participate in an international conference, which had about a dozen speakers (including me) and about the same number of people to listen and discuss. The central topic for this meeting was the nature of time, including its unidirectional flow. After a stimulating discussion lasting five days the bottom line was that the apparent one-sided flow of time is hard to explain. The Sanskrit poster in Japan highlighted the same aspect of time. I felt, however, that the poster would have been more appropriate in India rather than in Japan. For, the Japanese have already acted on the teaching of the same. Their daily timetable sticks to the specified schedule. It is our experience that punctuality as a virtue has not been appreciated in our country. One would have expected the education sector to be more conscious in this respect. Alas, it is common experience that lectures and other public functions rarely start (and end) on time. The mindset vis-a-vis this happening is illustrated by one example. The chief guest at a university function arrived on the stipulated time in the host vice-chancellors office. The VC started chatting and went on well past the scheduled time of the event. The chief guest drew the VCs attention to the time delay and asked if they should start for the auditorium where the event was arranged.

The VC, however, said, Sir, do not get worried. Our importance in this event will not be felt unless the audience is kept waiting for half an hour or so. So if a VIP is half an hour late in arriving, the VVIP will see to it that he is late by one hour. Given the importance of being punctual, there are further aspects of how we use our time. I came across a very effective demonstration of time management. A teacher brought into his class a bucket, some large stones, some small pebbles, some sand and a pot full of water. He put as many stones into the bucket as he could and asked the class if the bucket was full. Yes, said the class but the teacher shook his head. He put in pebbles to the extent possible and asked: Is the bucket full now? No, roared the class now aware of what was going on. The teacher now filled the gaps with sand and later by water. What did the demonstration indicate? Just as larger stones left gaps that could be filled with smaller units so should we use the free time available between our big jobs to complete our smaller jobs so that no time is wasted.

But there was a second part to the above demonstration. The teacher started filling an empty bucket with small pebbles. When he filled it, he had no space left for large stones! The moral? If you keep doing small jobs you may discover that you have no time left for your important big jobs. I came across an example of this when a director of an institution complained that his administration took so much of his time that he could not do any of his academic work. This happened because he had refused to delegate part of his work to senior colleagues. Since he did not trust their ability, he himself was forced to look into and take decisions on numerous minor matters. That is where his time went!
Samsung has been rumoured to unveil its Galaxy S9 in the first quarter next year. One of the biggest alterations coming to the new flagship will be an increased screen-to-body ratio which could reach up to 90 per cent.

Several rumours hinted Samsung could achieve the high ratio with the upcoming device. The Galaxy S9 is also said to be taller than its predecessor.

But a report from Dutch website GlaxyClub claims otherwise. The report says Samsung will use the same 18.5:9 display ratio as the Galaxy S8. However, the company would increase the screen-to-body ratio in a different manner, and the one that makes more sense.

The most recent speculations suggest that the Galaxy S9 would come with smaller bezels, especially at the bottom where Samsung is trying to make them nearly invisible.

The Galaxy S9 lineup will comprise of two models, just like the previous generations. This indicates we will get a 5.8-inch Galaxy S9 and a Plus-sized 6.2-inch Galaxy S9+.

The smaller variant could feature a single-lens camera and 4GB of RAM, while the bigger variant will incorporate a dual camera setup along with 6GB RAM.

The devices are most likely to be showcased in March at a dedicated event and will hit the shelves in April.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is a close ally of Trump, whose announcement triggered protests across the world. (Photo: AP)

Cairo: A top Egyptian rights lawyer says at least eight protesters were detained and accused of "association with a terrorist organisation" after joining a small protest in Cairo over the Trump administration's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Khaled Ali says the protesters were arrested on Saturday in front of the Egyptian Press Syndicate in downtown Cairo after rallying against President Donald Trump's move.

It wasn't immediately possible to reach the prosecutors on Monday for a comment.

Ali says those detained, including a female activist, are accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood group, Egypt's onetime largest Islamist group which was outlawed after the ouster of the Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013.

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is a close ally of Trump, whose announcement triggered protests across the world.
Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York's Stony Brook University, is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week. (Photo: Twitter/ @nganang)

New York: A Cameroonian-American writer detained as he tried to leave the Central African nation is facing charges over writings critical of its government and family and friends are calling for public support in a campaign for his release.

Patrice Nganang, a professor at New York's Stony Brook University, is due to go before a prosecutor in the coming week, according to an account from his wife that was sent to fellow Stony Brook professor Robert Harvey.

Nganang was detained on Thursday as he was trying to leave Cameroon to join his wife in Zimbabwe.

Nganang and his attorney were informed of the charges against him at a hearing with judiciary police and were told the charges include accusations of insulting Cameroon President Paul Biya and issuing a death threat.

Nganang has been critical of how Biya, in power since 1982, has handled a secessionist movement in some English-speaking areas. He wrote an article that was published shortly before he was detained.

At the judiciary police hearing on Saturday, Nganang's lawyer said he didn't represent a threat because he had never worked with any violent or armed groups and had always been a peaceful activist. A prosecutor will decide what happens with the case moving forward.

Nganang's supporters called for an outpouring of support for him, suggesting actions including calling the Cameroon embassy to demand his release; getting in touch with the US Department of State and federal elected officials; reaching out to advocates like Amnesty International or the Committee to Protect Journalists; and spreading the campaign through social media.
Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes. (Photo: File/Representational)

Seoul: The US, South Korea and Japan started joint exercises Monday to track missiles from North Korea, Seoul's military said, following the nuclear-armed Pyongyang's longest-range test launch to date.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push.

The two-day exercise -- the sixth since June 2016 -- kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seoul's defence ministry said.

"During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information," it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Read: In latest effort to pressure N Korea, South Korea imposes new sanctions

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a "super-large heavy warhead" anywhere on the US mainland.

Many analysts suggest that the rocket is capable of reaching the US mainland but voiced scepticism that Pyongyang has mastered the advanced technology needed to allow the rocket to survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.

November's launch was the first test of any kind since September 15, and quashed hopes that the North may have held back in order to open the door to a negotiated solution to the nuclear standoff.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has traded threats of war and personal insults with US President Donald Trump, heightening fears of another war on the peninsula once devastated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

The South condemned the launch and on Monday imposed new unilateral sanctions on its neighbour.
An alliance of Nepals main Communist party and former Maoist rebels is heading for a landslide victory and is expected to form the next government in Nepal, ousting the ruling Nepali Congress, after winning 106 seats in the historic provincial and parliamentary polls. The CPN-UML led by former prime minister K.P. Oli and the CPN-Maoist led by former premier Prachanda have forged an electoral alliance for both the landmark polls, which is seen as a turning point after two decades of conflict and political instability in Nepal.

The poll outcome is expected to mark the end of Nepals transition to federal democracy, 11 years after the end of a brutal civil war in 2006. Since then, the Himalayan nation has seen 10 prime ministers. According to results released by the Election Commission on Monday, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist has won highest number of 74 seats, followed by its alliance partner CPN-Maoist Centre, which won 32 seats, out of the total 165 seats under the first-past-the-post election system. As the Left alliance headed for a clear majority in the 275-member Parliament, Oli was being projected to succeed PM Sher Bahadur Deuba. Oli won from the Jhapa-5 constituency by more than 28,000 votes as he defeated Nepali Congress candidate Khagendra Adhikari.
Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EU's search for closer business ties with Iran, said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by Europe, should be emulated by them. (Photo: File)

Brussels: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged the European Union to follow US President Donald Trump's lead and recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, but EU ministers shook their heads at Trump's move.

Netanyahu, arriving for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, said Trump's move made peace in the Middle East possible "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace."

But even Israel's closest European allies such as the Czech Republic warned Trump's decision was bad for peace efforts, while France insisted Jerusalem's status could only be agreed in a final deal between Israelis and Palestinians.

Asked by reporters about Trump's decision to switch the US Embassy to Jerusalem, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said: "I'm afraid it can't help us."

Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EU's search for closer business ties with Iran, said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by Europe, should be emulated by them.

"It's time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem," he said, after flying into Brussels from Paris after a meeting on Sunday with France's President Emmanuel Macron.

"I believe that, even though we don't have an agreement yet, this is what will happen in the future. I believe that all, or most, of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace."

Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which many in Israel saw as an endorsement of Trump's move.

Read: Jerusalem row: Palestine walking away from chance to discuss peace, says US

But Prague later said it accepted Israel's sovereignty only over West Jerusalem.

EU foreign ministers reiterated the EU position that the lands Israel has occupied since a 1967 war - including the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights - are not part of the internationally recognised borders of Israel.

"I'm convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution," Zaoralek said as he and his counterparts arrived for a breakfast with Netanyahu. "We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state."

Still Awaiting US Peace Plan

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian urged Washington to come forward with peace plans that are being drawn up by Jason Greenblatt, Trump's Middle East envoy, and Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner.

"We've been waiting already for several months for the American initiative, and if one is not forthcoming that the European Union will have to take the initiative," Le Drian said.

The EU believes it has a duty to make its voice heard as the Palestinians' biggest aid donor and Israel's biggest trade partner, even if EU governments have varying degrees of sympathy towards Israel and the Palestinians.

Some in Israel see the European Union as being too pro-Palestinian because it insists products made in Israeli settlements must be clearly labelled in Europe.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, welcoming Netanyahu on the first visit to the EU by an Israeli premier in 22 years, that the bloc would continue to recognise the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.

She repeated the Union's commitment to a two-state solution and that it was in Israel's interest to find a sustainable solution to its conflict with the Palestinians. The EU, she said, would step up its peace efforts and would hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in December.

She also condemned attacks on Israel and on Jews elsewhere in the world, including in Europe. Trump's plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has prompted sometimes violent protests.

A demonstration condemning Netanyahu's visit was planned for later in the morning in Brussels.
I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases, Putin said. (Photo: File)

Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday gave the order for a partial withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria during a visit to the country's airbase there, news agencies reported.

"I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," Putin said as he visited Hmeimim airbase, RIA Novosti news agency reported.

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia."
President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, during a surprise visit to the war-torn country. Putin arrived at Russias Hmeimim airbase in Latakia province, a government stronghold, where he was welcomed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and the two men were pictured smiling, shaking hands and hugging. Putin said he had ordered defence minister Sergei Shoigu to start a partial withdrawal. I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia, he said in a televised speech to troops at the base.

Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both the Islamic State group (ISIS) and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops. Putin said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the most battle-ready group of international terrorists, apparently referring to ISIS. On the whole the task has been completed. And completed brilliantly, he said. Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a new stage as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reforms.

He said both Hmeimim and Russias naval facility in Tartus would continue to function and warned that Russia would repel any fresh attacks by militants. If terrorists rear their heads again we will inflict the blows that they have not seen yet, he said. The Kremlin strongman thanked Russian troops for defending Russia from terrorism and helping Syria remain a sovereign independent state. Putin said the conflict proved that Russias armed forces, including intelligence officers, pilots, sailors, special forces, military police, sappers and military advisers, were on top form, and he also praised the countrys defence industry.

Our homeland thanks you, my friends, he said. Have a safe trip. I thank you for your service. After his speech Putin inspected the troops who goose-stepped to the tune of a popular Soviet-era song about World War II. Putin made the Syria stopover en route to Egypt where he arrived later on Monday. From there, Putin is scheduled to travel to Turkey for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Last week Putin announced he would be standing in the March presidential election that he is expected to effortlessly win, and his lighting visit to Syria can be expected to play well with the voters.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said India and China's strategic interests outweigh "partial frictions" and handling of the Doklam standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties.



Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India- China (RIC) foreign ministers' meeting to be held in New Delhi today during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always values good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as "we are each other's big neighbours and ancient civilisations".

He said India-China strategic interests outweigh differences and "partial friction".

"We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into China's Donglang (Doklam ) area through diplomatic measures," Wang told a symposium here last week, maintaining Beijing's stand.

"Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability," he said in his speech in Chinese posted on the website of the foreign ministry. "China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction," he said.

As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a "prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1 + 1 = 11 outlook," Wang said. The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about China's diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region.

Wang's visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Doklam standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping.

The over two-month Doklam standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'Chicken Neck' corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.

Wang's visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi's trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks.

Yang along National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties.

In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and China's diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about China's foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in- five-years Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October.

The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for China's external relations. Wang said China needs to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

"For China's diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful," he said.

He reiterated that "war is by no means acceptable" in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains.

On ties with the US, he said "China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions," official media quoted him as saying.

He said the China-Russia relationship has become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) he said it has become "the most popular international public goods programme".

Chinese businesses have invested over $50 billion and created nearly 200,000 local jobs in countries that are participating, he said.

India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI.

On Wang's visit to Delhi, Chinese think tanks said RIC foreign ministers' meeting offers Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which will effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Doklam standoff.

"Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track," said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times.

China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily.

China has opposed India's moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN.

Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides may help sort out differences on BRI.

China also continues to oppose India's bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Popular actor Sudeep met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah here on Monday and urged the State government to expedite the process of setting up a memorial dedicated to late Sandalwood actor Vishnuvardhan.



The meeting also gave rise to speculation that Sudeep may be considering taking a plunge into politics, a rumour that has been heard for sometime.

In a petition he submitted to the chief minister, Sudeep requested the government to grant one acre of land where a 'Dr Vishnuvardhan Punyabhumi' can be developed ahead of the legendary actor's eighth death anniversary on December 30. Vishnuvardhan, who died in 2009, was cremated at the Abhiman Studio in Uttarahalli.

The Karnataka High Court, in 2015, stayed a government order granting two acres of land for the construction of Vishnuvardhan's memorial at Abhiman Studio, based on a petition filed by the sons of late Kannada actor T N Balakrishna.

They argued that the government had granted 20 acres of land to Balakrishna for the construction of the Abhiman Studio in the 1970s.

"I request you to identify one acre of land where Dr Vishnuvardhan was cremated," Sudeep has stated in his petition to Siddaramaiah. "If government rules do not permit development of both a memorial and punyabhumi in the same place, the fans of Vishnuvardhan, including me, are willing to give in writing that we will take up the responsibility of development," Sudeep stated.

"If the government cannot suitably compensate the family of Balakrishna and buy the land, the fans of Vishnuvardhan may be allowed to buy it," Sudeep stated.

"You have given the state many bhagyas (schemes). By taking this request to its logical end, you can take credit for completing the memorial that was announced by the previous government and meet a long-pending demand of Vishnuvardhan fans," Sudeep stated.

The State government has already identified land for a Vishnuvardhan memorial in Mysuru, Sudeep pointed out. "But you are aware that it is the wish of Kannadigas and countless fans that a memorial should come up where Vishnuvardhan was laid to rest," Sudeep told Siddaramaiah.

He also stated that there will be no objection if a memorial comes up in Mysuru as per the wishes of Vishnuvardhan's wife Bharathi.
Ravi Belagere, editor of Kannada weekly 'Hi Bengaluru' was, on Monday remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.



He has been charged with giving 'supari' (contract) for killing one of his employees and journalist Sunil Heggaravalli. Belagere was arrested on December 8 from his office-cum-house in Padmanabhanmagar by sleuths of the Central Crime Branch. He is in police custody for the last four days.

He was produced before the first additional chief metropolitan magistrate in the morning. After hearing both the sides, the judge remanded Belagere in judicial custody till December 24.

Prior to the order, K Divakar, the advocate representing Belagere, submitted to the court that his health condition was very poor, he was under medication and appealed for bail.

After the court remanded him in judicial custody, Divakar pleaded the court to pass directions to the prison authorities to provide all medical assistance to him.

The public prosecutor, who filed an application objecting to the bail plea, argued that Belagere had written many articles on underworld gangsters and he had close links with them.

There are chances of Belagere destroying evidence and eliminating people related to this case using his underworld links.

Investigation revealed that he had given his licensed revolver to a sharpshooter to kill Heggaravalli, he submitted. To carry out the 'supari', he was in possession of illegal arms and appealed to the court not to grant him bail.

He also told the court that the CCB police seized an iphone and a tab from the suspect and sent them, along with the revolver and double barrel gun, to the forensic lab to check whether these weapons were used in any crimes in the past.

Belagere's daughter Chethana and son Karna were present in the court during the hearing and they accompanied him till he reached the Parappana Agrahara central prison.

The editor's advocate is likely to file a bail application before the sessions court on Tuesday.
Elks and magpies get along, so to speak, because the elk needs grooming and the magpie is looking for dinner. But they may have never entered into this partnership if it were not for their particular personalities, suggests a study published in Biology Letters.



Let's start with the elk. In Canada's western province of Alberta, they have been acting strange. Some have quit migrating, opting to hang around towns with humans who protect them from predators like wolves. Others still migrate. As a doctoral student at the University of Alberta, Robert Found, now a wildlife biologist for Parks Canada, discovered over years of observing their personalities that bold elk stayed, while shy elk migrated. But he noticed something else in the process of completing his research: As elk laid down to rest at the end of the day, magpies approached.

There appeared to be a pattern: elk of some personality types aggressively rejected magpies. Others did not. "Sometimes the magpies will walk around right on the head and the face of the elk," Robert said. Scientists define animal personality by an individual animal's behaviour. It is predictable, but also varies from others in a group. Robert created a bold-shy scale for elk, measuring how close they allowed him to get, where elk positioned themselves within the group, which elk fought other elk, which ones won, how long elk spent monitoring for predators and their willingness to approach unfamiliar objects like old tires, skis and a bike. He also noted which elk accepted magpies.

To study the magpies, he attracted the birds to 20 experimental sites with peanuts on tree stumps. During more than 20 separate trials with different magpies, he judged each bird's behaviour relative to the other magpies in a trial. Like the elk, he measured flight response, social structure and willingness to approach items they had not previously encountered. He also noted who landed on a faux-elk that offered dog food rather than ticks.

Bolder elk and magpies exhibited riskier behaviours like tolerating the experimenter, approaching novel objects and fending off animals. About half of the elk let magpies land, and just over half the magpies landed on the fake elk. And it was the shy elk and bold magpies that were more likely to engage. This was counter-intuitive for an elk: eyeballs offer easy targets for hungry magpies.

Mutualistic interactions

But magpies also eat winter ticks. This tick species waits on tall grass for passing animals, like elk and deer, but preferably moose, which do not notice them until it's too late. They clump together and infest by the thousands, remaining on a host all winter, expanding to grape size when fully engorged. They can drain all the blood from a moose calf, and are credited with giving the moniker 'ghost moose' to those that groom themselves hairless.

Elk have fewer winter ticks than moose, perhaps because they have had more time to evolve coping mechanisms, like habitual grooming. But hair loss around the neck is still a problem. Two decades ago, Bill Samuel, a retired moose biologist, found some moose also evade the pests by tolerating magpies. Perhaps, Robert thinks, shy elk gain an advantage over bold elk and compensate for their bashfulness by accepting magpies.

Few studies have examined the role that personality plays in shaping interactions between species, especially mutualistic interactions. In one study, however, aggressive spiders in so-called mutualistic relationships suffered compared to docile spiders. And in another study, bold cleaner fish tended to cheat mutualism by consuming the protective mucus around their client fish and swimming off instead of eating parasites. Robert thinks personality reveals a messier mutualism than once assumed.

While more research remains to be completed, Robert's peculiar observation, described for the first time, demonstrates the complex role personalities play in the animal kingdom. Whether emotional concepts or just behavioural tendencies, personalities exist in all kinds of species and can influence the interactions among and between them. Some combinations work; some don't. In this case, opposites attract - and it seems to be working.
They often trumpeted, anxious and confused a driven from one village, only to be forced out from the neighbouring village. The herd even took refuge in a lake, the matriarch making desperate efforts to calm the young ones, while villagers stood close by shouting and screaming. The image of five elephants deep in the water with raised suspecting trunks constantly sniffing the air still remains fresh in my mind. And the commotion continued for over 12 hours.



On November 18, a small herd of elephants that walked into the farm lands in Sathanur, a village in Kanakapura taluk, found themselves at the mercy of irate locals of two villages - both parties using crackers, loud threats to push the herd away from their lands, unknowingly obstructing the gentle giants from escaping into the forest too. The following morning, the Forest Department landed on the scene and tried to bring some order - and finally, the elephants were guided to take another stressful journey back home.

Constant interaction

This season, the elephants have arrived as expected. This might not have been the case several years ago. "I don't remember seeing an elephant in Sathanur about eight to nine years ago. But over the last few years, they have been a part of our lives - our crops, harvest, loss-profit, and our very own safety depends on the occurrence of wild elephants," explains Nagesh, a local. "The land I work on has been raided by elephants over seven times in the last four to five years," he adds.

A ride through small roads within Sathanur town, a few years ago, threw up memories of quaint little village homes with low sloping roofs, fewer traffic, and dark nights, with no lights emanating from farmlands, giving the star-lit sky its due credit. These days, post 7 pm, you will hear locals on motorbikes singing on top of their voice, whistling and shouting while on the move and blinding bright yellow lights stand tall on farmlands. "Things have changed. A few years ago, elephants had raided over 43 farmlands in one night. Today, many people I know have leased out their lands not wanting to face elephants, season after season," recollects Swamy, another local.

Let's face it, things have changed and for obvious reasons - as highlighted in the 'Right of Passage: Elephant Corridors of India', a study recently published by the Wildlife Trust of India in collaboration with Project Elephant and Elephant Family, a UK-based non-profit. The study identifies and records details pertaining to 101 elephant corridors across India. The report states that about 74% corridors are of a width of one kilometre or less today, compared with 45.5% in 2005, and only 22% corridors are of a width of one to three km now, compared with 41% in 2005.

This clearly depicts the thinning of elephant corridors in India over the past 12 years. It's disheartening to know that in southern India, there is one corridor for every 1,410 sq km of available elephant habitat. Where will the elephants go while we aggressively continue to deplete their 'right of passage'?

The other side

Unlike other towns like Hassan, Sathanur does not host any resident (wild) elephants. A lone tusker or a herd is most often heard or spotted only in the late evenings. Santhaur, currently with no Range Forest Officer (RFO) in attendance, is under the supervision of RFO Halagur, Kiran. "As it is the harvest season right now, farmers are perpetually on the edge and we are doing everything we can to support them and ensure safe passage to elephants."

Things have been changing over the years. With entry to the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary becoming more regulated and low tolerance exhibited by rangers towards locals and tourists who play loud music and drink around places like Muthathi, there are more displeased individuals among the locals than before, states the RFO. "There is anger towards the Forest Department, also because we are not tolerant to illegal chopping of trees and movement within the forests," adds Kiran.

There is also the issue of participation - when the Forest Department tries to drive a herd away from a farmland, neighbouring farmers block them fearing for their own land. "Earlier, there were four night-watchers, we now have eight and have deputed two vehicles to speed up our response time to SOS calls. There is a small canal bordering the forest, through which elephants find their way into farmlands. We have sent a proposal seeking permissions to build a cement wall at this location to stop this passage," he adds. Many villagers feel positive about the move.

It's interesting to note that farmers do not hate elephants; in fact, some of the farmers I spoke to expressed their sympathy for the animal. "On some evenings, you can hear the crackers followed by the trumpeting of elephants, the voices seem faint at times. But sometimes, when they get loud, I know it's my time to stay on guard. This summer, one elephant was found dead from dehydration. They come near the lake for water. They are also helpless, I truly feel sorry for them," says Hanmanthaiah, a farmer.

This reminds me of an incident that occurred in January this year. A forest guard was killed by a tusker in Sathanur. The tusker was found at the same spot for the next two to three days. Many farmers, including those whose farmlands were frequently being raided by elephants opined that the tusker felt guilty for killing the man who protects his habitat.

Many would call this talk anthropomorphism, but it also reminds me of a profound statement made by Primatologist Frans de Waal in his book, The Bonobo and the Atheist: In Search of Humanism among the Primates, "Those who exclaim that 'animals are not people' tend to forget that, while true, it is equally true that people are animals. To minimise the complexity of animal behaviour without doing the same for human behaviour erects an artificial barrier."
The Cabinet on Monday cleared the eagerly awaited Metro line connecting the city with the Kempegowda International Airport.



The project is estimated to cost Rs 5,950 crore, and is scheduled to be operational by 2021.



The government also proposed a passenger service charge of Rs 60-80 on fliers to raise Rs 1,000 crore towards the construction of the line.



Currently, the airport collects a user development fee of Rs 1,537 from international passengers and Rs 384 from domestic passengers.



The passenger service charge is over and above what the airport is levying. The UDF is for the infrastructure the airport provides, whereas we have proposed a fee for providing Metro connectivity to the airport, said Mahendra Jain, additional chief secretary (urban development), who holds additional charge as managing director of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd.



The decision to levy a charge on airport passengers will need approval from the Centres civil aviation ministry and the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India.



Now that the Cabinet has approved it, we will send a formal proposal to the agencies concerned, Jain said.



9 routes considered



The Metro line to the airport will be an extension of the Gottigere-Nagawara line under Phase 2B.



Earlier this year, the Metro authorities had proposed nine routes to the airport originating from KR Puram and Nagawara. The government eventually chose the latter starting point.



The line will have seven stations and a 2021 deadline, Law Minister T B Jayachandra said, briefing reporters after the Cabinet meeting.



Karnataka hopes to get Rs 500 crore from the Centre under the Metro Rail Policy. The state government itself will put in Rs 1,250 crore, including Rs 250 crore of Karnatakas GST share. A lions share (54%) will be raised through loans adding up to Rs 3,200 crore.



Short deadlines



The government has set specific timelines for the project:



Three months for land acquisition, three months for tendering, six months for award of contracts; and 30 months for civil works.



The ruling Congress is planning to lay the foundation stone for the project ahead of the Assembly election in early 2018.


An unusually combative former prime minister Manmohan Singh hit out at his successor Narendra Modi telling him that the Congress needed "no sermons on nationalism" from a person and party that had made compromises in fight against terrorism.

In a scathing statement, Singh asked Prime Minister Modi to apologise to the nation for his "ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

The sharp rebuttal from Singh came a day after Modi accused him and the Congress of conspiring against the BJP by holding "secret meetings" with Pakistani officials a day before Mani Shankar Aiyar's "neech" remarks against the prime minister.

Singh rejected outright Modi's allegations as "innuendoes and falsehoods". "I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner," the former prime minister said.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the prime minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly & regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former prime minister and Army Chief," Singh said in a statement here.

"My track record of public service to the country over the last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Modi, cam lamely question it to gain lost political ground," Singh said.

Singh reminded Modi of his "uninvited" visit to Lahore in 2015 after the terror attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur and asked him to give reasons for inviting an official of the ISI to the Pathankot Air Base to investigate a Pakistan-based terror attack.

Congress leaders Anand Sharma and P Chidambarm also hit out at Modi for "dragging the political discourse to a new low" describing the BJP campaign for Gujarat election as "beyond bizzare".

"Since when do we have to take permission to attend dinners," Sharma asked at a press conference here.

The aggression displayed by the former prime minister also comes at a time when he has hit the campaign trail in Gujarat by addressing meetings and holding press conferences on demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax, which were highlighted as key election issues.

Singh said he hoped Modi to show "maturity and gravitas" expected of the high office he held instead of "concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points".
India has proposed $1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said.



Apart from this, India has set up a project development fund of $77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, he said.

"The Asean India maritime transport cooperation agreement is being negotiated...An Asian India civil aviation task force has been established to see optimisation of air connectivity. India has proposed to commit a line of credit of USD 1 billion to promote projects that support physical and digital connectivity," Gadkari said.

He was addressing the Asean-India Connectivity Summit jointly organised by CII and Asean India Centre.

The minister said Asean and India have also agreed to establish a maritime transport working group among India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to examine the feasibility of shipping networks.

Asserting that connectivity is the pathway to shared prosperity, he said better connectivity is the core factor for strengthening Asean-India relations.

"Connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH), extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and at different stages of implementation," he said.

India is already working with Myanmar in the areas of border area development, capacity building, infrastructure development, connectivity projects and institutional development.

Stressing on augmentation of international connectivity, the minister said for Bharat Mala project, around 2,000 km with an outlay of Rs 25,000 crore are earmarked to connect India's major highway corridors to international trade points.

This will facilitate export/import trade with Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

About BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) Motor Vehicles Agreement, Gadkari said action has been initiated for implementation of BBIN MVA by Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
Actor-turned-BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for raking up "unsubstantiated and unbelievable" stories linking Pakistan against political opponents.



Sinha's comments came even as the BJP rallied behind Modi a day after he claimed that Congress leaders, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh, met the Pakistani High Commissioner here.

The BJP asked why it took the Congress over 48 hours to accept that a "hush, hush" meeting with the Pakistani envoy and a former Pakistani minister did take place at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence.

But Sinha's tweet came as a sour note. "Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with and endorse new, unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories every day against political opponents? Now linking them to Pakistan High Commissioner and Generals? Incredible," Sinha tweeted.

Sinha also advised Modi to stop communalising the atmosphere and return to the promises that the BJP had made in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

"Sir! Instead of new twists and turns, stories and cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, vikas model," he added.

In another tweet, Sinha said, "Let's stop communalising the atmosphere and go back to healthy politics and healthy elections. Jai Hind."

Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao asked in a tweet, "Why has it taken 48 hours for Dr (Manmohan) Singh to accept the meeting took place. Why did the Congress leaders deny yesterday (Sunday)."

Rao's remarks came soon after Manmohan Singh issued a statement accusing Modi of spreading "falsehood and canard" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat elections and asked him to "apologise to the nation".

Modi on Sunday had accused a group of Congress leaders of meeting the Pakistan High Commissioner at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence before the latter called him (Modi) "neech". He said the meeting at Aiyar's residence was also attended by former Vice-President Hamid Ansari and the former PM. (end)
The State High Level Clearance Committee (SHLCC) on Monday approved four new proposals including Boeing with a combined investment of Rs 3,427 crore which have potential to create 2,595 jobs.



The SHLCC, headed by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, approved the proposal of Boeing India Private Limited to invest Rs 1,152 crore to set up an engineering and technology facility with electronics, avionics manufacturing and assembly at Aerospace Park in Bengaluru. The company has's proposed facility will be spread over 36 acres at the aerospace park, the government said in a statement.

Among other proposals, the Committee approved Rs 740 crore investment proposal of CDC Development India Pvt Ltd for setting up a technology innovation international park, Rs 1,010 crore investment of Indian Coast Guard, which has proposed to set up a training centre at Baikampady industrial area in Mangaluru.

The committee also approved a proposal of Universal Builders to develop an affordable housing project with an investment of Rs 525 crore in Hardware Park area at the Defence and Aerospace Park in Bengaluru.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hit out at former prime minister Manmohan Singh for seeking apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for what he said was "flagging a political misadventure" by its senior leaders by engaging Pakistani leaders.



As an opposition party, the Congress, too, was expected not to engage Pakistani leaders as the current national policy was not to do business with Islamabad till terrorism from there stopped.

"An opposition party, particularly the principal opposition party, is also important in India's domestic politics. Therefore, when there's a national position on an issue, everyone is expected to maintain it."

He said those like former Congress MP Mani Shankar Aiyar always had an inconsistent position. "They maintained a parallel line of dialogue, underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and continued to engage with them (Pakistan)."

Jaitley said "senior Congress leaders must desist from such adventure and come out with detailed facts on what transpired in that meeting and what was the necessity of having it under present circumstances. Yesterday, they were in denial about it and, today, instead of accepting it as a misadventure, they are trying to blame those raising the issue. When we were in the opposition too, we have followed the government's policy in this regard."

He was responding to former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who had earlier in the day accused Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" about a meeting between Congress leaders and a former foreign minister of Pakistan and its envoy at suspended party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house.

At a rally on Sunday, Modi had alleged that the "three-hour secret meeting" was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, its former foreign minister, Manmohan Singh and former vice president Hamid Ansari.
A Leftist alliance comprising the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist-Leninist) is poised to form the next government in Nepal. The alliance has raced ahead of the Centrist Nepali Congress-led coalition in the just-concluded elections to parliament. It will be some days before Nepal has an exact picture of its new parliament. Of the total seats in Nepal's federal legislature, 165 are decided on a first-past-the-post basis, with another 110 determined by proportional representation.



Having won the first-past-the-post seats convincingly, the Left coalition is expected to take most of the proportional representation seats, too. Provincial elections were held alongside parliamentary polls and that, too, saw the Left alliance win handsomely. The clear mandate that voters have extended the Left will give Nepal a measure of political stability that has eluded it for long. Since the restoration of democracy in 1990, Nepal has seen shaky governments come, collapse and go. It has witnessed 10 governments over the past 10 years. The strong mandate will provide the Left alliance government with a strong foundation to last.



However, many in Nepal and outside are sceptical of the Left alliance surviving its full term. The leaders of both the CPN (Maoist) and the CPN (UML), Pushpa Kamal Dahal (aka Prachanda) and K P Oli, respectively, are highly ambitious leaders and, till recently, they were bitter enemies and rivals. Their unity is recent. In fact, the rank-and-file of the two parties were taken by surprise when the alliance was announced. Will Dahal and Oli be able to set aside their long-standing rivalry to provide Nepal with the stability and good governance it so badly needs?

The Nepali election result will evoke some concern in India. Oli, who is expected to become the next prime minister, projected a decidedly pro-China image during the election campaign. In fact, during his last stint at the helm, there were rumours that Delhi, which was upset with his bonhomie with Beijing, engineered his exit. There is some concern in India that his likely return as prime minister will see Nepal tilt towards China again. However, this is a simplistic reading of Nepali politics. Anti-India rhetoric is undoubtedly useful in winning votes in Nepal. But once in power, leaders adopt a pragmatic approach and seek equidistance between the two Asian giants. This is the path that the new government in Nepal will likely follow. Meanwhile, India must welcome the new government and offer all support to ensure Nepal's stability, security and economic development. Both sides have made mistakes in the past and hopefully, lessons have been learnt. India should be supportive of Nepal's quest for a stable and secure future.
Patel quota stir leader Hardik Patel on Monday once again asked his supporters to vote out the BJP in Gujarat.



"I am not here to say who to vote for, but all I have to say is that if you vote for BJP, you would be a traitor of your community. For once, teach them a lesson. If you want, vote them back in 2022," Hardik told his supporters who had gathered in large numbers at New Nikol area of Ahmedabad. "Unless you give someone a chance, how will you know whether they are better or not?" he said.

Hardik hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his reference to Pakistan's collusion in Gujarat elections. "What has Pakistan got to do with Gujarat elections? But in last 22 years, those who talked of development have gone back to their old theme - Ram Mandir, Hindu-Muslim, Pakistan. Do they talk of development?"

Hardik said that he did not seek to grab power by defeating the BJP but wanted three things - "reservations for youth in unreserved classes, bring down unemployment and right price for farmers. If they announce this now, I shall end the agitation right here and turn it in to a 'Thank You' rally."

Traffic snarls were witnessed in different parts of the city on Monday during Hardik's road show. There were reports of minor scuffles and stone-throwing, when BJP and PAAS workers clashed at Bapunagar election office of BJP candidate. The situation was brought under control after police intervention.

Hardik held his road show even as Ahmedabad Police Commissioner refused permission for road shows by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president designate Rahul Gandhi in the city on Tuesday, on the grounds of security and traffic congestion.

Hardik's road show was given permission with an understanding that it would not have more than five vehicles. However, thousands joined him on their personal vehicles.
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A little over three months after a bitter border dispute over the Doklam plateau, which ended on 28 August, there are reports of a fresh presence of Beijing troops in the region. In the freezing winter, around 1,800 Chinese troops have now virtually established a permanent presence in the area at the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet junction, according to a Times of India report, which adds that Chinese troops have constructed two helipads, upgraded roads, and set up scores of pre-fabricated huts, shelters and stores. According to the report, while India has "achieved its strategic objective" of not letting China extend its existing road in Doklam, the fallout has been "the almost permanent stationing of People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops in the region". Earlier, PLA patrols would come to Doklam every year to mark their presence and lay claim to the area before going back. But according to officials, both China and India would in the past withdraw troops from the advanced regions of that area during the harsh winter months. On 1 December, the Chinese military had hinted that it would maintain a sizable presence of troops near the area of the standoff during winter, asserting that the region is in Chinese territory. "Donglong (Doklam) is Chinese territory," Col Wu Qian, spokesman of the Chinese ministry of defence said when asked about reports that PLA continues to maintain a sizable number of troops close to the Dokalam standoff area, doing away with the practice of vacating the place during winter. "Based on this principle we will decide on the deployment of troops on our own," he said without elaborating. The continued presence of Chinese troops near Yatung close to Doklam reportedly prompted India too to maintain troops there. While it is not clear whether the issue figured in the 10th round of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) talks between India and China in New Delhi on 17 November, officials said the meeting reviewed the situation in all sectors of India-China border and exchanged views on enhancing Confidence Building Measures (CBMS) and military contacts. Indian Army chief General Bipin Rawat had warned in September that China would continue with its efforts to nibble away at disputed territories through "salami slicing", muscle-flexing and other measures.








A Left alliance between former Maoist rebels and moderate communists is poised to form the next government in Nepal as it headed for a clear majority after winning 91 of the total 165 seats so far in historic polls that many hope will bring political stability to the Himalayan nation. According to results released by the Election Commission on Sunday, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified MarxistLeninist (CPN-UML) has won 66 seats while its alliance partner CPN Maoist-Centre bagged 25 seats out of the total 165 seats. The CPN-UML led by former prime minister K P Oli and the CPN-Maoist led by former premier Prachanda have forged an electoral alliance for both the provincial and parliamentary elections. The ruling Nepali Congress (NC), which was the largest party in the last assembly, has managed to win only 14 seats. As the Left alliance headed for a clear majority in the 275-member Parliament, Oli was being projected to succeed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. Oli won from the Jhapa-5 constituency by more than 28,000 votes as he defeated Nepali Congress candidate Khagendra Adhikari. He polled 57,139 votes, the highest number of votes so far secured by any candidate in the election. In the assembly, 165 seats are directly elected and 110 are allocated to parties based on proportional representation. Two Madhesi parties, Federal Socialist Party Nepal and Rastriya Janata Party, have so far secured 11 Parliamentary seats each. The Rastriya Prajatantra Party, the Naya Shakti Party led by former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai and an independent candidate have secured one seat each. Sudheer Sharma, editor of the popular Kantipur newspaper, said the reason for the alliance doing so well was because their votes were not divided as was the case in past elections. They also promised a stable government for the next five years. Nepal has had 10 prime ministers in the past 11 years. The political instability has been blamed for slow progress in Nepal, one of the world's poorest countries. Many voters said they were eager for help in pressing the government to reconstruct hundreds of thousands of homes toppled in a devastating 2015 earthquake that killed 9,000 people. So far, less than 4 per cent have been rebuilt. The former rebels of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) fought government troops between 1996 and 2006, when they entered a UN-monitored peace deal and joined mainstream politics. They and their coalition partners also promised to work for good relations with both of Nepal's giant neighbours India and China. Officials said final results could take days. The mostly peaceful elections were held in two phases - the northern half of the country voted on 26 November and the rest on Thursday. The NC is expected to perform better in the proportionate voting, which was evident from the initial counting trends. The final results would be declared after the counting of votes for the proportionate voting system. It was the first election for seven provincial assemblies established under the constitution adopted in 2015. Election officials estimated turnout at 67 per cent among the 15 million eligible voters. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the elections marked "a historic moment for Nepal in implementing its federal structure as enshrined in the 2015 Constitution". Nepal's slow path to democracy began in 2006, when protesters forced the king to give up his rule. Two years later, Nepal officially abolished the centuries-old monarchy and decided that a federal system would best deliver services to all corners of the nation. But bickering among political parties delayed until 2015 the implementation of the new constitution, which declared Nepal a republic. Protests by ethnic groups in southern Nepal who complained they did not get enough territory in the province assigned to them had turned violent and left some 50 people dead. Protesters had blocked the border with India for months, cutting off fuel and other supplies. The two alliance partners are considering a merger to form the largest communist party in Nepal. If they merge, the post of party president and the country's president will be shared between Maoist chief Prachanda and top UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, according to reports citing insiders. Nepal has won the parliamentary election from Kathmandu-2 while Prachanda is set to win from Chitawan-3 constituency.








Detectives from the Police Service of Northern Irelands Serious Crime Branch are appealing for information about Donegal woman Lu Na McKinney who died at Devenish Island in Fermanagh on Thursday, April 13th this year.

Mrs McKinney (35), from Convoy, was on a family holiday when she died. The death of the mother-of-two, who was originally from China, was initially thought to have been a boating tragedy until the PSNI reviewed the evidence.

A 41-year-old man was last week charged with her murder.

Detective Inspector David McGrory said: Police are issuing a photograph of Mrs McKinney today in the hope that people will come forward with any information they have about her.

I would like to hear from anyone who knew her or anyone who had contact with Mrs McKinney, who lived in Convoy, County Donegal, in the months preceding her death.

Colleagues in An Garda Siochana are working jointly with PSNI to investigate Lu Nas death and anyone with information can contact either the PSNI on 101 ext 43373, confidential Crimestoppers number on 0800 555 111 or AGS at Letterkenny on 00353 749167100 or the AGS Confidential line on 1800 666 111.
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Whether you plan on becoming the next Atlassian, or the next big thing in the share economy, many people, at some stage, will have their own new business dream.

And in 2017, the startup space to be in is tech. Hundreds upon hundreds of adventurous and enthusiastic minds are venturing into the tech space with dreams of being the next big thing. Indeed, in just the first half of 2017, 71 private investments and acquisitions in the tech space alone racked up $564.1 million worth of deals.

Among them, some seriously promising startups that raised anywhere in excess of $100million USD via several founding rounds, failed.

Throw the cryptocurrency phenomenon into the mix, along with the trend toward Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and anyone with the right offering can dream big.

Indeed, new business ventures are a cornerstone of a thriving and successful economy, and everyone is entitled to think big at least once in their lifetime  about how your new business idea is going to change your life and set you up for the future. But what stops many potentially life-changing business ideas before theyve even seen the light of day is the reality that starting a business isnt easy or free, and that there a long list of barriers that need to be overcome.

While that may sound like an obvious statement, with startup funding being the most obvious starting point for all new businesses  yet its the costs that many burgeoning business owners overlook that cause them problems.

In more than 20 years legal practice Ive worked with hundreds of startups and have seen some common themes as to why they fail.

On the bright side, they can be avoided. Its about being aware of some simple principles and preparing accordingly.

Far from this being a generous pouring of cold water on the brilliant ideas of Australian hopefuls, the intent is to help those hopefuls understand exactly what theyre in for, and how to properly prepare.

The top five hidden traps that can stop a startup in its tracks:

Lack of commitment from founding partners

Its hard to start a business on your own and you often need partners in crime so to speak to share the load. However, founders often drop off in the first 6 -12 months. They do so for many reasons but most commonly its due to finances (i.e. lack of salary or low salary) and lack of commitment (they didnt think it was going to be this hard  its easier to get a job).

So, when founders leave, problems can arise in regard to their equity  do they get their money back? And at what value?

The answer is to ensure there is an agreement between founders, known as a Founders Agreement or alternatively a Shareholders Agreement which deals with the initial phase of the business, but also what happens when someone wants to leave. This is where an increasingly popular concept known as Founder Vesting becomes relevant.

Overestimating sales

Most start-ups can predict their costs for their initial operational period. However, most terribly overestimate their potential income. This is usually due to poor marketing, poor ability to convert users into paying users, sales (that is  time between meeting a prospect, landing a sale, and revenue coming in  particularly with corporate clients) and sometimes, simply that founders dont have the right skills to sell.

Digging a deeper hole

Often an idea at concept stage is great, but as you get into it, challenges arise. For example, you quickly discover user uptake isnt what you expected, or you didnt anticipate the capital required to be successful.

The challenge at this stage is to know when to pivot to a new idea or when to shut down and cut your losses. However often, ego takes over. Founders dont want to give up their dream and admit they made the wrong call. If they keep digging a deeper hole, often they and their investors will fall into it.

Not understanding the regulatory space  and having no money to pay for it

This is quite pertinent for fintech startups. Many start-ups do not consider the legal, regulatory or compliance aspects of their businesses. Many also do not set aside adequate capital to pay for meeting their obligations.

Ive seen startups shut down because they dont have the ability to meet the requirements of an Australian Financial Services Licence or Australian Credit Licence (where either is needed). Sure, the ASIC sandbox may help, but this simply delays the inevitable compliance obligations.

Not enough money

This is linked to the sales and capital planning issue. In summary, the start-up runs out of cash as it simply hasnt gotten its financial projections right, nor has it been able to raise capital.

Alternatively (and quite often) the start-up attracts seed capital from what we call the three Fs (family, friends and fools), but the business requires significantly more capital to be successful and cannot raise subsequent rounds.

Founders are also often caught in the infinite loop of raising capital. Instead of raising capital and then working on the business, the Founders raise money via a drip feed. This means they spend their time constantly presenting to investors and chasing investors instead of working on their product.

In short, raising capital is hard. The ability to attract capital depends on a range of variables including:

Connections of the founders or seed investors.

The founders themselves  investors often invest in people and not businesses. Perhaps the investors do not believe the founders can deliver.

Product type  what was sexy for investors yesterday, isnt necessarily sexy today.

Lack of worldwide focus.

Poor user take-up of their product.

So, a concrete and realistic fundraising plan needs to be in place before a business should consider itself ready to launch.

The point is to seek the right advice and be sure youre ready. Optimism and enthusiasm are great qualities to have, along with resilience, when trying to start a business. But theyre a lot more useful when you are fully prepared and ready to go.

Know your people, know your obligations and more importantly, know your product. A little bit can be made to go a very long way in this respect.

About the author

Darren Sommers is a Principal Solicitor at Melbournes KHQ Lawyers. He has more than 20 years experience providing general commercial legal advice and specialist technology law advice to clients in the IT industry and other technology industries.
But members of nearby communities, represented by the Port Moresby-based Centre for Environmental Law and Community Rights Inc (Celcor), claim they were not adequately consulted and that they hold grave concerns over its impact.

Nautilus told the Guardian it has conducted dozens of community meetings  reaching more than 30,000 people from nearby islands  and has had its key documents, including a detailed environmental impact statement, publicly available for years.

Nautilus Minerals Inc, a Canada-based company primarily owned by Russian and Omani mining firms, wants to extract gold and copper deposits from 1.6km below the surface of the Bismarck Sea, using a seabed mining technique never before used in commercial operations.

SYDNEY - A controversial experimental deep-sea mine is being challenged in court by environmental groups who have accused the Papua New Guinea government of withholding key documents about its approval.

There are also concerns over its financial viability and the PNG governments stake in it.

Celcor, which has been assisted by the New South Wales Environmental Defenders Office, formally lodged an application in PNGs national court and served the PNG government last week.

It said key documents had not been published, and that under the PNG constitution affected residents had a right to the information.

The plaintiffs have previously sought documents including the original permit, the environmental management plan and independent reviews, all oceanographic data on the site, and any studies or modelling of the environmental, social, health, culture and economic impacts.

They had also asked for any agreements made between Nautilus and the PNG government or other entities in relation to the project, and evidence of the mining ministers original granting of the exploration licence and his reasons.

Our major concern is the environmental impact of this project, since there is no independent environmental study, a plaintiff, Jonathan Mesulam, from PNGs New Ireland Province, said.

Mesulam criticised the companys consultation approach, and said the community at large did not give free, prior and informed consent on the companys permit.

They had no control. It has been organised by the former minister, and a few other people from the local level government, he said.

The Solwara 1 field, in a volcanic area between the islands of New Britain and New Ireland, was identified by Australias CSIRO in 1996. Nautilus was granted an environmental permit for the field in 2009, and a mining licence in 2011.

Seabed mining  which Nautilus described as the next big disruptive technology  is usually based around areas of metallic nodules, or active or extinct hydrothermal vents, which carry valuable metal deposits.

This month Nautilus issued a statement to the Toronto Stock Exchange warning of cash flow and financing difficulties, deferring for a third time its due date for a required $10m funding injection.
As promised, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer's new leadership position didn't prevent him from completing his annual tour of New York's 62 counties.

Schumer, D-N.Y., finished the 2017 installment of his statewide tour with a stop in Columbia County Friday. It was the second consecutive year he ended his 62-county swing in Columbia County.

Before the start of the year, Schumer pledged to continue the 62-county tour despite being named Senate minority leader. He succeeded former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid as leader of the Senate Democrats.

His trips around the state were less frequent. In 2015 and 2016, he visited upstate New York and Long Island 213 and 189 times. This year, he made 107 visits to Long Island and upstate New York counties, including 11 stops in central New York.

He visited Cayuga County in July for a press conference at Emerson Park in Owasco. He urged the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to approve the necessary permits for the Owasco Flats restoration project.

Schumer's 62-county tour dates back to 1998, when he challenged incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Alfonse D'Amato. D'Amato, Schumer recalled in 2015, said New Yorkers wouldn't see Schumer "west of the Hudson should he win."

On the campaign trail, Schumer pledged to visit every New York county if he was elected senator. After winning the 1998 race, he followed through on his promise by visiting each of the state's 62 counties during his first year in office.

"This is a tradition that I have continued every single year because of how much I learn, not to mention how much I enjoy doing it," Schumer said Friday.

Schumer isn't the lone statewide elected official who has embarked on the 62-county tour. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand traveled to every county in the state early in her tenure. Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who crisscrosses the state five days a week, has touted her own 62-county tour in the past.

But no one has been doing it longer than Schumer.

"Almost 19 years later, now as the Senate minority leader, a position with great responsibility, my mantra is clearer than ever: Senators who stay in Washington and never return home are simply not doing their job," he said. "That's why I go to the street fairs, parades, graduations and all kinds of public events. Whether I'm in Allegany County or Franklin County, I'm always mixing and mingling with my constituents."
The city of Auburn will hold a public meeting to gather community input on designs for a new playground at Casey Park. The meeting is set for 6 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 13, at Casey Park Elementary School.

City staff is working with Play by Design, an Ithaca-based company that helps communities build their own playgrounds, to construct an inclusive, community-designed playground that can be utilized by all children.

Senior Planner Tiffany Beebee said city officials "would like to see all community members involved.

"This is different than typical playgrounds," Beebee said. "We're really having the community drive this playground. Play by Design will completely design this playground based on ideas generated at the community meetings."

Students as Casey Park have already started coming up with ideas for the playground, Beebee said. Those designs will be available during the meeting for the public to look at. Beebee said others who have ideas are encouraged to bring them to Wednesday's meeting as well.

The $215,000 project will be funded through the city's federal Community Development Block Grant allocations. Beebee said construction will begin in the spring or summer of 2018.

For more information, contact the Office of Planning and Economic Development at (315) 255-4115 or email Beebee tbeebee@auburnny.gov or Renee Jensen rjensen@auburnny.gov.
(Photo: Albin Hillert/World Council of Churches)Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor Setsuko Thurlow (center) and ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) executive director Beatrice Fihn (right) at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo on Dec. 10, 2017.

More than 3,000 peacemakers from all over the world gathered in Oslo on Dec. 10 to commemorate the work of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapon's with banners with slogans such as: "The world must sign UN nuclear ban."

ICAN is an alliance of 468 civil society organizations and it received the Nobel Peace Prize on Sunday for its ground-breaking efforts to secure a prohibition on nuclear weapons.

The supporting organizations of ICAN include numerous religious groups including the Geneva-based World Council of Churches where its headquarters are based along with those of other ecumenical institutions.

Beatrice Fihn, ICAN executive director, accepted the prize on behalf of all the campaigners in the alliance talking of fear, freedom and the future as the basis for a strong statement against the possession of nuclear weapons based on world realities.

"A choice between the two endings: the end of nuclear weapons or the end of us. It is not naive to believe in the first choice. It is not irrational to think nuclear States can disarm. It is not idealistic to believe in life over fear and destruction; it is a necessity."

Setsuko Thurlow, a Japanese survivor of the Hiroshima bombing also received the award on behalf of ICAN, saying in her speech that nuclear weapons and humanity cannot co-exist.

"Every second of every day, nuclear weapons endanger everyone we love and everything we hold dear," Thurlow said, noting, "we must not tolerate this insanity any longer."

She said, "These weapons are not a necessary evil; they are the ultimate evil," as she asserted that history will judge harshly those who reject the treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons.

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit said after the official ceremony that the day held a special place in history as "a day that changes the agenda.

"The people who makes peace applauded and they were applauded. We in the WCC are proud of being their partner.

"To make peace is holy work. We are encouraged by the Nobel Peace Prize for ICAN. We need words that can make the world accountable to our call to make peace.

"We need this treaty as an expression of how it should be, before it is so. We had a solemn moment of prayer and hope yesterday in the Trinity Church in Oslo."
(Photo: WCC)World Council of Churches 1st Assembly, Amsterdam, 1948. It was the official founding of the WCC, its theme, coming soon after World War II was "Man's Disorder and God's Design."

Pope Francis celebrated the Feast of All Souls Day commemorating all those who have died in war, reminding humanity not to forget past lessons and warning that the only fruit yielded by conflict is death.

His words of warning and his powerful condemnation of warmongers came during his Nov. 2 homily at the Sicily-Rome American War Cemetery some 50 kilometers (30 miles) south of Rome, Vatican Radio reports.

"Please God," Francis prayed, "everything is lost with war.

"There are men who are doing everything to declare war and to enter into conflict. They end up destroying themselves and everything."

Pope Francis arrived at the war cemetery early in the afternoon so that he could spend time reflecting and paying his personal respects to the mostly young soldiers who gave their lives in the name of freedom and respect for humanity

There are 7,860 servicemen buried there and in a chapel on the grounds are the names of 3,095 servicemen who went missing in action.

Most of those who are buried in the Nettuno cemetery died in the liberation of Sicily, the landings at Salerno and Anzio, and in air and naval support of these operations in 1943 and 1944 during World War II.

The Pope explained that pride is the vice which leads people to seek solutions to problems through a declaration of war, and that humanity "has not learned the lesson" nor does it seem to "want to learn it," Catholic News Agency reported

Francis concluded by reminding that today is a day to pray for all the dead, but that we should pray especially for those young people killed in war and buried in the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery.

"We also pray," he continued, "for the dead of today, the dead of war, even innocent children. This is the fruit of war: death."
Australian schools are immersed in transforming teaching and learning to help equip their students for an uncertain future.The key issue for the Australian Government in determining how to spend its Gonski dollars is therefore to devise ways to support and scale up what is already underway.That is, the transformation of Australias school system requires strategic leadership, not restrictive regulation.The suite of actions school leaders draw on to lead change offers a range of possible actions for the Government to consider, including:Reversing Australias slide in international test rankings is not a goal that will inspire classroom teachers or principals to work even longer hours. What is required is a targeted strategic focus such as reducing academic underachievement.What international tests and NAPLAN results do show is that in Australia there are greater differences in student achievement within schools than between schools. No school is complacent about the spread of students academic outcomes and all have a vested interest in narrowing that achievement gap.A national goal that is experienced locally and which can be analysed and acted upon locally is much more likely to achieve measurable gains faster.Leaders will often seek to identify if a model of the practices or behaviours they wish to embed in their school already exists in a form that can be adopted or adapted. They will then look for staff members with the curiosity, interest or skills to champion introduction of the model.Governments typically identify existing models of desired practice through award programs or will support the creation of lighthouse schools through participation in funded projects.Promotion of good practice is the precursor of amplifying and accelerating its adoption.The Government has already taken significant steps to promote and amplify good practice through the work of AITSL and ACARA. Illustrations of practice, work samples, interactive tools and other resources support implementation of the Australian Curriculum and the professional development of teachers and school leaders.As suggested in AHISAs submission to the Review to Achieve Excellence in Australian Schools, one way to amplify and accelerate use of these resources is to develop an associated system of micro-credentialing to align with teachers professional development requirements.Successful transformations often begin with amplifying whats right rather than changing whats wrong.A strengths-based approach to leading change in Australias schooling system could therefore begin by recognising and drawing on the immense pool of professional knowledge, expertise and intellectual capital in schools. The Government should also recognise that most schools in Australia are already operating strategically within a continuous cycle of strategic development and that an appropriate policy response would be to seek ways to support, build or accelerate such practice.Dr Mark Merry is National Chair of the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia and Principal of Yarra Valley Grammar in Victoria.
To build the largest and most complete Amateur Radio community site on the Internet - a "portal" that hams think of as the first place to go for information, to exchange ideas, and be part of whats happening with ham radio on the Internet. eHam.net provides recognition and enjoyment to the people who use, contribute, and build the site. This project involves a management team of volunteers who each take a topic of interest and manage it with passion. The site will stand above all other ham radio sites by employing the latest technology and professional design/programming standards, developed by a team of community programmers who contribute their skills to the effort. The site will be something of which everyone involved can be proud to say they were a part. We welcome your comments. The eHam.net Team, Revision 07/2020.
America is a very compassionate nation  donating over $390 billion to charities last year. When someone is in need, it is in our nature to reach out and help. Thoughtful contributors deserve to know that their donations actually go toward charitable work. It is also essential that anyone attempting to deceive the public under the guise of charity is put to a stop.

New York State law requires that organizations that solicit money directly from the public register with the Department of Law. The law secures your right to know how much money these organizations raise and how your contributions are being used, including salaries and administrative expenses.

During the holiday season, the appeals for charitable gifts will peak. With that in mind, I offer a few helpful dos and donts that you should keep in mind before contributing.

Dos of charitable giving:

Do ask to see identification for both the solicitor and the organization, including the organizations registration number;

Do ask how much of your contribution goes toward fundraising and administrative expenses, including the salaries of the organizations directors and employees;

Do ask for written literature, and read it;

Do ask how much the organization itself is to receive if it is selling a product or service;

Do ask whether your contribution may be tax deductible;

Do be suspicious of anyone who cant respond to your questions satisfactorily.

Donts of charitable giving:

Dont be afraid to ask questions;

Dont give to an organization you know nothing about;

Dont let yourself be pressured into making a donation;

Dont feel obligated to make a contribution on the spot  you can always mail a contribution after receiving more information;

Dont give because the solicitor gives you a sob story. This approach is quite often a sign of phony and unscrupulous operators;

Dont be fooled by an impressive name or one that closely resembles the name of a respected or legitimate concern.

Most organizations in New York State that engage in charitable activities and/or solicit charitable contributions are required to register with the Attorney Generals Charities Bureau. Under New York State law, charity is defined very broadly, and includes purposes such as cultural programs, education, poverty relief, promotion of health and research to cure disease, and other purposes to benefit the community.

Although most charitable organizations are required to register, some are exempt, including: religious organizations, parent-teacher associations, membership organizations that do not solicit contributions from the public, certain educational institutions, and government agencies. Depending on the nature of their activities and whether they solicit contributions from the public, other organizations may also be exempt from registration.

The New York State Attorney Generals office has additional information that can be helpful for givers and charities alike. The website, www.charitiesnys.com, contains financial reports of charities active in New York, guidance for those who manage charities and solicit charitable contributions, tips for those considering donating to charity, and links to other resources. The website also includes an on-line complaint form. All complaints received by the Charities Bureau are reviewed thoroughly to determine whether or not any action by the attorney general is warranted.

Perhaps the best advice is to give to a local non-profit group or charity. There are many organizations staffed by volunteers that live and work right here in our community. These groups make a real difference in the lives of our friends and neighbors, and they are part of the reason why our area is so special.

Finally, if you want to donate to a cause, but do not have the financial means to do so, consider giving your time  it is just as valuable to non-profits in need.
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Comedian Hannibal Buress was taken into custody on Saturday, Dec. 9, by the Miami Police Department on charges of disorderly intoxication.

Disorderly Intoxication Charge

Buress was placed under arrest in the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami on a disorderly intoxication charge at approximately 2 a.m. and was released on a $500 bail bond about four hours later.

According to The Miami Herald, the comedian was taken into custody following an encounter with a police officer. It all started when Buress approached the officer with bloodshot eyes and a strong smell of alcohol on his breath, asking the police to call him an Uber. However, the officer refused, which allegedly led to Buress becoming aggressive.

In his incident report, the officer said he then told the comedian to leave but Buress did not pay heed to the officer and instead walked into a nearby venue. The officer then followed him inside because he felt the comedian was too intoxicated to stick around.

"Once outside, the defendant stood by the front gate and continued yelling profanities," the officer's report says. "I, then again, asked him to leave the area about five times. A crowd began to gather and vehicular traffic slowed as they watched the defendant yelling and being disorderly. Defendant arrested."

All Over Social Media

The Miami PD confirmed news of Buress' arrest on a disorderly intoxication charge after filmmaker Billy Corben tweeted them seeking answers.

Hello Billy, Mr. Buress was arrested for disorderly intoxication, on December 9, 2017, at approximately 10:30 p.m.  Miami PD (@MiamiPD) December 10, 2017

Corben's tweet came in the wake of a video of the comedian's arrest that started circulating on social media. The video, which appears to have been shot on a bystander's cellphone, shows Buress handcuffed against a Miami patrol car with two police officers standing in front of him.

The comedian appears to be agitated and can be heard asking the officers the reason behind his arrest. The video footage went viral and spurred the #FreeHannibalBuress hashtag on social media as officers on the scene told Buress he was being detained for trespassing. However, it was later confirmed that he booked on a disorderly intoxication charge.

Buress is a popular comedian and has featured in a number of stand-up specials. He has also starred in several films including Spider-man: Homecoming, Baywatch, Neighbors, Daddy's Home, and The Disaster Artist. His television credits include Comedy Central's Broad City and Adult Swim's The Eric Andre Show.

He is also known as the comic who famously called Bill Cosby a rapist on stage before several women came forward with sexual assault allegations against The Cosby Show star.

Check out video footage of Buress' arrest below:
A woman has accused Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme of intentionally kicking her in the head during a show on Dec. 9.

Caught On Tape

The 44-year-old rocker was caught on video violently kicking a woman named Chelsea Lauren during the band's set at the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas concert in Los Angeles on Saturday, Dec. 9.

Lauren is a female photographer who works for the stock photography company Shutterstock, which has a licensing partnership with Variety magazine owner Penske Group.

She took to Instagram to post the video footage of the incident that clearly shows Homme kicking her in the head as she was standing near the stage and taking pictures of the rocker. Homme can be seen walking past Lauren and then backtracking a step in what appears to be an attempt to kick away her camera.

Lauren Reveals What Exactly Happened

In an interview with Variety, Lauren recounted the incident that landed her in LA's Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. She told the publication that she was standing on one end of the stage while three other photographers had taken their positions on the other side of the stage. Lauren said she was quite excited to be photographing Homme and the remaining band members as it was her first time clicking Queens Of The Stone Age.

In her excitement, she started clicking away as she saw Homme approaching and the next thing she knew, he struck her camera with his foot and the camera connected with her face with a tremendous amount of force. She claims Homme made eye contact with her as he violently kicked her and then continued performing like nothing happened while she was left holding her face in agony.

She said that she did nothing to provoke the violent behavior from Homme, who she also claims was smiling before he kicked her. Lauren then headed to the pressroom, before returning to her position next to the stage to click pictures of Thirty Seconds To Mars and Muse. She later checked in to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she received treatment for her injuries.

Rocker's Bizzarre Behavior

Homme acted erratically throughout the show. At one point, he apparently pulled out a knife and cut his own forehead to induce bleeding. He allegedly also yelled "f**k Muse" (the band was headlining the show after QOTSA's set) and called the crowd "retards" and at one point even urged them to boo him.

Homme Issues Apology

Homme later took to Twitter to issue an apology to the photographer.

"Last night, while in a state of being lost in performance, I kicked over various lighting and equipment on our stage. Today it was brought to my attention that this included a camera held by photographer Chelsea Lauren," he wrote in the statement. "I did not mean for that to happen and I am very sorry. I would never intentionally cause harm to anyone working at or attending one of our shows and I hope Chelsea will accept my sincere apology," he added.
The Thomas Fire has forced Ellen DeGeneres to evacuate her pets from her home in California.

On Monday, the television host shared to her followers that her home is under the threat of being burned by the recent wildfire. DeGeneres and her wife, actress Portia de Rossi, are among the thousands of families affected by the Thomas Fire.

"Our house is under threat of being burned. We just had to evacuate our pets," the TV personality tweeted. "I'm praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters."

She, however, assured that her neighbors are looking out for each other in this time of distress.

Everyone in the Montecito area is checking up on each other and helping to get people and animals to safety. I'm proud to be a part of this community. I'm sending lots of love and gratitude to the fire department and sheriffs. Thank you all. #ThomasFire  Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) December 10, 2017

According to E! News, DeGeneres' home is located in Carpinteria, close to Santa Barbara. The county, along with Ventura, is affected by the Thomas Fires. On Sunday, mandatory evacuation in the areas affected has been ordered by the local authorities.

DeGeneres and de Rossi are reportedly living with several cats and dogs in their $18.6-million beachfront house. The celebrity couple also owns a property in the Santa Barbara.

Celebrity Homes Affected

Carpinteria and nearby town Montecito are homes to several celebrities like Drew Barrymore, Jane Seymour, Jeff Bridges, Al Gore, Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis, George Lucas, Oprah Winfrey, and Patrick Stewart. As of this writing, it is still unknown whether these personalities have abandoned their homes for safety.

Meanwhile, Lea Michelle, Chelsea Handler, Lionel Richie, and Chrissy Teigen have already evacuated. The fire also impacted Kylie Jenner's cosmetics factory in Ventura County. Paris Hilton also tweeted last week that her pets have been evacuated from her home in L.A.

This wild fire in LA is terrifying! My house is now being evacuated to get all of my pets out of there safely. Thank you to all the firefighters who are risking their lives to save ours. You are true heroes! pic.twitter.com/6uYBUh1pjV  Paris Hilton (@ParisHilton) December 6, 2017

Actor Rob Lowe (Parks & Recreation) was also forced to pack his bags and evacuate. He shared on Twitter that the fire is nearing his town.

Praying for my town. Fires closing in. Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now.  Rob Lowe (@RobLowe) December 10, 2017

Thomas Fire's Wrath

The Thomas Fire has forced more than 88,000 people to evacuate from their homes. Los Angeles Times reported that around 8,500 firefighters are trying to suppress the six wildfires around California.

By Sunday, authorities revealed that 230,000 acres were affected by the wildfire. Over 524 structures were destroyed and another 135 were damaged in the city of Ventura alone. The Thomas Fire has become the fifth largest wildfire in the modern history of California.

Carpinteria, in particular, is in danger. The dry vegetation around the area could hasten the spread of the fire. Schools in Santa Barbara County have already canceled classes. Some will not open until the New Year.
WWE suspended Rich Swann following his arrest in Florida on Sunday, Dec 10. The 205 Live star was arrested for kidnapping and false imprisonment.

On Sunday, the Gainesville Police Department released Swann's incident report on their official Twitter account. A mug shot of Swann was also uploaded online following numerous national media requests from the department.

Rich Swann Gets Suspended By WWE

A day later, WWE confirmed that Swann has been suspended. On their official website, the organization said that they have zero tolerance for matters involving domestic violence of any kind.

The duration of Swann's suspension is unclear as of the moment, but WWE said that it will all depend on the results of the investigation that is already taking place.

Meanwhile, Swann was accused of kidnapping and battering his wife, Vannarah Riggs, as well as false imprisonment, following an altercation that took place while they were inside their car.

After their heated argument escalated, Riggs got out of the vehicle and left Swann. However, the WWE superstar stopped in the middle of the traffic and grabbed his wife by her arm.

An onlooker told police officials that Swann placed Riggs in a headlock and dragged her back into their car when she refused to follow his orders. Riggs, who is also a pro wrestler, screamed for help.

Another insider said that Riggs did not put his car on park mode that's why it kept moving through the traffic. It eventually hit a telephone pole.

Swann initially denied dragging his wife back into their car and said that Riggs went back with him on her own. He also said that he ran after her to get her phone because he was using her GPS for directions.

Will Rich Swann Go To Jail?

Following the incident, the pro wrestler was booked for simple battery and false imprisonment at the Alachua County Jail.

If proven guilty of kidnapping, Swann could face up to five years in prison. He is also scheduled to appear in court on Monday, Dec. 11.

Kidnapping or false imprisonment in Florida is considered a third-degree felony. On top of the possible prison sentence, Swann may also be required to pay a $5,000 fine.

Battery, on the other hand, is a first-degree misdemeanor in Florida. Penalties include a $1,000 fine, one year in jail or 12-month probation.

As of late, Riggs has not yet released her statement regarding the incident.

Swann and Riggs just got married nine months ago. They were together for five years before they tied the knot earlier this year.
The Shape of Water and Big Little Lies lead the Golden Globe Awards race as top winners in their respective divisions.

Every year, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association awards the Golden Globes for outstanding achievement in film and television.

Actors Kristen Bell, Garrett Hedlund, Alfre Woodward, and Sharon Stone announced the nominees in front of a packed room full of photographers and media representatives.

'The Shape of Water' Evaporates Competition

Critics' Choice Award favorite, The Shape of Water, earned seven nominations. The film was nominated in the Best Motion Picture-Drama category while Guillermo Del Toro received a nomination for Best Director-Motion Picture. Del Toro also shared a nomination with Vanessa Taylor for Best Screenplay- Motion Picture.

Actors Sally Hawkins, Octavia Spencer, and Richard Hawkins each placed in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture-Drama, Best Performance by an Actress in A Supporting Role, and Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role.

Composer Alexandre Desplat picked up the seventh nomination with Best Original Score-Motion Picture.

Other Honorable Nominees In Films

The Post and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri each received six nominations.

In addition to The Post being nominated for Best Motion Picture-Drama, Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep each earned places in the Best Performances-Drama category. Film legends Steven Spielberg and John Williams each received a nomination for Best Director and Best Original Score-Motion Picture.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri 's Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell each scored acting nominations while the film picked up Best Motion Picture-Drama.

Veteran actor Christopher Plummer earned Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for All The Money in the World. Plummer replaced the film's original actor, Kevin Spacey, after he was let go when sexual misconduct allegations against him surfaced.

Greta Gerwig's breakout film, Lady Bird, earned four nominations. The film and lead actress Saoirse Ronan previously won New York Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Picture and Best Actress.

'Big Little Lies' Tops TV

The Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman HBO drama, Big Little Lies, topped the television portion of the Golden Globes. The series picked up six nominations including Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made For Television.

Both Witherspoon and Kidman were nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Actresses Laura Dern and Shailene Woodley each earned spots in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made For Television.

Finally, Alexander Skarsgard picked up a nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in A Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

'Will And Grac'e Returns And Other Honorees

Beloved NBC sitcom Will And Grace made its return to the Golden Globes after an 11-year hiatus. The show was nominated for two awards including Best Television Series-Musical or Comedy and Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series for Eric McCormack.

Feud: Bette vs. Joan picked up four nominations including Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Both Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon picked up nominations for their portrayals of the silver screen icons. Also, Alfred Molina picked up Best Performance by an Actor in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

Late Night with Seth Meyers host Seth Meyers will emcee the 2018 ceremony, which will go live from Los Angeles' Beverly Hilton on Sunday, Jan.7 on NBC.
Harvey Weinstein is responsible for 'The Weinstein Effect' that is taking over headlines and Hollywood. Since September, a wave of accusations against some of Hollywood's elite men implicating them as sexual predators with their actions being spread across the internet for everyone to see.

Weinstein's accusations are probably the most horrendous. If the allegations are true, Weinstein has used his power to manipulate and demean women for decades and is now paying the price for it.

Weinstein is currently being investigated for allegedly raping actress Paz De La Huerta on two separate occasions. De La Heurta claims that Weinstein raped her in 2010, once after showing up at her apartment and then another time after showing at her hotel lobby and following her to her home. De La Huerta came forward with her allegations to the New York City Police.

While it looked like Weinstein could be facing some serious prison time, new reports suggest that might not be case after all.

The Weinstein Effect

Because the case against the Hollywood mogul is more than seven years, this may be problematic for the prosecutors looking to bring Weinstein to justice. Also, the actress was in contact with Weinstein in between the times of the two alleged attacks.

Huerta's therapist also wrote a report to authorities that doesn't cooperate with what the Boardwalk Empire star claims happened.

"I recall you reporting to me a sexual encounter with Harvey Weinstein involving intercourse in your apartment in 2010 that resulted in you feeling victimized. I recall you telling me that it felt coercive to you and that you didn't want to have sex with him, but felt that you had to as he was a man of power and rank and you couldn't say no to his sexual advances," her therapist wrote.

Weinstein has denied De La Huerta's allegations.

Other actresses who have claimed that Weinstein raped or assaulted them include: Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd, and Heather Graham.

Even though Weinstein may not arrested for this case, he's not completely out of the dark yet. The producer's wife left him amid allegations and Weinstein is still being investigating by the LAPD and London police.
A terrorist set of a pipe bomb that was strapped to his body in the Times Square section of New York City. Police revealed the explosion occurred in an underground passageway on 42nd street between 7th and 8th avenue.

The bomb went off at 7:30 a.m. during rush hours on Monday, Dec. 11. Eyewitness News reports the suspects name is Akayed Ullah and is currently in custody. New York Citys Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Ullahs strike against the city was an attempted terrorist attack.

The bomb was attached to Ullahs body with velcro; his arm and torso sections of his body were damaged due to the explosion.

Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device," NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill shared.

Ullah is from Bangladesh and a supporter of ISIS. Hes been living in the United States for seven years now. He has a brother who attends a Brooklyn school that the authorities are currently searching for.

The suspect is 27-years-old and three civilians have been injured due to his attack. Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump has been informed of the explosion.

The President has not tweeted about the attack, instead, he tweeted about The New York Times and their bad reporting skills regarding an article the media outlet published about how much television he watches.

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2017

Enstarz will continue to have updates on this developing story.
Celebrity chef and The Chew co-host Mario Batali is the latest high profile television personality to be accused of sexual assault allegations.

The founding member of the ABC's culinary talk show has been advised to temporarily step down from his commitments to the Emmy-winning daytime series. Batali stepped down after a report, that the Food Network veteran has sexually assaulted several women, was published on the Eater New York website.

"We have asked Mario Batali to step away from The Chew while we review the allegations that have just come to our attention," ABC stated in a statement. "ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment."

The ABC Television Network also added that while it does not know about any additional harassment involving Batali or any other employee associated with The Chew, the network stated that it would quickly and efficiently deal with any harassment matter.

Batali Apologizes To Victims

The Iron Chef issued an apology statement to Eater New York, and the comment was directed towards his alleged victims.

"Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stores have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted," wrote Batali. "That behavior was wrong, and there are no excuses."

Batali also apologized to his family, friends, employees, and customers and asked them for forgiveness regarding his actions.

"We built these restaurants so that our guests could have fun and indulge, but I took that too far in my own behavior," Batali wrote. "I want any place I am associated with to feel comfortable and safe for the people who work or dine there."

Batali Temporary Leaves Batali And Bastianich

A spokesperson for Batali's culinary company, Batali and Bastianich Hospitality Group, has stated that Batali agreed to step away from the day-to-day business operations.

"We take these allegations very seriously," said a Batali and Bastianich representative. "We have strong policies and practices in place that address sexual harassment. We train employees in these policies, and we enforce them, up to and including termination."

Fall From Grace

Batali began his celebrity culinary career when he first joined the Food Network in 1995. His first show, Molto Mario, aired on the culinary cable network from 1996 to 2004. Batali was also an original Iron Chef on the fan-favorite culinary competition show, Iron Chef America. Batali retired from the series at the end of the sixth season.

For the past six years, Batali reached a broader audience as a part of The Chew's Emmy-nominated on-air team. The original line-up of Batali, Carla Hall, Michael Symon, Clinton Kelly, and Daphne Oz, won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host in 2015.

Batali is the second high profile celebrity to leave his positions regarding sexual assault allegations following Russell Simmons, who left his own companies following the revelation of alleged allegations.
President Donald Trump is facing a series of sexual assault allegations as numerous women stepped forward to share their stories about how the reality television celebrity turned POTUS forced himself upon them.

The Allegations

Former news anchor Juliet Huddy alleged that Trump tried to kiss her on a Trump Tower elevator in 2005. In a transcript provided by Page Six, Huddy revealed the news on the Mornin!!! With Bill Schulz podcast.

"He took me for lunch at Trump Tower, just us two. He said goodbye to me in an elevator while his security guy was there, rather than kiss me on the cheek he leaned in to kiss me on the lips. I wasnt offended, I was kind of like, Oh my god,'" Huddy exclaimed.

"He came up on stage and he turned around to the audience  and, you know, there were 50 people there  and he said, I tried to hit on her, but she blew me off," Huddy said, recounting what Trump had said when he visited her show, The Morning Show With Mike and Juliet. Despite accusing him of sexual harassment and assault, Huddy said she wasn't offended by his advances. She was only upset when Trump publicly supported Bill O'Reilly, who was terminated from Fox News after his own sexual assault allegations leaked.

Shared Stories Between The Accusers

Huddy's former co-worker Julie Roginsky confirmed Huddy's allegations by tweeting how the two spoke about the incident after it happened. "For all those who are doubting @JulietHuddyTVs story, please stop. She told me this story many years ago, well before Trump was running for anything," Roginsky wrote.

"She has absolutely no agenda other than the truth here."

Other women who have accused Trump of similar behavior noted that the 45th President groped and fondled them prior to his presidency. They shared their stories on Monday at a news conference. "This was serial misconduct and perversion on the part of Mr. Trump. Unfortunately, this behavior isn't rare in our society, and people of all backgrounds can be victims," Rachel Crooks, a former receptionist of Bayrock Group said. She accuses Trump of kissing her on the mouth without her consent in 2005, as well. Other accusers like Temple Taggart, former Miss Utah USA said Trump kissed her on the lips in 1997 and Mindy McGillivray said Trump grabbed her buttocks in 2003 when she was at his club Mar-a-Lago.

President Trump Responds

These women stepped forward as President Trump continues to support Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore. Moore has been accused several times of child molestation. There is also video footage from Access Hollywood where President Trump was shown saying he was able to grab women "by the p--sy" because he is famous. Contestants who participated in his Miss USA pageant franchise came forward sharing how Trump would enter their dressing rooms unannounced while they would be half-dressed or naked.

President Trump has denied these allegations and announced during a Monday press conference that the women have lied and will be sued.
Im glad Im not an Alabama voter By Michael R. Shannon

More specifically, Im glad Im not an Alabama conservative. The choice confronting conservatives in the December 12th special senate election is very difficult. But not so tough that our cultural arbiters arent eager to give conservatives and Christians the benefit of their wisdom. The same Opposition MediaPunditCelebrity nexus that didnt condemn Teen Vogue for its recent issue introducing young girls to the joys of anal sex, is now urging Christians to vote their convictions. This is certainly a welcome change from being characterized as figures of fun who dabble in hate, but Im still skeptical of the OpMedias sudden admiration for our sterling character. Particularly when they urge us to choose a candidate based on moral beliefs the OpMedia routinely mocks and derides. Our media betters want Christian voters to pick an ideal candidate. Someone who would look good in a Baptist pulpit, instead of the lefts hotel bathrobe. Naturally, their choice is Democrat Doug Jones instead of handson Republican Roy Moore. The argument isnt all that compelling, particularly when one recalls all of Roy Moores alleged victims survived, whereas Democrat Ted Kennedys didnt. This election is also noteworthy in that it reverses the usual noseholding option conservatives confront. I recently wrote how I was tired of being told to hold my nose and vote for country club conservatives. The Republican establishment would patiently explain that even though this spineless weathervane could never be depended upon to fight for bedrock conservative issues, he would be marginally better in office than his leftist opponent, since hes a sure vote for Mitch McConnell as Majority Leader. This year conservatives have a chance to vote for a somewhat tarnished candidate that will fight tooth and toenail for conservative causes and the establishment tells us to forget about that nose thing and just vote Democrat. From the beginning I was suspicious of the alleged underage abuse allegations against Moore. Ive worked in campaigns for over 40 years and timing is a key factor in the negative side of the campaign. Ive been the media consultant for races where we had devastating information regarding the opponent and we sat on it for weeks or months until such a time as the information could be released and the opposing campaign would not have time to recover. I suppose I could accept the Washington Posts claim that their scoop on Moore was generated inhouse and not handed to them on a platter like the Russian Dossier. Only, if the stories about Moores alleged behavior were common knowledge, why did the knowledge only become common nationwide after Moore defeated Luther Strange and it was too late to put someone else on the ballot? That convenient timing looks like a premeditated decision to hold the story and thereby influence the election. Then theres the yearbook signature thats an exact copy of the Judge Moore signature on the womans divorce decree from years later, but bears no relation to his unofficial personal signature at the time the yearbook was supposedly signed. The OpMedia is doing its part to make voting Democrat less painful for wavering conservatives and Christians. Why Democrat Doug Jones middle name is Moderate according to his glowing press clippings. Hes going to focus on jobs, education and infrastructure. Theres zero mention of Jones being the frontman for a George Sorosfunded effort to politicize US Attorneys. According to Breitbart, the Sorosfunded effort supported ending mass incarceration and its report  authored by Jones  used language similar to the Obama Justice Dept. effort to grant de facto amnesty to illegal aliens. Running in the middle and governing from the left is common for Democrats. Last election Virginia had its first transvestite candidate for the House of Delegates. This man in womans clothing assured voters that he also intended to focus on meatandpotatoes issues like transportation. You can imagine voters shock after he won when they learned his first issue in Richmond would be forcing insurance companies to cover gender transition and gender reassignment surgery. Evidently, the road our shiftshifter was most interested in improving was the one between his house and the genderbending clinic. Alabama voters will see the same transition when Jones gets to Washington, absent the pronoun switch. As far as Im concerned, the voting decision for Christians comes down to a single comparison. Roy Moore may or may not have fondled babies 40 years ago, but if Doug Jones gets to Washington hell be voting to kill babies and fund Planned Parenthood from day one. Thats why if I were an Alabama voter Id choose Roy Moore now and support a conservative opponent in the 2020 Republican primary. Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at mandate.mmpr (at) gmail.com. He is also the author of Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!). Home
The American Renaissance: Chapter One By Michael Moriarty

Why I have chosen to describe these thoughts on December 8, 2007 as The American Renaissance? Im not sure yet. One things for certain: I just survived the worst five-day cold of my entire life. It could very well have been pneumonia! Not now, however. The worst of it is over. Indeed, it has proven to be An Epic Ailment. Apropos of a mildly comforting epithet: If it doesnt kill you, it will make you stronger. If I were in my thirties, I wouldnt be writing about it. Im 76! And, thank God, Im still alive! This is way beyond a Second Chance! It is a One-Hundredth and Second Chance! I have survived a Killer Cold and President Trump has repeatedly survived a treasonous, New World Order attempt to hand American sovereignty over to a United Nations Fourth Reich. The first, formal efforts to impeach President Trump have failed. Subsequent attempts will also fail. I formally announce that: The Trump Era

Is

Unstoppable! President Harry Truman and General Dwight D. Eisenhower are back!

Has North Korea become the Old Imperial Japan? The fundamentals of American success have returned!! Both individual liberty and individual responsibility are in charge of the American future! However! What about the Military-Industrial Complex

that President Eisenhower

was

so

worried about?! Hasnt The Military-Industrial Complex become President Trumps best friend? In the face

Of

Bipartisan,

American support

for

THE NEW WORLD ORDER?! A Renaissance

For

The American Military-Industrial Complex

Has Become

INEVITABLE! What did the recent vote by the anti-Israel, New World Order, United Nations do to re-assert President Trumps obligations to strengthen and reinforce the American, Military-Industrial Complex?! The UN

Shamelessly voted

Against

Israel! Like my cold, that could have been a Killer vote! It hasnt stopped Trump. And, with Divine Certainty, it certainly wont stop The United States of America! Michael Moriarty is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor who starred in the landmark television series Law and Order from 1990 to 1994. His recent film and TV credits include The Yellow Wallpaper, 12 Hours to Live, Santa Baby and Deadly Skies. Contact Michael at rainbowfamily2008@yahoo.com. He can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@MGMoriarty. Home
Examining the historical defence of Christendom as the conceptual template for the defence of Westernesse in J.R.R. Tolkiens The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings (Part Two) By Mark Wegierski

This essay is based on a presentation co-authored with Wojciech Szymanski, M.A., which was read at the Fantastic Literature Conference 2016 (Religious Topics in Fantastic Literature) at the University of Lodz (Lodz, Poland), September 19-20, 2016. Like many great classic works of dystopia, science fiction, or fantasy, Tolkiens works are largely driven by the specific invented terms and languages used in them. The driving impulse of the works under study is the special languages used in them. The invention of language is a vital element of what Tolkien called the subcreation of a world, and it can be seen Tolkien has placed an enormous amount of effort into the construction of specific vocabularies. Nearly all of the special words appear in the ongoing flow of the text, without being italicized. Of course, these special languages are not created ex nihilo  they are based on languages formerly used in human societies. In his world-building, Tolkien went to great lengths to create extensive invented languages. His most prominent invented language, two varieties of Elvish  Quenya and Sindarin, -- have been based largely on a combination of Latin, Old Norse, Old Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, and Finnish elements, to name the most prominent influences. It is at least somewhat interesting that the relation of the Elvish languages to the Middle-Earth setting at the time of the War of the Ring, is somewhat similar to that of Latin to the various European cultures in more modern times. Tolkiens writing can be contrasted with that of the sword-and-sorcery subgenre, typified by Robert E. Howards Conan stories. While reading sword-and-sorcery can be a response to an over-regulated and over-bureaucratized world, it could be argued that there is also an element of cheapness, vulgarity, and gracelessness in sword-and-sorcery, especially in the less salubrious examples of this subgenre. The contrast with Tolkiens own writings, could not be more striking. Some have argued that Tolkiens promulgation of a warrior-ethic is more pagan than Christian. One sees in these works a robust, stalwart fight against various enemies. This does not seem to be a prominent feature of Christianity, as it exists today. Heroic resistance to ones enemies is often said to be a pagan, not Christian trait. Indeed, it could be perceived that, today, various denominations of Christianity are often very weak in facing their current-day adversaries. They seem to be talking all the time about forgiveness, about turning ones cheek, and so forth. It is argued that the key to understanding these works of Tolkien as actually more Christian, rather than pagan in spirit, is to refer to an earlier phase of Christian history, notably the defence of Christendom. The notion of Christendom has become extremely attenuated today. The notion of Christendom hearkens back to the Middle Ages and Early Modern period, when most Europeans lived within an over-arching religious-political-cultural complex that permeated their lives to an extent almost unimaginable today. Christendom was also something that had to be robustly defended. Over the course of close to 1,500 years, European history was punctuated by a series of great battles and sieges that held back various (mostly) Eastern adversaries. Here, one indeed finds a stalwart, robust resistance to various enemies. One can think of such decisive conflicts as Chalons (451 AD), Tours (732 AD), the Great Siege of Malta (1565), the sea-battle of Lepanto (1571), and the siege and battle of Vienna (1683).

Much of this conflict was a struggle against the Ottoman Turks, who were called the sempiternal enemy of Christendom. Also, in the history of the British Isles, there had been at least three conflicts that seemed to fit the template of defending civilization. First of all, there was the stand of the legendary King Arthur and what remained of Roman Britain, against the Saxon invaders. Secondly, there was the later resistance of the Anglo-Saxon King Alfred  the only English monarch surnamed the Great -- against the Danish Vikings. And thirdly, there was the struggle of Irish King Brian Boru against the Vikings. Indeed, G.K. Chestertons famous poem, The Ballad of the White Horse (1911)  portraying an idealized King Alfred  had been one of the inspirations for Tolkiens Middle Earth legendarium. There is little doubt that Tolkiens writing was meant to echo in many readers minds, various instances of the heroic resistance of the men of the West against various enemies.

The defence of Christendom is very likely the conceptual template for the defence of what Tolkien, in these fictional works, himself calls Westernesse. The adversaries of Westernesse attack from the south and east, as was historically the case in Europe. Also, Tolkien names one of the southern powers, the Corsairs of Umbar  which obviously brings to mind the Barbary Coast Corsairs  that had plagued Mediterranean Europe for centuries. He also calls the tribes of men recruited by Sauron, the Southrons and the Easterlings. It should also be noted, that, as in the case of Europes historical battles for survival, the struggle, first against Morgoth, and, subsequently against Sauron, stretches across millennia, with many great battles and sieges. In The Lord of the Rings, the struggle reaches a crescendo, as Minas Tirith stands against the hordes of darkness. Both the historic and fictional struggles can be described as epic in scope. To be continued. Mark Wegierski is a Canadian writer and historical researcher. Home
End the war on coal By Bryan Leyland and Tom Harris

At the recent Environmental Protection Agency public hearing in Charleston, West Virginia, on withdrawing the Clean Power Plan, anti-coal activists were out in force: the Climate Justice Alliance, Sierra Club, Citizens Climate Lobby, Natural Resource Defense Council and many others. The New York Times reported that several groups also met at the University of Charleston, to discuss the purported environmental, health and climate benefits of reducing coal consumption. They apparently do not understand that the abundant, low-cost energy provided by coal laid the foundations of the industrial revolution and modern society. It provided power for trains that transported raw materials and factories that turned them into vital products. In the twentieth century coal-fired power stations provided the reliable, inexpensive electricity that is the lifeblood of modern economies. It still does today. The world has vast coal reserves. The USA alone still has a 380-year supply at current usage rates. It could be burned in modern clean power plants. Sadly, in the Western world, radical environmentalists are working to shut down existing coal-fired stations, and prevent new ones from being built. Meanwhile, hundreds of new coal-fired stations are being built annually in the rest of the world, to power expanding economies and bring improved health, welfare and prosperity to billions of people who until recently had no access to electricity. Developing countries must build new coal-fired stations to provide their poverty-stricken populations with reliable low-cost electricity. But environmentalists have convinced international development banks that coal is evil and persuaded the banks to squander vast sums on expensive wind and solar power that keeps a few lights burning a few hours a day. For commercial and industrial development, hospitals, schools and families, developing nations need abundant, continuous, low-cost electricity. In many cases, coal is by far the best option. So why is coal vilified? It is because of the mistaken belief that man-made carbon dioxide (CO2) is causing dangerous global warming. Indeed, coal stations are a major source of CO2 emissions. However, this climate change connection rests entirely on the output of computer models that are programmed to predict warming if CO2 increases. The models assume what they are supposed to prove! Speaking at the recent America First Energy Conference in Houston, Texas, University of Delaware climatology professor Dr. David Legates showed that climate models consistently predict far greater temperature rises than are actually observed: a full degree Fahrenheit difference by 2017. Models are tuned to give the results desired for political purposes, he explained. This is not science! Yet, the benefits of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide  the only gas controlled by the Clean Power Plan  are clear. CO2 is essential for plant growth. Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change expert Dr. Craig Idso told the Houston audience, The entire terrestrial biosphere is reaping incredible benefits from an approximately 40% increase in atmospheric CO2 since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. If it were true that man-made CO2 caused dangerous global warming, the best option would be nuclear power that is proven, safe and environmentally friendly. But environmental extremists claim that nuclear power is too dangerous, even though the only recorded deaths from nuclear power generation occurred at the obsolete and mal-operated Chernobyl station in Ukraine. The next best option is natural gas. This has been spectacularly successful in the United States, and hydraulic fracturing is producing abundant supplies of this vital fuel. Yet, despite its excellent safety record, activists violently oppose fracking. Instead, they push wind and solar power that exist only because they are heavily subsidized, and their health and environmental impacts are ignored. The huge expansion of wind and solar power has massively increased electricity costs because of subsidies, mandated purchases and the high cost of providing backup power whenever the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine. Reliability is also a problem, especially with wind power. For example, extensive blackouts occurred recently in South Australia when their wind power went offline in a gale and so overloaded the backup supply that it also shut down. Few people understand that the war against coal is actually a war against people and a cleaner environment. Modern highly efficient coal-fired power plants with stack gas cleanup  the kind that can be built all over the world  are as clean as they can be. Their emissions consist of water, CO2 and nitrogen. The stack gas cleanup removes virtually all the real pollutants, especially sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxides. The only pollution left behind is coal ash, which freezes pollutants in its glassy matrix and can be stored safely in disposal facilities. The USA is not building modern coal-fired power plants because EPA regulations set allowable CO2 emissions per megawatt of electricity far below what can be achieved using the best technology. If it had been set slightly higher  or better still, if no limit had been imposed on CO2 emissions  the United States would be still leading the world in building modern, clean, efficient, economical coal-fired stations. Thats exactly what Europe, China, India and dozens of other countries are doing. Its clearly high time to end the war on coal! Bryan Leyland is an Auckland, New Zealand-based consulting engineer and the founding secretary and energy issues adviser for the International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC). Tom Harris is the ICSCs executive director. Home
Impeach Mueller! By Dr. Robert Owens

IMPEACH TRUMP! IMPEACH TRUMP! IMPEACH TRUMP! That is the screech were about to hear emanating from the denizens of the swamp. Sure Maxine Waters and a few others have been singing this song since election night when their plans for the last nail in our coffin went down in flames. Now its beginning to percolate through the monotone media megaphone. And though this was predicted in this column by this author before the inauguration it still has a jarring impact on the senses. Back in the Dream Times when the Deep State was able to turn Watergate into a Silent Coup the precedent was set. If someone tries to overturn the moneychangers tables they must be destroyed. If its a president, even one elected for the sole purpose of adding some reality to the mirage of our functioning oligarchy which portrays itself as a dysfunctional democratic republic, they must be hounded out of office, disgraced, and discredited. Thats the play book. Since before the inauguration the perpetually re-elected hacks aided and abetted by the ABCCBSNBCCNNMSNBCPBS Cartel and their paleo partners in print latched on to their intended weapon, The Russians are coming! The Russians are coming! No matter that the initial facts of the story are ludicrous: the fictional Golden Shower Dossier and the Russian hack of the DNC, which was in fact an inside job. It doesnt matter that the very foundation of the Russian collusion theory is built on sand. Al that matters is that they now have a Special Counselor. They cant call him a Special Prosecutor because theres no legal foundation to appoint a Special Prosecutor, so if they call him a Special Counselor that should fool all of us out here in fly-over country. Prosecutors always believe whoever theyre investigating is guilty and that their job is to find enough evidence to prove what they believe. Innocent until you are proven guilty, right. Anyone who has ever been unlucky enough to have be involved in a criminal trial and lived to talk about it knows how that feels in reality. It has inspired some to look at the courthouse and say, It may say justice on the outside but there isnt any on the inside. Remember the Valerie Plame investigation? Someone blew her cover as an undercover CIA operative. Before the investigation even started they knew who did it. Eventually after a few years and millions of dollars they never prosecuted anyone for the leak; instead they prosecuted Lewis Scooter Libby the Chief of Staff of Vice President Dick Chaney for inconsistencies in his testimony, a process crime. These are search and destroy missions. They are looking to get as many convictions as they can to justify all of their expenses and to puff up the reputations of the scalp hunters who run them. This Special Counselor is one of the closest associates of James The Leaker Comey. He is staffing his office with Obama and Hillary supporters and were supposed to believe his investigation of a non-crime that never happened will produce objective results that anyone anywhere would imagine are justice? Witch hunts find witches. Thats what they do. If anyone was interested in finding real collusion to disrupt an American election they could look into the subject of the DNC emails leaked to WikiLeaks; the proven collusion between the Hillary Clinton campaign and Debbie Wasserman Schultz as revealed by unindicted co-conspirator Donna Brazile. Did you ever notice that none of the principles ever denied what was in the leaked emails, they merely complained about who leaked what to who. Why isnt there a Special Counsel looking in to how these people stacked the cards against poor old Bernie Sanders? He said all along the election was rigged and he was right after all. Why no interest in this? It doesnt serve to keep the swamp damp thats why. Our elite masters, the perpetually re-elected, the Deeps State, and the Media Cartel are setting the stage. They must drive Trump from office before he can actually drain the swamp. They must drive him out disgraced and repudiated or else the poor blind masses might figure out that we dont need technocrats to rule us. If a professional business man is necessary to clean up the mess professional politicians have made, what do we need professional politicians for? Now it turns out that Special Counsel Robert Mueller kept secret that Peter Strzok a top FBI investigator exchanged anti-Trump text messages with an FBI attorney. This transparent bias fuels questions about Muellers credibility and his ability to oversee an impartial investigation. It was revealed that Strzok helped push the largely unverified dossier on Trump, oversaw both the Clinton email and Russia collusion investigations, and conducted the July 2, 2016 interview with Hillary Clinton as well as the interview with Flynn. Several weeks later, he was handpicked to oversee the investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian government. Add all this to the fact that Mueller has packed his investigating team with Clinton Supporters and there you have it, a fair and unbiased effort by the Deep State to remove President Trump from office. They wont let little things like votes, or facts, or whats good for America get in their way. No, theyll soldier on and soon well hear their longed for victory chant IMPEACH TRUMP!!!! IMPEACH TRUMP!!!! echoing through the halls of Rome on the Potomac. To which I say, Impeach Mueller! Dr. Robert Owens teaches History, Political Science, and Religion. He is the Historian of the Future @ http://drrobertowens.com  2017 Contact Dr. Owens drrobertowens@hotmail.com Follow Dr. Robert Owens on Facebook or Twitter @ Drrobertowens / Edited by Dr. Rosalie Owens Home
Keystone is anti-hydrocarbon zealotry in microcosm By Paul Driessen

The Nebraska Public Service Commission (NPSC) recently voted to approve the states segment of the 1,200-mile Keystone XL Pipeline. While that would appear to allow construction to move forward, more obstacles loom before KXL can finally bring North Dakota and Canadian crude oil to Texas refineries. Commissioners who voted against approval have raised objections, some landowners still object to the pipeline crossing their lands, other landowners were not aware that the new route will cross their properties, and environmentalists plan more lawsuits to stop TransCanadas plans to finish Keystone. Further complicating matters, the NSPC-approved route is not the companys preferred path through the Cornhusker State. A spokesman said project engineers will have to assess how much the newly revised route will affect construction schedules and costs, on top of the $3 billion it already spent on KXL. The imbroglio is a tiny facet of the ideological green movements implacable opposition to carbon-based energy. Rooted in climate change dogma, its keep it in the ground mantra has become a rallying cry for nasty campaigns against pipeline construction, existing pipelines, drilling and even sand destined for fracking operations. Police increasingly have to deal with masked thugs, mountains of toxic trash, murder threats and even the possibility of improvised bombs hidden in peaceful protesters encampments. The attitudes and actions underscore the increasing power and recalcitrance of $13-billion-per-year Big Green industry, and how little fundamental facts affect its thinking. If the radicals believe there is an ecological or climate risk, they feel justified in using intimidation, criminal sanctions, and even force, violence and eco-terror to impose their will. Whatever they cannot make off limits via Antiquities Act, wilderness or other land use designations, they intend to lock up or shut down by other means. The most delayed and litigated pipeline in U.S. history, KXL has stirred controversy for over a decade. Proponents say it is a necessary, safe, effective way to transport crude oil to refineries that produce fuel for vehicles and raw materials for countless petrochemical products. In fact, segments of Keystone have already been in operation for several years, delivering crude oil to refineries in Illinois and Texas. A new, shorter, more direct route  Keystone XL, running diagonally through Wyoming, the Dakotas and Nebraska  would be less expensive and safer. The northern portions were approved years ago, but the Nebraska section encountered prolonged opposition from climate alarmists and President Obama. TransCanada had already agreed to move the route away from environmentally sensitive wetlands known as the Nebraska Sandhills. The NPSC decision shifted the pipeline further away from Sandhills. Diehard opponents say all pipelines are inherently unsafe, prolong the use of climate-damaging fossil fuels, and will become obsolete relics as America shifts entirely to renewable energy in a utopian decade or so. The United States already has 160,000 miles of liquid petroleum pipelines, 300,000 miles of natural gas transmission pipelines, and 2,200,000 miles of local gas distribution pipelines. Skilled builders will use the latest steel, valve, monitoring and other technologies to build the KXL segment and prevent spills. No one can guarantee that spills will never occur. A recent older Keystone pipeline break in South Dakota caused a 5,000-barrel leak. However, the Keystone and KXL lines traverse mostly rural areas, whereas truck and rail alternatives go along busy, congested highways and through towns and urban areas  with far greater potential for loss of human life and property. A fiery 2013 derailment in Quebec killed 47 people and left many more badly burned; rail accidents in Colorado and Virginia resulted in significant oil spills but fortunately no deaths. By carrying 830,000 barrels of light and heavy crude every day, Keystone XL would eliminate the need for 1,225 railroad tanker cars per day (450,000 per year) or 3,500 semi-trailer tanker trucks daily (1,275,000 annually)! More than 99.9% of oil moved by pipeline arrives safely at its destination, the Wall Street Journal notes. Rail transit is 2.5 times more likely to have an accident resulting in an oil spill, and trucks are six times more likely to do so  with both far more likely to injure, burn or kill many people. Indeed, the 5,000-barrel spill happened after the Keystone pipeline had safely delivered more than 1.5 billion barrels of oil, and TransCanada isolated the affected pipeline section within 15 minutes. No serious damage occurred. Equally important, wind and solar substitutes for fossil fuels have their own major ecological impacts  which few environmentalists ever acknowledge. Using wind power to replace current US electricity generation and charge batteries for just seven windless days of backup power would require some 14 million towering 1.8-MW bird-and-bat-killing turbines, across acreage twice the size of California. The backup power would require over 650 million 100-kWh Tesla battery packs on still more acreage. This does not consider what it would take to replace vehicles with electric versions  or coal and gas fuel in foundries, refineries and factories. The steel, copper, lithium, cobalt, rare earth elements, fiberglass and other raw materials to build all those turbines, batteries and transmission lines would require massive quantities of earth removal, mining, processing, smelting and manufacturing  much of it in developing countries under dangerous, inhuman conditions. Renewable energy is not ecological or sustainable. Activists who cry Climate Armageddon attempt to tie every temperature rise, hurricane and other extreme weather event to human greenhouse gas emissions. They ignore the record 12-year drought in Category 3-5 hurricanes striking the U.S. mainland, prior to Harvey  and the warming hiatus that has prevailed since 1998, except during the 2015-16 El Nino temperature spike. Climate computer models falsely assume that plant-fertilizing carbon dioxide drives climate change  and predict average global temperatures a full 1 degree F higher than have actually been observed by satellites and weather balloons, a gap that is widening every year. It now appears that Western Antarctic ice shelf instability is due to volcanic and magmatic activity beneath it  not climate change. Heavily subsidized, sporadic, unreliable wind and solar combined provide less than 3% of all U.S. energy. One day, they (or some other as yet unimaginable energy source) may replace the fossil fuels that still account for 81% of the energy that makes US livelihoods, living standards and life spans possible  and is lifting billions out of abject poverty, malnutrition and disease. But that day has not yet arrived. Fossil fuels provide feed stocks for paints, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other products that enrich and safeguard our lives. They keep our lights, heat and air conditioning on, and power the manufacturing centers that create computers, smart phones, healthcare technologies, vehicles and batteries. They take patients to hospitals, people to work and events, products to retailers and homes. They are the most efficient, most affordable power source for the modern civilization which we Americans enjoy and take for granted  and to which all humans aspire. Pipelines are the fastest, safest, most direct, most economical way to get oil and natural gas supplies where they are needed. Keystone XL is a vital addition to Americas pipeline system. Its not perfect. But it is essential for a healthier, safer, more prosperous United States. Building it will create tens of thousands of jobs. As to handling anarchists who think they are above the law, these suggestions may help. Ensure that there are sufficient police and National Guardsmen to maintain control. Require permits and multi-million-dollar surety bonds for every encampment, to ensure safety, lawful activities, and cleanup of human and other wastes. Prohibit wearing of ski masks and collect IDs, fingerprints and photos of every activist. To prevent hypocrisy in anti-fossil fuel anarchist camps, prohibit all petroleum-based synthetic fibers (clothing, tents, sleeping bags); clothing derived from fibers grown, harvested and/or manufactured using fossil fuels; computers and cell phones with plastic housings; and transportation from protest sites in vehicles fueled or manufactured with hydrocarbons, in aircraft, or on asphalt roadways. Allow only growing, harvesting, garment manufacturing, food, cooking and travel using all-natural pre-1900 technologies  so that campers can learn how wonderful life was back in the good old days. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (www.CFACT.org) and author of books and articles on energy and environmental policy. Home
Trumps speech recognizing Jerusalem: What it says and what it doesnt say By Nadav Shragai

The U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel overturns American policy dating back 70 years and entails several immediate results, some of them declarative and some also practical: Burial of the UN Resolution to Internationalize Jerusalem Trump put paid to the notion of internationalization, which the United States had not officially renounced since November 29, 1947. That same day, of course, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 181 on dividing the Land of Israel between the Jews and the Arabs. The partition resolution stated, among other things, that: The City of Jerusalem shall be established as a corpus separatum under a special international regime and shall be administered by the United Nations. According to the United Nations, the boundaries of Jerusalem then also encompassed the city of Bethlehem, and the internationalization of the city was to be in place for 10 years. However, it was never implemented. The outcomes of the Israels 1948-49 War of Independence and the division of Jerusalem between Israel and Jordan turned internationalization into a dead letter. Until the recognition speech, the United States had never officially renounced internationalization while giving most of the emphasis in its policy to repeated statements that Jerusalems status would be determined in negotiations between the sides. Now that Trump has recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital, internationalization has become, from the U.S. standpoint, irrelevant history. Plans for Dividing the City  In Deep-Freeze Trumps speech puts into deep-freeze the audacious plans for a division of the city, which were on the negotiating table during the tenures of Prime Ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert. Barak and Olmert were prepared to divide Jerusalem, and two U.S. administrations, that of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, were intensely involved in mediating between the sides and encouraging them to adopt such a plan in the hope of achieving peace. The countries of the European Union also took part in the negotiations on dividing Jerusalem at different stages. In the wake of Trumps speech and his recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital, the chances that during his tenure such plans will again be broached are low. A Single Territorial Unit without Sacrosanct Borders Until Trumps speech, the United States did not recognize either west or east Jerusalem as Israels capital, even though presidents, secretaries of state, and American diplomats were regularly hosted in the western part of the city. Trumps speech did not distinguish between west and east. He referred to Jerusalem with all its parts as a single unit. At the same time, the speech made clear that the United States does not necessarily regard the current borders as sacrosanct, or as the president himself put it: We are not taking a position on any final status issues, including the specific boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem or the resolution of contested borders. Those questions are up to the parties involved. Formal Recognition of the Reality of One Jerusalem Trump again mentioned the Jewish peoples historical bond to Jerusalem, while also emphasizing his awareness of the current reality in the city. The alley of the Western Wall has become a huge plaza. After many years, Jews can now visit the Temple Mount. The U.S. president now, in effect, recognizes all these places, along with the network of infrastructures, national parks, and governmental and national institutions that have been built in the added parts of Jerusalem  including on Mount Scopus, where Hadassah Hospital and the Hebrew University were re-established after 1967. In Atarot to the north, the Atarot Airport was put to use (and later closed). Numerous archaeological digs have been conducted in all parts of the city, and Jerusalems glorious past through the ages has been revealed. All of this  along with, of course, the older reality in the western part of the city, where the government offices, the Knesset, the presidents residence, and the Supreme Court are located  the United States now recognizes as part of Jerusalem, capital of Israel. Symbolic Changes Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital will purportedly change the State Departments practice regarding the passport registration of American citizens born in Jerusalem. To this day, when an American is born in Paris, it is registered in his/her passport that the place of birth was in Paris, France. When an American is born in Tel Aviv, place of birth in the passport is recorded as Tel Aviv, Israel. But when an American is born in Jerusalem, place of birth is registered as only Jerusalem. Now that the United States has recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital, perhaps it will be possible to change this practice and register Jerusalem, Israel on the passports of Americans born in Jerusalem. What Is Missing from the American Recognition of Jerusalem as Israels Capital? There Are No Free Gifts There still is no easing of the major restrictions the United States has imposed on Israel regarding construction in Jewish neighborhoods and areas that are over the Green Line, whether in Jerusalem itself or in Greater Jerusalem. Whatever is happening behind the scenes on that issue is not talked about. Building in Givat Hamatos in southern Jerusalem, which was approved a considerable time ago by the planning institutions in Jerusalem, is still frozen. From an Israeli standpoint, this is a painful obstruction of a crucial urban-strategic link between the Gilo neighborhood and the Har Homa neighborhood. Construction is also frozen in the E1 area, where a neighborhood linking Maale Adumim and Jerusalem is supposed to be built. Construction in the Greater Jerusalem area is approved sparingly under American supervision. Even within Jerusalems municipal boundaries, little construction is approved in neighborhoods that were added to the city after 1967. Diplomatic observers in Jerusalem believe that reports in recent weeks about progress in talks on an Israeli-Palestinian deal of the century are not unrelated to the presidents declaration. According to this analysis, it is not inconceivable that Trump will now request a payment for this historic step in the form of Israeli concessions connected to the ongoing talks. The Temple Mount  Not Part of the Game The status quo on the Temple Mount will be maintained. Jews will not be permitted to pray there, only visit. The Israeli-Jordanian de facto joint management of the site will continue. The senior status on the Temple Mount that Israel granted Jordan in the two countries peace treaty will not change. Trump now understands the huge sensitivity and volatility of one of the most sensitive spots in the Middle East. Jerusalems Borders Trumps speech does not promise, as noted, that Jerusalem will remain within its current boundaries when peace is achieved. The American president recognized Jerusalem as Israels capital but did not commit that its current borders are its final borders. He thereby left the Palestinians a narrow opening, but certainly not a wide-enough one to return to the grandiose and fanciful plans for the citys division that arose in the past. It is possible, for example, that the New York Times report on a Saudi proposal to Mahmoud Abbas that revives the old notion of a Palestinian capital in Abu Dis (a neighborhood bordering Jerusalem on the east) hints at additional new thinking in the context of U.S. policy on the Jerusalem issue. The Embassy Is Not Moving So Fast Trump, like his predecessors, will not be moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem tomorrow. He is deterred by the Palestinian threats on this issue. The administration is talking about a transfer process of three or four years. The site to be chosen for the embassy will, apparently, be in West Jerusalem and not in the east of the city. The president is now talking about launching the logistical preparations for the embassys transfer. Trump thereby joins a series of U.S. presidential candidates who promised but, upon becoming president, did not deliver. Perhaps this will change in the future. Where Will the Recognition Lead? The question of where Trumps statements and the American recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital will lead depends on the behavior of the sides. At least on the rhetorical level, Trumps declaration united the Muslim world (moderates and extremists) against Israel: Iran, Turkey, and Qatar, along with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan, all denounced Trumps move and warned of the repercussions. At the same time, reality will ultimately be determined on the ground. The three days of rage that Fatah declared, and Hamas threat to renew the intifada, will test not only Israels ability to put out the fire if it erupts, but also the Palestinians ability to bring masses of people into the streets. When the issue of Al-Aqsa and the Temple Mount was on the agenda in the summer (in the metal detector crisis after the terror attack on the Mount), masses of Palestinians did take to the streets, and eventually, Israel gave in and removed the detectors. However, on other occasions during the past year when Hamas and Fatah called for a day of rage and protests, the street did not respond. If Hamas again succeeds to channel the protest in the Al-Aqsa direction and to convince the public that the American recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital once again means that Al-Aqsa is in danger, the masses will again take to the streets. But as long as Al-Aqsa is outside of the picture, the waves of protest will be lower. One of the dangers of another religiously driven imbroglio lies in the cooperation between Jordan and Erdogans Turkey. In recent years Turkey has been trying to gain a foothold in Jerusalem by funneling funds to various institutions and endeavors in the Old City and on the Temple Mount, and it has indeed accrued influence among the east Jerusalem population. Erdogan has already started trying to incite anger over the American recognition on a religious footing. Israels interest, then, is to try to isolate the Temple Mount from the current agitation and to prevent actors such as Hamas, the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, Turkey, or Qatar from again setting the field ablaze. Nadav Shragai is a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He served as a journalist and commentator at Haaretz between 1983 and 2009, is currently a journalist and commentator at Israel Hayom, and has documented the dispute over Jerusalem for thirty years. Home
The first thing to say is, it is not funny. Kundan Shah never had any sense of humour. He had a sense of the wacky, he laughed easily, but he struggled to tell a joke. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983, henceforth JBDY) was, if anything, about the impossiblethe film was not meant to work. Shah was making it almost like it would be the only chance the film-maker would be given to use up footage and to shoot. He made it like he knew he would never make another.

JBDY goes so far beyond ha-ha-funny that it becomes, rather like the pivotal moment in its plot, some kind of instant snapshot of Bombay (now Mumbai), and the India of that time: capturing something so gruesome that laughter became almost a last-resort action. This was an achievement that went beyond Shah, and it swallowed him. He even referred to it in a strange way, jumbling the words together into something that sounded a bit like janiybdoyroo. This was a film-maker who has made two major commercial hits, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa (1994) and Kya Kehna (2000) and collaborated on a television series that would itself be a landmark, Nukkad (198687). And yet he would never transcend his first film, it remained the only film he had ever made or would ever make.
The majority judgment of the Supreme Court that struck down triple talaq as unconstitutional has been welcomed as an important step towards ameliorating the plight of Muslim women and is indeed a landmark legal victory. Yet, many have expressed their unhappiness about the fact that the verdict was ambiguous, made ample room for personal law, and did not do enough in terms of upholding the constitutional rights of Muslim women (Mehta 2017).We would like to draw attention to a few observations that have emerged from two years of fieldwork at a sharia court or darul qaza (literally, place where the qazi sits) situated in a large Muslim ghetto of Kanpur.1 We argue that what is lost in the current discourse is the truism that personal law is a matter of resolving personal problems as much as it is a matter of law. They are enmeshed in kinship rules, household economics, and family intrigues. Here, litigants work towards resolution where privacy, expediency, and negotiation are the key terms. The question of personal law, therefore, needs familiarity with the processes through which Muslim women (and men)especially those belonging to the lower rungs of socio-economic hierarchy resolve their family and property disputes, obtain divorce and custody.

While the media and public discourse have remained focused on the constitutional validity of certain practices in Muslim personal law, there is very little clarity around the question: how are Muslim family and civil cases adjudicated in India? The procedural aspect of Muslim personal law is a black box even for those well-conversant with the contemporary discourse on law and Islam. Feminist legal scholar and womens rights lawyer Flavia Agnes noted that during the six-day hearing on triple talaq in May 2017, it became apparent that even the legal luminaries had not done any research about the situation prevailing on the ground (Agnes 2017). Yet, in recent years there has been research that shows how adjudication in family matters takes place in collocation between civil, social, and religious forums (Lemons 2010; Solanki 2011; Vatuk 2014, 2017). For example, Gopika Solankis fine-grained analysis documents how legal practice is localised and decentralised by multiple legal actors such as lawyers, clergy, family members, religious organisations, sect councils, womens organisations as well as the doorstep courts, such as residential committees and womens ad hoc groups (Solanki 2011).
Absurd said: Hello,



I tried to search the forum upon posting this, however I didn't find a proper answer.

I'm working in France for 6 years - can anyone tell me, if I can take out my pension accumulations if I will leave France/EU?



Thanks Click to expand...

No, you can't. When you get ready to retire, depending on where you are at that point, there is a good chance that your years worked in France will count toward your retirement entitlement in your country of residence. And if that country is a member of the EU, there is also a good chance that they will forward your retirement request to France. (If you retire outside of the EU, you may need to apply to France yourself.)The amount of your French pension may not be much, but when combined with any other pensions, may actually be rather handy. (I only worked for 2 1/2 years in Germany, but I get a small but steady pension payment every month now.)Cheers,Bev
Ph76 said: We are kind of looking for an easier life style than what we have in Sweden with the dark & the cold most of the year, all free time consumed by cleaning, laundry, gardening and such, when we want to be able to spend that time with our kids as a family.



But we are not willing to go down in living standards. Click to expand...

Household help is cheap here. You can get live in 6 days a week childcare, household help, gardener, driver etc for next to nothing if you provide room and board. ( between $US 150 to $200 a month would be lots for the skilled people, a simple cleaner would be much less.). The hard part is finding someone good, dependable and trustworthy.That buys you something very valuable, time.A quick online look gives several 5 bedroom homes in Makati for between 200kp and 400kp a month depending on furnished or not. These will be luxury high-end homes in extremely safe subdivisions. Also, this is asking prices, you can always make a bargain, often 10% discounts for prepaying a year in advance.Before making your decision, why not ask for a site visit? Get a feel for the place, location is important because the worst thing here is traffic, you do not want a long commute. Often during rush hour times walking is the fastest way around, even for longer distances.If you come, just let us know. I am sure many here would be happy to have a coffee/beer with you and offer some insights.
NAVAJO NATION  A dead horse lay alongside Indian Route 12, just south of the Navajo Nation community known by old-timers as Tsihootso, good eating for a wild dog that scurried into the scrub as cars passed by.

It drew little notice. Whether live and meandering across roads in town centers, or dead from getting slammed by vehicles while grazing the reservations thin forage onto highway shoulders, feral horses have become a familiar part of the 27,000-square-mile nations high desert landscape  and a problem for the tribes emerging cattle ranching industry, according to Robert Joe, the Navajo Nations chief operating officer.

The Navajo Nation  a 17.5 million acre Indian reservation that stretches across portions of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico  is the largest coal-producing tribe in the U.S. Coal mining, oil, natural gas and the tribes massive coal-fired plant, the Navajo Generating Station, accounted for 66 percent of the tribes revenue in 2016  down from as high as 77 percent in 2012.

With the pending shutdown of the plant in 2019 and the collapse of the coal market, the impoverished nation is being forced to look at new sources of wealth. A federal program established in 2009 by Congress shows some promise in raising cattle on the Padres Mesa Demonstration Ranch  a 640-acre swath of land on the reservation.

At about the same time, San Antonio-based Labatt Food Service was looking for markets for a new distribution center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Labatt CEO Blair Labatt and Chief Operating Officer Al Silva met with ranch manager Bill Inman and tribal officials to pitch a Navajo beef label that would allow Indian casinos to feature their own beef. It could be expanded to a Native American beef label as more tribes joined on.

The Navajo Beef label launched in November 2012. Labatt brought in a feed lot operator to fatten the cattle before slaughter and sent the meat off to its plants for processing. It also packaged, transported and a marketed the program, with pens and hats and posters featuring the label.

They processed 545 head of cattle that first year, generating more than $500,000 in revenue for the Navajos. Last year, the program processed 1,998 head of cattle that yielded $2.3 million in revenue for 23 Navajo ranching families. According to Labatt, the company is barely breaking even with its investment, though the label has helped the company make inroads in stocking other items for Navajo casinos.

Really we view this as the biggest philanthropic effort that weve ever undertaken, he said.

The nations sheer size alone, however, could make it a major contender in the niche beef market. Families with small herds could get a part of a label thats already a star feature of casino restaurants and area supermarkets. For a place with a 44 percent unemployment rate, 7 percent graduation rate, and a $7,752 per capita income, the opportunity is hard to pass up.

But the program, which includes five ranch hands, breeding stock, inspections, and other operating expenses, cost the federal government about $67,000 last year. The ranch is facing funding pressure from the federal government and at risk of closing.

And grazing competition  a horse eats 1 times more range than a cow  has become an issue for the Navajos now that the potential of marketing Native American beef is being realized.

Horses on the reservation have no natural predators, multiply prolifically, and eat up massive amounts of range. Amid an emotional debate that mirrors the national crisis over the exploding population of wild horses on federal lands, the Navajos havent been able to find a solution. Few are comfortable with the idea of killing them.

Its a real controversial issue with the Navajos, because of the Navajo culture and just the story of the horse, the sacredness of what it represents and how its integrated into the prayers and ceremonies, Joe said. So its a tough one. But at some point there has to be some controls and management that come into play. Because today, none of that exists.

The wild horse population on federal lands has more than doubled in the past 16 years to more than 113,000 in 2016 with an additional 93,000 feral horses roaming on tribal lands throughout the U.S., according to a July report by the GAO. There are now at least 40,000 feral horses on the Navajo reservation, and that population is expected to double in the next five years, according to aerial surveys funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The population boom has been linked to the prohibitions against domestic horse slaughter. Congress has effectively banned horse slaughter since 2005 by withholding funding for federal inspectors necessary to approve the meat for human consumption. That means there hasnt been domestic horse slaughter for more than a decade, which has given rise to a market for horses sent to Mexico for slaughter.

Exports for slaughter in Mexico increased 680 percent from 2006 to 2010, the GAO said. Separate measures to outlaw exporting horses for slaughter in Mexico and Canada have failed. A provision by President Donald Trump to save $10 million in Bureau of Land Management costs by selling wild horses has outraged animal rights groups.

Without the ability to take their horses to a processing facility, owners have few options in how to deal with overpopulation or aging horses. This means horses are more likely to be abandoned or mistreated, said Jeremy Fuchs of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association.

In the past, a down-on-his-luck Navajo could round up a horse or two, take it to a sale and net several hundred dollars. The horse meat would end up on dinner tables in parts of Europe and Asia, where its considered a delicacy. But exports have fallen after an animal welfare group called Animals Angels launched a campaign in 2013 in Europe releasing videos showing the brutality of horse slaughter and raising questions about the presence of veterinary drugs considered unsafe for humans in domestic horses sold for horse meat.

Thats led to a dramatic increase in horse carcasses in the Texas-Mexico border town of Presidio  from 12.5 tons in 2012 to 330 tons over the subsequent three years, the Express-News reported last year. Presidio is the end of the line for horses for which there was no market, in part because of the loss of the European customers.

With overpopulation of wild horses on federal lands, regulations against slaughter, and the aftermath of the Great Recession, horses in some places are more or less worthless.

You can get a truckload of wild horses for, its heartbreaking, $150, said Laura Leigh, founder of Nevada-based Wild Horse Education. That truckload can pull in anywhere from $50 to $100,000 depending on the current price of horse meat. Thats a lot of cash.

Gloria Tom, director of the Navajo Department of Fish and Wildlife, said leaders were considering a proposal for an approximately $950,000 multidisciplinary horse management plan. The plan includes an educational campaign about the horses effects on the environment, on-reservation livestock sales for off reservation buyers and controlled horse hunts.

We want to be able to offer monetary incentives for people to get rid of their horses because basically theyre just out there on the landscape, she said. Theyre not being used. Theyre just there.

The plan also includes contraceptive darts, she said, but only for people who have control over their areas.

Were talking about 18 million acres of land here, she said. I mean, if we had a small pasture and we knew what horse was darted, wed be able to do something like that. But were talking about a large land base and it just wouldnt be practical.

In July, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, cast a pivotal vote opening the door for horse slaughter in the U.S. again. The legislation still needs to pass the Senate before it would become law, but it was the first indication in a while that Congress may reverse course on the practice.

All of us would like to see wild horses and burros thrive in an ecologically balanced environment. But, this cannot happen unless the (Bureau of Land Management) has adequate means at hand to effectively manage horse and burro populations in an environmentally sensitive way, Cuellar said in an email. Due to this ban, the BLM has not been able to maintain horse populations at levels that protect wildlife habitat and enable multiple uses of land. Areas overpopulated by horses cannot sustain populations of wildlife. Ultimately, not only horses and burros themselves, but the entire ecosystem suffers.

Cuellar added that hes sponsored horse and burro adoption events in his district and saw that it wasnt enough. Some horses considered successfully adopted have ended up in Mexican and Canadian packing plants, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Similarly, current sterilization and birth control efforts have proved ineffective at controlling the wild horse population, leaving many to face gruesome deaths due to starvation, he said.

Leigh said that the move to reopen domestic horse slaughter was about cattle raisers looking to control forage on federal lands where they have grazing rights.

This machine is moving really fast  to remove horses and put a bullet in their head, she said. Nobody comprehends that wild horse management is public land management, its attached to the federal grazing program  The federal grazing program is broken.

Inman, a former Texas rancher and Bureau of Land Management employee, knows well how horses can eat up rangeland. But Navajos with horses have a feeling of wealth, he said, even if they dont tend to the horses or know where they are.

Roundup attempts have ended with Navajos showing up to reclaim their found horses or letting them loose from the pens. Since reservation lands are collectively owned, the program will fail unless everyones on board with managing horse numbers, not grazing too many head of cattle and breeding for the best genetics.

During a drive up U.S. 191, which runs through the Navajo reservation up past the Utah border, Gene Shepherd, the first ranch hand hired at the Padres Mesa demonstration ranch, spoke of the many horse-vehicle collisions on the highway and the roundups by the Navajo Department of Agriculture that failed to fix the problem.

I worked with them for three months, he said. Almost every day. But they didnt even put a dent in em. They came underneath a lot of criticism. A lot of people lost their jobs.

In the past few years, fencing has been put in along the state-managed roadway. In the winter months, whats left of the grasses will get depleted, and desperate horses will try to get through the fences to try to reach the grass on the other side.

Shepherd is a soft-spoken man who speaks Navajo fluently and sings at spiritual ceremonies. He grew up herding sheep. Before the ranch, he worked odd construction jobs.

He slept in a horse trailer during the ranchs earliest days, because the ranch house with all its snakes reminded him of the Mormon-run Indian boarding schools hed escaped from in his youth. There arent many jobs on the reservation, so those who are employed either travel long distances or work for the government.

Inman has been fielding cellphone calls from the agencys lawyers and the Bureau of Indian Affairs in an effort to save the ranch from losing its funding. When was the ranch started? How many acres was it? How much is it worth? How do we preserve it? How do we tear it down?

Labatts also visited with tribal leaders and Arizona Sen. John McCain to try to help save Padres Mesa. Hes hopeful Padres Mesa will be maintained under the tribes new Naattannii (Navajo for leader) Development Corporation if the federal government cuts off funding.

The DC folks, if they come out here then its a pretty easy sell that we are very unique, Inman said. They have a little issue, I hear, because theyre like, Who authorized a federal agency to start a ranch? Even though its great, the taxpayers money doesnt usually go to buy cows. And they didnt even know it really existed until this phase-out.

lbrezosky@express-news.net
WASHINGTON  Sen. Richard Shelby, a fixture of Republican politics in Alabama for a generation, sent a clear message to his home state Sunday when he said on national television that the party could do better than elect Roy Moore to the states other Senate seat in two days.

Shelby, appearing on CNNs State of the Union, stopped short of endorsing Moores Democratic opponent in the special election, Doug Jones, noting that he had written in the name of a distinguished Republican on his absentee ballot.

But his decision to air his opposition to Moore on national television so close to the election added an exclamation point to an extraordinary break from the norms of modern party politics. Shelby pointedly declined to recommend that his fellow Republicans back their nominee in the tight race, a man Shelby would have to work with in the Senate if he is elected.

I understand where the president is coming from. I understand we would like to retain that seat, Shelby said, referring to President Trumps endorsement of Moore despite accusations of sexual misconduct involving teenagers.

But I tell you what, theres a time, we call it a tipping point, Shelby continued. I think, so many accusations, so many cuts, so many drip, drip, drip. When it got to the 14-year-olds story, that was enough for me.

The senator has long opposed Moore, saying a month ago that he would absolutely not vote for the embattled candidate.

Over the past month, Moore has been repeatedly accused of harassing and assaulting teenage girls when he was a state attorney in his 30s. One of the women told the Washington Post that Moore had touched her sexually when she was 14. He has denied any wrongdoing.

The comments by Shelby, a key party figure at age 83, underscore the degree to which voters in Alabama  both for and against Moore  are viewing Tuesdays election as a referendum on the character of the Republican Party, which dominates there, and the state itself.

Moore has faced scrutiny not just for the allegations of sexual misconduct, but also for a string of incendiary remarks, including comments that America was last great when families remained intact during the slavery era, and previous claims that Muslims should not be allowed to hold office.

Rep. Terri Sewell, the only Democrat representing Alabama in Congress, said Sunday that the direction Moore represents is clear. If elected, she said, he would harken us back to the days of segregation. Speaking on ABCs This Week, she said she feels there was no reason not to believe the women who had come forward to accuse Moore of misconduct.

Nicholas Fandos and Emily Cochrane are New York Times writers.
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Jury foreman Mixtli Bolanos, 9, and his friend wanted to convict Santa Claus of endangering children and violating the law that separates church and state.

But the other jurors, also fourth-graders at James Bonham Academy, brought Mixtli around Saturday morning, reminding him what happened after Santa passed out candy in the federal courtroom.

They called my bluff, and they said that I ate the candy, Mixtli said. And I did.

Thus Santa, aka Kris Kringle or Luis Miranda, walked free after the 24th annual mock trial inspired by the movie Miracle on 34th Street.

In addition to filling the jury, Bonham fourth-graders served as clerks and bailiffs. Prosecuting and defense attorneys were Boy Scouts from Troop 285 working toward citizenship badges. The U.S. District Court Committee and the San Antonio Bar Association helped organize the trial, with federal Judge Henry J. Bemporad presiding.

The annual mock trial began with Burnet Elementary, but it has been a Bonham project since Burnet closed almost 20 years ago.

Its just a really fun thing for the kids to learn how the judicial process works, said Sona Ramirez, a partner at Strasburger & Price and a member of the federal court committee.

The case began with the San Antonio Police Department arresting Santa at 1 p.m. Wednesday as he was passing out candy and toys at Bonham.

He is tried on similar charges every year in federal court. Hes always been acquitted except once a few years ago, when the prosecutors did an especially good job and Santa did not tamper with the jury enough, Ramirez said.

Santas tampering Saturday took the form of passing out candy to jurors, court staffers, Bemporad and the audience.

The defense will also say that Kris is a nice and innocent man who is just spreading joy to children, Gage Lagueux, 13, the lead prosecutor, said during opening arguments. Hes allowed to do this, just not at public schools. The fact of the matter is, he broke the law, and no one  not me, not you, or even the president  is above the law.

After that argument, Santa handed out lumps of coal to the four prosecutors.

The principal does not care about the happiness of the kids that are receiving the gifts, said Quinn Niebergall, 13, the lead defense attorney. He only cares about his job and making sure that he doesnt get in trouble with the board of education.

On the stand, Santa maintained that he has a toy factory at the North Pole, from which his reindeer fly to deliver presents to the worlds children in one night because it makes them happy. No-ho-ho-ho, he sobbed as prosecutors and witnesses attacked him.

Sean Hughes, father of a Scout defense attorney, testified for the prosecution in the assumed role of psychiatrist and author of the book Delusions of the Elderly. Another Scout father posed as a cultural anthropologist who argued that gift-giving is not a uniquely Christian pastime, and a third became a postman who gave Santa federal recognition by delivering him letters.

Jake Ryan Stroope, 4, the son of an attorney at Strasburger & Price, took the stand to answer confidently that Santa makes him happy and Kris Kringle is Santa Claus.

It took the jury almost 20 minutes to acquit.

Santa didnt do anything to deserve this, Mixtli said after announcing the verdict. He brings families together.

amalik@express-news.net
The condemned soldiers marched one last time at daybreak, chains rattling, toward a scaffold where 13 nooses dangled from a long beam that would cast a long shadow over Fort Sam Houston and the U.S. Army.

Standing 6 feet 6 and weighing 260 pounds, one condemned soldier known for telling stories everyone presumed to be lies but still loved to hear decided he wasnt going quietly.

Ive wandered far away from God, Pvt. Frank Johnson began to sing at a place the executioners called Hangmans Grove, a white guard wrote in a letter to his parents. Now Im coming home.

The other men of the 3rd Battalion, U.S. 24th Infantry sat in chairs on the hastily assembled scaffold near Salado Creek and joined in singing the hymn, prompting the white soldiers who had guarded them since their trial to weep. When the last notes faded into the icy wind, an Army major issued final instructions and cried, Attention!

One hundred years ago today, the 13 African-American soldiers convicted in a mass trial at Fort Sam were executed at 7:17 a.m. Their deaths might have struck many as the completion of one of the largest murder trials in U.S. history, but in closing the books on a riot that left the city of Houston briefly under martial law months earlier, the hangings instead sparked a national outcry.

The Camp Logan Mutiny, and the resulting executions, 19 in all, prompted a re-evaluation of the Armys justice system that would correct one of its most glaring shortcomings: the lack of an appeal process for condemned soldiers.

The Aug. 23, 1917, riot at the start of Americas entry into World War I left 16 white people dead and two dozen injured. The 13 condemned men had been found guilty of mutiny, sedition, murder and lesser offenses in the first of three trials of more than 100 soldiers from the all-black infantry regiment. Six more would be executed at Fort Sam and buried with the others in unmarked graves near the scaffold. A total of 53 were handed life sentences.

Many aftershocks

Things that would shock people in 2017 were common in military trials a century ago. The 63 soldiers in the first trial in November 1917 were represented by a single officer who wasnt even a lawyer. He had been given 10 days to prepare his case. Soldiers testified under immunity.

The Houston Riot, as its also called, involved sporadic firefights among soldiers, police and white civilians on a dark night 2 miles or so from Camp Logan, which is part of sprawling Memorial Park west of downtown. Through three trials in 1917 and 1918, no civilian could identify a single defendant.

Yet the decision of three one-star generals and nine colonels in the first trial, held in what is now Fort Sams Gift Chapel, was not a surprise. In addition to the 13 sentenced to death, 41 got life sentences. In the next two courts-martial, 16 were ordered to face the hangmans noose, and 12 others were given life terms.

A total of eight soldiers won acquittals in all three trials, while charges against one were dismissed.

I dont think there is any doubt some of those soldiers were guilty of murder, said Fred Borch III, regimental historian and archivist for the Army Judge Advocate Generals Corps. But I have to believe some were innocent, at least of killing people. With 63 defendants (in the first trial), there are going to be levels of guilt with all of them. How can you shake out those levels with only one defense counsel? You just cant do it.

Protests over the outcome, often from Africans-Americans but in some cases by white leaders who included senators and congressmen, spurred President Woodrow Wilson to commute 10 of the 29 death sentences. The NAACP, in turn, successfully lobbied Washington to get most of those handed long sentences out of prison by 1930, but civil rights activists marking the 100th anniversary of the hangings say more could be done.

The head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conferences Fort Worth chapter, who brought about 40 high school students Saturday morning to see the chapel, Hangmans Grove and the soldiers graves in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, is asking President Donald Trump to posthumously pardon every soldier.

Dr. (Martin Luther) King used to say the arc of a moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice, the Rev. K.P. Tatum Sr. said.  And so were there to let them know not only that their lives were not in vain, but their legacy was not in vain, and that 100 years later our generation is learning about the story.

The soldiers who came to Houston were part of a proud, highly decorated unit whose lineage went back to the famed Buffalo Soldiers who protected the American West. But their mission  guarding Camp Logan and performing military police duties around Houston  was a clouded enterprise even before they arrived in April 1917.

Some in the city didnt want them there and told the Army so. Racism was rampant in Houston, as were fears that armed black soldiers could stir hostility toward whites and their recently instituted Jim Crow laws. The Houston Police Department often brutalized those in custody, and run-ins with black soldiers soon led to beatings.

A fuse is lit

Transcripts from the first trial, preserved in an extensive collection at South Texas College of Law, described ongoing disputes at Camp Logan, insults involving white workers, police and soldiers, sometimes violent. The police earned a reputation for arresting and beating soldiers who stood up to them when words were exchanged.

A common racist epithet for black people appears to have been employed in connection with almost every case of disorder, a witness stated. The use of the word was invariably met by angry responses, outbursts of profanity and threats of vengeance.

Things came to a head Aug. 23. At 10 a.m., police officers Lee Sparks and R.H. Daniels raided a craps game led by some young black men at San Felipe and Wilson streets. They ran, with Sparks following one of them into the home of an African-American woman, whom he arrested and reportedly slapped. Pvt. Alonzo Edwards of Company L got in the middle of it and was beaten and handcuffed. Police said he was drunk.

Four hours later, a military police officer, Cpl. Charles Baltimore of Company I, talked with Sparks and Daniels about Edwards arrest. The conversation ended with Sparks pistol-whipping Baltimore, who ran, was shot at three times by Sparks, and later arrested and beaten again.

Daniels would die in the riot, his corpse bearing bayonet wounds.

The colored soldiers could not reconcile the actions of the police authorities of Houston with the ... principles they had been taught  that authority was to be exercised with firmness, kindness and justice and that officers would treat enlisted men in ways that preserved their self-respect, wrote Col. J.A. Hull of the Judge Advocate Generals Corps and Maj. H.S. Grier.

Word of Baltimores beating got back to camp, with some saying he had been killed. The report wasnt accurate, but it didnt matter. The fuse had been lit.

Army Maj. H.K. Snow, a white infantry officer, recalled Sgt. Vida Henry coming to his tent and saying Major, I think we are going to have trouble tonight.

Henry would be identified as a leader of the riot and was found dead when it was over, an apparent suicide.

Snow went to investigate and saw a large column of men clustered around a tent in the rain. As quickly as they did recognize me they scattered in all directions, and I saw them taking ammunition away, holding it in their arms and in their hands, he testified.

Major, what are we going to do when they hit us over the head  beat us up like this? one of the soldiers asked.

Snow, who had a flashlight, saw a crowd of 30 to 35 soldiers and realized that they were armed.

When I started to go toward them they stopped me again and said, If you come another step, we will bore you or We will shoot you, he testified.

Snow ordered them to put down their weapons.

I told them that they were sticking their necks into ropes. I said they were committing suicide by doing anything of this kind, he testified. But all that I said was unavailing; their excitement, their anger seemed to be rising each second.

At 8:25 p.m., Capt. Haig Shekerjian of the 24th Infantry also realized that the situation was beyond control.

Men were packed very close to each other, calling out, Throw out that ammunition, Give me another bandoleer! Give me a rifle, Be sure you get enough, he told the court.

Lets go! Snow heard one of the soldiers say.

Riot rocks the Army

The riot and its aftermath rocked the Army, prompting one major reform almost immediately and a quiet reassessment of the use of black soldiers in a racist military and society that could not tolerate them as equals.

Under the Articles of War, a document going back to the Revolution, soldiers had no right to appeal in a time of war, but that was changed not long after the executions.

Infuriated over the hangings, then-acting Judge Advocate General Brig. Gen. Samuel T. Ansell in 1918 prohibited the execution of any death sentence before a review and determination of legality. A review board for all serious courts-martial soon became the Armys first appellate structure. Congress later formalized it by statute and in so doing created the foundation for todays Army Court of Criminal Appeals.

Borch, the regimental historian, said trials became less about enforcing discipline and more like courts. In 1917, for example, line officers led trials, not military judges. When Congress created the new Uniform Code of Military Justice in 1950 after President Harry S. Trumans order to desegregate the armed forces, an array of new protections took effect for troops, some stemming from abuses during World War II, when 1.7 million out of 12 million soldiers found themselves on the wrong end of military trials.

The riots produced another, far more negative effect that lasted until 1951.

The noble experiment of incorporating black officers and men into the Army literally blew up in their faces, John Manguso, retired director of the Fort Sam Houston Museum, wrote in a document used for a panel discussion years ago. Despite competent and gallant service of black soldiers in the (First) World War, only the problems and difficulties were remembered.

As a nation, we were to repeat many of the same mistakes in World War II. As the result of (Houstons) night of violence, all Americans lost a great opportunity, and a quarter-century would pass before any further effort was made to allow black Americans to take their rightful place in the defense of the nation.

On the day of execution 100 years ago, however, no one saw past the nooses. The scaffold was quickly demolished. The 13 soldiers, and the six others executed later, eventually were reburied at the national cemetery, where they rest under standard-issue headstones.

A single eyewitness account of the hangings of the 13 soldiers survives, the letter written by one of the white soldiers who guarded them, published in 1941 in a Readers Digest anthology. He recalled the men shivering, perhaps more to the damp air than fear, and following their orders to the letter.

Like the well-trained soldiers they were, they sprang to their feet as one man, every one of them wearing a proud smile, the guard, who remains unknown, wrote to his parents. Goodbye, C Company! they called. The major lowered his hand to his side with a snap: This was the signal for the men to pull the rope to spring the trap.

sigc@express-news.net
By Election Day 2014, when Republicans swept the statewide ballot behind a populist, conservative wave, Greg Abbott had dispatched 90 paid field staffers throughout Texas, five of whom were sent to Bexar County.

Abbotts troops, backed by $47.5 million in campaign contributions, recruited an army of local volunteers while coordinating block walks and phone banking campaigns, employing a traditional grass-roots operation that, combined with a targeted push for the Hispanic vote, helped Abbott narrowly edge Democrat Wendy Davis in the San Antonio area.

As the 2018 election cycle kicks off, the governor is leaving nothing to chance on his march to re-election, fortifying his troops on the ground through a massive war chest, as Democrats seek to tie him to controversial legislation and President Donald Trump  a strategy they believe will provide a boost in November.

Abbotts campaign did not end after the election: Hes kept five field organizers in Bexar County who work with GOP grass-roots organizations linked to the countys Republican Party. Now, with at least $41 million on hand, Abbott plans to put about 100 paid field staffers on the ground statewide by mid-January, surpassing the peak staffing scale of his 2014 operation. Nine of those staffers will be in Bexar County and the surrounding area, with plans to build on that in March, Abbott spokesman John Wittman said.

Bexar County is incredibly important to the governor, Wittman said, pointing out that Abbott launched his campaigns in San Antonio in 2013 and 2017. He was married there, his wife is from there. Its something thats near and dear to him.

Wittman declined to specify how much of the governors cash the campaign might funnel into the San Antonio area, but with Abbott making clear his intention to again push for the Hispanic vote, the fourth-largest county in the state, with a 60 percent Hispanic population, makes for a visible target.

Thats one of the most exciting things were going to see in Bexar County this year, said former Bexar GOP Chair Robert Stovall, whos running for the 21st Congressional District. The governor has taken direct aim at putting resources here. He felt like he got a good portion of the Hispanic vote here.  And hes back to prove it again.

Meanwhile, a crowded lineup of candidates will face off in the Democratic primary, including Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez and Houston entrepreneur Andrew White, the son of former Gov. Mark White. Both jumped into the race last week, joining six other Democrats.

That Abbott appears poised to put campaign assets into the San Antonio area makes sense, said Texas Democratic Party Press Secretary Delma Limones, because hes attacked issues that impact Bexar County voters the most, including health care, education and immigration, from the playbook of Donald Trump.

Thats not going to play well with the voters of Bexar County, Limones said, focusing on Abbotts support for Senate Bill 4, a law that punishes local law enforcement for not cooperating with federal immigration agents and allows local officials to ask people about their immigration status. So, of course, he has to spend a good chunk of his money there to undo that damage. He doesnt have a good reputation there.

Democrats efforts to tie Abbott and other GOP candidates to Trump sets up one side of what will be a clash of historical precedents in 2018 Texas races.

You essentially have two different waves going on, said Mark Jones, a fellow in political science at Rice Universitys Baker Institute for Public Policy. The lower turnout (in midterm elections) generally favors Republican candidates, and because of the uncompetitive nature of statewide races, Democratic coattails are generally much weaker than Republicans in gubernatorial elections. But the reality is that Trump is a very unpopular president. He is likely in specific areas of the country to represent a millstone around many down-ballot candidates.

Also at play is Abbotts down-ballot influence, which could boost local GOP candidates. That political relationship doesnt have nearly as strong a connection as the one between the president and member of Congress, according to Walter Wilson, a political science professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

But in a narrow race, a governor who wields as much funding as Abbott could tip the scales in one direction or another. His campaign also shares information gathered from block walks with local GOP candidates, Wittman said.

When the governors on the ballot, particularly if hes running a good, well-funded campaign like we would expect the governor to, its helpful to local candidates, said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at UT-Austin. But there are always local and national dynamics at work.

One of those factors, Wilson said, is the focus of Abbotts political advertising.

If hes spending it purely on ads to help get himself re-elected or some sort of more generic Republican message ... I dont think its going to impact other races, Wilson said. Now, if he decides to take a million dollars and attempt to torpedo vulnerable Democrats, or even Republicans that he doesnt like ... at that point, it could have an impact. But we also dont see politicians do that very often.

Jones said that even if Abbott wins, his victory alone wouldnt be a marker of a successful campaign.

The saying is that you should always run scared, Jones said. From Gov. Abbotts perspective, its not just that we wants to win. He wants to win by a large margin to demonstrate the legitimacy of his administration.

The governors performance could depend on how effectively Democrats frame his support for SB 4. Abbott signed the bill in May, but a federal judge halted most of its provisions in an August ruling. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments for the case Nov. 7 after previously reinstating part of the law.

That hurts him somewhat, Jones said of Abbotts support for SB 4. But not as much as Democratic activists make it out, because its such a complex issue.

Limones acknowledged the complexity of immigration issues but said the bill was not only unpopular, but one of the most cruel pieces of legislation in the nation to come across.

Abbott and the rest of the leadership have definitely disregarded how unpopular it is, Limones said. Theyre willing to put politics over people, because the reality is that this does harm Texas families. It does harm people in Bexar County and San Antonio.

Wilson said its unlikely that Abbott will improve on his performance with Hispanic voters, citing historical trends among previous Republican politicians.

What we tend to see is that Republicans who have better-than-average success winning Latino votes tend to see that support erode over time when people become familiarized with their policies, Wilson said.

Where Democrats are most likely to hurt Abbott on immigration is by connecting him to Trump, Jones said. He added that the presidents indiscriminate policies  ones that may deport criminals but also families that have become established in their communities  have a negative impact electorally.

The risk that Abbott ran into with support for SB 4 is that Democrats can better link him with Trumps aggressive enforcement efforts that have resulted in deportation of immigrants with long-standing ties in the community, Jones said.

Bexar County Democratic Party Chair Manuel Medina sees Trump as perhaps the best weapon he can employ in 2018, pointing to Democrats sweeping victories in Virginia and New Jersey on Election Day this year as proof that 2018 will be a referendum on Trumps presidency.

He has, in effect, nationalized next years midterm election, Medina said. Thats going to increase turnout. And when turnout is high, Democrats win.

High turnout favors liberal candidates, Wilson said, because the block of reliable voters  those who turn out in midterm and even off-year elections  tend to be better educated, wealthier and more conservative.

As you increase the electorate, what youre doing is youre picking up what we might call low-likelihood voters, people who are poorer, have fewer educational resources, who live in poorer communities where they are less likely to be mobilized by candidates and parties, Wilson said.

To yield the turnout he wants, Medina will have to find a way to make information about the race so pervasive that its difficult for voters here in the county to escape, Wilson said. And thats going to cost money.

Henson said its a reasonable expectation that Trumps presidency, and Republican dominance of all three branches of the federal government, would nationalize the election. But while national and state politics are likely to trickle into lower races to a degree, it will be up to the local party apparatuses, and the candidates themselves, to capitalize on public sentiment. Standing in the way for Democrats is an incumbent governor with more than $40 million in the bank.

What you need is a lot of scaffolding to exploit those negative feelings toward Trump, Henson said. Its unclear whether the Democrats will have that or not. You have to have candidates on the ballot, you have to have resources to reach out and touch voters.

While some say Abbott has a clear path to re-election, Medina isnt so sure.

The bottom line is, we will have a candidate for governor next year, Medina said. We will rally behind him or her, and considering the national mood, we may pull off a surprise. So, more than investing in party building, I think Greg Abbott is making sure he wins next year.

jscherer@express-news.net | Twitter: @jaspscherer
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Moureen Kaki was scrolling through her Facebook feed, taking a break from studying for a chemistry final, when she saw the news.

She knew it was coming, but still felt fear and uncertainty upon seeing the headlines: President Trump had formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and directed the State Department to begin planning to move the U.S. Embassy there from Tel Aviv.

Four days later, Kaki, 26, wore a white t-shirt displaying the name of the University of Texas at San Antonio organization she leads, Students for Justice in Palestine, while directing a Sunday morning rally in front of the Hipolito F. Garcia Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.

About 50 protesters gathered at the intersection of East Houston and North Alamo Streets, holding up signs  No embassy in Jerusalem, We will not be silent, end the siege of Gaza  while intoning chants: From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!

I think the president did something that was important for this conflict, Kaki said. He exposed the two-state solution for what it is. Its a sham, its a farce. Its not realistic.

The protest, a joint initiative of the UTSA Students for Justice in Palestine chapter, San Antonio for Justice in Palestine and the San Antonio chapters of Jewish Voice for Peace and the Council on American-Islamic Relations, followed clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, demonstrations that led to injuries, arrests and even a couple of reported deaths. Sundays rally here was peaceful but loud, with protesters passing around a bullhorn that carried their chants across the street to the Alamo.

The crowd grew steadily in size, starting around 11 a.m. with a group of about 10 UTSA students before expanding into a large collection of protesters. As the chants began, people across the street turned to watch, some filming with their smartphones. A few crossed the street to join the protest. The occasional passing car honked in approval.

Many rally-goers wore hats and shirts marked with the four colors of the Palestinian flag: black, white, green and red. One woman draped the flag over her shoulders as she stood atop the courthouse steps.

Those in attendance Sunday expressed the overarching view that Trumps announcement, which broke long-standing U.S. policy, gave legitimacy to Israeli expansionist claims they characterize as false. Israelis and Palestinians dispute Jerusalems status, both claiming the city  currently controlled by Israel  as their political capital. The possibility of reaching a peace deal where Palestinians gain control of east Jerusalem has become increasingly distant in recent years.

Trinity University professor Judith Norman, who attended the protest, called the conflict a political situation in which Israel is acting as a colonialist power to occupy Palestinian land.

The U.S. is supposed to be an honest broker helping negotiate a settlement, but for a long time, given the enormous military aid that the U.S. gives to Israel, it hasn't been acting as an honest broker, Norman said. This is sort of solidifying the bias. And it's also, justifiably, angering Palestinians in the region, endangering their lives.

Norman, who is Jewish, told the crowd to resist any attempt to recast the conflict in religious terms.

Any rhetoric about how this helps protect Jewish rights and traditions and lives is not only false, but cynical, Norman said. This issue is not about Jews versus Muslims or Christians. It's about a colonialist oppressor and the people who have been subject to a brutal and illegal occupation.

Trump framed his decision Wednesday as a long-overdue step and a recognition of reality. Acknowledging disagreement and dissent would follow the announcement, Trump nevertheless said the move should not be seen as a shift in the administrations goal of reaching a peace agreement.

We are confident that ultimately, as we work through these disagreements, we will arrive at a peace and a place far greater in understanding and cooperation, Trump said last week.

jscherer@express-news.net | Twitter: @jaspscherer
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HOUSTON  As thousands turn to Texas windstorm insurer of last resort to make repairs in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, more than a half-dozen school districts, cities and other government agencies are still awaiting payment on nearly $60 million in claims from Hurricane Ike.

Texas City Independent School District leads the list, with more than $17 million in outstanding Ike claims, followed by Dickinson ISD with $10.5 million and Chambers County with $9.5 million. Three other school districts, two cities and a community college are awaiting payment on additional claims of more than $22 million, according to a Houston Chronicle analysis.

Officials said they have little faith that the insurer will pay the claims without further legal battles.

Its scary, said Dickinson ISD Superintendent Vicki Mims, whose community was also hit hard by Harvey. As a school district, we have some resources to use.  If youre a homeowner, what do you do? Fight TWIA for 10 years?

Of the nine entities still seeking funds for Ike damages, five are trying to work through an appraisal process to determine how much the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association should pay. Dickinson ISD filed a lawsuit, turned to an independent judge and has battled a legal appeal in an effort to recover the losses.

More Information Waiting for payments Nine entities are still awaiting payment for claims filed over damages from Hurricane Ike in 2008 from the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, a quasi-governmental group that serves as an insurer of last resort for an area of coastal Texas that includes 14 counties and a slice of Harris County. Texas City ISD, $17.3 million Dickinson ISD, $10.5 million Chambers County, $9.5 million Anahuac ISD, $7.6 million Santa Fe ISD, $5.3 million College of the Mainland, $3.94 million Lamarque ISD, $2.75 million City of Santa Fe, $1.5 million City of Dickinson, $1.25 million See More Collapse

Jennifer Armstrong, vice president of communications for TWIA, said the pending Ike claims are anomalies that dont portend problems for Harvey claims.

We want to resolve anyones concern as best we can outside any process, Armstrong said. When we set payment on a claim based on an estimate, we realize it could be a different number when people do repairs. We always encourage policyholders to come back and work with us to make sure everyones satisfied.

Claims through TWIA have gotten more complicated, however, since Ike struck Texas in 2008. In 2011, the Legislature passed a series of laws making an appraisal process the sole avenue through which policyholders can dispute claims and capping the amount of damages if a court finds TWIA guilty of wrongdoing.

The more than 73,000 claims filed since Harvey will be the first major test of how the new policies could affect payouts.

Some consumer advocacy groups and insurance experts worry that the new rules will allow the insurer to drag policyholders through years of proceedings without being held accountable for wrongdoing.

TWIA has a recognizable pattern of stall tactics and attempts at nonpayment, Anahuac ISD Superintendent James Hopper wrote in a letter to a state lawmaker over his districts attempt to collect $7.6 million in claims.

A quasi-governmental entity, TWIA provides insurance covering only wind and hail for 234,861 homeowners, businesses and government policyholders in a 14-county area of coastal Texas plus a portion of Harris County. It does not cover claims arising from flooding, such as that caused by Harvey, which dumped more than 50 inches of rain on parts of the Houston area.

In Dickinson ISD, about 40 miles southeast of downtown Houston, officials say they know all about the slow process of recovering damages.

After Hurricane Ike blew through Galveston Bay, Dickinson ISD spent about $1 million to replace the high school roof, which was lifted several inches by the storm and plopped back down, full of holes.

San Leon Elementary and a gymnasium similarly had their roofs lifted and damaged, requiring substantial maintenance work. Other district schools suffered less severe wind damage.

TWIA offered to pay $238,000 for all the damages, later upping the offer to $1.2 million on the condition that the district wouldnt ask for more. Dickinson ISD disputed the claim by filing a lawsuit, and the insurer asked that they resolve the matter through a process known as appraisal.

The process required the insurer and Dickinson ISD to hire their own adjusters, both of whom agreed on a third-party umpire adjuster to oversee their work. If two of the three adjusters reached a decision on how much damage was sustained, that would be the amount the insurer would pay.

Dickinson ISDs adjuster said the losses amounted to about $19 million; TWIAs calculated zero covered damages. An independent judge said the total damages were closer to about $11 million, a number to which the Dickinson ISD adjuster agreed.

But instead of paying the court-ordered amount, TWIA balked. When a jury again ordered the insurer to pay Dickinson ISD, it appealed the decision. The case is now pending in a state appeals court.

The Legislature created the Texas Catastrophe Property Insurance Association after several hurricanes slammed into the Texas coast in the late 1960s and in 1970, scaring many wind insurers out of coastal counties. The goal was to provide homeowners, business owners and government entities a way to get windstorm insurance in areas where private companies refused to write policies.

TWIA was given its current name in 1997 and had small but consistent growth until Hurricane Rita in 2005, after which another wave of insurers said they would no longer write wind-damage insurance policies along Texas coast.

The number of policies written by the state-backed insurer subsequently skyrocketed, said David Nardecchia, a senior specialist for the Office of Public Insurance Counsel and a former underwriter manager at TWIA.

It varies by county, but in certain counties it could be pretty high, Nardecchia said. They have a majority of the risk in those counties.

The insurer faced major problems after Ike, when more than 1,900 policyholders sued TWIA over its handling of claims. The insurer ended up settling a majority of those cases. However, state Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, sponsored a series of changes to the agency in 2011 after alleging an outsized portion of the settlements went to pay attorney fees instead of policyholders. Those concerns were shared by then-Gov. Rick Perry and tort reform groups.

The changes included a rule that makes the appraisal process the only way for policyholders to appeal TWIA decisions. Another new rule capped the amount that policyholders can recoup if a court finds TWIA guilty of wrongdoing: While other insurers in the state can be held liable for up three times the claim in cases of wrongdoing, TWIA is only liable for the face value of the claim.

Seth Chandler, a law professor at the University of Houston who specializes in insurance, said the idea behind the appraisal process was that policyholders would benefit from potentially quicker payouts and settlements.

But he questioned why TWIA is the only insurer in Texas given such treatment.

Why is TWIA special? You could make the same argument for State Farm and Allstate and the rest of industry, Chandler said.

Nardecchia said there are numerous reasons why TWIA is treated differently: Its the states insurer of last resort; its funded differently than private insurers; and, at one point after Hurricane Ike, there were concerns whether the agency could remain financially solvent.

Lawsuits over claims can drag on for years even in the private market, Nardecchia said.

Im not sure thats unique to TWIA in itself, Nardecchia said.

In Texas City, the College of the Mainland is still waiting on $3.94 million it believes it is owed by TWIA from Hurricane Ike.

The insurer originally offered to pay the community college about $46,000 for light poles that had blown around campus but offered nothing for damaged roofs, which school administrators say were full of holes.

Without the money from TWIA, the school patched the holes. But they continue to spring leaks, causing ceiling tiles to bubble in the Student Center and water stains to creep along the upper walls of the schools dome-shaped gym.

Clen Burton, a vice president at the college, said hes not surprised that the insurer covered only damage that could be seen from sidewalks. He said TWIAs original adjuster never looked on top of roofs or in crawl spaces and instead walked around the campus for about 90 minutes and left.

Dickinson ISD also questioned the insurers actions during the appraisal process.

While the districts adjuster went onto school roofs and into crawl spaces after Harvey, Deputy Superintendent Ryan Boone said TWIAs adjuster did not.

They basically did a cursory look on our buildings, Boone said. It was a stop, look and listen, and then go about our business.

TWIAs Armstrong said the insurer was concerned about the appraisal process in the nine remaining Ike cases, but not because it did anything wrong. She said those cases are more complicated because the appraisal processes didnt begin, in many cases, until four years after the storm. There had been other wind and hail events between Ike and the time some of those appraisals began, further compounding the issue.

Armstrong suggested that there could be other concerns but said she could not elaborate because the cases are still working their way through the legal system.

But the situation with Harvey is dramatically different than these nine Ike cases, Armstrong said.

However, Wade Wendell of Texas Watch, a consumer and insurance policyholder advocacy group, said TWIA policyholders should be concerned because the new appraisal process is difficult to navigate and because the insurer is less liable for damages if it does something wrong.

Theyre rigging the process, Wendell said. These changes further incentivize TWIA to test to see if policyholders can afford a lawyer or if they have the stomach to fight them in court for years.
AUSTIN  It was pretty dramatic when state senators from both parties lashed out at Land Commissioner George P. Bush over the way the Alamo is managed, saying they want more transparency in a system that relies strongly on nonprofit entities.

It would have been more dramatic if they had done it before they allocated another $75 million to Bushs ambitious project to re-imagine the Alamo.

With the budget knife in their hands, Senate Finance Committee members might have more easily been able to force changes in the management structure.

Instead, the two-year budget approved earlier this year took effect Sept. 1, with the $75 million tucked inside. Whether they can make changes now is unclear.

Asked whether they had voiced concern to Bush about the management structure before appropriating the money during this years regular legislative session, Bush spokeswoman Brittany Eck said that none of the senators or their staff members had expressed any worries. She said other than general questions, they have only expressed support during the numerous meetings, phone calls, and briefings with the General Land Office.

Eck added that Bush had invited Finance Committee members to visit the Alamo three times for personal tours and briefings, including one that was two weeks before last weeks Finance Committee hearing. No Finance Committee members have been able to tour, she said, but others have. She said the response has been positive from attendees with regard to how we are working to recapture the 1836 Battlefield and preserve the Alamo for future generations.

In fairness to the timing of their criticism, House and Senate budget writers are slammed to the wall during the regular legislative session.

The two-year budget they oversee totals well over $216 billion in state and federal money and covers every state service.

And lawmakers want to take care of the Alamo. They know the international reputation and historical importance of the shrine known as the cradle of Texas liberty.

Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, said he absolutely wishes he had known more about the management structure when he and other Finance Committee members were making budget decisions.

When were in session, were trying to make decisions like, Are we going to let the Alamo crumble? No, were not. Great. Going to give them money, Bettencourt said in an interview. They got a major allocation, given how tight the budget was.

Sen. Kirk Watson, an Austin Democratic on the Finance Committee, agreed.

Part of the problem with a lack of transparency is that sometimes you dont know whats going on. This may be Exhibit A, Watson said. People were wanting to do right by the Alamo.

Concerns since have become louder, with critics worrying that the Alamo project might not properly spotlight the 1836 battle or might diminish its impact. Bush says his focus is to restore honor and dignity to the battlefield that is in touristy downtown San Antonio.

Bettencourt and Watson said theyre glad for another chance to focus on the project, now that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has asked the Finance Committee to ensure state funds are spent to emphasize the battles importance.

Both said senators message to Bush is clear.

The setup is too complicated. And the public as well as the senators are making clear that the emphasis has to be on the battle, Bettencourt said.

Watson said theres a desire that the operation that is addressing the Alamo is done in as open and transparent a way as can be done.

Some want to see open meetings by the nonprofits. Some would like to see Alamo staff members work directly for the state, rather than for the nonprofit Alamo Trust.

Its not clear what action lawmakers could quickly take with regard to the budget to ensure their concerns are addressed. Bettencourt said there may be a way, but he and Watson said theyd prefer a cooperative approach.

Bush, who repeatedly has voiced his support for transparency, said he would discuss with other members of the nonprofit board on which he serves whether there can be additional changes.

This is a concern, and it should be. This is the public taxpayers money, and we have nothing to hide. Weve been transparent about our financials and will continue to do so, Bush said.

The Finance Committee plans to hold him to it. If nothing else, theyll have another chance to consider funding for the Alamo project in 2019. The multiyear project could cost $450 million in state, city and private funds.

In the meantime, Bush will face a reminder on another front. As we reported Friday, Bush predecessor Jerry Patterson plans to file against him in the GOP primary Monday, promising to make his handling of the Alamo project front-and-center in the race.

pfikac@express-news.net | Twitter: @pfikac
AUSTIN  While Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller was picking a fight with a fellow Republican over banana Nutella crepes on Facebook last week, Kim Olson was driving from her farm to a radio interview just south of Fort Worth.

She went on the air to talk about food deserts, how food is a national security issue and why voters should elect her to take over the Texas Department of Agriculture, an agency that oversees school lunch programs, facilitates trade and market development for commodities like cattle and cotton and regulates fuel pumps and other issues.

Olson is a farmer, a veteran and an author. Shes also a Democrat, and her party hasnt won a statewide office since 1994.

Political experts say she may be the strongest candidate the party has on the ticket in 2018 and the Democrats best chance against Republicans who control state government in a red state next year, but say that Republican voters loyalty to their party stand in her way.

Olson contends this is a winnable race.

All Texans eat, she said. It doesnt matter if youre red or blue, youve really got to be red, white and blue because youve got to represent all Texans.

Miller, a rodeo cowboy and Republican incumbent, is recognizable by his large white hat and known for his Facebook posts. Millers social media following is the largest among statewide elected officials here, boasting more than 623,000 followers on Facebook.

Since he was sworn into office, he has grown a reputation for controversy. Less than two months into his term, which began in January 2015, he used state taxpayer dollars to finance a trip to Oklahoma where he received a Jesus shot, billed as being able to cure all pain for life. Two weeks later, he used state funds again to take a trip to Jackson, Mississippi, where he competed in a rodeo. He agreed to refund the money from his trips and was not charged with any wrongdoing.

The controversies have made him vulnerable as he seeks his first bid for re-election. Last week Miller drew a Republican primary challenger: Trey Blocker, a lobbyist and Austin attorney who specializes in ethics law.

The race between the two has already shown signs of getting hinted it could get ugly. Without mentioning the commissioner, Blocker announced his bid for office in a video stressing the agency needs an articulate, intelligent voice for our core conservative values. Im tired of the talk. Its time for action.

Miller shot back, accusing Blocker of being a liberal and took it a step further, criticizing Blocker for having his photo taken at a restaurant that was serving Nutella banana crepes.

Olson, who so far is unopposed in the Democratic primary, said her focus is on getting people fired up for her, for Democrats and to understand why agriculture is important in the state. She said she plans to run a positive campaign. She knows she lacks name recognition, but is trying to counteract that by visiting all 254 Texas counties and getting to know different people throughout the state.

By the end of November, she had visited 88 counties, she said.

Ag touches every aspect of this nations political arena and the nations place on the world power platform, she said. Its bigger than everyone thinks.

Few people know much about agriculture or the agency, giving it a low profile few voters get excited about, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor who researches executive controversy and elections at the University of Houston.

Political experts and operatives say that while a so-called blue wave of Democratic voters have come out in other races, such as in Virginia last month, foretelling a surge of voters pushing back against President Trump and the Republican party in power, it wont be strong enough to make a dramatic difference in Texas state races.

Thats because Democratic voters also tend to stay home during midterm elections, said Rottinghaus, and the party will need someone strong at the top of the ticket running for governor or U.S. Senate to get people out to vote.

[Olson] could be the highest performing Democrat if she runs a good campaign because she can present a strong narrative and is running against the weakest statewide Republican, he said. But even as a solid candidate, she could still lose the race 20 points behind her Republican counterpart, he said.
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A line will start forming early Monday afternoon outside San Fernando Cathedral for a cherished point on the Catholic calendar, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Twenty-four years ago, the cathedral began holding its Serenata, or serenade, to La Virgen de Guadalupe, and the midnight Mass has become one of the Archdiocese of San Antonios most popular events of the year.

Ultimately, hundreds will wait in Main Plaza to get a seat inside the cathedral. While in line, theyll pray while fingering rosary beads. A few will travel the length of the line on their knees.

Known as the Patroness of the Americas, the Marian figure is a central one to Latino Catholics, who revere the story of a brown-skinned Marys apparition to a humble indigenous man, now St. Juan Diego, who spoke to her in his native Nahuatl in 1531 on a hill in Tepeyac in what is now Mexico City.

The festivities in San Antonio have earned a reputation far beyond the city limits, thanks to its inclusion in televised coverage from the famous basilica and shrine built on the site.

This year, as in the past two, Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller will be in Main Plaza with fellow priests, seminarians, nuns and deacons and spend time with the faithful. The priests bless them, their children and their devotions  candles, rosaries, images of Guadalupe and other saints.

It has become a part of the archbishops ministry and an answer to the Vaticans call for the New Evangelization, an effort opened by Pope John Paul II, who asked Catholics to more deeply understand the Gospels and proclaim them to others, especially those whove experienced a crisis of faith.

The New Evangelization also calls for Catholics to meet people where they are  whether in faith or turmoil, devotion or light, church or workplace, or in Main Plaza in line for the Serenata.

The eve of the feast day has turned into a really great moment of service, Garcia-Siller said. Three years ago, he took a break from prayer inside the cathedral before the Serenata and noticed the line of people outside.

I decided to visit with them, he said. Thats how it started.

Those waiting outside are in various stages of need and all look to Our Lady of Guadalupe for solace and comfort, as they would their own mothers, said Father Jonathan Felux, director of vocations and seminarians at Assumption Seminary, who will be at Main Plaza with the archbishop.

They have a great desire to see our lady on that day, even some who havent been to church in a long time, he said.

We pray with them, Felux said. We talk through things. Sometimes its a family or work crisis, a struggle with addiction, or not being able to deal with loss.

Sometimes their burdens are financial or involve their immigration status.

Its a beautiful thing to see them share something so intimate while theyre standing in the line, Felux said. Theres a sense of security of being home at the cathedral.  Wherever their mother is, is home.

Ive seen amazing moments of healing, he said. I see their faces. I see them relax and be more at peace.

Those who approach the cathedral on their knees do it as an act of humility  theyre in the presence of holiness and seek to be close to her, said Felux, who finds the gesture moving. Its an offering to God that says, I may not have much, but I give everything I am.

Interacting with a member of the clergy adds to the special occasion, and Felux said the archbishops own popularity may be another factor  people express joy to be in his presence, he said.

Whatever their reasons, the core of the draw is faith  Its not just a trip downtown to see a pretty building, Felux said.

Priests accompanying the archbishop will be hearing confessions in Main Plaza in the hours prior to the 8:30 p.m. start of the Serenata.

Several counselors from Catholic Charities will be available to speak with people who express or show special needs. The charitable arm of the archdiocese will provide other services as necessary, Garcia-Siller said.

For those who dont get a seat inside, a Jumbotron will be set up in front of the historic church in the heart of the city.

The Mass of the Patroness of the Americas, which will be bilingual, begins at midnight.

Univision affiliate KWEX-TV will carry the local Serenata from 10:30 to 11 p.m. and then pick up network coverage out of Mexico City from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m.

eayala@express-news.net | Twitter: @ElaineAyala
Gerry Hertz says farmers may be too invested in canola

By Diego Flammini

News Reporter

Farms.com

Large canola yields in Saskatchewan are great but should come with a word of warning, according to Gerry Hertz, an agronomist and director with SaskCanola.

Canola production rose across Canada by nearly 9 per cent since last year, up to 21.3 million tonnes this year, according to Statistics Canada. The yield in Saskatchewan grew by nearly 5 per cent to 11.2 million tonnes.

And larger yields mean more chances of disease, Hertz said.

Were walking closer to a cliff, he told the Regina Leader-Post yesterday. Blackleg has been inching its way up and, if youve got the right kinds of conditions and tight rotations, sometimes a problem thats lurking in the background might just rear its head.

If youre growing canola every year, youre risking a lot of potential problems if something shows up, he said. (The canola crops) havent got burnt for a while, and theyre probably going to continue to do that.

Producers are transitioning some acres to canola to make up for the declining prices of other crops, according to Florian Hagmann, a producer near Birch Hills, Sask.

He harvested more than 90 bushels per acre in some fields. Given the current canola market, that could add up to a nice profit for producers.

A tonne of crude canola oil can sell for almost $973, according to the Canola Council of Canada. Canola meal is selling at about $326 per tonne and canola seed is selling at approximately $579 per tonne.

And farmers need to make those tough decisions about inputs and operating costs, especially as they continue to increase.

The crop income to the farmer didnt change, but the cost of the machinery, the cost of the land, was really high, Hagmann told the Regina Leader-Post. The margin is getting tighter, so farmers are starting to farm every acre.
By Pete Bauman

At a recent meeting of the South Dakota Grassland Coalition, Ryan Brunner Commissioner of State School and Public Lands, provided excellent information for those interested in understanding more about grazing and hunting on South Dakota School and Public Lands. For additional information on the South Dakota office of School and Public lands, including annual reports and education allocations and various application forms, visit the South Dakota School & Public Lands website.

What is the Office of School and Public Lands?

In 1889, the federal government of the United States granted the state of South Dakota over 3.5 million acres. These lands, generally, were represented as sections 16 and 36 of each township to be used for funding schools and other public purposes. These, along with other lands, were divided among the states universities, specialty schools, and general school districts. To create revenue, these School Lands could either be sold or leased and the proceeds held in a permanent trust fund with the interest used for education. On average, revenue is generated from grazing, mineral, gas, and cropping leases. One hundred percent of the income generated from these lands is allocated to education. The operating budget for the office is based on legislative allocation. Annually, the office returns approximately $12 million to school districts and endowed institutions from approximately 760,000 acres, and annual funding for education has increased roughly 10% on average over recent years.

How do grazing leases work?

Every year, some portion of state School Lands leases are opened for public auction. These leases are managed as a 5-year base lease, with an additional 5-year renewal option. Prior to auction, a minimum bid rate is set based on the current cattle market. During the initial 5-year term, the lease payment is based on the actual competitive auction bid. However, during the second 5-year period, the lease rate is based on a set formula that depends on the cattle market and is non-competitive. Therefore, the rental rate for the second 5-year period can fluctuate from that of the first 5-years, and can be potentially less expensive. As an example, in recent years high crop prices have increased competition at these auctions, driving the initial bid price much higher than the required minimum for the first 5-years of the contact. The lease price then declines during the second 5-year period as competition is eliminated and the lease is based on the cattle market.

How are lease auctions advertised to the public?

Lease auctions must be announced at least four weeks in advance and are posted on the School and Public Lands website and in the official newspaper for each county. Auction announcements are published annually, generally in mid-March.

What other expenses does a lessee incur?

Lessees are responsible for paying the annual property taxes on state School Lands.

Can I install fences and water on state school land?

Because the office of School Lands has a limited budget, they rarely invest in infrastructural improvements. Often any infrastructural improvements such as fences and water development are the current lessees responsibility. Lessees apply for an infrastructural improvement permit with the office. The state does allow lessees to cooperate with outside agencies willing to cost share or otherwise fund infrastructural improvement projects. In all cases, the lessee essentially owns the infrastructure and its value unless or until the lease changes hands.

In most instances, when state School Land goes to auction, the successful bidder will also incur a one-time payment, often to the previous lessee, for the value of the infrastructure associated with the lease. The land auctioneer discloses this value, so the bidders are fully aware of the valuation. This valuation is based only on the permitted infrastructure, thus former lessees are not reimbursed for non-permitted investments. If the successful bidder and the previous lessee do not agree on the terms of the infrastructural value, a third-party Board of Appraisal is appointed consisting of a representative of the former lessee, the new lessee, and a neutral person. If land goes unleased for 6 months, the office of School Lands then assumes ownership of all infrastructure and new lessees are not subject to the infrastructural improvement expenses.

How many cattle can I graze if I rent state school land?

Stocking rates are suggested by the state School Lands office at the time of auction on a price per animal unit month ($/AUM) basis. However, leases are structured to reflect a price per acre cost.

Can I sublease school land?

Generally, it is not legal to sublease state School Land to a third party. However, state law does allow for pasturing agreements where additional livestock may be brought in under the total allowable stocking rate. In these agreements, responsibility for lease payments and property taxes remain solely with the listed lessee.

Can I break school land for crop production?

No. The office of School and Public Land has placed a moratorium on any conversion of School Land grasslands for crop production or other uses.

Click here to see more...
By Steve Hu

Will summer 2018 likely be wet or dry?

While climatologists cant predict day-to-day weather conditions in advance of the next growing season, they can use seasonal and annual average records to identify climate trends that can help growers position their operations for the expected conditions.

These climate trend projections, particularly for precipitation, are based on multi-decade climate variations that have been tested and shown to have persistent patterns. Seasonal and annual precipitation in Nebraska and the central U.S. Great Plains is one such variable with a fairly persistent quasi-20-year oscillation. This oscillation is shown in Figure 1 using data from the past 120 years.

Figure 1. Departure from normal precipitation (standard deviation) in observed summer precipitation (June-August) (gray bars) in Nebraska from 1894-2017. The 0 line represents the mean over this period. The 20-year variation component of the precipitation is shown by the red line, and the multi-decade variation is shown by the blue line.

Summer Precipitation Trends

In addition to showing the quasi-20-year oscillation in Nebraska summer precipitation (June-August), Figure 1 shows a strong pattern of summer precipitation variations over the past 120 years. In the decades when this 20-year variation was in its dry phase, i.e., the red line was below 0.0 in Figure 1, most years had below-average summer precipitation. (For example, summer 2002.) On the other hand, when this variation was in its wet phase, or the red line was above 0.0 (Figure 1), most years in those decades had above-average summer precipitation.

Now, looking at the most recent years, we see that this 20-year variation entered its dry phase around 2015. The first year in that dry phase, year 2016, had below-average summer precipitation. As this dry phase continues to develop in the next six to seven years, we anticipate that most summers will have below-average precipitation. Although an exception to this dry norm may occur in one or two summers, the overall trend will include the 2018 growing season and several seasons afterward. As noted previously, individual years can fall outside the trend. (Note that 2012, one of the driest Nebraska summers in recent history, was an exception that fell outside the wet norm in the 20-year variation.) To predict climate conditions for individual years within the pattern, growers should consult the 30- and 90-day precipitation and temperature forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Climate Prediction Center.

Annual Precipitation Trends

Annual precipitation in Nebraska also has a strong quasi-20-year trend as shown by the red line in Figure 2. This annual variation has a phase similar to the 20-year variation in the summer precipitation in recent decades (Figure 1). The annual precipitation trend also indicates Nebraska may be entering a dry phase for the next few years, reinforcing indications in the summer precipitation projection (Figure 1).

Figure 2: Departure from normal precipitation in observed annual precipitation (gray bars) in Nebraska from 1894-2017. The 20-year variation component of the precipitation pattern is shown by the red line.

The Numbers Behind Figures 1-2

In Nebraska, as in other High Plains states, precipitation varies significantly from east to west and from year to year.

The mean annual precipitation from 1895-2016, averaged across Nebraska, is 22.71 inches and the standard deviation is 3.86 inches.

The mean summer precipitation from 1895-2016 averaged across Nebraska is 9.39 inches and the standard deviation is 2.15 inches.

In figures 1 and 2, the 0.0 line represents the mean precipitation level for 1895-2016: 22.71 inches for annual precipitation or 9.39 inches for summer precipitation. The numbers on the vertical axis indicate number of deviations from standard. For example, in Figure 1, the "2" indicates rainfall was two times the standard deviation of 2.15 or 4.30 inches above the normal/mean value of 9.39 inches.
He said there were signs that the WA flock was holding its ground but the growth, if any, would come from existing farmers because the price of entering the industry was too high, although that could change.
On each of the trading days at the WWC last month lines of superfine wool sold for more than 1700c/kg greasy but unlike other years, most were new seasons wool, not special bales stored away until record prices were on offer  those had already been cleared out in previous months.




Shanghai (Gasgoo)-Lynk & Co recently finished the construction of its Zhangjiakou Plant. The new plant features four workshops, including pressing, welding, coating and final assembling. With an annual production capacity of 200,000 vehicles, Lynk & Co will produce the 02 and 03 models in the future. Besides, Lynk & Co will adopt CMA platform, an exclusive platform for luxury compact vehicles, which is led by Volvo and co-developed by Geely Auto.



Lynk & Co will produce a range of products, covering models from A0-class to C-class, including SUV, sedan and MPV. The Lynk & Co 02 and 03 will hit the market in the first half of 2018. In the future, Lynk & Co will release 2 or 3 new models in the market annually and will release around 10 models by 2020, shaping a complete products lineup and market deployment.

Built and managed under Volvo's global quality standards, the plant is invested and operated by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. With the concept of Industry 4.0, Lynk & Co Auto Zhangjiakou Plant will be built into a plant with an integration of intelligent plant, intelligent manufacturing and intelligent logistics via introducing a complete IT system, adopting an advanced information management mode and employing cutting-edge devices.

An Conghui, President and CEO of Geely Auto expressed that Lynk & Co Auto Zhangjiakou Plant plays a crucial role in the fulfillment of Geely's 2020 strategy and its global strategic deployment. They will continue to partner with world-leading auto parts suppliers to lead the development of high-end vehicles' industrial chain, thus leading the transformation and upgrade for auto industry in Northern China, he also added.
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Rob Gruppetta, Head of the Financial Crime Dept. at the FCAArtificial intelligence will always be a work in progress in fighting money laundering and wont entirely replace humans and their intuition, a top UK regulator said.

Any bank hoping for a black box in the corner that will sniff out the launderers will be disappointed, according to Rob Gruppetta, head of the financial crime unit at the UK Financial Conduct Authority or FCA.

But the technology has the capability to better achieve what we all want: keeping finance clean, Gruppetta said last week during a talk in London.

British banks spend 5 billion ($6.7 billion) every year combating financial crime, he said. A big chunk of that is spent on detecting suspicious activity and reporting it to the authorities.

With those resources, shouldnt artificial intelligence eventually reach a level of effectiveness thats better than humans?

According to Gruppetta, there are non-technological challenges that hold back the use of machine learning to fight money laundering.

The biggest problem is the quality of information. Learning systems depend on feedback. But banks complain they hear little from police after filing a suspicious activity report, Gruppetta said.

Without better feedback, banks cant train machines to spot the worst cases of actual or suspected money laundering.

To fix that, banks and law enforcement agencies are cooperating more, Gruppetta said. And that cooperation may provide new fodder for the machines to chew on.

Another obstacle is that each bank stands alone and only sees its own part of a transaction. Having just one piece of a jigsaw impairs a banks ability to train its machines to detect criminal funds, Gruppetta said.

Banks arent at fault. Laws require them to protect customers and not share their data. The UKs new Criminal Finances Act creates a legal framework for information sharing, Gruppetta said. How much that will hep banks create smarter machines remains to be seen.

Whats the future for AI versus money laundering?

Machine learning should sit alongside human decision-making, Gruppetta said. We see it as complementing, not replacing, human judgment.

Banks should continually refine their feedback processes, he said. Predictions that produced false positives (or false negatives), for example, should be used to refine the models.

Ultimately, software deals in probabilities, not absolutes, Gruppetta said. So final decisions at banks about passing information to law enforcement will require human judgment.

But smart machines can direct the humans to the cases of most interest, he said.

____

Rob Gruppettas full speech to the FinTech Innovation in AML and Digital ID regional event in London on December 6, 2017 is here.

_____

Richard L. Cassin is the publisher and editor of the FCPA Blog.
Megan Schott(NEW YORK) -- Many use the beloved holiday tradition of dressing their kids up as an Elf on the Shelf just for laughs. But one Nashville, Indiana, mom is dressing her son up to raise money to buy toys for kids in need.

Megan Schott started dressing up her 18-month-old son Forest as an Elf on the Shelf last year.

"It was a lot," the mother of one recalled to ABC News.

Schott, 30, noted that she takes anywhere between 80 to 100 photos just to get a single silly shot of her son as an Elf on the Shelf. The process usually takes an hour. But it became so taxing, she didn't want to do it again this year.

"But everyone kept asking, 'Hey! Are we going to see Forest as an Elf on the Shelf?' So I said, 'Let's do a fundraiser out of it,'" she explained. "In order for me to post a nightly picture of Forest, someone would have to donate in the past 24 hours. It's kind of like a pay-per-view."

Schott had an initial goal of $500. But she was blown away by the response, meeting that goal in a matter of days. So she bumped up her goal to $1,000, but she blew past that goal too. She's now raised more than $2,000, which she'll split and donate to the Salvation Army and the Columbus Fireman's Cheer Fund.

Cheer Fund co-chairman Jarrad Mullis told ABC News that the Schott's donations will help the approximately 1,300 kids they serve each holiday season.

A spokesperson for the fund added in a statement, "Having the community be so involved like Forest and his family is what makes the Cheer Fund succeed each year. Without the generosity of volunteers and donations, it wouldn't be possible. Forest's donation will go toward purchasing new toys, bikes and stuffed animals for the over 1,200 children we will help this year."

For Schott, who works in administration at an automobile engine company, she just wants to teach her son how to live a great life.

"I really want to teach my son to be a caring and compassionate person and to be there for others," she said. "When you promote compassion for others, the others will show their compassion too. Thats what our community has done."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.




Shanghai (Gasgoo)-On Dec. 11, Ford Motor Company announced that its November sales in China reached 117,593 units, down 8% year on year. During January and November, it delivered 1,056,163 vehicles, decreasing 6% compared with the same period last year.



Monthly sales for Changan Ford Motor totaled 84,231 units, down 12% year over year. Its cumulative sales during the past 11 months reached 724,521 units with a year-on-year drop of 14%.

Jiangling Motor Corporation (JMC) sold 26,083 units in November, equaling to the sales of the same period last year. During January and November, its total delivery reached 262,620 units, increasing 13% compared to November 2016.

Sales of Lincoln soared 70% year on year to 6,006 units, setting a new record high of monthly sales in China. During the past 11 months, Lincoln enjoyed great sales gains of 51,735 vehicles, surging 83% compared to the same period last year.

Ford brand delivered 1,273 units, dropping 22% year on year. Its cumulative sales from January to November reached 17,287 units with a year-on-year increase of 11%.

Jason Luo, Chairman and CEO of Ford China stated that Lincoln kept a strong sales growth momentum in November and broke the record of monthly sales again. With the launch of the new Navigator, the products lineup of Lincoln has been further expanded. Three models under Lincoln brand, the MKC, MKX and Navigator saw almost the same sales growth of around 27% year on year.

In terms of Ford brand, the Mondeo boasted remarkable monthly sales, surging 61% year on year to 11,627 units. In the past 11 months, total sales of Mondeo reached 95,639 units, up only 1% compared with the same period last year. Jason Luo also added that the high-performance models under Ford brand, the Mustang and Focus RS also sold quite well. Their sales both soared 49% and 31% year on year respectively, though Ford brand saw a year-on-year sales decline of 22% in November.
Kasabian and Courteeners will headline Teenage Cancer Trust shows at London's Royal Albert Hall in 2018.

Kasabian

The 'You're In Love With A Psycho' hitmakers and the indie rock group are the first acts confirmed for the iconic charity shows with Tom Meighan and co performing on March 24, and the 'What Took You So Long?' stars - fronted by Liam Fray - playing the world famous venue on March 23.

It's a special gig for the latter, who are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their seminal album 'St. Jude' by performing the 2008 LP in full.

It follows their homecoming gig at Manchester's Old Trafford to 50,000 fans, following the horrific terrorist attacks at Ariana Grande's Manchester Arena concert in May.

Liam said: "It's a great honour and privilege to perform for such a brilliant charity at such a legendary venue.

"This will be the first and last time we'll ever perform our debut album St. Jude in full in London and we're really pleased to be doing it for a such a great cause."

Kasabian recently completed a 12 date UK Arena tour, in support of chart-topping record 'For Crying Out Loud', and can't wait to entertain the masses next Spring.

Frontman Tom said: "We love playing the Royal Albert Hall for the Teenage Cancer Trust. It is a show we have come back to throughout our career for the special atmosphere and the amazing cause. Our fans love it and we do too, it will be a highlight of 2018 for us."

The concert series was launched by the charity's Honorary Patron Roger Daltrey CBE, the legendary frontman of The Who, who said: "I'm really pleased to announce the first shows for The Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall next March. This will be the 18th year of these concerts for the charity.

"It's great to be welcoming back Kasabian, they have been fantastic supporters of this charity since they first headlined for us back in 2007."

Tickets go on sale on Friday (15.12.17).
Geneva-based International Trade Centre (ITC) and the Government of Sri Lanka have jointly produced the first comprehensive manual for Sri Lankan exporters to export under the European Union Generalized System of Preferences Plus (EU GSP+) scheme. The EU-funded EU GSP+ Business Guide for Sri Lankan Exporters was released last week on the ITC website.The information in the manual was collected in June this year, according to Sri Lankan media reports. It highlights the GSP Regulation enumerating 27 conventions, including the core human and labour rights conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

Geneva-based International Trade Centre (ITC) and the Government of Sri Lanka have jointly produced the first comprehensive manual for Sri Lankan exporters to export under the European Union Generalized System of Preferences Plus (EU GSP+) scheme. The EU-funded 'EU GSP+ Business Guide for Sri Lankan Exporters' was released last week on the ITC website.#

It explains relevant rules of origin applicable to apparel under GSP+, relevant institutions in the EU and additional resources like web portals, where Lankan exporters can obtain more information. (DS)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
Karl Mayer, Germanys leading textile machinery firm, has announced that the company has officially opened the new workshop in Vietnam on November 13, 2017, after nine months of sufficient preparation. Karl Mayer, a market leader in textile machinery building, offers perfect solutions for warp knitting, technical textiles and warp preparation for weaving.On the day of opening ceremony, representative from Illies, Kuna Robert and Wu Chun Yan, the trainers who are providing courses for Vietnam workshop from Karl Mayer, and Eddy Ho, sales manager of Karl Mayer Hong Kong welcomed the participants of the first phase of workshop. The visitors, customers from Hanoi and Ho-Chi-Minh-City, attended the premiere event held from 13 to 17, November 2017, followed from a second one, held from 20 to 24, November 2017. Each of them took place in Ho-Chi-Minh-City and was attended by six participants.

Karl Mayer, Germany's leading textile machinery firm, has announced that the company has officially opened the new workshop in Vietnam on November 13, 2017, after nine months of sufficient preparation. Karl Mayer, a market leader in textile machinery building, offers perfect solutions for warp knitting, technical textiles and warp preparation for weaving.#

Karl Mayer is devoting to expand the Southeast Asian market, so that more and more Vietnamese manufacturers purchase Karl Mayer warp knitting machines. In order to meet the current market demand, Karl Mayer will provide more product-related learning courses to help customers getting familiar with the theory and operation of Karl Mayer machine.Trainees of Karl Mayer workshop Vietnam will be attending a one week WKB training course, including machines theory, study of warp knitted fabric constructions, textile calculations, and practical works on training machines. In addition, Karl Mayer workshop Vietnam will offer additional course of machine maintenance introduction and article change.The workshop will give information on topics like introduction on stitch formation warp knitting, tricot machine structure and technical features, function and explanation of the knitting element movements and their synchronisation with help of chain links, and explanation of the KAMCOS in details and hands on practice of each participant. (GK)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
FinanceAsia congratulates the winners of our Annual Achievement Awards in Australia and New Zealand for 2017. We honour the tenacity and innovation shown by these Best Houses over the past 12 months.

To view the winners of our Best Deal Awards announced yesterday, click here.

The award winners and their clients are invited to attend our 15th annual awards celebration dinner on Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at the Park Hyatt on Sydney Harbour. For more information on this event, please contact Vicki Shaw at [email protected] or +61 2 9967 5774.

The winners Best Local Commercial Bank ANZ Best Foreign Commercial Bank Citi Best Investment Bank UBS Best Investment Bank, New Zealand Forsyth Barr Corporate Issuer of the Year Ausgrid Financial Issuer of the Year Latitude Financial Services Best Equity House UBS Best M&A House Goldman Sachs Best Local Bond House Westpac Best International Bond House Citi Best Green Bond House ANZ Best Debt Finance House National Australia Bank Best Financial Law Firm Herbert Smith Freehills
TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - Japan will on Monday release preliminary November numbers for machine tool orders, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In October, machine tool orders surged 49.8 percent on year. Japan also will see November figures for money stock and Q4 results for the BSI manufacturing index. The M2 money stock is expected to hold steady at 4.1 percent on year, while M3 is called unchanged at 3.5 percent. The BSI manufacturing index is expected to show a score of 10.0, up from 9.4 in the three months prior. The all industry index is pegged at 5.8, up from 5.1. The Philippines will release October numbers for imports, exports ad trade balance. In September, imports were worth $7.51 billion and exports were at $5.59 billion for a trade deficit of $1.92 billion. Finally, the markets in Thailand are closed on Monday in observance of Constitution Day, and will re-open on Tuesday. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Yidan Prize held its inaugural award ceremony on Dec 10, 2017

Welcome remarks by Dr Charles Chen Yidan

Carol S. Dweck, Yidan Prize for Education Research Inaugural Laureate

Vicky Colbert, Yidan Prize for Education Development Inaugural Laureate



HONG KONG, Dec 11, 2017 - (ACN Newswire) - The world's largest education prize, the Yidan Prize laureates accepted the inaugural awards and received gold medals from The Honorable Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, GBM, GBS, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, at the Yidan Prize Award Presentation Ceremony held Sunday (12/10) at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Each of the laureates will receive HK$30 million (about US$3.87 million) to recognize their distinguished contributions to global education and to help fund their future work.Carol S. Dweck, Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, received the Yidan Prize for Education Research. Her groundbreaking research on the power of the "growth mindset", based upon the belief that intelligence is not fixed and can be developed over time, has become an influential concept in the field of education."It is a great honor to receive the Yidan Prize for Education Research and I accept it on behalf of my extraordinary students and colleagues. It is their work as much as mine. It is critical for educators to know that we cannot nourish the mind without the heart. We cannot expect good learning - joyful and effective learning - to happen in a mind that is disconnected from the heart. And we cannot expect our students to create the world of tomorrow, the world that we hope for, without a heart-mind that connects them to each other, to the larger society, and to the planet as a whole," Dweck said.Vicky Colbert, founder and director of Fundacion Escuela Nueva, Colombia, was awarded the Yidan Prize for Education Development. Her project Escuela Nueva ("New School" in Spanish) has improved the quality of education at rural public schools in Colombia since the mid-1970s. The pedagogical model has also been adopted by 14 countries, reaching over 5 million children."I am honored and deeply moved to receive this prestigious education Yidan Prize for Education Development. The recognition that we receive through this prestigious award is a further motivation to continue our commitment to the cause of basic education of high quality for all children. At Escuela Nueva Foundation in Colombia and many other countries of the world we work to establish affordable schools of excellent quality where children, teachers and parents are empowered to learn and contribute to a culture of peace and citizenship in their environment," Colbert said.Each laureate receives a gold medal and a total sum of HK$30 million (about US$3.87 million) including a cash prize of HK$15 million (about US$1.9 million) and a project fund of HK$15 million (about US$1.9 million).Presenting the awards, The Honorable Mrs Carrie Lam said: "The Yidan Prize gives us much to look forward to in education excellence. And for this, I am grateful to Dr Chen, the Yidan Prize Foundation and the international judging committee for their commitment to global education and educators, and for their contribution to the sustainable development of the world we live in. My congratulations again to this year's laureates, Professor Dweck and Ms Colbert, for their distinguished achievements. Working together, I know we can create a better world through education."Dr Charles Chen Yidan, founder of the Yidan Prize, said: "Yidan Prize aims to empower educators to transcend religion, race and nationality, to exert far-reaching, positive influence over humanity, and ultimately, to help create a better world. I hope that their practical experience and research findings can be applied more extensively, expanding their impact, and benefiting more people."The event was attended by prominent figures including H.E. Dr Ahmed Al-Eissa, Minister of Education, Saudi Arabia, Ms. Cherie Blair, Founder, Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, and Jaime Saavedra, Senior Director, Education, World Bank Group, among others.The laureates are selected by a judging committee chaired by Dr Koichiro Matsuura, former director-general of UNESCO, which comprises two independent judging panels. Professor Paul Chu Ching-wu, professor of physics, T.L.L., Temple Chair of Science, University of Houston, heads the Yidan Prize for Education Research panel, and Dorothy K. Gordon, former director-general of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT leads the Yidan Prize for Education Development panel.About Yidan PrizeThe Yidan Prize is founded by Dr Charles Chen Yidan, the core founder of Tencent Holdings Limited. The Prize aims to recognize and support change makers for their most forward looking innovation that can create sustainable impacts on education systems for a better future. The Prize comprises two categories - the Yidan Prize for Education Research and the Yidan Prize for Education Development.The Prize is financed and governed by a HK$2.5 billion (about US$320 million) independent trust. Each prize carries an award of HK$30 million (about US$3.87 million), with a cash award of HK$15 million (about US$1.9 million), a further HK$15 million (about US$1.9 million) project fund, and a gold medal. Through a series of initiatives, the prize serves to provide a platform that allows the global community to engage in conversation around education and to play a role in education philanthropy. For more information, please visit www.yidanprize.org.*Photo from left: Mr Clive Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Yidan Prize Foundation; Carol S. Dweck, Yidan Prize for Education Research Inaugural Laureate; The Honorable Mrs Carrie Lam, Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, GBM, GBS; Vicky Colbert, Yidan Prize for Education Development Inaugural Laureate; Dr Charles Chen Yidan, Founder of the Yidan Prize.Contact:Yidan Prize FoundationLawrence LuiT: +852 2155 1582E: lawrence@yidanprize.orgWeber ShandwickMokka Mok / Winky ChowT: +852 2533 9971 / 2533 9923E: mmok2@webershandwick.com /wchow@webershandwick.comSource: Yidan Prize FoundationCopyright 2017 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Andy Ahn Head of Marketing, Suprema Inc. Email: andyahn@suprema.co.kr

SEOUL, KOREA, Dec 11, 2017 - (ACN Newswire) - Suprema, Inc., a leading global provider of biometrics and security technologies, today announced that the company has been recognized as one of the top 50 largest security company in A&S's 2017 Security 50 rankings. In this year's rankings, Suprema moved up in its ranking from 31st to 30th with its 2016 annual revenue of US$66.2 million. Since 2011, Suprema has been ranked in Security 50 for 7 consecutive years and is the only dedicated biometrics company in 2016 rankings.The Security 50 from A&S magazine is an annual rankings of publicly listed physical security manufacturers around the globe solely based on their financial performance (sales revenue). On the rankings, companies' businesses range from biometrics, access control, video surveillance, alarms and integrated security solutions.In the 2017 Security 50 rankings, Suprema is the only dedicated biometrics company among the 'Access Control Product Group', and Suprema ranked 4th in Access Control rankings after multi-nationals including Assa Abloy, Allegion and Nedap."We are thrilled to be recognized as one of the key player in security industry by listing our name on the prestigious 2017 Security 50 rankings. This is an incredible reflection of overarching vision and innovations of Suprema's technology, products and solutions. When it comes to biometrics, the market focus is shifting from technological advances to user convenience while user acceptance is rapidly growing with widespread of biometrics-enabled smartphones."As credential management and interoperability are becoming more important, we will put more effort into better delivering identity management solutions while maintaining the best-available biometric technologies over the competition," said Brian Song, CEO at Suprema.About Security 50Security 50, conducted by a&s International, is one of the most comprehensive and influential reports in the industry that ranks the top security manufacturers in the world. The annual Security 50 ranking is based upon product sales revenue, gross profit, and profit margin during the previous fiscal year. To find out the full list of 2017 Security 50 Rankings, please visit https://goo.gl/81fQev.About Suprema Inc.Suprema is a leading global provider of biometrics and security technology. By combining world renowned biometric algorithms with superior engineering, Suprema continually designs and develops industry leading products and solutions. Suprema's extensive range of portfolio includes biometric access control systems, time & attendance solutions, fingerprint live scanners, mobile authentication solutions and embedded fingerprint modules. Suprema has worldwide sales network in over 130 countries and is one of the world's Top 50 security company in its turnover (ranked in A&S's Security 50, 2010-2017). For more information, please visit www.supremainc.com.Source: Suprema Inc.Contact:Copyright 2017 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.
LONDON (dpa-AFX) - The Scottish Investment Trust plc (SCIN.L) reported return on ordinary activities before tax of 67.06 million pounds for the year to 31 October 2017 compared to 195.26 million pounds, prior year. Return attributable to shareholders decreased to 65.81 million pounds from 193.72 million pounds. Return per share was 75.52 pence compared to 190.66 pence. On revenue basis, fiscal year return on ordinary activities before tax decreased to 21.35 million pounds from 23.50 million pounds. Return per share was 23.06 pence compared to 21.62 pence. For the fiscal year, net gains on investments held at fair value through profit and loss was 50.82 million pounds compared to 177.33 million pounds, last year. The Board recommended a final dividend of 14.5 pence per share which, if approved, will mean that the total regular dividend for the year will increase by 48.1% to 20.0 pence. The Board also recommended a special dividend of 5.0 pence per share in order to distribute the income generated in the year to 31 October 2017 in excess of the requirements of the proposed regular dividend. If approved, the total dividend for the year will increase by 11.1%. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, 2017-12-11 13:30 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sabina Gold & Silver Corp (TSX:SBB.T), ("Sabina" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Nunavut Water Board (NWB) has commenced public review of the Type A and Type B water license applications related to initial development, mine construction and operation of the Back River Project (the "Project" or "Back River"). As announced on December 6, 2017, the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, on behalf of the five responsible federal Ministers, accepted Nunavut Impact Review Board's recommendation for the Project to proceed to the regulatory and licensing phase. The NIRB has advised that the final Project Certificate will be issued on or before January 4, 2018. The Type B water license would enable Sabina to commence certain initial pre-development activities in 2018 including onsite construction of service roads and laydown pads, and the mobilization of fuel, supplies and equipment at the Goose property and marine laydown area. Sabina anticipates approval of the Type B water license in late Q1, 2018. The Type A water license would allow for full construction and operation of the Back River project. Sabina anticipates approval of the Type A water license in Q4, 2018. "With a positive Ministers decision now in hand we are pleased to see that the licensing process has commenced which will enable full development of the Back River Project" said Bruce McLeod, President & CEO. "We look forward to receiving the Project Certificate, various final licenses as well as finalizing the definitive agreements with the Kitikmeot Inuit Association for land tenure and Inuit benefits." Sabina Gold & Silver Corp Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. is a well-financed, emerging precious metals company with district scale, world class undeveloped assets in one of the world's newest, politically stable mining jurisdictions: Nunavut, Canada. In September 2015, Sabina released a Feasibility Study on its 100% owned Back River Gold Project which presents a project that has been designed on a fit-for purpose basis, with the potential to produce ~200,000 ounces a year for ~11 years with a rapid payback of 2.9 years. At a US$1,150 gold price and a 0.80 exchange rate, the Study delivers a potential after tax internal rate of return of approximately 24.2% with an initial CAPEX of $415 million. The Project has advanced through the environmental assessment process with a positive decision from the federal government received December 5, 2017. The Project is now in the final regulatory and licensing phase. In addition to Back River, Sabina also owns a significant silver royalty on Glencore's Hackett River Project. The silver royalty on Hackett River's silver production is comprised of 22.5% of the first 190 million ounces produced and 12.5% of all the silver produced thereafter. The Company had cash and equivalents of C$38.5m at September 30, 2017. For further information please contact: Nicole Hoeller, Vice-President, Communications: 1 888 648-4218 nhoeller@sabinagoldsilver.com Forward Looking Information This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws (the "forward-looking statements"), including our belief as to the extent, results of permitting and environmental assessment outcomes, and access to project funding. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the future circumstances, outcomes or results anticipated in or implied by such forward-looking statements will occur or that plans, intentions or expectations upon which the forward-looking statements are based will occur. While we have based these forward-looking statements on our expectations about future events as at the date that such statements were prepared, the statements are not a guarantee that such future events will occur and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors which could cause events or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors and assumptions include, among others, the effects of general economic conditions, commodity prices, changing foreign exchange rates and actions by government and regulatory authorities and misjudgments in the course of preparing forward-looking statements. In addition, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Known risk factors include risks associated with exploration and project development; the need for additional financing; the calculation of mineral resources and reserves; operational risks associated with mining and mineral processing; fluctuations in metal prices; title matters; government regulation; obtaining and renewing necessary licenses and permits; environmental liability and insurance; reliance on key personnel; the potential for conflicts of interest among certain of our officers or directors; the absence of dividends; currency fluctuations; labour disputes; competition; dilution; the volatility of the our common share price and volume; future sales of shares by existing shareholders; and other risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the Back River Project and general risks associated with the mineral exploration and development industry described in our Annual Information Form, financial statements and MD&A for the fiscal period ended December 31, 2016 filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available at www.sedar.com. Although we have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We are under no obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable securities laws. This news release is authorized by the undersigned on behalf of Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. Bruce McLeod, President & CEO Suite 1800 - Two Bentall Centre 555 Burrard Street Vancouver, BC V7X 1M9 Tel 604 998-4175 Fax 604 998-1051 http://www.sabinagoldsilver.com
Shanghai (Gasgoo)-Today, WM Motor held its brand releasing ceremony and unveiled its first mass-produced model. At the ceremony, the company also revealed that its cumulative financing sum has been up to RMB 12 billion.

The new model, named EX5, is a battery electric and intelligent SUV, with a starting price of about RMB 200,000 (about 30,226 dollars). The vehicle boasts a maximum range of 600 kilometers. Featuring rich intelligent functions, the model is expected to be put into production at the beginning of next year in the companys intelligent factory in Wenzhou and will go on sale in the second or the third quarter in 2018. From 2018 on, the company will introduce at least one new model each year.

The first model is equipped with car-window intelligent interaction solution to bring out-vehicle interaction experience for the young generation who grow up under digital background. The feature can tell the identity of drivers and give access to the owner, the owners family and friends, and other authorized users. Every WM user will have a Super ID account, which will provide personalized service fur users.

Recently, WM released its development path which will integrate Artificial Intelligence, hardware, software and service. Based on its prognosis on AI technology, the company will implement the strategy in four phases. First, WM vehicles will be fully internet-connected and offer real-time online intelligent services. Then, the vehicle will have the capacity to sensing the changes and purposes of users and the surroundings to offer interaction experience and personalized service.

At the following stage, vehicles can connect and create synergy with other intelligent ecosystems to provide comprehensive travelling services. Finally, the vehicle will make driving decisions, thus to give drivers more freedom and improve travelling efficiency. According to the company, the first two stages will be realized in the first mass-produced model next year. The last two stages will be its mid-long-term goal.
Mitsubishi Corporation Tel: +81-3-3210-2171 Fax: +81-3-5252-7705

TOKYO, Dec 11, 2017 - (JCN Newswire) - Mitsubishi Corporation is pleased to announce that its 100% subsidiary, Marunouchi Infrastructure Inc. (MII), has launched Japan's first diversified infrastructure fund. The fund will invest in a portfolio of assets across all major infrastructure sectors.MII has established a limited partnership with commitments from institutional investors in Japan reaching more than JPY 30 billion on its first closing, and expects additional commitments to bring the Fund to its targeted JPY 50 billion in total in the first half of the next year. The Fund has a hard-cap of JPY 100 billion.The value of infrastructure assets held by the public sector in Japan, including the central and local governments, reaches several hundred trillion yen. The private sector also holds a large volume of infrastructure assets. Many of Japan's infrastructure assets, particularly those developed during the period of rapid economic growth between 1954 and 1973, will need to be refurbished and replaced in the coming decades.In addition, a large number of new infrastructure projects, including those related to the rapidly expanding renewable energy space, are now being developed. With governments trying to ease their fiscal burden and with companies aiming to concentrate on their core businesses, MC sees infrastructure funds playing a greater role in developing and maintaining Japan's infrastructure.MC and its subsidiaries have been the front runners among Japanese companies in managing investor capital and in executing investments in infrastructure assets overseas since 2012. Those investments have included electricity distribution networks, toll road related business and seaports, particularly in Europe and the U.S. With that proven track record, we are in a good position to leverage our investment management capabilities to successfully launch this Fund to invest in infrastructure in Japan.While most other infrastructure funds in Japan invest exclusively in renewable energy, the Fund is targeting all major infrastructure sectors, namely energy, transportation and utilities, making it the country's first diversified infrastructure fund. Through this initiative, MC is seeking an opportunity in developing and maintaining infrastructure in Japan, while at the same time simultaneously generating economic value, environmental value, and societal value through this Fund.About Mitsubishi CorporationMitsubishi Corporation (MC; TSE: 8058) is a global integrated business enterprise that develops and operates businesses across virtually every industry including industrial finance, energy, metals, machinery, chemicals, foods, and environmental business. MC's current activities are expanding far beyond its traditional trading operations as its diverse business ranges from natural resources development to investment in retail business, infrastructure, financial products and manufacturing of industrial goods. With over 200 bases of operations in approximately 80 countries worldwide and a network of over 500 group companies, MC employs a multinational workforce of nearly 60,000 people. For more information, please visit www.mitsubishicorp.com.Source: Mitsubishi CorporationContact:Copyright 2017 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
OTTAWA (dpa-AFX) - Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ), a solar power company, announced Monday that its Board of Directors has received a preliminary, non-binding 'Going Private' proposal letter from its Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Shawn (Xiaohua) Qu. As per the letter, dated December 9, Qu has offered that all the shares of the company not already beneficially owned by Qu and his wife, Hanbing Zhang, would be acquired in a 'going-private' transaction for cash consideration of $18.47 per common share. This price represents a premium of approximately 7.1% to the Company's closing price on December 8, and a premium of approximately 10% to the average closing price during the last 90 trading days, the letter noted. The Chairman and his wife currently beneficially own approximately 23.5% of the stock. The Board has formed a special committee of independent and disinterested directors to consider the proposed transaction. The company expects that the Special Committee will retain independent advisors, including independent legal and financial advisors, to assist it in this process. The Board cautioned the shareholders and others considering trading in the Company's securities that it has just received the Proposal Letter and that it is yet to review the proposal. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
LOS ANGELES, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

USA News Group - In the rush to advance the electric vehicle revolution, it appears China is taking an early lead in both adoption of EVs and securing the resources of lithium to power them.

Lithium producers and near term producers looking to immediately increase global lithium supplies include A.I.S. Resources Limited (TSX-V: AIS) (OTC: AISSF), Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF), Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), and Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX) (OTC: LIXXF).

Several major Chinese auto manufacturers are planning to increase their electric vehicle (EV) quotas dramatically in the next two years based on early success by EV makers there and the Chinese Government's demands to abandon petrol fuel engines.

Combined with greater use of lithium in power grid storage, the demand is creating kind of "arms" race style competition for global lithium. So far China is ahead.

A new lithium junior player that could benefit directly from the Chinese appetite for lithium is A.I.S. Resources Limited (TSX-V: AIS) (OTCQB: AISSF), which could answer the call to add new supplies from its South American lithium brine Guayatayoc project as early as 2019.

Other lithium companies that are poised to take-up the shortfall being fed by China's consumption include Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF), Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), and Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX.V) (OTCQX: LIXXF), all of which are in the process of expanding of their respective lithium resources to accommodate the major demand increase.

CHINA STEPPING ON THE PEDAL

China is already a leader in the adoption of electric vehicles, with more than 500,000 units being sold in the country in 2016.

Indeed, Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd is planning a US$1.97 billion IPO to drive its expansion and meet soaring demand for electric car batteries.

And BYD, the Chinese electric car and bus company part-owned by Warrant Buffett, has talked extensively with South American lithium producers to secure supplies of the key battery material.

China, the world's most active polluter has suffered for long due to toxic effluents and greenhouse emissions, hence is one of the countries at the forefront of adopting the Paris Agreement. But this process is lithium-intensive due to the millions of batteries required to power various processes particularly electric transportation.

China does not have substantial lithium mines within its own boundaries. Lithium resources tend to be located far away from the centers of industrial muscle in North America, Europe and Asia that utilize it in large quantities.

The main sources are brine pools in Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, as well as rocks in Australia.

Chinese companies have been rushing to acquire concessions in these countries, aided by the diplomatic power and financial muscle of the Chinese government.

Companies such as Ganfeng Lithium and Tianqi Lithium have seen massive growth, with their turnovers more than doubling in 2016.

Ganfeng Lithium strengthened their position by purchasing 2 million equity shares from International Lithium, increasing its shareholding in the company to 18%.

MORE AND MORE LITHIUM NEEDED

Although there are enough verified lithium resources to sustain a fully EV dependent world for hundreds of years, slow establishment of mining operations has meant that actual supply has lagged behind demand.

And now that the Tesla-led EV revolution has hit full gear, pressure on existing resources has grown by a considerable factor.

Entities that control these resources have gold (even that maybe an understatement) on their hands as the price of lithium keeps surging. China has been moving to do exactly that through government-sanctioned acquisition of supplies across the world.

If, as lithium consultant Sam Jaffe of Cairn ERA predicts, lithium-ion battery demand rises from 80 GWh this year to 750 GWh in 2026, it's likely that the world is going to need every bit of lithium production that can be brought online.

In total, the projected increase would account for a massive 10-fold leap in demand within 10 years.

JUNIORS SEIZE THE OPPORTUNITY

Not to be left out of the competition, junior resource companies have grasped the seriousness of the demand for lithium and are moving to bring on supplies.

A.I.S. Resources Limited is one of these early movers with excellent prospects in South America's productive regions.

Argentina is a major global lithium producer with significant additional potential, and a respected mining-industry history. The country has become well known for its many mineralized salars or salt fields, which include the Hombre Muerto and Salar Olaroz properties each producing significant lithium.

This is where A.I.S. Resources has staked its three main lithium projects, all of which are strategically located in the Argentina's Puna Region.

In all, A.I.S. Resources has about 7,725 hectares and its flagship Guayatayoc property is well advanced with a mining permit in hand and drilling permits imminent.

Guayatayoc was sampled and returned Li ranging from 270-900 ppm in ponds that had aquifer flow, as well as 100-190ppm for brines sitting in the top layers. That's considered very high grade and suitable for li-ion battery production.

The Guayatayoc is on its way to becoming a near term producer. The project will be fast-tracked, as chemistry and process work is already complete. The company expects that it can be in production as early as 2019.

And that comes from a highly skilled team of lithium mining veterans who have completed other recent lithium projects into production.

THE GAUNTLET IS THROWN DOWN

The race for lithium resources could leave EV companies such as Tesla short of the commodity if China manages to monopolize available sources, in a similar way as they have achieved with cobalt.

Already, Chinese companies control nearly all of Lithium Hydroxide reserves, which Panasonic uses to make lithium batteries for Tesla.

In what could be spell a gloomy outlook for Tesla, there are undertones about Chinese companies looking to build multiple super factories to rival Tesla's recently opened Nevada gigafactory.

And while Tesla's gigafactory is expected to produce 35 gigawatt hours of battery power annually, global production should rise from a little over 100 million gigawatt-hours to more than 273 gigawatt-hours by 2021. As much as 65% of this growth could be produced in China.

However, Tesla is not resting on its laurels either, with plans to build up to 4 factories reportedly in the pipeline.

An arms race can scarcely suffice to describe the competition between China and outsiders like Tesla.

Regardless if China moves ahead, lithium prices don't appear to be abating any time soon so new lithium resources like A.I.S. Resources' Guayatayoc project in South America are likely to bring tremendous value and aid in the move to electrify the auto market.

POTENTIAL COMPARABLES

Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF)

Galaxy Resources Limited is a lithium-focused resources company, with assets spanning Australia, Canada and Argentina. Galaxy is currently advancing plans to develop the Sal de Vida Lithium and Potash Brine Project ("Sal de Vida") in Argentina, which is situated in the Lithium Triangle, a region where Chile, Argentina and Bolivia meet. Sal de Vida is a proven high quality resource has excellent promise as a future low cost production facility. Galaxy also owns the Mt Cattlin Spodumene Mine near Ravensthorpe in Western Australia and the James Bay Lithium Pegmatite Project in Quebec, Canada.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM)

Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A., is a producer of potassium nitrate and iodine. The Company produces specialty plant nutrients, iodine derivatives, lithium and its derivatives, potassium chloride, potassium sulfate and certain industrial chemicals. Its segments include specialty plant nutrients, industrial chemicals, iodine and derivatives, lithium and derivatives, potassium, and other products and services Lithium and its derivatives are used in batteries, greases and frits for production of ceramics. Potassium chloride is a commodity fertilizer that is produced and sold by the Company across the world.

Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX.V) (OTCQX: LIXXF)

Lithium X Energy Corp. is a lithium exploration and development company with a goal of becoming a low-cost supplier for the burgeoning lithium battery industry. On July 11th, the company announced that further to its news release of June 29th, 2017, the Company has closed the definitive agreement with Aberdeen International Inc. for the purchase of Aberdeen's remaining 50% interest in Potasio y Litio de Argentina S.A., which controls 100% of the Sal de los Angeles Project. The project consists of 8,154 hectares covering 95% of Salar de Diablillos, and has an NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate of 1.037 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in the indicated category and 1.007 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in the inferred category.

For a more in-depth look into AIS you can view the in-depth report at USA News Group: http://usanewsgroup.com/2017/06/14/lithium-juniors-seeing-massive-demand/

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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - It was a nightmare weekend for British Airways passengers after the airlines cancelled over 140 short-haul flights and 26 long-haul flights yesterday after serious snowfall in the U.K. The airline has also cancelled additional 70 short-haul round trips and nine long-haul flights for Monday. Passengers on a British Airways flight from Berlin to Heathrow were the worst affected. The flight was due to depart from Berlin at 1.50 pm but took off five hours late on Sunday. However, it turned around when it was within an hour of London Heathrow airport and returned to Berlin leaving around 180 passengers stranded. One passenger posted a photo on Twitter of an on-board TV screen showing the flight path, with the caption: 'Nightmare.' Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
PRESS RELEASE

NAGRA CONNECT SECURES EUSKALTEL'S

4K ANDROID TV SET-TOP BOX DEPLOYMENT IN SPAIN

New 4K Android TV set-top box seamlessly integrates with NAGRA CONNECT and OpenTV Platform to deliver a range of new content packages

Launch marks the first Android TV Operator Tier deployment for NAGRA

Collaboration between Euskaltel, NAGRA and Technicolor enablesa secure Android TV ecosystem

CHESEAUX, Switzerland - December 11, 2017 - (NAGRA: https://dtv.nagra.com/), a Kudelski Group (SIX:KUD.S) company and the world's leading independent provider of content protection and multiscreen television solutions, today announced that its (NAGRA CONNECT: https://dtv.nagra.com/secure/casdrm) content protection solution for connected networks was deployed by Spanish cable TV provider (Euskaltel: http://www.euskaltel.com/CanalOnline/particulares/) to secure the operator's new Android TV-based 4K set-top boxes by (Technicolor: http://www.technicolor.com/). This new launch marks the first Android TV Operator Tier deployment for NAGRA.

The seamless integration of the NAGRA-secured set-top box with the operator's existing (OpenTV Platform: https://dtv.nagra.com/engaging/opentvsuite) backend gives Euskaltel the ability to bring a range of new content packages to its subscribers. They include premium 4K content with value-added features such as VOD, catch-up and start-over TV, cloud DVR and multiscreen TV secured by NAGRA CONNECT, the converged CAS/DRM solution for connected set-top boxes and televisions, supporting protection for broadcast, IPTV, operator OTT. Additionally, leveraging its forward-thinking investment in DOCSIS and Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) IP infrastructure, Euskaltel is now able to progressively transition its installed customer base to the new 4K Ultra HD Android environment.

"Consumer demand for high-quality content on multiple screens keeps growing and we're delighted to respond with this new offer for our subscribers," said Leticia Sanchez Berian, Director of Television Operations at Euskaltel. "By working with NAGRA and Technicolor, we were able to introduce a new 4K set-top box that allows us to take advantage of our existing OpenTV backend platform to deliver linear and on-demand premium content while also tapping into a rich Android TV video app ecosystem to deliver even more value to our customers."

"We have deployed secured Android multiscreen solutions for several years. By leveraging our expertise, along with our newest content protection technology for connected networks, our OpenTV Platform and secure OpenTV Player, we enable Euskaltel to deliver a complete and feature-rich experience to its consumers, and clearly be at the forefront of technical evolution in pay-TV cable market," said Thierry Legrand, Senior Vice President Sales EMEA at NAGRA. "This launch further demonstrates that, because they are designed for secure IP, cloud and data-centric environments, NAGRA's newest technologies in content protection and user experience can add significant value to an operator choosing the Android TV ecosystem."

"As Android TV gains traction with pay-TV operators worldwide, we are delighted to work with a trusted partner like NAGRA to deliver a secure and feature-rich solution to Euskaltel, based on our advanced 4K Ultra HD set-top box designs," stated Gaetan Delcroix, VP, OTT Product Management and Engineering at Technicolor Home Division. "NAGRA elegantly brings together the best of both the broadcast and broadband worlds to offer maximum flexibility in managing content security to operators."

About Euskaltel

Euskaltel is the leading telecommunications group in convergent offerings in northern Spain. The company has strong territorial ties and a well-founded commitment to the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturias, where it operates via Euskaltel, R and Telecable. The telecommunications group offers its services to a market of 6 million people, serving over 800,000 residential customers and companies. Euskaltel, R and Telecable are leaders in fibre optic (broadband, phones and Pay TV and convergent telecommunications services), with a solid customer base and complementary business models. As a mobile phone operator with its own 4G license in the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturias, it has the largest proprietary fibre optic network in place on the market.

About Technicolor Connected Home Division

Technicolor's Connected Home Division offers operators around the world a full range of set-top box offerings, along with professional services and a wide variety of software, conditional access and digital right management (DRM) solutions. Technicolor's set-top box portfolio ranges from SD or HD converters for digital and HDTV transition, to powerful premium 4K HDR and Ultra HD Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) and Smart Media Gateways. Technicolor's comprehensive portfolio of internet protocol (IP) set-top boxes enables network operators to offer their subscribers a tailored, personal and differentiated video experience by decoding, decrypting and displaying linear and OTT content.

About NAGRA

NAGRA, a digital TV division of the Kudelski Group (SIX:KUD.S), provides security and multiscreen user experience solutions for the monetization of digital media. The company offers content providers and DTV service providers worldwide secure, open and integrated platforms and applications over broadcast, broadband and mobile platforms, enabling compelling and personalized viewing experiences. Please visit (dtv.nagra.com: https://dtv.nagra.com/) for more information and follow us on Twitter at (@nagrakudelski: https://twitter.com/nagrakudelski?lang=en).

Contacts:

Ivan Schnider

Marketing Communications

+41 21 732 09 40

(ivan.schnider@nagra.com: mailto:ivan.schnider@nagra.com)

Christine Oury

Marketing Communications

+1 415 962 5433

(christine.oury@nagra.com: mailto:christine.oury@nagra.com)
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / December 11, 2017 / Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Cheetah Mobile Inc. ("Cheetah" or the "Company") (NYSE: CMCM). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 9980.

The investigation concerns whether Cheetah and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here to join a class action]

On October 26, 2017, Prescience Point Research Group published a report asserting, among other things, that: (1) approximately 55% of Cheetah's second quarter 2017 consolidated revenue does not exist; and (2) the Company uses company-controlled or "fake" accounts on the mobile application Live.me to gift other users using Company money.

On this news, Cheetah's American depositary receipt price fell $0.37, or 4.39%, to close at $8.05 on October 26, 2017.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com.

SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP
WHITE ROCK, BC / ACCESSWIRE / December 11, 2017 / Azarga Metals Corp. ("Azarga Metals" or the "Company") has exercised its call option to increase its ownership of the Unkur Copper-Silver Project from the current 60% interest to 100%. The project vendors have also agreed to cancel the remaining US$1.6 million owed to them by the Company in the form of deferred consideration payments associated with the original 60% purchase. Further, the Company has also arranged a bridge loan to complete various strategic initiatives.

Commenting on the transactions, Dorian L. (Dusty) Nicol, the Company's president and CEO, said, "I'm very happy to have been able to exercise the call option to consolidate Azarga Metals' 100% ownership of Unkur early. I believe there is a great deal more copper and silver mineralization to be found at Unkur and the cleaner ownership structure makes Azarga a lot more attractive." He then went on to say, "The Project Vendors are supportive shareholders including contributions to our capital raisings since the original project acquisition and I believe their agreement to our option exercise and cancellation of deferred cash consideration reflects their alignment with us on the long-term strategy for Unkur."

The Unkur Copper-Silver Project in the Zabaikalsky administrative region of eastern Russia is already the Azarga Metals' principal asset. 60% of it was acquired in mid-2016 and the Company completed an initial physical exploration program including 16 diamond core drill holes (4,580 meters), together with trenching and a ground magnetic survey. The initial exploration program was highly successful, resulting in a maiden Mineral Resource estimate (see April 4, 2017 news release), of an Inferred Mineral Resource of 42 million tonnes at 0.52% copper and 38g/t silver, containing 220,000 tonnes (ie, 480 million pounds) of copper and 52 million ounces of silver. This equates to approximately 380,000 tonnes (ie, 840 million pounds) of copper equivalent at 0.90% or approximately 124 million ounces of silver equivalent at 91g/t, assuming a copper price of US$3.00/lb, silver price of US$20/oz and 100% recovery.

On December 8, 2017, the Company signed a binding letter agreement (the "Letter Agreement") with the eight holders of the indirect 40% interest (the "Project Vendors") whereby the parties agreed to amend the terms of the shareholders agreement dated May 31, 2016 (the "SH Agreement") among the Company, the Project Vendors and the intermediate holding company Azarga Metals Limited ("Azarga BVI") (collectively the "Parties"). Three of the Sellers are directors of the Company and they declared their conflict and abstained from voting on approval of the Letter Agreement.

In addition to agreeing to the exercise of the Company's call option, pursuant to the Letter Agreement the Project Vendors have also agreed to waive and cancel US$1.6 million deferred cash consideration payments associated with the original acquisition of the Unkur Copper-Silver Project (together the "Project Consolidation Transaction"). The Parties have agreed on payment for the Project Consolidation Transaction to be 42,000,000 shares in Azarga Metals.

The issue of all shares is subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, and which may require disinterested shareholder approval.

Azarga Metals has recently been engaged in moving forward a number of initiatives that currently remain incomplete, including: (a) engaging with a number of potential strategic partners at both the Unkur project and parent level; (b) re-interpretation of the results of the 2016-2017 exploration program to refine plans for upcoming physical exploration works; (c) discussions with technical consultants regarding the potential for early preparation of a Preliminary Economic Assessment for Unkur based on the data already acquired; and (d) reviewing potentially attractive acquisitions in the broader Kodar-Udokan geological district within which Unkur is situated. As a result, certain of the directors and other shareholders of the Company have agreed to provide the Company with a bridge loan facility in order to pursue some or all of these initiatives to completion in the near term. The bridge loan facility will be for C$400,000 to be drawn in four equal advances over the next 9 months. Advances will bear interest at the rate of 10% per annum and all advances must be repaid within twelve months of the first advance. The loan is intended to bridge the Company's activities until an equity placement is conducted in the new year. In addition, under certain conditions, the same lenders will make available an additional C$150,000 to the Company on the same terms.

The bridge loan is subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Qualified Person

The Company's President and Chief Executive Officer, Dorian L. (Dusty) Nicol, B.Sc. Geo, MA Geo, a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the exploration information disclosures contained in this Press Release.

AZARGA METALS CORP.

"Alex Molyneux"

Alexander Molyneux, Chair

For further information, please contact:

Doris Meyer, at +1 604 536-2711 ext 6, or visit www.azargametals.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statement :

This news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the Corporation's current expectations and estimates. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan," "expect," "project," "intend," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "suggest," "indicate," and other similar words or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results implied or expressed in such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others: the actual results of current planned exploration activities; conclusions of economic evaluations; changes in project parameters as plans to continue to be refined; possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays in obtaining governmental approvals or financing; and fluctuations in metal prices. There may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Corporation disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly, undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

SOURCE: Azarga Metals Corp.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - December 11, 2017) - Latin American Minerals Inc. (TSXV: LAT) (the "Company") announces, further to its November 13, 2017 press release, an increase to the size of its non-brokered private placement by $500,000 for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $2,000,000 (the "Offering"). The Offering will now be up to 26,666,666 units ("Units") at a price of $0.075 per Unit. Each Unit is comprised of one common share ("Common Share") of the Company and one Common Share purchase warrant ("Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share for a period of five (5) years from the closing of the Offering at a price of $0.10 per Common Share. The proceeds of the offering will be used for general working capital purposes.

Closing of the Offering is subject to receipt of all necessary corporate and regulatory approvals, including the approval of TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued in connection with the Offering will be subject to a hold period of four months plus a day from the date of issuance and the resale rules of applicable securities legislation. The Company closed the first tranche of the Offering on December 1, 2017 and will be closing additional tranches of the Offering until December 29, 2017.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or the securities laws of any state of the United States and may not be offered or sold within the United States (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to an exemption from such registration requirements.

About the Company

Latin American Minerals Inc. is a mineral exploration and gold mining company which holds its core gold projects in Paraguay. The Company is currently expanding its Independencia Mine gold processing plant to encompass vat-leach gold recovery from mineralization extracted in open pit bulk mining activities at its fully permitted mining concession.

Management has identified exploration targets at Independencia Mine, and six new gold zones on the Company's adjacent exploration claims, for drill testing. This property package comprises the Company's 15,020 hectare Paso Yobai gold project.

For more information, please contact:

Mathew Wilson, President & CEO

Toronto: (1-416) 643-7630

E-mail: information@latinamericanminerals.com

Website: www.latinamericanminerals.com

The Company's public documents may be accessed at www.sedar.com.

For further information, please visit our website at www.latinamericanminerals.com

or email us at information@latinamericanminerals.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

Not for distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or for dissemination in the United States. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of U.S. Securities laws.
Regulatory News:

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (NA:PSH) today announces that it has purchased, through PSH's agent, Jefferies International Limited ("Jefferies"), the following number of PSH's ordinary shares of no par value (ISIN Code: GG00BPFJTF46) (the "Shares"):

Trading Venue: London Stock Exchange Date of purchase: 11 December 2017 Number of Shares purchased: 27,393 Shares Highest price paid per Share: 1,048 pence 14.00 USD Lowest price paid per Share: 1,045 pence 13.96 USD Average price paid per Share: 1,047.96 pence 14.00 USD

Trading Venue: Euronext Amsterdam Date of purchase: 11 December 2017 Number of Shares purchased: 43,551 Shares Highest price paid per Share: 14.09 USD Lowest price paid per Share: 13.95 USD Average price paid per Share: 14.02 USD

PSH intends to cancel these Shares. The net asset value per Share related to this Share buyback is USD 17.68 GBP 13.15 which was calculated as of 5 December 2017. After giving effect to the above Share buyback, PSH has outstanding 235,595,930 Shares. The prices per share in USD were calculated by Jefferies.

The number of PSH Management Shares and the 1 special voting share (held by PS Holdings Independent Voting Company Limited) has not been affected.

About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd.:

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American companies.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171211006029/en/

Contacts:

Media Contact:

Maitland

James Devas, +44 20 7379 5151

Media-pershingsquareholdings1@maitland.co.uk
RAPT ENABLED INTERACTIVE FLAT PANELS TO BE DEMONSTRATED IN THE MICROSOFT BOOTH

DUBLIN, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- RAPT Touch, the leader in alternative touchscreen technologies, will demonstrate its latest advancements in Interactive Flat Panel technology designed for the education market at BETT 2018. RAPT and its partner will showcase Microsoft OneNote, Microsoft Whiteboard Preview and other classroom applications on its 75" interactive panel, as well as announce a new Interactive Flat Panel program for the Education Market at BETT.

RAPT enabled devices, powered by Windows Ink, replicate a pen on paper experience in all applications supporting Microsoft Pen Protocol. With up to 20 simultaneous fine tip stylii operating at 7 milliseconds tracking latency with pressure recognition built-in, every teacher and student has the power to express themselves and collaborate like never before.

"We are excited to unveil the work the RAPT team has accomplished in conjunction with Microsoft to provide valuable alternatives to Interactive Flat Panels for the Education Market," said Cathal Phelan RAPT CEO. "Microsoft Whiteboard is an example of a breakthrough application that in use with devices using RAPT technology, school districts will now be able to use all the features at a price point never seen before in advanced touchscreens."

"When you combine the power of OneNote and Windows Ink, with interactive flat panels built with RAPT technology, students are greeted with a true pen on paper experience on the largest interactive panels available," said Peter Han, Vice President Partner Devices and Solutions, Microsoft Corp. "This combination of technologies is an amazing tool for teachers to unlock student creativity in a highly collaborative environment."

Established in 2008, RAPT's patented FTIR multi-touch technology is the clear alternative to projected capacitive systems. RAPT's technology provides new breakthrough features at a cost which enables OEMs to sell competitively in mass volume. RAPT is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and led by a world-class team of industry veterans with expertise in launching products to be manufactured in the millions of units. RAPT also has offices in Taiwan, Switzerland and Silicon Valley, California.

About RAPT (http://www.rapttouch.com)

Logo - http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/368794/RAPT_Touch___Logo.jpg
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- At the opening ceremony of Beijing New Energy Technology Innovation Center held on December 9, Xu Heyi, President of BAIC Group, said that the group will first restrict and finally ban the sales and production of those self-own branded traditional fossil fuel-powered vehicles.

According to the president, BAIC plans to ban the sales of self-own branded traditional vehicles first in Beijing city in 2020. In 2025, the automaker will finally stop the sales and production of those vehicles across China.

In accordance with the governments guidance, BAIC set up the Beijing New Energy Technology Innovation Center, which is a major step for the group to focus on new energy industry and gain technology advantages in the segment.

There are a total of 15 initiators for this innovation center, covering automakers, battery producers, internet enterprises, scientific research institutions and industrial investment companies. The center will optimize the allocation of global resources to establish an open and inclusive innovation center.

BAIC is the second Chinese automaker which has released the timetable to ban sales of fossil fuel-powered vehicles. On October 19, Changan revealed its Shangri-la Plan and declared to ban sales of traditional fossil fuel-powered vehicles in 2025.
200 Degrees, a Nottingham, UK-based specialty coffee roaster with six coffee shops across the UK and a wholesale business, raised 3m in growth funding.

Foresight Group made the investment.

The investment will support expansion across the UK with a program of shop openings while building the wholesale business and online retail coffee subscription model.

Founded in 2012 by Rob Darby and Tom Vincent, 200 Degrees was initially established as a supplier of coffee beans and machines to cafes, delis, bars and restaurants through a small roasting operation, and later (in 2014) evolved in a coffee shop and barista school. The company has grown rapidly and opened five new stores in the last 18 months in Nottingham, Birmingham, Leeds, Leicester and Cardiff.

As part of the investment plan, Jonathan Hart, former MD of Caffe Nero and CEO of Thorntons, will join the company as Non-Executive Chairman to support its growth.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
Alpin, a Boulder, Colorado-based provider of SaaS monitoring and management tools for IT administrators, raised $1m in funding.

The round was led by Rockies Venture Club with participation from Nebraska Angels, Plains Angels, Keiretsu Capital and Techstars and individual angel investors.

The company intends to use the funds to expand product features and benefits and increase new customer adoption.

Founded by Julien Denaes, Benjamin Soulier and Mark Evans, Alpin provides SaaS-based monitoring and management tools for IT administrators. Its dashboard allows IT admins to discover shadow IT and addresses the demand for automated SaaS management tools for both Google and Microsoft environments.

They get access to a comprehensive view of their organizations SaaS ecosystem, discover and capture cost savings, and initiate real governance over the hundreds or thousands of SaaS applications (free or paid, web or mobile) and devices being used.

Alpin is a graduate of the Techstars Barclays accelerator, and is based in Boulder, Colorado.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
AuditComply, a Belfast, UK-based enterprise risk management software company, received an investment of undisclosed amount.

Backers included First Derivatives, BGF and CoFundNI, managed by Clarendon Fund Managers.

The company will use the new funds (and First Derivatives Kx technology) to accelerate its growth.

Founded in 2014 by Kevin Donaghy, CEO, and Susan Fitzsimmons, Chief Operating Officer, AuditComply provides enterprise risk management software across the engineering, manufacturing, food and logistics industries. Its customers include Autoliv, UniTrunk and KDD.

The company will use First Derivatives Kx technology and expertise to develop new software modules that will provide real-time analytics for supply chain auditing.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
Billie, a Berlin, Germany-based factoring startup, raised 10m in Series A funding.

The round was led by Creandum with participation from existing investors Rocket Internet, Speedinvest, Avala Capital and Picus Capital.

The company intends to use the funds to continue to develop the platform and expand its business reach.

Co-founded by Christian Grobe and Matthias Knecht, Billie provides SMEs with a technology platform to advance payments for their outstanding invoices.

The solution leverages big data analytics, digitalized processes and a tech platform to provide small businesses with financing products against their open invoices, with no hidden fees, no paperwork, and no bank branches involved.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
Creditas, a Sao Paulo, Brazil-based digital secured loan platform provider, raised $50m in Series C funding.

The round was led by Vostok Emerging Finance (VEF) with participation from existing investors Kaszek Ventures, Quona Capital, QED Investors, International Finance Corporation and Naspers. Post the transaction, VEF holds a minority position and board representation in Creditas.

The company intends to use the funds to improve the technology platform and expand its product portfolio.

Founded in 2012 by Sergio Furio, Creditas is a digital-first secured lending platform, offering Brazilian consumers consumer loans at affordable rates by using borrower collateral like homes and autos. The company leverages these assets to offer home equity and auto secured loans at more reasonable rates.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
Fuzzy Pet Health, a San Francisco, CA-based subscription-based pet healthcare company, closed a $4.5M seed financing.

The round was co-led by Eniac Ventures and Crosscut Ventures, with participation from Precursor Ventures, SV Angel, Accelerator and FJ Labs.

The company intends to use the funds to continue expanding its veterinary services and geographic markets.

Founded in 2015 and led by Zubin Bhettay, CEO, Fuzzy Pet Health aims to make pet care accessible through in-home vet checkups, and by connecting members with vets at any time online, via the app, and directly mailed medications, supplements, and food.

The company has just released the Fuzzy mobile app, through which members get direct access to Fuzzy vets whenever they need it. Members can chat with vets in real-time, ask for diagnoses and prescriptions, and get recommendations for products and services based on their pets lifestyle.

The app is available to download for free in the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Fuzzys membership model enables vets to engage pet parents much more frequently and personally when compared to care delivered in a traditional clinic. The companys all-inclusive memberships cover in-home checkups, medications, vaccines and telemedicine (care delivered remotely via email, chat or video).

The service is available in the San Francisco Bay Area, with plans to expand to additional cities in the U.S. in 2018.

FinSMEs

11/12/2017
Early 2017, the statistics on new car purchases showed that Canadians bought more cars in the month of February 2017 compared to same time in 2016. The numbers showed that there was a 2.7% increase in the number of new vehicles compared to the same time in 2016. It is also important to note that the highest percentage increase in new car purchases was realized in Ontario which was a total of 41%.

This shows that they are not only investing in real estate, they are also determined in owning more cars. This could be very great for the automobile industry but not as good for the country`s economy. The following observations were made from this boom in new car purchases.

Canadians Bought More Cars Than They Can Afford

It was noted that consumers paid more for cars they can afford. This is because of an uptick in the price of the vehicles as a result of opting to secure long-term financing by the buyers. Data by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) shows that the boom in the purchase of cars that the consumer cant afford is as a result of the widespread of longer financing.

FCAC observed that the lease period for the new cars has been increased by 2 months every year as from the year 2010. Checking the data on credit period from the Bank of Canada you will notice that the average car loan period was 74 months back in the year 2015. Note that as the period is extended, you will pay lesser monthly amounts, but overall you will have paid more because you enjoyed a long period of credit term.

The Upspring of Non-Prime Lending In the Auto Industry

25% of the total borrowers in Canada are categorized as Non-Prime Creditors and a majority of these individuals are people with a FICO score of below 670. These people are faced with Predatory loans that have as high as 25% interest. Therefore this makes them not qualify/harder to qualify for positive equity on car loans. Therefore they have to result to smarter loans in Canada.

Looking at the ability of people of Canada to buy new cars, you might see that as a positive indicator that the economy is doing well. However, you will realize that this is not actually true and this is because these people buying new cars are actually depending on credit. Therefore what you are looking at is a credit-driven economic improvement.

Therefore you might want to classify this as an economy that is running on smarter bad credit car loans. This is because of the new trend of the Canadians turning to non-prime borrowing which actually top them is Sub-Prime if you like. For these credits, the immediate boost cannot be taken as positive since in the long run, it is more problems created. This is because as the Canadians commit to credit, a greater percentage of their income will go to repaying the loans.
If you have any doubt whether the rural economy is still reeling under the twin blow of demonetisation and hasty rollout of GST, biscuit maker Britannia has a definite proof -- the uncertainty continues in the rural economy. The Rs 8,600 crore, Bengaluru-based fast moving consumer goods major believes the rural masses are still not bullish on the economy and are not spending much, according to a report in Times of India.

Britannia managing director Varun Berry is not sure as to when the company will be able to clock a double-digit volume growth. Are we out of the woods? I am not sure. It will take more time for heady double-digit volume growth to come back, Berry has been quoted as saying in the ToI report.

The company has not seen a jump in rural demand even after six months of roll-out of the goods and services tax and more than one year after demonetisation. The notes recall had affected the farmers incomes as a crippling demand slowdown resulted in a price crash. The cash shortage had also impacted their ability to go ahead with farming operations, thus resulting in deeper distress in rural areas and heightened agitations.

In fact, Britannia has not seen double-digit growth for the past five years which is not a good sign for any FMCG player. According to Berry, the impact of GST and demonetisation has bottomed out and the biscuits segment has started to show an uptrend. But the spirit optimism gets overshadowed by some hurdles which at the end of the day slow down the business.

True there are indications that uncertainty in the rural economy will most likely to increase over the next few months. The khariff season has not been good for the farmers due to the scanty rainfall. The prospects for rabi crop is also not looking great due to an unusually warm winter and unseasonal rains in some parts of the country.

Any impact on the crops will have a severe negative effect on the rural incomes. In the coming months, the country is likely to see heightened farmer agitations. For Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had promised to double farm income in the run up to election, this definitely is no good news.
The Coconino Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution is hosting a Wreaths Across America event Saturday, Dec. 16, at the Northern Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Camp Navajo in Bellemont.

With the help of many donations and the Wreaths Across America program, there are wreaths for each and every veteran resting at the new cemetery. A brief public ceremony will begin at 10:30 a.m. at the cemetery. Boy Scout troop 7031 will be providing a color troop. At the moment a wreath is laid, each individual veteran's name and details will be said aloud.
New Delhi: After hiking cooking gas LPG price by Rs 76.5 in 19 installments in 17 months, national oil companies skipped the monthly revision in rates this month ahead of elections in Gujarat.

State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) have been since July last year raising price of LPG on 1st of every month with a view to eliminating government subsidies on the fuel by 2018.

The oil companies however, skipped the hike this month.

"Yes it is true that we have not done a revision in subsidised LPG price this month," said a top executive at one of the three retailers requesting not to be quoted. "I am not in a position to specify what promoted this (decision). It is a routine management decision."

Asked if the government had asked the oil companies to skip the monthly revision, the official refused comments.

The price of subsidised LPG was last raised by Rs 4.50 per cylinder on 1 November to Rs 495.69, according to a price notification issued by state-owned firms.

The government last year had asked state-run oil firms to raise prices every month to eliminate all the subsidies by March 2018. Since the implementation of the policy of monthly increases from July last year, subsidised LPG rates have gone up by Rs 76.51 per cylinder. A 14.2-kg LPG cylinder was priced at Rs 419.18 in June 2016.

Every household is entitled to 12 cylinders of 14.2-kg each at subsidised rates in a year. Any requirement beyond that is to be purchased at market price.

Initially, the hike in LPG rate was Rs 2 per month which was raised to Rs 3 from May this year. The November 1 hike in the LPG price was the sixth since the May 30 order of the oil ministry to raise rates by Rs 4 per cylinder every month.

According to the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the Oil Ministry, there is a subsidy of Rs 251.31 on every 14.2-kg subsidised LPG cylinder.

Incidentally, the non-subsidised or market priced LPG rates were raised by Rs 5 per cylinder to Rs 747 a bottle on December 1. Non-subsidised LPG rates have moved in tandem with their cost since December 2013.

There are as many as 18.11 crore customers of subsidised LPG in the country. These include over 3 crore poor women who were given free connections during the last one year under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna.

There are 2.66 crore users of non-subsidised cooking gas including those who gave up subsidy on call by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PTI ANZ MR
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on Tuesday the appeal of Unitech Limited challenging the recent order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) directing the central government to take over the management of the embattled real estate firm.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud considered the submission of the real estate firm that its bank accounts have been frozen and the company and its jailed promoters are finding it difficult to deposit Rs 750 crore as asked by the apex court.

The NCLT has recently invoked the provisions of the Companies Act and allowed the central government to take over the Unitech Limited and appoint its nominee directors in the Board of the firm.

Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, appearing for the company said the entire firm has been taken over by the government and its appeal be heard on an urgent basis.

The apex court had on 20 November directed Tihar Jail authorities to grant adequate meeting time to their inmate Sanjay Chandra, Managing Director Unitech Ltd, for allowing him to strike deals with prospective buyers as he was asked by the court to deposit Rs 750 crore with it by December end to safeguard the interests of homebuyers.

The top court had on October 30 said that the jailed businessman will be granted bail only after the real estate group deposits money with its registry by December end.

He sought interim bail from the apex court after the Delhi High Court on August 11 had rejected the plea in a criminal case lodged in 2015 by 158 home buyers of Unitech projects' -- 'Wild Flower Country' and 'Anthea Project' --in Gurugram.
The general body meeting of Tamil Film Producers Council (TFPC) saw a section of members protest against its president Vishal, bringing the meeting to an abrupt end. This was the actors first meeting after being elected president of the producers association, as reported by The Hindu.

The opposing members of the Council, led by actor-producer Cheran, have alleged discrepancy in the accounts of the council and blamed Vishal for the corruption to the tune of 7 crore rupees.

As reported by The Quint, a protesting member JK Rithesh said, It has been eight months since Vishal promised that he will give the details in the next general body meeting. Vishal has denied the corruption allegations and asked for evidence. If we swindled Rs 7 crore, we cannot carry out such an annual general meeting. Every week they tell the press that there has been corruption. Instead, they should come to the office and speak to us. They need to have proof, only then will we respond to them, said Vishal at a press conference after the interrupted council meeting.

While I agree that everyone should be given a chance to speak on stage, this cannot happen when people are hindering the proceedings of the meeting. People keep alleging that there is corruption but why have they not visited the councils office and presented any evidence of the same? reacted Vishal to the unruly behaviour by those opposing him at the meeting as reported by The Hindu.

Vishal is also facing heat for his attempts at joining politics, as he saw producers opposing his move to stand for the RK Nagar by-poll election and asking for his resignation. According to the bylaws, anyone who holds an office cannot stand for the elections without resigning their post. He did, so we objected to it and questioned him. But he refused to give a reply, and thats why this problem started, said Rithesh as reported by The Quint.

As reported by the Times of India the ruckus in the meeting erupted when the office bearers were questioned on Vishals decision to contest the RK Nagar polls and Vishal had said this question would be addressed later and asked for the meeting to proceed as per the set agenda.
Ed Sheeran says he plans to work on a "lo-fi" record inspired by rock star Bruce Springsteen, which he believes would be his "lowest-selling, but most loved" one.

The 26-year-old artiste said he heard Springsteen only recently when he listened to the EP of 'Nebraska'.

"Im weak-minded at times, and feel very vulnerable and insecure... My plan is a lo-fi album that will be my lowest- selling, but most loved... I only heard Springsteen recently.

"I was with Kit (Harington) from Game of Thrones. We had a night out in New York, got back to his hotel to drink more, and he played 'Atlantic City'. Then, when I heard Nebraska," Sheeran told The Times. The 'Shape of You' hitmaker earlier said he would collaborate with rapper Drake on one of his songs.
Copenhagen, Denmark: The former husband of Norwegian King Harald's daughter is alleging that actor Kevin Spacey groped him during the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize concert in Oslo.

Ari Behn, Princess Martha Louise's husband for 14 years, told Norwegian radio that Spacey, who sat next to him, suddenly said 'hey, let's go out and have a cigarette, before he touched me" on the genitals.

He said Wednesday that he declined Spacey's approach by saying "maybe later."

Behn, 45, married Martha Louise, fourth in line to the Norwegian throne, in 2002. Last year, they decided to split but share custody over their three daughters.

Spacey, who was co-hosting the 11 December, 2007 event, has faced numerous sexual misconduct and assault allegations, but he has remained mostly silent.
Mumbai: Sonam Kapoor feels people's regressive thinking and ignorance towards menstrual hygiene is baffling.

The actor will next be seen in Akshay Kumar's Padman, inspired by the life of Arunachalam Muruganantham, a Tamil Nadu-based social activist who revolutionised the concept of menstrual hygiene in rural India by creating a low-cost sanitary napkin machine.

"Menstrual hygiene is an issue, which not many people would think can be a good subject for a film. For city girls it is normal, but when we were shooting in Maheshwar and around, the ignorance I saw was shocking. Even with us, we remember our grandmother asking us not to go to the temple, or in the kitchen or don't go close to the pickles. As city girls we get to hear all of that, so just imagine what girls in smaller villages are going through," said Kapoor in a interview with PTI.

The actor said the film focuses on this "backward thinking" and she is excited to be a part of the project which addresses such a major issue in an entertaining way.

The 32-year-old actor believes when a star deals with social issues in his/her films, it makes a huge impact on people.

"Cinema is the largest medium. It reaches out to a larger audience. Especially, if you have mainstream stars attached to such films, it works. For a film like Munnabhai, PK  if they have big names attached to them, and the issues are pertinent, it makes a big difference," said Kapoor.

Padman, a comedy-drama directed by R Balki, also features Radhika Apte and megastar Amitabh Bachchan in a special appearance. It will hit the theatres on 26 January.

Sonam was talking on the sidelines of the Blenders Pride Fashion Tour, where she walked the ramp for designer Tarun Tahiliani.
Thiruvananthapuram: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the controversy surrounding Hindi film Padmavati was "totally absurd" on 10 December.

Participating in an open forum on Freedom of Expression during the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) in Thiruvananthapuram, Tharoor said nobody should have the right to say what should go on in a movie or a book.

"The whole controversy against Padmavati is totally absurd. We have reached a critical point where those who claim to be offended manage to get their way," the former Union minister said.

"All you need to say is something has hurt your religious sentiment, let it be a book, a movie, an article or even a headline and it doesn't matter even if it is accurate or truthful, but the law is in favour of them," a release quoting Tharoor said.

An adaptation of Malik Muhammad Jayasis epic Padmavat, the film's release had to be postponed from 1 December amid protests by various Rajput groups and fringe elements who have threatened physical harm to its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and lead actress Deepika Padukone.

Bhansali has been accused of depicting a romantic dream sequence between Padmavati and Sultan Alauddin Khilji (played by Ranveer Singh), a claim repeatedly denied by the director.

Historians are divided on whether Padmavati actually existed.

Tharoor, Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram, claimed such issues escalate because the British wrote a law in the 1920s which says anything that offends the religious sentiment of a community is punishable by such and such.

"Sadly we haven't removed this from the law and it has become the favourite tool of those who have a problem with the freedom of artists," he said.

Participating in the discussion, noted filmmaker Aparna Sen said the idea of freedom was non-negotiable, especially for creative artists.

Noting that some people ask her why she was "protesting for a movie" when "thousands of farmers commit suicide" every day in the country, she said the protests were "not merely for a movie".

"The protest was because the creative freedom and freedom of expression in the country is at stake," she said.

"We are living in a time of fear and everyones freedom is challenged. This is how dictatorship begins," she alleged.

Sen said everybody has the freedom to protest, write and express but that should not create a law and order situation.

"They can't say a movie shouldn't be screened or else its actress' nose will be cut off," she added.

Malayalam actor Sajitha Madathil said the idea of freedom of expression has always been related to gender.

She mentioned about the social media attack against three Muslim girls recently for participating in a flash mob dance performance in Malappuram, wearing Hijabs, on World Aids Day.

People who tried to support them were suppressed and silenced by fundamentalists, she claimed.

"All these incidents are creating a fear psychosis among those who usually respond to such things. There have always been violations of freedom", she alleged.
Speculations have been running strong about Hollywoods enfante terrible, Quentin Tarantinos ambitious plans for directing the next Star Trek movie. As reported by Deadline, Tarantino has a great idea for a Star Trek movie at Paramount and has got JJ Abrams, the director of two previous Star Trek installments, excited enough to produce the film, who is actively putting together a scripting team.

According to a report in Business Insider Tarantino has approached the studio to direct a Tarantino style Star Trek movie complete with blood, gore, violence and curse words. The director has demanded approval for an R-rated movie from the studios who are said to be on board, given the recent blockbuster success of an R-rated Deadpool.

However, the film is unlikely to be finished for at least a few years as Tarantino is currently working on Helter Skelter, his next movie on the Manson Family and their murder spree to be released by Sony in 2019.

Tarantinos films are known to be auteur-driven and he has been the writer of all his films but is not a complete stranger to the franchise bandwagon as he has worked on ER and CSI early in his career. As reported by Deadline, JJ Abrams who is currently busy directing Star Wars Episode IX, and directed the 2009 Star Trek, followed by 2013s Star Trek: Into the Darkness, has taken the reins of seeing the project through and has assembled a writers room to start putting Tarantinos vision on paper right away.

An interesting development has also emerged which might make the fans of Star Trek explode with joy. As reported by Business Insider, Patrick Stewart has expressed interest in returning to the franchise in his iconic role as Jean-Luc Picard, if Tarantino is directing it.

In an interview to The Hollywood Reporter, the veteran actor said, One of my dreams is to work with Tarantino. I admire his work so much, and to be in a Tarantino film would give me so much satisfaction. So, if he is going to direct something to do with Star Trek and there was the possibility of dear old Jean-Luc showing up again and doing that for Mr. Tarantino, I would embrace it.
Mumbai: On thespian Dilip Kumar's 95th birthday, his evergreen wife Saira Banu, 22 years his junior, says her marriage to him has been a "perfect dream".

Dilip Kumar is recuperating from a bout of pneumonia. On his special day, a stream of visitors began trickling into their bungalow in Bandra here from early Monday morning.

Emotional about the love that her husband continues to receive year after year, the utterly devoted wife said: "Every year, I am asked the same things. What are we doing for Saab's birthday? For those who don't know, it is the day when our residence turns into a gorgeous fairyland.

"There are flowers everywhere from everyone who comes to pay Saab a visit on his birthday. It is a day when Saab's brothers, sisters, relatives and come close friends come together."

Saira Banu and Dilip Kumar got married in 1966.

"Seriously, there is no woman as blessed as I am... I thank my Allah every day for this. It has been my good fortune to be able to do anything for the man I love intensely. For me, it was always Saab, no one else. I was his fan from the time I can remember. While still a teenager, I wanted to be his wife. I am very headstrong and once I made up my mind, there was no stopping me. I knew many beautiful women wanted to marry Saab, but he chose me. It was my dream come true and that's what my marriage has been, a perfect dream."

Now she is devoted to taking care of her ailing husband.

"Looking after Saab, his life and his home comes naturally to me. All Indian wives look after their husbands. In my family, I've seen women being devoted to their husbands. I grew up watching that."
Lincoln City's Holidays and Frivolities: December Highlights for Central Oregon Coast

Published 12/08/2017 at 6:45 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff





(Lincoln City, Oregon)  The land of Glass Float Drops and seven miles of smiles is making plenty of waves for December. Lincoln City, on the central Oregon coast, is providing plenty to partake in when it comes to events, and not just the holidays. There's food happenings, a robust music scene, a special glass float drop around New Year's Eve (on top of the usual weekend drops), whale watch week and some big fun for New Year's celebrations.

Here's a hefty lineup of things going on for the month.





December 9. Siletz Bay Music Festival presents an afternoon with pianist Cary Lewis and violinist Sarah Kwak. Performance at 3 p.m. and $30 includes light refreshments. Tickets may be purchased at SiletzBayMusic.org or by calling 541-992-1131. Lincoln City, Oregon.

December 14. Holiday Dive-In Movie. Bring your favorite air mattress, inner tube or deck chair, then sit back and relax in the pool or on the deck while you watch Frozen on the Jumbotron. That's right: in the pool at the Community Center. 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Cost: $5 per person. 541-994-2131. Lincoln City, Oregon.

December 15  16. 5th Annual North Pole Express. Take a magical ride on a virtual journey to the North Pole! There will be hot cocoa, cookies, and Santa will be there with a special gift for each child, ages 3  11. On Friday, the North Pole Express departs at 5:45 p.m. and arrives at 8 p.m. On Saturday, it departs at 12:45 p.m. and arrives at 3 p.m. Ticket price $17.95. Chinook Winds Play Palace. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-996-5790.

December 16. 5th Annual Jingle Bell 5K Jog/Walk. Open to runners, joggers, walkers, baby strollers and pets. Costumes are recommended but optional, and bells will be provided. 9:30 a.m. To register, visit www.lincolncity.org or call 541-994-2131. Lincoln City Community Center. Lincoln City, Oregon.

December 16. Outbound Traveler live. Upbeat campfire music on banjo, guitar, fiddle, flute and bouzouki will keep your feet moving along with vocal harmonies that will melt your heart. $15 in advance. 7 p.m. Lincoln City Cultural Center. Highway 101. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-994-9994. Website.

December 16. Hands-On Tamales. Come and learn how to make delicious tamales right at home. $75 per person includes meal and beverage. 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Lincoln City Culinary Center. Highway 101. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-557-1125 Website.

December 21. Lincoln Pops Big Band. Dance or just listen to the sounds of the 40s, 50s and 60s. Adults $6 and Students $3, children under 6 are free. 7:30 p.m. Gleneden Beach Community Club, 110 Azalea Street, Gleneden Beach, Oregon (just south of Lincoln City). 541-563-5067. Website.

December 21. Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza Demo. Learn the secrets to authentic Chicago-style pizza. 6 p.m. Lincoln City Culinary Center. Highway 101. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-557-1125 Website.

December 22  23. 5th Annual North Pole Express. Take a magical ride on a virtual journey to the North Pole! There will be hot cocoa, cookies, and Santa will be there with a special gift for each child, ages 3  11. On Friday, the North Pole Express departs at 5:45 p.m. and arrives at 8 p.m. On Saturday, it departs at 12:45 p.m. and arrives at 3 p.m. Ticket price $17.95. Chinook Winds Play Palace. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-996-5790.



December 24. Christmas Eve Concert with Kids Sing Out (KSO). A free concert of sacred and secular music on Christmas Eve. 7 p.m. Admission is free. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-996-4045. Website.

December 27  31. Winter Whale Watch Week on the Oregon Coast. Watch as majestic gray whales migrate south to Baja, Mexico, where they give birth to their calves. In Lincoln City: top floor of Inn at Spanish Head. 541-765-3304 or visit oregonstateparks.org.

December 30  January 1. 100 glass art pieces will be hidden along the 7-1/2 miles of public beach in Lincoln City, from the Roads End area to Siletz Bay. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-996-1274 or Website.

December 31. New Years Eve Bash with the Lincoln Pops Orchestra. Celebrate in style with the Pops. Tickets include light hors doeuvres and a champagne (or sparkling cider) toast at midnight (beer and wine sold separately). $45 per person/$80 per couple. 8:30 p.m. Lincoln City Cultural Center. Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-994-9994. Website. --- Oregon Coast Hotels for these events - Where to eat - Map and Virtual Tour. More Lincoln City below:



















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Popular Telugu comedian Vijay Sai was found dead in his Hyderabad apartment today (11 December) morning. According to a report by News18, the actor's body was found hanging in his apartment, which is located near Yusufguda. As per the same report, his parents were also present in the house at the time of his death. Although it looks like a case of suicide, the investigating team has said that the "exact reason for the suicide is yet to be known".

The 38-year-old made his debut in 2001, after which he continued to appeared in a number of hit films like Bommarillu and Ammayilu Abbayilu. However, he was under immense pressure lately due to financial problems.

Apart from that, it is being reported that Sai had been living separately from his wife, which had further added to his personal troubles. He had also stopped getting good film offers and was was also believed to be depressed, reports Indian Express. Meanwhile, local news organisations have been terming his faltering career the main reason which forced him to take such an extreme step.

The film fraternity had expressed grief and shock over his sudden demise. Tollywood PRO Vamsi Kaka told Indian Express that the high-profile people of the industry should come forward to help find a permanent solution for people like Sai, who face financial trouble.
Mumbai: Top Bollywood actors, including Kareena Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar and Madhuri Dixit, have condemned the alleged molestation of National Award-winning actor Zaira Wasim.

The 17-year-old actor, known for her roles in films like Dangal and Secret Superstar, was allegedly molested on a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night.

The actor later narrated her ordeal on Instagram via a live video.

Wasim said she was on an Air Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put up his feet on her armrest.

The man was arrested by the police in Mumbai last evening.

When asked about the incident, Pednekar said she was shocked to know about the alleged molestation but the actor was happy that Wasim showed courage to speak up about her ordeal.

"I am appalled. She is a child. There is a problem in our culture where people think, especially if you are an actor, that you are their property. This is hugely problematic. But I am very happy that she put it out on social media. I am glad she took that step because it needs a lot of courage to speak, to come out and take a stand like that. More power to her," said Pednekar.

Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said women are far superior than men and that females can rise above any difficulty.

"I definitely feel women are way more superior than men. We are fighters and whichever situation it is in our life, personal or professional, we all come out as fighters. When we talk about God, we talk about goddess. So, we look from the perspective of a woman. When we talk about the earth, we say Mother Earth. So, whenever we talk about anything, we talk about women. Women are far superior (than men). So, they can fight out of every situation," Khan said.

Actor Taapsee Pannu, who has always raised her voice against violence against women, said, "I just hope she gets justice. It is good that at least she has raised her voice. She deserves to get justice."

Noted actor Madhuri Dixit said, "This should not happen, neither in India nor in any other part of the world."

Television actor Mouni Roy said she was deeply saddened by the incident, which is an act that stems from a poor mentality.

"Now, what should I say about this country. On one hand we talk about women empowerment, on the other hand we hear about all these incidents. But I think it is very important not to just stand against it and talk about it, but also to educate people against this," she said.

"I genuinely dont know what to say. It deeply saddens me. The kind of life we lead, the kind of education we all are getting, in fact, the levels of education in towns and villages have gone up. This is just really sad. I think this reflects a poor mindset," Roy added.

When asked for his opinion on the incident, actor Sushant Singh Rajput said, "We talk a lot (but) I think at the right place and in the right time, we need to take action also. We are intelligent and responsible enough as a country to see to it that these things dont happen."

The celebrities were speaking at the red carpet of Lux Golden Rose Awards in Mumbai last night.

Actor Zareen Khan said there should be a focus on preventing such incidents rather than attending to "minuscule" things.

"I really dont know what to say about it because such incidents keep happening in our country. Rather than focusing on issues like these, I dont know why our country is behind minuscule matters," she said.

"The way we talk about women empowerment and safety, I dont think only talking about it is needed. We also need to take some action to stop all of this," Khan added.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, she broke down several times.

"This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how youre going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!" she said.

"No one will help us if we dont decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing," she added.
WOLFSBURG, Germany (Reuters) - Volkswagen expects cash outflows of 4-5 billion euros ($4.7-5.9 billion) next year in relation to the dieselgate emissions cheating scandal, the carmakers Chief Financial Officer Frank Witter told journalists on Monday. A Volkswagen logo is pictured at the International Auto Show in Mexico City, Mexico November 23, 2017. REUTERS/Henry RomeroI am not at all relaxed with regard to the diesel issue, Witter said. The figure is below the up to 17 billion euros in outflows expected this year. Dieselgate has so far cost the company more than 25 billion euros and contributed to a strategy shift in the sector towards electric vehicles, with most manufacturers having announced far-reaching investment packages. ($1 = 0.8482 euros)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
New Delhi: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said his government is not against private hospitals, but can't maintain silence on their inhuman criminal negligence.

His remarks came in the wake of protest staged on Saturday by the employees of Max Hospital in Shalimar Bagh area of north Delhi after the government on Friday cancelled its licence with immediate effect for erroneously declaring a newborn dead.

"Delhi government is not against private hospitals and is fully aware of their importance. But Max hospital left us with no option other than to take action. This is not happened first time. Such kind of erronous act was done by the hospital on many occasions in the past too," Kejriwal said at a public gathering in west Delhi's Mundka.

"Our conscience would have pricked us. Had we remained silent on such inhuman criminal negligence? Doctors are saviours and we salute the work they do. Their hard work is admirable. But, if any hospital does wrong with people, we will not spare it and maintain silence. We will take action."

The chief minister said that he had been informed about the corporate owned private hospitals who exploit their own doctors and do not give their salaries on time.

He also slammed Bharatiya Janata Party Delhi state President Manoj Tiwari for supporting Max hospital and opposing Delhi Government's decision to cancel its license.

A baby boy was declared dead by Max Hospital on November 30 and handed over to the parents in a plastic bag, along with its still-born sister. However, the baby started moving while being taken for burial. The baby was then admitted in a clinic in Pitampura, but died on Wednesday.
India will take a crucial step towards enacting its first anti-human-trafficking law as government sources told Hindustan Times that the Union Cabinet could soon consider and approve the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill.

In a first, the bill does not treat a trafficked person as an offender but a victim, says the report. The existing laws do not do take this approach and instead treat both the trafficked person and the trafficker as criminals.

The draft bill was released in May 2016 and aimed to create a strong legal, economic and social environment against trafficking of persons and related matters.

The bill mandates the constitution of District Anti-Trafficking Committee for every district. This committee will perform functions relating to the prevention, rescue, protection, psychological assistance etc of the victims. There will also be a State Anti-Trafficking Committee to oversee the implementation of the law and advise the state government on matters relating to the prevention of trafficking and protection/rehabilitation of victims. A Central Anti-Trafficking Advisory Board will perform similar functions at the Union level.

The bill takes into account various aspects of trafficking and the punishments as defined in Sections 370 to 373 of the Indian Penal Code. It also aims to include other offences which are not dealt with in other laws for the purpose of trafficking, such as punishment for disclosing the identity of the victim, using narcotics/alcohol for the purpose of trafficking etc. The bill provides for mandatory reporting within 24 hours by a police officer, public servant, any officer/employee of protection homes or special homes having custody of the victim to the District Anti-Trafficking Committee or in case of child victim to the Child Welfare Committee.

A separate chapter on offences and the penalties is part of the bill. It seeks to establish special courts in each district of the country and special prosecutors to fast-track the trials and increase prosecution. The bill also envisages the creation of a fund for rehabilitation of victims of trafficking.

Once the bill is approved by the Cabinet, it will be tabled in Parliament and referred to a select committee before being taken up for debate and passing.

Currently, India uses different laws to deal with human-trafficking cases on a case-to-case basis, according to Livemint. For example, the police sometimes uses the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act to raid brothels and rescue the women in it (including those who might not be living in confinement). In other cases, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act might be used for prosecution. The labour laws too are invoked in some cases. Begging and organ trafficking are looked at under yet other provisions.

Human trafficking a serious concern in India

Over the years, the problem of human trafficking has become a cause for serious concern in the country. According to the UN Office for Drugs and Crime, South Asia, with India at its centre, is the fastest-growing region for human trafficking in the world. The Global Slavery Index 2016, published by the Walk Free Foundation, said that India has the highest number of enslaved people in the world, with about 18 million children and adults being victim of modern slavery.

IANS had earlier reported that the annual US Congress-mandated report on human trafficking placed India in the tier-2 category, which includes countries that have failed to effectively combat the problem. India has maintained its position at the tier-2 level since 2011. The report argued that India still did not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. In 2016, the report had noted that India has become "a source, destination, and transit country for men, women and children subjected to forced labour and sex trafficking".

While the bill is a step in the right direction, it has faced certain criticism. The Livemint report points out the absence of definitions of either trafficking and rehabilitation in the bill. Further, there is also ambiguity on where the manpower and resources will come from. It also quotes a lawyer, Kaushik Gupta, who says that the bill is silent on labour trafficking, organ removal and forced marriages.

The bill was also opposed by sex workers who said that it has no provision for consensual/voluntary sex work, reported The Telegraph. The offences listed in the bill presuppose that doing sex work always entails trafficking and can never be voluntary. The report quotes Tripti Tandon of Lawyers Collective who said that "The bill's model is to use the coercive power of the state to counter trafficking. It will not lead to prevention of trafficking, but will only deal with victims post trafficking."

With inputs from IANS
Thiruvananthapuram: The death toll in the Cyclone Ockhi in Kerala rose to 40 on Sunday with the recovery of two more bodies, even as search operations to trace the missing fishermen entered the 10th day.

Meanwhile, a total of 250 fishermen, trapped in the high seas following the 30 November cyclone, returned to Kochi.

The fishermen had put out to sea from Kerala and Tamil Nadu coast and most of them were trapped in Lakshadweep area.

The fishermen, including 189 from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, arrived in Kochi by boats since Saturday night, officials said.

Mourning the dead and the missing, the Christian community in the coastal belt near Thiruvananthapuram observed a "prayer day" and sought Central funds for rehabilitation of the affected families.

A defence spokesperson said one body was recovered off the coast of Minicoy in Lakshadweep islands and another fished out from near Kochi.

This took the death toll to 40 in the cyclone that hit the southern coast of the state. The cyclone had also left several fishermen stranded in the sea.

The spokesperson said an Indian Air Force transport aircraft covered 10,880 square nautical miles south of Kanyakumari coast in the Indian Ocean, while an AN-32 aircraft along with local fishermen also took part in the search and rescue operations.

The navy said more than four lakh square nautical miles had been searched by Indian naval assets so far over the southeast Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep and Minicoy islands.

Following inputs from fishermen, an aerial search was carried out over Maldives after obtaining clearance through diplomatic channels, but no fishermen were found there.

"Nine ships and all available aircraft have continued the search operations. Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft P8I searched over entire Maldives," a defence release said in Kochi on Sunday night.

Officials confirmed that Maldivian locals undertook search and have not located any fishermen on the islands, it said.

'INS Subhadra', under routine deployment, transferred 1,500 litres of drinking water to 12 crew members on board two Tamil Nadu registered fishing vessels about 90 nautical miles northwest of Bitra island of Lakshdweep, the release said.

The ship also found two capsized fishing vessels and investigation revealed no survivors on board, which had been intimated to the state governments, it said.

A sombre atmosphere prevailed in the coastal villages of Poonthura, Vizhinjam, Pozhiyur and Adimalathura near Thiruvananthapuram as men, women and children gathered at the local churches to offer special prayers since 6 am.

The family members of 15-year-old Vineesh, the youngest fisher to have gone missing, was among those who offered prayers.

Addressing the people, St Thomas Church vicar Justin Jude said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should visit the cyclone affected areas.

He also sought formation of a separate fishing ministry.

A message read out during the special prayer meetings in the churches, said the cyclone should be declared a national disaster and urged the Centre to provide more funds for rehabilitation of the victims.

The community members said they would take out a march to Raj Bhawan on Monday to press for their demands.

Black flags were hoisted near the church to mourn the dead.

Special prayers were also held at the cemeteries as women and children wailed for the dead.

In neighbouring Kanyakumari, hundreds of people, including women, formed a human chain in remembrance of the dead and missing fishermen.

A demonstration was held in Tirunelveli district by the fishermen demanding steps to trace and rescue all the missing fishermen.

More than 500 fishermen held a brief demonstration in the sea off Muttam village in Kanyakumari district demanding Rs 20 lakh compensation for the families of the deceased.

Union minister Pon Radhakrishnan said some fishermen have joined the Indian Coast Guard crew in the search operations.

In a tweet, he said, "I am thankful to @DefenceMinIndia Smt @nsitharaman ji for the arrangements (Vaibhav ship) to search missing fishermen in deep sea region. Our Kanyakumari #Chinnathurai 5 #Thoothur 2 fishermen travelling along with our @IndiaCoastGuard crews for this operation."

I am thankful to @DefenceMinIndia Smt @nsitharaman ji for the arrangements( Vaibhav ship) to search missing fishermen in deep sea region. Our Kanyakumari #Chinnathurai 5 #Thoothur 2 fishermen travelling along with our @IndiaCoastGuard crews for this operation. pic.twitter.com/xEaWbr0rvb  Pon Radhakrishnan (@PonnaarrBJP) December 10, 2017

As per the figures released by the Latin Church, more than 300 fishermen were still missing, while official estimate of the missing men from Kerala is 95.

Kerala has demanded a financial assistance of Rs 1,834 crore from the Centre in view of the loss suffered due to the cyclone.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had on SAturday met Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi to apprise them of the situation.

In a memorandum submitted to Singh, he urged the Centre to announce a long-term package similar to the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project considering the gravity of the disaster.

The cyclone also caused damage to crops in 2,053 hectares of land affecting 15,104 farmers.

A total of 207 houses were completely damaged while 2,753 partially suffered damage, the memorandum pointed out.

The Kerala government also requested the navy, the coast guard and the Indian Air Force to continue the search operations for the missing fishermen for another 10 days.
Chennai: DMK leader MK Stalin on Monday said that he would lead a protest demonstration outside the collectorate in Chennai against the AIADMK state government's "inaction" in rescuing fishermen from Kanyakumari caught on the sea due to Cyclone Ockhi.

In a statement issued in Chennai, Stalin, seeking the rescue of fishermen caught on the sea due to Ockhi, carrying out restoration work in Kanyakumari district and providing compensation to those affected by the cyclone, said a demonstration would be held on Tuesday by the party's fishermen wing to press for the demands.

The demonstration would be held outside the collectorate in Chennai. Stalin also complained that different authorities are giving different statistics as to the number of missing fishermen.

He said Kanyakumari district collector Sajjansingh R Chavan has said 623 fishermen from the district are missing whereas Chief Secretary Girija Vaidyanathan has put their number at 197, while Chief Minister K Palaniswami is saying 260 fishermen are missing.

Stalin termed it as a shame on the part of the state government not having a correct number of the missing fishermen even nearly two weeks after Ockhi hit Kanyakumari.

The DMK leader also said the government does not have any count of the number of fishermen who were pushed to the shores in other states by the strong winds when the cyclone hit.
Hyderabad: CPM politburo member Brinda Karat on Monday said a nationwide ban on alcohol will lead to illegal trade, even as she supported a regulated policy with people's participation to curb the abuse.

Bihar chief minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar on Sunday pitched for a nationwide ban on alcohol and asked party activists to raise awareness among people about the ill-effects of liquor consumption.

Karat said that the ban and total prohibition lead to illegal trade while free supply of liquor causes "social havoc". "So, a more regulated policy with people's participation is what we support," she told PTI, when asked about her party's view on Kumar's statement.

Karat said her party believes that the present liquor policies of most state governments actually promote its consumption as a revenue spinner. "We fight against such policies and support and build social movements against alcohol abuse," she added.

Kumar had on Sunday hit out at the Congress and Left parties, asking why they could not support a ban on liquor and campaign against its consumption. "When Gujarat could implement liquor ban, Bihar could show that it could also be banned in the state, why it cannot be banned in the entire country?" he had said while addressing a party event in New Delhi.

Stressing that all religions, including Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism, criticise liquor consumption, he had said a ban in the entire country would be the biggest sign of communal harmony and respect to all the religions.
New Delhi: IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said that though digitisation has brought in exposure to the majority of the people it has also exposed them to cyber threats and vulnerabilities.

"As part of its Digital India initiatives, the government has introduced a lot of its services online. Although this has made services very accessible to the citizens, it has also exposed them to the threats and vulnerabilities which are an inherent part of cyberspace," the minister said.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the "NIC-CERT", a setup of National Informatics Centre.

He mentioned that in the recent past there has been an exponential growth in cyber attacks leading to concerns about data theft which led to the government drafting the Data Protection Act.

"As Internet with its ever-expanding canvas of opportunities is touching the life's of people, it necessitates the requirement to upscale the existing security infrastructure," he added.

The NIC-CERT has been set up with the objective of creating a comprehensive framework that integrates world-class security components and inbuilt threat intelligence for detection, prevention and incident response.

Using the tools the team will correlate events that would help in generating a canvas of the attack surface and identify the vulnerabilities and possible exploits. The gathered intelligence assimilated with the knowledge of the open web would give the CERT the ability prevent and predict attacks, Prasad said.
New Delhi: Several former Supreme Court judges believe that the practice of torturing an accused was rampant in the criminal justice system, according to a report released by the Centre on Death Penalty of the National Law University, with one judge even pointing out that hardened criminals would not yield to "mere casual questioning".

In the report  Matters of Judgment  a study on the criminal justice system and death penalty in India, one of the judges said he was in dismay when during an event at the National Judicial Academy, Bhopal, he found out that the majority of the participating judges were of the view that the truth behind a crime would not come out unless the police had the power to torture.

"Five of 12 former judges, justifying torture, said the police resorted to it because the investigating agencies worked under strenuous conditions, without adequate time and independence to investigate cases," the report said.

The study also records the acknowledgement and concern of the former apex court judges about the "crisis" in the country's criminal justice system, on account of the widespread prevalence of torture, fabrication of evidence, the abysmal quality of legal aid and wrongful convictions.

Of the 39 former judges, who discussed the prevalence of torture in the criminal justice system, 38 believed it to be rampant, while one former chief justice of India was of the opinion that there was no torture.

"Seasoned criminals...they will not yield to mere casual questioning," said a judge, who has served in appellate courts for 22 years. Another former judge said the mindset of the police was affected by how poorly they were treated by VIPs when they were deployed on law-and-order duties. "This, in turn, affects them (police) as when it comes to crimes, they will pick up small men and adopt third-degree methods to elicit a confession and make them accused, whether they have committed the crime or not," he was quoted as saying in the report.

The probe agencies either being "lazy" or "not having enough manpower" or "not knowing the methods of scientific investigation" were also cited by some of the judges to explain the prevalence of torture in the criminal justice system.

However, 17 of the judges believed that torture undermined the system and said they were inherently opposed to it, irrespective of its utility. They also felt that the use of torture was an unreliable way of getting to the truth and recalled that it had led to undesirable results at times. A former chief justice of India said because of the prevalence of torture in the criminal justice system, he would tend to take the recovery statements (recorded by the probe agencies) "with a pinch of salt".

Of 58 judges, 38 were of the view that the investigating agencies abused section 27 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, which dealt with the recovery of evidence.

Twelve judges were aware that the provision was used to subliminally increase the use of torture as an investigative technique and therefore, were cautious of such recoveries as torture was often the starting point of an investigation. "We have mentioned the names of the judges but have not disclosed who said what. This is to ensure that the focus stays on the issue and does not shift to the person," Anup Surendranath, the director of the centre, said while releasing the report.

The 60 judges interviewed by the study have adjudicated 208 death penalty cases between them, from 1975 to 2016.
11 December 2017

The Michael King Writers Centre launched the sixth issue of Signals, its literary journal for young writers, on Saturday 9 December at the National Library in Parnell.

The journal features the work of senior secondary students who took part in this years Young Writers Programme, as well as its alumni. Over 190 pieces were submitted to the editors.

This year we are very grateful to have received the support of Penguin Random House.

Winners of the $150 Chris Cole Catley Prizes for the year were Maria Ji of Auckland University and Rachel Meadows of Auckland University of Technology. Full results are as follows:

Poetry: Judged by Gregory Kan

First - T & C by Maria Ji Second - We Are Working on Standing Still by Sophie van Waardenberg Highly Commended - Paradox by Pritha Marks

Prose: Judged by Whiti Hereaka

First - Tumour by Rachel Meadows

Second - When the Wolves Come Out by Joanna Li

Highly Commended - Roses for the Grave by Gina Holden and Birdgod  Rachel Meadows

The 2017 Programme attracted more than 130 senior students, representing schools from all over Auckland.

Leading writers contributed to workshops and master classes in collaboration with tutors Ros Ali and Jo Emeney. Guests included Ali Ikram, Toby Morris, Chris Price, Gregory Kan, Whiti Hereaka and Fiona Sussman, Matt Harris and Tina Makareti.

Copies of Signals will be distributed to Auckland secondary schools and libraries. The journal will be available from the Michael King Writers Centre and selected bookshops.

The Young Writers Programme thanks Creative New Zealand, Joyce Fisher Charitable Trust and Penguin Random House for their support. Michael King Writers Centre

PO Box 32-629, Devonport, Auckland 0744

Ph: 09 445 8451

E: administrator@writerscentre.org.nz

E: youngwriters@writerscentre.org.nz

www.writerscentre.






Gujarat Congress farmers cell office-bearer Haresh Moradiya and his wife committed suicide in Rajkot on Monday, media reports have quoted the police as saying.

Congress leader Haresh Moradiya and his wife allegedly commit suicide in Rajkot #Gujarat  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

According to TV9 Gujarati, Haresh and his wife Ramila had consumed poison at their house in Maheshwari society at Kothari road of Rajkot. Though the cause of the suicide is unknown, initial probe reveals family disputes may have been the reason. No suicide note has been found yet.

Chairman of Gujarat Congress Kisan Cell, Virji Thummar, confirmed that Moradia was the secretary of the Kisan Cell.

VK Gadhvi, police inspector of Bhaktinagar, said that the incident came to light after neighbours, not noticing any movement in the Moradia household since morning, broke open the door.

"The neighbours found the couple unconscious. The emergency medical team that arrived declared the two dead," said Gadhvi.

Police said that while the exact reason is being investigated, marital discord between their son and their daughter-in-law could be a reason.

"Moradia's daughter-in-law had recently given an application at the women's police station due to some dispute. This might have led to the suicide of the couple. However investigations are still on to find the exact reason," said Gadhvi.

Gadhvi said that Moradia also served as the principal of private school.

The deaths have taken place days before the second phase of polling in the Gujarat Assembly election.
Gurugram: Two FIRs, including of culpable homicide, have been registered against Gurugram's Fortis hospital management and doctors regarding the death of 7-year-old Adya Singh due to dengue in September, a district official said.

The hospital will also face civil action on three counts in the case, a Haryana government official told IANS, adding that Health Minister Anil Vij had already ordered for both criminal and civil action against the Fortis Memorial Research Institute.

The FIR against the hospital authorities was filed under Section 304 (2) of the Indian Penal Code, dealing with culpable homicide, at the Sushant Lok police station.

The second FIR was under the Epidemic Act and Section 188 of the IPC dealing with disobedience of an order duly promulgated by a public servant since the private hospital failed to inform authorities about a patient suffering from a disease like dengue.

A four-member panel that probed the child's death and subsequent billing of her parents to the tune of around Rs 16 lakh had found many alleged irregularities in the hospital functioning.

The panel, headed by Additional Director General of Health Rajeev Vadhera, has since submitted its report to the government.

While the hospital's blood bank and pharmacy sections have been issued notices over alleged wrongdoing in the case, action will also be initiated over treatment to inadequate number of patients under the Economically Weaker Sections category.

The case came to light after bereaved father Jayant Singh's friend posted it on Twitter on 17 November, recounting how the family was billed "Rs 16 lakh, including for 2,700 gloves" but the girl could not be saved.

The message was retweeted over 9,000 times in four days, prompting the health minister to assure action.

Adya, a Class 2 student, developed high fever on 27 August. Her Dwarka-based family said they rushed her to Rockland Hospital in Dwarka two days later.

Tests confirmed she was suffering from dengue. However, since her condition worsened and Rockland suggested that she be transferred to another hospital, she was taken to Fortis where she remained on life support for 10 days.

Fortis raised a bill for 1,600 gloves, 660 syringes, high-end antibiotics, and sugar strips, a family member said.

"On 14 September, an MRI revealed extensive damage to the brain. We decided to take her to another hospital, but Fortis doctors refused to even facilitate an ambulance," the girl's father said in a statement.

Adya died 14-15 September midnight while being shifted to Rockland Hospital without life-support equipment in the ambulance.
Three terrorists were gunned down and one civilian was killed during an overnight anti-insurgency operation in a village in Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara town, reports said. Following the encounter, internet services were suspended in Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara, ANI reported.

J&K: Internet services suspended in Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara following killing of 3 terrorists in #Handwara's Unisoo.  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

According to ANI, search operations are still underway in Unisoo village in Kupwara district, where the encounter began last night. The identity of the three terrorists and the civilian woman has not yet been ascertained, however, initial reports claimed that the terrorists are most likely Pakistanis and part of Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group. An India Today report said that "the gunfight started at 3 am when the troops of 92 CRPF Battalion along with 22 Rashtriya Rifle and Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel, acting on intel laid a cordon in the area".

According to a tweet by Jammu and Kashmir DGP SP Vaid, the security forces managed to successfully neutralise the terrorists despite a bad weather.

In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold.  Shesh Paul Vaid (@spvaid) December 11, 2017

Vaid reportedly said the slain militants were apparently Pakistanis. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in the early hours in Unisoo village of Handwara following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants in the area, a police official said.

The official added that the search operation turned into an encounter as the hiding militants fired upon the forces conducting the searches. Their (militants) bodies along with three weapons have been recovered from the encounter site.

Early on Monday morning, the Jammu and Kashmir Police had also tweeted informing that it had launched a cordon and search operation at Unisoo in Handwara, which turned into an encounter.

An earlier tweet of ANI had claimed that one terrorist was captured in an injured state. His condition is not known yet, however, India Today claimed that the security forces have captured one terrorist alive while neutralising other three.
Heavy snow and rainfall is likely to hit Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir in the next week due to Western Disturbances in the weather systems.

According to Skymet Weather, light to moderate rainfall and snowing is expected in parts of northern states of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The intensity will increase as time progresses. The report also predicted light rainfall in Uttarakhand in the next 24 hours as well.

The reason for this is an active Western Disturbance developing over north Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir.

Rains in the hilly states is likely to be followed by snowfall which will pick up pace on 12 December, according to the report. Between 11-13 December, moderate to heavy rains and snowfall is expected in both states.

According to another report in Skymet, areas such as Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Kufri, Lahaul, Spiti and Kinnaur are expected to experience snow. Rainfall and snow activity is likely to increase in high-altitude areas.

As per The Times of India, rain and snow has been predicted for Shimla as well. The report, quoting the Shimla meteorological centre, stated, many places in the middle and high hills will receive rain and thundershowers during this period. Rain and snowfall is forecast in few parts of the state on 14 December.

Srinagar-Leh highway closed ahead of expected heavy snowfall

The Srinagar-Leh highway, connecting the frontier Ladakh region with the rest of the state, was closed for traffic on Sunday for the winter season, ahead of expected heavy snowfall, an official said. The highway, which is the only surface link between Kashmir valley and the Ladakh region, has been closed for traffic following the instructions of the Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan, said an official of the traffic department.

The Met Department has said a fresh Western Disturbance is most likely to affect the state from Monday to 15 December with moisture feeding taking place from the Arabian Sea. Under the influence of this system, moderate to heavy rain or snow is expected at widespread places of Jammu, Kashmir and the Ladakh region," said the Met office.

The main activity of this system (moderate to heavy rainfall or snowfall) is likely to occur during 12-13 December and gradual decrease thereafter, the Met office said. It said this would be the first major wet spell during the current season for the state and the weather system may lead to disruption of surface and air transportation.

The 434-kilometre highway acts as a major lifeline to the frontier region. The Zojilla Pass, 140 kilometres from Srinagar, is a vital crossing point on the mountainous highway and receives the heaviest snowfall in winter, shutting it down for nearly five months each year.

With inputs from PTI
India, Russia and China on Monday jointly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations while calling for effective implementation of existing international commitments to counter terrorism. This was after the 15th Russia-India-China Foreign Ministerial Meeting in New Delhi.

In a joint statement, the three countries expressed concern over the threat of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) falling into the hands of terrorists. They expressed hope that the UN will ensure a peaceful, secure, open, cooperative, stable, orderly, accessible and equitable information and communication technology environment.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Chinese and Russian counterparts, Wang Yi and Sergey Lavrov also called for a peaceful and stable Afghanistan through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process at the meeting between the three nations. The three affirmed that outer space should be preserved for peaceful exploration and use by current and future generations.

The three nations also expressed deep concern over the the continuing conflict in Yemen and the tension on the Korean peninsula as a result of the nuclear and ballistic missile programmes of North Korea.

Following is the full text of the press statement by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the RIC Meeting:

Namaskar, Good afternoon

Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Foreign Minister Lavrov and I had discussions today on global and regional issues of common concern in the 15th RIC Foreign Ministers' Dialogue.

The discussions included issues like the challenges of the global economy, increasing terrorism, transnational organized crime, smuggling of drugs, natural and man-made disasters, climate change, and changing political scenario in Middle East and North Africa.

This is my third RIC meeting as External Affairs Ministers of India, the last being in Moscow in April 2016. These annual talks give an opportunity to us three countries to exchange our mutual views with each other and identify our contributions to international peace, security and development.

Our discussions today were focused on four broad cluster of areas, namely, Economic and Developmental issues; Fight against terrorism; Global / Multilateral issues; and, Regional issues.

In the recently released Ease of Doing Business report by World Bank India has improved its position from 142nd in 2014 to 100th place this year. I have invited China and Russia for a more intensive trade and economic partnership so that they can take advantage of the economic opportunities available here.

I pointed out that the Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) mirror Indias own vision of development. The UN Summit on Sustainable Development held on 25 September 2015 in New York has 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets with poverty eradication as its overarching focus.

Government of Indias initiatives such as Smart Cities, Make in India, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Swachh Bharat, Jan Dhan Yojana, Digital India, Skill India, Startup India etc., closely relate to several targets under the SDGs.

While discussing terrorism, I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organizations like Taliban, Daesh (ISIS), Al-Qaeda, and LeT directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development. India strongly recommends a comprehensive policy for dealing with global terrorism.

The policy should include dealing with extremism, countering religious fanaticism, preventing recruitment of terrorists, disrupting terrorist movements, stopping all sources for financing of terrorism, stopping flow of FTFs (Foreign Terrorist Fighters), dismantling terrorist infrastructure, and countering terrorist propaganda through the internet, but we should not limit ourselves to these only.

To combat climate change, I argued that we should ensure a fair implementation of the Paris Agreement based on the principles laid down in the Convention (UNFCCC), especially equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibility.

We also had detailed discussion on a range of regional issues.

First Russia-India-China trilateral discussions were organized in December, 2016. Welcoming these discussions, I proposed that its next meeting to be held in 2018 in New Delhi. I am happy that this proposal has been accepted.

I also proposed that the dialogue between RIC young diplomats organized by China in January 2017 should be carried forward. Next year we will welcome young diplomats from China and Russia to India.

In addition to our tri-lateral engagement, I had the opportunity to have separate meetings with Foreign Minister Lavrov and with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discuss our bilateral relations in a comprehensive manner. We had a frank and forward-looking exchange on a wide-range of issues.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi and I agreed that we should further strengthen our mutual trust to develop a better understanding between the two parties. And it will be better to meet again and without agenda, which will help us to expand our mutual understanding.

Foreign Minister Lavrov and I reviewed our bilateral relations and both of us were satisfied that this is the 70th year of establishing diplomatic relations between us and more than 100 programs were organized in the two countries to commemorate the 70th anniversary. It is well-known that relations between India and Russia are very close and friendly.

In the end, I would unabashedly say that this trilateral forum RIC, which was established in 2002, is working very effectively. Its meetings are being conducted regularly and it provides us with a platform where the three major countries of the world, Russia, China and India, can openly have discussion on issues among themselves as well as other international and regional issues. Today's meeting also took place in a very cordial atmosphere and was very meaningful.

Thank you.

The entire text of the press statement has been taken exactly as posted by the official website of the Ministry of External Affairs and has not been edited by Firstpost.

With inputs from IANS
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Police has arrested a French journalist here for making a documentary on pellet victims.

"Comiti Paul Edward has been detained for violating visa norms in Srinagar," a senior police officer said.

Edward was arrested on Sunday evening from Kothibagh area. He was meeting separatists and pellet victims in the city to shoot his documentary, the officer said.

Scores of protesting youths suffered injuries from pellet guns used in 2016 following an unrest in the valley after the 8 July killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani. Some lost vision totally or partially after their injuries.

Edward has a passport and a business visa for India, valid upto 22 December, 2018, the officer said.

A business visa does not allow anyone to make a documentary on political or security related issues. An FIR under section 14B of the Passport Act has been registered against the French national, he said.

The French Embassy has also been informed about Edward's detention, the officer said.
The Maharashtra government on Monday made a budgetary provision of Rs 15,000 crore for the farm loan waiver scheme on the first day of the Winter Session of the state's legislative Assembly in Nagpur.

The government made this provision by tabling a proposal of supplementary demand for implementing the loan waiver scheme. The amount of 15,000 crore comes up to more than half of the total supplementary demand proposed, which is Rs 26,402 crore. Of these, a provision of Rs 1,000 crore each has been tabled from the social welfare and tribal development departments, for farmers belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

In the Monsoon Session, the state government tabled a similar proposal for Rs 20,000 crore, which was accepted. The proposal which has been tabled on Monday is also likely to be accepted soon, sources say.

The farm loan waiver is expected to cost the state exchequer an amount of Rs 34,000 crore. The waivertitled the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Shetkari Sanman Yojanawas announced by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 24 June.

But although over five months have passed since the announcement, very few farmers in the state have actually received the benefits of the scheme. On 7 December, the state government announced that an amount of Rs 19,537 crore has been disbursed to banks.

While on 7 December, the government announced that 41 lakh out of 71.11 applications had been validated, only ten days earlier, the corresponding figure was a mere 69,832 applications.

However, the government has increasingly been facing criticism from Opposition parties over the issue. The Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have repeatedly demanded that the government put the details of the loan waiver online. In a press conference on Sunday, Fadnavis said the government would do so soon.

The NCP organised a Halla Bol march from 1 to 10 December, during which it raised farmers' issues, the loan waiver being prominent among them.
New Delhi: Slamming the BJP for "opposing" cancellation of licence of Max Hospital in New Delhi, Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday asked what relationship does it have with the hospital.

"The way in which the BJP shamelessly stood behind Max Hospital yesterday, we want to ask this to the people of BJP: Without having any love for the baby's mother, what love did you have for Max Hospital? Why do you love the hospital? What is your relationship with the hospital? What is the deal behind it?" AAP Delhi convener Gopal Rai said at a media meet in New Delhi.

Rai added that they were not against doctors or private hospitals, but only against hospitals which were looting people.

The Delhi government had on Friday cancelled the hospital's licence for erroneously declaring a newborn dead. But on Sunday, Bharatiya Janata Party's Delhi President Manoj Tiwari had questioned the decision.

On Sunday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also said that his government was not against private hospitals, but they can't remain silent on inhuman criminal negligence and slammed Tiwari for "supporting" Max Hospital.

The Delhi Medical Association (DMA) has threatened to go on strike from Thursday, if the decision to cancel the licence is not revoked by the government.

A baby boy was declared dead by Max Hospital on 30 November and handed over to the parents in a plastic bag, along with his still-born sister. However, the baby started moving while being taken for burial. He was then admitted in a clinic in Pitampura, but died on Wednesday.
Months after the 73-day-long standoff between China and India at Doka La ended, reports have emerged of around 1,600-1,800 People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops establishing a presence in the same area near the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet trijunction. According to The Times of India, the Chinese troops have constructed two helipads, scores of pre-fabricated huts, shelters and stores to withstand the freezing winter in the high-altitude region.

A source told the newspaper that earlier, the PLA patrols would come to Doka La between April-May and October-November every year to mark their presence and lay claim to the area before going back but now, after the recent standoff, the Chinese troops have stayed put in what India considers Bhutanese territory for the first time this winter.

The report comes in after Army Chief Bipin Rawat cautioned that China is silently taking over territory and testing India's threshold. He had also warned of a two-front war on the western and northern borders.

"Salami slicing, taking over territory in a very gradual manner, testing our limits of threshold is something we have to be wary about and remain prepared for situations emerging which could gradually emerge into conflict...," Rawat said about China.

Meanwhile, Beijing maintains that Doka La belongs to China. "Doka La is Chinese territory," Colonel Wu Qian, spokesman of the Chinese Ministry of Defence said, when asked about reports that PLA continues to maintain a sizable number of troops close to the standoff site, reported Business Standard.

More recently, Beijing accused New Delhi of invading its airspace. Chinese media said that an Indian drone crashed in Doka La and warned of the consequences.

'Indian drone invaded airspace'

China's defence ministry claimed on 7 December that an Indian drone "invaded" its airspace and crashed. Beijing voiced strong dissatisfaction and opposition to the "intrusion by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) belonging to New Delhi".

"The Indian move violated China's territorial sovereignty. We strongly express our dissatisfaction and opposition," deputy director of the army's western theatre combat bureau, Zhang Shuili, said in a statement.

While Zhang did not reveal details of where the incident happened, Chinese state media said that the drone crashed in Doka La near the Sikkim boundary, reported Hindustan Times. It also said the consequence of this "intrusion" could be far worse than losing a drone.

India, however, rejected Chinese claims and said the drone was on a regular training mission inside the Indian territory when it lost contact with the ground due to some technical problem. Indian officials alerted Chinese authorities over the missing unmanned aerial vehicle.

'Indian and Chinese troops present in Doka La'

Government sources had told The Indian Express that around 1,000 Chinese troops were still present on the plateau. The presence of PLA troops had thinned in the area after the disengagement process following the standoff but, one battalion of Chinese troops remained, the report added.

Rawat had said that both Indian and Chinese troops were present in Doka La, but were not in an "eyeball-to-eyeball" contact. "The PLA (People's Liberation Army) is still at Doka La, but they are at a reasonable distance from us and we are not in eyeball-to-eyeball contact," the army chief said.

A PTI report said that China has gradually been increasing its troop level in Doka La. Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa acknowledged this and said, "The two sides are not in a physical faceoff as we speak. However, their forces in Chumbi Valley are still deployed and I expect them to withdraw as their exercise in the area gets over."

It further said that Beijing had started widening an existing road at a distance of 12 kilometres from the site of conflict.

'China to continue building roads'

After the two nations ended the 73-day Doka La standoff, China remained non-committal on the issue of stopping road construction.

"In order to meet the needs of defending the borders, improving the living conditions, China has long engaged in infrastructure development including the road construction," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.

A Chinese daily further said that Beijing will continue to build the road in Doka La and New Delhi's strong reaction to the "logical" construction is "eccentric". The state-run Global Times said Doka La belonged to China and "during the Doka La face-off, Beijing intensified efforts to develop infrastructure in the region and road construction there will be a long-term trend".

The standoff

Indian and Chinese troops were locked in a 73-day standoff in Doka La since 16 June after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army. Bhutan and India were in touch with each other during the course of the face-off that ended on 28 August.

As part of the disengagement, the Chinese troops left the disputed area of Doka La along with bulldozers and removed the tents which they had pitched, according to a top Indian government official.

With inputs from agencies
Speaking at a rally in Gujarat's Palanpur on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused Pakistan of interfering in the ongoing Assembly elections. Moreover, Modi also claimed that retired Pakistani military officers are willing to help senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel become the chief minister of the state.

Modi's latest salvo came after a senior BJP leader claimed that suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, along with former vice-president Hamid Ansari and ex-prime minister Manmohan Singh met with the Pakistan High Commissioner on 6 December.

This is what Modi said in the rally:

"There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice-president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh. The meeting at Aiyar's house carried on for almost three hours," Modi said.

Modi claimed that Pakistan Army's former director-general, Sardar Arshad Rafiq, is interfering in Gujarat's election, alleging that he had appealed to make Patel the next Chief Minister of Gujarat.

The Congress was quick to deny any such meeting with the Pakistani officials, calling the allegation "baseless". Nevertheless, unfounded allegations of a "foreign hand" meddling in India's internal affairs have been as old as the Indian State itself.

The most popular proponent of the "foreign hand" theory was the late Indira Gandhi, who often accused western powers for trying to destabilise the country.

As noted by eminent historian Ramchandra Guha, the "foreign hand" theory was the biggest contribution of Indira to India's political discourse.

During the 1970s and 1980s,"foreign hand", most often than not, referred to the US-led western world, as the Soviets were considered to be close to India. That was the Cold War era when the world was sharply divided into the capitalist and socialist camp.

There were numerous occasions when Indira blamed the "invisible hand" for creating trouble in India.

In January 1975, when the then Union minister Lalit Narayan Mishra was killed in a bomb blast at Samastipur railway station, Indira immediately blamed "foreign elements" for the murder.

"Foreign hand" became a frequent theme of the Indira government in the 20 month-long Emergency period.

Just five months into the Emergency, Indira raised the "foreign hand" bogey to discredit the Jayprakash Narayan-led Opposition.

"There are many people outside the country, who are not our well-wishers and who do not like to see India being strong and united and carrying forward its economic programmes," Indira told the nation during a radio broadcast on 11 November 1975.

At a 1976 public rally in Calcutta, when the Emergency was in full swing, Indira Gandhi warned "foreign critics" to stop interfering in India's internal affairs.

As the prime minister I can say the more they try to suppress us or oppose us, the more strong and united we will be. We dont care for their criticism, whether it came from the Socialist International or any other organisation," The Indian Express quoted her as saying on 3 March, 1976.

In the rally, she also slammed "foreign powers" for belittling India's achievements like the 1974 Pokhran test and the launch of Aryabhatta satellite.

Indira's fear of a foreign hand sabotaging India continued even under her successor and son Rajiv Gandhi.

India Today reported in 1985 that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had uncovered a Khalistani plot to kill Rajiv in the US. The report added that the prompt action of the FBI helped "snuff out much bally-hooed fear in India that an American 'foreign hand' is out to undermine the integrity and stability of the subcontinent."

Rajiv, who famously said that only 15 paise out of one rupee reaches the needy, was also known for repeatedly claiming an "invisible foreign hand" for disrupting India's economic development.

A November 1984 profile in The Guardian profile stated: "Rajiv is the one who most frequently talks about the foreign hand - a reference to the CIA and Pakistan - highlighting its alleged role in domestic affairs, particularly Punjab (sic)."

As the Cold war came to an end, after the Soviet Union's disintegrated in December 1991, the narrative of a "CIA hand" took a backseat. This may have been possible due to India's ties with the US improving in the post-Cold War era.

However, international NGOs like Greenpeace now occupy the position, once held by the CIA. Nevertheless, the US too has made infrequent appearances in conspiracy theories in the 21st Century.

While the Anna Hazare-led Jan Lokpal movement took the nation by storm, the Congress party suspected the United States' involvement in funding the stir.

"The US never supported any movement in India since its independence. For the first time, the US said that Anna Hazare's movement should be allowed and there should be no obstruction to it. What was the need for the US to give this statement?" Rashid Alvi, a senior Congress had said back then.

Moreover, the CBI too made claims of a "foreign hand" maligning soon-to-be Congress president Rahul Gandhi.

In September 2012, the apex investigator told the Supreme Court that three foreign websites were behind the charge that Rahul had abducted a girl.

The most recently reported instance of an alleged "foreign hand" came in 2012, when the then prime minister Manmohan Singh claimed that foreign-funded NGO were behind derailing the Kudankulam nuclear pwoer plant in Tamil Nadu.

"There are NGOs, often funded from the United States and Scandinavian countries, which are not fully appreciative of the development challenges that our country faces," India Today quoted the former prime minister as saying.

What Manmohan claimed in 2012 was taken a step further by the Modi government in 2015, when it cancelled the licenses of around 9,000 foreign funded NGOs.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the decision was taken as the NGOs were prejudicially affecting the public interest and economic interest of the state.

Greenpeace India was the major target of the government, which believed that the international NGO was working against the country's economic progress.

The present NDA government is also a topic of discussion among the conspiracy theorists.

After the Congress slumped to its lowest ever tally of 44 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, a senior Congress leader Mohan Prakash claimed that the BJP won a clear majority with the help of Israel's Mossad.

He claimed that the RSS had been working in tandem with Mossad since 2009 to defeat the Congress, adding that the Israeli intelligence agency was unhappy over limited bilateral ties under the UPA regime.

While conspiracy theories have remained on earth as long as the mankind, political scientist Jyotirmaya Sharma's statement highlighted the possible reason behind the phenomena, "The fear of the foreigner is phoney. It is not real. It has been created as a bogey to justify your capitulation to the outsider.

With inputs from PTI

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Former leading New Zealand publisher and bookseller, and widely experienced judge of both the Commonwealth Writers Prize and the Montana New Zealand Book Awards, talks about what he is currently reading, what impresses him and what doesn't, along with chat about the international English language book scene, and links to sites of interest to booklovers.
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indias main opposition Congress party on Monday elevated Rahul Gandhi, the scion of the countrys most fabled political dynasty, as its president, preparing to challenge the dominance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of national polls in 2019. Rahul Gandhi, Vice-President of India's main opposition Congress Party, is garlanded by supporters during an election campaign meeting ahead of the second phase of Gujarat state assembly elections, in Dakor, December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Amit DaveIn a long-awaited move, Gandhi, the great-grandson of Indias founding prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected unopposed to head the party. He will take the reins from his mother Sonia, the partys longest-serving president who was elected in 1998. Calling it a historic occasion, the Congress party said Gandhi would take charge as president on Dec. 16. Television broadcast images of party supporters celebrating and distributing sweets outside Congress offices in the capital, New Delhi, and the financial hub of Mumbai. Gandhis ascent coincides with state polls in Modis western home state of Gujarat that are shaping as a test for the prime minister, who has been facing criticism for softening economic growth and poor implementation of a nationwide sales tax. The Congress hopes a round of state elections offers the party, and Gandhi, a shot at revival ahead of the next national elections, due in 2019. Modis depiction of Gandhi as an undeserving prince has helped sideline Gandhi since the last national election, during which time Congress has suffered some of its worst results in local elections. The Nehru-Gandhi family has ruled the country for most of its 70 years since independence from Britain. Gandhis father and grandmother were both prime ministers, and both assassinated. GANDHI VS MODI FILE PHOTO: Rahul Gandhi, Vice-President of India's main opposition Congress Party, is pictured during an election campaign meeting ahead of the second phase of Gujarat state assembly elections, in Dakor, India, December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File photoFollowing Congress defeat in the 2014 polls, Gandhi struggled to convince voters, as well as many within his party, of his leadership skills. But senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said Gandhi was now ready for the next challenge. The entire country has lots of expectations from Rahul Gandhi, Azad said. Much before he was elected he has shown his mettle. He knows his responsibility. Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swiftly dismissed Gandhis election, saying he had become president only on the basis of dynastic principle. Slideshow (4 Images)The new India is loath to (accept) dynastic principle and the family character of the Congress further diminishes its appeal, BJP spokesman G.V.L. Narasimha Rao told Reuters. Gandhi, until now a vice-president of Congress, is widely seen as a prime ministerial candidate if the party returns to power one day. The 47-year-old has increasingly gone public in slamming Modis governance since the last national polls, as he looks to shed the reticent image that has for years been synonymous with his political dynasty. But he has also faced political backlash. In 2015, for example, he took nearly two months of leave, prompting Modis party to accuse him of holidaying while parliament was in session. Modi still trumps Gandhi in popularity rankings, however. Nearly nine of 10 Indians have a favourable opinion of him and more than two-thirds are satisfied with the direction in which he is taking the country, a Pew survey found in November. Modis favourable rating was 30 points more than Gandhis, it showed.

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Jaipur: Representatives of the Akhil Rajasthan Rajya Karamchari Sankyukt Sangarsh Samiti started a 48-hour hunger strike from Monday at district headquarters across Rajasthan to press the demands of state employees, which include implementing the recommendation of the Seventh Pay Commission from 1 January, 2016.

Initially, the employees staged dharna. Later, under the leadership of committee coordinator, Aayu Daan Singh Kaviya, 11 representatives from the committee started a hunger strike amid rains and chilly breeze.

On the occasion, Gajendra Singh Rathore, convener of Akhil Rajasthan Rajya Karamchari Sankyukt Sangarsh Samiti, accused the government of ignoring the core issues of employees. The state government employees are aggrieved owing to the "indifferent attitude" of the government, he added.

He warned the government of serious consequences if the demands of employees remain unmet.

On 12 December, the entire state government machinery will stage a protest in the name of pen down and tool down where no employee will contribute to any kind of work.

The state secretariat will also extend its cooperation in this protest and boycott work.

On 13 Decembe 13, massive protests will be staged across the state in respective headquarters and then a memorandum in the name of the chief minister will be submitted to respective district collectors.
Chandigarh: Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's counsel has deposited Rs 30 lakh as fine with the special CBI court in Panchkula which had imposed the fine on the sect head convicted in two rape cases.

"A sum of Rs 30 lakh has been deposited with the special CBI court on Saturday," Dera chief's counsel, Vishal Garg Narwana, told PTI over the phone on Monday.

The fine was paid in the shape of a demand draft, he said.

In October, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had admitted the plea filed by the Dera chief challenging his 20-year sentence in two rape cases.

The HC had directed Ram Rahim's counsel to deposit Rs 30 lakh as fine, which was imposed by the special CBI court on Ram Rahim, within two months.

The jailed Dera chief had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court on 25 September, challenging the order of the special CBI Court of Panchkula which had sentenced him to 20-year-imprisonment for raping two disciples.

Ram Rahim was convicted by the special CBI court on 25 August, after which violence and arson erupted in Panchkula and Sirsa districts which left 41 people dead and scores injured.

Ram Rahim is currently lodged in Sunaria jail in Rohtak district.
Patna: The main opposition party in Bihar, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), hit the streets in Patna on Monday against the sand mining policy of the Nitish Kumar government in the state, throwing vehicular traffic out of gear.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also announced a statewide bandh on 18 December against the "anti-poor" attitude of the NDA dispensation in the state.

The protest march, which was led by RJD national vice presidents Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and Shivanand Tiwary and state president Ramchandra Purve, started from the party office at the Birchand Patel Marg and concluded at the Kargil Chowk, a few kilometres away.

The JD(U)-BJP coalition government, after coming to power in the state in July, had come up with a new policy, in a bid to put an end to illegal sand mining and regulate its trade.

Lalu Prasad Yadav's party has been critical of the policy.

Road traffic was badly affected along the route of the march at the heart of the town with vehicles, including school buses and ambulances, seen stranded for hours.

Reacting to the RJD stir, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi told reporters, "They are not agitating for any hardship caused to the common man. They are desperately trying to protect the sand mafia, which has been funding their party."

Told about the deputy chief minister's remark, Tiwary angrily retorted, "The state government is neck deep in corruption which has been proved by scams such as Srijan. It has no moral right to speak about the mafia funding any party."

Singh, who is also a former Union minister, said, "Construction activities have come to a standstill in the state since July, when the impractical sand mining policy came into being. Thousands of workers have been rendered jobless and compelled to migrate to other states in search of a livelihood."

Tejashwi said, "The JD(U)-BJP government is anti-poor, anti-worker and anti-Dalit. Even the directions of the Patna High Court seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

"Left with no other choice, we will now be staging a Bihar bandh on 18 December. The bandh will get support from every section of the society as the state is reeling under rampant corruption, deteriorating law-and-order and anti-people policies of the government, which seems indifferent to the plight of the common man."
A plea seeking cancellation of the Ryan International School trustees' anticipatory bail filed by the father of seven-year-old Pradyuman Thakur, who was found dead in the washroom of the school in Gurugram, was dismissed by the Supreme Court on Monday.

Plea filed by Pradyuman's father Varun Thakur seeking cancellation of interim bail granted to Pinto family dismissed by Supreme Court. #PradyumanMurderCase pic.twitter.com/vbAiV5S66T  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

The apex court upheld the pre-arrest bail for the school's CEO Ryan Pinto, and trustees Augustine and Grace Pinto. The Pintos  Augustine F Pinto, his wife Grace and their son Ryan  were granted anticipatory bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on 21 November.

On 6 December, the court had reserved its verdict on the plea of Pradyuman's father Barun Chandra Thakur.

In his appeal, Thakur has claimed that the CBI probe into the case was underway and granting anticipatory bail at this stage would frustrate the criminal justice delivery system.

"The manner in which the conspiracy has been hatched to kill him and the manner in which the entire scene of crime has been destroyed, decorated and ornamented, it clearly appears that the directions may have come from some high-ups to the school authorities and the possibility of the involvement of Pinto family at this stage cannot be ruled out in any manner whatsoever and howsoever," said the plea, filed through advocate Sushil Tekriwal.

It also referred to an affidavit filed before the apex court by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and alleged that the board had categorically said the school had failed to discharge its responsibility to file an FIR and inform the district education officer.

"Holding the school squarely responsible for the tragedy the CBSE has also said that the entire sequence of events, it clearly appears that the school was guilty in failing to ensure the safety and security of students," the plea claimed.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court, while granting the anticipatory bail, had asked the Pintos to join investigations in the case. The court had barred them from leaving the country without permission.

Pradyuman was found with his throat slit in the school washroom in Gurugram on 8 September. School bus conductor Ashok Kumar was arrested by Haryana Police in connection with the crime. He was recently granted bail by a lower court.

The case was then transferred to the CBI and the agency had apprehended a class 11 student in connection with the killing.

With inputs from PTI
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on key bilateral issues.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi meets External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi. pic.twitter.com/FHntQZw2ez  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

According to sources, all issues of mutual interest were discussed between the two leaders.

This is the first high-level visit from China after the Doka La standoff this summer.

Wang is in New Delhi to attend the Russia-India-China trilateral,

He will also attending an India-China cultural event on Monday evening.

The foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) are in New Delhi to deliberate on a range of pressing regional and global issues, including ways to tackle the threat of terrorism and extremism, at the key meeting of the grouping.
A 27-year-old woman from Telangana killed her husband and disfigured her lover's face with acid to pass him off as her husband after taking inspiration from Telugu movie Yevadu. The incident took place on 26 November in Nagarkurnool district, according to reports.

The New Indian Express reported that the crime started unfolding when the deceased's family members got suspicious over the behaviour of their 'son' who was replaced by the woman's lover.

Swathi was married to Sudhakar Reddy and had recently, got into an illicit relationship with Rajesh. Swathi and Rajesh decided to kill Sudhakar so they can live together and take possession of the husband's assets. They killed Sudhakar by hitting him on his head and dumped his body in a forest.

The police told The Times of India that the woman called up her relatives and said that a group of four persons attacked her "husband" at their house and poured petrol on his face and set him on fire. She then shifted Rajesh to a hospital. Initially convinced with the story, the family spent Rs five lakh on his treatment.

During one of their hospital visits, Sudhakar's relatives realised that the man undergoing treatment is someone else and they immediately informed the police. Swathi was arrested and Sudhakar's body was recovered from the forest area, Deccan Chronicle reported.

During the investigation, the woman revealed the entire plot and said she killed her husband and then adopted the storyline of Yevadu to live with Rajesh.
LGBT Pride in metropolitan India has its own look, its own leitmotif. The rainbow face paint. The trans woman in her gorgeous red-and-gold sari navigating the uneven road in high heels. The hand-drawn Ardhanarishwar posters and the little handmade rainbow brooches. The men pairing colorful pleated dhotis with elaborate nose rings and eyeliner. Face masks. Drums. Bollywood music. Azaadi slogans. The scrum of photographers with high-powered cameras.

But this year, Kolkata, home to the oldest Pride parade in India, added a different flavour to the usual Pride celebrationsa Transgender Day of Rage.

Transwomen, transmen and allies stood behind a banner showing a red clenched fist with the demand Stop the Transgender Bill 2016. They chanted Aamar deho, aamaar mon, doorey thako rajshashon (My body, my mind, stay away, government.)

Not since the fight to overturn Section 377 has there been such a national galvanisation of the LGBT community as the opposition to a Transgender Rights bill the government wants to introduce in the winter session of Parliament.

It was not meant to be this way. In a country where homosexual sex between consenting adults still remains criminalised by an antiquated law, transgender rights were one sliver of hope. The 2014 NALSA verdict was a landmark ruling where the Supreme Court unequivocally affirmed that the fundamental rights granted by the Constitution applied to transgender people. It gave them the right to self-identificationman, woman or third gender.

In response, the government has come up with its Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights ) bill, but the proposed legislation has sent shockwaves through the community.

NALSA liberated many of us as trans persons because it recognized for the first time that we can be who we are without having to prove ourselves to any authority, says Anindya Hajra, founder member of the Pratyay Gender Trust. The proposed bill completely violates that spirit.

This new bill wrests that right of self-determination away and hands it to district screening committees which will determine who is an authentic transgender and who is not. Thats sounding alarm bells within the community. Neel, a trans-man, remembers the humiliation of athlete Pinki Pramanik, stripped and poked and prodded as the government tried to determine Pramaniks gender.  To stand before a roomful of people to prove whether you are boy or girl or animal! This is inhuman, says Neel. It happened to Pinki and now they want it to happen in every district! And you call a bill that does this Protection of Transgender Rights?

Aparna Banerjee, member of the West Bengal Transgender Development Board and the Amitie Trust, is even more blunt. Will we have to strip in front of this screening committee? Then Id rather strip in public.

The problem says Banerjee, is that those who drafted the bill seemed to have no understanding of what transgender means. I cannot find myself in this bill, she says. It defines transgender among other things as neither wholly female nor wholly male or a combination of female or male and conflates intersexed with transgender. A transgender person is more than anatomy, retorts Banerjee.

If the Supreme Courts NALSA verdict came as a moment of enormous affirmation for the community, this bill from the government has had the opposite effect - opening up angry wounds. There is already the notion of the real hijra and the fake hijra, explains Hajra. It is also kept alive by gatekeepers within the community. Who has undergone gender reassignment surgery and who has not is a topic of much conjecture and a weapon to undermine rivals within the community. This bill could further medicalise the discourse. The whole notion of fakeness vs authenticity is deeply internalized by our community, admits Hajra. When someone calls someone inauthentic, we forget that for many of us, its been, to use a cliche, a journey. Hajra worries this will create so much state scrutiny it will further discrimination when asserting ones own gender identity is already difficult.

The government, in its wisdom, has chosen to reinforce that schism. If anyone who drafted that bill had bothered to come to the Rainbow Pride Walk they would have seen the diversity of the community where the trans-man with facial hair, the manicured trans-woman in sleeveless magenta blouse and an exquisite kantha sari stealing a smoke, and the hijra with sindoor in her hair all come under the umbrella of transgender. Instead the bill seems to have only understood transgender to mean hijra. We are not necessarily opposing the government, but this is supposed to be a transgender bill, not a hijra bill, says Ranjita Sinha, executive director of Association of Transgender/Hijra in Bengal. Transgender is an umbrella term. There are so many gender identities. A bill like this has to consider all of that. But it only pays lip service. I see the words intersexed, transman, transwoman used in the bill, says Neel. But I have grave doubts whether those who have written this bill understand what they mean. I fear a certain hijra-fication of the discourse, says Hajra. I am not saying thats not important but thats not the only way gender non-conforming people identify.

Therein lies part of the problem. A government bureaucracy is all about conformity and putting people in boxes. Transgender, by definition, is something out of the box. Aparna Banerjee says while the rest of the country is worrying about linking their PAN cards to Aadhar, her community has other problems. PAN cards do not allow anything other than male or female, she says. So what do we link to? When you add talk of reservation and social welfare to the mix, it feeds into the paranoia that this will somehow open, as the Ministry of Home Affairs once put it in the context of Section 377, the floodgates of delinquency.

Even the bills understanding of the realities of the lives of hijras, probably the most visible face of the transgender community, is spotty. When a community group met the minister for social welfare, he had, according to reports, been adamant that nuisance practices like begging and demanding money for blessings or badhai had to stop. The bill accordingly says anyone who compels or entices a transgender person to indulge in the act of begging can face imprisonment, but it offers no alternatives, it addresses none of the causes why so many hijras beg and it pays no attention to the history behind practices like badhai and mangti. It also privileges biological family over the adoptive family of gurus and gurukuls. If your family rejects you, it says there are government shelters, says Neel. But it does not say whether there will be special rooms for us there. Today if a transwoman goes to a shelter and is treated as a man, what is going to happen?

The government does not have answers as it tries to steamroller over all the complexity in a one-size-fits-all bill. But the fight against it is also gaining steam. Banerjee walks the Kolkata parade carrying a sheet and asking people to donate whatever they can, ten rupees, fifty rupees, hundred rupees. The money, she says, will help bring thousands of transgender folk and their allies to Delhi to protest the bill.

Shreya stands watching the protest. A trans-woman, in a gown exploding with multicoloured feathers, red, yellow, green, blue and a train of white paper roses, shes the cynosure of a hundred clicking cameras. She poses for all of them with catwalk poise.

Its threatening to rain again and I wonder if shes worried that the outfit that shes worked so hard on will be ruined. If it rains and it goes, it goes, she says unfazed. But thats not going to stop me. I am here now.

In its own way that defiant grit captures the spirit of the fight against the Transgender Bill. In front of Shreya, a copy of the bill is on fire. As photographers zoom in on the flames, an activist says with a shrug We know how to fight. We have done it all our lives.
Mirzapur: Eight persons were arrested on Monday for allegedly beating up and molesting a woman from Varanasi and leaving a French national injured when he tried to intervene.

UP Police maintained that no attack was made on the French national.

The woman along with a group of French tourists and her relatives was visiting the Lakhania Dari Waterfall when the incident took place. A police spokesperson said, "No attack was made on any French national, but a French national sustained injuries as he tried to intervene in an altercation between two group of Indians."

The French national sustained injuries on his hand, police said.

He said the woman, a resident of Varanasi, was molested by some persons and was also beaten up.

"The vehicle by which she had come to Mirzapur carried about half a dozen French tourists," he said.

The woman later filed a complaint with the police, based on which the eight persons were arrested, the official added. The spokesperson said that on Sunday the woman in her police complaint had alleged that nearly a dozen persons molested her and beat her. She said her relatives too were beaten up by the men.
Lucknow: In a shocking incident, a 15-year-old cancer survivor was allegedly raped by two men in Sarojini nagar in Lucknow and was later sexually assaulted by another person whom she asked for help, police said on Sunday.

The incident took place last night when the girl had gone out to meet an acquaintance, Additional Superintendent of Police (Lucknow East) Sarvesh Mishra said.

The survivor alleged that her acquaintance, Shubham, took her to a secluded place where he and his friend, Sumit, raped her and fled from the spot, the police said, adding when she sought help from a passerby, Virendra, he also raped her. The victim somehow reached home and narrated the ordeal to her parents. Subsequently, her father lodged a complaint, the police said.

A case of gang-rape has been registered under relevant section of IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), police said, adding Sumit and Virendra have been arrested.

A hunt was on to apprehend Shubham, the Additional SP said.

In October, a 19-year-old girl was allegedly gang raped by five men and shot at for trying to escape in a village near Lucknow raising concern over the law and order situation in the state.

The incident happened when the girl had gone to the fields to relieve herself. She was allegedly assaulted by a group of five men who shot at her when she tried to fight them back, Satish Kumar, Superintendent of Police, Lucknow had said.

The girl had reportedly travelled from New Delhi to appear for her Bachelors of Education (B.Ed) entrance exam.

With inputs from PTI
Ahmedabad: A group of war veterans on Monday accused the Narendra Modi government of "betraying" their trust over the issue of the One Rank One Pension (OROP).

They claimed that instead of agreeing to their demands for which the ex-servicemen had been agitating for long, the Centre was "insulting" them.

The war veterans said the government was doing "injustice" by capping at Rs 10,000 per month the educational assistance it gives to children of martyrs or those disabled in action.

"By not implementing OROP, the Modi government has betrayed our trust," said Major General (retired) Satbir Singh, chairman of the Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement.

During a press conference at the state Congress headquarters in Ahmedabad, Singh maintained their movement was "apolitical" and they had requested the opposition party to raise their grievances in Parliament and also before the public.

The Modi government "insulted" ex-servicemen and their widows by arresting them and suppressing their protest using police, he alleged.

"It has become a hallmark of the Modi government to suppress opposition voice. We would like to ask the BJP government at the Centre as to why it did not accept OROP in the form it was accepted by the then UPA government on 17 February, 2014?" he asked.

The UPA government had agreed to the definition of OROP which said that servicemen who worked for the same duration and retired on the same rank will be given an equal pension, irrespective of their date of retirement, he said.

"Why the Modi government did not accept OROP in the form accepted by the UPA government based on the theory of equality, thus denying benefits to ex-servicemen?" he asked.

"The Modi government denied benefits of OROP to 40 percent of the armed forces personnel and those who retired early, according to a notification issued on 7 November, 2015," the retired officer said.

He raised questions over the Modi government putting the condition in the scheme that it will review pensions after five years when experts sought a review after two years.

"Why is injustice being meted out to the children of martyrs by limiting their education expenses at Rs 10,000 per month?" Singh asked.

He was referring to a Centre's notification dated 13 September, 2017, capping education expenses for the kids of martyrs or those disabled in action at Rs 10,000 a month.

In November 2015, the Centre issued a notification, bringing into force the long-pending OROP scheme, which it said, will benefit over 2.5 million veterans and war widows.

However, the ex-servicemen had then rejected the notification, saying their main demands have not been accepted.

In December 2015, the government appointed a committee to look into the anomalies, if any, arising out of the implementation of the scheme. The panel later submitted its report to the defence ministry.
Four women from Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh were charged with sedition for stopping Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath's convoy, say media reports. One of these women, Neetu Singh, had been in the news last week for marrying a picture of Adityanath to draw attention to the rights of anganwadi workers.

Adityanath was on his way to attend the "Naimishya Shankhanaad" program when the women tried to stop his convoy, according to Jansatta. They were sent to judicial custody for 14 days. The police said that the women were repeatedly stopping the convoy and continued protesting despite being warned multiple times.

On the other hand, Neetu said that she was told that the authorities just wanted to talk to her but was instead charged with sedition and sent to jail.

Symbolic marriage to Adityanath's picture

It had been reported on Wednesday that after their demands had been stonewalled for a long time by the state government, Anganwadi workers in Uttar Pradesh had devised a new way to put pressure on the authorities. Amid chanting of hymns and drum beating, Singh had symbolically "married" a picture of Adityanath.

The mock wedding, solemnised in the presence of fellow Aanganwadi workers in Sitapur late on Tuesday, saw a picture of the monk-turned-chief minister being garlanded by the coy bride.

Singh, the district president of Mahila Aanganbadi Karmachari Sangh, said that for them this was a novel way of attracting the attention of the state government. "Through this marriage we thought around four lakh sisters will benefit," she had said. "If our demands are still not met, I will go to meet Yogiji on a horse," she had said.

The woman who put a picture of Adityanath on her face and acted as the groom said she was happy to be part of the "novel nuptial".

The anganwadi workers had given a four-month ultimatum to the new Bharatiya Janata Party government to address the issues raised by them but rue that even after the passage of eight months, the state government has done nothing for them.

In fact, an anganwadi leader said that they were cane-charged brutally in the state capital once when then went to protest.

With inputs from IANS
Contrary to what male chauvinists think and say, no woman goes out of her way to embarrass herself without cause. It is difficult to believe that Dangal actress Zaira Wasim sat on that Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai and plotted to indict 39-year-old Vikas Sachdeva for physically harassing her.

At first, one is a little doubtful of the accusation, because an aircraft is not exactly a place where you can be easily intimidated. These days, you cannot even recline your backrest by those two awesome inches without someone in the back complaining that you are annoying them. And to be honest, if a woman in todays environment stands up and calls out inappropriate behaviour, half the aircraft would go to her aid. Sitting on a plane does not have the same risk factor as getting into a bus or an auto. One press of the call button and the crew would have appeared. Else, one can just get up and walk to the galley and complain to the stewardess. Passengers do it all the time for much lesser reason. Bad breath, leery men, body odour, irritating habits, even a medical condition.

So, why did she suffer this mans nonsense in silence and still have the presence of mind to try and tape him. Ill tell you why. At first, you do not believe this is happening. Two weeks ago it happened to Mark Zuckerberg's sister Randi on an Alaska Airlines flight in first class. The man next to her began to make sexually explicit comments. She wrote on a Facebook page: Feeling furious, disgusted and degraded after an Alaska Airlines flight during which the passenger next to me made repeated lewd, inappropriate, and offensive sexual remarks to me .

Such obnoxious sexual conduct is not unusual and happens far more often than we would like to think. The victim (and the person is a victim) is unable to assimilate the first nudges as being sexual in nature. You would think that you are in an air-conditioned slick modern aircraft with 200 people, and this cannot be happening.

There is also this ridiculous belief that only educated, decent, and polite people travel by air. That brainwash becomes a deterrent to act. The hand or, in this case, the foot, goes away and returns and since the seats are so cramped, the lady being pestered tries to rationalise and put it to inadvertent movements. She just cannot believe this is happening.

Then a pattern emerges and the victim knows this is for real; this is not random, and she is being targeted. There is immediate revulsion and horror and it is well documented that the disgust freezes the mind and the person does not know what to do. The option to create a scene is not one is grabbed automatically. Victims may think of what happens if no one believes them. Indeed, in Wasims case, there are people commenting that she did this as a publicity stunt. For heaven's sake, stop.

Ask Dana T whose celebrated case on a United flight last year form Newark to Cologne shocked her when the man next to her began pinching her blouse and telling her to lie in his lap. A total stranger.

And that brought to the fore the issue in the USA which we in India also grapple with. The crew are not trained to handle sexual harassment, the women in uniform are often hassled. There is no database of sexual harassment cases on flights. Airlines duck the subject so totally that when something gross happens, they try to wish it away.

Sexual harassment is also very difficult to prove. Dana said to the crew; he pinched my nipple when I was sleeping. How do you prove that?

Keeping this context in mind, it is possible that Zaira was seething with rage, but was unable to react. She decided to use a mobile phone to record the mans misconduct.

When she deplaned, Zaira appeared shattered by her experience in the video. Did this actually happen on a plane? However, Zaira had the courage to speak up about her ordeal in public.

Because aviation has not yet come to grips with this ugly reality, many people get away with their physical intimidation. There is this misplaced male concept that single women on a flight are fair game.

Airlines must wake up to sexual harassment in the sky and keep a track of incidents like they keep track of their aircraft equipment malfunctions. The crew must be trained to respond to such incidents. Until this happens, there will be a hundred Zairas a day sitting in front of or next to some boorish lout.
Chandigarh: Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh and SAD chief Sukhbir Badal on Sunday engaged themselves in a prolonged exchange of heated words on Twitter after Akali workers were booked for blocking roads and National Highways.

The Akalis were protesting against alleged attacks on party workers and registration of what they say were "false" cases against them.

Both Amarinder and Badal took swipe at each other on their respective Twitter handles. And what followed was claims and counter claims.

In a series of tweets Amarinder wrote: "Shocked at reaction to registration of cases against Akali Dal dharnas that caused immense inconvenience to people. Does he not know it's against the law to block National Highways? Or does he simply not care for the law?"

"Blocking National Highways does not just cause hardships to people, it also cuts off the strategic supply line of our armed forces in Kashmir and other areas, thus undermining our defence strength," he wrote.

He alleged that the Akali Dal, "despite their tall claims of being guardians of Sikh religion", don't care that blocking highways would obstruct pilgrims going to Sri Harmandir Sahib.

"There's a difference between a road & a National Highway and between a symbolic protest & 24-hour siege. Nobody is denying Akali Dal its right to protest but is it fair to bring normal life of citizens to a standstill and subject them to miseries as you did?"Amarinder wrote.

Badal responded to Amarinder's accusation on Twitter.

"Your goons forced us to come on roads by beating, shooting and not allowing people to file nominations in municipal polls," Badal said.

Reminding Amarinder of the street protests he had organised, Badal said, "And please don't try to be holier than thou. Posting pic of your supporters blocking National Highway by stopping Lahore bus (sic). And here's a pic of you blocking a road. Whom are you trying to fool? SAD will continue to protest for people's rights."

Amarinder defended his stand, saying, "Right to protest is indisputable in a democracy. But the way Akali Dal blocked the National Highway was not only illegal but against the interest of the people. Not the sign of a healthy opposition!"

But Badal was less than amused. He continued: "Not letting people file nominations is murder of democracy akin to what Congress did in Emergency. SAD will expose you."

Amarinder replied: "Stop perpetrating lies. If Akali Dal nominees had been stopped from filing nominations they would have grabbed the extra day given by EC to submit papers. Fact is nobody turned up, clearly exposing your blatant falsehoods."

He also equated the Akali Dal with the Aam Aadmi Party. "It seems that Akali Dal has decided to go the Aam Aadmi Party way when it comes to street politics. It seems Badal has learnt no lessons from Arvind Kejriwal and his party's poll routs," Amarinder wrote on Twitter.
Ahmedabad: The Congress on Sunday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an impartial probe into the note-ban decision that the opposition party dubbed the "biggest scam ever and the largest money-laundering scheme".

"In September 2016 (before demonetisation announced on 8 November, 2016), a whopping Rs 5,88,600 crore was deposited in banks, of which Rs 3 lakh crore was in fixed deposits. Whose money was it and what happened to it?" Congress Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said at a press conference in Ahmedabad .

"In October 2016, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar purchased eight properties. In Odisha, it purchased 18 properties, just ahead of demonetisation. Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah tell the people as to how many properties they purchased just before demonetisation? Will they disclose the details of the party's bank accounts of the months preceding demonetisation?" Surjewala said.

Modi had announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

"Also, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank three days before demonetisation. Amit Shah is a director of this bank. Was he questioned by the Income Tax Department or the Enforcement Directorate regarding this money?" he said.

The Congress leader said that after demonetisation, Rs 10.1 crore was seized from a Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Development Bank van, in which BJP leader and Maharashtra Minister Pankaja Munde has a stake.

"It is public knowledge that the cooperative banks were not given any new currency. Then how come this cooperative bank got new currency of Rs 10 crore? Whose money was it? Is there any probe into this case?" Surjewala said.

He said at a time when the common people were struggling in bank queues to get a few lakh of rupees in new currency for their daughters' weddings, mining baron G Janardan Reddy splurged Rs 500 crore on his daughter's wedding.

"The BJP top brass made a beeline to this function as Reddy is considered very dear to Prime Minister Modi. Why was no investigation launched against Reddy as to where from he got so much money in new currency, when notes were being rationed to the common people?" Surjewala said.

"We challenge the prime minister to order an impartial probe into all these cases, and many more such cases, and bring out the facts before the people," he added.

The Congress leader called All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi as the "B-team of BJP" and said people should not pay attention to the polarising antics of such people.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said he was spreading "falsehoods" to score political points. Singh issued a statement after reports of him attending a meeting where a Pakistan envoy was present. Denying that any discussion about the Gujarat election took place at the meeting at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence, Singh said that Modi is losing ground in Gujarat and his fear of the imminent loss is quite evident.

His statement was a reaction to Modi's address at a public rally in Vadodara on Sunday where he had asked Singh why did he not show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the army.

The prime minister had also raised a question mark on a "secret meeting" between Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and the former Pakistani high commissioner and other leaders from that country.

#BREAKING -- Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh takes on Prime Minister Modi over the war for Gujarat.

Pak Cong Meeting: Manmohan Singh denies Gujarat poll discussion #CongPakLinked pic.twitter.com/dtqaTWM2mt  News18 (@CNNnews18) December 11, 2017

Dr. Manmohan Singh shows the mirror of truth and gives a reality check to Prime Minister Modi, who has been driven by canards & false propaganda in face of imminent defeat in Gujarat. pic.twitter.com/QLQiPQDHxI  Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) December 11, 2017

The former prime minister also said, "Congress needs no sermons on nationalism. My track record of public service over five decades is known to everybody. Prime Minister Modi should apologise to the nation."

Earlier too, on 7 December, Singh had said the people of Gujarat have seen though the "lies" propagated by the BJP during its 22-year-rule in the state, and took a dig at the ruling party over the 'Gujarat model' of development, saying it only benefited the top one percent of the society.

He also said the "achhe din" promise made by the BJP was "nowhere to be seen". Singh had also attacked Modi over demonetisation and GST rollout, saying, "Modiji has betrayed the trust that the people of Gujarat had reposed in him."

The Congress leader had also demanded that the Centre should release the relevant documents and files relating to demonetisation.

With inputs from PTI
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Rahul Gandhi could be declared the Congress party president on Monday, which also happens to be the last date of withdrawal of nomination in the partys organisational elections.

Rahul Gandhi will officially take charge of the Congress party on 16 December when his mother and longest-serving president Sonia Gandhi resigns.

Congress workers are celebrating the elevation of Rahul Gandhi as party president at the party headquarters in Delhi, reported News18.

Congress Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran said that they received 89 nomination papers for one candidate. Since Rahul was unopposed, Ramachandran declared Rahul as the new president of the Congress party.

Congress to have a formal event on 16 December at party headquarters in Delhi

Ramachandran said that Rahul is a stickler for rules and both he and Sonia Gandhi completely stayed away from the process and allowed the election authority to function autonomously.

On the other hand, Rahul as Congress vice-president failed during the Assembly elections, be it allying with the Left in West Bengal or in Uttar Pradesh. Many times, Rahul has been accused of being an absentee politician. Dealing with alliances will be a major challenge.

Rahul is expected to face a tough challenge from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah, who are known for their connection to the grass roots and drawing up electoral strategies with surgical precision.

While former prime minister Manmohan Singh described Rahul Gandhi as the "darling of the Congress", Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh said he would make a "good future prime minister".

The principal tasks before Rahul Gandhi as Congress president will be to evolve strategies for countering Hindu nationalism without alienating the Hindus and ensuring Other Backward Classes (OBC) politics doesn't stump the party. These two tasks dwarf the challenges most media commentators have identified for Rahul  those of forging alliances with regional players and building the party organisation.

As Congress president, Rahul Gandhi's challenge will be to win Hindu hearts without becoming poor Hindutva copy

Long before Independence, his great-great grandfather, Motilal, headed the party, the first from the family to do so.

The Nehru-Gandhi clan was at the helm of affairs of the party after independence for 38 years: Nehru for three years, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi for eight years each, and Sonia Gandhi for a record 19 years.

Of the 15 people who led the 132-year-old Congress party post-Independence, four belonged to the Gandhi-Nehru family. When Rahul Gandhi takes over as the president, he will be the fifth.

Uttarakhand: Celebration at Congress office in Dehradun after Rahul Gandhi elected as the party President. pic.twitter.com/6fWeG1bGYt

Celebrations at our Mumbai Congress office on the the occasion of Shri Rahul Gandhi being elected as the president of Indian National Congress #CongessPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/R6Uwi78HVU

The principal tasks before Rahul Gandhi as Congress president will be to evolve strategies for countering Hindu nationalism without alienating the Hindus and ensuring Other Backward Classes (OBC) politics doesn't stump the party. These two tasks dwarf the challenges most media commentators have identified for Rahul  those of forging alliances with regional players and building the party organisation.

As Congress president, Rahul Gandhi's challenge will be to win Hindu hearts without becoming poor Hindutva copy

This is the worst time in India under present govt. In such time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party President. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon. He is facing Modi confidently: Tarun Gogoi on Rahul Gandhi elected as the party President pic.twitter.com/oFyfdctNYQ

Joyous moment for the party as we celebrate the appointment of @OfficeOfRG as the President of @INCIndia . Beginning of a new, energised, positive and progressive era in the party under his leadership. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi

"She will continue to play an effective role even though she is not (Congress) president."

The outgoing Congress president Sonia Gandhi will continue to play an effective role and guide the destiny of the party, senior party leader M Veerappa Moily had said.

Long before Independence, his great-great grandfather, Motilal, headed the party, the first from the family to do so.

The Nehru-Gandhi clan was at the helm of affairs of the party after independence for 38 years: Nehru for three years, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi for eight years each, and Sonia Gandhi for a record 19 years.

Of the 15 people who led the 132-year-old Congress party post-Independence, four belonged to the Gandhi-Nehru family. When Rahul Gandhi takes over as the president, he will be the fifth.

Since Independence, Gandhi family has held the reins of the Congress party for 36 years

A look at who's headed the Congress over the years

TTV Dhinakaran greeted Rahul Gandhi for his elevation as Congress President and wished him a 'sterling' tenure.

Rahul Gandhi on Monday is expected to be elected as the president of the Congress party, succeeding his mother Sonia Gandhi. Monday was the last date of withdrawal of nomination in the partys organisational elections.

He will however, officially take charge only on 16 December marking a generational shift in the grand old party when his mother and its longest-serving president Sonia Gandhi would formally hand over the baton to him.

He has become the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to take charge of the Grand Old Party of India.

Senior party leader M Veerappa Moily said outgoing Congress president Sonia Gandhi will continue to play an effective role and guide the destiny of the party.

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) had cleared the decks for Rahul's elevation in a meeting chaired by Sonia and attended by top party leaders, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh, and party general secretaries.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family will face monumental challenges as Congress president. As Debobrat Ghose wrote for Firstpost, "Rahul as Congress vice-president failed during the Assembly elections, be it allying with the Left in West Bengal or in Uttar Pradesh. Many times, Rahul has been accused of being an absentee politician. When he takes over, dealing with alliances will be a major challenge."

Another challenge would be overhauling the party cadre through internal restructuring, he wrote.

The Congress party will also have to mount a strident campaign for state elections in 2018 to begin gathering a momentum that can put it in a better position for the general elections in 2019 Hindustan Times reported.
Rahul Gandhi could be declared the Congress party president on Monday which also happens to be the last date of withdrawal of nomination in the partys organisational elections. The Congress Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran, and CEA members Madhusudan Mistry and Bhubaneswar Kalita will announce that Rahul's was the only nomination for the top job on Monday. A press conference has been scheduled for 3:30pm, News18 reported.

Rahul will officially take charge only on 16 December marking a generational shift in the grand old party when his mother and its longest-serving president Sonia Gandhi would formally hand over the baton to him.

While pageantry would herald the dawn of a new era in the party which has ruled the country for over half-a-century since independence, the 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family will face the daunting task of restoring lost glory to the party whose fortunes have been dwindling in the recent past. Today, the party, which once controlled almost the entire country, has its governments in just five states and the Union Territory of Puducherry.

The announcement of Rahul's elevation, however, is likely to be made on Monday, the last date of withdrawal of nomination for the election of the Congress president which is a one horse race.

Altogether 89 nominations received in his favour were found to be valid during scrutiny. Rahul, however, will be handed over the certificate appointing him the party president on 16 December in the presence of Sonia and other senior leaders, Ramachandran said.

Sonia will officially hand over the mantle of the 132-year-old party to her son around 11 am after which Rahul will meet leaders from across the country at the Congress's headquarters, party sources said. The Congress has been losing state after state since the 2014 Lok Sabha election with the exception of Punjab.

Rahul's elevation would come just two days ahead of the counting of votes for the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly election.

A sure-footed Rahul powered a spirited campaign for the Congress in Gujarat, and a win in the election, which many analysts say could be dead heat between the two parties, would come as a massive boost for him.

"Delivering in Gujarat will be important as it is the immediate test facing Rahul, who has mounted a strong anti-BJP campaign in the state and led personally from the front. We are looking at victory in Gujarat," said a Congress leader and former chief minister.

Mahila Congress chief and party spokesperson Sushmita Dev said reorganising the party would be another major task for him.

"Every post comes with a challenge. He has to rebuild the party at the grassroots and strengthen the ideological base. His undisputed election as party president is a sign of his strength. He will have to take everyone along from the AICC level right up to the states," she told PTI.

Striking a balance between the old guard and the young leaders would be a key to running the organisation which has many seasoned politicians whose wisdom he could use as he steers the party.

Rahul in the past had said that he would draw upon a blend of experience of the old and the energy of the young.

"Initial signs are encouraging since he put veterans like Ashok Gehlot and Sushil Kumar Shinde in charge of elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh respectively and was willing to bank on them," said a leader. He also got appointed young leaders as secretaries.

Clarity on the party's ideological stand on the issue of Hindutva would also be important as he is being seen as projecting the Congress's soft Hindutva with his visit to temples in Gujarat. He has also proclaimed himself a "Shiv bhakt".

These visits are also being seen as an attempt to blunt the BJP's accusation against the party of Muslim appeasement.

"This is to course-correct after it was felt that an overtly pro-minority image of the Congress undermined its electoral prospects on the eve of 2014 Lok Sabha elections," a party veteran noted, adding cobbling together electoral alliances will also be key to the future growth of the party.

Another former union minister said every state had its own set of challenges and Rahul would be expected to make informed decisions in each by taking everyone along.

Rahul has already been taking all major decisions in the party even though his formal elevation was delayed due to a long-drawn internal election process.

The deadline set by the Election Commission for the conclusion of the organisational elections in the Congress expires on 31 December.

Organisational elections in the Congress were due in 2015. The party constitution provides for elections to be held every five years. The last such polls were held in 2010.

Rahul, who was initially hesitant about taking over the reins from Sonia, who held the partys top post for 19 years, will be the sixth member and fifth generation leader of the Nehru-Gandhi clan to occupy the post. These include Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and now Rahul Gandhi.

Some eminent leaders who held the post in the pre-independence era included Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, Abul Kalam Azad, Vallabhai Patel and Rajendra Prasad.

Eminent people like Madan Mohan Malviya, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Dadabhai Naoroji, Annie Besant and Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee, the first party president, also led the party in the pre-independence era.

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
A fascinating contest of narratives is under way in Gujarat. In response to Narendra Modi's charge that Congress is letting Pakistan interfere with India's electoral process, Rahul Gandhi on Monday sought to reset the parameters of the debate. He told voters in a rally that this election is all about Gujarat  nothing else  and the prime minister's attempt to distract the voters betrays his nervousness.

The Congress president-elect has insisted that he "respects" the prime minister's chair (Manmohan Singh might privately disagree), and inspired perhaps by Michelle Obama's Democratic Convention speech the Gandhi dynast claimed he would rather answer the prime minister's 'venomous barbs' with 'love'. Bitten once too often, it seems to have finally dawned on Congress that abusing Modi may be counterproductive. Hence it wants to restrict the debate on local issues, farmers' plight and economic woes: Topics that it believes will resonate with Gujarati voters.

This is a prudent approach. The problem with Congress is that its messaging is inconsistent and it remains prone to frequent self-goals. For instance, it wants the voters to believe that a desperate prime minister is trying to "polarise voters" because he knows BJP has 'lost the elections'. This implies Congress is confident of returning to power in Gujarat and sees no reason why it should, unlike the BJP, 'polarise voters'.

PM has said Congress is conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections.Its outrageous. This is just an attempt to polarize ahead of second phase of voting.This also shows his desperation and that BJP's loss is now guaranteed: Anand Sharma,Congress pic.twitter.com/1Ax2qxDzvN  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

If it is Congress' electoral strategy to "stay away" from polarising issues, personal attacks and occupy a moral position in the cut and thrust of electoral politics, what explains its spokesperson's recent demand that Modi should "apologise" for communal riots by visiting the Jama Masjid?

At a debate organised by News18 on Sunday evening, Congress leader from Punjab Charan Singh Sapra said Modi should take a leaf out of Sonia Gandhi's book and say 'sorry'.

"Neither my party nor do I support the 1984 (anti-Sikh) riots. Sonia visited Golden Temple and apologised in front of the media. Manmohan Singh also apologised in Parliament. In the last 33 years, the BJP has been adding insult to our injury. Can Narendra Modi visit the Jama Masjid and apologise for 1992 riots?"

This comment could be the fourth self-goal that Congress has scored since the onset of campaigning in Gujarat. It may rank alongside blunders such as party's claims that Rahul is a 'janeu-dhari' Hindu (one who wears the sacred thread)", Kapil Sibal's submission in Supreme Court on delaying Ayodhya verdict till after 2019 elections and Mani Shankar Aiyar's 'neech' insult against Modi.

Expectedly, the BJP wasted no time in flagging the demand as 'outrageous' and framing it within the parameters of 'vote bank politics'.

Several BJP leaders condemned the statement, with party president Amit Shah telling journalists on Sunday in Gandhinagar that "entire nation knows the allegations levelled on the prime minister by the Congress backed NGO were all false. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017."

It is tough to believe that Congress is unaware of the repercussions of raising the issue of communal riots or attacking Modi personally in his home state bang in the middle of elections. It is either Congress' attempt at dog-whistling to corner Muslim votes, or another example of its incoherent electoral strategy: Possibly both.

What the grand old party doesn't seem to realise is that any mobilisation of Muslim votes through dog-whistling strategies is a game two can play, and BJP is on a much stronger wicket here because it can counter-mobilise the majority sentiment.

This dissonance sends out mixed signals about Congress' intent and confuses voters. It is also becoming a defining feature of the party under the new boss. Early signals indicate Rahul's leadership will be little more than a continuation of Congress' policy of pandering to all impulses  be it majoritarian or minoritarian  in a 'horses for courses' strategy. While that is hardly a radical departure from the way Sonia handled electoral strategies, Rahul's job is made difficult by the fact that he lacks the finesse to dress rank opportunism as savoir faire.

Consequently, the new president-elect swings between extremes: Overcompensating while trying to restore balance in positions. In this respect, Rahul is closer to his father who tried to compensate for his Shah Bano blunder by laying the ground for Babri Masjid demolition.

As Shekhar Gupta writes in Print, Rajiv Gandhi "allowed the unlocking of the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi site, pretty much endorsed the temples foundation stone laying (Shilanyas) and then launched his 1989 campaign from therewith a promise of ushering in Ram Rajya."

In the larger context, Rahul's inconsistent positions risk undermining its larger electoral strategies. It has sought to approach the Pakistan debate once again from a high moral ground by demanding Modi's apology for ostensibly making a "social function" look "sinister" through insinuations that it was a "secret meeting".

"The former prime minister and vice-president were merely attending a social function in which high (level) dignitaries were present and it was not a secret meeting (At the event) former chief of army was present, former Indian high commissioners to Pakistan, distinguished diplomats of this country, eminent journalists they were all present and the prime minister gives it a sinister and sensationalist twist?" said Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma.

It escaped the Congress that Modi has been building the 'Congress-soft-on-Pakistan' narrative rather diligently for what it's worth, and Congress played into his hands by initially sounding abrasive about the meeting.

In response to Modi's allegations of Pakistan's interference in Gujarat election, and his statement at a rally that a meeting at Aiyar's residence involving Pakistan's former high commissioner and former minister of external affairs did take place, Sharma called Modi a 'liar'.

On Sunday, the senior Congress leader dismissed the accusation as a "lie being sold by the prime minister", and told ANI "only because he is rattled by the defeat that is staring him and the BJP in the face, he should not say such things. If he had this information, and if it is true, which is not, then it would have been an act of treason and action should have been there under law. Why is he crying there? If there is anything like that, why has he spoken now?" asked Sharma.

On Monday, Congress claimed that there was nothing secretive about the meeting.

This apparent inconsistency in argument allowed BJP the chance to bring out a discussion into the open about an allegation that addresses the deepest concerns of our collective psyche. The fact that it took place at Aiyar's residence, who had, on an earlier occasion, allegedly told a Pakistan TV channel that Modi must be removed for talks to resume only added to the narrative.

In 2015, Aiyar told Pakistan's Duniya TV channel: "Bring us (the Congress) back to power and remove them. There is no other way (to better the relations). We will remove them, but till then you (Pakistan) have to wait."

Modi was playing his cards well. The Congress tried turn the table on BJP by suggesting that it was Modi who made an unscheduled stop at Lahore at Nawaz Sharif's invitation, but these attacks don't affect BJP much since it has secured the 'nationalist' space in polity.

Meeting Pakistani envoys over dinner surely isn't an exceptional event, but doing so during an Assembly election involving a border state, and being initially abrasive about details, gave Modi just the kind of weapon he was looking for. The Congress made similar blunders during Doka La conflict when Rahul met Chinese envoys reportedly to "seek details": An issue that Modi has kept repeating during Gujarat campaign.

To defeat an excellent communicator like Modi at his game, the first requirement is consistency in messaging. It must be based on a coherent strategy. There is no space for self-goals. The new Congress president-elect has his job cut out.

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is set for his stormiest Assembly session of the past three years as a result of a variety of issues which are not restricted to the problems with implementing the farm loan waivers. Since coming to power in 2014, Fadnavis has largely been able to navigate through choppy waters in the Assembly, but the session that kicks off in Nagpur today is certain to be his biggest test yet. Here's a look at the reasons for this:

First, the chief minister's pet project  the farm loan waivers announced on 24 June  has run into a whole host of implementation problems, ranging from online bugs to issues with banks. It's been nearly six months since the project was announced and yet farmers across the state are still deep in debt. "The number of beneficiaries, as reported by the government, has changed so many times that people have lost faith in this government," said senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar, adding, "If this government prides itself on its high levels of transparency, why isn't it putting the details of the loan waivers online?"

The issue of unwaived loans is likely to take centre stage in Nagpur, particularly after the NCP held its protest march, named Halla Bol, from 1 to 10 December. Over the course of their 140-kilometre march, senior NCP leaders claim they didn't encounter a single farmer whose loans had been waived.

Second, the Yavatmal pesticide tragedy has also provided further ammunition to the Opposition that claims that the BT Cotton that was brought in, is also affected by pests. And the parties in the Opposition demand that the government takes responsibility.

Third, the latest NCRB data shows that crime rates in Maharashtra  particularly, in Nagpur  have skyrocketed. Considering the fact that Fadnavis holds the home ministry portfolio in the state, fingers are set to be pointed at him.

Fourth, the Opposition is likely to raise the issue of corruption charges against Panjaka Munde, Vinod Tawde, Girish Mahajan, the Shiv Sena's Subhash Desai and others.

The fifth reason that is set to contribute to a stormy Winter Session is the mess in the state government's online systems. From farmers to scholarships, the Opposition contends that there's not one area where the online system is functioning satisfactorily.

Further, on Tuesday, the Congress and NCP will launch a joint morcha at Nagpur's Vidhan Bhavan, led by NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and Congress' Ghulam Nabi Azad.

On the agenda for the Winter Session are 13 new bills to be tabled and 11 ordinances to be approved. However, whether or not these even receive a cursory hearing remains to be seen.
Chennai: Opposition DMK will stage a protest here on Tuesday urging the Centre and state government to expedite rescue of missing Kanyakumari fishermen post Cyclone Ockhi, party working president MK Stalin said on Monday.

The DMK leader also said he has sought an appointment with Tamil Nadu governor Banwarilal Purohit to take up the issue.

Speaking to reporters here, he claimed different figures were being given by various officials in the state government and Ministers on the number of fishermen missing since the cyclone hit Kanyakumari recently, especially affecting the fishermen community.

Scores of them who had ventured into the sea for fishing prior to the cyclone are yet to return, according to their families and relatives.

"The Centre and state governments are ignorant in conducting a survey (of missing fishermen). I have been insisting that only if Kanyakumari is declared as a disaster-affected district can due steps (to address problems) be taken," the DMK leader said.

"DMK fishermen's wing will stage a massive agitation on Tuesday pressing the Centre and the state government to expedite rescue of missing fishermen," Stalin said adding he will lead the protest.

Stalin, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, said he had sought an appointment with the Governor to discuss "fishermen's issues."

Since the governor was not in town, an appointment was likely on Wednesday, he added.

In a separate statement, Stalin questioned why Chief Minister K Palaniswamy has not visited Kanyakumari so far and met families of missing fishermen.

He criticised Palaniswamy for focusing on the RK Nagar bypoll and the birth centenary celebrations of AIADMK founder, the late chief minister, MG Ramachandran.
New Delhi: Actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Monday questioned prime minister Narendra Modi for spinning "unsubstantiated and unbelievable" stories against political opponents.

Sinha's comments came a day after Modi said Congress leaders met the Pakistani high commissioner in New Delhi.

Hon'ble Sir!

Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!.1>2  Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Modi on Sunday had accused a group of Congress leaders of meeting the Pakistan High Commissioner at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence before the latter called him (Modi) "neech". Addressing an election rally at Sanand, Modi said the meeting at Aiyar's residence was also attended by former Indian vice president Hamid Ansari and former prime minister Manmohan Singh.

Continuing his attack on the Congress, Modi said, "There was a meeting convened at Aiyar's residence where Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's foreign minister, Ansari and Manmohan Singh were present. The meeting lasted three hours." The next day Mani Shankar said I am a 'neech'," said the prime minister. Aiyar was promptly suspended from the Congress' primary membership. He also apologised for his comment. Sinha also advised the prime minister to stop communalising the atmosphere and return to the promises that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made in the 2014 general elections.

Sir! Instead of new twists & turns, stories & cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Lets stop communalising the atmosphere & go back to healthy politics & healthy elections. Jai Hind!  Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Sinha, a former union minister has been vocal against the policies of the Modi government, especially demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax.
Responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's jibe at Congress for "conspiring" with Pakistan for Gujarat election, party leader Anand Sharma on Monday accused him of trying to polarise voters ahead of the second phase of polling on 14 December.

PM has said Congress is conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections.Its outrageous. This is just an attempt to polarize ahead of second phase of voting.This also shows his desperation and that BJP's loss is now guaranteed: Anand Sharma,Congress pic.twitter.com/1Ax2qxDzvN  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

Speaking at a press conference, Sharma said Modi's comments displayed his desperation and that BJP's loss was now guaranteed in the prime minister's home state. On Friday, Modi addressed a public gathering in Gujarat's Bhabhar, where he lashed out at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, and alleged that Aiyar had told "people from Pakistan to get Modi out of the way." "Did you go to Pakistan to offer a supari on my head?" Modi asked.

Calling Modi's words reprehensible, the Congress said that a former Pakistan foreign minister was in New Delhi to attend a wedding. "Ex-Pakistan foreign minister was here (New Delhi) to attend a wedding. There was a dinner organised for him in which there were former diplomats and the former army chief among other dignitaries. Does the prime minister think they were all conspiring with Pakistan? It is reprehensible," ANI quoted Sharma as saying. On Sunday, he invoked Pakistan once again in a rally in Palanpur, saying Congress leaders held secret meetings with Pakistan officials.

"You people must have read the newspapers about the incident at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was an issue of hot debate, and the media said that a meeting between former Pakistan high commissioner, former minister of external affairs of Pakistan, former vice-president Hamid Ansari and former prime minister Manmohan Singh was held at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. The meeting had run for three hours and the next day he called me neech," Modi was quoted as saying by The Times of India.

Earlier on Monday, the Pakistan Foreign Office in Islamabad slammed Modi for dragging Pakistan into the internal politics of the country. Calling the comments "utterly baseless and irresponsible", Foreign Office spokesperson, Dr Mohammad Faisal took to Twitter to express his displeasure. He said that India should "win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies".

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
In October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the coastal town of Ghogha in Gujarat's Bhavnagar district to inaugurate the roll-on-roll-off (RoRo) ferry service, that connects Saurashtra to south Gujarat. His hour-long speech at the launch of his "dream project" took just about one-fourth the time many of Ghogha's residents lose because of water daily, or rather the lack of it.

As part of her daily routine, Shehnaz Sheikh, a Ghogha resident, walks for about an hour to the pond near her village to wash clothes. She needs another hour to wash them and an hour more to walk back. "There is no water in the village," she says, while on her way to fill drinking water.

"The common well has water for six months a year, and that too stinks. It is a farce that we use this water to clean utensils and clothes. We cannot use groundwater because it is saline," Shehnaz adds.

Through the narrow, sludgy lanes of Ghogha  situated on the mid-western bank of the Gulf of Khambhat  water storing drums stare at you from every nook and corner. They are filled with drinking water once a month for about one hour, and that too is not clean. Which is why they have to order water tankers frequently. One pot of water costs about five rupees.

"I just filled water worth 20 bucks," says Shehnaz. "The costs multiply during summers. They know we have no other option."

Most of the residents of Ghogha and the adjacent village of Machchiwada  making up for over 13,000 of Bhavnagar's population  are small fishermen or labourers. They work around the village or in Bhavnagar city, which is about 20 kilometres away.

Sajid Ibrahim, a mechanic, says that he spends Rs 1,200-1,500 every month to procure drinking water. "That is about 20 percent of my monthly income," he says. "In summers, it doubles or triples. How am I supposed to sustain? What exactly are we demanding that is so difficult to provide?"

Apart from the three hours she loses to Washing clothes , Shehnaz has to fill water from the common well, if it has any left. If Not, she then has to walk outside the village to fetch it for cleaning and bathing.

"I do not remember a time when we did not have water problems," she says. "This is what I have been doing all my life. It is ironic to live on the coast and grapple for water. We have been complaining to the MLA for years, but he has hardly ever turned up in the village."

The constituency belongs to Purushottam Solanki, a three-time MLA from the Bhavnagar rural seat. He is a prominent Koli leader, the community that dominates the constituency.

But merely eight kilometres from Ghogha, in the village of Koliyak, the anger over Solanki's neglect is replaced by euphoria. Daksha Parmar, a Koliyak resident, says that she gets 24 hours of running water throughout the year. "Purushottambhai has brought vikas (development) to our village," she says. "He has reduced so much of our efforts. We do not have to think of water as we plan our day."

A vegetable seller in Koliyak, Kanabhai Bariya, says that Solanki is very accessible. "...smallest of complaints and Solanki will be at your doorstep to find a solution," he says. "He has built hospitals, roads, provided water in our village and the neighbouring villages as well."

The village of Ghogha, though, has conspicuously missed the boat of vikas. When Modi arrived to launch the 615 crore RoRo project, villagers desperately expected the prime minister to address their concerns. But he did not.

The aim of the ferry service was to appease the Patels in the vicinity, who have their relatives working in textile and diamond industries of Surat. The geography of Gujarat forced people in Bhavnagar to cover the entire arc and go around the sea via a nine-hour bus journey to get to Surat. The ferry service directly takes one to south Gujarat in an hour, as it connects Ghogha to Dahej.

In Budhel village, 12 kilometres from Ghogha, Khimjibhai Gorakhiya says that he can now meet his sons living in Surat regularly, who work in the diamond industry. "Modi has brought us closer," he says. "Earlier, we had to plan well ahead of time to meet them. Today, we can go and come back within a day. Our sons can visit us more frequently. It has saved our money, efforts and time."

The same ferry service taking off from Ghogha, however, has become a headache for its residents. Most of the small fishermen in the village do not own a boat. They fish near the banks, by going in as far as they can by foot.

Munaf Abdul, 45, says that when the ships embark and disembark from the jetty, they rupture the fishing nets placed by the fishermen in the sea. "Nobody compensates us for that loss," he says. "Moreover, the jetty has limited our fishing area. Guards at the jetty do not allow us to fish on the other side of it. It has reduced our income by half."

The jetty service has brought a shipping yard with it as well, but Ghogha residents have hardly benefited from it. "We get odd labour jobs at the shipping yard but that is once in a while," adds Sajid. "We need permanent, assured sources of income. But our woes have been selectively ignored."

Over 70 percent residents of Ghogha are Muslim, while the villages around it are predominantly Koli. Mohammad Sheikh, a labourer living in Ghogha, says that they do not mind supporting the BJP if the government provides basic facilities.

"We do not want anything expansive," he says. "All we ask for is jobs and water. Conditions here are unliveable, while villages around us are in much better shape. There is only one hospital in the neighbourhood, which is only for emergency services. Are we being discriminated against because of our faith?"

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Ahead of the second phase of the Gujarat Assembly election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Congress has "already lost in the first round" of polling and claimed that its leaders were using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) as an excuse.

"Congress has lost in the first round and are not even thinking about the second round as they know people here will support BJP. They are now making excuses. They know that south Gujarat supports Modi, so their leaders and cheerleaders are blaming EVMs, including saying they are hacked using Bluetooth," Modi said while addressing a public rally in Patan on Monday.

Modi also told the gathering that BJP leaders were the ones who came to their rescue when their villages were submerged in the recent floods in Gujarat. "When this area was flooded, chief minister Vijay Rupani, former chief minister Anandiben Patel and other BJP ministers came and stood with the people. The prime minister reviewed the situation. Tell me where were the Congress workers at that time? The Congress MLAs were enjoying in resorts in Bengaluru," he said, taking a jab at the Opposition party's meeting in Bengaluru to evade "poaching attempts" ahead of the state elections.

Modi also criticised soon-to-be Congress president Rahul Gandhi's 'potato to gold' statement, saying he lacked basic knowledge of agriculture. "Our farmers work hard and grow potatoes. If at all Congress comes to power, there will be no need to do that because their leader says we will produce potatoes in factories. Congress' basic knowledge about agriculture is so poor," Modi said at the rally.

The prime minister also reacted to Rahul's claims that government policies were implemented only for serving the rich and that he only "worked for five industrialists," saying he worked for the children of the poor. "During peak summer, I would go to the villages of Gujarat and ask parents to educate their children. Whose children were they? Were they Ambani's children? No. They were children of the poor. We are working for poor," Modi said, who also addressed rallies in Nadiad and Ahmedabad on Monday.

Taking another swipe at the Congress, he added that the party leaders would never understand what poverty is. "When we went to the farmers, did Krishi Mahotsav, we did not go out helping the rich. We went among the poor. Sadly, Congress leaders born with golden spoons will never understand what poverty is!" Modi said in Patan.

The voter turnout in the first phase for 89 seats on Saturday stood at 68 percent. The second, and final phase, for the remaining 93 seats will be held on 14 December, followed by counting, which will be held on 18 December.

Watch the complete rally here:

With inputs from agencies

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Requests by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress to organise road shows for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi in Gujarat on Tuesday have been turned down by the police due to security concerns, according to media reports.

Ahmedabad police commissioner Anup Kumar Singh told ANI that the requests for the rallies were turned down "due to security, law and order reasons, and to avoid public inconvenience."

Request by BJP & Congress for conducting PM Modi & Rahul Gandhi's road show tomorrow, turned down by Police due to security, law & order reasons & to avoid public inconvenience : Anup Kumar Singh, Police Commissioner #Ahmedabad to ANI #GujaratElection2017 pic.twitter.com/qaNr7lbdYL  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

On Monday, Modi will address three rallies in Gujarat's Patan, Nadiad and Ahmedabad on Monday, where polling is scheduled for the second phase on 14 December.

Congress vice-president Rahul will address four rallies in Tharad, Viramgam, Savli and Gandhinagar on the same day, according to officials.

BJP president Amit Shah will also address four rallies in Saigam in Banaskantha district, Enclave and Barsad in Anand and Dabhoi in Vadodara on Monday.

The first phase of Gujarat assembly elections on Saturday saw a 66.75 percent turnout, according to final figures released by the Election Commission on Sunday.

The counting of votes will take place on 18 December. Gujarat has been under the BJP's rule for the last 22 years.

With inputs from IANS

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
The BJP and Congress are gearing up for the next phase of elections in Gujarat which is scheduled for 14 December. Keeping up the hectic campaigning, which went on ahead of the first phase of polling held on 9 December, both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi have several rallies scheduled in the state on Monday.

While Modi is expected to address three rallies in Gujarat, Rahul will take part in four rallies in Banaskantha, Ahmedabad,Vadodara and Gandhinagar.

The prime minister is expected to arrive at Hemchandracharya North Gujarat University ground in Patan at 12.30 pm where he will address a rally. Around 2.30 pm, Modi is likely to arrive at the Helipad Ground near the National Express Highway in Nadiad. At 7 pm, Modi is expected to address gathering at the Sabarmati riverfront which is behind the National Institute of Design campus in Ahmedabad.

Rahul is scheduled to address at least four public meetings in Banaskantha, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Gandhinagar. Rahul's last rally at the Ramkatha Maidan in Gandhinagar is expected at 5.15 pm. He will start his campaign from the Shivnagar ground in Banaskantha at 12 pm.

Political discourse became harsher than usual after Congress' Mani Shankar Aiyar's neech remark, which BJP did not take lightly. Campaigning in poll-bound Gujarat has been hectic and high-octane as the two major parties in the fray are busy levelling charges against each other.

Rahul in Kalol

Amid this acrimonious political atmosphere, Modi addressed a rally in Vadodara while Rahul addressed a gathering at Kalol on Sunday. Rahul, while attacking the prime minister and his government's various policies, said he would not use even one "galat shabd" (wrong word) against him because he respects the post of the prime minister.

Rahul, who began his second day of campaigning for the second phase of poll, said that he has learnt from the history of the Congress and the legacy of party leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel that one should "defeat his enemy with love".

"Modi ji uses wrong words regarding me, talks senseless things, and did once in today's speech as well. I would like to tell everyone from both BJP and Congress that Rahul Gandhi respects the position of the prime minister."

"However offensive words the prime minister uses about me, Rahul Gandhi is not going to say a single wrong word regarding the prime minister," he said. "And in Gujarat, we are going to defeat you with love, Modiji," quipped Rahul, who is set to assume the reins of the Congress in a few days from now.

During the day-long campaigning, Rahul offered prayers at Ranchhod Raiji Mandir at Dakor and Shamlaji Mandir at Shamlaji. Exuding confidence that his party would dethrone BJP from power in Gujarat, Rahul said that Congress government would listen to the people instead of delivering Mann ki Baat as "Modi ji, (BJP president) Amit Shahji, or (Chief Minister Vijay) Rupaniji do".

Rahul targetted the prime minister over speeches in his rallies claiming Modi frequently changed the election planks and now he was left with nothing to speak about but himself and Congress.

Modi in Vadodara

Meanwhile, Modi, addressed a public rally in Vadodara on Sunday night and asked his predecessor Manmohan Singh why did he not show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, despite the readiness of the Indian Army.

He said that after the Mumbai attacks, the Indian Air Force had approached the then prime minister Singh with a plan for surgical strikes, but the government did not show the courage to order it.

"Under whose advice did he (Singh) do so," Modi asked the gathering at the Navlakhi compound in Vadodara.

"Someone who served at a high position in the Indian Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for surgical strikes. Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that," Modi said and cited the example of his government's action in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack in September last year.

"My government, in the aftermath of the Uri attack by Pakistan, had launched a surgical strike inside the borders of Pakistan, targeting several terror camps and launchpads. The strikes came as a surprise for the Pakistanis who were caught unaware. While the maximum damage was inflicted on their side, the Indian soldiers came back without any casualties," he added.

Election results for the Gujarat Assembly Election will be announced on 18 December

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
The BJP and Congress are gearing up for the second phase of Gujarat elections which is slated for 14 December. While Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi have been regularly hitting out at each other in the course of the poll campaign, both the leaders chose political civility over vociferous acrimony on some occasions in the recent past.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated Rahul Gandhi on his election as the Congress president.

"I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress president. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure," Modi tweeted from his personal twitter handle @narendramodi.

I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure. @OfficeOfRG  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017

Modi's congratulatory message came on a day when a row broke out over his insinuation on Sunday that former prime minister Manmohan Singh was colluding with Pakistan to influence the state polls. Singh shot back, saying Modi was setting a "dangerous precedent", and asked him to apologise to the nation.

On the other hand, Rahul last month had also instructed Congress workers in Banaskantha to conduct "dignified campaigning" and respect Modi. "I wrote an email to Ashok Gehlot, asking him to instruct all our social media campaigners not to say anything undignified about Modi ji. He is the prime minister of our country and he must be respected. I remember how Manmohan ji was ridiculed when he was the PM. I said we will not do that to Modi ji. We will not go beyond a point," Rahul said, according to India Today.

"I would like to tell everyone from both the BJP and the Congress that Rahul Gandhi respects the position of the prime minister," Rahul had also said at a rally in Kalol.

However, the BJP and Congress have consistently levelling charges against each other. Recent examples were Mani Shankar Aiyar referring to the prime minister as 'neech' and Modi's claim of Pakistan interfering in the Gujarat polls.

With inputs from agencies
Vadodara: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing a public rally in Vadodara on Sunday, asked his predecessor Manmohan Singh why did he not show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the Army.

He said after the Mumbai attacks, the Air Force had approached the then prime minister Singh with a plan for surgical strikes, but the government did not show the courage to order it.

"Under whose advice did he (Singh) do so," Modi asked the gathering at the Navlakhi compound here.

"Someone who served at a high position in the Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for surgical strikes. Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that," Modi said and cited the example of his government's action in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack in September last year.

"My government, in the aftermath of the Uri attack by Pakistan, had launched a surgical strike inside the borders of Pakistan, targeting several terror camps and launchpads. The strikes came as a surprise for the Pakistanis who were caught unaware. While the maximum damage was inflicted on their side, the Indian soldiers came back without any casualties," he added.

Modi also questioned Congress leaders, including its vice president Rahul Gandhi, for raising doubts over the surgical strikes.

"Are such secret matters to be discussed in public?" he asked, saying this was the difference between the NDA government and the UPA government.

Modi said the reason behind his vacating the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat in 2014 was for blossoming the "lotus" in Uttar Pradesh and replicating the Gujarat model of development in that state.

After winning two Lok Sabha seats from Vadodara and Varanasi in the 2014 general election, Modi had retained the Varanasi seat.

He thanked the people of Vadodara for allowing him to resign from here.

The prime minister also justified demonetisation, saying it was aimed at unearthing black money and preventing the parallel economy.

He said the government had since succeeded in unearthing a "hawala" racket in Jammu and Kashmir which led to the arrest of many leaders who were advocating support for terrorism in the state.

Congress leaders were not happy with demonetisation as it was a source of their income and even after a year since the note ban, they had kept the issue alive, he said.

The prime minister also wondered how a "secret meeting" between Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and the former Pakistani high commissioner and other leaders from that country could take place without the knowledge of the Government of India.

Modi said when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he used to take permission from the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government at the Centre before holding a meeting with a foreign dignitary.
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused Congress leaders of having a "secret meeting" at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence, alleged that Pakistan was interfering in Gujarat Assembly elections and asked why former prime minister Manmohan Singh did not "show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the army", Singh released a statement responding to Modi.

Dr. Manmohan Singh shows the mirror of truth and gives a reality check to Prime Minister Modi, who has been driven by canards & false propaganda in face of imminent defeat in Gujarat. pic.twitter.com/QLQiPQDHxI  Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) December 11, 2017

Here is the full text of Singh's statement:

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Sh. Narender Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly & regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a Former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

The Congress Party needs no sermons on Nationalism from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known. Let me remind Sh. Narender Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan.

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Sh. Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground.

I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Shri Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations. Names of the distinguished Indian public servants and journalists present at the dinner are enclosed to this statement. None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities.

I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies.

Note: The above text has been taken directly from the official Twitter handle of Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala and has not been edited for content or style by Firstpost.

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Taking offence to political comments made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi invoking Pakistan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad slammed politicians across the border and said that they should "win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies".

Spokesperson of the ministry Dr Mohammad Faisal said on Twitter:

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

On Friday, Modi addressed a public gathering in Gujarat's Bhabhar, where he lashed out at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, and alleged that Aiyar had told "people from Pakistan to remove Modi from the way." "Did you go to Pakistan to offer a supari on my head?" Modi asked.

On Sunday, he invoked Pakistan once again in a rally in Palanpur, saying Congress leaders held secret meetings with Pakistan officials.

"You people must have read the newspapers about the incident at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was an issue of hot debate, and the media said that a meeting between former Pakistan high commissioner, former minister of external affairs of Pakistan, former vice-president Hamid Ansari and former prime minister Manmohan Singh was held at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. The meeting had run for three hours and the next day he called me neech," the prime minister was quoted as saying by The Times of India.

Calling it an issue "of serious concern", Modi said, "Former director general of Pakistan army Arshad Rafiq has insisted that Ahmed Patel should be made chief minister of Gujarat. Former army director general intervenes in Gujarat election. They held meeting with Pakistanis at Mani Shankar's house... Congress must answer what suspicious activities they are doing. They must answer the country," the report added. Reacting to the prime minister's comments on Monday, Congress leader Anand Sharma said, "For the first time in history, a prime minister has said these kinds of words for the Opposition  we condemn it. Former vice-president and former prime minister served the country for decades." Sharma then asked for an apology from the Modi.
The birth anniversary of a political leader is generally marked with celebrations, the receipt of bouquets, the distribution of sweets and other such activities. But Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president and former agriculture minister Sharad Pawar will be celebrating his 77th birthday  on Tuesday  by heading a rally in Nagpur. Pawar will attend the Halla Bol Aakrosh March along with senior Congress leader Ghulab Nabi Azad.

The Congress and NCP will jointly lead the rally and it will be a rare occasion that Pawar takes to an agitation against the state government. The march is aimed at cornering the BJP-Sena government in the state for its unfulfilled election promises. Senior NCP leader and MLC Hemant Takale said, "It is true that Pawar will be agitating against the state government after 32 years. It was in 1985, when Pawar had organised a cycle rally against the then state government of the Samajwadi Congress. It was organised from Jalgaon to Nagpur. While Pawar has participated in marches in Mumbai and Pune since then, from the point of view of a state-related rally, he is doing so for the first time in 32 years."

"For the first time, he will be agitating on his birthday in the interest of the people. The way this government is neglecting farmers' issues like Minimum Sales Price (MSP) for agri goods and the disbursement of loan waivers, he has decided to protest against this government and walk on the street," said the NCP supremo's nephew and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar.

Speaking with Firstpost, he said, "Generally, Pawar (Sr) used to stay at home in Pune or Mumbai and have a low-profile event. The only events organised on his birthday were health checkups and blood donation drives for those in need. But to wake up the sleeping BJP-led government, a joint Congress and NCP march will be held on Tuesday. As part of the Halla Bol agitation  1 to 10 December, we walked 140 kilometres and noted that Nagpur and the entire Vidarbha region is in distress about this anti-farmer government."

The rally will begin at Lokmat Chowk, where Pawar Sr will address the rally. The combined march against the BJP-led government will be a show of strength with more than a dozen leaders from each party likely to take to the streets. It is believed that Pawar, a senior and respected leader from the state, heading the rally will lend the event some heft. Azad is expected to attend as well, said MP Ashok Chavan.

"It's a combined Opposition march in which the Congress, NCP, RPI, Peasants and Workers Party and Samajwadi Party will be participating. The objective is to target the government that has failed miserably on all fronts in the past three years. Right now, our priority is the combined Opposition march and ensuring its success. More than two lakh participants are set to attend the rally," said Chavan.

"The BJP-led government just makes grand promises and then fails to implement any of them. The popularity graph of the BJP has quickly dropped and the Opposition is united in exposing the weak government," added the former chief minister.

However, senior BJP leader and education minister Vinod Tawde said his party was ready for the morcha. "Whatever issues the Opposition parties have raised are issues created by them. We are with the farmers and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has everything under control. This rally is only a publicity stunt," he said.
Nagpur: On his birthday on 12 December, NCP president Sharad Pawar would hit the street against the BJP- led government in Maharashtra. The Maratha strongman and former Union minister, who will turn 77 on 12 December has already completed 50 years of active participation in politics.

Pawar will take part in an anti-government rally being organised in Nagpur by the opposition Congress and the NCP, which have accused the BJP-led ruling coalition of "neglecting" issues related to farmers and common people.

When the veteran politician hits the street, it will be a rare occasion in his political life, during which he has held a number of key posts in Maharashtra and also at the Centre.

The former chief minister will be agitating against an incumbent government after over 30 years.

Hemant Takale, senior NCP leader and an MLC, said, "It is true Pawar would be agitating against the state government after over 30 years. It was in 1985 that Pawar had organised a cycle rally against the then state government. The cycle rally started from Jalgaon and ended in Nagpur."

"Pawar has mostly been in power," said another senior NCP leader.

Ajit Pawar, nephew of Sharad Pawar and a former deputy chief minister, said, "Generally, (on birthdays) Pawarsaheb would stay at his home in Pune or Mumbai and have a low- profile event.

The only events used to be organised on his birthdays were health check ups and blood donations.

"For the first time, Pawarsaheb will be agitating on his birthday for people's interest. Pawarsaheb has decided to protest against this government to highlight the ways it is neglecting the interests of people," Ajit Pawar said.

Senior Congress leader and former union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad will also be participating in the rally. Congress, NCP leaders and workers will take out a march which will conclude at Lokmat Chowk where Pawar and others will address the rally.
New Delhi: Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections, and seemed to suggest that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party.

Prasad said Indians were capable of contesting the country's democracy on their own.

This came after Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted:"India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible".

The tweet came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public rally in Palanpur in Gujarat talked about a purported secret meeting held at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's home and attended by the Pakistani High Commissioner, an ex-Pakistani foreign minister, a former Vice-President of India and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

This meeting, Modi claimed, happened a day before Aiyar called him "neech". "Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into India's election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own. Yes, I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting India's democracy on their own as they do... India's Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM and so is the BJP," Prasad told reporters.

India, he said, "completely abhors any outside interference in India's electoral affairs."

The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world and Pakistan. "Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of India's democracy," he said. "We are very productive of India's democracy and totally condemn this unwarranted statement from Pakistan," he said.

Prasad said it was "curious" that Congress leader Anand Sharma had denied any meeting taking place at the residence of Aiyar. "And in today's newspapers...It is very evident as to who attended the meeting including from Pakistan and even Manmohan Singh went there in the get together," he said. "Why a wrong statement was made by Anand Sharma completely denying that no such meeting took place."

"Now it is whose turn to apologise? But what is curious is that this happens and Pakistan comes out with an official statement. In many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion," he added.

Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017
Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of resorting to "histrionics" and pulling the ongoing poll campaign for the Gujarat elections to "a new low".

The critical ally of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party said that Modi "dug up the graves of the Mughal regime" in his campaign - instead of speaking about "vikas" (development) issues - to target the opposition Congress.

"The people of Gujarat had already rejected the Congress for 22 years for this very reason. The prime minister chose to ignore the progress and developmental issues and stooped to mere 'tu-tu, main-main' (rhetoric) in his own home-state," Shiv Sena in a strong edit in the party mouthpieces, "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana", said.

It pointed out how Modi oscillated between "very emotional" and "highly aggressive" in his public meetings and wondered what prompted the BJP to such bottom-level campaigning tactics, with its party chief Amit Shah, all cabinet ministers, state chief ministers and other leaders swooping on Gujarat to defeat Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

The edit mentioned the "neech" (lowly) reference made by "jobless" Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar which Modi countered by claiming it was "an attack on Gujarati pride" which raked up a controversy that subsided only after Aiyar apologised.

"This reference to me is an insult not to the country, but to the people of Gujarat", was Modi's refrain as the Congress attempted a damage control by suspending Aiyar from the party.

"By such a statement, Modi made himself small. We always believed he stood for the 'pride' of the people and all the Hindus of the country, but he still remains stuck in the Gujarat rut.

"He came across more as a regional leader than a national figure, but when others raise issues of 'regional pride' they are threatened into silence by the sword of 'national pride'," Shiv Sena added sharply.

"It has been made clear by the BJP that truths and lies no longer matter in winning elections, as also issues of 'vikas', which is the reason why the party even forgot to publish its manifesto and "nobody raised developmental issues in the campaigns," the edit said.

The Gujarat poll campaign was reduced to mere theatrics, making emotional speeches, shedding tears, and doing 'tandav' (Dance of Death), and in the final stages, Modi became very sentimental by referring to "the people of the country are my family".

"Does this imply that all past presidents, prime ministers and other top leaders had no relationship with the people? Some like Indira Gandhi sacrificed their life, while many others spent years in jail, for the country.

"They sacrificed so much because they considered the people of India as their family," Shiv Sena said sternly.

Not only them, it reminded that even the soldiers who were getting killed on the borders are a part of the same family, and urged the ruling dispensation to rein in their highly emotive speeches.
PTI

On 11 December, China successfully launched Algeria's first communication satellite, the first project in aerospace industry between the North African nation and Beijing.

The Alcomsat-1 was launched into a present orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in the southwestern province of Sichuan, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

It will be used by Algeria for broadcast and television, emergency communication, distance education, e-governance, enterprise communication, broadband access and satellite-based navigation, it said.

The satellite was launched 40 minutes past midnight by the Chinese Long March-3B carrier rocket, making it the 258th flight mission for the Long March rocket family.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Algerian counterpart Abdelaziz Bouteflika exchanged congratulatory messages on the successful launch of Alcomsat-1, the report said.
tech2 News Staff

Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus today announced that it would give out 10,000 complimentary tickets to the screening of the new Star Wars movie, The Last Jedi. The tickets to the movie screening that also gives fans the chance to check out the OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition smartphone and even meet up with the rest of the OnePlus community in their respective cities.

The free tickets will be available on oneplusstore.in and Paytm in two phases on 13 and 15 December at 10.00 am.

OnePlus in a press release said that the complimentary tickets was one of the many unique engagements planned for the OnePlus community, which are a part of the company's three year celebrations in India.

Fans will get a chance to experience the upcoming OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition smartphones in Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Banglore and Kochi.

Commenting on the event, Vikas Agarwal- General Manager at OnePlus India said, The OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition is dedicated to the OnePlus and Star Wars fans in India. We are humbled by the phenomenal response to our smartphones this year that has made OnePlus the best selling smartphone in premium segment and has reinforced the trust that our fans have instilled in us.

OnePlus has detailed two simple steps to enjoy the movie and experience the phone at OnePlus popup stores:

Step 1: Visit oneplusstore.in and register your OnePlus IMEI number (If you have registered your IMEI previously, you can skip this step). Then choose your city and confirm the movie date and time (tickets are available for 16th and 17th December at select PVR and Cinemax theatres). Click Get It button & your ticket coupon code will be generated (Depending on availability)

Step 2: Once the ticket coupon code is generated, follow the link to the Paytm website, to select from the available shows and complete the checkout process

Star Wars: The Last Jedi releases in theatres on 15 December, 2017 in India.
Asheeta Regidi

This article is Part 10 of a multi-part series explaining the recently issued white paper on data protection in India. The responses to the white paper will help in the formulation of Indias future data protection laws. You can read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8 and Part 9.

Regulating and enforcing data protection faces two key challenges  the wide range of entities, sectors and industries which are subject to it and the rapid pace at which technology is developing. In view of the divergent needs of each, a suitable regulatory model needs to be adopted. Once established, it is essential to support this regulation with suitable enforcement mechanisms.

Customising regulation for diverse sectors

The diverse needs of various sectors demonstrate the need for customised regulation. For example, in the telecom sector, ensuring adequate encryption and other security requirements, such as for the various networks, is essential to make sure that there is no snooping on peoples communications. For the financial sector, it is crucial to maintain the confidentiality and security of the data in the possession of the financial entities. This will still need to be disclosed, routinely, to the apex financial regulator to ensure the smooth running of the industry.

Data in the medical sector is even more sensitive but still needs to be shareable with relatives, other health institutes and for research purposes. This data may even need to be shared without consent to save the life of the individual. For data with social media, protecting peoples personal information like photographs and messages from hackers and the government is one consideration and dealing with the privacy implications of a new technology like live streaming is another.

International regulatory models

When considering regulating data protection, different countries have adopted different versions of these models. One is the European model, ie, the general data protection regulation (GDPR), an all-inclusive regulation, applicable to all entities, whether private or public. The second is the US model, featuring an encouragement of self-regulation, through numerous state and sectoral level regulations, along with a few federal regulations. Another is the Singapore model, with one data protection regulation and several guidelines issued through a public consultation process, much like that of TRAI.

The co-regulatory approach for India

These models can be broadly classified into the command and control approach, the self-regulatory approach, and the co-regulatory approach. The White Paper recommends the co-regulatory model for India, an approach that was previously also recommended by the Justice AP Shah Committee. This combines an overarching data protection regulation, along with sector specific self-regulation.

The benefit of this approach is that different industries can customise data protection regulations based on the kind of data they handle. Any aspects or industries that are left out will still be protected under the main regulation.

Inadequate enforcement mechanisms in India

Once a regulatory approach is decided, the next consideration is enforcing it. Prescribing privacy regulations can be effective only when they are backed by adequate enforcement mechanisms. This is, in fact, one of the primary drawbacks in Indias current privacy laws. The IT (Sensitive Persona Data or Information) Rules, for instance, embody most of the privacy principles, such as consent and notice, purpose specification, use limitation, and so on. However, there are next to no enforcement mechanisms.

The IT (SPDI) Rules require adequate security practices, require a regular audit of these practices, and require the body corporate to be able to demonstrate at any time that it has adequate security standards. This is, in fact, similar to the approach of the GDPR. There is, however, no system of checks to ensure implementation, nor is there any consequence or penalty for non-adoption. Thus, despite the rules being in place, the lack of enforcement makes their implementation is limited.

Accountability under Indian laws

The only consequence that will follow will be under Section 43A of the Information Technology Act when the lack of adequate security practices results in a failure to protect the sensitive data, and this leads to a wrongful loss to a person.

The tie-up with the lack of security practices, on the one hand, and the need to prove wrongful loss such as financial loss, on the other, further limit the scope of this section. For instance, many a time, the effects of a loss of data, say a hack of a social media site, are felt much later. This can take the form of another cyber attack, say a spearphishing e-mail targeting the head of a business, sent later using details acquired from the social media hack.

Ineffectiveness of Section 43A

For example, consider the major breach of ATM card details in India in 2016. A person whose debit card was compromised as a result of this hack, would not be entitled to compensation under this provision for the hack itself, for the loss of their data or for any mental agony that results. He will only be entitled to compensation if actual financial loss results to him, such as an actual stealing of funds from his account.

The bank itself, will also not be subject to penalties for any negligence under this provision. Since this example considers the highly regulated financial industry, there are penalties under financial laws, such as the Banking Regulation Act. The example nevertheless demonstrates the failure of Section 43A as a privacy law.

Who should be held accountable?

When considering accountability under the new law, resolving this issue with Section 43A is crucial. A key consideration for this is to define what kind of liability must be established under the new law?

Consider a mobile wallet  this will involve a number of different parties  the app developer, the telecom service provider (TSP) providing communication channels, the m-wallet provider itself, a bank that the m-wallet has tied up with, or the cloud service provider whose services the m-wallet provider is using. The operating system of the phone being used may also be transferring data. For a data breach from the m-wallet app, who should be held responsible  the m-wallet company itself, the app developer for a flaw in the app, or the OS manufacturer for any contributory vulnerability? In this case, should liability apply to all the entities (jointly and severally)?

Another option is to establish strict liability, where the data controller is liable for any loss of data, regardless of the adoption of security practices. This is recommended by the White Paper for inherently risky businesses. This may be considered, for example, for the central identities data repository (CIDR), which stores crucial biometric data.

Yet another option to be considered is the common practice of contracting to establish liability among various parties. The RBI, for instance, allows financial entities to enter into contractual arrangements with outsourcing providers to fix liability, but where the agents of the financial entity are concerned, the financial entity will remain responsible for any violations by them.

Determining security standards and codes of practices

The IT (SPDI) Rules require the adoption of security practices commensurate with the nature of the business and the data in their possession. An international standard such as the IS/ISO/IEC 27001 has been recommended.

This approach has its advantages, in effect, avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach. Industries are thus also encouraged to self-regulate. Small businesses also, this way, are allowed a lower standard of security. Sector-specific regulations, such as the Information Security Guidelines of the RBI, or its Cybersecurity Framework for Banks, follow a similar format, where an extensive set of security standards have been prescribed, but each organisation is expected to customise these to their specific needs. A bank, thus, will have a different set of security practices from, say, a payment bank or a peer to peer lending platform.

This process also has drawbacks to be considered. TRAIs latest consultation paper on data privacy, for instance, appears to be a case of regulatory overreach, unless its scope is restricted to the telecom sector. Another issue that arises is with overlapping obligations from various regulators, as seen for m-wallets, with RBI directions on prepaid payment instruments, and the Meitys IT (SPDI) Rules as well as the proposed Meity rules for prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) specifically, all of which have privacy provisions. Such overlaps can create compliance issues for the governed entities.

Privacy by design

The drawbacks of the notice and consent system for privacy, particularly in view of the overwhelming amounts of data usage for which consent is required, has led to the privacy by design approach. This imposes an obligation on businesses to implement privacy by design or privacy by default. Through this, a business is obliged to consider data privacy at the initial design stages of a project as well as throughout the life cycle of the relevant data processing.

This approach is supported in the GDPR but is again not without issues. For example, OS manufacturers release common APIs based on which apps are developed. A flaw in this can lead to flaws in the whole system.

Consider the Apple HomeKit flaw which left smart gadgets developed using the software development kit vulnerable to attacks. Even OSes like Android and Apple have built-in privacy requirements, such as data which an app can and cannot access, raising issues with their conformability to prescribed privacy requirements.

Key questions raised in the White Paper

In view of these issues, the White Paper has presently sought comments on the following key questions with respect to the regulatory approach and enforcement mechanisms to be adopted:

Is the co-regulatory approach appropriate for India? What about other models like self-regulation and command and control?

What are your views on the principles of accountability?

What organisational measures and standards must be prescribed? Who will determine these standards?

Should lack of organisational measures be linked to the harm caused by establishing liability?

Should all data controllers be jointly and severally liable for harms caused, or can they have contractual arrangements?

Should there be strict liability for specific categories of processing?

Should data controllers be required to take out insurance policies to meet liability requirements?

What are subject matters for which codes of practice can be developed within a data protection law? What is the process of their preparation? Should stakeholders be mandatorily consulted?

Who should issue the codes of practice and how should they be enforced? What are the consequences for violation?

Any other views

Part I of the series explores the definitions of personal data and sensitive personal data, Part II of the series examines the jurisdiction and territorial scope of data protection laws, Part III of the series explores cross-border data flows and data localisation, Part IV deals with exemptions to data protection law, Part V deals with notice and consent, Part VI deals with the big data challenge to privacy principles, Part VII deals with processing of sensitive personal data, Part VIII deals with ensuring data quality and Part IX deals with new rights against discriminatory AI decisions, marketing, etc.

The author is a lawyer and author specialising in technology laws. She is also a certified information privacy professional.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Bangladeshi man with a homemade bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion at a New York commuter hub during rush hour on Monday morning, wounding himself and three others in what New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called an attempted terrorist attack. The suspect in the incident in the Times Square subway station near the Port Authority Bus Terminal was Akayed Ullah, 27, the New York Police Department commissioner said. Ullah had burns and lacerations. Three other people, including a police officer, sustained minor injuries. The weapon was a pipe bomb that was attached to the suspect, police said. New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, speaking at a news conference near the explosion site, described the device as amateur-level. Cuomo told CNN the explosive in the pipe ignited, but the pipe itself did not explode. So he wound up hurting himself, several others in the vicinity. He said the attacker obtained information on how to make a bomb from the internet. Fox News reported that the attacker made the device at his job at an electrical company and there were no known co-conspirators. De Blasio told the news conference the incident, which happened at the start of the morning rush around 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT), was an attempted terrorist attack. The White House said the attack underscored the need for U.S. immigration reforms. We must protect out borders. We must ensure that individuals entering our country are not coming to do harm to our people. And we must move to a merit-based system of immigration, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters at a regular news briefing. Several U.S. officials familiar with the investigation told Reuters that at this point there was no information indicating Ullah was previously known to any American spy or law enforcement agency for any connection to militants or terrorism. This did not, however, categorically rule out some such connection could be found, they said. An authoritative U.S. government source confirmed that Ullah arrived in the United States seven years ago on a visa authorizing his entry due to the U.S. presence of family members. New York City was a target, said John Miller, deputy police commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism. He cited the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, which killed more than 2,750 people in New York and nearly 3,000 people in all; and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, which killed six people. Ullah is from the Bangladeshi city of Chittagong and is a U.S. resident, said the countrys police chief. He had no criminal record there and last visited Bangladesh on Sept. 8, the chief said. Ullah had a black cab/limousine drivers license from 2012 to 2015, the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission said. A pro-Islamic State media group, Maqdisi Media, portrayed the attempted terror attack as a response to U.S. President Donald Trumps recognition on Wednesday of Jerusalem as Israels capital, according to the SITE Intelligence Group. SITE tracks and analyses online activity by extremist groups. Akayed Ullah, a Bangladeshi man who attempted to detonate a homemade bomb strapped to his body at a New York commuter hub during morning rush hour is seen in this handout photo received December 11, 2017. New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission/Handout via REUTERSHowever, CNN, citing a law enforcement source, reported that Ullah told investigators recent Israeli actions in Gaza were the reason he carried out the attack. The incident occurred less than two months after an Uzbek immigrant killed eight people by speeding down a New York City bike path in a rental truck, in an attack for which Islamic State claimed responsibility. In September 2016, a man injured 31 people when he set off a homemade bomb in New Yorks Chelsea neighbourhood. Mondays incident was captured on security video, police said. Video posted on NYPost.com showed smoke and a man lying in a long tunnel that connects sections of the sprawling Times Square subway station. A photograph showed a man lying facedown, with tattered clothes and burns on his torso. EVERYBODY WAS SCARED Slideshow (18 Images)There was a stampede up the stairs to get out, said one commuter, Diego Fernandez. Everybody was scared and running and shouting. The bus terminal was temporarily closed and a large swath of midtown Manhattan was closed to traffic. Subway travel was disrupted but later returned to normal. In December, New York experiences a surge of visitors who come to see elaborate store window displays, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree and Broadway shows. Alicja Wlodkowski, a Pennsylvania resident in New York for the day, was sitting in a restaurant in the bus terminal. Suddenly, I saw a group of people, like six people, running like nuts. A woman fell. No one even went to stop and help her because the panic was so scary. More than 200,000 people use the Times Square station, the citys busiest, each weekday, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Ten train lines stop at the station. The bus terminal is the busiest in the United States, according to the Port Authority. On a typical weekday, about 220,000 passengers arrive or depart on more than 7,000 buses. The bus terminal is adjacent to and above the subway stations western section. A long, narrow underground tunnel connects that part of the station to its eastern section, and is used by thousands of commuters during rush hour. Buskers and other entertainers at entrances to the tunnel often draw crowds. The incident rippled through American financial markets, briefly weakening stock markets as they were starting trading for the week and giving a modest lift to safe-haven assets such as U.S. Treasuries. Technology and energy stocks gained in afternoon trading, helping Wall Street shake off uncertainties following the explosion.

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May hailed a new sense of optimism in Brexit talks, telling parliament on Monday an agreement to move negotiations on to future trade ties is progress and will reassure those concerned Britain may leave with no deal. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at a news conference at the EC headquarters in Brussels, Belgium December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Yves HermanMay, weakened after losing her Conservatives majority at a June election, rescued an agreement last week to move the talks to unravel more than 40 years of union on to a second phase after easing the concerns of her Northern Irish allies over the future role of the border with EU member Ireland. But the discussion of Britains trade relationship with the EU after Brexit contains many pitfalls and could widen differences among her top team of ministers, or cabinet, over how Britain should look after it leaves the bloc. In a statement to parliament, May took to task those who doubted that she could move the talks beyond the initial stage of agreeing terms on how much Britain should pay, citizens rights and the border between the British province of Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. This is good news for people who voted leave who were worried we were so bogged down in the tortuous negotiations it was never going to happen, she told parliament. It is good news for people who voted remain who were worried were going to crash out without a deal. May will head to Brussels on Thursday for a summit meeting at which she expects the leaders of the other 27 EU states to approve an assessment by negotiators that the sides have made sufficient progress to move on to phase two. TROUBLES AHEAD But she warned that the government will only pay a financial settlement if Britain and the EU secure a future trade deal. The deal to launch further talks looked in jeopardy a week ago when May was forced to abandon a choreographed meeting in Brussels intended to seal the deal after her allies in Northern Ireland expressed fears she was proposing a special status for the region - out of sync with the rest of the United Kingdom. After days of diplomacy, there was a compromise - if no overall Brexit deal is secured, Britain will keep full alignment with those rules of the EUs single market that help cooperation between Irelands north and south. But those words have reverberated in both London and Belfast, with Brexit minister David Davis saying they were more a statement of intent than a legally binding move. On Monday, Davis told LBC radio his words had been taken out of context and denied he was backing away from the commitment, which the EU described as a deal between gentlemen. And it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK government, the European Commissions chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters in Brussels. Davis comments may have been aimed at members of the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, which props up Mays Conservative minority government in parliament after the party expressed concerns about how alignment could work without Britain staying in the EUs single market and customs union. Or he may have wanted to ease the fears of some campaigners for Britain to leave the EU, who say the possibility of having to follow the blocs rules would mean that they would have Brexit in name only. But May said the commitments made in the first round of talks -- which includes a payment of 35-39 billion pounds over many years to meet EU obligations -- were necessary to sever ties with the bloc. In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see, she said. A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again. (1 British pound = 1.1376 euros)

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (Reuters) - A raging wildfire pushed toward a string of California coastal cities on Sunday, prompting new evacuations as crews fought to save homes in the face of gusty winds that have fueled blazes across the state for nearly a week. Authorities ordered residents in parts of Carpinteria and Montecito to leave early on Sunday as the Thomas Fire edged closer to Santa Barbara, about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of Los Angeles on the scenic central California coast. The blaze, the worst of six major fires in Southern California in the last week and already the 10th largest on record in the state since 1932, has blackened 173,000 acres (62,726 hectares), destroyed hundreds of structures and left nearly 90,000 homes and businesses without power. The combination of Santa Ana winds and rugged terrain in the mountains that run through Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have hampered firefighting efforts, and officials said the Thomas Fire was only 15 percent contained on Sunday. The National Weather Service said winds of up to 55 miles (88 km) per hour were expected on Sunday evening, up from gusts of 40 miles per hour on Saturday. The fires burning across Southern California have forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people and destroyed nearly 800 structures. Among them are residents of Montecito, one of the states wealthiest communities and home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey. Emmy Leikin, an Emmy-winning songwriter who was ordered to evacuate her Montecito home at 9 a.m. on Sunday, said she fled with only her cell phone, medication, eyeglasses and a few apples. Leikin, 74, said she doesnt know the condition of her home and belongings but none of that means anything when it is your safety. WORST IN A DECADE Firefighters knock down flames as they advance on homes atop Shepherd Mesa Road in Carpinteria, California, U.S. December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department/Handout via REUTERSThe fires that began last Monday night collectively amounted to one of the worst conflagrations across Southern California in the last decade. They have, however, been far less deadly than the blazes in Northern Californias wine country in October that killed over 40. In the last week, only one death has been reported, a 70-year-old woman who died Wednesday in a car accident as she attempted to flee the flames in Ventura County. Scores of horses have died, including at least 46 at a thoroughbred training facility in San Diego county. Residents and firefighters alike have been alarmed by the speed with which the fires spread, reaching into the heart of cities like Ventura. Slideshow (9 Images)At the Ventura County Fairgrounds, evacuees slept in makeshift beds while rescued horses were sheltered in stables. Peggy Scissons, 78, arrived at the shelter with her dog last Wednesday, after residents of her mobile home park were forced to leave. She has not yet found out whether her home is standing. I dont know whats gonna happen next or whether Ill be able to go home, she said. It would be one thing if I were 40 or 50, but Im 78. What the heck do I do? James Brown, 57, who retired from Washington States forestry service and has lived in Ventura for a year, was forced to leave his house along with his wife last week because both have breathing problems. We knew a fire was coming, but we didnt know it would be this bad, said Brown, who is in a wheelchair. Some of the other fires, in San Diego and Los Angeles counties, have been largely controlled by the thousands of firefighters on the ground this week. Both the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County were 90 percent contained by Sunday morning, officials said, while the Skirball Fire in Los Angeles posh Bel Air neighborhood was 75 percent contained. North of San Diego, the 4,100-acre (1,659 hectare) Lilac Fire was 60 percent contained by Sunday.Governor Jerry Brown, who surveyed the devastation in Ventura on Saturday, said the outbreak of December fires may be the new normal for the state, saying global warming was exacerbating drought conditions.

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BARCELONA (Reuters) - Protesters clashed with police trying to reclaim disputed religious artefacts from a museum in Catalonia on Monday, in the latest display of tension between Catalan separatists and Spains central government ahead of a Dec. 21 election. A monastery in neighbouring Aragon region says over 44 of its artefacts were sold illegally to Catalonia in the 1980s and the issue has become a symbol of broader disagreement between opponents and supporters of Catalan independence. Culture Minister Inigo Mendez de Vigo angered Catalan nationalists in November by using special temporary powers to accept a petition by a judge from Aragon calling for the artefacts to be returned to their previous home, the Monastery of Sijena. The previous month, Madrid took control of Catalonia to quell the crisis over secession and called a snap regional election. Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan regional police officers) scuffle with protestors in front of the Museum of Leida after police entered the museum to carry out an order and return over 40 contested artworks to the Spanish region of Aragon following a protracted legal battle in Lleida, Spain, December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Albert SalameHundreds of demonstrators on Monday massed at the museum of Lleida in western Catalonia where the artefacts were kept and pro-independence groups called supporters to stop the police from removing them. There were minor scuffles, though no injuries were reported and the artefacts were eventually taken away at around noon. Slideshow (2 Images)Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, currently in self-imposed exile in Brussels, criticised the move on Twitter and blamed the three principal unionist parties running in upcoming elections, the ruling Peoples party (PP), the socialist party and Ciudadanos. Carried out at night and using a militarised police force, as always, and taking advantage of a coup detat to plunder Catalonia with complete impunity: This is the model that Ciudadanos, PSC and PP defend, Puigdemont said. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said his government could not oppose court rulings because it would mean stepping outside the rule of law.

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Beijing: Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has said India and China's strategic interests outweigh "partial frictions" and handling of the Doka La standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties.

Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India-China (RIC) foreign ministers' meeting to be held in New Delhi on Monday during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always values good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as "we are each other's big neighbours and ancient civilisations".

He said India-China strategic interests outweigh differences and "partial friction".

"We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into China's Doka La area through diplomatic measures," Wang told a symposium Beijing last week, maintaining Beijing's stand.

"Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability," he said in his speech posted on the website of the foreign ministry.

"China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction," he said.

As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a "prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1 + 1 = 11 outlook," Wang said.

The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about China's diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region.

Wang's visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Doka La standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping.

The over two-month Doka La standoff ended on 28 August after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'Chicken Neck' corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan. Wang's visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi's trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks.

Yang along National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties.

In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and China's diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about China's foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in- five-years Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October.

The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for China's external relations. Wang said China needs to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

"For China's diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful," he said.

He reiterated that "war is by no means acceptable" in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains.

On ties with the US, he said "China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions," official media quoted him as saying.

He said the China-Russia relationship has become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) he said it has become "the most popular international public goods programme".

Chinese businesses have invested over USD 50 billion and created nearly 2,00,000 local jobs in countries that are participating, he said.

India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI.

On Wang's visit to Delhi, Chinese think tanks said RIC foreign ministers' meeting offers Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which will effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Doka La standoff.

"Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track," said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times. China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily.

China has opposed India's moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN. Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides may help sort out differences on BRI. China also continues to oppose India's bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Jerusalem: The United States accused the Palestinian Authority on Sunday of "walking away" from a chance to discuss peace in West Asia by snubbing Vice-President Mike Pence on an upcoming visit.

"It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region," Jarrod Agen, Pence's deputy chief of staff, said in a statement.

The comments come after the Palestinian Authority said that its president Mahmud Abbas would refuse to meet Pence later in December in protest at the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Brussels: European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is meeting with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address the issues of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and the chances of reinvigorating negotiations on the peace process.

Mogherini has joined many EU leaders in expressing disapproval of the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. She said during a joint media address Monday that "the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both."

Netanyahu insisted that what US president Donald Trump did was "put facts squarely on the table. Peace is based on reality."

He said the reality of seeing Jerusalem as Israel's capital "doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible."
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took his case to Europe to ask allies to join the United States in recognising Jerusalem as Israels capital, but was met by a firm rebuff from EU foreign ministers who saw the move as a blow against the peace process. Making his first ever visit to EU headquarters in Brussels, Netanyahu said President Donald Trumps move made peace in the Middle East possible because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace. Trump announced last Wednesday that the United States would recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, breaking with decades of U.S. policy and international consensus that the ancient citys status must be decided in Israeli-Palestinian talks. Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in a 1967 war, considers the entire city to be its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state. The Trump administration says it remains committed to the peace process and its decision does not affect Jerusalems future borders or status. It says any credible future peace deal will place the Israeli capital in Jerusalem, and ditching old policies is needed to revive a peace process frozen since 2014. But even Israels closest European allies have rejected that logic and say recognising Israels capital unilaterally risks inflaming violence and further wrecking the chance for peace. After a breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Swedens top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Trumps decision, and no country was likely to follow the United States in announcing plans to move its embassy. I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I dont think any other EU country will do it, Margot Wallstrom told reporters. Several EU foreign ministers arriving at the meeting reiterated the blocs position that lands Israel has occupied since the 1967 war - including East Jerusalem as well as the West Bank and Golan Heights, are not within Israels borders. Israels position does appear to have more support from some EU states than others. Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Hungary blocked a planned EU statement condemning the U.S. move. But Prague later said it accepted Israels sovereignty only over West Jerusalem, and Budapest said its long-term position seeking a two-state solution in the Middle East had not changed. On Monday, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said of Trumps decision: Im afraid it cant help us. Im convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution, Zaoralek said. We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state. VIOLENCE SUBSIDES Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini brief the media at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Francois LenoirTrumps announcement triggered days of protests across the Muslim world and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in which scores of Palestinians were wounded and several killed. By Monday morning, violence appeared to have subsided. Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EUs search for closer business ties with Iran, said Europeans should emulate Trumps move and press the Palestinians to do so too. Its time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. Its called Jerusalem, he said. In comments filmed later on his plane, he said he had told the Europeans to stop pampering the Palestinians. I think the Palestinians need a reality check. You have to stop cutting them slack. Thats the only way to move forward towards peace. Trumps announcement last week has triggered a war of words between Netanyahu and Turkeys President Tayyip Erdogan, straining ties between the two U.S. allies which were restored only last year after a six year breach that followed the Israeli storming of a Turkish aid ship bound for Gaza. Slideshow (3 Images)On Sunday, Erdogan called Israel a terror state. Netanyahu responded by saying he would accept no moral lectures from Erdogan who he accused of bombing Kurdish villages, jailing opponents and supporting terrorists. On Monday Erdogan took aim directly at Washington over Trumps move: The ones who made Jerusalem a dungeon for Muslims and members of other religions will never be able to clean the blood from their hands, he said in a speech in Ankara. With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed. The decision to recognise Jerusalem could also strain Washingtons ties with its other main Muslim ally in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, which has sought closer relations with Washington under Trump than under his predecessor Barack Obama. Saudi Arabia shares U.S. and Israeli concerns about the increasing regional influence of Iran, and was seen as a potential broker for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal. But Saudis have suggested that unilateral decisions over Jerusalem make any such rapprochement more difficult. Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi ambassador to the United States and veteran ex-security chief, published a strongly-worded open letter to Trump on Monday denouncing the Jerusalem move. Bloodshed and mayhem will definitely follow your opportunistic attempt to make electoral gain, the prince wrote in a letter published in the Saudi newspaper al-Jazeera. Your action has emboldened the most extreme elements in the Israeli society ... because they take your action as a license to evict the Palestinians from their lands and subject them to an apartheid state, he added. Your action has equally emboldened Iran and its terrorist minions to claim that they are the legitimate defenders of Palestinian rights. The Trump administration says it is working on a peace proposal being drawn up by Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt and Trumps son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner. European leaders say the decision on Israels capital makes the need for a broader peace move more urgent. Weve been waiting already for several months for the American initiative, and if one is not forthcoming then the European Union will have to take the initiative, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said.

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MANILA (Reuters) - As she announced in January 2016 that the Philippines would immunize one million children with a new dengue vaccine, the nations then health secretary Janette Garin boasted it was a world-first and a tribute to her countrys expertise in research. FILE PHOTO: A worker shows used anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia inside a vaccine storage room in Sta. Cruz city, Metro Manila, Philippines December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco/File PhotoAt the time, it seemed the Philippines could be on the cusp of a breakthrough to combat a potentially lethal tropical virus that had been endemic in large parts of the Southeast Asian nation for decades. Almost two years later, the program lies in tatters and has been suspended after Sanofi Pasteur, a division of French drug firm Sanofi, said at the end of last month the vaccine itself can cause severe dengue in recipients not previously infected by the virus. Documents reviewed by Reuters that have not been disclosed until now, as well as interviews with local experts, show that key recommendations made by a Philippines Department of Health (DOH) advisory body of doctors and pharmacologists were not heeded before the program was rolled out to 830,000 children. After Garins announcement, the Formulary Executive Council (FEC) of advisers urged caution over the vaccine because it said its safety and cost-effectiveness had not been established. After twice meeting in January, the panel approved the states purchase of the vaccine on Feb 1, 2016 but recommended stringent conditions, minutes of all three meetings show. Based on the available scientific evidence presented to the Council, there is still a need to establish long-term safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness, the FEC told Garin in a letter on that day. The letter was reviewed by Reuters. The FEC said Dengvaxia should be introduced through small-scale pilot tests and phased implementation rather than across three regions in the country at the same time, and only after a detailed baseline study of the prevalence and strains of dengue in the targeted area, the FEC letter and minutes of the meetings said. The experts also recommended that Dengvaxia be bought in small batches so the price could be negotiated down. An economic evaluation report commissioned by Garins own department had found the proposed cost of 1,000 pesos ($21.29) per dose was not cost-effective from a public payer perspective, the minutes from the meetings reveal. For reasons that Reuters was unable to determine, these recommendations were ignored. VERY ANGRY The DOH purchased 3 million doses of Dengvaxia in one lot, enough for the required three vaccinations for each child in the proposed immunization program and paid 1,000 pesos per dose, a copy of the purchase order reviewed by Reuters shows. It did conduct a limited baseline study in late February and March 2016, but the survey looked at common illnesses rather than the prevalence of dengue, according to guidelines issued by Garins office at the time and reviewed by Reuters. Garin, who was part of the government of former president Benigno Aquino and replaced when President Rodrigo Duterte took power in June, 2016, did not respond to requests for comment on why she ignored the local experts recommendations. A physician, Garin has defended her conduct and a program that she said was implemented in accordance with WHO guidance and recommendations. I understand the concern, she told Philippine TV station ABS-CBN on Friday. Even us, were also very angry when we learned about Sanofis announcement about severe dengue. Im also a mother. My child was also vaccinated. I was also vaccinated. DOH spokesman Lyndon Lee Suy also did not respond to text messages or questions emailed to him. Sanofi Philippines declined comment on the Philippines government decision. However, Dr. Su-Peing Ng, Global Medical Head of Sanofi Pasteur, told Reuters: We communicated all known benefits and risks of the vaccine to the Philippines government. Rontgene Solante, former president of the Philippines Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, said health officials were motivated to end the debilitating impact of dengue on the Philippines, where there are about 200,000 reported cases each year and many more unreported. Over 1,000 people died of the disease in the country last year. FILE PHOTO: Concepcion Yusop, a national immunization program manager, shows an anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia inside a vaccine storage room in Sta. Cruz city, Metro Manila, Philippines December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco/File PhotoTwo months after the FEC wrote to the health secretary, the DOH began immunizing one million students around the age of 10 in all three target areas in April 2016, in accordance with its original plan but at odds with the FECs recommendations to conduct a slow roll-out of the vaccine. The usual process for the DOH that has protected our children for so many decades was not followed. Thats a fact, said Susan Mercado, a former Philippines health department undersecretary and former senior official at the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO said in April 2016 that the Philippines campaign appeared to meet its criteria for using Dengvaxia because the targeted regions had high levels of dengue exposure; the vaccine would be provided to children 9 years and older; and they would each receive three doses. Now, after Sanofis warnings, WHO has said it agrees with the governments decision to suspend the immunization program. SHOULDNT IGNORE EXPERTISE The current secretary of health in the Duterte administration, Francisco Duque, said he would carry out a thorough analysis of the FECs recommendations and the program before passing judgment. He said the Councils recommendations were not legally enforceable. Slideshow (4 Images)At the end of the day, the final decision is made by (the)secretary of health, he told Reuters. But because of the expertise that the members of the FEC have, it is something that you dont want to ignore. Underpinning the concerns in 2016 about Dengvaxia, since confirmed by Sanofi, were fears that the vaccine would act like a primary infection for those who had never had dengue. If they were bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus after the vaccination, it could be akin to getting dengue a second time, which often leads to far more severe symptoms and potentially death if bad cases are not treated quickly. The concerns were first raised by noted U.S.-based tropical disease expert, Dr. Scott Halstead, who urged both Sanofi and the WHO to proceed with caution. In the Philippines, Dr. Antonio Gans, an epidemiologist from the University of the Philippines, led a delegation of physicians to the DOH in March 2016 where, citing Halsteads research, they pressed for the campaign to be aborted. The data was not definitive but it was clear there were uncertainties and risks. Why not wait for the complete studies to be finished before endangering so many children? Gans told Reuters. In a Senate hearing late last year, Garin said she was aware of Halsteads assessment but dismissed it. This is a theory ... it has not been proven, she said at the time. FEAR AND CONFUSION Two sources involved in the program said no antibody testing was undertaken, as recommended by the FEC. Antibody testing, while not 100 percent accurate, indicates whether an individual has had dengue before. Duque, the current health secretary, is demanding the company refund the 3 billion pesos ($60 million) paid for the vaccinations and has threatened legal action against Sanofi if it is proven to have withheld information. A criminal probe is underway into how a danger to public health came about and two Congressional inquiries have been convened in the Philippines. Duque told Reuters he was concerned that the program was paid from an off-budget allocation, meaning it bypassed Congressional scrutiny. Reuters was unable to confirm this. Until now, one child out of the 830,000 vaccinated, a girl who was hospitalized with severe dengue, has been linked definitively by the DOH to the campaign. But the department of health says it still does not have complete data on those who fell ill after taking Dengvaxia.

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(Reuters) - An explosion on Monday shook the area near New Yorks Port Authority Bus Terminal, one of the citys busiest commuter hubs, and authorities said a suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, and three other people were injured. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called the explosion an attempted terrorist attack. A police officer stands guard outside the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal after reports of an explosion in New York City, New York, U.S., December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Lucas JacksonThe following are some of the other attacks carried out in New York in recent years: Oct. 31, 2017 - Sayfullo Saipov drove a truck down a lower Manhattan bike lane, killing eight people, including five Argentinians who were in the city to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their high school graduation. A police officer shot Saipov, 29, and arrested him. The Uzbek immigrant has pleaded not guilty to murder, attempted murder and other counts. March 20, 2017 - James Harris Jackson, a 28-year-old white man, stabbed Timothy Caughman, an African-American, multiple times with a sword. Caughman later died of his injuries and Jackson told police he traveled to the city from Maryland to kill black men. September 2016 - Three bombs exploded in the New York area, two in Manhattans Chelsea neighborhood and one in New Jersey, wounding 31 people. Several unexploded bombs were also found. The suspect, Ahmad Khan Rahimi of New Jersey, was captured after a shootout with police. Rahimi, who was born in Afghanistan, was influenced by anti-American materials believed to be produced by Islamist militant group al Qaeda, prosecutors said. May 2010 - Times Square was evacuated when a car bomb that failed to explode was found in a sport utility vehicle. Faisal Shahzad, a naturalized American and Taliban-trained militant, later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment. March 2008 - An individual detonated a small pipe bomb in front of the U.S. Armed Forces recruiting station in Times Square. No one was injured. December 2004 - A firebomb exploded on a crowded subway train in lower Manhattan, injuring 48 people. Six days earlier, a firebomb went off on a subway in Manhattans Harlem section, injuring two teen-agers. Edward Leary, 50, of Scotch Plains, New Jersey, was sentenced to 94 years in prison in the two bombings. The second bomb went off at his feet, leaving him critically burned. Sept. 11, 2001 - Members of al Qaeda flew two passenger planes into the north and south towers of Manhattans World Trade Center. The attacks, which involved a third plane that crashed into the Pentagon just outside Washington and a plane that crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killed 2,996 people and injured over 6,000 others. The death toll included more than 2,700 people who were in the World Trade Center and on the ground. 1997 - Palestinian teacher Ali Hassan Abu Kamal opened fire on the observation deck of the Empire State Building in February, killing one person and wounding six others before shooting himself. 1994 - Lebanese-born immigrant Rashid Baz shot at a van of Orthodox Jewish students on the Brooklyn Bridge, killing one and wounding three others. 1993 - Militants detonated a truck bomb below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in February, killing six people and injuring over a thousand.

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London: The heaviest snowfall to hit Britain in four years caused widespread disruption on Sunday, with roads becoming hazardous and flights grounded following runway closures.

Birmingham Airport, serving the country's second biggest city, suspended flights for all of Sunday morning, as staff worked to clear the runway amid heavy snow.

A spokeswoman told AFP they expected it to reopen.

The airport, which typically handles around 30,000 passengers and 200 flights a day in December, diverted 11 flights elsewhere and expected to cancel more than that, she added.

Meanwhile, London Luton Airport closed its runway for two hours before reopening around 1130 GMT to departing aircraft, according to a spokesman.

It had opened to incoming flights by early Sunday afternoon.

"All flights (are) subject to delay or cancellation," he said.

Delayed passengers took to Twitter to complain, with one frustrated traveller describing the airport as "like a war zone".

Police forces in worst-hit Wales and central England urged motorists not to travel unless "absolutely necessary" as they dealt with surging calls.

A spokesman for the Highways England agency said there had been road incidents "all over the place".

The flurries continued to fall into the afternoon, raising the prospect of roads becoming impassable.

Swathes of Britain were hit by the snowfall on Sunday, with significant accumulation in central and western regions, according to the Met Office, the country's official weather service.

Sennybridge, in Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales, topped the records with 30 cm, while Coleshill, close to Birmingham, received 10 cm, it reported.

Meanwhile, light snow and sleet fell through the morning in London, leaving Northolt, on the outskirts of the capital, with a covering of two cm, the Met Office said.
The Palestinians staged three "days of rage" after US president Donald Trump's dramatic announcement recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, with clashes breaking out in flashpoints across the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, and Gaza militants firing rockets into Israel. Four people in Gaza were killed. In the West Bank, there were dozens of injuries, but no deaths.

In Jerusalem, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard, seriously wounding him in the first attack in the volatile city since Trump's pronouncement on Wednesday. There were indications that Sunday's stabbing at the Jerusalem bus station was motivated by Trump's move, although police did not officially confirm it.

They said the attacker was a 24-year-old Palestinian from the West Bank city of Nablus. Israeli media identified him as Yassin Abu al-Qarah, who posted on his Facebook page in recent days about Jerusalem, saying "our blood is devoted" to the holy city. Comments on his profile called him a hero for the alleged attack.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the guard sustained a serious wound to his upper body and the attacker was apprehended.

Protests in Bethlehem, Beirut

Palestinian youths also clashed in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, hurling stones at Israeli soldiers, who fired back with rubber bullets and tear gas.

In Beirut, Lebanese security forces broke up the protest outside the US Embassy after demonstrators pelted them with stones. After a rowdy start, the protest drew several hundred people and became more peaceful, with demonstrators chanting and singing.

Clashes resumed in the afternoon, with security forces chasing and arresting a handful of protesters and lobbing tear gas. Lebanon is home to 450,000 Palestinian refugees, nearly 10 percent of the population.

Demonstrators flood Jakarta's streets

About 10,000 people also rallied on Sunday outside the US Embassy in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to denounce Trump's decision.

Similar protests, mostly organized by the Islamist Prosperous Justice Party, or PKS, also were held in many other cities in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country.

The protests were the third and biggest in Indonesia since Trump's decision on Thursday.

In the capital, protesters carried banners reading "US Embassy, Get Out from Al Quds," ''Free Jerusalem and Palestinians" and "We are with the Palestinians." Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

Wearing traditional Islamic white robes, the protesters also unfurled Indonesian and Palestinian flags.

A written statement from PKS described Trump's decision as "a form of humiliation and provocation against Muslims all over the world."

It said similar and simultaneous protests also were held Sunday in at least 10 provincial capitals and cities across Indonesia.

Earlier in the day, another group, calling itself Indonesia's Volunteers Society, held a similar rally in Jakarta, hundreds of meters (yards) from the embassy.

Indonesian president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has strongly condemned Trump's move, which he described as a violation of UN resolutions.

Indonesia has long been a strong supporter of Palestinians and has no diplomatic ties with Israel.

With inputs from AP
New Delhi: India, Russia and China on Monday called for a peaceful and stable Afghanistan through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process following the 15th Foreign Ministerial Meeting between the three countries in New Delhi.

"We reiterate our support to the government and the people of Afghanistan in their efforts to achieve an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned national peace and reconciliation and build a peaceful, secure, united, sovereign, democratic, stable, prosperous and pluralistic state," a joint statement issued following the meeting, which was attended by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Chinese and Russian counterparts, Wang Yi and Sergey Lavrov, said.

"We share the view that a capable and effective Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) should be the key to the stabilisation of Afghanistan," it said.

"Noting the significant increase of opium poppy production in Afghanistan and the nexus between narcotics revenue and its financial support for terrorism, we emphasise the need for stepping up result-oriented international efforts aimed at countering the Afghan drug threat."

The three countries also stressed on the importance of multilateral region-led interaction on Afghan issues, primarily by those organisations which consist of Afghanistan's neighbouring countries and other regional states, such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the Moscow format, the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process, the Kabul Process and the Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan.

To achieve peace and stability in West Asia, the three countries reiterated "the need for a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the basis of the relevant UN Resolutions, the Arab peace initiative and previous agreements between the parties through negotiations aimed at creating an independent, viable, territorially contiguous Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel within mutually agreed and internationally recognized borders".

On the crisis in Syria, the three countries reaffirmed that the only lasting solution was "through an inclusive Syrian-led, Syrian-owned political process which safeguards the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Syria, in pursuance of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2254(2015), and promotes the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people".

The three sides expressed concern over the continuing conflict in Yemen which has led to the killing of civilians and to the destruction of civilian infrastructure.

"We call for urgent measures by the international community to alleviate social and economic situation in the country and to facilitate unhindered access to humanitarian aid to all parts of the Yemen Republic," the statement said.

The three countries also expressed deep concern over the ongoing tension on the Korean peninsula as a result of the nuclear and ballistic missile programmes of North Korea.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. District Court judge told President Donald Trumps former campaign manager Paul Manafort on Monday to stop communicating with the media in ways that might affect the outcome of his trial but she agreed to consider a proposal to ease his bail restrictions. Paul Manafort, campaign manager to Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump, escapes a mob of reporters asking about the Republican National Convention Committee on Rules in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. July 14, 2016. REUTERS/Rick Wilking/FilesU.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson said she would take under advisement Manaforts proposal to have his house arrest lifted in exchange for accepting four of his properties as collateral. She also ordered Manafort, who is under a gag order, to stop communicating with the press in ways that might affect the outcome of his case after he helped ghost write an opinion piece that was published in an Ukrainian newspaper.

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Amid global calls to restore peace and stability in Myanmar's northern Rakhine, the Lashkar-e-Taiba's (LeT) charitable wing, the Falah-i-Insaniat Foundation (FIF), has reached out to the Muslim population in the troubled state and has reportedly distributed millions in cash.

According to a report in The Indian Express, propaganda material released online by the organisation claimed that FIF volunteers had distributed "millions in cash money and blankets among more than 300 besieged Rohingya Muslims".

Shahid Mahmood, FIFs head of foreign operations said in an online statement that the FIF intended to start its relief activities in all areas of Burma where Muslims are besieged".

The claim was backed by Bangladesh-based intelligence officials, who told The Indian Express that "the group had been operating in refugee camps near the town of Coxs Bazaar, with the help of local Islamist groups".

Rohingya leaders based in Dubai and Pakistan are now enlisting the support of Lashkar-e-Taiba affiliate Jamaat-ud Dawah (JuD) towards the cause of the Rohingya settlers in Pakistan and other countries including India, according to latest intelligence reports, The Times of India said.

The report states that Firdous Sheikh, the Dubai-based president of Rohingya Federation of Arakan, had visited Pakistan last month and had attended seminars in support of Rohingya Muslims.

During this visit, he met Naveed Qamar, JuD 'amir' based in Karachi, along with Noor Hussain, Pakistan-based leader of Rohingya Solidarity Organisation and president of the Burmese Muslim Welfare Organisation.

The FIF claim seems to confirm India's stand, which had stated that it had adequate intelligence to confirm LeT's role in radicalising Rohingyas with its so-called charitable avatar and then through frontmen in the Rakhine state in Myanmar.

According to a report in Hindustan Times, India first grew suspicious of LeT involvement in 2012-13 when it got inputs from Bangladesh and suspected that Rohingya radicals and LeT had a hand in the blasts that rocked Bodh Gaya, the report said.

LeT founder Hafiz Saeed has also been vocal in accusing India of aiding the Myanmar regime in its persecution of Rohingyas. In an unauthenticated video, he had urged the Rohingya Muslims of fleeing Myanmar to 'join jihad'.

According to a DNA report, the video shows LeT and JuD chief calling on the Rohingya to wage a 'holy war' if they are threatened.

Responding to Saeed's calls, the Union home ministry had submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court on the deportation of Rohingya immigrants to Myanmar and had called them a "security threat to India".

In the affidavit, the government said it had reports from security agencies and other credible sources "indicating linkages of some of the unauthorised Rohingya immigrants with Pakistan-based terror organisations and similar organisations operating in other countries".

With inputs from agencies
Seoul: South Korean President Moon Jae-In hopes to "normalise" ties with giant neighbour China on his first state visit to the country this week, his office said Monday, after Beijing was infuriated by a US missile system deployment.

Seoul and Washington decided to install the powerful US THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system in the South earlier this year to guard against threats from the nuclear-armed North.

Beijing saw it as a threat to its own security and reacted furiously, slapping a string of measures against South Korean businesses and banning group tours to the South, in moves seen as economic retaliation.

China is the South's top trading partner and the diplomatic row took a major toll on many South Korean firms, most notably retail giant Lotte Group, which provided the land to host the powerful US missile system.

Angry boycott campaigns and regulatory crackdowns by Chinese authorities decimated its business in the world's second-largest economy, and it was forced to put its supermarket unit in China up for sale.

But last month the two countries issued identically-worded statements on their mutual desire to improve relations.

It did not state any specifics, but Beijing has demanded that Seoul formally promise not to deploy any more THAAD launchers and not to join any regional US missile defence system.

Nam Gwan-Pyo, a deputy director of the presidential national security office, did not give reporters details of any concrete steps that could be expected from Moon's four-day trip  his first to China since taking power in May.

But he said it would be a turning point in relations towards a "more mature" relationship, he said, "by recovering bilateral trust and strengthening friendship between the leaders of the two nations".

Ties recently showed some  albeit limited  signs of thaw as China's state tourism board approved last month Seoul-bound group tours from some parts of China.

Moon heads to Beijing on Wednesday and will hold a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping the following day to discuss issues including how to curb the North's nuclear weapons drive, Nam added.

China  the North's sole diplomatic ally and economic lifeline  has stepped up sanctions on the North amid pressure from the US and the international community to play a bigger role in taming its regime.

Beijing has backed recent UN sanctions imposed on the North over its nuclear and missile tests, including a ban on coal imports, although it repeatedly pushed for talks to defuse the tensions.

It has urged a "double freeze" on both North Korean weapons tests and joint military exercises by Seoul and Washington  an idea consistently rejected by the US and South Korea.
Kathmandu: A Left alliance between former Maoist rebels and moderate communists was poised to form the next government in Nepal as it headed for a clear majority after winning 91 seats so far in the historic polls many hope will bring political stability to the country.

The CPN-UML led by former prime minister KP Oli and the CPN-Maoist led by former premier Prachanda have forged an electoral alliance for both the provincial and parliamentary elections.

According to results released by the Election Commission on Sunday, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified MarxistLeninist (CPN-UML) has won 66 seats while its alliance partner CPN Maoist-Centre bagged 25 seats out of the total 165 seats under the first-past-the-post election system.

The ruling Nepali Congress (NC), which was the largest party in the last election, managed to win only 14 seats, according to tallies.

As the Left alliance headed for a clear majority in the 275-member Parliament, Oli was being projected to succeed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Oli won from the Jhapa-5 constituency by more than 28,000 votes as he defeated Nepali Congress candidate Khagendra Adhikari.

He polled 57,139 votes, the highest number of votes so far secured by any candidate in the election.

Two Madhesi parties, Federal Socialist Party Nepal and Rastriya Janata Party, have so far secured 11 Parliamentary seats each.

The Rastriya Prajatantra Party, the Naya Shakti Party led by former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai and an independent candidate have secured one seat each.

The counting of votes in the proportionate voting system was under progress.

The NC is expected to perform better in the proportionate voting, which was evident from the initial counting trends.

The final results would be declared after the counting of votes for the proportionate voting system.

A Maoist leader, on the condition of anonymity, said that though the Left alliance is tilted towards the northern neighbour (China), the new government needs to strike a balance between the country's two giant neighbours (India and China) while pursuing its foreign policy.

The two parties are also considering to merge to form the largest communist party in Nepal.

If they merge, the post of party president and the country's president will be shared between Maoist chief Prachanda and top UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, according to party insiders.

Nepal has won the parliamentary election from Kathmandu-2 while Prachanda is set to win from Chitawan-3 constituency.

There was a tacit understanding among three key leaders of the alliance to share the three top posts, reliable sources have claimed.

The house of representatives consists of 275 members, of which 165 would be elected directly under the first-past-the-post system while the remaining 110 will come through the proportional representation system.

Voting in two-phased parliamentary and provincial assembly elections were held on 26 November and 7 December.

In the first phase, polling was held in 32 districts, mostly situated in the hilly and mountainous region, in which 65 percent of voters had exercised their franchise. In the second phase, 67 percent voter turnout was registered. A total of 1,663 candidates contested polls for parliamentary seats.
VENTURA, Calif. (Reuters) - Californias largest wildfire pushed toward prosperous coastal cities on Sunday, prompting a new wave of evacuations as firefighters struggled to curb its destructive power with the gusty winds that have fueled fires for nearly a week. Authorities ordered residents in parts of Carpinteria and Montecito to evacuate early on Sunday as the Thomas Fire edged closer to the city of Santa Barbara, about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of Los Angeles. The blaze, the worst of six major fires in Southern California in the last week, has already blackened 173,000 acres (62,726 hectares), consumed hundreds of structures and left nearly 90,000 homes and businesses in the area without power. The combination of Santa Ana winds and rugged terrain in the mountains that run through Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have hampered firefighting efforts, and officials said the Thomas Fire was only 15 percent contained on Sunday. The National Weather Service said winds of up to 55 miles (88 km) per hour were expected on Sunday, up from top speeds of 40 miles per hour on Saturday. The fires raging across Southern California have forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people and destroyed nearly 800 structures. Governor Jerry Brown, who surveyed the devastation in Ventura on Saturday, said the ferocious fires in December may be the new normal for the state, with climate change exacerbating the drought conditions that stoke such blazes. At the Ventura County Fairgrounds, evacuees slept in makeshift beds while rescued horses were sheltered in stables. A steady stream of rescue workers streamed in and out of the entrance early on Sunday. Peggy Scissons, 78, arrived at the shelter with her dog last Wednesday, after residents of her mobile home park were forced to leave. She has not yet found out whether her home is standing. Firefighters knock down flames as they advance on homes atop Shepherd Mesa Road in Carpinteria, California, U.S. December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department/Handout via REUTERSI dont know whats gonna happen next or whether Ill be able to go home, she said. It would be one thing if I were 40 or 50, but Im 78. What the heck do I do? James Brown, 57, who retired from Washington States forestry service and has lived in Ventura for a year, was forced to leave his house along with his wife last week because both have breathing problems. It brought back old memories, fighting forest fires, said Brown, who is in a wheelchair. We knew a fire was coming, but we didnt know it would be this bad. Slideshow (9 Images)Thus far, the fires have been blamed for a single death, after a 70-year-old woman who died Wednesday in a car accident as she attempted to flee the flames in Ventura County. Scores of horses have died, including at least 46 at a thoroughbred training facility. Some of the other fires, in San Diego and Los Angeles counties, have been largely controlled by the thousands of firefighters on the ground this week. Both the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County were 90 percent contained by Sunday morning, officials said, while the Skirball Fire in Los Angeles Bel Air neighborhood was 75 percent contained. North of San Diego, the 4,100-acre (1,659 hectare) Lilac Fire was 60 percent contained by Sunday. Brown issued emergency proclamations last week for Santa Barbara, San Diego, Los Angeles and Ventura counties, freeing up additional resources to fight the infernos. President Donald Trump issued a federal proclamation that enabled agencies to coordinate relief efforts.

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An explosion of unknown origin took place in the New York City subway near the Times Square area of Manhattan on Monday, according to several media reports. A pipe bomb that was strapped to a man went off, injuring the suspect and three others on the platform at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials.

The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time, tweets New York City Police Department  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

One person was taken into custody by New York Police Department while subway lines A, C and E lines were being evacuated, the New York City Police Department tweeted. Police have identified the 27-year-old man who detonated the explosive device as Akayed Ullah and authorities have called the incident an attempted terrorist attack. Law enforcement officials said he was inspired by the Islamic State but had apparently not had any direct contact with the terror group.

The person on the platform was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries, The Associated Press reported.

The explosion, which happened around 7:30 am, triggered a massive emergency response by New York police and fire both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has tweeted that President Trump has been briefed on the explosion.

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

New York Governor Andrew Mark Cuomo called the incident "frightening and disturbing".

The incident was frightening and disturbing. It was a low tech device. Situation was handled extraordinarily well. A sweep is being done. The service at the subway is being restored: Andrew Mark Cuomo, New York Governor on New York subway pipe bombing pic.twitter.com/jWaQnv913M  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

Everything around the Port Authority in the 42nd Street area was shut down  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations following the explosion.

NJ Transit says buses are taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken. From there, they can take trains or PATH into the city.

Trains, PATH, light rail and ferries are honouring bus tickets into New York.

With inputs from agencies
New York: A man with a pipe bomb strapped to his body with Velcro and zip ties set off the crude device in the subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring him and three other people at the height of the morning rush hour.

All four were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries in what the mayor and police labeled an attempted terror attack.

The explosion happened in a long underground passageway that runs a full city block under 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. The 7:20 am blast caused smoke to fill the passageway, which was crowded with Monday morning commuters.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner James P O'Neill labeled it an attempted terror attack.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," de Blasio said.

The suspect was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

Law enforcement officials said he was inspired by the Islamic State group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group. The officials said he lives in Brooklyn and may be of Bangladeshi descent. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the blast.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device. They were investigating how it was made, and combing through surveillance footage that captured the blast on video.

A video posted on social media showed the security footage. In it, a man walks through the crowded pedestrian tunnel and the bomb suddenly going off in a plume of white smoke. Through the smoke, the suspect is then seen sprawled on the ground as bystanders flee.

Fire officials said the suspect had burns to his hands and abdomen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in ears and headaches.

Police are investigating whether Ullah intended to set off the device in the walkway, or whether he had meant to do it in a busier location.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff. A police officer is holding the man's hands behind his back.

A Brooklyn man has been arrested after allegedly detonating a homemade pipe bomb inside the Port Authority https://t.co/JdHgIez0Fe pic.twitter.com/QuNAxQRGv8  New York Post (@nypost) December 11, 2017

The explosion triggered a massive response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal. Elrana Peralta, a customer service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal complex near where the blast happened, but didn't hear the explosion. "All we could hear was the chaos," she said. "We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, 28, from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts. He also didn't hear the blast, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said. There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave. "They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

New York has seen its share of terror attacks in recent years. On 31 October, a man drove a rented truck onto a bike path near the World Trade Center, killing eight people.

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority area was shut down for a few hours  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour. But by 10 a.m., much of the area had returned to normal. Authorities said by evening rush hour everything would be re-opened.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations. NJ Transit said buses were taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken, where they could take trains into the city.

.@POTUS has been briefed on the explosion in New York City  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 11, 2017

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.
A man inspired by the Islamic State group set off a crude pipe bomb strapped to his body Monday in a crowded subway corridor near Times Square, injuring the man, slightly wounding three others and sending New York commuters fleeing in terror through the smoky passageway.

A White House spokeswoman said the pipe bomb explosion in New York City's subway system shows the need for "immigration reform."

Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that Congress should work with the president, stressing the need to "protect our borders" and calling for a "merit-based" immigration system.

Law enforcement officials say the man came to the U.S. from Bangladesh seven years ago with a type of preferential visa for people with relatives who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

Surveillance cameras captured the man walking casually through the crowded passage when the bomb went off at 7:20 a.m. amid a plume of white smoke, which cleared to show the man sprawled on the ground and commuters scattering to get away. Investigators said it was not clear if he set the bomb off intentionally or prematurely.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters. "Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."

The suspect, who was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, was being treated at a hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.

Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by the Islamic State group but apparently did not have any direct contact with the group and probably acted alone. Gov. Andrew Cuomo later told the NY1 cable channel that the suspect went online to learn how to make a bomb.

"We have no evidence at this time that there were any secondary devices or it was part of a larger plan," Cuomo said.

Ullah, who lives in Brooklyn, came to the U.S. from Bangladesh about seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a livery cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission. He was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, police said.

A person briefed on the investigation said Ullah arrived in the United States on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the U.S. who are citizens, and that he made the bomb in his home.

The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Investigators were searching Ullah's apartment, interviewing witnesses and relatives and looking for surveillance footage that may show his movements in the moments before the attack.

Ullah lived with his father, mother and brother in a residential area of Brooklyn with a large Bangladeshi community, neighbors said. The home was just off a shopping strip  a red two-story brick building.

Alan Butrico owns the house next door and a locksmith business two doors down.

"It's very weird," he said. "You never know who your neighbors are."

The Bangladesh Embassy in Washington condemned the attack. The deputy chief of mission, Mahbub Hassan Saleh, said the embassy had not received any information from authorities about the suspect's identity.

The explosion, which happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

It's the city's busiest subway station and a major transit hub, with 64 million subway riders passing through every year. In 2016, daily ridership on the subway was 5.7 million, a record high.

Everything around Times Square was shut down, halting what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour at the "Crossroads of the World." But streets quickly began returning to normal, and traffic around the area was expected to be operational by the evening rush.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.

Port Authority police said officers found the man injured on the ground, with wires protruding from his jacket to his pants and the device strapped to his torso under his coat. They said he was reaching for a cellphone and they grabbed his hands.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff. A police officer was holding the man's hands behind his back. Another photo shown on NY1 showed the bearded suspect, wide-eyed, on a stretcher being loaded into an ambulance.

Elrana Peralta, a customer-service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal near where the blast happened but did not hear the explosion.

"All we could hear was the chaos," she said. "We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, who is from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts. He did not hear the blast either, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said. There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave. "They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion. Instead of commenting on the suspected terror attack, Trump sent a tweet at 9:17 a.m. criticizing a Sunday story in The New York Times that said he watched cable news television for at least four hours a day.

The blast came just weeks after eight people died in New York when another man, also said to be inspired by the Islamic State, drove a rented truck onto a bike path near the World Trade Center.

Cuomo said at a news conference following the attack that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.

"Let's go back to work," he said. ""We're not going to allow them to disrupt us."
Washington: US president Donald Trump's "courageous" decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital is going to move the ball forward for the peace process in the West Asia, US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley said on Sunday amid protests in the region against the move.

Trump's announcement on Wednesday that the US would recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and begin the process of moving its embassy there from Tel Aviv, was met with protests and violence from Palestinians.

Jerusalem, the eastern part of which was annexed from Jordan by Israel in 1967, has long been a sticking point in peace negotiations in the region.

In a statement the Arab League Sunday said that Trump's Jerusalem decision has "isolated" the US from the peace process.

On Friday, 14 of the 15 countries in the UN Security Council opposed Trump's decision.

Haley defended Trump's decision and said that such a reaction from the international community was expected.

"Trumps decision basically says that the United States acknowledges that the capital of Israel is Jerusalem, and saying also that the embassy is going to be moved to the capital, just like it is in almost every other country," she said.

"Jerusalem has the Israeli Parliament, office of the president, prime minister, and it has the Supreme Court. So, why shouldn't we have the embassy there? Haley asked.

She said Americans have been demanding this for the past 22 years.

"And no president, not (Bill) Clinton, not (George) Bush, not (Barack) Obama, actually had the courage to make that move and listen to the will of the American people. The Senate just overwhelmingly again voted to have the embassy moved. So, the president did the will of the people," she told the CNN in an interview.

She said she strongly believed that the move "is going to move the ball forward for the peace process".

Trump, Haley said, realised that waiting did not help anyone for 22 years.

"Now let's try and move the ball. What I will tell you is, you have to look at the situation, that he just took Jerusalem off the table. He just took it off the table," she said.

"So, now they get to come together. They get to decide what the borders will look like. They get to decide the boundaries. They get to talk about how they want to see Jerusalem going forward," she said.

Responding to a question on the Arab League, she said the US had a lot more in common with the grouping than they have ever had before.
Washington: The US ambassador to the United Nations said Sunday that women who accuse someone of sexual misconduct deserve to be heard, even if it involves President Donald Trump.

"I know that he was elected, but women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them," Nikki Haley said on CBS' Face the Nation.

Trump, a Republican, won the White House in 2016 despite the election season release of a 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he described grabbing women's private parts, followed by accusations by several women of aggressive sexual misconduct. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has since reiterated the White House's position that the women who accused Trump of sexual harassment are lying.

On Sunday, Haley, who was the first female governor of South Carolina, praised the courage of women who have raised complaints of harassment in various industries, including government and Hollywood, saying they will "bring a conscience to the situation."

"Women who accuse anyone should be heard. They should be heard and they should be dealt with, and I think we heard them prior to the election," said Haley, a Republican. "I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up."

Asked whether Trump's election settled the issue, Haley said it was "for the people to decide."

The wave of allegations have brought down powerful figures, including the resignations last week of Representative John Conyers, Senator Al Franken and Representative Trent Franks.
CAIRO (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday intensified efforts to rally Middle Eastern countries against U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital, setting up talks with Arab leaders beginning in Cairo. FILE PHOTO: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 72nd United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 20, 2017. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/FilesAbbas will meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, which has been a key broker in past peace talks with Israel and between fighting Palestinian factions, before heading for Istanbul to give a speech, his office said. Arab states condemned U.S. President Donald Trumps Jerusalem decision last week, and vowed to press international bodies to take action against it. The Arab Parliament held an emergency meeting on the issue in Cairo on Monday, state news agency MENA reported. Sisi, after a separate meeting with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin, said the U.S. moving its Israel embassy to Jerusalem would have dangerous effects on peace and security in the region. Abbas met the head of the Arab League in Cairo on Monday, local media reported. Arab foreign ministers held an hours-long emergency meeting at the weekend and vowed to seek a U.N. Security Council resolution rejecting the U.S. move, but gave few details on other measures they would take. The Palestinians hope for concrete action. Daring Palestinian and Arab decisions are required in the coming stage, which is very important, Abbass spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah told Palestinian official news agency WAFA. World powers have said the U.S. move will impede peace efforts in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict as anger spreads across the region. The Trump administration says it is still committed to the peace process. Abbas will not meet Mike Pence during the U.S. Vice Presidents visit to the region later this month, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said on Saturday. Egypts top Muslim and Christian religious leaders also said they would not meet Pence. Abbas is expected to make a statement after his meeting with Sisi, the Palestinian embassy in Cairo said, without giving details. Egypt, along with Jordan a key U.S. ally in the region which has helped broker past peace deals and has good relations with Israel, has said the Jerusalem move undermines efforts to end the conflict. It has also brokered reconciliation deals between Abbass Fatah party and Gaza-based Islamist group Hamas, which called for a new uprising against Israel last week. The planned handover of control of Gaza to the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority under the latest deal hit another delay on Sunday, with a Fatah official blaming obstacles without elaborating. Israel launched fresh air strikes in Gaza on Saturday in response to rocket fire from the enclave, where it fought a war in 2014 which killed more than 2,000 people, most of them civilians.

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LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May hailed a new sense of optimism in Brexit talks, telling parliament on Monday an agreement to move negotiations on to future trade ties is progress and will reassure those concerned Britain may leave with no deal. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May meets the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Boyko Borissov, at 10 Downing Street in London, December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Toby MelvilleMay, weakened after losing her Conservatives majority at a June election, rescued an agreement last week to move the talks to unravel more than 40 years of union on to a second phase after easing the concerns of her Northern Irish allies over the future role of the border with EU member Ireland. But the discussion of Britains trade relationship with the EU after Brexit contains many pitfalls and could widen differences among her top team of ministers, or cabinet, over how Britain should look after it leaves the bloc. In a statement to parliament, May took to task those who doubted that she could move the talks beyond the initial stage of agreeing terms on how much Britain should pay, citizens rights and the border between the British province of Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. This is good news for people who voted leave who were worried we were so bogged down in the tortuous negotiations it was never going to happen, she told parliament. It is good news for people who voted remain who were worried were going to crash out without a deal. May will head to Brussels on Thursday for a summit meeting at which she expects the leaders of the other 27 EU states to approve an assessment by negotiators that the sides have made sufficient progress to move on to phase two. TROUBLES AHEAD But she warned that the government will only pay a financial settlement if Britain and the EU secure a future trade deal. FILE PHOTO - Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May and European Council President Donald Tusk meet at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium, December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Eric VidalThe deal to launch further talks looked in jeopardy a week ago when May was forced to abandon a choreographed meeting in Brussels intended to seal the deal after her allies in Northern Ireland expressed fears she was proposing a special status for the region - out of sync with the rest of the United Kingdom. After days of diplomacy, there was a compromise - if no overall Brexit deal is secured, Britain will keep full alignment with those rules of the EUs single market that help cooperation between Irelands north and south. But those words have reverberated in both London and Belfast, with Brexit minister David Davis saying they were more a statement of intent than a legally binding move. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May and her husband Philip leave church, in Sonning, Britain, December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Peter NichollsOn Monday, Davis told LBC radio his words had been taken out of context and denied he was backing away from the commitment, which the EU described as a deal between gentlemen. And it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK government, the European Commissions chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters in Brussels. Davis comments may have been aimed at members of the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, which props up Mays Conservative minority government in parliament after the party expressed concerns about how alignment could work without Britain staying in the EUs single market and customs union. Or he may have wanted to ease the fears of some campaigners for Britain to leave the EU, who say the possibility of having to follow the blocs rules would mean that they would have Brexit in name only. But May said the commitments made in the first round of talks -- which includes a payment of 35-39 billion pounds over many years to meet EU obligations -- were necessary to sever ties with the bloc. In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see, she said. A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again.

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Doha: Qatar signed a multi-billion-dollar deal on Sunday to buy 24 Typhoon fighters from Britain, its second major defence agreement this week, which comes during the worst political crisis in the region for years.

The $8-billion deal was signed in Doha by Qatar's defence minister Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah and his British counterpart, Gavin Williamson. Williamson said it was the biggest order for Typhoons in a decade, and it follows a billion-dollar deal signed by Qatar on 7 December to buy 12 French Dassault Aviation warplanes.

"These formidable jets will boost the Qatari military's mission to tackle the challenges we both share in the (West Asia), supporting stability in the region and delivering security at home," said the British minister.

The deal also includes an intention for Qatar to buy further military equipment from Britain, namely the purchase of Hawk aircraft. A memorandum of understanding was signed by the two countries for this Typhoon contract in September. Qatar is the ninth country to sign a deal for Typhoon jets, said London.

Sunday's deal comes at a politically sensitive time for both countries. There are heightened tensions in the Gulf, where a Saudi-led boycott of Qatar is in its seventh month.

Since 5 June, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have diplomatically isolated Qatar, accusing the emirate of supporting Islamist extremists and of being too close to Shiite Iran, Riyadh's arch-rival. The four countries also cut off all air and sea links to Qatar.

Qatar denies the allegations and has accused the Saudi-led bloc of aiming to incite regime change in Doha.

It is the latest agreement in a growing list of defence deals signed by Qatar since the crisis erupted.
Istanbul: Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday described Israel as a "terrorist state" and vowed to use "all means to fight" against the US recognition of Jerusalem as the country's capital.

"Palestine is an innocent victim... As for Israel, it is a terrorist state, yes, terrorist!" Erdogan said in a speech in the central city of Sivas. "We will not abandon Jerusalem to the mercy of a state that kills children."

His speech came days after US president Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, angering Palestinians and sparking protests in Muslim and Arab countries.

Four Palestinians were killed and dozens injured in violence following the US announcement. Rockets were fired from Gaza and Israeli warplanes carried out raids on the territory.

Erdogan earlier described the status of Jerusalem, whose eastern sector Palestinians see as the capital of their future state, as a "red line" for Muslims. He called Trump's declaration "null and void".

The Turkish president has used his position as the current chairman of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to call a summit of the pan-Islamic group on Wednesday. "We will show that applying the measure will not be as easy as that," he added on Sunday.

During his speech, Erdogan held a picture of what he said was a 14-year-old Palestinian boy from Hebron, in the Occupied West Bank, being dragged away by Israeli soldiers.

Turkey and Israel normalised their relations in recent years but Erdogan has continued to defend the Palestinian cause and has regularly criticised Israeli policy.
Aden: Saudi-led coalition air strikes on a Yemen rebel training camp northwest of the capital on Sunday killed at least 26 Huthi fighters, security sources said.

The head of the training camp in Hajjah province, Amar al-Jarab, was among those killed in the strikes, the sources close to the Shiite rebels told AFP.

A warehouse where rockets were stocked was also hit, the sources added.

The raids come with the war-torn country plunged deeper into turmoil by Monday's killing of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh at the hands of the Huthis after his alliance with the rebels collapsed.

Forces of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government retook the Red Sea town of Khokha from the rebels on Thursday after clashes that killed dozens, local officials and medical sources said.

On Sunday, Katyusha rockets believed to have been fired by the Iran-backed Huthis hit Khokha, killing a six-year-old girl and wounding five other civilians, residents said.

Further east in the town of Hays and north in Tuhayta, rebels clashed with loyalists on Sunday, pro-government forces said.

Khokha lies between rebel-held Hodeida and government-controlled Mokha on the Red Sea, and is central to the government expanding its control over the strategic coastline.

The port of Hodeida is the main conduit for UN-supervised deliveries of food and medicine to Yemen, where poverty has been compounded by war and a blockade on ports and airports imposed by the Saudi-led coalition.

The International Committee of the Red Cross on Saturday warned against fighting intensifying along the Red Sea coast near what it called densely populated urban areas.

ICRC regional head of operations Robert Mardini called on all sides to protect civilians.

More than 8,750 people have been killed in Yemen since the Saudi-led coalition intervened in March 2015, to help the government of Abedrabbo Hadi Mansour fight the Huthis.
Seoul: South Korea says it has added several North Korean groups and individuals to its sanctions list as part of efforts to cut off funding for the North weapons programmes.

South Korea's government says the sanctions on 20 North Korean groups and 12 individuals took effect from today.

Seoul is among the first to respond to North Korea's November 29 missile launch with fresh sanctions. The government says it hopes its move will prompt the international community to do likewise.

US President Donald Trump's UN ambassador has been urging the world to cut trade and diplomatic ties with Pyongyang.

Separately, South Korea, the United States and Japan started their two-day missile tracking drills today.
London: Brexit Secretary David Davis on Sunday said Britain will not honour financial commitments agreed this week with the European Union if they fail to secure a future trade deal, contradicting finance minister Philip Hammond.

"No deal means that we won't be paying the money," he told the BBC.



"It is conditional on an outcome. It is conditional on getting an implementation period, it is conditional on a trade outcome," he said.

Under an initial agreement reached with the EU on Friday, Britain will pay a financial settlement of between 35 billion- 39 billion pound for leaving the bloc in March 2019.

The 15-page document, detailing post-Brexit arrangements for citizens' rights and the Irish border, was hammered out after nearly six months of negotiations and now allows the talks to move on to a future trade deal.

Davis' stance contradicts comments from Hammond on Wednesday, who said London would pay the bill regardless of their outcome.

"Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed in this negotiation," he told a parliamentary committee.

"But I find it inconceivable that we as a nation would be walking away from an obligation that we recognised as an obligation," he said.

"That is not a credible scenario. That is not the kind of country we are. Frankly, it would not make us a credible partner for future international agreements."

A spokeswoman for the Treasury reached Sunday declined to comment.

Davis' interview also sparked reaction in Dublin, after the Brexit minister told the BBC the agreement struck was "a statement of intent" rather than "legally enforceable".

Ireland responded that the deal was "binding" and it would hold Britain accountable  branding his comments "bizarre".
Washington: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Sunday for a renewed push to end the "stupid war" in Yemen, saying he hoped the Trump administration could pressure Saudi Arabia to ease the humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

"I believe this is a stupid war. I think this war is against the interests of Saudi Arabia and the Emirates... (and) of the people of Yemen," he said on CNN, employing unusually blunt language for the top UN diplomat.

"What we need is a political solution."

US president Donald Trump on Wednesday took the rare step of publicly demanding that ally Saudi Arabia immediately allow vital humanitarian supplies to reach Yemen, scene of what the UN calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with millions at risk of starvation.

Trump, while not asking for an end to Saudi-led bombing of Yemen, said in a statement that his aides would ask the Saudis to "completely allow food, fuel, water and medicine to reach the Yemeni people, who desperately need it."

Guterres said conditions in Yemen had improved somewhat, adding, "I hope that President Trump has put a lot of pressure recently... A lot of humanitarian aid is already going in."

He said he hoped a Saudi blockade of Yemen's ports, imposed after a Huthi missile was intercepted near Riyadh last month, would be lifted.

Saudi Arabia and its allies have launched a campaign to oust Huthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa and who have links to Riyadh's arch-foe Iran.

As the war drags on, seven million people are believed to be on the brink of famine and a cholera outbreak has caused more than 2,000 deaths.

"This war is causing, in my opinion, terrible suffering to the Yemeni people," while also harming Saudi Arabia and the Emirates, Guterres told CNN.

"It's in the interests of everybody to stop this war."
Brussels: Israel's leader faces renewed pressure from Europe on Monday to reboot West Asia's moribund peace process following widespread criticism of the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Jewish state's capital.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be in Brussels for an informal breakfast with EU foreign ministers who will urge him to "resume meaningful negotiations", according to the bloc's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini.

The talks come after French president Emmanuel Macron met Netanyahu in Paris on Sunday and called on him to freeze settlement building and to re-engage with Palestinians following widespread protests over the US move.

Last week's decision by the administration of US president Donald Trump upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus.

Speaking alongside Netanyahu on Sunday, Macron again condemned the decision as "contrary to international law and dangerous for the peace process".

"I urged the prime minister to show courage in his dealings with the Palestinians to get us out of the current dead end," Macron said after talks in Paris with the Israeli leader.

"Peace does not depend on the United States alone... it depends on the capacity of the two Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," the French leader said.

Netanyahu has praised Trump's decision as "historic" and he explained Sunday that Jerusalem "has always been our capital and it has never been the capital of any other people".

"It has been the capital of Israel for 3,000 years, it has been the capital of the Jewish state for 70 years. We respect your history and your choices and we know that as friends you respect ours. I think this is also central for peace," he said.

"The sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move toward peace."

Before leaving Israel, Netanyahu had taken aim at what he called Europe's "hypocrisy", for condemning Trump's statement, but not "the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it".

Pointedly, Macron began his pre-prepared remarks with a clear condemnation "with the greatest of clarity of all forms of attacks in the last hours and days against Israel".

Despite the obvious differences between the 39-year-old French leader and the Israeli hardliner, there were also attempts to show they had developed a good early working relationship and held common views.

"Does this mean Emmanuel Macron and me agree on everything? No, not all of it, but we're working it," Netanyahu said at one point, joking later: "The lunch in the Elysee is superb, the conversation is superb too."

The two countries are keen to reset ties after often difficult exchanges under ex-president Francois Hollande.

EU not unified

Most EU members, including the bloc's biggest countries, have expressed alarm over the Trump administration's policy shift.

Mogherini has warned the decision on Jerusalem "has the potential to send us backwards to even darker times than the ones we're already living in".

Speaking to reporters in Brussels on Friday, she repeated Europe's stance that "the only realistic solution" for peace was two states  Israel and Palestine  with Jerusalem as the capital of both and the borders returned to their status before the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

"It is in Israel's security interest to find a lasting solution to this decades-long conflict," she added.

But the 28-member block is not unified on the issue  Hungary, Greece, Lithuania and the Czech Republic in particular favour warmer ties with Israel.

Last week Hungary broke ranks to block a joint statement from the EU that was critical of Washington's Jerusalem shift.

Trump's announcement on Wednesday has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories.

Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.

Tens of thousands have also protested in Muslim and Arab countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia.

Further protests were held in Lebanon, Indonesia, Egypt and the Palestinian territories on Sunday.

Macron was also asked if France would attempt to launch another peace initiative to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict following failed efforts in the past.

"There's a desire by the Americans to mediate which remains and I don't want to condemn it ab initio (from the beginning)," he said. "We need to wait for the next few weeks, the next months to see what will be proposed.

"And I think we have to wait to see whether the interested parties accept it or not."

Netanyahu was an outspoken critic of efforts by former French president Hollande to push a West Asia peace process.
Moscow: President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country.

Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both the Islamic State group and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops.

"I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," Putin said in a televised speech as he visited Russia's Hmeimim airbase in Syria.

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia."

Putin, who was welcomed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the "most battle-ready group of international terrorists," apparently referring to the Islamic State group.

"Our homeland thanks you, my friends," Putin said. "Have a safe trip. I thank you for your service."

Putin and Assad were pictured smiling and shaking hands.

Putin made the stopover at the base in Latakia province, a regime stronghold, on his way to Egypt where he arrived later Monday.

Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a "new stage" as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reform.

More than 3,40,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown.
Baghdad: World leaders congratulated Iraq on Sunday following the prime minister's declaration of victory over the Islamic State group.

Saudi Arabia says the achievement is a big victory against terrorism in the region and the United Kingdom applauded Iraq's security forces "for their courage and

sacrifice."

Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory in the more than three year fight against Islamic State in a national address aired on Iraqi state television Saturday evening. Sunday was an official holiday in Iraq.

A military parade attended by al-Abadi was held inside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone, a district that houses most of Iraq's government buildings and foreign embassies. In the evening, the capital's skies filled with fireworks.

"Daesh no longer hold significant territory in Iraq or Syria," United Kingdom prime minister Theresa May said according to an official statement released by her office. "This signals a new chapter towards a more peaceful, prosperous country."

In Saudi Arabia's statement on Sunday, the kingdom reiterated Saudi support for Iraq.

Several thousand Saudis are believed to have joined the ranks of Sunni extremist groups to fight in Iraq and Syria. However, the kingdom has also been a target of multiple attacks claimed by Islamic State and carried out by local affiliates. The top US-led coalition commander US Lt Gen Paul E Funk II pledged that coalition forces would continue to support Iraq after the conventional military fight against Islamic State is concluded.

"Much work remains, and we will continue to work by, with and through our Iraqi partners to ensure the enduring defeat of Daesh and prevent its ability to threaten civilisation, regionally and globally," Funk said in a statement released by the coalition Sunday.

Daesh is an Arabic acronym for Islamic State.
Mario Batalis $250 million plus restaurant empire, Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group, which includes Eataly and Del Posto, is reeling after the celebrity chef took a leave of absence amid allegations of sexual misconduct. It also leaves his partners, Italian chef Lidia Bastianich and her son, Joe Bastianich, in limbo.

Batali announced Monday that he is stepping away from day-to-day operations of his businesses for an unspecified period of time, after allegations by four women who accused Batali of inappropriate touching over a span of two decades. The allegations were first reported by Eater.

I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt. Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted. That behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family, Batali told FOX Business.

In the report, multiple women accused Batali of groping them or otherwise making them feel uncomfortable at work. The accusations against the restaurateur follow a wave of sexual misconduct allegations against powerful figures in both Hollywood and the media, including Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose and Harvey Weinstein.

The Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group owns and operates 30 restaurants throughout the U.S. and Singapore. The croc-wearing Batali is known as much for his food, as well as for his celebrity friends including actress Gwyneth Paltrow.

In 2012, Joe Bastianich told The New York Times that B&B Hospitality Group made a reported $250 million in revenue, with its popular Eataly accounting for nearly a third of its annual revenue. Batali is also a co-host of Disneys (NYSE:DIS) ABC daytime show, The Chew.

However, Batalis exact net worth is difficult to pin down. In 2015, FOX News reported Batalis net worth was around $30 million, while the website The Richest put it around $25 million. He has also been listed among Forbes' Top Earning Chefs with the likes of Gordon Ramsey and Rachel Ray.

A spokesperson for B&B Hospitality Group told FOX Business that they are taking these allegations very seriously and even though the company already has strong policies and practices in place to address sexual harassment, they plan to go a step further to ensure that all their employees feel comfortable.

If employees have claims they want to make against any corporate officers or owners specifically, they may now contact the outside corporate investigations firm T&M Protection Resources, LLC, who has discretion to independently investigate complaints and report to outside counsel, B&B Hospitality Group said in a statement.

Batali added that while he knows his actions have disappointed many people, the successes I have enjoyed are owned by everyone on my team. The failures are mine alone. To the people who have been at my side during this time  my family, my partners, my employees, my friends, my fans  I am grateful for your support and hopeful that I can regain your respect and trust. I will spend the next period of time trying to do that.
Disgraced former NBC host Matt Lauer could lose out on a multimillion-dollar ranch he purchased in New Zealand after a series of sexual misconduct allegations.

Lauer and his wife, Annette Roque, purchased a sprawling 16,000-acre sheep and cattle ranch called Hunter Valley Station last February. The property, which is located on New Zealands South Island, is worth $9.1 million, according to the New Zealand Herald.

However, New Zealands Overseas Investment Office, which oversees attempts by foreign investors to purchase property in the country, mandates that individuals involved in such transactions maintain good character. An OIO spokesperson told FOX Business that the agency is aware that allegations have been made in relation to Matt Lauer and has contacted his representative for further information on the situation.

For an overseas person to receive consent under the Overseas Investment Act they need to be of good character, Lisa Barrett, the agencys deputy chief of executive policy and overseas Investment, told FOX Business. There is a range of regulatory tools or actions we can take if we believe the Overseas Investment Rules have been broken. The OIO can seek orders, through the Courts, that require people to dispose of property.

Hunter Valley Station has a five-bedroom estate, four airstrips, stables and various other amenities, according to local media. Business Insider was first to report on the OIOs investigation.

NBC fired Lauer, the longtime host of the Today show, last month amid allegations of sexual misconduct. Subsequent reports by Variety and the New York Times detailed allegations by several women against Lauer, who was accused of exposing to a female employee and giving another colleague a sex toy as a gift, among other alleged transgressions.

"Some of what is being said about me is untrue or mischaracterized, but there is enough truth in these stories to make me feel embarrassed and ashamed," Lauer said in a statement at the time.
One day after a major price plunge and following a volatile week, the Cboe Global Markets kicked off the highly-anticipated bitcoin futures trading on Sunday evening on the Cboe Futures Exchange (CFE).

After bitcoin futures started trading, the cryptocurrency spiked more than $1,200, while the Cboe website became inaccessible.

Due to heavy traffic on our website, visitors to www.cboe.com may find that it is performing slower than usual and may at times be temporarily unavailable. All trading systems are operating normally, a Cboe spokesperson told FOX Business in a statement.

With Sundays launch, Cboe beat fellow Chicago exchange and rival CME Group (NASDAQ:CME), which announced plans to start its own bitcoin futures contract on Dec. 18. Cboes bitcoin futures are trading under the ticker symbol XBT, and are based on the auction price from digital asset exchange Gemini, created by the Winklevoss twins in 2015. The first full day of trading will be Monday, and the exchange said trading will be free through the month of December.

Though its seen wild swings, bitcoin has been super-hot in recent weeks, currently pricing at $15,400 as of 6:15 p.m. Eastern Time, according to the latest data from Coindesk. Earlier in the week, the cryptocurrency reached an all-time high above $17,000 before falling to as low as $13,152 late Saturday night.

However, some business leaders and investors are not yet set on the currency itself. Take Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), for example, who called bitcoin a fraud while speaking at an investor conference in New York in September.

"The currency isn't going to work. You can't have a business where people can invent a currency out of thin air and think that people who are buying it are really smart," Dimon said, adding that if any of the companys traders were trading bitcoin, he would fire them in a second, for two reasons: It is against our rules and they are stupid, and both are dangerous."

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) CEO Larry Fink also had some harsh words for bitcoin, calling it an index of money laundering, at a conference hosted by the Institute of International Finance.

Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha, also isnt sold on the cryptocurrency, warning that it could be a bubble thats getting ready to burst.

But, some still have faith that bitcoin is the way of the future, including PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, Overstock.com (NASDAQ:OSTK) CEO Patrick Byrne, and of course CME Groups CEO Terry Duffy.

Furthermore, in an open letter to Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Christopher Giancarlo on Wednesday, Futures Industry Association CEO Walt Lukken expressed concerns about the way cryptocurrency futures have entered the marketplace.

The recent volatility in these markets has underscored the importance of setting these levels and processes appropriately and conservatively  we remain apprehensive with the lack of transparency and regulation of the underlying reference products on which these futures contracts are based and whether exchanges have the proper oversight to ensure the reference products are not susceptible to manipulation, fraud, and operational risk, Lukken wrote.

Concerns also have grown regarding the security of bitcoin after NiceHash, a mining exchange for the cryptocurrencys customers, announced it had lost more than $78 million-worth of bitcoin after being attacked by hackers.

We have not abandoned you guys, NiceHash CEO Marko Kobal said during a Facebook Live video on Thursday, a day after the hack took place. Currently we are cooperating with local and international law enforcement and cybersecurity experts to fully investigate the scope of the breach that happened.

But thats not the only hack to hit a digital currency exchange. Last year, more than $60 million worth of bitcoin was stolen from Bitfinex, one of the worlds largest exchanges. The biggest hack occurred when hackers stole about $450 million worth of bitcoin from Mt. Gox, a Tokyo-based exchange, in February 2014. At the time, the now-defunct Mt. Gox handled 70% of bitcoin trades.

The cryptocurrency was created in 2009 by an unknown person or people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto. Transactions are made online and without the involvement of middlemen, or in the case of the currency, banks.
Deep learning is a technique of machine learning in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) that is seeing explosive growth. Every major tech company globally is jumping on board, and the segment is booming.

While there is agreement that the size of the deep-learning market will be huge, there is no consensus on just how big it could become. According to a report by Persistence Market Research, deep learning will generate an estimated $4.8 billion by the end of 2017, and it will skyrocket to a massive $261 billion by 2027 -- a compound annual growth rate of 49%. Stratistics MRC calculated a market worth of $1.95 billion in 2016, which it expects to grow to $72.10 billion by 2023.

A market opportunity of that magnitude has attracted some of the foremost companies in technology, who are acquiring AI start-ups and ramping up R&D spending in order to increase their competitive position in a technology that is still in its infancy. Here's a list of some of the largest players in deep learning:

With so many companies to choose from, which ones have the greatest opportunity to capitalize on this nascent trend? Below, I'll tell you why my favorites in the field are Google, Amazon, and NVIDIA.

What is deep learning?

Before we examine the key players, it might first help to define what this technology is. Deep learning is a specific technique within the field of artificial intelligence (AI). Data scientists build computer models inspired by the structure and function of the human brain, called artificial neural networks. These systems use a combination of sophisticated algorithms and millions of data points in an attempt to reproduce our capacity to learn. The network is fed a multitude of examples and "learns" to distinguish differences and discover relationships and similarities among the examples. In its simplest form, the program learns to recognize patterns and make associations from the massive quantities of data it ingests. It can then make decisions or predictions based on what it has learned.

The concept of deep learning has been around for decades, but it was the recent convergence of three trends that finally made it practical. The advent of big data, faster processors, and better algorithms combined to enable the technological advances that are occurring today. This includes such breakthroughs as voice recognition, natural language translation, image recognition, and user profiling.

It's still early days in the application of deep learning, but examples of the advances that have occurred abound. Digital assistants, voice-controlled smart speakers, and self-driving cars are all the result of recent developments in deep learning.

NVIDIA

NVIDIA is best known as the pioneer of the graphics processing unit (GPU) back in 1999. The development of this chip revolutionized gaming, providing players with more lifelike images then were previously possible. In a feat known as parallel processing, the GPU could perform many complex mathematical calculations at the same time by dividing the work among a number or processors and executing it simultaneously. This provided the key to quickly rendering realistic graphics.

Several years ago, researchers discovered that the speed and mathematical precision of parallel processing could also accelerate the training of deep-learning systems.

Much of NVIDIA's growth over the last several years is the direct result of its success in deep learning. In its 2017 third quarter, NVIDIA posted record revenue of $2.64 billion, which grew 32% year over year. The strongest growth came from its data center segment, where deep-learning sales are reported, which grew to $501 million, up 109% over the prior-year quarter. This is the sixth consecutive quarter of triple-digit year-over-year gains and the ninth consecutive quarter of sequential increases.

While there are potential contenders, there is currently no better tool for accelerating the training of deep-learning systems than the GPU, and NVIDIA will likely continue to reap the benefits.

Amazon

Amazon is primarily known for its gargantuan e-commerce operation, its Prime member loyalty program, and its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing business. The company has been hard at work developing what could potentially be the fourth pillar of its business -- artificial intelligence.

For more than four years, Amazon has been using deep learning to enhance various aspects of its core business. The company has been able to improve search results, make better product recommendations, and produce more accurate forecasting for its inventory management.

The company made deep-learning capabilities available to its AWS customers about a year ago, providing text-to-speech, image recognition, and the ability to create sophisticated chatbots. Amazon recently doubled down on that strategy, deploying a number of new services based on the science, including a "deep learning-enabled wireless video camera that can run real-time computer vision models."

Consumers are becoming increasingly enamored with Amazon's Echo smart speaker, which has evolved from a single device to a full line of products, powered by its AI-infused Alexa digital assistant. During the recent holiday sale that concluded on Cyber Monday, the Echo Dot was the best-selling product worldwide on Amazon's website. The company is tight-lipped about how exactly many have been sold. Consumer Intelligence Research Partners estimates that Amazon commands a 76% market share, with an installed base of 15 million Echo devices in the U.S. RBC Capital markets estimates that the combination of device sales and voice-activated shopping on its website could generate an additional $10 billion in sales by 2020.

That may just be the tip of the iceberg, as Amazon recently expanded Echo's market potential by introducing Alexa for Business. At the company's re:Invent conference, Amazon announced a number tools and capabilities specifically designed to facilitate business uses.

Google

No discussion of deep learning would be complete without including Google, one of the early pioneers of deep learning and AI research. As far back as 2011, the company began work on a neural network that would eventually be called the Google Brain. Noted deep-learning researcher and Stanford adjunct professor Andrew Ng began collaborating with Google scientists, who had their first major breakthrough in 2012.

By connecting 16,000 processors, and feeding the system more than 10 million random images culled from YouTube videos, the system learned to recognize images of cats. This seemingly innocuous bit of image recognition has led to other advances in the areas of language translation, voice recognition, and computer vision.

Google acquired deep-learning start-up DeepMind in 2014, and the company has gone on to make headlines. Its AlphaGo computer was able to defeat the world champion at the ancient Chinese game of Go, one of the most difficult and sophisticated games ever played. DeepMind technology was used to arrange Google servers more efficiently and to improve energy efficiency by reducing the power necessary to run them. These efforts resulted in a 15% reduction in power usage, which saved hundreds of millions of dollars.

Google generates most of its revenue from advertising, which grew to $27 billion, up 24% year over year in its 2017 third quarter. The company was able to design a deep-learning system to more accurately match advertising with users by better predicting the click-through rate. Due to the scale of its operations, even small, incremental improvements can result in gains of hundreds of millions of dollars in additional revenue.

One of the most game-changing applications of deep learning is in the field of autonomous driving. Google began its research in the field back in 2009, which resulted in its self-driving car unit Waymo. The company is widely regarded as the leader in the field, and Waymo recently removed the drivers from its pilot program shuttling consumers around Phoenix, Arizona, achieving full autonomy. When testing completes and a full deployment begins, the company's lead in the space could be insurmountable. Analysts from Morgan Stanley estimate that the business generated by Waymo could conservatively be worth $70 billion.

Final thoughts

Because deep learning can be deployed across so many facets of a company's business, it is often difficult to quantify the revenue generated and the savings resulting from its use. There is no denying, though, the transformational nature of the technology. Each company listed above has established an early foothold and will likely benefit from these advances for years to come. This provides investors a good starting point.

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Two of the nations foremost nonprofit hospitals are reportedly in talks to merge  a deal that would form the biggest owner of hospitals in the U.S.  while also potentially exacerbating industry headwinds for the pair.

The deal, first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Monday, would combine Ascension and Providence St. Joseph Health, creating a hospital system with more than 190 locations across 27 states.

However, the prospect of a massive horizontal merger is puzzling to some experts who wonder how increasing the size of an organization will translate into flexibility and nimbleness, which is mandatory to evolve with a changing health care landscape.

Ultimately the challenge for a lot of these institutions is were shifting from hospital-centric [models] to much more decentralized  outpatient settings and trying to manage populations in a way that decreases the use of hospital beds, Francois de Brantes, vice president and director of the Center for Value and Health Care at Altarum, told FOX Business. How do you think your odds of success increase by combining two [of the same type of] entities? Youre actually increasing the challenge and the complexity.

While de Brantes acknowledged that amassing more hospitals could give Ascension and St. Joseph Health more negotiating power with insurers, he says historically, that hasnt been the case. In fact, consolidation within a certain industry, like hospital care, usually leads to higher prices.

The evidence to date, and its pretty strong, is fairly clear that the consolidation leads to higher prices for commercially-insured populations, de Brantes said.

The Ascension-St. Joseph Health merger discussions come as consolidation increases in the health care industry, overall. Last week, CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) announced a $69 billion deal to acquire Aetna (NYSE:AET), a vertical merger that will allow for the companies to provide more efficient, accessible and transparent care. Shortly thereafter, UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH) said it would buy DaVita Medical Group, allowing it to also dive further into localized patient care.

In each of those cases, the companies are merging in a way that would give them access to new areas of the market more rapidly. However, as de Brantes pointed out, in the case of Ascension and St. Joseph Health, hospital plus hospital just equals more hospital.
The weekend launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin reflects widespread acceptance of the virtual currency, especially among investors in Asia, though regulators are wary.

Japan and South Korea are among the world's top five markets for bitcoin trading, according to sites that track trading volume by currency. Here's a glance at the digital currency's rise in some of the region's major markets:

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JAPAN:

Japan was home to one of the earliest bitcoin communities, but it was started by expatriate residents and kept a low profile. Until a few years ago, bitcoin and other virtual currencies were left alone by regulators.

Following the failure of a bitcoin exchange called Mt. Gox, new laws were enacted to regulate bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Japan is the only major advanced economy with a licensing regime for digital currency intermediaries such as exchanges and payment providers.

That has helped make Japan the world's biggest market for speculative virtual currency trading, said Thomas Glucksmann, Hong Kong-based head of marketing for Gatecoin, a virtual currency exchange.

"There was very little interest back than at all and now it's a complete 360," said Glucksmann. "It's the biggest market, everybody's talking about it."

Big Japanese banks have gotten involved, investing in bitcoin exchanges or letting them open bank accounts while developing their own related services. Some retailers accept payment in bitcoin.

Many Japanese are familiar with currency trading since Japan is the world's biggest retail foreign exchange market.

"You have people like hairdressers and housewives, people like that investing in crypto, in addition to the bigger players in Japan," said Glucksmann, who used to work at a bitcoin exchange in Japan. "So the regulations have helped to fuel a lot of the legitimacy in the Japanese market."

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SOUTH KOREA:

About a year and half ago, South Korea emerged as a very large market for speculative trading activities thanks to investors' high risk appetite and fears of missing out.

Now, just as the government prepares to regulate virtual currencies, big financial institutions are starting to get in on the action. Shinhan Bank is planning to offer virtual currency services like a bitcoin wallet,

Worried over risks of speculative trading, in September South Korea banned initial coin offerings, or raising money through bitcoin or other virtual currencies.

Senior officials at South Korea's financial watchdog have compared speculative trading in bitcoin to a "Ponzi scheme" and say they are mulling a ban.

"We will not let financial institutions handle transactions related to virtual currencies," said Kim Yongbeom, vice chairman at Financial Services Commission, according to a media pool report Monday. "The price of virtual currencies rises because of the expectation that the next person will buy it at the desired price and this is quite like a Ponzi scheme."

Chairman Choi Jong-gu said one option is a total ban on virtual currencies, which would require revising existing legislation or enacting new laws.

Still, bitcoin sells for a 20-30 percent premium in South Korean compared to other places, and this has spurred offshore trading to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities as South Koreans buy bitcoin overseas and sell them back home.

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CHINA:

For a brief time, China dominated bitcoin trading, at one point reportedly accounting for as much as 90 percent of volume. That dried up after Beijing tightened controls.

The lively bitcoin market had been set up by bitcoin miners, who had set up data centers taking advantage of China's cheap electricity and hardware to handle the intensive computing processes needed to "mine" new bitcoin.

China started cracked down on such activities last year just as the price of bitcoin began to surge. In September, regulators ordered all exchanges to shut down, banning initial coin offerings.

China's bitcoin exchanges have since migrated overseas or shifted to over-the-counter trading where exchanges match buyers and sellers who then connect through chat apps like Telegram. Payment is made in cash or through bank transfers and the exchange collects a fee.

Some mainland China exchanges have refocused their efforts on their Hong Kong operations, said Leo Weese, president of the Bitcoin Association of Hong Kong. He estimates there are about 10,000 bitcoin users in the Asian financial hub, including 1,000-2,000 active investors who have significant holdings or work for bitcoin related companies.

Weese estimates that bitcoin prices are 5-8 percent higher in mainland China than Hong Kong. Speculators who can get around China's strict capital controls to profit from the price difference are driving some trading activity in the city, Weese said.

"For them it's a way to make money," he said. "They can buy the bitcoin in Hong Kong cheaply and they can sell them at a premium in China."

___

SOUTHEAST ASIA:

Bitcoin's rising popularity in Indonesia has alarmed the country's central bank, which said last week it would ban it as a payment method next year.

Bank Indonesia spokesman Agusman Zainal said more a "assertive rule" on virtual currencies is planned.

He said the bank is concerned bitcoin might be used for fraud or other illegal activities like terrorism, money laundering, prostitution, drug trafficking.

"In the context of the payment system, bitcoin is not a valid means of payment," Zainal said. "The reason for prohibiting is in order to implement prudential principles, safeguard business competition, risk control and consumer protection."

____

AP Writers Niniek Karmini in Jakarta and Youkyung Lee in Seoul contributed to this report.
Enzo Biochem (NYSE: ENZ) Q1 2018 Earnings Conference CallDec. 8, 2017 8:30 a.m. ET

Contents:

Prepared Remarks

Questions and Answers

Call Participants

Prepared Remarks:

Operator

[Audio gap] Q4 2018 operating results Conference Call. I'll now read the company's safe harbor statement. Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this news release may be considered forward-looking looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 as amended and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 as amended. Such statements including declaration regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the company and its management including those related to cash flow, gross margin, revenues, and expenses are dependent on a number of factors outside of the control of the company including inter alia, the market for the company's products and services, cost of goods and services, other expenses, government regulations, litigations, and general business conditions.

Key risk factors in the company's Form 10K for the fiscal year ending July 31, 2017. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees for future performance and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could materially affect actual results. The company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of developments occurring after the date of this conference call. During this conference call, the company may record EBITDA or non-GAAP measure.

EBITDA is not and should not be considered an alternative to net loss, loss from operations or any other measure for determining operating performance. The company has provided a reconciliation of the difference to GAAP on its website www.Enzo.com and then issued last night. Our speaker today is Barry Weiner, president. At this time, all participants have been placed in a listen-only mode and the floor will be opened for your questions and comments following the presentation.

I'll now turn the floor over to your host. Mr. Weiner, the floor is yours.

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

Thank you. Good morning and thank you for joining us today. On the call with me is Jim O'Brien, executive vice president of finance. We distributed our first quarter results released yesterday after the market closed and I hope you had a chance to take a look at it.

As the results show, we continued to implement our business strategy to enable our unique fully integrated diagnostic structure to meet the evolving challenges of our industry. This past quarter was marred by a number of significant operational accomplishments that validate Enzo's importance in the marketplace at a time when the high cost of production and lower reimbursement is making it more and more difficult for clinical laboratories to operate profitably. We regard our operating and development accomplishments as well as our outlook at Enzo as very favorable and we will share our thoughts with you in that regard shortly.

Permit me to once again this quarter underscore the growing success we've had in transitioning Enzo into a fully integrated, hybrid diagnostic company. We have done so by blending our two operating business segments Enzo Clinical Labs and Enzo Life Sciences into what we believe is a unique one of a kind new company that develops products and platforms and also provides services and products that fills an important void in the growing field of molecular diagnostics which has made it possible to see the unusual depth of our expertise and our forward-looking strategy to meet the needs of today's unusual market demands. Over the years of product and technology development, our strength stretches back over four decades and is embodied in our extensive intellectual property estate. The depth, practical knowledge, and experience of our scientists provide us with unique competitive advantage with which to develop new technology that is both medically relevant and importantly cost efficient.

This is an important part of makes Enzo so strong. Our innate, deep understanding and ability to develop low-cost, highly effective technology platforms and products for a market in need of affordable solutions. We have within Enzo Life Sciences, broad capabilities for developing critical assays that have demonstrated high sensitivity and in our two manufacturing facilities, one in New York and one in Michigan, we have the capability to manufacture them as they are approved. At the same time, Enzo Clinical Labs and state of the art diagnostic capabilities provide a need for seamlessly working with Life Sciences to assure the quality and effectiveness of our products through their testing services.

With our integrated resources, we are able to bring to market platforms and technologies that are fully vetted in a real-world diagnostic facility. As many of you already know, Enzo Clinical Labs uses our own developed technology in performing many testing services that, given Enzo's higher than average industry gross margins, demonstrates the value of affordable technology that clinical laboratories can enjoy either by deploying Enzo solutions in their own laboratories or by referencing testing services to Enzo. Thus, from idea to development to validation to manufacturing, Enzo has enormous in-house strength and what has made this special is that we recognized early on that the nation's independent clinical laboratories which number in the thousands are at an economic disadvantage in today's rapidly changing diagnostics world. The advent and fast growth of molecular diagnostics as a means of early diagnosis and follow-through testing have required sophisticated new techniques and assays that are needed but that is also burdensome and expensive.

If you combine this with the high capital cost to expand, operate or maintain laboratory facilities and the ability for labs to extend their and testing menu at affordable pricing and perhaps most importantly, steadily declining reimbursements make it easy to understand the challenges these clinical labs face today. Enzo had to brace into the task of developing affordable solutions that are vitally needed. The effectiveness of this strategy is reflected in the increasing attention that our technology is getting from independent clinical labs starting with our AmpiProbe platform and others that have followed and the cost-efficient highly sensitive assays that we have developed, all of which benefits clinical laboratories, their physicians, and the patients. Our transformation is starting to reflect in our financial performance.

Revenues in recent years have been on a steady upward trajectory as seen in the growth in our laboratory testing services that is the result of new products, extending our geographic coverage in the northeast and adding new clients. It is also attributable to our ability to offer not only high quality and industry best service but also innovative the new diagnostics of which our newly approved women's health panel is representative. It is also notable that our revenues have grown despite a conscious effort to pare the low-margin commodity type of research products in Enzo Life Sciences in order to build capacity for turning on new products being developed for clinical markets worldwide. Despite somewhat reduced research product sales, our efforts to streamline our product mix in favor of higher-margin products and increasing efficiencies along with tight cost controls has enabled this segment to remain profitable and cash flow positive during this transformational period.

I will have more to say about our business shortly including our product and platforms but I would like to review with you our recent financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2018, which ended on October 31.

Revenue ready for the quarter was $27.7 million, an increase of $1.4 million or 5% over the prior year period. Clinical laboratory services were once again the key driver with revenue of $20.3 million, a 10% increase over the prior year. Gross profit increased to $5.2 million, 1% ahead of prior year, gross margins were 44%, down slightly from the prior year given somewhat lower product revenues. Operating expenses were $12.9 million, a decrease of $500,000 or 4% from the prior year.

Included in this amount was SG&A that was lower by about $600,000, or 5%. This was offset by higher allowances for bad debts of $100,000. Our bad debt allowance remains constant as a percentage of laboratory services revenues at roughly 4%. The consolidated operating loss improved year over year by approximately $650,000, attesting further to our emphasis on improving profitability.

On a GAAP basis, the net loss was improved by $0.02 a share over the prior year. Net loss of $640,000, or $0.03 per share, compared with a net loss of $1.5 million, or $0.03 per share, in the prior year. EBITDA and non-GAAP measure was break-even during the quarter as compared to an EBITDA loss of $600,000 in the prior year, reflecting a significant improvement.

In terms of segment performance, Enzo Clinical Laboratory Services continue to increase revenue to $20.2 million, a significant 10% ahead of last year. The gains reflected an increase in testing volume, the result of wider geographic penetration in existing markets but also expansion in parts of New England. Increased business with most major healthcare providers has also been a growing factor, particularly business derived from our being named an in-network provider by the fourth largest national healthcare insurer last April. The lab's gross profit increased 8% to $8.3 million and as a percentage of its revenues remained at 41% for both the current year and year-ago quarter.

Enzo Life Sciences revenues were off slightly, to $7.1 million from $7.4 million, a 5% decline. Gross profit was $4 million compared to $4.4 million a year ago. With continued focus on reducing cost and improving efficiency, SG&A declined by 11% and operating expenses fell by 12%. Our financial condition remains solid, providing us with capital to advance both our development and marketing programs, to extend our business throughout the United States and international markets.

Our balance sheet remains very strong with cash and cash equivalents of about $67 million. This is $2.7 million higher than the balance as of July 31, 2017. Working capital remains at more than $71 million. During the quarter, cash provided by operations was $2.6 million compared to cash used in operations of $0.3 million a year ago, an improvement of $2.9 million.

Our financial position enabled us to invest nearly $500,000 in capital expenditures during the quarter. Along with our solid financial performance, we continued to move rapidly ahead on the product-development and regulatory-approval front. Conditional approval during the quarter by the New York State Department of the remaining five women's health tests has made possible our offering of one of the most complete women's health diagnostics on the market with 13 different analyte targets. This approval was significant in that it now allows a broader test menu to be marketed to clinical laboratories with a potential for savings, either by buying products or services from Enzo, could be material.

Our belief is that our diagnostics panel will offer a cost-efficient approach to women's health testing and have a broad and major impact. Enzo Labs is currently expanding its capabilities to incorporate the new tests for a complete panel solution. We expect to shortly offer this service to Enzo Clinical Lab's existing marketing territory in the greater metropolitan New York, New Jersey, and New England area. We are also prepared for a national marketing program with a complete testing menu of affordable products and services that we offer clinical labs around the country with the option of purchasing the Fast One Plus assays that are compatible with their existing systems or sending the results to Enzo on a reference basis for overnight processing and recording on specimens.

Our sales and marketing efforts are already receiving positive responses in the market and we expect these efforts to grow over the next several months.

Recently, Enzo Sciences delivered a host of presentations at the annual meeting of the Association for Molecular Pathology in Salt Lake City. It involves a report that details research of our women's health panel that uses our AmpiProbe multiple real-time PCR assays for use with Candida, gonorrhea, Chlamydia, Trichomonas and bacterial vaginosis. The focus was on the panel sensitivity, specificity and reproducibility, and accuracy in line with the requirements of the New York state's microbiology molecular checklist to validate the assay's diagnostic value. We were pleased to report that the study demonstrated that our technology provides a new proprietary approach to achieving accurate detection and identification of vaginitis associated with microorganisms.

The utility of this platform is now being extended to other targeted diseases. At present we have several noteworthy medically related molecular diagnostic testing assays that provide unusual sensitivity and cost savings while being adaptable to open systems existing in many clinical laboratories. These include diagnostics for human papillomavirus infection E6/E7, hepatitis C viral load, cardiac markers, and in-situ hybridization allowing for localizing specific nucleic acid or DNA targets within fixed tissues and cells. Our prolactin in-situ hybridization is otherwise known as the FISH technique used in laboratories to visualize chromosomal abnormalities that outperform all other commercially available products is also being offered.

Another platform, POLYVIEW, for reading tissue biopsies and having a high-confidence quotient as a result of demonstrating no false positives, is also being offered. Amino assays, having superior detection capability with higher sensitivity are in various stages of product development and utility. And FLOWSCRIPT, our gene expression platform for assays providing broad applications for detecting genotype and phenotype markers via flow cytometry, which applications include cancer progression and monitoring immune function and inflammation are in various stages of development. To build capacity, as we add new products to the program, we have begun an expansion, an upgrade of our Farmingdale, Long Island manufacturing location that will be ISO-certified and GMP-compliant.

It will allow capacity to produce our proprietary molecular assays including PCR based and gene expression assays for immunohistochemistry and in-situ hybridization reagents.

I would like to close on a note that while we are active on multiple fronts, our focus is primarily on our basic business that we believe holds growth opportunities. We have previously commented on what we believe to be impending PAMA Medicare reimbursement levels, the first of which is implementation expected shortly after the first of the year. We hold the of further impacting the economic well-being of the nation's independent laboratories which makes our vision of transforming Enzo into a national provider of high quality, affordable and easily adaptable diagnostic products and services of even more timely and important.

With that, I would now like to open the call for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Operator

At this time I'd like to inform everyone, if you'd like to ask a question, please press star, then the number 1 on your telephone keypad. If your question has been answered and you wish to remove yourself from the queue, press the pound key. Again, to ask a question or make a comment, please press * 1.

Your first question comes from the line of Kevin Ellich of Craig-Hallum.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Good morning. Thanks for taking questions. Barry, I just wanted to go back to the good cash flow that we're seeing and now you have about $67 million of cash on the balance sheet. What are your plans and how do you guys plan to deploy that or at least the discretionary portion? How would you prioritize that?

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

We are embarking on a program to expand our regional business into one that is a national reference service business. The utilization of that cash will be used in a concerted by dedicated fashion to expand our sales presence throughout the national market. We are increasing our sales force. We are doing it in a measured and, I would suggest, focused way but we will be in more human capital in a number of different areas, one being sales, the other is being invested in the employment of personnel to drive our manufacturing capabilities as we seen a need in the future to build volume capacity within our production structure.

At the same time, we are always evaluating new opportunities within the market. We are fairly stringent in our evaluation process but certainly, if opportunities do present themselves, they will be considered. So, we are approaching this issue of capital utilization in a measured, conservative and, I hope, responsible fashion, one that we believe will drive revenue, volume and product development within the laboratories and help the expansion of our business model in a more rapid timeframe.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Great. And, I guess, with the expansion of the national sales force, any rough estimate of how many people you need to add in the field?

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

We believe that ultimately we will be adding approximately 10 new individuals in various functions in the marketing and sales organization. Obviously, this is an evolving target as we watch the business and the potential growth that should take place within the business but at this point, we are targeting about 10 individuals.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Got you. OK. And then as we think about value in the vertical integration of your business, especially, I think, in your prepared comments you made a comment about hybridized diagnostics company, how should we see the revenue segment shift over time and will we see a greater shift to the diagnostics side versus the clinical lab and how long do you think that will take to shape out?

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

I think over the next year, you will start to see the emergence of the reference activity within the clinical marketplace as it pertains to Enzo. We are agnostic in terms of whether our customers will buy product or perform reference service and deliver reference services to us. We believe the economics favor the utility of reference testing as an economic need for small to medium-sized clinical laboratories. We see no reason for the need for hundreds of labs in our industry to be performing the same economic tests at an overhead cost structure that can be prohibited for them.

When you look at what is taking place within the market today where the approaches for economics are driving the elimination of middlemen in many of the areas of product delivery when look at Amazon and you look at recently just the announced program between Aetna and CVS, you see the utility in the consolidation that is taking place through the utilization of vertical integration and we believe that program methodology should benefit the clinical lab market as well and we hope to be a provider of low-cost testing reference services which, I believe, will drive the laboratory side of the business. At the same time, we do not view it as differentiated in terms of product versus service. We will be pleased to provide the product if parties wish product and we will provide the service. We believe the economics will favor the delivery of the service and allow them to focus on sales and marketing, not on processing and production.

So, I believe you will see the growth on the service side.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Very good. That's helpful. And then just a couple more questions. PAMA, the final rates coming out, have you guys had time to analyze the changes in 2018 and beyond and curious if you have any material changes relative to what you guys said last quarter.

I think you said it was going to be less than around $500,000.

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

Hi, Kevin, it's Jim O'Brien. I think that's right. As we look at the final rules and see how this is going to play out, I think that's a good estimate. We'll have to be conscious of what if any changes private payers make as a result of changes to PAMA, which could be anticipated but we don't see that at this time.

So, we're keeping an eye out for it and we'll update you if things were to change but that's a good estimate right now.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

And then, Jim, you made a comment about what changes if any private payers would make. Do you have any or many private-payer contracts, commercial contracts, tied to Medicare rates?

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

We do. It's not a significant portion of our business but there are contracts out there that that will review rates with us each year or maybe every other year, and they'll make changes based upon what's happening in the Medicare market.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

OK, understood. And then, I guess, going back to gross margins on the lab side, it came in at about 100 basis points lower than the expected. Is that really due to the prior authorization for genetic testing? How should we think about that going forward?

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

Yeah, I think what we've done in the quarter is to make sure that as insurers take a more proactive view of genetic testing requiring pre-approvals, letters of medical necessity, we want to make sure that we're following the rules and we're compliant. So, in the quarter we made sure that our revenue didn't get out too far in front of us, kept our balance sheet in check. We think we've got it right, in terms of what we think about it and over the next quarter we will continue to assess that but we're very comfortable where we are right now.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Gotcha. And then last two for me is, with the large national [Inaudible] contract, I think it's the fourth largest, I don't think you ever disclosed who it is, how's that contribution, since you've announced, or signed it, back in April, has it been ramping and is the pie getting bigger for you there and should we see other context as well?

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

It is growing. Certainly being able to expand up into the Northeast and eventually into the Mid-Atlantic, having that contact will help us to extend within our current marketplace today. I would say that our effort to gain more and more and in network contract is ongoing. It's time-consuming.

There are a lot of factors that go into it but we're seeing a lot of good projects, we have good dialogues with payers in the marketplace. So, we would expect those contracts to continue to grow and with that the opportunity for revenue expansion.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Sure. And then lastly, with the conditional approval in New York for 13-analyte women's panel, I guess, how should we think about that contribution as well? Obviously, you didn't have much, if any, impact this quarter. Should we see more in next quarter and any help in terms of how big that could get for you.

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

Yeah, I think we will be using it within our own lab in the next month, certainly within in the quarter and, as we noted in the script, having that expanded test menu and putting together a compendium of tests that we could offer as a reference service or as product sales, those efforts will really kick in the third and fourth fiscal quarter for Enzo. As you mentioned, our pre-marketing activities in the things that we've been doing in the marketplace so far have given us great confidence that the strategy is resonating with clinical labs and we take the opportunities that are out there for us to expand the business, either the reference services or product sales.

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Sounds good. Thanks, guys.

Operator

Once again, if you'd like to ask a question or make a comment, please press *, then the No. 1 on your telephone keypad.

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

I think no questions. We thank you for your time. We look forward to reporting our second quarter in March. We believe this will be a very extraordinary activity for Enzo.

So, we're very excited about where we're going and we hope to speak with you in March. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. That concludes the Enzo Biochem Inc.'s first-quarter 2018 operating results conference call. You may now disconnect.

Duration: 29 minutes

Call Participants:

Barry Weiner -- Chief Financial Officer, President and Treasurer

Kevin Ellich -- Craig Hallum -- Analyst

Jim O'Brien -- Senior Vice President, Finance

More ENZ analysis

This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability.

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A high-profile proponent of marijuana legalization who was spurned as an applicant for a medical marijuana grower's license announced plans on Monday for a 2018 Ohio ballot issue to legalize the sale and possession of marijuana.

The proposal from Green Light Acquisitions would make growing, processing, possessing, selling and using marijuana legal. The measure was announced by Jimmy Gould, CEO of CannAscend, whose grower's proposal was rejected by the Ohio Department of Commerce last month.

Gould said the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol amendment will be on the ballot next fall. The amendment also would legalize the growing of hemp.

"We will put together the best amendment that we think will pass and does the most good for Ohioans," Gould said.

Gould raised and spent millions of dollars as a backer of the unsuccessful 2015 effort to legalize marijuana in Ohio. In recent days he has criticized the Department of Commerce for hiring a consultant with a Pennsylvania drug conviction to help select Ohio's medical marijuana growers.

Gould said Monday the selection system was flawed by incompetence and favoritism. He suggested problems with a second consultant involved in the medical marijuana program. He also alleged someone at the Department of Commerce was looking for a job with the applicants for growers' licenses.

Commerce spokeswoman Kerry Francis denied those allegations Monday. She said consultants hired by the state to help score growers' applications had limited influence on overall selections and were unaware of the identities of applicants they reviewed.

She said applicants denied grower's licenses can appeal.

"We have confidence that we had a blind and impartial process," Francis said.

Gould's criticism  picked up by some lawmakers and several candidates running for governor  focuses on the 2005 guilty plea in Pennsylvania by consultant Trevor Bozeman at age 20 to charges of manufacturing, possessing and distributing drugs. A marijuana possession charge was dropped.

Bozeman was one of three consultants Ohio selected to help grade the grower applications. The consultants worked with state employees to select the growers. Bozeman has not returned phone and email messages.

Also Monday, the lawmaker who helped craft Ohio's medical marijuana law expressed concerns about the application process.

State Rep. Kirk Schuring, a Canton Republican, said he's concerned that nearly seven in 10 of all cultivator applications were ruled out of consideration.

Schuring said he wants to move quickly because the system must be up and running by September. He plans a Thursday meeting with Commerce Director Jacqueline Williams.

Last month, Ohio selected 12 large growers for a total of 24 licenses.

The state will use the consultants next to help score applicants for the medical marijuana processors.

Ohio's medical marijuana law, passed last year, allows people with medical conditions such as cancer and epilepsy to buy and use marijuana if a doctor recommends it. It doesn't allow smoking.

___

Associated Press Writer Julie Carr Smyth contributed to this report. Andrew Welsh-Huggins can be reached on Twitter at https://twitter.com/awhcolumbus.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission plans to turn over oversight of internet service providers to another federal agency as it plans to vote on Thursday to revoke the landmark 2015 "net neutrality" rules.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai last month unveiled plans to repeal the rules that prohibit internet service providers from impeding consumer access to web content. The 2015 rules bar broadband providers from blocking or slowing access to web content.

On Monday, the FCC and Federal Trade Commission said they plan to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding to coordinate efforts under the new rules. The agencies said the proposal will "return jurisdiction to the FTC to police the conduct of ISPs."

Pai said Monday in a statement the agencies "will work together to take targeted action against bad actors."

Under Pai's proposal, the FCC would no longer bar any specific internet provider practice but require companies to disclose if they block, throttle or offer paid prioritization of internet traffic.

FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, a Democrat, said the agreement "is a confusing, lackluster, reactionary afterthought: an attempt to paper over weaknesses in the chairman's draft proposal repealing the FCC's 2015 net neutrality rules."

The FTC will investigate if internet providers fail to make accurate disclosures or if they engage in deceptive or unfair acts or practices. "The FTC is committed to ensuring that Internet service providers live up to the promises they make to consumers," said Acting FTC Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen.

FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, said "FTC enforcement would happen long after the fact -- many months, if not years, after consumers and businesses have been harmed."

Chris Lewis, vice president of advocacy group Public Knowledge, said the FCC is "joining forces with the FTC to say it will only act when a broadband provider is deceiving the public. This gives free reign to broadband providers to block or throttle your broadband service as long as they inform you."

Democrats and net neutrality advocates plan a series of protests ahead of Thursday's vote. Pai's proposal has already won the backing of the three Republicans on the five-member commission. The reversal represents a victory for big internet providers such as AT&T Inc, Comcast Corp and Verizon Communications Inc that opposed the 2015 rules.

Pai's proposal is opposed by large internet companies including Alphabet Inc and Facebook Inc.

The new rules are expected to take effect in January and draw court challenges.
On Monday, Teva Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:TEVA) announced it will launch a generic version of Pfizers (NYSE:PFE) well-known, little blue pill, Viagra, in the United States.

Pfizers full patent for Viagra, or sildenafil citrate, doesnt technically expire until 2020. However, Teva negotiated a deal to launch its own generic version of the erectile dysfunction (ED) pill in 2013.

Viagra generally costs about $65 per pill, but as competition increases, that price point will decrease substantially.

With new rivals imminent, a unit of Pfizer has committed to launch its own generic version of Viagra, which is expected to cost about half of what the brand-name pill is currently priced at.

The company is operating under the assumption that some portion of current users will stay loyal to the brand, buying either its less expensive generic pill or sticking with Viagra.

A segment of the patient population remains who prefer to use branded medicines instead of their generic equivalents Pfizer will continue to support the brand through a variety of channels to ensure patients and physicians, who may prefer to receive and prescribe branded VIAGRA, can continue to do so, Pfizer said in a statement.

The generic medication launched on Monday.

According to The Associated Press, the widespread introduction of generic pills could reduce the price of the medicine by as much as 90%.

Teva did not immediately respond to FOX Business requests for comments regarding the price of its pending ED medication.

Mylan also settled a patent case with Pfizer in 2015, which was expected to allow the company to launch its generic version of sildenafil citrate in December 2017, as well. Mylan did not return calls for comment at the time of publication.

Viagra launched in 1998. In 2016 alone, global sales clocked in at $1.6 billion, according to Forbes. More than 23 million people have been prescribed Viagra.

Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) released Cialis in 2003, which leads Viagra in market share, according to The Associated Press.
President Donald Trump is expected to sign one of his first space directives on Monday, an initiative that will send U.S. astronauts back to the moon, and beyond.

The President, today, will sign Space Policy Directive 1 (SPD-1) that directs the NASA Administrator to lead an innovative space exploration program to send American astronauts back to the Moon, and eventually Mars, White House deputy spokesman Hogan Gidley said in a statement on Monday, adding that since the beginning of his administration, Trump has set out to refocus NASA on its core mission of space exploration.

Trumps initiative lands on the 45th anniversary of Apollo 17, last mission to the moon. The crew landed on the celestial body on Dec. 11, 1972.

The move is also largely seen as a change of course from the Obama administrations policies in space, which instead put a larger emphasis on the role of private companies. The former president cancelled a proposed program to return humans to the moon by 2020, after it came in over budget.

Vice President Mike Pence chairs the National Space Council, which Trump reactivated in June. At the time the president said he was restoring Americas leadership in space and that exploration was essential to the economy and national security.

Trump is expected to sign the order at the White House Monday afternoon.
McLaren brought back a legendary name Saturday night, one from its pedigree of historic Formula One racing.

The new McLaren Senna was unveiled in England, a new hypercar in the automaker's stable complete with 800 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque motivating just 2,641 pounds of mass.

The mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive car boasts a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 at its heart, sunk deep into an ultra-lightweight carbon fiber chassis wrapped in more carbon fiber, with an aggressive stance and functional aerodynamics hammering every stretch of pavement it conquers. McLaren didn't specify performance, but with a lighter weight and more power than the 720S, it's reasonable to assume that it will sprint to 60 mph in less than 3 seconds with a top speed well past 200 mph.

Distantly related to the McLaren 720S, the Senna follows the P1 in terms of performance and in the automaker's series of "Ultimate" carsbut not in propulsion.

The Senna takes its motivation from the 4.0-liter turbocharged V-8 alone (no hybrid powertrain) and trims more fat from the 720S, if there was any to be found on that car at all. On top of uprated performance from the V-8, the Senna adds more downforce and more functional aerodynamics to stick it to the ground.

A 7-speed dual-clutch automatic handles the furious shifting duties that the V-8 demands, while a double wishbone suspension system with interconnected dampers and constantly monitors the road to stick all four wheels firmly on terra firma. The system uses a kinetic roll system to replace mechanical antiroll bars to independently adjust the dampers for better compression and rebound. Configurable race modes toggle through Comfort, Sport, Track, and Race modes depending on conditions and, of course, the driver's courage.

The cockpit is similar to the 720S in terms of two passengers, side-by-side to wail down streets or a track. The interior is stark and spartan: there's no room for interior storage, the start button is above the driver's head like a jet fighter, and exposed struts for the car's dihedral doorssimilar to the F1's doorsopen and close to offer a view of the car's extreme aerodynamic accoutrements. The dash, wheel, doors, and paddle shifters are exposed carbon fiber; the large touchscreen is the only high-tech controller found in the cockpit.

The car's extreme aerodynamics take their cues from the 720S, but are shaved of any unnecessary elements to reduce weight. Every bit of the Senna, including headlights and taillights serve as cooling ducts for the engine or to whisk high-pressure airflow away from the car and toward the back of the massive dual-stage carbon fiber wing that's nearly 4 feet above the rear deck.

McLaren will produce 500 examples of the Senna and it will cost $1 million for buyers who've already snapped up every example.

The McLaren Senna will make its public debut at the 2018 Geneva motor show next March.
CNN has accused President Trump of bullying Don Lemon in a tweet that called the polarizing anchor the dumbest man on television.

Trump slammed The New York Times on Monday morning over what he called a false story claiming he watches up to eight hours of television a day  while taking yet another swipe at CNN and MSNBC. The Times article detailed Trumps hour-by-hour battle for self-preservation, describing how he sometimes hate-watches CNNs Lemon.

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting, Trump tweeted on Monday morning.

CNN quickly issued a statement, accusing Trump of bullying the 51-year-old anchor.

In a world where bullies torment kids on social media to devastating effect on a regular basis with insults and name calling, it is sad to see our president engaging in the very same behavior himself. Leaders should lead by example, CNN said.

Former CNN political analyst Jeff Greenfield isnt a fan of CNNs statement and mocked his old network.

Unless Don Lemon is a LOT younger than he appears to be, this is a tone-deaf overreach. From what I've seen, Lemon--unlike bullied kids whose school officials ignore the issue--is more than capable of standing up for himself. This almost infantilizes him, he tweeted.

Fox News contributor Stephen Miller joked, CNN just compared themselves to a crying kid in a car and they think that's the high road.

President Trump has an ongoing feud with CNN, which has essentially implemented an anti-Trump programming strategy. As a result, the president often refers to CNN as fake news and the network has launched an advertising campaign in an attempt to shake that moniker with a Facts First initiative.

CNN had to issue an embarrassing correction on Friday when the Washington Post debunked the network's report claiming the Trump campaign had early, secret access to hacked DNC emails from WikiLeaks. The network on Friday inaccurately trumpeted that Congressional investigators obtained a mysterious 2016 email that was sent to Trump and other top aides, including Donald Trump Jr., which contained information on how to get a sneak peek at hacked information that WikiLeaks had acquired. The email, as CNN reported, offered a decryption key to access the files  but the network botched the date on the email, rendering the entire report irrelevant.

In addition, CNN on Monday gently backpedaled a report from earlier this year that bashed Attorney General Jeff Sessions for failing to disclose meetings he had with Russian officials when he applied for his security clearance  but it turns out he wasnt required to.
Corey Feldman shared excerpts of a lost 1993 audio recording he said was made during an interview with California law enforcement in which he divulged the name of a man who sexually abused him as a minor.

The audio played on "The Dr. Oz Show" Monday, which Feldman said he only recently discovered in his car, revealed Feldman naming actor Jon Grissom as his sexual molester when he was interviewed by the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Office. Feldman was 15 years old at the time of the alleged abuse that he contends lasted for more than a year and a half.

Feldman thought the police were investigating Grissom at the time, but realized later they were investigating child molestation claims against his friend, pop superstar Michael Jackson.

"They weren't interested in Jon Grissom," Feldman told host Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Feldman had previously named Grissom on the same talk show on November 3. Grissom was arrested in 2001 for sexual abuse against a minor.

Feldman said if the police had acted after his interview, it could have stopped Grissom from abusing others.

Feldman also speculated that the police had more nefarious motives in going after Jackson instead of pursuing Feldman's claims against Grissom.

They were trying to frame Michael Jackson and burying the Corey Feldman story," he said.

Feldman told the syndicated talk show that he had "spent my entire life fighting this battle. No one was listening then. No one is listening now. [The] LAPD is still not investigating it."

The Santa Barbara County Sherrif's office told Fox News in October that the Feldman tapes from the 1993 Michael Jackson investigation did not exist. But last week they sent an email explaining they had recently found the recordings and turned them over to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Feldman claimed to Dr. Oz that, by chance, he found his copy of the same recordings in the back of his car the day before he learned that the Santa Barbara police had discovered theirs.

Dr. Oz asked Feldman if he felt vindicated.

Not yet. Vindication will come when my best friends (Corey Haim) perpetrators are behind bars, my perpetrators are behind bars," said Feldman.

Fox News reached out to the LAPD repeatedly about the unearthed audio tape and also asked if an investigation would be launched, but did not receive comment.
Embattled NBC News execs are doubling down on their refusal to appoint an outside investigator into sexual misconduct at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, instead announcing a series of internal steps they themselves are overseeing.

On Friday, ten days after NBC announced it had fired its biggest star, Matt Lauer, for sexual offenses, NBC News Chairman Andy Lack sent a memo to staffers outlining his efforts to find out why this was able to happen, why it wasnt reported sooner, and what we can do to make employees feel more empowered to report unacceptable behavior.

The memo, which was obtained by TVNewser, says that 40 employees have already been interviewed and the process will continue for several more weeks. Lack also announced a culture assessment of NBC News and an assortment of other bureaucratic efforts he's doing to combat sex harassment  such as focus groups and mandatory training on workplace behavior and harassment prevention.

Lack did not say who was doing the interviews, but it's clear that he and his deputy, Noah Oppenheim, are keeping the investigation under their thumbs. Both executives have been under intense pressure over how they themselves have managed issues of sexual misconduct at NBC News.

Cornell University law professior and Legal Insurrection founder William Jacobson said Lack had no business overseeing the investigation.

"It's hard to see how an internal investigation that reports to senior executives would be viewed as complete and transparent when the conduct, or lack of conduct, of senior executives, such as Andrew Lack, necessarily should an issue, Jacobson told Fox News.

Anything other than an independent outside investigation that reports to the NBC Universal Board of Directors would raise questions as to whether responsibility is being pushed down to lower corporate levels."  Legal Insurrection founder William Jacobson

Anything other than an independent outside investigation that reports to the NBC Universal Board of Directors would raise questions as to whether responsibility is being pushed down to lower corporate levels."

Not only are the executives' ties to Lauer suspect - they are also facing criticism for lack of transparency over why, in the last year, NBC sat on two explosive sex harassment stories that ended up being given to other outlets: the "Access Hollywood" tape of Donald Trump, and Ronan Farrow's investigation into Harvey Weinstein's sexual predations.

It is time for all institutions and organizations to examine themselves, accept honest criticism, and change; it is time we all accept responsibility for work places that are safe and respectful for everyone, Webster University School of Communications Dean and media history guru Eric Rothenbuhler told Fox News.

Inside NBCs headquarters, several staffers said they were dismayed by a Friday piece on Vanity Fair's website which asserted that Lack and Oppenheim have convinced their colleagues they knew nothing about Lauer's years of alleged transgressions.

The dozen or so NBC sources we spoke with for this article agreed the initial speculation about whether the Lauer scandal might metastasize into a situation that could cost Lack or Oppenheim their jobs has since tempered, Vanity Fair's Joe Pompeo wrote.

One current NBC News employee told Fox News that many colleagues feel this is simply inaccurate. There is widespread disbelief about the way things have been handled and the defensive duo is losing the newsroom, according to the employee.

Another NBC staffer told Fox that Pompeo's assessment was "insulting our intelligence."

Numerous media outlets have reported in the last two weeks that "everybody knew" at NBC about Lauer's pervy tendencies. "Everybody" would seem to include Lack and Oppenheim, who both have close ties to Lauer going back years. Lack -- who appointed Lauer co-host of "Today" in 1997 -- is such close friends with Lauer that the two have reportedly even vacationed together. Oppenheim has spent most of his career at NBC, including a stint as a "Today" senior producer, working very closely with Lauer, and also a stint as the executive overseeing "Today" when he was, at least nominally, Lauer's boss.

Last week, famed attorney Gloria Allred told Fox News that a review led by NBC News' legal and human resources departments isnt good enough if the network truly wants to find the truth.

NBC should hire an outside law firm to investigate what knowledge the network had, or should have had, about Matt Lauers alleged sexual harassment of female employees at NBC," Allred said. "An outside law firm hired to do an independent investigation is more likely than HR to be impartial and not subject to internal pressures and potential conflicts of interest."

Celebrity chef Mario Batalis B&B Hospitality Group is the latest high-profile organization to use an independent, outside investigator to determine the severity of sexual misconduct allegations -- which is common when dealing with alleged harassment in the workplace, according to Eater.

When news first broke that Lauer had been fired, Lack initially claimed there was only one complaint about Lauer in 20 years--the one that led to his dismissal. But the executives soon backtracked, with NBC clarifying in a statement that only current management was in the dark about "reports" of Lauer's conduct. Oppenheim would go on to tell skeptical staffers at NBC's "Nightly News" that he only knew about Lauer what he saw on the covers of "The National Enquirer" when he went to the supermarket.

Oppenheim then insisted that if he found out that anyone at NBC had known about Lauer's conduct and not reported it, that he or she would "be dealt with in the most severe way possible."

But observers have recently pondered if NBC executives reluctance to expose other big stars bad behavior -- via the "Access Hollywood' tape or Farrow's investigation -- was linked to a glass houses problem.

And in recent days, NBC has been rattled by taunts from the right wing blogger Mike Cernovich, who's been asserting that more sex harassment scandals are brewing inside 30 Rock.

Two major NBC figures next in line, one is a household name, Cernovich tweeted on Dec. 6.

Cernovich has long been dismissed as a conspiracy theorist, but his predictions are a source of worry within NBC as he was recently a driving force behind reporting that toppled powerful U.S. Rep. John Conyers amid a sexual harassment scandal.
The New Yorker has severed ties with star reporter Ryan Lizza in response to behavior the magazine described as improper sexual conduct.

Lizza emerged as a household name last summer after he recorded a phone call with then-White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci, who went off on a profanity-laced tirade. President Trump fired Scaramucci after less than two weeks.

The New Yorker recently learned that Ryan Lizza engaged in what we believe was improper sexual conduct. We have reviewed the matter and, as a result, have severed ties with Lizza. Due to a request for privacy, we are not commenting further, the magazine said in a statement.

Lizza is also a contributor to CNN and the network put out its own statement shortly after the news broke.

We have just learned of the New Yorker's decision. Ryan Lizza will not appear on CNN while we look into this matter, a CNN spokesperson said.

I am dismayed that The New Yorker has decided to characterize a respectful relationship with a woman I dated as somehow inappropriate, Lizza said in a statement to the media. I am sorry to my friends, workplace colleagues, and loved ones for any embarrassment this episode may cause. I love The New Yorker... But this decision, which was made hastily and without a full investigation of the relevant facts, was a terrible mistake.

In no way did Mr. Lizza's misconduct constitute a 'respectful relationship' as he has now tried to characterize it, the unnamed accuser's attorney, Douglas Wigdor, told a Washington Post reporter.

Lizza has not appeared on CNN since November 22, according to the Daily Beast. Perhaps his absence from the network is a result of appearing in the Sh-tty Media Men list, which has floated around the industry for several weeks. The list is filled with powerful men in the media industry who are accused anonymously of misconduct, including sexual harassment and assault.

CNN did not respond to a request for comment about whether the network would investigate Lizza or rely on The New Yorker. CNN also did not respond when asked if Lizzas recent absence is a result of being included on the Sh-tty Media Men list.

The media industry has seen a significant number of high-profile men lose their jobs after being accused of sexual misconduct in recent months, including Bill OReilly, Charlie Rose, Matt Lauer, Mark Halperin and Garrison Keillor.

Scaramuccis political career essentially ended after he didnt seem to realize his profane conversation with Lizza was on the record. The Hill media columnist Joe Concha pondered whether Scaramucci knew about Lizzas alleged misconduct, pointing to comments made in a Dec. 4 interview.

"This guys obviously a very bad actor. Karmas a b-tch. Itll come back & bite him, Scaramucci said of Lizza, according to Concha.
The longtime host of one of NPR's most successful programs has been suspended while the network investigates sexual misconduct allegations.

The allegations against "On Point" host Tom Ashbrook include that he engaged in "creepy" sex talks and gave unwanted hugs, neck and back rubs to 11 mostly young women and men who worked on the show. They were contained in a document and confirmed in multiple interviews by WBUR-FM, the Boston station that produces the show.

Ashbrook was put on leave last week.

In a text to the station, Ashbrook said: "I am sure that once the facts come out that people will see me for who I am  flawed but caring and decent in all my dealings with others."

"On Point" is carried by more than 290 NPR stations. Ashbrook has hosted for 16 years.

NPRs chief editor, Michael Oreskes, also recently resigned in the midst of sexual harassment allegations of his own, along with Chief News Editor David Sweeney. Earlier this month, famed "A Prairie Home Companion" host Garrison Keillor was let go from Minnesota Public Radio for the same reason.

Another recent bombshell report to rock the liberal radio network said NPR journalist John Hockenberry had sexually harassed and and bullied colleagues for years before he retired, seemingly out of the blue, in August. The article's author, Suki Kim, said she reported her experiences working with Hockenberry to Walker in February, long before the tidal wave of sexual harassment stories, starting with Harvey Weinstein, began.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Porn star August Ames, who hanged herself last week after she was relentlessly bullied on social media for her comments about working with an actor who worked in gay porn, revealed she suffered sexual abuse and mental health issues before her death.

The 23-year-old, who starred in nearly 290 movies, was found dead Tuesday morning in California. In mid-September, she appeared in a podcast where she detailed experiencing a lot of sexual molestation while growing up, adding that the offender was not her father, the Independent reported.

It was just awful. Its still recent where I have to keep myself occupied or else I start thinking about all that st and then I fall into a depression, she said, citing the podcast. I try to do therapy. I hate that word. I hate therapy.

Ames said therapists would judge her after she revealed she worked in the adult industry. She then detailed her past drug abuse and how she used it to escape her issues.

I dont drink alcohol anymore. When I would drink, Id black out every time. I used to smoke a lot of weed too, I used to be a big stoner but Ive cut that out too. I just drink water now, Ames said.

She added that she resorted to medication for her bipolar disorder, depression and multiple personality disorder. She recalled the crippling feeling when she wasnt on medication.

Ames received major backlash in early December after she tweeted that she declined filming for a movie after she discovered the male actor also worked on gay pornography. She cited health safety reasons and insisted she was not homophobic and just wasnt willing to put her body at risk.

Whichever (lady) performer is replacing me tomorrow for @EroticaXNews , youre shooting with a guy who has shot gay porn, just to let cha know. BS is all I can sayDo agents really not care about who theyre representing? #ladirect I do my homework for my body, she tweeted.

Despite her insistence, several people accused her of being homophobic. Jaxton Wheeler, an adult film star, also took to Twitter to criticize Ames and said in a now-deleted tweet that Ames should swallow a cyanide pill for her comments. He posted the tweet after her death and soon apologized for his out of context comment. It's unclear if he knew about her death when the tweet was posted.

My gay community friends please a life is lost and we gain nothing from anything but showing respect and sympathy, her fans and loved ones are upset, I'm sickened in my out of context comment. As I stated before anyone even made my tweet a thing, Wheeler said.

Industry trade magazine Adult Video News (AVN) first reported Ames' death and released a statement from her husband saying: She was the kindest person I ever knew and she meant the world to me. Please leave this as a private family matter in this difficult time.
Buddy Valastro, better known as TLCs Cake Boss, has confirmed on Twitter that his popular Carlos Bake Shop location at the corner of NYCs Port Authority Bus Terminal will be closed following Monday mornings attempted terrorist attack.

MARIO BATALI ACCUSED OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT BY FOUR WOMEN

Hey guys! Everyone at the Times Square location is safe but know that we are shutting down our 42nd & 8th bakery for the day, he tweeted shortly after an explosion went off in a subway passageway near the Port Authority. Im down in Hoboken where well be operating as usual.

Valastro also confirmed on Instagram that he was saddened by the incident, but "extremely grateful" for the safety of his employees. He added that he'd keep fans posted of the bakery's status.

The New York City location of Carlos bakery is situated at 625 8th Avenue, just a short distance from the subway passageway where the suspected bomber triggered an explosion just before 7:30 a.m.

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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has since referred to Monday mornings incident as an attempted terrorist attack." However, police say the mans explosive device went off earlier than intended, and that no one other than the suspect himself  a 27-year-old Bangladeshi national named Akayed Ullah  was seriously injured in the explosion.

Three other people reportedly suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Carlo's Bake Shop has 22 locations across New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Texas, Nevada, Minnesota and California, as well as one location in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
A man in Illinois had a case of mistaken identity when police officers approached him after he crashed his car into a ditch.

Police officers arrived on scene at 12:49 a.m. Friday after being notified of a man driving erratically in the parking lot, almost hitting a pedestrian and then crashing his car. When police approached the Galesburg, IL, man, he claimed his name was Burger King.

BURGER KING MANAGER FILMED SCREAMING AT CUSTOMER FOR TAKING TOO LONG TO ORDER

According to reports, the 34-year-old Bradley S. Galloway told officers his name was Burger King, and he smelled like alcohol. Officers noted Galloways eyes were bloodshot and glassy, WGIL reported.

Galloway failed to cooperate with officers or medical personnel, and refused medical assitance. During an inspection by the EMTs, Galloway made racial slurs towards the paramedics multiple times.

The man then refused to stand up by himself and required police to carry him into the police station.

Galloway continued to make several unusual comments, including Donald Trump is coming to beat up the officers, The Register-Mail reported.

Eventually, he was transported to the hospital, where he implied that a doctor was coming to give him a million dollars. When he was transferred back to the county jail, Galloway told officers, You all believe in Satan. You all worship Satan. You all driving me to Satans town, WGIL reported.

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The man faces charges including driving under the influence, resisting arrest, reckless driving, failing to reduce speed to avoid and accident and operating an uninsured vehicle.

Witnesses alleged earlier that they tried to take his keys away from him when Galloway left the Showgirls bar, but were unable to.
A man believed to have robbed a New York City fried chicken restaurant in July was arrested on Thursday after returning to the scene of the crime for second helpings, police say.

Christopher Schlosser, 21, has been charged with robbery stemming from an incident that took place on July 27, when he allegedly stormed into a Texas Chicken and Burger location in the Bronx to steal fried chicken and biscuits from behind the counter.

CALIF. RESTAURANT 'PROUDLY' SERVING POPEYES CHICKEN AS ITS OWN

As seen in surveillance footage from inside the restaurant, the suspects face was only partially obscured during the robbery. So upon re-entering the eatery on Thursday, an employee was able to identify Schlosser as the same man from the incident.

He thought we didnt know him, said Texas Chicken employee Abdul Mustawu to the New York Daily News. I told my manager, This guy punched me and took my chicken and my biscuits. I know him. Call the police.

Police arrived shortly afterward to arrest Schlosser, The New York Post adds.

Oddly enough, this very same Texas Chicken and Burger location was the target of a similar robbery on Wednesday night, when a young couple jumped over the counter to physically assault a 22-year-old employee and steal about $15 worth of food, PIX 11 reports.

SUSPECTED BURGLAR GETS STUCK IN FRIED CHICKEN RESTAURANT FOR 7 HOURS

Police are encouraging anyone with information into the latest robbery to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
Mario Batali has been asked to temporarily leave his ABC series "The Chew"  and his upcoming Food Network series is said to be "on hold"  in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct, Fox News has learned.

The celebrity chef, 57, said he will step away from the day-to-day operations of his restaurant empire after four women accused him of inappropriate behavior in the workplace and elsewhere, including grabbing and groping three of his female employees, and even grabbing a fellow chef who approached him at a New Orleans wine auction ten years ago, Eater NY reported on Monday morning.

The four women have declined to reveal their names, but the latter accuser claimed that Batali groped her breasts after she spilled wine on her chest, while saying something to the effect of Let me help you with that. The woman also alleges that Batali had been under the influence of alcohol at the time, and that just prior to the incident, he came off as creepy and icky, Eater reports.

MARIO BATALI'S $250 MILLION RESTAURANT EMPIRE IN LIMBO AMID SEXUAL ALLEGATIONS

The other three accusers were all employed by Batali at one time or another, and shared similar stories of Batalis behavior with Eater. One woman says he approached her from behind and held her against himself; another says she was groped and made to straddle Batali; and the last, who had already stopped working for the chef, says he also grabbed her breasts.

Batali, who is married to wife Susi Cahn, has since released a statement apologizing for his actions, in which he takes full responsibility for the inappropriate behavior.

I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt, said Batali in a statement obtained by Eater. Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted. That behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family.

I have work to do to try to regain the trust of those I have hurt and disappointed. For this reason, I am going to step away from day-to-day operations of my businesses. We built these restaurants so that our guests could have fun and indulge, but I took that too far in my own behavior. I wont make that mistake again. I want any place I am associated with to feel comfortable and safe for the people who work or dine there.

"I know my actions have disappointed many people. The successes I have enjoyed are owned by everyone on my team. The failures are mine alone. To the people who have been at my side during this time  my family, my partners, my employees, my friends, my fans  I am grateful for your support and hopeful that I can regain your respect and trust. I will spend the next period of time trying to do that.

BATALI: $15 MINIMUM WAGE IS NO GOOD FOR RESTAURANTS OR CUSTOMERS

ABC confirmed to Fox News that they have asked Batali to step down as a co-host of its daytime series The Chew.

We have asked Mario Batali to step away from 'The Chew' while we review the allegations that have just recently come to our attention, writes an ABC spokesperson in a statement. ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment. While we are unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with the show, we will swiftly address any alleged violations of our standards of conduct.

Prior to these allegations surfacing on Monday morning, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain suggested that he knew such an expose was coming, though he refrained from revealing Batalis name until after the site published the accusations on Monday morning.

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The accusations against Batali follow several other allegations against celebrity chefs in recent months. In November, four former employees of Johnny Iuzzini, a judge on ABCs Great American Baking Show, accused the pastry chef of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior, including one woman who claims Iuzzini tried to stick his tongue in her ear three or four times. And in October, New Orleans chef John Besh stepped down from his restaurant group after more than two dozen of his employees came forward with accusations of harassment and sexual misconduct.

Batali and his restaurant group operate dozens of restaurants in the United States and Singapore. Along with Lidia Bastianich and Joe Bastianich, Batali co-owns the Eataly chain of Italian marketplaces.

In November, Batali was also reported to be working on a revival of his "Molto Mario" cooking series for Food Network, although a representative for the channel tells Fox News those plans are now "on hold."

Food Network takes matters like this very seriously and we are putting relaunch plans for 'Molto Mario' on hold.

A representative for Mario Batali or his restaurant group was not immediately available to comment.
A 10-year-old boy is hoping to be home in time to celebrate Christmas with his new family after undergoing a multi-organ transplant that was eight years in the making. Victorious Vic Nera, whose home health nurse took legal custody of him in March after the mother who adopted him as a toddler died earlier this year, was born with short bowel syndrome, Fox 8 reported.

The condition nearly killed him as an infant, and causes malnutrition, weight loss and dehydration. As a result, Vic has received all of his nutrients through an IV, and has undergone multiple surgeries, but the toll of the recoveries destroyed his liver and pancreas. He was placed on the organ transplant list, with the fateful call finally coming in November.

These patients, its like our baby because we are taking care of them day and night, and we see them often so we establish a bond and relationship, Dr. Kareem Abu-Elmagd, Vics doctor at the Cleveland Clinic, told Fox 8.

'ELF ON THE SHELF' UNDERGOES EMERGENCY SURGERY AFTER DOG ATTACK

Vics surgery lasted 16 hours and saw him receive a new liver, pancreas and small intestine.

Everybody was excited in the operating room when we had the organs in, Abu-Elmagd told Fox 8. They fit in his abdominal cavity and the whole team was so excited that we were able to Vic with the new organs.

Annie Lykins, Neras adoptive mother, said she Vic fits in perfectly with her three other children, and described the adoption and subsequent surgery as a domino effect.

BOY BATTLING BRAIN TUMOR GETS SPECIAL TOUR OF JOHN DEERE FACTORY

It was crazy the way everything kind of fell into place; it was a domino effect, she told Fox 8. He fit perfectly with our family; it was like he was always there.

Lykins is hoping to have Vic home in time for Christmas. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family cover any remaining medical expenses.
Like a lot of other good things in life, wound-healing is a process. You probably didnt enjoy the events that earned you your cuts and scrapes, but when you do have them, you get to watch your body perform an amazing work.

However, time doesnt necessarily heal all wounds. If several weeks have already gone by, you might be left wondering about your open scrapes. Its important for you to find out why your wound wont heal properly and what exactly you can do about it.

Reasons Your Wound Wont Heal

1. Infection

Your skin is your bodys first line of defense against bacteria. When the skin breaks, bacteria can then move from the outside to inside the body. If the wound area gets infected, you may notice persistent redness, swelling, pain and an off-color or foul-smelling fluid.

2. Nutrition

Are you getting enough fruits and vegetables? The vitamins in them help your body heal faster, especially vitamins A and C.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SLEEPING WELL

Make sure youre eating foods like oranges, spinach, sweet potatoes and bell peppers to help your body do its job. Youll also need plenty of lean protein along the way.

3. Diabetes

Because of elevated blood sugar, diabetics have an increased risk for slow-healing wounds and infection. The high blood sugar can negatively affect your circulation and immune system.

It can also damage nerves that signal pain, leading to more wounds simply because the diabetics dont know when something is hurting them. If you notice slow-healing wounds regularly, they could be a sign of this disease, especially recurrent wounds on the legs and feet.

4. Medication

Different medications could also identify as your culprit for slow wound-healing. Chemotherapy and radiation drugs have powerful chemicals that hamper your immune system, making the healing process harder.

BABY MILK MAKER ORDERS GLOBAL RECALL OVER SALMONELLA FEARS

Antibiotics kill off good bacteria, increasing your risk of an infected wound site. In addition, anti-inflammatory drugs might inhibit the inflammatory stage that your body goes through in healing wounds. If you suspect that your medication is causing the problem, discuss your concern with a doctor.

5. Poor circulation

When your body is healing a wound, red blood cells are the ones that carry new cells to the site. In turn, they help form the foundation for new skin with collagen.

If you have poor circulation, the blood will move to the wound site more slowly, delaying the healing process. You may have poor circulation due to diabetes, obesity, blood clots, arterial build-up or some other underlying condition.

6. Bed Sores

Bed sores (technically pressure ulcers) usually occur when a person is bedridden or immobile for long periods. For instance, a bedridden patient will have pressure on certain areas of the body that press up against the bed.

That pressure can cause varying levels of sores, eventually leading to a gaping wound and infection if not cared for properly. Mild sores should go away quickly with regular relief and movement from those pressure points, but moderate or severe sores will need medical treatment.

7. Drinking Alcohol

This bad habit gets worse when you consider all the health effects on your body, including slow-healing wounds. In one 2014 study published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, researchers found that binge drinking significantly increases infections while hospitalized.

Of these infections are surgical site wounds. According to the study, excessive alcohol decreases important white blood cells in the body that fend off bacteria.

8. Venous Leg Ulcers

Venous leg ulcers happen when a wound on your leg is slow to heal. Many times, the ulcers occur because of poor circulation in the veins of the legs.

FENDING OFF TOXIC MOLD SYNDROME

Since the legs need a good push to get blood circulation back up to the heart, blood might tend to pool in the legs. In turn, the pressure can weaken the surrounding skin, causing problems with wounds and their healing. Venous leg ulcers often happen in bony areas like the ankles.

How to Properly Care for a Wound

In many cases, you can help the healing process of mild wounds with proper care. These suggestions from the American Academy of Dermatology will help you stave off infection:

Gently wash the area with mild soap and water.

Keep the wound moist to prevent scabbing, which prolongs healing. The AAD suggests petroleum jelly.

Keep the wound bandaged and clean every day. As long as the wound stays clean, you do not need antibacterial ointments.

Follow any orders from your doctor, especially if you have stitches.

When to Get Help

In nearly all of these scenarios, you will want to seek your doctors advice. You should know that normal wound-healing can take up to 3 weeks, but you shouldnt wait much longer than that to see your doctor. If a wound has not healed after a month, its time to seek professional help.

Through the amazing process of wound-healing, your body has the ability to close a mild scrape or cut on its own. However, this process can be hampered for a variety of reasons. For instance, a scabbed wound may take longer to heal. In most cases, though, you will need to talk about your situation with your doctor. Protecting your bodys defense system is the best way to stop deeper problems before they get started.

This article first appeared on AskDrManny.com.
An 11-year-old boy with an inoperable brain tumor was able to take a break from the hospital last week to spend time at the John Deere Harvester Works factory in Illinois. Donning a green and yellow John Deere hat and sweatshirt, Johnny Becker saw never-before-used machines and took a turn on the assembly line with the help of welcoming employees, Fox 59 reported.

Becker, who is about to start his eighth round of chemotherapy, has a deep-rooted love for the company, as hes watched his farmer grandfather and uncle work John Deere machines, and his own father use the companys tools in his landscaping business. As a result, the factorys employees rolled out the red carpet for their young fan and his siblings.

'ELF ON THE SHELF' UNDERGOES EMERGENCY SURGERY AFTER DOG ATTACK

He chose to visit us, and its truly very humbling, David Thompson, a machine repairman who was on hand for Mondays tour, told Fox 59. Weve got everything from signs to shirts to toys for him.

His mother, Marie Becker, told the news outlet that it was great to see her son smile. One of his favorite memories was writing his name using a robotic arm in the paint department.

These poor kids, theyve been dealt a bad blow, Randy Parker, a factory employee, told Fox 59. We try to keep in touch with them after they leave, you know, its kind of like we take them into our family.

Becker said her son has been responding well to treatments thus far, and is determined to keep up with his brothers.
A Florida familys beloved Elf on the Shelf is back to his mischievous ways thanks to the work of surgeons at Orlando Health. Jenn Thelen, the emergency department nurse manager at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, said her 7-year-old daughter Aubrie was devastated to discover the doll, which they named Sam, ripped to shreds by their pet German Shepard, Fox 35 reported.

Thelen said she calmed Aubrie down by promising to take the elf to work where surgeons could patch him back together. Video shows the elf being rushed into surgery on a hospital bed, with one staffer describing an amputation of the right arm, a cut on the right arm, an open tib/fib fracture and a cut on the left cheek.

BABY MILK MAKER ORDERS GLOBAL RECALL OVER SALMONELLA FEARS

Aubrie was concerned about how the surgeons would be able to fix him, since Sam is not allowed to be touched by humans, but Thelen told her that the unidentified surgeon donned special magic gloves that allowed her to touch the elf. Orlando Health told the news outlet that one staffer even sprinkled Christmas magic glitter on the elf when surgery was done to help with his recovery.

Sam has since returned home to Aubrie and is back to his usual tricks, Fox 35 reported.
Editor's note: The following column first appeared in the Washington Post.

The phones of House and Senate leaders are ringing off the hook right now, as CEOs and wealthy donors lobby them furiously to lower the top income tax rate and insert costly carve-outs into the GOP tax bill to protect their business tax preferences. Too bad regular taxpayers dont have a direct line to the conferees hammering out the final bill to plead their cases. Because it seems as though they have been forgotten.

Case in point: At the last minute, Senate Republicans changed their version of the tax bill to keep the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)  a pernicious parallel tax code which they had promised to scrap that requires corporations and millions of individuals to calculate their taxes twice and pay whichever rate is higher. On hearing the news, corporate lobbyists swung into action, pressing GOP leaders to get rid of the corporate AMT in the final bill. And their efforts seem to be paying off. The corporate AMT has to be eliminated, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said on Monday.

But what about individuals? Who is championing AMT repeal for them?

Enter Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), who is fighting to get the individual AMT removed from the final tax reform bill as well. Repeal of the individual AMT has been a fundamental element of Republican tax reform campaign promises for years, he told me. By leaving the individual AMT in place, we would be punishing hardworking Americans and doing virtually nothing to simplify the tax code.

Burr is right. Congress created the AMT in 1969 after the Treasury Department reported that 155 high-income filers were using tax breaks to avoid paying any income taxes. In 1970, it affected only 20,000 very high-income taxpayers. But today, the number of people impacted has ballooned to 5.2 million. Most of those who currently pay the AMT are not from the highest-income households for which the tax was intended, but the middle and upper-middle class  folks who have enough money to be a ripe target of revenue raisers, but not enough to have influence on Capitol Hill. They are mostly two-earner households with mortgages to pay, who give to charity and have children. The AMT also hits the families of our fallen warriors. According to Burr, children who receive an annuity from the Uniformed Services Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) can see the AMT eat up as much as 26 percent of their benefit. No Republican tax bill should punish individuals like these  especially not to pay for tax breaks for corporations and the wealthiest among us.

Members of the Trump administration know that the AMT is a horrible tax. In 2006, Kevin Hassett  now chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers  called the AMT an economic abominationand urged Congress to erase it from the tax code completely. Yet instead of erasing it, Republicans are retaining it.

Keeping the individual AMT means many Americans will see no tax cut under the GOP bill, Burr says. It defeats the entire purpose of tax reform. GOP leaders promised to make the tax code simpler and fairer. But the AMT increases tax complexity and raises compliance costs for 10 million American taxpayers, who must calculate their taxes using two separate systems every year  and then pay whichever rate is the highest. That is not simple or fair. It is obscene.

GOP leaders are focused on passing corporate tax cuts to fuel economic growth, which is a good thing. But they seem to have lost sight of the fact that reducing taxes for individuals is important, too. According to the Tax Policy Center, even before the AMT retention, 1 in 4 Americans will not get any tax cut under the Senate bill, and 14 percent of middle-class Americans will get a tax increase of $1,170. That is a problem for the GOP. If Americans see the GOP borrowing $1.5 trillion to pay for tax cuts, and they end up getting either no tax cut or paying more next year, they will punish Republicans at the polls. Instead of more carve-outs for corporations and fat-cat donors, Republicans should give tax relief to more individuals, especially the middle class.

Will Burr vote no on final passage if the individual AMT is not repealed? He hopes it wont come to that. I am confident the House and Senate conferees will fix the individual AMT in the final tax reform bill, he says. Lets hope hes right. If Republicans get rid of the AMT for corporations, but not for individuals, that will send a clear message to American voters about where the GOPs interests lie.
On Tuesday, the good people of Alabama will decide whether to vote for Roy Moore, the Republican candidate who is accused of multiple accounts of inappropriate sexual contact with underage girls. Beside Moore on the ballot is Doug Jones, a pro-abortion candidate who generally supports the policies associated with his partys secular progressive platform.

Should the good Republicans of Alabama vote for Moore, for Jones, or for a write-in candidate?

Should conservatives across the nation support Moore or speak out against his candidacy?

GOP leaders are divided.

Some Republican leaders support Moores candidacy. President Trump, for example, supports Moore because, The future of this country cannot afford to lose a seat in the very, very close United States Senate. Similarly, Alabamas governor Kay Ivey argues that significant policy issues are more important than Moores past.

Other Republican leaders argue unequivocally that Alabamans should disown Moore. Cory Gardner, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, declared that Roy Moore will never have the support of the senatorial committee. We will never endorse him. We wont support him. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell says that Moore will immediately face a Senate Ethics Committee probe should he win. Speaker Paul Ryan has repeatedly called for Moore to drop out of the race.

What is best for our nation, for vulnerable women, and for the Republican party?

But GOP leaders are not the only people who must make up their minds about Moore. The good people of Alabama must cast their votes, and conservatives across the nation must make our voices heard on this matter of national significance.

Lets face it: the Roy Moore situation is a sticky wicket.

Moore denies all charges, repeatedly declaring that he does not know the women and that the charges are malicious. And although Moore has not undergone trial and been found guilty, Americans do not have the luxury of waiting for a trial before the election is held. We must make a decision now, however tentative our judgment might be.



The weight of the evidence is against Moore. The testimony of the women seems generally persuasive. At least nine accusers have given their names and exposed themselves to tough questioning, knowing their testimony would cause them pain and public harassment. At least four of the women are Trump supporters, Republicans, or vocally devout Christians. Additionally, there are at least thirty persons who have corroborated details of the accusations.

On the one hand, if we do not support Moore, the nation will be stuck with a pro-abortion Democrat whose votes will line up fairly well with the secular progressive agenda. We will be giving ground to media outlets and personalities who have slighted conservatives and mocked us for decades. We might find ourselves with one less vote during the next Supreme Court Justice confirmation. Adding insult to injury, well have to live with the knowledge that todays left-wing moralists are yesterdays supporters of Harasser-in-Chief Bill Clinton.

On the other hand, if we do support Moore, the short-term victory will come at a considerable cost to vulnerable women, our own integrity, and the long-term health of the GOP. The moment Moore is seated, his situation almost assuredly will be investigated by the Ethics Committee and might eventuate in a vote to censure or expel him. During mid-term elections, news media will hang him around the neck of every Republican candidate as Democrats try to drive turnout among women, independents, and younger voters who rightly think that personal character matters for public office.

Although a substantive case can be made for supporting Moore, the right thing is to withdraw support for his candidacy and send a resounding message to the nation.

In the words of Founding Father Noah Webster, When a citizen gives his vote to a man of known immorality, he abuses his civic responsibility [and] betrays the interest of his country.

In the words of Proverbs 14:34, Righteousness exalts a nation.

Although a public officials private life does not always bear on his public office, and although public officials should not be held to unreasonable moral standards, the accusations against Moore are serious. If they are true, he preyed on the unprotected, treating them as objects or instruments of sexual gratification. And if so, he has not confessed or repented and thus his morally and legally indefensible acts should be politically devastating also.

Now is not the time for the GOP to change its long-standing conviction that personal character matters for public office. Now is not the time to send a message to younger voters, women, and independents that morality no longer matters in the GOP. Now is not the time to forsake all credibility in our rebukes of Kennedy, Clinton, Weinstein, Lauer, Franken, and others.

It is possible that Moore is innocent. I have always respected him personally and hope that, against appearances, he is vindicated. And yet, even if he is later shown to be innocent, support for him now would send the wrong signal in light of the overwhelming public perception that he is guilty.

What is best for our nation, for vulnerable women, and for the Republican party?

To embrace and act on the conviction that personal character matters for public office, that we will not elect to office candidates of whom there are serious questions or allegations concerning their respect for women, and that we are willing to write in a candidate, knowing that we will experience a short-term electoral setback in order to sustain our long-term integrity and viability.


A mailer sent by the campaign of Alabama Senate Democratic nominee Doug Jones compares Republican opponent Roy Moore to the former segregationist governor George Wallace just days after the Jones campaign faced a social media backlash over a different racially-charged flyer.

Fox News has obtained a copy of the latest mailer, sent to black voters in the state. It shows an infamous 1963 photo of Wallace standing at the schoolhouse door at the University of Alabama to block black students from enrolling.

George Wallace fought to protect segregation, the flyer reads. So did Roy Moore.

DOUG JONES FACES BACKLASH OVER RACIALLY-CHARGED CAMPAIGN FLYER IN ALABAMA

Lying Doug Jones is at it again. This is just another attempt to manipulate African-American voters with lies while covering for his own horrible track record of defending an extremist with KKK ties, Moore spokeswoman Hannah Ford told Fox News. The mail piece speaks for itself, Jones spokesman Sebastian Kitchen said.

The attack from the Jones campaign is rooted in how Moore in 2004 opposed efforts to remove segregationist language from Alabamas constitution.

Segregation had long been outlawed by then, but the business community argued at the time it would be an important symbolic move for Alabama to take. The measure failed.

As recently as 2004 he was fighting to keep racism the law in Alabama, the mailer states. Instead of working to move Alabama forward, Moore led the campaign against removing racist, outdated language from our state constitution that required segregation in Alabama schools.

According to AL.com, Moore said he opposed the effort at the time because he said it would lead to higher taxes.

In 2004, Moore opposed proposed Amendment 2 to the Alabama Constitution, which would have stricken language mandating that schools be segregated and makes mention of poll taxes, the outlet recently explained. He argued that the real motivation behind the amendment, which narrowly failed, was to increase funding for public schools, and therefore increase taxes, according to an October 2004 Birmingham News story. Moore also pointed out that the U.S. Supreme Court already declared segregation unconstitutional, making the amendment moot.

The ad also claims Moore has ties to hate groups like the KKK and has repeatedly worked alongside racists and white supremacists who support his agenda. That claim is based on past support for Moore from several groups, though not on any direct activity from Moore himself.

A Mississippi KKK group supported Moores refusal to enforce federal law, and Moores legal foundation accepted a thousand dollar contribution from a Neo-Nazi group, the ad says.

A disclaimer on the ad said the Doug Jones for Senate Committee paid for it.

The flyer came days after the Jones campaign saw a social media backlash to another mailer that showed a young black man with a skeptical look on his face and the message: Think if a black man went after high school girls anyone would try to make him a senator?

In a radio interview Friday, Jones was asked about the criticism of the ad and said: You know, maybe we could've used a little bit different language.

That flyer was meant as a reference to the multiple women going on record to say Moore pursued romantic relationships with them when he was in his 30s, and when they were teenagers as young as 14. He has denied the accusations.

Jones campaign has been actively working to motivate the states black voters ahead of Tuesday election. On Sunday, his campaign brought in a number of high-profile Democratic black lawmakers to Alabama to campaign for him, including New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, Alabama Rep. Terri Sewell, Georgia Rep. Sanford Bishop and Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond.
Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, on Sunday defended President Trumps announcement to move the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and recognize the holy city as Israels capital -- arguing the move should fastball the Middle East peace process while warning that the international bashing of Israel is hurting such efforts.

We think this is actually going to help us fastball the peace process going forward, Haley told Chris Wallace during Fox News Sunday.

The announcement by Trump on Wednesday to move the embassy from Tel Aviv and to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital roiled much of the international community -- including the Palestinians, whose seat of government is in east Jerusalem.

The U.S. announcement was also widely criticized by the 14 other members of the U.N. Security Council, during an emergency meeting Friday, which seems in part why Haley on Sunday continued to defend Israel, one of the United States closest and strongest allies.

There have been repeated attempts to hit Israel, for no reason whatsoever, Haley said. [The UNs] Israel-bashing sessions, constantly trying to find ways to pick at them.  But I want the Security Council and all of the international community to understand, when you bully Israel, you are not helping the peace process.  Were not going to put up with it anymore.

Trumps announcement is considered by many a major departure from decades of U.S. foreign policy on Jerusalem, which is essentially to stay neutral on the issue. It also fulfills a big Trump campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy to the holy city. And it is a major part of the Trump administrations agenda to bring about Middle East peace.

'We will respect anything that the two parties come together on.'  Nikki Haley

On Sunday, Alyssa Farah, press secretary to Vice President Pence, announced he would be traveling to the Middle East.

"The president has asked Vice President Pence to go to the region to reaffirm our commitment to work with partners throughout the Middle East to defeat radicalism that threatens the hopes and dreams of future generations. The Vice President very much looks forward to traveling to the region to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President el-Sisi. It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region, but the administration remains undeterred in its efforts to help achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians and our peace team remains hard at work putting together a plan."

Haley on Sunday also insisted that the U.S. will treat the Palestinians and Israelis fairly and will allow the sides to reach their own peaceful solution.

We will respect anything that the two parties come together on, she said.
California Gov. Jerry Brown said Sunday President Trump's apparent lack of fear "of the wrath of God" explains his denial of climate change.

"I don't think  President Trump has a fear of the Lord, the fear of the wrath of God, which leads one to more humility," Brown told CBS' "60 Minutes."

"And, this is such a reckless disregard for the truth and for the existential consequences that can be unleashed," he continued, referring to climate scientists who believe global warming is due to the burning of fossil fuels.

Brown, who is currently battling some of the worst wildfires in his state's history, said nature is not "a political game."

The governor, however, called on Trump to re-evaluate his decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate accord, which he announced in June.

"The truth of the case is that there's too much carbon being emitted, that heat-trapping gasses are building up, the planet is warming and all hell is breaking loose," he said. "So I'd say to Mr. Trump, take a deeper look. Now is not the time to undo what every country in the world is committed to."

Click for more from the Washington Examiner.
Vice President Mike Pence's office said Sunday it was unfortunate that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas canceled plans to meet with Pence in the West Bank this month because President Trump announced the U.S. would recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital.

The President has asked Vice President Pence to go to the region to reaffirm our commitment to work with partners throughout the Middle East to defeat radicalism that threatens the hopes and dreams of future generations. The Vice President very much looks forward to traveling to the region to meet with [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and [Egyptian] President [Abdel Fattah] el-Sisi, Pences press secretary Alyssa Farah told Fox News.

Its unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region, but the Administration remains undeterred in its efforts to help achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians and our peace team remains hard at work putting together a plan.

Abbas diplomatic adviser, Majdi Khaldi, said Saturday that Abbas wouldnt meet Pence because the U.S. has crossed red lines on Jerusalem.

President Trump also said last week the U.S. Embassy would ultimately move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Israel says it wont relinquish any part of the city, while the Palestinians have said they want the Israeli-annexed eastern sector as their future capital.

Abbas had viewed close ties with Washington as strategically important because of the U.S. role as Mideast broker. The snub of Pence signaled a sharp deterioration in relations.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Former President Barack Obama and his veep Joe Biden have recorded robo-calls in support of Democratic Alabama Senate candidate Doug Jones, in a final push to get out the vote ahead of Tuesdays special election.

A Jones campaign official confirmed the calls to Fox News. They started going out statewide on Monday.

The 11th-hour efforts are being undertaken on both sides. President Trump  who held a rally Friday just across the Alabama state line in Florida where he touted Republican Roy Moores candidacy  has also recorded a pro-Moore robo-call.

The national interest reflects the importance to Trump's agenda of keeping the seat in Republican hands.

Moore has been dogged by allegations for weeks that he pursued and even molested teenage women when he was a young prosecutor.

Moore denies the allegations.

These allegations are completely false. I did not date underaged women. I did not molest anyone. And so these allegations are false, Moore said during an interview with The Voice of Alabama Politics, a television news show affiliated with the website The Alabama Political Reporter.

"This is an election to tell the whole world what we stand for," Jones told supporters at one stop Sunday, adding that his campaign "is on the right side of history." At an earlier appearance, he declared Alabama is "at a crossroads" and that Moore, an unapologetic evangelical populist, tries only to "create conflict and division."

Fox News Peter Doocy and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Gun-rights advocates scored a major win with House passage of legislation making concealed-carry gun permits valid across state lines -- but face a much tougher challenge in the Senate where they'll need support from at least eight Democrats to make the bill law.

Supporters of "concealed-carry reciprocity" argue they simply want to clarify a patchwork of laws from local jurisdictions that confuse and sometimes ensnare gun-carrying travelers.

And they insist any bill sent to President Trump would not put state laws under a federal umbrella law or ease background checks.

This vote marks a watershed moment for Second Amendment rights, said Chris W. Cox of the National Rifle Associations legislative affairs group.

The bill passed in the House 231-198 last week, with six House Democrats voting in support.

But Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn, who is sponsoring the companion Senate measure, will need more than that in his chamber.

In 2013, Cornyn got support for a similar bill from 13 Democrats, including seven who are still in the Senate. Five of the seven are seeking reelection next year -- Joe Donnelly in Indiana, Martin Heinrich in New Mexico, Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota, Joe Manchin in West Virginia and Jon Tester in Montana. All those states are conservative-leaning except for New Mexico.

One source told Fox News it's likely Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., would seek to hold back the necessary support for the bill, giving his blessing only for a handful of vulnerable lawmakers to support it.

He could have months to organize the opposition.

Despite last week's fanfare, any Senate vote on concealed carry is not expected until next spring, sources said Monday.

The looming Senate battle pits powerful and deep-pocketed guns-rights advocates like the NRA against gun-control groups like Everytown for Gun Safety -- whose cofounder, ex-New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is reportedly putting up $25 million to oppose the reciprocity legislation.

Gun-control advocates insist the legislation would allow concealed-carry laws to follow the traveler, arguing somebody from North Dakota, for example, could carry a concealed handgun through Times Square.

When I go to New York, I have to follow New Yorks laws, North Carolina GOP Rep. Richard Hudson told Fox News before his bill passed last week.

His bill contained an 11th-hour change to help states and agencies enter such data as criminal and domestic-violence convictions into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System for gun purchases.

It's a provision the NRA has also supported, in the aftermath of the mass shooting last month at a Texas church. The Air Force admitted that it failed to enter into the federal system the shooters domestic violence-related court-martial, which could have prevented him from buying a rifle used in the attack.

But Cornyn is not including the "NICS Fix" in his measure.

I support the constitutional carry, because I view it kind of like a drivers license, he told several news outlets before the successful House vote.

But I think its a mistake to try to combine this with the fix NICS background check. We have good bipartisan support for that.  But if we start trying to add other things to it, then I think we risk not doing anything which has sort of been the fate of a lot of the legislation weve tried in the past. So, Id like to do the fix NICS, and then we can move on from there.

Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said before the vote that he supports Cornyns strategy and that House Republicans were combining the two because they know the conceal carry is extremely unpopular.

But dropping the provision from the Senate version could make it tougher to attract Democrats. Republicans have just a 52-48 Senate majority, while needing 60 votes to pass such a measure.

Cornyn appears to have enough bipartisan support and momentum to pass separate NICS Fix legislation, even before years end.
Democrat Doug Jones holds a 10-point lead over Republican Roy Moore among likely voters in deep red Alabama.

Greater party loyalty plus higher interest in the election among Democrats combined with more enthusiasm among Jones supporters gives him the advantage in the race to fill the U.S. Senate seat previously held by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

Thats according to a Fox News Poll of Alabama voters conducted Thursday through Sunday using traditional polling techniques, including a list-based probability sample with both landlines and cellphones.

Jones receives 50 percent to Moores 40 percent, with 1-in-10 undecided (8 percent) or supporting another candidate (2 percent) -- which could make a difference Tuesday. Thats even truer with such an unconventional election with unconventional candidates.

READ THE FULL POLL RESULTS

This races uniqueness is significant. It is impossible to know who will show up to vote in a special election to fill a seat in the middle of a term in an off-year. And its December, a time when people expect to be going to the shopping mall, not the voting booth.

On top of that, accusations of sexual misconduct against Moore emerged Nov. 9. Thats just a month before the Dec. 12 election. Since then, he has repeatedly denied the allegations, and after the GOP initially pulled its support, the party ultimately backed Moore.

By a 6-point margin, Alabama voters believe the allegations against Moore are true (39-33 percent). They were more evenly divided last month, believing the accusations by just 1 point (38-37 percent). About one quarter, 27 percent, feel it is too soon to say or have no opinion.

Among Republicans, 13 percent believe the accusations are true, 60 percent say they arent, and 26 percent are unsure. In November, it was 13-62 percent (26 percent unsure).

President Donald Trump, who won the state by 28 points in 2016, held off endorsing Moore until Dec. 4 -- about a week before Election Day. Yet Alabamas senior senator, Republican Richard Shelby, announced Sunday he didnt vote for Moore and instead cast a write-in vote.

Joness 10-point edge is outside the polls 3 percentage-point margin of sampling error. Last month, Jones was ahead by 8 points among likely voters and by 9 among the larger group of registered voters (November 13-15, 2017). In the new poll hes up by 6 among registered voters.

Among just the 46 percent of Alabama voters who are extremely interested in the race, the Democrats lead widens to 53-40 percent.

Joness lead comes mostly from nonwhites, younger voters, and women. Hes the choice of nonwhites by 76 points (83-7 percent), by 31 points among voters under age 45 (59-28), and by 20 among women (54-34). That jumps to 46 points among women under age 45 (67-21 percent).

More Democrats (50 percent) than Republicans (45 percent) are extremely interested in the election. And more Democrats plan to vote for Jones (90 percent) than Republicans plan to vote for Moore (81 percent).

The small subgroup of independents breaks for Jones by 29 points.

Moore is preferred among whites by 20 points (55-35 percent) and whites without a college degree by 33 points (61-28 percent).

Support for Moore among white evangelical Christians is down 8 points since last month: it was 73 percent in November and stands at 65 percent now.

And his advantage among men has dropped from 12 points last month to just 3 points now. In addition, Republican men (41 percent) are less likely than GOP women (50 percent) or Democratic men (53 percent) to be extremely interested in the race.

Moore might prevail if only the people who typically vote in Alabama elections turn out Tuesday, which is often what happens in special elections, says Democratic pollster Chris Anderson, who conducts the Fox News Poll with Republican counterpart Daron Shaw.

But this appears to be a special, special election with blacks and young voters animated by a caustic Republican candidate and the chance of winning a statewide election with national implications, and at the same time some Republicans and many moderates are turned off by Moore, too.

A subtle but potentially noteworthy finding is Alabama voters who were interviewed on cellphones are +30 for Jones, while the race is roughly even among all others. The fact that traditional, high-quality probability samples, like the Fox News Poll, include both landline and cellphone numbers may be why these polls show Jones doing relatively well compared to automated or blended polls.

Its clear Jones is positioned to pull off the upset because his supporters are unified and energized, and Moores are conflicted and diffident, says Shaw.

But Jones is depending on many voters who show up only occasionally to cast their ballots. If their rate of follow-through drops from what we expect, the race could turn. The other factor is the race seems volatile, with a new twist or story every day, and because of this it is difficult to know what Republicans will ultimately do.

The poll does indeed show enthusiasm is up among Jones supporters and held steady among Moore backers.

Fifty-seven percent of those planning to vote for Moore say they strongly support him, which is mostly unchanged from 58 percent in November.

Among Jones supporters, 70 percent strongly back him, up from 62 percent.

The portion of Moore supporters who are backing him because they dislike Jones is up 4 points since last month and stands at 13 percent.

Meanwhile, 29 percent of Moores supporters say they have reservations about their candidate, while just 13 percent of Joness supporters feel that way.

By a 15-point margin, strong moral character is more important to Alabama voters than how the candidate will vote in the Senate (48-33 percent).

For those who say moral character is more important, Jones tops Moore by 60-30 percent. Moore is preferred among those prioritizing how the candidate will vote in the senate by a narrower 54-38 percent.

The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted December 7-10, 2017, by telephone (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among a sample of 1,127 voters selected from a statewide voter file in Alabama. It has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for the full sample of likely voters. For the sample of 1,408 registered voters it is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
Paul Manafort's prison stay was extended Wednesday  nearly a week after he was sentenced to 47 months on bank and tax fraud charges in a separate case. The former Trump campaign chairman is now slated to spend a total of 81 months in prison.

He was given extra prison time at his second sentencing in connection with his guilty plea related to foreign lobbying and witness tampering.

In August, Manafort became the first Trump campaign associate to be found guilty by a jury as part of Special Counsel Robert Muellers long-running probe. He was convicted of eight bank and tax fraud charges at that time.

PAUL MANAFORT SENTENCED ON FOREIGN LOBBYING AND WITNESS TAMPERING CHARGES

Manafort has been the subject of an investigation over his dealings in Ukraine several years ago  he didnt file as a foreign agent until June 2017. But Mueller has incorporated that investigation into his probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and possible collusion with Trump associates.

Manafort was convicted on multiple counts of financial fraud last year in connection with his Ukranian work, and is in prison. In November, Mueller accused Manafort of lying "on a variety of subject matters" since his plea deal, thus violating that agreement.

Read on for a look at Manafort's work with the Trump campaign and how he is connected to the Russia investigation.

What kind of foreign work did Manafort do?

A GOP operative who worked for former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Manafort reportedly began his work in Republican politics in the 1970s.

Eventually, Manafort was hired by former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, a controversial pro-Russia politician who was ousted from power twice. After Yanukovych was elected president in 2010, Manafort reportedly stayed on as an adviser and worked on other projects in Eastern Europe, including the Party of Regions political party.

Manafort also worked for Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska. In 2005, Manafort allegedly came up with a plan to influence U.S. politics, business dealings and the media in order to greatly benefit the Putin government, according to The Associated Press.

Deripaska is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and signed a $10 million annual contract with Manafort in 2006; they maintained a business relationship until at least 2009.

Financial records obtained by The New York Times indicated that Manafort was in debt to pro-Russian interests by up to $17 million prior to joining Donald Trumps presidential campaign.

He also took more than a dozen trips to Moscow and frequently talked to Putin allies over a period of about 10 years, McClatchy reported. He traveled to Kiev at least 19 times in 20 months after the February 2014 removal of Ukraines pro-Russia leader.

How was Manafort involved with Trump's campaign?

Manafort joined Trump's presidential campaign in March 2016 to help wrangle delegates ahead of the Republican National Convention in Ohio, something he'd done for former President Gerald Ford.

Just two months later, Manafort became Trump's campaign chairman.

Manaforts resignation from the campaign was announced on August 19, 2016, after The Times reported that he'd received $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments from Yanukovychs pro-Russian party between 2007 and 2012.

Manafort and Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son, met with Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya in June 2016. She reportedly was said to have damaging information on Trumps campaign rival, Hillary Clinton, which was "part of Russia and its governments support for Mr. Trump."

What was Manafort charged with?

Along with his former business associate Rick Gates, Manafort was initially indicted in October 2017 on multiple counts that included: conspiracy against the U.S., conspiracy to launder money, false statements and failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts.

Nearly four months later, in February 2018, the pair were hit with additional tax evasion and bank fraud charges. These charges involved much of the same conduct Manafort and Gates were initially accused of, but the amount of money Manafort said to have laundered through offshore accounts increased to $30 million.

In June 2018, Mueller's team brought additional charges of obstruction of justice against Manafort and Konstantin Kilimnik, an associate. The charges against Manafort and Gates dont relate to allegations of misconduct during Trumps campaign.

Mueller also accused Manafort of secretly paying former European politicians to lobby on behalf of Ukraine.

Manafort was found guilty of eight counts in August in the first trial victory for Mueller's team. The judge declared a mistrial on 10 other counts after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict.

In September, Manafort pleaded guilty as part of an agreement with Mueller's team ahead of his second trial. According to Politico, the plea deal includes a 10-year cap for how long Manafort will be in prison. It also includes allowing Manafort to serve his time for both trials concurrently.

He received a nearly 4-year prison sentence on March 7 after a federal jury in Virginia convicted him on eight counts of bank and tax fraud last year. A week later, on March 13, he received an additional three and a half years on foreign lobbying and witness tampering charges.

Manafort previously maintained his innocence despite all of the charges brought before him  but he has since expressed remorse for his actions.

"I am sorry for what I have done and all the activities that have gotten us here today," Manafort said in a written statement in March, begging a judge for mercy.

Fox News' Ann Schmidt, Jake Gibson, Alex Pappas, Matt Richardson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Republican Rep. Peter King, responding to the rush-hour explosion near New York Citys Port Authority bus terminal, called Monday for more vetting and surveillance to help prevent attacks.

We cant afford to be politically correct, the New York congressman told Fox News Americas Newsroom.

One person was in custody Monday morning following the blast that prompted mass chaos and halted multiple subway lines, the NYPD said.

The person arrested has non-life threatening injuries, The Associated Press reported. Four people suffered minor injuries, the FDNY said, though it's unclear if the attacker was included among them.

Former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC his sources in the department said the explosion was an "ISIS-inspired attack." Bratton said the suspect was a man from Bangladesh who had been living in the U.S. for about seven years.

King, who has long advocated for tough policies when it comes to surveillance in New York City and beyond, said many people could have been killed if the explosive had detonated in a subway car.

Were always that close to a disaster, he said.

King said authorities will now have to look into whether this was part of a coordinated effort, saying this has all the  hallmarks of either being controlled or inspired by ISIS.

President Trump has been briefed on the attack.

The National Counterterrorism Center, meanwhile, is monitoring the situation in New York City.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders shut down CNNs Senior White House Correspondent Jim Acosta on Monday when the liberal reporter tried to hijack a press briefing during a conversation about fake news.

Acosta told Sanders that journalists make honest mistakes but that doesnt make them fake news before attempting a question. Sanders quickly cut him off.

Im not taking another question from you.  Sarah Sanders

When journalists make honest mistakes, they should own up to them. Sometimes, and a lot of times, you dont, Sanders said as Acosta tried to interrupt.

Im sorry, Im not finished, she said. There is a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposefully misleading the American people... you cannot say its an honest mistake when youre purposely putting out information you know is false.

Acosta then asked Sanders to cite a specific story that was intentionally false.

Sure. The ABC report by Brian Ross, Sanders said, referring to a recent embarrassing correction ABC News issued after Ross botched a bombshell exclusive about retired general Michael Flynn that resulted in the reporter being suspended.

CNNs Acosta should have stopped when he had the chance, as Sanders didnt pick one of his networks recent blunders to use as her example. However, Acosta tried to continue the conversation with repeated attempts to interrupt the press conference.

Jim, Im gonna say once and for all that Im moving on, Sanders said. Im not taking another question from you.

CNN had to issue its own correction on Friday after The Washington Post debunked the network's report claiming the Trump campaign had early, secret access to hacked DNC emails from WikiLeaks. The network on Friday inaccurately trumpeted that Congressional investigators obtained a mysterious 2016 email that was sent to Trump and other top aides, including Donald Trump Jr., which contained information on how to get a sneak peek at hacked information that WikiLeaks had acquired. The email, as CNN reported, offered a decryption key to access the files  but the network botched the date on the email, rendering the entire report irrelevant.

On Monday, CNN backtracked a report from earlier this year that faulted Attorney General Jeff Sessions for failing to reveal meetings he had with Russian officials when he applied for his security clearance  a disclosure he wasnt required to make. CNN also was widely mocked on Monday morning for a segment on Trumps soda intake amid unfolding breaking news related to the terror attack in New York City.

President Trump has pointed directly at Acosta and said, Youre fake news, at past news conferences.
Sen. Richard Shelby, R- Ala., came out swinging Sunday, saying his state can do better than elect Senate hopeful Roy Moore and suggested that people should write-in another candidate.

Shelby, the states senior senator, said he already cast an absentee ballot for another unspecified Republican.

The Republican Party supports Moore, whose campaign has been damaged by accusations of sexual misconduct with underage girls decades ago when he was a county prosecutor.

Moore is facing Democrat Doug Jones in the special election on Tuesday to replace Jeff Sessions, who vacated his Senate seat when President Trump appointed him the U.S. attorney general.

I couldnt vote for Roy Moore. I didnt vote for Roy Moore. But I wrote in a distinguished Republican name. And I think a lot of people could do that, Shelby said during a television appearance.

The accusations of sexual misconduct with teenage girls were a tipping point in disqualifying Moore from becoming a senator, according to the senior politician.

The state of Alabama deserves better, he said. Theres a lot of smoke in regard to the accusations against Moore. Got to be some fire somewhere.

If Alabamians elect Jones, he would be first Democratic Alabama senator in over two decades. Trump has come out in support of Moore out of fear that a loss in Alabama would narrow the GOPs majority in the Senate.

Moore has seen his lead in the polls slip amid the allegations, but Trumps endorsement last week might be the last-minute jolt his campaign needs to put him over the edge.

Democrats refusal to give even one vote for massive Tax Cuts is why we need Republican Roy Moore to win in Alabama. We need his vote on stopping crime, illegal immigration, Border Wall, Military, Pro Life, V.A., Judges 2nd Amendment and more. No to Jones, a Pelosi/Schumer Puppet! Trump tweeted last week, following weeks of silence regarding the Alabama race.

At a Florida rally Friday night, the president reiterated his support and rallied his supporters to get out and vote for the Republican candidate.

"We cannot afford ... to lose a seat in the very, very close United States Senate," he told the crowd. "We need somebody in that Senate seat who will vote for our 'Make America Great Again' agenda  So get out and vote for Roy Moore. Do it. Do it."

He added: "We cant afford to have a liberal Democrat who is completely controlled by Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer  His name is Jones and hes their total puppet and everybody knows it."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Trump slammed The New York Times on Monday morning over what he called a false story claiming he watches up to eight hours of television a day  while taking yet another swipe at CNN and MSNBC.

The tweet came as his administration was dealing with the response to the rush-hour explosion Monday morning in New York City. The president was briefed on the incident, now described as an attempted terrorist attack.

But he soon turned his attention back to his battle with the media thats been in full swing since last week.

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting, Trump tweeted.

The New York Times article detailed Trumps hour-by-hour battle for self-preservation, describing his Twitter habits and how he absorbs the 24/7 news  much of it critical  about his presidency.

The article claimed he spends at least four hours a day, and sometimes twice that, watching television  eager to fight back. The story said he sometimes hate-watches CNN and especially host Don Lemon.

Trump has been on a media-focused tear for days, in the wake of several high-profile errors regarding reports about his administration and associates.

On Sunday, he called the Fake News media out of control.

Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposed...a stain on America! he tweeted.

Trumps comments came after a Washington Post reporter tweeted a misleading photo about the crowd size at Fridays rally in Pensacola, Fla.

In a now-deleted tweet, the Posts Dave Weigel posted a photo of a half-empty arena to mock Trump for saying the rally was packed to the rafters.

But that photo was not taken while Trump was speaking. Trump tweeted photos showing the arena when it was full.

Weigel apologized and deleted the photo.

CNN also had to correct a story that suggested the Trump campaign, including Donald Trump Jr., had been tipped off early about hacked DNC emails from WikiLeaks when it later emerged that the alert was about material already publicly available.

CNN responded, CNN's initial reporting of the date on an email sent to members of the Trump campaign about Wikileaks documents, which was confirmed by two sources to CNN, was incorrect. We have updated our story to include the correct date, and present the proper context for the timing of email.

Fox News Zoe Szathmary and Brian Flood and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
EXCLUSIVE: A senior Justice Department official demoted last week for concealing his meetings with the men behind the anti-Trump dossier had even closer ties to Fusion GPS, the firm responsible for the incendiary document, than have been disclosed, Fox News has confirmed: The officials wife worked for Fusion GPS during the 2016 election.

Contacted by Fox News, investigators for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) confirmed that Nellie H. Ohr, wife of the demoted official, Bruce G. Ohr, worked for the opposition research firm last year. The precise nature of Mrs. Ohrs duties  including whether she worked on the dossier  remains unclear but a review of her published works available online reveals Mrs. Ohr has written extensively on Russia-related subjects. HPSCI staff confirmed to Fox News that she was paid by Fusion GPS through the summer and fall of 2016.

Fusion GPS has attracted scrutiny because Republican lawmakers have spent the better part of this year investigating whether the dossier, which was funded by the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, served as the basis for the Justice Department and the FBI to obtain FISA surveillance last year on a Trump campaign adviser named Carter Page.

The House Intelligence Committee, Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., told Fox News in a statement on Monday, is looking into all facets of the connections between the Department of Justice and Fusion GPS, including Mr. Ohr.

Until Dec. 6, when Fox News began making inquiries about him, Bruce Ohr held two titles at DOJ. He was, and remains, director of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force; but his other job was far more senior. Mr. Ohr held the rank of associate deputy attorney general, a post that gave him an office four doors down from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. The day before Fox News reported that Mr. Ohr held his secret meetings last year with the founder of Fusion GPS, Glenn Simpson, and with Christopher Steele, the former British spy who compiled the dossier, the Justice Department stripped Ohr of his deputy title and ousted him from his fourth floor office at the building that DOJ insiders call Main Justice.

The Department of Justice has provided no public explanation for Ohrs demotion. Officials inside the Department have told Fox News his wearing of two hats was unusual, but also confirm Ohr had withheld his contacts with the Fusion GPS men from colleagues at the DOJ.

Former FBI Director James Comey has described the dossier as a compendium of salacious and unverified allegations about then-candidate Donald Trump and his associates, including Page, a foreign policy adviser. The dossier was provided to the FBI in July 2016, shortly before then-candidate Donald Trump accepted the Republican presidential nomination. As Comey later testified, it was in that same month that the FBI began a counterintelligence probe of alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.

The disclosure by Fox News that Bruce Ohr met with Simpson and Steele last year expanded the reach of the dossiers creators from the FBI into the top echelons of the Justice Department. Initial investigation suggested that Steele, a longtime FBI informant whose contacts with Mr. Ohr are said to date back a decade, might have played the central role in putting Simpson together with the associate deputy attorney general. Now, the revelation that Mrs. Ohr worked for Simpson calls that account into question.

A review of open source materials shows Mrs. Ohr was described as a Russia expert at the Wilson Center, a Washington think tank, when she worked there, briefly, a decade ago. The Centers website said her project focused on the experiences of Russian farmers during Stalins collectivization program and following the invasion of Russia by Nazi forces in 1941. She has also reviewed a number of books about twentieth century Russia, including Reconstructing the State: Personal Networks and Elite Identity in Soviet Russia (2000), by Gerald Easter, a political scientist at Boston College, and Bertrand M. Patenaudes The Big Show in Bololand: The American Relief Expedition to Soviet Russia in the Famine of 1921 (2002).

Contacted by Fox News late Monday, DOJ officials declined to comment.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the ranking Democrat on the intelligence committee, declined to comment on the original disclosure about Mr. Ohrs secret meetings, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Mrs. Ohr.

While Nunes has issued numerous subpoenas to DOJ and FBI relating to the dossier, and has threatened contempt-of-Congress citations against Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray for what congressional Republicans have termed stonewalling by the two agencies, Schiff has mostly objected to the demands for documents and witnesses, casting the entire dossier probe as innately political. I think there's a hope that if they can impeach Christopher Steele, and they can impeach the FBI and DOJ, maybe they can impeach the whole Russia investigation, Schiff told MSNBC in September.
NASA has announced it will make an announcement surrounding a new discovery from its Kepler mission, a space telescope used to find exoplanets.

The announcement, set for 1 p.m. EST on Dec. 14, will showcase a new discovery using machine learning techniques from Google. "Machine learning is an approach to artificial intelligence, and demonstrates new ways of analyzing Kepler data," NASA said in the press release.

SUPER EARTH IS DISCOVERED AND IT HAS PERFECT CONDITIONS FOR ALIENS

Experts taking part in the briefing include:

Paul Hertz, astrophysics division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington

Christopher Shallue, senior software engineer at Google AI in Mountain View, California

Andrew Vanderburg, astronomer and NASA Sagan postdoctoral fellow at The University of Texas, Austin and Jessie Dotson, Kepler project scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Californias Silicon Valley

The press conference will also be streamed lived on NASA's website.

Kepler launched in March 2009 at a time when scientists and NASA researchers did not know how common planets were beyond our solar system. Since the original mission was completed in 2012, Kepler confirmed 2,337 exoplanets and 4,496 potential candidates.

In 2014, Kepler started on a new mission, known as K2, to look for exoplanets and introduce "new research opportunities to study young stars, supernovae and other cosmic phenomena."

SCORCHING-HOT ALIEN PLANET MAY HAVE EARTH-LIKE ATMOSPHERE

In 2015, the Kepler mission discovered Kepler-452b, the first Earth-sized planet in the habitable zone around a sun-like star.

Fox News' James Rogers contributed to this report. Follow Chris Ciaccia on Twitter @Chris_Ciaccia
President Donald Trump wants to see U.S. astronauts return to the Moon as a foundation for future Mars missions.

Trump signed a policy directive Monday instructing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to "refocus America's space program on human exploration and discovery."

The move, Trump said, "marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the Moon for the first time since 1972 for long-time exploration."

SUPERMOON 2017 IN PICTURES

"This time we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint," he said. "We will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars, and perhaps someday, to many worlds beyond."

NASAs goal is to send a manned mission to Mars in the 2030s.

Chris Carberry, executive director of Explore Mars, a non-profit organization that aims to advance the goal of sending humans to Mars within the next two decades, welcomed the policy directive and urged the administration to drive space exploration over the coming years. We are certainly happy that Mars remains a key element of US space policy, to told Fox News, via email. However, we also hope that a plan can [be] devised that will enable humanity to return to the Moon, but not delay Mars missions by decades.

NASA TO MAKE MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT THURSDAY, WILL REVEAL NEW KEPLER DISCOVERY

Explore Mars, he explained, is a strong proponent of building strong commercial and international partnerships to enable lunar missions, while at the same time, allowing the U.S. to lead missions to Mars in the 2030s. We hope that this signing will help to accelerate our return to deep space exploration.

Under the directive, the government is expected to work closely with other nations and private industry.

The last time a human set foot on the Moon was during the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972. Only 12 men, all Americans, have set foot on the Moon.

EUGENE CERNAN: A LIFE IN PICTURES

Vice President Mike Pence also highlighted the economic impact of the policy directive Monday. We will see jobs created that you couldnt even imagine, he said, during the White House signing ceremony.

The space policy directive ensures that America will lead in space once again, he added.

Trump and Pence were joined at the White House by several current and former astronauts, including Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the Moon, and former U.S. Sen. and Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison "Jack" Schmitt, the next-to-last person on the Moon.

EARLY EARTH TOOK A HEAVY BEATING AFTER THE MOON WAS FORMED

Monday marks the 45th anniversary of the Moon landing by Schmitt and Eugene Cernan, the Apollo 17 commander. Cernan, the last man to walk on the Moon, died earlier this year at the age of 82.

Past presidents, including George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, have also proposed returning to the Moon and missions to Mars but budget constraints derailed their plans.

The Associated Press contributed to this article. Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers
A Houston woman, her elderly parents and her 2-year-old son were kicked off a Spirit flight at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport Friday morning for non-compliance with crew instructions after being told to stop breastfeeding her son and buckle him in the seat.

Mei Rui, a concert pianist and cancer researcher, was on her way to New York City to take part in a recording session for a clinical cancer study, The Washington Post reports. Trouble began when the 6:30 a.m. flight was repeatedly delayed due to an insufficient de-icing solution, Rui wrote in a now-deleted post on Facebook. She began breastfeeding her young son in an attempt to quiet him down and get him to sleep on the three-hour flight.

MAN APOLOGIZES TO RACIST WOMAN WHO SHAMED HIM IN AIRPORT

Every parent with a young child can [imagine], you dont want to be that parent on the plane, she told the Post. It would be very embarrassing. I was just trying to avoid that.

Rui claims a crew member asked her to stop breastfeeding and buckle her son into his seat before takeoff. She wrote that the airplane door was still open and asked the attendant for a few more minutes to finish nursing her son before the doors closed. However, a representative for the airline said reports confirm that the door was already closed at this time.

I explained to them both that giving me a couple more minutes to finish nursing him would prevent him from crying and disturbing the other passengers. Seeing that I did not stop breastfeeding him promptly, they went back and at that point must have called the captain. I didnt want to cause any trouble, so I immediately pulled my son off and forced-buckled him into the seat, which set off uncontrollable crying for the next 25 minutes to the great dismay and earache of everyone on the plane, Rui wrote on Facebook.

SOUTHWEST PASSENGER THREATENS TO 'KILL EVERYBODY' ON PLANE AFTER BEING CAUGHT SMOKING

She and her family were then allegedly asked to leave the plane, where they were met by airline staff and airport security who told her they would not be allowed back on board. Its not like I was resistant, I put him in the seat, she told The Post. If they had shown a little compassion, it wouldnt have happened, they didnt have to let it escalate.

Rui recorded the encounter on her cell phone, where she can be heard over her crying son, asking what she had done wrong. I just want to know why we were kicked off the plane. Rui said.

Because you were not compliant, a Spirit employee said.

Could you tell me which part of the instruction we were not compliant with? I think we deserve to know that.

The employee refused to provide any details.

If this happened to your family... Rui said.

It wouldnt happen to my family, I can assure you, he said.

Spirits Director of Communications, Stephen Schuler, told Fox News that Rui was not removed for breastfeeding but instead for failure to comply with crew instructions by not being safely buckled and secured for takeoff after being asked repeatedly to do so.

We were forced to remove a passenger from flight 712 after they refused to comply with crew instructions several times while the doors were closed during taxi and safety briefing. To ensure the safety of our guests and crew, FAA regulations and airline policies require all passengers stay seated and buckled during takeoff and landing. We reviewed multiple accounts from the crew and other guests sitting nearby and we apologize for any inconvenience caused by this issue.

"As a courtesy, weve issued a full refund to the customer in question, Schuler wrote in an email to Fox News.

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

"We're not lawbreakers or trouble seekers," Rui told KHOU. "We're the elderly, a baby and his mother, why did they have to treat us this way?

After waiting an hour for their luggage, which was never returned, according to the Post, Rui and her family were on the way home from the airport when her father, who suffers from a heart condition, collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital.

Its been an especially tough year for the mom, whose family lost their home to Hurricane Harvey and are still living in temporary housing, the Post reports.
Disney officials have revealed new images and details about what you can expect when their new Skyliner transportation system opens in Florida.

Unveiled earlier this year, the Skyliner will transport visitors across Disneys parks and resorts in gondolas adorned with popular characters from classic Disney flicks, all while passengers enjoy a birds eye view of the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista.

The system will connect Disneys Art of Animation, Pop Century and Caribbean Beach resorts with Disneys Hollywood Studios and the International Gateway at Epcot, giving visitors a scenic new way to travel between the properties.

According to Disney, characters in the mix will include the likes of the Fab Five, while an European-style station complete with glass canopies, murals and steel structures modeled in an Art Nouveau style will arrive at Epcots International Gateway.

The Skyliners hub will be located at the station at Disneys Caribbean Beach Resort and will be made to resemble the colorful open air marketplace found in Caribbean villages, with seating for those who want to enjoy the resorts waterfront setting.

Besides transporting visitors from one Disney locale to another, the new Skyliner will offer sky-high views of World Showcase, attractions like the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, and panoramic views of Hourglass Lake, Disneys Pop Century Resort and Disneys Art of Animation Resort.

Disney officials have not announced when the Skyliner will officially open yet, though park officials told ABC that their plan is to have the system up and running months before the Star Wars: Galaxys Edge attraction opens in late 2019.
A Southwest Airlines pilot was forced to declare an emergency on Saturday after a passenger repeatedly told a flight attendant she would kill everybody" on the plane.

The trouble started after the female passenger disabled a smoke detector aboard Southwest Flight 2943 from Portland, Ore., to Sacramento, and proceeded to smoke onboard, Southwest confirmed to Fox News. After she was caught, the woman created a disturbance which was captured on video by a fellow passenger.

I have a destination for this, I have a destination for myself, and I need to go there, the woman can be heard saying in footage provided to KOIN 6.

"I swear, if you  land, I will kill everybody on this [expletive deleted] plane, she shouted. I will kill everybody on this [expletive deleted] plane!



A man can then be seen stepping into the frame to confront the irate passenger.

INSTANCES OF 'AIR RAGE' ROSE 50 PERCENT IN 2017, STUDY FINDS

The woman, who was later identified as 24-year-old Valerie Curbelo of Sandy, Ore., was physically restrained for the remainder of the flight, according to KOVR, although Southwest has not confirmed those details.

Our Crew in command of Flight 2943 traveling from Portland on Saturday afternoon safely landed on-time in Sacramento following an inflight disturbance, said Southwest in a statement. Our reports from Flight Attendants indicate a customer violated federal laws by both smoking onboard an aircraft and by tampering with a smoke detector in an aircraft restroom. Our Crew enforced the regulation and that was followed by the passenger outburst.

The safety of our Crew and Passengers is our top priority and we take all threats seriously. The pilots declared an emergency to receive priority handling from air traffic controllers, and our crew handled the situation onboard until the plane landed and local authorities stepped in.

THIS AIRLINE HAS THE WORST FOOD, STUDY SAYS

Curbelo is currently booked in the Sacramento county jail for making criminal threats, KOVR adds. She cited anxiety as the reason she lit up a cigarette aboard the flight.
A U.S. Coast Guard cutter intercepted a self-propelled semi-submersible vessel engaged in smuggling more than 3,800 pounds of cocaine, federal officials said Sunday.

According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), on November 13, CBP and Marine Operations (AMO) arrested the crew during operations in international waters, and all three suspects will face charges in the U.S.

The drug cartels are relentless and extremely innovative, National Air Security Operations Center  Corpus Christi Director Allen Durham said.

Interdicting self-propelled semi-submersible vessels requires expertise and the right aircraft. Air and Marine Operations will continue to beat the cartels at their own game to protect our borders.

The multi-day operation from surveillance to interception, according to CBP, involved several interagency partners including the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy.

AMO operates maritime patrol aircraft from Corpus Christi, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, to conduct long-range aerial patrols and surveillance missions along the U.S. borders and in drug transit zones in Central and South America, according to CBP.
Conservative commentator Lucian Wintrich had charges against him dropped for the chaos that ensued after his notes were stolen midway through his Its OK To Be White speech at the University of Connecticut.

Wintrich, 29, a White House correspondent for the right-wing blog Gateway Pundit, was arrested for chasing down a Quinebaug Valley Community College adviser, identified as Catherine Gregory, 33, at UConns Andre Schenker Lecture Hall in late November. Gregory can be seen in the viral video grabbing Wintrichs notes before he retrieved them from her as she attempted to run up the stairs.

While Wintrichs breach of peace charges were dropped, Gregory has been arrested and charged by the UConn police with attempted theft and disorderly conduct this past weekend, as first reported by the Hartford Courant.

I think its wonderful that finally the system corrected itself, Wintrich said outside the court. We dont want to set a precedent where people can walk up to speeches they find disagreeable and steal them. I mean thats really not what America is about.

His lawyer, Norm Pattis, said the state recognized that Wintrich was retrieving notes that were taken from him when the incident occurred.

We would like to thank the law enforcement, Pattis said. We disagree with their decision to arrest my client, but understand, that, given the mob mentality obtained at UConn that night there was potential for further violence.

He continued: This is the United States, not Nazi Germany. What happened at UConn the other night was shameful, and they will be hearing more from us in the not-too-distant future.

Monday was Wintrichs first court appearance at the Rockville Superior Court.

Gregory is set to appear in court on Wednesday.

Since the College Republicans Its OK To Be White event that attracted more than 100 protesters, UConn has implemented a stricter vetting process for speaking engagements that could pose a safety risk.
A plow driver in Massachusetts happened to be at the right place at the right time early Sunday when he spotted a vehicle go off the road and into an ice-covered pond.

The Winchendon Fire Department said in a Facebook post they received a call around 4 a.m. from a plow driver who spotted a car that drove onto and crashed through Hunts Pond, located about 65 miles northwest of Boston.

"He seen the accident, he seen the car go in the water, and he came down here and called 911 at the same time," Deputy Fire Chief Ricci Ruschioni told Boston 25 News.

Ruschioni was one of the first responders to arrive at the scene, and found the car in the water with the driver still inside.

"The guy was still in the vehicle and trapped, I live less than a quarter mile away, I arrived on the scene and the kid had just self-ejected and was sitting on the roof," Ruschioni said.

"With exposure to water like that, the water's only about 40 degrees, you're talking about 5 minutes with exposure like that, would have been in severe hypothermia."  Deputy Winchendon Fire Chief Ricci Ruschioni

The vehicle was in about 8 to 10 feet of water, with temperatures below freezing at the time.

As authorities were waiting for proper equipment to arrive, the car started to "quickly" sink, and firefighters were able to throw a rope to the man and have him tie it around himself. Officials were then able to pull the driver to shore.

Ruschioni said with the help of a few officers, firefighters, and a public works crewman, they were able to pull the man out of the water uninjured. They were also eventually able to remove the car as well.

If the plow driver did not notice the crash, first responders said the man wouldn't have stood a chance in the conditions early Sunday.

"With exposure to water like that, the water's only about 40 degrees, you're talking about 5 minutes with exposure like that, would have been in severe hypothermia," Ruschioni told Boston 25 News. "Like I said, would have been a lot worse.
Southern California's largest and most destructive wildfire exploded in size Sunday and swept into new areas, as the wind-whipped flames forced thousands more residents to flee their homes.

The powerful flare-up on the western edge of the Thomas Fire sparked new evacuations as the fire sent up giant plumes of smoke near Montecito and Carpinteria, seaside areas in Santa Barbara County about 75 miles northwest of Los Angeles that had been under fire threat for days and were now choked with smoke.

"The winds are kind of squirrely right now," said Mike Eliason, the Santa Barbara County fire spokesman. "Some places the smoke is going straight up in the air, and others it's blowing sideways. Depends on what canyon we're in."

Fire crews, with the help of a fleet of water-dropping planes and helicopters, tried to save homes as unpredictable gusts sent the blaze deeper into residential foothill areas and into unoccupied sections of Los Padres National Forest, where the state's fourth-largest fire burned a decade ago.

The wind-fanned flames churned through old-growth brush in canyons and along hillsides toward coastal towns. While the winds appeared to lessened slightly on Monday, officials warned they were not sure how it would help out firefighters.

The out-of-control blaze grew by more than 50,000 acres on Sunday and scorched 230,000 acres in total, making it the fifth largest wildfire in modern California history, according to The Los Angeles Times.

THOMAS FIRE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA JOINS LIST OF DESTRUCTIVE BLAZES IN THE STATE

The blaze has split into two forks in an uncontrolled move west into the Santa Barbara foothills, and northwest toward Lake Cachuma, FOX 11 reported.

Thousands of homes and businesses in Santa Barbara County were without power. Overall, the fires have destroyed about 800 homes and other buildings, killed dozens of horses and forced more than 200,000 people to flee since Dec. 4. So far, one death, a 70-year-old woman who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city where the fire began.

Officials handed out masks to residents who stayed behind in Montecito, the wealthy hillside enclave thats home to celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bridges and Rob Lowe.

Our house is under threat of being burned, Ellen DeGeneres tweeted at midday Sunday. We just had to evacuate our pets. Im praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters.

"Peace be Still, is my prayer tonight," Oprah tweeted Sunday. "For all the fires raging thru my community and beyond. #peacebestill"

In Carpinteria, retired school teacher May Osher told the LA Times she didn't plan to leave her neighborhood unless she was ordered to evacuate by police.

"I'm staying until it's time to go,"Osher said.

A few miles to the west, the Santa Barbara Zoo was closed to the public. Workers there gave shelter to the zoo's 500 animals.

Firefighters made significant progress Saturday on other fronts of the enormous fire that started Dec. 4 in neighboring Ventura County. As containment increased on other major blazes in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties, resources from those fires were diverted to the Santa Barbara foothills.

Forecasters said Santa Ana winds that whipped fires across the region last week would continue in some areas at least through Monday.

A lack of rain has officials on edge statewide because of parched conditions and no end in sight to the typical fire season.

This is the new normal, Gov. Jerry Brown warned Saturday after surveying damage from the deadly Ventura fire. Were about ready to have firefighting at Christmas. This is very odd and unusual.

SANTA ANA WINDS: WHAT ARE THEY?

Late last week, the fire swept through the San Luis Rey Training Facility, where it killed more than 40 elite thoroughbreds and destroyed more than 100 homes  most of them in a retirement community. Three people were burned trying to escape the fire that continued to smolder Sunday.

Most of last week's fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the city's rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A North Dakota woman dubbed "womb raider" pleaded guilty Monday to murdering her pregnant neighbor so she and her boyfriend could steal and keep the baby.

Brooke Crews, 38, faces life in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and murder, and lying to law enforcement officers in the death of 22-year-old Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, of Fargo. She is expected to be sentenced on Jan 16, KVRR reported.

Crews and her boyfriend, William Hoehn, 32, had previously pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and kidnapping in the death of Greywind. Investigators haven't said how Greywind was killed, but Fargo Police Chief Dave Todd has said her death was a "cruel and vicious act of depravity."

Fargo police have said Greywind died of "homicidal violence." Crews' attorney said Monday she wanted to take responsibility for her actions, but didn't offer details on how Greywind was killed.

Defense attorney Steven Mottinger told the INFORUM newspaper the guilty plea goes a long way in terms of us being able to argue for something less than life without parole.

Greywind was eight months pregnant when she disappeared on Aug. 19 in Fargo. Her body was found eight days later in the Red River, wrapped in plastic and duct tape.

Authorities said after her body was found she may have been the victim of "womb raiders" who forcibly took her baby, the Star-Tribune reported at the time.

The baby was later found alive in the apartment where Crews and Hoehn lived, in Greywind's building.

Crews initially claimed Greywind gave up her newborn daughter, but later admitted taking advantage of the woman to get the child, according to court documents. Crews told police she arranged to have Greywind come to her apartment and told her how to induce labor. Greywind came back two days later to give her the newborn baby, Crews said.

Hoehn told police a different story, according to court documents. He said he came home on Aug. 19 to find Crews cleaning up blood in their bathroom. Hoehn said Crews presented him with an infant girl and said: "This is our baby. This is our family."

Hoehn told police he took garbage bags containing bloody shoes and his bloody towels and disposed of them, according to the court documents. Hoehn is scheduled for trial in March.

The baby, Haisley Jo, is now in the custody of her biological father, Ashton Matheny, who was Greywind's boyfriend, according to the Star-Tribune.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Students at Oberlin College have long enjoyed pastries, bagels and chocolates from Gibson's Bakery, a century-old, family-owned business near campus.

That sweet relationship has turned bitter amid hotly disputed accusations of racism, roiling a school and town long known for their liberal politics.

The dispute, which began in November 2016 with the arrest of three black Oberlin students who tried stealing wine from Gibson's, is now a lawsuit in which the exasperated bakery owners accuse the college and a top dean of slandering Gibson's as a "racist establishment" and taking steps to destroy the family's livelihood.

The three students arrested at Gibson's pleaded guilty in August to attempted theft and aggravated trespassing and said in statements required by a plea agreement that their actions were wrong and that the store wasn't racist.

Even so, students continue to boycott Gibson's over perceived racial profiling, causing business to suffer. Pressed by a reporter to provide evidence or examples of profiling, they said only that when black students enter the store, they feel as though they're being watched.

The clash has inspired Oberlin senior Jake Berstein, who said he witnessed the initial altercation, to produce a podcast trying to create a conversation that "isn't being had" between the two sides.

"Gibson's has become all that is wrong with America," Berstein said. "It's a classic case of those political bubbles that don't communicate with each other, and don't want to."

Caught in the middle are longtime residents of this town of 8,300 people, many of whom identify themselves as liberals but who have patronized Gibson's for decades.

Many believe the timing was right for the conflict to boil over; the arrests came the day after Donald Trump won the presidential election, electrifying students who had long heard suspicions of racial profiling at Gibson's.

"I can understand why people were looking for some outlet for their frustration, but it's just counterproductive to bend that anger towards a small family business that to my knowledge is not guilty of the sort of racial profiling that people accuse it of," said retired Oberlin professor Roger Copeland.

The three students were arrested after punching and kicking the white shopkeeper. The 18- and 19-year-old students said that they were racially profiled and that their only crime was trying to buy alcohol with fake identification; the shopkeeper, Allyn Gibson, said the students attacked him after he caught them trying to steal bottles of wine.

The day after the arrests, hundreds of students protested outside the bakery. Members of Oberlin's student senate published a resolution saying Gibson's had "a history of racial profiling and discriminatory treatment."

There have been protests in favor of the bakery. In November, a patrons held a rally outside the store in a show of support.

We just think it is important to be law-abiding. Thats really important to us, Kirsten Penton Hill, a local business owner, told The Chronicle newspaper in November. She said she is a member of Totally Engaged Americans and the group supports a free market. She spoke out against what she sees as the college attempting to bully a small business.

Few colleges put the "liberal" into "liberal arts" more than Oberlin, which in the early 1800s became the first in the country to regularly admit women and minorities. But it also more recently has become, for conservatives, a symbol of political correctness gone awry and entitled youth.

News articles in 2015 quoted students decrying the school dining hall's sushi and Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches as cultural appropriation. The divisive, voice-of-a-generation actress Lena Dunham, famously a 2008 Oberlin alumna, was quoted in Food & Wine magazine as saying, "The press reported it as, 'How crazy are Oberlin kids?' But to me, it was actually, 'Right on.'"

With Oberlin's reputation preceding it and news of the Gibson's protests spreading online, bikers and out-of-town counter-protesters soon converged on the town to jeer students and buy doughnuts from Gibson's. Conservatives derided the students on social media as coddled "snowflakes" with a mob mentality, while students attacked the store as a symbol of systemic racism.

"Racism can't always be proven on an Excel sheet," said Kameron Dunbar, an Oberlin junior and vice chair of the student senate.

Copeland and other residents say the accusations of racism are unfounded.

"I've never seen evidence; it's always hearsay," Copeland said. "When your fellow student is shutting down a conversation because he or she is made uncomfortable, it leads to a hive mentality."

On Nov. 7, the Gibsons sued Oberlin and Meredith Raimondo, vice president and dean of students, for slander, accusing faculty members of encouraging demonstrations against the bakery by suspending classes, distributing flyers, and supplying protesters with free food and drink.

It says Raimondo took part in the demonstration against Gibson's with a bullhorn and distributed a flyer that said the bakery is a "RACIST establishment with a LONG ACCOUNT of RACIAL PROFILING and DISCRIMINATION."

Today, the lawsuit says, college tour guides continue to inform prospective students that Gibson's is racist.

Dave Gibson, the bakery's owner, says the lawsuit is about standing up for his right to crack down on shoplifting without being branded as a racist. The suit says Oberlin demanded that he stop pushing criminal charges on first-time shoplifters and call school deans instead.

"I have not taken a paycheck since this happened more than a year ago," Gibson said in an email. "Sometimes you have to stand up to a large institution. Powerful institutions  including Oberlin College  and their members must follow the same laws as the rest of us."

Gibson's loses thousands of dollars to theft, the lawsuit said. It rejects any accusations of racial bias, pointing to police figures in the past five years that show only six out of 40 adults arrested for shoplifting at the bakery were black.

The school said in a statement after the lawsuit was filed that it and Raimondo deny Gibson's claims and that the college has stopped buying the bakery's goods, ending what had been a decades-long relationship. Raimondo did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Attempts by the Oberlin Business Partnership to mediate between the school and bakery ended in failure, said partnership Director Janet Haar, with neither side appearing to be interested.

The Associated Press contributed to this report
Authorities say an Ohio woman shot her husband multiple times earlier this year and dismembered his body.

Forty-nine-year-old Marcia Eubank has been charged with murder in the death of 54-year-old Howard Eubank. Records don't show an attorney for her.

The Summit County sheriff's office says in a release that deputies went to the couple's home in Coventry Township in suburban Akron on Saturday when the couple's adult son called about possible remains. The deputies found deteriorating remains tentatively identified as those of Howard Eubank. The release says investigators believe Eubank was killed earlier this year in a "domestic-related incident."

Authorities say Marcia Eubank was arrested later Saturday in a store parking lot. A Barberton Municipal Court judge on Monday set bond for her at $1 million.
A 27-year-old man inspired by ISIS allegedly set off a small rush-hour explosion in one of New York Citys busiest transportation areas Monday morning.

Akayed Ullah, the suspect, is a Bangladeshi national who lived in Brooklyn, police said. The would-be suicide bomber had strapped a pipe bomb to his body with Velcro and zip ties, according to law enforcement officials, although it was unclear if he detonated the explosives or if the device went off prematurely.

Four people, not including the suspect, sustained non-life threatening injuries in the explosion.

Heres a look at other failed terrorist attacks in the U.S.

Fake bomb

Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis attempted to detonate what he believed to be a 1,000-pound bomb in front of the Federal Reserve Bank in New York City in October 2012. But the bomb didnt detonate for the then-21-year-old because it was a fake supplied to him by undercover FBI agents.

Nafis, a Bangladeshi national who purportedly came to the U.S. for school, intended to form a terrorist cell inside the U.S., according to the FBI. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Underwear bomber

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was sentenced to life in prison in 2012 after he attempted to blow up an international flight with a bomb placed in his underwear.

The bomb in Abdulmutallabs underwear failed to properly detonate on the 2009 plane from Amsterdam to Detroit. It did, however, cause a small fire that left Abdulmutallab burned in his groin.

He said he wanted to bomb the flight and commit martyrdom for his Islamic faith in response to the mistreatment of Muslims around the world. Abdulmutallab, who is now 30, was born in Nigeria.

Shoe bomber

Richard Reid, now 44, was arrested after he tried to blow up a trans-Atlantic plane with explosives he had hidden in his shoes. He pled guilty to the planned attack on the nearly 200 people on the 2001 flight from Paris to Miami.

Born in England, Reid had converted to Islam and told a federal judge that he was a member of Al Qaeda and pledged his allegiance to Usama bin Laden.

Im an enemy of your country, and I dont care, Reid reportedly said in court.
Three people sustained non-life threatening injuries after police said a 27-year-old man detonated an explosive device inside a New York City subway station during Monday mornings rush hour.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and fire officials  both above and below ground. The suspect was taken into custody by police.

Following the explosion, many took to social media to express gratitude for the first responders.

N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo

N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo urged New Yorkers to return to their daily routine. "Lets get back to our daily business. We will never allow them to disrupt us. Thats exactly what they want," he tweeted.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio

During a press conference, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio called New York the "resilient place on earth." He said, "We are a target because we prove a society of many faiths and many backgrounds can work  we show democracy can work."

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand

Grateful to the NYPD for quickly apprehending the suspect at Port Authority. We must remain vigilant and give law enforcement the federal resources to keep us safe, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said.

Sen. Chuck Schumer

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., praised New York Citys first responders and said, As we learn more about what happened, it is a startling reminder why the see something, say something campaign is so important to keeping our city safe.

Rep. Elise Stefanik

N.Y. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R, said the first responders courage saved lives in the morning attack.

Attorney Gen. Eric Schneiderman

Thankful for the courageous and quick response of our first responders in New York today, New York Attorney Gen. Eric Schneiderman said in a tweet. Please stay vigilant and look out for each other.

Lin-Manuel Miranda

NYPD, FDNY, thank you, today and every day, said Lin-Manuel Miranda, the Hamilton creator and star.

Bethenny Frankel

Television personality Bethenny Frankel tweeted, So is this the new world? We wake up daily to play: find the explosion?

Alyssa Milano

Actress Alyssa Milano tweeted a news report about the explosion and said, Please be safe everyone.

Rep. Mark Meadows

Thinking of and praying for everyone in New York this morning. Thank God for the brave first responders who were there so quickly, Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., said.

Sarah Sanders

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said on Twitter that President Trump has been briefed on the attack.

DC Police Department

The Washington, D.C., police department tweeted that it was monitoring the situation.

At this time, there are no current threats to the District of Columbia. We ask all residents and visitors to remain vigilant, the department tweeted.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The suspect in a triple murder that occurred inside a Houston home was captured more than 200 miles away in Dallas, officials said Monday.

The Harris County Sheriff's Office said Jeffery Noble, 35, was arrested late Sunday by Dallas Police after he fled the Houston area in a red Honda accord on Friday.

"Thank you to the community and our law enforcement partners for helping get Noble in custody," the HCSO said.

Noble was booked late Sunday into the Dallas County jail and is being held on a charge of capital murder, FOX4 News reported.

Authorities had been searching for Noble since Friday after a man and woman were found dead with gunshot wounds to the head in a home in northwest Houston.

A third person was found dead from apparent gunshot wounds to the neck and jaw, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Authorities have identified the victims as 67-year-old Robert Sciandra, 22-year-old Jessica Sciandra and 25-year-old Jordan Michael Collier. The relationship between Robert and Jessica Sciandra wasnt immediately clear.

Another woman was able to escape the home and told a neighbor to call 911.

The neighbor, Claire Vincik, told the Houston Chronicle the woman said "somebody is shooting up the house" and to call 911.

"It almost looked like she was hiding from someone," Vincik said.
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As Iraq emerges from three years of war with the Islamic State group, the U.S. is looking to roll back the influence of neighboring Iran and help the central government resolve its dispute with the Kurdish region, the American envoy to the country told The Associated Press.

U.S. Ambassador Douglas Silliman took up his post in Baghdad in September 2016, just weeks before the start of the operation to retake the northern city of Mosul. With IS now driven out of all the territory it once held and Iraq's declaration that the war against the extremists is over, he says Washington is focused on keeping the peace and rebuilding, and sees Iran's influence as a problem.

"Iran simply does not respect the sovereignty of its neighbors," Silliman said. "The Iranians have  to some extent  assisted the government of Iraq in defeating ISIS," he said, using an alternative acronym for IS. "But frankly I have not seen the Iranians donating money for humanitarian assistance, I have not seen them contributing to the U.N. stabilization program."

Iran gained major influence in Iraq after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led dictatorship and empowered the country's Shiite majority.

When IS swept across northern and central Iraq in the summer of 2014, Iran-backed militias mobilized in the country's defense, providing a bulwark in many areas while the beleaguered armed forces were rebuilt. The now state-sanctioned paramilitaries, known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, consist of tens of thousands of mostly Shiite fighters deployed across the country. Victories against IS have made their leaders increasingly powerful.

The Trump administration has called for the paramilitary forces to disband after the IS fight is complete. It has also vowed to take a much tougher line on Iran, threatening to pull the U.S. out of the landmark 2015 nuclear agreement and levying sanctions on Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard.

Iraq is meanwhile seeking external support for reconstruction after the war, which the government says caused an estimated $100 billion in damage. Some 3 million Iraqis are still displaced, months after major fighting ended.

The Trump administration has made clear that the $14.3 billion military campaign against IS will not be replaced with a similarly funded reconstruction effort. International aid organizations are instead looking to wealthy Gulf states.

"Iraq is coming out of a difficult period where there had been a lot of economic destruction, lots of social disruption and we think that it is important for Iraq to have good, positive relationships with all of its neighbors, and Iran is included in that," Silliman said.

He said the U.S. was encouraged by recent Iraqi efforts to reach out to Saudi Arabia and Jordan, allies that it hopes will play a bigger role in the country going forward.

The U.S. is also hoping to help calm tensions between the central government and the northern Kurdish region following a September independence referendum that was rejected by Baghdad. Federal forces clashed with Kurdish fighters in October as Baghdad retook disputed territories that the Kurds had seized from IS.

"The relatively modest role we are playing is to help both sides find ways to walk through the door of discussions," Silliman said, explaining that while both sides support "the idea" of discussions, negotiations to end the crisis have not yet begun.
An American man who was detained on drug charges in August escaped an Indonesian jail early Monday and a manhunt is underway.

Chrishan Beasley, 32, who was arrested in August, was allegedly found at a Bali post office with a package containing 5.7 grams of hashish, a drug made from cannabis.

Tonny Nainggolan, head of Kerobokan prison, said Beasley escaped at around 4 a.m. after sawing though a ceiling and jumping over a 20-foot wall behind the prison. Paul Anthony Hoffman, another American, was captured while trying to escape with Beasley.

Hoffman, 57, is serving a 20-month sentence for robbing a number of convenience stores at knifepoint, AFP reported.

"Paul was immediately recaptured by the locals who saw him trying to escape while Chrishan, who climbed up before him, managed to run away," Nainggolan told the news agency.

Nainggolan also said the men may have used a ladder from a construction project at the womens section of the prison to escape, ABC reported.

An investigation was underway to find out possible involvement of prison guards in the incident, said Surung Pasaribu of the local Law and Human Rights Ministry. He also said there is a shortage of guards for the prison, which was built to accommodate about 300 people but has nearly 1,600 inmates.

It was the second escape from the prison in Bali's capital, Denpasar, since June when four foreign inmates from Australia, Bulgaria, India and Malaysia escaped through a drainage tunnel.

Two of them, Bulgarian Dimitar Nikolov Iliev and Indian Sayed Mohammed Said were recaptured in East Timor days later and were returned to Bali. Two others, Shaun Edward Davidson of Australia and Malaysian Tee Koko King bin Tee Kim Sai are still at large.

Jailbreaks are common in Indonesia, where prisons are overcrowded by people convicted of drug crimes as part of the government's anti-drugs crusade.

In May, more than 440 prisoners escaped from an overcrowded prison on Sumatra island when they were let out to perform Friday Muslim prayers. In July 2013, about 240 prisoners, including several convicted terrorists, escaped during a deadly riot at a prison in another part of Sumatra.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Three months ahead of Russia's presidential election, apathy and disappointment pervade incumbent Vladimir Putin's heartland.

Alexandra Chekh, a retired kindergarten director, voted for Putin the last time around in 2012. Now she wonders if he has anything to offer.

"Change? If he could do it, he would have done it by now," she said. "If nothing gets done, then maybe we will need a new person."

A new person is unlikely  the 65-year-old Putin is the overwhelming favorite in Russia's March 18 presidential vote. But the dim view taken by former supporters such as Chekh is notable in a city like Novokuznetsk, part of the Kemerovo region in southwestern Siberia where Putin tallied 77 percent of the vote in 2012.

The city itself lies 4,500 miles (7,240 kilometers) east of Moscow.

Since that last election, anti-corruption campaigner and adamant Putin foe Alexei Navalny has been able to spread his message far beyond the prosperous and educated urban circles of Moscow and St. Petersburg where his support started. But Navalny is saddled by a fraud and embezzlement conviction  which his supporters view as politically motivated  that will prevent him from running in the presidential race unless he's pardoned or some other dispensation is made.

Navalny is pressing on, nonetheless. On Saturday, several hundred people showed up at his rally in Novokuznetsk, a city of nearly 550,000 people that is home to coal mines, metals plants and soot-smelling air. Some at the rally came without hats or gloves despite the minus -15 Celsius (minus -5 Fahrenheit) temperatures.

Navalny focused on the grievances he has been highlighting throughout the campaign: low pay for state employees, the concentration of wealth in Moscow and the Kremlin's excessive funding for foreign policy forays.

Official statistics show the region's average monthly pay as 31,600 rubles ($532), a little under the Russian average. But Novokuznetsk residents think those figures are inflated by officials. When Navalny asked the crowd how much a nurse makes in Novokuznetsk, they shouted "10,000" or "15,000."

If Putin's 18 years in power have induced apathy and a sense of helplessness among Russian voters, that's the big issue in Navalny's view.

Putin has made voters in industrial cities like Novokuznetsk his base, touting stability as the key achievement of his rule. But these days, finding a fervent Putin supporter on Novokuznetsk's snow-covered streets can be hard.

Of seven residents approached by an AP reporter, only four said they supported Putin. None of them expressed enthusiasm.

A survey by the independent polling agency Levada Center suggests that enthusiasm for Putin is in decline countrywide. It found that 51 percent of those questioned said they were tired of waiting for Putin to bring "positive change," 10 percentage points higher than a year ago.

Through his canny, energetic use of social media and YouTube, Navalny has done an end-run around Russia's state-controlled news media, which is the main source of information for people outside of the country's main cities. Demonstrations called by Navalny this year rattled the Kremlin, not only because of their large turnouts but due to the fact they were taking place in provincial cities throughout the country.

Many of those who showed up at the Novokuznetsk rally say Putin does have support there, but nowhere near as overwhelmingly as the last election figures indicated. The real picture, they say, is distorted by widespread voting fraud.

Navalny told The Associated Press after the rally that he is encouraged by the warm reception he is seeing in Russia's regions. He says that proves support for Putin in the places that habitually give him 80 percent of the vote at the polls is "fiction and falsification."

Navalny's activists all over Russia have been canvassing all year on the streets and going door-to-door to talk to voters, despite threats and intimidation from authorities.

"If we can hold such a big rally here, with all the pressure and intimidation, it means that we enjoy at least significant support here," Navalny said after an hour of posing for photos with rally attendees in Novokuznetsk.

Navalny initially laughed off a question about what is going to happen if authorities  when the presidential campaign officially starts later this month  formally bar him from running.

"(The Kremlin) cannot bar me from running if such a big number of people is supporting me," he declared.

But he later offered a glimpse into his plans.

"If they don't register me, people together with me will not recognize this election and we will boycott this election," he said.

A low presidential turnout is something the Kremlin is very wary about.

Fighting apathy is one of the most common theories behind the surprise presidential bid of socialite-turned-journalist Ksenia Sobchak. The 36-year-old candidate has been mildly critical of Putin but faces none of the obstacles that Navalny's supporters do. Many Russians think her efforts are designed to boost interest in an otherwise bland presidential campaign  a claim that Sobchak absolutely denies.

But Navalny probably does not even need to call for a boycott to bring the turnout even lower, because many residents of the Kemerovo region have already given up on the presidential vote.

Sergei Maslyukov, 40, watched his daughter slide off a mammoth mound of snow on Novokuznetsk's main square. He did not go to Navalny's rally Saturday and has not heard much about the popular activist. He is also disappointed in Putin but sees no viable alternative to the Russian leader.

"The promises he made . he did not make good on them," Maslyukov said. "What promises? Do you think average pay in Russia correlates to the prices? I'm not going to vote for anyone."
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered his country's forces to begin withdrawing from Syria, saying the country's two-year campaign to destroy ISIS is complete.

Putin, due in Egypt and Turkey for talks, had previously declared he was planning to pull out most Russian troops.

I order the defense minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases, Putin said, according to RIA Novosti news agency.

Reuters reported, however, the Russian leader left wiggle room, saying if terrorists raise their heads again his country would carry out such strikes on them which they have never seen.

However, the Pentagon pushed back on Putin's announcement.

"Russian comments about removal of their forces do not often correspond with actual troop reductions," Army Col. Robert Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters Monday.

The Russian militarys involvement in Syria, which began in September 2015, has not been without controversy. Days after Russian jets and troops arrived, then-President Obama predicted a quagmire for Russian and Iranian forces in Syria.

President Trumps national security advisor H.R. McMaster told Fox Newss Bret Baier earlier this month at the Reagan National Defense Forum outside Los Angeles that today 80 percent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assads forces are Iranian supported proxies.

What the Iranians have done across the Middle East is fuel and accelerate cycles of violence so that they can take advantage of chaos and weak states to make them dependent on Iran for support, McMaster said.

Russia has always said it was targeting ISIS militants, but human rights organizations say civilians have often been killed.

TRUMP, MATTIS TURN MILITARY LOOSE ON ISIS, LEAVING TERROR GROUP IN TATTERS

The Violations Documentation Center, a Syrian civil monitoring organization, documented one bombing campaign in opposition-held Aleppo in 2016 killed more than 440 civilians -- including more than 90 children.

Last month, various groups, including the Syrian government and some opposition representatives, met in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, for talks aimed at implementing a lasting ceasefire agreement. Those talks have not led to any meaningful agreement yet.

The task of fighting armed bandits here in Syria, a task that it was essential to solve with the help of extensive use of armed force, has for the most part, been solved and solved spectacularly, Putin said, in remarks broadcast on Russian television, Reuters reported.

However, Putin also announced that Hmeimim airbase and Russia's naval facility in Tartus would continue to operate in Syria.

The Kremlin strongman thanked Russian troops for helping Syria remain a "sovereign independent state," telling servicemen gathered at the base: I congratulate you!"

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based war monitor, said in March that about 465,000 people killed and missing in Syrias civil war. The United Nations says that over 13.1 million people are in need of assistance in the war-torn country, which includes 6.1 million who were internally displaced.

Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson contributed to this report.
It appears that a woman was indeed buried nearly nine years ago in the median of Interstate 95 in Stafford County, in a then-wooded spot just north of the Telegraph Road overpass.

Now the paved express lanes run through the stretch where a man said he buried the remains of his girlfriend, after strangling the 47-year-old woman in her Washington home on Feb. 13, 2009, the day before Valentines Day.

Earlier this year, Jose RodgriquezCruz admitted to killing Pamela Butler that night and later burying her remains in the median. In a plea deal, he promised to lead police to the her remains.

Police used cadaver dogs to search the grassy area next to the express lanes on Friday, but havent said anything about the results.

Butlers brother said Monday morning that police told him the dogs hit on human remains in several areas. That led them to believe Butlers remains were scattered about when earth was moved for work on the express lanes, which opened two years ago.

We gave it a hell of a try, said Derrick Butler, who has talked about how important it was to the family to recover his sisters remains.

Although they wont get the remains, Butler said he and prosecutors believe RodriguezCruz told the truth about burying her body in the median.

The 52-year-old Rodriguez-Cruz was sentenced to 12 years as part of the agreement.

Derrick Butler called RodriguezCruz a monster and pointed out that the mans first wife also disappeared, a crime he implored police to solve.

According to media reports, Arlington County cold-case detectives uncovered evidence that domestic violence contributed not only to Butlers death but possibly the death of Rodriguez-Cruzs first wife, Marta Cruz.

In Butlers case, prosecutors described RodriguezCruz as an extremely violent man.

He told prosecutors that the couple argued that night over his job and him holding up his end on finances. He said he punched Butler, then got on top of her and strangled her.

RodreiguezCruz said he turned off Butlers home security system and lowered her body out of a first-floor window. He then put her body in his nearby car, drove off and disposed of her remains.
Long-standing tension between the Spotsylvania Education Association and a tea party group is simmering as budget season approaches.

The education association recently cried foul after the county reserved a portion of this coming Tuesdays Board of Supervisors meeting for a 15- to 20-minute presentation on teacher pay by the Fredericksburg Virginia Patriots. Residents typically have up to three minutes to speak during the public-comment portion of meetings, prompting some education association members to suggest the tea party is getting preferential treatment.

But late Friday afternoon, county officials deleted the tea partys spot on an online agenda, in addition to an attachment of its slideshow presentation. It was on the agenda as a placeholder because a presentation had been received electronically, County Administrator Mark Taylor wrote in an email.

Spotsylvania Education Association President Jeanne Bergeron, a teacher at Riverbend High School, said she does not buy that explanation. I think theyve seen the conflict, and they dont want to be in the middle of that or they dont want to appear to be in the middle of that, she said, noting that reserving time for the conservative group outside of public comments would set a precedent.

Jennifer Theut of the Virginia Education Association also pointed out Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Greg Bentons Facebook post Thursday replying to criticism of the tea partys placement on the agenda. As far as the Patriots, we felt it better to go ahead and give them the time [than] have to listen to a repeated number of their membership come in and give 3 minute pieces of the presentation, Benton wrote.

Michael Smithchairman of the tea partys budget review committeesaid Taylor told him Friday he would need to deliver the speech during the public-comment session. He said hes fine with that, adding that other residents plan to defer their speaking time to him so that he can make the presentation uninterrupted.

Smiths presentation offers feedback on a consultants salary study for Spotsylvania Public Schools. I dont know why everybody got all up in arms about a 20-minute presentation, Smith said, adding that most of the report simply summarizes information from the study.

Tea partiers in Spotsylvania often speak out against real estate tax increases, and routinely find common ground on the issue with at least three supervisors: Chairman David Ross, Timothy McLaughlin and Paul Trampe.

But some teachers say the anti-tax sentiment hurts the school system, which relies on the Board of Supervisors for a significant amount of its funding. Critics of the tea party question why its members scrutinize the School Boards budget so much more than other county spending.

During a public hearing in March, some tea party members accused the School Board of lavish spending on chairs and other items. In perhaps the most eye-raising claim, they said the school system spent about $40,000 on two chairs.

School Board Chairwoman Erin Grampp disputed the allegation of wasteful spending, writing that the school system actually bought 175 chairs for $40,152, or $229.44 each.

Smith asked supervisors last month to allot about 15 minutes for his presentation. Otherwise, he said at the time, tea party members would have to deliver the speech in increments during the public-comment period.

Ross said in a text message to a reporter Friday that board members never agreed to put the tea partys presentation on this weeks agenda. He said he thinks the group should deliver its remarks during the public-comment session.

I was not aware of any complaints by [the education association], but since you have informed me, I share their concerns of perceived favoritism and believe it has been addressed prior to the meeting, Ross wrote in the text message.

Smiths report recommends no budget increase next year for Spotsylvania schools. The School Board, he wrote, should consider increasing employee contributions to benefit packages in order to improve compensation/salary for some employees and examine and execute cost-cutting measures at all departments and schools.

His report recommends carrying out the salary studys least expensive option, which would maintain most salaries, but increase pay for some employees at the bottom of their pay scales at a cost of $176,430.

Individuals are free to choose their professions with the full understanding of the compensation and benefits available, Smith wrote. Military members used to say, We joined the military not for the pay, but for the benefits and No one ever gets rich in the military. The same can be said for a majority of SCPS employees.

The tea party did not weigh in on a separate salary study on behalf of all other county employees, including deputies and firefighters. Supervisors this year approved a wide range of pay raisesfrom 1.3 percent to up to 10.7 percentfor those employees at a cost of $2.1 million.

The school systems salary study includes three options for its employees, costing from $176,430 to a little more than $7 million. The study says the school system is paying entry-level teachers near market averages, while teacher salaries at the middle and top of the pay scale are above market.

Employee pay increases in SCPS have been good and need to continue in order to retain employees, the report states. But the report acknowledges that a major concern among employees, particularly those nearing retirement, is that their position on the salary scale does not reflect their experience because of a lack of step increases.

Spotsylvania teachers, who received a 2 percent pay increase this year, made an average of $53,438 during the 2016-17 school year, or about $1,453 less than the statewide average, according to the Virginia Department of Education. Thats more than the average in Fredericksburg, but nearly $1,000 less than in Stafford County Public Schools.

The Spotsylvania school system has already increased health insurance premiums for employees in recent years, said Bergeron, the education association president. She agreed that teaching is a choice, but said she thinks Spotsylvania educators deserve better.

I chose to go get my masters degree so I could teach, Bergeron said. But I still have to be able to pay that masters degree off.
Every princess must have her court.

Mary Pelhams was made up of eight: Teachers from Stafford High School who every day prepare her for life outside it, the Rappahannock Area YMCA staffers who have known her for years, including a youth director named Karla Edwards who enlisted them all.

They gathered on a bus with a noisy heater that roared over the Disney music Edwards had picked out. Beyond the clouded windows, an early December snow picked up.

A nearby county had canceled its school activities, the libraries had closed, and the forecast was calling for four to six inches, but none of that mattered to Marys loyal subjects.

At the front of the bus was a seat covered in white tulle and Cinderella-blue satin, and in a box near the drivers seat was a roll of red plastic, because every princess must have her throne and a red carpet on which to get there.

Edwards checked the time. Nearly 10 a.m. The princess would be waiting. She put the bus in gear and headed toward the home of Mary, a 16-year-old with Down syndrome who knew only that she was going to be royalty for the day.

Do You Want to Build a Snowman? from Disneys Frozen sounded through the bus speakers, but if anyone noticed how fitting it was, they didnt remark on it.

They were thinking about the girl who loved princesses, and who today would get to be one. Francesca Futia, Marys physical education teacher, dabbed the tears that were already slipping from her eyes.

DRESSING LIKE A PRINCESS

She was waiting on the porch with her dad, bundled against the cold, when her chariot rumbled up to the curb and the court disembarked.

Edwards rolled out the red carpet, only to discover it was shorter than she thought. It was no matter; as Mary walked the length of it, Edwards picked it up and moved it farther over the snow-powdered grass until shed walked the length of the lawn.

Mary stepped onto the bus, through a curtain of white tulle, and took her special seat.

Whats it like being a princess? Bailey Vera, a YMCA child care provider, asked Mary. Are you happy?

Yes, Mary said.

A little bit happy or a lot happy?

A little bit happy, Mary answered, and they all laughed.

Every princess must have a pretty dress, and they were headed to find one.

Weeks ago, as Edwards, the YMCA youth director, began dreaming up what being a princess for a day might entail, shed gotten in touch with Macys. The department store was providing a $150 gift card for a dress and shoes, and the entourage figured theyd split up to find a few for Mary to try on.

But Marys court was as surprised as the princess when a trio of Macys workers at Spotsylvania Towne Centre led them to a vast dressing room decorated with a plush pink rug and silver and white ribbons and strings of light bulbs. A chandelier hung from the center of the ceiling, and boxes of shoes sat on a bench and dresses in Marys size and fit for a princess filled a rack.

Im going to be your personal elf today, said Nettie Graham, a sales associate who was dressed like one, down to a pair of green shoes, and Mary stuck out her hand and introduced herself as a princess, just as shed practiced while theyd waited.

Graham does not drive in the snow, she said, except today she did, because like those who already knew Mary, she wouldnt have missed this for anything.

They started with the shoes, pulling pairs of slippers that sparkled--like the glass ones Cinderella had worn--and fitting them onto Marys dainty feet.

Mary chose a pair with bows on the toes, and the courtiers agreed those were the best before turning their attention to the dresses, which were already outfitted with bracelets and necklaces and fur wraps.

Youre so good, Sharon Reik, a YMCA child care provider, told Graham as all but Marys two teachers filed out of the dressing room theyd squeezed into.

It doesnt cost a thing to be kind, Graham said, and in one sentence shed summed up what Mary taught everyone she met, without ever trying.

BEAUTIFUL FROM

THE INSIDE OUT

Mary deserved to be a princess, Edwards said in answer to why shed put all this together. When shed reached out to Macys and to New-U Salon and Family Nail in downtown Fredericksburg where they would end the day, everyone had wanted to help.

She is happy every day, said her teacher, Erin Dowd. She looks at the positive. Shes beautiful from the inside out.

Dowd paused. Mary reminds us to enjoy the special moments. The little things.

Back in the dressing room, she and Futia helped her into her first dress, a blue one. Blue is her favorite color; blue is the hue of Cinderellas dress at the end of the movie, when her fairy tale has finally come true.

It had cold-shoulder sleeves and was paired with a stole made of white faux fur, and as Mary stepped out of the dressing room, all anyone could say was how beautiful she looked.

There were more dresses: one in Christmas-red with a narrow silver belt, a fitted white one with a keyhole back and gold trim.

For me? Mary wanted to know, and Dowd and Futia assured her that they were.

Outside the dressing room, amid racks of womens suits and blouses, Graham had a hunch.

It might be hard for her to choose, she said knowingly, but I think shes got her mind on the blue.

When Mary stepped out for the final time, it was the one she wore.

A FINISHING TOUCH

There was lunch in the malls food court, with Mary at the head of the table, because where else would a princess sit. There were visits from Spotsylvania Sheriffs Office deputies, who shook her hand and gave her a sticker that looked like a badge and posed for a photo, because who would want to miss a chance to meet a princess.

After lunch, the deputies let her sit in one of their vehicles parked inside the mall, and they turned on the lights for her. There was a visit with Santa, where Mary was ushered in through a side gate, because princesses dont have to wait in line.

Then it was time to go back to Macys, where a makeup artist asked Mary whether she wanted something natural or glamorous.

Cinderella, Mary said, and the woman seemed to know exactly what she meant.

She had the same answer for Nidal Samad, a stylist at New-U Salon who turned Marys straight dark hair into ringlets fit for a princess.

Mary stood.

Were going to put one more thing on your head, Edwards said, and Mary sat down again.

Every princess must have a tiara.

It rested on a blue satin pillow made especially for it, light catching in the jewels. Samad placed it on her head.

All of it had been magical--the shoes and the dress, sitting on the arm of Santas over-sized chair and learning to wave with a flick of the wrist.

But for the first time that day, Princess Mary was spellbound.

So was everyone else.

Mary reminds us to enjoy the special moments. The little things. erin dowd, teacher
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A blanket ban on a class of pesticides linked to harming bees could make growing sugar beet in the UK unviable, the NFU has warned.

Representatives from EU member states are due to meet in Brussels on 12-13 December to discuss the future of three neonicotinoids that are currently banned for use on flowering crops such as oilseed rape and sunflowers.

The European Commission Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (Scopaff) will discuss a proposal to further restrict the use of these insecticides by imposing a total ban for use on all outdoor crops.

See also: Can sugar beet survive a future without neonicotinoids?

Member states may be asked to vote on the commissions proposal for an outright ban.

Last month, in a reversal on the governments previous position, Defra secretary Michael Gove said he would support a commission proposal to extend the ban to non-flowering crops.

Writing in the Guardian, Mr Gove said the evidence had grown that the risk to bees and other pollinators from neonics was greater than previously understood.

Defra reversal

However, the NFU said Mr Goves comments are deeply worrying and extending the neonics ban to cover all cereals and sugar beet could seriously damage yields.

Emma Hamer, NFU senior plant health adviser, said: In our view, the weight of evidence is not enough to condemn neonics and we cannot understand the U-turn by Michael Gove.

Rothamsted Research and the pan-European study on neonics by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology have both concluded the evidence is not strong enough for a total ban.

Under a total ban, Ms Hamer said more growers would have to resort to using insecticide sprays, such as pyrethroids, which could be worse for the environment.

Its a massive concern, particularly for sugar beet, because there is nothing else available that can control aphids, which spread virus yellows disease in sugar beet, she added.

Neonics have done a great job at controlling aphids. Without them, we could see a 30-40% yield depression in sugar beet, which would then not be viable to grow in the UK.

No alternatives

Better crop breeding technologies and better insecticides could be an alternative to replace neonics. But for now, neither are options, said Ms Hamer.

Achim Dobermann, Rothamsted Research director, said a total ban would result in known consequences and unknown consequences.

If you have no alternative available, you might be forcing people to use something older that is worse, or forcing them towards something new that might turn out to be worse, said Prof Dobermann.

More than 80 European NGOs in the Save The Bees Coalition, which includes Friends of the Earth Europe and Buglife UK, have signed a letter urging EU decision-makers to completely ban outdoor neonicotinoid seed treatments without further delay.
Unless you have been living in a bunker for the past few days, you will know that it has been snowing in many parts of the UK, with Wales and the Midlands bearing the brunt.

Yesterday (10 November) about 140,000 homes were left without power as heavy snow and strong winds battered Britain, and temperatures dipped to as low as -12C on Sunday night in Northumberland.

True to form, our wonderful readers have been busy snapping snowy rural scenes in all their beauty  here are some of our absolute favourites.

See also: Job profile: Whats it like to be a farm brewer?

Yorkshire Dales

Julia Chapman sent us this wintry photo of sheep adjusting to the chilly landscape on the Yorkshire Dales.

Heavy snow in Wales

Young farmer Tom Parry took this photo of Texels in the snow in the Brecon Beacons area.

And Matty Thomas took this one on a hill in Llanidloes, Powys, about 1,950ft above sea level.

Sledging on the farm

Here are Josie and Freddie having a blast sledging in the snow on the farm. Check out their matching sledge and overalls.

New workers snow joke

Looks like the guys at Hoys Farm are short of workers. We are not sure much ploughing is going to get done with this frosty character in charge, though. Tara Davies sent this one in to us.

Snow-covered pig sty

Janet Powell sent in this chilly shot of the farms pig sty after the first big dump of the white stuff in mid-Wales.

Chilly Charolais

Vince and Melita Corbett sent in this photo of one of their heifers in the snow in Powys. This beauty is called Teme Lollypop, an 18-month-old pedigree Charolais enjoying the snow at 1,400ft on the Welsh border.

Hairy Highland

This inquisitive Highland certainly wont have trouble keeping warm in the snow in Shropshire. Lisa Lupton of Church Stretton send us this one.

Snowy silage bales

Alexandra from Northern Ireland quite rightly points out that black-wrapped silage bales look like pints of Guinness when it snows.
A family of beavers is to be released in an enclosed site in the Forest of Dean early next year, in the hope they will contribute to improving biodiversity and flood control near the village of Lydbrook.

But farmer groups have expressed concern that any more widespread release of beavers could have a negative impact on farmland and the landscape, due to their physical activities of felling trees and building dams.

See also: NFUS calls for measures to counter beaver damage

The Forest of Dean project, proposed by the Forestry Commission and just signed off by Defra secretary Michael Gove, will see two adult beavers and two kits released into a 6.5ha site next spring.

The hope is that their dam-building skills will help slow the flow of water through the village and also create new habitats.

The beaver has a special place in English heritage and the Forest of Dean proposal is a fantastic opportunity to help bring this iconic species back to the countryside, 400 years after it was driven to extinction, said Mr Gove.

The project is an example of the wider approach we are taking to enhance biodiversity. and deliver on our plans for a Green Brexit.

The Forest of Dean release could be the first of many such schemes, with Defra publishing new guidance for further trial releases across England.

Farmer fears

But, even though the Forestry Commission insists that the enclosure for this trial will be totally secure, the NFU has concerns about beavers in the wild and the impacts they could have.

The Forest of Dean release into a secure enclosure is a good opportunity to further learn about the consequences of beavers on the landscape, said environment forum chair Mark Pope.

However, it is vital that this release is closely monitored to ensure that no beavers are allowed to escape, which could have potentially serious implications on farmland such as land drains being blocked in lowland arable fields.

That has been the experience in Scotland, where 19 of the semi-aquatic rodents were introduced in Argyll in 2009.

An illegal release also occurred in Tayside, and there are now believed to be several hundred beavers at large.

Crop losses

NFU Scotland points to problems with agricultural land being flooded and crops lost, either as a result of beaver dams, or due to tunnelling through flood banks.

The illegal release of beavers on Tayside some time ago means that the animals are now found on waterways stretching through half a million hectares of land, said SFUS environment committee chairman Angus MacFadyen.

The environmental benefits seen in localised areas must be viewed against the considerable damage from beaver activity on productive farmland, drainage systems, long-standing flood banks and established woodland.

Discussions on an appropriate management plan are still taking place with stakeholders.
News

editor's pick centerpiece

Island one of few small cities operating its own transit

KELSEY WALLING/The Daily News A man walks toward an Island Transit bus at Wal-Mart on Seawall Boulevard on Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017. The city of Galveston is looking at potentially cutting Island Transit routes. KELSEY WALLING/The Daily News Bobby Wrenn talks to a bus rider while stopped at the Galveston Transit Terminal on Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. Wrenn thinks less people ride the bus now, because many people found more lucrative jobs north of Galveston after Hurricane Ike.

GALVESTON

The city of Galveston is one of only a handful of small municipal governments in the state that administers its own public transit system, according to a Texas Department of Transportation database.

Because the population of Galveston was less than 50,000 in the last census, Galveston is classified as a rural transit system. Out of dozens of state-recognized rural transit systems, the wide majority of those are operated by specially formed transit districts or third-party companies.

If you look around the Houston-Galveston area, most of the others that do have transit components, theyre usually operated by others, Assistant City Manager Rick Beverlin said. Youre finding fewer and fewer communities of this size that are running their own system unless they are a community off to their own, separate from a metropolitan area.

Galvestons geography and focus on tourism does lend itself more to a city-operated form of transit, however, said Michael Walk, a research scientist and program manager at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.

Because it has sort of a tourist orientation and its a small island thats separated from the region as a whole, I dont think its that uncommon for a city like Galveston to want to have a transit system, Walk said.

Beverlin and other city officials have frequently cited the fact that Galveston is one of few small cities to operate its own transit system, called Island Transit, in conversations proposing cuts to service.

South Padre Island and Del Rio are two rural cities that also operate similar fixed-route services, according to the database. Dozens more rural transit systems are operated through other means and not by cities.

The city has proposed eliminating the lifeline route on weekdays, just months after beginning the service. The lifeline is the only nighttime route during the week, and operates from 7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. It also operates all day on Saturdays and Sundays, but the city has also proposed cutting the service after 7:30 p.m. on weekends.

Galveston City Council approved the lifeline route in May as a response to declining ridership and a loss in federal grant funding. The island-wide bus route loops from 81st Street to the citys East End.

The city will hold a public meeting 5 p.m. Jan. 4, 2018 about canceling the service, city spokeswoman Jaree Fortin said.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

City officials point to losses of funding as the reason for canceling the service. In the 2010 census, Galvestons population declined and made the city ineligible for $750,000 in annual federal transportation funding it had previously received.

Since then, the city had recovered most of that amount. But in 2018, the city is set to lose another $500,000 in grant funding from the Houston-Galveston Area Council, Beverlin has said. The city also approved a budget in September that reduced its general fund allocation to Island Transit by $180,000.

Added to the problem is a consistent drop in fixed-route ridership over the years, Beverlin said. That has been the case for the lifeline route so far, with two buses combined collecting an average of $40 a day during the week, he said.

Each bus on the lifeline route costs $80 an hour to operate, Beverlin said. With two buses running per hour for four hours during the week, that equals $640 in overhead a day.

Sometimes, the ridership is so low that buses will go an hour or two without any riders, Beverlin said.

If youve got services for an hour or two and youve got no one on it, you need to start looking at that, Beverlin said.

No city turns a profit on its transit system, but Galvestons farebox revenues seem on the lower side, Walk said.

Declining ridership is most likely attributed to changes in demographics, Beverlin said. Many of the people who use Island Transit are elderly or disabled and qualify for demand-response services, where riders can request a ride to and from a location of their choice, Beverlin said.

To not look at it in the vacuum, those users either went from fixed route to a higher income bracket, they relocated, or they got older and are now demand- response candidate patrons, Beverlin said. Then, you probably are losing some to the Uber-type model as well.

But cutting service sometimes worsens the problem, Walk said.

It becomes a very vicious cycle as a transit system runs out of funds, Walk said. Reducing service makes it less convenient and less convenient service brings in less riders. You have to keep trying to balance the books.

Making sure cuts to service dont exclude former riders is tricky business, said Brad Coleman, operations supervisor for the Port Arthur Transit Department, which operates its own bus service. The city of Port Arthur had a population of more than 53,000 in the 2010 census and qualifies as an urban transit system.

You have to make adjustments, Coleman said. While were making adjustments, we dont want to leave out people who used to ride.

NOW WHAT?

Most rural cities in Texas rely on regional transit districts or contractors to operate services, according to the Texas Department of Transportation database. Some of those provide service across counties, and many are demand-response shuttle services.

The city of Galveston said it has contemplated moving away from some of its Park and Ride services, Beverlin said.

James Hollis, transportation director for Gulf Coast Center, which runs the mainlands Connect Transit, said he has had conversations with the city on taking over some of those services.

Were prepared, Hollis said.

The city hasnt yet to come up with a full solution on how to get affected riders replacement transportation, Beverlin said. The city has recommended that the city council extends a subsidized taxi program, called Harris County RIDES, before it expires in May 2018.

Cutting service isnt the only answer, either, Walk said. Sometimes better marketing can help, such as making transit systems easier to use and understand, he said.

Another option would be a campaign to increase community buy-in that transit is important to the economic vitality of Galveston, or even having business communities sponsor transit, Walk said.

I think any transit agency thats struggling would want to do whatever it could to keep its doors open, Walk said. Besides cutting service, there are alternatives to try to increase revenue.

More Information The city of Galveston runs two buses on the Lifeline bus for four hours in the evening during the week. Here's how much it costs to operate the two buses and how much the city earns in fares. Cost per hour to operate the two buses: $160 Average in fares collected per hour: $10 Cost per day to operate: $640 Average in fares collected per day: $40 Information provided by Assistant City Manager Rick Beverlin
LEBANON  Joel and Bill Bartman wanted to meet more often and drink beer together.

So the brothers, along with the help of nephews Aaron and Brian Franks, formed their own microbrewery. Barsideous Brewing opened in downtown Lebanon in early November.

Bills been a microbrewer for quite a while. Gatherings like weddings, festivals, you name it, we always had his beer and it was always really good, Joel Bartman said.

We just got to talking, and it was, Why not open a microbrewery? he added.

A grand opening for Barsideous Brewing is scheduled for Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with live music on Friday and Saturday starting at 8 p.m. each night. Due to limited space, patrons may want to arrive early to see the shows.

Bill Bartman said theres definitely room for another brewery in Lebanon. Conversion, the towns first microbrewery, or at least the first in modern times, opened in October 2015.

So far, the most popular beers at Barsideous have been Kama Citra, a Belgian style India pale ale, and Chocolate Cassanova, a chocolate stout.

But there also are seasonal offerings, such as St. Gregory, an oatmeal gingerbread stout, and Saint Misbehavin, which has a strong Scottish ale base and is brewed with 40 pounds of Bing cherries, as well as maple syrup, vanilla beans and cinnamon sticks.

Chef Angela Miller also has been a chief draw for customers, the Bartmans said, and she uses Barsideous brews in many recipes.

The prime rib for Philly cheesesteak sandwiches, for example, is cooked with stout from the microbrewery.

The barbecue burger, jalapeno poppers with berry sauce and macaroni and cheese gouda balls also have been top sellers on the food side.

Daily specials have proven popular, as well. On a recent weekday, the special was bacon-wrapped meatloaf with mashed potatoes.

Joel and Bill Bartman are both graduates of Lebanon Union High School and Oregon State University.

While Joel Bartman still works as a software engineer for HP Inc., Bill Bartman is retired. He used to teach band at Oregon City High School.

The name of the microbrewery comes from a nickname bestowed on him by his band students, who believed he could Jedi mind trick people to do his bidding. Mix Bartman and Darth Sidious and you get Barsideous.

The nickname was initially used as a placeholder on company graphics. But then Bill Bartman couldnt get his nickname off of posters no matter how hard he lobbied.

Barsideous Brewing sits in the original location of the Kuhn Cinema. The current Kuhn was built next door after the initial location proved immensely popular for Lebanon residents. The old theater kept operating and was then rechristened the Gem.

The Bartmans started renovations a year ago, and as Joel Bartman and his nephews were all working full time, creating a microbrewery was a lengthy process. Aaron Franks owns Franks Construction, and Brian Franks also has skills as a craftsman, so they were able to contribute greatly to shaping the microbrewery space.

Bill Bartman said Brian Franks helps with the brewing, as does Miller, who selects food ingredients for beers.

Barsideous Brewing, 644 S. Main St., is open from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Mondays, Thursdays and Sundays, and 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The microbrewery is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. For more information, call 541-570-1789 or go to the business Facebook page.
A new voter-created program that makes lottery dollars available to Oregon schools to fund overnight outdoor school programs for students in the fifth or sixth grades has received fundraising requests from schools representing 76 percent of eligible students.

Kristopher Elliott, who administers the distribution of these funds for the Oregon State University Extension Service, said the goal of extension service staff was to have a 45 percent participation level this year. Because of the high level of funding requests, Elliott said the program will have to spend more of the $24 million allocated to it for the 2017-19 biennial budget this year than expected.

Despite this, he said the program should be able to fund all the requests this year and next. However, he said it could be a challenge next year if schools that requested funds for a three-day outdoor school program this year expand their requests to the full five days for which they are eligible. If that happens, he said the extension would have to adjust their funding formula.

The 76 percent participation rate represents over 36,000 students, Elliott said.

Elliott, who started in his role as the outdoor school program leader in September, said the extension faculty has been helping in reviewing applications.

Though it caused extra work for us, we do it with smiles on our faces. Seeing the overwhelming response from our schools is so exciting, he said.

Elliott said the extension has an advisory board working on the program and has seven resource groups working on issues for support that the extension is offering to schools doing outdoor school. The groups are focused on specific topics, like curriculum development or identifying sites for outdoor school programs. Eventually, Elliott said there will be three more people working under his supervision in Corvallis and three more around the state in extension offices.

Elliott said extension staff across the state have helped in getting the participation rate so high by communicating with their local school districts about how the funds are available and assisting with crafting funding requests.

The ballot measure that created the outdoor school program in 2016 tasked the extension service with administering the outdoor school program, and it allowed the extension service to keep some of the money allocated to the program to cover the costs of administering the program.

Elliott said the extension expects 80 percent participation next year, and hes excited so many students are being reached already.

Its reassuring weve communicated well and have reached the right people, he said.

Brenda Downum, communications coordinator with the Corvallis School District, said the district has applied for funding for all 550 fifth-grade students in the district to be able to attend outdoor school for three days this school year. She said this represents about $150,000 in expected funds. If the district is awarded less than that, it would make up any gaps with its own budget so all kids in the district could participate without schools having to raise funds. In recent years, district outdoor school programs have been funded by parent groups, so not all schools have had equitable access to it, she said.

Steve Bell, principal at Philomath Middle School, which has a longstanding tradition of offering outdoor school to sixth-graders, said the school has applied for funding. He said the biggest change is this allows the school to not have to work as hard to raise funds to support the program as it traditionally had.

We did host our big event, Turkey Bingo, which has become a fun Philomath Schools tradition," Bell said. "If we receive full funding from the grant, we will be using the funds raised at Turkey Bingo in a different manner. At this point, we are hoping for substantial funds from the grant, but until we are awarded any funding, we are not making any substantial shifts to our practice and planning for outdoor school beyond the reduction in fundraising efforts.
What are the historically ignorant snowflakes here in River City, on campus, students, administration, and the leftist liberals that run this city going to do if or when they find out that good old Abe Lincoln, 16th president of these United States, was a true blue racist? How many streets, schools and what not, are named after Honest Abe from Illinois, who wanted to ship the former slaves, after they were freed of course, back to Africa. If not there, somewhere else. Be careful about opening this can of worms by renaming campus buildings, schools, city streets and parks.

Of course it may be impossible to get pass the blood-brain barrier of the historically ignorant PC public-schooled and university-educated 21st century American, that many blacks in the American South owned slaves, as did American Indians and even some Mexicans: And some of their slaves were white folks. Fancy that!

And by the way, Lincoln's Yankee invasion of the South was not because of slavery. The misnamed Civil War, at the cost of 650,000 lives, was to preserve the Union. Even Lincoln's top general, U.S. Grant, a future president, was a slave owner. (Robert E. Lee, top general for the South did not own any). How many streets and schools are named after Grant?

Oh, I almost forgot. Grant and the Yankees get a pass; they won the war and the Yanks and their historians get to write the history. Abe Lincoln is their hero as the New American Bolsheviki go about tearing down the statues of Robert E. Lee and company, ignorant that Lincoln had asked Robert E. Lee to lead the army of the North but was turned down because Lee was a loyal Virginian.

Dean Kennedy

Corvallis (Dec. 11)
Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2021.
Beethoven Competition Bonn : A winner from Genoa

Bonn At the final of the seventh Beethoven Competition Bonn in the Telekom-Forum, Alberto Ferro from Italy emerged victorious.

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Another Italian! After Filippo Gorini won the International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn two years ago, Alberto Ferro from Genoa got off to an early flying start in the nine-day competition. From the beginning, he was not only the audiences number one favourite but was also among the judges favourites and in the end they waved him through to the very top onto the winners podium, where the first prize worth Euro 30,000 was waiting for him.

We were always in agreement  right to the end, confirmed chairman of the jury Pavel Gililov at the award ceremony. So was the public, who awarded him the new Deutsche Telekom Stream-on-Prize online as well as choosing him as winner of the Beethoven-Haus-Prize by ballot paper in the Telekom head office and finally with 49 per cent of the votes, clearly choosing him as the publics winner during the vote at the finals in the sold-out Telekom Forum at Landgrabenweg. The sole surprise: none of the three finalists received the chamber music prize, which was awarded to the semi-finalist Ashok Gupta from England. But the gap between the winner and the second place in the jury ranking, Tomoki Kitamura (26) from Japan (Euro 20,000) and the third prizewinner from South Korea, Ho Jeong Lee (31) (Euro 10,000) was not as wide as it seemed. All three played to a very high standard on Saturday evening.

Things were slightly more difficult for Kitamura than for his two competitors. First, he had to start and secondly, with the piano concerto Nr 2 in B flat major, composed in Bonn, he played a piece that is not as popular in musical life as Beethovens other four piano concertos.

Ho Jeong Lee, one of only three women in the 24-string initial rounds, has a completely different temperament to Kitamura and handled the piano concerto Nr 3 in C minor masterfully and with great confidence.

The fourth piano concerto in G major, with which Ferro played himself into first place, is thoroughly lyrical. After the lively and very musically impressive final, he received jubilant applause.

At the start of the event, wittily presented by Daniel Finkernagel, the head of Telekom, Timotheus Hottges made a promise: there will be another competition in 2019. Hottges said: However, we also want to celebrate Beethovens 250 anniversary in 2020 in a fitting way. We will invite all former prize winners from previous competitions to an extraordinary concert at a summit of the best in Bonn. And Bonns Lord Mayor Ashok Sridharan expressed confidence in his speech that the 2019 Beethoven festival and the competition would once again take place in the Beethovenhalle.
Weekend snowfalls : Roads in NRW are mostly passable again after wintry weather

Bonn/region Snow and icy conditions caused numerous problems and delays in Bonn and the region over the weekend. In many parts of Germany, police attended hundreds of accidents. The situation is now calmer.

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The onset of winter led to chaotic traffic conditions in many parts of Germany until the thaw mostly calmed the situation. In some regions, police were involved in hundreds of operations on Sunday night.

After the onset of winter in North Rhine-Westphalia, the roads were open again for the most part at the start of the week. Police control centres were not expecting any major disruptions during work traffic on Monday morning, said a spokesman. On Sunday, snow falls severely restricted traffic and there were numerous accidents.

The German Weather Service nevertheless also warned of a risk of ice on Monday in Bonn and the region. It will rain during the day and temperatures in Bonn and the region are expected to climb to up to 7 degrees Celsius.

There were bus and train cancellations across the country. On Sunday, Deutsche Bahn halted the ICE train route Cologne-Rhine/Main, which stops in Siegburg. The trains are now running again.

Weather conditions in Bonn becoming calmer

Police said there were 30 weather related accidents in Bonn on Sunday. They resulted mainly in damage to car bodywork. Four people were injured and received outpatient treatment.

The wintry weather also caused at times chaotic road conditions in the Siebengebirge at the weekend. Heavy snowfalls around lunchtime had already made roads slippery on Saturday. While these stopped in the afternoon, they started again on Sunday morning. Snowfall and heavy gusts made things difficult for drivers, not all of whom were apparently driving with suitable tyres.

Police said the low volume of traffic on a Sunday meant there were no major accidents. By early evening there had only been two accidents on Sunday in the Konigswinter area. Police said there was damage to car bodywork only and no one was injured.

Cancellations at airport

Employees at Cologne/Bonn airport also had their hands full because of the snowfall. Snowploughs had to be used several times on the take-off and landing runways causing the service to be interrupted each time. This caused delayed departures and landings and even some complete cancellations.
An opportunity for foodies and beer lovers to get lost in a world of food and drink from a hand-selected range of food trucks and breweries from around New Zealand.
Danish English

Company announcement no. 9/2017



Summary

STRATEGIC FOCUS CHANGED, ASSET SALES TO BE ACCELERATED AND PROFIT GUIDANCE LOWERED

The Board of Directors has today resolved that TK Development will change its strategic focus. Going forward, focus will be on the Danish and Swedish property development business, while efforts will be made to divest the Groups Polish activities within a period of two years.

The Groups previous asset management activities will be divested sooner than originally planned.

Due to these strategic measures, impairment losses of a total of DKK 405 million, primarily on the Groups asset management activities, have been recognised.

The consolidated result for 2017/18 is expected to be a loss of DKK 355 million before tax, compared with the previous estimate of a profit before tax of DKK 50-60 million. Excluding the above-mentioned impairment losses, the consolidated profit is expected to be about DKK 50 million before tax for 2017/18.

For 2018/19, TK Development expects a consolidated pre-tax profit of DKK 80-90 million. The target remains to achieve a return on allocated equity in the property development segment of 15-20% p.a. before tax, but now as from financial year 2018/19.

As previously announced, the Group's net proceeds from the divestment of asset management activities will be distributed to its shareholders.

As a result of the above, the Polish activities will as from 31 October 2017 be included under asset management for reporting purposes. At the same time, the Groups ownership interest in BROEN Shopping in Esbjerg will be transferred to the asset management business, and previously non-allocated balance sheet items will be allocated to the property development segment.

The Board of Directors has allocated equity of DKK 500 million to the property development segment as at 31 October 2017. This is considered an appropriate amount of equity for the Group's future property development activities, and the goal is to achieve an annual return on equity of 15-20% before tax.

CHANGE OF MANAGEMENT

The Board of Directors wishes to complete a generational change at CEO level and has launched a search for a new group CEO.

In that connection, it has been agreed that the current CEO, Frede Clausen, will step down when a new CEO has been found at the latest. Until such time, the Groups activities will be managed by Frede Clausen and Executive Vice President Robert Andersen.

Frede Clausen has been a member of the Executive Board since 1992 and has served as CEO since 2002.

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IN Q1-Q3 2017/18

The result before tax for the first nine months of 2017/18 was a loss of DKK 397.8 million against a profit of DKK 0.2 million in the first nine months of 2016/17. The result after tax was a loss of DKK 395.9 million against a loss of DKK 4.1 million in the same period of 2016/17.

Total assets amounted to DKK 2,541.9 million at 31 October 2017 against DKK 2,852.9 million at 31 January 2017. Consolidated equity stood at DKK 902.5 million compared with DKK 1,293.7 million at 31 January 2017, for a solvency ratio of 35.5%.

Breakdown by segment:

DKKm Property development Asset management Unallocated Profit/loss Profit/loss before tax -33.5 -355.4 -8.9 Balance sheet Development projects 707.3 - - Completed properties - 898.0 - Other projects - 346.3 - Other assets 341.8 248.5 - Total assets 1,049.1 1,492.8 - Tied-up equity 500.0 402.5 -

PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT

Due to impairment losses totalling DKK 60 million on Polish plots of land which the Group has owned for a number of years, the result before tax for the first nine months of 2017/18 was a loss of DKK 33.5 million.

The level of activity in the property development business is generally high, and an additional number of projects were sold or initiated after the balance sheet date, see below.

In the first nine months of 2017/18, TK Development handed over a 3,200 sqm retail park in Oskarshamn, Sweden, to the investor, handed over the apartments sold in the Amerika Have project in Copenhagen to the buyers and handed over the initial phase of the Strdet retail project in Kge to the investor.

Major development projects:

Construction of BROEN Shopping, the new shopping centre in Esbjerg, Denmark, has been completed, and the centre opened in April 2017. The current occupancy rate is 93% (Q2 2017/18: 93%).

Construction of Strdet, Kge, Denmark, was affected by the bankruptcy of a contractor in August 2017, which caused a delay of the principal second phase of the project. The second phase has now been completed, and the shops opened at the end of September 2017. The 19,000 sqm retail project is being handed over to the investor in three phases, and handover of the second phase to the Finnish-based investor, Citycon, was agreed after the balance sheet date.

Construction of the Amerika Have residential project in Copenhagen, Denmark, was completed in spring 2017, and the apartments sold were handed over to the buyers in Q2 2017/18. A total of 119 of the 121 apartments have been sold (Q2 2017/18: 119).

Construction of the third phase of the Bielany residential project in Warsaw, Poland, is progressing according to plan, as is the pre-completion sale. 81% (Q2 2017/18: 68%) of the residential units have been sold.

INITIATION OF NEW PROJECTS AFTER THE BALANCE SHEET DATE

TK Development has sold and initiated a number of projects after the balance sheet date. In total, construction projects of some 27,000 sqm have been initiated after the balance sheet date. These projects are:

MetroBielany, residential project, Bielany, Warsaw, Poland

In December 2017, TK Development began construction of the fourth and final phase of the Bielany residential project in Warsaw. The project comprises about 12,500 sqm and will consist of 227 residential units and service facilities. 20% of the units have been reserved in advance.

SporbyenScandia, Randers, Denmark

TK Development has concluded conditional agreements for the sale of 12,000 sqm of residential building rights to private investors and a conditional agreement for the sale of 5,500 sqm of residential buildings rights to a housing association.

BROEN Shopping, Esbjerg, Denmark

Plans are afoot to add a cinema to BROEN Shopping, which opened in April 2017, and a lease agreement has been concluded with Nordisk Film Cinemas for the establishment of an eight-screen cinema in connection with the centre. Construction commenced in November 2017 after the building permit for the cinema had been obtained. The cinema is expected to open its doors in spring 2019.

Outlet Arena Moravia, Ostrava, Czech Republic

As part of the termination of the Groups Czech activities and in order to optimise values, the Board of Directors has, as previously announced, decided to develop and complete the Outlet Arena Moravia development project in Ostrava. In November 2017, TK Development sold the outlet centre under development to CPI Property Group, a major international property group with properties in 11 countries, under a conditional sale agreement. The outlet centre comprises some 17,000 sqm, of which the initial phase accounts for 11,700 sqm. Construction of the initial phase commenced in December 2017, and handover to the investor is scheduled for end-2018.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

Impacted by impairment losses on the Groups asset management activities totalling DKK 345 million, the result before tax for the first nine months of 2017/18 was a loss of DKK 355.4 million.

In spite of favourable developments in a number of areas, the traditional centres are not yet generating satisfactory operating results, and maturing and optimising these centres is taking longer than expected. The economy is expanding, but the effects have failed to filter through to consumer spending in physical shops. This has resulted in cutthroat competition among rival shopping centres, and the competitive landscape is further affected by the growing volume of online purchases.

As a consequence, many traditional centres are reporting relatively flat revenue growth, which is putting rent levels under pressure. Previous assumptions regarding the maturing and optimisation of some centres have turned out to be overly optimistic. There is still a maturing potential, but it will likely take longer than previously assumed to realise selling prices in line with original expectations.

The Board of Directors has today decided to divest the asset management business as soon as possible in order to free up capital and focus on property development activities in Denmark and Sweden, which are still assessed to generate satisfactory earnings for shareholders.

Any questions regarding this interim report may be directed to Peter Thorsen, Chairman, tel. +45 4070 0676.

http://prlibrary-eu.nasdaq.com/Resource/Download/c6ffd631-5c52-43ba-ab24-0e99cf49cc34
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Group Ten Metals Inc. (TSX-V:PGE) (OTC:PGEZF) (FSE:5D32) (the Company or Group Ten) is pleased to announce it has completed the requirements for earn-in of the Spy PGE-Ni-Cu property per the agreement announced September 14, 2015. The Company also reports that it acquired an additional 15 claims by direct staking in 2017, adding to past staking efforts which have more than tripled the property from its original size.



Spy Property within Kluane PGE-Ni-Cu Project





A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fd4ac3a5-268c-4fc7-8a8d-f99b3ed18c08

The 100%-owned Spy property consists of 201 claims covering over 41 square kilometers within the Kluane Mafic-Ultramafic Belt; a belt of PGE-Ni-Cu deposits which are part of a sequence of mafic-ultramafic rocks that extends through the Yukon from northern British Columbia to central Alaska1. The Spy property is a key part of Group Tens overall Kluane PGE-Ni-Cu Project which consists of the Spy, Ultra and Catalyst properties, all of which are within 15 km of the Alaska Highway. The Kluane project properties are on trend with, and south of, the Wellgreen deposit, which hosts one of the largest undeveloped PGE-Ni-Cu deposits in North America at 6 Moz of Pt+Pd+Au and 3 Blbs of Ni+Cu in M&I resources and an additional 2 Moz of Pt+Pd+Au and 1 Blbs of Ni+Cu in Inferred resources2.

Exploration on the Spy property has demonstrated that PGE-Ni-Cu mineralization occurs as disseminated to massive sulphides associated with mafic to ultramafic intrusions. Massive sulphide mineralization typically occurs near the basal contact and can also occur within the cores of larger ultramafic bodies. The ultramafic Spy Sill is typically 75-100m thick at the surface, with grab samples from the massive sulphide lenses assaying as high as 3.1 g/t Pt, 1.4 g/t Pd, 1.0 g/t Au, 3.1% Ni and 2.8% Cu from the mafic gabbro, and 75.8 g/t Pt, 7.9 g/t Pd, 7.0 g/t Au, 2.6% Ni and 10.45% Cu from the footwall siltstone (Tulk, 2001)3.



To date the highest-grade mineralization encountered at the Spy property has been associated with massive to strongly disseminated sulphides in the basal zone and the footwall siltstones, with disseminated mineralization found throughout the sill and into the country rocks. Several showings of massive and disseminated mineralization are exposed intermittently at surface over a strike length of 1.5km between the 99 and Sweet 16 showings with the Solo and South Spy showings indicating that mineralization remains open to the south. Further exploration is planned to test the full extent of mineralization in the area.

Michael Rowley, Group Ten Metals President and CEO, stated, We are pleased to have completed the earn-in requirements for 100% of the Spy property, and to have expanded that land position more than threefold to include over 16km of strike length on this highly-prospective system. Based on exploration to date, there are many similarities in the style of mineralization with the multi-million-ounce Wellgreen deposit to the north but Spy has shown significant high-grade potential. Of particular note are the elevated PGE, nickel and copper grades associated with the basal sulphides. There is a scarcity of attractive PGE-nickel sulphide deposits of scale outside of Russia and South Africa and we see excellent potential for both large-scale and attractive grades in the Yukons Kluane belt. Our Kluane PGE-Ni-Cu Project is the largest land position in this emerging PGE-Ni-Cu district and we look forward to continuing to advance their potential as we plan our 2018 activities.

1  Hulbert, L.J., 1997. Geoloy and metallogeny of the Kluane mafic-ultramafic belt, Yukon Territory, Canada: Eastern wrangellia  A new Ni-Cu-PGE metallogenic terrane. Geological survey of Canada Bulletin 506.

2 - Based on 2017 Wellgreen Platinum mineral resource estimate as disclosed in a news release dated June 26, 2017 and available under the companys profile on Sedar.com

3 - Tulk, L.A., 2001. Report on geological and geochemical surveys on the Kluane property. Yukon Assessment Report 094164.

Quality Control and Quality Assurance

Ms. Debbie James, P.Geo., is the qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101, and she has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained in this news release.

About Group Ten Metals Inc.

Group Ten Metals Inc. is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition and development of high-quality platinum, palladium, nickel, copper and gold exploration assets in North America. The Companys holdings include the Stillwater West PGE-Ni-Cu project adjacent to Sibanye-Stillwaters high-grade Pd-Pt mines in Montana, the Kluane PGE-Ni-Cu project adjacent to Wellgreen Platinum in the Yukon Territory, and the Black Lake-Drayton Gold project in the Rainy River district of northwest Ontario.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

GROUP TEN METALS INC.

Michael Rowley

Michael Rowley, President, CEO & Director

Email: info@grouptenmetals.com

Web: http://grouptenmetals.com

Tel: (604) 357 4790

TF: (888) 432 0075

Forward-Looking Statements

Forward Looking Statements: This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, historic production, estimation of mineral resources, the realization of mineral resource estimates, interpretation of prior exploration and potential exploration results, the timing and success of exploration activities generally, the timing and results of future resource estimates, permitting time lines, metal prices and currency exchange rates, availability of capital, government regulation of exploration operations, environmental risks, reclamation, title, and future plans and objectives of the company are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although Group Ten believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of material factors and assumptions. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include failure to obtain necessary approvals, unsuccessful exploration results, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, results of future resource estimates, future metal prices, availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms, general economic, market or business conditions, risks associated with regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of personnel, materials and equipment on a timely basis, accidents or equipment breakdowns, uninsured risks, delays in receiving government approvals, unanticipated environmental impacts on operations and costs to remedy same, and other exploration or other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the companies with securities regulators. Readers are cautioned that mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral exploration and development of mines is an inherently risky business. Accordingly, the actual events may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on Group Ten and the risks and challenges of their businesses, investors should review their annual filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Vancouver, December 11, 2017 - Canamex Gold Corp. (the "Company") (TSX-V: CSQ) (OTCBB: CNMXF) (FSE: CX6) announces that further to the News Release dated 6th December 2017, referring to the Terms of Agreement ("TOA") dated 24th November 2017, an Addendum ("Addendum") has been signed between Harmonychain AS ("Harmony") and the Company.

Under the Terms of the Addendum, additional domain names have been registered and secured, on the Ethereum Blockchain. The Company now has secured the exclusive rights to a total of 6 (Six) Ethereum Blockchain Smart Contract Token ("Token") domain names, and ticker codes.

The six Token domain names, and ticker codes, are as follows:

GOLD SECTOR SILVER SECTOR GOLDUSA (ticker GUSA) GOLD United States SILVERUSA (ticker SUSA) SILVER United States GOLD10Y (ticker G10Y) GOLD 10 Years SILVER10Y (ticker S10Y) SILVER 10 Years GOLD30Y (ticker G30Y) GOLD 30 Years SILVER30Y (ticker S30Y) SILVER 30 Years

Under the Terms of the Addendum, these six domains are covered by Harmonychain AS patents pending Bether(TM) (Better Asset Backed Ether System) a Commodity Asset Backed Future with Call, based on Blockchain technology. Bether(TM) is a registered trade mark in Norway.

The Company has secured the rights to use any of these six exclusive Token domain names, and ticker codes, for any future Token offering, if any of them are completed successfully by December 31, 2018. The Company is not undertaking any current Token or ICO offering now, but has secured the rights to use such Token domains. If, as and when the Company wishes to undertake a Token offering, it will disclose such details at that time.

ICO and Token Considerations

While the Company is not conducting an offering of any Token now it may decide to do so in the future. If the Company decides to do so, it will determine the terms of such offering and, such Token offering may be deemed to be a security for the purposes of the Securities Act (British Columbia) and therefore require either a prospectus or an exemption from the prospectus requirement to issue the Tokens and affect trades in the Tokens. The Company may utilize the accredited investors exemption, the offering memorandum exemption or such other exemptions from the prospectus requirement that are detailed in National Instrument 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions. However, in certain instances the issuance of a Token may be determined to be a derivative if the underlying asset of the coin is a commodity which is not an investment contract. Until the Company finalizes any terms of any Token offering it will be unable to definitively determine if the Token is a security or a derivative. Tokens may be tradeable on the Ethereum Platform or other token platforms. If such token is a security then the Company will need to file a prospectus to permit the secondary market trading of the Token or alternatively apply for an exemption from the prospectus requirement for secondary market trading - there is no assurances that such exemptions will be granted.

A Token would not give the acquirer any equity or other interest in the Company equivalent to a holder of common shares including, for greater certainty, a right to participate in the profits or the distribution of assets of the Company, nor any voting rights in any meeting of the security holders of the Company. However, a holder of a Token would only be entitled to gold or silver as noted below pursuant to the terms of such Token offering. The Company intends to utilize the expertise of Harmonychain in establishing a possible Token offering pursuant to the TOA and Addendums.

As the Company is still in the development phase with its Bruner Gold Project, in Nevada, and in the exploration phase with its Silverton Gold property, in Nevada, and has yet to produce any gold or silver or other resources, a Token offering linked to the production of such mineral resources will be speculative and there is no definitive time horizon in which commercial production of such resources will commence; or could commence, given that there is no definitive feasibility study demonstrating economic production.

When and if the Company issues Tokens, the Company will receive cash for such issuances and will have a long-term liability on its financial statements which will require the delivery of gold or silver if commercial production is achieved. Investors of common shares of the Company should be aware that, depending on the terms of a Token issuance, a Token holder will receive gold or silver, if or when commercial production is achieved and after redemptions of gold or silver are satisfied, the Company could sell any remaining resources available.

About Harmonychain

Harmonychain has several patent applications pending within Ethereum Blockchain technology. These are divided in three categories:

1.Bether(TM) and other commodity physical forwards tailored for resource companies. 2.Physical delivery systems related to Blockchain Contracts. 3.Security systems related to Breach of Blockchain Security.

About the Company

Canamex Gold Corp. (TSX-V: CSQ) (OTCBB: CNMXF) (FSE: CX6) is engaged in fast-tracking toward development of the Bruner Gold Project in the prolific gold jurisdiction of Nye County, Nevada. The region is home to several producing and past-producing mines along the Walker Lane Trend. Canamex completed a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) on the Bruner Gold Project in April 2016. Based on additional drilling conducted on the property, the company has commissioned a new PEA and resource estimate, expected to be completed before the end of 2017. The second asset is the Silverton Gold property, which is a gold exploration project, in Nevada, which has geological similarities to the Long Canyon gold deposit (+3 million ozs Au) in Nevada, being mined by Newmont Mining. Canamex has signed Agreements with Harmonychain AS, for Ethereum Blockchain Smart Contract Tokens for Gold and Silver, as an alternative means of raising capital, potentially without equity dilution. The Agreements secure the exclusive rights to 6 (Six) Ethereum Token domain names, ticker codes, and associated smart contracts, for Gold and Silver, if any of them have been successfully completed by 31st December 2018.

Greg Hahn (CPG#7122), President & COO of the Company is the qualified person who has reviewed and approved technical disclosures in this release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

David Vincent

Chief Executive Officer and Director

david.vincent@canamexgold.com

Mike Stark

Chairman of the Board

Contact: (604) 833-4278

mike.stark@canamexgold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Copyright (c) 2017 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.


Chicagos efforts to overhaul its contracts and purchasing processes have come a long way in the past few years. But its biggest challenge  making it easier for small, women- and minority-owned businesses to bid on city contracts  is yet to come.Chicago is unique among major cities in that it created a Procurement Reform Task Force , a group of 60 government and nonprofit leaders tasked with increasing transparency, reducing administrative burdens and lowering the barriers to entry for the citys small businesses. Since its creation in 2015, the task force has already completed half of the 31 recommendations laid out for it. But many of these  like writing new best practices and establishing a quarterly report system  were short-term goals.The most difficult portions of the initiative, which includes launching an online platform to connect businesses to Chicagos more than 2,500 contract opportunities each year, is yet to come. Many are hoping that a sleek and user-friendly digital procurement system will entice more small and minority businesses that simply cant afford to navigate the different bureaucracies between the city and related agencies like Chicago Public Schools or the Housing Authority. Chicagos participation this year in City Accelerator , a cohort of cities aiming for comprehensive procurement reform, could give the task force the boost it needs to meet the rest of its more complex goals by the groups end date of 2021.One of the most daunting parts of the process is creating a system that can work with the citys 29 departments and six agencies. That system, says task force co-chair and Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson, should also still allow the different agencies the independence they need to focus on their core mandates.Its a real concern for each agency that whatever we do does not hinder their missions and objectives he says. It is the single most important thing to achieve in the next annual cycle.Still, with a unified system, says Chief Procurement Officer and task force co-chair Jamie Rhee, the bidding process will be easier to navigate and attract more minority-owned, women-owned and disadvantaged business enterprises. That should increase competition  which ultimately benefits taxpayers.Transparency in procurement is key, as access to information levels the playing field for all interested vendors, Rhee adds. The degree to which an agencys procurement process is transparent is dependent not just on what information is made available, but also how easily accessible and user-friendly it is.The citys CIO and Commissioner of the Department of Innovation and Technology is leading a group that will decide if one overarching software should manage the agencies or if a collection of programs should be used to maintain each organizations ability to function with less standardization. It is a balancing act as different agencies have different sources of funding. For example, some departments are primarily funded through local dollars while others, like the Chicago Housing Authority, receive most of their funding from the federal government.Gustavo Giraldo, Chicagos former deputy procurement officer and now the Illinois Tollways chief of diversity and strategic development, says making the citys procurement solicitations more efficient is a big challenge for all businesses  let alone smaller firms that cant afford to deal with bureaucracy. A lot of things can happen along the way to cause major delays, he says. Every single city agency has its own organizational culture and its own way of dealing with issues, procurement being one of them. Its the personalities.The slow reputation has dogged the city for decades. In 1985, a article noted the city lagged far behind many other state and local governments in how swiftly it pays contractors, sometimes taking as long as four months to do so. Fast-forward two decades and while the city has made progress with attracting minority and small businesses in general, African-American-owned businesses still lag behind, with just an 8 percent share this year. The reason? Payment issues.They get paid slow, Roderick Sawyer, chairman of the city councils Black Caucus, told the. There are certain restrictions on what they can do. Sometimes, its the contractors unwilling to bid on certain projects because of that.Still, he and others applauded Rhees efforts that have helped result in companies owned by minorities and women representing big shares of the citys contract payments: 43 percent in 2016 and 31 percent during the first nine months of this year. Those figures, which do not include agency spending, far exceed the citys goal.Sterling Johnson of Griffin & Strong, a consulting firm that is working with the City Accelerator program, said Chicagos approach with its procurement task force and its progress thus far puts the city far ahead of its cohorts. Its even drawn international attention as the procurement reforms task force has shared its work with governments in Canada, Kosovo, Ireland and Poland.A lot of what Chicago is doing is seen as best practices in the field, says Johnson.Governing
Schenectady County, N.Y., is on track to pay 20 percent less on prescription drugs for its employees this year than in 2003.Flagler County, Fla., expects to save nearly $200,000 in 2017 on brand-name medicines for its 800 workers, its total drug costs having fallen by 10 percent since last year.Kokomo, Ind., has found a way to save so much money buying drugs that it offers employees a 90-day supply of dozens of popular brand-name medicines for free.While the nation grapples with soaring prices of drugs, dozens of cities, counties and school districts across the country have quietly found a solution they say protects their budgets and saves workers money: They are helping their employees buy medicines from pharmacies in Canada and overseas, where prices are up to 80 percent cheaper.We love it  its a win-win for us and our employees, said Anita Stoker, benefits and wellness manager for Flagler County, on Floridas northeastern coast, which in 2015 started offering its employees a program to get drugs from pharmacies in Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand.The numbers are growing, even though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says the practice of importing prescription drugs is illegal and is stepping up enforcement, with raids on stores that helped people order overseas, and even visiting some customers homes to collect evidence of illegal purchases.So far, the FDA has made no move to shut down these employee benefit programs  a few dating back over a decade, but most far more recent.Asked about its view of the programs, an agency spokeswoman said: The FDA does not comment on its compliance or enforcement strategy regarding specific FDA-regulated products. When non-compliance with FDA regulations is found, the agency may take, and has taken, a variety of advisory, administrative and judicial actions depending on the violations identified.The FDA doesnt prosecute consumers buying medicines from foreign pharmacies for personal use, although  if detected  such packages are intercepted at the border as contraband and their contents returned or destroyed.But signaling it may be stepping up enforcement  at least against middlemen who facilitate the practice  the FDA in October raided nine Central Florida storefronts that helped a mostly senior population buy drugs from Canada and other countries. The stores dont stock any medicines but assist consumers in ordering drugs from foreign pharmacies. Criminal investigators warned the stores owners they were operating illegally and could face fines or jail time. They were not shut down.Bill Hepscher, co-owner of Canadian MedStore, which owns six of the nine storefronts visited by the FDA, defends his practice, saying hes only helping consumers do what the FDA says they can do without fear of government prosecution. He said its not fair that his stores get targeted for assisting consumers while municipalities across the country are doing the same thing for their employees. This includes the school district in Pasco County, where Hepscher has one of his stores.Congress has passed legislation legalizing the importation of prescription drugs several times in the past 20 years, but both Democratic and Republican administrations have opted not to implement it. The FDA has said reimporting medicines from outside the United States is dangerous because of the possibility that medications are counterfeit, mislabeled or otherwise unsafe  a view vigorously supported by the industry.The pharmaceutical industry applauded the recent FDA raids. We welcome the FDAs action to crack down on drug importation schemes, said Holly Campbell, a spokeswoman for PhRMA.But rising drug prices have given this reimportation idea new life  in Congress and in practice.In hearings last week, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he would oppose the nomination of Alex Azar, a former drug company CEO, as head of Health and Human Services unless Azar commits to implementing an importation plan. Told by Azar that the problem was guaranteeing safety, Paul replied: Thats b.s. The American people think its b.s. that you cant buy drugs from Europe or from Canada or Mexico or other places.A growing number of city and county officials argue that their employees should have the option to buy less expensive drugs and that helping them do so doesnt violate any laws.In recent years, millions of Americans have driven over the border to Canada and Mexico or used the internet to buy medicines from foreign pharmacies for personal use.A Kaiser Family Foundation poll in 2016 found that 8 percent of respondents said they or someone in their household had imported a drug at some point, a figure that would translate to about 19 million adults in the U.S. based on current Census population estimates.In the early 2000s, several states, including Maine and Illinois, briefly maintained websites to help residents buy drugs from Canada. The programs were discontinued, amid opposition from federal authorities, the pharmaceutical industry and GOP politicians. Now, cities, counties and school districts are stepping in.Consumers need a doctors prescription just as they would to buy medicine from their local pharmacy.Drugs ordered from overseas often come with the same packaging as in the U.S. CanaRx, based in Windsor, Ontario, and ElectRx, based in Detroit, says it vets the pharmacies (generally in Canada, England and Australia) to ensure customers get the real product. Counties, cities and schools  as well as a growing number of private companies  contract with one of these companies for online service.These companies do not sell to individuals. They sell only a three-month supply of medicine and do not provide drugs that are available as generics in the U.S.The price savings for common medicines outside the U.S. can be huge, since other nations negotiate prices with drug manufacturers or allow cheaper generic equivalents to be sold more rapidly.Take Canadian MedStore, for example. It sells a 90-day supply of Januvia for $83, imported from England. The same supply of the diabetes drug can cost $423 in the U.S. An Advair Diskus, which goes for $417 in the U.S., MedStore gets from New Zealand and sells for $96. Xarelto, a popular blood thinner, costs $89 per month imported from England, versus $485 a month in the U.S.Companies selling drugs from Canada and overseas say the FDAs safety concerns are unjustified. The recent FDA raids on Hepschers Florida storefronts followed a sting operation in which undercover agents purchased medicines from overseas  all of which proved in testing to contain the ingredients matching the medicines ordered.But FDA spokeswoman Lyndsay Meyer said: The ones that we found and tested may have been [safe], but that doesnt mean that they all were. We do believe that its unsafe. You never know what youre going to get or how they were stored  its a gamble. And importantly, its prohibited under federal law.Cities and counties that facilitate online ordering from overseas often do so on the advice of their insurance brokers. In this day and age, when its common for employers to see a 20 or 30 percent annual increase in drug costs, we are seeing a negative drug trend in Flagler County  thats unheard of, said Sherry Bugnet, an account executive with The Bailey Group, an insurance broker in St. Augustine, Fla.Schenectady County, N.Y., has worked with CanaRx for over a decade to allow employees to buy drugs overseas, saving more than $10 million during that period, with no complaints; prescriptions involve no copay if the service is used. The few times drugs were confiscated at an international mail-processing facility by customs officials, CanaRx merely re-sent the shipment.It helps us keep our tax rate down and helps us give cost-of-living increases to employees, said Chris Gardner, a county attorney who helped start the program, through which he has ordered medicines for cholesterol and blood pressure.Since 2012, Kokomo, Ind., has let its employees get brand-name drugs with no copayment if they order from Canada and overseas through ElectRx. Our employees like it, and its very simple and easy to use. Their doctor fills out a prescription, they send it in, and the medication goes right to their home, said Kathy Horton, director of human resources for the city, about 60 miles north of Indianapolis.Encouraged by the successes in other parts of Florida, Patricia Howard, senior manager for benefits and risk at Pasco County Schools, said the county in July started offering the international pharmacy option to its 9,600 employees and dependents to buy brand-name drugs.Employees pay zero for their first 90-day order, then $10 for each 90-day refill. About 75 workers have used the program.Other parts of Florida will soon join in. Both the Palm Beach County Clerk & Comptroller and the city of Sarasota are set to unveil similar programs in January. I have no questions about the legality, as thats already been vetted, said April Bryan, the citys general manager of human resources.Carmen Catizone, executive director of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, a nonprofit association that promotes safe pharmacy practices, said: If cities and counties have done their due diligence to ensure their employees are getting drugs from reputable sources, then there is nothing wrong with it, he said. If not, they could be playing Russian roulette.
Republican venture capitalist John Cox called for an end to one-party domination of state politics and a smaller government as he made his pitch to be California's next governor Thursday at a Public Policy Institute of California speaker series.Cox, 62, faces an uphill battle in a state where 1 in 4 voters is a registered Republican, but the Illinois transplant said he wants to ensure California is on a sustainable path for the next generation, which includes his 12-year-old daughter."I love this state, I have three homes here," Cox said before laughing that such a statement might not go over well with voters. "I can hear my PR guy having a heart attack, but I want people to know I've made an investment here, I love it. I've been successful, I've been lucky, I'm not going to apologize for it. But I'm running for governor to transform this state."The 2018 governor's race to replace termed-out Gov. Jerry Brown also includes four Democrats and one other Republican: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, state Treasurer John Chiang, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former state schools chief Delaine Eastin and Assemblyman Travis Allen, R-Huntington Beach (Orange County).Newsom leads the pack at 23 percent, followed by Villaraigosa at 18 percent, according to a PPIC poll released last month. Thirty percent of likely voters said they are undecided. Chiang and Cox were both at 9 percent, Allen at 6 percent and Eastin at 3 percent.In Thursday's conversation with PPIC President Mark Baldassare, Cox leaned into his Republican pitch, saying he supports regulatory changes pushed by President Trump and the GOP tax bills in Congress."I think there are some issues for California and other high-tax states, and that's a problem," Cox said about plans in Congress to scrap state and local tax deductions on federal returns.The answer to that, Cox said, is having California lower state income taxes so the federal tax reforms would not be such a burden."The media talks about this as a gift to the wealthy," Cox said. "I've been in the investment and tax world for 40 years. The reason people make investments is because they get a return, an after-tax return. ... The more after-tax profit, the more risk they are going to take. We want to encourage people to take marginal risks, that's what grows the economy."Asked how he differs from Trump, Cox said it's in their styles: "I'm a policy wonk."Cox repeatedly used the stage to mention the proposed ballot measure he's bankrolling that would create a "neighborhood legislature" by dividing Assembly and Senate districts into smaller pieces. Under the measure, which is awaiting verification of signatures to qualify for the 2018 ballot, each legislator would represent 5,000 to 10,000 constituents. The smaller neighborhood districts then would select a representative to go to Sacramento during the legislative session.The idea is to make campaigns less expensive for candidates so that monied interests would carry less influence."In those little districts, you don't need money," Cox said. "It's an answer to campaign finance reform."He backed a similar measure in 2014 that failed to make the ballot. Cox said special interests have a foothold in the current system, making it difficult for even well-meaning lawmakers to tackle controversial topics, like pension debt. The state's pension debt is one of his top priorities, with Cox saying it's likely to swallow the state."The wage and pension system for state employees is just gold-plated," Cox said. "I applaud them for getting it, but that cost is in the cost of your house, in the cost of your gasoline, in the cost of your clothing and restaurant bill. ... Costs are paid by consumers."Cox, who lives in Rancho Santa Fe (San Diego County), has been a resident of California for eight years. He ran three times for elected office in Illinois and lost all three campaigns, including in 2003 when he dropped out of the U.S. Senate primary in a race that former President Barack Obama went on to win.Cox described his upbringing with a single mother of four who worked as a schoolteacher in Chicago, saying he put himself through college and worked his way up to becoming a successful businessman."I grew up with nothing," he said. "The way I've achieved what I've achieved is the ability to have my own business. It kills me when I hear politicians -- and it's mostly in the other party -- and they talk about this horrible inequality we have, yet they go out and encourage more regulations, more government, more restrictions on competition, more inability to start your own business."Cox said he believes government should provide a safety net, "but I don't want it to be a hammock."He said he wants to reach out to voters who might not normally vote Republican, pledging to make the state the shiny city on a hill that former President Ronald Reagan referenced "where you can make something of yourself.""I want it to be a situation where the government helps the least among us, but also gives us the opportunity to make what we can of ourselves," he said. "So that's the message I would send our Democratic friends, our black and brown friends. Don't give your vote to a party that wants to keep you taking a check from the government."
On Friday, in the afternoon, at Government House, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC received the Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk MP, Premier of Queensland, and invited her to form government.

In the evening, at the Lyric Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, the Governor and Mrs Kaye de Jersey attended the opening night performance of Queensland Ballets The Nutcracker.
(TNS) - Five years ago, the world was stunned by a crime unprecedented in its horror  the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School that took the lives of 20 first-graders and six adults.State legislators reacted to the massacre not only by enacting tougher gun laws but also by earmarking millions to make Connecticut schools safer, including addressing concerns raised after the shooting about access to school buildings, communication failures and multi-agency coordination gaps.But now a Courant investigation has found that those efforts, started when the pain of Sandy Hook was fresh, have largely dwindled.Nearly half the school districts in the state are violating at least some aspect of the law requiring them to submit school security information, a Courant review of state records reveals.For instance, one of the key regulations requires districts to submit what is known as a School Security and Safety Plan, a 30-page document developed by the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, each September to that agency. But state records show that nearly 100 school districts havent submitted a plan this year and nearly 60 havent submitted a plan in at least two years.The security plan is not the only requirement schools have failed to follow, records show.District also must submit records of all fire drills or crisis management drills, also known as lockdown drills, to DESPP by July 1. But for the last school year, only 52 school districts, barely 25 percent of the state, submitted the records  a two-page sheet detailing when and where drills were held that is signed by a local fire or police official.Its shocking that within a year or two of the worst school tragedy in history that it would all be forgotten, school security expert Thomas Dillon said.Security experts said the numbers of school districts not complying with the law is stunning.Dillon is a former Wethersfield police officer who has started his own school security consulting firm. He has helped Wethersfield, East Hartford, Winsted and now Sherman produce security plans, as well as recommending what measures to install in their schools using the state funding.For example, in Wethersfield, every computer in a police cruiser has the security plan downloaded, giving officers schematic drawings of each school, contact information for school officials and exits and entrances for school buildings.If you had told me in 2013 that nearly half the school districts wouldnt submit plans I wouldnt have believed you, state Rep. Andrew Fleischmann said. He is chairman of the legislatures education committee and was one of the lawmakers involved in passing the new regulations in 2013. What happened at Sandy Hook was so awful and horrific, and parents and educators were made so very aware of risks facing students and educators, that we had a sense of everyone mobilizing. I am trying to figure out what could have possibly prevented districts from doing their due diligence and submitting a plan and we will work to get that number down to zero.Fleischmann said that could mean passing new laws to inflict penalties on school districts that dont follow the law.If we introduce a bill next session for penalties for leaders of school districts or the districts themselves, that would certainly get the attention of everyone who isnt complying with the law, Fleishmann said.DESPP spokesman Scott Devico said the plans also are important for the state police who are likely to respond to any mass emergency. At Sandy Hook, many of the responding troopers couldnt find the school, wasting precious seconds when a gunman is firing at children.School security is one of the most important things that we do and it is our hope that all of the school districts would comply with the state law, Devico said. We have been working very closely with schools to complete the documents, but it is always an ongoing process. They may have a plan, but just arent submitting it to us.Bristol Superintendent Susan Moreau said school officials were unaware that they needed to submit security plans until recently and are gathering information from all of their schools to submit to the state.Moreau didnt know why fire drill information hadnt been submitted to the state. Devico said state officials believe school districts are performing them, but he acknowledged that the scant number of records submitted to the state raises concerns.Vincent Riccio Jr., a former New Haven police officer who formed his own security company focusing on active-shooter training, said he wonders if school districts are doing lockdown drills, which are much more involved than fire drills.Fire drills last maybe 15 minutes and are easy to do, but to do a lockdown drill right could take an hour, and if schools arent submitting their reports, you have to wonder if theyd be committed to that amount of time, Riccio said.Waterburys Interim Chief Financial Officer Robert Brenker said his district has been proactive. It is one of the few districts that has submitted records.We take these drill seriously, as if they are real life, because you never know when it will be real life, Brenker said.Waterbury also is one of the 34 school districts that have asked the state for an extension of their grant funding in order to complete work on their schools.As part of the law that was passed, the state put about $42 million into a security fund, and grants were awarded in 2013 and 2014. The way the grant works is that towns must pay a percentage of the total cost of the project, which is determined by how wealthy a community may be. The law was changed in 2014 to allow private schools access to 10 percent of the grant money.Waterbury received about $2.3 million, and $1.8 million of it will be reimbursed by the state once work is completed.Brenker said his district has used the money to install more security cameras and put in buzzer alarm systems at every school. The city hasnt yet run out of funding for its portion, but it is getting close. It applied for an extension because officials are still working on communications issues and want to add more cameras.Hamden got more than about $2 million, but the town needed to pitch in $742,000 of that. The town also has applied for an extension, according to Superintendent of Schools Jody Goeler.The district has used the funding to laminate all first-floor windows, upgraded video security and implement a key card system. Goeler said the district has applied for an extension because more work is needed to improve communications.There was a period of time where we didnt know if we would need additional funds to get two-way radios, Goeler said.Goeler came to Hamden from the Bethlehem/Woodbury school district, where Dawn Hochsprung was a principal before moving onto Sandy Hook Elementary School. Hochsprung was the first person killed by Adam Lanza when she confronted him in the hallway after he had shot his way into the school through the front glass windows.I knew people who were killed that day, as did many people in those two towns, so school security is a priority, Goeler said. I wouldnt know how to put together an emergency plan if I fell over one, so I knew I needed to put together a team right away. We fight about a lot of things when it comes to school budgets but school safety is not one of them.Devico said many schools have installed numerous security features, from window film or bulletproof glass to better intercom systems, more surveillance cameras inside and outside school buildings and new locks.With all of the investments that the state has made in improving school security, theres no question that schools in Connecticut are safer than ever, Devico said. But there are towns that are more than likely struggling to come up with the funds to match the grant because of budget issues.Moreau said the local match is a concern in Bristol. The district also has applied for an extension of its grant funding, although Moreau said she isnt sure who did it.We have yet to find out who requested an extension for those grant funds. The business administrator on staff at that time has left our employ, Moreau said. I believe that we were not able to come up with the $75,000 grant match as we were in a deficit position with our budget. That would have diminished the grant award by an equal percentage.In Bristol, the schools plan on using money from another grant  the Alliance District Building Repairs Grant  to cover costs. Moreau said that money, when appropriated, will be used to replace older cameras and expand the use of the Rapture System that screens individuals visiting schools.Devico said there are other reasons schools may be behind in finishing the security work  for instance,, much of the work must be done in the summer in order to avoid interrupting classes, and schools are fighting over the same contractors to do some of the work.Enfield applied for an extension for its 2014 grant because it was struggling to find contractors, Superintendent of Schools Christopher Drezek said. Enfield installed bulletproof film for windows, more video surveillance equipment and mantrap vestibules in some schools.Contractors approved by the state had booked up schedules as other municipalities across the state were scheduling work for them, Drezek said.There are 16 school districts that have never applied for a state school security grant. Many were smaller districts, like Franklin, which has only one school with 160 students.Franklin Superintendent Lawrence Fenn said that, after the Sandy Hook school shootings, officials there formed a school safety committee that included the towns resident state trooper, and then decided not to apply for a state grant.The committee looked into it and we were kind of discouraged by the process to apply for a grant, Fenn said. It seemed clear as a smaller school we werent a priority district.The district decided to make security upgrades on its own. It was aided by a local licensed electrician who volunteered to install security cameras all through the school and outside in the parking lot.Franklin hasnt submitted a security plan to the state in two years, or its fire drill records.I think if you came down here, youd find that our schools are very secure, Fenn said.One of the larger school districts that hasnt submitted a plan is Clinton.It was really more of a personnel and timing issue, Superintendent Maryanne ODonnell said. We didnt have a tech director or a business manager, so we just didnt apply. The initial hardening of the schools we did right away and just used capital funds to pay for it.ODonnell said she has no doubt that Clinton schools, probably like all schools in Connecticut post-Sandy Hook, are much more secure.I dont think it is possible to walk into a school in Connecticut anymore without some sort of buzzer system, ODonnell said. It (the shooting) made us much more aware of security.(Courant Reporter Mikaela Porter contributed to this story.)2017 The Hartford Courant (Hartford, Conn.)Visit The Hartford Courant (Hartford, Conn.) at www.courant.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
(TNS) - Law enforcement officials have identified the Port Authority Terminal pipe-bomb suspect as Akayed Ullah, 27.Ullah was wearing a low-tech, homemade explosive device, affixed to his body with zipties and Velcro when he detonated the bomb at approximately 7:20 a.m. on Monday in an underground subway passageway between 42nd Street and 8th Avenue and 42nd Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan, officials said during a press conference moments ago near the site of the blast.Officials are calling the incident a terrorist attack.Ullah suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, including burns to his hands and abdomen and lacerations, according to FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro.He was taken into custody and transported to Bellevue Hospital.Three people in the vicinity of the explosion went to area hospitals with minor injuries that include headaches and ringing of the ears, Nigro said.Miraculously there were no other injuries.Photos purported to be the suspect lying on the ground are circulating on social media.It was not immediately clear if the walkway was Ullah's initial target, authorities said, or if his intention was to find a more heavily-populated area."Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," Mayor Bill de Blasio said during the press conference.The suspect tried to detonate the device but only part of it went off, according to the New York Daily News.Several Port Authority Police officers stepped in and took him into custody, the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association said.According to published reports, Ullah is a Bangladeshi native living in Brooklyn. Officials did not confirm any details about him beyond his name and age.When asked if the suspect was inspired by ISIS, NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill said he made statements to authorites, but did not elaborate on the nature of those statements.Some officials, including former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton and Rep. Daniel Donovan said on television or social media he was indeed ISIS inspired."It's very important for my fellow New Yorkers to know there are no additional known incidents at this time, there are no additional known activities," de Blasio said.Still, officials said city residents can expect to see an enhanced NYPD presence across the five boroughs.A law enforcement source said that may indeed be the case on Staten Island."This is NYC, we don't live in fear," O'Neill said. "But if you see something suspicious you have an obligation to come forward and tell us."The Port Authority Bus Terminal has been re-opened.2017 Staten Island Advance, N.Y.Visit Staten Island Advance, N.Y. at www.silive.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
If you want to know how to testify before elected officials, then watch this "master class" performance by Brock Long, FEMA aCredibility is what oozes out of Brock Long. His opening remarks set the tone, and the Congress members recognized it right away. It is likely what differentiates him from other federal staffers who go into these sessions with "shields up" mentality. He came across as open and transparent.He did not promise everything and he said he'd have to get back to them on some questions that he did not have answers for that day. I was wondering if the one Congressman who backed off from trying to trap him on disagreeing with the White House would not have done so, if he had not had such a good  fast start out of the blocks.You might disagree with what Long had to say on different topics, but he did a wonderful job in representing himself and his agency.
(TNS)  City officials aren't the only ones working to beef up their network of crime cameras on the streets of New Orleans.ProjectNOLA, an independent, nonprofit crime camera network, has been seeking  and has begun to find  financial support for a plan that would place such cameras on more than 100 places of worship throughout crime-plagued neighborhoods such as the 7th Ward, Gert Town and Central City.Additionally, leaders of the initiative expect some worshipers will want crime cameras on their residences, which could give the ProjectNOLA network the potential to expand from 2,200 cameras to roughly 2,900.Relations between ProjectNOLA and City Hall have often been strained, but project founder Bryan Lagarde and city officials seem to be moving toward a closer working relationship.Joe Givens, a veteran civic activist helping to lead the project, said the crime cameras are an up-to-date substitute for neighborhood watch groups that were active when New Orleans saw a drop in killings in the 1990s but have since tailed off."With technology, we can do what we did in the '90s more efficiently," Givens said. "And cameras aren't afraid to testify in court."The so-called Partnership for Peace & Public Safety, which involves the Givens-led Isaiah Institute, a faith-based nonprofit, as well as Lagarde's initiative, also hopes to support programs that connect at-risk youth with recreational opportunities and ex-convicts with employment.It also wants to organize churches, mosques and other communities of faith to become more involved in attacking quality-of-life issues, such as blighted properties, on their own rather than depending on the government to do it, Lagarde and Givens said.But a key component of the partnership's $1 million first phase is a plan to expand the nearly nine-year-old ProjectNOLA camera network, which is separate from a citywide network being developed by Mayor Mitch Landrieu's administration.After a couple of meetings with potential business community benefactors, Lagarde and Givens said they hope also to secure the funds that would allow ProjectNOLA to hire staff to monitor its various feeds 24 hours a day at its hub on the University of New Orleans campus.For now, on a roughly $200,000 annual budget including monthly maintenance fees and donations from homeowners and businesses outfitted with ProjectNOLA cameras, Lagarde said he and "one volunteer with a law enforcement background" monitor the feeds, calling in any relevant information they observe to police dispatchers.Lagarde said that during "extended business hours" someone is always stationed at the group's office, which features a dimly lit control center dominated by a dozen computer and television screens displaying the network's feeds.But the rest of the time the group monitors the feeds on an on-call basis, depending on what may be happening on the streets, which they keep tabs on with the help of police radio scanners.As it is, ProjectNOLA's system has proved to be valuable to the New Orleans Police Department, which also uses a separate crime camera network that pipes into the city's newly unveiled Real Time Crime Monitoring Center, staffed 24 hours a day, on the edge of the French Quarter.By Lagarde's reckoning, there have been roughly 30 homicide investigations this year in which ProjectNOLA provided useful surveillance footage to detectives. Often that has produced solid results in the form of arrests or warrants, he said.As long as they've been around, surveillance camera networks around the country have faced questions about whether they are effective at reducing crime and whether they infringe on citizens' right to privacy.But Lagarde counters that helping police solve homicides and other violent crimes is important, and that ProjectNOLA would not have grown to its present size if it used participants' feeds in an intrusive manner."Over the years we've been doing this, we've earned people's trust," he said.While Superintendent Michael Harrison and other NOPD brass at times have been complimentary toward ProjectNOLA's help, at other times Lagarde's relationship with the city has frosted over.One example occurred after a ProjectNOLA crime camera's footage helped identify several men charged with the retaliatory killing of a 21-year-old woman inside her Gert Town home this summer. To Lagarde's irritation, the commander of the police district covering that neighborhood told a news conference that the case illustrated the power of the city's SafeCam NOLA program  which is unrelated to ProjectNOLA.SafeCam is a city effort to map all privately owned cameras, but so far the program does not provide real-time feeds to the Police Department or any other entity. Officials said recently they are expanding the program to allow the private camera owners to pipe their feeds into the city's real-time observation center on North Rampart Street.Additionally, Lagarde last year was the subject of a WWL-TV investigation that questioned whether ProjectNOLA was run purely as a public service, given that program participants bought cameras from a for-profit business run by Lagarde under the name CCTV Wholesalers.Lagarde pointed out that ProjectNOLA participants were not required to get their cameras from CCTV Wholesalers to form part of the network. The former policeman with a criminology degree also said he had decided to close his company down in 2015, and finalized that decision the following year, to give his undivided attention to ProjectNOLA."I closed the business I had for 19 years, the one I wanted to hand down to my children, because this  ProjectNOLA, the peace initiative  is my life," Lagarde said.Over the past several months, Lagarde and Givens' initiative has received support from several notable New Orleanians. Former U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite, National Urban League President and ex-Mayor Marc Morial, Archbishop Gregory Aymond, Police and Justice Foundation founder John Casbon and Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman have all spoken at meetings in support of the plan.Meanwhile, despite their past distance, Lagarde and Landrieu's administration seem to be taking steps to develop a closer working relationship.The two sides recently met to discuss how to make it easier for ProjectNOLA to get footage from its network to the Police Department when appropriate. They said they would keep in touch, comparing notes on projects each side is pursuing and identifying possible collaborations.Landrieu's homeland security director, Aaron Miller, said the dialogue recognized that "many members in the community" are comfortable with the role ProjectNOLA has established for itself in the city."We want to maintain our promise that public safety is our priority ... and we want to make sure we are taking every opportunity to expand our Police Department's toolkit," Miller said.
F1 looks set to remain on free-to-air television in Germany.

As the 2017 season ended and Niki Lauda retired as a television pundit, a dark cloud hung over the future of German broadcaster RTL's F1 deal.

But Bild newspaper now reports that talks between RTL and Liberty Media are now essentially done.

It is claimed that the 2018 season opener from Melbourne will definitely be shown free-to-air within Germany.

But a RTL spokesman insisted: "I cannot confirm that. There is no contract. We are not ready yet."

However, it is also claimed that former F1 drivers Nico Rosberg and Timo Glock will alternate at grands prix to replace the retiring F1 pundit Lauda.

(GMM)
Williams has denied that Formula 2 star Oliver Rowland is now a late contender to replace Felipe Massa for 2018.

With Robert Kubica inching towards the race seat for next year, Rowland threw a spanner in the works by declaring at the weekend: "My team is in talks with Williams.

"British car, British driver, it fits well," he is quoted by The Independent newspaper.

But when asked if it is true that Rowland is really a contender to race for Williams next year, a team spokesman said: "That's not correct."

Canadian newspaper La Journal de Montreal reports that if Kubica does have a genuine challenger for the 2018 role, it is Russian driver Sergey Sirotkin.

Citing sources, the report said 22-year-old Renault reserve Sirotkin promises about $15 million in sponsorship, "which Kubica is unable to match".

Le Journal de Montreal said Sirotkin was seen at Williams' headquarters last Tuesday, with Kubica visiting Grove a day later.

"According to information, Williams could hire Kubica as well as Sirotkin as the third driver. If the Pole does not satisfy the team, the Russian could be called up to take over at any time."

The report concluded: "Paul di Resta, Pascal Wehrlein and Daniil Kvyat had also been mentioned to replace Massa, but they are no longer in the picture."

(GMM)
An official has denied that planning for a F1 race in Las Vegas is obviously racing ahead.

With Liberty Media often mentioning the desire for a second annual grand prix in the US, the local Las Vegas Review Journal says the sport has now made a series of trademark applications for Las Vegas GP-related items.

"As far as we know, there is nothing new with formula one," the president of Las Vegas events said.

However, a F1 spokesman confirmed that Las Vegas is on Liberty's radar.

"We have made no secret that we are looking for destination cities, and regarding the US, Las Vegas has been mentioned alongside Miami and New York," said Luca Colajanni.

Indeed, the Las Vegas Review Journal said F1 has also made similar trademark applications for New York and Miami.

(GMM)
Ferrovial Services and Renault have signed an agreement to implement Zity, a car sharing service in Madrid. The project will start up with an initial fleet of 500 ZOE electric vehicles located within the M-30 beltway and in some adjoining areas.

Ferrovial is a leading global infrastructure operator and municipal services company, with 97,000 employees in more than 20 countries. Its main business areas are: Toll Roads, Services, Construction and Airports.

Zity combines Ferrovial Services capacities in the area of municipal services and environmentally-friendly solutions with Renaults experience as Europes foremost supplier of electric cars and a leading brand in the field of sustainable mobility.

ZOE is currently the only mass-market electric car on the market to offer an NEDC range of 400 km (249 miles), equivalent to about 300 km (186 miles) in real-world conditions, thereby extending range and usage time and adressing an even larger number of users.
Their approach involves converting radioactive material into short-lived nuclides by absorbing surplus neutrons in the core peripheral portion of a small fast reactor faster than they are generated in the core. The new method, published in an open-access paper in Scientific Reports , could significantly reduce the effective half-life (an indicator of the amount of time it takes to bring radioactive materials down to safe levels) of long-lived fission products (LLFPs) from hundreds of thousands of years to within a hundred years.

A team of scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) working in collaboration with Tohoku University, Tokyo City University and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency has proposed a novel, more efficient method to reduce radioactive waste.

Long-lived fission products (LLFPs) are radioactive materials with long half-lives produced by nuclear fission.

The disposal issue concerns what to do with radioactive waste after uranium and plutonium have been recovered from spent nuclear fuel using reprocessing methods such as Plutonium Uranium Redox EXtraction (PUREX).

Although burying waste deep underground is widely viewed as the most viable option, a number of strategies are being explored to reduce the stockpile of depleted fuel. One of the most promising is the partitioning and transmutation (P&T) strategy. This involves separating fuel into minor actinides (MAs) and LLFPs followed by the transmutation of MAs and LLFPs into shorter-lived nuclides.

Minor actinides are elements synthesized in nuclear fuel other than uranium and plutonium, such as neptunium, americium and curium. Transmutation is a change induced by neutron capture that results in the conversion of LLFPs to short-lived or non-radioactive nuclides.

So far, the P&T strategy has been limited by the costly and cumbersome need to separate LLFP isotopes before they can undergo transmutation. Also, some LLFPs, owing to their small neutron capture cross sections, are not able to capture enough neutrons for effective transmutation to occur.

The new study led by Satoshi Chiba at Tokyo Tech shows that effective transmutation of LLFPs can be achieved in fast spectrum reactors without the need for isotope separation. By adding a moderator (or slowing-down material) called yttrium deuteride (YD 2 ), the team found that LLFP transmutation efficiency increased in the radial blanket and shield regions of the reactor. The researchers say that this is due to the moderators ability to soften the neutron spectrum leaking from the core.

Chiba and his co-workers focused on six LLFPs: selenium-79, zirconium-93, technetium-99, palladium-107, iodine-129 and caesium-135. Calculations showed that the effective half-lives of these LLFPs could be drastically reduced so that total radiotoxicity at long cooling time domain will be efficiently reduced.

In experiments of this kind, the support ratio (that is, the ratio of the transmutation rate to the production rate) is an important indicator of transmutation efficiency. The team showed that support ratios of more than 1.0 were achieved for all six LLFPs tested, representing a significant improvement on previous findings.

Using their method, the researchers say that the 17,000 tons of LLFPs now in storage in Japan could potentially be disposed of using ten fast spectrum reactors. Their method also has the advantage of contributing to electricity generation and supporting efforts towards nuclear non-proliferation.

Resources
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indonesian Government under which it will work to expand the use and availability of electric vehicles in Indonesia. This partnership is in support of the Indonesian Governments ambition to encourage the development of electric vehicles as part of its strategy to reduce CO 2 emissions.

Measures will include the Government exploring the potential for new policies and incentive programs to encourage drivers and manufacturers to adopt electric vehicles.

Both the Indonesian Government and Mitsubishi Motors will also work together to conduct a joint study to examine the efficient usage of electric vehicles in Indonesia.

Mitsubishi Motors will make an immediate contribution to the transition of Indonesia to a low carbon economy by providing 10 electric vehicles and four charging units to the Indonesian Ministry of Industry (MOI) and a range of other organisations, including national universities and research institutes.

Mitsubishi Motors entered the Indonesian market 46 years ago, and earlier this year opened a new factory in Bekasi Prefecture. The factory plans to provide more than 3,000 jobs and has the capacity to produces 160,000 vehicles a year.

With the opening of the Bekasi plant, Indonesia has become a major production hub for MMC and is now at the heart of its work across the entire ASEAN region.
Under current rules, the EU sets the legal framework but national authorities are fully responsible for checking car manufacturers compliance. Once a car is certified in one Member State, it can circulate freely throughout the EU. Only the national authority that type approved a car can take remedial action such as ordering a recall and imposing administrative penalties in case of non-compliance. The Commission was already reviewing the EU type-approval framework for motor vehicles prior to the Volkswagen revelations in September 2015. It then concluded on the need for more far-reaching reform to prevent cases of non-compliance from happening again, which it proposed on 27 January 2016.

Last week, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission reached a political agreement to raise the quality level and independence of vehicle type-approval and testing; to increase checks of cars that are already on the EU market; and to strengthen the overall system with European oversight.

The EU co-legislators reached an agreement on that January 2016 proposal to overhaul fully the EU type-approval framework.

With tighter rules which are policed more strictly, the car industry has the chance to regain consumers trust. Just a few weeks after the Commissions clean mobility proposals, todays agreement marks yet another milestone in the EUs wider efforts to reinforce our car industrys global leadership in clean and safe vehicles. Jyrki Katainen, Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness

Dieselgate has revealed the weaknesses of our regulatory and market surveillance system. We know that some car manufacturers were cheating and many others were exploiting loopholes. To put an end to this, we are overhauling the whole system. After almost two years of negotiations, I welcome that the key elements of our proposal have been upheld, including real EU oversight and enforcement powers. In the future, the Commission will be able to carry out checks on cars, trigger EU-wide recalls, and impose fines of up to 30,000 per car when the law is broken. Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, responsible for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs

The main building blocks of the new rules are:

Raise the quality level and independence of type-approval and testing before a car is placed on the market. Technical services will be regularly and independently audited, on the basis of stringent performance criteria, to obtain and maintain their designation by a Member State for testing and inspecting new car models. The Commission and other Member States will be able to challenge a designation when something is wrong. National type-approval authorities will be subject to Commission audits to ensure that the relevant rules are implemented and enforced rigorously across the EU. The Commissions proposal to modify the remuneration system to avoid that technical services are paid directly by the manufacturer was not maintained.

Increase checks of cars that are already on the EU market. While the current type-approval rules deal mainly with ex ante controls of prototypes taken from the production line, in the future Member States will have to carry out regular spot-checks on vehicles already on their market and such results will be made publicly available. All Member States will now be able to immediately take safeguard measures against non-compliant vehicles on their territory without having to wait for the authority that issued the type-approval to take action, as is currently still the case.

European oversight. In the future, the Commission will carry out market checks independently from Member States and will have the possibility to initiate EU-wide recalls. It will have the power to challenge the designation of technical services, and to impose administrative penalties on manufacturers or technical services of up to 30,000 per non-compliant car. The Commission will lead a new enforcement forum to ensure a more uniform interpretation of relevant EU legislation, complete transparency on cases of non-compliance, and better and more coordinated market surveillance activities by Member States.

The new Regulation maintains the current ban on defeat devices, which national authorities have a standing obligation to police and enforce, but goes a step further. In the future, car manufacturers will have to provide access to the cars software protocols. This measure goes hand in hand with the Real Driving Emissions package, which will make it very difficult to circumvent emission requirements and includes an obligation for manufacturers to disclose their emissions reduction strategies, as is the case in the US.

The preliminary political agreement reached by the European Parliament, Council and Commission in trilogue negotiations is now subject to formal approval by the European Parliament and Council. The Regulation will then be directly applicable in all Member States and will become mandatory on 1 September 2020.
Dec. 11, 1972

Apollo 17s lunar module landed on the moon with astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt aboard. During three extravehicular activities (EVAs), they became the last two men to date to step onto the lunar surface. Space.com recounts: Apollo 17 marked the end of the program that took 12 people to the surface of the moon. By the time the mission launched on Dec. 7, 1972, public interest had declined, the government had shifted its focus to the Vietnam War and many other factors brought the program to a close, even though three more flights had been planned. ... Apollo 17 was the first mission to include a scientist in its crew. Geologist Harrison Jack Schmitt was one of the first six scientist-astronauts selected in 1965 amid immense pressure to do so from the National Academy of Sciences, who were worried only test pilots would walk on the moon.
HIGH POINT  Police have a juvenile suspect in custody who they say fired a single shot at High Point Central High School on Monday.

Update from High Point Central incident: Juvenile Suspect is in custody! #HPPD  HighPoint(NC)Police (@HighPointPolice) December 12, 2017

Authorities said the suspect's name would not be released at this time

High Point Central High School and Ferndale Middle School were locked down Monday afternoon after a window at High Point Central was shot out, police said.

Police received a call of a shooting at the school around 2:05 p.m. this afternoon. No one was injured in the incident, according to police.

After the shooting, police assured parents that there was no active shooter and that the lockdowns were part of safety protocol. Officers remained in the area during school dismissals.
WASHINGTON  The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said Sunday that women who accuse someone of sexual misconduct deserve to be heard, even if it involves President Donald Trump.

I know that he was elected, but women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them, Nikki Haley said on CBS Face the Nation.

Trump, a Republican, won the White House last year despite the election season release of a 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he described women letting him grab their private parts, followed by accusations by several women of aggressive sexual misconduct. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has since reiterated the White Houses position that the women who accused Trump of sexual harassment are lying.

On Sunday, Haley, who was the first female governor of South Carolina, praised the courage of women who have raised complaints of harassment in various industries, including government and Hollywood, saying they will bring a conscience to the situation.

Women who accuse anyone should be heard. They should be heard and they should be dealt with, and I think we heard them prior to the election, said Haley, a Republican. I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up.

 The Associated Press
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Stoneville Fire Chief Tim Brown received unanimous support on Tuesday, Dec. 5 from the town council to have a take-home vehicle.

Brown said he spoke with Town Manager Ken Gamble about purchasing a fire chiefs vehicle, to also be used for back-up and to drive to chiefs meetings and training exercises.

The McMichael Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to the fire department. Now, Brown wants to apply for a USDA grant for additional money.

The only cost to the town is maintaining the vehicle and the gas and insurance, he said.

Councilman Jerry Smith immediately made a motion for Brown to proceed with the grant application.

New Councilman Johnny Farmer then asked for clarification on the vehicles use.

I dont have a four-wheel-drive vehicle, so if it snows, I cant run fire calls, Brown said. Last year I had to borrow somebodys vehicle, so yes, it will be a take-home vehicle.  It will be for fire calls and fire business only.

Farmer asked if the towns insurance would cover non-city employees who might be passengers in the vehicle, expressing concern over whether Brown would be liable for them in the event of an accident.

Yes, they are [covered]. Thats no different than if a police officer arrests somebody theyre going to be covered as a passenger under our liability coverage, answered Ken Gamble, town manager.

Weve had fire chief cars before, but they were hand-me-down police cars, Brown said.
Matthew Brown / Hearst Connecticut Media

Vista Equity Partners completed its acquisition of Datto and combination of the company with Autotask, with Datto maintaining its Norwalk headquarters under CEO Austin McChord.

Datto provides data backup and security as a managed service for other companies, selling through a network of more than 13,000 managed service providers in 125 countries. In the past year, Datto has opened new offices in New York City and Portland, Ore.; combined with East Greenbush, N.Y.-based Autotask, Datto employs 1,300 people.
The head of Priceline subsidiary Kayak.com is seeking approval from the city of Norwalk to build a new home on Bell Island, on property he acquired earlier this year after selling a mansion on Wilson Point across the water.

Kayak CEO Steve Hafner has filed for a coastal site plan review of the Yarmouth Road property with the goal of a new residence designed by Norwalk-based Beinfield Architecture. A modest bungalow currently fronts a small beach on Wilson Cove; in July, Hafner sought approval for a small dock extending nearly 40 feet from the water line at high tide.
Bob Luckey / Hearst CT Media

GREENWICH  Although the Byram Shubert Librarys Proust Book Club just finished its book, there are other clubs reading about other topics at the western Greenwich library.

From 5 to 7 p.m. this Tuesday the International Book Club will meet to discuss its latest work, The Lover by Marguerite Duras. The Byram Book Club will be meeting at 3:45 p.m. on Jan. 9 to discuss The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See and the Proust Book Group is starting up again at 5 p.m. on Jan. 18 to read In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust, again, a journey that took the last group seven years to finish.
In some ways, it's been a rough year at Laurel High School, where two students are battling cancer.

"It runs in my family, so I'm used to that, but not friend-wise," said junior Kaitlyn Kelley.

In other ways, it's been uplifting. Kelley and other students at Laurel raised about $1,400 to support the students and their families as they get treatment in other states.

Students already knew that Junior Casey Burrows was battling her second round of cancer this fall. Then, shortly before Thanksgiving, news spread that sophomore Tysen Baeskens was also fighting the disease.

"I think it hit a lot of people," said junior Hannah Kopp. "They're part of our schools, part of our community."

Kopp and Kelley are both part of the Laurel High student council. The group started organizing a fundraiser Nov. 20.

"They didn't hesitate at all," said Lori Hodges, Laurel's librarian and student council adviser.

Student council members manned a desk near the school entrance, collecting donations, and a round of collections went out during a class period.

"We're just trying to help out by collecting whatever we can," Kopp said. The school even had a few checks delivered from community members without kids attending school.

Burrows has been getting medical care in Denver, while Baeskens has been in Salt Lake City.

Hodges handed over the money to families Dec. 1.

The student council has also helped organize another fundraiser with the Vue and Brew movie theater in Laurel.
Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York told CNN on Monday that President Donald Trump should resign over allegations of sexual misconduct.

"President Trump should resign," Gillibrand told CNN's Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview. "These allegations are credible; they are numerous. I've heard these women's testimony, and many of them are heartbreaking."

If he does not "immediately resign," she said, Congress "should have appropriate investigations of his behavior and hold him accountable."

Responding to UN Ambassador Nikki Haley saying that Trump's accusers "should be heard," Gillibrand said: "Not only should women be heard, but they should be believed."
"All Government employees should realize that the process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service. It has its distinct and insurmountable limitations when applied to public personnel management."  President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, August 16, 1937

by Andrew Walden

Has HGEA signed on to a suicide pact?

HGEA is on course to destroy the $37M overhaul of the States tottering manual payroll system.

HGEA is sabotaging the States $60M overhaul of DoTax collection system.

And yet, HEGAs alleged Executive Director, Randy Perreira, asks rhetorically , Who the hell wants the payroll system to fail?

Perreira claims HGEAs campaign to defund and disrupt the two tech overhauls are, all about making sure that, at the end of the day, we can collect taxes and that the payroll system is going to pay them.

At the end of the day, neither will happen.

The seeming political power play is actually a sign of Perreiras weakness.

HGEA has not yet endorsed a candidate in the upcoming Democratic Gubernatorial primaries. Perreira tells Civil Beat December 1, 2017 : What motivates his members to vote in a governors race, he said, is whether they like the people the incumbent appointed to be their bosses.

In other words, HGEA leaders are unable to provide strategic leadership to its membersleadership that would say: we need to stop obstructing these tech upgrades in order to ensure that we process our own payroll and collect the taxes necessary to fund our bloated contracts.

An October, 2017 report from AdvanTech, LLC, posted December 6, 2017 on the Hawaii Office of Enterprise Technology Services webpage , describes how HGEA is killing off the DoTax upgrade:

The political component has now been further exacerbated by the filing of grievances with the union by a number of DoTAX employees claiming issues with the new Tax System Management (TSM) management (effective July 2017), and intervention by the union with the legislature, governors office, and the press. The overall impact of this politicization of the program is to create an image of failure, which could end up being self-fulfilling. (p 11)

What drives HGEA members dissatisfaction?

a negative attitude by some users because the new system does not do things the in exactly the same manner as the old. (p 12) Because the legacy systems and previous failed projects were custom built systems, some DoTAX staff have had the expectation that GenTax could be configured either exactly as it is done in legacy, or otherwise customized to follow a preconceived notion of how a process should be done. (p 18)

Can Iges contractor can create an old-tech style interface so that HGEA members can use the new tech without discerning the slightest change? Anything short of that and mafia candidate Colleen Hanabusa will be selected.

HGEA instructed its Legislature to deny funding for the DoTax upgrade in 2017. AdvanTech explains how HGEA will finish the job:

A similar denial of funding in the next session will almost certainly ensure that the program will not reach full completion, and could possibly interrupt R4 in mid-stream. This would require DoTAX to work in multiple systems (the legacy system and the new GenTax system), prevent DoTAX from realizing fully the anticipated benefits of TSM, and leave significant exposure to the failure of the remaining legacy systems. (p 20)

This is not the first time HGEA has sabotaged tech upgrades.

In his December 10, 2017 column , David Shapiro explains, (the $60M tax collection) project is to replace a previous $87.5 million tax department computer modernization that was declared outdated before it was finished. (And) two years ago, Ige scrapped a useless new financial software system in the Department of Transportation and sued the now-bankrupt contractor in a likely doomed attempt to recover nearly $14 million the state paid.

Both projects died from HGEA malfeasance.

Using the same tactics, HGEA also killed off a 2008 DoTax initiative employing a private contractor to collect taxes, as explained in  Audit fuels clinically psychotic HGEA effort to strangle tax collection :

The HGEA was outraged when (contractor) CGI in January, 2008 landed a $25M contract to increase Hawaii Tax collectionsdoing a job supposedly performed by HGEA members. DOTax reported September 22, 2010 that CGI had raked in over $100M in tax revenues. DOTax projected CGI would collect tax revenue of $120M by the end of CGIs contract June 30, 2011. But the HGEA was not mollified by CGIs ability to rake in the bucks that its members need in salaries in order to pay their dues and contribute to the reelection of union-owned politicians. Instead union operatives worked diligently to sabotage CGIs tax collection efforts.

A CGI memo quoted in a 2010 State Auditors report described the HGEA members who were controlling the unions agenda:

Clinically psychotic;

Smart yet can be very air headed;

Weak leader and easily manipulated;

EXTREMELY ODD [PERSON]; and

Not respected by his peers within the state.

These are the people Randy Perreira answers to. They will choose your next Governor.
New South Wales Attorney General, Mark Speakman, has announced a legal exemption that entitles employers to refuse to hire pregnant women will be removed next year.The amendment will also stop employers from dismissing women who do not disclose they are pregnant when they are hired.In the NSW Anti-Discrimination Act 1977, Sections 25 (1A) and 25 (2A) protect employers who refuse to hire pregnant women, or dismiss women who were pregnant at the time of hiring.The NSW Government has now agreed to remove these two discriminatory sections from the law.Its unacceptable and out of step with modern standards for a woman to be overlooked for a role because shes pregnant, or dismissed from a new position once it becomes apparent shes carrying a child, said Speakman.We understand the need for employers to plan and be prepared for staff who need to take maternity leave, but an agile workplace that accommodates family commitments is likely to attract and retain the brightest talent.Greens MP and spokesperson for the Status of Women, Dr. Mehreen Faruqi, gave notice of a bill to remove pregnancy discrimination exemptions from NSW Anti-Discrimination Law in September 2017, and then met with Speakman to get the Government on side.We know pregnancy discrimination at work is still a huge problem in Australia and many women suffer in silence, said Dr Faruqi.We still live in a society where too many people think pregnancy and motherhood are incompatible with work, but having these laws that protect employers who discriminate against pregnant women only compound the problem.Dr Faruqi added that the fact that NSW has these exceptions means that pregnant women are turned away from the NSW Anti-Discrimination Commission which is unacceptable.We urgently need to change this law to protect pregnant women from discrimination. Im glad the NSW Government is moving to remove these discriminatory laws, said Dr Faruqi.NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian added that the changes would make sure pregnant woman were not discriminated against."This is a great win for women in the workforce, it's a great win for families," she said.The change brings NSW into line with other states and territories and Commonwealth law.
A total of 25,500 randomly selected first- and second-generation immigrants and members of ethnic minorities were interviewed for what was the second the European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS II).

Immigrants, their descendants and ethnic minorities continue to face widespread discrimination across the European Union, finds a survey conducted by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).

The respondents were asked not only about their experiences of discrimination, harassment, police stops and rights awareness but also about their sense of belonging and trust in public institutions in their country of residence. The results of the union-wide survey were published on 6 December, 2017.

Almost a decade ago we warned about the presence of large-scale ethnic discrimination and hatred. Today, these new results show that our laws and policies are inadequately protecting the people they are meant to serve, says Michael OFlaherty, the director of FRA.

FRA highlights in a press release that discrimination remains a union-wide problem in all areas of life  especially, in job-seeking  in spite of the introduction of anti-discrimination laws at the turn of the millennium. For many, it adds, discrimination is a recurring experience.

The failure to eradicate discrimination, intolerance and hatred, meanwhile, is threatening to marginalise and alienate members of minority groups who otherwise tend to be attached to their country of residence and have a higher level of trust in its institutions than the general population.

With every act of discrimination and hate, we erode social cohesion and create inequalities that blight generations fuelling the alienation that may ultimately have devastating consequences, says OFlaherty.

The survey found that people of immigrant and ethnic minority background are more likely to experience discrimination in Finland than almost anywhere else in the European Union.

Discrimination against people of Sub-Saharan African descent is particularly common in Finland: almost a half (45%) of the respondents reported that they have experienced discrimination over the past year and well over a half (60%) that they have experienced discrimination over the past five years.

Their experiences were most commonly related to the use of public and private services, such as employment, health care and hospitality services.

The only member state to yield a higher 12-month rate of discrimination against people of Sub-Saharan African descent was Luxembourg (50%). High 12-month rates of discrimination were reported also by North African respondents in the Netherlands (49%) and Roma respondents in Greece (48%) and Portugal (47%).

The results are a clear confirmation that theres a lot of racism in Finland, Kirsi Pimia, the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman of Finland, stated to Helsingin Sanomat on Sunday.

The researchers said they were shocked by the high ranking of Finland. They found it difficult to believe that there can be so much racism in a welfare state such as Finland.

A total of 500 people of immigrant and ethnic minority group backgrounds were interviewed for the survey in the capital region, according to Helsingin Sanomat.

FRA believes the survey results place greater emphasis on the need to introduce specific and more resolute measures to provide legal protection against discrimination, as well as effective sanctions for those guilty of discrimination.

The fact that most incidents of ethnic discrimination (88%), hate-motivated harassment (90%) and hate-motivated violence (72%) were not reported also indicates that member states must step up their efforts to reach out to victims and encourage them to report. Law enforcement and anti-discrimination officials, similarly, need new tools to respond to such reports effectively, according to FRA.

The willingness and ability of respondents to report discrimination, however, appears to vary substantially between member states.

For example, nearly a third (30%) of respondents of Sub-Saharan African descent in Finland said they reported or filed a complaint about the latest incident of discrimination; in Austria, Italy and Portugal, fewer than a tenth of respondents of similar background said they did so.

This indicates that rights consciousness  including the knowledge and means to complain  varies not only between individual respondents and/or target groups. It also points to varying degrees of effectiveness of existing laws and policies that aim to counteract discrimination and ensure equality for all in the member states, concludes FRA.

The average reporting rate across the union was 12 per cent.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Antti Aimo-Koivisto  Lehtikuva
The National Coalition is pleased with the decisions made in the government programme. Its important that [its implementation] continues. I doubt Finns would appreciate it if the government was brought down for reasons related to political power, he stated in an interview on YLE TV1 on Saturday .

Petteri Orpo (NCP), the Minister of Finance, has dismissed suggestions that the National Coalition is planning on dissolving the government.

As long as the government is functional and capable of making decisions, the National Coalition will remain part of the government, he assured.

Orpo pointed out that the economic situation has improved notably in Finland. The State Treasury, he added, has consequently estimated that the government may only have to contract three billion euros in net debt this year, 1.5 billion euros less than projected as recently as a couple of months ago.

We may get below the three billion mark next year, if we make the right decisions, estimated Orpo.

He also underlined that the country should resist the temptation to increase public spending in spite of the strong economic growth.

Were currently at the top of the economic cycle, with the economy growing at a rate well above three per cent. Economic growth will slow down to the two per cent range next year, he said to the public broadcasting company.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Vesa Moilanen  Lehtikuva

Source: Uusi Suomi
THE winner of this years Henley Standard Christmas turkey competition says she only entered on a whim.

Julie OConnor, of Drays Lane, Rotherfield Peppard, was one of dozens of people to enter the competition to win the 75 bird from Gabriel Machin butchers in Market Place, Henley.

She answered correctly that Christmas turkey is traditionally served with all the trimmings and her name was drawn out of a hat.

Mrs OConnor said: I entered the competition really just on a whim so it was lovely to hear that Id won  it was smashing. I buy the Standard each week and thought it would be a bit of fun to enter without thinking Id win.

Ive bought a few things from the butchers before but never a big turkey so this is lovely.

Mrs OConnor will feast on the 10lb bird on Christmas Day with her partner Vince Jay, with whom she runs a tool hire business near Heathrow airport, his sister Denise Jay, mother-in-law Joan Jay, daughter Sophie OConnor and her partner Ben Woodgate.

They will be at Mr Jays mothers house in Eastcote, Middlesex. Mrs OConnor said: I imagine the turkey will be coming with us on the passenger seat  Ill make sure I put a seatbelt around it!

With the hours that we work we usually fall to a frozen bird so to have a fresh one from a local business will be very enjoyable. Last year we had roast beef so itll be a nice change and its traditional, isnt it?

The turkey was supplied by Starveall Farm in Aylesbury.

 Dont miss your chance to win a Tesco Christmas hamper in next weeks Henley Standard.
One week ago, President Trump unleashed an assault on two national monuments in Utah. He signed a proclamation slashing the size of Bears Ears National Monument by 85 percent, from 1.35 million to 201,397 acres, and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument by half, from nearly 1.9 million to 997,490 acres. Apparently, he isnt done. He will be signing more proclamations stripping protection from some of our most outstanding public lands.

These actions taken against our national monuments will go down in American history as perhaps the single biggest attack on our public lands ever conducted by the federal government. As the president admits, they serve to aid those who have actively been trying to sell off our public lands, most notably Utah Rep. Rob Bishop.

Containing one of the greatest concentrations of archaeological sites in the world, Bears Ears was designated a national monument in response to a national groundswell led by five sovereign Indian nations in the Four Corners region, people who consider this area sacred. Those tribes, along with a host of conservation groups, have already brought a legal challenge to this proclamation, as they should. At least 121 law professors agree that this proclamation wont stand up in court, primarily because the Antiquities Act, which was used to create these monuments, contains no language allowing presidents to shrink or eliminate national monuments.

But the presidents proclamation could be enacted with the help of Rep. Greg Gianforte.

Earlier this year, Gianforte voted for a bill written by Bishop. The dishonestly-named National Monument Creation and Protection Act (H.R. 3990) would enable presidents to shrink and eliminate national monuments that previous presidents have created. If this bill passes, it would basically codify Trumps anti-national monument proclamations and open all national monuments created by the Antiquities Act  including Montanas Upper Missouri River Breaks and Pompeys Pillar  to the same fate as Bears Ear and Grand-Staircase. It would render national monument protection virtually meaningless, prone to the whims of future presidents.

In voting for this bill, Gianforte blatantly ignored 2.7 million Americans, including 24,000 Montanans, who submitted comments to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke urging him to maintain all existing national monuments. Zinke recommended shrinking several national monuments, but kept his hands off Upper Missouri River Breaks after facing a backlash in his home state.

Gianforte put the Upper Missouri River Breaks right back on the chopping block when he voted for Bishops bill in the House Natural Resources Committee. If it passes Congress, Gianforte will be guilty of dismantling the central pillar of Theodore Roosevelts conservation legacy and destroying the most effective tool we have for safeguarding public lands with significant natural, cultural, historical and scientific value.

Over the past 110 years, 16 presidents  eight Democrats and eight Republicans  have used the Antiquities Act to designate 157 national monuments. I grew up in Crow Agency just outside one of Montanas national monuments, the Little Bighorn Battlefield. This is a sacred site for numerous Plains Indian tribes, including my own. Its status as a national monument has enabled the descendants of those who fought in this battle to gather, tell stories, and begin healing from a traumatic history that includes this battle. That status would be put in jeopardy with Bishops bill.

The Antiquities Act is one of the best tools we have for preserving, protecting, and perpetuating the heritage we share as Montanans and Americans. Call Gianfortes office at 202-225-3211 and tell him to respect that heritage by withdrawing his support of H.R. 3990.
Congress is in a brief period when it must act on significant legislation, so the possibility of action on good, long-awaited changes is higher.

Its time to remind Montanas delegation of a straight-forward Wild and Scenic River designation that has had bipartisan support for years. Its time to finally place East Rosebud Creek under protection of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

The East Rosebud is a clear, cold ribbon of water that tumbles out of the Beartooth Mountains in south central Montana. It travels through the Custer National Forest in a valley filled with pine trees, deer, elk, moose and bears.

Proposals to permit hydro dams on the creek spurred ranch neighbors and area cabin owners to action several years ago. Neither the proposed dams nor the extensive infrastructure required was built, but the creek is still vulnerable to future development  unless Congress designates it as wild and scenic.

Montana lawmakers introduced legislation to protect the East Rosebud, starting in 2014. In 2015, Democrat Jon Tester and Republican Steve Daines introduced a Senate bill to protect the creek. Their bill unanimously passed Senate committee last year, but didnt make it to the Senate floor. At the same time, Ryan Zinke, then Montanas U.S. representative, introduced a House bill.

Again this spring, Daines and Tester introduced a Senate bill (S. 501) to permanently protect the East Rosebud under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. The Senate bill would only apply to federal public land, not to private land. The Forest Service already manages these public lands as if they were wild and scenic, so there wouldnt be a change in management. The congressional designation would ensure that these public creek sections would always be wild and scenic.

Rep. Greg Gianforte hasnt yet introduced the House companion bill needed to move the East Rosebud protection forward.

Gianforte, who took office in June, visited Carbon County last summer and heard from Friends of the East Rosebud. According to the Aug. 3 Carbon County News, Gianforte told East Rosebud supporters: My goal today is to hear from the residents. Ive been here before and down the beaten path and I know how precious the public lands are and the desire of the community here to preserve this. Whats impressed me is the work Frank (Annighofer) has done (and) there is such unanimity in the support of the landowners. Annighofer is vice president of the Friends of the East Rosebud.

The Gazette contacted Gianfortes office Thursday and asked for his position. A spokesman replied: Greg supports designating East Rosebud Creek a federal wild and scenic waterway, recognizes what a priority it is for the community, and will introduce companion legislation in the House soon.

His window of opportunity is closing fast. If this popular, noncontroversial East Rosebud protection is to be attached to a must-pass bill this year, theres barely two weeks to get the job done. With all House members and a third of the Senate up for re-election in 2018, legislative productivity is expected to slow further. Gianforte and Tester are among the lawmakers who are campaigning for re-election.

Montanans who live, work, vacation, hike and fish along East Rosebud Creek have been striving for years to maintain this natural treasure. Montanas lone congressman should do what his constituents ask: Bring forward a short, simple, clean House bill to designate East Rosebud Creek wild and scenic forever.
Both of the Senate and House tax reform bills are an assault on the American middle class and small businesses. Reviewing the analysis of a variety of sources, I see that my personal federal taxes will go up, and there will be no tax benefit to the small business that I am buying into. Instead, this business is already seeing higher costs. We have selected our businesss health care plan for next year, and our costs will go up 15 percent, thanks to efforts from the Trump administration to undercut the Affordable Healthcare Act (Obamacare).
CLAREMONT  Dec. 4 marked the last Claremont City Council meeting where Tim Lowrance sat on the dais among fellow council members.

Lowrance was recognized during the meeting for his 48 years of service with the city, and 33 consecutive years of serving as a city council member.

During those years, Lowrance also served as mayor pro tempore, representative to the Western Piedmont Council of Governments, co-chair of Parks and Recreation Committee, Recreation Committee member, planning board member, a volunteer firefighter, a member of Claremont Jaycees and a lifelong member of Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church.

N.C. Rep. Mitchell Setzer presented Lowrance with the state flag, which was flown in his honor over the state legislative building, and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine award.

The Order of the Long Leaf Pine award is among the most prestigious awards conferred by the governor of North Carolina, and is awarded to people for exemplary service to the state and their communities that is above and beyond the call of duty, according to the Order of the Long Leaf Pine Society website.

Following Setzers presentation of awards, Claremont Mayor Shawn Brown presented Lowrance with a resolution from the North Carolina League of Municipalities along with a resolution from the city acknowledging his service.

Brown said he has spent a lot of time with Lowrance, from attending school with his children to serving as co-chairs on the Recreation Committee.

I have learned a lot from (Tim) and have accomplished a lot with (him) by my side, Brown said. I have appreciated all of the time that we have been able to spend together, and I know that is the sentiment from the council as a whole.

Lowrances service to Claremont began at the fire department, where he served as a volunteer firefighter. In the following years, Lowrance had the idea to run for town council, but was hesitant.

I asked my grandfathers, the late Fred Hope and the late Bud Watts, what they thought, Lowrance said. Bud was pretty short with all of his answers, but he said, Go for it, try it and if you dont get elected then you can try again.

Lowrance was elected to the town board in May 1972, but was quickly faced with another barrier to cross.

The very next year municipal elections were changed to the odd years, Lowrance said. I had to run again, but that wasnt any problem, because I got re-elected.

At that time, Lowrance said he was the youngest person to be elected into office in Catawba County.

Since Lowrance had been heavily involved with the Claremont Fire Department, he was chosen to serve as the fire commissioner.

When people would come looking for the fire commissioner, well here I was as this 21-year-old guy and people would be looking for present-day me and not 21-year-old me, Lowrance said.

Although Lowrance started his public service young, he was able to stand his own in the face of adversity until 1977.

I took off at the end of 1977  My daughter, Karen, was 2 years old and I decided that I needed to stay home more, Lowrance said.

In 1979 a friend of Lowrance persuaded him to run for Claremont mayor, and his opponent was Carol Glenn Sigmon. Lowrance said he lost the mayoral race by 10 votes.

I did not press the issue of recounting the votes, because Carol Glenn and I were good friends and I congratulated him and everything was fine, Lowrance said.

This bump in the road of Lowrances public service did not stop him from serving Claremont.

It was in 1989 when this adventure started. From 1989 until now, I have been re-elected (for council) each time, Lowrance said. I have had the honor to work with seven mayors, seven city managers, six clerks, eight fire chiefs and four police chiefs.

During his second time serving on council, Lowrance was involved with the building of the public works building, the building of a fire station that was completed in 1999, and city hall renovations that were completed in 2000.

The fire station and city hall renovations were two projects that I was really interested in while they were being completed, Lowrance said.

Lowrance was also involved with numerous police department renovations, the construction of two spec buildings and most recently a new medical office that is scheduled to open soon.

The dedication and devotion Lowrance has displayed during his time as a council member have been unwavering, even during trying times.

Even when I was out a couple years ago from surgery, they Skyped me into the meeting, so that I wouldnt miss it, Lowrance said.

Although Lowrance has retired from city council, he does not plan on slowing down his public service.

I am taking a position on the planning board now, and I will also be working on the Claremont Fire Protection Association, Lowrance said.

The Claremont Fire Protection Association nonprofit organization is a new addition to the city, one that Lowrance has had a big part in developing.

I would like to thank the council members for their support for the establishment of a nonprofit organization for the fire department to raise funds and receive grants, Lowrance said. It will serve as a way to provide necessary equipment to Claremont Fire Department without needing funding from the city.

We did all of this. It was not done by me alone.

Lowrance is also employed by Catawba County Schools at Oxford Elementary as the director of custodial affairs.

As my slogan from the Jaycees Creed goes, Service to humanity is the best work of life, and that is what I have always enjoyed doing, Lowrance said.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh sought an apology to the nation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for insinuating that he, and other members of the Congress party, may have colluded with Pakistan; Indias neighbour called Modis allegations baseless and irresponsible; and BJP leaders saw Pakistans response as suspicious and asked why the Congress had taken 48 hours to admit to a meeting between Congress leaders and Pakistani officials including the high commissioner.

The back and forth over Pakistan started as a sideshow of the ongoing campaign ahead of the second phase of the elections to the Gujarat assembly on December 14, but soon grabbed centre stage.

On Sunday, Modi referred to a Facebook post by a former director general of the Pakistani army, Sardar Arshad Rafiq, saying Congress leader Ahmed Patel should be the next chief minister of the state, and to a meeting in Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars residence attended by Singh, the former vice president of India, Pakistans former foreign minister, and the countrys high commissioner to India. The prime minister said the meeting happened last week, a day before Aiyar called him neech (lowly). Aiyar has since apologised and also been suspended from the primary membership of the Congress.

On Monday, Singh, 85, said Modis claim was an ill-thought transgression and rejected his charge as innuendos and falsehoods . Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma accused the prime minister of dragging political discourse to an unacceptable low by making statements that harmed the dignity of the prime ministers post.

In his statement, Singh added that the meeting on December 6 at Aiyars house was restricted to discussions about Indias relations with Pakistan and that the Gujarat polls didnt figure in the conversation.

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground, Singh said.

Pakistan too, refuted charges of a secret meeting. India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal tweeted.

Hours later, the BJP hit back; law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad slammed Pakistan for giving lessons. What is curious is that this happens and Pakistan comes out with an official statement... in many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion, he added.

Singh also pointed out that Modi went to Pakistan uninvited after the terror attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan, he said.

Meanwhile, the BJP questioned why it took the Congress 48 hours to admit to the meeting at Aiyars residence.

Why was this a hush hush meeting? Why was the MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) India not in the loop? Why do Congress leaders meet China and Pakistan envoys secretly? party spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao asked on Twitter.

The Congress President-elect Rahul Gandhi, too, stepped into the debate. The Prime Minister talks sometimes about Pakistan and sometimes about China and Japan. Modiji, this is the election for the future of Gujarat. Talk something about Gujarat too, he said at a rally in the states Banaskantha district.

But Modi pressed on with his Pakistan references. At Nadiad, he said in a rally that money that was being routed from Pakistan to fund terrorists in India had stopped after last Novembers demonetisation.

The BJP has governed Gujarat for 22 years but the Congress is hoping to unseat it by tapping anger over the agrarian crisis and the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax, and on the strength of a partnership with Patidars, some backward classes, and Dalits. The BJP is counting on its record in the state and the Modi magic to see it through.
A rare row between a sitting and a former premier broke out today after Narendra Modi insinuated that Manmohan Singh colluded with Pakistan in the Gujarat polls with the Congress leader accusing his successor of setting a dangerous precedent and asking his apology.

Launching a sharp counteroffensive, Singh tore into Modi over what he called the prime ministers ill-thought transgression and rejected his charge as innuendos and falsehoods.

In uncharacteristically strong words, a usually reticent Singh crossed swords with his successor to say that the Gujarat polls was never raised by anyone present at a dinner hosted by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for a visiting Pakistani leader at his house on December 6 and that the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan ties.

Heres the full text of Manmohan Singhs statement:

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Sh. Narender Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly & regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a Former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

The Congress Party needs no sermons on Nationalism from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known. Let me remind Sh. Narender Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan.

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Sh. Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground.

I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Shri Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations. Names of the distinguished Indian public servants and journalists present at the dinner are enclosed to this statement. None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities.

I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points. I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies.

On its part, Pakistan also rebuffed the allegations of a secret meeting between Congress leaders and its High Commissioner, saying India should stop dragging Islamabad into its electoral debate and termed Modis remarks as baseless and irresponsible.

(With agency inputs)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday addressed three rallies in election-bound Gujarats Patan, Nadiad and Ahmedabad, where polling is scheduled for the second phase on December 14, while Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi spoke in rallies at Tharad, Viramgam, Savli and Gandhinagar.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah also addressed four rallies in Saigam in Banaskantha district, Enclave and Barsad in Anand and Dabhoi in Vadodara.

On Sunday, addressing a rally in northern Gujarats Palanpur, Modi alleged that Pakistan was meddling in the elections to the state assembly. He also questioned some senior Congress leaders recent meeting with Pakistan officials, including the countrys high commissioner to India.

The Congress denied the charges and asked Modis government to repatriate Pakistans top diplomat in the country if he was indeed meddling in an Indian election.

Here are the updates on Monday:

6pm: Modi rally ends.

5.15pm: Congress has lost in the first round and are not even thinking about the second round as they know people here will support BJP. They have now taken to excuses. Their leaders and cheerleaders are blaming EVMs, including saying they are hacked using Bluetooth, says Modi in Patan rally.

4.55pm: If PM Modi honestly believes then he must immediately take action. He must direct NIA to arrest them (Congress) because if he believes that Pakistan is interfering then tell NIA. Why doesnt he use Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or NSA, asks Asaduddin Owaisi.

4.26pm: Former prime minister Manmohan Singh says deeply pained after Modis remarks on Congress leaders meeting with Pakistani diplomats. Singh says Modis statement is setting a dangerous precedent.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issues a statement after reports of him attending a meeting where a Pakistan envoy was also present. pic.twitter.com/ngAyC7MW08  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

4:08pm: When we went to the farmers, did Krishi Mahotsav, we did not go out helping the rich. We went among the poor. Sadly, Congress leaders born with golden spoons will never understand what poverty is, says PM

4:05pm: During peak summer, I would go to the villages of Gujarat and ask parents to educate their children. Whose children were they? Were they Ambanis children? No. They were children of the poor. We are working for poor, says PM

3:55pm: Our farmers work hard and grow potato. If at all the Congress comes to power, there will be no need to do that because their leader says we will produce potatoes in factories! Congress basic knowledge about agriculture is so poor, says PM

3:46pm: When this area was flooded the chief minister, former chief minister, ministers came and stood with people here. The Prime Minister reviewed the situation. All this while, Congress MLAs were enjoying in resorts: PM Modi

3:40pm: Congress has lost in the first round and are not even thinking about the second round as they know people here will support BJP. They have now taken to excuses. Their leaders are blaming EVMs, including saying they are hacked using bluetooth: PM Modi

3:30pm: PM Narendra Modi begins rally in Gujarats Patan

3:17pm: Modi doesnt talk about unemployment, education, farmers or corruption in his rallies, says Rahul Gandhi

3:14pm: Rahul Gandhi again takes a dig at PM Modi demonetisation and GST, says its the common man who was affected after note ban, but not Amit Shahs son Jay Shah. Gandhi says in 3 months Jay Shah converted Rs 50,000 company into Rs 8 lakh crore.

3:10pm: Only a few people are happy in Gujarat right now- one of them are industrialists and the other one is Amit Shah.

3:09pm: In the next 10 days, govt of industrialists will be removed from Gujarat

3:02pm: This election is about the future of the people of Gujarat

2:46pm: Rahul Gandhi addresses his next rally in Viramgam

2:29pm: The BJPs campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election? tweets Congress leader P Chidambaram.

1:14pm: Narendra Modi is scared of Amit Shah, says Rahul Gandhi.

1:12pm: After demonetisation, Modiji introduced GST- Gabbar Singh Tax.

1:10pm: After demonetisation, Modi said he will add Rs 15 lakh in everyones bank account. People did not even get 15 paise.

1:08pm: During demonetisation, all of you had to stand in endless queues - did you see anyone in suit and boot standing in a queue?

1:05pm: Modji will invest Rs 33,000 cr in Tata Nano plant but not on your education, says Rahul Gandhi.

1:00pm: BJPs vikas yatra has flopped, says Rahul Gandhi.

12:59pm: Rahul Gandhi says elections are in Gujarat and Modiji is talking about Japan, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

12:55pm: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi addresses a rally in Banaskantha.

12.49pm: Why did (Congress) Anand Sharma make a wrong statement denying that the meeting took place? Now who should apologise?

12.48pm: Completely abhor outside interference in Indias internal affairs. Pakistans promotion of terrorism in India is well known but Pakistan must stop giving us lessons, we are proud of our democracy. Condemn this unwarranted statement, says Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.

12:40pm: The Congress party is fighting this election on issues of development that concern Gujarat. And in round one, our party has already won. This has scared Modi into spewing lies and ill-thought accusations against the former prime minister: Sharma.

12:39pm: We will win somewhere between 45-50 seats in the first phase, says Congress leader Sharma.

12:35pm: Ex-Pakistan foreign minister was here to attend a wedding, there was a dinner organised for him in which there were former diplomats and former army chief among other dignitaries. Does the PM think they were all conspiring with Pakistan? It is reprehensible.Modi must apologise, says Anand Sharma.

12:32pm: The PM should restore the dignity of political discourse, withdraw what he said and apologise to the former prime minister. It is clear that he said this to mislead the people during the time of elections: Sharma.

12:31pm: Actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha questions Modi for spinning unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories against political opponents.

12:30pm: It is the prime minister who is doing grave injustice to this nation by ignoring developmental issues, says Congress leader Sharma.

12:29pm: Congress leader Anand Sharma asks, Why isnt the PM speaking of economy, employment and the farmer crisis? What is the BJPs agenda in Gujarat?

12:28pm: Modi has said Congress is conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections.It is outrageous and just an attempt to polarise ahead of second phase of voting.This also shows Modis desperation and that BJPs loss is now guaranteed, says Congress leader Anand Sharma.

12:26pm: The PM chose to ignore the progress and developmental issues and stooped to mere tu-tu, main-main (rhetoric) in his own home-state, the Shiv Sena says.

12:25pm: The Shiv Sena accuses Modi of resorting to histrionics and pulling the ongoing poll campaign for the Gujarat elections to a new low.

12:05pm: I am getting a very good response from the people and I am very confident, Hardik Patel tells ANI during Ahmedabad motorcycle rally.

11:45am: Pakistan says Indias politicians should not drag the country into its domestic politics during campaigning for the Gujarat assembly polls.

11:38am: Hardik Patel supporters take out a motorcycle rally in Ahmedabad: ANI.

11:25am:

Will address rallies in Patan, Nadiad and Ahmedabad today. @BJP4Gujarat  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017

11:15am: BJP leader S Prakash, in Bengaluru, says instead of focusing their attention on development, the Congress is trying to evoke Gujarat riots to win over the Muslim votes: ANI.

11:05am: This is a shameful statement by the Congress. They apologised for their deeds in 1984 anti-sikh riots and now they are creating a baseless controversy. The truth is only those people who have committed mistakes apologise, but those who have not done anything wrong why they will serve an apology, BJP leader Bizay Sonkar Shastri tells ANI.

11:00am: Hitting out at Congress for asking Modi to apologise in Jama Masjid for the 2002 riots, the BJP says those who commit mistakes only they serve an apology.

10:00am: Request by BJP and Congress for Modi and Rahul Gandhis roadshows, respectively, on Tuesday turned down by police due to security, law and order reasons and to avoid public inconvenience, police commissioner Anup Kumar Singh tells ANI.

*The first phase of the Gujarat elections ended on Saturday; 89 seats went to the polls. The second phase, for 93 seats is on December 14 and campaigning ends on December 12.

*The BJP has governed Gujarat for 22 years. The Congress is hoping to unset the BJP by tapping angst over the agrarian crisis and the implementation of the goods and services tax, and on the strength of a coalition it has built with Patidars, some other backward classes, and Dalits.

*Analysts expect it to be a close fight, although the BJP has maintained that it is confident of bettering its tally of 119 seats in the 182-member assembly in 2012.

(With agency inputs)
The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were embroiled in a war of words over crony capitalism invoking top industrialists such as Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, a day before the 49-day long campaign for the Gujarat polls comes to an end.

Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president-elect Rahul Gandhi accused each other of promoting the rich, spreading canards and degrading the political discourse in seven rallies they addressed in north and central Gujarat, where voting for 93 assembly seats will be held on December 14.

Reacting for the first time to the Congress leaders charge that the Modi governments policies were oriented towards rich industrialists while ignoring the poor, the PM said: I went with a begging bowl to every nook and corner of Gujarat asking people to send their girls to school. Was I asking about the education of daughters of the Ambanis? Was I asking about daughters of Adanis? I went from village to village in 45-degree heat to promote education of the girl child.

On Gandhis repeated accusation, he accused the Congress leader of spreading lies everywhere and thinking others are fools.

Gandhi has been alleging throughout his campaign that the Modi model of development was all about taking away resources of the poor and farmers and handing them over to a handful of corporates including the Tatas and Adanis for a song.

He reiterated the allegation on Monday describing the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government as a suit-boot ki sarkar.

Gandhi also asked the PM why he was silent on the meteoric rise in the turnover of BJP president Amit Shahs son Jay Shahs company and wondered why the PM was scared of the saffron partys chief? He added that elections were being held in Gujarat and Modi was speaking about Japan, Pakistan and Afghanistan, without referring to the PMs allegation of Pakistans interference in the state polls.

Modi hit back at Gandhi saying that those born with a silver spoon know about the pain of the poor. Our footwear got worn out. We have walked barefoot under the sun. They (Gandhi) may not have been pricked even once by a thorn in the foot, Modi said, while asking audience in Patan whether they remembered it.

Both leaders also claimed that they will be available for the cause of Gujarat at a short notice.

(With agency inputs)
Local politicians and activists in Madhya Pradeshs Sagar district have accused Christian campaigners of promising education and jobs to poor and illiterate villagers to lure them to convert, an allegation dismissed by the church and the district administration.

Since laws governing conversion are cumbersome and require prior notification, it is said that many villagers are unofficially embracing Christianity without bothering to inform the administration.

Sagar district Congress president, Heera Singh Rajput, said instances of conversions could be found in more than 50 villages.

There was no conversion when Congress was in power in the state. But the situation in Bundelkhand has worsened because of misrule by BJP, Rajput alleged.

He said that desperate villagers, deprived of proper education and employment, were proving to be easy prey for Christian proselytisers.

Even the local BJP MLA, Pradeep Laria, feels the same. An organised racket is behind this. People dont submit applications before undergoing conversions officially as it suits them and also benefits those behind it as the administration will not have any ground to take action against them, Laria explained.

We came to know about unofficial conversions recently and are trying to become the voice of poor people to stop such activities, said activist, Kapil Rajesh Rai.

Bhopal, India - Nov. 25, 2017: Saurabh Rajak who has recently atarted practicing christianity at his hut that contains signs of both hindu and christian in village Bandri in Sagar district in Madhya Pradesh, India, on Saturday, November 25, 2017. (Photo by Mujeeb Faruqui/Hindustan Times) (Mujeeb Faruqui/HT Photo)

Both the district administration and the church say the allegations are baseless.

Minority community institutions have been operating in the area for the past 140 years and are providing employment, quality education and health facilities to people. This might be a reason why a section of the people is attracted towards them, but I dont see any conversion, insisted Alok Kumar Singh, the district collector.

As per the Madhya Pradesh religious conversion law, one has to take permission from the district collector to change his or her religion. But Singh said no such application has been received.

Father Leo Cornelio, the archbishop of Bhopal, accused local politicians of orchestrating a campaign against them. Our God taught us to help others, so we are helping people. But there are some who are out to malign us, he said.

Amid the claims and counter-claims, some members of the Christian community, including the bishop in Sagar, have sought police protection. Father Alex of the church in Shampura said his community was being wrongly targeted.

The government has failed to provide even a road to our village. Now there are people who are questioning our social work to misguide people, he said.

Notwithstanding the heat the issue has generated, some families in villages such as Khajuria, Bandri, Shayampura and Badlo close to national highway 26 admit to observing Christian rituals, despite not officially converting.

Draupadi Ahiwar of Bandri said she never dared to dream of educating her children with her meagre income as a beedi worker. But a church member told me my life will change if I start praying to Prabhu. I have started it for the past few months. I am happy now as from the next year, my children will go to a convent school, Ahiwar said.

Ashish Yadav of Khajuria put things in a perspective. We Hindus at times go to the mazhar and the dargah to pray. Does it mean we have converted to Islam?

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An attempt by the ruling BJPs youth wing, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), to further the saffron agenda through an international quiz competition in schools and colleges across Madhya Pradesh has met with criticism from the opposition Congress and educationists.

Titled Mere Deendayal after Deendayal Upadhyay, founder of BJPs progenitor Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the quiz seeks to raise awareness about him (50%) and the schemes of the BJP-helmed state government (30%) and Centre (20%).

While the competition is not compulsory, BJYM is pushing to get 30 lakh students to participate, and has asked government teachers and professors to extend support.

Congress and educationists have raised their voice against it, citing politicisation of education although the organisers said it would help students learn about Upadhyay and the governments schemes, whereas the government said it was a motivational move.

We are not providing any aid to them. The quiz competition is a motivational thing for students and there is nothing wrong in informing students about beneficial schemes, minister of state for school education and technical education Deepak Joshi said.

Noting that till now, the government was using students for increasing crowd in their programmes, Kunal Chaudhary, president of MP Youth Congress, said now, they have started misguiding students by asking them to learn about BJP and its leaders.

Educationist Zamiruddin questioned why they were mixing politics and education, and reasoned that it could be because they want to change the students mindset.

It is very dangerous for the future of students. Are they afraid of their failure of providing good education and infrastructure to students? he asked.

However, BJYM state president Abhilash Pandey said the quiz would help students learn about a leader whose thoughts are relevant in the 21st century and about schemes of the state and the Centre that are beneficial to them.

BJP has done so many good things. So we can ask the students about it, but Congress never did anything remarkable except criticising others work. So it is obvious that they would raise questions, he said.

The organisers are charging Rs 10 per participant. Government teachers and professors have been asked to motivate students to take part in good numbers and get registered themselves.

Interestingly, they will also provide booklets to the participants in a few days and ask them to prepare in 20 days for the competition, that is being organised on January 23, the birth anniversary of freedom fighter Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

Sources said the booklet, which is in the final stages of preparation, contains information glorifying Jana Sangh heroes and the various beneficial schemes of the state and central governments.

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Top Bollywood actors, including Kareena Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar and Madhuri Dixit, have condemned the alleged molestation of a Bollywood actor inside a Delhi-mumbai flight.

The 17-year-old actor was allegedly molested on an Air Vistara flight on Saturday night. The actor later narrated her ordeal on Instagram via a live video. She said she was on a flight from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put up his feet on her armrest. The man was arrested by police in Mumbai Sunday evening.

Noted actor Madhuri Dixit said, This should not happen, neither in India nor in any other part of the world.

Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said women are far superior than men and the females can rise above any difficulty. I definitely feel women are way more superior than men. We are fighters and whichever situation it is in our life, personal or professional, we all come out as fighters. When we talk about God, we talk about goddess. So, we look from the perspective of a woman. When we talk about the earth, we say Mother Earth. So, whenever we talk about anything, we talk about women. Women are far superior (than men). So, they can fight out of every situation, Khan said.

When asked about the incident, Pednekar said she was shocked to know about the alleged molestation but the actor was happy that Wasim showed courage to speak up about her ordeal.

I am appalled. She is a child. There is a problem in our culture where people think, especially if you are an actor, that you are their property. This is hugely problematic. But I am very happy that she put it out on social media. I am glad she took that step because it needs a lot of courage to speak, to come out and take a stand like that. More power to her, Pednekar said.

Actor Taapsee Pannu, who has always raised her voice against violence against women, said, I just hope she gets justice. It is good that at least she has raised her voice. She deserves to get justice.

Television actor Mouni Roy said she was deeply saddened by the incident, which is an act that stems from a poor mentality. Now, what should I say about this country. On one hand we talk about women empowerment, on the other hand we hear about all these incidents. But I think it is very important not to just stand against it and talk about it, but also to educate people against this, she said.

A girl was molested on an airline and the people are busy discussing nationality and religion.

It amazes me what our mindset is becoming  Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) December 10, 2017

I genuinely dont know what to say. It deeply saddens me. The kind of life we lead, the kind of education we all are getting, in fact, the levels of education in towns and villages have gone up. This is just really sad. I think this reflects a poor mindset, she added.

When asked for his opinion on the incident, actor Sushant Singh Rajput said, We talk a lot (but) I think at the right place and in the right time, we need to take action also. We are intelligent and responsible enough as a country to see to it that these things dont happen.

The celebrities were speaking at the red carpet of Lux Golden Rose Awards.

Actor Zareen Khan said there should be a focus on preventing such incidents rather than attending to minuscule things. I really dont know what to say about it because such incidents keep happening in our country. Rather than focusing on issues like these, I dont know why our country is behind minuscule matters. The way we talk about women empowerment and safety, I dont think only talking about it is needed. We also need to take some action to stop all of this, she said.

In the video, which the victim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, she broke down several times. This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how youre going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible! she said.

No one will help us if we dont decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing, she added.

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Actor Shabana Azmi says, Culture cannot be kept under lock and key. Best remembered for her performances in classics such as Ankur (1974) and Arth (1982), Azmi was in Delhi to speak at Jashn-e-Rekhta  the annual three-day festival celebrating Urdus cultural heritage and history. In a tete-a-tete with HT City, she waxes eloquent about her love for Urdu, recollects fond memories of her growing up in a culturally-rich atmosphere, and stresses on the importance of going back to ones roots to be able to reach ones full potential.

We were fortunate that we had literary giants such as Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Firaq Gorakhpuri, Josh Malihabadi, and Begum Akhtar as house guests. I would be very fascinated when I would see these evenings from behind the curtains  the tinkling, and laughter

 Shabana Azmi

Azmi, who comes from a family of poets and artists, shares she feels blessed to have grown up in an atmosphere full of cultural influences. In my growing years, it was almost by a process of osmosis, that I inherited a love for acting and theatre from my mother [Shaukat Kaifi] and father [Kaifi Azmi]. We were fortunate that we had literary giants Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Firaq Gorakhpuri, Josh Malihabadi, and Begum Akhtar as house guests. I would be very fascinated when I saw these evenings from behind the curtains, the tinkling, and laughter. My father would always encourage me to come and sit with those people, but provided that this did not become an excuse for me to bunk school the next day. At that time, I couldnt even understand the language, but it was like music filling my ears.

About her role in attempts to revive the Urdu language, she says, Urdu celebrates our Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (a cultural and linguistic phenomenon in North India, that celebrates cultural and linguistic syncretism between the Hindu and Muslim communities). Urdu is actually Hindustani with a couple of words that are different. To celebrate our composite culture, in what language can we do it? Urdu seems to be a very good receptacle in which that can happen. I find it heartening that there are so many young people who not only come to the festival, but are actually learning the alphabet. There is a definite interest in the language. And the computer has made things much easier.

In a country like India, we should give an impetus to all our regional languages, whether its Tamil, Hindi,Telugu, Gujarati, or Marathi. Since our languages are our strength, we will have to give them real support, so that learning a language, and becoming true to them becomes an asset, rather than a liability, she adds.

The actor urges people to go back to their roots, as it gives one strength and depth. In todays day, where expression, language is getting compressed, where messages no longer respect spellings, grammar, all that is easily accepted as cool. What it is doing is [that] its taking away our roots completely. I think first you need to be very deeply rooted. Only then can you spiral upwards and spread your branches. But if you have weak roots, in the spreading of the branches, you will uproot the tree. Humari joh tehzeeb hai, culture hai, zabaan hain, woh humare andar jar pakadegi, tabhi jaake, hum phir international zabaan bhi bol sakenge (Only after our roots are composed of our own language and culture, will we be able to embrace foreign languages and cultures).

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A law expert appearing on behalf of controversial businessman Vijay Mallya on Monday expressed doubts about the Indian Supreme Courts handling of the case, and alleged that it gave preferential treatment to banks.

Martin Lau, professor of law at the School of Oriental and African Studies, deposed on Mallyas behalf on the fourth day of his extradition case at the Westminster magistrates court, claiming that the Supreme Court had shown unusual speed in dealing with Mallyas case. The defence says the former liquor baron will not get a fair trial if extradited to India.

Lawyer Mark Summers, who appeared on Indias behalf, said the issue before the court was not to decide on trial issues but whether there was a prima facie case that Mallya has to answer in India. The defence says the prosecution has zero evidence against him.

Commenting on the various aspects of the law and judicial system in India, Lau said courts in India tend to be influenced by media trials. When asked by Summers if the legal chronology of Mallyas cases in India supports his contention on the apex court, Lau said: By giving banks preferential treatment, it has allowed doubts to be cast on judicial independence.

The professor of law said the Supreme Courts decisions reflect a certain pattern where judges, especially those nearing retirement, rule in favour of the government allegedly to secure post-retirement jobs and postings in the administration. I have the highest respect for the Supreme Court, but it is not disrespectful to voice doubts about some of its aspects. It is not a corrupt institution. It is heavily burdened, Lau said, agreeing with Mallyas lawyer Clare Montgomery on various legal aspects related to him.

Lau said media trials were an issue due to the proliferation of television channels, but agreed with Summers that Mallya could raise the issue during his trial in India.

According to the legal expert, Indias case that Mallya gave misrepresentations to IDBI Bank while securing loans, failed to honour obligations, and used loan funds for unintended purposes does not amount to cheating. Wilful default is not an offence in Indian law, he claimed.

Montgomery cited the rapid pace at which Mallyas case progressed from the Karnataka high court to the Supreme Court, despite the latter having a large number of cases on its plate. She also referred to another study that found several allegedly undesirable aspects  including fabrication and planting of evidence; torture; death penalty; and abuse of the legal process in India  to support the defences claim that Mallya may not face a fair trial if extradited.

Besides this, Montgomery cited a press report to allege that CBI special director Rakesh Asthana threatened bank officials in the Mallya case. Lau agreed with her that a statement under Section 161 of the Criminal Procedure Code cannot be used to secure a conviction in court.

Margaret Sweeney, chief financial officer of the Force India F1 team, deposed to say that all transactions with Kingfisher Airlines were audited and made under existing contracts. She denied Indias allegation that some of the payments made since 2008 were shrouded in secrecy.

Academic Lawrence Saez will speak on Indian politics when he deposes on Mallyas behalf on Tuesday.

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Light rain that lashed parts of Punjab on Monday brought a sigh of relief for farmers. With the first irrigation of the recently-sown wheat crop ahead, these showers will serve that purpose to some extent, say experts.

Agriculture officer Gurmail Singh at Patiala said the prevailing weather conditions are apt for the development of wheat and other rabi crops, which are presently in their vegetative growth. These conditions will help increase yield potential, he said.

Dr Jagdish Sharma, associate director at Krishi Vigyan Kendra of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), said that it has been a good sign for farmers who have sown the crop up to the third week of November. He said rainwater contains natural ingredients beneficial for the crop.

However, heavy rainfall will cause worry for the farmers who had sown wheat crop in last 3-4 days, he said.

Gursharan Singh, assistant professor (horticulture), PAU centre, Faridkot, said that light rain is beneficial overall for the horticultural crops, especially citrus and potatoes.

Moreover, the agricultural experts have told farmers not to apply urea blindly due to fear of any effect on the crop. They have also instructed farmers to keep a tab on day-to-day effect of weather conditions. The farmers have been directed to inform agriculture officials or field staff in case of any damage to crop.

Meanwhile, director of the meteorological department, Surender Paul, said there will be heavy rainfall in the districts close to foothills in the coming days.

Amritsar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Gurdaspur and Faridkot were among the places which received rain on Monday.

In Amritsar and surroundings, drizzling began just after midnight and lasted until 3.30 am. After another four hours, the rain restarted. Till filing of this report, it was drizzling with gaps, owing to which the people have got rid of dry weather and air pollution.

Adampur in Jalandhar witnessed a minimum of 4 degrees Celsius on Monday as cold weather persisted at most places. In Jalandhar city, rain caused a problem for commuters. It was a very chilly day and the rain made me reach my office late in the morning due to jams, said Sandeep Sharma, an employee of the district administration.
In Delhi, where a majority of constructions violate building norms or are outright illegal, the words sealing and demolition throw up a scary imagery.

The national capital got a reality check in 2006 when simultaneously the Supreme Court ordered sealing of commercial units that ran illegally from residential spaces and the high court directed demolition of unauthorised constructions.

As the court-appointed monitors went about locking up properties after properties and bulldozers landed up at peoples homes, Delhi opened a can of worms. It was not just a local grocery store or a homestead extension at fault. Even government offices, malls run by top designers and high-street fashion outlets were found operating in neighbourhoods not meant for them.

Also, illegal construction turned out to be a problem not restricted to working-class neighbourhoods. Even in the plushest of postal codes, there was hardly a home that did not make an illegal extension  an extra room here, a covered balcony there. Some encroachments brazenly ate into pavements while basements carved out space under public thoroughfares.

Soon, the government stepped in to introduce laws to protect the violators and Delhis Master Plan was subsequently amended. In 2012, the Supreme Court withdrew its monitoring committee. This, it said, was done with the hope and expectation that the authorities would carry out their statutory duties and act against unauthorised usage.

Five years on, the Apex court feels let down. Observing how the hope, expectation and trust reposed in the concerned officers seem to have been completely belied, the Supreme Court warned last week that it might revive its monitoring committee which had sealed thousands of illegal commercial establishments in Delhi a decade ago.

Ten years was long enough for Delhi to have set its house in order. But as the national capital waited for some proactive measures, unchecked commercialisation paralysed the city. Streets are crammed with traffic. Sewers overflow from excessive load. Pavements have no space for pedestrians. Today, every third resident lives in a poorly provisioned, illegal settlement and house collapses kill more people than any other disaster in normal times.

For any conscientious government, the 2006 sealing and demolition drives should have been a wake-up call. But successive governments have turned a blind eye, as if waiting for the illegalities to gain a critical mass at which they have to be regularised. Granting legal titles in the name of regularisation is an oft-repeated poll promise in Delhi since the 1970s.

Even the list of construction violations is routinely modified to exempt more and more constructions. While the Central laws granted immunity to unlawful structures and land use violations between 2006 and 2014 to buy time to make norms and strengthen the enforcement mechanism, the municipalities have used it as an excuse to not take action against even the more recent contraventions.

Just two months ago, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation proposed a partial amnesty to illegal constructions that came up until a year ago, while admitting that 90% of properties in its jurisdiction had some unauthorised components.

Yet, nobody has invested in strengthening the enforcement mechanism.

While the municipalities remain the biggest offender in this civic mess, the government planners and builders were also at fault. In Delhi, initial urban planning discouraged mixed zones where commercial and residential spaces coexist. But rules were violated and illegal, haphazard commercialisation continued unabated and mixed land use became synonymous with chaos, congestion, corruption and poor quality of life.

Shortage of land also incentivised illegal construction. Much of the blame goes to the Delhi Development Authority, the citys primary landowner and developer, which failed in its basic duty of providing affordable housing. The agencys policy of locking up huge tracts of land held up the housing supply. Those in need turned to the illegal market where plots and even ready-to-move flats were available on more flexible terms.

Given the scale of mounting irregularities, mass demolition was not an option. The regularisation drive is also backed as a step towards recognising the rights of the citizenry to housing and workspace. But no matter how many justifications we have for the mess, they do not absolve the authorities, which failed to plan, build, enforce and regulate for six long decades.

That is where a city still aspiring to be world-class must draw the line.

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A newly elected Nepalese MP from CPN (UML), a part of Left alliance that is poised for election landslide in Nepal, on Monday backed the bi-national 5,040 megawatts Pancheshwar Dam project on Mahakali river with rider.

The project was accelerated during the rule of Nepali Congress but there was apprehension over the fate of the project if the Left parties  Maoists and CPN (UML)  formed government in the neighbouring nation.

Damodar Bhandari, CPN (UML) leader who won Baitari seat in the federal parliamentary poll, said the project was fine but some conditions need to be reviewed.

Reports from Nepal suggest that the Left alliance has won majority seats in the elections held in the two phases  November 28 and December 7.

The provisions made for rehabilitation of the affected people in the detailed project report (DPR) will have to be reviewed, Bhandari told HT over phone from Nepal on Monday.

He, however, rubbished fears that Left parties in Nepal were lenient towards China and could derail the project.

It was our Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who had sanctioned budget for the project in 2016, said Bhandari, a former minister of state for finance.

Left parties earlier opposed terms of reference of the Pancheswar project on the question of origin of river Mahakali mentioned in the DPR released by India in 2003 by saying that the origin of river Mahakali from Kalapani glacier in not acceptable to them.

Mahendra Gurung, chief executive officer of Pancheswar Development Authority (PDA), said parties in Nepal have become mature.

All questions raised by Nepalese intellectuals have been answered in joint DPR of the project. Now, there should be no opposition of the project, Gurung said.

Two agencies  Pancheswar Development Authority (PDA) and WAPCOS (a union water resources ministry) consultancy firm handling the initial works of the project.

As per DPR of the project, the main Panchesawr dam will produce 4,800 MW while Rupali Gad Re-regulating Dam which is about 25 km downstream from Pancheshwar High Dam will produce 240 MW.

At 315 meters, Pancheswar Dam will be the biggest in India. It will also be the first joint hydro power project that will serve the purpose of both the nations.

Besides producing hydro power, the project will provide irrigation power to both the countries.

But this will come at a price. Thousands of people on both the sides will be displaced.

As per officials, 2.7 lakh hectares land on the Indian side and 1.70 lakh hectares land on the Nepalese side will be submerged in the Mahakali waters.

Total 35 villages, including 24 in Indian border districts -- Pithoragarh and Champawat in Uttarakhand -- will be directly affected. On Uttarakhands part, it will get 12% of electricity as its share.
The Khanpur MLA alleged a Rs 50-crore scam in the distribution of panchayat shops in Haridwar district and demanded a CBI probe into the irregularities.

Haridwar zila panchayat chairperson Savita Chaudhary was suspended last week after district magistrate (DM) Deepak Rawat submitted to the government a report that highlighted anomalies in the distribution of shops.

The MLA, Kunwar Pranav Singh Champion, and his wife Rani Devyani said the scam was reported during the previous Congress government, hinting at involvement of former chief minister Harish Rawat.

Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Champion alleged that irregularities were reported at more than six places, and the scam money went to Chaudharys husband Rajender Chaudhary and relatives.

District panchayat shops are constructed, auctioned and distributed to local people so that they could do business. But Savita Chaudhary auctioned the shops at minimal value to her relatives leaving a big hole in the state treasury, Champion told media persons.

Devyani has been nominated as the chairperson of the committee that dug up documents and detected the multi-crore scam.

Former BJP MLA Shehzaad alleged that the shops were constructed at high costs with panchayat funds in Bhagwanpur, Jwalapur and a dozen other places, but they were auctioned at minimum rates to Chaudharys family and relatives.

At Roshnabad, Rs 53 lakh was given to the contractor for constructing only one-metre boundary wall. Imagine the level of corruption if for only one-metre boundary wall, Rs 53 lakh was given to the contractor. And the contractor is her family member, Shehzaad alleged.

This couldnt have been possible without the support of the then government, Shehzaad said, hinting at the role of Harish Rawat.

Champion demanded for a comprehensive investigation into the scam, saying the BJP-ruled Uttarakhand government has zero tolerance on corruption.

Reacting to the allegations, Savita Chaudhary said, I havent seen or read what Devyani or legislator Kunwar Pranav have alleged. Such allegations are baseless and politically motivated. For past one and a half years nothing was said about the irregularities.

She had earlier claimed that the irregularities were reported before she took charge of the district panchayat. (With inputs from Sandeep Rawat in Haridwar)

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The air quality in Delhi remained on the higher side of very poor on Monday morning. However, there are chances that it might improve on Tuesday as the Meteorological department has predicted rain on Monday night.

Delhis average Air Quality Index  a measure of pollutants in the air on a scale of 0-500  was at 377 on Sunday. At 9am on Monday, it was at 375 which falls in the very poor category.

However, pollution levels in some areas such as Anand Vihar and Punjabi Bagh breached the severe category on Monday shooting beyond 400. At Anand Vihar, the AQI was at 454 and at Punjabi Bagh was at 413 at 9am.

The levels of particulate matter in the air have been on the rise since Sunday. Both Particulate Matter (PM) 10 and PM 2.5 have been four times above the safe standard since Sunday night.

If the levels shoot up beyond five times, emergency measures such as shutting down of schools, rolling out of odd-even road rationing scheme and ban on construction activity will be introduced.

On Sunday, Indias official pollution forecasting system SAFAR had forecast that the capitals air quality will dip further, however, the weather department had predicted light rain on Monday night and Tuesday which might wash out pollutants.

We are expecting some light rain starting from Monday night. It is likely to continue till Tuesday, said Kuldeep Srivastava, a senior scientist with the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre (RWFC).

This would be the first December rain in Delhi since 2014.

Delhi didnt receive any rain in December in 2015 and 2016. A strong Western Disturbance is approaching. It has already triggered a cyclonic circulation over Rajasthan. These two systems together will trigger some rain, he added.

As loads of moisture has gushed in, because of this western disturbance, Delhi experienced a morning mist on Sunday.

The sky is likely to turn cloudy from Monday. The cloud cover and the high moisture levels would push up the night temperature. The maximum temperature is likely to drop. The night temperature that had dropped to around 7.6 in the last week of November is expected to shoot up to around 10 degrees by Tuesday. The day temperature, which was hovering above 27 degrees Celsius on Sunday, is likely to drop to around 23 degrees Celsius, he added.

Shallow fog and mist are expected to continue for at least two days after the rains cease, as moisture levels would be high. Delhi could expect a sharp drop in mercury levels once the cold and dry north-westerly winds start blowing. As soon as the moisture levels drops and the winds pick up speed the mist will also disappear.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government may be planning to make Delhi open-defecation free by March 2018, but the situation on the ground suggests that the administration may not be able to meet its deadline.

An internal report of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), compiled in October this year, states that out of around 15 lakh slum dwellers of the city only a little more than 3 lakh use community toilets.

The calculation reveals that only 25% of the target users are using the facility. DUSIB has installed 19,168 toilet seats at 641 toilet complexes till November 2017, out of which 18,281 toilet seats are functional while the remaining are under repair and renovation. DUSIB plans to build 2,500 more toilets and the municipal corporations will build an equal number by the end of December.

The government has set a target to build a total of 27,000 toilet seats in the city to be able to make the city free of open defecation by next year. This leaves the authorities with the big challenge of building 3,000 toilets in the first three months of 2018 to meet the deadline.

Though DUSIB says it is on course with the construction, it is the under-utilisation of toilets which is making the challenge bigger.

Delhi to miss toilet goal The state govt will need to build at least 3,000 toilets in the first three months of 2018 to meet its deadline 19,168 Number of toilet seats till November 2017 (functional  18,281, non-functional - 887) 641 Total number of toilet complex 2,500 Total number of toilet complexes 3,70,386 Slum dwellers using community toilets 27,000 Number of toilet seats proposed by March 2018 30,000 Toilet seats required if 1 seat is used by 30 people (Swachh Bharat rules) The state govt will need to build at least 3,000 toilets in the first three months of 2018 to meet its deadlineNumber of toilet seats till November 2017 (functional non-functional -Total number of toilet complexTotal number of toilet complexesSlum dwellers using community toiletsNumber of toilet seats proposed by March 2018Toilet seats required if 1 seat is used by 30 people (Swachh Bharat rules) Status report of inspection says toilets condition was average

DUSIB officials say there are more than three lakh families who live in slums of Delhi, if they assume that a family has five members on an average. This brings the number of slum dwellers in the city to about 15 lakh. As per Swachh Bharat Abhiyan guidelines there should be one toilet seat for 30 people.

According to DUSIB officials, the under-utilisation of toilets could be the result of the Rs 1 per person charged from users.

Bipin Rai, member DUSIB, told HT that slum dwellers practically had to pay Rs 2 per person for using the facility managed by NGOs. Complaints are often received in this connection and action taken against such NGOs.

Explaining the reason behind under-utilisation of toilets, Rai said that if there were six members in a family and they relieved themselves twice or thrice daily then the family ends up spending around Rs 1000 on toilets only.

This is a considerable amount for most of the families residing in slums. Witnessing this problem, the board members have proposed to waive the user charge which was unanimously accepted. This will boost the usage of toilets in JJ clusters, Rai said.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in October this year had announced that no user charges would be levied in toilets from January 1, 2018. He termed the move as a New Years gift for toilet users in slum clusters.

Thousands of families, who live in slums, have built toilets in their houses. They no more use the community toilets. This is also a reason behind under-utilisation of toilets in JJ clusters, Rai said adding that the rehabilitation of around 35,000 slum families is also in the pipeline where people will have their own toilets.

According to DUSIB officials behavioural issues of people and untidy toilets are also major contributors. The responsibility of maintaining toilets has been given to various NGOs. As per norms a toilet should be cleaned thrice a day, but this practice seldom takes place.

The small NGOs, who are operating the DUSIB toilet complexes at JJ clusters, do not work properly and toilets remain dirty. So now we are in talks with some big NGOs, who have specialty in this field, to manage toilets properly, said DUSIB member AK Gupta.

Sunil Kumar Aledia, executive director, Centre for Holistic Development says that it was not possible to make Delhi open defecation free by having 27,000 toilets only.

Making Delhi open-defecation free by March 2018 is not possible. These are false claims by the government. Delhi needs around 50,000 toilets to become OD free which will require around five years, Aledia said.
Two men, described by police as budding criminals, were arrested on Saturday for plotting to kill a rival in police custody. For both the criminals, it was more personal than business.

Their target, Farman alias Nanhe, a notorious gangster from northeast Delhi, had allegedly sexually assaulted one of them and threatened and humiliated the other.

Last week, they decided to shoot Nanhe on Saturday, when he was to be taken to a city hospital for medical examination by the police. But police arrested them minutes before they could execute their plan.

Officers of the Special Cell said Farman is a member of Nasir gang, which controls extortion, betting and illegal liquor operations in northeast Delhi. Farman, who was recently arrested for murder and extortion by the Uttar Pradesh police, was brought to the city on Saturday on a transit remand. The two men along with their gang members had planned to shoot Farman at close range.

Those in police custody have to be taken for a medical examination at least once in 24 hours.

DCP special cell Pramod Kushwah said police received a tip-off on Saturday that a group of gangsters would meet in Welcome area of northeast Delhi. Their rendezvous point was the East Delhi Municipal Corporations zonal office in Shahdara, located less than 2 kilometres from Welcome police station, where Farman was lodged.

At about 5.45pm Danish,21, and his 24-year-old associate (who was sexually assaulted by Farman) reached the spot on a scooter, which did not have a number plate. After some time, two others reached there, said DCP Kushwah.

A police team which was waiting for them at the spot told the gangsters to surrender. Kushwah said the criminals fired at the police team. While others managed to escape, Danish and his friend were arrested.

Police also recovered a pistol from them. During interrogation, the two confessed that Farman bullied them. Recently, he had held the 24-year-old at gunpoint and assaulted him sexually. The man was sexually assaulted for refusing to give Farman protection money. He had also filed a police case at the Welcome police station against Farman under sections of unnatural sex. Farman was threatening him to withdraw the case, a senior special cell official said.

The two told the police that they knew Farman since childhood. Farman, who had joined the Nasir gang, had started extorting from local traders. He had also fired outside Danishs house in the area and threatened his father to give in to their demands. Police said they are looking for others.

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Locals and experts are upbeat over a comprehensive revamp and decongestion plan for Jama Masjid, proposed by the Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation (SRDC). They expect that the plan will be implemented this time, unlike several others which had been proposed but remained in papers only. The SRDC  a special body constituted to plan and execute redevelopment of Old Delhi  has submitted two plans to the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) for review. We hope to get a response from SPA soon, said a Delhi government official. Rampant encroachments and unbridled illegal constructions around the 360-year-old monument have been on the radar of the authorities for a long time. In the last six months, Delhi lieutenant governor Anil Baijal has visited Red Fort, Chandni Chowk and Jama Masjid twice  latest on Saturday, and directed that the makeover of the heritage zone must be taken up on priority. 1 MAIN ENTRY from Netaji Subhash Marg (About 15 metres high) 2 PASSAGE for the Shahi Gate (14 mtrs wide) 3 Remains of the AKBARABADI MASJID 4 GREEN PATCHES 5 Concrete space for worshippers 6 Dargah Sheikh Kalimullah 7 JAMA MASJID 8 Mazar of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad 1 ENTRY/EXIT for community facilities 2 AUDITORIUM (PIE.htc); /* remove if you dont care about IE8 */ width:22px; height:22px; padding:1px 1px 1px 1px; background-color:#005199; color:#FFF; text-align: center; "> 3 ART GALLERY

Delhi is hosting ASEAN summit in January and the Centre has asked all agencies to restore monuments and spruce up prominent tourist attractions and markets across Delhi by mid-January. The official said the Centres directions will also ensure that the revamp plan is expedited.

Haji Miyan Fayazuddin, who runs a guest house opposite the mosque, said efforts to give the area a facelift were long pending as even local lawmakers and councillors have ignored the area. Roads are full of potholes along Chawri Bazaar. The historic Urdu Bazar has been turned into a food street. Illegal constructions overrun roads leading to the mosque, not to mention the encroachments by hawkers and illegal parking lots. There is not even space to breathe.. Good that someone is at least thinking to do something now, he said.

Rana Safvi, author and historian who conducts history walks in the area, said the area desperately needed attention. The filth and chaos belies the significance the imposing structure carries. It is getting from bad to worse. We hope the plan takes off this time, she said.

The two plans sent to the SPA are prepared by Pradeep Sachdeva, appointed by the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to draft the plan that proposes relocation of Meena Bazaar and SRDCs consultant (tourism project) Vijay Singh. As per Singhs plan, the market should be moved underground (see graphic).

The degradation of the monument and the areas around it was first raised in 2004 through a public interest litigation (PIL) based on which the Delhi High Court asked the authorities to redevelop Jama Masjid and its precinct, spreading over 23 acres. A plan was prepared and approved by the court two years later. However, it could not move beyond papers and meetings. A case regarding the PIL is listed on December 29.

Once the SPA approves and we get a nod from the court, a committee will decide the further action plan, the official said.
Attorneys for Red Fawn Fallis, an anti-pipeline protester accused of shooting a handgun at arresting officers, sought to suppress evidence and her statements made at the time of her arrest during a hearing that lasted all day Friday and through Monday morning.

Fallis' attorneys allege her arrest violated free speech rights during a protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline on Oct. 27, 2016, along State Highway 1806.

Six officers had testified Friday to various aspects of her arrest when District of North Dakota Chief Judge Daniel Hovland agreed to reconvene at 8:30 a.m. Monday. At that time, North Dakota Highway Patrol Trooper Bennett Bitz resumed his testimony before the defense, followed by state parole officer Daniel Heidbreder, who processed Fallis after her arrest, and Oceti Sakowin camp peacekeeper Dennis Martinez Jr.

Heidbreder said he processed six items of evidence removed from Fallis, including 12 rounds of .38-caliber ammunition, three bags of marijuana, rolling papers, a bandanna and a braid of sweet grass.

Martinez said he "held the line" between law enforcement and protesters throughout the demonstrations near the pipeline route in southern Morton County. He said he never had to push Fallis back but she was angry in the moments before her arrest.

Pennington County (S.D.) Sheriff's Deputy Thadius Schmit testified Friday that Fallis' "aggressive stance, her having to be pushed away from (another officer)" contributed to her arrest.

Her arrest took place as officers with tactical vehicles paused while moving protesters south on the highway as they received reports of gunshots ahead. Martinez said Monday that a horse and rider had been shot with less lethal ammunition.

Drone footage showed Fallis arriving at the scene within five minutes of her arrest. Other footage showed her cursing at least once and jabbing in midair as Martinez stood between her and officers.

Officers from Friday in court testified that after her arrest, Fallis said statements to the effect of, "If I wanted to kill you, I would have shot you in the head" and "All pigs deserve to die," while laughing or giggling.

Monday's hearing concluded about 11:30 a.m. Attorneys agreed to file post-hearing briefs by Dec. 18.

"It is our position there is a substantial amount of outstanding discovery," defense attorney Molly Armour said, referring to discussion at the outset Friday when Fallis' legal team said potential camera and witness evidence has not yet been produced.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Hagler reiterated his response that "everything we have has been turned over."

Hovland previously ordered the prosecution to file formal responses by Friday to each of the 17 discovery disputes Fallis' attorneys have raised. He also ordered prosecutors to undertake their best faith efforts to "disclose anything and everything they have by the end of this week."

Armour also said the defense will file a motion to compel discovery. Prosecutors will respond within a week of receipt.

In other proceedings, Hovland said questionnaires will go out this week to 150 potential jurors to be returned by Dec. 22. Attorneys said they hope to quickly strike any potential jurors with obvious bias.

Fallis' trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 29 in Fargo. She is charged with civil disorder, discharging a firearm in relation to a felony crime of violence and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
Parents of differently abled children will get a breather in nursery admissions in private schools this year as the Delhi government is planning to relax the norms for applicants with physical and mental challenges.

This year, the upper age limit for differently abled applicants for entry level classes may get revised. The admission process is likely to be same as last year.

For Class nursery, the upper age limit has been fixed at 4 years. But, for differently abled children with physical challenges, the upper age limit will be 5 years as on March 31 of the admission year. For differently abled children with mental challenges, the upper age limit is 5 years as on March 31 of the admission year, though the school principal can give further relaxation of one year on submission of required documents, an official from the Directorate of Education (DOE) said.

The only change this year is the imposition of an upper age limit. Kids of age between 3-4 years will be eligible for Nursery, between 4-5 years for KG, and 5-6 years for Class 1, the official said.

The official added that same age relaxations will be applicable for differently abled students applying to KG and Class 1.

The DOE is yet to make an official announcement about the relaxation. Nursery admission in over 1,700 private unaided recognised schools is expected to begin from January 1, 2018. The government is likely to bring out the admission notification by December 15.

Admission for Class nursery usually starts in the first week of January and the last date for submission of application forms is by January end.

The DOE had in December 2015 imposed an upper age limit for entry level admissions but it was stayed by the high court after which admissions last year happened without an upper age limit.But the court in October upheld our decision to implement the age limit, the official said.

The government is not likely to make any changes to the criteria for nursery admissions, allowing private unaided schools to decide the guidelines on their own.

For admission, the applicant scores out of 100 points, divided in the various criteria. In most schools, the distance criterion carries the maximum points. The radius of the distance differs from school to school. Other criteria include girl child, sibling in the same school, children of alumni and students with a single parent.

Delhi has 1,700 private schools that offer approximately 1.25 lakh seats in nursery.

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Many of Indias best-known universities and colleges, including Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Panjab University, most of the top Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and a number of state universities have joined the race to be named institutes of eminence.

Several people familiar with the matter said that, till Monday evening, the human resources development (HRD) ministry had received 73 applications from institutions wishing to be named institutes of eminence, which will come with significant financial and academic autonomy, and, for government institutions, financial support.

Among those who have applied are the seven IITs at Madras, Delhi, Bombay, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Guwahati and Roorkee, as well as Jadavpur University, Goa University and Mangalore University. From the private sector, OP Jindal Global University, Ashoka University, Manipal University and Amity University have applied.

The deadline is December 12, and ministry officials expect close to a hundred applications.

So far, they added, six private institutions have also applied to be named institutes of eminence. The private institutes will not be eligible for government funding if they get the tag.

The ministry is expected to start on the process of shortlisting institutes soon.

The response has been overwhelming and we are hoping to get more applications by tomorrow, which is the last day. Central and state universities, and IITs have also applied , said a senior University Grants Commission (UGC) official on condition of anonymity.

In 2016, the government announced plans to create 20 world class universities in India -- 10 each from the private and public space. Existing as well as upcoming institutions can bid for the tag. Since then, the name has changed from world class university to institutes of eminence.

The UGC has already notified the UGC (Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2017, for private institutions and UGC (Declaration of Government Educational Institutions as Institutions of Eminence) Guidelines, 2017, for public ones.

Unlike other institutions, the 20 institutes with the status of eminence will get greater autonomy to start new courses, set fees, admit foreign students, hire foreign faculty, and collaborate with foreign educational institutions without seeking government approval.

The government will invest Rs10,000 crore over the next few years in the 10 public higher education institutions short-listed.

The objective is to provide for greater academic, financial, administrative and other regulatory autonomy to 10 public and 10 private higher educational institutions to emerge as world-class teaching and research institutions. They will have an emphasis on multi-disciplinary initiatives, high-quality research, global best practices and international collaborations, said a senior HRD ministry official, who asked not to be identified.

The institutions will be evaluated by a panel of experts and the names of the selected institutes of eminence are expected by March 2018.

Government institutions which are ranked among the top 50 by the HRD ministry in their respective categories such as engineering, general universities or management are eligible to apply for the status. The institutions were all asked to present a report on how they plan to achieve excellence over the next 15 years.

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Nearly 20 Indian-origin youths from Singapore, who arrived in India on Saturday night, started renovation work on Government Primary School, Rattoke, on Sunday morning.

The boys and girls, aged between 18 and 21 and from different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, were interacting with women, farmers and labourers of the village, one of the most backward areas of the state.

Interestingly, some of them who know a little Punjabi tried to communicate with the villagers.

Some of them with their roots in Tamil Nadu got help from their Punjabi-origin friends in translation to English. The young girls also tried hands in Punjabi cooking.

We want to understand Punjab, its culture and history. Though I visited Amritsar a few years ago as my grandparents belong to Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts, it is a new experience for me. Punjab people love us and they are cooperative. I have met students, women and farmers. I learned a lot in a single day, said Rajveen Kaur (23).

They are part of the project 'Khwahish', an initiative of the Young Sikh Association (YSA), a non-profit organisation founded by Satwant Singh in Singapore. The team will spend three-week vacation in the village till December 26.

The NGO is going to spend around 10 lakh to renovate the school building in which they will build an office, a library and toilets.

NRIs often come to Punjab with religious feelings and reach the Golden Temple but we have brought these youngsters to a village to introduce them to the real Punjab and its socio-economic conditions. I think when they return to Singapore, they will tell their parents about their experiences, said Satwant Singh, 53.

People from across the district prefer enrolling their wards to Government Primary School Rattoke even if they have to wait for a year or two for this. The school, however, faces shortage of infrastructure.

I watched a video about the school and its achievements. I liked it. We have purchased 3,000 books, including a collection on world fiction and history, for the library, Satwant said.

The Rattoke village panchayat has made all the arrangements for its guests and are serving Punjabi dishes to them.
While nicotine may not be completely safe for a pregnant mothers foetus, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is safer than smoking for women who are not able to quit on their own, says a new study.

Researchers suggest that the study, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, should give doctors the confidence about the safety of NRT, a medically approved way to ingest nicotine to help quit smoking.

The therapy includes the adhesive patch, chewing gum, lozenges, nose spray, or inhaler. Smoking during pregnancy is the most significant, preventable risk factor for poor maternal and infant health outcomes, according to Yael Bar-Zeev, Head of the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) Centre for Smoking Cessation and Prevention in Israel.

Clinicians worldwide, including in the United States, report that they prescribe NRT at low levels due to lack of confidence and safety concerns. However, behavioural counselling combined with medication is the most effective smoking cessation strategy, Bar-Zeev said.

Predominant guidelines worldwide recommend NRT for pregnant women who have been unable to quit smoking without medication. However, prescription instructions such as only if women are motivated, only dispense a two weeks supply or under close supervision send mixed messages.

The researchers noted that while using NRT during pregnancy improves smoking cessation rates, they may not adequately account for higher nicotine metabolism during pregnancy, and therefore may not adequately treat withdrawal symptoms. The most important guidance for NRT in pregnancy is to use the lowest possible dose that is effective, said Bar-Zeev.

However, to be effective, women should use as much as needed to deal with cravings, Bar-Zeev added.

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People who live in cold regions may be at an increased risk of developing cancer, a study has found. According to the study, populations living in very low temperatures, like in Denmark and Norway, had among the highest incidences of cancer in the world. In the study published in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, researchers suggest that there is an evolutionary relationship between adaptation at extreme environmental conditions - like cold and high altitude - and increased cancer risk in humans. The findings of this study provide evidence that genetic variants found to be beneficial in extreme environments, can also predispose for cancer, said Konstantinos Voskarides, from the University of Cyprus.

Cell resistance at low temperatures and at high altitude probably increases the probability for malignancy. This effect hardly could be filtered out by natural selection since most cancers appear later on in age after most people have their children, said Voskarides. Researchers focused on the effect of low temperatures, either within Arctic/Scandinavian climates or high altitudes.

Their analyses focused on the relationship between cancer risk and local average annual temperatures. They concluded that the extremely cold environment contributed to the cancer risk. For the study, they carefully examined the data of worldwide cancer incidence. They probed the available literature bibliographic cancer incidence and genetic data for human populations living at extreme cold and extreme high-altitudes.

A striking pattern began to emerge, with the highest incidence of certain cancers linked to those populations living in the coldest environments. Additionally, analysis of 186 human populations showed a great linearity of high cancer incidence with the lower the environmental temperature. The data shows that these populations exhibit extremely high cancer incidence, especially for lung, breast and colorectal cancer, said Voskarides. This is the first study that provides evidence that high cancer risk may be a result of evolutionary adaptation in certain environmental conditions, he said.

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Researchers, led by one of Indian-origin, have developed a groundbreaking cancer treatment that genetically engineers a patients immune system to attack cancer cells.

The novel treatment involves the recently approved CD19-targeting chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy for patients with aggressive large B-cell lymphoma -- blood cancers -- who had failed prior chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation.

To fight cancer, T-cells collected from the patient are sent to a lab, where they are genetically modified to include a gene that instructs the T-cells to target and kill cancer cells. Millions of such genetically modified t-cells are then infused back into the patient.

With the US Food and Drug Administrations recent approval of this therapy, we believe this is a major advance in the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma and is likely to save or prolong lives of many patients, said Sattva Neelapu, professor at The University of Texas.

The results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that 42 % of patients with aggressive large B-cell lymphoma remained in remission at 15 months following treatment with axi-cel marketed as Yescarta.

The results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that out of the 111 patients with aggressive large B-cell lymphoma from 22 centres across US, 42 per cent of patients remained in remission at 15 months following treatment with axi-cel marketed as Yescarta. After being infused back into patients bodies, these newly built hunter cells both multiply and attack, targeting cells that express a protein called CD19.

These hunter cells can grow to more than 10,000 new cells for each single engineered cell patients receive, producing high remission rates while surviving in the body for years. This study demonstrated that axi-cel provides remarkable improvement in outcomes over existing therapies for these patients who have no curative options, Neelapu added.

However, while the therapy could potentially cure patients who have run out of other options, it also can cause severe side effects, cautioned Patrick Stiff, Director at Loyola University in Chicago. Hence doctors need to carefully inform patients of the pros and cons of this new therapy if it is presented as an option.

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The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has said that it will not acquire any land for carving out additional lanes for the benefit of commuters at the Kherki Daula toll plaza, as the process of shifting the toll point to Sehrawan near Panchgaon is already under way.

In a meeting between officials of the NHAI and the state industries department held more than a week ago, Sudhir Rajpal, principal secretary, industry, had proposed that the road authority acquire land from private owners to make four additional lanes at Kherki Daula in compliance with a directive from the Delhi High Court. Rajpal had mooted a similar proposal to the NHAI in June as well. It was said that the four additional lanes would provide Manesar commuters a smooth passage to Gurgaon.

However, with the move to shift the toll already in process, the NHAI said there is no need to acquire any land at Kherki Daula.

I had proposed four additional lanes in a bid to ease the movement of traffic at the Kherki toll. However, the NHAI has to take a call on it, Rajpal said.

However, a senior NHAI official said the proposal isnt being considered.

Since the process of shifting the Kherki toll plaza is already under way, the NHAI has deferred the acquisition of land from individual owners. Rather, we wish that the Haryana government would officially hand over the land at Sehrawan at the earliest for the NHAI to set up the new toll plaza, Ashok Sharma, project director, NHAI, Gurgaon, said.

Three years ago, the NHAI had initiated the process to acquire land at Kherki Daula before the landowners moved a petition in the Delhi High Court. However, the court advised both parties to go for an out-of-court settlement and resolve the issue by way of a lease agreement.

In May, the NHAI opened three lanes at Kherki to facilitate the movement of traffic from Manesar to Gurgaon.

However, industry owners at Manesar call it a piecemeal move and urged a permanent solution to perennial traffic problem at the toll.

We want a permanent solution to the perennial traffic problem, Manmohan Gaind, president, Manesar Industry Welfare Association (MIWA), said.

According to officials, around 1.1 lakh vehicles cross the Kherki toll everyday, fetching an average revenue of around of 40 lakh per day to the tolls keeperss.

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The upscale Wellington Estate in DLF 5 has commissioned a 200 kWp Solar Power Plant that will supplement the already installed 1800 KW grid supply connection from Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitaran Nigam (DHBVN).

With the installation of the solar plant, the society will save more than 20 lakh per annum on common area electricity expenditure, at least for the next 25 years. The society had already switched all its common area lighting to LEDs, much before this installation, said a RWA member.

The implementation will be more beneficial during peak summer, as the citys electricity demand averages around 1300 MW per day and there is shortage of 350 MW, as per DHBVN officials.

It took four months to get the plant installed, We had been working towards it for a long time. We wanted to invest in a project which would give us maximum output for longer period, Vineet Bagga, president, RWA, said.

The project has been funded by internal savings and accumulated reserves, without any additional contributions from residents or funding from any financial institution. The project has been approved for government subsidy by Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency (HAREDA), the state nodal agency to implement MNRE-sponsored renewable energy initiatives.

Now the entire common area is connected to solar plant. Earlier, our monthly electricity bill used to be approximately around 4 lakh a month, but now it will be reduce to 25-30%. The plant will be help us save money, Ajay Jain, secretary, RWA, Wellington Estate, said.

Recently, the Wellington RWA had installed a uniquely designed rain water harvesting system with a capacity to store 40,000 liters of rainwater for charging groundwater. The rainwater received is diverted to water harvesting wells and helps replenish the groundwater levels. The RWA intends to add more wells, if needed, in the future to utilise 100% rainwater during the monsoon.

The RWA plans to make Wellington Estate zero waste society by installing a composting plant in-house to process 100% of the biodegradable waste generated in the complex.

Wellington Estate was established in year 2002. There are seven towers with 555 apartments spread across 6 acres.

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Guillermo del Toros Cold War-era fairytale The Shape of Water swam away with a leading seven nominations from the Golden Globes, while the HBO drama Big Little Lies led the television nominees with six nods.

In whats been seen as a wide-open Oscar race so far, several films followed closely behind The Shape of Water, including Steven Spielbergs Pentagon Papers drama The Post, with six nominations, including best actress for Meryl Streep and best actor for Tom Hanks. Martin McDonaghs revenge drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri also got a major boost in the nominations announced Monday in Beverly Hills, California, with six nods, including best actress for Frances McDormand and supporting actor for Sam Rockwell.

The awards ceremony, traditionally seen as a more populist answer to the Oscars, will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2018.

Eyes were also on how the Hollywood Foreign Press Association would tackle the ongoing sexual harassment scandal - which was spurred on after a series of allegations were made against producer Harvey Weinstein in October. In the months that followed, several other members of the industry such actor Kevin Spacey, director Brett Ratner and others have been accused of sexual misconduct.

Many were excited to see how the likes of Transparent and All the Money in the World would perform. A rough cut of the latter was reportedly screened for the HFPA shortly after Scott finished reshooting the film with Christopher Plummer stepping in for Spacey.

This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows James D'Arcy, left, and Kenneth Branagh in a scene from Dunkirk. (AP)

Ahead of the announcements, the favourites at the Globes this year were Steven Spielbergs Pentagon Papers drama The Post and Christopher Nolans World War II tale Dunkirk. In the television categories, Hulus The Handmaids Tale and HBOs Big Little Lies.

Meanwhile the HFPA had a wide choice of scandal-free nominees from diverse backgrounds like filmmakers Jordan Peele (Get Out), Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird) and Dee Rees (Mudbound).

Get Out -- a satire on racism and middle class white guilt -- made perhaps the biggest and most unexpected impact of any movie this year.

Martin McDonaghs Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, starring Frances McDormand as a mother seeking to avenge the rape and murder of her daughter, also took the influential audience award at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

Steven Spielbergs The Post, a defence of the free press widely seen as a rebuke to President Donald Trump, was the favourite for many experts to take best film drama.

Coco was the comfortable frontrunner for best animated film -- but was marred by Pixar co-founder John Lassaters recent admission of inappropriate behaviour towards employees.

The Golden Globes, televised by NBC, will take place at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, on January 7. The show will be hosted by Seth Meyers.

Here is the full list of nominations:

Best Picture  Drama

Call Me by Your Name

Dunkirk

The Post

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Picture  Comedy or Musical

The Disaster Artist

Get Out

The Greatest Showman

I, Tonya

Lady Bird

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture  Drama

Timothee Chalamet, Call Me by Your Name

Daniel Day Lewis, Phantom Thread

Tom Hanks, The Post

Gary Oldman, The Darkest Hour

Denzel Washington, Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Drama

Jessica Chastain, Mollys Game

Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water

Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Meryl Streep, The Post

Michelle Williams, All the Money in the World

Best Actor in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy



Steve Carrell, Battle of the Sexes

Ansel Elgort, Baby Driver

James Franco, The Disaster Artist

Hugh Jackman, The Greatest Showman

Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy:

Judi Dench, Victoria & Abdul

Margot Robbie, I, Tonya

Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird

Emma Stone, Battle of the Sexes

Helen Mirren, The Leisure Seeker



Best Supporting Actor



Willem DaFoe, Florida Project

Armie Hammer, Call Me By Your Name

Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water

Christopher Plummer, All The Money in the World

Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Mary J. Blige, Mudbound

Hong Chau, Downsizing

Alison Janney, I, Tonya

Laurie Metcalfe, Lady Bird

Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

Best Director  Motion Picture

Guillermo Del Toro, The Shape of Water

Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk

Ridley Scott, All the Money in the World

Steven Spielberg, The Post

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Robert Deniro, The Wizard of Lies

Jude Law, Young Pope

Kyle MacLachlan, Twin Peaks

Ewan McGregor, Fargo

Geoffrey Rush, Genius

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Anthony Anderson, Blackish

Aziz Ansari, Master of None

Kevin Bacon, I Love Dick

William H. Macy, Shameless

Eric McCormack, Will and Grace

Best Screenplay  Motion Picture

Guillermo Del Toro and Vanessa Taylor, The Shape of Water

Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird

Liz Hannah and Josh Singer, The Post

Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards outside Ebbing Missouri

Aaron Sorkin, Mollys Game

Best Picture  Foreign Language

A Fantastic Woman (Chile)

First They Killed My Father (Cambodia)

In the Fade (Germany/France)

Loveless (Russia)

The Square (Sweden, Germany, France)

Best Original Score  Motion Picture

Carter Burwell, Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

Alexandre Desplat, The Shape of Water

Jonny Greenwood, Phantom Thread

John Williams, The Post

Hans Zimmer, Dunkirk

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Big Little Lies

Fargo FX

Feud: Betty and Joan FX

The Sinner, USA

Top of the Lake: China Girl, Sundance TV

With agency inputs

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A group of 20 Afghanistan women serving in combat role are in Chennai for a military training programme, the first such exercise which has enthused their peers in India who too are keen to serve on the frontline.

The 20-day training programme began on December 4 at Officers Training Academy in Chennai, the sole centre training for gentlemen and lady cadets in India.

Two Indian Army women officers, who are coordinating the training, favoured allowing women in combat role.

Yes, I (will) definitely give a big yes...we should be given a fair opportunity in combat...all of us feel we could be in the forefront, Major Sanjana J R told PTI.

... if Afghan lady officers are serving their nation in combat, then why not the Indian Army, one of the largest armies in the world, she said.

Major Sanjana, the instructor for the training programme for Afghan officers, was asked if the Indian army too should allow women officers in combat role.

She said though women army officers were presently engaged in key support roles, they were actually not in the thick of combat.

Hopefully, we will be part of combat (in future), said Captain Samriti, who is acting as an interpreter (of Pashto-official language of Afghanistan) and coordinator for the programme.

It has been the wish of women officers to engage in combat to serve the nation, she added.

The training will end on December 23 and the Afghan officers will leave the next day, Samriti said.

Though training sessions have been held in the past to enhance the skills of officers in other areas, this is the first time Afghanistan women officers are here for military training, she said.

Major Sanjana said the training programme is a capsule which encompasses major features of one year training.

The Afghanistan women officers of various ranks are being trained in several areas including weaponry, firing, communication, tactics, administration and logistics.

In addition to this, they are being trained to use hand grenades, AK-47s, INSAS (Assault rifle), among others.

On Monday, media personnel were allowed to witness the women officers getting trained in handling the AK-47, in the OTA shooting range here at St Thomas Mount.

They also handled ambush situations in mountainous terrain in class room simulation exercises. The women also underwent training in computer proficiency.
Decades before Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park became the attraction it is today, a young Harold Brady and his friends explored the ruins of an old military campground that housed Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and the 7th Cavalry troops.

Brady, 98, who died in November, loved to explore and collect.

"He collected stuff his whole life," said his daughter, Pat Hager, as she looked at a photo of her father wearing his favorite 7th Cavalry replica hat given to him by Fort Abraham Lincoln staff.

"Truly one of the most interesting guys you would ever meet," Hager said.

Born in Minnesota, Brady came to Mandan as a small child with his family after his father took a job with the railroad.

In 2008, Brady loaned more than 7,000 artifacts he found as a child at or near the Fort Abraham Lincoln site to the Fort Abraham Lincoln Foundation as a way to share with the public what he found as a boy.

In 2011, Brady gave the collection to the foundation and now some of the items are on display at Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park.

"This is the tangible history," said Fort Lincoln park manager Dan Schelske about the case displaying some of Brady's artifacts. The case, which can be found in the commissary storehouse, holds evidence of 19th century life including buttons, doll faces, toy guns, bullet casings, horseshoes and metal kitchen utensils.

"He always had stories about running around out here and collecting stuff and we're just fortunate we're able to get that and display it and show people," Schelske said.

"The history of the area he thought, even when he was a kid, was so important. His interests went beyond history because he was an amateur geologist and interested in fossils and paleontology. All of those things to him were important, " Hager said.

He opened Brady's Used Auto Parts in 1942 in downtown Mandan and the business stayed open until 2008. Hager said her father, who had an eighth-grade education, loved to collect various items and always made good use of what he had.

"He was the original recycler," said Hager, adding he would buy cars, strip them for parts and then resell the parts and would fix old lawnmowers to resell as well.

In 1966, Brady went before the state Legislature to urge the governing body to declare Teredo petrified wood the state fossil. He, along with others, were successful in their endeavor.

Thoughout his life, Brady was recognized for his explorations, and, in 1987, he and his wife, Emma, were named honorary lieutenants of the foundation. He also was instrumental in the re-creation of the Custer home and additional buildings at the park. He was a charter member of the foundation.

Brady also was a founding member of the Central Dakota Gem and Mineral Society.
Police in Rajasthans Alwar shot at a truck being allegedly used to smuggle cows early on Monday, officials said, claiming people in the vehicle were the first ones to open fire.

This is the second such case in days. Last week, a man was killed when police in Alwar similarly opened fire to stop a truck.

Officials said Mondays shootout did not lead to any fatalities and one person was arrested.

They were smuggling seven cows and six calves from somewhere near Narnaul to their village Palla in Nuh through Alwar. When they saw the police barricading at Gadpur, they fired at the police parties before taking a turn into a locality, said Bhiwadi circle officer (CO) Siddhant Sharma.

Sharma said 3-4 shots were fired first at the police team, which returned 4-5 shots.

The vehicle eventually got struck in a narrow street and the men fled on foot before one of the suspects, identified as 35-year-old Umar, was caught since he hurt his leg, according to police. The others were named as Tahir, Haroon and Zubair.

Alwar is close to Mewat that straddles Haryana and Punjab. The region has a prominent settlement of Muslims, many of whom are from impoverished backgrounds and trade in cattle for a living. People often buy cattle from the several weekly markets and take them to their village, often passing by Alwar.

It was in Alwar that dairy farmer Pehlu Khan was lynched by cow-protection vigilantes who accused him of smuggling the animal. Khan had bought the cow legally.

In Mondays case, the police also accused the cattle transporters of smuggling. The CO said the bovines were bought for Rs 10,000 and were being taken for slaughter. It was not clear on what basis the claim was made.

A case against the four has been registered under the bovine act, sections of arms act, and for attempt to murder and assault on public servant.

Cows are considered sacred by Hindus and the animals preservation has become a prominent, often provocative issue since the rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Vigilante groups with members who belong to right-wing groups have attacked and killed people found carrying cows or over suspicions that they ate beef. The targets have overwhelmingly been Muslims.
With the Ganga drifting northwards and the emergence of a huge sand bar right in the middle of the stream, river navigation has been affected as also the water supply to the Silk City from its Barai Water Works.

Officials here say that immediate dredging operations are needed over 1,700m to provide water depth for bigger ships to sail under the Vikramshila Bridge, but operations have been slow.

The Bhagalpur stretch of the Ganga is a vital cog in the stretch declared National Waterway no. 1  massive work, worth 5,000 crore and with the assistance of the World Bank, is already underway to facilitate navigation along the 1,620km of the river stretch.

The work includes development of three multi-modal hubs at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Haldia in West Bengal, and Sahebganj in Jharkhand, the last project being just 60km east of Bhagalpur, under a plan unveiled by Nitin Gadkari, Union minister for transport.

The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), under the shipping ministry, is also facilitating cruise operations on NW-1 from Kolkata to Varanasi in collaboration with private cruise operators.

IWAI officials here said the river has abandoned its original course and in certain areas huge sand bars have formed and are proving to be impediments in navigation. A large island has formed in the river, following sharp reduction in water, and the shallow areas present difficulties in the way of dredging.

The Gangetic mainstream, earlier flowing close to the south bank along Bhagalpur, located 240km east of Patna, has now shifted course in a northward loop to flow along Naugachhia near Khagaria district. This has reduced water in ship pathways on the southern side.

In order to ensure sufficient flow of water in the channel, the IWAI now aims to dig a pilot channel by undertaking dredging work.

Prashant Kumar, deputy director, IWAI sub-office at Sahebganj in Jharkhand, said though it is now nearly a month since work was initiated, only about 700m could be cleared.

Kumar said that due to insufficient horizontal and vertical clearance below the northern arches of the bridge, linking north to south Bihar, and the increasing water level, it is often risky for bigger tourist and cargo vessels to navigate through the northern arches.

The shift of the river has also hit water supply to different localities of the city from the Barari Water Works, making it necessary that the dredging bring back the water channel closer to town through a pilot channel for water harvesting purposes.

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The wife of a Mumbai-based businessman who was arrested late Sunday for allegedly molesting a teenage Bollywood actor said her husband had no intention to molest and the incident was the result of a misunderstanding.

My husband is innocent, he had no intention to molest. There was a young death in family, which is where he went. He hadnt slept for 24 hours. He asked the crew not to disturb him. His foot was on the arm rest but not with the intention to harass, the woman is quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

On Sunday, the 17-year-old actor, a National Award winner, posted a social media video narrating how she was touched inappropriately during a Delhi-Mumbai Vistara flight the night before.

There was no immediate reaction by her. I dont know why she levelled these allegations, maybe there was a misunderstanding. He is a family man and can never do such a thing. We want justice, the businessmans wife told ANI.

The suspect, who is 39 years old, was identified with the help of the airline and description provided by the girl, whose name is being withheld due to legal protocols that protect the identity of victims in sexual crimes.

He will be produced in a magistrate court on Monday.

In her Instagram video, the actor shows a man sitting behind her repeatedly putting his feet on her back and neck.

This is not the way, this is not (how) a girl should be made to feel because this is terrible. Is this how they are doing to take care of girls? she said in the video made shortly after landing late Saturday.

According to the Sahar police, a FIR was lodged based on her oral complaint under section 354 (assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of Indian Penal code (IPC) and section 8 (sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against the unknown passenger.
The Election Commission on Monday told the Supreme Court that a candidate should not contest from two constituencies as the court sought the assistance of the Attorney General in the matter.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud sought the assistance of KK Venugopal as it directed petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay to serve a copy of the petition to the Attorney General.

Upadhyay has challenged Section 33(7) of the Representation of People Act that allows a person to contest elections for parliament and the state assemblies from two constituencies.

He has sought prohibition on contesting elections from two constituencies at all levels -- parliament and the state assemblies.
Rahul Gandhi will officially be declared Congress president on Monday, the last day of withdrawal of nomination papers for the top post in the grand old party.

He takes over the reins from his mother Sonia Gandhi who remained at the partys helm for 19 consecutive years since 1998.

Rahul had filed his nominations papers on December 4.

The announcement will come in Rahuls absence, who is busy campaigning in Gujarat.

The central election authority (CEA), a party panel overseeing the organisational polls, will hand over a certificate to him at a later date.

The 47-year-olds elevation marks a generational shift in the grand old party that is going through a difficult phase due to a series of electoral setbacks.

The Congress had barely managed to win 44 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls after being in power for 10 years.

Rahuls daunting task will be to revive and rebuild the Congress to make it fighting fit for the 2019 elections. A good show in Gujarat, where he is leading the party campaign from the front, will certainly give a good start to his new innings.

As many as 89 sets of nomination papers for Rahul with proposers, including Sonia Gandhi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other Congress Working Committee members, had been received by the partys election authority.

Before filing his papers at the Congress headquarters, Rahul had visited the residences of Pranab Mukherjee, former president and veteran party leader, and Singh besides his mother to seek their blessings.

Rahulji has been the darling of the Congress...He will carry on the great traditions of the Congress party, Singh said.

Rahul, who was anointed as the Congress vice president in January 2013, will be the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to occupy the top post in the 131-year-old party.

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The Congress on Monday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologise to former vice-president Hamid Ansari and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for insinuating that they were colluding with Pakistan to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Gujarat elections.

Perceiving a clear defeat in Gujarat, the Prime Minister was frustrated and using foul language to rouse sympathy for himself, Congress leader Anand Sharma said in New Delhi, a day after Modi accused the party and elements in Pakistan of working together to defeat the BJP.

The Congress was reacting to Modis charge in a public meeting on Sunday in Gujarat that Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars neech remark came after a dinner at his house the previous day attended by former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri, its current High Commissioner in India besides Ansari and Singh, among others.

Today Prime Minister, in his frustration and perceiving a clear defeat, wants to divert the attention of people. PM should take his words back and to maintain the dignity of his post, should apologise.

If he has any such information, then its a very serious matter... The country will not accept wrong means being employed by the ruling party to win the elections. We have full faith that the Gujarat electorate is intelligent and mature enough to understand the tactics behind yesterdays address (by Modi) and will answer them in the second phase, Sharma told the media.

He said nothing could be more absurd than what the Prime Minister had said on Sunday.

It is expected of the Prime Minister to be dignified in his discourse, to always remember that he holds a high office and he should not level accusations, cast aspersions on those who have held high constitutional offices and have served India with dedication and commitment.

Sharma said Modis insinuations against the former Vice President of India and former Prime Minister of doing something improper is highly irresponsible, improper and condemnable.

The Prime Minister, he said, must remember that mere attending a social function in which high dignitaries were present... It was not a secret meeting, in which former Chief of the Indian Army, India former High Commissioner to Pakistan, eminent journalists, they all were present.

The Prime Minister is giving it a sinister and sensational twist. The Prime Minister should restore the dignity of political discourse, and apologise to the former Vice President and former PM.

It is clear that he has done so with the intent to confuse and mislead the people of Gujarat ... to whip up emotions and to polarise. There cannot be any other explanation and there cannot be anything more reprehensible than what he has done.

Referring to Modis charge that Congress leaders were colluding with Pakistan, Sharma said, It is outrageous. He should know that Congress led the freedom struggle in which the ancestors of the party that Modi belongs to had opposed the Indian freedom struggle. They had sided with the British and had opposed Mahatma Gandhis Quit India Movement ... He is heir of such a group.

Sharma said that Modi has time and again brought down the political discourse to such a low, which is anything but dignified.

Why doesnt he talk about progress, the countrys economy. He is the Prime Minister, is given to making tall claims, why doesnt he talk about farmers today? Why doesnt he talk about employment, the future of youth? What is their agenda, on what basis are they fighting the polls?  he asked.

His own speeches, their partys foul language.. The PM is trying to rouse sympathy for himself by trying to show to the people that he has been wronged. It is he who has wronged the people.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday said the controversy surrounding Hindi film Padmavati was totally absurd.

Participating in an open forum on Freedom of Expression during the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) here, Tharoor said nobody should have the right to say what should go on in a movie or a book.

The whole controversy against Padmavati is totally absurd. We have reached a critical point where those who claim to be offended manage to get their way, the former Union minister said.

All you need to say is something has hurt your religious sentiment, let it be a book, a movie, an article or even a headline and it doesnt matter even if it is accurate or truthful, but the law is in favour of them, a release quoting Tharoor said.

An adaptation of Malik Muhammad Jayasis epic Padmavat, the films release had to be postponed from December 1 amid protests by various Rajput groups and fringe elements who have threatened physical harm to its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and lead actress Deepika Padukone.

Bhansali has been accused of depicting a romantic dream sequence between Padmavati and Sultan Alauddin Khilji (played by Ranveer Singh), a claim repeatedly denied by the director.

Historians are divided on whether Padmavati actually existed.

Tharoor, Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram, claimed such issues escalate because the British wrote a law in the 1920s which says anything that offends the religious sentiment of a community is punishable by such and such.

Sadly we havent removed this from the law and it has become the favourite tools of those who have a problem with the freedom of artists, he said.

Participating in the discussion, noted filmmaker Aparna Sen said the idea of freedom was non-negotiable, especially for creative artists.

Noted that some people ask her why she was protesting for a movie when thousands of farmers commit suicide every day in the country, she said the protests for not merely for a movie.

The protest was because the creative freedom and freedom of expression in the country is at stake, she said.

We are living in a time of fear and everyones freedom is challenged. This is how dictatorship begins, she alleged.

Sen said everybody has the freedom to protest, write and express but that should not create a law and order situation.

They cant say a movie shouldnt be screened or else its actresss nose will be cut off, she added.

Malayalam actor Sajitha Madathil said the idea of freedom of expression has always been related to gender.

She mentioned about the social media attack against three Muslim girls recently for participating in a flash mob dance performance in Malappuram, wearing Hijabs, on World Aids Day.

People who tried to support them were suppressed and silenced by fundamentalists, she claimed.

All these incidents were creating a fear psychosis among those who usually respond to such things. There has always been violations of freedom, she alleged.
Eminent scientist and Father of DNA finger printing in India, Lalji Singh, has passed away following a massive heart attack while he was on his way to Delhi.

Singh, 70, died late Sunday night.

He complained of chest pain when he reached the Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport to board a flight for Delhi. He was taken to the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) Trauma Centre from there but he could not be saved, OP Upadhyaya, chief medical superintendent of the Sunder Lal hospital in the BHU, said.

Singh, the 25th vice-chancellor of BHU, hailed from neighbouring Jaunpur districts Kalvari village.

He was also an alumnus of the BHU and completed his BSc, MSc and PhD degrees from there.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath condoled Singhs death. Lalji Singh was the father of DNA finger printing. The country has lost a great educationist and scientist after his death, he said.

Singh was also the recipient of the prestigious Padma Shri award.

He joined the BHU in 1962 after completing his intermediate from a school in his native district.

Singh, the founder of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), also served as its director.

He was the officer-on-special-duty (OSD) at the Centre for DNA Finger Printing and Diagnostics (CDFD) in Hyderabad between 1995-1999.

Singh also found various institutes and laboratories that included laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species (LaCONES), Genome Foundation, that aims to diagnose and treat genetic disorders affecting the underprivileged people, especially in rural India.
India, China and Russia on Monday called for stronger partnerships and concerted actions by the world community to counter all forms of terrorism and to disrupt terror financing, supply of arms and spread of terrorist ideology.

A joint communique issued after the 15th meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia-India-China (RIC) also called for those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts to be held accountable and brought to justice under international law, including the principle of extradite or prosecute.

Though India flagged its concerns about Pakistan-based terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, they were not named in the communique, which also did not single out any country for backing terror activities.

I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations like Taliban, Daesh (Islamic State), al-Qaeda, and Lashkar-e-Taiba directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said at a joint press interaction with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi

Swaraj also called for a comprehensive policy for dealing with global terrorism that includes dealing with extremism, countering religious fanaticism, preventing recruitment, disrupting terrorist movements, stopping terror financing and the flow of foreign terrorist fighters, and countering terrorist propaganda through the internet.

The communique said the three countries were committed to step up cooperation to prevent and counter terrorism, radicalisation, terrorist ideology and terror financing. It said they would work together at multilateral forums such as the Financial Action Task force to choke funding for terrorists.

We agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities. We condemn all forms of terrorism and all terrorists, terror entities and organisations listed by the UN Security Council, it added.

The communique made it clear the trilateral cooperation was not directed against any other country.

Referring to the situation in Afghanistan, the three countries backed an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned national peace and reconciliation and the building of a peaceful, united, democratic, stable and pluralistic state.

They said the key to stabilising Afghanistan is capable and effective Afghan National Defence and Security Forces. They also called for result-oriented global efforts to counter the Afghan drug threat because of a significant increase of opium poppy production and the nexus between narcotics revenue and terror financing.

The communique said a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the basis of UN Resolutions, the Arab peace initiative and previous agreements aimed at creating an independent and territorially contiguous Palestinian state living side by side with Israel is needed to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Narendra Modis allegation that Pakistan was trying to influence the Gujarat elections, citing a meeting between Congress leaders and Pakistans High Commissioner at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars residence in New Delhi, has drawn sharp reactions. Here is what is being said as the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attack each other in the Gujarat elections.

Manmohan Singh, Congress

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than ... Modi, said the former prime minister. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

Rahul Gandhi, Congress

The Prime Minister talks sometimes about Pakistan and sometimes about China and Japan. Modi ji, this is the election for the future of Gujarat. Talk something about Gujarat too, says Congress leader at an election rally in Tharad assembly constituency of Banaskantha district. During his entire speech half of the time he talks about Congress. You (Modi) claim that the country has been Congress-free then why are you giving so much prominence to the Congress in your speeches?

P Chidambaram, Congress

Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President, says the former finance minister in a tweet. The BJPs campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election?

Anand Sharma, Congress

Today Prime Minister, in his frustration and perceiving a clear defeat, wants to divert the attention of people. PM should take his words back and to maintain the dignity of his post, should apologise, says former commerce minister in Delhi. It is expected of the Prime Minister to be dignified in his discourse.

Shiv Sena

The BJP ally criticises Modi for being stuck in the Gujarat rut and for his election speeches. The PM chose to ignore the progress and developmental issues and stooped to mere tu-tu, main-main (rhetoric) in his own home-state, the Sena said in an editorial in its newspapers, Saamana and Dopahar Ka Saamana. The edit criticised Modi for his response to Aiyars neech (lowly) comment about him. Modi had said Aiyars comment was an attack on Gujarati pride.

By such a statement, Modi made himself small... We always believed he stood for the pride of the people and all the Hindus of the country, but he still remains stuck in the Gujarat rut.

Shatrughan Sinha, BJP MP

Sinha, a dissident BJP leader, called Modis statement incredible. Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with and endorse new, unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents?

Now linking them to Pakistan High Commissioner and Generals?! Incredible! Sinha said in a tweet.

Mohammad Faisal, Pakistan foreign ministry spokesperson

Pakistan called Modis allegation utterly baseless and irresponsible. Faisal tweeted: India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

Ravi Shankar Prasad, law minister and senior BJP leader

Prasad rejected Pakistans statement and said Faisal was trying to bail out the Congress party. Now it is whose turn to apologise? But what is curious is that this happens and Pakistan comes out with an official statement. In many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion.
Mandan police received a report of a shooting about 4 p.m. Friday in the 1000 block of First Street Northwest, according to a news release from Mandan Deputy Police Chief Lori Flaten.

Friday's shooting comes about a week after a Dec. 2 shooting incident in Mandan in the 800 block of Poplar Street that sent a 22-year-old man to the hospital injuries that were not life-threatening. Mandan police have released few details about that case, describing it as complex.
Prime Minister Narendra Modis allegations that Pakistan was trying to influence the outcome of the assembly elections in Gujarat was utterly baseless and irresponsible, the neighbouring country has said.

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible, spokesperson of Pakistans ministry of foreign affairs Mohammad Faisal tweeted on Sunday.

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

Modi on Sunday referred to a Facebook post by the former director general of the Pakistan army Sardar Arshad Rafiq, saying that senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel should be the next Gujarat chief minister. The post was covered by a section of the Indian media.

The Prime Minister also attacked Congress suspended leader Mani Shankar Aiyar over the latters neech aadmi (low-class man) jibe at him. Modi drew a connection between Aiyars remark and Pakistans interference.

There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyars house. It was attended by Pakistans high commissioner, Pakistans former foreign minister, Indias former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Modi said.

The next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar said Modi was neech. This is a serious matter, he said adding that they met for almost three hours.

The Congress was quick to deny the charges and asked Modis government to repatriate Pakistans top diplomat in the country if he was indeed meddling in an Indian election.

Its a foregone conclusion that he has abdicated the politics of development in both action and words. But does it befit the stature of the Prime Minister to rely on canards, rumours & lies just for an election? This is very sad, Patel, Congress president Sonia Gandhis political secretary, tweeted.

This was not the first time the BJP has referred to Pakistan in an election campaign. Last year, ahead of the Assam election, which it won, the BJP said if the Congress won, fireworks would go off in celebration in Pakistan.

Modi is back to the same old Pakistan bogey. It was Mian Musharraf in 2002  Sir Creek issues in 2012, and now hes talking about Pakistans interference in Gujarat polls. If Modi thinks that Pakistan is meddling in Gujarat polls, why doesnt he expel the Pakistani high commissioner in India? the partys national spokesperson Manish Tewari asked.

Abhishek Manu Singhvi, another Congress spokesperson, said Patel himself had dismissed recent rumours that he would be made chief minister if the Congress won.

The Congress also came out in defence of Singh and pointed out that as the prime minister he never went to Pakistan in 10 years.

Is Modi suggesting Singh and former VP Hamid Ansari are untrustworthy people? Its not Singh but PM Modi who went to Lahore and we got (the) Pathankot terror attack Tewari said.

The first phase of the Gujarat elections ended on Saturday; 89 seats went to the polls. The second phase, for 93 seats is on December 14 and campaigning ends on December 12.

The BJP has governed Gujarat for 22 years. The Congress is hoping to unseat the BJP by tapping the angst over the agrarian crisis and the implementation of the goods and services tax, and on the strength of a coalition it has built with Patidars, some other backward classes, and Dalits.

The BJP is hoping to retain power on the strength of the popularity of Prime Minister Modi, who was chief minister of the state for 13 years, and its record of development and governance.

Analysts expect it to be a close fight, although the BJP has maintained that it is confident of bettering its tally of 119 seats in the 182-member assembly in 2012. Opinion polls give the Congress anything between 37 and 85 seats, and the BJP 92-141.
China acted firmly but with restraint in resolving the Doklam military standoff, diplomatically ensuring India withdrew its trespassing troops from the area, foreign minister Wang Yi has said.

Wangs remarks that Beijings stance reflected its responsibility in maintaining peace in the region came against the backdrop of reports that China had deployed some 1,600 troops near the site of the face-off that lasted more than two months.

He said Chinas actions during the standoff were on just grounds and had upheld the countrys territorial integrity.

Wang said, We handled the Indian border troops trespass into Chinas Donglang area in our national interest, on just grounds and with restraint. He noted that China is also firm in upholding its sovereign rights and interests and territorial integrity.

He added, Through diplomatic means, we engaged with the Indian side and it withdrew its equipment and personnel. This demonstrates not only the value and emphasis we put on relations with India but also our sincerity and sense of responsibility in maintaining regional peace and stability.

Wang was speaking at the opening of a symposium on International Developments and Chinas Diplomacy in 2017 over the weekend.

The military standoff between Indian and Chinese border troops was resolved at the end of August, when the two countries withdrew troops from Donglang, an area under Chinese control but claimed by Bhutan. Beijing also indicated it had halted work on a road that triggered the row.

The standoff aside, Wang said China and India have shared strategic interests and the need to cooperate.

Both being big developing countries, China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than concrete differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial frictions, he said.

Wang added that China always values the good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as we are each others big neighbours and ancient civilisations.

He mentioned that there is a prospect for the dragon and the elephant to dance together as long as bilateral strategic communication is maintained.

We believe that as long as we continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of China-India cooperation will speak for itself, and there will be a prospect of the Dragon and the Elephant dancing together and 1+1=11 effect as expected by our leaders, he said.

Turning to regional issues, Wang said Beijing will direct more attention and resources to the issue of Afghanistan and announced that the first meeting of the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Afghanistan and China will be held in Beijing this month.

Before the end of the year, I will be joined by my Afghan and Pakistani counterparts in Beijing to discuss peace, reconciliation and reconstruction in Afghanistan, improvement of relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and cooperation among our three countries, he said.

In the meantime, China will continue its mediation for a proper, phased settlement of the situation in Rakhine state, Myanmar, he added.

On the multi-billion dollar Belt and Road Initiative, Wang said China will focus on flagship projects along key routes and at key junctions to reap early harvests for the benefit of the people.

Through our work at the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, China-Laos Economic Corridor, and China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, at the Piraeus port and Kyaukpyu port, at the China-Laos railway and China-Thailand railway in Asia and other railway projects in Africa, Europe and Latin America, we will strengthen new driving forces for and further upgrade Belt and Road cooperation.
When Fortis Hospital in Gurgaon billed the family of a seven-year-old girl who died of dengue in September a sum of over Rs 16 lakh, outrage ensued over allegations of overcharging by private hospitals in India.

While that is a problem, new data from the National Health Accounts (NHA) published by the Union health ministry reveals that medicines are the biggest financial burden on Indian households. Of more than three lakh crore rupees that households spent on health in 2014-15, around 42% of the total out-of-pocket spending (OOP) went in buying medicines. In private hospitals, households spent around 28% of the OOP spending.

OOP spending is the money individuals pay on their own rather than being covered by insurance or health benefits and constitutes 62.6% of the total health spend in India  including all government and private sources, latest NHA data shows.

This has direct bearings for reducing OOP expenditure. Every public facility should be providing a list of essential medicines and diagnostics for free, as medicines and diagnostics are significant causes of the OOP spending, said Indranil Mukhopadhyay from the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI).

This also means that the governments push for generic drugs, which are generally cheaper, can help reduce a significant proportion of household spend on health.

Households spent four times less in government hospitals (7.5%) as compared to private hospitals. Another 7% was spent on medical and diagnostic laboratories and 6% on patient transportation and emergency rescue services. The estimates for household spending breakup were made through various surveys of NSSO and NFHS.

Experts say that high OOP for health brings a financial burden on families and discourages people from seeking timely care. India has one of the highest private OOP expenditures in the world. OOP, when catastrophic, results in seven crore people falling back into poverty line, former Union health secretary CK Mishra said at a conference organised by the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) last week.

International Comparison

Cross-country comparable NHA data from WHOs Global Health Expenditure Database shows that Indias OOP spending as a proportion of total health expenditure is extremely high when compared with BRICS nations, the United States and the United Kingdom. For none of these countries, does OOP share in total health spend exceed 50%.

However, this is not the only problem. International experience indicates that low public spending is behind the high OOP share in India.

When compared with BRICS, the UK and the US, India has the highest share of private spending on health and the lowest share of government spending. Of the total health spending in India, the government contributes just 29%. In the UK, the governments share is 83%. For others, this figure ranges between 45 and 55%.

As a proportion of GDP, Indian government spends just 1.1% on health. The 2017 National Health Policy set a goal of raising this figure to 2.5% of GDP by 2025.

There has been little change in government spending over the last decade or so. Governments share in total health spend increased slightly from 22.5% in 2004-05 to 29% in 2014-15. In the same period, OOP share decreased from 70% of the health spend to around 63%indicating that a further rise in public spending may decrease the OOP burden.

Unutilised funds

Increase in government spending is crucial but accountability and utilisation is equally important. Despite the low budgetary allocation to health, says Yamini Aiyar, President and Chief Executive of Center for Policy Research, the government is unable to spend the relatively little it does have.

The system is so deeply broken that even some of the basic things like moving money and spending money become a complicated task, Aiyar said at the NIPFP conference, pointing to the inefficiencies and systemic problems in how public finances are managed in the country.

Bihar, for instance, in 2016-17 spent just 54% of its approved budget for the year. Health issues in Bihar require massive expenditure, yet the state is able to spend remarkably little, Aiyar said.

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India has proposed $1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Monday.

Apart from this, India has set up a project development fund of $77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, he said.

The ASEAN India maritime transport cooperation agreement is being negotiated...An Asian India civil aviation task force has been established to see optimisation of air connectivity. India has proposed to commit a line of credit of $1 billion to promote projects that support physical and digital connectivity, Gadkari said.

He was addressing the ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit jointly organised by CII and ASEAN India Centre.

The minister said ASEAN and India have also agreed to establish a maritime transport working group among India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to examine the feasibility of shipping networks.

Asserting that connectivity is the pathway to shared prosperity, he said better connectivity is the core factor for strengthening ASEAN-India relations.

Connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH), extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and at different stages of implementation, he said.

India is already working with Myanmar in the areas of border area development, capacity building, infrastructure development, connectivity projects and institutional development.

Stressing on augmentation of international connectivity, the minister said for Bharat Mala project, around 2,000 km with an outlay of Rs 25,000 crore are earmarked to connect Indias major highway corridors to international trade points.

This will facilitate export/import trade with Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

About BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) Motor Vehicles Agreement, Gadkari said action has been initiated for implementation of BBIN MVA by Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
Two bank guards were killed in an alleged militant attack on a cash van in South Kashmirs Shopian district on Monday.

Police said the militants were unable to loot any money because the van, belonging to the Jammu and Kashmir Bank, was returning empty after disbursing it among local branches in Keller area. Militants intercepted a van and killed two bank guards, but they could not loot any cash, confirmed deputy inspector general of police (South Kashmir) SP Pani.

Police said the van driver is out of danger, and a hunt has been launched for the alleged militants.

Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed her grief over the death of the two guards, and tweeted that the future can be made safe and peaceful only if everybody worked together.

The opposition National Conference also strongly condemned the incident. A statement jointly released by party president Farooq Abdullah and his son, working president Omar Abdullah, termed the killing of the two bank guards as an act of barbarism and cowardice.

A similar incident had occurred in May, when militants killed five policemen and two bank guards during an attack on a cash van at Phambai in Kulgam district. The Hizbul Mujahideen, which claimed responsibility for the incident, had to clarify its position after it evoked widespread condemnation across the Valley.

We didnt attack the vehicle with an intent to loot cash. We have enough money. We condemn the killing of the bank employees, and want to clarify that they were shot dead by security personnel, Burhanuddin, spokesperson of the militant group, said.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for Mondays attack so far.

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Suspected Lashker-e-Taiba operative Abdul Nayeem Sheikh, who was arrested last month from Lucknow, had spent some time in trouble-torn south Kashmir and filmed some Army installations, officials said.

Sheikh, a resident of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, was on the radar of central intelligence agencies for quite sometime before he was nabbed with the help of Uttar Pradesh police in the last week of November.

The case was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), a central probe agency mandated to investigate all terror modules in the country.

The central security agencies, which interrogated Sheikh at length, had told the investigators about his accomplice, Tauseef Ahmed Malik, in Pulwama district of south Kashmir. He was placed under arrest by the NIA on December 9.

During interrogation, Sheikh disclosed that he had stayed in Pulwama, moved to various places with the help of Malik and even photographed some Army and para-military camps, the officials claimed.

Sheikh, who was wanted in connection with a 2014 terror case and was since on the run, told investigators that some important power projects and railway tracks in the Valley were surveyed, they said.

He had also visited some places in Himachal Pradesh, especially Kasol, which is frequented by Israeli nationals visiting India, according to the officials.

Security agencies have claimed that Sheikh was roped in for a recce mission similar to that undertaken by David Headley, a Pakistan-American, who is at present serving a prison sentence of 35 years at a US jail for his involvement in terror activities and the 26/11 Mumbai attacks of 2008.

They said Maliks association with the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba also came to light during Sheikhs interrogation.

Malik had shown to probe officials the places where Sheikh had stayed with the terrorists for over three months, they added.
The Patna high court on Monday issued showcause notices to all vice chancellors (VCs) and registrars over inordinate delay in clearing retirement benefits to teaching and non-teaching staff of different universities across Bihar.

A division bench of chief justice Rajendra Menon and justice Anil Kumar Upadhaya passed the order after the state education department informed the court that university authorities had not been sending complete papers related to retired employees.

Taking serious note of the matter, the bench also asked the VCs and registrars to explain in their replies why their salary should not be stopped.

The bench, which was hearing a petition filed by Krishna Kant Sinha, secretary of Pensiondhari Samaj of Bihar University, Muzaffarpur, posted the matter for further monitoring on January 4, 2018.

The court had on September 8 asked the state government to hold a meeting with university authorities to chalk out a mechanism to ensure payment of all admissible retirement benefits, including pension, provident fund, gratuity and leave encashment, within 30 days of retirement.

In his petition, Sinha has pleaded for a court direction to authorities concerned to ensure that all admissible retirement benefits are paid to university staff without knocking the door of the high court. He said many retired university employees were not being paid the monthly pension on the first day of the month.

The petitioner alleged that many teaching staff, who retired after January 2010, were yet to receive gratuity amount and the payment against leave encashment.

The Bihar education department is already burdened with nearly 4,000 pending court cases, including 1,250 contempt proceedings. Many of these cases are related to promotions, service matters and post-retirement issues.
A religious preacher has been arrested for allegedly insulting Bharat Mata by posting a hate speech on social media, police said on Monday.

Yalamanchili Vijay Kumar, director of an organisation called Christ Gospel Team, allegedly made a derogatory speech about Bharat Mata--the national personification of India as a mother goddess.

The accused, a native of East Godavari district in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, had given the hate speech in August this year and posted it on social media, DCP (South Zone) said in a statement.

The complaint was filed against Vijay Kumar, who also goes by alises Vijay Kumar and Br. Vijay, by one T. Kunal Rao, a businessman and a resident of Hussainialam in Hyderabad.

According to police, the speech of Vijay Kumar was prejudicial to maintenance of harmony which could disturb the public tranquillity.

Vijay Kumars hateful intention to outraging feelings of the citizens of India and his statement is prejudicial to national integration, according to the release.

Vijay Kumar was booked under relevant sections of the IPC for hurting communal harmony and religious feelings.
The Banaras Hindu University (BHU) has said questions about the goods and services tax (GST) as part ancient Indian political-philosopher Kautilyas treatise Arthashastra and that Manu, the legendary author of a Sanskrit law code, was the first to think of globalisation were part of the curriculum taught at the institution.

Several postgraduate students of political science at the university were also asked about the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Swachh Bharat and Smart Cities missions in their semester exam on social and political thought of ancient and medieval India last week.

The questions triggered a debate as critics alleged that they were a part of a drive by Hindu hardliners to promote ancient philosophies in the contemporary context.

Professors are experts of their subjects. As far as the GST is concerned, professors in few departments have started teaching the new tax regime from this session. As far as I know, other topics around which questions were framed would be part of the curriculum. Professors of their respective subjects are experts, they can say it better, the BHUs spokesperson Rajesh Kumar Singh said.

Current affairs? Political science (MA semester I)

 "Write an essay on nature of GST (Goods and Services Tax) in Kautilya Arthashashtra and Manu is the first Indian thinker of globalisation. Discuss it."

 Write an essay on Bharatiya Janata Party.

 What is AAP? Political science & History (MA semester III)

 What is the meaning of smart city?

 Is urban government a failure in implementing the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in Varanasi? Give a critical evaluation of it. 10 marks.

 Where is Taj Mahal?

 Discuss about triple talaq and halala as social evils in Islam.  What do you mean by Jauhar tradition? Describe Rani Padmavatis Jauhar in the period of Alauddin Khalji.

Professor Tabir Kalam, who teaches history at the university, said the Quran and Hadith were part of the syllabus of medieval Indian historiography when asked why second-year students were asked about Islams most holy text and the Taj Mahals location, normally taught at the primary level.

In this paper, we teach students about the influence of Arabic and Persian historiography on medieval Indian historiography. Main sources of Arab historiography are the Quran and Hadith, Kalam said.

Hadith is the best example of history writing because when the scholars started the compilation of Hadith, they enquired and scrutinised the content and sources and the person responsible for bringing the information to the compilers. And then the Hadith was considered reliable. In history, we also do the same thing, he added.

The BHU also asked history students about Alauddin Khilji, Rani Padmavati and jauhar -- a tradition followed by women who jumped into the fire collectively to avoid being captured by invading rulers.

Rajiv Srivastava, who teaches society, culture and religion in medieval India, described the questions as very logical.

Those raising questions over the question paper have no idea about the syllabus. The Jauhar tradition, Rani Padmavati and Alauddin Khilji were also part of the syllabus. A question was framed on the Taj Mahal as its architecture was great and each student should know about it, Srivastava said.

The question on the Taj Mahal was an objective-type one and carried two marks, Srivastava said. He clarified that he did not set the paper but taught these subjects.

Political science professor Kaushal Kishore Mishra said there is nothing intentional about the essay on the ruling BJP.

A short-answer question about the AAP is also there in the paper, he said.

Mishra also defended the question on Kautilyas Arthashastra in the context of modern-day GST and Manus concept of globalisation saying these were part of the curriculum. He said Arthashastra, a Sanskrit treatise on political diplomacy, economy and military strategy, talks of a single-tax system, including 13 slabs.

The BHU is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modis parliamentary constituency Varanasi.

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The Congress on Monday declared Rahul Gandhi as its president in an elevation that marks a generational shift in the countrys oldest political party that is going through a difficult phase due to a series of electoral setbacks.

The 47-year-old leader was elected unopposed and will replace his mother Sonia Gandhi. The change of guard brings down the curtains on more than 19 years of uninterrupted tenure of Sonia, who holds the record of being the longest-serving Congress president after assuming the post on March 14, 1998.

Since the withdrawal of date/time is over and as there is only one candidate, as per Article XVII (d) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I hereby declare Shri Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress, returning officer Mullappally Ramachandran said.

Ramachandran told reporters Rahul will receive the certificate of election from the partys poll panel during a ceremony at the Congress headquarters in Delhi on December 16.

Ramachandran said as many as 89 sets of valid nomination papers proposing Rahuls name for the post were received by the partys central election authority that oversaw the organisational polls. He had filed his papers on December 4.

Rahuls elevation comes nearly five years after he was anointed as the Congress vice-president in January 2013. He is the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to occupy the top post in the 131-year-old party.

The announcement, which came in the absence of Rahul who is campaigning in Gujarat, was received by Congress supporters by bursting of crackers, waving of party flag and beating of drums.

Slogans such as Agla Pradhan Mantri Kaisa Ho, Rahul Gandhi Jaisa Ho. (How should our next Prime Minister be he should be like Rahul Gandhi) and Long Live Rahul Gandhi rented the air outside the party office at 24, Akbar Road.

The entire Indian National Congress family would like to convey our best wishes to incoming President Rahul Gandhi, and wish him a successful tenure as he continues to lead from the front, the party said on its official Twitter handle.

He will be the face of the party in the 2019 parliamentary elections. His party faced one of its worst ever electoral drubbings in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and barely managing to win 44 seats.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had then led an aggressive campaign to oust the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government after 10 years in power.

Rahuls daunting task will be to revive and rebuild the Congress to make it fighting fit for the 2019 elections. A good show in Gujarat, where he is leading the party campaign, will certainly give a good start to his new innings.

The entire country has lots of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. He has shown his mettle much before he was elected, senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said.

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Congress has given themselves a little more breathing room to get through their 2017 to-do list, passing a continuing resolution Thursday on a spending bill that gives them two more weeks to get a final budget to the President's desk.

Budget negotiations will continue behind the scenes, and although no resolution is expected this week, those involved want a clear outline for the final deal locked in before lawmakers go home for the weekend.

Here's what else to keep an eye on this week:

Will Roy Moore join the Senate?

All eyes will be on Alabama on Tuesday as the state's voters decide between Republican Roy Moore and Democrat Doug Jones for Alabama's Senate seat. Should Jones win, it will shave Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's slim majority even closer, with a 51-49 split in the upper chamber. Should Roy Moore prevail, McConnell has said he believes Moore "would immediately have an issue with the Ethics Committee."

Moore's would-be partner from Alabama, Sen. Richard Shelby, said Sunday that though he wants a Republican elected to the chamber, he did not vote for Moore in the special election.

"I'd rather see the Republican win, but I'd rather see a Republican write-in," Shelby told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union." "I couldn't vote for Roy Moore. I didn't vote for Roy Moore."

Tax reform

The conference committee is expected to have its first public meeting early in the week. As of now, leadership sources still say the vote on the conference report is expected on either December 18 or 19 in the House, and a day later in the Senate. That could be sped up, though at this point, it's not clear how that could happen.

Sexual harassment

Resignation watch continues for Rep. Blake Farenthold of Texas, with the House Ethics Committee saying it has received information over the last two weeks about his alleged conduct and it is establishing a subcommittee to continue the investigation.

Rep. Ruben Kihuen of Nevada faces sexual harassment questions of his own, with both House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee calling for his resignation. Kihuen has flatly refused to resign, and is expected to announce this week whether he will run for re-election.

Key votes and hearings

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell filed cloture on three circuit court judges -- Leonard Grasz for the 8th Circuit, Don. R. Willett for the 5th Circuit and James C. Ho for the 5th Circuit Court -- in what has been a rapid-pace filling of judicial slots during the Trump administration.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is scheduled to testify in front of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday about Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of the Trump campaign. He is expected to face questions over potential bias in the investigation after Peter Strzok, who previously led the FBI's investigation into the Clinton email server, and was removed from Mueller's team after sending text messages that could be interpreted as showing political bias against Trump.

On Tuesday, a House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee will examine ways to protect North Korean refugees; the House Financial Services committee will clear the decks of their to-do with the markup of fifteen different bills; and the Senate Commerce Subcommittee will hold a hearing to examine artificial intelligence and "what practices should be in place to ensure proper use of this technology."

On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hear from former administration officials on the strategic, political and legal considerations for the use of force.

And on Thursday, the Senate Armed Services Committee will receive testimony on the US policy and strategy in the Middle East.

CNN's Lauren Fox and Maegan Vazquez contributed to this report.
Rahul Gandhi was officially declared president of the Congress party on Monday, taking charge of what can be seen as one of the most challenging jobs in Indian politics.

Gandhi, 47, will take control of the countrys principal opposition party from his mother Sonia, who served as the Congress chief for a record 19 years.

The challenges, which by and large include sweeping changes crucial to take the party out of one of its worst phases, mirror the early days of his mothers term in 1998 when the party was in power in only four states and was torn by divisions within.

Following are some of the important decisions and problems he will need to deal with to revive the party:

Organisational overhaul

Rahuls first task will be a revamp of the party. Leaders suggest he will go for an overhaul, completing a generational shift in the 131-year-old party brought about by his elevation.

The important challenge will be to ensure the transition is smooth, a balance is struck between young leaders and the old guard, which in the past had some reservations about his style of functioning.

In his nearly five years as the Congress vice-president, he had tried to open the party to end the heirloom politics but didnt make much headway.

State affairs

The party has to mount a strident campaign for state elections in 2018 to begin gathering a momentum that can put it in a better position for the general elections in 2019.

Retaining Karnataka and dethroning the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan will be a daunting task, one that cannot be achieved without addressing problems such as infighting and regional leadership gaps.

The party desperately needs to get its house in order in key states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and West Bengal, where it has ceded political space to rivals.

Lifting morale

With the Congress at its weakest in parliament and arch-rival BJP appearing to gain ground nationally, it is crucial for Gandhi to galvanise an otherwise demoralised Congress. Much of the cadre has been struggling to recover after a series of electoral setbacks.

The challenge is difficult but not impossible, since outgoing Congress president Sonia Gandhi turned the party around in six years after taking charge, winning the 2004 and 2009 general elections.

Forging partnerships

With around 16 months left for the next Lok Sabha election, Gandhi will have to decide on alliance partners to prevent a division of the opposition vote that could help the BJP.

Stitching up alliances perhaps is his second biggest challenge after reviving the party.

His mother, who turned 71 on December 9, enjoys a good rapport with other opposition parties. Crediting her with bringing together the United Progressive Alliance, CP-M leader Sitaram Yechury described Sonia as the glue that bound the Congress as well as secular allies.

Rahul will have to be the Congress president, the glue and more.

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The Supreme Court on Monday said it cannot direct the legislature to legislate but has simply asked the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government to deliberate on issues including whether the majority Muslim community in the state could be regarded as a minority for availing benefits.

The Centre informed a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra that it was still deliberating on a host of issues including whether Muslims, who are majority in Jammu and Kashmir, can be treated as minority to get benefits which are only available to minorities in the state.

We have legal difficulties. We cannot direct the legislature to legislate on a particular issue. We just asked them (Centre and state) to deliberate, the bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said.

It considered the statement of Attorney General K K Venugopal that the process of deliberations was on and a decision would be taken, and granted eight weeks to the Centre.

The bench had on August 8 granted the last opportunity to the Centre and other stakeholders to take a final decision within three months on issues raised in the petition filed by Ankur Sharma, a Jammu-based lawyer.

The Centre had then sought time saying it has been holding consultations with the state government.

Prior to this, the top court had issued notice to the Centre, the state government and the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) on the plea filed by Sharma who alleged that benefits accruing to the minorities were being taken away by the 68%-strong Muslim community in J-K.

The court had asked the Centre and the state government to sit together and find a solution to contentious issues including whether the Muslims in the state could be regarded as a minority to avail benefits under that category.

The plea has alleged that the rights of religious and linguistic minorities in the state were being siphoned off illegally and arbitrarily due to extension of benefits to unqualified sections of the population.

Sharma alleged the provisions of the National Commission for Minorities Act were not applicable to Jammu and Kashmir due to a caveat put by Article 370 of the Constitution.

Moreover, crores of rupees are being given to the members of the majority community under various schemes meant for linguistic and religious minorities, he said.

The state government was violating Article 29 (protection of interests of minorities) and Article 30 (right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions) under the Constitution, he has alleged.

The PIL has also sought setting up of a state minority commission for identification of minorities and extension of National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act, 1992 to Jammu and Kashmir.

The population of Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir according to the 2011 Census is 68.31%. Communities which are eligible to be notified as minorities, are not awarded their due share of scholarship owing to their non-identification as minorities, thereby jeopardising their constitutionally guaranteed rights enshrined under Part III of the Constitution of India, it has said.

This clearly reflected the unfairness and discrimination of the state government towards other communities in Jammu and Kashmir which were eligible to be notified as minorities, the petition has alleged.

It has pleaded that a committee of experts functioning under the direct supervision of the apex court be appointed and a comprehensive report be submitted identifying communities in the state which qualified as religious and linguistic minorities.

The petition has also demanded that a special investigation team (SIT), headed by a retired high court judge working under direct supervision of the top court, be constituted for investigating the illegal and arbitrary disbursement of minority benefits.
A special auxiliary police (SAP) constable, deputed as jail guard, was shot dead in north Bihars Vaishali district on Monday morning.

Deep Narayan Rai, 50, was killed by unidentified motorcycle-borne criminals near the Hajipur jail, where he was posted, at around 8 am, police said.

Rai, who had joined the SAP following his retirement from the Indian Army, was on way to the jail to report for duty when the incident took place.

The jail is near the busy national highway (NH)-77 that links Hajipur, headquarters of Vaishali district, 22 km north of state capital Patna, to Sonbarsa near the India-Nepal border.

Eyewitnesses said as the criminals opened fire, the guards on duty at the outer gate of the jail took shelter inside the barrack, while passersby ran helter-skelter for safety.

Sitamarhi district transport officer Chitranjan Kumar, who was on way to his place of posting from Patna, saw Rai lying along the NH-77 in a pool of blood and took him to a hospital, where doctors declared the SAP constable brought dead.

Another person, who was injured in the attack, is unconscious and undergoing treatment at Hajipur sadar hospital.

Additional superintendent of police (ASP) Ajoy Kumar, who is holding charge of SP, said that criminals intercepted Rai near the jail gate and shot him on his head. Rai had been assigned duty outside the jail gate. We are trying to find out if Rai had entered into arguments with any visitor to the jail recently, Kumar said.
Senior Supreme Court advocate Rajeev Dhavan said he was quitting court practice on Monday and that his decision was prompted by the humiliation he faced during the hearing of a trial related to the turf war between the Centre and Delhi government.

Dhavan conveyed his decision in a letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI), Dipak Misra, who headed the Constitution bench that heard the case on December 6, when, the senior lawyer says, he was treated badly in open court.

After the humiliating end in the Delhi case, I have decided to give up court practice, read his letter to the CJI.

I stand by what I have written in the letter. I would never go back to the court, he said when Hindustan Times contacted him for his comments. He refused to say anything more.

Chief Justice Misra, too, declined to comment.

Dhavan chose to convey his reasons to quit, though he wasnt bound by any rules to do so.

His decision follows arguments with the Chief Justice on two consecutive days last week, when he was one of the senior lawyers representing the Delhi government.

On December 6, the last day of hearing, CJI Misra asked Dhavan not to repeat arguments already presented by other counsels on his side. The lawyer insisted on making his point, leading to an exchange with the top judge.

A day before, during trial in the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute, the lawyer asked the three-judge bench to not to start hearing the case, arguing that it would not end before October 3 next year, when Chief Justice Misra retires.

The bench headed by the Chief Justice didnt welcome his argument and one of the judges, Justice Ashok Bhushan, called it unfortunate.

Also, the CJI disapproved of the remarks. Without naming any lawyer, he lashed out at senior advocates for making atrocious arguments at a high pitch and warned of severe action if the bar failed to regulate its members. He said such lawyers dont deserve a senior designation.

The top court had designated Dhavan as a senior advocate in May 1994. In the letter, Dhavan asked the Chief Justice to take back his designation, but sought to keep the black cloak that came with the job for the memory and services he rendered.

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The chief medical officers (CMO) office began an inquiry on Monday into a complaint of medical negligence following the death of a woman, whose relatives alleged that doctors left a scissors in her abdomen during a caesarean operation at a private hospital in Allahabad.

Priya Soni, the wife of Ashok Soni of Jamaha village, was admitted to the Mother and Child Hospital in Soraon for the delivery of her child about one-and-a-half months ago. She delivered a baby on October 29 after a caesarean operation and the hospital discharged her after a few days.

But even at home, she continued to complain of severe pain in her abdomen. An ultrasound test...showed a scissors in her abdomen, alleged her mother, Mala Soni.

Mala said when doctors of the hospital were informed, they admitted Priya to another private facility -- Dwivedi Hospital, where she was again operated upon.

However, as her condition deteriorated after the surgery, the doctors referred her to Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital, also in Allahabad.

Even after one-and-a-half months of treatment, Priyas condition failed to improve and she breathed her last on Sunday morning, said Mala, who lodged an FIR against the owners of both Mother and Child Hospital and Dwivedi Hospital.

CMO Alok Verma said a committee, led by additional chief medical officer Dr AK Tewari, has been formed to probe this case and that it will submit its report in a week. Its a serious matter. If found guilty, the hospitals could lose their licence, he added.
Security issues, including Indias efforts to counter Pakistan-based terror groups and the situation in Afghanistan, and regional trade are expected to top the agenda at a meeting between the foreign ministers of India, China and Russia in New Delhi on Monday.

The 15th meeting of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral comes a month after Indian officials met their counterparts from Australia, Japan and the United States to discuss the revival of the Quad, an alliance focussed on the Indo-Pacific region.

It also marks the first visit to New Delhi by a senior Chinese official after a substantially stronger President Xi Jinping was given a second term by the ruling Communist Party.

Before the trilateral meeting, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj will hold separate meetings with her Russian and Chinese counterparts, Sergei Lavrov and Wang Yi.

The trilateral meeting was originally scheduled for April but it could not be held then as China did not confirm its participation, apparently due to its anger over New Delhis decision to allow the Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh, which is claimed by Beijing.

Since then, India-China relations have been strained by Beijings persistent efforts to block the designation of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar at the UN Security Council and the border stand-off at Doklam that lasted more than two months.

Indian officials have indicated that the trilateral meeting will focus on regional security, counter-terror efforts, issues affecting the Asia-Pacific region and coordination at regional and multilateral forums. India is also expected to make a push for named Pakistan-based groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in the communique to be issued after the meeting.

Given the commitment of the three nations to fight all forms of terrorism, India is also expected to raise the blocking of Masood Azhars designation by China, apparently at the behest of its all-weather ally Pakistan.

The Russian foreign ministry has said the discussions are likely to include the situation in Afghanistan, the Middle East and the Korea peninsula. The fight against terrorism and drug trafficking and efforts to facilitate the exchange of information on international security are also likely to figure, Russian officials said.

The meeting also comes at a time when China and Russia have been moving closer on a number of global issues, including the situation in Afghanistan, while there is greater convergence between the foreign policies of India and the US.

The traditionally close ties between New Delhi and Moscow have also stagnated and been hit by some strain as Russia has moved closer to Pakistan, including the sale of military hardware and holding of annual war games.

Russias policies on Afghanistan, which have hewn closer to those of China, have also become a cause of worry for policy planners in New Delhi and Kabul.
The nearly two-decade-long tenure of Sonia Gandhi as the Congress president came to an end as she handed over the reins of the party to her son Rahul Gandhi on Monday, leaving behind a legacy full of ups and downs.

Chaos and confusion reigned supreme when she assumed the charge of the grand old party in 1998. A fragmented Congress then ruled just four states of Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Mizoram and Nagaland and it had 141 members in the Lok Sabha. The partys flagging fortunes forced her to come out of self-imposed political hibernation.

And within six years under her leadership, the partys fortunes swung considerably.

Sonia Gandhi at an Iftar party at the AICC headquarters in January 1998. (Prakash Singh/HT Archives)

Having been the driving force behind the Congress for more than 19 years, the 71-year-old Sonia  who underwent a successful surgery abroad in 2011  delegated most of her responsibilities to her son Rahul in the past few years. She has already created history by becoming the longest serving chief of the nearly 131-year-old party.

Early turbulence

After her husband and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991, Sonia rejected pleas to join the Congress. However, she finally shed her reluctance and agreed to join politics in 1997 when she became a primary member of the grand old party at its Kolkata plenary.

A few months later on March 14, 1998, she was elected as the Congress president. But more than a year later on May 15, 1999, just before the Lok Sabha elections, she resigned from the post after senior leaders Sharad Pawar, PA Sangma and Tariq Anwar opposed her being projected as the partys prime ministerial candidate, ostensibly on the grounds of her foreign origin.

Sonia Gandhi at a AICC special session in May 1999. (Manish Swarup/HT Archive)

Although born in a foreign land, I chose India as my country and would remain an Indian till my last breath. India is my motherland, dearer to me than my own life, Sonia wrote in her resignation letter to the Congress Working Committee (CWC).

The move prompted hunger-strikes and agitation from Congress workers and she agreed to take back her resignation after the party expelled Pawar, Sangma and Anwar on May 20.

The CWC was informed of her decision on May 24, 1999. The next day, a special session of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) was called to welcome her back as the party president.

Mulayam snub

After the fall of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government on April 17, 1999, by just one vote, Sonia met the then president KR Narayanan on April 21 to seek time to form the next government.

We have 272 and more are coming, she told journalists at the Rashtrapati Bhavan after meeting the president.

But in a U-turn, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav announced that his party would not support the Congress, leaving Sonia shell-shocked. She was banking on Yadav and the Left parties to reach the magic figure.

Yadav instead floated the name of veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Jyoti Basu for the prime ministers post but Sonia rejected the move.

First electoral success

In 2004, the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee looked invincible and the BJP-led NDA unassailable but Sonia demolished both. Her aam aadmi slogan crushed the BJPs feel good and India shining catchphrases.

It was her efforts that saw several parties come together to stitch a coalition that came to be known as United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

Sonia Gandhi greets people at a darbar session in May 1999. (Pradeep Singh/HT Archives)

Not only was she able to revive the party when it was down and out, Sonia also brought the governments focus back to welfare and secularism. She is often credited with taking the Congress to the left-of-the-centre position.

As the chairperson of the National Advisory Council (NAC) set up to monitor the implementation of the coalition governments common minimum programme, she initiated several pro-poor welfare projects such as right to information, rural employment guarantee scheme, right to education and food security act.

Biggest political masterstroke

Following her inner voice, Sonia stunned the world in 2004 when she declined the prime ministers post after the Congress-led UPA came to power. Power in itself has never attracted me, nor has position been my goal, she then said, taking both supporters and opponents by surprise.

Manmohan Singh greets Sonia Gandhi after being sworn in as the Prime Minister at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi in May 2004. Singh became PM after Gandhi declined the position. (SN Sinha/HT Archive)

Senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj threatened to shave her head, don a white saree and eat groundnuts if Sonia became the prime minister. Sonia had earlier defeated Swaraj from Bellary in Karnataka in the 1999 parliamentary polls.

Sonia again gave a shock to her political adversaries on March 23, 2006, when she resigned from the Lok Sabha and the National Advisory Council in the wake of the office-of-profit controversy. However, she was re-elected from Rae Bareli with a huge margin in May same year.

While she was named the third most powerful woman in the world by Forbes magazine in 2004, her name featured in Times list of 100 most influential people in the world in 2007.

UPA retains power in 2009

She again played a key role in the UPAs return to power in 2009 general elections. The Congress on its own won 206 seats, till then the highest by any party since 1991.

The BJP surpassed it in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections by winning 282 of the 543 seats. At one point during her tenure, the Congress ruled in 15 states.

Criticism

Though Rahul had virtually taken over the Congress as its de facto head, it was under Sonias leadership that the party registered its worst ever electoral performance bagging just 44 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

She also faced criticism for delaying the process of restructuring of the Congress organisation, a highly centralised leader-driven party, due to her indecisiveness.

Best performance in Lok Sabha

As leader of the opposition, she moved a no-confidence motion against the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in August 2003.

During her speech on August 18, she dismissed the NDAs projected growth rate of 8% as Mungerilal ke Haseen Sapne (Mungerilals Sweet Dreams).

Future role

As she hands over the baton to the 47-year-old Rahul, Sonia could take the role of the partys chief patron or head the Congress Parliamentary Party. Congress leaders have already indicated that she is unlikely to seek re-election from Rae Bareli in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Sonia Gandhi talks to son Rahul during a memorial ceremony for her husband and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 20th death anniversary in New Delhi in May 2011. (HT File Photo)

A binding force for the Congress and known for her ability to stitch good alliances, she could be a guiding force for the opposition parties. CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury recently called Sonia the glue that binds the Congress as well as the opposition.

Having said that, Rahuls take over will not bring down the curtains on the long tenure of Sonia but also herald a new era in the grand old party.

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External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on key bilateral issues.

According to sources, all issues of mutual interest were discussed between the two leaders.

Wang is here to attend the Russia-India-China trilateral meeting. He will also attend an India-China cultural event in the evening.

The foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) are here to deliberate on a range of pressing regional and global issues, including ways to tackle the threat of terrorism and extremism, at the key meeting of the grouping.

This is the first high-level visit from China after the Dokalam standoff in the Sikkim sector this summer.

The 73-day border standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to Indias chickens neck corridor -- that connects India to its north east states.

The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.
The government has ordered television channels not to air condom advertisements before 10pm and after 6am, a decision prompted by complaints of explicit content in such ads.

The information and broadcasting ministry said these ads should be slotted for late night to prevent exposing children to indecent and inappropriate content.

The ministry warned that any channel found flouting the order will face action in accordance with provisions in the cable television networks rules.

In an advisory issued on Monday to the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, the ministry said its attention has been drawn to channels carrying advertisements of condoms repeatedly, which are alleged to be indecent, especially for children.

Poonam Mutreja, executive director of Population Foundation of India, said the move will prove counterproductive for campaigns against unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortions and the fight against HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

There are 13% unwanted pregnancies in India, there are nearly 15 million abortions. This decision is a red flag for me. If the complaints were against the content of a product, then we can review that and make it more culturally sensitive, she said.

Read | One in three pregnancies in India ends in abortion: Lancet

Hindustan Times reported last week that the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) had asked the ministry to come up with guidelines for television channels on broadcasting advertisements of contraceptives with adult content.

The council is a self-regulatory voluntary organisation that keeps tabs on advertisement content.

The ministrys order follows the councils representation as well as complaints from the National Commission of Women and consumers forums.

The ministry invoked Rule 7(7) of the cable TV rules that says advertisement which endangers the safety of children or create in them any interest in unhealthy practices or shows them begging or in an undignified or indecent manner shall not be carried in the cable service.

It also referred to Rule 7(8), which states that indecent, vulgar, suggestive, repulsive or offensive themes or treatment shall be avoided in all advertisements.

The councils secretary general, Shweta Purandare, said the complainants objected to such advertisements shown during prime time.

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Three Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were gunned down by security forces during a nightlong encounter at north Kashmir, police said on Monday morning. A civilian was also killed in the crossfire, they added.

Three terrorists, all seemingly from Pakistan, were neutralised by a joint team of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, Rajasthan Rifles and the Central Reserve Police Force in Unisoo, Handwara. It was raining through the night, and our boys had to operate in the cold, tweeted Jammu and Kashmir police chief SP Vaid.

Three bodies of armed militants were recovered, an Army spokesperson said. The woman killed in the crossfire was identified only as Mysra.

Sourced said local residents took out a protest against security personnel soon after the encounter. Scores of people also braved the rains to attend Mysras funeral.

Acting on specific inputs, security personnel launched a cordon-and-search operation at Unisoos Mir Mohalla area in the Handwara police station limits. Terrorists hiding in the house of one Abdul Hamid Mir fired at the joint search party during the course of the operation. A woman was injured in the encounter that followed and, unfortunately, she succumbed to her injuries, police said in a statement.

Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed grief over Mysras death, besides the murder of two bank guards in a separate incident in Shopian district.

The opposition National Conference also lamented Mysras accidental death. The government should probe the circumstances that led to the incident and provide ex-gratia aid to her family, party president Farooq Abdullah and his son, working president Omar Abdullah, said in a joint statement.

Security forces recently claimed that they killed over 200 insurgents across the Valley in 2017. The year witnessed a series of counter-insurgency operations that resulted in the death of top militant commanders, including Abu Dujana and Waseem Shah of the Lashkar-e-Taiba; Tallah Rashid and Mehmood Bhai of the Jaish-e-Mohammed; and Sabzar Ahmad Bhat of the Hizbul Mujahideen.
Recently, the U.S. Senate took an important step forward in advancing tax relief for middle-class families and our small businesses. After an open floor debate and voting on amendments offered by members of both parties, we passed a tax reform package that lowers rates across the board, makes our nation more competitive and allows our workers to keep more of their paychecks. Thats good for the long-term growth of our economy, meaning more jobs and rising wages.

One of the most significant ways we are helping families is by doubling the standard deduction. That means Americans will not be taxed on the first $12,000 of income for individuals, $24,000 for married couples and $18,000 for single parents with dependents. This expanded deduction will likely be used by nine out of 10 taxpayers, significantly simplifying the tax filing process and saving families time and money. On top of this, the bill doubles the Child Tax Credit to $2,000 and lifts the caps on eligibility, meaning more families will benefit. All told, our bill provides a net tax cut of about $2,200 for a median family of four.

On the business side, we drop our corporate rate to be more in line with our foreign competitors, which will help give our nation the edge and attract greater investment here at home, rather than overseas. That means more jobs. At the same time, we are providing an easy-to-comply-with deduction for small businesses, the backbone of our economy. These same benefits accrue to our farmers and ranchers. Further, we worked to ensure our agriculture producers and small businesses will not only see lower rates, but will have a greater ability to write off their expenses. Specifically, our bill:

 Allows full expensing or writing off the cost of new investments for the first five years. This is phased down over an additional four-year period.

 Expands the Section 179 expensing of equipment on a permanent basis.

 Doubles the estate tax exemption, while maintaining the step-up in basis for capital gains.

 Maintains interest deductibility as well as the property tax deduction for small businesses, farmers and ranchers.

I worked throughout this process to improve upon the tax bill and ensure it works for North Dakotans. Among other things, we included an increased tax deduction of 23 percent for small businesses with pass-through income; maintained the state and local property tax deduction up to $10,000 for individuals and families; preserved IC-DISC, a deduction on a portion of small- and medium-sized businesses export income; and provided greater flexibility for implement and auto dealers to expense interest on their inventory.

As we move forward on tax relief, we are focused on ensuring we can continue investing in our nations priorities. Tax relief, combined with regulatory relief, will empower the economy to grow and increase government revenues. The evidence for this is apparent, as our efforts to roll back burdensome regulations have already helped push economic growth to an annualized rate of more than 3 percent for the past two quarters. Claims that the legislation will increase the deficit do not account for, or underestimate, revenue from a growing economy. History shows us its true, as demonstrated in a bipartisan way by the tax cuts made during the administrations of President John Kennedy and President Ronald Reagan.

Passing the Senates tax reform package is a crucial part of our effort to provide much-needed relief to taxpayers and get our economy going and growing. Now, well go to work to resolve the differences between our legislation and the bill passed by the House of Representatives. As we move forward in this process, I continue working to deliver the best possible bill for our small businesses, farmers, ranchers and hardworking Americans.
The trial to prove a prima facie case of fraud against fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya resumes here on Monday to determine if he can be extradited to India to face charges over his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines.

The 61-year-old will be back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates Court in London for day four of the hearing when his defence led by barrister Clare Montgomery, is set to depose two further witnesses in its attempt to prove that the airlines alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than dishonest and fraudulent activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is also facing a parallel litigation in the Queens Bench Division of the commercial court in Englands High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets.

The State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co Pvt Ltd are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk LLP, Rose Capital Ventures Ltd and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday.

Margaret Sweeney, from the accounts team of Force India - Mallyas Formula 1 racing team, and legal expert Martin Lau are set to be deposed by his defence team at the extradition hearing today.

Judge Emma Arbuthnot will hear the case over some interruptions as Ubers appeal against the cancellation of its operating license in London is expected to open in the same court today.

Last week, the defence claimed that a consortium of Indian banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) had rejected an offer by the liquor baron in early 2016 to pay back nearly 80 per cent of the principle loan amount owed to them.

While deposing a banking expert last week, Mallyas counsel Montgomery questioned whether her clients offer to pay back around Rs 4,400 crores of the principle debt amount on April 6, 2016 should have been dismissed out of hand just a day later by the banks.

Paul Rex, who was described as a banker by profession who served as an independent expert in the field for over 20 years, said that banks tend to partially provision for loans unpaid over a long period and such an offer would have helped avoid further loss.

A commercial bank would assess such an offer against other routes of repayment. If that offer is higher than could be expected from other sources, it would be an attractive option for banks to consider, he said, adding that state- owned banks in particular tend to be more susceptible to political pressure.

However, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)  arguing on behalf of the Indian government  countered that assertion in its cross-examination, indicating that the reason such a repayment offer would have been rejected was that the banks knew Mallya had the means to pay back the entire amount due.

There are plenty of reasons why even a state bank may take a view to reject such an offer, such as if it comes from a dishonest person who is known to have plenty of money to repay the entire amount if he wants to, CPS barrister Mark Summers stated during his cross-examination.

He also made a reference to the debtor (Mallya) throwing a birthday party costing around 2 million pounds as a factor which could have influenced the banks decision to reject the offer.

The cross-examination of Rex was left incomplete at the end of the third day of the trial last Thursday, to be taken up again tomorrow afternoon.

In his cross-examination, Summers had highlighted a particular washing machine activity picked up by the government of India that involved sums amounting to around 10 -15 million pounds being funnelled between UB Group companies to wrongly claim obligations of equity infusions into struggling Kingfisher Airlines were being met.

Indian government sources have described its case, being presented by the CPS, as very strong.

Mallyas legal team had claimed earlier in the trial that the case against him was politically motivated and that it was being used as an opportunity to make political capital by the ruling BJP as well as Congress and Shiv Sena.

The prosecutions case rests on three chapters of dishonesty by Mallya  misrepresentations to various banks to acquire loans, the misuse of the loans, and his conduct after the banks recalled the loans.

Mallya, who has been based in the UK since March 2016, was arrested by Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant in April this year and has been out on bail on a bond worth 650,000 pounds.

If the judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must order Mallyas extradition within two months. However, the case can go through a series of appeals in higher UK courts before arriving at a conclusion.
The spiritual head of the Ajmer sufi shrine, Syed Jainul Abedin Ali Khan, Monday termed as a blot on civil society the brutal murder of a Muslim migrant labourer from West Bengal in Rajasthans Rajsamand district.

A video of the act had gone viral after the alleged accused, Shambu Lal Regar, uploaded it on the social media. He was arrested within a day of the murder.

An incident like this is a blot on the entire society. The way the killer ensured that the video of the killing was uploaded on social media had a glimpse of Talibani terror, the Dargah Diwan said in a statement.

Khan, who is also Sufi saint Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hassan Chishtis great grandson, further said that cruel murder would sow the seed of hatred in the country. Such acts, he said, foment religious sentiments. Strongest possible action should be taken against accused to set an example so that such acts are not repeated and theres mutual respect and brotherhood in society, the statement read.

Comparing the act of killing the migrant labourer Mohammed Afrazul and filming the whole episode to Talibani terrorism, the Dargah Diwan said, The Talibani terrorists also kill innocent people in this manner and circulate videos on social media to spread terror.

He said it was a matter of concern that people of a country, known for the Ganga - Jamuni tehzeeb (culture) were are becoming so violent. Society and political parties need to introspect which direction our country was going in. We are turning into animals, the statement read.

In the statement, the spiritual head said the Rajsamand case was heart wrenching and such brutality could not be acceptable to a civil society. The state government should take swift and strict action against the accused because such acts vitiate the atmosphere, he said, adding, Communal elements try to cash in on such sensitive issues to spread hatred.

The Dargah Diwan also appealed to all responsible citizens and religious organizations to condemn the heinous act. He also announced an assistance of Rs 51,000 to the next of kin of Afrazul from the Hazrat Khwaja Moinnudin Hassan Chishti Trust.
Health minister Kali Charan Saraf on Monday said the government will seek support from all concerned departments to achieve the target of 90% immunisation of children and pregnant women in Rajasthan by December 2018.

Saraf said Prime Minister Narendra Modi under Mission Indradhanush (MI) has set a target of 90% immunisation of children and pregnant women in the country by December next year. This target will be achieved in Rajasthan with the support of various departments such as woman and child development (WCD), panchayati raj and local bodies, along with NCC, NSS and Nehru Yuva Kendra, he said.

He was addressing a meeting at the health directorate in Jaipur for successful implementation of MI. The meeting was attended by WCD minister Anita Bhadel, Jaipur mayor Ashok Lahoti and Jaipur district collector Siddharth Mahajan among others.

According to the annual health survey 2012-13, the immunisation was 74.2% in Rajasthan. Since the launch of MI in December 2014, children up to two years and pregnant women have been vaccinated in four phases of immunisation in Rajasthan, Saraf said. The prime minister intensified MI on October 10, 2017, following which the vaccination is done for seven days a week, he said, adding that the vaccination will continue till January 2018.

Rajasthans 11 districts have been identified for the immunisation under MI. The districts are Alwar, Barmer, Bikaner, Dholpur, Jalore, Jodhpur, Karauli, Pali, Pratapgarh, Sawai Madhopur and Udaipur. Along with, urban areas of Jaipur district have also been included in the immunisation process. The areas deprived of vaccination in these districts have been identified and vaccination is being done, Saraf said.

WCD minister Bhadel said the department is extending active support to the immunisation mission. Considering the role of Asha Sahayoginis and Anganwari workers in MI, Asha Sahayoginies from nearby areas will be employed at vacant posts in the identified districts.

Jaipur mayor Lahoti said that Jaipur Municipal Corporation councillors and local development committee members will be involved in the immunisation process. Councilors will contact parents in their areas who are not getting their children vaccinated and will aware them about the importance of vaccination and will make efforts to get their children vaccinated, he said

Principal secretary, health, Veenu Gupta directed officials to take help of panchayati raj, WCD and health department personnel at local level. Strict action will be taken against personnel found careless towards this campaign, she warned.

National Health Mission chief Naveen Jain, WCD secretary Roli Singh, reproductive and child health director Dr SM Mittal, project director (immunisation) Dr SK Garg and representatives of other organisations were present.
The state health department will incentivise its workers to motivate them in the fight against tuberculosis (TB) in Rajasthan.

Under the Union government programme, which aims to eradicate TB from the country by 2025, the state health department is running a campaign in seven districts of Rajasthan from December 4 to 18. The districts where the campaign is being run to curb the disease are Kota, Jaipur 1, Jaipur 2, Banswara, Jhunjhunu, Sikar and Sriganganagar.

Under Active Case Finding campaign of the health department, a screening team including auxiliary nurse midwives (ANM) and accredited social health activists (ASHA) will be given 500 for finding a TB patient, Dr Ramesh Meena, the district TB officer of Kota, told HT.

Explaining the process of rewarding workers, Meena said, The screening team will take sample of the suspected TB patients on the basis of symptoms such as decline in appetite, lowering of weight, fever, chest pain and breathlessness for diagnosis, he said. After confirmation of TB, the patients treatment will start within two days. The screening team, which will have maximum two members, will be given 500 incentive after confirmation of the TB case, he added. There are 400 such teams in Kota district alone.

The incentive will be provided to the screening team bringing TB patients through door-to-door screening during the campaign period, he clarified.

Around 11% population of the Kota city will be screened under the campaign, Meena said.

Around 2.1 lakh people will be screened under the campaign in Kota, which has around 21 lakh population.

Meena said that the screening teams will submit daily report to the deparatment for effective action on curbing TB. Around 3,000 to 3,500 TB patients have been registered with the government in Kota district, while a similar number of TB patients take treatment from private doctors.
The number of smokers in Rajasthan is more than the national average, but the overall tobacco use by adults has declined in the state over the past more than five years, revealed Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS 2) 2016-17.

The survey covered 74,037 individuals across India, and 1499 males and 1534 females in Rajasthan.

The data revealed that India has 10.7% smokers, but Rajasthan has 13.2%. Overall tobacco users in India account for 28.6%, but in Rajasthan it is 24.7%; smokeless tobacco users are 21.4% in India and 14.1% in the state, and dual users (using both smoke and smokeless tobacco) are 3.4% in India and 2.6% in Rajasthan.

Health minister Kali Charan Saraf, economic adviser to the ministry of health and family welfare Arun Kumar Jha, principal secretary, health, Veenu Gupta, health secretary and National Health Mission chief Naveen Jain, and World Health Organisations Vineet Munish Gil released the results of the Rajasthan survey on Monday.

The survey revealed that the prevalence of overall tobacco use has come down significantly among adults in Rajasthan  from 32.3% in 2009-10 (GATS 1) to 24.7% (GATS 2) in 2016-17. Smoking has decreased by 5.6% among adults from 18.8% to 13.2% during the period. Smokeless tobacco use has decreased by 4.8% (from 18.9 to 14.1%).

Bidi and gutka are the most commonly used tobacco products in the state -- 11.4% of the adults smoke bidi and 9.0% take gutka, the data showed.

The prevalence of tobacco use among people aged 15-17 years has decreased from 10.5% in GATS 1 to 7.1% in GATS 2. The mean age for initiation of tobacco use has increased from 17 years in GATS 1 to 18.4 years in GATS 2. This means that children start tobacco use at a later age than earlier.

GATS 2 data revealed that the number of current tobacco users who want to quit is 44.8% smokers and 48.5% chewers in Rajasthan; in GATS-1, this number was more -- 54.6% smokers and 57.4% chewers.

Health care providers in the state advised 53% smokers and 37.5% chewers to quit; during the previous survey, the figures were 39.7% and 57.4%. The findings underline the need to increase support and expand cessation services, especially for smokeless tobacco users, which will help them quit tobacco use.

Large pack warnings have motivated tobacco users -- especially bidi smokers and smokeless tobacco users -- to consider quitting, the study said.

GATS was conducted under the stewardship of the union ministry of health & family welfare (MoH&FW) with technical assistance from WHO, Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.
Rajasthan has become the first state in the country to offer free e-mail address in Hindi to its residents. The facility name@rajasthan.bharat (in Devanagari script)  will lead to millions of new users who are not comfortable with English e-mail ids, officials said.

During Digifest Kota in August 2017, chief minister Vasundhara Raje had shown the intent to have a vernacular e-mail service for the residents who are not fluent in English as she felt that language should not be a hindrance for anybody using emails or electronic communication. Hence, the vernacular e-mail, in Hindi, was launched on December 3. Rajasthan is the first, and currently the only state, to have a vernacular e-mail, principal secretary, department of information technology and communications, Akhil Arora, told HT.

The first e-mail id that was created was that of the chief minister, Vasundhara@rajasthan.bharat (in Devnagari). All the government personnel in the state will soon have an email id in Hindi too.

The project has been implemented by the state IT department with partnership in form of in-sourcing with private IT companies, a senior official said. A dedicated team of 10 experts from the state IT department worked for three months on the project. Apart from people who use Hindi keyboard, the email also works for those who use English keyboard. Even the Japanese who like to work in their own language dont have a linguistic email id, the official said.

The initiative will ensure maximum participation of people towards e-governance and also that maximum facilities are available in vernacular language. This e-mail is small part of the bigger picture Rajasthan DigiKit which has an enrollment of more than one crore people, he said.

In December 2016, state-run BSNL had launched e-mail address service in eight Indian languages for its broadband users by launching a DataMail service.

However, unlike BSNL, the Hindi email offered by Rajasthan government is for all the Internet users.

As per TRAI, total Internet subscribers in India are just about 30 per cent of the countrys population. So, about 70 percent of population is not having access to the Internet and most of these belong to rural India.

As per official data compiled in 2016, Hindi is spoken by 544 million people in India making it the most spoken language.

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A Kolkata court on Monday afternoon ordered life imprisonment for three Pakistan nationals and five local criminals found guilty of kidnapping city-based businessman Partha Roy Burman in July 2001.

These men comprised the second set of accused to face sentence in this case. The principal accused, Aftab Ansari, who also masterminded the attack on the American Centre in Kolkata in December 2002 and killing of several policemen, was sentenced to life in 2009 along with four of his associates. Ansari was arrested in Dubai.

Read: Guard down, Bengal becomes a haven for terror

Ansari used to work for the al-Qaeda, the CBI and anti-terrorist units of several states later found. Roy Burman is a partner in the family-owned Khadim Group which is best known for its chain of footwear stores. The sum of Rs 3.75 crore that the family reportedly paid for Roy Burmans release was allegedly transferred to Dubai and used in carrying out terrorism across the globe, including the attack on the World Trade Centre in New Work in September 2001.

Those sentenced by the Alipore court on Monday were Mizanur Rahman, Mozammel Sheikh, Nayeem, Noor Mohammed, Dilshad alias Khalid Mehmood, Akhtar, Arshad and Jalal Mollah alias Omar.

Read: Kolkata tycoons abduction was planned in Bangladesh

Arshad, Dilashad and Nayeem, the three Pakistani nationals, pleaded through their lawyer that the government should deport them to Pakistan since they had already served more than 10 years in judicial custody. The judge however did not listen to their plea and sentenced them along with the others.

The Roy Burman kidnapping created a sensation and exposed the Kolkata Police to international terrorism for the first time.

Read: Indian Mujahideen: Little- known terror outfit that kept the country on tenterhooks

The kidnappers were led by Asif Raza Khan who grew up in Kolkata. He was taken to several states for interrogation and killed by policemen in Rajkot when he tried to escape. He told members of the Special Task Force (STF) that the ransom money was used by the Al Qaida to carry out the 9/11 attacks.

Khan also told the police that he knew Jaish-e-Mohammed members and came to know from them about the plan to attack the Indian Parliament.

Important dates in the abduction case:

July 25, 2001: Partha Roy Burman kidnapped from C N Roy Road in Topsia in the eastern fringe of Kolkata.

August 2, 2001: Roy Burman released by kidnappers after his family pays ransom.

January 23, 2002: Anfab Ansari arrested in Dubai and deported to India.

May 21 2009: Ansari and four associates sentenced to life imprisonment after long trial.
Members of the Lesbian-Gay-Bisexual-Transgender (LGBT) community from all over the country will assemble at Parliament Street in New Delhi on December 17 to demand scrapping of the proposed Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016.

The announcement was made on Sunday at the annual Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk, Asias oldest walk for LGBT rights. The participants appealed to all opposition parties to resist the bill.

Read: Delhis queer pride parade: A short gasp of breath in a choked environment

We are hoping to see leaders from opposition parties at the rally in Delhi. I cant take names right now but we have been assured by leaders from the Congress and Left parties. We are also expecting representatives of Trinamool Congress, said Aparna, activist and member of West Bengal Transgender Development Board.

Members of the LGBT community walked from Deshapriya park to Park Circus in Kolkata on Sunday. (Samir Jana/HT PHOTO)

Souvik, one of the main organisers of Sundays walk, said political consensus was absolutely necessary to scrap the bill. We hope our Delhi rally will be a grand success, he said.

Read: Turkey bans all LGBTI events across Ankara province to maintain public order

Explaining why the LGBT community was opposed to the bill, Pawan Dhall, former country director of Solidarity and Action Against the HIV Infection in India (SAATHI), said the proposed bill nullifies the recommendations of the parliamentary standing committee on social justice and empowerment.

Members of the LGBT community also raised slogans against Article 377 at the 16th Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk. (Samir Jana/HT PHOTO)

The bill denies one the right to identify his or her own gender. This goes against a Supreme Court order on this issue. The bill says transgender people will be identified on the basis of their anatomical feature, said Dhall.

Read: Huge procession marks 10th anniversary of Bengalurus pride march

Criminal lawyer and LGBT rights activist Kaushik Gupta said: In October this year, the Indian government decided to vote against a UN resolution that condemned death penalty for LGBT people. Though India itself does not prescribe such a penalty, the governments stand effectively means it supports violation of right to life.

The colorful walk on Sunday started with a dance performance. The participants carried placards that condemned Transgender Bill 2016. The programme was attended even by people who are not members of the LGBT community.

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The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Sunday night seized a huge quantity of high grade Malana hasish and drugs such as LSD and Ecstasy during raids in Kolkata. Three people, including the disc jockey of a posh night club, were arrested.

The seized drugs, NCB officers learnt from the traffickers, were meant for use at rave parties that are clandestinely organised around Christmas and New Year.

Information gathered by NCB officers during investigation indicate that rave parties, though almost unheard of till a decade ago, have become popular in Kolkata in recent years.

Read: Narco-tourism in Himachals Kasol: Take action, HC tells state govt

DK Srivastava, NCB director (east zone) said about 2.5 kilos of Malana hashish and so-called party drugs including LSD were seized in huge quantities. Malana hasish is popular around the world as Malana Cream and considered the purest of all forms hasish comes in.

Nikhil Lakhwani, the arrested DJ, works at a moderately new but popular night club in central Kolkata. The two others have been identified as Henry Lawrence Manna and Roberts Dixon. All of them allegedly supply drugs to high-profile customers, said Srivastava.

Read: No straightjacket formula for grant of bail in drug seizure cases: HC

Srivastava said seizures were made from Sealdah station as well as the nightclub where Nikhil works. We suspect that the hasish and drugs were brought to Kolkata from Kulu (Himachal Pradesh) by a man who goes by the name Pedro. Raids will continue at different nightclubs during the coming party season, he added.

Some prominent people from the glamour world figure among the buyers and they are also part of the supply module. They are reportedly seen at these rave parties, said an NCB officer.

Read: Drug seizure: Onus on accused to prove whether he is addict or trafficker, rules HC

With rave parties becoming popular in Kolkata, demand for narcotics and banned party drugs has gone up. Since most of these parties are held in houses of high-profile people it often becomes difficult to conduct raids. But Sundays seizure will help us nab all members of this module, the officer added.
Accusing the UP government of not doing any work of public interest in its tenure of nine months, former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav asserted that people would punish the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Akhilesh made these remarks while addressing a gathering of traders at the Samajwadi Party office, during the conclave of the Uttar Pradesh Udyog Vyapar Sangathan on Sunday.

Traders should openly support the SP as the Bharatiya Janata Party had harmed their interests by bringing in demonetisation and the Goods & Services Tax. In contrast, the Samajwadi Party always thinks about the welfare of traders and farmers, and bringing prosperity. The prosperity of traders is possible only when BJP is ousted and SP gains power in the state, he said.

Akhilesh, who was also the chief guest at the programme, said, The traders of UP are angry with BJP as its promise of bringing back black money after demonetisation has fallen flat, and its move to implement GST has jeopardised the existence of small and middle class traders. Also, crimes against traders in Mathura, Sitapur, Varanasi and Ghaziabad have created a feeling of insecurity, leading to exodus of traders to other states.

Akhilesh also said that the stamp of BJP on traders community must go away as it was the SP that had given the community a large share of tickets during the civic bodies polls.

Read more: Candidates fielded by Akhilesh in Gujarat will lose, asserts Mulayam Singh Yadav

The former CM also reminded the gathering that the dial 100 service was introduced by the Samajwadi Party. Because of dial 100, police can reach any place quickly, which has added to the safety of traders, he said. He also spoke on how the Lucknow-Agra expressway had benefited both the farmers and the traders. We had planned to connect Ghazipur and Balia with the expressway too, but BJP has stopped that work, he added.

Meanwhile, party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav and senior leader Mohammed Azam Khan were not present at the conclave.

Read more: BJP will see impact of demonetisation in Gujarat elections, says Akhilesh Yadav

Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Agawal also addressed the gathering. He said that moves like implementing the GST had reduced the vote percentage of BJP in the recent elections (civic polls).

Senior SP leader Ramgopal Yadav said, I had warned that the GST would harm the real estate and that is beginning to show. Now, a law is being planned according to which if banks go broke, then the money of the common man would be gone. He added that whatever relaxation was being given in GST was only because of the elections in Gujarat.

Hardoi MLA Nitin Agarwal called on the traders to prepare for the 2019 elections.
Eight people have been arrested for allegedly attempting to molest a woman and attacking a group accompanying six French tourists to the Lakhania Dari waterfall in Mirzapur, police said on Monday.

While three suspects were arrested on Sunday night, a few hours after the incident, five others were taken into custody the following day.

Denying that any of the French tourists were attacked, police said the suspects had attempted to molest a member of the group accompanying them. Another person was beaten up when he tried defending the woman, who happened to be his niece.

Police identified the French tourists, associated with an international charitable organisation, as Jean Pierre, Bykans Petit Patricia, Venitucci Dominique, Claire Anquetil, Piazza Celia and Marie Bernard.

The six French tourists were visiting Lakhania Dari along with a four-member group when they were allegedly attacked by a gang led by one Vivek Kesari. Police said the tourists returned to their guesthouse in Varanasis Shivala area after the incident.

I spoke to one of the French tourists over the phone. He said a few drops of blood fell on his hand when he tried to help the man attacked by the gang, but they were otherwise fine. None of the tourists were assaulted. They are safe, Mirzapur superintendent of police Ashish Tiwari told HT.

According to the complaint lodged by the victim, Kesari and his accomplices tried to molest her and beat up her sisters and uncles when they forbade them from taking a selfie with the French tourists.

Tiwari said a case has been registered against the eight suspects under sections 147 (punishment for rioting), 336 (endangering life or personal safety of others), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 511 (attempting to commit offences punishable with life imprisonment or other imprisonment) of the Indian Penal Code.

The other suspects were identified as Imran, Deepak Kumar, Prabhat Gupta, Abhishek Kumar Yadav, Krishna Yadav, Ravi Kumar Bhardwaj and Jaikishan Jaiswal. All of them hail from Varanasi.
A group of 13 allegedly attacked a doctor and four employees of the Varanasi-based Anandmayi Hospital when the hospital team was accompanying a group of French tourists in Mirzapur on Sunday evening, police said.

The doctor was critically injured when he, along with others, resisted an attempt by assailants to forcibly take selfies with the French tourists at Lakhania Dari waterfall, a tourist spot under Ahraura police station, police said.

The attackers also dragged a woman employee of the hospital by her hand and misbehaved with three other hospital employees, police said, adding the doctor was admitted to a government hospital in Mirzapur.

A case was registered against 13 people on a complaint by the doctor and four of them were arrested, station officer Praveen Kumar Singh said.

The four arrested men were identified as Imran, Deepak, Prabhat and Vivek, he added. The nine others fled, police said. A team has been deployed for their arrest.

To a question, Singh said the youths did not attack the foreign tourists.

Police said six French nationals, including Bernard, Fremini, Jean Pride and Patricia, were on a visit to Anandmayi Hospital, Varanasi. All of them were associated with a social organisation.

A hospital team, including Dr Nitin Kumar Dey, and some employees took the French tourists to Lakhania Dari on Sunday.

After parking the vehicle at Lakhania Dari, the tourists walked to the nearby picnic spot Choona Dari, police said, quoting the doctor.

When tourists and the hospital employees were on way back to the vehicle, 13 youths, who appeared drunk, stopped the tourists, and started taking selfies with them, police said.

While taking selfies, one of the youths dragged a woman employee by her hand and misbehaved with three other hospital employees.

When Dr Nitin Kumar resisted, the youths left, lay in wait nearby and then attacked the doctor with bottles and canes, inflicting severe injuries on his head.

Later, the victims reached Ahraura police station and informed the police about the incident.
In what appears to be a controversial remark, union minister of state for human resource development Satyapal Singh on Sunday said, No boy will be ready to marry a girl who comes to the mandap (wedding stage) in jeans.

The minister, who shared the stage with chief minister Yogi Adityanath at a function in Gorakhpur, also said: Similarly, no saint will be revered if he gives up his traditional attire and wears jeans.

He made these remarks in the context of appropriateness of attire in Indian culture, especially when and where to go in which dress.

He was addressing a gathering of students at the concluding ceremony of the foundation day of Maharana Pratap Siksha Parishad (MPSP), the academic venture of Gorakhnath temple.

The minister hailed the MPSP for preserving the values associated with Hindu culture and rendering services in the field of education and health. The Gorakhnath temple also runs hospitals, blood banks and Ayurvedic treatment centres.

Satyapal Singh added education should be linked with employment. In addition to helping spread education, institutions should incorporate human values in the new generation, he said.

Mutts and temples had always been centres of education and culture, he said, adding that the Gorakshpeeth had been instrumental in taking this tradition forward.

Satyapal Singh released two books with Adityanath on the occasion. These were: Bhartiya Sanskriti and Gorakshpeeth : Yoga Evam Sant Parampara. Both volumes have articles of the chief minister.

Singh said it was the good fortune of Uttar Pradesh that Yogi Adityanath was given its reins.

Addressing the students , Adityanath said human beings were the most wonderful creation of God. There was none who was useless or did not have talent, he said.

Recalling the role of his guru Mahant Avaidyanath in giving Gorakshpeeth a grand structure, Adityanath said saints usually preferred moksha (salvation) but Avaidyanath laid down his life for the country and the society.

From establishing himself in politics to engaging himself in social life, Avaidyanath did everything for the society and the country, Adityanath said.

Over 450 students were given medals, certificates and scholarship on the occasion.
Deputy chief minister and public works department minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has announced setting up of an expert committee to markedly improve road connectivity and driving experience in Uttar Pradesh. The announcement has been made two days after union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari said the quality of road construction undertaken by his ministry through the National Highways Authority of India in Uttar Pradesh will last three generations.

The committee set up by Maurya will suggest ways to improve road construction quality in a state with poor quality of roads even in urban areas.

The BJP government, in fact, missed its first test of making all the 1, 21, 034 kilometre roads gaddha mukt or pothole free by June 15, underlining the mammoth task that awaits Maurya and his department.

However, Maurya, who got road experts from across the country for a two-day first of its kind conference on introduction of new road relay and repair technology, said he is in touch with experts who have promised 20-year road life against the usual under five year lifetime of bitumen roads that also require frequent repair. The conference concluded on Saturday.

The public works department (PWD) maintains the biggest chunk of 23 lakh square kilometre roads in the state. Its on these roads that the PWD ministers kayakalp (transformation) claim would be tested. Maurya is also deputy chief minister.

The peeling of surface dressing on usual bitumen roads soon after they are relaid has been a common sight across the state but the PWD officials pointed out that the newer technology that involves a judicious mix of bitumen and cement along with few other chemicals has shown remarkable results.

In fact, on select stretches, we have started relaying roads using the cement treated base technology with a recycler imported from Germany. Encouraging results have made us confident. Thats why we say its no joke that 20 year roads will be a reality in the state, Maurya told HT.

The PWD officials pointed out that the recycler is already being used on the Lucknow-Hardoi stretch managed by the state highways. We have introduced third party inspection of all construction work being carried out by the department. There are encouraging results in stretches, where we have carried out road relay and full depth reclamation work using the latest technology, he said.

Part of Mauryas confidence is due to a BJP government at the centre and proactive road transport minister in Gadkari, something that the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party governments that ruled the state in the last 15 years didnt have.

In fact, during the BSP rule between 2007 and 2012, the PWD department had put up notice boards on national highway roads, stating that the centre (and not the BSP government) needed to be blamed for the poor quality of those roads.

We were directed to put up boards that also stated that if the centre wasnt able to maintain those roads it should transfer the roads to the state which would maintain it. The Congress led UPA government was in power at the centre then. The state and the centre mostly played the blame game on road construction. This isnt the situation now as the BJP has governments both in UP and the centre and naturally the focus on roads would be real this time, a senior official told HT.

Maurya said by December 31 his department will have completed work on roads for which tenders have been finalised.

I plan to meet contractors separately to make the governments priorities clear. I am not against profit, but I am surely against roads that used to be re-laid and repaired on paper as was the case during the previous SP and BSP regimes, he said.

Why talk of just Rs 2 lakh crore? if required we would be able to get Rs 4 lakh crore as well because roads are integral to our commitment on development that we have made to the people of the state, Maurya said.

Maurya has also asked the PWD officials to work out a plan for relaying and repair of roads leading to Allahabad that will host the Kumbh mela in early 2019.

The Kumbh is going to be an event that we plan to showcase in a grand way. Thats why we will complete the work by 2018 end itself, the deputy chief minister said.

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After coming to know that many students of the premier Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, (IIT-K) are given to drugs and subsequently identifying 25 of them, the institute has introduced a three-pronged strategy to check the menace.

Prof Manindra Agarwal, acting director of the IIT-K, while confirming it said the exact number of drug users was still to be ascertained. It could be still higher than the number assessed so far, he added.

Agarwal further said abnormal behaviour of the students in the classroom and in hostels besides reports of the security staff confirmed the growing menace in the institute.

As per the strategy, the institute got a new link road completed for the people going to the city. The road will not touch the hostel area and it will not be easy for drug suppliers to contact the students, he said. The district authorities have assured the institute that rural people will be asked to use the new road.

Secondly, an awareness programme will be launched on the campus to check students falling prey to dug menace and they will also be counselled.

The director confirmed that some girls were also using drugs. He said the situation was alarming and all efforts would be made to protect the premier institute and its students.

The fact came to light during a secret survey jointly conducted by IIT-K professors and district officials. During the survey, nearly 25 students were identified as frequent drug users and banned medicines. Drugs were taken mixing with surti (a mixture of tobacco and lime), cigarettes and beer.

The girls residing in hostels also revealed that a few girl students were also addicted to drug and demanded regular checking in the girls hostels.

District magistrate Surendra Singh, who inspected the IIT-K campus, said the district administration will assist the IIT-K in checking the drug menace.

A foolproof strategy has been framed to nab drug suppliers who were supplying drugs to the IIT-K students, he added.

Read more: Mumbai dealer supplying drugs to actors caught; Rs12 L-worth LSD, cocaine seized

The IIT-K director urged the district magistrate that the alternative road constructed for the rural people should be opened for use. At present, the rural people were using 1.02-kilometre long road for going to the city side. The road passed through the campus and connected the villages with the GT Road and provided easy access to the drug peddlers.

Commuters from the villages often got mixed with the students and some of them supplied drugs to the students, the IIT-K authorities told the DM.

Read more: Not just marijuana, here are other drugs you should be aware of

According to police, some employees of the institute and security guards also supplied drugs to the students for hefty amount.

It was only two months back when the police arrested a security guard and recovered two kilogram of ganja (hashish form of cannabis) from his possession. Later, he was removed from the duty, Kalyanpur police sources said.

The IIT-K director said passes will be issued to the guardians who came to take their wards from the central school and that the entry of any outsiders to the campus will be banned.
The National Crime Record Bureaus (NCRB) recent data suggests that Uttar Pradesh tops the list in crime against minors, with around 15% share of total crime against children in the country. The data analysis also suggests that the second biggest category of crime against children in terms of numbers is rape, amounting to more than 18% of all crimes against kids, while crimes under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences act constitute around 4% of total crimes.

The data also reveals that more than 50% crimes against children have been recorded in just five states, namely UP, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi UT and West Bengal.

UP is closely followed by Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh (14% and 13% respectively). Similarly, Delhi and West Bengal recorded 8 % and 6 % of crimes respectively.

The data also shows that there has been a sharp increase of 11% in crimes against children across the country between 2015 and 2016. Going by absolute numbers, its an increase of 12,786 reported crimes against children across the country. The total number of crimes against children reported in 2016 was 1, 06,958, while 94,172 crimes were recorded in 2015.

This, however, does not come as a surprise, as a cumulative analysis by child rights organisation CRY (Child Rights and You) shows a steady upward trend with a significant increase of more than 500% over a period of the past one decade (1,06,958 in 2016 over 18,967 in 2006). Further retrospective comparison within the mentioned time-frame points at a sharper rate of increase in the latter quadrennium (2012 to 2016) than that recorded in the former lustrum (2006 to 2011).

Komal Ganotra, director, policy and advocacy in CRY said, The unfortunate truth is that the same trend of increase is witnessed this year again, indicating that we have not been able to address the age-old issue over the years. Its time we ensure a more robust protective environment for children.

It also does indicate that children have become increasingly exposed to the risk of becoming victims in recent years, she added. However, to some extent this steep rise in numbers could be attributed to increased awareness among the people and the law enforcing agencies in reporting and recording crimes in recent years.

Going by the nature of crimes and categories, kidnapping and abduction clearly top the list with almost half of the total crimes (48.9%, number of crimes 52,253) recorded in 2016. This is clearly indicative of the fact that we are still way short of building a fool-proof safety-net for our children. While ICPS talks about provisions of multilayered protective rings around children, in reality this is still a distant cry, Komal added.

Read more: 14-year-old abducted, gangraped at Loni, one arrested

The CRY analysis also suggested that the next biggest category of crime against children in terms of numbers was rape, amounting to more than 18% of all crimes against children, while crimes under POCSO Act constituted around 4% of total crimes.

Further analysis suggests that UP recorded maximum number of crimes under the categories of Kidnapping & Abduction and POCSO Act; as in both these categories Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh stand in the second and third slot respectively.

Read more| Uttar Pradesh: Youth held for sexually harassing 8-yr-old girl

Ganotra said the current trend in some states like UP continued to throw up worries about the magnitude of crime against children. She said this called for further thinking in terms of differential strategies for critical states along with ensuring adequate investment. Also, this was a grim reminder of the fact that we, as a country, did not have proper prevention mechanisms in place to address the issue of child protection, nor were we keen on building more empathetic understanding and intervention plans adequately backed up by sustained investment on child security, she added.

On tackling increasing crime rate against children, Ganotra said, Child protection in our country cannot be ensured with just legislations and guidelines. We as a country need to commit in cultivating a culture of zero tolerance to violence against children. We should be vigilant and cognizant of the fact that children are at risk. It is non-negotiable for the state and other duty bearers to equip themselves in recognising these risks and put robust systems and processes to assess and eliminate the same.
At a time when even the urban rich do not want to give up government subsidies, many poor villagers are showing courage to construct individual toilets with their own resources, refusing to accept the government financial assistance for the cause.

While examples are now trickling in from several other districts also, the way was apparently shown by Bijnor, where around two dozen village panchayats recently returned the money they had received for the construction of individual latrines under the Swachh Bharat Mission.

Instead, the village pradhans took the initiative to pool in resources to build the toilets. In many other cases, the beneficiaries did it on their own.

Around two dozen village panchayats in Bijnor returned an amount of Rs 4.42 crore that had been transferred to their accounts for building 3696 individual toilets, chief development officer, Bijnor, Indramani Tripathi told the HT. Bijnor, over 150 km from Delhi, is among the states around half a dozen districts that have been declared open defecation free (ODF).

The story began with the Mubarkpur Kalan village under the Haldaur development block. Kishwar Jhan, village Pradhan, took the initiative to return the cheque of Rs 17.56 lakh to the governments district sanitation committee and decided to build the remaining 178 toilets without the government assistance.

We constructed more than 50 toilets through a trust that we run, while in other cases the beneficiaries bore the cost or the community helped them if they were too poor, Shakeel Khan, Kishwar Jhans brother-in-law, told HT.

Toilets have something to do with our honour and hence we decided not to depend on the governments assistance to build latrines that we have named Izzat Ghar, he said adding, Government is welcome to spend on roads, water, education etc.

Significantly, Prime Minister, Narendra Modi had lauded the naming of toilets as izzat ghar by the residents of Mubarakpur Kalan after which the Yogi Adityanath government decided to inscribe the same on latrines being built under the Gramin Swachh Bharat Mission.

But this is not the only village of its kind in the district. In fact, Shahalipur Asha, Telipara, Ajpura Rani, Shekhpura, Islampur Lalu, Kajiwala, Barkala, Buggara, Jatpura, Saraya Jivan, Mubarkpur Kala, Chakmahmood Sani, Fulsanda Gangdas, Sabalpur Bitra, Jatpura Bonda, Mehmoodnasho, Alipur alias Jogipura, Azampur Zamnibhan are among two dozen villages that have their own story.

Lalita Chauhan, village pradhan of Badgar panchayat, returned Rs 28.32 lakh to the government deciding to construct 236 toilets with community participation. We built 52 toilets with our own money, pradhans husband DP Singh claimed.

We also ensured, wherever possible, that the beneficiaries too spend some money so that they have a sense of ownership. Now, not only are people using these toilets but have also constructed bathrooms, he said.

All this, however, did not happen overnight. According to additional chief secretary, panchayati raj, Chanchal Kumar Tewari this was achieved through prolonged sessions of counseling. Our teams sat with villagers impressing upon them the importance of sanitation in their life and the financial loss they suffer in the form of expenditures they made on the treatment of diseases caused due to open defecation, he explained.

According to rural sanitation mission director, Vijaykiran Anand, reports of villagers not taking the government assistance (Rs 12000 per beneficiary) for toilet construction and doing it on their own or through the community help are now coming in from all the districts.

We hope to have 10 lakh individual household latrines built in the state during the current financial year in this manner only without the government spending a penny, he said.

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An eight-year-old school girl was allegedly molested by a youth staying in her neighbourhood in a Kakori village on Lucknow outskirts on Sunday.

The youth has been arrested after registering an FIR under IPC section 354-A for unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures and section 7/8 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act against him.

The accused identified as Chottu was arrested from Chandoiya crossing in Kakori when he was about to board a bus to leave the city.

Read more: 14-year-old abducted, gangraped at Loni, one arrested

District police spokesman Arun Kumar said the girls father told the police that the youth was familiar to the girls family and frequently visited their home. He said the accused was sexually harassing the girl for past many days but she was unable to explain it to her parents.

Read| Rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar armed forces sweeping and methodical: AP investigation

He said the parents came to know about the incident when the girls mother interacted with her after she became ill recently. He said the girl shared her trauma to her mother after which her parents approached the police and lodged an FIR against the youth.
Even as recent incidents of child abuse have raised concerns over how safe schools are, four out of five parents believe that their childs school is the safest place for them, a recent study by Child Rights and You (CRY), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), found.

The survey also found that the proportion of privileged parents who are concerned about the safety of children at home is higher than their underprivileged counterparts. Both groups identified physical and sexual abuse as the biggest risk facing the children.

The NGO surveyed 122 parents of three to 14-year-old children in Kurla, Colaba and Kalina slums, and 89 parents from privileged backgrounds from across the city.

The study comes close on the heels of three reported crimes against children at the hands of people in their schools.

Data compiled by National Crime Record Bureau shows that there has been an increase of 11% in crimes against children across the country between 2015 and 2016. Despite this spike in crime, the study found that parents consider school to be a protected environment.

Accidental risks facing children were much more widely acknowledged, compared to non-accidental risks such as abuse, exploitation and abduction. Less than 2% parents from the underprivileged section and less than 20% of parents from privileged backgrounds perceived non-accidental threats at school.

Around 41% of underprivileged sections acknowledged the risk at home, while 75% of privileged parents felt there was a risk at home.

CRY suggested that parents need to create such a home environment that enables children to express themselves and confide in caregivers more freely.The study also recommended that parks and public spaces be manned, well-lit and guarded.

The findings indicate that there needs to be more awareness generated about the larger construct of child protection, which goes beyond physical safety. We also need the government to address parents concerns and play an active role in ensuring that our children are protected and safe from harm of any kind, said Kreeanne Rabadi, regional director, CRY West.

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The Kalamboli police arrested one more person on Sunday, in connection with the case of woman inspector Ashwini Bidre, who went missing on April 15, 2016.

The accused, Rajesh Patil, 44, is the nephew of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Eknath Khadse, police confirmed.

Bidre, 37, lived with her family at Roadpali. Her family suspects that she was kidnapped and murdered. After the police failed to trace her, they approached the Bombay high court

Patils arrest is the second in the case  on Thursday, police arrested Abhay Kurundkar, 52, a senior inspector with the security branch of Thane (rural) police. Police and his family suspect he had an extramarital affair with Bidre.

They also found photographs and videos on Bidres laptop, which suggest that she and Kurundkar were close. Kurundkar misled the police, saying Bidre had gone to a Vipasana centre to learn meditation. Police searched Vipasana centres in Mumbai, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, to no avail. .

After getting some clues, we arrested Patil from Jalgaon on Sunday. He was produced before the judicial court and remanded in police custody. We will interrogate him to find out more, said Rajendra Mane, deputy commissioner of police (zone II).

On the day Bidre went missing, Kurundkar had called Patil several times. Following this, Patil travelled to Mumbai from Jalgaon. Later, the mobile phones of Bidre, Kurundkar and Patil were traced to the same spot near Mumbai, said a senior official, who did not wish to be identified.

The police had earlier said that Bidres mobile was last traced to Bhayandar.

We had summoned Patil for questioning on Saturday. We arrested him on Sunday evening, the officer said.

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Despite his work as an apologist and essayist of the highest order, C.S. Lewis most famous work is the Chronicles of Narnia. The Silver Chair, the fourth novel published in the series, provides a good framework to understand the state of the European Union, writes Stephen F. Copp in a new essay for Religion & Liberty Transatlantic:

The seductive power of evil and the difficulties of regaining self-determination once lost are well illustrated theologically in C.S. Lewiss The Silver Chair. Rilian, the prince of Narnia, and the children, Eustace and Jill, are all-but-convinced through enchantment and clever argument by the Queen of Underland that the real world, the Overworld, is but a dream and that there was never any world but her own. Puddleglum, a humble Marsh-wiggle, who clears his thoughts with self-inflicted pain, responds with a magnificent speech.  Only then is the queens true nature revealed as she is transformed into a great but loathsome serpent, which the prince, Eustace, and Puddleglum put to death.

Copp, an associate professor of law at Bournemouth University in the UK, writes that first round of Brexit negotiations have similarly exposed EU negotiators priorities.

The EU threatened the return of a hard border between Protestant, British Northern Ireland and the Catholic, independent Republic of Ireland. Irish officials warned this violation of the Good Friday peace agreement may have had the seeds to touch off another round of religious warfare. The dream that the EU promotes peace in Europe is in tatters from the way the question of Northern Ireland has been addressed, risking feeding ancient grievances that were fast being healed, he writes.

In a penetrating essay, Copp delineates the ways which he believes the EU transgresses such European governing values as national self-determination, voluntary and mutually beneficial cooperation, and democratic norms  all in the quest for the maximum economic concessions from Great Britain.

The monetary settlement even took precedence over the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, Copp notes. Early in the negotiating process German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected Mays calls for an early settlement and Donald Tusk, European Council president, and Jean-Claude Juncker, European Commission president, subsequently objected to discussing the matter  so important for the day to day lives of millions  because it was raised in the wrong venue.

While phase one of Brexit negotiations tentatively set the divorce bill in the range of 35 to 39 billion ($46 to $52 billion U.S.), the EU may yet increase its demands. Copp concludes:

The only good thing to emerge from this unholy mess is that if the UK is prepared to pay such a potentially monstrous sum to enable it to leave the EU, it demonstrates that its people are awakening from the spell they have been under, that many still value freedom very much  and can see glimpses of how cold and dark their Underworld prison truly is.

Read his full essay here.

(Photo credit: GlitterandFrills. This photo has been cropped. CC BY 2.0.)
The Opposition led by the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Sunday boycotted the customary tea party hosted by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on the eve of the winter session of the state legislature, beginning from December 11.

Launching a scathing attack on the BJP-Shiv Sena government in Maharashtra, the leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, and opposition leader in the legislative Council, Dhananjay Munde, described the saffron government as total failure on all the fronts  be it loan waiver to farmers, adequate prices to agricultural products or law and order situation.

Vikhe-Patil and Munde alleged farmers, farm labourers, tribals, backward classes and minorities are feeling unsafe in the saffron regime.

The Opposition also targeted the government for ambiguity in farm loan waiver in the state. The government had announced Rs34,000-crore loan waiver package for needy and distressed farmers. Both the leaders dared the government to come out with a list of beneficiaries of loan waiver scheme in the state.

Vikhe-Patil said the loan waiver was announced in June and since then the government has miserably failed to provide any relief to the farmers. He said the government should put the data of farmers and amount of loan waived on the government website, if it is honest.

Munde said the government had to shift its principal secretary information and technology (IT) department and later sent him on compulsory leave when facing embarrassment on the issue. The Opposition also questioned the governments style of working as the law and order situation was going from bad to worse.

Quoting the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures, Vikhe-Patil said Nagpur which is home town of chief minister Fadanvis, was among top five cities in the country where crime rate was highest. Criminals like Munna Yadav (a trusted lieutenant of chief minister Fadnavis) are absconding while leaders like Yashwant Sinha were arrested by the police under this Raj, he quipped.

Former chief minister Ashok Chavan and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said that the opposition would take out a massive morcha Halla Bol on December 12 in protest against governments failure on all fronts. The march started from Yavatmal around 10 days ago and would reach Nagpur on Monday evening.

During the march we interacted with several farmers and not a single farmer said that he had benefitted from the loan waiving scheme of the government, Munde said.
The debate over farm loan waiver and agrarian crisis led to clashes in both houses of the state legislature on the first day of the winter session in Nagpur on Monday.

As the session began, leaders of Opposition in both the houses sought a debate on farmers distress, setting aside the business on the agenda. When the government struck down the demand, leader of Opposition in legislative Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil attacked the state, saying the figures of loan waiver were fake. He dared chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to put the number of beneficiaries and waiver amount on a Rs-100 stamp paper and their website.

In response, the CM said in the Assembly he could put the numbers down on Rs-1,000 stamp paper too. Dont shed crocodile tears. The UPA government waived loans worth Rs72,000-crore all over the country one decade ago. The loan waiver benefits we gave to Buldhana district alone are more than the entire amount granted for Vidarbha region during the UPA regime, he said.

In the upper house, leader of Opposition Dhananjay Munde alleged the government was insensitive when farmers were facing challenges such as deaths because of poisonous insecticides, attack of bollworm on cotton and debts.

The government countered the allegations, saying it was doing everything possible and the plight of the farmers was the result of 15-year rule of the parties that are now in the Opposition.

Opposition members from Congress and NCP, led by Vijay Wadettiwar, Jitendra Ahwad, Sunil Kedar and others, created a ruckus in the House by trooping into the well and shouting slogans against the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Pandemonium prevailed in the legislative council over the issue, which witnessed four adjournments. The Opposition alleged the government was not serious about the agrarian crisis, while treasury benches said the opposition was politicising the issue. The uproar finally led to the adjournment for the day.

NCP MP Supriya Sule suffers minor injuries in scuffle with police

Nationalist Congress Party leader and Rajya Sabha member Supriya Sule suffered a minor injury to her hand during a rasta roko agitation in Nagpur on Monday.

The incident took place during the Halla Bol march launched by the NCP. The anti-government protest march started from Yavatmal a few days ago and reached Nagpur on Monday.

When police tried to disperse the mob, Sule suffered a minor injury to her hands. She was detained by the police, but later released on bail.

The police arrested other NCP leaders, including Anil Deshmukh, Anand Paranjape and Sandeep Bajoria.

The march, which was launched by NCP chief Sharad Pawar 10 days ago, will culminate in a massive public rally on Tuesday.

Yavatmal was chosen as the spot to launch the march as it is a major cotton-growing region and witnesses a majority of farmer suicides.

The government had announced a Rs34,000-crore loan waiver scheme for needy and distressed farmers. However, the actual number of farmers who are expected to benefit from the loan waiver is less than previous estimates of the government, as revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said that at least 10-lakh bank accounts of farmers were fake.

The NCP wants every farmer in the state should get the benefit of the scheme.
The 39-year-old man arrested for allegedly molesting a 17-year-old National award-winning actress was on Monday produced before a Mumbai sessions court, where a judge remanded him to police custody for two days.

The accused -- a Chandivali resident -- was held late Sunday for allegedly harassing the actor on board a Delhi-Mumbai flight operated by Vistara. The incident took place a day before that.

The actor posted an Instagram video narrating her experience, triggering an outrage. The wife of the accused has said the incident is the result of a misunderstanding and that her husband is innocent.

Arguing before the judge, a public prosecutor said, The accused who was seated on a seat behind the victims seat touched her with his leg on her shoulders and neck. The victim shifted a bit on her seat to get away from his leg but despite this he repeated the act after which she raised an alarm. The act has been done intentionally.

The defense lawyer said, The act was not intentional. My client was very tired. He had taken a 7 am flight to Delhi for a condolence meet kept for his maternal uncle who had died four days prior to Saturday. He was returning home that night. He was travelling economy class and wanted a comfortable seat so he switched to business class.

He was in agony and so had asked the airhostess not to wake him up. After the actress had a heated argument with him he apologized to her and said it happened due to the turbulence. It could be that the actress did this for cheap publicity. The complaint was not filed at the airport but it was an afterthought and was filed at a private hotel a day later.

After listening to both sides, the judged remanded Sachdev to police custody for two days. He will be produced before the court again on December 13.

We are being socially shamed: Execs family

Vikas Sachdev, the man accused of molesting a teenage actor on a Delhi-Mumbai, hugged his wife Divya as she broke down at the Dindoshi sessions court on Monday.

After he was remanded in police custody, his wife Divya told reporters that he was innocent and had been falsely implicated.

Vikas works as an executive at a private firm, which distributes equipment such as high-end cameras. He, Divya and their nine-year-old son live in Chandivli.

Vikas  father is a retired income tax officer who lives in Delhi. His father-in-law is a retired Army official.

My family and I are going through a lot of trauma. My husband is completely innocent. He is a family man. We have full trust in the judiciary and know we will get justice. He has been falsely implicated. He had no idea that there was a police complaint against him, Divya told reporters.

She said the police came to their house at 12.30 pm on Sunday, while Vikas was out buying groceries. They took him away soon after he returned. Despite our questions, they did not tell us that he was being arrested, she said.

Vikas brother-in-law Atul Batra said the actor should realise that their family is suffering.

Vikas is innocent. He had apologised to the girl for touching her unintentionally. He is a frequent flier and cannot even think of doing something like that, he said.

We come from a well-do-to family and have never faced such a situation. We have been socially shamed as Vikas is being painted as a sexual offender, he added.
The Mumbai fire brigade plans to procure 35 telescopic rods to help their officials reach birds stuck on electricity wires, thus reducing fatalities of officials during the rescue operations.

The proposal to procure the rods, which can be extended upto 16.5ft, was tabled before the standing committee of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and its meeting will be held on Wednesday.

The telescopic rods will cost Rs77.53lakh and will be distributed across 34 fire stations. A senior fire official said, Earlier, fire officials had to climb up the houses, use bamboo sticks and climb trees to rescue animals or birds. Several fire officials have been injured in the process. These telescopic rods will avoid such accidents.

According to data from the fire brigade department, the fire officials have rescued more than 13,000 animals or birds between 2014 and 2016, the highest in the past 30 years.

A year ago, a fire official, Rajendra Bhojane, lost his life while rescuing a crow stuck on a hypertension wire. After suffering for 20 days in a hospital, Bhojane succumbed to the infection caused by 50% burns on December 31 last year.

There have been several discussions in the past to relieve fire officials from birds and animal rescue, but the administration is yet to take a concrete decision.
The sudden deaths of three members of a family known for being down-to-earth has saddened the residents of Sion-Chunabhattis Baba Tower.

Yashwant Mane, 55; his wife Sharda, 46; his son Rushikesh , 20 and their car driver Krushna Surve, 65, were killed on the spot after the car in which they were travelling hit a truck on the Pune-Satara Highway near Jambhulwadi around 4 am on Monday. The family went to Satara to drop off their daughter who studies there. The accident occurred as they were returning.

The Manes had been living in Sion for long. Dr Yashwant Mane was a helpful man. You could call him in the middle of night and he would be willing to get to work, said Dr Ujwal Rane, who lives in the same building and has known the family for the past two decades. He was a gentleman, he said.

The news has come as a shock, said neighbour Vikas Satpute.

A 10-minute walk from Dr Manes residence is his Shubhangi pathology lab, which was deserted on Monday. The last time we saw him was Saturday. We cannot imagine how his daughter must be feeling. Her entire family has been wiped out, said A Kapil, who works at a neighbouring medical shop.

Residents of Hill Road, where Dr Mane ran the clinic, could talk about little else but the accident. He was a simple man and was well-known here as his lab is the sole one in this area, said a local resident.

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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations upcoming infrastructure projects are likely to face hurdles in the future owing to a shortage of tenements to house those displaced by the projects. Although there are a few tenements in Chembur, the authority currently needs more than 5000 tenements.

The administration is demolishing encroachment structures along the Tanspa pipeline and rehabilitating people to their units for Project Affected People (PAP) at Mahul in Chembur.

A senior civic official said the total number of PAP units constructed at Mahul were nearly 16,000, of 12,000 have been given out. There are around 4,500 units left at Mahul village in Chembur. PAP units received from other projects of Slum Rehabilitation Authority under Development Control Regulations (DCR) are not more than 300. We may temporarily face shortage, but that would not delay projects as there are several units that are yet to be handed over, he said.

Under DCR 33 (11), developers hand over some tenements to the civic body for free and get additional transfer development rights (TDR) in return.

The BMC is also turning to the suburbs to generate more units, but the proposal is in the planning stage.

Another senior civic official said the civic body was to get 1,000 PAP tenements from SRA projects, of which they have received a mere 10% so far.

He said, The slum authority is unwilling to share the tenements as they have stated they require more houses. They said after the government cleared a bill to regularise pre-2000 slums, the requirement for tenements has increased, as the number of slum dwellers that need to be rehabilitated has gone up.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackerays son Amit, 25, got engaged to fashion designer and long-time girlfriend Mitali Borude in a private ceremony at Tote On The Turf, Mahalaxmi racecourse, on Monday afternoon.

The date of the engagement, December 11, was chosen as it is also the wedding anniversary of Thackeray and his wife Sharmila.

At the small function attended by close family and friends, notably absent was Thackerays cousin and political rival Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and his family. A source close to the MNS chief said that Thackeray did not invite his cousin Uddhav, as he is upset with the Senas recent poaching of MNS corporators in the civic body.

Six of the seven MNS corporators broke away from the party and joined the Shiv Sena recently. Sources close to Raj said the MNS chief is bitter about the way Sena poached on his party corporators, even though he was willing to cooperate with the latter in the Brinhamumbai Municipal Corporation, where the Sena is in power with outside support from the BJP.

Smita Thackeray, ex-wife of Uddhavs brother Jaidev Thackeray, and their son Rahul attended the engagement.

With just 60 to 70 people attending the event, it was a low-key affair, and only political leaders present were those from the MNS--Nitin Sardesai, Bala Nandgaonkar and Rajan Shirodkar. Other guests included prominent photographer Avinash Gowariker, and Rajs relatives Chandrakant Vaidya, and Jaijaiwanti Deshpande.

Amit, a commerce graduate from DG Ruparel College, and Mitali, a close friend of his sister Urvashi, have known each other for more than nine years. His fiance has a clothes label called The Rack, which she launched a few years back.

Clad in a deep blue kurta and embroidered jacket, Amit said: Mitali has designed and stitched the clothes herself. When asked about their wedding plans, Mitali said: It takes a lot of preparation, so there is some time for that.

Thackeray soft-launched Amit into politics during the 2014 Maharashtra Assembly elections, when he held road shows in Mumbai. During the 2017 civic polls, Amit started a Facebook page to interact with voters and woo the youth. The page has more than one lakh followers.

It is anticipated that Thackeray will launch Amit into politics soon, in a bid to revive the MNS dwindling popularity.

Amit faces competition from his cousin, Aaditya Thackeray, Uddhav Thackerays son and the leader of Yuva Sena, which has gathered following in Mumbai since Aadityas launch in 2010.
Despite the polices claim that they have solved the Sanpada bank heist and recovered 52% of the stolen goods, they are yet to arrest four culprits.

On November 11, a gang dug a 30-foot-long tunnel from a nearby shop and broke into 30 Bank of Baroda lockers, stealing valuables.

Key accused Deepak Mishra, a Nalasopara resident, is still on the run. Mishra and the mastermind, Hajid Ali Mirja Baig, 47, had brought the gang together.

Two labourers, who Mishra brought from Uttar Pradesh to Mumbai, are also missing. Their task was to dig the tunnel, said police. The two, who stayed at a flat in Ulwe, would dig a little more every evening.

Another accused, who coordinated with the gang and arranged for transportation, is yet to be arrested. We recovered four vehicles used in the crime, one of which belongs to this man, said an officer from Sanpada police station.

Suraj Padvi, senior inspector, Sanpada police station, said police hope to make arrests soon

So far, the police have arrested 11 people, including two women and recovered 5.5 kg gold, Rs12.19 lakh in cash, four vehicles and some foreign currency notes.

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On his 77th birthday on Tuesday, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar will be leading a protest rally of Congress, NCP and other Opposition parties in Nagpur, along with senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad. Two separate protest marches of the Congress and NCP will merge and culminate in a rally to protest against the policies of the BJP-led government. Pawar will be leading such a rally after more than three decades.

In states political circles, there are speculations that this rally could be a significant step, with the Congress and NCP coming together after parting ways ahead of the Assembly elections in 2014. There are also speculations that the event will be the beginning of the Opposition unity in Maharashtra as smaller parties such as Peasants and Workers Party and Samajwadi Party too will participate.

Pawars on-off relation with Congress

In his political career of over half-a-decade, Pawar was not always a Congressman, but his style of politics was similar to the grand old party. He left the Congress twice. First time in 1978 to be part of Congress (S) and returned to the party in 1987 during the late Rajiv Gandhis tenure as the Prime Minister. Second time, he floated the NCP in 1999 after he rebelled against Sonia Gandhi over the issue of her foreign origin. Within six months, he was back in an alliance with the Congress after the Assembly elections in Maharashtra. The election threw a fractured mandate and the Congress-NCP came together to form a coalition government. The NCP contested 2004 Lok Sabha elections as part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

The next ten years saw the two parties winning two Lok Sabha and two Maharashtra Assembly elections together and Pawar became a significant part of UPA. Even though he had rebelled against her, Sonia Gandhi respected Pawar as an ally of the Congress. On his part, Pawar was least troublesome ally for the Congress in two successive UPA governments at the Centre.

Things started turning bad between the two sides in the last couple of years of the UPA-II and when Prithviraj Chavan became the chief minister of Maharashtra. With BJPs landslide victory in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the NCP started drifting from the UPA and ultimately the alliance ended ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls in 2014.

BJP and Pawar

As the BJP fell short of barely 23 seats to win power on its own, Pawar surprised everyone by extending unconditional support to the BJP government in Maharashtra. Later, Prime Minister Modi went to Baramati and declared Pawar was his guide in politics. That distanced Congress further. At the same time, the NCP seemed to be trying to be in good books of the BJP as its senior leader Chhagan Bhujbal was put behind bars in a corruption case and probe began into the irrigation scam in which Pawars nephew Ajit was under the scanner. The past three years saw the NCP rarely taking a strong line against the ruling BJP governments in the state or at the Centre.

However, now there are murmurs in the NCP that Pawar is not very happy with the current situation. The NCP doesnt get along well with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is more inclined towards getting Shiv Sena on his side rather than scam-hit party.

. As such, the process of NCP-Congress coming together has begun, say NCP insiders. Current state Congress chief Ashok Chavan, too, is in favour of the two parties coming together to counter the BJP as they share a common voter base. The groundwork was done earlier this year, when Chavan and Ajit Pawar together started a yatra demanding farm loan waiver. Now Pawar and Azad leading a joint protest rally on Tuesday could be the next step forward.

The doubts

However, there is a sizable section in the Congress that does not trust Pawar. Some of them suspect that Pawar is joining the Congress to deny the party an advantage of occupying the entire Opposition space, which will suit the BJP. Some of them suspect Pawar is doing what he does the best: the balancing act between the BJP and the Congress so he will end up with the winning side post 2019, no matter who wins. Whatever is the truth, the fact remains that the Congress would need the NCP in Maharashtra if it wants to put up a formidable challenge to the BJP. And who knows this better than Pawar?

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Two unidentified bikers shot the manager of a Palghar firm in the leg so they could snatch his bag in Kudus on Monday afternoon. The men fled with Karan Singh Yadavs bag containing Rs6 lakh in cash, which was to be disbursed to his employees.

Yadav was admitted to the Wada primary health centre (PHC), where the bullets were extracted. He is said to be recuperating. Police have not made any arrests yet.

As soon as Yadav alighted at the state transport bus stand, the men grabbed his bag. After he resisted, one of the assailants shot him twice, said inspector Ravindra Naik, Wada police station.

No passersby came to Yadavs aid. An on-duty policeman took him to the hospital, said Naik.

We registered a case under section 394 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Arms Act and are investigating, he said. The CCTV camera footage of the area is hazy. The heist seems to have been pre-planned. We have not ruled out the involvement of an insider, he said.
Two years after they launched the e-challan system, the Mumbai traffic police have now decided to deliver penalty notices to violators doorstep via general post office, to collect pending fines.

In January this year, the police launched an initiative under which motorists receive messages on their phones about the nature of traffic violation and the penalty amount.

With payment of nearly 7.5lakh e-challans pending, the police have realised that not all motorists and bikers have registered their phone number with the regional transport offices (RTOs). Another reason, according to an officer, is that a few motorists mislead the police, saying that they have not received any challan message.

The Mumbai traffic police plan to link the e-challan fine system with the postal service. With this, they want to iron out shortcomings in the system.

Once a driver receives an e-challan via post, he has to visit the nearest chowky to pay up the fine within a stipulate time.

We have found that not every driver has registered his mobile number with the RTO. This means that they dont receive e-challan messages, said Amitesh Kumar, joint commissioner of police (traffic). An officer said after exploring several alternatives, they decided to opt for the postal service to collect fines. Before the postal service, the Mumbai traffic police have taken several measures to increase fine collection. First, 500 repeat offenders with more than 2,700 challans were identified. Each violator was issued five of more challans and the penalty had been pending for months. Traffic chowkies were given the list and asked to physically trace the address of these motorists from RTO records and summon them to pay up the fine. Second, the traffic police set a target of 2,700 more motorists each with three or more challans. However, this method failed to bear fruits.

The traffic police also realised that at times drivers were unable to pay the fine through their card owing to poor network or malfunctioning of the machine. The general post office (GPO) would now send the e-challan to their residential addresses. The officer said that they had begun stopping drivers, asking to pay their pending fine through debit/credit card or Paytm. If the driver does not have money in his account, he will be asked to call his relatives to the spot. Using this method, the police had managed to collect Rs20 lakh in 10 days. But the police believe that this method could not be continued as it demanded huge manpower.

Now, the traffic police had asked the GPO to submit a proposal to link the e-challan system with the postal service, We have received the proposal but we are still thinking over it, said a traffic police officer.
The team of child welfare committee (CWC) officials who inspected the Sahibabad-based school, where a class 2 girl was allegedly sexually assaulted by minor students, found serious lapses including the use of girls toilet by boys, lack of women support staff and dysfunctional CCTV cameras.

The CWC, after its inspection on December 6, sent a report to senior officials at the Centre and also officials of the state government in this regard.

According to the girls parents, the boys allegedly inserted some object into the victims private parts on November 8.

Following the FIR, we inspected the school, where we found that the boys washroom was locked and the boys were using the girls toilet. We also found some dysfunctional CCTV cameras and there was no woman staff deputed to look after the children while they moved around toilets, Shalini Singh, member, CWC, said.

She said that the report of the school inspection was sent to the higher authorities of the school, ministry of HRD, principal secretary  UP and Ghaziabad district magistrate.

We have also called upon the parents of the girl for counselling but they have not responded so far. It is only after the counselling sessions will we be able to get more information from the child about the incident, Singh said.

Following the alleged incident, the parents of the girl approached the police after a doctor, during treatment, told them that the girl had suffered an injury to her private parts.

An FIR under sections of voluntarily causing hurt, rape and sections of Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences Act was lodged into the incident. During the investigation, the police questioned two boys of class 5 and 6 but they denied any assault and said that they had slapped the girl as she was allegedly misbehaving.

The police also got a medical examination conducted but the report ruled out an injury. However, the police had said that they will take the opinion of medical experts as there was a lapse of nearly 25 days between the date of the alleged incident and the filing of an FIR.

Earlier, the girl was not going to school and was fearful but we have started sending her to school now. It is more than enough for us as our child is normal now and is paying attention to her studies. Her medical has also ruled out any injury. We will decide if we want her to go in for counselling by CWC. However, I do not want to pursue the case, the girls father said.

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The 16-year-old boy, who was sent to the observation home in Noida on Saturday after he confessed to have killed his mother and sister, did not talk much about the incident, said the official who counselled him at the juvenile care home.

The boy said he did it in a fit of rage, without realising the consequences of his action, the official said quoting the boy.

After two days of the incident, he started missing his family and later called up his father. He said he was confused and could not tell his father about his whereabouts, the observation home official said, quoting his conversations with the accused juvenile.

The counsellor quoted boy saying, Maine galat kiya lekin tab pata hi nahi chala. Maine socha bhi tha kood jaoon.

The counsellor hinted that the boy had developed resentment against his mother at a very young age and shared a closer bond with his grandfather. Police had brought the boy to observation home around 5.30pm, where his father and other relatives were present.

Before entering the home, the boy hugged his father and went in without talking to him.

An official said that in view of the gravity of the incident, the boy has been put in solitary confinement. He is remorseful, but he is still angry. He will have to be in solitary confinement for four days at least. The boy is not ready to share the details and we do not want to make him uncomfortable by broaching the subject at this stage, the counsellor said.

The first counselling session took place at 10pm on Saturday which lasted for one hour. He slept at 11pm and woke up at 7am.

At 9am on Sunday, we had the second round of counselling in which he looked a little comfortable. He was given a haircut and later some story books. The observation home is all about changing the mental make up of a juvenile, the counsellor added.

The boy followed the directions by the officials.He ate dal, roti, rice, paneer on Saturday night and had milk and aloo-poori on Sunday morning for breakfast. He can meet his parents once a week on Thursday.

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The Patna high court on Monday ordered that all mining activities in Bihar, including sand lifting, would be carried out in accordance with the unamended old rules.

A division bench of chief justice Rajendra Menon and justice Anil Kumar Upadhaya also directed officers concerned of the state mining department to submit their replies to charges of overreaching the court order staying operations of the new Bihar Minor Minerals Rules 2017.

The court has sought the replies by December 18.

The bench was hearing interlocutory applications, alleging that the mining department was issuing various orders overreaching the courts stay. Petitioners Pushpa Singh and others also claimed that the department had closed the website and stopped issuing e-challan, thereby bringing their entire business to a halt.

Earlier on November 27, the court, while hearing a bunch of analogous petitions filed by Singh and others, had stayed the execution of the new Bihar Minor Minerals Rules 2017.

The petitioners had challenged the validity of the new rules, claiming that these were not in accordance with the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

The new rules were introduced by the Nitish Kumar government after the JD(U) and the BJP joined hands on July 27.

The impact of the law has been that sand mining has been restrained, resulting in temporary lay off of thousands of people, including labourers, transporters and the realty sector being hit to the extent that both public and private constructions have stopped.

In a related development, 50 people were injured when the police and miners engaged in sand mining clashed at Chirand in north Bihars Saran district
Chandigarh got air connectivity with Bangkok on Monday, with Air India launching a direct flight to the famous south-east Asian tourist destination from here.

The flight of the national carrier, which will be operating thrice a week - Monday, Wednesday and Friday - took off from here at 2pm carrying over 120 passengers. The flight will take around five hours to reach the destination in Thailand.

The maiden flight from the Thailands capital reached Chandigarh International Airport in the morning before it took off for the return journey in the afternoon.

The flight was awaited for close to a year with the national carrier missing several deadlines. The airlines local manager, RK Negi, said response to the flight is very good. The first flight is almost full and there is decent booking in subsequent flights as well, he said.

On price variation, Negi said travellers might get cheaper tickets to Bangkok from Delhi but taking off from here will help them save time. The return fare varies between Rs 20,000 and Rs 22,000.

Air India has deployed its latest plane A320 Neo on the route. Negi said it has 12 business class seats and 150 in the economy class. The aircraft has more leg space for both the categories, he said.

(With PTI inputs)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP, from Mandi parliamentary constituency, Ramswaroop Sharma demanded Bharat Ratna for Nobel Peace laureate and Tibetan leader Dalai Lama, on Sunday.

Sharma was speaking as a chief guest at the official ceremony, to celebrate 28th anniversary of conferment of Nobel Peace Prize on the Dalai Lama, organised by Tibetan government-in-exile at Tsuglagkhang Temple in McLeodganj.

The temporal head of Tibetan people was bestowed with Nobel Peace Prize on this day in 1989.

I appeal to the Indian government to confer the Bharat Ratna on his holiness the Dalai Lama, said Sharma, who is also a member of All Party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet, led by Kangra MP and former chief minister Shanta Kumar.

Sharma described the Dalai Lama as a beacon of grace and humility in his address and expressed Indias fervent support for the Tibetan freedom movement.

He said that forum is also making efforts for inviting Dalai Lama to address a joint session of the Indian Parliament.

The celebration included cultural performances by the participants from Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts and Tibetan Childrens Villages.
A 12-year-old hearing-impaired boy from Pakistan, lodged at Faridkot childrens home since May this year, became a subject of cross-border speculation following a twitter exchange between a Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar and external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj.

It was on December 2 that Tarar tweeted a Geo News report alleging that a Pakistani boy with hearing and speech disabilities was lodged in Amritsar jail, and asked Swaraj to look onto the matter. She also marked the tweet to the prime minister and the home minister. In reply, Swaraj asked Tarar to send details.

Mehar Tarar - Pls send me complete details. I will check it up. https://t.co/6QajgffMsH  Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) December 2, 2017

Two days later, Tarar shared that the boys name was Hammad Hussain and his father was one Ghulam Mustafa, a resident of Pasrur, Punjab. As per the father, Hammad had gone missing from Pasrur near Sialkot in 2013.

Thanks Mehr. I will ask for a report from State of Punjab. https://t.co/K3xb5UDlKT  Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) December 6, 2017

In a series of tweets on December 6, Swaraj said India has five Pakistani nationals who are unable to speak and hear. Three of them are in a transit camp in Amritsar but Pakistan has not confirmed their nationality.

She further tweeted that they have a 12-year-old juvenile in the Faridkot observation home. He was apprehended by the BSF in May 2017. We are waiting for Pakistan to confirm his nationality as well, she tweeted.

She wrote that even though the boy was just 12 and had strayed into the Indian territory in May this year, the Indian government was ready to give the parents a visa. We are prepared to give visa to parents of Hammad if they believe the juvenile we have is their son. They may visit India, meet him and confirm for themselves.

The Border Security Force (BSF) had detained the 12-year-old when he crossed over to the Indian side in the Ferozepur sector of Punjab on May 1. He could not speak or hear, and it was only from a currency note in his pocket that they found he was from Pakistan. Two days later, he was sent to childrens observation home.

Officials say they sent the boy to Amritsar in the hope that counselors for hearing impaired would be able to find the name of his native place from him, but without any success.

Deputy commissioner of Faridkot, Rajiv Prashar, said nobody from Pakistan has so far approached the administration for the boys custody. We will be very happy if he returns home, he said.

He said the boy has been under special care at the observation home and is being counseled regularly. He has also made friends with other inmates.

Charges galore

The police have slapped a slew of serious charges against the juvenile. He has been booked under Sections 3 (punishment of offences committed beyond, but which by law may be tried within India), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), Section 20 of the Indian Passport Act and Section 14 of the Foreign Act at the police station (Sadar) in Ferozepur.
The general body meeting of Tamil Nadu Film Producers Council (TFPC) held on Sunday ended abruptly after producer Cheran and other members of the council demanded Vishals resignation, reported Times of India.

According to the report, this happened as members were unhappy about Vishals decision to contest elections from RK Nagar as they are expecting flak from the state government. Producers depend on the subsidy provided by the state government and also depend on the government that moderates disputes about satellite rights of the films.

Producer Rajan was quoted by TOI as saying, The producers council has never opposed the government. When some questioned the office-bearers over Vishals decision to contest the RK Nagar bypoll, Vishal said the question will be addressed later. Vishal asked for the meeting to proceed as per the agenda. Then there was a ruckus and the meeting came to an end.

The meeting was to discuss producer Ashok Kumars death, welfare of small-budget film producers and satellite rights. The meeting saw the presence of 400 producers including SA Chandrasekar, Sundar C, Prakash Raj, SR Prabhu and T Rajendar.

T Rajendar told TOI, When a former office-bearer like S Radhakrishnan (who runs Maruthi Films) wanted to pose a question, the organisers refused to give him the microphone, and added, Radhakrishnan wanted to ask Vishal if he was working on recovering the pending dues from TV channel. But he was not allowed.

Vishal also faced allegations of corruption over the council funds to which he told the publications, The opposing members are blocking our initiatives. We have submitted the accounts for the money spent by the office-bearers since April.

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Telugu actor Vijay Sai was found dead at his residence in Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad, on Monday morning. While reports claim the actor has committed suicide, the police are yet to confirm this. The incident reportedly occurred between 4 and 5 am.

The comedian was well know for his roles in films such as Nuvve Kavali, Bommarillu, Swathi Keertanam and more.

Local media reported that the actor took this step as he was not getting work in films anymore. However, the police have not confirmed the same and are investigating the case. For now, the death is being treated as suspicious and the police are also checking if there was a family dispute. It was also reported that the actor was being treated for depression.

It is not clear if the actor left behind a note. The police are checking on people who the actor spoke to before his death. More details in the case are awaited.

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An interfaith group from Bahrain is visiting Israel amid turmoil there over US President Donald Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital, angering some in the island nation who support the Palestinians.

The groups trip comes after two U.S.-based rabbis have said that Bahrains King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa thinks that the longtime boycott of Israel by Arab countries should end.

While organizers repeatedly described the trip as nonpolitical and unrelated to its governments policies, the timing comes as Bahrain increasingly looks like the test case for other Gulf Arab nations in seeing what could happen if they recognize Israel.

A group of 30 people from Bahrain, including Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews and Muslims, flew to Israel for the event. They plan to visit universities and talk to officials there about topics of common interest, said Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center.

The goal here is to multiply the interactions and contacts among people doing similar things in the overall region, the rabbi told The Associated Press on Sunday. Until now, there was absolutely no chance of having contact.

King Hamad hosted Cooper and another rabbi in February from Simon Wiesenthal Center. In September, King Hamads son, Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, went to the center to promote a religious tolerance declaration signed by the king.

It was at that September event word spread of King Hamads comments about wanting the Arab boycott of Israel to end.

That goes against decades of Arab opposition to Israel, which at its heart remains the demand for the creation of a Palestinian state and Israels withdrawal from occupied territory. Only Egypt and Jordan have made a separate peace with Israel.

However in recent years, Sunni Arab states have found themselves on the same side as Israel when confronting Shiite power Iran following its nuclear deal with world powers.

Bahrain, an island nation off the coast of Saudi Arabia connected by a 25-kilometer (15.5-mile) causeway, long has been known as more liberal than its ultraconservative neighbor. Its bars and nightclubs attract cross-border traffic, as well as sailors based there with the U.S. Navys 5th Fleet.

The island also hosts a small Jewish community, whose presence occasionally makes waves. An online video last year from Bahrain during Hanukkah caused a minor stir when it showed yarmulke-wearing Jews dancing with Arabs in traditional robes and kaffiyeh headdresses.

Everyone in Bahrain has total religious freedom, said Betsy Mathieson of the This is Bahrain campaign group, which promotes the island. They are free to carry out their religious rites and worship in safety and security. Its not a problem for anyone in Bahrain.

However, that belies the findings of an official investigation conducted after Bahrain put down its 2011 Arab Spring protests with the help of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. That investigation found the government demolished 30 Shiite religious structures following the demonstrations, ranging from mosques to meeting halls and shrines.

The report noted that while many lacked proper permits, the timing of their destruction would be perceived as a collective punishment. Activists put the number of destroyed Shiite structures even higher.

In the time since, activists, Shiite leaders and politicians have found themselves ensnared in a wide-ranging crackdown on all dissent in Bahrain. In August, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the island nation must stop discriminating against the Shiite communities.

I believe that the government of Bahrain has failed to follow a just and inclusive policy in its relationship with the majority of its citizens, Sheikh Maytham al-Salman, a Shiite cleric from Bahrain, told the AP. PR campaigns by the government of Bahrain ... have failed to convince the international community that it respects the religious freedom rights of the majority of its citizens.

As news of the Bahraini delegation in Israel spread, many took to social media in anger Monday. Already, many had been sending messages of support to Palestinians over Trumps Jerusalem decision.

I reject this normalization of relations with the usurping enemys entity, Ebrahim Sharif, a secularist politician who was once a leader of the Waad political party, wrote on Twitter. I consider this visit by the delegation a betrayal of the Palestinian people.
Hardline Muslim groups in Indonesia burned photos of U.S. President Donald Trump, as well as U.S. and Israeli flags, on Monday during a protest outside the U.S. embassy against Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Indonesia, home to the worlds largest Muslim population, has joined a global chorus of condemnation of Trumps controversial move on Israel, which they say threatens security and stability in the Middle East and the world.

The status of Jerusalem, a city holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians, is one of the thorniest barriers to a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Jerusalems eastern sector was captured by Israel in a 1967 war and annexed in a move not recognised internationally.

Palestinians claim East Jerusalem for the capital of an independent state that they seek, while Israel maintains that all of Jerusalem is its capital.

Hundreds attended the protest outside the U.S. embassy in Jakarta, which was barricaded by barbed wire and dozens of police officers.

Let us witness the destruction of Israels hegemony, one protest leader shouted into a megaphone as protesters burned an Israeli flag. We will support Palestine with our blood.

Many protesters waved Palestinian flags and carried banners supporting intifada, or an uprising against Israel, and rally leaders also shouted anti-Semitic slogans.

The protest was led by the Islamic Defenders Front, an aggressive vigilante group that calls for sharia, or Islamic religious law, to be imposed in Indonesia, a secular country.

The demonstration followed a much larger protest at the weekend, where thousands called for diplomatic relations with the United States to be severed and for the U.S. ambassador to be expelled.

Indonesia supports a two-state solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
A stash of 1,200-year-old Chinese treasure found under the sea has been returned to Chinas central Hunan province.

Experts believe they will provide evidence of Chinas overseas porcelain trade during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

The 162 pieces of treasure were part of a huge cargo of ninth-century porcelain traded from China during the Tang Dynasty via an Arab dhow, which wrecked in Indonesias Java sea.

In 1998, a German salvage company discovered the shipwreck and named it Batu Hitam.

More than 67,000 pieces of treasure were found in the ship, 85 per cent of which came from a kiln in Changsha, now Hunans capital city.

Most of the porcelain is now owned by Tilman Walterfang, head of the salvage company.

In September, the administration office of the kiln in Changsha signed an agreement with Walterfang to return a collection of 162 pieces to China, state-run Xinhua news agency reported today.

The treasure sent home includes fine ceramics from several kilns in the provinces of Hunan, Zhejiang, Hebei, Henan and Guangdong.

The treasure is expected to be accessible to the public at a museum in Changsha by early 2018.
A Bangladeshi-origin man inspired by the Islamic State exploded a low-tech device in an underground station near Times Square in New York City on Monday, injuring himself and four others in an attempted terrorist attack.

The attack could have been catastrophic given the crowds of commuters passing through at the time.

Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that Akayed Ullah, 27, was inspired by the Islamic State but apparently had no direct contact with the terrorist group.

Akayed Ullah was an immigrant who came to the United States from Bangladesh seven years ago. He lived in Brooklyn.

The suspect was in hospital in a serious condition with burn injuries on his hands and abdomen and lacerations after being detained.

Four persons suffered minor injuries, official said.

The suspect wore the device, described as based on a pipe bomb, strapped to his body with a combination of velcro and zip ties. He triggered it while walking through an underground tunnel with other commuters, which was captured live by a CCTV camera.

The suspect did make a statement before setting off the device, New York Police chief James P ONeill told reporters when asked if he had links to the Islamic State, but refused to divulge more. No other details were given of the suspect.

The police have said he acted alone, but investigations will be conducted of his residence and acquaintances as is the drill in such cases to ascertain if he had received help from a network of supporters or the Islamic State, which has not claimed credit for the incident as it had for the Manhattan attack on October 31.

When we hear of an attack in the subways, its incredibly unsettling, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters at a news conference. And lets also be clear, this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

New York governor Andrew Cuomo said the bomb used was an effectively low-tech device.

The explosion occurred at 7:20 am in the underground tunnel on 42nd Street between 7th and 8th avenues, near the Times Square subway station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal, which is Americas largest bus station handling an estimated 230,000 commuters daily.

The incident, which was described by ONeill as terror-related, came just weeks after a man drove his pick-up truck through a busy Manhattan street killing eight in the worst terrorist attack in the city since September 11, 2001, and sent the city into a practiced state of heightened security.

When you hear about a bomb in the subway station, it is in many ways one of our worst nightmares, Cuomo said. The reality turns out to be better than the initial expectation and fear.

President Donald Trump was briefed about the incident, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said.

New York City has been a target of multiple terrorists attacks and attempts starting the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993; the worst of them was the 9/11 attacks. There have been 26 more attempts and plots that were stopped, including several attempts to attack the iconic Times Square.
Labour Leader Brendan Howlin has warned that the internal politics of the British Conservative Party could derail the prospects of a soft Brexit with the advantages that would bring for Ireland.

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Netflix have just released their users habits for 2017, including the most binge watched television shows, series that we just couldnt wait for our significant other to come home before watching and some of our more unusual quirks.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the day that saw the most users on the popular streaming site was Monday 16th October when the nation came to a standstill during Storm Ophelia.

The average Netflix user watched around 60 movies this year which makes it really bizarre that one Irish person managed to watch the Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston movie 'Just Go With It' a whopping 308 times.

To the 53 people who've watched A Christmas Prince every day for the past 18 days: Who hurt you?  Netflix US (@netflix) December 11, 2017

The most binge watched show of this year was the Mexican political drama Ingobernable, and Irish audiences tended to marvel at superhero criminal dramas such as Iron Fist and The Defenders.

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Comedies faired very well on the Emerald Isle this year with You Me Her, a rom com centred around a polyamorous relationship in Portland hitting the right note with Irish audiences. Big Mouth, a hilarious coming of age animated show dealing with the awkwardness of puberty and hormones also tickled our funny bones.

On a more contentious note, the shows that we just couldn't wait for our significant other to watch with us were Narcos, the gripping story of the cocaine trade in Columbia and the mystery drama 13 Reasons Why.

The series voted best for bringing all the family together was the supernatural nostalgia tinged Stranger Things, which has garnered it's own cultish following among its many viewers.
Houston-based Phillips 66 and Canada's Enbridge said Monday they're teaming up to build a large Texas oil pipeline stretching from West Texas' Permian Basin to export and refining hubs near Corpus Christi, Houston and Freeport.

The two energy giants said they're beginning to solicit interest this week from customers and will finalize the pipeline plans based on customer feedback and interest.
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The Montrose craft shop Corazon endured much over the last 20 years, from eight car crashes damaging the walls to multiple hurricanes battering it with wind and rain.

But the eclectic store under the rainbow-colored sign, known for hand-selected folk art and trinkets imported from Latin America, could not survive the relentless demand for close-in real estate in Houston. The property at Waugh Drive and Fairview Street was sold to developers earlier this year for $500,000, real estate agent Robert Martinez of Greenberg and Co. said. The metal building will be demolished to make way for townhomes.

That will be the end for a building that over the years housed a blacksmith shop, a general store, an antique store, a furniture refinishing store and a glass-blowing studio. As Corazon, it became a local icon and a temptation to curious passersby. The store decorated with creatively cut tissue paper, or papel picado, has been well regarded by its neighbors.

"It's a Montrose staple," lamented customer Antonio "Geronimo" Villalobos, owner of Campesino Coffeehouse down the street. "I'm going to miss it."

Chris Murphy first opened the shop in 1997 on Montrose Boulevard at the site of the former Gramercy Apartments. A year later, while biking past the Waugh and Fairview corner, a hand-painted cardboard "for rent" sign caught his eye.

Friends tried to dissuade Murphy from moving in, calling the corner "the middle of nowhere" and pointing out how the building, already worn with time, was leaning to the side.

Murphy disregarded them and took a year's lease for $650 a month. Given months to search for a new location, he said he's been unsuccessful in finding affordable rent inside Loop 610.

Jason Baker, principal at commercial real estate firm Baker Katz, said that as more residents look for homes closer to the urban core, commercial land prices continue to grow.

"We're seeing land values right now that we've never seen before," Baker said.

The consequence is little to no interest in developing single-level retail like Corazon, which Baker said adds character to the city.

Customers say Murphy is a character himself.

A native Houstonian, Murphy thought he'd never return to Houston after he left for college at the University of Texas. After graduation he joined a traveling circus, tutoring the teenage children of performers and looking after performing poodles. He returned to Houston with a part-time gig at a separate imported artisan craft store, where he picked up the trade.

For years Murphy has built up his store's inventory traveling to Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and South American countries where he bought traditional items directly from artisans and collectives.

Store shelves and walls display colorful luchador masks, ceramic jaguars, handmade jewelry, woven bags and wooden block letters by renowned Salvadoran artist Fernando Llort.

Calling himself a "reluctant merchant" Murphy said he has little interest in promoting consumerism, but he's found that selling crafts allows him to promote cultures he loves.

Though sales never boomed, Murphy generated steady revenue over the years through a combination of walk-in and online purchases. In recent years, e-commerce took its toll on his business as well as other retailers big and small.

He hopes that by the end of the year he'll be out of inventory after hosting a series of clearance sales. Remaining product, and his best-selling guayaberas, will be sold online through the store's website.

On a recent afternoon, friend and longtime customer Ben Hernandez walked in with a worried look on his face and asked Murphy if it was the final day. He hadn't heard of the extended reprieve the landowners had given him.

With a sigh of relief, Hernandez asked Murphy about his weekend. The two men carried on their conversation under decorative flags Murphy pinned up from his time visiting members of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation in Chiapas, Mexico.
Otto von Bismarck is famously quoted as saying (though he probably didn't), "Laws are like sausages. It's better not to see them being made." That's certainly the case with the tax bills passed by the U.S. House and the Senate and now set for conference. Sausages and laws do end up containing things that on their own might be fairly unappetizing, but that doesn't mean they should include things that are inedible or rotten.

For higher education, there is virtually nothing good in this tax legislation, but that doesn't mean that everything that adversely affects us is wrong or an inappropriate part of a larger bill. But there are at least two distasteful provisions that our representatives and senators should remove before the sausage becomes law.

Both the House and Senate bills contain an "excise" tax on certain university endowments, though the threshold for applying the tax differs: $500,000 of assets per student in the Senate bill and $250,000 in the House version. The House bill originally applied to any college or university with more than $100,000 per student, but that was ultimately raised to $250,000. The Senate worked with that number until an amendment that would have exempted only Hillsdale College, which identifies itself as a conservative Christian college, failed, and then the threshold was raised to $500,000 to exempt Hillsdale (and incidentally others) instead.

RECKLESS CUTS: GOP tax bill does not live up to early promises

The discriminatory nature of the provision reflects its unprincipled quality and could make it legally vulnerable. It doesn't apply to nonprofit institutions other than educational ones even if they are sometimes engaged in the same work. Thus an endowment gift to a university to support medical research would be subject to the tax, but a gift to a hospital would not be. A gift to support music and art at a university would be subject to the tax, but not to a museum or city orchestra.

Even though public university endowments have in most cases been accumulated by gifts subject to the same favorable provisions on charitable giving, a public university is exempted, regardless of how it spends its endowment income. And a university that falls just below the $500,000-per-student threshold is completely exempted from tax, whereas a university like Rice must in effect pay tax on earnings from the entire endowment.

Up until this bill, discussions about applying taxes to university endowments have focused on how those endowments were being used. Was the university spending enough? Was it spending a sufficient portion on scholarship assistance or other student support? A leading congressman I consulted about those proposals once told me that Rice is the "positive poster child" for endowment use. Our endowment supports 40 percent of operating costs, and we regularly spend more than 5 percent of its recent average value. Nearly half of our endowment expenditures go to direct student support. The rest of our endowment income primarily supports faculty and research. Our endowment also helps keep our annual tuition and costs about $6,000 below most of our peers.

Dave Rossman/Freelance

All this got chucked out the window in the frantic search for revenue, and by the time the Senate had accommodated the desire to protect Hillsdale, the bill was limited to fewer than 30 colleges. It is doubtful that the bill would raise much more than $180 million per year toward closing the projected $1.5 trillion budget deficit increase. Our Texas congressmembers should be outraged that three of the 30 or so institutions affected are located here, where they contribute to the best in education and research.

Equally odious is a provision in the House bill, but not the Senate's, that would tax graduate students on tuition waivers, which are essentially scholarships to support their advanced education. At a private university like Rice, this would mean taxing them on an income of about $70,000 even though their actual income is less than $30,000, multiplying perhaps by five times the taxes they currently pay on their stipend, and requiring them to pay over a quarter of their low income in taxes.

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The result will be simply to discourage the very kind of advanced education our country needs to remain competitive and innovative. Many of the greatest ideas that are now fueling our economy or saving lives through medicine came out of universities. The global competition for discovery and innovation is intense, and as we know, it leads to new industries and jobs. Taxing higher education, and in particular taxing those extraordinary students who are receiving advanced education thanks to tuition waivers, will put our nation at a competitive disadvantage and is surely the opposite of making America great.

The conference on the tax bill occurring this week and next is a last opportunity to remove these two dubious elements from the sausage.

David Leebron is president of Rice University.

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As Lonnie Schooler watched his grandchildren make handprint menorahs at the Children's Museum of Houston on Sunday, this week's holiday of Hanukkah celebrating the perseverance of Jewish faith seemed to particularly resonate.

The Schoolers will light their menorah in a rental apartment this year after their beloved four-bedroom house in Meyerland was destroyed by 20 inches of rainfall during Hurricane Harvey. Their synagogue, Beth Yeshurun, flooded. And Meyerland, the epicenter of Houston's Jewish community, is a question mark as to how it will rebuild.

The Schoolers don't even know if they will move back.

It's been a difficult few months for many in Houston's Jewish community, coming after an already troubling year in which the country saw rising anti-Semitism from bomb threats against Jewish groups to neo-Nazis marching in Charlottesville. Hanukkah is a reminder to see the joy.

"It takes your mind off feeling that you're displaced," said Schooler, a partner at the downtown law firm Jackson Walker. "Hanukkah talks about religious freedom and observing that even in the face of disaster."

The holiday, which starts at sunset on Tuesday, has special meaning this year for Houston's Jewish community, said Rabbi Samantha Safran, an assistant director at the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston. The community center was evacuated this spring after a wave of anti-Semitic bomb threats, and it suffered severe flooding during the hurricane.

"It's been very difficult," Safran said. "Hanukkah certainly has more relevance this year. It reminds us that out of the dark times comes light."

She said the community, which for decades has centered around Meyerland, is facing tough decisions on its future. More than 70 percent of the city's Jewish population of about 64,000 people live in areas that experienced high flooding, according to the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston.

"There are many of our members who flooded the last three years in a row," Safran said. "We hope people commit enough to the neighborhood to stay and rebuild and keep the community flourishing."

Schooler, who is 71, grew up in Houston, one of about a quarter of the city's Jewish adults who were born here, according to the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston.

"At that time you could throw a stone and hit almost every Jewish person in Houston," he said. "We would hear anti-Semitic comments almost every day."

Today, the city's Jewish community is thriving and spread out, though still culturally centered around Meyerland.

"It's a typical big Southern city Jewish community," said Beryl Joffre, who watched as his children decorated wooden dreidels at the children's museum Sunday. "Even though it has multiple synagogues, it's really just one small community."

The 33-year-old pharmacist and his family moved this summer to Meyerland from Atlanta. He said it was inspiring to see how organizations rallied after Harvey.

"Everyone really came together to help," he said.

This year's Hanukkah, he said, feels like a Jewish version of Thanksgiving, a time to be grateful for blessings despite hardships that were suffered.

"It's good to see everyone try to get on with their lives," Joffre said. "I hope this year people try to find a way to give back."

Instead of receiving presents every night of Hanukah, for example, Joffre said his family would donate gifts.

The holiday this year also marks a historic move by President Donald Trump, who announced last week that he would follow through on a controversial campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

It comes at a time when Trump faces a 77 percent disapproval rating among Jewish voters, according to a survey in September by the American Jewish Committee.

The decision, making the U.S. the only country to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, set off violent protests across the Middle East this weekend. Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their political capital and as a sacred religious site.

But for some American Jews like Joffre, it was an early Hanukkah gift.

"From a Jewish Zionist perspective," he said, "we saw it as the capital anyway."

Other Jewish leaders said the announcement left them worried, fearing it would incite tensions in the region. Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, the largest branch of American Judaism, said last week that he is concerned it will damage the resumption of a peace process with Palestinians.

"It's complicated,"said Safran. "I think it very much depends on your politics."
Houston Catholics attending services Sunday were mulling a proposal from Pope Francis last week to change the Lord's Prayer.

Many of the faithful were undecided about a small change that alters Christianity's best-known prayer, which many people memorize in childhood.

Francis said on Wednesday the common rendering of one line in the prayer - "lead us not into temptation" - was not a good translation from ancient texts. The pontiff suggested, "Do not let us fall into temptation" as a fix.

If change does come to the prayer also known as "Our Lord's," most said they trusted the pope and the process.

"People don't like change," said Donald Willams, a 40-year-old lifelong Catholic attending Holy Rosary Church near Midtown. "The religion has been around more than 2,000 years and to make such a drastic change in the prayer - something people like me have been saying since I was 3 years old - it's going to rock the church to the core, I think."

He said he expects push back, but agrees with the sentiment behind the change.

"Maybe some people do need to be a little more accountable for their temptations and sins," he said.

Catholics in France adopted the change this week, and the pope suggested that Italian Catholics might want to join them.

"It is I who fall," the pope said in Italian, in an interview with TV2000, an ecclesiastical television station in Rome. "But it is not He who pushes me into temptation."

The pope explained that it is not God who tempts.

"A father does not push me into temptation, to see how I fell," he said. "A father doesn't do that. He helps you get up right away. What induces into temptation is Satan."

Essentially, the pope said, the prayer is asking God: "When Satan leads us into temptation, You please, give me a hand."

On Sunday morning, Nina Garcia, a 38-year-old Catholic who was born into the faith and attends the Catholic Charismatic Center near the University of Houston, said the proposed change seems like an improvement.

"I like the second wording better, it's more clear," she said.

The proposal led to the hashtag #LordsPrayer circulating on Twitter with opponents feverishly taking to keyboards to say Francis was trying to re-write scripture. Those opposed to a change seemed to outnumber supporters Sunday.

Traditionalists and conservatives have been wary of Francis since his 2013 election. In his 2016 document, "The Joy of Love," he seemed to open the door to letting divorced and remarried Catholics receive Communion, a position that created division within the Catholic Church and led to different interpretations from one parish to the next.

On Sunday in front of the Holy Rosary Church, Jim Eaton, a 78-year-old Spring man who was selling tamales for the Knights of Columbus, said he trusts the pope with any possible changes.

"Whatever he says is fine with me. That's why he's the pope," Eaton said. "Growing up, when your dad said something, you just said, 'OK, that's what the family is going to do.'"

A few blocks away at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in downtown, John Yoo, 51, agreed.

"I'll trust the Vatican to do their due diligence to see what's right for the church," he said. "Once the decision is made, we'll pray about it."

This report contains material from wire services.
As graduate students from Houston to Austin to College Station protest proposals to tax the value of their "free" tuition, Texas colleges and universities are bracing for changes to higher education proposed by a Republican-led Congress, including an overhaul of the Higher Education Act.

Behind-the-scenes fights are brewing over issues ranging from taxing university endowments and graduate student tuition waivers to eliminating interest subsidies on student loans, as congressional leaders work to balance tax-reform proposals and address voter concerns about the value of higher education.

The pressure is mounting for universities, experts say. But the colleges also must walk a fine line in the legislative process this year.

"They have to be careful about how they speak about individual pieces of legislation, realizing that if you're advocating for (changes), House and Senate writers have to get that revenue from somewhere else," said Robert Kelchen, a higher education professor who has dissected the tax bills offered by the U.S. House and Senate as well as the proposed revision to the Higher Education Act.

Kelchen, an assistant professor at Seton Hall University and author of "Higher Education Accountability," said the pressure in Texas is "even more salient" than it is nationally, because state lawmakers are predominantly Republican and likely would support the federal tax bill.

More Information By the numbers $5 billion: Approximate amount of Rice University's private endowment, which would be taxed under bill. 40: Percent of university operations Rice says it uses endowment to help fund. 58: Percent of survey respondents who say universities have negative effect on the country. See More Collapse

The debates in Washington come as lawmakers in Texas and across the nation are increasingly voicing skepticism about the value of a post-secondary education, questioning whether universities can better train their students for the workforce or minimize the costs of a degree.

The House and Senate must reconcile their differing tax bills before presenting the legislation to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign a bill that wins approval from both chambers.

Worries in Texas

A key concern for Texas' research universities and graduate students is a provision in the House version of the bill that would tax tuition waivers, which universities use to make graduate student tuition more affordable. This would strain the already low stipends that graduate students receive, students and university administrators say.

Protests against the legislation in the last few weeks have included University of Houston and Rice University students writing letters and making phone calls to elected officials. Students at the University of Texas at Austin Wednesday walked out from all work-related responsibilities, chanting "overworked, underpaid."

Students are anxious and want to know "that someone's fighting for them," said Sydney Gibson, the president of Rice's graduate student association, though she acknowledged that Rice is working quietly on the issues.

Both the House and Senate bills also would tax wealthy private university endowments, including Rice's roughly $5 billion fund, as lawmakers argue campuses should spend more from their endowments directly on education.

Rice says it uses endowment money to support 40 percent of its operations in addition to financial aid.

The tax bills have spurred action from schools. UH, Rice and UT-Austin administrators are meeting with the Texas delegation over concerns with the bills, and trade groups representing Texas campuses are also speaking out.

The Association of Public and Land Grant Universities, of which UH and UT-Austin are members, urged House and Senate members of the tax bill conference committee to keep tuition waivers tax-free.

The Association of American Universities, which represents Rice, UT-Austin and Texas A&M University, created a video shared on social media as lawmakers considered the tax provisions.

A voice-over on the animated video said it's "more important than ever" to support research universities "for a better America tomorrow."

Rice's lobbyists are also involved as the tax bill is shaped, said Nathan Cook, the university's head of government relations.

Growing protests

These efforts may be moving the needle for lawmakers. A letter from Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Dallas) and dozens of other lawmakers to House leadership said taxing graduate tuition waivers would be "unfair" and inhibit economic growth.

Still, graduate students are questioning whether university presidents are doing enough, citing a lack of vocal support from their campus leaders.

"I understand, from the university perspective, why they're holding their tongues," said Hannah Locke, a president of UH's graduate and professional student association, acknowledging that UH leaders are public employees.

"At the same time, however," Locke said, "I think it's really important that graduate students see some level of leadership action on this as a form of reassurance that their work is valued."

Historically, UH President and Chancellor Renu Khator has spoken out on issues when her comments would "make a difference," said Jason Smith, UH's vice chancellor for government affairs. In this case, "our position is known with the delegation."

Shilpa Bakre, a UT-Austin spokesperson, said in an email that UT-Austin President Gregory Fenves communicated directly with Texas delegation members on the issue.

Mark J. T. Smith, the dean of UT-Austin's graduate school, emailed graduate students that the university was taking the proposed tuition tax waiver "very seriously."

"(The Graduate School) will do all we can to adjust for any difficult changes ahead to assure your success as a Longhorn," he wrote.

Texas Southern University President Austin Lane declined to comment through a spokeswoman, citing the ongoing legislative process. The University of St. Thomas did not respond to requests for comment.

The PROSPER Act

Meanwhile, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has pledged to re-evaluate how campuses adjudicate sexual misconduct, and Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C, has unveiled a 542-page bill called the PROSPER Act that would overhaul the Higher Education Act.

Foxx's bill would force universities to publish salaries by program for students who receive financial aid, and it pares back regulations former President Barack Obama imposed to regulate for-profit colleges.

The proposal simplifies portions of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and consolidates grant programs, a proposal that the Washington, D.C., nonprofit Institute for Higher Education Policy has criticized.

It also bans "free-speech zones" - the only places on some college campuses where students and outsiders can put up fliers and protest. A Senate version is expected early next year.

Rice and UH say they are still examining Foxx's bill.

Michelle Asha Cooper, president of the Institute for Higher Education Policy, said she sees a connection between eroding support for higher education and the focus on the sector by the Republican-controlled Congress.

Fifty-eight percent of Republican and right-leaning respondents to a Pew Research Center survey released this summer said they believe colleges and universities have a negative effect on how things are going in the country.

"The public is asking what is this degree worth, and lawmakers desire to be responsive to that," Cooper said.

Higher education, she said, needs to better communicate its value in this era.

'A very busy time'

The developments could mark a "pivotal moment" for higher education policy, Cooper said.

"We have a Congress that wants to make sure that they are seizing opportunities at the beginning of this administration," she said. "(And) we have a need in the field. We have issues related to college affordability that we need to address. There are a number of things that are swirling at this time that make this a really important moment."

Smith from UH said he is confident that higher education will be "comfortable" with the enacted tax law.

"It looks like there might be a target on higher education's back, but I don't think that's the case," Smith said, noting that revamping the Higher Education Act has been on the table for several years and that many sectors are included in the tax bills.

Bakre said UT-Austin is used to tackling multiple legislative challenges at once. Still, she acknowledged in an email that this is a "very busy time" for UT in Washington.

Kelchen, the Seton Hall professor, said the focus in the sector may be politically expedient.

"Given that graduate students tend to lean more toward the left, and elite universities with large endowments are punching bags on both sides of the aisle," he said, "it makes sense that to minimize push-back from constituency groups conservatives value, they may be willing to go after higher education."
Here's a simple question each voter should ask: After 2017, what is the most important issue facing the Houston area?

Anybody who was driven from home by rising floodwaters in August knows the answer. And most important, so should any politician who asks for your vote next year.

The filing deadline for candidates running in the March primaries is 6 p.m. Monday. As the campaigning begins, Houston area voters need to send one very loud message to every candidate on the ballot:

The 2018 Vote is a one-issue election. The issue is flooding.

Our political leadership must respond to Hurricane Harvey by better preparing for the inevitable storms that lie in our future. Voters need to hammer each politician with hard questions about what they're going to do to protect our homes and communities from the next catastrophic flood.

On the federal level, voters should get downright mad at congressional candidates parroting national partisan rhetoric. Instead, they should demand answers about funding for a third reservoir to protect Harris County, about paying for a coastal barrier system to protect the Houston Ship Channel and the Clear Lake area and about reforming the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the National Flood Insurance Program.

On the state level, any candidate for governor, lieutenant governor or the state legislature who dares talk about potty politics after this disaster needs to get flushed down the drain and replaced by somebody who prioritizes protecting us from floods. We need our state government to help pay for a third reservoir, to establish a regional flood control authority, to find new funding streams for flood mitigation and to work with local officials preparing for future disasters instead of tying their hands with big government mandates imposed out of the state capitol.

On the county level, voters need to demand tougher regulation of development in flood prone areas, restructuring budgets to make flood control a bigger priority and specific plans on how counties should pay for new flood control initiatives. Just as important, incumbents who've served in office for years need to answer some tough questions about why they didn't act earlier to address the problems disastrously highlighted by Harvey.

Abortion, gun rights and immigration shouldn't be the hot button issues in next year's elections. Our homes are in danger, and our political leadership needs to do something about it. Let 2018 become the year voters demand dramatic action on flood control.
The swift passage of tax reform legislation in the U.S. Senate is welcome news for small businesses in Texas. My stepfather owns a small telecommunications firm in Houston, and one of the biggest challenges that he and other small business owners face is complying with an outdated and convoluted federal tax code.

That is why it's so important Congress succeeds in passing tax reform this year. The tax reform bills passed by the House and Senate, although not perfect, would give us a simpler, less burdensome tax code that will boost job creation, wages and economic growth across the country.

It would also provide much-needed relief to small businesses in Texas, which account for more than 99 percent of Texas firms and employ nearly half the state's workers.

Most of these firms are "pass-through" businesses that face tax rates as high as 39.6 percent, even higher than the top corporate income tax rate of 35 percent. That limits their ability to expand their workforce, raise wages or even turn a profit.

As hard as it is to succeed under crushing tax rate rates, for many businesses the hassle of preparing their taxes and complying with tax laws is even worse. In fact, according to a 2017 survey by the National Small Business Association, 58 percent of small firms reported that the administrative burden of federal taxes posed a greater challenge than the financial cost of the taxes themselves - an alarming sign of just how complex the tax code has become.

There's no better reflection of the tax code's growing complexity than its sheer length. At about 4 million words, the federal tax code is more than four times longer than the complete works of William Shakespeare. Print out each page and you'd have a stack of paper over 3 feet tall.

For large corporations that can afford a small army of lawyers and accountants, the tax laws are a nuisance. For small businesses, they are a nightmare. Nationwide, one-third of small businesses reported spending more than 80 hours per year dealing with federal taxes. And most of them - 84 percent - turn to an external tax preparer for help.

Small businesses need a simpler tax code. That's why the tax bills, in addition to lowering the maximum rate on pass-through businesses, also eliminate the vast majority of special tax deductions and credits. That will help put businesses big and small on an even playing field.

In the aftermath of hurricane Harvey, these reforms cannot come soon enough. Even after three months, many businesses are struggling to finish repairs or to bring back employees whose homes were wiped out by the storm.

"Our experience with disasters of this magnitude has shown that 40 percent of small businesses never reopen and the remainder take three to five years to recover," said Al Salgado, executive director for the South-West Texas Border Small Business Development Center Network.

America has endured eight years of lackluster economic growth and stagnant wages, but today we are on the verge of achieving a once-in-a-generation opportunity to enact the pro-growth tax reform we need to get our economy humming again and deliver lower taxes, better jobs and higher wages. The House and Senate have done their part by passing their versions of tax reform, and we all eagerly await the final product from the conference committee. They must not let politics or special interests stand in the way of a simpler and fairer tax code  the 2.6 million small businesses that call Texas home are counting on them.

Morris is the Texas deputy state director of Americans for Prosperity, a conservative political advocacy group founded by billionaire businessman David Koch.
The following are excerpts from reports generated by the Texas County Sheriffs Department:

A deputy responded at about 3 p.m. Dec. 6 after a 26-year-old man reported that his 26-year-old girlfriend had threatened him and their 9-month-old child at their Stone Ridge Drive residence at Mountain Grove.

Upon arrival, the officer spoke with both parties involved and then smelled a strong odor of marijuana. After an investigation the woman  Sativa C. Hale  was arrested for possession of marijuana. She was taken to the Texas County Jail for a 12-hour hold period.

A 35-year-old Success man reported on Dec. 6 that guns, clothing and cash of unreported value had been stolen from his Highway 17 residence. Investigation continues.

A woman on Dec. 9 came to the TCSD office with her 14-year-old daughter and a cell phone.

The woman told an officer the phone belonged to a classmate of the girl and she had been using it to contact men on Facebook. The officer reported finding nothing of evidentiary value on the phone, and it was returned to its owner.

The girl is reportedly already on juvenile probation and meet with her juvenile officer to discuss the behavior.

A 33-year-old Mountain Grove man reported on Dec. 3 that his former wife had been following he and his girlfriend around to many places, including church where she allegedly sat right behind them. The man claimed he and the girlfriend felt intimidated and harassed.

An officer advised him to look into an ex-parte against his former wife.

A deputy was dispatched at about 4:40 p.m. Dec. 8 regarding a suicidal woman at a Highway AW residence at Plato.

The officer made contact with the woman, 52, and she denied wanting to hurt herself, but said she was extremely upset about her husband buying a German shepherd a few days earlier and that the dog was a chicken killer. An ambulance crew arrived and checked on her. and the man and woman were advised of the 12-hour no-contact rule.

A deputy was dispatched at about 6:45 p.m. Dec. 6 regarding a report of a domestic disturbance at a Ware Road residence at Licking.

The officer made contact with a 49-year-old man who lives there who said his stepdaughter was high on drugs and threatened to kill him. The man told the officer the suspect was in a shed on the property.

The officer made contact with the stepdaughter, 24, who was angry and yelling at the officer. The officer observed a pie plate with marijuana in it and the woman  Maia K. Mannin  was arrested for possession of marijuana. She was taken to the Texas County Jail for a 12-hour hold period.

A 51-year-old Houston woman reported on Dec. 4 that she had been raped by her 54-year-old brother in either last April or May.

The woman told an investigating officer her brother lives in Illinois but was at the time living with she and her husband at their Raymondville residence. During an interview, the woman told an officer she had gotten out of the hospital and was heavily sedated on medication when her brother came into her room and took advantage of her.

An officer noted in a report that the woman had reported being raped on Jan 1, 2015, but a Missouri State Highway Patrol investigation determined the claim was unfounded. Investigation continues.

On Nov. 27, a deputy was advised that a male inmate in the Texas County Jail had attempted to commit suicide by hanging himself in his cell.

Upon arrival, the officer observed the inmate, 26, of Willow Springs, unresponsive and being loaded onto an ambulance gurney.

The inmate was taken to Texas County Memorial Hospital for treatment, and then transferred to Mercy Hospital in Springfield for a brief check-up before being released back into TCSD custody.

The deputy reported that the inmate had torn a towel into strips and wrapped it around hand bars near a toilet. He was reportedly found by jailers, who removed the makeshift noose. Several suicide notes written to various people were found in the mans cell.

A deputy responded at about 5:15 p.m. Nov. 26 to a report of two men tampering with a vehicle at an apartment complex on U.S. 63 at Licking.

The officer made contact with a woman who lives there who said the men were beating on a silver truck parked two apartments down. The officer looked at the truck and observed no damage.

The woman told the officer neighbors in the apartment upstairs from the truck had yelled at the men to get them to quit. The officer made contact with the neighbors, who had been in bed asleep and had no idea what was being referred to.

The officer reported that the woman appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, and that she appeared agitated and made many jerky movements.

Texas County 911 called at about 4:20 p.m. Nov. 26 and reported that a woman at a Shipp Drive residence at Licking had called and stated she didnt know where she was.

An investigating officer made contact with the woman and her husband who said she had taken too much cough medicine and woke up frightened.

Texas County Jail admissions

Dec. 5

Brett Hall  Butler County hold

Orval K. Clark  5-years MDOC

Bradley C. McKee  non-support

Tyler R. Barnett  traffic violations

Kari D. Young  drug charges

Dec. 6

Lucas L. McGaugh  72-hour commitment

Dec. 7

Shane L. Briggs  burglary

Joshua D. Eisenhauer  3-day commitment

Leonard L. Martin  possession of controlled substance

Dec. 9

Lucas L. McGaugh  drug charges

Byron K. Dugger  possession of controlled substance

John A. Clapper  possession of controlled substance, tampering with evidence

Chance I. Gale  48-hour commitment

Jessica S. Kelly  Jefferson County hold

Dec. 10

Michael J. Gerdes  failure to appear

Tyler J. Brock  stealing
Personnel from three Texas County volunteer fire departments responded shortly after 7 a.m. Monday to a fire that burned down a residence near Yukon.

Tyrone Fire Department Chief Adam Webb said a total of six trucks from the Tyrone, Raymondville and Summersville departments went to the scene, where a residence consisting of two trailer homes connected by a deck was on fire at 19403 Cockrell Road (south of Highways 137 and 17).

Webb said a man who was asleep inside was awakened by the blaze and got out uninjured. The home was a total loss, Webb said, and cause of the fire isnt known.

Raymondville and Summersville did a great job with mutual aid for us, Webb said. I love that; if it werent for mutual aid companies, life would be a lot harder. It was that time of day when people are on their way to work or already at work, so that makes the amount of people responding smaller.

And 911 did a fabulous job providing directions and doing their job.

-

EARLIER: Three county fire departments were called to a structure fire near Yukon shortly after 7 a.m. Monday.

A trailer was reported ablaze at 19403 Cockrell Road, which is south of the Highways 137 and 17 intersection at Yukon.

Tyrone, Raymondville and Summersville departments were called.
Linda Sue (Purcell) Buchholz, 65, daughter of Lester Elvin and Ruby Janetta (Sumrall) Purcell, was born Aug. 18, 1952, in Sayre, Okla. She passed away Dec. 10, 2017, at Licking Park Manor in Licking, Mo.

Lindas parents made their home in Raymondville when she was very young. She was proud to have lived her entire life just down the road from the land where the Purcell family settled five generations ago. Linda graduated from Houston High School in 1970 and many of her classmates were still close friends. She married James Buchholz on Aug. 6, 1971, at the Cabool First Baptist Church and they celebrated 45 years of marriage together.

She was preceded in death by her husband, James; an infant daughter; and her parents.

Linda accepted the Lord as her Savior at an early age. Her faith was important. Despite battling illness, she always found a way to make it to church.

She is survived by one son, Justin Buchholz and wife, Lacy, of Raymondville; two daughters, Traci Goetz and husband, Tony, of Raymondville and Janda Jenkins and husband, Mike, of Kansas City, Mo.; six grandchildren, Austin Goetz, Keaton Goetz, Bryson Goetz, Robert Jenkins, Eva Jenkins and Alivia Tharp; two brothers, Bill Downey and wife, Shirley, of St. Clair, Mo., and Danny Purcell and wife, Rhonda, of Ray mondville; a half-sister, Gloria Bowen of Pampa, Texas; and eight nieces and nephews.

Linda worked at many jobs over the years, but mostly in secretarial positions, and she was competent to do any job that farm life required. She appreciated simple things and was proud to be from the country. She liked to crochet, work puzzles, play cards, make jellies and view wildlife. She loved having visitors and would holler out Come on in, if you can get in! when she heard a knock at the door.

Most of the time she could be found at the kitchen table reading a book or sitting in the yard with the grandsons, dogs and chickens. She had an outgoing personality and never met a stranger. She enjoyed a good joke and was always telling stories, some true and some embellished.

She was a keeper of traditions and knowledge of older generations. She often recalled fishing trips with her dad on a homemade pontoon boat at Bull Shoals Lake or catching trout on opening day in the freezing cold weather at Montauk. She enjoyed seeing the country with James in his truck and traveling to see Janda and Mike.

Linda recently took an extended trip west with Danny and Rhonda, but she was always happiest at home where she could keep an eye on Justin, Traci, Tony and the boys. She was raised to be resourceful and could make-do with very little; she gave others whatever she had. Many times she opened her home to those in need and treated them like family. She did not dwell on negative things and refused to let her illness interfere with what she wanted to do. Above all she enjoyed visiting with friends and spending time with her family. She will be missed but not forgotten.

Visitation is 6-8 p.m. Thursday Dec. 14, at Ev ans Funeral Home. Services are 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 15, with Dr. Howell Burkhead and Pastor Cody Neugebauer officiating. Burial will be in Allen Cemetery. Pallbearers are Justin Buchholz, Mike Jenkins, Tony Goetz, Danny Purcell, Mickey Westbrook, and Paul Spencer. Honorary pallbearers are Austin Goetz, Keaton Goetz, Bryson Goetz, Robert Jenkins, Eva Jenkins and Alivia Tharp.

In lieu of flowers, the family request memorials to Allen Cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of Evans Funeral Home. Online condolences may be sent to www.evansfh.com.
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A 2008 American Economic Review paper which found that US congressmen vote more liberally, especially on issues affecting women, when they have more daughters.

A 2015 American Journal of Political Science paper which found that federal judges, primarily Republican, with daughters, consistently vote in a more feminist fashion on gender issues compared to judges with only sons,

A working paper by two Harvard University professors shows that parenting more daughters cause decisionmakers in venture capital firms to hire more female partners.

ing a child often changes how a person views the world and, according to one recent study, it seems this altered attitude even reaches the workplace.According to a paper published in the December issue of Journal of Financial Economics, CEOs with daughters scored higher in corporate social responsibility and were more likely to make decisions that lead to greater workplace equality.The mere fact of having a daughter opens executives eyes to gender-related issues they might not otherwise be aware of, said co-author Henrik Cronqvist, who is the chairman of the department of finance at the University of Miamis School of Business Administration.The research also revealed that a companys corporate social responsibility rating is 9.1 per cent higher than that of a median firm if the CEO has a daughter.Incredibly, the study also found that when a new CEO who has a daughter comes on board, the company becomes more socially responsible. The opposite happens when a CEO without a daughter joins the company.Sociology professor Barbara Risman told the Wallstreet Journal that having a daughter was not the only factor shaping how CEOs act but it certainly does have an impact.Fathers of daughters want their daughters to have equal opportunities in the world, she told the news outlet. They see the inequities that women face, and that makes them more open to thinking about inequity in general.Other studies that support this are:The study used data from 416 CEOs across S&P 500 companies and provides an update to a previous report published in 2015.
North Adams Emergency Services Holiday Fundraiser Yields Big Numbers



Donated toys cover the Fire Department's vintage truck at Walmart last month. Fire, police and ambulance personnel collected more than 700 toys for needy children. NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  Emergency services received more than 700 donated toys this holiday season during their annual Emergency Services Toy Drive.

The North Adams Fire Department spent last Monday afternoon wrapping the hundreds of toys they received during the November toy drive outside of Walmart, where shoppers were able to purchase a toy and place it on one of the emergency service vehicles parked outside.

"We have doubled the amount of gifts and we have well over 700 gifts," Mary Ann King, who has spearheaded the drive with firefighter Bob Patenaude, said. "We really surpassed our goal."

"We are at 150, if not more, kids getting three presents each this year," Patenaude said.

King, a police dispatcher, said this year instead of donating to the Toys For Tots program, emergency services worked with local agencies and organizations to find families in need to sponsor.

"We teamed up with [Berkshire Community Action Council] and other groups because we needed a to find those children that are in need," she said. "That was our goal to put all of this right back into the community."

King said the gifts will be delivered to the families via fire truck, ambulance or police cruiser.

Emergency personnel worked with North Adams Rotary and the Northern Berkshire Family YMCA to host a pizza party Sunday at the Y, with pizza donated by Village Pizza.

"We have a big Christmas party at the YMCA for them," she said. "We are going to have a movie, there will be arts and crafts, we will hand out hats and mittens and they will open the pool for the families."

King said it is important to help families in need and noted it is always a touching day when they deliver gifts to families that truly have nothing.

"Its great and you would be amazed at the number of families that register right in our own community," she said. "The families that we take on are really in need."
The Board of Health says it can take no action on the former Curtis paper mill property until the town takes control of it.

Board Of Health Can Not Yet Inspect Curtis Paper

ADAMS, Mass.  The Board of Health says it can take no action on the former Curtis paper mill property until the town takes control of it.

Chairman Peter Hoyt told the board Wednesday that after talking with then Town Administrator Tony Mazzucco, he has the understanding that the board's hands are tied when it comes to the 115 Howland Ave. property.

"We wanted to make sure that we were all on the same page but until the town really takes over the property, which we are in the process of doing, we can't do a whole lot," Hoyt said. "There is no response from the property owner so, therefore, we can't enter the premise."

The town began the process of taking the property last year from MJD Real Estate, which owes more than $450,000 in property taxes.

Since then, residents have reported activity on the site even though MJD's permits were pulled. Activity included tractor trailers moving on and off the property, some kind of automotive repair operation and the storage of roll-offs.

The roll-offs caught the attention of the Board of Health because they were filled with potentially hazardous material.

The roll-offs have been removed , however, the board still has concerns about the interior and the grounds of the old mill.

"That is a building you don't want to walk around in," Code Enforcement Officer Thomas Romaniak said.

In other business, board member David Rhoads said the newly implemented transfer station seems to be a success and more than 450 permits have been sold.

Board member Bruce Shepley said the original goal was to sell 200 permits.

"There is a lot of positive feedback from those who are using it and there are still negative comments, but I think they are blending in," he said. "I think a year from now it will be accepted, and we will be able to possibly expand services."

The board did pass a policy stating that it would not accept propane tanks at the station but would refer patrons to other possible vendors if the situation arises.

"There are plenty of resources to get rid of propane tanks in Berkshire County and I think we can make this a permanent policy," Shepley said. "Maybe if the issue comes up we can address it again."

The board also put the kibosh on brush removal and brush burning by the Department of Public Works at the transfer station until it can figure out a better and fairer way to remove it.

"We need to sit down as a committee and look at alternatives to limit the amount of brush that comes in because we think there is a lot coming in from landscapers," Shepley said. "It is not a showstopper, but we have to figure something else out."

Before closing the meeting, the board agreed to seek more information on training from a company called 24Trauma that trains organizations in how to enter a potential biohazardous situation or a crime scene.

"They will show us how to safely enter a premise and not damage a crime scene or come in contact with the biohazardous material," Hoyt said.

Hoyt said Police Chief Richard Tarsa floated the idea and said the town may be able to host the training.
Police Chief Richard Tarsa updates the board on new equipment at the Police Department.

Adams Police Receive New Fingerprint Device

ADAMS, Mass.  Police Chief Richard Tarsa updated the Selectmen last week on some of the improvements and changes in the department, including a live-scan fingerprinting device.

Tarsa told the board on Wednesday that because of the way the Adams Police Department conducts sex offender registrations, it was one of four departments in the state to receive the $30,000 device.

"We take care of it in Adams in an efficient matter and do so appropriately and properly," Tarsa said. "Because of our impeccable record keeping, they titled us as one of the four recipients."

Tarsa said the department has had the scanner and affiliated equipment for some time now and officers have been trained in how to use it.

Instead of taking a print on a card and scanning it, the new device can get results much quicker. He said in some cases the scanner gathers results in five minutes.

"It is almost instantaneous, and it is a huge benefit," he said.

Tarsa said the department will receive another $10,000 enforcement grant for speeding prevention. He said some of this will go towards new radars for the cruisers.

"Unfortunately, it is a fast-paced society and we are getting nowhere fast," Tarsa said. "We have been experiencing an increase in speeding complaints and I hate to say it but ... it is not people from out of town, it is the people that live in the problem areas, but we have been stepping it up and this will help."

Tarsa added that cameras have been installed in all cruisers and he also expects the new cruiser that town meeting cleared for purchase will be delivered soon.

"It is in the final stages of being built and I expect a call any day now in regards to its delivery," he said.

Tarsa added that the Adams Police Department also now carries Narcan, a nasal spray used to reverse the effects of an overdose due to opioids.

"We have been carrying that now for a few months and recently deployed it successfully a few days ago," he said.

Also, Tarsa said the Adams Police Association is once again holding a toy drive and residents can drop off donations or toys at the station.

In other business, the Selectmen voted to allow free holiday parking downtown until Jan. 1.

This sparked discussion about the meters themselves and Selectman Joseph Nowak said he heard from residents that the meters are always jammed and unusable.

Tarsa said because of the design of the meters, they often get jammed if people do not put coins in the right way. He said every few weeks an officer collects the coins and clears jams.

Nowak added that he felt the police did not have enough of a presence downtown so people just dont feed the meter.

"I surmised they are not getting filled up because people realized they can get away with it," he said. "Its mostly locals and this has been a point of contention with this board."

Tarsa said part of the issue is staffing and even though he plans to hire five reserve officers he has to wait for the state to dissolve the town's affiliation with Civil Service, which town meeting agreed to leave in order to make it easier to hire police officers.

"It is currently in the House and has passed the Senate ... it is a formal process and I will be honest with you, this is a time consuming and very frustrating process," he said. "But once I get those five reserve officers you will see more of a presence on the street."

Nowak said he felt there were plenty of opportunities for the current officers to get out of their cruisers and walk the beat.

"I dont know if that is legitimate in my thinking because I am around town a lot and I see the officers, and they do a great job, but I also see them and think they have time to get out of their cruisers and go up and down the street," Nowak said. "I think they could do it if they really wanted to."

Tarsa said he partially agreed and noted he recently sent a memo to his officers that they will spend 15 to 20 minutes walking downtown near their cruisers to increase street presence. He said many communities practice this and if there is an emergency, the officer is not far from their cruiser.

Tarsa said an issue arises with call volume and the town has seen an increase of calls during the day and the officers sometimes just dont have time.

"I can tell you the numbers are up especially with vehicle citations and arrests during the day," he said. "The day shift numbers have increased dramatically."

He added that without dispatchers, sergeants now work the desk, which means the officers have to do all of their own reporting and that can take hours.

Tarsa said although there are challenges, community policing is important to Adams and the department is working towards being better at it.

"It is community policing 101 and it is something that we have advocated for before I was on the job and we will continue to advocate for it after me," he said. "It is what we do here and it has always worked for Adams and will continue to work for Adams."
The Bennington Center for the Arts opened its doors in 1994.

Bennington Center for the Arts Donated to Southern Vermont College



Bruce Laumeister founded the Bennington Center for the Arts with his wife, Elizabeth Small.

BENNINGTON, Vt.  Bruce Laumeister said Monday that his family's gift to Southern Vermont College allows for the preservation of his legacy.

SVC President David Rees Evans said it will allow SVC to build for the college's future.

Laumeister and his wife Elizabeth Small, who founded the Bennington Center for the Arts in 1994, have donated the Route 9 facility to the college, which will name it the Laumeister Art Center at Southern Vermont College in honor of the donor.

"It's been a great ride," Laumeister said at a ceremony announcing the gift on Monday afternoon. "But [the BCA] is only ending physically, not mentally. We'll be around.

"When you get into your 80s, you start to wonder what's going to happen to things you built and how they're going to stay. I built it for the community, and it will stay in the community. Southern Vermont College couldn't be a better source."

Small, who was unable to attend Monday's ceremony, echoed Laumeister's sentiment in a news release from the college.

"I am delighted to see the transfer of BCA to SVC for I feel with Dr. Evans at the helm they will be able to continue the mission that we set forth for the center, which was to bring world-class art to the residents and visitors of Southern Vermont," Small said. "With his youth, enthusiasm, commitment to the community, and his love for the arts, including theatrical and the Southwest, I have complete confidence that the center will continue to grow and serve the arts community everywhere."



Southern Vermont College President David Rees Evans called the gift the largest by far in the college's history. Evans talked about how the acquisition will help complement programming at the liberal arts college.

"We have not been all that much engaged in the arts," Evans said. "In this community, having a foothold in the arts is, of course, immensely important. This creates a giant, instantaneous opportunity to be a player in the arts in Bennington, which is terrific for us."

Evans, who sits on the board of the Dorset Theatre Festival, noted that his wife is the costumer at Bennington's Old Castle Theatre, and the college foresees cooperating with a number of the area's cultural entities for programming at the Laumeister Center, starting as early as this summer.

"We've got one thing we're looking at for March, which depends on the technological capacity of the theater," he said. "Once we get in there, we'll have a better sense of what we can do. But for sure, there will be as much as we can possibly do during the summer."

The new Laumeister Art Center adds 36,000 square feet of performance and programming space. That represents an increase of about 70 percent, if not more, to SVC's academic footprint, Evans said.

The center includes a 315-seat theater as well as offices, workshop spaces and a gallery dedicated to the history and culture of covered bridges in Vermont.

SVC is no stranger to the BCA. Evans himself was installed in the theater at the center, and the college has used the site for admissions events and student orientations.

In the not-too-distant future, those orientations may include information about expanded arts offerings at the school, which offers degree programs in 14 areas ranging from business administration to nursing to liberal arts.

"This enables us to think seriously about expanding our academic programs into some more arts areas," Evans said. "We have no interest in competing with Bennington College, so we're looking at things that dovetail with their work, rather than competing with their work, and add vibrancy to the arts in this area.

"This morning, we formed a small committee that has a faculty member and administrator and a couple of people from the community to do a quick plan for the summer because we'd like to get it very active in the summer time. In the longer run, we will develop a strategy for academic programming.  We're strong already in non-profit management, so we're looking at options in that realm. We're also thinking: Are their applied arts programs we can do.

"I think by the end of the spring semester, we'll have a pretty good idea where we're going."
Even when the weather outside is frightful, Wild Oats has been delightful for 35 years.

Biz Briefs: Wild Oats Celebrates 35 Years As Cooperative in Williamstown

35 and counting



Wild Oats is seen in 1982 when it first opened as a retail store in Colonial Shopping Center.

Wild Oats Market, a cooperatively owned natural foods grocery store, bakery and cafe, will celebrate 35 years as a cooperative, community-owned business on Saturday, Dec. 16, in conjunction with Owner-Appreciation Day. The main event will be a cake cutting at 3:35 p.m., but the celebration will go on all day with vendor demos throughout the day, including Maplebrook Farm, Hop2o, Heritage Cider and Niman Ranch.



The hot bar, salad bar, sandwich bar and soup will be 35 percent off for all shoppers that day and a small coffee will be just 35 cents There will also be specials on beer and wine. Since the event is happening in conjunction with Owner Appreciation Day, member-owners will save 5 percent on all purchases that day.



"In an age of intense competition from big box stores, conventional grocers and online retailers, it's no minor feat for a small, local business to be marking 35 years of serving the community," said David Durfee, general manager of Wild Oats. "It's a testament to both the cooperative ownership model and our focus on being a local market in a way that a chain or online store could never be. We source our local products from within 100 miles of the store, and our customers know that when they buy a local apple, local beef or local maple syrup they are benefiting a farmer or producer who is part of the community and supporting the local economy."



Beginning as a cooperative buying club in 1975, Wild Oats Market opened its first retail store in 1982 in the Colonial Shopping Center in Williamstown with 100 cooperative owners. Those numbers grew steadily over the years as more and more people became interested in local, organic food and sustainable living. Today, in its present location on Main Street, the co-op boasts more than 1,500 owners.

Carr in Top 10

Carr Hardware, announced last month as making it to the quarterfinals of the ational small business movement "Independent We Stand," has been notified they have now made it to the top 10. The winner will be announced later this month.



"This year's top ten list represents the independent businesses from across the country who go above and beyond to support their local economies," said Bill Brunelle, co-founder of Independent We Stand. "This award is our way of honoring the contributions they've made to their communities."



Carr Hardware is the only hardware store left in the running and the only business chosen from New England. Americans cast votes for 249 nominees during the nominations phase. If Carr Hardware does receive the Indie Award, its owners have committed to donating 100 percent of the cash proceeds ($5,000) toward the "Build the New Splash Park" project in Pittsfield.

Better to give

Berkshire Bank has launched its sixth "Season of Giving," the company's annual initiative to assist children and families in need during the holiday season. The campaign runs through the end of the holiday season and engages more than 300 company employees from across the country in a variety of community service projects, all of which benefit nonprofit organizations in the footprint where the bank and its subsidiaries conduct business operations.



Highlights and regions for the more than 60 activities include collecting and distributing gifts for the Salvation Armys Holiday program in Pittsfield, preparing meals for homebound individuals with the Bennington Eagles in Bennington, Vt., and assembling holiday gift baskets for the Arlington Food Shelf in Manchester, Vt.

The old and the new

Berkshire Money Management, an independent investment advisory firm, is opening its doors - and its walls and floor space - to artists from the Berkshires and beyond. The firm invites submissions of two and three-dimensional original artwork for a one-night, group exhibit titled "New Art in an Old Building," to be held on Friday, January 19 at the Model Farm on Main Street.



The historic, 19th century property has undergone extensive renovation, and is now the new headquarters for the firm. Berkshire Money Management founder and CEO Allen Harris, himself an art collector, sees the 15-room estate as a perfect canvas to showcase art in all mediums. "The renovations for the building were extensive, taking about six months to complete. And while the process and the move was exciting, I am most eager to see new art displayed in our space, Allen said. "Whether it was a new initiative like ArtsWalk, or the Paintbox Project, or supporting long-lasting venues such as Tanglewood and Jacob's Pillow, we have worked hard to be a good cultural neighbor to our community. Now we're hoping to be a good host to the creative work of living artists."



The show is open to all artistsvideo installation, sculpture, soundscape, painting--and submissions can be sent digitally by email with the subject line "New Art in an Old Building." Works need to be displayed free standing, on pedestals or easels, and must be ready for display by Jan. 18. Up to six pieces may be submitted by any individual. The deadline for submissions is Dec. 23 at 5 p.m. Artists whose work is selected will be notified by Dec. 31.

Celebrating 10 years

Greylock Insurance Agency, a subsidiary of Greylock Federal Credit Union, is celebrating its 10th year in Great Barrington. The Great Barrington office opened in 2007 and was Greylock Insurance's sixth location, making it the only truly county-wide insurance network in the Berkshires. The full service insurance agency, operating at 325 Stockbridge Road, offers a full array of auto, homeowners, life and commercial insurance.



The office has been managed since its opening by Jessica Havens, a Greylock Insurance Agency account manager who started her career as a teller at Greylock 14 years ago when the Credit Union opened its Great Barrington branch.



GIA's five other offices are located in: Adams, 2 Park St.; North Adams, 66 Main St. (moving soon to 131 Ashland St.); Pittsfield locations at 150 West St. and 5 Cheshire Road (Allendale Shopping Center); and 552 Main St., Williamstown.
When the Sept. 30th deadline approached for reauthorizing the Childrens Health Insurance Program, no one seriously thought that Congress would let the bipartisan-supported health plan expire.

When the deadline passed, there was still little concern: States still had money available in their coffers to pay for the $14 billion program, which serves about 9 million children whose parents earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but who cant afford insurance for their children on the open market. (CHIP also covers about 370,000 pregnant women.)

But now, more than two months later, the program still has not been funded by Congress, and no funding plan is on the immediate horizon. Supporters hoped that long-term funding for the program might be appended to a short-term bill passed on Dec. 7 to keep the government running, but that didnt happen.

Instead, that short-term bill allowed some reserve funds to be used by states whose CHIP funding is running out the soonest. That buys a little more time, but it doesnt help states, which are now wondering whether they should start notifying families that their childs health care program may be going away, or hold off on such notifications in hopes that Congress will come up with the money soon.

Some states have decided not to wait. Colorados CHIP funding, which serves about 75,000 children, runs out at the end of January. The state started notifying families at the end of November that they may need to start looking for other options.

Everyone agrees it needs to get done, said Elisabeth Wright Burak, a senior fellow at Georgetown Universitys Center for Children and Families. The fact that we cant get across the finish line is kind of mind-boggling.

So how did we get here? Burak hypothesizes that the fact that the program is supported on both sides of the aisle may have, ironically, reduced lawmakers sense of urgency.

Back in April, a federal advisory panel called the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission estimated that only a few states would run out of CHIP money by the end of the year, giving lawmakers the idea that they had several more months to act.

But it doesnt work that way, Burak said: States cant turn on a dime like that.

Congresss inability to get this done has already created a lot of uncertainty for states and for families, she said. Faced with the signal that the program might be financially shaky, they start to look for other options, or they just disenroll in the program. And its hard to get them back in the door.

Theres not a lot of other options available for CHIP families, said Dr. Charles Pruitt, the president of the Utah chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and an emergency room pediatrician in Salt Lake City.

About 20,000 children in the state are covered through the program, Pruitt said, including a child whose uninsured family delayed bringing him to the hospital, only to find out that he had a brain tumor. He also spoke of a teen who was hit by a distracted driver; her family wont be bankrupted by her care because she is enrolled in the CHIP program.

These are real people with real problems. These are not people on the dole, these are not the takers. These are people who are playing by the rules and doing the best they can, Pruitt said.

Utah may be among the first states to freeze enrollment, Pruitt noted. Thats because the state doesnt have an additional source of funds to tap once federal funding runs out for the state at the end of January.

Lives are in the balance while people debate the politics. If they worked with me, I think wed have re-funded CHIP a long time ago, he said.
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Attorney General Xavier Becerra Sues EPA Over Failure to Implement Life-Saving Clean Air Protections

Sacramento, California - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, joined by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its failure to designate any areas of the country as having unhealthy levels of smog in excess of federal Clean Air Act requirements. These designations are critical because an area that is designated as not meeting the requirements must take active measures to improve its air quality. EPA was required to make these designations by October 1, but it failed to do so. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Smog causes various health problems, particularly in children, outdoor workers, and asthma sufferers. It is therefore imperative that the EPA implement these smog-reducing standards as mandated by the Clean Air Act, said Attorney General Becerra. The California Department of Justice refuses to let the EPA blatantly violate the Clean Air Act. We will continue doing everything in our power to ensure that the EPA does what it is supposed to do: protect our environment. Lives can be saved if the EPA implements these standards.

Public health research shows that smog can make people sick, particularly those most vulnerable, including children, said CARB Executive Officer Richard Corey. Despite reducing emissions from motor vehicles and other sources, improvements become more difficult as the climate warms. While CARB and the Air Districts do their part to protect public health, the federal government needs to do its part. The U.S. EPA has been illegally attempting to avoid its obligations on this critical matter for months, despite having everything it needs to keep making progress. Todays action will help get us back on track.

Promulgated by the Obama Administration in 2015, the smog standards are set at a level EPA determines is necessary to protect public health from the harmful effects of ground-level ozone, the primary component of smog. When the standards were adopted, EPA projected that compliance with the standards would create billions of dollars worth of health benefits every year, even after subtracting costs.

Attorney General Becerra filed the lawsuit along with the attorneys general of: New York, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota (by and through its Minnesota Pollution Control Agency), Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

When he assumed office, Attorney General Becerra made protecting the environment a top priority. Among other actions, he has announced a $9.5 million settlement with DIRECTV to resolve allegations that its California facilities unlawfully disposed of large volumes of hazardous waste; has called on the Trump Administration to enforce and keep in place a rule that prevents the dangerous waste of natural gas; and he has filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration for illegally delaying a rule that encourages automakers to produce vehicle fleets that meet or exceed federal fuel efficiency standards.
By Denisa Superville and Sarah Sparks

Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool resigned on Friday, amid allegations that he repeatedly lied to investigators during an ethics probe and tried to cover up an investigation into legal contracts.

Claypools resignation, which will become effective on Dec. 31, came a day after the districts Inspector General released a report recommending his termination.

Longtime Chicago educator Janice Jackson, who serves as the districts chief education officer, will become interim CEO. The school board will vote on her appointment at its next meeting, Frank Clark, the president of Chicagos mayorally appointed school board, said in a press conference on Friday.

Jackson is as homegrown a leader as they come in Chicago: She graduated from Hyde Park High School, got her education degree at Chicago State University, and a masters in administration and a doctorate in education policy studies and urban school leadership from the University of Illinois in Chicago.

She worked her way up, first as a history teacher at South Shore High School. Then, then at 27, she was tapped to lead a series of small high schools she helped found, the Al Raby School for Community and Environment and the Westinghouse College Prep High School.

She later became leader of Chicagos 26-school Network 9, and from there stepped in as the districts chief academic officer when her predecessor, Barbara Byrd-Bennett, left amid a corruption scandal.



With Claypools resignation, the Chicago district is now onto its third CEO in a little more than two years.

Claypool came to the district in July 2015, shortly after then-CEO Byrd-Bennett resigned while federal investigators were looking into a $20.5 million no-bid contract that was awarded to a leadership development company. Byrd-Bennett was later charged and convicted in connection with the kickback scheme and is now serving a four and a half-year prison sentence.

Both Clark and Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who handpicked Claypool to replace Byrd-Bennett, praised the outgoing CEO for steering the district in the right direction since he came on board. They said he brought financial stability to the chronically financially strapped district and pointed to academic progress the district has made under his leadership.

Just last month, Stanford researchers Sean Reardon and Rebecca Hinze-Pifer released a report showing that Chicago schools led the nation in academic growth. The New York Times also took note of the districts academic gains.

Emanuel said that Claypool should be judged by the entirety of his decades-long public service career and that he had been selfless and courageous in taking on institutional inertia.

He has always gone to work with his sleeves rolled up ready to get the job done, and ... he can walk out with his head high because he did a job well, Emanuel said.

He did a great job for the children of the city of Chicago, Emanuel said.

The probe related to whether the districts chief attorney hired a firm with which he had an existing business relationship to do legal work for the district. After CPS ethics committee ruled that the relationship violated CPSs ethics code, Claypool allegedly tried to cover it up, according to the report by Inspector General Nicholas Schuler.

Just Thursday, Claypool released a statement apologizing and saying that he had made a mistake.

This is not a case of anyone profiting off of CPS; no one in this story gained a dollar, Claypool said Thursday. This is not a case of anyone taking anything from children; this is a case of fighting to get more resources for children. In fact, the only ones who profited from this pursuit of justice were our students, who have another $450 million of funding from the state due to the efforts our team.

On Friday, he apologized again.

I regret my actions, and I have apologized for them, he said.

Claypool said that when he took the job he knew that it would be the toughest in his career. But he said that he was leaving the district in stronger financial footing.

I hope when this chapter...is written people will say that even good men can make stupid mistakes, he said.

The Chicago Teachers Union, which was never a fan of Claypool, had called for Emanuel to fire Claypool in the wake of the inspector generals report.

Our members are delighted to see Forrest Claypool go, but hes got to take his policies with him. Ninety-nine percent of our members voted no confidence in him last year because his decisions have pushed thousands of students out of Chicago Public Schools, hes cut our schools funding to the bone and hes populated his administration with cronies and political insiders while running roughshod over the voices of parents and teachers, said Jesse Sharkey, the unions vice president.

And while Sharkey said he was glad to see a veteran educator chosen for the job, the union also had some concerns about Jackson.

Shes got to show that she will take a different approach on revenue, reject her predecessors agenda to close schools and expand charters, and start listening to educators and parents, Sharkey said.

From the start, Claypool and the union did not see eye to eyethe union head Karen Lewis urged him not to take the job.

The two sides butted heads over a new contract, which came to the brink of a strike, and how best to get more money for the financially beleaguered school district. Despite that, they reached a last-minute agreement on a contract shortly before a strike deadline in October 2016.

Claypool, for his part, has been vocally critical of Illinois funding formula, which he says is unfair to the citys students, who are predominantly students of color. He sued the governor and the state board of education over the school funding formula , arguing that the state funding formula creates a separate and unequal system and violates the states Civil Rights Act. The lawsuit, filed in Circuit Court in Cook County, was dismissed in April, but the court gave the district an option to refile the case. The district dropped the lawsuit in October.

Image 1: Janice Jackson, Chicago Public Schools Chief Education Officer, will become the districts interim CEO. Photo courtesy Chicago Public Schools.

Image 2: Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool tenders his resignation during a press conference at CPS headquarters on Friday, Dec. 8.

--Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP
Attorney General Becerra Announces Takedown of Stockton Street Gangs

Stockton, California - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced the arrest of 47 individuals; seizure of 35 firearms, and 10 of them were assault rifles; nearly $44,000 in currency; and the seizure of 34 pounds of marijuana, 2 pounds of methamphetamine, and 2 pounds of cocaine as part of a takedown of gang members in Stockton.

This operation, which took place Tuesday, targeted criminal activities by members of the MOB, Flyboys, East Coast Crips, Conway Gangsters, Sierra Vista Project and Glock Team gangs. The alleged criminal activities included conspiracy to commit murder, robbery, drug trafficking, human trafficking, illegal weapons possession, and gang enhancements.

Families in Stockton can breathe a little easier tonight knowing that gang members, drugs, and deadly weapons are off the streets, said Attorney General Becerra. The MOB and Flyboys have used violence to incite fear and intimidation in the south Stockton community for far too long. I want to thank all of the brave men and women who wear the badge for taking this important step in improving safety in south Stockton.

The operation was the product of a joint investigation by the California Department of Justices Bureau of Investigations Special Operations Unit (SOU), Stockton Police Department Gang Suppression Unit, California Highway Patrol, and San Joaquin County District Attorneys Office.

The Special Operations Unit is a collaborative investigative effort between the California Department of Justice and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) that provides statewide enforcement for combating violent career criminals, gangs, and organized crime groups, along with intrastate drug traffickers.

In 2014, the Office of the Attorney General, California Department of Justice and California Highway Patrol Commissioner worked with the Legislature and Governor Browns administration to secure $9.4 million for California DOJ Bureau of Investigations SOU teams. These unique and essential teams use the latest technology and advanced investigative techniques and work alongside local law enforcement to enhance investigations into violent criminals and organized crime throughout the state.
Attorney General Becerra Joins Amicus Brief Calling For CFPBs Independence

Sacramento, California - California Attorney General Xavier Becerra Friday called on the Trump Administration to respect the Consumer Financial Protection Bureaus (CFPB) independence. The CFPB works tirelessly to protect consumers from fraud, abuse, and unfair business practices, and has returned $12 billion to American consumers since being created in the wake of the financial crisis. It was carefully crafted by Congress to be an independent agency.

On November 24, 2017, CFPB Director Richard Cordray stepped down and Deputy Director Leandra English became acting director pursuant to the law governing the CFPB, 12 USC s. 5491(b)(2), which states: There is established the position of Deputy Director, who shall - (A) be appointed by the Director; and (B) serve as acting Director in the absence or unavailability of the Director." That same day, President Donald Trump moved to politically appoint a known antagonist of the CFPB, Mick Mulvaney, the Office of Management and Budget Director, as the acting CFPB Director. "Sick, sad joke" are the words Mulvaney has used to describe the agency which protects consumers, veterans and loan borrowers.

Under the leadership of Richard Cordray, the CFPB set new standards for protecting mortgage and student borrowers, brought landmark actions against big banks, and proposed critical reforms to payday lending practices, mandatory arbitration, and bank overdraft fees, said Attorney General Becerra. President Donald Trump, however, is attempting a hostile takeover of this independent agency by contravening the Dodd-Frank Act and installing as acting director a man who has repeatedly sided with Wall Street instead of Main Street. It is an absolute insult to hardworking Americans.

"In California and the Attorney General's Office, we are committed to moving forward, and we will do everything in our power to defend this critical agency," added Attorney General Becerra. The CFPB must remain independent of Wall Street and politics. Its job is to protect and empower consumers.

In the amicus brief filed today, Attorney General Becerra and 17 attorneys general argue that while there is a legal mechanism for President Trump to nominate a new director for the CFPB  an appointment subject to the advice and consent of the Senate  President Trump has not taken that path here. Undermining the statutory structure of the agency harms the States ability to enforce myriad consumer financial laws that protect their residents.

Attorney General Becerra joins the Attorneys General of Washington D.C., Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai'i, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, And Washington in filing this amicus brief.

Since taking office, Attorney General Becerra has supported and worked with the CFPB. Among other actions, he stands with the agency for issuing its Payday Lending Rule, which will prevent the worst harms associated with short-term payday lending, and for launching its Arbitration Rule, which would have allowed people to pursue justice against financial services companies had it not been overturned by Republicans in Congress. In addition, Attorney General Becerra, joined by 12 attorneys general and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, secured a settlement with Aequitas Capital Management Inc., a private equity firm, to provide over $51 million in debt relief to Californians who attended Corinthian Colleges and $183 million nationwide.
CBP Takes Interim Measures for Transshipment of Glycine in Ongoing Enforce and Protect Act Investigation

Washington, DC - U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a notice of interim measures on Monday to importer, Ceka Nutrition, Inc., in its ongoing Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigation concerning the evasion of the antidumping duty order for glycine from The Peoples Republic of China. CBP found a reasonable suspicion that Ceka Nutrition was entering glycine that had been transshipped from China through Cambodia.

CBP is committed to aggressively pursuing allegations that we receive of duty evasion with all of the available legal tools we have at our disposal, as we did in this case, said Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan. Through partnering with the trade community in combatting evasion, CBP can work to level the playing field for U.S. businesses by facilitating legitimate trade, while penalizing and deterring the violators of U.S. trade laws. To that end, I encourage those with knowledge of evasion of our trade laws to file an allegation with CBP.

CBP has taken the following interim measures against Ceka Nutrition:

Requiring live entry for all imports of glycine, meaning Ceka Nutrition must submit proper import documentation and duties prior to the release of its merchandise;

Implementing rate adjustments for all unliquidated entries of merchandise subject to this investigation to reflect that they are subject to the antidumping duty order;

Suspending or extending unliquidated entries of glycine, as appropriate;

Rejecting any entry summaries that fall within the entry summary reject period; as well as,

Reviewing Ceka Nutritions continuous bond and application of single transaction bonds for it, as appropriate.

As a result of implementing EAPA interim measures, CBP halts the potential evasion of several million dollars worth of antidumping duties annually. The antidumping duty rate for goods subject to the China-wide rate for this order is 453 percent ad valorem.

GEO Specialty Chemicals, Inc., of Deer Park, Texas, filed an allegation on August 1 claiming that Ceka Nutrition was evading the antidumping duty order on glycine from China. Geo Specialty Chemicals is one of the largest U.S. producers of glycine, and a petitioner for the antidumping duty order on glycine from China. The allegation provided evidence that reasonably suggested that Ceka Nutrition had imported glycine that was transshipped by LG Chemicals Ltd. from China through Cambodia.

CBP requested detailed information from Ceka Nutrition regarding its foreign supplier, and conducted an on-site visit of the alleged foreign supplier in Cambodia to assess the validity of the information provided by Ceka Nutrition. At that site visit, CBP learned from employees who operated the suppliers purported factory that the facility only further refined Chinese-origin glycine and did not produce it, thus rendering it subject to the antidumping duty order on glycine from China. Moreover, there was insufficient equipment, product, and employees on hand to support claims that the factory could produce the quantity that had been exported to the United States in the prior year, further supporting CBPs determination that this glycine was transshipped from China through Cambodia. The notice of final determination in this investigation is due on July 2, 2018.




This Isnt Our Last Love Letter



Dear Don Don,

Way back in 92



I walked into the room and knew



Never felt this way before



I shook your hand while gazing into your eyes



And the feeling grew



As I took a seat I knew



A love that would have my heart



Forever



I knew



Way back in 92





They say love at first sight doesnt always last or isnt true



We were the exception to that rule



Our love had no where to hide



A spark set fire



As if this is how the universe started





I never doubted our love or what we could do



Together we grew



Forming a bond everlasting



That became our glue



My euphoria was YOU



Im eternally grateful for the love and life we shared



For how fortunate we were :



to have and to hold

through sickness and in health

Til death do us part



Until we are together again



This isnt our last love letter



I love you with all my heart and soul



Yours forever,



Deirdre (Mrs. Hank Snow)





Im fortunate to have fallen in love with, marry and make a life with the sharpest, coolest, funniest, most rare, bad ass, tender loving, loyal man on the planet, my husband Don Imus.









A True American Hero

I dont know why it has been so hard for me to write about my dear friend Don Imus.



I certainly know what he meant to me, my family, my charity, my hospital and the millions of fans that listened and loved him for so many years.



I keep reading all the beautiful condolences that people are writing about how much a part of their lives were effected by listening to him over the years.

But what most people dont talk enough about is what he did for all of us.

In every sense of the word, he was an American Hero. His work with children with so many different illnesses and his dedication to their future was unmatched by anyone I have ever known or heard about.



Besides raising over $100,000,000 for so many causes, he took care of young people for over 20 years in a state where he could not breathe. Along with his incredible wife Deirdre, he created a world where children were not defined by their disease. That was a miracle! He was a miracle.

I will miss him ever day for the rest of my life.

I was blessed to be a part of his and Deirdes life.

No one will ever do what he did.

I love you Don Imus - A TRUE AMERICAN HERO





David Jurist

IMUS IN THE MORNING

FIRST DAY BACK!
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Sometimes a film delivers its most powerful message wordlessly  say, by the clenching of a characters jaw. More often, movie moments are made by the words that are spoken  or shouted  such as Tommy Wiseau in The Room, wailing, Youre tearing me apart! (That gem of dialogue, by the way, was stolen from Rebel Without a Cause, as we learn in the new film The Disaster Artist, a comedy about the making of Wiseaus so-bad-its-good masterpiece.)

Here are 10 other memorable bits of dialogue from this years films  some of which are sure to be nominated for screenwriting Oscars, and others that, for reasons that are harder to explain, found their way into this critics heart  and notebook.



Darkest Hour

Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour

Screenwriter: Anthony McCarten

Joe Wrights film looks at Winston Churchills early days as Prime Minister. Set in 1940, the film culminates with Churchill (a transformed Gary Oldman) delivering his We shall fight on the beaches speech, rousing and reassuring the British government and people on the eve of the Battle of Britain. After listening to the speech, a member of Parliament asks, as though blown away by the words: What just happened? And Viscount Halifax (Stephen Dillane) replies:

He mobilised the English language, and sent it into battle.

The Florida Project

A girl named Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) who lives with her prostitute mother in Orlando-area motel has a secret hideaway tree (Rex Features)

Screenwriters: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch

Filmmaker Sean Bakers portrait of the Central Florida underclass focuses on a little girl named Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) who is living with her prostitute mother in a seedy, Orlando-area motel. When Moonee introduces a new friend to her secret hideaway  an uprooted, yet still living, tree  Moonee describes it in a way that offers a metaphor for her own survival instincts:

Do you know why this is my favourite tree? Because it tipped over, and its still growing.

The Shape of Water

A mute cleaning woman named Elisa (Sally Hawkins) falls in love with an amphibious sea creature (Doug Jones) in The Shape of Water (Rex) (Twentieth Century Fox)

Screenwriters: Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor

Guillermo Del Toros sci-fi fantasy  half horror story, half swooning romance  is about a mute cleaning woman named Elisa (Sally Hawkins) who falls in love with an amphibious sea creature (Doug Jones) that is being studied in the government lab where she works. Narrated by Richard Jenkins, as Elisas misfit roommate, Giles, the poetic tale of oddballs seeking to belong ends, fittingly, with a fragment of verse:

When I think of her, of Elisa, all that comes to mind is a poem, made of just a few truthful words, whispered by someone in love, hundreds of years ago: Unable to perceive the shape of you, I find you all around me. Your presence fills my eyes with your love. It humbles my heart, for you are everywhere.

Mollys Game

Jessica Chastain as Molly Bloom and Idris Elba as her lawyer in Mollys Game (Rex)

Screenwriter: Aaron Sorkin

The Oscar-winning writer of The Social Network and the creator of the Emmy-winning The West Wing has sometimes been criticised for writing dialogue that doesnt sound the way people normally talk. Making his directorial debut with an adaptation of Molly Blooms 2014 memoir about running a high-stakes poker game, Aaron Sorkin fills the script with smart (and improbably sassy) zingers, including this put-down, by Blooms lawyer (Idris Elba), of the cover photo chosen by his client (Jessica Chastain) for her book:

You look like the cat that ate the canary  and then told the canarys parents about it.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Frances McDormand as Mildred, the mother of a murdered teenage girl in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing. Missouri (Twentieth Century Fox)

Screenwriter: Martin McDonagh

Frances McDormand plays Mildred, the grieving yet scabrously funny mother of a murdered teenage girl who has installed a series of billboards accusing her towns police chief of inaction. When the local priest (Nick Searcy) stops by to ask her to take them down, Mildred lays into him, citing the Los Angeles County penal code  which considers gang members to be complicit in crimes committed by other gang members  to implicate the padre in paedophilia.

[This] got me thinking, Father, that whole type of situation is kinda similar to you church boys, aint it? Youve got your colours. Youve got your clubhouse. Youre, for want of a better word, a gang. And if youre upstairs smoking a pipe and reading a Bible while one of your fellow gang members is downstairs f***ing an altar boy, then, Father, just like the Crips, and just like the Bloods, youre culpable. Cause you joined the gang, man. And I dont care if you never did s*** or never saw s*** or never heard s***. You joined the gang. Youre culpable. And when a person is culpable to altar-boy-f***ing, or any kinda boy-f***ing  I know you guys didnt really narrow it down  then they kinda forfeit the right to come into my house and say a word about me, or my life, or my daughter, or my billboards. So why dont you just finish your tea there, Father, and get the f*** out of my kitchen?

The Big Sick

Kumail Nanjiani and Zoe Kasden in The Big Sick

Screenwriters: Emily Gordon, Kumail Nanjiani

Married in real life, Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon collaborated on a funny-sweet screenplay about their courtship  which included Gordon being placed in a medically induced coma after she was taken seriously ill. When stand-up comic Nanjiani, playing himself, meets the parents of his sick girlfriend (Zoe Kasdan), he finds himself in the awkward position of having to simultaneously reassure Mom and Dad (Holly Hunter and Ray Romano) while delivering terrible news:

Apparently, there are good and bad comas. And the kind that they put her in  the medically induced ones  are definitely the good kind of coma. Like, you know how there are good and bad carbs? Gremlins  those can be good or bad.

Wind River

Jeremy Renner plays US fish and wildlife officer in Taylor Sheridans thriller Wild River

Screenwriter: Taylor Sheridan

Taylor Sheridans directorial debut  a nouveau Western centring on the investigation of the murder of a Native American girl  features Jeremy Renner as a laconic and methodical agent of the US Fish and Wildlife Service who dispenses such folksy nuggets of wisdom as:

Being careless wont get you anywhere faster and A gun is always loaded, even when it aint.

Logan

Hugh Jackman in Logan

Screenwriters: James Mangold, Scott Frank, Michael Green

Director James Mangolds noirish tale of Marvels X-Men features poignantly broken-down versions of Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), who laments the burden of the mutant hero who, seemingly, cant be killed:

Nature made me a freak. Man made me a weapon. And God made it last too long.

The Hero

Sam Elliott stars in The Hero

Screenwriters: Brett Haley, Marc Basch

Ageing cowboy/actor Sam Elliott plays an ageing cowboy/actor struggling to find work in an industry whose enduring appeal  part escapism, part voyeurism  he sums up, succinctly:

Movies are other peoples dreams.

Lady Bird

Saoirse Ronan stars in Greta Gerwigs Lady Bird (Moviestore/Rex)

Screenwriter: Greta Gerwig

Actress Greta Gerwigs solo directorial debut centres on Christine Lady Bird McPherson (Saoirse Ronan), a Sacramento high school senior who dismisses her home town as the Midwest of California. But the headmistress of Lady Birds Catholic school, Sister Sarah Joan (Lois Smith), thinks she knows better, telling our protagonist that its obvious, from the way she writes about Sacramento in her college admissions essays, that Lady Bird loves the city. All I do is pay attention, Lady Bird protests, to which the nun replies:

Dont you think they are the same thing  love and attention?

 The Washington Post
Guillermo del Toro's 'The Shape of Water'

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The nominees for the 75th Golden Globe Awards are being announced today from 5.15AM PT / 1.15PM GMT at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.

Alfre Woodard (Marvels Luke Cage, Lemony Snickets: A Series of Unfortunate Events), Garrett Hedlund (Mudbound), Kristen Bell (The Good Place) and Sharon Stone (most recently The Disaster Artist) will read out those vying for awards, which - along with being great accolades in and of them themselves - serve as a good prediction for the Academy Awards.

The nominations announcement will be live streamed on the Golden Globes Facebook Page and at GoldenGlobes.com - we'll have every category covered in here and provide some context for the nominees.

Please allow a moment for the live blog to load:

The 25 categories nominations will be announced for:

Best Motion Picture  Drama

Best Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy

Best Motion Picture  Animated

Best Motion Picture  Foreign Language

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Drama

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture  Drama

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture

Best Director  Motion Picture

Best Screenplay  Motion Picture

Best Original Score  Motion Picture

Best Original Song  Motion Picture

Best Television Series  Drama

Best Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series  Drama

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series  Drama

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

The 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday 7 January with Seth Meyers hosting.
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*Major spoilers follow for The Walking Dead season 8 episode 8 - read our review here*

The midseason finale of The Walking Dead revealed that its biggest death yet is imminent following a reveal in the closing moments which undoubtedly dropped jaws the world over.

It was discovered that Carl (Chandler Riggs) has suffered a walker bite and will depart the series he's appeared on since 2010 when the show returns from its hiatus in February - news the actor himself confirmed in an interview following the traumatic episode.

Yes, Carl is going to die, he told The Hollywood Reporter. There's no way he can get back from that. His story is definitely coming to an end.

The 18-year-old actor, a lead star who first appeared on the show as the son of Andrew Lincoln's Rick Grimes when he was just 11, has revealed his shock at discovering Carl was to be killed off - especially considering his character overtakes his father as leader in the comic book; this is easily the biggest departure from the source material yet.

Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes in 'The Walking Dead' (AMC)

Describing the news as devastating, Riggs said: I didn't expect for Carl to ever get killed off. But it serves a good purpose in the story. There's still a little more left in Carl's story - in episode nine [the midseason premiere in 2018]  and that impacts Rick, Michonne and everyone.

He continued: I was planning on going to college until I found out. I found out when I was doing rehearsals for episode six back in June. It was quite the shocker for me, Andy and everyone because I don't think anyone saw it coming. Scott [Gimple, showrunner] wanted to meet in person because it was such a big deal.

Speaking about Gimple's justification for Carl's death, Riggs elaborated: Scott was trying to figure out how to bridge the gap between Rick not wanting to kill Negan and Rick also really wanting to kill Negan, which he does right now [in the show's story]. Scott's way to get around that was to make Carl this really humanitarian figure and person who could see the good in people and see that people can change and not everyone out there is bad.

That's what Carl's talk to Rick was in this episode: there's no way that they can kill every one of the Saviours and not everyone is a bad person and there has to be some way forward than just killing people.

The most shocking Walking Dead moments Show all 10 1 /10 The most shocking Walking Dead moments The most shocking Walking Dead moments Sophie's a walker (season 2, episode 7) Much of season two's opening half is spent looking for Sophia, the missing daughter of Carol (Melissa McBride). Turns out she was locked up in Hershel's barn as a zombie all along. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Shane reanimates without being bitten (season 2, episode 12) When Carl (Chandler Riggs) guns down a deranged Shane (Jon Bernthal) to protect his father, the shock arrives when he manifests into a walker despite not being bitten; turns out everyone's infected with the virus and will turn whichever way they die. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Axel's bullet to the eye (season 3, episode 10) A character introduced in the show's prison arc, Axel is a reformed prisoner who strikes up a friendship with Carol - until he's gunned down mid-sentence. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Carl kills Lori after she gives birth (season 3, episode 4) Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) goes into labour at the very moment a zombie siege breaks out at the prison. Unfortunately, she doesn't make it through the procedure with her son Carl being the one to put a bullet to her head. The most shocking Walking Dead moments The Governor slays Hershel (season 4, episode 8) The Governor makes his dramatic return for a showdown at the prison after he captures Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Hershel (Scott Wilson). Rick reaches out, attempting to reason with him - but The Governor starts a war when he proceeds to decapitate poor old Hershel instead. The most shocking Walking Dead moments "Look at the flowers" (season 4, episode 14) In a standout episode from the show's fourth season, Carol is forced to take drastic measures when young teenager Lizzie murders her sister Mika in the belief that she'll live on as a zombie. Realising Lizzie's depraved mind would endanger those around her, Carol puts a gun to the young girl's head and, telling her to "look at the flowers," pulls the trigger, fighting back the tears. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Carl's bullet to the eye (season 6, episode 9) Season six returned from its mid-season break in typically dramatic fashion when an iconic moment from the graphic novels came to life: Carl takes a bullet to the eye. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Beth is killed (season 5, episode 8) Upon being kidnapped, Beth (Emily Kinney) is taken to Grady Memorial Hospital managed by Atlanta Law Enforcement. Forced to reside there against her will, the group - including Rick and Daryl (Norman Reedus) - eventually find her - only for her to be accidentally shot in the head by her captor. The worst thing? Her sister Maggie (Lauren Cohan) had just arrived outside. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Negan kills Abraham Season seven opened in brutal form as we discovered it was Abraham (Michael Cudlitz) at the opposite end of Negan's baseball bat. "Suck my nuts," the soldier growls as the Saviours' leader brings Lucille raining down on his head until nothing remains but a pulpy mess. The most shocking Walking Dead moments Negan kills Glenn Negan decides to punish the group once more after getting clocked round the face by Daryl. Without expectation, he thwacks Lucille round the head of poor Glenn. With his eyeball popping out of his head, he manages: "I'll find you, Maggie before Negan proceeds to finish the job ending the former pizza delivery boy's life.

Since the episode, Rigg's father caused controversy by claiming Gimple "fired" his son having stated they wanted him for "the next three years."

The Walking Dead season eight returns in the US on AMC February 2018 with the UK premiere arriving on FOX. It will also return on NOWTV

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Leaders from three indigenous Arctic communities have called on the UK Government to meet and exceed its commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement.

They have also urged the MPs to only support sustainable development in the far north.

In an event attended by cross-party MPs, leaders from the Guichin nation, the Inuit and the Saami people described the impact climate change is having on their communities in the Arctic, and the role the UK must take in helping address the problem.

Polar scientists, explorers and conservationists attended the event alongside leaders from industry, shipping, finance and insurance sectors.

The Arctic is warming at twice the rate of the global average, meaning the effects of climate change there are particularly pronounced. These effects are felt acutely by the indigenous communities living there.

Climate change really directly affects our way of life, Sarah James, from the Guichin nation, told The Independent.

I see a lot of erosion, permafrost melting, displacement of animals, we are losing a lot of lakes. All those are our way of life, she said.

10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Show all 10 1 /10 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A group of emperor penguins face a crack in the sea ice, near McMurdo Station, Antarctica Kira Morris 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Floods destroyed eight bridges and ruined crops such as wheat, maize and peas in the Karimabad valley in northern Pakistan, a mountainous region with many glaciers. In many parts of the world, glaciers have been in retreat, creating dangerously large lakes that can cause devastating flooding when the banks break. Climate change can also increase rainfall in some areas, while bringing drought to others. Hira Ali 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Smoke  filled with the carbon that is driving climate change  drifts across a field in Colombia. Sandra Rondon 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Amid a flood in Islampur, Jamalpur, Bangladesh, a woman on a raft searches for somewhere dry to take shelter. Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable places in the world to sea level rise, which is expected to make tens of millions of people homeless by 2050. Probal Rashid 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Sindh province in Pakistan has experienced a grim mix of two consequences of climate change. Because of climate change either we have floods or not enough water to irrigate our crop and feed our animals, says the photographer. Picture clearly indicates that the extreme drought makes wide cracks in clay. Crops are very difficult to grow. Rizwan Dharejo 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Hanna Petursdottir examines a cave inside the Svinafellsjokull glacier in Iceland, which she said had been growing rapidly. Since 2000, the size of glaciers on Iceland has reduced by 12 per cent. Tom Schifanella 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A river once flowed along the depression in the dry earth of this part of Bangladesh, but it has disappeared amid rising temperatures. Abrar Hossain 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A shepherd moves his herd as he looks for green pasture near the village of Sirohi in Rajasthan, northern India. The region has been badly affected by heatwaves and drought, making local people nervous about further predicted increases in temperature. Riddhima Singh Bhati 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A factory in China is shrouded by a haze of air pollution. The World Health Organisation has warned such pollution, much of which is from the fossil fuels that cause climate change, is a public health emergency. Leung Ka Wa 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Water levels in reservoirs, like this one in Gers, France, have been getting perilously low in areas across the world affected by drought, forcing authorities to introduce water restrictions. Mahtuf Ikhsan

Ms James, who was raised undertaking the traditional practices of hunting, fishing and gathering, comes from a community of caribou [reindeer] people who live 110 miles north of the Arctic Circle in Alaska.

The Porcupine River caribou herd has been a foundation of the Gwichin culture for 20,000 years, and over her lifetime she has seen their habits change as they are threatened by fossil fuel extraction and climate change.

They change their migratory routes, they have got to change their food, and when they are supposed to be fat theyre not fat, she said.

Ms James said she wanted to thank the UK Government for its role in the Paris Agreement, but said they need to do more when it comes to committing to combat climate change and providing funding.

Sarah James, from the Guichin nation, one of the three indigenous speakers (Pamela A Miller)

Its really important that somebody takes the lead, and President Trump took the wrong lead. That made us sad because every day we have got to deal with climate change, she said.

The UK Government has recently reaffirmed its commitment to tackling climate change and meeting the commitments agreed by both the Climate Change Act of 2008 and the Paris Agreement through the Clean Growth Strategy and Industrial Strategy. Neither plan, however, has outlined how it specifically will do so or provided the funding necessary.

Ms James, together with Josie Okalik Eegeesiak, chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council, and Jannie Staffansson, who works on environmental issues for the Saami Council, were hosted by MP James Gray.

WWF supported the All Party Parliamentary Group in bringing the Arctic Indigenous leaders to the UK.

We are the Arctics neighbour, Rod Downie, head of polar programmes for WWF, said to The Independent.

Besides proximity to the Arctic, said Mr Downie, the UKs status as an influential member of the G7, and a centre of finance, shipping and other industries that impact the region, make it well placed to help combat climate change and its effects in the north.

As well as reinforcing the urgency of the UK Government meeting its commitment for climate change, the meeting also has significance for the upcoming revision of the UK governments Arctic policy.

The UKs Arctic policy framework was set out in 2013, and is set to be revised soon.

Recommended Arctic Ocean fishing ban welcomed by scientists and environmentalists

Mr Downie says it is vital that any revision includes a commitment to sustainable development in the Arctic.

WWF would like to ensure any development or exploitation of the Arctic, by the shipping or fishing industries for example, is carried out sustainably.

Mr Downie hopes the representatives of Government and industry who were present will be affected by their meeting with these indigenous leaders.

They are living on the front line of climate change. The opportunity to hear first-hand about the effects of climate change on their communities is I think a very unique and powerful message, he said.

What happens in the Arctic doesnt stay in the Arctic, said Mr Downie. These are global issues.

A government spokeswoman said: The UK is a world leader in tackling climate change. We played a vital role in securing the historic Paris Agreement and the UK was one of the first countries to introduce legally binding emission reduction targets."

We want to make sure that only responsible development in the Arctic is allowed so we are updating the UK-Arctic Policy framework to ensure this remains the case. We are working with the indigenous peoples towards a safe and secure Arctic.
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Witnessing children in the UK visiting a food bank is truly shocking, but research tells us it is not uncommon. In the last six months The Trussell Trust has given out over half a million food parcels, more than 200,000 of which were given to children, many of school age.

But there are also many more food banks, often run informally by religious organisations and community groups. I identified three times more independent food banks than Trussell Trust services in my ongoing research in the North West of England, revealing the true scale of the crisis.

I have witnessed food banks become the last line of support for many families, and it is likely that much of the food insecurity in the UK is hidden.

An estimated four million children live below the official poverty line in the UK even though a majority live in households where at least one adult is in employment. It has been widely reported how some teachers have been providing food and dinner money for those children who have no food.

The issue of food insecurity among children is being highlighted this Christmas by The Independent and Evening Standards Help a Hungry Child campaign to respond to the disproportionate impact food poverty has on children.

In every food bank we visited, we observed children accompanying their parents to collect food parcels. The children would just wait quietly. It is difficult to imagine what they were thinking, but it is clear their parents were in desperate need.

Often the food bank volunteers would find something to give to the children and the food parcel would be made up specifically to include food for them, such as breakfast cereal. At Christmas time there are usually some donated toys and chocolates to give out. While a comfort, this essential help is of course only a short-term fix.

A lack of food can impact on a childs ability to concentrate in school but can also impact on their long-term health in adult life. This begins with nutrition during pregnancy. Around seven per cent of babies born in the UK are low weight (under 2.5kg) and this is thought, in part, to be linked to economic deprivation.

 Help A Hungry Child: How the Felix Project is tackling food poverty

Visiting a food bank is not a particularly joyful experience, especially at Christmas. Our research identified how many parents had put off going because of embarrassment and shame.

One mother, aged 34, said: It throws your pride out of the window...I am doing it for my kids, I am not going to make my kids suffer just because of my pride.

A father-of-two commented on how uncomfortable he felt: I was nervous coming here, I thought I had done something wrong...having to ask for food your ego takes a battering.

Many parents we spoke to did not want to be seen having to rely on a food bank. One mother said she feared if anyone saw her they might report her to social services and she might lose her children if she was seen as not being able to afford to feed them.

Many families were facing difficult choices. People on low incomes can face higher costs for everyday essential goods and services and many parents had turned to the food bank as a last resort.

In one corner shop close to the food bank, there was a prominent hand written sign on the door, which read Please Do Not!! Ask For Credit Under Any Circumstances!

A sign in a corner shop close to a food bank in the northwest (Kingsley Purdam)

Another mother commented: We need to keep the house warm and have just had to buy some new school uniform and that meant cutting down on something else.

Evidence also suggests that many parents are skipping meals to make sure their children have enough to eat, which can put their own health at risk. One ten-year old child we spoke to highlighted how she was worried about her mother not eating. She said: We say to my mum make sure you eat but she says shes not hungry...shes just making sure we eat first.

Financial insecurity can affect childrens well being. Research by Step Change found more than half of children aged between 10 and 17 and living in households with problem debts reported feeling worried about their familys financial situation.

Recommended How a bereaved mother found a lifeline with The Felix Project

Visiting a food bank is not free, it comes at a cost, it can impact on your self-esteem and pride. At Christmas, many food banks provide extra food parcels to cover the holidays. But food banks can only provide a temporary fix and are no place for children. Given the predicted increase in child poverty, it is likely that we will see more UK children in food banks in the future.

Unlike Oliver Twist the children we have encountered in food banks were not asking for more, they just seemed happy to have something.

Kingsley Purdam is a social statistics researcher at the University of Manchester
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At first glance, Lauren Santo Domingo may not strike you as an empire builder. A former Vogue editor and glossy-blonde socialite, she is married to the heir of a Colombian beer fortune and has a slew of It girl friends. She could appear easy to dismiss.

But this week Moda Operandi, the high-fashion website she and Aslaug Magnusdottir founded in 2011 as the first pre-tailer (a place where customers can pre-order looks immediately after runway shows), announced that it had raised $165m (123.2m) in its latest round of funding.

As the death of retail is heralded as the biggest trend of 2017, boutiques shutter and rumours spread of possible department-store bankruptcies driven by changing consumer habits, price wars and the threat of Amazon. High-end e-commerce remains a bright spot in the shopping landscape: flooded with more cash than ever before and with bubble-like, sky-high valuations to boot.

What is so exciting about the amount of money we were able to raise is that we have proved ourselves and our model on a global scale. Year-on-year sales are growing at an exponential rate, says the Moda Operandi chief executive, Deborah Nicodemus, who has worked with Santo Domingo since 2013. Their latest investment round was led by Adrian Cheng, whose family controls the jewellery group Chow Tai Fook, and Apax Digital, a fund advised by Apax Partners, a private equity firm that bought a controlling stake in the rival e-commerce outfit matchesfashion.com in September.

We feel on top of the world right now, and it is a fantastic place to be, Nicodemus says.

Its a world dominated by two behemoth competitors who have spent the last year aggressively expanding their territories and strategically carving up the landscape between them. Napoleons of the virtual boulevards, they are locked in an escalating battle for power  and your wallet. You may not know their names, but they are shaping how you shop.

Yoox Net-a-Porter, the largest luxury e-tailer by sales, is one of them. It owns the e-tailers Net-a-Porter, the Outnet, Mr Porter and Yoox; it also operates the e-commerce sites for over 30 luxury brands including Stella McCartney, Dolce & Gabbana and Chloe.

Farfetch, the other big name, is an online marketplace for 500 independent luxury boutiques and 200 brands as well as the owner of the bricks-and-mortar store Browns in London.

The stakes are high. Online luxury sales jumped by 24 percent in 2017, according to a recent study by the consulting firm Bain & Co, with the authors estimating that online sales of personal luxury goods will make up 25 per cent of the market by 2025. Little wonder that during the past year barely a month went by without Yoox Net-a-Porter or Farfetch unveiling a snazzy new strategy or service in a thinly veiled bid to outmanoeuvre the other.

In April, for example, Yoox Net-a-Porter introduced You Try, We Wait: a same-day, try-on-and-wait premium delivery service with at-home shopping consultations. Six days later, Farfetch started a store-to-door service in 90 minutes with Gucci in 10 cities worldwide. Then Farfetch revealed a suite of technologies based on responding to consumers in the Store of the Future.

Yoox Net-a-Porter promptly responded with Next Era: a partnership with brands, that debuted with Valentino giving customers access to Valentino products wherever they are, and however they want them.

We are the leaders in the luxury fashion online space, no question about it, says Federico Marchetti, the CEO of Yoox Net-a-Porter, from a giant television-screen streaming into the glossy Technology Hub in West London that he opened earlier this year. On message in every way, he was doing a virtual interview from Milan. If you want me to describe my territory, then that is how I would describe it, he said.

An intense and bespectacled self-made multimillionaire, Marchetti, 48, was a pioneer in Italian luxury fashion, starting Yoox in 2000 as a platform where end-of-season stock could be sold online, before branching out into full-price designer wares.

In 2015, in a merger, Yoox combined forces with its British rival Net-a-Porter to become the worlds largest luxury retailer (in a rumour-fueled internal tussle, the Net-a-Porter founder Natalie Massenet left soon after). For the first nine months of 2017 the group reported sales of 1.5 billion euros, up 19 per cent year-on-year, and unveiled ambitious plans to double the size of the business by 2020.

In any industry there are always copycats, but what we do here is come up with ideas first and lead from the front, Marchetti says. He points to the groups early foray into mobile commerce (two thirds of sales are on mobile), sales of high-end jewellery online and a fresh focus on EIPs: the extremely important persons who make up 2 per cent of the companys clientele but contribute 40 percent of revenue.

While he seems relaxed about the groups plans for growth, Marchetti scoffs at the notion that anyone may be snapping at his heels.

Lately, there has been more and more focus on our new competitors, but most of them have been around for some time. Its just one has been sold, the other is trying to go public, Marchetti says, referring to the smaller but much-lauded matchesfashion.com, and Farfetch. So there is this perception there is increased rivalry, but in terms of truly new players, Im not sure I can think of anyone who comes close to us.

While there was a braggadocio to his words, any first mover inevitably looks behind at the next generation of names adapting their approach to suit ever-evolving contemporary needs. Enter Jose Neves, 43, who founded Farfetch in 2007. Then a shoe-brand owner from Portugal, Neves chose to create an online marketplace platform helping smaller bricks-and-mortar stores enter the digital world and taking a commission on each purchase, freeing himself from the need to take on the significant inventory risk and working capital requirements of a traditional store (and Yoox Net-a-Porter).

What makes us different is that everyone else is operating on a retail model, but we are a platform, not a shop, an enabler not a competitor, and are reaping all the advantages that such a position entails, the suave Neves says in London. (Although the company is based in Britain, he continues to live in Portugal.)

With a valuation of $1bn less than a decade after its start, Farfetch has pulled off a string of media coups this year. In February Massenet joined its board, a seeming rebuke to Yoox Net-a-Porter. In June, the Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com invested $397m, the better to boost Farfetch in the worlds third-largest luxury market. And although the company is unprofitable, many industry analysts think it will have an initial public offering next year, something Neves is at pains to downplay.

We have a completely full plate right now with all our current plans, from consolidating our position locally in key growth markets like China and Korea, and exploration of how to leverage augmented retail and ideas around the store of the future, particularly in relation to Browns, Neves says. We believe we are the only global luxury platform at scale. Maintaining and building on that is keeping us more than busy. Especially as new players start their own incursions into the market and brands ramp up their independent e-commerce operations.

High-profile flops like that of Style.com, the Conde Nast-backed venture that shuttered earlier this year, serve as stark reminders that things can easily go wrong. It isnt surprising, then, that as the big two (and the one that would be three) fight to expand their reach, their focus is on new territories, particularly Asia and the Middle East.

Clients from these regions want to make their own decisions on purchases, and love the experience of a trunk show and high sense of luxury, says Nicodemus of Moda Operandi, noting (or gloating) that the average basket value for its shoppers was $1,300, and our nearest rival brings in around $650.

There is definitely a heightened sense of rivalry across a narrow band of luxury e-commerce players, but theres also a great deal to play for as it is a growing sector, she says. Still, there is no question that everyone is sizing up where to go next.

 New York Times
Business / Companies

by Staff reporter

THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has set December 31, 2017, as the deadline for the separation of ZB Financial Holdings Limited (ZBFHL) from Intermarket Holdings Limited (IHL), which will see banker Mr Nicholas Vingirai regaining his assets after a seven-year wait.On Thursday last week, ZBFHL issued its second cautionary to members of the public and shareholders that discussions were presently under way that would likely impact on the institution's share price."Shareholders and members of the public are advised that ZB Financial Holdings (ZBFH or company) is engaged in negotiations concerning a material transaction which, if concluded, may have an effect on the price of the company's shares," said ZBFHL in the latest statement."Accordingly, shareholders and members of the public are advised to exercise caution and consult their professional advisors when dealing in the company's shares until full announcement is made or this cautionary is withdrawn."ZBFHL board chairperson Professor Charity Manyeruke declined to comment and referred our Harare Bureau to the RBZ. So, too, did Mr Nicholas Vingirai, whose investment vehicle Transnational Holdings Limited (THL) owns IHL.But sources privy to the negotiations said last week the parties  RBZ, ZBFHL and THL  met on December 6 to discuss the finer details of bringing closure to the long-standing issue. It was the second such meeting following discussions on June 23 this year."The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe wants the matter to be resolved by December 31 this year, and the parties are currently negotiating," said a source."There was a meeting on Wednesday, which resolved to come up with a clear roadmap."At the meeting, which was convened at the central bank, ZBFHL was represented by Prof Manyeruke, its legal advisors and transaction advisors, Imara, while THL was represented by Mr Vingirai and his legal team, including financial advisors, Ernest & Young.It is understood that Government, which is worried about the interminable delays surrounding the deal, has taken a keen interest in the matter, especially considering that Cabinet approved the deal in February 2015.There is also belief that separating the two groups can be "straight forward" and "quick" considering that the businesses are separately licensed and have different administrative structures.It is believed that the demerger of the two financial institutions might affect some members of the ZBFHL management, who are accused of receiving over $25 million in alleged irregular payments between 2009 and 2016 from subsidiaries that are under Mr Vingirai's THL.
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Hanukkah, the Jewish festival that commemorates the miracle of a menorah burning for eight full days after the desecration of the Temple of Jerusalem, is upon us once more.

Starting on Sunday 28 November, the Jewish Festival of Lights is celebrated by lighting a menorah, or a hanukkiah, for eight days and exchanging gifts with loved ones.

Its also observed by eating a gargantuan amount of delicious, mouth-watering food, much to the delight of celebrants around the world.

From jam-filled doughnuts to chocolate coins, sumptuous potato latkes and more, the food thats served during Hanukkah is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the jubilant festival.

Heres everything you need to know about Hanukkah food. Chag Sameach (Happy holiday)!

Latkes

(Getty Images (Getty Images)

When the Jewish people reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem from the King Antiochus and his troops, as the story of Hanukkah goes, they could only find enough oil in the temple to light the menorah for one day.

However, when the menorah (a candelabra) was lit with the oil, it somehow managed to carry on burning for eight full days, hence the eight-day duration of Hanukkah.

To commemorate the miracle of the tiny amount of oil transcending expectations to light the holy menorah, during the Festival of Lights Jewish people eat a lot of food thats been fried in oil.

One of the most popular foods eaten during Hanukkah are latkes, which are fried potato pancakes.

Some Jewish people eat latkes sweet, accompanied with apple sauce, while others prefer them savoury, served with sour cream.

Either way, theyre a treat for the taste buds.

Sufganiyot

(Getty Images/iStockphoto (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A sufganiyah, or sufganiyot for plural, is a round, deep-fried doughnut typically filled with strawberry jam thats eaten on Hanukkah.

Topped with powdered sugar, these delectable treats are one of the most recognisable foods affiliated with the Jewish festival.

In recent years, Jewish people in Israel and around the world have become more experimental with their sufganiyot fillings.

You can now choose from an array of flavours, including chocolate cream, vanilla cream, caramel and cappuccino.

Many bakeries also offer miniature-sized sufganiyot, so you can tuck into a selection of different flavours without going overboard (although if you do, who can blame you).

Gelt

(Getty Images/iStockphoto (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

On Hanukkah, children are often given chocolate money in celebration of the festival.

In Yiddish, a language that the Jewish people began using in Europe around 1,000 years ago, the translation of money is gelt.

The chocolate coins given out on Hanukkah are wrapped in silver or gold foil and eaten in abundance by children and adults alike.

According to Rabbi A. P. Bloch, the custom of giving out gelt on Hanukkah began in 17th Century Poland, when Jewish parents would give their children money to give to their teachers.

In time, as children demanded their due, money was also given to children to keep for themselves, he says.

Bloch explains that according to 17th Century Rabbi Magen Avraham, poor yeshiva students would visit the homes of Jewish benefactors who would then give them Hanukkah money.

The rabbis approved of the custom of giving money on Hanukkah because it publicised the story of the miracle of oil, Rabbi Bloch writes.

Beef brisket

(Getty Images/iStockphoto (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Beef brisket is a delicacy thats served at many Jewish festivals, including Rosh Hashanah, Passover and Hanukkah.

It first became popular in eastern Europe when Jewish living the region werent able to afford more expensive cuts of meat.

The often-impoverished Jews of eastern Europe could rarely afford to live high on the cow - to buy the more tender cuts from the rib and chuck, Gil Marks writes in Encyclopedia of Jewish Food.

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[So] they learned how to make do with the cheaper, less desirable parts.

Brisket is taken from the chest of the cow, and is often made the day before its eaten.

It can be served with side dishes such as potato latkes or roasted vegetables.
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If youve ever come home from work looking forward to a glass of wine only to be thwarted by the cork breaking as youre trying to open the bottle, it is most likely the way youre storing your wine bottles, and not how the wine was corked.

According to Adrian Smith, The Independent's wine expert, while "you may see wine sitting upright in a wine shop and assume that's the correct way to store it at home, for wines with a cork, that couldn't be further from the truth."

He said, "If you want to keep wine over time, it should always be in contact with the cork, and thus should be placed on its side."

Otherwise, he says, "the cork will be exposed to more oxygen, shrinking it over time and letting more oxygen deep inside the bottle, which will slowly turn the wine to vinegar."

In addition, Joanna Simon, a wine critic, told Cosmopolitan storing your wine bottles upright actually results in brittle cork, prone to crumbling or breaking once youre ready for a glass, or two.

Even if you do manage to remove the cork successfully from a bottle that has been upright, there is a higher chance bits of cork will be swimming in your wine.

Be wary of wine stored upright

The correct way to store wine bottles? Horizontally.

Wine racks aren't just for show (Getty Images/Vetta)

It looks like those fancy wine racks you see in restaurants arent just for decoration.

And to further ensure you can enjoy your wine cork-free, Simon suggests using a smooth, rounded corkscrew, rather than one with a sharp, bevelled edge.

So while you may not splurge on your wine, you should pay the extra money for a good corkscrew.

But if youre like us and dont have room in your apartment for a fancy wine rack, you should stick to screw cap wines, which do not need to be stored horizontally.

Also, not keeping a bottle of wine around long enough for storage to be necessary works too...
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A massive vote of confidence in Britains economy?

Thats how Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson described BAE Systems 5bn deal to flog 24 Typhoon fighter jets to Qatar.

There is, of course, another way to look at the transaction.

Its also a massive vote of confidence in the willingness of the British to sell weapons to anyone whose money is good.

Qatar is hardly a model of enlightened democracy. But then neither are Oman and Saudi Arabia, which have also bought the aircraft.

According to Mr Williamson, these formidable jets will boost the Qatari military in its mission to support stability in the region and deliver security at home.

You can understand why his press people whipped the statement up, but quite how they worked that out isnt entirely clear.

Qatar has, after all, been isolated by Egypt, Bharain, the United Arab Emirates, and the Saudis, all of which have accused it of sponsoring terrorism  something the Qataris vehemently deny  as well as being too pally with Iran.

It has responded to this by ramping up military spending, with the Americans and the French also contributing their hardware to what looks like a febrile mix. Britain is hardly alone here.

We keep being told that the Saudis are expected to pitch a follow-on order to the Typhoons they have already bought. Perhaps all this is intended to serve as a motivational tool?

Still, if we buddy up with the Qataris we might at least be able to prevail upon them to knock on Tehrans door for us if Boris Johnson puts his foot in his mouth again when discussing British citizens languishing in the Islamic republics jails. That could come in very handy. Just a thought.

Yes, yes, I get the fact that this will be viewed as a wonderful early Christmas present by thousands of workers who make the things, not to mention the people who help to construct all the bits and pieces that go with the order.

It wont save 2,000 workers already lined up for the axe by BAE, but there are thousands more people in Lancashire who were facing an uncertain future with production due to end in 2019 in the absence of any new orders.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

It will also keep the wolf from the door at Brough in Yorkshire, where the Hawk Trainer aircraft is made (theres also an order coming for a jet best known for its use by the Red Arrows).

The Government, meanwhile, now has some breathing space as it considers how to secure Britains capacity to design and make combat jets when the Typhoon blows itself out, and the certainty that these islands will have something to sell for at least a few years after Brexit.

Itd be nice if that something wasnt a technological terror that may be destined to stoke tensions in one of the worlds more dangerous regions, but there you go.
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The UK will have lost 10,500 finance jobs to other European cities by day one of Brexit, according to new research.

The number of City firms planning to shift jobs to the Continent has doubled since last year, professional services company EY said on Monday.

It tracked 222 City firms and found that almost a third of banks, brokers and asset managers had confirmed or said they are considering plans to move staff or open up new offices in centres such as Dublin, Amsterdam and Frankfurt.

However, the number of jobs estimated to be moving has dropped by 2,000 from a year ago, EY said. Many of the jobs set to go are front-office jobs rather than support functions.

The latest estimate is in line with that of Bank of England Deputy Governor Sam Woods who predicted 10,000 jobs would go by the time Britain officially departs the single market and customs union in March 2019. However a senior figure at the BoE believes around 75,000 jobs could be lost in the longer term because of Brexit, according to sources cited by the BBC.

Dublin and Frankfurt are the cities likely to see the largest benefit from Brexit relocations, EY said. A total of 26 firms have announced they will move operations to one of those two financial hubs.

The extent of broader strategic restructurings and relocation plans will of course ultimately depend on the specifics of any long-term UK deal with the EU, but a drop in the volume of jobs moving will be welcome news for the City, said Omar Ali, head of EYs UK financial services team.

The moves would have a significant impact on smaller hubs on the Continent but would not dent Londons role as Europes primary financial centre, he said.

Mr Ali added that Fridays breakthrough announcement of a Brexit agreement between the UK and the EU member states had sent a wave of relief across the City.

The two sides agreed to move on to the next phase of the Brexit talks.The agreement could pave the way for agreement on a transitional period as early as next year and the starting point for negotiations on future trade deals, both of which are seen as crucial for the future of the UK financial services industry.

UK-based financial institutions have lobbied hard for a transitional period, amid fears that they will not be able to serve their EU clients once Britain leaves the trading bloc. More firms are expected to confirm job moves from the UK if a transitional deal is not confirmed in early 2018.

A no-deal Brexit is widely seen as being potentially devastating for the UKs important financial sector, which was worth 124bn to the UK economy in 2016, according to House of Commons figures.

The EUs chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier made it clear last month that, when the UK leaves the single market, financial services firms based in Britain will lose their passporting rights.

On financial services, UK voices suggest that Brexit does not mean Brexit. Brexit means Brexit, everywhere, Mr Barnier told the Centre for European Reform last month.

The passport enables firms to sell their services across the EU. To continue selling to clients within the EU, as they do now, they would have to establish subsidiaries within the EU and apply for a local licence.

Alternatively they will have to hope they can rely on regulatory equivalence. This is the notion that if the UK financial regulator adopts the same regulatory standards as the pan-European financial regulator, the European regulator will continue to allow UK-based financial firms to operate as they do now across Europe.
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Britains popularity as a destination for European jobseekers has plummeted since its decision to leave the EU, with many workers now favouring destinations like Germany, Luxembourg and Ireland, new research reveals.

Job site Indeed analysed the online search patterns of millions of jobseekers from 15 European countries and found that the share of all cross-border job searches is down 14.7 per cent since 2015.

Despite the fall, the UK remains the most popular choice for Europeans searching for a job abroad, attracting 31.8 per cent all interest in the first nine months of the year.

Recommended British Chambers of Commerce trims UK growth outlook until 2019

Germany has seen its searches rise by 19.3 per cent, taking it to second place, while Irelands have risen by 33.6 per cent and Luxembourgs by 56 per cent.

The data mirrors Government figures published last month which show that EU net migration to the UK fell by 106,000 to 230,000 in the year following the Brexit vote.

For much of the past decade, Britains dynamic labour market has made it a poster boy for ambitious Europeans keen to progress their careers, said Mariano Mamertino, economist for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, at Indeed.

Last years Brexit vote hasnt stopped that attractiveness in its tracks, but it is clearly giving many European jobseekers pause for thought, he said.

So while the UK is still the most popular destination among Europeans looking to work abroad, its lead is shrinking fast. Britains loss could be its rivals gain  and Germany, Luxembourg and Ireland are all attracting a greater share of the interest from upwardly mobile EU citizens.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

There has also been a shift in the pattern of Brits hunting for jobs abroad.

Traditionally, they have tended to look towards English-speaking countries such as the US, Australia or Canada, but since 2015 there has been a 15.4 per cent increase in those searching for work in the EU, the Indeed figures show.

One more surprising aspect of the Brexit effect is the apparent outbreak of itchy feet among British jobseekers, said Mr Mamertino.

Britain remains a net importer of talent from the EU, but the surge of interest in European roles among UK-based job seekers suggests the cross-Channel traffic is no longer just a one-way street, he added.
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A major producer of baby milk has ordered a massive recall of a global international product on fears that it might be causing salmonella.

A spokesman for French company Lactalis told agency AFP on Sunday that nearly 7,000 tonnes of baby milk may have been contaminated with the bacteria. He was unable to provide information on how much of the product remains on the market, how much has been consumed so far and how much might be in stock.

Lactalis is one of the biggest dairy groups in the world. As well as baby milk, it produces cheeses, regular milk, cream and butter, under a slew of different brand names.

The recall will affect consumers in countries including China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sudan, as well as the UK, AFP reported.

The UK's Food Standards Agency in a statement said that it was aware of the recall and had contacted the relevant authorities to establish whether any of the affected products had been distributed in the UK.

"We have not been informed that the UK has received any of the affected products so there has been no recall issued," a spokesperson added.

The recall reportedly follows news of 26 cases of children falling sick in France since the start of this month.

Symptoms of salmonella include diarrhoea, stomach cramps and sometimes vomiting and fever. According to the NHS, it takes on average 12 to 72 hours for the symptoms of salmonella to develop after swallowing an infectious dose.

Symptoms usually last for four to seven days and most people recover without treatment. But if symptoms persist, hospital treatment may become necessary as a result of dehydration. In those cases, salmonella can be life-threatening.

Lactalis was not immediately available for further comment when contacted by The Independent.
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Sir Richard Branson has fanned the flames of a long-running feud with the boss of British Airways, calling on Willie Walsh to settle a "very public and painful" 1m bet.

The billionaire founder of Virgin Group is claiming victory after pitching the wager to Mr Walsh in 2012 that Virgin Atlantic would still exist in five years' time.

However, the chief executive of BA-owner IAG refused to cede defeat, claiming the serial entrepreneur is the loser because he "no longer owns or controls the business" after giving up majority ownership earlier this year.

The initial terms of the bet were for the loser to pay 1m bonus to the rival airline's staff, but Mr Walsh wanted to shift them to a "knee in the groin".

Writing on his Virgin blog, Sir Richard said it was time for the pair "to settle this matter once and for all".

He said: "Five years ago today, BA chief Willie Walsh wagered me a very public and painful bet. He bet that the Virgin Atlantic brand would disappear within five years. I disagreed.

"He said that the loser should accept a 'knee in the groin'.

"Although people might be amused to see me give Willie a low blow, I ideally have no wish to do so.

"So to settle this matter once and for all, and in the spirit of Christmas, I suggest he donates 1m to Virgin Atlantic's team.

"If he doesn't agree then we'll just have to agree a time, date and place for the knee in the groin.

"Once this is over (one way or the other), lunch or dinner is on me, Willie, and perhaps we can draw a line under the past."

Sir Richard claims the public spat harks back to 1993 when BA was forced to apologise and stump up 500,000 to the billionaire - and a further 110,000 to his airline - following a libel battle.

However, the Virgin founder devised the bet 19 years later after Mr Walsh told reporters he thought Virgin Atlantic could disappear after Delta snapped up a 49 per cent stake in the airline.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

Since then, Air France-KLM agreed a joint venture with Virgin Group, which currently still owns and controls 51 per cent of Virgin Atlantic.

Responding to Sir Richard's latest blog post, Mr Walsh said: "When Richard Branson sold out to Delta five years ago, he said he would never give up control.

"As everyone knows, he no longer owns or controls the business, a reality confirmed by the decision to sell more of his shares to Air France. He's lost the bet."
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Uber will defend its right to operate in London in a court hearing on Monday after the app was deemed unfit to run a taxi service and stripped of its licence in its most important European market.

Regulator Transport for London (TfL) shocked the Silicon Valley firm by rejecting its licence renewal bid in September, citing its approach to reporting serious criminal offences and background checks on drivers.

Ubers 40,000 drivers, representing around one in three of all private hire vehicles on the capitals roads, can continue to take passengers until the appeals process is exhausted, which could take years.

Recommended Uber agrees to settle US lawsuit filed by India rape victim

The legal battle pitches one of the worlds richest cities against a tech giant known for its forays into new markets around the world that have prompted bans, restrictions and protests, including by drivers of Londons famous black cabs.

Ubers lawyers will begin their appeal at Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday, in what is expected to be a largely administrative hearing designed to set a date for a fuller hearing next year.

Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi has apologised to Londoners and met TfL commissioner Mike Brown in October for what both sides described as constructive talks.

Mr Brown told Reuters in November that there are some discussions going on to make sure they are compliant.

Months of legal wrangling are likely unless the Silicon Valley app, valued at around $70bn (52bn) with investors including Goldman Sachs, can come to a new arrangement with the regulator.

We continue having constructive discussions with Transport for London in order to resolve this, an Uber spokesman said ahead of the hearing. As our new chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi has said, we are determined to make things right.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

Losing its London licence was just one of many blows to Uber this year as a stream of executives left amid controversies involving allegations of sexual harassment and issues surrounding data privacy and business practices.

In the UK, Uber is looking to appoint a new boss after Jo Bertram announced her departure less than two weeks after Londons decision.

It also faces potential problems in Sheffield where its licence has been suspended and in Brighton, where local officials extended the firms licence for only six months to give them more time to consider the outcome of the dispute in London.

Reuters
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Minicab app firm Ubers appeal against Transport for Londons decision not to renew its licence in the city will not be heard until spring 2018.

Both sides of the dispute appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Monday, for a case-management hearing. Chief magistrate Emma Arbuthnot said that a hearing as to whether the GMB union and the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association could become interested parties in the case would take place on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. A full appeal hearing on the case, though, would not be happen until either May or June next year. An exact date is yet to be set.

TfL announced its decision to scrap Ubers operating licence in the capital in September, sparking a fierce battle between the company, unions, politicians, rival services and customers.

Recommended Sheffield suspends Uber licence over management questions

The transport authority had accused the Silicon Valley giant of lacking corporate responsibility in relation to issues around public safety and security.

In October, Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi met with TfL and apologised to Londoners for some of the companys past practices. Both sides described those talks as constructive but details of progress in negotiations have been sparse since.

Uber employs around 40,000 drivers in London, servicing an estimated 3.5 million people, which makes the capital one of its most important international markets. However, it has been under severe fire from a growing army of UK critics over the past year.

Some have claimed that the privately owned company unfairly skews competition, while other have accused it of not doing enough to crack down on incidents of violence involving drivers.

Beyond London, Ubers licence was recently also suspended in Sheffield after the company reportedly failed to respond to official requests about its management.

In Brighton its licence was renewed in early November, but only for a period of six months.

In London, Uber can continue servicing its London passengers until the appeals process is exhausted, which some experts have said could take several years.

In a statement on Monday, a spokesperson for Uber said that the company had filed the appeal so that we can continue serving millions of riders and tens of thousands of drivers in London.

The spokesperson added that discussions with TfL around resolving the issue were still constructive.

As our new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has said, we are determined to make things right.
News / Local

by Stephen Jakes

Mthwakazi Republic Party has said the Tredgold court officials reflected the highest level of unprofesionalism and inefficiency when a warranty of arrest was issued for MRP President in absentia at court number 2.On Friday December 1 2017, the magistrate, Lawyer Maqhawe Mpofu the defense counsel and the Public prosecutor concurred and announced to the packed court that the next court appearance for the MRP leader was to be January 5 2018.Surprisingly, the magistrate on Tuesday the December 5 called Mqondisi's name three times before issuing a warrant of arrest without realising his error.The MRP leader had been summoned to report to Bulawayo central CID law and order section on Thursday as the court through the Public prosecutor had submitted the docket for a warrant of arrest to the central CID law and order.The defense counsel and the MRP President have already appeared before the magistrate and the public prosecutor to rectify the matter. The records in the court reflected and confirmed that the next court appearance is indeed January 5 2018, as per the court announcement of the last appearance."The discrepancy that led to the court appearance yesterday was either due to incompetence or the inefficiency of court staff. We hope that it was not done deliberately for the reasons best known to them, other than administration of justice," said MRP.
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The political scientist Professor Jack Hayward, who has died aged 86, came to prominence in the so-called Oxford insurgency in 1975 which overthrew the old guard of senior professors which had long dominated the executive of the Political Studies Association (PSA)  a not-for-profit set up in 1950 with funding from Unesco.

At its annual conference at Oxford the retiring executive expected re-election. But tapping into a groundswell of discontent a slate of young academics (most of whom later became prominent members of the profession) offered themselves for election on a reform platform. A contested election was unheard of, leaving some appalled at such divisive conduct.

The group, to their surprise, won easily. But they had made no plans and hurriedly chose Hayward, the only professor among them, as chairman. He chastised those who said it was a coup, pointing out that an election was not a coup. Many of the senior figures were scarcely seen again at conferences. A new generation had taken over. The new team inaugurated a series of reforms that transformed the work of the PSA, greatly expanding membership and extending the range of activities and services.

At the universities of Hull and Oxford, Hayward was a successful builder of institutions: at the first of politics and the second of European studies. He was also the latest in a long and distinguished group of British students of French history, society and politics. In 1996 the quality of his work on France over some 30 years was recognised by France with a Chevalier de la Legion dHonneur. In 2011 he won the PSAs Isaiah Berlin award.

If he had a hero it was the charismatic Sammy Finer, who appointed him to a post at Keele University in 1963. Finer was a solitary scholar and Hayward at the end of his career sometimes wondered if his professions concentration on collaborative research had gone too far and the talents of the individual scholar subsumed in collective projects. (Paradoxically, he was himself an indefatigable member of committees, workshops and research groups). He brought to fruition Finers three-volume History of Government from the Earliest Times (OUP, 1997) covering 5,000 years.

Finer had died four years earlier with the work incomplete. It was a remarkably generous act on Haywards part but he regarded it as paying an intellectual debt. Hayward was born in 1931 in the International Concession in Shanghai.

His first 14 years were spent as a British boy of Jewish upbringing in China, including three and a half in a Japanese internment camp. In 1946 his family returned to England and he went to the London School of Economics in 1949 to study government. At LSE his tutors included Ralph Miliband, father of David and Ed Miliband, and, crucially, William Pickles who fired his interest in French politics. He remained at LSE to complete his doctorate under Michael Oakeshott who contributed little beyond correcting his punctuation.

After completing his PhD and national service in the RAF, Hayward spent four years as a politics lecturer at Sheffield University, before moving to Keele. This was a lively department and a number of colleagues later achieved positions of eminence in the profession.

At Keele, he produced his first book, Private Interests and Public Policy (1966) a study of the Economic and Social Council of France. This prompted some wider interest because Harold Wilsons Labour government was interested in French economic planning and cooperation between interest groups and government.

Relations between state and industry in France remained an interest for Hayward and he edited or co-authored a number of books on the subject. He complained that the British did not understand how the French system worked and this led to naive institutional borrowings; hence his justification for comparative research.

He argued that the weakness of Whitehall vis-a-vis business and the trade unions led to pluralistic stagnation. In 1973 he published The One and Indivisible French Republic; the title was an ironic challenge to the revolutions claim to have established a sense of national unity.

In the same year he was appointed a professor of politics at Hull. He recruited and, more significantly, retained a number of outstanding scholars. In the Research Assessment Exercises for Higher Education in the 1990s, the politics department, alone across the university, was rated outstanding. Even when he ceased being head of the department he was still the senior figure, one to whom colleagues looked for personal and professional guidance, academic promotion, and a supportive word on their behalf with the university managers.

Having turned 60 he was, like many academics of his age, planning for early retirement. But in January 1993 he moved to Oxford as professor of politics and director of the European Studies Institute. He extended the interests of the institute to take account of developments in Eastern Europe and supervised a number of doctoral students.

Although he was a fellow of St Antonys College, his family home remained in Hull which he found a more congenial place for living. Oxford provided the opportunity to work with his friend and fellow don Vincent Wright and they wrote The Core Executive in France (2002), although Wright had died in 1999.

Then he and Anand Menon dedicated a festschrift to him entitled Governing Europe in 2003. He wrote regularly on French Presidential elections and edited De Gaulle to Mitterand: Presidential Power in France. His collaborative volume on Industrial Enterprise and European Integration (1995) explored the different ways in which national firms in Britain, France, Germany and Italy adapted to the pressures of globalisation and the European Community. His concern with the EUs unification by stealth and the need to carry the public was covered in his The Crisis of Representation in Europe (1995) and Elitism, Populism and European Politics (1996).

Forty years after his childhood internment the British government announced a scheme to compensate those who suffered internment or had been prisoners of war at the hands of the Japanese in the Second World War and Hayward was invited to apply. He was furious when he (among others) was informed that he did not qualify because, in his words, he was considered not British enough.

He mounted a campaign and convinced the ombudsman that that the schemes eligibility criteria were inconsistent and discriminatory. Although he received an apology and compensation from the government he remained angry on behalf of those who were denied what he regarded as justice. Hayward wrote easily and well, despatched business quickly and did not agonise over his decisions.

As a committee chairman he was good at bringing key issues to the fore and reaching a conclusion. When he edited the journal Political Studies between 1987 and 1993 he maintained its reputation and resisted demands from various lobbies for preferential access. In a famous essay he described British political science as a self-deprecating discipline, at times energised by homeopathic doses of American political science and with the capacity to offer a little insight and almost no foresight.

When he left Oxford in 1998 he returned to a position as research professor in the politics department at Hull. By the time of his retirement he had become an elder statesman in the profession, representing it on various national and international bodies. Vice-chancellors sought his views when they were filling chairs in politics. He combined all this activity with numerous visiting professorships in Paris and a steady output of edited books and articles. He was a prime mover and co-editor of the British Academys The British Study of Politics in the 20th Century (2002) to celebrate the academys centenary. He was elected a fellow of the British Academy in 1990 and for some years chaired its politics section.

Professor Jack Hayward, political scientist, born 18 August 1931, died 8 December 2017
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Google is celebrating the work of Max Born, a physicist whose work changed the way we live today. But he also advised people on how to live, too.

Much of Born's work was highly complex: dealing with the still mysterious and unknown topic of quantum mechanics. He established many of the foundations of a discipline that still today remains hard to understand even by the scientists who work in it.

But he took that same sense of mystery and uncertainty into his thought about life in general, too. And he said that it would help everyone to do the same, since believing yourself to know everything can be incredibly dangerous.

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Born knew about evil. Along with other scientists like Albert Einstein, he and his family were forced to flee Germany and the Nazis in 1933, fearing for their own safety  he would go on to live in many places across the world, including at Cambridge, Edinburgh and Bangalore. He would return to Germany after his retirement.

He saw that evil  and all evil  as being caused by a belief in complete truths and absolutely certainty. It was an approach that was reflected across both his work and his ethical thinking.

"I believe that ideas such as absolute certitude, absolute exactness, final truth, etc. are figments of the imagination which should not be admissible in any field of science," Born said. "On the other hand, any assertion of probability is either right or wrong from the standpoint of the theory on which it is based.

"This loosening of thinking seems to me to be the greatest blessing which modern science has given to us. For the belief in a single truth and in being the possessor thereof is the root cause of all evil in the world."

That same approach could be seen in his work. Perhaps Born's most famous work, and the one commended when he won the Nobel prize, which was given "for his fundamental research in quantum mechanics, especially for his statistical interpretation of the wave function".

That work came to be known as the Born Rule. And like his philosophical beliefs, it arose from the recognition that messiness can be both the natural state of the world and a good way to be  his research proposed that quantum mechanics shouldn't work by attempting to make exact measurements of wave particles, but rather that it was better to estimate where they would be using highly complex measures of probability.
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Nasa is preparing for a huge announcement from its planet-hunting telescope.

It has said only that it will brief the press on Thursday and that the discovery has been made by the Kepler space telescope. It also said that Google has been involved in the breakthrough discovery.

But beyond that it said very little. Still, some clues give us a little insight into what the major announcement might be about to actually reveal.

What's the Kepler space telescope?

The craft was launched into space in 2009, and has been looking for exoplanets ever since. It's been good at it  finding huge numbers of the exciting worlds  and Nasa has appreciated it work so much that it began another round of investigations in 2014, a year after its work was officially finished.

Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Show all 30 1 /30 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An image from Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows a 200,000 mile long solar filament ripping through the Sun's corona in September 2013 Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa Celebrates 50 Years of Spacewalking For 50 years, NASA has been "suiting up" for spacewalking. In this 1984 photograph of the first untethered spacewalk, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless is in the midst of the first "field" tryout of a nitrogen-propelled backpack device called the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Hubble Cosmic Couple The spectacular cosmic pairing of the star Hen 2-427  more commonly known as WR 124  and the nebula M1-67 which surrounds it ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago Nasa's most stunning pictures of space The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launch The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, carrying three new astronauts to the International Space Station. It also took caviar, ready for the satellite's inhabitants to celebrate the holidays Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth from the ISS From the International Space Station, Expedition 42 Flight Engineer Terry W. Virts took this photograph of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Gulf Coast at sunset Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Black Hole Friday Nasa celebrated Black Friday by looking into space instead  sharing pictures of black holes Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space NuSTAR X-rays stream off the sun in this image showing observations from by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, overlaid on a picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Cassiopeia A c A false colour image of Cassiopeia A comprised with data from the Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes and the Chandra X-Ray observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Orion Capsule splashes down The Orion capsule jetted off into space before heading back a few hours later  having proved that it can be used, one day, to carry humans to Mars Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth Observations From Gemini IV in 1965 This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19 in 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Frosty slopes of Mars This image of an area on the surface of Mars, approximately 1.5 by 3 kilometers in size, shows frosted gullies on a south-facing slope within a crater. The image was taken by Nasa's HiRISE camera, which is mounted on its Mars Reconaissance Orbiter Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Yellowstone from space NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman shared this image of Yellowstone via his twitter account Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Saturn This near-infrared color image shows a specular reflection, or sunglint, off of a hydrocarbon lake named Kivu Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Worlds Apart Although Mimas and Pandora, shown here, both orbit Saturn, they are very different moons. Pandora, "small" by moon standards (50 miles or 81 kilometers across) is elongated and irregular in shape. Mimas (246 miles or 396 kilometers across), a "medium-sized" moon, formed into a sphere due to self-gravity imposed by its higher mass Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An X1.6 class solar flare flashes in the middle of the sun in this image taken 10 September, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Mars Rover Spirit Nasa's Mars Rover Spirit took the first picture from Spirit since problems with communications began a week earlier. 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This impact crater appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Peers into the Most Crowded Place in the Milky Way This Nasa Hubble Space Telescope image presents the Arches Cluster, the densest known star cluster in the Milky Way NASA & ESA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space An Astronaut's View from Space Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman tweeted this photo from the International Space Station on 2 September 2014 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Giant Landform on Mars On Mars, we can observe four classes of sandy landforms formed by the wind, or aeolian bedforms: ripples, transverse aeolian ridges, dunes, and what are called draa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Expedition 39 Landing A sokol suit helmet can be seen against the window of the Soyuz TMA-11M capsule shortly after the spacecraft landed with Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Soyuz Commander Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos, and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio of NASA near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan (NASA/Bill Ingalls) Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Jupiter's Great Red Spot Viewed by Voyager I Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and perhaps the most majestic. Vibrant bands of clouds carried by winds that can exceed 400 mph continuously circle the planet's atmosphere Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Chandra Observatory Sees a Heart in the Darkness This Chandra X-Ray Observatory image of the young star cluster NGC 346 highlights a heart-shaped cloud of 8 million-degree Celsius gas in the central region

When the mission began, scientists didn't know how many exoplanets there were. Now they know they are more common than expected, and it's likely that every star has at least one of them.

It works by continuously scanning the sky, watching more than 145,000 stars. Scientists look out for those that occasionally dim when a planet crosses in front of them  by then tracking the patterns of that dimming, they can find out how many planets each star has and what they might be like.

Now Nasa has said that it has found something new, hosting an event "to announce the latest discovery made by its planet-hunting Kepler space telescope". The telescope finds a lot of things  but very few so interesting that they deserve their own event.

What do we know?

Nasa has given out limited information, but we can make some decent guesses based on what they've said.

It also said that four scientists would be leading the press event. Those are:

Paul Hertz, Astrophysics Division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington

Christopher Shallue, senior software engineer at Google AI in Mountain View, California

Andrew Vanderburg, astronomer and NASA Sagan Postdoctoral Fellow at The University of Texas, Austin

Jessie Dotson, Kepler project scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Californias Silicon Valley

Nasa always picks the most relevant and senior engineers and scientists to speak at such events, to ensure that they can answer the press and the publics' questions in the most detail. So it's possible to infer from who they've picked some details of what might be going on.

The inclusion of Jessie Dotson makes clear that Kepler will be at the heart of this discovery, and that therefore the news is going to relate to something it's sent down from space. Much of Ms Dotson's work focuses on asteroids  she helped create the Nasa team that tries to calculate how at risk the Earth is of an impact, and works there still  though she has worked on a range of different kinds of objects in space.

Andrew Vanderburg works primarily on exoplanets and their stars, using data sent down as part of Kepler's K2 mission. His expertise is in detecting and characterising exoplanets.

The other two attendees  Paul Hertz and Christopher Shallue  will presumably be representing their important organisations and the work they've done to find whatever has been discovered.

As such, the list suggests that the discovery might have something to do with exoplanets, their stars, and potentially asteroids; though Kepler is being used for more diverse functions than trying to find other Earth-like planets that are orbiting stars and could support life, it's probable this announcement will at least involve at least one such planet in some way. Beyond that, much is a mystery.

Why is Google involved?

Perhaps the strangest and most mysterious thing about the announcement  at least, beyond what the announcement actually is  is the fact that Google is involved.

"The discovery was made by researchers using machine learning from Google," the otherwise mysterious and not very detailed announcement reads. "Machine learning is an approach to artificial intelligence, and demonstrates new ways of analysing Kepler data."

Nasa and Google haven't talked about this focus on machine learning much before, so it's not clear how exactly it's being used and to what purpose. But we can have a decent guess: Google is expert at using artificial intelligence to find patterns and learn like a human, and it's probably using the technology to sort through the data being sent by Kepler to pick out things that are of interest.

The Kepler telescope is looking around the sky all the time, searching for things that might be of interest. As it does so, it sends huge amounts of data back down to Earth  far too huge for scientists to pick through as it arrives, which is why these major announcements can often take some months to actually come about.

As with other applications of machine learning, the Nasa announcement likely puts machine learning to work doing some of that automatically. Nasa is presumably letting the AI see what kinds of planets are of interest to scientists, then looking out for those itself but at great speed  researchers can then look through what's of interest and examine them as needed.

It's just one of a range of ways that humanity is trying to sort through the sheer amount of data Kepler is sending down from space. Others include the Planet Hunters project, which asks citizen scientists to get involved with flicking through the data and trying to find something that might be of interest.

So what's it going to be?

It's not clear, just yet. The best bet is that it will be at least one Earth like planet, orbiting around a star. It may have some interesting relationship with asteroids.

That's just about all we know for sure, apart from the fact that whatever the announcement is will probably be big.
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A newborn baby has been threatened in a string of violent burglaries seeing victims beaten, held at knife-point and squirted with potentially corrosive substances in their own homes.

West Midlands Police are appealing for information on 28 incidents recorded across Birmingham so far, which they believe may have been carried out by several unconnected groups.

They have escaped with jewellery worth tens of thousands of pounds after appearing to select homes to target in recent weeks.

In one incident in Balsall Heath on 8 November, burglars forced their way in through the front door and took the family into a bedroom.

The gang picked up and threatened to harm a newborn baby if they were not told where money was hidden, and knives were held to the throats of women in the house, police said.

In another burglary, in Small Heath on 21 November, a gang armed with screwdrivers forcible removed a victims jewellery and squirted his hands with cleaning fluid.

It came as household and industrial cleaning products are used in a series of corrosive substance attacks across the UK.

 Trump links rise in UK crime to 'radical island terror'

One victim was struck with a metal bar during a burglary and others have been beaten with fists but police said no one has yet been seriously injured.

West Midlands Police believe Asian gold jewellery used for weddings and other family events may be a key target, after launching an investigation into the spate of violent burglaries.

Detective Inspector Dave Keen, who is leading the probe, said a dedicated taskforce was working to identify those responsible literally 24 hours a day.

Weve got a lot of good lines of inquiry, and in the areas where these offences have happened, theres a commitment to carry out special patrols, he added.

Its also very important that residents do as much as possible to protect their property.

Asian traditions have always placed a strong emphasis on jewellery it plays an important role in many religious festivals as well as significant family occasions, with many items handed down through generations.

These are not just highly valuable possessions; they are also of great sentimental worth and are a huge loss to their owners if such jewellery is taken.

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Police are issuing a warning to residents owning valuable gold jewellery and issuing advice on how to protect their homes, such as storing items in a bank or safety deposit box and making houses secure.

Mr Keen said criminal gangs were scoping areas for potential targets and urged people to report any suspicious behaviour, or call police if they are offered high value gold for sale.

Areas where burglars have struck include Balsall Heath, Erdington, Small Heath, Winson Green, Kitts Green, Hall Green, Edgbaston and Alum Rock and Four Oaks.

There have also been break-ins in Smethwick, Yardley, Saltley, Washwood Heath, Hall Green, Tyseley, Bordesley Green, Hodge Hill and Ward End and Moseley.

A 27-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of robbery in connection with a raid on a home in College Road, Moseley, and remains on bail.

Anyone with information is urged to call police on 101 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.


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A man has been kidnapped, tied up and threatened with a gun in a 50-hour hostage ideal in London.

The 24-year-old victim was wearing a 9,000 Rolex watch when he was approached by two acquaintances while walking through Croydon on 4 December.

They lured him to a house in nearby Thornton Heath, where a group of men waiting with weapons stripped him naked, tied him up and started a brutal and extended assault.

Over the course of the next two days he was subjected to an extended bout of physical abuse and humiliation that included his attackers kicking him in the face, which left him with severe bruising on his lips and a large lump on his forehead, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said.

The gang threatened the victim with a gun and knives while forcing him to phone his parents with a demand for a significant sum of money.

When they said they could not obtain it, the kidnappers forced their victim to hand over keys to his parents home and burgled it on 6 December.

Police would like to speak to this man regarding a kidnapping and burglary in Croydon (Metropolitan Police)

CCTV footage shows two suspects  who police are appealing to trace - approach the home in Sydenham before cash, designer handbags, sunglasses and further Rolex watches were stolen.

As the victims imprisonment approached its third evening, members of the gang forced him into his car to withdraw money from a bank.

They stayed in the vehicle, possibly to avoid being caught on CCTV, and the man saw his opportunity to escape.

Police said he ran and sought shelter at a nearby church, Croydon Minster, where officers were called.

Investigators believe up to 12 people may have been involved with the ordeal and are appealing to trace two men who arrived at the victims parents home wearing high visibility vests.

The footage shows one suspect, a black man with dark facial hair wearing a yellow jacket over a parka, walk to the door and spot the camera.

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He returns with an accomplice wearing an orange jacket to enter the property, with both men covering their faces.

This was a vicious and prolonged attack of a nature that thankfully is very rare, said Detective Sergeant Samuel Bennett. It has left the victim utterly distraught and traumatised.

He appealed for anyone who has seen a Rolex like that one stolen - a 2007 model with a black face, black bezel, yellow gold body and strap  or the suspects caught on CCTV to come forward, adding: These men are dangerous and it is important that we apprehend them before they can target anyone else.

Four men have been arrested so far. Two suspects aged 19 and 28 were arrested on suspicion of kidnap on Sunday and have been taken to a police station for questioning.

Two men aged 39 and 58 were arrested on suspicion of kidnapping on Friday and have been bailed to a date in early January.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101, tweet @MetCC or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.


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Britain contributes less to the common good of humanity than last year due to its "vast weapons exports" and inadequate aid to foreign countries, a new study has found.

The country has fallen from number four to number eight out of 163 in the Good Country Index  an index which measures their contributions to global culture, health, security and environment, instead of basing the rankings on traditional economic and social factors.

The index looks at 35 criteria from the United Nations, the World Bank and other international organisations.

Recommended Foreign investment to UK creates fewer jobs as Brexit looms

It was established in 2014 and Britain has dropped four places since the last study, partly due to its low ranking in terms of international peace and security.

Simon Anholt, the creator of the independent Good Country Index, told The Independent that the UK's continued albeit diminishing involvement in Afghanistan and it weapons exports were largely to blame.

"One of the two main reasons why the UK ranks so low in Peace and Security is because of its big weapons exports, to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other destinations," he said.

The Independent previously reported that UK sales of weapons to Saudi Arabia have risen by 500 per cent since the start of the war in Yemen.

"[...] the debate doesnt affect the ranking: no matter how much people criticise the exports, and no matter how fierce the debate, the level of sales remains high and thats what keeps the ranking so low," Mr Anholt added.

Last year, the UK ranked first in terms of its contribution to science and technology, while in 2017 it comes in fifth, based on factors such as the number of international students, publications, Nobel Prizes and patents.

In 2016, Britain was in fifth place for its contribution to prosperity and equality  that place is now number 35. Factors analysed here include the size of cross-border trading, the number of aid workers and volunteers sent abroad and investment in developing countries relative to the size of the economy.

"The ones at the top need to think much harder about how they can share their ability to balance their domestic needs with international ones," said Mr Anholt.

Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Show all 10 1 /10 Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May is welcomed by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker Reuters Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders EU President Jean-Claude Juncker greeting Theresa May at the EU Commission in Brussels PA Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May poses for a picture with European Council President Donald Tusk REUTERS Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker walks behind British Prime Minister Theresa May EPA Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders British Prime Minister Theresa May (L) and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker address a press conference at the European Commission in Brussels AFP/Getty Images Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at a press conference with EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker EPA Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Britain's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, David Davis (L) and Michel Barnier (2-L), the European Chief Negotiator of the Task Force for the Preparation and Conduct of the Negotiations with the United Kingdom under Article 50 enter the room by the emergency exit to attend British Prime Minister Theresa May press briefing on Brexit Negotiations in Brussels. EPA Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders Britain's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis (L), Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May (2-L), European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (2-R) and European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier (R) in a meeting on Friday morning AFP/Getty Images Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier speaks during a media conference at EU headquarters Brexit bonhomie as May finally seals agreement with EU leaders European Council President Donald Tusk addresses a media conference at the Europa building in Brussels AP

Britain is still in the top 10 but now stands behind Switzerland, Ireland  which ranks first in terms of its contribution to prosperity and equality  Germany and Finland. Top of the list is the Netherlands, while Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan were at the bottom.

Mr Anholt, an honorary professor at the University of East Anglia, said a successful country was one that contributes to the good of humanity.

Of course it must serve the interests of its own people, but never at the expense of other populations or our shared resources: this is the new law of human survival, and it's a balance which is far more easily maintained than many people imagine," he said.

Agencies contributed to this report.
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A 24-year-old British man faces two years behind bars in Dubai after he tested positive for cannabis.

Connor Clements claimed he had been sleeping on the floor of a cell with 25 other people before being released on bail.

Mr Clements flew from Liverpool to Dubai to get out of a rut in his life and landed a job as a waiter earlier this year.

He underwent a medical test for his new employer but was arrested when the results showed he had traces of cannabis in his system. Mr Clements said he had taken the drug before boarding his flight to the United Arab Emirates.

I was in a rut. My sister lives here and I had an opportunity to change my life and it's been nothing but a living nightmare, he told the Liverpool Echo. I haven't committed a crime in the UAE.

(Facebook)

He told the newspaper his court appearance had lasted less than a minute and was not allowed to explain what had happened in court.

Mr Clements described his few weeks in jail as a living nightmare.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. 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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. 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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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A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. 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His hearing will take place before Christmas and his passport has been confiscated.

Our staff in the UAE are assisting a British man following his detention in Dubai, a Foreign Office spokesperson told the paper.

We have visited him on several occasions, made calls to the prosecutor's office to get updates on his case, and are in regular contact with his family.

Authorities in the UAE have a zero tolerance policy towards drugs.

Around 200 UK citizens have been detained in the UAE this year alone.

A recent case was that of 27-year-old Jamie Harron from Stirling, who was held for three months after being sentenced for public indecency for accidentally touching another mans hip in a busy bar.

A non-profit called Detained in Dubai has been established to assist people who have become victims of injustice in the UAE.
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The number of domestic violence incidents going unattended by police is soaring, with the worst performing forces now missing a quarter of call-outs, damning statistics obtained by The Independent reveal.

The proportion of incidents where officers failed to show up more than doubled between 2012 and 2016  from 5 per cent of cases to 11 per cent  responses to Freedom of Information requests from police forces across England showed.

Last year, at least 39,686 incidents went unattended, while it took police more than 24 hours to get to the scenes of a further 32,007 reported crimes.

An ever-smaller proportion of reports are attended within 15 minutes, the figures demonstrate. Police showed up to 47 per cent of cases in this time frame in 2012, but only to 37 per cent last year.

Among the forces with the worst records of attending scenes was Devon and Cornwall. The service did not turn up to more than a quarter of reports, or 7,855 of 30,298.

Humberside Police, which covers part of east Yorkshire, did not arrive at the scene in 22 per cent of cases.

The Independent received responses from 19 of 38 forces across England, which all provided figures for 2016. Three of these forces were not able to provide data as far back as 2012.

The Metropolitan Police said it could not give accurate response figures because analysts would have to review three different computer systems, which would be too costly.

The revelations about response times follow a report by the police watchdog, which last month found some forces were downgrading the severity of calls to justify slower response times.

Her Majestys Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) said it was concerned that some forces may be suppressing demand because they have insufficient officer numbers.

There can be serious consequences for the victim if the response is delayed, it added.

One domestic violence survivor told the police inspectors they waited two days to see the police after reporting their abuse.

When I called, the police said that an officer would be with me by 10pm. No one came but they text me, and then arrived two days later, they said.

The watchdog also found evidence of police potentially putting victims in danger by inappropriately conducting risk assessments over the telephone, rather than in person.

An accurate assessment of risk is impossible without seeing the victim and other individuals within the household, including children, in person, it said.

A recent explosion in the number of reported domestic abuse incidents has prompted concerns law enforcement is struggling to cope. The number of crimes recorded by police rocketed 60 per cent in the three years to June 2016, in line with rises in the number of sex crime victims coming forward.

Katie Ghose, Chief Executive of Womens Aid, described the new figures as shocking.

It takes a lot of strength and resolve for a woman to build up the courage to report domestic abuse to the police. It is therefore vital that she gets an effective response when she calls out for help, she said.

This means that police officers must be attending domestic abuse scenes to ensure that survivors are in no immediate danger and that perpetrators are held accountable for the abuse.

Some forces are struggling to cope with the increase in reported crimes and are giving dangerous responses when survivors seek protection, such as assessing risk over the phone and downgrading the severity of cases to justify a slower response time.

This is unacceptable. Such practices threaten to put more women and childrens lives at risk.

Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott said the data presented a very disturbing picture of the growth in domestic violence and the decline in police response.

The growing misery of tens of thousands of victims is a stain on our society, she continued

Independent assessment is that the lack of police resources is now a key factor in the declining quality of the response to domestic violence.

This lack of resources is one of the terrible consequences of Tory austerity, the effects of which are falling hardest on women. It comes on top cuts for funding to legal aid, and to womens refuges.

Any decent government would be trying to improve this situation, and tackle domestic violence across the board. This Government is making things worse.

It emerged at the end of October the Government is planning to stop housing benefits being used to pay for supported accommodation. The proposals led rights organisations to warn refuges would close, placing women and children fleeing violence at increased risk.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 November 2022 Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2022 Emma Woolf, great niece of British author Virginia Woolf, and her son Ludovic sit next to a new bronze statue of Woolf, unveiled in Richmond, London Reuters UK news in pictures 15 November 2022 Lesley Sutcliffe shelters from the rain next to a life-sized replica of the innermost coffin of King Tutankhamun by artist Amanda Stoner as it goes on display inside a traditional red telephone box which has been converted into a museum, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. 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Deputy Chief Constable Louisa Rolfe, National Police Chiefs Council lead on domestic abuse, said forces aim to attend every incident of domestic abuse reported to them.

At a time when the police service is having to do more with less, we are dealing with over one million incidents of domestic abuse each year and this number continues to rise, she said.

All police forces constantly review the way that they handle these cases to ensure we are putting the victim at the heart of investigations and strengthening our coordinated response across the criminal justice system.

Detective Chief Inspector Danny Patrick, who leads on domestic abuse for Humberside Police, said domestic abuse was a key priority for the force and they strive to respond to our victims according to their needs.

A response can be via one of a number of methods according to circumstances. Where there is any suggested threat to the victim, an immediate police patrol response is appropriate. However, if someone is reporting something retrospectively for example and their immediate safety is not in jeopardy, it may be more appropriate to arrange an appointment at a later date.

We have improved the way that we understand and deal with cases of domestic abuse. What it is important to stress is that we understand the importance of getting our response right at the first point of contact. As more people are coming forward to report this complex and often hidden crime type, we are achieving higher levels of prosecutions and arrests overall.

DCI Craig McWhinnie, from Devon and Cornwall Police, said: Incidents of domestic abuse are both complex and varied and there are often many reasons as to why officers would not attend immediately. This could be to safeguard the victim and protect them if they have called us in confidence.

A large number of victims are offered appointments, providing that there is no immediate risk, where they can pick a convenient time to talk to police which doesnt put them in danger.

A Home Office spokesperson said: Domestic violence is a life-shattering and abhorrent crime, and tackling it is a key priority for this Government.

Independent assessments from HMICFRS have noted improvements in the overall police response to victims since 2014, but we recognise there is still more to do. This is why the Government will publish a landmark draft Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill to protect and support victims, recognise the life-long impact these crimes have on children, and ensure agencies respond effectively to domestic abuse.

Last year the Government committed funding of 80m to stop violence against women and girls and launched a new strategy to stop abuse with a focus early on intervention and prevention. A further 20m for domestic abuse services was announced in the spring budget, and we are committed to working with the police and the Crown Prosecution Service to continue to improve their response to these crimes.
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Jeremy Corbyn has accused the Prime Minister of failing Grenfell Tower survivors, most of whom remain homeless six months on from the blaze.

Labour rounded on the Government for the slow progress in rehousing displaced families despite early pledges to have everyone out of hotels within three weeks.

In a letter to Theresa May, shadow housing minister John Healey sets out five areas where he claims Grenfell survivors and tower residents more widely continue to be let down.

Recommended Human Rights Commission to launch inquiry into Grenfell Tower

He backed calls made in a petition for the Grenfell Tower public inquiry to be overseen by a diverse panel of experts, rather than just one judge.

Safety concerns in other high-rise blocks were still not being properly addressed, he said, after a nationwide audit found hundreds wrapped in flammable cladding.

Mrs May, widely criticised for her response in the aftermath of the fire, was also urged to hasten an overhaul of building regulations and properly fund work to make tall buildings safer.

Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street Show all 10 1 /10 Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street Inside a flat at 375 Kensington High Street - Located in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street The 68 flats are being acquired by the City of London Corporation as part of the response to the tragedy berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street The luxury flats are located just a couple of miles from Grenfell Tower berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street The families will be offered permanent homes in the building berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street Penthouses in the block can go for up to 13m berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street A spokesman for the Berkeley Group confirmed they were finalising plans berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street The property boasts a gym, swimming pool and 24-hour concierge service harrodsestates.com Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street The families will live in the award winning 2bn development berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street Families whose lives were devastated by the fire at Grenfell Tower are to be housed in a luxury development berkeleygroup.co.uk Grenfell Tower survivors to be housed in 375 Kensington High Street 68 families are to be rehomed in the block berkeleygroup.co.uk

Mr Corbyn said in a statement: Six months on from the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Government is failing to learn its lessons and, more importantly, failing the survivors.

It is a disgrace that the majority of Grenfell residents have still not been given homes and that tower blocks across our country have still not been made safe.

We need answers from the Government and we need action.

The party's intervention comes as survivors and bereaved relatives prepare to mark six months since the tragedy, which left 71 dead, on Thursday.

Currently only 42 households from the tower have moved into permanent new homes and 118 remain in emergency accommodation, including 103 in hotels.

 Grenfell: Final death toll put at 70 plus a stillborn baby

Mr Healey pointed to the Prime Minister's words on June 17 when she said she had fixed a deadline of three weeks for everybody affected to be found a home nearby.

He asked why more families had not been rehoused and how many would be in emergency rooms over Christmas.

His letter continued: Why has the Government failed to provide any funding to build new homes, or to acquire existing empty homes to help survivors?

Survivor's confidence and willingness to participate in the public inquiry led by Sir Martin Moore-Bick was absolutely vital to its success, the Labour MP said.

This meant that a petition launched by around 50 victims' families and the main survivors' group calling for experts from a diverse range of backgrounds to sit alongside him should be considered.

The shadow minister also weighed in on a continuing tussle between councils and central Government about funding for the safety installations recommended by fire chiefs.

It is essential that cash was set aside to finance the improvements, including 1 billion for the retro-fitting of sprinklers in older tower blocks, the Labour MP said.

PA
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Police have carried out a training exercise to prepare for a chemical attack on the the Israeli embassy in London.

The drill, which was the first of its kind to take place in a foreign embassy in the capital, also involved firefighters and paramedics who rehearsed their response to casualties affected by a noxious substance.

A section of the embassy was cordoned off on Sunday and decontamination tents were erected at the back of the building, which is near Kensington Palace in central London.

Paramedics in bio suits treated casualties, played by members of the Royal Military Police, who were put through decontamination showers.

The Met said the scenario provided valuable learning both in terms of the nature of the incident and the challenges brought by the location.

Sunday's snowy and icy conditions made the exercise more difficult, the police said.

Commander Adrian Usher, who heads the Mets parliamentary and diplomatic protection command said: This was the first time we have been able to carry out a live exercise inside a foreign embassy and the experience and learning gained from this will be invaluable.

It also tested our joint response in dealing with a hazardous substance, which is important as it will help officers and staff be better prepared should we ever face this type of challenge for real.

It came at a time when Israeli-owned institutions were on high-alert, after Donald Trump announced the US would officially recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The move is controversial since the city is a holy site for a number of religions and the President has been accused of squandering years of diplomatic effort between Israeli and Palestinian people.

But the police denied the exercise was linked to the latest political developments and the drill was not carried out in response to any particular piece of intelligence, the Met said.

"I must stress that the exercise, which has been planned over several months, was not designed with any specific threat in mind either in terms of the hazardous material element or the location, Commander Usher added.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 November 2022 Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2022 Emma Woolf, great niece of British author Virginia Woolf, and her son Ludovic sit next to a new bronze statue of Woolf, unveiled in Richmond, London Reuters UK news in pictures 15 November 2022 Lesley Sutcliffe shelters from the rain next to a life-sized replica of the innermost coffin of King Tutankhamun by artist Amanda Stoner as it goes on display inside a traditional red telephone box which has been converted into a museum, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters 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 form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA

The Embassy of Israel said it was happy to take part in the exercise and to work together with the Metropolitan Police and emergency services.
News / National

by Staff reporter

PROPHETIC Healing and Deliverance Ministries founder, Prophet Walter Magaya was in Zambia lats week and met with former Presidents, Kenneth Kaunda and Rupiya Banda.The 93-year-old Kaunda led Zambia as the first President from 1964 to 1991 while Banda (80) took charge between 2008 and 2011.With Kaunda, Prophet Magaya conducted a prayer meeting and then discussed issues around the Kenneth Kaunda Foundation, which deals with HIV/Aids in Zambia.With Banda, Prophet Magaya dealt with possible business partnerships they could be in partnership especially in Zambia.The private visit came a week after a visit to Angola where he engaged the leaders there on possible ventures for both his church and business arm.A member of Prophet Magaya's small delegation said the invitation by the two former Zambian Presidents is recognition of the PHD leader's influence in society and also recognition of the work he is doing as a proud Zimbabwean.
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The British public overwhelmingly supports a ban on ivory sales, with a majority urging ministers to allow no exemptions to the proposed prohibition of the trade, according to a new poll.

The survey, carried out by Kantar TNS and commissioned by a group of nine NGOs, found that 85 per cent of the public support a ban on the sales.

Current UK laws allow the trade of antiques, carved before 1947, but the Government in October bowed to pressure by campaigners to ban the sale of ivory regardless of its age.

Recommended WWF releases Christmas advert to highlight illegal ivory trade

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is currently running a three-month consultation on the ban.

The Government proposes a number of exceptions for antique ivory items  including musical instruments, items of significant cultural value and those containing only a small amount of ivory  which it argues do not contribute to the poaching of elephants.

Yet only 27 per cent of survey respondents agreed such exemptions should be put in place, while 57 per cent called for absolute prohibition of ivory sales.

Kantar TNS conducted the poll online between 30 November and 4 December, receiving 1,265 responses.

Campaigners argue the demand fuelled by the UKs legal ivory market encourages poaching that currently kills 20,000 elephants a year.

Charlie Mayhew, chief executive of the conservation organisation Tusk, said: The UK market drives demand for ivory and fuels the illegal slaughter of elephants.

The only way to combat this destruction of Africas natural heritage is to shut down ivory markets, and there is overwhelming public support for the Governments proposed ban.

It is clear that the public do not want ministers to allow any loopholes that would create a hiding place for the illegal trade, which is why we are opposing the proposed exemption allowing the sale of items of artistic, cultural or historic significance.

If a piece is so important, it belongs in a museum  not the marketplace.

He urged the public to take part in the Governments consultation, which closes on 29 December.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 November 2022 Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2022 Emma Woolf, great niece of British author Virginia Woolf, and her son Ludovic sit next to a new bronze statue of Woolf, unveiled in Richmond, London Reuters UK news in pictures 15 November 2022 Lesley Sutcliffe shelters from the rain next to a life-sized replica of the innermost coffin of King Tutankhamun by artist Amanda Stoner as it goes on display inside a traditional red telephone box which has been converted into a museum, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters 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 form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA

Antique traders, meanwhile, argue banning the sale of older ivory will crush their businesses.

Announcing the ban proposed ban in October, Environment Secretary Michael Gove said: The decline in the elephant population fuelled by poaching for ivory shames our generation.

The need for radical and robust action to protect one of the worlds most iconic and treasured species is beyond dispute. Ivory should never be seen as a commodity for financial gain or a status symbol  so we want to ban its sale.

These plans will put the UK front and centre of global efforts to end the insidious trade in ivory.

Mr Goves announcement came as a surprise, after the Conservative Party 2017 general election manifesto failed to include a ban on ivory sales, which had been a staple of their 2015 campaign.
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Three children have died and a fourth child is in a critical condition after a house fire in Salford.

A 14-year-old girl, named as schoolgirl Demi Pearson, was declared dead at the scene.

An 8-year-old boy and 7-year-old girl subsequently died in hospital.

A three-year-old girl and the 35-year-old mother of all three children are in critical condition in hospital.

The blaze broke out at the terraced house on Jackson Street in the Worsley area at around 5am.

The fire is being treated as suspicious and a murder inquiry has been launched.

Police are believed to be investigating if a flammable liquid was poured through the letterbox.

A Manchester Fire spokesman told the Manchester Evening News: We were called at 4.58am to a fire at a mid-terrace house on Jackson Street.

Four crews attended. They used six breathing apparatus, three hose reels and a ventilation fan to put out the fire.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 November 2022 Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2022 Emma Woolf, great niece of British author Virginia Woolf, and her son Ludovic sit next to a new bronze statue of Woolf, unveiled in Richmond, London Reuters UK news in pictures 15 November 2022 Lesley Sutcliffe shelters from the rain next to a life-sized replica of the innermost coffin of King Tutankhamun by artist Amanda Stoner as it goes on display inside a traditional red telephone box which has been converted into a museum, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters 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 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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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Two 16-year-old boys rescued themselves from the fire, one of which is believed to be a family member.

Police said they had been in recent contact with the family and had visited the house before the fire broke out.
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Jeremy Corbyn has called for Brexit to be delayed until after March 2019 if it allows the Government to secure a better deal.

The Labour leader surprised MPs by giving his personal backing to dropping the unnecessary exit date deadline from the EU Withdrawal Bill, ahead of a crunch vote next week.

Speaking in the Commons  as Tory MPs praised Theresa May for last weeks Brussels deal to move the exit talks onto trade  Mr Corbyn said she had only scraped through.

He pointed out that the Government had intended to conclude phase one of the negotiations two months ago and that the agreement reached on Friday was fudged.

Has this experience given the Prime Minister reason to consider dropping the unnecessary exit date deadline of the 29 March 2019 from the EU Withdrawal Bill, Mr Corbyn asked.

He added: Im sure the whole House, and probably the whole country, would rather get the best possible deal a little bit later if that meant a better deal for peoples jobs and the economy.

The comments were seized on by the Prime Minister as fresh evidence that Labour could not be trusted to stand by its commitment to uphold the referendum.

She told MPs: Were leaving the European Union on that date. That is what the British people voted for and that is what this Government is going to put in place.

The clash comes ahead of a crucial vote next week in which pro-EU Tory MPs will join forces with opposition parties to try to remove the Brexit date and time from the bill.

The Prime Minister has made it a show of strength  but could yet be forced to back down if more Conservative MPs join the revolt, fearing it will box the Government in.

The controversy is closely linked to a vote on Wednesday to give MPs a binding meaningful vote on the final Brexit deal. Both centre on the power of MPs to delay departure, if no satisfactory trade deal has been achieved.

Mr Corbyns support is further evidence of Labour softening its stance, after Keir Starmer, the partys Brexit Secretary, said it wanted to stay aligned to the EU single market and customs union.

Meanwhile, the statement saw the Prime Minister praised by both pro and anti-EU Conservative MPs, following Fridays agreement to move the Brexit talks onto trade and a transitional deal.

The former chancellor and pro-Remain MP Ken Clarke said: I congratulate the Prime Minister on her triumph,  while Nicky Morgan, another ex-Cabinet Brexit critic, said thank you on behalf of EU citizens.

But most hard-Brexit supporting Conservatives also held their fire, despite No 10 confirming the guarantee of full alignment of regulations, if necessary, to avoid a hard Irish border, would have legal force.

Only the Conservative MP Philip Davies spoke out, saying: Why are we paying tens of billions of pounds, that are not legally enforceable, to the EU when she is continuing a policy of austerity at home?

The Prime Minister confirmed the size of the divorce bill, telling MPs: The calculations currently say that that would be 35bn to 39bn.

But she calmed most backbench unease by insisting the UK would not pay the money unless agreement is also reached on a future partnership covering trade.

This offer is on the table in the context of us agreeing the partnership for the future, agreeing the next stage and agreeing the partnership for the future. If we dont agree that partnership, then this offer is off the table, the Prime Minister warned Brussels.

This is strongly disputed, with critics pointing to paragraph 96 of last Fridays text, stating the UKs commitment to the agreement even if there is only a framework for a trade deal.

But, when this was pointed out, Ms May replied: No, that is not my understanding.

The warm welcome for the Prime Minister from her own MPs does not mean that the Conservative Party has ended its Brexit wars, but she has achieved a temporary ceasefire.

The battle is likely to resume as soon as next week, when the Cabinet debates its preferred end state  whether to remain close to the EUs economic structures, or diverge and seek to deregulate.

That could bring some members into conflict with the Prime Ministers concession of full alignment with EU regulations, if necessary to avoid customs checks and posts at the Irish border.

Ms May insisted it was only a fallback option of last resort  in case a border solution was not found through a free trade agreement with the EU, or through the use of new technology.
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No 10 says it is ready to look at an amendment that could give MPs the power to delay Brexit, ahead of a possible embarrassing defeat on Wednesday.

Tory backbenchers are preparing to rebel on the Withdrawal Bill to ensure Parliament has a binding vote on the final Brexit agreement - before the Government can enact Britain's withdrawal.

The vote is crucial because, if no new satisfactory trade deal is struck by exit day in March 2019, it would be a weapon to extend the Article 50 negotiations.

Recommended Ireland issues warning to David Davis over Brexit agreement

If MPs rejected the deal, making their vote binding would allow them to send Theresa May back to Brussels to ask to delay departure and seek better terms.

Around 20 Conservatives have signalled a readiness to defy the Prime Minister, in a move led by former Attorney General Dominic Grieve  threatening a first defeat on the legislation

Now the Prime Ministers spokesman has refused to say the Government will continue to oppose amendment 7, telling journalists: I dont have anything for you on that.

He added: We have said from the outset that we will look at the amendments and, where we consider that improvements can be made to the legislation - given its importance to delivering a smooth Brexit - we will look at them and we will respond to them.

Strikingly, the comment  hinting at a climbdown - came even as No 10 insisted it would fight a separate revolt over placing the exact date and time of Brexit on the face of the Bill.

Meanwhile, ministers have also retreated over their likely use of Henry VIII powers to bypass Parliament when forcing through post-Brexit changes to the law.

They have accepted an amendment tabled by the cross-party Commons Procedure Committee to introduce a new sifting committee of backbench MPs to over see the process.

The committee will decide whether statutory instruments proposed by ministers require a vote in the Commons  or can be simply signed through.

However, the bigger fight is over amendment 7. On Sunday, one Tory rebel - Antoinette Sandbach  urged the Government to give way, to avoid a defeat.

I don't want the government to push it to a vote, I would like them to accept that amendment, she told Radio 4s Westminster Hour.

Ms Sandbach described it as crucially important, adding: Taking back control was taking back control to Parliament and not to the executive, to government.

The Government had been expected to table a compromise motion, but failed to do so by the deadline of 3pm on Friday.

At the weekend, Mr Grieve made clear he would not back down, saying: The Government has conceded the principle that there must be a statute approving and implementing the withdrawal agreement before we leave the EU. Amendment 7 guarantees that will happen.

The potential climbdown was welcomed by Francis Grove-White, the deputy director of the pro-EU Open Britain group, who said: If the Government are serious about giving Parliament and the public a meaningful role in the Brexit process, they must support amendment 7.

There is no halfway house  the only acceptable concession they could make would be to vote for it.

MPs must have the power to scrutinise, to debate, and if necessary to reject a deal that would leave working people worse off.
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Brexit Secretary David Davis has said he "doesn't have to be very clever" to do his job.

Mr Davis told LBC radio that intelligence was not the principal requirement of his position leading the Brexit negotiations. "I do just have to be calm," he said, adding that when the agreement fell apart on Monday he had come close to losing his cool.

"What's the requirement of my job? I don't have to be very clever, I don't have to know that much, I do just have to be calm," he said. "And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.

"But we had to pick another day and we looked at Wednesday but Wednesday wasn't long enough for the DUP to sort themselves out so we made it Thursday, Friday morning."

Mr Davis was appearing after his interview with the BBC's Andrew Marr on Sunday, in which he said the agreement with the EU was not "legally enforceable" and was contingent on a succedsful trade deal. Those provoked a response in Ireland, for whom the agreement represents a guarantee preventing a hard border returning to the island of Ireland. Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar called the agreement a "cast-iron" guarantee that was "politically bullet proof."

He was also asked about the recent furore in which he was forced to admit that 58 sector-by-sector Brexit impact assessments do not exist.

"In the last 18 months I've talked about impact here and there, but an impact statement, this is a thing that the Labour Party have been going on about, an impact statement has got a proper meaning in Whitehall, there's a definition of it and so on, including things like forecasts.

"Now I don't actually believe economic forecasts, they have all been proven wrong, I mean look at all the ones about Brexit.

"So what we do is we look at what we call a sectoral analysis which is the size of the thing, the size of the industry, employment levels, how much is dependent on Europe, how much is dependent on European regulations, how much opportunity there is in other countries.

"When you know those things, you know what you need to know."
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The Irish government has issued a warning to David Davis over suggestions the agreement reached with the EU over the Irish border may not be "legally enforceable" and was merely a "statement of intent."

Mr Davis told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that the joint agreement between London and Brussels published on Friday might not be enacted if no free trade agreement was reached between the two sides, casting into doubt important reassurances over the border between Northern Ireland and the republic.

The Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said the deal was "politically bullet-proof" and "cast iron".

The Irish government's chief whip, Joe McHugh, branded the Brexit Secretary's comments as "bizarre".

He told RTE: "We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union.

"My question to anybody within the British Government would be, why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they weren't going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me.

"This, as far as we're concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

The terms of the agreement specified "full alignment" with the EU on regulations on issues relating to "North-South co-operation" on the island of Ireland, which might include energy and agriculture. Responding to criticism of this agreement from Conservative Brexiteers who want to end all alignment with EU regulations, Mr Davis said: "This was a statement of intent more than anything else.

"Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing."
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Boris Johnson has said he held worthwhile meetings in Tehran over the case of a jailed British-Iranian woman, but warned he did not wish to raise false hope for her release.

The Foreign Secretary told MPs he had urged Iran to release jailed dual nationals, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, during his visit to the region at the weekend and he believed his messages had been understood by senior Iranian figures.

However, he admitted it was too early to be confident of the outcome, casting doubt over her familys hopes that Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe might be released in time for Christmas.

Tensions have been ramped up with Iran over the case of Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a mother-of-one who has been incarcerated in Tehran for more than 18 months, after she was arrested during a family holiday to Iran over spying charges.

Her future was thrown into further doubt when Mr Johnson mistakenly told MPs that she had been teaching journalists in Iran  something her family vehemently denies  which Irans state broadcaster seized on as proof of the allegations against her.

Speaking in the Commons, the Foreign Secretary said: On bilateral issues, my first priority was the plight of the dual nationals behind bars.

I urged their release on humanitarian grounds, where there is cause to do so.

These are complex cases involving individuals considered by Iran to be their own citizens, and I do not wish to raise false hopes.

But my meetings in Tehran were worthwhile, and while I do not believe it will be in the interests of the individuals concerned or their loved ones to provide a running commentary, the House can be assured that the Government will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to secure their release.

It comes as Irans foreign ministry said it would raise the case with the judiciary out of humanitarian concerns after Mr Johnsons meetings with senior figures, including Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said the final decision on whether to release Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who is serving a five-year sentence for allegedly plotting to overthrow the government  something she denies  rests with the judiciary.

Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe is considered an Iranian national and should serve her prison conviction according to the judicial system of Iran, Mr Ghasemi said.

Mr Johnson told MPs: In each of those conversations, I repeated, as I have said to the House, the case for release on humanitarian grounds where that is appropriate for the difficult consular cases that we have in Iran.

That message was certainly received and understood, though as I say to the House, it is too early to be confident about the outcome.

Calls for Mr Johnson to resign over her case appear to have abated for now and his Labour counterpart Emily Thornberry thanked him for his efforts to secure her release.

But he refused to answer questions on whether he had met Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe or sought permission for her husband Richard Ratcliffe to visit her in prison, saying he would not give a running commentary on the case.

He also defended his erroneous comments about the British women, as he said the Iranians have always been clear ... That none of my remarks in any context had any bearing on any judicial proceedings in relation to any UK consular case.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 November 2022 Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt leaves 11 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons to deliver his autumn statement PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2022 Emma Woolf, great niece of British author Virginia Woolf, and her son Ludovic sit next to a new bronze statue of Woolf, unveiled in Richmond, London Reuters UK news in pictures 15 November 2022 Lesley Sutcliffe shelters from the rain next to a life-sized replica of the innermost coffin of King Tutankhamun by artist Amanda Stoner as it goes on display inside a traditional red telephone box which has been converted into a museum, in Barnsley, South Yorkshire PA UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters 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 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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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Mr Ratcliffe said there had been positive consequences as a result of the talks, including the postponement of a new court case.

Having always been keen to have his wife home for Christmas and for her birthday which follows soon after, he said he was optimistic that this was still achievable.

Mr Ratcliffe said: But as Christmas gets closer it gets harder to expect. I wasnt presuming that she would come back on the plane with him.

So I think for me, it was always best case scenario that his going would unlock the door and then days later she might be able to come home.
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A majority of Conservative voters want Britain to lead on backing human rights while 45 per cent believe the Government should never provide aid to countries with poor records on human rights, according to a new survey.

The polling - mapping how Conservative voters view human rights and discrimination - comes amid concern over the impact of Brexit on future rights and the ongoing row over arms sales to the Middle East.

According to the survey by the think-tank Bright Blue, 66 per cent of Tory voters said they wanted a significant role for human rights in British foreign policy while just six per cent said they believed human rights should not be promoted.

Significantly, nearly half of respondents, or 45 per cent, said Britain should never give aid to countries that have a poor record on human rights. Nearly 30 per cent of Labour voters agreed, believing that aid should be contingent on the human rights record of the country, and 28 per cent of Liberal Democrat respondents.

But of those polled, a majority, or 65 per cent, said the Government should be prepared to do trade deals with countries that have poor human rights depending on the importance of the trade deal and the severity of the human rights violation. Around one in five said the UK should never do trade deals with such countries.

In particular a large majority of respondents said the right to a fair trial was the most important human right to them  or 68 per cent.

Ryan Shorthouse, the director of Bright Blue, said: Britain is the home of human rights. After Brexit, the UK Government should not just be a global leader in free trade, but human rights too.

Britain should remain a proud signatory of the European Convention on Human Rights, which originally exported English common law to the rest of the continent. The Government should ensue that trade deals, where possible, include obligations to improve human rights in the partner countries. And human rights should be a priority for British aid.

The senior Conservative MP and former attorney general Dominic Grieve said the results of the survey show that far from people being uninterested in human rights in the United Kingdom.

Not surprisingly, they identify them in traditional terms, but that is a very good springboard for developing and protecting rights for our future, he added. Human rights are entirely in keeping with the conservative philosophical tradition.

A second Tory MP, George Freeman, added: As we begin to craft a new post EU foreign policy, it is vital that we continue our commitment to extending universal rights  in the Tory traditional of Shaftesbury, Churchill and One Nation Conservatism.

The best way to enshrine our human rights is through supporting free enterprise liberal democracy through our global aid, trade and security work. Championing human rights is the best form of soft power we have.
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A global medical company failed to fully inform doctors of the risks of vaginal mesh implants, a BBC Panorama investigation is set to reveal.

The programme, which will air on Monday night, documents the conflicts of interest, improper trialling and weak regulatory system behind the vaginal mesh scandal, as reported in The Independent this year.

The Panorama investigation reveals that Ethicon, which markets mesh in the UK under brand name Gynecare TVT, did not update doctors with the extent of risks for its leading mesh device.

It also discovered that the product was only tested in 31 women  and on sheep  before being used in patients.

It comes just over a week after the death of Chrissy Brajcic, the first woman reported to have died from mesh complications, and the publication of a study on vaginal mesh in BMJ open revealing the failures of the regulatory system and weak evidence used to support device approval.

The transvaginal mesh procedure, which involves implanting a polypropylene netted device into the vaginal wall, is performed on at least 10,000 women in the UK every year to treat prolapse and incontinence.

However, mounting evidence of higher risks, severe side effects and insufficient trialling, as well as allegations of corruption and whitewashing, have culminated in whats been branded the biggest health scandal since thalidomide.

Hundreds of thousands of women in the UK, US and Australia are currently involved in lawsuits against mesh producers; at least 800 in the UK are suing the NHS. Ethicon is a wholly-owned subsidiary of multibillion-dollar Johnson and Johnson, one of the main producers of mesh implants and currently the subject of multiple class-action lawsuits.

The company produces Instructions for Use (IFU) leaflets to accompany mesh products, designed to explain to doctors how to insert the implants. They also explain the adverse reactions, or risks, associated with surgery, to help doctors explain these to patients.

In 2009, Panorama will reveal, an associate medical director at Ethicon warned, that the statements about side effects in the IFU leaflets were not sufficient, as side effects were described as transitory.

However, thousands of women have suffered permanent or chronic complications, sometimes manifesting years after the implant.

In an email in January 2009, the associate medical director suggested that the wording be changed for three Ethicon Gynecare TVT mesh implants, explaining: From what I see each day, these patient experiences are not transitory at all.

But Ethicon admits it did not update the IFUs at the time. The companys latest IFUs, updated in 2015, do make clear some effects may be permanent, but use incomplete and insufficient risk assessment data to do so.

Dr Wael Agur, a consultant urogynaecologist, told Panorama: Its so important for me as a surgeon to understand the full risks of a medical device Im about to implant ... and my first resource would be the IFU.

I would expect the manufacturer to have a comprehensive list of the adverse events and the risks within the instructions for use so I fully understand these and communicate them.

The investigation also revealed that Ethicons TVT-Secur implant  sold worldwide, and designed to be the companys safest mesh product  was launched in 2006 after only being tested on 31 women for five weeks, and some sheep. The product was withdrawn from the market in 2012.

Ella Ebaugh, from Pennsylvania, was fitted with a TVT-Secur device in May 2007 to help cure mild incontinence. It was one of two mesh implants she had fitted; she later had surgery to try to remove them.

She suffered chronic pain that left her needing a walking stick and mobility scooter. She sued Ethicon, and in September 2017 was awarded $57m (42.6m) by the court  which Ethicon is currently appealing.

Recommended Vaginal mesh study shows how regulatory failings put women at risk

In her first UK interview, she told Panorama: If I was told that I would need a wheelchair to get around, if I was told that I was going to live with permanent disabilities for the rest of my life, I wouldnt have had a surgery for a simple stress urinary incontinence problem.

She added: The pain that I have I will have to live with for the rest of my life. Theres nothing they can do to help me.

Figures compiled for Panorama by NHS Digital and NHS Wales show that the NHS has implanted more than 130,000 mesh devices in the last decade.

In that same period (2006-7 to 2016-17), there have been 6,000 procedures to remove or partially remove the implants.

However, the real number could be much higher: these figures only relate to the NHS in England and Wales, and do not include women who have paid to have the device removed privately, or who received partial snips to stop the mesh cutting through the vagina.

Doreen Day, aged 70, for example, had a TVT implanted in 2007 to treat pelvic organ prolapse. The surgery left her in acute pain, needing morphine and painkillers to function: I was in sheer agony, as if I had a cheese grater inside me.

In 2015 she travelled to Los Angeles to have her mesh partially removed at a cost of 22,000, which she paid for out of her personal savings. She is still suffering from pelvic nerve damage.

Mesh implants for prolapse have led to higher complication rates than mesh implants for incontinence.

A spokesperson for Ethicon said: While we empathise with those who have experienced complications, the vast majority of women with pelvic mesh see an improvement in their day-to-day lives.

All surgical pelvic floor procedures  with and without mesh  come with the risk of developing complications.

Dr Linda Cardozo, from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, echoed this, telling Panorama: You cannot operate without complications occurring in a small minority of cases. You are never aware of complications that may occur years later, and that doesnt just occur with these tapes and meshes.

She has previously described a ban as a retrograde step, arguing: If mesh is banned, there will be no more clinical trials. We will go back to how we were a century ago when we couldnt offer women a range of options.

But Kath Sansom, founder of prominent anti-TVM campaign group Sling the Mesh, claims that Dr Cardozo speaks with a heavy bias.

She commented to The Independent: It is a shame that Linda Cardozo has spoken out on this issue to Panorama without declaring her ties to industry.

Dr Cardozo has previously admitted her ties to Ethicon, and also accepts research monies from Pfizer.

 Cross-party call to end mesh procedure ends in disappointment

In a 2012 study assessing colposuspensions for women with stress incontinence, which she co-authored, the Conflicts of interests section lists Dr Cardazo as a consultant for AdvaMed, Astellas, Ethicon and Pfizer, as well as a speaker honorarium and trial participant for Pfizer.

According to Ms Sansom: Dr Cardozo should have made it very clear that she is a consultant to four industry giants, and a consultant to a UK company that promotes pharmaceutical products and medical devices to the NHS. That means she speaks with a heavy bias.

The MHRA, the UK medical devices regulator, told Panorama it recognises that some women develop serious complications, but maintains that many women gain benefit from these surgical procedures.

It said: We continue to work closely with NHS England, Nice and professional bodies, and we are all committed to helping address the serious concerns raised by women who have experienced complications.

Currently, from a regulatory perspective, these devices are acceptably safe when used as intended and as part of an appropriate treatment pathway.

In October, a cross-party group took a debate to Parliament calling for a suspension pending full inquiry into the scandal, which the Government refused.

Later this month, Englands National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) are expected to recommend banning the mesh devices.

BBC Panorama: The Operation That Ruined My Life airs today on BBC One at 7.30pm
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Police have named the suspect in the New York explosion as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

Four people have been left injured after a bomb exploded on a Manhattan subway platform.

The city's police force said the "explosion" was of "unknown origin" and was located near the Port Authority bus terminal on 42nd street and 8th avenue.

Asked if Mr Ullah had ties to Isis, Police Commissioner James O'Neill said the alleged attacker had made statements but refused to say what they were. Mr O'Neill said the young man had been taken to Bellevue Hospital with burns and other wounds.

Police sources told CBS News the suspected bomber has lived in the US for seven years and was of Bangladeshi origin.

Explosion in New York City Show all 14 1 /14 Explosion in New York City Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City FBI and police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal o AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority in New York City, U.S. REUTERS Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images

Investigators are looking into the alleged attacker's residence and personal life at this time. Surveillance video of the incident is being reviewed.

New York City police say a man had an explosive device strapped on when it went off while he was in the subway.

It was a pipe bomb, attached by velcro and zip ties, but FBI bomb technicians and police officers are looking into it further.

The device exploded at the Times Square and Port Authority station on New York's west side - which is one of the city's most hectic commuter centres - at 7.30am in the midst of the morning rush.

Port Authority serves more than 65 million passengers a year and is the largest bus terminal in the US.

At least four people are said to have suffered non-life threatening injuries such as ringing in ears, headaches, and scrapes, according to police officials.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said President Donald Trump "has been briefed on the explosion in New York City".

The New York Mayor's Office said Mayor Bill de Blasio had also been briefed, saying police and fire crews were on the scene.

The incident took place less than two months after Uzbek immigrant Sayfullo Saipov killed eight people and injured eleven others by driving a rental truck down a New York City bike path close to the World Trade Center memorial before being shot by police.
News / National

by Stephen Jakes

Bulawayo City Councillors have expressed concerns over the mining activities around the city as they discussed an application for a Special Grant To Mine at Wood Lock Mine.(During the full concil meeting the Mayor Councillor Martin Moyo declared an interest and recused himself during consideration of this item.Councillor Gideon Mangena was opposed to the recommendation of the Town Lands and Planning Committee."He said that allowing mining activities in an urban setting was likely to be detrimental to the future expansion of this City," reads council minutes."Concurring the Deputy Mayor Councillor Gift Banda drew attention to the Acting Deputy Director of Engineering Services (Town Planning), comments that made reference to a 1997 mining policy which discouraged the establishment of new mines in the City. He said professional views on such matters should be upheld."Councillor Clayton Zana felt that there was a proliferation of mining activities in and around the City."Relevant authorities (Zimbabwe Republic Police) appeared to be failing to control the situation. To restore order and avoid anarchy, it would only be proper, in this view, to allocate mining grants to substantive applicants on the basis of relevant conditions and guidelines," reads the minutes.Councillor Mlandu Ncube concurred citing Old Nic Mine which had been in existence for many years in Killarney suburb, and also Johannesburg City in South Africa.He said that the reasons proffered against mines in residential areas were not valid. He was convinced that allocating a mining grant to a responsible company/entity would prevent a chaotic "free for all" scenario.Councillor James Sithole was of a similar view.The Town Lands and Planning Committee of which he was a member, had visited the site in question and was persuaded that the application was worthy of Council's support.As stipulated in recommendation 2 of the Committee, the applicant, should as a precondition, demonstrate that the project was of economic value.After further debate it was resolved that the recommendation of the Town Lands and Planning Committee as submitted be adopted.
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An estimated 84,000 people in the Canadian province of Quebec are to receive basic income from the start of next year, as part of the government's anti-poverty plan.

Quebecs Premier Philippe Couillard made the announcement as part of his administrations $3bn (2.25bn) plans on Sunday, which aims to promote economic inclusion, CBCNews reported.

Those who qualify for basic income include those with a limited capacity to work, including people with physical and intellectual disabilities. It means their current financial support will increase by at least $73 (54) per month.

Recommended Finnish citizens given universal basic income report lower stress

The plan will see the annual income of those covered by the scheme increase from $12,749 (9,538) to $18,029 (13,496) by 2023, which meets the poverty threshold of $18,000, the Montreal Gazette reports.

The project, which largely targets single people, intends to bring some 100,000 people out of poverty by 2023, government officials told reporters.

Anti-poverty groups criticised the governments plans, claiming they do not go far enough and that the offer of support should be unconditional.

Those denouncing the plans say it is divisive and will create two different classes of people who are in poverty; those who are rewarded when they are unable to work, and those who are constantly penalised.

Meanwhile, the government in Ontario is introducing basic income for 4,000 people. The programme is being trialled as an experiment to see if it improves the lives of people receiving benefits or on low incomes.

People who are unemployed or who earn less than $26,000 (19,450) are eligible to take part in the areas of the province it is being trialled.
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Police in Brazil are facing an angry backlash after posing for selfies with a gang kingpin accused of extortion, drug-trafficking and multiple murders.

Rogerio Avelino da Silva, also known as Rogerio 157, was arrested on Wednesday in what should have been a victory for detectives grappling with the bloody criminal violence that plagues the streets of Rio de Janeiro.

The 35-year-old is believed to have been partly responsible for a recent wave of deadly crime in Rocinha, Rios largest favela, which saw his men fight street gun battles against gangsters loyal to a rival crime lord.

Recommended Brazilian police accidentally shoot Spanish tourist dead in Rio favela

However, the capture of one of Brazils most wanted men has now been overshadowed by the emergence of smiling selfies taken by the officers who arrested him.

The images, shared on WhatsApp and other social media, show Mr da Silva handcuffed next to officers with beaming smiles.

In some photos, Mr da Silva himself is seen smiling, while in others he appears stone-faced as the officers laugh.

The selfies dominated the headlines in Brazil over the weekend and have since hit the headlines elsewhere in Latin America.

One Brazilian, Tammara Colttro, tweeted: Im looking at the newspaper and seeing the absurdity of these cops getting selfies with a thief as if he were a prize.

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

Another, Zori Mesquita, said: This is a shameful rampage, taking photos with a bandit as if he were a rock star. Come on!

Ricardo Capelli, a politician from the Brazilian state of Maranhao, wrote an editorial saying: Brazil already has the third largest prison population on the planet. Its irrational to commemorate yet another arrest when we should be asking ourselves why we have so many.
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A huge wildfire in southern California has scorched an area larger than New York City, making it the fifth largest fire recorded in the state since 1932.

Authorities said the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties had burned 230,000 acres by Sunday evening, after growing by more than 50,000 acres in a single day.

Evacuation orders were triggered for areas of Carpinteria and Montecito as the fire moved closer to the city of Santa Barbara, around 100 miles west of Los Angeles.

Fuelled by the dry, rugged terrain and high winds, authorities said containment had dropped from 15 per cent to 10 per cent as the fire grew.

Now is the time to gather your family members, pets, irreplaceable and necessary items including prescriptions and documents in case you are ordered to evacuate, an alert from the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Office said.

If you are ordered to evacuate, leave immediately. If at any point you feel threatened, dont wait for a mandatory order.

Around 200,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and around 800 buildings have been destroyed by the wildfires across southern California.

Several firefighters have been injured tackling the blazes and a 70-year-old woman died in a car accident on Wednesday as she attempted to flee the fires in Ventura County.

Donald Trump has issued a state of emergency in California after a request by the California Governor, Jerry Brown.

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

Speaking on CBS 60 Minutes on Sunday, Mr Brown cited climate change as a significant contributing factor and criticised the President for removing the US from the Paris climate change agreement.

These fires are unprecedented, weve never seen anything like it. Scientists are telling us, this is the kind of stuff that's gonna happen, he said.
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YouTube star Angry Grandpa has died on Sunday at the age of 67.

The wildly popular internet personality, who had almost 3.5 million YouTube subscribers, was famed for his cantankerous demeanour and his videos centred round him reacting to his son Michael Greens pranks.

His son Green announced the news of his death in a poignant YouTube video in which he becomes overwhelmed with emotion and openly sobs in front of the camera.

Today Ive got to make a very unfortunate video. Ive never wanted to make this video. Today we lost angry grandpa, he told viewers in a video which has already amassed over 1.1 million views.

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Maybe I should not be filming this right now because it just happened but I respect him too much to hide how I feel from the internet. People are going to make fun of me for crying and thats okay. Ill take it because if hes out there somewhere I hope he can hear me.

So earlier in this year grandpa was diagnosed with cancer and he beat it and we were so happy we were like man 2016 is going to be great. In July he was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver which we thought was early stage but it turns out it was end stage.

Notable deaths in 2017 Show all 28 1 /28 Notable deaths in 2017 Notable deaths in 2017 Hugh Hefner, the creator of Playboy magazine, died 28 September 2017 aged 91 Central Press/Stringer - Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Liz Dawn as Vera Duckworth in Coronation Street, pictured with co-star Bill Tarmey who played her husband Jack. Dawn died 25 September 2017, aged 77 ITV Notable deaths in 2017 Walter Becker, one of the founders of the band Steely Dan, died September 3 aged 67 Rex Notable deaths in 2017 David Tang, one of Hong Kong's most famous businessman, died of liver cancer aged 63 on 29 August AFP/Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington died July 20 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Holocaust survivor and stateswoman who fought for abortion rights, Simone Veil, died July 4 Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Michael Bond, author and creator of Paddington Bear, died June 28 PA Notable deaths in 2017 TV's Batman, Adam West, died June 12 AFP/Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Peter Sallis, who starred in Last of the Summer Wine and voiced Wallace and Gromit, died on June 5 Rex Notable deaths in 2017 John Noakes, The action hero of Blue Peter, died May 29 Rex Notable deaths in 2017 Former MotoGP world champion, Nicky Hayden, died age 35, on May 26. He was knocked off his bicycle by a car in Italy. Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Sir Roger Moore died on May 23 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Soundgarden singer, Chris Cornell, who helped define grunge music died May 17 Kevin Winter/Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Moors Murderer Ian Brady died May 15 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Powers Boothe, star of Deadwood and Sin City, dies, aged 68 on May 15 Todd Williamson/Invision/AP Notable deaths in 2017 Robert Miles, Trance DJ behind hit track 'Children', died from cancer aged 47 on May 12 PA Notable deaths in 2017 Happy Days child star, Erin Moran, died at the age of 56 on April 24 Getty Images Notable deaths in 2017 Ex-player and Tottenham U23 coach Ugo Ehiogu died after he suffered a cardiac arrest at the training ground, aged 44 on April 21 Getty Notable deaths in 2017 British athlete Germaine Mason, silver medalist at the Beijing Olympics, died following a motorcycle crash, aged 34 on April 21 Rex Notable deaths in 2017 Actor Tim Pigott-Smith star of TV, film and theatre died on April 7 Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Rupert Cornwell an award-winning foreign correspondent who embodied the spirit of The Independent died on April 1 Notable deaths in 2017 Morse creator Colin Dexter died on March 21 PA Notable deaths in 2017 Rock and roll legend Chuck Berry died on March 18 Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Sir Howard Hodgkin, one of Britain's greatest abstract painters of the post-war period died on March 9 Rex Notable deaths in 2017 Sir Gerald Kaufman was the oldest of the longest-serving MPs and Father of the House of Commons when he died on February 27 PA Notable deaths in 2017 Joost van der Westhuizen died at the age of 45 on February 6 Getty Notable deaths in 2017 John Hurt died aged 77 on 28 January Getty Notable deaths in 2017 Lord Snowdon, husband to Princess Margaret died on January 13 Getty

Green said his father's health had steadily deteriorated since July but he had managed to come home for Thanksgiving but things again went downhill from there.

Everything looked like it was going great and he got to come home and that is where he died," he said.

Green also announced the news of his fathers death in a statement on Twitter, saying: Heaven just got a whole lost angrier. Dad, Im going to miss you more than I even understand as I write this.

He added: I already miss you more than youll ever know. Im so sorry that you couldnt enjoy your fame longer but Im so happy that the last 10 years of your life had a purpose.

The YouTuber, whose real name was Charles Marvin Green Jr, carved out a loyal fanbase over the years and found his popularity had longevity. His videos were featured on everywhere from Channel 4's RudeTube to MTV's Pranked and many more.

His YouTube channel TheAngryGrandpaShow clocked up almost nine million views and his fanbase was known as Grandpa's Army. He affectionately called them youngins.

The vlogger, who was raised in Charleston, South Carolina, credited YouTube with managing to transform him from being an 800 pound alcoholic and distant father to keeping his days busy, giving him purpose and making him be more conscious about his health.

He also had his own personal YouTube channel named Grandpa's Corner where he told tales about his life and even made cooking videos.

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In July 2015, the father and son duo made headlines after the latter surprised Angry Grandpa with a house and made him break down in tears.

For the past few months, Bridget and I have been planning a huge prank on Angry Grandpa, Michael told the camera. Weve been taking my dad house-hunting with us under the pretence that hes looking for a house for me and Bridget. The only problem is, hes been looking for his own. Dad  I got you a house.

This is followed by Angry Grandpa strolling around the house in utter awe and remarking on how brilliant it will be for his son and daughter-in-law.

After a few minutes of showing his dad the house, his son says: I have something to confess  were not searching for a house for us.

After Angry Grandpa says, Then what the hell we doing here? he reveals, This is your house, Pop.

Tributes to Angry Grandpa have poured in on social media. Actor Roseanne Barr tweeted: God Bless you grandpa we will always love u!.

Paul Heyman, a wrestling commentator, wrote on Instagram: It is with profound sadness that I inform you of the passing of Charles Green, better known around the world as The Angry Grandpa.
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Senator Bernie Sanders and two of his Democratic colleagues have suggested that President Trump should consider resigning, after a run of sexual-harassment scandals has driven out some members of Congress.

Senator Al Franken felt it proper for him to resign, Sanders said in an interview with NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday morning, referring to the Democrat from Minnesota. Here you have a president who has been accused by many women of assault, who says on a tape that he assaulted women. He might want to think about doing the same.

Sanders's comment, which built on a tweet he sent last week, came after Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley and Cory Booker suggested that the #MeToo moment should prompt another look at the women who accused Trump of sexual harassment during the 2016 presidential campaign.

The president should resign because he certainly has a track record with more than 17 women of horrific conduct, Merkley said last week in an interview for the weekday version of Meet the Press.

On Saturday, during his campaign swing as part of Alabama's US Senate race, Booker told Vice News that the standard that brought down Franken should be applied to the president.

I just watched Senator Al Franken do the honourable thing and resign from his office, Booker said. My question is, why isnt Donald Trump doing the same thing  who has more serious allegations against him, with more women who have come forward. The fact pattern on him is far more damning than the fact pattern on Al Franken.

Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Show all 30 1 /30 Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Threatening to shut down Twitter after being fact-checked After the president tweeted that voting by post would be "substantially fraudulent", Twitter attached a warning label to his tweet and referred readers to a site which explained how the claim was "unsubstantiated". Trump then said Twitter was "stifling free speech" and that he may have to shut it down, something which he would not have the power to do AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Flippantly dismissing a serious allegation of sexual assault When author E Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her, the president responded: Number one, shes not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?" AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Insulting the Mayor of London as he landed in London Just before touching down at Stansted Airport for his state visit, Trump took time out to @ the London mayor Sadiq Khan on twitter. He said that Khan has done a "terrible job"as mayor and that he is a "stone cold loser" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Taking plenty of "Executive Time" The president's official schedule sets aside the hours from 8 to 11am daily for "Executive Time". Further intermittent periods of "Executive Time" are scheduled throughout any given day, ranging from 15 minutes to 3 hours. His duties in these hours have not been officially disclosed, though Axios reports that he spends them watching TV, reading the newspapers and tweeting Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Shutdown the government for over a month in an effort to secure funding for his wall With Mexico declining to pay for the wall, the president has faced difficulty in raising the required $5bn at home. Due to his demand that the money for the wall be included in the budget, and Congress's refusal, the government partially shut down on 22 December 2018. It remained shut for over a month, the longest period in history Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Joking about the Nazi occupation of France to President Macron In this tweet from 13 November 2018, the president mocks Emmanuel Macron's suggestion of a "true, European army" by invoking the conflict between France and Germany in the world wars Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Railing against the Mueller investigation The president has repeatedly claimed that the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, is a "rigged witch hunt" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting a US intelligence report on Russian meddling in the presence of Vladimir Putin In the press conference that followed his landmark meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Trump stated that he saw no reason why Russia would have meddled in the 2016 US election. This contradicted a 2017 report by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence that found evidence of Russian interference in favour of Trump Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting his contradiction of a US intelligence report on Russian meddling Following furious backlash in the US, the president claimed that he meant to say that he saw no reason why it would not have been Russia who meddled in the 2016 US election. As to why he would have intended to use such bizarre phrasing, he did not comment Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Colouring in the US flag wrong The president coloured in the US flag wrongly during a visit to a children's hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He added a blue stripe where in tradition, and statute, there have been only white and red stripes AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing a Secretary of State over Twitter The president announced on Twitter that he was appointing Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, much to the surprise of then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Quoting a catchphrase from a reality TV show when discussing police brutality While addressing the issue of black athletes not standing for the national anthem in protest of police brutality, the president made reference to his catchphrase from reality TV show "The Apprentice": you're fired! Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Calling African nations "S***hole Countries" Ever one for diplomacy, the president reportedly referred to African nations as "s***hole countries". Asked to confirm this when meeting with Nigeria's President Buhari, Trump stated that there are "some countries that are in very bad shape". Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Defending Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump appeared to equate US foreign actions to those of Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying: There are a lot of killers. You think our countrys so innocent? Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Asking for people to 'pray' for Arnold Schwarzenegger At the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump couldnt help but to ask for prayers for the ratings on Arnold Schwarzeneggers show to be good. Schwarzenegger took over as host of The Apprentice  which buoyed Trumps celebrity status years ago Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Hanging up on Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull Early in his presidency, Trump reportedly hung up the phone on Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull after the foreign leader angered him over refugee plans. Mr Trump later said that it was the worst call he had had so far Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... The 'Muslim ban' Perhaps one of his most controversial policies while acting as president, Trumps travel ban targeting predominantly Muslim countries has bought him a lot of criticism. The bans were immediately protested, and judges initially blocked their implementation. The Supreme Court later sided with the administrations argument that the ban was developed out of concern for US security Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Praising crowd size while touring Hurricane Harvey damage After Hurricane Harvey ravaged southeastern Texas, Trump paid the area a visit. While his response to the disaster in Houston was generally applauded, the president picked up some flack when he gave a speech outside Houston (he reportedly did not visit disaster zones), and praised the size of the crowds there AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 'Little Rocket Man' During his first-ever speech to the United Nations General Assembly, Trump tried out a new nickname for North Korea leader Kim Jong-un: Rocket Man. He later tweaked it to be little Rocket Man as the two feuded, and threatened each other with nuclear war. During that speech, he also threatened to totally annihilate North Korea Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Attacking Sadiq Khan following London Bridge terror attack After the attack on the London Bridge, Trump lashed out at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, criticising Khan for saying there was no reason to be alarmed after the attack. Trump was taking the comments out of context, as Khan was simply saying that the police had everything under control Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming presenter Mika Brezinkski was 'bleeding from the face' Never one not to mock his enemies, Trump mocked MSNBCs Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying that she and co-host Joe Scarborough had approached him before his inauguration asking to join him. He noted that she was bleeding badly from a face-lift at the time, and that he said no MSNBC Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming the blame for Charlottesville was on 'both sides' Trump refused to condemn far-right extremists involved in violence at 'the march for the right' protests in Charlottesville, even after the murder of counter protester Heather Heyer AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Retweeting cartoon of CNN being hit by a 'Trump train' Trump retweeted a cartoon showing a Trump-branded train running over a person whose body and head were replaced by a CNN avatar. He later deleted the retweet Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Tweeting about 'slamming' CNN Trump caught some flack when he tweeted a video showing him wrestling down an individual whose head had been replaced by a CNN avatar. Trump has singled CNN out in particular with his chants of fake news Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 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Accusing Obama of wiretapping him Trump accused former president Barack Obama of wire tapping him on twitter. The Justice Department later clarified: Obama had not, in fact, done so Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming there had been 3 million 'illegal votes' Trump was never very happy about losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million ballots. So, he and White House voter-fraud commissioner Kris Kobach have claimed that anywhere between three and five million people voted illegally during the 2016 election. Conveniently, he says that all of those illegal votes went to Clinton. (There is no evidence to support that level of widespread voter fraud.) Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Leaving Jews out of the Holocaust memorial statement Just days after taking office, Trumps White House issued a statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but didnt mention jews or even the word jewish in the written statement Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Anger over Inauguration crowd size Trumps inauguration crowd was visibly, and noticeably, smaller than that of his predecessor, Barack Obama. But, he really wanted to have had the largest crowd on record. So, he praised it as the biggest crowd ever. Relatedly, Trump also claimed that it stopped raining in Washington at the moment he was inaugurated. It didnt, the day was very dreary Reuters

Democrats made those comments just days after a largely ceremonial effort to impeach Trump, pushed by Republic Al Green, failed in the House of Representatives. Although polling has found that a large number of voters favour an effort to remove Trump from office, most Democrats have suggested that investigations into the 2016 Trump campaign's Russia connections run their course before any such action. In a Quinnipiac University poll released last week, 70 percent ofrespondents said Congress should investigate the accusations of sexual harassment against President Trump.

The Washington Post
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New York City police say a man had an explosive device strapped on when it detonated while he was underground in the subway.

It was a pipe bomb, attached by velcro and zip ties, but FBI bomb technicians and police officers are investigating further.

The device went off in a corridor connecting the Times Square and Port Authority stations on the city's west side, one of the busiest commuter hubs, at 7:30am during the morning rush.

At least four people total also suffered non-life threatening injuries such as ringing in ears, headaches, and scrapes according to police officials.

US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the situation, according to Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

The bus terminal at Port Authority had been evacuated and closed, but reopened just before 10am.

Police sources told CBS News, the suspect is believed to be a man from Bangladesh who has been living in the US for several years.

Police officials have confirmed he is 27-year-old Akayed Ullah. Surveillance video of the incident is being reviewed.

Police Commissioner Paul O'Neill said the suspect "made statements" regarding terror group Isis but declined to comment further.

He had a homemade device that either did not fully detonate or malfunctioned in some way, resulting in burns to his hands and abdomen as well as lacerations.

Investigators are looking into the alleged attacker's residence and personal life at this time.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said during a news conference that the "reality turned out better than initial expectation and fear" of a bomb going off on the subway.

Explosion in New York City Show all 14 1 /14 Explosion in New York City Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City FBI and police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal o AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority in New York City, U.S. REUTERS Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images

He commended first responders and said there were "minor" injuries from the "essentially low tech" explosive device.

"This is New York, we all stick together. We're a savvy people. That's what 'see something, say something' is all about," said the Governor, adding that New Yorkers should not let this disrupt them because "that's exactly what [attackers] want."

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said "New York is a target for a reason," because of its diversity and representation of "democracy"

He also said it was an "attempted terrorist attack" and that there are "no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time."

"Let's get back to work," the mayor said.

Transportation authorities have said the subway system on the 8th Avenue lines and the cross-town train to Grand Central station, another major commuting hub, should be fully operational by the evening rush hour.

The incident occurred less than two months after Uzbek immigrant Sayfullo Saipov killed eight people by speeding a rental truck down a New York City bike path close to the World Trade Center memorial before being shot by police. Isis claimed responsibility for the New Jersey resident's actions.

In September 2016, a man injured more than two dozen people when he set off a homemade bomb in New York's Chelsea district.
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Police are searching for the motive behind an attempted terrorist attack on the New York subway, after a man with a home-made bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion during the morning commute.

The explosion injured five people including the suspect, named as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah by authorities. Ullah is said to be a Bangladesh national who lived in Brooklyn having arrived in the US in 2011 and become a permanent resident.

Officials are looking at all facets of Ullahs life and the time leading up to the attack. Multiple reports said that Ullah had allegedly watched Isis propaganda, and suggested that he told investigators he pledged allegiance to the extremists. However it is believed there is no evidence yet that Ullah may have had direct contact with Isis, while no group has yet taken responsibility for the attack.

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When asked at a news conference about the potential for a link to Isis, New York Police Commissioner Jim ONeill merely said that the suspect had made statements that were the focus of the investigation.

There was said to be no information indicating Ullah was previously known to any US spy or law enforcement agency for any connection to militant groups.

He was was arrested and taken to hospital for treatment having suffered burns and lacerations on his hands and stomach. Three others, including a police officer, sustained minor injuries.

In a statement, President Donald Trump called it an attempted mass murder attack and called for those convicted of engaging in acts of terror to face the strongest possible penalty, including the death penalty.

Explosion in New York City Show all 14 1 /14 Explosion in New York City Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City FBI and police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal o AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority in New York City, U.S. REUTERS Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images

Authorities were quick to point out that things could have been much worse, with the explosion coming in a crowded subway passage near Times Square at about 7.20am (12.20 GMT) during rush hour.

This was an attempted terrorist attack, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

CCTV cameras captured a man walking down the crowded passage, before the explosion which caused a plume of white smoke and scattered commuters who rushed to evacuate.

There was a stampede up the stairs to get out, said one commuter, Diego Fernandez. Everybody was scared and running and shouting.

It is not clear if the bomb was set off intentionally, near 42nd Street and 8th Avenue close to the Port Authority Bus Terminal, or if it went off prematurely.

New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, speaking at a news conference near the explosion site, described the device as amateur-level. It had been attached to Ullah by Velcro and zip ties, having collected the materials for the bomb himself.

Mr Cuomo told CNN the explosive in the pipe ignited, but the pipe itself did not explode. So he wound up hurting himself. He added the attacker obtained information on how to make a bomb from the internet.

This is one of my nightmares, right: a terrorist attack in the subway system, Mr Cuomo, a Democrat, later told TV channel NY1.

The good news is: We were on top of it, he said, and the reality was not as bad as the fear.

The incident occurred less than two months after an Uzbek immigrant allegedly killed eight people by driving down a New York cycle path in a rental truck. Isis did claim responsibility for that attack.

While subway service was restored and the area returned to a level of normalcy in the wake of the latest attack, it left its mark. Its worrying - something is always happening these days, said Ashley Rodriguez, who was waiting outside the bus terminal with her younger brother.

Susana Concepcion said that she was waiting for a Greyhound bus to Philadelphia at the time of the attack, and saw three police officers rush past. She said she didnt hear the blast, but was immediately told to leave alongside a number of others. We didnt know what was going on, she said.

Investigators have searched a number of properties in Brooklyn said to be connected to Ullah, or his family as they look to piece together what might have led to the attack.

One, in the Flatlands neighbourhood, saw police block off the area and about a dozen officers milling about near the residence. Local residents said the street was quiet, with people mostly keeping themselves to themselves. One man, who did not want to be named said that Ullah had lived across the street and that he had seen him pacing around outside his home, talking on the phone and smoking cigarettes.

Another neighbour, JC Fouch, said that he had had no interaction with the suspect but that it was kind of freaky that he was living nearby.

Ullah was said to have came from the southeastern Bangladeshi district of Chittagong and last visited the country on September Inspector General of Police A K M Shahidul Hoque told Reuters on Monday.

He had no criminal record in Bangladesh, Mr Hoque said.

Having arrived in the US on an F-4 family immigrant visa in February 2011, from March 2012 through March 2015, he held a license to drive a limousine or black cab as an independent contractor, the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission said in a statement. He is also believed to have done some work as an electrician.

As investigators piece together his life, Trump officials were quick to jump on the case to suggest it means that the US immigration system must be fixed. Getting tough on immigration has been one Mr Trumps major promises since he was on the campaign trail for the White House.

In his statement, Mr Trump called for Congress to act to fix Americas lax immigration system by ending chain migration - where family members are permitted to join relatives who have immigrated. He linked chain migration to how Ullah entered the country.

Both Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Attorney General Jeff Sessions called for a merit-based immigration system. Mr Sessions said relatives of US citizens shouldn't get priority ahead of someone who is high-skilled, well educated, has learned English, and is likely to assimilate and flourish here.
 Close Footage from scene of evacuated Manhattan area following reports of possible explosion

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A man with a home-made pipe bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion in a New York subway station during morning rush hour, in what the city's mayor called an "attempted terrorist attack".

The suspect - identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah - was one of four people injured by the blast and has been detained. The pipe bomb ignited, but did not fully explode, leaving Ullah with lacerations and burns on his hands and abdomen and three victims being treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Police are now searching a number of addresses in Brooklyn connected to Ullah as they try and pin down a motive for the attack.

The blast occurred at about 7.20am (12.20pm GMT) in a passageway connecting subway lines near 42nd Street and 8th Avenue close to Times Square. The noise of the blast filled parts of the nearby Port Authority Bus Terminal, which was evacuated along with a number of subway lines.

When we hear of an attack in the subways, its incredibly unsettling, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters. And lets also be clear, this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

Please allow the liveblog to load...

The suspect Ullah is said to have made statements after the explosion that led officials to believe he could have been inspired by overseas terror groups, most likely Isis. However, when asked about these at a news conference the New York Police Commissioner James O'Neill declined to go into detail, saying they were a focus of the investigation. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ullah arrived to the US from Bangladesh about seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a for-hire taxi cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission.

He is said to be speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, police said.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has told CNN that the suspect in the attack was disgruntled and went to the internet to try and get information about how to make a home-made bomb.

The governor earlier told a news conference: The first news this morning was obviously very frightening and disturbing... When you hear about a bomb in the subway station, it is in many ways one of our worst nightmares. The reality turns out to be better than the initial expectation and fear.

Mr Cuomo said that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.

Let's go back to work, he added. We're not going to allow them to disrupt us.
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Authorities investigating an attempted terror attack in New York have said the would-be suicide bomber detonated a homemade bomb attached to his body.

The suspect, identified as 27-year-old, Akayed Ullah, was taken to hospital with wounds from the blast and three people nearby were injured.

What happened?

Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York, described the rush-hour blast as an attempted terror attack, adding: Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

Officials said the explosion was reported at 7.20am (12.20pm GMT) in a below-ground walkway connecting subway lines near Times Square.

Emergency services found Ullah at the scene with burns and lacerations to his hands and abdomen.

Police believe Ullah detonated the device himself but could not confirm whether the crowded walkway itself was the target, or whether the suspect may have been travelling towards somewhere else.

He was arrested and taken to hospital for treatment in the custody of police. Three people standing nearby at the time of the blast presented themselves to two nearby hospitals with minor injuries including ringing in the ears and headaches.

Several New York subway lines were evacuated and parts of the network temporarily shut down, before being gradually reopened.

Explosion in New York City Show all 14 1 /14 Explosion in New York City Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City FBI and police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal o AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority in New York City, U.S. REUTERS Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images

What was the device?

The Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, described the device as effectively low-tech, adding: Anyone can go on the internet and download garbage and vile-ness on how to put together an amateur level explosive device and that is the reality that we live in.

John Miller, deputy commissioner of the NYPD, told a press conference the device was based on a pipe bomb.

It was affixed to his person with a combination of Velcro and zip ties. Bomb technicians processing crime scene, he told a press conference, adding that experts were analysing the device to confirm what explosive it contained and how it was constructed.

Pipe bombs are a type of improvised device that see a sealed section of pipe filled with explosive material, aiming to increase the power of an explosion because of increased pressure and shrapnel.

It is unusual for a single pipe bomb, which are normally concealed or used as part of larger devices, to be attached to a person.

Suicide vests can be made from several pipe bombs or another combination of explosives packed with ball bearings or shrapnel.

(AFP/Getty Images (AFP/Getty Images)

Who is responsible?

No terrorist group immediately issued a claim of responsibility and officials have not confirmed any links or sympathies by the bomber.

Mr De Blasio said only Ullah was believed to be involved and there were no further known threats to New York, adding: At this point in time all we know is one individual who was unsuccessful in his aims.

Mr ONeill said that officers were investigating whether the bomber shouted anything before detonating his device.

When asked if he was connected to Isis, he replied: He did make statements but were not going to talk about that right now.

Is Isis involved?

The terrorist group did not immediately claim responsibility for the bombing but statements have been issued hours or even days after incidents in the past.

Isis does not always link itself to attack that are unsuccessful or where the suspect has been arrested.

A recent anomaly was the Parsons Green attack, which saw a homemade bomb partially explode on the London Underground.

A teenage Iraqi refugee was arrested on suspicion of attempting the attack, which saw several people injured by a device concealed inside a Lidl bag and detonated during the morning rush-hour in September.

Isis has been intensifying its calls for supporters to carry out terror attacks around the world as it becomes harder for jihadis to travel to its dwindling territories in Iraq and Syria.

The group has issued several rounds of detailed guidance on carrying out massacres using cars, lorries, knives and bombs.

A signature of Isis bombings has been the powerful and volatile explosive TATP, which was used in attacks including Paris and Brussels, but was not immediately evident in New York.

Al-Qaeda has also issued bomb-making instructions to supporters, with one notorious article on making a pipe bomb issued in an English-language propaganda magazine being that has been tied to atrocities including the Boston bombing.

Isis claimed responsibility for another failed bomb attack in Parsons Green, London, in September (PA)

Have there been other terror attacks in New York recently?

Isis claimed responsibility for a terror attack that left eight people dead in Manhattan on 31 October.

Investigators confirmed Sayfullo Saipov was inspired by the groups propaganda to launch a rampage using a truck, after he allegedly declared his intentions to officials and asked to hang an Isis flag in his hospital room.

The NYPD said he had followed Isis instructions almost to a T but no formal links to the group had been uncovered.

In September 2016, three pressure cooker bombs exploded in New York and New Jersey as part of a coordinated plot by an Islamist inspired by both al-Qaeda and Isis.

Ahmad Khan Rahimi is alleged to have planted several other bombs that did not detonate.

A blood-soaked journal found on the suspect after he was shot and detained by police contained references to Isis late spokesman, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, and a speech calling on supporters to attack the kuffar [disbelievers] in their backyard.

The journal also expressed admiration for brother Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-Yemeni al-Qaeda recruiter killed in a US drone strike in 2011.

It read: I looked for guidance and Alhumdulilah [praise God], guidance came Sheikh Anwar [al-Awlaki], Brother Adnani/Dawla [Isis].

Mr Miller said that around 26 terror plots have been foiled in New York since al-Qaedas 9/11 attacks, including the 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt, which was linked to the Pakistani Taliban.

He added: We have prevented a significant number of attacks but this is a fact of life whether youre in New York or London, or Paris. The question is can it happen here? And the answer is it can happen anywhere.

A note in Mr Saipov's reportedly says he was acting for Isis (Getty)

Are transport networks being targeted?

The bombing is the latest incident to target transport networks, which have been a recurring location of terror attacks around the world.

Trains and underground networks have been the site of atrocities by groups including Isis, al-Qaeda, other Islamists, the IRA, neo-fascists and Sikh militants.

Among the deadliest attack of its kind is the 2006 Mumbai train bombings, which saw seven blasts in 11 minutes kill more than 200 people on the Indian citys suburban railway.

The Madrid train bombings in 2004 killed 192 victims in 10 near-simultaneous explosions in the morning rush hour, while the 2008 Mumbai attackers also included a railway station among targets.

Bombs were detonated on both the London Underground and a bus in the 2005 London bombings, which killed 52 victims, and were followed two weeks later by four more attempted attacks on public transport.

Experts have ranked transport networks and interchanges among other soft targets that will continue to be used by terrorists searching for densely crowded sites with low security.


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The explosion at New York City's Port Authority subway terminal was an attempted terrorist attack, authorities have confirmed.

Mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed that the explosion was a planned attack, but said there were no other credible threats to the city at this time.

Four people, including the suspect, were injured in the rush-hour blast in one of New York's major transit centres, authorities said. Three commuters suffered minor injuries, while the alleged attacker's injuries were more severe.

Recommended New York terror suspect named as Akayed Ullah

The alleged attacker has been identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, Police Commissioner James O'Neill said. Multiple outlets reported that Mr Ullah was a Bangladeshi native who had been living in the US for the last seven years, citing police sources.

Asked if Mr Ullah had ties to Isis, Mr O'Neill said the alleged attacker had made statements, but declined to elaborate as to what they were. Mr O'Neill said the suspect had been transported to Bellevue Hospital with burns and other wounds.

Explosion in New York City Show all 14 1 /14 Explosion in New York City Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City FBI and police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal o AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City A fire truck arrives after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority in New York City, U.S. REUTERS Explosion in New York City Port Authority Police watch as people evacuate after a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images Explosion in New York City Police and other first responders respond to a reported explosion at the Port Authority Bus Terminal AFP/Getty Images

Mr Ullah allegedly detonated an "improvised, low-tech explosive device" that was strapped to his body with velcro and zip ties, Mr O'Neill said. Police responded to the explosion caused by the device at approximately 7:20 am ET. The terminal resumed service three hours later.

The device went off in an underground walkway connecting trains at 42nd St and 8th Avenue. The area is a popular hub for commuters, as well as tourists. Seasonal attractions such as the Rockefeller Christmas tree and festive store displays draw visitors to the area in the winter months.

The incident was captured on transit system video, Mr O'Neill said. Authorities were deployed to other transportation hubs in the city as a precautionary measure.

 Explosion on New York City subway injures four

Governor Andrew Cuomo urged New Yorkers to return to work, saying: Were not going to allow them to disrupt us. That is exactly what they want, and that is exactly what theyre not going to get."

"This is New York and we all pitch together, and we are a savvy people, and we keep our eyes open," he added. "...We have the best law enforcement on he globe, and were all working together extraordinarily well."

The attack occurred less than two months after a man drove a rental truck through a New York City bike path, killing eight. He claimed to have carried out the attack in the name of Isis.

In September 2016, dozens of people were injured when a man set off an explosive device near a subway station in New York's Chelsea neighbourhood.
Opinion / Columnist

OUR past is rich in history; the sacred sacrifices made by the founding fathers of this nation alongside many sons and daughters who perished for our freedom can never be overlooked.From the early days of the Samukange nationalism in the 1930s, moving on to the days of heroes like Benjamin Burombo, Samuel Parirenyatwa, Ndabaningi Sithole, Joshua Nkomo, Herbert Chitepo; all the way to the heroic era of Robert Mugabe; we have a proud national narrative for posterity, a rich history to cherish, and a strong foundation for the future of this country.As a nation we must and we will learn to live above our errors, above our shortcomings, and above our weaknesses. Our strength and unity is in our success story, not in the downside of our journey. We are as proud as the Jewish nation, always cherishing our glory above our gloom.Much as the last days of the presidency of Robert Mugabe were punctuated by dramatised episodes of questionable behaviour by those who surrounded him; the undeniable truth is that the person and character of Robert Mugabe will go down in history as that of an iconic figure of principle, resilience, independent nationalism, and passion for black empowerment across the continent of Africa.In the same vein, the role of people like Ndabaningi Sithole as the founder of Zanu in 1963 cannot be eroded by the differences that saw the man's political downfall.In nation-building the positive will always outweigh the negative. In politics we always hail downfall over successes. Politics is a mere means to an end. The end is nation building. There was always going to be a Mugabe way of leaving, and that way was never going to be the Nujoma way, the Kaunda way, the Mandela way, or the Machel way. We hoped it would be a way in honour of the revolution for which Mugabe stood firm in defence for all his life.The revolution was firmly defended by his younger comrades, and Zanu-PF has been re-united, rejuvenated, and re-energised for the future of our beloved country.It is now easier for ZANU-PF to protect into perpetuity the great name of Mugabe, without having to worry about protecting the legacy and survival of the party itself in the same vein. The Mugabe legacy is safe and sound. Our dramatic internal processes can only strengthen it, and will never weaken it.Professor Jonathan Moyo had hatched a deadly plan that was designed to demise Zanu-PF in the name of protecting the legacy of Mugabe and his family. Never once did Moyo say anything about protecting the revolution itself.He was never a subscriber right from the time of the liberation struggle. Just an intruder. He had managed to rally and frog-march thousands of youths and women within Zanu-PF behind the mantra that said the one and only way to get into the Zanu-PF Kingdom was through a chosen intermediary, whom Jonathan Moyo and his cronies said was none other than Mugabe's wife.Just as much as Jesus said he was the way, the truth and the life, Jonathan Moyo through his "Munhu wese kunaAmai" slogan was telling party faithfuls that Grace Mugabe was the only begotten wife of President Mugabe, given and sacrificed as the messianic divine figure to ensure membership to eternity within Zanu-PF.No doubt Jonathan Moyo did not admire the former first lady at all, did not think she was anything more than a pawn in his greater plan of bringing Zanu-PF down. In her, Moyo saw a pliant tool for the ultimate demise of the party he so much loathes.It is hard to understand why Moyo and his cronies like Saviour Kasukuwere and Patrick Zhuwao actually thought they could hand over a Zanu-PF without war veterans and the ZDF to Grace Mugabe, after which they could easily snatch the same party away from the pliant and excited lady.That was never going to be allowed to happen. Moyo and cronies were allowed to get exactly where the real owners of this party wanted them to be, and at the right time the scheme was blasted into smithereens on that fateful night of November 14.The gun has always protected the politics of Zanu-PF, and this case was no different. The transitional set up we have in Zimbabwe now is in defence of the revolution, never in attack of Mugabe, or even the demised G40. I am positive the veteran iconic politician understands that Zanu-PF will now survive bigger and stronger after the fateful events that resulted in the dramatic end of his political career.In reforming Zanu-PF we cannot depart from the ideological foundations of this great liberation movement. Zanu-PF is a nationalist party founded on the need to transform the lives of the masses for the better. It is not driven by a narrow agenda like labour for labour's sake; or liberalism for liberalism's sake. Zanu-PF is a party for the people across the social divides  labour, students, business, liberals, democrats, socialists, communists, capitalists and all other social identities that may affect the people of Zimbabwe from time to time.Victor Matemadanda takes over the party's Commissariat department; and he has the daunting task of bringing the control of Zanu-PF back into the hands of the people. The trauma of a few individuals abusing power to run roughshod over all others has to be dealt with as the party rehabilitates its broken structures to once again revive the voice of the people.Jonathan Moyo occupied this artificial place of assumed intelligence where he postured as the custodian of Zanu-PF survival strategy, and gullible people like Kasukuwere rallied around him in zealous ignorant worship. Sadly even the former first lady was bamboozled by the professor's colourful language and pretenses at sophistication. Surely geniuses must see guns coming.The revolution for which Zanu-PF stands remains the same revolution for which our heroic freedom fighters fought for, but the narrative of where we are going has got to change.The revolution cannot be protected outside its service to the people. The revolution has to transform the lives of the people. The reason our young people are now skeptical about the leadership of the older generation is simple. They have not seen or experienced any positive transformation associated with leadership from the people they look up to. This is not a mere generational power struggle where one generation has become impatient in waiting for their turn to lead the nation. This is about a betrayed generation trying to ensure its days on earth are not wasted in the anguish and pain of poverty.Jonathan Moyo saw the opportunity in the disaffection in our youth and was determined to exploit it for the demise of Zanu-PF. He had a measure of temporary success. Now that his grand plan lies in ashes of shame and defeat, it is now incumbent upon Zanu-PF to ensure that never again will the power in the party be a monopoly of one man, never again will the people's power be stored in one center that is only accessed by a chosen few, never again will the collective strategy of the party be stored in the head of one single person.President Emmerson Mnangagwa is surely alive to the detriment of patronage. He has seen more than enough of this scourge over the years. Governance is no feeding trough for the executive; the party is no cash cow for office holders, and Parliament is not a mere pathway to a better livelihood.The Mnangagwa Government must distinguish itself as a government of service to the people of Zimbabwe, as a hard-working and honest facilitator of business opportunity and investment; and as a reliable member of the family of nations.Editor's note  Wafawarova returns to this page after engaging the Editorial team on matters of concern.Zanu-PF must be the party through which talented and ambitious young men and women will rise and shine into the leadership of this great nation. It must be a party that identifies and nurtures political potential and talent. It must be a party that rewards merit and merit alone. The days of rising through the political rankings by bootlicking others and backstabbing others must be a thing of the past. Singing and sloganeering in praise of leaders as a way of seeking political office must never again be encouraged or rewarded.The current budget has prioritised education, security and health; which is expected. The Finance Minister has also emphasised the need to live within our means, to save as much money as possible, to exercise maximum austerity. He has said investment laws will be adjusted to attract investors as demanded by international competition for modern day investment.What we need now are visionary implementers of these policies. A visionary budget can only succeed after being implemented by a visionary workforce. We need a development driven executive with workers who understand that national development is the sole reason they are employed. There is need for clearly set tasks that are to be completed in a specified way within a specified period. Appraisals must be effective for every single public service worker, and where failure is evident consequences must be made public.This government must bring back the work ethic that will earn our police force respect, trust and admiration from the public. This government must restore the dignity of the health worker and the integrity of the health profession.This government must restore the nobility of the teaching profession. This government must bring back the good old memories of effective governance by our local councils and authorities. Our mines must once again be destinies of employment, so should be our manufacturing firms, so should be our estates and plantations.This is not going to be easy at all. A massive orientation needs to take place. Laziness, ineptitude, selfishness, ignorance, corruption and insouciant behaviour must be dealt with once and for all if this government is going to revive this country to its deserved glory as the jewel of Africa.We cannot demean the efforts of the impoverished masses as many try to survive and barely earn a living. However, this country will need to accept that open market place and street vending have never been pillars of any modern economy. These are mitigating measures carried out in response to a declined economy. These are economic measures that only expand in a declining economy, and will always dwindle with a growing economy.We cannot have a whole government whose sole focus is to protect and create more street and open market vending. That is not the Zimbabwe that was envisaged by the thousands of young people who died in battles to free this country from colonial rule.At the same time the problem of street vending is not an initiative driven by people who just want to vend for the sake of enjoying the practice. This is a practice caused by huge economic problems. The artificial cleansing of streets by chasing away vendors in and of itself will not help the country economically, or in any other way.The street vendors were driven to the streets by poverty, and they can only be driven away from the same streets by prosperity.Indeed there is need for short-term regulation of street vending so we stop lawlessness and the spread of diseases, but we can only do this in a context that will leave the vendor with an alternative.The electioneering towards the next general election must not distract this government. The best way to win the 2018 election is simply to visibly transform the country's economy for the better. If we can start moving towards the 4.5 percent economic growth rate projected by the Finance Minister in his budget, there will be no need to go around buying votes by promising the electorate all sorts of freebies; as was the plan and habit of people like Patrick Zhuwao and Saviour Kasukuwere.Zimbabwe should never ever have such unscrupulous politicians within it ranks. They are ruinous characters. I believe the chance given to this government by the people of Zimbabwe is a fresh mandate for Zanu-PF, a chance to show that the party has transformed itself, that the party has rediscovered its old successful self.Any repeat of patronage tricks will be met with disdain. Jobs, jobs, jobs and jobs, as the President passionately said on his return from exile. Zimbabwe we are one and together we will overcome. It is homeland or death!Reason Wafawarova is a political writer based in SYDNEY, Australia.
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Noam Chomsky has criticised the anti-fascist movement and argues its tactics are a gift to the far right and US state repression.

The renowned academic, widely considered the founder of modern linguistics, says anti-fascists have instigated the use of violence in wholly reprehensible ways.

Antifa, shorthand for the anti-fascist movement, refers to a loose decentralised coalition of groups which oppose the far right via grassroots action rather than depending on the police or the state. While the movement dates back to the rise of fascism in Europe in the 1920s, it has gained increasing attention since anti-fascist activists clashed with neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan members and alt-right supporters at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville over the summer.

Tensions between fascists and counter-protesters made headlines across the world after a 20-year-old man, who officials say had Nazi sympathies, mowed his car into the crowd of peaceful anti-fascist demonstrators and killed a female civil rights activist.

The spotlight on the movement intensified again in September after confidential documents obtained by Politico revealed federal authorities had been warning state and local officials since early 2016 that antifa had become increasingly confrontational and dangerous, and the Department of Homeland Security formally classified their activities as domestic terrorist violence. President Donald Trump subsequently berated antifa as bad dudes.

 One dead as car hits crowd of anti-fascist protesters in Charlottesville

Chomsky, a prominent voice on the left, has now voiced his frustrations with antifa, telling The Independent that physically preventing members of far-right groups from expressing their views is counter-productive.

Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Show all 9 1 /9 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Protesters clash and several are injured White nationalist demonstrators clash with counter demonstrators at the entrance to Lee Park in Charlottesville, Virginia. A state of emergency is declared, August 12 2017 Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Trump supporters at the protest A white nationalist demonstrator walks into Lee Park in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. Hundreds of people chanted, threw punches, hurled water bottles and unleashed chemical sprays on each other Saturday after violence erupted at a white nationalist rally in Virginia. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville State police stand ready in riot gear Virginia State Police cordon off an area around the site where a car ran into a group of protesters after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Militia armed with assault rifles White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' with body armor and combat weapons evacuate comrades who were pepper sprayed after the 'Unite the Right' rally was declared a unlawful gathering by Virginia State Police. Militia members marched through the city earlier in the day, armed with assault rifles. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee The statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee stands behind a crowd of hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' during the 'Unite the Right' rally 12 August 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. They are protesting the removal of the statue from Emancipation Park in the city. Getty Images Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Racial tensions sparked the violence White nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' exchange insults with counter-protesters as they attempt to guard the entrance to Lee Park during the 'Unite the Right' rally Getty Violence on the streets of Charlottesville A car plows through protesters A vehicle drives into a group of protesters demonstrating against a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The incident resulted in multiple injuries, some life-threatening, and one death. AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville Rescue personnel help injured people after a car ran into a large group of protesters after an white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia AP Photo Violence on the streets of Charlottesville President Donald Trump speaks about the ongoing situation in Charlottesville, Virginia from his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. He spoke about "loyalty" and "healing wounds" left by decades of racism.

Antifa is very far from a structured organisation. It is largely a collection of people disturbed about the ugly and ominous forces that have broken into the public arena with particular venom since Trump removed the cork from the bottle, the 89-year-old says.

Recommended Chomsky says Trump brought Doomsday Clock alarmingly close to midnight

Associated with the loose antifa array are fringe groups that have initiated the use of force in ways that are completely unacceptable and are a welcome gift to the far right and the repressive forces of the state, while also providing some justification for the absurd claim that antifa is comparable to the far-right forces.

Chomsky argues that violence paves the way for state actions reminiscent of Cointelpro (acronym for Counter Intelligence Programme), which he describes as the most extreme domestic state-terrorist programme in US history.

This is a reference to a series of covert and often illegal projects carried out by the FBI aimed at scrutinising, infiltrating and disrupting political organisations. The anti-Vietnam war movement, which Chomsky played a key role in, and the Civil Rights movement were subject to such measures.

Chomsky, who recently left his post as Institute Professor Emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to become a laureate professor at the University of Arizona, believes such events should be allowed to go ahead but be challenged with non-violent confrontation and educational methods of resistance.

Unlike repression of the left, typically tolerated (even approved), repression of the right elicits great concern and sometimes support for the targets as they claim the high moral ground of defending basic civil rights, he says. Thats quite apart from the opportunity cost, the failure to use the opportunity to expose their doctrines and actions, and the threat they pose to civilised existence.

Although the media and many Americans only associate the anti-fascist movement with militant direct action, it is worth remembering activists adopt a plethora of tactics. Urging venues to cancel far-right events or shutting down such events through direct action is just one strategy among many others which include union organisation, migrant solidarity, public education programmes and outing neo-Nazis to their neighbours and employers.

 Protesters from Unite Against Fascism gather near Trafalgar Square to counter EDL protest

Chomsky also argues the current manifestation of the anti-fascist movement should not be compared with earlier historical configurations, warning against conflating the current state of the far right in the US with the growth of fascism in Europe in the early twentieth century.

The anti-fascist movement has a long history, which dates back to fighting Benito Mussolinis Blackshirts in the 1920s and then Adolf Hitlers Brownshirts in the taverns of Munich. In Britain, activists mobilised against Blackshirts led by Oswald Mosley, the leader of the British Union of Fascists, in Cable Street, east London, in the 1930s.

Recommended Noam Chomsky to start new professorship at University of Arizona

The differences are radical, Chomsky says. In the 1930s, the Nazis ruled Germany, fascism had been established for years in Italy, and there were powerful fascist movements elsewhere.

There was a literal death struggle between fascism and labour (and of course much beyond). There are many ominous developments today but nothing remotely like that. In particular, in the US its hardly the case that the working class is confronting the far right.

Dr Mark Bray, a leading scholar on antifa, agrees it was important not to assume the distinct historical circumstances were the same, but argues the troubling growth of the far right in America should be treated with the same gravity as that in Europe at the beginning of the twentieth century.

I dont think they are the same. I dont throw away comparisons willy-nilly. I think it is important to understand the differences, the Ivy League lecturer tells The Independent.

The argument anti-fascists make, which I agree with, is whether or not it is the same or different, it is important to organise against fascists and far-right groups even if they are small, in case they could be the seeds of a future murderous movement or regime, he continues. In my opinion, it is not the same but it should be treated with the seriousness that it could be the same.

Bray, who lectures at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, disputes Chomskys assertion that the violent fringes of antifa played into the hands of the far right itself.

I dont agree with the characterisation that anti-fascism is a gift to the far right, he says. I dont know of an example where the efforts of anti-fascists to stop the far right have made them stronger than they would be otherwise whereas I know plenty of examples where their efforts have stopped the far right.

Recommended Noam Chomsky says he would vote for Jeremy Corbyn if he were British

Bray, who specialises in human rights, terrorism, and political radicalism, is similarly dismissive of the notion antifa somehow benefits the repressive arm of the state.

He argues the US government did not need a pretext to enhance its powers and draws attention to the polices response to the Ferguson protests over the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, by a white Ferguson police officer back in August 2014.

The police brought military armoured vehicles into the area. At the time, police could be seen wearing Kevlar vests, helmets and camouflage, and were armed with pistols, automatic rifles, shotguns and tear gas.

It seems to me the repressive forces are going to be increasingly more repressive almost regardless, Bray reflects. He also suggests tendency persists within the media to divide left-wing protesters into a reductive good-guy-versus-bad-guy dichotomy and focus far greater attention on militant outlier groups.

He says media coverage tended to be drawn to images of violence and property damage even if this did not accurately capture the diverse nature of protests.

This has been true of antifa in recent months, with Fox News voicing alarm about the threat of leftist antifa thugs and an increasing volume of think pieces and columns issuing stern warnings against the groups actions.

Bray says the media and much of the American public overlooked the broad scope of antifas activities, explaining that while it was the spectacle which gained the most attention, it constituted a minority of their activities.

Nevertheless, he recognises that violence does have a role to play in the movement. It is part of the antifa repertoire to confront these groups and physically if necessary. The historical justification has been made evident in my opinion, he says.

Anti-fascists see fascism as a political opponent not a difference of opinion. It is important for it to be understood as a struggle rather than something which can sit within a liberal rights framework. Some members of the movement say no free speech for fascists because historically fascism has invalidated its legitimacy in the public sphere  it has shown itself to be violent and genocidal.

His remarks are founded on the view that fascism must be shut down as quickly as possible, as allowing such movements to snowball can constitute a grave danger to society.

The alt-right movement has gained growing attention since Donald Trumps presidential bid and subsequent election victory. While Mr Trump has sought to distance himself from the movement  which has been accused of racism, antisemitism, and misogyny  its members have hailed him as their leader.

The growing spotlight on the far right has gone hand in hand with mounting attention on antifa. The movement entered mainstream American public consciousness after Richard Spencer, the white supremacist credited with coining the term alt-right, was punched at a protest after Mr Trumps inauguration in January.

As well as prompting a torrent of memes and parodies overnight, the incident sparked a massive debate about whether it was ever acceptable to use physical violence against those who hold fascist views.

Antifa also dominated headlines at the beginning of February after the University of California, Berkeley was forced to cancel a speech by Milo Yiannopoulos, a former Breitbart editor, after thousands of students assembled in protest and a group of black-clad, anti-fascist activists hurled fireworks at the speech venue.

But it was not until the deadly violence which ravaged Charlottesville in the summer that Antifa well and truly found its way into mainstream political debate.

Trump prompted fury for responding to the violence by drawing a moral parity between white supremacists and anti-fascists, suggesting counter-protesters were as violent as those involving far-right supporters  which he suggested included some very fine people.

But while the problem of white supremacy has gained increasing attention since the rise of Trump and in the wake of Charlottesville, it has of course been an ongoing and persistent problem in the states.

The murder of Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old civil rights activist who was killed at the Virginia rally, is just one of a spate of killings which have recently raised the spectre of far-right violence.
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With less than 24 hours until the special senate election between Roy Moore and Doug Jones, voices are being raised in support of and opposition to the Republican candidate who has been accused by multiple women of sexual assault when they were teenagers.

It is an election that has divided the Republican Party, has seen the political comeback of Barack Obama and has shone a national spotlight on the views and attitudes of people towards women who accuse men of abusing them and towards their alleged perpetrators.

Polls show the Republican leading by single digits, but experts and pollsters appear to have reached a consensus: that the results of a special election two weeks before Christmas are anyone's guess.

Why does the White House support Roy Moore?

After weeks of dithering about whether the White House should officially endorse Roy Moore for the Senate following allegations of child molestation, Donald Trump travelled to a rally within 20 miles of the Alabama border and called on crowds to vote for the Republican.

The Presidents rallying cry in Pensacola, Florida  So get out and vote for Roy Moore  marked an end to the analysis of vague comments from the likes of Kellyanne Conway and Mitch McConnell, who argued that Mr Moores opponent was weak on crime and immigration.

Ivanka Trump said there was a special place in hell for people who abused children, but as the race to the Senate between Mr Moore and his opponent Doug Jones appeared increasingly tight, all caution was thrown to the wind. Mr Moore has received full financial backing from the Republican National Convention.

High-profile support has refuelled Mr Moores campaign. With the media & Washington elite doing everything they can to stop us, we need all hands on deck! tweeted Mr Moore, adding that Mr Trump was the best supporter.

Former President Barack Obama most recently called for voters to reject the Republican, without explicitly mentioning his name.

This one's serious, he said in a pre-recorded message to target black voters. You can't sit it out.

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

What is at stake in the election?

If Doug Jones wins, it would be the first time the state has sent a Democratic senator to Washington DC in almost two decades. A Democrat victory would also stretch the already thin majority of Republicans in the state and make it more difficult for the Conservatives to push through legislation.

If Moore wins, it will highlight the success of gradual gerrymandering on the part of the Republican Party and the unwavering loyalty of the Republican National Convention and its base  whatever the cost.

Who is Roy Moore?

The former Alabama Supreme Court judge and district attorney in Etowah County has built up strong support from his conservative base over decades.

He is a Christian, and much of his policy appeared to be rooted in his faith, including establishing a Ten Commandments monument at the Alabama courthouse. He has also opposed measures which would advance gay rights. In 2002, he denied a mother custody of her children because she was dating another woman  while the father of the children was allegedly abusing them. He declared being gay was an inherent evil and makes for an unfit parent.

 Jimmy Kimmel roasts Roy Moore for weaponising 'Christian values' despite sexual assault allegations

Before the allegations became national news, he had little profile in the US. Most recently it was revealed he advocated scrapping constitutional amendments after the Tenth Amendment to eliminate many problems in the structuring of the US government.

What are the allegations against him?

The Washington Post recounted allegations from a woman who said Mr Moore asked her for her phone number when she was 14 years old, and took her a few days later to his house in the woods several times, during which he allegedly groped her. There were three other on-the-record allegations against Mr Moore  the women said they were teenagers when he pursued them in his 30s.

After the story ran, another five women came forward. There are now eight on-the-record allegations.

Mr Moore has denied the allegations, saying that he has never engaged in sexual misconduct.

As a father of a daughter and a grandfather of five granddaughters, I condemn the actions of any man who engages in sexual misconduct not just against minors but against any woman, he said.

What happened in the Republican primary?

Mr Moore won the primary against Senator Luther Strange, who had backing from the President. Mr Moore had the support of the Presidents former chief strategist, Steve Bannon.

 Roy Moore blames his sexual misconduct allegations on LGBT people

During a rally in September, Mr Moore was asked by a black member of the audience when he last thought America was great. Mr Moore replied: I think it was great at the time when families were united  even though we had slavery  they cared for one another. Our families were strong, our country had a direction.

Do all Republicans support Mr Moore?

No. Many Republican senators and commentators have called Mr Moores accusers credible and some have even discussed expelling Mr Moore should he win.

Republican Senator Richard Shelby told CNN: I couldnt vote for Roy Moore. I didnt vote for Roy Moore, adding his state deserves better.

Arizona Republican Jeff Flake wrote a check to Doug Jones, and Nebraska RNC committeewoman Joyce Simmons resigned over the committee's support for Mr Moore.

Amy Siskind, founder of The New Agenda, tweeted: As bad as the paedophilia allegations are against Roy Moore, can we also not lose sight of his slavery comments, his views on Jews and gays. That this man can be a viable candidate for senate, AND have the backing not only of Trump but the RNC, is a stain on our great country.

After Mr Trumps support failed to get Luther Strange through the primary, it remains to be seen how influential his backing of Mr Moore will be.
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Doug Jones, the Democrat looking to defeat Roy Moore and deliver a humiliating rebuke to Donald Trump, is working frantically to persuade African Americans in Alabama - the demographic on which his success most crucially depends - to turn out and vote for him.

With polls opening on Tuesday for Alabama residents to select a senator to represent them in Washington, Mr Jones has been holding rallies with high-profile black politicians such as senator Cory Brooker, former former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick and congresswoman Terri Sewell. He has also been reminding voters of his role in prosecuting the white supremacists responsible for one of the most notorious crimes of the civil rights era.

With an average of polls showing the Democrat trailing Mr Moore by perhaps less than four points, Mr Jones over the weekend attended a rally in the city of Selma, speaking in front of the church where Rev Martin Luther King and other began the 1965 march to Montgomery that helped secure the passage of the Voting Rights Act.

Mr Jones has been campaigning with African American politicians (Getty)

Im here to try and help some folk get woke, said Mr Booker, from New Jersey. Democracy is not a spectator sport.

Meanwhile, Matthew Knowles, the father of Beyonce and an Alabama native told a group of voters at a prayer breakfast: Were not just voting for a person or voting for a party, were voting for the perception of Alabama.

On Monday night, the eve of the ballot, Mr Jones will hold a final rally in Birmingham, the city in which he had spent much of his life.

It is nothing short of astonishing that it has come to this. The deeply conservative state of Alabama has not elected a Democratic senator since 1986, and that person, Richard Shelby, subsequently defected to the Republicans and still holds the seat. The last Democratic presidential candidate to win the state was Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Republicans appeared to be looking for another easy victory after former judge Mr Moore beat Luther Strange in the Republican primary for the seat in September. While Mr Moore, who has been backed by Steve Bannon and other conservatives, has long been controversial outside of Alabama, inside the state he has a loyal following of conservative evangelicals who literally believe he is doing Gods work.

 Roy Moore blames his sexual misconduct allegations on LGBT people

Then on November 9, the Washington Post started publishing a series of reports that included allegations that Mr Moore - then aged 30 - had harassed and otherwise acted inappropriately with a series of girls and young women, some as young as 14, when he was working as a local prosecutor.

Mr Moore has adamantly denied the accusations and accused the media of conspiring with the Democrats. Yet the reports, and the testimony of numerous women, saw his polling numbers fall by a couple of points and those of Mr Jones jump from 42 to 46.

Most observers believe Mr Moore will probably pull through. Having initially remained silent, Mr Trump, who is very popular in the state and who originally backed Mr Strange, has endorsed Mr Moore, as has the Republican National Committee.

Mr Trump has gone as far as recording a phone message, which is being rolled out by the Moore campaign. The robo-call to potential voters includes Mr Trump's voice telling voters that if they do not support the Republican candidate, progress on his agenda will be stopped cold. Democrats have subsequently released their own calls involving former President barack Obama, and former Vice President Joe Biden.

Several issues will likely prove crucial to the election race. The allegations levelled at Mr Moore have disgusted many Republicans and a number have said they will vote for a write in candidate rather than the former judge by writing the name of another Republican on the ballot paper. Mr Shelby is among those who have indicated that is his plan.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. 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What remains unclear is whether sufficient Republicans in Alabama, where 49 per cent of adults identity as evangelical Christian, will feel so strongly they would vote for a Democrat and risk reducing the senate majority to 51-49, rather than simply decide not to vote for anyone.

Mr Jones is targeting the states so-called black belt, which includes urban areas located in the middle of Alabama and include Birmingham, Montgomery and Selma. Around 25 per cent of voters are African American.

He has shared a platform of interests for everyone, said Darryl Lee, 58, a pastor, who was walking through the citys historic district told The Independent. Roy Moore is more in it for himself.

Melvin Griffen, who like Mr Lee was African American, said he felt Mr Jones views were closer to his and he said he had shown the courage of prosecuting the church bombers. He also said that voter turnout would likely be the determining factor.

Its a hard red state, he said. Right now, its a toss.

Mr Jones campaign has been bombarding people with political adverts highlighting his role as a prosecutor who reopened the investigation into the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham that killed four young girls - 11-year-old Denise McNair and 14-year-olds Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins and Cynthia Wesley.

In 1977, the ringleader of the Ku Klux Klan gang that carried out the atrocity, Robert Dynamite Bob Chambliss, was convicted. Then the pursuit of the other people involved went quiet.

Two decades later, when Mr Jones was the US attorney for Alabama, he reopened the case and brought charges against against two more Klan members, Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr, and Bobby Frank Cherry. Blanton was convicted in 2001 and Cherry was convicted the following year.

Cherry died in prison in 2004, while Blanton, 79, remains behind bars. In the summer of 2016, a parole board refused to grant him an early release.

Despite all of this, it remains unclear whether Mr Jones will be able to get out the vote in big enough numbers to overcome Mr Moore support, which is particularly strong in rural areas.

Thats the $64,000 question, Danny Ransom, the vice chair of the Civil Rights Activist Committee, told NBC News. There doesn't appear to be a lot of enthusiasm.

Larry Powell, a professor of communication studies at the University of Alabama, told the Birmingham Times that Mr Jones cannot win without the black vote. Yet he added that the race is denitely winnable [for Jones].

This is a candidate black voters should be able to back, said Mr Powell. He has a commendable track record worthy of their support.

Outside of a Doug Jones campaign office on 4th Ave, Judi King, a volunteer, was preparing to hit the streets and bang on doors in the citys Bessemer neighbourhood.

This is our chance to show that not everyone in the state is hateful, she said. I really do feel this election is a chance to show the world.
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As part of a last-ditch effort by Democrats to win Alabamas US Senate seat, former President Barack Obama is imploring Alabama voters to reject Roy Moore, the Republican candidate dogged by sexual misconduct allegations.

Along with Mr Obama, several other Democrats are also putting their weight behind Democratic candidate Doug Jones, while President Donald Trump encourages Alabamians to vote for Mr Moore.

With polls due to open on Tuesday morning, the Moore campaign has also rolled out a last-minute robo-call with Mr Trumps voice telling voters that if they do not support the Republican candidate, progress on the Presidents legislative agenda will be stopped cold.

The high-profile nature of the late appeals  with former Vice President Joe Biden also recording a message for Mr Jones  highlight the unpredictable nature of the race. A number of polls released on Monday all showed wildly different results. An automated poll from Emerson College showed Mr Moore with a nine-point advantage, while a poll from Fox News showed Mr Jones with a 10-point advantage. A Monmouth University Poll showed the race about even.

The sexual misconduct allegations against Mr Moore have given Democrats a rare opportunity in a deeply conservative state, which has sent Republicans to the Senate for the last 20 years. The race has also exposed rifts within the Republican party, with claims by several women that Mr Moore sexually assaulted or had inappropriate contact with them. One allegation claims he molested a 14-year-old when he was a prosecutor in his 30s. Mr Moore has vehemently denied all the allegations.

Mr Obama recorded a phone message in which he urges Alabamians to head to the polls on Tuesday. This ones serious. You cant sit it out, he says, according to CNN.

Doug Jones is a fighter for equality, for progress, Mr Obama says in the call. Doug will be our champion for justice. So get out and vote, Alabama.

Mr Moore has not made a public appearance in almost a week. Meanwhile, Mr Jones has covered thousands of miles across the state on the campaign trail, appearing with multiple prominent black politicians, including New Jersey Senator Cory Booker. Part of the Democrats strategy is to win over African American voters  a tougher challenge without Mr Obamas name on the ballot.

As for Mr Jones, in a morning stop at a diner in Birmingham, he accused Mr Moore of disappearing during the campaigns closing days and claimed the Republican wasnt even in Alabama over the weekend.

Were making sure our message is getting across while Roy Moore hides behind whoever hes hiding behind, Mr Jones said.

Meanwhile, Mr Moore told a conservative talk radio show in Montgomery that he lamented the tone of the campaign and that he had been the recipient of vicious and unfounded attacks.

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Also on Monday, an official quit the Republican National Committee (RNC) over its support for Mr Moore. Joyce Simmons, the GOP national committeewoman from Nebraska, emailed the 168-member governing body to inform them that she had tendered her resignation.

I strongly disagree with the recent RNC financial support directed to the Alabama Republican Party for use in the Roy Moore race, she wrote.

Ms Simmons adds that she wishes she could have continued her service to the national Republican Party that I used to know well.

The RNC had pulled support from Mr Moore after the allegations surfaced against him last month. But the organisation reversed that position once Mr Trump endorsed Mr Moore, citing the need for a Republican in the seat.

On Friday, Mr Trump told a cheering crowd in Pensacola, Florida  about 25 miles from the Alabama border  to get out and vote for Roy Moore.

We cannot afford  this country, the future of this country  cannot afford to lose a seat in the very very close United States Senate, he said.

But not all Republicans have been pushing for Alabamians to vote for the controversial candidate.

The state of Alabama deserves better, said Alabama Senator Richard Shelby in an interview with CNN. Mr Shelby was the last Democrat elected to the Senate in Alabama, before he switched to the Republican party in 1994. He has has been a prominent face in the states politics for 40 years.

Theres a time, we call it a tipping point, and I think so many accusations, so many cuts, so many drip, drip, drip, when it got to the 14-year-old story, that was enough for me. I said, I cant vote for Roy Moore, Mr Shelby said.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has said that a victory for Mr Moore would be a gift that keeps on giving for Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections.

It will define the 2018 election, at least 2018, Mr Graham told CNN. And to think you can elect Roy Moore without getting the baggage of Roy Moore is pretty naive. I wish he wouldve stepped aside.
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Doug Jones, the man who made his name prosecuting two former Ku Klux Klan members who bombed a black church, has won a stunning victory in the senate race in Alabama - the first Democrat to win such a seat in the state for 25 years.

In doing so, the 63-year prosecutor, who just weeks ago was trailing Republican Roy Moore by double digits in the polls, also delivered a humiliating blow to Donald Trump, who had mocked Mr Jones and endorsed his opponent. It also reduces the Republican majority in the Senate to 51-49, complicating Mr trump's efforts to push his legislative agenda.

Mr Joness fortunes increased sharply after Mr Moores campaign was rocked by allegations that he sexually assaulted and abused young girls and women when he was was aged in 30s and working as a local prosecutor.

Follow the latest live updates on the special election below

Mr Moore denied the allegations and dismissed them as an attempt to undermine his campaign, but they appeared sufficient to either lead some Republicans to vote for Mr Jones or else to enable the Democrat to persuade a sufficient number of his potential supporters to actually go out and cast their ballots for him.

On Tuesday night, as news of Mr Jones stunning upset sank in, not just among the political class but across the country. Mr Trump offered measured congratulations.

"Congratulations to Doug Jones on a hard fought victory. The write-in votes played a very big factor, but a win is a win. The people of Alabama are great, and the Republicans will have another shot at this seat in a very short period of time. It never ends," he said.

However Mr Moore and his campaign told supporters that the race is "not over" as the Republican refused to concede defeat, holding out hope of a recount in a tight race. However, that appeared unlikely, with results putting Mr Jones ahead by 1.5 per cent.

If the result was a huge embarrassment for the President it was a similar blow for his former strategist, Steve Bannon, who had become one of Mr Moores most outspoken supporters and who was hoping to use what he believed would be a victory in Alabama, to drive the momentum for similar so-called insurgent campaigns in 2018.
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The President of Venezuela has said the country's main opposition parties are banned from taking part in next year's presidential election.

Nicolas Maduro said only parties which took part in this weekend's mayoral vote would be able to participate.

The Justice First, Popular Will and Democratic Action parties refused to take part in the poll, saying the electoral system was unfair.

"They won't participate, they will disappear from the political map," Mr Maduro said after casting his vote in Caracas.

Some small parties in the Democratic Unity coalition dissented, however, and ran candidates on Sunday.

That confused opposition supporters already disillusioned at the failure to weaken Mr Maduro in months of protests that took 125 lives earlier this year.

Under his rule since 2013, Venezuela has endured one of the worst economic meltdowns in Latin American history.

"If we're going to change the government, we need to do it democratically," said 81-year-old retiree Raul Ocana. "It was a huge mistake (by opposition parties) not to participate."

After the Socialists notched surprise wins in October gubernatorial elections, they were confident of repeating the feat on Sunday to increase the party's current share of roughly 70 percent of mayorships.

State agencies have pressured voters to participate in elections this year, particularly in the July 30 vote for the all-powerful Constituent Assembly, which the opposition also boycotted.

Some government employees said on Sunday they were being flooded with text messages urging them to show they had voted by posting their ID numbers to state-run websites and to upload pictures of voting centres to social networks.

"They won't leave us alone," said a government ministry employee who requested anonymity.

Opposition activists said the government abused state resources, including bribing people to vote with handouts of food vouchers worth 500,000 bolivars - more than a monthly minimum wage or about $5 at the black market rate.

Voting lines observed by Reuters reporters around Venezuela, appeared much thinner, however, than at past elections.

"What happened today wasn't an election and no one will see it as such," said the hardline opposition party Popular Will, which boycotted the vote. "Venezuelans want to vote in free and fair conditions."

The Socialists were also hoping to win a rerun of the October gubernatorial election in western Zulia state.

Opposition leader Juan Pablo Guanipa won that governorship in October, but the election was annulled and he was barred from holding office after he refused to swear allegiance to the pro-Maduro legislative superbody.

Former Zulia Governor Manuel Rosales ran on the opposition ticket, but Guanipa supporters and other sectors of the opposition boycotting Sunday's vote have called him a "traitor."

Yon Goicoechea, an opposition activist running for mayor in the wealthy Caracas suburb of El Hatillo, said it was self-destructive for larger anti-Maduro parties to abstain and hand political victories to the Socialist Party.

"There's reticence to participate because the national election board doesn't offer guarantees or impartiality," Mr Goicoechea, who is just out of jail for alleged coup-plotting, told Reuters. "But the solution cannot be giving up the right to vote. ... The abstentionists will regret it within two weeks."

Maduro's approval ratings have fallen by half since he was elected in 2013 following the death of Socialist leader Hugo Chavez.

Despite the nation's economic problems and the accusations of squashing democracy, Mr Maduro is enjoying a political upturn after the October gubernatorial vote.

He is expected to be the Socialists' candidate in the 2018 presidential election and maintains support among party loyalists like retiree Jose Flores, 71.

"It's a way of showing other countries that there's no dictatorship here," Flores said outside a voting centre on the poor west side of Caracas. "On the contrary, what we have is peace and democracy."

Reuters
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Hardline Muslim groups in Indonesia burned photos of US President Donald Trump, as well as US and Israeli flags, on Monday during a protest outside the US embassy against Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Indonesia, home to the world's largest Muslim population, has joined a global chorus of condemnation of Trumps controversial move on Israel, which they say threatens security and stability in the Middle East and the world.

The status of Jerusalem, a city holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians, is one of the thorniest barriers to a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Jerusalem's eastern sector was captured by Israel in a 1967 war and annexed in a move not recognised internationally.

Palestinians claim East Jerusalem for the capital of an independent state that they seek, while Israel maintains that all of Jerusalem is its capital.

Hundreds attended the protest outside the US embassy in Jakarta, which was barricaded by barbed wire and dozens of police officers.

"Let us witness the destruction of Israel's hegemony," one protest leader shouted into a megaphone as protesters burned an Israeli flag. "We will support Palestine with our blood."

Many protesters waved Palestinian flags and carried banners supporting "intifada", or an uprising against Israel, and rally leaders also shouted anti-Semitic slogans.

The protest was led by the Islamic Defenders Front, an aggressive vigilante group that calls for sharia, or Islamic religious law, to be imposed in Indonesia, a secular country.

Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Show all 18 1 /18 Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli forces scuffle with Palestinians at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City AFP/Getty Images Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A Palestinian protester hurls stones as tear gas is fired by Israeli troops Reuters Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A Palestinian protester runs during clashes with Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli forces scuffle with Palestinians at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City AFP/Getty Images Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Palestinian protesters run during clashes REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli border policemen and a Palestinian protesters clash REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Palestinian protesters react to tear gas REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli border policemen hold on to a Palestinian protester REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Palestinian protesters react to tear gas fired by Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli border policemen and Palestinians scuffle after Friday prayers in Jerusalem's Old City REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A Palestinian protester moves a burning tire during clashes with Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Worshippers chant as they hold Palestinian flags after Friday prayers Reuters Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A Palestinian protester hurls back a tear gas canister fired by Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A wounded Palestinian protester is evacuated during clashes with Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli border policemen and a Palestinian youth scuffle REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Israeli border policemen detain a Palestinian man REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' A Palestinian protester uses a sling to hurl stones towards Israeli troops REUTERS Palestinians clash with Israeli troops during 'Day of Rage' Journalists react to tear gas fired by Israeli troops REUTERS

The demonstration followed a much larger protest at the weekend, where thousands called for diplomatic relations with the United States to be severed and for the US ambassador to be expelled.

Indonesia supports a two-state solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Reuters
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Police are investigating the sexual assault and murder of a six-year-old girl in the northern Indian state of Haryana.

The child was allegedly snatched from her home on Friday, before her body was discovered nearby on Sunday.

The crime and the extent of the girls injuries have sent shockwaves through the country, with reports the child was violated with a stick.

No arrests have been made so far, but a special investigative team has been set up to look into the childs death and detain those responsible, AFP reports.

The girls family reportedly want the federal police to investigate their daughters death because they say they do not trust the local police.

Her parents have reportedly given the police until 11am on Wednesday to make an arrest in the case, and threatened to escalate the protest if they have not.

The victims parents have three other children, two sons and a daughter.

The news comes just a week short of the fifth anniversary of the 2012 Delhi bus rape case, which sparked widespread protests across India.

A 23-year-old physiotherapy student, Jyoti Singh, was beaten, gang raped and tortured on a moving bus and died of her injuries days later.

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. 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The incident sparked demonstrations and shone a light on Indias pervasive problem of sexual violence against women, after which the government introduced tougher punishments for rape, including the death penalty.

Nearly 35,000 cases of rape were reported across India in 2015, according to the countrys National Crime Records Bureau, but human rights experts have warned many attacks still go unreported.
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Jetsun Pema, 27, is the world's youngest living queen.

She took the throne at the age of 21 in 2011, when she married King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan, now 37.

The couple  who have a 1-year-old son, Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck  have both studied in England, share a love of art, and were once dubbed the Will and Kate of The Himalayas.

Speaking about his wife, the king once told local reporters: "I have been waiting for quite some time to get married. But it doesn't matter when you get married as long as it is to the right person. I am certain I am married to the right person."

Meet Jetsun Pema, the youngest queen on the planet.

Jetsun Pema became queen of the kingdom of Bhutan in October 2011, at just 21, when she married 31-year-old King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan, also known as the Dragon King.

Pema and her partner married in 2011 Getty Images

Before taking the throne, the queen attended Regent's College in London, where she studied international relations, psychology, and art history. The couple apparently share a love of art.

A student offers a painting of Their Majesties and The Gyalsey #KingJigmeKhesar #QueenJetsunPema #Gyalsey #Bhutan #Blessed #Punakha #Painting A post shared by Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema (@her_majesty_queen_of_bhutan) on Apr 18, 2016 at 10:05am PDT

The popular king, also a young monarch, studied at Oxford University.

The queen had an extravagant wedding which included framing a giant portrait of her and her husband Getty Images

More than 50,000 Bhutanese citizens attended the final day of wedding celebrations at Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu.

The wedding was attended by many Getty Images

Their union has been described as a love marriage, with Pema portrayed as a "commoner by the secretariat. The Washington Post reported that "in one version of events, the two met at a picnic when she was 7 and he was 17; she reportedly came up to him and gave him a hug."

This wonderful image of Their Majesties, celebrating the Royal Wedding Anniversary which falls this month, features on the free desktop and smartphone wallpaper available on www.yellow.bt. This image is from 14 October 2011, as Their Majesties met hundreds of thousands of people along the highway while returning from Punakha after the Royal Wedding Ceremony to Thimphu. A post shared by Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema (@her_majesty_queen_of_bhutan) on Oct 2, 2015 at 4:22am PDT

However, her family apparently has long-term links with the royals. She is the daughter of a pilot, but her paternal great-grandfather was lord of the eastern province of Tashigang, and her maternal grandfather was the half-brother of the wife of Bhutan's second king, according to The Post.

She's known for her charity work for organisations like the Bhutan Red Cross Society, Ability Bhutan Society, and Bhutan Kidney Association.

Despite her royal duties, she appears to be a hands-on mother.

She gave birth to the royal couple's first child, a son named Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, in February 2016.

4 March 2016: Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen with Her Majesty The Royal Grandmother and His Royal Highness The Gyalsey. His Royal Highness The Gyalsey is one-month-old on 5th March. #QueenJetsunPema #Gyalsey #March #RoyalGrandmother #Beautiful #Blessed #Bhutan A post shared by Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema (@her_majesty_queen_of_bhutan) on Mar 4, 2016 at 9:14am PST

The king, who also appears to be an involved father, once told reporters: "I have been waiting for quite some time to get married. But it doesn't matter when you get married as long as it is to the right person. I am certain I am married to the right person."

"She is a wonderful human being, intelligent," he told reporters. "She and I share one big thing in common: a love and passion for art."

Bringing to mind the serene joys of sunshine and spring blossoms, the newest edition of the monthly desktop calendar features this radiant photograph of Their Majesties with His Royal Highness The Gyalsey, infront of the splendid cherry tree at the Tashichhodzong. http://yellow.bt/calendar-april-2016/ #KingJigmeKhesar #QueenJetsunPema #TheGyalsey #Tashichhodzong #Bhutan #Love #Spring #Blossoms #Beautiful A post shared by Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema (@her_majesty_queen_of_bhutan) on Mar 31, 2016 at 6:55am PDT

In April 2016, the king and queen welcomed the duke and duchess of Cambridge on a royal visit. The Bhutanese royals were once nicknamed the Will and Kate of the Himalayas.

They most recently visited New Delhi, India, in October, where their 1-year-old son reportedly melted hearts  and it's not hard to see why.

 The secret code cabin crew use to point out attractive passengers

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 A 2018 ranking of universities worldwide

Read the original article on Business Insider UK.  2017. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter.
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A survivor of the Hiroshima atomic bombing and the leader of the group that won this year's Nobel Peace Prize have urged the United States and North Korea to tone down their rhetoric and negotiate together to avoid a nuclear strike.

Tensions have risen markedly in recent months over North Korea's development, in defiance of repeated rounds of UN sanctions, of nuclear-tipped missiles capable of reaching the United States.

A missile test last week prompted a US warning that North Korea's leadership would be utterly destroyed if war were to break out. The Pentagon has mounted repeated shows of force after North Korean tests.

Recommended North Korea says UN officials willing to ease tensions

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) was awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize by a Nobel committee that cited the spread of nuclear weapons by countries like North Korea and the growing risk of an atomic war.

Setsuko Thurlow, an 85-year-old survivor of the Hiroshima bombing on 6 August 1945, and Beatrice Fihn, ICAN's executive director, will receive the prize together on Sunday at Oslo City Hall in front of King Harald and Queen Sonja.

No human being should suffer what we suffered, Thurlow, who was 13 at the time of the attack and is now an ICAN campaigner, told reporters on Saturday.

I deeply and strongly urge the leaders of North Korea and the US never to use nuclear weapons... Negotiate.

A diplomatic solution is the only solution.

ICAN's Fihn said that the risk of a nuclear war had increased over the past year.

There is an urgent threat right now, she told reporters.

I would very strongly urge the leaders (of North Korea and the US) to back down from their very dangerous rhetoric. Stop threatening to use weapons of mass destruction. Engage in a diplomatic solution.

We are facing a clear choice right now: The end of nuclear weapons or the end of us, she said.

An impulsive tantrum, a calculated military escalation, a terrorist or cyber attack or a complete accident - we will see the use of nuclear weapons unless they are eliminated."

ICAN is a coalition of grassroots non-governmental groups in more than 100 nations that began in Australia.

It has campaigned for a UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted by 122 nations in July.

It needs to be ratified by 50 states to come into force. So far only three have done so: the Holy See, Thailand and Guyana.

North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Show all 13 1 /13 North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Pyongyang residents react after the news of the successful launch of the new intercontinental ballistic missile AFP/Getty Images North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un signing an order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic missile KRT via AP Video North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch A news broadcast displays Kim Jong Un's signed document AP North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch People cheer as they watch the news broadcast announcing Kim Jong Un's order to test-fire the new inter-continental ballistic missile AFP/Getty Images North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Residents react after the document signing AP North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Pyongyang residents celebrate Kim Jong Un's announcement AFP/Getty North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Cheering Pyongyang residents react AP North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch To counter North Korea's missile test, South Korea fired missiles into the East Sea The Defence Ministry/Yonhap via REUTERS North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch The Hyunmu-2 missiles firing during the drill South Korean Defense Ministry vi North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch The exercise was carried out in an attempt to counter Kim Jong Un's order South Korea Defense Ministry via AP North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch The South Korean army continue to carry out military exercises AP North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch Where K-9 self-propelled howitzers were taking part in a drill Rex Features North Korea announces intercontinental missile launch US soldiers are also present in the border city of Paju AFP/Getty Images

The treaty is not signed by - and would not apply to - any of the states that already have nuclear arms, which include the US, Russia, China, Britain and France, as well as India, Pakistan and North Korea.

Israel is also widely assumed to have nuclear weapons, although it neither confirms nor denies it.

The US, Britain and France are sending second-rank diplomats to the award ceremony, which Fihn said was some kind of protest.

Reuters
Opinion / Columnist

If Zimbabwe's military regime thought that a few sensible gestures would be enough to present a more attractive face to the world they were misreading the hopes of the thousands who joyfully took to the streets to celebrate Mugabe's downfall.The new cabinet with recycled old frauds and hucksters was the first shock. Next came Thursday's threadbare budget. It's difficult to believe that resurrected Finance Minister Chinamasa really thinks that a few token reforms will bring in a flood of new investors. Some of the most obvious Zanu-PF lunacies such as indigenisation have been largely dumped but the budget figures were unconvincing and will not turn round the economy. The forced retirement of civil servants at 65 must have been a painful decision for the geriatric cabinet but it will not rebalance a budget still heavily overburdened by government salaries  even if the Green Bombers are detonated.As for the promised cost-cutting closure of some of Zimbabwe's useless diplomatic missions, how about the London Embassy? The Vigil will run it for nothing and it will be nice to get out of the cold. Zimbabweans in South Africa would do the same, overjoyed by the recall of the current Ambassador Isaac Moyo, more suitably redeployed to the CIO cesspit.He will fit in happily with the Congolese three: Mnangagwa, Foreign Minister Major General Sibusiso Moyo and Lands Minister Air Marshall Perence Shiri, who were named in the famous UN report about the plundering of minerals in the Democratic Republic of Congo.A presidential reprieve for a dispossessed white farmer and the departure of serial election rigger Rita Makarau from the Electoral Commission were welcome news but reports of heavy-handed unconstitutional action by soldiers on the streets gives us little confidence in the new regime. And the tough action against street vendors promises to further stir unrest.Misheck Chizema, 48, was depressed on Tuesday during the Harare cleaup: 'They took away my pushcart with all my bananas and apples that I had just ordered and they were fresh. We marched two weeks ago to support Ngwenya but now he has already forgotten about us, and he is now devouring us, so why did we waste our time demonstrating for him?'.The ugly new face of the Zanu-PF regime?
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The soldiers arrived, as they often did, long after sunset.

It was June, and the newlyweds were asleep in their home, surrounded by the fields of wheat they farmed in western Burma. Without warning, seven soldiers burst into the house and charged into their bedroom.

The woman, a Rohingya Muslim who agreed to be identified by her first initial, F, knew enough to be terrified. She knew the military had been attacking Rohingya villages, as part of what the United Nations (UN) has called ethnic cleansing in the mostly Buddhist nation. She heard just days before that soldiers had killed her parents, and that her brother was missing.

This time, F says, the soldiers had come for her.

The men bound her husband with rope. They ripped the scarf from her head and tied it around his mouth.

They yanked off her jewellery and tore off her clothes. They threw her to the floor.

And then the first soldier began to rape her.

She struggled against him, but four men held her down and beat her with sticks. She stared in panic at her husband, who stared back helplessly. He finally wriggled the gag out of his mouth and screamed.

And then she watched as a soldier fired a bullet into the chest of the man she had married only one month before. Another soldier slit his throat.

Her mind grew fuzzy. When the soldiers were finished, they dragged her naked body outside and set her bamboo house ablaze.

It would be two months before she realised her misery was far from over: She was pregnant.

The rape of Rohingya women by Burma's security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh. These sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively. They ranged in age from 13 to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Burma's Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September.

Foreign journalists are banned from the Rohingya region of Rakhine, making it nearly impossible to independently verify each womans report. Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves.

The testimonies bolster the UNs contention that Burma's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a calculated tool of terror aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people. The Burma armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place. And when journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organised trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhines minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances  do you think they are that attractive to be raped?

Doctors and aid workers, however, say that they are stunned at the sheer volume of rapes, and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward. Medecins Sans Frontieres doctors have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, a third of them under 18. The youngest was nine.

The UN. has called the Rohingya the most persecuted minority on earth, with Burma denying them citizenship and basic rights. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees now live in sweltering tents in Bangladesh, where the stifling air smells of excrement from a lack of latrines and of smoke from wood fires to cook what little food there is. The women and girls in this story gave the AP their names but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Burma's military.

Each described attacks that involved groups of men from Burma's security forces, often coupled with other forms of extreme violence. Every woman except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms, generally dark green or camouflage. The lone woman who described her attackers as wearing plain clothes said her neighbours recognised them from the local military outpost.

Many women said the uniforms bore various patches featuring stars or, in a couple cases, arrows. Such patches represent the different units of Burma's army.

The most common attack described went much like Fs. In several other cases, women said, security forces surrounded a village, separated men from women, then took the women to a second location to gang rape them.

The women spoke of seeing their children slaughtered in front of them, their husbands beaten and shot. They spoke of burying their loved ones in the darkness and leaving the bodies of their babies behind. They spoke of the searing pain of rapes that felt as if they would never end, and of days-long journeys on foot to Bangladesh while still bleeding and hobbled.

F, 22, clutches her hands around her pregnant belly.

They spoke and they spoke, the words erupting from many of them in frantic, tortured bursts.

N, who says she survived a rape but lost her husband, her country and her peace, speaks because there is little else she can do  and because she hopes that somebody will listen.

I have nothing left, she says. All I have left are my words.

Two months after the men came quietly in the night for F, they came boldly in the daytime for K.

It was late August, she says, just days after Rohingya insurgents had attacked several Burma police posts in northern Rakhine. Security forces responded with swift ferocity that human rights groups say left hundreds dead and scores of Rohingya villages burned to the ground.

Inside their house, K and her family were settling down to breakfast. They had only just swallowed their first mouthfuls of rice when the screams of other villagers rang out: The military was coming.

Her husband and three oldest children bolted out the door, fleeing for the nearby hills.

But K was nearly nine months pregnant, with swollen feet and two terrified toddlers whose tiny legs could never outpace the soldiers strides. She had no place to hide, no time to think.

K, 25, right, cries as she recounts being gang raped by members of Burma's armed forces.

The door banged open. And the men charged in.

There were four of them, she thinks, maybe five, all in camouflage uniforms. Her young son and daughter began to wail and then, mercifully, scampered out the front door.

There was no mercy for her. The men grabbed her and threw her on the bed. They yanked off her earrings, nose ring and necklace. They found the money she had hidden in her blouse from the recent sale of her familys cow. They ripped off her clothes, and tied down her hands and legs with rope. When she resisted, they choked her.

And then, she says, they began to rape her.

She was too terrified to move. One man held a knife to her eyeball, one more a gun to her chest. Another forced himself inside her.

When the first man finished, they switched places and the torture began again. And when the second man finished, a third man raped her.

In the midst of her agony, she thought of nothing but the baby inside her womb, just weeks away from emerging into a world that would not want him, because he was a Rohingya.

She began to bleed.

She blacked out.

As she awoke, her great aunt was there, tearfully untying her. The elder woman bathed her, clothed her and gave her a hot compress for her aching thighs.

When Ks husband returned home, he was furious: not just at the men who had raped her, but at her. Why, he demanded, had she not run away?

She was pregnant and in no condition to run, she shot back. Still, he blamed her for the assault and threatened to abandon her, because, he told her, a non-Muslim had raped her.

Fearful the men would return, she and her family fled to her fathers house in the hills above the village. When they saw soldiers setting fire to the houses below, they knew they had to leave for Bangladesh.

K was too crippled by pain to walk. Her husband and brother placed her inside a sling they fashioned out of a blanket and a stick, and carried her for days.

Inside her cocoon, she wept for the baby she feared was dead.

A few days after the men burst into Ks house, 10 soldiers arrived at Rs.

She was just 13 years old, but R had already learned to fear the military men.

Her parents had warned her to steer clear of them, yet it was her father who first fell prey to their wrath. One day last year, R says, soldiers stabbed him in the head with a knife, killing him.

Yet Rs family had nowhere else to go. And so they stayed in the village. R busied herself by learning Arabic, doting on her chicken and its hatchlings and caring for her two younger brothers.

And then one day in late August, R says, the soldiers barged into her house. They snatched up her little brothers, tied them to a tree outside and began to beat them. R tried to run out the front door, but the men caught her.

R, 13, covers her face with her headscarf while being photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh.

Her body is barely pubescent, her limbs still gangly like a childs. But her youth could not protect her.

R fought back against the men, but they dragged her out of the house. The skin tore away from her knees as her legs scraped along the ground.

The men tethered her arms to two trees. They ripped off her earrings and bracelets, stripped off her clothes.

R screamed at them to stop. They spit at her.

And then the first man began to rape her.

F, 22, who says she was raped by members of Burma's armed forces in June and again in September, clutches her hands around her pregnant belly as she is photographed in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh (Wong Maye-E/AP)

She froze. She was a virgin. The pain was excruciating.

The attack lasted for hours. She remembers all ten men forcing themselves on her before she passed out.

One of her older brothers later found her on the ground, bleeding.

Rs two little brothers were missing, but their mother had no time to search for them. She knew she had to get her daughter over the border and to a doctor quickly to get medicine in time to prevent a pregnancy.

R was barely conscious. So her two older brothers carried her across the hills and fields towards Bangladesh. Rs mother hurried alongside them, terrified for her daughter, terrified that time was running out.

R, 13, shows the scars on her knees and right shin from injuries obtained when members of Burma armed forces dragged her out of her house before gang raping her.

That Rs family sought treatment for her at all is an anomaly. Despite still suffering pain, bleeding and infections months after the attacks, only a handful of the women interviewed by the AP had seen a doctor. The others had no idea free services were available, or were too ashamed to tell a doctor they were raped.

In a health centre overflowing with women and wailing babies, Dr. Misbah Uddin Ahmed, a government health officer, sits at his desk looking weary. He pulls out a stack of patient histories for those treated at his clinics and begins to flick through them, reading the case summaries out loud:

Sept. 5, a patient 7 months pregnant says three soldiers burst into her home 11 days ago and raped her. Also Sept. 5, a patient says she was asleep at home when the military broke in 20 days ago and three soldiers raped her. Sept. 10, a patient says the military came to her house one month ago and beat her husband before two soldiers raped her.

Ahmed says the women who manage to overcome their fear and make it to his clinics are usually the ones in the deepest trouble. So many others, he adds, are suffering in silence.

Though the scale of these attacks is new, the use of sexual violence by Burma's security forces is not. Before she became Burma's civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi herself condemned the militarys abuses. Rape is rife. It is used as a weapon by armed forces to intimidate the ethnic nationalities and to divide our country, she said in a 2011 videotaped statement to the Nobel Womens Initiative.

And yet Suu Kyis government has not only failed to condemn the recent accounts of rape, it has dismissed the accounts as lies. In December 2016, the government issued a press release disputing Rohingya womens reports of sexual assaults, accompanied by an image that said Fake Rape.

Ahmed seems bewildered that anyone would ever doubt these women. Look at what I have just shown you, he says, gesturing towards his stack of files chronicling one atrocity after another.

Gynecologist Arjina Akhter has witnessed the results of those atrocities. Since August, so many women began showing up at her two clinics, she stopped asking them to fill out patient history forms so she could treat them faster. Among other women, she estimates between 20 to 30 rape survivors visited her clinics in September and October.

She ticks off the injuries: Two women with lacerations to their cervixes they said were caused by guns shoved inside their bodies. One woman with horrific tearing she said was caused by a nail driven into her vagina. Several women with severe vaginal bleeding.

More recently, she says, women who were raped months ago have been coming to her in a panic, asking for abortions. She has to explain to them that they are too far along, but reassures them that officials will take the babies if they cannot care for them.

Still, for some Rohingya women, giving up the babies they never asked for was not an option.

Which is how it was for F.

More than three months had passed since the men burst into Fs home, and her despair had only deepened.

Neighbours had taken her in and cared for her. But her house was gone, her husband was dead. And the timing of the attack left little doubt that the baby growing inside her belonged to one of the men who had caused all her grief.

She could only pray that things would not get worse. And then, one night in mid-September, they did.

F was asleep along with the neighbours  a couple and their five-year-old son  when the men broke down the door, jolting everyone awake.

There were five of them this time, she remembers. They quickly grabbed the boy and slashed his throat, and killed the man.

Then they turned to the mans wife, and to F. And her nightmare began again.

They stripped off the womens clothes. Two of the men noticed the swell of Fs stomach and grabbed it, squeezing hard.

They threw the women to the floor. Fs friend fought back, and the men beat her with their guns so viciously the skin on her thighs began to peel away.

But the fight had gone out of F. She felt her body go soft, felt the blood run between her legs as the first man forced himself on her, and then the second. Next to her, three men were savaging her friend.

When it was finally over and the men had gone, the two women lay immobile on the floor.

K, 30, mother of six who's three-year-old daughter was killed, who says she was raped by members of Burma's armed forces in late August, carries her baby born two months premature (Wong Maye-E/AP)

They lay there for days, so crippled by pain and catatonic from the trauma that they could not even lift themselves to use the toilet. F could smell the blood around them. As the house baked under the punishing sun, the stench from the decaying bodies of her friends husband and son finally overwhelmed her.

F, 22, pregnant, prays in her tent in Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh.

She would not die here. And neither would her baby.

She reached out for her friends hand and clasped it. Then F hauled herself to her feet, pulling her friend up with her. Hand in hand, the women stumbled to the next village. They spent five days recovering there and then, alongside a group of other villagers, began the 10-day journey to Bangladesh.

The monsoon season had begun, but there was nowhere to shelter. So F kept walking through the downpours. She was starving, and her battered body ached with each step. Generous strangers offered her sips of their water, and one man gave her a few sweet rolls.

One day, she came across a nine-year-old boy lying along the side of a road, wounded and alone. He had lost his parents, he told her, and the soldiers had tortured him. She took him with her.

Together, the two made it to the shores of the Naf River and boarded a boat to Bangladesh.

Which is where they live now, in a tiny bamboo shelter between two filthy latrines. And it is here that F prays her baby will be a boy  because this world is no place for a girl.

For now, the women are left to wonder how long they will live in the bleak limbo of Bangladesh, and if they will ever return to their homeland.

R, the teen, is not pregnant. Her mother sold all her jewellery and got her to the hospital in time. But R cant stop thinking about her little brothers, and her sleep is plagued by nightmares.

Since the rape, she has struggled to eat, and her once-curvy frame has shrunk. Before the rape, she says softly, she was pretty.

K, who feared the baby inside her had died, gave birth to a boy on the floor of her tent in a dizzying rush of relief. She had kept her son alive through it all.

But her trauma persists. The thrum of a helicopter hovering over the camp sends her into a panic and she recites the Muslim prayer for the moments before death. She is convinced the aircraft is Burma's military, coming to kill them all.

When told she is strong, she looks up with tears in her eyes.

How can you say that? she asks. My husband says he is ashamed of me. How am I strong?

Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Show all 10 1 /10 Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Rohingya refugee Mohamed Jabair, 21, reveals the burns on his bod, which he said he sustained when his house was set on fire in Myanmar REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Refugee Momtaz Begum, 30, at Balukhali refugee camp. Begum told how soldiers came to her village demanding valuables.After beating her, they locked her inside her house and set the roof on fire. She escaped to find her three sons dead and her daughter beaten and bleeding REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Imam Hossain, 42, sleeps at Kutupalang refugee camp, near Cox's Bazar. Hossain said he was returning home after teaching at a madrassa in his village when three men attacked him with knives REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Rohingya refugee Setara Begum, 12, at Nayapara refugee camp. The home of Begum and her siblings was hit by a rocket. The young girl received no treatment for the severe burns to her feet. Her feet healed but she has no toes. Her mother said: 'She has been mute from that day, and doesn't speak to anyone. She only cries silently' REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Mohamed Heron, 6, and his brother Mohamed Akter, 4, show the burns on their bodies at Kutupalong refugee camp. The boys' uncle said the burns resulted from Myanmar's armed forces firing rockets at their village Reuters Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Kalabarow, 50, at Leda refugee camp, in Bangladesh. Kalabarow said her husband, daughter and son were killed when soldiers fired on her village in Maungdaw. She was hit and lay on the floor pretending to be dead for several hours before a grandson found her. During their journey to Bangladesh, a village doctor amputated her REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Ansar Allah, 11, at Leda refugee camp in Bangladesh. Allah showed a large scar  the result of a gunshot wound. His mother Samara said: 'They sprayed us with bullets, as our house was burning' REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Anwara Begum, 36, at Kutupalang refugee camp, near Cox's Bazar. Begum said she woke to find her home in Maungdaw township in flames REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Abdu Rahaman, 73, at Leda refugee camp in Bangladesh. Rahaman, a merchant from Maungdaw, was ambushed while walking on a mountain path with other refugees. A machete thrown at his feet severed three toes REUTERS/Jorge Silva Bullets and burns: injured Rohingya refugees Nur Kamal, 17, described how soldiers assaulted him after they found him hiding in his home in Maungdaw. His uncle found him unconscious in a pool of blood. It took them two weeks to get to Bangladesh. Kamal said: 'We want the international community to help us obtain justice' REUTERS

F, whose body is starting to ache under the strain of her pregnancy, finds her mind often drifts towards how she will care for the child in the future. She believes God has kept them both alive for a reason.

Her parents, her brother, her husband are gone now. This baby will be the only family she has left. For her, the most haunting reminder of the agony she endured also, somehow, represents her last chance at happiness.

Everybody has died, she says. I dont have anyone to care for me. If I give this baby away, what will I have left? There will be nothing to live for.

AP
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Rohingya women have come forward with stories of sexual assault, beatings and torture at the hands of Burmese security forces.

More than 600,000 Rohingya refugees have fled into Bangladesh to escape an offensive by the Burmese military described as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing by the United Nations.

Sunuara, 25, who only gave her first name, fled to neighbouring Bangladesh after her village was attacked on 25 August.

Before she left, she had a good life and owned cows, cars and rice paddy fields, she said.

One day the military arrived and soldiers came to her home, while her husband was staying in another village with relatives and her other children were with her parents.

In front of her eyes, her son was shot in the stomach. The soldiers then decapitated him, she said.

Sunuara fled to Bangladesh after the 25 August attack from Boulibazar village (Getty Images/Allison Joyce) (Getty Images)

Sunuara, who was eight months pregnant at the time, was tied to a bed and raped by nine men for six hours, according to testimony provided to reporters with the Getty picture agency.

She lost consciousness and when she awoke, her husband and brother had found her. They carried her to the border of Bangladesh where she give birth at a hospital, but the baby died a day later.

Roshida Begum, 22, escaped from Tula Toli village in Burma at the end of August.

The military is accused of petrol-bombing her village and setting houses on fire, shooting anyone they saw on the spot.

Roshida lost 17 members of her family when he village was attacked (Getty Images/Allison Joyce) (Getty Images)

Roshida tried to hide on a riverbank with others, but the military found her. Her husband swam across and escaped.

The soldiers shot the young boys and threw babies and children in the river, she said, adding that they took jewellery off the women and made them kneel up to their necks in a pond.

Roshida recalls a helicopter circling overhead at the time.

The military then took groups of four or five women into houses and raped them, including Roshida. She said her baby, who was 25 days old, was thrown to the ground and killed.

Roshida shows scars left by the attack (Getty Images/Allison Joyce) (Getty Images)

After the men were done, she said they slit the womens necks with machetes and set the house on fire. Roshida survived and escaped, hiding in a paddy field until she came across another woman - and together they crossed into Bangladesh.

Roshidas husband found her in an MSF clinic and they were moved to a camp. In the attack, she claims to have lost 17 members of her family, including her mother, father and brother.

In Bangladesh, sometimes I'm happy, but then I'll see an old man and miss my father, or I'll see a woman with a baby, and I'll miss my son, she said.

Soldiers cut Roshida's neck with a machete (Getty Images/Allison Joyce) (Getty Images)

I can't help but cry. I want justice from the world, why did they kill my mother and father and sisters?

I hope the world will give me justice. They killed my parents and relatives for no reason.

Mumtaz Begum, 30, also fled Tula Toli village.

She ran and hid but her husband was shot. As he lay dying, she told him: I have lived many years with you, if I made any mistakes, please forgive me.

Mumtaz escaped a burning house set on fire by the military (Getty Images/Allison Joyce)

Fatally injured, he asked the soldiers for water, and they shot him again, she said.

Mumtaz was then taken to a house with some of their children and raped. When the children screamed, they hit them with machetes. The soldiers then lit the house on fire.

She managed to escape the flames but suffered severe burns, and hid in a forest until a group of people found her and carried her to the border.

I want justice and I want to tell the world all the things the military did, she said.

They raped and killed us. We want justice.
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French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to award a number of US based climate scientists, multi-year, all-expenses-paid grants to relocate to France.

The "Make Our Planet Great Again" grants are part of Mr Macron's efforts to counter US President Donald Trump on the climate change front.

The French leader announced a competition for the projects in June, hours after Mr Trump declared he would withdraw the US from the 2015 global accord reached in Paris to reduce climate-damaging emissions.

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Mr Macron is unveiling the first winners at a start-up incubator in Paris called Station F, where Microsoft and smaller tech companies are announcing projects to finance activities aimed at reducing emissions.

They are aimed at giving new impetus to the Paris accord and finding new funding to help governments and businesses meet its goals.

More than 50 world leaders are expected in Paris for the One Planet Summit, co-hosted by the United Nations and the World Bank. Mr Trump was not invited.

Initially aimed at American researchers, the research grants were expanded to other non-French climate scientists, according to organisers. Candidates need to be known for working on climate issues, have completed a thesis and propose a project that would take between three to five years.

The time frame would cover Mr Trump's current presidential term.

Lisa Murray's climate change photography Show all 12 1 /12 Lisa Murray's climate change photography Lisa Murray's climate change photography Dinka cattle herders starting their migration in South Sudan Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography A Dinka woman fetches water in South Sudan Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Veronica in South Sudan preparing tea outside her home, recently ravaged by heavy flooding Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Children playing in Vietnam. When it floods, transport to and from school is a major challenge Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Sugeng, a fish and crab farmer from Indonesia who suffers financially every time the area floods Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Tan, a vegetable farmer, learning new methods through Oxfam in Vietnam Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Maluk, a 19-year-old from Tonj South, South Sudan Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Normally this farmer in South Sudan would be harvesting sorghum, but rains are late so the hunger season continues Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Herders bringing home their cattle in Afar, Ethiopia Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Farmers harvesting chilli in Ethiopia Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography A woman in Tigray, Ethiopia, scares birds away from her crops with a slingshot Lisa Murray Lisa Murray's climate change photography Irula tribe woman in Tamil Nadu Lisa Murray

The applicant list was whittled down to 90 finalists in September, the majority of them Americans or based in the US, according to French national research agency CNRS.

About 50 projects will be chosen overall, and funded with 60 million euros (53 million) from the state and French research institutes.

However, some French researchers have complained that Macron is showering money on foreign scientists at a time when they have been pleading for more support for domestic higher education.

Reuters
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Mikheil Saakashvilis wife has asked Western powers for help as her husband appeared at a court in Kiev accused of being involved in an alleged Russian plot to overthrow Ukraines President, Petro Poroshenko.

The appeal came as a Ukrainian judge turned down the prosecutors request to place Mr Saakashvili under house arrest, paving the way for his release from detention. The prosecutors petition ... is dismissed, Judge Larysa Tsokol told the court.

Mr Saakashvili, the former President of Georgia, had been a friend and supporter of Mr Poroshenko until the two men fell out spectacularly amid bitter public acrimony, followed by weeks of stand-off leading to his arrest.

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Mr Saakashvili was the leader of Georgia during the countrys war with Russia nine years ago and has since been a vocal campaigner against the supposed expansionist policies of Vladimir Putin.

Mr Poroshenko, whose country has itself been engaged in a conflict against Russian backed separatists, had given Mr Saakashvili, who is accused of embezzlement and abuse in Georgia, Ukrainian citizenship and made him governor of Odessa before the allies became adversaries.

Sandra Roelofs, Mr Saakashvilis wife, told The Independent: To accuse someone like my husband of working with Moscow is simply ridiculous: one only has to look at his experience with Russia to see that. It would be quite amusing if the matter was not so serious. He had, as people know, spent a long time warning Ukraine and the West about Russia.

There was a lot of international criticism by the way his passport was taken away from him and we would like the West, the international community to ensure that the Ukrainian government behaves in a correct way in this. The atmosphere is now quite toxic, we are concerned that this may be the first stage of an attempt to deport him to Georgia. The charges against him in Georgia are politically motivated and this looks like an attempt to shut him up.

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Thousands of Mr Saakashvilis supporters had marched in Kiev at the weekend calling for his release and for Mr Poroshenko to be indicted and there were scuffles outside the Pechersky District Court in Kiev between several hundred of them and the police when he appeared at his first hearing.

The former Georgian President told the courts: I consider myself a prisoner of Ukrainian oligarchs. He asked his followers to remain calm adding we dont want a confrontation. Yulia Tymoshenko, the former Ukrainian prime minister who had appeared in court to show solidarity with Mr Saakashvili, accused President Poroshenko of behaving like a dictator and suppressing dissent.

Dutch born Ms Roelofs, who has remained in Georgia after her husband went into exile, said: He is on hunger strike at the moment. One can see from the photographs that he was brutally treated during the arrest, there are marks which are plain to view. He has got some medicine but he was not allowed to see a lawyer for the whole of Sunday and we need to make sure that he gets all the necessary help.

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President Poroshenko gave Mr Saakashvili the governorship of Odessa with the remit to clean up a city which had become notorious for corruption and organised crime.

Mikheil Saakashvili is my friend from our student years. I remember him as a strong and decisive person, and I have reason to trust him, Ukraines president tweeted at the time

Mr Saakashvili claimed repeatedly, and publicly, that instead of backing his reforms, Mr Poroshenko was deliberately hindering them. Mr Poroshenko revoked Mr Saakashvilis Ukrainian citizenship while he was on a visit to the US. The former Georgian leader still feels deeply aggrieved.

I was sabotaged in Odessa. At first the local mafia feared me, but then they began talking to their corrupt friends in Kiev and realised they had nothing to fear because all my efforts would be undermined, he told The Independent days before his arrest.

He declared in the interview: Much of this is about the President and accumulation of scandals. In normal countries there can be an impeachment process. As we saw with Mugabe, this can happen even in places like Zimbabwe.

But there is no law allowing impeachment in Ukraine: so people are saying they are not happy with the President, he must be investigated, they are marching, holding rallies to say it.

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 Saakashvili claimed his supporters are being illegally deported to Georgia. They arrest people from my team in the street and deport them to Georgia, journalists, people who have fought as volunteers for Ukraine. They have been taken out on special trains, military helicopters. They are trying to send me a menacing message, he said.

Ms Roelofs, an academic, said: My father asked about my husband why couldnt he be satisfied with being governor of Odessa and be happy with a quiet life? But I have been married to Misha for 24 years and the thing that I have learned is that he is someone who will never accept a job being half-finished.

Mr Poroshenko probably thought it was good PR to give that job to Misha. He is very thorough, he is a perfectionist. He was not going to accept the situation there and he wanted to carry on his campaign across Ukraine. The fat that he was gathering support obviously counted against him. People who had things to hide became very worried.
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Three people have been arrested after attacking a synagogue with Molotov cocktails in Sweden.

Police in the southern city of Gothenburg said they arrested three 20-year-old men on suspicion of attempted arson following the incident shortly after 10pm on Saturday.

The synagogue was open for a youth event at the time of the incident and around 20 to 30 people, including children, were believed to be inside.

One mother whose child was at the event said the group was forced to flee to the basement to escape when 20 masked men reportedly started throwing burning objects.

She said: They ordered the young people to run down to the basement. My daughter says that it smells of gasoline. It is very unpleasant. Weve been worried that something like this could happen.

I received an SMS from her 20-30 minutes ago. She wrote Mum, Im starting to get scared, and that 20 masked men were throwing burning objects.

There were no reported injuries during the attack and guards had been hired to protect the event.

Dvir Maoz, a youth leader at the local Jewish Assembly, who was at the synagogue told the Expressen newspaper: I was there to say hello to everyone when I suddenly saw a fireball come flying in the corner of the eye. I immediately realised that it was an attack.

He said he alerted a guard who helped him take the children to the basement where he tried to keep them calm.

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 were afraid, none of them have experienced an attack before. We were there until about 11:30pm - when the police told us it was safe for us to leave, he added.

A spokesperson for the Jewish Community in Gothenburg said: There was a strong fire in the yard, but then it rained and the flames went out quickly.

Although the motive for the attack has not been confirmed it follows other antisemitic incidents in Malmo and Stockholm.

In Malmo, on the Danish border, antisemitic chants were heard at a rally to protest against Donald Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital while protesters set fire to the Israeli flag at a similar demo in Stockholm.
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The United Nations migration agency is calling on social media giants to do more to crack down on people smugglers using their platforms to lure West African migrants to Libya.

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) spokesman Leonard Doyle said smugglers often use Facebook to make illicit deals to take would-be migrants to Libya, where they face the possibility of detention, torture and slavery.

He said young West Africans are especially vulnerable to being lured by smugglers, who often attract them with false promises of jobs in Europe.

We think its time for some grown-up responsibility by the social media companies writ-large for their platforms, which are clearly having a very detrimental role on young vulnerable populations across West Africa, Mr Doyle said.

We ... ask social media companies to step up and behave in a responsible way when people are being lured to deaths, to their torture.

It comes as the UN appealed on Monday to countries worldwide to take in 1,300 mainly African refugees stranded in Libya. Many, it said, have suffered mistreatment, while being kept in appalling conditions in detention.

Hundreds of thousands of migrants have attempted to make the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean to Europe since 2014, with as many as 3,091 dying en route. Many of those died after passing through Libya.

A recent investigation by CNN revealed images appearing to show migrants being auctioned off as slaves by Libyan traffickers. The broadcaster was told of auctions at nine locations across Libya, but many more are believed to take place each month.

Libya has long struggled to cope with the major influx of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. The UN estimates there are between 700,000 and one million migrants in the country.

Europols Migrant Smuggling Centre estimates that 90 per cent of migrants arriving in EU countries have had their journey facilitated by a criminal organisation while the IOM says people smuggling now represents the third-largest business for international criminals.

It estimates that people smugglers make a total of roughly $35bn (27bn) a year worldwide.

The IOM has been in ongoing talks with social media providers about its concerns over their role in the people smuggling market, but Mr Doyle said so far the talks have been to very little effect.

What they say is, please tell us the pages and we will shut them down ... It is not our job to police Facebooks pages. Facebook should police its own pages, Mr Doyle said.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

A spokesperson from Facebook told The Independent they could not offer an immediate comment on the IOMs statements.

They said people smuggling is illegal and that posts, pages or groups that coordinate such activity are not allowed on Facebook.

The social media giant also said it continues to urge Facebook users to use its reporting tools to flag any content that they suspect may be illegal or violate the sites Community Standards.

The company recently announced that it would be hiring an additional 3,000 people as part of its Community Operations team to help strengthen the social media sites ability to quickly review and remove reported content in violation of its standards.

Mr Doyle said WhatsApp is also used by some people smugglers and that in cases where migrants are tortured, video is sometimes sent back to the victims families over WhatsApp as a means of extortion.

WhatsApp, which was developed by Facebook, uses encryption to prohibit third parties from snooping on conversations.

Facebook recently said it would be hiring 3,000 people to strengthen its ability to quickly review and remove material in violation of its Community Standards (Reuters) (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic)

However, the IOM says that feature also makes the messaging app ideal for illicit activities like people smuggling.

WhatsApp did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The IOM spokesman called on social media firms to adopt a more civic-minded approach, noting how Google uses pop-up windows to warn users of potential danger or criminality whenever they look at pornography online.

Dr Paolo Campana, an expert in criminal networks at Cambridge says the people smuggling market is very competitive, so smugglers must go out of their way to attract would-be migrants.

They use social media sites like Facebook to share information and even post pictures of themselves, of successful crossings, of their boats as a way to build trust and credibility.

But Mr Campana maintains that while social media sites are an effective tool for people smugglers, making deals through word-of-mouth is far more common.

The IOM has helped 13,000 migrants return voluntarily to Nigeria, Guinea and other countries from Libya this year, covering their transport and pocket money fees. Mr Doyle said the organisation is also in the process of repatriating 4,000 migrants to Niger.

Additional reporting by Reuters
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Israels Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has been rebuffed in meetings in Brussels after urging European foreign ministers to follow the USs lead in recognising Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

During his first ever visit to the European Councils headquarters on Monday, the Israeli leader told officials US President Donald Trumps move made peace in the Middle East possible because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace.

Palestinians should also move to recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. Its called Jerusalem.

 Stephen Colbert ridicules Trump's Jerusalem announcement

Europe must stop pampering the Palestinians, the Israeli Prime Minister said.

I think the Palestinians need a reality check. You have to stop cutting them slack. Thats the only way to move forward towards peace.

Mr Netanyahus overtures appear to have been comprehensively rejected by European officials, however.

Immediately after a closed-door breakfast meeting, Swedens Foreign Minister, Margot Wallstrom, told reporters: I have a hard time seeing that any other country would [recognise Jerusalem as Israeli] and I dont think any other EU country will do it.

Her comments echo those made by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini last week, both of whom have called for the EU to take the lead on the now urgent need to restart the peace process.

The US President shocked even his closest allies with last Wednesdays declaration that the country would break with decades of established foreign policy and international law by recognising the holy city as the Israeli capital, moving its embassy there from Tel Aviv.

Israel annexed East Jerusalem in the 1967 Six Day war, a move regarded as illegal by the international community.

Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Show all 22 1 /22 Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of Difa-e-Pakistan Council a coalition of right wing Islamic parties, burn an effigy of US President Donald Trump, during a protest in Quetta, Pakistan EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli police scuffle with a Palestinian protester outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City Getty Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn pictures of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu following Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli forces disperse Palestinian protesters outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City on 7 December 2017 AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC), an Islamic organization, chant slogans as they burn Israeli and US flags during a protest against Donald Trump in Peshawar REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinians paint an 'X' over the face of a picture of US president Donald J. Trump which was painted on the Israeli separation wall in Bethlehem EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protestors burn the Israeli flag and a poster of US President Donald Trump in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of a Pakistani religious party rally against Donald Trump in Lahore AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn the US and Israeli flags in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital A poster depicting U.S. President Donald Trump is burnt during a protest against Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in the West Bank city of Ramallah REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli forces detain a Palestinian protester during clashes that followed protests against US President Donald Trump recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in Hebron AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn an effigy of U.S. President Donald Trump AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters shout slogans against Donald Trump EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital A Palestinian protester wears a Guy Fawkes mask used by the anonymous movement during clashes with Israeli troops in Hebron AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian demonstrators clash with Isralei troops during protests AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of a Pakistani religious party chant anti-American slogans during a rally in Islamabad, Pakistan AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Pakistanis burn a representation of the U.S. flag during a protest rally in Hyderabad AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Young Palestinian women look on as smoke billows from burning tyres as fellow Palestinian demonstrators clash with Isralei troops AFP/Getty Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protesters burn a picture of U.S. President Donald Trump at a protest in Islamabad REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protestors shouts slogans against US President Donald Trump as they hold Palestinian and Turkish flags during a protest near the US Embassy in Ankara, Turkey EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protestors put their feet over a picture of US president Donald Trump during a protest in the West Bank City of Nablus EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Pakistani protesters burn tires at an anti-Donald Trump rally in Multan AP

Both Israelis and Palestinians claim the holy city as their undivided capital. Under the 1993 Oslo peace accords, the final status of Jerusalem is to be decided at an advanced level of peace talks.

While welcomed by Mr Netanyahu, many other world leaders, including US allies such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia, have expressed concern that the controversial move could spark renewed violence in the region and wider Muslim world.

Protests have been held across the globe and four Palestinians have been killed in violent clashes with Israeli security forces in the West Bank and Gaza. An Israeli soldier was seriously wounded in a stabbing attack carried out by a Palestinian on Sunday.

On Monday, Hezbollah  the Lebanese militant group which has sworn Israels destruction  held a rally in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh attended by tens of thousands of people.

Protesters chanted slogans such as Death to America and Israel and waved Hezbollah and Palestinian flags.

More than 6,000 people also gathered in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta for a fifth day of solidarity protests against the USs decision.

 Theresa May says she will talk to Donald Trump about Jerusalem

In the Palestinian territories and Jerusalem itself, however, demonstrations appear to be winding down.

The US has been seeking to resurrect talks between Israel and the Palestinians since Mr Trump took office; the President has previously described brokering an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict the ultimate deal.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, however, says the USs symbolic move on Jerusalem is as good as a withdrawal from the peace process.

Hamas, the militant organisation that rules the Gaza Strip, has called for a third intifada as a result of the USs decision.

Recommended Trump risks uniting the entire Arab world against the US

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said last week it would still be up to the Israelis and Palestinians to hammer out all other issues surrounding the city in future talks and that a reality check was needed to revitalise peace talks.

European officials, however, have been sceptical.

On Monday, many reiterated to reporters throughout the day that their official position still holds that East Jerusalem, Golan Heights and the occupied West Bank are not Israeli territory.

The right wing governments of Hungary and the Czech Republic have shown more support for the Trump administrations move, but both countries said on Monday that their long-term goal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was still a two-state solution.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called the US a "partner in bloodshed" over President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel .

"With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed," Mr Erdogan said at an event in Ankara on Monday.

"The statement by President Trump does not bind us, nor does it bind Jerusalem."

 Sarah Huckabee Sanders: Jerusalem decision not a sign that US is pulling out of peace process

Mr Trump declared that the US would break with decades of established foreign policy and international law last week by recognising Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and relocating its embassy there from Tel Aviv.

While welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, many other world leaders, including US allies such as Turkey, have expressed concern that the controversial move could spark renewed violence in the region and wider Muslim world.

Protests have been held across the globe and four Palestinians killed in violent clashes with Israeli security forces in the West Bank and Gaza.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem in 1967 in a move that has never been recognised internationally. Both Israeli and the Palestinians claim it as their capital.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Friday it would still be up to the Israelis and Palestinians to hammer out all other issues surrounding the city in future talks.

Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Show all 22 1 /22 Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of Difa-e-Pakistan Council a coalition of right wing Islamic parties, burn an effigy of US President Donald Trump, during a protest in Quetta, Pakistan EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli police scuffle with a Palestinian protester outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City Getty Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn pictures of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu following Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli forces disperse Palestinian protesters outside Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City on 7 December 2017 AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC), an Islamic organization, chant slogans as they burn Israeli and US flags during a protest against Donald Trump in Peshawar REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinians paint an 'X' over the face of a picture of US president Donald J. Trump which was painted on the Israeli separation wall in Bethlehem EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protestors burn the Israeli flag and a poster of US President Donald Trump in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of a Pakistani religious party rally against Donald Trump in Lahore AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn the US and Israeli flags in Gaza City AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital A poster depicting U.S. President Donald Trump is burnt during a protest against Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in the West Bank city of Ramallah REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Israeli forces detain a Palestinian protester during clashes that followed protests against US President Donald Trump recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in Hebron AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters burn an effigy of U.S. President Donald Trump AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protesters shout slogans against Donald Trump EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital A Palestinian protester wears a Guy Fawkes mask used by the anonymous movement during clashes with Israeli troops in Hebron AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian demonstrators clash with Isralei troops during protests AFP/Getty Images Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Supporters of a Pakistani religious party chant anti-American slogans during a rally in Islamabad, Pakistan AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Pakistanis burn a representation of the U.S. flag during a protest rally in Hyderabad AP Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Young Palestinian women look on as smoke billows from burning tyres as fellow Palestinian demonstrators clash with Isralei troops AFP/Getty Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protesters burn a picture of U.S. President Donald Trump at a protest in Islamabad REUTERS Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Protestors shouts slogans against US President Donald Trump as they hold Palestinian and Turkish flags during a protest near the US Embassy in Ankara, Turkey EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Palestinian protestors put their feet over a picture of US president Donald Trump during a protest in the West Bank City of Nablus EPA Protests erupt after Trump recognises Jerusalem as Israel's capital Pakistani protesters burn tires at an anti-Donald Trump rally in Multan AP

A meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) later this week should prove a "turning point" in the crisis, Mr Erdogan added.

The firebrand Turkish leader has been critical of both the US and Israel since last week's announcement.

During a rally in the Turkish city of Sivas on Sunday he called Israel a "child-murderer state".

"We will not abandon [Jerusalem] to an occupier state," he added.

Mr Netanyahu responded that he would not be lectured on morality by a man who "bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran go around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people".

The Israeli leader is currently in Brussels for talks with EU foreign leaders. He is urging EU member states to follow the US' lead in recognising Jerusalem as Israeli.

On his arrival on Monday he told reporters that Mr Trump's move made peace in the Middle East possible "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace".

Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to arrive in Turkey later on Monday for talks on cooperation and the increasing tensions in the Middle East.

He met with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo - another key US ally - earlier in the day.
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Here are a few things you need to know about Chongqing in south-west China.

First, its the largest city on earth. Some 37 million people live in its urban area, and thats growing by a couple of per cent every year.

Second, the city looks like the future. Built around the meeting point of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers, Chongqing has 105 buildings over 150m tall (with 27 more in construction  its the fastest growing city in China). For context, London has just 17 of them. Looking back at the skyline from the Yangtze River Cableway, Chongqing looks a bit like New York. Honestly.

Third, this city is also one of the worlds hottest. During summer, its rightfully known as the oven of China (I visited in August and can vouch that Chongqing deserves most of its superlatives).

The nickname also extends to its cuisine. This little-known megalopolis is the birthplace  and spiritual home  of the fieriest Sichuan mala hotpot (huo guo in Mandarin) in the world. According to some estimates, there are more than 50,000 hotpot restaurants in Chinas aptly named Hotpot City.

Walk around Chongqings downtown Jiefangbei business district and youll notice every other shopfront has a neon flame on it and a sack of chillis by the door. Chongqing takes its hotpot seriously; its built into the very fabric of what this city is.

Hotpot is an institution, Jordan Porter, from Chengdu Food Tours, tells me. Where to eat it? Look for a restaurant with a big atmosphere. Its good advice  in a city with thousands of choices, its almost impossible to rank one over the other.

Which is how I find myself at very local hotpot restaurant Lin Jiang Men in downtown Chongqing, facing down a menu entirely in Chinese and without a single English speaker in the restaurant.

With hotpot, the first step is to choose the base: a clear broth, spicy chilli oil broth, or half and half. I choose the nine-section spicy red oil soup, which comes bubbling with beef lard, industrial quantities of Sichuan peppercorns and every other kind of spice the restaurant can get their hands on (usually cardamom, MSG, fennel and star anise).

Ever wondered why your tongue fizzes and goes numb after eating Sichuan peppercorns? Thats thanks to small amounts of a molecule called hydroxy alpha sanshool, which produces an effect much like a mild electric current, according to food author Harold McGee.

The nine-section hotpot is one of the most popular (Cathy Adams)

Next into the hotpot goes pretty much anything. Local specialities include duck intestine and Chinese sausage, bright red with pigs blood, though there are also more prosaic options like fried tofu, crunchy lotus root and strips of rare beef. The process is simple: throw them in and wait for them to cook. When theyre ready (they float to the top of the broth when done), yank them out and dip into a saucer of sesame oil, coriander and ginger to cool off.

As Chongqing forges into the future, hotpot remains much the same as it was hundreds of years ago when the dish migrated south from Mongolia. The nine-section format  still the most popular soup, judging from my neighbours in Lin Jiang Men  is a hangover from the origins of the dish. Villagers would sit around outside and throw things into the broth, and the more sections there were, the more people could join for dinner. The community aspect of hotpot hasnt changed today.

In Chongqing, hotpot isnt just a meal; its both a noun and a verb. Its a time for interaction: doing business, celebrating a birthday or anniversary, or just an excuse to sit down and talk as a family. In Lin Jiang Men, Im surrounded by families and groups of friends, all laughing and haggling over whatever innards theyre pulling out of the steamy broth. Nobodys in a hurry and nobodys Instagramming their dinner  the hotpot is the social platform itself.

Hotpot is the party, says Porter. Its the main event. Or, at least, it is for tonight. Tomorrow, my insides  currently humming with 100,000 Scoville heat units  might think differently.

Chongqing looks a little like New York (Cathy Adams)

How to hotpot

Hotpot is a celebration. Find a busy restaurant where the locals are chugging plenty of Chongqing Beer and laughing at some reality show on a big-screen TV.

Youll be asked a series of questions when you walk into a hotpot joint: the type of broth, the level of heat and what kind of oil you want. If you cant speak Chinese, walk around the restaurant and point to what other people are eating.

Avoid eating in the touristy areas of Chongqing like Hong Ya Dong (home to the Hongya caves). The quality isnt going to match a reliable local spot. Ask your hotel for recommendations.

Order lots and lots of weak beer (Snow or Chongqings own brand) to cool off. In Sichuan, its usually drunk out of mini glasses or flat ceramic bowls.

Wear clothes that you dont mind getting dirty. For hotpot beginners, its impossible to avoid being spattered with red-hot oil. Even better, wear an apron.

Take your time. This is a slow food experience.

Want more spice? If your guts can handle it, try Chongqings signature noodle dish, xiaomian, which is spicier than its widely known Chengdu counterpart dandanmian. You can find a cheap bowl, swimming in chilli oil, spring onion and coriander, down most city backstreets.

Travel essentials

Getting there

Tianjin Airlines flies direct from London Gatwick to Chongqing twice a week, from around 420 return.

Staying there

The Regent Chongqing, which opened last year, is a well-located hotel with killer views over the Jialing River and the downtown skyscrapers. Doubles from RMB 1,385 (160), B&B.

More information

Chengdu Food Tours offer foodie tours of Chendgu from 400RMB (45), and can arrange bespoke Chongqing tours (price on request).

Youll find Lin Jiang Men on Ba Yi Lu Road. Hot pot costs about 8-10 per person.

Click here to find hotels in Chongqing
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At 9pm on Sunday night, around 300 passengers waiting at Heathrow for British Airways flight 245 to Buenos Aires discovered they would be not be waking up in an Argentinian midsummer. Instead, they faced the prospect of having to sort out their own hotel rooms many miles away, or sleeping on the floor of Terminal 5.

Like 50,000 other BA passengers, they will start Monday far from where they planned to be, after the airline's operation juddered almost to a halt at Heathrow. More than 140 outbound short-haul flights, and 26 long-haul departures, were cancelled on Sunday. BA has cancelled a further 70 short-haul round trips on Monday, plus nine long-haul flights including departures to Rio, Tokyo and Los Angeles. An additional 15,000 people will be affected by these latest cancellations.

Departures from Europes busiest airport began to go wrong before dawn on Sunday. Torrential overnight rain meant that de-icing could not begin until the first wave of planes were ready to go. Delays quickly built up: the 7am to Geneva left four hours late. And as queues developed while sleet and snow fell, aircraft that had already been de-iced needed to be treated again as ice began to build up on their wings while they waited for clearance to depart.

BA operate an ambitious schedule, which most of the time works remarkably well. But not on Sunday. At 10am, a sweep of around 20 proactive cancellations was made by British Airways operations staff, to create firebreaks in the schedule in a bid to avoid further cancellations. Within an hour, that number had doubled. And quickly the first seriously wintry day at Heathrow became a bonfire of the schedules.

Other airlines were mildly affected, with Austrian Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa and Swiss cancelling flights to and from their hubs, but for BA  which has a majority of the slots at Heathrow  the unravelling was of an entirely different order of magnitude.

Initially passengers on long-haul flights waiting to leave Terminal 5, or at European airports heading for Heathrow, faced irritating delays exacerbated by hunger. From Athens, Frank Durrell tweeted: Come on @British_Airways. 1 hour delayed boarding. 1.5 hours stuck in this plane waiting to leave. And now told we will be 4 hours late landing. Would have just gone back to hotel if Id known at the start.

And now no snacks available at all. No complimentary food, must buy M&S food and it cant be given away. Pilot tried to get more snacks locally and couldnt. Pilot wants to get us vouchers on arrival but doesnt think he can. Terrible service.

Gradually, the scale of the problem became clear. With aircraft blocking stands, British Airways planes that did make it to Heathrow had to wait sometimes for hours to be unloaded. When space on the ground ran out, the diversions began.

Passengers from Newcastle got no further than Leeds-Bradford, where they were joined by confused travellers from Kiev and Warsaw. Back on Tyneside, Newcastle airport welcomed divertees from Paris, Reykjavik, Helsinki, Frankfurt and Athens; Frank Durrell tweeted once more: You suck. Diverted us to Newcastle. Why didnt you just let us stay in Athens and fly us back tomorrow?

Passengers from Zurich, Zagreb, Vienna, Gibraltar, Nice and Madrid are mingling in Cardiff. Milan, Prague and Berlin passengers had an unexpected visit to Bournemouth, while along the road BA travellers from Geneva and Krakow congregated in Southampton. The late-night passengers from Istanbul flew around in circles over the Home Counties for a while, hopeful of landing, before diverting to Liverpool.

 BA film plane landing from cockpit in Johannesburg

Long-haul inbound flights from Dubai, Mumbai and New York landed at Paris, Frankfurt and Dublin respectively. At times of disruption British Airways does everything it can to protect the long-haul schedule. Slots for smaller planes flying shorter distances are sacrificed to enable big aircraft to take large numbers of people across oceans. But at Heathrow on Sunday, even that principle had to be abandoned.

One by one, crews went out of hours, when it became no longer possible for them to fly the mission within legal limits. Three New York services were cancelled as well as two each to Dubai and Toronto, with many Asian flights also grounded including the key departures to Hong Kong and Singapore.

For each cancelled outbound departure, there is an equal number of inbound flights that have been grounded. While the passengers in Buenos Aires and other far-flung locations have plenty of warning of the cancellation, those closer to home do not enjoy the luxury of time or, often, information.

Sarah Griffiths tweeted: Parents stuck in Pisa airport for 6hrs and British_Airways has made 1 announcement & ignored all consumer rights. Reps done a runner?! Theyre tired & freezing. Rubbish.

The Independent has calculated 27,000 BA passengers are stranded in London, a further 20,000 stuck in European airports, and another 3,000 at airports elsewhere in the UK and neighbouring countries after their flights to Heathrow were diverted.

With so many planes and crews out of position, even if Mondays conditions at Heathrow were perfect, it would take several days to get everyone where they needed to be. But sub-zero temperatures are forecast for the airport, and the flow rate is to be reduced  hampering BAs efforts to get back on schedule and possibly leaving even more passengers out of position.

The airline is offering passengers booked to fly on Monday the option to re-book on alternative flights up to Monday December 18, free of charge.

Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Show all 18 1 /18 Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures A snowplough clears a closed road on the A470 from Merthyr Tydfil to Brecon PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Pedestrians walk over the Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral pictured in the background as snow falls AFP/Getty Images Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Snow in Wood Green Rex Features Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures People walk through the snow in a park in north London EPA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Two girls make a snowman on Primrose Hill PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures People wake up to a blanket of overnight snowfall in Stoke On Trent Getty Images Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Harlequins win a line-out in heavy snow during the European Rugby Champions Cup match against Ulster Rugby at Twickenham Stoop Getty Images for Harlequins Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures A train travels along snow covered tracks in High Wycombe EPA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Families take to the hills with sledges near Edale in Derbyshire AFP/Getty Images Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures People push a car up a snowy hill in north London EPA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures A crashed lorry on the A50 is tended to by police as the snow falls near Uttoxeter REUTERS Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures People go sledding on Primrose Hill PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Motorists brave the snow in Worcester PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures An abandoned car on the roadside on the Snake Pass in the Peak District PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Heavy snow falls on sheep in the hills near Sennybridge, Wales REUTERS Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Snow falling on Westminster Bridge Rex Features Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Walkers on The Long Walk at Windsor PA Heavy snowfall across Britain: in pictures Motorist braves snowy conditions on the M2 motorway near Gillingham PA

British Airways is telling passengers: Heathrow has experienced unpredicted severe adverse weather conditions and that is expected to continue into Monday.

Temperatures have remained low, and safety is our number one priority, there is a requirement to de-ice every individual aircraft before it departs. We are sorry for the difficulties caused by the poor weather and will do all we can to minimise the effect it has on our operations.

We apologise for the inconvenience, and we would like to assure customers that we are doing everything we can to get as many people away on their flights as possible.

As a result of the forecast we have agreed with Heathrow Airport, National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and other airlines to reduce our flight schedule from Heathrow on Monday December 11.

Please do not travel to the airport if your flight has been cancelled.

A Heathrow spokesperson said: Heathrow airport remains open however we regret that weather across the UK is resulting in some passengers experiencing disruption to their travel arrangements. Airlines are responsible for ensuring their flights are fully de-iced before they are operated and this is resulting in some delays and cancellations.

Why do planes need to be de-iced?

A build-up of ice on an aircraft wings adds weight, increases drag and, crucially, changes their shape in a way that significantly reduces lift. It is thought to have been a factor in the 2009 crash of a Colgan Air flight from New York to Buffalo in which 49 people died; shortly before they lost control, the crew discussed a build-up of ice. In flight, it is dealt with by heating the critical surfaces, notably the leading edge of the wings. But before take-off any build up of ice must be removed from the outside, by spraying on a hot mix of propylene glycol and water. The procedure is time-limited, and in extreme conditions while de-icers work on one side of a plane the ice builds up on the other, just cleaned side.

At some airports prone to frosty conditions, a de-icing truck waits near the holding point for aircraft, close to the runway, so that the aircraft can be de-iced just before departure. But at Heathrow, BA  along with other airlines  de-ices at the stand. That practice may change after this latest extremely expensive and frustrating episode.

Click here to compare flight options with Skyscanner
Opinion / Columnist

A child of the revolution, nurtured on the perennial run, from childhood to the present age of 75. Multiple narrow escapes!Emmerson Munangagwa's multiple escapes remain too extra-ordinary to be of Man-making! This is of the anointing of God! The longest and most challenging, brutish and nasty of its kind. I hold no fear for Zimbabwean President Emmerson Munangagwa as a person and as Head of State! I would rather fear for the mafia that still remains in his cabinet. The world is looking at a complete man! A Robert Gabriel Mugabe University Graduate!I have always argued with Garwe staunch critics that both intensive and extensive learning never stops no matter how adverse the situation or conditions could be in a respective institution. Far be it from me to expect a most seasoned 75 year-old to sink so low as to act like a 37 year-old delinquent war-monger tribalist youth just retired from the war-zone!If God could humble Saul the mass-murderer, and out of him mould Paul the greatest Apostle of all The Apostles what would stop Him doing the same with The Garwe? It is also an undisputable fact that Emmerson Munangagwa has never ruled Zimbabwe! This remains as the greatest oppirtunity for him to show Zimbabwe that which he was capable of! For many years Munangagwa has assisted the previous Chief Executive Officer to drive his own vision and mission! Which he later openly contradicted and got the ugly boot. Living 37 years ago, would it be going forward or retrogression? Surely Zimbabwe has to be a progressive nation that teams-up to make corrections upon former President Mugabe's national biblical Gehena with The President.Give President Munangagwa wings to fly on the job! It should surely be more about healing the old wounds than either making fresh-bleeding new-ones or opening the old wounds. The same strategy! National Rainbow Team Spirit upon Mugabe! The new political dispensation would heal the wounds! It is all about engagement and re-engagement with a constructive intent!Zimbabwe would not afford to waste another single minute to destroy the gains of independence and the new political dispensation of survival and picking crumbs and stitching together the remnants of The Mugabe nemesis. When I look at this Garwe I see an aggressive-reformist-transformational leader who has shocked not only the Zimbabwean nation but the entire world! Broke both the ruling ZANU-PF both Centeal Committee and Politburo respectively hate, hurt, malice and undue vengeance also prone to succumbing to negative incitement of no wisdom! President Mnangagwa levels of pragmatism, starting with his inaugural speech about a fort night ago was much unZANU-PF! It remains as clear that it was this suppressed level of pragmatism and extra-ordinary high quality common-sense that courted so much hate, hurt and undue vengeance upon him among all presidential aspirants!A visible and humiliating clean electoral walk-over! None in The ruling ZANU-PF had expected such effects of The Munangagwa reformatory and transformational whirl-wind! Both The ZANU-PF Central Committee and Politburo least expected anyone from within their ranks to rise against the party's well entrenched culture of national plunder and externalisation of the loot with a 90 day deadline to repatriate all such! Or face ptosecution in the courts. What, in ordinary SADC and African Union culture of political primitivism could have been firing squad material, as in Joseph Kabila' s Democratic Republic of Congo, The Central Africa Republic and Somalia below the nose of these guardian institutions, President Munangagwa has protected! All those either incited and hired to hurl insults upon him and champion his unholy demise with televised road shows, none of them was, so far, either missing or harrassed.The national team spirit worked on Mugabe's many years of difficult and costly retirement and ushered-in a new pragmatic era with Emmerson Munangagwa's rise from the grave! Make it work furthermore beyond Mugabe. President Munangagwa was a well-seasoned multi-graduate from Africa and the world's various extra-ordinary hands-on schools of thought that range from that of oppression and suppression! The revolution and the war of indepence! Persecution and narrowly escaped execution at the former colonial gallows for childhood ever-brave political activism which led to The Munangagwa bombardment of The Fort Victoria (Masvingo) Railway Line during colonial rule! The Generation 40 Grace Mugabe school of Hate, Hurt and Grave Malice! Vengeance! The Grace Mugabe School of Isolation! Denigration! And Undue Ridicule! The Robert Gabriel Mugabe School of Appointment and whimsical Disappointment, Promotion! Demotion and Expulsion! Robert Gabriel Mugabe School of Escape and Survival of The Fittest! The Generation 40 Shool of Poisoning and Cruelity and Scaling-Out of Grave Walls! The Job of Uz School of Tolerance and Forgiveness! Restoration and Prosperity! The School of Governance! The Grace Mugabe School of Resentment and Rejection! The School of Humility, Loyalty, Credibility, Intergrity, Obedience, Courage, Determination and Godly Wisdom of Response in Persecution! Open-theatre Schools for extra-ordinary men and women! That a few would dare escape nor survive! As such could only go by the relevant anointing of God. For men/women made of the stuff that great men's/women's mothers/fathers were.All those who have never been dishonoured know of no true value of honour! All those who have never been in poor health, accordingly, would lack sufficient wisdom to manage or preserve good health! Accordingly, all the people who have never been in poverty would lack sufficient wisdom to manage or retain and multiply God's multiple blessings to reach all! Those who have never been caught-up in spiritual poverty would be surely bound to misappropriate spiritual affluence! Anyone who misses this Open University remains as incomplete and hollow. Which of the above schools could have president Emmerson Munangagwa missed? Of course, the answer is none of the above in the presence of Jesus Christ! Amen.President Emmerson Munangagwa belongs to the new stable of Heads of State! The new stable of pedigree Heads of State that started with the late former Zambian President, Levi Mwanawasa. On taking-over the leadership of Zambia's then ruling party, The Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) and government, Mwanawasa went on a quick audit of his predecessor, Frederick Chiluba's uspicious governance with an urgent transformational and reformatory agenda! And the security agents took Chiluba-in for questioning severally. And various corruptly externalised and other acts of corruption by the former president were exposed. Tanzania's sitting president John Magalufi caused lots of constructive administrative trouble on assuming office as if he had been a political new comer from Planet Mars! Shook the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi hardened strongholds who had been long and turing in the gravy train.First female Malawian president, Dr. Joyce Banda triggered brave patriachic resentment and rejection with her anti-corruption drive that saw her being packaged out of power after disposing of the presidential jet pleading unbearable national poverty. She chanelled the proceeds from the sale to national water and sanitation and went for a 30 percent salary cut. All these men and one woman have confirmed the true and real need for new blood in all institutions! New blood marks organisational new tenure of life! Creativity and growth! And how most organisations that have, for a long time beat the drums of democracy and good governance and yet they remain as highly undemocratic, primitive and non-functional or paralysed. Charity truely begins at home! The new school has well-exposed as to how much grand talent remains both oppressed and suppressed within such respective institutions. Under-utilised! Or untapped.These wise men have acted like total strangers on getting into power! There-by confirming a great learning process even in the most adverse conditions that they could have lived and worked under! Or, spiritually, never having been part of the institutional prevailing ideology. When the new school of thought manifested with these wisemen, a lot of people within the respective political institutions that had thrived on liberation credentials to insulate corruption had to take-cover from the inspirational and the art of real public service! In Africa, business magnets abandon business to go into government for both free-for-all financial and material wind-falls! Land and mineral scandals! While in the modern world governments have struggled to attract technocrats and other such highly seasoned professionals out of the private sector. With The Levy Mwanawasa drive, Zambia would have never been the same again. And Mugabe would have got neither sympathy nor support in the way that he got from sitting Zambian President, Edgar Lungu.When extra-ordinary men are born the battle begins long before conception! The child is at war before s/he is both conceived and born respectively! Abraham, the divine appointed Father of All Nations battled to get his only child, Isaac, whom he eventually got twenty years later at age 95, after the divine promise because the devil was opposed to it. (Gen 17:5, 18:9-10). The first sign that Abraham and his aged wife Sarah were carrying an extra-ordinary anointed seed. Isaac, got his twins, Esau and Jacob twenty years later after marriage to his cousin, Rebecca because he carried Israel (Jacob) within his scrotum. (Gen. 25:20-21, 26). And, therefore, the devil had brilliant cause to contest this anointed birth.Rachel was first denied by her fatjer in marriage and was exchanged for her elder sister Leah. After Jacob had agreed to go into servitude for her and eventually married her, she remained barren for many-many years before she could conceive the anointed Joseph, the divine dreamer, sold into slave-labour by his own kin! (Gen. 30:1-3, 22-24). Joseph found favour both in the eyes of God and in the eyes of Men in slavery, in prison, in Portiphar's house and in the house of Pharoah against the will of his detractors. God found reason to favour Joseph with an illustrious track-record of escape because he (Joseph) carried the anointing of both personal and national survival! The breath that saved The Israeli Nation inclusive of his blood brothers who had traded him-off into slavery in a fit of jelousy. He was too visible. Joseph miraculously found devine favour and skipped numerous death traps with the hand of God on his way to The Egyptian Premiership in enemy territory! That had motivated the devil to oppose Joseph's anointed birth and fruit of labour to exterminate God's favoured Israeli nation. The devil was in opposition! So did he with these multiple most identical Emmerson Munangagwa cases.Hannah, Elkanah's wife, faced resentmet and rejection from Peninah, her husband's second wife, and the public for her barrenness! Barren because of her divine appointment with God! 1Samuel 1:2, 5-20). Appointment to carry a great prophet Samuel who both made and unmade Kings! The Devil was in opposition to this divine appointment. The same went for Manoah's wife! The mother of The Great Samson! Because she was carrying a saviour and hero of Israel out of Philistine humiliation. (Judges 13:2-4). And, again the Devil was in opposition. The biblical Moses had to be hidden in the river to escape the murderous hand of The Devil so that he would, 40 years later, lead The Israelites out of servitude to the promised land of Canaan. (Exodus 2:1-10). Jesus'parents had to flee to Egypt to save The Messiah from Satanic opposition that threatened the divine birth despite the fact that 33 years later He had to face the destined violent death in the hands of The Devil! (Luke 1:26-33, Matt. 1:12-15). John The Baptist faced Satanic opposition! A delayed birth to an aged barren Elizabeth and Zacharia! (Luke 1: 7-15) Like Jesus, he also died a violent death because The Devil was in opposition.Zimbabwean President, Emmerson Munangagwa has lived a life of a most brave track-record of death traps! From village witches in the then Shabani prior to conception to an embryo in his mother's womb! Condemned to The Gallows at a tender age for effective political activistism! To gunfire at the battlefront and captivity respectively! To Prison and banishment to Zambia. To scaling ready-made customised grave walls-out at The National Heroes Acre with that Grace Mugabe and former Co-Vice President Phelekezela Report Mphoko and cabal Gushungo Dairies manufactured customised poisonous Ice Cream! That Ice Cream Movement! To The Grace Mugabe Generation 40 Israeli Mosad sniper terrorist hit squad! Cornered by civilian political novices in The Generation 40 with borrowed and failed militancy! Surely only God can do that! Only The almighty God carries sufficient authority to fail every Satanic manoeuvre under all circumstaces. Like Joseph, all of President Munangagwa's enemies found themselves both miraculously exposed and ashamed beyond measure before celebratory dawn.Emmerson Munangagwa remains as no ordinary man! He has kept The Devil on panick mode as an embryo in his mother's womb to the present! The Devil's radar never misses people of substance! Grace Mugabe and her Generation 40 passed a death sentence upon Munangagwa because they had realised that it was only death that could stop the unstoppable God's anointed man and obvious presidential material from ascending to power after Mugabe! Poisoning is not for ordiinary targets! Surely Dr Grace Mugabe, also known as Dr. Stop It, would not waste her poison on ordinary and ineffective personalities! When Grace and Mphoko Generation 40 looked at The Garwe they saw an unstoppable president in the quick-making! And they fevered! They suffered stomach aches with neither toilet paper nor running water! Grace went bersek with her desire to rule! She took a most hurried short-cut and started misruling above her senile 94 year old husband, former President Robert Gabriel Mugabe! To safe-guard her dream-rise to power Munangagwa had to either die or be forced into permanent exile.I betrayed President Munangagwa when Grace Mugabe went bersek with her venomous attacks upon the then Vice President after the poisonous Ice Cream saga and Professor Jonathan Moyo's malicious presentations upon Munangagwa. The miscalculated malice, hate, hurt and undue vengeance snd humiliation that made a new president and ushered-in a new dispensation in Zimbabwe. I am on record as having put it straight too early that Munangagwa carried high potential to govern better than Mugabe and that he could well be in command of superior following than Mugabe! And that, of all the presidential aspirants after Mugabe, within ZANU-PF and all opposition, Munangagwa had no equal as he remained as the would be most equipped to make any meaningful impact in the respective race! Even if he were to stand against Mugabe himself in 2018! And possibly Munangagwa commanded of superior access to arms of repression than Mugabe! My prophetic soul! Only if The Generation 40 had paid attention to this most accurate prediction. Generation 40 was most keen to up-grade the most primitive strong man power approach into a strong woman power approach as against a strong ethics driven corruption-free institution approach! Strong parliament!The strong judiciary, the strong police, the strong military, the strong clergy and strong human rights institutions. Like Joseph who fed and settled his most weired brothers, many of Garwe adversaries have remained as front-runner-beneficiaries of Munangagwa's new political dispensation! Unlike Joseph, Multiple self-confessed Mugabe true-sons still surround President Emmerson Munangagwa as senior ministers! Joseph was in similar authority. Despite having forgiven his blood brothers and fed them who had sold him into slavery and reported him to their father Jacob as having been attacked by a hyna and as dead. He did not appoint them into influential positions. Loved them but never trusted them! Neither did they trust Joseph too as symbolised in their apology and need for solid assurance of security after the death of their father Israel (Jacob), because they knew their foot-prints. Joseph assured his brothers of sufficient food and security but not governance roles! There would be surely zero wisdom for Garwe to seek to govern with Robert Mugabe self-confessed sons and daughters. The Gushungo Matibiri Mugabes! They would surely need to go and lick their most true father's wounds rather than taking opportunities for possible sabotage of the revolution.Only traitors of the worst order would fore-go both their biological and political DNA! The Gushungo Matibiri Mugabe must surely act decent enough to keep their word and loyalties. George Charamba, The Permanent Secretary in The Ministry of Information and Honourable Obed Moses Mpofu Gushungo Matibiri Mugabe, among others, stand to compromise the new Emmerson Munangagwa political dispensation at all costs.Reginald Thabani GolaE-mail:regtgola@gmail.comCell. 00263 775 184 749.
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After having travelled half the globe and headed numerous German cultural institutions around the world, a retired, dignified German lady sits in her austere dining room, her grey hair lifted in an impeccable bun, and tells me in a disillusioned tone how Germans are usually dry, and how she found in Lebanon a certain quality of life that she missed in Germany. Taken aback by her honesty, I find myself trying to temper her judgment by telling her about some instances where I was treated gently by her fellow citizens. It is no obvious task.

Very few Germans are likely to be that lucid about their own culture, though. In fact, the impression one gets when frequenting Germans is that most of them consider their way of life to be inherently superior and their culture to be an absolute reference. This became clear to me after working for two years in German government institutions, where I and other Lebanese colleagues were treated in such a colonialist and inhuman way that would have made Michael Hanekes film Das weie Band pale in comparison.

Many of the more than one million refugees who have entered Germany know what I mean. After Chancellor Angela Merkel adopted an open-door policy towards the refugee wave in 2015, and after the attack on the Berlin Christmas Market last December, anti-immigrant sentiment is on the rise in Germany.

 Pilots stop 222 asylum seekers being deported from Germany by refusing to fly

At the last national elections on 24 Sept, Merkels conservative party paid the price of such openness, and its score dropped significantly (32.9 per cent down from 41.5 per cent), while the anti-immigrant party AfD came in third place, making it the first far-right party to enter the German parliament since the 1960s. With such a low score, Angela Merkel is still struggling to this day to form a ruling coalition.

To justify her generosity, Merkel evoked a national duty, and soon the stern accountant-like daughter of a Lutheran pastor became Mama Merkel to thousands of refugees. According to some analysts, she is more likely to have been under pressure, from her Nato allies as well as the German heavy industry, which was hoping to benefit from minimal-cost labour. In effect, Germany is in desperate need for skilled workers and for compensating one of the lowest birthrates in the world.

Whatever the questionable circumstances which surrounded the entry of more than one million refugees to Germany within two years, the situation cannot be changed, and German society will have to adapt to it. If Germans persist in their anti-immigrant stance, things are bound to deteriorate.

In a slightly brighter scenario, things would continue as they were before the crisis: immigrants living in their own districts, minding their own business, mostly ignored by native Germans. But this attitude will not work any longer, in the face of such a massive influx of newcomers.

First, Germans need to abandon the idea of their innate superiority, however fast their Audis and BWMs are. Other cultures are valuable too, and Germans can learn a lot from them, if they show a genuine and humble interest. Curious about his Persian-sounding name and dark features, I once gently asked the director of a German cultural institution in Beirut about his eastern origins. He refused to answer, wryly justifying: This is a very German question. Besides the very German answer, would he have been as avoidant, had his name sounded Swedish or Austrian?

This arrogance needs to go, if Germany wants to attract skilled workers. A Lebanese researcher friend who has patented several vaccines in the USA and France told me once how she avoided working with Germans because they are too square and lack the joys of life.

What Germans desperately need, apart from filling their factories with cheap workers, is to re-discover notions such as poetry, romance, humour, affection, spontaneity, conversation, sensuality, subtlety, nowadays only to be found in their museums and 18th century literature. But most of all, they need to re-discover the value of human contact. How many times did I try striking up a conversation with a German stranger or offering a small box of chocolates to a German colleague, only to be gratified with a What do you need from me? Well, just the joy of human presence. They could learn a lot from the Syrians, Ethiopians and Afghans living next door, eager to talk and offer their neighbours a culinary specialty from their country.

No need to relinquish ones own culture, or become embittered like the grey-haired lady in her dining room, on this journey of discovery. Being a Christian Lebanese who has learned the hard lesson of the Lebanese war, I have more Muslim friends than Christian ones, and I know more about Islam than some of them. Which doesnt prevent me from staying myself. Such are the joys of dynamic exchange and mixing Germans are in dire need of.
The N.C. Metropolitan Mayors Coalition honored Sen. Paul Newton (RCabarrus) with their 2017 legislative award Thursday, Dec. 7.

The award comes following Newtons work on legislation addressing public water and sewer system development fees. The legislation affirms local governments authority to collect water- and sewer-growth related fees for community and economic development, which was a priority for cities and towns.

Newton accepted the award and addressed North Carolina mayors and city managers at the ceremony. In his brief remarks, Newton thanked the members for the award.

A strong North Carolina requires strong cities and counties, he said.

The N.C. Metropolitan Mayors Coalition was founded in 2001 and is comprised of the mayors of the states larger cities. The coalition is a non-partisan, mayor-driven organization that focuses on issues of special interest to larger cities. They work with state and federal elected officials to promote job creation, protect local revenues, invest in public infrastructure and keep cities safe.
CONCORD- No injuries were reported in a house fire in Concord over the weekend.

The Concord Fire Department responded to a reported house on fire located on the 500 block of Viking Drive SW at about 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9.

Fire crews arrived on scene within 4 minutes of being dispatched and found smoke visible from the attic area. The incident was brought under control and the fire was extinguished quickly. A total of four engines, one ladder, one rescue, two battalion chiefs and the fire chief responded with a total of 24 firefighters. There were no injuries reported.

Concord Fire Department was assisted by Concord Police, Harrisburg Fire Department and Cabarrus County EMS. The cause of the fire is under investigation at this time.
CONCORD- Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Concord and a gingerbread train has popped up in the storefront of Chocolatier Barrucand on Union Street.

The train is a replica of the one in the childrens book The Gingerbread Train- Santas Secret Gift, writeen by Ann Tarpley Francesco.

As a customer of Chocolatier Barrucand, Francesco approached owners Ann Marie and Jean Luc Barrucand to create a replica of The Gingerbread Train as it appears in the pages of her book, for use in a display during her book tour in the Carolinas and Virginia.

"They did such a beautiful job bringing the Gingerbread Train to life. Their attention to detail with the candy decorations and three-dimensional artistry of the train's construction is remarkable," Francesco said. "Sitting atop the fireplace mantel in our show display, the replica has been a real attention-getter throughout the book tour."

The Barrucand's were so inspired by The Gingerbread Train story and the creative challenge of producing the replica, they made a second replica to place in their storefront, which has been on display since mid November.

Francesco will be at Chocolatier Barrucand on Thursday, Dec. 14 for a book signing from 5-7 p.m.

About the Book

The Gingerbread Train  Santa's Secret Gift is a 48-page hardbound children's book written for kindergarten through 5th grade reading level, and illustrated by Rebecca Solow, who also illustrates for well-known publishers including Highlights for Children, Penguin Random House and Spider Magazine.

The book's main characters share the same names as her children, Matthew and Courtney. The book's story centers around the lead character, Matthew, seeing a gingerbread train that no-one else sees, sparking wonder and anticipation for the reader.

About the Gift Set

The Gingerbread Train Baking Gift Set includes a custom Made-in-the-USA metal cookie cutter, its shape inspired by the engine featured in The Gingerbread Train. The set also includes a personal recipe by Francesco, BRAVO Gingerbread Cookies, with a special ingredient inspired by her focus on healthy, tasty alternatives in baking. The gift set is packaged in a festive green or red organza drawstring bag for value-added reuse.

About the author

Francesco attended Radford University in Radford, Virginia, where she earned her teaching certification for early childhood and middle education. Francesco also earned a B.A. in business administration at Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Two lesson plans she developed were included in teacher resource books entitled, Sweet Numbers (Learn Every Day About Numbers, Gryphon House Books) and Yummy Colors (Learn Every Day About Colors, Gryphon House Books).

Francesco's love of education later evolved into work as a college admissions counselor for Lynchburg College in Virginia, a 5th grade teacher in the Stafford County, Virginia and then an admissions representative for King's College.

Her work as a personal chef inspired a passion for healthy, yet tasty food choices and options.

She lives in Concord.
Package theft in her Chicago apartment building is so rampant, Sara Costello says, that she has begun rerouting all of her online orders to work: potting soil, knitting kits, glittered wigs and the occasional bottle of sage-scented spray.

Its secure  and practical, the actor and comedian says  at least until it comes time to lug her things home on the train.

Sometimes Im just sitting on the red line with a wig in my hand, or potting soil in my backpack, thinking, This is so weird,  Costello said. I thought Amazon was supposed to make my life easier?

Online shopping has been heralded as the ultimate modern-day convenience, but in at least one respect, it can be anything but. Packages get stolen, boxes pile up in the rain and many residential buildings  particularly those built back when people actually had to go to a store to shop  are running out of room for the never-ending barrage of deliveries.

The challenge has given rise to an entire industry that is racing to come up with technology that would make deliveries easier and more secure. Retail giants are also getting involved: Jet.com recently installed smart-lock technology in 1,000 apartment buildings in New York to allow delivery workers access to buildings when residents arent home. Amazon.com  which accounts for more than 40 percent of online sales  offers a similar service to Prime members. The company is also installing locker systems in apartment buildings across the country. (Jeff Bezos, the founder and chief executive of Amazon, owns The Washington Post.)

People have this overwhelming sense of fear that their stuff wont be there, said David Echegoyen, vice president of marketing for Jet.com, which is owned by Walmart. Thats been the big question for us: How can we remove friction from the e-commerce experience, and in particular, with deliveries?

This holiday season is expected to be a particularly busy one for the nations carriers. The U.S. Postal Service says its expects to deliver 850 million packages between Thanksgiving and New Years Day, a 10 percent increase from last year. (That comes out to an average of more than 20 million packages a day.) UPS expects its holiday load to rise 5 percent, to 750 million packages, this holiday season, while FedEx says its planning for up to 400 million parcels.

The number of parcels shipped worldwide has increased 48 percent in the past two years, as shoppers look to the Internet as a replacement for routine trips to the store, according to data from technology firm Pitney Bowes. People are buying products as varied as single tubes of toothpaste and grand pianos online, creating new problems for apartment and condominium buildings  especially in dense, urban areas.

This is one of the biggest puzzles in the apartment industry, said Rick Haughey, a vice president at the National Multifamily Housing Council, a Washington nonprofit group. How do you manage hundreds of packages every day?

Some building managers are installing package lockers, smart-lock technology and front-door cameras, while others have converted janitorial closets, basements and even gyms into makeshift package rooms. In extreme cases, apartment companies are banning packages altogether. The Cairo, a 169-unit apartment building in Northwest Washington, has two full-time porters who deliver packages to residents. A few miles away, managers at the Meridian at Mt. Vernon Triangle have outfitted the buildings gym with dozens of package lockers, where residents can punch in special-access codes to pick up deliveries around the clock. Other properties around the country now rely on a service called Fetch, which collects packages and delivers them to residents once theyre home.

People are buying everything online  even furniture, which means our offices end up looking like West Elm warehouses, said Luanne McNulty, vice president of ZRS Management, an Orlando, Florida-based property-management company. Sorting all of that out is easily a full-time job.

* * *

There are days when Hillary Greenwald can barely make it to her desk.

The apartment-leasing office where she works is stacked high with other peoples boxes: TVs, packages from Kohls and Madewell, and dozens of Amazon deliveries. They come in by the truckful and sometimes sit for days until residents come for them.

Some days Im crawling over packages  theyll be all around my desk, on the tables, on the shelves, said Greenwald, the manager of Gelmarc Towers, a 1950s building that has 166 units. It can feel like an obstacle course.

The building, in Washingtons Kalorama neighborhood, is renovating the leasing office to add shelving and storage space for residents deliveries. But there is only so much they can do, she says: The lobby is small, and there are no extra closets or parking spaces to convert into mailrooms.

Two years ago, Camden Property Trust made waves when it announced that it would no longer accept packages at its 169 properties across the country. The company said it was a financial decision meant to free its workers from hours of sorting, managing and retrieving deliveries every day. Package volume, the company said, was increasing 50 percent year over year.

Ultimately, this was going to eat our lunch, Keith Oden, president of Camden, told the Wall Street Journal. A spokesperson for Camden declined to comment for this story. (The policy does not appear to have deterred residents: Occupancy rates at Camden properties continue to hover around 96 percent.)

The popularity of Amazon Prime  which offers two-day shipping on most items  means people will place online orders for a single bar of soap or ballpoint pen, said Georgianna Oliver, who founded Package Concierge five years ago. She spent a year researching the delivery industry before creating a line of package lockers for residential buildings. The lockers  which come equipped with built-in cameras and digital touch screens  notify residents when they have a package and give them a one-time pin code to access it.

Todays customer wants self-service, she said. They dont want to have to talk to somebody to get a package, especially if theyre getting something in the mail multiple times a week.

Package Concierge processes 30,000 packages a day. Larger apartment buildings have as many as 500 lockers, while a student housing building at the University of Southern California has more than 700 lockers in one location.

Over the past few years, its gone from maybe this locker is a good idea to we have to do this,  Oliver said.

But lockers can be costly and at times impractical. The units, apartment managers said, typically cost at least $30,000 and require ample space, as well as wireless Internet access and electricity. And, well, this is a fast-growing problem.

You can retrofit a building, but by the time you install 100 lockers, youll end up needing 150, McNulty of ZRS Management said.

* * *

On Sunday, Ali Pressgrove returned from a three-day work trip to find that someone had rummaged through her online deliveries. The latest item to be stolen from her San Francisco apartment building: a lint roller from Amazon.

I am at my wits end, said Pressman, 26, who works for a hotel booking company. I rely on delivery as I dont have large amounts of time or energy to run every single errand, especially here when it takes ages to get from A to B.

Sometimes, she says, she has valuable items sent a nearby vintage shop, where employees sign for her deliveries. Other times, she obsessively tracks her packages online to make sure shes waiting at the door when they arrive.

I have a really nice handmade pair of boots coming soon, she said. I really dont want to have to panic until theyre here, but I definitely will.

Roughly 35 percent of Americans say they have packages sent to an address other than their home to prevent theft, according to a survey by Shorr Packaging. FedEx now allows customers to reroute their packages to nearby pharmacies and groceries store, while UPS offers similar pickup services at neighborhood shops, delis and dry-cleaning establishments, which often stay open late and on evenings for easy access.

More and more customers want alternatives to residential deliveries, said Randy Scarborough, vice president of retail marketing for FedEx. Maybe its package theft concerns, or not wanting everyone to see what theyre buying. For whatever reason, preferences are changing.
Opinion / Columnist

A house divided cannot stand the test of time. A nation divided cannot thrive. Zimbabwe is a nation tiring apart because we have become a divided nation of the filthy rich ruling elite few, on the one hand, and on the other the desperately poor majority. The rich few live in massive mansions such as General Chiwenga's C&M mansion and Mugabe's Blue Roof palace, they have farms and many businesses. The rich are sending their children out of the country for their education and they go oversea for all their health needs.Contrast this with the majority who have nothing. 90% of our people are unemployed. We can afford to build multi-million dollar mansions whilst even the nation's big hospitals like Mpilo and Harare are so poorly funded they regularly run out of such basic requirements as clean running water and pain killers. 72.3% of our people now live on US$1.00 or less a day. This is not right!Zimbabwe is not a poor country, we would not afford the megastar lifestyles for the ruling elite if we were a poor country. And yet the poverty of the overwhelming majority has swallowed up the opulence of the few so that, collectively, we are now the poorest nation in Africa.There is a moral imperative, urge, to find out what went wrong and to put it right!The root cause of our economic meltdown is simple enough to see, it is the 37 years of gross mismanagement and rampant corrupt. We inherited a robust economy in 1980, when the country attained her independence, but most of it has rotted and decay because of decades of underinvestment and neglect.Two years ago, Mugabe admitted the nation was "swindled of US$ 15 billions of diamond revenue". No one has ever been arrested. Not one cent has ever been recovered. We know the swindling has continued unabated to this day because, a year ago, Finance Minister, Patrick Chinamasa, told parliament he was receiving 1/6 of the revenue he expected from diamonds.There is documentary evidence to prove that Joice Mujuru and her late husband tried to sell diamonds worth US$ 15.8 billions. The two were not the only swindlers. Mugabe himself pocketed as much as $2 billions in 2012 alone, according to an Africa Canada report. The ruling elite have bought their posh cars, build their mansions and afforded their lifestyles of unparalleled luxury on the back of the wholesale looting of the nation's wealth.Zimbabwe has been losing as much as US$ 15 billion a year from the rampant corruption alone. No nation can afford that level of economic haemorrhage much less a nation whose GPD is a mere US$10 billion like Zimbabwe.Of course, the people of Zimbabwe have known for years that Mugabe and his Zanu PF government were incompetent and corrupt and were dragging the whole nation to economic ruins. However, for 37 years and counting, they have failed to do anything about it because the regime has rigged elections to remain in power frustrating the people's democratic wish for meaningful political change.We have the absurd situation where 72.3% of the population live on $1.00 or less a day whilst a tiny minority live 25 bed-room mansions with a luxurious lifestyle to march because for the last 37 years the majority have never had the political voice to cry. The essence of our struggle today is to make sure the majority of Zimbabweans have a political voice and that it is heard, loud and clear.At the heart of our national economic meltdown and the growing schism between the filthy rich few and the desperately poor majority is the systematic denial of the majority of a meaningful say in the governance of the country."Mwana asingachemi anofira mumbereko!" (The baby that does not cry will die on the mother's back!) so, goes the Shona saying.Last month's military coup saw the forced removal of Robert Mugabe and a handful of his senior associates in the G40 faction of Zanu PF. Many people have welcomed the change and some have argued that we should allow the new President Mnangagwa government the space and time to see if it will be any better than the Mugabe regime of the last 37 years. By all means, let us!Given the real economic mess the country is in, there is no doubt that there are many things that President Mnangagwa can do reduce the mismanagement and corruption, even if these changes are significant what we must not lose sight of is the need for political change designed to restore our political voice.We must not forget we are in this mess because we had lost our political voice. We need the political changes to restore our political voice otherwise the country will once again slip back into the same economic mess we are in. There is absolutely nothing that would lead one to believe that President Mnangagwa is doing anything to restore the common man's democratic freedoms and human rights include the right to free, fair and credible elections. Nothing!Indeed, if anything, President Mnangagwa is doing everything to consolidate his own iron grip on power. He has retained Mugabe's de facto one-party dictatorship and has dismissed all calls to implement democratic reforms with total contempt."Zanu PF ichatonga! Igotonga! Imi muchigohukura!" (Zanu PF will rule! And rule! Whilst you continue barking (about reforms)!) He boasted on his return from exile last month!President Mnangagwa has plans to improve the economy, whether or not any of them will add up to much, is doubtful.Some people have said Zimbabwe could have become the South Korea of Africa. Sadly, that was not to be, we have become the North Korea of Africa in every respect  Police State with a belligerent and ruthless authoritarian regime. Considering how far this nation has sunk in this economic hell hole under this Zanu PF dictatorship and the over 30 000 innocent lives murder in cold blood for no other reason than they dared to seek for a more just society; the very least we can do is to demand the democratic reforms and dare not drop the ball.The country's economic meltdown has hit the ordinary people hard but it was not spare the Zanu PF ruling elite either. The shrinking nation cake and the ballooning greed of the ruling elite has forced the number of those at the feeding trough to be reduced again and again. Zanu PF member have been fighting amongst themselves for feeding access like hyenas. The recent firing of then VP Mnangagwa followed soon after by the coup that forced Mugabe to resign was the collimation of the factional war that has torn Zanu PF asunder.The Zanu PF dictatorship is weaker now than it has ever been in all its 37 years in power. Zanu PF imploding has presented the nations with the next best opportunity, after the one wasted by MDC during the GNU, to push through the demands for democratic reforms.If all this nation ever get from the Zanu PF implosion was the replacement of one dictator, Mugabe, with another, Mnangagwa, leaving the dictatorship itself untouched; then we have dropped the ball for democratic change. All the misery brought on by the dictatorship and the lives lost along the way would have been all for nothing! Nothing would have changed; we started with a divided nation of a few filthy rich and with a veto vs the filthy poor with no political vote. Mugabe's going has brought no change, none, although the opportunity for change was and is still there if only people would open their eyes.
The All Progressives Congress (APC ) has called on PDP members to join the ruling party, if they can pass the integrity test to join it.

This was said following the outcome of the Peoples Democratic Partys national convention that held in Abuja on Saturday, APC likened the opposition party to the leopard, which, it says, cannot change its spots.

It was the APCs first official reaction to the national convention of the opposition party which has vowed to defeat it in the next general election.

APCs National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi said: With rrevelations of how money-for-votes and systematic rigging was brazenly perpetuated during the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party, the All Progressives Congress is mindful of the popular axiom, A leopard cannot change its spot.

The APC said the abnormalities that trailed the PDP National Convention have further exposed the PDP as a party that is not ready or willing to change.

Indeed, the PDP has, once again, displayed itself to the generality of Nigerians that it is a party with corruption deeply rooted in its DNA.

Again, it is tragic that the PDP which used to pride itself as the biggest political party in Africa has now been reduced to a regional party.

By frustrating (its) South West chairmanship candidates, it is unfortunate that the PDP has decided to punish the South West for not voting for the party in 2015.

We urge members of the PDP that can pass the integrity test to join the APC so that we can, together, bring about the much-needed change the country deserves.

Source : (NAN)
At least six Nigerian soldiers have been brutally killed after they were attacked by Boko Haram terrorists.

At least six soldiers died in two separate Boko Haram ambushes in Borno State, military and civilian militia sources said on Monday, according to a report by AFP.

It was gathered that four troops were killed and 12 injured on Sunday when their convoy was attacked near Damboa, 90 kilometres (56 miles) from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

Two soldiers were killed in the same area on Saturday, the sources told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to talk to the media.

Revealing how the tragic incident happened, a military officer in Maiduguri said Sundays ambush happened when troops were on patrol between the villages of Nyeneri and Falawani.

The terrorists came in huge numbers and attacked the convoy using IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and gun trucks, he added.

A member of the civilian self-defence force gave a similar account and death toll, and said the jihadists made off with weapons before reinforcements arrived.

He added: Two soldiers died on Saturday when the six vehicles they travelling in came under heavy attack from Boko Haram near Bulaburin (village), said the militia source.

The attacks came days after the military replaced the officer leading troops fighting Boko Haram following a surge in attacks, including against military outposts.

The incident has left many people in the area displaced and agitated.
Doctors have issued a stern warning to people who have undergone breast surgery to avoid doing this particular thing that could force their n*pples to fall off.

Smoking just one month before or after a breast surgery can lead to your n*pples turning black and falling off, according to a top plastic surgeon.

Even if you have never been a smoker, the toxins in a cigarette can cause blood supply to the healing breasts to be cut off ultimately making the nipples fall off.

But doctors can save the decaying nipples with a treatment that sounds just as bizarre as the prognosis  blood sucking medical-grade leeches.

Michigan plastic surgeon Dr Anthony Youn described his experience treating a patient who almost lost her nipples from smoking.

Surgeons advised to refrain from smoking during the time of any surgery.

Dr Youn told Daily Mail Online that it is especially dangerous to smoke when having a surgery where the blood supply is significantly altered such as tummy tucks, face lifts and boob jobs.

The nicotine and the carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke constricts blood vessels and you need that blood to heal and for your body to be alive, he said.

If the blood flow to a particular body part is greatly reduced or completely cut off, that body part dies.

When you smoke before you after surgery, the cigarette carbons act as a virtual tourniquet causing the nipple to die, a process called necrosis. Dr Youn said that the area will first turn purple or blue, which is a precursor to black, signifying that not enough blood is getting to the area.

Patients wont feel much pain, but instead the area will be numb and gradually get worse.

It could take several weeks before the nipple falls off on its own, but typically a doctor would surgically remove it and reconstruct the nipple and areola If you do make it to a doctor in time, they may be able to perform an unorthodox but timely treatment to save the nipple instead of cutting them off.

We use leeches to literally suck out the excess venous blood from the body part, acting as an attachable vein, Dr Youn wrote in a blog post describing the time he performed this on a patient. He placed leeches on top of the decaying nipple until the body part grew new blood vessels.

The leeches then drained the old blood, causing it to turn from unhealthy purple back to healthy pink, typically taking several days.

Dr Youn has successfully performed the treatment twice on nipples and once on a finger.

Leech therapy or hirudotherapy has been used in medicine for 2,500 years. The river-dwelling creatures provide a natural local anesthetic to reduce pain, a local vasodilator to widen blood vessels and hirudin which prevents further clogging.

While it may be a rare treatment, Dr Youn said that most big hospitals have medical leeches that can be accessed within hours.

He also said the more you smoke the higher your chances are of this occurring.

I tell patients to stop smoke three to four weeks before surgery and three to four weeks after, during the initial healing phase, he said.

It doesnt matter the quality of the doctor if you dont adhere to their guidelines.

Even if you had the best doctor, if you smoke around any type of surgery, it can happen to anyone, he added.

He adds that boob jobs arent the only plastic surgeries this can happen in .

If you smoke and have a face lift, skin on the face can die and show exposed fat, or if you have a tummy tuck a hole in your stomach can form, he said.
President Muhammadu Buhari will today travel to France alongside three governors for the One Planet Summit.

President Muhammadu Buhari will leave for Paris today to participate alongside over 50 world leaders in the One Planet Summit. The summit opens tomorrow. The Nigerian leader, who is accompanied by three governors and two ministers will return home on Thursday.

The summit, jointly organised by the United Nations, the World Bank Group, and the French Government in partnership with non-governmental organisations concerned about reversing the negative effects of climate change, like Bloomberg Philanthropies, holds at the eco-friendly La Seine Musicale, situated on the picturesque Seguin Island in western Paris.

The main focus of the summit, with the theme, Climate Change Financing, according to the organisers, will be to innovatively pool public and private finance to support and accelerate our common efforts to fight climate change.

While recognising that all countries are affected by the effects of climate change under One Planet but some are more vulnerable, the summit seeks for tangible collective action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Before heading for the Summit venue, the Nigerian leader will attend a lunch hosted by President Emmanuel Macron of France for Heads of State and Governments at the Elysee Palace.

President Buhari and other world leaders and participants will make presentations under four sub-themes namely: Scaling-up Finance for Climate Action; Greening Finance for Sustainable Business; Accelerating Local and Regional Climate Action; and Strengthening Policies for Ecological and Inclusive Transition.

While signing the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the sidelines of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 22, 2016, President Buhari had said it demonstrated Nigerias commitment to global efforts to reverse the effects of the negative trend.

He followed that significant step by signing the Instrument of Ratification of the Paris Agreement on March 28, 2017 at the State House, Abuja, making Nigeria the 146th party to the Paris Treaty. It became binding on the country effective June 15, 2017, one month after the submission of the Ratification instrument to the United Nations on May 16, 2017 by Nigerias Permanent Representative to the UN, Prof. Tijjani Bande.

The participation of Nigerias delegation at the One Planet Summit will reinforce the countrys commitment to realising the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

The President, who will depart for Paris on Monday, accompanied by the governors of Adamawa, Kano and Ondo States, and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Environment, will return to Abuja on Thursday.
# EndSARS

Last week, the Nigerian social media space went agog with the # EndSARS protest. According to them, they are tired of the injustice, brutality, intimidation, extortion and killings of innocent citizens by the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS ) and called for its immediate scrapping. Some Nigerians even shared stories of torture, a lack of respect for the rule of law, extortion, extrajudicial murder and the disappearance of hundreds of people. As a follow up to the online protest, some Nigerians this morning took to the streets to actually see that SARS no longer exists.

However, there was a protest by another set of Nigerians to counter the #EndSARS protest but reports have it that those protesters were allegedly paid by Nigerian police. Nigerian Police authorities allegedly rented protesters to counter # EndSARS rally in Abuja today According to photos shared by Sahara Reporters, some of t

Tithe: Between Daddy freeze and Pastor Adeboye

According to the RCCG, General Overseer, Pastor Adeboyes son, Leke Adeboye, controversial OAP, Daddy Freeze, has contributed in the increase in their church and for that, he thanks Freeze.
Some Nigerians today, protested against the Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Nigeria Police after stories of abuse went viral on social media forcing the Inspector-General of police to call for a reform of the unit.

Nigerians have trooped out to protest the brutality, intimidation, extortion and killings of innocent citizens by the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS ) and called for its immediate scrapping.

According to SaharaReporters, speaking at the rally, the convener #EndSARS #ReformPoliceNG , Segun Awosanya said that Nigerians have spent the last one week highlighting the travails many Nigerians suffer in the hands of the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS).

He said that the stories that have been recounted on social media include stories of torture, a lack of respect for the rule of law, extortion, extrajudicial murder and the disappearance of hundreds of people.

Awosanya noted that the police unit has outlived its usefulness and now constitutes a clear and present threat to the safety, well-being and welfare of most Nigerians.

The group has given the authorities 21 days within which to meet these demands failing which they will be compelled to resort to other measures to embarrass them into taking action.

They listed their demands as follows during the lead rally at the Unity Fountain Abuja:

1. We demand for an outright scrapping of the entire SARS unit across the country. Its members have become engrossed in crime, murder, brutality, extortion and disrespect for the rule of law in a manner that makes any attempt at reform a waste of time.

2. We demand the constitution of a panel by the Police Services Commission to reform the Nigerian Police in its entirety.

The agenda must include provisions for better training of police officers; provision of better equipment and firearms; better welfare including housing, insurance, prompt payment of salaries and pensions etc; establishment of a code of conduct and strict compliance thereto as well as strong disciplinary measures for any officer who violates the code of conduct.

3. We also demand a public hearing at the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to enable Nigerians to table their grievances before our elected representatives as well as the submission of memoranda on reforms of the Nigerian Police including recommendations on the amendment of laws to ensure a more efficient police force.

4. We demand thorough investigations into complaints filed against SARS officers. We demand that such officers be identified and immediately brought to justice. In some cases, we will provide video and pictorial evidence against officers who have been seen to be involved in such acts of brutality and extortion
Femi Falana (SAN) a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, reveals that the source of the Boko Haram arms and ammunition are looted from the armoury in Libya. Not without blaming the slave trade in Libya to the fallout from the removal and brutal killing of President Muammar Gaddafi by armed gangs.

In a statement released on Sunday in Lagos, Why Nigerian victims of slavery cannot sue Libya Falana says; Today, not less than five armed gangs are laying claim to the leadership of the country. It has been confirmed that the arms and ammunition looted from the armoury in Libya were sold to the dreaded Boko Haram sect. It is also true that the shameful slave trade which Nigeria is battling with is part of the fallout from the removal and brutal killing of President Muammar Gaddafi by armed gangs supported by the allied forces of imperialism led by the United States under President Barrack Obama.
Opinion / Columnist

Contacts

Cases of women raping men after drugging them have been on the increase in some parts of Southern Africa especially Zimbabwe and South Africa.Sometime fours years ago a Zimbabwean man fell victim to three ladies who offered him a lift at Westgate in Harare. It is alleged that the three ladies pulled off the road their Toyota Sedan and stopped at the bus stop where a number of people usually wait for transport to ferry them to Banket , Chinhoyi, Karoi and Chirundu. He got into the car and the accused persons drove some few kilometers and stopped gave the man some liquid to drink which was suspected to be a drug and he fell unconscious and they took turns to rape him. He was later found nak*d by passerbys and he later reported the case to the police.A similar incident has occurred yesterday Sunday in Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. The police are currently looking for two middle aged women who sexually assaulted a 25-year-old man after offering him a lift to Tzaneen early yesterday morning.It is alleged that the two women, who were travelling in a sedan from Polokwane to Tzaneen, gave the victim a lift at Polokwane hiking spot. They drove into the bushes in Makgoebaskloof, at gunpoint and forced him to drink a certain substance and subsequently exchanged in raping him, said Police Spokesperson, Lt Col Moatshe Ngoepe.After the ordeal it is alleged that they drove further with the victim and dropped him off in a secluded area near Tzaneen Central Business Centre, where he proceeded to the Tzaneen Police Station and reported the matter the matter explained Ngoepe.Preliminary information revealed that the suspects were travelling in a Toyota Tazz with registration numbers 0616L, confirmed Ngoepe.It is believed that these kind of women who have been on the rampages of raping men are sort of infected with sexual transmitted diseases and are believed to be of high sexual drive because very few men are after them or they could have been divorced. Some alleged that it has something to do with rituals where they would be targeting sperms of men which they will use to boost their businesses. Men are encouraged not to hitch hike cars where there are three or more female occupants or they risk being raped.Facebook - Leonard KoniTwitter - @leokoniWhatsapp - +27747402042Email - konileonard606@gmail.com
A Nigerian man took proposals to a new level after he bent the knee and asked the girlfriend to marry him 30,000 feet above sea level.

A Nigerian man has melted hearts and shown the way for many others to follow after he upped his game by proposing to his girlfriend on board a plane to Dubai.

The man identified as Tayo Adesokan proposed to his girlfriend, Tolu Sanya 30,000 ft above sea level, on a Medview Flight to Dubai.

Without wasting time on board, Tayo bent the knee in front of many stunned people to pop the question. His bride to be, Tolu didnt waste anytime to say yes. It was indeed a beautiful moment as people cheered the couple.
A human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), has said that Nigerian victims of slavery can not sue the Libya government, for the violation of their rights.

This was said in a statement by Mr. Falana, on Sunday he said, that the victims would have been able to approach the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights sitting in Arusha, Tanzania, but had been deprived access to the only international court due to the Nigerian governments failure to make a declaration accepting the courts jurisdiction.

He stated that the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States, which Nigeria had accepted its jurisdiction was only limited to West African states.

He stated, Since the jurisdiction of the community court is limited to the West African sub-region, Nigerians whose rights are breached in other African countries would have been able to seek redress in the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights sitting in Arusha, Tanzania.

But that is not possible as the Federal Government has refused to make a declaration accepting the jurisdiction of the Court in line with Article 34(6) of the Protocol establishing the African Court which provides that At the time of the ratification of this Protocol or any time thereafter the State shall make a declaration accepting the competence of the court to receive petitions under Article 5(3) of this Protocol.

The court shall not receive any petition under Article 5(3) involving a state party which has not made such a declaration.

He said although, Libya too had not accepted the jurisdictional competence of the African Court, the victims of the illegal slave trade in that country could have submitted a petition to the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights and thereafter apply that the communication be referred to the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights for judicial determination.

He added, But since Nigeria has not facilitated access to the African Court, the victims of the slave trade in Libya have been left without any legal remedy whatsoever.

In other words, the infringement of the human rights of the victims to dignity and freedom from discrimination guaranteed by articles 2 and 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights cannot be challenged in the African Court.

He demanded that the Federal Government compensated the victims and accepted the African Courts jurisdiction before December 31, 2017 otherwise he would sue the FG.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, has also lamented on the loss incurred by the Nigerian Army in trying to fight the Boko Haram sect in Nigeria, he said the Nigerian army has also suffered tragic human loss. 

Buratai said this on Sunday in his remarks to mark the International Human Rights Day, noting that the insurgency jeopardised the peace and security of a number of states, the rights to life and the liberty of the people.

The army chief stated that the military believed that human rights were essential components of the combat operations, adding that the army affirmed its commitment to the protection and advancement of human rights and fundamental freedom.

Buratai said, Terrorism has a very real and direct impact on human rights with devastating consequences on the enjoyment of the right to life, liberty and physical integrity of victims.

These acts of terrorism jeopardised peace and security in a number of states. It also threatened social and economic development. All of these also have a real impact on the enjoyment of human rights.

The human and economic costs of the acts of terrorism and insurgency have been felt in virtually every nook and cranny of Nigeria. The army has itself suffered tragic human loss as a result of violent terrorists acts.

The army chief added, Our rules of engagement and code of conduct affirm human rights as core values. We are committed to adopting measures that ensure respect for human rights as the basis of our civil-military relationship.

We have developed strong partnerships with the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Committee of the Red Cross as well as the Nigerian Bar Association.

The need for the establishment of a human rights office came with the increasing interest of human rights organisations in the armys ongoing military operations. The army embraces the idea and we will continue to do our part to spread awareness and support for human rights.

The United Nations commemorates the Human Rights Day on December 10 since 1948, when the UN General Assembly adopted the universal declaration of human rights.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
A Proud Nigerian mother, Mrs. U.O. Nwadiogu, and her son Mr. B.A. Nwadiogu, will both be called to bar this week, as Barristers and Solicitors of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The ceremony will take place on the 12th and 13th of December respectively at the International Conference Centre Abuja.

Her son, Arthur took to Facebook to share the good news, he wrote;

Wow

Its here, The moment weve all been waiting for.

Our Journey of Six years has finally brought about so much joy and fulfillment in our hearts.Im actually very overjoyed.

Celebrate with us as my Mother Mrs U.O. Nwadiogu and I Mr B.A. Nwadiogu are called to the Bar as Barristers and Solicitors of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on the 12th and 13th of December respectively at the International Conference Centre Abuja .

It could have only been God,and were grateful.

See more pictures below;
Days after more Nigerians were rescued back home from Libya, the victims have been sharing their sad experiences in the North Africa.

One of them, who gave his name as Lucky Akoluche, said the traffickers used migrants, including Nigerians, to test the efficacy of their firearms.

Akoluche, a 28-year-old man from Ikah North-East Local Government Area of Delta State, told Southern City News that the armed traffickers did not value the lives of their victims.

The Libyans killed people the way they liked. When they bought new guns, they used human beings to test the guns. They call us black monkeys, the returnee stated.

Akoluche, who claimed to be a student of the Delta State Polytechnic, Ozoro, said he made up his mind to drop out of school in search of better means of livelihood in Europe when he could no longer afford his school fees.

He also said he was repatriated with an injury in his right hand, which he sustained during a fight with a Gambian migrant.

I left Nigeria for Europe on April 25, 2016. I wanted to go to Germany, but I had to go through Libya. I left Nigeria because of the suffering that my family and I were facing.

I was in the second semester of my first year in Ozoro Polytechnic. But I could not continue because of lack of money to pay my fees, he explained.

Akoluche added, So, my sister assisted me with some money, which I used to travel. My friends also advised me to go. I spent about N2m.

I regret abandoning my studies for a trip abroad. Libya is not good; I did not know that it was like that. I should have searched for something to do here in Nigeria.

Akoluche advised those nursing the idea of travelling from Nigeria to Europe by land to have a rethink.

It is better to stay in Nigeria because many people are dying in Libya. There was no water and food for days.

People die at sea. About 10 persons died in my presence due to lack of water and food for up to a month. Some decomposing bodies were seen in the desert as we were travelling.

I thank the government for bringing me back. But I appeal to the government to help me with my treatment. I am also willing to work, the returnee added.

Meanwhile, a new batch of returnees is expected to be received by the Edo State Government on Wednesday.

The Secretary of the state Task force on Anti-human Trafficking, Mrs. Oyemwense Abieyuwa, who disclosed this shortly after the arrival of 98 male returnees in Benin, said the state government would do its best to rehabilitate the returnees.

Immediately we received them, we interviewed them. So, we have all their details; we are going to do a follow-up.

Some of them went home. But that does not mean that we have lost touch. We get in touch with them at every point, Abieyuwa added.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
Luck has ran out on two notorious armed robbers after they were caught by men of the Nigeria police in Ogun state.

The Ogun state police command has arrested two men who specialised in car snatching across Ogun state. The two, Damilola Omolegbe and Saidi Asirikoko were arrested at oko ape area of igbogila on Friday 8th of December 2017.

One of the suspects, Damilola Omolegbe contacted one Abimbola Olaore, a driver of Toyota Camry with registration number KJA 164 EX in order to hire his vehicle from Alimoso in Lagos to Igbogila on an agreed fee. On getting to oko ape area, he asked the driver to stop for him to ease himself only for two other men to emerge from the bush with dangerous weapons and tied him with rope after beaten him severely and dispossessed him of his car.

Unfortunately for the suspects, while escaping with the car, they ran into a ditch and the vehicle was unable to move further. They jumped down and ran into a nearby bush.

Distress call was made to the police, consequence of which the Area Commander Ilaro, ACP Titus Musa detailed police patrol team to the scene. The bush was thoroughly combed by the policemen in collaboration with the members of the community and the two suspects were eventually arrested while the remaining one escaped. The car has been recovered to the station.

Meanwhile the commissioner of police CP Ahmed iliyasu has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to FSARS for discreet investigation.

ASP ABIMBOLA OYEYEMI, PPRO OGUN STATE.
Still on the issue of tithes in churches, son of the general overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), has come out to thank Daddy Freeze on Twitter. Identified as Leke Adeboye, the last born of the Pastor adeboye on Monday, December 11, took to his Twitter account to show love to the controversial radio presenter. He thanked him for making more people realise why they must pay their tithes. He also thanked Daddy Freeze because the viewership of the churchs event increased in a short time.

His post reads: Thank you my brother. There has been a 33% increase in the number of people viewing RCCG events, increase in the amount of people paying their correct tithes, increase in the number of persons visiting the personal website of EAADEBOYE.COM and sending him emails and the amount of persons watching all messages from start to finish on any Pentecostal live events has increased. So I personally want to say thank you to @daddyfreeze.

source: Twitter
Former vice-president Atiku Abubakar paid a visit to former Head of State Ibrahim Babangida in his home in Minna, Niger State.

Atiku had reportedly gone to seek for Babangidas endorsement for his candidacy for president in 2019.

According to Premium Times, Babangida had a very useful political discussion with the former vice president, his spokesperson Kassim Afegbuan saying:

They had a very useful political discussion. IBB also has a good relationship with Atiku.

A photo showing the former vice-president squatting to address Babangida has since circulated on social media.

While some have termed it a show of respect due to a Northern elder, others have described it as a show of desperation to get elected.

See some reactions
The Nigerian Police have arrested 28 suspected kidnappers, armed robbers and car snatchers terrorising the Abuja-Jere-Kaduna highways.

The suspects were said to have been apprehended by the IGP Special Tactical Squad which raided some identified kidnappers den, camps, black spots and hideouts in the forests located in the Federal Capital Territory, Niger and Kaduna states.

Parading the suspects on Friday, the police spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, said many of them were caught in the act of collecting ransom from families of kidnapped victims.

According to Moshood, all the suspects confessed to the crimes.

He said they would be arraigned in court after full investigation.

He said, All the suspects arrested confessed to the various roles they played in the commission of the crimes and some of them have been identified by their victims.

Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police has directed Assistant Inspectors-General of Police and Commissioners of Police in the zones and state commands across the country to beef up security in their area of responsibility.

The police spokesman stated that the police would continue to raid black spots and flashpoints to nip in the bud all forms of crimes nationwide during the Yuletide period and beyond.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
A student of Delta State Polytechnic, Sofia Ogogo, and a civil servant, Victor Emeagwai, were both shot dead by a policeman attached to the Igbuzo Police Division, identified as Sergeant Abuja, at a checkpoint in the community.

The victims were in a Toyota Corolla, driven by an estate agent, Jerry Akinlabi, when the incident happened. Ogogo and Emeagwai are Akinlabis girlfriend and friend respectively.

PUNCH Metro learnt that a team of five policemen, including Abua, had flagged down Ogogo at a checkpoint along Igbuzo Market.

One of the policemen, identified as Nwokolo, was said to have demanded money from Akinlabi and the driver told him that he did not have N200 to give him.

Nwokolo reportedly said he would take one of the N1,000 notes Jerry had on him.

As Akinlabi drove off from the checkpoint, Abua reportedly shot at the car and bullets pierced the back of the vehicle, hitting Ogogo, who sat at the back seat.

The bullet also grazed the back of Emeagwai, who was at the passengers seat.

Akinlabi told our correspondent that four cops, including the team leader, one ASP Akhabue, were detained by the police, while Abua evaded arrest.

He said, On Sunday, November 17, 2017, I was driving to the Igbuzor Market and on getting to a checkpoint, I met the policemen. We knew one another some months ago when I had an issue concerning a property at the station. I sounded the horn to greet them, but they did not respond.

One of them used his gun to hit the boot and I reversed. He said I wanted to beat the checkpoint. I told him that I assumed that they knew me very well and apologised. He demanded money. I wanted to give him N100 or N200, but it was N1,000 notes I had on me and I explained to him.

He said, Am I too small to collect N1,000? When I declined to give him N1,000, he asked me to pull over, which I did. As the argument over N1,000 got heated, I entered my car and drove off. What I heard next was three gunshots aimed at my car.

A bullet pierced into the car, hit my girlfriends body, came out and hit my friend in the back.

The 22-year-old indigene of Oyo State said he took the victims to a general hospital in Igbuzo, from where Ogogo was referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba.

He said he called a senior police officer at Asaba who notified the state Commissioner of Police of the incident.

He said, The CP and the DPO of the Igbozo Police Station came to the FMC and deposited N100,000, but I have spent much more than that. Meanwhile, the policeman who shot at us had gone to drop the gun at the station and fled. The other four policemen were detained at the command headquarters. My friend and I wrote our statements there.

Akinlabi explained that a police officer asked him to drop his car key to aid investigation. He added that he handed over the car key, but activated the steering lock because he suspected foul play.

He said he met with the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 5, Benin, Edo State, who assigned a policeman to take his statement, adding that the policeman came down to the police command, Asaba, the following day.

As I was returning from Zone 5 on Monday, I received a call from the Investigating Police Officer at the police headquarters in Asaba and he asked for the steering key. The IPO and a policeman came down to the hospital and I told them I would have to look for the key when I got home.

The policeman sent from Zone 5 invited my friend to the police headquarters in Asaba to write his statement too. When he got there, he saw some policemen moving the car. He called to ask me if I gave them the key to unlock the steering and I said no. When I called the IPO, he confirmed what my friend said and he told me that there was no cause for alarm.

He said the command returned his car washed, with the bullet holes on the vehicle covered and painted, lamenting that he had not heard from the command and zone 5.

Akinlabis girlfriend, Ogogo, who spoke to PUNCH Metro from the hospital, said she was on the telephone when the bullet hit her.

That was the last thing I remembered until I found myself at the hospital, she added.

Emeagwai urged the police authorities not to sweep the case under the carpet, saying the policemen must be punished.

He said, I dont see any reason for the shooting. I have been going to the FMC to treat the gunshot injury for about three weeks now. The policemen should not go scot-free.

Harrison Gwamnishu, the Coordinator of Behind Bars, a rights group, which Akinlabi contacted on the matter, said the group would institute a legal action against the police.

He said, We want to charge the case to court as a civil matter. It is barbaric. Why did the police wash the bloodstains in the car and covered the bullet holes without the consent of the owner?

The Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Andrew Aniamaka, said the policemen would be brought to book if found culpable after investigation.

He said, The case is being investigated. However, our utmost concern is that the injured victim gets proper treatment. The Area Commander and the DPO of the division in question are involved in the matter.

The case is being investigated by Zone 5. Where somebody is absent from duty for 21 days without any reason, we declare such a person a deserter. So, there is no anxiety that the policeman is on the run. Rest assured that the right thing will be done.

Source : ( Punch Newspaper )
Miller & Martin chairman James Haley IV photo by John Shearer Sign in lobby of Miller & Martin photo by John Shearer Vintage plaque on outside of Volunteer Building photo by John Shearer Firms commemorative water bottle photo by John Shearer Back side of water bottle photo by John Shearer Previous Next

From one of the Miller & Martin law firms meeting rooms atop the 12th floor of the Volunteer Building, a stunning view of downtown Chattanooga and beyond is offered.It could be symbolic of the reach that the firm has had on the community as well, as many of the visible places have been impacted by the firms services over the years.And that reach brings satisfaction to chairman James Haley IV and others, as the firm is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year.Weve spent the last year looking back with justifiable pride, said Mr.Haley, who possessed an easily approachable manner during a recent interview and gave little hint that he heads Chattanoogas largest and oldest law firm. Its been fun to recognize what the people who came before us have done and the brand they created.In recent weeks, the firm has hosted events for clients and employees at such places as the Hunter Museum of Art and the Chattanooga Theatre Center. A book, Substance Matters: The History of Miller, has also been written by former Miller & Martin attorney and current McCallie School administrator Thomas E. Hayes.And U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, who owns the Volunteer Building where the firms offices are, recently offered some words of congratulations to them in person after flying back from Washington, D.C. Sen. Corker in a foreword in the book said that he has used the services of Miller & Martin and that Mr. Haley is his primary relationship attorney.The firm has also done some volunteer work at United Way agencies as part of the anniversary celebration to focus as well on its belief in community service and being good civic stewards.According to the Substance Matters book, the firm traces its roots on the Miller side to T.M. Burkett. The son of a Methodist minister, the uncle of White Burkett Miller, and the great-uncle of well-known mid-20th century attorney Burkett Miller, he was a Confederate Civil War veteran who had passed the state of Tennessee bar in 1867 and began practicing in Athens, Tenn.The Martin side traces its roots to Maj. William Stanhope Marshall, a veteran of the Union Army who was captured at the Battle of Missionary Ridge. He had resumed his law practice after the war and had become a citizen of Chattanooga in 1867. Later partners of his firm included George White and Francis Martin, the father of longtime firm partner H. Linton Martin.After the firm of White and Martin faced off against Col. Burkett and W.B. Miller in 1905 in a case involving disagreements between the two Methodist-founded colleges in East Tennessee named after former President U.S. Grant, they merged firms.One of the combined firms early cases of note was one in which the infant U.S. Food and Drug Administration decided to go after Coca-Cola over the fact that caffeine was in the drink and the agency considered it very unhealthy.Representing the Coca-Cola interests in the trial, which did result in Coca-Cola agreeing in a later settlement to reduce the amount of caffeine in its drink to half, W.B. Miller came into contact with various urbane, civil and progressive individuals. As a result, that trial gave him his own boost of natural energy to change Chattanooga.His new outlook was also influenced by his view of the rugged frontier that still existed to some extent in the Appalachian South and that he saw played out about the same time with the tragic murder of his father on his McMinn County farm. That incident had occurred after a tenant of the farm, George Rose, had coerced White B. Millers brother, Bascom Miller, who had special mental needs, to ambush his father and hold him down while Mr. Rose struck the father with an axe.As a result, White B. Miller wanted Chattanooga to be a more civilized town. To accomplish that, he sent his McCallie School-educated son, Burkett Miller, to the University of the South at Sewanee for undergraduate work and the University of Virginia Law School. Meanwhile, Burketts brother, Vaughn, who also went to McCallie, attended Yale for undergraduate studies and then Harvard Law School.Vaughn Miller also became well acquainted with the famous as well as the finest. At Yale, he was best friends with (composer and song-writer) Cole Porter, said Mr. Haley. Cole Porter came to Chattanooga some to visit him. And Vaughn clerked for (Supreme Court Justice) Oliver Wendell Holmes.He enjoyed a successful career with the firm until his death in 1964.Mr. Haley added that Burkett Miller before his death in 1977 also became quite successful in business and became philanthropic through the Tonya Foundation. Tonya was a mysterious name that he had named his yachts while enjoying a vacation home in South Florida and becoming acquainted with such people as tobacco baron R.J. Reynolds.The Tonya Foundation went on to help a number of downtown and riverfront development projects, including Miller Park and Plaza, the Willie Miller Eye Center, the Tennessee Riverwalk, the Tivoli Theatre restoration and Coolidge Park.Mr. Miller was also involved in the development of Miller Park in part through his own visionary plans.Burkett Miller had also been involved in the creation of the now-well-known Miller Center, a non-partisan center affiliated with the University of Virginia that specializes in presidential scholarship, public policy and political history. Mr. Haley said the center is a repository for oval office voice recordings, and also does a study on the first year of a presidency, as it is currently doing with Donald Trump.Mr. Haley said he first worked for the Miller & Martin firm as a clerk in the summer of 1974 while attending the University of Tennessee College of Law, and said he remembers seeing from his small office two distinguished-looking gentlemen being ushered back to Burkett Millers office. He later learned they were the U.Va. president and the governor of Virginia, Mills Godwin, and they were there to talk to Mr. Miller about his idea for starting the center.He (Mr. Miller) thought there was a lot of rancor (among politicians), said Mr. Haley regarding Burkett Millers motivation for the founding of the center. Were real proud of that legacy.Mr. Haley remembered that Mr. Miller was a slightly unique person, but one who was certainly easily approachable.At that point in the late 1970s, he wore suits off white and they looked like they had been put under the pillow the night before, he recalled with a laugh. He was a rumpled looking guy, but very direct. He knew what he wanted to do. And he was certainly polite to me.During those early years working for the firm fulltime beginning in 1975, Mr. Haley  a Baylor graduate and former Morehead-Cain Scholar at the University of North Carolina -- said he also became acquainted with another person working in the Volunteer Building. He said the firms offices at that time were only on the 10th floor of the Volunteer Building, and he would park in the garage and ride up to his office via a man-operated elevator.Regularly he would see an unassuming-looking man get out of his Pontiac automobile and head up to his office. And often they would enjoy some light conversation.Only after a few conversations did Mr. Haley learn that his elevator mate was Cartter Lupton, who, despite his low-key demeanor, was one of the richest people in the South with his Coca-Cola bottling interests later headed by his son, Jack Lupton.He was totally non-descript and a gentleman, Mr. Haley recalled.During that time when Mr. Haley was just getting started with the firm, Miller & Martin was involved in another high-profile case. It involved the FDIC takeover of the financially straddled Hamilton National Bank in 1976 as the institution became part of First Tennessee Bank.Through the years, the firm has continued being involved in large and small cases in its primary work of serving as a business law firm. Mr. Haley said it works primarily in the areas of corporate law, litigation, and commercial law, including real estate and bankruptcy.Besides those who have distinguished themselves in various ways with the firm, its alumni also include former district federal Judge R. Allan Edgar and former District Attorney Gary Gerbitz.Miller & Martin has also tried to be a good civic partner in Chattanooga and beyond, Mr. Haley said.But the firm  with about 80 attorneys in Chattanooga and another 45 in Nashville, Atlanta and Charlotte -- also has its eyes on the future. Mr. Haley said he knows the profession of law is changing in this age of increased technology, and artificial intelligence will be able to quickly provide information for lawyers that sometimes formerly took hours of research.But even with a nearby computer, he hopes the people aspect for his large firm remains as important as it was for the founders working with only a pen, paper and a lamplight nearby.A lot of it will be focusing on relationships and understanding of clients and businesses, Mr. Haley said. Our goal will be to add value to the client.Jcshearer2@comcast.net
Some police officers who arrested a Lagos hotelier have found themselves in serious problem after their action came into light.

It has been revealed that the team of policemen that allegedly handcuffed and bundled a Lagos hotelier into the boot of their vehicle from Apapa to their base in Ikorodu area of the state, have been arrested.

According to Vanguard, the policemen attached to the Zonal Intervention Unit, Ikorodu, stormed Formula 2 Hotel and Suites in Apapa area of Lagos recently, to effect the arrest of its owner, Mr. Obimdi Ocho, over claims that his guards were found with guns.

In a petition to the Inspector General of Police, Idris Ibrahim, lawyer to the victim, Dan Okoro, alleged that the policemen placed a gun on the victims hand, took a shot of him and, thereafter, demanded for N1 million.

According to the lawyer, the officer told the hotelier that if he doesnt come up with the amount, the pictures will be released to journalists.

The petition, entitled Complaint Against Supol Salawu of Zonal Intervention Unit, Ikorodu, for Professional Misconduct, Misuse of Police Power, Extortion and Incivility to Members of the Public, further stated that the policemen threatened to brandish the victim as a robber if he failed to part with the demanded sum.

The petition read: Our client has briefed us that on November 24, some policemen bashed into his hotel complex in a commando style and when our client came out to meet them, they told him that they had information that his private security men in the hotel were armed.

Our client told them that the arm he had has a licence and it was shown to the policemen.

However, our client was informed by the policemen that the Pump Action gun does not have a licence, but our client informed them that when the gun was bought, he took it to Ikeja, where the said gun was issued a licence in the year 2015.

When our client was questioned about using a gun in the hotel, he told them that cultists were always disturbing his customers and members of the public, dispossessing them of their belongings.

He said cult boys usually come to the hotel to engage the guards in fights, injuring them in the process. One of the cases was reported at Trinity Police Station, where the cultists were arrested and handed over to Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, FSARS, from where they were charged to court.

One of the security men, Cyril Nwachukwu, was also arrested and taken to their office without dropping their address or phone number. Our client quickly ran to Trinity Police Station to inform them of the situation.

But he was told that the policemen were from the Zonal Intervention Squad, Ladegboye, Ikorodu.

Vanguard gathered that the IGP forwarded the petition to Zone 2 Command, Onikan, with a directive to fish out the policemen involved and investigate their culpability.

As at Friday, Police sources at Zone 2 Command told Vanguard that four policemen, who were involved, had been apprehended.

When contacted, the Zonal Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmus, confirmed the arrest and disclosed that the policemen involved were being investigated at the X Squad section of the Federal Criminal Investigation Department, Alagbon, Lagos.
A six-woman-child-trafficking team, have been arrested by the Imo State Police Command for allegedly specialised in stealing children from churches and selling them to buyers.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Andrew Enwerem, a Superintendent of Police, said the prime suspect, Nnenna Njoku (32), allegedly used her 10-year-old daughter, Chinecherem Onyejiaka, to lure children from churches and homes to her mother.

The police spokesperson, who identified the other suspects as Ijeoma Eboka, Irene Ogbuehi, Chinyere Mark, Perpetua Dike, Lilian Asoluka, Grace Ogueri and Edith Ejiaga, said investigation revealed that the number of children missing in the prime suspects area of operation was nine.

Enwerem said, After a thorough investigation, the prime suspect, Nnenna Njoku, a resident of Umuagwo in Imo State, was arrested.

She was detained and later released on bail to help the police to track down other suspects she sold the children to. The prime suspect confessed to stealing three children.

The other suspects were arrested and they made confessional statements, which led to the recovery of three children  Ezinne Nwosu (4), Chimjindum Felix (3),and Rejoice Ezirim (3).

The police spokesman said the rescued children had been released to their biological parents.

It is worthy of note that one Chimaobi Duru (4),was earlier recovered from the prime suspect, Nnenna Njoku, and has been released to his biological parents, Mr. and Mrs. Victor Duru from Anambra State. Effort is on to recover the remaining stolen children, Enwerem added.

The police spokesperson said the state Commissioner of Police, Chris Ezike, had ordered that the suspects be charged to court to answer for their crime at the conclusion of investigations.

The prime suspect, a divorcee and mother of five children, told our correspondent that she made N380,000 from the sale of the three children to Eboka, an indigene of Delta state.

She said while she stole the children from different churches in Imo State, she took them to Eboka at different meeting points in Anambra State, who sold them to waiting buyers.

The second buyer, Ogbueri (45) from Orlu in Imo State,confessed that she bought two children from Eboka for N600,000 each, while she sold them at N750,000 to Dike (60), and another buyer who was at large.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
President Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR), inaugurated a new state-of-the-art Rice Mill factory located at Amarawa Village, in Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State.

The mill is owned and operated by Amarava Agro Processors Limited, a subsidiary of Fullmark Group, the new factory is the first made in Nigeria Rice Mill with all fabrications and installations of the factory made in Kano with almost 100 percent local content.

President Buhari Inaugurates First Made in Nigeria Rice Mill in Kano

Speaking during the inauguration of the factory, President Muhammadu Buhari commended the management of Fullmark Group for its effort, which he noted is in line with the agricultural revolution of his government to reduce importation of rice by encouraging local farmers and investors.

President Muhammadu Buhari noted that investment in Rice Mills would encourage and boost the confidence of the local rice farmers and a right step in the right direction in moving Nigeria closer to complete independent from importation of rice and improve food security across the country.

He explained that, Nigerias continued dependence on rice importation has put a strain on the economy as well as the nations food flow as a substantial amount of our foreign exchange goes into rice importation yearly. With this mill in operation, Nigeria would continue to progress towards food self-sufficiency.

President Buhari Inaugurates First Made in Nigeria Rice Mill in Kano

Also speaking at the inauguration of the factory, the chairman of Fullmark Group Mr. Sriram Venkateswaran revealed that the entire idea of the project was conceived, designed, manufactured, executed from start-to-finish in Kano, Nigeria.

Explaining the production capacity of the factory, Mr. Sriram disclosed that Amarava Agro Processors Limited has the capacity to produce up to 288 metric tonnes of top quality per-boiled rice per day when operating in full capacity but its currently producing 250 metric tonnes per day.

While commenting on the quality of the Rice produced from the mill, Sriram said, Our rice is best in class in terms of quality which is comparable to the best available anywhere in the world and is often compared to Thai Rice.

President Buhari Inaugurates First Made in Nigeria Rice Mill in Kano

He further revealed that beyond being the first made in Nigeria Rice Mill facility, the Amarava Agro Processors Limited Rice Mill is the first to be fully equipped with the capacity to convert waste to energy.

We use the steam from the mill to drive steam turbines which generates about 500 KVA of electricity which is used in powering the factory and this is why we say that at Amarava, we believe in producing more and conserving more he added.

Mr. Sriram then commended President Buharis led Government for its sustained efforts in empowering farmers and enriching the nation through well thought-out agricultural developmental policies. He assured the President that the company would continue to support the effort of the government to enhance and stabilize food production in the country.

In his own remarks at the occasion the Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Abdullahi Umar Ganduje also expressed delight over the new Rice Mill, applauding the management of the company for locating and selecting Kano for such a strategic agriculture project. It is very laudable for Amarava Agro Processors Limited to have picked the Amarawa Village, in Gezawa Local Government Area for this project. This shows that the company places high importance on social development as well as industrial growth.

Source: ( Linda Ikeji )
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has declared Ugochukwu Sandra Alexandra Nneka from Nnewi area in Anambra state wanted for conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretence.

The anti-graft agency has asked anybody with useful information to contact the commission. Also writing, a Nigerian banker and activist, Safiya Stephanie Musa who claimed to know Nneka accused her of almost duping her.

She wrote on Facebook: and my old Classmate who almost duped me is finally wanted by the EFCC.

Nneka Ugochukwu was one of the very brilliant ones we had in my set. How she became a crook with her God given brain still beats me wallahi. She was even a Prefect fa.

When I raised alarm on Facebook 2013, many of my classmates came to beg me privately to let her be. Now that you know shes indeed a Criminal, hope you all feel bad knowing how your plea and disbelief made it possible for her to swindle more people. If we had taken up her case then, gaskiya she for no see chance swindle people again fa.



This one EFCC is sharing black and white photo..Ive shared a clearer colored Photo. EFCC needs to search beyond Nigeria. Check Ghana where she claims she has hotels, hospitals etc and Dubai which was her last abode.

She use to move around with 2 of her daughters (they look like her younger Sisters though), so the EFCC should be on the lookout for 3 Ladies.

Na those her daughters she use tell me sob story wey make me part with my money wallahi. she blocked me everywhere and thought she had escaped with my money. She no know say na my hard earned money I give her, so I ready to look for her inside snake hole or bee hive. She eventually gave a friend my money when she saw I wasnt relenting. I had already reported her to the Nigerian Ambassador and an Emirati friend who works with Immigration.
In one month, the Edo State Government has received 1,100 indigenes who were deported from Libya. They left the state for Europe through Libya in search of greener pasture. Many of them died on the way, many others were sold as slaves, while many who were held in Libyan prisons were severely tortured. Some of the returnees in Benin spoke to Daily Trust on Sunday about their harrowing experiences.

I was sold for N300,000  Harrison Okotie (35)

A friend of mine sold the idea of travelling to Europe to me and my sister, who we travelled together with, assisted me with some money. We paid the traffickers N600, 000 each to take us to Libya. When we got to Libya, we were arrested and sold to Arabs at N300,000 each. I never knew I was being sold because they would tell you that, they were taking you to cross over to Italy. It is only when you reach their destination that you would know that you were sold as slave.

From that moment, you would be under his rules and regulations until you are able to pay double the amount he claimed to have paid for your freedom. I was tortured daily, they even stabbed me on my back for not being able to pay a ransom. They will tell you to control your family at home to bring money, but if the money was not forthcoming you would face severe torture.

A Nigerian was shot in the presence of our ambassador for attempting to join the queue to register for deportation. Four people died in my presence due to torture. Our suffering in the hands of the Arab increased when we started telling the United Nations that we wanted to go home. The Arabs would always ask us to tell the UN that we needed food and clothes but we would tell them that we wanted to go home due to the way and manner we were being tortured. By the time the UN personnel leave, it would be 24 hours torture and we would be denied the loaf of bread we were given each. Even if I am given the opportunity again, I will never go to any Arab country. I left my wife and two children here in search of a greener pasture only to face torture.

I was shot for attempting to register for deportation  Amos Oghogho (25)

I left Benin on June 24 this year and within a week I was in Libya. While there, I was working in a car wash in Saba city. My suffering started when I had to leave for Subuata town because of too many kidnappings and slavery. As soon as I got to Subuata, war broke out between militants. As I was going to work, the police arrested me and took me to prison. Nigerians at the prison were more than 1,000, and because of the number, we were moved to a prison in the desert. There they used to drug our food because as soon as you eat that food, you go to sleep immediately. For the three months I stayed in prison I never had a bath. They were using us to trade because as soon as they release you after paying ransom, another group would arrest you and the torture continued. All the months I spent in prison, it was only macaroni they fed us and it was once a day. I was shot while trying to register to be deported back to Nigeria. When I wanted to join the queue, the police asked me to go back, but as I was explaining to him my intention, another one shot me on the hand. They later took me to a hospital where they performed surgery on the hand. I can never advise anybody to go to Libya.

I saw my twin brother shot dead for not being able to pay ransom  Abel Osifo Christopher (36)

My destination was Italy and not Libya but I was not able to cross before we were bundled into prison. The journey cost me N680,000. I sold my car to raise the money and move on June 13, this year. My experience in Libya was disastrous and painful: life there was full of agony and sorrow and to worsen it, I lost my twin brother there. They shot him because we could not pay the ransom on time.

When they kidnapped us, they asked us to pay 5000 dinar (N500, 000). However, before we could raise the money from Nigeria, they shot and killed him. Many Nigerians died in Libya. I regretted going to Libya and cant even advise anybody to go.

I regret going to Libya  Abieyuwe Igue (24)

I left Nigeria last year not knowing that I was pregnant. I spent one year four months and my baby is 10 months old now. My intention was to go to Europe through Libya but I was not able to cross before we were caught. I paid N400,000 to get to Libya. I was a stylist here but decided to go to Europe for a greener pasture.

I was beaten severally for no just cause, but never sexually assaulted. I will never go to Libya again because it is too risky and I regret going there.

Im happy to be home Josphine  Ajagbor (33)

I left with my son of three years to Libya in June this year. When they arrested us they took us to prison and we were living on macaroni and bread daily. The food was cooked without salt and pepper and we only ate twice a day. My son had to get used to the suffering too. I was a caterer before I left Nigeria.

***

Culled from Daily Trust
The All Progressives Congress, (APC) accused the Peoples Democratic Party, at its Saturdays convention, that it decided to punish the South-West candidates for voting against the PDP in the 2015 elections.

The APC made this allegation in a statement in Abuja on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi.

It said the failure of the South-West to get the PDP chairmanship was a punishment meted out to the zone by the former ruling party.

The ruling party further said the national convention of the PDP had once again showed Nigerians that corruption was deeply rooted in the PDPs genes.

The APC explained that the outcome of the PDP national convention did not only reduce the opposition party to a regional party, it also exposed it as a party unwilling to change for the better.

He said, With revelations of how money-for-votes and systematic rigging were brazenly perpetuated during the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party, the All Progressives Congress is mindful of the popular axiom: a leopard cannot change its spots.

The abnormalities that trailed the PDP National Convention have further exposed the PDP as a party not ready and willing to change.

Indeed, the PDP has once again displayed itself to the generality of Nigerians that it is a party with corruption deeply rooted in its DNA.

Again, it is tragic that the PDP, which used to pride itself as the biggest political party in Africa, has now been reduced to a regional party. By frustrating the South-Wests chairmanship candidates, it is unfortunate that the PDP has decided to punish the South-West for not voting for the party in 2015.

At the convention, Prince Uche Secondus from Rivers State emerged as the chairman of the PDP in the early hours of Sunday.

The APC also urged members of the PDP, who could pass the integrity test, to join the APC in order to bring about the much-needed change the country deserves.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper)
The founder of The Commonwealth of Zion Assembly, Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo who is one of the classiest and richest Christian clerics in Nigeria has reminisced on his days of humble beginning.

Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo of Coza Ministry recounts how he started his ministry with one trouser and holes in his wifes shoes.

He revealed this on his Instagram page while announcing a prestigious award given to him by the Methodist Church in Nigeria for their evangelistic works.

The handsome pastor based in Abuja showered encomium on his wife for standing by him during the period of financial drought. Mr. Fatoyinbo today is reportedly worth over $7 million.

Here is what he wrote on his IG page.

Babe, we walked the streets of Ilorin together looking for people to preach the gospel to. We didnt have no car, I had just one trouser, we didnt have technology or finance to increase our reach, there were holes in your shoes. We had to do it one person per time. Im fully aware that God will reward us for our labour, but I am also thankful to the Methodist Church in Nigeria for presenting us with this Honorific Award for Evangelism! We havent lost that same passion and we never will! We are ever committed to winning souls for Christ!

Thank yoy Modele for always standing with me and running with me and running with the vision! Im blessed to have you!
If you run a business or plan to start one, you should mark this date on your calendar: Saturday, February 3, 2018. Its the day on which Connect Nigerias eBusiness fair, the largest event for small and medium scale businesses in Africa, will be taking place.

Thought leaders and top executives from the countrys biggest brands will be there as well, to lend their voices to conversations about tech and business. Growth hacks and cutting edge enterprise solutions will be revealed; businesses will showcase and sell your favourite products at great discounts; youll make new, forward-driving connections; and those business questions youve always asked will be answered by the experts.

Here are ten other reasons why you should join thousands of SMEs and business professionals at the Eko Hotels and Suites in Lagos for this event.

1. Get huge business growth scoops from World-Class CEOs and Techpreneurs

If youve never been to the eBusiness fair, youre missing out on a lot of enterprise transforming information. And heres why this matters: the people who will be giving these tips and growth strategies are accomplished leaders in the world of business. Previous speakers at this event include Lola Masha, Country Manager, OLX; Angel Fadahunsi, Deputy Director, FIRS; Ebi Atawodi, Head, global digital payments, Uber; Mark Essien, CEO, Hotels.ng; Nikki Summers, Director of SageOne, East and West Africa; Ayotunde Coker, CEO, Rack Centre; Paul Ayim, Executive, Phillips Consulting; and several others. Over the past eight years, they have let participants in on their preferred strategies for business growth, and uncovered new areas of opportunity for entrepreneurs in Nigeria. You can benefit from their wealth of knowledge too, for free.

2. Exhibit your products and services to thousands of people

With a booth at the exhibition section, youll be able to showcase and sell your products and services to over 5,000 attendees. Its an opportunity to make great sales and win more loyal customers.

Heres what Adaolisa Anekwe, CEO of the online clothing store, Zimafashion, has to say about what the fair did for her business:

I had an amazing time at last years business fair. I was able to meet with people. There was a lot of networking. I had a lot of clients, and I made a lot of money, which is the most important thing.

3. Meet business experts and influencers one on one

One great thing about the eBusiness fair is the calibre of people who will be in attendance. Theres always a chance that youll bump into industry leaders and opinion shapers, business executives or pioneering startup founders. Such meetings could give your business the lift it needs- anything from exceptional advice to big-fish leads, and maybe even investment for your venture. And if youre looking for a mentor or senior partner who knows his (or her) onions, this could be the place to find one.

4. Learn tech-driven marketing

Theres a huge market for your business online that youre likely missing out on. The world displayed on screens of mobile devices and computers is the new frontier for businesses seeking to reach a wider range of people than they can in the offline world. At the Connect Nigeria eBusiness fair, social media marketing kingpins will spill the secrets and present the latest trends in modern online brand campaigns, content marketing and more.

5. Network and exchange ideas with other business people

Theres always new information concerning your line of business, or an opportunity you can take advantage of. The best sources for this are usually business people. When they converge upon a single location in their thousands, its likely that you will get hold of great leads and fantastic business insights. The stories entrepreneurs tell of their travails and strategies could contain brilliant nuggets of wisdom and creativity that you can try out on your business. Ebi Atawodi, the product manager for global payments growth at Uber, says this about the energy and connections made at a previous edition of the eBusiness fair:

Its really interesting how passionate people are, and how pumped up people are about the possibilities that are out there. I think platforms like this are.also about connecting with other people. You never know where the next idea is going to come from.

6. Get discounts from your favourite brands

Products on display at the eBusiness fair will come at greatly discounted rates. If you love bargain hunting, youll like the offers at the fair. Given the type of services showcased, the percentages shaved off the prices will be worth it. It could mean that you dont have to pay as much as you usually would for, say, software that could help improve your business processes, gadgets that make everyday routines easier, or high-quality fashion accessories.

7. Have your business questions answered by the experts

How about putting those nagging business questions you have, to real business professionals and wiseheads, the top bosses in the corporate world and even government policymakers? At the last fair, we had Angel Fadahunsi, Deputy Director at the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) tackle questions about governments business tax policies; Ahmad Mukoshy, CEO of web hosting company Gigalayer, answered questions about opportunities that businesses can take advantage of by setting up their own websites; and Nikki Summers, Manager of Accounting software solutions company SageOne (East and West Africa), dealt with matters related to accounting for small businesses. Whatever uncertainties about your business bug you, they can be settled at the eBusiness fair.

8. Surmount the peculiar challenges of Nigerias business environment

Experienced entrepreneurs who have mastered the peculiarities of Nigerias business environment will be giving the audience their choice strategies for succeeding in it.

9. Get a glimpse of the future of business in Nigeria

Nigerias biggest brands will be unveiling their products for the future. Industry analysts will deconstruct and demystify the path to tomorrows economies and the business-supporting technological advances that will power them. You will have a rich insight into where the whole world of business is headed for, enabling you to swoop on the new opportunities theyll create.

10. Its free to attend!

A free pass to attend Africas largest SME event!

Register, make sponsorship placements and book an exhibition booth for your business at www.connectnigeria.com/bizfair, or call 0700 800 5000.
A Law graduate of Imo State University , Barrister Roseline Udoh has sadly passed away.

The brilliant lawyer and registered member of Due Process Advocate,DPA, collapsed at her Abuja home in the early hours of Saturday December 9, and was rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead shortly after.

The Mystery in this whole incident is that barely four days ago, she wrote on how life is too short.

She wrote ;

Life is too short Dont put off anything you really want to do till tomorrow cos you are not guaranteed tomorrow. The sooner you realise this, the less you will worry about living your life to please people. Its all you. YOU are all that matters.

You owe only YOU the responsibility to be happy.

Touching tributes have poured out on her page as her close friends and associates are still finding it hard to stomach the fact that their beloved Barrister is no more ;

May her soul rest in peace.
A young Nigerian lady named Sampou Bridget Oyindoubra was burnt beyond recognition in a house fire on Sunday, at Agoloma Town, near Bomadi, Delta State, shortly after she returned from church service.

A Facebook user identified as Agoinzoh Nkemluv, has taken to the social networking platform to share some heartbreaking and very graphic photos of a young lady named Bridget who was burnt to ashes in her room, shortly after returning from church in Delta State.

Nkemluv posted the photos and wrote;

To day something very bad happened in Agoloma Town. We lost one of our Sister. Esampou Daughter. Pepe younger sister. Just burnt to Ashes live in are House. Pls I dont know what else to write again.

He shared another photos and wrote; ONLY GOD KNOWS WHY IT HAPPED SO, RIP BRIDGET WE MISS You. Just burnt to Ashes in are house after cuming back from Church. Fire incident. Journey well.

Below are more photos of the deceased (Very graphic content);

More photos below

-Gistreel
The public is invited to the Family Justice Center Monday to commemorate the 69th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with a celebration of local human rights organizations and leaders.

There will be a reception from 6-7 p.m. featuring exhibitions from human rights organizations and art exhibitions from SPLASH and Flying Brushes. There will also be music by Rick Rushing III.

The program from 7-8 p.m. will include performances by Christian J. Collier and Rick Rushing III (Healing Blues). There will also be a panel moderated by WTVC NewsChannel 9's Greg Funderburg with speakers Marina Peshterianu (BRIDGE), Kristen McCallie (Children's Advocacy Center), Kate Sheets (SEIU) and Rev. Cathy Harrington (UUCC).

This is a free event, but seating is limited at the Center, so is a ticketed event.

Celebration organizers this year include the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, Family Justice Center, Second Life Chattanooga, city of Chattanooga's Multicultural Affairs Office and Unity Group of Chattanooga.

The Family Justice Center is at 5705 Uptain Road. For more information visit tn.gov/humanrights.


Industry experts say that artificial intelligence (AI) can help improve cybersecurity measures, as hackers employ more sophisticated attacks on systems.AI can utilize machine learning to scan large volumes of data and detect patterns of abnormal behaviour that could signify a data breach. This approach, experts say, is far more efficient than manually combing through the data and discovering the hack months  or even years  after the attack has been carried out.University of Montreal assistant professor of criminology David Decary-Hetu told CBC News that AI could help cover for the shortcomings of most cybersecurity measures."The main issue is that if you're defending a system you have to be good 100% of the time, but when you're attacking the system you only have to be successful once to get in, Decary-Hetu said.David Masson, Canadian manager for UK-based Darktrace, added that AI will help to keep up with threats by immediately identifying and preventing attacks by picking up on subtle indicators that identify bad behaviour.Masson explained that his companys systems map a customers network to distinguish any deviations. He said that AI is required to keep up with threats by automating responses to mounting machine-on-machine attacks conducted by hackers."You're kind of looking at a cyber arms race," he told CBC. "If you want to keep up with this threat and put the advantage back in the hands of the defenders you're going to have to use AI."According to reports, cybercrime costs the Canadian economy between $3 billion and $5 billion a year, including ransom paid to foreign hackers.
Indigenous Climate Action (ICA) has turned down an Aviva Canada cash prize after winning the insurers charity competition.The non-profit initiative said theres a direct contradiction between its mission and Avivas financial relationship with oil and gas projects.Shortly after winning the Aviva Canada Community Legacy Award through the insurers Community Fund competition, ICA received information that Avivas parent company (Aviva plc) held major passive investments in corporations  including Teck Resource, Encana, Exxon, Imperial, Suncor, Chevron, Cenovus, Kinder Morgan, Trans Canada, and Enbridge - which operate in Albertas tar sands.ICA said that these investments are in direct contradiction with its organizational mandate, according to a Rainforest Action Network report.We cannot in good conscience accept an award from a corporation that is financially associated with fossil fuel energy projects that violate the rights of Indigenous peoples and contribute to global climate change, said ICA executive director Eriel Deranger in a statement.Our organization is working to support Indigenous rights and address the climate crisis while Aviva is investing in corporations proposing or operating tar sands projects that threaten water, land, the climate and Indigenous rights.Aviva Canada and Aviva plc have responded to ICAs rejection with an open mind, and has offered to begin discussion on divestment and how to move away from its tar sands investments.There are other insurance companies who are taking the climate risk seriously, such as Swiss Re who recently have limited their underwriting of shale gas, tar sands and Arctic drilling projects, commented UK Tar Sands Network director Suzanne Dhaliwal.We want to see a major commitment from Aviva to climate action alongside their community fund and scientific research and a broader commitment to finding the mechanisms to divest from tar sands pipelines and projects. We need Aviva to look seriously into their investment in projects that are violating the rights of Indigenous Peoples, furthering the expansion of the Alberta tar sands infrastructure and pipelines which pose a major threat to the stability of the global climate.
In my last post, I wrote about the many times the word all appears in the Scriptures  nearly 6,000. The term offers great encouragement, assurance of Gods presence and personal involvement in every circumstance, good and bad, that we confront in this journey called life. But not every use of all is as uplifting.

Romans 3:23 declares, For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The same chapter also says, There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one (Romans 3:10-12). That sounds harsh  and all-encompassing.



Why is this important? All we need to do is watch the evening news, or read a newspaper, for the answer. Of late weve heard report after report about prominent individuals  entertainers, politicians, news media celebrities, athletes and others  accused of multiple instances of sexual misconduct. Reactions by employers and their industries have been swift and severe. And sadly, as some observers suggest, this may be merely the tip of a proverbial iceberg of similar accusations yet to come.



Some of these persons reveled in the misdeeds of others; now the weight of guilt has fallen on their own shoulders. How can this be? Its because, as the Bible asserts without wavering, we all have sinned  and fallen far short of Gods glory and His perfect standards.



These recent episodes focus on one specific form of sin, but they teach a broader lesson. How can such wrongdoing be so pervasive? Why have so many stumbled, people who should have known better?



Sociologists and psychologists might offer different explanations, but I believe the reason is very simple. In our enlightened, progressive, amoral culture, weve rejected the clear warnings of the Scriptures. The ancient book of Job, describing the travails he endured and the debate between himself and his so-called friends, recounts his bold statement, I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl (Job 31:1). He knew even a desiring stare could lead to serious consequences.



In the book of Proverbs, chapters 4-9 speak about the snares of sexual temptation and the devastating results when those temptations are acted upon and turned to sin. Heres a sampling:



Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23).

For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword (Proverbs 5:3-4).

a man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself (Proverbs 6:32).

All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a nooselittle knowing it will cost him his life (Proverbs 7:22-23).

Jesus addressed this in His sermon on the mount. He warned, You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:27-28).



Not everyone is guilty of sexual sin, although a wise man once told me that we all have broken every one of the Ten Commandments in thought, word or deed. But without question, we all fit the description of Romans 3:23. We all have sinned and fallen desperately short of God righteous standard.



Whats to be done about this? It has already been done. Romans 5:8 declares, But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. A bit later it also states, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).



Our part is uncomplicated: Recognize our sin, repent, and receive Gods gracious and unconditional gift. Now thats what we can call good news  and its available to all of us.



----



Robert J. Tamasy is a veteran journalist, former newspaper editor and magazine editor. Bob has written hundreds of magazine articles, and authored, co-authored and edited more than 15 books. These include the newly re-published, Business At Its Best, Tufting Legacies, The Heart of Mentoring, and Pursuing Life With a Shepherds Heart. He edits a weekly business meditation, Monday Manna, which is translated into more than 20 languages and distributed via email around the world by CBMC International. To read more of Bob Tamasys writings, you can visit his blog, www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com, or his website (now being completed), www.bobtamasy-readywriterink.com. He can be emailed at btamasy@comcast.net.
The US healthcare system is on the brink of a massive shake-up following the announcement that retail pharmacy company CVS Health is buying one of the largest health insurers in the country.CVS Health revealed on Sunday (December 03) that it will buy Aetna in a $69 billion acquisition ($77 billion including debt), subject to approval by antitrust regulators. CVS CEO Larry Merlo said the deal would allow CVS to expand the services offered in its MinuteClinic walk-in health clinics.What does this monumental deal mean for US health care in terms of costs, insurance and the future of the industry? Insurance Business spoke to Eric Wilson, principal of health care insurance company Wilson Associates, about the possible impacts of the acquisition.This deal could help to drive health care costs down in the US, he said. Generally, if you go and see someone at a CVS quick clinic, or a similar type of health clinic, it will cost less than a trip to your doctor . If people start migrating towards those clinics, that could bring the cost of health care claims down.These days, we tend to see a lot of people opting for urgent care or emergency care services because it can take days to set up an appointment with a doctor. A quick clinic, like those run by CVS Health, is open most of the time, so we might see a migration towards quick clinic service rather than the emergency room. This would also bring claims costs down.CVS Health is not the first company to go down this road. Kaiser Permanente has a similar system that requires its health insurance policyholders to visit a specified Kaiser center for medical care. UnitedHealthcare also tried a similar move with Harken Health, where they built specified Harken Health centers.The difference is, whereas those examples had to build the infrastructure and hire people, CVS Health already has everything necessary in place. Approximately 70% of Americans live within three miles of a CVS pharmacy or quick clinic. The deal simplifies peoples access to health care, Wilson explained.There has been discussion around whether the CVS and Aetna acquisition could lead to cheaper drug prices in the US. Wilson described that as a question mark at the moment.In theory, Aetna could start to charge less for drugs because this partnership will eliminate the need for a third-party administer, or middle-man, to administer drug costs. CVS will now administer their drug plan, so that could bring drug costs down, he said. However, the drug companies in the US can be quite aggressive, so its tough to tell.Others have said this acquisition could be to the detriment of large hospital operators. Wilson disagreed with this, telling Insurance Business: If anything, it could stabilize things. One problem our hospitals have is the amount of free or uncompensated care theyre giving to people without insurance or to people who are using the emergency room as their primary care center. This deal could lead to a migration towards CVS Health clinics, which could reduce some pressure on the hospitals.
Small businesses lack professional resources for response and recovery in the event of a cyber incident
Californias Department of Insurance has served an accusation against Wells Fargo Bank and its insurance business, with the intent to suspend or revoke the banks licenses for alleged abusive insurance sales practices."Consumers should not be treated like chattel by corporations who take advantage of and abuse the consumers' trust," insurance commissioner Dave Jones said in a release. "Companies licensed to transact insurance have an obligation to act with integrity, to obtain consumer consent before placing insurance, to disclose relevant and material information, and to comply with all state insurance laws."A release said that the accusation is a result of an investigation opened at the request of the commissioner. The investigation found that from 2008 to 2016, Wells Fargo customers were issued about 1,500 insurance policies without their knowledge or permission.In several cases, the banks employees told customers to enter their personal information on a policy application merely to receive a quote. However, these applications would be later sent to the insurer to purchase the policy without the consumers consent, the investigation found.Reuters attempted to contact Wells Fargo for a comment on the accusation, but the bank was not immediately available for a statement.
A new wildfire ignited this morning in San Diego County, which is already battling a fire that has consumed at least 85 buildings.The new fire is near Alpine, Calif., a mountain town about 30 miles east of San Diego, according to a San Diego Tribune report. The fire was still small as of this morning, but officials told the Tribune that they were marshalling numerous resources to fight it.The larger fire, about 50 miles north of San Diego, ignited Thursday and was driven by fierce winds. More than 1,000 firefighters are battling the blaze, one of several that have broken out in Southern California this week. The firefighters are being aided by seven air tankers and 15 helicopters, the Tribune reported.Authorities said that 10,000 people have been evacuated. Nine hundred are in shelters.
GLOBALLY, WERE becoming increasingly connected to the internet  in our homes, in our vehicles, in our pockets and purses, and in factories, hospitals, and construction sites.Internet-connect devices  or, collectively, the Internet of Things [IoT]  can make life more convenient and efficient. But the technology comes with risks.As the recent WannaCry and Petya global cyberattacks on corporate computer systems demonstrated, anything connected to the web poses a potential risk. And the Internet of Things could become the next hacker threat, says Adam Cottini, managing director of Arthur J. Gallagher s US cyber liability practice.The rise in connected technology has led to a growing cyber threat relating to the Internet of Things, Cottini says.This includes [cyber threats to] internetconnected devices in the home, potentially in a vehicle  in medical devices, in wearable devices and in critical infrastructure.Nowhere is categorically safe from hackers, including those things you take for granted on a day-to-day basis.When you look at the home, Cottini says, some items that are important to focus on  some of the most common [potential threats]  are thermostats, so your heating and air-conditioning.Imagine being held ransom in your home, in either boiling hot or freezing cold temperatures, having to pay a criminal to release the controls back to you. Or, Cottini says, a homeowner away for an extended period who loses control of their home thermostat in humid conditions could return to a mold-infested house.Crooks taking over commercial refrigeration could also cause major harm, he says.And then theres the possibility  which has already been witnessed  that home security systems, cameras and microphones can be used to surveil and extort high-networth individuals, who often have highly connected homes.Weve seen invasion-of-privacy events even with some of the toymakers, Cottini says. People have taken over the cameras in a toy, and you can listen and eavesdrop into a conversation. And can you get a ransom out of that? Thats a possibility. That actually takes the conversation way further than just a shutdown of a system in the way of the WannaCry or Petya viruses. This can go much further.According to Nick Graf, consulting director of information security for CNA s risk control unit, modern internet-connected cars are also a dangling, shiny bauble for hackers to try to grab.Where do we see these types of [ransomware] attacks going next? Graf says. Where we see the big area [of concern] is in the Internet of Things. In a few short years, youre going to see thing like your Nest home thermostat gets hacked.There have already been examples of car hacking thats gone on, he adds. As you get automated cars, software always has vulnerabilities. I can totally imagine bad guys putting ransomware in your car, and now youve got to pay me $200 or your car is not going to start up. We think those things are likely to happen.Ransomware, which was used in the recent WannaCry and Petya attacks, is likely to be an easy tactic used by hackers in the near future. Locking a persons access to their thermostat or car could easily entice them to pay up to regain control. Though the best defense is cybersecurity, many people do actually pay. A small fee like $300 may seem cheap to get your belongings back, but thats what keeps the criminals in business.We see that, if you make the payments, they will decrypt your data, for the most part, Graff says. They just want your money. They are making millions of dollars off these schemes every year. If word got out that they werent unlocking the data, then no one would pay them after a while. Again, they want your money. They dont care about your data.In some cases, the crooks will even go to the trouble of setting a type of help desk to walk people through how to set up a bitcoin account to transfer the money, Graf adds.Theres a theory of honor among thieves, Cottini says. Recently there was an example where one of the hackers had taken the bitcoin and didnt actually give the encryption key to the victim. Then [other hackers] went after them, because the people who are involved in this expect a certain level of behavior.
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Breaking EV Stock News: Mullen (NASDAQ: MULN) Announces Funding to Close on ELMS Assets

BREA, Calif. - November 17, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Mullen Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN) ("Mullen" or the "Company"), an emerging electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, announces today receipt of $150 million on Nov. 16, 2022, which will be used in part to close on ELMS assets.

Top EV Stock News - Investor Idea

EV Companies on the Rise: (NASDAQ: MULN) (NASDAQ: TSLA) (NYSE: NIO) (NASDAQ: RIVN)

Vancouver, Kelowna, Delta, BC - November 16, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Investor Ideas Investorideas.com, a leading investor news resource covering EV stocks releases a special report on the continued growth within the sector

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Breaking AI Stock News: FatBrain (OTCQB: LZGI) Acquires UK-based Forecasting Innovator Predictive Black To Help SMEs Optimize Cash Management

NEW YORK, NY - November 15, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) FatBrain AI (LZG International, Inc.) (OTCQB: LZGI), the leader in powerful and easy-to-use artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for star enterprises of tomorrow (some call SMEs), has acquired Predictive Black Ltd, a UK-based innovator of real-time cash management, financial insights and business wellness for SMEs.

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New Fashion Designer Launches this Holiday Season in Kelowna and Online; Sweet Dees Creations  Fun, Flirty and Affordable

Kelowna B.C. - November 14, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) A local fashion designer is launching a new women's line at Kelowna markets and online this Holiday Season that will make heads turn with her whimsical and colourful choices

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Average retail gasoline prices in Chattanooga have fallen 4.4 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.10 per gallon on Sunday, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 170 gas outlets in Chattanooga. This compares with the national average that has fallen 2.5 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.45 per gallon, according to gasoline price website GasBuddy.com.

Including the change in gas prices in Chattanooga during the past week, prices on Sunday were 11.7 cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 10.8 cents per gallon lower than a month ago.

According to GasBuddy historical data, gasoline prices on Dec. 11 in Chattanooga have ranged widely over the last five years:

$1.98 per gallon in 2016, $1.71 in 2015, $2.36 in 2014, $3.13 in 2013 and $3.10 in 2012.

Areas near Chattanooga and their current gas price climate:

Knoxville- $2.19, down 5.4 cents per gallon from last week's $2.24.

State of Tennessee- $2.22, down 3.5 cents per gallon from last week's $2.26.

Huntsville- $2.21, down 0.4 cents per gallon from last week's $2.21.

"With the exception of some Great Lakes states where prices tend to be volatile, average gas prices moved lower in nearly the entire country in the last week," said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. "Thank a large build in gasoline inventories and gasoline demand numbers that have finally seen a reprieve from levels that were more consistent with summer months than autumn. With OPEC extending its oil production cuts, there is solid evidence that U.S. oil producers will fill in at least some of the void with rig counts remaining strong. As the focus continues to broaden beyond the rest of the year, motorists who found this year's gas prices high may want to begin setting aside some additional funds for next year as all signs continue to point to higher prices than this year."
According to the Thai mass media, the first phase of the Sino-Thai railway  Thailands first High Speed Railway (HSR) line  connecting Bangkok with Nakhon Ratchasima (approximately 253 km with a top speed of 250 km/h) would begin construction in late 2017. This was announced by Deputy Transport Minister Pichit Akrathit on September 25, 2017.





The projected date of completion is 2022, in sync with the Sino-Laotian railway line. This rail line will be a part of Chinas Belt and Road Initiatives (BRI) pan-Asian railway project, a master-plan to link Thailand, China, Laos, and other East Asian states. The first phase of this project will be crucial to gauge the success of upcoming later phases, such as projected initiatives for lengthening the track from Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai (355 km). Given that it is placed under the BRI, the Sino-Thai railway projects progress, successes, and challenges will be scrutinized by all stakeholders as well as the partners in other BRI projects, not just for the Sino-Thai railway but for the overall pan-Asian railway project.





The construction of the initial 3.5 km railway track involves the Department of Highways (Transport Ministry) in Nakhon Ratchasima Province. The following 11 km (Thailand hopes to fund this 2nd phase), 119.5 km and 119 km tracks will follow suit sequentially.





The leadership meeting on this project took place between Thai Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith and Wang Xiaotao, the Vice Chairperson of Chinas National Development and Reform Commission in Tianjin.





Thailand will be leading this project as its authorities (both national and local) are able to advise on bureaucratic procedures and the intricacies of raising USD 5.4 billion for the project. Thai PM Prayuth Chan-ocha permitted financing for the initial duration of the project in July 2017, having deployed the use of Article 44 of the countrys current transitional constitution. This extraordinary power allows the Thai PM to carry out and implement administrative commends without legal restraints. The Thais plan to issue bonds and/or take loans from banks and financial institutions, including options from a China-based bank.





Meanwhile, China will take care of the technical and engineering responsibilities and also the purchasing of railway track mechanisms, as it has accumulated skills and knowledge in constructing, managing, running and maintaining railway systems, especially since China has the worlds longest HSR railway.





400 Chinese technicians and engineers have taken courses on Thai legislation and Thai code of ethics with a mandatory qualifying grade of 60%. This is part of acclimatizing Chinese workers and engineers to local conditions. The courses also introduce Chinese personnel to local culture as well as other sensitivities, as they help Chinese workers understand the local concepts of ethical behavior and corporate social responsibility.





Eventually, according to the Chinese state media, the technologies and know-how will be transferred to the Thais through training institutions, including the manufacture of spare parts. This is important for a turnkey project as it would benefit both parties eventually. The Thais can acquire technical skills and the Chinese can move on to high-value added activities in partnership with Thailand in the future.





The Thai government has invested in the Eastern Economic Corridor and thus railway and other infrastructure developments are a boost to such plans.



In fact, this was a basis for the so-called East Asian miracle coined by the World Bank when technology and management know-how was passed from Japan and the Four Tiger Economies (Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan) to developing economies (the newly emerging tigers) like Thailand and the Philippines as well as the mostly former socialist countries of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. Thailand became Southeast Asias Detroit of the East through such exchanges. Its formidable car industry which supplies Japanese cars to most of Southeast Asia today is built up based on such turnkey projects as well as foreign direct investment. China plays this crucial role in the field of infrastructure development today.





The Sino-Thai railway project is significant for Sino-Thai relations which has been enjoying good relations of late. It will contribute to friendship, confidence building measures in economic relations, as well as to people-to-peoples diplomacy when the railway is completed and starts ferrying passengers. Of course, there will be challenges too. The Sino-Thai railway will have to meet environmental needs. Thailand is a major agricultural country and is one of the worlds largest, if not the largest, rice exporters. Therefore, preserving environmental integrity will be important.





The project must also be sensitive to local conditions and cultures. Therefore, emphasis has been given to training in local knowledge, bureaucratic procedures, and laws. These are crucial in developing this understanding and sensitivities. Otherwise, delays may result when procedures are not complied or cultures are not respected.





Like all large projects, the Sino-Thai railway is subject to national interests, domestic political developments, and technical solutions. Right now, Thailand is hoping to be the logistic hub of Southeast Asia and this railway may have the potential to contribute to this desire. The project is perceived as being good for Thailands economic development with infrastructure-spurring business investments.





The Thai government has invested in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) and thus railway and other infrastructure developments are a boost to such plans. The EEC will draw Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) to the region. China may also be able to build production networks with Thailand if connectivity becomes stronger through such railway projects.





The railways connection between Thailand and Laos may also be able to spur economic exchanges between the two countries. Land-locked Laos wants to have access to coastal ports such as Laem Chabang within the proximity of Thailands capital city, Bangkok. This would enable Laos to export products through the global maritime trading system.





Some Chinese scholars have suggested the possibility of constructing industrial parks along the railway tracks. Potentially, population centers near the railway system are possible centers of consumers and manufacturing. Such developments may then spur development in underdeveloped regions along or near the railway system.





China is also keen to connect with Thailands markets, consumers and labour pools and the railway system may make this possible. Some Chinese companies, including infrastructure and construction companies, are aligned with this line of thinking. Besides them, cutting-edge companies like ecommerce giant Alibaba.com have also expressed interest in constructing logistical hubs and facilities in the vicinity of the railway system.
By Gordon Deegan

An Bord Pleanala has given the go-ahead for a new 40m luxury hotel for Dublins St Stephens Green despite security fears being raised by staff at the adjoining offices of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Dublin City Council originally backed the plan to convert Loreto Hall  the site of a former womens hostel, at Number 77 St Stephens Green  into a luxury hotel back in April; only for it to be blocked by an appeal by the Department.

Brown Table Solutions has now been granted final approval to convert the building into an 87-bedroom hotel in spite of appeals. However, An Bord Pleanala has responded to concerns by ordering the omission of a planned penthouse suite level and one floor from the planned hotel.

The planning board said the proposal would not adversely affect the character or architectural significance of the historic buildings on site or in the vicinity of the site. It also said the plan would not seriously injure the amenities of properties in the vicinity and would be acceptable in terms of traffic safety and convenience.

The approval comes against the backdrop of An Taisce shouting stop to the number of hotels planned for the capital.

An Taisce has also said the level of new hotel plans has reached the point of unsustainability in the context of city centre planning.

However, Failte Ireland has warned there is a major threat to additional tourism in Dublin because of the acute shortage of hotel bedrooms in the city centre.

Regarding the Loreto Hall plan, the Department of Foreign Affairs said it represented a gross over-development of the site and pointed out that Iveagh House regularly hosts heads of State, national and foreign dignitaries and political leaders for sensitive meetings and negotiations.

The security and privacy of the Iveagh House premises is of paramount importance. The proposal to construct a bank of hotel rooms with windows facing directly into the Iveagh House offices and ballroom  its main meeting room  with inadequate separation distances, is of great concern, it said in its appeal.

Loreto Hall went on the market last year with a guide price of 5.75m.
A decade ago, tweeting was recognised by only a few hardcore social media users  now it is a medium of communication favoured by a sitting US president.

For Dublin money messenger app Plynk, the ultimate ambition is for the firms name to become a verb. If plynking becomes a word as recognisable as tweeting, then the financial technology (fintech) firm will have realised its ambition of having millions of users worldwide.

Founded in 2015, Plynk is Europes first money messaging app offering instant person-to-person payments. Headquartered in Dublin, Plynk was co-founded by Charles Dowd and Clive Foley to remove the complexities of money transfers amongst family and friends.

Think of WhatsApp with the ability to transfer money into another persons account instantaneously, and you get a pretty good idea of what Plynk is. Linked to users social networks, Plynk users can send money as a message to a single contact or in group chats instantly and with no fees.

Once an account is created, users receive a payment account with a dedicated IBAN and virtual Mastercard for online payments.

Mr Dowd has worked for some of the worlds largest and most impactful technology firms, including IBM, Microsoft, and Facebook, holding senior management roles in the US and Ireland over the past 25 years. He left Facebook in 2015 to establish and develop Plynk with Mr Foley.

Plynk is the sound that money makes when you drop it in a jar. Were building a social network built around money, where people are paying people. We want to change the way people interact with money together. We want to be a verb, essentially, Mr Dowd said.

The concept was a head-turner among investment funds and venture capitalists, who saw high potential.

In May this year, Plynk raised 25m in its Series A raise from a European investment trust fund. Series A is the name typically given to a companys first significant round of venture capital financing.

Considering Twitter received around 5m in investor funding at the beginning of its development in 2007, the investment into Plynk is an indication of where investors believe it can go.

Following its success, KPMG referenced Plynks historic milestone in its Pulse of Fintech 2017 report.

Plynk announced 40 new jobs based in its Dublin headquarters in June  adding that it plans to hire across numerous departments over the next year. Mr Dowd said a drive was now on to make young people aware of how Plynk could revolutionise how they treat money and exchanging funds. Growing the brand in Europe is the next phase of the business, he added. Portugal has so far followed Ireland.

We have more than 12,500 people using the service and we launched in Portugal some weeks ago. Were doing a similar approach in Portugal as we do in Ireland, which is on campuses with campus ambassadors. We have a 30-odd campus ambassador scheme based in Portugal and they are essentially recruiting in Lisbon and Porto campuses, in a similar way to how it is done in Ireland, said Mr Dowd.

Here we have ambassadors pretty much on campuses all over Ireland and they have been working since the beginning of the school term essentially. Its about getting the brand out there, making sure they know who we are, recruiting users. We want this to become part of peoples lifestyle, so its not just about getting people to install Plynk, but getting people to use it.

We want it to become part of peoples lives and to change the way we act around money, he said.

With 25m in investment, Mr Dowd said the company would not blow itself up with unrealistic targets. The business plan you commit to with your investors should be meaningful and achievable. They want the business to be successful and are not here to say you must grow to five million people or anything like that, he said.

Where we think the business can grow, and what is achievable to move on to the next phase, its

always a combination of a conversation between everyone, and that the goals are appropriate for the

investment you can build. Currently we have a three-year plan, thats the way we look at the world. Its hard to predict much further out, so right now we are focused on the next 12-18 months.

Having Plynk available across Europe is achievable, he added. Then the sights will be set on global expansion.

Right now we are a pan-European application building a consumer brand, so it does require a significant amount of cash to actually make the brand actually work.

Were looking at around 11 countries across Europe, 10 in the eurozone and the UK. We, therefore, need to be in different languages and currencies, and need to appeal to a wide audience of people. Its an interesting challenge but one we definitely think is worthwhile.

We want to be number one in Europe but we understand this is a global product. We want Plynk to be in every language in the world.
By Ann O'Loughlin

A campaigner for victims of the Troubles has launched a High Court challenge seeking clarity over the State policy on the holding of a border poll in Northern Ireland.

The result of such a vote would determine if Northern Ireland unites with the Republic or remains part of the UK.

The action has been brought by Raymond McCord, from Newtownabbey in Belfast whos says it is "an absolute imperative in the interests of transparency" the Irish State as well as the British Government "publish policies setting out in adequate detail the conditions and criteria for the holding of border polls on the Island of Ireland."

Today, his counsel Ronan Lavery QC told Mr Justice Seamus Noonan at the High Court that looking at the demographics the "time will come" when the issue of a border poll "will have to be looked at, and looked at in an objective way".

Counsel said it is not clear from the 1998 Northern Ireland Act Good Friday Agreement or Article 3.1 of the Irish Constitution if a majority in favour of a united Ireland is required in both jurisdictions on the Island of Ireland or if a combined majority of the people of Ireland is all that is required.

Counsel said his client does not know if the Irish State has a policy in relation to a border poll, or if it does, what is the policy.

Counsel said McIvor Farrells Solicitors for Mr McCord had written to the Irish government highlighting his concerns and requested details about the Irish government's policies on a border poll.

The solicitors had not received any substantial reply from the State, counsel said.

Due to this uncertainty "clarity is required" as there appeared to be "no clear policy", counsel said.

As an example counsel said if there was a poll in the Republic on the question of a united Ireland it is not known who could vote.

Would only people ordinarily resident in the Republic or would it be open to citizens who live elsewhere or people who have resided here for a certain period.

Counsel said Mr McCord has brought similar proceedings before the Belfast High Court against the Northern Ireland Secretary of State over the lack of clarity or criteria in which a border poll can be called.

Mr McCord, a unionist who holds both Irish and British citizenship, says he is a strong advocate of the Good Friday Agreement which he hoped would bring about a peaceful and democratic era for all the people on the Island of Ireland.

He said he has recently become concerned about the undermining of the Good Friday Agreement, particularly the "damaging effect the UK's withdrawal from the EU," will have on the "ongoing relative stability and peace process."

Mr McCord has also expressed his concerns about the current political arrangement between the DUP and British Government and how that could impede the holding of a border poll.

In his action against An Taoiseach, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Government of Ireland, the Attorney General and Ireland, Mr McCord seeks various declarations including that the State's failure to have policy on a border poll is a breach of the Good Friday Agreement and is unlawful.

He also seeks a declaration that a failure by the Irish State to confirm that a simple majority of the people of Northern Ireland voting in favour of a united Ireland is the only precedent required for the purpose of the unification of Ireland is a breach of the Good Friday Agreement.

In the alternative he seeks a declaration that where a simple majority of the people of Northern Ireland vote in favour of a united Ireland in a Border Poll the Irish State must hold a border poll in the Republic immediately after a border vote in the North.

The action has been brought on grounds including that as co-custodians of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement the Irish Government have allegedly failed to disclose or publish policies on central elements of the agreement relating to the holding and calling of a border poll.

Mr McCord also argues failure to have or provide the policies if they exist is unreasonable or irrational.

Permission to bring the action against the Irish State was granted on an ex-parte basis by Mr Justice Noonan. It will come back before the court in February.

Mr McCord is a long-time campaigner for justice for his son and other victims of the Troubles.

In 1997 his eldest son, Raymond McCord Jnr, was murdered by the UVF.

In 2007, the NI Police Ombudsman concluded in a report that there was collusion between the RUC and the UVF in respect of his son's and other murders.
Despite US attitudes, this weeks gathering in France will attempt to finance real measures to slow the process of climate change, writes Laurence Tubiana

Nearly two years have passed since Frances then-foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, struck his gavel and declared: The Paris agreement for the climate is accepted.

This week, President Emmanuel Macron and the French government will host world leaders and non-state actors for the One Planet Summit. The purpose of this gathering is to celebrate climate gains made since 2015, and to boost political and economic support for meeting the goals and targets of the Paris agreement.

The Paris climate agreement, a historic feat of diplomacy that ushered in a new era of international climate collaboration, was facilitated by a number of political and social forces.

One of the most influential of these was a group of more than 100 countries known as the high-ambition coalition, which helped finalise the deal in the waning days of the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21).

This diverse coalition of leaders  from the richest countries to the most vulnerable Pacific island states  broke a political deadlock that had impeded climate progress for years, if not decades.

As we reflect on that success, one thing is abundantly clear: the need for ambitious coalitions has returned. Strong global leadership on climate change scored a diplomatic victory two years ago, and today, new economic and political alliances are needed to turn those commitments into action.

The diplomatic success of the Paris accord is worthy of praise in its own right; it was a remarkable leap forward in the fight against climate change. But we must not rest on our laurels.

With the US, the worlds largest historical emitter of greenhouse gases, dismissive of the accord, the rest of the global community must reaffirm its commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Dramatic, meaningful, immediate steps must be taken.

The best available science estimates that the world has only three years to begin a permanent reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions if there is to be any hope of achieving the Paris accords goal of keeping warming to well below 2C relative to pre-industrial levels.

And, whatever urgency science cannot convey is being communicated by the planet itself  through a ferocious display of hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and deadly droughts.

Given the immediacy of the challenge, what can and should be done to avert crisis?

Solutions start with money, and a main objective of the One Planet Summit is to mobilise public and private financing to fund projects that can reduce climate-changing pollution today.

During the summits Climate Finance Day, companies, banks, investors, and countries will announce new initiatives to help fund the costly transition to a carbon-free future.

Hollow promises will have no place at this gathering; only real commitments of real money for tangible projects will be discussed. As a result, we hope to see hundreds of millions of dollars committed by governments to fund solutions across all fronts of the climate-change battle.

Plenty will go to renewable-energy projects, but money will also be committed to clean transportation, agriculture, infrastructure, and urban systems. Funding will also be earmarked for projects that help protect communities that are most vulnerable to the impact of global warming.

The One Planet Summit will be an occasion for countries, companies, and private institutions to forge concrete strategies to shift away from fossil fuels. At the UN climate talks in Bonn, Germany, last month, 20 countries, led by Canada and the UK, announced plans to phase out coal from electricity generation.

The gathering in Paris will provide an opportunity for other countries to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance, which aims to formalize a deliberate transition from coal, and to help companies achieve net-zero emissions.

Ultimately, this weeks summit should be a place where governments, businesses, investors, and other key stakeholders collaborate and share ideas, showcase successful projects, and coordinate goals.

This event should not stand alone, but rather serve as a springboard for international meetings that will take place over the next few years. After all, it is during this short timeframe that the fate of the Paris accords temperature targets will be determined.

Two years after the adoption of a groundbreaking climate agreement, global leaders are set to reconvene in the City of Light. When they arrive, their collective ambition will be needed once more. This time, however, the goal must be to ensure that past agreements amount to more than just words on a page.

Laurence Tubiana, a former French ambassador to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, is CEO of the European Climate Foundation and a professor at Sciences Po, Paris
Greeces former finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, says bourgeois liberal bleatings have long overlooked the attacks on the living conditions of working-class people.

The Anglospheres political atmosphere is thick with bourgeois outrage. In the US, the so-called liberal establishment is convinced it was robbed by an insurgency of deplorables weaponised by Russian president Vladimir Putins hackers and Facebooks sinister inner workings.

In Britain, too, an incensed bourgeoisie are pinching themselves that support for leaving the EU in favour of an inglorious isolation remains undented, despite a process that can only be described as a dogs Brexit.

The range of analysis is staggering. The rise of militant parochialism on both sides of the Atlantic is being investigated from every angle imaginable: Psychoanalytically, culturally, anthropologically, aesthetically, and, of course, in terms of identity politics.

The only angle that is left largely unexplored is the one that holds the key to understanding what is going on: The unceasing class war unleashed upon the poor since the late 1970s.

In 2016, the year of both Brexit and Trump, two pieces of data, dutifully neglected by the shrewdest of establishment analysts, told the story.

In the US, more than half of American families did not qualify, according to Federal Reserve data, to take out a loan that would allow them to buy the cheapest car for sale (the Nissan Versa sedan, priced at $12,825).

Meanwhile, in the UK, over 40% of families relied on either credit or food banks to feed themselves and cover basic needs.

William of Ockham, the 14th century British philosopher, famously postulated that, when bamboozled in the face of competing explanations, we ought to opt for the one with the fewest assumptions and the greatest simplicity. For all the deftness of establishment commentators in the US and Britain, they seem to have neglected this principle.

Loath to recognise the intensified class war, they bang on interminably with conspiracy theories about Russian influence, spontaneous bursts of misogyny, the tide of migrants, the rise of the machines, and so on.

While all of these fears are highly correlated with the militant parochialism fueling Trump and Brexit, they are only tangential to the deeper cause  class war against the poor  alluded to by the car affordability data in the US and the credit-dependence of much of Britains population.

True, some relatively affluent middle-class voters also supported Trump and Brexit. But much of that support rode on the coattails of the fear caused by observing the classes just below theirs plunge into despair and loathing, while their own childrens prospects dimmed.

Twenty years ago, the same liberal commentators were cultivating the impossible dream that globalising financialised capitalism would deliver prosperity for most.

At a time when capital was becoming more concentrated on a global scale, and more militant against non-owners of assets, they were declaring the class war over.

As the working class was growing in size worldwide, even though its jobs and employment prospects were shrinking in the Anglosphere, these elites behaved as if class were passe.

The 2008 financial collapse and the subsequent Great Recession buried that dream. Still, liberals ignored the

undeniable fact that the gigantic losses incurred by the quasi-criminal financial sector were cynically transferred onto the shoulders of a working class they thought no longer mattered.

For all their self-image as progressives, the elites readiness to ignore widening class divisions, and to replace it with class-blind identity politics, was the greatest gift to toxic populism.

In Britain, the Labour Party (under Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, and Edward Miliband) was too coy even to mention the post-2008 intensification of the class war against the majority, leading to the rise across the Labour heartland of the UK Independence Party (Ukip), with its Brexit parochialism.

Polite society seemed not to give a damn that it had become easier to get into Harvard or Cambridge if you were black than if you were poor. They deliberately ignored that identity politics can be as divisive as apartheid if allowed to act as a lever for overlooking class conflict.

Trump had no compunction to speak clearly about class, and to embrace  however deceitfully  those too poor to buy a car, let alone send their children to Harvard.

Brexiteers, too, embraced the great unwashed, reflected in images of Ukip leader Nigel Farage drinking in pubs with average blokes.

And when large swaths of the working class turned against the establishments favorite sons and daughters (the Clintons, the Bushes, the Blairs, and the Camerons), endorsing militant parochialism, the commentariat blamed the riffraffs illusions about capitalism.

But it was not illusions about capitalism that led to the discontent that fueled Trump and Brexit. Rather, it is the disillusion with middle-of-the-road politics of the kind that intensified the class war against them.

Predictably, the embrace of the working class by Trump and the Brexiteers was always going to arm them with electoral power that, sooner or later, would be deployed against working-class interests and, of course, minorities  always the penchant of populism in power, from the 1930s to today.

Trump has used his working-class support to attempt scandalous tax reforms, whose naked ambition is to help the plutocracy while millions of Americans face reduced health coverage and, as the federal budget deficit balloons, higher long-term tax bills.

Similarly, Britains Tory government, which has espoused Brexits populist aims, has recently announced another multi-billion-pound reduction in social security, education, and tax credits for the working poor.

Those cuts are matched exactly by reductions in corporate and inheritance tax cuts.

Today, establishment opinion-makers, who scornfully rejected the pertinence of social class, have contributed to a political environment in which class politics was never more pertinent, toxic, and less discussed.

Speaking on behalf of a ruling class comprising financial experts, bankers, corporate representatives, media owners, and big industry functionaries, they act exactly as if their goal were to deliver the working classes into the grubby hands of the populists and their empty promise of making America and Britain great again.

The only prospect for civilising society and detoxifying politics is a new political movement that harnesses on behalf of a new humanism the burning injustice that class war manufactures.

Judging by its callous treatment of US Senator Bernie Sanders and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, the liberal establishment seems to fear such a movement more than it does Trump and Brexit.

Yanis Varoufakis, a former finance minister of Greece, is Professor of Economics at the University of Athens
The leader of an Italian party that hopes to capitalise on growing resentment of migrants and asylum-seekers told supporters it would be "splendid" if he wins national elections and his government can issue one-way tickets home to undeserving refugees.

Matteo Salvini wants to propel his anti-migrant Northern League, which was founded in 1991 as a regional party in Italy's affluent north, to its first premiership in the national election set for early 2018.

To do so, Mr Salvini needs to build support in the south, an underdeveloped area of Italy the League has long denigrated as living off government aid.

Many of the thousands of people who turned out for his Rome rally today did come from southern Italy.

One of them was Adriana Domeniconi, who travelled by bus from Matera in the "instep" of the boot-shaped Italian peninsula.

"We're no longer about north vs. south, but against those invading our country," she said.

Ms Domeniconi was referring to the hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers and economic migrants that have received shelter in Italy after being rescued at sea from traffickers' boats setting out from the Libyan coast.

Opinion surveys have found that many Italians blame the newcomers for crime.

"The Salvini government will have the (nation's) doors wide open for women and children who are fleeing war, but not for those bringing war to our home," Mr Salvini told the rally.

For the latter, "we need one-way tickets to send them back".

The advertised goal of the rally was to oppose a proposed citizenship law that the centre-left, Democrat-led government of premier Paolo Gentiloni is supporting in Parliament before the legislature's term expires in March.

AP
French baby-milk maker Lactalis has ordered a global recall of millions of products over fears of salmonella bacteria contamination.

The company, one of the largest dairy products groups in the world, said it has been warned by health authorities in France that 26 infants have become sick since December 1.

Spokesman Michel Nalet told The Associated Press today that the "precautionary" recall both in France and abroad affected "several million" products made since mid-February.

The company said a possible source of the outbreak has been identified in a tower used to dry out the milk at a production site.

Lactalis employs 75,000 people in 85 countries, with a turnover of 17bn.

The symptoms of salmonella infection include abdominal cramps, diarrhoea and fever.

- AP
Cumberland Caverns, together with RCS Productions, announce Cumberland Caverns Live, a new concert series taking place in the historic Cumberland Caverns Volcano Room. The series will kick off on Feb. 3 with Front Country and John Stickley Trio followed by Chris Knight and Travis Meadows on Feb. 25, Mothers Finest on March 10, Shawn Mullins on March 17, Secret Sisters and Lilly Hiatt on April 14, and High Valley on May 12.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. on Friday via CumberlandCaverns.com. Additional artists and performance dates will be announced in the coming weeks.

For over 55 years Cumberland Caverns Historic Volcano Room has hosted a wide array of musicians. This room 333 below the surface, has caught the attention of the music industry for its near-perfect acoustics presented with a backdrop of formations and beauty, said officials. Forbes, Time, and Jetsetter have included music at Cumberland Caverns on some of their most prestigious lists of places you dont want to miss.

Youre not just coming for a concert at a cave when you visit Cumberland Caverns Live, said General Manager Robby Black. you are embarking on a memory-making journey with friends and family. When we say, our musical roots run deep, at 333 underground, were not kidding.

In addition to a new concert series, Cumberland Caverns and RCS Productions are focused on bringing an elevated experience to concert attendees when they are welcomed back in 2018. Officials said changes include:

Smoother Check-In Experience  New directional signage, early entry options, a more guest friendly check-in process and paperless ticketing will equate to a better event for guests from start to finish

Improved Seating Options  Existing seating is being replaced with expanded and more comfortable options in all areas of the room

Updated Menu Items  In addition to Cave Chili, the Volcano Room will now offer an expanded list of healthy options such as soups, salads, and wraps

Concert announcements and updates will be available at CumberlandCaverns.com and the Cumberland Caverns Live Facebook page.
The German government has condemned anti-Semitic incidents that took place during protests in recent days.

The demonstrations were called in response to President Donald Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital and the announced move of the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city.
That is not to say that back at global headquarters in San Francisco, Google is not anxiously watching the final twists and turns on Capitol Hill as the two houses of the US parliament struggle to finalise the most comprehensive overhaul of the tax system in decades.

Of particular concern is the move by a growing group of senators to cut sharply the value of business tax credits associated with R&D, intellectual property and capital expenditure.

There is a growing group in the Senate who are not happy with how US corporations are using these credits to effectively bring current corporate tax rates well below the current headline rate of 35%.

If the new tax legislation is passed, maximum headline rates will fall to 20%, but with the tax credits applied, the effective rates will fall well below this level.

Googles 2016 financial accounts show that on its global sales of $90.3bn, it paid $4.7bn in corporation tax  an effective rate of 19%, despite the low level paid in Ireland.

If the new US tax legislation is passed without any changes to the tax credits regime, the effective US corporation tax rate would be slashed to 4% for Google, which spent just under $14bn last year on R&D.

For many companies, particularly those in the technology, pharmaceutical and medical devices sectors, this is a game changer.

Martin Shanahan and his colleagues at IDA Ireland will be worried at this turn of events as it is likely to take the gloss off Ireland as an inward investment location.

Mr Shanahan sees Google as one of the jewels in the crown of inward investment, with employment continuing to expand over the past year to now stand at 7,000 people here.

The number of permanent staff grew by 300 to 3,500 over the past 12 months, with the balance of the increase coming from contract staff.

Although its tax position raises eyebrows in many quarters, the company has been a hugely positive presence in Ireland.

The issue is, of course, of wider concern, as the vast majority of our corporation taxes, our exports sales, and half of our employment in businesses, comes from US multinationals based in Ireland.

The implementation of the new US tax legislation could see a stagnation of growth here, as US corporations seeing no tax advantage here may start to cut back on overseas investment in favour of America first  delivering on Donald Trumps key campaign promise.

However, lobbying continues in full swing by all the major US companies and we can expect further twists in the legislation before it is sent to the White House for sign off.

House and Senate lawmakers also have to grapple with other potential sticking points, including President Trumps recent tweet of his preference for a 22% rate and his likely entering into the outstanding issue of tax on repatriation of foreign earnings.

Regardless of which way the US legislators sign off on the new tax bill, the European Union still has major concerns with the level of tax being paid in Europe by digital giants such as Facebook, Google and Amazon and continue to push for them to pay their fair share of tax.

The EU finance ministers last week requested the European Commission to tackle the issue by considering an equalisation tax on services provided by the non-resident  hard to tax  digital sector.

This is backed by bigger countries such as France and Germany, but opposed by Ireland and others, who want to wait for co-ordinated action at a global level with the OECD.

John Whelan is an expert in global trade
We are currently losing the battle to curb the growth in CO2 emissions. We continue to run up a huge import bill, around 6bn annually, while exposing ourselves to heavy fines for breaches of limits set at EU level.

Over the past two years, Irelands total emissions have increased by 7%. We are now back to levels last seen in 2009. This is simply not good enough.

Last week, the Climate Change Advisory Council issued a call to arms report which included a recommendation that carbon taxes be increased substantially.

The council, which is chaired by John FitzGerald, also called for a rebalancing in transport expenditure away from roads and towards public transport. Presenting the report, Mr FitzGerald singled out for attention the large subsidies  just over 120m a year  handed over to the peat industry.

Of the 318m levied in 2015 on consumers of electricity, 121m was allocated to supporting peat production which is highly damaging from an environmental perspective.

At the same time, the country has been far too slow to diversify away from oil and gas when it comes to the heating of homes. Carbon sources heat up almost 40% of our homes.

Coincidentally, or otherwise, the Climate Action Minister, Denis Naughten announced, last week, that a nationwide ban on the sale of smoky coal would take effect in 2019.

It is 30 years since Mary Harney pushed through a prohibition on the use of smoky coal in urban areas, a move which was made in the face of considerable opposition from business and political interests, but whose implementation led to a big reduction in the prevalence of respiratory diseases. Change comes slowly in Ireland.

Mr Naughten has shown courage. His own rural and small town Roscommon constituency will be affected by the changes. The opposition to change is strong. Michael Healy-Rae TD has warned against attempts to push through pro-environment policies.

You can only shove people so much  they will push back, he told TV3 viewers days ago, echoing the protest politics that has such impact across the Western world. The Healy-Raes, in particular, know a thing or two about the business of harvesting votes by reaping the fruits of discontent.

Peat growers have proved themselves to be particularly stubborn adversaries, witness the success west of the Shannon of the Ming Flanagan dynasty.

Mainstream politicians are still scalded after the water saga. It would be a pleasant surprise, indeed, if the climate change groups proposals were to be implemented any time soon yet unthinking, unblinking resistance to change carries a huge, largely hidden price tag attached to it.

One analyst, Joseph Curtin, of the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) has calculated that we could face fines of between 3.7bn and 5.5bn cumulatively by 2030 if no further action is taken to reduce emissions.

In some areas, progress is being made. Mr FitzGerald has insisted that the increased reliance on wind energy is acting to reduce the price of electricity to customers. Here, he is in disagreement with UCD economist and commentator, Colm McCarthy.

Green Party leader, Eamon Ryan, points out that the real culprit behind our high utility bills is our uniquely disbursed patterns of settlement.

We are paying for all these wires and not just the power they carry, he said.

But the road ahead to a reduced carbon future could be bumpy.

The switch to electric cars could prove transformative on several

fronts, but some experts estimate

that it will lead to a one quarter

increase in electricity consumption.

A big positive is that technology is playing a major part in reducing the cost of renewable energy, with the emergence of new carbon storage

technologies. Farming-related Co2 emissions are a particular issue for Ireland which has been pressing ahead with a policy of output expansion that threatens to clash with its climate action commitments.

Food Wise 2025 projects Irish agri-

exports to grow to 19bn a year by 2025. This represents a rise of 85% on the

current three year average. Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan has warned against a produce at all cost

approach.

Recent growth in Irish milk production is the opposite of heeding market signals, he has said.

He has also pointed out that in the

recently published Climate Change

performance indicator, Ireland had fallen to 49th place out of 56 countries. Ireland was, according to Mr Hogan, sleepwalking towards further EU fines by our lack of investment in the energy grid.

And farmers will face a changed, greener CAP regime. The agricultural sector needs to urgently step up to the plate, Mr Hogan, who has shifted towards a pro-environment position, perhaps influenced by continental European colleagues, said.

According to Alan Matthews, economist and member of the Climate Change Commission, a carbon tax signal should be sent to farmers in the form of a tax on excessive emissions and/or subsidies to farmers who sequester, or store, carbon on their land.

The key here is that carrots should be on offer as well as sticks. Mr Matthews also proposes incentives for producers who improve efficiency through better grassland management, feed efficiency and the greater use of cover crops.

Teagasc is already carrying out extensive research examining the potential of carbon sinks, such as forests. They believe that there is potential to cut net emissions by 25% to 35% using carbon sinks.

However, there is plenty of resistance, not least amongst farmers, who consider afforestation to be an admission of failure.

In truth, we need more younger farmers and this will require not simply more incentives but an alteration in

the balance of power between suppliers and large retailers, something which Mr Hogan, for one, has identified as a priority.

The country is beginning to wake up to the challenge of providing an environmentally sustainable future. However, events on both the weather and the EU financial front are moving with rapidity.

Can the people be persuaded of the need to step up the pace of adaptation before the really large bills fall due?
Already accepted in mainstream education as a pre-eminent source of future employment and careers, the penny has also dropped amongst adults as to its gathering consequence for the generation of tomorrow.

Research carried out for Science Foundation Irelands Tech Week, earlier this year, showed the vast majority of Irish adults, over 89%, now believe that getting an education in STEM- related subjects is important in offering wider career opportunities in the future.

As we forge ahead into an imminent world of robotics, drones, self-driving cars and virtual reality, almost three-quarters surveyed welcomed this new age built upon STEM innovations.

Just over a decade ago, we didnt imagine many of the jobs that now exist today through technology, according to Jim Friars, chief executive of the Irish Computer Society.

The message we want to communicate is that STEM-related studies will help you to improve and shape students future job prospects.

He added that it is essential to ensure that an awareness of the myriad of opportunities that exist for females in technology-related disciplines is promoted.

This should serve as a method of narrowing the gender gap and opening up new talent to employers while contributing to overall skills availability.

In their central role at the coalface of providing graduate opportunities, third level institutions are witnessing, first-hand, the significant increase in demand for suitably qualified candidates.

The demand for STEM graduates is booming, according to Michael Loftus, head of faculty of engineering and science at the Cork Institute of Technology.

Such is the level of requirement from industry, the major challenge currently facing the institute is how to produce more STEM graduates. STEM graduates feature at the top of the earnings list, with many of them securing employment long before completing their final examinations.

Over 91% of CIT graduates find paid employment or enter further study within nine months of graduating.

I WISH is an initiative encouraging young women to pursue careers in STEM, supported by Science Foundation Ireland and which harnesses the combined power of industry, academia and the public sector.

The world is facing incredible challenges in the next decade  over population, food shortages, urbanisation, climate change, ageing populations  and we know that the answer to all of these problems lies in STEM, said I WISH co-founder Gillian Keating.

Donal Sullivan, site manager and vice president at Cork-headquartered Johnson Controls, believes the rate of gender change needs to swiftly increase to benefit future needs.

We know that innovation spikes where there is balance across our male and female workforce, and we see the positive outcomes of that every day in our R&D, tech comms and IT organisations as well as in our wider business functions.

Brian MacCraith of DCU, and chairperson of the STEM Education Review Group, underlines the need for greater engagement to meet the necessary global standard currently established.

The overall levels of performance in STEM subjects are not good enough if we aim to provide the best for our nations children, and to sustain our economic ambitions for the future.

A step-change in STEM outcomes is required throughout the educational system if we are to move to optimum levels of performance, he said.

Ireland needs to take an early and more rounded approach to fostering an interest among male and female students in STEM to remain competitive over the next decade, according to Mari Cahalane, head of the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition.

We have long campaigned that STEM subjects are for everyone, and that it is not necessary to be an A student to have a career in STEM. Ireland has an enormous opportunity as we are already seen as leading the way in innovative developments  but we need to foster an earlier interest in it amongst students.
Figures from the Department of Social Protection show 39,500 was spent housing just one Cork family under its exceptional needs payment scheme.

The scale of the payments has prompted fresh calls for money to instead be spent on keeping vulnerable families in their rental accommodation.

Highlighting the growth of the homelessness crisis outside of Dublin, the department revealed that the amount it has paid out under exceptional needs payments to people in hotels, hostels, and B&Bs nationally to the middle of October this year is already more than double the figure last year  up from 1.5m to over 3.1m.

While the bill for families living in hotels and other forms of emergency accommodation in the capital is co-ordinated through the Dublin Region Homeless Executive, in co-operation with the four local authorities, different systems operate elsewhere.

Thanks to historical arrangements with the Community Welfare Services, the money paid to house homeless families in some other parts of the country is covered by exceptional needs payments, with the issue most acute in Cork.

Looking at aggregate payments to house people and families in emergency accommodation, eight of the 10 highest payments so far relate to families in Cork, equating to 248,000 in total up to October 20.

The other two payments were for 34,000 to house a family in Clare and 29,500 spent so far this year to house a family in Limerick. The corresponding amount spent on all 10 families last year was 30,500, indicating that most of the families only became the subject of exceptional needs payments late last year or early this year.

Focus Irelands service manager for Cork and Limerick, Ger Spillane, said the amount of money spent on housing homeless people and families had nothing to do with the individuals involved and instead reflected the madness of the current system.

Not all of the families, but a good portion of them, would have lost their tenancy because the rent went up, said Mr Spillane. Its actually cheaper to pay the extra rent than put them in a hostel or B&B.

He said Focus Ireland operates a social rental model in Limerick designed to keep people in their tenancies and avoiding becoming homeless, topping up other payments to meet market rents.

Mr Spillane said there seemed to be a view that the Government could not be seen to allow landlords to profit from the housing crisis by making similar top-up payments, but he said the contradiction was that hotels were benefiting from the same situation.

The payments covered in the Freedom of Information request cover both Cork city and county areas, although most relate to city placements.

A spreadsheet showed the monthly payments made with regard to various placements and also highlights the variety of costs on offer, from one cent for a week-long stay in November/ December last year to 4,420 to cover a two-week stay at the start of June this year. More payments, and a greater number of larger payments, are visible in recent months.

The Homeless Persons Unit provides a central placement system for those presenting as homeless in Cork City on behalf of and funded by Cork City Council.

The exceptional needs payments are made by the department, but on a monthly basis a summary of accommodation costs are submitted to the city council for reimbursement.

Historical arrangements are in place in Limerick, Clare, and Tipperary, where community welfare officers work in conjunction with the local authorities homeless units.

The department said that these arrangements with the local authorities are currently under review.
His comments came after reports that some hardline Brexiteers in the UK had been assured by the British government that the term full alignment was meaningless.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Davis moved to calm fears of hardline leavers who were alarmed by a section of the agreement with Brussels which said Britain would have full alignment with the EU on regulations and standards that impacted on Northern Ireland.

Mr Davis insisted that the phrase had been changed from non-divergence which would have meant cutting and pasting rules from Brussels.

He said full alignment meant reaching similar outcomes, stating: We want to protect the peace process and we also want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them.

This was a statement of intent more than anything else. Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing.

Mr Daviss stance is likely to raise eyebrows Ireland after Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described Britains commitments to ensure no return to a hard border as politically bullet-proof and cast-iron.

Mr Davis insisted the UK would keep a frictionless border with the Republic even if there is no trade deal.

He told the BBC that the chances of Britain leaving the EU without a trade deal have dropped dramatically.

The odds, as it were, against a WTO, or no deal outcome, have dropped dramatically, he said.

Mr Davis also insisted Britain will not pay a 39bn (44bn) exit bill to Brussels unless there is a trade deal.

The comments appeared to contradict those of chancellor Philip Hammond who has said it would be inconceivable the UK would fail to honour its international obligations.

Pressed on Mr Hammonds remarks, Mr Davis said: No. It is conditional on an outcome. I am afraid that wasnt quite right.

It is conditional. It is conditional on getting an implementation period. Conditional on a trade outcome.

No deal means that we wont be paying the money.

When asked at a Commons treasury committee meeting last week whether Britains divorce bill was contingent on a trade deal, Mr Hammond said: Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed in this negotiation.

But I find it inconceivable that we as a nation would be walking away from an obligation that we recognised as an obligation.

That is not a credible scenario. That is not the kind of country we are. Frankly, it would not make us a credible partner for future international agreements.

Mr Davis said a trade deal was not that complicated.

Meanwhile, former chancellor Ken Clarke said British prime minister Theresa May needs to face down the hard-right extremist Brexiteers in Conservative ranks.

He told the BBC: I cant see how we are going to get to a sensible conclusion without, eventually, facing down the ones that wont compromise. The ones that just keep reciting nonsense.
James Brokenshire said a new customs partnership could be established or a highly streamlined approach to customs could be taken post-Brexit.

We set out two proposals in relation to how we would deal with the issue of tariffs, how we would deal with those sorts of elements in relation to customs, whether that be a new customs partnership where we would effectively apply a similar or the same tariff that the EU currently applies to goods coming into the EU, or a highly streamlined approach with effectively exemptions that would apply for small business, Mr Brokenshire told Sky News.

It comes after the Government came out strongly to claim Ireland and the EU would be holding the UK to the agreement reached over the border.

Reacting to comments made by Brexit secretary David Davis, who said Fridays deal was a statement of intent rather than a legally binding agreement, a number of ministers maintained that the progress document had ensured that there will be no hard border.

Minister of State for European Affairs Helen McEntee said that, as far as the Government was concerned, Fridays agreement is what will happen.

Its very, very clear, in the absence of UK being able to negotiate this free-standing, close personal relationship and trade arrangement with the rest of the EU, there will be a fall-safe in that areas that pertain to the single market and the customs union that are linked not just to the Good Friday agreement, but also the area of co-operation North and South, not just now but into the future, would be aligned, she said.

Agriculture Minister Michael Creed said: We set out our stall very early on in the context of these negotiations on what we wanted from phase one. That was accepted by the negotiating team as a critical foundation into the future. We have achieved everything that we set out. We negotiated in good faith, we had a hierarchy of objectives, the critical one from our point of view was that there would be no hard border.

Government chief whip Joe McHugh said Ireland has the solid support of other EU states over the border.
Kathleen OToole said the Independent Commission on Policing in Northern Ireland (Patten Commission) had pressed for this measure and that its creation was key to setting up the PSNI.

Ms Toole sat on the Patten Commission and said she and the rest of the members of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland were determined their report would not just gather dust.

Speaking before the commissions first major public consultation in Cork tomorrow evening, Ms OToole said: An oversight body was established after Patten to ensure that everything is implemented.

Certainly, we will make a recommendation on the need for such a body to implement our report. We do not want this report to sit on a shelf and gather dust.

The commission is conducting a major review of policing, including recruitment and training, its structures and function, technology, leadership and the entire issue of accountability and oversight.

It is due to complete its report by September 2018.

The public consultation  in Boole 1 lecture theatre in UCC at 7pm on Tuesday  is to be moderated by criminal justice expert Professor Caroline Fennell.

It is the first of eight such meetings around the country between now and January, with the second in Athlone this Thursday. It is part of a wider consultation, including written submissions, with the deadline for receipt of all such entries being the end of January.

People should be the ones who set the agenda, said Ms OToole. We want to listen to ordinary people. I am a strong advocate of that.

It was the same with the Patten Commission, where we also had extensive public consulation.

She said the commission had been conducting research and compiling data since it started work and was examining best practice in other countries. I

t had set up five subcommittees:

Governance, oversight, and accountability.

Recruitment, training, and professional development.

The role of policing  examining civil policing, immigration, and security.

Technology and digital innovation.

Leadership and structures.

From February, it would conduct analysis of the consultation process and sometime after spring, start writing its report and deliberating on its recommendations.

She said she hoped the external review of the Department of Justice ordered recently by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar would feed into the work of the commission.

The commission is examining the relationship between the department and the gardai (as well as the Policing Authority and the Garda Inspectorate).

We will examine, are the stuctures effective, who is playing what role and how are they operating? she said.

She said the Taoiseachs external review was reporting by Christmas and also had a much wider remit than the commission.

We will follow very closely the review and will keep strong lines of communication open with them, Ms OToole said.

She pointed out that she sat on the Toland Review, which examined the department in 2014.
Brexit minister David Davis described the phase one Brexit agreement, signed on Friday, which promised to prevent a hard border with the North, as a statement of intent rather than a legally-binding deal.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described the agreement as politically bulletproof, claiming it ensures there will be no return to a hard border and last night a spokesman said the EU would be holding the UK to this commitment,
Chattanoogas newest data center, DC BLOX, held its first IT business connection event last week. This event launched the first of several planned events designed to bring area IT professionals together with major technology companies. In collaboration with Comcast and Ciena, DC BLOX hosted regional IT professionals at their site. The company provided tours of their new data center as well as the Ciena demonstration truck. Both Comcast and DC BLOX presented their capabilities via presentations to more than 35 local Chattanooga IT professionals.

Since we opened our new data center here, more and more large data-focused companies have shown their interested in utilizing our network and Chattanoogas robust fiber infrastructure, said Benny Middleton, Tennessee director of business development for DC BLOX. We are bringing technology businesses together in the ideal location. The more connections that are built with national carriers, the greater the chances are for major content providers like Netflix and Hulu to see this area as prime real estate. This would not only mean faster services in the home but regional economic development. Connections with companies like Comcast and Ciena vastly improve an areas technological capabilities and offer easily-accessible data services to businesses. These types of partnerships tie to our company strategy of edge connected data centers bringing technology advantages to mid-tier cities across the Southeast.

DC BLOX creates and operates edge data centers providing customers with the ability to securely backup, transfer and restore information while syncing in real-time. The company is able to move data in hours or minutes instead of days by utilizing cloud-based services. In the event of a crisis or emergency situation, their clients sensitive information is warehoused outside of an impact zone resulting in safe storage, said officials.

The Atlanta-based company expanded into Chattanooga earlier this year and held a ribbon-cutting in September. To find out more about DC BLOX, call (877) 590-1684, visit www.dcBLOX.com or follow DC BLOX on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.


Julie Shynkarenka, a former language teacher, journalist, and entrepreneur who first volunteered with the charity, lived for many years in one of the most highly radioactive contaminated regions of Belarus.

She says her family had no idea of the seriousness of the Chernobyl disaster as it was kept totally hidden from them and remained surrounded in secrecy for many years afterwards; however, all of them have suffered from the consequences of the catastrophic explosion.

Julie grew up in Gomel, a city of 520,000 residents, the second largest city in Belarus, which was directly in the path of the deadly fall-out from the Chernobyl nuclear accident of April 26, 1986.

Gomel, just 130km from Chernobyl, suffered serious contamination from the explosion, with an alarming rise in illnesses linked to high levels of radiation exposure.

Today, Gomel is a leading centre of radiation medicine, where efforts continue to cope with the catastrophic consequences of Chernobyl.

Julie and her family were among the thousands of victims of the disaster.

Chernobyl is located just across the border in Ukraine but those of us who lived in the path of the radioactive cloud that came with the wind into our country have lived with the consequences of that terrible disaster all of our lives, she says.

The full scale of the Chernobyl accident only emerged years later, following the

collapse of the Soviet Union. Ireland, led by Chernobyl Children International,

became one of the first countries to offer emergency relief to the victims and survivors of the nuclear accident.

In 1993, Julie was sent to Italy for a month-long recuperation programme by a local relief organisation based in Gomel.

She was suffering from serious eyes defect and had almost lost her sight. Her sister, Anna, had problems with her thyroid glands and bones.

She recalls: The awful truth is that when Chernobyl happened, people in Belarus knew nothing about its impact or seriousness. All information about it was hidden and kept secret.

Every spring and summer we would go to live with our grandparents in the village of Rechytsa, which is even nearer Chernobyl and grow our own vegetables, unaware that we were sowing them in contaminated ground.

I remember the first weekend after the explosion we were working on our grandparents farm, sowing potatoes. We knew nothing about the disaster which had taken place so near us. We had no idea that it was going to cause us so much tragedy. We were completely failed by the state.

What happened in her country makes Julie both very sad and very angry.

The fallout from Chernobyl caused huge economic, social, environmental, and health problems. There was huge disruption and dislocation with thousands of people becoming environmental refugees as they were forced to move out of the most contaminated areas.

Julie graduated from Gomel State University in 2001 and worked for a time as a language teacher. She went to Dublin to study tourism management and marketing in 2002, afterwards working with the investment firm Oyster Capital Partners.

She later became a presenter and journalist with the first Russian internet TV station in Dublin  2Dublin.tv.

She was immediately impressed by the work that Irish people had been doing for children in Belarus affected by the Chernobyl disaster.

I almost couldnt believe it, she says.

I became aware of what Irish volunteers with Adi Roches Chernobyl Children International were doing all over Belarus, even in my own hometown of Gomel, and I offered to help in any way I could.

Julie began to work as a volunteer with the charity, making several trips back to Belarus in recent years  in the company of Ms Roche, board member Ali Hewson, and teams of Irish volunteers working to improve the lives of vulnerable children.

It is an unending struggle to find the resources to support the programmes which CCI has established and is providing in my country, says Julie. And it is a great honour to be appointed to the board of directors.

Irish people have played an extraordinary role in helping the child victims of Chernobyl, many of whom were abandoned in grim orphanages, suffer from the most serious illnesses and have to cope with severe disabilities.

It is inspiring to witness what has and is being done to improve their lives in even the remotest villages in my country.

Commenting on the appointment, Ms Roche said: Being a native of Belarus, Julie has an added understanding that will hugely benefit the organisation in terms of local negotiations and relationship building.

However, most importantly, Julie has lived through the fallout from Chernobyl and is an inspiration for so many like her who continue to live in its dark shadow.
Let Me Tell You is a new bespoke podcast series from



Hosts Daniel McConnell and Paul Hosford take a look back at some of the most dramatic moments in recent Irish political history from the unique perspective of one of the key players involved.


Her family said they were touched by the gesture from HeliOperations  a leading search and rescue (SAR) helicopter training and crew supply firm based in Britain  to name the ex-Royal Navy aircraft, which is getting a new lease of life as a SAR training aircraft.

Her sister, Niamh Fitzpatrick, said Dara would have been very proud to be associated with such a remarkable aircraft.

From the first day she flew a helicopter, Dara utterly loved it. This is a lovely gesture in tribute to her, she said.

Its a mark too of the respect and affection in which she was held in the SAR community.

Anyone who ever heard Dara talk about her role would hear the joy in her words. She spoke with such love about her job and about the helicopters she flew. She was just so proud, and to be associated with a Sea King  shed get such a kick out of that. We as a family have drawn huge comfort from this.

The Sea King Mk5 aircraft, ZA166, is one of two former Royal Navy SAR helicopters, formerly of the 771 Naval Air Squadron, which were based in Cornwall until their retirement in April 2016.

However, they are now re-entering service to train the German Navy in SAR operations.

They will be retained as UK military aircraft but will be leased to HeliOperations, which owns a massive training base in Portland, Dorset.

HeliOperations CEO Capt Steve Gladston, who knew and flew with Capt Fitzpatrick, said everyone supported his suggestion to name ZA166 after Dara.

She was a beautiful woman, a fabulous human being, and a brilliant pilot and we thought maybe this was the right thing to do, and everyone endorsed the idea, and her family was hugely supportive, he said.

Daras name will appear in Gaelic script below the pilots door window, with the words, Queen of the Skies, written in Irish below.

She died when the Rescue 116 aircraft she was flying crashed into the sea off Mayo in the early hours of March 14. Her body was recovered from the water a short time later.

The body of her co-pilot Mark Duffy, was recovered from the sunken wreckage just over a week later. Despite extensive searches, the bodies of winchmen Ciaran Smith and Paul Ormsby have not been found.

Capt Gladston said he would also like to see the establishment of a training scholarship in Capt Fitzpatricks memory to encourage more women into aviation.

He hopes to work with her family, with the Irish Aviation Authority and major aviation companies in Ireland to get the annual scholarship idea off the ground.

Dara's sister Niamh said: Dara often gave of her time to help people coming up behind her wanting to get into aviation and I suppose that being a woman she attracted many requests from females.

She would be just thrilled with this scholarship - to think that in her name another pilot will benefit, that would mean so much to Dara and therefore to us.
Property website Daft.ie has found that commuters living on the Dublin coastline pay the most for a home, with houses close to the Sandymount Dart averaging 784,000.

Among the most expensive Dart stations to live beside include Lansdowne Road (737,000), Sydney Parade (706,000), and Dalkey (699,000).

On the Luas, homes close to Beechwood on the green line have the highest average asking prices, at 727,000.

However, those living in the city centre pay the most for properties on the Luas red line, with properties near the Spencer Dock averaging 597,000.

Asking prices for each stop on the new Luas Cross City line, which opened on Saturday, put properties close to the new Dawson, Trinity, and Westmoreland stops at the top, with average asking prices of 519,000.

Economist Ronan Lyons said it was well known that transport infrastructure could have a significant impact on property values.

Ireland has added a lot of new infrastructure over the last 20 years, including motorways and the Dart.

Mr Lyons said how the investments paid for themselves was another issue but an option increasingly being considered elsewhere was value capture.

In other words, where the taxpayer brings about an increase in wealth by paying for new infrastructure, he said.

Mr Lyons said the opening of the Luas Cross City had obviously added value in the areas newly served by light rail.

Three-bedroom homes near the new Luas stations increased by 15% in value over the last year, compared to a 6% increase for similar dwellings near other rail stations.

Whether the taxpayer gets some payback, however, is down to the Government, said Mr Lyons.

Commenting on the data, Martin Clancy from Daft.ie said convenience and affordability were two critical concerns for almost everyone living and working in Dublin.

Mr Clancy said the property website had created its 2017 Dart and Luas stop-by-stop house price maps, sponsored by KBC.

This map gives a great overview of property prices across the capital and is a fantastic visual reference for anyone who is considering buying or selling close to the Luas or Dart, he said.

An analysis by MyHome.ie found Luas Cross City caused property prices to increase by over 20% in parts of Dublin 1 and 2.

Cabra, Stoneybatter, and Phibsboro are among the most popular areas. Prices in the Dominick St area where a new Luas stop is located, are around 356,000, a 22% increase.
Kathleen OToole made a dramatic intervention last September, publicly warning Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan that it would be a serious mistake to proceed with the appointment before the expert group issued its report in September 2018.

It followed the shock retirement of Noirin OSullivan and the start of discussions between the Department of Justice, the Policing Authority, and the Public Appointments Service about starting a new appointment process.

Ms OToole told the Irish Examiner that while they would prefer, in a perfect world, for the Government to wait until it reported, she was now satisfied, from talking to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and the Policing Authority, that a proper procedure would be taken.

She was speaking ahead of the commissions first major public consultation in relation to its review, which is being held in Cork tomorrow evening .

We were very concerned at the time that the Government would go out immediately and hire someone within a few months, said Ms OToole, who is due to finish soon as police chief in Seattle.

I had very good discussions with the Taoiseach in Seattle [ early last month]. I expressed the fear that an impulsive decision would be irresponsible. I did not want to see the Government paying more for the same result and that it was really important that this would be a thoughtful process.

Im not particularly concerned now and Im very optimistic it will be a thoughtful process and that the right person will be selected.

Ms OToole said she did think it would attract credible candidates and that she saw a much bigger pool of applicants, including from abroad, this time.

She said Mr Varadkar talked about the issue on RTEs Marian Finucane show at the start of this month and said that, from his remarks, he had listened carefully to what she had said.

The Government is expected to set the appointment process in motion this month and the Policing Authority and the Public Appointments Service have indicated to Mr Flanagan that the process could take up to six months.

Tomorrows meeting is on in Boole 1 lecture theatre in UCC at 7pm
Mary Harris was born in Cork in 1837 and survived the famine before emigrating to Canada with her family.

She went on to become one of the most renowned union leaders in the US.

Harris campaigned fiercely against child labour and was a passionate defender of miners and the rights of workers.

She later became widely known as Mother Jones.

A new memorial, in the form of a large road sign detailing the story and achievements of Harris, is to be unveiled just off Route 66 near the I-55 Southbound Coalfield Roadway in the state of Illinois.

It is a rest stop which caters for more than 1m travellers every year.

The large marker, which has been placed with the cooperation of the Illinois Department of Transportation, will be unveiled today by Brian OBrien, Irelands consulate general in Chicago.

The marker is located about 30km north of Mount Oval Cemetery where Mother Jones is buried.

I know of nobody else from Cork who has had a sign that has been specially erected in their honour so close to one of the most famous highways in America, said Ger OMahony, of Cork Mother Jones Committee.

It shows the increasing interest in the story of Mother Jones on both sides of the Atlantic.

Mr OMahony is currently making preparations for the 2018 Spirit of Mother Jones Festival.

An annual event in the heart of Cork City, it is due to take place in Shandon next August.

James Nolan, also part of the Cork Mother Jones Committee, said: We are delighted to congratulate the Mother Jones Heritage Project committee in Illinois for their enormous work to ensure that Mary Harris/Mother Jones is never forgotten.

We especially wish to thank Professor Rosemary Feurer who has brought this project to fruition in Illinois.

She has supported and inspired the Spirit of Mother Jones festival in Cork over the past six years and has spoken at it twice.

In addition to the Irish Consulate, representatives from the Illinois AFL-CIO, Illinois Labour History Society, the United Mine Workers of America, the Irish American Heritage Centre, the Route 66 Association, and many others will attend the historic unveiling of the Mother Jones Marker.

The Coalfield rest area where the marker is placed receives more than 1m visitors each year.

The new marker is the brainchild of the Mother Jones Heritage Project which established a museum near Mount Olive where she is buried.

The marker will highlight the importance of union coal miners in Illinois and US history, as well as the remarkable historical figure Mother Jones.

Mary Jones Harris was born in Cork and baptised at the North Cathedral, on August 1, 1837, by Fr John OMahony.

Her parents were Ellen Cotter, a native of Inchigeelagh, and Richard Harris.

Ellen Cotter, born in 1816, was aged 18 when she married.
In what has been described as an extraordinary step, the head of Transport Infrastructure Irelands (TII) network operations has written to chief executives of each local authority saying he found it necessary to warn them of the scale of the cutbacks they will have to implement in their 2018 budgets, and the challenge they will face in maintaining the national roads network in their region.

Most local authorities have at this stage prepared and adopted their 2018 budgets, anticipating the same level of funding as 2017 from the TII for ordinary maintenance.

The recent annual budget meeting in Tralee had heard how the grants were already insufficient to properly maintain the national primary and the national secondary roads networks in Kerry, which includes some of the busiest tourist routes in the country.

Maintenance grants for the national roads had been drastically cut each year and were less than half what they were in 2008, the meeting was told.

John Brassil, a Fianna Fail TD in Kerry, said the public would be shocked at the cuts. He has called on Transport Minister Shane Ross to rethink them, saying roads are already in a terrible state.

In the letter to local authorities, TII head of network operations Kevin ORourke states: You will appreciate that areas of expenditure such as winter maintenance and route lighting have limited scope for reduction in expenditure.

In addition, TII has contractual commitments with regard to motorway and bridge maintenance contracts and salt purchase.

Taking all factors into consideration, the necessity for significant cuts in the national road ordinary maintenance allocations to local authorities is inevitable.

At this point, it is envisaged that the 2018 ordinary maintenance allocations to local authorities will be reduced by approx 30% from 2017 levels.

Even with the possibility of mitigation by drawing down extra funding streams, the cuts would be significant, said Mr ORourke.

Combined management of the situation at both national and local level will be critical, he said.

A spokesman for TII this weekend said safety maintenance had been prioritised and the impact would be on grass cutting and verge maintenance, patching, and such. Resurfacing would not be affected.

It would be up to each local authority to identify areas most in need along the national routes in their counties.

Mr Brassil said local authorities and the public will be shocked to learn of the cuts, on top of 10 years of reduced funding.

The good work which had been done a decade ago has now almost completely eroded and it was an extraordinary step this year that TII had to write to local authorities, he said.

Roads are already in a severe state of disrepair. Road users can expect to see more potholes and increased damage to their cars and higher repair costs in 2018, said Mr Brassil.

Minister Ross needs to review this issue as a matter of urgency. Where exactly is the additional money he secured in Budget 2018 actually going towards?

Its perfectly clear from the TII that it is not going towards roads maintenance budgets.
TWH Architects Eric Huffstetler has earned his architect license. After 18 months, Mr. Huffstetler passed the Architecture Registration Examination consisting of five total exams  all of which he passed on first attempt  to receive his Architect Registration for the State of Tennessee.

Originally from Knoxville, Mr. Huffstetler attend the University of Tennessee at Knoxville where he earned his Bachelor in Architecture. From there, he accepted a position with a sole proprietor in Knoxville where he worked on projects in which he was involved first-hand in both the design and construction process. It was during that time in 2009, when Mr. Huffstetler began logging his professional experience in preparation to become licensed.

In 2014, Mr. Huffstetler was hired as an intern by Michael Brady Inc. as they began to grow their Chattanooga office. Rated one of the top design firms in the Southeast, TWH merged with MBIs Chattanooga office in September 2016 to form TWH Architects, a michael brady inc. company. Combined, the company forms one of the largest design firms in East Tennessee.

Working for a large firm like TWH has exposed me to larger projects, as well as different aspects of the industry that I formerly had little experience in, said Mr. Huffstetler. I gladly attribute my ARE success to the experiences gained through the very different environments I have been able to work in.

The ARE is a multi-division exam used to assess ones knowledge and skills regarding the practice of architecture. The ARE is designed to assess aspects of architectural practice that affect the integrity, soundness, and health impact of a building. The exam also assesses an architects responsibilities within firms, such as managing projects and coordinating the work of other professionals.

The biggest challenge for me was balancing work, studying and adult life while remaining diligent in my goal to obtain my license within 18 months of beginning testing, said Mr. Huffstetler. I had to overcome the learning curve of two separate testing formats but was fortunate enough to have the support of American Institute of Architects Chattanooga with financial reimbursement, as well as access to study materials throughout the process.

Prior to graduating, Mr. Huffstetlers first professional experience was a summer construction job in Chattanooga in 2007. Working on a collaboration between UTK College of Architecture (UTK CoA+D), Howard High School and HGH Construction and other organizations, Mr. Huffstetler was one of two UTK CoA+D student team leaders for a group of Howard drafting students interested in a career in architecture/construction.

Together they built two houses from the ground up on Carr Street in eight weeks, both of which were designed by the Howard students. This introduction into construction gave him a practical understanding of what it takes to bring a design to life.






The Signal Mountain Genealogical Society will meet on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018 at 1 p.m. at the Signal Mountain Library.

Jim Dodson, President of the Society, will present a program entitled, "Using DNA Techniques in Your Genealogical Research."

As always guests will be welcome.






The Ringgold Playhouse will host open auditions for its first production of its 2018 season, John Cariani's romantic comedy "Almost, Maine," Dec. 11-12.



Auditions are open to actors ages 16 and up, and will be held at the historic Ringgold Depot, 155 Depot St., each evening beginning at 7 p.m. Actors do not need to have a monologue prepared, as the audition will consist of cold readings from the script.



The show's director, TRP veteran Renee Lierow, says the play will provide a heartfelt story for audiences around Valentine's Day, and create a great storytelling opportunity for actors.

"I am so excited to be directing my first show at TRP," Ms. Lierow said. "We are looking for people who want to have fun with this quirky romantic comedy about relationships in this small town of Almost, Maine."



The show will include seven performances over a two-weekend period. Production dates are Feb. 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24.



Anyone seeking additional information can email TheRinggoldPlayhouse@gmail.com.



"We're looking for actors of all ages, shapes, and sizes to come play with us," Ms. Lierow said. It's going to be a great way to kick off the 2018 season."



Play synopsis

On a cold, clear, moonless night in the middle of winter, all is not quite what it seems in the remote, mythical town of Almost, Maine. As the northern lights hover in the star-filled sky above, Almost's residents find themselves falling in and out of love in unexpected and often hilarious ways. Knees are bruised. Hearts are broken. But the bruises heal, and the hearts mend  almost  in this delightful midwinter night's dream.



Character/scene breakdown

"Prologue"

PETE (M) and GINETTE (F)

The two have been dating for a little while. Due to how shy and awkward they both, the two are unable to communicate their love for one another. That is, until one of them decides to go the distance.

"Her Heart"

EAST (M) A repairman. Calm, collected, and sincere. GLORY (F) A hiker. She is vulnerable, nervous, and the point.

Glory is hiking through Maine to find the perfect spot to see the northern lights and get over her late husband. East finds her setting up camp in his front yard.

"Sad & Glad"

JIMMY (M) A well-intended heating and cooling guy. His broken heart keeps him from articulating his thoughts well. SANDRINE (F) His ex-girlfriend who left him abruptly. She is very sensitive and put together. WAITRESS (F) A waitress. Very excited and dedicated to her job.

Jimmy is already having a sad night at the local bar when Sandrine shows up.

"This Hurts"

MARVALYN (F) A woman, going through a rough patch in her current relationship.

STEVE (M) An innocent and confused man who has a disorder that stops him from feeling pain.

After meeting in the laundry room of Ma Dudleys Boarding House, Marvalyn gives Steven some ideas for his new books Things That Can Hurt You and Things to Be Afraid Of.

"Getting it Back"

GAYLE (F) An impatient, passionate, and very flustered woman. LENDALL (M) An understanding and collected man.

Gayle shows up at Lendalls door in the middle of the night and demands that he return all the love she gave him.

"Interlogue"

PETE from the "prologue"

"They Fell"

RANDY (M) A down-to-earth "country boy," and CHAD (M) Another down-to-earth "county boy"

As these two boys talk through the horrors of their most recent dates, they make an honest discovery - theyre in love with each other.

"Where it Went"

PHIL (M) A working man, and MARCI (F) His hardworking wife.

Phils workload has been overwhelming lately, and on a hard-to-come-by, much needed night out, Marci draws his attention to all the things hes missed.

"Story of Hope"

HOPE (F) She has traveled the world. MAN (M) He has not.

After leaving abruptly many years ago, Hope shows up at her ex-boyfriends door expecting to get back together. Unfortunately, A lot has changed since she left Almost.

"Seeing the Thing"

RHONDA (F) A tough woman. Hesitant to commit. DAVE (M) The not-so-tough man who loves her.

Rhonda and Dave have been "hanging out" a lot. One night, after a non-date of snowmobiling, Dave ends up giving Rhonda a present, which would be nice if she could actually figure out what it is.

"Epilogue"

PETE (M) From the prologue and interlogue, and GINETTE (F) From the prologue.

The casting of this show is wide open, because it can be staged with as few as 4 actors, or as many as 19, which means some actors could appear in multiple vignettes if the director sees fit. Actors need only to attend one night of auditions, and call backs will be up to the director if deemed necessary.
The Occupational Therapy Assistants program made available at Chattanooga State Community College through a partnership with Roane State Community College is composed of three semesters of academic readiness followed by one semester of full-time experience in the field. Every OTA student that is admitted will use distance education technologies to engage with the instructor, course content and peers. Every student is required to travel weekly to the Oak Ridge Branch Campus of Roane State for face-to-face labs.

"Occupational therapy assistants use intentional activities to help a person retain or reestablish their independence at the highest degree possible in pursuits that are personally worthwhile to them. Occupational therapy assistants are employed in a multitude of areas such as hospitals, outpatient centers, school systems, skilled nursing facilities, community programs, home health agencies, and mental health agencies," officials said.

Students seeking admission through the East Tennessee Alliance must be a current or former student at Chattanooga State who have completed a minimum of least 12 hours at CSCC before applying to the OTA program. Each year, up to 10 adept applicants will be granted admission to the program. All applications must be submitted by no later than March 31, 2018.

For further inquiries and information about the programs admissions policies, visit Chattanooga State Nursing and Allied Health OTA webpage at https://www.chattanoogastate.edu/occupational-therapy-assistant or contact Jerri Kiser, Distance Education Academic Fieldwork coordinator, OTA East Alliance Program at jerri.kiser@chattanoogastate.edu.

The next available OTA Information Session will be held Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2018 at 5 p.m. in the Health Science Center in HSC-2088. No reservations needed.



The Occupational Therapy Assistant Program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education.
A U.S. investigator confirmed Sunday that the bodies of a local flight instructor and two Chinese trainees had been recovered after a plane crashed into a lake in the southern U.S. state of Florida Friday.

A Beechcraft King Air C-90 twin-engine plane crashed into Lake Harney, east just of Sanford, at about 11:15 a.m. Friday, said Joshua Cawthra, a senior aviation investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), at a press briefing Sunday afternoon.

Two Chinese trainees are missing after a training flight crashed into Lake Harney in Florida on Friday. [Photo: CGTN]

Cawthra said all of the bodies of the victims aboard the plane had been recovered Saturday.

Investigators are in the process of recovering the wreckage of the crashed plane, which remains about 10 feet underwater, but the environment is not favorable.

"It's a fairly complex situation right now due to the underwater visibility," Cawthra said. "The divers that have been going under the water were reporting anywhere from five to eight inches of visibility."

"So with limited visibility, it hampers the ability to figure out where the rest of the airplane is," he said.

Search crews found the sunken plane Saturday, while using sonars to locate the rest of it. Cawthra said it's still unsure how to extract the plane, but suggesting using airbags.

The aircraft, if recovered, will be delivered to a secure facility in Jacksonville, over 200 km north of Lake Harney, said the investigator.

The pilot was identified as Kamalesh Naik, 56, of Sanford. His LinkedIn account lists his occupations as flight instructor and airline pilot. The two trainees were both identified as Chinese nationals in their 20s. They were students at an airline academy in Sanford.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the aircraft was on its way to Orlando-Sanford International Airport before it crashed.

Cawthra said the investigation hasn't found any evidence to support that "there was any distress calls or any mayday radio."

The NTSB investigators are expected to work with the FAA, as well as manufacturers of the plane and its engine. Cawthra revealed that a preliminary report on the crash will be released on the NTSB website in five business days.

In the wake of the accident, the flying academy that owned the plane extended their condolences in a statement to the family and friends of the victims of the tragedy, promising to "cooperate fully with the FAA and the NTSB in the ongoing investigation."

The Chinese Consulate General in Houston told Xinhua that it reached out to the academy as soon as they heard about the incident. Officials from the consulate said the academy has suspended all on-flight training lessons and provided psychological counseling to other Chinese trainees.

It also sent a team to Sanford to meet NTSB investigators Sunday over the crash.
The local supply of Christmas trees should be adequate for most of December, despite a projected national shortage of the evergreens during the holiday season.

Heather Overton, a spokeswoman for the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said that supplies of Christmas trees are limited in the state.

The supplies are tighter than usual, Overton said. People may pay more for Christmas trees.

In some areas in North Carolina and throughout the country, consumers looking for Christmas trees may find them in short supply, and possibly 10 percent more expensive than last year.

The Great Recession of 2008 forced some tree growers to plant fewer Christmas trees while many consumers didnt spend as much money and decided to forego buying the festive evergreens during that period, according to a recent report by the New York Times.

It takes eight to 10 years for Christmas trees to grow big enough to be cut and sold for the holidays. Therefore, there are fewer trees available for the market. This year Americans are spending, and Christmas trees are in demand again.

The latest available statistics show that 4.29 million Christmas trees in 2012 were harvested in North Carolina, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on its website. There are about 1,500 Christmas tree growers in the state, according to the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service.

In 2014, those growers generated $89.3 million in tree sales, Overton said.

Christmas tree production is a difficult business, said Leslie Peck, an agent with the Forsyth County Cooperative Extension Service.

It does take several years to grow a sizable tree, and there is a very limited window in which those trees are desirable to consumers, said Peck who specializes in commercial and consumer horticulture. So, it is often difficult for producers to stay in business.

During the past two weekends, state and local residents flocked to farms and to roadside merchants, said Overton and Bill Glenn of Asheville, a marketing specialist for the state Agriculture Department.

However, tree growers have adequate supplies of trees for this weekend and possibly the rest of the month, Glenn said. Many tree lots are owned by growers from Ashe and Watauga counties, and they can provide enough evergreens for these businesses, he said.

The supplies will be good, especially in Winston-Salem, Glenn said. But our supply of inventory hasnt been as strong as in previous years.

Laura Foster of Newland, who works at the Christmas tree lot at The Childrens Home on Reynolda Road, said that her lot has enough trees to meet the demand. Her family grows evergreens in Avery county.

At that lot, the trees range in price from $30 to $100 each.

Ken Van Hoy, the co-owner of Rail Fence Farm in the Belews Creek community, also said he was aware of a nationwide shortage, but his farm has enough trees for its customers.

His prices range from $20 to $40 per tree, Van Hoy said. About 1,000 trees are planted yearly on his farm.

We will have trees available for this week, he said. After this weekend, we will pretty much be sold out.

Jarrett Joyce of Winston-Salem is selling Fraser firs in the parking lot of West Salem Shopping Center on Peters Creek Parkway. The prices for the trees there ranged from $20 to $65.

His lot has a good supply, Joyce said. The tree shortage is affecting wholesalers, he said.

His uncle, Sanford Fischel, a Winston-Salem native, grows evergreens in Ashe County.

We knew it was coming, Joyce said of the shortage. It had to come with everyone growing fewer trees.
President Donald Trump on Saturday evening issued a call for a reporter with The Washington Post to be fired because of a quickly deleted tweet that presented a misleading impression of Trump's rally crowd in Florida.

The Post reporter, David Weigel, had earlier tweeted a photo of the crowd gathered at Pensacola Bay Center for Trump's speech there Friday evening, showing numerous empty seats. He removed the tweet after being told by others that the photo was taken before the venue filled up and apologized in a later Twitter exchange with the president.

Trump's public response: ".@daveweigel of the Washington Post just admitted that his picture was a FAKE (fraud?) showing an almost empty arena last night for my speech in Pensacola when, in fact, he knew the arena was packed (as shown also on T.V.). FAKE NEWS, he should be fired."

On Saturday night, The Washington Post released a statement. "Dave Weigel relied on an inaccurate image in tweeting about President Trump's rally in Pensacola," the paper's vice president of communications, Kristine Coratti Kelly, said. "When others pointed out the mistake to Weigel, he quickly deleted the tweet. And when he was later addressed by the president on Twitter, he promptly apologized for it."

Trump has frequently lashed out at media figures in very personal terms. It was not the first time the White House had called for a journalist's firing: In September, after ESPN commentator Jemele Hill called the president a "white supremacist" in a tweet, his press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, said in a White House press briefing that it was a "fireable offense."

Earlier Saturday, Trump similarly lashed out at two other media organizations, ABC and CNN, that had issued corrections on stories about Trump in recent days.

"Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his 'mistake'). Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?" he tweeted.

Early Saturday morning, Trump tweeted about the "GREAT EVENING last night" at his rally in Pensacola, Florida, where he told the audience, among other things, to "get out and vote for Roy Moore," Alabama's Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, who has been accused of sexual misconduct with teenage girls. "Arena was packed to the rafters, the crowd was loud, loving and really smart," Trump wrote.

A short time later, Weigel quoted Trump's tweet and wrote "Packed to the rafters," attaching a photo that showed hundreds of available seats in the lower and upper levels. He deleted it about 20 minutes later.

Around 5 p.m., Trump addressed Weigel's tweet with his own: ".@DaveWeigel @WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo!" the president wrote, including pictures of the venue's seats filled as he was onstage.

Weigel tweeted back almost immediately. "Sure thing: I apologize. I deleted the photo after @dmartosko told me I'd gotten it wrong," Weigel wrote, referring to David Martosko, U.S. political editor of the Daily Mail's website. "Was confused by the image of you walking in the bottom right corner."

In a later tweet, Weigel wrote: "It was a bad tweet on my personal account, not a story for Washington Post. . . . Very fair to call me out."

Among Trump's grievances with the media, he is notably sensitive about crowd size at his events. After images circulated on social media in January that showed fewer people at his inauguration than former president Barack Obama's, then-press secretary Sean Spicer was dispatched to tell the press, "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration - period - both in person and around the globe."

trump-reporter

Washington Post News Service (DC)

12/9/2017 9:51:10 PM Central Standard Time
Sometimes you have to acknowledge what you are and embrace it, even if part of you doesnt like it.

I might wish I were tall and famous and a candidate for People Magazines Sexiest Man Alive. You might wish you had invented Google and appeared on the cover of Forbes. But that doesnt change the fact that were regular schmoes from Wisconsin whose appeal has, to date, gone unrecognized by national periodicals.

What are we to do, attempt to pass ourselves as something were not in hopes of getting attention? I could spend my days strutting about in pantaloons, munching on baguettes and humming La Marseillaise, but that wouldnt make me the king of France.

Alas, some in Wisconsin want our state to deny its nature and create a new identity in hopes of impressing others. They want to discontinue the states slogan  Americas Dairyland  and replace it with something that isnt quite so, well, cheesy.

This fall the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce business group pushed to remove the slogan from license plates. Business leaders want the world to know theres more to Wisconsin than cheese wedges. On this point, the organization is right: Theres also sausage, beer, Harley-Davidsons and the Green Bay Packers.

But those are just the kind of traditional  they might call them tired  images business leaders want Wisconsin to shed. They want to promote exciting things happening in the states economy outside the agriculture sector. They point to the Taiwanese company Foxconns plan to build a massive high-tech manufacturing campus near Racine with help from a $3 billion state subsidy. Perhaps our license plates should read, Wisconsin: Taiwans Sugar Daddy.

I can understand the states chamber of commerce wanting Wisconsin to be known for more than its dairy air. No one wants to be perceived as one-dimensional. But the reputation of the states cheese across the nation and around the world is a commodity to be treasured, not trashed. Any rebranding effort must take care not to throw out the cheese wedge with the whey.

Imagine Las Vegas suffering a crisis of conscience and deciding it would prefer to be known not for gambling, but for something more wholesome such as, say, crocheting. Try though it might to rebrand itself as the Crocheting Capital of the World  What Frays in Vegas Stays in Vegas  it wouldnt change public perception of Sin City.

Wisconsin should count itself lucky that it has a well-established identity. Tell me what you know about Delaware. Im waiting. Ask people in Dover what they know about Wisconsin, and theyll mention cheese, beer, bikes and the Pack.

Business leaders dont like that Wisconsins poster child is a shirtless guy holding a beer and wearing a cheese wedge on his head at Lambeau Field. The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation wants to spend nearly $7 million on marketing efforts to recruit skilled young workers, forsaking our agricultural slogan because millennials prefer to live in cities. They want to draw millennials by showing Wisconsin has more to offer than farms and bars. Good luck drawing a generation of vegans with gluten allergies to the land of cheese and beer.

Everyone here wants Wisconsins economy to thrive, of course, and its important to attract and retain bright young minds. Our state has been a hub of innovation since its inception, giving the world the typewriter, stem cell research and the ice cream sundae.

This last example proves innovation and dairy products arent mutually exclusive. And it shows Wisconsin shouldnt hide from its heritage. I could try to masquerade as the Sexiest Man Alive or the king of France or the Wizard of Oz, but in the end the world would learn the man behind the curtain is a Wisconsin newspaper columnist. And theres nothing wrong with that, just like theres nothing wrong with Wisconsin being known being known for its dairy products.

I ask, when it comes to slogans, whats in a name? Limburger by any other name would smell like feet.
WASHINGTON -- There's no doubt, in the case of Al Franken, that Democrats are better off with the Minnesota senator gone. There's more doubt about whether justice was done.

The political calculus is simple: Franken had to go. With the grotesque picture of him groping, or pretending to grope, the breasts of a fellow USO performer, he would have been a nonstop distraction, muddling Democrats' case against alleged groper President Trump and alleged child molester Roy Moore. Franken paid not only for their sins but also for the alleged behavior of Bill Clinton two decades ago. Democrats underreacted then and consequently were impelled to overreact now.

Or, at least, act quickly. I don't know where I would ultimately come down on the propriety of Franken's continued service in the Senate because I don't have a full grasp of the facts. Do you? Did his colleagues?

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who deserves praise for her work on issues of sexual assault and harassment and who opened the floodgates against Franken on Wednesday, said she had enough facts to conclude that Franken should resign.

"Enough is enough," Gillibrand said. "When we start having to talk about the differences between sexual assault and sexual harassment and unwanted groping, we are having the wrong conversation. We need to draw a line in the sand and say none of it is OK, none of it is acceptable."

I agree: None of it is acceptable. What gives me pause is both the rush to judgment and the one-size-fits-all nature of the punishment, given, as Gillibrand acknowledged, the significant difference in seriousness between the Franken allegations and those against Trump and Moore.

And against Michigan Rep. John Conyers Jr., for that matter -- proving, I hope, that my position is not driven by partisanship but by concerns about due process. Public service is a privilege, not a right. The presumption of innocence and the need for proof beyond a reasonable doubt, essential in the criminal context, need not blind us in the real world to credible allegations of improper behavior.

So, any reasonable person assessing the evidence against Trump, Moore or Conyers would conclude there is more than enough reason to disbelieve their denials and more than enough reason, given the seriousness of the allegations, to conclude they are not fit to hold office. In Conyers's case, he used $27,000 in taxpayer money to settle a lawsuit by a staffer who said she was fired after refusing his sexual advances. Other former staffers came forward with similar claims.

Franken presents a more difficult case both because of the quality of the evidence against him and the nature of the alleged transgressions. Much of the alleged behavior took place before he joined the Senate, which doesn't make it acceptable but does make it different. Some of the Senate-era behavior is offensive but less serious; a hand on the butt during a photo op is different from a tongue down the throat. And some is anonymous, albeit corroborated by other witnesses, which should give all of us pause. The final, and perhaps last-straw, allegation involved an unnamed former Democratic political aide who claimed Franken, while a radio host, attempted to forcibly kiss her, announcing, "It's my right as an entertainer." Franken said the story was "categorically not true."

Consider: One of Franken's colleagues, New Jersey Democrat Bob Menendez, is under federal indictment for allegedly taking bribes in the form of lavish gifts and using the power of his office to help a campaign donor/friend in dealings with the federal government. Menendez's trial ended with a hung jury last month, after which the Ethics Committee announced it would resume its inquiry into his conduct.

If senators have the patience to let the ethics process proceed in the Menendez case, why not with Franken? What about weighing whether some lesser punishment than what was essentially forced resignation would better fit Franken's circumstances?

The right policy is zero tolerance. That does not answer the question about what is the right punishment, or what proof there should be before it is meted out.

The Washington Post
The International Criminal Court (ICC) [official site] on Monday announced [press release] that it will refer the Kingdom of Jordan to the United Nations Security Council [official site] over its failure to arrest Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir [official website]. The referral comes after the ICC decided issued two arrest warrants [text, PDF; second warrant, PDF] for Al-Bashir for the alleged genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity [JURIST report] committed in Darfur. However, because Sudan is not a part of the ICC, it is up to member nations [JURIST report] to effect an arrest if the suspected individual is in their jurisdiction. The ICC is referring Jordan because they granted him immunity as a head of state and refused to arrest him when he visited in March for a summit.

Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court found that the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a State Party to the ICC Rome Statute since 2002, failed to comply with its obligations under the Statute by not executing the Courts request for the arrest of Omar Al-Bashir and his surrender to the Court while he was on Jordanian territory attending the League of Arab States Summit on 29 March 2017. The Chamber decided to refer the matter of Jordans non-compliance to the Assembly of States Parties of the Rome Statute (ASP) and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

The pre-trial chamber held on Monday that Jordan had not complied [decision, PDF] with its obligations under Article 87 [text] of the Rome Statute by not arresting him during a March 2017 visit, thereby preventing the Court from exercising its functions and powers under the Statute in connection with the criminal proceedings instituted against Omar Al-Bashir. It is the ICCs position that there is no immunity afforded to heads of state when there in an arrest warrant and international law mandates an arrest.

According to the ICC, Bashir [ICC backgrounder] is the first sitting president of a country to be charged with the crime of genocide. The court has previously found South Africa committed [JURIST report] of the same noncompliance, but chose not to issue a referral [press release].
The US Supreme Court [official website] on Friday granted certiorari [orders list, PDF] in seven cases. In Benisek v. Lamone [docket], the Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge to Marylands 2011 electoral map. The petitioners allege [SCOTUSblog materials] that their district was re-drawn to favor Democrats as retaliation against them for their support of Republican candidates. A three-judge panel of the US District Court for Maryland [official website] had previously refused [opinion, PDF] the voters preliminary injunction request, and the voters appealed to the Supreme Court. The voters assert that the District Court erred in requiring them to show that the gerrymandered district will dictate the outcome of every election, that it applied burden shifting improperly, and that the record allows a finding that the purportedly retaliatory redistricting was the cause of Democratic victories in the district in the last three congressional elections. The parties had originally filed pleadings arguing whether the Supreme Court currently had jurisdiction to hear the appeal. On Friday, the Supreme Court postponed consideration of the jurisdictional question until the case was heard on the merits.

In Upper Skagit Indian Tribe v. Lundgren [docket], the Supreme Court is asked to decide [SCOTUSblog materials] whether a court may exercise jurisdiction over property owned by a tribal government despite a generally applicable sovereign immunity to suit. Here, the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe and the Lundgrens owned adjacent properties. A Washington state trial court denied the tribes motion to dismiss a quiet title action filed by the Lundgrens based upon an application of tribal sovereign immunity. The Supreme Court of Washington [official website] upheld the denial [opinion, PDF] in a 5-4 decision, finding that the Lundgrens acquisition of the property by adverse possession decades before the Tribe acquired record title in 2013 would have been uncovered in a pre-purchase title search, and thus that the tribe had wielded sovereign immunity as a sword in disguise.

Both Hughes v. United States and Koons v. United States [dockets] ask the Court to decide whether retroactive adjustments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines [official materials] can be applied to defendants who were sentenced under earlier versions of the Guidelines. The Hughes case asks whether such a retroactive reduction applies to defendant who enters into a plea deal with prosecutors, as has been previously approved of by a 4-1-4 plurality in Freeman v. United States [opinion]. The defendants in Koons seek to ascertain the applicability of Freeman to defendants who provide substantial assistance to prosecutors in other cases.

In China Agritech, Inc., v. Resh [docket], the Court must determine [SCOTUSblog materials] whether a series of cases beginning with 1974s American Pipe & Construction Co. v. Utah [opinion] justified the tolling of the statute of limitations in a class action suit. Resh is seeking to keep a class action suit against China Agritech alive, despite filing his suit after the applicable statute of limitations, based on the American Pipe courts determination that the filing of a defective class action suit stops the clock. Here, two prior defective suits of which Resh was not a member were filed within the statute of limitations period. The Ninth Circuit allowed the suit to continue [opinion, PDF] despite the expiration of the limitations period based on the reasoning in American Pipe.

United States v. Sanchez-Gomez [docket] asks whether the Ninth Circuit erred in ruling that it could hear a challenge [opinion, PDF] to the use of pre-trial physical restraints prior to a final order being issued. The government asserts that this challenge was interlocutory and beyond the appeal courts scope of review while the trial below was pending. The case also challenges the Ninth Circuits decision to hear the interlocutory challenge despite what the government says is the defendants acknowledgement that the challenge was moot.

In Sveen v. Melin [docket], the Court is asked to determine [SCOTUSblog materials] whether a2002 Minnesota law automatically revoking [Minn. Stat.  524.4-804 text] the designation of a former spouse as beneficiary of an insurance policy, retirement plan or other instrument when a couple divorces violates the Contracts Clause [text] of the federal Constitution.
An Economical Solution for Swahili Language Bibles has Arrived Notoriously expensive and hard to acquire Swahili language Bibles now have an economy New Testament version designed for outreach



Contact: Blair Radney, 410-857-2910



BALTIMORE, Md., Dec. 11, 2017 /



Swahili Bible translations exist, mostly as digital or downloadable e-books. However, this option is not viable in areas with low smartphone use and spotty internet availability. "After meeting with Pastors in Kenya, the need they had the most were Bibles," stated Blair Radney, who after spending time in Kenya could not shake this thought of a lack of Bibles. "We would go into the villages to share Jesus Christ but visually absent were Bible for distribution." So while working and attending the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, the Swahili Bible Project was formed.



The Swahili Bible Project was to designed and create an affordable Swahili Bible intended for outreach evangelism and missions. The result was a New Testament complete with evangelistic helps available for a fraction of other print Bibles.



"We at Second Adam Publishing believe that by making the Swahili New Testament affordable to Swahili speakers, we will open the doors to the knowledge of Christ and salvation through faith and repentance."



Every aspect of this New Testament Swahili Bible was thought over and examined to make it easy to read, understand, and communicates the gospel clearly to Swahili readers. With input from multiple cultural contributions from Tanzania to Kenya, it works well in every area of East Africa to fill its gospel gaps.



Available now at online marketplaces such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble. For more information visit



SWAHILI NEW TESTAMENT BIBLE: OUTREACH EDITION

Imprint: Second Adam Publishing

On sale: August 1st, 2017

Price: $7.00

Pages: 288

ISBN: 9780692923191



Share Tweet Contact: Blair Radney, 410-857-2910BALTIMORE, Md., Dec. 11, 2017 / Christian Newswire / -- In the region of East Africa which covers countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and others, there are approximately 150 million who speak and read Swahili; yet Swahili language print translations of the Bible are scarce.Swahili Bible translations exist, mostly as digital or downloadable e-books. However, this option is not viable in areas with low smartphone use and spotty internet availability. "After meeting with Pastors in Kenya, the need they had the most were Bibles," stated Blair Radney, who after spending time in Kenya could not shake this thought of a lack of Bibles. "We would go into the villages to share Jesus Christ but visually absent were Bible for distribution." So while working and attending the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, the Swahili Bible Project was formed.The Swahili Bible Project was to designed and create an affordable Swahili Bible intended for outreach evangelism and missions. The result was a New Testament complete with evangelistic helps available for a fraction of other print Bibles."We at Second Adam Publishing believe that by making the Swahili New Testament affordable to Swahili speakers, we will open the doors to the knowledge of Christ and salvation through faith and repentance."Every aspect of this New Testament Swahili Bible was thought over and examined to make it easy to read, understand, and communicates the gospel clearly to Swahili readers. With input from multiple cultural contributions from Tanzania to Kenya, it works well in every area of East Africa to fill its gospel gaps.Available now at online marketplaces such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble. For more information visit www.secondadampublishing.com/swahili-bible-project/ SWAHILI NEW TESTAMENT BIBLE: OUTREACH EDITIONImprint: Second Adam PublishingOn sale: August 1st, 2017Price: $7.00Pages: 288ISBN: 9780692923191
To what extent does the destruction of an architectural masterpiece constitute a war crime if that masterpiece is also used for military purposes? What, too, if the destruction of such a monument, like the Old Mostar Bridge, causes psychological and physical harm to a civilian population now under siege? How should military objectives, damage to cultural heritage, psychological and physical harm be weighed together? That was the headache posed by the last judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

The ICTYs last judgment on November 29 will be remembered for the televised live suicide of Slobodan Praljak, one of the six accused, as the sentence was being read out. But another aspect of this judgement, which also concerns Slobodan Praljak directly, caused deep divisions between the ICTY judges of the Trial Chamber and the Appeals Chamber in their analysis. Do the 50 or so shells that fell on the Old Mostar Bridge (Stari Most in Serbo-Croat) constitute a war crime if this destruction is linked to acts of persecution? Let us remember that the Old Bridge dates from the 16th century, is a jewel of Ottoman architecture and even a symbol of multiculturalism in the Balkans.

The ICTYs judgment on the destruction of the Old Mostar Bridge has special importance at a time when the Taliban destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas and the destruction by Salafist groups of cultural heritage in Iraq, Syria and Mali have given cultural crimes a new resonance. It also comes after the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2016 sentenced Ahmad Al-Faqi Al-Mahdi, destroyer of the Timbuktu mausoleums, to nine years in jail for a war crime.

The destruction of cultural heritage was also a determining factor in former Yugoslavias wars in the 1990s, when hundreds of mosques and churches were deliberately destroyed. Cultural cleansing often went alongside ethnic cleansing, seeking to wipe out the links that unite communities around their culture. More than fifteen ICTY judgments sanction the destroyers of cultural heritage, such as those who ordered bombing causing the fire that destroyed the Sarajevo library, burning 90% of the manuscripts, or the old town of Dubrovnik.

Legitimate military target?

However, the destruction of the Old Mostar Bridge during the 1993 war is a special case. The war at the time pitted the HVO Croat forces against Bosnian (ABiH) soldiers in the town of Mostar. The bridge allowed the latter to bring arms supplies and to bring food and medicines to besieged Muslim civilians on the west bank.

So was the Old Bridge therefore a legitimate military target for the HVO forces? The ICTY Trial Chamber considered in 2013 that it was. In its judgment, it states that the Old Bridge was indeed a military target, but added that its destruction was disproportionate to the military gains achieved. It was therefore an illegal act, a war crime and a crime against humanity, being an underlying act of persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds as a crime against humanity and unlawful infliction of terror on civilians as a violation of the laws and customs of war ). The 2013 judgment (para. 1294-1366) takes the different elements into account in reaching this conclusion. It points to the historic and symbolic value of the bridge, recognizing at the same time that the Old Bridge was essential to the ABiH for the combat activities of its units on the front line, for evacuations and for sending troops, provisions and material and that it was used for this purpose. But the Trial Chamber also recognized that the Old Bridge was also essential for supplies to the inhabitants of the Muslim enclave on the right bank of the Neretva river.

In this long judgement of some 2,000 pages covering a spectrum of crimes committed by the six accused, 80 paragraphs (!) are dedicated to the destruction of the Old Mostar Bridge. But we do not know how the judges determined the disproportionate and therefore illegal nature of the HVOs bombing of the bridge. How did the Trial Chamber judges weigh the elements of psychological and physical damage, cultural heritage and military target? The criterion of proportionality is based on the idea that the military gains achieved must be concrete and direct. Was that not the case? Or was the cultural, psychological and physical harm caused to the besieged populations too serious in comparison with the direct, concrete advantages obtained? Nobody knows, but the 2013 judgment concludes that this was a war crime and a crime against humanity, because the destruction of the Old Bridge was accompanied by a will to terrorize the civilians who were now completely under siege.

The Appeals Court, in its 29 November 2017 judgment, threw out this conclusion of the 2013 decision, deeming that because the bridge was a military target its destruction was legal, producing a definite military advantage. As a consequence, the Court said, its destruction could not be considered wanton destruction not justified by military necessity. This point of view was vigorously contested in a dissenting opinion by Judge Fausto Pocar. He expressed surprise that his colleagues on the Appeals Court had ignored the 1954 Convention on the protection of cultural property, which stipulates in Article 4, paragraph 2 that there can only be a waiver for destruction of cultural heritage in cases where military necessity imperatively requires such a waiver, with military necessity being defined by the absence of alternative to the destruction.

These divergences of analysis between the ICTY judges reflect the current state of debate on the laws of war. How should psychological harm, which the 2013 judgment points to, be measured? Should it even be taken into account? Isnt weakening the morale of the enemy an intrinsic part of war? How can a commander in the thick of battle determine the long-term psychological damage he is inflicting? And how should the cultural value of an object be added to psychological harm and weighed against the proportionality criterion of international humanitarian law? These questions reflect a wider one: how far should the definition of war crimes, crimes against humanity and acts of genocide be taken? Since the birth of the ICTY in 1993, these definitions have continued to expand, with a potential longer term risk of undermining the whole judicial edifice. If every crime becomes a potential international crime, then there is the risk that international crimes will become diluted, commonplace and finally lose the power to call to account. This is perhaps what the majority of judges wanted to counterbalance in this last judgment of the ICTY before it closes its doors.
Some 2,000 people packed a public memorial in Croatia's capital Zagreb on Monday for Bosnian Croat war criminal Slobodan Praljak, whose final act was to commit suicide in front of UN judges.

Public buses ran free of charge to the ceremony for the 72-year-old Bosnian Croat commander, who swallowed potassium cyanide during a hearing broadcast live around the world.

The concert hall where his memorial was held was packed with some 2,000 people, while hundreds more crowed into the building's entry and hallways to watch on giant screens.

Praljak had private a funeral in Zagreb last week, according to reports.

Since Praljak's death, Croats have paid multiple tributes to the late general, laying flowers and lighting candles in town squares in Croatia and Bosnia.

Monday's commemoration, organised by the Croatian generals' association, was attended by a government minister in charge of war veterans issues, and top officials of the ruling conservative HDZ party.

Before the ceremony the visitors were signing two books of condolences.

Praljak, who worked in film and theatre before joining the military, remains a hero to many Croats despite his conviction for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Bosnia's 1990s conflict.

The judges confirmed that Praljak and his five Bosnian Croat co-defendants were part of a "joint criminal enterprise" to ethnically cleanse Bosnian Muslims in the war.

Their convictions were upheld for crimes including murder, persecution and inhumane treatment.

After the commemoration a mass for Praljak is to be held in a Zagreb church later Monday.
Israel's defence minister on Monday called Arab MPs "war criminals". a day after he urged a boycott of Israeli Arabs living near the scene of clashes over the US president's Jerusalem declaration.

Avigdor Lieberman was speaking in a televised parliamentary debate on a motion of no confidence in the right-wing government filed by the mainly Arab Joint List alliance.

Presenting the motion, Joint List lawmaker Hanin Zoabi said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "should be tried at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, because he is a war criminal."

"Occupation is always belligerent, violent, illegitimate and a basis for war crimes," she added, referring to Israel's 50-year occupation of the Palestinian territories.

"All the Joint List are war criminals, every one of you," Lieberman responded.

The alliance has 12 Arab members and one Jew.

"You exploit the weaknesses and advantages of a democratic state to destroy us from within, we have no illusions," he told them.

"You are here by mistake and the time will come when you will not be here."

Arab Israelis are descendants of Palestinians who remained on their land following the creation of Israel in 1948. Today they account for some 17.5 percent of the population.

Lieberman has long advocated land-swaps in a future peace deal that would see some Arab areas of Israel handed over to the Palestinians in exchange for Israeli retention of some West Bank Jewish settlements.

He has also proposed conditioning the Arabs' continued Israeli citizenship on them taking oaths of loyalty to the Jewish state.

Dozens of Arab Israelis on Saturday night blocked the Wadi Ara intersection in northern Israel, police said, throwing stones at vehicles and burning tyres in protest at Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The windows of a bus were smashed and its driver was slightly injured. Police arrested two minors and a man from Arara, an Arab town in the Wadi Ara area.

Speaking to Israeli army radio the next day, Lieberman proposed collective punitive sanctions.

"Those who demonstrate in Israel holding Hezbollah, Hamas and PLO flags are not part of the state of Israel," Lieberman said.

"I therefore call on Israeli citizens to impose an economic boycott on Wadi Ara -- don't shop there, don't eat in the restaurants and don't buy services from them."

Jewish Israelis must simply "give them the feeling they're not wanted here," he said, noting instances in which Arabs from the area carried out attacks against Israelis or supported militant activities.

Clashes and protests erupted in the Palestinian territories after Trump's declaration last Wednesday, but there has been relatively little unrest within Israel itself.
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I have to tell you about this, even though some of the forecasts are crazy extreme. For several forecast cycles, the models have suggested t...
OMAHA -- Three Omaha men died early Sunday when a car being driven the wrong way on Interstate 480 slammed nearly head-on into another car, Omaha Police Sgt. Jason Menning said.

Police identified the three as Alvaro Contreras, 32; Homero Guerrero, 33; and Alberto Longino-Maldonado, 36.

Contreras had been driving a 2014 Chevrolet Cruze in the wrong direction  northbound in the southbound lanes of I-480  and was not using a seat belt, police said. Guerrero was driving a 2000 Chevrolet Impala south in the southbound lane. Longino-Maldonado was Guerreros passenger.

The crash was reported at 12:54 a.m. and occurred at the point where I-480 splits to join Interstate 80.

All three men were declared dead at the scene by Omaha Fire Department paramedics. Both vehicles were traveling at highway speeds of between about 50 and 60 mph, Menning said.

The Nebraska State Patrol and State Department of Roads were on the scene to assist with the road closing. All southbound I-480 traffic was diverted to westbound I-80 until 5:45 a.m.

Anyone who witnessed the collision is asked to call the police traffic unit at 402-444-5626.

The last time three people died in a vehicle collision in Omaha was in June, when two motorcycles collided at 72nd and Cass Streets.

World-Herald staff writer Kevin Cole contributed to this report.
LINCOLN  An FBI spokesman said Friday that speculation about sex trafficking or other motives that might have led to Sydney Loofes death is just that.

Ive heard a lot of things going around, but its all speculative at this point, said FBI spokesman Huston Pullen.

Loofe, 24, of Lincoln disappeared after going on a date with Bailey Boswell on Nov. 15. The two women met on Tinder, and the dating site said its fully cooperating with the FBI.

Boswell, 23, and Aubrey Trail, 51, are in custody as persons of interest in the case. In one homemade video, Trail said Boswell had a separate phone to access Tinder.

Authorities in sex trafficking say that having multiple cellphones or disposable phones is not uncommon for those involved in that activity, and that using a separate phone for such dates makes it harder to trace.

However, authorities have not announced any connection to sex trafficking in the Loofe case.

Meanwhile, Pullen said law enforcement teams were out Friday combing ditches for evidence west of Wilber, where Trail and Boswell last lived in a basement apartment.

Small evidence flags were visible along Highway 41 west of Wilber on Saturday. Similar flags that had lined a gravel road where a body believed to be Loofes was found north of the village of Edgar had been removed by Saturday.

Dozens of law enforcement officers, including some from the FBI, combed the two areas beginning Nov. 27 and had planted the flags, presumably as evidence markers.

Janet Haney of rural Edgar said some evidence was recovered from a marsh on her farm.

The more I hear about (the case), the more scared I get, Haney said Saturday.

Pullen said that some details are not being revealed to maintain the integrity of the investigation.
Compared to many states and the federal government, Nebraska has relatively few laws regarding conflicts of interest, reporting of interactions between elected officials and lobbyists, and rules regulating the influence of special interest on lawmakers. During my three years in the Legislature a number of ethical issues have emerged with no guidance for resolution. These include concerns of conflicts of interest, senators registering to lobby while in office, personal use of state resources, and expectations of residency within a district, among others.

Outside of issues of campaign finance under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Committee, there are no ethics rules for members of the Nebraska Legislature. Consequently, there is no process for addressing ethical concerns unless it is illegal activity defined by statute via the courts.

Nebraska voters have the expectation that their interests are being represented by their elected officials, not those of paid special interests and lobbyists, and free of quid pro quo arrangements. Statutes and rules that reflect that intention are conspicuously absent. Additionally, the public assumes there are rules and a procedures in place for ethical conduct, even though none exist. Public confidence in the legislative process necessitates greater transparency in the ethical expectations of state senators.

Among the ethical issues unaddressed in current Nebraska law is the revolving door. This is the practice of elected officials and senior staff becoming paid lobbyists directly after leaving office. Immediately leveraging the influence and insider knowledge gained in public service is prohibited by 34 states and the federal government. Nebraska has seen two high profile examples of the revolving door as former state Sen. Heath Mello has been hired as chief lobbyist for the University of Nebraska, and former director of the Department of Economic Development, Courtney Dentlinger, has been hired as the chief lobbyist for the Nebraska Public Power District.

In keeping with my firm belief that the lawmaking process in Nebraska should be transparent, responsive, and devoid of undue influence by special interest groups, I have introduced legislation to close the revolving door. My legislation would prohibit elected officials from taking a job as a paid lobbyist for two years after leaving office. The governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state treasurer, secretary of state, auditor of public accounts, and members of the legislature, Public Service Commission, State Board of Education, and NU Board of Regents would be required to have a two-year cooling off period before being paid to lobby. Their staffs would be prohibited for one year.

The language of my bills mirror the federal statute passed in 2007. In Washington, D.C., varying revolving door statutes have dated back to as early as 1872. In addition, 34 other states have enacted cooling off periods, yet Nebraska has none. For a body that prides itself on transparency, we are failing when it comes to public expectation in this regard. The chairman of the Government Committee, Sen. John Murante of Gretna, has failed to bring the bill to vote in committee. I am not the first senator to introduce a bill requiring a cooling off period. In 2008, Sen. Bill Avery of Lincoln introduced similar legislation which did not advance from the Government Committee. Four of the members of that committee later went on to lobby after their time as senator.

Sen. John Kuehn of Heartwell represents District 38 in the Nebraska Legislature. The district encompasses southwest Buffalo County and all of Clay, Franklin, Kearney, Nuckolls, Phelps and Webster counties.
Its absolutely no surprise that President Trump has heartily endorsed Roy Moore as the next senator from Alabama. They are soul mates  BFFs bringing their own bromance, The Roy and Donald Show, to a TV or smartphone near you.

Moore faces a close race with Democrat Doug Jones in a special election next week. Some Republicans find him so reprehensible that theyve threatened to expel him from the Senate if he manages to win. And yet Trump has given Moore a full-throated endorsement.

The president says a lot of things that are inaccurate and insincere. But when he said, Go get em, Roy, he was revealing his true character. It was a pure Trumpian moment. He could have been looking in the mirror and cheering himself on.

Start with their shared attitudes toward women. Hit on as many as possible. Grab and grope. Some may give in. And if youre accused of assault later, deny everything.

Trump made his philosophy completely clear in the infamous Access Hollywood tape. I just start kissing them, he bragged. Its like a magnet. Just kiss. I dont even wait. And when youre a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.

Thats a cogent summary of Trumps philosophy: When youre a star, you can do anything. And he said it even before he was elected president, his biggest starring role ever.

Moore is not in Trumps league; the mall in Gadsden, Ala., is not exactly a penthouse in Manhattan or Hollywood. But the pattern is similar. Moore was so creepy in his pursuit of young girls that he was reportedly banned from the mall and the YMCA, as well.

Theres more. Faced with numerous accusations of sexual misdeeds during last years campaign, Trump told a New Hampshire radio station, These are stories that are made up, these are total fiction.

Moore used almost identical language, telling a campaign rally, These allegations are completely false, theyre malicious ... I do not know any of these women.

He was lying. Two of Moores accusers have produced notes to them in his handwriting. But Trump was happy to take his best bro at his word. He totally denies it, the president explained, dismissing the charges against Moore.

The soul mates have another trait in common: They both believe theyre bulletproof, that the conventional rules dont apply to them.

Moore was twice ousted from his post as chief judge of Alabama for defying court orders. The first time, in 2003, he refused to remove a statue of the Ten Commandments from the lobby of the state judicial building. After being re-elected in 2012, he was deposed again for telling state judges to defy the Supreme Court ruling in favor of same-sex marriage.

Throughout his career, Moore has justified his actions by appealing to a higher authority than made-man statutes. God is the only source of our law, liberty and government, he said during a debate in September. And of course Roy Moore is, conveniently, Gods messenger, so he doesnt have to abide by earthly limitations.

Trump makes no claims to divine guidance; in fact, he seldom mentions religion. His sole source of authority is, well, himself. If he says something is true, then thats that, damn the facts.

Moore invokes God to defy judges who have ruled against him. Trump doesnt need that excuse. He has denounced numerous so-called judges who object to his policies without appealing to a higher power. And now his lawyers have adopted the same mentality.

In a truly astounding statement of true Trumpism, the presidents attorney, John Dowd, told the website Axios the president cannot obstruct justice because hes the chief law enforcement officer under the Constitution, and has every right to express his view of any case.

Yes, the president has the right to express his view on an issue like Russias role in the 2016 election. But speech and action are not the same thing. Trump has no right to undermine the ongoing investigation into that role. The articles of impeachment drafted against both Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton included obstruction charges, and it is a fundamental principle of American democracy that no president is above the law. Let alone a judge in Alabama.
There is no question that Abel Hidalgo has committed some awful crimes. As a gang member in Arizona, he accepted $1,000 in 2001 to murder auto repair shop owner Michael Cordova and also killed another man, Jose Rojas, who showed up at the shop at the wrong time. Hidalgo is just the kind of person from whom society needs to be protected, and he should be locked away. Few would disagree about that. A more complicated question  even for those who support capital punishment  is whether an Arizona jury was right to sentence him to death.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that states must design their capital punishment statutes so that only truly egregious crimes are punished by death. But Hidalgo argues that Arizona has added so many aggravating circumstances  factors that turn a run-of-the-mill killing into a capital crime  that pretty much any murder in Arizona can now qualify for the death penalty.

The Times opposes the death penalty under all circumstances. We take a Green Eggs and Ham approach  we dont like it here, there or anywhere. But if states are going to engage in such a barbaric practice, they must at least follow the Constitution, and we hope the Supreme Court accepts the Hidalgo case and, at the very least, strikes down such broad definitions of death-eligible crimes.

But Hidalgo raises another, even more challenging issue and could conceivably lead to an even more radical decision. The death penalty, Hidalgo argues, is inherently unconstitutional because the nation has been unable to use it without descending into an unreliable system in which the poor and minorities are disproportionately affected.

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Tammy Conforti never expected her efforts to build Kenoshas first fully accessible playground would lead her to Hawaii.

Conforti, who spent years working to get the Dream Playground funded and built, also dreamed of visiting Hawaii. Playground volunteers made her dream a reality this fall.

I didnt know about it until the playground ribbon cutting, and they presented me with a certificate that said, Theres a fund set up in your honor for your dedication to the community, Conforti said. The funds were used at LaMacchia Travel.

Approximately 33 families and some anonymous donors donated to this whisper fund, and when I found out about it, I was in front of a crowd of a thousand people. They presented me with flowers and a certificate.

I was so incredibly surprised and moved by the fact that my team would go through that effort to raise money to send me to Hawaii, she said.

Conforti said she was a little uncomfortable at first because I didnt spend the years working on the project to gain anything.

They took it upon themselves to do this. I was flattered, but kind of uncomfortable because I didnt want there to be a perception that that was the reason I worked on the project for five years, she said.

Conforti said LaMacchia Travel helped organize the trip for her, which made it stress-free.

They booked everything for me. They handled everything, she said.

Located inside Petzke Park, 2820 14th Ave., the Dream Playground was built with the help of thousands of volunteers.

During her trip to Hawaii, Conforti helped build a similar playground in Waimea.

A woman who had the same vision as me raised $500,000 to build a playground there, Conforti said. I was the shortest volunteer from the furthest away. It was an indescribable experience.

Volunteering at community builds is nothing new to Conforti, and she often wears T-shirts representing Kenosha.

I did one in Franklin, one in Janesville, New Berlin, Boston and Hawaii, she said. As soon as I find out about a community build, I find out where it is, how far away it is and the dates of it, and if I can go, I sign up and volunteer. I love community builds.
Transition Year and fifth year students from Duiske College in Graignamanagh recently attended a community awareness talk as part of the nationwide Dementia: Understand Together initiative, led by the HSE, working with the Alzheimer Society of Ireland and Genio.

The talk was presented by nurses Mary Hickey and Joan McDonald who are working with people living with dementia at the Kilkenny Memory Clinic, based in St Columbas Community Hospital in Thomastown.

The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness and understanding of dementia within the community and to reduce stigma around the condition, to help people with dementia to live well, to inform the community how they can support friends and neighbours.

Pictured are: Riley Smith (Co-ordinator) Joan McDonald, Erin Hore and Casey Maher. Katie Staunton, Gemma Butler, Kat Healy teacher, Elise Holden, Chloe Boland and Michelle Boland. Photos: Mary Browne

Its estimated that there are 55,000 people living with dementia in Ireland, and this number is expected to more than double to 113,000 by 2036.

Information evenings for the wider community will be held in early 2018 in Thomastown and Graignamanagh, and further details of these events will be provided in due course.

For more information, including details of county supports and services available, visit www.understandtogether.ie or Freefone 1800-341 341.
Santa Claus himself will provide a special sleigh-ride escort to Dublin Airport from the Chernobyl-affected regions of Belarus for a group of children with special needs who will on Wednesday begin a two-week long Christmas 'Rest and Recuperation' stay in counties across Ireland.

The Kilkenny Outreach Group will welcome vulnerable children and young adults to Ireland for the programme. Children as young as 13 will join Vasilli Lyskavets, who will be returning to his loving 'Irish family', the Morrisseys, who are a volunteer host family with the Kilkenny Outreach Group. The Morrissey family have hosted Vassili for over 10 years, during which time he has become one of the family, attending family weddings and special occasions.

Vasilli has lived in Vesnova Children Institution as long as he can remember. Abandoned to Vesnova with his brother at a young age, their lives appeared to be lost and separation seemed a certainty but through CCIs intervention we have managed to keep the boys together.

Vasili and his brother Alexei live together in our Independent Living Home. This historic programme pioneered by CCI and established in 2009 enabled Vasilli and his brother to move from Vesnova into an independent living house and escape a future of adult institutions offering them a bright future.

The Kilkenny Outreach Group fundraise tirelessly throughout the year in order to give these children and adults a much needed break. Activities such as their hugely successful annual 2017 Mary Slattery Chernobyl Cycle as well as a Fashion Show and American Tea Party funds the life-prolonging programme for so many. The success of CCIs oldest programme is due to the commitment, dedication and kindness of thousands of host families from Kilkenny and all over Ireland.

Host families from nine counties will welcome the children for the start of their life-prolonging respite holiday, during which time radiation levels in the children drop by nearly 50% and up to two years is added to their life expectancy. The trip, code named 'Operation Sleigh Ride' has been organised by the Adi Roches Chernobyl Children International (CCI) charity which has brought more than 25,500 children to Ireland to stay with host families since 1991.

For many of these children, nothing as magical as this will ever have happened in their lives," says Chernobyl Children International Voluntary CEO Adi Roche.

"This is the true meaning of Christmas  its about family and sharing. Some of the host families at Dublin airport will have hosted children of Chernobyl many times before, and they will be the first to tell you how these children truly become part of the family and an integral part of Christmas traditions. The positive impact these stays have on the children is a testament to three generations of truly remarkable Irish volunteers.

Since 1991, over 25,500 children from Belarus and Western Russia have come to Ireland through Adi Roches charity on this Rest and Recuperation programme.
Results of the National Patient Experience Survey released today provided mixed feedback for local hospitals as Kilcreene Orthopeadic Hospital in Kilkenny performed best of all and recorded an 80% very good satisfaction rating, compared to the national average of 54%.

In comparison, St Luke's General Hospital recorded 43%, University Hospital Waterford 42% and South Tipperary General hospital in Clonmel 46%.

The survey, which took place during the month of May, gave almost 27,000 patients discharged from a public acute hospital across Ireland the opportunity to describe their experiences in hospital. It is the largest single survey of the healthcare system in Ireland and received an exceptional 51% response rate.

90% of cases were admitted to St Luke's in an emergency, and 60% of patients waited for over 6 hours. 87% of patients felt they were treated with respect and dignity.

In the case of Kilcreene Orthopaedic Hospital, 98% of patients were pleased with the way they were informed of what to do after they left the hospital. 20% described the food in the hospital as poor. Average age of patients was the highest of hospitals in the region, at 68.

In University Hospital Waterford, 76% of admissions were as an emergency and 75% of patients waited for more than six hours before admission.

In South Tipperary General Hospital in Clonmel, 46% found it very good and 81% entered on an emergency basis while 50% said they did not receive an explanation about their condition that they could fully understand.
Award for quicker data transmission: Christian Koos, Manfred Kohl, and Sascha Muhlbrandt of KIT. (Photo: Gips-Schule Foundation, Thomas Niedermuller)

Researchers of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) demonstrated a novel plasmonic photodetector that is a hundred times smaller and much quicker than conventional detectors. For this, scientists Sascha Muhlbrandt, Christian Koos, and Manfred Kohl of KIT were granted this years Gips-Schule Research Award in the amount of EUR 50,000 by the Gips-Schule Foundation. Large numbers of these small components can be integrated on large-area silicon wafers, together with other optical and electronic components. In this way, capacity of future communication systems can be increased considerably.

High-performance data networks are the backbone of digital society and the basis of megatrends, such as autonomous driving and Industry 4.0, says the President of KIT, Professor Holger Hanselka. Based on a long research tradition in this field, we want to develop smart technologies for the information society. Global challenges in many areas can only be mastered by rapid progress in information technology, Hanselka continues. We are very happy about the Gips-Schule Research Award for our team of researchers.

The light signals transporting the data in glass-fiber cables have to be converted into electrical signals for them to be understood by a computer. With this component, we overcome the bottleneck of optoelectronic data transmission and can transmit the contents of a complete DVD in less than one second, physicist Sascha Muhlbrandt of KIT explains. He carried out the work at the Institute of Microstructure Technology (IMT) and the Institute of Photonics and Quantum Electronics (IPQ) of KIT.

Interdisciplinary cooperation of several groups from nanotechnology, material sciences, and nanophotonics was decisive for the success of the work. The high performance of the detector results from a novel component concept. Light waves are converted into much smaller electron light excitations, so-called plasmonic waves, Manfred Kohl of IMT says. For the implementation of the concept, a special metal-semiconductor-metal transition of mushroom-like profile was developed. Its manufacture turned out to be a big technological challenge.

It is a special advantage of the new technical concept that the components can be integrated on large-area and low-cost silicon wafers together with other optical or electronic components. The speed of the components can be further increased in the future, Christian Koos, IPQ, is convinced. We think that plasmonic components can also be used in wireless high-speed communication for seamless connection of radio antennas to glass-fiber networks.

The award of the jury under its spokesperson and the Foundations supervisory board member Peter Frankenberg was handed over in Stuttgart on November 28, 2017.

About the Gips-Schule Foundation

The Gips-Schule Foundation supports research, young scientists, and academic education in Baden-Wurttemberg. The focus lies on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects as well as on interdisciplinary projects. In Baden-Wurttemberg, the Foundation based in Stuttgart cooperates closely with universities and research institutions and funds promising research projects through endowed professorships, scholarships, support of studies ambassadors encouraging secondary school graduates to study STEM subjects, and projects for the basic and advanced education of teachers. Every two years, the Foundation grants its research awards in the total amount of EUR 65,000. The Gips-Schule Young Scientist Award in the amount of EUR 17,500 is granted annually.

www.gips-schuele-stiftung.de (in German only)

Being The Research University in the Helmholtz Association, KIT creates and imparts knowledge for the society and the environment. It is the objective to make significant contributions to the global challenges in the fields of energy, mobility, and information. For this, about 9,800 employees cooperate in a broad range of disciplines in natural sciences, engineering sciences, economics, and the humanities and social sciences. KIT prepares its 22,300 students for responsible tasks in society, industry, and science by offering research-based study programs. Innovation efforts at KIT build a bridge between important scientific findings and their application for the benefit of society, economic prosperity, and the preservation of our natural basis of life. KIT is one of the German universities of excellence.
HANOI, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Following is a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official and unofficial markets, indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi and interbank offered rates as of 0404 GMT.

December 11 USD/VND mid-point 22,454 USD/VND interbank 22,710/22,711 USD/VND unofficial 22,805/22,820 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 36.25/36.47

Interbank offered rates Overnight 0.9-1.3

1 week 0.9-1.6

1 month 2.2-2.7

3 months 4.5-5.0

NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank offered rates are the latest indicative bid/ask prices, quoted from market sources.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co.

For more interbank rate fixings released at 0400 GMT, click on .

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath)
* Fitch cites 'strong and consistent' macroeconomic performance

* Fitch says no evidence that drug war hit investor confidence

* Fitch sees Philippines' GDP growth at 6.8 pct in 2018, 2019

(Adds more comments, background)

MANILA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings on Monday upgraded Philippines' credit rating to 'BBB' from 'BBB-', citing the nation's "strong and consistent" macroeconomic performance and sound policies supporting high and sustainable growth rates.

Fitch, the first credit rating agency to raise the Philippines' credit rating to investment grade in 2013, said investor sentiment also remained strong, as indicated by solid domestic demand and inflows of foreign direct investment.

"As such, there is no evidence so far that incidents of violence associated with the administration's campaign against the illegal drug trade have undermined investor confidence," it said in a statement.

Although the Southeast Asian nation is among the fastest growing economies in Asia, some analysts had flagged risks President Rodrigo Duterte's deadly war on drugs could pose to investment.

The Philippines has drawn international criticism for the killing of about 3,900 people in police anti-drugs operations since Duterte took power in June last year. But the police deny allegations by human rights advocates that many of the killings were executions.

Fitch forecast real gross domestic product growth of 6.8 percent for the Philippines in 2018 and 2019 and said it would maintain its place among the fastest-growing economies in the Asia-Pacific region.

Fitch said it expects higher infrastructure spending under the government's public investment programme to support continued robust growth over the medium term.

Duterte has pledged to modernise the country's airports, roads, railways and ports through a six-year $180-billion, "Build, Build, Build" initiative to attract much-needed foreign direct investment and lift economic growth.

Fitch upgraded the Philippines by one notch to 'BBB-' in 2013, with the agency citing Manila's efforts to achieve fiscal sustainability, curb corruption and increase infrastructure spending.

The move was followed by Standard & Poor's less than two months later. Moody's Investors Service in 2013 was the last of the three major agencies to lift the Philippines to investment grade status.

(Reporting by Sangameswaran S in Bengaluru and Enrico dela Cruz in Manila; Editing by Paul Tait and Sam Holmes)
ABU DHABI, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi Financial Group (ADFG), a privately owned investment company which has $6.5 billion of assets under management, expects to raise $200 million from the stock market listing of Etihad REIT next year, its chief executive said on Monday.

Etihad REIT, a sharia-compliant real estate investment trust, will be listed in either Abu Dhabi or Dubai, Jassim al-Seddiqi told Reuters at a conference in Abu Dhabi.

Shuaa Capital is advising on the listing, he said.

(Reporting by Stanley Carvalho, writing by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Andrew Torchia)
Dec 11 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's total exports to China for outward processing rose 4.0 percent to HK$147.3 billion ($18.87 billion), in terms of value in the third quarter of 2017, the Census and Statistics Department said on Monday.

Outward processing trade involves the shipment of raw materials to mainland China for manufacturing. Finished products are then shipped back to Hong Kong for re-export.

(Rounded figures in billions of Hong Kong dollars and year-on-year percentage change in brackets):

3rd qtr 2017 2nd qtr 2017 Total exports to China 147.29 (4.0) 140.43 (3.7) Domestic exports to China 0.584 (-4.5) 0.413 (-7.2) Re-exports to China 146.70 (4.0) 140.02 (3.7) Imports from China 197.92 (1.8) 204.42 (3.8) ($1 = 7.8078 Hong Kong dollars)

(Reporting by Twinnie Siu in HONG KONG; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
LIMA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Peru will likely post a $5.9 billion trade surplus in all of 2017 instead of $5.1 billion as previously expected thanks to higher copper and gold prices, the central bank said in a presentation on Monday. In the first 10 months of this year, Peru registered a $4.6 billion trade surplus, according to the latest trade data available in the central bank. (Reporting By Teresa Cespedes Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
MANILA, Dec 11 (Reuters) - The Philippines' Bureau of the Treasury rejected all bids for T-bills at an auction on Monday amid weak demand. Tenders totalled 7.576 billion pesos ($150.6 million) against the government's offer of 20 billion pesos worth of 91-day, 182-day and 364-day T-bills, the bureau said. It also rejected all bids at the Nov. 27 T-bill auction, while raising 255.4 billion pesos from its latest retail treasury bond offering. For previous auction results, click on ($1 = 50.3000 Philippine pesos)

(Reporting by Enrico dela Cruz; Editing by Sunil Nair)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
(Repeating to add additional Ratings.)

Dec 8 (Reuters) - Below are the ratings awarded by Investment Information Credit Rating Agency Ltd. (ICRA) for local debt instruments as of December 7, 2017.

COMPANY INSTRUMENT RATING AMOUNT MOVEMENT

(RS.MLN) ------ ---------- ------ ----- --------- SHORT TERM RATINGS: ------------------- Adcock Ingram Ltd ST FBL ICRA A1+ 400 Reaffirmed Adcock Ingram Ltd ST Non-FBL ICRA A1+ 150 Reaffirmed Amber Exports (India) FB Packing Credit ICRA A2+ ** Reaffirmed **Short-term, fund-based facility is a sub-limit of long-term, fund-based facility, with total utilisation not exceeding Rs. 15.00 crore Anthony Garments Pvt Ltd Fund based facility ICRA A4 200 Reaffirmed Anthony Garments Pvt Ltd Non-fund based ICRA A4 15.3 Reaffirmed

facility Aov Exports Pvt Ltd ST FB ICRA A3+ 954.1 Revised from

ICRA A2+ Aov Exports Pvt Ltd ST Non-fund Based ICRA A3+ 12.5 Revised from

ICRA A2+ Atlas Exports (India) FB Packing Credit ICRA A2+ * Reaffirmed **Short-term, fund-based facility is a sub-limit of long-term, fund-based facility, with total utilisation not exceeding Rs. 10.00 crore Biba Apparels Pvt Ltd CP (CP) ICRA A1+ 250 Reaffirmed Darshita Exim Pvt Ltd Non FB Fac ICRA A3+ 500 Reaffirmed Darshita Exim Pvt Ltd Unallocated ICRA A3+ 200 Reaffirmed Indus Vegpro Pvt Ltd ST - FB Fac ICRA A4 50 Reaffirmed Kerala Nut Food Company ST non-FB Fac - sub ICRA A3+ - Upgraded

limit^ from ICRA A3 ^ Letter of credit as a sub-limit of Fund Based Limits Kerala Nut Food Company ST non FB Fac - ICRA A3+ 12 Upgraded

Proposed Fac from ICRA A3 Kerala Nut Food Company ST FB Fac* ICRA A3+ 396 Upgraded

from

ICRA A3 * 100% interchangeability between fund based working capital limits Kerala Nut Food Company ST FB Fac - sub limit*ICRA A3+ - Upgraded

from

ICRA A3 Manisha Construction Co Non fund basedBG ICRA A4 155 - Issuer not cooperating Metco Roof Pvt Ltd ST - Non Fund Based ICRA A3 260 Assigned /

Outstanding Shankar Mahadev And Company Non-fund Based BG ICRA A4 30 Reaffirmed Somnath Agro Industries Fund based - Export ICRA A4 4.2 Reaffirmed

Packing Credit* *sub-limit of cash credit Svarn Telecom Ltd ST Non FB ICRA A4 35 Reaffirmed Svarn Tex Prints Pvt Ltd ST Non FB ICRA A4 70 Reaffirmed Tanfac Industries Ltd Non-fund Based ICRA A3 550 Upgraded

Working Capital Fac from

ICRA A4+ Vijeta Broking India Pvt Ltd ST non- fund based Bk ICRA A4 210 Reaffirmed

lines

LONG TERM RATINGS: ------------------- Adcock Ingram Ltd LT FBL# ICRA A+ Reaffirmed # Sub-limit of short-term fund based limit Adcock Ingram Ltd LT Non-FBL## ICRA A+ Reaffirmed ## Inter-changeable with short-term non-fund based limits Alsthom Industries Ltd TL Provisional 500 Assigned

ICRA AA Alsthom Industries Ltd FB facility Provisional 100 Assigned

ICRA AA Amber Exports (India) FB Foreign Bill ICRA BBB 150 Reaffirmed

Purchase Anthony Garments Pvt Ltd TL ICRA BB- 37.5 Reaffirmed Aov Exports Pvt Ltd LT FB - TL ICRA BBB 33.4 Revised from

ICRA BBB+ Asir Automobiles Pvt Ltd FB Fac ICRA BB- 50 Review process is underway Asir Automobiles Pvt Ltd Proposed Fac ICRA BB- 70 Review process is underway Atlas Exports (India) FB Foreign Bill ICRA BBB+ 100 Reaffirmed

Purchase Bharatiyam Foods And Beverages LT Fund based - TL ICRA BB 500 Upgraded Pvt Ltd from

ICRA BB- Bharatiyam Foods And Beverages LT Fund based - CC ICRA BB 40 Upgraded Pvt Ltd from

ICRA BB- Biba Apparels Pvt Ltd LT working capital ICRA A+ 690 Reaffirmed

fund based Bk Fac Biba Apparels Pvt Ltd Fund based-TL ICRA A+ 200 Reaffirmed Biba Apparels Pvt Ltd Unallocated/ Proposed ICRA A+ / 810 Reaffirmed

Bk Fac A1+ Embassy Inn Pvt Ltd NCD ICRA D 750 Downgraded

from

ICRA BB- G R Gupta & Brothers FB - CC ICRA BB 150 Reaffirmed G R Gupta & Brothers FB - Channel FinancingICRA BB 250 Reaffirmed Iced Desserts & Food Parlours Bk Loan Rating ICRA D 150 (India) Pvt Ltd Issuer delayed in giving information Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 150 Assigned -Aye Finance Pvt Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 100 Assigned Akme Fintrade (India) Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 50 Assigned Aris Capital Pvt Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 125 Assigned Essel Finance Business Loan Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 140 Assigned Fino Finance Pvt Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 100 Assigned Pahal Financial Services Pvt ICRA BBB+ Ltd Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 80 Assigned Samunnati Financial ICRA BBB+ Intermediation & Services Pvt Ltd Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 50 Assigned Satya Microcapital Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 70 Assigned Shri Ram Finance Corporation ICRA BBB+ Pvt Ltd Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 50 Assigned Merittrac Services Pvt Ltd Fund based- CC ICRA BBB+ 150 Reaffirmed Merittrac Services Pvt Ltd Non-fund basedBG ICRA BBB+ Reaffirmed

(sub-limit) Merittrac Services Pvt Ltd Non-fund basedLOC ICRA BBB+ Reaffirmed

(sub-limit) /ICRA A2+ Svasti Microfinance Pvt Ltd ICRA BBB+ Ifmr Capital Finance Pvt Ltd - Provisional 150 Assigned Visage Holdings And Finance ICRA BBB+ Pvt Ltd Indus Vegpro Pvt Ltd LT - TL ICRA BB- 5 Upgraded

from ICRA B+ Japfa Comfeed India Pvt Ltd Bk Loan Rating ICRA BBB+ 1196

/A2 Review process is underway Kamsri Printing And Packaging LT FB CC ICRA B 88 Withdrawn Pvt Ltd Kerala Nut Food Company LT FB Fac - sub limit*ICRA BBB - Upgraded

from

ICRA BBB- * 100% interchangeability between fund based working capital limits Krushna Godavari Khate, Fund based- Working ICRA BB- 70 Reaffirmed Bi-Biyane Utpadan Va Vikri Capital Fac Sahakari Sanstha Ltd. Manisha Construction Co Fund based-CC ICRA B+ 30 - Issuer not cooperating Manisha Construction Co Unallocated limit ICRA B+ 15 - Issuer not cooperating Metco Roof Pvt Ltd LT - Fund Based/ CC ICRA BBB- 70 Outstanding Metco Roof Pvt Ltd LT - TL ICRA BBB- 34 Assigned Metco Roof Pvt Ltd LT/ ST Unallocated ICRA BBB- 101 Assigned

Limits Mi Industries (India) Pvt Ltd LT - Fund Based/ CC ICRA BB- 280 Issuer not cooperating Mi Industries (India) Pvt Ltd LT - Fund Based TL ICRA BB- 777.5 Issuer not cooperating Mi Industries (India) Pvt Ltd LT / ST - Non Fund ICRA BB- 62.5

Based /A4 Issuer not cooperating Paramount Steels Ltd FB Limits ICRA B 100 Reaffirmed Ramapriya Solar Energy Pvt Ltd Fund based-TL ProposedICRA B 105 - Issuer not cooperating S. J. Logistics (India) Ltd FB - CC ICRA B+ 170 Outstanding S. J. Logistics (India) Ltd FB - Foreign Currency ICRA B+ - Outstanding

Demand Loans

(Sublimit of CC) (Reduced from 16.00) S. J. Logistics (India) Ltd FB - Working Capital ICRA B+ 10 Assigned

Demand Loan S. J. Logistics (India) Ltd FB - Foreign Currency ICRA B+ 68 Assigned /

TL Outstanding (Enhanced from 5.00) S. J. Logistics (India) Ltd Unallocated ICRA B+ 2 Assigned Shankar Mahadev And Company FB CC ICRA BB- 30 Reaffirmed Siti Networks Ltd LT, Non-fund Based ICRA A- 750 Assigned

Facility Siti Networks Ltd Long-TL ICRA A- 1250 Outstanding Siti Networks Ltd LT, FB Facility ICRA A- 250 Outstanding Siti Networks Ltd Long-TL ICRA AA 500 Outstanding Somnath Agro Industries Fund based - CC ICRA B 50 Reaffirmed Somnath Agro Industries Unallocated ICRA B 54.2 Reaffirmed Somnath Agro Industries Fund based - TL Svarn Telecom Ltd LT FB - CC ICRA BB- 50 Reaffirmed Svarn Telecom Ltd LT FB - TL ICRA BB- 9.4 Reaffirmed Svarn Telecom Ltd LT Unallocated ICRA BB- 155.6 Reaffirmed Svarn Tex Prints Pvt Ltd LT FB - CC ICRA B+ 82.5 Reaffirmed Svarn Tex Prints Pvt Ltd LT FB - TL ICRA B+ 20 Reaffirmed Svarn Tex Prints Pvt Ltd LT Unallocated ICRA B+ 77.5 Reaffirmed Tanfac Industries Ltd FB ICRA BBB- 250 Upgraded

from

ICRA BB+ Vehlna Steels & Alloys Pvt Ltd CC ICRA B+ 60 Reaffirmed Vehlna Steels & Alloys Pvt Ltd Unallocated ICRA B+ 17.8 Reaffirmed Vijeta Broking India Pvt Ltd LT fund based Bk linesICRA BB- 40 Reaffirmed -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- $: Rating watch with positive implication #: Rating Watch with Developing implications @: Rating Watch with Negative Implications %: Rating under Credit Watch wd -Rating Stands Withdrawn sp -Rating Suspended pp -Principal Protected pn -Principal Not Protected ICRA may apply + or - signs for ratings to reflect a comparative standing within the category. BG-Bank Guarantee; CC-Cash Credit; CCPS-Cumulative Convertible Preference Share; CD-Certificate of Deposit; CLO-Collateralized Loan Obligation; CPA-Claims Paying Ability; CP-Commercial Paper; CPS-convertible preference shares; CRPS- Cumulative Redeemable Convertible Preference shares; DDB-Deep Discount Bond; EPBI-Exchange premium bond; FBL-Fund Based Limits; FRB/FRN -Floating Rate Bond/Note; ICD -Inter Corporate Deposit; ITD-Immediate Term Debt; LOC-Letter of Credit; LT -Long Term; LTB -Long Term Borrowing; LTD -Long Term Debt; MOCD-multiple option convertible debenture; MTD -Medium term Debenture; MTN-medium term notes; NCD(SO) - Non-Convertible Debenture-(Structured Obligation); NCD-Non-convertible Debentures; NCRB-Non Convertible Redeemable Bonds; NM-Not Meaningful; OCD-optionally convertible debenture; OD-Over Draft; OFCD-Optionally Fully Convertible Debenture; PCD-Partially Convertible Debenture; PCN-partly convertible notes; PCPS-Partly Convertible Preference Share; POCD-partly optional; PP-privately placed; PSPC-Post Shipment & Packing Credit; PS-Preference Shares; PTC-Pass Through Certificates; RPS-Redeemable Preference Shares; SCPN-secured convertible preference notes; SDO-Structured Debt Obligation; SLR-Statutory Liquidity Ratio; SO-Structured Obligation; SPCD - Secured Partly Convertible Debentures; SPN-secured premium notes; STB-Short Term Bond; STD-Short Term Debentures; ST-Short Term; Sub. Bonds-Subordinate Bonds; TB-Taxable Bond; TFB-Tax Free Bond; TL-Term Loan; TOCD-triple option convertible debentures. (Mumbai Rate Reporting Unit + 91 22 6180 7222 / 3317 7222 , E-mail at rru.data@thomsonreuters.com)

Keywords: INDIA RATINGS/
STOCKHOLM, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Swedes turned negative on prospects for the housing market in December, spying lower prices a year ahead, banking group SEB's Housing Price Indicator, showed on Monday.

The indicator, showing the balance between households forecasting rising or falling prices, dropped to -5 in December, from +11 in November.

It was the first time Swedes have forecast a fall in prices since February 2012.

According to SEB, 36 percent of households expect prices to rise over the coming year, down from 43 percent the previous month. The number expecting prices to decline increased to 41 percent from 32 percent.

(Reporting by Johan Sennero; Editing by Simon Johnson)
ISTANBUL, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Turkey's 2017 economic growth is expected to be greater than 5.5 percent, Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Monday, after data showed the economy expanded at 11.1 percent in the third quarter, its fastest pace in six years.

Simsek, who was speaking to broadcaster TRT Haber, is the government minister with oversight of the economy. Development Minister Lutfi Elvan earlier said full-year growth was expected to be between 6 and 7 percent.

(Reporting by Birsen Altayli; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Daren Butler)
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By Yoon Ja-young



A Korean version of Silicon Valley in the U.S. will be built in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, to nurture start-ups as the country's new growth engines. It aims at enabling anyone with innovative ideas to start their own business by providing one-stop full-support service.



The government unveiled the blueprint for Pangyo Techno Valley II at an economy-related ministers' meeting held at Pangyo, southeastern Seoul, Monday. Innovative growth is one of the two main pillars of the Moon administration's economic policy along with income-led growth.



"As seen in Silicon Valley in the U.S. and China's Zhongguancun, it is crucial to set up an innovation center to form an ecosystem for start-ups and venture companies," Strategy and Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said.



"For job creation and growth, innovation is needed in all businesses, both economically and socially," he added.



Pangyo Techno Valley II will be built on 430,000 square meters of land by 2022. Pangyo already harbors many IT companies. It is home to over 1,300 businesses as of the end of the last year, with their total sales surpassing 77 trillion won and employing 75,000 people.



The previous Park Geun-hye administration had announced a master plan to develop Pangyo into a "creative economy valley" back in 2015, but it was mostly about real estate development. There is criticism that it lacks software to support start-ups or facilitate communication between entrepreneurs



According to the government plan, Pangyo Techno Valley II will be developed to have a competitive edge against start-up incubators overseas. Pangyo will be the place where anyone can start their own business as long as they have an innovative idea.



It will provide work space for around 1,400 start-ups so that entrepreneurs can concentrate on realizing their innovative ideas without having to worry about high rent.



Those with innovative ideas will receive one-stop services, ranging from protection and realization of their technology, financial consulting, to advancing into overseas markets. They will be able to test their new innovations in new industries such as IoT, drones, self-driving cars, and healthcare.



Pangyo's infrastructure will be improved for young entrepreneurs, with more roads built to link the techno valley with other key areas and rental homes and short-term residences provided so that young workers can enjoy stabilized housing near their work.



The government also plans to nurture Pangyo Valley as a leading smart city. It will adopt all smart city technologies, such as smart transportation including car sharing and smart parking, a new system enhancing electrical energy efficiency, and technology for smart work environment



Pangyo Techno Valley II will be Korea's incubator for self-driving technology and research. There will be the first self-driving shuttle bus to operate in the residential area, running between Pangyo Station and the techno valley. It will be equipped with a self-driving monitoring system and facilities to run simulation tests based on big data.



At the ministers' meeting, the government also announced plans to overhaul its procurement system in a move to open doors wider for start-ups, SMEs and social enterprises. The government plans to pull up the ratio of start-ups and venture companies in procurement to 70 percent from 50 percent. Social enterprises will also get extra points when they bid for government orders.


South Korea is considering banning all kinds of cryptocurrency transactions in the country as a way to cool down the worldwide craze for digital currencies, the top financial regulator said Monday.

"I don't see bitcoin transactions as financial deals," Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Choi Jong-ku said in a luncheon meeting with reporters. "They are not institutionalized transactions. So the authorities never allow futures trading of such currencies."

He said the FSC is mapping out measures to restrict the transactions to some extent, including an all-out ban, adding that the restriction is aimed at minimizing side effects of Bitcoin transactions and reducing speculative investment.

Cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin and ethereum, have rapidly gained popularity in recent years, and South Korea is home to one of the world's largest bitcoin exchanges, with about 1 million people estimated to have the best-known digital currency.

Despite a boom in transactions of digital currencies, such exchanges are largely unregulated, as they are not recognized as financial products. Also there are no rules protecting people who invest in digital money.












BonAngels CEO offers advice to new companies



By Nam Hyun-woo





BonAngels CEO Kang Seok-heun / Courtesy of BonAngels
Insurer, lender win top honors as women-friendly firms



By Kang Seung-woo



AXA General Insurance and Busan Bank won the grand prizes as the most women-friendly financial outfits in Korea in an annual awards ceremony hosted by the Korean Women in Finance (KNWF).



The KNWF also recognized Park Jeong-rim, vice president of KB Financial Group and KB Kookmin Bank, for her contributions to bring more gender equality to the country's conservative financial industry.



"Thus far, men have dominated foreign exchange and loan departments of domestic banks. But Busan Bank has opened the areas to women of late," KNWF Chairwoman Kim Sang-kyung said. "In addition, it appointed a female executive vice president for the first time among Korean regional banks."



Early this year, the Busan-based lender tapped Kwon Mi-hee as its executive vice president to take charge of compliance and consumer offices.



With regard to AXA General Insurance the KNWF praised the Seoul-based non-life insurer that it's an exemplary firm as far as gender equality is concerned.



"AXA has maintained the proportion of females at around 30 percent, which is significantly high compared to other financial companies," Kim said.



The proportion of female executives is a mere 2.4 percent in Korea according to the KNWF, the lowest among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.



"KB Vice President Park has worked in the financial sector since 1986. Over the past three decades, she has put forth great efforts for the advancement of women in the industry. We highly recognize it," Kim said.



Busan Bank Executive Vice President Kwon said that her company has more female workers than males, while promising to keep trying to help crack the glass ceiling for senior employees and executives.



AXA CEO Gilles Fromageot also pledged to play a bigger role in the initiative.



"AXA is known for its female-friendly corporate culture and women development programs," he said. He noted that women's leadership styles promote communication, energy and innovative mindsets.



KB Vice President Park said it is a high time for the government to take more proactive measures to shatter the glass ceiling.



"For women to catch up to male competitors, they have to work harder because of the male-centric culture. This should be changed and the government must gear up to spearhead the transformation," Park said.



The KNWF was first set up in 2003 to strengthen the networking capacity of women in the financial industry.



The organization started with less than 30 members but now has hundreds.



Kim is a founding chairwoman. She is also CEO of the Korea International Finance Institute.


By Park Hyong-ki





SC Bank Korea CEO Park Jong-bok / Yonhap
Park Yu-ha, a professor at Sejong University and the author of "Comfort Women of the Empire," answers questions from reporters in front of the Seoul High Court in eastern Seoul after the court ruled against her in this Oct. 27 file photo. / Korea Times file

Intellectuals say freedom of expression in danger



By Kang Hyun-kyung



Korean, American and Japanese academics and artists voiced concern about a court's ruling that Park Yu-ha, the author of "Comfort Women of the Empire," defamed victims of wartime sexual slavery.



They claimed the Seoul High Court's ruling has put freedom of expression in danger.



In the book released in 2013, Park, also a professor at Sejong University in Seoul, claimed some Korean women who were taken to comfort stations overseas during World War II were volunteers, not victims who were forced to provide sexual services for Japanese soldiers against their will.



In October, the court ruled against Park and said her book defamed wartime sex slaves. It said Park's views of them were not consistent with historical facts upheld by the Korean government and the international community that comfort women were the victims of the Japanese military's systematic sex slavery and thus could mislead its readers. The higher court reversed a lower court ruling _ which had found her not guilty _ and fined Park 10 million won.



The court ruling, meanwhile, ignited academics and artists. Ninety-eight writers, artists and academics, including linguist Noam Chomsky, took collective action to help Park in her legal fight. They held a news conference at the Press Center in downtown Seoul, Dec. 7.



They claimed academics such as Park can present their own opinions about certain historical or political events, even if they are different from widely accepted existing views. In a free democracy, they said different opinions must be respected and protected because people are given freedom of expression. "Scholars are not supposed to be treated as criminals just because they present different views," they said.



"Comfort Women of the Empire" has been the center of a controversy since it was first released in 2013, two years after she worked on the book in Japan during a sabbatical.



In the book, Park challenged several established points about Japan's wartime sex slavery. Park denied the Japanese military's involvement in the recruitment of Korean girls and said human traffickers were responsible for war rape.



During World War II, as many as 200,000 women from Korea, China, the Philippines and the Netherlands were taken to comfort stations which were set up all across the Asia-Pacific region. About 80 percent of them were believed to be Koreans. Several comfort women survivors testified that they were duped by recruiters and believed they would work as manufacturing workers.



Park said prostitution was in place in Japan before World War II and women involved in the industry there were called comfort women. Those women were from poor families and they were there to earn money to support their families by providing sexual services for the Japanese military.



Park went on to say the opening of comfort stations across the Asia-Pacific region starting in 1932 was the result of the systematic expansion of such facilities ahead of the war, not as something that suddenly came up as an organized effort by the Japanese government as some Korean scholars and activists believed.



She also defended her use of prostitution for what those Korean comfort women did during the war. She said what they had gone through was "prostitution based on rape," or "prostitution almost identical to rape." As her description irritated Koreans, Park said she used such expressions to indicate what those Korean women underwent was the result of the systematic rape and her focus was put on rape, rather than prostitution.



Park said criticism against her was too harsh and she believed to some degree critics' misunderstanding of her intentions caused her to face such undeserved approbation. She said her initial intention was to raise the issue in order to hold Japan accountable for wartime rape accordingly. "The issue has long been treated as a wartime crime, which I think is incorrect," she said. Park said the nature of Korean comfort women was different from that of Chinese or Dutch wartime sex slaves.



Korea was a colonial state of Japan and thus Koreans at that time were considered Japanese citizens, whereas Chinese and Dutch women were considered foreigners, according to the author.



In June 2014, about a year after the publication of her book, 11 surviving "comfort women" filed a lawsuit against Park for defaming them. The court sided with the victims and ordered Park to redact content in 34 sections that it ruled defamed those victims.



In November 2011, the prosecution indicted the author without detention for defamation in a separate lawsuit. It drew the ire of some artists, historians and filmmakers at that time. One hundred ninety people signed a petition denouncing the prosecution's indictment of Park.


By Jun Ji-hye



President Moon Jae-in's chief of staff, Im Jong-seok, visited South Korean troops stationed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Monday, encouraging the nation's soldiers stationed there in their efforts to boost bilateral military cooperation with the Middle East country.



Im left for the UAE Saturday as Moon's special envoy. The itinerary for his four-day trip also includes Lebanon.



While meeting with the soldiers of the Akh Unit, Im presented the unit a wall clock with President Moon's signature printed in it, Cheong Wa Dae said.



The Akh Unit, composed of 130 soldiers, has carried out the duty of helping train the UAE's special forces and protect South Korean residents there in case of an emergency since January 2011. "Akh" is an Arabic word meaning "brother."



Before visiting the unit, Im paid a visit to Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, and held 40-minute talks.



"The two had a candid conversation based on mutual trust and respect," Cheong Wa Dae said. "They agreed to develop the two nations' mutual strategic cooperative relations further."



Later in the day, Im traveled to Lebanon and visited the Dongmyeong unit stationed as part of the U.N. peacekeeping operations there.



Seoul has dispatched the unit, consisting of 330 soldiers, since July 2007.



Im also paid a courtesy call to Lebanese President Michel Aoun and discussed bilateral diplomatic issues.



Given that Lebanon still maintains diplomatic relations with North Korea, some vernacular reports speculated that Im's visit to the country may have also been aimed at secretly contacting North Korean officials amid strained inter-Korean relations due to Pyongyang's repeated military provocations.



Cheong Wa Dae denied this, saying there was no plan for Im to meet other figures beyond his official schedule.



He will return home Tuesday.


By Kim Rahn



President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold a summit in Beijing Thursday during Moon's state visit to China, according to Cheong Wa Dae, Monday.



However, the leaders will not issue a joint statement or hold a press conference afterward, reflecting their different views on South Korea's deployment of a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery.



After arriving in Beijing Wednesday, Moon will attend an official welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, Thursday afternoon. He and Xi will then have bilateral talks, the third of their kind following previous ones in July and November.



"The two leaders will review the past 25 years of diplomatic relations and discuss ways to boost political and economic cooperation and cultural and human exchanges, for a more matured and future-oriented strategic partnership," said Nam Gwan-pyo, deputy head of the National Security Office.



They will talk about resolving issues surrounding North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, and linking Xi's "One Belt, One Road" initiative and Moon's "New Northern Policy" and "New Southern Policy," all of which seek to expand economic cooperation.



The two governments, however, decided not to issue a joint statement.






Firefighters inspect a basement room crammed with Bitcoin servers after putting out a minor fire on Friday. / Courtesy of Gangwon Fire Headquarters



By Chyung Eun-ju, Park Si-soo

A Bitcoin "mine" in South Korea suffered minor damage on Friday when a fire started in a room crammed with Bitcoin servers, police said Monday.



The fire happened in a basement room of a motel in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, at 12:30 p.m. The fire was extinguished in 10 minutes after burning several servers worth 50,000 won ($46) each.



The room was crammed with hundreds of Bitcoin servers operating with around 300 graphic cards, according to police.













An investigation is under way to find what caused the fire. An overloaded socket is among possible causes.



"The overloaded use of multi-outlet sockets seemed to have caused the fire," an investigator said.
By Kim Bo-eun



Twenty-six Korean sex slaves were used by Japanese soldiers on Chuuk Island in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul National University (SNU) Human Rights Center on Monday.



Records obtained by the city government and the SNU center's research team from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration are the first on sex slaves on Chuuk Island. Up until now there had only been testimony offered by one victim.



Chuuk Island, also known as Truk, is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia. It was a key base for the Japanese navy in the Pacific Theater during World War II.



Records include battle documents drawn up by the U.S. military, a passenger list of the vessel which took the sex slaves back to Korea, photos of when they returned to Korea and a New York Times (NYT) article on their return.



From the records, the research team identified the late sex slave Lee Bok-soon, who testified she had been taken to Chuuk Island. She is the only one among 239 government-recognized victims to claim to have served as a sex slave there.



The team also identified another late victim Ha Bok-hyang, who passed away before she could be registered on the government's list of sex slaves.



The late Ha was forced into sexual servitude in Manila, the Philippines. She kept silent for decades until she finally spoke out about her past in February 2001. However, she passed away days after she spoke out, which prevented her from being registered with the government as a victim.



"Like Ha, it is presumed that there are many victims who have not spoken out, and therefore there could be many more," the team said, stating it would analyze records to discover them.



Records show the Korean sex slaves boarded the escort vessel Ikino, January 17, 1946, at Dublon, an island in the Chuuk Lagoon, and returned to Korea via Japan.



The NYT article titled "Japanese on Truk are not prisoners" published March 2, 1946, mentions the return of Korean and Japanese from the island to their home countries.



"Koreans were sent home by the Truk commander, Marine Brig. Gen. Robert Blake of Berkeley, Calif., and with them went 27 Korean comfort girls. The girls, said General Blake, wanted to stay and work for the Americans. They feared the Koreans would throw them overboard for having served Japanese but General Blake packed them off and has not heard whether any were thrown overboard," the article said.



The research team said the article stated there were 27 sex slaves because it appears one of three children was counted as a sex slave.



The Ikino's passenger list shows 249 Koreans had boarded, among which there were 26 women and three children _ whose names, jobs and addresses are recorded.



The occupation of the women was recorded as "laborer" but a comparison with other documents confirms this indicated they were sex slaves.



Many of the names that appear to be Japanese were those of Korean sex slaves. During Japan's occupation of Korea, many Koreans were forced to change their names to Japanese ones. Their addresses show that they came from Korea.


By Yi Whan-woo





Victor Cha


By Lee Kyung-min



Officials at CJ Logistics, POSCO Engineering & Construction (E&C), Kumho Industrial and SK Engineering & Construction (E&C) were convicted Monday of accepting money from subcontractors in return for giving them construction work.

The Seoul Eastern District Court sentenced officials from CJ Logistics and POSCO E&C to two years in prison, and handed down a year-and-a-half term an official of Kumho. The CJ official was indicted for receiving up to 490 million won until April from a construction supervision service provider in return for helping the construction arm of CJ win a contract in building a new terminal in February 2013.



Officials of POSCO E&C and Kumho were indicted for receiving 410 million won and 300 million won, respectively, from the same service provider in return for their respective roles in inking contracts to earn money for their services.

The court said the three deserved harsh punishment as they led the service provider to prioritize efforts in lobbying and offering bribes to officials that had influence over coming up with a competent plan to complete the construction. The amount they received was large, it added.



The Seoul Southern District Court sentenced an SK official to two years in prison, ordering him to forfeit 183 million won in illicit gains.



The man surnamed Park was indicted for receiving the money from a subcontractor in return for granting various favors it sought at a construction site.



Park was also charged with embezzling 130 million won in company funds. He did so by asking the company to pay subcontractors up to 30 million won more in payment on numerous occasions and repeatedly pocketing the difference.

The court said his repeated offense gravely undermined the credibility of landing contracts and carrying out construction. Public trust in the sector, it added, would subsequently be eroded.



The rulings come amid a widening prosecution investigation into many builders here over similar bribery allegations.

The prosecution and police recently raided the headquarters of SK E&C and Lotte E&C, repspectively, over allegations that officials there received money in return for handing out construction contracts.
By Yi Whan-woo



President Moon Jae-in's scheduled visit to China this week will serve a "milestone" in fully restoring bilateral ties, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Monday.



Speaking at an international conference hosted by the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security in Seoul, Kang also called for opening an effective channel between North Korea and the outside world, saying "It will be critical to bring Pyongyang back to the negotiating table."



"Our President's visit to China is expected to become a significant milestone in recovering mutual trust between South Korea and China and helping put normal relations back on track," Kang said in her keynote speech.



Moon will make a state visit to China from Wednesday to Saturday. It comes after the two neighbors agreed in October to restore their ties frayed by deployment of a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea and Beijing's economic sanctions against Seoul.



"Our government was able to come up with momentum to normalize the South Korea-China relations in October following its countless efforts to overcome difficulties and recover mutual trust," Kang said.






By Duncan Harrison





In the workplace, employee wellbeing is important for business success and it requires an investment in energy and resources. These days, wellness programs are recognized as a vital part of an organization's offerings, and studies have indicated that not having one is costlier than employing one after factoring in absenteeism and general morale and energy levels of employees.



An effective wellness program taking into consideration employees' needs and expectations is imperative. It's not only about the employer providing a job and compensation, but also about the employee's happiness and mental state and encouraging increased physical activity, improved eating habits and reduced stress.



In Korea, which is well known for its long working hours, hustle and bustle and stressful lifestyle conditions to get ahead in life, the working environment for employees is improving but has not yet reached its full potential. According to a just released OECD report titled "How's Life in Korea?" job strain among employees is among the highest in the OECD, while earnings and the employment rate are below the OECD average.



Overall, the report cites Korea's performance as mixed. While income and wealth are below the OECD average, the long-term unemployment rate is the lowest in the OECD and labour market insecurity is low. In terms of what matters most to Koreans, a survey of 890 website visitors in the report indicated life satisfaction, safety and health as the three most important topics, highlighting the importance of health and wellbeing in the workplace.



Understanding attitudes toward employee health and wellbeing and finding practical solutions employers can implement is an important initiative at Robert Walters as we aim to provide long-term value to both the employer and employee.



As such, we conducted a survey of over 1,000 hiring managers and more than 2,400 professionals on the prevalence and value of workplace wellness programs. We found that 92% of professionals said it was very important or somewhat important for them to work in a firm which offers a wellness program.



To do it right, an organization must ensure its wellness program is sustainable and fully operational all the time and always maintain an attitude of "doing more" for its employees. A company must also understand the costs involved of mismanaging employee wellbeing issues and keep a focus on workers, monitor their needs and seek feedback through one-on-one contact.



To ensure a positive wellness program and eliminate barriers to implementation, a solid business case should be positioned internally to gain support from senior management and facilitate an active role outside of the HR department. Finally, all wellbeing initiatives should be promoted among existing employees and utilized effectively during the recruitment process to attract top talent.



Through our research, employee health and wellbeing is a predominant topic these days that is vital to business performance and one which can offer significant productivity gains. Ultimately, companies who invest time and resources into their health and wellbeing programs will be better positioned for future success.





Duncan Harrison is the Country Manager of Robert Walters Korea, one of the world's leading specialist professional recruitment consultancies and outsourcing firms. Reach him at Duncan.harrison@robertwalters.co.kr
By John Burton





"We had to destroy the village in order to save it," is a famous quote from the Vietnam War. It referred to the bombing of a village by the Americans in the Mekong Delta during the 1968 Tet Offensive that called into question U.S. war aims.



I am reminded of that quote as the White House publicly debates whether to launch a preventive war against North Korea. The idea has gained traction in Washington in recent months that Pyongyang can no longer be deterred from completing its nuclear and missile program and must be stopped with military action or else it will reunify the Korean peninsula on its terms. But there is a strong likelihood that South Korea could also be destroyed in the process.



H.R McMaster, U.S. President Donald Trump's national security adviser and ironically known for his critical book on the Vietnam War, is a strong proponent of the view that North Korea is not seeking a nuclear-capable ICBM system to secure regime survival by deterrence but rather it represents the first step to conquer South Korea by coercion and force that could trigger a wider war threatening U.S. cities if Washington intervenes.



McMaster recently warned that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un wants to use its nuclear weapons to "drive the [United] States and our allies away from this peninsula that he would then try to dominate. And if you want to know what life looks like under a North Korea regime, you just have to look north of the 38th parallel."



It is an argument based on the premise that Kim is irrational and morally evil and that North Korea cannot be contained as the Soviet Union and China were after they obtained nuclear weapons, although they too had abysmal human rights records.



McMaster added that North Korea is also likely to sell nuclear weapons to others, while Pyongyang's possession of nuclear weapons is likely to force South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Vietnam to acquire their own as well. "So, this would be the most destabilizing development, I think, in the post-World War II period, and it is something that places us at direct risk, but places the world at risk."



That talk is scaring some in Washington. Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth from Illinois told Vox, the internet website, "I'm extremely worried ? not just based on what I'm hearing out of the White House but also what I'm hearing out of the defense community. We are far closer to actual conflict over North Korea than the American people realize."



She added: "Everything we're doing shows a military that, in my personal opinion, has turned the corner from we need to try to prevent this from happening' to a military that's saying the president is likely to make this decision [to attack] and we need to be ready." She noted that Trump "frankly seems eager to launch a first strike."



McMaster and other hawks don't seem to acknowledge that a preventive attack by the U.S. on North Korea would also amount to a "destabilizing development" that could plunge the world into its worst crisis since World War II. Start with the fact that it would likely trigger the most destructive war since 1945, with casualties amounting to more than 1 million people on the Korean peninsula. Casualties would further mount if the war expanded to Japan and China.



There is also the danger that a U.S. attack on North Korea would lead to a clash with China since Beijing would view such an event as a U.S. challenge to its own power in the region. There is surprisingly little discussion in Washington about this scenario.



Even if the U.S. decided to avoid a full-scale military attack on North Korea and instead opted for a limited decapitation strike to remove Kim from power, it would create its own problems. The North Korean military would likely go ahead and automatically execute war plans, which would likely include the shelling of Seoul, missile attacks on U.S. bases in South Korea and Japan, and the use of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.



Even though the U.S. and South Korea would ultimately prevail, allied forces might continue to face an insurgency in North Korea while thousands of refugees could flood into China. This would likely force China to send its troops into North Korea to help restore order, but it would also send back efforts for reunification under Seoul's leadership. Finally, the cost of reconstructing a war-ravaged North Korea would be astronomical for South Korea, particularly if it had suffered extensive economic damage resulting from a war.



Given the unthinkable consequences of a preventive war, many in Washington take comfort in the fact that hawkish talk is just that  talk  that is meant to spook China into applying stiffer sanctions against North Korea while intimidating Pyongyang into stopping its nuclear and missile. But is such complacency fully justified?





John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is now a Washington, D.C.-based journalist and consultant.




By Park Si-soo







The chairman of South Korea's medium-sized conglomerate Booyoung Group has been banned from overseas travel in a widening investigation of alleged tax evasion.







The Ministry of Justice recently slapped an overseas travel ban on Chairman Lee Joong-keun after reviewing documents from the state tax agency and the fair trade regulator.







In April last year, the National Tax Service (NTS) accused Lee, 76, of evading massive tax using what the NTS called "ghost" companies registered in family members' names. He is also suspected of being involved in an offshore tax evasion linked to the company's construction project in Cambodia.







Booyoung is the first South Korean conglomerate to be embroiled in a corruption scandal since President Moon Jae-in took office in May.







The chairman was accused in June of providing inaccurate information about Booyoung's business structure to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC). Booyoung was prosecuted in October on suspicion of misleading the public with fake cost data and faulty construction of apartments in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.







The Seoul Central Prosecutors' Office is leading the investigation into Booyoung and Lee.







Lee was sentenced to three years' jail in 2004 for bribing politicians. But the sentence was suspended for five years and he returned to work after then President Lee Myung-bak pardoned him in 2008.


Seen is a Louis Vuitton men's store on the sixth floor of Shinsegae Department Store's main branch in Seoul. / Courtesy of Louis Vuitton



Luxury brands separate men's stores from women's



By Park Jae-hyuk



Louis Vuitton has recently begun separating its men's stores from women's at major department stores in Korea.



According to the French luxury brand, Monday, a Louis Vuitton store specializing in men's fashion items was opened on the sixth floor of Shinsegae Department Store's main branch in Seoul last week. The department store will accommodate a renovated store featuring women's collections as well on the ground floor next week.



The international fashion house will also open a brand new store focusing on men's collections at Galleria Department Store's East Wing and a renewed women's store in the store's West Wing this month.



Its Korean subsidiary said it divided the stores to offer clients a unique and personalized shopping experience.



According to the company, separated Louis Vuitton stores can only be found at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York, Harrods in London, and Shin Kong Place in Beijing, as well as Shinsegae Department Store's Gangnam branch having stores for women's collections on its second floor, women's shoes collections on the fourth floor and men's collections on the sixth floor.





A Louis Vuitton women's store that will be opened on the ground floor of Shinsegae Department Store's main branch in Seoul. / Courtesy of Louis Vuitton
Chairman Kim comes under fire



By Yoon Sung-won





Harim Chairman Kim Hong-kuk
SPECIAL REPORT'I was falsely accused of theft': foreign entertainer recalls painful memories of bullying by Korean agency
The seaside city of Liverpool, England (yes, home of the Beatles), was one of Englands major shipping hubs in the not-so-distant past. Magnificent ocean liners like the RMS Titanic, Lusitania, and Queen Mary were all registered there. The city is also infamous for its part in the triangle trade, where rum, sugar, finished goods, and enslaved humans crisscrossed the Atlantic between the Old World, Africa, and the New World, with Liverpool as a northern Hub. Hugging Liverpools dozens of remaining docks are gigantic brick warehouses, built in the 1800s as the city rose to prominence. One such warehouse holds a rummy treasure trove belonging to the Main Rum Company.

Liverpool Arrival

On a blustery October day, I find myself inside one such warehouse, descending to the basement in a rickety freight elevator, although suspended metal cage might be a more apt description. Im doing my best to contain my excitement at what lies in wait once the doors open. For among my journeys to the epicenters of rum, this particular warehouse has become a singular obsession.

The doors open into a cold, dimly lit room. Its my first glimpse into a virtually unheard of yet fascinating corner of the rum world. Even the most extreme, hardcore rum aficionados dont know of the treasures held here. For within these walls lies a magnificent, unparalleled collection of rums from all over the world, slumbering away in casks.

Liverpool cathedral

Just an hour earlier, having left Mrs. Wonk to her Beatles tour (a must-do, she says, for any music fan who sets foot in the city), I made my way from the citys Lime Street train station to Canning Street, in the shadow of Liverpools enormous hilltop sandstone cathedral. After locating the correct door in an extremely long brick building, Im buzzed in and greeted by Ian Smith, managing director of The Main Rum Company, a friendly chap in his early forties.

Up a flight of stairs on the second floor is the hub of the companys operations  a surprisingly compact, square room, with a row of windows along one wall overlooking Canning Street. Theres just enough space for four desks. Here, I meet Eric Strahan and Christine Southern, as well as Ian Hoyles, the latest addition to the operation. What might appear like a small insurance agency to the untrained eye is actually the nerve center for one of the most important enterprises in the rum world. Only the many miniature rum sample bottles belie what happens here.

The Main Rum Company building, Liverpool

The Main Rum Company building, Liverpool

I have my trusty SLR camera with me, but no pictures are allowed. The Main Rum Companys operations require the utmost discretion. You see, they do not sell any rum directly to consumers, but rather, they are rum merchants. They purchase stocks of rum to age in a nearby Liverpool warehouse, and sell it to their customers. Main Rum wants to stay below the radar; Im extremely fortunate to have been granted access.

After a bit of chit-chat about the rum industry, the two Ians and I hop in a car for the short drive to the warehouse. As we drive, Ian Smith outlines a brief history of how The Main Rum Company came to be.

Liverpool Docks

Demerara rum from Guyana has long been a staple of the UK rum market  by itself and in navy style blends such as Pussers. For many decades, Demerara rum from Guyana was shipped to the UK via tanker ships docking at Liverpools Nelson Dock. The rum was offloaded from the ships via an elevated pipeline running along the side of a brick warehouse before depositing into giant tanks. You can still see this warehouse today, although it has a new life as the Titanic Hotel. An on-site rum bar honors the sites rum history.

Nelson Dock, Liverpool

Titanic Hotel, Liverpool

Circa 1984, Benjamin J. (Ben) Cross de Chavannes was assisting Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) in Liverpool. Ben had the idea to purchase batches of rum and mature them in casks in a nearby warehouse. Thus, The Main Rum Company was born  A company offering a diverse collection of cask-aged rum to other purveyors of rum.

In time, DDL moved their shipping operations away from Liverpool, and The Main Rum Company took over DDLs office space on Canning Street  the same office The Main Rum Company operates out of today.

Enter E&A Scheer

In 2001 and prior to his planned retirement, Ben decided to merge his company with E&A Scheer, the Dutch company that also buys, blends, and sells rum to many well-known brands, and with whom Ben had long been associated. Teaming up with E&A Scheer couldnt have been a better match. Ive written extensively about E&A Scheer, including here and here. If you dont know their story, stop now and go read up.

There are critical differences between Main Rum and Scheer that make for a great symbiotic relationship. Scheers volume of bulk rum sold annually makes them one of the worlds largest rum companies. They do no aging of rums, only blending, and deal in units of shipping containers, not casks. Using this container method, they need to make sure that their products are secure and safe during transit, so they may look into cargo accessories to help keep everything in line and ready for delivery. In contrast, The Main Rum Company sells high-quality rum in casks for a very limited-edition release. Both E&A Scheer and The Main Rum Company, the entire gamut of rum, in provenance, age, and volume is covered.

Into the Menagerie

As we arrive at the warehouse, its easy to note by the architecture and faded red brick exterior that its quite old. The six visible levels of windows (all gated and closed with metal doors) indicates at least six levels within, plus whatever lurks below ground level. Wording painted on the brick announces that this was once a bonded tea warehouse; tea was once held in government bond, just like liquor. (Hence all that revolutionary action in Boston Harbor.) If you were to imagine an 1800s British dockside warehouse, youd probably picture something very similar to this.

Once inside, I notice the vaulted ceilings, painted white. Every so often throughout the space are thick support pillars, painted green. The building, built in 1836, is so large that despite all the rum casks within, other companies also lease space here.

The Main Rum Company warehouse, Liverpool  Photo Credit: Dan Szor  Cotswolds Distillery

Walls separate the expansive floor area into manageable rooms of varying sizes, connected by open archways. Entering the first of many rooms, I find what Im here for: Casks of rum laying horizontally, bunghole pointing upward. In some spots, the casks are stacked two or three levels high; in others, casks are lined up in a single row. On the barrelheads, written in chalk, are a series of numbers and words. Some of the words are known as marques, which are basically names for different rums made at the same distillery. Each distillery defines its own marques, and theyre usually quite cryptic, like Hampden Estate DOK, for instance.

The Main Rum Company uses its own set of marques, which are completely distinct from the distillery marques. Thus, even if youre familiar with, say, DDLs or Hampdens marques, that wont help you in this warehouse. However, in time, Im partially able to decode whats in a barrel from the labeling  If you know the key distilleries that sell in bulk, its not particularly hard to guess.

As were on this bottommost level of the warehouse and hence below ground level, its not surprising that the air is quite moist. Adding to the challenge the available light is quite dim in spots. The two Ians and I spend much of our time navigating the warehouse via cellphone flash lighting.

With at least dozens of casks in any given room, the effect of the angels share is easily noticeable. Walls and pillars are thickly coated with distillers mold, the harmless fungus that feeds on evaporating alcohol. As you might guess, the smell of rum is strong, but heavily interlaced with dank fungus smells.

Youd be forgiven for thinking the lower level of the warehouse resembles a nineteenth century dungeona maze of dark, damp rooms. So strong is this impressions provided by these rooms that they appeared (without much set dressing) in the 2009 film Sherlock Holmes, starring Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law.

The Main Rum Company warehouse, Liverpool  Photo Credit: Dan Szor  Cotswolds Distillery

Eventually, the shock and awe of the range of casks wears off (slightly), and I ask about cask management. Its predominantly ex-bourbon, but youll also find French oak, Cognac, Armagnac, and Sherry casks scattered about. Everything here eventually ends up in a cask, regardless of whether it arrived in a cask or a shipping container. After all, the goal here is maturation not mere storage.

A Rum Distillery, Revealed

Passing one particular cask, my eyes pop out. The distillery is easy enough to guess from the marque, and is quite a surprise. A few days earlier at Londons UK RumFest, Id seen and tasted a bottle of Compagnie des Indes rum (a French independent bottler), which was labeled 2005 Vintage New Yarmouth. (New Yarmouth is the much lesser known sister distillery to Appleton Estate.) This Compagnie des Indes bottling was the first New Yarmouth bottling Id ever seen. I had to wonder

A few days later, I asked Florent Beuchet, owner of Compagnie des Indes, if he purchases casks from The Main Rum Company. He replied that he has always been very transparent about where I source my rums from, and for sure I do source some of them from Main Rum. However, Florent also stressed that he sources his rums from elsewhere as well, including directly from distilleries where possible. In my conversations with several other premium rum purveyors, they have echoed Florents words.

Bung flogger, The Main Rum Company warehouse, Liverpool  Photo Credit: Dan Szor  Cotswolds Distillery

Seeing my enthusiasm over this particular cask, Hoyles fetches what looks like an elongated wooden croquet mallet (a bung flogger), a siphon pump, and-oh, yestasting glasses. Cautioning me to stand back, he swings the mallet in a long, overhead arc, bringing it down squarely on the wooden bung. A violently loud bang echoes throughout the warehouse. A second well-placed strike and the bung pops out. In goes the siphon, and soon were nosing off-the-charts funky rum, quite similar in flavor profile to an aged Hampden Estate rum. But not from Hampden!

A bit later and elsewhere in the warehouse, the same mallet swings again to open a cask of blended rums from different distilleries. While most casks here are single estate, single vintage rum, there are times when Main Rum decides the best choice for a rum is blending with other rums.

As we depart the warehouse, I spot a large collection of small rum-filled sample bottles. Looking as if theyre waiting to be discarded, I ask what happens to them. From time to time, Smith says, each is emptied into a cask for future blending. I couldnt help but think about how some spirits enthusiasts have been making infinity barrels at home, combining the last drops of nearly empty bottles into a small cask and let them marry. All those samples at The Main Rum Company would surely make an amazing infinity barrel!

Musical Connection

Rounding the warehouse on the drive back to the office, Smith stops and points to a particular set of steps inset into the side of the building. It seems theres a famous 1966 black-and-white photo of Bob Dylan sitting on a set of steps surrounded by young children, taken by photographer Barry Feinstein. Those very steps are part of the warehouse we just walked through. Hows that for a cool historical connection?

Dylan in Liverpool, 1966  Barry Feinstein

To the Flagons!

Back in the office, we tour through many of the old rum bottles Main Rum has acquired over the years. A British armed forces rum flagon from the 1950s appears, and soon Im enjoying a wee nip of real rum history! (See: Black Tot). Being in the presence of people who worked in the rum industry for many decades, I naturally sought their stories from rums not-too-distant past. Eric shows me photos from his travels to Caribbean distilleries in the 1980s, and my jaw is agape as I flip through them. He graciously lets me take a few photos of his pictures of spirit industry executives stirring the famed Hampden muck pit.

1950s British armed forces rum flagon, The Main Rum Company

The Main Rum Company office and the people who inhabit it are an absolute treasure trove of information about the rum world, working in it long before we enthusiasts and our blogs and Facebook groups appeared. Hopefully the history contained within will be preserved for future generations of rum enthusiasts.

I was extraordinarily fortunate to be granted access to The Main Rum Companys operations. Despite (intentionally) being virtually unknown, they and E&A Scheer, have an enormous impact on todays global rum trade. From the most inexpensive supermarket rums to the most rare, independently bottled jewels, youll find evidence of their handiwork if you know where to look. As rum enthusiasts and experts seek to understand rum from cane to glass, understanding the role of these global rum merchants is essential. My most sincere thanks to The Main Rum Company staff and Carsten Vlierboom for allowing me to look inside this fascinating corner of the rum world.

Note: The warehouse interior images were graciously provided to me by Cotswolds Distillery, who also ages product in the same location.
COLUMBUS  Tara Vasicek doesnt like the term blighted and substandard.

She prefers to view the areas as ripe for development  and there are plenty of them in Columbus.

Since taking over as city administrator in February, Vasicek has been approached by a number of developers interested in local projects, from hotels and apartment complexes to restaurants and retail businesses.

There are good commercial projects that are sitting out there and are excited about Columbus, but they need an incentive, an investment to get their projects to where those developers are wanting to build the projects, said Vasicek.

Thats where tax-increment financing (TIF) and that blighted and substandard designation come in.

TIF is a funding mechanism that provides capital for developers and property owners to help get projects off the ground. The funding, which comes from the city, is then repaid over a period of up to 15 years using the increased tax revenue on the improved property.

Locally, its been used for projects such as Hobby Lobby, Slumberland, Ramada-Columbus, Hy-Vee and the Village Centre strip mall.

Vasicek said many of the developers currently looking at Columbus are requesting TIF assistance, which is why city officials and other key stakeholders in the community recently worked with Omaha-based RDG Planning and Design on a study that updates the areas labeled blighted and substandard.

State law requires projects to be located in blighted and substandard areas in order to receive TIF funding.

Several factors are considered before the label is applied, including population trends, income, unemployment rates, the age and condition of buildings, percentage of undeveloped land, infrastructure layout and number of property owners within the area.

The study, which cost $2,600, focuses on nine areas in Columbus, including the 23rd Street and 33rd Avenue corridors, downtown business district, an industrial area near Platte County Agricultural Park and three locations Vasicek believes would support residential development.

Vasicek said the study targets a mix of projects ranging from large industry expansions to commercial businesses to single- and multifamily housing.

In the downtown district, for instance, theres the potential for both commercial development and the addition of more apartment buildings and second-story living spaces above businesses.

Im excited about this area and hopefully we can get some good projects in this area, Vasicek said.

The city administrator believes TIF is part of the solution to the communitys current housing shortage.

To make a dent in the housing problem, we really have to do some high-density projects, and theyre very expensive to do, said Vasicek, who noted that a market-rate apartment complex with more than eight units hasnt been constructed in Columbus in nearly 30 years.

Thats obviously a huge contributing factor for why were having a housing issue right now, she said.

Three areas  between 48th and 33rd avenues just north of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, east of 18th Avenue near Columbus Municipal Airport and east of East 14th Avenue near the new Frontier Park and Armed Forces Readiness Center in northeast Columbus  are included in the study specifically for residential development.

Some of those areas, Vasicek said, wont be developed without a financial incentive because of the high infrastructure costs.

Thats where TIF comes in. As part of the funding request, developers must prove the project wouldnt happen without this financial support.

There are critics of TIF who argue it takes revenue away from counties, cities, school districts and other entities that collect property taxes while the funding is repaid, but Vasicek isnt one of them.

It is economic development, she said, adding that TIF-backed projects grow the local property tax base for decades and decades beyond the payback period.

Vasicek believes Columbus needs to offer this incentive to remain competitive with other Nebraska cities.

If a developer is coming to me with a project, theyre also going to Fremont and Grand Island and Norfolk and theyre asking them the same questions, she said.

If approved, the study would designate about 25 percent of Columbus as blighted and substandard. State statute allows a city to go up to 35 percent, so Vasicek said theres leeway to accommodate projects that pop up outside the nine highlighted areas.

The study is expected to head to the city council next week for approval.

A lot of projects hopefully will happen after we get this done, Vasicek said.
PRESS RELEASE

Top Chinese Military Moscow Visit Boosts China, Russia Military Coordination

Dec. 9, 2017 (EIRNS)Zhang Youxia, Vice Chairman of Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Military Commission, met in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, and other top Russian military officials on Dec. 7, for discussions on deepening the China-Russia strategic partnership through improving military-technical cooperation. All involved placed this cooperation in the framework of the relationship Presidents Putin and Xi Jinping have developed between their countries.

According to Chinas Xinhua, Putin told Zhang at their meeting that

"military cooperation plays an important role in Russia-China relations and the two countries should continue to strengthen their partnership in joint military drills, army games and personnel training."

The Kremlin reported that in greeting Zhang, Putin reiterated "that the strategic partnership with China remains a key foreign policy priority of Russia. We highly value our current relations. They have developed largely thanks to the Chinese leadership and personally to the President of China, whom we consider a friend."

Zhang spoke of Putin in the highest terms, in greeting the President, calling it an honor to meet him again:

"You enjoy the respect and support of the Russian people and the Armed Forces. You are a national hero. You are leading the Russian people and moving toward prosperity and wealth, and have achieved great success. You have made an important contribution to resolving a number of major complicated issues. In this way, you have demonstrated political resolve and outstanding leadership ability."

TASS played up Defense Minister Shoigus statements of intent "to further develop relations between our defense ministries in all areas," adding that

"for his part, the Chinese official also noted development of Russian-Chinese cooperation and expressed hope that good personal, working and friendly relations will be established in the future."

These Moscow meetings, taking place at the same time as the Cooperation-2017 joint exercises of special forces troops from both countries in northwest China, sent Western media such as Breibart and the U.K.s Daily Express into geopolitical outer orbit. And no wonder: Breibart cited a Russian military press release stating that exercises would

"help Russian Special Forces adapt to a dry climate without precipitationsand to the meals represented by a variety of both traditional spicy and sour-sweet Chinese and European dishes."

Evidently a cultural threat!
Walt Disney Co.s planned acquisition of much of Rupert Murdochs 21st Century Fox media company  a deal that is expected to be completed as early as this week  could prompt a brain drain of high-level Fox executives in the coming months.

Among the prominent executives who eventually could exit Fox is 20th Century Fox Chairman Stacey Snider as well as Fox Television Group Chairman Dana Walden.

Amazon.com has had individual discussions with the two executives to gauge their interest in becoming chief executive of Amazon Studios in Santa Monica, according to four knowledgeable people who were not authorized to discuss the situation.

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Snider and Walden are two of Hollywoods most high-powered and successful female studio chiefs, which makes them highly marketable at a time when more than a dozen men in Hollywood have fallen following sexual harassment allegations.

The talks with Amazon, which occurred during the last month, are said to be preliminary. Both women remain under contract at Fox.

Amid worries of an executive exodus, Fox Chief Executive James Murdoch last week began reaching out to several key business leaders in an effort to extend their employment at Fox so they would serve through any transition to Disneys ownership, according to two people familiar with the situation.

One of Amazons top executives is leading the search and has talked to several veteran Hollywood executives as the company begins the process of finding a new creative chief to replace Roy Price, who left Amazon in October following a sexual harassment allegation.

Amazon, according to one of the sources, is not in any hurry to fill the position, in part because several of the top prospects are under contract at other companies.

In addition, Amazon Studios has leadership in place. Albert Cheng, a prominent media executive who previously oversaw many of ABCs digital efforts, has been interim chief since Prices departure.

An Amazon spokesman declined to comment. Fox representatives declined to comment.

Disney and Fox appear to be putting the finishing touches on their proposed merger, according to two knowledgeable insiders who were not authorized to discuss the situation. Philadelphia cable company Comcast Corp. said Monday that it was no longer pursuing a deal with Murdoch.

Speculation over the future of Snider, who took charge of the 20th Century Fox film studio last year, has intensified because some people think its unlikely that she would move over to Disney. The Burbank studio has its own film team in place, including the highly respected chairman of Walt Disney Studios, Alan Horn.

Snider has been credited with reinvigorating Foxs studio but she had a mixed track record when she worked as co-chief executive of Steven Spielbergs DreamWorks Studios, which had a distribution deal with Disney.

Before her association with DreamWorks, Snider helped manage Universal Pictures during a period that produced several blockbusters for that studio, now owned by Comcast Corp.

Several Fox insiders speculated that Disney might be more interested in bringing over Emma Watts, Foxs president of production. Earlier this year, Watts was elevated to vice chairman of Foxs film studio.

The Amazon Studios position might not be the only coveted Hollywood position up for grabs. AT&T is trying to buy Time Warner Inc., which could lead to open positions at the Warner Bros. studio if the telecommunications giant decides to install its own leadership. Apple also is in the market for a top film executive as the technology giant expands its foray into Hollywood.

Fox Television Group Chair Dana Walden, who has worked at the company more than 20 years. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times )

Walden is one of the most successful executives in Hollywood. She has worked at Fox more than two decades and has strong relationships with key television producers, including Ryan Murphy. She and fellow Fox Television Group Chair Gary Newman are credited with building 20th Century Fox Television into a powerhouse, churning out such hits as This is Us, Empire, Modern Family, Homeland and Family Guy.

Disney is highly interested in Foxs television studio, which a recent report by Bernstein & Co. analyst Todd Juenger called the crown jewel of 21st Century Fox.

For the last three years, Walden and Newman also have been running the Fox broadcast network, which will likely remain within the Murdoch familys portfolio following the proposed merger.

Anxiety has spread beyond the executive ranks. Producers who make shows for the broadcast network are uncertain how their businesses will be affected. No one really knows whats going to happen, one producer said Monday.

Brain drains are common in high-level mergers.

Anytime a merger like this happens, people start dusting off their resumes, said James R. Bailey, a professor of leadership development at George Washington University School of Business. You are going to see a talent drain at Fox, he predicted. This is exactly the time for top talent to move on.

Murdoch  and his sons Lachlan and James Murdoch  sent a note to employees late last week, acknowledging the angst caused by a potential sale to Disney.

While we cant comment on market speculation, we do want to address the impact we know this is having on all of you, the Murdochs said in an email late Thursday. Uncertainty always breeds unease. In every way, our focus is on our businesses and on the welfare of all our colleagues.

James Murdoch has been trying to reassure executives, people familiar with the matter said.

All of you have worked hard to build and nurture a remarkable company through your hard work, loyalty and creativity, the Murdochs said. For this we are truly grateful.

Times staff writer Ryan Faughnder contributed to this report.

meg.james@latimes.com

Twitter: @MegJamesLAT

UPDATES:

5:05 p.m.: This story was updated to include information about Comcast abandoning its pursuit of Fox.

12:40 p.m.: This story was updated with additional information about Snider.

This article was originally published at 11:45 a.m.
Betsy Stover was 17 when her mother asked her to help fax strangers, hawking a service that had the markings of a pyramid scheme.

I always felt like a creep sending unsolicited faxes, said Stover, who hated the chore, but knew the work required cold calls to succeed.



For the record: A previous version of this story included the wrong first name for Robert FitzPatrick, president of Pyramid Scheme Alert.

Stover, now a 38-year-old comedian based in Los Angeles, had largely forgotten about the experience until about three years ago. Thats when her Facebook feed started filling up with new direct sales posts touting cosmetics, jewelry and leggings.

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Unbeknownst to her, friends Stover hadnt seen in years had added her to private Facebook groups promoting body oils and makeup. She had little interest. It felt too similar to her mothers get-rich-quick schemes, which had more to do with recruiting new distributors than selling actual products.

It was super awkward, said Stover, who discreetly left the groups. With these people, there was always a looming sales pitch in the background.

Unsolicited calls and face-to-face pitches once defined multilevel marketing  a $35-billion industry that recruits an ever expanding network of independent distributors to sell their products rather than rely on bricks-and-mortar stores.

Instead, todays generation of multilevel marketing brands including Rodan + Fields, Stella & Dot and LipSense are often discovered on social media platforms such as Facebook, which gives distributors instant access to a vast network of potential customers and recruits with the swipe of a finger.

Rather than suffer the humiliation of cold calling, adherents can blast sales pitches and promote their brands online with little effort, attracting increasingly distant acquaintances who would have been previously unreachable.

Its why many women such as Stover have seen their news feeds transformed from a place to keep up with friends and family into a clutter of livestreamed sales events, invitations to trunk shows and incessant promotional threads about moisturizers and lipsticks.

This is what multilevel marketing has always done, said Robert FitzPatrick, president of watchdog group Pyramid Scheme Alert. It is the only business that ignores the boundaries of private life and professional life. It simply follows where people are gathered, and now that people communicate on digital forums like Facebook, it has invaded social networks.

No recent company exemplifies the industrys shift more fittingly  and controversially  than LuLaRoe, a Corona multilevel marketing brand that through Facebook developed a cult-like following for its patterned leggings and is now the target of five class-action lawsuits.

One of those suits, filed in October, seeks $1 billion in damages and alleges LuLaRoe operated a pyramid scheme, enriching itself by primarily selling inventory to its distributors, or sales consultants, rather than its customers.

The plaintiffs say the company did this by using social media to lure a sales force mostly made up of stay-at-home mothers into paying thousands of dollars to become consultants with dim hopes of turning a profit.

Defendants achieved such rapid growth by enticing consultants with social media posts boasting large bonus checks and other lavish material possessions, the suit says. Those rewards were celebrated with the hashtag #becauseofLLR.

Another popular social media slogan, Part-time work for full time pay, has been chided by critics as mostly untrue except for those lucky enough to get in on the business early.

LuLaRoe, which was founded in 2012 and surpassed $2 billion in annual sales this year, called the lawsuits baseless. The company said it has given thousands of consultants the opportunity to earn income. And it rejected allegations it was a pyramid scheme, explaining it does not reward consultants for simply signing up new sellers, but instead offers bonuses based on a cut of retail sales achieved by a consultants recruits.

Only 27% of LuLaRoes consultants received such bonus payments last year, which means about a quarter of the companys consultants were involved in recruiting and maintaining a sales team  the multilevel part of multilevel marketing.

LuLaRoe has grown exponentially over the last four years. Our success has made us the target of orchestrated competitive attacks and predatory litigation. We take all litigation  regardless of its lack of merit  seriously, the company said in a statement.

In addition to the pyramid scheme claims, LuLaRoe has been saddled with complaints about shoddy merchandise, an unfair return policy and unsympathetic leadership (consultants say the company pressured mothers to sell their breast milk to pay for more inventory).

It was an endless chain. They always wanted you to buy more, said Pamela Winkelman, a Minnesota consultant who was introduced to LuLaRoe over Facebook and is a member of the $1-billion class action.

Before the lawsuits, LuLaRoe had built an ultra-loyal following thanks to its buttery soft leggings. The companys embrace of all body types positioned it as something of an anti-Lululemon, the maker of pricey yoga pants whose former chief executive once suggested its clothes werent appropriate for bigger women.

By 2015, LuLaRoe had become a social media sensation. Its clothes couldnt be found at stores or e-commerce sites. Instead, women had to join private Facebook groups run by the companys consultants.

Once in, they had to hope the seller had their size and pattern  not an easy task because consultants had no say over what pieces LuLaRoe would give them to sell.

Those restrictions on supply sparked a frenzy. Women joined multiple Facebook groups scavenging for rare leggings  known as unicorns  with playful prints such as purple dragons or the solar system. Eventually, unicorns would show-up on EBay for double or triple their typical $25 sticker price.

The clamor for leggings also boosted the ranks of consultants, who were charged a minimum of $5,000 for their initial batch of inventory. LuLaRoe had about 30,000 consultants by the middle of 2016. Since then, the number has grown to more than 80,000.

I never would have heard of LuLaRoe if it wasnt for Facebook, said a 31-year-old consultant in Southern California who didnt want to use her name for fear of reprisal from the company. (She is not a member of any of the lawsuits directed at LuLaRoe).

I saw how these women were buying these crazy prints left and right. I figured there was a lot of money to be made, she added.

The mother of two signed-up as a LuLaRoe consultant in 2015 and initially made a tidy profit. But within months, her suburban neighborhood was saturated with rival consultants who cut her earnings by two-thirds.

Now Im sitting on $22,000 of inventory in my spare bedroom that I cant move, she said.

Consultants say new recruits were being minted each day, in no small part because of LuLaRoes pervasiveness on Facebook. They say the company drove up engagement on the platform by encouraging consultants to post and comment as much as possible. It also urged consultants to launch Facebook business pages from which they could place ads.

LuLaRoe says it was its consultants who pioneered the companys Facebook strategy. The brand adopted the strategy because it allowed consultants to interact more intimately with customers in a manner similar to salespeople in bricks-and-mortar stores.

[W]e want to help get you to a place where you are a Facebook diva and your Facebook group isnt just helping your business its practically running it for you, the company says in a Facebook strategy tutorial posted on its website.

The Facebook groups, which routinely had hundreds of members, had a culture of their own. Negative comments about the brand were frowned upon. Acronyms such as FSOT (for sale or trade) and DISO (desperately in search of) abounded. Roe became a blanket verb, said Jill Robbins, a San Antonio blogger who wrote about her observations as a member of several LuLaRoe Facebook groups.

I found a lot of people who drank the Kool-Aid, Robbins said.

LuLaRoe rose as the number of people involved in all manner of direct selling in the U.S. grew to a record 20.5 million in 2016, up from 15.9 million in 2012, according to the Direct Selling Assn.

Experts say economic insecurity born out of the Great Recession has pushed more Americans to multilevel marketing  not unlike the way people have seized on the gig economy working for companies such as Uber.

With her background in direct sales, LuLaRoe co-founder DeAnne Brady has said she started the company envisioning a sales force of mothers who could earn income while raising children.

Jessica Wernz, a writer focused on family issues, says direct selling appeals to women in several ways: It offers a path to entrepreneurship and a promise of sisterhood to stay-at-home moms who otherwise struggle to find time for socializing. And it gives mothers in the workforce an alternative source of income that allows them to spend more time with their children.

What troubles Wernz is that it perpetuates the idea that mothers are best suited at home, not in an office.

I love the idea of empowering women, but this is the exact opposite, she said. These companies are selling them on the idea that theyll miss their kids childhoods if they have to go into an office.

Facebook has taken a hands-off approach to multilevel marketing, saying it has no reason to limit the industrys presence on the social network. A Facebook spokesman declined to share any data about LuLaRoe.

The deluge of posts about direct sales can easily be removed by selected hide post next to any unwanted content, the spokesman added. Otherwise, posts about LuLaRoe and other multilevel marketing brands are subject to the whims of Facebooks algorithm like most other topics.

The rules are different for paid ads. Facebook requires multilevel marketing brands to fully describe the associated product or business model and never to promote business models offering quick compensation for little investment. However, LuLaRoe consultants interviewed for this story who placed ads on Facebook say they never disclosed such information.

Facebook also prohibits ads and landing pages from containing deceptive, false, or misleading content, including deceptive claims, offers, or methods. Even if Facebook decided to banish pyramid schemes from its networks, it would have a hard time determining which companies to target.

Pyramid scheme isnt a legal term, and the nations laws are notoriously vague about what it means. Most experts and industry officials, including those at the Direct Sales Assn, say the bar for a scam is when the majority of revenue is derived from recruiting new consultants rather than sales.

But others say thats not enough. They argue the majority of multilevel marketing is predatory because its founded on the false promise of quick returns, when in reality, the overwhelming majority of consultants lose money.

Ive never once met a single person who earned income in multilevel marketing sustainably from retailing, said FitzPartick of Pyramid Scheme Alert. The model is impossible.

FitzPatrick said legal ambiguity and powerful lobbying has protected multilevel marketing, an industry with close ties to the Trump administration. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is married to former Amway CEO Dick DeVos, the son of Amway co-founder Richard DeVos. President Trump was once a paid promoter of direct sales firm ACN Inc.

Some of the biggest names in the industry, including Amway, Avon and Mary Kay have survived scrutiny for decades. Other stalwarts such as Herbalife and Nu Skin have paid millions in settlements, while upstarts such as beverage distributor Vemma Nutrition were effectively shuttered by the Federal Trade Commission.

LuLaRoe needs to take its consultants concerns more seriously if it hopes to continue growing, said Terri Villasenor. The Whittier resident signed up with the brand in August 2016 and believes it expanded too fast.

The first three months were OK, but then it plateaued because they were saturating the market, said Villasenor, 55, who gave her middle and maiden names because she worried LuLaRoe would retaliate.

Shes now stuck with 200 pieces of clothing no one wants to buy. She has no intention of purchasing any more inventory. Though not a member of any of the lawsuits against LuLaRoe, Villasenor is encouraged that disgruntled consultants are fighting back.

Dissenters are even exchanging ideas through private Facebook groups  much like the ones they started to lure recruits and customers. The forums can feel liberating to consultants such as Villasenor, who were wary of questioning LuLaRoes business until they saw others come forward.

I felt like I was stuck in a cult, she said.

david.pierson@latimes.com

Follow me @dhpierson on Twitter
Here are the 2018 SAG Awards nominees reactions to their nods

The on-camera talent recognized during the 24th Screen Actors Guild Award nominations on Wednesday shared their excitement and gratitude for the special honor bestowed upon them by the acting community.

The SAG Awards serve up laurels for actors and ensemble casts working in television and film as voted by their peers. The awards show, hosted by The Good Place star Kristen Bell, will take place on Jan. 21.

LIST: The 2018 SAG Award nominees

In statements to the Los Angeles Times, several nominees repeatedly thanked their drama families, particularly the casts and crews of their respective projects. Heres what some of them had to say about the recognition:

Alison Brie. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Alison Brie, GLOW

It is such a great honor to be recognized by my fellow actors with this nomination. I am so proud to be part of a show that celebrates the craft of acting, with all its pitfalls and glories, and to be able to work with such a diverse group of insanely talented women. GLOW has meant the world to me and Im deeply thankful for this recognition for me and the cast. Thank you SAG-AFTRA!!

Millie Bobby Brown. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things

Screen Actors Guild! Thank you SO much for recognizing me and our cast for the second year in a row! This means the world coming from you, our peers. I am so lucky and honored to have the privilege of playing Eleven  a strong, powerful, badass, strange, wonderful character! Cant wait to celebrate with my Stranger Things family!

Timothee Chalamet. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name

What an incredible morning! This nomination is very close to my heart because its from the actor. When we made Call Me By Your Name, we had no idea what it would turn into. The experience in making the film with Armie [Hammer] was so special, and yet, we just didnt know. Simply put, Ive been blown away by the response this film has received. And, to be included in ensemble along with my Lady Bird family (congrats, Saoirse [Ronan]!) makes this recognition that much more special.

David Harbour. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

David Harbour, Stranger Things

If it isnt wildly apparent by now, Ill say it directly  I love actors! To be recognized by my peers in such distinguished company gives me a special joy. And Millie [Bobby Brown] and the show! Beyond.

When I act, when I create, I feel alive, full to bursting, and I feel of service to the mysterious goodness that firmly exists in this world. I have been rewarded with a life that indulges in the primacy of self, but at its core and at its purest and its best, it is a life of service. A service to audiences. To prod and poke when necessary, to comfort and entertain when times seem dark, to ever expand the human experience, to offer a reason to live, to celebrate to the gods the great gift and scourge that is consciousness. Sometimes it means expressing iron intellect and rigorous truth that bonds us all in the achingly profound wisdom of no escape. Sometimes it means revealing the intimate moments of endurance, of unexpected kindness, unasked for love. And sometimes it simply means making a fierce and joyful noise, to spin, to twirl, to throw your hands up with the relentless dips and climb aboard this roller coaster of life. Ya know, to dance. *insert Hopper dancing gif*

Thank you for recognizing me, as it might mean itll be easier to get more jobs doing it.

Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water

I am beyond thrilled to have received the honor of this nomination. And to receive it from fellow colleagues is huge to me. Guillermo [del Toro], this film and the entire cast and crew hold a very special place in my heart and always will. Each and every one of them made me better. I am truly delighted more than I can really express in words but my heart is fit to burst with pride for us all. Thank you dearest SAG members. Thank you for your embrace.

Sean Hayes. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Sean Hayes, Will & Grace

I am so honored to be recognized in this category with these extraordinary actors. I love acting because I love actors. I also like to bake sometimes.

Richard Jenkins. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water

I am thrilled and humbled to be nominated by my peers for a SAG Award. This union is very close to my heart. Well, the SAG card is in my wallet, so its a little further south.

Zoe Kazan. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Zoe Kazan, The Big Sick

Thank you to SAG for honoring The Big Sick ensemble with a nomination. It means so much to us, especially from our acting peers. I am deeply proud to be a part of this film and to have brought Kumail [Nanjiani] and Emily [V. Gordon]s story into the world, especially at this time. We are particularly moved to have been recognized as an ensemble, as this was such an extraordinary collaborative experience Im excited to be reunited once more with my movie family, and to share this with Kumail, Holly [Hunter], Ray [Romano], Zenobia [Shroff], Anupam [Kher], and Adeel [Akhtar] and everyone else who helped bring The Big Sick to life.

Nicole Kidman. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies

What an amazing morning! Thank you to SAG-AFTRA for recognizing Big Little Lies in such a significant way. Ive been acting since I was 14 and have dedicated an enormous amount of my life to my craft so to be acknowledged by my acting family is the most incredible honor.

Jason Bateman and Laura Linney. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Laura Linney, Ozark

I am so proud to be included in a list of such wonderful actresses who have raised the bar so high. What an amazing year for women in television. And I am especially proud to be representing Ozark with my TV spouse, the ever deserving Jason Bateman! Thank you SAG-AFTRA!

Marc Maron. (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

Marc Maron, GLOW

I am stunned and excited to be recognized by other actors in this way. I really never thought this was possible in my life. It helps to be surrounded by amazing actors and to have such a defined and well written character as Sam Sylvia and to be on a show as unique as GLOW. I am just a small part. So, thanks SAG for recognizing me and the mind-blowing ensemble that is GLOW.

Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, The Big Sick

We are so lucky to have been graced with the enormous talents of every single member of our cast. They each put a piece of themselves into our story and we are thrilled at being recognized. Thank you. And a special shout out to Holly Hunters individual nomination!

Now we have to go tell our real parents that they arent actually nominated.

Bob Odenkirk. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul

I am thrilled to get this nomination from my fellow actors! At Better Call Saul I am surrounded by an ensemble of excellence  Michael McKean, Rhea Seehorn, Jonathan Banks, everybody raises my game. Thank you to SAG-AFTRA.

Gary Oldman. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

Gary Oldman, The Darkest Hour

No actor could ever deny the special satisfaction that comes from being recognized by your fellow artists  we all share the same challenges, insecurities, and uncertainties, chief among them, the question am I any good? this nomination, and in the wonderful company of the other nominees, is so very satisfying.

Margot Robbie. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Margot Robbie, I, Tonya

Im so incredibly moved and excited to be nominated by my fellow actors. I feel very fortunate to be able to have had the opportunity to bring Tonyas story to the big screen. Thank you to Steven [Rogers] for his brilliant and unique script, to Allison [Janney] and Sebastian [Stan] for being such incredible screen partners and to Craig [Gillespie] for his amazing direction and perfectly capturing the tone and essence of the film. Im so honored to be recognized among the truly powerful and wonderful women in the category. I cant wait to celebrate with everyone.

Sam Rockwell. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

It is such an honor to be nominated by your fellow actors, I have been a proud member of the Screen Actors Guild for as long as I can remember. To share it with this wonderful ensemble whom I have had the pleasure to work with over the years and others I got to collaborate with for the first time is truly special. I want to thank Martin McDonagh, our director and writer, for crafting these characters, as well as Woody [Harrelson], Fran [McDormand] and the rest of the cast who brought the town of Ebbing to life on screen. I am thrilled.

Ray Romano. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Ray Romano, The Big Sick

This is awesome but I wont believe it till the recount.
Rachel Brosnahan on her Golden Globes nod, and the vats of coffee required for the rapidfire dialogue of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Rachel Brosnahan, star of the new Amazon series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, woke up to learning she was among the nominees for this years Golden Globes.

Below, she talks about series creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, the importance of womens voices on TV, and her fear of freaking out Issa Rae of Insecure on awards night.

Hows your morning?

Im in New York, Im currently walking my dog and tying my shoe.

How did you find out?

I was asleep. I think I might still be asleep. My dog woke me up. My dog made a noise and I habitually picked up my phone and had lots of well wishes, which was very exciting.

The show just came out, were you surprised to be embraced so quickly?

Im thrilled and surprised and so honored that the shows gotten this recognition so fast. Were in incredible company and I couldnt be more grateful.

Is there anyone youre excited to be in a room with?

You should see my face right now. Issa Rae is a hero of mine and Im going to try not to completely creep her out. I love Insecure.

Its one of my favorite shows on right now and I love how smart and capable specifically the two main characters are but, as any woman in their 20s can relate to, theyre struggling to get it together despite how amazing they are. I love the friendship between Issa and Molly so much. You dont often see true depictions of a female friendship on TV that way, and I need to see Season 3 already.

Your show is about a friendship of sorts.

Its a blossoming friendship. Theyre still in denial about it -- or at least Susie [Alex Borstein] is.

Im not sure they have much in common and I think thats whats exciting about it. Im used to one-dimensional female friendships. Its become a kind of trope. Thats whats so exciting to me about it. They feel completely different from one another. Susie and Midges [relationship] is at completely different time but the friendship between Issa and Molly is one that I totally recognize. One where you can cuss each other out and tell each other that you hate each other and show up at their door the next day and drink wine and move through it. Its complicated and its flawed and its beautiful.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is about this very specific scene and very specific time period in New York. Why do you think modern viewers are embracing it?

First of all its a fun show, and the world is on fire and its nice to escape for a little bit. But additionally I dont think there are many women like Midge on TV, and there should be more.

I think a lot of the women in this category represent that -- different kinds of women and different kinds of stories, and there are still so many more that need to be told. I hope that the success of this show and shows like Insecure and SMILF encourage people to make more content like this and tell more womens stories.

And its about women in comedy, which is something were still having conversations about in 2017.

I would argue that our show hasnt quite reached the conversation on a deeper level about women in comedy. At this point its still about this woman whose life has fallen apart, struggling to reinvent herself and find her voice. As we move forward well get more into the conversation about what it means to be a woman in comedy.

Theres this repeated idea that people ask if Susie and Midge can sing because youre not valuable unless you have other skills, because women cant just be funny. Jane Lynchs character [Sophie] says to her, you want them to laugh at you, not want to ... you. You need to be a character, or you need to have a [penis].

I think thats also frustrating for Midge. Thats been Sophies experience of the world up to that point. Midge defying that is valid, but Sophies feeling that is also in response to her own experience.

Amy Sherman-Palladinos dialogue is known for being really fast. Were there any lines that gave you particular trouble or kept you up at night?

Yes, there were quite a few I think I still remember. The one that I had a lot of trouble with, I think its in Episode 2 where she says, I could be a cool chick with a doorman and a Kelvinator Foodarama refrigerator, cant I?

Also theres one later on where Midge and Imogene are packing goodie bags for her sons birthday and she says something like, Youre putting the tiny Tina baby carriages in the boys bag. I could not get that one out of my mouth. There is so much B-roll of my saying the Tina Turner baby carriages.

I also yelled at Amy at one point for naming my children Ethan and Esther. Trying saying Ethan and Esther five times fast.

So how do you prepare for that? Do you just say rubber baby buggy bumpers over and over?

I actually do. I do a full Shakespearean mouth warm-up and just vats of coffee. Its really all of that, all those tongue-twisters -- red leather yellow leather, unique New York unique New York. Or just saying the lines on repeat.

The reason I can say them is because I spent so much time rehearsing them. [Really, really fast] Youre putting the tiny Tina carriages in the boys bag. Youre putting the tiny Tina carriages in the boys bag. Just to try to get it out of my face.

So when do you go back to work?

We have a Season 2. I dont know exactly when well start, but Ive been hearing rumors of sometime in the spring.

What are you up to until then?

Currently Im at the dog park. Holidays coming up, so I am going to go see some family. I have a project or two swirling I may be able to squeeze in before we start again. But its up in the air in a lovely way.

Have you seen any of the nominated movies or shows?

No, Im so behind. I dont have a TV and Ive been trying, Im excited to see all of these projects, all of these movies, now that Im back and all of the screeners are coming. Ive been trying to put the technology down a little bit.

Lady Bird is top of my list. I cant wait to see I, Tonya. It looks amazing. I saw The Big Sick, that was one of my favorite movies this year.

So before Midge, did people recognize you as Rachel from House of Cards, and do you feel like Midge is erasing that?

Thats probably the one I get recognized from the most. But its only when I look like death and Im leaving the gym or have gone to the dog park with pink zit cream on my face. I dont know what that says.

I think one of the things I enjoy about acting is the transformation and part of that is certainly the physical transformation. If people are confused forever, wondering where they have seen me before, that feels like exactly where I want to live. It feels like somethings working.

How does it feel going into an awards season at a time when the industry is going through a serious reckoning about the treatment of women?

As somebody whos never really previously been involved in the awards scene generally, Im curious what that will feel like in person.

Im hoping it feels like were on the cusp of a major shift in this industry. I think shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel are one part of a very multifaceted solution to this problem. This is a show that is written, produced, directed, created by an extraordinary woman, and produced by an extraordinary man [Daniel Palladino] who loves extraordinary women, about an extraordinary woman at a time when women werent encouraged to be extraordinary.

This is a show that lifts women up, that highlights some of our battles and employs us behind and in front of the camera. Amazon gave and continues to give the money to make this production great, and so I hope that the success of shows like this is part of this new frontier in Hollywood.

There are so many other womens stories out there that need to be told and I hope we recognize that as the way to move forward.
Just three days before nomination ballots for the Golden Globes were due, Sony Pictures screened a rough cut of All the Money In the World for the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.

One week later, the kidnapping thriller earned three nominations: Ridley Scott for best director, Michelle Williams for actress in a drama film and Christopher Plummer for supporting actor. The latter nod was particularly surprising, given that the 87-year-old was only cast in the film in November.

Thats right  Plummer was cast in, shot and earned a nomination for All the Money In the World basically in the span of a month.

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The whirlwind began on Oct. 29, when Kevin Spacey  who had already wrapped his role in Scotts movie as oil tycoon J. Paul Getty  was first accused of sexual harassment by actor Anthony Rapp. Spacey apologized for the behavior and entered treatment, but more than a half dozen others then came forward with their own misconduct allegations against the actor.

He was fired from his Netflix show, House of Cards  which, in 2015, brought Spacey his only Golden Globe victory to date  and on Nov. 8, Scott announced he was taking unprecedented action with his film: The director said he would cut Spacey from the movie and replace him with Plummer. Reshoots, the filmmaker said, would begin immediately, and he intended to make his initial release date of Dec. 22.

There are over 800 other actors, writers, artists, craftspeople and crew who worked tirelessly and ethically on this film, some for years, including one of cinemas master directors, the films U.S. distributor, Sony, said at the time. It would be a gross injustice to punish all of them for the wrongdoings of one supporting actor in the film.

For the most part, Scott has remained true to his word. After completing reshoots on Nov. 30  and editing on-the-fly  the movie is still on target to be released at the end of the month, shifting a mere three days to Dec. 25.

 Kevin Spacey, Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg in the trailer for Ridley Scotts All the Money in the World.

Despite the unexpected challenges we encountered after shooting was completed, we were determined that audiences around the world would be able to see our film, Scott said in a statement following Mondays nominations. So the fact that we have received these wonderful acknowledgments this morning is especially gratifying.

The film, based on the 1973 kidnapping of John Paul Getty III  a grandson of Plummers character  will screen for the press later this week. How it will fare during the rest of award season remains to be seen, but dont expect to see it on the list when SAG Award nominations are announced this Wednesday  the film did not screen in time for that guilds voting deadline.

The Spacey-Plummer casting drama is the most high-profile example of how the numerous sexual harassment revelations that have rocked Hollywood this fall are impacting awards season.

Transparent, the critically-beloved Amazon show starring Jeffrey Tambor as a transgender parent, was not recognized by the HFPA in any category for the first time since it debuted in 2014. Tambor, who won a Golden Globe for his role in 2015, was last month accused of inappropriate behavior by his former assistant. Though he denied the allegations, the actor said he didnt see how [he could] return to Transparent given the politicized atmosphere on set.

Dustin Hoffman, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by three women over the last few months, also did not receive a nomination Monday. The actor, who had earned early praise for his turn in Noah Baumbachs The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), was grilled about the allegations by HBO host John Oliver in New York during a public Q&A last week.

Full coverage: Golden Globes 2018 

Also missing from the Globes crop? Wind River, a murder-mystery set on a Native American reservation. The film, which stars Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen, was beloved by many critics but was initially released by the Weinstein Co. in August. After the controversy involving the companys then-chief executive broke, TWCs name and logo were removed from the film and an awards campaign funded by some of the films producers was launched to emphasize a separation of any link with Weinstein.

Meanwhile, Geoffrey Rush  who appears as Albert Einstein in National Geographics limited series Genius  scored a nomination after being accused of inappropriate behavior during an Australian stage production King Lear. Rush is suing Australias The Daily Telegraph over the allegations, though he did resign as president of Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts.

This is good news for Albert Einstein. I believe in science, Rush said in a statement Monday. I also believe in the complexity of humankind. I am honoured to be in the company of fellow nominees who, with their artistry, have strived to define the multiplicity of dimensions in the male experience.

amy.kaufman@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter @AmyKinLA
Tales of women in conflict, including Big Little Lies, The Handmaids Tale and Feud: Bette and Joan dominated the TV nominations for the 75th annual Golden Globes on Monday.

True to form, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., which hands out the Golden Globes, honored an eclectic mix of new and returning series from cable networks, streaming services and broadcast networks, with perennial awards favorites HBO, Netflix and FX once again leading the TV pack.

FULL COVERAGE: 2018 Golden Globe nominations 

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But at a moment when the mistreatment of women in Hollywood and in the halls of government is front-page news, the association recognized a number of projects dealing head-on with physical abuse, sexual exploitation and industry sexism.

Leading the network tally was HBO with 12 nominations, with half of those going to the limited series Big Little Lies -- the most-nominated show of the year. The all-star tale of a group of privileged California women caught up in a murder mystery will compete with Feud: Bette and Joan and Fargo (both FX), The Sinner (USA) and Top of the Lake: China Girl (SundanceTV) for limited series or TV movie.

As it did at the Emmys, Big Little Lies scored nominations for its leads, Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman. Supporting performers Shailene Woodley, Alexander Skarsgard and Laura Dern were also recognized in their respective categories.

HBOs biopic about convicted financier Bernie Madoff, The Wizard of Lies, picked up two nominations in the limited series or movie made for TV category for stars Robert De Niro (actor) and Michelle Pfeiffer (supporting actress).

Big Little Lies is closely followed by Feud: Bette and Joan, which scored a total of four nominations. The limited series, from prolific producer-writer Ryan Murphy, explores the infamous rivalry between screen legends Joan Crawford and Bette Davis. Jessica Lange, who played Crawford, and Susan Sarandon, who played Davis, were both nominated for actress in a limited series or TV movie, and will face off against Kidman and Witherspoon.

Jessica Biel is a surprise entrant in the category, nominated for her portrayal of a young mother accused of murder in USAs The Sinner.

Hulus Emmy-winning The Handmaids Tale, based on the novel by Margaret Atwood and set in a dystopian future where women are forced to become reproductive slaves, scored three nominations, including one for drama series. It was the only freshman nominee in a category otherwise dominated by returning series.

Rounding out the category are Netflixs retro-supernatural tale Stranger Things, its lavish royal drama The Crown and NBCs popular family weepie This Is Us. Game of Thrones, which was on hiatus last year, also returned to the category.

The HFPA, known for favoring the new and shiny, was particularly keen on comedies centered on females, recognizing The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, a snappy period piece about a housewife turned stand-up comic that debuted last month on Amazon, and SMILF, Showtimes black comedy about a single mom and sexual abuse survivor, for comedy or musical series.

Master of None, Aziz Ansaris semi-autobiographical Netflix comedy, also landed a series nomination for the first time. In the old-but-new department is NBCs revival of Will & Grace. Rounding out the category is ABCs black-ish, also nominated last year.

Notably, four out of five nominees for actress in a comedy or musical were first-time honorees for their particular roles. Competing are Rachel Brosnahan, who plays the title character in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Issa Rae of HBOs Insecure, Pamela Adlon of FXs Better Things, Frankie Shaw for SMILF and Alison Brie of Netflixs GLOW. Previous winners and nominees including Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep) and Rachel Bloom (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) were shut out.

The category for lead actress in a drama series included nearly as many fresh faces.

1 / 16 Actress in a limited series or motion picture made for television (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 16 Actress in a television series, musical or comedy (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 16 Actress in a television series, drama (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 16 Actress in a limited series or motion picture made for television (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) 5 / 16 Actor in a limited series or motion picture made for television (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times) 6 / 16 Actor in a television series, musical or comedy (Katie Falkenberg / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 16 Actress in a television series, drama (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 16 Actor in a television series, drama (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 16 Actress in a television series, drama (Patrick T. Fallon / For The Times) 10 / 16 Actress in a television series, musical or comedy (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 16 Actor in a television series, musical or comedy (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 16 Actress in a television series, drama (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 16 Actress in a television series, drama (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 16 Actor in a television series, drama (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 16 Actor in a television series, drama (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 16 Actress in a television series, musical or comedy (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Elisabeth Moss, the Emmy-winning lead of The Handmaids Tale, was nominated alongside newcomers Katherine Langford, the star of Netflixs teen suicide mystery 13 Reasons Why and Maggie Gyllenhaal of HBOs gritty 70s porn drama The Deuce. Returning to the category is Caitriona Balfe of Starzs time-traveling romance Outlander, and last years winner, Claire Foy, who stars as a young Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown.

In the actor in a drama series category, first-timers Jason Bateman of Netflixs Ozark, Sterling K. Brown of This Is Us and Freddie Highmore of The Good Doctor will face off against returning nominees Liev Schreiber (Showtimes Ray Donovan ) and Bob Odenkirk (AMCs Better Call Saul) .

In the comedy or musical actor category, Kevin Bacon earned his first nomination for the Amazon series I Love Dick. He will compete with actors who are returning to the category in roles theyve played before, including Ansari, Anthony Anderson (black-ish) Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) and William H. Macy (Showtimes Shameless).

Notably absent from the running was three-time nominee and 2014 winner Jeffrey Tambor, who stars as a transgender woman in Amazons Transparent.

Showtimes revival of Twin Peaks was overlooked in the limited series or TV movie category, but star Kyle MacLachlan, who (sort of) reprised his role as Special Agent Dale Cooper, was nominated for actor in a limited series or TV movie, where he will compete with De Niro, Jude Law (The Young Pope,) Ewan McGregor (Fargo) and Geoffrey Rush (Genius, National Geographic).

See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour 

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meredith.blake@latimes.com

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Thomas fire victim loses her home but saves the most important thing -- her children

Gabriela Gutierrez was at home in Santa Paula watching a childrens program and snuggling with her 18-month-old daughter and 3-year-old son Monday evening when she took a call from her babysitter Adriana.

Hey, Gaby. Have they knocked on your door? Theres a fire. They are going to start evacuating. Get your important stuff and clothes, the babysitter told her.

What fire? Gutierrez thought to herself. It was 9:01 p.m.

The 32-year-old ran outside her mobile home on Wheeler Canyon Road into a wall of gray smoke. She panicked. Minutes later, a law enforcement official knocked on her door. He told her she had a few minutes to pack up and evacuate.

Frantically, she packed diapers for 18-month-old Genesis, a pair of shoes for 3-year-old Osiel. She grabbed clothes for all of them, medical cards, her U.S. citizenship naturalization certificate.

Gabriela Gutierrez, 32, and daughter Genesis take refuge from the Thomas fire after her home burned. (Cindy Carcamo / Los Angeles Times)

Her husband, Alex, froze, unwilling to accept that the fire was heading toward them.

Dont worry. The wind is blowing in another direction, he told her.

Still, she threw her belongings and blankets into the car. Thats when she saw flames approaching. She buckled in her two children in one car. Her husband jumped into another vehicle. They headed to Gutierrezs mothers home.

On Tuesday morning, she returned to a steel shell of what appeared to be her mobile home. Everything was gone. The only way she could tell her two-bedroom home apart from the others that had burned were a pair of tire rims her husband planned to sell.

Alex refused to believe their home was gone. Instead he headed to work as usual at a nearby ranch, where he irrigates strawberry fields. He finally accepted the news when Gutierrez texted him photos of their charred home.

On Tuesday afternoon, Gutierrez wrangled her tots as she attempted to eat a tamale at the Santa Paula Senior Center, which served as an evacuation center for fire refugees.

Her sister, Maricela Martinez, a landscaper, kept her company and helped her care for the kids.

Oh, no, she said suddenly. Martinez had just gotten a text message from one of her clients.

Hello, our house burned down today so we will not be needing yard service in the near future. I prepaid you through January, we can work it out later, the text message said.

Martinez shook her head.

So many people have lost their homes, she told her sister.

Gutierrez, who was recently laid off from her job picking strawberries after the company went out of business, worried about finding a new home and paying upcoming bills. She doesnt have rental insurance. The $700 in cash shed saved up for Christmas presents and stored on a shelf in her home was gone. Framed pictures of her sons baptism and daughters birth were destroyed. Her eyes welled with tears as she thought of the photos.

Still, she said shes thankful for her health and what she was able to salvage from her home.

I saved the most important thing, she said. My kids.

Gutierrez said she was thankful she didnt have to stay overnight at the evacuation center. She could stay with family, she said. Others werent as lucky.

Just outside the center, homeowners in a neighborhood across the street hosed down their roofs. They watched as white and gray smoke billowed up as helicopters carrying fire retardant and water flew past. From just half a mile north, the Thomas fire headed their way.
OMAHA  At one time, Bob Felthousen and Grace Felthousen stored 300 tiny buildings in their Plattsmouth home. They occasionally took them out of cartons to display on the main floor and in the basement family room, with 700 accessory pieces such as cars, trees and sleighs.

The structures are a minuscule fraction of full size. But the amazing Christmas villages they create are huge indeed.

The Felthousens are among thousands of folks who collect porcelain Department 56 figurines. The company, based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, makes Christmas decorations that become tiny towns when grouped together. The items are among the hottest holiday collectibles. Pieces grow in value after the company quits making them and they get hard to find.

Department 56 collector clubs help fans find rare pieces and even have conventions. As of June 2017, 85 clubs were registered with a national umbrella organization.

The Felthousens got their first figurine in 1986. Now, more than $18,000 and 1,000 pieces later, they have a new home at the Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum near Ashland, just in time for the Santa Goes to Space event.

Coincidentally, the museum that specializes in space was offered the vast collection in part because it had enough room. The couple wanted to keep the village intact and had trouble finding an area museum large enough to accommodate and store it.

"We never even considered separating it  wouldn't be important to anybody that way," Bob Felthousen said. "It's perfect here. They have the place to display it. They set it up right by the door."

The museum's mission is to educate the public about air and space history, with more than 300,000 square feet of exhibits. Its traditional focus is on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education, but in 2015 it expanded to add art to its educational focus. "STEM" enables the museum to include a variety of exhibits such as the Department 56 display, said marketing manager Deb Hermann.

"We hope to do a lot of different art exhibits," she said. "It enhances the visitors' whole experience."

Department 56 makes items for several collectible series, including a Dickens Village, an Alpine Village and a New England Village. The Felthousen collection includes pieces from two series: the Original Snow Village, with items such as a mountain lodge and chalets, and Christmas in the City, featuring 1930s- and 1940s-style buildings such as a movie theater and a Chinese restaurant.

The buildings come with lights and movable features, such as rotating signs. Because of that, and its sheer size, the Felthousen display takes several days to set up.

"It took 12 people four hours just to get it out of boxes when we set it up last year," Bob Felthousen said. It then took two weeks to make it display-ready.

It took about four days to assemble it at the museum  two full days with about 18 volunteers, and another two days for facilities manager Mark Hamilton to complete "the piddly stuff," Bob Felthousen said.

Hermann said about 130 volunteer hours went into the assembly, including help from the Felthousens.

The Felthousens have collected things throughout their nearly 60-year marriage. They met at Omaha Technical High School, where they were part of a group of five girls and five guys who became lifelong friends.

"She was a cheerleader," he said with a smiling nod toward Grace Felthousen. "All of the couples stayed married," though the group now has some widowed members.

Bob Felthousen, 82, said some lean years as children led the couple to become collectors as adults. They had several ventures in Plattsmouth, including a restaurant. His wife was an obstetrics nurse.

"Neither of us had anything when we were kids, and we just worked hard," he said.

They were unfamiliar with Department 56 when their son gave them a figurine for Christmas.

"We never could have imagined this when we got that gift," Grace Felthousen said of their first piece.

In true collector fashion, they researched the pieces, joined a collector club and slowly built a village empire. They even traveled to Minneapolis to get one of their most prized pieces, a rare church.

None of their three kids wanted the huge collection.

"In a way, they're glad it's gone, because they don't have to mess with it when we're gone," he said. "I'm sure they'll miss it, too."

As will people in Plattsmouth and the surrounding area. Last year more than 350 people saw the display at the Felthousen home.

Far more people will be able to see it at the museum, however. Hermann said she expects 2,000 people or more to attend Santa Goes to Space, and many more to see the display during museum hours until it's dismantled for the year after Jan. 5.

That's gratifying for the Felthousens.

"We couldn't have asked for a nicer place," Bob Felthousen said of the museum. "We're glad they got it."
For decades, the Weingart Center has been a fixture on Los Angeles skid row, one among the many places of refuge where homeless men and women come for shelter, food and support.

Now the social services agency is expanding its mission into permanent housing and plans to do it with a flourish by reshaping the skyline of L.A.s most depressed neighborhood.



For the record: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified Mike Alvidrez as head of SRO Housing Corp. Alvidrez is chief executive of Skid Row Housing Trust. The article also said SRO Housing has more than 30 permanent supportive housing buildings in downtown Los Angeles. SRO has 27 such buildings; Skid Row Housing has 24.

Weingart has filed applications with the city to build three high-rise residences on the two blocks it shares with the homeless services providers Lamp Community, Union Rescue Mission, Volunteers of America and the Midnight Mission.

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Weingart filed the plans for all three buildings early this year to have them on record before the vote on Measure S, the city initiative that would have imposed new restrictions on building apartment towers, shops and offices in Los Angeles.

After the measures failure in March, the agency is now pressing ahead first with an 18-story tower next to Weingarts existing facility at San Pedro and 6th streets. It could be completed as early as 2021, President and Chief Executive Kevin Murray said. Plans for the other two buildings are still in flux.

Murray said the sleek metal-and-glass design by Joseph Wong Design Associates of San Diego would improve the neighborhood through architecture.

One of the things we asked the architect is we dont want it to look like a housing project, said Murray, a former state senator. We want it to look like one of these other first-class downtown apartments.

The $138-million project would provide 278 new units of affordable housing, most of them for the chronically homeless, and would dominate the block. Weingarts existing facility, in the 11-story former El Rey Hotel, is already more than twice as tall as any other building around it.

The projects large scale would achieve the highest and best use of what is currently a surface parking lot, but it also is intended to make a statement, Murray said.

Weingart Center Chief Operating Officer Tonja Boykin, left, and Chief Executive Kevin Murray show a rendering of an 18-story residential tower planned next to the agencys skid row shelter. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times )

Like other homeless advocates, Murray is concerned that the citys goal of producing 1,000 new units of housing for the chronically homeless each year will be difficult to reach even with the additional funds from a $1.2-billion bond voters approved last year.

Typically, projects that tap government funds to build homeless housing have fewer than 100 units each  and often only 49, the maximum allowed without costly design and environmental reviews. Projects can also be slowed or forced to scale down by local opposition.

If youre trying to build 1,000 units a year, its much harder to build them 30 and 40 and 50 at a clip, Murray said.

Weingart, whose developer Chelsea is currently preparing its environmental impact report, has been showing renderings of the project to downtown groups. It has met some opposition over both the scale and its goal of permanently housing homeless people on skid row.

When will skid row stop being the default answer for the regions inability to adequately provide adequate housing for persons who need it? asked Estela Lopez, executive director of the Central City East Assn.

The association has not yet taken taken a position on the project, but Lopez said she is hearing concerns from members over the concentration of homeless housing.

About 1 in 3 of the citys permanent supportive housing units is in downtown, most in the small area bounded by Main, Alameda, 4th and 7th streets, a Times analysis of Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority housing data shows.

About 2,600 formerly homeless people live in those units.

It is the most difficult environment for anyone who is fighting mental illness or addiction to restore normalcy, Lopez said.

The concentration of homeless people also hurts downtown businesses, Lopez said.

Their insurance costs are going up, their security costs are going up, Lopez said. Its attributed to a cause they cannot abate.

Murray contends the Weingarts high-rise will help to change that by enhancing the security, including 24-hour video surveillance, that he said keeps the sidewalks around the Weingart Center relatively free of overnight camping.

You dont have to be overwhelming, Murray said. I think if you create an environment where they know theres going to be somebody patrolling, they know theres going to be somebody to contact them, they know theyre on camera, youre probably not going to pitch your tent there.

Councilman Jose Huizar, who represents downtown, has given preliminary support.

Huizar voted for the transfer of a parcel of city land that was needed to move the project forward, spokesman Rick Coca said.

Well wait until they are further along in the process to weigh in on any specific design elements, but we support it, Coca said.

The prospect of denser housing on skid row is also fine with Mike Alvidrez, chief executive of Skid Row Housing Trust, owner of 24 permanent supportive housing buildings downtown.

Alvidrez once planned to partner with Weingart on the tower project. He backed out for undisclosed reasons but still has no disagreement with adding more homeless housing.

When we think what downtown might look like in 20 years, its going to be a much denser place, Alvidrez said. With that density, you could easily think of how to add more supportive housing that blends in.

There needs to be housing where there are homeless folks, Alvidrez said.

doug.smith@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATDoug
On Friday, an army of firefighters in Ventura County hoped it was finally beginning to turn the tide on the Thomas fire.

After burning hundreds of homes, the fire was slowing as Santa Ana winds calmed down.

But over the weekend, the fire reemerged with a vengeance, pushing into Santa Barbara County and destroying more homes.

Heres a look at the fire that has refused to die.

A map of the Thomas fire. (Los Angeles Times)

It was wind, but also a landscape filled with fuel

So how did the Thomas fire become such a monster? Heavy winds are one factor. But another is the thick brush that has not burned in decades, providing fuel.

The fuels in there are thick and they're dead, so they're very receptive to fire, said Steve Swindle, spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department.

The fuel can spread the fire even when winds die down.

Since its so dry out there, it doesnt take much in the way of winds to create those critical fire weather conditions, said Robbie Munroe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Well see wind gusts in that ... area between 20 and 35 mph, maybe a few mountain sites might see up to about 40, but thats the most were expecting right now.

When the fire shifted toward the coast Sunday morning, Monroe said winds were not necessarily the driver.

Wind was probably not the biggest factor last night to this morning  its probably more the complex terrain, very dry and possibly widespread fuels for the fire and the fact that its a pretty large and ongoing fire, he said. The light offshore winds are certainly a factor, but not as important as theyve been, say, earlier in the week when we saw much stronger winds over the fire.

The last time some of the slopes and canyons burned in the mountains east of Santa Barbara was in the 1970s, when four firefighters operating bulldozers died in a rollover accident.

In such difficult terrain, officials with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said on Monday that they have essentially no way to get boots and hoses on the ground to attack the western front of the Thomas fire directly.

Instead, fire crews caravanned out of the Ventura County Fairgrounds on Monday and headed to the residential streets in the south-facing foothills of Carpinteria in Santa Barbara County. Thats where they set up defensive positions and waited just in case the fire moved downhill.

"The terrain ... makes it super difficult for us to position with normal tactics," said Kalin Ramirez, a fire information officer.

During a news conference at the Ventura County Fairgrounds on Saturday, Gov. Jerry Brown said climate change may exacerbate the weather conditions that caused the wildfires to explode. He expressed sympathy for residents who had lost their homes and animals, saying the fires were horrific and a terrible tragedy for so many people.

This could be something that happens every year or every few years, he said. Were about to have a firefighting Christmas.

Image of fire direction Dec. 10 (National Interagency Fire Center)

Example of wind gusts Dec. 10 (NWS)

Among Californias 5 worst modern fires

In the last week, the fire has moved in various directions, west into Ventura, then north into Ojai, then west again toward the coast of southern Santa Barbara County.

This is a complex fire, Rich Macklin, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department, said over the weekend. There are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of men and women with packs on their backs, squirting the hills, putting the wet stuff on the red stuff.

On Sunday morning, as the blaze spread westward into the mountains, it grew to at least 230,000 acres, putting it in the top five of Californias largest modern fires and creating new challenges for the exhausted crews in their sixth full day of battling it.

With the northern and eastern fronts of the fire moving mainly into uninhabited areas of Los Padres National Forest, fire officials concentrated Sunday on protecting the beach communities of Carpinteria and Montecito, the wealthy enclave to its west.

Throughout the day, the fire moved down the mountains north of Carpinteria into foothills several miles from its downtown. The flames chewed rapidly through hillsides thick with vegetation.

So where does the fire stand now in history?

The Cedar fire burned 273,246 acres in San Diego County in 2003. More than 2,800 structures were destroyed and 15 people died. The Rush fire, caused by lightning, burned 271,911 acres in California and another 43,666 acres in Nevada in 2012. The Rim fire in Tuolumne County in 2013 burned 257,314 acres and consumed 112 structures. The Zaca fire in Santa Barbara County in 2007 charred 240,207 acres and destroyed one structure. The Thomas fire surpassed the Matilija fire  which scorched 220,000 acres in Ventura County in 1932  as the fifth largest wildfire.

While other large fires raged in California prior to 1932, those records are less reliable, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The list also does not take into account this years wine country firestorm, the most destructive in history, because it was several different fires. Together, that complex of fires destroyed more than 10,000 structures and killed more than 40 people in October.

The Thomas fire makes its way down a ridge, threatening homes in Montecito on Monday. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Trail of destruction

The Thomas fire has destroyed 524 structures and damaged 135 in the city of Ventura. In the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, 266 structures have been destroyed, while 56 were damaged. The fire consumed six structures on Sunday in Carpinteria, authorities said.

Wind speeds are expected to be on the lower end of whats been seen over the last week, forecasters say.

Over Sunday night and into Monday morning, there were wind gusts of around 20 mph across the lower mountains and foothills in the region of southeastern Santa Barbara County into southwestern Ventura County.

Officials said it could take weeks or months to finally contain the fire.

ALSO

Battle against Thomas fire enters second week

Live updates: Track key details of all the major fires in Southern California

Thomas fire leaves behind barren 'moonscape' as it threatens Montecito, Carpinteria

Here are maps showing all the major fires in Southern California

UPDATES:

12:30 p.m.: This article was updated with fire maps for Dec. 10
Reinvigorated by Santa Ana gusts and canyons of bone-dry vegetation, the Thomas fire surged into the Santa Barbara County foothills Sunday, forcing evacuations in the coastal communities of Carpinteria and Montecito.

As the blaze spread westward into the mountains, it grew the blaze to at least 230,000 acres, putting it in the top five of Californias largest modern fires and creating new challenges for the exhausted crews in their sixth full day of battling it.

With the northern and eastern fronts of the fire moving mainly into uninhabited areas of the Los Padres National Forest, fire officials concentrated Sunday on protecting the beach city of Carpinteria and Montecito, the wealthy enclave to its west.

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Throughout the day, the fire moved down the mountains north of Carpinteria into foothills several miles from its downtown. The flames chewed rapidly through hillsides thick with vegetation.

The fuels in there are thick and theyre dead so theyre very receptive to fire, said Steve Swindle, spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department.

A helicopter makes a water drop as flames burn toward the Shepard Mesa area of Carpinteria on Sunday. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )

The blaze, which had already destroyed more than 750 buildings, leveled six more in Carpinteria, said Ray Navarro, chief of the Carpinteria-Summerland Fire District. As of Sunday evening, the blaze was about four miles from Montecito.

As the fire moved, people in the foothills near Carpinteria and Montecito were ordered to leave immediately and fire officials urged all residents to begin preparing to evacuate.

Retired LAUSD teacher May Osher, 66, packed photo albums and pet supplies into her car Sunday afternoon, but said she didnt plan to leave her Carpinteria neighborhood unless ordered to by police.

Im staying until its time to go,Osher said.

Fire officials identified dry creek beds as a particular hazard. If the blaze moved into the arroyos, officials warned, it could create a chimney-like effect that would send flames exploding down the creek path and into undefended terrain.

Winds that had gusted to 50 mph overnight weakened Sunday afternoon, allowing helicopters to drop water on fires in the foothills. Lower down, bulldozers sliced fire breaks in the heavy brush.

Contingency strike teams were dispatched throughout Carpinteria in case the blaze manages to cross fire lines, said Newport Beach firefighter Jude Olivas, a spokesman for the Thomas fire response.

Arna Crittenden, 61, who lives near downtown, said the extensive efforts by the fire crews reassured her  to an extent.

 Watch huge smoke plume from the Thomas fire Sunday morning. (Video by Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

When the winds are calm, I feel very confident, but once the winds pick up, I start to worry, she said.

Even with the fire miles away, there was no escaping its effect. Plumes of putty-colored smoke churned over the coastline and people in Carpinteria donned face masks to run errands.

Concerned residents walked through ash to get to a Sunday evening meeting at nearby San Marcos High School. The crowd in the the packed auditorium clapped for the firefighters.

Nathan Underwood, 26, who lives in a rural area north of Highway 192, moved his horse, Velvet, to the Earl Warren Showgrounds. He is among the thousands who have been warned they might have to evacuate, but he said that he isnt too worried and that firefighters had done a good job of preparing.

We are waiting to hear updates about Velvet, but otherwise we have stuff ready to go in a tote bag, he said.

The Santa Barbara Zoo was closed to the public Sunday and its 500 animals confined to their night quarters. The zoo was outside the evacuation area and not in immediate danger, but there was smoke and ash on the 30-acre property.

We drill for and are prepared for emergencies, zoo director Nancy McToldridge said in a Facebook post. We are taking all precautions to ensure the safety of our animals and our staff.

The animal care staff was providing enrichment, including toys, treats and puzzles, to prevent the zoo residents from becoming bored inside, said director of marketing Dean Noble.

The gorillas like music, Noble said.

As many as 85,000 customers in Santa Barbara County were without power, according to Southern California Edison.

Officials expected weaker winds Monday, but anticipated the fire would continue its westward march toward Montecito, where Oprah Winfrey, Al Gore and other celebrities have homes and some chaparral-covered hillsides vulnerable to fire are dotted with luxury estates.

Peace be Still, is my prayer tonight. For all the fires raging thru my community and beyond. #peacebestill  Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) December 11, 2017

Since it erupted near Thomas Aquinas College on Dec. 4, the Thomas fire has forced 88,000 people to flee their homes. Official estimates have put the cost of combating the blaze at $25 million.

By Sunday evening, the fire was 10% contained. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

ruben.vives@latimes.com

melissa.etehad@latimes.com

harriet.ryan@latimes.com

For more Southern California news, follow us on Twitter: @LATvives, @melissaetehad and @latimesharriet

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Ashley Mendez arrived in Orlando before sunrise Thursday, her eyes red from crying, a single duffel bag holding all her worldly possessions. The 20-year-old already ached for her mother, left behind in Puerto Rico.

She made her way through a special welcome center at Orlando International Airport set up by the state, proceeding stoically until she traded in her Puerto Rican identification card for a Florida ID, and a worker snipped the old one in half  a symbolic death to her former, familiar life. Then, the blood seemed to drain from her face.

What if I want to go back? she said.

Raquel McCormick of the Heart of Florida United Way wrapped her arms around the young woman and held her as she began to sob. This is not forever, McCormick said. Its only forever if you want it to be.

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It was a scene that has played out in varying forms since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in late September, prompting tens of thousands to leave the island for Florida  either temporarily or permanently. More than two months later, a wave of suffering, desperation and hope continues to wash through this corner of the Orlando airport, one of two state-operated welcome centers in Florida. It is tucked beyond a large black curtain near the first-floor rental cars and staffed at one point by 27 government agencies and charities.

Here, the newest Central Florida residents can get help with housing, health needs, school enrollment, employment, drivers licenses and federal aid.

In the beginning, it was seven days a week, 9 in the morning to 7 at night, and we were full every day, with people lined up down the hall, said McCormick, operations director for the local United Way. If families got in late at night, they would sleep on the benches here and be waiting for us to open in the morning. There was never a dull moment.

Some came with no idea where they would live or how they would make a living. They knew only that they couldnt stay in Puerto Rico.

We lost everything, said Ana Soler, 47, who flew to Orlando with her husband Oct. 10 and was back at the airport Wednesday to greet her two grown children and their children as they arrived from the island. We lost our home, our furniture, our jobs. I tell my husband, We have to go [to Orlando]. 

Now, seven of them are in a single hotel room, but Soler and her husband have already found jobs and are saving for a house. Once a regional sales manager, she is now a food court cashier at a turnpike rest stop. Her husband, a warehouse supervisor, is working construction on Interstate 4, putting in 10 hours a day, six days a week.

I cry a lot, Soler said. But I work more than I cry. You have to put all your effort into it.

At the welcome center, she and more than 800 others have found help with temporary housing while evacuees await approval from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. At first, the process took a couple of weeks. Now, it is about 48 hours.

Most importantly for us, we wanted to make sure people had a place to sleep, McCormick said. We didnt want them to be homeless.

The center also had paramedics on standby as passengers arrived needing insulin, oxygen  even surgery.

At recently as last week, the medically fragile continued to arrive at the center, though paramedics are no longer stationed there.

Flights from the island to Orlando are booked through January.

The numbers flooding into the welcome center have dropped since the first weeks  when more than 1,000 a day were seeking help  and the hours have been scaled back. But there is still a steady stream of arrivals. One day last week, 323 people came in, some for the first time, others returning for more answers.

Within our culture, no matter what the circumstances are, were going to stay together to celebrate the holidays, said McCormick, whose family is from Puerto Rico. So we think were going to see another influx in January. We are preparing for Phase 2.

By then, Mendez hopes to be enrolled in college. Her father, Gilbert Mendez, who has lived in nearby Melbourne since Ashley was a toddler, has found a two-bedroom apartment there where they will live.

To prepare for her arrival, he bought her a bedroom set, a TV and girlish curtains he thought would comfort her.

Gilbert Mendez looked at his daughter crying and began to cry himself.

I know she misses her mother, he said. Once, we were like a chain  and all of a sudden the chain has broken.

ksantich@orlandosentinel.com

Santich writes for the Orlando Sentinel.
To the editor: Perhaps nothing is more despicable about this president than his unabashed endorsement of Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama. (In Alabama Senate race, Republicans fear they may lose even if Roy Moore wins, Dec. 9)

This is a slap in the face to women across this country. As an alleged perpetrator of sexual harassment himself, President Trump sees little wrong with what Moore is accused of doing. He is not the only one. Anyone who would vote for Moore is sending the same message.

The irony of it all is this is the message both Trump and Moore make about returning to American values while disregarding women as anything more than sex objects. American values have always stood for inclusiveness, generosity of spirit and tolerance.

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The blatant disregard for basic human dignity is becoming a theme in this presidency and unfortunately much of America.

Paula Petrotta, Rancho Palos Verdes

..

To the editor: If the two candidates running for senator from Alabama ran as independents with no party identification, would voters choose the man accused of molesting young girls, or the one who brought to trial the men who bombed a church in Birmingham that killed four young girls?

Seems like a no-brainer to me.

Mary Anne Vincent, Corona

..

To the editor: Weighing in as Trump has for Moore should come as no surprise to anyone who paid even passing attention to Trump before he formally entered the political arena.

As fellow travelers through life without a moral compass to guide them, Trump and Moore have taken what they wanted, without concern for who or what they leave in their wake.

We as Americans, regardless of political affiliation, deserve better  or do we?

Stuart Kern, Palos Verdes Estates

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
Petition drive to repeal California gas tax increase temporarily slows down By Patrick McGreevy A motorist prepares to gas up her vehicle in San Rafael, Calif., in 2015. ( (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)) Paid signature-gatherers for a ballot measure that would repeal gas tax increases may be hard to find on the streets of California this week. Organizers say its not a money issue, adding that they needed to briefly halt paid signature-gathering to catch up on collecting petitions from volunteers. The petition drive has so far collected more than 327,800 verified signatures of the 587,407 needed to qualify the measure for the November ballot, according to Dave Gilliard, the political strategist behind the drive. We knew it was popular but the incredible pace is even faster than we expected so we outran the capacity of our verification operation over the Christmas holiday and told our crew managers to slow down so we could catch up, Gilliard said. We will be back up to speed by the end of this week. The gas tax and vehicle fee increases signed by Gov. Jerry Brown are expected to raise $5.2 billion annually for road and bridge repairs and expanded mass transit. The gas tax jumped from 18 cents to 30 cents per gallon on Nov. 1, and vehicle fees of at least $25 kicked in Jan. 1. The gas tax repeal petition is breaking records for both paid and volunteer signatures and were using the next two weeks to catch up on validation of signatures already received, said Carl DeMaio, a former San Diego City Councilman and conservative radio talk-show host. As a grass-roots-funded effort we are also continuously raising funds and volunteer support. We are highly confident well qualify this Initiative for the November 2018 ballot. Facebook

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State pot bureau ready to enforce Californias new marijuana laws as license applications flood in By Patrick McGreevy The state has issued 104 licenses for retail stores to sell marijuana for recreational use in California and 239 other applications for those permits are pending, officials said Tuesday. An official with the state Bureau of Cannabis Control added that the agency is prepared to begin taking enforcement action against pot shops that are not properly licensed. The bureaus enforcement team is ready to respond to any complaints it receives and start doing compliance checks and site visits at any time, said Alex Traverso, a spokesman for the bureau. Selling marijuana without a license is a crime punishable by up to six months in county jail and a fine of up to $500. Those convicted of engaging in any marijuana business activity without a license will also be subject to a civil penalty of up to three times the amount of the license fee for each violation. A new report issued Tuesday indicated the bureau has issued 478 temporary licenses to firms to test, distribute and sell medical and recreational marijuana, which began Jan. 1 after voters approved a legalization initiative, Proposition 64, in 2016. Businesses have received 153 licenses to sell marijuana for medical use. Another 1,458 firms have applied for licenses that are still being processed. The state Department of Food and Agriculture has separately issued 207 licenses to marijuana growers. Facebook

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Two possible instances of discrimination reported after California issues drivers licenses to immigrants here illegally By Jazmine Ulloa The California Research Bureau on Tuesday released its first report on incidents of discrimination under a 2015 state law that has provided drivers licenses for hundreds of thousands of immigrants here illegally. Researchers found no complaints have been made against government agencies tasked with enforcing anti-discrimination laws. But two possible instances of discrimination were reported in focus group interviews conducted by Drive California, a coalition of advocates studying the impact of the new law. In one case, a woman in Fresno was told her license was not a valid form of identification at a retail store, though it was unclear whether the incident reflected intentional discrimination or simple ignorance of the license marking, the report states. A MoneyGram clerk in another case denied a license holder the ability to cash a check. The same person was later rejected again at a bank. The state Department of Motor Vehicles has issued 960,000 AB 60 drivers licenses as of Nov. 30. The state research bureau produced the report for the Legislature as part of the new law, which declares discrimination against an AB 60 license holder a violation of the Unruh Civil Rights Act. Facebook

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California lawmaker proposes requiring panic buttons for hotel workers in response to widespread sexual harassment By Patrick McGreevy More than half of hotel workers surveyed report being sexually harassed at some point. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times) Alarmed by a survey indicating sexual harassment of hotel housekeepers is widespread, a California state lawmaker on Tuesday proposed requiring employers to provide panic button devices to their employees so they can summon help if abused by a guest. The bill to be introduced Wednesday by Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) would also require individual hotels to impose a three-year ban on guests who engage in harassment on the property. We want to protect our most vulnerable women workers, hotel maids who are going into rooms alone, from sexual harassment, said Muratsuchi, who co-authored the bill with Assemblyman Bill Quirk (D-Hayward). The legislation signals that concerns over sexual harassment that dominated the state Legislature last year will continue to be an issue for lawmakers as they begin the new legislative year Wednesday. Harassment allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, comedian Louis C.K. and other high-profile men have involved sexual misconduct in hotel rooms. A survey in July by Unite Here Local 1 found that 49% of female hotel workers in Chicago had experienced a guest answering the door naked or exposing himself. The report titled Hands Off, Pants On, found 58% of hotel workers said they had been sexually harassed by a guest. Californias Unite Here Local 11 has been calling for the action proposed in the legislation. It is the intent of this measure to protect hotel employees from violent assault, including sexual assault, and sexual harassment, and to enable those employees to speak out when they experience harassment on the job, said the introduction to the legislation introduced by Muratsuchi. In addition to requiring hotels to provide panic buttons to employees who work alone in rooms, the bill requires hotels to take written complaints from employees and keep them for five years. Any complaint backed by evidence including a statement given under penalty of perjury would result in a guest being banned from a hotel for three years. Hotels would also be required to post a notice on the inside of hotel room doors warning guests about the consequences of sexual harassment. Updated at 4:10 pm to include comment from Assemblyman Muratsuchi. Facebook

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Money, Republican malaise and Tom Steyer: These are the things to watch for in Californias 2018 statewide elections By Seema Mehta Get ready, California. What had been a behind-the-scenes dash for cash closely watched by few other than political observers is about to burst into public view. Voters this year will decide who will succeed Democrat Jerry Brown as the next governor and whether they will send Sen. Dianne Feinstein back to Washington. Before the June 5 primary, candidates will ramp up their campaigns with messages on television and stuffed into mailboxes. Heres a primer on the states two marquee races. Read More Facebook

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Fickle L.A. County is pivotal in the race for California governor By Phil Willon Home to a quarter of Californias 5.2 million registered voters, Los Angeles County is the biggest prize in Californias 2018 race for governor. For two hometown Democratic candidates especially  former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Treasurer John Chiang of Torrance  doing well in L.A. County is essential if they hope to best the front-runner, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom. Yet this overwhelmingly Democratic stronghold continually bedevils even the most adept campaigns. Read More Facebook

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A renewed brawl over single-payer healthcare in California is on deck for 2018 By Melanie Mason Carolyn Angela Chen, a registered nurse, gives a free hepatitis A vaccination to Glenn Gardner, 52, at Joshua House Clinic (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) California officials are bracing for healthcare battles in Washington to have a major impact on the states budget and programs. Activists and politicians are planning a showdown over whether or not to establish a single-payer healthcare system in the state. And prescription drug manufacturers are the target of a number of bills meant to target the rising costs of medication. Sound familiar? Turns out the brewing healthcare battles in California in 2018 arent all that different from those from 2017. Heres a primer on the upcoming healthcare agenda in California: Read More Facebook

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How California lawmakers plan to protect the online privacy of consumers in 2018 By Jazmine Ulloa (Elise Amendola / Associated Press) With federal regulation rollbacks and a rise in data breaches, California lawmakers this year are looking for ways to protect consumers and their personal information. Some legislation under consideration could give people more notice and control over what data is collected, without having to pay for privacy or better services. Other bills could provide free credit freezes for consumers and require new privacy features for products that connect to the internet. Read More Facebook

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2018 will see California motorists pay more to the state to repair roads and bridges By Patrick McGreevy The new year brings with it new vehicle fees in California ranging from $25 to $175 depending on the value of your car, but Republican lawmakers are hoping to qualify a ballot measure in November to repeal the higher charges. The fees and a 12-cent increase in Californias gas tax last year are part of a plan by Democrats to raise more than $5.2 billion annually to deal with a backlog of road and bridge repairs. Petitions to qualify a repeal initiative are circulating now. Read More Facebook

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A rent control battle tops the list of California housing issues to watch in 2018 By Liam Dillon A new-home community in Anaheim in 2016 (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times) California lawmakers arent wasting any time in tackling one of the most contentious issues in state housing politics this year. On Jan. 11, the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee is set to hold a hearing on legislation that could lead to a dramatic expansion of rent control policies across the state. The debate over rent control could spill over onto the 2018 ballot, where Californians also could see proposals to expand or curtail the property tax restrictions ushered in 40 years ago by Proposition 13. Lawmakers will have to wrestle with how to follow up a package of housing bills that passed last year. The measures provided new funding and regulations designed to encourage homebuilding, but are unlikely to make an appreciable difference in housing costs. Read More Facebook

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Assemblyman Sebastian Ridley-Thomas is resigning By John Myers Assemblyman Sebastian Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles) (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Assemblyman Sebastian Ridley-Thomas abruptly announced his resignation from the California Legislature on Wednesday, citing health reasons. Ridley-Thomas, a Democrat from Los Angeles, informed Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) Tuesday night. The reason for this difficult decision is that I am facing persistent health issues, Ridley-Thomas, 30, said in a written statement on Wednesday. On December 18th, I underwent surgery for the fifth time this year. Although I expect a full recovery, my physicians advise that I will need an extended period of time to recuperate. Earlier this year, Ridley-Thomas was absent from work for more than two weeks. Staff members initially said the absence was a personal leave, then said the time off was due to unspecified medical reasons. His resignation letter on Wednesday offered no additional details. When I resume public life, I intend to remain active in civic affairs, where my passion lies, he said in the statement released by his office. Ridley-Thomas was first elected to the Assembly in a 2013 special election. He is the son of Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas. Before winning elected office at age 26, the younger Ridley-Thomas worked as an aide for Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price and managed a 2012 Assembly campaign in San Bernardino County. In a statement about his sons decision, Mark Ridley-Thomas said he and his wife more than anyone, have seen him struggle with health challenges this year, and we fully support his decision to step down from the state Legislature so that he can recuperate with complete rest, in accordance with his doctors orders. His solidly Democratic district includes the west Los Angeles neighborhoods of Westwood, Culver City, Crenshaw and Baldwin Hills. He is chairman of the influential Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee, which oversees all tax-related legislation. Ridley-Thomas is a proponent of changes in the operation of the state Board of Equalization, though his plan would have allowed the agency to ultimately retain many of its duties. A more substantial shake-up was signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown in June. Ridley-Thomas was the author of a bill signed into law in October giving the Los Angeles Unified School District the power to preserve some of its existing single-gender schools. He was unsuccessful, though, in an effort to stop local governments from imposing taxes on streaming video services like Netflix and Hulu. Ridley-Thomas departure will require a special election in 2018. He is the fourth Southern California legislator to leave office this year. The election of Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles) to Congress also required a special election. The other two lawmakers Assemblymen Raul Bocanegra (D-Pacoima) and Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills)  stepped down in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct, which both men have denied. A special election to fill Bocanegras seat will be held on April 3, with a potential runoff on June 5. A special election date has not yet been set for Dababnehs seat. My colleagues and I wish Assemblymember Sebastian Ridley-Thomas all the best going forward as he deals with his health challenges, Rendon said in a statement. The Assembly will continue to assist the residents of the 54th Assembly District until a new assemblymember is seated. This post was updated with comment from Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, as well as more information about special elections. It was originally published at 11:10 a.m. Facebook

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California Senate Democrats are considering some ideas to counter the GOP tax plan By Liam Dillon Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Democrats in the California Senate are planning to write legislation to lessen the effects of the elimination of popular tax breaks in the GOPs overhaul of the federal tax system. To finance broad-based corporate tax cuts and reductions in individual tax rates, the GOP plan caps the deductibility of state and local income and property taxes  a benefit used often in suburban areas of California. The Republican tax scam disproportionately harms California taxpayers, Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) said in a statement. Our hard-earned tax dollars should not be subject to double-taxation, especially not to line the pockets of the Trump family, hedge fund managers and private jet owners. De Leon, who also is running for U.S. Senate, said the state Senate is working with law professors at UCLA, UC Davis and the University of Chicago to develop the legislation. Ideas being considered, according to a de Leon spokesman, include: Reducing state personal income taxes through a tax credit program and offsetting that amount through payroll taxes.

Allowing individuals to make voluntary gifts to the state of California, which would be deductible as a charitable donation under federal law. The deduction for the donated amount would replace the state and local tax deduction. Lawmakers return to Sacramento in January.

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L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti admits considering a 2020 bid: I am thinking about this By Seema Mehta Eric Garcetti (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) Its no secret Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is interested in running for president. When reporters ask about his intentions, he has used all sorts of ways to deflect, typically by saying hes focused on his day job  for the moment. But speaking in Spanish to a Univision reporter this week, Garcetti edged ever closer to the telltale admission hes actually considering it. I am thinking about this, said Garcetti, who is partly of Mexican heritage but learned Spanish attending private school. The majority of time goes to my work as mayor of Los Angeles, but every [citizen] should think about what our role is in these difficult times, in these dangerous times. Garcetti added that he expects many mayors to run for president, and noted New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio recently visited Iowa, which holds the first presidential nominating contest. Garcetti has long been rumored to be flirting with a White House bid, and he has fueled such speculation by traveling out of state to places such as the early presidential primary state of New Hampshire to campaign for a mayoral candidate. Facebook

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Gov. Brown makes judicial appointments, including attorney who helps train Legislature on anti-sexual-harassment policies .@JerryBrownGov makes two court of appeal and 33 superior court appointments including Lauri Damrell in Sacramento. Damrell, an attorney at Orrick, testified at the Assemblys recent hearing on sexual harassment, outlining the assemblys current prevention efforts.  Liam Dillon (@dillonliam) December 22, 2017 Facebook

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Californias former top cop forms marijuana distribution firm in new age of legalization By Patrick McGreevy Former California Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer is going from enforcing laws against marijuana to legally distributing the drug under the states new rules that allow the sale and possession of pot for recreational use. With state-licensed sales of marijuana starting Jan. 1, Lockyer has co-founded a firm, C4 Distro, that will distribute packaged marijuana concentrates and edibles to stores in Los Angeles. He says Californias new regulated system has a chance to be a model for the rest of the country. For me as somebody who was on the law enforcement side for so many years, I saw the inadequacies of the effort to regulate something just by calling it illegal, Lockyer said. I think legalizing will help stabilize and help legitimize this industry and result in better consumer protection and other public benefits. Lockyer, a Democrat who served in the state Assembly and was leader of the state Senate, has co-founded the firm with Eric Spitz, who was chairman and president of the former parent company of the Orange County Register. The businessmen aim to get their products to pot shops in L.A. in late January or early February, Spitz said. Asked if he uses marijuana himself, Lockyer, 76, said, Not in any recent times, but there were college years. He said he sees his involvement in the marijuana industry as a mixture of helping to pay for his kids college tuition and public service to help the new regulations work. This whole industry has to come from the dark side to the light, he said. By focusing on delivery to as many as 700 stores that might open in Los Angeles, C4 Distro hopes to capture a targeted market while other firms distribute statewide. The business has a warehouse in southeast Los Angeles County and is close to applying for a distributors license from the state, Lockyer said. Lockyer served a quarter century in the state Legislature before he was elected as state attorney general in 1999. He left that office in 2007 when he was elected as state treasurer, serving until his retirement from politics in 2015. Before co-leading a group that bought the Register newspaper in 2012, Spitz served as chief financial officer at Narragansett Brewing Company. Spitz left the Registers Freedom Communications in 2016. 2 p.m.: An earlier version of this article mistakenly said Spitz left Freedom Communications in 2015. Facebook

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House passes disaster aid bill with wildfire funding, 18 Californians vote no By Sarah D. Wire (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) Eighteen of Californias 53 House members voted no on an $81-billion disaster aid package Thursday, which includes funds for Californias recent wildfires. The 17 Democrats and one Republican voted no on the bill, which passed the House by a 251 to 169 vote. The Senate is not expected to take up the bill until January, when Congress returns from its holiday break. The entire California delegation had recently signed onto a letter asking for the disaster aid. In a speech on the House floor before the vote, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) pleaded with colleagues not to take a political stance on a disaster aid bill. Dont play politics on a vote to give aid to the people of Texas, to the people of Puerto Rico and to the Virgin Islands, to the people of Florida, and to the people of California that are still fighting the fires. Dont play politics on a bill where you hope to maybe stop another. That would be the worst of any politics Ive seen played here, McCarthy said. Here and now, right before Christmas, dont vote against aid for Americans who just lost everything. Several of the Democrats who voted no also voted against the spending bill Thursday, and said that they felt they could not support either because the bills did not include Democratic priorities for the end of the year, including protections for people brought to the country illegally as children. Others said the aid bill doesnt provide enough money for California and doesnt treat Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands fairly in terms of competing for the funds. The 18 representatives voting no were: Nanette Barragan (D-San Pedro)

Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles)

Tony Cardenas (D-Los Angeles)

Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park)

Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana)

Anna Eshoo (D-Menlo Park)

Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles)

Ro Khanna (D-Fremont)

Barbara Lee (D-Oakland)

Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose)

Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove)

Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco)

Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey)

Linda Sanchez (D-Whittier)

Jackie Speier (D-Hillsborough)

Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin)

Norma Torres (D-Pomona)

Juan Vargas (D-San Diego) Facebook

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Three California House members cross party lines on spending bill to keep government open By Sarah D. Wire Three California House members crossed party lines Thursday on a vote to pass a spending bill that will keep the government open until mid-January. Democratic Reps. Jim Costa of Fresno and Raul Ruiz of Palm Desert joined the majority of Republicans to vote for the bill. Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter of Alpine joined Democrats to vote against it. The bill, which funds the government through Jan. 19, passed the House 231 to 188, right before representatives left for the holidays. Costa said in a statement that he voted yes because keeping the government open is Congress job, but he called the vote a continuation of the dysfunction in Washington. It further illustrates the damage that results from partisan politics and irresponsible leadership. It is unacceptable that we have to resort to funding the government for weeks at a time because we cannot sit down together  Democrats and Republicans  and negotiate a real budget bill, Costa said. Hunters staff said the congressman was concerned that military spending in the bill was extended for only a short period. He had wanted the spending to be extended until September. Facebook

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Poll points to all-Democrat runoffs in California races for governor and senator By Seema Mehta Californians could see two Democrat-on-Democrat contests in the states premier races in 2018, according to a new poll released Thursday. In the gubernatorial race, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom remains the front-runner with the support of 26% of likely voters in a Berkeley IGS poll. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa came in second with the backing of 17%. The poll found notable demographic differences in the two mens bases of support. Newsom had strong leads in the Bay Area, where he once served as the mayor of San Francisco, as well as among white voters, liberals and the wealthy. Villaraigosa saw strong backing in Los Angeles County, among Latino voters and among those who earned less than $40,000. Republicans splintered in the race, placing businessman John Cox and Assemblyman Travis Allen in a tie for third place with 9% each. Two other Democrats, state Treasurer John Chiang and former state schools chief Delaine Eastin, each won the support of 5% of likely voters. If Republicans fail to consolidate behind a candidate in the June primary, voters will for the first time see no GOP candidate on the November ballot for governor. Its a repeat of what occurred in the 2016 U.S. Senate race, and what is likely to occur again in the 2018 U.S. Senate race if the field does not grow. Sen. Dianne Feinstein has the support of 41% of likely voters in her reelection bid, but her rival, fellow Democrat Kevin de Leon, won the support of 27%, according to the poll. There is no GOP candidate in the race. Feinstein, who has served in the Senate for a quarter-century, has enormous advantages in fundraising, name recognition and support among powerful political groups. However, the poll found that nearly one-third of likely voters said they are undecided or would like to support another candidate. Facebook

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California legislator wants to curb sexual harassment in Hollywood and eating disorders for models By Melanie Mason Fashion models show off the BCBG MAX AZRIA Spring 2016 collection during New York Fashion Week. (Richard Drew / AP) A new proposal by a California assemblyman is taking aim at two of the more criticized phenomena in the entertainment industry: sexual harassment and unhealthy body standards for fashion models. The legislation, by Assemblyman Marc Levine (D-San Rafael), would require the states Occupational Safety and Health Standards to adopt guidelines for fashion models in an attempt to combat the prevalence of eating disorders and excessive thinness in the industry. This is the second time Levine has tried to take on the fashion industry. His similar bill to impose standards on models sputtered in 2016. This time, Levine also is trying to address the prevalence of sexual harassment in the entertainment industry by requiring that talent agencies  which represent actors, performers and other artists  provide training on sexual harassment and how to identify and prevent inappropriate behavior. I believed women who told me their stories of abuse when I introduced legislation to provide workplace protections in the fashion industry in 2016 just like I believe them now, Levine said in a statement. Its time that law reflects societys rejection of sexual harassment in all workplaces, including Hollywood. My bill aims to address the problem before it starts, but also empowers survivors with the tools to report these cases. Facebook

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Local Indivisible group picks Democrat to endorse against Rep. Duncan Hunter By Christine Mai-Duc Ammar Campa-Najjar, 28, is running against Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine). (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) With an already crowded field of contenders hoping to unseat Rep. Duncan Hunter and months to go before the candidate filing deadline, one local activist group has made an early endorsement in the race. Indivisible CA50, made up of activists mostly in San Diego County, announced Thursday that its endorsing Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Democrat and public affairs consultant whos challenging Hunter. The endorsement comes as liberal activists and interest groups all over the state are grappling with whether  and how  to winnow down the dozens of candidates vying for 10 GOP-held seats in California. The group held more than half a dozen endorsement meetings to allow members throughout Hunters district to vote on their preferred candidate. One of the candidates, Pierre Beauregard, dropped out of the race recently and endorsed Campa-Najjar. In a statement Campa-Najjar said in a statement that the nod represents the enthusiasm of hundreds of progressive grassroots activists. Indivisibles national political director Maria Urbina said the endorsement was the first made by any California chapter in the 2018 midterms. Aside from Campa-Najjar, two other Democrats are running for Hunters seat: Josh Butner, a school board trustee and former Navy SEAL, and realtor Patrick Malloy, who ran last year and lost to Hunter by nearly 27 percentage points. Hunter will also face at least two GOP challengers: Shamus Sayed and Andrew Zelt. Hunter is not considered to be particularly vulnerable in next years election, but an investigation into his alleged misuse of campaign funds has caused at least one election handicapper to move his race from solid Republican to the likely Republican column. Facebook

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San Francisco is getting a new mayor and creating a political star. Who will it be? By Mark Z. Barabak San Francisco is the city everyone loves, even if they hate it. The stately Victorians, like a gingerbread dream come to life. The majestic Golden Gate Bridge, standing like heavens portal above the fog. The plucky cable cars, scrabbling up its impossible hillsides. It can almost make you forget the bands of ravaged homeless, the paralyzing traffic, the scent of human waste wafting from sidewalks outside the citys posh eateries and palatial tech headquarters. San Francisco is getting a new mayor, owing to the sudden death of incumbent Ed Lee. All of the grandeur, and all of the grit, accompany the position. To say the race is wide open  Lee having died just about a week ago  is an understatement. Read More Facebook

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Sen. Dianne Feinstein is under pressure over a fix for Dreamers By Sarah D. Wire California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is under pressure from activists and fellow Democrats to withhold support for a spending bill that would avert a government shutdown in exchange for protections for people brought to the country illegally as children. Feinstein said in October that protections for so-called Dreamers are the most important thing we can get done, but the senator known for her moderate bent said this week that she wont try to block the end-of-the-year spending bill over it, and has not offered an explanation. Dreamers this week flooded Feinsteins five California offices and her office on Capitol Hill. Two UCLA students refused to leave her Capitol Hill office after three hours Tuesday and were briefly detained by police. On Wednesday, about a dozen students and parents returned and were asked to leave after about 30 minutes of shouting in her office lobby. Read More Facebook

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The GOP tax plan passed. Now Democrats have another big issue to use in the midterms By Sarah D. Wire As GOP leaders in Congress met behind closed doors to hash out the details of their massive tax overhaul, a group of UC Irvine graduate students met in Rep. Mimi Walters district, fretting about how the plan could cost them money. About 20 miles north, dozens of activists in top hats stood outside Rep. Ed Royces Brea office as they chanted, Shame on you! And up in the Central Valley, protesters gathered outside Rep. Jeff Denhams Modesto office to sing Protest ye dreary congressman  Remember that he voted to take healthcare away. To save himself from taxes now, so you will have to pay. Read More Facebook

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Kevin de Leon to Feinstein: Dont come back to California without forcing a government shutdown over Dream Act By Jazmine Ulloa State Senate leader Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles), left, and Assemblyman Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles), right. (Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press) Taking direct criticism to the woman he is attempting to unseat in next years U.S. Senate race, California Senate leader Kevin de Leon on Wednesday urged Democrats to block a year-end spending bill as leverage to pass a Dream Act  clean of GOP demands for increased border security. At a news conference in downtown Los Angeles, De Leon commended Sen. Kamala Harris for pledging to block the measure, saying he could not understand why her colleague Sen. Dianne Feinstein had failed to take a similar stance in pushing for legislation to protect the so-called Dreamers, immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. Dreamers make up hundreds of thousands of Sen. Feinsteins constituents, and while talking a good game on Dreamers, when it comes to standing up and supporting them, she is AWOL, said De Leon (D-Los Angeles), who has attempted to position himself to Feinsteins left as he campaigns for her seat. His statements follow days of demonstrations by young protesters at legislators offices in Washington and California. The coalitions of activists have been calling on Democrats to hold up the spending bill, a move that could force a government shutdown. They want to pass Dream Act legislation that would provide protections and a path to citizenship to young people without legal residency in the U.S. At least two young protesters were arrested Tuesday outside of Feinsteins Capitol Hill office, and more demonstrations took place at her offices in Washington and San Francisco on Wednesday. Feinstein, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) have sponsored Dream Act legislation but have not pledged to hold up the spending deal. A separate bipartisan group of senators is advocating punting the issue to January. President Trump has asked Congress to come up with a solution by March. Standing next to De Leon and immigrant rights advocates on Wednesday, state Assemblyman Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) said advocates had to double down the shame on any Democrat who thinks its time to wait on the issue. De Leon said they had made that message clear to Schumer, saying, It is time to find your spine, sir. To Pelosi and Feinstein, he said: Dont come back to California if you havent demonstrated your leadership and your courage to stand up for these young men and women. I can tell you this, De Leon said. If the Republicans were on the other side, they wouldnt hesitate for a nanosecond to shut down the government to move forward what they believe in. Facebook

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12 California Republicans vote to support tax overhaul for a second time; Rohrabacher and Issa say no By Sarah D. Wire The House gave final approval for the GOP tax bill Wednesday, with 12 Republicans in the state delegation again voting in favor of the bill. Reps. Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa and Darrell Issa of Vista voted no. The House and Senate both passed the bill Tuesday, but, because Democrats raised procedural objections that forced the bill to be changed in the Senate, the House had to vote on the bill again Wednesday before sending it to President Trump for his signature. Though many California taxpayers are expected to see an initial income tax cut under the plan, a significant number probably will have higher taxes because of the lost deductions. Analysts also expect the biggest cuts to flow to corporations and the states wealthiest residents. Republicans are expected to head to the White House later Wednesday for a celebration with Trump. No House Democrats, including the 39 from California, supported the bill. Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-Norwalk) was not present for the second vote, but she voted no on Tuesday. See the Republican votes here: Facebook

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Californias Democratic senators vote no on GOP tax bill Californias @SenKamalaHarris and @SenFeinstein join rest of Democrats in the Senate in voting no on the GOP tax bill, which passed 51-48 along party lines. Sanders, who is an Independent, voted with Democrats.  Sarah D. Wire (@sarahdwire) December 20, 2017 "At a time when wages have stagnated and working Americans are trying to do more with less, this tax plan pulls the rug out from the middle class to give billions to those who already have so much. This is an attack on our values, and Americans deserve better," Harris said.  Sarah D. Wire (@sarahdwire) December 20, 2017 "Californians will be hit especially hard by the cap on the state and local tax deduction, making it more difficult for communities to pay for services that our families rely on, Its no wonder a bill that primarily benefits the wealthy is so unpopular..." Feinstein said  Sarah D. Wire (@sarahdwire) December 20, 2017 Facebook

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GOP tax overhaul passes House with help from a dozen California Republicans By Sarah D. Wire Despite weeks of consternation from some California House Republicans, a dozen of them joined their colleagues to pass an overhaul of the U.S. tax code Tuesday. Two  Reps. Darrell Issa and Dana Rohrabacher  voted against the plan. In the weeks before the vote, Republican Reps. Mimi Walters of Irvine and Steve Knight of Palmdale cited new caps on popular deductions as reasons they were uncertain about whether to vote for the bill. Both worked behind the scenes on changes and ultimately supported the bill, which passed the House on a near party line vote 227-203. Knight said hes satisfied the changes are enough to to turn what would have been a tax increase into a tax cut for his constituents. Read More Facebook

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More than half of Californians oppose GOP tax bill, according to new poll By Sarah D. Wire House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) arrives for a news conference about the tax plan. (Win McNamee / Getty Images) More than half of Californians oppose the GOP tax bill expected to be approved by Congress today, and just 20% believe it will have a positive affect on their families, according to a poll released Monday. Just over half of California voters, 51%, oppose the tax bill, and 30% support it, according to the newest IGS Poll, a survey by the Institute of Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley. And the belief falls largely along party lines, with Democrats opposing the bill by a more than 4-to-1 (67% to 15%) margin and Republicans supporting it 3 to 1 (60% to 21%). The House and Senate are expected to vote on the tax bill Tuesday. Californias Republican members of Congress largely support the bill despite some concerns about how cuts to the state and local tax deduction and mortgage interest deduction might affect Californians. Democrats in the delegation oppose it and have said they will use the vote against vulnerable Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections. When asked about the impact they think the bill will have on themselves and their families, just 20% of the polls respondents said they think it will benefit them directly, while 40% foresee a negative impact. About 27% do not expect much of an impact, and 13% said they dont know if theyll be affected. The poll of a random sample of 1,000 registered voters was completed by telephone in English and Spanish from Dec. 7 to 16. Facebook

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A quick look at some of the biggest tax changes for Californians By Sarah D. Wire (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press) Congressional Republicans are framing their tax cut bill as a Christmas gift that will give Americans an average tax cut of $2,059. For Californians, especially in the wealthier areas along the coast, the situation isnt as clear-cut. When the measure comes up for a vote in the House on Tuesday morning, its expected to pass along party lines. At least two Republicans say they will join Democrats in the California delegation to oppose the plan because they fear it will hurt their constituents bottom line. Take a quick look at what some of the biggest changes in the tax bill might mean for average Californians. Read More Facebook

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Lawmakers, pot growers say Californias marijuana cultivation rules favor big corporate farms By Patrick McGreevy Californias new rules allowing marijuana cultivation favor large corporate farms despite a promise in Proposition 64 that small growers would be protected, according to a group of state lawmakers and marijuana industry leaders who called Monday for the policy to be changed. The California Department of Food and Agriculture issued emergency rules last month that allow for small and medium-sized farms of up to a quarter acre and one acre, respectively, to get licenses for the first five years. That five-year head start for small farms was promised in Proposition 64, the initiative approved last year by voters that legalized growing and selling marijuana for recreational use. Individuals and businesses can get only one license for a medium-sized farm, but the new rules do not set a limit on how many small-farm licenses can be obtained by one person or business. That could allow a corporation to assemble a 20-acre farm by obtaining 80 licenses for a quarter-acre each, opponents worry. Democratic state Sens. Scott Wiener of San Francisco and Mike McGuire of Healdsburg, Assemblyman Jim Wood (D-Healdsburg) and the California Growers Assn. asked for swift action by the state agricultural department to change the rule. This is clearly a broken promise, McGuire said. For two years, every discussion has included a cap on cannabis grows and the Department of Food and Agriculture needs to fix this massive loophole they have created. This last-minute revision rolls out the red carpet for large corporations to crush the livelihood of small family farmers. With cultivation licenses set to take effect next month, the lawmakers also promised legislative hearings on why the rules were drafted to disadvantage small, mom-and-pop farms. California only has one chance to get this right, and it is already on the wrong path with this last-minute change that flies in the face of what the backers of Prop. 64 promised, said Hezekiah Allen, executive director of the California Growers Assn. This single decision will hand over the California marketplace to multinational corporations and a wealthy few at the expense of thousands of growers who are ready to play by the rules and provide economic opportunity in communities that until recently were criminalized or  at the very least  marginalized. The industry estimates there are about 3,500 independent growers on track to get a state license in the first half of 2018. Allens group estimates that number could grow to as many as 10,000 or 15,000 by the end of 2020, but not if large corporate farms are allowed in early. The agricultural agency issued a response later: A one-acre canopy limit has not been in proposed regulations at any point and was not included in the emergency regulations due to the fact that Proposition 64, the law guiding the process, did not provide authority to include it. However, local jurisdictions may impose that limitation on their own if it meets the needs of their constituents. Updated at 5:10 pm to include comment from agricultural agency. Facebook

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Final tax bill dramatically softens blow to mortgage interest deductions in California By Christine Mai-Duc Last-minute changes to the Republican-led tax overhaul seem to be tailor-made to entice support from California GOP lawmakers, several of whom voted against a previous version passed in the House last month. The House version, passed with the support of all but three California Republicans, had proposed capping the mortgage interest deduction at loans of $500,000 or less. Republicans in high-tax, expensive states had voiced concerns the bill would have major effects in their districts. But the final version of the bill dramatically slashed the percentage of new mortgages that would be affected if the package becomes law. *New mortgages over $500,000 include data through Sept. 2017. New mortgages over $750,000 include data through Oct. 2017. Source: Times analysis of data provided by CoreLogic The particulars of the mortgage interest provision and other popular deductions were major sticking points as House and Senate negotiators hammered out a compromise between the two versions. A previous Times analysis showed that more than half of new mortgages this year in Rep. Dana Rohrabachers coastal Orange County district exceeded the $500,000 cap laid out in the House version. Text of the new bill released Friday outlined a cap of $750,000, which would apply to just under a quarter of new mortgages there through October 2017. Rohrabacher was one of three California Republicans, along with Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) and Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove) who previously voted against the measure. Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Irvine) said she supported the House version after receiving assurances from leaders that the bill would be changed to account for the loss of deductions, The percentage of new mortgages over the cap dropped from 48% to 14%. Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford), whose district had 1% of mortgages exceeding the $500,000 cap proposed previously, saw that share drop almost to zero; 27 of 7,515 mortgages in his congressional district this year have been for more than $750,000. The House is expected to vote on the final tax bill Tuesday. Facebook

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A major change to Proposition 13 takes its first step toward the 2018 ballot By Liam Dillon A commercial property in San Bernardino County that could face higher property taxes under a proposed ballot measure (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times) Proponents of making a dramatic change to Californias landmark Proposition 13 property tax restrictions took their first step to getting a measure on the November 2018 statewide ballot Friday. The change would allow the state to receive more tax dollars from commercial and industrial properties by assessing them at their current market value, an effort known as split roll because existing tax protections on homes would remain in place. Advocates of the measure, including the League of Women Voters of California and community organizing nonprofits California Calls and PICO Network said the change could raise billions of dollars that could be spent on public schools and community colleges. I think the cumulative effects of the unfair tax system have gotten to the point where its created crippling economic impacts on the state, said Melissa Breach, executive director of the League of Women Voters of California. Backers filed their proposed initiative Friday. The attorney generals office will prepare an official title and summary for the measure and it will receive a financial analysis. From there, advocates will decide if they will collect signatures to put the measure on the ballot. Proposition 13 passed in 1978 amid concerns that rising property taxes could force people out of their homes. The ballot measure limited property taxes to 1% of a propertys value at the time of purchase and ensures that the assessed value on which taxes are based can only increase by a maximum of 2% a year  no matter how much a propertys market value goes up. Split-roll measures have been long debated in state politics, but business groups and anti-tax groups have expressed substantial opposition to the idea, arguing that it would cause major harm to the states business climate. Breach said she expected an avalanche of big money against the measure should it go forward, but said that her organization wouldnt get involved without believing it could raise sufficient funding.S For the record 1 p.m., Dec. 18: An earlier version of this post said the split roll ballot measure would allow California to charge higher tax rates on commercial and industrial properties. It would allow the state to assess those properties at current market value, not charge higher rates. Facebook

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Three more women accuse California assemblyman of sexual misconduct By Melanie Mason Assemblyman Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills) (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) A Los Angeles woman has filed a police report alleging Democratic Assemblyman Matt Dababneh had sex with her without consent four years ago, adding new allegations of sexual misconduct to those that led the politician to announce his resignation last week. He says her claims are false. Nancy Miret, 26, told The Times that when she was 22 and a recent college graduate, she spent time with Dababneh over two months in late 2013, primarily at his Encino apartment. At the time, Dababneh was running for Assembly to represent the western San Fernando Valley. They had consensual sex on one occasion, but after that, Miret said she had multiple nonconsensual sexual encounters with Dababneh that left her traumatized. Miret, who now works in commercial real estate, is one of three women interviewed by The Times who have made new allegations concerning Dababnehs behavior. These allegations are false and Im confident that when all the facts are in, it will clearly show that these claims are not true, Dababneh told The Times. Read More Facebook

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San Diego business is first in California to be issued license to sell marijuana for recreational use By Patrick McGreevy A San Diego medical marijuana business is the first firm to be issued a license by the state of California to sell marijuana for recreational use, officials said Thursday. Torrey Holistics received two of the first 20 licenses granted by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control this week to sell or distribute marijuana, although the licenses do not take effect until Jan. 1, according to bureau chief Lori Ajax. An additional 180 firms have applied for licenses but they are being processed. Last week, we officially launched our online licensing system, and today were pleased to issue the first group of temporary licenses to cannabis businesses that fall under the Bureaus jurisdiction, Ajax said in a statement. We plan to issue many more before January 1. The bureau is issuing temporary, four-month licenses to firms initially, but will eventually require firms to undergo background checks and pay a $1,000 application fee for yearlong permits. Tony Hall left a chemical distribution business two years ago to start Torrey Holistics with a friend and classmate at San Diego State. He said he was ecstatic to have the first recreational permit in California. He also obtained a new license to continue selling marijuana for medical uses. We feel fricking great about it, he said Thursday. Its just exciting. This is a once in a multi-generational event, he added, likening it to the end of prohibition. Added Ruthie Edelson, the firms marketing director, We will be open at 7 a.m. on Jan. 1. Last year, voters approved Proposition 64, which makes California one of eight states that allow the growing and sale of marijuana for recreational uses. Facebook

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Conservative activist group files a lawsuit over Los Angeles County inactive voter list By John Myers A Washington-based conservative-leaning activist group filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday alleging Los Angeles County officials are refusing to cancel the registrations of voters who are ineligible to cast a ballot. The legal action by Judicial Watch comes four months after the organization first accused elections officials across the state of maintaining registration lists that are larger than their voting-age population. The lawsuit also names Secretary of State Alex Padilla as a defendant and alleges the voter lists violate the National Voter Registration Act, or NVRA. They dont care about removing ineligible registration, said Robert Popper of Judicial Watch. I think we have a very strong lawsuit. The lawsuit names four Los Angeles County voters as co-plaintiffs and asserts that a countys two lists of voters  the file of active voters and those whose registration has been placed on inactive status  should be combined into a single total. The inactive list includes people who havent cast ballots in recent elections and havent responded to inquiries from elections officials. Though the names on that list are considered voters, they are not counted in official registration reports and are not mailed election material. Popper led an effort earlier this year to estimate the size of each countys voting-age population using the Census Bureaus American Community Survey. He said the surveys five-year average of county populations was then adjusted by focusing just on the estimate of those over the age of 18, and then comparing that with the combined active and inactive voter lists. Popper dismissed any concern that the resulting number might be skewed by the different standards used by counties for the inactive list, which could include names of voters who moved or died and thus be an imperfect guide. I believe that a court is going to accept our numbers, he said. Dean Logan, the registrar of voters in Los Angeles County, said his staffs practices are consistent with federal law. This lawsuit appears to fundamentally interpret the requirements of the NVRA in a manner inconsistent with ensuring voter enfranchisement and appropriate list maintenance, he said. The lawsuit also alleges that Los Angeles elections officials failed to provide Judicial Watch with requested data about the size of the inactive list, and accuses Padilla of failing to address the groups concerns about California not following NVRA rules. In a statement on Thursday, Padilla said county inactive-voter files are not out of compliance with the law. He criticized Judicial Watch for its baseless assertions, bad math, and flawed methodology. Local elections officials have said very few inactive voters show up on election day, and that any who do would be asked to cast a provisional ballot  one that isnt counted unless the voters eligibility is confirmed through additional review. Popper insisted that if the list is never used, theres no reason to keep it. Judicial Watch, which sued for access to Hillary Clintons emails in 2016, alleged that its calculations show 11 California counties with questionable voter registration totals. Facebook

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Voters in California GOP districts may get calls asking them to thank their member of Congress for tax plan By Sarah D. Wire Voters in four key Republican-held congressional districts could get a robocall starting Friday urging them to call and thank their member of Congress for supporting the tax bill. Its a last minute effort by American Action Network, a politically active nonprofit connected with House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) that has spent millions to shore up Republican support for the bill. The robocalls include the members office number. The four California members being targeted are Reps. Jeff Denham of Turlock, David Valadao of Hanford, Steve Knight of Palmdale and Mimi Walters of Irvine. All four represent districts that backed Hillary Clinton for president in 2016 and are Democratic targets in 2018. Knight and Walters had been particularly vocal about their concerns with the plan, saying it might raise taxes for their constituents. The final text of the bill is set to be released Friday, with a vote expected early next week. In total, American Action Network plans to place 1 million robocalls in 29 districts nationwide. Facebook

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Merry Christmas Republicans in Congress: Funny or Die video goes after California lawmakers over DACA By Christine Mai-Duc As members of Congress try to pass a controversial tax bill and a measure to keep the federal government funded, the political arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is hitting Republicans hard over another unresolved issue: the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people brought to the country illegally as children who could face deportation if lawmakers dont act. Amid negotiations over a long-term spending bill, Democratic leaders have been pushing their GOP colleagues to include a fix for those who were granted temporary protection under President Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA. President Trump announced an end to the program earlier this year and gave Congress a March deadline to address it. Funny or Die and BOLD PAC released a video Friday featuring comedians skewering GOP members, including two in California, for their inaction. In the video, Oscar Nunez, best known for his role on The Office, calls out Reps. Steve Knight (Palmdale), Ed Royce (Fullerton), Carlos Curbelo (Florida) and John Culberson (Texas), who get to go ahead and celebrate as thousands of Dreamers are banished from the only country theyve ever called home. How many broken promises can fit in a stocking? Nunez asks later. Im asking for a congressman. The political action committee says its spending six figures on the weeklong buy, which will go out nationwide across Funny Or Dies social media channels. They are known for blasting out irreverent, often viral parodies that play to young audiences. The video will also be targeted to constituents in each of the four congressional districts. A separate video released by the ACLU last week also urged members of Congress to strike a deal on DACA. Many California Republicans have remained mum on the issue, particularly those facing tough races in 2018. So far, only Reps. David Valadao (Hanford), Jeff Denham (Turlock) and Mimi Walters (Irvine) have pressured fellow Republicans to come up with a solution before Congress breaks for Christmas. Following Trumps decision, Knight said the issue should receive attention by Congress. Royce, who has taken hard-line stances on immigration in the past, urged his colleagues to provide a permanent, legislative solution that gives certainty to these kids. Neither elaborated on what that solution should be. Facebook

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For a prominent California consumer group and savvy political consultants, documents reveal a close financial relationship By John Myers If theres a clear mantra for Consumer Watchdog, one of Californias most visible and vocal advocacy groups, its that hidden financial relationships shouldnt shape politics and public policy. The Santa Monica-based nonprofit has spent more than three decades reprimanding politicians and interest groups for doing the bidding of those who give them money. Its official motto is expose, confront, change. We are loud, and we speak more of a populist truth than the way people usually talk to each other in Sacramento, said Jamie Court, Consumer Watchdogs president. Read More Facebook

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Regional director resigns from California Democratic Party amid sexual misconduct claims By Jazmine Ulloa A regional director with the California Democratic Party submitted his resignation on Thursday, nearly two weeks after a 23-year-old woman reported that he sexually assaulted her last year, spurring party leaders to seek his ouster. Craig Cheslog served as Region 2 director spanning the East Bay, Napa, Sonoma and the Clearlake areas. In a statement, his lawyer, Mary P. Carey, said she and her client were confident that a full and fair exploration of this matter, undertaken in an appropriate, fact-governed venue, would exonerate Mr. Cheslog. We are prepared, if necessary, to put forward the facts of this matter in just such a venue, she said. Democratic Party Chairman Eric Bauman and other officials initially called for Cheslogs removal in a Nov. 29 letter to state party secretary Jenny Bach. They said he was seen acting in an inappropriate and sexually aggressive manner toward a member of the party in a public area of the Westin San Francisco Airport Hotel, following a Nov. 18 executive board meeting. The level to which this activity advanced made a number of those in attendance uncomfortable, the letter stated. It added that another member reported that Mr. Cheslog raped her at a CDP executive board meeting the previous year. Party officers said the incident occurred during a weekend where the prevention of sexual harassment of women in politics was a dominant theme in the wake of the #metoo movement. Before the meetings conclusion on Sunday, the California Womens Caucus approved a resolution making clear that sexual harassment, bullying and other forms of abuse are grounds to lose endorsements and be stripped of party membership. Maddy Dean, who was not named in the letter, spoke at the meeting about her experiences of sexual harassment in the movie industry, and told the Times that she reported Cheslog. She said she could not provide further details about her allegation as she explores possible legal paths moving forward. This was about protecting other women and in particular other young women, she said of reporting the assault. In his own letter to Bach on Thursday, Cheslog did not acknowledge any wrongdoing. He said he was stepping down to prevent any personal misconduct allegations from creating a distraction with the party at a critical moment in national and state politics. I am confident of the results that would be forthcoming in a fair, fact-based exploration of this matter, he said. Since the report, Cheslog has been fired from his job at Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization that helps families navigate media and technology. He also has stepped down from his position on the Acalanes Union High School District Board of Trustees. The conduct represented a serious violation of both company policy and the way in which our employees are expected to conduct themselves in the community at large, Common Sense spokeswoman Corbie Kiernan said in a statement. We immediately suspended Mr. Cheslog and conducted an investigation. As a result of the investigation, Mr. Cheslogs employment with Common Sense was terminated. 4:05 p.m.: This post was updated with Cheslogs resignation from the school board. Facebook

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Sen. Bob Hertzberg will cooperate with investigation into unwanted hugs By Patrick McGreevy State Sen. Bob Hertzberg works at his Senate Chambers desk. He faces an investigation into unwanted hugging (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) State Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Los Angeles) said Thursday he will cooperate with a state investigation into complaints from a former legislator that she was uncomfortable with his repeated hugs after she asked him not to touch her. Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon said Thursday that a team of outside attorneys will investigate a complaint by former Assemblywoman Linda Halderman that Hertzberg has made her uncomfortable with hugs that were too close and lasted too long. Hertzberg, well-known for hugging other lawmakers, said he supports having any allegations investigated by the two outside law firms. I just learned of the investigation, and will fully cooperate, he said. The use of an independent third party investigator is essential to improving transparency and trust in the system. Halderman said Thursday she was encouraged that her concerns will be investigated, but said it was disturbing  that attorneys for one of the law firms selected, Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher, contributed more than $90,000 in campaign funds to sitting legislators including Hertzberg. Halderman, a surgeon, served in the state Assembly from 2010 through 2012 and said Hertzberg hugged her multiple times even after she asked him to stop because she was uncomfortable. The last incident occurred in a hallway of the Capitol, she claimed. I told him I dont care to be hugged. Dont touch me,  Halderman recalled. He then grabbed me and pinned my arms to my side and used his hands to press my lower back into his groin and he essentially pinned me so I couldnt push off of him to get away the way I ended previous hugs. It was certainly so over the line, she added. Halderman said a current female senator and assemblywoman also have complained about inappropriate hugs from Hertzberg. However, Sen. Cathleen Galgiani (D-Stockton) defended Hertzberg, saying she has known him for many years and he has always acted as a gentleman. I have never felt uncomfortable with him, and have always felt his hugs were a display of affection - which I appreciate, she said. I consider him a dear friend. Updated at 5:30 pm to include comment from Sen. Galgiani. Facebook

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Rep. Maxine Waters asks Justice Department to investigate fake letter tweeted by Republican opponent By Sarah D. Wire (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) Rep. Maxine Waters is asking the Justice Department to look into a fake letter posted to Twitter by her Republican challenger that falsely indicated the congresswoman wants to resettle tens of thousand of refugees in her Los Angeles district. The GOP candidate, Omar Navarro, posted the letter on what looks like official House of Representatives letterhead to Twitter on Monday. The letter, which purports to be from the congresswoman, says the congresswoman wants to bring refugees to her congressional district after the 2018 election and perhaps even once I have secured the Speaker of the House position. Navarro accompanied the tweeted letter with a message: According to this document, Maxine Waters wants more terrorists, like the one who bombed NYC, in Californias 43rd District. As Congressman of CAs 43rd District, I will oppose such policies. Its been retweeted more than 680 times. But the letter is a forgery and a fake, her chief of staff, Twaun Samuel, said in a news release. The letter, dated June of this year, also contains several inaccuracies. It references multiple committees and subcommittees Waters does not serve on, and lists an address for a district office that has been closed for nearly a decade. Waters filed a complaint about the tweeted letter with the House general counsel, who forwarded the complaint to the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California and the fraud section of the Criminal Division for the United States Department of Justice. The complaint states that Waters has not communicated with the letters purported addressee  Teri Williams, who is president and chief operating officer of the Los Angeles-based OneUnited Bank, about any refugee resettlement program. Impersonating a federal official and misusing a federal seal are federal crimes. Navarro, who is backed by big name far-right conservatives, said Thursday that the letter was sent to his campaign through Facebook by a person he didnt know. He said neither the Justice Department or Waters staff has asked him about the letter. I dont know if its real or not, so I put it out there, Navarro said, adding that he believed his followers would help him determine if it is real. It doesnt say that I know. Its according to this document  what, am I supposed to send it to her and get an email back from Maxine? According to this document, Maxine Waters wants more terrorists, like the one who bombed NYC, in Californias 43rd District.

As Congressman of CAs 43rd District, I will oppose such policies. #VoteNavarro2018https://t.co/vO8YUsyPp3 pic.twitter.com/k7ef0H20if  Omar Navarro (@RealOmarNavarro) December 11, 2017 Facebook

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Sen. Tony Mendoza refuses to take a leave of absence amid harassment probe By Patrick McGreevy Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia), left, talks earlier this year about a pending bill with Sen. Ted Gaines (R-El Dorado Hills). (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Defying pressure from legislative leadership, state Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) refused Thursday to take a leave of absence until an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against him is concluded early next year. Mendoza has denied allegations by former employees that he treated three female aides inappropriately, inviting them to hotel stays and asking one to visit his home to work on her resume. I am very disappointed that certain Senate Rules Committee members are apparently asking me to take a leave of absence or resign before any investigation has even begun and without giving me an opportunity to defend myself, Mendoza said in a statement. This is contrary to the very concept of due process, which is a pillar of our American system of fairness and judicial prudence. These actions bypass any process in a rush to judgment. Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) earlier Thursday called on Mendoza to take a leave of absence. Mendoza had previously been stripped of his leadership positions, including chairmanship of the Senates committee on banking and insurance. Mendoza questioned statements urging him to step down, saying they leave him concerned about the fairness of the investigation. He also said he has been disappointed that he has been told he cannot publicly address allegations. I was not appointed to the position I hold, but was elected by the voters in my district, he said. I am grateful to the voters in my district and thank them for their trust and their continued support. The Senate owes them an opportunity to hear the truth. I assure them that I will vigorously defend myself to clear my name. Facebook

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State Senate leader asks Sen. Tony Mendoza to take leave of absence amid sexual harassment investigation By Patrick McGreevy (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) State Senate leader Kevin de Leon said Thursday he has strongly suggested that Sen. Tony Mendoza take a leave of absence until the completion of an investigation by outside attorneys into allegations that Mendoza sexually harassed three former aides. Given the severity of the allegations against Senator Mendoza I do not believe he can perform the duties in Sacramento right now while the investigation is being conducted, De Leon told a packed news conference in his Capitol office. I believe Its the right thing to do, its the fair thing to do, to take a leave, he said. The Senate leader also said the outside attorneys have been asked to investigate complaints by former Assemblywoman Linda Halderman that Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Los Angeles) inappropriately hugged her on multiple occasions in a way that made her uncomfortable, even after she asked him to stop. De Leon also announced the hiring of two law firms to handle the Mendoza and Hertzberg investigations, and all future probes of harassment and abuse involving Senate employees. Mendoza, a Democrat from Artesia, did not immediately respond to the request to step aside. De Leon, a Democrat from Los Angeles who had been Mendozas roommate before the allegations were made public, said he made the suggestion to Mendoza in a meeting Thursday morning. If Mendoza refuses to take a leave, the Senate has the power to suspend him without pay, but De Leon said that is not currently under discussion. There is an effort underway to force his expulsion in January when the Legislature returns to Sacramento. Former Mendoza employees have claimed that he gave inappropriate attention to a female fellow and intern, inviting one to his home and hotel and giving the other alcohol in a hotel even though she was underage. Another former female aide told the Sacramento Bee that Mendoza invited her to one-on-one dinners and a weekend at Pebble Beach. Mendoza has denied the allegations. The Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher and Van Dermyden Maddux law firms have been retained for two years, according to Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles), who participated in their selection. Have you experienced sexual harassment in government or politics? Tell us your story   In addition, the state is contracting with Weave, a Sacramento crisis-intervention organization for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, to provide counseling and to establish a hotline for Senate employees who are victims of sexual assault. The hotline number is 1-800-729-1443. America is finally reckoning with entrenched inequities in our personal and professional relationships and in workplaces of every type, De Leon said. Nowhere is this reckoning more important than in the halls of power  our political institutions. Facebook

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Watch live: California Senate leader addresses sexual misconduct at state Capitol Facebook

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California state senator pledges to bring back net neutrality rules just as FCC votes to repeal them By Jazmine Ulloa Demonstrators rally in support of net neutrality outside a Verizon store in New York on Dec. 7. (Mary Altaffer / Associated Press) Moments after the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted to roll back net neutrality regulations, a state senator pledged to introduce legislation that would preserve open internet protections for consumers in California. Net neutrality is essential to our 21st century democracy, and we need to be sure that people can access websites and information freely and fairly, Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) said in a statement. If the FCC is going to destroy net neutrality and create a system that favors certain websites just because they can pay more money, California must step in and ensure open internet access. The announcement of the proposal came shortly after the FCC voted to repeal net neutrality in an expected 3-2 party-line vote, with Republicans calling for an end to the utility-like oversight of internet service providers. The Obama-era rules put in February 2015 barred broadband and wireless companies, such at AT&T Inc., Charter Communications Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. from selling faster delivery of certain data, slowing speeds for certain video streams and other content, and discriminating against legal material online. Before the vote, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai argued loosening the regulations would allow the online economy to flourish. FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, one of the the two Democrats on the commission, said the rollback would inhibit the openness that has made the U.S. internet the envy of the world. Supporters of net neutrality are expected to file suit to try to halt the repeal plan. Weiners attempt to institute net neutrality rules in California could have challenges. The FCC order states that allowing state and local governments to adopt their own separate requirements, which could impose a heavier burden on companies, could disrupt the balance between state and federal regulations. The preemption of state and local net neutrality measures is something that could be challenged in court. Amid such legal battles state legislation could face heavy lobbying efforts from internet providers arguing against uneven regulations. A bill by Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park) was shelved last legislative session over similar disputes. It would have enshrined in state law other FCC regulations that were rolled back this year by President Trump and Congress. The Internet privacy rules limited what broadband providers can do with their customers data. The bills defeat capped a behind-the-scenes battle that pitted telecom companies against state internet service providers and brought other bills to a halt in the state Senate as negotiations unfolded over legislation that would have had national significance. UPDATES 7:57 a.m.: This post was updated with additional information about the potential legal case. LA Times reporter Jim Puzzanghera contributed to this report. Facebook

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L.A. County sheriffs office failed to follow policy for issuing concealed weapon permits, audit says By Patrick McGreevy Handguns are displayed at the Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas in 2016. ( (John Locher / Associated Press)) The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department has repeatedly failed to follow its own rules for issuing concealed weapon permits, the state auditor concluded in a report released Thursday. L.A. County Sheriff Jim McDonnell disputed some of the key findings of the audit, saying state officials misinterpreted the policy. The department policy requires applicants to provide convincing evidence of a clear and present danger to life or of great bodily harm to get a license, but the audit found the department issued 24 licenses during the last few years without sufficient evidence. Most of the 197 active licenses in L.A. County as of August went to current or former law enforcement officers, judges and prosecutors, the audit found. The lieutenant in charge of reviewing applications told auditors that people in law enforcement satisfy the departments requirements by the nature of their jobs. However, making that decision based solely on the applicants profession both directly contradicts Los Angeless written policy  which specifically states that no position or job classification in itself shall constitute good cause for issuance  and has led the department to treat applicants inequitably based on their occupations, the audit says. McDonnell said the audit identified some legitimate issues, and the department has added a checklist to the application process in order to show requirements have been met. But he disagreed on the reports sweeping conclusion that the department consistently failed to follow its own policies. The LASD policy simply requires that the applicant provide convincing evidence that his or her life or physical safety is threatened, the sheriff said. He said the policy does not require additional documentation of that evidence if sufficient information is provided in the application. Auditors also concluded that Sacramento County issued some licenses without proper documentation and that San Diego Countys renewal process led it to inappropriately renew some licenses. Facebook

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Anti-Issa effort discloses donors: Leo DiCaprio, Jane Fonda, Ted Danson and more By Joshua Stewart A political group that has brought professional political organizers into the campaign against Rep. Darrell Issa has received its most significant contributions to date  from actress Jane Fonda and other celebrities. Fonda gave $100,000 to Flip the 49th! Neighbors in Action, which recently registered as a political committee to get Issa, R-Vista, out of office. Comedian Bill Maher gave $15,000 to the group, a rebuke of a politician who has twice appeared on his talk show. Former California Sen. Barbara Boxer gave $2,500, as did Academy Award recipient Leonardo DiCaprio. Actor Ted Danson gave $1,500. Flip the 49th gave the The San Diego Union-Tribune a list of donors more than a month before its required to disclose them to the Federal Election Commission. Read More Facebook

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California Senate GOP leader: Release Capitol whistleblowers from non-disclosure agreements By Melanie Mason California Senate Republican leader Patricia Bates is wading into the sexual harassment debate that has swept up the Capitol and is calling on her Democratic colleagues to allow whistleblowers to speak out by releasing them from non-disclosure agreements. Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) wrote in a letter to the Democratic legislative leaders  Senate Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount)  that Senate Republicans are calling for the Legislature to allow victims or witnesses who may have signed such agreements to share their experiences publicly. This release from NDAs would empower victims of sexual harassment, create a new atmosphere for resolving sexual harassment or discrimination concerns, increase public awareness and transparency, and ensure that both the Senate and the Assembly fulfill their obligations to the public and their employees for providing a safe and welcoming workplace environment, Bates wrote in the letter, dated Dec. 12. The Republican senator also laid out suggestions to improve the Legislatures handling of sexual harassment complaints, such as jointly convening both houses rules committees  which act as the chambers human resources departments  to have a comprehensive, bicameral and bipartisan review. Bates wrote that the Joint Rules Committee should consider the assigning of an outside entity for assuming responsibility for all issues regarding sexual harassment. She said the California Highway Patrol or an inspector general could serve that function. Bates is currently serving on a panel designated by the Senate Rules Committee to select an outside law firm to investigate sexual harassment complaints. De Leon, in a statement, said he agreed with Bates that sexual harassment is a bipartisan, bicameral problem that requires bipartisan, bicameral solutions. Many of these recommendations we are already pursuing and evaluating in some form and we look forward to working in collaboration with Senator Bates  as we did with the independent selection panel  on additional reforms in the weeks to come, De Leon said. With regard to non-disclosure agreements, De Leon spokesman Jonathan Underland said the Senate is discussing with attorneys and anti-harassment experts about what options are available without violating the privacy rights of past victims. John Casey, a spokesman for Rendon, said the Assembly does not ask for NDAs in settlement agreements. The Speaker agrees with both the Legislative Womens Caucus and the Rules Committee chair that any sexual harassment policy should be both bicameral and bipartisan, Casey said. Facebook

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California plans to send out licenses for pot sales this month  but they wont be effective until Jan. 1 By Patrick McGreevy Patrons shop at Bud and Bloom, a Santa Ana marijuana dispensary, last year. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) California officials said Wednesday they plan to use email before the new year to send out some licenses to sell marijuana to speed up the transition to a regulated market. The licenses will not go into effect until Jan. 1. Proposition 64, which legalized the sale of marijuana for recreational use, required the state to begin issuing licenses by Jan. 1. Because that date is a state holiday, the bureau originally planned to begin sending them out on Jan. 2. That has changed. Much of the date discussion  Jan. 1 versus Jan. 2  was based on whether or not wed be able to be open on a state holiday, said Alex Traverso, a bureau spokesman. The solution to that issue was to issue licenses with an effective date of Jan. 1 since licenses will be issued electronically. That eliminates the need to have the office open on Jan. 1. He said that, as of Wednesday, the bureau has not yet sent out any emails with licenses approved to begin operating Jan. 1. Facebook

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Californias budget director makes last ditch effort to urge GOP members to vote against tax plan By Sarah D. Wire House Republicans hold a news conference after the House passed the GOP tax bill. (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press) As closed-door negotiations over the final tax bill come to an end, the head of the California Department of Finance is making a last-ditch effort to convince Republicans in the states congressional delegation to vote against the plan. In a letter to the entire delegation Wednesday, Finance Department Director Michael Cohen detailed 10 issues in the current tax proposals about which the state is worried. Some of Cohens concerns may be addressed in the deal that House and Senate leaders said they reached Wednesday morning. Details of the agreement are not yet public. Cohens concerns range from potentially billions less in federal funding available to California to offset the $1.4 trillion the plan is expected to add to the federal deficit, to the environmental effect of ending green energy tax credits. Californias 39 Democratic representatives are expected to oppose the final tax bill, which could come before both chambers of Congress by early next week. Three California Republicans  Reps. Darrell Issa of Vista, Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa and Tom McClintock of Elk Grove  voted against the original House version, and several other California Republicans have indicated they might be willing to vote against the final plan. Cohen specifically pointed to issues that have been raised by the uncertain House members, including the proposal to lower the cap on the mortgage interest deduction, the plan to limit state and local tax deductions and the elimination of a deduction for uninsured personal property damaged in natural disasters such as fires. Facebook

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California lawmakers have fought sexual misconduct on military bases, farms and college campuses. Will they police their own house? By Jazmine Ulloa Over the past decade, California lawmakers have worked to help curb sexual violence in the workplace and other spheres of public life. They have pushed college campuses to keep better track of incident reports, created whistleblower protections for military officers who file claims and established sexual harassment training for farmworkers and janitors. Now, as more than 140 women have come forward in an open letter to denounce a pervasive culture of sexual harassment in the California Legislature, activists and employment lawyers say lawmakers have not held colleagues and staffers to the same standards demanded of those in other fields. Members [of the state Assembly and Senate] are quick at pointing the finger at other folks, said Fiona Ma, a former Democratic assemblywoman from San Francisco who is now running for state treasurer. But they dont want to look inside and fix their own house, air their own dark, dirty laundry. Read More Facebook

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Californias cap-and-trade climate program could generate more than $8 billion by 2027, report says By John Myers Gov. Jerry Brown signs an extension of Californias cap-and-trade program in July. (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) Although Californias cap-and-trade program was designed to combat climate change, a new analysis predicts it could also provide significant cash  as much as $8 billion in a decades time  for state and regional programs. The report issued Tuesday by the independent Legislative Analysts Office projects a wide range of revenue generated by the sale of permits for companies to emit greenhouse gases beyond a state-ordered emissions cap. The most recent auction of those emission permits brought in more than $800 million. The analysis warns that annual cap-and-trade revenue beyond 2020 is highly uncertain, and offers a possible range from $2 billion in 2018 to almost $7 billion in 2030  the final year of the program under legislation Gov. Jerry Brown signed in July. The estimate of $8.3 billion in 2027 is the high-water mark for any year in the report. Researchers cite a number of factors that make a specific prediction impossible, including future technology that allows industries to cut greenhouse gas emissions easily and thus pass on purchasing emission allowances. While it is clear that there will be additional revenues to the state beyond 2020, the amount that will be generated annually is highly uncertain, the report reads. Money collected from the sale of pollution permits is required to be spent on programs combating climate change. A portion of the money also is earmarked for the states high-speed rail program. The report urges lawmakers to provide oversight for future decisions made by the California Air Resources Board, the agency that has taken the lead on climate change efforts. In particular, the analysts warn that allowing businesses to stockpile too many permits  ones bought at current low prices  could lead to excessive greenhouse gas emissions in future years, potentially even causing the state to miss its annual benchmark as soon as 2024. Facebook

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Vice President Pence meets with California lawmakers about massive fires By Sarah D. Wire Briefed bipartisan group of California reps on the fed response to #CAwildfires. @POTUS approved an emergency declaration last Friday & @forestservice is providing air & ground assets including 1,000 personnel. Together, we will help the people of CA restore, rebuild & recover. pic.twitter.com/zn7QdbCZOQ  Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) December 12, 2017 A handful of California representatives discussed the federal response to their states wildfires Tuesday with Vice President Mike Pence. Attending the West Wing meeting were House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) and Reps. Ken Calvert (R-Corona), Darrell Issa (R-Vista), Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village), Steve Knight (R-Palmdale) and Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara). It was a very bipartisan-spirited meeting. He clearly understood the significance of the fires and the impacts, Brownley said after the meeting. She said Pence offered federal assistance and recognized that recovery was going to be very important and that we want to work together to make sure that we can get the resources needed. President Trump signed an emergency declaration for the Southern California fires last week. Pence visited California this fall to view fire damage in Northern California. He stayed engaged and specifically wanted to make sure that FEMA and the other organizations were continuing to meet or exceed all expectations, Issa said after the meeting. We mostly thanked him for the fact that hes taken a personal interest and his team has been at the heart of the domestic coordination. There was no discussion about reinstating a federal tax deduction for uninsured damage repairs that would end up in the House and Senate tax bills, Brownley said. If you cant deduct uninsured property loss, its devastating. It would be devastating, Brownley said. Facebook

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We must talk about the health aspects of climate change, Schwarzenegger says in Paris By Kim Willsher (Thibault Camus / Associated Press) He showed up at Paris City Hall on Monday on a green bicycle and wearing a green tie to talk climate change with the mayor. But Arnold Schwarzenegger almost didnt make the trip from Los Angeles. One of the wildfires scorching Southern California was threatening his home. Luckily we have extraordinary firefighters, he told a group of officials and journalists. The actor and former governor of California was speaking in Paris as the founder of R20, a nonprofit based in Geneva that aims to help regional, state and local governments reduce their carbon emissions by developing clean energy sources. Read More Facebook

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A special recall election for state Sen. Josh Newman would cost a lot more than waiting for the June primary, state says By Patrick McGreevy State Sen. Josh Newman (D-Fullerton) faces a recall campaign (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)) State finance officials said Monday it would cost about $2.67 million for a special election on the recall of state Sen. Josh Newman (D-Fullerton), but only $931,000 to put his potential recall on the regular June primary ballot, which will also feature races for governor and congressional seats. The savings  and the time it took to complete the financial assessment  could give ammunition to Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown to put the recall measure on the primary ballot, possibly improving Newmans chance of staying in office. The higher turnout expected in the primary might benefit Newman as he tries to fend off the Republican recall drive. The financial analysis was a new requirement of a law approved this year by the Democrat-controlled Legislature that has slowed the Newman recall. Brown and legislators now have 30 days to review the election cost report. The deadline for calling a special election was last week, 180 days before the June 5 primary, although state officials have been known to extend such deadlines. In this case, that is unlikely. Carl Demaio, a former San Diego City councilman who is leading the Republican-funded recall, denounced the lengthy new process Monday, but said it will not save Newmans political career. This is about a shameful tactic by Sacramento politicians to keep politicians who break public trust and engage in misconduct in office for as long as possible, he said. Republicans launched the recall after Newman voted with the majority of le
Two minutes into Sundays invocation, after blessing the sunshine and recent snowfall and its swift melting, the pastor turned to the political contest that has riveted the nations attention on the Deep South.

He asked the Lord to lift up the country, from the White House to City Hall, and asked for deliverance of a new U.S. senator for Alabama who will suit us best and is the one that will meet our needs.

The minister, the Rev. Arthur Price Jr., didnt say who he had in mind. But speaking to a predominantly black congregation in the basement of Birminghams historic 16th Street Baptist Church, he didnt have to.

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Doug Jones, the Democratic candidate in Tuesdays special election, is sure to carry the African American vote in a landslide. To have any shot at winning, however, he needs a robust black turnout to help offset the strong support Republican Roy Moore can expect from Alabamas mostly conservative white electorate.

Charges of sexual misconduct by Moore have turned what should have been a GOP romp into a fiercely competitive race and the campaign into a gothic narrative of lust and recrimination.

In the final hours, though, it was the practical matter of getting voters to the polls that mainly consumed both candidates.

Moore, who has largely gone into hiding since being accused of molesting two teenagers and romantically pursuing other young girls as an adult, relied on a robocall from President Trump and surrogates attacking Jones as a pawn of liberal Democrats in Washington.

Jeremiah Chapman prays during a 16th Street Baptist Church service Sunday in Birmingham, Ala. (Brynn Anderson / Associated Press )

In an interview broadcast Sunday, he again denied the allegations.

Jones focused on motivating African American voters, the bedrock of the Democratic Party in the South and more than a quarter of Alabamas population.

Here, as elsewhere, they have shown less inclination to vote when Barack Obama is not on the ballot. But there are reasons, Democrats hope, for greater enthusiasm Tuesday: deep animosity toward the president, and the personal histories of the two candidates.

Moore has a long trail of racially provocative words and deeds, and for some African Americans, already inclined to vote Democratic, that offers all the more incentive to turn out.

He only cares about people like himself, said churchgoer Joyce Holloway, 65, who has tried to impress upon her nieces, nephews and black co-workers the importance of Tuesdays vote. He doesnt have any concern for people of different nationalities or different races.

Over the weekend, Jones blitzed through black churches and neighborhoods with an entourage of African American leaders.

On Saturday, it was Selma, where marchers led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. were brutalized in 1965 as they crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in a bid to secure black voting rights.

Im here to try to get some folks woke, said New Jerseys African American senator, Cory Booker, who campaigned along with Massachusetts black former governor, Deval Patrick.

On Sunday, Booker joined Jones for a second day, addressing workers at a crowded campaign office in downtown Birmingham and calling Tuesdays vote, with no shortage of drama, One of the most consequential races in this nation in my lifetime.

In a further boost, former President Obama and his vice president, Joe Biden, recorded robocalls on the Democrats behalf.

This ones serious. You cant sit it out, Obama said in the call, first reported Monday by CNN. Doug Jones is a fighter for equality, for progress. Doug will be our champion for justice. So get out and vote, Alabama.

Jones, 63, and Moore, 70, are vying to fill the seat vacated by Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions and held, for now, by Republican Luther Strange, who lost to Moore in Septembers GOP primary.

Jones is greatly esteemed in the African American community. As a U.S. attorney, he successfully prosecuted two Ku Klux Klansmen decades after the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street church, which killed four girls in one of the most infamous attacks of the civil rights movement. He is celebrated in a display across the street at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.

Democratic senatorial candidate Doug Jones, left, campaigns with Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in Birmingham. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images )

But the odd timing of the election and the atrophy of Alabamas Democratic Party  which hasnt won a major statewide race in over a decade  has some fretting Jones jury-rigged get-out-the-vote drive, a combination of campaign and volunteer efforts, may be too little too late.

They complain Jones has stinted on issue-oriented advertising aimed at black voters, focusing too much on potential crossover Republicans who may be put off by Moores alleged misconduct and feud with the GOP establishment.

Faya Toure is a longtime Selma voting rights activist and coordinator of Vote or Die, an independent group working on Jones behalf.

Its not enough to say he prosecuted Klansmen, Toure said. Thats a very honorable and courageous thing he did, but that was 30-some years ago. People want to know what are you going to do for me now?

Jones also drew criticism for a recent mailer picturing a young African American with eyebrow cocked and text reading, Think if a black man went after high school girls anyone would make him a senator?

The unstated, though obvious, reference to Moore struck some as offensive and off-key. Maybe we couldve used a little bit different language, Jones said in a SiriusXM interview, but he stuck by the mailers essence. I think it speaks for itself.

Another factor that could determine black turnout is, inevitably, Trump.

Democratic participation has surged in races across the country this year  even in elections they lost  and Jones is counting on the pattern holding true again Tuesday.

Fred Hutchinson suggested Trump was the reason he sat Sunday morning on a metal folding chair in the 16th Street church basement, a temporary sanctuary while renovations were underway upstairs.

Hutchinson works in the public schools outside Washington and knows Diane Braddock, a former principal, whose 14-year-old sister, Carole Robertson, died in the 1963 bombing.

Over the last couple of years politics in this country has taken a decided turn for the worse, said Hutchinson, 63, who flew down to Birmingham for the weekend with two friends to telephone prospective Jones voters and urge them to the polls.

That requires people to put in a little more effort than they mightve before, if were going to put the brakes on things.

At the lectern, Price invoked the civil rights movement, the churchs tragic history, the lives lost, the tears and sweat and blood shed to secure a voice for black people at the ballot box.

We dare not stay home, he said.

We must make sure we get out the vote on Tuesday, he said. Amen?

Amen, the worshipers responded.

Barabak reported from Birmingham, Ala., and Finnegan from Los Angeles.

mark.barabak@latimes.com

Twitter: @markzbarabak

michael.finnegan@latimes.com

Twitter: @finneganLAT

ALSO

In Alabama Senate race, Republicans fear losing even if Roy Moore wins

Roy Moore dismisses sexual misconduct allegations as ritual defamation

Spread the swamp? Trump wants some offices moved out of Washington

UPDATES:

10:55 a.m. This article was updated with former Vice President Joe Biden recording a robocall for Jones.

Dec. 11, 7:10 a.m. This article was updated with former President Obama recording a robocall for Democrat Doug Jones.

This article was originally published Dec. 10 at 6:50 p.m.
The ghost of Justice Antonin Scalia often hangs over the Supreme Court, perhaps never more so than as the justices struggle with the case of the Christian baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex marriage.

Scalia often spoke of his strong Catholic faith. But he also believed the courts should not grant religious exemptions to the laws that everyone must follow.

A persons right to religious freedom does not excuse him from compliance with an otherwise valid law, Scalia wrote in 1990 for a 5-4 majority that included then-new Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. The political process, not courts, should decide such questions, he said. Although some religious claims may fail, he wrote, that unavoidable consequence of democratic government must be preferred to a system in which each conscience is a law unto itself.

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Scalias words and views are revered, especially on the right, but his 1990 opinion looms uncomfortably over the court these days as conservative Christians seek a religious exemption from anti-discrimination laws adopted in liberal states.

Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop near Denver, went to court seeking an exemption from a Colorado civil rights law that requires public businesses to serve all customers. The federal Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination based on race, gender, religion and nationality but not sexual orientation. Only 20 states have joined Colorado in extending anti-discrimination protection to gays and lesbians. No state in the South has adopted such a law.

Phillips says he believes that the Bible restricts marriage to a man and a woman and that it would be sinful for him to help celebrate the marriage of two men by making them a custom wedding cake.

But in his long legal battle, his lawyers have been obliged to argue his case as mostly about the freedom of speech and expressive conduct. They described him as a cake artist, rather like a painter or a sculptor. This would be so even if he were making a plain white cake with no words or symbols, they argued.

During Tuesdays argument, the liberal justices said that claim sounds both farfetched and without limits. If a cake maker is engaged in expressive conduct, why not a dress designer, a hairstylist, a chef, an architect or a makeup artist? they asked. The examples were endless. We would cause chaos and undermine every civil rights law if the court buys that argument, Justice Stephen G. Breyer said.

When the states lawyer rose to defend the law, the argument shifted abruptly, and the courts conservatives, led by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., focused on religion.

Roberts asked about the Catholic Legal Services: If it offers free legal help, could it be required to help arrange a same-sex marriage? Alito wondered whether Colorado could compel a religious college to provide married student housing for a married same-sex couple. By their questions and comments, the courts conservatives made clear they believe it is wrong for the government to force a believer to violate his religious conscience.

Before Scalias 1990 opinion, the high court often granted religious exemptions based on the 1st Amendment protection for the free exercise of religion. The justices had long said the government can and must accommodate believers when possible. Most cases involved minority sects. For example, the court said the Amish may not be forced to send their children to high school, and a Seventh-day Adventist may not be penalized for refusing to work on Saturday.

In the most famous case, the court during World War II said the children of Jehovahs Witnesses may not be forced to salute and pledge their allegiance to the American flag. If the court rules for the Colorado baker, its opinion will probably rely on that case, West Virginia vs. Barnette, because it involved both freedom of expression and freedom of religion.

Since the 1990s, however, when Scalia was skeptical of religious exemptions, the ideological sides have shifted. Then, the courts three staunch liberals  Justices William Brennan, Thurgood Marshall and Harry Blackmun  dissented from the ruling in Employment Division vs. Smith, calling Scalias opinion a wholesale overturning of settled law for protecting religious freedom. The case before the court arose when two Native Americans were fired for having used peyote during a religious ceremony. State officials said peyote was classified as an illegal drug, and the liberal justices said it could be viewed like communal wine in church.

These days, by contrast, conservatives including President Trump see religious liberty as being under constant threat, and they have called for more legal protection for Christians who object to government policies. The administration joined in support of the Colorado baker. And now, it is the liberals who worry whether people can invoke their personal religious beliefs as grounds for voiding a civil rights law that regulates a public business.

Despite the shift in political thinking, Scalias opinion stills stands, and it has shaped the law on religious freedom. Congress tried to overturn the ruling in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 1993. Adopted on a nearly unanimous vote, it said the government shall not substantially burden a persons exercise of religion.

But the court, with Kennedy and Scalia again in the lead, struck back in 1997 and ruled the religious freedom law may not be enforced against states and cities. In a case called City of Boerne vs. Flores, they said Congress did not have the power to expand the free exercise of religion and apply it to the states.

The federal law remained on the books, however, and resurfaced when conservatives sued to challenge the Obama administrations Affordable Care Act rule requiring employers to provide a full range of contraceptives as part of their health coverage. In Burwell vs. Hobby Lobby Stores, the court ruled in 2014 the owners of the chain of crafts stores were entitled to a religious freedom exemption from the contraceptive rule based on the 1993 federal law. The 5-4 vote found Kennedy and Scalia in the majority.

In recent years, as same-sex marriages became legal, lawyers for the Alliance Defending Freedom went to court seeking exemptions for some Christian conservatives. They sued on behalf of a wedding photographer in New Mexico, a florist in Washington and the baker in Colorado. But they could not simply argue for a religious exemption under the 1st Amendment or under federal law because they were blocked by the pair of Scalias rulings from the 1990s.

The Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from the wedding photographer in 2014. But in June, two months after Justice Neil M. Gorsuch filled the seat left vacant by Scalia, the court agreed to hear the bakers case.

Kennedy sounded torn on what to do now. At first, he said it would be an affront to the gay community and could encourage businesses to boycott gay marriages if the court rules for the Colorado baker.

But 30 minutes later, Kennedy seemed open to doing just that. He said some Colorado officials displayed hostility to religion. And accommodation is quite possible, he said. There were other good bakery shops that were available to the gay couple seeking a wedding cake, he said.

When Kennedy pressed on, a lawyer for American Civil Liberties Union answered with a surprising twist. What if the Christian baker had to attend that wedding and help cut the cake? Kennedy asked.

Thats not at issue here, said the ACLUs David Cole. However, in a future case that involved physical participation in a religious ceremony that an individual deeply opposed, the court might create a new doctrine not governed by Smith, he said, referring to Scalias 1990 opinion. The court may want to say that compelling somebody to engage in a religious ceremony violates their rights to the free exercise of religion, he said.

The chief justice quickly intervened. Is that a modification of Smith? he asked. It sounds like an overruling of Smith.

The exchange suggested the justices are not ready to reconsider their precedents on religion and instead will split 5-4 on the odd question of whether making a wedding cake involves protected free speech.

david.savage@latimes.com

On Twitter: DavidGSavage
Lets not beat around the bush: No matter where you live, the election of a new United States senator from Alabama on Tuesday will mark a significant moment for the politics of the nation.

And thats saying something in a year in which there have been so many notable markers, almost too many to count.

Lets begin with what it might mean for the Republican brand.

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THE REPUBLICAN DILEMMA

Mark Z. Barabak sums it up nicely in his latest dispatch from Birmingham:

Either voters will elect a Democratic U.S. senator from one of the most deeply conservative states in the country, slicing the GOPs slender majority to a bare 51 to 49; or the Republican Party will seat Roy Moore, an accused sexual predator with a history of outlandish statements who, if Democrats have their way, will effectively serve as running mate for every Republican seeking office in 2018.

Democrat Doug Jones would be an afterthought in the deep red state were it not for a months worth of troubling stories about Moores personal past. Even Alabamas senior senator offered a viewpoint that could scarcely be imagined when talking about his partys nominee.

I think the Republican Party can do better, Sen. Richard Shelby said on Sunday.

Moore, who ended last week by calling one of his accusers a liar over the inscription in her high school yearbook, called all of the allegations made against him a ritual defamation during an Alabama interview on Sunday. Then there were new questions about September comments on when families were united  even though we had slavery.

And President Trumps role in the outcome  be it a boast or an excuse  will also be worth watching, after his Friday rally in support of Moore in nearby Pensacola, Fla.

Keep an eye on our Essential Washington news feed for the latest, and for updates once returns come in on Tuesday night.

LIGHTNING ROUND: NATIONAL POLITICS

-- The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said on Sunday that Trumps decision to declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel was courageous.

-- That wasnt how the nations European allies saw the decision, and they gave Secretary of State Rex Tillerson an earful about it.

-- The weekend was quieter than it could have been under a government shutdown, after Republicans in both houses passed a stopgap funding measure.

-- And with that crisis averted for the time being, Trump went back to demanding a wall on the Mexico border.

-- The president took to Twitter over the weekend to bash an error made by CNN on Friday, when the network wrongly reported that Donald Trump Jr. may have been notified about hacked emails obtained by Wikileaks before they were publicly released.

-- President Trump was in Mississippi on Saturday to attend the opening of a new civil rights museum as his presence sparked a boycott by lawmakers, civil rights icons and protesters who questioned his commitment to racial equality.

DABABNEH TO RESIGN AFTER ACCUSATIONS

Four days after a Sacramento lobbyist said Assemblyman Matt Dababneh (D-Woodland Hills) was the lawmaker in a shocking allegation she made this fall about sexual misconduct, he announced that he will resign at the end of the month.

Dababneh maintained the accusations are false.

As we battle for change, we must remember that due process exists for a reason, he wrote in his resignation letter. We should never fight injustice with injustice.

Meanwhile, the attorney for the lobbyist who made the accusation wants the Assembly to detail how the investigation into her clients sexual misconduct claim will be conducted.

POLITICAL ROAD MAP: WHATS IN A TITLE?

In my Political Road Map column, we take a closer look at one of the more hotly debated elements of any campaign  one thats only three words long.

The ballot description a candidate uses can be the last (and in local races, the only) thing voters know about the person running for an office. Two hopefuls in the race for governor held powerful jobs in the past, but they cant use those titles.

And some incumbents do everything they can not to be viewed as, gasp, a politician.

TODAYS ESSENTIALS

-- The planet is warming and all hell is breaking loose, said Gov. Jerry Brown in a Sunday national TV interview before flying to Paris for a climate change event.

-- George Skelton takes the pulse of Californias two marquee contests for 2018, the races for governor and U.S. Senate, and finds five conclusions he sees as simple truths.

-- On this weeks California Politics Podcast, we discuss the selection of state Sen. Toni Atkins as the next leader of the Senate and dive deeper into the latest Sacramento news when it comes to the reckoning over sexual misconduct.

-- Just weeks before California begins issuing licenses to businesses to sell marijuana for recreational and medical use, the state on Friday began accepting applications electronically through an online system.

-- Californias landmark law to require new disclosure of prescription drug prices was challenged in federal court Friday, with the pharmaceutical industry accusing state officials of trying to dictate national healthcare policy.

-- GOP members in California got a lot of feedback from constituents and activists last week over the Republican tax proposal. Graduate students at UC Irvine met with Dave Min, a Democrat challenging Rep. Mimi Walters, to talk about how changes to deductions could affect them. Outside Rep. Ed Royces district office in Brea, protesters wore top hats and sported monocles to criticize the bill as a giveaway to the rich.

-- As California burns, Congress is planning to limit taxpayers ability to write off losses from future wildfires and other disasters. The disaster write-off is one of the many little-known deductions set to be mostly wiped out in the GOP tax plan, but its getting fresh attention because of the fires that have devastated parts of Southern California over the last week.

-- Treasurer John Chiang says if hes elected governor, hell tackle the states housing affordability crisis by spending billions more on low-income development and offering greater financial incentives to cities that permit new building.

-- A liberal political group has waded into the 2018 primary early, endorsing challengers in four Republican-held congressional districts.

LOGISTICS

Essential Politics is published Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

You can keep up with breaking news on our politics page throughout the day. And are you following us on Twitter at @latimespolitics?

Miss Wednesdays newsletter? Here you go.

Please send thoughts, concerns and news tips to politics@latimes.com.

Did someone forward you this? Sign up here to get Essential Politics in your inbox.

john.myers@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter at @johnmyers and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast
Its still early in the 2018 races for California governor and U.S. Senate, but already we know five things:

 In this stormy, polarized political climate, Republicans arent likely to vote for a Democrat even if there isnt a strong GOP candidate on the ballot.

 So the original theory behind Democratic state Treasurer John Chiangs candidacy for governor that he could attract business-minded Republicans just isnt working out.

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 Democratic state Senate leader Kevin de Leons challenge of centrist U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein is drawing some GOP support, but that cant last if Republicans ever learn about the tenacious liberal.

 Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom always has been the front-runner for governor and still is, but former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is inching up and making the race competitive.

 Feinstein is running far ahead in her bid for a fifth full term as the relatively unknown, underfunded De Leons attempt to attract Berniecrats falls flat.

The June 5 primary election will select the top two vote getters in each race, regardless of party, and advance them to a Nov. 6 runoff.

What we know now comes from public opinion polls. The most recent one was released Nov. 30 by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California.

It showed that among likely voters, Newsom led the gubernatorial contest with 23%, followed by Villaraigosa at 18%. Then came Chiang and Republican businessman John Cox, both at 9%. After that was Republican Assemblyman Travis Allen of Huntington Beach, 6%, and Democratic former state schools chief Delaine Eastin, 3%. Nearly a third of the likely voters hadnt decided.

In the Senate race, Feinstein was outrunning fellow Democrat De Leon by 45% to 21%. A third were undecided.

A month earlier, a USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll found Newsom leading Villaraigosa by 10 percentage points.

Chiangs camp disputes the PPIC findings, saying its own private poll in October used a narrower, more realistic definition of a likely voter. And in that survey, Chiang trailed Villaraigosa by only 2 points. But Newsom had an even larger lead, 14 points.

The public polls are neutral and accessible, so I go with them.

What stood out in the PPIC survey was Villaraigosa creeping up on Newsom. Villaraigosa, 64, is also a former Assembly speaker and Newsom, 50, made his political name as San Francisco mayor.

Villaraigosas hopes largely depend on whether Latinos finally turn out to vote in decent numbers. Theyve been under-voting in California for decades. But President Trumps determination to build a border wall and escalate the deportation of immigrants without documentation affects relatives and friends of many unnerved Latino citizens. And they just might be motivated to vote next year.

Therell also be Latinos running in most other statewide races.

Villaraigosa would be the first Latino in history to be elected California governor. One Latino, Romualdo Pacheco, served for a few months in 1875 after ascending from lieutenant governor when the governor, Newton Booth, was elected to the U.S. Senate.

In the PPIC poll, Latinos favored Villaraigosa over Newsom by 42% to 11%.

Latinos werent helping De Leon much in the Senate race, however. They backed Feinstein 48% to 26%. Nearly half of Latino voters drew a blank on De Leon.

The challenge for De Leon is the fact that although he has held a very powerful position in Sacramento, voters say theyve never heard of him, says Mark Baldassare, the PPIC president and pollster. How do you get known in this climate?

With money. And De Leon doesnt have much. Feinstein can raise tons.

But De Leon is getting a boost from Republicans  no doubt because his name isnt Feinstein, a decades-long GOP nemesis. And there arent any GOP candidates running for the Senate. Republicans favored De Leon over Feinstein in the poll by 25% to 18%. But Democrats supported the incumbent senator by 66% to 16%.

Republicans presumably will flee De Leon once they realize he pushed through sanctuary state legislation and has promoted other liberal bills such as tough gun control and state single-payer health insurance.

Those leftist efforts, however, arent attracting Berniecrats. Liberals favored Feinstein 57% to 20%.

In the gubernatorial race, Chiang  selling himself as a good money manager  was supported by only 2% of Republicans. Nearly half of Republicans backed the obscure GOP candidates. And more than a third were undecided.

It could be that the soft-spoken Chiang, 55, lacks the oratorical flair sought by todays agitated voters who are attracted to firebrands.

But in this era, Republicans really dislike most Democrats. And vice versa. The PPIC poll showed that 91% of Republicans have an unfavorable impression of the Democratic Party. And 92% of Democrats feel that way about the GOP.

Baldassare found little public interest in the gubernatorial race, compared with the last time the office was being vacated in 2010. Only 25% of likely voters were paying attention to who might succeed Gov. Jerry Brown. But 43% were following the race when Brown ran for his third term.

Their attention has been diverted to Washington, the pollster says.

He also wonders whether voters will be turned off from voting by all the sexual harassment scandals in politics.

I dont know about that. But I do think it will be even tougher than usual for little-known candidates to be heard over all the roaring from Washington and accusations of sexual misbehavior.

More from George Skelton 

Coverage of California politics 

george.skelton@latimes.com

Follow @LATimesSkelton on Twitter

ALSO

Why you should believe women in politics who speak out about sexual misconduct

Wheres your money really going when you donate to charity? Do your research

Its time to unmask abusers in the Legislature and hit them where it hurts  their pocketbooks and careers
Wait  did the president really say, Mission Accomplished? By Marc Olson Some are recalling the last time a president declared Mission accomplished, in May 2003 when George W. Bush was talking about Iraq. (Stephen Jaffe / AFP/Getty Images) President Trump on Saturday morning thanked his allies in a tweet that declared the airstrikes on Syria perfectly executed, but he might have wished hed stopped there. Instead, he ended his message with the phrase, Mission Accomplished! Thats a line that might have a previous president shaking his head. On May 1, 2003, President George W. Bush declared an end to major combat in Iraq under a Mission Accomplished banner aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. That war, which began in March 2003, grew into a prolonged conflict that didnt end until 2011. In 2008, the White House said it had paid a price for the backdrop. A perfectly executed strike last night. Thank you to France and the United Kingdom for their wisdom and the power of their fine Military. Could not have had a better result. Mission Accomplished!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 14, 2018 Facebook

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Auditor says Pentagon is censoring key data on the war in Afghanistan By Shashank Bengali The Pentagon is blocking the release of data showing how much of Afghanistans territory lies outside government control, censoring a key metric used to gauge progress in the 16-year war, a watchdog agency said Tuesday. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, an auditing agency established by Congress, said in its latest report that the Pentagon instructed it not to release unclassified data on how many districts and people are controlled or influenced by insurgent groups. This is the first time SIGAR has been specifically instructed not to release information marked unclassified to the American taxpayer, the head of the agency, John F. Sopko, wrote in a letter. Sopko also said the U.S.-led military coalition, for the first time since 2009, classified information about the size and attrition rates of the Afghan security forces, important indicators of progress in building up army and police forces on which the U.S. already has spent $70 billion since 2002. The decision to withhold more information from congressional oversight and the public comes amid growing violence in Afghanistan and an intensifying combat mission involving a greater number of American troops. Following a series of bombings in Kabul that left at least 136 people dead in 10 days, President Trump signaled on Monday that he was focused on trying to win the conflict militarily, saying, We dont want to talk with the Taliban. But data released by SIGAR since 2015 have shown how the insurgents have gained ground against Afghan security forces. In its previous quarterly report, the watchdog said that only 57% of Afghanistans 407 districts were under Afghan government control or influence as of August 2017, the lowest level of control since it began tracking the statistic in December 2015. The steady decline in government control should cause even more concern about its disappearance from public disclosure and discussion, Sopko wrote. The watchdog also accused the Pentagon of overstating the impact of its efforts to combat drug cultivation and trafficking, among the Talibans main sources of revenue. The Pentagon touted airstrikes that destroyed 25 drug labs in November and December, saying it eliminated nearly $100 million of Taliban revenue. The labs being destroyed are cheap and easy to replace, SIGAR said. According to some estimates, they only take three or four days to replace. Facebook

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Women journalists shunted to rear for Pences visit to Western Wall By Noga Tarnopolsky The view from the womens section. (Noga Tarnopolsky / Los Angeles Times) Vice-President Mike Pences 48-hour visit to Israel stumbled into a public storm Tuesday when female reporters covering his final stop at Jerusalems Western Wall were penned behind four rows of their male colleagues. White House officials told stunned journalists that the arrangement emanated from a request made by the Western Wall rabbi, Shmuel Rabinowitz, and followed Western Wall rules. Some women journalists said they could not recall such treatment in the past. In a statement to Israels Channel 10 news, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation said it was exactly as it was during the visit of the U.S. president to the Western Wall last May. Later in the day, in a statement to the newspaper Haaretz, the foundation blamed the United States embassy in Tel Aviv and Israeli security officials for the segregation, and announced they would reexamine the way they handle such events. Women who covered previous VIP visits said the Pence arrangements were significantly more onerous than previous visits, when male and female journalists were separated but not offered substantially different work conditions. LIVE coverage of our male colleagues granted access to cover VP at Western Wall as we are penned into #PenceFence pic.twitter.com/k3svkxfQsa  Noga Tarnopolsky (@NTarnopolsky) January 23, 2018 The arrangement reflected procedures at the Western Wall, Judaisms holiest site, where on regular days, men have access to two thirds of the area available for prayer. Tal Schneider, the diplomatic analyst for Globes, a financial newspaper, protested that the separation of men and women may be valid for the requirements of Orthodox prayer, but no one is praying here. We are here to work. I dont appreciate being restricted in my ability to work because I am a woman, she said. The discriminatory attitude towards women is infuriating and is unbefitting of a modern country. Yael Freidson, the Jerusalem affairs correspondent for Yediot Ahronot, Israels widest circulation newspaper, said she worried that her editors could choose male colleagues for the next assignment, knowing they would have better access. Before Pence arrived, journalists were herded onto a specially constructed platform in the middle of the Western Walls esplanade, with women guided to the right behind a white fence, and men, many carrying cameras, directed to the left, where they had more than double the space. Towards the end of the vice presidents 10-minute visit, male journalists were permitted into the VIP tent where he received a gift from Rabinowitz, while the women remained in their enclosure. None of the men publicly protested the treatment of their female colleagues. Israels Association of Women Journalists filed a formal complaint with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, herself a woman. Facebook

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Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio, after his pardon from Trump, says hell run for Senate in Arizona By Kurtis Lee (Mary Altaffer / Associated Press) (Mary Altaffer / Associated Press) Former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who last year was pardoned by President Trump in a case stemming from his enforcement tactics aimed at immigrants, announced Tuesday he will run for the open Senate seat in his home state. I am running for the U.S. Senate from the Great State of Arizona, for one unwavering reason: to support the agenda and policies of President Donald Trump in his mission to Make America Great Again, Arpaio, 85, said on Twitter. Hell enter a Republican primary for the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Jeff Flake. Last summer, Trump pardoned Arpaio, who was convicted in July of criminal contempt for violating a federal court order to stop racially profiling Latinos. It was Arpaios roughly quarter-century as sheriff that gave him a national reputation for his tough treatment of people suspected of being in the country illegally. Repeated court rulings against his office for civil rights violations cost local taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. In the early 1990s, Arpaio directed construction of a tent city for immigration detainees, a measure he said was intended both to alleviate overcrowding and to underscore his aggressive enforcement measures. But it was open to the burning Arizona sun, and drew widespread criticism. After Trump entered the presidential race in July 2015, Arpaio invited him to Phoenix to talk about a crackdown on illegal immigration. He endorsed Trump just before the first votes in the Iowa caucuses in 2016 and frequently spoke out on behalf of Trumps campaign. Facebook

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President Trump ends controversial voter fraud commission By Kurtis Lee President Trump signed an executive order late Wednesday ending the voter fraud commission he launched last year as the panel faces a flurry of lawsuits and criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike. Trump signed the order disbanding the commission rather than engage in endless legal battles at taxpayer expense, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement. The Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, created by executive order in May with the stated goal of restoring confidence and integrity in the electoral process, has faced a barrage of lawsuits in recent months over privacy concerns, as the commission sought personal data on voters across the country. Read More Facebook

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Congress returns to work with slimmer GOP majority to accomplish Trumps agenda By Lisa Mascaro Congress returns to work this week with unfinished business on spending, immigration and other crucial issues, but with an even narrower GOP majority that will make it tougher to move on President Trumps agenda. The House and Senate will convene Wednesday, swearing in the newly elected Democratic senator from Alabama, Doug Jones, and Minnesotas Tina Smith to replace a fellow Democrat, Sen. Al Franken, who is resigning as the latest high-profile public figure sidelined by allegations of sexual misconduct. The change gives Republicans only a one-seat margin in the Senate. Trump, fresh off passage of the GOP tax cuts bill, is pushing lawmakers to pivot quickly on his new year priorities of infrastructure investment and immigration, as well as his foreign policy agenda. But another legislative victory seems far off. Republicans have struggled to hold their majority together and Congress first must tackle critical stalled agenda items that leaders punted to 2018. Read More Facebook

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Trump threatens to cut off U.S. aid to Palestinians By Tracy Wilkinson President Trump on Tuesday angrily threatened to cut off U.S. aid to Palestinians as punishment for what he called their failure to show appreciation or respect to the United States. Writing on Twitter, the president compared the Palestinians to Pakistan, a nuclear-armed ally that abruptly drew his ire this week and a similar threat to drastically curtail aid. He accused the Palestinians of recalcitrance in what he described as their refusal to negotiate a peace deal with Israel. Palestinian officials have said they can no longer use Washington as a broker to restart peace talks with Israel following Trumps Dec. 6 decision to overturn decades of U.S. policy and recognize the disputed city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and ultimately to move the U.S. Embassy there. The Palestinians also claim part of Jerusalem as the capital of an eventual independent state. Until now, the United States and most of the world agreed the citys political status was a matter to settle in final peace talks. The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly condemned any effort to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, and the Palestinian leadership said it would not meet with Vice President Mike Pence, who had planned a trip to the region. That trip is on hold. [W]e pay the Palestinians HUNDRED [sic] OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect, Trump wrote on Twitter. [W]ith the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them? In response to Trumps tweet, Hanan Ashrawi, a senior Palestinian official, issued a statement saying: Palestinian rights are not for sale. By recognizing Occupied Jerusalem as Israels capital Donald Trump has not only violated international law, but he has also singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace and condoned Israels illegal annexation of the city. We will not be blackmailed, she said. President Trump has sabotaged our search for peace, freedom and justice. Now he dares to blame the Palestinians for the consequences of his own irresponsible actions! The United States does not pay large amounts of money directly to the Palestinian Authority, the government that rules over parts of the Palestinian West Bank. Instead, most money goes to the U.N., refugee or aid agencies and even Israel to pay for roads, welfare, schools, security and other Palestinian projects. The U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Nikki Haley, said Tuesday that the administration was planning to cut off one of those organizations, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, until the Palestinians return to the negotiating table. UNRWA, which receives around $300 million annually from the U.S., for years has been the lifeline to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. It was not clear if Haley was threatening to cut all U.S. support for the agency. Special correspondent Noga Tarnopolsky in Jerusalem contributed to this report. Facebook

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The White House stops short of calling for government overthrow in Iran By Brian Bennett President Trump wants Iran to give its citizens basic human rights and stop being a state sponsor of terror, his top spokeswoman said, but the White House stopped short of calling for a change of government in Tehran. If they want to do that through current leadership, if thats possible, OK, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters. Sanders praised the organic popular uprising, which she said the widespread protests in Iran represented. The protests grew out of years of years of mismanagement, corruption, and foreign adventurism have eroded the Iranian peoples trust in their leaders, she said. Earlier Tuesday, Trump called Irans government brutal and corrupt and wrote in a tweet: The people have little food, big inflation and no human rights. The U.S. is watching! Trump also blamed President Obama for foolishly giving Iran money that he said went to fund terrorism. The money he referred to were funds belonging to Iran that had been frozen by the U.S. and were released as part of the deal in 2015, which blocked Irans development of nuclear weapons. 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 Facebook

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Retirement of Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch clears the way for a Mitt Romney revival By David Lauter The retirement of Utahs senior senator, Orrin G. Hatch, opens the way for a widely expected Senate bid by Mitt Romney, the Republicans 2012 presidential nominee and a frequent critic of President Trump. Although Romney previously served for two terms as governor of Massachusetts (and was raised in Michigan, where his father was governor and his mother ran for the Senate), he comes from a prominent Mormon family with strong ties to Utah. He also served as chief executive of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. Hes viewed as a strong candidate for the Senate seat. Romneys criticisms of Trump, however, could prompt a challenge in a Republican primary. Trump was widely reported to have tried to convince Hatch to run for a seventh term, in part to head off a Romney candidacy. Last month, Romney and Trump were on opposite sides of one of the biggest political fights of the fall  the battle over the Senate seat from Alabama. The president strongly supported Roy Moore, the Republican candidate who had been accused of sexual misconduct by several women. Romney called Moore a stain on the GOP. Roy Moore in the US Senate would be a stain on the GOP and on the nation. Leigh Corfman and other victims are courageous heroes. No vote, no majority is worth losing our honor, our integrity.  Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) December 4, 2017 On Tuesday, Romney tweeted praise for Hatch, but did not immediately reveal his own plans. I join the people of Utah in thanking my friend, Senator Orrin Hatch for his more than forty years of service to our great state and nation. Read my full statement: https://t.co/YwjUpjez5y  Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) January 2, 2018 Facebook

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U.S. calls on Iran to unblock social media sites amid protests By The Associated Press The Trump administration is calling on Irans government to stop blocking Instagram and other popular social media sites as Iranians are demonstrating in the streets. Undersecretary of State Steve Goldstein says the U.S. wants Iran to open these sites. He says Instagram, Telegram and other platforms are legitimate avenues for communication. The United States is encouraging Iranians to use virtual private networks, known as VPNs. Those services create encrypted links between computers and can be used to access blocked websites. Goldstein says the U.S. is still communicating with Iranians in Persian through State Department accounts on Facebook, Twitter and other platforms. He says the U.S. wants to encourage the protesters to continue to fight for whats right. Goldstein says the U.S. has an obligation not to stand by. Read More Facebook

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Trump blasts Democrats in advance of immigration meeting By Brian Bennett The day before a meeting of administration officials and congressional leaders on outstanding legislative business, President Trump accused Democrats of doing nothing to hammer out an immigration deal to protect from deportation people brought to the country illegally as children. Democrats are doing nothing for DACA  just interested in politics, Trump wrote in a Tweet on Tuesday morning, referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program by its acronym. 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 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer along with the Republican leaders, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, are scheduled to meet on Wednesday at the Capitol with Trumps legislative director, Marc Short, and budget director, Mick Mulvaney. The White House on Tuesday said the meeting is to discuss separate spending caps on military and domestic programs. Yet the Democrats insist the discussion also must include a variety of legislative issues that Trump and Congress punted into the new year  on immigration, the budget, healthcare and more. That stance reflects Democrats leverage: Republicans need Democratic votes to pass a government-funding bill and avert a federal shutdown when the current funding expires Jan. 19. Democrats especially want separate legislation replacing the Obama-era DACA program; Trump in September ordered a phase-out of the program, beginning March 6, and called on Congress to act before then on an alternative way to address the plight of the group. However, Trump has demanded that any alternative must be part of a package including both money for a border wall and immigration limits. Democrats are opposed. Facebook

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Pakistan hits back after Trump accuses its leaders of lies and deceit By Aoun Sahi Pakistan lashed out Monday after President Trump accused its leaders of lies and deceit and suggested the United States would withdraw financial assistance to the nuclear-armed nation it once saw as a key ally against terrorism. 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, according to two foreign office officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Pakistans prime minister, Shahid Abbasi, called a Cabinet meeting for Tuesday and a meeting of the National Security Committee on Wednesday to discuss Trumps New Years Day tweet. 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. Read More Facebook

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Trump again cheers on Iran protests 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 The presidents earlier hailing of the protests drew condemnation from Irans government. A Foreign Ministry spokesman called his comments deceitful and opportunistic. Following an overnight report of the first two fatalities stemming from the protests, Trump raised some eyebrows by expressing concern over human rights violations as authorities move to crack down on the demonstrations. During his first year in office, the president has shown scant inclination to press foreign governments to respect the fundamental rights of their citizens. The USA is watching closely for human rights violations! Trump said in his tweet Sunday. Some domestic critics have pointed to the presidents inclusion of Iranian nationals in his travel ban, suggesting he was more interested in bashing the Tehran government than in supporting freedom of speech in Iran. Even some of the presidents allies said that supporting the protesters on social media did not amount to making policy. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he had urged Trump to give a national address laying out his Iran strategy. President Trump is tweeting very sympathetically to the Iranian people, Graham said on CBS Face the Nation. But you just cant tweet here. You have to lay out a plan. Facebook

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Australian diplomats tip a factor in FBIs Russia inquiry By Associated Press Australian High Commissioner Alexander Downer. (Alastair Grant / Associated Press) An Australian diplomats tip appears to have helped persuade the FBI to investigate Russian meddling in the U.S. election and possible coordination with the Trump campaign, the New York Times reported Saturday. Trump campaign advisor George Papadopoulos told the diplomat, Alexander Downer, during a meeting in London in May 2016 that Russia had thousands of emails that would embarrass Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, the report said. Downer, a former foreign minister, is Australias top diplomat in Britain. Australia passed the information on to the FBI after the Democratic emails were leaked, according to the Times, which cited four current and former U.S. and foreign officials with direct knowledge of the Australians role. The hacking and the revelation that a member of the Trump campaign may have had inside information about it were driving factors that led the FBI to open an investigation in July 2016, the newspaper said. White House lawyer Ty Cobb declined to comment, saying in a statement that the administration is continuing to cooperate with the investigation now led by special counsel Robert Mueller to help complete their inquiry expeditiously. Papadopoulos has pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and is a cooperating witness. Court documents unsealed two months ago show he met in April 2016 with Joseph Mifsud, a professor in London who told him about Russias cache of emails. This was before the Democratic National Committee became aware of the scope of the intrusion into its email systems by hackers later linked to the Russian government. The Times said Papadopoulos shared this information with Downer, but it was unclear whether he also shared it with anyone in the Trump campaign. Facebook

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Trump offers fresh support for protesters in Iran as demonstrations continue By Lisa Mascaro Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people will face a choice. The world is watching! pic.twitter.com/kvv1uAqcZ9  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 30, 2017 President Trump again offered support Saturday for anti-government protesters in Iran, where a third day of demonstrations, the largest in years, spilled across the country amid fears of a crackdown. Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people will face a choice. The world is watching! Trump wrote on Twitter. Trump took a break from playing golf near his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida to tweet clips from his speech to the United Nations General Assembly in September when he called for Iranian democratic reforms. Iranian authorities warned of potential violence as the street demonstrations, which began over economic conditions, swelled into frustrations with the theocratic rule of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Trump has maintained a hawkish stance toward Iran, sharply criticizing the landmark nuclear disarmament accord that Tehran reached with then-President Obama and five other nations in 2015. In October, Trump declined to certify the accord to Congress although the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency says Iran is complying with it. Several conservative GOP senators signaled their support for Trumps position and backed the protesters in Iran. Others in Congress did not immediately respond, however, amid conflicting reports over who had organized the demonstrations. Even after the billions in sanctions relief they secured through the nuclear deal, the ayatollahs still cant provide for the basic needs of their own people, said Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a Trump ally and opponent of the nuclear deal. We should support the Iranian people who are willing to risk their lives to speak out against it, he added. Trump initially tweeted his support on Friday night. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a statement at that time as protests spread. There are many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with the regimes corruption and its squandering of the nations wealth to fund terrorism abroad, Sanders said. The Iranian government should respect their peoples rights, including their right to express themselves. The world is watching. Facebook

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When it comes to U.S.-Russia relations, it takes two to tango, Kremlin says By Sabra Ayres The deteriorating relationship between the United States and Russia is one of the biggest disappointments of 2017, Russian President Vladimir Putins spokesman told reporters today. Russia would like to rebuild relations between the two adversaries, but it takes two to tango, Dmitry Peskov said today during a conference call with the press. We want and are looking for good mutually beneficial relations based on mutual respect, mutual trust with all countries, primarily with European ones, including the United States, but it is necessary to dance tango, as they say. Peskov blamed the ongoing anti-Russian Russophobia in Washington for playing a major role in blocking the two countries from moving forward in their relationship. U.S. investigations into the Trump presidential campaigns alleged collusion with the Kremlin during the 2016 U.S. election and accusations that the Kremlin tried to interfere with the electoral process continue to cast a dark shadow over the relationship, he said. Peskov told reporters that Moscow was perplexed by the investigations. The Kremlin has continued to deny having any involvement with the Trump campaign or doing anything to interfere with the American election. This is definitely a U.S. domestic affair, but in this case it naturally hurts our bilateral relations, which is regrettable, Peskov said. Relations between the U.S. and Russia have been categorized as the worst theyve been since the end of the Cold War. This year, Washington and Moscow have engaged in a diplomatic tit-for-tat in which both sides have been forced to reduce diplomatic staff, embassy properties have been repossessed by the hosting countries and visa services have been interrupted. The U.S. diplomatic mission to Russia shrank from 1,200 personnel, including some Russian local staff, to just over 450 across all its three consulates and embassy in Moscow. In the U.S., Russia was forced to vacate its San Francisco consulate. Moscow has also blamed anti-Russian sentiments on the recent decision by the International Olympic Committee to ban Russian teams from wearing their tricolor uniforms or flags during the upcoming games in South Korea. The international body accused some of the Russian national teams of doping. Facebook

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U.S. and Turkey resume reciprocal issuing of visas but frictions remain By Tracy Wilkinson The United States and Turkey began issuing reciprocal visas again on Thursday, more than two months after normal visa service was suspended in a dispute over the arrest of two U.S. diplomatic staffers in Istanbul  the latest friction between the two nominal allies. The State Department said it was lifting the visa restrictions after it was assured by the Turkish government that U.S. Embassy employees would not be arrested when performing their official duties. But the Turkish Embassy in Washington denied assurances were offered concerning the ongoing judicial processes, and suggested that the arrests were legal and justified. It is inappropriate to misinform the Turkish and American public that such assurances were provided, the embassy said in a statement. The dispute has aggravated the already tense relationship between the United States and Turkey, which is a member of the NATO military alliance. The two countries have clashed over U.S. support for Kurdish rebels in Syria and over Turkeys demands that the U.S. extradite a Turkish cleric who lives in rural Pennsylvania. After a failed coup attempt killed more than 250 people in July 2016, Turkeys autocratic president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, launched a harsh crackdown on his political opponents, arresting or firing tens of thousands of teachers, police, journalists, military officers and others. Erdogan accused Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic educator and former political ally, of orchestrating the coup. Gulen, who has lived in a compound in the Pocono Mountains, has denied any involvement. The Justice Department has so far denied Turkeys repeated demands to extradite Gulen. Erdogan raised the issue again at the White House in May, but his visit ended in a public relations disaster when his security guards brutally beat peaceful protesters outside the Turkish ambassadors residence. Two Turkish employees of the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul were arrested this fall for alleged ties to the 2016 coup attempt. The U.S. responded by suspending most visa services at its missions in Turkey in October. The Turkish government reciprocated in November. State Department officials said they have repeatedly demanded more information about any formal charges against the two employees. They reiterated on Thursday that serious concerns about the allegations remained. Facebook

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Trump: China caught RED HANDED allowing oil to reach North Korea By Brian Bennett (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press) President Trump isnt taking a holiday vacation from Twitter. In one of three tweets early on Thursday from his West Palm Beach golf club, he charged that China was caught RED HANDED allowing oil shipments to reach North Korean ports. Pronouncing himself very disappointed, Trump in effect was acknowledging the failure of his months-long effort to convince China to clamp down further on energy shipments going to the isolated country, which relies heavily on Beijing, as a way to pressure North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. Caught RED HANDED - very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea. There will never be a friendly solution to the North Korea problem if this continues to happen!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 28, 2017 Trumps tweet came after a South Korean newspaper published what it said were U.S. spy satellite images of Chinese ships selling oil to North Korean ships. The United Nations Security Council, which includes China, has voted repeatedly to restrict fuel shipments to North Korea. Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping in November to cut off North Koreas oil supply entirely, the American ambassador to the U.N., Nikki R. Haley, said at the time. It is unclear if Trumps admonishment of China was based on news reports or classified information he received from U.S. intelligence officials. There was no daily intelligence briefing on Trumps public schedule Thursday. He is expected to return to Washington next week after spending the Christmas holiday and New Years Eve at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla. Facebook

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President Trump again falsely claims hes signed more bills than any president By Brian Bennett President Trump visits a firehouse in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Wednesday. (Nicholas Kamm / AFP) After another morning at his Florida golf club, President Trump visited firefighters and paramedics at a West Palm Beach firehouse and praised his own performance as president, including with a false boast. Trump touted his administrations work to roll back government regulations and cut taxes and claimed credit for the stock market hitting record highs. He also said hes signed more bills into law than any other president, which isnt true. We have signed more legislation than anybody, Trump said, standing in front of a rescue vehicle inside the fire station. We have more legislation passed, including  the record was Harry Truman a long time ago, and we broke that record, so we got a lot done, Trump said. An analysis by GovTrack, a website that tracks bills in Congress, shows that Trump has signed the fewest bills into law at this point than any president in more than 60 years, back to Dwight D. Eisenhower. Facebook

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Trump administration urges Russia to reinstate monitors in Ukraine, lower violence By Tracy Wilkinson Sergei Lavrov (AFP/Getty Images) Secretary of State Rex Tillerson asked Russia on Wednesday to reinstate its military personnel at a monitoring station in eastern Ukraine intended to quell escalating bloodshed. In a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, Tillerson also urged Russia to lower the level of violence and underscored the Trump administrations concern over increased fighting in Ukraine, the State Department said in a statement. Russia last week withdrew its monitors from the Joint Center on Coordination and Control, which is tasked with verifying a much-violated ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists. Moscow cited what it called restrictions and provocations from Ukrainian authorities that made it impossible for the observers to do their jobs. Washington has accused the pro-Russia forces of being responsible for many of the truce violations. Late last week, the State Department also announced plans to provide Ukraine with lethal defensive weapons, including Javelin anti-tank missiles, a decision that angered Moscow. The State Department statement did not say whether the weapons deal came up in Tillersons conversation with Lavrov. The two also discussed North Korea, its destabilizing nuclear program and the need for a diplomatic solution to achieve a denuclearized Korean peninsula, the statement said. Russia has offered to serve as a mediator between Washington and Pyongyang, but direct talks do not seem likely at this point. Facebook

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U.S. sanctions two more North Korean officials for ballistic missile program By Tracy Wilkinson The Trump administration announced sanctions Tuesday against two more North Korean officials for their alleged role in Pyongyangs expanding ballistic missiles program. The Treasury Department is targeting leaders of North Koreas ballistic missile programs, as part of our maximum pressure campaign to isolate [North Korea] and achieve a fully denuclearized Korean Peninsula, Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said in a statement. The nuclear-armed country tested an intercontinental ballistic missile last month that U.S. officials said appeared capable of reaching New York or Washington, a significant milestone in the countrys growing arsenal. The Treasury Department identified the two North Korean officials as Kim Jong Sik, who reportedly is a key figure in the ballistic missile program and led efforts to switch missiles from liquid to solid fuel (which makes them easier to hide before launch), and Ri Pyong Chol, who was reported to be a key official in the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles. The sanctions block banks, companies and individuals from doing any business with the targeted officials. It also allows the U.S. government to freeze any American assets owned by the officials. On Friday, the United Nations Security Council unanimously voted to add more sanctions on North Korea, its third round this year. The new measures order North Koreans working abroad to return home within two years, and ban nearly 90% of refined petroleum exports to the country. In a statement published Sunday by North Koreas state-run KCNA news agency, the foreign ministry denounced the new U.N. sanctions as an act of war. We define this sanctions resolution rigged up by the US and its followers as a grave infringement upon the sovereignty of our Republic, as an act of war violating peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and the region and categorically reject the resolution, it said. Facebook

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Salt Lake Tribune calls on Sen. Orrin Hatch to not seek reelection in scathing editorial Perhaps the most significant move of Hatchs career is the one that should, if there is any justice, end it. The last time the senator was up for reelection, in 2012, he promised that it would be his last campaign. That was enough for many likely successors, of both parties, to stand down, to let the elder statesman have his victory tour and to prepare to run for an open seat in 2018. Clearly, it was a lie. Read the editorial>> Facebook

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Christmas Eve, Trump on Twitter: New attacks on FBI official, decrying Fake News By Laura King President Trump launched a Christmas Eve attack on FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, whom he accuses of favoritism toward his former opponent, Hillary Clinton, and also returned to a longtime favored theme, excoriating the news media for failing to sufficiently extol his accomplishments. .@FoxNews-FBIs Andrew McCabe, in addition to his wife getting all of this money from M (Clinton Puppet), he was using, allegedly, his FBI Official Email Account to promote her campaign. You obviously cannot do this. These were the people who were investigating Hillary Clinton.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 24, 2017 Thank you President TRUMP!! pic.twitter.com/LKdkT0FL99  oregon4TRUMP (@shawgerald4) December 23, 2017 The Fake News refuses to talk about how Big and how Strong our BASE is. They show Fake Polls just like they report Fake News. Despite only negative reporting, we are doing well - nobody is going to beat us. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 24, 2017 Trump, who is spending the holidays at his Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago, also sent Christmas greetings to deployed military personnel, praising them for success in the fight against terrorism. The early-morning swipe at McCabe followed a flurry of tweets attacking the deputy FBI chief on Saturday. McCabe, who has been a lightning rod for Republican attacks on the FBI, is expected to retire early in the new year. How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin James Comey, of the Phony Hillary Clinton investigation (including her 33,000 illegally deleted emails) be given $700,000 for wifes campaign by Clinton Puppets during investigation?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2017 FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is racing the clock to retire with full benefits. 90 days to go?!!!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2017 Critics say the president and his allies are in the midst of a systematic campaign to denigrate the FBI and special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who is looking into potential collusion by the Trump campaign in Russias attempts to sway the 2016 presidential election. In a pair of statements on Twitter, Trump again expressed scorn regarding news coverage of his administration. For months, the president has been particularly critical of reports regarding the Russia investigation and more recently has repeatedly complained he does not receive enough credit for a booming stock market. In his video conference message to troops overseas, the president made apparent reference to the fight against the militants of Islamic State, who over the last year have lost most of the territory they previously controlled in Iraq and Syria, including former strongholds in Mosul and Raqqah. Were winning, Trump told military personnel deployed in Qatar, Kuwait, Guantanamo Bay and aboard the guided missile destroyer Sampson. Reporters traveling with the president heard his address, but were ushered from the room before he took questions from the troops. The president often breaks with longtime custom and makes politically charged statements at events in which he addresses military personnel. Facebook

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Trumps Wells Fargo tweet cited in court hearing as reason to remove Mulvaney as CFPB acting chief By Jim Puzzanghera A recent tweet by President Trump about possible penalties against Wells Fargo & Co. was cited during a court hearing Friday as a reason for removing White House official Mick Mulvaney as acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The attorney for Leandra English  the bureaus deputy director who has said she is the rightful acting head  said Trumps tweet showed he was trying to exercise improper influence over the independent consumer watchdog. I think that [tweet] shows you this isnt just some hypothetical concern, the attorney, Deepak Gupta, told Judge Timothy J. Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia during a nearly two-hour hearing. Read More Facebook

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Trump administration recognizes Honduran presidents reelection By Tracy Wilkinson The Trump administration on Friday formally recognized the incumbent president of Honduras, conservative Juan Orlando Hernandez, as the winner of a bitterly contested presidential election held last month. In a statement, the State Department congratulated Hernandez while also acknowledging widespread irregularities in the Nov. 26 vote and calling for a robust national dialogue to overcome political discord in the Central American country, a close ally of the administration. The Organization of American States, which monitored the election, said it was so flawed that only a new round of voting could establish a fair and transparent outcome. But the U.S. rejected that determination. Uproar over the contest led to demonstrations in Honduras that left numerous civilians dead after state security forces opened fire on the protests. Activists and others voiced criticism Friday of the administrations decision. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), a leading Democratic voice on Central American issues, said he was angry and deeply disturbed by the State Department decision. The recent elections in Honduras were deeply flawed, chaotic and marred by numerous irregularities, McGovern said. U.S.-Honduran cooperation on matters such as drug-trafficking, violence and immigration requires a credible, legitimate government that has the support of its people, in Honduras, McGovern said. Hernandezs victory also was controversial because it was the first time a sitting president was allowed to run for re-election, barred until now by the Honduran Constitution. Facebook

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Senate Leader Mitch McConnell says fixing DACA is no emergency until March By Lisa Mascaro Amanda Bayer, left with banner, and Marisol Maqueda, right, join a rally in support of so-called Dreamers outside the White House. (Manuel Balce Ceneta / Associated Press) Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Friday hes committed to allowing a vote on a bill for so-called Dreamers in January, but sees no rush to resolve the deportation threat posed by President Trumps decision to end a program protecting immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. There isnt that much of an emergency there, he said. There is no emergency until March. Well keep talking about it. Trump called for phasing out by March the Obama-era program that allows the young immigrants, many of them longtime residents, to get two-year deferrals of any deportation threat so they can legally attend school or work. Beneficiaries must be vetted for security purposes. Trump told Congress to come up with a legislative alternative for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which President Obama created by executive order, to protect those currently eligible. A bipartisan Senate group has been working with the White House, but talks stalled this week amid administration demands for curbs on legal immigration flows in exchange for protecting the DACA recipients. Meanwhile, Dreamers and immigrant advocates stormed the Capitol in recent days pressing for the help promised by Trump and Democratic congressional leaders that failed to materialize in the years final legislation. Advocacy groups say more than 120 immigrants each day are falling out of compliance without DACA renewals, putting them at risk of deportation. The number that is projected to swell to more than 1,000 a day in March. Weve been gridlocked on this issue for years, McConnell said. We want to have a signature. We dont just want to spin our wheels and have nothing to show for it. Facebook

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President Trump signs tax bill By Noah Bierman (Alex Brandon / Associated Press) President Trump on Friday morning signed a sweeping tax-cut measure  his first major legislative achievement  before heading off for a Christmas vacation at his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach, Fla. The president also privately signed a short-term spending bill to fund government operations through Jan. 19. Congress approved it Thursday, after Republican leaders were unable to bridge differences in their own party as well as with Democrats to get agreement on funding for the full fiscal year. The stopgap bill punts fights on immigration and other issues to January. The tax bill, approved earlier this week in Congress in largely party-line votes, slashes corporate tax rates from 35% to 21% and also includes a host of other provisions for individuals, all intended to boost the economy. Critics point to nonpartisan analyses showing that the package, including changes greatly reducing the number of estates subject to taxes, steers the bulk of tax benefits to top earners and the wealthy, including Trump, despite his repeated claims that hell take a hit. Trump signed the bill quietly Friday, but held a public ceremony with Republican lawmakers on Wednesday after the bills passage; he also tweeted about the measure extensively. He is expected to hold another public ceremony after the New Years holiday. Facebook

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Pelosi urges Ryan to prevent Republicans from curtailing Houses Russia probe By Chris Megerian House Speaker Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin greets House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi sent a letter to Speaker Paul D. Ryan on Friday urging him to ensure the Houses investigation into Russian interference with last years presidential campaign is not cut short. The American people deserve a comprehensive and fair investigation into Russias attacks, wrote Pelosi, of San Francisco, in her letter. Political haste must not cut short valid investigatory threads. The House Intelligence Committee has been probing the issue since March 1, and Democrats have repeatedly warned that Republicans are trying to wrap up its work prematurely. Pelosi said Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, should take urgent action to ensure this investigation can continue. AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Ryan, said Pelosi simply wants to see this investigation go on forever in order to suit her political agenda. Whether it concludes next month, next year, or in three years, she will say it is too soon, Strong said in a statement. She added, The investigation will conclude when the committee has reached a conclusion. The committees work is led by Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-Texas). His spokeswoman, Emily Hytha, said he remains committed to conducting this investigation as thoroughly and expeditiously as possible. With more interviews scheduled, the investigation shows signs of extending into next year, Bloomberg reported Friday. BREAKING: Steve Bannon and former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski have been sent letters requesting they testify to House Intel panel in early January, per @HouseInSession  Laura Litvan (@LauraLitvan) December 22, 2017 Facebook

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Congress votes to avert government shutdown, but Senate fails to pass disaster aid package By Lisa Mascaro ( (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)) Congress approved a temporary spending bill to prevent a government shutdown, but failed to complete work on an $81-billion disaster aid package to help California, Gulf Coast states and Puerto Rico recover from wildfires and hurricanes, as lawmakers scrambled Thursday to wrap up business before a Christmas break. The stopgap measure continues federal operations for a few more weeks, setting up another deadline for Jan. 19. But it left undone a long list of priorities that members of both parties had hoped to finish this year. Read More Facebook

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Wells Fargo says raises were not linked to tax bill passage  then backtracks By James Rufus Koren Wells Fargo & Co.s move to raise its minimum pay to $15 an hour was part of a long-term plan and not related to the passage of the Republican tax overhaul as the company implied, said a bank spokesman, who later backtracked and stated the hikes were a result of the bills approval. The bank was among several large corporations to publicly announce pay raises or new investments immediately following the final House vote in an apparent public relations offensive to boost the popularity of the tax bill The San Francisco bank had implied the direct linkage to the tax legislation in a news release Wednesday, shortly after Congress passed the tax overhaul, which slashes the corporate tax rate to 21% from 35% starting Jan. 1. Read More Facebook

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Obamacare signups beat expectations, despite Trump administrations opposition By Noam N. Levey President Trump with Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) Despite Trump administration efforts to discourage people from signing up, the number of people enrolling for Affordable Care Act coverage nearly hit last years level, the government revealed Thursday. Exchange open enrollment for 2018 coverage ended w/ approx 8.8M people enrolling in coverage. Great job to the @CMSGov team for the work you did to make this the smoothest experience for consumers to date. We take pride in providing great customer service.  Administrator Seema Verma (@SeemaCMS) December 21, 2017 The 8.8 million people who enrolled in the 36 states that use the federal governments healthcare.gov system significantly exceeded most forecasts. The Trump administration stopped most outreach and other efforts this year aimed at getting people to sign up. The president also repeatedly said publicly that Obamacare was dead. Open enrollment continues in California and several other states that run their own healthcare marketplaces. The figures from the federal government indicate that when those states wrap up for the year, the number of people covered by Obamacare will be nearly the same as in 2017. Read More Facebook

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U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly condemns U.S. policy change on Jerusalem despite Trumps threats By Tracy Wilkinson The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted Thursday to condemn President Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, despite Trumps threats to punish countries that voted against the U.S. position. The resolution passed in an emergency session at U.N. headquarters in New York with 128 in favor, nine opposed and 35 abstentions. The nonbinding resolution demands that Washington rescind its declaration, which included a plan to transfer the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in coming years. The resolution value is mostly symbolic, showing how isolated the U.S. is in the move. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., warned this week that she would be taking names of countries that opposed the U.S., and Trump on Wednesday suggested he might cut U.S. aid to governments that voted in favor of the resolution. Let them vote against us, Trump said. Well save a lot. We dont care. The U.S. recognition of Jerusalem reversed decades of international consensus on the political status of the divided city. Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as their capital in a future independent state. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said the U.N. was facing an unprecedented test and that history would remember those who stand by what is right. Facebook

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Democrats defend Robert Mueller, saying Russia investigation must be allowed to continue By Chris Megerian Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) speaking during a committee hearing earlier this year. (Molly Riley / Associated Press) House Democrats said they will fight Republican attempts to discredit and undermine the work of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who is investigating whether President Trumps associates helped Russian meddling in last years election. There is an organized effort by Republicans, in concert with Fox News, to spin a false narrative and conjure up outrageous scenarios to accuse special counsel Mueller of being biased, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) said. Trump has said he has no plan to fire Mueller, but Democrats are alarmed by escalating criticism of the special counsels work. Why is the president afraid of the facts and the truth? Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) said. He added, No matter what the facts are, were satisfied if the investigation is complete. A letter of support signed by 171 Democratic members of Congress will be sent to Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller, a former FBI director, and oversees his investigation. Rosenstein has defended Mueller in the face of Republican criticisms. Facebook

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U.S. blacklists Myanmar army general who it says oversaw atrocities against Rohingya Muslims By Shashank Bengali The Trump administration on Thursday blacklisted a Myanmar army general who it said oversaw human rights abuses committed by security forces against Rohingya Muslims. Imposing economic sanctions against the general, Maung Maung Soe, was the toughest action the United States has taken in response to a brutal army offensive that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has described as ethnic cleansing. In a statement, the Treasury Department said it had examined credible evidence of Maung Maung Soes activities, including allegations against Burmese security forces of extrajudicial killings, sexual violence and arbitrary arrest as well as the widespread burning of villages. The Rohingya are an ethnic and religious minority of about 1 million people in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar, also known as Burma. The United Nations says that more than 640,000 Rohingya have fled the country since August, after the army launched clearance operations in response to attacks carried out by a Rohingya insurgent group against security forces. Rohingya refugees in crowded camps in neighboring Bangladesh have described horrific violence by Myanmar forces, including mass rapes, summary executions and children being burned alive. The aid group Doctors Without Borders estimates that 6,700 people were killed in the first month of the operation. Myanmar authorities deny committing atrocities and say that only a few hundred fighters were killed. Maung Maung Soe was chief of the armys Western Command, which carried out the offensive. He was transferred from his position last month, according to news reports. He was one of 13 individuals worldwide who were blacklisted Thursday under a new U.S. law that gives the Treasury Department authority to target officials for human rights abuses and corruption. Others included former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh; Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the late Uzbekistan dictator Islam Karimov; and Artem Chaika, son of Russias prosecutor-general. Today, the United States is taking a strong stand against human rights abuse and corruption globally by shutting these bad actors out of the U.S. financial system, said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. The sanctions freeze any assets Maung Maung Soe holds in the United States and bars Americans from doing business with him. It is also a sign of how quickly U.S. relations with Myanmar have soured. Under the Obama administration, the United States forged closer ties with the former military dictatorship and eased economic and political sanctions as the country began implementing democratic reforms. But Myanmar, which does not regard the Rohingya as citizens, has lashed out at the international community over the current crisis. It has jailed journalists, blocked access to affected areas in the western state of Rakhine and this week barred a U.N. human rights investigator from entering the country. Rohingya activists said the U.S. action would not have much effect on a country that survived under economic sanctions for years. It is the whole military institution that has a policy to persecute these people, said Nay San Lwin, a Rohingya activist and blogger in Germany. According to the U.S.s own definition, the army is carrying out ethnic cleansing. They have a responsibility to protect these people. Sanctions on one person are really not enough. Facebook

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Dreamers will have to wait until next year for Congress long-promised protections By Lisa Mascaro Amanda Bayer, left with banner, and Marisol Maqueda, right, join a rally in support of so-called Dreamers outside the White House. (Manuel Balce Ceneta / Associated Press)) A promised year-end deal to protect the young immigrants known as Dreamers from deportation collapsed Wednesday as Republicans in Congress  fresh off passage of their tax plan  prepared to punt nearly all remaining must-do agenda items into the new year. Congressional leaders still hope that before leaving town this week they can pass an $81-billion disaster relief package with recovery funds for California wildfires and Gulf Coast states hit during the devastating hurricane season. But passage even of that relatively popular measure remained in doubt as conservatives balked at the price tag. Rather than finish the year wrapping up the legislative agenda, the GOP majorities in the House and Senate struggled over their next steps. Read More Facebook

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Chants of protest drown out any caroling this holiday season at the Capitol By Lisa Mascaro U.S. Capitol Police arrest a man wearing a Santa Claus hat during a protest against the Republican tax bill. (Alex Edelman / AFP/Getty Image) Outside the U.S. Capitol, the lights on a towering Christmas tree are flipped on each evening, giving the Engelmann spruce a festive twinkle; inside the marble halls, wreaths and garlands decorate doorways and alcoves ahead of the holidays. But the spirit of the season has been punctuated by other sights: a Jumbotron parked across from the Capitol reflecting pool broadcasts images of young immigrants who face deportation; Little Lobbyists, children with complex medical needs, were featured in a recent news conference; protesters filed into the visitor galleries to shout against the Republican tax plan. While its beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Capitol, its also shaping up to be a holiday season of protest. Read More Facebook

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Tax bill simplifies filing for some but complicates it for others  and dont count on that postcard By Jim Puzzanghera A priority of the Republicans tax overhaul was simplification, and they drove home the point this fall with an omnipresent prop: a red-white-and-blue postcard. Were making things so simple that you can do your taxes on a form the size of a postcard, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) said last month, pulling one from his jacket pocket as he and Republican leaders unveiled their bill. They gave a couple of the cards to President Trump at a White House meeting a few hours later and flashed them often during news conferences and TV interviews in the coming days. Read More Facebook

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Top U.N. human rights official reportedly wont seek reelection The top United Nations official for human rights, who has frequently criticized the Trump administration, has reportedly decided not to seek a second term, saying his work had become untenable. Zeid Raad Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, notified his staff in an email that was obtained by several news outlets, including Agence France-Presse. Staying when his four-year term is up for renewal at the end of August might involve bending a knee in supplication, AFP quoted Husseins email as saying. Hussein is a Jordanian prince who has criticized, among other things, President Trumps attempts to ban visitors or refugees from six predominantly Muslim countries. The news comes a day before the U.N. General Assembly is expected to vote on a nonbinding resolution condemning the Trump administrations formal declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a decision that went against international consensus. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., has warned she will be taking names of those who vote against the United States on Thursday. Trump echoed that sentiment Wednesday, voiced support for Haley and implying to reporters that he would consider cutting off U.S. aid to countries that vote against the U.S. Well, were watching those votes, Trump said. Let them vote against us. Well save a lot. We dont care. On Monday, the United States lost a Security Council vote 14-1 on a binding resolution that would have required Washington to rescind its declaration. Haley then vetoed the resolution. Facebook

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Top Democrat warns Trump not to fire Mueller or interfere with his investigation By Chris Megerian Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, one of the top Democrats involved in the congressional inquiries into Russian interference in last years election, said Wednesday that any attempt by President Trump to interfere with the separate criminal investigation would be a gross abuse of power. Warner, who is vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, delivered his warning from the Senate floor as Republicans escalate their criticism of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III and his team of prosecutors and FBI agents. Some Democrats believe Trump is laying the groundwork to fire Mueller even though the president has publicly denied it. Mueller was appointed in May after Trump fired FBI Director James B. Comey. In the United States of America, no one, no one is above the law, not even the president, Warner said. Congress must make clear to the president that firing the special counsel or interfering with his investigation by issuing pardons of essential witnesses is unacceptable and would have immediate and significant consequences. Some Democrats say the White House may try to in effect short-circuit the Mueller investigation by replacing Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein, who is the only official empowered to fire Mueller. Rosenstein recently told Congress that the special counsel is acting appropriately and that he would not dismiss Mueller without just cause. Facebook

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We have essentially repealed Obamacare, Trump says after tax bill passes By Brian Bennett President Trump at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday at the White House. (Chris Kleponis / Getty Images) President Trump is celebrating Republicans passage of the tax overhaul bill as a two-fer: On Wednesday, in addition to tax cuts, he checked off his promise to repeal Obamacare, pointing to a provision in the bill to end the penalty on Americans who dont get health insurance. We have essentially repealed Obamacare, Trump told reporters during a Cabinet meeting at the White House. Other provisions of the 2010 Affordable Care Act are still in place, and Trump and congressional Republicans failed completely on the replace half of their vow to repeal and replace the program. In Trumps view, however, stripping away the laws individual mandate to get insurance or else pay a tax penalty amounts to repeal of the whole law. Congressional analysts have said that millions of people would lose insurance as a result, either by choice or because they cannot afford it without subsidies, and that premiums would increase for others as younger, healthy people drop coverage. We will come up with something much better, Trump said, adding that block grants to states could be one approach. By his comments, Trump tacitly acknowledged that repeal of the mandate is likely the best he can do following Republicans failure this year to agree on a repeal-and-replace bill. Looking back on his first year, Trump also boasted of his administrations efforts against the Islamic State and increased immigration enforcement. He said he had not given up on funding a border wall or tightening immigration law to limit citizens ability to resettle foreign relatives in the country. He said he would very shortly visit the border with Mexico near San Diego to see wall prototypes that have been built. He didnt answer a reporters shouted question about how he would personally benefit from the tax bill. Facebook

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House gives final OK to GOP tax plan, sending it to Trump By Lisa Mascaro Congress gave final approval to the GOP tax plan Wednesday, 224-201, after the House took an unusual do-over vote to clear up differences with the Senate-passed bill. The $1.5-trillion package now heads to President Trump, who plans to sign it into law. The House had approved the tax bill on Tuesday but was forced to take another vote Wednesday because a couple of provisions in the version it approved were found to be in violation of Senate procedures. Those provisions were dropped before the Senate gave its approval early Wednesday. Critics complained the Republicans rushed to pass the sweeping tax plan to deliver Trump a year-end legislative victory, but supporters shrugged off the problems as minor. The tax plan dramatically cuts corporate rates and provides some individual rate reductions, overhauling the tax code for the first time in 30 years. Facebook

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Trump administration effort to block immigrant from having an abortion fails By David Savage Scott Lloyd is director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (Drew Angerer / Getty Images) President Trumps lawyers rushed to the Supreme Court and U.S. appeals court in Washington on Monday evening to file emergency appeals seeking to prevent an immigrant in detention, dubbed Jane Roe in court, from having an abortion. That set the stage for a legal showdown on whether the administration can block pregnant minors in custody from choosing to have an abortion. But the legal clash, which the administration has seemed eager to have, fizzled out Tuesday when the governments lawyers admitted the 17-year-old unaccompanied minor in their custody was actually 19. They said they had obtained her birth certificate and realized she was not a minor after all. As a result, Roe, who is 10 weeks pregnant, will no longer be held in a detention center for immigrant minors, and will not be subject to an administration policy that tries to prevent minors in immigration detention from having abortions. Administration lawyers told appeals court judges Tuesday night that Roe was being sent to a facility for adults and likely would be released until her immigration status can be resolved. In a brief order, the D.C. Circuit Court agreed to put the case on hold, but told government attorneys to confirm that she will be permitted to obtain an abortion. The administration had earlier tried to delay another young woman, referred to in court as Jane Poe, from having an abortion, but officials relented on Monday because she was 22 weeks pregnant and nearing the time limit for a legal abortion. Facebook

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Senate panel rejects Trumps pick to lead Export-Import Bank, a leader in the effort to shut it down By Jim Puzzanghera A Senate committee on Tuesday rejected President Trumps nominee to lead the Export-Import Bank, extending the chaos at the embattled agency whose job is to help U.S. companies sell their goods abroad. Two Republicans joined all Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee in voting against former Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.) to be the banks president. Garrett had been a vocal critic of the Ex-Im Bank and a leader of a conservative effort that shut the bank down for five months in 2015 by blocking its congressional authorization. He and other bank opponents branded the banks aid as crony capitalism. Read More Facebook

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Congress proposes $81-billion disaster aid package, including funds for California wildfires By Lisa Mascaro Congress is set to consider an $81-billion disaster aid package that includes wildfire recovery money for California and other Western states as well as hurricane relief with a price tag reflecting a year of record-setting natural calamities. The legislation, the text of which was released late Monday, would provide almost twice as much as the $44 billion the White House sought last month to cover relief efforts along the Gulf Coast and in the Caribbean. Republican congressional leaders added more money after California lawmakers objected that the administration had failed to include help for areas damaged by wildfires and Democrats protested that the overall amount President Trump asked for was insufficient. Read More Facebook

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White House blames North Korea for worldwide WannaCry cyber attack By Noah Bierman The Royal London Hospital, a victim of the unprecedented global cyberattack in May. (Niklas Hallen / AFP/Getty Images) The White House officially blamed North Korea on Tuesday for the cyberattack in May known as WannaCry that infected hundreds of thousands of computers in 150 countries, affecting healthcare, financial services and vital infrastructure. Thomas P. Bossert, assistant to the president for homeland security and counter-terrorism, noted in a briefing with reporters that the consequences were beyond economic. He warned that North Koreas malicious behavior is growing more egregious. Bossert did not specify what evidence American officials have to blame North Korea, citing security issues, but he cited the countrys prior attacks as revealing hallmarks of how Pyongyang and its network of hackers operates. He said other allied countries had joined the United States in making the determination. The administration did not announce any penalties on the regime, which is already subject to severe sanctions over its nuclear program. They want to hold the entire world at risk, Bossert said of North Koreas rulers, referring to the nations nuclear and missile provocations as well as its alleged cyberattack. Given its isolation and international sanctions, North Korea is desperate for funds. Bossert said the country did not appear to make much money on the ransom attack, as word spread that paying a ransom did not result in getting computers unlocked. Its primary goal, he said, was spreading chaos. Bossert and Jeanette Manfra, assistant secretary of homeland security for cybersecurity and communication, said the United States, through a combination of preparation and luck, escaped the worst of the attack, as a patch to the malware was found before U.S. companies and other interests were severely crippled. However, Manfra said, We cannot be complacent. Bossert added, Next time were not going to get so lucky. Manfra praised Microsoft and Facebook for their efforts to combat WannaCry and to block more recent attempts to hack U.S. systems. She and Bossert urged more cooperation and information-sharing from American and multinational companies, arguing a united front is vital to protecting against bad actors who do not differentiate between government and business. Bossert rejected criticism that the the Trump administration has more aggressively called out North Korean cyberattacks than it has Russias meddling in the 2016 election. He said the administration has continued the national emergency initiated by President Obama. Facebook

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GOP lures some mountain bike groups in its push to roll back protections for public land By Evan Halper When their vision of creating a scenic cycling trail through a protected alpine backcountry hit a snag, San Diego area mountain bikers turned to an unlikely ally: congressional Republicans aiming to dilute conservation laws. The frustrations of the San Diego cycling group and a handful of similar organizations are providing tailwind to the GOP movement to lift restrictions on the countrys most ecologically fragile and pristine landscapes, officially designated wilderness. Resentment of these cyclists over the longstanding ban on mechanized transportation in that fraction of the nations public lands presents a political opportunity for Republicans eager to drill fissures in the broad coalition of conservation-minded groups united against the GOP environmental agenda. Read More Facebook

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Vice president postpones Israel trip a second time in case his vote is needed to pass tax cut bill By Noah Bierman (Ethan Miller / Getty Images) Vice President Mike Pence is delaying his trip to Egypt and Israel for a second time in case he is needed to break a tie in the Senate for the tax bill that is expected to pass narrowly this week. Two White House officials confirmed the changed schedule, which they say is unrelated to to protests in the region over the administrations decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital. Pence had initially been scheduled to leave last Saturday. Late last week, the White House moved the trip back a few days to Tuesday night, in case Pence was needed to break a Senate tie. But Monday, they decided to postpone the trip further, to January, given the possibility of a late Senate vote and the coming holidays. He wants to see it through the finish line, said a White House official, referring to the tax measure that is a centerpiece of the Republican legislative agenda. We dont want to leave anything to chance. The mid-January dates will allow Pence more breathing room to merge schedules with embassies and hotels, the official said. Trump still plans to address the Israeli Knesset, a high-profile venue to discuss the Jerusalem decision where it is most popular. Facebook

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Trump judicial pick who drew ridicule at hearing withdraws By Associated Press A White House official says the Trump judicial nominee whose qualifications were questioned by a Republican senator has withdrawn his nomination. Matthew Petersen, who was nominated by President Trump to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, has been the subject of widespread ridicule since he was unable to define basic legal terms during his confirmation hearing Wednesday. A White House official says Petersen has withdrawn his nomination and that Trump has accepted the withdrawal. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the development publicly. Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy pressed Petersen, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission, who testified he had never tried a case, on his qualifications to the bench. Facebook

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Trump says McCain will return to Washington if needed for tax vote By Laura King President Trump said Sunday that Sen. John McCain, who is battling an aggressive form of brain cancer, was returning home to Arizona for the holidays but would come back to Washington if needed to cast a vote on the Republicans tax overhaul bill. The Arizona Republicans office announced last week that McCain was receiving treatment at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington for complications from his cancer treatment. McCains daughter Meghan tweeted earlier Sunday that her 81-year-old father would be spending Christmas in Arizona. The Senate is expected to vote early this week on the tax cut legislation, but the GOP appeared to have secured sufficient support without McCains vote. John will come back if we need his vote, Trump told reporters as he returned from a weekend at the presidential retreat at Camp David. Hes going through a very tough time. Facebook

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Putin calls Trump to thank him for U.S. help foiling terrorist strike By Laura King Vladimir Putin phoned President Trump to thank him for what the Russian president said was CIA help in foiling a terrorist attack, the Kremlin said on Sunday. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed the two leaders conversation to reporters. It was the second time that the two leaders had talked in four days; Trump called Putin on Thursday to thank the Russian leader for lauding the U.S. economy. Putin, in his annual year-end news conference, had praised Trump for a strong performance by the U.S. stock market. Perhaps ironically, given his credit to the CIAs recent help, Putin at that news event dismissed as hysteria the consensus among American intelligence agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential campaign. In reporting Putins call to Trump on Sunday, the official Russian news agency Tass said Putin thanked his American counterpart for information shared by the US Central Intelligence Agency that had helped break up a plot to set off explosives in St. Petersburgs landmark Kazan Cathedral and elsewhere in the city, which is Russias second-largest. Russian authorities last week had credited their countrys counter-intelligence service, the FSB, for foiling the attacks. They reported that seven people affiliated with Islamic State had been detained in St. Petersburg in connection with the plot. The FSB, the successor organization to the KGB, announced Friday that the group had planned to carry out the attacks on Saturday, and that one of those in custody had confessed to the cathedral bomb plot. Facebook

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Mnuchin: Government shutdown unlikely but could happen By Laura King Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said on Sunday that a government shutdown this week was unlikely but possible. A two-week stopgap spending bill passed by Congress earlier this month provided enough funding to keep the government running through Friday. A deadlock on another temporary funding measure would open the door to a possible shutdown. I cant rule it out, but I cant imagine it occurring, Mnuchin said on Fox News Sunday, suggesting everyone had an interest in avoiding the government grinding to a halt and federal workers going unpaid, especially in the holiday season. I would expect that both the House and Senate, Republicans and Democrats, understand if they cant agree on this, they need to have another short-term extension to move this to January, the Treasury secretary said. We cant have a government shutdown in front of Christmas. In May, irate over concessions made to Democrats in hammering out a spending measure, President Trump tweeted that a good shutdown might help matters. While both parties agree that a government shutdown involves a degree of disruption that is not beneficial to either side, shutdowns in 1995-96 and in 2013 mainly caused a backlash against Republicans. The latest funding measure is to be taken up after a vote on a massive GOP tax overhaul, expected by midweek. Facebook

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Trump transition team says sensitive emails should not have been shared with Robert Mueller By Chris Megerian (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) President Trumps transition team is crying foul over how special counsel Robert S. Mueller III obtained emails for his investigation into Russian meddling in last years campaign and possible Trump campaign complicity. Kory Langhofer, a lawyer for the transition team, sent a letter to Congress on Saturday saying there was an unauthorized disclosure of emails. While the Trump transition is long over, the transition team remains a nonprofit organization. Its emails were hosted by the General Services Administration, a federal agency. Mueller reportedly obtained the emails directly from the agency. There are attorney-client communications, Langhofer said in an interview. There are executive-privileged communications. He added, What were asking Congress to do is to take some legislative action to make sure this never happens again. Peter Carr, a spokesman for the special counsels office, defended the process for obtaining emails. When we have obtained emails in the course of our ongoing criminal investigation, we have secured either the account owners consent or appropriate criminal process, he said. The letter was first reported by Fox News. A request for comment from the General Services Administration was not immediately answered. This story has been updated with a comment from the special counsels office. Facebook

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Virginia house arrest is ending for Paul Manafort By Chris Megerian (Mark Wilson / Getty Images) A federal judge agreed Friday to end Paul Manaforts house arrest in Virginia, allowing President Trumps former campaign manager to return to Florida while awaiting trial. The decision followed a dispute between Manaforts legal team and prosecutors working for special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who accused Manafort of violating a court order restricting public statements about the case. Under the terms of the judges order, Manafort will be allowed to live at his home in Florida as long as he stays within Palm Beach and Broward counties and obeys a curfew from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. If he misses a court appearance, he would forfeit four properties valued at $10 million total. The deal, which includes GPS monitoring, is not as permissive as Manafort originally sought. He had asked to be able to travel freely among Florida, New York, Virginia and Washington. Manafort faces criminal charges of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. He has pleaded not guilty. Facebook

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GOP negotiators enhance child tax credit to win over Sen. Rubio By Lisa Mascaro Republican negotiators slightly increased the refundable portion of the expanded child tax credit in their tax plan, raising it to $1,400 in hopes of winning back Sen. Marco Rubios (R-Fla.) support ahead of next weeks vote. Rubio announced Thursday he was withholding support after negotiators ignored his push to make the expanded tax credit, which increases from the current $1,000 to $2,000 in the proposed bill, fully refundable for lower- and moderate-income filers. The refundable portion in the original bill was $1,100. The Florida senator argued that was not enough to help working-class Americans, many of whom already view the GOP plan as tilted toward the wealthy. Rubios office was waiting to see the final text before commenting on whether the change was enough to win him over. We have not seen the bill text, and until we see if the percentage of the refundable credit is significantly higher, then our position remains the same, Rubios spokeswoman said. Negotiators meeting Friday before unveiling the bill said they thought they had the support they needed from Rubio and other holdouts. Im confident both chambers will pass it next week, said Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.). Facebook

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Sen. Marco Rubio opposes GOP tax bill, depriving leaders of crucial support By Lisa Mascaro 20.94% Corp. rate to pay for tax cut for working family making $40k was anti-growth but 21% to cut tax for couples making $1million is fine?  Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) December 12, 2017 Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) says he is currently opposed to the GOP tax plan because it fails to include his proposed enhancements to the child tax credit, leaving leaders without crucial support ahead of next weeks expected vote. Republicans can only lose two GOP senators from their slim 52-48 majority as they push the plan forward under special budget rules to prevent a Democratic filibuster. Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday altered his planned Israel trip so he could be on hand, if needed, to cast a tie-breaking vote. Rubio, and GOP Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, have fought to increase the child tax credit, doubling it to $2,000 in the GOP plan, but they also want to increase its refundability. They argue it will lower taxes on middle-income families at a time when the tax plan is being criticized as tilted to the wealthy. Sen. Rubio has consistently communicated to the Senate tax negotiators that his vote on final passage would depend on whether the refundability of the Child Tax Credit was increased in a meaningful way, Rubios spokeswoman said. Lee stopped short of opposing the bill, but his spokesman said Wednesday he is undecided. GOP leaders, though, have said they believe they have the support for passage. Facebook

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White House gives Roy Moore a unsubtle shove: Time to concede By David Lauter (Alex Wong / Getty Images) The White House sent a clear signal Thursday to the defeated Republican candidate for Senate in Alabama: Its time to concede. Roy Moore refused to concede the race on Tuesday night when Doug Jones, the Democrat, was declared the winner. Election night results show Jones winning by about 1.5 percentage points, three times more than the states standard for a recount. Although a few absentee and provisional ballots remain to be counted, theres no indication they would change the result. On Wednesday, Moore notably did not call to congratulate Jones  even as President Trump and other leading Republicans did. Instead, he released a video declaring the battle rages on. Asked at the daily news briefing whether the White House thinks Moore should concede today, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, It probably sounds like it maybe should have already taken place. Sanders also dismissed the idea, pushed by some Moore supporters, that Jones victory was tainted in some fashion. Asked if the Democrat had won fair and square, she said, I think the numbers reflect that. The states Republican senator, Richard Shelby, offered a similar comment in an interview with MSNBC in which he said he was willing to work with Jones. If I was 25,000 votes behind, its not going to change much, Shelby said. Facebook

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House Speaker Paul Ryan says hes not leaving anytime soon By Lisa Mascaro House Speaker Paul D. Ryan shot down suggestions Thursday that he might soon be retiring. Stories often circulate that party leaders, especially the House speaker, are stepping aside. Ryans tenure has been as rocky as that of his predecessor, Rep. John Boehner, who abruptly resigned in 2015 amid GOP infighting. Asked Thursday if he would be leaving, Ryan answered a simple no, as he left his weekly press conference in the Capitol. Ryan, the Wisconsin Republican who reluctantly took over the speakers gavel after Boehners departure, had just finished talking up the GOP tax plan, which leaders hope to pass next week. He also outlined his sweeping agenda for his longtime goal of entitlement reform of welfare benefits next year. Two stories published Thursday suggested Ryan may soon be out. This is pure speculation, said spokeswoman AshLee Strong. As the speaker himself said today, hes not going anywhere anytime soon. Facebook

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GOP leaders reach tax deal, cutting corporate rate to 21% and top individual rate to 37% By Lisa Mascaro Republican leaders on Wednesday agreed on a revised plan to cut taxes that would lower the corporate rate from 35% to 21% and drop the top individual rate for the richest Americans to 37%, according to GOP senators and others briefed on the deal. The tentative accord marked a significant step in the Republican push to have a tax bill on President Trumps desk by Christmas. Leaders did not release details of the compromise or the text of a final bill as negotiations continued. Its critically important for Congress to quickly pass these historic tax cuts, Trump said Wednesday, promising that Americans could begin to reap the benefits of the plan as early as February, if passed. Critics, however, said the latest changes  particularly the lowering of the top individual rate from the current 39.6%  only reaffirmed several independent analyses that show the bulk of the savings from the Republican plan would go to businesses and the wealthy. Read More Facebook

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Farenthold to retire from House amid harassment accusations By Associated Press Texas Republican Rep. Blake Farenthold wont seek reelection next year, two Republicans said Thursday, adding his name to the list of lawmakers leaving Congress amid sexual harassment allegations that have cost powerful men their jobs in politics, the arts and other fields. The accusations against Farenthold surfaced in 2014, when a former aide sued him alleging sexually suggestive comments and behavior and said shed been fired after she complained. The lawmaker said he engaged in no wrongdoing and the case was settled in 2015. But the House Ethics Committee said last week that it would investigate Farenthold after congressional sources said hed paid an $84,000 settlement using taxpayers money. Though Farenthold said hed reimburse the Treasury Department, such payments have drawn public criticism from people saying lawmakers should use their own money for such settlements. A House official said Farenthold spoke twice Wednesday to House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), while another official said the congressman spoke once with Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio) who heads the GOPs House campaign committee. Those discussions suggested that Farenthold may have come under pressure from leaders to step aside. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. Last week, three lawmakers facing accusations of sexual harassment announced their resignations. Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) have already left Congress while Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) has said he will step aside soon. Mike Bergsma, Republican county chairman in Farentholds home county of Nueces, Texas, said Fare
In July 2015, the defeat of Syrian President Bashar Assad appeared imminent.

His troops, overstretched and exhausted, had lost too many men, and a string of humiliating defeats meant the government controlled only a quarter of the country.

Two months later, Russian warplanes streaked through Syrias skies, hurling bombs at Assads adversaries and starting a reversal of fortune that, more than two years later, has forced most of those enemies to accede that he will remain.

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That was the backdrop to Russian President Vladimir Putins surprise visit to a Syrian air base on Monday, where he met with Assad and declared that Moscow would begin a drawdown of troops following what the Kremlin said was the defeat of Islamic State.

You are returning with victory to your native homes, to your relatives, parents, wives, children, friends, Putin said in an address to Russian troops at the Hemeimeem air base shown on state television. The motherland is waiting for you.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the commander of Russias military forces in Syria, Col. Gen. Sergey Surovikin, were also in attendance at the base southeast of Latakia.

The troop withdrawal announcement came a week after the Russian Ministry of Defense said that it had defeated Islamic State and that there were no remaining enclaves left in Syria under the militant groups control.

Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses troops at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria on Dec. 11, 2017. (Mikhail Klimentyev / Associated Press )

In his speech at the base on Monday, Putin said Moscow would begin bringing home a significant part of its troops, but left room for Russian troops to strike once more if Islamic State tried to return.

If terrorists raise their heads again, we will strike at them with such blows as they have never seen, he said.

Assad was effusive in his praise of Russias support.

Future generations that will read of this war will not differentiate between the Syrian martyr and the Russian martyr, Assad said. And the sacrifices of the heroes from both sides was a manifestation of the noblest battle in the confrontation of terrorism.

Assad added that Russian pilots have been in the air all the time, according to the Russian state news agency Tass.

Thanks a million, he added.

Mondays visit was Putins first to Syria since Russias decisive intervention more than two years ago. Russia has two bases in Syria, the air base at Hemeimeem and a naval base at Tartus (both will remain operational and in Russias hands), from which Russia has conducted airstrikes against groups opposed to Assads government, including the Syrian National Coalition and Islamic State.

Putins announcement Monday was not the first time he has said Russian troops would be leaving Syria.

Last month, during a surprise visit by Assad to Russias Black Sea resort of Sochi, Putin announced that the Russian military campaign in Syria was over and that its troops would be leaving Syria. During that meeting, Assad thanked Putin for saving his country.

Some analysts believe Mondays announcement may be more likely to be followed by actual troop movement than the previous announcements, as the Syrian conflict moves into what Assad in his speech said was the second phase of combating terrorism.

Islamic State has largely been defeated in Syria and, thanks to Russian military backing, Assads government troops have prevailed against the other rebel opposition militias, said Leonid Issaev, an associate professor in the department of political science at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. What comes next, he said, will be a political resolution to the Syrian civil war, and Russia wants to make sure it has a clear role of influence in a future Syria.

Its very important for Putin to show to the international community that its not Iran who has the most important presence in Syria, but that its Moscow who plays a crucial role in Damascus, Issaev said.

So, in that sense, its realistic that weve finished the military campaign in Syria. Assad is the winner, he won this war in Syria with Russian help, he added.

It is unclear how many Russian military advisors (the euphemistic catchall for special forces or private contractors) will remain in the country as Damascus continues its campaign to defeat the opposition it cannot neutralize with negotiations.

The rebels still control pockets of territory, especially near the countrys borders. That includes Idlib province, held by Assads most implacable foes.

Putin added that he hoped Iran and Turkey would be able to restore the peace in the country.

There is a domestic advantage as well to Putins announcement. The Russian president said last week that he would seek reelection in March. A Russian military success in Syria bodes well for his prospects more than three months ahead of the election.

Putin made the stop in Syria on his way to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi for talks in Cairo.

Special correspondent Ayres reported from Moscow and Bulos from Beirut.

sabra.ayres@latimes.com

Twitter: @sabraayres

Ayres is a special correspondent.

UPDATES:

12:05 p.m.: This article has been updated with additional quotes, background.

This article was originally posted at 8:05 a.m.
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The Europe Direct Information Centre Amiens is organizing an event about Employment and posted workers.

The region Hauts-de-France is the first region to benefit from EU funds but it is also the most Eurosceptic. Despite its geographical location at the heart of Europe, young people of this region are still far from the European construction. A citizen's dialogue will be the opportunity to get Hauts de France inhabitants closer to Europe.
@WildandSassyGal/Twitter(LOS ANGELES) -- Communities along Southern California's coast were still seeing fresh evacuations on Sunday as the seemingly unstoppable Thomas fire, fueled by plentiful brush and shifty Santa Ana winds Several swaths of the city of Carpinteria were placed under mandatory evacuation overnight and into Sunday, fire officials confirmed, as the blaze continues to threaten structures.



The Thomas fire, which since Monday has been battled by 4,400 firefighters and has torched 173,000 acres, remains only 15 percent contained.



One firefighter suffered an injured leg while battling the Thomas fire, Cal Fire officials confirmed to ABC News. The Thomas fire has also knocked out power lines to thousands.



There was also limited refuge for the evacuees as parts of Ventura, Ojai, Casitas Springs, Santa Paula and Fillmore are still being threatened by blazes, fire officials said.



The news of the fire's continued devastation in the already scorched region comes a day after firefighters across Southern California made dramatic headway in the week's battle against six major wildfires that have dragged the state's fire season well into December.



On Saturday, Gov. Jerry Brown surveyed some of the remains of Thomas Fire, which started in Ventura, fire officials said.



The governor said the prolonged fire season is becoming the norm.



"[We're] facing a new reality in the state," he said. "It's a horror and a horror we need to recover from."



He also noted that the years of drought and climate change have caused experts to conclude that "California is burning up."



From here on in California, Brown said, fires are going to be more "intense" and penetrate lives and property.



"Individuals need to come together to make our communities livable," he said.



The breakdown of the blazes and shift in winds gave firefighters in the region much-needed respite.



The newest blazes, the Lilac fire in San Diego County and the Liberty fire in Riverside County, which was 20 percent contained as of Saturday afternoon, are also being fueled by continued Santa Ana winds and low humidity, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



ABC News meteorologist Daniel Manzo said the forecast for those fire-ravaged areas remains serious.



Red flag warnings have remained in effect for much of Southern California with peak wind gusts of 30 to 50 mph. Low relative humidity - as low as 5 percent -- is likely through this period, as well, Manzo said.



Winds could exceed 50 mph in the mountains east of San Diego, an area that was of particular concern for fire growth on Sunday.



Winds gusts in Ventura and Los Angeles counties were expected to diminish Sunday afternoon from 60 mph to 45 mph due to an onshore flow beginning to develop, according to Cal Fire's website.



The winds had exceeded 60 mph during the week, causing embers to spread.



Gusts were in the 30 to 50 mph range in San Diego County and 25 mph in Santa Barbara where the evacuations were taking place.



Low humidity around Southern California has staggered in the teens to single digits.



It took 8,500 firefighters to battle the first four large wildfires and then new ones have continued spreading rapidly, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



Overall, the six blazes have burned more than 200,000 acres and forced more than 98,000 residents from their homes.



A 70-year-old woman was identified Friday as the first victim of the fires.



The Skirball fire is small, but its threat to heavily populated areas of Los Angeles, including Bel Air, has drawn widespread attention.



All Los Angeles Unified School District schools in the San Fernando Valley and 17 schools on Los Angeles' west side were shuttered last week, citing the poor air quality. At least 265 schools have been closed. UCLA canceled classes during the week because of the Skirball fire.



On Friday, the district announced that all schools will reopen Monday.



Thomas fire



The Thomas fire in Ventura County, the largest of the six blazes, started Monday night as a 50-acre brush fire in foothills east of Santa Paula and grew to 10,000 acres in just four hours, authorities said.



The fire had burned 173,000 acres of land by Sunday morning and was holding at just 15 percent contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



More than 98,000 residents were evacuated, and 25,000 structures are threatened by the flames, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



The Thomas Fire has since spread to Santa Barbara County late Thursday, prompting California Gov. Jerry Brown to issue a state of emergency for the county, the third to be designated.



There were 9,000 firefighting personnel on the scene of the massive blaze.



Authorities said 834 structures were destroyed in the blaze and more than 100 were damaged.



Officials were concerned about part of the Thomas Fire heading northeast and threatening a nursing home in Ojai. The 25 residents and staffers there were evacuated as a precaution, authorities said. It's unclear if the seniors have returned to the nursing home or remain evacuated.



Creek fire



The Creek fire, in the Kagel Canyon area above Los Angeles' Sylmar neighborhood, has scorched 15,619 acres of land, destroyed at least 105 buildings and damaged another 70. Over 150,000 residents were evacuated and some 2,500 structures are threatened, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



The blaze was 90 percent contained as of Sunday morning, and 1,964 personnel are fighting the flames.



The Creek fire was responsible for the death of almost 40 horses at Rancho Padilla, according to ABC station KABC-TV in Los Angeles. The horses were trapped in a barn that burned to the ground as the owners were evacuated with no warning.



All evacuation orders and warnings were lifted by Saturday morning.



Rye fire



The Rye fire has scorched 6,049 acres in Santa Clarita, west of Valencia. The blaze was 90 percent contained as of Sunday morning, though 5,460 structures are still threatened by the flames, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.



About 2,000 residents were evacuated, though mandatory evacuation orders in the area have been lifted.



There were 652 personnel on scene battling the Rye fire Sunday morning.



Skirball fire



The Skirball fire has burned more than 400 acres of land so far, but its proximity to Los Angeles and responsibility for briefly shutting down the infamously crowded 405 Freeway has drawn national attention.



The fire had posed a threat to the acclaimed Getty Center, a museum in western Los Angeles. Officials managed to keep the flames from jumping the 405 freeway and heading east. The blaze was 75 percent contained as of Sunday morning, and firefighters have managed to keep it from breaching containment lines.



Six structures were lost in the fire, with an additional 12 damaged. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries while battling the flames, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.



Los Angeles County declared a state of emergency Wednesday afternoon because of the Skirball fire in the city's Bel-Air neighborhood.



Lilac fire



The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said Friday that flames from the Lilac fire were growing at a "dangerous rate" in San Diego County, where 4,100 acres of land have been burned thus far. At least 182 structures were destroyed and 23 were damaged by the blaze, while an additional 1,500 are threatened.



The fire was 60 percent contained as of Sunday morning.



AlertSanDiego, the region's cellphone emergency alert system, had sent out 23,000 evacuation messages as of Friday morning, including for new evacuations in Oceanside.



Officials said the Lilac fire began late Thursday morning near Fallbrook and had grown to 50 acres in just an hour. Peak gusts had reached 66 mph Thursday afternoon in Pala, California, near the blaze, contributing to the rapid spread of flames.



Four civilians had suffered injuries and were taken to local hospitals, though authorities could not confirm the severity of the injuries.



Gov. Brown declared a state of emergency in San Diego County due to the Lilac fire, his office announced late last week.



Liberty fire



The Liberty fire, located in Riverside County near Murrieta, north of Temecula, has scorched 300 acres of land. It was 100 percent contained as of Sunday night, according to the Murrieta Fire and Rescue.



Seven structures were destroyed in the flames, but authorities have lifted all evacuation orders for the area.



One woman, Lauren Fuga, said she watched in shock as the Liberty fire burned down part of her home in Murrieta.



"I just, I'm at a loss for words," Fuga told KABC-TV through tears. "It's so horrible. You never think that it's going to happen to you, and it can."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
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Armenian leaders at the national and local level on 24 October struck an upbeat note about the decentralisation of power in Armenia, about the country's relations with the European Union, and about the potential of EU initiatives to help local communities, suggesting that a pending agreement between the EU and Armenia has substantial support at lower levels of government.



The mayors and national politicians from Armenia were speaking at a conference  entitled "Innovation and regional development: Agents for growth in Eastern Partnership countries"  at which European local and regional leaders shared their experiences of efforts to stimulate growth progress and to embrace e-governance. The conference  which was co-organised by: Armenia's Ministry of Territorial Administration and Development; the Conference of Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP); and GIZ, the German development agency  was a follow-up to a meeting in Yerevan in 2016 at which the EU launched a bottom-up initiative, Mayors of Economic Growth. It was held a month before the planned signing of a Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the EU and Armenia on the sidelines of the summit of national leaders of the Eastern Partnership.



Emin Yeritsyan, the president of the Union of Communities of Armenia and a member of CORLEAP, said that Armenian municipalities had joined the Mayors for Economic Growth eagerly, accounting for over 40% of the 195 Eastern Partnership mayors in the bottom initiative, which sees the European Commission provide technical support to regional and local administrations that draw up plans for sustainable economic development. He traced the high take-up back to promotional efforts by CORLEAP, a forum created by the European Committee of the Regions in 2011 at which its members can meet counterparts from six Eastern Partnership countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Belarus and Ukraine.



The Mayors for Economic Growth initiative, which has a secretariat in Tbilisi, Georgia, has proven even more popular in Armenia than an older, similar initiative  Covenant of Mayors East, a regional branch of the Global Covenant of Mayors  in which communities receive technical support from the EU if they pledge to exceed the EU's emissions-reduction targets. Mr Yeritsyan is also a major proponent of climate action, drafting a report for CORLEAP on energy efficiency.



The EU's support for regions and cities in Armenia and the other Eastern Partnership countries come in the midst of substantial changes in Armenia's political system, with the gradual amalgamation  between 2015 and 2019  of local administrations, reducing their number from 915 to some 400. The mayor of the first community to be consolidated  Armen Santrosyan, mayor of Dilijan and member of CORLEAP  said at the conference that the process had been popular in his area, with 73% support in a referendum in May 2015.



Mr Santrosyan said Dilijan was now stepping up e-governance initiatives, broadcasting council meetings live, running a municipal management information system (MMIS) for documentation, financial and property issues, and providing citizens with a 'one-stop shop'.



Karen Nazaryan, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, opened the event by suggesting that reforms within Armenia and the planned CEPA with the EU would create more momentum and opportunities for economic growth.



Mr Nazaryan and other Armenian speakers stressed that practical benefits  at work, at home, and on the move  of cooperation with the EU will do much to shape Armenian voters' attitude towards the EU, and that it will therefore be important for national leaders to agree at the Eastern Partnership summit on 24 November on a package of '20 deliverables for 2020'. CORLEAP is pressing for local authorities to be involved in all phases of Eastern Partnership projects, from their conceptualisation to their implementation.



The same message was voiced by Europeans at the conference. Piotr Switalski, the Head of the European Union Delegation to Armenia, said that local and regional authorities would have a significant role in ensuring the '20 deliverables'  projects to strengthen economies, governance, connectivity and society in the six countries are implemented by 2020.



Addressing the broader political role of local politicians, Pawe Adamowicz (PL/EPP), the mayor of Gdansk, emphasised the need for local administrations to strengthen grassroots democracy, highlighting initiatives by Gdansk to develop participatory budgeting and encourage social innovation. Mr Adamowicz was the author of a report on strengthening local democracy in the Eastern Partnership, which was adopted by CORLEAP in 2016.



Mr Adamowicz also spoke of the need for local administrations to cooperate internationally, mentioning Gdansk's support in setting up a Local Democracy Agency in Mariupol in south-eastern Ukraine. Pavel Branda (CZ/ECR), deputy mayor of the town of Radlo, said that experience from the Czech Republic and other parts of the EU suggested that cross-border cooperation could have a major impact on economic development.



The conference devoted a thematic session to e-governance. Jelizaveta Krenjova, an e-democracy expert from the e-Governance Academy in Estonia, which holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union and which is an acknowledged leader in e-governance, called for a "balanced" approach, by coupling electronic services with efforts to promote online engagement in local policymaking. She said that it was very important for local and regional authorities to be involved, as promotion at the local level boosts the general level of e-activism.



Case studies came from the Czech Republic, Latvia and Georgia. Petr Osvald (CZ/PES), a former deputy minister for regional development, said that an award-winning initiative from his city, Plzen, enables travel, payments, and cultural services through a contactless chip card and may be extended through connections with similar projects in the Czech Republic. Davit Melua, executive director of the National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia (NALAG), said leadership by local politicians is critical, and said that Georgia hopes to have municipal management information systems (MMIS) in place in all municipalities by the end of 2018.



Vache Terteryan, Armenia's First Deputy Minister for Territorial Administration and Development and moderator of the event, noted the striking similarities with the problems faced by post-Soviet countries. He made a commitment to reflect together with Mr Yeritsyan and the Union of Communities of Armenia on how Armenia could develop many of the ideas presented, particularly by Andris Jaunsleinis (LV/ALDE), member of Ventspils Municipal Council, and Maris Pukis, senior adviser at the Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments.
Four men were charged with attempting to lure 14-year-old girls for sex in Bethlehem over a three-day period.

A fifth man faces similar charges, although it's unclear how old the victim was in his case.

Police charged four men in independent investigations after each one allegedly attempted to lure a 14-year-old girl for sex. In each case, an agent with the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General's Child Predator Section was posing as the girl.

The following men were charged:

Brandon Lee Souders, 22, of Salisbury Township, allegedly arranged to meet a girl Dec. 9 into Dec. 10 in the first block of West North Street in Bethlehem. He allegedly told police he "really messed up" and had used Craig's List to meet others for sex at least three times prior to being caught.

Clifford William Jones, 53, of Bethlehem, allegedly arranged to meet a girl Dec. 8 in the 400 block of Wyandotte Street in Bethlehem. He handed over his cell phone, which had his inappropriate exchanges with the undercover officer, and said "he totally screwed up," police said.

Terry M. Hostetter, 51, of Bethlehem, allegedly arranged to meet a girl Dec. 8 in the 400 block of Wyandotte Street in Bethlehem. He allegedly handed over his phone and told police he "made a very bad choice."

Robert Andrew Saultz, 55, of Manville, New Jersey, allegedly arranged to meet a girl Dec. 9 into Dec. 10 in the first block of West North Street in Bethlehem.

Each of the four men was charged with unlawful contact with a minor, criminal attempt at involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and criminal use of a communication facility.

Jones was charged with an additional count of unlawful contact with a minor and statutory sexual assault.

A fifth man, Victor Cueto, 24, of Allentown, was also charged with unlawful contact with a minor, criminal attempt at involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and criminal use of a communication facility in Bethlehem on Dec. 8, according to online court records. Details of his case weren't immediately available.

All five men were sent to Northampton County Prison after failing to post bail. Bail for Souders was $125,000 and for Cueto was $150,000. Bail for each of the remaining three men was $200,000.

District Judge Antonia Grifo arraigned each man and set bail in each case.

Souders lives in the 1000 block of East Emmaus Avenue in Salisbury Township, records say. Jones lives in the 800 block of Wyandotte Street in Bethlehem. Hostetter lives in the 500 block of East Fourth Street in Bethlehem. Saultz lives in the 100 block of South 17th Avenue in Manville.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
Charlie Wacik wasn't able to play the role of Santa on Sunday after his home burned down in Wilson Borough.

The 74-year-old believes he lost his home and the children missed out on a five-year tradition due to a fire that could have been prevented.

He had been calling the borough codes department about what he said was a dangerous situation. He suspected the home at 1530 Washington St. that was attached to his at 1532 Washington St. could catch fire some day. That's exactly what happened.

"My dad called this in months ago," said Wacik's 46-year-old son, who is also named Charlie. "They were running heaters and air compressors late at night. ... The place was condemned. It didn't have running water. He said something was going to happen."

Little is left Dec. 11, 2017, after a fire the day before at 1530 Washington St. in Wilson Borough. (Tony Rhodin | For lehighvalleylive.com)

"I knew it was going to happen," the elder Wacik added.

The father is staying with his son as a result of the fire. The elder Wacik, his wife Marlowe, and their Bichon Zoe weren't hurt in the fire.

The borough did intercede but people continued to live in the home as work was being done, neighbors said.

Codes director Paul Corriere on Monday declined comment at the scene, saying "everything is being investigated."

As the fire burned, "too much fishy stuff was happening," Wacik said. There was "popping" and a whooshing noise that raised Wacik's suspicions.

He was waiting for his insurance agent and expected an adjuster later in the day, he said. Decisions about what to do next will have to wait for the numbers, his son said.

"It's a difficult day, I guess," the elder Wacik said.

The top of 1532 Washington St. in Wilson Borough was burned through early on Dec. 10, 2017. (Tony Rhodin | For lehighvalleylive.com)

The community, which the father served for nearly 46 years as a firefighter, has reached out. There are fundraisers underway and several people have offered places to stay, he said.

Another slice of his life was left behind in a closet on the back of the second floor.

"The other part was being Santa," he said. The suit his wife bought for $360 is still up there, but is likely ruined, he said.

Sunday was supposed to be the day when he played Santa on a firetruck, delivering presents to borough children. It would have been the fifth year for that special duty, he said.

"It broke my heart," he said, when the event was canceled due to the fire.

Blaze Odyssey, 43, who has lived across the street for 11 years, was still angry 24 hours after the fire.

He said he "confronted" 1530 Washington's owner Tarek Osman about the property and personal losses in a fire that could have done even more damage.

Odyssey, whose SUV was damaged by the heat, said that Osman replied, "Oh, but I lost a lot of money."

"I bit my tongue," Odyssey said. "For a man to say something like that."

A listed number of Osman on Monday morning in Forks Township was out of service.

"Somebody has to be held responsible for these people losing their homes," Odyssey said. He plans on attending the next borough council meeting to request a "more effective ordinance toward (property) investors."

The elder Wacik was aghast at Osman's alleged comment.

"... The owner had the nerve to stand there and say 'the money I lost.' What about me?" he asked.

Fire witness Luis Rodriquez said he came across the fire on his way home from work Sunday morning. The 33-year-old ran inside his home across the street, woke up his wife, called 911 and headed back out to knock on doors and alert neighbors.

Amid the mayhem, Rodriguez said he saw a man running down the street. The man wasn't stopping to knock on doors, and Rodriquez "didn't keep track" of where the man went, because "that's when things went crazy" and the fire quickly roared through 1530 Washington.

A man with burns on his hands was reported a block away, but authorities have yet to confirm if that person existed, if he was treated at a hospital and if he was living in the home.

Police Chief Steven Parkansky said everyone in the area of the fire is accounted for and nothing appeared "criminal or suspicious."

A state police fire marshal has joined the probe and it's ongoing, Parkansky said.

As for the man with the burned hands, police may have an update later in the day, the police chief said.

Even if the Santa suit is ruined, Wacik's Santa days aren't over, both he and his son said.

They're just put on hold.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A Berks County man was charged Monday with driving drunk and causing a crash that killed his girlfriend in Upper Macungie Township.

Yvonne Rohrbach was a passenger on a motorcycle driven by Shawn Balthaser at 11:23 p.m. July 31, according to a news release from Lehigh County District Attorney James Martin.

The release says Balthaser, 49, failed to negotiate a left curve at Route 222 and Mill Creek Road. He drove across two concrete islands, the release says.

The release says Rohrbach, 52, fell off the motorcycle after he struck the second island. She was dragged a short distance until she struck a sign post, the release says. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The couple lived at a home in the 400 block of Franklin Street in Hamburg.

Balthaser is charged with involuntary manslaughter, homicide by vehicle while DUI, and two counts of driving under the influence.

The charge of homicide by vehicle while DUI carries a mandatory three-year prison sentence.

He was cited for driving after sunset with a passenger, which is prohibited for drivers with just a learner's permit. He was charged with reckless driving and related traffic citations.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
A pipe bomb attack in a passenger subway corridor beneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal that injured the suspect and three others Monday morning is terror-related, New York City officials said.

Akayed Ullah, 27, of Brooklyn, N.Y., is in serious condition at Bellevue hospital while three passers-by brought themselves to city hospitals to be treated for minor injuries, primarily suffering from ringing in the ears.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference outside the bus terminal Monday morning. "An attack in the subway is incredibly unsettling. Thank God the terrorist didn't achieve his ultimate goals."

Law enforcement officials say he was inspired by the Islamic State, but apparently had no direct contact with the terror group.

Ullah detonated a "low-tech" improvised explosive device in an underground passageway connecting two subway lines about 7:20 a.m., police said.

He strapped the device to his body using Velcro and zip ties, according to police, who have yet to conclude whether Ullah specifically chose that spot to set off the device. Ullah had burns to his hands and abdomen, police said.

"This was frightening and disturbing," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. "We're thankful that the reality turns out better than our initial expectations and fear."

Ullah was walking east in the corridor between 8th Avenue and 7th Avenue when the device detonated, police commissioner James O'Neill said.

Ullah, who lives in Brooklyn, came to the U.S. from Bangladesh about seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a livery cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission. He was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, police said.

A person briefed on the investigation said Ullah arrived in the United States on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the U.S. who are citizens, and that he made the bomb in his home.

The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Service has since resumed at the Port Authority Bus Terminal. NJ Transit said that PATH discontinued cross honoring bus tickets. NJ Transit rail will stop cross honoring bus tickets at 11:59 a.m.

JUST IN: The suspected Port Authority bomber has been identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, an ISIS-inspired Brooklyn man https://t.co/sI8z5juTQO pic.twitter.com/hZxcDfYeP2  New York Post (@nypost) December 11, 2017

NY Waterway ferries will continue to cross honor NJ Transit bus tickets until 8 p.m. and had deployed extra ferries.

The MTA said that while subways have resumed service, trains on the Seventh and Eighth Avenue lines will not stop at 42nd Street. There are still significant traffic delays at the Lincoln Tunnel to New York.

Gov. Chris Christie said additional security has been stationed at mass transit hubs.

"Every law enforcement asset in New Jersey is coordinating with our federal and New York partners regarding this incident," Christie said. "I urge all New Jerseyans to be alert and that if they see something unusual, to report it to law enforcement immediately."

Larry Higgs and the Associated Press contributed to this report Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
The sentencing of Paul Gill for the serious assault of 58 year-old Naas man, Patsy Bud Kelly, who later died, has been adjourned until next Monday, December 17.

At Dublin Circuit Court yesterday, Judge Melanie Greally heard how Mr Gill had assaulted Mr Kelly, who did not fight back. The defendant was found not guilty of the manslaughter of Mr Kelly but he pleaded guilty to assaulting him.

Today the judge also heard victim impact statements from the Kelly family on how the death of their brother had affected them, and details of the difficult childhood of Paul Gill, who lost his father at the age of nine and was brought up by a schizophrenic mother.

Patsys brother, Brendan said of August 22 2015, the day his brother died.

I felt it was a dream. I pretended it did not happen. It was the day my life changed forever.

He continued: I thank God mam and dad were not here.

My mother had lost a child and Patsy was my mothers special boy, he said.

I apologise to him (Patsy) for not being there when he needed me although I know he would say it is ok. I miss him every day.

Brendans sister, Carmel was heartbroken by Patsys death.

I cant sleep at night. I feel so guilty I could not have helped him.

Her sister, Bernadette, on behalf of other family members, said August 22 2015 is etched in our hearts. Patsy was kind, caring and extremely thoughtful. Patsy was never violent.

We still put a plate out for him with a candle and a photo at Christmas, she said.

His death has left deep scars on the family.

She said Naas was no longer the town they grew up in and their trust in people is broken.

No one has the right to take the law into their own hands, she said.

Det Garda Enda Coleman, who investigated the assault summed up events, stating that Mr Gill (37) could not recall some of the events.

Mr Gill was represented by solicitor, Cairbre Finan, and counsel, Karl Hanahoe BL and Seamus Clarke SC,

Gda Coleman told prosecuting counsel, Orla Crowe SC, Mr Gill had assaulted Mr Kelly and Mr Kellys friend, Martin Curtis, a neighbour of Mr Gill, (who did not make a victim impact statement to the Court).

He agreed Mr Kelly had difficulties in life, including with alcohol and that he was very well known and well liked in Naas.

Mark Kelly, a relative of Mr Gill, said he and his wife looked after Mr Gill and his brother, Gerry (who died in a traffic accident when he was 16). Their father died when Mr Gill was 9 years old, and they had a difficult upbringing due to their mothers mental illness. Mr Gill, from the Aran Islands, did a fishing apprenticeship and later worked in construction.

His relative, Mr Kelly said he is a hard worker who never relied on the State. He married Laura in 2012 and they have five children, but he had to miss the birth of two of them because he was late getting to hospital on account of his new address.

Bail conditions kept him out of Naas and it was difficult for his wife and children.

Mr Clarke said Mr Gill would have to live with the consequences of Mr Kellys death.

Mr Gill has a previous conviction for a public order offence from June 2003 and another for an assault in March 2000 when he was ordered to pay over 2,000 compensation.

The Court was told how there was a background to the incident and the Sarto Road residence of Mr Gill was now empty. Judge Greally declined a request from Mr Clarke to adjourn sentence until after Christmas, opting for next Monday, instead.
A YOUNG man has been charged in connection with an incident during which an elderly woman was threatened with a knife.

Dale McNamara, aged 27, of Cosgrave Park, Moyross is accused of brandishing a large butcher knife at the 79-year-old after entering Sean OBrien shop, Gerard Street at around 10am on April 19, last.

Opposing bail, Detective Garda Donnacha Coakley said it will alleged that having entered the premises, the defendant started shouting at the woman and became agressive as he demanded cash from the register.

Judge Marian OLeary was told the defendant was identified as a suspect from CCTV footage and that it will be alleged by the State that he made some admissions when arrested and questioned about the incident.

Detective Garda Coakly said he believes the defendant is a Chronic heroin addict and that he would engage in further criminality to fund his habit.

He has no lawful income and its my belief that he will commit further offences and that he will not answer his bail (if released) he said.

Solicitor Tom Kiely said his client lives with his mother and that he has not come to the attention of gardai since the alleged incident.

He rejected the garda asertion that Mr McNamara represents a flight risk and he submitted that the concerns of gardai could be addressed with the imposition of strict bail conditions.

Addressing the court, Sergeant Donal Cronin said he believed it was reasonably necessary to refuse bail as gardai had concerns Mr McNamara would frustrate orders of the court.

While commenting that the allegations are particularly serious, Judge OLeary said she was willing to grant the defendant bail subject to a number of conditions including the lodging of an independent surety of 5,000 with the court.

Once he achieves bail, Mr McNamara must live at his home address in Moyross, sign on at his local garda station three times a week and obey a nightly curfew.

The 27-year-old was also ordered to give gardai a mobile phone number and he must not apply for any Passport or travel documents pending the conclusion of the proceedings.

Noting that a file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions, Judge OLeary adjourned the matter to December 19, next for directions.
ALL of Limericks 142 national schools are to benefit from a government grant, with even the smallest schools in line to get thousands of euro under the Minor Works Scheme.

The grants are to be paid to all primary schools throughout the county and the country this week, Limericks Minister of State, Patrick ODonovan said, welcoming the announcement.

Each school will receive a flat rate minor works grant of 5,500 plus 18.50 per mainstream pupil and 74 per special needs pupil attending a special school or special class, Minister ODonovan explained.

The grant is worth 6,425 for a 50-pupil school, for example, and over 11,000 for a 300-pupil school," he continued.

This grant will go a long way towards improving the physical condition of our school buildings to the benefit of both pupils and the teachers who work there.

The funds can be used for improvements to school buildings and grounds, improvement or replacement of mechanical and electrical services, the purchase of standard furniture and physical education equipment, the purchase of floor coverings and window blinds or the purchase of IT-related equipment.

However, it is expected to be late next year or January 2019 before the next minor works grants can be determined.
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THE head of the Limerick garda division says hes concerned that young people are continuing to drink and drive despite numerous appeals and road safety warnings.

Briefing members of the Limerick Joint Policing Committee, Chief Superintendent David Sheahan revealed there have been more than 600 detections for either drink driving or drug driving across the Limerick division since the beginning of 2016.

Of those apprehended by gardai, almost two thirds (63%) were aged between 20 and 39.

The vast majority of detections occurred in the greater city area while more than 80% of the suspected offenders were male. Nearly a third of all incidents involved young men aged between 20 and 29.

The prevalence of drink-driving was highlighted as recently as last Thursday night when a man was arrested at a checkpoint on the Dock Road after he failed a roadside breath test.

The driver and his female passenger were travelling on the outbound lane when the car was stopped shortly before 9pm.

Limerick Traffic: Man arrested for drink driving on the Dock

Rd, Limerick last night. Never ever drink and drive pic.twitter.com/YR0MT4Wych  An Garda Siochana (@GardaTraffic) December 8, 2017

Chief Supt Sheahan says the statistics show that young people dont seem to be getting the message when it comes to drink driving.

There was a perception that millennial's were not engaged in this kind of behaviour and that they have learned but they have not, he said.

He said it beggars belief that people are continuing to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs and that something has to be done to get the message through.

A major campaign focusing on drink-driving over the Christmas and New Year period is now underway.

There will be high visibility checkpoints and additional patrols across the city and county.
THOUSANDS of Limerick commuters could face another morning of treacherous slippery road conditions and traffic disruptions, as Met Eireann has issued a fresh weather alert for freezing temperatures for Tuesday morning.

Cautious motorists and pedestrians endured icy road conditions and delays, as a result of widespread black ice across Limerick on Monday morning.

This followed a weekend of plunging temperatures hitting below zero in parts of the county, after Met Eireann issued a nationwide orange weather alert on Sunday morning.

Met Eireann has warned that the country faces another cold snap, with temperatures dropping to minus four degrees between Monday evening and Tuesday morning.

And despite the freezing conditions, there were no major incidents across the city and county on Monday morning.

There were no call-outs to any incidents by Limerick Fire Service crew on Monday morning, though there were a number minor road traffic incidents in Limerick, between 8am and 9.30am.

A number of commuters noted lengthy traffic delays in the Castletroy area, particularly near University of Limerick. One driver said that they tried to pull over by the university and ended up skidding.

AA Roadwatch said on its website that roads around the city were very icy.

Another commuter said that it was like an ice rink driving from Patrickswell to the city centre.

Cllr Emmett OBrien stated on social media that there was a minor road traffic incident In Pallaskenry, while Cllr Cathal Crowe reported a stuck truck in Meelick. Emergency services attended the scene of a car crash near the Croom bypass.

It is understood that a number of businesses in the city centre were spreading salt on the footpaths, in order to make conditions safer for pedestrians.

There will be spells of rainfall on Tuesday and Wednesday, with average midday temperatures rising to eight and six degrees, respectively.
The next step in the search for a new superintendent could take place behind closed doors on Dec. 21 when Carlisle Area School Board members meet in executive session to discuss personnel issues.

The board is going to reach a consensus on what we see as the top four or five priorities for a new superintendent, board president Paula Bussard said Thursday. We will outline the process from there.

The search was delayed until after the Nov. 7 general election because the race was competitive and could have resulted in a change in the make-up of the board.

Six candidates were vying for four open four-year seats. Incumbent board members Rick Coplen, Brian Guillaume, Anne Lauritzen and Deborah Sweaney were challenged by Kitzi Chappelle and Julie Lesman.

The four incumbents won reelection and were officially sworn in Thursday during the boards annual reorganization meeting. Incumbent Fred Baldwin, who ran unopposed for a two-year seat, was also sworn in.

Board members Thursday reelected Bussard as president and Linda Manning as vice president. Bussard first became board president in late 2015 after Nancy Fishman resigned to take a job in Washington, D.C.

Bussards reelection as president Thursday was unanimous. I appreciate the trust my fellow board members have given in me to continue leadership, she said. We have important facility planning, leadership transition and certainly a desire to continue pressing forward on academic achievement. I look forward to meeting with the board in fulfilling those.

The board in September approved an updated job description for superintendent as the first step in the process to find a permanent replacement for John Friend, who stepped down as the districts chief executive this past June.

The board has appointed Christina Spielbauer to serve as acting superintendent through the current school year, which ends June 30, 2018. She was the assistant superintendent under Friend.

Board members Coplen and Lauritzen reviewed and updated the job duties, qualifications and expectations that had been in effect since the board promoted Friend from assistant superintendent to chief executive in March 2010.

We have the job description, Bussard said Thursday. We have to make decisions on how recruitment would proceed. She felt confident the board could meet its stated goal of appointing a new superintendent by July 1, the start of the 2018-19 year.
Shah Rukh Khans new show is a retweetand that matters 'TED Talks India Nayi Soch' uses Shah Rukh Khan's celebrity to push discussions that might not have found a wide audience otherwise /how-to-lounge/movies-tv/shah-rukh-khan-s-new-show-is-a-retweet-and-that-matters-111646832615383.html 111646832615383 story

The first time I remember using the TED Talks app on my iPad many, many years ago, it tossed up a host of options: the time I had at hand, subjects I was interested in, the mood the talk should have. After I parsed these parameters, the app helpfully presented me with a selection of ideally sized and shaped talks, after which I saved a couple for later and went back to see if the app could handle much odder demands. I dont remember if Id hunted for a talk on thermodynamics weighing in under seven minutes, or a discussion on heteronormative stereotypes in television writing, but the fact remains that the app can deal with whatever you throw at it. There is a TED Talk for everything.

This makes TED a remarkable resource, certainly, but it also means it has generated too much content for us to sift. There are fascinating talks well never individually stumble upon, and superlative ones being watched by far too few people. This is why we rely on curators to pick out things and point us in the right direction, and with the new Star Plus show TED Talks India Nayi Soch Sunday evenings at 7pm on Star Plus, streaming on HotstarShah Rukh Khan walks us through a playlist of talks he finds interesting.

This ought to be a highly effective approach. As many of us on social media would attest, even a stray comment from a relatively minor celebrity gets favourited and liked and shared several hundred times over, not to mention the love it gets from various real (and very unreal) fan clubs. In a world like this, the fact that Khan is introducing a talk advocating better living conditions to those living in underdeveloped urban settlements makes sure the reach for that particular talk is exponentially amplified. This show is basically Shah Rukh sharing articles he thinks we should read andgoing by the way even a good morning" text from the star receives demonstrative adoration from the massesthese retweets are endorsements.

It is great to see Khan, a charming and articulate speaker, step back from the spotlight and give it to thinkers and achievers from other fields. Khan introduces the topic and the speaker, and takes his place in the midst of the audience, letting the TED format crisply do its thing. In the first episode telecast on Sunday, the speakers included Gautam Bhan, an expert on human settlements; Shubhendu Sharma, a former engineer who now makes urban forests; Dr Manu Prakash, a physicist who showed how effective low-cost science experiments can be; Sneha Khanwalkar, a popular music composer; Manju Kapoor, a novelist speaking about the need for Indian men to have better emotional education; and finally Anirudh Sharma, a young scientist whoinspired by Khans Swadescame back to India and has found a way to reduce carbon-dioxide and harvest ink from polluted air.

These are all speakers and subjects thaton first glancewe might not have chosen from TEDs unending lineup. Most of them arent buzzy enough to immediately go viral and be shared over and over on Facebook, earning their weight in wow" emojis. This is what makes the selection a good one, a thoughtfully considered one that focusses on making the viewer contemplate and converse about the issues discussed. Bhan, for example, made an immediate impact by appealing to us not to call settlementsthe Hindi word for which is the soothing word basti", which literally means to settle"by the pejorative term slums". With Khan promising the same, I already expect many young Indians to stop using the word.

Khan is in fine touch, relaxed and confident without trying too hard. He does occasionally emphasise his exclamation marks somewhat too hardthe opening Lets talk, India" clarion call comes with an over-urgency like hes saying the words for the first time, and later in the show he dramatically says After all, Im an Indian man too" as if this were a revelationbut he does rather well overall, and looks genuinely interested. This is what makes the difference and could make TED Talks India Nayi Soch a success.

This is a clearly well-intentioned show, one that has masterfully avoided the Bollywood circus (while hiring one of its top ringmasters) as well as overt emotionality as we saw in Aamir Khans distractingly tear-stained Satyamev Jayate. This show features speakers talking about their passions while Khan and other audience members look on, utterly engrossed by what is being said. Your mileage may vary regarding the speakers and talks themselvesI liked Bhan and Sharmas presentations best, while Khanwalkars was disappointing and Kapoor offered no new insightbut the interested audience" shots function in this narrative like a laugh track does in a sitcom. Here, then, is to that delightful idea: that of intrigue itself being an infectious thing.

Raja Sen tweets @rajasen
There are pivotal moments in every faith-walk that can change the path of a believer.

Tom Kaden had one about 11 years ago while he was stranded in the middle of nowhere in the mountains of West Virginia the night before Christmas Eve.

His Jeep Cherokee developed a flat tire around 11:30 p.m., and the New Jersey native faced an awful truth  the used vehicle had a spare tire but a broken jack.

We had not seen a car for about an hour, recalled Kaden, 36, of Mount Holly Springs. There were no lights. It was so dark.

Pitch black, to be precise, with a seasonal mix of precipitation and temperatures in the 30s. Kaden had no choice but to consider his scant options with his wife in the passenger seat. She was three to four months pregnant at the time.

He could chance leaving her behind and make for a house off in the distance, or he could try to walk the 15 miles to the next exit hoping to find some help.

Kaden stayed put, resigned to the fact that eventually the gas would run out, the heat would go off and the cold would creep in. With no cellphone service, the situation looked bleak.

That was when Kaden saw the light.

Christmas miracle

It was not a flash of insight or a divine calling card, but the emergency lights of a police cruiser pulling up behind his vehicle. Officer Anderson may have been drawn in by the four-way flashers.

What followed was a version of the good Samaritan story, but with an air of mystery. There was nobody by the name of Officer Anderson on the police roster when Kaden called the station the day after Christmas to offer up his thanks.

Kadens full story can be found in Chicken Soup for the Soul: A Book of Christmas Miracles available for purchase in bookstores and online. The book is an anthology of 101 previously published true stories that showcase examples of divine intervention, holiday angels, answered prayers, forgiveness, gratitude, random acts of kindness, the joy of giving and family reunions.

A Book of Christmas Miracles is one of four Chicken Soup titles selected to be fundraisers for charities in 2017. Royalties from the book will go to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program, which provides holiday gifts to children who might not otherwise receive any.

For Kaden, the story Stranded was the first in his writing career. As the founder and chief executive officer of the Someone to Tell It To ministry in Harrisburg, Kaden has published two books, each with the theme of reaching out to people in times of deepest need and showing them compassion.

Ive always kept him in the back of my mind, Kaden said of Officer Anderson. He went way beyond the call of duty driving us out of his jurisdiction and setting us up with a mechanic.

Inspiration

The example set by the mystery police officer proved an inspiration for Kaden who, in December 2006, was still trying to define his calling during his first year as a graduate student at the Asbury Theological Seminary in Willmore, Kentucky.

That June, Kaden had married Sarah Carr of North Middleton Township who he met in 2005 while he was working as a youth minister intern at the Carlisle Evangelical Free Church in South Middleton Township.

Kaden graduated from Messiah College in 2004 with a bachelors degree in public relations and a minor in business. His wife earned a nursing degree from Bloomsburg University. They met in an adult Bible study group.

The two were on their way from Kentucky to the Carlisle area the night before Christmas Eve 2006 when the Jeep Cherokee broke down in West Virginia on a lonely stretch of Interstate 79.

The compassion the officer showed at a time of deepest need stayed with Kaden and influenced him to develop a ministry with his friend and fellow clergyman Michael Gingerich.

The heart of our ministry is to reach out with compassion to those who need to be heard and whose stories need to be told, Kaden said. We accompany people who are carrying a heavy burden in life. We want to work to combat this epidemic of loneliness and disconnection.

Officer Anderson was not the only person to influence Kaden and the direction of his faith-walk. While a student at Messiah College, Kaden landed a paid internship position with a Wall Street public relations firm during the summer between his sophomore and junior years.

He only lasted a couple weeks on the job. While the pay was good, the stress level was high and the hours were long and demanding. But there was something deeper at work, and it took a chance encounter with a female supervisor in an elevator to point it out.

She looked me in the eye and asked Why are you here? Kaden said. I answered I dont know. Frustrated and flustered, Kaden broke down in tears but later took comfort in her blunt approach.

She saw something in me that I was not seeing in myself, Kaden said. She was a follower of Jesus.

Starting his junior year, Kaden put a greater emphasis on taking as many courses as possible in Biblical studies. That prepared him for the next stage in his calling as a minister: graduate work at the Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky.
PHILADELPHIA  Pat Pomroy had just gained custody of two of her young grandchildren and wanted to say prayers with them. But she had no idea how.

Robert and Rachael were deaf. In Pomroys struggle to learn enough American Sign Language (ASL) to get through the basics of everyday life with them, expressions of faith would have to wait.

Then Pomroy came upon a teacher, one who could show her and her grandchildren that the sign for Jesus Christ is a finger alternately tapping the palm of the opposite hand, in reference to the crucifixion; that a clap followed by hands and fingers spinning in the air is alleluia; that palms together with a twisting motion means peace.

Until she met Sister Kathleen Schipani four years ago, I didnt have a way to communicate religion and faith to the children, said Pomroy, of Croydon. My faith has seen me through a lot of things in my life, and I want them to have the same.

Schipani, director of the Archdiocese of Philadelphias Deaf Apostolate, has since enlisted Robert and Rachael, now 11 and 8 years old, as stars of an app she has created to teach families with deaf children how to pray, worship and talk about faith in ASL.

Religious Signs for Families is one of the first apps to focus solely on religious terminology, giving visual interpretations to concepts such as prayer, blessing, and praise.

When parents go to community programs to learn sign, they are not learning religious signing, said Schipani, 62. Religious topics dont come up in these settings.

In her new app, seven adults and 13 children sign words including angel and blessing, and simple prayers such as God bless mommy, Holy Spirit, guide me, and Angel of God, watch over me as I sleep. The signs are captioned and voiced in English and Spanish.

Schipani introduced the app  available on iPhone and Android platforms for $2.99  at an October meeting at the Vatican of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization, which included seminars on how to involve people with disabilities in church life.

The $20,000-project is being funded by the Deaf Apostolate, several small grants, and proceeds from app sales. Schipani said she hopes it will be the first of several developed by her office, which serves about 900 households in the archdiocese.

The app is a marvelous and glorious tool for families, said Roz McKelvey, an ASL interpreter, foster parent to deaf children, and founder and president of Germantown Deaf Ministries Fellowship, a faith-based social services agency. At her own congregation, Grace United Methodist Church in West Oak Lane, she leads a monthly religious sign class that teaches the ABCs and colors, the basics, of religious sign language.

Likewise, Schipanis app introduces elementary words and concepts, most of which can be applied across Christian denominations, and even to some other faith traditions, Schipani said. Prayers such as God, thank you for my family and God, keep me safe are ecumenical requests of the almighty.

Nonetheless, there are distinctions. Like other languages, ASL has expressions that are specific to region, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic class, gender and religion, said Dr. Kirk VanGilder, an associate professor at Gallaudet University, a college for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in Washington. For instance, the sign for baptism might be based on the sprinkling of water on an infant in one religious tradition, and the full immersion of an adult in another.

Religious signing in Judaism has an added complexity, requiring the interpretation of the Hebrew used in services, prayers and rituals, said Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, director of the office of Whole Community Inclusion at Jewish Learning Venture, a Jenkintown nonprofit that advocates Jewish engagement.

Thirty years ago, as an eighth-grade teacher, Schipani began learning what she calls a basic form of sign language to better reach students with intellectual disabilities. When a child with deaf parents invited her to a Mass at which the priest and participants used ASL, Schipani joined them to worship and practice her signing.

I fell in love with the language, she said.

Signing is conceptual. You sign the concept, not the spoken word, Schipani said. For instance, the signs for running as in jogging, or for your nose is running, or for a run in your stocking are all different. That is the case in religious signs.

Through the years, she has come to understand the challenges in communicating religious language to children who are deaf. In families for whom faith is important, spirituality is so ingrained in their everyday life that is passed on by incidental learning, Schipani said. Youngsters learn by hearing adults talk to each other about faith.

A deaf child (in a hearing family) misses that incidental learning, she said.

Sometimes, hearing parents and their deaf children are learning ASL at the same time. Parents face the difficulty of conveying abstract concepts about faith in a language that isnt their first.

With the app, Schipani aims to help families adapt. To develop it, she turned to CANCAN Productions, based in Oxford, Chester County. Co-owners Catherine Miller and Ann Calamia had met Schipani about 10 years ago while making Universal Signs, an award-winning film about a troubled young man who is deaf. The three women then collaborated on a video series about deaf children preparing for confirmation, produced for the National Catholic Office for the Deaf. They began working on the app more than two years ago.

Schipani put together a focus group made up of deaf parents, some of them literacy specialists, to brainstorm. They carved out categories such as Religious Words and Religious Actions, divided prayers into groups that include blessing, thank you, and peace prayers.

The filmmakers used a crew that included deaf people and interpreters, and found programmers to turn their videos into an app.

Pomroys grandchildren sign some of the prayers.

Before she got custody of Robert and Rachael, Pomroy attended ASL classes at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. The children had been going to public school, but she instead chose a Catholic education for them.

When the family met Schipani, they knew few signs associated with religion and faith.

Its difficult for parents when they have to learn a new language to meet the needs of their children, said Meghan Dearnley, Racheal and Roberts social worker. Having an app that is so visually accessible makes the process easier. Having it on cool technology makes it even better.
President Trump won the election as a populist.He excoriated everyone else in the primaries. His voters loved him for calling out Clinton as Crooked Hillary.

His campaign was built upon ridiculing the Washington elitists, including a major political media rightly perceived as fawning over Democrats and liberals until those Democrats or liberals follies were beyond ignoring.

The insiders recoiled as millions cheered as Trump laid bare every other candidates weaknesses, including chastising Hillary for aiding and abetting her husbands abuse of women.

When Democratic Senator Al Frankens physical abuse of women became photographically undeniable, Trump tweeted to the world, Frankenstein.

When House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi circled the Democratic Party wagons around Frankengroper and Democratic Senator John Conyers, Americans  including me  called her out on her partisan hypocrisy as she cried for her Democrats to rally around due process while convicting Republican Roy Moore as a child molester without any due process.

Since then, two horrible actions for the Republican Party occurred.

First, Pelosi gave in to public pressure to call for Conyers to resign, as multiple accusers (and a paper trail of a settlement to a former aide) came forth.

Then, Trump completely destroyed any moral advantage for the Republicans.

While Alabama Republicans were isolated by the rest of the party in defending Moore, Trump put on his designer muck boots and joined the Alabama swamp.

He endorsed Moore.

Why?

Because, like the Democrats, he would sacrifice truth, honor and respect for political office for the expediency of ensuring votes for his agenda.

Its the same reason the National Organization for Women and other such groups defended Bill Clinton against charges of rape and abuse; Clinton promised to support their political causes.

Trumps hypocrisy is endorsing a man with multiple accusations of predatory behavior, including rolling around in his underwear with a 14 year-old girl while he was in his thirties.

Has Moore been prosecuted? No, and were not talking about putting anyone in jail or losing their job due to some presumably jilted lover.

Were talking about serving in the U.S. Senate, where perverts and abusers have often prowled and sometimes have been forced out when discovered.

Sometimes theyre actually reelected, like Fred Richmond of New York, whom Democrats sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives following his arrest for soliciting a 16-year-old boy.

Do voters want ethical representation or do they just want what they want when they want it  and they want it now?

When it comes to Moore and Republican votes in Congress, there are a lot of Republican voters willing to go tribal and defend Moore.

Weve all heard and read Moore defenders saying the charges are 40 years old and why now? and all the women voted for Hillary (They didnt. Two reportedly voted for Trump.)

Some seem to truly believe all of these women are paid Democrat party operatives.

Sure, Democratic operatives have openly admitted to fomenting violence at Trump rallies, but it seems quite a stretch to presume all of these women are paid operatives, willing to face conviction of false accusations.

Heres something else Trump has sacrificed for the expediency of a guaranteed vote for his policies.

Should Moore be elected to the Senate, Republicans will have a harder time repairing their brand than Democrats. Historically, Republican voters have been less likely to return alleged and accused sexual offenders to Congress and the Presidency than Democrats.

That hasnt hurt Democrats in the long run ... or in the short-term, either.

Conyers has already tag-teamed his son to replace him and Minnesotas Democratic Governor will simply appoint another Democrat.

And despite Trumps capricious capacity for inventing invectives, I doubt many Congressional Republicans would publicly refer to Al Franken as Frankenstein during the final weeks leading to his presumed resignation.

It would be no surprise if gavel-wielding Democrats would grandstand for the press in meetings, sessions and hearings acknowledging Roy Moore in the most Pelosi-inspired way, saying, The Chair recognizes the child molester from Alabama.

Rick Jensen is an award-winning Delaware talk show host and national columnist. Email Rick@DBCMedia.com.
JERUSALEM (AP)  Breaking with decades of U.S. policy, President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital last week, a declaration that set off a wave of clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces and drew sharp criticism from U.S. allies in the Middle East and beyond.

Here's a look at why the U.S. recognition of the holy city as Israel's capital matters.

JERUSALEM'S CURRENT STATUS

Israel has considered Jerusalem its capital since the state's establishment in 1948 and sees the city as the ancient capital of the Jewish people.

In the 1967 Mideast war, Israel captured the city's eastern sector and later annexed it in a move that is not recognized internationally. Israel's government ministries and institutions are all located in Jerusalem and Israelis across the political spectrum see the city as their capital.

Israel is likely the only country in the world whose capital isn't recognized internationally.

The Palestinians equally lay claim to Jerusalem and want the eastern part of the city as capital of their future state. Some 200,000 Palestinians live in that part of the city and Palestinians claim a deep cultural, historical and religious connection to the city.

The Old City, located in east Jerusalem, is home to sites holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims. These include the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site.

It is one of the most explosive issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and to that end, the United States, along with most other countries, has maintained its embassy in Tel Aviv, saying the status of Jerusalem should be resolved between the sides in negotiations.

THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUMP'S DECLARATION

The U.S. remains the world's most influential superpower and a key player across the region. For the past quarter of a century, it has played a special role as the lead mediator between Israel and the Palestinians in on-again, off-again peace talks.

Although it cannot singlehandedly dictate a solution to the Jerusalem dispute, its opinions carry great weight with both parties and traditionally influence others to follow its lead.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been one of Trump's most vocal supporters globally and has been outspoken about his gratitude for Trump's declaration on Jerusalem. But the Palestinians, and much of the international community, view the declaration as a unilateral action that could dash hopes for a negotiated two-state solution.

WANING AMERICAN INFLUENCE

As with other issues such as climate change and global free trade agreements, Trump finds himself at odds with the international community.

American friends and foes alike have almost universally criticized Trump's decision with exceptionally harsh language. The European Union, along with Germany, Britain and France, as well as the pope and key Arab allies, have denounced the move.

While the U.S. remains a power in the region, its influence in the Middle East has been on the decline. Some saw U.S. weakness in the Obama administration's handling of the war in Syria and its concessions to Iran for the 2015 nuclear deal. Trump's insistence on putting "America first" seems to presage a further drawdown.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has vowed to rally the world against the U.S. decision, reaching out to traditional Arab allies as well as Europeans nations. As a first step, the Palestinians asked the U.N. Security Council to demand that the U.S. decision be rescinded.

ANGER AND WEARINESS

Trump's announcement has elicited shock, sadness and anger from Arabs across the Middle East. But there have also been feelings of resignation and shrugs from many who have long given up on their leaders standing up to either Israel or the United States.

The Palestinians have been worn down by decades of conflict and years of stalled peace efforts, as their cause has been overshadowed by the fighting in Syria and Iraq, and regional concerns about Iran. Many of their Sunni Arab allies are believed to have expanded covert ties with Israel to counter Tehran.

Randa Slim, an analyst with the Washington-based Middle East Institute, tweeted on Wednesday: "In times of fear and repression and revolution fatigue I will not be surprised if we don't see the kind of demonstrations people expect. This does not mean people are not angry. How people express their anger is different than in past."

Israel and the U.S. may be counting on this crisis to pass, allowing Trump to renew his efforts to clinch what he calls "the ultimate deal," while leaving Israel firmly in control of the holy city.
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Hate groups and prominent members of the alt-right movement have been testing the limits of free speech by visiting college campuses over the years.

Alt-right is defined as an offshoot of conservatism which mixes racism, white nationalism, anti-Semitism and populism, or, more simply, a white nationalist movement.

High-profile figures like Richard Spencer and Milo Yiannopoulos have caused protests when they visit institutions of higher learning.

HAVE YOU SEEN THEM: White supremacist group gives Nazi salutes, posts banners on Southern Methodist University

Students accuse Spencer and people with similar views of spreading racist rhetoric that is similar to Nazi beliefs. Spencer, meanwhile, argues that he has a right to free speech and to exercise the First Amendment.

Now Playing: FOX 26 News Reporter Natasha Geigel Video: Fox 26 Houston

Not all hate groups are so open with their visits, however.

The white supremacist group, Texas Vanguard, tweeted photos on Dec. 3 of members giving a Nazi salute in front of a Christmas tree and in front of a banner that read "White men save your people reject the droid beast" on the Southern Methodist University campus after hours while wearing skull masks. Police and university officials are still searching for the people in the photos.

Scroll through the slideshow above to see which hate groups that have made their presence known on college campuses.





Will Axford is a digital reporter for Chron.com. Read more of his stories here and follow him on Twitter.
Seduced by Mrs. Robinson: How "The Graduate" Became the Touchstone of a Generation

By Beverly Gray

Algonquin. 304 pp. $24.95

---

Is 50 the new 20? Does "The Graduate" - a blockbuster movie celebrating its 50th anniversary this year - retain the flush of youth?

Beverly Gray argues that it does, and has written "Seduced by Mrs. Robinson" to explore how an obscure novel, a neophyte film director, unlikely casting and a pop music score revolutionized post-studio Hollywood.

Gray uses a "making of" approach to examine how this mash-up of a movie made magic. The key figure was director Mike Nichols, who turned to movies after his comedy partnership with Elaine May dissolved. Nichols framed "The Graduate" as a story about young boomers rejecting the mid-century world honed by their parents. Twenty-one-year-old Benjamin Braddock is the touchstone, the prototype for a new generation's "general malaise."

As fans of the movie know, Benjamin's parents live in Los Angeles. When he returns from college in the East, he feels trapped in a hometown where now, Gray writes, he "can see and be seen, but remains forever cut off." His parents throw him a graduation party and give him a frogman's outfit. Mr. Braddock forces him to don the scuba suit and jump into the family pool, and Nichols shapes that scene to portray the submerged Benjamin as "some exotic, but glassed-in sea creature, placed on exhibit to dazzle his parents' friends." To the Braddocks, Benjamin is their "trophy son."

For the role of Benjamin, Nichols cast against type. Instead of a Southern California hunk, he selected a still-unknown Dustin Hoffman. Nichols said he identified with Hoffman as "a short, dark, Jewish, anomalous presence, which is how I experience myself." Nichols wanted Benjamin to radiate the discomfort of an outsider - to know only that he didn't want to be submerged in the world of his parents.

Nichols chose respected actress Anne Bancroft as the seductress, and he framed Mrs. Robinson as a predator. Her wardrobe evoked tiger and leopard motifs, and she wore extravagant furs. "All her clothes are animals," Nichols said. Yet Mrs. Robinson was only a diversion. She is part of an older world, and Nichols told Hoffman to imagine that Benjamin "is still in bed with his parents' generation."

Benjamin suddenly finds purpose by falling in love with Mrs. Robinson's daughter, Elaine. She is marrying someone else, but nothing stops Benjamin once he's in command mode. He grabs Elaine from her wedding and whisks her off on a city bus. They both look confused, and the movie ends ambiguously as "The Sound of Silence" plays in the background. Is darkness ahead, or is the bus heading into a sunset?

Gray views their future with optimism, suggesting that "whatever age you may be, if the vision that was planted in your brain still flickers, it's a sign you retain a shard of Benjamin Braddock's youthful capacity for hope and wonder."

Will the wonder last? Ben's self-discovery is what attracted Gray to write "Seduced by Mrs. Robinson" in the first place. Growing up in the '60s, she embraced "The Graduate" because it made her understand "how badly we wanted to distance ourselves from the world of our parents." Fifty years later, she has adopted the movie as a generational template, and for most of the book she writes smartly and insightfully about how the characters were shaped by a disruptive age.

The final section focuses on how "The Graduate" became a transformative force in Hollywood filmmaking, but here Gray's discussion tends to ramble. Despite this weakness, though, the book as a whole offers a fascinating look at how this movie tells a timeless story: that life is always about making choices.

---

Henderson is historian emerita of the National Portrait Gallery. She writes frequently on media and culture.
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In a 24-hour period, Border Patrol agents rescued over 20 immigrants in Laredo, Hebbronville, Freer and Zapata.

The immigrants, who had entered the country illegally, had fallen into distress due to the recent severe cold temperature conditions or after they became lost while walking in the brush.

Border Patrol agents, including those assigned to the Laredo Sector Horse Patrol Unit, were deployed to locate the distressed immigrants throughout different locations in the Laredo and surrounding communities.

As a result, 25 were rescued in nine different events.

Some who were located displayed symptoms of moderate to severe hypothermia; however, after Border Patrol agents certified as emergency medical technicians assisted in evaluating them and providing initial care, they were able to recover their core body temperatures.

RELATED: 16-year-old homicide suspect wanted by LPD captured by Border Patrol

The immigrants were determined to be from Mexico, El Salvador and Honduras.

Border Patrol agents in the Del Rio Sector said they rescued a family of undocumented immigrants, one of whom died, and found 14 others who were lost in the cold.

"Crossing the border illegally poses multiple hazards," said Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Felix Chavez. "Sadly another human life was lost (Thursday) while attempting to illegally enter the United States."

In the morning hours of Dec. 7, Eagle Pass Station agents were relayed a distress call, originating from the local 911 system, from a group of three people lost on a remote ranch. The caller stated they had been separated from a larger group of migrants and that one was suffering in the extreme cold.

When agents located the three individuals one had already died. The Mexican Consulate was notified and Maverick County Sheriff's Office responded to the area to take custody of the body.

READ MORE: Laredo Border Patrol agents arrest MS-13 gang member

At the scene, agents also determined that more immigrants were potentially lost in the surrounding area. After a few hours of searching, agents from the Eagle Pass Station, Eagle Pass South Station, Uvalde Station, and the Del Rio Sector Border Patrol Special Operations Detachment located 14 other undocumented immigrants crossing though the ranch. With frigid temperatures, and the first substantial snowfall in Eagle Pass in for than 30 years, agents potentially saved their lives.

The group was transported to the Fort Duncan Regional Medical Center for treatment, stemming from exposure to the cold. Upon medical release, they will be transported to the Eagle Pass South Border Patrol Station for processing as per CBP guidelines.

For fiscal year 2017, which ended on Sept. 30, Del Rio Sector documented 17 border deaths. The Del Rio Border Patrol Sector is part of the Joint Task Force-West South Texas Corridor, which leverages federal, state and local resources to combat transnational criminal organizations.
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Despite the launch of ride-hailing services Uber and Lyft in Laredo earlier this year, the number of DWI arrests in the Gateway City is up 17 percent compared to last year.

Data provided by the Laredo Police Department shows that 369 DWI arrests were made from Jan. 1, 2016 to Nov. 27, 2016. During that same time period this year, 433 DWI arrests were made.

Whether ride-hailing services will curtail drunk driving in a city that averages 200 alcohol-related crashes a year remains to be seen. Some community leaders said there needs to be more awareness about the ride-hailing services, which offer residents an easy, safe ride home at the click of a button on their cellphone. One ride-hailing service driver said he thinks "machismo" may play a factor in some men not taking advantage of Uber or Lyft. Some may be too prideful to request a ride or believe they can drive drunk, the driver said.

MORE ON LMTOnline.com: October 2017 DWI arrests in Webb County

Several studies have been conducted to try to determine whether ride-hailing services prevent drunk driving.

Jessica Lynn Peck, a doctoral candidate at the City University of New York Graduate Center who wrote a study, a working paper that was published in January, told The New York Times, "We need more evidence, but the trend seems to be pointing toward ridesharing reducing drunk driving incidents."

"But not all studies have reached the same conclusion," a New York Times article published in April states. "One report, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology last year, looked at 100 densely populated counties across the United States and found no correlation between the rollout of Uber services and the number of traffic fatalities.

"But none of these reports has been as unequivocal as the one Uber itself released in 2015. It stated that in several major cities, Uber ridership peaked at times when drunken driving accidents tend to happen."

Uber reported that in Seattle, arrests made for driving under the influence decreased 10 percent after the introduction of services. And in places in California, the number of alcohol-related crashes every month decreased by 6.5 percent among young drivers.

RELATED: Uber launches in Laredo

"Several independent studies have shown Uber's presence in cities can help reduce drunk-driving," an Uber spokeswoman told The New York Times. "We're glad to provide an alternative to drunk driving that helps people make safer, more responsible choices."

Uber and Lyft did not respond to requests for comment on this story.

Elizabeth Alonzo Villarreal, president and founder of Laredoans Against Drunk Driving, or LADD, said the community needs to become aware of these services.

"As you can see, the comparison has increased. However, Lyft and Uber have not been operating in Laredo that long. LADD promotes for these services to be utilized.However, I feel there is not enough educational efforts out there," Alonzo Villarreal said.

Serving Children And Adults in Need also suggests people use Uber and Lyft but agrees with Alonzo that the services have not been in Laredo that long.

Lyft launched in Laredo in March and Uber in July.

"We encourage more people to use Uber and Lyft services if they plan to drink or plan to have a sober friend drive them home. Not a lot of people tend to use Uber and Lyft services in Laredo since they are fairly new to our community," said Veronica Jimenez, program director for the Webb County Community Coalition of SCAN. "The holidays are approaching us and this is an excellent time to raise awareness of these services to hopefully minimize the amounts of DWIs in our community."

Avoiding a DWI is simple, Alonzo said.

RELATED: Lyft allowed to operate without regulations in Laredo

"Just don't drive drunk. Just don't get behind the wheel. It is so easy to eliminate DWIs in Webb County. Just don't drive. Have a plan," she said. "Getting a ticket is the least of worries. Causing a death is more devastating and it can all be avoided if the person just doesn't get behind the wheel."

Sometimes people think that if they have one or two alcoholic beverages, it's OK to drive but this is not true, Jimenez said.

"If you plan to drink any amount of alcohol, then you should plan ahead and find a way to get home safely," she said.

Drinking alcohol affects judgment, depth perception and physical reaction time, Jimenez said.

She added that planning ahead is essential if a person plans to drink alcohol because the effects of a split-second decision of drinking and driving can't be reversed once a person is hurt or killed.

"About every 20 minutes in Texas, someone is hurt or killed in a vehicle accident that involves alcohol. Driving while intoxicated affects many lives and families. There are many lives lost and affected because people choose to drink and drive," Jimenez said.
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The Zapata County tax assessor-collector allegedly kissed women on their neck and inappropriately touched them while acting as a public servant, according to court documents.

An indictment filed Nov. 29 against Luis Lauro Gonzalez states he kissed two women on their neck and touched them on the "legs, or shoulders, or back knowing that the advances or requests or touching or comments was not welcomed by the complainant."

RELATED: Man accused of sexually assaulting 16-year-old girl in local park out on bond

Gonzalez, 57, allegedly kissed and inappropriately touched two women and inappropriately touched a third, according to court records.

Texas Rangers arrested Gonzalez on Nov. 30. He was charged with five counts of official oppression, a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine.

Gonzalez, who is out on bond, could not be reached for comment.

The Department of Public Safety said it initiated an investigation after receiving allegations of "oppression (sexual misconduct)" involving Gonzalez.

At least three female county employees and a fourth woman came forward reporting "unwanted touching" by Gonzalez, according to county officials.

The Texas Attorney General's Office is prosecuting the case.

Zapata County Judge Joe Rathmell expressed disappointment.

READ MORE: Border Patrol agents rescue over 20 immigrants during cold weather snap

"It's disappointing and troubling anytime an elected official is indicted on any charges. At this point, we're going to let the legal process take its course," he said.

Rathmell previously said that three female employees accused Gonzalez of sexual harassment. A fourth female employed at another location also came forward with an allegation.

In May, Rathmell sent a letter to Gonzalez requesting him to work from home.
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A lot has happened in the year since Raven Petroleum announced it would be building a $500 million, 50,000-barrel-per-day oil refinery near Laredo.

Officials from Webb, Duval and Jim Hogg counties immediately touted the economic boost and hundreds of potential jobs that would come out of this project. A few months later, though, Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina withdrew his support, citing Raven's vague details about the refinery.

A group of wary Laredo and Bruni residents concerned about the project's environmental impact formed South Texans Against the Refinery, or STAR. They have held several town hall meetings in Bruni, which is only four miles away from the proposed refinery site, and right along its prevailing wind pattern.

RELATED: UTEP Professor: South Texas refinery will cost $1.9 billion, four times the previous estimate

Most recently in July, Raven's Managing Director Christoper Moore addressed the public about this project, now officially dubbed the South Texas Energy Complex, for the first time. He told LMT he had nine senior managers working on the project, and that he planned to expand to a team of about 45.

But also in this year there's a lot that hasn't happened.

In November 2016, when Moore first announced Raven's plans, he said they were on schedule to break ground in 2017 with a possibility for the refinery to be in service by 2018.

But 2017 is nearing its end, and Raven has yet to file its air permit application with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which can take around a year to be approved, according to the commission's website. TCEQ's approval of this application is a required step to begin construction on the refinery.

Moore said Thursday that while they would have liked to have broken ground this year, they are still on track to break ground in the near future.

RELATED: New refinery on Webb County border will create 300-400 jobs, Raven Petroleum says

"We are currently finalizing and negotiating with several customers for product or off-take agreements and suppliers or feedstock agreements. These are some of the final pieces to be completed that give us the values for our permit application," Moore wrote in an email to LMT.

"As I said in July and again in August, we are in no rush to file the permit, but are more concentrated on aligning the design engineering and agreements to develop the products that will deliver the greatest value and sustainability in the marketplace.

"Our concern for the long-term viability of the project has always come first, and when the market agreements and engineering are aligned, the project will continue to move forward."

Tricia Cortez, a member of STAR and the executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center, has been concerned about the health and safety hazards that tend to come along with refineries. But until Raven files their TCEQ permit, details regarding emissions, for example, remain unknown.

She also believes Raven could have done a much better job with community outreach. Typically with a project such as this, project leaders will meet with members of neighboring communities to gather their input before planning begins. People living near the proposed site have been ignored and excluded, Cortez said, and Raven is essentially saying that this project is happening whether they like it or not.

READ MORE: Man charged in 2016 Christmas crash on Mines Road that left one dead

Even though Raven is behind on their deadlines, and still no permits have been filed, Cortez does not believe the refinery isn't happening.

"Until this project is off the table, we're still going to stay on top of it, and we're still going to demand a lot of answers to these questions," she told LMT.

Julia Wallace may be reached at 956-728-2543 or jwallace@lmtonline.com
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers recently seized a significant amount of alleged crystal methamphetamine and heroin with an estimated street value of more than $4 million in one enforcement action.

READ MORE: Man charged in 2016 Christmas crash on Mines Road that left one dead

"Our CBP officers play a vital role in safeguarding our communities by intercepting these dangerous narcotics and preventing them from entering our country," said (A) Port Director Albert Flores, Laredo Port of Entry. "This seizure was significant and I commend the officers for maintaining their vigilance as they utilized the tools available to them, which have proven to be very effective against the criminal element."

The seizure occurred on Sunday, Dec. 3, at the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge when a CBP officer referred a 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe driven by a 34-year-old-female United States citizen who was traveling with a 25-year-old-female United States citizen and a 23-year-old male United States citizen for a secondary examination.

The passengers and driver are all residents of Dallas, Texas. A canine and non-intrusive imaging system inspection of the vehicle by CBP officers resulted in the discovery of 24 packages containing 137 pounds of alleged crystal methamphetamine and 6 packages containing 48 pounds of alleged heroin.

The narcotics combined have an estimated street value of $4,039,622.

RELATED: Man accused of sexually assaulting 16-year-old girl in local park out on bond

CBP officers seized the narcotics and the vehicle. The driver and the passengers of the vehicle were arrested and the case was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) special agents for further investigation.
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Two men who allegedly took part in a shooting that left two people injured outside a north Laredo bar are now facing burglary and drug possession charges, authorities said.

Laredo police said Pablo Antonio Gonzalez, 21, and Eduardo Gonzalez, 22, and two other suspects broke into a home to steal 141.2 pounds of marijuana.

READ MORE: Man accused of sexually assaulting 16-year-old girl in local park out on bond

Each was served with warrants for burglary of a habitation with intent to commit other felony and felony possession of marijuana. They remained behind bars at the Webb County Jail, where they were held for the bar shooting on an aggravated assault with firearm charge.

Last month, police arrested and identified the two other suspects as Guadalupe Bedarte, 34, and Juan Manuel Delgado, 31. Bedarte is facing the same charges as the Gonzalez duo while Delgado was charged only with burglary of habitation with intent to commit other felony.

Officers responded to a burglary of a habitation report Nov. 7 in the 6400 block of Casa del Sol Boulevard. A man stated that four masked males armed with handguns had assaulted him, according to police. The suspects allegedly fled in a brown or white sport utility vehicle.

RELATED: Two men shot, three arrested after fight outside north Laredo bar, police say

Officers said they spotted a vehicle matching the description and conducted a traffic stop in the 4300 block of Texas 359. But the occupants allegedly took off running. Officers then discovered the suspect vehicle was loaded with six bundles of marijuana.

Police caught up with a male who was identified as Delgado. He was allegedly found with a .40-caliber handgun on his waist, according to police.

"Delgado was then taken to the Laredo Police Department where he confessed that he had just robbed marijuana from a stash house with his buddies," police said in a statement.

READ MORE: Raid of Laredo stash house led to arrest, cocaine seizure, police say

Investigators said they identified the fleeing occupants through video surveillance from a nearby convenience store. They were identified as Pablo Antonio Gonzalez, Eduardo Gonzalez and Bedarte.
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Indie drama The Florida Project was the big winner at this years San Francisco Film Critics Circle awards meeting; the story of poverty-stricken families struggling near a Disney resort received best picture of the year.

Andy Serkis won the best actor award for his motion capture performance in War for the Planet of the Apes, while Margot Robbie won best actress for her comic/dramatic performance in I, Tonya. Laurie Metcalf won best supporting actress for Lady Bird, and Willem Dafoe won best supporting actor for The Florida Project.
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Sweet Paris Creperie & Cafe is planning to open new locations in College Station, Katy and The Woodlands.

The new locations will be situated in retail developments with amenities and offerings in sync with the lifestyle brand. Sweet Paris is a restaurant offering a selection of sweet and savory made-from-scratch crepes. The locations represent a strategic planned expansion for the very popular and successful restaurant concept. Opening dates for all are expected to be spring of 2018.

Sweet Paris Katy will be the newest addition to La Centerra at Cinco Ranch, a premier retail and restaurant center located on the western edge of Houston. The restaurant will encompass 1,824 square feet of space plus a beautiful patio and seats 80.

Sweet Paris College Station will be located in Century Square adjacent to Texas A&M University. The new center is redefining shopping and dining for the bustling Brazos River Valley community. The restaurant will comprise 2,280 square feet plus a generous patio and seats 140.

Details on The Woodlands location are being finalized and expected to be announced in the near future.

The founders, Allison and Ivan Chavez, have made it their personal mission to "revive the art of eating crepes." They've traveled the world searching for flavors and new ways to bring this popular street food to the market. They feel that a crepe is a canvas, and a perfect delicious crepe is the result of artistic cooking and using the best and freshest high-quality ingredients. The menu has grown to include waffles, salads, paninis, soups, milkshakes and hot drinks.

"We are thrilled to bring the Sweet Paris experience to these new markets in 2018," said Allison Chavez, co-founder. "Many fans have been traveling great lengths to visit us in Houston for years, and now they'll be able to more easily treat friends and family to the delicious and beautiful world of Sweet Paris crepes. We look forward to welcoming friends to our gorgeous, new spaces in the new year!"

The crepe menu is rounded out by sweet and savory selections. Breakfast crepes are served daily until 3 p.m. There are the signature Nutella crepes with "just" Nutella, or strawberries or bananas can be added.

The savory crepes include a Chicken Enchilada and Chicken Carbonara, Ham and Gruyere with smoked ham, aged gruyere, Dijon mustard, fresh oregano and bechamel sauce; Turkey, Grapes & Brie  roasted turkey, French brie, red grapes, spring mix, walnuts and Dijon mustard vinaigrette; Truffled Caprese  mozzarella, basil-infused cherry tomatoes and truffle oil; and The Vegan  portobello mushroom, black bean puree, corn salsa and chipotle sauce. Salads, seasonal soups and paninis are sunny additions to the menu. A fresh Spinach Quinoa is a vegan option, and the Salade de Chevre is a new take on bistro fare made with spring mix, goat cheese, walnuts, almonds, cherry tomatoes, dried cranberries, parmesan crisps and Dijon vinaigrette.

New on the menu is a selection of milkshakes, including the Nutella Graham, Very Berry, Reese's and Toasted Coconut Dulce De Leche.

The restaurants will be open daily. In addition to menu items, Nutella Hot Chocolate, coffees, wine, champagne and mimosas, beer and hard cider will be available.

Sweet Paris, a Houston-based company, currently operates three locations in Houston Rice Village, Houston CityCentre and Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. For more information, visit online at www.sweetparis.com.
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Citizens of Cleveland gathered at Coats Jewelers on Dec. 5 to celebrate the family-owned business's 85th anniversary.

Coats Jewelers is one of Cleveland's oldest, if not the oldest, business in its history. Lawrence Preston Coats founded the business in 1932, which is three years before Cleveland became incorporated as a city.

According to current owner and grandson Bobby Coats, Lawrence Coats had an accident, which cost him part of his leg. Lawrence Coats decided to make a career change to suit his new circumstances.

"I think he started barbering for a while and then he went into repairing pocket watches," said Bobby Coats. "It just exploded in that direction."

The business went from repairing pocket watches to selling jewelry, repairing jewelry, making custom designs, casting, mold making, appraisals and more.

"I think there was just a need," said Bobby Coats.

Some of those needs include wedding events with customers purchasing wedding bands.

"People are always getting married," said Coats. "I think the opportunity just presented itself and he followed it."

Lawrence Coats eventually passed the business to his son, Bobby A. Coats, in the early 1960s. Bobby A. Coats is the father of Bobby Coats.

"I purchased it from my father about 14 years ago," said Bobby Coats.

Coats Jewelers was originally located where Walgreens is today, two doors down from the Anderson Hotel, which was situated on the corner of old US 59 and San Jacinto Street. The owners of the nearby Walker's Dry Goods store retired and Lawrence Coats bought the property.

The business has since expanded with one store located in Liberty, Texas and another located in Livingston, Texas.

Bobby Coats says the anniversary marks not only a milestone for Coats Jewelers but also for Cleveland, noting that the store would not be where it is today without its customers placing their faith and trust in Coats and his family.

"This is a business that requires trust," said Coats. "If a jeweler doesn't have trust he doesn't have anything."

Bobby A. Coats expressed his appreciation to the loyal customers that have come to Coats Jewelers for their needs.

"Some of them have been with us for many, many years," he said.

Bobby A. Coats also thanked his father, Lawrence Coats, for not only starting Coats Jewelers but for also raising him and his siblings.
Celebrate the holidays with the Houston Archeological Society, which will feature of a review of 2017 activities at its last meeting of the year.

The group will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14, in Room 009, Doherty Library at the University of St. Thomas. The meeting will include a special holiday themed snack buffet for members and guests. Bring a holiday snack to share. Meetings are free and open to the public.

Linda Gorski, HAS president, will present a review of the projects that the Society has been involved in during 2017 including archeological surveys, excavations and other activities in and around the Houston area. The presentation will include overviews of fieldwork at San Felipe de Austin State Historic Site, HAS participation in International Archeology Day at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Public Archeology Dig at Kleb Woods Nature Preserve and its continuing participation with the Texas Department of Transportation and Prewitt and Associates at the Frost Town Project in downtown Houston. She will also report on HAS lab activities, education and public outreach programs, and awards that the Society has received in 2017.

Gorski is serving her fifth term as president of the Houston Archeological Society. She is also a Texas Historical Commission Archeological Steward representing Harris County. Gorski is a published co-author of several books with HAS vice president Louis Aulbach including "Camp Logan, Houston, Texas, 1917-1919," which is a detailed account of the activities of the military regiments that trained at Camp Logan during World War I. Their latest publications are entitled "Along the Aurelian Wall" and "Campus Martius and Its Ancient Monuments." These volumes are the first two in a series of self-guided walking tours to archeological sites in Rome, Italy.

For a campus map of the University of St. Thomas, go to www.stthom.edu and look for the Interactive Map, Building 22, Doherty Library. Street parking is available as well as paid parking in Moran Center Garage ($5) at the corner of West Alabama and Graustark. Contact Gorski, at lindagorski@cs.com for more information about this program or about the HAS.
WASHINGTON - For months, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said that the Republican tax plan wouldn't add a penny to the national debt, pledging that more than 100 people in his agency were "working around the clock" to calculate how much additional growth would come from the plan. On Monday, the Treasury Department released the fruit of those efforts: a one-page document asserting that the $1.5 trillion tax plan would generate more than enough to pay for itself.

The analysis relies on two big - and controversial - assumptions: that it will generate economic activity well in excess of what independent analysts project, and that the rest of the administration's economic agenda, including regulatory reform, infrastructure spending and an overhaul of the welfare system, will take effect.

Treasury's Office of Tax Policy says the U.S. economy will grow 2.9 percent every year for the next 10 years, a large increase from the 1.9 percent per year growth that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office is projecting.

"One percentage point of higher growth sounds like a little bit, but it's the equivalent of me being one foot taller and able to dunk a basketball," says Mark Mazur, an economist who served as assistant secretary for tax policy at the Treasury during the Obama administration.

Treasury says half of the increased growth would come from the massive cuts to business taxes. The tax plan proposes cutting the corporate rate from 35 percent to 20 percent.

The office attributes the rest of the increased growth to multiple factors, including some that have yet to happen and are not part of the tax bill. As the one-page analysis says, "We expect the other half to come from changes to pass-through taxation and individual tax reform, as well as a combination of regulatory reform, infrastructure development and welfare reform as proposed in the [Trump] Administration's Fiscal Year 2018 budget."

Treasury estimates that, all told, the tax code changes and other policy efforts would lift economic growth so much that it would generate $1.8 trillion in new revenue over 10 years, as a bigger economy leads to bigger tax bills.

It is an analysis far different from other groups.

A recent analysis by the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT), Congress's nonpartisan scorekeeper, predicted that the Senate tax bill would add about 0.1 percent more a year to growth over the next decade, far less than what Treasury says. JCT took into account the economic effects of the tax cuts to individual and business taxes, but not other policy changes advocated by the administration such as welfare reform.

The JCT says the Senate bill's total cost would be $1 trillion after considering growth effects. JCT found almost exactly the same result when it analyzed the House bill and its economic impact: It would boost growth a little, but not nearly enough to cover the entire $1.5 trillion price tag. The House bill would also end up costing $1 trillion, JCT said in a new report out Monday afternoon.

Many economists and tax policy experts slammed the Treasury memo as half-baked. There was no supporting documentation with the statement, making it impossible for independent economists to be able to re-create Treasury's work. Independent analysts have forecast that the bill would add $500 billion to nearly $2 trillion to the debt.

"Treasury has released a one-page [analysis] which will be used by tax cut advocates to claim that the tax cut pays for itself. It's a joke and no substitute for the career staff running the full macro model they have to analyze effects," New York University tax law professor David Kamin tweeted.

Some economists in the Obama administration don't think Treasury ran a model at all. They note that the 2.9 percent growth estimate is what President Trump's budget assumed in the spring.

The nation's leading think tanks that analyze tax and budget policies have all released detailed analyses showing that the tax bill would not fully pay for itself.

In a new analysis of the Senate GOP tax bill that was also released Monday, the Tax Policy Center found that the bill would still cost $1.5 trillion, even after taking into account economic growth. The Penn-Wharton Budget Model predicts that the tax measure would still add $1.5 trillion to $1.8 trillion to the national debt after factoring in growth.

"Even with assumptions favorable to economic growth, the Senate [bill] still increases debt by over $1.5 trillion over the next decade," says economist Kent Smetters, director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model.

The Tax Foundation, which supports the GOP tax plan, says it would cost about $500 billion. Treasury is by far the most optimistic of all.

Scott Greenberg, a senior analyst at the Tax Foundation, tweeted Monday that what Treasury posted "is not an analysis of the economic effects of the Senate tax bill."

Senior administration officials said that different economists could come to different conclusions, but that they wanted to offer some transparency in their perspective. The analysis states, "We acknowledge that some economists predict different growth rates." Kevin Hassett, the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, defended the higher growth projections in several TV appearances Monday.

"We are going into next year with momentum. It's our view at CEA that all of the capital spending that's going to be drawn back to the U.S. next year is a reason for optimism that we can sustain 3 percent growth for a good, long time," Hassett said on Fox Business.

One Republican senator - Tennessee's Sen. Bob Corker - voted against the tax bill because of concerns about how much money it would add to the deficit. The White House has tried to persuade other GOP lawmakers that the Joint Committee on Taxation is wrong and that the bill would not increase the debt.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., called the analysis "fake math" that shows Republicans are "grasping at straws."

---

The Washington Post's Damian Paletta contributed to this article.
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New York

Mayor Bill de Blasio won election in 2013 promising a progressive overhaul of public policy. Robert Anderson Van Wyck won the same office in 1897 with a Tammany Hall-backed campaign featuring the slogan "To Hell with Reform."

The two mayors would seem to have little in common, but the genealogy company MyHeritage says it has discovered the mayors are 11th cousins five times removed, sharing an ancestor who was knighted in England in 1487.

"To find a genealogical connection between two of the most impactful and significant New Yorkers in the last 120 years is quite extraordinary and unexpected," MyHeritage researcher Nitay Elboym said.

Researchers at the company said they were looking for Van Wyck relatives because of the upcoming 120th anniversary of the consolidation of New York's five boroughs into one city, which occurred during his administration.

They were surprised to uncover the link to de Blasio, who was born with the name Warren Wilhelm Jr. but dropped it and took his Italian mother's maiden name after his father became estranged from the family.

De Blasio did not respond to requests for comment.

MyHeritage provided The Associated Press with names from the family trees of de Blasio and Van Wyck going back to Sir Thomas Boteler and his wife, Margaret, who were both born in the 1460s. Sir Thomas and his lady are Van Wyck's 10-times great grandparents and de Blasio's 15-times great grandparents if the research is correct.

A titled Englishman may not be the ideal ancestor for de Blasio, a liberal Democrat whose priorities include addressing economic disadvantages in a city he says is often rigged in favor of the rich and powerful.

The Van Wyck connection might not be a badge of honor, either.

Present-day New Yorkers know Van Wyck for the often-congested expressway to Kennedy Airport that bears his name.

Tapped to run by the notoriously corrupt Tammany Hall Democratic machine, Van Wyck presided over the five-borough consolidation and broke ground on New York's first subway tunnels.

But his one-term administration was tarnished by the so-called ice trust scandal of 1900.

Van Wyck was cleared of wrongdoing  in a plan by the American Ice Co. to double the price of ice (a crucial commodity in the age before refrigeration)  by Gov. Theodore Roosevelt but lost the 1901 election to Republican reformer Seth Low.
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A 41-year-old San Francisco plumber who was on a losing streak at local casinos and faced eviction for not paying his rent was found guilty Monday of slaughtering a family of five inside their Ingleside neighborhood home after targeting them for robbery.

On its seventh day of deliberations, the San Francisco Superior Court jury found Binh Thai Luc, an undocumented Vietnamese immigrant with a violent criminal past, guilty of five counts of murder in the massacre of the Lei family on March 23, 2012.

The victims bludgeoned bodies were found covered in blood and household cleaning products in various rooms of the row house on Howth Street, which had been flooded with water. The damage was so severe and the scene so chaotic that investigators didnt initially know if they were dealing with a quintuple murder or a murder-suicide.

Prosecutors said Luc used a hammer to commit one of the worst mass homicides in modern San Francisco history, though the weapon was never found. The defendant was also found guilty of five counts of attempted robbery and two counts of burglary.

Because Luc was convicted of murder with special circumstances  in this case, lying in wait and committing multiple killings  he faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. The charges made him eligible for the death penalty, but the district attorneys office did not pursue that punishment. Judge Carol Yaggy will set a sentencing date Tuesday.

This was a very gruesome, brutal murder, and were pleased were getting some accountability for the family and for the community, District Attorney George Gascon said.

Luc said nothing after the verdict was read. Wearing a light-blue collared shirt and black vest, he leaned in occasionally to whisper to his defense attorney, Mark Goldrosen.

He was quite disappointed, Goldrosen said outside the courtroom. He understands that this is the beginning of the process and there are appellate procedures.

More for you Trial in gruesome quintuple slayings winds down amid clashing...

None of Lucs family members, who occasionally attended the trial, came Monday, nor did relatives of the victims.

Police arrested Luc shortly after the killings at a hotel in San Mateo, where investigators found him reading an article in The Chronicle about the crime on his computer, prosecutors said.

He was found guilty of killing Hua Shun Lei, 65; his wife, Wan Yi Wu, 62; their daughter, Ying Xue Lei, 37; their son, Vincent Lei, 32; and his wife, Chia Huei Chu, 30.

Vincent Leis 12-year-old niece discovered the carnage at 7:45 a.m. and ran out of the home screaming, Mommy, bodies! Bodies! A witness later heard the girls mother, Nicole Lei, on the phone, yelling hysterically, They took the money! The money is gone! prosecutors said.

While authorities didnt have an eyewitness place Luc at the scene of the crime, Assistant District Attorney Eric Fleming used numerous pieces of physical evidence to link Luc to the killings.

Investigators said Vincent Leis blood was spattered on Lucs jeans, which were discovered at his home. Inside the Lei home, crime scene technicians reported finding Lucs blood on a pack of cigarettes, a receipt and a cabinet drawer. Luc had a cut on his hand when he was arrested shortly after the crime.

Police also found a fingerprint on a bottle of window cleaner inside the home that matched Lucs right index finger, prosecutors said. The bodies were covered with bleach and other products, and the killer flooded the home by turning on faucets and detaching pipes under sinks.

Goldrosen didnt dispute that Luc was at the scene around the time of the killings. Instead, he argued that someone else attacked the family, suggesting the real killer could have been one of two notorious Chinatown gangsters  or possibly a former boyfriend of one of the victims.

Goldrosen argued that the prosecution didnt establish a motive for the crimes, which he characterized as gang-style, loan-shark-style slayings.

Fleming told the jury that Luc killed the family members while robbing them. He frequented Artichoke Joes Casino in San Bruno and had dumped thousands of dollars gambling in the weeks before the crime. The prosecution even said Luc lost money at a casino on the night of the massacre.

The jury was told Luc had been served an eviction notice for not paying his rent, a debt he settled immediately after the killings. When he was arrested, he had $6,518 in cash. Prosecutors said the Lei family kept thousands of dollars in the home, and that Luc knew Vincent Lei from local mah-jongg games.

Before the killings, Luc was convicted in 1998 of committing an armed robbery at a Chinese restaurant in San Jose. After he served eight years in San Quentin State Prison, officials handed him over to federal immigration authorities for deportation back to his home country of Vietnam.

Vietnamese authorities, however, refused to provide Luc with travel documents, and he was released from custody as required by federal law.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky
WASHINGTON - A federal judge Monday is set to home in on a question left open by federal courts since the struggles over detentions of suspected al-Qaida members and other terrorists after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks: how long can the government hold a U.S. citizen captured on the battlefield without letting him challenge his detention?

U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the District of Columbia set the 10 a.m. hearing in a petition brought by the ACLU. The organization seeks to represent an unidentified citizen and suspected member of the Islamic State detained as an "enemy combatant" for nearly threemonths without a charge. He was captured in Syria and transferred to the U.S. military.

At issue is the U.S. government's assertion that it can secretly hold the man without court review for a to-be-determined "reasonable period" before deciding his disposition. The government is also opposing the ACLU's attempt to be the man's lawyer.

The Pentagon disclosed Nov. 30 - at Chutkan's order - that the American had asserted his constitutional rights to a lawyer, halting law enforcement questioning. But the Pentagon stated in filings that it was "not currently aware" whether he wanted to challenge his detention in court.

Justice Department lawyers asked Chutkan to toss the ACLU's habeas corpus petition on legal grounds, saying the group could show no relation to the man that would give it standing to sue on his behalf. As a result, the Justice Department argued, the court had no authority to weigh in on wartime detentions by the U.S. military in an overseas conflict zone.

Chutkan expressed incredulity at the "circularity" of that claim, saying it was the government that is withholding the man's identity, preventing legal counsel from establishing contact with him or his family.

Referring to an assertion of authority to indefinitely detain a citizen without court review, Chutkan said, "That scenario, that kind of unchecked power, is, quite frankly, frightening."

ACLU attorney Jonathan Hafetz in an Oct. 5 filing had called the government's position "Kafkaesque" and "a direct assault" on the authority established by the U.S. Supreme Court during George W. Bush's presidency.

"The government's claim that a federal judge does not even have the authority to determine if a U.S. citizen who has been imprisoned for nearly three months wants to challenge his detention is unprecedented, and completely unsupportable," Hafetz said. "It not only strips citizens of a basic constitutional right, but it eliminates the important role of the federal courts as a check on actions by the president."

Justice Department civil division attorney Kathryn L. Wyer said the decision of what to do with the detainee is temporary, "still underway, and the government is diligently attempting to reach that determination" but did not know how long it would take.

The government has said the man surrendered in Syria to rebel Syrian Democratic Forces, and was turned over to the U.S. military on Sept. 14 and held since in military custody in Iraq. Wyer said the detainee has been visited by the International Committee of the Red Cross and could ask that group to contact his family to seek legal help. The government has said it is complying with the Geneva Conventions in not releasing his name.

Wyer warned of "far-reaching consequences whenever U.S. forces detain an individual while engaged in active military operations in a foreign country" if the court ruled any third party could sue on the detainee's behalf in U.S. courts.

Some national security law experts have said that there is agreement the executive branch does not have unreviewable discretion to indefinitely detain U.S. citizens captured on a battlefield, but that the military has some leeway to make a decision.

The key question is how long is too long, and who decides.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2004 ruled U.S. citizens held as "enemy combatants" under war legislation are entitled to counsel and the right to challenge the evidence against them before a neutral arbiter.

But then-Justice Sandra Day O'Connor wrote in a controlling opinion that that right does not attach at the initial capture but instead "only when the determination is made to continue to hold [him]."

Chutkan directed both sides to file further arguments on whether the court can directly seek the answer to whether the man wants the ACLU or other private counsel, and whether the government is obligated independently to provide him with an attorney.

The Washington Post reported in October that Justice Department officials did not think they had enough evidence to charge the man, who was questioned first by an interagency interrogation team for intelligence purposes and then by an FBI team seeking enough admissible evidence to bring a case against him. The man refused to talk and demanded a lawyer, the officials said.

U.S. officials told The Post that the man once had ties to the Pacific Northwest but that most of his family and roots are in the Middle East.
Conservative women, shaped by a mixture of party loyalty and a rejection of gender-driven politics, have shown little evidence that they will follow the example of their Democratic sisters and publicly cut ties with men in their political camps who have been accused of sexual misconduct.

After female Senate Democrats prompted the resignation of Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., last week, saying they could no longer ignore the growing number of women who alleged he had kissed or groped them against their will, Republican women mostly have responded with shrugs or silence to accusations against men in their party. Few have spoken out against the candidacy of Roy Moore, the Alabama Republican running for the state's open U.S. Senate seat in Tuesday's special election, despite accusations that he pursued or sexually touched teenage girls as young as 14 when he was an assistant district attorney in his 30s.

Party loyalty plays a big role in why more Republican women have not demanded that GOP men accused of sexual harassment be held accountable. But a fundamental disagreement about the relevance of sexual harassment as a symptom of gender inequality is also a factor.

Ronnee Schreiber, chair of the political science department at San Diego State University, said many conservative women think the current conversation about sexual harassment has been "overblown" by feminists on the left. To them, women's daily lives are less affected by sexual harassment and assault than by the economy and national security.

Democratic women, on the other hand, could call for Franken's resignation without appearing to betray their party's fundamental values, Schreiber said.

"It's consistent with the ideology of Democrats to be opposed to sexual harassment," Schreiber said.

Franken resisted giving up his seat until Wednesday, when Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., publicly called for his resignation. She was quickly joined by several other female senators, followed by several male Democrats. Eventually, more than 30 Democrats urged Franken to step down, which he did in a combative speech, noting that Moore was still on the ballot and President Donald Trump was still in the Oval Office.

Americans show a large political divide when asked whether sexual harassment is a serious problem. In a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 92 percent of Democratic women and 86 percent of Democratic men said sexual harassment in the workplace is a problem for women. Among Republican women, 61 percent said sexual harassment of women in the workplace is a problem, as did 56 percent of Republican men.

The issue of sexual harassment in the workplace exploded two months ago when several actresses publicly reported that movie mogul Harvey Weinstein had sexually assaulted them. It also has made its way back to the political arena, with three congressmen, including Franken, announcing their resignations last week. Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., who had been the longest-serving member of Congress, stepped down after former staffers said he had sexually harassed them. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., resigned Friday amid allegations that he asked female employees to bear children as surrogates, including one woman who said he offered her $5 million.

Moore, however, has dismissed calls to end his campaign. Initially, more than a dozen Republican senators, including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Ky., said Moore should step aside. McConnell now says the decision is up to the voters of Alabama.

Alabama's senior senator, Richard C. Shelby, has not changed his position; he has said he wrote in the name of another Republican on his absentee ballot.

"I think the Republican Party can do better," he said on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday morning.

But most Republican members of Congress have said Moore should step aside only if the allegations are true. Of the five Republican women in the Senate, only one has emphatically said Moore should drop out of the race.

"Because we have this crazy two-party system, to make sure there is Republican dominance in the Senate they're going to overlook it," Schreiber said. "That's why they overlooked Trump."

When the Access Hollywood tape of Trump bragging about grabbing women's crotches became public during the 2016 presidential campaign, and several women came forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct, "conservative women's organizations basically said, 'We don't want him, but we want party dominance,' " Schreiber said, referring to groups like the Independent Women's Forum and Concerned Women for America.

Two of Alabama's most prominent Republican women - Gov. Kay Ivey and Terry Lathan, the chair of the state GOP - have consistently supported Moore.

Ronna McDaniel, the female chairman of the Republican National Committee, which withdrew its support from Moore shortly after the allegations arose, cited the president's desire to keep the Alabama U.S. Senate seat in the GOP as the party's reasons for reversing itself and resuming to help the embattled candidate.

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, are the only Republican congresswomen who have unequivocally said Moore should drop out of the election.

"I believe for the sake of this country that Roy Moore should step aside. There are others that can fill that seat," Rodgers said in a local television interview Thursday.

"Members of Congress, House and Senate are held to a higher standard. . . . We've got to walk the talk," she said after Franken announced his resignation.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway has wavered in her response to the allegations against Moore. In an interview with ABC News soon after The Post published the first accusations, Conway said that the behavior Moore's accusers described "offends me greatly as a woman, as a mother of three young girls," and that it should be "disqualifying, if true." But more recently, she has defended Republicans' continued support for Moore, saying Trump needs his vote in the Senate to pass tax legislation.

She has taken to Twitter to jab Democratic women who vacillated in their response to the accusations against Franken, noting that Gillibrand had seemed ambivalent on the question just a day before she called for him to resign.

After the release of the Access Hollywood tape last year, she accused some of Trump's detractors of being on a "high horse," suggesting they had in the past engaged in behavior similar to what Trump described.

"I would talk to some of the members of Congress out there." Conway said in an MSNBC interview in October 2016. "When I was younger and prettier, them rubbing up against girls, sticking their tongues down women's throats uninvited who didn't like it."

In an interview with The Post, Conway said no one listened to her at the time because she was Trump's campaign manager. She argued that the issue of sexual harassment has become too politicized.

"We cannot have an honest conversation or full and fair resolution of sexual misconduct in this country unless and until we stop discriminating against those coming forward based on their politics or any other factor," she said.

The Independent Women's Forum honored Conway at a gala last month with its "Woman of Valor" award. During her remarks, Conway boasted about how she responded when Anita Hill accused then-Supreme Court justice nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment.

"I proudly brought this button in that said, 'I believe him,' " she said, describing a pin she wore to classes at George Washington University's law school during the 1991 hearings.

The IWF sprang from those hearings, founded by women who thought Thomas was being unfairly maligned because of his conservative beliefs. They chafed at the news media's tendency to go to groups like the National Organization for Women for commentary on women's issues.

Carrie Lukas, president of the IWF, said women on both sides of the political divide agree sexual harassment is a problem.

"But there is also a sense that we know that the accusation is also a political weapon," she said. "These allegations can be incredibly damaging if you wanted to derail a candidate."

Lukas stopped short of saying Moore should drop out of the race.

Patrice Onwuka, a senior policy analyst with the IWF, said she saw no cause for women on the right to take a stand against Moore.

"Judge Roy Moore has not been elected to the Senate, so his situation is not the same as Senator Al Franken or Rep. John Conyers," she wrote in an email. "If the allegations are proven true then he is not fit to serve as a U.S. senator, but that is for the voters of his state to decide. Victims deserve to have their allegations investigated, but we should not rush to judgment on every allegation without more information."

Michelle Bernard, a former president of the IWF, said she is disappointed to see so many conservative women waffling over Moore in the name of preserving a governing majority in the Senate. She was similarly disappointed that women like Conway provided political cover for Trump.

"If these people were not so powerful, they would have restraining orders against them and be on some sex [offenders] list, ordered to keep 100 feet away from children," Bernard said.

"I have a very difficult time believing that people, deep in their hearts, believe this crap," she continued. "They say it because they also fear they have something to lose - a powerful donor or they will lose the Senate or the White House - so they toe the party line in public, but they go home and shut the door and say, 'My God, that man is sick.' "
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Ateam of optometrists from Specsavers have just returned from a successful trip volunteering for The Hope Foundation in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) bringing sight to over 1,000 people.

Having raised over 11,000 for the charity ahead of the trip, the group spent seven days in the Indian city, marking the first mission that Specsavers has embarked on with the charity.

Specsavers store owners across the country donated money towards the charity in order to purchase glasses for the team to bring to Kolkata but to also purchase a portable auto-refractor machine, worth 6,500, which was gifted to the Hope Foundation.

During the seven days, store director Lisa Walsh, together with opticians Orla Murphy and Jasmine Jose and dispensing optician Edwina McKinney, carried out over 1,000 eye tests on people.

They dispensed over 300 pairs of glasses and 600 pairs of the pre-made bifocals to those who were tested.

In addition to this, urgent referrals were made for eye disease and trauma-related issues, as well as 100 referrals for cataracts, to The Hope Hospital.

For many of the patients, this was their first experience having their eyes tested, highlighting how many people do not have access to basic health services in this part of the world.

A number of those tested had reduced vision because of uncorrected refractive error, one of the most common causes of treatable blindness in the developing world.

Speaking about the team who travelled, Longford store director Fiona Ferguson said: We are delighted to have supported our colleagues as they proudly represented our brand on their mission in Kolkata. Bringing expert eye care to people is at the core of what we do.

"We are thrilled that the team joined the Hope Foundation to bring our expertise and services to those who truly need it so supporting this cause through fundraising locally was an honour.
Longford rail commuters are expressing frustration on social media this evening after they had to endure delays owing to a 'points issue'.

16.00 Dublin to Sligo and 16.30 Sligo to Dublin delayed up to 60 mins due to points issue at Longford  Iarnrod Eireann (@IrishRail) December 10, 2017

Iarnrod Eireann tweeted that the "16.00 Dublin to Sligo and 16.30 Sligo to Dublin delayed up to 60 mins due to points issue at Longford".

And responding, Liam Devaney asked, "Will there be any movement from those stations? Very fed up people at Edgesworthstown Station (no bathrooms,no inside area and no people here to update for people whove been here since 5.45".

Will there be any movement from those stations? Very fed up people at Edgesworthstown Station (no bathrooms,no inside area and no people here to update for people whove been here since 5.45  Liam Devaney (@dev7liam) December 10, 2017

@IrishRail could you please explain why the Sligo - Dublin train has gone BACKWARDS from Longford to Dromod?! Intercom not working in all carriages at sufficient volume.  Eamon OCeallaigh (@EamonOCeall) December 10, 2017

Iarnrod Eireann has also issued the following reminder to Longford to Dublin customers:

1. Sunday only 18.50hrs Longford to Dublin not operating tonight, resumes on Sun 7th January. Train at 19.17hrs from Longford

2. 05.40hrs Longford to Dublin weekday service moves to new earlier time of 05.35hrs from tomorrow morning

Reminder to Longford to Dublin customers:



1. Sunday only 18.50hrs Longford to Dublin not operating tonight, resumes on Sun 7th January. Train at 19.17hrs from Longford



2. 05.40hrs Longford to Dublin weekday service moves to new earlier time of 05.35hrs from tomorrow morning  Iarnrod Eireann (@IrishRail) December 10, 2017

You may also be interested in reading:

Weather Alert: Met Eireann issues snow and ice warning for Longford as temperatures could plummet to -8
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > A Long Road Ahead

by Prabira Sethy and Rakesh Kumar

Introduction

India has been pitching for a permanent seat since 24 years in the expanded membership of the United Nations Security Council arguing that the existing body does not truly reflect the contem-porary world realities. Indiaalong with Brazil, Germany and Japanhas formed the Group-4 to press for speedy UNSC reforms and their inclusion in the powerful organ of the world body. Indias demand for a permanent seat in the UNSC with veto rights is a symbol of power, not power itself. It would be an ultimate recognition of our stature. India missed its opportunity at the end of the World War to get a bigger stake in the UNSC when the former United States President, John F. Kennedy, offered to help India in the matter. The UNSC expansion is tied to the sharpening competition for global influence. The powers of the day wield the power of might. And that might is not just the musculature of the state but a genome of manipulated frenzy, which the throne feeds and is fed by.

While membership of the UN has increased nearly fourfold since its birth in 1945, the UNSC has been expanded only once in 1965 by increasing the number of non-permanent seats from six to 10. Thus, there is an imperative need to undertake further expansion of this body to reflect the current global dynamics and to give equitable representation to different geographical regions in the world. But the existing permanent members are not interested in their primacy and power getting diluted by the addition of new countries in their group. In this context Indias objective should be to ensure that it gets its rightful and equitable place on the world stage.

History of Indias Quest for UNSC Membership

Indias own candidature for permanent member-ship was announced by the erstwhile Congress Government (1991-96) as a national policy at the highest political level. This policy was also formed part of the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) of the subsequent United Front Governments. After that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also promised in its election manifesto to launch a vigorous campaign for permanent membership of the UNSC. In the past, Nikolai Bulganin, Prime Minister of the former Soviet Union, proposed for India to become the sixth permanent member of the UNSC. India was among the countries which initiated the proposal for the SCs expansion at the 1993 General Assembly (GA). India had officially announced its candidature for permanent mem-bership of the UNSC during the 49th GA in 1994 and this has been reiterated in subsequent sessions of the UN and at various other fora. But the reform of the Council has been stalled due to disagreements among the United Nations 188 members on how to proceed.

The Group-4s own initiative has had only limited success. At the 2005 World Summit, all the heads of state and government unanimously called for UN reforms, even highlighting the fact that changes in the SC were necessary in acordance with the overall plan. It was a significant development but the momentum couldnt be sustained. Again in 2008, the UNs Intergovernmental Negotiations for Comprehensive Reform began but it was not until September 2015, seven years later, that a negotiating text was finalised. On September 14, 2015 the text was adopted by consensus by the UNGA. This was a big step forward. But the reforms process faced stiff opposition from the entrenched powers that benefit from the current system.

Even though most of these powers had supported the call for reforms in public, they frequently sought to scuttle the process behind closed doors. For instance, just before the reforms text was being finalised, the UNSCs permanent member China, with the full support of Russia, sought to tweak the text in a manner that would drown it in unnecessary technicalities. India led the fight back and even protested outside UNGA President Sam Kutesas residence and eventually convinced him to remove the problematic insertions.

Moreover, at the Group of Four or G-4 summit, which was held in New York in 2015, the leaders called for urgent reforms of the UNSC in a fixed time-frame expressing disappointment that no substantial progress had been made in the past decade on the issue. They also emphasised that they are the legitimate candidates for permanent membership in an expanded and reformed SC and supported one anothers candidature.

India has All Necessary Criteria to become a Permanent Member of the UNSC

Indias claim for permanent membership of the UN SC emanates from a variety of factors:

Major Contributor to Peace-keeping in the World:

It is a fact that India is a major contributor to peace-keeping in the world. It is ironical that the major powers initiate the peacekeeping motion and then expect the global South to provide the cannon fodder as they do not want their troops to risk their lives. Indias first and major contribution to the UNs peacekeeping mission was in Korea way back in 1953. To date, India has participated in 43 UN missions over a span of 68 years, contributing over 1,60,000 Indian soldiers besides a large number of police personnel.

In 2014 alone, India contributed 7860 personnel with 10 UN peacekeeping missions of which 995 were police personnel including the first female police unit formed under the UN. It was stated that this was done because of the responsibility we have on our shoulders for being one of the founder-members of the UN.

India has one of the highest numbers of soldiers in Africa under the UN flag. Defence analysts say that at present, almost 6000 Indian soldiers are deployed as part of the UN peacekeeping force across Africa. Bulk of the soldiers are in Congo (about 3000) and South Sudan (about 2200), while the remaining are in Sudan, Ivory Coast and West Sahara. Our soldiers are very well respected in Africa due to their professionalism and better understanding of these countries than many others. But we have also lost 159 soldiers over the years while fighting the battles in Africa alone because of our obligation in the maintenance of international peace and security.

The task of performing as the Custodian Force was indeed a delicate one for which the Indian contingent earned the first of many post-independence accolades in the international military arena.

Thereafter, Indian contingents and observers were requisitioned for all major UN missions. Despite the solid support readily provided by India for the UNs peacekeeping missions, it failed to gain the UNSCs permanent membership.

Foreign Policy based on Peace, Disarmament, Democracy and Development:

Since independence India has articulated its foreign policy on the basis of the components of peace, disarmament, development, democracy and human rights. These components underline the philosophy of the UN as well. PM Narendra Modi has energetically expanded the political, security and economic reach of Indian diplomacy. He has travelled extensively to many countries, taken open positions on issues of strategic significance, offered economic opportunities and easiness of doing business to would-be participants in his several development campaigns, and has wooed Indian communities abroad in an unprecedented manner. The PM has made a unique international impact by having the UN declare June 21 as the International Yoga Day. Besides, the Africa Forum Summit, which was held in October 2015, has boosted India-Africa ties.

The Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh is another foreign policy highlight as is Indias membership in the Shangai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). Further, Modi dramatically underwrote Indias outreach to Pakistan by halting at Lahore to greet Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif on his way back from Afghanistan, with which Indias strategic engagement found fresh breath. India needs to adopt a more positive sum approach, pursuing shared interests and seeking common ground, and showing a greater willingness to make concessions and com-promises.

Interestingly, India has long assisted Nigeria in military training and capacity-building for fighting the Boko Haram terrorist group. Meanwhile, India is committed to support the fight against HIV/AIDS in the combined resolve to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 in Africa.

In 2015, PM Modi signalled New Delhis renewed interest by hosting the India-Africa Forum Summit securing the attendance of 54 African nations, modestly higher than similar summits hosted by the US, China and Japan. By the time most African nations gained sovereignty, India had also established itself as a strong development partner within the model of South-South cooperation. Presently, India has military-to-military cooperation (mostly training) with more than 30 African nations. Indian defence training teams are deployed in such countries as Botswana, Zambia, Lesotho and Seychelles.

Fastest Growing Major Economy in the World:

We have an economy which is growing at 7.5 per centone of the few economies growing at that rate. Recently, the World Bank (WB) has anticipated that Indias economy will grow at 7.6 per cent in 2016-17 retaining its position as the fastest growing major economy in the world. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has estimated that Indias global growth averaged 3.1 per cent in 2015, declining from 3.4 per cent in 2014. India has made very good progress in its contribution to the global growth of gross domestic product (GDP) in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. Indias share has increased from an average of 8.3 per cent during the period 2001 to 2007 to 14.4 per cent in 2014. Indias share in world GDP has increased from an average of 4.8 per cent during 2001-07 to 6.1 per cent during 2008-13 and further to an average of 7.0 per cent in 2015 in current PPP terms. It is against this background that the Indian growth story appears very bright.

When the world is slowing down and the world environment is not only unsupportive but at times obstructive, for an economy to grow is most challenging.

Another aspect of the Indian economy is its demographic capital. India is house to 1.25 billion people, second only to China. Sixtyfive per cent of this population is below 35 years of age. This will yield rich demographic dividend for India. India benefits from a demographic dividend as an unusually young country in a greying world and it will stay so till 2050, morphing into a consumer market for the world. Its middle class is already larger than the United States population, and expected to swell to 580 million in the next two decades.

Largest Diaspora in the World:

The Indian diaspora is estimated to be the largest in the world and has a diversified global presence. The diaspora, estimated at over 25 million, is spread across more than 200 countries with a high concentration in regions such as the Middle East, the United States of America, Malaysia, and South Africa. The Indian diaspora has not only increased in numbers but has been gaining universal recognition for the unique contributions to its host countries. PM Modi has reached out to the Indian diaspora and has appealed to the diaspora from 45 countries to use their soft power to spread the message of humanism and Indian values. The world is looking at India with optimism.

The Indian diaspora is playing a very important mainstream role while discharging responsibilities in their adopted countries, helping shape the destiny of these states. The President of Singapore, Governor-General of New Zealand and PMs of Mauritius and Trinidad and Tobago are all of Indian descent. When people of Indian origin are held in high esteem, respect for and understanding of the country go up. The influential Indian diaspora affects not just the popular attitude, but also government policies in the countries where they live, to the benefit of India. India benefits tremendously through these people in luring large multinational companies and entrepreneurial ventures.

Playing a Crucial Role in New Global Order:

India has been playing a very crucial role in the new global order. Indias image has improved a lot across the world. In his aggressive worldwide pursuit of external relations PM Narendra Modi has surprised political observers and great politicians across the world.

It is very important to note that the Narendra Modi-led Indian Government is closely working with Pakistan along with six other member-countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in raising a common disaster response force on the lines of the UN Peacekeeping Force for specialised response to natural and man-made disasters. Indias initiatives and its capacity building have already been recognised by the UN. By evacuating Indian and foreign nationals from civil war-hit Yemen and trembler-hit Nepal in large numbers, PM Modi has projected Indias speed, scale and skill in handling natural and man-made disasters. For example, under his leadership the first Indian C-17 Globe-master aircraft with skilled National Disaster Response Force teams and medical equipment landed in the mountain nation within five hours of the calamity in Nepal. Besides, New Delhi was involved in the rehabilitation of the Himalayan nation for months. So the facts say that India now has the capacity and capability to project its benign power anywhere in the world.

Largest Vibrant Democratic Nation on Earth:

India is largest vibrant democratic nation on earth. On secular tolerance, on freedom of speech, on institutional functioning and on other liberal democratic indicators, Indias image has been very remarkable. The progress made by the country in moving towards the developmental goals set by it for itself are substantive. The success of Indian democracy has been possible by the genius of the Indian people in making their efforts to grapple with the serious problems that afflict them and in having sustained the developmental process without having compro-mised on fundamental freedoms and human rights.

That they have done this by making the Constitution they gave themselves work and without succumbing to authoritarian and dictatorial models is highly commendable. In addition, the country has been able to make significant shifts in policies without subjecting its people to the traumas and crises with which those in some others have been afflicted.

It is the innate strength of Indian democracy that helps when it singles out the judicial arm of the Indian state for special mention in enforcing the rights of the people and when it refers to the good work done by the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the press, they have been allowed the space and freedom to do so. Moreover, the success of the genuine efforts made in India to empower women, such as through reservations in Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs), is in advance of many developed countries. Besides, it is the only land where four of the worlds great religionsHinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhismwere born. It also has the second largest number of Muslims on the planet. Thus, Indias claim is that as the largest democracy in the world, it deserves a permanent seat in a reformed UN SC.

History of Service to the World:

It is very significant to mention here that the thousands of years of Indian history is testimony to the fact that it has never indulged in aggression ... About 1000 Indian soldiers got martyred while fighting alongside France in World War I. It was not only in France, Indian troops were also deployed in other theatres of war in Europe including the western frontier in Belgium to fight against its invaders in 1914 and 1915. Furthermore, despite political unrest in the country against the British colonialists, Indians extended their total cooperation to Britain during the World War in the fervent hope that they would be subsequently rewarded with at least self-government, if not full independence. But the expectations were belied.

As pre-war fears of unrest subsided, Britain took many troops out of India for battle against other troops in other areas. India contributed 15 million men of which 74,187 lost their lives, and 67,000 were wounded. Every sixth man on the battlefield was an Indian. They fought in most theatres of war including Gallipoli and North and East Africa. India spent  250 million and provided significant supplies and animals towards this war effort. Such was the cost of war that Indias economy was pushed to near bankruptcy.

Given this backdrop we can proudly say that there is hardly any other country in the world which has such a moral authority as the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Gautama Buddha. This history of service definitely qualifies India to be a permanent member of the SC of the UN. There was also genuine appreciation for Indias role in the emergence of a post-colonial Africa and its continued support as a development partner. It is well known that Indian and African leaders worked together to fight against foreign rule and brought freedom and prosperity to their people.

At its 1928 Annual Session in Calcutta, the Indian National Congress (INC) officially linked the Indian freedom struggle to the global fight against imperialism. Later, a new independent India, under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, continued to lead the global anti-colonial struggle from the front. It promoted the African cause at international forums, placed the anti-colonial movement at the heart of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and also provided active support to African liberation groups.

An Appraisal

India craves for a permanent seat status in the UNSC because it offers a short-cut to enduring acclaimthe halo of international power even in the absence of true world power. For years, India has used these above mentioned attributes to claim to a permanent seat at the UNSC. It has not been successful.

There are several reasons, including lack of unanimity, on which other countries should make it. The idea that the permanent segment of the SC must mirror ethnic and regional diversity is ridiculous. The enlargement of the SCeven a proposal to create a new cadre of permanent members without veto powerhas lost its way when it comes to the who and the how.

It has also led to the alternative argument that India shouldnt bother lobbying for a permanent SC seat at all. It should simply build its economy and capacities and wait for the world to inevitably rearrange frameworks to accommodate it. We should pay sufficient care to promoting Indias potential role as a hard power that can contribute to the global order. Therefore, a permanent place in the SC is not the verdict of a popularity contest. It is recognition of the worlds paramount military powers.

Conclusion

The preceding discussion ensures that Indias bid to become a permanent member in the UNSC is based on strong foundations. India is not only a young Republic but also an ancient civilisation. It is the worlds largest functioning democracy; it is an ancient land, with a culture that is marked by antiquity, diversity, assimilation, continuity and peaks of unparalleled refinement; it is a country which has consciously chosen the path of respect for plurality; it is a nation which believes in religious tolerance; and finally, it is a country that is essentially liberal in its outlook, with space for dissent and debate, and therefore, unrelentingly opposed to the monolithic funda-mentalisms that are sweeping now across large parts of the world.

Keeping the above in view and taking into account the 1.27 billion population which is one-fifth of the worlds population, and its growing economic and political influence, its ability to be a successful role model for a multi-cultural and multi-religious society, the largest democracy in the world with the highest tolerance level, impacting directly on South-East, West and Central Asia, India must be suitable as a natural candidate for permanent membership in the Council.

India has been an active participant in the UNs peacekeeping operations, whether in the Korean peninsula, Indo-China or Africa. It provided the largest contingent of peacekeepers to the UNs operations in Congo in the early sixties and now has been actively involved with the UN activities in different continents. Besides, India contributed a lot to the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNMSL) although it had to decide to withdraw its troops from there later. The world community has always appreciated the role India has played by deploying efficiently its troops to deal with different crisis stretching from Haiti in Latin America to Cambodia in Asia. One exceptional thing to mention here is that the Indian Government makes no money from UN operations. Rather, it spends money and is a net contributor to peacekeeping, much like rich countries and unlike other developing countries. Generally speaking, India has been the largest troop contributor to UN peacekeeping missions since the inception of the world body.

In the recent past, India has done a commen-dable job in evacuating its citizens and other nationals from conflict-hit countries such as Syria, Libya, Iraq and Yemen. Indias claim to a permanent SC seat is based on the strength and global reach of our foreign policy, our commitment to the UN processes, our conviction of strength in the democratic functioning of multilateral arrangements. And it has always been found supporting decolonisation, while opposing apartheid and racial discrimination in Africa and Asia or leading the Non-Aligned countries into a full-fledged movement for asserting an alternative voice in the global paradigm. The emergence of India as a major player in the software and information technology (IT)-enabled services sectors has raised Indias economic profile, and it is now being seen as an economic superpower in the making. Indias case gets further strengthened when one considers the fact that it is one of the founding members of the UN, steadfast in a host of initiatives blending the moral with the practical: Gandhian non-violence with a definite touch of pragmatism.

As a permanent member of the UNSC, India will be able to play a larger role in pressing international issues. But the latest developments show that the path will not be smooth. Indias deserving and strong candidature for permanent membership in an expanded UNSC hinges on an expansion that is miles away. India should still continue its efforts to build a democratically evolved global consensus on restructuring the SC. The permanent members ought to realise that there are much more serious issues at stake globally than their own so-called prerogatives, and they should be flexible in addressing those issues. Thus, we continue to have the confidence that on any objective ground, criterion and belief in strengthening the work of the Council, it would be concluded that India possesses the necessary attributes for permanent membership of an expanded SC.

Endnotes

Ganguly, Swagato (June 16, 2016), Hesitations of History, New Delhi: The Times of India, p. 12.

Singh, K. Natwar (March 30, 2015), The United Nations Must Hit a Six, New Delhi: The Hindustan Times, p. 12.

Suresh, K.G. (April 20, 2016), Indias Right to a Permanent Seat, New Delhi: The Hindustan Times, p. 10.

Sibal, Kanwal (December 31, 2015), Many Hits and Some Misses, New Delhi: The Hindustan Times. p. 8.

September 28, 2015), Leading from the Front: At G-4 Meet Modi Walks the Talk on UN Reform, New Delhi: The Pioneer, p. 8.

Mukherjee, Mayuri, (October 30, 2015), Redefining India-Africa Ties, New Delhi: The Pioneer, p. 9.

Prabira Sethy is an Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Maharaja Agrasen College, Delhi University. Rakesh Kumar is an Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Maharaja Agrasen College, Delhi University.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > Mandir and Masjid can Co-exist

On December 6, the demolition of the Babri Masjid would be 25 years old. Instead of making amends for what the Congress Government did in 1992 with the connivance of the then Prime Minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party Government is bent upon building a temple at the site where the Masjid stood once.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has made a statement that only a grand temple would be built in Ayodhya and nothing else. This is unfair to the Muslims or the liberals who support the countrys diversity and had come to agree that both the mosque and the temple could stand side-by-side at the site. However, the demolition remains a blot on Indias secularism. To build only the temple would be tantamount to rubbing salt in the wound that was inflicted.

I recall that after the demolition, which initiated countrywide Hindu-Muslim clashes, Prime Minister Rao convened a meeting of senior journalists to explain what had happened. He sought the media cooperation in quenching the fire. He said that the Central Government was helpless because of the determination by hundreds of kar sevaks to demolish the Masjid. But Madhu Limaye, the late Socialist leader, later told me the puja that Rao performed was meant to camouflage the demolition. When an aide whispered into his ears that the Masjid had been demolished, he opened his eyes.

Rao could have easily acted before the demolition took place. The proclamation to impose Presidents Rule was ready a fortnight earlier. It was awaiting the Cabinet approval. The Prime Minister did not convene its meeting. When the demolition began, there were frantic calls to the Prime Ministers Office.

Even if the Congress were to deny the allegation against Rao, the party has not yet explained how a small temple had come up overnight at the site where the Masjid stood earlier. The Centre was then in full control because UP had been put under Presidents Rule after dismissal of the State Government. In any case, the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute had transcended the State borders and the Centre was following the developments every day. The Justice Manmohan Singh Liberhan Commissions silence on Raos behaviour was meant to cover up his complicity and that of the Congress party.

Let the temple come up. This was the remark by Atal Behari Vajpayee when I asked for his reaction to the destruction of the Masjid one day after the incident. I was surprised by his comment because I considered him a liberal force in the BJP. In fact, the Liberhan Commission had named Vajpayee as one of the collaborators in pulling down the mosque. How could he have reacted differently when he was a party to the meticulously planned scheme to demolish the mosque?

That L.K. Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, the other two BJP leaders, were co-conspirators was known on December 6, 1992 itself. The surprising name for me was that of Vajpayee. Vajpayee, when he was the Prime Minister, was a changed person. He had led a bus full of intellectuals and journalists to Lahore to convey the message of peace and conciliation to the neighbours.

The indictment has exposed our polity because all the three came to occupy top positions in the country. Vajpayee became the Prime Minister, Advani, the Home Minister, and Joshi, the Human Resources Development Minister. If all the three were collaborators in the demolition of the Babri Masjid, they were dishonest in taking the oath of office which demanded that the oath-taker would work for the countrys unity and uphold the Consti-tution that mentions secularism in the Preamble. The Liberhan Commission has said that they were among the 68 who were culpable in taking the country to the brink of communal discord.

Not only that. The three leaders acted against the Supreme Courts order not to disturb the status quo. In other words, they made a mockery of the countrys judiciary and the Constitution to which they swore before assuming power. And they ruled for six years without a tug of conscience.

How can the planned demolition be squared up with the holding of office by Vajpayee, Advani and Joshi? The question is not only legal but also moral. This is a matter that the nation should have debated to find an answer. Those who have no clean hands should not be allowed to defile the temple of Parliament.

Meanwhile, the Art of Living founder, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, has been making efforts for mediation among the stakeholders. During his recent visit to Ayodhya, the spiritual guru has said that the problem could be solved through dialogue and mutual respect rather than conceit and accusation. Even UP Chief Minister Yogi Adiyanath, whom the guru had met, agreed to provide all necessary support.

The spiritual gurus meeting with the UP Chief Minister came in the backdrop of BJP launching its civil poll campaign from Ayodhya with promises of redevelopment. However, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, an arm of the RSS, and the Muslim Personal Law Board have rejected Sri Sris offer to mediate on the issue. The feeling within the BJP leadership is that the decision be best left to the Supreme Court, which is slated to hear the case on December 5.

Ram temple matter is in the Supreme Court and I think we should let the legal process be complete. Other discussions can be held after that, said Ram Madhav, the BJPs National General Secretary. Similarly, the VHP also voiced its concern over the Art of Living founder trying to resolve the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute.

This is not for the first time that Sri Sri has taken this initiative. In 2001, he made attempts but failed. The reaction to his efforts was the same as today, the VHP Joint General Secretary, Surendra Jain, had said. The real hitch is the statement by Bhagwat that only the temple would come up in Ayodhya and nothing else. When Muslims have, by and large, come to accept that the temple could be built by the side of the mosque, the RSS chiefs lament is unwarranted.

The author is a veteran journalist renowned not only in this country but also in our neighbouring states of Pakistan and Bangladesh where his columns are widely read. His website is www.kuldipnayar.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > Not Sorrow but Atonement

The following piece, which was published as Political Notebook in Mainstream (December 12, 1992), is being reproduced on the twentyfifth anniversary of the demolition of the Babri Masjid. Its significance is heightened due to the ongoing offensive of the Hindutvavadi forces following the seizure of power at the Centre by the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah-led BJP in May 2014.  Editor

The vandalism that brought down the Babri Masjid structure on December 6 will remain a Black Sunday in the annals of independent India. Like the insensate violence of fratricidal communalism of the partition days that culminated in Gandhijis killing fortyfour years ago, the demolition of the Babri Masjid will remain a symbol of shame for the nation, and particularly for the majority community which permitted a bunch of blackguards to pose as its guardian and get recognised as such.

While anger and anguish over this ghastly incident have overwhelmed millions in this country, there is no escape for certain elements in public life from being held responsible for this despicable act. The BJP and the RSS leaders who backed the so-called Dharma Sansad issuing the fatwa for the kar seva have to unequivocally own up the guilt for having collected such a huge number of people around the disputed area by whipping up raging frenzy which was beyond control. And the BJP bosses, who had been campaigning in support of the kar seva, were found to have beaten a retreat when the mob was actually demolishing the mosquean ignominious commentary on both their capacity and courage. Those who incite a crowd and lack the guts to face and halt it are unworthy of claiming to be leaders. Their moral posture, which they flaunt as part of their Hindutva, should have the honesty to offer public apology for this shocking abdication of responsibility on their part.

The BJP leadership is accountable for the grave misconduct on the part of the Uttar Pradesh Government which the party was running. Chief Minister Kalyan Singh was giving assurances to the Central Government and the Supreme Court which turned out to be thoroughly bogus. If he had any idea about the importance of the commitments he had made to the Supreme Court, he should have anticipated the grave risk he was taking in handling an unmanageably massive crowd, which by its very nature was beyond any discipline. Instead of asking for more Central force, Kalyan Singh was protesting against the despatch of whatever the Union Home Ministry had despatched as a matter of precaution.

The point to note is that the BJP Government in UP, like the rest of the BJP-VHP-RSS combine, was trying to run with the hare and hunt with the hound. They were stoking the frenzy for kar seva all over Uttar Pradesh and beyond, while at the same time assuring the judiciary, the Parliament and the public that the disputed areas would not be touched as per the Supreme Court directive.

Not only that. In the critical days after the National Integration Council meeting on November 23, the senior BJP-RSS leaders were working out some settlement terms with the Central Government. The terms of these negotiations, which the present writer can vouch for, were, firstly, the Babri Masjid disputed structure complex would be adequately protected until the dispute is settled by dialogue or due process of law, and the UP Government would invite the Centre, if it so desired, to send its force to reinforce the State Governments security arrangements. Secondly, there would be no kar seva in violation of law. Thirdly, the Centre would make a one-point reference to the Supreme Court under Article 143 and the Courts opinion would be accepted as binding by both the Centre and the UP Government as also the BJP-RSS combine. Fourthly, the Centre would express its support for expeditious disposal of the case about the disputed plot now pending before the High Court. As these terms were hammered out, an impression prevailed on the eve of December 6 that perhaps the crisis was on the way of being defused. In fact, the BJP-RSS leaders were expected to persuade the Dharma Sansad not to precipitate the crisis.

The question now arises whether the BJP-RSS leaders were diabolically agreeing to these terms while preparing for the demolition of the Babri Masjid; or, were they themselves outstripped by the blitz attack of the mob? The fact that Advani resigned from the post of the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, coupled with the RSS leader Rajendra Singhs statement that the vandalism on December 6 was a grievous setback for the Ram temple cause, might be put up by them in their defence that they were themselves overtaken by the developments. Be that as it may, there is no doubt that before the bar of public opinion in India and abroad, the BJP-RSS combine has no option today but to acknowledge their guilt for the heinous act of violent destruction. It is not just a question of owning up moral responsibility, but substantive responsibility for whipping up frenzy and then giving in to mob-violence and thereby desecrating their commitment before the highest court of law and the supreme tribune, that is, Parliament.

The BJP leaders have to bear in mind that the rule of law has to be respected if they do not want to put their party outside the pale of law and the Constitution. More than once during these crisis days, the BJP spokesmen have talked about the majesty of law, and now they themselves connived, if not were actively involved, in the blatant defiance of the Consti-tution. The pulling down of the Babri Masjid structure is not just a matter of religious frenzy, but the blatant assault on the rule of law and civilised conduct of public affairs. Here is the essence of their guilt.

In the history of contemporary India, this is how terrorism has crept into politics. Whether it is the Akali Party or the Asom Gana Parishad, one finds the moderate parliamentary leaders using the rowdy terrorist groups as their battering ram against the adversary and in course of time, they themselves become the captive of the militants, as many of the distinguished Akali leaders have become today in Punjab politics. What has happended at Ayodhya looks like the curtain-raiser of the very same type of political adventurism coming over to the BJP. The RSS leaders may have survived the stigma that stuck to them after Gandhijis assassination, but there is grave doubt whether they can come out of the present crisis intact. The more mature among them would soon have to make their choice here and now.

Looking at the predicament facing the Congress and its government today, there is little doubt that public opinion has already marked out those in power as being guilty of dereliction of duty. There is no room for passing the buck to the UP Government, since it was as much the Centres solemn charge to protect the Babri Masjid structure.

It was all the time given out that the Centre was on the alert even while the talks for a settlement were continuing. When para-military forces were sent, one can very well ask, why were these not sent in adequate strength, at least to guard the disputed structure? Even if a fully equipped Army unit had been posted to guard the disputed structure, it would have acted as a deterrent, and the shame of the Indian state not protecting a place of worship of its citizens would not have come upon our country. This is the simple charge of any government claiming to rule from New Delhi as the guardian of a secular state. The Prime Minister himself had made the solemn commitment on August 15 in his Red Fort speech saying that the mosque would be protected as much as the government would like the proposed temple coming up.

In this context, this writer needs to acknow-ledge in all honesty the validity of the criticism voiced by some observers that the Centre dithered in imposing Presidents Rule in UP immediately after the NIC meeting when the kar sevaks were yet to gather. Hindsight makes it clear that such a pre-emptive strike might have averted the tragedy of December 6. At the same time, such an action of dismissing an elected government could have been misconstrued at that stage as a partisan move with poor legitimacy.

The exploitation of religious sentiments for political purpose has become the bane of Indian politics over the years. The opening of the lock at the Babri mosque complex and the subsequent permission of shilanyas on the disputed spot were done by the Congress under Rajiv Gandhi to collect Hindu votes. The passing of the Muslim Womens Bill in the wake of the Shah Bano case was done by the Congress to gather Muslim votes. If the Janata Dal took the help of the BJP to form its government at the Centre, the Congress too did not hesitate to vote along with the BJP to oust the same Janata Government at a moment when the Janata Dal fell out with the BJPs clamour over the same Babri Masjid issue. Even the Left in the late sixties did not have any qualms to form coalition governments with the Jana Sangh at the State level. The cumulative effect of this exploiting religious faith for electoral gains today is that the BJP leadership at this moment, instead of being branded as having violated the tenets of the Constitution, is regarded by the large body of Hindus, particularly in North India, as being heroes who have dared to defy the law to uphold the urge for Rams temple.

With nobody having a clean hand on the issue of pampering to communalism, the BJP-RSS combine has been able to go so far in initiating a totalitarian communal approach as could be seen from their moves to change names of places and rewrite textbooks apart from the ghastly deed at Ayodhya. This multipronged communal approach can hardly be halted by mere seminars on secularism, but only by launching a nation-wide mas movement for Hindu-Muslim amity, which alone can provide the surest guarantee for genuine secularism in the country. While swift administrative action to halt communal violence is imperative at the moment, the building of communal amity on sound footing can come only through relentless mass cam-paign. All parties will have to unequivocally abjure the slightest communal bias in political life with relentless vigilance. This applies equally to all communities, as is brought out by the ugly demonstrations in the Jamia Millia over the secular stand of a distinguished scholar. Hollow men do not make History, but unmake it.

Indian nationalism shall not endure by preaching hatred and deceit and disdain between brother and brother. Out of the ruins of the Babri mosque must rise the shining mansion of communal harmony. We, each one of us, have to pledge ourselves as our brothers keeper. What we need today is not sorrow but atonement.

(Mainstream December 12, 1992)
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > Sporting Moustache represents the New Format of Dalit Politics

by Arun Srivastava

In three separate violent incident at least three Dalit youths were recently thrashed in the Gujarat villages by the Rajputs for sporting moustache. Humiliating and thrashing Dalit youths in Gujarat for sporting moustache by upper-caste people is a new element in the long drawnout tactics to assert might through coercive and violent means. An insight into the atrocities of Dalits in the State points to the fact that a serious endeavour is on to make Gujarat a Hindutva laboratory. It is in this backdrop that Dalits with twirled moustaches have become a challenge to their supremacy. The protest by the Dalits also make it explicit that a social revolution of sorts has been fast emerging. In the seventies most of the struggles were economic in nature. The social struggles were mainly confined to the issue of izzat. In the prevalent scenario, instead of raising economic issues, the upper castes are attacking the Dalits on these issues.

For the Rajput lords, the social assertion of the Dalits and having a twirling moustache are challenges to their feudal pride. This was also a potent threat to their policy of hegemony and dominance. After assaulting the Dalit youth, Krunal Maheria, a law student, the Rajput goons told Maheria, who was visiting a friend in the village, that he cannot become a Rajput by just sporting a moustache.

In yet another incident that took place on September 25, Rajput mercenaries thrashed 24-year-old Piyush Parmar while he was returning home after watching garba at a local temple. The audacity of the Rajputs could be assessed from the fact that on October 3 yet another 17-year Dalit youth was stabbed in the same village where two Dalits had earlier been attacked by the Rajputs. He was also punished by the mercenaries for committing the crime of sporting a moustache.

To protest the attacks over a moustache, Dalits near Sanand have adopted a twirled moustache logo as their WhatsApp display picture. It is a twirled black moustache with a crown and a line that reads Mr Dalit. It is their way of telling people that Dalits will sport a moustache and twirl it like a king without caring for the consequences.

The upper castes have been oppressing and perpetrating torture on the Dalits and Harijans for a pretty long time. It is not that the Dalits and Harijans did not resent or protest. A number of glorious struggles were fought by them. The historic role of the Communist Parties, especially the Naxalites, in mobilising them against the tyrannies of the landlords has been a known fact. This protest acquired a new dynamics in the late sixties after the emergence of the Naxalbari movement. In those days the struggles began over the issues of minimum wages and protection of prestige (izzat) of the Dalit and Harijan women. These were the issues which witnessed the resurrection of the Naxalite struggle in Bhojpur of Bihar, just after it was announced by the bourgeois media that the movement had fizzled out. The struggle has its glorious past. Even the BSF and other para- military forces at one stage were reluctant to confront the rebellion of Dalits and Harijans.

However with the BJP coming to power, the upper-caste goons and mercenaries have become aggressive throughout the country. This time the issues have changed. The old issues of minimum wages and izzat have been replaced by the Hindutva agenda. The Dalits are being killed and tortured for skinning cows. The mercenaries have been attacking them in the garb of the cow vigilantes. With the BJP and Modi Government out to protect their class and caste interest, they are determined to maim the Dalits. For liberal democrats, this may appear to be a case of vigilante attack. But beneath this, there lies a dangerous ideological implication. Basically, this is the reason that the Modi Government or for that matter the BJP govern-ments have not been opposing the actions of the vigilantes.

The public pretension of the RSS and Modi to the upper-caste leaders and also to the Dalits to have cordial relations and treat each other at par has been merely a hoax. Beneath the facade of sab ka saath, Modi has been striving to perpetuate the rule of the upper-caste feudal elements. Almost all the States have been witnessing the emergence of a fresh round of attack on the Dalits. The nature of aggressiveness of the upper castes could be understood from their violent actions in UP, Gujarat, Haryana and even Rajasthan. A serious attempt is underway to uproot the Harijans from their homeland.

Recently a group of Dalits from Gujarat, who were on their way to Lucknow with a plan to gift a 125-kg soap to Adityanath as a mark of protest, were stopped and sent back from the Jhansi railway station. Those expressing solidarity with them in Lucknow, including a retired senior IPS officer, S. R. Darapuri, were also taken into custody. This underlines the double standards of the BJP and its government towards Dalits.

Perpetrating torture on Dalits has acquired a new dimension in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. While the oppression and persecution of Dalits have been a regular phenomenon in Bihar, the Dalits of Gujarat have been facing the worst nature of feudal tyranny. It is really a matter of shame that neither the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, nor his party leaders have been voicing their concern. This has made the government and administration to behave in an ostrich-like manner. The government has been least bothered of the systematic murderous attack on the Dalits. Modi has been resorting to tokenism in castigating and condemning the actions of the mercenaries.

Feudal tyranny and totalitarianism have acquired such a ruthless dynamics that barely some days ago more than 300 Dalits embraced Buddhism in Ahmedabad and Vadodara on the occasion of the Ashoka Vijaya Dashami, the day emperor Ashok had pledged non-violence and converted to Buddhism in Vadodara, where Babasaheb had launched his fight against untouchability. Incidentally, on this day Ambedkar had also embraced Buddhism with lakhs of people in Nagpur in 1956.

The intensity of increase in feudal tyranny could be understood from the simple fact that a 21-year-old Dalit youth was killed by goons belonging to the upper-caste Patel community, for attending a garba event, in a temple in a village in Anand on September 30. Before the killing, the marauders had warned the Dalits that they do not have any right to watch garba.

In a significant development, Gujarat and Maharashtra have been witnessing an increasing radicalisation of Dalit politics. The torture and oppression perpetrated by the feudal lords has forced them to look for a radical youth leader. During the last decade, a significant number of young Dalit leaders like Jignesh Mewani have emerged. This shows a volatile setting of caste resurgence and identity politics. The Dalits have become conscious of their identity.

Though Modi has been reiterating his concern for the welfare of the Dalits, the fact is that the attacks on them have increased many fold during his rule. The BJP and the Modi Government have been trying to conceal the fact behind the facade of expressing their anxiety for them. Some months back the RSS constituted a group of Buddhist monks with the avowed aim to reach out to the Dalits in the villages of Chhatish-garh for assuaging their emotions and feelings. But even after spending six months in Dalit villages the monks failed to have significant impact.

No doubt in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections the Dalit caste arithmetic paid the dividend and the party could manage a clean sweep. But it would be wrong to say that it managed to build an impregnable support-base amongst them. Like any other sector of voters they too revolted against the ruling dispensation and their leader Mayawati. An insight into Amit Shah dining at the residences of Dalits would reveal that this has not helped the BJP win the hearts and minds of the Dalits. Unlike the upper-caste people the Dalits do not exhibit their arrogance or hatred for the feudal element. Their tolerance index is quite high.

Though the BJP and UP Government have been denying, the fact remains that during the rule of Yogi Adityanath as the UP CM the attacks on Dalits have increased considerably in the State. The Yogi Government has been found to be wanting in taking action against these upper-caste marauders. The State Police is reluctant to lay its hands on the killers.

Intellectuals and academics owing allegiance to the RSS strongly deny that caste assertion has been the strategy of the BJP. Like another party, the fact remains that at national as well as regional levels, the BJP has been pursuing hard-core caste politics and working out a social engineering agenda. Else, what was the reason that Amit Shah moves around the Dalit ghettos and dines at their houses? What an irony, BJP President Amit Shah and other leaders of the party are now eating food with Dalit families to woo them! These are the same people who used to criticise Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi when he did the same thing.

Not only this, even in the matter of functioning of the party, the upper-caste lords are allowed a greater role. The party is assiduously striving to strengthen its upper- caste base but at the same time working to keep the Dalits happy. It is not ready to patronise the Dalits at the cost of alienating the upper-caste and bania supporters. The bond between the banias and Sangh continues to be the same as it was three years back. This was clearly manifest in the Sassahara speech of Mohan Bhagwat who expressed concern at their plight due to note- bandi and also asked Modi to help them.

While Modi has been exhorting his party leaders to reach out to the Dalits obviously with an electoral perspective, a report from the USA painted a very grim picture of Modi rule and observed that attacks against Muslims and Dalits grew sharply in India under Modi. The report, titled Constitutional and Legal Challenges Faced by Religious Minorities in India and sponsored by the US Commission on Inter-national Religious Freedom (USCIRF), said the religious minority communities and Dalits face discrimination and persecution in India where hate crimes, social boycotts and forced conversion have escalated dramatically since 2014.

The report pointed out that religious tolerance has deteriorated and violations of religions freedom have escalated dramatically since 2014. While hate crimes, social boycotts and forced conversion have escalated, India faces serious challenges to its pluralistic traditions. The report suggested that India must adopt the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

The report underlined: Since the BJP assumed power, religious minority communities have been subject to derogatory comments by BJP politicians and numerous violent attacks and forced conversions by affiliated Hindu nationa-list groups such as the RSS, Sangh Parivar, and Vishva Hindu Parishad.

Not in so many words, but the report also dropped hints for imposing some sort of sanction. It suggested to the US Government to put religious freedom and human rights at the heart of all trade, aid and diplomatic interactions with India. India is a religiously diverse and democratic society with a Constitution that provides legal equality for its citizens irres-pective of their religion and prohibits religion-based discrimination. The USCIRF Chairman Thomas J. Reese observed: The reality is far different. Indias pluralistic tradition faces serious challenges in a number of its States. To reverse this negative trajectory, the Indian and State governments must align their laws with both the countrys constitutional commitments and international human rights standards.

The USCIRF further held that the Indian Governmentat both the national and State levelsoften ignores its constitutional commit-ments to protect the rights of religious mino-rities. The statistics supplied by the Home Ministry said that in 2015, India experienced a 17 per cent increase in communal violence, when compared to the previous year. In 2015, there were 751 reported incidents of communal violence, up from 644 in 2014. It also urged the US Government to counsel the Indian Govern-ment to push its States that have adopted anti-conversion laws to repeal or amend them to conform to international norms. The Indian Government must lift its sanctions against non-governmental organisations working for the welfare of the minorities in India, it underscored.

The report also urged the foreign funders not to provide any fund to the Hindu fanatic groups. The report underlined: Identify Hindutva groups that raise funds from US citizens and support hate campaigns in India. Such groups should be banned from operating in the United States if they are found to spread hatred against religious minorities in India.

The Dalits have always been at the receiving end, had to face the torture and oppression of the feudal lords in the past, yet they nurse the strong view that the governments of yesteryears had unleashed the communal forces against them. In those years the fight was on the issues of wages and izzat. The feudal lords would let loose their private militia who enjoyed the patronage of the government agencies and its police. If cases were filed against these elements, the police would arrest them. Later of course, they were released on bail.

But in the present scenario the government has been directly involved in encouraging such goons and criminals. The Centrist and liberal character of the previous governments was a major deterrent for those governments to work nakedly in favour of the landed gentry and upper castes. But now the fascist political formations have been openly patronising and supporting them. Today, the Dalits no longer have the same confidence in the government. The feudal lords have shifted their support and loyalty to the BJP. The party is no longer the party of banias only; instead it represents the aspirations of the upper-caste feudal lords, corporate sector and the urban middle class primarily constituting the upper-caste populace.

An insight into the violence perpetrated on the Dalits and Harijans would reveal that in yesteryears it was mainly associated with the agrarian relations and crisis in the States of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Bengal, MP and Rajasthan. The worst affected was Bihar. The State witnessed gruesome killings of the Dalits and Harijans during the last fifty years. As per the National Crime Records Bureau statistics, the total number of crimes against SCs in the country in 2010 was 32,643, of which UP accounted for 7522 (23 per cent). The number of crimes increased to 47,064 in 2014, in which UPs share was 8075.

But the recent addition to the long list of atrocities and assaults has been the socio-religious oppression. This does not provide the right ambience for the Dalits to unite and launch a sustained struggle against the feudal lords. In the present situation violence against the Dalits needs serious consideration. It is a wrong notion that caste has been the primary factor for perpetration of violence against them. An analysis of the incidents would reveal that behind the facade of caste it is the class that has been the motivating factor.

Until about four or five decades ago, the Dalits would meekly surrender to the wishes of the so-called upper castes in social, economic and political matters. But during the last decade a significant change in the style and approach of the Dalits is also being witnessed. The struggles led by the Communist Parties, and especially the Naxalites, have brought about a major change in their attitude. While the Dalit youths were reluctant to accept their lordship, this new class has started to refuse the conven-tional social stigmatisation and subordination by the upper castes.

This Dalit assertion has been posing a challenge to the upper-caste hegemony. Jignesh Mewanis mobilisation of Dalits over the flogging of five Dalit youth for skinning a dead cow in Una, Gujarat, and also mobilisation by the young lawyer, Chandrasekhar, and the Bhim Army at Jantar Mantar in the national Capital are examples of Dalit assertion.

At the BJPs two-day national executive in Bhubaneswar in April, Amit Shah had cautioned his upper-caste support base: Our mass base is changing rapidly. So change your behaviour, language and tone accordingly. But it is interesting to watch that there has been no taker for his advice. The upper-caste elements continue to indulge in brutal violence against the Dalits. There has been no let up in violent actions. The more the Hindutva protagonists, incidentally the upper caste Hindus and urban middle class, are striving to impose themselves on the Dalits, the more vehemently the Dalit youths have been opposing their mechanism.

In recent years a new swing and also trans-formation is being witnessed in Dalit politics. While old ways of doing Dalit politics are still in vogue, asserting their individuality is being added to the new form of politics. However, the character and mode of the new politics is not yet clear. While the urban Dalits, who have joined the ranks of the neo-middle class, are for asserting their identity in the light of the teachings of Babasaheb Ambedkar, those in the rural areas relate it to their economic assertion and accessing their economic rights. Still their work is not evaluated in relation to the capitalist economy and market forces that have been defining the Indian economy.

No doubt Dalits are increasingly striving to take charge of affairs in their own hands. But they are not clear of the mechanism with which to accomplish the task. Though caste continues to be the basic index of their assertion, the fact is that they are disillusioned of caste politics. They nurse a strong feeling that their caste leaders have exploited them and used them for their personal gains. In recent times a hot debate is going on about the real intent of BSP chief Mayawati, Udit Raj and even Ram Vilas Paswan and their brand of politics. The various social Dalit organisations feel that they should adopt a broader political spectrum.

The 2017 elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly have made it explicit that the Dalits look for a wider canvass. Use of the social media to connect and communicate has proliferated; Left politics and its limitations are under scrutiny. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they have distanced away from the traditional Communist Parties. Naxalites are the only political force which attract them. Incidentally, in the 2015 Bihar Assembly elections while the Grand Alliance of the RJD-JD(U) bulldozed the BJP, the CPI(ML) managed to win three seats having Mahadalit population.

It is also significant that a paradigm shift is being witnessed in the attitude of the Dalits and agricultural labourers towards the movements relating to their own problems. During the last two years the Patna High Court exonerated the goons of the landlords involved in at least three genocides, but the Dalits did not protest against the government and its lawyers for preparing and presenting weak cases before the court. They have been pursuing the cases in their own modest way.

India is witnessing the emergence of a new Dalit politics which lays emphasis on widening the landscape of struggle rather than merely restricting it to political power or religious conversion. The struggle would have to be multipronged. The slogans that resound in the Dalit movement underline the new trend. The slogans echo: choice of food, right to land, swabhiman and atmabhiman (self-respect), azadi (freedom) and dignity. They denounce the surveillance of the Hindutva brigade on them. A Hindu mob dragging out Mohammad Akhlaq from his house and killing him for allegedly storing beef at his house has become an important issue in Dalit struggles. The new politics has raised the subject of right to food for the first time in a strong manner.

Mewani, the prominent face of the new Dalit politics, argued that his movements main demand was that every landless Dalit should be given five acres of land. His movement was pitching for an alternative model of develop-ment, based on land reforms. This will be an attempt to define the character and element of productivity of the Dalits. Little doubt the biggest challenge before Dalit politics is to combine identity politics with a material basis; to fight for social justice as well as economic justice.

Though a number of prominent Dalit political faces and leaders have joined the BJP, it would be in the interest of the Dalits that they should counter saffron politics. The objective of land reforms was to make India a more egalitarian society, and uplift the Dalits and the landless. But the rulers pursuing semi-feudal and semi- colonial policies did not implement it seriously. A majority of Indias population still depends on agriculture for survival. Dalits in the changed scenario must strive for an alternative model of development, based on land reforms, where productivity and wealth gains will be crucial elements.

So far not only Gujarat but almost all the States have carried out land reforms but only on paper. This was an eye-wash primarily to fool the people, especially the poor. Land pattas were distributed but the Dalits did not have the actual possession. These lands are still under the physical control of the landlords and feudal elements. In most of the States the bureaucrats and administrations have failed to prepare the parcha (land deed) to be distributed amongst the Dalits as they do not have proper records of the government vested lands. In some States the pressure of the landlords on the government to desist from this project has been so acute that the governments preferred to push it beneath the carpet.

The present set of Dalit leaders intended that they be turned into political disenchants. For this they felt it necessary to be busy in sloganeering. Dalit politics should have progressed beyond this sloga-neering, but it is bogged down in identity politics. There is thus an imperative need to combine identity politics with material politics to fight for both social justice as well as economic justice.

The author is a senior journalist and can be contacted at sriv52[at]gmail.com
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > Way to Socialism through Socialist Unity

by Prem Singh

This comment is about the situation that has arisen after the split in the Janata Dal (United). The comment is made by me as a citizen with a socialist background, and not as a member of the Socialist Party (India). The National Election Commission of India has decided in favour of Nitish Kumars faction on the party symbol dispute. The Sharad faction, however, has gone to petition the High Court in order to challenge the decision of the NECI but is simultaneously engaged in an exercise of forming a new party. It is very likely that soon another Janata outfit will be born from this exercise.

After the split in the Janata Party in 1979 most political outfits, formed time to time by various socialist leaders of mainstream politics, retained the word Janata while naming or renaming their parties. This includes Chandra Shekhar (Samajwadi Janata Party Rashtriya) and Surendra Mohan (Socialist Janata Party). The only exception was the Samajwadi Party (SP) formed by Mulayam Singh Yadav in UP in 1992.

The Socialist Party was merged into the Janata Party in 1977, and thus lost its original glory and national image. It would be interesting to analyse why and how the word Janata still haunts the socialists! When Surendra Mohan parted ways from the JDS, I had a discussion with him about the name of the new party he was planning to form. I tried to convince him that the word Janata should be avoided and the original name of the Socialist Party of 1977 should be revived and strengthened. That would have certainly helped in regaining the lost glory and national status of the original party in the long run. But he was not convinced with arguments and named his new party with the prefix of Socialist.

Recently M.P. Veerendra Kumar, who resigned from the Rajya Sabha a few days back, has given indications of reviving his old outfit namely Socialist Janata (Democratic) Party.

In this connection, I would like to forward a suggestion to the Sharad faction, M.P. Veerendra Kumar particularly, and individual socialists in general. Forming another leader-based State-level Janata Party/Dal with a Samajwadi pre-fix or suffix will contribute little in the direction of much needed socialism and socialist unity. It will be more appropriate if they should join the Socialist Party (India) and take up its leadership. The Socialist Party was revived as Socialist Party (India) in 2011 in Hyderabad in a two-day foundation conference by several senior and young socialist groups/leaders after having countrywide meetings/discussions at the initiative of Surendra Mohan and Justice Rajindar Sachar. The foundation conference was attended by around 600 delegates from 19 States. The SPI was formed to creatively carry forward the inheritance of the Indian socialist movement and ideology propagated by its leaders and thinkers such as Acharya Narendra Dev, Jaya Prakash Narayan, Dr Rammanohar Lohia, S.M. Joshi, Yusuf Meherally, Kamala Devi Chattopadhyaya, Kishan Pattnayak and other genuine socialist leaders. The Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha (SYS), the youth wing of the Socialist Party, was also formed simultaneously as Socialist Yuvjan Sabha.

The sole aim of the SPI and SYS is to provide an elaborate alternative political ideology to counter and thus replace the nexus of neo-liberal-communal forces. The party, through its varied programmes, is trying to create a space for socialist politics at the national level within its limited resources. This uphill task/responsibility should be shared by all those socialists who really believe in the socialist legacy. If the Sharad faction and M.P. Veerendra Kumar decide to join the Socialist Party (India), several socialist individuals/groups can join. Workers and leaders who feel suffocated in dynasty-based State-level parties can also come forward to join the SPI. The party can be renamed as Indian National Socialist Party (Bharatiya Rashtriya Socialist Party) or Socialist Party of India (Bharatiya Socialist Party).

I would further suggest that persons like Dr G.G. Parikh, H. Hanumanthappa, Kuldip Nayar, S.P. Shukla, Michel Fernandez, Dr Sunilam, Subhash Ware, Suresh Khairnar, Dr Raj Kumar Jain, Qurban Ali, Dr D. Sreekumar, Ravikiran Jain, Surendra Kumar, Vijay Pratap, Subhash Bhatnagar and many other concerned socialists should take the initiative in this direction. Friends of small parties, who participated in the unity meeting held at Tara, Mumbai, and later in the SPIs National Executive Committee meeting held at Delhi should also speed up their efforts. They are Prabodh C. Sinha (Socialist Democratic Party), Brajkishore Tripathi (Samata Kranti Dal), Arun Kumar Srivastav (JD-U), Manju Mohan (Socialist Janata Party), representatives of Socialist Party (Lohia) and Loktantrik Samajwadi Party. Incidentally, senior SPI leaders Bhai Vaidya, Pannalal Surana, Justice Rajindar Sachar have already started dialogue with leaders of the Sharad faction and M.P. Veerendra Kumar.

Dr Prem Singh, a former Fellow, Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla, is the President, Socialist Party (India).
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > Judges Must Cross Lakshman Rekha

IMPRESSIONS

Jawaharlal Nehru showed the judiciary its place when he said in the Constituent Assembly in 1949: No Supreme Court can make itself a third chamber. No Supreme Court and no judiciary can stand in judgment over the sovereign will of Parliament. If we go wrong here and there, it can point it out, but in the ultimate analysis, where the future of the [country] is concerned, no judiciary can come in the way. And if it comes in the way, ultimately, the whole Constitution is a creature of Parliament.

Ravi Shankar Prasad is no Jawaharlal Nehru. Indeed, his party has deleted Nehru from its memory pad. But the Law Minister was on Nehrus page when he, too, showed the judiciary its place. His phraseology was different because it was meant primarily to please his chief, but the spirit was the same when he told judges at a Law Day meeting: The people of India trust the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister possesses the nuclear button, thats how much the people trust him. Yet the Prime Minister through the Law Minister cannot be trusted to have a fair judge appointed. Why dont you trust the Prime Minister?

That is a self-serving approach to electoral democracy. A declamatory answer to the Law Ministers declamatory question would be: The Supreme Court does not trust the government for the same reasons that the government does not trust the Supreme Court. Such mutual mistrust suits the citizen because it will ensure a fair measure of checks and balances.

Justice J.S. Khehar gave a pointed answer to the Law Minister when he said: The judiciary is mandated to shield all citizens against discrimination and abuse of state power. The curse of party politics as played in India is that power is abused by all parties. This is evident in the appointment of Governors, in giving undue favours to relatives, in promoting the interests of crony capitalists.

A government favourite, Pahlaj Nihalani, was made the film certification board chief; he proved such a liability that he had to be removed. The Pune Film Institute was reduced to a laughing stock by another BJP favourite, Gajendra Chauhan. His replacement, Anupam Kher, has more filmic credentials but his principal credential is that he is a BJP-bhakt. Come to think of it, what about Raghuram Rajans exit from the Reserve Bank?

All governments want pliable people in key positions, from the Reserve Bank to the CBI. All governments want a pliable judiciary. Indira Gandhi used crude authoritarianism to achieve her purpose. The present government passed a law that gave the Law Ministry a say in the appointment and transfer of judges. But Justice Khehars five-judge Bench struck it down on the ground that the judiciary must remain insulated and independent from the organs of governancea position Indias citizenry will wholeheartedly support.

This does not mean that a Supreme Court collegium is a perfect arrangement. With embarr-assing frequency, collegium-backed appointments have favoured sons and uncles and promoted private interests. Judges have faced impeachment and one is currently in jail. But the solution to a flawed system is not the installation of another flawed system.

We had a taste of what would happen if this government were to have its way in appointing judges. The eminent jurist, Gopal Subramanians name was put up by the collegium for appointment to the Supreme Court. When resistance came, he withdrew his name with dignity. It transpired that he was once the amicus curiae on behalf of the Supreme Court in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter killing case, which the BJP has turned into the most politically sensitive case in modern India. The governments resistance to collegium recommendations led, as CJI T.S. Thakur said last year, to 478 High Court positions being vacant and people languishing in jails for 13 years without a hearing.

The idealism that propelled Nehru lost its meaning even when his party was in power. The sovereign will of Parliament became a farce when gangsters and money-bags entered the House as elected representatives of the people. The first two chambers Nehru had in mind lost credibility while the third, the judiciary, despite black sheep, remained a saving grace. Thats why Subramanian Swamy was unconvincing when he argued, in the 2G spectrum corruption case, that the courts should remain within the Lakshman Rekha of executive wisdom.

Justice Ganguly intervened: It was only when Seeta crossed the Lakshman Rekha that Ravana was killed. May the judiciary continue to cross executive rekhas and help kill the Ravanas roaming around!
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > BJP Routed in UP Urban Local Bodies Elections

On December 2, 2017 most newspapers flashed a front-page story that the Bharatiya Janata Party had swept the urban local bodies elections. Pictures of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offering sweets to one of his Deputy CMs or the State BJP President and all of them displaying victory signs also accompanied the report.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. The BJP has actullay been routed in these elections having managed to win a mere 18.7 per cent of all seats whereas the Opposition, especially the Independent candidates, have walked away with flying colours. In fact, if Independents were a party they would have got a thumping majority in these elections.

The only category in which the BJP has done better is the Mayors positions. Out of 16 Mayoral positions they have captured 14. But that is the end of their success story. And there is nothing unusual about it. Big cities are BJP strongholds for a long time now. It would have been surprising if they would not have won so many seats. In every other category of elected positions, other than Mayors, the combined Opposition has decimated the BJP. The details are revealing.

For the position of Corporators in 16 Municipal Corporations, the BJP has won 596 seats with the Opposition taking away 703. The Samajwadi Party has got 202 seats whereas the Bahujan Samaj Party has 147 positions.

For the post of Chairperson of the Nagar Palika Parishad, while the BJP has managed 70 positions, the combined Opposition has got 128 positions. The SP has 45 and BSP 29 chairpersons of the NPP. When it comes to members for the Nagar Palika Parishad, the BJP with merely 922 seats stands nowhere close to 3380 Independents. The combined Opposition has got 4338 members. The SP has 477 members and BSP 262. The Aam Admi Party has managed 17 seats in this category.

There are more Independent Chairpersons of Nagar Panchayats than belonging to any single party. Their number is 182. Whereas the BJP has managed 100 positions, more than three times, 338 positions are occupied by the Opposition. The SP is not very far behind the BJP with 83 positions and the BSP has about half of that of the BJP at 45. Even the AAP will have two persons chairing the Nagar Panchayats. If we look at the members of Nagar Panchayats, again 3875 Independents clearly represent the peoples mood. The BJP could manage merely 664 seats. The SP with 453 seats closely followed.

Thus out of a total of 12,644 positions, non-BJP representatives hold 10,278!

If anybody can claim to have swept the elections it is the Independents who have a whopping share of 61 per cent of all seats.

So, the question is: why is the media gung-ho about an imagined BJP victory? What are its compulsions? Has it been managed so that the UP urban local bodies election results dont have any adverse impact on the forthcoming Gujarat elections? Except for the Mayors post in big cities, people have very decisively rejected the BJP as a party in spite of it spending many times more money than other parties and fielding the CM to address election meetings. While Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati chose to keep out of campaigning leaving it to local leaders and workers, the BJP did not leave any stone unturned.

Quite clearly, the charisma of Narendra Modi or Yogi Adityanath failed to fetch votes contrary to what is being claimed. The common people are quite badly hurt by the decision of the BJP Government to implement demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax. Businesses have suffered greatly. People have lost jobs and income levels have dropped. Whether it is the Swachch Bharat Abhiyan for which everybody has to pay extra cess or the Ujjwala scheme where the connection is free but there is no subsidy for the poor on gas cylinders for cooking, the people are feeling the pinch. With no demonstrable benefits people have a feeling of having been taken for a ride or being treated like culprits with the authorities breathing down their neck. The economy has been badly hit and the mood among the people is that of despair. In such a situation it would have been really surprising had the people handed over a convincing victory to the BJP.

The BJP rode to power on the basis of a high- profile media and advertisement campaign in the first place and it continues to use the tool to hoodwink the people. The media has been made to fall in line. This is dangerous for democracy. When the media gives up its role of being an independent agency in democracy serving its role of holding the government accountable and starts toeing the government or worse the ruling partys line, something must be done about it.

The media is part of the conspiracy to keep an unpopular anti-people party in power by swaying the public opinion. It is a great disservice to the people. All the people cannot be fooled all the time. The sheen of the government created by the media is now beginning to fade. The government is finding hard to maintain its credibility, nationally and internationally. Contrary to media stories, the international standing of India has gone down under the Modi regime in spite of him having made numerous foreign forays. The relationship with bigger countries like the United States, China, Pakistan has worsened, the smaller neigh-bours like Nepal and Maldives dont trust India.

Without having taken any concrete steps to control deaths of children in the Gorakhpur Medical College hospital, CM Yogi Adityanath is seen to be giving more time and importance to religious issues. Ayodhya is back in focus although it is not clear how a grand temple in Ayodhya is going to help the common people overcome their suffering. The politics of symbolism is at the centre and when the government doesnt have anything concrete to offer to the people, it does rely on media blitzkrieg.

Noted social activist and Magsaysay awardee Dr Sandeep Pandey is the Vice-President of the Socialist Party (India). He was elected to this post at the founding conference of the party at Hyderabad on May 28-29, 2011.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2017 > After Twentyfive Years

EDITORIAL

We have observed yesterday the twentyfifth anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition, an incident in post-independence India thatlike the assassi-nation of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948 and the Gujarat genocide of 2002was not only a blot on our much-cherished secular democracy but actually shook the very basis of our republic.

Indeed a day after the demolition of the mosque on December 6, 1992 activists of various persuasions owing allegiance to secularism had marched to the BJP headquarters in the national Capital shouting: sharm se kaho hum Hindu hain (hang your heads in shame to call yourselves Hindus). The idea was to inject a sense of shame in the minds of the majoritarian triumphalists for having tarnished the secular values on which the Indian state was founded.

And it must also be recalled that in a TV interview some years ago L.K. Advani, the then number two in the BJP hierarchy, had blandly said that on the evening of December 6, 1992 after the demolition of the Babri mosque he was really saddened by the turn of events at Ayodhya. But the following day when he heard the slogan sharm se kaho hum Hindu hain he said he was highly agitated to retaliate: Why should we be ashamed for what had happened? Thus the BJP leaders double-speak was in full display here. Dont forget, Advani was one of those who had assured that the mosque would remain untouched on December 6, 1992. It also revealed the BJP-RSS diabolic strategy to mislead the public. [It is a different matter that now the same Advani has been upstaged by someone who is much more effective in this specific game of hoodwinking the people.] As N.C., the founder of this journal, wrote in this publications December 19, 1992 issue, To build a temple to mark the birthplace of Ram, a mosque was destroyed by deceit.

Following the Babri Masjid demolition many of us were stunned into silence, and soon this writer composed a poem which concluded with the lines: I know not how to atone for my immoral silence / For History shall not forgive me.

Those words have haunted me all these years. But to what avail?

Meanwhile something far more dangerous is being planned. As eminent human rights crusader Harsh Mander has underlined: If indeed the BJP Govern-ment builds a Ram temple at the site of the demolished mosque, Indias secular Constitution will be shredded to tatters.

Let us make no mistakeregardless of which way the Supreme Courts Ayodhya verdict may go, the prospect of such an ominous eventuality as spelt out above is growing with every passing day.

And it must also be admitted in all frankness that secularists of all hues are much more isolated now than what they were twentyfive years ago when the Babri mosque was destroyed. This gives us a measure of the regression the nation has suffered in this time-span.

That is why we must urgently take the solemn pledge on this occasion to stop the demon on its tracks and defeat it with all our might. Time is running out.

December 7 S.C.
Friday was one of the most embarrassing days for the U.S. media in quite a long time. The humiliation orgy was kicked off by CNN, with MSNBC and CBS close behind, with countless pundits, commentators and operatives joining the party throughout the day. By the end of the day, it was clear that several of the nations largest and most influential news outlets had spread an explosive but completely false news story to millions of people, while refusing to provide any explanation of how it happened.



The spectacle began on Friday morning at 11:00 am EST, when the Most Trusted Name in News spent 12 straight minutes on air flamboyantly hyping an exclusive bombshell report that seemed to prove that WikiLeaks, last September, had secretly offered the Trump campaign, even Donald Trump himself, special access to the DNC emails before they were published on the internet. As CNN sees the world, this would prove collusion between the Trump family and WikiLeaks and, more importantly, between Trump and Russia, since the U.S. intelligence community regards WikiLeaks as an arm of Russian intelligence, and therefore, so does the U.S. media.



This entire revelation was based on an email which CNN strongly implied it had exclusively obtained and had in its possession. The email was sent by someone named Michael J. Erickson  someone nobody had heard of previously and whom CNN could not identify  to Donald Trump, Jr., offering a decryption key and access to DNC emails that WikiLeaks had uploaded.



The email was a smoking gun, in CNNs extremely excited mind, because it was dated September 4  ten days before WikiLeaks began promoting access to those emails online  and thus proved that the Trump family was being offered special, unique access to the DNC archive: likely by WikiLeaks and the Kremlin.



Its impossible to convey with words what a spectacularly devastating scoop CNN believed it had, so its necessary to watch it for yourself to see the tone of excitement, breathlessness and gravity the network conveyed as they clearly believed they were delivering a near-fatal blow to the Trump/Russia collusion story:



There was just one small problem with this story: it was fundamentally false, in the most embarrassing way possible. Hours after CNN broadcast its story  and then hyped it over and over and over  the Washington Post reported that CNN got the key fact of the story wrong.



The email was not dated September 4, as CNN claimed, but rather September 14  which means it was sent after WikiLeaks had already published access to the DNC emails online. Thus, rather than offering some sort of special access to Trump, Michael J. Erickson was simply some random person from the public encouraging the Trump family to look at the publicly available DNC emails that WikiLeaks  as everyone by then already knew  had publicly promoted. In other words, the email was the exact opposite of what CNN presented it as being.



How did CNN end up aggressively hyping such a spectacularly false story? They refuse to say. Many hours after their story got exposed as false, the journalist who originally presented it, Congressional reporter Manu Raju, finally posted a tweet noting the correction. CNNs PR Department then claimed that multiple sources had provided CNN with the false date. And Raju went on CNN, in muted tones, to note the correction, explicitly claiming that two sources had each given him the false date on the email, while also making clear that CNN did not ever even see the email, but only had sources describe its purported contents:



All of this prompts the glaring, obvious, and critical question  one which CNN refuses to address: how did multiple sources all misread the date on this document, in exactly the same way, and toward the same end, and then feed this false information to CNN?



...
An article that recently appeared in the South African news publication Daily Maverick, Intellectual property for the 21st century economy, reminds us that, notwithstanding the increasing homogenisation of IP laws, parts of the developing world are yet to be totally convinced that IP is the best way of ensuring innovation and progress.

The article was written by renowned economist Joseph Stiglitz. He comes right to the point when he says this: 'Developing countries are increasingly pushing back against the intellectual property regime foisted on them by advanced economies over the last 30 years they are right to do so because what matters is not only the production of knowledge, but also that it is used in ways that put the health and well-being of people ahead of corporate profits.'

According to Stiglitz, the pushback is being led by South Africa, India and Brazil, and the focus is medicines. Although South Africa has in the past felt the 'full legal might of the global pharmaceutical industry', it is in the process of finalising an IP policy that expands access to medicines. The South African government 'is right, and other developing and emerging economies should follow in its footsteps.'

Stiglitz is critical of IP: it was wrong to impose a 'one-size-fits-all' policy; the standards imposed by the developed world are not designed to maximise progress and innovation, but rather corporate profits; the institutions and laws protecting knowledge are increasingly inadequate to govern global economic activity, and poorly suited to the needs of developing countries; patents may encourage research, but the sheer number of patents now stifles innovation; much of the research that is taking place is aimed at extending protection rather than creating new products. The IP regime has, says Stiglitz, erected barriers to the use of knowledge, and this is not sustainable.

Stiglitz says that the 21st century economy will differ from that of the 20th century in two major ways  the economic weight of countries like South Africa, Brazil and India will increase, and the economy of ideas, knowledge and information will become increasingly important. Developing countries should be looking at alternatives to patents for financing research, including centralised bodies like national health institutes, tax credits and prizes.

IP owners in the developed world, as well as their advisors, would do well to bear these philosophical differences in mind

Wayne Meiring

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New Delhi : Rahul Gandhi is likely to assume the reins of the Congress on December 16, marking a generational shift in the grand old party when his mother and its longest-serving president would formally hand over the baton to him. While pageantry would herald the dawn of a new era in the party which has ruled the country for over half-a-century since independence, the 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family will face the daunting task of restoring lost glory to the party whose fortunes have been dwindling in the recent past.

Today, the party, which once controlled almost the entire country, has its governments in just five states and the Union Territory of Puducherry. The announcement of Rahul Gandhi's elevation, however, is likely to be made tomorrow, the last date of withdrawal of nomination for the election of the Congress president which is a one horse race. Altogether 89 nominations received in his favour were found to be valid during scrutiny.

The Congress s Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran, and CEA members Madhusudan Mistry and Bhubaneswar Kalita will announce that Gandhi's was the only nomination for the top job tomorrow. Rahul Gandhi would, however, be handed over the certificate appointing him the party president on December 16 in the presence of Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders, Ramachandran said.

Sonia Gandhi will officially hand over the mantle of the 132-year-old party to her son around 11 AM after which Rahul Gandhi will meet leaders from across the country at the Congress's headquarters, party sources said. The Congress has been losing state after state since the 2014 Lok Sabha election with the exception of Punjab. Rahul Gandhi's elevation would come just two days ahead of the counting of votes for the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly poll. PTI
In 2008, then candidate Barack Obama took serious flak about remarks he made during a campaign stop. He described the bitterness of some small-town folks who cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren't like them.

The events weve seen over the last few weeks bare out the truth to his words. The hypocrisy being played out in Alabama is a model for a philosophy that has gone sideways. These are people who evoke the name of Jesus and love thy neighbor while advocating for loosening gun regulations, spewing hate and generally dismissing those in need.

In the wake of the mass shooting at the church in Texas, the general response from the surviving members of the congregation seemed to be resignation from those who see the death of innocents as a part of Gods Plan. Solutions offered were consistent with their worship of guns as well as God --- to arm the congregation. Where is the outrage? Where is the anger to do something other than say Well, theyre in a better place with Jesus now?

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told Fox News that had the Sutherland Springs congregation been armed, there would have been fewer casualties. Are you kidding me? As anyone in the military or law enforcement will tell you, he who shoots first wins. The good guy with the gun is a false narrative the NRA continues to employ. Of course gun nuts made the guy who chased down the killer in Southerland Springs into a savior even though the results were suspect at best.

Most evangelicals describe themselves as pro-life. I suggest that no, they are not pro-life, they are pro-birth. They reject a womans right to choose and believe unwanted pregnancies should be carried out to the finish so they can get that kid born, and as soon as he can hold it, put a gun in one hand and a bible in the other.

Some of the most strident homophobes like now former congressman Wes Goodman or Trumps Oklahoma campaign chair Ralph Shorty turn out to be sexual predators while standing up for family values.

Alabama is Mecca for evangelicals, with over half the population describing themselves as such. They cheer Roy Moores pistol waving Yosemite Sam impersonation and calls for what amounts to a Christian caliphate. In their hypocrisy, they ignore or vilify his accusers of sexual harassment. In order to advance their twisted agenda, theyll look past any tragedy or reprobate.

They are galvanized behind a man who co-authored a study course in 2011 saying Women should not be allowed to run for office or work outside the home. And every day leading up to this Tuesday it gets more bizarre.

While were all busy watching Trump, Republicans in Washington are working diligently to dismantle the Medicare and Social Security and pilfer the Treasury to hand benefits to the super-rich.

In 2011, a poll by the Public Religion Research Institute found that only 30 percent of white evangelicals believed an elected official who commits an immoral act in their personal life can still behave ethically and fulfill their duties in their public and professional life. By 2016, that number had risen to 72 percent. Clearly the majority of evangelicals have moved to a Machiavellian ends-justifies-the means approach to politics that violate their own core beliefs.

As former Reagan speech writer Peggy Noonan lamented, when a Washington Post journalist presented as fact in a 1993 news report that evangelical Christians are largely poor, uneducated and easy to command, you know he was thinking of Southern evangelicals. Yes, Peggy, and given what we see in Alabama, Texas, and rest of the evangelical world it must be true.

Meanwhile, Democrats in Congress are sacrificing Al Franken who apologized for his indiscretions but is required to fall on his sword in the name of moral purity that doesnt remotely exist on the other side. There is a false equivalence out there and the evangelical right is winning in the name of a Jesus that they alone create. I wonder what Jesus would think of this flock thats gone down such a dark path in his name.

Andy Parker is a resident of Collinsville
Two statements were made on the same day, 21 November. Both declared the end of the war on Islamic State in Syria. The first was made by Vladimir Putin, in a meeting with Bashar al-Assad in Sochi, the second was released by Qassem Suleimani: the Iranian general at the head of the Quds Force (the Islamic Revolutionary Guards). Both, almost simultaneously, stated that terrorism was defeated in the country.

A month before, Raqqa  the capital city of the Islamic State  was taken by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). This defeat dealt a decisive blow to the last hopes of Islamic State establishing their Caliphate.

In the same period, loyalist forces consisting of Assadist troops and Iranian backed militias with Russian air support took the city of Deir Ezzor along with all the main cities on the bank of the Euphrates river towards the Iraqi border. The western backed Islamist insurgency, from which IS arose, has now been crushed in all important areas. Of the plans of US imperialism - and their traditional allies in the region - of overthrowing the Assad regime and cutting through Iranian influence in the region, nothing remains.

The Russian intervention was the final element which tipped the balance against US interests. As a result of the outcome of the war, Russia is now rising as a counterweight to US influence throughout the region. This underlines the limitations of US imperialism. While the US is still by far the strongest single force globally, it is tied up by a series of internal crises which limits its room for maneuver. This in turn is opening up a vacuum for other smaller powers to manoeuvre. In Syria, three forces which have traditionally opposed US imperialism - the Kurdish militia, together with Russia and Iran - have become the key forces on the ground. Unable to intervene directly, the US could only maintain some influence in Syria at the great cost of leaning on the Kurdish militia and thereby jeopardising its relationship with Turkey, a key NATO ally.

Turkey and the Kurds

Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, initially intervened in Syria along with the US, with ambitions of using Syria as a springboard towards achieving his dreams of a modern day Ottoman Empire. But seeing the coming defeat and the support of the US for the Kurdish militias, he made a deal with Russia and Iran.

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In return for selling out the CIA-backed Islamic fundamentalist groups, Putin gave Turkey increased room to act against the Kurds. This shouldnt come as a surprise. What concerns Moscow is not the fate or the liberation of the oppressed peoples but the assertion of its role as a regional power.

At the same time of course, Islamic fundamentalism has not been uprooted in Syria. Al Qaeda still controls the province of Idlib, but it does so at the mercy of Turkey, which in agreement with Russia and Iran, and much to the dismay of the US and Saudi Arabia, keeps a tight leash on it. Erdogan is supporting the fundamentalists as a backup in the future political game in Syria and to use them as a battering ram against the Kurds.

Ankara cannot allow the consolidation of Kurdish autonomy in Syria. Turkey fears the consequences within its borders, where at least 15 million oppressed Kurds live. Erdogan has been very critical of the support provided by the US to the SDF. The US on the other hand, has not had any other reliable force to fight IS in Syria. But now that the civil war is coming to an end, US imperialism is preparing to sell out the future of the Kurds in return for an appeasement with Turkey, which in turn could be used against Iran.

On November 27, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders highlighted this by saying that, with IS's territory shrinking, "we're in a position to stop providing military equipment to certain groups, but that doesn't mean stopping all support of those individual groups". Sanders statement echoed Trumps, who told President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a phone call that he had issued instructions that weapons should not be provided to the Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters.The US are now ready to dump the Kurds. As we have stated several times, for US imperialism, the Kurds are only a pawn in a bigger game and if it had to choose between them and Turkey, the choice will always be in favour of the latter.

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The YPG leaders thought they could use the US for their purposes, but the opposite is occurring. One hundred years after the Balfour Declaration, the petty-bourgeois and bourgeois leaders of the liberation movements in the Middle East have not learned any lessons. There is nothing wrong in a revolutionary movement using the divisions between imperialist powers, but there is, however, a limit to this tactic. In the end Kurdish liberation can only be achieved by revolutionary means, by appealing to the masses in Syria, Iraq, Iran and most importantly in Turkey for a revolutionary overthrow of all these regimes and the establishment of a Socialist Kurdistan as part of a Socialist Federation of the Middle East. It was the revolution in Western Syria which in the first place created the vacuum for the Kurdish movement to rise. But the leaders of the different Kurdish factions have increasingly been leaning on deals with the big powers, rather than developing a revolutionary policy to connect with the struggle of the Iranian, Turkish, Syrian and Iraqi masses. In doing so, they have also given important concessions to the imperialists.

In Syria, the Kurdish leaders have not only received arms from the US, they have also allowed the US to build more than a dozen bases throughout Kurdish controlled territory. They have also allowed Russian and Syrian forces into their territory and have, on different occasions, made deals with Iranian proxies and the Iraqi central government. The absurdity of this policy reached a temporary peak during the Qatar-Saudi crisis, when some PYD leaders publicly supported collaboration with Saudi Arabia. These mistakes by the Kurdish leaders are not only weakening the Kurdish liberation movement militarily, but also politically, by repelling the most radical layers who are fiercely opposed to US, Saudi and Russian imperialist meddling. Small nations are just so much small change in the deals reached between the big powers. And when the time for a deal comes, all of these concessions will be used to try rein in the Kurdish movement.

Saudi Arabia

At the same time, the defeat of the US campaign in Syria, means a consolidation of the position of Iran and its traditional ally in Lebanon, Hezbollah. This is raising new contradictions and represents an untenable situation for the crisis ridden Saudi kingdom. As a response Saudi Arabia embarked on an attack on the Lebanese government, which is strongly influenced by Hezbollah. Seeing Prime Minister Saad Hariris indulgence towards the Shiite movement as a threat, the Saudis essentially kidnapped him and forced him to resign during a visit to Saudi Arabia. The Saudis were hoping to whip up a sectarian conflict within Lebanon and thereby force the hand of Israel to attack Hezbollah. The Arab League, following a Saudi proposal, declared Hezbollah a terrorist organisation and Iran a regional threat. But the move had the opposite effect. Inside Lebanon public opinion turned sharply against Saudi Arabia, in sympathy with Hezbollah. Meanwhile, international pressure forced the Saudis to let Hariri go, after which he retracted his resignation.

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At the same time the Saudis launched a highly publicised military alliance to rid the world of Islamist terrorism. If lives of innocent men, women and children were not involved, such a statement would be a contender for the best joke of 2017. Saudi Arabia was founded on the principles of Wahhabism: one of the most reactionary ideologies in the world. For decades, the Saudis have funded Islamic terrorism, and still do.

The latest result of this was the Islamist terrorist attack, which killed 235 people in a Sufi mosque in Sinai, Egypt. It was carried out by the Islamic State, which had strong links to the Saudi regime itself and which has been strengthened by funds and resources delivered to the Islamists in the Syrian Civil War by Saudi Arabia and other western powers. Of course, they have now escaped the complete control of their former masters.

The military alliance set up by the Saudis has nothing to do with fighting terrorism. Along with the rest of Saudi foreign policy, it is aimed at one target only: Iran.

Saudi Arabia has emerged as the biggest loser of the Syrian civil war. This outcome has led Riyadh to adopt an attitude that is far from remissive. Indeed, its foreign policy positions have become increasingly aggressive. The rise of Mohammed bin Salman (MBS as he is called), son of the current king, is the expression of this. As a foreign minister, MBS launched in 2015 a military intervention against the Houthi forces which controlled large parts of Yemen. Following the deafening silence of western imperialism (and tacit support, given that the western powers keep selling weapons to the Kingdom), Saudi aggression has left tens of thousands of people dead and created more than three million refugees. According to the United Nations, 80 percent of Yemenis are experiencing a humanitarian emergency.

But the war in Yemen is being lost by the Saudis and the war fronts have barely moved for the past year. Only two weeks ago, the Saudis pulled out their last desperate attempt at turning the tables when they convinced the then Houthi ally, Abdullah Saleh, to break with the Houthis. But this proved unsuccessful as Saleh was quickly killed and his troops cleared from Sanaa. This defeat only lays bare the weakness of Saudi Arabia, which in spite of having one of the most expensive armies on the planet, could not force its will on one of the poorest countries in the world. Each defeat in the region is piling on the internal crises of the regime, which in turn continues to raise the stakes like a gambler on a losing streak.

In May the kingdom provoked a conflict with Qatar, calling on the Qataris to break relations with Turkey and Iran, as well as shutting down media such as Middle East Eye and Al Jazeera. In response, Qatar did the opposite and strengthened its relations with Iran and Turkey. While Donald Trump initially supported MBS in this endeavour, he was quick to withdraw as he found out that the US has a major military base on the peninsula. Qatar is not a one off case. The crisis of US imperialism is also a crisis of the Saudi regime which has always been dependent on imperialism for its survival. The US did not support Saudi Arabia against Iran in Iraq - in fact the US had to make a deal with Iran to secure its own withdrawal from the country. In Syria, Trump has abandoned Saudi backed proxies and is manoeuvring to cut a deal with Russia. In Yemen, Trump is now openly calling for an end of the war, which is essentially a defeat for Saudi Arabia. Any attempt of the Saudis to take the fight to Lebanon will eventually lead to a similar outcome.

But if the Americans will not fight the wars of Saudi Arabia, who will? The fact is that the kingdom does not have any real loyal subjects, which is why it has never dared send its army to fight in a war. Thus, the lack of US support poses an existential danger for the regime.

In early November an "anti-corruption" drive was carried out on the orders of MBS. Most of the main opponents of the crown prince within the royal family were arrested. These are the opening shots of the coming conflicts within the kingdom. The world economic crisis and the falling oil prices are straining the networks of patronage which have kept the kingdom together since its inception.

For the first time in ten years, Gross Domestic Product declined in the first two quarters of 2017 and the IMF forecasts zero growth this year. In order to cope with the rise in public debt, MBS plans a series of privatisations, including the sale of 5 percent of Aramco, the oil company, whose value is estimated at about $2 trillion. In a country where 40 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, the government has already cut by 15 percent state employees' wages, along with other subsidies. And all this is happening in the world's largest oil exporter!

This is preparing an explosive situation at the bottom. Apart from the Sunni population, the Shia minority in the oil rich north eastern areas have been restive since 2011 and the urban youth have been increasingly calling for more democratic rights.

The defeats in foreign policy are magnifying this crisis. The war in Yemen was partially a concession to the Wahabis, but it is becoming a public opinion disaster internally. Meanwhile MBSs new liberal statements are aimed at appealing to the middle class youth. MBS wants to unite these layers behind the monarchy, but these forces are diametrically opposed to each other as well as to the monarchy itself.

With the revenues from the sale of Aramco, Riyadh will increase its military spending. Last May it reached a deal for arms and defence systems from the United States for over US$110 billion. On his official visit, Trump provided almost unconditional support for the actions of the Saudis in the Middle East. The regime is trying to divert attention and to forcefully claw back its dominant position in the region, but it is fighting a lost battle.

MBS is trying to maintain the initiative by constantly setting the agenda. But he is unable to resolve the crisis and thus, sooner or later events will catch up with him. All the forces of Saudi society are pulling in opposite directions threatening to tear the regime apart. What we are witnessing is thus essentially the beginnings of the decline of Saudi Arabia as we know it.

Iran

If western imperialism was seeking to curb Iranian influence, they have achieved the exact opposite. Iran has never been more influential in Syria, Iraq or Lebanon. This is a direct result of the breakup of the regional order imposed on the region by the US with the destruction of the Iraqi state after the defeat of Saddam Hussein. In the vacuum Iran is rising to become the key power of the region along with Turkey.

On its northern border, Israel thought it had created an equilibrium with Assad and Hezbollah, but with the rise of Iranian backed proxies in Syria that balance is being disrupted radically. Israel has tried not to get sucked into the Syrian civil war, but a few weeks ago it was forced to escalate its involvement by bombing an Iranian military base south of Damascus. The possibility of Iranian military and naval bases along with Iranian arms factories on Israel's border poses a major threat to the Israeli regime.

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Together with Saudi Arabia and the US, they want to roll back Iran. Saudi Arabia has already made several public overtures to Israel. The two countries, despite not having formal diplomatic relations, have admitted they are in contact through their intelligence services, and Israeli Defence Minister Lieberman has called for the need to start a new "imminent" war front in Lebanon.

Together with Trump, these gentlemen are trying to turn back the clock to before the Iraq war, before the capitalist crisis and before the Arab revolution. Trump has been trying to make a 180 degree turn from Obamas policies in the Middle East as if these were merely based on Obamas personal preferences and were not dictated by strategic interests of US imperialism. First he increased support for the Syrian rebels and carried out a pathetic missile attack on an empty government airbase in Syria. But nothing changed. In the end he had to come to an agreement with Russia about Syria. In Yemen as well, he initially supported MBSs brutal, yet hopeless war. But now he has been forced to call for an immediate end to the war.

Trump is also trying to scrap the Iran nuclear deal, but it is clear that other world powers will not follow suit. Nevertheless, the Iran deal was not an arbitrary piece of paper, it was the formalisation of a process which had taken place on the ground in the region. It was the formal recognition of Irans growing influence on the ground and the need by US imperialism to come to terms with it.

Trump is supporting almost everything said in Riyadh and Jerusalem, but time and time again, like during the Qatar crisis, he soon realises that his position undermines key US interests. Last week he officially recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Of course, this is only the last nail in the coffin of the utopian two state solution and the farce of peace negotiations played out by world powers for 25 years. Nevertheless, it is provoking a backlash against US imperialism throughout the region and thereby undermining Saudi political influence, while building up that of Hezbollah and Iran.

The US administration probably thought that, after the defeat of Islamic State, they had a window of opportunity to move against Iran. But the situation in the Middle East is not based on the level of cowardice of of this or that US politician. Trump, despite all his arrogance, has a little problem. In the context of the global economic crisis, the public debt crisis, rising anti-establishment moods in the US, the crisis of the US political system and after the disastrous adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan (where incidentally, they are still bogged down since the 2001 invasion), the US cannot deploy significant amounts of troops in the Middle East. So he has to rely on alliances with regimes and forces riddled by crises and with their own interests which do not necessarily coincide with those of the US all the time.

Meanwhile, Iran and its proxies have entrenched their position as the strongest political and military force, with hundreds of thousands of dedicated battle hardened troops holding territory from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean, through Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. No other regime in the Middle East can boast of similar influence and therefore, Iran cannot be ignored or merely rolled back.

The limitations of US American power left a vacuum in the Middle East that was partially filled by Russia and partially by Iran. However, none of the regional powers has the strength to replace Washington completely, even though they all wish to do so. Seeing the rise of Iran, which is an existential threat to the regime in Riyadh and to an extent also to that in Jerusalem, tensions are likely to increase and the conflict to replicate itself throughout the region.

Mohammad Bin Salman, who is desperate to keep the conflict simmering outside of his own borders, has been trying to stir up a clash in Lebanon, a country of 4.3 million people, which has become much more unstable after the arrival of 1.5 million Syrian refugees. The Israeli regime is also preparing for war in Lebanon, but Hezbollah already pushed back the Israeli army in the 2006 war. Eleven years later, Hezbollah is stronger, both militarily and in terms of popularity. Saudi pressures on Lebanon have only had the effect of increasing the popularity of the Shiite movement inside the country.

Thus, if the imperialists engage in a new open conflict, they are likely to see similar results as in Syria. Those who will pay the main price are the oppressed peoples, such as the Palestinians and Kurds, used as pawns in this great game. As the crisis of capitalism grinds on, the ruling classes of the region are willing to drown the whole area in a sea of blood to protect their own privileges.

So long as the various despotic regimes remain in power, this nightmare scenario for the peoples of the Middle East will continue to get worse. The only way out is for all of these regimes to be overthrown. That task belongs to the workers and poor in all these countries. The 2011 Arab revolution gave us a glimpse of what is possible.

Only a solution based on class independence, on the common interests of the oppressed masses, beyond religion, ethnicity, and language, can free the Middle East from the nightmare of reaction and blood in which it is currently entangled.

The task of Marxists in the region is to patiently explain this and build a force that will be capable of intervening in the inevitable mass movements of the future. Iran 2009, Egypt 2011, Turkey 2013 showed what immense power the workers in these three key countries have. It is this power, if correctly challenged, that can finally put an end to the living hell the imperialists have created for all the peoples of the Middle East.
The Boston Celtics announced they will be without Kyrie Irving and Marcus Morris when they face the Chicago Bulls on Monday. Al Horford was also listed as questionable.

The result? An injury report of players who, when healthy, would make up an extremely productive four-man lineup.

Full #NEBHInjuryReport for tonight in Chicago:

Injury report for tonight:

- Al Horford - questionable (right knee contusion)

- Kyrie Irving - out (left quad contusion)

- Marcus Morris - out (left knee rehab)

- Gordon Hayward - out (left ankle fracture)  Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 11, 2017

The Bulls have the worst record in the league -- 5-20, half a game below the Atlanta Hawks -- but Chicago has won two games in a row since Nikola Mirotic returned to the lineup. They also still have Robin Lopez, who destroyed Boston in the playoffs last season with his size and aggressive rebounding.

Still, Chicago's teardown turned them into a contender for one of the top picks in a loaded draft. With the exception of rookie Lauri Markkanen, the Bulls haven't had much to celebrate this year.

The Celtics, meanwhile, are staring in the face of a difficult stretch that includes three back-to-backs in the next 10 days, and the Celtics likely see Monday's contest as a chance to buy their stars a night off. Horford is banged up after he collided knees with Anthony Tolliver on Sunday, and Irving took a knee to the quad as well.

Boston does have one notable advantage: Aron Baynes, who would have done wonders for last year's team against Lopez. If the Celtics can limit his damage on the boards and counteract Markkanen's production, they could finish the three-game road trip 2-1 despite a close loss to San Antonio and resting stars.
Yanni will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of his famed "Live at the Acropolis" concert with a tour that will stop in Connecticut.

"Yanni 25 -Live At The Acropolis 25 Anniversary Tour" will arrive at the Oakdale Theatre on May 11 at 7 p.m.

Tickets are priced at $85, $55, and $35 and go on sale Dec, 15 at 10 a.m.

Tickets are available through oakdale.com or by calling the Ticketmaster number at (800) 745-3000. Yanni's "Live At the Acropolis" recording is one of the best selling concert videos of all time.
A 45-year-old man has been found guilty in the 1992 killing of 21-year-old Lena Bruce after DNA helped investigators find the suspect.

A Suffolk Superior Court jury found James Witkowski guilty of murder in the killing. The sentencing is set for Thursday at 2 p.m., but the conviction carries a life sentence without parole.

Witkowski, who was 19 at the time of the killing, was indicted in October 2015 on a charge of first-degree murder. Bruce was found dead in her South End home in Boston on July 12, 1992.

Prosecutors said he was identified as a suspect through DNA. Witkowski had provided DNA samples to a database after he was convicted of two felonies. The DNA was matched to evidence obtained in Bruce's killing.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said Bruce's roommate came home to their Massachusetts Avenue apartment after a weekend away and found Bruce, a Tufts University graduate, dead.

"The roommate discovered Bruce face down on her bed, partially undressed, with her hands tied tightly behind her back with telephone cord," authorities said. "She had been dead for at least 24 hours."

Investigators said Bruce was killed by an intruder who entered the apartment through an open window. The window led directly to a fire escape accessible from the alley behind the building.

Biological evidence was recovered from Bruce's body. Skin cells were found under her fingernails and semen was recovered, authorities said.

The Boston Police Crime Lab tested both samples and found that they shared the same DNA profile. The DNA profile was uploaded to the FBI's Combined DNA Index System known as CODIS.

In 2014, Witkowski was charged with a criminal offense in Brockton, violating his probation on a Suffolk County conviction for assault and battery and triggering an 18-month house of correction sentence.

Witkowski was ordered to provide DNA after he was convicted on drug and uttering charges. The DNA sample was uploaded to CODIS leading to a match in January 2015 in the Bruce killing, authorities said.

"Boston Police detectives re-interviewed witnesses and reviewed the aging case file. Among the evidence they examined was a wallet with no identifying information inside that was found outside the Mass Ave. crime scene," the district attorney's office said. "Inside the wallet was a slip of paper with a fingerprint individualized to Witkowski's left thumb."

Detectives again interviewed Witkowski three times. He admitted to hanging out near Bruce's building, but denied recognizing her in a photo and claimed that he drank heavily at the time of the killing and suffered from "blackouts."

The Boston Globe reports Bruce's family was in the courtroom was the verdict was read. Bruce was working at an engineering firm at the time of her killing, according to the newspaper.
WESTFIELD -- The community will gather Monday morning at Blessed Sacrament Church for the funeral of Montgomery Fire Chief Stephen P. Frye.

Frye, 59, died Dec. 5 while fighting a fire on Southampton Road in Montgomery.

A member of the Montgomery Volunteer Fire Department since 1993 and chief for 13 years, Frye also worked for the local electrical workers union and was a longtime member of the Blandford Ski Area ski patrol.

Fellow Fire Chief Russ Anderson, of the Southwick Fire Department, said the fire community and beyond are mourning his loss.

"The outpouring of support shown from the fire, ski patrol, co-workers, friends and family stands as a symbol of his passion and the friendships he had in all he did," said Anderson.

Frye's obituary noted his mastery of grilling, sense of humor and wise advice.

Frye is survived by his wife, an adult son and adult daughter, all of whom live in Montgomery. His son is also a member of the fire department and had responded to the fire where his father collapsed. The two-alarm fire destroyed the home, but the residents escaped the blaze unharmed.

"This is a small, tight-knit community and the fire department is like a second family to its members," State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey at a press conference following the fire. "I offer heartfelt condolences to the Frye family and the Montgomery and area fire departments on this devastating loss."

The cause of the blaze was determined to be an accidental chimney fire. The Montgomery Fire Department and State Police assigned to the State Fire Marshal's Office and to the Hampden District Attorney investigated.

Mutual aid was received from the Easthampton, Huntington, Southampton, Southwick, Westfield, Westhampton, Russell, Barnes Air Force Base, Westover Air Reserve Base and Holyoke fire departments, Hilltown Ambulance, Massachusetts State Police and the Huntington Police Department.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services, this is the second fire-related firefighter death this year. Watertown firefighter Joseph Toscano died battling a house fire on March 17, 2017. Western Massachusetts has not lost a firefighter in a fire since July 24, 2010 in Otis, and April 8, 1999 in Russell.
Parents of young children confess they are feeling pressure to find creative ways to relocate their Elves and many are cursing the Elf on the Shelf tradition on social media.

For those without children of Santa age, the story, which came from a book by Carole V. Aebersold and Chandra A. Bell called "The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition."

The story says elves appear sometime after Thanksgiving and watch to make sure the children are naughty or nice. The elf leaves every night for the North Pole to make the report to Santa and returns the next morning, but in a different place.

It seems parents are constantly searching for new places and scenarios for the elf, who is apparently magical enough to travel 6,636 miles daily (the distance from Springfield to the North Pole and back) but isn't creative enough to come up with his or her own spots to land. Maybe the elf is just too tired.

Parents have their elves riding toy dinosaurs, playing with Barbie dolls, making snow angels in a pile of sugar and hanging on wreaths.

The tradition seems to be driving some parents to drink - or at least having their elves drink. Several have Tweeted photos of their elves having wild drinking parties or doing shots. One had his elf learning how to brew beer.

Here are some of the things people were Tweeting about the Elf on the Shelf. Take heart, there's only 15 days to go before Christmas.
LEBANON  A convoy of motorcycles paraded from Walgreens to the River Center to transport Christmas toys for low-income families during the Road Maggots motorcycle group's toy run on Sunday afternoon.

The 10th annual event was held in honor of Road Maggot member "Milkman" Mike Hamer, who came up with the idea for the toy run, said fellow Road Maggot member Ray Jackman. Hamer died in 2013. The Road Maggots were joined by several other motorcycle groups.

Jackman said it is important to continue the toy run to help many community members have Christmas.

"There are people in this town who wouldn't have a Christmas otherwise," Jackman said.

Another community club, The American Street Masters car club, joined the Road Maggots by driving classic cars in the parade. The parade was followed by truckloads of toys people donated to the River Center for their annual Christmas Toys Program.

The Road Maggots and other community members helped unload the Christmas toys inside the center to be later distributed to families in need. There was a large pile of toys accumulating inside the center only 13 minutes after the parade started.

"There will be a mountain of toys and food, said Lynn Koehn, River Center community outreach pastor. "There are families and children who are less fortunate than us. We have been given so much. This is a way for us to give that blessing back to the community"

River Center Associate Pastor Bob Elliott agreed with that sentiment.

Elliott said that it would be near impossible to count the total number of toys, or the exact value of the toys, because there were already so many toys donated (and donations will continue until Christmas) for the River Center's Christmas Toy Program.

Compared to last years toy drive, Elliott estimated that the center was at about 50 percent of their total accrued donations. Within the last week, donations had picked up.

"It's been delightful to see the compassionate support of the community," Elliott said. "We really value our relationship with the Road Maggots."

Those toys will go to local area families who put in an application with the River Center.

This year, seven residents from the Oregon Veterans' Home participated in the parade, said Rosemary Turnwall, veterans' home activities director.

The home also provided brownies for the public at the River Center.

"I just looked back in the bus, and saw tires and motorcycles as far as the eye could see," Turnwall said.

For more information about the River Center's Christmas Toy Program, visit http://www.therivercenter.net/christmas.
A consortium is trialing a fleet of electric cargo bikes and trailers for quicker, more efficient and nearly carbon neutral deliveries in Central London.

As on-demand becomes the norm, and consumers continue to shop around for brands and products that mirror their social priorities.
WASHINGTON  A year ago, with the election of a U.S. president who had fulminated against the international trade and financial systems, some analysts worried that the engine of global prosperity might soon be sputtering. But that's not what happened.

The global economy has surged forward this year, significantly outperforming expectations. As the International Monetary Fund wrote in its latest world economic outlook, published in October: "The current upswing reaches more broadly than any in a decade  roughly 75 percent of the world economy ... is sharing in the acceleration."

The IMF revised upward its forecast for the global economy, predicting 3.6 percent growth this year and 3.7 percent in 2018, powered by surging activity in Europe, Japan, China and America. The U.S. will grow more slowly, at 2.2 percent this year and 2.3 percent in 2018, but that's better than 2016's anemic 1.5 percent.

Goldman Sachs' forecasters are even more bullish. A November report, titled "As Good as It Gets," offered this tonic for investors: "For the first time since 2010, the world economy is outperforming most predictions, and we expect this strength to continue." Goldman projects 3.7 percent global growth this year and 4.0 in 2018.

So why, you might ask, does the U.S. need a tax cut amid this global surge? Good question. Many economists warn that by ballooning the deficit and creating an artificial "sugar high" in the U.S. economy, the tax-cut legislation passed by the House and Senate would add little to U.S. long-term growth and could actually make it worse.

But let's stick with the mystery that's lurking in the upbeat numbers: Did this year's good economic news happen because of Donald Trump's presidency, or despite it?

Trump's daily circus of anti-elitism during 2017 certainly looked like an attack on the global system: He scuttled the Trans-Pacific Partnership, threatened NAFTA and bad-mouthed trading partners Germany, Japan, South Korea and China. Yet global markets rolled forward, as if oblivious to the man in the White House who, figuratively speaking, was wielding a sledgehammer.

Trump boosters would argue that he reinforced global economic confidence, despite his political antics. And it's certainly possible that financial markets were steadied, not disrupted, by the self-described billionaire who was ready to make deals to enhance the U.S. position in the global economy.

The reality is that financial markets are driven by investor psychology  the raw, instinctive confidence that it's time to buy and invest. This was the central insight of economist John Maynard Keynes. In one of the most-quoted passages of his 1936 "General Theory," Keynes argued that positive economic decisions "can only be taken as a result of animal spirits  of a spontaneous urge to action rather than inaction."

Animal spirits are certainly roaring overseas. China inspires confidence as it shifts to a slightly slower but more sustainable pace. Emerging economies, generally, are thriving: Goldman forecasts that India will grow 8 percent next year, 1.5 points faster than China, and that emerging markets as a group will grow at 5.6 percent.

A final reason for optimism is Europe's recovery from its near-death experience of the past decade. The IMF attributes the revival to strong exports, solid domestic demand and "accommodative financial conditions amid diminished political risk and policy uncertainty." In other words, good policy and good luck. A recent blog posting by economist Simon Johnson was headlined: "A European Economic Miracle?"

The weak spot is Britain, which appears to be paying a steep price for its post-Brexit retreat from Europe. The IMF said growth will fall this year to 1.7 percent (the IMF was predicting 2 percent back in April) and to 1.5 percent next year.

Reading all this good news, there's a nagging sense that "we should not let a good recovery go to waste," as IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde put it in a recent speech at Harvard. "Repair the roof while the sun is shining," she urged.

For the U.S., that means removing structural impediments to continued growth. U.S. companies aren't investing in new plants and equipment at the same levels as some Asian and European competitors, and few economists think that's because of high taxes. One telling statistic: The U.S. has been the worst at reducing inequality of all high-income countries, a recent Peterson Institute report noted. The new tax bill could make that problem worse.

Boosting U.S. demand by increasing workers' real wages would make this recovery as real and powerful at home as it seems to be abroad. If we're really talking about making America great again, rebuilding middle-class incomes is where to start.
Hamilton has been awarded a $450,000 grant from the Montana Department of Commerce for construction of a Ravalli Early Head Start building, play area and drop-off loop.

Marjorie Vegoren, early childhood and disabilities manager, said the staff is thrilled to have the funds to build on the same property as Ravalli Head Start.

"It will make transitions for kids and families much smoother. It will have an effect on how efficiently we can carry out operations," she said. "We are very excited to be all on one campus."

Eight towns, cities, and counties across Montana will receive funds through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), a federally-funded program Commerce administers for Montana.

MICHELLE MCCONNAHA [email protected]

http://ravallirepublic.com/news/local/article_e8b89757-5b4b-56d1-9b5a-b3bf814a3c88.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1
By recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the U.S. made our Israel bias abundantly clear. Years of pretending to be an "honest broker" of peace is revealed as a lie.

No wonder Palestinians still don't have a state!

They never will; Israel has confiscated most of the West Bank.

For Palestinians, Israel is not a democracy but an apartheid state. Mandelas grandson Mandla told a Nov. 27 press conference, What we experienced in South Africa is a fraction of what Palestinians are experiencing.

Israel withholds equal rights: Jahalin Bedouin's Khan al-Ahmar village, expelled three times from land Israel wanted for Jews, is under demolition order yet again. Their solar panels, obtained with European help, were confiscated, keeping them without power since Israel won't provide it.

In Christmass "Little Town of Bethlehem," Palestinians' Dheisheh refugee camp youth are being systematically disabled by an Israeli Army commander they call Captain Nidal, who shoots them in the legs ("kneecapping"). Issa al-Mu'ti was only 12 when it happened to him as he searched for his brother. Even though he lay bleeding in the street, a police dog began to attack him. Soldiers dragged him across the street and finally let an ambulance take him to a hospital. There he was chained to the bed, and still lost one leg, even after 20 surgeries.

Israel is not a democracy; most West Bank Palestinians don't have basic human rights: those are reserved for their Israeli settler neighbors.

Its obvious Trump cares only for those with money and power.

June Forsyth Kenagy

Albany (Dec. 7)
With temperatures gradually rising and leftover snow melting on the sidewalks, weather outlets and emergency services reflect on Winter Storm Benji.

The storm, initially reported for Friday evening into Saturday morning with light rain to a potential 1 inch of snow, far exceeded estimates. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued on 5:30 a.m. Friday morning a winter storm warning in southeastern McDowell and central and southern mountains of North Carolina with expectations of 4 to 6 inches of snow, and localized amounts of up to 8 inches for areas exceeding 5,000 feet.

According to Foothills Weather Network (FWN)s Chief Meteorologist Chris White, two factors that were instrumental in shifting the forecast from one inch of snow to much higher were low level cooling dynamics that fell into the lower atmosphere and a one degree temperature change.

Going from 33 to 32 degrees, everything changes, and in this case, the cooler temperature allowed snow to stay, freeze and gather accumulation earlier than what we anticipated, said White. With the dynamics in atmosphere at play, this was an overachiever.

The result was a snow flurry throughout Friday morning into Saturday evening that covered McDowell with as much as nine to 10 inches in areas like Old Fort, Dysartsville and Ashford-North Cove. On Friday morning, McDowell County Schools dismissed elementary schools at 9:30 a.m., followed by secondary schools and McDowell Tech at 10 a.m. On Monday, McDowell County Schools and Early Childhood Enrichment Center opened on a two-hour delay.

According to White, McDowells reported inches of snow were much higher than other areas the network typically covers.

Road conditions worsened within a few hours on Friday morning, creating limited visibility and slick driving conditions. By 1:45 p.m. that afternoon, more than 30 motor vehicle accidents and collisions were reported, as well as multiple reports of stranded motorists, according to Emergency Services Director William Kehler. Among these incidents were: six stranded vehicles on Harmony Grove Road in Nebo; a stranded school bus on Bethlehem Road; a three-vehicle collision on Stacey Hill Road involving a tractor trailer and a UPS truck; and a vehicle rollover on I-40 westbound at the 72 mile marker.

Over the weekend, Duke Energy and REA reported 2,875 combined power outages throughout McDowell. In response, an emergency shelter was opened at First Baptist Church in Marion on Saturday, remaining open until 9 a.m. Sunday.

By Sunday, temperatures reached between the high 30s and low 40s during the day and dropped to low 20s overnight, allowing for comparatively dry and sunny weather to melt surrounding snow. According to FWNs seven-day forecast, temperatures grew on Monday to a high of 47 degrees Fahrenheit under mostly sunny conditions, with Tuesday anticipating similar results with a high near 42.
Public Survey Underway Audio Article Throughout the month of November, the Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) is conducting an online survey to identify traffic safety concerns and obtain feedback about interactions with the agency. The 2022 Public Survey is anonymous and takes approximately five minutes to complete. The survey is designed to be used as...

Purple Heart Placed on Memorial Audio Article At the second stop during the Veterans Parade Saturday, Jack Bonsell, a Purple Heart recipient, places a purple heart-shaped wreath at the memorial dedicated to all men and women wounded in all wars. This memorial sits on Main Street in front of the Riecker Building.

Controlling Board Approves Funds for Multiple Projects in 20th Senate District Audio Article State Senator Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster) announced Monday, Nov. 7, the approval of over $34 million for projects across the 20th Senate District by the states Controlling Board. Ensuring our infrastructure, universities, and parks are updated and well maintained is critical for the health of our area, Schaffer said. Im thankful...

Morgan County Veterans Day Parade slated Nov. 11 Audio Article The Morgan County Veterans Day Parade will be held on Friday, Nov. 11. The parade will form at the Commons, in McConnelsville, at 9:30 a.m. and set out at 10 a.m. The American Legion Post 24 will render honors at the monuments at the Commons, Riecker Building, the Square, at...

A concert with two purposes Audio Article Wednesday, Nov. 30, a concert with dual purposes is being held at the Twin City Opera House in McConnelsville, Ohio. Its a thank-you to healthcare workers, who can attend for free, and its a benefit for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. In September 2021, Rick Shriver contracted COVID-19. He collapsed...

BOE reminder of early voting hours and polling location change Audio Article Remaining early voting hours at the Morgan County Board of Elections are as follows: from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov, 2 through Friday, Nov. 4; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5; from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 6; and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m....
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/CNW/ - The Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, met with researchers at theand Maritimes Node of the Canadian Research Initiative in Substance Misuse (CRISM) intoday. This research team is working to advance the Government ofresponse to the ongoing opioid crisis.The Minister recently announcedin funding to support the important work of CRISM. This funding is being divided equally among the four regional nodes. Of this funding, more thanis being provided to theand Maritimes Node, based at the Centre de recherche du Centre hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal.Led by Dr., theand Maritimes node is building research capacity and connecting researchers and Indigenous partners in five provinces. Among other priorities, the network focuses on harm-reduction initiatives, and addressing barriers to intervention and treatment of substance use disorders and mental health issues.The Minister met with the research team and discussed recent clinical discoveries related to effective treatments, such as a community-based naloxone administration training programs for substance users and their peers as well as stigma-reduction efforts."The work being carried out by the CRISM research team here inis representative ofresponse to our most pressing of public health crises. The knowledge and strategies being developed will translate into more effective responses, and will ultimately help save lives all across.""Investments in CRISM will speed up the development and implementation of science-based interventions so that overdose deaths can be prevented, those with opioid dependency receive effective treatments and that we reach those populations most at risk.""We are proud to be working at finding solutions to this most pressing health issue. Our researchers are developing effective treatments and methodologies to address the many challenges associated with harmful substance use."CRISM AnnouncementSOURCE Canadian Institutes of Health Research


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The trial included 27 sites in 10 countries across North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. In total, 81 patients were infused with CAR T cells and evaluated for a response. At three months, 26 patients (32 percent) achieved a complete response, while five (6 percent) achieved a partial response. The results will be presented as part of the ASH meeting press program.The research team says the updated results from an earlier study, of patients treated at Penn's Abramson Cancer Center, provides additional evidence that the responses to the new therapy can be highly durable, an important milestone in the fight against a type of cancer which is diagnosed in 56,000 patients per year in the United States.Among 28 patients who received the therapy in the single-site pilot trial after their cancers had come back following standard treatments, 43 percent of DLBCL patients achieved complete remission, as did 71 percent of patients with follicular lymphoma, the second most common form of the disease. All patients who were in remission at six months are still in remission, after a median follow-up of 28.6 months."Taken together, our data from both trials show that most patients who are in remission at three months stay in remission," said Schuster, who is the Robert and Margarita Louis-Dreyfus Professor in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Lymphoma Clinical Care and Research in the Perelman School of Medicine and director of the Lymphoma Program at the Abramson Cancer Center.Carl June, MD, the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy, director of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, and director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at Penn, is the senior author on the single-site study.Two-thirds of DLBCL cases are successfully treated with frontline chemotherapy. When that fails, a high-dose chemotherapy combined with an autologous stem cell transplant can potentially lead to long-term disease-free survival. But only half of these relapsed/refractory patients are candidates for this approach, and for those who are, the expected three-year event-free survival rate is just 20 percent in the current era of frontline immunochemotherapy.can usually be treated with frontline chemotherapy, although 20 percent of patients relapse within two years. These patients have a five-year overall survival rate of just 50 percent using currently available therapies."About a third of patients who fail all current therapies, even transplant, could now have a form of therapy that may offer them durable remissions," Schuster said. "This therapy has the potential to save lives if approved by the FDA for this indication."Kymriah was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in August 2017 for the treatment of patients up to 25 years of age with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) that is refractory or in second or later relapse. Penn and Novartis formed a global research and development collaboration in 2012, the result of which was the first therapy based on gene transfer approved by the FDA.Results from JULIET served as the basis for a recent application submitted by Novartis to the FDA for approval of CTL019 for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who are ineligible for or relapse after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). Novartis is also seeking approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for CTL019 in pediatric and young adult patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell ALL and adult patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who are ineligible for ASCT.The treatment modifies patients' own immune T cells, which are collected and reprogrammed to potentially seek and destroy the patients' cancer cells. After being infused back into patients' bodies, these newly built "hunter" cells both multiply and attack, targeting cells that express a protein called CD19. Tests reveal that the army of hunter cells can grow to more than 10,000 new cells for each single engineered cell patients receive, producing high remission rates. They can also survive in the body for years. CTL019 uses the 4-1BB costimulatory domain in its chimeric antigen receptor to enhance cellular expansion and persistence.a toxicity associated with CAR T therapy which includes varying degrees of flu-like symptoms, with high fevers, nausea, and muscle pain, and can require ICU-level care, was reported in 58 percent of the patients in multi-site study. Fifteen of those patients (26 percent) required treatment with tocilizumab, which is the standard therapy for the toxicity.All of those patients recovered from their CRS. Other toxicities included infections (34 percent of patients), cytopenias or low blood count (36 percent), neurologic events (21 percent), febrile neutropenia (13 percent), and a metabolic abnormality called tumor lysis syndrome (one percent). All of the toxicities resolved on their own or with treatment, and there were no treatment-related deaths.In the single-site trial, CRS was reported in five patients. Only one of those patients required treatment with tocilizumab. That patient recovered and achieved a complete response. Eleven patients reported temporary neurologic symptoms, including delirium. Ten of the 11 cases were self-limited and resolved without ICU care. The 11th case resolved after treatment.Both studies were supported by Novartis. The single-site trial was also supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (1R01CA165206), as well as through philanthropic support for the Lymphoma Program at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania from James and Frances Maguire and the Frances Maguire Lymphoma Research Fund, Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, and Sharyn Berman and the Richard Berman Family Funds for CLL and Lymphomas.Source: Eurekalert
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Katherine D. Crew, Jillian L. Capodice, et al. Randomized, Blinded, Sham-Controlled Trial of Acupuncture for the Management of Aromatase Inhibitor-Associated Joint Symptoms in Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer. Journal of Clinical Oncology (2010) DOI: 10.1200/JCO.2009.23.4708

The top priority of this cancer research is to treat this pain effectively without using opioids or any other drugs.Every year, tens of thousands women are being treated with aromatase inhibitors (AIs). These pills halt the production of estrogen and starve hormone receptor-positive breast cancer cells.Few women are advised to take these pills daily for up to 10 years. About 50 percent of women experience joint pain and stiffness. The side effects can also cause pain in the knees, hips, hands, and wrists making it difficult for women to walk or sit or climb stairs, and perform easy tasks like typing or driving.Dr. Dawn Hershman, the lead researcher of this study and a SWOG vice chair, said that some of his patients have the difficulty of getting off a chair.She also said, "As a result, with no good treatment options for their pain and stiffness, many women stop their cancer treatment. This is probably the most commonly cited reason breast cancer patients stop taking AI medication. So we need a solution, one that doesn't include opioids or drugs that can be addictive or have serious side effects. We want women to continue their cancer treatment and have a good quality of life."SWOG research team has been chasing to relieve AI pain for years, which is known as AI-Associated Musculoskeletal Syndrome (AIMSS).Dr. N. Lynn Henry, a SWOG investigator from Huntsman Cancer Institute and co-chair of SWOG's Symptom Control and Quality of Life committee presented his findings last year at San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. The results showed that the drug duloxetine, which is used to treat depression and anxiety, can efficiently treat AIMSS as well.Hershman, leader of the Breast Cancer Program at the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center and a professor of medicine and epidemiology at Columbia said that many women do not prefer taking pills to relieve the symptoms caused by other pills.In a single-center study at Columbia, acupuncture was found to show potential promise.However, Hershman wanted to test the effects in much larger group and she, and her team included about 226 patients from 11 cancer centers nationwide. They were randomly assigned to one of the three arms, where one group received true acupuncture, the second group received sham acupuncture, and the third group received no treatment at all.Sham acupuncture is superficially inserting needles in different, non-therapeutic locations on the body.Patients were treated twice in a week for six weeks. Later, they were given a weekly maintenance treatment for another six weeks.The research team investigated the patients for their pain before, during, and after treatment by using a variety of methods.The primary indicator of this trial was to check the patient's level of worst pain, measured using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI-WP) at the end of the first six weeks. The research team observed that the patients experienced less pain on the acupuncture arm than those with the sham and treatment-free arms. The patients in this study experienced relief for about 24 weeks. Dr. Katherine Crew, a SWOG executive officer, director of the Clinical Breast Cancer Prevention Program at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center and an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at Columbia and a co-investigator on the study team said that this study strongly proves that acupuncture results in better outcomes for women."I expect this work to influence medical practice, as well as insurers' willingness to reimburse for acupuncture during AI treatment," said Dr. Crew.The Symposium was sponsored by the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC) at UT Health Science Center San Antonio, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and Baylor College of Medicine.Source: Medindia
N. KOTZIAS: We talked about two issues at todays meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council here in Brussels. We had a discussion with Mr. Netanyahu, in which we stressed our assessment of the situation as we ' ve already expressed it: that the relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem does not contribute towards peace in the region. We also underscored the need for a two-state solution  that is, Israel and Palestine  that would also safeguard Israels security. We then talked about the Middle East. I underscored the need, first, for timely planning for reconstruction in Syria and for the provision of assistance by experts in the formulation of the new constitutional order. Regarding Iraq, I stressed the need for respect of the rights of autonomy provided for in the countrys constitution, just as we had earlier supported Iraqs unity. We discussed the need for a positive agenda and a new spirit. I talked about the spirit of Rhodes, as the Arabs call it: what it is and why it contributes to the building of a new order in the Eastern Mediterranean; in other words, a new order for security and peace, in the same way the Helsinki Final Act functioned.



JOURNALIST: Minister, what is Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahus stance following President Trumps announcement? What position did he express at the breakfast you had today?



N. KOTZIAS: The Israeli Prime Minister underscored that his countrys position is that Jerusalem is its capital. He said that, in exactly the same way the Palestinians have a right to their position that eastern Jerusalem (or, for some, all of Jerusalem) is the Palestinian capital  these are two different positions  Israel has a right to its position. That was his stance.



JOURNALIST: Do you see any flexibility from the Israeli side, that they might move ahead to talks?



N. KOTZIAS: The Israelis set a condition; that the other side recognize the right for the Jews to have their own state, which might potentially lead toward a two-state solution. Of course articles like the ones we saw last week  that the Palestinians would not pursue two states and instead orient themselves towards one state where they would focus more on human rights, within an Israeli state  do not appear to have gained ground in the politics of the region.



JOURNALIST: Minister, there was criticism regarding Turkish President Erdogans visit to Greece, and many people said...



N. KOTZIAS: This was the first time in the history of diplomacy that criticism of a visit began before the visit started. In other words, this isnt political criticism. It is prophecy, divination.



JOURNALIST: On the other hand, some people  and especially the opposition  said it was a visit that you organized and that was not well organized, as it turned out, and a number of people questioned why this visit to Greece took place.



N. KOTZIAS: This visit took place because we always have to keep the channels of communication open. In Korea, where I was a week earlier, when I asked my interlocutors what their biggest problem was, they didnt say it was the ballistic missiles. They responded that we have no channels of communication with North Korea, and if some accident or mistake happens, we wont be able to contain the repercussions. The visit also took place so that we could finally impart some momentum; so that we can start implementing the major economic and transport projects we are preparing, the cooperation between universities and research centres, the G2G meeting that will take place in Thessaloniki three months from now, and to look again at how the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs will cooperate. We also talked about the Cyprus issue. Turkey is a neighbour that we have to discuss things with. It is my impression that the opposition was predetermined to consider the visit a failure before it even began. This opposition has a mindset that I call neo-isolationism and inertia. In other words, we just stay home. This may be a convenient attitude when it comes to your neighbour in a block of flats, if you dont want to talk to him. But this doesnt work in inter-state relations.

JOURNALIST: So would you call the visit a success, in terms of your expectations?



N. KOTZIAS: The visit benefited the country and the way in which Greek-Turkish relations are handled.
BEND, Ore. (AP)  Dr. Byron Maas surveys a supply of marijuana products for dogs that lines a shelf in his veterinary clinic. They're selling well.

"The 'Up and Moving' is for joints and for pain," he explains. "The 'Calm and Quiet' is for real anxious dogs, to take away that anxiety."

People anxious to relieve suffering in their pets are increasingly turning to oils and powders that contain CBDs, a non-psychoactive component of marijuana. But there's little data on whether they work, or if they have harmful side effects.

That's because Washington has been standing in the way of clinical trials, veterinarians and researchers say. Now, a push is underway to have barriers removed, so both pets and people can benefit.

Those barriers have had more than just a chilling effect.

When the federal Drug Enforcement Administration announced last year that even marijuana extracts with CBD and little or no THC -- marijuana's intoxicating component -- are an illegal Schedule 1 drug, the University of Pennsylvania halted its clinical trials. Colorado State University is pushing ahead.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned companies that sell marijuana products online and via pet shops and animal hospitals that they're violating laws by offering "unapproved new animal drugs." The FDA threatened legal action.

But, seeing potential benefits of CBDs, the American Veterinary Medical Association's policy-making body said last summer it wants the DEA to declassify marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug "to facilitate research opportunities for veterinary and human medical uses." It asked the board of the national veterinarians' organization to investigate working with other stakeholders toward that goal. The board is awaiting a recommendation from two group councils.

"The concern our membership has is worry about people extrapolating their own dosages, looking to medicate their pets outside the realm of the medical professional," Board Chairman Michael Whitehair said in a telephone interview. "This is an important reason for us to continue the research."

Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, a conservative Republican, became an unlikely champion of this push when he introduced a bill in September that would open the path for more clinical research. While Hatch said he opposes recreational marijuana use, he wants marijuana-based drugs, regulated by the FDA, produced for people with disorders.

"We lack the science to support use of medical marijuana products like CBD oils, not because researchers are unwilling to do the work, but because of bureaucratic red tape and over-regulation," Hatch said.

Dawn Boothe, of Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine, is waiting for federal approval to begin a study of marijuana's effects on dogs with epilepsy. The classification of marijuana products containing CBD as a Schedule 1 drug, the same category as heroin and LSD, creates a "major, major, major, terrible roadblock" for researchers, Boothe said in a phone interview.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine were studying CBDs' effects on dogs with osteoarthritis and pruritis, or itchiness, until the DEA released its policy statement.

"The ambiguity in this process has really brought us to a screeching halt," said Michael DiGregorio, director of the university's clinical trials center. "It is research that needs to be done, because there are a lot of CBD products out there."

When it clarified that marijuana CBD extracts are Schedule 1 drugs, the DEA said it was assigning a code number to those substances to better track them and to comply with international drug control treaties.

DiGregorio complained that researchers seeking federal approval to study CBD products are told to provide certain data, but that data isn't normally available until the study is done.

"If you don't have the data, you can't get the registration to do the work," he said.

On a recent morning, Maas took a break from seeing four-legged patients in the Bend Veterinary Clinic. A stethoscope dangling from his neck over green scrubs, Maas said his clients have reported CBDs help relieve pain, arthritis, anxiety, loss of appetite, epilepsy and inflammation in their pets.

"Unfortunately there's not a lot of research out there, especially on animals, on CBD compounds," Maas said. "The research is really necessary to help us understand how to actually use these compounds on our pets."

Veterinarian Janet Ladyga of the Blue Sky Veterinary Clinic, also in Bend, said she doesn't recommend marijuana products because of the unknowns.

"We don't have a lot of evidence right now, so we don't know the toxicity or the safety profile ... and we don't have any good evidence to show either if it's safe or efficacious," she said.

The study at Colorado State University aims to provide some data. The roughly two dozen dogs in the arthritis study and the 30 in the epilepsy tests are given either CBD oil or a placebo. For the arthritis study, activity monitors are attached to the animals' collars, to determine if they're more mobile when they're taking CBD.

Principal investigator Stephanie McGrath said she hopes the results will be a stepping stone for longer and more diverse studies, and that they provide useful information for human medicine.

"Every medication we're taking has been given to a dog first," the University of Pennsylvania's DiGregorio noted.

Meanwhile, Boothe said she had everything ready to start her study in January, and was waiting for a green light from federal officials.

"I don't know what's taking so long," she said.
Ucoms mobile customers will benefit from the best internet roaming rate of 8 AMD/MB when travelling to Georgia, Egypt or the UAE

Ameriabank Launches Google Pay and Google Wallet Support for Card Users in Armenia

Karen Vardanyan donated 112 million drams for the medical equipment for National Center for Infectious Diseases.

UCOM HAS INTRODUCED FUTURE NETWORK WI-FI 6E ROUTERS

Statement by the Spokesperson on the conflict resolution and reconciliation efforts

Foreign Minister of Armenia to participate in the Fifth Paris Peace Forum

Armenia: EU and Armenia Hold annual Dialogue on Human Rights

Todays Shushi, Occupied and Cleared of Armenians, is a Real Example of Turkish-Azerbaijani Policy of Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh

Ookla, the the global leader in internet testing and analysis has awarded Ucom

Sweden will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

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Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS

There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces
Ucoms mobile customers will benefit from the best internet roaming rate of 8 AMD/MB when travelling to Georgia, Egypt or the UAE

Ameriabank Launches Google Pay and Google Wallet Support for Card Users in Armenia

Karen Vardanyan donated 112 million drams for the medical equipment for National Center for Infectious Diseases.

UCOM HAS INTRODUCED FUTURE NETWORK WI-FI 6E ROUTERS

Google Ad

Statement by the Spokesperson on the conflict resolution and reconciliation efforts

Foreign Minister of Armenia to participate in the Fifth Paris Peace Forum

Armenia: EU and Armenia Hold annual Dialogue on Human Rights

Todays Shushi, Occupied and Cleared of Armenians, is a Real Example of Turkish-Azerbaijani Policy of Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh

Ookla, the the global leader in internet testing and analysis has awarded Ucom

Sweden will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

Google Ad

Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS

There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces
Contributed photo

MIDDLETOWN  Middletown High School earned the top ranking for career and technical education at the Connecticut Career and Technical Education Conference Nov. 30 at the Sheraton Hartford-South Hotel.

CTE students from 124 high schools across the state take rigorous tests based on standards and competencies related to a career cluster and based on contextual Common Core Standards in reading and math, David Reynolds, coordinator of Career and Technical Education at the high school, said in a prepared statement.
MIDDLETOWN  The high schools recent sustainability fair featured 10 exhibits on virtually every aspect of land and resources preservation.

As part of each display, a professional employed in the field explained the program to the nearly 200 students who visited the fair at the Middletown High School Agricultural Science Center.

The idea grew out of social studies teacher Daniel Lowrys sustainability class at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, according to a press release. Lowry is pursing a second masters degree as part of his program for a PhD. in geography.

Middletown is such a center for the sustainability movement, Lowry said in a prepared statement. One if the requirements of the course is a community component, and I thought a fair in which we could bring all such groups together might be a good idea. I found all these organizations that wanted to get involved, he added.

Among those in attendance were Mayor Dan Drew and Superintendent of Schools Michael Conner.

I was impressed about how this teaches kids a sense of the environment and its connection to social justice, Drew said in the release. They understand that science, public policy and social responsibility are integrated. All of that is imbued very well here at MHS.

Connor took over as superintendent in early November. Under the leadership that (Principal Colleen) Weiner has displayed, teachers and students are engaged in a phenomenal activity here today. This is one of the great things happening at Middletown High School, he said in the statement.

Among the organizations with exhibits were the Middletown Land Trust, Middletown Clean Energy Task Force, Forest City Farms, Connecticut Forest and Parks Association, Herd Restaurant, U.S. Department of Agriculture/Natural Resources Conservation Service, Connecticut Coastal Conservation District and others.

Students who attended included those in both advanced placement human geography courses taught by Lowry and Trevor Charles. The schools science classes were also invited.

Many of the groups, such as Forest City Farms, offer students volunteer positions to help in sustainability efforts.

We lease land from the city and work to get the land back to being usable, Colby Russo said about Forest City Farms in the press release. We also keep bees on the property and we end up growing local produce for local people. We run a farmers market and we give local produce to the Amazing Grace Food pantry.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - The family of the late war hero, entrepreneur and philanthropist Ralph W. Hauenstein announced a $3.5 million gift to three West Michigan institutions that are dedicated to the "body, mind and soul" of the community.

The $3.5 million gift will be divided between Grand Valley State University's Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies, Aquinas College's Grace Hauenstein Library and expansion of the Albertus Magnus Hall of Science, and the Mercy Health Hauenstein Neurosciences Center.

"I feel elated that I am able to carry out my dad's wishes regarding the important work these places do," said Ralph D. Hauenstein at a press conference announcing the gifts on Monday, Dec. 11.

"My dad believed in the mission of education, health care, and leadership and integrity in all aspects of life. I'm the guy carrying the ball over the finish line, and I'm honored to do so."

Hauenstein, who died in January 2016 at age 103, was a Grand Rapids newspaper editor who became chief of the intelligence branch for the U.S. Army's European Theater of Operations, and played a pivotal role in "Project Ultra," which cracked Germany's secret radio codes.

After the war, Hauenstein joined a New York company that made food processing equipment. He eventually moved the company, Werner Lehara, to Grand Rapids.

Upon his retirement, he translated his business success into philanthropic activities that benefited Grand Valley State University, Aquinas College and Mercy Health Saint Mary's West Michigan.

"With Ralph's most recent, generous gift, the center that bears his name is able to reach more students than ever before and transform them from learners into leaders. We are honored to carry on our friend's legacy," said Gleaves Whitney, director of GVSU's Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies.

"Ralph Hauenstein was an American hero, and we honor him in all we do at the Hauenstein Center."

Sister Damien Marie Savino, dean of science and sustainability at Aquinas College, said the family gift will be used towards the college's $32 million expansion of its science center.

Dr. Philip Gorelick, medical director of Mercy Health Hauenstein Neurosciences, said their benefactor took a personal interest in the development of their program to treat Parksinson's Disease.

"He invariably said it was too small," said Gorelick, adding that Hauensteain helped raise $15 million towards the hospital's $60 million Mercy Health Hauenstein Center, which opened in 2009.

"Mr. Hauenstein wanted to leave his legacy while he was alive and fully appreciate the impact his thoughtful giving was going to make," said Michelle Rabideau, president of the Saint Mary's Foundation in a statement.

"This gift is one that truly keeps giving because the impact on the thousands of patients and their families is significant and one of Mr. Hauenstein's proudest philanthropic moments."
ANN ARBOR, MI - Police have arrested two of three individuals wanted in connection with a robbery in a University of Michigan residence hall last week.

Brian E. White, 18, of Novi and Deandre R. Jetter, 19, of West Bloomfield were arraigned Sunday, Dec. 10, on four felony counts related to the Dec. 4 robbery, a release from the University of Michigan Division of Public Safety and Security confirmed.

Police believe three male suspects were let in to the West Quad hall and went into a resident's room about 9 p.m., police previously said.

About 10 p.m., the men assaulted two students while brandishing a handgun and also demanded property from a third student, police said. The three suspects then fled the building.

Police believe the suspects and victims were acquaintances.

White and Jetter face two counts of armed robbery, one count of home invasion, and one count of larceny in a building, police said. If convicted of the counts, the men face punishment of up to life in prison, 20 years in prison and four years in prison, respectively.

Police continue to investigate and seek a third individual in the robbery.

University of Michigan police declined to release further information Monday regarding the incident.

White and Jetter were given $5,000 bonds, with the option to post 10 percent, court records show. The two are scheduled for probable cause conferences on Dec. 21 and preliminary examinations on Dec. 28.
ANN ARBOR, MI - A former Eastern Michigan University student accused of writing racist messages in multiple incidents of vandalism on campus last fall had his first circuit court hearing adjourned Monday, Dec. 11.

Eddie Curlin, 29, appeared in the Washtenaw County Trial Court wearing shackles and a blue prisoner's jumpsuit, accompanied by Michigan Department of Corrections officers.

He is serving prison time for an unrelated conviction of receiving and concealing stolen property. He was sentenced in that case in August. The earliest he can be released is 2019, according to state prison records.

Curlin's court-appointed attorney, Assistant Washtenaw County Public Defender Timothy Niemann, told Judge David Swartz that he needed more time to review Curlin's case and requested the adjournment.

The case was postponed until Jan. 29.

Curlin, who attended EMU from 2014 to early 2016, was formally charged in the racist vandalism incidents after a 13-month investigation by the university.

The charges stem from incidents that took place in September 2016 at King Hall, in which a hate message was found spray painted on an exterior wall; an October 2016 incident in which a racist message was discovered spray painted on an exterior wall of Ford Hall; and a third incident that took place last spring in which a racist message was found in a men's restroom stall in Sherzer Hall.

The graffiti targeted Eastern's black community.

After Curlin was arraigned in October, EMU Police Chief Robert Heighes said race was not a motivating factor in the vandalism incidents.

Curlin is charged with three counts of malicious destruction of property, four counts of identity theft and one count of using computers to commit a crime.

The malicious destruction of property charge is a misdemeanor, while the identity theft and using computers to commit a crime counts are felonies.

The identity theft and criminal computer charges are unrelated to the graffiti, according to police.
ANN ARBOR, MI - Middle Eastern and North African students at the University of Michigan are calling on the university's administration and Board of Regents to recognize their identities on its forms and surveys that collect demographic data on campus.

After receiving support from UM's Literature, Science & the Arts Student Government earlier this fall calling on the university's administration to add the Middle Eastern/North African (ME/NA) identity category to its applications, a number of students and faculty members organizing under #WeExist spoke during the meeting on Thursday, Dec. 7, urging the Board of Regents to do the same.

UM senior Jad Elharake said ME/NA students have raised the issue to the university for more than a decade, but their concerns were not prioritized or acted upon. With the additional support of a resolution passed by UM's Central Student Government in February, he believes it is time for UM to act.

"Not identifying ME/NA students, faculty and staff is problematic for a number of reasons that impact campus climate, including, but not limited to: Student recruitment and retention efforts; identifying trends in the hiring of faculty, staff and administration; and even bias incident reporting," Elharake said.

"Given that we live in a state with the largest concentration of ME/NA individuals, outside of the Middle East and North Africa, UM has a unique regional responsibility to implement the ME/NA identity category," he added. "...We are not 'other.'"

The #WeExist group - consisting of students from all three UM campuses - circulated an online petition to faculty and staff at UM to garner support for the effort, collecting more than 700 signatures.

In the past year, the UM Islamophobia Working Group identified the ME/NA identity box as a central Diversity, Equity and Inclusion concern in its report to the University. In that time, more than 12 student governments at UM have passed a resolution or written a statement of solidarity with the #WeExist movement, the petition states.

"ME/NA students, constrained by Census categories, are expected to check the white identity box," the petition states. "However, many people of Middle Eastern and North African descent do not identify with or have the lived experiences of being white in the U.S., especially in a post-9/11 environment of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim racism. In addition, the lack of an identity box for UM's ME/NA students perpetuates the erasure that many marginalized communities experience."

UM doctoral student Yahya Alami Hafez said he was part of a similar effort to have the identity added across the University of California System as an undergraduate. It was implemented by the UC System four years ago.

"This is already starting to attract scholars, students and donors for the unique access to data that this is providing," he said. "We have a unique opportunity here to be competitive with the UC System by expanding the demographic data collection beyond undergraduate admissions and financial aid to all demographic data collection."

Having to check a box on forms identifying themselves as "white" or "other" is problematic, UM student Sara Alqaragholy said.

To be lumped in with people who have different histories and with those "who are viewed in the eyes of American society as more supreme than us," disregards the identities of students, faculty and staff whose families have origins in the League of Arab States, she said, which consists of 22 different nations.

The Arab American Institute estimated that nearly 3.7 million Americans trace their roots to an Arab country. According to NPR, after years of advocacy groups pressuring the U.S. Census Bureau to create a separate geographic category for people of Middle Eastern or North African descent, the bureau is recommending that MENA be added to the 2020 census.

Alquaragholy said she would like to see UM implement the change sooner than that.

"We do not know how well our students are doing financially or socially," Alqaragholy said. "Are we being disproportionately affected by hate crimes? How do we know our special needs? What are our graduation rates? We cannot address these needs if we don't know how many of us there are."

After hearing the concerns of students and faculty, Regents Mark Bernstein and Andrea Fischer Newman offered different opinions on whether the university should proceed in implementing the ME/NA identity on its forms and applications.

"I don't see any reason why we wouldn't do this," Bernstein said. "I just want you to know, based on the conversations that we've had and with other students, I strongly recommend or at least urge the university to consider this in a very serious way."

Newman encouraged the board to look into the request more thoroughly before moving forward.

"I do have some concerns, and would like to have that discussion before coming to a conclusion," she said. "I just want to make that clear that there is a difference of opinion, potentially."
BEAVER CREEK TOWNSHIP, MI -- A mother in this rural Northern Michigan town wants to bury the cremated remains of her 25-year-old daughter in a historic cemetery, but concerns from the local government, which owns the burial grounds, over shoddy property records and potential vandalism has stalled those efforts.

Amber Lynn Skutt, of Roscommon, died in April from injuries sustained in a single-vehicle accident. Drugs or alcohol weren't involved in the crash.

Her family's last wish was to see Skutt buried at Pere Cheney Cemetery, a historic property that she often visited.

"Amber wasn't a religious person, but she was spiritual," her mother Christine Prosser said. "That place was a spiritual escape."

A photo of Amber Skutt at Pere Cheney Cemetery.

The cemetery, which has a reputation of being haunted and is popular among ghost-hunting groups, is maintained by the township, but has fallen victim to vandalism over the years. Beaver Creek Township is located in Crawford County.

"That place has been vandalized more than any other place in the world," said Kim Van Nuck, the township's supervisor.

That's part of the reason why the township is hesitant to allow families to bury loved ones at the cemetery. Van Nuck said no one has been buried there in close to 100 years and Skutt's family is the first she has known about to approach the government about securing a plot.

"If someone puts a headstone there and it gets ruined, we're going to be liable for it," she said.

Prosser said they would want to either install a headstone or a plaque above her daughter's remains.

The township also has concerns over the cemetery's property records. They know people are buried there, but they aren't exactly sure where. Some tombstones remain in place; others have been taken or destroyed over the years, Van Nuck.

So, if they were to let Skutt's remains be buried in the cemetery, a company would have to use ground penetrating radar to determine if the plot is vacant or not.

Prosser said she understands that concern and would pay for the radar service for her daughter's specific plot, but the township remains hesitant.

"I would be more than happy to let them bury her there, but if we let them and they pay for the radar, we'll be paying for the next one," Van Nuck said.

The township would prefer to have the entire cemetery mapped out and then work to acquire funds to secure and improve the grounds. It has been in talks with Michigan State University about having students in its forensics program working on the cemetery, but nothing has been finalized.

In terms of fundraising, it recently received $500 from the Lions Club of Grayling that's going to go toward new fencing and a gate for the cemetery. Van Nuck also wants to install cameras on the property to deter vandalism. St. Helen Monument is also currently making a new monument to donate for the cemetery that will document the history of Pere Cheney.

Prosser said her biggest concern is that the township would decide to close the cemetery and not allow her to bury her daughter there.

"All we want right now is an answer," she said. "I don't love having my daughter on my dining room table -- she needs to be in a place where she would be happy.

"If they close it, we won't be able to honor her."

Amber Lynn Skutt died April 22, after she lost control of her vehicle on a curved road. She was working at a bar that night and offered to take a person home who was intoxicated, her mom said.

Skutt wasn't drunk and wasn't texting, police determined. She was less than a mile away from home when the accident happened.

"Her passion was helping people -- that's why she was taking that person home that night," her mom said.

Skutt had plans to return to school and pursue a career in nursing and pediatrics.

Pere Cheney was a small town established by lumberjacks in 1873. In 1893, diphtheria spread through the town of about 1,500 people, wiping out a majority of the population. The disease recurred in 1897, leaving only 18 people in the town.

In 1917, with less than 20 people in the town, the land was sold and Pere Cheney essentially became a ghost town.

Several ghost stories about Pere Cheney have been told over the years. The cemetery has graves of about 90 people.

Van Nuck said she wants to help the family, but wants to make sure everything is done correctly.

"If we're going to do this, we need to do it right," she said. "It's just not as easy as saying yes."
A limited number of speaking spots still available for the Florida conference which will explore how Smart Cities, Asset Tracking, Agricultural and Industrial IoT are all being effected by LPWAN.

Trumbull, CT  December 11, 2017  TMC and Crossfire Media today announced the program for LPWAN Expo being held January 22-25, 2018 at Disneys Contemporary Hotel in Orlando, Florida. The four day conference program will take a deep dive into LPWAN technologies as well as narrowband IoT, CAT M1 and cellular. Other topics covered will include Security and application case studies in logistics, smart cities, industrial solutions and more. LPWAN Expo is collocated with IoT Evolution Expo which in its 19th iteration is the leading education and networking forum for the enterprise looking to understand how to develop and implement IoT Solutions.

Hundreds of attendees from across industries are joining us in Florida to research the top solutions for their own deployments, said Carl Ford, CEO, Crossfire Media, executive director of content, IoT Evolution. From the farm to the factory floor, the opportunities are endless and the thought leaders speaking at LPWAN Expo will help attendees determine how they can benefit.

For full details and to submit a proposal, please visit the call for speaker section of the website. For questions, please contact Carl Ford. Please submit you speaking request for the following sessions:

Smart Cities: Making Smart Citizens Efficient - Smart City NB-IoT vs. LPWAN: Whos Leading Who?

Advances in LP IoT Security Models

IoT and Airport Logistics: Before Take-Off and After Landings

LPWAN Market: Network Operators Deploying LPWAN Services From Anywhere in the World

Smart Buildings: Keeping People Comfortable with Things

Asset Management: Utilizing Solutions

Industrial Controls and Factory Floor

Agricultural IoT: Managing Earth, Wind and Water

Cellular Fights Back

Registration for the LPWAN Expo is now open. For more information, contact Scott Kargman. For media registration, contact Jessica Seabrook. Companies interested in exhibiting, sponsorship or advertising packages should contact Dave Rodriguez at 203.852.6800 ext. 146 or Maureen Gambino 203-852-6800 x 109.

For the latest LPWAN Expo news, updates and information, follow the event on Twitter at @LPWANExpo

About TMC

Global buyers rely on TMCs content-driven marketplaces to make purchase decisions and navigate markets. This presents branding, thought leadership and lead generation opportunities for vendors/sellers.

TMCs Marketplaces:

Unique, turnkey Online Communities boost search results, establish market validation, elevate brands and thought leadership, while minimizing ad-blocking.

Custom Lead Programs uncover sales opportunities and build databases.

In-Person and Online Events boost brands, enhance thought leadership and generate leads.

Publications, Display Advertising and Newsletters bolster brand reputations.

Custom Content provides expertly ghost-crafted blogs, press releases, articles and marketing collateral to help with SEO, branding, and overall marketing efforts.

Comprehensive Event and Road Show Management Services help companies meet potential clients and generate leads face-to-face.

For more information about TMC and to learn how we can help you reach your marketing goals, please visit www.tmcnet.com.

About Crossfire Media

Crossfire Media is an integrated marketing company with a core focus on future trends in technology. We service communities of interest with conferences, tradeshows, webinars and newsletters. Crossfire Media has a partnership with Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC) to produce events and websites related to disruptive technologies. Crossfire Media is a division of Crossfire Consulting, a full service Information Technology company based in New York.

Media and Analyst Contact:

Jessica Seabrook

Marketing Director

203.852.6800 ext.170

[email protected]

Edited by Ken Briodagh
As the December 13 deadline for insolvency resolution looms, bankers are working to speed up the restructuring process for 28 accounts that are part of the Reserve Bank of India's second list of defaulters, reports The Economic Times.

Accounts that are not restructured until December 13 will have to be referred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and CNBC-TV18, learns a majority of the 28 cases may end up in the NCLT despite the bankers attempts to recast debt within the deadline.

Post the deadline, banks will have to provide for losses of up to 50 percent of the loan value, which will severely dent their earnings.

These 28 accounts including names like Jaiprakash Associates, Uttam Galva Steel, and Videocon, account for nearly Rs 2 lakh crore worth of loans.

Of the 28 cases, resolution is in final stages for two major accounts. For Jaiprakash Associates, which owns about Rs 26,000 crore, resolution talks are in final stages, senior bank officials said. Negotiations are also on for Videocon Industries, which owns Rs 42,000 crore to banks.

In June this year, RBI had identified 12 stressed accounts to be taken under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) on immediate basis. Besides the 12 accounts, the banking regulator instructed banks to finalise a resolution plan for all other accounts within six months.

According to a source-based report on CNBC-TV18, RBI had sent the list of defaulters with nearly 40 names to be referred to NCLT in August. The total defaulter list may have 35-40 accounts and State Bank of India alone could have a list of 25-26 accounts, the report said.

The government is likely to push RBI to help them in meeting capital requirements. The government will also look to ease provisioning norms for loan accounts identified under the insolvency process.

While bankers have approached the banking regulator, the Indian Banks Association (IBA) has also made a representation to the government seeking a breather on the provisioning requirements, which may hit the banks' profitability given the capital constraints and weak credit growth at about 6 percent.
Ruchira Papers has had a steady 2017 with a 70 percent gain for the stock so far. The buzz in the industry earlier this year was that China had banned making paper from waste pulp which would benefit Indian paper companies.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, SC Garg, Chairman of the company spoke about the latest happenings in the company.

Garg said that due to pollution China has closed the pulp section and there is volatility. Therefore, China has started importing paper.

We exported 1,000 tonne of kraft paper to China last month, he added.

He further said that we have seen a lot of queries from China with regards to Indian paper.

Talking about target, he said FY18 production target is at 124,000 tonne.
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Jet Airways (Jet) continues to face turbulence compared to its peers. The company posted a disappointing set of numbers for the second quarter ended September 2017 marred by an increase in fuel and other operating expenses.

We have a neutral stance on the company on the back of its underinvestment in the domestic market and tepid capacity expansion despite some benefits coming out of cost optimization and agreement between Jet Airways and Air France-KLM.

Quarter in a Snapshot: Fuel cost played spoilsport

Revenue from operations witnessed a growth of 4.1 percent (YoY) led by increase in revenue passengers (7.4 percent) which partially got offset by the fall in the yield (3.1 percent). Additionally, the load factor witnessed a dip of 20bps over the same quarter last year.

Despite the growth in the top line, the company witnessed a significant decline of 574bps (YoY) in EBITDAR margin. The decline was attributed to the rise in fuel prices (up 254bps as a percentage of operating revenues), aircraft maintenance cost (up 95bps as a percentage of operating revenues) and other expenses (up 343bps as a percentage of operating revenues). The company has, however, been able to manage its employee costs (down 118bps as a percentage of operating revenues).

Why is Jet is losing out when the industry dynamics are improving?

Jet has underinvested in the domestic business as is evident from the fact that it employs 60 percent of ASKM (Available Seat Kilometres) to international business. Consequently, Jet continues to cede its market share to other players in the domestic market. It has lost significant (900bps) domestic market share over FY12-17.While other players in the industry are expanding their capacities, Jet has lagged behind. It has added only 4 aircraft in its fleet in a year and its capacity as measured by ASK (Available Seat Kilometres) has only increased by 7.7 percent (YoY) in this quarter.The management indicated that the company is also facing infrastructure challenges. It is not able to get additional slots at the Mumbai airport which is the hub for the airline. The proposed new airport at Navi Mumbai would take time to be fully operational. Hence, this would limit the growth for the carrier.The management indicated that the yields in the international market, especially the Gulf region (Jet deploys 20 percent of the international capacity in the Gulf region), continues to be under pressure and would be under pressure, at least in the short-term.

Jet is trying to fix the problem to an extent through.

The airline continued its focus on operational efficiencies across its entire business thereby reducing costs. The management of Jet in the recent analyst meet indicated that they are working towards cost optimization which is currently highly inefficient when compared to its peers due to higher employee, maintenance and selling cost. In addition, the management indicated that B737-max aircraft which are about to join Jets fleet are 15 percent more fuel-efficient than the current aircraft and the company has also improved its aircraft utilization. These initiatives will help Jet in catching up with its peers but we doubt if it would impart any competitive advantage.The management has indicated that they are focusing on retiring the debt from the cash generated through operations and would take 4-5 years to retire the debt. The leverage in the Balance Sheet that is thwarting its expansion amid positive industry dynamics, increases the likelihood of a stake sale to raise capital in the future.Jet Airways and Air France-KLM signed a landmark Enhanced Cooperation Agreement through which customers will benefit from multiple travel options and seamless service throughout the three partners networks spanning 44 cities in India and 106 destinations across Europe. Additionally, the agreement will complement the Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines transatlantic partnership between Europe and North America, offering access to over 200 destinations in North AmericaAt the current price, the stock is quoting at 3.5 and 3.18 times FY18 and FY19 projected EBITDAR. While the current state of affairs in the company doesnt excite us, we would be carefully monitoring the developments in the company given the favourable industry dynamics.

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Lumax Auto Technologies posted a good set of Q2 earnings. In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Anmol Jain, MD of the company discussed the details.

Q2 had been a good quarter for the company, he said.

Post goods and services tax (GST), the offtake has been quite smooth and in Q3 and Q4, the offtake will be even far better, he added.

According to him, aftermarket business essentially is on a higher EBITDA as compared to other businesses.

I do anticipate a single digit revenue growth in FY18. Next year we are looking at much more aggressive growth, we should be looking at a double digit growth in the next fiscal, said Jain.
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India's government is in favour of banning imports of petroleum coke on environmental grounds, according to a government affidavit filed with the country's top court, which could be a big blow to U.S. refiners who export heavily to the country.

The Supreme Court, which in October banned the use of petroleum coke in and around New Delhi in a bid to clean the air in one of the world's most polluted cities, is scheduled to hear a case on its use across the country later on Monday.

India is the world's biggest consumer of petroleum coke, better known as petcoke, which is a dark solid carbon material that emits 11 percent more greenhouse gases than coal, according to the CarnegieaTsinghua Center for Global Policy.

Burning it also emits several times more sulphur dioxide, which causes lung diseases and acid rain.

Local producers include Indian Oil Corp, Reliance Industries and Bharat Petroleum Corp.

The oil ministry has also told the Supreme Court that petcoke should only be used as feedstock, like in the cement industry, and not as fuel.

A country-wide import ban would require replacing 14 million tonnes of petcoke a year with 24 million to 31 million tonnes of coal, according to industry calculations, most of which has to be imported.
Representative image

The road ministry government is targetting to close the financial year by awarding 20,000 km of highway projects , and add another 25,000 km in new stretches in 2018-19 as part of a broader strategy to modernise India's infrastructure, create jobs and accelerate growth in the broader economy.

I wish to award 20,000 km highways by the end of this year and even take it to 25,000 km by next year, union minister for road, transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit, organised by industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), ASEAN-India Centre (AIC) and Ministry of External Affairs.

Indias domestic infrastructure is witnessing massive transformation At the time when I took charge of the ministry, the road construction was at 2 km/day Today, it is 28 km/day, he said.

He said that India would achieve the ambitious target of constructing 40 km of road length in a day by next financial year.

Also read: NHAI revises highway project award target to 10,000 km for FY18

We are now going for express-highways (to enhance road infra) Infrastructure in the country is our highest priority he said.

The union minister had earlier expressed his dissatisfaction over slow progress of highway award by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and had set a target of 10,000 km for FY18. He now wishes to double the target by the end of March 2018.

NHAI had earlier set an award target of 6,500 km for FY18, while its highway construction target was 3,500 km for the same period. It has now decided to bid out higher number of projects by December 2017.

NHAI chairman, Deepak Kumar, had told Moneycontrol that the organisation would be in the position to tender out road projects for 10,000 km by December.

The ministry is leveraging on Centres umbrella roads programme, Bharatmala, to achieve the target for award.

Under Bharatmala Pariyojana, which was approved by the Cabinet in October, 66,100 km of National Highways will be constructed in two phases of 24,800 km and 30,600 km each.

BMP has identified 26,200 km of economic corridors, 15,800 km of feeder roads, 13,100 km of national corridors, 5,200 km of border and international connectivity roads, 3,300 km of coastal roads and 1,800 km of expressways for construction with a total capital outlay of Rs 6.92 lakh crore.
The first week of placements at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay and phase one at IIT Madras saw a rise in both domestic and international offers for students.

At IIT-B, around 795 students received jobs (including PPOs) in various corporates and startups from India and abroad. This include close to 65 international offers. Around 200 companies have given their preference to IIT-B and have already visited the campus for the interviews. Over 50 more are expected to participate in the remaining few days of the phase-1 of placements.

In 2016, by the end of the first week of December, close to 180 companies visited IIT-B and 775 students received job offers (including PPOs) from them.

Samsung (taking into account all their offices in India and abroad) emerged as the highest recruiter in terms of numbers with 45 offers while Intel (25 offers), Goldman Sachs (24 offers) and Microsoft (17 offers) followed next. Companies like Palantir Technologies, Alvarez & Marsal, UBS, Mercari, Tolaram group, Quadeye Securities were among the first timers on the campus.

The top international offers include Microsoft (6 offers) with over 210,000 US dollars annually offered as CTC and Uber (1 offer) with over 150,000 US dollars annually as CTC in the US, Optiver (3 offers) with over 100,000 euros annually as CTC in Amsterdam, and Mercari (5 offers) with over 6,000,000 Japanese yen annually as CTC in Japan.

The top domestic offers (in INR) include the Blackstone Group (1 offer) with over Rs 45 lakh annually as CTC and WorldQuant Research (3 offers) with over Rs 39 lakh annually as CTC.

"The team also worked on rebuilding their relations with startups but was skeptical about giving them the prime slots in spite of attractive salaries," said IIT Bombay in a statement.

IIT Madras saw as many as 763 offers made during phase-I of campus placements, which concluded on Sunday. Around 1,100 students in all had registered for placements.

Including pre-placement offers, which stood at 114 this year, a total of 877 students have already been placed till date this year at IIT-M. This compares favourably with the same time last year when 745 students (including 73 PPOs) had been placed.

This year saw the total number of international offers go up to 23 by the end of phase-I as compared to 10 for whole of last year. The top international recruiters include American software company Microsoft, transportation technology company Uber, American worldwide job search engine Indeed, American cloud data management firm Rubrik, and Mercari, Softbank and Sekisui Chemical from Japan.

Manu Santhanam, Advisor, Training and Placement, IIT Madras, said: The first phase of IIT Madras placements ended on Sunday, with more than 60 percent of students getting placed. The placement of the postgraduate students was significantly better this year compared to the last year.

While the total number of students (excluding PPO) placed was not different compared to the same time last year, the actual placed percentage went up from 56 percent last year to 62 percent this year, said Prof. Manu Santhanam.

The top five recruiters in phase-I were Citi, Intel India Technology, EXL Servive, Flipkart and HCL Technologies.
Infosys

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Even as a whistleblower demands an independent probe into the alleged irregularities in the Rs 17.3-crore severance pay doled out to Rajiv Bansal and the Panaya deal, Infosys board member Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw asserts that there was no wrongdoing in the former CFO's payout case.

The re-investigation conducted in the severance pay case has found no wrongdoing, Mazumdar-Shaw said, according to a report in The Business Standard.

Eventually, Infosys had paid Bansal Rs 5 crore as severance, holding back Rs 12 crore.

Last week, Infosys had submitted a settlement application to SEBI with regard to issues surrounding Bansal's severance package. The company said it want to resolve allegations that the severance pay was decided without seeking prior consent from the audit committee and the Nomination and Remuneration Committee.

Most saw the settlement as an admission of guilt by Infosys, former board members  T V Mohandas Pai and V Balakrishnan  also asked the company to apologise founder NR Narayana Murthy, who had first alleged lapses in the Panaya deal, the report said.

The matters were reinvestigated (a)n(d) no wrongdoings were found by new chairman. Lets bring this to a closure (a)n(d) move on. It helps no one, Mazumdar-Shaw wrote on Twitter, responding to Mohandas Pai who called the lapse a substantial matter.

They have also asked for resignations of two board members, Ravi Venkatesan and Roopa Kudva.

The whistleblower, on Saturday, urged the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to deny the company's consent plea and hold management accountable in the case.

According to a source-based report in DNA, Infosys may have to pay Bansal the remaining Rs 12 crore to settle the dispute. Bansal had invoked the arbitration clause in his agreement earlier this year to claim the remaining amount.

Sources also said that Infosys is keen to close the matter before new CEO Salil Parekh takes office on January 1. According to the report, Parekh has said that he does not want the baggage of the controversy.
On the very first day of listing of Bharat 22 ETF which was managed by ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, the fund house witnessed redemptions worth Rs 1,256 crore, sources in the industry told Moneycontrol.

When Moneycontrol contacted the fund house, the spokesperson confirmed that there were redemptions on the first day of listing but attributed the redemptions to profit-booking.

On November 28, the listing day, Bharat 22 ETF was listed at Rs 36.11 per unit, up 0.91 per cent over the issue price of Rs 35.97 on the BSE and closed at Rs 37.32 per unit.

The subscription of the fund was open for retail investors from November 15-17.

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund managed Bharat 22 ETFs new fund offer that had an initial issue size of over Rs 8,000 crore.

As much as 25 percent of total issue size, or Rs 2,000 crore, was reserved for anchor investors who put in bids worth about Rs 12,000 crore. LIC, Bank of India, SBI Pension Fund, EPFO and HDFC Ergo Insurance are among those who had put in bids.

Bharat 22 ETF comprises stocks of 22 blue chip public sector companies, including State Bank of India (SBI), Axis Bank, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), ITC, ONGC, Indian Oil Corporation, PFC, PGCIL, Nalco, BPCL, NTPC and Bank of Baroda.

The government raised Rs 14,500 crore through the Bharat-22 which received bids worth Rs 32,000 crore.

ETFs trade on the stock exchange platform like a single stock. ETFs follow a constant portfolio strategy and are linked to an established index, which is why these mutual funds have a lower management fee. Also, there is no exit load for units sold through the secondary market on the stock exchanges.

However, brokerages charge a fee on transactions done through them. Redemption of ETF units can also be done directly with the fund.
From the sidelines of Kotak MidCap Conference, we have Naval Sharma, President, Kwality spoke to CNBC-TV18 on the outlook for business going forward.

He said for the next three years they will be growing at rate of 8-10 percent in terms of topline and expect the entire growth to come from business to consumer (B2C) segment. B2C is a strategic business segment for the company, he added.

The company will touch Rs 9000 crore in revenues by 2020 with EBITDA margins target of 9-9.5 percent, said Sharma.

Talking about debt, he said they are currently at Rs 1605 crore and of that 39 percent is long-term debt. To pare debt they are looking at 3-4 levers  one is capital structure optimisation, two, is revision of their rating from stable to positive, which would help them in negotiating better rates with bank. Three, as they change product mix, the overall cash conversion cycle which was is around 93 days will be touching 55-60 days. Moreover, four, as the value added product part of business increase, it will help generate lot of internal cash flows.

All this will help the company bring down debt and the cost of debt will also go down. They have a target of bringing debt down to

Related stories Naval Sharma President|Kwality

The company is among Indias largest private dairy companies and has a milk processing capacity of 3.4 million litres per day.

In the first half of FY18, they did margins of 7.1 percent compared to 6.9 percent in H1FY17. The total income was up 7.3 percent at Rs 3,246 crore compared to Rs 3,024 crore.
HDFC Securities

With the market is touching new highs, the question in everyones mind today is - should they invest at these elevated levels?

Other fears stem from the string of events lined up in December. A battery of central bank meetings is coming up, including those of the RBI, the ECB, and the US Federal Reserve.

Another important factor is the outcome of the Gujarat elections that will be known on the December 18. Himachal Pradesh is not worrying the markets, though the counting of votes will take place on the same day.

In addition to this, two big events  rollout of GST and demonetisation  are behind us. Though the negative impact of both has been priced in, the positive effects are not yet fully visible in listed companies.

It is essential to reiterate the fact that equity markets are very liquid, and investors can book profits, exit and withdraw their money at any point of time. Having said that, there is absolutely no reason for long-term investors to feel acrophobic.

Let us take a look back at the year 1986, when the Sensex was first published on January 2 at 549. The base year was 1978-79, with a base value of 100.

Had you not bought at 549 thinking it has already multiplied 5.5 times in seven years, you would have missed seeing your money grow to 4546 in 1992, 6151 in 2000 or 21,207 in 2008.

This holds good for the scenario in which we are today, as the same Sensex has seen a new high of 33,865 in November. The Sensex has risen at a CAGR of 16.52 percent since inception.

Since long-term returns are tax-free, there is absolutely no comparative asset class that gives you such high returns, with the added advantage of being liquid.

So you have two options.

One is to invest right away, or wait for these events to pass, and then invest. My contention is that you will always end up investing in an uncertain market. These events will be replaced by new ones and also additional risks. This is an unending process.

Central Banks meetings happen every six weeks, and results come in every quarter, with annual budgets and the Governments policy changes that dont have a timetable.

I expect the markets to do well in the coming days, owing to an unexpected rating upgrade for India. It is unexpected in the sense that the markets were not expecting it, and I had pencilled in to happen in the first quarter of 2018 in an article in a business daily in May this year.

Bond yields have fallen from 7.06 percent, a level that prevailed before the rating upgrade, to 6.90 percent at the time of writing. With the FIIs having bought more than 98 percent of their allotted quota, additional buying could take place in the next financial year, which will support the Rupee.

A more fundamental reason is that profit growth in the quarterly numbers, elusive for the past many quarters, has come in finally in this quarter. The next two quarters are expected to be fantastic, allowing the Nifty stocks to post a 14 percent growth this fiscal, as compared to a CAGR growth of just 3.5 percent in the past four years.

As for the Gujarat results, there is a possibility that the mandate could tilt in the BJPs favor, as the Patels dont vote en block, and the state has seen a cleaner and senior Keshubhai Patel being humbled by the Modi juggernaut in 2012.

While we know that the markets will surpass the walls of worries, these are not genuine worries, to begin with. So invest with confidence for better times ahead.

: The author is MD & CEO, HDFC Securities. The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
After a flat 2016, bulls clearly dominated D-Street in 2017 as benchmark indices rallied nearly 25 percent in the year. The biggest contributor to the rally were retail investors as more household savings got channelized into equity markets via mutual funds (MFs).

Small and midcap stocks rallied, thanks to record inflows from mutual fund throughout the year 2017. As many as 28 stocks in which fund managers raised stake throughout 2017 more than doubled investors wealth which includes names like HEG, Yuken Ltd, V2 Retail, Dilip Buildcon, Minda Industries, SpiceJet, JM Financial, NOCIL, Ramkrishna Forging, Tata Metaliks, Jindal Steel etc. among others.

Majority of stocks mentioned in the list belong to the small and midcap space. It looks like mutual fund managers are testing new waters as some of the investment made are for the very first time in the year 2017.

Fund managers raised stake from 0.04 percent to 1.6 percent in HEG which has already given a return of over 1000 percent so far in the year 2017.

Similarly, Fund managers raised stake in Dilip Buildcon from 2.92 percent in the March quarter to 5.04 percent recorded in the September quarter.

A large part of this growth in the midcap and smallcap is because of the liquidity that we have witnessed in India -- domestic liquidity which we think is a structural trend. It is not something that it will vanish, Sanjeev Zarbade, Vice-president  PCG Research at Kotak Securities told Moneycontrol.

We have just around three-four percent of our retail assets in mutual funds and equity. It is almost 15-20 percent for the developed markets. Provided these midcaps and smallcaps dont mess in terms of going for badly priced acquisitions or taking some steps which are not in the right spirit of the corporate governance, they should be able to do well over the next four-five years, he said.

Note: The above list for reference purpose. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

Indian markets rallied in one straight line without giving investors any big opportunity to enter. The market bounced back swiftly after 3-4 percent correction; hence, plenty of money is still standing on the sidelines ready to get invested.

If there is a big correction in the market, it will be quickly bought into especially by the institution which are sitting on a big cash pile.

Retail investors have pumped in Rs 1.26 lakh crore into mutual funds in the month of November, driving industry assets under management to an all-time high of Rs 21.8 lakh crore.

With the latest inflow, total infusion in MF schemes reached Rs 3.8 lakh crore in the first eight months (April- November) of the current fiscal, latest data with Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) showed.

Equity and equity-linked schemes attracted over Rs. 20,300 crore. In addition, more than Rs 7,600 crore was invested in balanced funds. Further, over Rs 9,300 crore was put in the debt funds. In contrast, gold ETFs continued to see a net outflow of Rs 89 crore.

If we look at the trend for equity schemes, MFs have poured in more than Rs 30,000 crore in the December quarter, according to data collated from Capitaline.

The amount of money going into equity schemes more than doubled in the last three years. Fund managers were pouring a little over Rs 14,000 crore in the December quarter, back in the year 2014 which has now reached well above Rs 30,000 crore in the year 2017.

Fund managers have already poured in a little over Rs 31,000 crore so far in the December quarter of 2017.

Inflows into domestic Mutual Funds continue to remain strong since mid-2014. Domestic flows have contributed significantly to equity investments while foreign investments, on the other hand, remained volatile. Increasing return on equity in the US may shift the flow of funds, BofAML said in a report.

Primary issuance in India too has been strong in 1HFY18. Further, equity issuance to the tune of USD 5 billion is expected in the near future. The supply of money will create demand and help in growing infrastructure, it said.

Stocks in which MF have a double-digit stake:

Many small and midcap stocks in which fund managers have a double-digit stake have managed to outperform Nifty50 returns so far in the year 2017. As many as 30 out of 83 stocks have given negative return while the rest managed to outperform Nifty.

Some of the stocks in which fund managers have double-digit stake include names like Equitas Holdings, Max Financial, KNR Construction, Federal Bank, India Terrain, Repco Home Finance, HSIL, Atul, Tata Chemicals, BEML, PNC Infratech, and CG Power etc. among others.
The Indian equity market has rebounded post a correction of around 400-points and has been rally for the last few days.

Udayan Mukherjee, Consulting Editor, CNBC-TV18 says there is growing conviction that levels of 10000-10100 will act as solid support and market may have formed a higher bottom. December month could tell us if that is true.

However, the important test of that level could come on next Monday when the outcome of Gujarat elections are out but it also depends where we are on that day.

All in all the price action has been fairly remarkable in favour of bulls.

The correction that came in 10-days back because of uncertainty of election outcome in Gujarat and the fact is this uncertainty tells us that there is little bit in the price already that the result may not be that good. If the result is good then there is room for upside and market may make a top above 10500 on Nifty although it depends on where the market is by Friday.

However, if the result is of middling kind where the BJP wins but not with huge majority then the correction may not be severe. If BJP gets less than 100 seats, there will be correction in the market but may not break 10,000 on the downside. In the unlikely event of BJP losing, there could be a significant year-end correction and that could take us back to 9600-9700 levels of Nifty but it is not the base case for anyone in the market at this point.

Talking about if domestic liquidity is here to stay, he said there has be a scare for the market to correct, otherwise liquidity will gobble up these small corrections. However, one is not sure what could be the trigger for that, it could be Gujarat election, bitcoin crash, North Korea etc., and till then one will have to just stay the course. And till such a trigger or an event plays out, corrections will be modest in the context of the liquidity universe that we are trading at, said Mukherjee.

When asked what did he expect from the FOMC meet this week and if it would have an impact on our markets. He said the Fed have been masters of managing expectations. They have always prepared the markets in advance and therefore usually there is no severe volatility post these meets, since markets are well prepared.

The markets may take the policy action as an excuse to take profits home after having a good year but dont expect the market to go into a massive correction or sell off after the FOMC meet because the news is out in the open. The US market had a better year than the Indian market.

So, it has been a non-event of sorts unless their commentary is very hawkish for 2018, which also seems unlikely, he said.

Talking about the Bitcoin frenzy, he said he cannot claim to understand the technicality about that but most people may feel missed out. It looks like makings of a bubble and something that may end badly but at what levels, one does not know, said Mukherjee.

He also spoke about Maruti Suzuki, telecom, Bharti Airtel.
'deeply pained' by Modi's allegation of Pakistan collusion

# Rahul Gandhi officially named Congress president, to take over on December 16

21:55 New York mayor says explosion at bus terminal was attempted terror attack

An ISIS-inspired Bangladeshi- origin man, wearing a homemade device, today triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, US media reports said.

Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires attached to him. He was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, CNN reported, according to which he was taken into custody after the device partially detonated.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the device that exploded in the New York City subway was an attempted "terrorist attack".

"At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims," Mayor de Blasio said.

21:45 PIL in SC to restrain persons from contesting from more than 1 seat

The Supreme Court on Monday directed that copies of a petition seeking to restrict a candidate from contesting from more than one constituency simultaneously in an election be served on the Attorney General and the Election Commission.

The petitioner sought directions to authorities to take appropriate steps to discourage the independent candidates from contesting the Parliament and State Assembly election as suggested by National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) and Election Commission of India.

The petition said the question of independent candidates is often connected with the issue of fragmented voting and instability in the electoral system.

21:20 Fukrey makes a welcome box office return, gathers Rs 31.65 crore in opening weekend

It was a bolt from the blue for Bollywood this weekend as the Fukrey franchise returned with a bang. Against all odds, Fukrey Returns did a business of Rs 8.10 crore on Friday, which is three times more than the opening day collection of the first instalment.

While trade pundits expected the film to garner around Rs 3-4 crore on day one, Fukrey Returns beat all expectations and emerged as a hit.

21:09 Gujarat polls: Rare row between PM and predecessor; Manmohan tears into Narendra Modi

A rare row between a sitting and a former premier broke out on Monday after Narendra Modi insinuated that Manmohan Singh colluded with Pakistan in the Gujarat polls with the Congress leader accusing his successor of setting a dangerous precedent and asking his apology.

Launching a sharp counteroffensive, Singh tore into Modi over what he called the prime ministers ill-thought transgression and rejected his charge as innuendos and falsehoods.

In uncharacteristically strong words, a usually reticent Singh crossed swords with his predecessor to say the Gujarat polls was never raised by anyone present at a dinner hosted by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for a visiting Pakistani leader at his house on December 6 and that the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan ties.

21:02 Vijay Mallyas defence questions impartiality of Indian judicial system

Vijay Mallyas extradition trial to face fraud and money laundering charges of Rs 9,000 crore in India resumed today, with his defence fielding a legal expert to question the impartiality of Indias judicial system.

The 61-year-old was back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates Court in London for day four of the hearing when his barrister, Clare Montgomery, deposed Dr Martin Lau to give his views on the evidence presented by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Indian Supreme Court rulings.

I hold the Supreme Court in the highest respect but it is equally not disrespectful to indicate that some doubts are voiced about particular patterns [in judgments], Dr Lau, an expert on South Asian law, told the court.

20:58 14% of candidates in Gujarat polls have criminal cases against them: Report

Fourteen percent of the 1,815 candidates contesting the ongoing Gujarat Assembly polls were facing criminal charges, according to a report.

A study of the affidavits submitted by the candidates to the Election Commission showed that of the 253 such nominees, 154 had serious criminal cases such as murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, and crime against women against them.

The study was carried out by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-governmental organisation which works in the area of electoral and political reforms, and the Gujarat Election Watch.

20:53 Govt considering developing own civilian aircraft: Civil Aviation

The government is considering manufacturing civilian aircraft and would like to move ahead with the plan very fast, a civil aviation ministry official said on Monday.

The countrys domestic aviation market is one of the fastest growing in the world and has registered high double-digit growth for more than two years. Many airlines are embarking on ambitious expansion plans and authorities are working on developing new airports to cater to the rising demand as well as boosting regional air connectivity.

We are considering manufacturing our own civilian aircraft definitely, the concept is there and we are looking for smaller aircraft like a 20-seater which can be used within the country and this also is supported by our policy of Make in India, said Shefali Juneja, Director at the Civil Aviation ministry.

20:49 "The incident was frightening and disturbing. It was a low tech device. Situation was handled extraordinarily well. A sweep is being done. The service at the subway is being restored," Andrew Mark Cuomo, New York Governor said on New York subway pipe bombing, reports ANI.

20:48 PM Narendra Modis Pakistan conspiracy remark worrisome in a democracy: Left

As Prime Minister Narendra Modis conspiracy with Pakistan remark against his predecessor Manmohan Singh creates ripples, the Left and JD(U) called the development worrisome and not proper in a democracy.

They said the prime minister should take action based on evidence if there was any seriousness in his allegations, and not raise the same in Gujarat poll campaign.

He is dragging Pakistan into a domestic pollif he is serious, he should have taken up the issue with the Congress. As the head of the government, he could have taken appropriate action. Instead of that, he is making it a poll issue. I think it is not proper in a democracy, senior CPI leader D Raja said.

20:41 DR Reddy's say that they have received establishment inspection report from the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its Bachupally unit, reports CNBC TV-18.

20:36 Farm loan waiver gets thumbs-down from former central bankers

With the farm loan waiver pitch getting shriller by the day, former RBI governor Y V Reddy today said the practice is not good for economic or credit culture and insisted that ultimately it is a political decision and cannot be justified in the longer run.

Even former RBI governor C Rangarajan took a similar line, saying the alternative is to offer farmers a longer window to pay off.

Reddy noted that every political party in India has offered such waiver in some state or the other or at an all- India level.

20:34 BSE launches five new market cap-based indices

Asia Index, the equal joint venture between BSE and S&P Dow Jones Indices, on Monday launched five size-based indices to measure the performance of the large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap companies.

This would better represent the market capitalisation and help meet the regulatory requirements, according to a statement.

20:31 Meet Modi's mentor, who scripted the first chapter of the 'Chaiwala to PM' story

When you first meet Ambalal Koshti, he comes across as just another elderly man who has seen his share of ups and downs in life. Koshti is as unassuming as the next person and certainly conducts himself in a manner befitting that image. And yet, this inconspicuous senior citizen can claim credit for the deeds of the India's most visible man.

What Koshti is known for, especially within the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is finding a an 18-year-old Narendra Modi at a tea stall and bringing him into the RSS to work and further himself. As fate would have it, the youth that Ambalal had brought into the RSS shakha at Maninagar in Ahmedabad would go on to become a three-time chief minister of Gujarat and an iconic Prime Minister of India.

Read the full story here.

20:30 DLF partners Uber to offer subsidised rates for malls visit in NCR

Realty major DLF has tied up with Uber to offer subsidised rides to and fro for customers visiting its malls in the national capital region.

Till February 15 next year, Uber will charge only Rs 69 for 9 km ride to its shopping malls DLF Promenade, Vasant Kunj and DLF The Place, Saket as well as DLF CyberHub, Gurgaon.

For DLF Mall of India, Noida, Uber will charge Rs 109 for 15km. This offer will be available from 11 am to 5 pm every day.

Kovind

Chinese and Russian foreign ministers, who are here to attend a summit, on Monday called on President Ram Nath Kovind and held discussions pertaining to bilateral relations.

President Kovind congratulated Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi on the successful conclusion of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China.

He added that India looked forward to working with President Xi Jinping and the Chinese leadership to take the developmental partnership to greater heights.

20:23 CBI questions NTPC Director-Finance, others in graft case

The CBI has questioned the Director (finance) of the state-run power utility NTPC Limited for over two days in connection with an alleged bribery case, the agency officials said here on Monday.

CBI sources said Kulamani Biswal, Director (finance) NTPC, was questioned at the agency headquarters here along with Umapathi Reddy, the father of another accused Rohit Reddy, Director of BGR Mining and Infra Private Limited.

Meanwhile, arrested accused Prabhat Kumar, an alleged confidant of Reddy, has been sent to judicial custody, they said.

20:20 Manhattan explosion update:

New York mayor says the explosion at bus terminal was attempted terror attack.

According to a Reuters reports, police were not yet identifying the device used. Local television channel WABC cited police sources as saying a possible pipe bomb detonated in a passageway below ground and WPIX cited sources as saying a man with a possible second device has been detained in the subway tunnel.

The fire department tweeted there were four injuries, all non-life threatening. One of the injured was a Port Authority police officer.

The bus terminal was temporarily closed, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a Twitter statement.

20:07 Trade setup for Tuesday: Top 10 things you should know before Opening Bell

The 50-share NSE Nifty, which started on a buoyant note on Monday, reclaimed the 10,300 level in the opening tick but failed to build on the momentum, witnessing wild swings on either side.

The Nifty made a bullish candle that looked like a Hanging Man kind of pattern. The index has been making higher highs and higher lows over the last three trading sessions.

A Hanging Man is a bearish reversal candlestick pattern, which is usually formed at the end of an uptrend or at the top. In a perfect 'Hanging Man' pattern, there will either be a small upper shadow or no upper shadow at all, a small body and long lower shadow.

Read the full story here.

20:00 FM Arun Jaitley attacks Congress, former PM Manmohan Singh

Attacking the Congress party and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union ministers Arun Jaitley said, "Former PM Manmohan Singh has issued a statement asking PM Modi to apologise for what he said in an election rally with regard to a meeting involving Pakistani delegations. It is surprising that Congress party expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it."

"The Congress party and its leadership should come out with facts about what happened in the meeting" and added that the Congress should state "what was the necessity of such the meeting," he added.

19:52 India's fuel demand jumps 6.2% in November as diesel use recovers

India's fuel demand went up by 6.2 percent in November as diesel consumption showed signs of recovery.

Fuel consumption totalled 17.4 million tonnes (mt) in November against 16.4 mt in the year-ago period, according to the latest data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the oil ministry.

This mirrors a recovery from 0.9 percent growth in October but pales before 10.4 percent expansion in November last year. (With PTI inputs)

19:33 Manhattan explosion update:

A law enforcement official has reportedly told Associated Press that the suspect had explosive device strapped on when it exploded in New York City subway.

New York Police Department have confirmed that one person has been taken into custody but have not issued any confirmation regarding the type of device that was used, according to media reports.

Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has said that President Donald Trump has been briefed regarding the explosion.

19:13 India, Russia, China resolve to step up counter-terror co-operation

India, China and Russia have said that they have resolved to step up cooperation to counter terrorism, including choking terror funding and dismantling terrorist infrastructure, as the Indian side flagged concerns over increasing acts of terrorism by Pakistan-based terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

19:01 Prime Minister Narendra Modi has wished Rahul Gandhi on being named President-elect of the party.

PM Modi has tweeted, "I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure."

18:50 Bitcoin futures steal spotlight, momentum keeps pushing stocks up

World stocks climbed and equity volatility neared a record low on Monday as investors focused on strong economic growth signs ahead of a slew of interest rate decisions, while the launch of bitcoin futures fed the market's cryptocurrency obsession.

European stocks drew strength from a positive Asian session to trade higher in early deals. The rally dissipated after the open but Germany's cyclicals-heavy DAX and the index of leading European companies held onto gains.

Strong banks and mining stocks supported benchmarks, and Britain's FTSE climbed 0.7 percent, helped by a weaker pound.

Read the full story here.

18:45 Explosion heard in Manhattan, New York: New York Police Dept.

The New York Police Department was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin on Monday morning in midtown Manhattan at 42nd Street and 8th Avenue, according to the police department's official Twitter feed. The New York fire department said it was responding to an incident at the Port Authority bus terminal in midtown Manhattan.

18:25 Terrorists attacked a J&K Bank cash vehicle in Shopian's Kralchak. Two security guards were killed and shots were fired in the air, according to news agency ANI.

18:04 'Punjab to save Rs 2,000 crore by rationalisation of expenditure'

The Punjab government is hoping to save Rs 2,000 crore by rationalising the expenditure of various departments and plugging revenue leakage as it looks to become a revenue surplus state in the next three years.

"We are expecting to save Rs 2,000 crore in the current financial year with the rationalisation of expenditure of government departments. We are asking the departments to plug in loopholes and any revenue leakage to reduce fiscal burden," state Finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal said here today. (With PTI inputs)

17:22 Maharashtra tables supplementary demand of Rs 26,402 crore, including that for farm loan waiver

The Maharashtra government tabled a supplementary demand of Rs 26,402.32 crore in the Legislative Assembly on the first day of the winter session today.

Out of the Rs 26,402.32 crore, Rs 15,000 crore is for its flagship farm loan waiver scheme.

This is the second time that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis-led government has placed supplementary demands of such high amount before the House after the last monsoon session. The demand will be discussed subsequently during the session.

When grants, authorised by the legislature, fall short of the required expenditure, an estimate is presented before the House for additional funds. (With PTI inputs)

17:09 BCCI lifts Rajasthan Cricket Associations suspension, asks Lalit Modi to stay away

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced that it had lifted suspension of Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). The decision was taken during the Special General Meeting in New Delhi.

The suspension on RCA will be lifted on the condition that former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi stays away from its functioning.

The RCA had been suspended in 2014 after Lalit Modi won the association's election. BCCI had taken charge of all domestic and age-group competitions in the interim period.

16:55 Sensex rallies 205 pts, Midcap at record close; all eyes on Fed meet, Gujarat polls

The market started off the week on a positive note Monday as the Sensex rallied more than 200 points, taking the total three-day gains to 850 points. The rally was driven by positive global cues, taking lead from Wall Street after stronger-than-expected jobs report.

All sectoral indices ended in green barring realty. Nifty IT, FMCG, Pharma and PSU Bank gained around 1 percent each; followed by bank, auto, metal that settled trade with mild gains.

Read the full report here.

16:44 Ford India to hike prices by up to 4 percent from January 2018

Ford India has said that it will increase prices of its models by up to four percent from January 2018 to partially offset the impact of rising input costs.

Vinay Raina, Ford India Executive Director - Marketing, Sales and Service said, "The price increase is necessary due to several external factors, such as frequent fluctuations in commodity prices and rising input and freight costs".

The company has tried to minimise the impact on its customers by absorbing a large part of these incremental costs and capping the price hike to 4 percent, Raina added.

The company said the price hike would apply to all Ford products, including the recently launched new Ford EcoSport. (With PTI inputs)

16:15 India's economy expected to grow at 7.5 percent in 2018: Nomura

Global investment bank Nomura has predicted India's economy to register a growth rate of 7.5 percent in 2018 and has said that it is on the cusp of a cyclical recovery.

Nomura has forecast 6.7 percent in the fourth quarter and a full-year growth of 6.2 percent this year before rising to 7.5 percent in 2018.

India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth bottomed-out in the second quarter of 2017 at 5.7 percent year-on-year, rising to 6.3 percent in the third quarter, it said.

Apple has asked India to defer a planned increase in import taxes on mobile phone parts so it can expand its iPhone manufacturing in the country, but the government is unlikely to accede, sources told Reuters. The US. technology giant has been in talks with Indian officials for months, seeking pre-requisites - government tax breaks and incentives - for expanding its operations in one of the worlds fastest-growing smartphone markets. During those talks, Apple has conveyed it wants India to defer an existing policy that plans to levy taxes on more imported mobile components in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modis Make in India drive to boost domestic manufacturing.

While Indias government has been keen to get Apple to manufacture in India as a showpiece investment, it has told the US firm there would be no policy exemptions, so there will be no tax breaks on parts imports, sources said. Apple wants duty-free imports of components. India wants indigenisation, sources said. Apple has expressed willingness to increase local value addition over time, but has stuck to its demand for immediate import tax relief to expand its iPhone manufacturing, they added.

15:48 Rahul

Ending years of speculation, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi was on Monday officially declared as party President in Delhi. The announcement was made by Congress Central Election Authority (CEA) chairperson Mullapally Ramachandran. The party CEA said that Gandhi will officially take over the duties of the Congress President from December 16, after being given the certificate at the All India Congress Committee office in Delhi.

The announcement came after the deadline to withdraw nomination papers ended at 3 pm on Monday. Rahul has now become the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to take over the party's top post after Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. Former Union Minister and senior party leader M Veerappa Moily said outgoing Congress President Sonia Gandhi will continue to play an effective role and guide the destiny of the party.

000cr

Icra

The telecom industry could pare as much as Rs 90,000 crore debt if stake sale deals of mobile tower assets, currently being discussed, materialise, credit rating firm Icra said. It predicted structural and material changes for the telecom tower industry in the medium-term.

Icra also anticipated some headwinds in the short-term, as consolidation of telecom operators leads to rationalisation of tenancies, but remained confident about the growth prospects in coming years. This growth would be fuelled by the network expansion of telecom operators, keen to meet the data needs of consumers, it said.

"As per Icra estimates, debt to the tune of Rs 80,000-90,000 crore can be pruned from the telecom industry if the stake sale transactions of tower assets currently under discussions materialise," it stated.

15yr

75bn

Tata Communications will soon hive its property holdings into a separate company, which will subsequently be listed, capping a 15-year effort by the unit of Indias largest conglomerate, reports Bloomberg. The value of the companys 773 acres of land parcels may be about Rs 263 per share, or about Rs 75 billion, according to ICICI Securities. The spinoff should take less than a few months as there is in-principle agreement among the parties involved, said Tata Communications Chief Executive Officer Vinod Kumar said in an interview.

Around the corner is probably a better description, Kumar said. The government is supportive and they are keen to do it. So its really paperwork. The company, which in October reported worse-than-estimated quarterly earnings, has been shedding non-core assets while bolstering its enterprise offerings. Analysts said that hiving off the property holdings should help its stock performance, which has trailed the benchmark gauge since early June and is near the bottom of a sectoral index.

Existing shareholders, including the Indian government, which holds 26% in Tata Communications, will get shares in the new listed entity. The new entity will receive land earmarked as surplus when Videsh Sanchar Nigam was divested by the government in 2002 and sold to the Tata group. Any quick resolution in the land monetisation process would be an upside, Bhupendra Tiwary and Sameer Pardikar, analysts with ICICI Securities, wrote in a November 2 note.

Tata Communications shares have dropped 11.6% in the past six months, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex has climbed 6.7%.

14:56 Wonderla

Wonderla Holidays' non-ticket business is growing fast and expected to contribute as much as 40% to its total revenues in the next 4-5 years, a top company official told PTI. This business includes food and beverage, resort, ride photos and souvenir, the amusement park operator's Managing Director Arun K Chittilappilly said. Non-ticket revenues of the company, which owns and operates amusement parks in Kochi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, currently contributes 25% of its topline, he said.

The company, Chittilappilly said, has just completed acquisition of 60 acres of land in Chennai, where it plans to begin construction of a park early next financial year. The Rs 350-crore plus park is slated to be operational in 2019-2020. Wonderla is working on rolling out information technology initiatives, including introduction of RFID bands, to enhance customer experience, he said.

After the Chennai park, Wonderla would "concentrate" on the Western region and is currently exploring options on setting up facilities in Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Pune and Goa, he said. Wonderla does not have overseas plans, Chittilappilly said, noting that India is still a largely untapped market.

5MT

FY19

GAIL India will import about 5 million tonne (MT) of LNG from the US next fiscal, replacing the volumes the state-owned utility buys from the spot market, a senior company official told PTI. GAIL has contracted 5.8MT per annum of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US, some of which it has swapped  either by exchanging the gas with someone having it nearer to India or by time-swapping it.

"We expect to receive about 5 million tonne of LNG from US next fiscal (2018-19)," the official said. This will be used for replacing the LNG that GAIL currently buys from the spot or current market as well as on short-term contracts. "Out of our LNG buying of about 33 million standard cubic meters per day (8.25MT per annum), only 17-18 mmscmd comes from long-term contract with RasGas of Qatar. The rest is all spot or short term contract volumes, which we hope to replace with US LNG," he said.

The official said the company sold a "major chunk" of the US LNG via time swaps, destination swaps and shipping optimisation. Under the time-swap deals, the company will buy LNG from international companies this year and sell equivalent amount of Henry Hub-indexed volumes during 2018-19. Besides, to cut shipping costs, it has entered into deals to take deliveries of gas from a nearer location and in exchange given its US volumes to company closer to the origin.

14:26 Mallya

defence

The trial to prove a prima facie case of fraud against fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya resumes in London today to determine if he can be extradited to India to face charges over his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines, reports PTI. The 61-year-old will be back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London for day four of the hearing when his defence led by barrister Clare Montgomery, is set to depose two further witnesses in its attempt to prove that the airline's alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is also facing a parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets. The State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co Pvt are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk, Rose Capital Ventures and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday. Margaret Sweeney, from the accounts team of Force India - Mallya's Formula 1 racing team, and legal expert Martin Lau are set to be deposed by his defence team at the extradition hearing today. (

14:20 Talaipalli

NCC

Infra major NCC expects to start development and operation of Talaipalli coal block from 2019-20 onwards and contribute about Rs 190 crore to topline during the first year of its commercial operation, reports PTI. The company is also betting big on infrastructure and housing projects from Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh which is under development stage.

The Talaipalli coal block is located in Chhattisgarh. "The work (on the project) will start in FY18. Commercial production may start from 2019-20. In the first year of commercial operations, we are aiming at 4 million tonne of coal extraction and supply," YD Murthy, Executive President (Finance), NCC, said. "We are looking at a topline of Rs 380 crore (from the block), in which our share will be Rs 190 crore," he said.

On the order book, Murthy said during the last seven months of the current fiscal, NCC got nearly Rs 15,000 crore worth of orders and expects that the total order value to reach around Rs 28,000 crore by the end of FY18. Murthy said the company's building and construction, water pipelines and roads verticals, put together, will constitute 75-80% of the total order book as well as topline of NCC.

FY18

FMCG firm Colgate Palmolive India has declared an interim dividend of Rs 4 per equity share for FY18, which will see a total payout of Rs 131 crore, including dividend distribution tax. The company said in a regulatory filing that its board has declared an interim dividend of Rs 4 per equity share, with face value Re 1 each, for the financial year ending March 31, 2018.

It will be on the paid up equity share capital of Rs 27.20 crore involving a total payout of Rs 131 crore, including dividend distribution tax, it added. The record date for payment of the dividend is December 19, 2017.

favours

petcoke

The government is in favour of banning imports of petroleum coke on environmental grounds, according to a government affidavit filed with the Supreme Court, which could be a big blow to US refiners who export heavily to the country, reports Reuters. The apex court, which in October banned the use of petroleum coke in and around New Delhi in a bid to clean the air in one of the worlds most polluted cities, is scheduled to hear a case on its use across the country later on Monday.

India is the worlds biggest consumer of petroleum coke, better known as petcoke, which is a dark solid carbon material that emits 11% more greenhouse gases than coal, according to the CarnegieTsinghua Center for Global Policy. Burning it also emits several times more sulphur dioxide, which causes lung diseases and acid rain. Local producers include Indian Oil Corporation, Reliance Industries and Bharat Petroleum Corporation.

The Oil Ministry has also told the Supreme Court that petcoke should only be used as feedstock, like in the cement industry, and not as fuel. A country-wide import ban would require replacing 14 million tonne of petcoke a year with 24 million to 31 million tonne of coal, according to industry calculations, most of which has to be imported.

000cr

Indian companies raised close to Rs 51,000 crore through private placement of corporate bonds in November, a surge of 32% from the year-ago level, for business expansion and propping up working capital needs, reports PTI. With the latest mobilisation, the total fund-raising through private placement of debt securities reached Rs 4.2 lakh crore in the April-November period of FY18, as per the latest data by markets regulator Securities & Exchange Board of India (Sebi).

In FY17, the capital raked in through the route stood at Rs 6.4 lakh crore. In private placement of bonds, firms issue securities or bonds to institutional investors to raise capital. Companies garnered Rs 50,855 crore from debt on a private placement basis last month, much higher than Rs 38,645 crore raised in November 2016.

In volume terms, however, just 145 issues were made last month compared with 221 in the year-ago period. The funds have been raised mainly for business expansion, to support working capital requirements and retire their existing debt.

YoY

41MT

Indias fuel demand rose 6.2% in November compared with the same month last year, reports Reuters. Consumption of fuel, a proxy for oil demand, totalled 17.41 million tonne, data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the oil ministry showed. Sales of gasoline, or petrol, were 4.8% higher from a year earlier at 2.12 million tonne. Cooking gas or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales increased 6.7% to 2.00 million tonne, while naphtha sales fell 6.1% to 1.01 million tonne. Sales of bitumen, used for making roads, were 16.4% up, while fuel oil use edged unchanged in November.

13:13 Modi

Pranab

Mukherjee

82nd

Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished former President Pranab Mukherjee on his birthday and said he prayed for his long and healthy life, reports PTI. Mukherjee turned 82 today. "Spoke to Pranab Da and wished him on his birthday. His impeccable service endears him to every Indian. I pray for Pranab Da's long and healthy life," the prime minister tweeted. Mukherjee was born this day in 1935 in Mirati, a village in the Bengal Presidency of British India (now in Birbhum district, West Bengal).

Meghalaya

A moderate intensity quake measuring 4.7 on the Richter Scale shook Meghalaya but there was no report of any casualty, reports PTI. Officials at the Regional Seismological Centre in Shillong said the epicentre was at a depth of 60 km in remote East Garo Hills district. The quake, which lasted for a few seconds, occurred at around 9.05 am. Meghalaya and the seven other north eastern states fall in Zone 5 of the country's earthquake zoning map. According to the zoning map, Zone 5 is associated with the highest level of seismicity.

12:29 Pradeep

Kharola

CMD

Senior IAS officer Pradeep Singh Kharola took charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of Air India today. Kharola assumed charge from Rajiv Bansal. A 1985-batch Karnataka cadre officer, Kharola would be steering the national carrier at a time when the government has started the process for its strategic disinvestment. He was the Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation since February 2015.

Among others, Kharola has worked in various posts in Karnataka, including as the chairman of Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development & Finance Corporation. He has also served as principal secretary to the Karnataka chief minister. As part of efforts to revive the fortunes of Air India - which is staying afloat on taxpayers' money - the government has decided on selling stake in the airline.

The carrier, which has a debt burden of more than Rs 50,000 crore, managed to eke out operational profit for the first time in a decade in 2015-16.

Tata Motors said it will increase prices of its passenger vehicles by up to Rs 25,000 from January to offset the impact of rising input costs, reports PTI. "The changing market conditions, rising input costs and various external economic factors have compelled us to consider the price increase," Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicle Business, Tata Motors said in a statement. The introductory prices of the recently launched compact SUV Nexon will be ending by December 31 and this entire range will also witness a price hike from January 2018 by up to Rs 25,000, the company said.

Zaira

Wasim

Police have filed a sexual assault case against an airline passenger after a 17-year-old Bollywood actress said the male passenger had molested her during a late New Delhi-Mumbai flight, police said on Monday. Zaira Wasim was seen sobbing in a video she posted to her Instagram site after getting off a Vistara flight during which, she has alleged, the passenger sitting on the seat behind her attacked her, reports Reuters.

He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck, Wasim said in the post. Is this how we are going to take care of girls?. The video sparked outrage on social media, where fans came out in support of the actress, who shot to fame through her role as a child wrestler in the 2016 blockbuster Bollywood drama Dangal.

Police have registered a case against a man identified as Vikas Sachdeva, under Section 354 -- for assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty -- and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, a Mumbai police control room official said. We are investigating fully and will support Zaira in every way required, said Vistara Chief Strategy and Commercial Officer Sanjiv Kapoor. We have zero tolerance for this kind of thing.

12:15 Suven

Suven Life Sciences has secured a product patent each from India and the US for treatment of disorders associated with neurodegenerative diseases. These patents are valid through 2029 and 2033 respectively, the company said in a BSE filing.

"We are pleased by the grant of these patents to Suven for our pipeline of molecules in the CNS (central nervous

system) arena, which are being developed for cognitive disorders with high unmet medical need with a huge market potential globally," Suven Life CEO Venkat Jasti said.

Suven Life said the granted claims of the patents are being developed as therapeutic agents and useful in treatment of cognitive impairment associated with neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson and Schizophrenia.

12:13 Rhizen

USFDA

Drug firm Alembic Pharmaceuticals said the US health regulator has granted fast track designation to its associate company Rhizen Pharmaceuticals SA's RP6530 (tenalisib), used in treatment of cancer. "The US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) has granted Fast Track Designation for RP6530 (tenalisib)...for the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL)," Alembic Pharmaceuticals said in a BSE filing. Fast track designation is awarded to drugs that treat a serious condition and fill an unmet medical need, it added.

12:11 Unitech

NCLT

Shares of Unitech surged as much as 20% in trade today after the NCLT authorised the government to appoint its 10 nominees on the board of the realty firm. On December 8, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) suspended all the eight directors of Unitech over allegations of mismanagement and siphoning of funds, while authorising the government to appoint its 10 nominees on the board. Today's rally is the fourth consecutive one for the stock. On December 8, the Unitech scrip had jumped 20%.

In a rare move, the government approached the NCLT to take over the management with a view to protecting the interest of nearly 20,000 home buyers. The tribunal's order came after the government filed a petition arguing that Unitech was a fit case for winding up but considering the interest of thousands of home buyers and small depositors, it wanted to take over company management. The company has over Rs 6,000 crore debt with more than 16,000 undelivered units from a total of nearly 70 projects.

12:06 Infosys

Sebi

Former Infosys Chief Financial Officer V Balakrishnan said it was not a matter of whistleblower's emotions, but of legality for Sebi to decide on denying company's consent plea in connection with former-CFO Rajiv Bansal's severance payment case, reports PTI. "The whistleblower has said whatever he wants to say as per his viewpoint. These are legal issues decided based on merits and not individual's emotions.. What Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) as a regulator thinks and decides is all that matters," Balakrishnan said.

Earlier this year, a whistleblower had written to the market regulator over alleged lapses in the Panaya deal and Bansal's severance pay. The letter had stated that the package was decided by the then CEO Vishal Sikka and then general counsel David Kennedy. The whistle-blower had asked why Infosys was reluctant in disclosing answers surrounding the "hush money."

The letter has brought allegations of poor corporate governance to the fore again after Infosys filed an application for settlement. This has spurred Balakrishnan and another former CFO TV Mohandas Pai to launch an attack against the company, whose board is now led by co-founder Nandan Nilekani. Balakrishnan has demanded the resignation of board members, Roopa Kudva and Ravi Venkatesan in the matter.

On Sunday, board member Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw had exchanged barbs with Pai on twitter, saying, "The matters were reinvestigated (a)n(d) no wrong doings were found by new Chairman.. Let's bring this to a closure and move on.. It helps no one."

The Supreme Court has dismissed a plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to three trustees of the Ryan International Group in connection with the killing of a student in the school premises, reports PTI. A bench of Justices RK Agrawal and AM Sapre said the "petition is dismissed."

The court had earlier reserved the order on the plea of the father of 7-year-old boy, who was found dead in Ryan International School in Gurgaon, challenging the anticipatory bail granted to the trustees of the group. Pradhuman, a Class II student, was found with his throat slit in the school washroom in Gurgaon on September 8.

Domestic passenger vehicle sales rose 14.29% to 2,75,417 units in November from 2,40,983 units in the same month last year. Domestic car sales were up 4.49% to 1,81,395 units as against 1,73,607 units in November last year, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). Motorcycle sales last month rose 23.25% to 9,59,122 units as against 7,78,173 units a year earlier.

Total two-wheeler sales in November rose 23.49% to 15,35,277 units compared to 12,43,246 units in the year-ago month. Sales of commercial vehicles were up 50.43% to 68,846 units in November, SIAM said. Vehicle sales across categories registered a rise of 24.05% to 19,39,671 units from 15,63,658 units in November 2016, it added.

000cr

The Centre has moved the Supreme Court, seeking a stay on the Rs 20,000 crore Vodafone tax arbitration case, reports CNBC-TV18. The apex court will hear the government plea on December 12. The government has told the court that Vodafone cannot be allowed to invoke arbitration in the same case in two forums.

As legendary actor Dilip Kumar turns 95 today, his wife Saira Banu plans to treat him to his favourite delicacies - biryani and vanilla ice cream  on the occasion, reports PTI. Banu says she is not planning to throw a birthday party this time as Kumar is still recovering from pneumonia. "He loves biryani and that will be made for him but I will give him only little as he is unwell. He is also fond of vanilla ice cream, I will ask the doctors if we can give him a little bit of that too. Then we will have a birthday cake," Banu said in an interview.

"We will not have a grand birthday party as he is not keeping well. The immune system is not so good after he was down with pneumonia. I cannot let him exert now," she added. Banu also plans to buy Kumar a new pair of shirt and trousers. "Dilip Sahab is fond of good and simple clothes. He likes cotton shirts and trousers and matching shoes and socks. He has a huge collection of shoes, which he has from world over. Every year I order things of his choice. He is not a materialistic man. He doesn't like expensive gifts. My one consistent gift to him every year is my love, which keeps intensifying," she said.

After offloading stakes in insurance companies, cash-strapped public sector banks are gearing up to raise money by diluting their stakes in mutual funds through initial public offerings, reports Hindu Business Line. The government, which announced a Rs 2.11 lakh crore bailout for NPA-hit state-run banks, had instructed them to mop up capital by selling stakes in non-core assets before seeking financial support.

The seven public sector bank-sponsored mutual funds include Baroda Pioneer Mutual Fund, BOI Axa Mutual Fund, Canara Robeco Mutual Fund, IDBI Mutual Fund, SBI Mutual Fund, Union Mutual Fund and Principal (Punjab National Bank) Mutual Fund. Some of these mutual funds have already sounded out investment banks to ascertain the market potential and prepare the groundwork for an IPO, sources said.

Led by SBI Mutual Fund, the assets under management (AUM) of these seven mutual funds were up 11% in the September quarter at Rs 2.34 lakh crore against Rs 2.10 lakh crore in the June quarter. The average AUM of the mutual fund industry was up 7% at Rs 20.94 lakh crore (Rs 19.51 lakh crore) during the same period.

As tax officials chase to meet stiff revenue targets amid sluggish growth, there is a sudden surge in prosecution notices slapped by the Income Tax (I-T) Department, reports The Economic Times. Till now prosecution provision was invoked sparingly and primarily on wilful tax evaders. Now, prosecution proceedings are being initiated for not filing tax returns or for short or even delayed remittance of tax deducted at source (TDS) by business entities.

"A list of 8,000-odd non-filers (of tax return) with a past record of earnings has been compiled (by the tax department). Many in that list have been issued prosecution notices. While this may come across as somewhat harsh, notices have also gone to companies which even after deducting TDS (from salaries, rent, or other heads) have failed to submit it to the government," a senior tax official in Mumbai, which accounts for the highest income tax collection, said.

Three militants were killed in an encounter with security forces in Handwara area of north Kashmir, police told PTI. Director General of Police (DGP) SP Vaid said the slain militants were apparently Pakistanis. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in the early hours in Unisoo village of Handwara following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants in the area, a police official said.

He said the search operation turned into an encounter as the hiding militants fired upon the forces conducting the searches. During the gunfight, three militants were killed, the official said. He said their bodies along with three weapons have been recovered from the encounter site.

The craze for cryptocurrencies entered a new chapter on Monday as bitcoin futures rocketed by one-fifth of their value at a closely-watched launch, reports Reuters. The most-traded contract on the Chicago-based CBOE Global Markets exchange XBTc1 opened at $15,460 in New York on Sunday evening, before leaping to a high of $18,700 - a gain of 21%. They were last quoted at $17,550 a premium of more than $1,600 to the price on Gemini Exchange.

The futures are cash-settled contracts based on the auction price of bitcoin in dollars on the Gemini Exchange, which is owned and operated by virtual currency entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. The cryptocurrency has boasted a gravity-defying 15-fold gain since the start of the year, attracting institutional interest and no small amount of question marks.

Essar

Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda disposed of a part of their foreign currency loans in Essar Steel, selling the debt at 30-40% discounts with a foreign hedge fund acquiring it, sources told The Economic Times. Essar Steel has Rs 49,000 crore of loans outstanding, including external commercial borrowings of Rs 6,000 crore. The loans that Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda sold were part of the external commercial borrowings (ECBs).

The two banks sold the debt to Deutsche Bank, which subsequently transferred it to a hedge fund owned by Davidson Kempner, sources said. The buyer will have a say in the bankruptcy proceedings of the metal maker, they added. Axis Bank was the first to sell, bankers said. It sold $90 million (approximately Rs 580 crore) at a little less than 60 cents to a dollar, they added.

State-run Bank of Baroda got a better deal at 71 cents to a dollar, but the amount of loan it sold wasnt immediately known. Lenders, including IDBI Bank and ICICI Bank, are also contemplating to exit Essar Steels foreign currency loans and are evaluating a few proposals, sources said. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Indian Overseas Bank had sold their domestic loans to Essar Steel to Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company.

10:02 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhis roadshows in Ahmedabad have been denied permission by the police, reports NDTV. The police have cited law and order and public inconvenience as reasons for denial of permission.

South Korea says it has added several North Korean groups and individuals to its sanctions list as part of efforts to cut off funding for the North weapons programs. South Korea's government says the sanctions on 20 North Korean groups and 12 individuals took effect from today. Seoul is among the first to respond to North Korea's November 29 missile launch with fresh sanctions.

09:15 The Max India stock will be in focus today after the Delhi government on Friday cancelled the licence of Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh post market hours. Max India is the holding company for Max Healthcare. The Delhi governments decision came nearly a week after one of the premature twins born on November 30 and declared dead was found alive by the parents while being taken for last rites.

India is likely to change rules to allow foreign airlines to bid for Air India as long as they have a local joint venture with an Indian partner as the government seeks to increase the number of suitors for the debt-laden national carrier. Foreign airlines will be allowed to bid as per the current policy thats applicable on all domestic airlines. That much we can confirm, an official told Mint. Existing rules allow foreign airlines to own as much as 49% in an Indian airline, with the exception of Air India.

With the change in rules, the government expects to make the sale of Air India, which has drawn interest from companies including the Tata group and InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo), more competitive. The Civil Aviation Ministry has conveyed the proposal to a Group of Ministers looking into Air Indias stake sale in a recent meeting. The panel led by finance minister Arun Jaitley also includes Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Railways Minister Piyush Goyal and Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu.

The government will have to make several changes to existing rules before foreign airlines can bid for the national carrier. First, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotions Press Note No. 6 (2012 Series) has to be amended to remove a clause that bars foreign investment in Air India. Second, international flying rights negotiated between two governments require respective airlines to have local effective control to avail of these rights. A change in control to a foreign airline will invalidate these rights.

To ensure Air India does not face any issues, the government will retain a clause that says Air India cannot be 100% foreign-owned (even though foreign entities can own 100% of a private Indian airline, stakes of foreign airlines are capped at 49%). This, the Aviation Ministry believes, will allow effective control to be retained in India as the majority ownership will be with an Indian entity.

With time running out for a resolution of the second list of non-performing assets (NPAs) on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) list, lenders and corporate bodies have approached the central bank for extending the December 13 deadline, reports Business Standard. If debt resolution is not finalised by December 13 for the 28 companies on the list, insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) will be initiated.

The debt exposure of these companies would be more than Rs 1 lakh crore. No major progress has been made so far in debt resolution for the 28 accounts. Hence, some banks have sought an extension of the deadline, said the head of a public sector bank. If the deadline is not extended, most of the cases will go to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). The kind of deadline being put on the table is not acceptable to the banks. So, decision-making is very difficult at this stage, he said.

Maruti

Suzuki Motor Corporation is trying to insulate its Indian unit from the risks involved in developing electric vehicles even as the outcome of such efforts will benefit Maruti Suzuki India directly, reports Mint. Driven by a policy push in India and a desire to keep its market share intact, Suzuki has formed two crucial partnershipsone where it will produce lithium ion batteries in collaboration with Denso Corporation and Toshiba Corporation; and another with the worlds largest automaker Toyota Motor Corporation to introduce electric vehicles in India by 2020.

In both cases, while there is no direct involvement of Maruti in any manner, the fact that the Indian company does not have any equity participation means that it is unlikely to face any risk even if Indias electric vehicle drive fails to take off. The role of Maruti in these partnerships may best be limited to that of a procurer of lithium ion battery packs (from the tripartite joint venture) and of electric vehicle platforms from the Toyota-Suzuki partnership. It will, of course, sell those to Indian customers if the electric vehicle market takes off in the country.

The whole tie-up between Suzuki and Toyota is specifically for the Indian market. Hence, it is solely going to benefit Maruti. The Gujarat plant is also operated (and owned) by Suzuki but it has benefitted only Maruti, RC Bhargava, Chairman of Maruti Suzuki, said.

Jammu

A medium intensity earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter Scale hit Jammu & Kashmir early on Monday, the IMD said. According to the National Seismology Centre of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the earthquake occurred at 4:28 am at a depth of 33 km, reports PTI. There were no immediate reports of loss of life or property.

Large Japanese manufacturers turned more optimistic about economic conditions in the October-December quarter, a government survey showed on Monday, in another upbeat sign for an economy on a record run of growth. The business survey index (BSI) of sentiment at large manufacturers stood at plus 9.7, up from plus 9.4 in July-September, according to the joint survey by the Ministry of Finance and the Economic and Social Research Institute, an arm of the Cabinet Office. The mood was brightened by a weaker yen and a 12% jump in the Nikkei stock average since the previous survey period, while sales and profits were up led by auto manufacturers and makers of electronic parts for smartphones, reports Reuters.

08:00

FPIs

000cr

Foreign investors have pulled out more than Rs 4,000 crore from the country's stock markets this month so far, mainly due to rising crude prices and widening fiscal deficit. The outflow comes following an eight month high inflow of Rs 19,728 crore in November, mainly due to the government's plan to recapitalise PSU banks and surge in India's ranking in the World Bank's ease of doing business.

This was the highest net investment by FPIs since March, when they had poured in Rs 30,906 crore in the equity market. According to the depositories data, Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) withdrew a net amount of Rs 4,089 crore ($634 million) from equities till December 8. However, such investors had put in over Rs 2,200 crore in the debt markets during the period under review.

"Rising crude prices and widening fiscal deficit prompted FPIs to adopt a cautious stance for now. As per the recently released data, India's fiscal deficit rose to 96.1% of the full-year target by the end of October. The fiscal deficit data, which was released on November 30 overshadowed a resounding GDP growth of 6.3% for September quarter, which was also released on the same day. In addition to that, appreciating rupee and rising domestic markets too provide a good profit booking opportunity to FPIs, especially before Christmas and new year," Morningstar India's senior analyst manager (research) Himanshu Srivastava told PTI.

Even if there are net outflows in December, we will end the year with higher net inflows from FPIs compared to the last two years, he added. Overall, FPIs have invested over Rs 53,000 crore in equities so far in 2017 and another Rs 1.5 lakh crore in debt markets.

Investors have pumped in Rs 1.26 lakh crore into mutual funds in November, driving industry assets under management to an all-time high of Rs 21.8 lakh crore. With this latest inflow, total infusion in MF schemes reached Rs 3.8 lakh crore in the first eight months (April-November) of the current fiscal, latest data with Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) showed.

According to the data, investors have poured in a net of Rs 1.26 lakh crore in MF schemes last month as compared to an investment of over Rs 51,000 crore in October. The latest inflow has been mainly driven by contributions from equity, equity linked saving schemes and liquid funds.

Individually, liquid funds or money market category - investments in cash assets such as Treasury Bills, certificates of deposit and commercial paper for shorter horizon - witnessed an inflow of over 77,000 crore. Besides, equity and equity linked schemes attracted over Rs 20,300 crore. In addition, more than Rs 7,600 crore was invested in balanced funds. Further, over Rs 9,300 crore was put in the debt funds. In contrast, gold ETFs continued to see net outflow of Rs 89 crore.

998cr

The combined market valuation of eight of the top 10 valued firms soared by Rs 57,998.58 crore last week, driven by FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) and the country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India. India's largest IT services firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and HDFC Bank were the only losers among 10 most valued firms on BSE last week.

HUL's m-cap soared by Rs 16,092.90 crore to Rs 2,87,161.37 crore, while that of Maruti Suzuki India's surged by Rs 13,089.13 crore to Rs 2,73,106.05 crore. The valuation of Infosys, India's second-largest IT firm, jumped by Rs 9,888.56 crore to Rs 2,30,055.36 crore and that of diversified ITC rose by Rs 7,800.45 crore to Rs 3,18,965.41 crore.

The Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) added Rs 7,029.70 crore to its market valuation at Rs 5,83,243.66 crore while HDFC m-cap moved up by Rs 2,874.09 crore to Rs 2,67,809.05 crore. ONGC, the biggest oil and gas producer of India, saw its valuation rising by Rs 705.83 crore to Rs 2,31,383.23 crore and the largest public lender State Bank of India (SBI) by Rs 517.92 crore to Rs 2,70,312.76 crore.

On the flip-side, TCS took a hit of Rs 5,656.72 crore as its market capitalisation slumped to Rs 4,97,906.20 crore and the valuation of HDFC Bank dropped by Rs 944.64 crore to Rs 4,76,190.86 crore. In ranking, RIL remained at the top followed by TCS, HDFC Bank, ITC, HUL, Maruti Suzuki India, SBI, HDFC, ONGC and Infosys.

CBOE

Bitcoin prices jumped on Monday as the CBOE Futures Exchange began trading futures on the cryptocurrency, reports CNBC. The digital currency was at $14,890 right at 4:30am and then surged about $600 to $15,500.13 as of 5:47 am on the Coinbase exchange.

The new futures were up 2.6% to $15,860 on the CBOE in very early trading. They also turned negative for a brief moment at about 5:25 am before bouncing back. The exchange launched the futures under the 'XBT' ticker symbol following a huge ramp-up in the digital currency's price this year.

Interest was so great in the new product, it appeared to be overloading CBOE's website. "Due to heavy traffic on our website, visitors to http://www.cboe.com may find that it is performing slower than usual and may at times be temporarily unavailable," the exchange said in a statement. "All trading systems are operating normally."

The launch lets institutional investors buy into the cryptocurrency space. Until now, bitcoin has been mostly owned and traded by a few entrepreneurs.

Reversing last week's bearishness, global stock markets ended on a positive note this week. The European stocks were the biggest gainers after Britain and the European Union announced a breakthrough in Brexit negotiations.

The US markets also ended in the positive territory on a stronger than expected pick-up in the US hiring. As per the Labour Department, US employers added 228,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%.

Barring India, majority of the Asian indices ended weak. Although a softer yen and strong economic figures lifted stock sentiments, but the Japanese index ended flat in the week gone by. The economy expanded at an annual rate of 2.5% in the three months to September. Chinese markets were down 0.8% for the week.

Even as world stock markets remain mixed, bitcoin surged by over 50% to a dizzying level of over $16,000 on frenzied speculative buying. However, experts remain divided over the sustainability of the rally.

Back home, the Indian markets posted its biggest weekly gain since early November. The rally was fuelled amid hopes that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party would emerge victorious in the Gujarat state elections.

FMCG

bourses

All the stocks ended in green. Telecom stocks were the biggest gainers during the week as the telecom index rose by 4.3%. Stocks in the consumer durable,and oil & gas were among the other gainers on the
IPO

Restaurant firm Lite Bite Foods, which runs eateries like Punjab Grill and Zambar, is planning to list on the exchanges within a year.

"We can probably go public in the next year. We've reached those numbers," Chairman Amit Burman told The Economic Times. He further said that they currently have two options two raise funds  one is listing and the other is raising private equity.

Burman is optimistic on the future with impacts of highway ban, demonetisation and the Goods & Services Tax (GST) coming to rest. While in countries in Hong Kong and Singapore, people eat out about 28 times a month, in India, the number is hardly 3 or 4.

He expects this to change in coming time.

The company's revenue rose 30-32 percent over last year. Lite Bite has also recognised certain growth areas including small store at airports, offie premises and schools. The company will continue to maintain its airport brands like Zambar and Asia Seven.

For airports, the company works on franchise model and has set up stores for Burger King and KFC.

"For institutions, we sweat our commissaries. We're doing close to 9,000 meals a day and expanding the model. The number of customers is guaranteed. It's like the airport business where sales could fluctuate at most a daily 5 percent higher or lower," Burman told ET.
Q16. It is one of the oldest traditional sweet shops in India. It has catered to Mughal emperors, Presidents and Prime Ministers of India. It was founded by Lala Sukh Lal Jain, who had arrived in the walled city of Delhi from Amber. The shop is now run by his descendants. There are a couple of theories about how it got its name. According to one, it was so named by Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar himself, who asked his servants to get sweets from the shop below the bell. What is the name of the shop? (Image: Reuters)

The five-day general assembly of the global heritage body ICOMOS, hosted in the national capital this year, will begin today, at the end of which a Delhi Declaration is to be passed.

International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is a prestigious global non-government organisation which is dedicated to promoting the application of theory, methodology, and scientific techniques to the conservation of the architectural and archaeological heritage world over.

"This year, the 19th ICOMOS General Assembly and Scientific Symposium is taking place in Delhi on the invitation of ICOMOS India from December 11-15. The theme for the symposium is 'Heritage and Democracy'.

"Among other events, the symposium will explore the possibilities for cultural heritage in a world of multiple stakeholders, recognising the challenges of cultural diversity, and resulting contestation amidst local and global communities," a senior official of ICOMOS India said.

He said members of the ICOMOS International Board and several other representatives from ICOMOS offices in other parts of the country have already arrived on December 8 and took part in pre-Assembly events.

"On Friday they visited the Red Fort and Mehrauli Archaeological Park. Yesterday they toured the Qutub Minar," he added.

The events will be spread over three main venues - India International Centre (IIC), India Habitat Centre (IHC) and Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium.

As part the grand event, an exhibition has also been curated on the subject of 'cultural heritage practice in India: protection, conservation and integration'.

The exhibition is supported by the Urban Affairs Ministry, Aga Khan Trust for Culture and the Archaeological Survey of India.

ICOMOS is a network of experts that benefits from the interdisciplinary exchange of its members, among which are architects, historians, archaeologists, art historians, geographers, anthropologists, engineers and town planners.

The members of ICOMOS contribute to improving the preservation of heritage, the standards and the techniques for each type of cultural heritage property: buildings, historic cities, cultural landscapes and archaeological sites.

Its work is based on the principles enshrined in the 1964 International Charter on the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites (the Venice Charter).

"There will be resolutions passed at the end of the event, and there will also be a Delhi Declaration. It is a matter of great pride that India is hosting the General Assembly of this global heritage body," the senior ICOMOS India official said.
CNBC-TV18 brings you a brand new week of Bull's Eye. It's the popular game show where market experts come together to dish out trading strategies for you to make your week more exciting and compete with each other to see whose portfolio is the strongest.

Remember these are midcap ideas not just for the day, but stocks that look attractive in the medium-term as well.

This week, Sumeet Jain, Ashish Kyal and Ruchit Jain battle it out for top honours.

Below their top stock picks and analysis:

Sumeet Jain of Destimoney Securities

Buy Gujarat Ambuja Exports with a stoploss at Rs 184 and target of Rs 221

Buy Future Consumer with a stoploss at Rs 63 and target of Rs 77

Buy Star Paper with a stoploss at Rs 226 and target of Rs 262

Ashish Kyal of Waves Strategy Advisors

By SAIL with a stoploss at Rs 79.25 and target of Rs 87.40

Buy Balkrishna Industries with a stoploss at Rs 2343 and target of Rs 2585

Buy IOC with a stoploss at Rs 392.70 and target of Rs 435

Buy West Coast Paper with a stoploss at Rs 278.60 and target of Rs 307.30

Ruchit Jain of Angel Broking

Buy Cipla with a stoploss at Rs 588 and target of Rs 623

Buy Piramal Enterprises with a stoploss at Rs 2810 and target of Rs 3060

Buy Godrej Consumer Products with a stoploss at Rs 970 and target of Rs 1051

Sell Jubilant Foodworks with a stoploss at Rs 1710 and target of Rs 1590
Sudarshan Sukhani of s2analytics.com told CNBC-TV18, "I have midcap stocks because the sense is that the Nifty could consolidate or it could inch upward, so largecaps may be part of that consolidation. The deep correction in Ashok Leyland is over. A trading range is now in development and that should break on the upside. That is the assumption. That is a buying opportunity."

He further added, "Bharat Financial Inclusion had a dream chart, a long consolidation that has taken a shape of a bullish breakout. It is on the verge of breaking out. It is not just a swing trade, it is a day trade, swing trade as well as a positional buy. You could actually buy the equity and hold on. There is a very attractive impressive bullish chart there."

"The declines in Colgate Palmolive is now over. For the last one and a half months it is in a trading range. It had a handsome rally on Friday and that should bring it above the range and see a sustained upmove. FMCG is a favoured sector at this point in any case. So, Colgate is a buy."

"Tata Chemicals never corrected, it just went into a consolidation, in a sense that consolidation was a correction. It is now willing to break up and move ahead. Again a momentum buying opportunity. So, primarily the focus is to buy these consolidations and dips."

"IRB Infrastructure is the sole short sell. The stock has reacted to news. It is falling day after day. So, probably there is nothing to buy. It is a short sell but keep it intraday."
Sudarshan Sukhani of s2analytics.com told CNBC-TV18, "Lot of midcaps are giving buying opportunities, so Engineers India is buy for the day. The stock has already bounced from its minor correction and is looking for better and higher levels."

He further added, "Tata Elxsi is a buying opportunity. The stock has been an outperformer in the midcap IT segment. That outperformance continuous, so we are buying into existing momentum."

"Voltas which has been a strong outperformer in the consumer, capital good segment wherever it is placed, it has been doing very well. So, these three ideas for short-term buying intraday as well as carrying them forward for a couple of days."

"At current levels Escorts remains a long term buy. If you are prepared to hold it for three years which is what long term should mean at least then you are going to get gains in this stock. This has been an outperformer, an outperforming stocks in a bull market continue to outperform."

"At current levels ITC is a buying opportunity. After a long time the stock has been a distinct underperformer this is a trading call, so if you are looking for investing I think ITC is best left alone. Dont invest in ITC. If this is a trading idea I would say buy ITC, it is deeply oversold, even a relief rally can give you money in trading. So for a trader yes go and buy it."
A worker checks pipes and valves at Amaal oil field in eastern Libya October 7, 2011. Eight months of civil war have left Libya's oil industry in chaos, with fields that once pumped a total of around 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) deserted and export terminals, pumping stations and pipelines damaged by fighting and sabotage. Engineers and other workers who left the field, which is about 1000 km (620 miles) southeast of the capital Tripoli, are returning in what the country's new rulers hope will be the resumption of full oil production as soon as possible. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny (LIBYA - Tags: CONFLICT BUSINESS ENERGY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2SD29

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Shares of IL&FS Engineering and Construction has locked at 5 percent upper circuit on Monday as it has received order for pipeline laying works from GAIL.

There were pending buy orders of 25,154 shares, with no sellers available.

The company has received Fax of Acceptance (FOA) from Gas Authority of India (GAIL India) for 157.8 km long 30' diameter pipeline laying works for Dobhi-Durgapur-Haldia Pipeline Section (Part B) along with 13.28 km long 12' diameter spurline under Jagdishpur Haldia/Bokaro-Dhamra Natural Gas pipeline (JHBDPL) project in Jharkhand/West Bengal states, as per company release.

The total value of the contract is Rs 215.79 crore (excluding GST) and is to be mechanically completed in 15 months from date of FOA and additional 2 month for pre-commissioning and commissioning.

Recently, the company also won a pipeline laying contract from GAIL worth Rs 123.05 crore in Kerala/Karnataka.

The company is already executing pipeline projects for GAIL worth Rs 335.71 crore in Kerala and Bihar states.

At 10:03 hrs IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company was quoting at Rs 53.65, up Rs 2.55, or 4.99 percent.

The stock gained 42 percent in the last 3 months.

Posted by Rakesh Patil
The telecom industry could pare as much as Rs 90,000 crore debt if stake sale deals of mobile tower assets, currently being discussed, materialise, credit rating firm Icra said today.

It predicted structural and material changes for the telecom tower industry in the medium term.

Icra also anticipated some headwinds in the short term, as consolidation of telecom operators leads to rationalisation of tenancies, but remained confident about the growth prospects in coming years.

This growth would be fuelled by the network expansion of telecom operators, keen to meet the data needs of consumers, it said.

"As per Icra estimates, debt to the tune of Rs 80,000- 90,000 crores can be pruned from the telecom industry if the stake sale transactions of tower assets currently under discussions materialise," it said.

With around 4 lakh towers and 8 lakh tenancies, the telecom tower space is a sizeable one in the world, it added.

It said the sector has 10 organised players (besides small tower owners) wherein nearly three-fourths of the portfolio (74 per cent) is controlled either by tower companies promoted by telecom operators, or by telecom operators themselves.

"Over the next 1-2 years, there is likely to be a material change in the industry structure with number of players expected to reduce to 4-5," Icra predicted.

Summing up the upcoming trends, it said that one of the key developments would be the expected change in ownership from telecom operators to independent players, given ongoing consolidation moves and the interest from institutional investors and independent tower companies.

In addition, the industry is also headed for robust growth in the coming years fuelled by the network expansions of telecom operators, it added.

Also in the offing is upside in rentals due to improved negotiation power that would follow consolidation as well as from greater independent ownership, Icra said.

"At the same time, the consolidation transactions could entail migration of some debt to the tower industry from the telecom industry, where elevated debt levels remain an area of concern," it added.

Harsh Jagnani, Sector Head and Vice President  Corporate Ratings, Icra said the industry is now on a "solid footing" to expand as the telecom sector pursues network expansion to meet the growing data needs.

"The industry generates steady cash flows given its indispensability to the telecom services and benefits from the inherent strengths of the lease agreements...which include long tenure, penalties on exit before a fixed lock-in period, per annum escalations in rentals, and incentivising addition of new tenants," Jagnani added.

Significant pressures on cash flows and stretched capital structure of the telecom sector have pushed operators to reduce their debt levels by monetising their tower asset ownership, Icra said and forecast a significant debt reduction once ongoing deals materialise.

"Icra estimates that the consolidation transactions in the tower industry would entail some debt migrating from the telecom industry to the tower industry. However comfort is drawn from the tower industrys relatively stronger balance sheet and greater predictability of cash flows," Jagnani said.
Wonderla Holidays | ICRA reaffirmed its long term rating outstanding on the line of credit of company at AA-, but outlook on long term rating has been revised to Negative from Stable. (Image: Wikimeida)

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Wonderla Holidays Ltd's non- ticket business is growing fast and expected to contribute as much as 40 per cent to its total revenues in the next 4-5 years, said a top company official.

This business includes food and beverage, resort, ride photos and souvenir, the amusement park operator's Managing Director Arun K Chittilappilly told PTI.

Non-ticket revenues of the company, which owns and operates amusement parks in Kochi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, currently contributes 25 per cent of its topline, he said.

The company, Chittilappilly said, has just completed acquisition of 60 acres of land in Chennai, where it plans to begin construction of a park early next financial year.

The Rs 350-crore plus park is slated to be operational in 2019-2020.

Wonderla is working on rolling out information technology initiatives, including introduction of RFID bands, to enhance customer experience, he said.

After the Chennai park, Wonderla would "concentrate" on the Western region and is currently exploring options on setting up facilities in Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Pune and Goa, he said.

Wonderla does not have overseas plans, Chittilappilly said, noting that India is still a largely untapped market.

"GST is bad for us because the taxes are at the highest bracket of 28 per cent. In fact, we had to hike the prices by 18 per cent this year because of GST. And because of that we have lost 4-5 per cent footfalls," he said.

Demonetisation did not have much of an impact on the company, Chittilappilly added.
Fourteen percent of the 1,815 candidates contesting the ongoing Gujarat Assembly polls were facing criminal charges, according to a report.

A study of the affidavits submitted by the candidates to the Election Commission showed that of the 253 such nominees, 154 had serious criminal cases such as murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, and crime against women against them.

The study was carried out by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-governmental organisation which works in the area of electoral and political reforms, and the Gujarat Election Watch.

According to the report, 56 Congress candidates contesting the Gujarat polls had criminal cases against them, while the number of BJP nominees in this category was 46.

Of the 418 "crorepati" candidates, 147 belonged to the BJP, while 129 were fielded by the Congress.

The average worth of assets of the candidates contesting the Gujarat polls was Rs 2.22 crore, the report said, adding that in the 2012 Assembly election in the state, the average worth of assets of the 1,283 candidates was Rs 1.46 crore.

The average worth of assets for the 181 BJP candidates in the fray was Rs 9.04 crore, while the figure was pegged at Rs 9.10 crore for the 176 Congress candidates and at Rs 19.84 lakh for the 138 BSP nominees, according to the report.

It also stated that there were 35 "red alert" constituencies, having three or more candidates with declared criminal cases, of the 182 Assembly segments in the state.

In the 2012 polls, there were 25 of such constituencies in Gujarat.

The first phase of the polls was held on December 9 and the second and final phase will take place on December 14. The counting of votes will be taken up on December 18.
Congress vice President Rahul Gandhi addressing a public meeting at Amreli, Gujarat. (PTI)

Cutting across factions, the Bihar Congress today hailed Rahul Gandhi becoming party President and expressed hope that he will "infuse with new energy" the more than 100 years old political organization.

Led by BPCC Acting President Kaukab Qadri, party leaders celebrated the news of Rahul Gandhi elevation as President at Sadaqat Ashram, the state headquarters, distributing sweets, smearing each other's faces with "gulaal" and bursting firecrackers".

Qadri expressed hope "the Congress will attain new heights under Rahul Gandhi's leadership, starting with a resounding victory in the Gujarat assembly polls. He is a descendant of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who gave up their lives in defence of the country's integrity. He will preserve the country's democratic and socialist tradition".

AICC member Prem Chan Mishra, who was also present on the occasion, was asked whether Rahul Gandhi's emphasis on probity in public life could place the party's alliance with the RJD under strain, on account of allegations of corruption against Lalu Prasad and his family. "It is premature to think of those things.

IN PICTURES: Stakes are high for Rahul Gandhi 2.0

In any case, whenever the Congress has formed an alliance, it has not done so keeping an individual in mind. The stress has always been on ideology", Mishra said. Former BPCC president Ashok Choudhary, who was conspicuous by his absence at the Sadaqat Ashram, told PTI "it is a welcome development though it should have happened long ago. Even as the vice-president, Rahul Gandhi had been leading from the front and becoming the president was just a formality".

"Nevertheless, his elevation raises the hope that it will infuse the party with new energy", Choudhary said. Significantly, following the exit of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar from the Grand Alliance, the state unit of the Congress has witnessed a bitter factional feud.

One of these factions is headed by Choudhary, who is said to be close to Kumar while the other faction comprises those who are believed to be more comfortable with the RJD. Other party leaders who congratulated Gandhi over his elevation included CLP leader Sadanand Singh, Amita Bhushan, Vijay Shankar Mishra, and Chandan Bagchi.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi mocked at the jubilations over Rahul Gandhi's elevation saying "the Congress can never have a figure like Narendra Modi who rises through the ranks and reaches the top on sheer merit. All Congress presidents not from the Nehru-Gandhi family have been compelled to make disgraceful exits".
The Karnataka cabinet today gave its approval to a Rs 5,950 crore project for providing metro rail connectivity to the international airport on the city outskirts.

The 29.62 km long Metro project that will connect Nagavara and Kempegowda International airport will have seven stations.

The time frame for completing the project is 2021. On completion, 1.2 lakh people were projected to be benefited, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra told reporters after the cabinet meeting here.

He said the Detailed Project Report had been prepared and Rs 5,950 crore was expected to be invested in the project. It would be financed through Rs 1,000 crore collected by the Bengaluru International Airport Limited as Passenger Service Fee, Rs 1,350 crore from state government, Rs 500 crore from Centre and about Rs 3000 crore as loan.

The 42-3 km long first phase of Bengaluru Metro Rail Project, popularly named 'Namma Metro' to the city residents and started in 2008, was opened to public in different phases. The last section of first phase, measuring 11.3 km was opened in June this year. The second phase is already under implementation and would add another 72 kms to the existing network.

After the expansion, it was expected to carry more than 15 lakh passengers per day. The cabinet also cleared a proposal for identification of special agriculture production zones for farmers' benefit.

Jayachandra said the move was intended to encourage production of food crops, like producing vegetables in urban areas and to support establishment of allied industries nearby, based on the suggestion made by a vision group headed by Prof Swaminathan.

Other decisions taken by the cabinet include approval of 'Seva Sindhu', making it mandatory for various department services to offer services through the online portal and delegation of powers to the Bengaluru Smart City Limited- a Special Purpose Vehicle under Smart Cities Mission.

Seva Sindhu has been developed with an objective to enable a single window access to information and services being provided by the various government departments.
[UNVERIFIED CONTENT] Preparing for the daily border closing ceremony between Pakistan and India.

Pakistan on Monday asked India to not drag Islamabad into domestic elections. This comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused Congress leaders of holding secret meetings with Pakistan officials.



India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

 Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

"India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible," Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal said on Twitter.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed at an election rally that there was an attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the Gujarat polls.

During a rally in Gujarat, Modi had alleged that Congress held secret three-hour meetings with former and current Pakistan officials at former Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. The meeting, Modi said, was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, former foreign minister, former PM Manmohan Singh, and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari.

"On one hand, Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election, and on the other, Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts?" the prime minister had said while addressing a poll rally in Gujarat.

Modi also raised questions about the alleged appeal by former director general (DG) of the Pakistan Army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel chief minister of Gujarat.

(With inputs from PTI)
The government is considering manufacturing civilian aircraft and would like to move ahead with the plan "very fast", a civil aviation ministry official said on Monday.

The country's domestic aviation market is one of the fastest growing in the world and has registered high double-digit growth for more than two years. Many airlines are embarking on ambitious expansion plans and authorities are working on developing new airports to cater to the rising demand as well as boosting regional air connectivity.

"We are considering manufacturing our own civilian aircraft... definitely, the concept is there and we are looking for smaller aircraft like a 20-seater which can be used within the country and this also is supported by our policy of Make in India," said Shefali Juneja, Director at the Civil Aviation ministry. Currently, aircraft are imported or taken on lease from overseas lessors.

"Developing our own civilian aircraft is something we are considering... and is something which we need to move forward very fast," she said. She was speaking at the 'ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit' here.

In efforts to strengthen air connectivity between India and ASEAN nations, a civil aviation task force is being developed to encourage consultations between the countries. Under the ASEAN-India cooperation framework, a joint working group is being set up and it would initially focus on safety and security aspects, besides air navigation services.

The first meeting of the joint working group is to be held in January 2018, Juneja said. At present, there are no air services between India and four ASEAN countries -- Brunei, Cambodia, the Philippines and Lao-PDR.

Listing out the challenges in the India-ASEAN aviation market, Juneja also said there is "only one-sided operation by ASEAN carriers in India-Myanmar, India-Indonesia, India- Vietnam markets".

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has 10 members, including include Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei. The summit was jointly organised by industry body CII and ASEAN India Centre.
The row over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegations of Pakistani interference and Congress collusion in the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections boiled over on Monday as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a scathing attack on his successor and sought an apology.

Modi had stirred a hornet's note a day earlier with his remarks at an election rally over a meeting between Congress leaders and a Pakistani delegation.

What did the Prime Minister say?

At an election rally in Gujarat on Sunday, PM Modi accused Pakistan of interfering in the ongoing elections in his home state.

Modi: "There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at [Congress leader] Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice-president (Hamid Ansari) and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The meeting at Aiyar's house carried on for almost three hours".

The prime minister also claimed that Pakistan Army's former director-general, Sardar Arshad Rafiq was interfering in Gujarat's election, alleging that he had appealed to make Congress veteran Ahmed Patel the next Chief Minister of Gujarat in a post on social media. Moneycontrol could not independently verify the veracity of the post.

What happened next?

The Congress party was quick to call the claims "baseless". The party also said the prime minister made the allegations as he was worried about the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s impending defeat in the Gujarat Assembly elections.

Pakistan too refuted the claims and asked not to be dragged into India's domestic electoral battles. Islamabad said that PM Modi's allegations of a recent "secret three-hour meeting" attended by Congress and Pakistani officials are "fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible".

Did the meeting really happen?

Yes. The statement put out by Manmohan Singh clearly lists out guests present at the meeting. There were 18 people present at the meeting including the former prime minister himself, former Vice President Hamid Ansari, former External Affairs minister Natwar Singh, former Chief of Army Staff Gen. Deepak Kapoor, Pakistani High Commission to India Sohail Mahmood and former Pakistani foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri.

Was there collusion? Ajay Shukla, retired Colonel of Indian Army, who was also present at the meeting, told CNN News18 that India's domestic issues and the election were not discussed.

Modi claims that the morning after the dinner, Mani Shankar Aiyar had called him a 'neech aadmi', which led to the senior Congress leader being suspended from his party.

For his part, Manmohan Singh said that the Gujarat assembly election was not discussed at the meeting.



Statement from Former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on the falsehoods being spread to score political points, in a lost cause by PM Modi. pic.twitter.com/X20X3oeeYw

 Congress (@INCIndia) December 11, 2017

Singh issued a statement saying that he had been "deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than the prime minister." Singh also sought an apology from the prime minister for making the accusations.

But Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley came to defence of Modi, saying asking for an apology was "beyond comprehension".

"It is surprising that the Congress party expects the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it," Jaitley said. "The Congress should come out with facts of what transpired at the meeting and explain what was the necessity of it...to hold parallel dialogues, underplay Pakistan's role in terrorism."
Suspected Lashker-e-Taiba operative Abdul Nayeem Sheikh, who was arrested last month from Lucknow, had spent some time in trouble-torn south Kashmir and filmed some Army installations, officials said.

Sheikh, a resident of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, was on the radar of central intelligence agencies for quite sometime before he was nabbed with the help of Uttar Pradesh police in the last week of November.

The case was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), a central probe agency mandated to investigate all terror modules in the country.

The central security agencies, which interrogated Sheikh at length, had told the investigators about his accomplice, Tauseef Ahmed Malik, in Pulwama district of south Kashmir. He was placed under arrest by the NIA on December 9.

During interrogation, Sheikh disclosed that he had stayed in Pulwama, moved to various places with the help of Malik and even photographed some Army and para-military camps, the officials claimed.

Sheikh, who was wanted in connection with a 2014 terror case and was since on the run, told investigators that some important power projects and railway tracks in the Valley were surveyed, they said.

He had also visited some places in Himachal Pradesh, especially Kasol, which is frequented by Israeli nationals visiting India, according to the officials.

Security agencies have claimed that Sheikh was roped in for a recce mission similar to that undertaken by David Headley, a Pakistan-American, who is at present serving a prison sentence of 35 years at a US jail for his involvement in terror activities and the 26/11 Mumbai attacks of 2008.

They said Malik's association with the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba also came to light during Sheikh's interrogation.

Malik had shown to probe officials the places where Sheikh had stayed with the terrorists for over three months, they added.
Outgoing Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (C) along with India's Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi (2nd R) sit after paying respects at the Rajiv Gandhi memorial on the occasion of the former Indian Prime Minister's 23rd death anniversary in New Delhi May 21, 2014. Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a female suicide bomber during election campaigning on May 21, 1991. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY OBITUARY) - RTR3Q52L

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologise to the nation for alleging that he was conspiring with Pakistan for BJP's defeat in the Gujarat polls.

Rejecting the charge as "innuendos and falsehoods", Singh said he was deeply pained by the prime minister's "ill thought transgression".

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur, Gujarat, yesterday, Modi suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence the assembly polls in the state.

He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi.

Singh issued a statement today, listing those who attended the dinner, and stressed that the election was not discussed during the meeting.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies," Singh said in the statement.
Congress president-elect Rahul Gandhi today took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for talking about Pakistan, China, Afghanistan and Japan in the Gujarat elections but avoiding speaking about his home state.

Gandhi also questioned Modi's 'silence' on the company promoted by BJP president Amit Shah's son Jay Shah whose turnover was claimed to have shot up manifold after the BJP came to power at the Centre.

Gandhi, who was declared elected as Congress president today, said Modi was frequently shifting his campaign plank in Gujarat.

IN PICTURES: Stakes are high for Rahul Gandhi 2.0

He said, first it was the Narmada water, but after farmers started saying it has not reached their fields, Modi changed tack and began speaking about OBC issues. When that also did not find favour with people, he went for development issues "but people punctured it", he said.

"Now, Modiji speaks about Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and Japan. Modiji, this is the election about the future of Gujarat. Please say something about Gujarat also," he told a well-attended rally here in Banaskantha district.

Gandhi was apparently targeting the prime minister over his yesterday's suggestion that Pakistan was trying to influence the Gujarat Assembly polls and that some current and former officials of that country had met Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence a day before Aiyar's 'neech' remark against him.

The Congress leader said, in his speeches in the last couple of days, the prime minister devoted half the time to Congress-bashing.

"On one hand he is claiming that he has finished the Congress party from India, and on the other, he devotes half of his time to Congress. The other half of his speech is devoted to Narendra Modiji himself," the 47-year-old leader said.

"Modiji please devote two-three minutes of your speech to (talking about) the future of Gujarat," he said.

He questioned Modi's silence on corruption, as he targeted him over the alleged exponential rise in the turnover of a company owned by Amit Shah's son.

"You listen to his entire speech, corruption is totally missing from it. Jay Amit Shah's company converted Rs 50,000 to Rs 80 crore in three months but the chowkidar is silent, not a word is coming out of his mouth."

"Narendra Modiji fears Amit Shah, that is the reason he is not saying a word about Jay Shah," he claimed.

Gandhi reaffirmed his promise that the Congress if voted to power in Gujarat, will waive farm loans within 10 days.

He claimed the NDA government waived Rs 1.30 lakh crore loans of 10 richest people in the country. He said when farmers also ask for a loan waiver, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and the prime minister say it is not their policy.

"Why the loans of farmers are not waived," Gandhi asked, and in the next breath gave the reply "as they do not fly in planes, they do not have big cars, and they do not have suit worth Rs 15 lakh."

Gandhi again alleged there was corruption in the Nano deal between the Gujarat government and the Tatas.

"The Congress allocated Rs 35,000 crore to MNREGA, while the BJP government gave Rs 33,000 crore to the Tata Nano factory. The water from the Narmada went to that factory. The factory gets electricity for 24 hours even when you get it only at night," he alleged.

The Congress leader claimed land in villages in and around Mundra were given to the Adani group at the rate of Re 1 per square metre, which the latter sold back to the government at Rs 3,000 for every square metre.

Assailing the government over demonetisation and the GST, he said half the money of common people was "looted" by the note ban and the rest by the "Gabbar Singh Tax".

Tomorrow is the last day of campaigning for the second and final phase of Gujarat polls which has been high-pitch and vitriolic, with both Modi and Gandhi often making personal attacks against each other. Polling will be held on December 14. Votes would be counted on December 18.
CPI-M politburo member Brinda Karat today said a nationwide ban on alcohol will lead to illegal trade, even as she supported a regulated policy with people's participation to curb the abuse.

Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar yesterday pitched for a nationwide ban on alcohol and asked party activists to raise awareness among people about the ill-effects of liquor consumption.

Karat said that the ban and total prohibition lead to illegal trade while free supply of liquor causes "social havoc".

"So, a more regulated policy with people's participation is what we support," she told PTI, when asked about her party's view on Kumar's statement.

Karat said her party believes that the present liquor policies of most state governments actually promote its consumption as a revenue spinner.

"We fight against such policies and support and build social movements against alcohol abuse," she added.

Kumar had yesterday hit out at the Congress and Left parties, asking why they could not support a ban on liquor and campaign against its consumption.

"When Gujarat could implement liquor ban, Bihar could show that it could also be banned in the state, why it cannot be banned in the entire country?" he had said while addressing a party event in New Delhi.

Stressing that all religions, including Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism, criticise liquor consumption, he had said a ban in the entire country would be the biggest sign of communal harmony and respect to all the religions.
Technical education institutions in India, particularly those that offer BE (bachelor of engineering) and B Tech (bachelor of technology) courses, are running at 49 percent capacity, according to a report by the Financial Express.

The report also stated that according to data from All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), less than half the students passing out of these courses have found job via campus placements in the last five years.

The job placement figure is even worse if you see only the standalone figure for last year, which stood at a paltry 40 percent. After a series of extremely disappointing numbers like these, the apex technical education body of the country  the AICTE  is now considering asking colleges with less than 70 percent occupancy to wind up and shut shop.

This shocking situation also gained prominence after various reports online suggested that the quality of education in the country is worsening. The reasons for such a poor state of affairs are various, including corruption at various levels, poor infrastructure facilities like labs, and lack of skilled teaching faculty.

Factors like these are hampering the quality of graduates these colleges are churning out every year. External factors like poor connections with an industry body add insult to injury.

However, industry stalwarts have a different take on the story. RC Bhargava, Chairman of Maruti Suzuki, who is also Chairman of IIT Kanpur, was quoted by Financial Express as saying, Most of the graduates dont know the basics of engineering. The reason these vacancies keep increasing is because graduates cant find jobs. Thats because employers dont think they are worth employing. Most people will tell you that 80 percent of engineering graduates are not employable.

Experts also blame market factors for this situation. In the wake of the dotcom bubble during the late 90s and early 2000s, when the IT industry saw a rush of software-related jobs, companies were in dire need of engineers. The situation was so grave that employers even chose to ignore a candidates branch of engineering, if he or she could code.

DK Subramaniam, professor at IISc, said that private players have now stepped up in order to keep pace with the booming demand but government institutions have stayed away from the software engineering branch. Although this helped calm things down back then, the situation turned serious when scrupulous institutions started cropping up by the hour.

The situation has resulted in a vicious circle in which low quality engineers are forcing the industry to hire less. Reduced demand in turn results in lower number of people choosing to enter the field. Unless and until universities step up their game, courses like BE and B Tech will continue turning more and more unviable by the day.
Delhi High Court

The Delhi government on Monday told the Delhi High Court that most undertrials, languishing in Tihar Jail despite being granted bail, were accused in sexual offence cases relating to minors and cannot be released without a surety bond.

The government's counsel submitted that modifying the bail conditions of these offenders and releasing them without furnishing a surety (guaranteer) bond could hamper trial.

The submissions came during the hearing of a PIL claiming that over 300 undertrials were languishing in the Tihar Central Jail here, despite being granted bail.

Delhi government's counsel Gautam Narayan placed before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar, a list of 291 prisoners in whose favour conditional bail orders have been passed but due to inability to furnish the surety bond, they were still incarcerated.

The court asked the government to modify the list of the prisoners and place before it on December 14, the next date of hearing.

The PIL was filed by advocate Ajay Verma alleging that despite judicial bail orders, 326 prisoners have not been released from jail due to inability to furnish surety bond.

During the hearing, Verma said the prisoners were unable to furnish surety bond due to their financial problems and some of them were not residents of Delhi.

The government's counsel said that court should not pass any blanket order modifying the bail conditions.

The court had earlier directed the AAP government to submit a status report on the petition giving details of the prisoners, including names, cases in which they were implicated or convicted, details of orders on bail or sentence and the reasons for not releasing them.

It had also appointed former Director General of Tihar Jail Sudhir Yadav as amicus curiae to assist it in the matter.

Seeking formulation of guidelines and certain directions, the plea has said a large number of citizens were lodged in jail awaiting trials before the courts and many of them have not been released despite bail orders for several months for not fulfilling the conditions attached with the bail orders due to poverty and ignorance.

The plea has said the Supreme Court had also directed that the legal services authorities may take up those cases before the concerned court for relaxation on bail conditions.

It claimed that despite various directions of the apex court and the high court, the orders have not been implemented in the correct perspective.

It also sought to blame the courts for not exercising the option of personal bond for financially unstable prisoners and said it was a misuse of discretionary powers by the judicial system.
Assam government has sent the samples of Brahmaputra river's water to the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad and Indian Institute Technology-Guwahati for testing. It was reported that the water of the river was turning black.

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed the Director General of Fire Services to collect the samples and sent it to the institutes for examination.

AP Rawat, the Director General of Fire Services, collected water samples from 15 locations and sent them to IIT-G and Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, according to a report in The Economic Times. The samples will be tested to determines the reasons for water turning dark.

Upon finding the responsible causes the report would be submitted to the state government for it to take remedial steps. Following the incident, the state government also brought the incident to the notice of the central government, the Assam government said.

Also Read: Concerns raised about Chinese intentions after a river in Arunachal Pradesh turns black

Siang river, one of the largest tributaries to the Brahmaputra, has become muddy and black in Arunachal Pradesh. Siang meets the Brahmaputra in Sadiya in Assam state. India had accused Chinese activities on the bank of the river for the blackening of Siang. The river originates in Tibet and flows to Arunachal Pradesh.
The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the Madras High Court's order for setting up Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) in Tamil Nadu.

The Tamil Nadu government had gone to the apex court saying the state's education system follows a two language policy, where students are taught Tamil and English till 10th standard.

JNVs are government-run residential schools that were established to improve the quality of education in rural areas. They follow a three-language policy, wherein their students are taught the regional language, Hindi and English.

The setting up of these schools was earlier opposed by the state government as it feared that Sanskrit would eventually replace Tamil, the state's regional language, in the education system.

The state government had approached the High Court with this issue. Pleas were also filed, through which the parties stated their concern over Sanskrit or Hindi becoming the primary language instead of Tamil.

After discussions between the Centre and the state, the central government had clarified that Hindi will not be imposed on students who take admission in the state's JNVs. The issues arose after the state stuck to its stand of following a two language policy, which featured only Tamil and English, not Hindi.

The Centre had said schools will compulsorily teach Tamil to students from 5th to 10th grade and it will be an additional language for students in the 11th and 12th grades. After the clarification, the Madras High Court gave a thumbs up to setting up JNVs and they were set to open in every district of the state.
The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear Unitech Limiteds appeal challenging the recent order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) directing the central government to take over the management of the real estate firm that has projects spread across Gurgaon and Noida.

NCLT on Friday suspended the Unitech board for alleged mismanagement of funds and barred its directors from selling either personal or company assets. It invoked the provisions of the Companies Act and allowed the Centre to appoint its nominee directors to the Board by December 20.

After hearing the embattled companys argument on Friday, NCLTs principal bench had also noted that its order will be subject to compliance with the Supreme Courts directives.

Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, who appeared on behalf of the embattled company on Monday, requested that the companys appeal be heard on an urgent basis. A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud considered the submission of the real estate firm that its bank accounts have been frozen and the company and its jailed promoters are finding it difficult to deposit Rs 750 crore as ordered by the apex court.

The apex court had on November 20 directed Tihar Jail authorities to grant adequate meeting time to Sanjay Chandra, managing director, Unitech Ltd, for allowing him to strike deals to sell properties with prospective buyers in order to deposit Rs 750 crore with the court by December end. The apex court had earlier said that Chandra will be granted bail only after the company deposits the said amount with the Supreme Courts registry by December end.

Chandra had sought interim bail from the apex court after the Delhi High Court on August 11 rejected the plea in a criminal case lodged in 2015 by 158 home buyers of Unitech projects Wild Flower Country and Anthea located in Gurgaon.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on key bilateral issues.

According to sources, all issues of mutual interest were discussed between the two leaders.

This is the first high-level visit from China after the Dokalam standoff this summer.

Wang is here to attend the Russia-India-China trilateral,

He will also attending an India-China cultural event in the evening.

The foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) are here to deliberate on a range of pressing regional and global issues, including ways to tackle the threat of terrorism and extremism, at the key meeting of the grouping.
Vijay Mallya

Vijay Mallya's extradition trial to face fraud and money laundering charges of Rs 9,000 crore in India resumed today, with his defence fielding a legal expert to question the impartiality of India's judicial system.

The 61-year-old was back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London for day four of the hearing when his barrister, Clare Montgomery, deposed Dr Martin Lau to give his views on the evidence presented by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Indian Supreme Court rulings.

"I hold the Supreme Court in the highest respect but it is equally not disrespectful to indicate that some doubts are voiced about particular patterns [in judgments]," Dr Lau, an expert on South Asian law, told the court.

Quoting an unnamed study by three academics from Singapore and Hong Kong, Lau raised questions on the neutrality of Supreme Court judges close to retirement.

Lau was also made to comment upon some of the evidence produced by the CBI to back up its case against the liquor baron in an attempt to discredit its admissibility in court.

Reading from Lau's written testimony, Mallya's counsel quoted from an unnamed media report to claim that there had been "coercion" by Special Director Rakesh Asthana and his team over the banks in India to pursue criminal proceedings against her client.

The legal expert, who will continue to give his statement throughout today's hearing, is also being made to elaborate on the application of Indian laws relevant to the case.

Lau claims some of the money laundering allegations against Mallya may fall under a "retrospective application" of the Money Laundering Act because the alleged offences occurred before 2013, when the act was amended in India.

Earlier today, the defence had deposed Margaret Sweeney  the Chief Financial Officer of Force India, Mallyas Formula 1 racing team.

She was run through a series of spreadsheets and figures from her written testimony to establish if money had been taken from Kingfisher Airlines for "no good reason" by Force India and used for some other purposes.

"Absolutely not," was her response, explaining that all payments she was aware of were in relation to a marketing contract between Kingfisher Airlines and the F1 team.

The defence also quoted from an independent media valuation to claim there had been no overpayment by Kingfisher Airlines, as alleged by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

"Far from it," said Sweeney, on being asked if Force India was being paid too much.

The CPS cross-examination of Sweeney by barrister Mark Summers focused on payments being routed via an HSBC account in London, which was intended only for the operational use of Kingfisher Airlines.

The defence's case rests on trying to prove that the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is facing a parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets.

The SBI, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk LLP, Rose Capital Ventures Ltd and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday.

Last week, the defence claimed that a consortium of Indian banks led by SBI had rejected an offer by the liquor baron in early 2016 to pay back nearly 80 per cent of the principle loan amount owed to them.

However, the CPS  arguing on behalf of the Indian government  countered that assertion in its cross- examination, indicating that the reason such a repayment offer would have been rejected was that the banks knew Mallya had the means to pay back the entire amount due.

While the CPS stand is that Mallya did not intend to repay the loans he sought because his airlines demise was inevitable, Montgomery is trying to establish that Kingfisher Airlines was suffering from consequences of a wider global financial crisis around 2009-2010 and that its failure was a result of factors beyond the companys control.

In his cross-examination, Summers had highlighted a particular "washing machine activity" picked up by the government of India that involved sums amounting to around 10 -15 million pounds being funneled between UB Group companies to wrongly claim obligations of equity infusions into struggling Kingfisher Airlines were being met.

Indian government sources have described its case, being presented by the CPS, as "very strong".

Mallya's legal team had claimed earlier in the trial that the case against him was "politically motivated".

Mallya, who has been based in the UK since March 2016, was arrested by Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant in April and has been out on bail on a bond worth 650,000 pounds.

If the judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must order Mallya's extradition within two months.

However, the case can go through a series of appeals in higher UK courts before arriving at a conclusion.
Gujarat Elections 2017: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses an election campaign rally for state assembly election in Jamnagar. (PTI)

Senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily on Monday sought to know why Prime Minister Narendra Modi kept quiet when he had information that his suspended party colleague Mani Shankar Aiyar gave "supari" (contract) to get him "removed" from the way to ensure peace between India and Pakistan.

Moily, a Lok Sabha member and a former Union minister, wondered what Modi was waiting for when he had all the powers at his disposal to take action against Aiyar.

"Why he (Modi) remained silent for such a long period of time to disclose that the attempts were made to remove him? Is he talking responsibly? It is not a question of assassination bid on an individual but the prime minister of country," Moily told reporters.

He questioned the prime minister as to what investigation has been carried out to establish his claims.

He said Modi had made the baseless allegations only to emotionally blackmail the voters of Gujarat and win the Assembly polls somehow.

At an election rally in Gujarat, Modi had said, "...after I became prime minister, this man (Aiyar) went to Pakistan and met some Pakistanis. All this thing is available on the social media."

"In that meeting, he is seen discussing with Pakistanis that jab tak Modi ko raste se hataya nahi jata (until Modi is not removed from the way), relationship between India and Pakistan cannot improve," Modi added.

"Someone tell me what is the meeting of raste se hatana. You had gone to Pakistan to give my supari, you wanted to give Modi's supari (contract killing)," the PM said.

On Karnataka Assembly polls, due early next year, Moily said the manifesto would be released well in time.

"Almost 170 promises we made in the previous elections have been fulfilled. This time again the manifesto will be released well in time," said Moily, who heads the manifesto formation committee comprising 34 members.
December 11, 2017 / 05:25 PM IST

17:25 That's the end of our live coverage. Stay tuned to our home page for more updates on Rahul Gandhi's coronation. Thank you.

16:53 In case you missed it, watch this video about Rahul Gandhi's journey from reluctant prince to king of the Congress.

16:30 " class="scayt-misspell-word" data-scayt-word="Rahul" data-scayt-lang="en_US">Rahul Gandhi has been elected during a bad time for India under the current government. In Gujarat, he has proved that he is the only candidate who can be relied upon. He is facing Modi confidently," says Congress leader and former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

16:20 An official statement from the Congress: The entire Indian National Congress family would like to convey our best wishes to incoming President Rahul Gandhi, and wish him a successful tenure as he continues to lead from the front.

16:15 A prominent leader of the Hindu Mahasabha and the Father of the Nation. People of foreign origin, and from all corners of the country. Four women, and three leaders assassinated.

The presidents of Indias grand old party have written their own chapters in history.

Of the 15 people who led the 132-year-old party post independence, four belonged to the Gandhi-Nehru family. When Gandhi takes over as the president, he will be the fifth. Heres a short history of Congress Presidents.

16:00 Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad weighs in as well. The entire country has a lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. Much before he was elected, he has shown his mettle. He knows his responsibility, Azad says.

15:55 What next for Sonia?

There is also no clarity yet on what role Sonia Gandhi will play in the party that she has led for 19 years.

Senior leader M Veerappa Moily said yesterday that Sonia Gandhi would continue to guide the destiny of the Congress.

"She will continue to play an effective role even though she is not (Congress) president. She is always looked upon as mother of the party; not only mother to Rahul Gandhi, but also mother to the party. She will continue to inspire and nurture the Congress," he said.

15:50 No official reaction yet from Rahul Gandhi, who is campaigning in Gujarat in the hope that it will be his first success as Congress President.

15:45 Let's start with the challenges immediately facing Rahul Gandhi and the Congress. His record leading election campaigns is poor and the first order of business will be to try to turn that around.

15:40 So there you have it. It's been in the offing for months but Rahul Gandhi is now officially the Congress president, thus ending the 19-year reign of his mother Sonia. We'll have plenty of reactions and articles, so stay tuned to this blog.

15:38 Both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul had never intervened in the function of election, says Congress leader Mullappally Ramachandran.

15:35 Sonia Gandhi will formally hand over the reins of the party to her son on Saturday, December 16 at 11am.

15:33 The press conference has begun. The party spokesperson says the deadline for withdrawing nominations was 3pm today. All 89 nominations papers for Rahul Gandhi have been found valid. As the only candidate, Rahul Gandhi is declared Congress President. "This is a historic moment," says party leader MM Ramachandran.

15:30 "This is a new day and a new beginning for Rahul Gandhi. He will take us away from the fractured path of the Modi and BJP. Today starts another era for the Congress Party," says Assam MP Gaurav Gogoi.

15:25 Ahead of the formal announcement, some praise from an unlikely source: Shiv Sena. There is a 100 percent change in his body language. It was a different Rahul Gandhi in 2014. People used to change channels when they saw him on TV. Now they don't do that. People want to listen to him. Rahul Gandhi has a huge challenge in front of him, says party leader Sanjay Raut.

15:20 Congress workers are currently celebrating outside the party headquarters in New Delhi. Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, is busy campaigning in Gujarat.

15:15 Gandhi, however, may officially take charge on December 16 when his mother and longest-serving party president Sonia Gandhi formally hands over the baton to him, marking a generational shift in the grand old party.

The internal election was a one-horse race from the beginning with Gandhi the only one to file nomination, which was supported by 89 signatures.

15:00 Rahul Gandhi is set to be declared as the Congress chief on Monday, the last date of withdrawal of nomination in the partys organisational elections.

The Congress Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran, and CEA members Madhusudan Mistry and Bhubaneswar Kalita will announce that Gandhi's was the only nomination for the top job on Monday. A press conference has been scheduled for 3:30pm.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the "Gujarat Vikas Rally" in Surat. (PTI)

The Shiv Sena today accused ally BJP of "stooping to a low level" in the run up to Gujarat elections, stating that "development issue" was missing from poll speeches of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

It said Modi had "belittled" himself by claiming that suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's remarks against him had insulted the pride of Gujarat.

"Modi has belittled himself. We consider Modi as pride of the country and Hindus, but he is now chained by the Gujarat asmita (pride)," the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

"In Gujarat elections, Modi is less of a national and more of a regional (leader)," it said.

The Sena also said it was futile to register complaint on the "EVM scams" with the "BJP-sponsored Election Commission".

Notably, during the first phase of polling in Gujarat on Saturday, the opposition leaders had expressed apprehensions over electronic voting machine (EVM) tampering, a charge rejected by the poll body.

The Sena said the Gujarat poll campaign should have been focused on the much-touted 'development plank'.

"However, that point was missing from the prime minister's speeches in Gujarat," it said.

In his home state, the prime minister was sometimes emotional and sometimes aggressive in election speeches, the Sena said.

"This is the state which gave us this prime minister and where the BJP has ruled for 22 years. Why should BJP stoop to such a low level during election campaign?" it posed.

"As is the tradition, EVM scams have been unearthed in Gujarat. It is futile to register a complaint on these scams with the BJP-sponsored Election Commission," the Sena said.

The editorial said the quality of election campaign has "declined" due to the BJP.

"When we mentioned Afzal Khan in Maharashtra Assembly elections, the BJP objected and said we had stooped to a low level in campaigning. However, Modi himself referred to the Mughal regime in the Gujarat poll campaign," it said.

In the 2014 Maharashtra poll campaign, the BJP had asked the Shiv Sena to apologise for describing its campaign leaders as "Afzal Khan ki aulaad" who were trying to conquer Maharashtra.

The Sena also wondered why top BJP leaders were campaigning in Gujarat against Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, when it is "believed that his elevation as party chief has made it easy for the BJP to win the polls".

"It is said the BJP's victory in Gujarat has become easy due to Rahul Gandhi's elevation in Congress. If that is the case, why are the prime minister, BJP national president and all Union ministers and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states campaigning against him?" it asked.

"People in the country are puzzled over this," the Sena added.
Venkaiah Naidu

Making agriculture more viable was the challenge before the nation and politicising suicides of farmers would not help address the issue, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu said.

Presenting the 'Yerarignar' Award (Icon of farm research) to eminent agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan here, Naidu said agriculture universities and scientists should focus on enhancing farm production and diversification in farming.

"We hear of suicides here and there and again people try to make it political (issue)... (pointing to) this or that government," he said, adding "the moment you make it political then the issue is gone (indicating that it cannot be addressed)."

Naidu said the entire country, including the political leadership and scientists should introspect on the ways and means to strengthen and sustain agriculture.

He said the need of the hour was to go in for diversification like fisheries aquaculture, sericulture, poultry and diary and also food processing.

Adding value addition to agriculture should be another focus area and government should think on improving infrastructure,including water, godowns and cold storage chains.

He said the Centre's E-nam (e-national agriculture market), initiative which envisages farmers selling produce from their respective places, was now being experimented in 40 mandals and expressed the hope it would spread nationwide.

"Only then would exploitation of farmers stop," the Vice President remarked.

He also called for an increase in public investment in agriculture.

Naidu said Swaminathan has done India proud by his vision, commitment, work and showed the world how research can reach farms and transform farmers' lives.

Swaminathan taught us "home grown food security ... today we are not only having food security but we are also exporting," he said.

Naidu also hailed him as a "transformative leader" who inspired many scientists by focusing on problems of Indian agriculture.

The top scientist's role in agriculture helped usher in the green revolution in India in the early 1960s', he said.

Naidu noted that India registered a significant increase in agricultural production in the 1960's, consequent to the adoption of a new agriculture strategy, which involved high yielding seed varieties and use of chemical fertilisers.

Promotion of irrigation facilities and use pesticide was also part of such a strategy, he said.

Naidu said the governments at the Centre and states should consider Swaminathan's suggestions, which are "practical."

Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, state ministers R Duraikannu and K Pandiarajan, Vice-Chancellors of state-run varsities and president of Agricultural Scientific Tamil Society, M Muthamil Selvan were also present at the event.

The award was conferred on Swaminathan by Agricultural Scientific Tamil Society, New Delhi, in association with Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University and Tamil Nadu Fisheries University in recognition of his stellar contribution to agriculture.
India's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav speaks during a meeting with his party workers in the eastern Indian city of Patna June 20, 2009. REUTERS/Krishna Murari Kishan (INDIA POLITICS) - RTR24UMC

Rashtriya Janata Dal Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, while taking on his foes, said that even if he went to jail in the rail tender scam case his party would remain unaffected and his vote base would likely soar in upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly Elections for 2019 and 2020.

As per an India Today report, Lalu while speaking at the book launch of rebel JD-U leader Ali Anwars compilation of speeches in Parliament, I want to say is if I have to go to jail, there will only be an increase in votes for me.

The RJD Chief also spared no chance in taking a hit at Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling him a desh ka badshah under whose leadership the democracy was being mocked and made fun of.

Lalus comment follows Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi's statement that the Enforcement Directorate, the CBI, and the Income Tax department had strong evidence of benami transactions against RJD supremo Lalu Prasad and his family members.

Modi has even gone on to state that they will not only face charge sheet but also be sent to jail and awarded punishment.

He also compared the present political situation to that of tanashahi (autocracy). Lalu further added that people are afraid of even being spotted with a cow. Fringe Hindu outfits would come out with swords to teach the person a lesson, the report quoted him as saying.

The RJD Chief on Saturday predicted that the Congress was all set to win Gujarat as people have voted heavily in its favour in the first phase of the polls."

Earlier, Prasads younger son Tajeashwi Prasad Yadav had accused JDU President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of fielding candidates in Gujarat too eat into Patel votes and benefit the BJP.

Tejashwi Yadav, who is Prasad's younger son, had termed the action by the ED as "political vendetta" and questioned why the agencies had failed to file a charge sheet even after five months of lodging of the FIR.

(With additional inputs from PTI)
When you first meet Ambalal Koshti, he comes across as just another elderly man who has seen his share of ups and downs in life. Koshti is as unassuming as the next person and certainly conducts himself in a manner befitting that image. And yet, this inconspicuous senior citizen can claim credit for the deeds of India's most visible man.

What Koshti is known for, especially within the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is finding a an 18-year-old Narendra Modi at tea stall and bringing him into the RSS to work and further himself. As fate would have it, the youth that Ambalal had brought into the RSS shakha at Maninagar in Ahmedabad would go on to become a three-time chief minister of Gujarat and an iconic Prime Minister of India.

Now 70 years old, Ambalal still works at the state headquarters of the BJP in Ahmedabad. Members of the party know who he is and what he has given them but the man himself is an epitome of modesty, considering the magnitude of his contribution. Having spotted Modi when the dynamic leader was nothing but a teenager from an underprivileged background, he now reminisces about the good old days and recalls how Modi had always been a disciplined and strong-willed man.

It was 1968 when Ambalal met Modi for the first time while protesting against an increase in state transport fares. The young boy in front of him seemed an ideal candidate for the Jan Sangh, which was the political arm of the RSS back then. Ambalal was the partys general secretary in charge of the Kankaria ward in the city and it was his job to find young and promising recruits for the Jan Sangh.

Modi, who did not have a home in the city and spent his days and nights at the state transport canteen, seemed to be taken with the idea of joining the Jan Sangh, but took his time to actually arrive at the decision of doing so. Once the decision was made, Ambalal took him to the Maninagar shakha of the RSS and he started living and working there from then on. The two spent many a day riding on bicycles and dutifully carrying out the work of the RSS in the city and the state.

To keep him interested and motivated, and probably to stop him from being poached by rival parties, Ambalal reportedly handed over the Kankaria ward general secretary post to Modi, who later happened to win his memorable first assembly election from the constituency in 2002. He recalls that Modi the boy, not unlike Modi the man, did not suffer people who displayed a lack of discipline, something that is a hallmark of his governance even today.

Speaking about Modis nature, Ambalal said his ward had a terrific memory and that he would never forget the first name of a person he met, a quality that he continues exhibiting to this day. He also said the leader was never one to use foul language and even now, whenever he is forced to retaliate to someone elses jibes, he is very careful about the language he uses.

When asked whether he had the slightest intuition back then that Modi would become Prime Minister one day, Ambalal said that to begin with, none of them thought that the Jan Sangh  now BJP  would be the powerhouse it is today. We never thought Jan Sangh, which later became BJP, will become the largest in India. This happened because of the hard work of party workers, he said.
PM Narendra Modi

The Congress termed as "baseless" Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation that its top leaders recently met the Pakistani envoy and an ex- Pakistani minister and said he made the charge as he was worried about the BJP's impending defeat in Gujarat Assembly elections.

Modi told an election rally today that suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar had called him "neech" (a lowly sort of a person) a day after the alleged meeting of Pakistanis with top Congressmen.

"Holding the country's topmost post, Modiji is making baseless allegations. Modiji is worried, dejected, angry. Such a statement has no truth or fact, and is based on lies. Such a behaviour is unbecoming of a prime minister," Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala told reporters here.

Modi alleged that former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Aiyar had met the Pakistani high commissioner in India and an ex-Pakistani foreign minister at the residence of Aiyar recently.

"The entire country knows who loves Pakistan and who has been giving protection to the separatists," Surjewala alleged.

He asked Modi that if he planned to contest the elections on Pakistan-related issues, then he should also tell the people of Gujarat as to why he "trusted Pakistani spy agency ISI and offered it entry to Pathankot Airforce Base for investigation".

Surjewala also questioned Modi's "unplanned" Pakistan visit to attend the wedding of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's granddaughter, soon after "Pakistan-sponsored terrorist attacks at Gurdaspur and Udhampur".

He also alleged that the Modi government failed to arrest Pakistan-based terrorist Dawood Ibrahim's wife, who "managed to reach Mumbai from Pakistan and then fly back to Pakistan".

"We would also like to ask him as to why no action was taken against former minister in the BJP government in Maharashtra Eknath Khadse, who was removed after Indian agencies taped his conversation with Dawood Ibrahim," he said.

The Congress spokesperson also claimed Maharashtra minister Girish Mahajan attended the marriage of Dawood Ibrahim's daughter and asked why 11 BJP leaders, including the head of Madhya Pradesh's IT cell, were arrested for "spying for ISI".

Surjewala also sought an apology from the prime minister and the BJP over the release of Pakistan-based terrorist Maulana Masood Azhar by taking him and two others to Kandahar after hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane in 1999.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi sparred in battleground Gujarat where the former claimed leaders of the opposition party held a secret meeting with current and former Pakistani officials a day ahead of Mani Shankar Aiyar's "neech" jibe against him.

Modi claimed there was an attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the Gujarat polls.

Alleged Muslim appeasement and the Gujarat riots were also back on the table even as BJP chief Amit Shah raked up the issue of funding of Congress-backed Dalit candidate Jignesh Mewani by hardline Muslim outfit PFI.

Rahul Gandhi, set to assume the reins of the Congress in a few days from now, amid the acrimony-filled campaign, attacked Modi but promised he would not use even one "galat shabd" (wrong word) against the prime minister, remarks that came in the wake of Aiyar's "neech" barb that may not have gone down well with a section of Gujarati voters.

Modi also raised questions about the alleged appeal by former director general (DG) of the Pakistan Army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel the chief minister of Gujarat.

"There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh," Modi told an election rally at Palanpur.

The meeting at Aiyar's house continued for almost three hours, Modi said, adding "the next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar said Modi is "neech" (a vile man). This is a serious matter."

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election, on the other, Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts?" Modi said.

Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala, however, rubbished Modi's claim, terming it as "baseless".

"Holding the country's topmost post, Modiji is making baseless allegations. Modiji is worried, dejected, angry. Such a statement has no truth or fact, and is based on lies. Such a behaviour is unbecoming of a prime minister," Surjewala told reporters in Ahmedabad.

The prime minister, who did not speak much due to sore throat at the Palanpur rally, slammed the Congress for spreading a "false propaganda" that the Modi government worked only for the rich.

Modi cited the case of Genabhai Patel, a progressive farmer from Banaskantha district who was recently conferred with 'Padma Shri', to claim his government's pro-poor credentials.

Gandhi, who began his second day of campaigning for the second phase of poll scheduled for December 14 after offering prayers at Lord Krishna's Ranchhod Raiji Mandir here, claimed Modi frequently changed the election planks and now he was left with nothing to speak about but himself and the Congress.

"You claim you have finished the Congress. If it were so, why would you devote half your speech to Congress and half to yourself?" he asked the prime minister.

"I have respect for the post of the prime minister. He can say whatever he wants to, I will not use a single (galat shabd) wrong word against him," Gandhi told an election rally in Kalol.

Gandhi, who is all set to become Congress president in a few days from now, said "truth has cornered" the prime minister and that the Congress will "defeat the BJP, not by anger, but with love".

He accused the prime minister of making "false promises" to people about employment, depositing Rs 15 lakh in the accounts of each person from black money brought back from abroad, and remunerative prices for farm produce.

Gandhi alleged the Modi government gave benefits to the tune of Rs 33,000 crore to the Tatas for the Nano car project.

"Over six-and-a-half lakh acres were acquired by the government and thousands of acres given to the Tatas. People did not get water from Narmada, but the Tatas got," he said.

Earlier, addressing a rally at Dakor, the Congress leader attacked Modi over demonetisation and GST, saying the note ban helped all "thieves" convert their "black money into white" and the "Gabbar Singh Tax" destroyed small businesses and rendered one lakh people jobless.

The issue of 2002 communal riots and Muslim appeasement was back in the electoral discourse, with BJP chief Amit Shah claiming Charan Singh, a Congress spokesman, had asked the prime minister on television to visit the Jama Masjid to seek forgiveness for the 2002 Gujarat riots.

"The entire country knows that allegations by Congress-backed NGOs against Modi regarding the 2002 riots were rejected by the Supreme Court. But this Congress leader in 2017, for the sake of vote bank politics, is asking Modi to go to the Jama Masjid to apologise for the 2002 riots," Shah told reporters in Ahmedabad.

Speaking about Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani, Shah alleged he accepted donations from an outfit linked to the PFI (Popular Front of India).

"Mevani's photographs accepting funds from a PFI-linked outfit went viral (on social media). The entire country knows about the anti-national activities of PFI," he said, claiming the organisation was trying to recruit people for terror group ISIS.

"The Congress first indulged in caste politics. Now, 2-3 days prior to the first phase of voting, when they could see their defeat, the Congress has gone back to politics of minority appeasement," Shah said.
Berkeley: Congress Vice President, Rahul Gandhi delivering a speech at Institute of International Studies at UC Berkeley, California on Monday. PTI Photo(PTI9_12_2017_000038B)

Thirteen years after he formally entered politics, Rahul Gandhi has been crowned king of the Congress and will take over from his mother Sonia as the party's president.

Here's a look at some of the key milestones of his political career so far:

1991: Rahul's father Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated in Tamil Nadu. Just a fortnight short of his 21st birthday, the political spotlight beckons but his family packs him off to the US for further studies.

2002: After a stint working in London, Rahul Gandhi returns to India.

2004: After much showing much reluctance, he finally takes the political plunge and joins the Congress. Successfully contests the Lok Sabha election from Amethi, a Nehru-Gandhi bastion in Uttar Pradesh.

2006: Now an MP, Rahul and sister Priyanka manage mother Sonia's campaign for the bypoll in Rae Barela. She wins by a comfortable margin.

2007: Rahul Gandhi is appointed General Secretary of the Congress. He takes over the youth and student wings of the party. But his turn as star campaigner in the UP Assembly polls fails to bear fruit as the Congress wins just 22 out of 403 seats.

2009: Rahul addresses 125 rallies during the Lok Sabha elections. Retains Amethi and Congress wins a quarter of Uttar Pradesh's seats as the UPA keeps hold of the Centre.

2011: Gandhi is arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Bhatta Parsaul for joining a farmers' agitation against land acquisition. A motorbike ride with a farmer helped him partially shake off his 'yuvraj' image.

2012: Rahul Gandhi spearheads the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election campaign, holding more than 200 rallies. But the party returns empty-handed.

2013: Congress appoints Rahul Gandhi as Vice-President

Later that year, he criticises Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and tears up an ordinance that reversed a Supreme Court order barring convicted politicians from contesting elections.

2014: With Rahul as unofficial PM candidate, the Congress recorded its lowest-ever Lok Sabha tally.

2015-2016: Rahul Gandhi takes over state election campaigns, but the party is steadily wiped off the map suffering a series of heavy defeats.

Rahul Gandhi is appointed Congress President just before the high-stakes Gujarat Assembly elections.
At the moment, the Congress party is at its lowest-ever point in its century-long political history. With a baggage of multiple lost elections and with Rahul Gandhi assuming the role of party president in the 132-year old party, there are plenty of questions being asked about its future.

The party now has but a shadow of its once vast support base in the country and the spotlight is on Gandhi, whose leadership has often been the subject of much ridicule and even some political satire. History has shown that the party is at its stable best when there is a member of the Gandhi family at its helm, and that is what the current crop of Congress leaders is betting on.

According to the partys national spokesperson Sanjay Jha, the party is set to develop the alternative blueprint that is best suitable for India 2019 and create a strong political narrative for change under the 47-year-olds leadership. There will certainly be a lot of pressure on him to deliver, considering no one with his last name has ever really seen failure within the party.

Let us now take a detailed look at some of the challenges Rahul Gandhi will be up against the moment he takes over from his mother as President of the Indian National Congress.

The biggest challenge

The biggest challenge staring the new party president in the face is the Gujarat assembly elections, which will see its second phase on Thursday. The results are due on December 18.

After having aggressively campaigned in the state, which has been a BJPs holdfast over the last couple of decades, an electoral defeat would hang heavier than usual on Gandhi as it would be the first loss for the party under his leadership.

Acknowledging that there was no shortage of effort, AICC spokesperson and Supreme Court Advocate Brijesh Kalappa said that the party had invested a lot of energy into the Gujarat campaign. If we are not able to succeed it is going to be really sad, but we are not going to stop, he said.

Kalappa added that said Gandhis key task was to restore the former glory of the Congress party, and the partys performance in the Gujarat assembly polls was going to be crucial for that.

Electoral success

With Gujarat almost out of the way, a bit of the focus has already shifted toward the Karnataka assembly election, which is slated to take place early next year.

Karnataka is the last of the big states that still has a Congress-led government and therefore, the assembly polls go a long way in determining Congress position before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections get underway.

While Kalappa, who is from the southern state, said that he was confident Congress will hold sway in Karnataka, BJP has already started making inroads. P Muralidhar Rao, national general secretary and the head of BJP in the state, had earlier said that Karnataka was going to be at the forefront of BJPs expansion campaign in South India.

There is tremendous pressure on Rahul to win. He cannot be a mute spectator to Congresss failures anymore, said political commentator Rasheed Kidwai.

Highlighting the fact that the Nehru-Gandhi family has largely been politically successful unlike its new president, Kidwai pointed out that Indira Gandhi had also lost an election but came back strongly three years later.

Rajiv led the party to victory in 1984. Under Sonia, the party stayed in power from 2004-2014. Rahul at least has to begin delivering some results in terms of victory, Kidwai said.

With the BJP and other political parties waiting for the first opportunity to write him off for good as an apple that fell very far from the tree, Gandhi will be looking to get that first major electoral success under his belt as quickly as he can.

Organisational restructuring

The new party president is expected to change certain things within the party and weed out the arrogance he earlier said had seeped into it.

Kalappa pointed out that young Congress leaders have taken charge in several states but maintained that it wasnt going to threaten members of the old guard. He added that what is considered old is tremendous hands on experience on the ground.

Recently, senior leader Congress Digvijaya Singh was relieved of his duties as in-charge of the Telangana All India Congress Committee and was replaced by a somewhat younger RC Khuntia. Moreover, Gandhi himself has a young team of close aides like Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Randeep Singh Surjewala and so on.

Even if there is a slim chance of an inner-party democracy being formed within the Congress as a reform under Gandhis watch, experts expect the party to nurture state leaderships more from now on.

In Punjab, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has led the party to victory, while in Karnataka, CM Siddaramaiah has had a strong grip on state politics.

There is leadership vacuum at the certain state levels which Rahul has to fulfil. If they had an Amrindar Singh or Raja Virbhadra Singh like leader in Gujarat they would have almost been a winner by now, said Kidwai. He also underlined that Congress needs to strengthen its grass roots and add more vote-getters to its ranks.

The senior political analyst also critiqued Congress for having a Sab chalta hain (everything goes) type attitude and lacking in an accountability mechanism. In 2014 when they lost, nobody was made accountablenot even those ministers who made atrocious remarks, he said.

Secularism vs Hindu nationalism

Although Rahul Gandhi did lash out at the BJP for playing divisive politics and spreading communalism, he himself went on a temple visiting spree as part of his election campaign in Gujarat. On its part, the BJP did not hold back in rapping the scion of the Gandhi family for this 'temple-run'.

Kidwai clearly differs from the popular notion that the success of the Congress hinges on minority appeasement and secularism. He said that barely six months before her assassination, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had sought to assure the majority community that, if there is injustice to them or if they did not get their rights, then it would be dangerous to the integrity of the country."

Even under Sonias leadership, that attitude lingered on as what many call 'soft-Hindutva'. Her own working committee had once declared that Hinduism is the sole guarantor of secularism in India.

Kidwai reckoned that as long as the Congress is seen as an anti-majority party, it can never gain strength in electoral terms. So it has to flaunt its right-wing traditions as well, keeping in mind it does not hurt any other community, he added.

But party spokesperson Jha held that secularism will only get stronger as Rahul Gandhi galvanizes the party from within. He claimed that the Congress is going to foster secularism as it was the need of the 21st century.

Political allies

After an unfortunate turn of events in Bihar when CM Nitish Kumar broke the Grand Alliance with the Congress and RJD, the party now has one less state under its belt.

Moreover, the Congress, which was usually a binding factor between smaller opposition parties, has now lost its vigor to bargain with political allies like it did when Sonia took up the reign of the party some two decades ago.

You cant have allies when you are weak. Why should leaders like Mamata Banerjee or Arvind Kejriwal have interest in a loser like Rahul? What is their gain? said Kidwai, as he reiterated the party's need to get out of the rut it finds itself in today.

However Kalappa said that the party had confidence in its new leader. We believe that Gandhi provides passion and complete drive that is needed by the party at the moment to step up work to defeat BJP in 2019, he said.
Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis warned the opposition leaders that he had "evidence" against them and could bring it up "at the right time".

He was speaking to reporters in Nagpur ahead of the winter session beginning from today. "I have enough evidences against the leaders of the opposition and I will disclose it at the right time," he said.

Fadnavis said that he could prove that the government had saved significant funds due to the Aadhaar numbers in its three years of rule when compared to the Congress-NCP's 15 years.

He refuted Congress-NCP allegations that the loan waiver was flawed.

"We had received applications of 77 lakh farmers out of which 69 lakh applications were accepted after the removal of duplication. A decision to disburse loan waiver has been taken for 41 lakh farmers in the state. The process is still on and if more eligible farmers are found, we will provide the loan waiver benefits to them," Fadnavis said.

"We have implemented loan waiver with efficiency. The total outlay so far has been Rs 19,000 crore and if required, we will bring it before the house," he said.

The Maharashtra chief minister also pointed out that the construction of the controversial Gosikhurd irrigation dam in Vidarbha, which was suspended for a long time due to lack of permissions from the central government, has finally received necessary approvals.

"The Centre has approved 108 irrigation projects in the state along with Rs 18,500 crore cost of the Gosikhurd irrigation project. We will complete it in next three years," Fadnavis said.

Fadnavis said that farmers whose crops were getting damaged in pink-worm attacks could get compensation in three ways.

"One will come from the seed companies who at the time of licence for distribution of seed had claimed that the crop would not be attacked by any worm. Now, their plants are being attacked by pink-worm and companies will have to give compensation to the farmers," he said.

"The farmers who have applied for insurance of the crop will benefit and third would be the financial assistance from National Disaster Relief Fund. A proposal is being sent to Delhi for approval," said the chief minister.

Countering allegations from the opposition that the government had failed in disvursing scholarship to students from backward classes, he said that his government was giving even the amount that the earlier government had failed to disburse.

Fadnavis said, "Those who are used to corrupt practices for a long time are unable to see the system functioning in a transparent way. Out of Rs 1,100 crore, we have already disbursed Rs 740 crore to students. All we want is linking of Aadhar numbers with students bank accounts,"

"Wherever it has not happened, we have permitted students to avail the benefits. The opposition should not forget that we have given three years scholarship amount to students which the Congress-NCP government had failed to disburse." he added.

Fadnavis refuted NCP leader Ajit Pawar's contention that the state was leading towards bankruptcy.

"The loan amount has increased but we have spent it on infrastructure projects. As per Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act 2003, our capacity to avail loan is going up. The state's finance are still in good condition," he said.

Meanwhile, Sachin Sawant, spokesperson of Congress tweeted that Fadnavis should be acting against the evidence he has rather than sitting on it.

He said that such acts was a misuse as well as devaluation of the post Fadnavis holds.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi meets with the supporters during a public meeting at Tharad in Banaskantha on Monday. (PTI)

Israeli forces run towards Palestinian protesters during a protest against U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, near the Jewish settlement of Beit El, near the West Bank city of Ramallah. (Reuters)

Patidar community leader Hardik Patel during a roadshow for state assembly elections in Ahmedabad on Monday. (PTI)

Russian Foreign Minster Sergei Lavrov calls on President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Monday. (PTI)



Congress party workers celebrate after Rahul Gandhi was declared elected as the party president, in Mumbai on Monday. (PTI)

Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, exchange greetings before a meeting in New Delhi. (PTI)

'Dreamers' hug as they meet with relatives during the 'Keep Our Dream Alive' binational meeting at a new section of the border wall on the US-Mexico border in Sunland Park. (Reuters)

A temple under construction is seen engulfed in fire in Mianzhu, Sichuan province, China. (Reuters)

Members of Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) burn a picture of US President Donald Trump during a protest to condemn Washington's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, outside the US embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Reuters)

Russian Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces General Valeriy Gerasimov reviews the honor guard with Japan's Chief of Staff of Joint Staff Katsutoshi Kawano (unseen) at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, Japan. (Reuters)

A shepherd herds his sheep amid snow in Hulun Buir, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. (Reuters)

Supporters at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's election campaign rally in Kalol taluka of Gandhinagar district. (PTI)

A snowman and dog on a bench in Worcester, England, Sunday Dec. 10, 2017, as heavy snow falls across parts of Britain. Snow is causing travel disruptions across central England and northern Wales, grounding flights, shutting down roads and causing traffic accidents. (PTI)
Ram Nath Kovind, nominated presidential candidate of Indias ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), delivers a speech during a welcoming ceremony as part of his nation-wide tour, in Ahmedabad, India, July 15, 2017. REUTERS/Amit Dave - RTX3BL0Y

Chinese and Russian foreign ministers, who are here to attend a summit, today called on President Ram Nath Kovind and held discussions pertaining to bilateral relations.

President Kovind congratulated Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi on the successful conclusion of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China.

He added that India looked forward to working with President Xi Jinping and the Chinese leadership to take the developmental partnership to greater heights.

"We view India-China ties as important in our foreign policy. Our high-level exchanges and interactions have maintained momentum. Our economic engagement is growing. We are also seeing cooperation on many international issues," Kovind said according to an official statement.

The president said that expansion of cooperation bilaterally as well as regionally was in the mutual interest of both the nations.

He expressed confidence that "multifaceted" relations between India and China will continue to make progress and acquire even greater salience.

During his meeting with foreign minister of Russia, Sergei Lavrov, and his delegation, the president said that India-Russia bilateral ties were strong and had further intensified this year.

He expressed happiness that bilateral trade between India and Russia registered a growth of 22 per cent in the first six months of 2017.

Early operationalisation of the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) can play a significant role in achieving our bilateral trade targets, he said.

The corridor, expected to be completed by January next year, will facilitate movement of freight from India, Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia.

The President said that institutionalisation of the India-Russia Heads of Think Tanks Forum, which held its 2nd session in Delhi on December 4-5, would be most helpful to both countries.

"We should continue with our efforts to bring our think tanks and academic communities closer," he said.

The two foreign ministers are in India to participate in the 15th RIC (Russia-India-China) trilateral meeting which is being hosted by external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj.
The devastated remains of a fertilizer plant burns after an explosion at the plant in the town of West, near Waco, Texas, U.S. April 17, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Stone

An ISIS-inspired Bangladeshi- origin man, wearing a homemade device, today triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, US media reports said.

Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires attached to him. He was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, CNN reported, according to which he was taken into custody after the device partially detonated.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the device that exploded in the New York City subway was an attempted "terrorist attack".

"At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims," Mayor de Blasio said.

"There are also no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time. But we will give you more information, of course, as the investigation unfolds," de Blasio said.

A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority, the New York Police Department said, adding that all injuries are non-life-threatening.

The suspect suffered burns and other wounds and is currently in the hospital.

"Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device," said Police Commissioner James O'Neil.

President Donald Trump was briefed on the New York explosion, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

Earlier, the New York Police Department tweeted that it was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan.

The place is New York Port Authority, a busy bus terminal. It also has metro stations.

"The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time," the NYPD had said, adding that the information is preliminary.

The New York Fire Department received call around 7.19 am.

"I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting 'Go, Go, Go'," commuter Keith Woodfin tweeted, according to New York Daily News.

Designer Chelsea LaSalle tweeted that she was "stuck in a running stampede at port authority bus terminal due to bomb scare. cops EVERYWHERE."

Security was enhanced in several major American cities after an explosion in the New York City.

"We are monitoring the incident that occurred in New York City this morning. At this time, there are no current threats to the District of Columbia. We ask all residents and visitors to remain vigilant," said the Washington DC Police Department.
Q11. Skywise  which provides a single access point for the sharing of operational and flight data  is about making the right information available at the right time. To do so, it leverages the massive amount of data previously locked in company and functional silos across the industry to improve operational performance and business results for aircraft operators. Which company owns Skywise?

Eating bits of food meant for passengers cost dearly to a flight attendant. The cabin crew member has been suspended after a video of her act emerged.

An air-hostess of low-cost Chinese airline Urumqi Air can be seen sneaking a few bites of rice and meat from food boxes meant for passengers of the flight.

The footage, allegedly shot by one of her colleagues, eventually reached the bosses of the airline and the woman was suspended and disciplined. The executives of the carrier confirmed that she worked at Urumqi Air, British tabloid The Sun reported.

The company in a statement said that the meal its employee was eating was among leftovers and that they supply their aircrew with adequate onboard meals.

The firm said that the air crew member did not follow the usual procedure for dealing with leftover food and instead opened the food boxes without permission.

In view of the employees irregularities, the company has started an investigation and disciplinary procedures in accordance with the regulations. The company has arranged a comprehensive internal investigation to ensure that crew follow strictly the implementation of food disposal processes, to avoid the recurrence of similar incidents, the Chinese carrier said.

Urumqi Airlines since its inception uphold a responsible attitude to provide services to the general tourists.

The company, however, did not provide the details of the incident like when and where the video was shot.

The firm tried to explain that each flight that flies are packed with adequate food for passengers and crew members. But, sometimes, passengers do not eat which result in leftover meals.

We are deeply sorry about the incident and will never tolerate such acts. Complying with industry standards is a basic requirement for professionals and apologises for the troubles caused by this incident, a spokesperson for the company said.
North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un is seen during the inspection of a potato flour factory in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang. (Reuters)

North Korea has certainly made progress in its missile development programme but it is also getting paranoid due to the increasing global isolation, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said today.

US President Donald Trump last month declared North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism, a move that allows the Trump administration to impose additional sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile programmes.

Late last month, nuclear-armed North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile which travelled about 1,000 km before splashing down in the Sea of Japan, within Japan's exclusive economic zone.

"This is a serious situation. The missile that they launched not too long ago was much stronger than the one we had seen before. They have made progress," Haley told CNN.

"But what we have managed to do is, the United States has led and the international community is all with us in isolating North Korea. That's a very important move. They feel it. They are getting paranoid. They are stressed out about it. But we are going to continue keep up the pressure, because we have to," she said on North Korea.

The series of international sanctions, she said, has cut off 90 per cent of the North Korean trade, 30 per cent of the oil.

"But every ounce of revenue that North Korea receives, they put towards their nuclear programme. So, the fact that the sanctions have completely squeezed them, that is less money they can put towards that nuclear programme now.

"So, whether people can't see it, it is helping us tremendously to not have them have the cash that they normally would have had," Haley said.

Responding to a question on Russia, Haley said that the State Department has fully implemented the sanctions against it.

"From what I have been told, the State Department says they have gone forward with the sanctions on Russia. So I don't know anything about what you're talking about, because the State Department has said they have fully implemented that," she added.

In August, North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan in a major escalation of tensions by Pyongyang.

Five days later, it carried out a sixth nuclear test, sending tensions soaring over its weapons ambitions and causing global concern.
The village of Dorfchemnitz, Germany, September 27, 2017. Picture taken September 27, 2017. REUTERS/Matthias Schumann - RC1C8A05A450

Twelve buildings plus sheds and garages in the east German village of Alwine have been sold to a single bidder for 14,000 Euros (Rs 1.06 crore).

Alwine, a splinter settlement in the town of Uebigau-Wahrenbrueck in eastern Germany, went under the hammer on Saturday at an auction in Berlin.

The decaying town located 120 kilometers south of Berlin is filled with mostly old people.

Alwines aging homes and a resident population of only 20 people reflected the fate of the ex-Communist East Germany areas post the countrys reunification 27 years ago when the Berlin Wall was taken down.

As per a report in NY Daily News, the mayor of the town himself found out about the sale through a media report.

The anonymous buyer had bid over a telephone and scooped up the community that real estate auctioneers Karhausen had given a starting price of 125,000 Euros (Rs 94.7 lakh).

Also Read: This 26-year-old is the youngest self-made billionaire in the world

The manager of the auction said the winner was going to do something good with the purchase for the welfare of the people there, according to a report in Deutsche Welle.

Despite its previous sell-off to two brothers who owned the property for one symbolic Deutschmark (the pre-Euro German currency) Alwine had been sliding into neglect.

Villages in Europe seem to have been facing a population problem. Not a long while ago, a Swedish village was even willing to pay people a whopping sum of Rs 16 lakh if they moved in.

Alwine wasn't always like this though, the old village is, in fact, a slice of history. During the World War II, Nazi party's youth wing Hitler Youth trained around Alwine and prisoners of war were incarcerated nearby.

This was before the Berlin Wall was put up and it became a part of the Communist East Germany. Till the reunion, most of the property in Alwine was owned by a nearby coal briquette plant which closed in 1991.

As per a government report, between 1990 and 2015, the eastern regions population fell by about 15 percent, as per a government report earlier this year. The cause may have been people migrating to a more prosperous western Germany for jobs.

(Currency rates are in 1 Euro= Rs 75.83)
Education

Montgomery County Community College will present the spring installment of the interview/talk show program Issues and Insights April 20 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Science Center room 214, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The programs will be simulcast to the Colleges West Campus in South Hall room 216, 101 College Drive, Pottstown. Dr. Kolsky will offer a humorous presentation, Carrots, Sticks and Politics: A State of the Nation and the World Message. In this speech, he will provide his interpretation of domestic and international politics and then welcome questions from the audience for discussion. Issues and Insights, is free and open to the public. For information, contact Dr. Thomas Kolsky, professor of political science, at 215-641-6380 or tkolsky@mc3.edu.

Montgomery County Community Colleges STEM Scholars Program will host a STEM Jam! open house April 25 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Advanced Technology Center at the Colleges Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The drop-in event is designed for students interested in learning more about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Activities will include STEM program information and career advising, STEM speakers throughout the day from industry and academia, micro-helicopter and robotics competitive obstacle courses and demonstrations and static models of STEM student and faculty work. For more information about STEM Jam! or STEM programs at MCCC, contact William Brownlowe at wbrownlowe@mc3.edu or 215-641-6644, or Robin Zuhlke at 215-619-7440 or rzuhlke@mc3.edu.

Temple Ambler, located at 580 Meetinghouse Road, presents the following events:

International Club Global Bazaar April 15 from 5 to 8 p.m. The Ambler Campus International Club invites all students, faculty, staff and the community to celebrate a multitude of diverse cultures, which will be showcased at the organizations Global Bazaar. This family friendly event will highlight cultural traditions and celebrations in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, South American, North America and Africa through music, entertainment, food and informative displays developed and presented by students at the Ambler Campus. Young visitors will be provided with passports, which they may get stamped at each country they visit. Prizes will be awarded to world travelers who talk to cultural representatives, answer questions about the countries theyve visited and take part in fun-filled activities designed to help them learn about the rich diversity of cultures found throughout the world. Refreshments will be served. The event is free. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail tuc36466@temple.edu.

EarthFest 2011 April 29 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. More than 75 exhibitors, including the Philadelphia Zoo, The Franklin Institute, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Elmwood Park Zoo and the Insectarium, will take part in EarthFest 2011. School students of all ages are invited to attend and develop displays of their own. EarthFest partner the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society also offers its Kids Grow Expo, featuring the Junior Flower Show, as part of the event. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail duffyj@temple.edu.

Annual Spring Plant Sale May 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The plant sale  an Ambler Campus tradition dating back to the early 1900s  will feature woody plants and perennials in portable sizes, hardy trees, shrubs, and vines, native plants that are attractive to wildlife, herbs, and hanging baskets. There will also be numerous special plants for sale to highlight Amblers special anniversary year. Garden books and garden tools will also be available for sale. Students, staff, and volunteers from the Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture and the Ambler Arboretum Advisory Committee will be available to answer questions. All proceeds from the Spring Plant Sale will support the Ambler Arboretum Fund and the Pi Alpha Xi National Honor Society. Information: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

June Homecoming/Louise Bush-Brown Garden Dedication June 5 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. (June Homecoming), Bright Hall Lounge; 2 p.m. (Garden Dedication), Ambler Campus Formal Perennial Gardens. Tickets  June Homecoming: Participant  $18 per person; Sustainer  $25 per person; Benefactor  $40 per person. The 2011 June Homecoming, sponsored by the School of Environmental Design Alumni Association, will include the Alumni Association annual meeting and luncheon. June Homecoming will be followed by the formal dedication of Temple University Amblers Formal Perennial Gardens as the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Gardens. During this 100th anniversary of the campus, Temple University Ambler and the Ambler Arboretum of the Temple University is honoring Louise Bush-Browns many contributions to the history of the campus by formally dedicating the gardens in her honor. During the program, campus Executive William Parshall will welcome guests, Ambler Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey will speak about the Bush-Browns and the history of the garden, and an official ribbon cutting will be held for the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Garden. Following the ribbon cutting, guests are invited to take a tour of the gardens, which will wend their way to the Campus Greenhouse for the School of Environmental Designs annual Plant Auction. Information (Garden Dedication): 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Information (June Homecoming): 215-482-0722. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

Northview Garden Tour and Fundraiser for the Ambler Arboretum June 12 from noon to 5 p.m. Call for reservations. Tickets: $15 per person or $20 at the door. In addition to the gardens of the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University, Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey has a garden oasis all her own right in Ambler  Northview. Visitors will have the opportunity to take self-guided tours throughout the many gardens, where garden experts will be available to answer questions about the various designs. The Ambler Keystone Chapter of the Womans National Farm and Garden Association will also provide tea and refreshments. All proceeds from the tours will support the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University. Information or to register: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

The Senior Adult Activities Center of Montgomery County, 536 George Street, Norristown, will hold the following events:

SAAC Adult Day Care, an alternative to Nursing Home Care is available  for information call 610-275-1960

Volunteers are needed for Meals on Wheels Program (call the number above)

SAACs Fifth Avenue Boutique opens Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Exercise with Theresa will be held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 1 p.m.

Dance class is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Tai Chi is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Yoga is held every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m.

Line Dancing is held every Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

Dancing with Joan is held every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

Sculpture Class is held Wednesdays from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

Why Should I Learn Spanish? will be held Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m.

Generations On-Line computer classes for seniors will be held Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.  4 p.m.  computers are available during those hours.

Health Living will be held every Tuesday at 1 p.m.

Boomer U will hold the following events. Boomer U is located at 45 Forest Avenue, Ambler. Registration & payment is required for all events: 215-619-8863.

Pilates Class is held Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 a.m. First class is free; please bring a mat. For information call 610-291-5376.

Blue Bell School of Dance, 921 Penllyn Blue Bell Pike, Blue Bell, hosts Argentine Tango Classes and a Milonga dance party every Friday evening. Lessons start at 8:30 p.m. followed by dancing at 9:30 p.m. Andrew Conway, master Argentine Tango dancer, instructor and performer and his partner Linda Chase will instruct. All levels welcome and no partner is needed. Refreshments will be served. Fee is $12 per person and includes lesson and dancing. Information: 215-634-1101 or www.amoretango.com.

The Montgomery Hospital Medical Center will offer the following classes:

Childbirth Education Class- all parents are invited to participate, including those who are delivering at

other hospitals. For more information on maternity services or classes, call 610-270-2020.

CPR and First Aid Courses are offered for beginners to experiences health care providers. Call 610-270-2313.

The Ambler SAAC (Senior Adult Activities Center), located at 45 Forest Ave in Ambler will hold the following events:

Tai Chi every Monday and Thursday at 11 a.m.

Yoga is every Tuesday at 1 p.m. and Friday at 10:30 a.m.

Strength and balance training every Wednesday at 10 a.m.

Armchair Aerobics is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Gourmet Weight Wise every Thursday at 12:30.

Fitness Center and Pool Room open daily 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

The Diabetes Education Center will offer day and evening classes each month. Health insurance pays for diabetes education classes. Preregistration is required. Call 610-270-2301.

For Kids & Families

The Ambler Kiwanis Club will host its annual Easter Egg Hunt April 26 at 10 a.m. in Ambler Borough Park, located just off of the intersection of Hendricks Street and Valley Brook Road. Members of the Wissahickon Key Club will assist Kiwanians in hiding thousands of wrapped chocolate eggs in a designated area of the park. Also hidden will be plastic colored eggs, which are redeemed for prizes. Elementary school children are separated by age.

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation will hold its 21st annual Storybook Egg-Stravaganza April 15 fom 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Upper Dublin Township Building. Toddlers and preschoolers love this annual event where photo opportunities with favorite friends abound! Treasures are collected from UDP&Rs assortment of lifesize cutouts of favorite cartoon characters from Disney, Sesame Street, Nickelodeon and other well-known animation. Children can have their picture taken with Bugsy OHare; bring your own camera. And dont forget a basket for goodies! $7 for UD residents; $12 for non-residents. Pre-register at 215-643-1600 ext. 3443.

Splash Week is a free week-long program that teaches children and families basic swimming skills and water safety practices. All YMCA branches will host multiple classes each day from April 11 to 15. For more information, contact the Ambler Area YMCA at 215-628-9950.

Healthy Kids Day is April 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The day is filled with fun, engaging and artistic activities that cultivate healthy living as part of the YMCAs larger efforts to help more kids and families become physically active. All activities are free and open to the community. For more information, contact the Ambler YMCA at 215-628-9950. No reservation is required.

The Ambler Area YMCA has added several new programs for area youngsters. Classes are held late afternoons or evenings on various weekdays. For more information, visit philaymca.org or call 215-628-9950.

Basic Beading: Ages: 10+. Wednesdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. This class will teach you the fundamentals of wiring and stringing along with how color can be used to create unique and vibrant beadwork design. You will create various jewelry including earrings, bracelets, charm pendants and much more! Supplies will be provided. Bringing your own jewelry pliers or tools would be a plus.

Messin with the Masters: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. Learn about some of the worlds greatest artists. You will be inspired to create your own Starry Night with oil pastels and tempera paints, a tissue paper painted Monet garden, a Picasso head using scraps of paper, a Georgia OKeeffe clay flower bowl and a Rousseau jungle collage.

Super Scientist: Ages: 5-7. Mondays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Well be concocting chemistry experiments such as making slime, mixing potions and having fun with magnet magic. Your budding little scientist will enhance his/her creative thinking and motor skills and to top it off will learn that science can be serious fun.

Wacky Junk Art: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 6 to 6:45 p.m. Why throw it away! Instead join us to make household junk into aliens from outer space, wacky specs, crazy hats, body masks or a recycled train.

Globe Trotters: Ages: 4-6. Tuesdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Youre never too young to start thinking globally. Each week, we explore a new country through crafts, games, music, stories and even some taste-testing. A perfect introduction to our great big world!

Crazy about Crafts: Ages: 5-7, Thursdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Let your childs creative juices flow with our fun arts and crafts projects each week. Fine motor skills and creative thinking skills will be enhanced with this crafty class.

Come out and join the Ambler Area YMCAs Teen and Junior Leaders Club. Participants are given the freedom to plan community service projects year round and truly make a difference in the lives of people in need. Those in Teen and Junior Leaders also attend leadership retreats all along the East Coast three times a year and meet other leaders who are doing the same great work in their respective areas. Dont miss out on this inspiring opportunity. Teen Leaders, ages 13-17, meet every Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Junior Leaders, ages 10-12, will begin in the spring and will meet every Monday. For more information, contact Mike Miles, Teen Director, 215- 628-9950 x 1540 or mmiles@philaymca.org.

Did you know that the new Ambler Area YMCA holds childrens birthday parties at its site for members and non members as well. The Ambler Y does all the work from start to finish and birthday parties include a personalized cake, ice cream, beverage and paper products. Parties are held on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and include two party hosts to lead activities, set-up, clean-up and assist with serving. You can have a Splash Party for children ages six to 12 in the new zero depth entry pool with water slide and spray fountains. Up to 25 children have exclusive use of the pool area with 30 minutes in the party room. Sports Parties are offered for kids ages four to 12 with age appropriate activities and games, and sports such as floor hockey, soccer, basketball or dodge ball. Children ages three to five years of age will enjoy parties in the Family Active Center with use of the Moon Bounce and organized activities, such as parachute play and songs. For information, 215-628-9950 ext. 1583.

Community Events at the Ambler Y:

-YAchievers YMCA Achievers is a developmentally based, extracurricular, educational and team mentoring program designed to help students in grades five through 12 prepare for fulfilled livelihoods in college and beyond. Participation is free and all students in this program receive a free YMCA membership. Registration for the 2009 program begins now. You do not need to be a YMCA member to utilize these special services. Call 215-628-9950 to register.

Greater Norristown Art Leagues Childrens Weeklong Summer Art Camps will be held at 800 West Germantown Pike in East Norriton, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday throughout the summer. The cost per session is $125 per student for ages 6 and up. Jo Ann Cooksey Bono teaches an introduction to basic drawing skills and techniques from 10 a.m. until the lunch break each day. In the afternoon sessions, Mary Vogel Lozinak involves the students in hands on projects such as collage, papermaking, T-shirt printing, 3D design and sculpy clay. Fridays Graduation Day includes an art show, awards ceremony and reception for parents, siblings, grandparents and friends. All supplies are included. Students provide their own lunch. A refrigerator is available and the building is air-conditioned. This is the 15th year to run this successful program. Both instructors are professional artists with State Police and Child Abuse Clearances. To register, call Jo Ann at 610-279-1008, or register on-line at www.gnal.org.

Health

Dresher Physical Therapy is hosting an interactive seminar discussing its Golf Assessment Progam April 30 from 10 a.m. to noon at Dresher Physical Therapy, 1075 Virginia Drive, Suite 200, Fort Washington. Physical therapist Chris Miller, certified through the Titleist Performance Institute, will discuss why your body may be the most important piece of golf equipment you invest in and how this can drastically improve your game. $10 in advance; $15 at the door. Call 215-619-4545 to reserve your spot.

The Chestnut Hill Center for Enrichment, Center on the Hill and Chestnut Hill Hospital will host a Senior Health and Resource Fair April 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Chestnut Hill Presbyterian Church, 8855 Germantown Ave. The event is free. For more information, call 215-248-0180 or e-mail chseniors@cavtel.net.

The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is hosting Help Yourself to Health, a new six-week workshop for older adults with ongoing health conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety, heart disease and others. The free workshop will take place at the Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center, 45 Forest Ave. on six Thursdays, May 12 through June 16 from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Although there is no charge to participate, registration is required. To register, call 215-619-8863.

The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is sponsoring an eight-week program called A Matter of Balance: Managing Concerns About Falls. Presented by the Montgomery County Health Department, this workshop will be held on Tuesdays, May 3 to June 21 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Ambler Center, 45 Forest Ave. If you pre-register by April 27, the fee is only $5! Registration at the first class is $10. (Checks should be payable to SAAC and will benefit our Meals on Wheels program that serves homebound seniors.) A workbook will be provided and refreshments will be served. Call 215-619-8863 to register or for more information.

Fort Washington Wellness Center classes are ongoing. There are several offered during lunch or right after work, for your convenience: Boot Camp from noon to 1 p.m. on Monday; Zumba is MWF from 11 a.m. to noon and Friday at 4 p.m.; there are 25 cycling classes; Ashtanga and Vinyasana Yoga and Pilates; and a group Womens Strength Training class M-F from 10 to 11 a.m. Questions, call Cathy DeMarco at 215-641-1245.

Following the success of other local area programs, Impact Sports and Upper Dublin Parks and Recreation are delighted to team up again to offer a spring program for the 2011 season! Upper Dublin area children ages 3-5 years old can attend a Sports Program featuring their favorite sports games; soccer, rugby, hockey, track and field, basketball, and more. The program will start on April 27 and run through June 1. Cost for the program is $85 for the six weeks. The classes will be running 12- 1 p.m.; 1- 2 p.m.; 2- 3 p.m. For more info or to register, call Upper Dublin Township on 215 643 1600 or visit their website a http://www.upperdublin.net.

Spring Aquatic Programs  UDHS Pool:

-Summer is just around the corner  Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool can help get you into shape! Programs begin in March; preregistration is required.

 Shallow Water Aerobics  Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 8-8:45 p.m., $40R/$50NR.

 Adult Swim Instructions  Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 7-8 p.m., $50R/$60NR

-Open Rec Swims are fun for the whole family! Come out on Fridays from 7-9 p.m. or Saturdays from 1-4 p.m. and enjoy use of the pool and diving area. Fridays are offered through June 17; Saturdays are offered March 12-May 21.

-Join a growing group of adult lap swimmers and water walkers. Lanes are set aside evenings and weekends for use; lanes are shared. Monday  Thursday from 7:30-9:30 p.m.; Fridays from 7-9 p.m. and Saturdays (March 12-May 21) from 1-4 p.m.

-Private Swimming & Diving Lessons for ages 3-adult are offered at the UDHS Pool through a partnership with the Upper Dublin Aquatic Club (UDAC). Visit the UDAC website for more information, www.udac.us, and click the link to UDHS Private Lessons.

-Looking for local programs for US Masters Swimming (adults) or Water Polo (all ages)? UDAC and UDSD are working together to develop programs that will be offered at the UDHS Pool. Add your name to Interest Lists by emailing slohoefer@upperdublin.net. emails will be sent about clinics and program start dates.

Questions about Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool, group use of the pool or pool rental? Contact Susan Lohoefer, Facility & Community Affairs Manager at slohoefer@upperdublin.net or call 215-643-8800 x8994.

SilverSneakers Fitness Program. The Healthyways SilverSneakers Fitness Program is a result-oriented program that enables older adults to take charge of their health. The program is an innovative blend of physical activity, healthy lifestyle and socially oriented programing. Members of the program are eligible for a free YMCA membership, with use of the pool and exercise equipment, along with customized classes designed for older adults who want to improve their strength, flexibility, balance and endurance. If you are a subscriber to Independence Blue Cross (Personal Choice 65 PPO) or Keystone 65 HMO, Bravo Health, or Health Options Programs (HOP), call the Ambler Area YMCA, 215-628-9950 or Hatboro Area YMCA, 215-674-4545. You can also visit www.silversneakers.com.

Zumba Fitness offers Zumba dance/fitness classes at Academy of Dance and Music/BBAD Studio located at 1524 DeKalb Pike in Blue Bell (behind Sherwin Williams). Classes are offered three times a week: Tuesdays at 6 p.m., Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m. For a free trial pass for your first class, email us at info@danceandmusic.biz or call 610-277-2557. For more info, visit our site at www.academyofdanceandmusic.org.

Chestnut Hill Health Systems presents the following Health Education Programs:

FITNESS CLASSES

Golden Yoga: A Breathing, Stretching and Relaxation Class. Fridays, 2:30-3:30 p.m. Lea Auditorium, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. Registration for four classes at a time required. Golden Yoga is Classical Yoga, adapted by the SKY Foundation, to accommodate those who have difficulty getting up and down from the floor. The program includes postures, breathing, relaxation and meditation techniques, all performed while sitting in a chair and standing. Registration required. Call 215-247-3029. Cost: $20 for 4 classes per month.

Tai Chi: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 8:30  9:30 a.m. Springfield Residence, 8601 Stenton Ave. Classes, for the novice or beginner/intermediate student, are designed to improve balance, power, posture, coordination, flexibility and mental focus. Slow, gentle movements are modified to most everyones abilities. For more information or to sign up for a free introductory class, call 215-882-2804. Cost: $8 per class/paid monthly.

SUPPORT GROUPS

Weight Loss Surgery Support Group: Fourth Wednesday of the month, 7-8 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. Join us for a monthly get-together where well share information for those interested in weight loss surgery, learn from guest speakers discussing current news on issues including lifestyle modification, nutrition and exercise and provide ongoing support for those who have completed surgery. Registration required. Call 215-753-2000.

Breast Cancer Networking Group: Fourth Tuesday of the month 5:30  7 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. A free, confidential support group for women living with a diagnosis of breast cancer designed to provide a forum for sharing information, feelings and concerns associated with breast cancer. Facilitated by Tish Wakefield, LCSW, Oncology Social Worker. Registration required. To register or for more information, call 215-248-8047.

New Moms Support Groups Tuesdays 10:30 a.m.  12 p.m.; contact Jeanine ORourke, MSW or 2:30  4 p.m.; contact Susan Schack, Ph.D Volunteer Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. The Center for Postpartum Depression at Chestnut Hill Hospital is pleased to offer two new support groups to support new moms. Both groups will be run by experienced mental health professionals who really get it when it comes to new motherhood and juggling relationships, extended family, work/family balance and self-care. If you are experiencing new mom challenges that often heighten anxiety and involve hormonally driven depression, join us for an informative and supportive forum to connect with other moms. Infants are welcome. $30 per session (flexible based on need). Registration is required. Call Dr. Schack, 646-265-2484, or Ms. ORourke, 215-206-2931.

Man to Man Prostate Cancer Support Group Third Thursday of the month 8-9 a.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. A networking group for men diagnosed with prostate cancer designed to provide education, support and encouragement. Spouses and partners welcome. Harry M. Baer, MD, Chief, Urology Division, will host Ask the Doctor. Registration required. Call 215-248-8325.

Contact the Senior Center by phone 215-248-0180 or email (chseniors@cavtel.net) with your questions about these programs or any of our on-going activities and classes.

Holy Redeemer HomeCare and Hospice seeks compassionate and emotionally mature volunteers to provide support to local hospice patients and their families in Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. Volunteers may also assist with pet therapy and administrative work within the hospice department and are requested to have daytime availability. Hospice patient care volunteers visit with patients in their homes or nursing facilities once a week for two to three hours. They provide emotional support and companionship to patients and family members, assist with errands or provide respite for caregivers. Bereavement volunteers support the families of hospice patients following the loss of a loved one, while administrative volunteers assist with typing, mailings and/or filing. Hospice care workers provide a great service to families and loved ones of hospice patients. Many volunteers also report a great deal of personal satisfaction as a result of their services. Patient care and bereavement volunteers complete an application and attend an 18-hour volunteer training program that covers the medical, psychological and spiritual aspects of hospice volunteering. Day and evening training programs are offered. To sign up for volunteer opportunities in Pennsylvania, contact Holy Redeemer Volunteer Coordinator Jean Francis at 215-698-3737 or email jfrancis@holyredeemer.com.

Librarytalk

Upper Dublin Public Library, 805 Loch Alsh Avenue, Ft. Washington, 215-628-8744

www.upperdublinlibrary.org

APRIL CHILDRENS PROGRAMS:

Storytimes: Please register in the library.

o Wee Ones: 0 to 23 months Thursdays and Fridays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m.

o Tiny Tots: age 2. Wednesdays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m. and Fridays 11 to 11:20 a.m.

o Jr. Book Lovers: ages 3 to 6. Tuesdays 10:30 to 11 a.m.

o Bedtime Storytimes: 7 to 7:30 p.m. April 20 and 27. Wear your jammies, bring your teddy & hear Miss Barbara read bedtime stories! For ages 3 to 6.

APRIL TEEN PROGRAMS:

North Hills Library Teens April 28 from 4 to 6 p.m. Movie Matinee

APRIL UDPL ADULT PROGRAMS:

NEW! ESL Conversation Group. Tuesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. Interested in practicing your English in a safe and caring environment? Come to our conversation group and improve your skills! Please register with Kay Klocko at 215-628-8744 or kklocko@mclinc.org.

One-on-One Computer Mentoring. Get personalized assistance from experienced computer volunteers! Sign-up for a one-hour session. Limit one session per month. Please register  contact info above.

Book Groups Please register with Kay Klocko 215-628-8744.

o Daytimers: April 21 at 1:30 p.m. Tired of book groups where you all read the same book? Read any fiction or non-fiction book on this months theme: Explorers. Please register.

Meetings:

Annual Meeting of the Friends of UDPL: April 14 at 1 p.m.

Board of Directors: April 20 at 7 p.m.

Blue Bell Library www.wvpl.org Upcoming Events: The Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 650 Skippack Pike (Route 73) in Blue Bell, is diagonally across from the Blue Bell Inn. Call 215-643-1320 or visit their website at www.wvpl.org.

For children and teens at Blue Bell:

* Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian.

* Mondays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages.

* Fridays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Family Movies, new releases, second Saturdays of the month at 1:30 p.m.

* May 14  Despicable Me

* June 11  Alpha and Omega

* Special Events

* April  watch for date of spring/Easter events

* April 14 at 4:30 p.m.  Junior Lego Club for children ages 3 through 5. Parents and caregivers need to stay with children.

* April 14 at 7 p.m.  Jeopardy for ages 11 to 18. Test your book and library knowledge for prizes. Sign up to be a contestant. No sign up to be in the audience. Snacks provided.

* April 16 at 1 p.m.  Adult Mystery Book Group discussing The Beekeepers Apprentice by Laurie King.

* April 16 at 1:30 p.m.  Childrens event for One Book, Every Young Child celebration. Story and craft for book Whose Shoes?

* April 19 at 7 p.m. and April 26 at 1:30 p.m.- Adult book group discusses The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester. Group led by Adam Button.

* April 30 through May 3  Friends book sale with about 10,000 items for sale for children, teens and adults.

* May  sign up for Science in the Summer

* June  sign up for Enrichment Programs for Elementary-Age children

* June  sign up for Summer Reading, all ages

For adults at Blue Bell:

* Daytime Book Discussion Group  fourth Tuesday, Jan  April at 1:30 p.m.

* April 26  The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

* Night-time Book Discussion Group  third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m.

o April 19  The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

* Art Series with Dr. Sheldon Weintraub, docent at The Barnes and speaker at local colleges

o April 27 at 2 p.m. The Art of Looking at Art-Is She Nude or Is She Naked?

*Mystery Book Discussion Group, third Saturday of the month at 1 p.m.; new mystery theme each month; www.wvpl.org/programs

* Yoga on Mondays at 1:30 p.m. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop-in class.

* Tai Chi on Mondays at 3 p.m. with Dr. Kurt Findeisen. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop in class.

* Philadelphia Museum of Art presents class on their Marc Chagall exhibit, April 13 at 2 p.m.

* Giant Book Sale, April 29  May 3

o Starts with almost 10,000 items for children and adults!

o Held during library hours.

o Preview for members of the Friends of the Library, April 28 at 7 p.m.

o Join the Friends and attend the preview sale. Modest fee to join.

* Blooms at Blue Bell Gardening Series

o May 11 at 1 p.m.  Summer Bulbs by PA Horticultural Society

* Knitting group Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. Work on your project or observe and learn. The groups continue year-round in the community room.

* Socrates Cafe discussion group every Monday at 7 p.m. You pick the topic to discuss each week. No sign-up, nothing to read.

* Bridge every Friday at 12:30 p.m. New players welcome.

* Mah Jong every Wednesday at 1 p.m. New players welcome.

*Chess every Wednesday at 7p.m. for adults and teens 14 and older.

* Movie Matinee showing recent releases every Thursday at 2 p.m. April 14: Maos Last Dancer; April 21: Welcome to the Rileys; April 28: Conviction; May 5: Inception; May 12: Inside Job; May 19 The Kings Speech; May 26 The Fighter; June 2 Rabbit Hole; June 9 Black Swan; June 16 127 Hours

* Ongoing like-new, year-round book sale for adults & children during library hours

* Library opening at 10 a.m. Monday through Saturday!

Ambler Library, a branch of the Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 209 Race St., 215-646-1072. www.wvpl.org. All the following events occur at the Ambler Library.

* Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian.

* Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Thursdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages.

* For adults:

* Beading Group meets the first and third Monday of every month at 1 p.m. Work on your own projects or come to watch and learn.

* Free Family History Lookup with Connie Briggs. Email Connie for an appointment at the Ambler Library. conniebriggs@comcast.net

* Special Events:

* April 14 at 1:30 p.m.  Book Group discusses Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian.

* April 19 at 7 p.m.  Travel to Paris with world traveler Harry Balin. Tea and scones at 6:30 p.m.

* April 21 at 7 p.m.  Art with Sara for children in fourth through seventh grades.

*May 2 at 6:30 p.m.  Discuss the movie Lone Star with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time.

*May 10  Robert Capucci discusses Art into Fashion. Tea and scones served at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m.

*May 12 at 1:30p.m.  Book Group discusses The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman.

*May 17  Tour the gardens of Devon and Southwest England with Lois McMullen. Tea and Scones at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m.

*June 13 at 6:30 p.m.  Discuss the movie Blade Runner with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time.

Meetings and Lectures

The Unisys Blue Bell Retiree Group will meet in the Church on the Mall in the Plymouth Meeting Mall April 14 at 1:30 p.m. Kathy Sacket Young, director/trainer with the North Penn YMCA, will speak on Keeping Fit in Retirement. For more information, contact Membership Committee Chairperson Jerry Feldscher at 610-275-3538 or President Al Rollin at 215-368-4833.

The next FWBA meeting will be April 28 at the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Networking begins at 11:30 a.m.; meeting from noon to 1 p.m. Leon Singletary, Principal, First Contact HR and FWBA Executive Board, will present: Social Media: How to Use It To Get More Business. Lunch is provided courtesy of the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Members are welcome to bring a guest. An RSVP is requested by return email or 215-628-0313.

Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern PA is hosting a information sessions over the next few weeks on how to become a Big Brother. The information sessions will take place: April 16 at noon, April 19 at 8 a.m. and April 28 at 6 p.m. All sessions will be held at the groups Norristown Office,t 530 DeKalb St., Norristown. For more information, call 610-277-2200.

The North Penn Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) normally meets on the third Tuesday of each month from now until May. Meetings are held at the William Penn Inn on Route 202 and Sumneytown Pike, Upper Gwynedd, PA. Social hour starts at 5:30 p.m., dinner is served at 6:30 p.m., and the technical program begins at 7 p.m. Cost with reservation is $28 for members. Members without reservations and guests pay $30. Students with reservations pay $15. Reservations may be made by noon on the Monday preceding the meeting by phoning 215-371-1854 or emailing the reservation to northpennima@yahoo.com northpennima@yahoo.com. Information about the North Penn Chapter is available at http://northpenn.imanet.org/.

LeTip, a professional organization of men and women who are dedicated to the highest standards of competence and service meets every Tuesday at Cedar Brook Country Club, 180 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell at 7 a.m. -meeting officially starts at 7:16 a.m. and ends at 8:31 a.m. Our purpose is the exchange of business tips, leads, and referrals. Each business category is represented by one member and conflicts of interest are disallowed. Guests are welcome to visit any of our breakfast meetings.

Every third Thursday of month, Sunrise Assisted Living of Blue Bell (795 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell, PA 19422, 215-619-2777) serves as a satellite site to 148th Legislative district PA congressman Mike Gerber from 10 a.m. to noon. Stop by for help needed with things such as disability placards and license plates, vehicle registration, utilities issues, birth/death certificates,property tax/rent rebates, etc. Notary services arranged by appointment.

The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce is an action-oriented organization dedicated to promoting its members and the economic health of eastern Montgomery county. The Chamber is committed to serving as a catalyst by uniting business, community agencies, government and education to make our county a great place to live and work. For information, call 215-887-5122 or visit www.emccc.org.

Do you have a fear of public speaking? Blue Bell Toastmasters Club can help. We meet from 7 to 9 p.m., on the second and fourth Tuesday at the Marriott Courtyard, located on Route 202, directly across from the Montgomeryville Mall. Learn how to improve communication and leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment. Guests are welcome. Admission fee: $5. For more info, visit www.bbtoast.org.

The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will hold the following meetings (for reservations to any of the following, email info@PennSuburban.org)

-Breakfast News Network, 7:30-8:45 a.m. at Normandy Farm Hotel (1401 Morris Road, Blue Bell, PA 19422) $15 members, includes full buffet breakfast. Join us for a networking program at Normandy Farm Hotel every Thursday morning for breakfast, business news, informative speakers, and plenty of networking. The cost includes a full breakfast buffet. Copies of the business cards will be made available to those who would like them.

The BNI, Fort Washington Chapter meets every Monday at The Hilton Garden Inn, 520 Pennsylvania Ave., Fort Washington for a networking meeting. Meetings are from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. Visitors are welcome. The only cost to attend is the cost of your meal. For information or a reservation to attend, please call Luanne Cram at 215-947-7784, or visit our Internet site at: http://www.BNIDVR.Com and click on the menu item Find a Chapter.

For the past seven years, people have enjoyed participating in WVWAs Adopt-a-Tree program. Individuals can support the Association in its reforestation efforts by purchasing native trees to be planted. Supporters can plant their adopted tree or have WVWA volunteers will plant it. Trees cost $30 each. If you would like to volunteer or purchase a tree(s), please contact: Bob Adams at Bob@wvwa.org or call: 215-646-8866 for more information. Check www.WVWA.org for directions and maps.

Sustainable Upper Dublin, http://sustainableupperdublin.org, meets the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m., at the Upper Dublin Township Building, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington, PA 19034. Please send any questions to suec@sustainableupperdublin.org or call 610-996-6316. To learn more about Sustainable Upper Dublin, view or join the discussion at http://googlegroups.com/group/sustainableupperdublin.

Special Events

The Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard will hold its first nutrition class April 19 at 10 a.m. at the Community Cupboard, 150 N. Main St., Ambler. Lynne Sinclair, a nutritionist from Abington Memorial Hospital specializing in diabetic nutrition, will conduct the class. Topics will include healthy eating, beneficial foods, recipes, making meals with every day foods, and how to use unfamiliar produce. A healthy snack will be provided.The class is is open to all residents in Montgomery County.

The Historical Society of Fort Washington presents The History of Conshohocken April 19 at 8 p.m. at the Clifton House, 473 Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington. Jack Coll will present an illustrated program on the history of the Borough of Conshohocken. Coll is a longtime resident of Conshohocken and a member of the Conshohocken Historical Society. He is co-author with his son, Brian, of the Arcadia Then and Now Series book Conshohocken. He has also done books Conshohocken and West Conshohocken Sports and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Italian Feast. He has taken many photos for the Conshohocken Record and the Norristown Times Herald. This program is free. Refreshments will be served. For additional information, call 215-646-6065.

Taste of the White House Soiree featuring former White House Chef Walter Scheib will take place April 29 at 6 p.m. at Manufacturers Golf & Country Club in Fort Washington to celebrate HealthLinks 10th anniversary and honor its founders, the Eugene Jackson Family. The evening will heat up with a Chef Meet & Greet, followed by a specially selected presidential menu. Gala tickets are $150 per person. Proceeds benefit HealthLink, a free clinic providing compassionate, quality medical and dental care to uninsured, working adults in Bucks and Montgomery counties who fall in between the health care cracks. Go to http://tasteofthewhitehouse.charityhappenings.org to make reservations online or lend support through sponsorship. For event information, call 267-699-0124 or email jmarushak@healthlinkmedical.org.

The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association will hold an open house at the Evans-Mumbower Mill April 17 from 1 to 4 p.m. The Mill is at the corner of Swedesford and Township Line Roads in Upper Gwynedd. The open house is free but donations are welcome. For more information, call 215-646-8866 o email info@wvwa.org.

The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce will host Breakfast With Your County Commissioners and State Representatives April 21 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Fort Washington, 432 W. Pennasylvania Ave. Commissioners: James R. Matthews (Chairman), Joseph M. Hoeffel (Vice Chair), State Representatives: Todd Stephens (District 151) and Josh Shapiro (District 153). Register onlineat www.emccc.org. $10 for EMCCC member; $20 for non-members.

Upper Dublins Districtwide Allied Art Show will be held April 27 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. in the Upper Dublin High School Athletic Complex.

The Rev. Alfred Muli, chaplain at Fort Washington Estates, will be the featured speaker at the Kiwanis sponsored breakfast observing the National Day of Prayer May 5 at 7 a.m. at the William Penn Inn. The breakfast is open to the public ($15). Reservations can be made by calling 215-646-4356 or by emailing georgesaurman@Juno.com.

The Upper Dublin Shade Tree Commission invites people to participate in its spring bare root planting events, sponsored in part by Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Friends of Robbins Park. On April 9, zix trees will be planted at the Evelyn B. Wright Park & Community Pool, 401 Logan Ave., North Hills, at 9 a.m., followed by the planting of 10 trees at Sheeleigh Park, Loch Alsh Avenue and Douglas Street, Ambler, at 10:15 a.m. On April 29, students from Upper Dublin High School will join the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society to plant 16 trees in Robbins Park, Butler Pike and Meetinghouse Road, Ambler, to help launch the societys Million Trees campaign. This event will occur in conjunction with Temple Amblers EarthFest. Experienced tree-tenders are sought to assist the students. For more information,contact Ron Ayres at 215-653-0421 or 215-483-4348.

The Friends of the Wissahickon and the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association are teaming up once again to clean the Wissahickon Creek from top to bottom April 30 from 9 a.m. to noon. This spring marks the 41st anniversary of Wissahickon Valley Watershed Associations annual Creek Clean Up, and the second year that FOW has teamed up with WVWA. Volunteers of all ages will clean the creek, the surrounding trails and the many tributaries of the Wissahickon Creek. Armed with bags, volunteers will be assigned to sections of the creek. Following the clean up, all volunteers are invited to WVWAs Talkin Trash picnic in Fort Washington State Park, with food provided by Whole Foods Market of North Wales. The pavilion is located on Mill Road in Flourtown. To help out in Montgomery County, all volunteers must be pre-assigned a section of the Wissahickon Creek to clean. Please contact Bob Adams, WVWA director of stewardship, at 215-646-8866 ext. 14 or bob@wvwa.org. To work with the Friends of the Wissahickon in Philadelphia, meet at the pavilion along Forbidden Drive, a short distance south of the intersection of Forbidden Drive and Northwestern Avenue. Limited parking is available along Northwestern Avenue and other nearby streets. Volunteers are encouraged to bike or carpool to the event. To participate, register at www.fow.org. Contact Kevin Groves with questions at 215-247-0417 ext. 105 or groves@fow.org.

Montgomery County Community Colleges International Club invites the community to the second annual International Festival April 20 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The rain date is April 26. The International Club will transform the outside quad area into multicultural celebration with various performances by dancers, singers and musicians. Artists will share their artwork at various display tables. Activities include games, raffles, Easter egg decorating and henna tattoos. Students will have samples of international cuisine at tables representing different countries and will serve food from various local ethnic restaurants. Throughout the evening, volunteers will accept donations and will raffle gift baskets and prizes to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity. Donations of food, international clothes and prizes are needed. Volunteers, including artists and performers, are welcome. For more information or to sponsor an activity, contact Gillian Nel, International Club president, at gnel9277@students.mc3.edu or 267-974-0163.

The Arts and Humanities Division at Montgomery County Community College is partnering with the Philadelphia Writers Conference to host Memoirs Matter: How Life Stories (Including Yours) Can Transform Your Relationship to Literature April 23 from 1 to 3 p.m. in Advanced Technology Center room 101, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The event is free and open to the public. In the first part of this two-hour seminar, professor and author Robert Waxler will explain how writing his two memoirs affected his life as well as his relationship to literature. In the second part, blogger and workshop leader Jerry Waxler will present a sequence of steps to help writers find their own story. For information, contact Dana Resente at dresente@mc3.edu.

The Maple Glen Garden Club will hold its fourth annual Plant Sale on May 7 from 8 to 11 a.m. Perennials, shrubs, vegetables and native plants grown by the club members will be sold. The club uses the plant sale proceeds to fund community projects, a college scholarship and community plantings. The sale will be held in the 500 block of Coach Road, Horsham, as part of a neighborhood garage sale. Plants will be sold at bargain prices. For more information, email MapleGlenGardenClub@gmail.com.

The Relay for Life Craft Show is looking for local crafters to participate in show, which will be May 21 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Wissahickon High School track, 521 Houston Road, Ambler. There is a $10 entry fee, and 20 percent of sales are donated to the American Cancer Society. Participants will receive a 6-foot table under a tent. For information, contact Joanne at joannescoles@comcast.net or Mindy at mcamsilver@comcast.net.

Spring House Estates is hosting its annual book fair on April 18 from 4 to 7 p.m. and April 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Included will be hardback and paperback used books. Spring House Estates is located at 728 Norristown Road, Lower Gwynedd.

The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will present the Penn Suburban/Hatfield Joint Business Card Exchange April 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Univest Bank Lansdale Area Financial Service Center, 120 Forty Foot Road, Hatfield. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. Join Univest National Bank and Trust Co. for a spring-inspired Business Card Exchange at its newest office in the Hatfield Pointe Shopping Center. Come out and meet members of Univests executive management team while enjoying fine food and beverages.

13th Annual Community Reading Day Kick-off Breakfast Get Together April 26 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the North Wales Area Library, 233 Swartley St., North Wales. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. For more information, contact the chamber office at 215-362-9200 or info@pennsuburban.org. Join presenting sponsor Verizon, chamber staff and fellow members for the Community Reading Day volunteer get together. The Community Reading Day program allows volunteers to read a designated book to second-grade students throughout 38 area public and private schools and present the book as a gift to each class. Even if you are not a volunteer, you are cordially invited to stop by to network, enjoy coffee and pastries.

Ambler Mennonite Church is hosting a Spring Craft Show and Flea Market May 21 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rain date will be May 28. The community is invited to shop the great craft booths, find some gifts and deals, as well as enjoy home baked goods and tasty lunch specials. Childrens activities are planned. All vendors are encouraged to contact the church at 215-643-4876 or AmblerMennonite@verizon.net. Advertising, signage, customer parking and a shuttle to auxiliary parking at nearby lots for vendors will be provided. 10 foot by 10 foot spaces can be rented for $5 each and tables for an additional $5 each. All proceeds from space and table rentals go toward school kits for children around the world. The church is located at the corner of East Mt. Pleasant Avenue and North Spring Garden Street, Ambler.

The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association presents The Life & Times of Aquatic Insects in the Wissahickon Creek April 16 from 1 to 3 p.m. Join WVWA for a hands-on program. RSVP required: www.wvwa.org or 215-646-8866. WVWA member fee: $5 per person / $15 per family. Non-WVWA member fee: $10 per person / $20 per family.

The photography exhibition Natures Palette by photo-artist Judy Miller will run March 18 to May 19 at the Art in the Storefront gallery, 41 E. Butler Pike, Ambler.

JPRN  Networking For People in Transition & People Who Can Help Them  Unemployment remains high. JPRN, the Jarrettown Professional Relationship Network can help. Are you trying to network your way to a new job? Do you have expertise or contacts that can help people in transition? Is your company or organization looking for people in the area? This is a free outreach program to support those seeking work, involve people with contacts and networking know how, and involve local companies. Meetings held monthly at Jarrettown United Methodist Church, Limekiln Pike.

Pennsylvanias Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) grant program is now open for the 2010-11 heating season. Grants are based on income, family size, type of heating fuel and region. Additional information, such as specific income limits, and applications for LIHEAP grants are available online via the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Access to Social Services (COMPASS) website at www.compass.state.pa.us. Applications are available at most public officals district offices, county assistance offices, local utility companies and community service agencies, such as Area Agencies on Aging or community action agencies.

Begin your holiday shopping at Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation! Entertainment books for 2011, Philadelphia North, are now on sale at $30 each. Regal/United Artists movie tickets are on sale for just $7.50 each, and tickets to the Adventure Aquarium, Baltimore Aquarium, and the Philadelphia Zoo are also available. Discounted ski vouchers to area mountains will be arriving in December; call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information. Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

RSVP of Montgomery County and the Wissahickon Valley Public Library have partnered again to offer the public their popular free mock interview sessions. The mock interviews are conducted by RSVP volunteers who are retired professionals, some of whom were in hiring positions themselves. Packets of information which include a sample employment application and interviewing tips with mock interview questions are available at the library to pick up prior to a scheduled mock interview or will be sent via email once the interview is scheduled. To schedule your interview, please contact Janis Glusman at RSVP 610-834-1040, ext. 16. The library is also offering a free resume review service. Bring in your current resume and the professional reference staff will assist you with hints and tips on capturing your work history accurately.

Registration for Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation summer playgrounds, Camp B.I.G. and Small Folks, X-Zone, and sports camps has began. Register online at www.upperdublin.net/store, or at the UDP&R office, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington. Call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information.

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Danielles Espresso Cafe presents Mornings at Mondaug Bark Park April 16 and May 21 from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Meet fellow dog lovers. These events include complimentary coffee, treats for people and pups and raffles/giveaways.

Upper Dublins Annual Spring Flea Market will be held June 4 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Reserve a table, or come and shop. Tables are $15 for UD residents, $20 for non-residents. This successful event occurs rain or shine. Refreshments available. Call 215-643-1600 ext. 3443 to register for a table.

Regal movie tickets available for purchase at Upper Dublin Township Parks & Recreation. Reduced rate: $7.50 per ticket. Some restrictions apply. Call 215-643-1600 x3443.

Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation movie tickets $7.50 Regal Cinemas, United Artist & Edwards Cinemas on sale throughout the year Monday  Friday from 9 a.m.  4 p.m.

Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation Camp Sign-ups for Stony Creek Day Camp  Stony Creek Tracers and Park n Tots. Register on-line at www.whitpaintownship.org OrCome to Township Building with check or Visa MasterCard Monday  Friday from 9 a.m.  4 p.m. For additional information call 610.277-2400 ext. 374

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation offers exciting new programs for the fall:

-Returning favorites include UK Elite Petite Soccer, Tiny Dancers, Kiddie Tennis, Fun-nastics, Messy Playtime, Little Chefs, and more. Babysitters Training will be offered in November and December. Continuing Adult Fitness Classes include Cardio Circuit, Core & More, Yoga, Boxing, and Adult G.Y.M. For more information call 215-643-1600 x3443. Register for programs online at www.upperdublin.net/store.

Music and Theater

The community is invited to a Cantors Concert April 16 at 8 p.m. Congregation Beth Or, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen. Listen and hum-along to the Yiddish, pop tunes and classical music performed by Congregation Beth Ors own Cantor David Green and his special guest, Cantor Irvin Bell, from Temple Beth Israel in Deerfield Beach, Fla. The cantors will be accompanied by Mark Sobol and his Klezmer musicians. Tickets are $18 in advance and $25 at the door. RSVP with payment to Barb Murtha, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen, PA 19002, or call 215-646-5806 ext. 220.

Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse will host the Jameson Sisters May 14. Doors open at 7:30 pm, performance at 8:00 pm. Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse is located at the corner of Rte. 202 & Sumneytown Pike, Gwynedd. $5 suggested donation. Light refreshment available at a modest cost. For further information, call 215-393-9576 or visit gwyneddmeeting.org/coffeehouse.html.

Celebrate patriotism through song with Gwynedd-Mercy Colleges choir, the Voices of Gwynedd, as it presents Hear America Singing April 15 at 8 p.m. The choir will perform song selections from all over the country, including Georgia on My Mind, New York State of Mind, and a medley including Philadelphia Freedom and Allentown. The performance will end with When the Saints Go Marching In to acknowledge the choirs upcoming tour in New Orleans. Hear America Singing will take place in the Julia Ball Auditorium, located in St. Bernard Hall. Parking is available in lots A, C and D. Admission is free.

The Choristers will present Anton Dvoraks Stabat Mater April 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church in Ambler. The choir will be accompanied by a 41-piece orchestra. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for senior citizens, $10 for students and children are free. Tickets will be sold in advance or at the door. For more information, call 215-542-7871 or visit TheChoristers.org

Religious News

The Staircase Gallery at Or Hadash: A Reconstructionist Congregation in Fort Washington will feature the work of Emily Ennuat-Lustine. The artist will be showing paintings and graphics inspired by her own personal spiritual journey and quest for meaning. Some of the works to be shown have been inspired by Biblical Psalms and writings. Her work has been shown at Abington Art Center, Cheltenham Arts Center and Old City Gallery of Jewish Art among others. The exhibition is open Friday evenings starting Feb. 18 after Shabbat services. Gallery hours are: Mondays through Thursdays 10-4:30, Fridays 10-3 and following Shabbat Services and Sundays 10-1. The synagogue is located at 190 Camp Hill Road in Fort Washington. For additional information contact the synagogue office at 215-283-0276.

Reunions

St. Matthews High School Conshohocken Class of 1961 is looking for classmates. For details, contact Greg Marincola at 215-646-2239, 215-740-1296 or gregcola@comcast.net.

Olney High School Class of 1971 is Lloking for classmates for a 40th reunion Oct. 28. For details, contact Judy at ohsclassof71@yahoo.com or 215-870-7572.

Abington High School Class of 1961 is seeking classmates for a 50-year reunion to be held Oct. 14-15, 2011.Visit the website, www.abington61.com, for details or call 215-947-1779.

Overbrook High School class of January 1956 is having a 55 year reunion on May 22, 2011 at the Bala Golf Club in Philadelphia. For information please contact overbrookreunion56@comcast.net

Germantown High School Class Of January 1961 is looking for classmates for 50th year reunion to take place in May of 2011. Please contact: 215-362-9148, 856-577-0659 or samdelcomo@comcast.net

The June 1961 class of Germantown High School is holding their 50th reunion on May 15, which will be a brunch. For further details please contact Linda Dorfman Alten at lindaalten@yahoo.com or call 215-441-8411.

Support

New Life Presbyterian Church in Dresher, will host GriefShare, a special seminar and support group which will run on Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m., from March 7 through June 6. At each meeting there will be a DVD about the grief process, discussion and reference to a grief workbook. Preregistration is required to secure a place in the group and to purchase a GriefShare notebook (for a one-time fee of $15). The notebook goes along with the 13-week schedule covering such topics as: living with grief, the effects of grief, and stuck in grief. For more information or to register, call: Sandy Elder at 215-884-5149.

PUPS (People Understanding Parkinsons) A self-help group for those adjusting to a new diagnosis or dealing with the early stages of Parkinsons Disease. Meets fourth Tuesday of the month from 1 to 2:30 p.m., at Abington Health Center, Schilling Campus, Willowood Building, 2510 Maryland Road, Suite 251, Willow Grove. For more information or to RSVP, contact Lorna at 215-542-2931.

The North Penn Visiting Nurse Associations Meals on Wheels program is looking for volunteers to pack or deliver meals to the elderly and infirmed. Meals are packed and delivered mornings, Monday through Friday. You can volunteer for as many days per week or month as you would like. Packaging meals requires approximately 2-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves making sandwiches, packaging food into individual serving containers and packing coolers with the meals. Delivering meals requires approximately 1-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves loading coolers into your car and delivering a route of approximately 10 to 15 stops. The Meals on Wheels program is also in need of emergency, winter-weather volunteers to pack and deliver meals in bad weather. North Penn VNA is located at 51 Medical Campus Drive in Lansdale and delivers meals in the Lansdale, North Wales and Blue Bell areas. For more information or to volunteer, please call Bridget, North Penn VNA Meals on Wheels coordinator at 215-855-8296.

Elkins Park Area CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) meets the first Tuesday of every month, 7- 8:30 p.m., at Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital in Elkins Park. For information on CHADD or ADHD, please see our website www.chadd.net/249 or call Claire Noyes at: 215-779-6656.

Center for Loss and Bereavement, 3847 Skippack Pike, Skippack (610-222-4110) www.bereavementcenter.org Offers professional counseling for individuals, couples, children and families dealing with issues of loss and bereavement. Six-week adult support groups: Newly forming young adult grief support group  every other Wednesday, 7  8:15 p.m. (free of charge); Monthly loss of child support  second Mondays, 7-8:15 p.m.; Six-week young loss of spouse/partner  Thursdays, 10-11:15 a.m.; Other groups scheduled as interest is shown for suicide loss support, adult loss of parent, motherless daughters, adult loss of sibling, coping with chronic illness and disability and mens loss of spouse. Nellos Corner Family Bereavement program offers peer grief support groups for ages 4 through teen and their caregivers  Every other Tuesday or Wednesday (free of charge) Local chapter of Parents of Murdered Children also meets at the Center. Registration required. Call for further information.

CHADD is a national organization for children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder, providing education, advocacy and support for individuals and their families with AD/HD. Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital, 60 Township Line Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027, will host children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder on the First Tuesday of each month 7  8:30 p.m. Free, no childcare provided.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphias Kehillah of Old York Road is sponsoring a free Caregiver Support Group for individuals who care for an elderly person with cognitive and/or physical impairments. The group meets at SarahCare Adult Day Care Center, 101 Washington Lane, Suite G-6, Jenkintown, Pa., on the first Wednesday of each month. Patty Rich,
Thanks to Nigel the Nutcracker from The Warehouse, we are granting wishes across the country!
The Valdese Lions Club recently hosted a special guest.

Member Larry Courtney told me about Morganton native Derek Lane, who gave a presentation at the clubs October meeting.

After graduating from Freedom High School in 2002, Lane earned a bachelors degree in communications with a concentration in radio and TV and an interdisciplinary minor in music from Gardner-Webb University. He became an audio restorative specialist who owns a home-based consulting business, Lanes Audio.

The remarkable thing is, Lane was born with no eyes.

This rare medical condition is known as anophthalmia. Its usually caused by a genetic mutation or a chromosomal abnormality, according to research I found online.

Intrigued by the way he overcame his disability to accomplish so much, I contacted Lane to get more information. He said doctors were never able to determine what caused his condition.

We have no idea, Lane said. Mom said it was a normal pregnancy, and I wasnt premature.

Teachers and staff at Burke County Public Schools worked intensively to ensure his success as he attended Glen Alpine Elementary School, Table Rock Middle School and Freedom.

Since I was the only blind kid in Burke County, they had to be creative, Lane said. At first, computers werent as predominant as they became, so I would either get material in Braille, on tape or read to me. Also, I was privileged to have someone in the classroom who was dedicated to getting my material and helping me fill in the gaps.

In 1997, the Morganton Lions Club found out about Lane and gave him a computer with a screen reader and a scanner that read printed material to him.

That was a big step forward, he said. As computers became more and more dominant, I was able to take notes and do more with it.

The Lions Club International has a particular focus on assisting blind individuals. The tradition goes back to 1925, when Helen Keller, the famous blind-deaf woman featured in the movie, The Miracle Worker, gave a speech at an international Lions convention, in which she issued a challenge to members to get involved with people who have that disability.

Lane said he was drawn to the field of audio engineering from a young age.

(I enjoyed) figuring out what I could do and how things worked and coming up with ways to do different things with what I had at the time, he said.

Companies hired Lane as early as his high school years to beta-test their software. He worked on many recording and editing projects while attending Gardner-Webb. After graduation, he edited podcasts, cleaned up audio recordings for businesses and individuals, operated the sound system for his church and taught online classes on audio engineering, which led him to start his own business and create his own website, www.lanesaudio.com.

I got some help with the images, so there would be some visual appeal, he said.

Lane lives independently, though his parents live close by. He depends on friends and family to help him get around, but has been able to take several trips related to his job. The creation of companies like Lyft and Uber has made that aspect of life easier for him in recent years where theyre available, along with the development of voice-interactive computer systems, such as Siri and Alexa.

I learn a lot and get to travel with it and meet people, Lane said about his career. I learn from teaching, from editing and audio clean-up work, and from going to different conventions and recording different things.

After sharing his story with the club, Lane recorded some members speaking about the organization and produced a one-minute commercial for them, which they were able to have played on two local radio stations to attract new members. They made Lane a member of the club as a way to say thanks.

He encouraged those who may struggle with the everyday challenges of a disability as they strive to achieve their goals.

If I can do this  if I can create jobs for myself, its possible for other people to do the same thing, Lane said. If youre unemployed, jobs can be created. You can take what youre interested in and what youre good at and get something out of it.

Tammie Gercken is a member of the Morganton Writers Group.
50 Years ago in Burke County

Jimmy Rhyne

41 MERCHANTS GIVING TICKETS FOR DRAWING

Forty one Morganton Merchants are participating in a two thousand dollar give away and are distributing tickets for the first drawing Dec 8 at 9 pm on Queen Street.

There will be five hundred dollars given away on four nights, three before Christmas and one after. Dec 8, Dec 15, and Dec 22 at 9 pm, the last one on Dec 30.

There will be 5 one hundred dollar winners at each drawing.

The long, long list of merchants are doing this to say Merry Christmas to their customers.

WPCC IS CANIDATE FOR ACCREDIATION

Western Piedmont Community College is now two steps along the road to accreditation WITH THE Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

At the annual meeting in Dallas TX, the Southern Association unanimously approved the recommendation by the Commission on Colleges that Western Piedmont Community College be recognized as a candidate for accreditation.

When the College first opened it applied for correspondence status-the first of three stages in achieving accreditation. This is the second said said President Dr. Gordon Blank of the recognition of the College as a candidate for accreditation. We are not eligible for accreditation until we have graduated our first full term class.

IN THE SERVICE OF THE USA

Dickie G. Nichols, son of Mr. and Mrs. Boyd Nichols of Route 2, Valdese, is spending 20 days at home with his parents before reporting to Camp Pendleton CA, for six weeks of indoctrination on Southeast Asia. He will then join a Marine Corps unit in South Vietnam. Nichols is a 1967 graduate of Drexel High School. At Parris Island he earned his sharpshooter badge with the M-14 rifle and was also trained in the use of all other infantry weapons used by the Corps.

BLIND AND VISUALLY HANDICAPPED FETED

Oldest present: Mrs. Lula Price, 95 of Glen Alpine was the oldest person present at the annual Christmas Party given by the Lions Club at the community house last night. Mrs. Jonas Orders accompanied the guest John M. Patton is the President of the Lions Club and G.W. Abernathy is the chairman of the blind committee who was in charge of arrangements.

A large gathering of the blind and visually handicapped attended the annual Christmas party sponsored by the Lions Club last night.

OAK HILL CAPTURES CONFERENCE VICTORY

Oak Hill- Sharpshooter Ralph Taylor pumped in 26 points to spark the Oak Hill Bulldogs to a 58-44 victory over the Polk Central Rebels here Friday night as both teams opened their 1967-1968 seasons.

The Polk Central girls defeated the Oak Hill girls 32-20, in the first game of the Skyline conference doubleheader.

Behind Taylor in the scoring were Doug Caraway, Frank Gardin and Joe Tolbert with 8 points apiece.

AROUND BURKE COUNTY

C. Miller Sigmon, vice-president and cashier of Wachovia Bank and Trust Co. will speak to an economics class at Western Piedmont Community College on Wednesday.

Presently the economics class is studying the banking system and its functions in the economy. Sigmon will direct his lecture to the functions of the banking system and the role of the Federal Reserve System in the United States.

Sigmon recently made similar talks to local high schools and colleges. Western Piedmont is fortunate to be able to call upon the experience of local residents in better serving its students, said John W. Palm, instructor.

J. GORDON QUEEN; AMONG US MORGANTONIANS (circa 1963 54 years ago)

Around town: We Like the new sign in front of the Modern Barber Shop in South Sterling StreetCome to think of it, when a portion of the city was lowered a little bit, the city did a good job fixing things up in front of the Chamber of Commerce buildingAnd speaking of Collett Street, the big Trailway buses really use that thoroughfare. Much nearer the bus terminal...A nice brick residence is being built on East Concord Street by C&L builders Supply for Mr. and Mrs. Ed Greene, Nice location and a beautiful residence.

Thus article is sponsored by the History Museum of Burke County where the archives of the News Herald are stored. Jimmy Rhyne is the researcher of the archives.
Index trackers and ETFs now account for nearly 25% of all assets under management, meaning the largest providers are becoming increasingly influential. Often ranking among the largest investors of public companies, they are the ultimate long-term shareholders of listed companies.

They have the power to effect change through voting and engagement  as well as improving investment performance. Despite this, little research has been done to understand how index managers conduct their stewardship.

Unlike active managers, index managers can't sell poorly run companies. But putting up with poor governance is no longer an option as these managers have a fiduciary duty to their investors to push for changes that will increase shareholder value. As large, permanent owners of a wide range of public firms, they have the clout to advance their agendas. Being an active owner is also a means of galvanising managers' reputations as investor advocates.

Our survey of the 12 largest providers of index funds and exchange-traded funds covers three regions  the United States, Europe, and Asia  and includes global asset managers such as BlackRock and Vanguard, and smaller firms that are key passive fund providers in their local markets, such as Schwab and Lyxor.

Most of the firms also operate an active fund business that in some cases is much larger than their passive one. Collectively, the firms surveyed have over $20 trillion of assets under management.

The growth in index managers stewardship teams is compelling evidence of the increased commitment to active ownership. For example, BlackRock expanded its team from 20 members in 2014 to 33 today; Vanguard's team went from 10 in 2015 to 21; and UBS will employ 11 professionals dedicated to stewardship by the end of 2017, up from four in 2015. These increases will allow the firms to undertake more and better-quality engagements with companies.

It is clear that voting and engagement activities vary significantly, according to the size, history and philosophy of the company, its investment style and the region it operates in.

Default Position to Vote in Favour

Both actively managed and index-tracking strategies apply their voting policies universally to all portfolios, irrespective of investment style. The only exception is Fidelity, which delegates the full management and voting responsibilities of its index funds to subadvisor Geode.

Large managers with a global reach, such as BlackRock and Vanguard, typically vote for all portfolio holdings where possible as long as the potential benefit of voting outweighs the cost of exercising the right. Smaller firms and those with fewer resources, such as Deutsche Asset Management and Lyxor, focus more on their home country or region, or on their largest holdings. For example, Deutsche AM works with a watchlist of around 700 companies that typically represent around 50% of its equity fund assets under management.

The starting position for all surveyed asset managers is to be supportive of company management and boards, as most votes are routine matters. However, there are significant differences among firms in how they voted, especially with when voting against management.

US asset managers, who have been historically more reluctant to challenge the status quo than their European counterparts, are starting to show more dissent in relation to environmental and social issues. An example was BlackRock and Vanguard supporting a shareholder proposal seeking greater disclosure of climate-related risks at ExxonMobil (XOM).

For some asset managers, voting against management remains a last-resort option. For example, BlackRock will first try to effect change by engaging management teams and will only cast a negative vote if management is unresponsive or takes too long to address BlackRock's concerns. At the other end of the spectrum, Europe's largest asset manager, Amundi, has a strict voting policy and does not hesitate to swiftly vote against management when a proposed resolution fails to comply with its principles.

At BlackRock, Amundi, and UBS, the policy is for active fund managers to vote consistently across all funds, but they retain the authority to vote differently from the house view. This contrasts with the approach adopted at Vanguard and SSgA, where the corporate governance teams have ultimate authority on the final votes.

What is Engagement?

Index managers are also intensifying their efforts around engagement. Of the 12 surveyed firms, nine reported that they undertake direct engagement activities with companies and expressed a willingness to increase their engagements in the future.

Of the three that do not engage, Fidelity's subadvisor Geode and Lyxor have plans to formalise an engagement strategy in the coming months, in line with their commitment to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment. These principles require signatories to be "active owners" and incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues into their ownership policies. By contrast, Schwab was the only firm to see no compelling reason to set up an engagement programme, citing cost and what it sees as a lack of solid evidence about the benefits of direct engagement.

There is no standard definition of what constitutes an engagement, although all reported that they increased and are expected to increase in the coming years. For some, a fact-finding meeting or call with a company is enough to be recorded as an engagement; others apply a more stringent definition, only classifying meaningful interactions aimed at bringing about change through dialogue with companies. Of engagements disclosed in 2016, 37 were made by Deutsche AM, 120 by UBS and 1,480 by BlackRock. BlackRock and Vanguard a reporting the most significant growth.

The largest asset managers such as BlackRock, Vanguard, and SSgA have a clear preference for one-to-one engagements, ideally behind closed doors. Others, typically smaller firms, are keener to work with peers and share resources, especially in cases when individual engagements would have a low likelihood of success.

Voting Records are Hard to Find

Transparency of voting and engagement activities is an important part of an asset manager's stewardship duties but disclosure practices differ significantly between managers and countries.

Most surveyed asset managers publish voting records for their funds on their websites in countries where the regulator or a stewardship code requires them to. But too often these records are hard to find, and where disclosure isn't a requirement, they may not exist. Very few explain the rationale behind important votes, that is, votes against management, abstentions, or contentious votes. This is certainly an area for improvement. Indeed, the reasons behind a vote allow stakeholders to assess whether the asset manager has voted in line with its policy and in the best interest of shareholders.

Some managers, including BlackRock, Vanguard, and UBS, are averse to disclosing the names of the companies with which they engage. They believe that to build trust and develop constructive long-term dialogues with company management and boards, conversations need to be kept confidential. Some commented that "naming and shaming" can be detrimental. This, however, doesn't seem to be a concern for Amundi, which publishes an annual engagement report detailing nearly every action it had with companies during the year. SSgA also discloses the names of all the companies with which it engages each year, but it only provides full details on a selected number of successful engagements.

More Pressure to Disclose Voting

In the future, we expect increased disclosure of voting and engagement activities. There is already pressure on asset managers to share more details on voting decisions with the public. Equally, more companies will be publicly named and shamed when engagement has failed. This year, BlackRock started publishing  on a very limited basis  statements on its engagements and votes in relation to certain proposals.

We also expect index managers to become more vocal on ESG topics through public statements on their websites, opinion pieces in major publications, speaking engagements, and interactions with the media. Ultimately, this will also influence their product offerings.

As firms ESG-dedicated teams continue expanding, the expenditure will continue to rise. This raises the question of whether these firms will be able to absorb the extra cost without increasing their fees. While large asset managers with economies of scale should be able to absorb the additional costs, it might be more of a challenge for the smaller firms. To remain competitive, these firms will have little choice but to either do the minimum required or go down the outsourcing route.

As assets continue to flow into passive strategies and responsible investing becomes increasingly important, one can only expect greater scrutiny of index managers' stewardship activities.
Editors Note: Midland ISD has made the Texas Academic Performance Report available. This is another article using information from that report.

---

The average age of first use for Midland ISD students using marijuana or alcohol is age 12.

That information is part of the districts Safe and Drug-free Schools Survey, which can be found in the districts Annual Performance Report. The district will host a public hearing on its 2016-17 performance report today during the boards regularly scheduled meeting, which is slated to begin at 5:30 p.m. at the auditorium of Bowie Fine Arts Academy, 805 Elk Ave.

The drug survey, conducted by Palmer Drug Abuse Program, took into account student use of alcohol, tobacco and marijuana.Information included percentage of students using alcohol, tobacco or marijuana in the last 30 days, during the last year and the age of first use.

The survey showed 31 percent of students surveyed used alcohol in the last 30 days, 48 percent used alcohol during the past year, and 12 was the average age of first use.

Fourteen percent of students surveyed used cigarettes during the past 30 days, 20 percent used cigarettes during the past year, and 13 was the average age of first use.

Fewer students were using smokeless tobacco. Nine percent had used smokeless tobacco during the past 30 days, 14 percent used smokeless tobacco during the past year, and 14.8 was the average age of first use.

Lastly, the report shows 15.4 percent of students surveyed used marijuana during the past 30 days (second only to alcohol), 18.3 percent used marijuana during the past year, and 12 was the average age of first use. That means the average age of first use for both marijuana and alcohol was lower than either cigarettes or smokeless tobacco.

The report also indicates there were nine violent or criminal incidents on secondary campuses. These incidents included one possession of a firearms at Midland High, one possession of an illegal knife at Lee High, three possessions of a prohibited weapon (two at Lee and one at Goddard Junior High), two incidents of indecency with a child (one at Goddard and the other at San Jacinto), one aggravated assault against a non-employee/volunteer (Abell Junior High), one sexual assault against a non-employee/volunteer (Lee Freshman High School) and one aggravated robbery (Lee High).

Incident rates, according to the district, were as followed: Lee High School 0.2 percent, Goddard Junior High 0.2 percent, Abell Junior High 0.1 percent, San Jacinto Junior High 0.1 percent, Midland High 0.0 percent, Lee Freshman High School 0.0 percent.

There wasnt any information in the report for Midland Freshman High School, Alamo Junior High or any of the elementary schools.
Local scientist Steven Schafersman has announced his run for Midland County judge. The candidate, who works for area petroleum and environmental companies as a consulting scientist, said he is concerned about residents future.

Schafersman is a long-time advocate for improved science education in Texas public schools. In 2012, he campaigned for the State Board of Educations District 15 seat.

When I did run for state board, I got to discuss all the problems involving public education in Texas, and I publicized them, Schafersman said. I can do the same here in Midland. I can use it as an effort to educate people.

Schafersman has filed as a Democratic candidate, according to a press release. He said the party had success in 2017 elections and that he was encouraged to enter the county judge race.

There is an effort all over the state to get Democrats to run for office, he said. The reason theyre doing that is because we consider 2018 to be a Democratic year.

Schafersman said he plans to address water conservation locally as well as chromium groundwater contamination in the southern portion of the county.

The candidate, who previously worked as a petroleum geologist and taught science courses, has lived in Midland since 2000. Schafersman was born in Texas and grew up in various states. He earned bachelors and masters degrees from Northern Illinois University and a PhD from Rice University.

If elected as county judge, Schafersman said he could work with state lawmakers to make changes, including those related to property tax.

The county board doesnt have any power to solve many of these outstanding problems, he said. Theyre state problems. Nevertheless, county judges have influence.

Schafersman is seeking the position currently held by Mike Bradford, who announced this year he wouldnt run for a fourth term as county judge.

For Schafersman, county leadership has shown fiscal responsibility and integrity while maintaining its infrastructure.

The county administration has been doing a good job of that for decades, and thats most of the business right there, he said. I dont see big changes in 99 percent of the county business.

Profiles of other county judge candidates were published in previous editions of the Reporter-Telegram.
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Walt Disney World has announced who will perform during the Disney on Broadway series at next years Epcot International Festival of the Arts.

Broadway stars Ashley Brown, Josh Strickland, Kissy Simmons, Kevin Massey and Alton Fitzgerald White all return for the festivals second run.

They are joined by festival newcomer Kara Lindsay, who is known for her role as Katherine Plumber in Newsies.

All performances will take place Fridays through Mondays at 5:30 p.m., 6:45 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The lineup for the festival:

Jan. 12-15: Kara Lindsay and Kevin Massey  Tarzan, Aladdin, Newsies, Frozen





Jan. 26-29, Feb. 2-5: Kissy Simmons and Alton Fitzgerald White  Tarzan, The Lion King, Aida, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid





Feb. 9-12, 16-19: Ashley Brown and Josh Strickland  Beauty and the Beast, Tarzan, Mary Poppins, Newsies, Frozen

The festival debuted earlier this year and featured seminars, workshops, and food studios serving "culinary delights."

The Epcot International of the Arts runs Jan. 12 through Feb. 19.

CHECK OUT ATTRACTIONS INSIDER: Your all-in-one source for news, pictures and video from Floridas theme parks. Just go to our Attractions Insider page. Sign up to get breaking theme park news alerts and subscribe to our newsletter, Theme Park Roundup, delivered to your inbox or mobile phone.
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
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Negotiators for Oaklands largest union and the city will head back to the bargaining table Monday, but the strike thats shut down major services for the past week will continue.

With the help of a mediator, the two sides are hoping to come to a resolution that will bring workers back to their jobs and reopen the libraries, senior centers and nonemergency services that have been shuttered since the strike began Tuesday.

Mayor Libby Schaaf said the walkout is harming our most vulnerable residents.

We cannot spend money we do not have, particularly as we know our pension costs are escalating at least 49 percent over the next five years, she said in a statement over the weekend. Oaklanders deserve predictable city services now and into the future.

Union leaders say the citys revenue and cost projections are misleading, pointing to the greater-than-expected growth Oakland has seen in recent years. And they say workers who took cuts during the economic downturn were never fully brought up to scale or had their pay adjusted to the rapid cost-of-living increases in the East Bay city.

Rob Szykowny, the chief negotiator for Service Employees International Union Local 1021, said the city has been bargaining in bad faith, forcing workers to continue their strike into the second week.

He pointed to comments Schaaf made Thursday night, in which she declared that the city would accept nothing less than a yes from the union after her negotiators proposed a final offer. When the union made a counteroffer, the city officially declared an impasse Friday.

The union disputes the citys contention that were at impasse, Szykowny said. The city specifically wasnt trying and just delivered an ultimatum. Thats not bargaining in good faith, and if youre not bargaining in good faith, you cant be at impasse.

The citys intransigence, he said, compelled the work stoppage, which is now by far the longest strike in anyones living memory in the Oakland chapter.

The dispute is focused on the second half of the two-year contract as well as noneconomic provisions, like working conditions and the citys use of temporary part-time employees. The two sides agree on first-year terms, which include giving workers a 4 percent wage increase, retroactive to July 1, when their last contract expired.

The citys final offer Thursday was a slight tweak from its earlier one. Previously, the city said it could offer up to a 2 percent raise in the second year of the contract contingent on revenue growth. Its latest proposed deal would guarantee half that and give an additional 1 percent on Jan. 1, 2019, if revenue targets are met.

The SEIUs counteroffer outlined a 4 percent increase in the second year of the contract, with wages increasing by 1 percent in each quarter.

In her letter announcing the impasse, City Administrator Sabrina Landreth said Oakland could not reasonably afford what the union was proposing. She said some of the unions demands were outside the scope of bargaining, and described the disagreement on wages as a persistent gulf between the parties.

The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers Local 21, which is also deep in negotiations, has been on a solidarity strike. Members of other unions, including the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1245, have been refusing to cross the picket line.

IFPTE Local 21s bargaining team was set to meet Sunday to determine whether or not to remain on strike Monday.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
Texas oil giant Exxon Mobil opened its first gas stations in Mexico last week as the nations largest oil company works to become a major Mexican fuel supplier.

The first eight Mobil-branded stations opened around Queretaro, a city in central Mexico. Exxon Mobil also made its first fuel shipments to Mexico last week, joining Chevron and other U.S. refiners seeking to supply one of the worlds largest markets, recently opened to foreign companies.

Since Mexico deregulated its energy sector, international gas stations have begun popping up this year, ending the monopoly held for decades by state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex. British oil major BP opened the first non-Pemex gas stations in Mexico this spring.

Exxon Mobil plans to open about 50 fueling station in central Mexico within the next three months. Exxon Mobil says it is the first company to offer integrated fueling services and products.

Most of the fuel that the company exports to Mexico will come from its Texas refineries. Exxon Mobil is shipping the fuel from Texas to Mexico via private rail terminals in San Luis Potosi and San Jose Iturbide.

Exxon Mobil said this is just the beginning of its $300 million commitment to take its fuel logistics services and gas stations to Mexico. It is working with retailer Grupo Orsan to open the first eight stations.

Carlos Rivas, fuels director for Exxon Mobil in Mexico, called the new service stations a significant milestone for the country and our company made possible by Mexicos new energy policy regime.

At the same time, Pemex is expanding outside Mexico, opening its first U.S. fueling station in late 2015 in southeast Houston, with more planned.
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Last spring, Swedes got a tantalizing offer: If they subscribed to Swedens biggest telecom provider, Telia Co. AB, they could have unlimited access on their mobile phones to Facebook, Spotify, Instagram and other blockbuster apps.

Swedish regulators tried to put a stop to it. They argued that the arrangement violated the net neutrality rules in the European Union, which require internet providers to offer equal access to all web content. Essentially, once a users data cap was reached, Telia would restrict other apps, but not the big ones.

The issue is working its way through the courts. As it does, the offer is still available.

Such deals may be gaining momentum in the United States.

The Federal Communications Commission is expected to vote Thursday to roll back the net neutrality rules in the United States. While the EU has such rules in place, telecom providers have pushed the boundaries at times in Sweden, Germany, Portugal and elsewhere, offering a glimpse at the future U.S. companies and consumers may face if protections are watered down.

FCC chairman Ajit Pai is seeking a sweeping repeal of the Barack Obama-era rules, paving the way for internet service companies to charge users more to see certain content or to restrict access to some websites. High-speed internet service providers, or ISPs, could charge companies a fee to deliver their content more quickly.

Europe has sought to combat such practices by adopting net neutrality rules aimed at ensuring that ISPs in the blocs 28 member states cant pick the webs winners and losers. The regulations are binding and enforced by each countrys national telecom regulators.

For the EUs sprawling market of more than 500 million citizens, the rules have mostly helped prevent bad behavior.

There is not a long trail of abuse by telecom operators in net neutrality, said Philippe Defraigne, a director at Cullen International, a Brussels-based consultant that covers telecoms and the digital economy.

Thats largely because unlike in the United States, Europeans have plenty of choices for internet access at home and on their mobile phones. France has four major mobile and internet operators and nine low-cost offshoots. Britain has more than 50. And there arent dominant giants born of megamergers, like the ones between Comcast and NBC Universal, and Verizon and AOL.

Even so, telecom operators in Europe have tried to take advantage of some of the gray areas in the rules.

When Netflix entered the European market in 2012, some national telecom companies forced it to pay tolls to deliver content to customers. Netflix did not name the companies but told a regional regulator in a letter that the dispute showed the importance of strong net neutrality rules.

The blocs rules also left open a major regulatory loophole for a practice called zero rating, in which a mobile network does not charge for data used on certain applications or services, giving them a leg up against competitors. The few regulatory disputes that have arisen in Europe have mostly involved big telecom companies that steer users to Facebook and other services.

Pai dismantled zero ratings protections in the United States even before he unveiled the plan to undo net neutrality rules entirely.

In Europe, the loophole created a confusing patchwork of interpretations in different countries over whether zero rating violates net neutrality. Swedens regulator concluded that the Telia offer didnt treat internet traffic equally and should be halted. Want to stream music from a scrappy Spotify competitor? Telia would throttle, or artificially slow, that service once users reached their data caps, although they could keep listening to Spotify.

That doesnt necessarily bother consumers.

From a user perspective, I dont think its a problem and I think most consumers dont think its an issue, said Magnus Haglunds, a Stockholm-based independent music producer who uses the Telia service. There are those who may have to change from Apple Music to Spotify. But then they get free surfing on Spotify.

Wasnt net neutrality being compromised? Its not Cuba, Haglunds replied. Cuba has a problem. There they dont have any internet at all.

But the offer alarmed Swedish media companies, which warned that the deal gave Facebook an advantage over competitors, and Telia an edge over other telecom operators.

In February, Indian regulators shut down a separate Facebook zero rating deal with mobile phone carrier Reliance Communications, saying carriers should not be allowed to shape the users internet experience.

A Swedish court ultimately overturned the decision on technical grounds after Telia appealed. Telia continues to offer the service in Sweden and other Nordic countries. But Swedens administrative court is expected to issue a broader decision on zero rating rules this year.

Critics of the rollback in the United States have cited zero ratings schemes in Europe, or versions of it, as an omen of how the web may be split.

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., posted a screen grab on Twitter from Portuguese mobile carrier Meo that went viral. The shot showed basic monthly subscription plans with names like Social, Messaging and Video, each appearing to favor a batch of established apps.

Providers are starting to split the net into packages, Khanna wrote.

In Germany, a similar case involved a Deutsche Telekom offer called StreamOn, which allows users to access unlimited videos and music from specific partners like Netflix. The countrys telecom regulator approved the deal, drawing criticism from consumer activists. StreamOn sought to address some of the concerns by expanding the offer to include around 50 partners.

This a battle for the next century, said Klaus Muller, chairman of the Federation of German Consumer Organisations, a lobbying group. We can either have oligarchical markets with huge players, or a big variety of companies with lots of competition, which would be good for consumers but bad for big business.

Many in Europe are watching the FCC ruling with trepidation. Over 200 European companies signed a letter to Pai warning that ending the net neutrality rules will undermine privacy, free speech and competition on the internet.

Robert Beens, chief executive of Startpage, a Dutch privacy-based encrypted search engine used by surveillence-wary consumers who dont want their search data recorded, said his company could be put in jeopardy.

Half of the 2 billion searches done annually through Startpage are in the United States. If U.S. ISPs start charging companies to be in the internets fast lane, Beens said he would not be able to keep up with deep-pocketed competitors like Google, Bing and Yahoo.

People want privacy, but what if we cant pay the amounts of money that ISPs are looking for? he said. In the U.S., people would have a slower connection to our search engine. It could really harm our business model.

Perhaps the biggest issue for Europe  and other parts of the world  is that countries watch what the United States does.

The U.S. set good standards for the globe, but now they could go backward, said Maryant Fernandez Perez, a senior policy adviser at European Digital Rights, an association of civil and human rights organizations advocating an open digital environment.

The consequences are not very good internationally.
WASHINGTON  As officials from the 164 countries in the World Trade Organization gather in Buenos Aires this week for their first major meeting in two years, they will be watching to see whether the United States, once the groups biggest advocate, is seeking to subvert it.

The World Trade Organization knits together countries around the world by working to reduce trade barriers and resolve disputes among its members, but it has come under criticism not just from globalizations critics. Its supporters have said it has fallen short of its ambitious goals to create trade agreements among scores of countries with different economies, cultures and income levels.

But it has never faced such uncertainty as it does now, when its longtime leader and champion, the United States, has turned into a skeptic  putting the future of the group and the kind of broad trade agreements it is aimed at forging in doubt.

In recent months, the Trump administration has led the United States in stepping back from its traditional role at the head of global institutions like the World Trade Organization, creating a vacuum in leadership and throwing their future into question.

The change reflects a philosophy, shared by the president and his top trade advisers, that the current global structure of rules and organizations compromises the United States sovereignty and cheats U.S. workers. In his first year in office, President Donald Trump has criticized international agreements like the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, pulled out of the Paris climate change accord and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and began renegotiating trade deals with Canada, Mexico and South Korea.

Like many of the administrations positions, its view of the World Trade Organization represents a historic shift, said Douglas Irwin, a professor of economics at Dartmouth College.

The Reagan and Bush administrations wanted to create it, he said. The Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations tried to strengthen it. Now we have an administration that is very skeptical of it, and some would say has tried to undermine it.

Trump and his trade advisers criticize the World Trade Organization for failing to police what they describe as Chinas infractions of global trade rules. Chinas entry into the organization in 2001 accelerated the hollowing out of U.S. manufacturing jobs, as imports of cheap Chinese products boomed. But the Trump administration has argued that China never held up its end of the bargain by curtailing the role of its Communist government in the economy.

Late last month, the United States said it would join the European Union in an action involving China about that very matter. In discussing that dispute, a senior White House official said that it was unclear whether the World Trade Organization could work when China, the worlds second-largest economy, clearly did not share the goal of moving toward a market-based system.

But what the Trump administration intends to do about the organizations perceived shortcomings is less clear. Some of the measures proposed under Trumps America First economic policy appear to make use of the World Trade Organization, while others could violate its rules and undermine its very existence.

Most notably, the United States could run afoul of international convention with actions it might take as a result of investigations into imports of cheap solar products and washing machines. In the past, the World Trade Organization has decided that tariffs imposed as a result of these kind of safeguard investigations, which aim to protect domestic industries from a surge of imports, violate its rules.

In a separate investigation into Chinas infringement of U.S. intellectual property, administration officials are currently debating whether to use existing global rules (by filing trade cases through the World Trade Organization) or break them (by erecting the kind of across-the-board tariff on Chinese imports that Trump often pledged during the campaign).

Some of the tax policies the United States is considering might also run afoul of the organizations guidelines. In a report published Thursday, a group of lawyers and academics argued that a proposal intended to exempt the foreign income of domestic corporations from U.S. taxes might not comply with the World Trade Organization or bilateral tax treaties.

The question, trade analysts say, is what the Trump administration would do if the WTO rules against these policies. Several administration officials have suggested that they might respond by ignoring the trade organization or withdrawing from it altogether  two options that might weaken the organization enough to serve as a death blow.

On China, theres lots that can be done using our current trade laws, said Dan DiMicco, a trade adviser to the Trump administration. We can go to the WTO and file more trade cases. And if they dont work with us, we can leave the WTO.

Proponents of the trade group are also concerned by what they describe as the Trump administrations effort to undermine the organizations system for settling trade disputes among its members.

Since Trump came into office, the White House has blocked the appointments of new judges to a body that considers appeals, slowing the pace at which the World Trade Organization can process trade cases. As more judges see their terms expire in the coming months, experts fear the dispute settlement system could be paralyzed.

In a letter, farm groups said the current actions by this administration to block appointments indefinitely could prevent the resolution of cases that might benefit U.S. agriculture.

Chad Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said that the trend may be intentional. Trumps top trade negotiator, U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer, has been critical of the appellate body for passing judgments outside the scope of the original WTO agreement  akin to what some in the United States term judicial activism.

In a speech in Washington in September, Lighthizer said that Americans tended to view the trade group as a contract with clearly defined rights. Others  Europeans, but others also  tend to think theyre sort of evolving kinds of governance, he said. And theres a very different idea between these two things.

The Trump administration has also been slower than its predecessors to bring trade cases against other countries at the World Trade Organization  cases that the United States frequently wins, Bown said. That could soon result in a situation where the United States is losing cases, but not winning many  a set of circumstances that could fuel opposition to the WTO in the White House, he said.

In other matters, however, the Trump administration is making use of the organizations rules. That includes the decision to join the European Union in arguing its case before the World Trade Organization for not labeling China a market economy  a distinction that would entitle China to preferential economic treatment that the United States feels it does not deserve.

So far, the Trump administrations America First policy does not appear to be greatly dampening international trade.

The World Trade Organization is projecting that global trade in goods will grow 3.6 percent this year, more than double the rate last year, as economies around the world continue to strengthen. On Monday, the organization announced that its members introduced fewer measures to restrict trade between October 2016 and October 2017 than they had the previous year.

New trade pacts are also moving forward. On Friday, the European Union and Japan announced that they had finalized a deal to create a sweeping new free trade agreement. During Trumps trip to Asia, in which he proclaimed that the United States was no longer entering into multinational trade agreements, the 11 remaining countries of the Trans-Pacific Partnership pushed ahead with forming the pact.

Few trade experts expect much progress out of the meeting in Buenos Aires, which runs through Wednesday. Its unclear whether the members will reach a consensus on new rules on global fishing. Other recent efforts toward reforming digital trade and services that were formerly pushed by the Obama administration now appear to be bogged down.

Every country in the world hates the WTO, they just hate all the other alternatives worse, said Rufus Yerxa, president of the National Foreign Trade Council and the World Trade Organizations former deputy director general. Thats really the lesson that the U.S. has to draw. Its easy to hate some system of rules. The question is, whats the alternative?
If youre looking for a surrogate mother to have your baby, please dont approach it the way Rep. Trent Franks did.

Virtually everything about how the Arizona Republican broached the sensitive and complicated topic of surrogacy -- both according to his own recounting and the allegations of former aides -- strikes some very strange chords considering the legal standards, biological realities and ethical questions underpinning the process.

The eight-term congressman abruptly resigned on Friday, after the House Ethics Committee said it was investigating him for potential sexual harassment concerning his conversations surrounding surrogacy with two female staffers. Frankss own news release, in which he admitted to making the aides uncomfortable but insists he never solicited sex, is one of the stranger resignation announcements weve read when it comes to lawmakers.

It gets even weirder when you consider that Franks is one of the most prominent antiabortion members of Congress, sponsor of many bills aimed at restricting abortion, including a 20-week ban the House has passed multiple times. Surrogacy is an issue that makes many abortion opponents uncomfortable because it typically results in the creation and destruction of multiple embryos.

Franks and his wife have twins through surrogacy and have sought additional children since. Lets take a look at some of the oddest aspects of how Franks allegedly broached the topic.

Surrogacy is technically illegal in Franks home state.

A half-dozen states strongly encourage surrogacy by upholding contracts between donor parents and surrogate mothers. Another half-dozen frown upon it either by banning such contracts or prohibiting compensation. The rest fall somewhere in between on a complicated legal smorgasbord of laws and court rulings ascribing varying levels of rights to donor parents and surrogates.

Arizona is on the less-friendly end of the spectrum. The state technically outlaws such arrangements, but there is legal precedent allowing two parties to go to court to determine parentage. To have their twins via surrogacy, the Franks would presumably have had to take legal risks within their own state or contract with a surrogate elsewhere. They havent clarified exactly how their twins were born.

It could work in Arizona, but it would be a legal nightmare because they dont enforce contracts, said Arthur Caplan, professor of bioethics at New York University.

The market rate for paying surrogates is $20,000 to $55,000 (thats in addition to their medical expenses) -- not anywhere close to the $5 million Franks allegedly offered a former aide to bear his child.

Yes, Franks is among the richest members of Congress -- his net worth is estimated at nearly $33 million, mostly from oil and gas investments. But that makes it no less odd that Franks would offer such an extravagant figure to a potential surrogate.

During my time there, I was asked a few times to look over a contract to carry his child, and if I would conceive his child, I would be given $5 million, one former aide told the Associated Press.

That aide -- and another Franks had also approached about surrogacy -- said they werent sure whether he was referring to impregnating them through sexual intercourse or through in vitro fertilization, according to a report by Politico. Experts say the term surrogacy always refers to a medical procedure.

This notion that the baby would be conceived via sexual contact is very much out of the norm when it comes to the way surrogacy works in this country, said Valerie Gutmann Koch, director of law and ethics at the University of Chicagos MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics.

And the question of compensation highlights a serious divide between those who embrace surrogacy and those opposed to it.

Theres a real split, Leslie Francis, a philosophy professor and bioethicist at the University of Utah, told me. There are some feminists who are utterly opposed to the practice, thinking of it as commercializing reproduction and exploiting the woman.

Others view surrogacy as a charitable act by the woman, even if shes also paid -- or at least as a reasonable financial decision if the woman understands the details of the arrangement in advance and gives her full consent.

Its unusual and difficult to create only a limited number of embryos, as Franks claimed to have done with the birth of his twins.

In his resignation announcement, Franks said that his twins were conceived through a pro-life approach that did not discard or throw away any embryos. Thats theoretically possible but difficult, experts say.

Harvesting eggs from the donor mother is an arduous process that most women dont want to undergo more than once. So doctors typically collect many eggs at once and immediately fertilize them, because frozen embryos are much more stable than frozen eggs.

If the goal is to create only as many embryos as can be implanted into a surrogate, a doctor would probably have to harvest eggs multiple times or wait to fertilize them. Few surrogates would probably be willing to have more than a few embryos implanted inside them because of the risk of triplets, quadruplets or even more.

Finding a surrogate willing to take more than two or three embryos would be quite a task, Caplan said.

And freezing embryos doesnt necessarily solve the ethical problem for those who consider it morally wrong to destroy one of them -- even if they might, in time, be adopted by other people desiring children.

Just freezing them doesnt settle the issue -- why are you freezing people? Caplan said. Youre getting up pretty close to what I would consider inconsistent practices and beliefs.

Franks allegedly approached two of his staffers  directly  to request their services as surrogates.

Frankss aides said their boss approached them directly to raise the idea of bearing his child. Now, it wouldnt be so strange to directly approach a potential surrogate in whats known as a traditional contract surrogacy -- in which the surrogate mother is genetically related to the fetus. This was the first type of surrogacy generally practiced, with a couple seeking out a family member to be artificially inseminated because the woman cant bear a child for one reason or another.

But Franks crossed all kinds of workplace and ethical lines by approaching his staffers. Its unclear whether Franks was referring to a traditional surrogacy or a gestational surrogacy, where his wifes egg would be used. In a gestational surrogacy, prospective parents often engage legal counsel, since their relationship with a surrogate is so nuanced and sensitive.

Bottom line: Franks essentially committed some major blunders in the way he went about seeking a surrogate in his apparent quest for more children.

How much he was willing to spend, the fact he was unable to clarify whether this was a gestational surrogacy and the fact that these are his subordinates -- those are the big red flags, Koch said.
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Chris Mattei has a union problem.

A state labor organizer has filed an elections complaint against Mattei, a Democrat who last week transitioned from testing the waters for governor to a declared candidate for state attorney general.

The thrust of the allegations is that Mattei broke the law by using his exploratory committee for statewide office to solicit campaign contributions to specifically run for governor and failed to register as a candidate.

Timothy J. Sullivan, who has been an organizer for the carpenters union, filed the complaint last month with the state Elections Enforcement Commission.

Accordingly, the Mattei for CT committee, and candidate Chris Mattei, seem to be campaigning illegally, and have been doing so since late July. I would like SEEC to investigate, Sullivan wrote in the complaint.

Mattei raised more than $222,000 through his exploratory committee, which is more than enough to qualify for public campaign financing for attorney general if he is allowed to roll over the money.

Were aware that a complaint has been filed and it is without merit, and we are confident that anybody who looks at this will come to the same conclusion, said Julie Edwards, a Mattei campaign spokeswoman. The fact that a complaint was filed and peddled to reporters is politics as usual  the kind of politics of usual that people are sick of and that Chris Mattei has been fighting against his whole career.

Not long ago, Mattei led the public corruption unit in the U.S. attorneys office in Connecticut, sending disgraced former Gov. John Rowland, a Republican, back to prison for campaign fraud. Matteis role in another high-profile case perhaps sheds light on why a union organizer would have an ax to grind, however.

In 2012, Mattei prosecuted a pair political associates of former Connecticut House Speaker Chris Donovan for accepting illegal payments to in a bid to try to kill a proposed tobacco tax. There was no wrongdoing by Donovan, but the case effectively killed the Meriden Democrat and union-favorites congressional prospects.

The government informant in the case, Ray Soucy, a union treasurer for the states correction officers, received a six-month sentence at a halfway house. Donovan is now employed as a political action coordinator for the Connecticut Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state.

A request for comment was left Monday for Sullivan, who resides in Barkhamsted.

Click bait

If youre on a candidate or political partys email list, youre probably used to Nostradamus subject lines by now.

Then theres Liz Linehan, a freshman state representative from Cheshire who is running for lieutenant governor on the same Democratic ticket as Middletown Mayor Dan Drew.

The subject line of a Saturday email from Linehan was The anniversary of my death.

If you don't know me well yet, 23 years ago I died, Linehan wrote. Heart failure, kidney failure, rhabdomyolysis. My heart stopped beating on its own for 18 minutes. My last rites were performed three times. All from strep throat. I was in the hospital for a month afterward and spent three months on dialysis. Doctors said it was a once in a lifetime freak illness, but it was the day that changed my life forever.

Now that Linehan had everyones attention, she wasnt going to let the opportunity pass.

Join our campaign today with a contribution of $23. I believe in Connecticut, and I want you to join us.

Know when to hold em

The house always wins  and for the past dozen years so have Democrats in statewide and congressional races in Connecticut.

So Republicans are fittingly heading to Foxwoods to try to change their odds. Just dont roll snake eyes.

The state GOP will hold its biennial nominating convention at the tribal-owned casino next May, when 1,200 delegates from all over the state will endorse candidates for governor, U.S. Senate and House, and five other constitutional offices.

In 2014, Mohegan Sun hosted the Republican confab, prompting party lawyers to make sure the nominations would hold legal force because the reservation is a sovereign nation.

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American Idol does it. So does Dancing with the Stars. And now Republicans.

After its first gubernatorial debate last week in Windsor, the state GOP conducted an unscientific text messaging poll determine the unofficial winner, a distinction that went to former Trumbull First Selectman Tim Herbst with 28 percent of the vote.

Naturally, we wanted to know whether you can vote more than once from the same mobile number. No, said state GOP Chairman J.R. Romano, who estimated that 200 people voted.

twitter.com/gettinviggy; nvigdor@hearstmediact.com; 203-625-4436
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Saratoga Springs

For the last 10 years, Rabbi Linda Motzkin has been doing what no other woman in the Jewish community has done. She has been creating a Torah scroll from scratch.

She is a scribe, soferet in Hebrew, and is writing out the 304,805 divine letters of the Torah. But her calligraphy is just part of the effort. Motzkin created her own natural materials in order to write the sacred text.

"A lot of people ask me why don't you give a list of what you need to a man who can buy you the supplies," Motzkin said. "I don't because a Torah must be done with integrity. There has to be integrity of process. That's why I source my own materials."

The sourcing begins by making parchment from deerskin hides.

"I get them from local hunters," Motzkin said as she stands in her Wilton garage where curling deerskins hang on a wall. "I get them through word of mouth. Everyone around here knows a hunter."

From there, she scrapes the meat and blood off the hide, then soaks it in lime to loosen the hair, which she then scrapes away. Next she places the hide in her backyard stream for 24 hours to return material to its natural, suppleness. It comes out dirty, so she rinses it in water. The hide is then stretched on a frame to dry. As it does so, it is transformed into parchment that she sands three times for a polished finish. She then cuts out a rectangle from the center and another sheet for her five-book, 80-odd sheet scroll is ready.

"It has to be smooth and flat with no blemishes," Motzkin said, showing off a piece of her handmade parchment. "This sheet also has to be large enough for three columns."

Before placing ink to parchment, she makes a quill from a turkey feather. The tip must be a certain diameter, snipped at an exact angle and then hollowed out. She also prepares her ink. In her yarmulke and prayer shawl, she will line the parchment and begin the slow, careful work of penning what is considered in Judaism the most holy ritual object.

More Information Festival of Lights Hanukkah begins Tuesday at sunset. Hanukkah means "dedication" in Hebrew. The Festival of Lights commemorates the victory of the Maccabees over the Greek-Syrian armies in the second century B.C.E. and the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem when, although there was only enough oil for one night, the Temple lamp, or menorah, miraculously burned for eight. The eight-day holiday is celebrated at home by lighting a menorah, with one candle added each night. See More Collapse

Afterwards, three separate teams of proofreaders check her sheet. If there is an error, the ink is scraped away and the letter rewritten. If it's deemed perfect, the new sheet can be stitched, with sinew, to the other sheets. Eventually, it will form one long scroll that will be wrapped around wooden rollers.

It's a lot of work. But Motzkin has help. The creation of the scroll, which she expects will take another eight years to complete, is part of the Community Torah Project. Thus far, 2,800 people of all ages have helped in various ways  scraping or stretching the hides, looking for turkey feathers, mixing ink and proofreading.

For centuries, it was forbidden for women to write the Torah text. But in recent years, more women have learned the ancient skill from other scribes such as the late Rabbi Eric Ray who handed down the tradition to Motzkin. It wasn't until 2007 that the first Torah was written by a woman. Jen Taylor Friedman, whose materials were purchased for her, had the honor and a special celebration took place in New York City.

"It was a historic moment," said Motzkin, who attended the ceremony.

Traditions are changing rapidly and women are now able to buy some materials from kosher shops.

"It's a don't ask, don't tell kind of thing," she said.

Still, there is resistance. Marjorie Ingalls, who writes for the online Jewish magazine Tablet, has noted in her articles female scribes are one of the last barriers in Jewish ritual practice.

In a 2015 article, she wrote that female scribes were "isolated and without community when they began; they pretty much experienced a calling" and "Finding teachers was a challenge; because most soferim (male scribes) wouldn't take on a female student."

While the pool of female scribes grows, Motzkin remains unique as she continues to make, not buy, her materials. And when her Torah scroll is finally complete, she will donate it to a Jewish community in need of one.

Motzkin and her husband Jonathan Rubenstein have been the spiritual leaders of Temple Sinai since their ordination in 1986.

"We don't need (the new Torah) at Temple Sinai because we already have two," Motzkin said. "Some people ask if we can give away one of those and keep the one we are making. We are human and we become attached. But it's my intention to give it away."

wliberatore@timesunion.com  518-454-5445  @wendyliberatore
A federal appeals court in San Francisco gave a chilly response Monday to the Trump administrations argument to scuttle a far-reaching lawsuit by 21 young people who say their rights are at risk from the governments inaction on climate change.

The youths, aged 10 to 21, sued President Barack Obamas administration in 2015. Their lawyers contended that the governments long-established obligation to protect public resources such as rivers and seashores applies to the atmosphere, and that the youths constitutional right to life and liberty, and to due process of law, is being violated by federal policies on fossil fuels and related issues.

Ruling that the youths had made at least a preliminary showing that the governments policies were likely to harm them, a federal judge in Oregon refused to dismiss the suit in November 2016. At a hearing Monday attended by 18 of the young plaintiffs, a Trump administration lawyer called the ruling unprecedented and asked the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco to overturn it.

The court should decline to fashion a due-process right out of thin air, Justice Department attorney Eric Grant told the three-judge panel. He said the suit was clearly meritless and, if allowed to proceed, would threaten to create a constitutional confrontation between the branches of government, referring to the executive branch and the courts.

But Chief Judge Sidney Thomas said the process the administration wants the court to halt  the plaintiffs efforts to question federal officials and gather evidence  is a routine procedure that courts seldom interrupt.

Judge Marsha Berzon said the governments objections appeared to be premature. And the third panel member, Judge Alex Kozinski, said even a case that is ultimately found to be meritless should not be dismissed at this stage.

More for you Young peoples climate-change lawsuit takes on Trump

There always has to be a first case, Kozinski said. Ten years ago there was no right to same-sex marriage.

But Kozinski also expressed doubt that the case would be allowed to go to trial.

Questioning a lawyer for the youths, he cited the appeals courts 2013 ruling dismissing a suit by environmental groups against Washington state officials for failing to regulate greenhouse gas emissions by the states five oil refineries. The court said the groups could not show that their members were harmed by the refineries emission, and therefore lacked legal standing to sue.

I dont see how this case is different, Kozinski said.

The lawyer, Julia Olson, replied that the refineries emitted about 6 percent of Washingtons greenhouse gases, while the United States spews out 16 percent or more of the worlds climate-changing gases.

Kozinski also questioned the youths legal standing on another ground  that the harm they said they were suffering was the same as everybody else in the country  but Olson disagreed.

Children are disproportionately suffering harm to their health, she said, and they will live far longer than you, to a devastating era of rising seas.

She said the plaintiffs were not asking the courts to take over the fossil fuel industry, but only to order federal agencies to bring their emissions under control.

Who runs the country at that point? Kozinski asked. Is it a district judge in Oregon or is it the president?

They cant ignore their constitutional obligations, Olson replied.

The panel will rule at a future date on whether the suit can proceed.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@egelko
The neighborhood around Park Tree and Park Wind in southeast Katy was once considered a "park desert."

"That's because there are no local parks where children could go and play," said Sharlu Melville, the assistant principal at Memorial Parkway Elementary School, 21603 Park Tree Lane.

But that's no longer the case thanks to the SPARK nonprofit conservation program established in 1983 by former Houston City Council member Eleanor Tinsley.

"SPARK" - which stands for school park - uses available land to create green spaces on school properties. More than 140 playgrounds have been created in 15 school districts in the greater Houston area.

"With this park, we are benefiting not only the school and its students but also strengthening this community and its families," said Katy ISD board president Ashley Vann.

The dramatically revamped playground at the elementary is available for public use on the weekend and during non-school hours. The effort was a collaboration between Katy ISD, parents, staff members, students and the community which raised more than $129,000 for the upgrade. In addition to slides found at any school playground, the community park features a walking trail, an amphitheater and sensory play panels.

"I'm looking around to see if there's anything a 50 year old can play on," said State Rep. Mike Schofield, who presented the school a Texas flag that had flown over the state capitol building in Austin at the park's recent dedication.

Melville said she was happy to welcome the community to their new park.

"We're going to continue to make this park even more beautiful than it is," she said. "Just help us keep it safe and clean."
The sunlight came in through the shades, shaking me from my dream. But as a 6-year-old, that just meant Saturday morning cartoons. I sprang up and dashed to the living room. As I turned on the television, there he was - a blue-and-red blur flying across the screen. Soon after, the iconic "S" came into focus: SUPERMAN. By far, my favorite superhero.

I liked him for his abilities. Who wouldn't? He was super-strong and able to fly. But my connection was deeper. He was more than a hero, he was an immigrant who left his home and came to the United States. He left everything and adapted to this new place.

And, best of all, he used this experience to become stronger and protect others, standing for "TRUTH, JUSTICE and the AMERICAN WAY." Leaping from couch to couch in pajamas, I dreamed of one day being able to protect people, too; I dreamed of growing into someone loved in America.

I outgrew my pajamas, but never quite outgrew my hunger for leadership. That is why four years letter my dream was to become President of the United States.

One day, in fourth grade, my teacher opened our civics class to talk about the requirements for the presidency. There was no kid more eager. I took out my notebook and prepared to plan my future. She began by writing on the board, "Must be at least 35 years of age." One day I'll be older; check. Next: "Must have lived in the United States for at least 14 years." I will have lived in the country for 31 years by then; check. Finally, "Must be a natural-born citizen of the U.S."

With that, my world came crashing down.

My whole life I was told you can do anything you set your mind to. And now, over something I had no control over - where I was born, I was being denied my dream.

My teacher continued with the unofficial requirements, saying a president should also go to college and asked who among us would do that. Oops. She pulled me aside and asked why I felt it was beyond me, to which I said, "I'm undocumented." Understanding the pain I must have felt, she asked why I wanted to be president?" I said, "I want to make a difference in my community, like Martin Luther King." She smiled and pointed out that he wasn't a past-president. I countered: "Well, like Cesar Chavez." Again, she smiled and corrected me. That's when I realized, my dream was not to become president; my dream is to make a positive impact in my community. I want to interpret the law, not be a victim of it.

Thankfully, I did find a way to go to college. when back then it seemed impossible. I had to pay three times the tuition my classmates did, and couldn't apply for most scholarships. I was unable to qualify for loans, and unable to work.

Then, a miracle occurred.

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program was created and brought me out of the shadows. It could work enough to make me feel free of fear of deportation. Thanks to this program, I followed my dream, went to law school, graduated and passed the Arizona Bar exam. The lesson of understanding the law that I learned in fourth grade became the engine that drove me.

Nearly 800,000 individuals across the nation have benefited. We have found jobs, reached for higher education and offered help to community resources. While many hoped DACA would remain, I always understood it was merely a Band-Aid; I always understood that true security can only come through Congress.

We encourage fellow immigrants to use their voices and tell their stories. It's these stories that help lift the veil of misunderstanding.

At times like this, I remember those childhood Saturday mornings, think back to Superman going up against an impeding apocalypse. It wasn't his super strength that saved the day, it was his resolve. It was knowing that he was fighting on the right side.

Dreams can be funny. They begin in a land of make-believe, but with perseverance and grit, they can become objects of reality. I may not be wearing an "S" on my shirt and may not be living in the White House, but my love for this country has led me to fight for my community and its dignity.

Salvador Macias is a J.D. Graduate 2017 from the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.
BEIRUT - Thousands of Hezbollah supporters joined a fiery rally in Beirut on Monday as the movement's leader urged Palestinians to rise up after President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

Demonstrators packed the streets of Beirut's southern suburbs in a carefully managed march. Crowds chanted "Death to America, death to Israel!" and waved Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

Israel's military, meanwhile, reported that two rockets were fired at its territory from the Gaza Strip on Monday, the third volley since Trump said last week that he would break with decades of U.S. foreign policy to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. That announcement has sparked protests across the Arab world.

Hundreds of protesters clashed with Lebanese security forces near the U.S. Embassy in Beirut on Sunday, hurling rocks and bottles toward the compound as the army beat back the crowd using tear gas and water cannons.

But so far, more-serious violence has not materialized, and Palestinian concerns about Jerusalem have failed to energize most Arab governments. Many leaders here seem more focused on conflicts in Syria, Yemen and elsewhere that are roiling the region.

Addressing the crowd Monday via video link, Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah described Trump's policy change as a "foolish decision" that would mark the "beginning of the end" of the Jewish state.

"The most important response will be to announce a third Palestinian intifada on all occupied Palestinian territories," he said, using an Arabic term that evokes earlier uprisings.

Lebanon harbors more than 500,000 Palestinian refugees, many of whom fled their homes in what is now Israel and the West Bank during the wars of 1948 and 1967. The Lebanese state has never formally recognized their status as refugees, and Palestinians are barred from dozens of professions.

Sitting on the sidewalk during Nasrallah's speech Thursday was Alia Shahata, born in 1948 to parents who she said left Palestinian territories after being expelled from their home.

"Trump is humiliating all Arabs with his decision," she said. "My family has no rights here in Lebanon. Our boys all work on coffee stalls inside the refugee camp. Know that we would all go back to Palestinian territories tomorrow if we could."

As she spoke, a group of boys no older than 10 posed for photographs in the street, dressed in military fatigues and raising their hands in Hezbollah salutes. Founded in response to Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon, Hezbollah, a Shiite militia backed by Iran, has also played a key role in turning the tide of Syria's civil war in favor of President Bashar Assad.

Trump's decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital has drawn widespread condemnation from allies around the world, many of whom had seen the city's eventual status as a matter to be settled in a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Monday that the 28-member bloc delivered a "clear and united" message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a visit to Brussels, and that the only "realistic" solution is for two states, with Jerusalem as their shared capital.

She rejected Netanyahu's public statement that he expects European nations to follow the U.S. lead and move their embassies as well. "He can keep his expectations for others," she said.

In his speech, Netanyahu said Trump had put "facts on the table" with the recognition of Jerusalem, which he said makes peace possible by recognizing reality.

But at home in Israel, the fallout continued with the rocket attacks from Gaza.

The Israeli military said it was not sure whether the first rocket reached its territory but responded by bombing two Hamas military posts. No casualties were reported in the exchange.

Hours later a second rocket was fired, the roar of the launch audible from Gaza City, indicating that it may have had a larger payload. The rocket was intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome defense system in the region of Ashkelon. Shortly afterward, bombing could be heard in Gaza. The Israeli military said it had targeted Hamas military posts in northern Gaza.

The rocket fire came just hours after Iranian media reported that Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's elite Quds Force, had reaffirmed support for the Gaza militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas during phone calls with their military leaders.

He "urged all resistance movements in the region to boost their readiness to defend the al-Aqsa Mosque," Press TV reported, referring to the Jerusalem mosque.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also spoke with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Monday, it said.

No one immediately asserted responsibility for the rocket fire, but Israeli officials say they hold Hamas responsible for all such firings from Gaza.

Hamas has called for an uprising against Israel in the wake of the Jerusalem announcement. Two of its militants were killed after Israel responded to rocket fire last week, while two protesters who Israel said were rolling burning tires and throwing rocks were also fatally shot near the border.

---

The Washington Post's Loveday Morris in Jerusalem and Hazem Balousha in Gaza City contributed to this report.
ROCKY HILL  A 30-year-old Middletown man was killed early Saturday when the sedan he was a passenger in rear-ended a parked tractor-trailer on Interstate 91 near Exit 24, State Police said.

State police said Brian Gorman, 27, of Kensington Street, Manchester, was driving his 2012 Ford Fusion southbound on the highway just after 3 a.m. Saturday when the vehicle veered into the right shoulder and hit the rear of a UPS tractor-trailer operated by Dwayne Henry, 35, of Irvington, N.J.
Egypt and Russia signed a $30 billion deal to build North Africa's first nuclear power plant as the Kremlin moves to expand its influence in the region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi witnessed the signing ceremony in Cairo on Monday.

The project increases Russia's economic presence and political influence in the Middle East, already on the rise since Putin intervened in Syria's war in 2015 and began a more active role in Libya, conflicts where he and el-Sissi see eye to eye. The Cairo visit comes less than two weeks after the countries said they were in talks to use each other's military air bases.

El-Sissi praised the closer ties with Russia, saying in a press conference the relationship was based on "strength and continuity" on regional and economic issues. The Egyptian leader said he and Putin agreed to "settle any hurdles confronting the projects we plan to implement."

Russia and Egypt agreed three years ago to begin work on a nuclear power project, with Russia's state nuclear monopoly Rosatom Corp. initially expecting the deal to be sealed in early 2016. But progress was delayed after the 2015 bombing of a Russian airliner over Egypt which killed 224 holidaymakers.

Russia suspended flights to Egypt after the bombing by a local affiliate of Islamic State, dealing a major blow to tourism as the country sought to revive an economy battered by political upheaval since the 2011 uprising. Putin said Egypt had worked hard to improve airport security. Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said the two countries had agreed on a draft protocol to resume direct Moscow-Cairo flights.

Flights will restart a month and a half after the protocol is signed. No decision has yet been taken on the resumption of Russian charter flights to Egypt's Red Sea resorts, he said. On the eve of Putin's visit, banners for Aeroflot passengers could be seen at Cairo airport.

Rosatom plans to commission the first unit of the El Dabaa power plant in 2026, the company said in a statement after the signing. It will also supply nuclear fuel to each of the four 1,200MW reactors throughout the plant's entire operational lifetime. The project, which is to be built some 130 kilometers northwest from Cairo, will cost an estimated $30 billion and Russia is expected to provide a $25 billion loan.

"We have finalized technical, financial and legal aspects of the deal," Electricity Ministry spokesman Ayman Hamza said by phone. The remaining phases would come online one or two years after the first.

Egyptian newspapers hailed the deal as a historic moment for Egypt, the second-largest energy-consumer in Africa after South Africa, currently home to the continent's only nuclear power plant. Egypt was the fastest-growing energy market in the Middle East and Africa last year, according to BP Plc statistical reports.

Russia has a history of pursuing large-scale energy projects in Egypt, often as part of a broader effort to challenge U.S. political, military and economic influence. The Soviet Union helped build the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s.

Moscow was a major power in the Middle East during the Cold War, arming Arab states against Israel. Its influence waned with the collapse of communism, leaving the U.S. as the pre-eminent force.
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With six words penned to his local newspaper, serial killer Todd Kohlhepp gave voice to the fears of investigators and anyone else worried that a missing loved one had become a victim of South Carolina's infamous murderer:

"Yes there is more than seven."

The sentence was a chilling part of a prison letter Kohlhepp sent to the Spartanburg Herald-Journal last week - more than a year after a woman who had been summoned to Kohlhepp's property to clean was found chained by the neck inside a large storage container.

RELATED: South Carolina woman chained in container: Captor bragged about killing

The investigation led authorities to identify seven other victims. Three had also been lured to the property under cleaning gig pretenses. Their bodies were buried in shallow graves. Another four were victims of a quadruple murder that hadn't been solved for 13 years.

Now Playing: Todd Christopher Kohlhepp has been behind bars for over a year since confessing to killing seven people. Video: WYFF

In May, Kohlhepp pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty and was sentenced to seven lifetimes in prison, plus 60 years.

But he apparently wants people to know - or at least wonder - about other possible victims.

"I tried to tell investigators and I did tell FBI, but it was blown off," he continued in his letter to the Herald-Journal. "It's not an addition problem, it's (a) multiplication problem. Leaves the state and leaves the country. Thank you private pilot's license."

It's plausible that there could be more murder victims. Some of Kohlhepp's previous murders had been unsolved for more than a decade. He was a gun enthusiast and, as he points out in his letter, an amateur pilot. Authorities told the media they confiscated an "arsenal" of weapons from the Woodruff property where the woman was found and Kohlhepp's home some 10 miles away.

Kohlhepp was a well-groomed and tech-savvy real estate agent who gave no outward signs of the murderous secrets he was keeping. But to those privy to his true self, he was rather chatty.

Kala Brown - the woman found in the storage container - told the "Dr. Phil" show that Kohlhepp would tell her he was "nearing the triple digits" in killings.

RELATED: A year after his first murder, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer moved to San Antonio

As The Washington Post's Amy B Wang reported, Kohlhepp recounted in detail - and even seemed to brag - about killing four people at a South Carolina motorcycle shop, which had come to be known as the "Superbike" murders.

"All of a sudden, I had three people in front of me. ... Mom was the closest. ... And I shot her two, three times in the chest. Not my best work. ... She fell. The son and the manager, he ... ran for the door, took off. ... At that range, they should have ran to me, not away.

" ... That was one big building. I cleared that building in under 30 seconds," Kohlhepp told investigators. "I'm sorry, but you guys would have been proud."

More than a decade later, Kohlhepp hired Brown and her boyfriend, Charles "David" Carver, to do some cleaning work at the property he owned in Woodruff. She told "Dr. Phil" that they had previously cleaned houses for Kohlhepp and never thought they were in danger as they drove to Woodruff.

But Kohlhepp killed Carver and kidnapped Brown. Investigators tracked them down by tracing their cellphones.

RELATED: A look at Texas' most notorious serial killers

Dramatic video released by investigators showed them sawing through a lock on the shed where Brown was hidden. Suddenly free, she spewed out details about her captor and the other crimes he'd revealed to her.

Carver's body and two others were found on the property. Kohlhepp also confessed to the motorcycle shop murders in Chesnee.

As for the most recent claims, Anderson Police Department Capt. Mike Walters told the Herald-Journal he doesn't believe Kohlhepp is connected to any open local cases but that there could be more victims in other states where Kohlhepp has spent time.

The FBI told the newspaper the investigation remains open.

But the only person who knows for sure is being cryptic.

"At this point," Kohlhepp wrote in the letter, "I really don't see reason to give numbers or locations."
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Barney Smith, has spent half of his life building San Antonio's Toilet Seat Art Museum, but the fate of it remains unknown.

That's why an Austin-based micropublisher is working to create King of the Commode: Barney Smith and His Toilet Seat Art Museum, a book which documents all of his works with 350 color photographs and illustrations.

Earlier this year, Smith, 96, and his family decided to part ways with the collection of more than 1,300 seats decorated by the retired master plumber. They wanted to sell it to a person who would keep the collection intact and hopefully display them free to to the public, as Smith himself has since 1992.

RELATED: Clorox is helping Barney Smith sell his Toilet Seat Art Museum

Months later, a bidder has yet to step up to claim the beloved San Antonio institution. Clorox, the cleaning company, has tried helping by creating a dedicated website and now the publisher, Cattywampus, is lending a hand.

The company said since the future of the museum is "unknown," they "felt the need to document this important collection of American outsider art before it quite possibly disappears."

"This book will ensure Barney's collection and story are available for generations to come," Cattywampus said in a news release.

To fund the book, the publisher is asking for the public to support their Kickstarter campaign.

So far, 90 supporters have pledged $7,678 of the $30,000 goal to produce the book.

Cattywampus is offering tokens of gratitude for each pledge level, which ranges from $10 to $350 or more.

Madalyn Mendoza is a digital reporter for MySA.com. Read more of her stories here.| mmendoza@mysa.com | Twitter: @MaddySkye
All lanes of Interstate 10 are open again after a major crash snarled traffic Monday morning in the area of Callaghan Road and Medical Drive.

Four westbound lanes were affected, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
Those unable to attend Kenneth M. Copelands funeral, but still wanting to honor the San Marcos police officer slain Dec. 4, are invited to stand along roads and on overpasses for the passage of the funeral procession on Wednesday as it travels down Interstate 35 and across Loop 1604.

The hearse is slated to leave Thomason Funeral Home in San Marcos at 8 a.m. Wednesday, proceeding down RR 12 to Wonder World Drive and then heading south on I-35 en route to the Community Bible Church at 2477 Loop 1604 in San Antonio.
Tim Duncan asked a federal court Tuesday to properly sentence his former financial adviser, who allegedly defrauded the San Antonio Spurs legend out of millions of dollars.

"My biggest fear is that you will give him a sentence that will allow him to go out into the world and tell everyone as he has continued to do since his guilty plea that he did not do anything wrong and he proves by having very little to no jail time," Duncan said of Charles Banks. "I respectfully ask you, do not do that. I promise you, that if he has any excuse to get back into this line of business, he will be out hustling and doing the same to others."
Police have released the name of the alleged drunk driver accused of killing a woman and injuring two other people in a wrong-way crash on Sunday.

Alejandro Almazan, 25, faces one charge of intoxication manslaughter and two charges of intoxication assault. He was booked into the Bexar County Jail on a $200,000 bond. He is also being held on an ICE detainer.
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Bexar County deputies arrested a San Antonio man after he allegedly drunkenly drove head-on into a car with five passengers, injuring all of them.

Kevin Garcia, 25, was charged with intoxication assault and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was booked into the Bexar County Jail on a $150,000 bond.
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The man who was shot and killed Saturday night while sitting in his car at a red light on the Northeast Side has been identified.

Deandre Monte Cameron, 26, of San Antonio, was shot around 9:15 p.m. near the 6500 block of Rittiman Road and Farm-to-Market 78. He died a short time later, according to the Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office.
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The man suspected of firing a shotgun at a 2016 Halloween party while dressed as Freddy Kruguer is now facing another charge in connection with the attack.

Robert Contreras, 22, was charged with unlawfully carrying a weapon. He was previously charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

RELATED: Human skeletal remains discovered by hunters in Kerrville, police say

Contreras and a group of several other men showed up for a party at a home in the 2900 block of Aspen Meadow about 5 a.m. Oct. 30, 2016, according to an arrest affidavit.

Now Playing: San Antonio police investigate a shooting on the Northwest Side that left five people wounded Sunday morning, Oct. 30, 2016. Video: San Antonio Express-News

The 25-year-old host of the party didn't recognize the men so he didn't let them in. Three of the men, including Contreras, allegedly pushed their way inside, initiating a shoving match, according to reports.

During the fight, one of the uninvited guests reportedly told the host to fight his brother "one on one." They fought, but then the host saw Contreras holding a shotgun, police said.

According to the affidavit, Contreras fired the shotgun, striking the host. Reports at the time of the shooting indicate that four other people were also shot during the incident. Contreras has been charged only in connection with the shooting of the host.

RELATED: Police: Woman killed in head-on collision with drunk driver

Paramedics took three men to University Hospital and another man at Baptist Medical Center in downtown San Antonio; a female victim drove herself to Christus Santa Rosa Hospital but crashed on the way there, according to reports at the time of the incident.

Contreras and several other uninvited guests fled the scene after the shooting, authorities said.

There were no breaks in the case until the host reportedly identified Contreras in a photo lineup. The affidavit didn't specify how police developed Contreras as a suspect.

A second witness identified him as well, police said.

A judge then signed a warrant for Contreras' arrest on Aug. 9, which was executed almost one year after the shooting.

Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns
Police say they are trying to piece together events that led to a shooting Sunday night at a South Side apartment complex that left two men wounded.

The two victims were standing outside a first floor unit of the Utopia Place Apartments at 444 Utopia Lane about 7:17 p.m. when they were shot, according to police.
It's hard to check the news without seeing yet another student-teacher sex scandal in Texas.

Unfortunately, the phenomenon isn't just another media craze, it's an issue that has Texas education officials and legislators concerned.
Helen Marie Bowen was a creative person who enjoyed putting flower arrangements together from materials she would find at garage sales and thrift stores.

She would also make pillows for the residents at nursing homes and give gifts to her friends and family.

Bowen died Dec. 6 from health complications due to a stroke she had a while working in her yard the day before. She was 79.

She had a good collection of relatives during her stay at the hospital, said her husband, Warren Bowen. This past Dec. 1, we had our 61st anniversary, he added.

Born in Brownsville, Bowens family relocated to San Antonio when she was a girl. The family moved to different parts of the city due to financial hardships, which meant Bowen had to frequently adjust to a new school.

Her family kept moving from one location to another. She had a lot of friends from different parts of town because of that, but the moving was a necessity and wasnt pleasant, her husband said.

During her senior year at Providence High School, Bowen met her future husband.

I was an acquaintance of her brother. He built a pool room in the back of his garage, and I got to know her because I was over all the time, her husband said. She invited me to take her to a high school dance.

More Information Helen Marie Bowen Born:Sept. 30, 1938, Brownsville Died: Dec. 6, 2017, San Antonio Preceded by: Parents Mansel and Florence Elder; son James Vernon Bowen; a brother and a sister Survived by: Husband Warren Bowen; son Larry Bowen; daughters Elizabeth Hernandez and son-in-law Jesse and Brenda Van Shellenbeck and son-in-law Karl; and six grandchildren Services: Celebration of Life at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Shearer Hills Baptist Church, 12615 San Pedro, followed by interment at Bellevue Cemetery, Cheapside See More Collapse

The couple wed in December 1956.

She didnt start college right away. She was a stay-at-home mom for several years before she started pursuing college, said her daughter Elizabeth Hernandez. She didnt get her masters degree until we were all finally out of the house. She was very active with whatever us kids did.

Bowen got both a bachelors and masters degree from the University at Incarnate Word.

She had a lot of energy and got a lot of things accomplished. She went to night school and took a subject or two at a time, said her husband said.

A big part of Bowens life was taking care of her oldest son, Larry Bowen, who has Down syndrome.

My mom was always trying to help my brother be more integrated into the school system, Hernandez said. She wanted him to be fully involved and was his advocate.

She started teaching in her 40s, working 12 years at Ridgeview Elementary and then eight at Garner Middle School.

She always wanted to be a teacher. That was her lifetime desire, Hernandez said.

Bowen was also a writer and composed 250 poems for her self-published book, Pieces of Me from A to Z.

Her husband also recalled Bowen creating an all-cursive NIV Bible over a span of 10 years.

The church was a source for her stability, strength, and comfort, Hernandez said. She was always trusting in Gods goodness to get her through.

Bowen would make a friend and keep in touch with them throughout her life, including her first-grade teacher and numerous ex-students.

She was a very loving and open person and loved to meet people and make friends. She stayed in contact with all the friends she made whether it was in town or out of town, her husband said.

caleman@express-news.net
Health care doesnt stop outside the hospital. At least it did not for Florence Gonzalez, a nurse for 30 years and an advocate for senior citizens health care until she got too sick herself to care for others.

Gonzalez died Nov. 30 after a battle with ischemic heart disease. She was 90.

The San Antonio native began her career during World War II. She received her education through the Brackenridge Nursing School and the United States Cadet Nurse Corps.

As they were being trained, the war died down, daughter Julianna Velez said. It was a good thing that the war ended and the nurses got their education. It really changed their lives. Some of the nurses, like my mom, were able to get an education because of the program. The United States wanted to make sure they had enough nurses stateside as well as overseas.

Gonzalez finished her education in 1945 and went to work at a clinic where she was recognized for her abilities beyond the complex work of nursing.

Because she was bilingual  the hospital doctors knew she was  the doctors used her skills, Velez said. The patients were diabetic, and some of them couldnt speak English. When the doctor taps you to do something to help them, that goes a long way, saying they trust you to do things they need.

Nothing was automated in nursing when Gonzalez began her work, and she managed to handle a plethora of tasks.

More Information Florence Barbara Gonzalez Born: Feb. 20, 1927, San Antonio Died: Nov. 30, 2017, San Antonio Survivors: Husband Julian Gonzalez; daughters Diane G. Sonora and husband Juan, Barbara G. Perez and Julianna G. Velez and husband Alex; six grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; one great-great-granddaughter. Services: A rosary will be recited at 7 tonight at Porter Loring North, 2102 N. Loop 1604 East. Funeral Mass at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at St. Anthony de Padua; interment at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery. See More Collapse

Youre a nurse off-duty because  one of the things my mother taught us was to be compassionate, and this is one of the foundations of nursing, said Velez, who is also a nurse. My mom was trained to observe people. She was trained to educate people  their diseases and how to treat them themselves. She was trained to ease and comfort. That is one of the biggest things.

After retiring from a career that ranged from in-home care to chief nursing officer to administration in hospitals citywide, Gonzalez and her husband, Julian Gonzalez, dove further into their community.

We joined the Senior Citizens Council of Bexar County, said Julian Gonzalez, who became his wifes full-time caregiver when she became ill. They needed a health chairman on the council, so she did it. We went to the legislative sessions in Austin and talked to the representatives. They would ask us questions and have important dialect to get bills pushed through.

jpolcyn@express-news.net
If you have become numbed to President Donald Trump's constant attacks on the media, if you have lost interest in which networks he currently considers to be "fake news," if you have grown tired of hearing him call journalists "enemies of the people" - well, that's unfortunate, because plenty of others are still paying attention. Around the world, dictators and would-be authoritarians have picked up his attitude and his terminology. From Syria to Venezuela to Burma, authoritarians now dismiss legitimate criticism as "fake news." The Libyan government has denounced a CNN report on human trafficking as "fake news": If the U.S. president disdains the network, why should anybody else listen to them? The president of the Philippines invents stories about his political enemies from whole cloth, just like the president of the United States. And, with Trump at his side, Rodrigo Duterte recently dismissed a gaggle of reporters as "spies."

Now the Polish government has been emboldened to take a step in the same direction. On Monday, the national media council slapped an extraordinary fine on TVN24, the largest and most important private television channel in the country. Declaring that the channel had been "promoting illegal activities and encouraging behavior that threatens security," the council demanded 1.5 million zlotys ($420,000). In a very brief statement, the council related the charge to the channel's coverage of anti-government demonstrations a year ago. No details were provided. But the message was perfectly clear: Private media should be very, very careful about broadcasting any opposition to the government.
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission Chairperson Justice Rita Makarau could have resigned due to mounting political pressure over her multiple roles, The Sunday Mail has gathered.

Justice Makarau resigned last Thursday without stating reasons after leading Zec since 2013.

On top of heading the Commission, she was a Supreme Court judge and Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission.

She resigns less than a year before Zimbabwe holds harmonised elections and her deputy, Mr Emmanuel Magade, takes over in acting capacity.

Justice Makarau could not be reached for comment on her mobile phone.

Secretary for Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Mrs Virginia Mabhiza told The Sunday Mail, She gave no reasons for her resignation. My assumption is that it was because of the pressure that was coming from Parliament where there was a lot of debate around her roles at the Judicial Service Commission, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Supreme Court.

The ministry and herself were regularly called upon to justify her roles in these institutions and she may have decided that it was in the best interest that she resigns.

The minister has already notified the President of the resignation and, of course, the vacancy. What happens now, in terms of the Constitution, is that the President will appoint a new Chairperson after consulting the Judicial Service Commission and the Parliamentary Committee on Standing Rules and Orders. In the meantime, the Deputy Chair of the Commission is the acting head.

Chairperson of Zecs media committee, Commissioner Joyce Kazembe, said: She communicated her resignation to the Commission via email, stating that she was stepping down. She did not give any reasons why she was stepping aside.

I cannot speculate on why she decided to leave because that would be misleading. But as a Commission, we were really hurt and devastated by the news because we were doing very good work as a team and with the elections just around the corner, it just makes it very difficult to accept.

Another Commissioner, Dr Qhubani Moyo, added: She communicated her decision on Thursday but did not give any reasons why she was stepping down.

However, I cannot speculate on why she decided to leave. Try to get hold of her and she will give you her reasons.

Commissioners are appointed for a maximum of two six-year terms. None maybe appointed after having been a member for one or more periods, whether continuous or not, amounting to 12 years.

The Constitution says the Zec Chair should be a judge or former judge, or a person qualified for appointment as a judge.

He/she is appointed in terms of Section 238(1)(a) of the Constitution, which reads:

There is a Commission to be known as Zimbabwe Electoral Commission consisting of (a) a chairperson appointed by the President after consultation with the Judicial Service Commission and the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders.

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Registrar-General Tobaiwa Mudede will continue to hold office despite reaching the retirement age of 65 years, since the Civil Service Commission is empowered to engage such persons if their services are still required, Parliament has heard.

Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Petronella Kagonye said it was not prudent to discriminate persons on account of age and Government would soon ratify the African Union Protocol on Older Persons calling on State parties to respect their rights to employment.

Minister Kagonye said this in the National Assembly during questions with notice session last week.

Harare West MP Ms Jessie Majome (MDC-T) had asked her to inform the House when Mr Mudede was born and why he was not being retired when he was above the retirement age of 65.

In direct response to the question from my learned colleague, allow me Mr Speaker, to say that Mr Tobaiwa Mudede was appointed as the Registrar in terms of Section 201 (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe as read with Statutory Instrument 1 of 2000 (Public Service Regulations) as amended, said Minister Kagonye.

In terms of Section 21 (1) of the Public Service Act, the Commission can engage persons on contract or such conditions as may be fixed from time to time. The Commission is empowered by the Public Service Regulations to engage on annually renewable contracts after they reach retirement age.

Such persons will not contribute again towards a pension as they would have already done so, hence their placement on annually renewable contract.

Minister Kagonye said the AU was advocating to have the retirement age moved forward due to the rising life expectancy witnessed globally.

For example, British Government announced the possibility of raising the retirement age to 67 or 68 to match the trend, she said. Article 8 of the African Union Protocol on Older Persons requires us to respect older persons Right to Employment.

It provides that: States Parties shall:

1. Take measures to eliminate discrimination against Older Persons with regard to employment opportunities;

2. Ensure that Older Person enjoy decent working conditions.

Resolution 106 African Union bears in mind the rapid rate at which the population of older person is increasing throughout the world and that the most rapid increase is taking place in the developing world, with Africa alone projected to have between 204 and 210 million older person by 2050.

This resolution, therefore, calls upon all African Governments to review policies on Older Persons. My ministry is currently initiating ratification of this new Protocol, which Parliament is expected to debate and endorse.

It is important for us to consider social trends and keep abreast with global and continental trends. Our laws must remain relevant and devoid of discrimination against age in this particular context, otherwise we perish for want of vision.

Minister Kagonye implored legislators not to personalise their enquiries, but rather to interrogate policy issues.

Her ministry, she said, had proposed amendments to adjust National Social Security Authority retirement age from 60 to 65 and the suggestion was being considered by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.

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Following the circulation of videos showing Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) soldiers assaulting civilians, activist group Tajamuka/Sesjikile Campaign has given the army up to Wednesday, 13 December to wind up its operations and return to barracks. The activist group said that if the army fails to comply, the peoples movement would step in. In what may turn out to be an ill-advised move, Tajamuka/Sesjikile wrote on their Facebook page saying:

Tajamuka notes with grave concern the recent spate of citizen harassment and intimidation by members of the army who continue to man the streets in the country. This has got to stop forthwith.

The people of Zimbabwe deserve peace and security for once. Needless attacks on unarmed citizens going about their lawful business will not go unchallenged.

We give the army up to Wednesday the 13th of December 2017 to wind up their unwelcome business and disappear from the streets, failure of which the peoples movement will step in.

We want to assure the peace-loving citizens (vendors included) our great country that together as citizens we can challenge and defeat this status quo of anarchy and lawlessness.

Remember to register and vote in 2018.

*Tajamuka/Sesjikile Campaign*

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CONTROVERSIAL businessman Wicknell Chivayo was reportedly arrested yesterday morning.

It could not be immediately established where he was being held or interviewed.

As such, the charges against him were not yet available as police sources were still checking for details when contacted by H-Metro.

But while there was no immediate confirmation from official sources, people in Wicknells inner circle told H-Metro that he had been picked up for questioning.

Yes he has been picked but I cannot confirm who arrested him. We are all not sure and it will be bad to make assumptions, said a close source.

As of late yesterday afternoon, the associates were still to establish his whereabouts or reasons for being picked up.

Speculation was rife that he was in trouble over the energy deals awarded to his company, Intratrek by Zimbabwe Power Company.

Intratrek received US$5 million from ZPC to start work on the Gwanda Solar Energy project but nothing has been done amid reports that the site has since been abandoned.

Chivayo was awarded three ZPC projects and there has not been progress amid reports that Members of Parliament want the power utility summoned to parly to explain their dealings with Chivayo.

The ultimate goal is to get Chivayo repay the US$5 million to ZPC and the project be re-advertised.

A campaign to have Chivayo pay back the money was started on social media last week but he did not seem to bother him as he laughed off the calls.

Chivayo becomes the latest big fish to be caught in the net following Operation Restore Legacy that saw the arrest of former finance minister Ignatius Chombo.

Last week the government said they are leaving no stone unturned on cash barons to return externalised funds.

Chivayo, who is also known as Sir Wicknell, is famous for splashing cash on social media and several foreign trips.

Speculation over his arrest started soon after the inauguration of Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa as President but Chivayo said the ZPC deal was there to stay despite the public outcry.

At that time, Chivayo said calls for his arrest had to be dismissed as mere speculation and conjecture.

The ZPC tender which Intratrek Zimbabwe (Pvt) Ltd has an irrevocable and irreversible signed EPC contract. The company is compliant with the contractual obligations enshrined in its EPC contract for the 100 mw Gwanda project.

Intratrek won this tender as lowest bidder to specification under an open tender process above board. Contractually, Intratrek is answerable to the employer ZPC, who are the owners of the project.

The two parties are aligned in the progress and execution of this project and work is currently in progress at the power station site and proceeding in good order. The calls for anyones arrest are therefore malicious and unfounded and should be dismissed as mere speculation and conjecture.

Asked what progress he had made with regards to the ZESA tender, Chivayo told H-Metro everything was under control.

Progress made can be ascertained by talking to the project owner ZPC and visiting the site. Suffice to say pre commencement works are proceeding in good order and fund raising exercise for the actual project commencement are at an advanced stage.

He also felt it was unfair for Zimbabweans to keep referring to his criminal past after spending years in prison for fraud.

I might have made regrettable youthful misdemeanours in retrospect but that does not make me a criminal in any wide sense. At a time when constitutional matters are at the forefront it is instructive to refer to the constitution, which promotes the integration of ex-convicts into society and treats them equally to other Zimbabweans.

So its not correct to call me a criminal. My record as a non-partisan non factional patriot is what people should focus on instead of putting labels on me and casting aspersions on my character, Chivayo told H-Metro in an exclusive interview.

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ALBANY  New York convenience store operators are giving the state Labor Department an earful about the negative impacts of predictive scheduling regulations they are threatening to unilaterally impose on employers statewide.

Retailers representing hundreds of convenience stores have filed formal comments objecting to the proposed rules, which would add costs and curtail flexibility for employers. The New York Association of Convenience Stores (NYACS) is urging all retailers to file comments before the deadline of January 5, 2018. After that, the Cuomo administration intends to enact the regulations without any vetting by the state legislature.

Coming on the heels of minimum wage legislation that is gradually rising to $15 an hour, and a paid family leave mandate that is taking effect January 1, this is the last thing beleaguered New York small businesses need, said NYACS President Jim Calvin. By arbitrarily requiring C-stores to schedule a full two weeks in advance, they are trying to throw a saddle on a wild mustang. Our industry that utterly defies predictability.

They must think were mistreating or abusing our employees. Thats far from the case, Calvin continued. Most of our members use a collaborative approach to scheduling that provides as much flexibility as possible to each of the students, working mothers, senior citizens and other individuals who staff their stores. In fact, an October NACS survey found that 70% of convenience store employees appreciated the flexible work schedule their employer offered.

Key provisions of the proposed regulations are:

Employers would have to post the schedule 14 days in advance.

If you call in an employee to work a shift that was not scheduled at least 14 days in advance, they would be entitled to an additional two hours of call-in pay. There are exceptions for new hires, higher-paid full-time employees, and employees who volunteer to substitute for a scheduled co-worker.

If you cancel an employee's shift within 72 hours of the start of the shift, they would be entitled to four hours of call-in pay. There are exceptions for higher-paid full-time employees, workers who cancel the shift themselves, and extreme weather or other circumstances beyond the employers control that force the store to close.

If you have someone on call for any shift, even if they aren't called in, they would be entitled to at least four hours of call-in pay. There is an exception for higher-paid full-time employees.

If an employee is required to check in with you within 72 hours of the start of a shift to confirm whether to report to work, they would be entitled to at least four hours of call-in pay. There is an exception for higher-paid full-time employees.

Payments for the above-referenced extra two or four hours of call-in pay "shall be calculated at the basic minimum hourly rate with no allowances. Such payments are not payments for time worked or work performed and need not be included in the regular rate for purposes of calculating overtime pay."

The existing provision requiring employers to pay at least four hours' wages to an employee who reports to work would remain in place. However, there would be a new provision addressing shorter work days. If the employee normally works a shift shorter than four hours, you could reduce that minimum to the number of hours in that shift.

Written comments may be submitted by mail or email to Mr. Michael Paglialonga, NYS Department of Labor, State Campus, Building 12, Room 509, Albany NY 12240, regulations@labor.ny.gov.

Samples of comments submitted by NYACS member retailers to date are attached. See the full text of the proposed regulations.
Find the newest releases to watch from National Geographic on Disney+, including acclaimed documentary series and films Fire of Love, The Rescue, Limitless with Chris Hemsworth and We Feed People.
Tipperary based Robert A. Merry & Co. Ltd, who make Merrys Irish Cream Liqueur, helped launch the Love Irish Cream Liqueur campaign with the Irish Spirits Association.

Ahead of Christmas, which is a very important time for Irish cream liqueur sales, the campaign aims to restart a conversation about the uniqueness of the product category, its importance to Ireland, and the need to protect it against fake products.

To coincide with the launch of the new campaign, the Irish Spirits Association has revealed that that Christmas sales period of 2017 is set to be one of the most buoyant for Irish Cream Liqueur in years.

According to the ISA, Irish cream liqueur is growing in popularity at home and abroad, after recovering from a lost decade during which growth stagnated.

Between 2012 and 2016, sales of Irish Cream Liqueur in Ireland (across both on and off trade) fell by 11.2 per cent, from 108,000 cases to 95,900 cases. This trend has now been halted. Over 90 million bottles of Irish cream liqueur were sold globally in 2016. Preliminary figures from Nielsen show that the value of Irish cream liqueur sales in the important Irish off-trade sector have increased by 3.4 per cent during 2017.

The contribution of the Irish cream liqueur industry to the Irish economy is significant. In 2016, Irish cream liqueur producers purchased 316 million litres of fresh cream from Irish farmers, sourced from 46,000 dairy cows.

The Love Irish Cream Liqueur campaign aims to highlight the fact that Irish cream liqueur is protected by an EU-recognised Geographic Indication (GI) and to seek enhanced protection of this GI in international markets.

A GI means that Irish cream liqueur must be produced on the island of Ireland in accordance with certain standards (EU-approved technical file). The GI protects the integrity and quality of this spirits category and the investment being made in production and employment on the island of Ireland.

John Harte, chairman of the Irish Spirits Association stated:

Since its origin in 1974, Irish Cream Liqueur has been one of Irelands most successful spirits categories, loved by millions of people around the world.

After a lost decade, during which growth in the category stalled, I am delighted to see that Irish Cream Liqueur sales are once again growing in Ireland and globally.

In the lead-up to Christmas, we are delighted to launch this campaign, which seeks to raise awareness of Irish cream liqueur and protect the category.

We hope this campaign will be accompanied by increased efforts by industry and stakeholders to monitor the markets and crackdown on fake, non-GI produce.

Earlier this month, the Irish Spirits Association facilitated a meeting between Irish cream liqueur producers and the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine to progress efforts to tackle fake, non-GI produce.
South Tipperary General Hospital patients took part in the first ever National Patient Experience Survey - the results of which were released today (Monday, December 11).

Patients attending the Clonmel hospital were a little less happy with their overall experience than patients nationally - while 54% of the all-Ireland results was a score of 9/ 10 (the experience was very good) only 46% of patients at STGH gave their overall experience a very good rating.

Areas highlighted for improvement include the discharge process - including giving enough notice to the patient and their family of discharge; and explaining the purpose of medicines they were given to take home with them. Also highlighted was that more than half (52%) of patients said they were not able or only to some extent able to find someone on the hospital staff to talk to about their worries and fears.

Waiting times for admission must also be improved.

Areas where STGH scored well were patients being offered a replacement meal if they could not eat at mealtimes (80%); information about a procedure before (86%) or after (71%) it took place in a manner they could understand; and 81% said that hospital staff did everything they could to help control pain.

STGH had a slightly higher proportion of patients taking part - 52% of those eligible compared with 51% nationally.

The average age of participants in STGH was 64 years, evenly divided between male and female patients. 81% entered the hospital on an emergency basis. According to the national results patients who entered hospital on a planned basis were happier with their overall experience than those who were emergency admissions.

There were 168 inpatient beds available in the hospital during the survey period of 1  31 May 2017 and 575 eligible discharges were recorded during this time.

The full results from South Tipperary General Hospital can be seen in the infographic below. The full report can be read on www.patientexperience.ie which is also where the hospital's point-by-point response (Listening, Responding & Improving) to the survey can be read.

National Results

For the admission to hospital stage, 79% of patients had a very good or good experience. 96% of respondents said they were always or sometimes treated with respect and dignity in the emergency department. However, long waiting times in the emergency department were highlighted as a problem. Only 30% of people said that they were admitted to a ward within the target waiting time of six hours.

85% of patients had a very good or good experience of care on the ward. Patients were generally positive about the cleanliness and privacy on the ward. However, a large number of people said that they did not have a positive experience of communication while on the ward. Many patients said that they did not have enough time to talk with doctors about their care and treatment. Patients also had difficulty in accessing emotional support, with 48% saying they could not always find any member of hospital staff to talk to about their worries and fears.

The discharge or transfer stage of care was the lowest-rated stage, with only 60% saying they had a very good or good experience. Patients did not always receive enough information on how to care for themselves at home, and this was a source of concern for many patients.

The first National Patient Experience Survey took place in May 2017. 26,635 patients from 40 hospitals across Ireland were invited to participate. With a response rate of 51%, thats 13,706 participants, it is the largest survey on patients care in Ireland.

The survey is a partnership between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health. The survey was developed with the involvement of Patient Focus, a patient advocacy organisation, in order to ensure that patients were central to the design and execution of the survey.

The survey consisted of 61 questions about admission to hospital, care on the ward, examinations, diagnosis and treatment, discharge and transfer, and other aspects of care.
By Express News Service

With the 11th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) beginning in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Sunday, India has reaffirmed its stand that a permanent solution to the public stockholding of food stocks must be found.

According to Union commerce minister Suresh Prabhu, the demand for a permanent solution is non-negotiable because it is a matter of the livelihood of millions of people. The minister said the solution should also include future programmes of all developing member countries as well as least developed countries (LDCs).

A permanent solution to public stockholding for food security is a must have at WTO MC 11, the minister tweeted after attending a meeting of G33 - a grouping of 47 developing countries having common objectives and similar concerns. He also expressed hope that India will get the support of WTO member countries on food security, Doha Development Agenda and protection to small farmers.

Prabhu, who met the representatives of the European Union ahead of the ministerial meeting, strongly pitched for a special safeguard mechanism (SSM) to help developing countries deal with import surges and price erosion of their agriculture produce owing to heavy subsidies offered by developed countries to their agriculture sector.

He stressed that the G-33 grouping represents the collective voice of over two-thirds of humanity. The minister said he was trying to meet trade ministers of those countries which have opposite views with a view to convince them about the concerns of the developing nations.

Under global trade norms, a WTO member countrys food subsidy bill should not breach the limit of 10 per cent of the value of production based on the reference price of 1986-88. India has been seeking amendments in the formula to calculate the food subsidy cap as it fears the full implementation of food security programme might result in breach of the WTO cap.

To address this concern, the WTO members at the Bali ministerial meeting in December 2013 had agreed to put in place a temporary mechanism known as peace clause which would be in force till a permanent solution is found. The clause protects developing nations from action in case the cap is breached.

With the 11th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) beginning in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Sunday, India has reaffirmed its stand that a permanent solution to the public stockholding of food stocks must be found. According to Union commerce minister Suresh Prabhu, the demand for a permanent solution is non-negotiable because it is a matter of the livelihood of millions of people. The minister said the solution should also include future programmes of all developing member countries as well as least developed countries (LDCs). A permanent solution to public stockholding for food security is a must have at WTO MC 11, the minister tweeted after attending a meeting of G33 - a grouping of 47 developing countries having common objectives and similar concerns. He also expressed hope that India will get the support of WTO member countries on food security, Doha Development Agenda and protection to small farmers. Prabhu, who met the representatives of the European Union ahead of the ministerial meeting, strongly pitched for a special safeguard mechanism (SSM) to help developing countries deal with import surges and price erosion of their agriculture produce owing to heavy subsidies offered by developed countries to their agriculture sector. He stressed that the G-33 grouping represents the collective voice of over two-thirds of humanity. The minister said he was trying to meet trade ministers of those countries which have opposite views with a view to convince them about the concerns of the developing nations. Under global trade norms, a WTO member countrys food subsidy bill should not breach the limit of 10 per cent of the value of production based on the reference price of 1986-88. India has been seeking amendments in the formula to calculate the food subsidy cap as it fears the full implementation of food security programme might result in breach of the WTO cap. To address this concern, the WTO members at the Bali ministerial meeting in December 2013 had agreed to put in place a temporary mechanism known as peace clause which would be in force till a permanent solution is found. The clause protects developing nations from action in case the cap is breached.
By IANS

AHMEDABAD: The Congress on Sunday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an impartial probe into the note-ban decision that the opposition party dubbed the "biggest scam ever and the largest money-laundering scheme".

"In September 2016 (before demonetisation announced on November 8, 2016), a whopping Rs 5,88,600 crore was deposited in banks, of which Rs 3 lakh crore was in fixed deposits. Whose money was it and what happened to it?" Congress Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said at a press conference here.

"In October 2016, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar purchased eight properties. In Odisha, it purchased 18 properties, just ahead of demonetisation. Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah tell the people as to how many properties they purchased just before demonetisation? Will they disclose the details of the party's bank accounts of the months preceding demonetisation?" Surjewala said.

Modi had announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

"Also, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank three days before demonetisation. Amit Shah is a Director of this bank. Was he questioned by the Income Tax Department or the Enforcement Directorate regarding this money?" he said.

The Congress leader said that after demonetisation, Rs 10.1 crore was seized from a Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Development Bank van, in which BJP leader and Maharashtra Minister Pankaja Munde has a stake.

"It is public knowledge that the cooperative banks were not given any new currency. Then how come this cooperative bank got new currency of Rs 10 crore? Whose money was it? Is there any probe into this case?" Surjewala said.

He said at a time when the common people were struggling in bank queues to get a few lakh of rupees in new currency for their daughters' weddings, mining baron G. Janardan Reddy splurged Rs 500 crore on his daughter's wedding.

"The BJP top brass made a beeline to this function as Reddy is considered very dear to Prime Minister Modi. Why was no investigation launched against Reddy as to where from he got so much money in new currency, when notes were being rationed to the common people?" Surjewala said.

"We challenge the Prime Minister to order an impartial probe into all these cases, and many more such cases, and bring out the facts before the people," he added.

The Congress leader called All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi as the "B-team of BJP" and said people should not pay attention to the polarising antics of such people.

AHMEDABAD: The Congress on Sunday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an impartial probe into the note-ban decision that the opposition party dubbed the "biggest scam ever and the largest money-laundering scheme". "In September 2016 (before demonetisation announced on November 8, 2016), a whopping Rs 5,88,600 crore was deposited in banks, of which Rs 3 lakh crore was in fixed deposits. Whose money was it and what happened to it?" Congress Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said at a press conference here. "In October 2016, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar purchased eight properties. In Odisha, it purchased 18 properties, just ahead of demonetisation. Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah tell the people as to how many properties they purchased just before demonetisation? Will they disclose the details of the party's bank accounts of the months preceding demonetisation?" Surjewala said. Modi had announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. "Also, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank three days before demonetisation. Amit Shah is a Director of this bank. Was he questioned by the Income Tax Department or the Enforcement Directorate regarding this money?" he said. The Congress leader said that after demonetisation, Rs 10.1 crore was seized from a Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Development Bank van, in which BJP leader and Maharashtra Minister Pankaja Munde has a stake. "It is public knowledge that the cooperative banks were not given any new currency. Then how come this cooperative bank got new currency of Rs 10 crore? Whose money was it? Is there any probe into this case?" Surjewala said. He said at a time when the common people were struggling in bank queues to get a few lakh of rupees in new currency for their daughters' weddings, mining baron G. Janardan Reddy splurged Rs 500 crore on his daughter's wedding. "The BJP top brass made a beeline to this function as Reddy is considered very dear to Prime Minister Modi. Why was no investigation launched against Reddy as to where from he got so much money in new currency, when notes were being rationed to the common people?" Surjewala said. "We challenge the Prime Minister to order an impartial probe into all these cases, and many more such cases, and bring out the facts before the people," he added. The Congress leader called All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi as the "B-team of BJP" and said people should not pay attention to the polarising antics of such people.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: At least six people including two bank guards, a woman and three Pakistani militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed in two militancy incidents in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

A police official said police, army and paramilitary CRPF men on specific information about presence of militants laid siege around Mir Mohalla area of Unisoo in Handwara in border district of Kupwara last night.

He said they had information that three militants were hiding in a house.

We encircled the house and asked the militants to surrender. However they turned down the surrender offer and fired on the security personnel. The fire was returned by the troops and in the ensuing gunfight, which continued till this morning, three militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed, he said.

The official said the slain militants were Pakistani nationals and three AK rifles and other ammunition was recovered from the encounter site.

He said a woman identified as Misra Bano, 23, was caught in the cross-fire after she tried to escape from the house where from militants were firing on security forces.

She sustained bullet injuries in the cross fire and died on spot, the official said.

Later, hundreds of people braving rain and chill attended her funeral prayers amidst chanting of pro-freedom and anti-India slogans.

The woman is survived by six-month-old child, husband and elderly parents.

ALSO READ: French journalist Comiti Paul Edward detained in Jammu and Kashmir for filming pellet victims

Meanwhile, militants ambushed Jammu and Kashmir Bank cash van at Kral Check area of Shopian in south Kashmir this afternoon.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Shopian, Ambarkar Shriram Dinkar told New Indian Express that Jammu and Bank bullet proof scorpio vehicle was ambushed by militants between Pohju and Kralcheck area of Shopian at around 3 pm.

He said the vehicle was returning after depositing cash at a bank branch when it was attacked by militants.

In the militant attack, the driver lost control of the vehicle and it turned turtle. Due to it, the backdoor of the vehicle opened and two private security guards of the bank sustained bullet wounds in the militant firing, Dinkar said.

He said both the injured security guards were rushed to District Hospital Pulwama, where doctors declared them brought dead.

The deceased guards were identified as Tariq Ahmad R/o Pulwama and Mushtaq Ahmad R/o Anantnag.

Three other bank guards had sustained injuries after the vehicle had turned turtle.

The security guards were employees of Honest Security Agency, a private security firm.

After the attack, police, CRPF and army men launched a joint combing and search operation in the area to track down the militants responsible for the attack.

No militant group has owned responsibility of the attack.

SP Dinkar said they have launched a manhunt to identify the attackers and track them down.

It is the second attack on bank cash van in south Kashmir this year.

Earlier, on May 1, militants had attacked J&K Bank cash van in south Kashmirs Kulgam district, killing five policemen including a Station House Officer (SHO) and two bank guards.

SRINAGAR: At least six people including two bank guards, a woman and three Pakistani militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed in two militancy incidents in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. A police official said police, army and paramilitary CRPF men on specific information about presence of militants laid siege around Mir Mohalla area of Unisoo in Handwara in border district of Kupwara last night. He said they had information that three militants were hiding in a house. We encircled the house and asked the militants to surrender. However they turned down the surrender offer and fired on the security personnel. The fire was returned by the troops and in the ensuing gunfight, which continued till this morning, three militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed, he said. The official said the slain militants were Pakistani nationals and three AK rifles and other ammunition was recovered from the encounter site. He said a woman identified as Misra Bano, 23, was caught in the cross-fire after she tried to escape from the house where from militants were firing on security forces. She sustained bullet injuries in the cross fire and died on spot, the official said. Later, hundreds of people braving rain and chill attended her funeral prayers amidst chanting of pro-freedom and anti-India slogans. The woman is survived by six-month-old child, husband and elderly parents. ALSO READ: French journalist Comiti Paul Edward detained in Jammu and Kashmir for filming pellet victims Meanwhile, militants ambushed Jammu and Kashmir Bank cash van at Kral Check area of Shopian in south Kashmir this afternoon. Superintendent of Police (SP) Shopian, Ambarkar Shriram Dinkar told New Indian Express that Jammu and Bank bullet proof scorpio vehicle was ambushed by militants between Pohju and Kralcheck area of Shopian at around 3 pm. He said the vehicle was returning after depositing cash at a bank branch when it was attacked by militants. In the militant attack, the driver lost control of the vehicle and it turned turtle. Due to it, the backdoor of the vehicle opened and two private security guards of the bank sustained bullet wounds in the militant firing, Dinkar said. He said both the injured security guards were rushed to District Hospital Pulwama, where doctors declared them brought dead. The deceased guards were identified as Tariq Ahmad R/o Pulwama and Mushtaq Ahmad R/o Anantnag. Three other bank guards had sustained injuries after the vehicle had turned turtle. The security guards were employees of Honest Security Agency, a private security firm. After the attack, police, CRPF and army men launched a joint combing and search operation in the area to track down the militants responsible for the attack. No militant group has owned responsibility of the attack. SP Dinkar said they have launched a manhunt to identify the attackers and track them down. It is the second attack on bank cash van in south Kashmir this year. Earlier, on May 1, militants had attacked J&K Bank cash van in south Kashmirs Kulgam district, killing five policemen including a Station House Officer (SHO) and two bank guards.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: A freelance French journalist and documentary filmmaker, Comiti Paul Edward, has been arrested by police in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, for violating the visa norms and shooting documentary on pellet victims.

A police official said French journalist Edward was arrested by police on Sunday from the Pratap Park area of Srinagar.

He said Edward was having a business visa for India, which is valid upto December 22, 2018.

In violation of his visa norms, he was indulging in journalistic work and shooting a documentary on pellet victims. Besides, he had also met some separatist leaders, the official.

He said the French journalist was arrested for violating the terms and conditions of the visa.

When French journalist was arrested, he was covering a protest at Pratap Park area, the official said.

Police have registered FIR number 87/2017 under section 14 (B) Passport Act against him.

The police official said the French journalists passport, camera, other equipments and documents have been seized.

After his arrest, the French journalist was presented before a magistrate in Srinagar. He has been sent to police custody till December 16 and lodged in Police Station Kothibagh.

ALSO READ: Three militants killed in J& K's Handwara encounter; search operations underway

The police official said after Edwards arrest, they informed the French embassy in New Delhi about his arrest.

He said an official from the French embassy today arrived in Srinagar and met Edward in Police Station Kothibagh.

Sources said the French embassy official also met some police officials to know more details about the case and Edwards arrest.

Sources said the French journalist has told the police officials that he had applied for journalism visa for Kashmir but was not granted.

They said police has launched investigation to ascertain which places the French journalist had gone in Valley and with whom he had met.

Meanwhile, J&K State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) while hearing a petition filed by human rights activist Mohammad Ahsan Untoo today on detention of French journalist directed the Station House Office (SHO) of Police Station Kothibagh, where arrested French national is lodged, to file a status report about the case by December 18.

SRINAGAR: A freelance French journalist and documentary filmmaker, Comiti Paul Edward, has been arrested by police in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, for violating the visa norms and shooting documentary on pellet victims. A police official said French journalist Edward was arrested by police on Sunday from the Pratap Park area of Srinagar. He said Edward was having a business visa for India, which is valid upto December 22, 2018. In violation of his visa norms, he was indulging in journalistic work and shooting a documentary on pellet victims. Besides, he had also met some separatist leaders, the official. He said the French journalist was arrested for violating the terms and conditions of the visa. When French journalist was arrested, he was covering a protest at Pratap Park area, the official said. Police have registered FIR number 87/2017 under section 14 (B) Passport Act against him. The police official said the French journalists passport, camera, other equipments and documents have been seized. After his arrest, the French journalist was presented before a magistrate in Srinagar. He has been sent to police custody till December 16 and lodged in Police Station Kothibagh. ALSO READ: Three militants killed in J& K's Handwara encounter; search operations underway The police official said after Edwards arrest, they informed the French embassy in New Delhi about his arrest. He said an official from the French embassy today arrived in Srinagar and met Edward in Police Station Kothibagh. Sources said the French embassy official also met some police officials to know more details about the case and Edwards arrest. Sources said the French journalist has told the police officials that he had applied for journalism visa for Kashmir but was not granted. They said police has launched investigation to ascertain which places the French journalist had gone in Valley and with whom he had met. Meanwhile, J&K State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) while hearing a petition filed by human rights activist Mohammad Ahsan Untoo today on detention of French journalist directed the Station House Office (SHO) of Police Station Kothibagh, where arrested French national is lodged, to file a status report about the case by December 18.
By PTI

BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said India and China's strategic interests outweigh "partial frictions" and handling of the Dokalam standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties.

Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India- China (RIC) foreign ministers' meeting to be held in New Delhi today during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always values good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as "we are each other's big neighbours and ancient civilisations".

He said India-China strategic interests outweigh differences and "partial friction".

"We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into China's Donglang (Dokalam) area through diplomatic measures," Wang told a symposium here last week, maintaining Beijing's stand.

"Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability," he said in his speech in Chinese posted on the website of the foreign ministry.

ALSO READ: China hints at maintaining sizable troops' presence near Dokalam in winter

"China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction," he said.

As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a "prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1 + 1 = 11 outlook," Wang said.

The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about China's diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region.

Wang's visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Dokalam standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping.

The over two-month Dokalam standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'Chicken Neck' corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.

ALSO READ: China says Indian drone 'invaded' its airspace, crashed

Wang's visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi's trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks.

Yang along National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties.

In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and China's diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about China's foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in- five-years Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October.

The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for China's external relations. Wang said China needs to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

"For China's diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful," he said.

He reiterated that "war is by no means acceptable" in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains.

On ties with the US, he said "China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions," official media quoted him as saying.

He said the China-Russia relationship has become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) he said it has become "the most popular international public goods programme".

Chinese businesses have invested over USD 50 billion and created nearly 200,000 local jobs in countries that are participating, he said.

India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI.

On Wang's visit to Delhi, Chinese think tanks said RIC foreign ministers' meeting offers Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which will effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Dokalam standoff.

"Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track," said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times.

China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily.

China has opposed India's moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN.

Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides may help sort out differences on BRI.

China also continues to oppose India's bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said India and China's strategic interests outweigh "partial frictions" and handling of the Dokalam standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties. Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India- China (RIC) foreign ministers' meeting to be held in New Delhi today during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always values good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as "we are each other's big neighbours and ancient civilisations". He said India-China strategic interests outweigh differences and "partial friction". "We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into China's Donglang (Dokalam) area through diplomatic measures," Wang told a symposium here last week, maintaining Beijing's stand. "Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability," he said in his speech in Chinese posted on the website of the foreign ministry. ALSO READ: China hints at maintaining sizable troops' presence near Dokalam in winter "China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction," he said. As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a "prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1 + 1 = 11 outlook," Wang said. The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about China's diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region. Wang's visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Dokalam standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping. The over two-month Dokalam standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'Chicken Neck' corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan. ALSO READ: China says Indian drone 'invaded' its airspace, crashed Wang's visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi's trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks. Yang along National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties. In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and China's diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about China's foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in- five-years Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October. The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for China's external relations. Wang said China needs to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects. "For China's diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful," he said. He reiterated that "war is by no means acceptable" in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains. On ties with the US, he said "China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions," official media quoted him as saying. He said the China-Russia relationship has become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation. On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) he said it has become "the most popular international public goods programme". Chinese businesses have invested over USD 50 billion and created nearly 200,000 local jobs in countries that are participating, he said. India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI. On Wang's visit to Delhi, Chinese think tanks said RIC foreign ministers' meeting offers Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which will effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Dokalam standoff. "Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track," said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times. China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily. China has opposed India's moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN. Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides may help sort out differences on BRI. China also continues to oppose India's bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Amit Agnihotri By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi was declared president-elect of the Congress on Monday, marking a smooth change of guard in the 132-year-old party. He will formally take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi, two days before the crucial Gujarat Assembly election results are announced.

READ HERE Rahul Gandhi: The rise of a political scion

VIEW GALLERY | From mourning son to political heir

Sonia became Congress president in 1998 and has been the longest-serving party chief. Rahul was made party vice-president in 2013. There had been major speculation over his elevation since the party lost the 2014 national elections. He faces the immediate challenge to win four Assembly polls in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh next year and prepare the party for the 2019 Lok Sabha poll battle.

READ HERE | Sonia Gandhi: The longest-serving Congress president

Congress central election authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran said, Eighty-nine nomination papers proposing the name of Rahul Gandhi for Congress president were received. All nomination papers were found valid. Since the withdrawal date and time is over and as there is only one candidate, as per Article XVIII (D) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I declare Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress.

Gandhi will be officially handed over the certificate of his election as the party President on 16th December at the AICC headquarters, according to news agency ANI.

Though the result was a foregone conclusion right from the day Rahul filed his nomination on December 4 and was the only contestant, Ramachandran termed it a historic day and thanked Sonia for guiding the panel through the poll process.The announcement came on a day when Rahul campaigned in Gujarat. The Chief Election Commissioner will hand over the certificate of election to Rahul on December 16 at the partys national headquarters here.

The announcement marked the end of the partys internal elections, which had started in September and saw new office bearers getting elected from booth to the state level. The Congress said Rahul has earned the partys top post, dismissing allegations that the election was a sham. He has shown his mettle in Gujarat. The entire BJP, including the Prime Minister himself and 80 ministers, are sitting there for a month but are still unable to counter him, said senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad

Conducting the elections was not an easy job, said Ramachandran, adding that 42 provincial returning officers were deployed, supported by 71 assistant PROs and by 583 district ROs. These officials were all from other states to ensure an unbiased and impartial election, he said.Providing details of the party organisation, he said there are 8,86,358 Booth Committees, 9,418 Block Committees and 930 District and City Congress Committees in various states and Union Territories.Elections were held in more than 80 per cent of the booths as Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura would have Assembly elections this year and in 2018, he said.

All India Congress Committee's Central Election Authority officially announces Rahul Gandhi as the President of the Indian National Congress. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/XvPFHWAND1  Congress (@INCIndia) December 11, 2017

As soon as the announcement was made, Congress workers erupted in celebrations near the party office in Delhi.

Uttarakhand: Celebration at Congress office in Dehradun after Rahul Gandhi elected as the party President. pic.twitter.com/6fWeG1bGYt  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

"This is the worst time in India under present government. In such a time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party President. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon. He is facing Modi confidently," said former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi

Sidelined AIADMK leader T T V Dhinakaran greeted Rahul Gandhi for his elevation as Congress President, wishing him a 'sterling' tenure in a tweet.

Congratulations to @OfficeOfRG on being elected as Congress President unopposed. Wish you a sterling tenure in the footsteps of the illustrious past Presidents of the more than a century-old Congress party.  TTV Dhinakaran (@TTVDhinakaran) December 11, 2017

Later in the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to social media to congratulated the newly elevated Congress chief.

I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure. @OfficeOfRG  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017

(With online desk inputs)

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi was declared president-elect of the Congress on Monday, marking a smooth change of guard in the 132-year-old party. He will formally take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi, two days before the crucial Gujarat Assembly election results are announced. READ HERE Rahul Gandhi: The rise of a political scion VIEW GALLERY | From mourning son to political heir Sonia became Congress president in 1998 and has been the longest-serving party chief. Rahul was made party vice-president in 2013. There had been major speculation over his elevation since the party lost the 2014 national elections. He faces the immediate challenge to win four Assembly polls in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh next year and prepare the party for the 2019 Lok Sabha poll battle. READ HERE | Sonia Gandhi: The longest-serving Congress president Congress central election authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran said, Eighty-nine nomination papers proposing the name of Rahul Gandhi for Congress president were received. All nomination papers were found valid. Since the withdrawal date and time is over and as there is only one candidate, as per Article XVIII (D) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I declare Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress. Gandhi will be officially handed over the certificate of his election as the party President on 16th December at the AICC headquarters, according to news agency ANI. Though the result was a foregone conclusion right from the day Rahul filed his nomination on December 4 and was the only contestant, Ramachandran termed it a historic day and thanked Sonia for guiding the panel through the poll process.The announcement came on a day when Rahul campaigned in Gujarat. The Chief Election Commissioner will hand over the certificate of election to Rahul on December 16 at the partys national headquarters here. The announcement marked the end of the partys internal elections, which had started in September and saw new office bearers getting elected from booth to the state level. The Congress said Rahul has earned the partys top post, dismissing allegations that the election was a sham. He has shown his mettle in Gujarat. The entire BJP, including the Prime Minister himself and 80 ministers, are sitting there for a month but are still unable to counter him, said senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad Conducting the elections was not an easy job, said Ramachandran, adding that 42 provincial returning officers were deployed, supported by 71 assistant PROs and by 583 district ROs. These officials were all from other states to ensure an unbiased and impartial election, he said.Providing details of the party organisation, he said there are 8,86,358 Booth Committees, 9,418 Block Committees and 930 District and City Congress Committees in various states and Union Territories.Elections were held in more than 80 per cent of the booths as Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura would have Assembly elections this year and in 2018, he said. All India Congress Committee's Central Election Authority officially announces Rahul Gandhi as the President of the Indian National Congress. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/XvPFHWAND1  Congress (@INCIndia) December 11, 2017 As soon as the announcement was made, Congress workers erupted in celebrations near the party office in Delhi. Uttarakhand: Celebration at Congress office in Dehradun after Rahul Gandhi elected as the party President. pic.twitter.com/6fWeG1bGYt  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017 "This is the worst time in India under present government. In such a time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party President. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon. He is facing Modi confidently," said former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi Sidelined AIADMK leader T T V Dhinakaran greeted Rahul Gandhi for his elevation as Congress President, wishing him a 'sterling' tenure in a tweet. Congratulations to @OfficeOfRG on being elected as Congress President unopposed. Wish you a sterling tenure in the footsteps of the illustrious past Presidents of the more than a century-old Congress party.  TTV Dhinakaran (@TTVDhinakaran) December 11, 2017 Later in the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to social media to congratulated the newly elevated Congress chief. I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure. @OfficeOfRG  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017 (With online desk inputs)
By Online Desk

Congress President-elect Rahul Gandhi today visited some places hit by the Cyclone Ochki in southern Kerala that has claimed 63 lives in the state, most of them fishermen, and pitched for a better warning system to prevent recurrence of such tragedies.

Thousands of fishermen and their families in Kerala and Tamil Nadu are continuously holding mass protests, demanding for search operations to continue and for relief to be provided faster.

Search and rescue operations to trace the fishermen missing in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi continued for the 12th day today. As many as 433 fishermen from Tamil Nadu and 186 from Kerala are yet to be traced.

The cyclone, earlier this week, had finally dissipated over the Arabian Sea, sparing Gujarat from destruction.

ALSO READ | No tsunami says IMD as false WhatsApp alerts create panic

Here are all the latest updates:

The Union Home Ministry is constituting an inter ministerial central committee for the spot assessment of damage and admissibility of claims of the states hit by Cyclone Ockhi.

House-to-house verification process is going on and a final figure of the missing fishermen would be known once the process was over, say officials. [READ FULL REPORT]

"The farmers have a ministry that looks after their interests and I think it is time that we create a ministry for the fishermen to look after their interests and make sure they are protected," said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after visiting fishermen families in affected areas in Kerala. [READ FULL REPORT]

TN government hikes compensation for non-fisherman families from Rs 4 lakhs to Rs 10 lakhs. ( READ )

The death toll in the Ockhi cyclone that hit the Kerala coast mounted to 65 with more bodies being recovered.

DMK petitions TN governor Banwarilal Purohit to expedite rescue work post-Ockhi.

Efforts are on to identify the recovered bodies through DNA test.

In a bid to set up a mechanism to ensure the safety of fishermen, Kerala CM Vijayan said a system was being planned in association with the Indian Space Research Organisation.

Kerala State control room officials said three bodies were found off the coast of Kozhikode and three from Kochi. [READ FULL REPORT]

The financial assistance of Rs 20 lakh for families of Kerala fishermen killed in the cyclone would be given in one go. An amount of Rs five lakh would be given to those who are seriously injured and are not able to go to work in future as an "alternative livelihood" initiative.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said the Centre has agreed to continue search operations for the missing fishermen in Cyclone Ockhi that hit the state's coast on November 29 and 30.

The death toll due to Ockhi cyclone, which hit the Kerala coast, rose to 52 on Tuesday as more bodies were recovered and the search for the missing fishermen in the high seas continued.

The Tamil Nadu CM Palaniswami on Tuesday announced Rs 20 lakh compensation for the kin of fishermen who died in the cyclone that devastated the coastal areas of the state recently.

Pope Francis has enquired about the hardships and sufferings caused to Kerala's fishermen community in the Ockhi cyclone that ravaged the coastal belt on November 30.

The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday announced 'livelihood assistance' ranging from Rs 48,500 to Rs 63,500 per hectare for horticulture farmers of cyclone Ockhi-battered Kanyakumari district.

Kerala fishermen protestors took to the street by waving black flags and photos of the dead and missing fishermen walked about two km from Palayam to Raj Bhavan raising slogans, bringing the traffic to a standstill on the busy stretch.

The death toll in the Ockhi cyclone in Kerala rose to 40 on Monday with the recovery of two more bodies even as the search operations to trace the missing fishermen entered the 10th day.

Search and rescue operations to trace the fishermen missing in the aftermath of Ockhi cyclone continued for 10th day today even as 67 persons caught in the storm, returned to Kochi coast.

The Goa government would provide compensation to shacks having legal validity, for the damages suffered during the Cyclone Ockhi last week. [FULL REPORT]

The Indian naval ships engaged in search and rescue mission in the aftermath of Cyclone Ockhi today continued their operations in the high seas, searching area till the Maldives. No stranded boats , fishermen or floating bodies have been found in the sea by the naval search team during the last 72 hours, the official said.

Kerala Governor P Sathasivam will contribute a month's salary to the special fund being raised for the victims of cyclone Ockhi.

The Kerala government has asked the Indian Armed Forces and the Coast Guard to continue search operations for fishermen missing in high seas post-Cyclone Ockhi for 10 more days.

#HADR #CycloneOckhi #OpSahayam #SAR Based on reports by IN Boeing P8 i aircraft, INS Kalpeni was sent to Off Sesostris Bank/Bassas de Pedro (a traditional fishing area off Lakshadweep island).About 17 boats with 180 plus fishermen have been located.@DefenceMinIndia @nsitharaman  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 8, 2017

Fishing vessel as seen from the aircraft. This video captures the essence of what Navy Boeing P-8i is doing - systematic search of every inch of possible/ probable area & providing hope to the stranded till they are rescued by our ships @nsitharaman pic.twitter.com/1sY0VXul42  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 6, 2017

People receive essential commodities at a relief camp following cyclone Ockhi in the Kanyakumari district on Saturday. (PTI)

Given orders to Maharashtra Maritime Board and Collector, Sindhudurg Dist. to make all arrangements for the stranded fishermen. Local authorities are already with them and taking care of all arrangements, tweets Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis.

In all 68 fishing boats have reached, out of which 66 are from Kerala and 2 from Tamil Nadu with total 952 fisherman on board.

All are safe.

Maharashtra will completely look after everyone till weather permits them to go back. @nsitharaman @BJP4Keralam

 Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) December 2, 2017

A fresh spell of heavy rain is in store in some areas of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry with a low pressure area forming over south Andaman sea, which is "very likely" to become a depression over Bay of Bengal . It is very likely to become a depression over southeast Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood during the next 36 hours. It is also very likely to intensify further and move towards north Tamil Nadu south Andhra Pradesh coasts during the next 3-4 days. (IMD)

Though many fishermen from Kerala were brought ashore safely and admitted to hospitals, many are yet to recover from the shock of wrestling the lashing waves and seeing death face-to-face. Stephan, a fisherman hailing from nearby Poonthura, said: "It was the first time we were experiencing such huge waves and a rough sea. Luckily, the rescue boat came back and saved us." Most of the rescued fishermen had bruises all over their bodies and were seen shivering and begging for hot water and food when brought ashore. (PTI)

Stranded fisherman being brought to Kerala coast by Indain Navy personnel in Kochi on Saturday. (PTI)

Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami today requested the Centre to deploy the Indian Navy and Coast Guard for the search and rescue of fishermen who have not returned so far, and that helicopters of Coast Guard and Navy should be deployed for this purpose. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured the AIADMK leader that the Centre would provide the assistance required to rescue the fishermen. (PTI)

Several roads that connect Kanyakumari with many interior parts have got cut or were fully damaged due to heavy rainfall following the impact of cyclone Ockhi in the district on Saturday. (PTI)

A Coast Guard advisory here said the status of weather and sea conditions should be checked on television, radio, newspapers and smartphone applications before venturing out into the sea. The merchant ships should also be alert and avoid the path of Cyclone Ockhi, it said. Fishing boats should remain in groups and during distress all the crew should remain together, it said.

DMK working president M K Stalin urged Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in his letter to direct the Coast Guard to search and rescue "thousands of fishermen fighting for their lives in the mid sea, so as to prevent further loss of lives due to the Ockhi cyclone".

Steps have been taken to prevent any possible outbreak of epidemic in rain-hit areas of

Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu Health minister C Vijayabhaskar said today.

A relief worker places sand bags on the banks of a beach in Kochi in wake of cyclone Ockhi on Saturday. (PTI)

Leader of the opposition in the Kerala Assembly Ramesh Chennithala today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare cyclone Ockhi as a national disaster. He also urged the Kerala government to increase the financial aid for the injured at least up to Rs 50,000 from the present Rs 15,000. Lack of coordination had affected the government's relief and rescue operations, launched post Ockhi, he alleged. (PTI)

The Southern Railway announced partial and full cancellation of some trains in the Kaniyakumari-Nagercoil section. One train service was also rescheduled. (PTI

Meanwhile, relatives of missing fishermen from Kaniyakumari staged a road blockade demanding the fishermen be rescued at the earliest. Scores of women also staged protest at Chinnathurai in that district.

There has been a huge demand for generator sets following the devastation caused by cyclone Ockhi in the Kanyakumari region on Saturday. (PTI)

In Kanyakumari, power supply had been restored even as efforts are on to resume power supply in neighbouring areas like Nagercoil and Kuzhithurai. Officials expressed confidence that the power supply would be restored in the entire district by tomorrow.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami announced Rs 25 crore for expediting relief and restoration work in the district . ( PTI)

261 persons rescued by @IndiaCoastGuard @adgpi and @IAF_MCC in #CycloneOckhi @NewIndianXpress pic.twitter.com/ywhzBQLJnP

 Kiran_TNIE (@tniekiran1) December 2, 2017

The Coast Guard informed in a press release that on November 30, the Coast Guard District Headquarters in Kerala was informed that around 70-80 fishermen were stranded at sea due to the storm. The Coast Guard immediately sailed as many as nine ships towards Search and Rescue (SAR) efforts. Further, ships based at New Mangalore were also sailed towards Kerala coast to undertake the rescue of stranded fishermen. As the cyclone intensified, coordinated search by Coast Guard ships and aircraft continued in extremely rough weather with wind speed gusting up to 150 kmph. Ships at Mumbai and Goa were also placed on maximum alert to augment efforts as required, the press release read. (PTI)

As per the last report, a total of 79 stranded fishermen have been saved by the Coast Guard in coordination with other agencies. Also, the fisheries department has intimated that about 25 boats with 250 personnel are still in distress at sea.

A man watches a road that has been cut off due to floods following the heavy rainfall caused by the cyclone Ockhi which left heavy damage in the Kanyakumari district on Saturday. (PTI)

138 fishermen have been rescued from the Lakshadweep islands. (PTI)

So far 393 people from Kerala have been rescued, Kerala CM Vijayan said, as the state government announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of those who died in the storm, in addition to the financial assistance of Rs four lakh being given by the fisheries department.Of the rescued, 132 fishermen were from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, 66 from Kozhikode, 55 from Kollam, 40 from Thrissur, and 100 from Kanyakumari. (PTI)

In Lakshadweep, 31 relief camps have been opened in the10 inhabited islands. So far, 1,047 people have been evacuated to the relief camps, official sources said. No casualties have been reported, with the worst-affected islands being Minicoy and Kalpeni. Seven people have lost their lives in Kerala in rain-related incidents over the past two days, official sources said. (PTI)

Cyclone Ockhi has so far claimed 13 lives in Sri Lanka . Power supply, essential services and air traffic was disrupted in the stormy weather that left several buildings damaged and trees uprooted in its wake. READ FULL REPORT HERE

#CycloneOckhi update @IndiaCoastGuard ship rescued 15 fishermen at sea off Vizhinjam/Quilon (Kerala) Coast and heading towards shore for safe disembarkation of fisher-folks @DefenceMinIndia @SpokespersonMoD pic.twitter.com/39gJrfI20Z

 Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) December 2, 2017

Authorities including the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Coast Guard and Navy have rescued about 223 fishermen and evacuated thousands of people from cyclone hit areas, officials said, as they continued their operations on Saturday.

While INS Nireekshak, INS Jamuna and INS Sagardhwani are continuing search and rescue operations in their designated areas along the coast off Vizhinjam in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam, two ships INS Shardul and INS Sharda are heading towards Lakshadweep, a defence spokesman said. (PTI) The naval ships, which left from the Southern Naval Command here yesterday, are likely to reach Lakshadweep this evening.

The Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Lanba briefed me on the on-going rescue operations #CycloneOchki . More fishermen rescued this morning. Rescue work to continue.Some rescued fishermen waiting in Lakshadweep Isle to get back. Details @indiannavy @DefenceMinIndia @IndiaCoastGuard

 Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) December 2, 2017

The Kerala state government has announced a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh to the families of the deceased.

#Kerala Locals have blocked National Highway for last five hours in Trivandrum's Thumba, demand better relief measures & rescue of 6 fishermen missing from the area #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/rcTY0gyDty

 ANI (@ANI) December 2, 2017

Six boats and 73 fishermen that went missing in the sea have been brought back, the Fisheries Minister of Tamil Nadu, D Jayakumar, informed on Saturday. (ANI)

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan slammed rumour mongers on Saturday after it came to light that Friday's reports of a Japanese merchant ship rescuing 60 Kerala fishermen caught in the deep seas, was "fake". It was Thiruvananthapuram district Collector S.Vasuki who told the media, on Friday evening, that she wished to thank the Japanese government as one of their ships had rescued 60 fishermen and said they would arrive at the Vizhinjam coast. (IANS.) [READ FULL REPORT]

Locals in Thiruvananthapuram's Poonthura came out in protest alleging rescue operations have been inadequate. (ANI)

According to Thiruvananthapuram district Collector S Vasuki, 102 fishermen from the city who had gone into the sea have not been able to contact their relatives. [READ FULL REPORT HERE]

Kerala: Locals evacuated to rehabilitation centre in Kochi's Chellanam. #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/iAwj7Q7g94

Several houses suffered damage, trees got uprooted and communication lines were disrupted as rains accompanied by strong winds lashed the Lakshadweep Islands under the influence of Cyclone Ockhi. [ READ FULL REPORT]

INS Nireekshak rescued two fishermen off Alappuzha coast. INS Sagardhwani fished out one cadaver, 30 km off Thiruvananthapuram coast. The ship had earlier found another cadaver. (PTI)

PM Modi dialled Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami and enquired about the damage caused by the cyclone, which also battered parts of Kerala. [READ FULL REPORT HERE]

The Tamil Nadu government has said it will soon seek central funds for the damage caused by Cyclone Ockhi in the southern parts of the state, with Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli districts being the worst hit.

As many as 218 fishermen from various parts of southern Kerala who were missing at sea since Thursday have been rescued and brought back so far, even as Cyclone Ockhi continued its menacing north-westward path along the Arabian Sea. [READ REPORT HERE]

A rescued fisherman rushed to the ambulance from the technical area of the Thiruvananthpuram airport on Friday afternoon. Express Photo | Kaviyoor Santhosh

According to a CWC advisory, the west-flowing rivers in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam in Kerala are likely to rise over the next 24 hours and then, slowly fall as the rains reduced.

Three deaths were reported in Kerala and one in the worst-hit Kannyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, taking the toll to 12, reports UNI.

A report from Lakshadweep said a red alert had been sounded as high waves posed a major threat to most of the islands in the region. (UNI)

WATCH: Navy rescue fishermen off Thiruvananthapuram coast

About 150 fishermen, who put out to sea from various southern districts, were rescued, Thiruvananthapuram District Commissioner K Vasuki said, adding that efforts were on to bring the rest of the stranded fishermen to the shore. The rescued fishermen included those who were saved by a Japanese cargo vessel. Kerala: Rescued fishermen brought to Trivandrim Air Force Station, later admitted to hospital for treatment #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/lB10HNPqsE  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017

Heavy to extremely heavy rains are likely over Lakshadweep Islands, while light to moderate rains with a few heavy spells are expected over Kerala and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to Skymetweather's latest weather update.

Two fishing boats Arokia Mary and Hermen Mary from Kanyakumari reported missing due #CycloneOckhi since 30 Nov 2017 with 08 crew each rescued by Coast Guard Ship C-427 off Vizhinjam #Kerala pic.twitter.com/nyLuxkoonk

 ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017

Search and rescue effort progressing off Vizhinjam where approximately 40 people were stranded at sea. Indian Navy ships Sharda and Shardul sailed out to augment search effort, in final stages of embarking humanitarian assistance and disaster relief items for assistance at Lakshadweep and Minicoy Islands , reports ANI.

130 families from Chellanam, 17 families from Kumbalangi and 18 families from Edavanakad rehabilitated from the coastal areas, reports ANI. [Read Report]

Cyclone Ockhi is moving to the Arabian Sea. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan says steps are initiated to rescue fishermen stranded in the rough sea, reports PTI.

#WATCH: High tides seen at Lakshadweep coast #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/sxUBC4geku

 ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017

24 people stranded at sea sighted by IN assets. Efforts underway to rescue all 24:-

07 picked up by MV ENERGY ORPHEUS,04 being rescued by INS JAMUNA ,03 rescued by trawler in area,02 rescued by ALH (progressing further rescue of 06 more),02 under Rescue by MV KUN LUN SHAN

 SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 1, 2017

READ FULL STORY: Navy, Coast Guard save 39 Kerala fishermen

ALSO READ | Cyclone Ockhi tales

#Kerala: Relatives of missing fishermen mourn in Thiruvananthapuram, say they received no warnings of #CycloneOckhi from the government pic.twitter.com/gewQlJZvPI

 ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017

- One person was killed when a tree fell on his autorickshaw at Kulathupuzha in Kollam

- A couple at Kattakkada in Thiruvananthapuram was electrocuted when power cables fell over them

- Trees and hoardings collapsed in the strong wind, which also blew away thatched roofs and roofing sheets of houses

- The State Disaster Management Authority has issued alert to Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki and Kottayam districts

Satellite image of Cyclone Ockhi across South India. (Image Courtesy: skymetweather.com)

Southern Naval Command deployed 3 ships & 2 aircraft following request by District Collector, Trivandrum for assistance in search of 6 fishing boats with fisherman & 1 Marine Engineering vessel missing near Vizhinjam, due to cyclonic storm developed in Indian Ocean off Kerala. pic.twitter.com/2fShFmu1NS

 ANI (@ANI) November 30, 2017

 SkymetWeather (@SkymetWeather) November 30, 2017

With a speed of 38 kmph at 8:30 Thursday morning, the cyclone lay centred about 340 km west-northwest of Galle in Sri Lanka, 60 Km south of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu and 120 km southwest of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala and 480 km eastsoutheast of Minicoy in Lakshadweep. It has moved west-northwestwards towards Lakshadweep Islands in the southeast Arabian Sea. Lakshadweep is an archipelago of 12 atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks lying 200 to 400 km to the West of the South-West coast (Kerala) of India.

Cyclone Ockhi is approaching the Lakshadweep archipelago, a top official at the Ministry of Earth Sciences said in Delhi today. Madhavan Rajeevan, secretary in the ministry, said the archipelago in the southern part of the Arabian Sea will start experiencing heavy rainfall and strong winds from tomorrow. "It will hit the islands on December 2," Rajeevan said. (PTI)

Earlier today, the US Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Centre (JTWC) had put out an alert saying that the system could intensify further to become a severe cyclonic storm. It further said the storm could re-curve towards the Mumbai-Gujarat region on the West Coast, after being influenced by an incoming western disturbance from the opposite direction.

Heavy rainfall and storms in Tamil Nadu in the first week of November this year killed at least 12 people and thousands took shelter in relief camps, triggering fears of the 2015 floods repeat. It had killed more than 400 people, displaced lakhs and damaged property worth thousands of crores.

What is a tropical depression The India Meteorological Department (IMD) classifies the low pressure systems in the Bay of Bengal and in the Arabian Sea into seven categories. Low pressure areas with maximum sustained surface wind speeds between 31 and 61 kmph are called tropical depressions. Once the winds around the low pressure area reach at least 62 kmph, it is called a tropical cyclone and is assigned a name. The current system is intensifying rapidly. As per the IMD wind warning, squally winds would reach 45-55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph along and off south Tamil Nadu during the next 48 hours. Another depression kicking-in The trough of low pressure over the Malay Peninsula and neighbourhood is persisting and is likely to develop into a low-pressure area over Malay Peninsula and adjoining south Andaman Sea during the next 24 hours. This system is likely to trigger a wet spell for the north coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, around December 4. (With inputs from Express News Service and agencies)

Congress President-elect Rahul Gandhi today visited some places hit by the Cyclone Ochki in southern Kerala that has claimed 63 lives in the state, most of them fishermen, and pitched for a better warning system to prevent recurrence of such tragedies. Thousands of fishermen and their families in Kerala and Tamil Nadu are continuously holding mass protests, demanding for search operations to continue and for relief to be provided faster. Search and rescue operations to trace the fishermen missing in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi continued for the 12th day today. As many as 433 fishermen from Tamil Nadu and 186 from Kerala are yet to be traced. The cyclone, earlier this week, had finally dissipated over the Arabian Sea, sparing Gujarat from destruction. ALSO READ | No tsunami says IMD as false WhatsApp alerts create panic Here are all the latest updates: The Union Home Ministry is constituting an inter ministerial central committee for the spot assessment of damage and admissibility of claims of the states hit by Cyclone Ockhi. Today's #OpSahayam #CycloneOckhi Deployment of IN & ICG assets for #SAR of missing fishermen off Kerala & Tamil Nadu coast. @CMOKerala @CMOTamilNadu @OfficeOfOPS @ShashiTharoor @PonnaarrBJP @pibchennai @PIB_India @PIBTvpm @BJP4TamilNadu @BJP4Keralam pic.twitter.com/oTeP5QI2XP  Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) December 14, 2017 House-to-house verification process is going on and a final figure of the missing fishermen would be known once the process was over, say officials. [READ FULL REPORT] "The farmers have a ministry that looks after their interests and I think it is time that we create a ministry for the fishermen to look after their interests and make sure they are protected," said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after visiting fishermen families in affected areas in Kerala. [READ FULL REPORT] TN government hikes compensation for non-fisherman families from Rs 4 lakhs to Rs 10 lakhs. (READ) The death toll in the Ockhi cyclone that hit the Kerala coast mounted to 65 with more bodies being recovered. DMK petitions TN governor Banwarilal Purohit to expedite rescue work post-Ockhi. Efforts are on to identify the recovered bodies through DNA test. In a bid to set up a mechanism to ensure the safety of fishermen, Kerala CM Vijayan said a system was being planned in association with the Indian Space Research Organisation. Kerala State control room officials said three bodies were found off the coast of Kozhikode and three from Kochi. [READ FULL REPORT] The financial assistance of Rs 20 lakh for families of Kerala fishermen killed in the cyclone would be given in one go. An amount of Rs five lakh would be given to those who are seriously injured and are not able to go to work in future as an "alternative livelihood" initiative. Today's deployment on #SAR #CycloneOckhi .@CMOTamilNadu @CMOKerala @OfficeOfOPS @PonnaarrBJP @ShashiTharoor @PIB_India @pibchennai @PIBTvpm @BJP4Keralam @BJP4TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/LQedhf51eA  Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) December 13, 2017 Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said the Centre has agreed to continue search operations for the missing fishermen in Cyclone Ockhi that hit the state's coast on November 29 and 30. The death toll due to Ockhi cyclone, which hit the Kerala coast, rose to 52 on Tuesday as more bodies were recovered and the search for the missing fishermen in the high seas continued. The Tamil Nadu CM Palaniswami on Tuesday announced Rs 20 lakh compensation for the kin of fishermen who died in the cyclone that devastated the coastal areas of the state recently. Pope Francis has enquired about the hardships and sufferings caused to Kerala's fishermen community in the Ockhi cyclone that ravaged the coastal belt on November 30. The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday announced 'livelihood assistance' ranging from Rs 48,500 to Rs 63,500 per hectare for horticulture farmers of cyclone Ockhi-battered Kanyakumari district. Kerala fishermen protestors took to the street by waving black flags and photos of the dead and missing fishermen walked about two km from Palayam to Raj Bhavan raising slogans, bringing the traffic to a standstill on the busy stretch. The death toll in the Ockhi cyclone in Kerala rose to 40 on Monday with the recovery of two more bodies even as the search operations to trace the missing fishermen entered the 10th day. Search and rescue operations to trace the fishermen missing in the aftermath of Ockhi cyclone continued for 10th day today even as 67 persons caught in the storm, returned to Kochi coast. The Goa government would provide compensation to shacks having legal validity, for the damages suffered during the Cyclone Ockhi last week. [FULL REPORT] The Indian naval ships engaged in search and rescue mission in the aftermath of Cyclone Ockhi today continued their operations in the high seas, searching area till the Maldives. No stranded boats, fishermen or floating bodies have been found in the sea by the naval search team during the last 72 hours, the official said. Kerala Governor P Sathasivam will contribute a month's salary to the special fund being raised for the victims of cyclone Ockhi. The Kerala government has asked the Indian Armed Forces and the Coast Guard to continue search operations for fishermen missing in high seas post-Cyclone Ockhi for 10 more days. #HADR #CycloneOckhi #OpSahayam #SAR Based on reports by IN Boeing P8 i aircraft, INS Kalpeni was sent to Off Sesostris Bank/Bassas de Pedro (a traditional fishing area off Lakshadweep island).About 17 boats with 180 plus fishermen have been located.@DefenceMinIndia @nsitharaman  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 8, 2017 A decision in this regard was taken at an all-party meeting in Kerala on Friday to discuss the steps taken by the state for rescue of fishermen stranded at sea and situation in the aftermath of the cyclone that hit the coast on November 29 and 30. READ | Cyclone Ockhi: 200 people from Kerala's fisher community to be recruited to coastal police Sixty-six boats from this district were yet to be traced, while 713 fishermen were still to be rescued, in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi, a top district official said. Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan on Friday said all steps were being taken to trace and rescue missing fishermen in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi. A "false image" is being created against the central and state governments though they were taking up rescue, relief and rehabilitation works, Radhakrishnan told reporters in Kanyakumari. READ FULL STORY HERE | Tension at Adimalathura as Finance Minister meets protesting fishermen Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Thursday announced a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of fishermen who died in Cyclone Ockhi. Palaniswami also announced setting up of a high-level committee to go into the matter of missing fishermen and submit a report. He also announced Rs five lakh solatium to those fishermen who were affected by the cyclone and unable to pursue their profession. ALSO READ | Fishermen meet CM Edappadi K Palaniswami, seek intensive search operations The Tamil Nadu government said on Thursday (08-12-2017) that nearly 2,000 fishermen who had ventured into deep sea before Cyclone Ockhi crossed the coast of Kanyakumari were rescued and safely accommodated in coastal districts of various states. Principal Secretary (Information Technology) T K Ramachandran said that 1,969 fishermen on 284 boats ventured into the sea just a day before Cyclone Ockhi crossed the coast last week. READ | After Cyclone Ockhi, now its a sea of protest for 2000 fishermen families in Nagercoil Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit today assured the families of missing fishermen in the district that steps would be taken to trace all those missing after cyclone 'Ockhi' hit the state coast. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan said prime minister Narendra Modi had called the Tamil Nadu chief minister and enquired about the situation, but did not call the Kerala CM. Three bodies were recovered today off the Kerala coast, taking the death toll due to Cyclone Ockhi to 36, even as defence sources said search and rescue operations will be extended to International waters around Maldives. Family members of 19 fishermen from Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, reported missing in the aftermath of cyclone Ockhi, today met Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and sought help to trace them. "It was an unprecedented calamity, which claimed several lives and caused a widespread damage to properties. The Centre should declare Cyclone Ockhi a national disaster and announce a special package for the rehabilitation of the victims," Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said. Tamil Nadu government today said a total of 4,501 houses in cyclone Ockhi-hit Kanyakumari have suffered partial and full damage and relief to the tune of Rs 41 lakh has been provided in this regard so far. [READ REPORT] Nuns take out a candlelight procession for the victims of Cyclone Ockhi at the National Shrine Basilica of Our Lady of Ransom at Vallarpadam in Kochi on Wednesday night. (Albin Mathew | EPS) The Kerala state cabinet on Wednesday cleared a comprehensive rehabilitation package for the victims of Cyclone Ockhi, which includes Rs 20 lakh compensation for the kin of the deceased fishermen and Rs 5 lakh each for fishermen who were grievously injured. [READ FULL REPORT] Boeing P8i of Indian Navy detected a fishing vessel near Kavaratti, close to Mangalore, yesterday evening. While INS Chennai has diverted for rescue, search areas are being expanded due to drift and currents in the area, said Navy spokesperson. Fishing vessel as seen from the aircraft. This video captures the essence of what Navy Boeing P-8i is doing - systematic search of every inch of possible/ probable area & providing hope to the stranded till they are rescued by our ships @nsitharaman pic.twitter.com/1sY0VXul42  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 6, 2017 The government on Tuesday issued an advisory in view of Cyclone 'Ockhi', warning of a "rapid" rise in the water level of rivers in parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat. Union Health Minister J P Nadda today spoke to health ministers of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, assuring them of all help from the Centre for dealing with the possible damage caused by Cyclone Ockhi. A Coast Guard ship today located 15 boats off Lakshadweep and provided assistance to 184 fishermen on board, as part of its Cyclone Ockhi relief operations. Local fishermen will join Naval teams with INS Kabra, presently involved in search and rescue operations off Kollam port and their inputs will be taken to carry out the mission. The Madras High Court today directed the Tamil Nadu government to provide adequate basic amenities to those affected by cyclone Ockhi in Kanyakumari district. The Union Home Ministry on Tuesday said that Cyclone Ockhi was not expected to have high impact in Gujarat which is geared for the worst situation. As many as 39 people have perished and 167 fishermen were still missing after cyclone Ockhi hit Tamil Nadu and Kerala coasts while 809 others were swept away to Maharashtra, the Union Home Ministry said today. Narendra Modi today said he is constantly monitoring the situation in various states arising out of cyclone Ockhi battering parts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Lakshadweep islands and now heading towards Gujarat. [READ FULL ARTICLE HERE] Light rains were expected at one or two places in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry over the next two days. Rahul Gandhi's rallies in Gujarat's Morbi, Dhrangadhra and Surendranagar cancelled due to bad weather, reports ANI. The Kerala government today said intensified search and rescue operations are on to trace the 92 fishermen missing in high seas after Cyclone Ockhi hit the state's coast on November 29. The National Disaster Management Authority today asked fishermen in both eastern and western coasts not to venture out in the sea for the next three days as heavy rainfall is expected in many areas due to Cyclone Ockhi. The North Goa district has done a preliminary assessment of the damage caused due to Cyclone Ockhi in the coastal state. Cyclone Ockhi today moved closer to the southern coast near Surat in Gujarat and is expected to make a landfall in the state around midnight, said officials. PM Modi and Amit Shah have directed party workers to stop campaigning and instead help people in coastal regions of Gujarat move to safer places. Amit Shahs cancelled rallies were to be held in Rajula, Mahua and Shihor. (TV reports) It's likely to rain today, there will be strong winds. People have been advised not to go out at night. Those living in kachha houses will be given shelter. NDRF is on alert. Municipality & local bodies are working on their level.: Mahendra Patel, Surat DM #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/lUuIpOiauW  ANI (@ANI) December 5, 2017 Kerala fishermen demand stringent action against erring disaster management officers. [READ FULL STORY HERE] UP CM Yogi Adityanath hands over a cheque worth Rs. 5 Cr to PM Modi from CM Distress Relief Fund towards PM's National Relief Fund, for the cyclone affected people in Lakshadweep and other States #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/vPxxQaE43A  ANI (@ANI) December 5, 2017 The recent cyclone has brought to the fore the lack of proper mechanism to urgently communicate with fishermen at sea about an impending natural disaster. The situation is set to change once a mechanism to improve the communication with fishermen at sea is put in place by the state government in association with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS). [Kerala government to better offshore communication of fishermen | READ HERE] Rs 600 per hour to use a motor generator to fill water tank? Impossible, you might think. But the power-less Nagercoil is seeing this and more, as desperate residents look at help from all quarters to bring life back to normal. They shell out the extra charges to get drinking water and to charge their already-dead mobile phone batteries. [READ FULL ARTICLE HERE] With #CycloneOckhi expected to make a landfall in Gujarat, I appeal to @BJP4Gujarat Karyakartas to focus on helping people across the state. Our Karyakartas should devote themselves to providing all possible assistance and stand shoulder to shoulder with fellow citizens.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 5, 2017 In Mumbai, the Western Railways has deployed extra personnel for crowd management in case of any emergency due to the cyclone. [FULL REPORT] According to the IMD, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani held an urgent meeting with senior officials to take stock of the preparedness in the state ahead of the expected landfall of the cyclone today. THE STORM OCKHI OVER ARABIAN SEA MOVED FURTHER NNE WARDS & IS NOW 480 KM SSW OF SURAT LIKELY TO CONTINUE TO MOVE NNE WARDS, WEAKEN GRADUALLY & CROSS S GUJ & N MAHA AS A DEEP DEPRESSION BY TONIGHT. HEAVY RAINS AND STRONG WINDS ALREADY STARTED. BE CAREFUL & TAKE PRECAUTIONS. pic.twitter.com/M5YymjDD7W  Dr. Harsh Vardhan (@drharshvardhan) December 5, 2017 Some parts of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway experienced a hailstorm early today, police said. The traffic on Eastern and Western Express Highways in Mumbai has slowed down. There are traffic curbs in some places in view of the rush of followers of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar on his death anniversary tomorrow. Five days after #CycloneOchki made landfall @IndiaCoastGuard continues to be at sea off #TamilNadu #Kerala & #Lakshadweep Island for Search & Rescue . Coast Guard Ship rescued 19 fishermen on board 02 stranded vessels 96 Nautical Miles off Bitra (L&M ) Islands @DefenceMinIndia pic.twitter.com/PKFBHiUkjh  Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) December 5, 2017 All exams for Mumbai University taking place as scheduled, announced the administration. (TV reports) Mumbai police have been putting up barricades near Dadar chowpatty and Juhu chowpatty to stop people from going near the beaches, say TV reports. Cyclone Ockhi is expected to make landfall in Mumbai and coastal Gujarat on Tuesday midnight with squally winds, which may cause heavy rains in several parts of the state during the next two days. The Maharashtra government has declared a holiday for schools and colleges in Mumbai and adjoining districts. An official at the Mumbai office of India Meteorological Department said on account of the cyclone, the megapolis has started receiving rainfall due to spread of clouds. The Tamil Nadu government on Monday said a total of 2,604 fishermen out of the 2,864 caught in the cyclone Ockhi have been rescued. Women with all hopes of the return of their dear ones at the St Mary'schurch at Vizhinjam (EPS | Kaviyoor Santhosh) Several dozen shacks have reportedly been affected by Sunday night's swelling of waters along the coastline. The Central government has assured all help to cyclone-battered Lakshadweep, where there was no loss of lives, but extensive property damage in some islands: Lakshadweep Administrator Farooq Khan. Shibi, whose husband went missing Cyclone Ockhi, in all tears inside the St Mary's church at Vizhinjam. ( EPS | Kaviyoor Santhosh) The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Monday rescued another 19 fishermen from the Arabian Sea, top officials said. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today donated Rs two crore from the CM's relief fund to the PMNRF to provide relief to the victims of Cyclone Ockhi. A well-marked low pressure area over southeast Bay of Bengal is likely to become a depression and move towards Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh by December 6, the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) said today. The National Crisis Management Committee, headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, has reviewed rescue and relief operations being carried out in high seas and coastal areas hit by cyclone Ockhi. Women members of the fisher folk community on Monday held a protest in Kanyakumari district demanding that authorities intensify rescue operations to trace fishermen caught in the deep sea in the wake of Cyclone Ockhi. Hundreds of women held protest on the roads in Neerodi village demanding the authorities trace their loved ones who are still missing. [READ FULL STORY] In a thatched house on Poonthura beach in Kerala, 21-year-old Bobby, his 42-year-old mother Jacintha and his 17-year-old sister Nimmy are hopeless about the future. Their sole breadwinner Christy, 51, a fisherman, died in the Ockhi cyclone in high seas when he ventured out into the sea last Wednesday. [READ THE FULL STORY HERE] Four days after Ockhi hit Chellanam in Kerala, Annamma Pouly, 67, is yet to recover from the troubles she went through to shift her 74-year-old immobile husband from their house as sea water gushed in during the middle of the night. [READ HER ACCOUNT HERE] Cyclone Ockhi and the frantic scramble for organising rescue efforts down south have yet again underscored the need for permanently stationing Naval and Coast Guard ships in Thiruvananthapuram. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday sent two crore rupees from the Chief Minister Fund to the Prime Minister Fund for the relief of victims. (ANI) Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met with the families of fishermen affected by the cyclone at Vizhinam in Thiruvananthapuram. She pointed out that the boats that had gone out well before the cyclone warning was issued had been found 15 days after their departure with the fishermen alive. ''If boats which went 15 days ago can come back with fishermen alive, we will make every attempt to get everybody back,'' she said. (Express News Service) [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Previously, Cyclone Ockhi had moved north-northwestwards during the past six hours and lay centered over southeast and east-central Arabian Sea , about 390 km west-northwest of Amini Divi island of Lakshadweep. Lakshadweep islands, which was hit by Cyclone Ochki, has suffered a loss of over Rs 500 crore, Lakshadweep MP Mohammad Faizal said today. Nirmala Sitharaman taking stock of Cyclone Ochki affected Kanyakumari and interacting with the locals. Very severe Cyclone Ockhi to recurve towards Gujarat, weaken gradually: Skymet Weather Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said 28 more boats, carrying 321 fishermen, which were caught in rough seas due to Cyclone Ockhi, have safely reached Maharashtra's Ratnagiri coast today. [READ FULL REPORT] A total of 357 fishermen, including 71 from Tamil Nadu, stranded in sea due to Cyclone Ockhi , were rescued this morning, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said today. What looked like an aftermath of cyclone Ockhi, three houses were damaged while the compound wall of a private resort collapsed as surging waves lashed the coast of Ullal in Dakshina Kannada in the last two days. According to official sources, damage to the property by huge waves has occurred in most of the coastal areas. KJ Alphons on Sunday also said that Cyclone Ockhi will not be termed a national disaster. [READ HERE] Even as the blame game over the lack of warning before cyclone Ockhi continues, Union Minister of State for Tourism and IT Alphons Kannanthanam said that the state had not received any warning until November 30. However, he later clarified that a warning had been issued on November 28 and 29 about a deep depression in the sea. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Four men  three from Thiruvananthapuram and one from Tamil Nadu  were rescued by the IAF and admitted to the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital. They were identified as Zacharias (55), Seva Kurishu (35), and Kristudas (48) of Adimalathura, Thiruvananthapuram; and Anthony Adima (30) of Kollencode, Tamil Nadu. Another fisherman was brought dead to the hospital. A Coastguard vessel carrying 19 rescued fishermen was expected to arrive in Kochi. Moderate rain is expected at a few places in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry during the next 24 hours, according to IMD. [READ FULL REPORT] Indian Coast Guard ship Sarthi rescued a fisherman in rough seas during Cyclone Ockhi off Kerala coast. [WATCH VIDEO] Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will visit Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari today. She will arrive at the technical area of the IAF at Shangumugham by 3 pm and leave for Kanyakumari. Fishermen community in Thiruvananthapuram have decided to launch their own rescue operations on Sunday as 55 boats ventured into the sea to search for the missing fishermen. (IANS) TN SDMA has also warned that strong winds from North-easterly direction with speeds reaching 40-55 Kmph is likely along and off Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast. The Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority (TN SDMA) has issued a 24-hour warning to fishermen not to go for fishing to the Arabian sea. 68 fishing boats, out of which 66 are from Kerala and two from Tamil Nadu, have reached Maharashtra's Sindhudurg coast with total 952 fishermen on board. All are safe: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis. (READ FULL REPORT HERE) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has decided to ask the Centre to declare the Ockhi cyclone as a national calamity. (ANI) Claims of thousand fishermen stranded are false. Correct figures- 97 are yet to be rescued, 71 from Tamil Nadu have been rescued till now. The Coast Guard is at it, with all its strength to rescue the rest. Hoping for good news soon: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. (ANI) People receive essential commodities at a relief camp following cyclone Ockhi in the Kanyakumari district on Saturday. (PTI) Given orders to Maharashtra Maritime Board and Collector, Sindhudurg Dist. to make all arrangements for the stranded fishermen. Local authorities are already with them and taking care of all arrangements, tweets Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis. In all 68 fishing boats have reached, out of which 66 are from Kerala and 2 from Tamil Nadu with total 952 fisherman on board. All are safe. Maharashtra will completely look after everyone till weather permits them to go back. @nsitharaman @BJP4Keralam  Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) December 2, 2017 A fresh spell of heavy rain is in store in some areas of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry with a low pressure area forming over south Andaman sea, which is "very likely" to become a depression over Bay of Bengal. It is very likely to become a depression over southeast Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood during the next 36 hours. It is also very likely to intensify further and move towards north Tamil Nadu south Andhra Pradesh coasts during the next 3-4 days. (IMD) Though many fishermen from Kerala were brought ashore safely and admitted to hospitals, many are yet to recover from the shock of wrestling the lashing waves and seeing death face-to-face. Stephan, a fisherman hailing from nearby Poonthura, said: "It was the first time we were experiencing such huge waves and a rough sea. Luckily, the rescue boat came back and saved us." Most of the rescued fishermen had bruises all over their bodies and were seen shivering and begging for hot water and food when brought ashore. (PTI) Stranded fisherman being brought to Kerala coast by Indain Navy personnel in Kochi on Saturday. (PTI) Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami today requested the Centre to deploy the Indian Navy and Coast Guard for the search and rescue of fishermen who have not returned so far, and that helicopters of Coast Guard and Navy should be deployed for this purpose. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured the AIADMK leader that the Centre would provide the assistance required to rescue the fishermen. (PTI) Several roads that connect Kanyakumari with many interior parts have got cut or were fully damaged due to heavy rainfall following the impact of cyclone Ockhi in the district on Saturday. (PTI) A Coast Guard advisory here said the status of weather and sea conditions should be checked on television, radio, newspapers and smartphone applications before venturing out into the sea. The merchant ships should also be alert and avoid the path of Cyclone Ockhi, it said. Fishing boats should remain in groups and during distress all the crew should remain together, it said. DMK working president M K Stalin urged Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in his letter to direct the Coast Guard to search and rescue "thousands of fishermen fighting for their lives in the mid sea, so as to prevent further loss of lives due to the Ockhi cyclone". Steps have been taken to prevent any possible outbreak of epidemic in rain-hit areas of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu Health minister C Vijayabhaskar said today. A relief worker places sand bags on the banks of a beach in Kochi in wake of cyclone Ockhi on Saturday. (PTI) Leader of the opposition in the Kerala Assembly Ramesh Chennithala today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare cyclone Ockhi as a national disaster. He also urged the Kerala government to increase the financial aid for the injured at least up to Rs 50,000 from the present Rs 15,000. Lack of coordination had affected the government's relief and rescue operations, launched post Ockhi, he alleged. (PTI) The Southern Railway announced partial and full cancellation of some trains in the Kaniyakumari-Nagercoil section. One train service was also rescheduled. (PTI Meanwhile, relatives of missing fishermen from Kaniyakumari staged a road blockade demanding the fishermen be rescued at the earliest. Scores of women also staged protest at Chinnathurai in that district. There has been a huge demand for generator sets following the devastation caused by cyclone Ockhi in the Kanyakumari region on Saturday. (PTI) In Kanyakumari, power supply had been restored even as efforts are on to resume power supply in neighbouring areas like Nagercoil and Kuzhithurai. Officials expressed confidence that the power supply would be restored in the entire district by tomorrow. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami announced Rs 25 crore for expediting relief and restoration work in the district. (PTI) 261 persons rescued by @IndiaCoastGuard @adgpi and @IAF_MCC in #CycloneOckhi @NewIndianXpress pic.twitter.com/ywhzBQLJnP  Kiran_TNIE (@tniekiran1) December 2, 2017 The Coast Guard informed in a press release that on November 30, the Coast Guard District Headquarters in Kerala was informed that around 70-80 fishermen were stranded at sea due to the storm. The Coast Guard immediately sailed as many as nine ships towards Search and Rescue (SAR) efforts. Further, ships based at New Mangalore were also sailed towards Kerala coast to undertake the rescue of stranded fishermen. As the cyclone intensified, coordinated search by Coast Guard ships and aircraft continued in extremely rough weather with wind speed gusting up to 150 kmph. Ships at Mumbai and Goa were also placed on maximum alert to augment efforts as required, the press release read. (PTI) As per the last report, a total of 79 stranded fishermen have been saved by the Coast Guard in coordination with other agencies. Also, the fisheries department has intimated that about 25 boats with 250 personnel are still in distress at sea. A man watches a road that has been cut off due to floods following the heavy rainfall caused by the cyclone Ockhi which left heavy damage in the Kanyakumari district on Saturday. (PTI) 138 fishermen have been rescued from the Lakshadweep islands. (PTI) So far 393 people from Kerala have been rescued, Kerala CM Vijayan said, as the state government announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of those who died in the storm, in addition to the financial assistance of Rs four lakh being given by the fisheries department.Of the rescued, 132 fishermen were from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, 66 from Kozhikode, 55 from Kollam, 40 from Thrissur, and 100 from Kanyakumari. (PTI) In Lakshadweep, 31 relief camps have been opened in the10 inhabited islands. So far, 1,047 people have been evacuated to the relief camps, official sources said. No casualties have been reported, with the worst-affected islands being Minicoy and Kalpeni. Seven people have lost their lives in Kerala in rain-related incidents over the past two days, official sources said. (PTI) Cyclone Ockhi has so far claimed 13 lives in Sri Lanka. Power supply, essential services and air traffic was disrupted in the stormy weather that left several buildings damaged and trees uprooted in its wake. READ FULL REPORT HERE #CycloneOckhi update @IndiaCoastGuard ship rescued 15 fishermen at sea off Vizhinjam/Quilon (Kerala) Coast and heading towards shore for safe disembarkation of fisher-folks @DefenceMinIndia @SpokespersonMoD pic.twitter.com/39gJrfI20Z  Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) December 2, 2017 Authorities including the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Coast Guard and Navy have rescued about 223 fishermen and evacuated thousands of people from cyclone hit areas, officials said, as they continued their operations on Saturday. While INS Nireekshak, INS Jamuna and INS Sagardhwani are continuing search and rescue operations in their designated areas along the coast off Vizhinjam in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam, two ships INS Shardul and INS Sharda are heading towards Lakshadweep, a defence spokesman said. (PTI) The naval ships, which left from the Southern Naval Command here yesterday, are likely to reach Lakshadweep this evening. The Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Lanba briefed me on the on-going rescue operations #CycloneOchki . More fishermen rescued this morning. Rescue work to continue.Some rescued fishermen waiting in Lakshadweep Isle to get back. Details @indiannavy @DefenceMinIndia @IndiaCoastGuard  Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) December 2, 2017 The Kerala state government has announced a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh to the families of the deceased. #Kerala Locals have blocked National Highway for last five hours in Trivandrum's Thumba, demand better relief measures & rescue of 6 fishermen missing from the area #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/rcTY0gyDty  ANI (@ANI) December 2, 2017 Six boats and 73 fishermen that went missing in the sea have been brought back, the Fisheries Minister of Tamil Nadu, D Jayakumar, informed on Saturday. (ANI) Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan slammed rumour mongers on Saturday after it came to light that Friday's reports of a Japanese merchant ship rescuing 60 Kerala fishermen caught in the deep seas, was "fake". It was Thiruvananthapuram district Collector S.Vasuki who told the media, on Friday evening, that she wished to thank the Japanese government as one of their ships had rescued 60 fishermen and said they would arrive at the Vizhinjam coast. (IANS.) [READ FULL REPORT] Locals in Thiruvananthapuram's Poonthura came out in protest alleging rescue operations have been inadequate. (ANI) According to Thiruvananthapuram district Collector S Vasuki, 102 fishermen from the city who had gone into the sea have not been able to contact their relatives. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Kerala: Locals evacuated to rehabilitation centre in Kochi's Chellanam. #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/iAwj7Q7g94  ANI (@ANI) December 2, 2017 Several houses suffered damage, trees got uprooted and communication lines were disrupted as rains accompanied by strong winds lashed the Lakshadweep Islands under the influence of Cyclone Ockhi. [READ FULL REPORT] INS Nireekshak rescued two fishermen off Alappuzha coast. INS Sagardhwani fished out one cadaver, 30 km off Thiruvananthapuram coast. The ship had earlier found another cadaver. (PTI) PM Modi dialled Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami and enquired about the damage caused by the cyclone, which also battered parts of Kerala. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] The Tamil Nadu government has said it will soon seek central funds for the damage caused by Cyclone Ockhi in the southern parts of the state, with Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli districts being the worst hit. As many as 218 fishermen from various parts of southern Kerala who were missing at sea since Thursday have been rescued and brought back so far, even as Cyclone Ockhi continued its menacing north-westward path along the Arabian Sea. [READ REPORT HERE] A rescued fisherman rushed to the ambulance from the technical area of the Thiruvananthpuram airport on Friday afternoon. Express Photo | Kaviyoor Santhosh According to a CWC advisory, the west-flowing rivers in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam in Kerala are likely to rise over the next 24 hours and then, slowly fall as the rains reduced. Three deaths were reported in Kerala and one in the worst-hit Kannyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, taking the toll to 12, reports UNI. A report from Lakshadweep said a red alert had been sounded as high waves posed a major threat to most of the islands in the region. (UNI) WATCH: Navy rescue fishermen off Thiruvananthapuram coast About 150 fishermen, who put out to sea from various southern districts, were rescued, Thiruvananthapuram District Commissioner K Vasuki said, adding that efforts were on to bring the rest of the stranded fishermen to the shore. The rescued fishermen included those who were saved by a Japanese cargo vessel. Kerala: Rescued fishermen brought to Trivandrim Air Force Station, later admitted to hospital for treatment #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/lB10HNPqsE  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 Heavy to extremely heavy rains are likely over Lakshadweep Islands, while light to moderate rains with a few heavy spells are expected over Kerala and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to Skymetweather's latest weather update. Two fishing boats Arokia Mary and Hermen Mary from Kanyakumari reported missing due #CycloneOckhi since 30 Nov 2017 with 08 crew each rescued by Coast Guard Ship C-427 off Vizhinjam #Kerala pic.twitter.com/nyLuxkoonk  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 Search and rescue effort progressing off Vizhinjam where approximately 40 people were stranded at sea. Indian Navy ships Sharda and Shardul sailed out to augment search effort, in final stages of embarking humanitarian assistance and disaster relief items for assistance at Lakshadweep and Minicoy Islands , reports ANI. 130 families from Chellanam, 17 families from Kumbalangi and 18 families from Edavanakad rehabilitated from the coastal areas, reports ANI. [Read Report] Cyclone Ockhi is moving to the Arabian Sea. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan says steps are initiated to rescue fishermen stranded in the rough sea, reports PTI. #WATCH: High tides seen at Lakshadweep coast #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/sxUBC4geku  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 24 people stranded at sea sighted by IN assets. Efforts underway to rescue all 24:- 07 picked up by MV ENERGY ORPHEUS,04 being rescued by INS JAMUNA ,03 rescued by trawler in area,02 rescued by ALH (progressing further rescue of 06 more),02 under Rescue by MV KUN LUN SHAN  SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) December 1, 2017 READ FULL STORY: Navy, Coast Guard save 39 Kerala fishermen ALSO READ | Cyclone Ockhi tales #Kerala: Relatives of missing fishermen mourn in Thiruvananthapuram, say they received no warnings of #CycloneOckhi from the government pic.twitter.com/gewQlJZvPI  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 - One person was killed when a tree fell on his autorickshaw at Kulathupuzha in Kollam - A couple at Kattakkada in Thiruvananthapuram was electrocuted when power cables fell over them - Trees and hoardings collapsed in the strong wind, which also blew away thatched roofs and roofing sheets of houses - The State Disaster Management Authority has issued alert to Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki and Kottayam districts Satellite image of Cyclone Ockhi across South India. (Image Courtesy: skymetweather.com) Southern Naval Command deployed 3 ships & 2 aircraft following request by District Collector, Trivandrum for assistance in search of 6 fishing boats with fisherman & 1 Marine Engineering vessel missing near Vizhinjam, due to cyclonic storm developed in Indian Ocean off Kerala. pic.twitter.com/2fShFmu1NS  ANI (@ANI) November 30, 2017  SkymetWeather (@SkymetWeather) November 30, 2017 Five people dead, 22 fishermen missing, 62 houses fully damaged, 240 houses partly damaged due to heavy rains, in Kanyakumari district. 16 rehabilitation centres established by government in which 1044 people are being given shelter. (ANI) Ockhi can lead to cloudy weather coupled with light rain for some parts along Maharashtra coast and Mumbai next week, reports said. The IMD has issued warning to all ports. Skymet predicted that there will be light rains in Saurashtra and Kutch region of Gujarat as well. Thiruvananthapuram saw a respite from incessant rains Friday morning. Several trains to and from Thiruvananthapuram were either delayed, cancelled or re-scheduled, say TV reports. #WATCH: Water logging in Sthanumalayan Temple in Kanyakumari's Suchindram #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/nDSjmpfXoz  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami announces Rs 5 lakh compensation to kin of the five deceased in Kanyakumari district due to rain-related incidents. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there were serious lapses from the side of state disaster management department. The alert from Hyderabad was not sent to the Government on time, reports ANI. [READ FULL REPORT] Indian Navys Advanced Light Helicopter has dropped a life a liferaft for 8 survivors at sea 20nm off Trivandrum and is picking up two critically injured survivors from MV Energy Orpheus. Naval Seaking helicopter being launched shortly to recover 8 survivors & additional SAR. Boeing P8I Aircraft deployed at first light from INS Rajali this morning sights 7 survivors hanging on to a capsized boat ~25 miles West of Tivandrum. A/c drops life raft in the vicinity and reported the exact position. Ships in area are being diverted to render assistance: Indian Navy Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has spoken to the DG of NDRF and reviewed the situation in areas affected by Cyclone Ockhi. NDRF teams have already been moved to the affected areas. More teams are on standby to respond to any further emergencies. The Home Affairs ministry is closely monitoring the situation, according to a the HMO, reports ANI. #Kerala: 59 people stranded due to heavy rains rescued by Navy and coastal guards in Trivandrum #CycloneOckhi pic.twitter.com/8YziNQeaeH  ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2017 A cyclone alert has been issued across the coastal regions in north Kerala as MET has predicted cyclone Ockhi will reach this part of the state also. Nearly 200 fishing boats, which left Kochi coast in the last couple of days, are yet to return. Joseph Xavier, general secretary, All Kerala Fishing Boat Operators Association, said, Usually, we used to receive advance warnings on the weather. But this time, there was no such notification." This is a matter of concern, given there were reports about the arrival of the cyclone at least two days ago, he said. Since most of the boats are co-owned by people belonging to Tamil Nadu and most of the workers are also from that state, it is also possible that the fishermen might have taken the boats to Colachel, Muttom and Thengapattanam, said Xavier. Kerala: Fishermen in Trivandrum go missing. Relatives say they received no warnings of Cyclone Ockhi from the government. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan held an emergency meeting of top officials to take stock of the situation and has asked police and revenue officials to be on high alert, reports IANS. Balakrishnan Nair, scientist at INCOIS, said that the storm surge of about one metre above astronomical tides are very likely to inundate low-lying areas of Lakshadweep Islands from Thursday night and 0.5 metre surge will inundate low-lying areas of coastal districts of south Kerala (Alappuzha, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram districts), and adjoining districts of south Tamil Nadu (Kanniyakumari, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli districts). Four people were killed in Kerala on Thursday as heavy rains and strong winds lashed southern part of the state after cyclonic storm Ockhi hit the Kerala coast. (READ MORE) Four people died today in Kanyakumari as heavy rains and strong winds uprooted trees, snapped power lines and damaged settlements close to the sea in Kanyakumari-Nagercoil-Thoothukudi region in south Tamil Nadu. Schools in seven districts of the state including Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Virudhunagar were closed today. [READ MORE] Two National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams with 60 personnel have been sent to Kanyakumari. Another team of 47 will be on standby in Kochi in Kerala to help out in Lakshadweep if the need arises. [READ: TN CM Palaniswami: Taking precautionary steps for Cyclone Ockhi] Heavy rains have caused chaos and destruction in districts of Kerala since Wednesday. Thiruvananthapuram woke up this morning to a sustained heavy drizzle and heavily overcast skies, which hit rush hour traffic in the state's capital city. One death has been reported in the state so far. An autorickshaw driver on the outskirts of Kollam was killed today after a tree fell on his vehicle. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] Severe rainstorm &winds in Thiruvananthapuram. Here I'm struggling with my umbrella at Shankumukham Beach where #Padayorukkam is scheduled to conclude tomorrow w/ mass rally by Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/qxXvugMqHV The Southern Naval Command is also gearing up for any Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief that may be required due to the effects of the storm in the southern part of Kerala. [READ FULL REPORT HERE] S Balachandran, Director, Regional Meteorological Centre in Chennai, said southern districts in Tamil Nadu such as Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli, Tuticorin, Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga and Virudhunagar will get heavy to very heavy rainfall till December 1. Cyclone Ockhi is not expected to make a landfall in Tamil Nadu. ALSO READ | High wave warning sounded for south Tamil Nadu For north coastal Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, the skies would be generally cloudy and light to moderate spells of rain can be expected. Chennai received up to 6 cm of rain between 8:30 last night and 8:30 this morning. As far as fishermen are concerned, those in Kanyakumari, Tuticorin, Rameswaram, have been asked not to venture out into sea till December 1, Thursday as the wind speed will be 65-70 kmph, meaning the sea will be rough along and off south Tamil Nadu, south Kerala coasts and Lakshadweep Islands. #cyclonealert: Check out the progress of the #CycloneOckhi #Cyclone #Ockhi #Weather #cyclone1 #Chennai #Chennairains #Kerala #TamilNadu @tnsdma @kerala_kaumudi @archvivekh @karthickselvaa pic.twitter.com/A0RNw8wJ90 The weather office has also predicted dense fog in places in Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura. Cyclone 'Ockhi' (meaning: eye) was a name contributed by Bangladesh. With a speed of 38 kmph at 8:30 Thursday morning, the cyclone lay centred about 340 km west-northwest of Galle in Sri Lanka, 60 Km south of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu and 120 km southwest of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala and 480 km eastsoutheast of Minicoy in Lakshadweep. It has moved west-northwestwards towards Lakshadweep Islands in the southeast Arabian Sea. Lakshadweep is an archipelago of 12 atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks lying 200 to 400 km to the West of the South-West coast (Kerala) of India. Cyclone Ockhi is approaching the Lakshadweep archipelago, a top official at the Ministry of Earth Sciences said in Delhi today. Madhavan Rajeevan, secretary in the ministry, said the archipelago in the southern part of the Arabian Sea will start experiencing heavy rainfall and strong winds from tomorrow. "It will hit the islands on December 2," Rajeevan said. (PTI) Earlier today, the US Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Centre (JTWC) had put out an alert saying that the system could intensify further to become a severe cyclonic storm. It further said the storm could re-curve towards the Mumbai-Gujarat region on the West Coast, after being influenced by an incoming western disturbance from the opposite direction. Heavy rainfall and storms in Tamil Nadu in the first week of November this year killed at least 12 people and thousands took shelter in relief camps, triggering fears of the 2015 floods repeat. It had killed more than 400 people, displaced lakhs and damaged property worth thousands of crores. What is a tropical depression The India Meteorological Department (IMD) classifies the low pressure systems in the Bay of Bengal and in the Arabian Sea into seven categories. Low pressure areas with maximum sustained surface wind speeds between 31 and 61 kmph are called tropical depressions. Once the winds around the low pressure area reach at least 62 kmph, it is called a tropical cyclone and is assigned a name. The current system is intensifying rapidly. As per the IMD wind warning, squally winds would reach 45-55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph along and off south Tamil Nadu during the next 48 hours. Another depression kicking-in The trough of low pressure over the Malay Peninsula and neighbourhood is persisting and is likely to develop into a low-pressure area over Malay Peninsula and adjoining south Andaman Sea during the next 24 hours. This system is likely to trigger a wet spell for the north coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, around December 4. (With inputs from Express News Service and agencies)
By Associated Press

UKHIA (BANGLADESH): The newlyweds were asleep in their home in western Myanmar in June when seven soldiers charged in.

The woman, a Rohingya Muslim who agreed to be identified by her first initial, F, knew enough to be terrified. She knew the military had been attacking Rohingya villages, as part of what the United Nations has called ethnic cleansing in the mostly Buddhist nation. She heard just days before that soldiers had killed her parents and that her brother was missing.

Now they had come for her. The men bound her husband with rope, and tied her scarf around his mouth. They yanked off her jewelry and tore off her clothes. They threw her to the floor.

And then, she says, the first soldier began to rape her.

She struggled against him, but four men held her down and beat her with sticks. Her husband finally wriggled the gag out of his mouth and screamed.

And then she watched as a soldier fired a bullet into the chest of the man she had married only one month before. Another soldier slit his throat.

Her mind grew fuzzy. When the soldiers were finished, they dragged her outside and set her bamboo house ablaze.

It would be two months before she realized her misery was far from over: She was pregnant.

The Associated Press reported this story with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar's security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighboring Bangladesh.

IN PICS | MYANMAR SECURITY FORCES RAPE ROHINGYA WOMEN

These sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively. The women gave AP their names, but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Myanmar's military.

They ranged in age from 13 to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Myanmar's Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September.

Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants' uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves.

The testimonies bolster the U.N.'s contention that Myanmar's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a "calculated tool of terror" aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people. The Myanmar armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place.

When journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organized trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhine's minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: "These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances  do you think they are that attractive to be raped?"

Doctors and aid workers, however, say they are stunned at the sheer volume of rapes, and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward. Medecins Sans Frontieres doctors have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, a third of them under 18. The youngest was 9.

Each woman interviewed by the AP described attacks that involved groups of men, often coupled with other forms of extreme violence. Every woman except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms, generally dark green or camouflage. The lone woman who described her attackers as wearing plain clothes said her neighbors recognized them from the local military outpost.

Many women said the uniforms bore various patches featuring stars or, in a couple cases, arrows. Such patches represent the different units of Myanmar's army.

Though the scale of these attacks is new, the use of sexual violence by Myanmar's security forces is not. Before she became Myanmar's civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi herself said Myanmar's armed forces used rape as a weapon to intimidate ethnic nationalities.

Yet Suu Kyi's government has not only failed to condemn the recent accounts of rape, it has dismissed the accounts as lies. In Dec. 2016, the government issued a press release disputing Rohingya women's reports of sexual assaults, accompanied by an image that said "Fake Rape."

Read the full story here.

UKHIA (BANGLADESH): The newlyweds were asleep in their home in western Myanmar in June when seven soldiers charged in. The woman, a Rohingya Muslim who agreed to be identified by her first initial, F, knew enough to be terrified. She knew the military had been attacking Rohingya villages, as part of what the United Nations has called ethnic cleansing in the mostly Buddhist nation. She heard just days before that soldiers had killed her parents and that her brother was missing. Now they had come for her. The men bound her husband with rope, and tied her scarf around his mouth. They yanked off her jewelry and tore off her clothes. They threw her to the floor. And then, she says, the first soldier began to rape her. She struggled against him, but four men held her down and beat her with sticks. Her husband finally wriggled the gag out of his mouth and screamed. And then she watched as a soldier fired a bullet into the chest of the man she had married only one month before. Another soldier slit his throat. Her mind grew fuzzy. When the soldiers were finished, they dragged her outside and set her bamboo house ablaze. It would be two months before she realized her misery was far from over: She was pregnant. The Associated Press reported this story with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar's security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighboring Bangladesh. IN PICS | MYANMAR SECURITY FORCES RAPE ROHINGYA WOMEN These sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively. The women gave AP their names, but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Myanmar's military. They ranged in age from 13 to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Myanmar's Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September. Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants' uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves. The testimonies bolster the U.N.'s contention that Myanmar's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a "calculated tool of terror" aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people. The Myanmar armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place. When journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organized trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhine's minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: "These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances  do you think they are that attractive to be raped?" Doctors and aid workers, however, say they are stunned at the sheer volume of rapes, and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward. Medecins Sans Frontieres doctors have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, a third of them under 18. The youngest was 9. Each woman interviewed by the AP described attacks that involved groups of men, often coupled with other forms of extreme violence. Every woman except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms, generally dark green or camouflage. The lone woman who described her attackers as wearing plain clothes said her neighbors recognized them from the local military outpost. Many women said the uniforms bore various patches featuring stars or, in a couple cases, arrows. Such patches represent the different units of Myanmar's army. Though the scale of these attacks is new, the use of sexual violence by Myanmar's security forces is not. Before she became Myanmar's civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi herself said Myanmar's armed forces used rape as a weapon to intimidate ethnic nationalities. Yet Suu Kyi's government has not only failed to condemn the recent accounts of rape, it has dismissed the accounts as lies. In Dec. 2016, the government issued a press release disputing Rohingya women's reports of sexual assaults, accompanied by an image that said "Fake Rape." Read the full story here.
By AFP

AJACCIO: Nationalists on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica cemented gains in regional elections on Sunday, underpinned by their demands for greater autonomy from Paris.

The outcome is widely expected to pose a new challenge to President Emmanuel Macron who will have to decide whether to cede some control or maintain France's tradition of highly centralised government.

The governing Pe a Corsica (For Corsica) alliance -- made up of the pro-autonomy Femu a Corsica (Let's Make Corsica) and pro-independence Corsica Libera (Free Corsica) -- won 45 percent in a first round of voting a week ago and cemented that showing with 56.5 percent Sunday -- albeit turnout was low at 52.6 percent.

The win will give Pe a Corsica a comfortable majority in the island's assembly which will start work early next year. The nationalists will also take the 11 seats up for grabs on the governing executive council, which carries out the equivalent functions of regional council presidents in mainland France.

"Paris today has to take stock of what is happening in Corsica," Pe a Corsica's leading candidate, Gilles Simeoni, said after the results came through.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said he had sent "republican congratulations" to the winners, adding he was willing to meet them once the island's assembly is up and running.

In response Simeoni told reporters "Beyond the formal politeness, we expect and hope for a genuine dialogue," with the French state.

ALSO READ: France's rightwing shifts after President Emmanuel Macron victory

The strong result for the autonomists comes amid political crisis in Spain -- with potentially major consequences for the European Union -- following efforts by Catalan nationalists to break away from Madrid.

The leaders of Pe a Corsica have stressed throughout that their short-term goal is greater autonomy, rather than independence -- not least because the mountainous island is dependent on state spending.

They have formulated three core demands: they want equal recognition for the Corsican language along with French and an amnesty for convicts they consider to be political prisoners.

They also want the state to recognise a special Corsican residency status -- which would be used to fight against property speculation fuelled by foreigners snapping up holiday homes.

- Economic dependency -

Opinion polls show that most of Corsica's 330,000 residents, many of whom live off seasonal tourism or are employed in the public sector, want to remain in France.

Even separatist leader Jean-Guy Talamoni -- nicknamed by some "the Corsican Puigdemont" after the Catalan leader -- suggests the island would split from France in 10 or 15 years at the earliest, if a majority supported it.

"An economically viable Corsica -- I don't think we'll see it in my lifetime," a Corsica specialist at the University of Bordeaux, Thierry Dominici, told AFP last week.

That is not the case for Catalonia, where separatists complain that their wealthy region, representing a fifth of Spain's economic output, pays more than it gets back into national coffers.

Corsica, famed for having some of the best beaches in Europe and for being the birthplace of Napoleon, was once a hotbed of violent anti-French militancy.

The National Liberation Front of Corsica (FLNC) waged a four-decade bombing campaign -- mainly targeting state infrastructure -- until 2014.

The worst nationalist attack saw France's top official on the island, Claude Erignac, assassinated in 1998.

AJACCIO: Nationalists on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica cemented gains in regional elections on Sunday, underpinned by their demands for greater autonomy from Paris. The outcome is widely expected to pose a new challenge to President Emmanuel Macron who will have to decide whether to cede some control or maintain France's tradition of highly centralised government. The governing Pe a Corsica (For Corsica) alliance -- made up of the pro-autonomy Femu a Corsica (Let's Make Corsica) and pro-independence Corsica Libera (Free Corsica) -- won 45 percent in a first round of voting a week ago and cemented that showing with 56.5 percent Sunday -- albeit turnout was low at 52.6 percent. The win will give Pe a Corsica a comfortable majority in the island's assembly which will start work early next year. The nationalists will also take the 11 seats up for grabs on the governing executive council, which carries out the equivalent functions of regional council presidents in mainland France. "Paris today has to take stock of what is happening in Corsica," Pe a Corsica's leading candidate, Gilles Simeoni, said after the results came through. French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said he had sent "republican congratulations" to the winners, adding he was willing to meet them once the island's assembly is up and running. In response Simeoni told reporters "Beyond the formal politeness, we expect and hope for a genuine dialogue," with the French state. ALSO READ: France's rightwing shifts after President Emmanuel Macron victory The strong result for the autonomists comes amid political crisis in Spain -- with potentially major consequences for the European Union -- following efforts by Catalan nationalists to break away from Madrid. The leaders of Pe a Corsica have stressed throughout that their short-term goal is greater autonomy, rather than independence -- not least because the mountainous island is dependent on state spending. They have formulated three core demands: they want equal recognition for the Corsican language along with French and an amnesty for convicts they consider to be political prisoners. They also want the state to recognise a special Corsican residency status -- which would be used to fight against property speculation fuelled by foreigners snapping up holiday homes. - Economic dependency - Opinion polls show that most of Corsica's 330,000 residents, many of whom live off seasonal tourism or are employed in the public sector, want to remain in France. Even separatist leader Jean-Guy Talamoni -- nicknamed by some "the Corsican Puigdemont" after the Catalan leader -- suggests the island would split from France in 10 or 15 years at the earliest, if a majority supported it. "An economically viable Corsica -- I don't think we'll see it in my lifetime," a Corsica specialist at the University of Bordeaux, Thierry Dominici, told AFP last week. That is not the case for Catalonia, where separatists complain that their wealthy region, representing a fifth of Spain's economic output, pays more than it gets back into national coffers. Corsica, famed for having some of the best beaches in Europe and for being the birthplace of Napoleon, was once a hotbed of violent anti-French militancy. The National Liberation Front of Corsica (FLNC) waged a four-decade bombing campaign -- mainly targeting state infrastructure -- until 2014. The worst nationalist attack saw France's top official on the island, Claude Erignac, assassinated in 1998.
Ukraine in January-November 2017 supplied 8,174 tonnes of cheese to foreign markets, which is 12.6% more than in the same period of 2016.

According to customs statistics, released by the State Fiscal Service, in monetary terms shipments of these products increased 34.8%, to $29.14 million.

Cheese imports in January-November amounted to 8,785 tonnes, increasing by 43% compared to the same period last year. The country imported products worth $40.88 million (in January-November 2016 some $25.83 million).

Exports of butter from Ukraine in January-November 2017 increased 2.5 times, to 27,299 tonnes. In monetary terms, the figure amounted to $115.11 million against $33.46 million in January-November 2016. Imports of this product fell by 41.2% January-November 2017, from 1,030 tonnes ($3.53 million) to 621 tonnes ($3.63 million).

Exports of milk and cream (condensed) in January-November 2017 decreased 10.6%, to 44,455 tonnes. Ukraine supplied condensed milk and cream for a total of $76.23 million, which is 8.4% more than in January-November of 2016.
'The Gilded Age' hires an army of RI locals to bring show to life

Hundreds of people from greater Rhode Island help keep the set of HBO's 'The Gilded Age' running during filming.
Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada has passed amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine on the provision of the balance of budget revenues in 2018, foreseeing the increase of the excise duty for tobacco products by 29.7%.

According to a bill approved by the parliament on December 7, the excise duty for cigarettes using the specific rate would grow by 29.7%, to UAH 577.98 per 1,000 without the increase in the ad valorem rate (12%).

The Rada supported the gradual - until 2025 - increase in the specific rate of the excise duty for tobacco products and the minimum excise duty obligation to pay excise tax on tobacco products, namely: in 2018 - by 29.7%, in subsequent years - by 20%, to a level equivalent to EUR 90 per 1,000 units.

In particular, in 2019 the specific excise rate will increase to UAH 693.58 per 1,000 units, in 2020 - up to UAH 832.29, in 2021 - up to UAH 998.75, in 2022 - up to UAH 1,198.5, in 2023 - up to UAH 1,438.2, and in 2024 - up to UAH 1,725.84.

The minimum excise duty to pay excise on cigarettes with a filter and without a filter in 2018 will be increased by 29.7%, to UAH 773.20 per 1,000 cigarettes. In 2019, this figure will reach UAH 927.84, in 2020  UAH 1,113.4, in 2021 - UAH 1,336.08, in 2022 - UAH 1,603.3, in 2023 - UAH 1,923.96, and in 2024  UAH 2,308.75.
Champaign attorney Matthew Peek recalls the scariest flight he ever took while serving in the Air Force.
One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021
Bengaluru: Former Infosys Chief Financial Officer V Balakrishnan on Monday said it was not a matter of whistleblower's emotions, but of legality for SEBI to decide on denying company's consent plea in connection with ex-CFO Rajiv Bansal's severance payment case.

"The whistleblower has said whatever he wants to say as per his viewpoint... These are legal issues decided based on merits and not individual's emotions... What Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as a regulator thinks and decides is all that matters," Balakrishnan told PTI in Bengaluru.

Earlier this year, a whistleblower had written to the market regulator over alleged lapses in the Panaya deal and Bansal's severance pay.

The letter had stated that the package was decided by the then CEO Vishal Sikka and then general counsel David Kennedy.

The whistle-blower had asked why Infosys was reluctant in disclosing answers surrounding the "hush money."

While it is a norm for companies to settle cases via the backdoor, it should not be allowed this time and SEBI should prosecute both the board and management, he said in the letter.

The whistleblower had argued that a settlement was similar to a "backdoor agreement," and if Infosys is allowed to do so, then "no whistleblower in future will take the pain to expose any malpractices in the corporate sector."

"The whistle-blower may strongly feel about the issues he had raised... the regulator will follow the due legal process and decide," Balakrishnan reiterated.

The letter has brought allegations of poor corporate governance to the fore again after Infosys filed an application for settlement.

This has spurred Balakrishnan and another former CFO T V Mohandas Pai to launch an attack against the company, whose board is now led by Co Founder Nandan Nilekani.

Balakrishnan has demanded the resignation of board members, Roopa Kudva and Ravi Venkatesan in the matter.

on Sunday, board member Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw had exchanged barbs with Pai on twitter, saying, "The matters were reinvestigated (a)n(d) no wrong doings were found by new Chairman.. Let's bring this to a closure and move on. It helps no one.

Earlier this week, Infosys had submitted a settlement application to Sebi with regard to issues surrounding the severance package of Bansal.

The company had said it wanted to resolve allegations that the severance payment was decided without seeking prior consent from the audit committee and the Nomination and Remuneration Committee.

on Sunday, Mohandas Pai had disapproved whistleblower's demand asking SEBI to prosecute the IT giant's management and the Board.

He had also said Infosys' move to settle with Sebi the alleged disclosure lapses involving a severance pact is "perfectly fine."

Infosys had decided to pay Rs 17.38 crore as severance payment to the then CFO Bansal in 2015.

However, it only paid Rs 5 crore to him, holding back Rs 12 crore.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on Tuesday the appeal of Unitech Limited challenging the recent order of the company law tribunal allowing the Centre to take over its management.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), on December 8, had suspended all the eight directors of the realty firm over allegations of mismanagement and siphoning of funds and had authorised the Centre to appoint its 10 nominees on the board. The NCLT order had come after the Centre moved the panel with a view to protect the interest of nearly 20,000 home buyers.

"Let this matter be listed for hearing tomorrow. A copy of the SLP (special leave petition) be supplied to the parties," a bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said.

Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, appearing for Unitech Ltd and its jailed promoters, referred to the recent NCLT order and said the takeover of the management of the company by the Centre would make it difficult for them to deposit Rs 750 crore as directed by the apex court to safeguard the interests of homebuyers.

"How do I comply with the Supreme Court order? My bank accounts have been frozen on November 21," the lawyer said.

"The nominated Directors (of the government) shall have to comply with the orders of the Supreme Court," the bench said, adding that for it, the interests of homebuyers were paramount and they cannot be equated with the investors.

"We are more concerned for the homebuyers and not for the company and not for the fixed depositors. Homebuyers are not investors or fixed depositors," the bench said.

Sanjay Chandra, head of the embattled real estate group, was asked on October 30 by the apex court to deposit Rs 750 crore with it by December end for the sake of the homebuyers.

The NCLT, in its order, has said the government must give name of its nominees by December 20 and restrained Unitech's eight suspended directors from selling their personal and company properties.

The tribunal's order had come after the government filed a petition arguing that Unitech was a fit case for winding up, but considering the interest of thousands of home buyers and small depositors, it wanted to take over company management.

The company has over Rs 6,000 crore debt and over 16,000 undelivered units from a total of nearly 70 projects.

In its petition filed under section 241 of the Companies Act, 2013, the government had requested the tribunal to remove the eight directors.

The apex court had on October 30 said jailed businessman Chandra will be granted bail only after the real estate group deposited money with its registry by December end.

Chandra's lawyer had told the apex court that he has been required to be produced in various courts, consumer forum and commissions on a regular basis which hampered his endeavour to arrange money and hence, the production warrants issued against him by various judicial bodies be stayed for 15 days.

He had also said that the accused be allowed to appear in courts through his lawyers. The plea was declined.

The apex court had also clarified that its earlier order directing all courts below not to take any coercive action against the accused for the time being would also be made applicable on all forums including state and national consumer commissions.

The top court had earlier directed the jail authorities to facilitate Chandra's meeting with his company officials and lawyers so that he could arrange money to refund the home buyers as well as for completing the ongoing housing projects.

It had said if any proceedings were pending against Chandra and the company, those may continue and the final order be passed but no coercive steps be taken to execute those orders.

Chandra is seeking interim bail from the apex court after the Delhi High Court on August 11 had rejected the plea in a criminal case lodged in 2015 by 158 home buyers of Unitech projects' -- 'Wild Flower Country' and 'Anthea Project' -- situated in Gurugram.
Beijing: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said India and China's strategic interests outweigh "partial frictions" and handling of the Dokalam standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties.

Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India-China (RIC) foreign ministers' meeting to be held in New Delhi on Monday during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always values good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as "we are each other's big neighbours and ancient civilisations".

He said India-China strategic interests outweigh differences and "partial friction".

"We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into China's Donglang (Doklam) area through diplomatic measures," Wang told a symposium here last week, maintaining Beijing's stand.

"Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability," he said in his speech in Chinese posted on the website of the foreign ministry.

"China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction," he said.

As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a "prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1 + 1 = 11 outlook," Wang said.

The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about China's diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region.

Wang's visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Dokalam standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping.

The over two-month Dokalam standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'Chicken Neck' corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.

Wang's visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi's trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks.

Yang along National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties.

In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and China's diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about China's foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in-five-years Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October.

The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for China's external relations. Wang said China needs to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

"For China's diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful," he said.

He reiterated that "war is by no means acceptable" in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains.

On ties with the US, he said "China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions," official media quoted him as saying.

He said the China-Russia relationship has become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) he said it has become "the most popular international public goods programme".

Chinese businesses have invested over USD 50 billion and created nearly 200,000 local jobs in countries that are participating, he said.

India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI.

On Wang's visit to Delhi, Chinese think tanks said RIC foreign ministers' meeting offers Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which will effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Dokalam standoff.

"Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track," said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times.

China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily.

China has opposed India's moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN.

Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides may help sort out differences on BRI.

China also continues to oppose India's bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Lucknow: French tourists, accompanied by their Indian friends, were roughed up and misbehaved with by locals in Uttar Pradeshs Mirzapur. When they went to file a case, the police tried to shirk responsibility and kept the group waiting for hours.

A few boys began to harass the Indian female who was with the French tourists' group, when the foreign nationals intervened, they were roughed up. The boys returned with their friends after the initial ruckus to further attack the group.

When the victims reached the Mirzapur police station to lodge a complaint, they were made to wait for more than three hours to get their complaint registered.

After initially being in denial about the incident, the police finally claimed that it wasnt the foreigners, rather the Indian woman, who hails from Varanasi, was roughed up and molested. Even the SSP of Mizapur had denied the foreign nationals involvement in the case.

Tourism Minister KJ Alphons has called the incident deplorable and called for more sensitivity towards foreign nationals.

Speaking to News18, Varanasi ADG, Vishwajeet Mahapatra said, A few Indians were accompanying the tourists. Locals tried to misbehave with an Indian girl and the French nationals tried to intervene. A case has been registered under Section 354 of the IPC and eight people have been arrested. If the police were negligent in their duties, strict action will be taken against them.

This attack comes days after a German national and a Swiss couple were attacked in Sonbhadra and Fatehpur Sikri respectively. The incidents had prompted the Centre to seek a report from the Uttar Pradesh government.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has said that UAH 50 million will be allocated in 2018 to finance the Innovation Support Fund and added that the financial management system in science is not perfect.

"We are creating the Innovation Support Fund in the budget, which will now amount to UAH 50 million, because we want to support all innovative solutions that Ukrainians currently produce," he said at the National Reform Press Club "Decentralization: Results and Achievements for 2017, Tasks for the Next Year" in Kyiv on Monday.

At the same time, Groysman noted that only UAH 8.2 billion is to be spent on science, but the financial management system in science remains imperfect and needs to be improved, and the government plans to work on this in 2018.
Lucknow: Mother of suspended pediatrician Dr Kafeel Khan, who was arrested from Gorakhpur in connection with the BRD Medical College tragedy that led to the deaths of scores of children, met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during Janta Darbar held in Gorakhpur on Sunday.

Demanding justice for Kafeel, Nuzhat Parveen told Yogi Adityanath that her family is going through a bad phase and the CM must help them. The beleaguered mother also told the CM that her son Kafeel has been framed on false charges.

"My son was arrested in BRD Medical college incident while he was doing his duty because a conspiracy was hatched against him. I have requested CM Yogi Adityanath and he has assured me to look into the case," said Nuzhat Parveen who was performing Hajj when over 63 children died at the state-run Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh on August 10 2017.

While many blamed the supplier for cutting off supply of liquid oxygen to the hospital due to lack of payment from the state government, the supplier denied the allegations levelled against him. An official report released by the UP Chief Secretary also denied lack of oxygen as the cause of death of 33 children in BRD Medical College and Hospital.

Meanwhile, the Gorakhpur Police have already dropped charges of corruption and ban on private practice against Dr.

Kafeel Khan. Dr Khan is one of the nine people arrested after a spate of child deaths at the hospital on August 10 and 11. Dr. Khan, the head of the encephalitis ward and an assistant professor at the Pediatrics department, was removed from the post of the nodal officer at the National Health Mission in the wake of the child deaths.

The basic charge levelled against Dr. Khan by the office of DG Medical Education was that he collected oxygen cylinders from his private hospital. He was charged under Sections 120-B, 308 and 409 of the IPC.
New Delhi: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting does not want you to watch condom ads on television. In an order passed on Monday, the ministry said that condom ads can only be telecast between 10pm and 6am and not in the prime time.

The rationale? The ministry feels that children get exposed to the indecent and inappropriate content.

The decision was taken after the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) sought the ministrys suggestions, reportedly after receiving a number of complaints from viewers.

The ASCI received letters saying that the content of the advertisements of condoms was meant for adults and should not be aired during prime time.

The root of the problem was reportedly Manforce, a condom brand that has had a history of making suggestive commercials with Sunny Leone as the star.

The hoardings of the ad had sparked protests in Gujarat, after a Surat-based group took offence to its message. The message in Gujarati on the hoarding read Aa Navratri a ramo, parantu premthi (This Navratri, play but with love).

According to the protestors, it insulted the religious sentiment. It clearly didnt end with the condom brand withdrawing its hoardings.
Srinagar: The Muslim Conference (MC), a constituent of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, has split into two factions as the rebels expelled veteran separatist leader and MC president Abdul Gani Bhat for meeting the Centre's special representative for Kashmir, Dineshwar Sharma.

In a letter to Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the chairman of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, the MC said it had appointed a new chairman, Muhammad Sultan Magray, for six months.

"As you know, Bhat's secret meeting with Sharma has been a cause of concern for the party and the people of Kashmir. In this backdrop, a meeting of the MC leaders was held, in which it was decided that Magray would be the new president of the outfit for a period of six months," the letter read.

The expulsion comes amid reports that Bhat had met Sharma on the latter's second visit to the state. The new MC president, in the letter issued on Saturday, said the Hurriyat should contact him for any future correspondence with the outfit.

However, Bhat, on his part, expelled the representative of the MC's Pakistan chapter, Manzoor Ahmad Bhat, at whose behest he was expelled from the Hurriyat.

In a letter addressed to Manzoor and counter-signed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Bhat said he had expelled him as the representative for Pakistan for indiscipline.
New Delhi: Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections and seemed to suggest that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party.

Prasad said Indians were capable of contesting the country's democracy on their own.

This came after Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted: "India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible".

The tweet came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public rally in Palanpur in Gujarat talked about a purported secret meeting held at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's home and attended by the Pakistani High Commissioner, an ex-Pakistani foreign minister, a former Vice President of India and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

This meeting, Modi claimed, happened a day before Aiyar called him "neech".

"Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into India's election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own.

"Yes, I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting India's democracy on their own as they do... India's Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM and so is the BJP," Prasad told reporters here.

India, he said, "completely abhors any outside interference in India's electoral affairs."

The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world and Pakistan. "Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of India's democracy," he said.

"We are very productive of India's democracy and totally condemn this unwarranted statement from Pakistan," he said.

Prasad said it was "curious" that Congress leader Anand Sharma had denied any meeting taking place at the residence of Aiyar.

"And in today's newspapers... It is very evident as to who attended the meeting including from Pakistan and even Manmohan Singh went there in the get-together," he said. "Why a wrong statement was made by Anand Sharma completely denying that no such meeting took place."

"Now it is whose turn to apologise? But what is curious is that this happens and Pakistan comes out with an official statement. In many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion," he added.
Vadodara: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing a public rally here on Sunday, asked his predecessor Manmohan Singh why did he not show the courage to order a surgical strike post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, despite the readiness of the Army.

He said after the Mumbai attacks, the Air Force had approached the then Prime Minister Singh with a plan for surgical strikes, but the government did not show the courage to order it.

"Under whose advice did he (Singh) do so," Modi asked the gathering at the Navlakhi compound here.

"Someone who served at a high position in the Air Force has said that after 26/11, they went to the then prime minister with a plan for surgical strikes. Sadly, the then government did not show the courage to do that," Modi said and cited the example of his government's action in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack in September last year.

"My government, in the aftermath of the Uri attack by Pakistan, had launched a surgical strike inside the borders of Pakistan, targeting several terror camps and launchpads.

The strikes came as a surprise for the Pakistanis who were caught unaware. While the maximum damage was inflicted on their side, the Indian soldiers came back without any casualties," he added.

Modi also questioned Congress leaders, including its vice president Rahul Gandhi, for raising doubts over the surgical strikes.

"Are such secret matters to be discussed in public?" he asked, saying this was the difference between the NDA government and the UPA government.

Modi said the reason behind his vacating the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat in 2014 was for blossoming the "lotus" in Uttar Pradesh and replicating the Gujarat model of development in that state.

After winning two Lok Sabha seats from Vadodara and Varanasi in the 2014 general election, Modi had retained the Varanasi seat.

He thanked the people of Vadodara for allowing him to resign from here.

The Prime Minister also justified demonetisation, saying it was aimed at unearthing black money and preventing the parallel economy.

He said the government had since succeeded in unearthing a "hawala" racket in Jammu and Kashmir which led to the arrest of many leaders who were advocating support for terrorism in the state.

Congress leaders were not happy with demonetisation as it was a source of their income and even after a year since the note ban, they had kept the issue alive, he said.

The Prime Minister also wondered how a "secret meeting" between Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and the former Pakistani high commissioner and other leaders from that country could take place without the knowledge of the Government of India.

Modi said when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he used to take permission from the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government at the Centre before holding a meeting with a foreign dignitary.
In case you missed it

Zaira Wasim, the 17-year-old star took to social media on Sunday to share the horror of being subjected to sexual harassment on a Mumbai-bound flight. The Civil Aviation Ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have sought details from Air Vistara. Recording an Instagram video immediately after de-boarding, Zaira said, This is not done, I am disturbed Is this how youre going to take care of girls? Hours later, a 39-year-old Mumbai businessman was arrested.

In another horrific incident, a 16-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped in Lucknow's Sarojini Nagar on Saturday night by two youths, one of whom was known to her. She was raped again by a passerby, whose help she had sought to reach home.

The two incidents have raised those old questions yet agin-- Are women not safe anywhere? Not even in apparent safe spaces? How long do women have to live in fear?

In other news, Rahul Gandhi is likely to assume the reins of the Congress on December 16, marking a generational shift in the grand old party when his mother and its longest-serving president would formally hand over the baton to him.

After being battered in the Test series, the Sri Lankans produced a stunning display of ruthlessness to first restrict India to 112 and then chase the runs down in 20.4 overs to register a 7-wicket victory in the opening game of the three-match series. For the Lankans who had been the subject of much political discourse ahead of this series, the win was more than just a statement from them as they will now wear a confident look going into the second game.

Two brothers were lynched after they fired in the air at a religious programme at Sujapur in West Bengal's Malda district. Police said the angry villagers chased the brothers with sticks and rods. The mob caught hold of them and beat them up severely. Both died on the spot. Their house was also set on fire.

Second-year MA History students of Banaras Hindu University, while appearing for an exam, were asked questions relating to Rani Padmini and her Jauhar (sacrifice by self-immolation).

Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar wants a nationwide liquor ban.

Rajasthan, the land of sun and sand, recently witnessed a spike in crimes targeting minority communities. Whether it is the ruthless hacking of a daily wage migrant labourer or the butchering of a meat seller on suspicion of selling cow meat, Rajasthan has been slowly treading on the path to being the hate crime capital of India. The pattern of violence towards minorities, however, is not recent in Rajasthan and has spanned over several decades. News18.com pieces together the most prominent attacks over minorities in the last two years. In all these cases, there have been no legal convictions till date.

Agree or disagree?

If pharmacies in India are trained to recognise the symptoms of tuberculosis (TB) they can help control both the spread of the disease and resistance to first-line antibiotics, says a new paper in the Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and other Mycobacterial Diseases. The paper also noted that pharmacies can tilt the management of TB patients for the better or worse through their sheer number -- about 800,000 pan India -- their availability and long open hours and the fact that most medication, including antibiotics, is available over the counter (OTC).

Looking at the current political landscape in the country today, one must wonder how people vote. What makes people decide in favour of one political party over the other? Dheeraj Sharma writes about the agenda setting in political campaign management. "According to many, a month ago the possible and plausible heuristics for the Gujarat Assembly elections were youth, employment and GST. However, the new heuristics have emerged now and these are caste, Ram Mandir and religion," writes Sharma.

(Get a fresh dose of the news that matters, delivered directly to your inbox, every morning. The perfect way, to get you started and informed, for the day ahead. Subscribe to News18 Daybreak here.)
A group of students led by the CPM student body, the SFI, gathered on a Saturday afternoon along the main street of Trivandrum, just outside the University College.

The occasion was SFI's challenge to the religious orthodoxies gaining ground in Kerala. It was to protest against the trolling of three Muslim girls who had staged a flash dance during an Aids awareness programme in the northern Kerala city of Kozhikode.

Three Muslim girls (clad in scarf but wearing jeans) danced outside the college and outside the venue of the International Film Festival in open defiance of religious diktats that have made the life of Muslim women in a modern society like Kerala increasingly miserable.

The flash mob, held with Leftist support, gained huge traction on Facebook where it was live, and turned the focus on the increasing conflict between modernity and religious orthodoxy in Kerala.

SFI's slogan for the events was "Humanity is the answer to the fatwa of religious fundamentalists".

This dance of protests cannot just be dismissed as a flash in the pan. They are significant for many reasons.

1. Very few such protests against fundamentalism take place across the country

2. Nowhere in the world have Muslim women come out to dance in protest against issues concerning them

3. Kerala is building a modern Muslim resistance against the rising fundamentalist beliefs and practice within the community in Kerala, which is extremely affluent.

4. Kerala is becoming the flash (dance) point in the narrative of modernity vs. fundamentalism

"Every individual has his or her freedom. Hijab is only part of one's religious beliefs. It should not be seen as a weapon to suppress Muslim women," Namitha Farzana, one of the University College dancers, told The Indian Express.

"There are liberals in the Muslim community also. If Hindus and Christians can dance, why can't Muslims? The three girls of Malappuram had taken part in a flash mob with the noble intention of spreading Aids awareness through art. Their freedom should be respected."

Islam in Kerala is affluent, mostly cosmopolitan with universal literacy. Being affluent and educated, the community has been mainstreamed for a long time and has long since moved away from the 'ghetto-ised Muslims' in other parts of the country.

The main reason for this is that the Muslim League has been in power for many years. This is a unique achievement no doubt. But at the turn of the century, Wahabism gathered strength in Kerala, due to the rise of some seminaries in north Kerala and also some firebrand mullahs, mostly Sunni, who also have an eye on politics, started plying their trade with vigour with funding from dubious organisations in the Saudi Arabia.

The Popular Democratic Front has tried, not with much success, to espouse a hardline form of Islam.

It is in this context that the escape of certain young Muslim families from Kerala to join the IS has to be seen.

There can be no doubt that such fundamentalists are also interested in converting Christians and Hindus.

The rise of the RSS in Kerala can also be traced to the rise of Islam, apart from localised political issues. Like Christian seminaries in an early age, Muslim seminaries in Malabar offer not just a new religion, but opportunities, education, money and jobs. Many Hindus in Kerala find themselves closer to the bottom of the pile and look at the rise of Muslim affluence with envy and a certain degree of fear.

Such an educated, affluent community, which has a population of over 80 lakh compared to the Hindu population of more than 1.8 crore and Christians around 60 lakh, also holds many attractions to certain Hindus of the neglected sections who see the community opening doors not only to affluence, but also to a wider Islamic world (Gulf) where opportunities and money is there for the taking.

The flash mob dance was against the attempt to keep aspirational girls trapped within the confines of an imposed conservatism. Significantly, the girls in the video can be seen wearing jeans, a clear sign of modernity while making some concessions to orthodoxy by wearing a scarf, a sort of mid-way sartorial position between the hijab and a secular dress.

The flash dances are no doubt a small but serious questioning of orthodoxy. That it happened in Kerala  a lab for many such political experiments  is not a surprise.

Apart from improving the artistic and physical fitness of Kerala youth, such public dances are a clear and powerful defiance of imposed orthodoxy which has so far had a clear run.

(The author is a senior journalist. Views are personal).
New Delhi: Russia on Monday pitched for India joining China's One Belt One Road initiative and hoped that New Delhi will find a way out to benefit from the mega connectivity project without sacrificing its position on the issues flagged by it.

In an address at a think tank, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said a sustainable security architecture in the Asia Pacific region cannot be achieved through "bloc arrangement", in a clear signal of Moscow's opposition to the quadrilateral grouping comprising the US, Japan, India and Australia.

Talking about regional issues, the Russian Foreign Minister said that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj "suggested" improving not only India-China ties but also India's relations with Pakistan.

Lavrov, Swaraj and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi today held the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meeting during which a range of regional and global issues were discussed.

On OBOR, Lavrov said Russia feels the concept is very interesting and needed to be explored in the context of building harmonious relationship for deeper regional trade and investment.

About India's opposition to the project, he said, "the specific problem in this regard should not make everything else conditional for resolving political differences".

India has opposed the OBOR due to its sovereignty concerns over the USD 50 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is part of the OBOR.

Lavrov said almost all the central Asian countries have already signed documents with China for cooperation in the OBOR while Russia and other members of the Eurasian Economic Union concluded economic cooperation agreement with it, indicating that the process is irreversible.

"I am 100 per cent convinced that India has enough very smart diplomats and politicians to find a way which will allow it to benefit from this process and at the same time not to sacrifice your position," the Russian Foreign Minister said.

In a clear reference to the quadrilateral grouping among the US, India, Japan and Australia, he said, "We believe that sustainable security architecture in the Asia Pacific region cannot be achieved through bloc arrangement and is only possible through an open ended collective basis."

Officials of the four countries held their first meeting in Manila last month to give shape to the much talked about quadrilateral alliance to keep the Indo-Pacific region "free and open".

The formation of the bloc is seen as an effort to contain China's growing assertiveness in the resource-rich area.

The Russian Foreign Minister also talked about the need for peaceful settlement of the disputes saying use of force and threatening to use force will not resolve any issue.

Calling India a key partner for Russia, he said further strengthening of ties between the two countries can address numerous problems in the Asia Pacific region.

On tackling terrorism, he called for a "truly universal coalition" to act against the terror groups without "any double standards and hidden agenda".

Sounding critical of the role of the US in Afghanistan, Lavrov said every stakeholder including the Taliban and the war-ravaged country's neighbours should be taken on board for brining lasting peace to it.

The Russian Foreign Minister said his country was ready to ensure transfer of technology to manufacture critical military platforms in India in joint venture and co- development projects.
New Delhi: In a never-seen-before turn of events at the Supreme Court, senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan has written to Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, saying he is quitting practice because of humiliation in court.

Dhavan, in his letter, complained of a "humiliating end" to the case of allocation of power between the Delhi government and the Lieutenant Governor, compelling him to "give up court practice".

Dhavan was one of the senior lawyers appearing in the case on behalf of the Delhi government. The last date of hearing in the case had witnessed some heated arguments before a bench headed by the CJI.

While the CJI wanted Dhavan to not argue the points already raised by another counsel from his side and rather give written submissions, Dhavan insisted on making oral arguments. Certain unsavoury comments were also made during the proceedings.

A day before as well, Dhavan had told the CJI not to begin final arguments in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case since Justice Misra won't be able to complete it by October 3, 2018, the date on which he retires.

Justice Ashok Bhushan, another judge on the bench, had taken strong exception to Dhavan's statement and called it "unfortunate".

After two successive days of similar incidents, senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, who was also a counsel for the Delhi government, had shown up before the CJI and regretted the episodes.

Justice Misra had then lashed out at the conduct of the senior lawyers, calling their demeanour "atrocious". The CJI added he would be constrained to take action if the lawyers' body didnt take notice.

Justice Misra went on to state such lawyers don't deserve their designation as senior advocates and the gown.

Dhavan has now written to the CJI, asking him to take back the gown since he doesn't intend to practise anymore.

Dhavan has chosen to convey the reasons behind his decision to the CJI though it is not required under the Supreme Court rules to inform the CJI or any other judge if a senior counsel opts to quit practice.
Srinagar: A woman and three militants were killed during a midnight gunfight with security forces at Younsu area on Sopore-Kupwara highway on Sunday.

Officials told News18 that forces cordoned off the Younsu area following information about militants hiding inside a house.

Security personnel intensified cordon and search operations while firing several warning shots towards the suspected spot. The militants returned fire, triggering a gunfight, says an officer.

"Five members of a family were trapped inside the house, he said, adding that the daughter-in-law tried to escape but sustained serious bullet wounds and subsequently died.

The officer added that the woman died in crossfire during the operation.

Earlier, three Pakistani militants were killed by security forces in a gunfight in north Kashmir's Handwara.

"In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold (sic)," Director General of Police (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir, SP Vaid tweeted.

In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold. Shesh Paul Vaid (@spvaid) December 11, 2017

Security forces moved in on Unsoo village after being tipped-off about the presence of militants in the area. As they neared in on the hideout, they were fired upon triggering the encounter.

The police chief had initially said that the third militant was caught in an injured condition.

Authorities, meanwhile, have snapped internet services in Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara.
Rada announces UAH 1.2 bln of revenue in 2018 from use of state-owned gas distribution systems

Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada has announced UAH 1.2 billion of rental paid for operation of state-owned natural gas distribution systems in the national budget for 2018.

The parliament made the decision on December 7 under a proposal of the budget committee.

The parliament reduced revenue from privatization of state-owned property and the deficit of the general fund of the national budget by UAH 1.2 billion.
Mumbai: The wife of Vikas Sachdev, arrested for allegedly molesting actor Zaira Wasim on board a Delhi-Mumbai flight on December 9, on Monday claimed her husband, before deboarding, had "apologised" to the teenager to which she said it was "okay".

She claimed that her husband's leg had accidentally touched the actor.

Sachdev, a resident of suburban Chandivli, was arrested last evening after a huge public outcry over the incident prompted the Maharashtra State Commission for Women to seek an inquiry into the "shameful" incident.

He was booked for assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty, and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) as the actor is a minor.

Sachdev's wife Divya interacted with reporters on the premises of the sessions court at Dindoshi in suburban Goregaon after he was remanded in police custody till December 13.

Divya Sachdev claimed her husband had apologised to the actor before deboarding at the Mumbai airport "to which she said it was okay".

"My husband is a family man. He is innocent. He was mentally exhausted as he was returning after attending the funeral of his uncle (in Delhi).

"He was taking rest and was fast asleep when his leg accidentally touched the girl. Vikas apologised to the actor before getting out of the plane to which she said it was okay," she claimed.

The "Dangal" actor, who had narrated her ordeal on the Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai on Instagram, had said that a passenger sitting behind her put his feet on her armrest.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, the 17-year-old actor broke down several times.

"So, I was in a flight travelling from Delhi to Mumbai today and right behind me one middle-aged man who made my two-hour journey miserable. I tried to record it on phone to understand it better because the cabin lights were dimmed, I failed to get it..." she said.

"The lights were dimmed, so it was even worse. It continued for another five to ten minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck," the Kashmiri teen, who shot to fame for her stellar performance in Aamir Khan's blockbuster "Dangal", said in the video.

"This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how you're going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible!" she said.

"No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing," she added.

When asked if any official from the airlines got in touch with them, Divya Sachdev said her husband had told the cabin crew not to disturb him for anything during the flight as he wanted to take rest.

She also alleged that the police lied about the timing of her husband's arrest.

As per the remand copy produced by the police in the court today, Vikas Sachdev was arrested at around 9 pm yesterday.

The woman, however, claimed that her husband was actually picked up from their residence (in Chandivali) at around 12:30 pm yesterday and that she can produce the CCTV footage from the building cameras to prove her claim.

"We had no clue when police reached our home to arrest him. Till 2:30 pm (yesterday), we were not told why he was brought to the police station. Till 2.30-3 pm, we are not told why he was arrested or why he was brought to the police station. Later, we were told that he was brought to the police station in connection with a molestation case," she claimed.

"It was only at 4.30 pm that we came to know that the actor had filed a case against my husband," she said, adding that she had full faith in judiciary and hoped to get justice. Vikas Sachdev currently works as a regional manager at Sun Broadcast here.

Air Vistara had said that it had "zero tolerance towards such behaviour" and was looking into the complaint.

Terming the incident as "shameful", Maharashtra State Commission for Women's (MSCW) chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar had said they would seek a detailed inquiry into it from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Visitors to the tiny Pacific nation of Palau are being made to sign a promise to respect the environment, in an innovative move that authorities hope will curb ecological damage caused by booming numbers of tourists.

Claimed to be a world first, the "Palau Pledge" is stamped onto visitors' passports and must be signed upon arrival in the country, which lies in the western Pacific about halfway between Australia and Japan.

"I take this pledge as your guest, to protect and preserve your beautiful island home," it reads in part.

"I vow to tread lightly, act kindly and explore mindfully."

With crystal clear waters, pristine reefs and abundant sea life, Palau is regarded as one of the world's best diving spots and was once a niche tourist destination.

But visitor numbers have exploded in recent years, particularly from China, straining both infrastructure and the environment.

The symbolic pledge was written with the help of Palau's children and President Tommy Remengesau said it was about preserving the environment for future generations.

"Conservation is at the heart of our culture," he said.

"We rely on our environment to survive and if our beautiful country is lost to environmental degradation, we will be the last generation to enjoy both its beauty and life-sustaining biodiversity."

Palau welcomed almost 150,000 tourists last year, up 70 percent on 2010 figures and the nation of 20,000 has struggled to cope.

Some of the new arrivals have caused outrage among locals by capturing turtles so they can take selfies with them, walking on fragile coral and leaving trash on beaches.

"The Palau Pledge aims to encourage environmentally sound habits in visitors," the government said in a statement.

"If action is not taken now, it will get to the point where it is too late to protect some of the most unique parts of the country."
Mumbai: As legendary actor Dilip Kumar turns 95 on Monday, his wife Saira Banu plans to treat him to his favourite delicacies -- biryani and vanilla ice cream -- on the occasion.

Banu says she is not planning to throw a birthday party this time as Kumar is still recovering from pneumonia.

"He loves biryani and that will be made for him but I will give him only little as he is unwell. He is also fond of vanilla ice cream, I will ask the doctors if we can give him a little bit of that too. Then we will have a birthday cake," Banu says in an interview with PTI.

"We will not have a grand birthday party as he is not keeping well. The immune system is not so good after he was down with pneumonia. I cannot let him exert now," she adds.

Banu also plans to buy Kumar a new pair of shirt and trousers.

"Dilip Sahab is fond of good and simple clothes. He likes cotton shirts and trousers and matching shoes and socks. He has a huge collection of shoes, which he has from world over.

"Every year I order things of his choice. He is not a materialistic man. He doesn't like expensive gifts. My one consistent gift to him every year is my love, which keeps intensifying," she says.

The yesteryear actor says she feels blessed that so many people send their best wishes and prayers for Kumar's well-being.
Mumbai: Media mogul Ekta Kapoor said television has been showing both progressive and regressive content but the small screen cannot afford to project women in a bad light all the time.

The 42-year-old producer, known for her saas-bahu soap operas, said she has tried to present stories that show men and women as equals.

"TV have had lot of progressive and some regressive shows, but there are some issues that resonate with some part of India... It won't work if it is all regressive, women won't like to see watching themselves (being put) down," Ekta said.

She was speaking at the 'We The Women' event, alongside Union Minister Smriti Irani here. The session was moderated by Karan Johar.

The producer said scripts of her shows could be "melodramatic" but not regressive.

"Scripts could be melodramatic, filmy, (with) high-octane drama but they are not regressive. We have a show called 'Shakti' about the third gender. This is a long-running show about a woman who could not understand what sexuality she belongs to, no films have discussed the third gender."

Ekta added she has never had a show where a woman has called her husband 'parmeshwar' (God), or a woman touching her husband's feet and even if the character has tried to do that, the husband has stopped her saying this is wrong.

Irani, who has been part of one of the longest-running popular shows, "Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi", by the producer, said the toughest part about being an actor is to do shows that are far from reality.

"I have been an actor. When we explore scripts, the toughest task is to do things that is unbelievable. It is easier to do things that are closer to real life, the challenge is to get into that melodramatic situation. Like saas-bahu shows are tougher, as (people) don't live life like that. It is the true test for an actor, as to do something that you do not believe in but make it believable for others," she said.

"People often used to tell me what 'sanskar' (etiquette) are kids getting from your shows, I used to say, it is not the job of TV to give 'sanskar' to kids, it is a parent's job," Irani added.
Popular Tollywood comedian, Vijay Sai, was found dead in his apartment today morning. According to initial reports, Vijay Sai committed suicide in his apartment, by hanging himself, near Yusufguda in Hyderabad. The police who is at the spot investigating the case says, "exact reason for the suicide is yet to be known". At the time of the incident, his parents were present in the house.

Vijay Sai acted in many Telugu films, but is most fondly remembered for his performances in Bommarillu and Ammayilu Abbayilu.

It is being said that the actor has been struggling to come out of the financial problems and was suffering from depression. "We are investigating all angles. There is also a previous case of 498A against him. So at this point we cannot tell the exact reason for suicide", said an investigating officer.

The incident has left the Tollywood industry in deep shock.
New Delhi: BJP chief Amit Shah has come down heavily against the Congress after its leader Charan Singh Sapra dared PM Narendra Modi to apologise in Jama Masjid for riots. Congress, Shah said, was raking up riots for vote consolidation in Gujarat.

The entire nation knows that the allegations levelled against Modiji by a Congress-backed NGO were all false and he is spotless. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017, Shah said.

The anti-Sikh riots in 1984 and those in 1992 after the Babri Masjid demolition re-entered the political discourse with Congress Sapra saying Sonia Gandhi had apologised in Golden Temple, but Modi was yet to apologise.

Neither my party nor do I support the 1984 riots. Sonia Gandhi visited Golden Temple and apologised in front of the media. Manmohan Singh also apologised in Parliament. In the last 33 years, the BJP has been adding insult to our injury. Can Narendra Modi visit the Jama Masjid and apologise for the 1992 riots? the Congress leader from Punjab said at an event organized by News18 India.

Amit Shah retaliated and said that the Congress was raking up the riots to get electoral mileage in Gujarat.

Congress had laid the foundation of Gujarat election on casteism. The would-be President of Congress started hopping from temple to temple. Congress has been the creator of polarisation in India, ANI quoted Amit Shah as saying.

While the 1984 riots were triggered by the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguard months after Operation Blue Star, the 1992 riots broke out following the demolition of Ayodhyas Babri Masjid by kar sevaks.

Sapras comments come amid a heated campaign in Gujarat where the BJP is attempting to retain power for the fifth consecutive term while the Congress is gunning for a revival.
Mehsana/Ahmedabad: Ever since the Patidar agitation turned violent two years ago, Hardik Patel has been barred from entering Mehsana district, which is a stronghold of the Kadva Patel community. The 24-year-old Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) leader, taunting the state government and bureaucracy, hosted a massive rally near Mehsana districts border with Patan.

I have been prohibited from entering Mehsana district for the last two years. So I decided to hold a mega rally near the border of Mehsana. Saurashtra and Surat have done their job. Now its turn for North Gujarat and Central Gujarat to do their part, he tweeted on Sunday. Patel and PAAS claim that over a lakh had turned up at the Mehsana border rally, one of his biggest till date.

It is this show of strength that makes the PAAS confident. PAAS convener for North Gujarat Narendra Patel, who runs the organization in six districts, told News 18, Hardik Patel has already addressed packed rallies all over Saurashtra and South Gujarat. If you think those were massive, wait till you see how the people of North Gujarat turn up in droves. We will make sure that the BJP is punished.

That North Gujarat is where PAAS expects to pull the biggest crowds is no surprise. Hardik Patel belongs to the Kadva Patel community. While the Kadva Patels are small in numbers as compared to the Leuva Patels, but are concentrated in North Gujarat. In the last leg of the Gujarat Assembly elections, PAAS has concentrated all its energies in the north, where they can do the most damage to the ruling BJP.

In the six districts of North Gujarat  Banaskantha, Patan, Sabarkantha, Mehsana, Gandhinagar and Aravalli  Patels may end up being the decisive vote. Unlike Saurashtra, where Leuva Patels outnumber Kadvas, the Patidar outfit is banking on the Patel vote to remain united.

PAASs army of volunteers from all over the state has now moved to the north. In addition to Hardik Patels rallies, PAAS volunteers are also spreading across villages in all of these six key districts.

Narendra Patel said, We have 50,000 volunteers in the six districts of North Gujarat. On Sunday, 5,000 volunteers from Saurashtra reached Mehsana. On Monday, another 5,000 will come down. We know that north Gujarat is the key, so we will go all out in the last two days.

                                               pic.twitter.com/zbkegCIVu9 Hardik Patel (@HardikPatel_) December 10, 2017

PAAS has also changed its message from being a Patidar-centric movement to reaching out to OBC communities as well.

Patel said, Patels are not the only ones who come to Hardikbhais rallies. We have seen a lot of enthusiastic support from the Kshatriyas as well. In the villages, our people are being welcomed by people from all communities. This is an anti-BJP wave that you are seeing.

Harshadbhai Brahmbhatt, political observer and ex-aide to former Gujarat Chief Minister Shankarsinh Vaghela, said, North Gujarat is the key to this election. Whoever wins these six districts will win the election. We saw a heated battle in Saurashtra and South Gujarat. Central Gujarat is likely to see a similar fight. But in North Gujarat, voters are more decisive, but the BJP doesnt look very worried at the time.

Despite activist Alpesh Thakor joining Congress, the BJP feels confident of support from North Gujarats Thakors, a powerful OBC community. A BJP leader, on condition of anonymity, said, We are aware that Hardiks agitation will cause a dent in our Patidar support base. But we dont think it will be absolute. A lot of the younger lot may support him, but the older voters will stick with the BJP. Besides, most people forget that the largest community in Gujarat is the OBCs and not the Patidars. OBCs are resolutely with the BJP.

PAAS is not the only player which sees North Gujarat as a must-win battle. BJP, too, sees its prestige attached to this region. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President Amit Shah, Gujarat Deputy CM Nitin Patel and former CM Anandiben Patel all hail from these six districts. Three of them, with the exception of Shah, are from Mehsana district alone. And BJPs candidate from Mehsana city is Deputy CM Nitin Patel.

A PAAS leader said, Mehsana will see the toughest fight. That is why we are concentrating most of our efforts here. The two seats where BJP is strong are Mehsana city and Kheralu. They have a strong chance in Mehsana because Nitin Patel is contesting from there, although we are determined to see him defeated. Kheralu is a tough seat because Narendra Modis hometown Vadnagar falls within it. If we can breach that, it will be huge.

Mehsana district has nearly 4 lakh Patidar voters and Thakors, who form the largest community among the OBCs in Mehsana, have 3.31 lakh voters. Combined with other OBCs, they could help the BJP sail through the election. This, perhaps, explains PAASs outreach to communities other than the Patels. BJP is confident of sailing through in the Prime Ministers home district, as well as other areas of North Gujarat. But PAAS claims they will not let the ruling party off easily.

In 1984, when the BJP contested its first ever Lok Sabha election, they won only two seats in the entire country. One of those seats was Mehsana. BJP started its account with Mehsana, we will shut their account with Mehsana, said Narendra Patel.
New Delhi: In one of the most scathing political attacks that one has heard or read from him, former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh has accused Narendra Modi of setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of the former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

In a written statement, the mild spoken Congress leader sought to clarify his position regarding a speech made by Prime Minister Modi accusing senior Congress leaders of holding a secret meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyars residence, which was attended by a former Pakistani envoy and foreign minister.

Demanding an apology from Modi, the former prime minister said he was anguished by the falsehoods being spread to score political points ahead of the Gujarat election.

Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable, he said, adding that no one, including Modi can question his track record.

My track record of public service over five decades is known to everybody. No one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground, the former Prime Minister said.

"The Congress party needs no sermons on nationalism from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terror is well known," Singh added, reminding Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited in 2015 after the terror attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur and had also invited ISI to the air force station in Pathankot to investigate the attack in 2016.

Modi on Sunday had alleged that senior Congress leaders held a meeting with Pakistans former foreign minister and High Commissioner to India at Mani Shankar Aiyars residence a day before he made the neech comment.

There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice president (Hamid Ansari) and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Modi said, claiming that the meeting lasted for around three hours.

Manmohan rejected the allegations and said that he did not discuss the Gujarat elections with anyone at the dinner. The discussion was limited to India-Pakistan relations. None of those present can be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities, he said.

I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points, he added in the statement released on Monday.

Here is the full statement of Manmohan Singh:
New Delhi: Rival Congress, ally Shiv Sena and BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha on Monday launched separate but scathing attacks on PM Narendra Modi over his charge of Pakistan interfering in Gujarat elections via the Grand Old Party.

The PM had claimed at an election rally in Gujarat that Congress leaders held a secret meeting with current and former Pakistani officials following which Mani Shankar Aiyar made the "neech" remark against him.

"Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election. Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts?" Modi said.

A day after the remark, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hit out at the PM, questioning why he was speaking about Pakistan, but not Gujarat.

Elections are taking place in Gujarat. But the PM is busy talking about Pakistan. Modiji, speak about Gujarat at least once, Gandhi said at a rally in Banaskantha on Monday. He claims to have wiped out the Congress. But half of his speech is about Congress. The other half is about Modi himself.

Refuting Modis charges, former Union minister Anand Sharma demanded that the PM retract the statement. PMs statements show the BJP has lost Phase 1 (of Gujarat elections). For the first time in Indias history, a PM has used such words against the Opposition. We want to ask the PM, since when is it a rule that we have to seek governments permission for a dinner? Sharma said at a press conference.

Modi also faced criticism from ally Shiv Sena and BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha.

In an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamna, the Sena accused PM Modi of resorting to "histrionics" and pulling the ongoing poll campaign for the Gujarat elections to "a new low".

The BJP ally said that Modi "dug up the graves of the Mughal regime" during his campaign, instead of speaking about "vikas" (development)  to target the Congress.

"The people of Gujarat had already rejected the Congress for 22 years for this very reason... The PM chose to ignore the progress and developmental issues and stooped to mere 'tu-tu, main-main (rhetoric)' in his own home-state."

Actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha, meanwhile, took to Twitter and questioned PM Modi on "unsubstantiated and unbelievable" stories against political opponents.

"Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with and endorse new, unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories every day against political opponents? Now linking them to Pakistan High Commissioner and Generals?! Incredible!" Sinha said in a tweet.

Hon'ble Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!.1>2 Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Sir! Instead of new twists & turns, stories & cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Lets stop communalising the atmosphere & go back to healthy politics & healthy elections. Jai Hind! Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Defending the PM, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections and seemed to suggest that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party.

"Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into India's election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own. Yes, I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting India's democracy on their own as they do... India's Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM and so is the BJP, Prasad said.

Prasad said it was "curious" that Congress leader Anand Sharma had denied any meeting taking place at the residence of Aiyar.

"And in today's newspapers... It is very evident as to who attended the meeting including from Pakistan and even Manmohan Singh went to the get-together," he said. "Why a wrong statement was made by Anand Sharma completely denying that no such meeting took place."
Kolkata: In a veiled dig at the BJP, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asked people in her state to welcome those from other parts of the country.

Banerjee made the comments while addressing a public meeting at Kanksa in Paschim Bardhaman district.

We will not differentiate (outsiders) on the basis of their religion, states, castes. Bengal is a land of Rabindranath Tagore and Nazrul Islam. We respect Ambedkar, Gandhiji, Swami Vivekananda, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. We will not allow divisive politics in Bengal. Those who indulge in divisiveness, people will teach them a lesson politically, she said.

Taking a veiled dig at the BJP-led Rajasthan government, she said, Unlike few states, we dont differentiate people based on their place of origin. A lot of people from other states work in Bengal. Embrace them as we consider them our own. Our people will go to other places, people from other States will come to Bengal  isnt this normal? We cannot drive others away from Bengal. We love them.

A Dalit man was killed in Gujarat because he went to a dandiya festival. They did not allow Padmavati to release. An innocent man was burned alive in Rajasthan. How long can we allow these incidents to continue? she added.

She alleged that BJP is trying to cause riots by spreading falsehoods in Bengal. Please dont believe in their false propaganda. They are killing Adivasis and Dalits but feed lies to Adivasis here. Stay alert and dont listen to them. Our aim is to work for everybody. We do not differentiate on the basis of religion, she said.

Trinamool does not follow the culture that the BJP speaks of. We do not like that culture. We will fight politically. Let others speak ill, we will not, she added.

On December 6, a labourer from Malda district identified as Afrazul Khan (50) was hacked to death with an axe before being set on fire alive by a civil contractor identified as Shambhu Lal in Rajasthans Rajsamand village.

Lal recorded the whole incident on camera. In the video released later, he was seen attacking Khan with an axe and the victim was heard screaming for mercy. After repeated attacks, Khan died after which Lal set the body on fire.

The incident drew severe criticism from Banerjee who demanded a high level probe in to the matter. She had also raised the matter before Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
Antonov Airlines, the division of Antonov State Enterprise (Kyiv), in January-November 2017 increased commercial transportation by 26% compared with entire 2016.

The press service of the state-owned enterprise reported that total flight hours were 4,823 hours in January-November 2017, while in 2016 the figure was 3,832 hours.

"In the past three months, Antonov flew 2,120 hours, while the Russian Volga-Dnepr airline, which has a larger number of aircraft, flew 1,786. That is, Ukrainian aircraft carried more cargo, received more profits and paid more taxes in the country's budgets of all levels. This was made possible by the termination of cooperation in this area with the Russian company Volga-Dnepr, which since 2006, using the conditions of an "enslaving" contract with Antonov, was a monopolist in the market of air transportation by An-124 Ruslan aircraft," the enterprise said.

According to the press service of the State Enterprise Antonov, under this agreement, the Russian Volga-Dnepr carried out all the logistics management, using Antonov planes and independently, at its discretion, distributing profits, the bulk of which remained in the Russian Federation.

"But at the end of 2016, Antonov implemented a program to end this cooperation. To this end, Antonov Salis GmbH was involved in the participation of the Ukrainian company in the NATO program - SALIS and Dreamlifts Ltd, to provide logistics support for commercial transportation," the enterprise said in response to the publication of information about the doubtfulness of the above-mentioned companies in media.

In addition, taking into account the NATO tender conditions for the conclusion of the contract to transport cargos under the SALIS program, Antonov created Antonov Salis GmbH, which is part of the enterprise.

"At the same time, the legal mechanism for the creation of Antonov Salis GmbH to ensure the participation of Antonov State Enterprise in the tender was agreed with the relevant structures of the Alliance. Precisely thanks to the fulfillment of all the tender requirements, a year ago, NATO signed a contract in the interests of Antonov State Enterprise. All payments to the Antonov Salis GmbH account via transit payment are transferred to the Antonov payment account in Ukraine, which are declared as transit payments and they are under the control of the Federal Bank of Germany," Antonov State Enterprise said, adding that in these circumstances Antonov Salis GmbH acts effectively in the status of non-profit enterprises, exempted from paying value added tax in accordance with EU Directives as a service provider for the needs of NATO.

"Dreamlifts Ltd, the British company, is an agent company, without which international commercial air transportation around the world is impossible. The attraction of these companies is the usual and long-term practice of the absolute majority of world-class air carriers. The main feature of Dreamlifts Ltd is that its specialists are citizens of the European Union. After the Russian aggression, they no longer wanted to work for Ruslan International - another child of the Russian Volga-Dnepr airline. It was officially announced in the media over a year ago, on November 21, 2016," the enterprise said.

The press service said that Antonov will continue to exert maximum efforts in deepening cooperation with NATO, working on the international air transportation market and creating new aircraft in the interests of Ukraine.
New Delhi: Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday lashed out at former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and demanded to know the context of his meeting with Pakistani diplomats, hours after he demanded an apology from his successor Narendra Modi for accusing the Congress of colluding with the neighbouring country to fix the Gujarat election.

Jailtey ruled out any apology from the PM, and instead, accused Singh and other Congress leaders of violating national policy by holding a parallel dialogue with Pakistan. He asked the necessity of attending a dinner hosted by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar at his home here last week that was attended by Pakistani diplomats, among others.

The finance ministers remarks came after a rare row between a sitting and a former premier broke out, with Manmohan Singh accusing his Modi of setting a "dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of the former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

Launching a sharp counteroffensive, Singh attacked Modi over what he called the prime minister's "ill-thought transgression" and rejected his charge as "innuendos and falsehoods".

In uncharacteristically strong words, the usually mild mannered Singh crossed swords with the BJP and said that the desperation of the PM was evident as he has to latch on to every straw. He clarified that Gujarat polls were never raised by anyone present at the dinner and that the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan ties.

Terming the meeting as "political misadventure", Jaitley said the opposition party is expected to follow the national police that terror and talks cannot go hand-in-hand. He stated if anyone defies the national line, he should be prepared to answer questions. "It is a political misadventure, it has a political cost," he said.

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur in Gujarat on Sunday, Modi had accused Pakistan of trying to influence the assembly polls in the state. He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi that led to his suspension from the party.

Singh issued a statement on Monday, listing those who attended the dinner hosted in honour of former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri.

He said besides himself and former vice president Hamid Ansari, others present at the dinner were the Pakistan High Commissioner, Natwar Singh, K S Bajpai, Ajai Shukla, Sharad Sabharwal, Gen Deepak Kapoor, TCA Raghavan, Satinder K Lambah, M K Bhadrakumar, CR Gharekhan, Prem Shankar Jha, Salman Haider and Rahul Khushwant Singh.

"None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti- national activities," he said.

Lambah, a former diplomat, was quoted as having said he does not comment on private dinners. He, however, said there was just a general discussion on Indo-Pak relations.

Gharekhan, another former diplomat said, said the invitees were talking about the relations between India and Pakistan.

"But nobody, if I recall....I am hundred per cent sure that, not a single person, talked about Gujarat elections or anything about the present situation... Or for that matter, the present situation in Pakistan," he said.

"It was only about India-Pakistan relation. We didn't talk about any kind of politics."

Gen. Kapoor, a former Army Chief, was quoted as having said that Gujarat elections were never discussed at the dinner meeting.

Manmohan Singh said he did not discuss the Gujarat Assembly elections with anyone at the dinner meeting. "I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

Singh said he was "deeply pained and anguished" by the "falsehood and canards" being spread to score political points by the prime minister in what he said was a "lost cause" in Gujarat.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," he alleged.

The Congress Party, Singh said, needs no sermons on "nationalism" from a party and prime minister, whose "compromised" track record on fighting terrorism is well known, while reminding Modi of his "uninvited" visit to Pakistan after terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

"Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan," he said.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi on Monday was elected unopposed as Congress president.

Rahul will collect the certificate formally declaring his ascension to the post on December 16, party's central election authority head Mullappally Ramachandran told reporters.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family was the lone candidate in the fray. Rahul succeeds his mother Sonia Gandhi, who remained in the post for 19 years.

The CEA received a total of 89 nomination papers proposing Rahul Gandhi's name for the top post. All the nomination papers were found to be valid, Ramachandran said.

"Since the withdrawal of date/time is over and as there is only one candidate (Rahul), as per Article XVII (d) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I hereby declare Shri Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress," Ramachandran said.

Rahul became the vice-president of the party in January 2013.

Following his coronation, the party cadre broke out in celebrations break outside Congress headquarters here. Several Congress leaders congratulated Rahul. Rahul Gandhi is an able leader. I am sure we are going to the Gujarat elections, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad told CNN-News18.

"This is a new day and a new beginning for Rahul Gandhi. He will take us away from the fractured path of the Modi and BJP. Today starts another era for the Congress Party," party leader Gaurav Gogoi said.

Some leaders took to Twitter to Congratulate Rahul over his elevation.

Joyous moment for the party as we celebrate the appointment of @OfficeOfRG as the President of @INCIndia . Beginning of a new, energised, positive and progressive era in the party under his leadership. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi Priyanka Chaturvedi (@priyankac19) December 11, 2017

Congratulations to #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi on being elected President of the Indian National Congress. India looks to you to provide decent & dedicated leadership that will steer the country on the path of inclusive politics & shared prosperity. Good luck @OfficeOfRG! https://t.co/HBBxFEQ64q Salman Anees Soz (@SalmanSoz) December 11, 2017

With Agency inputs
Rahul Gandhi has become the Congress President-elect with the deadline to withdraw nomination for internal polls ending at 3pm. Gandhi would officially take charge on December 16 when his mother and longest-serving party president Sonia Gandhi formally hands over the baton to him, marking a generational shift in the grand old party. However, the attention has shifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modis allegations of a secret meeting between Congress leaders and Pakistani officials. At a press conference, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala hit out at Modi for his insinuation.

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New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi may be declared as the Congress chief on Monday, the last date of withdrawal of nomination in the partys organisational elections.

The Congress Central Election Authority chairman Mullapally Ramachandran, and CEA members Madhusudan Mistry and Bhubaneswar Kalita will announce that Gandhi's was the only nomination for the top job on Monday. A press conference has been scheduled for 3:30pm.

Gandhi, however, may officially take charge on December 16 when his mother and longest-serving party president Sonia Gandhi formally hands over the baton to him, marking a generational shift in the grand old party.

While pageantry would herald the dawn of a new era in the party which has ruled the country for over half-a-century since Independence, the 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family will face the daunting task of restoring lost glory to the party whose fortunes have been dwindling in the recent past.

Today, the party, which once controlled almost the entire country, has its governments in just five states and the Union Territory of Puducherry.

The internal polls was a one-horse race from the beginning with Gandhi the only one to file nomination, which was supported by 89 signatures.

Rahul Gandhi would be handed over the certificate appointing him the party president on December 16 in the presence of Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders, CEA chairman Ramachandran said.

Sonia Gandhi will officially hand over the mantle of the 132-year-old party to her son around 11 am after which Rahul Gandhi will meet leaders from across the country at the Congress headquarters, PTI quoted party sources as saying.

The Congress has been losing state after state since the 2014 Lok Sabha election with the exception of Punjab.

Rahul Gandhi's elevation would come just two days ahead of the counting of votes for the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly poll.

A sure-footed Rahul Gandhi powered a spirited campaign for the Congress in Gujarat, and a win in the election, which many analysts say could be dead heat between the two parties, would come as a massive boost for him.

"Delivering in Gujarat will be important as it is the immediate test facing Rahul Gandhi, who has mounted a strong anti-BJP campaign in the state and led personally from the front. We are looking at victory in Gujarat," said a Congress leader and former chief minister.

Mahila Congress chief and party spokesperson Sushmita Dev said reorganising the party would be another major task for him.

"Every post comes with a challenge. He has to rebuild the party at the grassroots and strengthen the ideological base. His undisputed election as party president is a sign of his strength. He will have to take everyone along from the AICC level right up to the states," she told PTI.

Striking a balance between the old guard and the young leaders would be a key to running the organisation which has many seasoned politicians whose wisdom he could use as he steers the party.

Gandhi had said in the past that he would draw upon a blend of experience of the old and the energy of the young. "Initial signs are encouraging since he put veterans like Ashok Gehlot and Sushil Kumar Shinde in charge of elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, respectively, and was willing to bank on them," said a leader. He also got appointed young leaders as secretaries.

Clarity on the party's ideological stand on the issue of Hindutva would also be important as he is being seen as projecting the Congress's soft Hindutva with his visit to temples in Gujarat. He has also proclaimed himself a "Shiv bhakt".

These visits are also being seen as an attempt to blunt the BJP's accusation against the party of Muslim appeasement.

"This is to course-correct after it was felt that an overtly pro-minority image of the Congress undermined its electoral prospects on the eve of 2014 Lok Sabha elections," a party veteran noted, adding cobbling together electoral alliances will also be key to the future growth of the party.

Another former union minister said every state had its own set of challenges and Gandhi would be expected to take informed decisions in each by taking everyone along.

Gandhi has already been taking all major decisions in the party even though his formal elevation was delayed due to a long-drawn internal election process.

The deadline set by the Election Commission for conclusion of the organisational elections in the Congress expires on December 31.

Organisational elections in the Congress were due in 2015. The party constitution provides for elections to be held every five years. The last such polls were held in 2010.

Rahul Gandhi, who was initially hesitant about taking over the reins from Sonia Gandhi, who held the partys top post for 19 years, will be the sixth member and fifth generation leader of the Nehru-Gandhi clan to occupy the post.

These include Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and now Rahul Gandhi. Some eminent leaders who held the post in the pre-independence era included Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, Abul Kalam Azad, Vallabhai Patel and Rajendra Prasad.

Eminent people like Madan Mohan Malviya, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Dadabhai Naoroji, Annie Besant and Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee, the first party president, also led the party in the pre-independence era.

(With PTI inputs)
Facebook users will soon be able to send a variety of greetings to interact with their friends in a unique way. Apart from 'Poke', now you can send a wink, a high-five, a hug and a wave. According to a report in The Nation, the options are under trial in Britain, Thailand, Australia, Canada, Columbia and France, and the feature has been released in line with the tenth anniversary of the poke.

Under the Hello' button on your friend's profile, the new options can be seen by just holding the button. On a desktop, a simple hover over the 'Hello' button will show the alternatives. These work in a similar way the 'Reactions' on a photo or status work. Facebook introduced the Hello' button in June and placed it at the top of people's profiles.

The new greetings also have an undo button for an accidental send.

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A Hong Kong-based activist investor in Toshiba Corp has told the embattled conglomerate that the $18 billion sale of its chip unit to a Bain Capital-led group is no longer necessary after its recent capital injection, according to a letter seen by Reuters. Argyle Street Management Ltd, a hedge fund with $1.2 billion under management, sent the letter to Toshiba's board late on Monday, the fund's chief investment officer, Kin Chan, told Reuters. The fund declined to say how many Toshiba shares it owns.

The first activist shareholder to openly voice opposition to the sale, Argyle is inviting the 30-plus overseas investors who participated in Toshiba's recent 600 billion yen ($5.3 billion) new share issue to team up and is already in talks with at least three funds who share the same view, Chan said. Toshiba agreed to sell Toshiba Memory - the world's no. 2 producer of NAND chips - to the Bain consortium to cover billions of dollars in liabilities arising from its now bankrupt U.S. nuclear power unit Westinghouse.

In order to ensure its listing status, however, Toshiba also secured a $5.4 billion cash injection from overseas funds this month, which with tax write-offs gives it sufficient funds to cover its liabilities. Argyle believes "there no longer is any urgency to undertake a sale of Toshiba Memory," it said in the letter, which proposed a meeting with Toshiba's board in either December or January.

The $18 billion price tag for the chip unit "significantly undervalues the business," the letter said, adding that the board should consider instead an IPO for Toshiba Memory. Representatives for Toshiba and Bain were not immediately available for comment. While the potential for activist funds to hinder or even scupper the deal with the Bain-led consortium will depend on how many join forces in opposition, Argyle's letter underscores some fears that Toshiba had opened a potential can of worms by tapping activist shareholders in its new share issue.

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Islamabad: An anti-corruption court in Islamabad on Monday declared embattled Finance Minister Ishaq Dar an "absconder" after he repeatedly failed to appear before it in a graft case linking to the Panama Papers scandal.

The court also ordered Dar, currently seeking medical treatment in London, to submit surety bonds within three days and warned that if he fails to do so, then authorities would freeze his assets.

Dar, 67, was indicted in October in a graft case in which he is accused of making assets that were "disproportionate to his known sources of income".

The case was filed against him by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the light of the Supreme Court order of July 28 that disqualified Nawaz Sharif as prime minister in the Panama Papers scandal.

The NAB had registered three cases of corruption and money laundering against Sharif, his family members and one against Finance Minister Dar in the Islamabad Accountability Court, weeks after the Supreme Court order ousted the premier.

In its case against Dar, the NAB has alleged that the accused has acquired assets and pecuniary interests/resources in his own name and/or in the name of his dependants of an approximate amount of Rs 831.678 million.

Dar is in London since October and has been seeking treatment of an undefined heart complication at a Harley Street hospital.

The former minister's counsel submitted Dar's new medical reports in the court and pleaded not to declare his client a proclaimed absconder.

NAB special prosecutor Imran Shafique opposed the plea saying that the reports presented before the court differ from each other.

Judge Mohammad Bashir, who had reserved the order last week, refused to accept Dar's new report and declared him as an "absconder".

The court then adjourned the hearing till December 14.

Dar was relieved of his duties last month after he requested leave for three months.
Brussels: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took his case to Europe to ask allies to join the United States in recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital, but was met by a firm rebuff from EU foreign ministers who saw the move as a blow against the peace process.

Making his first ever visit to EU headquarters in Brussels, Netanyahu said President Donald Trump's move made peace in the Middle East possible "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace."

Trump announced last Wednesday that the United States would recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, breaking with decades of US policy and international consensus that the ancient city's status must be decided in Israeli-Palestinian talks.

Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in a 1967 war, considers the entire city to be its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.

The Trump administration says it remains committed to the peace process and its decision does not affect Jerusalem's future borders or status. It says any credible future peace deal will place the Israeli capital in Jerusalem, and ditching old policies is needed to revive a peace process frozen since 2014.

But even Israel's closest European allies have rejected that logic and say recognising Israel's capital unilaterally risks inflaming violence and further wrecking the chance for peace.

After a breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Sweden's top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Trump's decision, and no country was likely to follow the United States in announcing plans to move its embassy.

"I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I don't think any other EU country will do it," Margot Wallstrom told reporters.

Several EU foreign ministers arriving at the meeting reiterated the bloc's position that lands Israel has occupied since the 1967 war - including East Jerusalem as well as the West Bank and Golan Heights, are not within Israel's borders.

Israel's position does appear to have more support from some EU states than others. Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Hungary blocked a planned EU statement condemning the U.S. move.

But Prague later said it accepted Israel's sovereignty only over West Jerusalem, and Budapest said its long-term position seeking a two-state solution in the Middle East had not changed.

On Monday, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said of Trump's decision: "I'm afraid it can't help us."

"I'm convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution," Zaoralek said. "We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state."

VIOLENCE SUBSIDES

Trump's announcement triggered days of protests across the Muslim world and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in which scores of Palestinians were wounded and several killed. By Monday morning, violence appeared to have subsided.

Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EU's search for closer business ties with Iran, said Europeans should emulate Trump's move and press the Palestinians to do so too.

"It's time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem," he said.

In comments filmed later on his plane, he said he had told the Europeans to "stop pampering the Palestinians". "I think the Palestinians need a reality check. You have to stop cutting them slack. That's the only way to move forward towards peace."

Trump's announcement last week has triggered a war of words between Netanyahu and Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan, straining ties between the two U.S. allies which were restored only last year after a six year breach that followed the Israeli storming of a Turkish aid ship bound for Gaza.

On Sunday, Erdogan called Israel a "terror state". Netanyahu responded by saying he would accept no moral lectures from Erdogan who he accused of bombing Kurdish villages, jailing opponents and supporting terrorists.

On Monday Erdogan took aim directly at Washington over Trump's move: "The ones who made Jerusalem a dungeon for Muslims and members of other religions will never be able to clean the blood from their hands," he said in a speech in Ankara. "With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed."

The decision to recognise Jerusalem could also strain Washington's ties with its other main Muslim ally in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, which has sought closer relations with Washington under Trump than under his predecessor Barack Obama.

Saudi Arabia shares U.S. and Israeli concerns about the increasing regional influence of Iran, and was seen as a potential broker for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal. But Saudis have suggested that unilateral decisions over Jerusalem make any such rapprochement more difficult.

Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi ambassador to the United States and veteran ex-security chief, published a strongly-worded open letter to Trump on Monday denouncing the Jerusalem move.

"Bloodshed and mayhem will definitely follow your opportunistic attempt to make electoral gain," the prince wrote in a letter published in the Saudi newspaper al-Jazeera.

"Your action has emboldened the most extreme elements in the Israeli society ... because they take your action as a license to evict the Palestinians from their lands and subject them to an apartheid state," he added. "Your action has equally emboldened Iran and its terrorist minions to claim that they are the legitimate defenders of Palestinian rights."

The Trump administration says it is working on a peace proposal being drawn up by Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt and Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner.

European leaders say the decision on Israel's capital makes the need for a broader peace move more urgent.

"We've been waiting already for several months for the American initiative, and if one is not forthcoming then the European Union will have to take the initiative," French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said.
New York: A man with a homemade bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion at a New York commuter hub during rush hour on Monday, injuring himself and three others in what New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called an attempted terrorist attack.

The suspect in the incident at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, a block from Times Square, was identified as Akayed Ullah, the New York Police Department commissioner said. The suspect, said to be inspired by ISIS ideology, had burns and lacerations while three other people, including a police officer, had minor injuries.

The weapon was based on a pipe bomb and fixed to the suspect with zip ties and velcro, police said. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, speaking at a news conference near the site, described the device as "amateur level."

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told the same news conference that the incident, which happened at the start of the city's rush hour, was "an attempted terrorist attack."

"As New Yorkers our lives revolve around the subways. When we hear of an attack in the subways it is incredibly unsettling," de Blasio said.

New York City was a target, said John Miller, Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism.

Miller cited the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that killed more than 2,750 people in New York and nearly 3,000 people total; and the World Trade Center bombing of February 26, 1993, that killed six people.

"In the course of the post 9/11 world, as you are aware, there's also been approximately 26 plots that we can talk about that have been prevented through intelligence, investigation and intervention."

The incident was captured on security video, the police said. Video posted on NYPost.com showed smoke and a man lying in the tunnel that connects the Times Square subway station to the bus station. A photograph showed a man lying face down, with tattered clothes and burns on his torso.

There was a stampede up the stairs to get out, said Diego Fernandez, one of the commuters. Everybody was scared and running and shouting.

Alicja Wlodkowski, a Pennsylvania resident in New York for the day, was sitting in a restaurant in the bus terminal.

Suddenly, I saw a group of people, like six people, running like nuts. A woman fell. No one even went to stop and help her because the panic was so scary."

The bus terminal was temporarily shut down and a large swath of midtown Manhattan was closed to traffic. Subway train service was returning to normal after earlier disruptions.

WABC reported the suspect was in his 20s and that he has been in the United States for seven years and has an address in New York's Brooklyn. The NYPD shut down the entire block and there was heavy police presence outside the home.

First reports of the incident began soon after 7 a.m. (1200 GMT). New York in December sees a surge of visitors who come to see elaborate store displays, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree and Broadway shows.

The incident rippled through U.S. financial markets, briefly weakening equity markets as they were starting trading for the week and giving a modest lift to safe-haven assets such as U.S. Treasuries.

S&P 500 index emini futures dipped in the moments after the initial reports of an explosion, but major stock indexes later opened slightly higher.

The incident occurred less than two months after an Uzbek immigrant killed eight people by speeding a rental truck down a New York City bike path, in an attack for which Islamic State claimed responsibility.

In September 2016, a man injured 31 people when he set off a homemade bomb in New York's Chelsea district.
A crown is affixed to a wild goat as it is crowned King Puck and will be held on a platform above the town for three days in Killorglin, Ireland. (Image: Reuters)
Only one Russian train runs across Ukraine

Train pair No. 66/65 Chisinau-Moscow is today the only Russian train crossing Ukraine, according to information from public joint-stock company Ukrzaliznytsia.

Direct trains from Russia to Ukraine formed by Russian railways do not run. However, eight trains formed by Ukrzaliznytsia run between Ukraine and Russia.

OJSC RZD (Russian Railways) organized movement of passenger long-haul trains using the new Zhuravka-Millerovo line bypassing Ukraine.

"With the launch of a new train schedule for 2017-2018, more than 120 passenger and up to 30 freight trains began to run on the Zhuravka-Millerovo section daily," RZD said.
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Republican firebrand E.W. Jackson on Monday publicly accused fellow anti-establishment Republican Corey Stewart of having had "dealings" with the Muslim Brotherhood, an incendiary opening attack in what is shaping up as a raucous GOP primary ahead of Virginia's 2018 U.S. Senate race.

Jackson, a Chesapeake minister who was the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in 2013, formally announced his run for Senate Monday morning on the conservative John Fredericks Radio Show.

Asked to draw a contrast between himself and Stewart - the chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors who has a history of provocative statements of his own - Jackson said he and Stewart may have different views on "the threat of Radical Islam and Sharia law."

"My understanding is that Corey has had some dealings with some of the members of the Muslim Brotherhood," Jackson said. "If that proves to be the case, then we're going to clearly draw that distinction."

Stewart called Jackson's claim "ridiculous," noting that he is, in fact, not Muslim but Catholic.

"It's so over the top I've got to wonder if he's off his medication or something," said Stewart, who is in Alabama this week to campaign for Republican Roy Moore, the embattled U.S. Senate candidate who has pressed forward with his campaign despite allegations he sought sexual relationships with teenage girls while he was in his early 30s.

The winner of next year's primary will face off against U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., in the former Richmond mayor and Virginia governor's first bid for re-election to the Senate seat he's held since 2013.

Jackson offered no evidence for his claim that Stewart - who served as chairman President Donald Trump's campaign in Virginia last year - has ties to the Islamist group that operates mainly in the Middle East and Africa but in some right-wing circles is seen as a lurking domestic threat.

Fredericks seemed to interpret the comment as a criticism of Stewart's vote earlier this year to allow the All Dulles Area Muslim Society to build a new mosque in Prince William.

Stewart has defended his vote to approve the mosque despite vocal public opposition by saying his county could've been sued for appearing to treat one religious faith differently than others.

"It would've resulted in a federal discrimination lawsuit, which we would've lost, and cost the taxpayers millions of dollars," Stewart said.

"We'll find out and obviously we'll be debating it and talking about it," Jackson said after Fredericks raised Stewart's argument that the county had no legal option to deny the mosque. "And people will have to make their own determination as to who they believe."

Jackson said the U.S. should officially designate the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization.

"We'll see whether Corey goes along with that," Jackson said.

Stewart and Jackson are expected to compete for the hardcore, anti-establishment voters that hold sway in Republican primaries.

Del. Nicholas J. Freitas, R-Culpeper, a libertarian-leaning conservative, officially jumped into the race over the weekend at the Republican Party of Virginia's annual retreat. Jackson suggested Freitas will be "the establishment choice."

Ivan Raiklin, a former military diplomat, is also in the GOP primary field.

Stewart is entering the Senate primary with an elevated profile after narrowly losing the Republican nomination for governor to Ed Gillespie this year after running on a message of supporting Confederate statues and opposing illegal immigration.

But the massive, across-the-board losses Republicans suffered in last month's elections likely means an uphill battle for any Republican trying to unseat Kaine, the Democratic nominee for vice president in 2016.

Jackson, who lost the 2013 race for lieutenant governor to Democrat Ralph Northam, said he'll try to court evangelicals, despite Jerry Falwell Jr., the politically influential president of Liberty University, endorsing Stewart last week.

"The people who've already jumped in on his side, they're my friends," Jackson said. "They just moved a little too early."

Jackson acknowledged that Stewart has a head start, but he said that's because Stewart is a "perennial candidate."

"He just runs for everything that moves," Jackson said.

Stewart responded to Jackson's criticisms with attacks of his own, pointing out that Jackson declared bankruptcy in 1993 and saying Jackson got "demolished" after becoming a statewide GOP candidate in 2013.

"He helped take down the entire ticket," Stewart said.

Despite the nastiness of the first round in the Jackson vs. Stewart battle, Stewart insisted that he wants to take a friendlier approach to his Republican rivals in 2018. If the gubernatorial primary was all about Gillespie, Stewart said, the Senate primary will be all about Stewart.

"My intention this time to try and be a nice guy with my fellow Republicans, Stewart said. "The only chance he has is to attack me."
The three University of Virginia football players who were killed are being remembered as funny, sweet and ambitious. Lavel Davis Jr., aspired to be the countrys best wide receiver and to play in the NFL. The 6-foot-7 sports star was known to be ambitious and sought out friendships with students who werent athletes like him. DSean Perry had shifted seamlessly from linebacker to defensive end. He was also an amazing studio artist who loved to cook. Devin Chandler transferred in from Wisconsin, where the wide receiver returned a total of four kicks for 85 yards. He was known for his sense of humor and for lifting people up. Authorities say that all three men were killed Sunday by a fellow student and former football player.
Ukrainian Finance Minister Oleksandr Danyliuk signed financial and guarantee agreements on raising sovereign loans from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) EUR 160 million each on behalf of Ukraine on Monday in the Presidential Administration in the presence of the Ukrainian president.

The Finance Ministry said that EBRD Managing Director for Eastern Europe and the Caucasus Francis Malige and EIB Director for Public Sector in Eastern Neighbourhood Lionel Rapaille represented the banks.

Head of Kharkiv Regional Administration Yulia Svitlychna who was present at the signing ceremony said that another EUR 10 million would be provided from the Kharkiv's budget.

"The project would allow building two subway stations towards the airport, a new electric depot and buy new rolling stock  85 wagons," she said, thanking for support of the region and trust to its authorities.

"Our objective is to support the development of clean, efficient and modern urban transport in Ukraine. The Kharkiv metro project is a perfect fit for this strategy. By promoting sustainable and clean urban transport as an attractive alternative to car travel, we are bringing a range of environmental and economic benefits as well as saving travel time and reducing carbon emissions," Malige said.

Svitlychna said that the implementation of the project would start after signing of the relevant agreement with Kharkiv Metropoliten municipal enterprise and the city council.

The EBRD told Interfax-Ukraine that the signing of the loan agreement is scheduled for December 18 in Kharkiv.

A feasibility study for the project was supported by grant funding provided by the government of Japan.

As reported, the project provides for the extension of the "green" metro line in Kharkiv by 3.47 km towards the airport, the construction of two metro stations Derzhavynska and Odeska, the construction of depots and the purchase of 85 rolling stock units. It is assumed that both stations and the section from the existing tunnels to the Derzhavynska station (959 meters) will be built in an "open way," while the tunnels between the new stations (2,514 meters) will be built with the help of a tunneling complex.

The EBRD is the largest international financial investor in Ukraine. To date, the bank has made a cumulative commitment of almost EUR 11.6 billion through 383 projects since the start of its operations in the country in 1993.
Nashville-based Cooper Steel Fabricators Inc. is opening Cooper Steel of Virginia, the companys newest expansion, in the former Lynchburg Steel plant in Monroe.

Cooper Steel of Virginia is the fourth expansion of the steel fabrication and contracting firm, according to a news release issued Monday. The location will remain at 275 Francis Ave. in Monroe, and aesthetic improvements are included in future plans, according to the company.

Its a win-win and a very exciting time for us to be in Virginia, Gary Cooper, CEO and chairman of Cooper Steel, said in the release. Cooper Steel has always prided itself on being like family, and today our family is officially getting a little bigger.

The company celebrated its grand opening Tuesday at the Monroe plant.

Addressing employees at the grand opening, Cooper said the two steel companies are mirror businesses, and he is excited about the firms expansion into Amherst County.

Were family, Cooper told employees. You guys are the reason we bought this place.

A $1 per-hour raise was effective Tuesday across the board for plant workers, Cooper said.

The company has 26 employees in the plant and four non-production workers, with hopes of bringing 24 more employees on board in the next year, according to Cooper.

We think well be good partners with Amherst County, he said.

Cooper would not comment when asked the purchase price for the former Lynchburg Steel plant.

A strong determining factor in Cooper Steels acquisition of the facility was the large fabrication shop with an established and highly skilled workforce, the release states.

Founded in Shelbyville, Tennessee, in 1960 by J. Kenneth Cooper, Cooper Steel Fabricators Inc. specializes in the fabrication, estimation, erection and project management of structures all over the country, according to the release.

Amherst County Economic Development Authority Executive Director Victoria Hanson said Monday the transition is excellent news because it means the lights never go out at the facility and jobs are retained.

Lynchburg Steel announced its closure in late July, citing economic difficulties. Doug Anderson, former president of Lynchburg Steel, said prior to the announcement the company employed about 70 people. Four salaried and 18 hourly employees were dismissed following the announcement.

Lynchburg Steel was a fixture of the county for 47 years, Anderson previously said, and the announcement to close operations was the best decision due to increased demands of the structural steel industry.

Calvin Kennon, the EDAs chairman, said in a news release Monday while the closing of Lynchburg Steel was devastating due to the time and effort the Anderson family spent operating their business in the county, the EDA is pleased to have Cooper Steel in Amherst County and looks forward to supporting its efforts.

Amherst County Supervisor L.J. Jimmy Ayers said he is glad Cooper Steels acquisition of Lynchburg Steel could be worked out.

It keeps business in the county, folks in a job and retains a business that has been longstanding in our community, Ayers said. It is a win-win for all.

Amherst County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Claudia Tucker said the transition is wonderful news, and the county appreciates work done by both companies.

Having a steel company of this caliber has been critical to the economy of Amherst County for decades, Tucker said. We look forward to the next chapter and welcome Cooper Steel to the Amherst County business community with open arms.

Anderson said Tuesday the transition between the two companies is bittersweet and a tough but right decision.

Im pleased theyre coming in and will be able to continue having jobs [here] and contribute to the community, Anderson said.

Anderson said he would like to continue to be involved in the short-term with a number of items Cooper Steel has asked for assistance with.

Ill do whatever they need me to do, he said.
Government is set to acquire 15 air planes as part of efforts to resuscitate the ailing Air Zimbabwe, Transport and Infrastructure Development Minister Dr Jorum Gumbo has said.

In an interview recently, Dr Gumbo said plans were at an advanced stage for the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe to acquire the planes under a public-private partnership (PPP) agreement with investors in the Diaspora.



The Civil Aviation Authority is on the verge of acquiring 15 new air planes from Malaysia under a lease agreement, he said. The deal was penned between Government and a private company, DIDG, a consortium of business partners from the Diaspora.





Dr Gumbo said Air Zimbabwe was reeling under a huge debt burden, which limited it from applying for credit from the market. Government has managed to rope in partners from the Diaspora, who are interested in the local airline, he said.





Under this agreement, which I initially planned to sign with Malaysia Airline, the DIDG (Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group) company will facilitate the acquisition of these planes under a lease agreement, and this would be renewable after five years, said Dr Gumbo. Firstly, I had suggested that we enter into an agreement with the Malaysian airline, but the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwes books were in the red, we could not meet loan requirements.





Dr Gumbo said Government had settled for DIDG  the same company that is involved in the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) deal  which offered to assist in acquiring the planes from Malaysia.





The national airline is reeling under a $330 million debt, he said. Its balance sheet is in bad state at the moment, hence, these other interventions. Dr Gumbo said his ministrys mandate was to oversee the rehabilitation of three major sectors  aviation, roads and rail transport. Herald
Illegal armed groups have attacked the positions of the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) forces in Donbas 35 times over the past 24 hours, the press center of the ATO headquarters has reported.

"The Russian occupation troops continue to fire at the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, using mortars of various calibers," the headquarters said in a report on its Facebook page early on Monday.

In the Luhansk sector, militants were active with the onset of twilight and fired at Ukrainian fortified positions near Triokhizbenka, Krymske, Novotoshkivske, Travneve and Zaitseve. In addition, militants used various types of grenade launchers and light infantry weapons in the vicinity of these settlements, as well as near Lozove, Novooleksandrivka, Svitlodarsk and Luhanske.

In the Donetsk sector, the area of Avdiyivka remains the epicenter of the confrontation.

"In particular, invaders launched more than 30 82mm mines in the evening at our positions near the Butivka mine. The defenders of Kamianka, Avdiyivka and Krasnohorivka came under grenade launcher and heavy machine gun fire," reads the report.

In the Mariupol sector, the enemy attacked Ukrainian positions near Starohnativka.

Four Ukrainian servicemen were slightly wounded in the fighting, and one more sustained a combat injury. All the soldiers were taken to military medical institutions and received emergency medical aid. Their lives are not in danger.
Government has assured the nation that it is aware of the challenges being faced by farmers in accessing inputs for the 2017/18 summer cropping season and is addressing them. Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement Minister Retired Air Marshal Perrance Shiri said this is in Parliament last week, while responding to questions from legislators.



The legislators had enquired on the progress in the distribution of inputs under Command Agriculture and selection criteria for beneficiaries of Government inputs programme. Rtd Air Marshal Shiri said Government was working on the distribution of inputs and admitted that there were some challenges that were affecting the process.



Everything that is possible is being done for fertiliser and seed to get to farmers, he said. The issue of inputs such as seed and fertiliser is under consideration. When it comes to seed, there are some challenges with regards to long season varieties such as seven and six series.





The seed that was produced last year is not enough to meet the demand because most probably it was affected by incessant rains. Varieties like five series going down are available. Our seed companies are looking for funds so that they can buy the six and seven series varieties. Rtd Air Marshal Shiri said fertiliser was being availed, though the quantities were limited.





The fertiliser is being manufactured locally and Government is also importing on the other side, he said. The smooth availability of fertiliser is being affected by challenges associated with the availability of nostro facilities. Rtd Air Marshal Shiri said the inputs were in high demand, as many people were into farming.





He dismissed notions that Government inputs were being distributed along party lines and said every Zimbabwean was entitled to benefit as long as one met the requirements. Minister Shiri said anyone who met the requirements could benefit from Command Agriculture inputs.





As long as they (farmers) meet the criteria, which is wanted they get access to inputs, he said. If it is the Presidential Inputs Scheme, everyone is given.



The inputs are not given on partisan basis. There is no law to it. I was involved in Command Agriculture at national level and field officers were never instructed to distribute inputs on partisan basis. The criteria at the moment is based on those who have honoured their obligations for last season. People were given inputs and were supposed to pay back, those who did that are eligible for registration again and for entering into contracts. New applicants must get confirmation from Agritex officers in their various districts based on their competence. Herald
The MDC Youth Assembly will escalate its campaign to have reforms realised before we go for the watershed elections in 2018. We are aware of the shenanigans that ZEC is undertaking to scuttle progress with regards to the preparation of the next elections. We reiterate our commitment to waging a peaceful campaign for electoral reforms. In this regard we will continue with our mass peaceful demonstrations to ensure ZEC will deliver a credible and fair election that will see a leadership chosen by the people in the coming elections. We are convinced a credible election will result in President Tsvangirai ascending to the highest office of the land.
Idaho Cops:

Actually, There

Could Be a Threat

to the Community
Scientists are raising a red flag over the future of endangered right whales after a high number died in 2017. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates that there are only about 450 North Atlantic right whales left after 17 were reported dead this year, according to Phys.org. And the news of such high mortality was exacerbated by a low number in births in 2017. Per the Guardian, there are only about 100 breeding female whales active in the species, making the fear of extinction all the more real. "You do have to use the extinction word, because that's where the trend lines say they are," says John Bullard, NOAAs Northeast Regional Administrator. "That's something we can't let happen."

Along with the low number of breeding females, a study published in Endangered Species Research suggests that entrapment in fishing lines spikes stress levels in males, reducing their ability to reproduce. Co-author of the study Elizabeth Burgess says her colleagues are seeking solutions with the fishing community. (NOAA temporarily suspended its rescue operations this summer after a right whale struck and killed the rescuer untangling it from fishing lines.) Collisions with ships is another major cause of right whale death, and a study in Nature reports that the whales are seeking food outside protected areas. The problem will likely worsen, it states, as water temperatures continue to rise, forcing movements towards both favorable oceanographic conditions and food sources elsewhere. (Read more whales stories.)
Maine's Republican US senator said on Sunday that Alabama politician Roy Moore was unfit to serve in the Senate even before sexual-misconduct allegations against him came to light. Sen. Susan Collins made the comments on CBS' Face the Nation. She called the Republican National Committee's decision to support Moore in the Alabama race "a mistake." Collins said she thought Moore was a poor choice for Senate because of his views on Muslims and gays even before she learned of the misconduct allegations. She also said she's troubled that Moore has been removed from the Alabama Supreme Court twice for failure to "follow lawful judicial orders," the AP reports.

Moore is accused of sexual misconduct with teenage girls decades ago, when he was a county prosecutor in his 30s. He has largely denied the allegations. Moore faces Democrat Doug Jones in a special election on Tuesday. The election could have major implications for the balance of power in the Senate, where Republicans have a slight edge. Alabama's Christian conservatives see Moore as their champion. He has fought federal judges and castigated liberals, big government, gun control, Muslims, homosexuality, and anything else that doesn't fit the evangelical mold. Moore was dumped from his state's Supreme Court for ignoring a federal court order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the state's judicial building and for opposing gay marriage after the US Supreme Court effectively legalized it.

(Read more Susan Collins stories.)
German officials may want to offer some of their LinkedIn contacts endorsements for "espionage" and "subterfuge." Per Reuters, the country's BfV intelligence service has revealed that Chinese intelligence operatives are setting up fake social-media accounts and attempting to connect with senior diplomats and politicians not only from Germany, but from a bunch of European countries. The nine-month probe found that the fraudulent accounts, in which operatives posed as headhunters or academic professionals, reached out to at least 10,000 German citizens on LinkedIn in an attempt to find out about everything from their hobbies to which way they leaned politically. The New York Times reports the Chinese spies would dangle free trips to China and meetings with big-name clients to their newfound online acquaintances to try to get them to spill info.

The head of the BfV says this outreach has been a "broad attempt to infiltrate parliaments, ministries, and administrations." The Times notes it's just one way China could try to spy on foreign businesses and governments by culling info on foreign and economic policy that would perhaps give it a leg up in the marketplace. Reuters notes many of the social media profile images were of attractive, stylish young adults, with at least one pic found to be lifted from an online fashion catalog. The BfV says it's sharing this info to warn officials to be careful about posting and sharing too much about themselves on social media. China, however, doesn't agree with the BfV's assessment. A Ministry of Foreign Affairs rep said this news was "complete hearsay and groundless." (Read more China stories.)
The crop in question is soybeans, but there's now a big carrot involved. Reuters reports Monsanto is offering what can amount to a more than 50% rebate to farmers who agree to use the herbicide XtendiMax with VaporGrip on their 2018 soybean crop. A rep for Monsanto calls use of the product and the complementary soybeans engineered to withstand it part of the "next level of weed control"; US regulators are less bullish. After concerns that dicamba-based herbicidesXtendiMax is oneare drifting to other crops that haven't been modifiedthe New York Times in September called Monsanto's modified seeds "one of the biggest product releases in the company's history"more states are restricting the application period and requiring farmers who use the product to undergo training, making the product a bit more cumbersome to use.

To address the first, Reuters reports Monsanto will give farmers a $6 per acre rebate on the product, which generally costs $11 per acre to apply. Ohio State University reiterated its position on how to minimize issues of dicamba drift: limit its use to early season, when there is "less emerged vegetation," noting "postemergence use of dicamba accounted for most of the off-target problems in 2017." To that end, Reuters outlines some states' in-the-works restrictions for 2018; Arkansas is considering a ban on its use after April 15. Monsanto says it expects Xtend soybeans to cover 40 million acres in 2018, a doubling of 2017's numbers. Agriculture.com reports 89.5 million acres of soybeans were planted in the US in summer 2017, and 3.6 million acres were thought to be harmed by dicamba drift. (Read more Monsanto stories.)
The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar's security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the AP found in interviews with 29 women and girls now in Bangladesh. These assault survivors from several refugee camps range in age from 13 to 35, come from villages in Myanmar's Rakhine state, and describe assaults between October 2016 and mid-September. The testimonies bolster the UN's contention that Myanmar's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a "calculated tool of terror" aimed at killing off the Rohingya. The Myanmar armed forces didn't respond to AP requests for comment, but an internal military probe last month concluded the assaults didn't happen. When journos asked about rape allegations in September, Rakhine's minister for border affairs replied: "Look at [the accusers'] appearancesdo you think they are that attractive to be raped?"

Doctors and aid workers, however, say they're stunned at the sheer volume of rapes and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward. Medecins Sans Frontieres doctors have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August; the youngest was 9. Every woman the AP spoke with except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms. The most commonly described attack involved soldiers bursting into private homes to carry out the rapes. In other cases, women said, security forces surrounded a village, separated men from women, then took the women to another location to gang-rape them. The women also spoke of seeing their children slaughtered in front of them and their husbands beaten and shot. More on the women's horrific stories, including the injuries and pregnancies that resulted, here.

(Read more Rohingya stories.)
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Several participants of the March for Impeachment and a rally in support of the former Georgian president and the leader of the Movement of New Forces, Mikheil Saakashvili, held a protest action outside the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office on Sunday, December 10.

Over 200 people have proceeded from the site of a picket near the Ukrainian Security Service's (SBU) detention center to Riznytska Street, where the Prosecutor General's Office building is located.

They were crying out criticizing slogans against Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko, demanding to release from custody Saakashvili and other people, whom they believe to be political prisoners, and to stop the pressure on the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and anti-corruption bodies.

Prior to this, a number of protesters have blocked the Roshen sweet shop on Mazepy Street along with its visitors, according to media reports. They allowed visitors to leave the sweet shop some time later and started throwing snowballs at it.

Meanwhile, a number of protesters remained near the SBU detention center, where Saakashvili detained on Friday is being held.
Verkhovna Rada Chairman Andriy Parubiy has said that no changes will be made to Article 7 "Language of Instruction" in Ukraine's law on education, the parliament's press service has reported.

Parubiy said at a conference dedicated to Local Self-Government Day in Lviv region on Saturday, December 9, that he had a conversation with representatives of the Venice Commission, "and it was agreed that the seventh article of the law on education will not be amended." "It will remain in the wording adopted," he added.

He recalled that round table discussions had been held before the adoption of the education law and their participants could not come to a common opinion. Therefore, Parubiy said, when considering the law on education, he created a working group, due to which "we managed to get a compromise wording, which, on the one hand, protects the language of national minorities, and, on the other hand, makes the study of the state language an obligatory condition for all."

He said that the issue of national identity and historical memory had become a key task for the Ukrainian parliament of the current convocation, including for him as parliament speaker.

As reported, the Ukrainian law on education came into force on September 28. Among other things, the law stipulates that the state language is a language of learning at educational institutions, but one or several subjects in two or more languages, namely, the state language, English and other European Union official languages can be taught in compliance with the educational program. People, who belong to ethnic minorities, are guaranteed the right for learning in the native language along with the Ukrainian language in separate groups of municipal pre-school and primary school institutions.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry sent the education law for examination by the Venice Commission.

On December 8, the Ukrainian Education and Science Ministry reported that the Venice Commission had not supported Hungary's accusation of narrowing the rights of national minorities in the article on the language of instruction in Ukraine's law on education. The commission noted that the issues of the content and scope of rights are exclusively within the competence of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, and a number of questions concerning the use of languages should be resolved by special laws.
New Delhi:

Since last few days, News Nation, News State, and UC News are providing important information about the basic rights that are provided to the citizens of the country.

However, it is regrettable that even after 70 years of independence, a large part of the population is not aware of their rights.

Unfortunately, it is also true that those who are aware of their rights hardly get any justice. Hence it is imperative that we talk about human rights.

How did human rights get into existence?

The UN General Assembly had recognized Human Rights declaration on 10th December 1948. It was also decided to observe December 10 as Human Rights Day every year. In India though, the safeguard of human rights was already into the picture even before it was discussed at the UN General Assembly.

Different Articles of the Constitution bestowed on states of the Republic of India to uphold human rights.

The courts were given the power under Articles 32 and 226 of the Constitution to protect the human rights.

The Constitution empowered the states to enact laws for safeguarding the Human Rights.

It was in 1993 that a law related to Human Rights came into being under which National Human Rights Commission was set up as a free and strong entity. Along with, Human Rights Commissions were set up at state levels.

There is no doubt that India has a much better Human Rights record compared to many countries in the world including its neighbours but the existing figures are disappointing.

If we take a look at figures from the year 2013 to 2016 then we will observe that more than 3 lakh 30 thousand cases of Human Rights violation were registered. Which means that on an average more than 300 cases were reported every day.

On the Human Rights Index Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, and Bihar fare the worst.

There have also been claims of solving 3 lakh 11 thousand cases.

Over the past three years, including the months beginning this year, the National Human Rights Commission recommended the financial help of Rs. 28 crore 80 lakh in 1347 cases, disciplinary action in 98 cases while the prosecution was recommended in 6 cases.

But this does not justify the number of cases registered against which financial relief, disciplinary action, and prosecution were carried out.

The figures are disappointing.

What kind of Human Rights?

More than three crore cases are pending in the country and millions of Indians await justice. The police which is considered protector are themselves facing a lot many allegations of Human Rights violations.

In the past 10 years, 5.5 crore people have spiralled down the poverty line only because of expensive treatments and medicines. Nearly 15 thousand people every day!

Things are so bad that every third poor citizen of the world is an Indian.

A big section of the population is suffering from poverty, illiteracy, and malnutrition and other basic needs.

Of course, in the past 70 years, things have improved on many fronts, but still, there is a long way to go.
Bengaluru:

On Monday evening IG western range of Karnataka Hemant Nimbalakar released the forensic report of the death of 18-year-old Paresh Mesta of Honnavar.



The 3-page forensic report gives answers to 19 questions which were asked by the investigation officer of this case. The report says "neither is there any evidence of injuries over the body due to weapons, nor any evidence of hot water or chemical being poured on the body was found. The report further says the tattoo on the arm of Paresh's body was intact and colour of body has changed due to putrefaction". The forensic investigation was done by doctors of Kasturba Medical College Manipal.



On December 9, a senior leader of Karnataka BJP and member of parliament Shoba Karandalaje had blamed Popular Front Of India (PFI) for Paresh's death. Shoba said, Colour of Paresh's body has turned black. It looks like boiling oil was put on his face. He had a tattoo on arm, flesh of that part has been ripped off. Those who killed Paresh have connections with PFI and the government is trying to protect them."



However, police have not clarified the real cause of death. While talking to News Nation, Hemant Nimbalkar, IG western range said, "We are waiting for the viscera report. With the help of that report, we can ascertain the cause of death. We had to release the forensic report because some people were trying to create law and order situation by circulating fake information and we will take strict action against those who are circulating this fake information."



On Monday late evening, police arrested one person by name Timmappa Parameshvar Nayak, aged 43 years, PE teacher in a private school, residing at Hiregutti, Kumta for spreading false rumours through WhatsApp with respect to the death of Paresh Mesta.



Paresh Mesta was a fisherman who would also participate in the religious functions in the local temple as a drummer.



Meanwhile, BJP leaders will be taking out a protest march on Tuesday in Bengaluru from Vidhan Soudha to Raj Bhawan and submit a memorandum to Governor regarding the death of Paresh.
Bengaluru:

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palika (BBMP) on Monday launched "Fix My Street" app where citizens can report civil amenity issues and BBMP assures all complaints will be addressed within a specific time frame.



While launching this mobile app, Sampat Raj, mayor of Bengaluru said, "Citizens can report about potholes, garbage, and street lights through this app by taking pictures which will be geotagged and all the BBMP officials will receive the complaint."



This mobile app will provide an end-to-end process for addressing citizen request. BBMP has set a specific time to address each issue. Streetlight complaints will be addressed within 12 hours, garbage within 24 hours and potholes will be filled within a week of the complaint added Manjunath Prasaad, the BBMP commissioner.



Potholes and garbage are the two main issues of Bengaluru and BJP is making them a political issue. Now Karnataka's Congress government is trying to solve these issues before the election campaign starts.
Mirzapur/Lucknow (UP):

In a tragic incident, 10 people were killed and other four injured including women and children when a tractor was hit by a truck near Krishi Vigyan Kendra in Marihan area of Mirzapur.

According to police, five people died on the spot, the rest succumbed to injuries in the district hospital. The deceased were identified as Akhilesh (16), Garia(12), Neha (13), Reena (15), Shushama (18), Hema (17), Anita(29), Manju Devi (30), Shyam Murari (10) and Nure (25).

Nure was travelling the truck while the others in the tractor.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the incident and announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of deceased and Rs 25,000 to the injured, an official release said in Lucknow.

He also directed the local administration to provide the best treatment to the injured.

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Verkhovna Rada First Vice Speaker Iryna Gerashchenko, who represents Ukraine in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group, is leaving for the United States on Monday to hold meetings and discuss security issues in Donbas and the release of hostages.

"I'm flying out to the U.S. for a couple of days. A lot of meetings are scheduled. I realize that in addition to the key subjects of security and the humanitarian situations in Donbas and Crimea, the work of the Minsk groups, the situation with hostages (even during these days I will remotely coordinate our joint actions with the SBU and other structures, so that everything is done), there will also be the question of the internal situation, the work of the Verkhovna Rada, and the fight against corruption," she wrote on Facebook on Monday.

According to Gerashchenko, there will be an exchange of views with partners on external and internal challenges and threats.

"God grant that everything work out and all our efforts for the release of the hostages give a result - this is my biggest responsibility for the coming days and weeks," she said.
New Delhi:

India, China and Russia on Monday resolved to step up cooperation to counter terrorism, including choking terror funding and dismantling terrorist infrastructure, as the Indian side flagged concerns over increasing acts of terrorism by Pakistan-based terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

During the 15th Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral, the foreign ministers -Sushma Swaraj, Wang Yi (China) and Sergey Lavrov (Russia)- also underlined the primary and leading role and responsibility of states in preventing and countering terrorism and extremism, a joint statement said.

They also reiterated that all states should take adequate measures to prevent terrorist activities from their territory, it said.

"While discussing terrorism, I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations like Taliban, Daesh (ISIS), Al-Qaeda, and LeT directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development," Swaraj said.

However, the RIC joint statement did not name Pakistan unlike the joint document issued after the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) meet in Xiamen in China in September.

Also Read| Russia says goal of defeating IS in Syria 'accomplished'

Condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including the recent heinous terrorist attacks around the world, the leaders reaffirmed their determination to prevent and counter terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

"We reaffirm that all acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable irrespective of their motivations, committed wherever and by whomsoever," the statement of the RIC leaders said.

They called for greater unity, stronger international partnership and concerted actions by the international community in addressing the menace of terrorism in accordance with international law and the UN Charter, including the principles of sovereign equality of states and non-interference in their internal affairs.

The leaders also emphasised the need for a comprehensive approach to combating terrorism. The statement said in this context, they resolved "to step up cooperation to prevent and counter terrorism and radicalisation, combat the spread of terrorist ideology and propaganda, stop sources of terrorist financing, prevent travelling off and the supply of arms to terrorists, dismantle the terrorist infrastructure."

Also Read| Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to visit New Delhi, hold talks with top Indian officials

They also resolved to enhance cooperation to disrupt recruitment and the flow of foreign terrorist fighters and prevent misuse of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for terrorist purposes, it said.

Swaraj, Wang and Lavrov also stressed that those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with the obligations under international law, including the principle of "extradite or prosecute" as well as the applicable domestic legislation.

"We agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities. We condemn all forms of terrorism and all terrorists, terror entities and organisations listed by the UN Security Council," the statement said.

It assumes significance as China has been blocking the international banning of UN-designated terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, the mastermind of Pathankot terror strike.

The three countries also agreed to intensify cooperation in multilateral fora including FATF and FATF-style regional bodies (FSRBs) so as to cut the flows of funds, and other financial assets and economic resources to individuals and entities involved in terrorism including those proscribed under the relevant UN sanctions.

They stressed on the need for a joint, integrated and balanced approach to deal with drug menace, it's illicit production and trafficking including new psychoactive substances in accordance with the UN Conventions and principles of international law.

The grouping also called for an early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) in the UN to establish the much needed comprehensive international legal framework to address the growing global menace of terrorism.

Expressing deep concern about the threat of WMDs falling into the hands of terrorist groups, including the use of chemicals and biological agents for terrorist purposes, they said they would cooperate to prevent a proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems and to deny access to such weapons by non-state actors, including terrorists.

"We need to address the threat of nuclear, chemical and biological terrorism through intensified meaningful work in international fora," they said in the statement and expressed firm determination to explore actively the modalities of elaborating a mandate in this regard.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Srinagar:

Two bank guards were killed in an attack by militants in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Monday.

Police said, unidentified gunmen indiscriminately opened fire at the bank vehicle of Jammu and Kashmir Bank with automatic and semi-automatic guns. The two guards did not even get time to respond, said a police officer.

The officer added two bank officials are also injured in the attack.

A senior police officer posted at Shopian district said, A search operation has been launched in the region to corner the attackers.

No terrorist organisation has claimed the incident.

(With PTI inputs)

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New Delhi :

A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his election campaign on Sunday questioned the motive behind the meeting between the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani Envoy, the latter on Monday asked his successor to tell the country the reasons for inviting ISI to Pathankot Air Base to investigate terror attack orchestrated by the neighbour itself.

PM Modi should also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan, said Singh.

The former prime minister in his official statement also reminded PM Modi of his uninvited Pakistan visit soon after terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

Singh further said, My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political grounds.

Also read| PM Modi: Why does Pak Army ex-DG want Ahmed Patel as Gujarat CM



Manmohan Singh further said, Congress does not need sermons on Nationalism from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

Singh in his official statement denied discussing Gujarat elections with anyone at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner, said Singh.

He further added, I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread.

The official statement by the former Prime Minister also reads, Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, the desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

The senior Congressman also added, PM Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of the former prime minister and army chief.

Also read| Don't drag us into your domestic politics: Pakistan to India



Singh suggested his successor to show maturity and expected gravitas of the high office and sought an apology from PM Modi to the nation.

I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies, read Singhs statement.

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New Delhi:

Security forces on Monday gunned down three terrorists in an encounter in Bomai of Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district. Another terrorist has been captured in an injured state, reported ANI on Monday.

The development comes after the security forces launched a search operation in the area. Although the firing has stopped, the search operations are still underway.

The state's Director General of Police, SP Vaid took to Twitter saying, "In Unisoo, Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralized by Joint team of J&K Police, RR & CRPF. It has been raining whole night and boys were out there in the cold."

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Beijing:

In a new finding, Researchers have identified around 500 tiny finger and toe bones belonging to primates - some half the size of a mouse - that lived about 45 million years ago in what is now China, offering evidence that early human ancestors came from Asia.

Representing nine different taxonomic families of primates and as many as 25 species, the specimens include numerous fossils attributed to Eosimias, the very first anthropoid known to date, and three fossils attributed to a new and much more advanced anthropoid.

The anthropoid lineage would later include monkeys, apes and humans.

"The fossils are extraordinarily small, but in terms of quantity this is the largest single assemblage of fossil primate finger and toe specimens ever recorded," said Dan Gebo, professor at Northern Illinois University in the US.

All of the finger and toe fossils imply tree-dwelling primates with grasping digits in both hands and feet.

Many of the smaller fossils are between 1 and 2 millimetres in length, and the animals would have ranged in full body size from 10 to 1,000 grammes.

"The new study provides further evidence that early anthropoids were minuscule creatures, the size of a mouse or smaller," Gebo said.

"It also adds to the evidence pointing towards Asia as the initial continent for primate evolution. While apes and fossil humans do come from Africa, their ancestors came from Asia," he said.

The newly described fossils were originally recovered from a commercial quarry near the village of Shanghuang in the southern Jiangsu Province of China, about 100 miles west of Shanghai.

Christopher Beard, a paleontologist at the University of Kansas in the US, said the limestone in the quarry is of Triassic age - from the very beginning of the Age of Dinosaurs some 220 million years ago.

Owing to a subsequent phase of erosion, the limestone developed large fissures containing fossil-rich sediments dating to the middle Eocene, after dinosaurs went extinct.

In the early 1990s, more than 10 tonnes of fossil-bearing matrix were collected from the fissures and shipped to the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in China and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in the US.

There, the matrix was washed and screened, yielding fossil bones and teeth from ancient mammals, many of which remain to be identified.

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New Delhi :

Google is celebrating 135 th birthday of German physicist and mathematician Max Born with a doodle created by artist Kati Szilagyi. Born is seen holding a pen that resembles the symbol psi, which is a representation of the wave function of Physics.

Max Born was born on 11 December 1882 in Breslau, now WrocAaw, Poland to a family of Jewish descent.

Known for ground breaking work in quantum mechanics and statistical interpretation of the wave function, Max Born won the Nobel Prize in 1954.

In 1918 Max met with Fritz Haver in Berlin in a coincidence that led to the discussion on formation of ionic compound when a metal reacts with halogen. This is known as the Born-Haber cycle.

Max Born was inspired by Albert Einsteins research on special relativity and latter began research on special relativity.

Born was among the three nominees for Nobel prize in 1928 along with Heisenberg and Jordan by Albert Einstein.

In a famous letter written to Born in December 4, 1926, Einstein wrote, Quantum mechanics is certainly imposing. But an inner voice tells me that it is not yet the real thing. The theory says a lot, but does not really bring us any closer to the secret of the 'old one'. I, at any rate, am convinced that He is not playing at dice.

This quotation is often paraphrased as 'God does not play dice'.

For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Telecommunications service provider Bharti Airtel Ltd has signed an agreement with Department of Telecom and the Universal Service Obligation Fund, under which it will set up more than 2,000 mobile towers across villages and national highways in the uncovered villages of North East.

The agreement, signed on Saturday, said the company will set up these towers across the villages of Assam, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh over the next 18 months.

The companys statement said, Bharti Airtel has signed an agreement with DoT and the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) for provision of mobile services in identified uncovered villages and national highways in the North-Eastern states of Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh.

Expanding the telecom connectivity will lead to many developments in the North-Eastern states.

Airtels Chief Operating Officer (India and South Asia), Ajay Puri, said, Airtel has been leading the expansion of telecom services in the Northeast and as the largest operator in these markets, we have gained deep understanding of the region. This project will provide a massive boost to telecom connectivity in these areas and truly connect them with the rest of India and the world. Customers in these areas can look forward to affordable world-class mobile services very soon.

Also Read: Airtel, Intex partner for 4G phone at an effective price

For the execution of the project, the company will receive an amount of Rs 1,610 from the Universal Service Obligation Fund, the statement added.

Bharti Airtel is Indias largest telecom service provider in terms of revenue and subscriber base.
New Delhi:

Search engine Google, which has a range of significant apps like Google Maps and Google Play Music, is ready to update its Google Maps service with new features.

Just a week ago, Google Maps got the Two-wheeler feature, and now the app is ready for its new feature which will inform the user when to get off a bus or a train while travelling.

This feature is really helpful when a user tends to fall asleep and forgets to de-board on their particular stop.

This new feature will notify a user as and when they are about to reach their destination. Google Maps will reportedly send live notifications mentioning its time to de-board on the users phone.

These notifications do not need the app to be opened. Maps will notify even if the users phone is locked.

Google Maps currently shows the real-time updated directions when you travel in a bus or train. The new update might be a small one, but is really essential in a persons journey.

Also Read: Google Doodle honours Max Born; German physicist and Nobel laureate known for path-breaking research in Quantum Physics

The notifications sent by Google Maps will directly come on your Android lock screen.

Google Maps recently introduced the Two-wheeler mode under which bikers get the fastest route to reach their destination. However, this feature is only available for Android users but will soon be available on iOS too.
Lahore:

Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed has unveiled his political ambitions by formally announcing that his Jammat-ud-Dawah will contest the general elections in Pakistan in 2018 under the banner of the Milli Muslim League, which is yet to be registered with the Election Commission.

The banned JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which carried out the 2008 Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed.

"The Milli Muslim League (MML) is planning to contest next year's general elections," said Saeed, a terrorist leader designated by both the United Nations and the United States.

Talking to a group of columnists at the JuD headquartersin Chauburji on Sundayy, he dedicated 2018 for Kashmiris.

The JuD chief, who carries a bounty of USD 10 million announced by the US for his role in terror activities, walked free on November 24 after the Pakistan government decided against detaining him further in any other case. He was under detention since January this year.

Saeed is also the vice president of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council, an umbrella coalition of more than 40 political and religious parties that advocate conservative policies.

In September when Saeed was under house arrest in Lahore, the JuD entered in the political arena and contested by-poll from NA-120. That National Assembly had fallen vacant on the disqualification of prime minister Nawaz Sharif. Sharif's wife Kulsoom Nawaz had won that seat.

JuD-backed candidate Sheikh Yaqoob, who secured 6,000 votes, had announced that the JuD would contest 2018 elections.

Yaqoob was placed in 2012 on a US Treasury sanctions list of those designated as leaders of terrorist organisations.

The founder of LeT militant group vowed to continue supporting the Kashmiris fighting the Indian forces.

"I want to tell India that I will continue to support Kashmiris no matter what kind of difficulties are there. India wants us to stop raising voice for the Kashmiris. It is building pressure on the Pakistani government. I want to tell Pakistan that back channel diplomacy only caused harm to the Kashmir cause," Saeed alleged.

He further said his detention in Pakistan and Hurriyat leaders in India was part of international agenda.

"This had been done to harm the Kashmir cause. India is angry over my release from the house detention. I warn India if it does not stop atrocities against Kashmiris then this struggle will rise further and it will face the music," he threatened.

The JuD was declared as a foreign terrorist organisation by the US in June 2014.

India had expressed outrage over Pakistan's decision to release Saeed, calling it an attempt by Islamabad to mainstream proscribed terrorists and a reflection of its continuing support to non-state actors.

Saeed has now filed the petition to de-list him from the UN list of designated terrorists.

He was also put under house arrest soon after the Mumbai attack, but he was freed by a court in 2009.

Nine of the Mumbai attackers were killed by police while lone survivor Ajmal Kasab was caught and executed after a trial.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi :

Three people were injured after a pipe bomb was triggered in an underground subway passage between Times Square and Port Authority Bus Terminal at Manhattan in United States on Monday.

US officials are calling it a terrorist attack. New York Police Department (NYPD) officials have arrested a Bangladeshi national in connection to explosion.

The arrested has been identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, a Bangladeshi native. Officials said Ullah was injured while detonating the explosive in the underground subway passage.

A

New York mayor Bill De Blasio termed the explosion as a terror attack. He said, aThis was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.a

Let's be clear a this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals. Our first responders were there quickly and the only injuries we know of right now are minor. a Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) December 11, 2017

The NYPD on its official twitter handle confirmed the incident and said no injuries have been reported. The Police has requested all commuters to avoid the area.



The NYPD added that they have cleared out A,C and E subway lines that sit beneath the building.A According to reports, the US police has taken a man into custody, who they believe was carrying an explosive material that went off.

Update regarding explosion at 42nd St and 8th Ave, in subway: One male suspect is in custody. No injuries other than suspect at this time. Avoid the area. Subways bypassing #PortAuthority and Times Square Stations. Info is preliminary. pic.twitter.com/bEAdjq8mYc a NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

Soon after the reported explosion, several blocks of the Eighth Ave. were shut down as emergency responders took their position on the street.

According to reports the blast shuttered the 1,2 and 3 subway lined and locked down the area around the bus depot near Eighth and Ninth Aves.

One Keith Woodfin soon after the explosion tweeted, aI was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting aGo, Fo., Go.a

I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting aGo, Go, Goa a Keith Woodfin (@hkdallas) December 11, 2017

No terrorist organisation has yet claimed the incident.





For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Aver Lex lawyer Vitaliy Serdiuk, who represents the interests of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, has brought an application to Kyiv's Obolonsky District Court on his return to the hearing of the high treason case.

At a court session on Monday, he read out an application by Yanukovych, in which he asks for Serdiuk's participation in the interrogation of witnesses.

"The Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine registered a criminal proceeding on the basis of my application on committing a coup in February 2014. During the consideration of this criminal proceeding, the Obolonsky Court of the city of Kyiv determined the list of witnesses on the part of the prosecution, who must be summoned and questioned in court. Some of them are witnesses and suspects in the coup case. In order to ensure my participation and document the testimony of witnesses or potential suspects in the coup case, I attract and authorize the lawyers of the Aver Lex firm to provide me with legal assistance in full," reads Yanukovych's application dated December 8, 2017, which Serdiuk read out.

The lawyer noted that the former president insisted on his participation in the interrogation of witnesses summoned to the court in the high treason case and asked the court to provide him with such an opportunity.

After a short break the Obolonsky District Court continued the session.

Serdiuk and his colleague, Ihor Fedorenko, are already taking part in the process. Yanukovych's public lawyer, Ihor Liashenko, also continues to participate in the process.

Presiding Judge Vladyslav Deviatko said that even if there are other lawyers, the public lawyer must fulfill his duties until a respective decision is made by the center for the provision of free legal assistance.

In July, Yanukovych withdrew private lawyers from the trial, in which he is accused of high treason. Public lawyers were appointed for him.
Batkivshchyna Party leader Yulia Tymoshenko has drawn parallels between the arrest of the leader of the Movement of New Forces party and former Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili, and her arrest, calling on Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to release Saakashvili.

"I understand that Mikheil Saakashvili was imprisoned not by the prosecutor general, not by the court, not by any other law enforcement agency. It was you who imprisoned him. Therefore, I appeal to you - immediately cancel all your orders. Do not dishonor Ukraine in the eyes of the whole world and your own people. Immediately release Saakashvili!" reads Tymoshenko's appeal to Poroshenko, which was posted on the website of the Batkivschyna Party on Saturday, December 9.

She recalled that a similar story had already occurred: "Mr. President, you have lost your memory. You forgot that a situation similar to the arrest of Saakashvili had already occurred."

According to Tymoshenko, in his fourth year as president, Poroshenko became simultaneously president, prosecutor, parliament, government, court and general producer of all television channels.

"And now you are jailing your opponents - the way Yanukovych did it. Keep in mind how it all ended," the politician said.

As reported, Saakashvili was detained late on Friday, December 8. He is charged under Part 2, Article 256 of the Criminal Code (assisting members of criminal organizations and concealing their criminal activity), which foresees from five to ten years of imprisonment.
State police are asking for the publics help to find two convicts who allegedly left halfway houses without permission.

The men are wanted for first-degree escapethe same statute that punishes people who break out of prison.

Zachary Foster, 22, allegedly left his halfway house in September. Police described him as a black, about 130 lbs, and 5 feet 5 inches tall with brown eyes and black hair.

Police did not say what had landed foster in a halfway house. A man with the same name and birth year pleaded guilty in 2016 to drug possession and in 2014 to carrying a dangerous weapon, according to court records.

Trooper also repeated a request from last week for the publics help to find James Shea, 47, who allegedly left a halfway house in April. He is described as a white, 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing around 250 pounds.

Shea is also wanted for outstanding larceny arrest warrants and failure to appear in court, police said.

Anyone who thinks they may have any information about the escapees or their whereabouts can call the Connecticut State Police Troop A in Southbury at 203-267-2200. They can also text information to 274637.

Police say that all calls and texts will be kept confidential.
In this Americas Small-Business Heroes edition of The Fix, Entrepreneur Associate Editor Lydia Belanger shares her conversations with founders and executives who have solved problems while keeping social impact in mind.

Nuria Santamaria Wolfe says she grew up feeling like she was living in two worlds. Born in El Salvador, she moved to Los Angeles with her family at age 3. Her childhood home life was filled with Latino culture, and Spanish is her first language, but living in the U.S. immersed her in the American mainstream. She learned how to transition between the two worlds, she says, and proudly grew up with a bicultural identity.

Even before graduating high school, Santamaria Wolfe knew that she wanted to pursue a career addressing the ways in which Hispanic people were underserved and underrepresented. She decided to study economics in college at Stanford and minored in Spanish, despite her fluency, to ready herself to use the language in a business context.

Eventually, she worked her way up to Twitter, where she headed up multicultural strategy for the social platform, identifying the market opportunities associated with long underrepresented and growing demographics.

I got to the point where I realized, sometimes brands understand the opportunity and dont act on it, Santamaria Wolfe says, or want to act on it but dont know how to act on it.

Related: How Lyft Goes Beyond Picking Up Drunk People From Bars by Giving Patients Rides to the Doctor's

Then, in 2015, she became a mother and saw a massive opportunity for more Latino culture in childrens media. She co-founded Encantos Media Studios with the goal of creating products to the bridge gaps between cultures. The first brand under the Encantos umbrella is Canticos, which publishes Latino nursery rhymes in books, sing-along videos and interactive app formats.

We werent going to wait for Disney or another media company to do this, Santamaria Wolfe, who also serves as Encantos CEO, says. We were passionate about doing this not just because it was a business opportunity, but almost because of social good. We felt we had to do it -- for the culture, for the people.

Santamaria Wolfe and her team have several goals for their self-funded media startup. They founded it as a public-benefit corporation and prioritize giving -- through in-kind donations, partnerships with charitable organizations, events, educational materials for kids and parenting resources.

They also want their products to appeal to more than just Latino families. The long-term plan is to create content for a range of cultures. For instance, Canticos stories, Santamaria Wolfe explains, are meant to make Latinos feel proud to see their culture represented, and give non-Latino parents an opportunity to expose their kids to diverse and bilingual content.

But the mass appeal the company had worked to cultivate would be much more powerful as a mass-market scale. Not to mention, financial growth would allow the public-benefit corporation to better fulfill its social mission. As partnership opportunities have arisen with big players such as Target, Nickelodeon and Burts Bees, Encantos has worked to deliver new products quickly by leveraging existing smaller partnerships and in-house talent, when possible.

When we think about going from a small, family-owned startup to scaling and playing with the big guys, Santamaria Wolfe says, its about finding that balance of capitalizing on short-term opportunities while not sacrificing the long-term vision that we have.

Heres how Encantos has stayed lean despite the demands of new distributors.

The fix

Target and Encantos began talks due to the retailers hunger for more bilingual childrens books. When Encantos first met with Target, it had four book titles out in market at the time. The problem was, they were not mass-market friendly and featured details such as a slip-cover and accordion-like expansion that made them more suited for boutique book stores. Encantos anticipated Target would want a smaller, pared-down version -- the existing one wouldnt fit on its shelves -- and brought a mock of a simpler version to the meeting. The companies worked together to retain the authenticity of the stories and the interactivity of the products that Encantos has prioritized from the day it was founded.

Image Credit: Encantos Media Studios, PBC



The challenge, however, was that Target wanted the new version of the books in a matter of three months, while Encantos had slated production for them a year out. Despite the magnitude of this deal, Encantos used its existing resources to handle it. The company called up its printer, a fellow startup, and explained the situation. The printer fast-tracked the process, and Encantos made Targets deadline.

Related: Productive Partnerships: How a 'David' Can Partner With 'Goliath'

This fall, Encantos has entered into another large partnership, with Nickelodeon. It had already been creating animated content for its own YouTube channel, which has more than 117,000 subscribers -- its singalong videos contain animated versions of the artwork in Canticos nursery rhyme books. Again, the company faced an aggressive timeline: The new content is slated to debut in spring 2018.

We had to work on short-form, digital content that needed to live on Nickelodeons platform, Santamaria Wolfe says. We had to up the ante of the quality and quantity. And we were not set up to do that.

In this case, Encantos made the decision to call upon new help for aspects such as storyboarding and post-production, hiring an animation studio.

Its about understanding where your limitations are going to be, Santamaria Wolfe says of the decision, and when its time to bring in an additional partner.

That said, Encantos relies heavily on its diversely talented in-house team. For example, the companys art director for Canticos books also designs the website and will soon work on additional consumer products Encantos and Nickelodeon has in the works, such as childrens bedding. Encantos CTO has a music background and consults on lyrics and translations, but the companys production work happens externally.

You have to be self-aware, as an organization, Santamaria Wolfe says. Its great to wear all hats and be a jack-of-all-trades, but you have to know when its not going to be enough and fill those gaps in talent.

She also notes that, when possible, companies seeking rapid growth should also look for jacks of all trades when hiring external talent as well, rather than seeking several one-off freelancers to build relationships with.

The results

Canticos books appeared on shelves of 400 Target stores in October 2017 after the three-month turnaround earlier this year.

We remained working with a partner that we respected and appreciated, Santamaria Wolfe says of Encantos relationship with its printer, which has helped release six titles, four of which come in two book formats. Small companies work well with small companies.

Encantos sells its books across the U.S. as well as in Europe, Asia and Latin America. It recently added Costco Puerto Rico as a distributor.

Image Credit: Erica Rojas



The company will grow its digital reach from to 2.6 million when it hits Nickelodeons platforms this spring. The studio that will have made this possible is based in Canada, and Santamaria Wolfe explains that this was a strategic move: Canada offers tax credits for animation work, which is saving Encantos money -- money that it can allocate to public-benefit efforts.

I think weve been really smart about the way in which weve used our resources, financial and people wise, Santamaria Wolfe says. We try to move fast, but very thoughtfully, in the way that we do things, and its given us opportunities to start to give back very early on.

Another take

When trying to decide whether to complete a project internally or with external help, companies should ask themselves what the costs of each option are, says Amy Blitz, a lecturer at Babson College who has led organizational research at IBM, McKinsey and other institutions throughout her career.

A company might decide it wants to do something in-house if it decides that type of project is core enough to its strategy going forward that it needs to develop those kinds of capabilities, Blitz says.

Related: 9 Ways to Recruit the Best Talent for Your Startup

She cites Apples move into retail in the early 2000s as an example. The tech giant determined it would be beneficial to operate its own stores, rather than leave the sales of its products to third parties such as Best Buy. Similarly, Netflix and Amazon have been producing their own TV content, as well as streaming licensed works.

Companies should have insights into whether their direct competitors are building vs. buying certain aspects of their business, but know the same strategy may be right applicable for any number of reasons. A company that takes on a new project in-house may have to dial down efforts in another area. Because of this, Blitz says, its important that a company knows where it wants to focus -- and plan ahead.

Other costs may involve managing the group that is completing the project, whether it's longstanding employees or a freelancer or agency. Although outsourcing allows more flexibility for companies that dont need certain capabilities on a constant or regular basis, the tradeoff is building rapport and trust. Terms of a partnership such as each partys ownership and responsibilities inevitably come into play.

Blitz shares an anecdote of a pair of partners that built a technology solution to keep sensitive information such as intellectual property private. Other organizations may agree upon regular check-ins or surveys to make sure each is holding up its end of the deal, happy with the arrangement and seeking ways to improve it. Another idea is to have internal and external teams report to the same person to force the two groups to see each other as collaborators, rather than competitors, Blitz explains

Partnerships of any size have a bearing on a companys branding and its employees, customers and suppliers perceptions of its values, and opening the wrong door can cause others to close.

Companies should ask, Who are we? What do we do? How do we do it -- at a profit? Blitz says. And, what dont we do?

Related video: Filmmaker Ken Burns Explains How to Build a Team You'd Trust in Battle

Related:



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This article originally appeared on entrepreneur.com


Ukrainian businessman Serhiy Kurchenko, who is hiding in the Russian Federation, has sued President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko.

As reported in the Unified State Register of Court Rulings, the lawsuit was registered on October 4 this year under No. 2-4203/17, the essence of the dispute is: "On the protection of honor, dignity and business reputation." LLC TV and Radio Company Studio 1 + 1 is indicted as the third party in the case.

According to the register, the case is being examined by Kyiv's Pechersky district court, Viacheslav Podpalov is the judge. A decision was taken on December 2 to set on April 4, 2018, as the day of the trial.

As reported, on May 30, 2017, the prosecutor's office in Odesa region sent Kurchenko a notice of suspicion of creating a criminal group and money laundering.

The charge against Kurchenko concerns criminal possession of property of state and private organizations (the National Bank of Ukraine, PJSC Ukrnafta, Ukrgazvydobuvannya, PJSC Real Bank, PJSC Brokbusinessbank, etc.) by abuse of powers of officials and official forgery of documents with further laundering of proceeds from crime. In early July, the Prosecutor General's Office reported that losses from the criminal group created by Kurchenko exceeded UAH 14 billion.

Last week, Ukrainian Chief Prosecutor Yuriy Lutsenko announced the disruption of the Russian Federal Security Service's "Russian Winter" plan in Kyiv, which also included rallies organized by the Movement of New Forces Party led by former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and allegedly financed by Kurchenko.
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TORONTO, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Automotive Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX: APR.UN) (the "REIT") today announced that it has entered into an agreement to purchase the Mazda des Sources automotive dealership property in suburban Montreal, Quebec (the "Property") for a purchase price of approximately $8.0 million. The addition of the Property is expected to be accretive to the REIT's Adjusted Funds from Operations ("AFFO") on a per unit basis.

The Property includes a newly-built 16,700 square-foot, full-service Mazda dealership facility located on approximately 1.7 acres at 2345 Place Transcanadienne (Trans-Canada Highway), a busy commercial area of Dorval, Quebec. Upon closing of the acquisition, Mazda des Sources, owned by the Dilawri Group, will be the operating tenant and will enter into a 19-year, triple-net lease with the REIT. The lease is indemnified by the Dilawri Group.

"The addition of this newly constructed facility will further enhance the REIT's portfolio," said Milton Lamb, President and CEO of Automotive Properties REIT. "We continue to execute on opportunities to strengthen the REIT's major market and brand diversification. This represents our fourth property acquisition in the greater Montreal area, further expanding our presence in Canada's second largest urban market."

The REIT intends to satisfy the purchase price through draws on its existing credit facilities. The REIT has completed its diligence in connection with this acquisition and closing is expected to occur prior to 2017 year-end, subject to customary closing conditions.

About Automotive Properties REIT

Automotive Properties REIT is an unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust focused on owning and acquiring primarily income-producing automotive dealership properties located in Canada. Currently, the REIT's portfolio consists of 38 income producing commercial properties representing approximately 1.4 million square feet of gross leasable area in metropolitan markets across Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec. Automotive Properties REIT is the only public vehicle in Canada focused on consolidating automotive dealership real estate properties. For more information, please visit: www.automotivepropertiesreit.ca.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, which reflects the REIT's current expectations regarding future events and in some cases can be identified by such terms as "will", "anticipates" and "expected". Forward-looking information is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the REIT's control that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the factors discussed under "Risks and Uncertainties" in the REIT's management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A") most recently filed on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) and in the REIT's current annual information form which is also available on SEDAR. The REIT does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law. This forward-looking information speaks as of the date of this news release.

Non-IFRS Financial Measure

This news release contains a financial measure which is not defined under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other real estate investment trusts or enterprises. AFFO is a key measure of earnings performance used by real estate businesses. This measure is not defined by IFRS and does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS, and therefore should not be construed as an alternative to net income or cash flow from operating activities calculated in accordance with IFRS. The REIT believes that AFFO is an important measure of economic earnings performance and is indicative of the REIT's ability to pay distributions from earnings. The IFRS measurement most directly comparable to AFFO is net income. Please refer to the REIT's MD&A for further discussion of this non-IFRS financial measure.

SOURCE Automotive Properties Real Estate Investment Trust

For further information: Bruce Wigle, Investor Relations, Bay Street Communications, Tel: 647-496-7856; Milton Lamb, President & CEO, Automotive Properties REIT, Tel: 647-789-2445; Andrew Kalra, CFO & Corporate Secretary, Automotive Properties REIT, 647-789-2446

Related Links

www.automotivepropertiesreit.ca


"This is a harrowing tale but required learning on our journey towards reconciliation with Canada's Indigenous Peoples," says Ellen Curtis, Director of Can Geo Education. "Our Google Earth Voyager residential school story provides a much needed primer for elementary and secondary school students. "

Told through a geographic lens, the Google Earth Voyager residential school story shows students where each school is located on a map of Canada, and often providing an overhead view of the school itself. The story explains why the schools were built, what attending a residential school was like for Indigenous children, the effects of the system on students, and how residential school survivors are working to move forward. The poignant testimonials of residential school survivors, providing detailed accounts of their abuse inside this educational system, will have an indelible impact on readers. These honest accounts of childhood loss and abuse will hopefully help students to break down any learned prejudices and build understanding that will aid in the reconciliation process.

"The Google Earth's Voyageur residential school story is an extremely important tool that encourages discussion in a way that compliments the learning styles of today's students," says Ry Moran, Director of the NCTR. "This is exactly what we need for a tough topic like the residential school story, if reconciliation is to begin."

This tale about Canada's residential schools is the latest installment in Google Earth's Voyager series. Google has been working with prestigious partners, such as NASA, BBC, and now, Can Geo Education, to bring storytelling functionality to its popular Google Earth mapping service. Over the past four years, Google has also supported the refresh materials to ensure they dovetail with current trends in geography teaching. Just this past summer, Google worked with Can Geo Education to provide professional development training for teachers on the use of popular geographic tools, such as Google Maps, Google Street View and Google Expeditions. Working with Google is just one of the ways Can Geo Education is helping to develop 21st century geographic skills among Canadians to maintain our nation's reputation as a geography powerhouse.

SOURCE Royal Canadian Geographical Society

For further information: Media information: Deborah Chapman, Communications Manager, Royal Canadian Geographical Society, O (613) 613-745-4629 ext. 160, C (613) 299-8995, Email: [email protected]
SAO PAULO, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ -- Created in the online universe in 2000 and expanding to brick-and-mortar retail where customers participate in a single program whenever they make purchases at various establishments, earning the same type of points. Founded by Brazilian businessman Roberto Chade, Dotz formed an international partnership with Loyalty One, the manager of the world's largest coalition loyalty program, Air Miles. As a result of this partnership, since 2009 Loyalty One has held a 37% stake in Dotz, with the Chade family owning the remaining 63%.

Seeking to boost earnings and expand the profitability to partnering retailers, at the same time that it allows consumers to use their daily purchases to get more out of life, increasing the purchasing power of Brazilians, Dotz is the fastest growing coalition loyalty program in the country. Dotz currently has more than 23 million clients, more than 300 partners, 8,200 brick-and-mortar partner establishments, physical presence in 690 cities across 12 states, and more than 160 online partners that allow people from all over Brazil to take part in the loyalty program. With this array of partners, customers earn Dotz in their daily purchases and then redeem them for products, plane tickets, supermarket vouchers, or pay their water, electric, or phone bills, and much more. Dotz can be redeemed for more than 50,000 products and experiences. The company registers an average of 900 Dotz distributed every second, and close to 10,000 redemptions every day.

Among Dotz's main partners are major brands familiar to every Brazilian, such as Banco do Brasil, Banco Santander, Vivo, Polishop, Ri Happy, the Super Nosso, Big Box, Angeloni, Paulistao, and Prezunic supermarkets, Posto Ale, Atlantica Hotels, Walmart.com, Americanas.com, and Submarino.com. If Dotz were classified as a retailer, considering the unified revenue at the company's 17 partner food retailers, Dotz could be said to be the 4th-largest supermarket group in Brazil.

The new Dotz challenge

In spite of Brazil's currently tumultuous economic situation, Dotz has set itself the challenge of doubling in size in three years, reaching revenue of R$1 billion. To do this, the company is relying on the following pillars of growth:

- Entering new locations: with a physical presence in major Brazilian cities, Dotz now plans to set up shop in strategic cities such as Sao Paulo, Salvador, and Porto Alegre.

- New businesses: the company's new fronts of action will be along the markets of Coalition Incentive Campaigns, Utilities  with the distribution of Dotz to clients of electric companies such as Elektro , and entry into the Insurance business, where the company will distribute Dotz to holders of insurance plans.

- Growing its client base: with more than 23 million clients, Dotz continues to report constant growth in the markets where it has already consolidated its presence, and has forecasts to capture new clients as part of its expansion plan.

- Expansion in consolidated markets: in states where Dotz has a strong presence in the capital cities, the company now plans to expand its activities into cities in the interior of those states.

- New partners: both in e-commerce and at brick-and-mortar retailers, Dotz is constantly working to capture new partners, and its results have attracted the interest of major Brazilian retailers, who see in the coalition program an opportunity to create even more customer loyalty.

- Partnerships with industry: the food and beverage industry has increasingly relied on the program by providing Dotz Extras to customers, making it so that products sold in partner supermarkets offer more benefits to consumers, who end up earning more Dotz in their daily purchases.

Contact:

55 11 3736-9585 or 55 11 3736-9581- Natalia

SOURCE Dotz
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CALGARY, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) (NYSE:ENB) (Enbridge or the Company) today announced that it has closed its previously announced public offering (the Offering) of Cumulative Redeemable Minimum Rate Reset Preference Shares, Series 19 (the Series 19 Preferred Shares) through a syndicate of underwriters led by Scotiabank, BMO Capital Markets, CIBC Capital Markets and National Bank Financial. Enbridge issued 20 million Series 19 Preferred Shares, inclusive of 4 million Series 19 Preferred Shares issued on full exercise of the underwriters' option, for gross proceeds of $500 million. The Series 19 Preferred Shares will begin trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) today under the symbol ENB.PF.K. Proceeds from the Offering are expected to be used to partially fund capital projects, to reduce existing indebtedness and for other general corporate purposes of the Company and its affiliates.

Enbridge Inc. (CNW Group/Enbridge Inc.)

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the preferred shares in any jurisdiction. The preferred shares offered have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold within the United States unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

Forward Looking Statements

Certain information provided in this news release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward-looking information, or forward-looking statements, contained in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to the expected use of proceeds of the Offering and the date on which the Series 19 Preferred Shares will begin trading on the TSX. This information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "anticipate", "expect", "project", "estimate", "forecast" and similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Although the Company believes that these statements are based on information which is current, reasonable and complete, these statements are necessarily subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties. Material assumptions, risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to the following: regulatory approvals not being obtained in the manner or timing anticipated, the state of domestic capital markets, changes in general market conditions and other factors more fully described from time to time in the reports and filings made by the Company with Canadian and United States securities regulators. Due to the interdependencies and correlation of these macroeconomic factors, the impact of any one assumption on a forward-looking statement cannot be determined with certainty. Except to the extent required by applicable law, Enbridge assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made in this news release or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. All subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, attributable to Enbridge or persons acting on the Company's behalf, are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements.

ABOUT ENBRIDGE INC.

Enbridge Inc. is North America's premier energy infrastructure company with strategic business platforms that include an extensive network of crude oil, liquids and natural gas pipelines, regulated natural gas distribution utilities and renewable power generation. The Company safely delivers an average of 2.8 million barrels of crude oil each day through its Mainline and Express Pipeline; accounts for approximately 65% of U.S.-bound Canadian crude oil exports; and moves approximately 20% of all natural gas consumed in the U.S., serving key supply basins and demand markets. The Company's regulated utilities serve approximately 3.6 million retail customers in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. Enbridge also has interests in more than 2,500 MW of net renewable generating capacity in North America and Europe. The Company has ranked on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations index for the past eight years; its common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB.

SOURCE Enbridge Inc.

For further information: Enbridge Inc. - Media, Suzanne Wilton, (403) 231-7385 or Toll Free: (888) 992-0997, Email: [email protected]; Enbridge Inc. - Investment Community, Jonathan Gould, (403) 231-3916 or Toll Free: (800) 481-2804, Email: [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.enbridge.com


VANCOUVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Trilogy Metals Inc. (TSX, NYSE American: TMQ) ("Trilogy Metals" or "the Company") announces the appointment of Mr. William ("Willie") Iggiagruk Hensley to the Company's Board of Directors.

Willie Hensley was born in Kotzebue, Alaska, attended the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and graduated with a degree in Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, DC. Mr. Hensley significantly contributed to the settlement of Alaska's Native claims with the United States federal government. While attending graduate school in Fairbanks, Willie wrote a seminal research paper for Judge Jay Rabinowitz titled "Alaska Native Land Claims: The Primary Issue", which outlined the historical land rights of Alaska Natives, arguing for a just settlement of the issue. His research paper led to Native self-organization and the establishment of the Northwest Alaska Native Association in 1966  a precursor to Maniilaq Association, a non-profit organization which advocates for all Native issues, including health, housing, and political rights. President Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act ("ANCSA") in December 1971 providing for the creation of 12 Alaska Native Regional Corporations which were capitalized with close to $1 billion and peacefully transferred about 44 million acres of land to Alaska Natives through their corporate entities. NANA Regional Corporation, Inc. ("NANA") was created as a result of ANCSA and received title to 2.28 million acres of lands in the Northwest Alaska region  now organized into the Northwest Arctic Borough. NANA is a for-profit US corporation with a mission to provide economic opportunities for its more than 14,000 Inupiat shareholders as well as to protect and enhance NANA lands.

Mr. Hensley was elected to the House of Representatives after graduation and then served four full terms as Senator and two further terms through an appointment by Governor Steve Cowper. Willie Hensley was a founder of NANA, served for 20 years as a director, became the head of NANA Development Corporation and finally President of NANA Regional Corporation. He was a founder of the Alaska Federation of Natives and served as director, executive director, president and co-chair.

Mr. Hensley is currently serving as chair of the First Alaskans Institute and is the Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Business and Public Policy at the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

"We are honored and privileged to have Mr. Hensley serve on the Company's Board of Directors. His experience and insights will be invaluable to the Company as we advance our projects in the Ambler mining district," said Gerry McConnell, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

"Willie Hensley was a founding member of NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., and has been a pivotal figure in Alaska," said Wayne Westlake, NANA President and CEO. "He led the movement that solidified Indigenous inclusion in projects on Alaska-Native owned lands, which has defined NANA's model for responsible resource development. Willie will be an invaluable addition to the Trilogy board."

About Trilogy Metals

Trilogy Metals Inc. is a metals exploration company focused on exploring and developing the Ambler mining district located in northwestern Alaska. It is one of the richest and most-prospective known copper-dominant districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. It hosts world-class polymetallic VMS deposits that contain copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, and carbonate replacement deposits which have been found to host high grade copper mineralization. Exploration efforts have been focused on two deposits in the Ambler mining district - the Arctic VMS deposit and the Bornite carbonate replacement deposit. Both deposits are located within the Company's land package that spans approximately 143,000 hectares. The Company has an agreement with NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., a Regional Alaska Native Corporation that provides a framework for the exploration and potential development of the Ambler mining district in cooperation with local communities. Our vision is to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.

SOURCE Trilogy Metals Inc.

For further information: Company Contacts: Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, President & Chief Executive Officer; Elaine Sanders, Vice President & Chief Financial Officer; [email protected], 604-638-8088 or 1-855-638-8088

Related Links

www.trilogymetals.com


ChickAdvisor survey uncovers Canadians' favourite gifts this year, and they aren't what you would expect

TORONTO, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Today ChickAdvisor  Canada's leading reviews and ratings platform  announced the results of a survey it conducted to help Canadians find the most desired gifts this year, all hand-picked by real consumers.

The survey  which was answered by over 5,000 community members  asked a variety of questions about the top brands to give and receive this year, brand loyalty during the holidays, and a series of would-you-rather gift options. The key categories covered ranged from top toys, drugstore cosmetics, prestige beauty, and even automotive gifts -- in case someone made the really nice list this year.

"Canadians are still likely to buy from brands they know and trust, but increasingly, they are buying products based on reviews and ratings rather than relying solely on their own experiences with a brand or product," said Ali de Bold, co-founder of ChickAdvisor. "In fact, only 56 per cent of surveyed shoppers consider brand loyalty during the holidays. To us, that indicates a key opportunity for companies to make a mark and capture new consumers this season; we're talking about a $13 billion industry in Canada. People are looking to get  and give  something different from their regular products."

These shopping trends were reflected throughout the survey results. While small mom-and-pop shops have gained popularity, big brands still ranked at the top of people's lists. For example, CoverGirl, Maybelline and L'Oreal Paris ranked the most popular drugstore beauty brands, while MAC Cosmetics led the pack for luxury cosmetics. When it came to personal care, Johnson & Johnson (the parent company of Aveeno and Neutrogena) ranked first, followed by L'Oreal Paris (Garnier and Vichy) and Unilever (Dove, St. Ives, Simple).

"What really interested us was the technology results," continued de Bold. "With everyone talking about Apple all the time -- especially with the buzz around the iPhone 8 and X this year -- we expected it to be the top-tech brand. However, it was edged out by Samsung and followed by Sony, LG Electronics, and Google."

In addition to brand-related questions, the survey also presented a handful of fun "would you rather" options to uncover Canadians' real desires this year:

65 per cent of consumers would rather have their debt paid off than receive an all-expenses paid trip

would rather have their debt paid off than receive an all-expenses paid trip 64 per cent of consumers would rather be given a personal assistant over an unlimited Uber account

would rather be given a personal assistant over an unlimited Uber account 89 per cent of consumers would rather have free groceries for a year than be given a personal in-house chef

"While some of these gifts are hard to give, it's important to note the changing consumer appetite," said Alex de Bold, co-founder of ChickAdvisor. "More than 55 per cent of people surveyed said they'd prefer to give experiences over physical gifts. It makes it increasingly difficult for companies to stand-out in the saturated holiday market. Brands need consumers advocating on their behalf."

That said, while Canadians are more exploratory during the holidays, ChickAdvisor is well-aware that a whopping 84.5 per cent actively read reviews as part of their purchasing journey before buying a product. More importantly, 73 per cent people will complete a purchase if the product has positive and authentic reviews.

"Reviews are more important than ever, to both brands and consumers," added Mr. de Bold. "Consumers need to read about products, understand what others are saying about them, and make educated purchasing decisions. Regardless of the stats, this is the best way to ensure you're buying a quality product that you know your loved ones will enjoy."

To read reviews and ratings from over 156,000 Canadian consumers or to find the full survey results, please visit ChickAdvisor.com.

About ChickAdvisor:

ChickAdvisor is the first ratings and reviews platform in Canada, designed specifically for female consumers. Founded in 2006 by wife and husband duo Ali and Alex de Bold, ChickAdvisor has over 800,000+ authentic reviews on the platform and has worked with tier A brands including Unilever, and Aveeno, NIVEA. ChickAdvisor's sister sites, XYStuff and FamilyRated, are Canada's premier platforms for male and family-focused product reviews, respectively.

SOURCE ChickAdvisor

For further information: Media Contact: Madeleine Stoesser, RNMKR, [email protected], 647-624-4904
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Commuters heading into New York City Tuesday morning on Metro-North trains can expect to see more security in light of the Monday morning bombing beneath Times Square  including police and military with high-powered weaponry  but they should expect to get there on time.

Metro-North officials said no delays are expected.

A day after a pipe bomb exploded in a crowded subway corridor, sending rattled rush-hour travelers fleeing into the streets, Connecticut commuters will board Metro-North trains into the city as they do most days  without giving it a second thought.

Unfortunately, its part of life nowadays, said Kenneth Martin, who boarded a Manhattan-bound train Monday at the central Greenwich station shortly after the 7:20 a.m. explosion, which officials are calling a terror attack. We need to be diligent and exercise caution. But at the same time, people around here arent going to change how they act, how they think or how they do things.

Travelers at the busy South Norwalk station watched TV news reports about the attack while they waited for their trains, which were running on time into Grand Central Terminal even as two of New Yorks busiest subway stations just blocks away were being evacuated.

Its very concerning, but unfortunately this is the world we live in, said Norwalk resident Karen Halloran, who was heading to the city to meet friends. Im still going today. I think security will be tight and I do feel safe.

Jim Cameron, founder of the Commuter Action Group and Hearst Connecticut Media transportation columnist, said it was unlikely Metro-North trains would have been delayed by the explosion.

This is like the new normal of our era, he said. We really just have to continue doing what were doing. Its really nothing within our control beyond the constant admonition, If you see something, say something. Commuters are increasingly good at doing that.

Authorities identified a suspect in the attack, 27-year-old Brooklyn man Akayed Ullah, who they say was inspired by the Islamic State, but had no direct ties with the terrorist group.

The former cab driver and Bangladeshi immigrant, who police say strapped the bomb to his body, was one of four injured in the explosion and was being treated at a New York hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen. Investigators said Monday it was not clear if he set the bomb off intentionally or prematurely. The three others were only slightly wounded.

The explosion, which occurred in an underground passageway at 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

Though security was heightened around 42nd Street and at Grand Central Terminal, with delays on subway lines and closures on major roads, commuters at Metro-North stations in Fairfield County seemed undeterred.

I thought it would be hectic, but its not that bad. Were going in the opposite direction (of the explosion) once we get there, said Joe Rios, 39, who was heading from the Stamford Transportation Center to his job at the Plaza Hotel on 57th Street. The Stamford man helps manage the hotels annual meet-and-greet with Santa.

Ive gotta get into the city, he said. Cant keep Santa waiting.

He was about to board the 10:05 a.m. express train with co-worker and fellow Stamford resident Carmary Barrera, 25, who was also determined to get to work.

Manhattan is such a big place, the odds are slim to none it would have happened where were going, she said.

Pamela Ostertag, 50, a teacher from Darien, was at the Stamford station with her daughter, Madeleine, 18, who was waiting on a delayed Amtrak train to Washington D.C. to get back to Georgetown University.

Its 15 minutes delayed, and were wondering if its because of this, Ostertag said. When this first started, you would avoid places, but what can you do?

At the Danbury station, Raffy DeRas, a sophomore at Western Connecticut State University, said the bombing just adds to the anxiety many now feel about traveling.

Its sad, but thats the way it is these days, he said. You cant just go outside anymore. You have to always look around and be aware of your surroundings. You just never know when something is going to happen. Unfortunately, thats become todays reality.

The Associated Press and staff writers Leslie Lake, Dirk Perrefort, Rob Marchant and Cedar Attanasio contributed to this report.
BRANFORD  Police continue to investigate a Sunday afternoon fatal motor vehicle accident, according to a police spokesman.

Gerald Peterson, 54, of Hopson Avenue, Branford, was operating a full-sized pick-up truck and traveling southbound on South Montowese Street when the vehicle veered off the right side of the roadway and hit a large tree, Capt. Geoffrey Morgan said in a press release. Emergency personnel transported Peterson to an area medical facility, where he was later pronounced deceased, the release said. The accident happened at about 4:15 p.m.

We know that witnesses, neighbors and other motorist stopped to render aid and assist Mr. Peterson prior to emergency personnel arriving and we are looking to speak those citizens by calling 203-481-4241, said Officer Christopher Romanello in a statement.

South Montowese Street was closed in the area for about four hours as Branford police in conjunction with the South Central Connecticut Traffic Unit conducted their investigation, the press release stated.
National joint-stock company Naftogaz Ukrainy is holding talks with Italy's Snam on partnership in managing the Ukrainian gas transport system (GTS), Naftogaz Chief Commercial Director Yuriy Vitrenko has said on Priamy TV channel.

"We are holding talks with Snam. This is an Italian gas transport operator. The approach is simple. If Snam, the Italian company, which earlier was a subsidiary of ENI if they become partners in managing the GTS, then ENI will trust the Ukrainian GTS and there will be more chances that they would buy gas on the Russian-Ukrainian border," he said.

Vitrenko said that managers of Naftogaz believe that the attraction of an international partner to the management of the Ukrainian GTS has no alternatives.

As reported, early April 2017, Naftogaz, Ukrtransgaz, Snam and Eustream (Slovakia) signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at jointly evaluating opportunities for collaboration in the operation and enhancement of the GTS in Ukraine.
HAMDEN  A private day school announced the departure of its director of college counseling office and its new replacement.

Hamden Hall Country Day School announced that after more than three decades in the schools college counseling office, administrator Fred Richter will forgo his full-time status as director of the department, opting instead for a two-year part-time post. Richter will be replaced by math department co-chair Kiki Carlson, who has taught upper-level math courses at the school for 11 years, with her officially transitioning to her new role July 1, 2018, a news release said.

I'm very grateful to Bob Izzo, who has given me his full support over the last decade and more, for allowing me to retire gradually. I'm happily looking forward to having time for other interests I value, and equally happy that I'll be able to assist with the transition, said Richter in a statement. Richter has been a faculty member since 1981.

Richter transitioned to the college counseling office in 1988 and will now work with Carlson to familiarize her with her new post, the release stated.

I'm delighted that Kiki Carlson has agreed to become Hamden Halls next Director of College Counseling. A brilliant educator and a superb writer, Kiki will make friends and influence important people in colleges and universities near and far from the outset. I can't imagine a better candidate for this position, he said in the release.

According to the release, for Carlson, working with juniors and seniors is already a staple of her school day as is writing college recommendations.

Coming from the Math Department, but more importantly, the faculty, grants me insight into the students' Hamden Hall experience. I am well acquainted with the challenging curriculum and the myriad of extracurriculars that each student takes on, and I continue to be impressed with their achievements, said Carslon in a statement. She said she hopes to continue in the classroom with at least one class in order to maintain my connection with the students.

That connection will be key, she says, to helping students navigate the college selection process, which can be onerous for families, the release said.

One of the biggest challenges is that there are more and more students vying for the same number of spots at each selective college. Fortunately, Hamden Hall students are exceptionally well-prepared academically, and they all have choices. I look forward to working closely with students, from researching a broad list of schools to narrowing down what they are looking for to writing applications that reflect their passions and strengths to ultimately selecting a school at which they can thrive, said Carlson in the release.

Prior to coming to Hamden Hall in 2006, Carlson taught math at St. Georges School in Newport, Rhode Island. She is a graduate of The Spence School and earned a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Dartmouth College and a Masters of Arts in mathematics education from Teachers College Columbia University, according to the press release.

Izzo, the Head of School, reflected on Richters longevity at Hamden Hall. Freds decision to reduce his work load, but still be available to us on a part-time basis for the next couple of years is just one example of his commitment to the school. Well into his fourth decade at Hamden Hall, Freds contributions to this institution cannot be overstated - he is a Hamden Hall legend, he said in the press release.

Moreover, Izzo noted in the release that Hamden Hall students have truly benefited over the years from having three enormously talented college counselors in Richter, Tom Iampietro and Sue Toole.

The addition of Kiki to the college office staff will make an already strong college office team even stronger. She is a terrific teacher, possesses outstanding organizational and written communication skills, and is highly respected by both her colleagues and students, Izzo said in the release.
NEW HAVEN  A city heroin dealer was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison, according to the U.S. attorneys office.

Efrain Rolon-Dones, 29, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Alker Meyer to 15 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in a heroin-trafficking ring, John H. Durham, U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut, said in a release.
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NUMAZU, Shizuoka, Japan - Suruga Bay, off Shizuoka Prefecture, is a treasure trove of deep-sea fish. The Heda district in the city of Numazu in the prefecture lies on the coast about an hour's drive from the city center.

A large volume of the local catch of deep-sea fish is landed in the district, and the bay's rich bounty can be found served at many restaurants in the area.

In late September, Toshiyuki Nakajima, the owner of seafood restaurant Marukichi Shokudo, showed off some of the fresh fish he had bought that day, including two seasonal varieties - Japanese grenadier, also known as toujin, and a type of beardfish called arame ginme.

The restaurant gets its seafood directly from local fisherman.

The owner served me a plate of sashimi featuring two kinds of deep-sea fish priced at 2,000 yen, plus tax.

Japanese grenadier is called "gehou" by local residents. The species is found at depths between 300 meters and 1,000 meters and is characterized by its oddly shaped head and sharp pointed nose.

Though the appearance of the fish is slightly strange, the taste of its white flesh was far from peculiar. The contrast of its almost grotesque appearance and the fresh flavor of the sashimi, somehow made the dish even more delicious.

Arame ginme is a deep-sea fish species that has become popular in recent years. It is another fish that does not look particularly appetizing, but eaten as sashimi it tasted surprisingly sweet. I imagined it would go quite well with sake.

"Ginme contains glycine, which creates the sweet flavor," Toshiyuki Nakajima said.

He studied fisheries science at university, and now also serves as the leader of a local project to revitalize the Heda district community by taking advantage of the deep-sea fish caught in the region. Hearing him share his knowledge about the region's fish made me appreciate the meal even more.

A deep-sea fish species that some consider a symbol of the Heda district is spider crab, of which the largest have a legspan of three meters.

In the district, many restaurants serve fresh spider crabs that they keep alive in tanks.

Noichi Shokudo, a restaurant that offers a wide variety of crab dishes, always keeps around 40 to 50 of the creatures in water kept at 12 C.

Its menu includes a dish that features a whole spider crab (10,000 yen to 20,000 yen, tax excluded), a set meal (5,250 yen), gratin (1,000 yen) and kaisen-don seafood rice bowl (1,900 yen).

"Because our crabs are not frozen, their meat tastes extremely fresh," Noichi Shokudo owner Inakazu Nakajima said.

In the Heda district, residents draw faces on empty crab shells and use them as masks to drive away evil spirits as part of a local tradition.

During my trip I felt the deep connection that exists between the lives of the locals and the delicious deep-sea creatures from Suruga Bay.

According to the Heda tourist association, there are seven restaurants, 17 minshuku guest houses and 10 ryokan inns which serve local seafood from the district.

Heda toro hanpen fish cake is a regional specialty. Local cuisine features fish such as Japanese barramundi ("mehikari" in Japanese, locally called "torobotchi") and deep sea smelt ("nigisu" in Japanese, locally called "megisu").

It is a tradition in the district that store and restaurant owners raise "nobori" banner flags at the entrances on days when seasonal fish catches are brought in.

An official of the tourist association said: "Local chefs use different ingredients to make the region's specialty dishes. It is interesting to enjoy the variety of options at each of the establishments."
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Quinnipiac University president John L. Lahey was the top-earning executive among private colleges in Connecticut, earning $1.46 million in total pay, according to The Chronicle of Higher Educations Private College Executive Compensation Study released Sunday.

The earnings place Lahey 24th on the list of highest-paid college executives in the country among private colleges. Laheys base pay of $1.06 million was further supplemented by $17,672 in nontaxable pay and $377,496 in other pay, according to the study. Laheys base pay is the ninth highest among private college presidents. Lahey said this spring he will retire in June 2018.

Quinnipiac vice president for public affairs Lynn Bushnell in a statement said the university adheres to standards of corporate governance in establishing executive compensation for all senior-level officers.

Compensation levels are set by the personnel committee of the Board of Trustees and are determined after reviewing compensation levels at comparable institutions, Bushnell said in the statement. An independent compensation firm validates the list of appropriate peer institutions. The personnel committee sets salaries with an eye to attracting and retaining highly qualified and highly motivated executives, based on an annual review of agreed upon goals.

Wake Forest University President Nathan O. Hatch topped the list with a total pay of $4 million. The Chronicle reported Hatchs salary was boosted by a $2.89 million deferred-compensation arrangement accrued over 10 years paid out in 2015.

The study was based on data from the 2015 calendar year and found the average pay for private college presidents who served a full year in 2015 was $569,932, according to a release from The Chronicle. The average was a 9 percent increase from 2014.

In New Haven, Yale President Peter Salovey earned $1.16 million in total pay during the 2015 calendar year. Saloveys compensation included $948,084 in base pay, $53,741 in nontaxable pay and $155,663 in other pay. The total pay amount is an increase from the $977,219 he made in 2014. A spokesman for Yale University was not immediately available for comment.

Salovey and Lahy were among a group of 58 presidents earning more than $1 million in 2015.

The number of presidents earning over $1 million is unusually high in 2015. We attribute that, in part, to a market where presidents are negotiating more deferred compensation and bonus packages before they take the job, database reported Dan Bauman said in The Chronicles release.

Saloveys pay placed him fourth among his peers at other Ivy League schools including Lee C. Bollinger at Columbia ($2.5 million) and Drew Gilpin Faust at Harvard ($1.6 million). University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutman ($3.1 million) was the top-earning Ivy League school president.

On the public side, University of Connecticut President Susan Herbst made $852,773 in total pay during the 2015-16 school year, good enough to place her 13 among 254 chief executives in public schools, according to the study. Connecticut State Colleges and Universities Board of Regents President made $413,487 in total pay during the same time span.

Elsewhere in the state, Trinity College President Joanne E. Berger-Sweeney made $524,945 in total pay, while University of New Haven President Steven H. Kaplan made $581,312. Wesleyan University President Michael S. Roth made $871,182 and University of Hartford President Walter Harrison made $588,390 in total pay.

According to The Chronicles release, their study is based on latest available Form 990 tax filings of the 500 private and nonprofit colleges with the largest endowments. Their study included data from 568 presidents serving at 500 institutions during the 2015 calender year.
Russia's Krasnodar regional court on Dec 19 will hear arguments for pretrial confinement of Ukrainian citizen Pavlo Hryb, who is currently held in Krasnodar region, his father Ihor has said.

"On December 19, 2017 there will be a court hearing about Pavlo's confinement," Ihor Hryb said on his Facebook page on Monday. He added that representatives of European Union countries are expected to attend the hearing.

As earlier reported, Ex-Ukrainian State Border Guard Service official Ihor Hryb said on August 28 that Russian special services had abducted his 19-year-old son Pavlo during a visit to Gomel, Belarus, where he went on August 24 to meet a girl whom he had met and talked to only on social-networking sites. It was agreed that Pavlo would return the same day. After he failed to return the next day, Ihor Hryb travelled to Gomel to look for him.

He said that in Belarus he had learned that Pavlo was on a Russian list of wanted persons in connection with a terrorist attack, and that a search had been initiated by the Russian Federal Security Service's Directorate for the Krasnodar region in Sochi.

It was reported on September 7 that Hryb was in a detention facility in Krasnodar, Russia.

On September 15, Pavlo Hryb's sister Olha Hryb said her brother was transferred from jail to hospital. According to her, neither Ukrainian consuls, nor Ukrainian doctors were allowed to visit the detainee.

Ukrainian doctors arrived in Russia on October 12 to examine Hryb, who is being held in a pretrial detention center in Krasnodar and does not receive the necessary medical care, but the Russian side didn't allow them to examine the Ukrainian.

On October 18, the Oktyabrsky District Court of Krasnodar (Russia) extended detention term for Ukrainian Pavlo Hryb until January 4, 2018.

A hearing on Hryb's detention had been scheduled for December 24, 2017.
Full disclosure in the administration of crude sales remains an issue at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) despite current efforts at enthroning transparency in the conduct of government business.An account reconciliation activity for crude oil transactions found gaps in the corporations reporting and remittances to the Federation Account for the month of October 2017.State governments had boycotted the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting on November 23, accusing the NNPC of cutting corners in reporting and remitting of receipts from oil in the period under review. The states insisted on thorough collation and reconciliation through representatives agreed upon by all the parties.The ensuing investigation and reconciliation uncovered the sum of N58.369 billion in unremitted funds and forced the state-owned company to issue fresh payment mandates to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to fund the Federation Account as well as the joint venture production (JVP) Account by the same amount.The Guardian learnt that N30 billion of the N58.369 billion meant for remittance was allegedly withheld, as it could not be traced in the Federation Account.The Federation Account payment mandate directive to the CBN carries the value of N58.369 billion for the October 2017 crude oil receipts, while the payment mandate directive for the JVP cash call funding for October 2017 has a value of N29.985 billion.The October FAAC meeting finally held on Thursday, December 7, 2017, after the revenue figures were reconciled and the NNPC made full remittance into the Federation Account.This additional N30 billion revenue available for distribution to the three tiers of government in the following order: Federal Government, N13.749 billion; states, N6.973 billion; local councils, N5.376 billion and oil mineral producing states, N3.9 billion.According to Mr. Mahmoud Yunusa, who chairs a body of commissioners of finance from the 36 states and Abuja, the new trend (under-reporting of oil revenue by the NNPC) will force states to be actively involved in collation and preparation of NNPC revenue account to prevent a recurrence. Yunusa said the states would engage sit-in consultants who will liaise with the NNPC to collate and reconcile revenue figures on monthly basis.A similar incident had occurred during the administration of the late former president, Umaru Musa YarAduas which led to a forensic audit discovery of N450 billion in under-reporting and non-remittance to the Federation Account. It was agreed at the time that the repayment process, which was only concluded three months ago, should be made on an installment basis.But Mr. Ndu Ughmadu, the Group General Manager of Public Affairs Division (GGM PAD) at the NNPC, would neither confirm nor deny if there were non-remittances, since, according to him, it has to do with financials. He promised to cross- check the facts.The NNPC spokesman said he was not aware that that states boycotted the November 23 FAAC meeting. Instead, he explained that the meeting could not hold because there was a directive by the National Council of State for a reconciliation of the NNPC Account. The directive, he said, was given because there were some contestations from some stakeholders (the states).Ughamadu added: The FAAC was not boycotted. There were issues relating to the interpretation of data presented by the NNPC, and the National Council of State directed that all stakeholders should jointly look into the Account.I cannot comment on the claimed N30 billion additional remittances into the Federation Account because that has to do with financials and there is no way I can verify it right now because today is Sunday; I will have to find out.
The Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, has presented the 2018 budget estimate before the House of Assembly.

The Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, has presented the 2018 budget estimate before the House of Assembly.

The projected budget size is One Trillion, Forty-six Billion, One Hundred and Twenty-one Million, One Hundred and Eighty-one Thousand, Six Hundred and Eighty Naira (N1,046,121).





The budget has a recurrent expenditure of N347bn and a capital expenditure of N699bn.





The N1.046 trillion budget is N254 billion less than Cross Rivers 2018 budget. The south-south state estimated N1.3 trillion; the highest by any Nigerian state.





The governor was still at the assembly complex in Alausa as of the time of filing this report.





The budget is tagged budget of progress and development.




Former Governor of the old Kaduna State, and National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party PRP, Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa on Mond...

Former Governor of the old Kaduna State, and National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party PRP, Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa on Monday took a swipe on President Muhammadu Buhari.

The former Governor also called out the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, saying that they rode to power on false and empty promises.





Musa spoke at the 54th meeting of the National Executive Committee, NEC, of PRP, where he noted that none of the promises made by Buhari and APC before coming to power in 2015 had been fulfilled.





He said, As you are all aware, our nation today remains in a very sorry state despite all the lofty promises and flowery speeches made by the ruling government of the All Progressive Congress (APC) at the inception of the Administration in 2015.





The economy remains comatose, and in some sectors, particularly in industry and commerce, it is even getting worse.





Monetary and fiscal management has continued to lack coherence and consistency, or even predictability and strategic planning.









Unemployment, particularly amongst the youth, who constitute the bulk of our population, has assumed critical proportions and is now, for all practical purposes, a national emergency.





Yet, this APC Administration, which rode to power on the back of false promises to this generation of hapless young men and women, seems to have no answers to this ticking time bomb beyond slogans such as N-Power.





In fact, instead of creating jobs, the Administration is busy cutting existing ones in the name of rightsizing or downsizing.





This government, both at the centre and in the States that it controls, has proved that it has little or nothing else to provide Nigerians other than further mass impoverishment, frustration and hardships.









If we turn to the security front, the same sad picture confronts us. Perhaps, President Muhammadu Buharis greatest appeal for many in 2015 was the belief that he was capable of dealing a death blow to the insurgency, particularly as manifested by Boko Haram.





In these almost three years that the APC has been in power, the reality has been otherwise.





Yes, the Boko Haram camps in the Sambisa forest may have been wiped out, but the security menace that the group poses continues to manifest, with suicide bombs exploding almost on a weekly basis, particularly in the North Eastern parts of the country.





But apart from the Boko Haram insurgency, others have emerged in different parts of the country.





Recently, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) unleashed mayhem in the South East. Similarly, the militants in the Niger Delta are yet to sheath their swords.





And even more ominous is the threat to public safety and the security of lives and property posed by the marauding gangs of cattle rustlers, killer herdsmen and armed kidnappers.





We ask, where is the security promised Nigerians by this APC administration?.





In so far as the political environment is concerned, again the story is a sad one. Lacking any internal cohesion within itself, the APC administration has only spawned and promoted institutional political decay in the country.





In the name of an anti-corruption campaign, the government has been consistently assaulting due process and the rule of law.





Court orders are flagrantly disobeyed by the very institutions that should enforce them.




Borussia Dortmund v Atalanta Nice v Lokomotov Moscow Copenhagen v Atletico Madrid Spartak Moscow v Athletic Bilbao AEK Athens v Dynamo Kyiv Celtic v Zenit St Petersburg Napoli v RB Leipzig Red Star Belgrade v CSKA Moscow Lyon v Villarreal Real Sociedad v Salzburg Partizan Belgrade v Viktoria Plzen Steaua Bucharest v Lazio Ludogorets v Milan Astana v Sporting Ostersunds v Arsenal Marseille v Braga

Celtic have been drawn against Zenit St Petersburg in the last 32 of the Europa League while Arsenal will face Swedish club Ostersunds.Celtic, who finished third in their Champions League group, will host the Russian club in the first leg on 15 February.Arsenal, who won their Europa League group and were one of the seeded teams, will travel to Sweden first.The second legs will be played on 22 February.Zenit, who beat Rangers in the 2008 final when the tournament was known as the Uefa Cup, are managed by former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini.Following a third-place finish last season, they are currently fourth in Russia's Premier League.Ostersunds are managed by an Englishman, former Southampton defender Graham Potter. They were promoted to Sweden's top flight for the first time in 2016.The Gunners have never lost a European match against Swedish opposition, winning three and drawing one.Meanwhile, 2010 winners Atletico Madrid will play FC Copenhagen, Napoli face RB Leipzig and German club Borussia Dortmund play Italian side Atalanta, who defeated Everton twice in the group stage.The final will take place at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais on 16 May.
Former minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has reacted to the emergence of Uche Secondus as PDP National Chairman.

Former minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has reacted to the emergence of Uche Secondus as PDP National Chairman.

Fani while congratulating Secondus, praised Atiku on his speech at the convention.





The ex-minister also noted that time has come for the All Progressives congress APC to be overthrown.





Together, we shall change the change and burn the brooms in 2019. 





In his tweets, he wrote, Congrats to the newly-elected National Chairman of our great party the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, and to all our other newly-elected party officials.





I also commend @atiku on his profound speech at the convention.





Together we shall change the change and burn the brooms in 2019.




Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, over the weekend raised a fresh alarm over Nigerias rate of population growth.

Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, over the weekend raised a fresh alarm over Nigerias rate of population growth.

According to him, if the rate was unchecked, the explosion in the nations population would impact negatively on the countrys economy and welfare..





To this end, Adewole called for the use of Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWS) to address the problems of shortage and misdistribution of manpower needed for the provision of access to family planning services in rural communities and other hard to reach areas.





He made the call in Abuja while speaking on the topic: The Relevance of Operations Research in Family Planning Programming in Nigeria during the formal presentation of the report of a study by a non-governmental organisation, Marie Stopes Nigeria.





The study assessed the provision of implant contraceptives by Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWS)





The Minister, represented by the Director, Family Health Department in the ministry, Dr. Adebimpe Adebiyi, said: We all know that we cannot continue with the rate at which our population is increasing. It is expedient for us to task-shift the delivery of family planning services in Nigeria to CHEWS.









CHEWS are to be regarded as an important cadre of contraceptive implant providers readily available for the expansion of access to family planning services in Nigeria.




The queues for Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, persisted on Sunday in Abuja and some states despite the order by the Fede...

The queues for Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, persisted on Sunday in Abuja and some states despite the order by the Federal Government to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, to end the scarcity.The Federal Executive Council, at its meeting last Wednesday, directed the minister to ensure that the fuel scarcity being witnessed across the country did not extend beyond last Saturday.But right in front of the corporate headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in Abuja were queues of motorists struggling to buy petrol from the two filling stations, Conoil and Total, facing the FMPR and the NNPC.Our correspondent also observed that many filling stations, particularly those operated by independent petroleum marketers, did not dispense petrol, while the few that sold the PMS had queues.After the FEC meeting on Wednesday presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, made the governments position on the fresh fuel scarcity known to journalists.He had said, The council gave him (Kachikwu) a matching order that this fuel scarcity should not last beyond this weekend and they are going to work very hard to ensure that it is curtailed. He (Kachikwu) assured the council that there was actually no cause for alarm.The NNPC on several occasions had stated that it had enough petroleum products to keep the country wet for the end-of-year movements and other uses.Kachikwu announced on Thursday that supply issues prompted the scarcity, but assured Nigerians that the matter would be resolved as soon as possible.Despite the many assurances from the ministry and the NNPC, the scarcity persisted on Saturday and Sunday in Abuja and neighbouring states as some petrol stations on the Abuja-Keffi road in Nasarawa State sold the PMS for as high as N200 per litre.However, officials at both the FMPR and the NNPC insisted that the two organisations were working hard to clear the queues.Meanwhile, two civil-society organisations, the Campaign for Democracy and the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, have called on the Federal Government to find a lasting solution to the biting fuel scarcity.The CD President, Usman Abdul, said, The government needs to sit and address this problem holistically. What we are seeing as citizens of this country is beyond our imagination. The issue of this scarcity is the handiwork of a few elements in the system who want to benefit from our misery.Also, the CACOL Director, Debo Adeniran, said, This scarcity is more like a self-serving venture for some private marketers. It is unfair. If fuel is available for them to lift and supply is unimpeded, why do we have this scarcity?
Ukraine should pass a law prohibiting politicians, officials and their families from owning property and doing business in the territory of the aggressor country, in particular, the Russian Federation and the occupied territories, Head of the Socialist Party of Ukraine Illia Kiva has said.

"I demand the adoption of a bill banning politicians, officials and members of their families from doing business in the territory of the enemy. If you are an official, if you are a people's deputy or the president and you have business in Russia - put your mandate, resign and leave civil service! Do not weaken the country," Kiva wrote on Facebook.

According to him, this idea will unite Ukraine and political forces in it, and also will allow defending the interests of Ukraine against the backdrop of Russian aggression.

"I am sure that this idea will unite the country - the right and the left, the red and the white, all those who are ready to defend the interests of Ukraine. My task for 2018 is to clean the rear, and therefore to strengthen the front and win!" Kiva added.

He also called on all patriotic citizens to identify the facts of doing business with the aggressor both in the occupied territories and outside Ukraine.

"I urge all patriots to make every effort to identify and block the business of Ukrainian officials and their relatives in the Russian Federation and the occupied territories. They earn on trade with the enemy and fill their budget, and the enemy kills our children for this money!" Kiva said.
Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) showed on Saturday that, despite the several miracles...

Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) showed on Saturday that, despite the several miracles God has used him to perform and the huge success of the just-concluded Holy Ghost Congress of the church, he is human after all.

On the last day of the Congress, Professor Aboaba, one of the elders of the church, who introduced Pastor Adeboyes session, had wished the week-long Congress continued for another week. Mr. Aboaba, a professor, is about 85 years old.





As he made his wish open, Pastor Adeboye was seen whispering to his wife, Pastor Folu, popularly called Mummy G.O.





And later when he mounted the pulpit to minister, he shared what he had whispered to his wife. I told my wife jocularly, I have no objection to his (Aboabas) wish provided he would be the one preaching (during the additional week of the Holy Ghost Congress). I will just sit down and enjoy it.





A source close to Pastor Adeboye explained later, that was a joke but of course it shows it takes the grace and empowerment of God for him to do all what he is noted for doing. You must have heard him say often that without Jesus he is nothing.





The over 75-year-old pastor noted for his disarming humility and stamina dreads taking Gods credit, a reason he dislikes to be praised. He would rather want Jesus. who empowers him, to be praised, according to what he said during a book launch for him last year at the Redemption Camp which he reluctantly attended.





Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who was at the book launch, had commented on Pastor Adeboyes humility in the foreword of the book, Stories of Pastor E. A. Adeboye.





He stated: The life of Daddy (Pastor Adeboye) in itself is one big miracle! For a man born to financially-challenged parents in the remote village of Ifewara, Osun State, who had no shoes at 18 years old; who was not a born again Christian until the time he was a mathematics teacher at the University of Lagos, becoming the leader of a church with a strong presence in over 192 countries (now 198), and with over 32,000 parishes in Nigeria alone, is indeed, a miracle worth knowing.

For this same man to remain infectiously humble, in spite of his enormous power, influence and popularity is also a miracle in itself.





Pastor Adeboye himself had heard some people say that he is a spiritual being who does not eat. He has taken time to debunk that claim a couple of times to show he is human.

Someone once said that the reason God is using Pastor Adeboye is because of his name Enoch, referring to how God related with Enoch in the Bible. He doesnt eat. Have you ever seen him eat the pounded yam he talks so much about? the person argued.





When I heard that, I laughed. You think I dont eat? Well, invite me to your house, prepare some good pounded yam; get a very good combination of okro, make sure there is plenty of bush meat and chicken and fish and turkey. Right there in your dining room, a mountain will become a valley.





His whisper to his wife about Professor Aboabas wish, reminded some people in the congregation of his encounter with God, after the first major RCCG Convention at Lekki, which was so massive that it nearly shut Lagos down. According to the account, he was warned not to take Gods credit if he doesnt want to be wiped out.





He had said in a testimony: Something happened after Lekki 98; one of the biggest programmes that we ever had. The whole of Lagos was paralysed because of the programme.





People walked kilometres to the venue and back. Fortunately, the programme was also transmitted by radio, so those who those who couldnt get there listened to it on their radio. It was a fantastic programme!

After the programme, I returned to the Redemption Camp and soon proceeded on a prayer walk to thank God: God I bless Your Holy name, what a wonderful thing, etc.





It was between 2a.m. and 3a.m. when He spoke. I heard him say clearly, Son, bend down.I did that quickly because, you know, I was in the jungle. You never can tell; a witch could have been flying past.





And then he said, Draw the figure of a man in the sand.





I drew the figure of a man: zero for head, one line for the body and two lines for the leg and so on. You know that kind of drawing.





God said, Stand up.





I did, but by then I was afraid because I knew something serious was happening.





He said, Wipe out the figure you have drawn with your leg.





I wiped it out.





And He said, Son, if you ever forget who your boss is, I will wipe you out and nobody will even remember you came to the world.





That was what He told me. So, I smile when I hear people say, Hes a very humble man. How can a man be so successful and be so humble? You think I want to be wiped out? As they say in Nigeria, You think say I dey craze? Me I no dey craze at all o.





Former Education Minister, Oby Ezekwesili at the RCCG Holy Ghost Congress





When you allow pride to creep into your life, you know what you are asking for? To be wiped out.'

On Saturday, as he lowered the curtains on the Congress, he thanked God for starting with us and ending with us, and preached on the topic Anointing for Victory.





He highlighted the three types of external enemies portrayed in a Bible passage on King Davids experience; and the need to overcome them with the anointing of God.





He likened the enemies to the lion, the bear and Goliath.





The lion, he explained, kills by choking its prey, and that in the case of humans it could be someone in superior position or influence who wants to suppress you, frustrate to death or kill opportunities or people who are to enhance your emergence or growth. He cited the example of Pharaoh, who ordered all male Israeli babies killed because a leader was to emerge among them.





But he had a solution for that. There is anointing from God to take care of lions.

The bear hugs to kill, (from which we got the term bear hug,) and that he said makes it very dangerous enemy because it comes pretending to be a friend.





According to him, the bear therefore represents people who get close to you, smile at you, pretending to love so as to get close enough to destroy you.

For those people too, he said there is an anointing to take care of them.





He gave a chilling testimony of how one of his three close friends earlier in his ministry hated him so bitterly he didnt want him to be the General Overseer after the death of the founder of the church.





It was way back in 1980, when one of the three was getting married. When I got there, the other friend welcomed me warmly and was doing everything to please me with drinks, food and other offers.





But God spoke and I heard Him clearly. He is your enemy!





I was shocked because I had exposed myself too much to that man.





When we met later, I told my friends Gods message but the man denied being an enemy. That was in June, 1980.





In December, we met again to discuss the church after the demise of the founder, and there the man bared his teeth: From the day you came to this church I hated you, he confessed.





The Goliath is the enemy who has insight into your destiny but vows that you will not get there. He could be a boss, a colleague or even an opponent, Pastor Adeboye said, explaining that what was at stake in the David and Goliath fight was the kingdom of Israel, which David had be anointed rule.





He assured that with the right relationship with God and His anointing Goliaths too have no chance to destroy people. Anyone who says you will not reach your goal will fail, in the name of Jesus, he said, singing the song I know my Redeemer liveth, to buttress his point.





An altar call was made before the church administered the Holy Communion  surprisingly done seamlessly for a congregation of that size.





The anointing session of the programme was done with oil Pastor Adeboye had personally blessed.





The General Overseer anointed his wife, who anointed the special guests. He also anointed deputy general overseers, and assistant general overseers, who in turn anointed pastors for them to anoint the congregation that was usually eager for such moments.





That done, he prayed for the congregation and blessed them to close the congress.





As at that Saturday, the churchs medical facility had recorded the birth of 51 babies  25 boys and 26 girls.





Earlier in the day there had been prayers and talk sessions on: The sacrifice of praise; Victory over lack; Victorious hope; All will be well; Divine champions; and More than conquerors.





There had also been goodwill messages from a delegation from Northern Ireland and Cote d Ivoire. Pastor Paul Keith from the Simple Faith Ministry in Belfast said, This is my first time in Nigeria, and in all my ministry work around countries, I have not seen so much joy and hope.





He continued, This has taught me so much; I am totally transformed by the experience.

Lionel Mitchell, who led a delegation of 11 pastors from six different churches in Cote d Ivoire, described Pastor Adeboye as the Abraham of our age, whose work and person continue to inspire us. What God is doing through him gives us faith and hope, he added.





As usual, there were also testimonies. A South-Africa-based Nigerian lady had been healed from arthritis during the Congress; and another lady who had heart problems, which doctors said could lead to heart failure, was also healed at the Congress.





From Oyo State, a lady whose sister had been kidnapped as she left her shop, leaving her baby in her car, got her released unconditionally when she prayed about it at the Congress.





And an elderly woman from Ijebu Ode, Ogun State had an encounter with someone in a dream and woke up blind, but after divine intervention, she can now see clearly.




A former aide to American member of parliament, Trent Franks, has said the congressman repeatedly pressed her to carry his child, at one...

A former aide to American member of parliament, Trent Franks, has said the congressman repeatedly pressed her to carry his child, at one point offering her $5m to act as a surrogate mother.The eight-term lawmaker abruptly resigned Friday, bowing to an ultimatum from House Speaker Paul Ryan.Ryan told Franks that he would refer the allegations to the Ethics Committee and urged him to step aside.The former aide said the congressman, at least four times, asked if she would be willing to act as a surrogate in exchange for money.Franks, in his statement announcing his resignation, said he and his wife, who have struggled with infertility, have twins who were carried through surrogacy.The former aide said the conversations took place in private, sometimes in the congressmans car, and that she repeatedly told him she wasnt interested.She said she never filed a formal complaint because until recently, she didnt know where to go, but that his behavior had made her feel uncomfortable.The aide asked that her name be withheld out of concern for her privacy.During my time there, I was asked a few times to look over a contract to carry his child, and if I would conceive his child, I would be given $5m, she said, adding that she refused to look over the contract and has never seen a copy.The woman said the requests shocked her, and made her feel afraid that if she didnt agree, she would face professional consequences. She said she spoke to another aide in the office, who had also been approached about surrogacy.The aide cited the surrogacy requests as a main reason for leaving the office, adding that she felt retaliated against after turning down the congressman, as she was ignored by Franks and not given many assignments.A spokesman for Franks would not comment on whether the congressman offered aides money in exchange to act as surrogates.Franks, a staunch conservative, said in his statement Thursday that he never physically intimidated, coerced or attempted to have sexual contact with any member of his congressional staff.Franks, 60, said he had become familiar with the surrogacy process in recent years and became insensitive as to how the discussion of such an intensely personal topic might affect others.He said he regrets that his discussion of this option and process in the workplace with two female staffers made them feel uncomfortable.Franks resigned from the Congress with immediate effect on Friday, citing the need to attend to his sick wifes need as reason.(TIME)
Justice Yusuf Halilu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Jabi, Abuja, yesterday refused the oral application for bail made on...

Justice Yusuf Halilu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Jabi, Abuja, yesterday refused the oral application for bail made on behalf of Maryam Sanda, and ordered her returned to Suleja prison pending her re-arraignment next Thursday.I will not grant her bail; all arguments about her bail shall be taken together at the next adjourned date when other co-defendants will be in court. Therefore, the defendant shall be taken back to prison, he said.At the last adjourned date, the FCT Police Command, in a two-count charge, accused Maryam, daughter of a former Executive Director of Aso Savings and Loans, Hajiya Maimuna Aliyu Sanda, of killing her husband, Bilyamin Bello, the son of Alhaji Bello Haliru Muhammad, a former chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).The police said Maryam caused Bellos death by stabbing him on the chest with a broken bottle; this you did with the knowledge that your act is likely to cause his death.Upon her arraignment on November 24, the court ordered that she be remanded in prison after she pleaded not guilty to the charges.But yesterday, Police Prosecutor James Idachaba told the court of an amended charge before the court, which added Maryams mother, Maimuna Aliyu, and two others, as defendants.He, however, said efforts to serve Maimuna and others were unsuccessful, urging the court to adjourn till next Thursday to enable the police bring all defendants to court to take their pleas.Maryams new lawyer Chief Joseph Daudu (SAN) urged the court to listen to the bail application filed on her behalf.He also made an oral bail application, pleaded with Justice Halilu to release Maryam on temporary bail, saying the prison condition was unwholesome for Maryams six-month-old baby.It is unfortunate that a life has been lost already, but we should not take more lives, he pleaded.But with another objection by the police prosecutor, Justice Halilu held that he is not disposed to grant the oral application since issues have been joined on the formal application for bail.But Justice Halilu ruled in favour of the prosecutor, saying the bail would be taken after the re-arraignment.The defendant, in the mean time, shall be returned to the prison pending Thursday, December 14, the judge said.He earlier ordered Maryams daughter, who is in the custody of a relative, taken out of court for crying.
In a bid to curb the menace of illegal migration which has resulted in modern slavery especially in Libya, the African Union AU, has urged the Nigerian government to develop its own Gods given resources especially in the tourism sector.This call, followed the official unveiling of the African Tourism Card (ATC), an initiative of African Festival of Arts and Culture.Speaking at the unveiling in Abuja Nigerian representative, African Union, Economic, Social and Cultural Council AU ECOSOCC, Dr. Tunde Asaolu identified culture as one of the strong components to integrate Africa by bringing together what polities have separated.Asaolu said, it is high time we promote what we have instead of been indirect slaves to the developed world.The AU Nigerian representative, who threw his weight behind the new initiative said that the ATC is not a cash card but when presented anywhere, could get one instant discount on goods and services.He noted that the card which is first in Nigeria is locally manufactured adding also that it would help aid fast integration of Africans.ATC is not transferable, it is valid for 5 years. African festival for arts and culture is one of our own and it is an instrument that will aid fast integration of Africa and promote culture and tourism.As an African I have been concerned with the unity and development of Africa and I key into any project that is unifying in Africa. It is an initiative that is homemade and locally developed and the first time in this region, he said.Also, the head of Technical and Secretary Governing Board African Festival of Arts and Culture, Dr. Kenechukwu Aloefuna said the initiative was borne out of the need to promote indigenous business.He said; we sat down to look at what it will take for African transaction to grow and African business people to understand and appreciate themselves, then give back to the society by promoting consumerism and we decided to take it from the point of tourism.What we are doing today is launching a tool that will make an hotelier do his business and give back to those who are their customer. What will make flight ticket around Africa to come down affordably by doing this we create a common market and African union system is creating continental free trade zone.This is a tool to get into that platform whatever we do as African there is one thing that brings us together it is unique because our tourism and culture will grow, as we speak now there are 28 representatives of the African Festival of Arts and Culture who will pick from this and promote what we do. With this card you earn points to go on local tourism and to give all the local tourism a new life.
Olisa Metuh, a Nigerian Lawyer, Politician and the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party had reacted to the claim that he was kicked out of the PDP convention.According to him, the news is Media Dramas to tarnish the image of the peace-loving party.He said:In the past 24 hours, I have received calls from a lot of people concerning the misleading online media reports which suggested that I was manhandled and barred from sitting in the VIP box at the just concluded PDP National Convention in Abuja.It sure reminds me of series of spurious reports that EFCC arrested me just when I was about to flee to some island; or is it the one about chewing my statements and the rest?The truth is that I have never sat at the VIP box whenever we come for a party event throughout my 17 years in active politics. Our joy has always been to sit amongst the Anambra delegates with all the drama of home invisibility.However, we visit the box at will to liaise with other leaders on issues as they arise and that was the case in the just concluded convention.I was never manhandled nor barred from the VIP box, but yes, on the first visit from the Anambra stand to the box, some security operatives had problem with the size of our delegation, which included some B.O.T members, legislators and other individuals.This was quickly resolved and we accessed the state box and had our first interaction with those sitting inside the box.Do I really have to explain how many times I visited the state box or the fact that I was all the times I visited, warmly received by all our leaders present?The PDP convention was one of the best in terms of planning and execution. Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa indeed is a perfectionist and he together with his team made the entire PDP family proud.My concern has always been with post convention management and this is where we are presently engaged in ensuring that the progress and stability of our party far outweighs individual successes and/or failures.I have served our great party, the PDP faithfully; I love my party and I have full confidence in the competence and capacity of the present National Working Committee.My charge to my able successor, the new National Publicity Secretary of our party is to focus on those issues that Nigerians are concerned about.The online media will always come with its drama, but let the new NWC remain focused on explaining our partys stand on the economy, fight against corruption, national unity and other important issues affecting the nation.Nigerians now look up to the PDP for direction and we cannot afford to be distracted in any way whatsoever.
The ruling All Progressives Congress has likened the opposition, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to the leopard, which cannot change its sp...

The ruling All Progressives Congress has likened the opposition, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to the leopard, which cannot change its spots.It was the APCs first official reaction to the national convention of the opposition party that has vowed to defeat it in the next general election.APC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi said: with revelations of how money-for-votes and systematic rigging was brazenly perpetuated during the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC) is mindful of the popular axiom: A leopard cannot change its spot.The APC said the abnormalities that trailed the PDP National Convention have further exposed the PDP as a Party not ready and willing to change.Indeed, the PDP has once again displayed itself to the generality of Nigerians that it is a Party with corruption deeply rooted in its DNA.Again, it is tragic that the PDP which used to pride itself as the biggest political Party in Africa has now been reduced to a regional party.By frustrating South West Chairmanship candidates, it is unfortunate that the PDP has decided to punish the South West for not voting for the Party in 2015.We urge members of the PDP that can pass the integrity test to join the APC so that we can together bring about the much-needed Change the country deserves.
President Muhammadu Buhari will leave for Paris, France on Monday to join 50 other world leaders to participate in the One Planet Summit on Tuesday.The President, who will be accompanied by the governors of Adamawa, Kano and Ondo States, and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Environment. He will return to Abuja on Thursday.The summit is jointly organised by the United Nations, the World Bank Group, and the French Government in partnership with non-governmental organisations.The summit which concerns reversing the negative effects of climate change will take place at the eco-friendly La Seine Musicale, situated on the picturesque Seguin Island in western Paris.The theme of the summit is Climate Change Financing.According to the organisers, the summit will innovatively pool public and private finance to support and accelerate our common efforts to fight climate change.While recognising that all countries are affected by the effects of climate change under One Planet, but some are more vulnerable, organisers noted.The summit seeks for tangible collective action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.A statement by Mr Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity), said President Buhari will attend a lunch hosted by President Emmanuel Macron of France for Heads of State and Governments at the Elysee Palace.President Buhari and other world leaders and participants will make presentations under four sub-themes.They are Scaling-up Finance for Climate Action; Greening Finance for Sustainable Business; Accelerating Local and Regional Climate Action; and Strengthening Policies for Ecological and Inclusive Transition.President Buhari signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the side-lines of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 22, 2016.He noted then that the countrys signature demonstrated Nigerias commitment to global efforts to reverse the effects of the negative trend.He followed that significant step by signing the Instrument of Ratification of the Paris Agreement on March 28, 2017 at the State House, Abuja, making Nigeria the 146th party to the Paris Treaty.It became binding on the country effective June 15, 2017, one month after the submission of the Ratification instrument to the United Nations on May 16, 2017 by Nigerias Permanent Representative to the UN, Prof. Tijjani Bande.The participation of Nigerias delegation at the One Planet Summit will reinforce the countrys commitment to realising the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
The intense politicking that went into the election of Yakubu Dogara as the speaker of the house of representatives in 2015 has been detail...

The intense politicking that went into the election of Yakubu Dogara as the speaker of the house of representatives in 2015 has been detailed in his biography by Ovation publisher, Dele Momodu.

In the book, A Reed Made Flint, Dogara narrates how he came against all odds to win the nations No. 4 position, including surmounting a fierce opposition from Bola Tinubu, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who wanted Femi Gbajabiamila on the seat.





The book is due for public presentation on December 26, 2017 to mark the 50th birthday of the speaker.





Gbajabiamila had been endorsed by APC for the speakership but Dogara, who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2014, decided to give it a shot.





Dogara recounted: As a matter of fact, Asiwaju (Tinubu) is someone that we respect very much and no one can doubt the sterling role he played in the emergence of APC as a government. Asiwaju had through emissaries sought audience with me and in deference to him I went to see him along with a colleague, then Right Honourable Kawu Sumaila. When we got to the Asiwaju, seasoned politician that he was, he asked us to come to his bedroom. We held this meeting in his bedroom!





He appealed to us and said what he only wanted, as a leader, as a political father, was for us to please collapse our campaign into Femis and declare our support for him. Asiwaju maintained that, as a matter of fact, support for Femi was a support for him. He said if we supported Femi by extension we were actually supporting him and reciprocating the work he did to ensure APC won the Presidency.





While Dogara did not say an outright no, he also did not give a definite yes to Tinubus request.





He said: This has always been my stand, Sir. It was my stand when (Aminu) Tambuwal was running for the Speakership and I ran for the position for Deputy Speaker. Even when my bosom friends had told me clearly what was happening and I knew, as an experienced politician, that we were running into head winds. I had seen clearly the implication that Tambuwal was favoured more than 80% to clinch the Speakership. But I insisted that I was going to run because the party had said they had zoned this position to the North-East and I wanted to make a statement that there were people from the North-East willing to contend for this position in the interest of our own people.





Even if I was going to lose the election, let the people from my zone know that yes, they had someone who, when the position was zoned to them, was ready and willing to stand up and be counted. I ran for that position to the end against someone I considered to be a brother and a very good friend on that principle. In this situation, we are already boxed into that corner. The President is not from North-East, the Vice President is not from North-East, the Senate President wasnt going to come from the North-East. If we from the North east now capitulate, we have not had anything serious apart from the position of the Vice President that Atiku once occupied. We have been excluded from this club of leadership in the country.





Dogara was quite vehement, insisting that in the interest of his people, it was necessary for someone from the north-east to run for that position even if he would lose.





He told Tinubu: Since you have appealed to me as a father figure and I see you as a political father and as a mentor, a person we always ran to for advice really in the seventh assembly, and I still remember so many occasions I had to come here to seek assistance on behalf of others from you, I owe you the responsibility to listen to your appeal.





But I need to get back to the members who are supportive of my agenda and then to my constituents back home. We will discuss and at the end of the day I will get back to you with our decision.





Dogara, who represents Bogoro/ Tafawa Balewa federal constituency in Bauchi state, went on to defeat Gbajabiamila, who represents Surulere federal constituency, Lagos state, by 182 votes to 174 in a fierce contest.





He later made Gbajabiamila house leader.




A 56-year-old New Jersey man has been convicted of fatally shooting a 26-year-old father of two at an outlet mall in Atlantic City last year.

Luis Maisonet (Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office)

Luis Maisonet, 56, of Somers Point, was found guilty of murder, aggravated assault and three weapons offenses, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said in a statement.

Maisonet shot Christopher Romero around noon on Sept. 1, 2016 at Zumiez, a store in "The Walk."

Authorities have described the shooting as a domestic incident.

Romero lived in Absecon.

Maisonet fled after gunning down and later shot himself before he was taken into custody.

Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner described Maisonet's actions as "selfish and cowardly" and said the gunman showed no remorse during his trial.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
NEWARK - A Bayonne police officer accused of helping a disgraced cop cover up use of excessive force is expected to testify on his own behalf in court Monday afternoon.

Francis Styles, who is charged with falsifying records and misprision, will be the first witness called to the stand after the government rested its case. The government alleges Styles intentionally lied in the reports he filed surrounding the 2013 arrest of Brandon Walsh, omitting any details of former Police Officer Domenico Lillo striking Walsh.

On Dec. 27, Bayonne police officers went to Walsh's Avenue C home to arrest him on a warrant out of Sussex County. Officers say Walsh acted "violently" because he was intoxicated and assaulted three cops. Lillo deployed pepper spray inside Walsh's home, sickening many of his family members.

Lillo struck Walsh in the head with a flashlight while he was being led to a police car and the assault was captured on video. Lillo has pleaded guilty to using excessive force during the arrest and testified against Styles in return for a possible lighter sentence.

The defense is expected to argue that Styles' suffered a head injury during the struggle with Walsh and was directly exposed to the pepper spray Lillo deployed to subdue Walsh. An expert is also expected to testify about the lingering effects pepper spray exposure has on an individual.

Bayonne Police Lt. Matthew Dugan testified Monday morning about the procedures followed when officers file arrest reports, criminal complaints, and use of force reports. Dugan had signed off on the reports submitted by Lillo and Styles and said he was never informed Walsh had been struck in the head.

The government rested in the case just before noon. Styles attorneys had motioned for acquittal, arguing the government presented weak testimony against Styles. U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty rejected the motion saying there was video evidence and a jury would decide if Styles intentionally lied in his reports.

A lawsuit filed by Walsh and his family was settled by the city of Bayonne. The Jersey Journal has taken the city to court to force it to release the terms of the settlement.

Caitlin Mota may be reached at cmota@jjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitlin_mota. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
The European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) considers it possible to amend the article on the language of instruction in Ukraine's law on education in order to remove possible discrimination of languages that do not belong to the languages of the countries of the European Union, according to an opinion of December 8, which was published on December 11.

The document says that Article 7 (on the language of instruction) provides for the opportunity to teach one or more disciplines in two or more languages  Ukrainian, English, other official languages of the European Union.

"The intention of the Ukrainian authorities seems, indeed, to use this provision to also enable the teaching of other subjects in these languages. This could be an acceptable solution for these languages, but only if there are sufficient guarantees in the implementing legislation, specified following adequate consultation of minorities, that the scope of this teaching will be sufficient to enable the students to attain a high level of oral and written proficiency, enabling them also to address complex issues," reads the opinion.

At the same time, the Venice Commission believes that the results of the current bilateral talks with minorities' kin-states could provide useful input to the implementation of Article 7 in this respect.

"However, paragraph 4 of Article 7 provides no solution for languages which are not official languages of the EU, in particular the Russian language, as the most widely used language apart from the state language. The less favorable treatment of these languages is difficult to justify and therefore raises issues of discrimination," the commission said.

It considers it possible to make changes to this article.

"Having regard to the above considerations, the appropriate solution would certainly be to amend Article 7 and replace this provision with a more balanced and more clearly worded one. In particular, the issue of discriminatory treatment of other minority languages - which are not official languages of the EU - would have to be addressed in this context," reads the document.

The Ukrainian Education and Science Ministry told Interfax-Ukraine that the major point of the opinion is the last final paragraph (No. 126), which contains the recommendations of the commission and based on which the Council of Europe subsequently monitors the country's implementation of the recommendations.

"None of the recommendations in this paragraph provides for changes to Article 7 of the education law, while the Education Ministry fully agrees, inter alia, with changes to the transitional provisions of the law on the extension of the transition period, a detailed description of models for the implementation of Article 7 in the law on general secondary education," the ministry said.

It also added that special attention would be paid to improving the methods and quality of teaching the Ukrainian language in institutions with the language of instruction for national minorities, which is envisaged in the recommendations.

As reported, the Ukrainian law on education came into force on September 28. Among other things, the law stipulates that the state language is a language of learning at educational institutions, but one or several subjects in two or more languages, namely, the state language, English and other European Union official languages can be taught in compliance with the educational program. People, who belong to ethnic minorities, are guaranteed the right for learning in the native language along with the Ukrainian language in separate groups of municipal pre-school and primary school institutions.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry sent the education law for examination by the Venice Commission.
JERSEY CITY -- The prosecution of six people charged in connection to the fatal shooting of a Jersey City teenager ended today with the final sentences meted out to three men.

However, today's court proceedings provided little in the way of solace to the still grieving family members of Ronald Witherspoon Jr., who died days after being shot in the head near Monticello and Belmont avenues on July 22, 2015.

"My son will never be on this earth again," the boy's mother, Dawn Witherspoon, said during the sentencing of Tyriek Porch, 27, of Bayonne, who received the most lenient of the six sentences - five years probation for hindering apprehension.

"My son will spend the rest of his life in that grave," Dawn Witherspoon added. "(Porch) needs to go to jail."

Naji McDuffy, 26, and Justin M. Nesmith, 27, were each sentenced to five years in prison today for second-degree conspiracy charges. They are not charged as the gunmen who pulled the trigger.

The prosecution said there were three cars involved in the shooting and the gunmen were in the middle car. The state said there were no intended victims and the plan was to "shoot up" the block.

On Friday, Dwayne Powell, 20, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for aggravated manslaughter and Marquis Nicken, 23, was sentenced to 15 years for the same crime. Darius Emanuel, 24, was sentenced to six years in prison for conspiracy to commit aggravated assault.

At today's hearing, Porch's attorney said he thought they were just on a run to buy marijuana the night Witherspoon was shot, and that he was influenced by his cousin, Powell. She said Porch has broken all ties with people in his life who are a bad influence, including his co-defendants.

That didn't fly with Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Lynne Seborowski or Ronald Witherspoon Sr., who both noted that Porch attended Friday's sentencing.

"Three days ago he was here," the Ronald Witherspoon Sr. said at today's hearing. "How did he cut off all ties?" Nesmith and Porch also had big smiles for each other in court today as Nesmith was being led away.

Dawn Witherspoon noted that Nesmith has already served a five-year prison term on a gun charge and said he is not going to change. She said she was disgusted by the mentality that leads people to be murdered for being in the wrong neighborhood of for having words with someone.

"They get slapped on the wrist and they come out and do the same thing," the mother said today. "It's ridiculous, and until these people get some hard time, it's not going to change."

All six defendants pleaded guilty and those sentenced today were among the first to take pleas.

Porch, who has 365 days of jail credit, must also serve 200 hours of community service, remain drug free, employed and have no contact with the Witherspoon family or his co-defendants during probation.

Of the three defendants sentenced today, only Nesmith spoke at the hearing. He said Witherspoon Jr. did not deserve what happened to him.

"I want to send my apologies to the family."
JERSEY CITY -- A 39-year-old Weehawken man threatened to kill police officers and injured three officers while being taken into custody last week, police said.

Jorge Simonetti, of the 100 block of Parkview Terrace, is charged with making terroristic threats, resisting arrest, obstructing a government function and aggravated assault on the officers, the criminal complaint says.

"You guys are dead," Simonetti allegedly yelled at the Weehawken officers. "I'm going to f---ing kill all of you," the complaint says.

The officers said that on Dec. 4, Simonetti resisted being handcuffed and during the scuffle he dug his nails into the hand of one of the officers, the complaint says.

Another officer suffered a knee injury when his leg was caught between Simonetti and an air conditioner. Finally, the third officer suffered a knee injury when Simonetti kicked backwards while being handcuffed, the complaint alleges.

Simonetti made his first appearance on the charges on Tuesday in Criminal Justice Reform Court in Jersey City via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny.

At the hearing, the state moved to detain him through the course of his prosecution.

During the hearing, Simonetti told the judge "I was assaulted." The complaint does not say why police initially arrested him.
UPDATE: Lakewood man, 51, is ID'd as victim in Route 9 crash

A northbound section of Route 9 in Howell was closed for several hours for an accident investigation Sunday night after a pedestrian was fatally struck between the Lakewood border and Alexander Avenue.

In statements posted to social media late Sunday evening, police asked drivers to find an alternate route during the closure but did not immediately provide further details about the crash. The highway was reopened around midnight.

In a separate incident, a crash earlier this month on another stretch of Route 9 in the township claimed the life of a 53-year-old pedestrian, whose death resulted in charges against the 21-year-old driver.

Juanean Perez, of Jackson, was initially charged on suspicion of driving under the influence in the Dec. 2 death of Juan Santiago Lopez, of Freehold Borough, but authorities have said other charges are pending.

Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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The former New Jersey police officer who crashed into several vehicles in two Pennsylvania towns while intoxicated last year was sentenced last week to six months probation, authorities said.

William McCarthy III

William McCarthy III, 46, of Great Meadows, was an officer with the Washington Township Police Department in Morris County on June 16, 2016 when he was involved in motor vehicle crashes in the Pennsylvania towns of Tamaqua and Hazleton following a domestic violence incident in New Jersey.

McCarthy was taken into custody by officers after they set up a roadblock for his vehicle in Hazleton, police said.

He was suspended from the police department without pay, but following a settlement agreement, the township changed his status to an unpaid medical leave so he could receive a disability retirement.

McCarthy, after failing to appear at a September trial date and having a bench warrant issued for his arrest, pleaded guilty last month to DUI and hit-and-run charges in exchange for the dismissal of charges of resisting arrest and reckless driving, according to the Luzerne County Clerk of Courts office.

He was sentenced Dec. 5 to between 90 days and nine months in the county jail, but was paroled after five days because he received jail credit for 85 days spent in an in-patient treatment facility, the court clerk's office said.

As part of his sentence, his driver's license was suspended for a year and he was ordered to pay restitution to the owners of the vehicles he damaged along with a $1,500 fine, the court clerk's office said. He'll also be required to have an ignition interlock device on his vehicle for a year.

The crashes in Hazleton and Tamaqua occurred nearly a year after McCarthy was arrested on a DWI charge in Blairstown.

During that incident on June 20, 2015, he was found parked on the shoulder of Route 94 in a daze and with an open bottle of tequila between his legs, according to arrest reports obtained by NJ Advance Media.

McCarthy told the officer who stopped to check on his condition that he saw dead people and asked if the officer also saw dead people, police said. McCarthy refused to submit to field sobriety tests and to provide breath samples, police said.

Authorities say Washington Township police officer William McCarthy III was involved in a DWI crash in Hazleton, Pa. on June 16, 2016. Pictured, McCarthy's Nissan Armada SUV.

According to the arrest report, his wife told Blairstown police there were family issues at home, that he'd been drinking heavily since 2002 and that they tried to get him help before. McCarthy denied having a drinking problem, according to the arrest report.

McCarthy's license was suspended for 90 days in August 2016 for a first-time DWI violation in the Blairstown incident. At the time of his arrest in Pennsylvania on June 16, his driver's license was valid.

After the Blairstown incident, McCarthy entered into a settlement agreement with the police department in which he agreed to immediate termination for any other alcohol-related incident on or off-duty.

McCarthy was hired by the Washington Township Police Department in February 1997, and, at the time he left the department, he was receiving a salary of $99,705.

Justin Zaremba may be reached at jzaremba@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinZarembaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A pipe bomb attack in a passenger subway corridor beneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal that injured the suspect and three others Monday morning is terror-related, New York City officials said.

Akayed Ullah, 27, of Brooklyn, N.Y., is in serious condition at Bellevue hospital while three passers-by brought themselves to city hospitals to be treated for minor injuries, primarily suffering from ringing in the ears.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference outside the bus terminal Monday morning. "An attack in the subway is incredibly unsettling. Thank God the terrorist didn't achieve his ultimate goals."

Law enforcement officials say he was inspired by the Islamic State, but apparently had no direct contact with the terror group.

Ullah detonated a "low-tech" improvised explosive device in an underground passageway connecting two subway lines about 7:20 a.m., police said.

He strapped the device to his body using Velcro and zip ties, according to police, who have yet to conclude whether Ullah specifically chose that spot to set off the device. Ullah had burns to his hands and abdomen, police said.

"This was frightening and disturbing," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. "We're thankful that the reality turns out better than our initial expectations and fear."

Ullah was walking east in the corridor between 8th Avenue and 7th Avenue when the device detonated, police commissioner James O'Neill said.

Ullah, who lives in Brooklyn, came to the U.S. from Bangladesh about seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a livery cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission. He was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, police said.

A person briefed on the investigation said Ullah arrived in the United States on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the U.S. who are citizens, and that he made the bomb in his home.

The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Service has since resumed at the Port Authority Bus Terminal. NJ Transit said that PATH discontinued cross honoring bus tickets. NJ Transit rail will stop cross honoring bus tickets at 11:59 a.m.

NY Waterway ferries will continue to cross honor NJ Transit bus tickets until 8 p.m. and had deployed extra ferries.

The MTA said that while subways have resumed service, trains on the Seventh and Eighth Avenue lines will not stop at 42nd Street. There are still significant traffic delays at the Lincoln Tunnel to New York.

Gov. Chris Christie said additional security has been stationed at mass transit hubs.

"Every law enforcement asset in New Jersey is coordinating with our federal and New York partners regarding this incident," Christie said. "I urge all New Jerseyans to be alert and that if they see something unusual, to report it to law enforcement immediately."

Larry Higgs and the Associated Press contributed to this report Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
UPDATE: Port Authority Bus Terminal explosion was 'attempted terrorist attack'

NYPD responding to incident at Port Authority Police responding to explosion of unknown origin at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, NYPD says Follow breaking details --> http://7ny.tv/2B4pPJi Posted by ABC7NY on Monday, December 11, 2017

A pipe bomb strapped to a man went off in the New York City subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring the suspect and another person at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials said.

The man and the other person were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the incident.

Police say the explosion happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. The 7:30 a.m. blast filled the passageway, crowded with throngs of Monday morning commuters, with smoke.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and fire both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Police activity has temporarily closed the terminal and is affecting NJ Transit buses.

Bus service to and from the bus terminal is being diverted to Secaucus and Newark Penn Station, where riders can catch trains. Bus tickets will be accepted on the agency's trains and light rail as well as PATH and ferries.

Police respond to a report of an explosion near Times Square on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Charles Zoeller)

An official New York City Twitter account, NotifyNYC said to expect traffic and transit delays on 42nd Street between 8th and 9th Avenue.

The A, C and E subway lines are being evacuated, the NYPD said.

Other subway lines, including the 1, 2, 3, A, Q, R, W and 7 are bypassing 43nd Street, the MTA said.

No cars are allowed to exit the FDR Drive from 59th to 42nd Street, police said. In addition, the area between 40th and 45th streets and 7th to 9th Avenues is closed as of 9 a.m.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has tweeted that President Trump has been briefed on the explosion.

The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time. Info is preliminary, more when available. pic.twitter.com/7vpNT97iLC  NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

The Mayor has been briefed on the incident in Midtown. The NYPD, FDNY and first responders are on the scene.  NYC Mayor's Office (@NYCMayorsOffice) December 11, 2017

Bus service to/from Port Authority Bus Terminal may experience delays due to police activity in the building.  NJ TRANSIT (@NJTRANSIT) December 11, 2017

The Associated Press and NJ Advance Media reporter Jeff Goldman contributed to this report.
A former governor who is chairman of the board at University Hospital in Newark recommended the hospital hire a friend, made her his personal assistant and signed off on a promotion and a pay raise for what was later deemed a "no-show or low- show" job, NJ Advance Media has learned.

Donald DiFrancesco, the former state Senate president who also was governor for most of 2001, made Jill Cooperman his assistant and began assigning her work weeks after she was hired in January 2014, according to a report investigating her tenure at the quasi-public city hospital.

Cooperman's salary at University Hospital rose from $94,000 to $125,000, and her title changed from senior staff attorney to assistant general counsel and secretary of the hospital's foundation from January 2014 to April 2016, the report said.

A University Hospital whistleblower complained that Cooperman had been given "a low-show or a no-show job," with a vague job description, said Annette Catino, a board member who hired an outside law firm to investigate the accusation.

The investigation concluded the complaint was "credible," according to the report by Vito Gagliardi Jr. of the law firm Porzio Bromberg & Newman in Morristown, who presented it to the hospital board in April 2016.

"In sum, UH (University Hospital) had a high-level administrator without a clear job title, job description or supervisor," according to the report.

"It is was clear that even Ms. Cooperman herself is unclear on to whom she presently reports, her exact title and what her responsibilities are. Often absent from the office, that she often leaves work early or in the middle of the day, and that her whereabouts are often unclear or unknown by her colleagues."

Soon after the report was completed, Cooperman and the board reached "a mutual decision" that she would leave with an undisclosed severance package, protected by a non-disclosure agreement, Catino said.

The whistleblower in the case also received a severance package from the hospital, according to two sources with knowledge of the agreement.

Reached by phone at her job as a real estate agent, Cooperman replied, "I have nothing to say," or "I can't answer that question" when asked to comment on the report and her time at the hospital.

The report's findings prompted the hospital to adopt a resolution in May 2016 barring any hospital employees from reporting to board members in the future.

"We recommend making clear to both the board and administrative personnel that there should never be a time where board members are directly supervising administrative personnel," the report said.

Gagliardi said the board did not ask him to focus on nature of DiFrancesco's and Cooperman's relationship.

Catino told NJ Advance Media she had asked DiFrancesco point-blank whether the two had an intimate relationship. "I asked him on two occasions, prior to the investigation starting. I did it face-to-face," Catino said. "He said, 'No, you are misreading it.' He said it was professional."

DiFrancesco declined to be interviewed for this article. Through a spokesman, Bob Sommer, he released a statement confirming he had recommended Cooperman fill a position in the general counsel's office.

"After Ms. Cooperman was introduced to me by my client, she forwarded me her resume and we met a handful of times prior to my recommending her for an open position at University Hospital," DiFrancesco said in a statement.

"She was hired following the process any state employee would and she reported to that department," according to DiFrancesco's statement. "Ms. Cooperman and I were friends but had not had a romantic relationship." DiFrancesco is married.

DiFrancesco described Cooperman as "vital in helping support the board," as the hospital was still in the throes of establishing its independence after its operating entity, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, was dissolved by Gov. Chris Christie and the Legislature in 2013.

DiFrancesco, who was appointed by Christie to lead the board that year, described the transition as difficult.

"Even though I was a volunteer chairman, I was spending two to three days a week at UH helping to build the organization," he said in his statement. "As such, I needed staff support."

He credited Cooperman with helping him and creating a foundation to raise funds to support the hospital, which is reliant on state funding and has long operated in the red.

"I think to a great degree we achieved these goals, though in the rush to create the organization, more attention should have been paid to establishing reporting mechanisms for staff," DiFrancesco's statement said.

"With 20/20 hindsight, I do agree a more formal chain of command would have been helpful but at the time I was focused on helping to build a corporate structure and improve the hospital's operation."

Catino, the board member who oversees budgetary and compliance issues, described the allegations as "serious," and the experience "embarrassing" for both Cooperman and DiFrancesco.

"Any mishandling of employment is serious, and when we found the problem, we corrected it," Catino, the former president and CEO of QualCare, an insurance provider.

She said there was no discussion of penalizing DiFrancesco. The only person who could remove the chairman is the governor, she said. "We made sure the governor's office knew this investigation was taking place," Catino said.

Christie spokesman Brian Murray declined to comment for this story.

"I don't think he thought he did anything wrong. I don't know if he ever worked in corporate structure," Catino said of DiFrancesco, whose term expires in June.

DiFrancesco, a Republican, was Senate president from 1992 to 2002 and served as governor for 11 months after Christie Whitman resigned to head the Enivornmental Protection Agency. He is partner at a law firm in Warren.

During his stint as governor, DiFrancesco appointed Gagliardi's father, Vito Gagliardi Sr., to his cabinet as commissioner of Education in 2001. Gagliardi Jr. disclosed his father's appointment when the board approached him to investigate the Cooperman complaint, Catino said Monday.

"There was some distance in years since (Vito Gagliardi Sr. and DiFrancesco) had a professional relationship," Catino said, explaining why she felt comfortable hiring Gagliardi Jr.. "We were assured there was no real friendship or social relationship. Also the appointment was not long in tenure, as Don DiFrancesco's tenure was also short lived."

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
CHRISTIE ADMINISTRATION MARKS 500th BLUE ACRES DEMOLITION WITH REMOVAL OF HOUSE ALONG DELAWARE BAY

(17/P118) TRENTON   The Christie Administrations Superstorm Sandy Blue Acres Buyout Program has reached another milestone with its 500th demolition, a house that was taken down in Cumberland Countys Lawrence Township, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin announced today.

The Blue Acres program is an important part of the Christie Administrations comprehensive strategy to make New Jersey more resilient to storms, using federal and state funds to acquire residential properties in flood-prone areas from willing sellers and then preserve the land as open space to absorb storm surges.

The Christie Administration is committed to making New Jersey more resilient to storms such as Superstorm Sandy, Commissioner Martin said. These demolitions will result in moving families out of harms way in a very vulnerable area along Delaware Bay. The Blue Acres Program has proven to be extremely successful by providing homeowners with a viable alternative to living with the constant threat of flooding.

The 500th demolition, a house on Paris Road, took place in the Bay Point section of Lawrence Township, an area of Cumberland County that is prone to dangerous flooding. A contractor for the state has been working for the past two weeks removing 20 storm-damaged homes as well as pilings and docks from 14 additional lots. The $1.2 million project is being carried out by Hammonton-based Site Enterprises Inc.

To have achieved 500 demolitions in a period of three years is quite an accomplishment, and there is still more work to be done, said Blue Acres Director Fawn Z. McGee. We receive calls on a daily basis from homeowners throughout New Jersey who face living with repeated flooding and paying high flood insurance premium and want Blue Acres to purchase their properties. The program provides a way to move families to safer places without losing the equity theyve invested in their homes.

The Blue Acres Program and its acquisition practices have earned national recognition, including awards from FEMA and HUD. To date, the Blue Acres program has acquired 618 properties. The program has made offers to a total of 893 property owners, of which 690 have been accepted so far.

Bay Point is about 15 miles southwest of Millville. The properties being taken down are located on an extremely exposed and narrow barrier island flanked by marshlands. Due to the need for demolition work to occur in water and the fact that the area is ecologically sensitive, Blue Acres was required to secure permits through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the DEPs Land Use Regulation program.

Consequently, the demolitions are timed to avoid impacts to species of migratory shorebirds, horseshoe crabs and other wildlife in this ecologically sensitive area, which will eventually become part of a state Wildlife Management Area.

In 2013, Governor Christie designated Blue Acres to run the states post-Superstorm Sandy effort to purchase homes from willing sellers at pre-Sandy values. The program was subsequently expanded to include acquisitions in communities that may not have been directly impacted by Sandy but are still prone to repetitive flooding from rivers, creeks and other water bodies.

The $375 million in funding for Blue Acres buyouts comes from $185 million provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, $175 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and $15 million from the Blue Acres and State Land Acquisition funds within the DEPs Green Acres Program.

After a Blue Acres purchase, homes are demolished and the land is permanently preserved as open space for recreation and/or conservation. The goal is to purchase clusters of homes to provide areas that will absorb flood waters and better protect municipalities.

The Blue Acres Program has been active in 14 municipalities: Sayreville, South River, Woodbridge, Old Bridge and East Brunswick in Middlesex County; Manville in Somerset County; Pompton Lakes in Passaic County; Newark in Essex County; Rahway and Linden in Union County; Lawrence and Downe in Cumberland County; New Milford in Bergen County; and Ocean in Monmouth County. The program is also conducting preliminary work with local officials to initiate programs in several other coastal communities.

The Blue Acres Program complements a wide range of storm-resiliency efforts spearheaded by the DEP, including construction of a statewide system of engineered beaches and dunes, development of protective standards for elevating homes in coastal areas, protecting and improving water and wastewater infrastructure, and assisting local governments with flood mitigation projects.

The DEP has also launched a comprehensive study with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers into strategies to reduce flooding from back bays and other coastal waterways.

Homeowners interested in selling their homes or who have questions about the buyout program may call the DEPs Blue Acres Program at (609) 984-0500. For more information on the Blue Acres Buyout Program, visit:

www.nj.gov/dep/greenacres/blue_flood_ac.html

DEP PHOTOS/Top: Blue Acres 500th demolition; Bottom: Post demolition scene, Bay Point

###
Mario Batali attends the Food Bank For New York City Can-Do Awards Dinner at Cipriani Wall Street on Wednesday, April 20, 2016, in New York.(Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Ukrainians have crossed the EU member states' border near 11mln times since the entry into force of the visa-free regime between Ukraine and the EU, which is by 15% more than in the same period in 2016, according to a press release from the EU Delegation to Ukraine, published on Monday.

"Visa free travel boosted the benefits of the free trade area between the EU and Ukraine. Moreover it contributed to the increase of exports from Ukraine to the EU by 29% over the first nine months of 2017 compared to the same period in 2016," the document reads.

The EU Delegation said, referring to the State Border Service of Ukraine, that more than 2,5 million Ukrainians have entered the EU using biometric passports.

In turn, the press service of the State Border Service informs that for half a year of visa-free regime, 355,000 Ukrainians has taken advantage of the simplified system of crossing the border.

"At the same time, more than 128,000 Ukrainians used aviation transport for travel, 227,000 of our compatriots traveled by car and by rail, a small number of citizens travelled through sea checkpoints ... Most of Ukrainians travelled across the border with Poland and Romania - almost 90,000 and 65,000 people respectively. As a whole, a common border with the EU was crossed by 64% of visa-free travelers," the report reads.

At the same time, the State Border Guard Service noted that recently there has been a decrease in the number of travelers on a visa-free basis, explaining this by the excitement in the first months of the visa-free operation: if earlier border guards issued an average of 80,000 Ukrainians per month, in November this figure was 32,500 people.

"At the same time, the total number of trips by Ukrainian citizens to European countries for the three summer months of 2017 increased by 10% compared to the same three months of 2016," the service said.

The State Border Guard Service reminded that, in preparation for the visa-free travel, in particular, 157 border checkpoints were equipped with biometric equipment, including 97 with fingerprint control. At present, the biometric monitoring system, established by the border guards, operates in all aviation, international and interstate border checkpoints at the border with the EU countries.

Ukrainian citizens were granted visa-free travel to the European Union countries (except for the United Kingdom and Ireland) as well as to four Schengen states  Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland on June 11, 2017.
Former President Donald Trump is preparing to launch his third campaign for the White House with an announcement Tuesday night. Trump is looking to move on from disappointing midterm defeats and defy history amid signs that his grip on the Republican Party may be waning. The former president had hoped to use the GOP's expected gains in last week's elections as a springboard to win his party's nomination by locking in early support and keeping potential challengers at bay. Instead, Trump now finds himself being blamed for backing a series of losing candidates in last week's midterm elections.
A strong cold front powering through eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa today was to touch off strong winds and slightly lower temperatures.

The National Weather Service office in Valley issued a wind advisory from 10 a.m. to 6 a.m. for eastern, northeast and southeast Nebraska and western, southwest and northwest Iowa.

Forecasters said northwest winds of 30 to 35 mph and gusts of 40 to 45 mph to near 50 mph in some locations can be expected from midmorning through the afternoon.

In addition to today's wind gusts, the Council Bluffs-Omaha area can expect a slight chance of sprinkles and rain and a high temperature around 45 degrees.

Tonight, blustery conditions with north-northwest winds gusting as high as 30 mph are likely. A low in the low to mid-20s is expected.

Tuesday and Wednesday should be partly to mostly sunny with highs in the low to upper 40s. Overnight lows will slip into the upper 20s to around 30.

The weather service said Thursday through the weekend in the Council Bluffs-Omaha area should be partly to mostly sunny with highs in the upper 30s on Thursday to the upper 40s to around 50 on Friday through Sunday.

Lows will be in the mid-20s to around 30.

No major weather systems coming in this week, said Ryan McPike, a KMTV meteorologist. No snow or ice.
Ex-Ukrainian Prime Minister and leader of the People's Front part Arseniy Yatsenyuk has said disgraced ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was working with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian officials in early February 2014 when Crimea was annexed.

"Russia's president himself confirmed this in an interview in which he said that on February 20, 2014 he gave the order to the Russian military to illegal seize and annex Ukrainian territory. This plan was executed with the participation of then President Viktor Yanukovych," Yatsenyuk said. Yatsenyuk was appearing in Kyiv's Solomiansky District Court on Monday at a hearing against Yanukovych for state treason.

Yatsenyuk said a letter addressed from Yanukovych to Putin dated March 1, 2014 was the result of the agreement between Yanukovych and Putin. The letter was meant to legitimize events transpiring in Crimea.

Yatsenyuk said he believes Yanukovych was fully dependent on Russia and personally on Putin based on his behavior as Ukrainian president, including Yanukovych's decision to sign the Kharkiv accords, and later by his refusal to sign the Ukraine-European Union Association agreement, which led to protests in Kyiv.
The conclusions of the Venice Commission on the language clause of the Ukrainian education law will help Hungary stop blocking the Euro-Atlantic and European integration aspirations of Ukraine, Deputy Prime Minister Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze has said.

"I really wanted to believe that repeated statements by Hungary that Ukraine should take into account the position and proposals of the Venice Commission should now unblock this opposition to Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic and European integration aspirations," she told Interfax-Ukraine on Monday.

At the same time, she noted that Hungary "now puts the main emphasis on the fact that Ukraine must reach mutual understanding with the Hungarian national minority."

"I am convinced that it is possible to do so if this national minority is an independent player," Klympush-Tsintsadze said.

As reported, the Ukrainian law on education came into force on September 28. Among other things, the law stipulates that the state language is a language of learning at educational institutions, but one or several subjects in two or more languages, namely, the state language, English and other European Union official languages can be taught in compliance with the educational program. People, who belong to ethnic minorities, are guaranteed the right for learning in the native language along with the Ukrainian language in separate groups of municipal pre-school and primary school institutions.

As reported, on October 27 Hungary blocked holding of a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Commission in December 2017.

"Hungary cannot support Ukraine's integration aspirations, so it vetoed the holding of the NATO-Ukraine summit in December," the ministry's press service quoted Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto as saying.

The minister recalled that after the Verkhovna Rada passed the bill on education, Hungary promised that its diplomacy will use all the tools available to impede Ukraine's European integration.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry sent the education law for examination by the Venice Commission.

On December 8, the Ukrainian Education and Science Ministry reported that the Venice Commission had not supported Hungary's accusation of narrowing the rights of national minorities in the article on the language of instruction in Ukraine's law on education. The commission noted that the issues of the content and scope of rights are exclusively within the competence of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, and a number of questions concerning the use of languages should be resolved by special laws.
JOIN A WINNING TEAM right here in northwest indiana We have been covering Northwest Indiana for over 100 years and were still growing. We are, by far, the main source of news, information and advertising in the Region and are looking for great people to join out team. Whether youre just starting out or looking for a place to step up,TheTimes has opportunities you need to explore. PAGE DESIGNER TheTimes Media Co., located 20 miles from downtown Chicago, is looking for highly motivated, creative page designers who can bring a new dimension to our brand of local newspapers and magazines. As our design center has expanded, so has our drive to find designers with innovative newspaper and magazine design and illustration skills. Our energetic design staff is working hard to change the perception of designers as merely visual people. We work with the belief that good content drives readership, and we push our staff to be content editors. If you possess the heart of a journalist and an innovative mind, we want you to join our close-knit, talented design team. Our ideal candidates will have experience in design at a newspaper or magazine, understand the fast-paced, newsroom environment, have the ability to manage several tasks simultaneously, and are experienced in information and content design. Candidates also must display a strong instinct for problem solving, a sense of urgency, and a passion for news. Experience with InDesign and Photoshop is preferred. In this position you must be willing to work a varied schedule with night hours. TheTimes Media Co. is one of Lee Enterprises 46 daily newspapers. Lee also publishes 300 weekly newspapers, shoppers and classified and specialty publications. In addition, Lee provides a wide variety of associated online services. EOE Call Center Representative (Part-time 30-39 hrs/wk) We have immediate openings for experienced Customer Service Representatives (CSRs), for our call center operations atTheTimes in our Munster & Crown Point, Indiana locations.TheTimes of Northwest Indiana is part of Lee Enterprises which is a leading provider of local newspapers, information and advertising in primarily midsize markets, with 46 daily newspapers and a joint interest in two others, along with rapidly growing digital products and nearly 300 specialty publications in 21 states which includesTheTimes of Northwest Indiana. Our call center agents are the backbone of our business. When customers call us, our CSRs answer the phone, make connections, answer questions, solve problems, and get people happily on their way as quickly as possible. As a Lee Enterprise Call Center Customer Service Representative, youll handle heavy call volumes daily in our fast paced call center, while maintaining a high level of customer satisfaction. When you join Lee Enterprises, you will enjoy:  Instantly becoming part of our family of diverse people focused on making really good customer experiences happen.  Ways to earn more every single month through bonus and incentives.  A clear path and the tools you need to progress with more responsibilities and promotions  Earning paid time off which includes vacation, sick and personal days, along with paid holidays  Eligibility for Medical, Dental, Vision, & Life Insurance, along with a 401K Match! Bring it.Youre qualified if you:  Love to help people  Have experience performing comfortably in a fast paced, deadline oriented environment.  Are proficient with MS Excel, Word & Outlook & have the ability to navigate thru various software programs efficiently  Above average typing skills (50+wpm)  Have sales ability and experience with inbound/ outbound customer service Learn more or apply online at www.nwi.com/timesjobs. EOE Distribution Assistant  Temporary/Seasonal TheTimes is currently looking for part-time Distribution Assistants to work in one of our Distribution Centers, working an average of 35 hours per week.These positions are temporary, seasonal positions that may continue through January 2018. Our centers are located in Valparaiso, Merrillville, and Hammond, IN. Work hours are in the early morning and include holidays and weekends. The work consists of:  opening and closing the distribution center  stacking bundles on tables  assisting with the delivery of newspaper routes  other duties assigned by the District Manager Candidates must have a valid drivers license and good driving record, as well as a reliable vehicle and proof of auto insurance. Mileage reimbursement is available if asked to use your vehicle for work purposes. Other requirements include basic computer skills and the ability to lift up to 40 pounds. The starting hourly wage for this position is $12.00/hour. This is an excellent entry level position for a company with a history of promoting from within. TheTimes is a drug-free workplace and all candidates offered a position will be asked to complete a pre-employment drug screen. Interested candidates should apply online at www.nwi.com/timesjobs. Equal Opportunity Employer Multi-Media Sales Executive  Outside Sales Base Salary PLUS Un-capped Commissions Join a winning team! We reach more consumers than we ever have before through NWI.com and our award winning print products. Consumer in NW Indiana rely onTheTimes and NWI.com for local news and information that no one else can deliver. Over 75% of all adults in NW Indiana connect with us through our on-line and print products on a weekly basis. We deliver 1.6M unique visitors per month with over 12.6M page views and 8.2M mobile sessions per month! We are looking for Multi-Media Sales professionals who possess the drive and passion to help local business owners increase market share through real time solutions and products that deliver superior results! We offer:  Competitive base salary  Un-capped commissions  On-going incentives and spiffs  Mobile phone  Mileage reimbursement  Benefits including: 401K (matching too), medical, dental, vision, paid vacation and personal time, life insurance, flexible spending accounts  Laptop and tools to be successful Our Multi-Media Sales professional manage an existing base of wellestablished accounts along with the responsibility and ability to hunt and develop new accounts... we want HUNTERS. Plus work alongside a team of sales professionals in a competitive market serving 6 counties! You Are:  Competitive  Driven to be the best  Results and goals oriented  Mentally tough  Possess a strong work ethic  Tech savvy  High character  Want to grow a great career  Willing to have fun! Ideal candidates possess:  3 + years of sales experience with a demonstrated track record of success  Prospecting & cold calling experience in successfully opening new accounts  Excellent communication skills  Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high transactional sales environment  College degree preferred  Valid drivers license, good driving record and access to a reliable vehicle Were willing to train the right candidate! If you bring the heart and desire to succeed we will equip you with the tools and knowledge to be successful! Drug Free Workplace Equal Opportunity Employer APPLY AT NWI.COM/TIMESJOBS
MERRILLVILLE  As important as it is to be in the classroom learning math, English and computer programming, Andrean High School leaders believe it's also important to learn the importance of giving back to the community.

To that end, the Catholic school in Merrillville has created monthly Formation Days. The entire school participates in these events, which usually involve faith and service.

For example in September, Andrean students partnered with St. Thomas Episcopal School in Houston, Texas, to offer assistance to flood victims of Hurricane Harvey. The Andrean community raised more than $2,000 in monetary donations, gift cards and school supplies.

In December, the theme is Giving Thanks, Giving Back, as it combines the message of Thanksgiving and Advent.

Andrean freshmen participated in sessions focusing on their goals as Andrean students.

Sophomores were at the Salvatorian Fathers in Merrillville. Juniors were at Our Lady of Consolation Parish in Merrillville with facilitation by the Theology Department and student leaders.

Seniors took part in service projects in the community with the option of working with Catholic Charities in Gary, decorating cookies with residents at senior living community St. Anthony Village in Crown Point or doing arts and crafts projects with students at St. Mary School in Crown Point.

St. Anthony Village enrichment director Edith Jackson, Executive Director Peter Bolt and Barb Mageral, skilled nursing home administrator, welcomed the students warmly, providing background about the agency and its services.

"During the holiday, some of our residents don't have a lot of family and when the community can come in and spread joy to the residents, I think that's great," Jackson said.

"We're focusing on joyful living here. When people come in and engage with the residents, it brings joy to the residents and a smile on my face."

Andrean math teacher Joe O'Neill said working with seniors will help the teens understand a little more about being thankful for the gifts they have and being thankful for getting up in the morning, going to school and having a meal, then pay it forward.

Andrean health teacher Susan Marovich said Formation Days are important because it gives teens an opportunity to get out of the classroom and practice what they learn.

"Today is about gratitude. Be thankful for what you have and share that with other people," she said Thursday.

St. Anthony Village residents were thrilled students spent the day with them decorating cookies, then later having lunch together.

Bunty McDonald, 100, said, "I think this is great. I think it's lovely that the kids came over here." McDonald spent the day with Andrean senior Tessa Boby, who said she really appreciates the opportunity the school gave her to participate in this program.

Andrean senior Thomas Schutz bonded with St. Anthony Village resident Rita Zahora, 82, when the two exchanged family information. Zahora told Schutz she grew up in Chicago and remembered the days when Chicago streetcars ran through the city. The teen's grandmother also grew up in the city.

Schutz said one benefit of Formation Days is participating in activities outside of the classroom.

"Formation Days gives us a chance to get out in the community," he said. "Otherwise, I'd be in calculus."

Ane Crespo, an Andrean exchange student who is a senior at San Jose Jesuitak School in Durango, Bitkaua, Spain, said she and her classmates in Spain have worked with younger students, but this is the first time she has assisted at a nursing home.

St. Anthony Village resident Lorraine Henshaw, 75, told Andrean senior Adam Kielbasa that her forte is entertaining her fellow residents at Christmas.

"I sing at the Christmas party," she said. "I'll be playing Santa. I think it's awesome that the kids are taking the time to come and see us. Christmas is a special time of the year. Christmas is about love, and these kids are showing that they love us."
CROWN POINT  Lake County Councilman Jamal Washington will remain in jail until after Christmas on new domestic violence charges that threaten his career as a public official for the second time in two years.

Washington, 44, of Merrillville, also faces the prospect of a longer period of incarceration if a judge finds he violated the terms of his probation for battering his wife in 2015.

Merrillville police arrested him and Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter charged him Friday with allegedly battering, confining and threatening a 23-year-old female cousin with a sledgehammer Dec. 5 during a dispute in his Merrillville home.

Lake Criminal Court Magistrate Natalie Bakota officially advised Washington on Monday of the five felony and three misdemeanor counts he now faces, court records state.

She also advised him the court cannot release him on bail before Dec. 26 to give the court's probation department time to investigate whether Washington violated probation. He then could be released on a $50,000 surety or $5,000 cash bond.

The Lake Criminal Court probation office filed a request Monday to revoke Washington's probation and the suspension of his one-year sentence, arising from the 2015 battery on his wife. If granted, a judge could order Washington to serve that time behind bars.

Washington is next scheduled to appear Dec. 19 before Lake Criminal Court Judge Diane Boswell, who could rule on the Lake County prosecutor's request for appointment of a special prosecutor and special judge to look into the newly filed charges.

Carter said Friday he wants special court officials to avoid any appearance of a conflict between local court officials and Washington and other County Council members who approve public appropriations for the prosecutor and the local courts.

Washington told The Times last week he didn't harm Kamaria Buckley, a cousin living in his Merrillville house.

Buckley told The Times on Friday she made up the complaint she filed with police last week because she was upset with Washington after they got into a verbal dispute and he ordered her out of his house.

It is Times policy not to identify victims of ongoing criminal cases, but Buckley agreed to talk publicly to The Times last weekend.

Washington has hired three defense attorneys  John Cantrell, Darnail Lyles and Mark Gruenhagen  to fight the new charges. Cantrell said Friday the criminal investigation was a complete and total witch hunt.

Dan Dernulc, chairman of the Lake County Republican Party and one of Washington's fellow county councilmen, asked Washington to consider resigning from the council in the wake of the allegations.

He joins Jim Wieser, the Lake County Democratic Party chairman, who on Friday called upon Washington to resign. Wieser said Monday that Buckley's recent recantation of her complaint against Washington "hasn't changed my opinion one iota."

Lake County Council President Ted Bilski, D-Hobart, said Monday the council has no power to remove Washington from his 3rd District council seat, and he doesn't know whether fellow council members want to make a joint statement on Washington.

Bilski, who also is president of Teamsters Local 142, expressed concern that Buckley told police last week she was initially reluctant to file a report on Washington out of fear of retaliation, given Washington's position as an elected county official and her job as a dispatcher for the county's E-911 Department.

"I'm in opposition to any type of abuse, including intimidation by bosses. I would hope that perpetrators in those scenarios do the right and honorable thing," Bilski said.

Buckley reported to Merrillville police Wednesday that Washington attacked her between 4 and 7 p.m. the prior night at their home in the 5600 block of Connecticut Street, according to a probable cause affidavit.

She said Washington arrived home at 4 p.m. and began yelling at her for being rude during an earlier phone call, the affidavit states.

She said the councilman ordered her out of the house, grabbed her by the throat and threw her to the ground, threatened her with a sledgehammer and refused to allow her to leave the home for two hours, court papers state.
Name: Northwest Indiana Medal of Honor recipients

Hometowns: Michigan City, East Chicago, Westville, Hammond

Known for: Valor

More than a century and a half ago, Westville Union Army Chaplain John Whitehead ignored a barrage of Confederate bullets to pull wounded troops from the front lines of one of the Civil Wars eighth bloodiest battle in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

While serving with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam in 1970, East Chicago Lance Cpl. Emilio De La Garza Jr. used his body to absorb an enemy grenade in Vietnam. He died in the process of saving fellow platoon members.

They are two of five Northwest Indiana residents to receive the Medal of Honor, the highest and most prestigious personal military decoration that may be awarded to recognize U.S. military service members who distinguished themselves by acts of valor.

They were inducted into the South Shore Wall of Legends in 2011 and joined by:

Marine Pfc. Daniel Bruce, Michigan City. Bruce was killed while serving in Vietnam. He held a live enemy grenade against his body and tried to carry it away from fellow platoon members, dying in the process.

Marine Staff Sgt. William Windrich of Hammond. Windrich died of blood loss from field wounds in 1950 during the Korean War. He was shot multiple times but refused to be evacuated until his men were safely away.

Lt. Thomas Graham of Westville, Company 6, 15th Indiana Infantry. Graham was cited for meritorious service at the Civil War's Battle of Missionary Ridge in 1863 in Tennessee for rallying troops after a regimental flag bearer fell in battle. He planted it in enemy breastworks and exposed himself to enemy gunfire to rally his troops.
MERRILLVILLE  There's a new method being used to promote awareness of local water quality, and it's appealing to the eyes.

The latest in the South Shore Poster series was unveiled last week at the Merrillville Stormwater Resource Center, and the painting created by artist Mitch Markovitz depicts a waterway traveling through the Region and heading into Lake Michigan.

The artwork also shows water puddling on a road following rain, and the waterway being used for recreation.

Water is a vital part of our lives, said Matt Lake, executive director of Merrillville's Stormwater Utility.

Lake also is part of the Northwest Indiana Stormwater Advisory Group, which came up with the idea for the poster.

He said the title of the artwork, Clean and Clear, is perfect because it represents what we want in our waterways.

Lake said what people do on land ends up in local waterways before heading into Lake Michigan.

NISWAG, a coalition of Stormwater entities from Lake and Porter counties, discussed the possibility of commissioning the artwork for years.

They're popular, Lake said of the South Shore Poster series.

He is pleased with the outcome of the project, which many view as a unique way to increase awareness of stormwater management.

As part of the process of creating the poster, NISWAG members met with Markovitz to discuss the concept for the artwork. Markovitz said he enjoyed working with them on the project.

Many of the municipalities that are involved in NISWAG, other local government entities, engineering companies and other groups contributed to funding the $11,000 poster project, Lake said.

All involved have the rights to sell reproductions of the paintings. They also can use the artwork on cards, promotional items and for other purposes.

This is an educational tool, said Reggie Korthals, of Butler, Fairman & Seufert, an engineering company that participated in the poster project.

Korthals said stormwater directors from local municipalities can take reproductions of the painting to schools to help teach students about water quality and quantity issues.
VALPARAISO  Anyone interested in filling the seat of Valparaiso City Councilman John Bowker has until 4:30 p.m. today to file paperwork.

Bowker announced earlier this month he intends to resign from his 5th District seat on the City Council at the end of the year, citing work responsibilities, and the addition of a grandchild, as preventing him from fulling committing to the council. Bowker has served 13 years on the council.

Michael Simpson, chairman of the Porter County Republican Party, said as of Friday afternoon, one person, lifelong Valparaiso resident George Douglas, has completed the necessary paperwork to be considered to be Bowker's replacement.

A caucus of precinct committee people from the 5th District will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Porter County Administration Center, 155 Indiana Ave.

Simpson said a couple of other people have picked up paperwork, but have not turned it back in.

Anyone interested must pick up the paperwork and return it by 4:30 p.m. today at the Porter County Voter's Registration office in the county administration building.
Michigan City's ongoing efforts to require carbon monoxide detectors in residential properties was met with opposition early last month from the Indiana Apartment Association.

The group objected to the city's attempts to go it alone with its requirements for detectors in multifamily buildings, such as apartments and nursing homes.

"IAA and its members continues to believe it is best to have statewide codes, especially when thinking that every local community could instead review and adopt their own codes which would create inconsistency throughout the state," the group said in a Nov. 2 letter to the Indiana Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission.

The commission signs off on local carbon monoxide ordinances.

IAA President Lynne Petersen said Friday that reference to carbon monoxide detectors was intentionally removed from the commercial building code during the last statewide update in 2014.

The multifamily reference has since been removed from Michigan City's ordinance as well, but final approval of the proposal continues to be held up by the Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission.

The commission unanimously voted Tuesday to reject the city's proposed ordinance, after having tabled it earlier. A proposal from Chesterton had been rejected Oct. 3.

Others seeking approval are Porter and St. Joseph counties.

All of the proposals would require carbon monoxide detectors in new home construction, with St. Joseph County adding existing rentals, nursing homes and hotels/motels.

LaPorte is the only community in the state to win approval thus far, yet had to make three attempts, according to Dot Kesling, founder of the Lindsey O'Brien Kesling Wishing Tree Foundation that advocates for carbon monoxide poisoning awareness.

Indiana is one of just four states without a statewide requirement for carbon monoxide detectors, she has said.

Petersen said she would have to see a statewide proposal for carbon monoxide detectors before she was able to say what stand her organization would take. There are several variables that need to be considered, she said, such as the required locations, number and decibels of the detectors.

Her group argued last month that the Michigan City proposal lacked the protections for property owners found in the requirements for smoke detectors. Renters need to sign off that smoke detectors are working when they move in, and it is up to them to maintain the equipment.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas emitted from furnaces, gas water heaters, stoves, fireplaces and exhaust from automobiles, generators and other gasoline-powered engines, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Michigan City Fire Marshal Kyle Kazmierczak last week said he was extremely frustrated by the commission, which he described as "inept" since it primarily is made up of building and construction industry representatives and includes only two firefighters.

"Until there's parity there these ordinances will never be enacted," Kazmierczak said. "What they're doing, in my opinion, is trying to draw it out as long as possible so we just go away."
The goal is to make sure our first responders have the resources and training necessary to be prepared to respond to calls and come to our assistance on, what would likely be, one of our worst days, said Celina Weatherwax, president of The McMillan Family Foundation Inc. Through a combination of classroom and practical, hands-on application, the MAAC Training campus will provide advanced levels of critical thinking and functioning in response to an emergency.
Yatsenyuk says in Feb 2014 he twice spoke over phone with Medvedev upon initiative of Russian side

Ex-premier of Ukraine, leader of the People's Front party, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, has said that in February 2014 he had two talks with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on the initiative of the Russian side; in his opinion, these conversations indicate that Russia then recognized the legitimacy of the change of power in Ukraine and the new government.

"I had two talks with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, during which I told him that Russia should return its troops to the places of permanent deployment, stop violating international law, and if there are any questions about our bilateral relations, we are ready to discuss," he said, giving testimony in the Obolonsky District Court of Kyiv on the case of the former president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych.

Yatsenyuk said that these conversations were held on the initiative of the Russian side, while calling these phone calls "strange", because Medvedev wanted to discuss issues relating to economic relations between the two countries, although already at that time, as the former Ukrainian PM noted, Russia carried out aggression in Crimea.

He believes that by these calls Russia leveled its statements about the unconstitutional change of power in Ukraine in February 2014, and recognized the new Ukrainian government, which was headed by Yatsenyuk then.
Here's a look at how area members of Congress voted the week of Nov. 24 to 30. Look for this roll call report by Targeted News Service (with a week delay) regularly in Sunday Forum.

HOUSE VOTES:

MINNESOTA LAND EXCHANGE: The House has passed the Superior National Forest Land Exchange Act (H.R. 3115), sponsored by Rep. Richard M. Nolan, D-Minn. The bill would exchange about 6,550 acres of the Superior National Forest in northern Minnesota for a slightly larger amount of nearby land held by PolyMet Mining, with the exchanged land to be used to open a sulfide-ore copper and nickel mine. The vote, on Nov. 28, was 309 yeas to 99 nays.

YEAS: Rokita R-4th, Walorski R-2nd, Visclosky D-1st

MINNESOTA MINING LEASES: The House has passed the Minnesota's Economic Rights in the Superior National Forest Act (H.R. 3905), sponsored by Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn. The bill would authorize the issuance and renewal of leases to mine mineral deposits in federal forest lands. Emmer said the bill, by reversing a January Obama administration move to withdraw mining leases on the forest lands, would reopen the lands for supplying "strategically important metals and minerals which are used by Americans every day." An opponent, Rep. Erik Paulsen, R-Minn., said automatically granting the leases would deprive Minnesota's national forests of the environmental protections that forests in every other state have. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 216 yeas to 204 nays.

YEAS: Rokita R-4th, Walorski R-2nd

NAYS: Visclosky D-1st

FEDERAL EMPLOYEE STATUS: The House has passed the Ensuring a Qualified Civil Service Act (H.R. 4182), sponsored by Rep. James Comer, R-Ky. The bill would change the probationary period for new employees in the federal government's Civil Service from one year to two years. Comer said the longer wait for new employees to achieve full, permanent employment status would give supervisors "ample time to evaluate new hires." A bill opponent, Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., said a two-year period would discourage people from joining the Civil Service and weaken the rights of new federal employees. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 213 yeas to 204 nays.

YEAS: Rokita R-4th, Walorski R-2nd

NAYS: Visclosky D-1st

BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT: The House has passed the Brownfields Enhancement, Economic Redevelopment, and Reauthorization Act (H.R. 3017), sponsored by Rep. David B. McKinley, R-W.Va. The bill would reauthorize through 2021 and modify the Environmental Protection Agency's grants program for rehabilitating and redeveloping brownfield industrial sites. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 409 yeas to 8 nays.

YEAS: Rokita R-4th, Walorski R-2nd, Visclosky D-1st

The House also passed the 21st Century Respect Act (H.R. 995), to direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to amend regulations for racial appropriateness; and a bill (H. Res. 630), requiring each member, officer, and employee of the House of Representatives to complete a program of training in workplace rights and responsibilities each session of each Congress.

SENATE VOTES:

D.C. DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Dabney Langhorne Friedrich to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., cited Friedrich as having a commitment to the law, shown by her "wealth of experience" as an assistant U.S. attorney in Virginia and California, and as a member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission. The vote, on Nov. 27, was 97 yeas to 3 nays.

YEAS: Young R-IN, Donnelly D-IN

APPEALS COURT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Gregory G. Katsas to serve as a judge on the U.S. Washington, D.C., Circuit Court of Appeals. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Katsas had extensive experience with appeals litigation, both as a private practice lawyer and as a Justice Department official, and substantial praise from his colleagues. An opponent, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Katsas's service in the Trump administration and work on some of its most legally dubious executive orders cast doubt on his independence if he were to serve on the appeals court. The vote, on Nov. 28, was 50 yeas to 48 nays.

YEAS: Young R-IN

NAYS: Donnelly D-IN

JOBS TAX CREDIT: The Senate has rejected a motion sponsored by Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, that would have recommitted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) to the Senate Finance Committee with instructions for the committee to add language to provide a tax credit for companies that create domestic jobs that meet standards for pay and benefits. Brown said the tax code should reward companies that manufacture goods domestically rather than in foreign countries. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 48 yeas to 52 nays.

NAYS: Young R-IN

YEAS: Donnelly D-IN

CORPORATE TAX RATE: The Senate has rejected a motion sponsored by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., that would have recommitted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) to the Senate Finance Committee with instructions for the committee to add language to re-establish a 35 percent corporate tax rate in 2020 if real average household wages have not increased by at least $4,000 from current levels. Stabenow said the motion "simply makes sure the American people get the raise the Trump administration is promising them" by passing a tax reform bill. An opponent, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said making a corporate tax rate cut permanent was needed to spur corporations to repatriate money now held in countries with lower tax rates and use that money to grow a stronger domestic economy. The vote, on Nov. 30, was 45 yeas to 55 nays.

NAYS: Young R-IN, Donnelly D-IN

Along with roll call votes this week, the Senate also passed the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act (H.R. 228), to facilitate the ability of Indian tribes to integrate the employment, training, and related services from diverse federal sources; the Esther Martinez Native American Languages Preservation Act (S. 254), to provide flexibility and reauthorization to ensure the survival and continuing vitality of Native American languages; the John P. Smith Act (S. 302), to enhance tribal road safety; and the RESPECT Act (S. 343), to repeal certain obsolete laws relating to Indians.
Have you participated yet in the 2017 Northwest Indiana CPR training challenge?

If not, theres still time. The challenge seeks to provide 5,000 Northwest Indiana residents with knowledge to save lives.

The great news is were closing in on 5,000, with just a few hundred to go. And you can be part of this by watching an American Heart Association-produced video that offers instructional training tips that you need.

That video is attached to this column at nwi.com; its also being shared on all of The Times Media Co.s social media channels. Chances are youll see it posted, and we hope you take time to view it.

This training challenge began as a partnership between the American Heart Association and The Times. It was announced Jan. 1, and weve been encouraging readers to attend free training sessions all year.

To date, 4,300 Region residents have received training. With the holidays upon us, there are no more sessions this year. But the video offers a way to pick up and practice the skills and join this important challenge.

Why start this challenge in the first place? Its simple and critical. Only 7 percent of the general public knows how to perform CPR, according to the Heart Association.

"Under 10 percent of cardiac arrest victims survive, and bystander CPR can more than double one's chance of survival, said Diane Kemp, executive director of Northwest Indianas branch of the American Heart Association. We can make the Region a safer place to live and work by increasing knowledge of the lifesaving steps of CPR."

In addition to holding public training sessions, Kemp can arrange workplace training sessions. This year she worked with Lisa Vosburg, human resources generalist at The Times, to offer training for our employees in our Munster, Crown Point and Valparaiso offices.

"If an emergency occurs during the workday, our employees are our first responders. Employees trained to respond to a medical emergency can make all the difference in saving lives, Vosburg said. In the past few months, our employees here at The Times Media Co. took the time to learn lifesaving steps of CPR. We are prepared to save the precious lives of our co-workers."

To learn more about workplace training programs, simply contact Kemp at dianekemp@heart.org using corporate training in the subject line or call 219-966-4958.

Legends

South Shore Legends are a gem of the Region, and today youll read about the two newest Legends and all of the rest.

Dean White and Quentin Smith will be inducted at the annual Legends ceremony at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond.

Read about them and other Legends throughout the paper today. This marks the first time The Times has featured all of the Legends in a #RegionProud presentation.

Shortly after I moved to the Region, I attended a Legends ceremony. I marveled that night and continue to marvel at the talent and achievement of this group.

South Shore Legends has been in existence since 2004, and its clearly still going strong. When at the Welcome Center, look over closely at the impressive Wall of Legends.

Thanks for reading us. Please contact me with any questions about The Times or our many publications.
The NYCEDC report, released with NYU Steinhardt and StartEd Inc, provides the most recent insights on the multi-billion dollar education technology sector. Among other findings, the analysis found that edtech companies based in NYC offer increasingly high pay, have the most job opportunities, and were the subject of more business acquisitions than any other location including Silicon Valley, Boston, Los Angeles, and DC since 2000.

New York City-based EdTech firms have also received $1 billion in venture capital investment between 2008 and 2017, making up 12.5 percent of venture capital investment in EdTech across the country.

According to the analysis:

Wages in Edtech continue to rise. Average wages in corporate training and computer training, two subsectors of EdTech, are $94,898. Total wages paid across these two sectors rose 63 percent since 2012.

New York City has the most EdTech job demand of any major city in the U.S., with 105 positions open since the beginning of this year.

Forty-seven New York City EdTech companies have been acquired since 2000, the most of any city in the country. San Francisco/Silicon Valley had the second-most acquisitions in that time with 29. Boston had 20, Los Angeles six.

New York City-based firms received $1 billion in venture capital funding between 2008 and 2017. EdTech companies nationwide received $8.1 billion in investment during the same time period.

New York City is an increasingly visible and ideal location for education innovation because the city and its neighbors are home to the most significant learning infrastructure in the world including 55 public and private colleges and universities, 2,666 K-12 schools and nearly two million students, in additional to major publishers and growing general technology and venture capital sectors. Another important part of the City's role as an EdTech leader is NY EDTECH WEEK the industrys global meeting point focusing on how entrepreneurship and edtech drive advancements in education and learning.

New York City is the leading edtech innovation ecosystem because there is unprecedented support, investment and resources here, said Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen, who will be presenting during NY EDTECH WEEK. We are delighted to continue to have NY EDTECH WEEK as an important partner in growing the edtech sector here and around the world because of the attention it brings to the businesses, ideas and our community.

The 2017 NY EDTECH WEEK festival will expand on past successful events and bring together hundreds of technology innovators, early-stage investors, entrepreneurs, policymakers, media representatives, researchers, and educators to foster new partnerships and exchange best practices for the tech-powered future of education.

Were developing a highly-skilled, highly-motivated army of edtech entrepreneurs in New York, the national center of education innovation, said Jonathan D. Harber of StartEd. Its the perfect place to bring people, organizations and resources together to improve the opportunities and outcomes in the global education community -- thats what NY EDTECH WEEK is all about.

Highlights of 2017 NY Edtech Week include presentations on education and talent technology from K-12 to higher education, the future of work, global education trends as well as:

StartEd Talks including:

Alicia Glen, Deputy Mayor of New York City

Deputy Mayor of New York City Eva Moskowitz, CEO and Founder of Success Academy

CEO and Founder of Success Academy David Coleman , President and CEO of College Board

, President and CEO of College Board Jeff Rosen, President & CEO of National Constitution Center

President & CEO of National Constitution Center Johnny C. Taylor Jr , President & CEO of Society for Human Resource Management

, President & CEO of Society for Human Resource Management Olga and Michael Block , Co-founders of Basis Curriculum Schools

, Co-founders of Basis Curriculum Schools Eric Gertler, Co-Chairman & CEO of U.S. News & World Report and Ulysses Ventures

Co-Chairman & CEO of U.S. News & World Report and Ulysses Ventures Think Tanks in early learning, K12, higher ed and corporate learning with industry thought-leaders including esteemed members of the media, entrepreneurs, policy makers, researchers faculty and educators.

in early learning, K12, higher ed and corporate learning with industry thought-leaders including esteemed members of the media, entrepreneurs, policy makers, researchers faculty and educators. Shark Tank style pitches from the hottest global startups representing the most exciting innovations today

style pitches from the hottest global startups representing the most exciting innovations today Master Classes led by faculty and PD accredited

led by faculty and PD accredited Open Lab intimate and interacitve visits to iconic and innovative New York education and cultural institutions

intimate and interacitve visits to iconic and innovative New York education and cultural institutions Gallery of Innovation showcase and 1:1 networking with the hottest edtech startups from around the globe

showcase and 1:1 networking with the hottest edtech startups from around the globe Broadway performances, and more!

In addition to its role as an innovation festival, NY EDTECH WEEK is also the culminating event for the NYU Steinhardt Edtech Accelerator powered by StartEd, an intensive three-month, mentor-led bootcamp program dedicated to education entrepreneurship and designed to help edtech entrepreneurs grow their companies. During the conference, participating startups from NYU-StartEd will be joined by other startups from around the world to present in front of a network of angel and venture capital education investors.

"We're excited to host NY EDTECH WEEK again this year and bring together some of the worlds best technology and education thought leaders working to improve and re-think how students learn and how we educate them," said Dominic Brewer, the Gale and Ira Drukier Dean of NYU Steinhardt. NYU Steinhardt is at the intersection of education, technology, and entrepreneurship and we will continue to support the growing edtech industry in our home of New York City.

NY Edtech Week is sponsored and presented in collaboration with Rethink Education, East Wind Advisors, Strada, Wiley and other sponsors. For more information about NY EDTECH WEEK, or to attend, please visit: www.nyedtechweek.com.

For more information about the NYCEDC EdTech analysis that will be released during NY EDTECH WEEK, please contact, Alicia Powers, SVP of Reaserch of the NYCEDC at apowers@edc.nyc.

About StartEd Companies:

By galvanizing an eco-system of education innovation in New York City, StartEd aims to develop edtech entrepreneurs to tackle the world's greatest education problems. StartEd runs edtech accelerators, 3-month intensive bootcamps for early stage edtech companies, co-working communities for the edtech community, courses on edtech entrepreneurship and the NY EDTECH WEEK festival. For more information on StartEd Accelerator, please visit: http://www.startedaccelerator.com or follow us on Twitter @startedaccel

About the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development:

Located in the heart of Greenwich Village, NYUs Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development prepares students for careers in the arts, education, health, media, and psychology. Since its founding in 1890, the Steinhardt School's mission has been to expand human capacity through public service, global collaboration, research, scholarship, and practice. To learn more about NYU Steinhardt, visit steinhardt.nyu.edu.
On the surface, One Bike Coffee might look like any other coffee shop.

Located at Hamilton Place on Moores Mill Road, it's filled with students on their laptops or poring over textbooks. Baristas churn out espresso drinks and deliver hot paninis and baked goods to customers. A basket of reading material sits in a nook with a coffee table and couch.

But beneath the coffee shop scene, One Bike owners Jack and Amy Fisher are doing so much more than running a business.

Our mission is very simple. Its to provide a great product in a welcoming environment, Jack Fisher said. But our purpose is greater than that. Our purpose is to give back to the community and support people with MS.

The Fishers designate the greater of 50 percent of the shops profits, or 2 percent of sales, each month for their One Bike Foundation. The ultimate goal of the 501c(3) is to provide bicycles for Alabamians who have multiple sclerosis.

We wont just buy somebody a bike, Amy Fisher said. Well get them shoes and a helmet, so that they have everything they need. We want them to have a good bike, because we want it to last and be something they enjoy.

The cost for providing a bicycle and equipment for each person will average between $1,500 and $2,000, she added. Danny and Amanda James at James Bros. Bikes agreed last week to partner with the Fishers in providing the bicycles to applicants. James Bros. has locations in Opelika and Auburn.

100 percent

Its not just two-wheeled bikes, said Jack Fisher, who competes in Iron Man races and was diagnosed with MS three years ago. For some people with MS, balance is an issue. If they have to get a recumbent bike or a three-wheeled bike, thats what well do.

One Bikes goal is to first provide a bike for every Lee County resident with MS, then to expand that service throughout the state.

While half of the business profits are earmarked for the One Bike Foundation, the other 50 percent of profits goes to a different local ministry or nonprofit each month.

We want to give 100 percent of our profit back to the community, Jack Fisher said.

After meeting a group of friends in Texas who give bicycles to people with MS in the Lone Star State, the Fishers wanted to do something similar in Alabama, but didnt know how to start.

We were just trying to figure out how to do this, Amy Fisher said. We had kind of talked about, Should we do a barbecue like they do? What can we do?

The heart of the county

This past summer, a door opened - a coffee shop door.

We know the couple who owned the coffee shop that was here before, Toomers, Jack Fisher said. They go to church with us. We knew they were in the process of opening Ross House Coffee, so we had a conversation and I said, What would it look like if we were to buy it from you? So we talked about it and talked to the kids, and decided we wanted to take this plunge as a family.

Three of the Fishers five children are baristas at the coffee shop.

I think because of the heart of the community here, everybodys very friendly and want to help other people, Amy Fisher said. We had one man who just walked in, gave us $20, and said, Put this in the bike fund. Its encouraging for us.

We know to do the mission well is what will drive the funding for what were trying to do, as well as the heart of the people in the Lee County area who say, Thats something I would like to be a part of or give to.'
The 2018 Golden Globe nominations were dominated by expected names like HBO's "Big Little Lies," FX's "Feud: Bette and Joan" and Guillermo del Toro's film "The Shape of Water." But like every year, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has thrown some curveballs our way. These are the biggest snubs and surprises:

Film snubs

"Get Out" was left out of both the best screenplay and best director categories, though it did land a nod for best comedy film. Jordan Peele's buzzed-about directorial debut had already generated some Golden Globe controversy after it was announced the satirical horror film would compete as a comedy. Given the film's incisive commentary on racism, many felt the film was worthy of recognition beyond that (or perhaps any existing) genre. "'Get Out' is a documentary," the director declared in a wry tweet last month. The film is still a strong contender for best screenplay at the Academy Awards, which offer ten nominations slots (across two categories, adapted and original) instead of five.

Greta Gerwig was also left off the best director list, though her acclaimed dramedy "Lady Bird" did make the cut for best comedy film and her screenplay. Gerwig and Peele would have added some excitement to the best director category, which has historically been dominated by white men. Barbra Streisand is the only woman to have won best director at the ceremony, which celebrates its 75th anniversary next year. No black director has ever taken home the honor, though Ava DuVernay ("Selma") and Barry Jenkins ("Moonlight") have been nominated in recent years.

Kumail Nanjiani's well-reviewed romantic comedy "The Big Sick" earned zero nominations.

"Netflix's "Mudbound," which topped Post critic Ann Hornaday's best movies of 2017 list, was shut out of the best picture category, though Mary J. Blige did land a best supporting actress nod. Perhaps the HFPA isn't quite ready to recognize films produced by streaming networks?

If you loved this summer's box-office smash "Girl's Trip," you'll probably agree that breakout star Tiffany Haddish was snubbed from the best supporting actress category, though the list heavily favors dramas.

Film surprises

Ridley Scott's "All the Money in the World" earned three nominations, including one for best director. The drama, about the 1973 kidnapping of 16-year-old J. Paul Getty III, originally starred Kevin Spacey as billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. Last month, Spacey was removed from the project following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. Veteran actor Christopher Plummer took on the elder Getty role and, despite having reshot scenes in the span of a month, landed a best supporting actor nomination.

"The Boss Baby," which featured Alec Baldwin voicing a petulant, infant businessman, was a surprise nomination in the best animated feature film category, which overlooked one of this year's critical darlings, "The Lego Batman Movie."

TV snubs

Amazon's "Transparent" and HBO's "Veep" were noticeably absent from the top categories this year. "Transparent" accolades certainly would have been tricky to navigate in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations against actor Jeffrey Tambor. The actor appeared to announce his departure from the show last month, but the New York Times reported last week that Tambor may return to the dramedy after all. "Veep" has long been a HFPA favorite, but was edged out this year by two surprising newcomers ... .

TV surprises

"The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" earned a nod for best TV comedy, as well as a best actress nomination for Rachel Brosnahan. Amazon's delightful new comedy - about a housewife-turned-aspiring comedian in 1950's New York - has been getting favorable reviews, but it's still surprising to see it here since the show has been streaming for less than two weeks.

Showtime's "SMILF" also landed in the best TV comedy category, with creator-writer-director Frankie Shaw earning a best actress nod.

Jessica Biel, who led USA's suspenseful limited series "The Sinner," earned a best actress nod, putting her up against "Big Little Lies" stars Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, as well as "Feud's" Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange. The show also got a best limited series nod.

It's also pretty shocking to see newcomer Katherine Langford, the star of Netflix's "13 Reasons Why," in the best actress category alongside prestigious drama stars including Elisabeth Moss ("The Handmaid's Tale") and "The Crown's" Claire Foy. "13 Reasons Why" certainly got people talking earlier this year, but the drama was controversial because of its graphic depiction of suicide.
It seems that these days people will go to any lengths for some attention on social media. Take YouTube, for example: it abounds in clips that will certainly make you go Wow! but also question the sanity of the uploaders. One guy enjoying his 15 minutes of fame right now is 22-year-old Jay Swingler from the UK, who made headlines for cementing his head inside a microwave oven for some YouTube views.

In hindsight, it looks funny and Jay certainly got the attention he craves. However, it may have gone horribly wrong: his friends couldnt free him for an hour and a half, and emergency services had to be called. As relieved as Jay was to be rescued, he is absolutely unrepentant, saying the whole thing is hilarious and he is thrilled with the attention his video has garnered.

Photo: YouTube screengrab

The project was carried out in a garage in Wolverhampton and filmed for TGFBro  the YouTube channel where Jay uploads his prankster videos. He wrapped his head in a plastic bag and stuck it in the microwave oven, while the friends assisting him filled it up with seven bags of Polyfilla, a spackling paste used to fill cracks. The microwave was supposed to serve as a mold but things got hairy and Jays friends spent 90 minutes in attempts to free him. The celebrity prankster was able to breathe through an air tube his pals managed to insert into the microwave, but the expanding Polyfilla made it increasingly harder for the air to get through.

The ambulance crew they called was unable to free Jay and they summoned the fire brigade. When the firefighters arrived, it took another hour before Jay was finally freed. Watch Commander Shaun Dakin, who runs the West Midlands Fire Service crew dispatched to the scene, said that the prank could have ended in suffocation or serious injury. It turned out to be quite a tricky rescue operation.

Photo: YouTube screengrab

As funny as this sounds, this young man could quite easily have suffocated or have been seriously injured. Taking the microwave apart was tricky, because a lot of it was welded. We video-called our technical rescue colleagues for advice and eventually managed to get him unstuckIt took us nearly an hour to free him, Dakin said.

Jay was criticized for wasting the time of the emergency services and possibly preventing them from responding to the call of somebody whose life was in genuine danger. However, the prankster doesnt think he owes any apologies.

I dont care, what about people who drink and drive? What about people who start fights on the street of the night? Is that not wasting police time as well? And in fact I wasnt wasting their time, they saved my life, he said.

Photo: YouTube screengrab

Despite lambasting his critics, Jay did express gratitude to the people who rescued him.

I appreciate every effort you went to to free me from that thing, you dont know how grateful I am. I was so scared, you comforted me, you made me feel so much less stressed. You guys are awesome at your job, and so were the paramedics. I appreciate you guys a lot.



Jay is absolutely thrilled with the attention hes been getting and doesnt think he should be apologizing to anyone.

I couldnt give a f-, I dont care about defending myself. I think this s**ts hilarious, man. This s**t is jokes, like. I had a damn microwave stuck to my head. Do you know how many people are going to remember that in comparison to that news article that said man stole toy from a shop, gets a fine? Im pretty sure this storys more interesting than your everyday read on another website, which is why youre all clicking it and reacting so much, because its so f**king bizarre. Literally every news publication has covered this, like your mum covers her acne with concealer, the YouTuber said in the first video released since the prank.

Alls well that ends well and things have wrapped up neatly for Jay, who wont have to cover the cost of his rescue. The hour spent on extracting his head from the microwave cost 650 pounds ($870), but the fire brigade wont be sending him the bill because his life was at risk.
If you still have any doubts that mobile devices have taken over our lives, this should make you a firm believer: smartphones and QR codes have become tools of the trade for Chinese beggars. If youre feeling generous, you can simply whip out your phone, scan a a printed QR code and transfer some money to the beggars account.

Local media have spread news of mobile-savvy beggars in the city of Jinan, in Chinas Shandong province. They gather in areas popular with tourists, holding begging bowls that contain a QR code printout. Anyone with Alipay, WeChat Wallet, or some other mobile payment app can scan the code and make a donation. Wait, beggars in China have mobile phones? Well, according to state media outlets, thats not actually a rare thing.

One of the beggars who caught the medias attention was reportedly a man with mental problems and the QR code he had was made by his family to help him. However, it appears that QR code begging serves other purposes besides generating income for people down on their luck. According to digital marketing company China Channel, many beggars in Beijing receive payment from local businesses for every QR code scanned by passers-by. The enterprises use these scans to collect peoples data from WeChat profiles, then sell the IDs for quite a pretty penny to small businesses. The latter use the information to bombard the users with unsolicited in-app advertisements.

Since passers-by dont actually have to give any money, they are not all that difficult to persuade. However, the beggars get paid for their efforts: each QR code scan pays between 0.7 and 1.5 yuan ($0.10 to $0.22). A 45-hour working week nets a monthly average of 4,536 yuan ($685), which is quite decent given what Chinese workers in minimum wage jobs get.

Photo: Twitter

The whole thing may sound weird to foreigners, but it must be noted that China is perhaps the country closest to a cashless economy and QR codes are the reason for that. The black-and-white, two-dimensional barcodes are used in all sorts of ways: from payment in shops to tips in restaurants and cash gifts at weddings. In fact, mobile payments in China exceed 50 times the volume for the US, where the 2016 tally was $112 billion.

According to consumer behavior researcher Chen Yiwen, China is on the verge of acodeconomy.



China has started the transition to a cash-free economy faster than anyone could have imagined, largely because of the viral spread of two-dimensional barcode. It creates a new economy based on scannable codes.

Interestingly, Western beggars are not that far behind their Chinese peers, when it comes to mobile payments. A few years ago, professional beggar Damien Preston-Booth made headlines for using a mobile card reader and accepting donations via credit card.
Fraser Seitel

Harvey Weinstein, although apparently beloved by his dear departed mommy, is nonetheless a pathetic, pitiless pig likely headed to the slammer.

So, too, Matt Lauer has always been a holier-than thou phony baloney and John Conyers a race-baiting reprobate.

And all the other sleaze balls swept up in the nations sexual-harassment tidal wave  Kevin Spacey, Mark Halperin, Harold Ford, Glenn Thrush, Al Franken, Bill OReilly, Roger Ailes, et al  are similarly lost causes.

Even poor, old Charlie Rose for goddsakes!

The fact is, no amount of public relations assistance can help any of them. Their reputations  not to mention their job prospects  are toast, bludgeoned by a guilty until proven innocent phenomenon that continues to take down high-flying swells at warp speed.

And any public relations counselor tempted to take the money and work for one of these lowlifes  are you listening Michael Sitrick?  risks ruining his own reputation in the process. That, in fact, is exactly what happened when Gloria Allreds daughter Lisa Bloom, erstwhile defender of the sexually harassed, suddenly reversed field and signed up to work for Weinstein. (It didnt end well.)

But what about Garrison Keillor?

What if the homespun NPR "A Prairie Home Companion" creator is telling the truth? Why cant public relations help him recover his good name?

The Keillor case seems different  and more suspect  than any of the others.

Directly on the heels of the loutish Lauer revelations, Minnesota Public Radio sheepishly announced that it was cutting ties with its most prominent  not to mention, only  superstar due to allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior by someone who worked with Keillor. MPR further announced  without a trace of irony  that in addition to firing Mr. Keillor, it had also hired an outside law firm to investigate the allegations. How reassuring.

Unlike the panoply of perverts to which his name was instantly added, Mr. Keillor didnt hide from the embarrassing news but rather responded immediately, lamenting to the Associated Press that the real story was more interesting and more complicated than the version MPR heard.

And then, eschewing the standard crisis communications advice to keep ones mouth shut, he elaborated to the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the firing stemmed from his once touching a co-workers bare skin.

I meant to pat her back after she told me about her unhappiness and her shirt was open and my hand went up it about six inches, he said. She recoiled. I apologized.

I sent her an email of apology later, and she replied that she had forgiven me and not to think about it. We were friends. We continued to be friendly right up until her lawyer called.

And that, according to Mr. Keillor, was the rest of the story. All of it.

How quaint. An accused  and therefore, summarily fired  sexual harasser refusing to hide behind handlers or silence and instead speaking out, simply and matter-of-factly in his own defense.

In response to its former stars explanation, an obviously uncomfortable MPR cryptically told the AP that it had received a formal complaint from an individual that includes multiple allegations related to Garrisons behavior.

And there the matter rests, with Garrison Keillor, rightly or wrongly, lumped in by a lazy media with all the degenerates picked off in the sexual harassment rush to judgment.

So, what can the beloved, down-home humorist do to escape the stigma of sexual harasser?

Heres what Id tell him.

 First and most important, you have to be telling the truth that there was one incident with one co-worker. If thats not the whole truth, then just as Judge Moores accuser faked the year book inscription, youll be found out and your case will be lost.

 Second, write an op-ed for The New York Times that lays out the whole story and discusses the fundamental unfairness of what has become  at least in your case  a mad dash to find celebrity fall guys to fit a salacious narrative.

Ironically, Mr. Keillor wrote an op-ed in defense of Franken for the Washington Post Syndicate (from which he was also fired) just a few days before his own downfall.

 Third (even though youll hate it), follow the Times op-ed with a sit down TV interview that allows you to explore what happened in an objective and fair-minded context. That means choosing an old-school interviewer, more interested in getting to what really happened than imposing his own brilliance on the viewers; somebody like Shepard Smith at Fox News.

This simple public relations action plan might be all Garrison Keillor needs to right his reputational ship.

Will he take this path? Probably not.

Mr. Keillor, as he demonstrated weekly for nearly five decades on the radio, is, at base, a stoic Norwegian, resigned to accepting whatever fate befalls him without putting up much of a fuss. As he wistfully told a reporter for the Berkshire Eagle, "Ive worked extremely hard on a show that I love for almost 50 years, and somebody else can torch it in one morning, and so its all gone."

Maybe not, if hes willing to try a little strategic PR to help people see the light.

***

Fraser P. Seitel has been a communications consultant, author and teacher for 40 years. He may be reached directly at [email protected]. He is the author of the Prentice-Hall text The Practice of Public Relations, now in its eleventh edition, and co-author of Rethinking Reputation and Idea Wise.


Feargal Purcell

Feargal Purcell, who worked six years as press secretary for Irelands former taoiseach Edna Kenny, has joined Edelman as public affairs director.

In that capacity, he coordinated and managed all government communications and was the top PA advisor to Kenny.

Purcell agreed in June to work for new prime minister Leo Varadkar through a transition period that ran through Oct. 31.

Prior to joining Kenny, Purcell spent two years as deputy director of communications for the Fine Gael political party and then head of its press office.

He also served as an officer in the Ireland Defense Forces for 18 years, and played leadership roles with peacekeeping units in Lebanon and Bosnia.

Joe Carmody, managing director of Edleman Ireland, praised Purcell as a respected political and communications strategist, who has experience operating at the highest level of Irelands government.
Presidential Conference

Introductory Remarks by Angel Gurria

OECD Secretary-General

Paris, France, 11 December 2017

(As prepared for delivery)



Dear President, Minister Videgaray, Ministers, Vice-Ministers, Ambassadors, Directors, dear Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen:



It is a great pleasure to welcome the President of Mexico, Enrique Pena Nieto, to the OECD. We are so proud to see him joining the rest of the leaders, who along with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, are clearly committed to deliver on our 2015 Climate Agreement. Mexico has been a leader in the fight against climate change since the COP16 in Cancun, and they put words into action. Just this week, they will announce that they will join the OECD Paris Collaborative on Green Budgeting, one of the deliverables that the OECD will present to the world. Thank you Mister President. Adding your voice makes a great difference.

President Pena Nieto has shown a great resolve to change Mexico and has put together the most ambitious reform package that any OECD country has built in recent times; he forged the necessary political consensus to do so through an unprecedented Pacto por Mexico, and then promoted passage of those reforms in Congress and started implementing them.

The reform package addressed policy areas that had been waiting for changes for decades. These efforts faced strong headwinds, as vested interests defended the status quo. But he persevered. I want to thank him for having reached out to the OECD to help break such status quo. He put to very good use our evidence, our analysis, and our commitment and passion for the well-being of the Mexican people to advance these meaningful changes.

The reforms have borne fruit. Even in a challenging international environment, you can be proud of your legacy Mr. President, as these reforms have already produced and will continue to produce positive results.

The education reform has led to the first systematic evaluation of teachers; career development based on performance; school evaluations focused on equity and quality; a new education model based on global competencies. The telecoms reform boosted competition; the prices of broadband mobile packages decreased by up to 75% and the number of mobile broadband subscriptions increased by 50 million. The energy reform opened the energy sector to private investment and competition, securing investments of close to $80 billion dollars. The tax reform increased tax collection and reduced informality. Labour, competition, state-owned enterprises, transparency and integrity, anti-corruption, are some of the other areas involved in the reform package.

I would like to acknowledge the now Minister of Foreign Affairs, but at the time Minister of Finance, as the one who coordinated the work with the OECD, Luis Videgaray, and the head AMEXCID, Ambassador Garcia-Lopez, who happened to be the Mexican Ambassador to the OECD at the time and who is also with us today. My Chief of Staff and Sherpa Gabriela Ramos and my Advisor Mario Lopez-Roldan coordinated the work that involved many directorates.

Of course Mexico is still converging with OECD standards. It is still facing important challenges: fighting poverty, inequalities, and informality; addressing the low levels of productivity; large education gaps and disparities; mismatches in the supply and demand of skills; strengthening the rule of law, especially at state and municipal levels; and combating crime and insecurity. This is why it is fundamental to give continuity to this battery of reforms. It is crucial to strengthen their implementation and monitor their compliance. It is important not to backtrack!

The OECD stands ready to keep helping Mexico address these challenges. We are currently working with and for the Mexican Government, with a very dynamic Ambassador Monica Aspe and her team, in key areas, from higher education and skills, to social policy and combating poverty, productivity, competition, regulatory improvement, integrity, e-procurement, the new airport, disaster protection and reaction policies, to mention only a few.

Senor Presidente,



As Mexico approaches the next Presidential and Legislative election on 1 July 2018, we will keep working to support the implementation of reforms in Mexico. We also plan to do what we have done already in the two last administrations to prepare a Getting it Right study with an OECD assessment of achievements and challenges in Mexico, and organize a Public Policy Forum in Mexico City in the context of the presidential campaigns, to spark a debate among presidential candidates.

Thank you for your visit and your confidence! Mr President the floor is yours.

See also

OECD work with Mexico
Delegates from a wide range of backgrounds - including from the educational sector, such as the Athlone Institute of Technology, the Public Sector and from the Midlands engineering and manufacturing industry, congregated in Tullamore last week to network and listen to different perspectives and case studies on Innovation Management by some of the leading experts on the topic.

Ron Immink, entrepreneur-in-residence for Sustainable Nation and founder of Bookbuzz and Smallbusinesscan (now business-achievers.com), spoke about the increasing need to include the environmental costs as part of the bottom line. He underlined that the increasing resource scarcity and need for sustainability must be central to any innovation strategy and spoke about the need to appreciate major technological disruption of the industry 4.0 and beyond.

Damian Costello, Managing Partner at Decode Innovation (part of the Synecco Group), delivered some innovation management lessons derived from high-impact innovation and strategy experience in the Medtech Sector. He in particular emphasised the opportunities that complacency in industry can bring.

Eoin Kennedy, a serial entrepreneur with extensive background in digital platforms and communication, spoke about some of the highlights of this years CongRegation tech festival, where deep discussion and dialogue took place on the topic of Innovation. One of the major findings of these discussions was that nobody has all the answers or pieces of the puzzle, and that continued dialogue and collective learning leads to better understanding of innovation.

Dr Hugh Henry, the Director of Innovation at Bord na Mona, delivered insights on the companys philosophy on innovation management and highlighted some of the cutting-edge projects the company is currently involved. He stressed the importance of collaboration and open innovation as means of achieving high-impact results.

Finally, Paul Killeen of the National Standards Authority Irelands (NSAI) spoke about the vital role standards can play in innovation, but also as part of a competitive strategy. Involvement in the standard development process was highlighted as an opportunity to be part of the process and stay ahead of the curve by becoming aware of upcoming trends before they hit the market.

The event was the 2nd in the series of Midlands Engineering Network events organised on behalf of Local Enterprise Offices in Westmeath, Longford, Laois and Offaly. The Network and the events form part of the Engenuity Programme, delivered by WestBIC and Almir Biz, which is an integral part of effort to promote market-led innovation, stakeholder collaboration, best practice transfer and product and trade development among the Midlands Engineering Cluster. This was identified as a priority in the Action Plan for Jobs and is funded by the Competitive LEO Fund managed by Enterprise Ireland.
One of the stand out segments, and by far the most creative item on this year's Late Late Toy Show, Santa's Magical Fireplace, is fast becoming a global success.

And it all started out and is produced right here in Offaly. The idea was the brainchild of Avril Nolan and it is a truly brilliant solution for Santa to get into a home that doesn't have a fireplace.

Avril, a budding entrepreneur and mother of three, brought her idea to fruition in 2016 on what she describes herself as 'a very tight budget'. Since then it's growing from strength to strength, and all involved come from Offaly.

Santa's Magical Fireplacetells the tale of how the elves went about making the fireplace and the magical dust so Santa doesn't have to squeeze through the half inch keyholes or under the door!! The story and instructions for Christmas Eve weave a tapestry of wonder for your child's imagination on the most magical day of the year.

Avril commented, "As soon as I came up with the idea for Santa's Magical Fireplace, I just knew it was going to be a huge success. Every classic tale talks about Santa coming down the fireplace. Its common knowledge that even the tiniest tot knows and believes in with every fibre of his being. Yet, somewhere along the line, when we began living on our devices and parting with traditions, we let go of our fireplaces too.

Avril added, "I knew I had an answer every parent would appreciate; one that will fuel childrens imaginations, keep the magic of Christmas alive, and give us all the opportunity to share our beloved traditions with our own children and no more awkward questions, 'Mammy, how is Santa going to get in, we don't have a fireplace'. Santa's Magical Fireplace is the complete package."

"Anyone I tell about Santa's Magical Fireplace I always get 'WOW!!! That's AMAZING, but also it's nearly like, duh, how come no-one has come up with this yet? But they hadn't until now."

Santa's Magical Fireplace comes beautifully packaged with the Magical Fireplace, Magical Dust and the Illustrated Childrens Storybook.

Avril is currently taking part in the New Frontiers programme run by Enterprise Ireland, Ireland's national entrepreneur development programme for innovative, early-stage startups.

You can get your very own Santa's Magical Fireplace in Kelly's Toymaster, Tullamore; Fagan's Toymaster, Mullingar; JKC Toymaster, Nenagh and Winter Wonderland, Gurteen College.

For more details and to order your own Santa's Magical Fireplace on line CLICK HERE
BEATRICE, Neb.  A judge will decide whether Joshua Keadles lawyers have a conflict of interest that would prevent them from defending him in the 2010 slaying of a Peru State College student.

The question of a conflict arose because the defense attorneys previously have represented witnesses who could be called to testify in the case.

Keadle faces a charge of first-degree murder in the death of 19-year-old Tyler Thomas of Omaha.

During a brief hearing Monday, Nemaha District Judge Ricky Schreiner ordered lawyers for Keadle and the state to submit written arguments by Jan. 8. Keadle, an inmate in prison for an unrelated rape conviction, appeared at the hearing under the tight supervision of four sheriffs deputies.

After the hearing, lawyers for the prosecution and defense declined to identify the witnesses in question or to characterize their potential testimony.

Keadles lead attorney is Jeff Pickens with the Nebraska Commission on Public Advocacy. Keadle is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Doug Warner.

Attorney General Doug Peterson charged Keadle in October, nearly seven years after Thomas disappeared from the small state college campus in southeast Nebraska. The filing of the charge came well after a judge declared Thomas dead, and her family won a symbolic $2.6 billion civil verdict against Keadle.

Despite extensive searches, Thomas remains have not been found. An investigators probable cause affidavit filed in October provided no new information about the potential evidence against Keadle.

Thomas appeared on college security cameras about 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 3, 2010, walking toward her dorm from an off-campus party.

Keadle told authorities that he offered to give her a ride to Omaha in exchange for a sex act, according to court documents. Afterward, Keadle said, he changed his mind about driving to Omaha and left her near a public boat dock on the Missouri River when she became angry.

News reports about Thomas disappearance prompted a Fremont woman to come forward with rape accusations against Keadle. A jury later convicted him of sexually assaulting the woman when she was a 15-year-old girl and he was a 27-year-old student at Midland University.

Keadle, 36, is at the Tecumseh State Prison, serving 15 to 20 years for the sex assault. He will become eligible for parole in about a year and is scheduled for release in early 2021.
Heartland Hope Mission: Preschool students at Primrose School at Falling Waters, 6625 S. 193rd Ave., recently donated nearly 5,000 diapers to help families at Heartland Hope Mission of Omaha. Students collected diapers, raised money to purchase more items and delivered the supplies to Heartland Hope Mission.

Family Advocate Award: Heartland Family Service honored one individual and four families during the Salute to Families banquet Nov. 16 at Happy Hollow Club. Completely KIDS Executive Director Penny Parker was given the Family Advocate Award for her more than 25 years of service to Completely KIDS, which provides safe places for children and families. The Karla and Scott Cassels family, the Dr. Viv and John Ewing family, the Simone and Tony Jones family and the Anne and Sean Rich family were also recognized for their community service.

Bethlehem House: The Metro Womens Club raised $5,000 for Bethlehem House at the clubs annual silent auction Nov. 14. Bethlehem House, 2301 S. 15th St., helps pregnant women attain prenatal care, parenting skills and employment. Metro Womens Club, formerly a branch of Welcome Wagon, is a local charity organization with a mission to build female relationships within the community and host fundraising events for local charities.

Project Pinkd: The Omaha Professional Fire Fighters Association recently donated $10,000 to Project Pinkd, a local nonprofit dedicated to supporting those diagnosed with breast cancer. Money was raised in October through the sales of T-shirts, light bulbs for Light It Up Pinkd and $1 for each social media post using the hashtag #OmahaPinkdOut.

The Salvation Army: More than 80 members of Acappella Omaha Chorus, including Sweet Adelines, Omaha Mens Barbershop, Heartland Harmonizers and Sarpy Serenaders, will host a holiday benefit concert today for the Salvation Army. The 4 p.m. concert is at Faith Westwood Methodist Church, 4814 Oaks Lane. Admission is a freewill donation.

Community Impact Luncheon: The North Omaha Community Care Council will host its fifth annual Community Impact Luncheon on Friday at Girls Inc. of Omaha, 2811 N. 45th St. The 11:30 a.m. luncheon honors nonprofit social service agencies, youth activism and commercial collaboration in service to the north Omaha community. Three businesses or individuals will be awarded during the luncheon: Omaha Economic Development Center will receive the Spirit of Business Award, Brenda Council will receive the Spirit of Advocacy Award and Maurice Jones will receive the Spirit of Youth Award. Tickets, $45, are available at northomahaccc.org.

Wreaths Across America: Volunteers with Wreaths Across America will place more than 1,800 wreaths on tombstones at 11 a.m. Saturday. Wreaths Across America is a nonprofit organization and extension of the Arlington Wreath Project, with locations in every state. Wreaths are sponsored through community donations, and the event is at Omaha National Cemetery, 14250 Schram Road.
A strong cold front powering through eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa today was to touch off strong winds and slightly lower temperatures.

The National Weather Service office in Valley issued a wind advisory from 10 a.m. to 6 a.m. for eastern, northeast and southeast Nebraska and western, southwest and northwest Iowa.

Forecasters said northwest winds of 30 to 35 mph and gusts of 40 to 45 mph to near 50 mph in some locations can be expected from midmorning through the afternoon.

In addition to today's wind gusts, the Omaha area can expect a slight chance of sprinkles and rain and a high temperature around 45 degrees.

Tonight, blustery conditions with north-northwest winds gusting as high as 30 mph are likely. A low in the low to mid-20s is expected.

Tuesday and Wednesday should be partly to mostly sunny with highs in the low to upper 40s. Overnight lows will slip into the upper 20s to around 30.

Winds on Wednesday could gust as high as 30 mph, forecasters said.

Barb Mayes, a weather service meteorologist, said a pattern of occasional blustery conditions was due to low pressure systems to the east and high pressure systems to the west, which produce strong winds over eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.

The weather service said Thursday through the weekend in the Omaha area should be partly to mostly sunny with highs in the upper 30s on Thursday to the upper 40s to around 50 on Friday through Sunday.

Lows will be in the mid-20s to around 30.

No major weather systems coming in this week, said Ryan McPike, a KMTV meteorologist. No snow or ice.

Northwest wind gusts at 11 a.m. today, according to the weather service:

Albion, 53 mph; Beatrice, 44; Blair, 40; Falls City, 46; Fremont, 47; Lincoln, 47; Norfolk, 47; Eppley Airfield, 40; Plattsmouth, 45; Harlan, 43; Offutt Air Force Base, 40; Millard, 35; Tekamah, 41; Wahoo, 44; Wayne, 40; Council Bluffs, 44; Shenandoah, 40.
(Xinhua) 07:50, December 11, 2017

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinpingand his Algerian counterpart Abdelaziz Bouteflika exchanged congratulatory messages on the successful launch of Alcomsat-1 in the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China's southwestern province of Sichuan early Monday.

In his message, Xi pointed out that the project of Alcomsat-1, Algeria's first communications satellite, is an important manifestation of the China-Algeria comprehensive strategic partnership, which starts a precedent in aerospace cooperation between China and Arab countries and will play an important role in promoting Algeria's economic development, improvement of its people's livelihood and social progress.

The year of 2018 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Algeria, Xi said, adding that Beijing is willing to work with Algeria to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields, promote the in-depth development of the comprehensive strategic partnership so as to benefit the two countries and two peoples.

For his part, Bouteflika said in his message that the successful launch of Alcomsat-1 is a remarkable achievement in aerospace cooperation between Algeria and China, which reflects the deep traditional friendship between the two sides.

Algeria is willing to work with China to jointly promote cooperation in various fields to achieve more results, he added.
This moment in our politics is fraught with loaded, and sometimes coded, words that trigger emotional responses.

Thats why the Nebraska Department of Education was wise to pull back from unnecessary provocation in its proposed civics guidance for teachers.

Those drafting a definition for civics education slipped up by including the term community organizing as a principle to be taught.

That led to criticism from Sen. Mike Groene of North Platte and other conservatives, who remember President Barack Obamas early work in political organizing and pushes by academics for political activism. Liberal observers would have felt just as slighted if the definition contained the term America first, a term favored by President Donald Trump.

A definition of civics education shouldnt appear to take sides if the goal is to help educate all young Nebraskans on how to participate in their communities and in political life.

The Education Department rightly accepted Groenes criticism. They also need to guard against overcorrection in trying to address the concerns while also meeting the demands of an Americanism state law still on the books.

The departments goal should be a cleaner definition of civics education that helps Nebraska teachers equip K-12 students with the tools to digest and evaluate information, then exercise their individual judgment.
Authorities say a 17-year-old girl was wounded in a shooting in Vancouver's Shumway neighborhood.

Officers responded shortly before 9 p.m. Sunday to the 3300 block of F Street and found the wounded teen. She was taken to a hospital; her injuries are not considered life-threatening.

Police say a suspect fled the scene before officers arrived.

-- Staff and wire reports
By Harris Zafar

Last week, Donald Trump boldly declared Jerusalem the capital of Israel and announced plans for the United States to be the first nation to establish an embassy there. As anyone with knowledge and experience on this matter would have predicted, the decision triggered disagreement and condemnation from world leaders that could escalate into worse consequences.



The U.S. stands alone in support of this ill-conceived decision. France, Germany and the UK -- three of America's strongest allies -- have all criticized President Trump's decision, calling it "unhelpful in terms of prospects for peace in the region." Pope Francis voiced his disagreement, stating "I cannot remain silent about my deep concern for the situation that has developed in recent days." The United Nations, the European Union, Italy's prime minister, China's ministry of foreign affairs, Turkey's president and several others have joined a chorus disagreeing with Trump and warning of dire consequences.



President Trump has made an unnecessarily provocative decision that comes with a real risk of increased violence and the possibility of war. The peace process between Israel and Palestine is one of the most critical issues of our time, one that is marred with challenges and sensitivities. Irresponsible behavior from leadership on both sides has historically damaged peace talks and instigated violence. Instead of exhibiting concerted efforts to bring peace, Trump has now introduced heightened risk of inflaming an already volatile situation in the Middle East.



The decision to declare Jerusalem the capital closes peace talks by making a unilateral decision on an outstanding point in the negotiations. This belligerent behavior exhibits a desire by the U.S. administration to fan the flames of war, consistent with the hostilities the White House has engaged in recently with North Korea.

The U.S. has sought to establish itself as a fair arbiter in the peace-brokering process. But the move to unilaterally decide the position of Jerusalem clearly demonstrates that the U.S. cannot be considered an unbiased and just broker in the Middle East.



My concern for the wisdom -- or lack thereof -- of the current administration's behavior is not derived solely from the president's ill-conceived decision on Jerusalem. Rather, this is simply the latest example of this young administration's desire to tear apart the Middle East and more broadly isolate itself in the world. This administration has exhibited deeply troubling signs of creating unrest and disorder by its mass export of war weapons that have destroyed Syria and Yemen, its provocation of nuclear war with North Korea, its constant confrontations with Iran and its travel ban targeting people from the Middle East.



The U.S. administration needs to focus on peace-building efforts, using better judgment based on wisdom and justice. Instead of increasing tensions, hatred, violence and war, it's time we established a mature and just strategy in the attempts to end conflicts. Carnage, self-interest and deliberate conflict are the work of tyrants, not leaders. True long-term pathways to peace can only be established through diplomacy.



His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad, spiritual leader of the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, rightfully urged all world leaders, including the United Nations, to act with wisdom and play their roles "in establishing peace in the world, unencumbered by politics, injustice or favoritism."



As an American, I ask the leaders of my country to have the integrity to take a stand against this track record we have established and instead, steer us towards diplomacy, peace and unbiased justice. It's the only way for us to give our children a world better than what we have now.



Harris Zafar (@Harris_Zafar) is national spokesperson for Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA. He lives in Southwest Portland.

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A rusted boat was found on the south end of Arcadia Beach on Saturday, Dec. 2.

The U.S. Coast Guard determined that the vessel is Japanese, but could not determine how it ended up on the Oregon beach, which is just south of Cannon Beach.

"We know there were a lot of vessels lost during the tsunami and earthquake in Japan," spokesman Levi Read said, referring to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated coastal Japanese communities. "We can't confirm where it came from."

Read said coast guard officials searched for but did not find any recoverable oil from the boat.

He said the Oregon state parks department is working on a plan to remove the watercraft from the beach.

The Oregon parks department could not be reached for comment Sunday evening.

--Jessica Floum

503-221-8306
Hoffman Construction Co. has withdrawn the $50 million lien it placed on Intel's multibillion-dollar D1X computer chip factory in Hillsboro.

"We are pleased that the dispute has been amicably resolved. The terms and conditions of the resolution are confidential," Intel said in a written statement. Hoffman echoed that statement but declined to elaborate.

Hoffman first filed the lien in the summer of 2015. Records show the Portland-based company released it last month.

Hoffman served as general contractor on the massive D1X complex, beginning in 2010 and continuing with a second phase that started in 2012. It's the most advanced computer chip factory in the world, designed to handle new generations of manufacturing technology that enable smaller, more detailed features to improve performance.

The origins of Hoffman's dispute with Intel remain somewhat mysterious. The lien did not detail the company's grievances, and Hoffman and Intel had moved to address their issues through private arbitration.

A related case filed last spring provided some clues, however.

Another company, Harder Mechanical Contractors, filed a complaint alleging that Intel and Hoffman were sharing proprietary information about Harder during their arbitration. Harder indicated that Intel and Hoffman had a disagreement over how to value labor costs, though it's not clear that was the issue that prompted the lien.

D1X was the largest construction project in Oregon history, consisting of a pair of adjoining factories of 1.1-million-square-feet apiece. In addition, Intel built a 400,000-square-foot support building for the project's second phase, and an adjacent, 1-million-square-foot office building.

In 2010, Intel said the first phase of D1X would cost $3 billion. It never revealed a total price tag for the project, but with the additional construction for the second phase it surely topped several billion dollars.

Intel developed its forthcoming generation of 10-nanometer chip technology at D1X and plans to begin shipping the first of those chips by the end of the year.

This article has been updated to reflect that Hoffman says it concurs with Intel's comments.

Staff writer Jeff Manning contributed to this article.

-- Mike Rogoway; twitter: @rogoway; 503-294-7699
Photos: AP

John Quincy Adams kept an alligator in a White House bathtub. Harry Truman once threatened to punch out a music critic. Lyndon Johnson held staff meetings while sitting on the toilet.

But none of the eccentricities of President Donald Trumps predecessors prepared us for the current administration. In less than a full year, Trump has reshaped the art of American governance, hiring department heads with no relevant experience, making policy seemingly by whim, challenging his secretary of state to an IQ-test showdown. He has, in short, normalized chaos.

How bad has it been? The unsettling behavior of those running the federal government since January has been so consistent that it now almost feels normal. Almost.

To provide an accurate sense of the Trump administration at work, weve collected 50 of the strangest and/or most terrifying things the president and his team have said in 2017. The list is far from comprehensive, but it is representative. (And please note: the quotes here, presented randomly, do not include Twitter posts. We had only so much time to spend on this.)

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"This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period."

-- White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer on the crowd at President Trumps inauguration

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"You're saying it's a falsehood. And they're giving -- Sean Spicer, our press secretary -- gave alternative facts."

-- White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway, defending Sean Spicers claim that Trumps swearing in as president featured the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period

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We dont think that was my voice.

-- President Donald Trump, reportedly telling a Republican senator early in his presidency that the 2005 Access Hollywood video -- in which he boasted of sexually assaulting women -- might have been faked. When the video went public late in the 2016 campaign, he admitted he had made the remarks and apologized.

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So, if the President says it -- let me do more research on it -- but my guess is that theres probably some level of truth to that.

-- White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci, on President Trumps false claim that there were millions of illegal Democratic votes cast in the 2016 election

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"From the standpoint of sexual assault, when the lights are on, when you have light that shines, the righteousness, if you will, on those types of acts. So from the standpoint of how you really affect people's lives, fossil fuels is going to play a role in that. I happen to think it's going to play a positive role."

-- U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Rick Perry, on how to prevent sexual assaults

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Our opponents, the media and the whole world will soon see, as we begin to take further actions, that the powers of the president to protect our country are very substantial and will not be questioned.

-- Senior White House policy adviser Stephen Miller, on President Trumps travel ban

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The one thing Ill say about myself, so, Obama was in there for eight years and got Obamacare. Hillary Clinton was in there eight years and they never got Hillarycare, whatever they called it at the time. I am not in here six months, and theyll say, Trump hasnt fulfilled his agenda. I say to myself, wait a minute, Im only here a very short period of time compared to Obama. How long did it take to get Obamacare?

-- President Donald Trump, on the difficulty in getting an Affordable Care Act repeal-and-replace bill passed.

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"The longer they talk about identity politics, I got em. I want them to talk about racism every day. If the left is focused on race and identity, and we go with economic nationalism, we can crush the Democrats.

-- White House strategist Steve Bannon, on why Trumpisms message is better than the Democrats

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Just as dessert was being served, the president explained to [Chinese President Xi Jinping] he had something he wanted to tell him, which was the launching of 59 missiles into Syria. It was in lieu of after-dinner entertainment. The thing was, it didnt cost the president anything to have that entertainment.

-- Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, on President Trump bragging about his commander-in-chief decisions

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This is equivalent to what the Rosenbergs did, and those people got the chair.

-- Trump media surrogate and former White House adviser Sebastian Gorka, on the so-called Clinton uranium scandal. The U.S. approval of a deal to sell a Canadian energy company to Russian buyers, President Trump has said, is Watergate, modern age. He and other Republicans falsely claim Hillary Clinton made the deal happen in exchange for donations to the Clinton Foundation. The Washington Post has pointed out that every legitimate news fact-checking operation has dismantled the underpinnings of these accusations. Even Fox News Shepard Smith has called the allegations against Clinton inaccurate, infuriating many Fox News viewers. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in 1953 for providing atomic-bomb secrets to the Soviet Union.

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Im not Steve Bannon, Im not trying to suck my own c---. Im not trying to build my own brand off the f---ing strength of the president. Im here to serve the country.

-- White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci, on whether he or White House political strategist Steve Bannon will have the presidents ear

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"Because, unable to really to come to grips with the problems in the church, they need illegal aliens, they need illegal aliens to fill the churches."

-- Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, on why the Catholic Church opposes the repeal of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy

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There are powerful forces in Washington trying to sabotage our movement. These are bad people. These are very, very bad and evil people.

-- President Donald Trump, during a speech in support of Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore

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The lack of an ability to compromise led to the Civil War. And men and women of good faith, on both sides, made their stand where their conscience had to make their stand.

-- White House Chief of Staff John Kelly on the cause of the American Civil War

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"I'm not talking about the nature of the video. I think you're focusing on the wrong thing. The threat is real and that is what the president is talking about."

-- White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, on President Trump retweeting violent, misleading anti-Muslim videos posted by the racist British organization Britain First

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The President has really good karma, O.K.? And the world turns back to him. Hes genuinely a wonderful human being, and I think, as the members of Congress get to know him better and get comfortable with him, theyre going to let him lead them to the right things for the American people. So, I think were going to get the health care done.

-- White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci, on the prospects of Republican health-insurance legislation

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I do now recall the March 2016 meeting at Trump Hotel that Mr. Papadopoulos attended, but I have no clear recollection of the details of what he said at that meeting. After reading his account, and to the best of my recollection, I believe that I wanted to make clear to him that he was not authorized to represent the campaign with the Russian government, or any other foreign government, for that matter. But I did not recall this event, which occurred 18 months before my testimony of a few weeks ago, and I would gladly have reported it had I remembered it because I pushed back against his suggestion that I thought may have been improper.

-- U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, having had his memory refreshed (sort of) by the guilty plea of former Trump campaign foreign-policy adviser George Papadopolous about a meeting Sessions had attended. Weeks earlier, the attorney general said he believed there had been no contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.

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"I mean, give me a break, they are political hacks. So you look at it, I mean, you have [former CIA Director John] Brennan, you have [former Director of National Intelligence James] Clapper and you have [former FBI Director James] Comey. Comey is proven now to be a liar and he is proven now to be a leaker. So you look at that and you have President Putin very strongly, vehemently says he had nothing to do with them. ... [Putin] said he didnt meddle, he said he didnt meddle. I asked him again. You can only ask so many times. ... Every time he sees me, he says, 'I didn't do that. And I believe, I really believe, that when he tells me that, he means it.

-- President Donald Trump, on the U.S. intelligence communitys assessment that Russia interfered with the 2016 U.S. election -- and Russian President Vladimir Putins insistence that Russia did not

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"I did not collude, nor know of anyone else in the campaign who colluded, with any foreign government. I had no improper contacts. I have not relied on Russian funds to finance my business activities in the private sector. I have tried to be fully transparent with regard to the filing of my SF-86 form, above and beyond what is required. Hopefully, this puts these matters to rest."

-- White House adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, about his contacts with Russians during and after the 2016 president campaign. The Senate Judiciary Committee later discovered that Kushner had forwarded emails about a Russian backdoor overture and withheld them from investigators. Kushner also had to repeatedly update his security-clearance forms after omitting dozens of contacts with foreigners, including government officials.

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Once a month, I join my FFL for a night of full-auto shooting -- Tommy guns, HK MP-5, HK-53, etc. Rummage through the local comic book/used sci-fi bookstore. I grew up on Doctor Who, 2000AD, and Judge Dredd, and you never get that out of your bloodstream.

-- Trump media surrogate and former White House adviser Sebastian Gorka, on what he does for fun.

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"I think he's at 30 -- I think he's 36 percent or 38 percent -- because he hasn't, we haven't, gotten the wall built."

-- Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, on the presidents low approval ratings

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Theyll all be fired by me. I fired one guy the other day. I have three to four people Ill fire tomorrow. Ill get to the person who leaked that to you. [White House chief of staff] Reince Priebus -- if you want to leak something -- hell be asked to resign very shortly.

-- White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci

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Reince is a f---ing paranoid schizophrenic, a paranoiac.

-- White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci. Priebus soon left the administration. So did Scaramucci.

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There are all different types, there are many different types of scientists. Theres a credible difference of opinion among climate scientists.

-- Council on Environmental Quality nominee Kathleen Hartnett White, during her Senate confirmation hearing

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"I still think the science is out."

-- Energy Secretary Rick Perry, on whether human activity contributes to climate change

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Trump

I actually dont know what that means, the 2C target.

-- George David Banks, special assistant to the president for international energy and environment, about the key goal of international climate policy that seeks to limit the global warming rise to 2 degrees Celsius. The Guardian newspaper pointed out back in 2014 that the 2C target ... has been repeated like a mantra, mentioned thousands of times in newspaper articles. Offered Climate Change News earlier this year: If you read or listen to almost any article about climate change, its likely the story refers in some way to the 2 degrees Celsius limit."

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"A president cannot improperly influence an investigation.

-- U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, when asked whether President Trump was behind the Department of Justice considering a special counsel to investigate Hillary Clinton

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"I think there is blame on both sides. ... Excuse me, what about the 'alt-left' that came charging at, as you say, the 'alt-right,' do they have any semblance of guilt? Let me ask you this. What about the fact they came charging, with clubs in hands, swinging clubs? Do they have any problem? I think they do. ... You had a group on one side that was bad and you had a group on the other side that was also very violent. Nobody wants to say it, but I will say it right now. You had a group, you had a group on the other side that came charging in without a permit and they were very, very violent. ... I own a house in Charlottesville. Does anyone know I own a house in Charlottesville?"

-- President Donald Trump, on the white supremacists marching in Charlottesville, Virginia, and those protesting the neo-Nazi rally. A woman was killed when a white supremacist rammed his car into a crowd of protesters.

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Macron

Hes a great guy. Smart. Strong. Loves holding my hand.

-- President Donald Trump, on French President Emmanuel Macron

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That's not what he said. He said that [the U.S. justice-system] process has people calling us a joke and a laughing stock. Particularly for someone to be a known terrorist, that process should move faster. That's the point he is making. That's the frustration he has.

-- White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, after President Trumps remarks following the October terror attack in New York City. Trump said: "We need quick justice and we need strong justice -- much quicker and much stronger than we have right now. Because what we have right now is a joke and it's a laughingstock. And no wonder so much of this stuff takes place."

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"And I'll tell you, we're spending a lot of money on the inner cities. We're fixing the inner cities. We're doing far more than anybody's done with respect to the inner cities. It's a priority for me, and it's very important.

-- President Donald Trump, when asked about race relations in the U.S.

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Modern air is a little too clean for optimum health.

-- Robert Phalen, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advisory board member, has stood behind the comment he initially made in 2012

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I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and theres tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact. So, no, I would not agree that its a primary contributor to the global warming that we see.

-- Environmental Protection Agency Director Scott Pruitt, on whether carbon dioxide causes global warming

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This merger would greatly harm American consumers.

-- U.S. Justice Department anti-trust chief Makan Delrahim, on the proposed merger of AT&T and Time Warner. DOJ is suing AT&T in an attempt to force it to sell off CNN, the cable-news company that President Trump regularly attacks as fake news. Before joining the Trump administration, Delrahim had this to say about the proposed merger: The sheer size of it, and the fact that its media, I think will get a lot of attention. However, I dont see this as a major anti-trust problem.

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Tribune News Service

There werent 17 as was previously reported; there were actually four. But they were saying there was 17; there were actually four.

-- President Donald Trump, trying to downplay the U.S. intelligence communitys consensus that Russia interfered with the 2016 U.S. election. The report hes referring to was put out by the CIA, the NSA, the FBI and the DNI. The DNI, the Director of National Intelligence, oversees all 17 U.S. intelligence services.

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"The President and a small group of people know exactly what he meant."

-- White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, refusing to simply admit the president made a typo when one of his tweets included the non-word covfefe

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"I don't think there's much to clarify, it's pretty black and white."

-- White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, on Presidents Trumps criticism of NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem to protest racial injustice

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"A lot of love in this room."

-- President Donald Trump, while throwing paper towels to hurricane survivors in Puerto Rico

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The president cares as much about Puerto Rico as everywhere else.

-- Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, on the administrations response to the humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico

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Sessions should have never recused himself, and if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job, and I would have picked somebody else.

-- President Donald Trump, on Attorney General Jeff Sessions recusing himself from the Russia-collusion investigation

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That's one of the more outrageous comments that anyone could make and certainly something that I think is a fireable offense by ESPN.

-- White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, after ESPN host Jemele Hill said on Twitter that President Trump was a white supremacist

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"I think she does the best of her ability to tell the truth but also to protect the president, and so I think that there's a fine line to draw between those two things."

-- Former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci, on White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders

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Why arent the other hands up?

-- White House economic adviser Gary Cohn, when very few of the corporate executives at a Wall Street Journal CEO Council event raised their hands in response to the question, If the tax reform bill goes through, do you plan to increase investment -- your companys investment, capital investment?

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Beyond contravening U.S. law, this decision risks marring the credibility of a broad range of State Department reports and analyzes and has weakened one of the U.S. government's primary diplomatic tools to deter governmental armed forces and government-supported armed groups from recruiting and using children in combat and support roles around the world.

-- a dissent memo from U.S. State Department officials, objecting to Secretary of State Rex Tillersons decision to exclude Iraq, Afghanistan and Myanmar from a list of countries that use child soldiers

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I have had the best reviews on foreign land. So I go to Poland and make a speech. Enemies of mine in the media, enemies of mine, are saying it was the greatest speech ever made on foreign soil by a president.

-- President Donald Trump, on his reception overseas

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I guess I should take that as a compliment that I look like a villain in a great, successful James Bond movie.

-- Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, trying to shake off social-media criticism after he and his wife Louise Linton posed with a sheet of newly printed money. Earlier in the year, Mnuchin's use of government planes was scrutinized after Linton published an Instagram post in which she seemed to celebrate her wealth while traveling with her husband on government business.

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I think I did a great thing for the American people.

-- President Donald Trump, on firing James Comey as FBI director

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Im telling you we want the votes in the Senate to get this tax bill through. And the media -- if the media were really concerned about all these allegations, and thats what this was truly about  Al Franken would be on the ash heap of bygone half-funny comedians. He wouldnt be here on Capitol Hill. He still has his job. Whats Bob Menendez doing back here? Thats the best my state of New Jersey can do?

-- White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway, when asked if the White House wanted Alabamians to vote for GOP Senate nominee Roy Moore, who has been accused by multiple women of sexual assault and other misconduct

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Andrea, I run the office of management and budget in Washington D.C. You work for NBC News in Washington, D.C. My guess is weve not spent that much time looking at the specifics of these allegations. Youve arrived at a certain conclusion because of a certain political persuasion.

-- White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, who had just said he found Republican Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moores accusers credible but that he didnt know who to believe. Andrea Mitchell followed up by asking him why he wouldnt believe Moores accusers if he finds them credible.

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Im a street fighter. Thats what I am.

-- Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon

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Bonus

Wait a minute. I'm not finished. I'm not finished. Fake news.

-- President Donald Trump, when reporters interrupted him to ask more questions during a press conference
Another home in the Washington County community of North Bethany was destroyed in a fire that investigators fear was intentionally set.

The fire, which broke out at 7864 NW 169th Ave., was one of two in the neighborhood early Monday, according to Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue. An unoccupied house next door sustained minor fire, smoke and water damage.

The blazes signal the fourth round of suspicious blazes in the neighborhood in the past several months. The first two happened less than two weeks apart in August, fire officials said. The third occurred late last month.

A deputy on patrol about 12:40 a.m. Monday saw the house fire, Tualatin Valley fire officials said in a news release. He reported that smoke was coming from the house next door, as well. Firefighters descended on the neighborhood, and a second alarm was called about 1 a.m.

Fire crews from @HillsboroFire and Portland Fire supporting TVF&R as firefighters check for exposure and mop up. No injuries. Under investigation. pic.twitter.com/BZXzLGJwJz  TVF&R (@TVFR) December 11, 2017

Firefighters kept the blazes from spreading to other houses, but the house that sustained the worse of the two fires "is considered a total loss," according to fire officials. It had been in the last stages of construction.

No one was injured.

The county sheriff's office has had extra patrols in the area since August, fire officials said, and the property developer hired a security company.

Fire officials said investigators will keep working with sheriff's detectives on Monday's case. Officials urge anyone who has information about the fires or other blazes in the neighborhood call the sheriff's office at 503-846-2700.

-- Jim Ryan

jryan@oregonian.com

503-221-8005; @Jimryan015
(Xinhua) 07:52, December 11, 2017

Israeli police guard the site of a knife attack at Jerusalem's central bus station, on Dec. 10, 2017. An Israeli security guard was seriously wounded Sunday by a Palestinian knifeman outside Jerusalem's central bus station, the police said. (Xinhua/JINI)

JERUSALEM, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- An Israeli security guard was seriously wounded Sunday by a Palestinian knifeman outside Jerusalem's central bus station, the police said.

The suspect, a 24-year-old Palestinian resident of the West Bank, stabbed the security guard and fled the scene, said a police statement, describing it as a "terror attack."

He was chased and arrested by a civilian and a policeman nearby, it added.

Israel's Magen David Adom emergency medical service said that the 25-year-old Israeli guard sustained serious injuries and was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.

The incident occurred amid growing tensions over U.S. President Donald Trump's recent decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israeli capital despite strong opposition and protests from the Palestinians and Muslims across the world.

Trump also ordered the State Department to start immediately the process of relocating the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

To protest Trump's announcement, the Palestinians called for three "days of rage." Protests were held in the past days in the Palestinian territories, many cities in Muslim countries, as well as some European capitals.

Four Palestinians were killed and dozens of others were injured in their clashes with Israeli security forces in the Gaza Strip and West Bank over the weekend.

On Friday, two Palestinian protesters were killed and 98 others were wounded in clashes in the Palestinian territories. A number of Palestinian protesters were also arrested at the Damascus Gate in East Jerusalem during skirmishes with Israeli security forces after the Friday prayers.

The two other Palestinians killed were believed to be Hamas members, who lost their lives in Gaza Strip Friday during airstrikes launched by Israeli military in retaliation against Hamas' firing of three rockets into Israel from the enclave.

Israeli police guard the site of a knife attack at Jerusalem's central bus station, on Dec. 10, 2017. An Israeli security guard was seriously wounded Sunday by a Palestinian knifeman outside Jerusalem's central bus station, the police said. (Xinhua/JINI)
(Xinhua) 07:54, December 11, 2017

China launched Algeria's first communication satellite, Alcomsat-1, into a preset orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in the southwestern province of Sichuan early Monday, on Dec. 11, 2017. (Xinhua/Ju Zhenhua)

XICHANG, Sichuan, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- China launched Algeria's first communication satellite, Alcomsat-1, into a preset orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in the southwestern province of Sichuan early Monday.

The satellite was the first cooperative project in aerospace industry between the two countries. It will be used by Algeria for broadcast and television, emergency communication, distance education, e-governance, enterprise communication, broadband access and satellite-based navigation.

The satellite was launched 40 minutes after midnight by a Chinese Long March-3B carrier rocket, making it the 258th flight mission for the Long March rocket family.
The combo picture shows the portrait, fingerprint of Zhang Lanying and illustrated story reviving her tragedy based on facts. Born on Dec. 6, 1929, Zhang is a survivor of Nanjing Massacre, a heinous crime committed by the Japanese militarists during World War II in 1937, in Nanjing, then capital of China. On the first day after Japanese troops entered Nanjing, three Japanese soldiers broke into her home, bound her elder brother Zhang Huaizhi and stabbed his thigh. Zhang and her mother dropped to their knees and begged piteously, brought Zhang Huaizhi back to life. The year 2017 marks the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre, in which more than 300,000 Chinese were killed by the Japanese invaders who occupied Nanjing on Dec. 13, 1937, marking the start of six weeks of destruction, pillage, rape and slaughter in the city. There are only less than 100 living survivors of the atrocity. Reporters from Xinhua spent many years to look for the survivors of Nanjing Massacre and record their current lives. (Xinhua/Photo by Han Yuqing, Illustrated by Chen Congying)
People stroll in Beihai Park on a clear day in Beijing. [Photo/VCG]

China has confidence in reaching its ambitious air pollution reduction goals as scheduled, based on data for the first 11 months, the environmental protection minister said on Sunday, crediting the scientific and comprehensive efforts taken in the past years.

The five major goals set by the national Action Plan Against Air Pollution in 2013 are likely to be achieved by the end of 2017, with a huge improvement in air quality in China, said Environmental Protection Minister Li Ganjie at the annual meeting of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development on Sunday in Beijing.

The council is a high-level international advisory body to gather foreign experts to promote China's sustainable development.

In the first 11 months, Beijing has seen the average PM2.5 concentration lowered to 58 micrograms per cubic meter, reduced by 35.6 percent from the same period in 2013, according to the Beijing Environmental Bureau.

Beijing has seen many blue days in December, with air quality staying at the good level, "and based on the data, we may see the annual average level of PM2.5 in Beijing lowering to around 60, maybe at 61 or 62," the minister said, adding that it's better than forecast.

He added that the reduction goal for Beijinglowering PM2.5 level to 60was considered more difficult compared with other goals, which worried him before.

Beijing is likely to attain its goal, so China has confidence it will reach the five major goals as scheduled, Li said.

The other four goals would be easily in reach if the good air quality level continues for the remaining days of the year.

In the first 11 months, the average concentration of PM10 in 338 cities nationwide was 20.4 percent less than the same period of 2013, and the goal in the action plan was 10 percent, Li said.

In addition, the average PM2.5 concentration in the first 11 months in three major industrial zonesthe Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the Yangtze River and the Pearl River Deltahas been at least 25.6 percent lower, easily exceeding the goal of at least 15 percent, the minister said.

The huge improvement in air quality was achieved based on the multiple measures including strengthened enforcement, scientific efforts, effective measures to reduce industrial emissions, vehicle exhausts, coal consumption, and other efforts in improving the economy, the minister said.

"The effective practices adopted in the past five years will continue to guide the air pollution control efforts in future," Li added.

China's effective environmental protection efforts, particularly in air pollution control, received praise from many foreign experts in environment from governments and international organizations who participated in the annual meeting.

Diane Regas, executive director of Environmental Defense Fund, a US non-profit organization, was amazed to see China fulfilling its commitment and was confident about further improvements based on the measures.

UN Environment said China has set an example for the rest of the world of sustainable development through green industrial policies, especially in areas of electric transportation, solar energy and the "sharing economy".
Rob Vallentine, global director of Corporate Citizenship for The Dow Chemical Co., will deliver the keynote address to Saginaw Valley State University's newest graduates this month.

Vallentine, who also serves as president and executive director of The Dow Chemical Co. Foundation, will speak at both of SVSU's commencement ceremonies. The first event is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Friday and the second ceremony is set for 11 a.m. Saturday, both in O'Neill Arena of the Ryder Center.

Commencement exercises for graduates in the colleges of Business abd Management and Health and Human Services will be held Friday evening. Students completing degrees in the colleges of Arts and Behavioral Sciences; Education; and Science, Engineering and Technology will take part in the ceremony scheduled for Saturday morning.

The graduating class consists of 639 students who are expected to complete degrees, including 570 individuals who have indicated that they intend to don regalia and march in the ceremonies. The class includes 520 who will receive bachelor's degrees, and 119 who will receive master's or education specialist degrees.

As is tradition, SVSU President Don Bachand will congratulate each graduate as he or she crosses the stage.

Vallentine is responsible for corporate engagement with Dow stakeholders at the global, regional and local levels. He drives business decisions at the intersection of sustainability, innovation and citizenship while utilizing Dow's capabilities to achieve business and social impact.

He works closely with Dow's Foundation Board of Directors to provide strategic direction on the company's philanthropic priorities around the world. A number of those community-minded endeavors have benefited SVSU initiatives to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) education for both college-level and K-12 students. Most recently, the foundation partnered with the university in June to create a program where SVSU prepares K-12 students to serve as leaders and "chief science officers" in their schools.

In addition, Vallentine manages a team responsible for public affairs strategies and programs at Dow's 50 sites in North America.

Throughout the 30 years he has been at Dow, Vallentine has been committed to weaving together the personal and the professional to change the world for the better. He believes that a harmonious balance of life, work and community service is the key to "doing good and doing well," and is at the heart of good business. Through his leadership of the company's global citizenship activities, Vallentine helps people find their purpose and then share that purpose to contribute to society.

Actively involved in community service, Vallentine currently serves on the boards of directors for the Council of Michigan Foundations, the Great Lakes Bay Regional Alliance and the Chemical Educational Foundation. He also serves as a community director at Chemical Bank. Vallentine previously served in board positions for the United Way of Midland County, the Delta College Foundation, and Hidden Harvest.

Vallentine completed a bachelor's degree in marketing at Southeast Missouri State University and a Master of Business Administration at Drake University. He and his wife, Nancy, have four children and reside in Midland.

In 2015, SVSU received the Community Engagement classification from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, a distinction achieved by only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities. By their senior year, 84 percent of students have engaged with community employers and agencies in internships, field placements or some other component of their academic preparation.
Colon and Rectal Surgeon Dr. Kristin Busch has joined the comprehensive cancer care team at MidMichigan Health. This team includes medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, specialized surgeons, interventional radiologists, as well as nurse navigators. Busch joins Colon and Rectal Surgeon Dr. George Zainea, and Advanced Practice Provider Cara Callan, P.A.-C.

As a colon and rectal surgeon, Busch specializes in the diagnosis and medical and surgical treatment of disorders and diseases of the colon and rectum, anal canal and perianal area. She commonly treats conditions such as colon and rectal cancer, polyps, inflammatory bowel disease, diverticulitis, as well as anal conditions such as hemorrhoids, fissures, abscesses and fistulas.

Busch received her medical degree from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and went on to complete a fellowship in colon and rectal surgery at St. Mark's Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah.

"There is tremendous variety within the field of colon and rectal surgery, from cancers of the colon and rectum to inflammatory bowel disease to benign anorectal conditions," she said. "Colorectal surgery allows me to provide care to patients in a wide variety of ways, whether it is through colonoscopies, outpatient procedures, or major abdominal surgeries."

According to Busch, patients can make the best decisions about their health and health care when they're well informed.

"I enjoy taking time with my patients to teach them about their disease and to explain the available treatment options to help them make an informed decision," she said. "I enjoy helping patients reach their full potential after treatment of their life-debilitating condition, whether it be anorectal disease, pelvic floor dysfunction, diverticular disease or colorectal cancer."

In addition to performing colonoscopies, Busch specializes in minimally invasive colon and rectal cancer procedures. Some of her procedures include laparoscopic-assisted colectomy, anal fistulas, colonic inertia, as well as treating and managing diverticulitis, colorectal polyps, inflammatory bowel disease, fecal incontinence and hemorrhoids.

"Colon cancer is currently the third most common cause of cancer death in both women and men in the United States," said Busch. "That's why screening colonoscopies are so important for detecting polyps or cancers at an early stage."

Busch is particularly interested in minimally invasive surgery, including robotic surgery, for the treatment of colon and rectal cancer.

"I am also interested in sacral neuromodulation for the treatment of fecal incontinence," she added.

Busch welcomes new patients to her office in the Towsley Building located at 4201 Campus Ridge Drive, Suite 2000 in Midland. Appointments may be made by calling 989-839-1795 or toll free at 866-494-8934. Those who would like more information about Busch may visit www.midmichigan.org/busch.
Forty-nine student members and one honorary member were recently inducted into Mid Michigan Community College's Alpha Omicron Omicron Phi Theta Kappa Chapter.

The mission of Phi Theta Kappa is to recognize academic achievement of college students and to provide opportunities for them to grow as scholars and leaders. Students must earn a minimum 3.5 grade point average and complete at least 12 credit hours at MMCC before being eligible to join.

An honorary member is an individual who represents the ideals on which Phi Theta Kappa is based and has rendered distinguished service to their local PTK chapter.

These members are of high character, intellectual ability, and exhibit a level of accomplishment worthy of recognition.

"Phi Theta Kappa is a great opportunity to learn, grow, and expand as a person. I have made lifelong friends and connections that I would not have made otherwise. During my time as an officer, I have enjoyed going to conventions, doing volunteer work, and going on various chapter outings. I have a new family, a PTK family, and I wouldn't change for the world," shared Tamara Smith, MMCC's chapter president.

MMCC launched a PTK chapter in 1989 -- one of nearly 1,300 PTK chapters worldwide. Over the past 28 years, MMCC's chapter has grown and obtained the highest level of achievement -- a 5 Star Chapter. Through chapter and individual projects, members have succeeded in serving the college and community.

For more information about MMCC's Phi Theta Kappa Chapter, visit midmich.edu/ptk or contact Tammy Alvaro at talvaro@midmich.edu or 989-386-6622, ext. 634.
People protest against tax reform on Capitol hill in Washington DC, the United States, on Dec 1, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese scholars said market expectations should remain objective on Washington's approval of a tax overhaul and they expect its benefits targeting special groups in the United States will be limited.

Despite the PR effect marking the US as an attractive business location, the nominal 15 percentage point reduction of the corporate tax rate may only mean a real decrease of 2 percentage points in tax payments, according to the US Congressional Budget Office, because the tax base has simultaneously been enlarged, said Liu Shangxi, head of Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences.

Investors will carefully calculate the real effects before making any decision to shift capital to the US just for tax avoidance, taking into consideration factors such as the market potential, infrastructure construction and other business favorable conditions, he said.

Scholars assume that the US tax cut will benefit business owners or investors first, after which the increased investment may raise workers' wages.

Tax cuts began in China years ago, especially since the value-added tax pilot program, which was launched in 2012. According to official data, tax revenue has been reduced by nearly 1.7 trillion yuan ($257 billion) so far, as a part of the country's ongoing economic rebalancing reform.

Meanwhile, taxes have been reduced on businesses in technology innovation and green development, as well as for small and medium-sized enterprises.

In the past five years, the central government's income from administrative fees has declined by 320 billion yuan per year on average, and provincial-level governments took in 47 billion yuan per year less, the data showed.

After tax reform was approved in the US Congress, at least two weeks would be needed for President Donald Trump to sign it into law, but delay is possible.

Intensive negotiations on the differences between the House and Senate bills will continue until mid-December.

Both the House and Senate bills have introduced base erosion rulestax avoidance strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules to artificially shift profits to low or no-tax locationsas identified by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

As a result, Chinese investors may see increased after-tax returns from the US investments, and Chinese multinational enterprises may suffer fierce competition from their US counterparts due to the reduction of the US corporate tax rate, said a research note from the KPMG professional services firm.

Chinese tax policymakers may consider taking measures to maintain China business competitiveness, it said.

Liu Yi, a professor at the School of Economics in Peking University, said: "A wave of tax reduction competition is likely to emerge among the world's major economies over the long term if the US president can finally sign the bill. Governments' expenditures on welfare could be reduced, and that may drag down the level living standards of social livelihood."
To the editor:

If you can't remember history, then it is very important to study it. David McCulloch, Ron Chernow and others make history come alive by telling the story of people: who they were, what they said and what they did, not just dates and events.

We have a president who supports white supremacy, the Klan and neo-Nazis by his close association with them and for refusing to condemn their views.

Our president believes he alone can solve the problems in our country and world. He expects people to heed his every word.

Our president says all news which disagrees with his news is fake and wants to ban some news media, a violation of the First Amendment.

Our president wants to ban all Muslims from entering the country and register those who live here, another violation of the First Amendment.

Our president wants to remove all undocumented immigrants, especially those of color, and has authorized deputizing local sheriff's departments as agents for the immigration service

Our president has rescinded an executive order of President Obama which would allow young people who came to this country illegally through no fault of their own (Dreamers) to remain in the U.S. and give them a path to citizenship.

Our president has begun lifting temporary protective status for thousands of people who are here because of turmoil in their own countries. Some of them have been here for 15 years.

Our president urges tough action against hecklers and those who oppose him without regard for due process.

Our president is considering a private spy group which would report to him directly and not share information with the U.S. intelligence community.

Our president supports the dictatorial regimes of Vladimir Putin in Russia and Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines.

These are all signs very reminiscent of the rise and power of Adolf Hitler in Germany from 1933 to 1945. Hitler set up a paramilitary group to quell opposition, banned one group after another, controlled the media, declared himself the sole savior of Germany, demanded complete loyalty to him. Let's stop this president before it is too late to save our country from his madness.
Now Playing: Take a tour of the interior of HGTV's 2018 Dream Home in Gig Harbor, Wash. Video: Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The Pacific Northwest is a hotbed for gorgeous homes in equally gorgeous locations, and it looks like the rest of the country is about to discover our secret.

HGTV's annual Dream Home sweepstakes features an elegantly remodeled home in Gig Harbor, Washington. Located on the shores of Henderson Bay, the 3,500-square-foot home received a massive makeover down to the studs. The home features stunning views from nearly every room, a soothing, gray color palette that mimics the surrounding territory and a strong emphasis on natural materials throughout.
NEWARK, N.J. (AP)  Mario Batali is giving up oversight of the daily operations at his restaurant empire following reports of sexual misconduct by the celebrity chef over a period of at least 20 years.

The online site Eater New York, part of Vox Media, reported Monday that the incidents involve at least four women, three of whom worked for Batali. The women, who were not named in the Eater story, claim that Batali engaged in behavior including groping one's chest and grabbing one from behind and holding her tightly against his body.

In a prepared statement sent to The Associated Press, Batali said that the complaints "match up" with his past behavior.

"I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family," Batali said.

A spokesperson for Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group says an employee reported inappropriate behavior by Batali in October. The company told Eater it was the first formal complaint against Batali and that he was reprimanded and required to attend training.

Batali will also take leave from his ABC cooking show, "The Chew."

"We have asked Mario Batali to step away from The Chew while we review the allegations that have just recently come to our attention," the network said Monday. "ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment. While we are unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with the show, we will swiftly address any alleged violations of our standards of conduct."

The allegations against Batali are just the latest in a series of incidents that include Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K., Matt Lauer, resignations in the U.S. House and Senate and calls again for President Donald Trump to address sexual misconduct allegations that he's faced. Last week Time magazine named the "silence breakers," those that have shared their stories about sexual assault and harassment, as Person of the Year.

The 57-year-old Batali was well known in culinary circles, taking jobs early in his career as a sous chef at the Four Seasons in Santa Barbara and San Francisco.

His career took off after opening Po in New York City in the early 1990s, and he skyrocketed to fame with the airing of "Molto Mario," a show that ran on the Food Network for eight years, until 2004. It was there that his signature look, a fleece vest, shorts, and orange Crocs, became instantly recognizable to most people.

The Food Network, which was planning to relaunch "Molto Mario," said Monday that it was placing its plans on hold. "Food Network takes matters like this very seriously," the network said in a statement.

Batali also co-owns restaurants in a handful of cities. The Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group owns or operates several restaurants, including Babbo in New York, Carnevino Italian Steakhouse in Las Vegas and Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles. It's also a partner in Eataly, an Italian food hall and grocer, which has locations in New York, Chicago and Boston.

Batali has long been socially active. The Mario Batali Foundation advocates child nutrition. He has come out forcefully against hydraulic fracturing, a method used to extract oil and gas.
PONTIAC  A nurse who claimed she was fired from a Dwight nursing home after she reported alleged abuse has been awarded $5.2 million by a Livingston County jury.

Katrina Wesemann was employed as a licensed practical nurse at Heritage Health in Dwight in October 2012 when she was fired by her employer, Bloomington-based Heritage Enterprises Inc., which operates 54 long-term facilities, including 53 in Illinois.

Wesemann alleged she was fired because she refused to follow orders from the facility's director of nursing "to 'drop a pill' or double-dose agitated residents with anti-anxiety medications and refused to delete or omit records of suspicious injuries on residents," according to a statement from Timothy J. Coffey, one of Wesemann's lawyers.

The verdict included past wages and benefits and $5 million in punitive damages for the nurse who worked at the facility for about 19 months. The jury deliberated about two hours before returning its verdict last week during an eight-day trial before Judge Robert Travers.

However, A. Clay Cox, corporate counsel for Heritage Enterprises, said in a written statement to The Pantagraph on Monday, "We at Heritage Enterprises Inc. are deeply disappointed in the verdict delivered in the case of Wesemann v. Heritage Manor-Dwight, LLC.

"We have disputed and continue to dispute and deny the assertions of the plaintiff in this matter," Cox's statement continued. "We fully intend to exercise all available legal remedies to contest this result. Until the legal process concludes, we will have no further comment."

Coffey said the verdict "sent a powerful message to Heritage Enterprises with the $5 million punitive damage award. Such awards are intended to punish and deter when evidence of willful and wanton misconduct is presented."

The Naperville lawyer was part of a legal team that included Loevy and Loevy and Amanda S. Yarusso, of Chicago.

The jury sided with the former worker on all three counts brought under Illinois whistleblower laws that protect employees from retaliation for reporting improper conduct at nursing homes and other regulated industries.

Wesemann's lawyers alleged that her firing was in retaliation for a call she made to the corporate hotline to report the accusations involving her supervisor.
(Global Times) 08:01, December 11, 2017

Officers reassigned based on battle requirements

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) ground force's top priority is actual combat readiness, experts said, following the PLA's announcement that it had been selecting and deploying officers based on battle requirements.

All of the PLA Army's commanders and political commissars have been reassigned as of November after the PLA streamlined its group armies from 18 to 13 in April, PLA Daily, the military's official newspaper, reported on Saturday.

Over 90 percent of military officers from the original group armies and 40 percent from combat brigades have been transferred to help in communication and training, the report said.

Along with a military reform, the PLA Army has selected officers according to battle requirements and organized communications among officers on a large scale, the report added.

"The reform and changes reflect the PLA Army's shifting focus from management to combat in peacetime, which should be the army's first priority," said Xu Guangyu, a senior adviser of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association.

"Especially after the PLA was regrouped into five theater commands, we need more officers with comprehensive abilities at all levels to implement trans-theater mobility," Xu stressed.

These moves also serve to strengthen the PLA as mentioned in the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Song Zhongping, a military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Sunday.

The PLA Army this year has been strengthening communication among military officers in different group armies to train them and select the best ones to enhance the PLA Army's ability to win a war, according to the PLA Daily report.

More than one hundred officers at the division and regiment level have been relocated to border regions, islands and highlands with tough conditions, the report said, adding that the PLA Army has chosen tough regions to train military officers.

"Enhanced communication among officers is meant to improve their ability to quickly adapt to an unfamiliar environment," Song said.

Song pointed out that experiences in tough areas will help senior officers make policies and issue commands that better address real situations and the soldiers' needs.

"It was disadvantageous for the army to station officers in one place for a long time," Xu said.

More than half of the staff at military schools and research institutes has also been assigned to posts in different places, the PLA Daily report said.

The PLA Army will also communicate with the PLA Air Force, PLA Navy and recruit capable persons from outside, according to the report.
CHENOA  The mayor of Chenoa on Monday defended shooting two wild turkeys that were local celebrities to some Chenoa residents and a nuisance to others.

Residents attending the Chenoa City Council said Chris Wilder explained that he had talked at length with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources about the city's options, and he had obtained permission to deal with the birds. He also told the audience that he discussed the issue with the man, whom he did not identify, who later shot the birds Saturday.

He told the crowd of about 50 people that shooting them was the right decision because several residents had complained about them.

Four wild turkeys had roamed the towns streets for several months, and some residents took to them, Chenoa resident David Cummings said.

During most of the summer and fall, a mother and her three babies were walking around town, he said Monday. Most of the residents liked them. They would take pictures and videos and share them on social media.

In fact, a Facebook page with 150 members, Chenoa Turkeys & Friends, was devoted to the turkeys.

As the turkeys grew older and bigger, though, problems developed, said Cummings.

They would hop up on vehicles and scratch them, and so some people complained to the city, Cummings said. The mayor contacted the Department of Natural Resources and received a Class C nuisance permit that gave city officials some options on ways to remove them from the city.

Officials with DNR did not immediately return messages Monday about the situation.

According to Cummings, a man shot two of the birds with a .40-caliber handgun about 11:20 a.m. Saturday.

Adding to the problem, Cummings said, was the fact that the birds were shot at the intersection of Division and Logan streets, which is in a school zone. While it happened around the time children were leaving a nearby school after a Breakfast with Santa, the mayor told the audience Monday no children were present.

He also told the audience he had asked the shooter not to kill the birds when children were present.

School officials also did not reply Monday to a request for comment.

My main problem is not just the shooting of the turkeys, but that it happened in a busy residential area, in a school zone, Cummings said. The residents werent notified and the kids and their parents were leaving that school.

What happened to the other two turkeys wasn't clear Monday night, but residents believe they are dead.
NORMAL  McLean County is part of a network working toward a goal of having 60 percent of adults in Illinois obtain a post-secondary college degree or career credential by 2025.

According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, 50.9 percent of McLean County residents had at least an associate's degree in 2015, compared to 40 percent statewide.

Although McLean County is ahead to the state in achieving the 60 by 25 goal, Charlie Moore, CEO of the McLean County Chamber of Commerce, said, We need to keep our eyes on the prize.

The "60 by 25" number wasn't pulled out of thin air, notes Lynne Haeffele, director of the Center for the Study of Education Policy at Illinois State University.

The Lumina Foundation, a private foundation based in Indiana focused on making post-secondary learning opportunities available to all, looked at economic and job forecasts and determined that 60 percent of jobs would require training beyond high school by 2025.

A survey of Illinois companies found that eight in 10 employers need employees with some post-secondary education, according to Advance Illinois, a nonpartisan education policy advocacy group.

That does not necessarily mean an academic degree. It also could mean vocational training beyond high school.

Achieving the goal in McLean County requires coordination, say those involved in the "60 by 25" project.

Moore said 17 different agencies or organizations in McLean County are addressing workforce issues.

They have joined a task force to ensure we're not crossing paths, he said.

The work starts as young as kindergarten by introducing youngsters to career options. Moore said officials next year hope to add a program called Inspire that would get business partners more involved, such as job shadowing.

But encouraging young people to continue their education beyond high school is only part of the initiative.

Twenty-two percent of the workforce nationwide has some college education, but no degree.

We have to create pathways for them to get back to school. . Somebody's got to pick up the ball with adult learners, said James Applegate, former executive director of the Illinois Board of Higher Education and a visiting professor at ISU.

With the size of high school graduating classes shrinking, it also makes economic sense for colleges to reach out to adult learners.

Your big new market is adults, he said.

For example, Lincoln College has an Accelerated Bridge to Education that's designed for adults to complete a bachelor's degree while they work. It combines classroom sessions at one of four locations, including Normal, with online learning.

In addition, Moore noted, Heartland Community College is an amazing resource we have in our backyard.

Sarah Diel-Hunt, associate vice president for academic affairs at Heartland, said community colleges are better positioned to create some different pathways to a college degree or certificate and are more nimble  to meet emerging workforce needs.

But there's a catch or two.

Although many employers offer tuition reimbursement, some employees can't afford to pay costs upfront.

Diel-Hunt said Heartland and others are working with employers and social service agencies to find ways to help those in that situation.

Also, as schools such as Heartland reach out to adults who previously didn't pursue further education, they often take more resources because they need remedial work and more individualized attention.

Nevertheless, reaching out to these populations is viewed as important.

The first step could be a short-term certificate in areas such as welding, pharmacist assistant or certified nursing assistant that can lead to a better-paying job and also build confidence to pursue more education or training, explained Rick Pearce, Heartland's vice president for learning and student success.

Some take as little as 30 days and others are longer, such as the eight-week CNA program.

The key, said Applegate, is to make sure short-term certificates don't become a cul de sac instead of a pathway.

We need on and off ramps, he said. We need an easy way to get back on.
Q: I am a veteran who served during the Korean War. I am having increasing health/medical problems and am contemplating applying for admission to one of the four Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs IDVA) veterans' homes. I know the financial details, like asset and income limits and costs to stay there. My concern is with reports over the last few years about Legionnaires disease at the Quincy home. What is the status?

A: One resident was treated the weekend of Thanksgiving. He was released and has returned to the Quincy home. Legionnaires disease (Legionella bacteria) occurs naturally, so the source is rarely identified in individual cases. The Quincy home extensively renovated its plumbing systems last year in response to the 2015 outbreak. The home continues to test and treat its water for harmful bacteria, including Legionella.

ID card update

The VA has suspended the applications process for its veterans' ID cards due to an overwhelming number of applications and problems with the website. Only the VA will issue the official card and it is free. Honorably discharged veterans can visit the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs on South Main Street at the National Guard Armory to have their DD214 registered. Then, take the registered DD214 to the Department of Motor Vehicles and the state will put the word veteran on your drivers license or your state-issued identification card.

Did you know?

Some VA facilities host non-VA legal service providers that can assist veterans free of charge. Rebecca Sanders provides legal outreach services at the Illiana VA Healthcare Center at Danville. Her e-mail address is Rebecca.Sanders2@va.gov. Appointments are necessary. Veterans must be low income and reside in the area served by Land of Lincoln.

Veterans' court

An Illinois law passed last year requires every judicial circuit in Illinois to have a Veterans Treatment Court (VTC) starting in early 2018. The VTC allows veterans who were honorably discharged to plead guilty to certain crimes in exchange for a probation sentence and a program of treatment. This is similar to other specialty courts. The VTC will hold court sessions in McLean County; more specifics will be released by VTC.

ACCESSING INFO ON VA BENEFITS

The VA website at va.gov covers just about everything concerning the VA and VA benefits. Websites that provide information about current VA topics and benefits are military.com and publichealth.va.gov/. Our weekly column or a quick phone call to the McLean County Veterans Assistance Commission Office are great alternatives to searching computer websites.
NEW YORK (AP)  A man with a pipe bomb strapped to him set off the crude device in the subway near Times Square on Monday, injuring the suspect and three other people at the height of the morning rush hour, law enforcement officials said.

The man and three others were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill labeled it an attempted terror attack.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," de Blasio said.

The suspect was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

Law enforcement officials said he was inspired by the Islamic State group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group. The officials said he lives in Brooklyn and may be of Bangladeshi descent. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff. A police officer is holding the man's hands behind his back.

Police say the explosion happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues. The 7:30 a.m. blast caused smoke to fill the passageway, which was crowded with throngs of Monday morning commuters.

The explosion triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

The subway system reopened about 9:20 a.m.

Elrana Peralta, a customer service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal complex near where the blast happened, but didn't hear the explosion.

"All we could hear was the chaos," she said. "We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, 28, from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts. He also didn't hear the blast, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said. There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave. "They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

Video from above the "Crossroads of the World" showed lines of police and emergency vehicles, their lights flashing, lining the streets and no other vehicle traffic moving.

Everything around the Port Authority area was shut down  a surreal scene of still at what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

New Jersey Transit buses headed to the Port Authority were diverting to other locations. NJ Transit said buses were taking passengers to Secaucus and Hoboken, where they could take trains into the city.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.

-- Associated Press writer Jake Pearson contributed to this report.
A year has passed since patrons and partiers of the art world last gathered in Miami for Art Basel art fair. Last year, shocked and outraged by the presidential election outcome that had been decided only a few weeks earlier, we had eagerly celebrated the artists who spoke out through their work, not afraid to be "nasty." Now, a year and thousands of shocking headlines later, artists have had time to process. Today, they are stronger than ever, making work that fights back in the war on women by using the female form as a weapon.

Related | The Nasty Women (and One Nasty Man) of NADA Miami

At NADA Miami, the contemporary art fair featuring independent and emerging galleries, this year's art was all about the politics of the body, undoubtedly in response to the year of assault on women's rights, health, and bodies. From dismembered selfies to rewriting the history of a classic nude, these five artists are challenging how we see the female form todayAnd oh yea, they're all women, too.

Genieve Figgis at Half Gallery



At first glance, the lounging nude may seem like a classic painting you'd find hanging in the boudoir of a duchess, but for Irish painter Genieve Figgis, figures are never what they seem. Her painting is based off Titian's 16th century work "Danae," which depicts the Greek myth of princess Danae waiting to be impregnated by Zeus, who comes to visit in the form of a shower of gold (naturally). In Figgis' "Waiting For My Romeo," flesh swirls and the princess' face morphs into an absurdist, nonchalant take on the tale, reducing Zeus to a murky cloud and showing a scene that could almost be captioned, "New phone, who dis?"

Aneta Grzeszykowska at Lyles and King Gallery, RASTER Gallery



Polish sculptor and photographer Aneta Grzeszykowska has taken the selfie to the next level, building a model of her own body out of pig skin and photographing the pieces as she crafts them together. The form in its entirety is beautiful, shown above as the artist paints makeup onto her creation. But each sculpture on its own, dressed up with fake lashes, nail polish or a wig, feels hauntingly sexualized and gruesome. It's as if the way we analyze and dissect women's featuresa great ass, perfect lips, beautiful eyeshas come to life, each part existing alone without a body, like cuts of meat in a deli case.

Cristina Tufino at Galeria Agustina Ferreyra



For Puerto Rican sculptor Cristina Tufino, a body is an objectand it's meant to be altered. These small surrealist ceramics look soft like playdough, crafted into bizarre forms that aren't quite human but aren't quite fiction. Some of the sculptures, like a pale, doughy pineapple with a gaping mouth, look like inanimate objects starting to come alive, while the female figures lean more towards objects. It's as if she's asking oscillating women to choose: are you a rigid icon or a moldable entity?

Elizabeth Jaeger at Jack Hanley Gallery



Working with prints of Renaissance paintings of reclining nudes, artist Elizabeth Jaeger isolates the female form by blacking out the rest of the image with pencil, questioning the way we perceive women's bodies in art. The torso, floating, dismembered from its identity, still somehow feels sexualized. The images are matted in the frame so that the belly button is in the exact center, immediately drawing your eye to the epicenter of female eroticism in an unsettling, yet necessary parallel to the way we look at bodies in society.

Koak at Et Al Gallery



Stretching. Scheming. Slumping. Anna Koak's caricatures show a reality of womanhood despite their cartoony style. Here, each personality radiates through, taking over so strongly that it's only after absorbing the story of each woman that we realize they're all naked. Koak has a profound ability to paint women beyond the erotism of a body without having to hide the body itself.
Regarded as the energy pearl inside the Arctic Circle, the giant Yamal liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, jointly launched by China and Russia, began operation on Friday, December 8, 2017.

A general view of the Yamal LNG plant in Sabetta port on the Yamal Peninsula in Siberia, Russia, December 8, 2017. [Photo: VCG]

Located on the Yamal Peninsula, the Yamal LNG plant is the world's largest natural gas development, liquefaction, transportation, and sale project in the Arctic region, and is also the first large oversea energy project since the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed in 2013.

The project was developed by JSC Yamal LNG. Russias natural gas producer Novatek owns 50.1 percent stake in the company while French energy provider Total S.A. and China National Petroleum Corporation own 20 percent each. The China-proposed Silk Road Fund has signed an agreement to purchase 9.9 percent stake.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the 27-billion-US dollar Yamal LNG plant has been designed to start with a production capacity of 5.5 million tons per year. Its expected to ultimately have three production lines by 2019 with a total capacity of 16.5 million tons of LNG per year. In the meantime, the three lines will supply 4 million tons of LNG to China every year, China Central Television reported.

As the important pivot of the so-called Silk Road on Ice," the Yamal LNG project also opens a shortcut between the Asia Pacific and the Europe through the Arctic. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said it might be able to achieve the transportation of LNG from Russia to Norway in just 17 days without icebreakers, and that the project will change the structure of the global energy transportation.
As cultures across the globe become increasingly more connected through the internet, the push toward inclusion and diversity in fashion becomes even more urgent  and depressingly even more apparent when the mark is missed. As the old power guards begin to give way to new generations of creatives influenced by the things around them  including the streets they're from  giving due credit, attention and opportunities to the originators of different styles is a vital part of nourishing a cultural ecosystem that is healthy and thriving rather than exploitative or vulturous. Fashion should be a means of expression, not oppression.

Enter Jacare Moda, a modeling agency and production company that's transforming the fashion industry by bringing young people on the periphery into the center of the conversation. Jacare casts models from in and around some of Brazil's poorest neighborhoods, including Jacarezinho  one of the biggest favelas in Rio de Janeiro. Founded by Jacarezinho resident Julio Cesar Lima, the agency started out by holding competitions to find and showcase new talent. As the competitions grew locally, the company grabbed the attention of bigger and bigger brands. Jacare books models who are not only beautiful in their own individual and unique ways, but who resist the idea that favelas are only a place of poverty and violence. Models participate in workshops and learn new skills to take their careers and their communities to new levels.

Recently Jacare teamed up with Papel & Caneta, a nonprofit collective made up of young people from creative agencies all over the world, to create a short film about Jacare, featuring three of its models: Caio, Natalia and Camila. The film premieres for the first time below, and PAPER asked the film's director Geoff Levy, Papel & Caneta connector Andre Chavez and Jacare Moda partner Clariza Rosa to tell us more about the process behind the film and about the models themselves.



How were the models in the film cast?



They were selected during the workshop phase, according to their story at Jacare Moda and their worldview. Even though all the models are driven by the will to strive, the life stories and opinions of [models] Caio, Natalia and Camila connect. Despite coming from distinct origins and lifestyles, their narratives exemplify the innovation that can emerge from the periphery with the power of union. Discriminated countless times for their backgrounds, they looked to fashion as a way to learn, rediscover their self-esteem, develop their talent and originality.  Andre Chaves, Connector at Papel & Caneta

How did Jacare Moda find them?

In 2015, we had a contest in the favela of Jacarezinho as a milestone for the new era at the agency. We needed to hold an event in Jacarezinho so people from different favelas could come to our community. It was a process developed with other partners to give it more amplitude.  Clariza Rosa, Partner at Jacare Moda

Do the models get paid for the work they do?

For the most part, yes. Something we stand by as a premise is the empowerment and financial independence of the youth from the communities. Depending on the job, though, we establish partnerships where payment comes in the shape of courses, for example. Or of a project which will be superbly executed and bring us visibility.  Clariza Rosa, partner at Jacare Moda

Are all the models represented by Jacare Moda from the favelas?

Almost all of them. Some come from neighborhoods away from the city center and Zona Sul [South Zone], which are the main developing areas in Rio today. That's why we have built our narrative around the communities, since our casting is mostly made up of youth from the favelas, but also from outer low-income neighborhoods, Baixada and Zona Oeste [West Zone]  Clariza Rosa, partner at Jacare Moda.

What makes Jacarezinho unique?

Jacarezinho was the most unique place that I've ever spent an extended period of time. It's in the North Zone, away from the beaches that traditionally illustrate what people think of Rio. There may be 40,000 people tightly together there, but it creates an incredible sense of pride and family. Locals were constantly greeting, hugging, playing board games in the street. Everyone was fashionable, or voiced their personality through their clothing. The colors were unreal. Nearly every building was painted vibrantly  this informed a lot of the palette of the clothing in the film. And when the sun goes down and you see dozens of kites being flown in backyards, you really get an intangible feeling about how special the place is. I'll never forget it.  Geoff Levy, Director

Brazilian style is so varied, and the people are so diverse. Why does representation of models from all walks of life matter? Why haven't we seen more of it before?

We believe the people and their diversities have always had strength, but thanks to a global wave of growth in the communities, now we're witnessing a bigger boom. Internet access has also had its share in speeding up the process. If we didn't like something before, the power to respond to that was weaker and slower, so the processes took much longer or were basically overlooked. Now, if a company/product or service isn't up to par with the customer's expectations, our voice is almost automatically heard. To highlight a country's plurality and diverse viewpoints is extremely important these days, even from a commercial perspective.  Clariza Rosa, partner at Jacare Moda

"Gambiarra," the idea of making it work with that you've got, was expressed throughout the film. Working with these young people, how did you see them applying that principle to their lives and their work?

When we sat with the models and learned about the concept of gambiarra, we realized it wasn't just a technical construct, but also a mantra for the people. Given a set of unfavorable circumstances, they are are able to make all situations work and oftentimes favorable. Caio may have to hop a train sometimes to make a casting, but his self-ripped jeans and DIY take on fashion is influential.

Also, our production was constantly referred to as a gambiarra. Hardly any budget, on-the-go preparation, working in small or unsecured spaces, and everyone wearing a lot of hats. The communal spirit of the concept really reinforced how we all worked together.  Geoff Levy, Director

How can fashion and media serve as conduits for social change?

Fashion has become such a fluidly global conversation. What happens in Brazil informs what happens in Tokyo, and vice versa. We all influence each other. With fashion, there is a cultural exchange while also a representation of self. A kid in a favela can see how a jacket is worn in another country, then bring their own style by pairing it with a different article, wearing it differently, recontextualize and recreate it. It's not a competition, it's a conversation that's democratic and open to all. And it's undeniable that favela culture bleeds into what is commercially in right now  it's important to give that credit where it's due. To recognize and appreciate those unique voices instead of just simply reappropriating.  Geoff Levy, Director

By becoming a means of expression and not oppression. In these complex times in which everyone is talking about inclusion, diversity is still more of a conversation topic than a reality. The truth is, creating opportunities for and embracing initiatives such as Jacare Moda is as important as supporting the diversity of models in fashion shows and campaigns. A lot of projects and collectives are springing from all over the world to set a new course for the industry, but do they get their due attention on websites and in magazines? Are the major platforms willing to find them and show their stories to the world?  Andre Chaves, Connector at Papel & Caneta
In late November patently Apple posted a report titled "Samsung won't be able to Copy Apple's 3D Face ID in Time for Galaxy S9 Smartphone in 2018." Today we're learning that in order to blur the line and sidestep not having 3D facial recognition like Apple's iPhone X, Samsung will announce they're advancing their Iris recognition feature for their next smartphone debuting in early 2018. Their marketing angle will be that online banking houses support iris scanning as a safer biometric standard for online transactions. However, the only banks making this claim happen to be from South Korea.

It's being report today that "the iris scanner of Samsung's upcoming flagship smartphone Galaxy S9 will be improved to better recognize users' eyes, a step that the firm hopes would solidify its lead in biometric verification technology for banking transactions.

Iris recognition is biometric identification that uses irises of an individual's eyes, whose complex patterns are unique, stable, and able to be seen from some distance."

An industry insider told the publication that the "Galaxy S9's iris scanner will have an improved camera lens and functions to make it better to recognize the eyes of users. The iris camera lens will be improved to 3 megapixels from 2 megapixels of Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 to capture clearer images. The scanner will better recognize users' irises even when they wear eyeglasses, move their eyeballs or are in a too dark or too light environment. The response time will also be shorter from the current one second."

The report further noted that "Alongside the improvement in hardware, Samsung is developing software to more accurately and safely recognize users' irises.

Samsung is also on target to expand the iris scanner into budget models possibly late next year or early 2019 with the ultimate aim of replacing physical banks with mobile banking, according to the source. Currently, Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 are the only Samsung smartphones that have iris scanners.

A Samsung spokesperson told the publication that "Iris scanner is the safest biometric authentication (among iris, fingerprint and face recognition) and we will continue to improve the system for upcoming smartphones for safer banking transactions," without disclosing any detailed specifications of Galaxy S9 or proof in the accuracy of such a statement.

Samsung is now accelerating the use of its biometric authentication into banking and financial services.

Its mobile payment and digital wallet service, Samsung Pay, is able to be logged in through iris and fingerprint verification. Samsung Pay is a mobile service allowing users to use their phones like cash or credit cards and withdraw or send money from bank accounts.

Separately from Samsung Pay, Samsung also partnered with several local banks, including Shinhan, Woori, IBK, NH and Busan, to make their mobile banking transactions on premium Galaxy series through biometric verification.

a Woori Bank official stated for the report that "Our customers using Galaxy series are able to use all mobile banking services, including money transfer, subscription to new financial products, loans and currency exchange, through fingerprint and iris scanners without typing in their ID and password. If security is more guaranteed by smartphone makers like Samsung, we are willing to more actively use the biometric authentication in the future."

Kim Jong-ki, a researcher specializing in the mobile industry at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade, said, the iris scanner is expected to be more widely used for banking transactions globally in the future as it is safer than fingerprint and face recognition although security should be more improved than now.

According to Dutch tech media, LetsGoDigital, LG Electronics is highly likely to adopt iris scanner for its upcoming flagship smartphone G7, citing the firm's patent drawing submitted to the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Concerns still remain among consumers as a series of reports on hacking the biometric system follow every time a new smartphone biometric system is unveiled. In May, Samsung Galaxy S8's iris scanner was fooled by German hackers with dummy eyes although Samsung immediately retorted that the hack was unrealistic in reality.

Patently Apple Xtra News covers interesting news and patents about present or future competitor products, concepts or services that may or may not compete with Apple. Patently Xtra is also used to cover editorial and/or opinion articles. About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Those using abusive language or negative behavior will result in being blacklisted on Disqus.
Patna: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, speaking at a lunch event organized by his son and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav in appreciation of journalists and reporters of Bihar, predicted defeat for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Gujarat where first phase of the two-phase state elections ended yesterday.

"All speculations about the Gujarat election would soon come to an end when the Congress serves massive defeat to the BJP that is clearly struggling for every single vote," Yadav said.

Interestingly, Yadav had made similar prediction about the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls held earlier this year saying BJP was headed for a huge loss only to be proven wrong by the actual result in which the saffron party with its allies walked away with 324 seats out of a total of 403.

Facing a number of cases of corruption, the RJD President, who has entrusted his political fate in the hands of soothsayers and astrologers, said he has quit eating meat products since non-vegetarianism is not good for health.

Sources in the party, however, contradict Yadav's explanation about going full vegetarian saying the RJD chief stopped eating meat products at the advice of one of his new-found fortune-tellers.

As recalled, Yadav had once quit eating meat in the past only to return to non-vegetarianism after a few months saying the human body needed some meat to remain fit and healthy.

Meanwhile, Yadav's son and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav said that he would soon release a report card on the NDA government's performance since Nitish Kumar walked away from the Mahagathbandhan earlier July this year.

"We are going to expose this government of how the crime rate went up under the new NDA administration and how development came to a standstill since the Mahagathbandhan government was dissolved in Bihar," Tejaswi Yadav said adding he would go on a state-wide yatra to expose the failure of the current government after Makar Sankranti in January.
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Farmers, who supplied quality maize seeds for the governments flagship agricultural programme - planting for food and jobs, are crying for payment of the money owed them.



The Food and Agriculture Ministry had bought the seeds through National Seed Trade Association of Ghana (NASTAG) and they say the delay in the final installment payment is making it difficult to continue with their business.



At a meeting of the Seed Producers Association of Ghana (SEEDPAG) held at Fumesua in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipality, they claimed that the outstanding payment should have been cleared at the end of November.



Mr. Patrick Apullah, SEEDPAG National President, appealed to the government to move quickly to get the farmers paid to sustain their operation.



He said they needed the money to fund the harvesting and processing of their dried seed maize on the field.



He indicated that if this did not happen soon, things could go wrong  looming danger of seed farms being ruined by bushfires.



He added that there could be ramifications for the planting for food and jobs.



Mr. Thomas Havoh, the General Secretary, appealed for calm as the association took up the matter with the government to get things sorted.



He acknowledged that the programme held a lot of promise for the nation and asked that any challenges with the implementation was handled in the best interest of all.



It was important that the key actors worked together to make it a huge success to achieve national food security and transform the lives of many.

Source: GNA









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Some traders at the Mokola Market in Accra have expressed optimism about increased sales before and during the Christmas and New Year festivities.



Most of the traders have started flooding their shops with clothing, toys, biscuits, children clothes and Christmas decor whilst some shop owners and buildings within the city have started decorating their premises with several types of decorations used at Christmas.



Scores of traders told the GNA that last years sale was not encouraging due to the general elections and the associated political tension just before the Christmas season. Madam Cynthia Mensah who sells clothes in an interview with the GNA said she has made enormous sales during this Christmas season, which were almost the same as what she sold during the past four months.



She said the festive season is associated new and trending clothes, and for others, a time to show-off adding that this years business has started picking very early.



A trader who owned a unisex boutique acknowledged that sales was very encouraging especially for female clothes, adding that some men would only buy a shoe when it is totally worn out, unlike females.



She however said currently her shop is fully stocked for the pick periods.



Madam Agnes Opoku who sells soft drinks said Business is good for me today, people are buying the soft drinks and I am sure more would be bought in the coming days.



A trader who owns a fabric shop said there is a high patronage for cloths during this festive period, customers have started Christmas shopping very early, she said.



A customer told the GNA she knows that that prices of items would definitely increase so she had to do her shopping as early as possible before prices go up.



Madam Ama Boateng who sells toys said I am making money in the toy business this Christmas because parents are buying the toys for their children.

Source: GNA









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Assin Central Member of Parliament (MP), Kennedy Ohene Agyapong has promised to reward the security man of Ghana Senior High School (GHANASS) in Koforidua with a cash prize of GHC 5,000 for blowing the cover of the senior matron of the school.



Madam Comfort Oduro Bruce, senior matron of GHANASS has been invited by the regional police command over an alleged stealing of some foodstuffs meant for the students and selling them outside.



The matron was reportedly caught pants down by the chief security man of the school, Kofi Kanjaga, when she and the driver (one Alfred) was transporting the foodstuffs with the Regional Ghana Education Service vehicle with registration number, GN 6717-15, over the weekend.



She was allegedly assisted by one of her staff, Appiah, who later exposed the rot on Oman Fm  an Accra-based radio station  after Kwame Baffoe aka Abronye DC, the Brong-Ahafo Regional Youth Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) had been informed about the alleged criminal act.



Mr Kofi Kanjaga confirmed in media interviews that the matron, who was transferred from Krobo-Odumase Girls SHS to the school last year, had been stealing foodstuffs meant to feed GHANASS students  particularly the first years, as part of the governments Free SHS policy  and selling them outside on daily basis.





According to him, the action of Madam Comfort Oduro had been causing food shortage in the school, making the students complain of insufficient meals being served to them.



Mr Kanjaga disclosed that on 16th November, 2017, at 7pm, the matron packed the big truck with sacks of gari, cartons of milk, rice, tins of Milo, cartons of tomatoes, among other items.



He said he had information that Madam Oduro had packed the food items into the truck and so he ordered the junior security man to block the main road so they used logs and stones to block it. When the driver got to the main gate, Kofi said, he ordered them to return the foodstuffs to the store, but the matron asked the driver to drive at top speed which Alfred did, and nearly knocked him (Kofi Kanjaga) down.



He added that after the incident he called the headmaster and even wrote an official report to him that very night but he (headmaster) refused to cause their arrest and allowed them to transport the foodstuffs away.



He indicated further that thereafter a five-member committee comprising the two assistant headmasters, senior house master and mistress and the bursar was setup by the headmaster, Rev Abraham Osei Donkor, to investigate the matter. He maintained that after the investigation, the report has been kept inside the headmasters drawer and has refused to take action on it.



This allegation of the security man has led to serious investigations by security agencies in the country.



Commenting on this on Adom TVs Badwam on Tuesday, the Assin Central MP said the security man deserves to be awarded for being patriotic and exposing people like the Chief Matron.



The security man should come to me for a GHC 5,000 reward as Christmas gift. He deserves to be rewardedI will bring the money to you [Omanhene] for you to give to him, such people are heroes and we need to reward people like that to be able to fight corruption, he said.



Ken Agyapong also demanded that the headmaster of GHANASS, Rev Abraham Osei Donkor must be sacked from his position for delaying to report the case.





Source: adomnews









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A 5-year-old girl from eastern Chinas Zhejiang province recently took a 6-day hiking journey with her parents in a no-mans land in November, finishing an unimaginable challenge, West China City News reported.

We learned a lot from the trip, though it was short, said the girls father, Pan Tufeng, in an interview with West China City News on Dec. 7.

Having decided not to send his daughter to kindergarten, Pan hopes to build up her willpower through such challenges.

The girl named Wenwen started hiking in Lop Nur, also called the sea of death, in late October, together with her parents, elder brother, and an 11-year-old friend who is a boy.

Pan had planned to cross the desert before, but was later persuaded by his friends that the kids are too young for such activity.

After discussion with his wife, he hired a local guide and decided to spend 10 days in the desert.

The trip was not a touring experience, in that all of the three kids had to carry water with them: three liters for the boys and one liter for the girl. After two days of excitement, they began to feel exhausted with the ceaseless walking each day.

Based on this situation, Pan and his wife decided to call a halt and pull back. However, the couple still had tough requirement on the three children, that is, every one of them must act independently no matter how tired they were. On the sixth day, the five of them made it out of the desert.

According to Pan, the lack of water was also a reason for him to stop the plan. It was not a successful challenge, but we learned a lot, Pan said.

People always feel desperate in the boundless desert even with a local guide. Such experience would help the children understand the significance of persistence, Pan noted, adding that they have also learned to cherish things.

Now, Pan has a new plan for Wenwen before she goes to elementary school in September 2018: to hike along the Qinghai-Tibet highway, one of the four national highways that stretches into Tibet. Wenwen has already completed hiking challenges on the other three of them.
Kenyas main opposition coalition, the National Super Alliance (NASA) has announced a postponement of the swearing-in ceremony of its leader Raila Odinga as president of the country.



A statement released on Sunday, two days to the December 12, event said the latest decision had been reached following extensive internal consultations and engagements with a wide range of national and international interlocutors.



NASA said it was aware that the postponement will be a disappointment to Kenyans who were looking forward to the day. They added that a new date for the event will be announced in the coming days



We wish to assure them that our resolve has not changed. Specifically, we wish to reiterate that any national dialogue must have electoral justice on the agenda. We are not interested in sharing illegitimate dictatorial power, a statement signed by Raila Odinga and three other leaders stated.

Source: africanews.com









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Chief Executive Officer at UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC), Tony Burkson, has disclosed that his outfit is poised at driving trade and investment agenda in Ghana to greater levels.



According to him, UKGCC in the next few years is expected to be the major driver of trade and investment activities between Ghana and the Unite Kingdom.



We intend to work closely with Yofi Grant and the GIPC to promote Ghana as an investment destination for British FDI and Technical expertise. Expect to see UK participation in railways, infrastructure, healthcare & technology, he said.



Mr. Burkson said this in his address at the maiden edition of the Business Excellence Awards and Dinner Gala held at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra.



The awards aimed at acknowledging excellence in business amongst companies operating in Ghana.



They also sought to create a platform for interactions between members of the chamber, top government officials of Ghana, as well as other key players in Ghanas corporate community.



In his speech, Mr. Burkson indicated that as a result of the strong fiscal discipline and macroeconomic prudence of this administration, led by the ever serene and competent Finance Minister and his team...Ghana is again an exciting investment destination and I can confidently say that interest in doing business in Ghana from UK companies has shot up over last few months.



He further stated that, there was the need for government to initiate predictable and fair policies that are good for investment decisions with long term views.



What we ask from the Government is predictable and fair policies. Investment decisions are made with long term view and constant changes in the policy outlook can affect investment decisions in the short term, he said.



He added that asking small SME's and other medium sized companies looking to invest in Ghana to demonstrate $500k worth of capital available seems to be an overkill in my opinion.



Mr. Burkson also expressed optimism in the new GIPC bill to help in the rectification of the anomaly.



In attendance at the awards were the Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta, Deputy Minister of Trade Carlos Ahinkra, Chief Director of Business development Joe Tackie, British High Commissioner to Ghana H.E. Iain Walker, Deputy High Commissioner to Ghana Gavin Cook, Head of Investments and Business Development for the Office of the VP, Kadijah Amoah , Kow Essuman, Counsel in the office of the president.



Find below the full list of winners

Employer of the Year - Unilever

Exporter of the Year - Kasapreko

SME of the Year - Boomers

CSR Project of the Year - Vivo Energy

Logistics Company of the Year - McDan Shipping

Financial Institution of the Year - Barclays Bank



BEST OF BRITISH

Best Brand of the Year - Vodafone

Best CEO of the Year - Charles Darko, Tullow Oil

Most Successful Company of the Year - Vodafone



HIGH COMMISSIONERS SPECIAL RECOGNITION

Best Think Tank - IEA

Improving Trade Between Ghana & UK - R. Yofi Grant & Adam Afriyie

Best Social Impact Project - Aqua Africa

Best in Innovation - Strategic Security Systems

British Entrepreneur of the Year - Ann Brewin, Clifton Homes

Best Engine Graduate - Decokraft

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Deputy Roads Minister, Anthony Karbo has urged Ghanaians to stop being grouchy about the terrible state of roads in the country and support government by paying their toll fees for the repair of the countrys roads.



Speaking on Citi FM's breakfast show, Mr. Karbo indicated that financing for the reconstruction of bad roads in the country has become problematic owing to the unwillingness of citizens to duly perform their responsibilities.



Comparing Ghanas situation to that of other countries, he stated that the payment of toll fees is one ideal way to generate funds for the pursuance of such projects in addition to other monies from government.



This is a discussion we should have in this country and support government to find new mechanisms, new ways of road financing because if you look at other countries, what is going on in the world now, and road users are paying for the roads, look at what is happening in America, all the roads you see in South Africa, Botswana, Malawi, are roads users are paying for.the real challenge we are having in this country is that people feel that we are paying for bad roads because everyone is whining, the motorway is not good, its deteriorating and yet we are paying tolls," he said.



According to him, issues regarding the maintenance of major roads in the country will be resolved if the subject of financing is discussed on a much bigger platform.



We have gotten to the point where we have to open up, have a national discussion about road financing moving forward especially for major roads that we know that the volume of traffic and the amount of tolls people can pay over a period can service the road and there will be maintenance because it will be a road that everyone is paying for so the issues of maintenance which has been the biggest problem in Ghana, at least we will be somewhere in our resolving them," Karbo noted.



He commended communities who have registered their preparedness to support government by gathering financial resources for the construction of specific roads in the country.



Many communities are getting urbanized, theres a growing middle-class in the country and they are looking for a certain environment in which they can operate. Government is conscious of that and we would like to engage communities that have these new innovative ideas," the Member of Parliament for Lawra Constituency stated.

Source: ghanaweb









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The Minister of Health Kwaku Agyeman-Manu has allayed the fears of the Member of Parliament for Asawase Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka of dying from a respiratory illness known as Influenza H1N1 2009 which has claimed the lives of four students of the Kumasi Academy Senior High School (KUMACA) in the past one week.



Hon. Muntaka under whose constituency the school falls, has been left fear-gripped following confirmation that the initial unexplained deaths in the school was caused by Influenza H1N1 2009 which is contagious, especially as hes visited the campus and has had handshakes with the school authorities.



The Minority Chief Whip has been very harsh on authorities in charge of education in Ghana, especially in the Ashanti Region, accusing them of being careless in handling the circumstances leading to the death of students.



But Hon. Kwaku Agyeman-Manu while briefing Parliament on the preliminary report on the deaths in KUMACA, urged Hon. Muntaka not to habour any fears of death as his life is not in danger.



The assurance I can give to me colleague MP for Asawase who claims hes visited the school twice and shook hands with the Headmaster is the fact that the incubation period for this particular virus is four days. Between Saturday and now that he hasnt gotten the disease, it indicates that he hasnt gotten the strain so he should rest assured that we wouldnt allow him to die.

He disclosed that the Ministry of Health plans to have the persons in Asokore and its immediate environs vaccinated when vaccines from the World Health Organization are ready, adding that every household a student has visited in the past few days will also be vaccinated.



Addressing the media Thursday, the Health Minister disclosed that 19 tests conducted by the Noguchi Memorial Institute confirmed Influenza H1N1 209 as the cause of the deaths and not meningitis as earlier suspected.



Hon. Agyeman-Manu also stated that seven students who died in the school earlier in April this year died from meningitis.



He assured that the outbreak has been confined to the Kumasi Academy and not likely to spread beyond the school.



The Minister also confirmed that 44 students have been infected and are currently receiving treatment. He appealed to parents not to panic and return their children who have been taken home.

Source: adomonline.com









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Audio Attachment: Ofosu Kwakye on Radio Gold

The NPP administration on December 7, 2017 celebrated its one year anniversary of winning the 2016 elections.



They held a thanksgiving ceremony at the Accra International Conference Center to mark the day.



However, the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) feels there was no need for the celebration because so far the ruling government has not fulfilled any of their campaign promises.



Analysing one year after winning the elections, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, a former Deputy Minister for Communication in the erstwhile John Mahama administration said so far, it has been eleven months or one year of falsehood, increasing hardship, corruption, terrorism and flawed and hopeless government



Apart from that he said so far, the ruling government has filled its administration with concubines, friends, relatives and so on; adding he (Akufo-Addo) has installed the most nepotistic government in the history of Ghana and I dare say on the African government



Contributing to a panel discussion on Radio Golds Alhaji and Alhaji, Saturday, Ofosu Kwakye scored the current administration zero on various levels of the economy.



According to him, Ghana is not in a better position than it was in December 2016; indicating that on 7th December 2016, Ghana owed GHC 122b; on 7th December 2017, Ghana owed a colossal 150b



Click the audio above to listen to the former Deputy Minister

Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com









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Hearing into the alleged abuse of power and corruption scandals that have rocked the Electoral Commission (EC) will begin today, Kasapafmonline.com has gathered.



Chairperson of the EC, Charlotte Osei, and two of her deputies, Georgina Opoku-Amankwah, who is in charge of Corporate Services, and Amadu Sulley, in charge of Operations, are expected to appear before the five-member committee chaired by a Supreme Court Judge for questioning relating to separate petitions filed against them.



The appearance of the trio before the committee follows the completion of preliminary investigations into their alleged conduct of abuse of power and corruption.



In August, 2017, the three EC bosses were directed by the Chief Justice to file their official responses to the allegations levelled against them in the various petitions.



It is not clear who among the three EC bosses will appear first before the Committee.



Deep throat sources at the corridors of the Electoral Commission say all the three are poised to defending themselves when they appear before the committee on charges of corruption and abuse of power levelled against them.



Several infractions in the award of contracts at the EC prior to the 2016 general elections is expected to feature prominently during the trial, sources familiar with how the trial will proceed told Kasapafmonline.com.



First Petition



The three EC bosses have been at loggerheads for sometime, a situation many believe, is jeopardizing the operations of the EC.



The trial by the committee, was therefore, was spurred by a petition sent to the Presidency by Lawyer Maxwell Opoku-Agyemang, who was acting on behalf of some unnamed staff of the Commission, who had sought to trigger impeachment proceedings against Madam Charlotte Osei.



In the petition, Charlotte Osei was accused among other things, spending GH3.9million to partition her office, receipt of a bulletproof Toyota Land Cruiser from the John Mahama-led National Democratic Congress government, and spending about US$14million for district offices when the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) had authorized her to use only US$7.5million.



Second Petition



Later, another petition was again filed against Charlotte Osei by Lawyer Douglas Seidu on grounds of breach of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 633) as amended, gross financial mismanagement as well as conflict of interest.



Lawyer Seidu alleged that Charlotte Osei put herself in a conflict of interest situation when she awarded a contract to Aerovote Security Printing (Ghana) Limited to print the pink sheets used for the 2016 general elections.



Lawyer Seidu argued that Charlotte Osei has strong business links with the Director of Aerovote and that the EC Chairperson had long arranged the deal even before the procurement process opened.



He further claimed that Charlotte Osei Unilaterally awarded contracts worth GH249,018,895.03 and US$71,406,388.80 in breach of procurement processes and also awarded various contracts, including the printing of letterheads and a logo for the Commission which amounted to gross financial mismanagement.



Fight Back



But the EC boss through her lawyer, Thaddeus Sory hit back, insisting that she had not been corrupt or abused her office.



Charlotte Osei then accused her two deputies, Georgina Opoku-Amankwah and Amadu Sulley, of deliberately scheming to frustrate her stay in office.



She also accused Georgina Opoku-Amankwah of signing contracts worth US$40million without her knowledge and authorization between May and September 2015.



Amadu Sulley was also not spared either as she accused him of illegally transferring votes in the run up to the 2016 general elections.



Further to that, Amadu Sulley, allegedly pocketed huge amounts of money from some political parties.



Counter Petition



Following her allegations, another group whose identity is not known sent a counter petition to the President to investigate her two deputies for allegedly abusing their offices and corruption.



No Wrongdoing



Both Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku-Amankwah denied any wrongdoing. They accused Charlotte Osei of being the problem at the Electoral Commission.

Source: kasapafmonline.com









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The Ashanti Regional NPP Chairman Bernard Antwi Bosiako says they are more than prepared to host the Extra-ordinary National Delegates conference.



He said without the Ashanti Region, the NPP can never win elections, saying that settling on Kumasi for the conference is in the right direction.



The NPP could not take decisions on amendments to its constitution made by members across the country during its recent annual conference at Cape Coast in the Central Region.



The party ordered a committee to look through the numerous proposals and submit its report two months ahead of the extraordinary conference.



Speaking on Okay FM's 'Ade Akye Abia' Programme, he explained that they have put in adequate measures to ensure a successful conference.



"The Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah who is the Chairman for REGSEC has been tasked with security and safety of delegates whilst other committee members have been tasked with other responsibilities," he added.



We are also looking at accommodating over 7,500 delegates for the one day conference.



Expressing worry about how they were disturbed by bed bugs at their national conference in Cape Coast, he noted that they will ensure same is not repeated in the Ashanti region.



According to him they are putting everything in place to ensure a successful conference this weekend.



The ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) will hold its extraordinary delegates conference on Sunday, December 17, 2017 in Kumasi, the Ashanti Regional Capital.



The conference is in pursuance to Article 9(A)(5) of the NPP constitution.



In a statement signed by the Acting General Secretary of the party John Boadu, it explained, "The agenda for the conference is to deliberate, consider and adopt a draft constitutional amendment for the party."







Source: Isaac kwame Owusu/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Philippine News Agency reporter Jelly Musico delivers speech during joint CAPC, CSASEAPC closing ceremony

Forty-two foreign journalists have rendered a medley Chinese songs while waiving their respective national flags to formally end a 10-month China development study and media exchange program organized by China Public Diplomacy Association (CPDA).

CPDA vice president Hu Zhengyue has lauded the journalists from Africa and Asia for their valuable contribution in enhancing the understanding and friendship between China and their respective countries.

I want to express my heart-felt thanks to all of you, Hu said in his speech during recent joint closing ceremony attended by some members of diplomatic corps, Chinese media, academics and think-tanks in Beijing.

Hu has called on 42 journalists to give attention on China as it aspire for a moderately prosperous society in 2022 and modern socialist society in 2049 by pushing the Belt and Road Initiative.

We hope you will continue to pay attention to China in the future, continue to pay attention to bilateral contacts and continue to pay attention to the regional cooperation, especially the process of building the Belt and Road, he said.

CPDA vice president Hu Zhengyue lauds 42 journalists from Africa and Asia for helping in promotion of China's diplomacy.

Established in 2012, CPDA is nationwide, non-profit organization aimed at mobilizing social resources and making the best use of people-to-people international exchanges to enhance mutual understanding and friendship between China and the rest of the world.

CPDA has actually formed three press centers this year but unlike China-Africa Press Center (CAPC) and China-South Asia and Southeast Asia Press Center (CSASEAPC), China-Latin America Press Center (CLAPC) stayed only from May to September.

It was a fruitful and experience-enriching 10-month journey that brought 27 CAPC and 15 CSASEAPC journalists to different Chinese provinces and major cities like Shanghai, Tianjin and Beijing.

The journalists had covered big local and international events like the once-in-five years 19th National Congress of Communist Party of China and the first Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation attended by 29 government leaders and heads of state.

They also covered lianghui or annual two sessions -- 12th National Peoples Congress (NPC) and 12th National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the countrys legislature and top political advisory body, respectively.

The two press centers along with 11 CLAPC journalists also went to Xiamen City last September for the 9th BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China & South Africa) Summit.

China also brought journalists to Hainan to cover Boao Forum for Asia in March and Belt and Media Cooperation Forum on Belt and Road held in Dunhuang, Gansu in September.

Renmin University of China had provided series of lectures on Chinese politics, economy, poverty alleviation, media, social, culture and its emerging role in global governance.

Beijing International Chinese College, on the other hand, taught them basic Chinese language and better understanding of Chinese diversified and rich cultures.

Journalists commended China for giving them opportunity to explore different beautiful places including famous tourist spots like the magnificent Yangtze river and three UNESCO-enshrined Mogao, Longmen and Yungang grottoes.

42 African and Asian journalists pose for photo opp after receiving certificates from BICC.

It is difficult to summarize the stories from all the tours, Raza Muhammad, reporter of Pakistans Dawn News, said.

Narendra Apurva Vaidyanathapura of India Express said he felt 10 months are not enough to fully experience and understand China particularly its people and culture.

These 10 months have also helped me learn a lot about other countries in the region from Laos, Thailand and the Philippines to Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, Vaidyanathapura said.

Others praised China for lifting over 700 million of its people out of poverty and its miracle rise as worlds second largest economy in a span of only three decades.

The cross-mountain and underwater tunnels, subways, massive road networks, airports, high speed trains, skyscrapers and bridges are proofs of Chinas rapid development.

Muhammad Zamir Assadi of Independence News Pakistan described Belt and Road Initiative a game changer that will benefit 4.4 billion people in Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America.

Jay Prakash Pandey of Indias Amar Ujala said he enjoyed so much Chinese cuisine especially Sichuan hot-pot while Aminath Ibrahim of Maldives Avas Online said coming to China was a dream come true.

Zaw Ye Aung of Myanmars TV Skynet and Latsaphao Khonesavanh of Vientiane Times thanked China for great opportunities to be part of the CPDA media exchange program that gave journalists opportunities to build ties with their Chinese counterparts.

Kimeng Hilton Nadukong of Cameroon Tribune delivered closing ceremony speech on behalf of CPAC while Jelly Musico of Philippine News Agency represented CSASEAPC.

Both journalists urged colleagues to write stories that will enhance mutual understanding and develop stronger cooperation among countries along Belt and Road.

(Jelly Musico, news reporter of Philippine News Agency and member of China South Asia, Southeast Asia Press Center)
(Global Times) 13:26, December 11, 2017

The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) of China announced on Monday that it has started investigation into Sun Zhengcai, former secretary of Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Sun, also former member of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee, was put under investigation on suspicion of accepting bribes.

The SPP has taken "coercive measures" against Sun, which may include summons by force, bail and detention, and further investigation is under way.
Resident Marlyn Addai stands in the doorway of home in Twin Pines Mobile Home Park in Mississauga, Ont., on Friday, December 8, 2017. Residents are fighting a move by The Peel Housing Corporation to impose a re-development plan for the community. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Christopher Calvin Garnier arrives at provincial court in Halifax on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015. Garnier has taken the stand at his trial in the death of off-duty police officer Catherine Campbell. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
(File Photo/Xinhua)

Recently, POLITICO reported that US President Donald Trumps fake news mantra is being adopted across the globe and blamed the US president for the growing outcry over Western media bias. The White House pushed back against the idea, calling the report really ridiculous. While the report is mostly focused on attacking Trump, it speaks to a larger truth about the Western media.

The US presidents criticism of the US media is well known across the globe. Trump has made numerous comments accusing his nations media of making up news out of thin air. So much of our news is just made up-FAKE! Trump once said. The US president routinely labels leading media outlets as mass producers of fake news and has called them the enemy of the people.

His dislike and distrust of the US media raises questions about the fairness of Western media reports. In describing his distaste for the media, Trump has repeatedly used the phrase FAKE NEWS online and also in numerous speeches and interviews. If a sitting US president argues that his nations leading media outlets are essentially fake news machines, then it is logical to assume that at least some of the outlets have political agendas.

Though Trump has blasted many media outlets, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, he has been especially critical of CNN, calling it, among other things, disgustingly biased, fiction, and a disgrace to the broadcasting industry. This Fake News Network image was reinforced after CNN wrongly reported a story about Donald Trump Jr. receiving an email on Sept. 4, 2016, that granted him special access to hacked WikiLeaks documents.

Immediately, the major bombshell story was promoted as proof that Trump and his team are tied to Russia. But the bombshell turned out to be fake news in its truest sense. And although CNN later acknowledged errors and corrected its story alleging contact between Trump Jr. and WikiLeaks, it only fueled claims that the Western media is biased.

Trump responded to the news by accusing Fake News CNN of a vicious and purposeful mistake. They were caught red handed, he added. The US president also accused the news network of lying to the American public with its slogan. There are many outlets that are far more trusted than Fake News CNN. Their slogan should be CNN, THE LEAST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS! Trump said.

Then, before the dust settled, The Washington Post was accused of making up news after one of its reporters posted a photograph of an almost empty arena just hours before a Trump rally in Pensacola, Florida. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo! Trump said. The reporter later apologized and deleted the misleading photo from his personal account.

Very little discussion of all the purposely false and defamatory stories put out this week by the Fake News Media. They are out of control - correct reporting means nothing to them. Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposeda stain on America! Trump said on Sunday.

In fact, the problem of fake news is nothing new to China. For years, China has long been on the receiving end of Western media bias. Rather than focus on Chinas achievements in poverty alleviation and human rights or the benefits of stronger China-US relations for instance, China is often cast in a negative light and frequently attacked in the Western media. In addition, reports by official media are often dismissed as propaganda in order to discredit them.

All this shows that putting the Western interpretation of events on a pedestal is part of the fake news problem that China and other countries have been battling for years. If the President of the United States claims that his nations leading media outlets are a stain on America, then negative news about China and other countries should be taken with a grain of salt since it is likely that bias and political agendas are distorting the real picture.
Catalan Mossos d'Esquadra officers scuffle with demonstrators outside the Lleida museum, in the west of Catalonia, Spain, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Spanish authorities take advantage of their direct powers over Catalonia to relocate 44 disputed art works from a museum in the Catalan city of Lleida to the neighbouring Spanish region of Aragon. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Generic mountain lion image courtesy of Justin Shoemaker/ USFWS

By Pete Thomas

An Iowa teenager on Saturday shot and killed a mountain lion that surprised the hunter as he stalked deer near Akron.

It made a jolt toward me, and I instantly pulled the trigger, Jacob Altena, 17, told the Des Moines Register.

Mountain lion sightings are rare in Iowa. The 80-pound female cougar, dispatched with a shot to its shoulder, becomes only the sixth mountain lion killed in Iowa, according to records kept by the state Department of Natural Resources.

Altena, who was hunting with a shotgun at dusk along the Sioux River, said he first spotted the cat in fallen timer about 15 feet to his left. It was pretty scary, he said. I was in shock.

Mountain lions, also called pumas and cougars, are not protected in Iowa.

This was the kill of a lifetime, Altena said.
It seemed at the time like a somewhat random, and amazingly fortuitous, coincidence.

Just as the Panama Canal was unveiling a new, fatter set of locks, U.S. shale drillers were readying their very first exports of liquefied natural gas. While the wide-body tankers that transport LNG would've had no chance of squeaking through the original steel locks built a century ago, they could easily traverse the bigger channel and shave 11 days off the trip to primary markets in Asia.

But 17 months in, it's not quite working out as planned. Only a single LNG tanker has a guaranteed passage each day. The natural-gas industry blames the Panama Canal Authority for holdups, and the canal authority blames the industry for being lackadaisical about transit timetables.

Whoever's at fault, this much is clear: The pressure is on both sides to resolve their problems. For gas exporters, it's critical to establish credibility as a reliable new source of fuel for clients in Asia. For the canal authority, the stakes are high too, with Mexico and other countries flirting with creating alternative routes as gas demand booms.

The canal surely has had some issues getting the new set of locks up and running smoothly, said Peter Sand, an analyst with the shipping association BIMCO. It has taken longer than the canal and the industry expected.

The story starts at the opening in June 2016 of the expansion project. It couldn't have come at a better time for the LNG market, just as Cheniere Energy Inc. was ramping up operations at the first export terminal ever built in the lower 48 states, at Sabine Pass on the Louisiana-Texas border.

Just One?

The Panama Canal Authority promised a dozen daily slots for ships of all stripes to pass through the new lane -- ultimately. So far, the maximum it has been able to handle every 24-hour period is eight; preparations are underway to move that up to 10 or more in 2019.

What rankles LNG companies is that they've been awarded just the single reserved slot, with the rest going to container ships that carry consumer goods from sneakers to refrigerators. One position isn't sufficient now and will be wholly inadequate once all the new export terminals under construction go on line, said Octavio Simoes, president of Sempra LNG & Midstream, at a conference in October. He caused a ruckus when he warned that canal holdups could crimp sales and cost traders serious money.

Jorge Quijano, chief executive officer of the canal authority, fired back, saying there are no plans to boost reservations for LNG tankers -- and suggested there won't be until they prove themselves worthy.

A Maybe'

We can focus on giving them a second slot when they start to behave with a more contract-like pattern with their suppliers and buyers, Quijano said from his office in Panama City. With container ships, if they request a transit tomorrow, they'll be there tomorrow. LNG tankers, he said, are a maybe.

That's not an accurate representation, according to the natural-gas industry. But canal operators do have to learn to be flexible, because exports from the U.S. will drive more spot trading, said Jason Feer, head of business intelligence at ship-broker Poten & Partners Inc. in Houston.

A decade ago, when the canal authority approved plans for the build-out, the U.S. was developing import terminals. The shale boom changed everything, and now the country is on track to become the world's third-largest LNG supplier by 2020 -- up from zero at the start of 2016. That's creating a new model for an industry that was once organized mostly around long-term contracts with set destinations.

New Terminals

Can the canal adapt? Can traders? Feer said. I'm not saying it will inhibit the competitiveness of U.S. LNG -- but there may be instances where it's hard or impossible to do a deal because you can't get it there soon enough because of the canal.

At Sempra, one of several terminal developers spending tens of billions on new Gulf Coast facilities, Simoes said he and others are working with the canal to find a solution to what he called growing pains. My intent is not to be upset or disruptive, he said, but the Panama Canal needs to work faster to resolve the issues.

Those include too few tugboats to escort ships through the enhanced waterway, according to tug captains and crew members. They're not impressed that the authority has budgeted $87 million this year to purchase six tugs with the option to buy four more to expand the current fleet of 46; their estimate is 90 are needed to safely and efficiently handle more than 10 vessels a day.

LNG tankers also require special attention -- including tugs with fire-fighting capabilities -- because of what they carry.

Good Problem'

You need state-of-the-art equipment and they are short, said Don Marcus, president of the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots, the union representing many tugboats workers in Panama. He said the canal is risking its own competitive future. They're not getting the most out of it because of these flaws, some of which could be fixed, but all of which cost money.

At the moment, the authority isn't flush. It has to pay off $2.3 billion in debt it took on to finance the expansion, with payments starting next year. But Quijano said the new lane will record $3 billion in revenue in fiscal 2018, $173 million more than in the previous fiscal year.

The expansion's capacity is going to be used much faster than anticipated, he said. Unmet demand is a good problem to have.

Next year, he predicted, LNG volumes will grow by 10 percent. Natural-gas carriers have accounted for 8.6 percent of traffic through the new locks, according to authority data. Container ships represent more than half with vessels including cruise ships and private yachts making up the rest.

The authority's current toll structure charges container ships substantially more. A fully loaded Neopanamax pays around $1.2 million to cross while a typical 170-cubic meter LNG carrier is charged around $460,000.

There is a preference for the biggest users of the canal, said Anders Boenaes, head of network for Maersk A/S , the world's largest container-shipping company. And I think that may be one of the reasons why there is noise among LNG carriers.

The LNG industry and the canal authority are both following a learning curve to manage additional volumes from the U.S., said Vincent Demoury, general delegate of the International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers. He said he's confident solutions will be worked out.

Feer of Poten & Partners said that could happen. The canal will change their processes, if it makes them more money.
PDVSA's refining unit in the United States, Citgo Petroleum, received 65,000 bpd of Venezuelan crude last month versus supply contracts that allow up to 220,000 bpd.

Venezuela's crude oil exports to the United States fell in November to their lowest level since January 2003, when a strike knocked down the country's output, due to sanctions and a steep production decline, according to Reuters data.

State-run oil company PDVSA and its joint ventures sent 475,165 barrels per day to its customers in the United States last month, down 36 percent from a year earlier and 12 percent from October.

The South American country has lost 1 million bpd of production in the last four years and pumped less than 2 million bpd in October, according to official numbers reported to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

The fast output decline has led PDVSA to request more crude from its Orinoco Belt joint ventures for its domestic refineries, affecting the volume available for exports and also hitting PDVSA's cash flow in foreign currency.

PDVSA is taking growing volumes of the valuable Hamaca crude from its Petropiar joint venture with U.S. oil company Chevron Corp and using it for domestic refining.

As a result, the volume of Hamaca crude exported to the United States fell to less than 33,000 bpd in November from an average of 106,000 bpd last year, according to Reuters trade flows data.

PDVSA's refining unit in the United States, Citgo Petroleum, received 65,000 bpd of Venezuelan crude last month versus supply contracts that allow up to 220,000 bpd. But U.S.-based Valero Energy Corp's imports of Venezuelan crude rose to 194,000 bpd in November.

Sanctions imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on Venezuela, including PDVSA's debt, have affected the ability of the company's customers to get letters of credit needed to complete some imports as banks avoid getting involved in transactions with the country.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said last month that the nation of 30 million people would try to restructure its burgeoning foreign debt. In the following weeks, a selective default has been declared by credit agencies as the country and PDVSA have not paid some of its debt service on time.


The two leaders are due to sign an agreement to start work on the Dabaa nuclear power plant; discuss various regional issues including Palestine, Syria and Libya, as well as resumption of Russian flights to Egypt

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah received Russian President Vladimir Putin at Cairo International Airport on Monday afternoon at the start of Putin's second official visit to Egypt.

Putin is set to hold talks with El-Sisi on a number of issues, including the construction of the Dabaa nuclear plant, the resumption of Russian flights to Egypt, the US decision to move the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and various regional crises, including Libya and Syria, the presidency told the official news agency MENA.

Putin's first official visit to the country took place in February 2015.

On his way to Cairo, Putin made a surprise visit to Syria on Monday morning where he ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from the war-torn country.

The Egyptian presidency spokesman Bassam Rady explained that an Egyptian-Russian document authorising the commencement of work on the Dabaa nuclear power plant will be inked during the summit on Monday.

The agreement stipulates Russia will build four-reactors which will produce 4,800 megawatt, 1200 megawatts capacity for each. The first reactor is expected to begin operations in 2024. The project is expected to be completed in 12 years at the cost of $25 billion.

Rady added that the bilateral talks between the two leaders would also focus on the return of Russian flights to Egypt in the near future. Russia suspended flights to Egypt in November 2015 after a Russian commercial flight crashed over Sinai shortly after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh, killing all 224 people aboard.

Egypt has been implementing tighter security measures at its airports to meet Russian demands on security, with the aim of restoring Russian visitors to boost its tourism industry.

Monday's talks will also cover a range of regional crises, said Rady, with the two leaders seeking to firm up efforts at bilateral cooperation.

Among the proposals under discussion will be a formal bilateral framework between the two countries foreign and defense ministers, or a two-plus-two dialogue mechanism.

Rady said that there is now a convergence of views between Russia and Egypt on several regional issues, especially the situations in Syria and Libya.

With regard to the Palestine cause, Rady said that Russia welcomes the national Palestinian reconciliation process, which was initiated through Egyptian efforts under the sponsorship of President El-Sisi.

The Egyptian spokesman said Egypt and Russia are in agreement on the rejection of US President Donald Trump's decision to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem, with Egypt and Russia affirming that the move does not help the Palestinian cause.

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In general, men are twice as likely to cheat on a spouse than women are. That frequency increases over the lifespan, peaking among the elderly. Among men 18 to 29 who have ever been married, about 1 in 10 is
Stateline, a project of the Pew Foundation, provides daily reporting and analysis on trends in state policy.

Mike Anderson was an 18-year-old freshman at Texas State University when he was busted with less than a gram of weed. Police arrested him, took his mug shot, and he spent the night in jail.

The legal consequences for being caught with such a small amount of marijuana  just enough for a joint or two  were minimal, but expensive. Prosecutors offered to drop the charges if he attended a drug program and did community service, and he could later get the record of his arrest expunged for about $500, wiping the history of his arrest from public view.

"After I got it expunged, I thought it was pretty much a done deal," he said of the order granted earlier this year.

But the next time he Googled his name, he realized the ordeal was far from over. His arrest photo was posted on Mugshots.com. The page was one of the top results for anyone who might be looking for him. And as Anderson applied for internships  a graduation requirement for mechanical engineering majors  recruiters who initially seemed interested would offer the spot to someone else.

"It wasn't right," said Anderson, a junior, who asked that his real name not be used for fear of drawing further attention to his mug shot.

"I called [Mugshots.com] on the phone, and they told me basically the only way I could get the mug shot to come down was to pay a certain fine. Proof of expunction wasn't valid."

At a time when personal information can end up online and rocket around the globe in seconds, the estimated 78 million Americans with criminal records are a rich target for websites that collect mug shots from police departments and sheriffs' offices across the country and typically charge hundreds or thousands of dollars to have the photos removed. Even people who are arrested but never charged have their photos on the sites.

Since their business practices came to light in 2013, the websites have drawn the ire of state lawmakers who criticize them as exploitative. Texas is one of 18 states with laws designed to help people like Anderson, cracking down on mug shot websites by banning them from charging removal fees, stemming the flow of mug shots from law enforcement agencies, or requiring that the postings be accurate.

But so far, the laws have been largely ineffective in providing relief to those whose photos are featured on the sites.

"They haven't worked," said Eumi Lee, a law professor at University of California-Hastings who has spent three years studying the effectiveness of mug shot laws for an upcoming legal review article to be published by Rutgers. "But they've had a bunch of unintended consequences."

Mug shot websites have ignored the laws or quickly figured out ways to work around them, Lee said. In places where people can no longer pay to have photos deleted, they often have no remedy to get them removed. And once law enforcement releases the photos, they have little control over where they end up.

Mugshots.com, one of the biggest purveyors, has entries for nearly 30 million people, including people in states that hoped to make it easier to have mug shots removed.

A Stateline review found evidence across the country of the laws' inadequacy:

Georgia twice tried to get mug shots off websites, first blocking sites from charging arrestees who were never convicted to have their pictures removed, and then requiring affidavits from any entity requesting law enforcement copies of mug shots. Still, Mugshots.com claims to have 2.3 million records from Georgia on its site, including entries for those arrested after the law took effect.

California enacted a law in 2014 barring mug shot companies from charging to remove photos. But even its sponsor doesn't know how well it's working. Pressed recently by Stateline for evidence of the law's effectiveness, the office of State Sen. Jerry Hill (D., San Mateo) found a still-operating site, Whogotarrested.org, requesting a fee to remove photos. He requested a probe by the state's attorney general.

And in Illinois, where the law similarly bans fees to remove mug shots, Mugshots.com is being sued for charging arrestees.

One of the plaintiffs in the Illinois suit, Peter Gabiola, said he can't escape a criminal past  despite time served  because his face keeps popping up on Google searches. Gabiola said Mugshots.com told him it would cost $15,000 to have his information removed from the site. He contends he's repeatedly been fired shortly after starting new jobs, even when he disclosed his criminal past, because Mugshots.com incorrectly insists he is still on parole.

"I made my life hard enough making some of the decisions I made in the past as a knucklehead, so I don't need some worldwide company or whatever making it harder by publishing incorrect information," Gabiola said.

Sheryl Ring, Gabiola's attorney, said that's part of the company's business model  people who are already struggling because of a criminal record will be more likely to pay if the listing makes things look worse than they really are.

Despite the laws' dubious track records, states keep enacting them. This year Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, and South Dakota all enacted laws targeting mug shot websites.

To be sure, trying to rein in mug shot websites is a challenge. In most states, mug shots are a public record. The companies can digitally scrape the photos from law enforcement websites, uploading them to their own sites in just hours, or put in public information requests to get others. When they've been sued, the sites' attorneys have repeatedly argued their work is protected under the First Amendment.

Among those who defend putting mug shots online are newspaper publishers, whose sites often feature local mug shots in crime coverage.

David Ferrucci, an attorney for Mugshots.com, said people featured on the site are being harmed not by the website but rather by their own criminal history.

"If your claim is that the publication of public records has hurt your reputation, then you're complaining about the publishing of public records," Ferrucci said.

Most of the state mug shot laws include some sort of criminal component, typically making it a misdemeanor offense for not complying. But it's not clear that police have ever filed charges against a mug shot website. The onus falls almost entirely on the person whose photo is posted, and lawsuits are no small undertaking, particularly for those who cannot afford an attorney.

"It's just like anything else. It's against the law to murder somebody, but people get murdered every day," said Georgia State Rep. Roger Bruce (D., Atlanta), who sponsored both of the laws Georgia enacted to address mug shot websites. "But now the law is on their side. They can get an attorney and go after whoever posted their mug shot."

A Stateline review of federal court dockets showed about 10 lawsuits in five states, many of which have come from people defending themselves in court. Several cases taken on by bigger law firms have stalled in court, complicated by an inability to get class certification or fears the firm would not ultimately see much money from the case, lawyers involved in the cases said.

Catch-22

Gabiola's suit in Illinois is one of the first using a state law that bars mug shot websites from charging people to remove their photo from the site. Among others upset at the website is Terrill Swift, who spent 15 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit and whose photo is still on Mugshots.com five years later.

"They should do the right thing and take our pictures off those websites," Swift told the Chicago Tribune earlier this year.

Both the lawyer for Mugshots.com and supporters of the law say it puts arrestees whose photos are on the site in a bit of a Catch-22  they can no longer be charged to remove photos, but they don't have a legal avenue to get them removed from the site. So Mugshots.com can keep them up.

"Perhaps the cruel irony of the Illinois law is that people who previously were able to have the information removed can no longer do so," said Ferrucci, the Mugshots.com attorney.

Mugshots.com tried to get the case dismissed on First Amendment grounds, but a U.S. district judge denied the request. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D.) intervened in the case in favor of Gabiola, saying Mugshots.com was engaged in an "extortionate practice" not protected by the First Amendment.

Ring, Gabiola's attorney, says it's already clear that mere passage of the laws does little to change the companies' business practices.

"In terms of whether these statutes are effective, we're going to need to find out if courts will actually enforce them," Ring said.

If the suit gets class certified, the $1,000 in damages provided by state law could require Mugshots.com to pay out millions.

Finding workarounds

In Texas, Mugshots.com refused to take down Anderson's photo without a $300 payment, even though state law requires that mug shot sites jibe with the state's criminal records  and according to Texas, he doesn't have one.

Kelvin Bass, an aide to Democratic State Sen. Royce West, who helped craft the state's mug shot law, acknowledged it doesn't have a good enforcement mechanism. He'd like to amend the law to put more pressure on the attorney general or local law enforcement agencies to take action.

"This guy's a college student," Bass said. "Why should he have to sue to get someone to follow the law when he's already notified this business that they're in violation? It should be easier."

Kayleigh Lovvorn, a spokeswoman with the Texas Attorney General's Office, said the office has received 19 complaints against Mugshots.com, but the state has taken no legal action against the company.

Sponsors of mug shot laws in several states say they haven't kept a watchful eye on the laws' effects, but they've been contacted by people who say they've been helped by their passage. They say the laws aren't intended to shut down the websites, just to curb their extortive practices.

But they also say mug shot sites have found workarounds: Attempts to block payment are often ignored, and sites can still make money off ad revenue. Even when mug shots aren't released, the websites use old arrest photos or mug shots from when people are booked in prison. The private sector has tried to step in; Google tried to change its analytics so mug shot websites aren't among the first to surface in a name search, but the mug shot sites can game the new algorithms.

Lee, the professor studying mug shot laws, thinks the only way to stop improper use of the photos is to stop releasing them at all, even to the media, ceasing their designation as a public record.

"It completely undermines the efficacy of those efforts," she said of the laws.

Federal mug shots have largely not been available since 2016, when the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the Detroit Free Press, which wanted access to the photos. But even some who want to crack down on the sites are hesitant to go that far.

"Arrest information is always public, and I don't know if we want to prohibit that," said Hill, the state senator from California. "We start sounding like a totalitarian state where people are secretly arrested and no one knows about it. No one can react to it or take action."

Back in Texas, Anderson continues his search for the internship he will need to graduate.

"I'm a junior right now, and I have about a year left," he said, but "once a company searches my name, I just don't get the same attention I did before."
Ashley Ugoletti, 27, a Pittsburgh stripper facing prostitution and drug charges who was stabbed to death in August, will be memorialized Sunday on Thomas Paine Plaza in front of City Hall in Philadelphia. Read more

Rickie Morgan was beaten with a brick and stabbed, her naked and bloody body found in a Philadelphia alleyway in July 2016. Prostitutes who worked the same Kensington area remembered her has a sweet girl.

Advocates say her death didn't come as a surprise. Alone and vulnerable, sex workers like Morgan face potential violence from johns and from police, they say.

This year, 31 sex workers have been killed in the United States, including a stripper from western Pennsylvania. A vigil will be held for them Sunday afternoon at Thomas Paine Plaza, across from City Hall.

Dozens of similar events will be held in cities around the world to bring attention to sex workers who were killed and to advocate for "de-criminalization." It's the 14th annual International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.

"People equate prostitution with the opioid crisis, but there are sex workers who are mothers or who are college students," said Melanie Dante, a co-organizer of Sunday's vigil in Philadelphia. She said the full extent of the violence against sex workers hasn't been documented because it is difficult to collect information.

Dante said she's passionate about the vigil and the issue because she said she feels "blessed to have made it off the streets alive and I want to see other young people off the street and thriving." Dante lives in Pennsylvania and spends some of her time speaking on the issue in Philadelphia.

The names of victims will be read at the two-hour vigil scheduled for 3 p.m. No identified victims this year are from Philadelphia, but at least one is from Western Pennsylvania.

Ashley Ugoletti, a stripper in a Pittsburgh club, was found stabbed to death inside a home of a man who worked as a salon nail tech in Westmoreland County. The man who police say stabbed Ugoletti hanged himself minutes later inside a closet in the home, authorities said.

Rachel West, spokeswoman for the U.S. Prostitutes Collective, said that violence against prostitutes is not prioritized by police or district attorneys, leaving it a shadowy issue mostly hidden from society.

Making sex work a crime "gives a green light to violent men to attack sex workers and get away with it," West said. "These men know that sex workers are afraid to report crimes for fear that they will be arrested, and if they are immigrants, they fear that they will be deported," she said.
Pat Toomey: We must catch up and surpass the rest of the world as the premier place for investment. Thats why tax reform is such an opportunity and necessity. Read more

Are you or your parents among the many living in a retirement community or Alzheimer's care unit? Are health-care bills stacking up?

Good thing you can deduct those on your taxes.

Oh, wait, not if Congress has its way. Your medical deductions could soon disappear  unless you contact your senator or representative to help sway the decision.

The Philadelphia region is home to a whopping 5 percent of the nation's retirees living in continuing-care retirement communities, or CCRCs, so we matter.

Philly boasts 30,000 of the nation's 600,000 CCRC residents  the most heavily concentrated number of senior living communities in the country. Other types of senior housing  independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing, and memory care  have monthly fees that are also tax-deductible as medical expenses.

Under the House version of the tax-reform bill, medical or health-care tax deductions  those you can write off for monthly fees, long-term-care premiums, and drug costs  would vanish, thus eliminating tax relief to millions of older Americans with high out-of-pocket and/or long-range costs but modest incomes.

The Senate version actually expanded medical deductions.

Under current tax law, those of us who spend more than 10 percent of our income on medical expenses can deduct the remainder of out-of-pocket expenses  health-care premiums, deductibles and co-pays, medical transportation costs, and memory care. Breast cancer or prostate cancer patient? You can deduct your treatment costs above the limit. In-vitro fertilization? Deductible. Diabetes or Parkinson's treatments? Deductible above the limit.

The Senate proposal also would lower the bar to 7.5 percent of income for the 2017 and 2018 tax years. Now, that would be helpful.

In 2015, about 8.8 million Americans used the medical-expense deduction. Of those, nearly 70 percent had annual incomes below $75,000, and more than half had a household member over age 65, according to AARP's Public Policy Institute.

The average medical-expense tax deduction in 2014 was $9,958.

Seniors aren't the only ones who would be affected by its elimination. If you itemize and deduct any doctor's office co-pays, big fat deductibles, premiums for long-term-care insurance (for yourself or your parents), care of a disabled child or parent, we repeat: Those could well be gone  unless you contact your congressional representatives, as well as AARP, which is lobbying against repeal of the medical-expense deduction.

We spoke with retirement communities in the Philadelphia area, and they've warned their residents, staffs, and their local reps to contact Congress and get this dumb idea repealed out of the tax bill, currently in reconciliation.

Why is it a dumb idea? Because as we age, we spend more on health care. Without the deduction, older individuals spend down their assets more quickly, and depending on Medicare and Medicaid even faster.

Whom to contact? Republicans on the conference committee include Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey. Democratic conferees include Sens. Tom Carper of Delaware and Bob Menendez of New Jersey.

Remind them of the stats: Chronic conditions and serious illnesses, such as diabetes or Alzheimer's disease, affect many of the 8.8 million people who take the medical deduction.

"From our perspective, the bill is a travesty," said Katie Smith Sloan, CEO of LeadingAge, the trade group for senior living in Washington. "We're telling seniors to call and write their senators and Congress. The Senate version of the bill allows for 7.5 percent deductions, which gives us some hope. We don't want repeal to sneak into the final bill."

LeadingAge has a website where you can write to Congress: http://www.leadingage.org/grassroots/make-your-voice-heard.

Jeff Petty, CEO of Wesley Enhanced Living, which operates six communities in the region, said, "We are up in arms about the bill." He and his staff have contacted local congressional reps to vote against scrapping the medical deduction.

"Seniors living in retirement communities overwhelmingly pay their own way. So the impact of this goes directly to them," added Jeff Kaighn, chief administrative officer of Acts Retirement-Life Communities, based in West Point, Montgomery County.

"We alone have eight communities and 3,000 residents" in Montgomery, Bucks and Delaware counties, Kaighn said. "The biggest group of health-care consumers are seniors, and then those with chronic conditions or disabilities. They can't deduct their medical expenses either. Whether you're a senior or infirm, you're now vulnerable."

In Pennsylvania, Kaighn has contacted Republican U.S. Reps. Patrick Meehan and Brian Fitzpatrick, as well as Toomey and Democratic Sen. Bob Casey. He's also planning on speaking with Democratic Reps. Dwight Evans and Brendan Boyle.

Adult children would lose the medical deduction, too, "and that could mean caregiver children stop contributing to their parents' care," Kaighn said.

"So much of the tax code is about incentivizing people  to retire, to save, to buy a house. The medical deduction recognizes when you have high health-care costs, the deduction makes health care more affordable, no matter your income," said Cristina Martin Firvida, director of financial security at AARP in Washington.

"We're hopeful," she said, "and we want the Senate version to remain."
Moodys Investors Service says that new owners want to buy the vacant casino for $200 and will spend an additional $175 million to get it ready to reopen in May 2018. Read more

Is the Revel casino hotel in Atlantic City under agreement of sale?

Moody's Investors Service, a credit rating agency hired by companies to rate debt, reports that Denver-based AC Ocean Walk LLC has presented financial documents to buy the failed Revel for $200 million and plans to invest an additional $175 million, for a total capital investment of $375 million.

Moody's identified the proposed new owners as Denver-based developer Bruce Deifik; Winding Trail Properties, controlled by Frank Ruocco; and other minority investors. The casino's proposed reopening is May 2018, Moody's said, citing financial reports submitted by AC Ocean Walk, but not an agreement of sale.

According to the proposed financial plan, AC Ocean Walk would operate 100 gaming tables, 2,000 slot machines, 1,399 hotel rooms, pools, a spa, night clubs, and 13 restaurant options.

The shuttered Revel's owner, developer Glenn Straub, said Monday the Revel is not under agreement of sale. He said he knew nothing about the Colorado company wanting to buy it.

"I know who Moody's is, but I don't know who in the hell this AC group is. I would know something like that," Straub said. "We've told everybody, we don't know who these people are. They come out of the woodwork. I think they try to make news."

Atlantic City Mayor Don Guardian's chief of staff said that the administration had no confirmation that the casino has been sold, or is close to being sold.

"A couple times we've thought it's been sold, or there's been a buyer, and it turned out not to be true," said Chris Filiciello. "Or the funding didn't come through. At this point, we don't have any confirmation."

This is the third time in recent months that a report has surfaced that a deal may be in the works to acquire the Revel. On Oct. 30, paperwork was filed with the Atlantic County Clerk's Office of a "notice of settlement contract of sale." However, it was not signed and did not list a purchase price.

According to Moody's, the Revel "is being acquired for $200 million  well below the estimated $2.6 billion cost to build. The new owners will invest another $175 million to reopen in May 2018 for a total invested capital of $375 million."

Moody's analyst Peggy Holloway, who authored the report, could not be reached Monday.

Moody's assigned a B3 Corporate Family rating to AC Ocean Walk and a B2 rating to the proposed $175 million five-year first-lien term loan. Both are considered sub-investment grade. The new owners plan to put $125 million in equity to finance the acquisition, and said they will spend $56 million on pre-opening and renovation costs, the report said. Approximately $255 million of rated debt is affected, Moody's said, noting that "the assigned ratings are subject to review of final documents."

Straub, whose Polo North Country Club Inc. bought Revel out of bankruptcy for $82 million in 2015, said Monday he is awaiting a court decision on his appeal to Superior Court to be exempt from a ruling by the state Casino Control Commission that he must obtain a casino license to reopen the Revel as a casino, though he intends to lease operations to another developer to run what he now calls the Ten casino.

"This has been going on for eight to 10 months, that everybody says we sold that place, or have a contract on the place," Straub said. "They come up with these stories. Anybody can make offers, don't get me wrong."

Another company, New York-based Keating & Associates LLC, announced last month that it was under contract to buy a one-acre development site on the Boardwalk next to Revel, which it also wants to acquire. The private equity firm said it has offered $225 million to buy the Revel from Straub.
A woman who allegedly concocted an elaborate scheme to bilk the Philadelphia School District out of more than $90,000 has been hit with federal fraud charges, authorities said Monday.

For almost two years, Patricia Cleary claimed to be tutoring a relative with special needs who was a School District student, according to the FBI; U.S. Attorney Louis D. Lappen; and Amy Kurland, the inspector general for the city and school system. The officials said Cleary used her maiden name, Patricia Goldstein, to submit a false federal tax form, using another person's Social Security number and falsified teaching credentials. (Public school systems often pay private contractors to educate special needs students.)

Cleary, 49, faces 28 charges including wire fraud, mail fraud, Social Security fraud, aggravated identity theft, and false statements to government agents. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and in a court appearance Friday before Magistrate Judge Elizabeth T. Hay she was ordered released on $10,000 bail.

Neither Cleary  who previously lived in Philadelphia but whose current address is not known  nor her lawyer could be reached for comment.

The scheme allegedly began in 2014, when Cleary and her husband entered into a settlement with the school system on behalf of their relative, the student. The boy was awarded 1,200 hours of compensatory education at $60 per hour. They had to submit documentation to prove the services were provided.

Between January 2015 and May 2016, Cleary allegedly presented herself to the school system as Patricia Goldstein, the child's tutor.

She is not licensed or credentialed, and the young man received no services, federal officials said.

The school district paid Cleary for $58,940 worth of invoices. When it halted payments on her invoices, Cleary threatened to sue the district, according to court documents.

"Stealing money from a cash-strapped school district, money meant to help people with special needs, is outrageous," FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Harpster said in a statement. "As alleged in the indictment, Cleary exploited a vulnerable family member to enrich herself  and when the school district grew suspicious and stopped sending checks, she brashly doubled down and threatened suit.

"Identify theft is a serious crime that affects millions of Americans each year. This case is an example of how an identity thief can infiltrate an organization, pose as a legitimate tutor, and cause all of us to pay her an unearned salary," Daniel B. Brubaker, inspector in charge of the Philadelphia division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, said in a statement. "This case illustrates how far-reaching the effects of identity theft are, and the depths these criminals will go to receive ill-gotten gains."

Lee Whack, a spokesman for the district, said the school system will continue to cooperate with law enforcement and the Inspector General's Office.

"Defrauding the Philadelphia public schools, its children and taxpayers is a serious charge and will not be tolerated," Whack said in a statement.
Tamia Pettus and her son Tamar, who has high-functioning autism, attended the Pennsylvania Ballets first sensory-friendly Nutcracker last year and plan to attend again this year. Read more

When Tamia Pettus was a girl, she looked forward to visiting the Academy of Music every year for a beloved family tradition  the Pennsylvania Ballet production of The Nutcracker. She loved the sparkly tutus, the exciting music, and the Christmas-themed story.

But when her son, Tamar, now 10, was diagnosed at age 2 with high-functioning autism, Pettus, of Olney, thought she would probably have to give up the annual trips to the ballet. She didn't feel comfortable even taking her son to the grocery store with her until he was 5. Instead, she introduced Tamar to The Nutcracker through storybooks and TV specials.

So when Pettus found out last December that the Pennsylvania Ballet was giving its first sensory-friendly performance of The Nutcracker, she was thrilled. She bought tickets and took Tamar to the ballet for the first time.

"Tamar was so excited to be there," Pettus said. "He loved all of it, especially the music. Because he was familiar with it already, he was telling me the story during the ballet."

Families will again have the opportunity to attend a sensory-friendly Nutcracker this year, at noon Dec. 27, again developed with the nonprofit organization Art-Reach, which works to bring underserved audiences to local performances.

For this Nutcracker, the Academy of Music is a "shush-free zone," which means parents of children with special needs don't have to worry about disturbing other audience members. "All behavior is allowed," said Charlie Miller, deputy director at Art-Reach. "That means attendees can do whatever they need to do to process the information, like pace up and down the aisles, play with a fidget spinner, or vocalize."

The performance will also feature adjusted lighting, lower sound levels, gluten-free concessions, and a "cool-down tent" in the lobby with blankets and pillows where attendees can continue watching the ballet on a projection screen.

It's not unusual for parents like Pettus to feel left out of holiday traditions that other families take for granted. "If you have a child on the autism spectrum, you kind of become a bit of a divided family," Miller said. "One parent takes care of the kid with special needs while other parent takes care of the other kids. If we don't have someone with special needs in our family, we often take for granted the ability to experience a cultural event together."

Sarah Cooper, director of community engagement at the Pennsylvania Ballet, said it's been a longstanding goal for the company to provide more access for people with special needs. "We wanted to reach as many people as possible in the Philadelphia area," she said. "This was a natural extension of that."

At last year's performance, Pettus said, she was surprised by how quiet the kids in the audience were. During intermission, she took Tamar to the cool-down tent and offered him a snack. When another kid took his snack, Pettus expected her son to become upset. Instead, he told her he didn't mind sharing.

Pettus also takes Tamar to libraries and has taken him to the Please Touch Museum for events that aren't specifically sensory friendly. When people have problems with him, she just tells them he is a little bit different and still learning.

She encouraged other parents of children with special needs to expose them to as many new experiences as possible. "No one should be embarrassed, but a lot of families are," she said. "But how are they supposed to learn how to act in public if they don't go out? It can be a little nerve-racking, but you don't know until you try."
You might assume that a popular neighborhood like Fishtown or Passyunk would hold the title for quickest rising rents in Philadelphia. But according to a new report by Zumper, the center of gravity for rent increases is in a different corner of the city altogether.

The quarterly report and map indicates that Northwest Philadelphia and East Parkside have seen rents increase by about 13 percent since the summer, with monthly rents at $950 and $1,025 respectively. The increase there comes in contrast to neighborhoods including Southwark and Bella Vista, which saw decreases of about 11 percent.

Logan Square has actually been the title-bearer for most expensive neighborhood through several iterations of this map, with rates for one bedrooms at around $1,900 a month. University City and North Broad came in second and third at $1,700 and $1,640. If you're looking to spend under $800 a month, look to neighborhoods like Belmont, Carroll Park and Elmwood, where rent is less than $730.
Attending the Women Presidents Organization and 100 Black Men of Philadelphia event at the Warwick Hotel Dec. 5 are (left to right): Jane Bell, mother of honoree Tracey Jasey; Tracey Jasey, a partner at MPI Business Valuation and Advisory; and Stacy Cann, a senior paralegal at Aramark Healthcare. Read more

The Women Presidents' Organization and 100 Black Men of Philadelphia joined at the Warwick Hotel on Dec. 5 to recognize this year's 10 Women of Color  "influential women business leaders [promoting] economic security," in the words of WPO founder and president Marsha Firestone.

All 10 women have helped build "strong and vibrant communities" in the Philadelphia area, said Wanda Henderson, director of sales at United Parcel Service, which cosponsored the awards.

Keith Warren, president of 100 Black Men of Philadelphia, called the honorees "visionaries, trailblazers, job providers, economic drivers, and, more importantly, role models," adding that they exemplify the "light that shines from within" identified by the late poet laureate Maya Angelou.

Warren praised the Women Presidents' Organization for leading the effort to recognize the businesswomen. The honored and their duties, as described by the sponsor groups, were:
Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi in Cairo on Monday for wide-ranging talks, marking their first meeting in Cairo since 2015

An Egyptian-Russian document to commence work on the Dabaa nuclear power plant will be inked during a meeting between Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Cairo on Monday, the Egyptian president's spokesman was quoted by the official news agency MENA.

The authorisation to start work on the Dabaa plant in western Egypt, the country's first-ever nuclear energy project, comes two years after El-Sisi and Putin signed a tentative agreement in November 2015 to start the project.

Putin is set to arrive in Cairo on his second official visit to Egypt on Monday.

A delegation from the Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom had arrived in Cairo on Satuday evening in preparation for the visit.

The Dabaa agreement stipulates Russia will build four-reactors which will produce 4,800 megawatt, 1200 megawatts capacity for each. The first reactor is expected to begin operation in 2024. The first reactor is expected to begin operations in 2024. The project is expected to be completed in 12 years at the cost of $25 billion.

Rady added that the bilateral talks between the two leaders would also focus on the return of Russian flights to Egypt in the near future.

Russia suspended flights to Egypt in November 2015 after a Russian commercial flight crashed over Sinai shortly after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh, killing all 224 people aboard.

Egypt has been implementing tighter security measures in its airports to meet Russian demands on security, with the aim of restoring Russian visitors to boost its tourism industry.

Monday's talks will also cover a range of regional crises, said Rady, with the two leaders seeking to firm up efforts at bilateral cooperation.

Among the proposals under discussion will be a formal bilateral framework between the two countries foreign and defense ministers, or a two-plus-two dialogue mechanism.

Rady said that there is now a convergence of views between Russia and Egypt on several regional issues, especially the situations in Syria and Libya.

With regard to the Palestine cause, Rady said that Russia welcomes the national Palestinian reconciliation process, which was initiated through Egyptian efforts under the sponsorship of President El-Sisi.

The Egyptian spokesman said Egypt and Russia are in agreement on the rejection of US President Donald Trump's decision to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem, with Egypt and Russia affirming that the move does not help the Palestinian cause.

Putin's first official visit to Egypt took place back in February 2015.

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Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia. Researchers at CHOP are pairing with Zelda Therapeutics, an Austrialian biopharmaceutical company, for a study examining the effects of medical marijuana on autistic children. Read more

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is pairing with an Australian biopharmaceutical company in what some advocates say could be the first major effort in the United States to study the effects of medical marijuana on children with autism.

Athena Zuppa, the director of the hospital's Center for Clinical Pharmacology, will lead a team researching current medical marijuana patients. The hospital will not provide any cannabis products to children.

"This is truly an observational study," Zuppa said. "We're not giving them anything. We're just gathering data to educate ourselves."

Research with children who are already covered under Pennsylvania's Safe Harbor provision is likely to begin in early 2018.

There is significant anecdotal evidence showing that cannabinoids, the active compounds in medical marijuana, can help with some of the symptoms of autism. Cannabis advocates say cannabinoids help improve social interaction and control repetitive behavior, and don't cause the side effects associated with antipsychotic drugs often given to autistic children.

The study at CHOP will build on data collected by the Australian company, Zelda Therapeutics, which is funding the research. Zelda, which completed another observational study on autism in Chile last year, is also set to start clinical trials in Australia to investigate the effectiveness of medical marijuana on chronic insomnia.

The partnership between CHOP and Zelda was brokered by the Philadelphia-area mother of an autistic child. Erica Daniels, founder of Hope Grows for Autism, said she was thrilled to have brought the two organizations together.

"For too long, patients and their families have been missing out on genuine therapeutic options with the potential to transform lives," Daniels said.

Zuppa said that little is known about how cannabis works in kids.

Standard drugs are marketed after going through a rigorous process by the FDA. Because the federal government considers marijuana to be a Schedule I drug, akin to heroin and LSD, there have been no clinical trials in the U.S. for any cannabis product.

One of the aims of the CHOP study will determine what parents in the region are giving their autistic children. Cannabidiol, known as CBD, is a substance in marijuana that, unlike THC, does not induce euphoria.

"We're trying to understand the landscape of what the kids are taking," Zuppa said. "Some kids are taking only CBD and some are taking a mixture of CBD and THC. I'm trying to understand how parents make their choices."

Pennsylvania's medical marijuana program is set to launch early next year.

For more information about the CHOP study, parents and caregivers can call 215-590-4924.

For complete cannabis coverage visit Philly.com/cannabis
Celebrity chef Mario Batali makes a meal with Drew Barrymore on ABCs The Chew. Bataldi has stepped down from the show and his restaurants after allegations of sexual misconduct have surfaced. Read more

Mario Batali is stepping away from his food empire and his role as a host on ABC's The Chew after four women accused the celebrity chef of sexual harassment and groping, incidents that allegedly date back 20 years.

In a report published Monday by Eater, a female chef who spoke on condition on anonymity accused Batali of grabbing her breasts after he offered her a job. Two other women, former Batali employees, claimed he grabbed and groped them in the kitchen. A fourth woman who worked for Batali for a year alleges he grabbed her breasts at an industry party a few years after she stopped working for him.

In a statement, Batali did not deny any of the allegations, noting that the behavior the women described "does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted."

"That behavior was wrong, and there are no excuses," Batali said. "I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation, or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends, and family."

Batali owns nearly 30 restaurants across the country, but none in Philadelphia. It was unclear whether the news would affect rumored plans

to bring Batali's Eataly concept, his Italian restaurant and food store, to Philadelphia as part of the revamp of the Gallery at Market East.

Eataly's Joe Bastianich told my college Michael Klein in 2015 that Philadelphia was "definitely" on Eataly's list of food cities for possible expansion. So far, PREIT CEO Joseph Coradino has said only that both sides were in discussions.

Steve Crane, who co-owned Po in New York City with Batali, confirmed to Eater that multiple employees had told him of Batali's inappropriate behavior, but that he didn't have the power to fire Batali.

"I made it very clear to him that he needed to stop, but I feel ashamed that this happened at Po, and my staff endured this behavior," Crane said.

ABC has asked Batali to step away from The Chew, which he has co-hosted with fellow celebrity chef Michael Symon since 2011.

"We have asked Mario Batali to step away from The Chew while we review the allegations that have just recently come to our attention," an ABC spokeswoman said. "ABC takes matters like this very seriously, as we are committed to a safe work environment. While we are unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with the show, we will swiftly address any alleged violations of our standards of conduct."

A spokeswoman for the Food Network said the channel was putting on hold plans for Batali to relaunch Molto Mario. Last month, Batali signed a deal with the Food Network to produce the first new episodes of his popular cooking show since 2005.
Terrell Hill, 11, of the Zodiac Percussion Drum Line, looks to one of the older drummers, as they make their way down Columbus Boulevard on September 4, 2017. A bill would have regulated drum lines in Center City. Read more

It's not that Antoine Mapp doesn't know where City Councilman Mark Squilla's briefly proposed ban on public drumming in Center City was coming from.

Mapp, assistant director of the West Powelton Steppers and Drum Squad, has heard about the groups that play in "regular clothes, at 10 o'clock at night, asking for money." From a tradition that prides itself on precision and where the dress code is often uniforms  if not full out military-inspired regalia he considers those groups "bad seeds."

But still, Mapp doesn't feel any municipal appreciation or support for drill teams.

"That was going to affect us tremendously," he said of the bill, which Squilla tabled last week on the eve of Council consideration. Drill teams and drum corps in Philadelphia are largely community-based, youth-focused organizations that take up residence not at concert halls, but schools and community centers.

In fact, some experts question why, rather than being a topic of legislation, Philadelphia's rich drum culture is not touted as a tourism draw.

"We're losing an opportunity if they just see it as noise," said Florida State University folklorist Jerrilyn McGregory.

When Benita Brown  director of Virginia State University's Sankofa Dance Theatre and North Philly native  tells people that Philadelphia had a Congo Square, people rarely believe her.

New Orleans' Congo Square draws visitors with its legacy for music-making among Colonial-era slaves. Philadelphia's own such place was Washington Square. In the 18th century, according to the Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania, in the olden time, slaves would gather for dances there with crowds that could reach a thousand people.

"Philadelphia has created various narratives about its own history," said historian Dana Dorman. "For whatever reason, the story that it chose for Washington Square was more about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the Revolutionary War, rather than these earlier activities."

A Visit Philadelphia spokeswoman said they did not have a position at this time on drum lines and local tourism efforts.

Many strains of black marching band culture  whether it be the large, highly competitive bands of historically black colleges and universities, the second line parades of New Orleans, or the drill teams and drum squads of the urban North  can be traced to mutual-aid societies. Through the 18th and 19th centuries, African Americans were limited from buying insurance. Black mutual aid societies sought to provide an alternative, often forming their own community bands too.

The first black mutual-aid society in the country was founded in Philadelphia: Richard Allen's Free African Society. In The Philadelphia Negro, W.E.B. DuBois wrote that Philadelphia had 106 of these organizations in 1848. These numbers ballooned after slavery was abolished, with DuBois noting in 1899 that there were "probably several hundred." In 1966, while analyzing the history of these groups, Commentary magazine highlighted Philadelphia as a base where they blossomed prodigiously.

While marching brass bands faded in popularity, the youth groups persisted. After the raging gang wars of 1970s, band coordinators had already begun using their step and drum units as a means to keep kids off the streets.

What if, Brown and McGregory question, Philadelphia treated its drill teams like New Orleans celebrates its second lines? Mapp and Marks want to know why the local drummers aren't treated the same as another cherished tradition.

"They brand the Mummers. They need to brand us. We bring the soul," said Mapp. "We need a mural. We need something. They should recognize us."

Anne Kelly, the chief of staff for Councilman Squilla, said the bill would not move forward in part because of heated opposition, which surprised those in her office. Squilla drafted the bill after complaints from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, she said. Hospital representatives, Kelly said, complained that patients could hear the drumlines marching "late into the night."

Even established drum lines solicit for money downtown  equipment and the competition circuit can be expensive  but some groups, like Mapp's, would never have kids performing at night. He believes it's wrong.

Still, with the backlash, Squilla's office has learned more about the tradition's musical history.

Celestine Marks first started to drill back in 1963, when she was 9 years old. She was a member of an all-girl marching corps called the Topcats. Her Conestoga Angels have packed events, festivals and invited performances in theaters, she said. She wishes the culture had a museum.

"It would show that we're more than people think we are. They're stereotyping us," she said. "We're just making noise, or we're just trying to make money. We should get the same respect that college bands and Caucasian [school] bands get."

Mapp's group performs for the Philadelphia 76ers as the Sixers Stixers. While the team has offered Mapp's group space to practice, the commute to Camden is too far for the squad, Mapp said. For most of the year, they practice in his friend's living room.

"There's nothing really out here for us," said Mapp. "We try to create these lanes that they want to take away."
Doug Jones campaign volunteer Dana Ellis, right, talks to Ebonique Jiles, top left, and her son on Saturday in Birmingham, Ala., about voting on Tuesdays senatorial election, The Jones campaign is targeting African-Americans. Read more

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  On a cold December day, as gray as the steel that used to roll out of the smoky mills in this formerly industrial city, Jimmy Lee Shields, a 50-something man who lives on disability payments, walked downtown and took a seat on a stone wall in front of Birmingham's civil rights landmark, the 16th Street Baptist Church, where four black girls were killed in a 1963 explosion triggered by the Ku Klux Klan.

Unlike the carloads that come from out of state to look at the church and then visit the impressive Civil Rights Institute across the street, Shields  born the year after the killings  was just looking for a spot to rest his feet. And he didn't want to talk too much about the hottest topic in Alabama this week  the neck-and-neck Senate race between the GOP's Roy Moore, battered by sexual-predator allegations, and Doug Jones, a Democrat looking for an upset in one of America's reddest states.

But when pressed, Shields  an African American man wearing a black hat that read "Jesus Is My King, Amen"  said he was planning to vote for the Democrat because of the one thing he knows about him  that Jones was the U.S. attorney who won convictions of two KKK members involved in the church bombings in the early 2000s, after a gap of nearly four decades.

"Because of what he did for those four little girls," Shields said.

If Jones has any chance of winning on Tuesday, he's going to need tens of thousands more voters like Shields  African Americans who are now the heart and soul of the Democratic Party in Alabama and across the Deep South, and who have the ability to tip the scales in what's expected, despite all the national publicity, to be a low-turnout election.

In a state that forged its reputation for many modern Americans with its pitched battles over civil rights, on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, in the schoolhouse door where George Wallace stood in Tuscaloosa, and in the streets near the 16th Street church, where marchers led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were met by fire hoses and police dogs, there's a weird dynamic around race and the Senate race.

Black voters make up roughly 29 percent of the Alabama electorate, but in a December election where experts think just 20 percent to 25 percent of those eligible might go to the polls, a surge in African American turnout could make the difference. Yet Jones probably can't win without also gaining white votes, particularly from upscale Republicans, especially women, more likely to be offended by Moore and his alleged molestations.

That means that Jones has generally avoided grand gestures to call attention to his black support, not bringing in former President Barack Obama, who recently campaigned for Democrats in New Jersey and Virginia but was deeply unpopular with white voters in the South. When I saw Jones campaign in Huntsville last week, he did appear with a leading local African American politician, Anthony Daniels, the new minority leader in the state House. But he spoke longer about matters that might appeal to wavering Republicans, like veterans affairs and his support, as a hunter, for the Second Amendment, than about bread-and-butter issues.

The danger of this strategy is an enthusiasm gap in the black community, even after recent reports that the GOP's Moore told a black questioner in September that families were stronger and America was better in the slavery era. Last month, a New York Times reporter visited a strip mall outside of Selma and found six of 10 black voters chosen randomly didn't even know about the election. A Washington Post poll suggested the problem isn't quite that bad, but it did find that white voters were following the election more closely than blacks.

When I asked Daniels about the seeming lack of energy in the black community, he insisted that Alabama's African American voters aren't an enthusiastic lot until Election Day arrives. "I don't know if you saw energy even with Obama until they got out to the polls," he said. In this final weekend of the campaign, the Jones campaign did bring in prominent outsiders, like New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker  seemingly a belated acknowledgement that more work needed to be done in predominantly black neighborhoods.

Even though the election has been portrayed as hanging on how voters perceive the allegations against Moore, or Jones' controversial support for abortion rights, black voters say the biggest factor in the Senate election, as in most contests here, is driven by the tribal loyalty that whites have shown to the GOP that began evolving in 1964, when then-Democratic President Lyndon Johnson embraced civil rights legislation.

A sense of bitterness is palpable along Fourth Avenue South in Birmingham, home to a small block of black-owned stores and restaurants, as well as Jones' statewide campaign office. At the Yeh-man restaurant, serving up Caribbean food next door to Jones' headquarters, there's a "Your Vote Matters" poster, seen at many black-owned businesses, but the counter man  who didn't want his name used  voiced cynicism.

"It's a matter of black and white," he told me. "Doug Jones is the black candidate, and Roy Moore is the white candidate. That's just the way it is."

The hard-won black voting rights have meant some impressive results on the local level, like Birmingham's new progressive mayor, Randall Woodfin, but have done little for African Americans on the state level, as Alabama moved to the extreme. That outcome feels particularly fraught in the shadow of the 16th Street Baptist Church and the civil rights museum, where visitors see a replica of the Freedom Riders' Greyhound bus that was burned by white vigilantes in 1961, and the actual shoe that was blown off 11-year-old victim Denise McNair two years later. On Fourth Avenue, at the Talk of the Town barber shop, the husband of a woman whose sister died in the bombing still gets his hair cut every week.

But "it's still Alabama, it's still a red state," shrugged Charles Hicks, 55, one of the two barbers at the shop, a center for grooming and political gossip since the early 1970s. Republicans like Moore remain a mystery, he said, because they never bother to campaign for black votes. "He's scared to come to the neighborhood," Hicks said.

But Hicks and his fellow barber Eugene Jones  who wears a T-shirt saying he's a "Birmingham 1963 Foot Soldier  are genuinely enthusiastic about Doug Jones, who's dropped by their shop a couple of times. "The change he is for is a powerful change," said Jones, citing his courage in prosecuting members of the Klan. "Those people will come after you," he said.

Behind the barber as he shaved the back of a customer's head, a large white placard declared "Register to vote. Here. Now." Eugene Jones said the sign was carried in a Selma voting-rights march and has been in the barber shop since the day it opened. It served as a stark reminder of what remains at stake in Tuesday's election  the stakes that too many folks don't talk about often enough.
As Congress tries to pass tax reform, the debate in the media and on Capitol Hill is focused on how these packages will affect the average taxpayer. But the what-it-means-for-your-wallet analysis misses what these tax changes might mean for your community.

In an effort to generate savings, the tax packages have taken aim at the tax credit programs and bond financing that underpin the American community development sector.

When the House Ways and Means committee initially unveiled its tax reform proposal, it called for eliminating the federal tax exemption of Private Activity Bonds (PAB), which underwrite many municipal economic development projects like hospitals and airports, but also affordable housing. It also called for getting rid of Historic Preservation Tax Credits, which provide the subsidy often needed to adapt and reuse old buildings, and New Markets Tax Credits, which incentivize the construction of projects in low-income communities, including businesses, schools, supermarkets, food banks, and health clinics.

Some saw these tax changes as a purposeful attempt to stall development in Democratic-driven cities and solidly blue states. Removing the tax exemption on PABs would make it much harder for municipalities to finance infrastructure improvements or maintenance, and eliminating the tax credit programs would greatly harm urban revitalization efforts.

However, the Senate Finance Committee's most recent bill reinstated the Private Activity Bonds exemption, allowed New Markets Tax Credits to continue until 2019, and eventually kept historic tax credits.

As the House and Senate versions of the bill go to a conference committee to be reconciled, our representatives will be debating the need for government incentives for development that serves the public good or requires subsidy (in most cases, both). In Philadelphia, PABs have financed many municipal projects, as well as university infrastructure, and nationally account for 27 percent of all long-term municipal debt. Historic tax credits have made possible more than 277 projects since 2001, including the revitalization of the Divine Lorraine, Ortlieb's brewery building, and the Wireworks in Old City. New Markets Tax Credits have been leveraged to generate more than $1 billion in investment in projects in low-income neighborhoods such as Paseo Verde, El Corazon Cultural Center, Pan American Academy Charter School, and Oxford Mills.

These tax credit programs were not created as some social welfare scheme. They were started by Republicans as a way to incentivize private business to participate in projects that serve a public good and to generate greater economic activity by enabling more development. Historic Tax Credits came about under Gerald Ford, and Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (so far spared this round of cuts), were included in the last major tax reform effort in 1986. A Republican-led Congress during Bill Clinton's administration added New Markets Tax Credits to the mix.

These efforts replaced direct federal subsidies with public-private partnership programs; but the House's proposal to cut these programs replaces them with nothing. Instead it makes clear that the federal government is willing to abandon its involvement in community development.

No one should be shocked by these tax proposals, given that practically every year, New Markets Tax Credits are on the congressional chopping block, only to be saved at the last minute. The president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation wrote months ago, "Over the past few years, some tax overhaul plans drawn up in Congress have included a repeal of the historic tax credit." Even if the programs are saved this year, it's just a matter of time before they are abolished.

With the federal government slowly rolling back its support of urban development, perhaps it's time to start talking about other alternatives. While no substitute for the historic tax credit, Philadelphia should consider more programs that incentivize homeowners to buy, restore, or keep an old home in good repair. While new construction and substantial rehabilitation get a 10-year tax abatement, homeowners who make more minor repairs to old homes (like fixing old roofs and buckling brick walls) get practically no support. Recent efforts like Council President Darrell Clarke's $100-million basic systems grants and new home repair loan program are a step in the right direction.

One additional step might be to swap the blunt homestead tax exemption, which reduces the taxable value of a home by $30,000, for tax credits that offset the cost of home improvements. This would create work for contractors while improving the overall value and livability of a home. Indeed, there are a lot of jobs in repairing homes, not just creating new ones.

Another strategy might be to strengthen Pennsylvania's inadequate state historic tax credit program, and for the commonwealth to follow the 14 states that have already created (and two others that have proposed) their own statewide New Markets tax credit programs. These programs can provide the needed stimulus to get development done and pay the state back in new job creation, property taxes, and the economic value of revived urban spaces.

The greatest irony here is that President Trump himself used the historic tax credit after he was elected, for a tax subsidy worth as much as $32 million to develop his new hotel in D.C.'s Old Post Office building. He of all people should know why tax credits have a good return on investment for the government.

Diana Lind, managing director of Penn Fels Policy Research Initiative, is a board member of the Philadelphia Citizen, where this article was first published. dlind@sas.upenn.edu
Four Philadelphia nuns were critically injured Sunday night when another vehicle crashed head-on into theirs on a Delaware County road, police said.

One of the nuns was flown to a Philadelphia hospital while the others were taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Bethel Township Police Chief Tom Sharp said Monday.

The accident occurred about 7:10 p.m. when a vehicle driven by a 21-year-old Delaware County man, westbound on Route 322 near Foulk Road in Garnet Valley, entered the eastbound lane and collided with the nuns' vehicle. Sharp said it was not known why the man's vehicle went into the eastbound lane. The driver, who was alone, also was taken to Crozer-Chester in critical condition, he said.

The nuns are members of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth and live and minister in Philadelphia, a spokeswoman for the Des Plaines, Ill., religious group said Monday afternoon.

"To protect the sisters' privacy and to allow them undisturbed time to focus on healing, we are not yet releasing their names or information regarding their injuries," spokeswoman Tammy Townsend Kise said in an email. "We ask for continued prayers for our injured sisters and for the other driver involved in the accident," she said.

The Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth serve families through ministry in schools, hospitals, parishes and social-service agencies in nine states and 13 other countries.

Due to the severity of the injuries, the Delaware County District Attorney's Office is investigating, police said.
A couple of years ago, Stu Bykofsky and his best friend, Jim Moran, were dining at now-closed Bliss, 220 S. Broad St., when Jerry Blavat stopped by. Read more

Usually at this time of year I write a humorous column imagining a conversation between myself and God, who talks like a Fluffyan.

But I don't have it in me this year, because my best friend died early Sunday, a few hours before I was going to visit him.

The passing of Jim Moran has turned out the Christmas lights for his friends and family.

He was 78, and he had health issues that were growing worse. He went into hospice last week. I spoke to him briefly twice, but we were interrupted by staff. When I called after that, he was too weak to talk. So I planned a visit to say goodbye, although I had no idea what I actually would say.

I was going to bring a mini-bottle of Dewar's, his drink of choice, because his fiancee, Janice Quinn, said he'd asked for a shot.

A Ridley native with blue-collar roots, he was a proud Penn State alum, served in the peacetime Army in Italy (where he had the best time), and was a reporter for the Associated Press before he switched over to business and launched a long, successful career with Sun Oil.

"I was successful because I knew how to lie to the press," he would say. No, he was successful because he didn't lie. Obfuscate a little? Sure. Lie? No.

We were friends for four decades, and in our 30s we'd go out drinking about once a week, usually at Doc Watson's in Center City. An Irish Protestant, he taught me how to empty a pitcher of beer.

With beer sloshing in our bellies, we would walk to a pizza place on Locust near 13th for some slices to soak up the suds before closing out the night.

We had a lot in common: a love of journalism, some mild despair about some of its practices, current events, travel, a tolerance for bad jokes.

But we had a lot of differences, too, mainly political. He was a conservative, and to him (I know this will surprise some of you) I was a raging liberal.

The point is, in 40 years of friendship and conversation  and we could talk wallpaper off the wall  we never once had a fight. Disagreements? Sure. But not even raised voices.

One thing he taught me about friendship is the unquestioning nature of it.

"I'll never lend you money," he once said. "If you are in trouble, I will give it to you." He figured a loan could only lead to hard feelings. I took his advice on a few occasions and gave money when it was needed, with instructions to not pay it back.

Jim had the corniest sense of humor; he never forgot jokes and would repeat them ceaselessly, his blue eyes twinkling over freckles and under a mop of reddish hair. He had an easy, natural laugh.

There was nothing he and I could not discuss, no secrets, no embarrassment, no shame.

I am blessed to still have one or two close friends, but not exactly like that. As I type this with tears in my eyes, I feel the emptiness. I know I will never have a closer friend.

I will down that mini-bottle of Dewar's in Jim's honor, and I offer you this idea:

Say goodbye while you can.



A viewing for Mr. Moran will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14, at Nolan Fidale Funeral Home, 5980 Chichester Ave., Aston. Services will follow at 9 a.m. Burial will be in Lawn Croft Cemetery, Linwood.
Police on Monday were continuing to investigate a fatal shooting over the weekend of a 22-year-old man in the city's Kensington neighborhood.

About 4:15 p.m. Sunday, the victim, identified as Terrence Williams, was shot in the chest and lower back while at Rorer and Westmoreland Streets. Williams, of the 900 block of Poplar Street in North Philadelphia, was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about 40 minutes later.

No arrest was reported. The motive for the shooting was not known.
Three of the Pennsylvania voters bringing the gerrymandering challenge. From left, Robert Smith, 73, of Bear Creek; Elizabeth Lawn, 71, of Chester; and Bill Marx, 41, of Westmoreland County. Read more

HARRISBURG  Pennsylvania's congressional map is so skewed toward Republicans that computer software tasked with randomly drawing maps produced hundreds of drawings that were more politically neutral, according to testimony Monday on the opening day of a state gerrymandering trial.

"Partisan intent predominated the drawing" of the current congressional map, said University of Michigan political science professor Jowei Chen, an expert witness testifying for the group of Pennsylvania voters bringing the challenge.

Republicans have won 13 of the state's 18 seats in the House of Representatives since the map was adopted in 2011, even as votes in statewide and national elections have been roughly split between Democrats and Republicans.

Chen said his software had generated 500 maps on what he called "traditional redistricting principles," which included keeping populations equal across districts and avoiding splitting up counties and towns. The majority of the maps drawn had nine Republican districts and nine Democratic districts, he said, calling the 13-5 GOP margin under the current mapping an "extreme statistical outlier."

Republicans credit other factors for their successes, including the fact that Democratic voters tend to cluster in the state's urban areas.

Chen's testimony will continue Tuesday; the defense has not yet cross-examined him.

Suing under the Pennsylvania Constitution, the 18 voters  one for each of the state's congressional districts  accuse Republican lawmakers of discriminating against Democratic voters by intentionally drawing the congressional map to maximize the number of Republican U.S. representatives elected.

The lawsuit is one of several that have popped up around the country challenging the mapping of congressional and legislative districts. This case, League of Women Voters v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, was filed in June and the trial comes the week after a separate federal gerrymandering trial was heard in Philadelphia. A decision in that case is pending. A third case has been filed in federal court and is currently stayed until early January.

If this challenge  fast-tracked by the state Supreme Court  is successful, it could force a redrawing of Pennsylvania's congressional map in time for the 2018 elections.

The case is in some ways similar to Gill v. Whitford, a gerrymandering case out of Wisconsin that is before the U.S. Supreme Court, in that much of the argument rests on the use of new ways of calculating how skewed a map is in one party's favor.

Those new tests that have been developed in recent years generally agree with experts' consensus: Pennsylvania's congressional map is among the most gerrymandered.

"The map falls on the wrong side of the constitutional line  it intentionally, severely, durably, and unjustifiably discriminates against Democratic candidates and voters," wrote Nick Stephanopoulos, a University of Chicago professor who developed the "efficiency gap" measure at the heart of Whitford and that will be used in this case. "The political scientists' tools make the legal analysis easy and reliable."

In this trial, he wrote, the state lawmakers are "trying to defend the indefensible."

Showing that the map is skewed is the first part of the argument brought by the Philadelphia-based Public Interest Law Center, which is representing the group of voters bringing the state challenge.

They also hope to show that the skewing is intentional, relying in part on evidence that was turned over by House Speaker Mike Turzai and Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati in last week's separate federal trial, Agre v. Wolf.

Commonwealth Court Judge P. Kevin Brobson had blocked attempts by the Public Interest Law Center to force Turzai and Scarnati to turn over the documents, but a three-judge panel ordered them produced for the federal case. Plaintiff lawyers then shared the documents with the Public Interest Law Center.

Both sides sparred Monday morning over that evidence, which includes files that Turzai turned over showing that mapmakers used detailed partisanship data in drawing the congressional districts.

Attorneys for Republican lawmakers said that admission of those documents would be a breach of legislative privilege, which is intended to shield lawmakers' deliberations in their work.

"We're sort of in uncharted territory here," Brobson said. "This is difficult and I am struggling with it."

After a recess, he issued a ruling allowing some of the documents to be admitted.

The trial is expected to last through the week, and Brobson has been tasked with issuing conclusions by the end of the year, which the state Supreme Court will then use to make its decision.

That decision is expected early in January. A successful challenge could reshape the 2018 elections; lawyers for the state said in the federal trial that to maintain the current primary schedule they would need to know by Jan. 23 whether a new map would be used.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks at United Nations headquarters on Dec. 8. Read more

Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that the women who have accused President Donald Trump of touching or groping them without their consent "should be heard."

Haley's comments, made on CBS' "Face the Nation," diverged from the White House position on the more than a dozen women who have accused Trump of misconduct. Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said that the White House's position is that the women are lying and that the American people settled the issue by electing Trump despite the accusations.

Asked by CBS' John Dickerson whether she considered the allegations a "settled issue," given last year's election results, Haley responded, "You know, that's for the people to decide. I know that he was elected. But, you know, women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them."

Haley's comments highlighted a challenge facing Republicans as a cultural revolution on the topic of sexual harassment sweeps the country.

Republicans have seized on allegations of wrongdoing by Democrats, including Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., and Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., who announced they would resign last week.

Republicans also have castigated liberals over high-profile allegations against figures in Hollywood and the media, including movie producer Harvey Weinstein, a one-time Hillary Clinton donor and ally.

But most have not shown similar outrage when allegations have been made against prominent Republicans, notably Trump and Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama.

Haley spoke about Trump's accusers after praising women who have come forward with allegations about powerful men in various other industries. Dickerson asked her how "people should assess the accusers of the president."

"They should be heard, and they should be dealt with," Haley responded. "And I think we heard from them prior to the election. And I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up."

Trump has been sued for defamation in New York by one of his accusers, Summer Zervos, a former contestant on "The Apprentice" who says Trump groped and kissed her in a hotel room in 2007 during a meeting to discuss a job opportunity. She says Trump defamed her when he dismissed her account and called her and the other accusers liars. A judge is weighing whether to allow that case to proceed.

Haley's comments came in contrast to other Republicans, who have defended Trump, noting the public elected Trump president even knowing about allegations from multiple woman against him.

On NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said that "to re-litigate the election is impossible."

"The allegations or the accusations against the president were a part of the campaign," Scott said. "Should people who were victimized have their day in court, their opportunity to present their information? I have no problem with that issue."

Democrats have continued to press the subject, with some beginning to argue Trump should resign his office like others have in face of such allegations.

"Al Franken felt it proper for him to resign," Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said in an interview with "Meet the Press" on Sunday morning. "Here you have a president who has been accused by many women of assault, who says on a tape that he assaulted women. He might want to think about doing the same."

Sanders's comment, which built on a tweet he had sent last week, came after Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., said that the so-called "#MeToo moment" should prompt another look at the women who accused Trump of sexual harassment during the 2016 presidential campaign.

"The president should resign because he certainly has a track record with more than 17 women of horrific conduct," Merkley said last week in an interview for the weekday version of "Meet the Press."

On Saturday, during a campaign swing to support the Democrat in Alabama's U.S. Senate race, Booker told Vice News that the standard that brought down Franken should be applied to the president.

"I just watched Senator Al Franken do the honorable thing and resign from his office," Booker said. "My question is, why isn't Donald Trump doing the same thing  who has more serious allegations against him, with more women who have come forward. The fact pattern on him is far more damning than the fact pattern on Al Franken."
Gov. Wolf took a good first step last week when he tightened up grant rules in the wake of former Gov. Ed Rendell's over-the-top largesse with Democratic National Convention workers.

Rendell, who was chairman of the 2016 convention's host committee, helped raise $86 million for the hosting of the convention; $10 million was from state grants. At the convention's end, he handed out $1 million in bonuses, using unspent funds and claiming that the bonus recipients had worked hard for low salaries. Former Director Kevin Washo who was earning $13,000 a month, got $310,000; other staffers got less.

The former governor argues that none of the bonus money came from a $10 million state grant or other public funds. A recent investigation by the Auditor General concurs. But that doesn't mean he didn't give out money that was never his to give.

Wolf's changes to grant rules include a ban covering bonuses for employees and volunteers of groups that receive grants from the Department of Community and Economic Development  no matter which pot of money is used for them. If a group awards bonuses, it has to pay back the state grant.

That's good but Wolf's reform falls short because it only covers one of the many state agencies that award grants. He should build on this ban to create much stronger reforms. As governor, he has worked to protect taxpayer money by streamlining agencies and raising the administration's ethical standards.

Wolf should follow the good advice of Auditor General Eugene DePasquale who has long recommended state grant and other contract rules be upgraded to protect the public interest.

He says all state grant contracts from all state departments need to be rewritten so that any surplus funds are explicitly returned to the state. If an organization gets state and private funds, it should use excess private funds to pay back the state funds.

DePasquale has found problems with a wide range of grantees and vendors. In September, he reported that an anti-abortion group called Real Alternatives used an elaborate scheme to divert almost $500,000 in Pennsylvania taxpayer money to prop up its out-of-state operations between 2013 and 2015. Additionally, he's found that the state doesn't have consistent standards for opioid treatment grants, and that jobs programs haven't produced the promised jobs.

In the past, Wolf has upgraded terms for job incentives, which include requiring companies to keep the jobs no less than five years after receiving a grant.

There's plenty of room for more improvements. The state doles out millions to corporations. Last year, it gave away over $870 million in inducements and gives out more corporate welfare than any other state, according to the conservative Commonwealth Foundation.

Surely, the governor can better protect the public interest by raising standards for aid to non-profits as well as corporations which receive grants, low-interest loans and tax breaks.

The state should insist that non-profits put a cap on executive compensation as a condition for receiving our money. When the state helps companies, it should negotiate a reasonable profit point after which it claws back the state's investment.

Shareholders get returns on their investments. Why shouldn't Pennsylvania's taxpayers?
Literary Roots

E.T.A. Hoffmann, a German writer, penned the eerie and dark tale Nutcracker and Mouse King in 1816. About 30 years later, the French writer Alexandre Dumas took the Nutcracker story into his own hands, lightening things up and softening the character descriptions. Dumas even cheered up the name of the protagonist. Marie Stahlbaum (meaning steel tree, representing the repressive family Marie found herself in, which led her imagination to run wild) became Clara Silberhaus (translated to silver house, a magnificent home filled with shiny magic.)

Snowflakes of the original cast, The Nutcracker at the Mariinsky Theatre, 1892. Photo by Walter E. Owen, Courtesy Dance Magazine Archives.

From Page to Stage

In 1892 St. Petersburg, choreographer Marius Petipa and composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky pulled the story off the page and onto the stage of the Mariinsky Theatre. But Petipa fell ill while choreographing The Nutcracker and handed his duties over to his assistant, Lev Ivanov. Critics at the 1892 premiere were not pleased. Balletomanes felt the work to be uneven, and lamented the lack of a main ballerina in the first act. Many thought that the story was too light compared to historically based stories.

Out of Russia

Despite its initial reception, the ballet survived, partially due to the success of Tchaikovskys score. Performances were scarce, though, as the Russian Revolution scattered its original dancers. The Nutcrackers first major exposure outside of Russia took place in London in 1934. Former Mariinsky ballet master Nikolas Sergeyev was tasked with staging Petipas story ballets on the Vic-Wells Ballet (today The Royal Ballet) from the original notation. The notes were incomplete and difficult to read, yet Sergeyev persisted, and The Nutcracker made it to the stage.

Dancers from ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in The Nutcracker pas de deux. Photo Courtesy Dance Magazine Archives.

An American Premiere

The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo brought an abridged version of The Nutcracker to the U.S. in 1940. Over the next decade, the company toured the ballet extensively, exposing it to audiences nationwide.

Willam Christensen (center) with his brothers Lew and Harold. Photo Courtesy San Francisco Ballet.

Across the Country

In 1944, San Francisco Ballet founding artistic director Willam Christensen choreographed the U.S.s first full-length Nutcracker. Christensen later founded Ballet West, which continues to perform his version of The Nutcracker each year.

Balanchine rehearsing the snow scene with NYCB. Photo by Frederick Melton, Courtesy Dance Magazine Archives.

A Christmas Staple

Though the ballets popularity was already growing, some historians suggest that George Balanchine was the first to irretrievably link the work to the holidays. As dance critic Robert Greskovic puts it, Balanchine was responsible for making the ballet a fixture of the Christmas season and of a ballet companys repertory. New York City Ballet first presented Balanchines Nutcracker in February of 1954 but quickly recognized its holiday appeal and moved the ballet to December for the following year.



Nutcracker All Over

As regional ballet companies sprouted around the country, The Nutcracker became a staple.Today its a holiday tradition that keeps families coming back year after year; its mass appeal keeps ballet in mainstream culture. Many companies attract audiences by infusing the classic with their own regional heritage: Christopher Wheeldons Nutcracker for the Joffrey Ballet is set at Chicagos 1893 worlds fair and The Washington Ballet serves a dose of American history with characters such as George Washington and King George III.

George Washington in The Washington Ballets Nutcracker. Photo by Carol Pratt, Courtesy The Washington Ballet.

The Nutcracker also serves as the financial backbone of companies nationwide. In 2016, San Francisco Ballet sold a total of 87,926 tickets to the holiday ballet and Boston Ballet sold a total of 92,907. Despite its humble roots, The Nutcracker is now the show that companies rely on to put on inventive and cutting-edge works throughout the rest of the year.

More fun facts

According to dance historian Doug Fullington, in the original 1892 scenario the Nutcracker has two sisters who graciously welcome Clara to the Land of Sweets with warm hugs.

Pennsylvania Ballets Craig Wasserman in the Candy Cane variation. Photo by Alexander Iziliaev, Courtesy Pennsylvania Ballet.

The Candy Cane variation (danced to the Russian Trepak music) was choreographed by its original 1892 dancer, Alexandre Shiryaev. Dance critic Mindy Aloff says that Shiryaev was possibly the first practitioner of hand-drawn animation; he notated his choreography in sequential drawings that could be projected to show the dance in movement. Balanchine included Shiryaevs original choreography in his Nutcracker.

The ethereal twinkling sound in the Sugar Plum Fairys solo comes from the celesta, a rare instrument Tchaikovsky heard in France. He had one sent to him essentially in secret, says Fullington.

Balanchine was given a budget of $40,000 for his 1954 premiere and, according to Aloff, he spent $25,000 on the Christmas tree alone. When asked if he could do without the tree Balanchine responded, [The ballet] is the tree. Today, New York City Ballets tree weighs one ton and can reach a full height of 41 feet.

1892 Nutcracker costume sketch by Ivan Vsevolozhsky of the Sugar Plum Fairys retinue. Courtesy Peter Koppers.

Choreographic notations suggest that the Cavaliers variation was originally danced by a retinue of eight female fairies representing things like fruit, flowers and dreams. According to Fullington, Pavel Gerdt, the dancer who created the role, was likely too old to dance the variation himself.

In Balanchines grand pas de deux, the lead ballerina holds an arabesque while gliding across the stage on pointe, pulled by her gallant prince. According to Fullington, Balanchine took this slide from Ivanovs original choreography.

The Sugar Plum Fairys princes original name was Prince Coqueluche. Meaning whooping cough in French, it likely referred to a lozenge candy.

NYCBs Unity Phelan and Silas Farley in Karinskas Hot Chocolate costumes. Photo by Paul Kolnik, Courtesy New York City Ballet.
A district attorney ruled Monday that state police acted properly a year ago when they shot and killed a man they suspected of murdering Trooper Landon Weaver in a rural area of central Pennsylvania.

Huntingdon County District Attorney David Smith issued his decision in the Dec. 31 death in Hesston of 32-year-old Jason Robison, reports the Associated Press.

Pennsylvania State Trooper Landon Weaver was killed in Dec. 2016. The shooting of suspect Jason Robison was ruled justified.

"Troopers at the scene ordered Robison numerous times to drop his gun, which he refused to do," Smith wrote. "Robison moved as if to advance from the camper while still holding the pistol in his hand. After Robison began to move, members of the state police fired shots at Robison, who was struck in the head, torso, arms and legs."

Related: PA Trooper Killed Responding Alone to Domestic Call

A .32-caliber Beretta pistol was recovered beside Robison's body. It contained eight live rounds, and there were two other bullets in the pocket of his jacket.

The prosecutor deemed the killing as justified and said authorities will not release the names of troopers involved.
Fechheimer Brothers Company (Fechheimer), the parent company of the uniform brand Flying Cross and low-profile apparel and gear brand Vertx, celebrated its 175th year of service to the U.S. Military and Public Safety markets at the annual IACP Conference and Exposition. Fechheimer has been designing and manufacturing uniforms since 1842, and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

"It is extremely momentous for us to be celebrating such a huge milestone in our history, as well as a huge milestone for uniform design in public safety," said Bob Getto, President and CEO of Fechheimer. "We have been celebrating with our employees all year long and were happy to extend the celebration to our customers at this year's IACP."

Fechheimer began its journey as a dry goods and wholesale clothier in Northern Kentucky. By 1865 it was awarded a government contract to manufacture uniforms for the Civil War, thus standardizing men's uniform sizing for the first time in history. Throughout its history it has been instrumental in the design and manufacture of uniforms for World War I, World War II, the U.S. Postal Service, National Parks, every branch of the U.S. Military and various military academies, as well as a number of state and local law enforcement agencies nationwide.

In 1980, Fechheimer acquired B. Lipman's Flying Cross brand and began marketing Flying Cross as its key brand. In 2009, it established the Vertx brand which was a design collaboration with an elite federal agency to manufacture the market's first truly low-profile tactical pant. Fechheimer is a Berkshire Hathaway Company and is one of the oldest running companies in the Berkshire portfolio.

During the IACP, Fechheimer shared moments in history at its Flying Cross/Vertx booth during several video presentations. In addition, it shared a commemorative lapel pin with all booth visitors featuring its specially designed 175th anniversary seal.

For more information about Fechheimer and its brands, visit www.fechheimer.com.
McCarthy Building Companies and the City of O'Fallon, MO, recently celebrated the grand opening of the new City of O'Fallon Justice Center that includes the O'Fallon Police Department and Municipal Courts.

Ribbon cutting ceremony (Photo: McCarthy Building Companies)

The new $26 million Justice Center features more than 96,000 sq. ft. of space and includes state-of-the-art technology and training spaces, an underground garage and sally port, and ample space for expansion as the City of O'Fallon grows over the next 30 years. The building was paid for by bonds from a property tax increase supported by more than 60% of O'Fallon voters.

"This building is truly a testament to how much our residents and businesses value public safety," said Mayor Bill Hennessy. "As our Police Department outgrew its previous home in City Hall, we knew we had to ask our residents to fund the construction of a new facility through a tax increase. We are so grateful for their overwhelming support of this project, and I cannot wait for our residents to see this great new facility. The O'Fallon Police Department has proven year after year to be one of the best departments in the country. Now, they have a home that also is among the nation's best."

Special features include a seven-stall indoor firing range and a firearms training simulator, a state-of-the-art training tool that supports marksmanship and judgmental training needs of law enforcement personnel and is one of the first in the area to be 300-degree surround. The project also includes 15 holding cells with separate cells for men and women, as well as two ADA accessible cells and one large group holding cell.

Lecture and presentation spaces feature a 70-seat tiered training room, a mechanical and emergency power system to serve the building, a 911 center, CSI lab space, offices, evidence storage room, and a courtroom. The building will also contain a FEMA-rated storm shelter. Specially designed duty lockers provide maximum security for storage of the specialized equipment police officers carry while providing ventilation for body armor.

The new City of O'Fallon Justice Center includes the O'Fallon Police Department and Municipal Courts. (Photo: McCarthy Building Companies)

"McCarthy was honored to collaborate with the City of O'Fallon on this important project," said Ryan Freeman, vice president of operations at McCarthy. "As a national leader in justice projects and a local leader in construction, we understand the challenges facing municipalities and local governments. Our construction management approach delivered significant cost savings due to proactive preconstruction and construction planning, ongoing open communication with city officials, and careful review of detailed subcontractor specs and cost estimates."

Cost savings enabled the police department to build out nearly 9,000 sq. ft. of additional space on the second floor for future expansion to meet the anticipated growth of the community. By building this additional space concurrently with the scheduled construction, the city will save time and money, as well as reduce disruption to ongoing operations when the space is customized to accommodate a future use. Cost savings also enabled the City of O'Fallon to upgrade the facility to include better finishes, ceramic tile, carpet, and vinyl wall covering, as well as additional outdoor space, a breakroom for employees, and an outdoor canine training space.

The O'Fallon Justice Center was designed by Wilson-Estes Police Architects (now known as Police Facility Design Group) and built by McCarthy Building Companies. More information is available at http://www.ofallon.mo.us/PD/the-new-o-fallon-justice-center.
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After cutting for the rich, Trump next move is going to be an executive order that will be nothing short of a declaration of war on poor people who depend on Medicaid, food stamps, and housing assistance.

Politico reported, The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress are hoping to make the most sweeping changes to federal safety net programs in a generation, using legislation and executive actions to target recipients of food stamps, Medicaid and housing benefits. The White House is quietly preparing a sweeping executive order that would mandate a top-to-bottom review of the federal programs on which millions of poor Americans rely. And GOP lawmakers are in the early stages of crafting legislation that could make it more difficult to qualify for those programs.

The Republicans are working at a breakneck pace to implement their agenda of making rich people richer and poor people poorer because they have two swords hanging over their heads. The first sword is the 2018 midterm election where it is looking more likely each day that Democrats will take back control of all or part of Congress. The second sword is the Russia investigation. When Special Counsel Mueller releases his report, it could plunge the country into a constitutional crisis that will grind the federal government to a halt.

The Trump ideology is based on the basic cruelty to those who are struggling that Republicans have been exhibiting since they took back the House in 2011.

Life is about to get even more difficult for Americans who depend on food stamps to be able to eat, Medicaid to see a doctor, and housing assistance to keep a roof over their head.

It will be a war on the poor, and now more than ever, our most vulnerable citizens need Democrats to step up in what will be a life or death struggle for millions of Americans.
The presidents of Egypt and Russia attended a ceremony on Monday for the inking of a deal to start work on the Dabaa nuclear power plant, with Russia providing funding and technical expertise

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met in Cairo on Monday to attend the signing of an agreement officially launching work on Egypt's first-ever nuclear power plant at Dabaa on the north coast.

The Egyptian president said that both leaders further discussed ways to boost economic ties, including efforts to attract Russian investments to the Egyptian Suez Canal Economic Zone and to establish a Russian free-trade zone.

We have agreed on mandating our ministers to follow up with such issues and resolve any obstacles to the finalizing of projects that would be executed in the near future, in line with the spirit of coordination that has distinguished recent negotiations on constructing the Dabaa nuclear plant, El-Sisi said.

Putin said that "upon the completion of the Dabaa project, Egypt will not only benefit from having a nuclear plant but also from gaining the latest and safest technology of nuclear energy."

Egypt's Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker and Alexi Likhatchev, the Director General of Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom, have signed the document to officially commence the project.

The nuclear plant, which will cost up to $21 billion, is expected to be completed by 2028-2029, Rosatom announced on Monday, according to Reuters.

Russia will provide a loan that will cover 85 percent of the construction costs, Likhachyov said.

According to the initial agreement signed by the two countries in 2015, Russia will build four reactors, each producing 1,200 megawatts of electricity, generating a total output of 4,800 megawatts.

The company will service the plants four reactors for 60 years, Likhachyov added.

El-Sisi and Putin held talks at the palace in Heliopolis shortly after the latter arrived in Cairo earlier on Monday.

After the signing ceremony, El-Sisi and Putin announced in the results of their talks on bilateral economic, military and political relations; the war against terrorism; the resumption of Russian flights to Egypt; and regional crises including Palestine, Libya and Syria at the presidential palace in Cairo on Monday afternoon.

Economic and Security Cooperation

Putin said that economic cooperation with Egypt "is taking on new dynamics in trade and economic exchange."

"During the past nine months, economic exchange between both countries have reached more than $4 billion," the Russian president stated.

Putin also said he agreed with the Egyptian president on the necessity of continuing negotiations on the establishing of the free-trade zone between Egypt and the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union.

On the resumption of Russian flights to Egypt, Putin indicated positive developments in light of the Russian Security Agency report on Egyptian security measures at airports.

"Soon I will be signing a memo on the resumption of air flights to Egypt," the Russian president affirmed.

Russia suspended flights to Egypt in November 2015 after a Russian commercial flight crashed over Sinai shortly after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh, killing all 224 people aboard.

Egypt has been implementing tighter security measures in its airports to meet Russian demands on security, with the aim of restoring Russian visitors to boost its tourism industry.

Russians make up the largest single tourist group in Egypt, contributing to about a fifth of foreign vacationers in the country as of 2015, according to official data.

Cooperation on regional matters

President Putin said he agreed with El-Sisi on the framework of cooperation between both countries in the near future, describing Egypt as the old and trustful partner of Russia in the Middle East and North Africa.

On the Palestinian situation, El-Sisi said that he asserted to Putin the importance of maintaining the legal status of Jerusalem in accordance with international accords, nearly a week after a US decision to recognize Jerusalem as a capital of Israel.

We discussed the dangerous repercussions of such a decision on the security and stability of the region. I asserted to President Putin the importance of not complicating the situation in the region through measures that restrict the chances of peace in the region, he said.

Putin expressed appreciation for the Egyptian role in sponsoring the reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas groups.

The Russian president vowed during their discussion for the establishment of direct Palestinian-Israeli talks involving all aspects of the conflict, including the situation of Jerusalem.

El-Sisi also said that the situations in Syria and Libya was on the table, with both presidents discussing ways of ensuring the achievement of a political settlement to both crises as soon as possible.

Regarding Syria, Putin said he demonstrated to President El-Sisi the results of his latest visit and meeting with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad on Monday.

On Syria, our visions matched on a number of political situations and we agreed to continue our joint work to lessen tensions as a preamble political negotiations, the Egyptian president said.

He added that both sides agreed on supporting negotiations led by the UN envoy to Syria in order to reach a comprehensive political agreement that accomplishes the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people and preserves the unity and territorial integrity of the country.

Regarding Libya, El-Sisi said the international community should come together to avoid any political or security vacuum. He also stressed his own countrys support for the political path sponsored by the UN envoy to Libya to end the transitional period and hold parliamentary and presidential elections in the country.

El-Sisi added that Cairo will continue with efforts to unify divided Libyan military institutions.

Combatting Terrorism

El-Sisi also noted that the two countries intended to increase cooperation on fighting terrorism.

Putin pointed out that his country is willing to boost assistance to Egypt in its war against terrorism in the coming period by enhancing military cooperation and the capabilities of the Egyptian Armed Forces.

According to El-Sisi, both leaders agreed on the necessity of countries preventing terrorists from passing through their territory.

I agreed with President Putin on the importance of exchanging information between our involved agencies in combatting terrorism, especially when it comes to the movement of terrorists from politically unstable areas to other countries, President El-Sisi said.

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Dr. Bobbi Pritt sees the miraculous in her microscope, then shares it with the world.

Her blog, "Creepy, Dreadful, Wonderful Parasites, " celebrated its 10-year anniversary in October with a parasite-themed art contest and giveaways. The Post Bulletin talked to the clinical parasitologist about pinworm, pictures and pathologists on Twitter.

So your blog's called "Creepy, Dreadful, Wonderful Parasites." I think a lot of us understand why parasites can be creepy and dreadful  but where's the wonderful?

Well, scientifically, they're fascinating. Each parasite is a little different  you have some parasites that have male and female parts, so they can basically fertilize themselves, and produce viable offspring. I guess the wonderful part is just the science  some of the life cycles that these go through. If you're looking at it like a nature show, you'd say, "Oh my gosh, that little organism is amazing!"

Your blog has a pretty impressive following. How did it begin?

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I had just finished my fellowship at Mayo Clinic in clinical microbiology, and I was hired on as Mayo Clinic staff, and I got this amazing opportunity, sponsored by Mayo, to go to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and study parasitology. And I knew when I was there, I was going to be studying all of these amazing cases, and I was leaving behind a lot of colleagues, friends and people I knew would be interested in cases.  So, I started (the site) about halfway through my year in London, and then, as I met more people over there, they said, "Oh, hey, can you add me to your blog?"

I post cases that come through my laboratory, (and) I also get donations from other people's laboratories. They're all de-identified to maintain patient confidentiality.  It's just "Here's a picture of a parasite. What is it?" And then people have the option of writing in."

How many followers do you have? Where are they from?

Last month, I had 25,507 page-views. When I first started, obviously, it was really, really low. I remember when I first started, that I was excited when I hit 10,000. I hadn't checked in a long time. So 25,000 is pretty cool for a blog about parasites.

Most views are coming from the United States, all across the states. The United Kingdom is my second-biggest viewer, followed by India, then Canada and then a whole bunch of other places. And that's just my blog  I also post cases on Twitter , Linkedin; I've really been expanding in the past couple of years to other forms of social media.

How do you decide which cases to use?

Well, I get total control. So I've created my own criteria. I always choose really high-quality images. I try to include a lot of common things, because I know that I actually now have teachers who assign my blog to their students, like microbiology teachers at various schools around the U.S.  maybe abroad, I don't know  so I try to make sure I include some stuff that everyone should know, even if it's the same stuff over and over again. Like, if I have a pinworm case, well, there's no reason why next year I won't put another pinworm case up, because it's something people need to know. I do try to sprinkle in fun, exciting, unusual, challenging cases.

You also helped discover a new form of Lyme disease, right?

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Ticks are ectoparasites, so there are all of these tick-borne diseases, and Lyme disease, of course, is a big one. Well, a few years ago, we discovered through routine testing, a patient who was infected with a form of Lyme disease that hadn't been described before. And it even has its own name  we called it after Mayo Clinic, so it's called Borrelia mayonii. Normally, Lyme disease is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi.

This is the second species of borrelia that is known to cause Lyme disease in the United States, and it appears to be only in Minnesota and Wisconsin, so it's pretty localized in the upper Midwest. But it actually might be a bit more severe, in terms of symptoms, than just plain-old, typical variants of lyme disease.

How did Mayo feel about being named after the more severe disease?

Ha! Well, it actually is considered an honor. But you're right, there were definitely some people that thought, "Oh, hmm  Mayonii?" But usually it's traditional to name new organisms either after someone great in the field  you wouldn't name it after yourself, it's considered bad form to do that  but you would name it after an established investigator in the field, one of the great names, or you'd name it after the place where it was first discovered.
LEROY  This tiny Southeast Minnesota town doesn't have even 1,000 people living in it. But it did have a Mayo Clinic until this fall.

Mayo announced this summer that it would close its LeRoy clinic after key staffers left, though its pharmacy remains open.

That has people like Eileen Evans worried, wondering where they'll get basic care. The 86-year-old said her closest option is 20 minutes away, a long drive for her.

"I felt very, very lost. And I still feel lost," she said.

This scenario is playing out in towns across the state as Mayo closes or trims service at smaller clinics throughout its Minnesota health care network, leaving some Mayo patients concerned about getting to a doctor and questioning the clinic's commitment to the people in its service area.

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"They threw us to the wind. That's what they did," Evans said.

Twenty-five years ago, Mayo brought its expertise to clinics and hospitals in rural areas of southeast Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa. Now, Mayo is shrinking its footprint in some areas.

The LeRoy shutdown is one of at least four closures or consolidations this year. Mayo says it has closed 10 facilities since 2009  usually clinics that don't see many patients or that are near other facilities.

"Those are just natural ebbs and flows of business," said Doug Parks, the top administrator of Mayo Clinic's satellite system in southeast Minnesota. He said visits to outpatient clinics like LeRoy's produce less revenue than hospital stays, so these facilities have tighter finances.

Plus, staffing clinics in LeRoy or any rural community is difficult.

"We try to make good decisions with limited resources," he said.

But even when staff are available, Parks said Mayo has to make a choice: put those employees in a small clinic, or in a busier part of the network where there's high demand for services.

While LeRoy residents look for new options, people in Kiester, Minn., worry they'll be next.

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Kiester Mayor Doug Trytten thanks Mayo's outpost on the main drag of this tiny, rural and aging town for being the first to catch his cancer.

"They're my angels, that's for sure," Trytten said, adding the Mayo brand has been a point of pride for the town.

"I was traveling for a large corporation, and I'd tell everyone that I come from a town of 500-600, and we have Mayo Clinic in town. So it was pretty cool," he said.

But now, the mayor said, he has soured on the organization. Over the summer, Mayo officials came for a visit and explained that staffing shortages could be a problem in Kiester. They made no mention of closing, but Trytten is still concerned.

Trytten said Mayo's ambition to grow in Rochester and globally appears to outweigh the mission of helping people in small towns like his.

"They're starting to run it more like a large corporation  which they are  but without the feelings and the understanding of how their business decisions are going to affect small-town living." Trytten said.

But Mayo needs to watch its margins, said Moody's analyst Dan Steingart, who tracks the company's financial margins closely. "No margin, no mission," he said.

Steingart said Mayo's revenue has grown faster than its costs recently, showing the company is making sound financial choices  including the decisions on satellite facilities.

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"They have been concentrating on improving performance at the collection of community hospitals that they have, and I think they're seeing some of the fruits of those efforts," he said.

Mayo administrator Parks said the company is not merely retrenching. It's investing in some places, including building a new hospital in Cannon Falls, Minn., a $4 million expansion in Faribault, Minn., and a scheduled upgrade in LaCrosse, Wis.

He said all patients will benefit from Mayo's $1.5 billion electronic medical records system and more than $1 billion in investments in Rochester's Destination Medical Center.

"I think people think DMC is sucking things away from their communities when the strategy is completely opposite," Parks said. "We're trying to build infrastructure to keep care local. My personal opinion is that DMC will rise all ships."
On a frosty Saturday morning, Po Shu Wang watched as a crane moved the two pieces of his 5,500-pound outdoor sculpture into place in front of the expanded Mayo Civic Center.

As he watched, Wang, of Berkeley, Calif., answered the question of how he expected people to interact with the stainless steel arch with a shrug.

"I have no idea. People are very imaginative  It's all fair and good," he said. "I don't own it. It's out there."

Wang did discuss how people can create music and light shows around the sculpture via input from a keyboard in a kiosk inside the center.

People will be able to type in messages, which will be translated into braille. The braille dots will then be assigned to a musical scale. The resulting music with lighting will be activated around both bases of the 30-foot-long sculpture.

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Wang wanted people, who might all be strangers, to have something to do while attending events at the conference center.

"They don't have to agree. They don't have to commit. But somehow they will collaborate," said Wang, "It doesn't matter where you come from or what you want to say. All of these voices will come together."

After a weekend of welding the sculpture back together, more work on the installation is expected to happen this week. Finishing touches will come when the weather warms up in the spring.

The entire artwork, which cost about $200,000, is coming together after being in the works for about a year. However, there is still one piece missing  a name.

Wang is still unsure on that point, though he does have an unofficial name he personally used during the development of it. Playing off the geometry of the circumference of the sculpture and the proximity to the Mayo Civic Center, he calls it Circum-Center.

When people point out how his sculpture looks similar to the popular "Cloud Gate" sculpture informally called the "Bean" in Chicago's Millennium Park, he isn't bothered.

"It doesn't matter to me. I've been making this for some time," said Wang. The shininess of the stainless steel "is just a way of finishing it. It's durable outside and you don't need to light it."

Civic Center's outdoor art on the way

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1 / 2: Charles Parent, left, and Hans Early-Nelson, with Primitive Precision Metalcraft, prepare to start welding a sculpture by Po Shu Wang, of Berkeley, Calif., together as it's installed Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, outside the Mayo Civic Center in downtown Rochester. 2 / 2: Sculptor Po Shu Wang, of Berkeley, Calif., stands nearby as his sculpture is installed Saturday, Dec. 9, 2017, outside the Mayo Civic Center in downtown Rochester.
All eyes are on Gov. Mark Dayton as he makes one of the biggest decisions of his gubernatorial career  choosing whom he will appoint to the U.S. Senate.

The DFL governor is faced with this decision after Sen. Al Franken announced last week he will resign his seat among allegations of sexual misconduct. On Thursday, Dayton issued a statement saying he would announce his pick within the "next couple of days." However, it does not appear that today will be the day the governor announces his choice. He will be in Fargo, N.D., co-chairing a meeting of the Fargo-Moorhead Area Flood Diversion Task Force.

Lt. Gov. Tina Smith is reported to be one of the top contenders for the job. Last week, she said she is mulling a possible run for the Senate seat in 2018. Speculation that she is Dayton's pick ramped up on Friday when her office postponed meetings planned for today with Rochester officials about affordable housing.

Plenty of other names are being floated as possible picks for the governor. They include Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, Edina DFL state Sen. Melisa Franzen, 1st District Rep. Tim Walz and St. Paul Rep. Erin Murphy. Both Walz and Murphy are running for governor but could potentially switch to running for Senate. Whomever Dayton appoints would fill the seat until November 2018, when voters will decide who should serve the remaining two years of Franken's term

A strange coincidence

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On Thursday morning when Franken announced his resignation, the Post Bulletin delayed its press run by an hour to get the news in the paper. I wandered into the press room to see the action as workers got the presses ready to roll.

To my great surprise, Sen. Melisa Franzen was also in the press room. It turns out, the Post Bulletin prints a Spanish-language paper that Franzen is involved in.

Franzen grew up in Puerto Rico and has been outspoken in recent months about the need to help the country recover from a devastating hurricane. We chatted for a few minutes as the presses began rolling with the headline "Franken to resign" on the front page. At that time, she said she had already been hearing Smith's name as a likely replacement for Franken. Still, her name was already being floated as a possible contender and she indicated it was something she would be willing to consider.

Hamline University political science professor David Schultz recently penned an op-ed for the Huffington Post make the case that Franzen would be the best choice for the job.

Nelson not interested in running for Senate

For Republicans, the resignation of Franken opens the door to the possibility of reclaiming one of Minnesota's Senate seats. Plenty of potential GOP candidate names are already swirling, including former Gov. Tim Pawlenty, 6th District Rep. Tom Emmer, Sen. Julie Rosen of Vernon Center and Sen. Karin Housley of St. Mary's Point  to name just a few.

So would Rochester GOP Sen. Carla Nelson, who is running for the 1st Congressional District, think about switching gears to run for the U.S. Senate? The answer is no.

"I am confident there will be one or several strong Republican candidates for the Senate, but I am committed to running for Congress and serving the people of Minnesota's 1st District," she said in a statement.

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Nelson and Blue Earth Republican Jim Hagedorn are both battling for the GOP endorsement in the race. Several Democrats are also running for the seat, including Army veteran Dan Feehan, former Owatonna Sen. Vicki Jensen, Mankato attorney Joe Sullivan and Rochester attorney Rich Wright.

Former governor say Franken shouldn't resign

Former Republican Gov. Arne Carlson argues that Franken should not resign his Senate seat. He wrote an opinion column , posted on his blog with the title "And Justice for All."

Carlson said he is "deeply troubled by the resignation of Al Franken and the complete absence of anything resembling due process." And while he said he does not always agree with Franken, "I firmly believe in due process which is a cornerstone of our democratic way of living. Whenever in history we abandoned it, we severely damaged ourselves. Just think about the lynching of Blacks in the South, the internment of people of Japanese descent in World War II, or the era of McCarthyism when lives were destroyed based solely on allegations."

Carlson said he would rather see the Senate Ethics Committee review the allegations against Franken.

Adding to Carlson's concern about Franken being forced out of office is the "nation is in peril with Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans yielding to his demands." He said the U.S. is increasingly moving towards authoritarianism and Franken has been very effective in challenging the Trump administration.

Changing how sexual harassment allegations are handled in St. Paul

A bipartisan pair of lawmakers are expected to propose changes to Minnesota House's rule process with the goal of improving how sexual harassment allegations are handled.

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Rep. John Lesch, DFL-St. Paul, and Rep. Marion O'Neill, R-Maple Lake, have scheduled a news conference for Monday morning to detail the changes. According to a news release, the proposals will include "an expedited investigation process once complaints are brought forward, confidentiality protections for complainants as well as due process protections for all parties involved."

This comes after two members of the Minnesota Legislature recently resigned amid allegations of sexual misconduct  Republican Rep. Tony Cornish of Vernon Center and Democratic Sen. Dan Schoen of St. Paul Park.
Two Republicans are vying for the chance to take on freshman Democratic Rep. Duane Sauke in 2018.

Rochester Realtor Kenneth Bush said he will run for the House District 25B seat, which covers Northwest Rochester and Cascade Township. Bush announced in August he was forming an exploratory committee to look into running for the seat. The 43-year-old said he decided to jump in after being encouraged by many people to run.

"I have a sense that they feel that I can bring their questions, thoughts, concerns to the Capitol not only with passion but with compassion as a Republican," Bush said.

In October, Rochester business consultant Walter Smith III announced he would run as a Republican for the seat. Bush's entry into the race means there will be a battle for the GOP endorsement. Bush said he will seek the endorsement but is not pledging to abide by it, setting the stage for a potential Republican primary.

"The party does not own Kenny Bush  no way," he said.

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Smith said he has not thought about whether he will pledge to abide by the endorsement.

"I'm not concerned about competition with Kenneth or anyone else. My sole focus in running is to take my public service to another level. Win or lose, my public service won't change," he said.

Republican Party of Olmsted County Chairman Aaron Miller said at this point, he hasn't heard of any other Republicans who are interested in running for the House District 25B seat. He added, "Choice is a good thing and we will allow the delegates, the voters at the convention to endorse a candidate, and we will fully support the endorsed candidate."

Sauke won election to the Minnesota House in 2016 after he defeated former GOP Rep. Fran Bradley with nearly 52 percent of the vote. Sauke confirmed in an interview that he plans to run for re-election in 2018. He said he is not interested in commenting on his two Republican challengers at this time.

"I am still who I am and generally, I have been open to share what I think and what I am. Outside of that, be what may," Sauke said.

Bush grew up in Rochester and attended John Marshall High School. He left to pursue his real estate career but moved back in 2015. He sells real estate for Coldwell Banker Burnet in Rochester. He is also owner of Bush Companies  a community economic development firm and serves on the Olmsted County Planning Advisory Commission.

Bush describes himself as a moderate Republican and a "bridge builder." He says he is not someone who will simply vote along party lines.

"I'm hoping I can contribute to folks that want to be optimistic and be positive about working together in a bipartisan fashion. Someone that is able to see both sides is really what we need and not to follow a one-track train because you don't know if that track is headed to the wall," he said.

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If elected, Bush said his No. 1 priority would be creating jobs.

"I believe we can turn around the economy of our state and our country and create jobs if we just simply adhere to the original principles of limited government, fiscal restraint and living within your means," he said.

Bush said he is also concerned about energy issues and the economy. He would support efforts to reduce carbon emissions. He also would back investments in transportation and infrastructure. He added that he is planning to announce his first major fundraiser shortly.

The Rochester Realtor emphasized that his life experiences set him apart from the other candidates in the race. He said he has struggled at times in his life. That includes living beyond his financial means at times and having to work hard to recover. Despite those challenges, he said he has never given up on his entrepreneurial dreams.

"I have a backbone," he said. "I know what it's like to be on the muddy road, and I also know what it's like to be on the mountain, too. I've been on both."
ST. CLOUD  On any given night, there are an estimated 125 to 150 people between the ages of 16 and 23 who are homeless in St. Cloud.

Some area service clubs plan to offer those youth a place to get out of the cold and connect to resources during the daytime.

"They're sleeping in alleys or in cars or on someone's couch, or worse yet, selling their bodies to get out of the weather," said Tim Wensman, president and board chair of the Pathways 4 Youth project.

St. Cloud-area Rotary clubs are partnering with Anoka-based Hope 4 Youth to open the opportunity center. It will be open from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and will provide social services, lockers, showers, laundry facilities and a hot meal, plus computers to search for employment or education opportunities.

"Hopefully we can stabilize the youth from their trauma that they may have when they come in and then help put them on a path for educational opportunities or living wage employment opportunities that could make them contributing members to the community," Wensman said.

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The center will not be a place to hang out or sleep, he said. It's expected about 20-25 youth will use the center daily.

Wensman said organizers are aware that they might be facing many challenges related to family trauma, addiction and mental health.

"We'll have to be prepared to have the people and the professionals at the site that can deal with all of these issues," he said.

Wensman says the Rotary club is raising funds and hopes to open the center in February.
Listening to the oral argument before the Supreme Court in the wedding cake case, it struck me how artificial the discussion was. Much of it centered on whether and under what circumstances cakes are speech. Bizarre.

I dont blame the advocates or the current Justices for the content of the argument. They must be mindful of Supreme Court precedents whether or not, as a practical matter, they fit this case well.

But the wedding cake case isnt really about free speech. It is about free exercise of religious conscience. After all, the Colorado baker refused to create a custom cake for the gay couple because doing so is incompatible with the dictates of his religion.

To be more specific, I think the case is about balancing freedom of religious conscience against the rights of gays who want the kind of marriage ceremonies non-gay couples frequently enjoy. I suggested so in this post from a couple of years ago. Ross Douthat made basically the same argument in yesterdays New York Times.

In my view, the best way to perform this balancing is through the concept of reasonable accommodation. The concept comes from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes it unlawful discrimination not to accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs and practices of employees unless accommodating them would result in undue hardship to the employer.

Thus, for example, in the absence of undue hardship to the employer, a Jew whose religion requires him not to work during multiple days in September-October must be given those days off and a strict Sabbath observer must be granted relief from shifts that interfere with observance.

An absolute requirement that bakers create custom made wedding cakes for gay couples in violation of their religious conscience violates the principle of reasonable accommodation. It requires the baker (or photographer or caterer) to choose between adhering to his religious belief and making a living in his chosen profession.

A decent respect for the First Amendment should lead courts to reject this outcome when it is possible to do and still uphold fairness for gays and gay couples. If questions like the one that arises in the Colorado wedding cake case are to be anything other than a raw power struggle, they should be resolved based on balancing the competing equities that arise from religious freedom and gay rights. The concepts of reasonable accommodation and undue hardship provide the best framework for such balancing.

In most cases, no undue hardship will attach if a gay couple has to use a baker or a wedding photographer who doesnt think the ceremony violates Gods will. Freedom of religious conscience will be accommodated and the couple will get cakes and photographs of the same or better quality.
That is what President Trump called the Democratic Party media in a tweet todaya stain on Americaand he is right.

Very little discussion of all the purposely false and defamatory stories put out this week by the Fake News Media. They are out of control  correct reporting means nothing to them. Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposeda stain on America!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 10, 2017

It would be a full-time job to keep track of the Democratic Party medias failed attacks on President Trump and his administration. I wrote about CNNs latest fiasco here and here. Maybe someone, somewhere, is keeping count of the liberal medias lies about Trump, but it would be a superhuman task to keep up.

The presidents comment was prompted in part by an absurd tweet by the Washington Posts Dave Weigel, who was fired by the Post some years ago for his participation in the surreptitious, left-wing JournoList. Weigel rejoined the Post after rehabilitating himself with MSNBC and Slate. I used to say that the Post is the most respectable voice of the Democratic Party, but I am not sure that compliment is still warranted.

Purporting to cover the presidents triumphant rally in Pensacola, Florida, Weigel published a picture of the arena that was partly emptybecause it was taken hours before the event began. This tweet by President Trump shows Weigels misleading photo along with actual pictures of the event once it was underway. Weigel later admitted that the President was right:

.@DaveWeigel @WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo! pic.twitter.com/XAblFGh1ob  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

These battles between President Trump and Democratic Party reporters are going on almost every day, and Trump is nearly always winning, because reporters from the Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, the Associated Press and so on are so crazed by Trumps election that they cant restrain themselves from lying.

But maybe that is too charitable. Maybe these reporters have been lying for a long time, and we finally have a Republican leader with enough guts to call them on it.

PAUL ADDS: President Trump says the Washington Post should fire Weigel. The Post says:

Dave Weigel relied on an inaccurate image in tweeting about President Trumps rally in Pensacola. When others pointed out the mistake to Weigel, he quickly deleted the tweet. And when he was later addressed by the president on Twitter, he promptly apologized for it.

I agree that Weigel just made a mistake. He did not put up something he knew was false or misleading. Weigel is smart enough to realize he couldnt get away that in this instance.

The question, though, is why did he make the mistake. I think it was because hes engaged in partisan warfare against Trump  just like his paper  and was too eager to seize on something that cast Trump in a bad light.

Thats why the mainstream medias mistakes almost invariably are ones that make Republicans and/or conservatives look bad. When was the last time you saw a correction by a MSM organ that was less favorable to a Republican or conservative than the erroneous item that required correction?
Emmanuel Macron, who became president of France because a scandal effectively took down the front-running candidate, fancies himself the leader of the free world. This week he will host a climate summit. Last week he chastised President Trump for his decision to recognize that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. Last month, he mediated a dispute over Lebanon.

Meanwhile, back in France, Parisians are threatening a hunger strike if immigrants arent cleared from neighborhood streets. They complain that the immigrants are trashing the sidewalks, soaking them in urine, and harassing women.

The immigrant takeover over the streets near the Jaures and Stalingrad(!) metro stations is just the tip of the French culture war iceberg. So are the Muslim street prayers that have led to fights between protesters and Muslim worshipers.

Where does Macron stand on these matters and what is he prepared to do?

He has vowed to clear the streets by the end of the year and place the immigrants in 62 cheap hotels that will be turned into shelters. And his Interior Minister says hell propose a ban on Muslim street prayer.

If the government follows through, the tip of the iceberg may become less acute for now, but that big block of ice will remain. Nor will Macrons preening on the world stage divert attention from it.

James McAuley of the Washington Post reports:

While the French are mostly proud to have an internationally respected leader, many remain ambivalent about a character often seen as overly timid on cultural problems raging at home. Identity in general  and Islam in particular  remain crucial issues in France, yet on both questions Macron has been quiet. This is one where people are asking the question, When is he going to speak?  said Francois Heisbourg, a Paris-based political analyst and former presidential adviser on national security issues to Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande. He will not be able to keep silent forever. Its one of the deepest divisions in the public debate that Ive seen in a very long time, and its very ugly.

In the presidential run-off election last Spring, issues of culture, identity, and Muslim immigration were raised by an extremist candidate, Marine Le Pen. Macron was able to shrug them off.

However, unless Macron speaks up and, more importantly, acts, there will be considerable space between him and Le Pen. That space can be occupied by, say, Laurent Wauquiez, the new leader of the center right party, or by Manuel Walls, a former Socialist (as is Macron) who, as Prime Minister, took a strong stance against against Islamic incursions on French secularism (e.g., by banning the burkini, a measure I oppose).

According to the Posts McAuley, some commentators view Macrons avoidance of social issues as a testament to his political intelligence, a means of avoiding a discussion that might otherwise unnecessarily divide the electorate. But if the electorate is already highly divided, it seems to me that Macron cannot avoid the social issues. And certainly not by hosting climate summits and lecturing President Trump about Israel.
ATLANTIC CITY  A Georgia man was arrested and charged after trying to flee from police, who found heroin, marijuana and cocaine in his car, authorities said.

About 10:05 a.m. Friday, Atlantic City police Officers Christopher Dodson and Alberto Valles stopped a car on the 1300 block of Atlantic Avenue, Sgt. Kevin Fair said in a statement Sunday.

Officers asked the driver, Kendall Johnson, 26, of Buford, Georgia, for his drivers license and vehicle documents, Fair said.

Valles could see a scale and plastic bags used to package narcotics when Johnson opened his center console, Fair said. The officers also smelled the distinct odor of marijuana coming from Johnsons car, Fair said.

The officers requested Johnson to exit his vehicle after he failed to provide the requested documents and and failed to have a valid drivers license, Fair said.

Johnson got out of his car and tried to run into oncoming traffic before officers apprehended him, Fair said. Johnson was found to have 69 bags of heroin, 8 grams of marijuana and 4 grams of cocaine, Fair said.

Johnson was charged with three counts of possession of a controlled dangerous substance, possession of CDS with intent to distribute, possession of CDS with intent to distribute within 500 feet of a public zone, obstruction of justice, resisting arrest, possession of CDS paraphernalia and three motor vehicle summonses.

He was taken to the Atlantic County jail.

Anyone with information on this incident can call Atlantic City police at 609-347-5766. Tips can be texted anonymously to tip411, or 847411. Begin the text with ACPD.
BALD IS BEAUTIFUL

{child_byline}MICHELLE BRUNETTI POST

Staff Writer

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Bald eagle numbers continued to increase in New Jersey in 2017, with 178 nest sites monitored, up from 172 last year.

But the number of successful fledglings fell to 190 from 216 last year, said state Division of Fish and Wildlife biologist Kathleen Clark, coauthor of the 2017 New Jersey Bald Eagle Project report by the division and the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.

Weve been on quite a ride with significant increases in eagles every year. Now it looks like the population is starting to stabilize, Clark said. There are still new nests getting established every year, but there may be other factors starting to come into play, like competition, and some are settling into areas that may not be optimum.

Three of the 19 dead or injured eagles found this year on the ground appeared to have been hurt or killed in fights with other eagles, she said.

Its something we have only seen in the last three to four years, said Clark. There are going to be fights over the best nest locations. Newly minted 5- or 6-year-olds come back and try to get their own nests going. Maybe unwisely, some try to take on an established pair.

Electrocution and injury from flying into electric wires was the most common cause of death of those found. Clark said Atlantic City Electric has cooperated in making changes at locations where eagles have died.

When you really look at power lines  theres usually three lines kept separated all at about the same level, called phase lines, Clark said. If a bird somehow connects two of those phase lines, it gets shocked.

Of the 178 nests, 153 produced eggs and 25 were territorial or housekeeping pairs, the report said.

The four-year-old telemetry program, which fits some young birds with electronic transmitters, has shown fledglings often range far from New Jersey just weeks after their first flight.

Males tend to return to their home territory more than females, Clark said.

Nacote, a male who fledged in 2014, spent much of the rest of that year in a remote area of Quebec, the report said. He returned to southeastern New Jersey in 2015, has stayed since and has been photographed several times at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in Galloway Township.

Two females, on the other hand, fitted with transmitters in 2012 and 2013, have not returned home. One went to the Chesapeake Bay area in Maryland before eventually flying to Maine and staying in New England. The other also headed to the Chesapeake, then to Canada before returning to Maryland.

Ive concluded that, just after learning to fly, they make one big movement, said Clark. Weve had birds go in each of the cardinal directions. It does seem random. Prior to satellite tagging, we always thought young eagles only went south, especially to the Chesapeake Bay, which is an important eagle area.

Twenty-one new eagle pairs were found this season, the vast majority of which were in the southern part of the state.

The Delaware Bay region remained the states eagle stronghold, with roughly half of nests located in Cumberland and Salem counties and the bayside of Cape May County, the report said.

Clark said the Delaware Bay area has tidal rivers that provide lots of fish and waterfowl to eat. And there is an abundance of land already in conservation that makes great bald eagle habitat.

We are really lucky to have a lot of publicly owned land in the Delaware Bay region, she said.

Seventy-eight percent of the nests with eggs fledged young, for a total of 190 eagle fledglings, the report states.

Thats a productivity rate of 1.25 per active and known-outcome nest, above the required range of 0.9 of 1.1 young per nest for population stability.

Use of the pesticide DDT, which made the eggs of eagles and other raptors too thin to withstand normal incubation, caused the numbers of nesting eagle pairs in the state to fall to one by 1970. It was in Bear Swamp in Downe Township, Cumberland County.

Use of DDT was banned in the U.S. in 1972, but the number of nesting pairs didnt start to increase until the 1980s, according to the report, after state biologists began a recovery effort.

By 1982, the single pair of eagles in Bear Swamp had failed to fledge young for six years. So state biologists removed the egg produced that year, incubated it and placed the chick back in the nest.

Artificial incubation and fostering of chicks continued until 1989, when the female of the pair was replaced and the pair was able to hatch its own eggs.

State biologists also started a hacking project in 1983 that released young eagles into New Jersey from other states over eight years.

Mortality rates are as high as 80 percent in young eagles, the report said, and eagles dont start reproducing until they are about 5. So the recovery was slow in the beginning. It really started to take off after 2000.

Now, one of the big problems is human disturbance around nest sites, as about 70 percent of nests are located on privately owned land, Clark said.

That and habitat loss are the greatest threats to the species in New Jersey, according to the report.

Disturbance is any human activity that causes eagles to change their behavior. Studies have shown people on foot result in the strongest negative reaction.

When eagles change their behavior in reaction to people, they cease doing what is best for their survival and the well-being of their eggs and young, the report said.

Thats where volunteers can help.

They observe nests from a safe distance, and the state educates the public and sets up safe viewing areas to minimize the stress on the birds. Volunteers record data such as number of birds, behaviors, incubation, feeding and more.

If needed, nests are protected with barriers or posted signs, and biologists work closely with landowners and managers. State conservation officers enforce protection and provide routine assistance.

Biologists enter the nest site to band nestlings when they are between 5 and 8 weeks old. They climb the tree, place nestlings into a large duffel bag and lower them one at a time to the ground. A team records measurements and bands each eaglet.

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{child_related_content}{child_related_content_item}{child_related_content_style}Just The Facts{/child_related_content_style}{child_related_content_title}BY THE NUMBERS{/child_related_content_title}{child_related_content_content}

190/216

number of bald eagle chicks fledged 2017/2016

178/172

number of nests monitored 2017/2016

153/150

number of nests with eggs 2017/2016

118/132

number of nests producing fledglings 2017/2016

21/15

new eagle pairs 2017/2016

14/12

new eagle pairs in South Jersey 2017/2016

Source: New Jersey Bald Eagle Project reports

{/child_related_content_content}{/child_related_content_item}{child_related_content_item}{child_related_content_style}More Information{/child_related_content_style}{child_related_content_title}BY THE NUMBERS{/child_related_content_title}{child_related_content_content}

Of the 19 bald eagles found grounded in New Jersey in 2017:

8 died of likely electrocution

4 died of illness, other injury or birth defect

3 died of likely fight with another eagle

2 died of vehicle strike

2 found alive and treated

Source: New Jersey Bald Eagle Project, 2017

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Air travel between Cairo and Moscow will resume in February 2018, Russia's Minister of Transport Maxim Sokolov told reporters on Monday, according to Russian Tass News agency.

Sokolov said that Russia was ready to sign the relevant intergovernmental protocol in the upcoming days to resume the direct flights.

"It depends primarily on the Egyptian party," he said.

The statement of the Russian transport minister come as Russian President Vladimir Putin was visiting Cairo.

In a press conference in Cairo earlier Monday, President Putin highlighted positive developments in security measures at Egyptian airports, in light of a recent Russian security agency report.

"Soon I will be signing a memo to resume air flights to Egypt," he told the reporters in the press conference.

Moscow grounded all civilian passenger flights to Egypt in 2015 over security concerns after a Russian A321 airbus crashed in Sinai shortly after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh. All 224 people on board were killed in the crash.

The downing of the Russian flight has dealt a blow to Egypt's tourism industry, with tourist numbers dropping by some 50 percent in the first half of 2016 year-on-year.

Russians make up the largest single tourist group in Egypt, contributing to about a fifth of foreign vacationers in the country as of 2015, according to official data.

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OCEAN CITY  A prominent rabbi and social activist spoke about human rights and politics Sunday afternoon at the Ocean City Free Public Library.

Rabbi Arthur Waskow, of the Philadelphia-based Shalom Center, was the guest speaker at event held in honor of Human Rights Day, which is celebrated annually Dec. 10 around the world. The talk was hosted by Amnesty Internationals South Jersey chapter.

Every day should be international Human Rights Day, but this is the designated Human Rights Day, said Georgina Shanley, of Ocean City, the local chapters coordinator.

Waskow, who has written or edited more than 20 books, touched on a number of topics, including the Republican-backed federal tax reform bill, climate change, net neutrality, democracy and resistance.

He said he was arrested last week in Washington, D.C., protesting the Republican tax plan. Waskow said the tax bill represents an attack on human rights.

I think we face a concerted effort to overturn American democracy and to substitute an oligarchy of the hyper-wealthy, Waskow told the crowd of about 30.

We see that in the tax bill is a massive effort to shift enormous wealth and enormous power into the hands of those who already have enormous wealth and power, he added.

Waskow expressed concern over what the response would be if President Donald Trump decides to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who has been tasked with investigating ties between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.

One suggestion is holding a new presidential election this November and putting all the seats in Congress up for grabs, Waskow said. The proposal generated cheers from the crowd.

So thats really interesting because it is real resistance, Waskow said. It breaks the rules but in a way that affirms the rules.

After taking questions, Waskow invited the crowd to read a prayer with him in honor of Human Rights Day, followed by the lighting of a candle.

Human Rights Day was established to mark the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, an United Nations document that was drafted with the help of Eleanor Roosevelt in 1948.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will head to Istanbul on Tuesday to lead the Egyptian delegation in the urgent summit meeting for the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) called in response to the recent developments concerning the city of Jerusalem, the Egyptian foreign ministry announced.

Attendees at the summit will address implications following last week's decision by US president Donald Trump to recognize the city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, as well as to order the move the US embassy there.

According to the ministry statement, Shoukry will discuss Egypt's stance against US president Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

He will also present Egypt's diplomatic efforts to limit the decision's negative impact, including the meeting between Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo on Monday, the statement read.

Egypt has maintained its full support to two-state solution, under which there is to be an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Turkey will head the current session of the OIC.

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Carl Data Solutions Inc.'s (CSE:CRL, FSE:7C5, OTC:CDTAF) Polish subsidiary is taking the next leap forward in developing artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor aging critical infrastructure. This ~300k USD research and development grant through the European Union will fund exploration into new ways that data collection and predictive modelling can improve water infrastructure safety and efficiency.

The research will focus on machine learning based AI that makes continuous predictions on how forecasted storm events will impact water infrastructure, allowing the time needed for workers to protect cities from flooding and other damage. An intelligent sensor that measures flow using a machine learning model will be developed that extracts more precise flow data than any other device currently available on the market. Another focus of the research will be sensor anomaly detection to improve the quality of data collected. AI will be trained to know if a sensor is giving incomplete or incorrect data, improving operational intelligence for the overall system.

Carl Data Solutions Poland will work closely with the Department of Decision Systems and Robotics at Gdansk University of Technology, coordinating with a research team of PhDs and engineers who have been studying water infrastructure for decades. Piotr Stepinski, Carl Data CTO and an architect in designing the project, commented, "The outcome of this project has potential to allow Carl Data's Polish subsidiary to resell this innovative technology throughout the EU and North America. We are excited to have government and international support for developing these in-demand products and services."

About Carl Data Solutions Inc.

Carl Data Solutions Inc. is an Industrial IoT (IIoT) company focused on providing next generation information collection, storage and analytics solutions for data-centric companies. Building on its recent acquisitions, Carl helps its clients analyze and understand all forms of environmental data through a powerful platform of data collection, monitoring, reporting, and predictive analysis tools.

Carl Data continues to develop applications to work with new cloud-based mass storage services and analytics tools (Big-Data-as-a-Service (BDaaS) to provide scalability for municipalities, utilities and other industrial verticals. These data collection and storage methods allow the company to build smart Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)-based applications that can collect data from many diverse sources and provide deep insight for decision-making purposes. More information can be found at http://www.CarlSolutions.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors:

Greg Johnston

President, Chief Executive Officer, Director

Carl Data Solutions Inc.

The Canadian Securities Exchange (operated by CNSX Markets Inc.) has neither approved nor disapproved of the contents of this press release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. In particular, forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the purpose of the research and development grant and the focuses of the research and the statement that the outcome of the project has potential to allow Carl Data's Polish subsidiary resell this innovative technology throughout the EU and North America.

Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements including, without limitation, risks with respect to: the research and development of AI by Carl Data's Polish subsidiary will not be successful in finding new ways that data collection and predictive modelling can improve water infrastructure safety and efficiency; the inability of Carl Data's Polish subsidiary to obtain the desired outcome from its research and development; the ability of the Company to establish a market for its services; competitive conditions in the industry; general economic conditions in Canada and globally; the inability to secure additional financing; competition for, among other things, capital and skilled personnel; potential delays or changes in plans with respect to deployment of services or capital expenditures; possibility that government policies or laws may change; technological change; risks related to the Company's competition; the Company's not adequately protecting its intellectual property; interruption or failure of information technology systems; and regulatory risks relating to the Company's business, financings and strategic acquisitions. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, other than as required by applicable securities laws.

Kimberly Bruce, Corporate Communications, Carl Data Solutions Inc., Telephone: +1(778)379-0275, Email: kimberly@carlsolutions.com

SOURCE Carl Data Solutions
LOS ANGELES, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

USA News Group - In the rush to advance the electric vehicle revolution, it appears China is taking an early lead in both adoption of EVs and securing the resources of lithium to power them.

Lithium producers and near term producers looking to immediately increase global lithium supplies include A.I.S. Resources Limited (TSX-V: AIS) (OTC: AISSF), Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF), Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), and Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX) (OTC: LIXXF).

Several major Chinese auto manufacturers are planning to increase their electric vehicle (EV) quotas dramatically in the next two years based on early success by EV makers there and the Chinese Government's demands to abandon petrol fuel engines.

Combined with greater use of lithium in power grid storage, the demand is creating kind of "arms" race style competition for global lithium. So far China is ahead.

A new lithium junior player that could benefit directly from the Chinese appetite for lithium is A.I.S. Resources Limited (TSX-V: AIS) (OTCQB: AISSF), which could answer the call to add new supplies from its South American lithium brine Guayatayoc project as early as 2019.

Other lithium companies that are poised to take-up the shortfall being fed by China's consumption include Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF), Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM), and Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX.V) (OTCQX: LIXXF), all of which are in the process of expanding of their respective lithium resources to accommodate the major demand increase.

CHINA STEPPING ON THE PEDAL

China is already a leader in the adoption of electric vehicles, with more than 500,000 units being sold in the country in 2016.

Indeed, Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd is planning a US$1.97 billion IPO to drive its expansion and meet soaring demand for electric car batteries.

And BYD, the Chinese electric car and bus company part-owned by Warrant Buffett, has talked extensively with South American lithium producers to secure supplies of the key battery material.

China, the world's most active polluter has suffered for long due to toxic effluents and greenhouse emissions, hence is one of the countries at the forefront of adopting the Paris Agreement. But this process is lithium-intensive due to the millions of batteries required to power various processes particularly electric transportation.

China does not have substantial lithium mines within its own boundaries. Lithium resources tend to be located far away from the centers of industrial muscle in North America, Europe and Asia that utilize it in large quantities.

The main sources are brine pools in Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, as well as rocks in Australia.

Chinese companies have been rushing to acquire concessions in these countries, aided by the diplomatic power and financial muscle of the Chinese government.

Companies such as Ganfeng Lithium and Tianqi Lithium have seen massive growth, with their turnovers more than doubling in 2016.

Ganfeng Lithium strengthened their position by purchasing 2 million equity shares from International Lithium, increasing its shareholding in the company to 18%.

MORE AND MORE LITHIUM NEEDED

Although there are enough verified lithium resources to sustain a fully EV dependent world for hundreds of years, slow establishment of mining operations has meant that actual supply has lagged behind demand.

And now that the Tesla-led EV revolution has hit full gear, pressure on existing resources has grown by a considerable factor.

Entities that control these resources have gold (even that maybe an understatement) on their hands as the price of lithium keeps surging. China has been moving to do exactly that through government-sanctioned acquisition of supplies across the world.

If, as lithium consultant Sam Jaffe of Cairn ERA predicts, lithium-ion battery demand rises from 80 GWh this year to 750 GWh in 2026, it's likely that the world is going to need every bit of lithium production that can be brought online.

In total, the projected increase would account for a massive 10-fold leap in demand within 10 years.

JUNIORS SEIZE THE OPPORTUNITY

Not to be left out of the competition, junior resource companies have grasped the seriousness of the demand for lithium and are moving to bring on supplies.

A.I.S. Resources Limited is one of these early movers with excellent prospects in South America's productive regions.

Argentina is a major global lithium producer with significant additional potential, and a respected mining-industry history. The country has become well known for its many mineralized salars or salt fields, which include the Hombre Muerto and Salar Olaroz properties each producing significant lithium.

This is where A.I.S. Resources has staked its three main lithium projects, all of which are strategically located in the Argentina's Puna Region.

In all, A.I.S. Resources has about 7,725 hectares and its flagship Guayatayoc property is well advanced with a mining permit in hand and drilling permits imminent.

Guayatayoc was sampled and returned Li ranging from 270-900 ppm in ponds that had aquifer flow, as well as 100-190ppm for brines sitting in the top layers. That's considered very high grade and suitable for li-ion battery production.

The Guayatayoc is on its way to becoming a near term producer. The project will be fast-tracked, as chemistry and process work is already complete. The company expects that it can be in production as early as 2019.

And that comes from a highly skilled team of lithium mining veterans who have completed other recent lithium projects into production.

THE GAUNTLET IS THROWN DOWN

The race for lithium resources could leave EV companies such as Tesla short of the commodity if China manages to monopolize available sources, in a similar way as they have achieved with cobalt.

Already, Chinese companies control nearly all of Lithium Hydroxide reserves, which Panasonic uses to make lithium batteries for Tesla.

In what could be spell a gloomy outlook for Tesla, there are undertones about Chinese companies looking to build multiple super factories to rival Tesla's recently opened Nevada gigafactory.

And while Tesla's gigafactory is expected to produce 35 gigawatt hours of battery power annually, global production should rise from a little over 100 million gigawatt-hours to more than 273 gigawatt-hours by 2021. As much as 65% of this growth could be produced in China.

However, Tesla is not resting on its laurels either, with plans to build up to 4 factories reportedly in the pipeline.

An arms race can scarcely suffice to describe the competition between China and outsiders like Tesla.

Regardless if China moves ahead, lithium prices don't appear to be abating any time soon so new lithium resources like A.I.S. Resources' Guayatayoc project in South America are likely to bring tremendous value and aid in the move to electrify the auto market.

POTENTIAL COMPARABLES

Galaxy Resources (OTC: GALXF)

Galaxy Resources Limited is a lithium-focused resources company, with assets spanning Australia, Canada and Argentina. Galaxy is currently advancing plans to develop the Sal de Vida Lithium and Potash Brine Project ("Sal de Vida") in Argentina, which is situated in the Lithium Triangle, a region where Chile, Argentina and Bolivia meet. Sal de Vida is a proven high quality resource has excellent promise as a future low cost production facility. Galaxy also owns the Mt Cattlin Spodumene Mine near Ravensthorpe in Western Australia and the James Bay Lithium Pegmatite Project in Quebec, Canada.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM)

Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A., is a producer of potassium nitrate and iodine. The Company produces specialty plant nutrients, iodine derivatives, lithium and its derivatives, potassium chloride, potassium sulfate and certain industrial chemicals. Its segments include specialty plant nutrients, industrial chemicals, iodine and derivatives, lithium and derivatives, potassium, and other products and services Lithium and its derivatives are used in batteries, greases and frits for production of ceramics. Potassium chloride is a commodity fertilizer that is produced and sold by the Company across the world.

Lithium X Energy Corp. (TSX-V: LIX.V) (OTCQX: LIXXF)

Lithium X Energy Corp. is a lithium exploration and development company with a goal of becoming a low-cost supplier for the burgeoning lithium battery industry. On July 11th, the company announced that further to its news release of June 29th, 2017, the Company has closed the definitive agreement with Aberdeen International Inc. for the purchase of Aberdeen's remaining 50% interest in Potasio y Litio de Argentina S.A., which controls 100% of the Sal de los Angeles Project. The project consists of 8,154 hectares covering 95% of Salar de Diablillos, and has an NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate of 1.037 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in the indicated category and 1.007 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in the inferred category.

For a more in-depth look into AIS you can view the in-depth report at USA News Group: http://usanewsgroup.com/2017/06/14/lithium-juniors-seeing-massive-demand/

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Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi discussed the latest developments regarding the city of Jerusalem with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas "Abu Mazen" in Cairo Monday, the Egyptian presidency announced.

According to the statement, which was issued following the meeting, the two leaders held extensive talks about the US decision to recognize the city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to transfer the US embassy there.

During the meeting President Abbas stated that the US president's decision was "surprising" considering the "flexibility" that the Palestinian Authority had shown in order to revive the peace process.

El-Sisi and Abbas have discussed all measures and decisions taken by the Palestinian Authority against the decision, the Egyptian presidency said.

The two presidents agreed to continue extensive coordination and consultation as well to use widespread international rejection for the US decision in order to preserve the Palestinian people's right to have an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and head of Egyptian General intelligence service Khaled Fawzy also attended the meeting.

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Dozens of Palestinian protesters were injured and at least 200 detained by Israeli occupation forces on Monday in a fifth day of clashes following US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel last week.

The announcement on Wednesday sparked protests in Jerusalem, Gaza and the West bank, with protesters throwing stones at Israeli security forces who fired tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds.

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-detainees Affairs confirmed the arrests, saying that many arrests took place in Jerusalem during the protests, with Paletinian activists being targetted.

The Palestinian health ministry said on Monday that at least 1,175 Palestinians had been injured since the protests started, with four people killed in the first two days.

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New Delhi, Dec 9 : Actor Shahid Kapoor says the strongest people in his life have been women, especially his mother Neelima Azeem who has been a single parent. He also calls his wife Mira and daughter Misha his "whole world" and says he couldn't have been happier in his life than now.

Shahid spoke to IANS on phone from Mumbai on the sidelines of Reebok FitToFight Awards 2.0, where the brand felicitated women nominees from across the country for their spirit and courage.

"I don't think there is anything which resonated with me so naturally as this campaign did. The strongest people in my life have been women, starting with my mother. She was a single parent and she was the most powerful and the strongest, and a person I would depend on the most," said Shahid, who endorses Reebok with Kangana Ranaut.

"Today, Mira and Misha are my whole world and I can't think of any reason why this initiative would not connect with me. It's the most natural connect," said the actor, who also believes women are fitter than men.

"Women know how to deal with situations better than most men do. They are very independent and self-assured," he said.

So is he going to inculcate these traits in Misha too?

"I want her to discover herself, be respectful towards family and appreciate everything that she has. I want her to spread love and happiness," he said of his little one, who was born in August 2016.

Coming from an industry where heroines often complain about not getting the equal screen space compared to their male counterparts, Shahid feels the journey of female stars has changed over the years.

"It's important to recognise roles for their power, for their impact. It doesn't matter whether it is male or female. I think stories that deserve being told, the characters that deserve being showcased, must be showcased. There is nothing like male or female in art. It's just about discussing life, connecting with people and saying something substantial.

"I think it's amazing to see that so much has been created in films which are female-centric and they are loved by audiences. It also goes to show that we have a lot of women in the audience, in case anybody had forgotten," he said.

And what does he think about pay equality?

"I think it is changing for the positive. I think people are recognising (the issue) and it is all co-related. Today, women-oriented films have started doing extremely well and they have developed a market for themselves. Therefore, the change is naturally happening.

"Like I said before, it's not about male or female. If you deserve to be paid a certain amount because that is how viable you are, you must be paid that," Shahid told IANS.

His next film "Padmavati", directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, is under the scanner for alleged distortion of historical facts about the fabled Rajput queen. The film was scheduled to release on December 1, but was deferred and uncertainty over its release still looms large.

Tired of commenting on the row, he said: "I have spoken enough and I don't feel the need to say anything more."

He also said trolls and backlash are problems emerging from social media.

"It's very easy to pass a comment when you don't have to be accountable for it because nobody even knows who you are."

(Nivedita can be contacted at nivedita.s@ians.in)
New Delhi, Dec 9 : Stating that the focus on strategic issues is shifting from the Pacific Ocean to India and the Indian Ocean, Japanese Ambassador to India Kenji Hiramatsu has said that his country has placed India at the centre of its Indo-Pacific policy.

"The geopolitics of Asia is dynamically changing. We used to discuss strategic issues with a focus on the Pacific Ocean, but that focus has shifted to India and the Indian Ocean." Hiramatsu said while speaking on "Japan's Perspective of the Changing Geopolitics of Asia" as part of the Changing Asia Lecture Series organised by the Society of Policy Studies think tank and the India Habitat Centre here on Friday evening.

"We are now having strategic discussions on this region, stretching from Asia to the African Continent. We place India right in the middle of this geopolitical dynamics," he said.

Stating that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to India in September this year was "unprecedented and special", he said that bilateral relations "are at its best ever, and substantial dialogues are being held at all level".

Explaining why Japan considers India as its key partner, Hiramatsu said that both countries shared values such as democracy, openness, and the rule of the law.

Stating that Japan attached great importance to upholding the rule of law, he said Tokyo found India's adherence to this in the international arena "worthy of admiration".

"You can see this from India's compliance with an arbitral decision regarding a sea boundary dispute with Bangladesh that was not necessarily in India's favour," the ambassador said.

"I appreciate India's consistent attitude to engage in dialogue through diplomatic channels to find a mutually acceptable solution at time of disputes. This is precisely why India is an indispensable strategic partner for Japan."

Speaking about the shifting of geopolitics to Asia, he cited three major reasons for this.

"The first reason is that the global power balance is changing, as it is becoming more dynamic and complex. The strategic situation in Asia is becoming ever globalised and interconnected, with emerging powers rising in the region," he said.

"The second reason is that the world we live in is becoming increasingly uncertain and unpredictable, with issues such as North Korea, the South China Sea, terrorism and others which are surfacing in the region. The third reason is the heightened significance of maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region, where the sea lanes stretching from the African continent to Japan are becoming crucial for the peace and prosperity of this part of the globe."

Referring to the India-US-Japan-Asutralia quadrilateral meeting held in the Philippines last month, the first such in a decade, he said that "given the greater convergence of views among the four like-minded countries, it is only natural that they come together to discuss measures to ensure a free and open international order in the Indo-Pacific region".

"In the meeting, senior officials of the four countries discussed the direction for cooperation in upholding the rules-based order and respect for international law in the Indo-Pacific, tackling proliferation threats, including North Korea's nuclear and missile issues, ensuring freedom of navigation and maritime security in the Indo-Pacific and countering terrorism and other issues," he stated.

"We share values and principles, so it is natural that we meet and discuss common challenges and deepen cooperation. We respect and understand initiatives by other countries to have their own mini-lateral frameworks, being trilateral or quadrilateral, with each of their own agenda."

Stating that both countries shared the principles of connectivity infrastructure he said that this should be implemented "in an open, transparent and non-exclusive manner based on international standards and responsible debt financing practices, while ensuring respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, the rule of law and

environment" in what can be seen as an obvious reference to China's One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative.

Hiramatsu said that while his country would like to promote cooperation on infrastructure development to the countries in the Indian Ocean region and beyond, connectivity on land too was essential.

"Japan and India have launched the Act East Forum to advance development in and to foster people-to-people exchanges with the northeastern region (of India) in order to enhance overland connectivity. We hope the Forum will serve as a springboard for concrete projects in the region," he stated.

During a question and answer session following the his speech, Hiramatsu agreed to the view that Japan-India ties were getting a boost because of China's increasing aggressiveness and the US' lessening influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Agartala, Dec 9 : The two-day old railway and road blockade called by a section of 10,323 Tripura government school teachers, who are set to lose their jobs on December 31 following a Supreme Court verdict, was withdrawn on Saturday.

According to police, braving rains, around 150 teachers demanding continuation of their jobs beyond December 31, since Friday started a blockade of the national highway and the railway line for an indefinite period in Sindhukumar Para in Tripura's Dhalai district.

Dhalai District Magistrate Vikas Singh, district police chief Smriti Ranjan Das, Tripura State Rifles (TSR) third battalion commandant Prabir Majumder jointly requested the agitators to withdraw their blockade considering the problems faced by the people.

"Following our persuasion, they voluntarily called off their blockades," Das told IANS over phone.

The blockade caused huge hardships to hundreds of passengers and hit the supply of essentials since Friday. The district authorities on Saturday promulgated prohibitory orders under Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code banning the assembly of five or more persons.

A large number of police and TSR personnel led by senior officials have been deployed in the blockade areas. Many goods-laden vehicles and some Agartala-bound trains including Rajdhani Express on Friday were stranded at various locations.

The agitating teachers' spokesman Uttam Kumar Dey had told IANS over phone on Friday night they would continue the road and rail blockade until their jobs are confirmed by the government.

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) on Saturday cancelled all trains running between Tripura and rest of the country due to blockades.

The agitating government teachers, however, threatened to launch agitations if their jobs were not regularised or confirmed after December 31.

On Thursday, around 1,000 teachers held a demonstration in front of the state secretariat and later met Education and Law Minister Tapan Chakraborty, demanding a halt to the termination of their jobs.

Chakraborty, during the 90-minute meeting, told the delegation that the state government had filed a petition before the Supreme Court, urging it to extend the termination deadline for one more year.

"The government is sympathetic towards the agony of these government teachers. We are exploring various legal options and considering suggestions of the legal experts including senior lawyers of the apex court to save the jobs of these teachers," Chakraborty told IANS.

He said the Supreme Court will hear the state government's pleas on December 11.

"As suggested by some opposition legislators, there is no question of convening a special session of the Tripura Assembly to enact any law to protect the services of the 10,323 teachers since, according to legal experts, it would constitute contempt of the Supreme Court," the minister said.

The Supreme Court in an order on March 29 had upheld the Tripura High Court verdict, terminating the jobs of 10,323 government teachers citing some indiscretion.

In an apparent move to circumvent the apex court order, the Tripura government in May announced the recruitment of 12,000 non-teaching staff in the Education Department. This was to ostensibly "accommodate" the 10,323 teachers facing the axe following the court verdict.
Gandhinagar, Dec 10 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused a group of Congress leaders of meeting Pakistan's High Commissioner at party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence before the latter called him (Modi) "neech".

Addressing an election rally at Sanand, Modi said the meeting at Aiyar's residence was also attended by former Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Continuing his attack on the Congress, Modi said: "There was a meeting convened at Aiyar's residence where Pakistan's High Commissioner, Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Ansari and Manmohan Singh were present. The meeting lasted three hours.

"The next day Mani Shankar said I am a 'neech'," said the Prime Minister.

Modi went on: "I ask you, brothers and sisters, why did they have to have a meeting with Pakistani officials. Pakistan is our enemy. You (Congress) meet them and the next day call me 'neech'.

"Isn't this a thing to worry about? Does it not raise doubts? There is something dubious here, isn't it? You should have ensured the presence of government officials at the meeting. Why are you holding meetings with our enemy neighbour in secrecy?"

"Isn't calling me 'neech' insulting to Gujarat? Isn't it insulting to the country? Insulting to the government whom the people voted to power?"

The Prime Minister added that a former Pakistan Army general, Arshad Rafiq, has announced that he favoured Congress MP Ahmed Patel as the Gujarat Chief Minister.

"Why? You are in Pakistan. Why are you interested in our country's affairs?

"Brothers and sisters, isn't this alarming? All this and the meeting at Aiyar's residence. What is all this? My friends, you should give me a promise that you will root out the Congress and give a thumping victory to the BJP at every booth in Ahmedabad."
Accra, Dec 11 : For real development to be realized in Africa, women need to be given their rightful place at the decision making table at country and continental levels, says a young Ghanaian official.

Speaking to Xinhua after the African Union Women Delegates Conference here last week where she addressed young female delegates from 50 African countries, Lydia Atiemo, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the west African country's Youth Employment Agency spoke strongly about the need for African women to participate in national and continental politics.

"Women must be part of the development process from inception stage through implementation stage, not just filling the space but participating in sharing ideas and expertise to move our countries forward," she said.

Acknowledging the positive steps being taken in Ghana, including the Affirmative Action to create more room for female participation in governance at all levels, she also urged women to position themselves well to take advantage of the opportunities.

"Too many women find it difficult to come out in the open to participate in politics because of the wrong impression that women in politics tend to be sexually promiscuous," she said, calling on society to encourage women who have been bold enough to venture into national governance.

She said women who are in positions of trust must not just occupy the space but become influencers of decision: "Be there because you want to effect change and be part of the change."

Tessa Dooms, Managing Director of Youth Lab, a South Africa-based policy think tank, at the conference also urged fellow African women to stop thinking that somebody needed to favour them in politics.

"Women who are for change in the status quo must not seek favours but must strive to carve a niche for themselves in order to make it in leadership," she said.

Dooms urged young ladies also to learn to engage in volunteerism and humanitarian work as a foundation to leadership, advocating for women to be one another's keeper.

Women seeking to be in leadership should learn to develop strong personalities to be able to withstand the scorn and name-calling that come from their competitors, she added.

Also in an interview, Fatimatu Abubakar, Deputy Director of Communications for Ghana's President, cautioned young women against networking with corrupt politicians.

In Ghana, Abubakar expressed satisfaction that women have the liberty to do what they desire to do in politics, although women still stay back from taking advantage of the opportunity to seek election into offices such as parliament.
Jammu, Dec 11 : A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) of the Army has been injured in Pakistan firing on the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district.

The incident occurred when the Pakistani Army violated ceasefire in the Nowshera sector of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday evening, a police officer said.

The injured was shifted to hospital, he added.
Srinagar, Dec 11 : Two militants were killed in a gunfight on Monday with the security forces and another was arrested in north Kashmir's Kupwara district.

"In Handwara encounter so far two terrorists neutralised," Director General of Police (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir, S.P.Vaid, tweeted.

Following specific information about the presence of militants in Unsoo village, the security forces surrounded it. As they were closing in on the hide out, they were fired upon triggering the encounter.

A third militant was apprehended in injured condition, the police chief said. "The operation is still going on."
Mumbai, Dec 11 : Actress Juhi Chawla is glad that the Maharashtra government is banning use of plastic bags from next year. The government plans to make Maharashtra plastic-free beginning May 2018.

The government is planning a ban on plastic bottles from early 2018 in government offices, educational institutions, and functions organized by the state before the ban is extended to private offices.

Juhi took part in the Cuffe Parade Residents Association (CPRA) organised 'Plastic Free Cuffe Parade' walk on Sunady. "I am happy that it has started and it should grow."

"When I heard that the Maharashtra government and the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), has taken the decision that by next Gudi Padwa, all plastic bags will be banned, it made me very happy," said the former Miss India.

"I would never back a move without a good reasons. Most people will wonder, how it can be done, as this is so convenient. But this is important.

"Thousands and millions of animals and birds die every day because of plastic, our water is getting polluted, so tomorrow, what will our children eat or drink?" added the Bollywood star. "So it's more harm than useful."

"In 2014, Supreme Court observed that if plastic bags are not banned or manufacturers didn't take the plastic bag and did something with it, the harmful effects would be so severe, it will be worse than an atom bomb," she said.

Juhi says that this is big issue.

"Don't just think this is garbage as this is poisonous garbage, which has piled up so much in the environment that not just Maharashtra but the entire world is planning to do something about it. Recently Kenya banned the plastic bags throughout the country" added the actress.

Juhi also spoke about "Citizens of Tomorrow" and "Swachh Bharata initiative.

"Join Citizens for Tomorrow' and together we will tackle this issue and make our country clean. And if Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, Swachh Bharat, then we will do it," she told media.

Juhi's next film is with Vidhu Vinod Chopra production.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged the European Union to follow U.S. President Donald Trump's lead and recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, but EU ministers shook their heads at Trump's move.

Netanyahu, arriving for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, said Trump's move made peace in the Middle East possible "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace."

But even Israel's closest European allies such as the Czech Republic warned Trump's decision was bad for peace efforts, while France insisted Jerusalem's status could only be agreed in a final deal between Israelis and Palestinians.

Asked by reporters about Trump's decision to switch the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said: "I'm afraid it can't help us."

Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EU's search for closer business ties with Iran, said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by Europe, should be emulated by them.

"It's time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem," he said, after flying into Brussels from Paris after a meeting on Sunday with France's President Emmanuel Macron.

"I believe that, even though we don't have an agreement yet, this is what will happen in the future. I believe that all, or most, of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace."

Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which many in Israel saw as an endorsement of Trump's move.

But Prague later said it accepted Israel's sovereignty only over West Jerusalem.

EU foreign ministers reiterated the EU position that the lands Israel has occupied since a 1967 war - including the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights - are not part of the internationally recognised borders of Israel.

"I'm convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution," Zaoralek said as he and his counterparts arrived for a breakfast with Netanyahu. "We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state."

STILL AWAITING U.S. PEACE PLAN

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian urged Washington to come forward with peace plans that are being drawn up by Jason Greenblatt, Trump's Middle East envoy, and Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner.

"We've been waiting already for several months for the American initiative, and if one is not forthcoming that the European Union will have to take the initiative," Le Drian said.

The EU believes it has a duty to make its voice heard as the Palestinians' biggest aid donor and Israel's biggest trade partner, even if EU governments have varying degrees of sympathy towards Israel and the Palestinians.

Some in Israel see the European Union as being too pro-Palestinian because it insists products made in illegal Israeli settlements must be clearly labelled in Europe.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, welcoming Netanyahu on the first visit to the EU by an Israeli premier in 22 years, that the bloc would continue to recognise the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.

She repeated the Union's commitment to a two-state solution and that it was in Israel's interest to find a sustainable solution to its conflict with the Palestinians. The EU, she said, would step up its peace efforts and would hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas next month.

She also condemned attacks on Israel and on Jews elsewhere in the world, including in Europe. Trump's plan to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has prompted sometimes violent protests.

A demonstration condemning Netanyahu's visit was planned for later in the morning in Brussels.

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New Delhi, Dec 11 : External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with her Chinese and Russian counterparts Wang Yi and Sergey Lavrov held the 15th Russia-India-China trilateral meeting here on Monday.

"Towards global and regional peace, security and stability," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted of the meeting.

Kumar had said last week that the three countries would discuss global and regional issues.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that the talks were expected to focus on security and trade issues in the region and elsewhere.

The discussions would also include the situation in Afghanistan, the Middle East and the Korean peninsula, it said.

Wang Yi's visit is the first high-level visit from China after Indian and Chinese troops were involved a tense face-off position in the Doklam region of the border earlier this year.
Damascus, Dec 11 : Visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria.

The Russian leader made the announcement at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria's coastal province of Latakia, reports the Independent.

Accompanied by Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu, Putin said Russian and Syrian Armies had destroyed "one of the most capable groups of international terrorists" in just over two years.

The visit marks Putin's first trip to Syria and comes as President Bashar Assad's regime's forces have retaken control over most of Syria under Russian air cover.
Chennai, Dec 11 : Apollo Munich Health Insurance Company Ltd plans to expand by opening around 40 branches a year over the next two-three years, a company official said on Monday.

The stand-alone health insurance company is expected to close this fiscal with a total premium of around Rs 1,700 crore, Krishnan Ramachandran, the company's Deputy Chief Executive Officer, told the media here.

He said the company closed last year with a total premium income of around Rs 1,300 crore. "By the end of this month our total premium income for the current year will be around Rs 1,000 crore."

"We have 158 offices now. Our plan is to add 40 branches per year over the next two-three years. The opportunity is immense as health insurance has not penetrated in the country to a large extent," he added.

He said as per the company's plans, each branch would turn profitable within three years.

The process of linking policyholders' Aadhaar Card numbers with their policies is progressing smoothly, said Ramachandran who was here to launch the company's new health insurance product 'Health Wallet'.

According to him, 55 per cent of the company's total business is from individual agents (average premium per policy is around Rs 15,000), 25 per cent from bancassurer (banks selling insurance policies as corporate agents), five per cent direct and the balance from brokers and other channels.

He said the company is yet to post underwriting profit (premium minus claims paid) while it is profitable overall.

According to Ramachandran, the company processed claims in-house for three years which led to significant cost reduction of around Rs 40 crore.

Queried about the third-party claims administrators (TPA) -- agencies that process health insurance claims for non-life insurers -- Ramachandran said: "The TPAs need to evolve further by investing in technology."

He said compared to other non-life insurance products, the claims frequency is relatively higher in the case of health insurance. Hence the policyholders have to be satisfied as settlement of claims is the core promise made by an insurer to the insured.

On the launch of new products, the official said 3-4 products are at various stages of evolution and would be launched in the near future.

Agreeing that the company is not focusing on the overseas travel insurance Ramachandran said the domestic health insurance segment is so huge to cater to and hence the company is not currently focused on that segment.

Queried about raising further capital for business needs, Ramachandran said the company raised Rs 75 crore as Tier II capital which is enough for the business for the near term.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : Rahul Gandhi, who is putting up a spirited campaign against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat, was on Monday elected the President of the Congress, taking over from his mother who had helmed the countrys oldest party for 19 long years.

The 47-year-old Rahul will formally take over the reins of the grand old party on December 16, two days before the counting of votes for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections, the outcome of which could be a trendsetter ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Congress leader Mullappally Ramachandran told the media that a total of 89 nomination papers proposing the name of Rahul Gandhi for Congress President were received. All the nomination papers were found valid.

"Since the withdrawal date and time is over and as there is only one candidate, as per Article XVIII(d) of the Constitution of Indian National Congress, I hereby declare Rahul Gandhi elected as President of the Indian National Congress," he said.

Marking a generational shift, Rahul Gandhi will be the sixth Nehru-Gandhi scion to helm the party, taking over from his mother Sonia Gandhi who steered it through an era during which it was in power from 2004 to 2014.

"This is a historic occasion. The handing over of the certificate of election is scheduled to be held on December 16," Ramachandran said.

He said Rahul Gandhi was a stickler for rules and was particular about ensuring that the elections were conducted in a transparent and meaningful manner.

"Both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi never interfered with the election authority. We were given complete freedom to execute the onerous responsibility," he said.

Rahul Gandhi, who filed his nomination for the President's post on December 4, had been the party Vice President for over four years since 2013.

Among the proposers of 89 nominations -- all in support of Gandhi -- was former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who called Rahul Gandhi the "darling" of the party. Manmohan Singh accompanied Gandhi when he filed the nomination papers.

Originally 90 nomination forms were issued but one could not be filed as there were not enough number of proposers.

Hundreds of Congress workers and leaders from across the country thronged the party office and celebrated the announcement of Rahul Gandhi's elevation by bursting crackers and dancing to the beat of drums.
Kolkata, Dec 11 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the Narendra Modi-led Central government of not aiding her state the way it aids the others as her government opposes its policies.

"The Central government does not provide necessary monitory support to Bengal, rather they take the money away. We are still paying Rs 40,000 crore every year as part of the state's debt to the Centre acquired during the Left Front regime," she said in a public meeting in Bardhaman district's Kanksa.

"The crops were wasted in parts of the country due to the untimely rain and flood. The Centre has aided Assam and Bihar but haven't sent any aid to Bengal. The Centre thinks they would hit us economically as our government oppose their policies," she alleged.

The Trinamool Congress supremo also accused the Centre's ruling BJP of talking in the language of communalism in Bengal but asserted that her government would not be provoked to reply in the same language.

"BJP is using the language of communalism. We would not reply to them in that language. We have many other languages to communicate. We prefer to talk in those languages. Our government is for mother, land and people. It is not for someone specific. It is everyone," she said.

Referring to the the brutall killing of an Bengali labourer in Rajasthan, Banerjee said there are repeated incidents of violence and hate crimes against the minority and dalits in the BJP governed states.

"What are they (BJP) up to? A Dalit family in Gujrat went to watch a cultural programme, they were lynched. A person in Rajasthan protested against the banning of the film 'Padmavati', he was hanged till death, another person came to work in Rajasthan was burnt alive. Why would these things happen?" she asked.

Taking a swipe at the BJP leaders in Bengal, Banerjee said: "People of Bengal should politically drive them away so that they can never come back."
New Delhi, Dec 11 : Ridley Scott's "All The Money In The World", in which Christopher Plummer replaced actor Kevin Spacey at the last minute following sexual harassment accusations, will release in India on January 5 next year.

The film is being brought to India by PVR Pictures, read a statement.

It was announced in November that 58-year-old Spacey would be cut out of Scott's biopic, which would have seen him take on the role of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. The decision was made after the actor faced a slew of sexual assault allegations.

"All The Money In The World" follows Getty's grandson John Paul Getty III, who was kidnapped by an organised crime regime, and his mother Gail's (Michelle Williams) attempts to convince his wealthy grandfather to pay the ransom.

Plummer re-shot all the scenes already filmed by Spacey. It also stars Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, and will open in the US on December 25.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : A "deeply pained and anguished" former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat election and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

In an unusually hard-hitting statement, Manmohan Singh denied allegations by Modi that he and others, including former Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Army Chief Gen. Deepak Kapoor, invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats discussed the Gujarat election.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than ... Modi," the senior Congress leader said.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

"Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Manmohan Singh added.

The statement follows Modi's allegations at an election rally in Gujarat that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh, Ansari and Gen. Kapoor, discussed the Gujarat polls with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister, Khurshid Kasuri, among others, suggesting that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in the state.

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election and on the other Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house," Modi said.

Manmohan Singh made public the guest list at Aiyar's in Delhi. Those present included former External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh, former Foreign Secretary Salman Haider, former High Commissioners of India to Pakistan T.C.A. Raghavan, Satinder K. Lambah, Sharad Sabharwal and M.K. Bhadrakumar and India's former Permanent Representative to the UN, C.R. Gharekhan.

Also present in the meeting were academician Kanti Bajpai and journalists Prem Shankar Jha, Ajai Shukla and Rahul Singh.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner," Manmohan Singh said.

"The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," he added.

Manmohan Singh said the Congress needed "no sermons on 'nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

"Let me remind Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic air base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

Manmohan Singh went on: "I sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

The Congress also demanded an apology from Modi for accusing it of "colluding and conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections".

"We have full faith that the Gujarat electorate is intelligent and mature enough to understand the tactics behind yesterday's address (by Modi) and will answer them in the second phase," Congress leader Anand Sharma told the media here.

"It was not a secret meeting.... The Prime Minister is giving it a sinister and sensational twist. The Prime Minister should restore the dignity of political discourse, and apologise to the former Vice President and the former Prime Minister.

"It is clear that he has done so with the intent to confuse and mislead the people of Gujarat for the second phase of the elections, to whip emotions and to polarize. It is outrageous."

But the BJP questioned why it took the Congress over 48 hours to accept that a "hush hush" meeting with the Pakistani envoy and a former Pakistani Minister took place.

"Why was the MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) India not in the loop? Why do Congress leaders meet China and Pakistan envoys secretly?" BJP spokesperson G.V.L. Narasimha Rao asked.

Pakistan also rebuffed the allegations of a secret meeting between Congress leaders and its High Commissioner, saying India should stop "dragging" Islamabad into its electoral debate and termed Modi's remark as "baseless and irresponsible".
Istanbul, Dec 11 : Abdulkadir Masharipov, an Uzbek national who shot dead 39 people at a nightclub here on the first day of this year, went on trial on Monday with 56 other suspects.

Masharipov confessed to the mass shooting at Reina nightclub on New Year's Eve which left 69 others injured, Xinhua news agency reported.

The gunman was charged mainly with "attempting to remove the constitutional order," "deliberately killing and deliberately attempting to kill" and "being a member of an armed terrorist organization," the NTV news channel said, as the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the shooting spree.

NTV said the prosecutors are asking for 40 times aggravated life sentences plus 1,555 to 2,397 years in jail for Masharipov.

They also want 40 times aggravated life sentences plus up to 2,385 years in jail for Zarina Nurullayeva, wife of the gunman, and two others accused of masterminding the attack.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : After the Pakistan Foreign Office said India should stop "dragging" Islamabad into its electoral debate, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday retorted saying it should not give lessons to India on democracy as it is well known to the entire world how the neighbouring country acts against terrorism.

"It is well known to the world how Pakistan acts towards terrorism and how few agencies there promote terrorism in India and in Jammu and Kashmir," Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters here.

The Law Minister said the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi win elections with the blessings of the people. "Pakistan should stop giving us lessons. We are proud of our democracy," he said.

"Who will win the elections will be decided by the people," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader asserted.

Hitting out at Congress leader Anand Sharma, the Union Minister said, "One thing is very strange that Anand Sharma has given a statement yesterday (Sunday) that no such meeting (between Congress leaders and the Pakistan envoy) has taken place.

"But in today's newspaper there were entire details of who from the Pakistan side and from Congress side attended the meeting," he said.

He also said that it was "very strange" that such a meeting is happening when the Gujarat Assembly elections are going on.

Prasad's remark came hours after Pakistan Foreign Ministry said that India should stop dragging it into its electoral debate and win on their own strength.

On Sunday, while addressing a rally in Sanand Prime Minister Modi had asked about the "secret meeting" of top Pakistani officials at the residence of now-suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar in New Delhi.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : A kidnapped businessman was rescued on Monday and the abductors, including an ex-employee, arrested, police said.

Manish Kumar, 23, and his accomplice, Satnam Singh, 44, kidnapped Saurabh Gupta, 28, while he was returning home from his showroom - of a chain store of electronics - in west Delhi's Paschim Vihar on Saturday, police said.

On December 10, the victim's father realised his son did not return home last night. Soon, he got a ransom call of Rs 5 crore, after which he informed police.

"Gupta, a resident of Karampura, went to his showroom in Paschim Vihar on Saturday. At night, when he left for home in his car, Kumar and Singh kidnapped him at gun point, and drugged him," said Deputy Commissioner of Police M.N. Tiwari.

They then drove to Haryana's Bahadurgarh to make the ransom call so as to mislead police about their location, he said.

"Gupta was rescued and the kidnappers arrested today (Monday) from a house in Nilothi Extension after a police team conducted a door-to-door survey of over 250 houses," he said, adding that police zeroed in on the area as they were still tracking the phone from which the ransom call had been made.

"During interrogation, Kumar told police that they were in urgent need of money and hence planned the kidnapping. They also rented a room to keep their hostage," the officer said.

The two accused are residents of Tilak Nagar area of west Delhi. Kumar had five years ago worked in the victim's Karol Bagh's shop.
The secretary general of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said on Monday that the Arab nations' rejection of the recent US decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel serves as an affirmation of their recognition of the state of Palestine.

Aboul Gheit made the comments during his speech to an emergency meeting of the Arab Parliament in Cairo to respond to US President Donald Trump's Wednesday's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The Arab Parliament President Mishaal bin Fahd al-Salami had called on Thursday for the emergency meeting of the parliament following Trump's announcement.

In 2013, in a move largely orchestrated to pressure the international community to step up efforts to implement UN decisions to end the decades-old Israeli occuption, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared an independent state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Abbas announced the move before the United Nations General Assemby.

By late 2015, the UNGA announced that 136 out of 193 member states had decared their recogntion of the Palestinian state.

However, Israel and the United States rejected the declaration, and then US President Barack Obama said his country would veto any United Nations Security Council move to recognize Palestinian statehood.

On Saturday, the foreign ministers of Arab countries called during an emergency meeting on the US to revoke Trump's Jerusalem decision and demanded the creation of a Palestinian state on 4 June, 1967 lines.

More to follow.

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New Delhi, December 11 : A division bench of the supreme court headed by chief justice Dipak Misra on Monday slapped a contempt of court notice on the CPI(M)-led LDF government in Kerala for dragging its feet on implementing a January 2017 order of the court directing it to pay compensation to victims of Endosulfan poisoning.

The apex court was hearing a batch of petitions by Endosulfan victims seeking to initiate contempt of court proceedings against the Kerala government over its failure to comply with the courts direction to compensate victims of the spraying of the hazardous pesticide.

In January 2017, the supreme court had directed the Kerala government to implement within three months a national human rights commission recommendation to provide solatium of Rs. 5 lakh each to the victims of Endosulfan poisoning.

Ticking off the state government over the inordinate delay in implementing the January verdict, the apex court on Monday asked the Kerala chief secretary to file an affidavit setting out details regarding compensation dispensed so far to the Endosulfan victims.

Appearing for the petitioners, advocate Kaleeswaram Raj submitted before the court that the Kerala government had thus far paid compensation to only 1,350 out of the 5,209 persons eligible to receive compensation.

The counsel for the state government told the court that the process of dispensing compensation to the eligible persons was afoot and that the state government was confident of completing the process soon.

Meanwhile, victims of Endosulfan poisoning under the banner of an action council resumed their agitation demanding compensation from the state government.

The action council had staged an agitation in front of the state secretariat more than a year ago during the tenure of the previous UDF government against the governments failure to pay compensation.

Incidentally, the leaders of the LDF, then in opposition, had expressed solidarity with the victims by calling on them at the venue of the agitation and had castigated the then congress-led UDF government for ignoring their plight.
Bhubaneswar, Dec 11 : An attempt to click a selfie with a wild elephant cost a youth his life, as the tusker trampled him to death near a temple in Khamar forest range of Odisha's Angul district on Monday.

The incident took place when the villagers were trying to chase the elephant back to the herd and the youth came closer to the tusker to click a selfie near the temple.

The youth has been identified as Jayakrushna Nayak of Nimidibeda village under Pallahara area.

"Forest officials including villagers were trying to send the jumbo back to the herd," said Dibya Lochan Patra, Khamar forester.

Nayak sustained serious injuries and was rushed to the Khamar community hospital where he died under treatment.
New York, Dec 11 : At least one person was injured in an explosion, said to be a suicide bombing, early on Monday at a bus terminal near the iconic Times Square in Manhattan, police said. One suspect has been taken into custody.

The explosion took place at the Port Authority Bus Terminal and police sources said it was possibly caused by a pipe bomb, ABC News reported.

The would-be suicide bomber set off the device at the bus terminal subway station, injuring himself, reported the New York Post, citing law enforcement sources. The suspected bomber - who had wires attached to him - was armed with a pipe bomb and a battery pack, and was taken into custody after the device partially detonated inside the passageway, said sources. He has been admitted to hospital.

Earlier the New York Police Department, in a tweet, said it was responding to "reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan" and the "A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time".

The Port Authority is a transportation hub where buses and trains operate from the west side of midtown Manhattan.
Imphal/New Delhi, Dec 11 : Three passengers were arrested on Monday at the airport in Manipur capital Imphal on the charge of smuggling after they were found to have concealed gold bars worth Rs 51 lakh in their rectums, a CISF official said.

Noor Mohammed, Azmal Hussain and Sahid Ahamed were held around 2.30 p.m. after frisking in the security hold area of the airport. They were to take an IndiGo flight to Kolkata.

"During frisking, we found the presence of some metal in the body of the three passengers, following which they revealed they had concealed two gold bars each in their rectums," Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Assistant Inspector General Hemendra Singh told IANS.

The passengers were handed over to Customs officials, who seized six gold bars weighing approximately 1,730 gm from them, he added.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : A "deeply pained and anguished" former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat election and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

In an unusually hard-hitting statement, Manmohan Singh denied allegations by Modi that he and others, including former Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Army Chief Gen. Deepak Kapoor, invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats, discussed the Gujarat election.

The BJP fielded Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to rebut Manmohan Singh's charge, saying that the former Prime Minister should admit that engaging with Pakistan at this moment was a "misadventure" for which he should apologize instead of demanding one from Modi.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than ... Modi," Manmohan Singh said.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable.

"Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Manmohan Singh added.

The statement follows Modi's allegations at an election rally in Gujarat that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh, Ansari and Gen. Kapoor, discussed the Gujarat polls with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister, Khurshid Kasuri, among others, suggesting that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in the state.

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election and on the other Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house," Modi said.

Manmohan Singh made public the guest list at Aiyar's in Delhi. Those present included former External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh, former Foreign Secretary Salman Haider, former High Commissioners of India to Pakistan T.C.A. Raghavan, Satinder K. Lambah, Sharad Sabharwal and M.K. Bhadrakumar and India's former Permanent Representative to the UN, C.R. Gharekhan.

Also present in the meeting were academician Kanti Bajpai and journalists Prem Shankar Jha, Ajai Shukla and Rahul Singh.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner," Manmohan Singh said.

"The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," he added.

Manmohan Singh said the Congress needed "no sermons on 'nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

"Let me remind Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic air base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

Manmohan Singh went on: "I sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

Talking to the media, Jaitley said the former Prime Minister and the Congress should come out with facts as to what happened in the meeting and what was the need to have it.

Referring to Manmohan Singh's attack on the government's policy towards tackling terrorism, the Finance Minister said the government has a track record which no other government in the past can boast of.

"On Sunday, the Congress was in a denial mode (about the dinner). Instead of accepting it as a misadventure, they are trying to blame us. They should apologise to the people instead of seeking apologies from us."

The Congress also demanded an apology from Modi for accusing it of "colluding and conspiring with Pakistan for Gujarat elections".

"We have full faith that the Gujarat electorate is intelligent and mature enough to understand the tactics behind yesterday's address (by Modi) and will answer them in the second phase," Congress leader Anand Sharma told the media here.

"It was not a secret meeting.... The Prime Minister is giving it a sinister and sensational twist. The Prime Minister should restore the dignity of political discourse, and apologise to the former Vice President and the former Prime Minister.

"It is clear that he has done so with the intent to confuse and mislead the people of Gujarat for the second phase of the elections, to whip emotions and to polarize. It is outrageous."

Sharma said India is not a police state where "we should seek Prime Minister's permission" for hosting dinners.

On its part, Pakistan also rebuffed the allegations of a secret meeting between Congress leaders and its High Commissioner, saying India should stop "dragging" Islamabad into its electoral debate and termed Modi's remarks as "baseless and irresponsible".

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram in a tweet said: "Former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh is absolutely right in demanding an apology for the outrageous allegation made yesterday against the former Vice President (Hamid Ansari) and former Prime Minister and other distinguished former civil servants."
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu addresses during a programme organised by National Human Rights Commission on Human Rights Day in New Delhi on Dec 10, 2017. Image Source: IANS/PIB

New Delhi, Dec 11 : Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said political parties should sit together and discuss if the minimum number of sittings of Parliament needed to be fixed, and also recommended automatic suspension of members who rush near the presiding officer 's podium in the house.

The Vice President, who will preside over the Rajya Sabha as Chairman for the first time this winter session, suggested that legislatures may put out in public domain the names of members who disrupt house proceedings with an observation that they have violated rules in disregard of the Chair's directions and thereby adversely impacted house functioning.

Naidu also suggested a 10 point charter to ensure effective functioning of legislatures in the country, so that people's respect for the democratic institution can be sustained. These includes devising methods to calculate productivity of the legislature, ranking legislative bodies in the country, and having a quorum for opposition parties as well.

"There is a serious need to consider a proposal that Parliament should meet for at least 100 days a year. Political parties need to seriously consider the minimum number of days for which Parliament should meet," he said, while delivering a lecture on "Importance of Legislatures" organised by thinktank PRS Legislative Research.

His comments come at a time when opposition parties have accused the government of undermining the importance of Parliament by delaying the winter session. The session was delayed due to the Gujarat assembly elections and will now be conducted from December 15 to January 1.

The Vice President also said that to address the "menace" of members rushing towards the presiding officer's podium, there was a need for specific provisions in the rules of business for "automatic suspension" of those who do so, adding that a consensus in this regard needs to be evolved.

Naidu also voiced concern over the low number of sittings of assemblies in the states.

"State assemblies met for 29 days, on an average. In general, the duration of meetings has been constantly decreasing. Of these, sometimes the opposition boycotts the assembly session. Some states like Kerala met for a longer period," he said.

Naidu also called for passing the bill on reservation to women in Parliament and assemblies, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010.

The Vice President said contrary to perception, Parliament works round the year with its Ministry-related Standing Committees and other panels enhancing its efficacy in legislative, deliberative and overseeing functions.

Giving out figures, Naidu said the First Lok Sabha had 677 sittings and passed 319 bills during 1952-57, as compared with 332 sittings and passage of 247 bills of the 14th Lok Sabha during 2004-09. The 15th Lok Sabha had 357 sittings and approved 181 bills.

He said that from these statistics, it would not be correct to conclude that Parliament is shirking its responsibilities, adding that there was need to pass more legislation after Independence.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : Wading into the controversy, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said instead of seeking an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should apologise for "violating" the national policy on terrorism and make public the details of what transpired at the dinner meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house.

Responding to a sharp attack by Singh on Modi, Jaitley said when there is a national position that there can be no dialogue with Pakistan till it keeps sponsoring terrorism in India, being the principal opposition party, the Congress should have abided by it.

"But people in Congress like Mani Shankar Aiyar never abide by this national position. Their position is that let Pakistan sponsor terrorism in our country but we will maintain our friendship with it," he told the media here calling the dinner diplomacy a "misadventure" like the one that took place in Sharm-al-Sheikh, Egypt.

The Finance Minister said the nation had never accepted the policy being advocated by people like Aiyar.

"Instead of admitting that their misadventure was a mistake, the Congress is instead asking for an apology from the Prime Minister for flagging the issue. This is beyond comprehension.

"It is them (Congress leaders) who should apologise for violating the national policy on Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and explain what was the need for the meeting, why it happened and what transpired during the meeting," he said.

Jaitley's remarks came after Manmohan Singh issued a statement accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat elections and asked him to "apologize to the nation".

At an election rally in Gujarat, Modi had alleged that guests at Aiyar's house, including Manmohan Singh and former Vice President Hamid Ansari, discussed the Gujarat election with Pakistan's High Commissioner to India and a former Pakistani Foreign Minister among others.

On former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's questioning the "compromised track record" of the Modi-led government on fighting terrorism, Jaitley said no government in the past had the track record of countering terrorism like the current BJP government.
Nagpur, Dec 11 : On his 77th birthday on Tuesday, veteran politician and NCP President Sharad Pawar will hit the streets, leading a 'Halla Bol' procession against Maharashtra's BJP-Shiv Sena government and address a rally jointly with Congress, a party official said.

The rally will be taken out in from Dhanwate National College grounds in Nagpur at noon in which the state Congress President Ashok Chavan, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and other top leaders from both the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party will take part, said NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik.

Pawar will address a rally with at least a dozen top leaders from both parties, besides leaders of other smaller and regional parties like the Samajwadi Party, the Peasants & Workers Party, the Republican Party of India, et al, before hitting the road in a procession, coinciding with the winter session of the Maharashtra Legislature which began here on Monday.

The rally is part of the ongoing agiation launched by the NCP on December 1, in different parts of the state intended to "condemn and awaken the sleeping state government on its various unfulfilled promisesa for the people of Maharashtra".

These include the Minimum Support Price for farmers for agriculture produce, the disbursement of the farm loans waiver package announced by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in June, and other issues, said Malik.

Chavan said that it has become a habit for the state government to announce grandiose schemes and then fail to implement them, and it has failed miserably on all fronts and its popularity has plummeted.

"However, now the entire opposition is united in exposing the weak government and our combined rally-cum-march tomorrow will be a success," he said.

The organisers expect over 200,000 people to turn up for the 'Halla Bol' rally, which the state government has dismissed as "a publicity stunt."
New Delhi, Dec 11 : India's accession to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation has not only "significantly increased the political profile and potential" of the grouping, but also the groups capacity to help stabilise the situation in Central and South Asia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov said here on Monday.

Speaking at an event organised by the Vivekananda International Foundation on new vistas of India-Russia relations, the Russian Minister said that India's joining the SCO will also help "resolve the crisis in and around Afghanistan".

Earlier, Lavrov said India's "independent and responsible" foreign policy has been "an important factor contributing to global and regional security and stability" and hoped that this "legacy would be maintained and strengthened".

He said that the current volume of trade between the two countries was not "satisfactory", and said that the aim is to increase this volume to $30 billion by 2025.

He said that as the defence cooperation between the two countries deepens, it will lead to greater transfer of technology and technical know-how from Russia to India.

Lavrov also said the new US strategy of using force in Afghanistan against groups that refuse to cooperate is not likely to work.

"I don't think the recent US strategy on Afghanistan which puts emphasis on use of force to defeat those who refuse to cooperate and engage in violence, frankly, I don't think it would work," Lavrov said in response to a media query.

"Like in the last 16 years, the presence of huge army of NATO did not manage either to curb extremism and terrorism or to stop drug trade which has peaked this year. The production of heroin in Afghanistan may have been quadrupled since 9/11," he said.

"It is to be understood and accepted that that this is something which feeds terrorist activities directly. And without precursors this drug production would not be possible. Most precursors come from Europe...We should not have double standards towards terrorism," the Minister added.

Lavrov also denied any support given by Russia to the Taliban as was being alleged by the US, and added that Russia's contact with Taliban was only to "pressurise them to sit down and talk".

"Never ever has there been any proof, any fact that Russia supported the Taliban as suggested by the US. We contacted Taliban only for two reasons. One, when our or our allies' citizens came harm's way and we needed to extract them.

"And secondly, to pressurise the Taliban to sit down and negotiate. But we always say that they must join negotiations provided they respect the criteria established by the UN Security Council," Lavrov said.

Adding that he lately heard US officials calling upon Taliban to join negotiations without any criteria being respected, Lavrov told the audience that they could "draw your own conclusions".

Lavrov regretted that the US declined the "Moscow Process" and instead decided to go ahead with the "Six PlusOne" group.

The Six Plus One group formed early last year includes India, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, the US and China in addition to Afghanistan.

He said the situation in Afghanistan could not be resolved without having "everybody" on board, including "the government, the Taliban and those who can really influence the situation, including the neighbours".

He said the Kabul Process initiated by the government of Afghanistan in June this year was "too large" and that a smaller group of countries would be needed to resolve the political situation including all Central Asian countries.
London, Dec 11 : British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday assured European Union citizens living in her country that their rights would be protected in British courts after Brexit.

May's comments came in an open letter in the context of Britain's upcoming withdrawal from the bloc, Efe news agency reported.

"As we take back control of our laws, you can be confident not only that your rights will be protected in our courts, but that there will be a consistent interpretation of these rights in the UK and in the European Union," said May.

The PM acknowledged that more than three million EU citizens had chosen to live and work in the country "without any expectation that the UK would leave the EU".

She added that her "first priority" had been safeguarding the rights of EU citizens in the UK and British nationals living in EU member states.

The PM said that healthcare rights, pensions and other benefit provisions would not change after Brexit, and that if somebody had paid into the system -- either in Britain or in another EU country -- they would be able to benefit from this.

"If you already have five years of continuous residence in the UK at the point we leave the EU, on March 29, 2019, you will be eligible for settled status," she said.

"And if you have been here for less than five years you will be able to stay until you have reached the five-year threshold."

On Friday, Britain and EU reached an agreement in principle on protecting rights of EU and British citizens, the financial settlement and the border with the Republic of Ireland.

The agreement means that both parties are able to move onto the second stage of Brexit negotiations, in which talks trade deals are expected to start.
Thousands of supporters of Lebanon's Hezbollah demonstrated in Beirut on Monday, chanting "Death to America!" and "Death to Israel!" in protest over the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Protesters marched through the Iran-backed Shiite movement's south Beirut bastion, carrying banners reading "Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine" and "Jerusalem is Ours".

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah had called for the demonstration last week after US President Donald Trump decided to upend decades of diplomatic protocol by recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The move has been widely condemned and sparked days of protest across the Middle East.

"Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine and will be until Judgement Day," said Iman Ghadbun, 28, attending the protest with her seven-year-old daughter.

Israel fought a devastating war against Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006 that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 120 Israelis, most of them soldiers.

Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in 2000, ending a 22-year occupation, but the two countries remain technically at war and there have been occasional skirmishes on the border.

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New York, Dec 11 : A Bangladeshi-origin man was arrested on Monday after a "low-tech" suicide bomb he was was allegedly wearing went off injuring him and three others at the city's transportation hub at the start of the rush hour.

Police Commissioner James O'Neil told reporters that 27-year-old Akayed Ullah had on an "improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body," which he "intentionally detonated".

Officials said that Ullah was from Bangladesh and had lived in the city for seven years.

Ullah was taken to a hospital and has made statements to police, O'Neil said, but refused to disclose what he had said.

Asked if the suspect had connections to the Islamic State, the Commissioner refused comment saying the investigations were at a preliminary stage.

O'Neil said that that the joint task force of city and federal officials was carrying out a "thorough background investigation" of Ullah who lived in Brooklyn.

He said three other people sustained minor injuries.

John Miller, the head of police counter-terrorism, said that the device was a pipe bomb attached to Ullah's body with velcro.

The bomb went off in a passageway connecting trains in the Times Square underground metro station adjoining the interstate bus terminal in Manhattan, disrupting the morning commute for thousands of people working in the city.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal was evacuated and shut down as scores buses headed to the city from suburbs and other states, but opened after police scoured it for suspicious objects. The Times Square subway station, the city's busiest, was closed for a while.

This is the second terrorist attack on New York in less than two months. A terrorist drove a truck into pedestrians near the World Trade Center on October 31, killing eight people.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo described Monday's attack as "one of our worst nightmares".

"We are a target," he said, "of those who are against democracy".

New York Mayor Bill De Blasio called it an attempted terrorist attack and added, "Thank God, the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."

He said that the city was on high alert with stepped up police patrols.

A picture taken moments after the blast showed Ullah on the ground with his clothing ripped showing injuries to his abdomen and arms.

Former New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC cable station that man was inspired by the Islamic State and set off the bomb in its name.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)
Chandigarh, Dec 11 : Rape convict Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh has deposited the fine of Rs 30 lakh imposed on him by a CBI special court following his conviction on two counts of rape.

The fine was deposited by the convicted sect chief's counsel in the CBI court in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, court sources said on Monday.

The fine was imposed by the CBI court in August this year when Ram Rahim was convicted for rape of two female disciples.

Ram Rahim had challenged the imposition of the fine in the Punjab and Haryana High Court but the court had told him to deposit the fine first.

The CBI court had, on August 25, sentenced Ram Rahim to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for the rape of the sadhvis in 1999.

Ram Rahim is presently lodged in the District Jail in Sunaria near Rohtak in Haryana, 70 km from New Delhi.
Jaipur, Dec 11 : Representatives of the Akhil Rajasthan Rajya Karamchari Sankyukt Sangarsh Samiti started a 48-hour hunger strike from Monday at district headquarters across Rajasthan to press the demands of state employees, which include implementing recommendation of the Seventh Pay Commission from January 1, 2016.

Initially the employees staged dharna. Later, under the leadership of committee coordinator, Aayu Daan Singh Kaviya, 11 representatives from the committee started a hunger strike amid rains and chilly breeze.

On the occasion, Gajendra Singh Rathore, convener of Akhil Rajasthan Rajya Karamchari Sankyukt Sangarsh Samiti, accused the government of ignoring the core issues of employees. The state government employees are aggrieved owing to the "indifferent attitude" of the government, he added.

He warned the government of serious consequences if the demands of employees remain unmet.

On December 12, the entire state government machinery will stage a protest in the name of pen down and tool down where no employee will contribute to any kind of work.

The state secretariat will also extend its cooperation in this protest and boycott work.

On December 13, massive protests will be staged across the state in respective headquarters and then a memorandum in the name of the Chief Minister will be submitted to respective district collectors.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : A month after India joined the US, Japan and Australia for the first Quadrilateral dialogue on the Asia-Pacific, Russia on Monday said that a "sustainable security architecture" in the region cannot be achieved through "closed bloc" arrangements.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking at an event organised by the Vivekananda Foundation, also stressed that India-Russia cooperation can help find "durable solutions" to regional challenges.

"We believe sustainable security architecture in Asia-Pacific region cannot be achieved through closed bloc arrangement, and it is only possible on an open-ended collective basis, building upon the principles of indivisible security, role of international law, peaceful settlement of disputes, non-use of force or threat of force," Lavrov said at the talk on 'New vistas in India-Russia relations'.

"Indian and Russian cooperation can help find durable solutions to the numerous challenges in the Asia-Pacific region," he added.

Lavrov's observation came in the background of India, Japan, US and Australia holding talks on cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, in the wake of China's increasing presence and influence in the region.

Relations between India and Russia are perceived to be not as warm as they used to be with India leaning closer to the US.

To a question on China's ambitious connectivity corridor OBOR, he said: "We believe China has a concept which is interesting and needs to be explored in the context of building some harmonious relationship in the Eurasian continent. I know India has problems with concept of One-Belt-one Road, but the specific problem in this regard should not make everything else conditional."

He said Russia too has signed documents with China on OBOR.

He also said India has enough smart diplomats and politicians to find a way to benefit from the OBOR process and not having at the same time to sacrifice principles.

India has refused to be part of OBOR citing sovereignty issues as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor passes through Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Cairo, Dec 11 : Egypt and Russia signed on Monday an agreement to build Egypt's first nuclear power plant.

The agreement was inked by Egyptian Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker and Russian Nuclear Corporation Rosatom's chief Alexei Likhachev, in the presence of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his visiting Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Xinhua reported.

In February 2015, Putin and Sisi signed an initial agreement here to build a four-reactor nuclear power station in Egypt by 2022.

In May 2016, Egypt approved the use of a loan of $25 billion from Russia for the nuclear power plant construction.

Under the deal, Moscow will provide 80 per cent of the foreign components of the plant, while Egypt provides 20 per cent.

The plant will be erected in Dabaa city in Egypt's coastal Matrouh province.

The Russian President arrived here on Monday from Damacus, where he ordered the withdrawal of most Russian troops from Syria.
Madrid, Dec 11 : Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Monday that whatever the results in the Catalan regional elections on December 21, he had no intention of calling a general election.

Polls predict that the December 21 vote will be very close between parties in favor and against Catalan independence, although Rajoy's Peoples' Party is expected to lose votes and seats and take less than six percent of the total vote, Xinhua reported.

However, speaking at a meeting organised by Europa Press, Rajoy insisted people should not pay too much attention to opinion polls, and said that even if a bad result did happen, it would not force him to the national polls before the scheduled date of June 2020.

"There doesn't have to be any early general elections as a result of the elections in Catalonia.

"Mandates usually last for four years, unless there are exceptional circumstances," said Rajoy, who refused to say whether he would be a candidate for a third mandate, explaining it was a decision he would take "in the future".
New Delhi, Dec 11 : Rahul Gandhi's long-delayed elevation as party chief is almost over as he was on Monday elected Congress President at a time when the party is facing an "existential crisis". His main challenge remains the revamping of party organisation, apart from electoral battles in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Gandhi will formally take over the reins of the grand old party on December 16, two days before the counting of votes for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh assembly elections, the outcome of which could be a trendsetter ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Gandhi, 47, who would take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi who had helmed the country's oldest party for 19 long years, will be the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to take the top position of the 132-year-old party.

The outcome of the Gujarat polls would be interpreted in terms of Rahul Gandhi's ability as a "campaigner and vote-getter".

The next round of assembly polls in 2018 -- first in Karnataka and later in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh -- will be very crucial for Gandhi in order to build the momentum to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha polls.

The state elections, with Bharatiya Janata Party as the key rival, will also be the first major polls directly under Rahul Gandhi's charge as party chief. Assembly polls will also be held early next year in Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.

The challenges for Rahul Gandhi include infusing fresh energy and life in Congress workers and evolving a proper strategy to galvanise the party, following a string of electoral losses since the 2014 Lok Sabha debacle.

Gandhi has to be decisive on forging a larger opposition alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls under a "collective leadership" or even projecting himself as the alternative to Modi with the support of different parties.

Gandhi has always been perceived as a reluctant politician due to some of his longish trips abroad, which delayed his stepping into the role of party chief.

His action not to take up ministerial responsibility in two UPA governments and not properly following through some of the issues he raised drew strong criticism.

He has been able to counter those perceptions to some extent with his sharp and aggressive attacks on Modi and the BJP. His recent trip to the United States, where he held interactions with think tanks, has brought about a sea change to his overall image.

In Gujarat, where success will be a big morale-booster for the Congress, Gandhi has sought to create a broad social coalition and has forced Modi to react.

Reviving the Congress in Uttar Pradesh is going to be another major challenge for Rahul Gandhi -- the state that sends the largest contingent of 80 members to the Lok Sabha.

The results of the local body polls in Amethi and Rae Bareli, the Lok Sabha constituencies of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi respectively, have not given a fillip to Rahul Gandhi's image.

Rahul Gandhi had been projected as a young leader who understands the language and pulse of the youth but Modi has been more successful in weaning away the section that has large electoral presence. The Congress also has to devise ways to woo the large middle class.

He needs to act smartly in his dealings with allies and other opposition parties, including the Communist Party of India-Marxist.

Within the party, Gandhi has to take several decisions, including whether to project chief ministerial candidates in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and who they are going to be.

To bring about unity in faction-ridden state units and striking the right the balance between the "old guard" and the younger aspirants will be his other challenges.

The Congress is ruling now in five states and a union territory only and a loss in Gujarat as well as in Karnataka next year will further put a squeeze on its chances of staging a comeback at the Centre in 2019.

Gandhi, who is into his third term as Lok Sabha MP, was made Congress Vice President in 2013 as a stepping stone to his eventual elevation to the top party post.

Since 2004, Rahul Gandhi has been the Lok Sabha member from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. In 2007, he was named Congress General Secretary in charge of youth and student wings of the party.

He has attended St Stephen's College, Delhi, Harvard College and Rollins College, Florida, from where he graduated with a Bachelor's in Arts.

He received an M. Phil in Development Studies from Trinity College, Cambridge University. Thereafter, he joined the Monitor Group, a strategy consulting group, in London, where he worked for three years.

Latest updates on Gandhi Jayanti 2019
New Delhi, Dec 11 : An online examination system for the Indian Air Force was launched on Monday. The IAF is switching over to online testing from January 2018, for which online registration will start from December 15.

The web portal for online examination was launched by Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre.

The IAF is the first of the three services to take up IT-enabled online testing for induction in the Officers and Airmen cadres.

The online exam system has been developed in collaboration with the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC).

The proposal was approved in principle in October.

"The selection system for officers and airmen cadres in the IAF has been continuously evolving and sustained efforts are in place to strengthen the testing system. Though the existing system is time-tested and well proven, constraints of testing capacity and geographical reach were major limitations in according opportunity to all deserving and eligible candidates from across the country, especially the rural youth," an official statement said.

To improve upon the system and to make it more candidate-friendly while enhancing organisational efficiency, a MoU was signed on October 31 with C-DAC, a Government of India agency.

"The project will be implemented with effect from January 2018 for Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) for Officer's cadre and Scheduled Test for Airmen Recruitment (STAR) for Airmen cadre," the statement said.

Earlier, the IAF had over 100 centres across India for Officer cadre exam and 14 for Airmen selection exams.

Certain states and Union Territories did not have any testing centre. Consequently, candidates had to spend considerable time and resources on travelling to the allotted centres.

In the new system, there would be about 760 examination centres all over the country.

"It will enable approximately four lakh candidates for Airmen's selection and two lakh for Officer's selection, to appear in the exam every six months."

IAF Vice Chief, Air Marshal S.B. Deo, along with other senior Air Force officers were present during the inauguration.
New Delhi, Dec 11 : The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the Centre, Aam Aadmi Party government in the national capital, Delhi Police, and civic bodies to work together in the fight to curb crime against women.

A division bench of Justice S. Ravindra Bhat and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva asked authorities to coordinate on lighting up dark areas and installing CCTVs in vulnerable locations in Delhi.

The bench directed that lights at dark spots in the city -- once identified by police, other civic agencies, or the public -- must be repaired or replaced within 72 hours and directed for the setting up of nodal agency, which will also map the areas which had dark spots.

The court also questioned the government for not acting on its 2015 direction to install closed-circuit television at 44 spots identified as vulnerable for crime against women during a crime-mapping exercise.

It gave the Delhi government eight weeks to procure and install CCTVs and said this task should be one of its top priorities.

The government informed the court that it was in the process of procuring 1.4 lakh CCTVs for installation across the city.

The court also asked the police to give a time frame for setting up CCTVs in 192 police stations and 42 chowkis, along with the locations where the CCTVs would be installed inside the police station.

It made it clear that all the CCTVs, including those being installed by the Delhi government, should have recording facility with a storage capacity of minimum 30 days.

During the hearing, the bench expressed anguish over recent spate of child rapes in Delhi.

"How do we prevent this?" the bench asked four senior Delhi Police officers of the ranks of Special Commissioner and Joint Commissioners present in the courtroom.

The Delhi Police said it was making concerted efforts to curb such crime against women and children, adding: "We are also visiting schools and sensitising students."

Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal, however, said that police stations in Delhi were running with half the sanctioned strength of staff.

The Centre said that a high-level committee was examining the issue of augmenting Delhi Police strength.

The police said all vacancies up to December 2017 have been taken care of in the recruitment process initiated for 7,300 posts.

The court was hearing a petition initiated by it to improve women safety in the capital after the December 16, 2012, gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus.
Lucknow, Dec 12 : A day after a group of French tourists were assaulted in Uttar Pradesh's Mirzapur, five more accused were arrested on Monday and sent to prison, taking to eight the total number of people arrested for the crime.

A local court sent the accused to 14 days judicial custody.

A senior Mirzapur police official that Varanasi resident Riya Dutta had come to visit Lakhania Dari along with her family members and some foreigner friends on Sunday when a group of youngsters from Varanasi misbehaved with them. When the family resisted, they were assaulted and beaten up.

The police official further said that when the foreign tourists, still seated in the car, came out and tried to restore calm, they were also assaulted but sustained no injuries. Officials also said that the statement of the French nationals that they were not beaten up has been video recorded and preserved for future probe.

A probe has also been ordered by the district police as to where were the PAC troopers and local policemen at the time of the incident as they should have been there at the tourist spot. Additional SP, A.K. Singh will conduct the enquiry.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images(BIRMINGHAM, Ala.) -- Two days before Alabama's special election, Republican Senate candidate Judge Roy Moore kept a low profile, not holding campaign events or making any public appearances, other than an interview with "The Voice of Alabama Politics."



In the interview, Moore again denied the allegations of sexual misconduct against him, and said that he did not know the women who have accused him of sexual assault or molestation.



"I did not know them. I had no encounter with them. I never molested anyone," Moore said about two of the women who have leveled the most serious accusations against him.



Moore, 70, has been accused by eight women of actions ranging from inappropriate behavior to sexual assault when he was in his 30s and, in most of the cases, the women were in their teens. He has denied the allegations.



"These allegations are completely false," he said. "I did not date underaged women, I did not molest anyone. So these allegations are false.



He blamed the allegations on the "scheme of political parties today."



"They know I've stood for moral values and so they're attacking me in that area," he said. "It's done for political purposes."



The Republican candidate has not made many public appearances this weekend leading into election day, despite facing a tight race against Democrat Doug Jones.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The European Union warned Monday that the war in Syria was "still ongoing" and civilians were being attacked, after President Vladimir Putin announced the partial withdrawal of Russian troops, saying their work was largely done.

Putin made the announcement on a surprise visit to Syria, where Russian forces first intervened in the conflict in 2015 to support its ally President Bashar al-Assad, targeting the Islamic State group and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops.

EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said the bloc was ready to do whatever was needed to support UN-brokered peace efforts, but warned the idea that "things can go back to normal unfortunately has no real ground".

"Conflict is still ongoing, even if some wish to pretend it is over," she told reporters in Brussels.

"We know very well that on the ground fighting is still going on, civilians are still attacked and we see that with our humanitarian support every single day inside Syria."

She said the EU was ready to offer economic support to Syria, but this could only come after a political agreement was reached at UN talks in Geneva.

A fresh round of Syrian peace talks is scheduled for next week in Astana, Kazakhstan, as part of a Moscow-led push to end the six-year conflict, focusing on freeing prisoners, delivering humanitarian aid, de-escalation zones and other issues.

More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 when protests against Assad's rule sparked a brutal crackdown.

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New Delhi, Dec 12 : As many as 253 (14 per cent) candidates in the fray in Gujarat assembly polls have declared criminal cases against them, with three candidates facing charges related to murder, 17 related to attempt to murder, and four related to rape, an ADR-Gujarat Election Watch report said on Monday.

Non-profit Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) along with Gujarat Election Watch has prepared a report by analysing information furnished by 1,815 of the 1,828 candidates.

In 2012 Gujarat elections, out of 1,283 candidates analysed, 222 (17 per cent) had declared criminal cases against themselves, the report said.

"As many as 154 (8 per cent) candidates have declared serious criminal cases, including ones related to murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, and crimes against women. In 2012 Gujarat assembly elections, 92 (7 per cent) candidates had declared serious criminal cases against themselves," it said.

It said seven candidates have declared cases related to kidnapping.

Among major parties, 46 (25 per cent) out of 181 candidates are from Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), 56 (32 per cent) out of 176 candidates from Congress, 17 (12 per cent) out of 138 candidates from Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), 9 (16 per cent) out of 57 candidates from Nationalist Congress Party, 4 (14 per cent) out of 28 candidates from Aam Aadmi Party, and 65 (8 per cent) out of 791 independent candidates analysed have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

Out of the 1,815 candidates, 418 (23 per cent) are multi-millionaires and among the major parties 147 (81 per cent) out of 181 candidates are from BJP, 129(73 per cent) out of 176 candidates from Congress, 5 (4 per cent) out of 138 candidates from BSP, and 11(39 per cent) out of 28 candidates from AAP, the report said.
Washington, Dec 12 : A US federal judge on Monday ruled that the White House must accept transgender military recruits by January 1, 2018.

US President Donald Trump announced the ban on transgender military enlistment on Twitter in July. In response, two US civil rights groups, on behalf of six unnamed service members and two recruits, filed a lawsuit against the ban in the federal court.

"The court will not stay its preliminary injunction pending defendants' appeal," Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the US District Court for the District of Columbia announced on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.

"In sum, having carefully considered all of the evidence before it, the court is not persuaded that defendants will be irreparably injured by allowing the accession of transgender individuals into the military beginning on January 1, 2018." the judge wrote.

In October, Kollar-Kotelly issued an injunction blocking the ban from taking effect. Since then, the Trump administration has sought to implement a ban on enlisting new transgender troops.

On October 30, Kollar-Kotelly found the administration's justification for the ban, which was set to take effect in March 2018, to be suspect and likely unconstitutional.

She had ruled that the military's current policy should remain in place.

"There is absolutely no support for the claim that the ongoing service of transgender people would have any negative effective on the military at all," the judge wrote in a strongly worded, 76-page ruling.

"In fact, there is considerable evidence that it is the discharge and banning of such individuals that would have such effects."
Ms. Ingall describes the Chateau de Malmaison in such a way that the reader is actually walking through the rooms where Empress Josephines guests danced and celebrated centuries ago. - Amazon Review

Author Gillian Ingalls historical novel "Napoleons Glass" is based on the real-life adventures of a Frenchwoman named Adele Valentin, a brave young woman who survived the guillotine, as well as other life-and-death struggles in Europe in the early 1800s.

Amazon reviewers agree in their praise of her book:

Adele, the leading character in this story, was one year old when her father fled to escape the guillotine. She was still young and sheltered when her mother died as they were fleeing from the Cossacks after the Russian Invasion. This is truly a story of Adeles courage and determination to be independent and to find ways to earn a living while helping those less fortunate. Its an inspiring history well told.

The remarkable courage of Lady Adele truly lifts you up and I was amazed by this strong woman.

Put in the framework of a series of letters from a French noblewoman, 'Napoleons Glass' puts a personal spin on the events of the downfall of Napoleons empire at the hands of the Russians, as well as other European turmoil that happened afterward.

Ms. Ingall describes the Chateau de Malmaison in such a way that the reader is actually walking through the rooms where Empress Josephines guests danced and celebrated centuries ago.

As I became absorbed in the story, I could not help but wonder which characters and events were imagined and which were truly historical  the author achieved such an intricate melding of the two in this page-turning historical saga.

By the end of her story I was emotionally spent because my heart felt everything this woman went through.

I love stories of women who, through adversity, become courageous  this is just such a story.

About the Author: Gillian Ingall grew up in Sydney, Australia, and now lives with her partner on a cattle property in New South Wales. Her first novel, "The Invitation  A Tale of Greed, Adultery and Political Turmoil," was written about her experiences in China and Hong Kong during the pro-democracy movement of 1989.

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of this historical novel is that much of it is true. We are pleased to announce the release of this amazing story set during the French Revolution and aftermath, said Robert Fletcher, CEO of Strategic Book Publishing and Rights Agency.

NAPOLEONS GLASS (Kindle ISBN: 978-1-946540-12-6, e-Book ISBN: 978-1-946540-11-9) is available for $9.99 at http://epubco.com/shop/products/napoleons-glass-by-gillian-ingall/ and in multi-formats for other e-Readers through numerous vendors online.

The soft cover version (ISBN: 978-1-68181-906-8, $19.95) can also be ordered through the publishers website: http://sbpra.com/GillianIngall. All formats are available at Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com.

WHOLESALERS: This book is distributed by Ingram Books and other wholesale distributors. Contact your representative with the ISBN for purchase. Wholesale purchase for retailers, universities, libraries, and other organizations is also available through the publisher; please email bookorder(at)sbpra(dot)net.
Dr. Jonathan Kulbersh - Carolina Facial Plastics In the short time Courtneys been with us, shes already made an impact on the lives of not only our patients but also our staff," said Dr. Kulbersh

Licensed and board-certified nurse practitioners are an important part of any facial aesthetics practice, as they undergo the intensive training necessary to administer minimally invasive procedures such as Botox, facial fillers, and laser therapy for skin. For patients deciding between two facial plastic surgery practices, the one with licensed, experienced, and highly skilled nurse injectors can be one of the main determining factors. With the recent hiring of Courtney Whitley, FNP-C, Carolina Facial Plastics adds to its already impressive reputation by bringing on an experienced, enthusiastic nurse injector to continue delivering top-notch service and care to its patients.

By adding Courtney to our staff, weve brought on board a nurse practitioner whos devoted to helping our patients achieve their aesthetic goals, says Dr. Kulbersh. Her ten-plus years of nursing and medical aesthetic experience, combined with her keen eye for detail, were exactly what we wanted.

Im excited to be a part of one of the countrys best aesthetic practices in Carolina Facial Plastics, says Ms. Whitley. Dr. Kulbersh and the staff here have impressively high standards, which I feel is a perfect match.

A native of North Carolina who has made Charlotte her home since 2007, Ms. Whitley has both a B.S.N and M.S.N. Her passion for aesthetics led her to participate in and complete a training program that certified her as an injector through both major cosmetic manufacturers Allergan and Galderma, which means that Ms. Whitley has thorough knowledge of and specializes in such injectable treatments as Botox, Juvederm, and Restylane. Ms. Whitley was personally trained by Dr. Kulbersh, who himself was trained by internationally-recognized Beverly Hills facial plastic surgeon Dr. Paul Nassif. This training allows Ms. Whitley to provide the same level of care and expertise that patients expect from Carolina Facial Plastics.

Injectable procedures require nurse injectors to know precise techniques and undergo comprehensive training, without which they cannot be licensed or certified, says Dr. Kulbersh. Patients who are interested in improving undesirable facial concerns, such as smile lines and under eye circles, can feel confident in Courtneys ability to effectively address these and other issues.

Adds Ms. Whitley: Its important to me that patients leave our office looking and feeling as if they are the best versions of themselves. This keeps me motivated to continuously learn and keep abreast of the latest injectable procedures and techniques. Plus, through my training with Dr. Kulbersh, my treatments are the ideal complement to his surgical work.

Ms. Whitley also specializes in laser therapies such as laser skin tightening and wrinkle treatment. Once patients have discussed their skin issues and confirmed their aesthetic goals, Ms. Whitley puts her experience and knowledge of skin rejuvenation to use in administering different laser modalities to address a multitude of skin concerns, including combination treatments where necessary. To find out more about Ms. Whitley, as well as how she can impact patients concerned with a range of facial aesthetics, visit https://CarolinaFacialPlasticSurgery.com.

Courtneys enthusiasm for improving the lives of our patients is seen in her smile as she goes about her work, says Dr. Kulbersh. In the short time Courtneys been with us, shes already made an impact on the lives of not only our patients but also our staff. Were very happy to have her with us and confident that her work and training with us will provide the most effective outcomes for our patients and maintain those results for the long run.

Ms. Whitley says, Helping people is part of my DNA; Ive always wanted to help people improve themselves. The best way I can do this is by listening to and understanding each patients needs and goals so that we find the best possible solutions. Please stop by our office and introduce yourself, even if you dont have an appointment; I look forward to meeting you!

Double board-certified as a facial plastic surgeon and fellowship-trained in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, Dr. Jonathan Kulbersh is the founder and director of Carolina Facial Plastics in Charlotte, North Carolina. Dr. Kulbersh received training in facial plastic surgery in Beverly Hills with renowned surgeons, Babak Azizzadeh, MD, FACS, Paul Nassif, MD, FACS, (well known for his show Botched) and Guy Massry, MD, and has experience in facial rejuvenation procedures, including facelifts, rhinoplasties, eye lifts, and injectables (Botox and fillers). Additionally, as an expert in the function of facial nerves, Dr. Kulbersh has a special interest in patients with facial paralysis and Bells palsy. Dr. Kulbersh has published numerous articles, as well as chapters of medical textbooks, including Master Techniques in Blepharoplasty and Periorbital Rejuvenation. Please visit our website: https://CarolinaFacialPlasticSurgery.com/

Carolina Facial Plastics

6849 Fairview Road #200

Charlotte, NC 28210

(704) 842-3644

info(at)CarolinaFacialPlastics(dot)com
Green Supply Chain Award We congratulate this years honorees for their commitment to sustainability and recognize their tremendous achievements, Our honorees serve as role models for supply chains globally to expand their CSR reach and impact. John R, Yuva, Editor

The Green Supply Chain Award recognizes companies making green or sustainability a core part of their supply chain strategy and are working to achieve measurable sustainability goals within their own operations and supply chains. The awards also recognize providers of supply chain solutions and services assisting their customers in achieving measurable sustainability goals.

This year's 10th-annual awards recognize small, mid-size and large enterprises that leveraged green practices and solutions to further drive sustainable improvements in their supply chain.

Honorees for this years award demonstrate that corporate social responsibility is a business imperative that transcends the company and extends throughout the supply chain, involving suppliers and customers, says John R. Yuva, editor for Supply & Demand Chain Executive. The number of entries only increase year over year, demonstrating how critical sustainability initiatives are within companies.

We congratulate this years honorees for their commitment to sustainability and recognize their tremendous achievements, Yuva adds. Our honorees serve as role models for supply chains globally to expand their CSR reach and impact.

To see the full list of this years honorees, please visit SDCExec.com.

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive, with its print, website and digital properties, is the executive's resource for successful supply and demand chain transformation, utilizing hard-hitting analysis, viewpoints and unbiased case studies to steer executives and supply management professionals through the complicated, yet critical, world of supply and demand chain enablement to gain competitive advantage. Supply & Demand Chain Executive is a publication of AC Business Media and a division of the Supply Chain Network.

About AC Business Media

AC Business Media is a business-to-business media company with a portfolio of renowned brands in heavy construction, asphalt, concrete, paving, rental, sustainability, manufacturing, logistics and supply chain markets. AC Business Media delivers relevant, cutting-edge content to its audiences through its industry-leading digital properties, trade shows, videos, magazines, webinars and newsletters and provides advertisers the analytics, data and ability to reach their target audience.
The Level Homes Carolinas Team receives the Fast 50 Award from The Triangle Business Journal. The award is especially meaningful because this is the second year in a row that Level Homes was the fastest-growing private homebuilder in the Triangle area  Ric Rojas, president, Level Homes

The Carolinas division of Level Homes has been named one of the 50 Fastest-Growing Private Employers in the vibrant Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina market by The Triangle Business Journal.

Level Homes was ranked second overall among all companies honored on this years Top 50 list, which makes the firm the fastest growing private homebuilder in the area.

Companies named to the 2017 Fast 50 list were selected based on a formula that includes revenue and profit growth for the three previous years. Results were tabulated and analyzed by PricewaterhouseCoopers  a leading accounting and professional services firm  and a Fast 50 partner.

Being recognized again this year by the experts at The Triangle Business Journal as a member of their 25th Annual Fast 50 list of private firms is a great honor, said Ric Rojas, president of Level Homes.

The award is especially meaningful because this is the second year in a row that Level Homes was the fastest-growing private homebuilder in the Triangle area, Rojas added. This honor also comes soon after our associates voted Level Homes one of the Triangles Best Places to Work.

According to The Triangle Business Journal, the companies named to the Fast 50 list this year employ nearly 15,000 people and are forecast to create more than 3,000 new jobs in the next 12 months.

Level Homes builds high quality new homes and sustainable communities that reflect the way homeowners live today. With 28 employees in the Raleigh area, Level Homes was previously named the fastest-growing firm on Builder Magazines annual ranking of the Next 100 Builders in the United States.

Our growth has been achieved by serving one homebuyer at a time and providing them with a great new home and community, said Todd Waguespack, Managing Partner of Level Homes. All of us at Level Homes are proud of the accomplishments of our team in the Carolinas.

Founded in 2000 with the goal of becoming a Top 10 builder in market share in each market it serves, Level Homes continues to expand.

The company currently builds new homes in five communities in the Triangle, North Carolina area and has expanded to the Wilmington area along the North Carolina coast. The firm also builds in several leading markets across Louisiana. Base prices of new homes range from the low $200s to the low $600s.

Visit https://www.levelhomeslifestyle.com/nc/communities/ to learn more about Level Homes, its award-winning new homes and communities in North Carolina, and the firms unique approach to building Life. Style. Home.
Zingle, the hospitality industrys leading, two-way, business-to-customer messaging platform, today announced that it has teamed with TripAdvisor to automate review collection for hundreds of its hotel customers, including Hyatt, Cosmopolitan Hotel, and Two Roads Hospitality. In addition, Zingle is teaming with Viator, a TripAdvisor company, to give hospitality customers the ability to message guests pre-arrival with nearby activity options.

By becoming a TripAdvisor Collection Connectivity Partner, Zingle will now enable its hospitality customers to collect TripAdvisor reviews from verified guests via text upon checkout. Hotels using Zingles software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform to support two-way text messaging with guests can now conclude messaging interaction during a stay with a customized text message requesting for a TripAdvisor review.

Were thrilled to team with the worlds largest travel review site and excited to integrate TripAdvisors Review Collection into our messaging platform for existing and future hospitality customers, said Ford Blakely, Founder and CEO of Zingle. The integration gives our hotel customers a free and effortless way to prompt their guests to share their positive experiences on TripAdvisor which has become the de facto decision maker for millions of travelers each year.

According to the TripBarometer by TripAdvisor, 87% of travelers globally say they use travel review sites to help them plan a trip and 95% say that other people's reviews on travel review sites influenced their plans. More positive guest reviews can even increase revenue by enabling hotels to increase room rates. For instance, a Cornell University study found that a one-point increase in reputation (based on a five-point scale) may result in a hotels ability to raise room rates up to 11%.

As part of the partnership with TripAdvisor, Zingle will also empower its hotel customers to message soon-to-be guests with deals from Viator on popular sightseeing tours and nearby activities in advance of their check-in.

Hotel bookings on mobile were up 67% over the last year as guests are increasingly turning to mobile devices to manage their stays, added Blakely. From dining reservations to spa appointments, Zingle continues to be the best way for hotels to communicate with guests from check-in to check-out. This new partnership will enable our hotel customers to engage with guests even before they check-in increasing their ability to provide a positive guest experience.

With a 98% open rate, text messages provide a quick and easy way to communicate with guests before, during and after their stay at a property. Last year alone, more than 600,000 hotel guests exchanged messages with hotels using Zingle. From increasing guest engagement and improving service to optimizing and streamlining operations, Zingle empowers hotels and their staff to provide better experiences.

To request a free Zingle demo visit http://www.zingle.me/demo.

About Zingle, Inc.

Zingle is a two-way, business-and-customer communication software platform that allows businesses to engage with customers in a real-time and personalized way through messaging  peoples preferred method of communication today. The platform helps businesses increase efficiency, revenue and customer loyalty by providing a quick and simple way to communicate with customers. Millions of messages are sent between businesses and their customers each year using Zingle.

All messages exchanged on Zingle can be transcribed in 90 different languages so businesses can converse in real-time with their customers, in their preferred language. Zingle integrates with SMS, email and all leading messaging applications today.

The Southern California-based company pioneered business messaging in 2009 and its patented platform was the first software-as-a-service (SAAS) to support two-way texting between businesses and customers. Today, Zingle supports more than 1,800 businesses worldwide to text with customers in multiple industries including hospitality, food and beverage retail, parking, professional services and more. For more information visit http://www.zingle.me.

About TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel site*, enables travelers to unleash the full potential of every trip. With more than 535 million reviews and opinions covering the world's largest selection of travel listings worldwide  over 7 million accommodations, airlines, attractions, and restaurants  TripAdvisor provides travelers with the wisdom of the crowds to help them decide where to stay, how to fly, what to do and where to eat. TripAdvisor also compares prices from more than 200 hotel booking sites so travelers can find the lowest price on the hotel that's right for them. TripAdvisor-branded sites are available in 49 markets, and are home to the world's largest travel community of 415 million average unique monthly visitors,** all looking to get the most out of every trip. TripAdvisor: Know better. Book better. Go better.
Tips to Overcome Holiday Stress Stress and depression rates go up during the Holiday Season. Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett offers some strategies to help people cope.

The Holiday Season can be a highly stressful. It's a time that the songs promise that it's the "most wonderful time of the year." In reality, depression and suicide rates go up in December and many people just feel overwhelmed. They run from activity to activity, eat and spend too much, and may even feel that everyone is having a better life than them. It's a time when many feel lonely and may grieve for loved ones who are far away or who have died. Although this time of year is stressful, there are some things people can do to cope and enjoy the holidays more according to health psychologist and Praeclarus Press founder, Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett.

1. Keep your expectations realistic.

"We shouldnt expect week upon week of unending happiness during the holidays. There will be ups and downs just like during the rest of the year. Nor should we expect our homes, families, and ourselves to look and behave like the mythic creatures on television and in magazines."

2. Reach out to others.

"In attempting to keep up with our long list of shoulds, its very easy to get focused only on ourselves or the needs of our immediate families. You may come away from the holidays feeling like you havent measured up. Sometimes the best antidote for this self-focus is reaching out someone who truly has less. Find out about opportunities for helping others who have a tough time during the holidays, and involve your families. This can be a wonderful opportunity to spend some quality time together, and do some good for others at the same time."

3. Make conscious choices about which rituals you want to participate in.

"We are offered an array of activities that we can participate in during the holiday season. Many times, we run from one activity to another, not really enjoying any of them. It is far better if you can pick the ones most meaningful to you. Be honest with yourself. Do you really enjoy baking? Or holiday cards? Or matching outfits for everyone? Or home decorations that look like Martha Stewart is stopping by? If your answer is yes, then by all means continue. If the answer is no, however, then think about dropping the activities you dont like, or assigning them to someone else. Discuss your holiday activities with your family and see which ones can be eliminated, modified, or temporarily put on hold."

Praeclarus Press also offers a podcast with Dr. Diane Sanford on Top 3 Tips for Stressing Less During the Holidays.. Dr. Sanford is the author of Stress Less, Live Better. Her book focuses on how to incorporate mindfulness into everyday life and offers more resources on how readers can live consciously during the Holiday Season.

Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett is a health psychologist and board-certified lactation consultant. She founded Praeclarus Press in 2011 with the goal of changing women's lives. Praeclarus Press offers books, webinars, podcasts, and the Women's Health Today blog, and is based in Amarillo, Texas.
The single greatest opportunity for President Trump and the new HHS Secretary to help improve American health care while controlling costs is expanding value-based care.

The DRIVE Health Initiative  a campaign by the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH) and The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) to decrease costs, improve quality, and revitalize the economy through value-based care  announced today that former Michigan Governor John Engler has accepted an invitation to serve as Chair. In this role, he will serve as an advisor and foster collaboration between policymakers and industry stakeholders to advance alternative models of paying for and delivering health care that reward quality.

Private employers have proven that market-based business principles like transparency, accountability, and innovation can work in health care, but we need the governments active partnership to drive change at a scale that private purchasers cant do by themselves, said Bill Kramer, Executive Director of Policy at the Pacific Business Group on Health. Governor Engler is uniquely suited to bring the private and public sectors together to make value-based care a reality.

Since its launch in May 2017, DRIVE Health Initiative has undertaken a number of activities to inform policymakers and urge the government to promote specific market-oriented, value-based purchasing strategies. The most notable efforts to-date include: issuing a letter to President Trump encouraging him to promote value-based care policies; and making specific recommendations to the U.S. House of Representatives Ways & Means Health Subcommittee and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on alternative value-based payment models that should be implemented by Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans. Under Governor Englers leadership, the group aims to further develop and execute its cooperative strategy to break down any barriers that inhibit quality improvement efforts.

The evidence-based, value-based reforms being pursued by DRIVE Health Initiative will improve the quality of health care for American families and help recover nearly $350 billion being wasted on unnecessary costs, said Former Governor John Engler. That money can then be invested in other national priorities like job growth, education, and tax cuts. Now thats a bipartisan fix I know everyone can get behind, and Im excited to help make it happen.

Governor Engler shares our belief that the single greatest opportunity for President Trump and the new HHS Secretary to help improve American health care while controlling costs is expanding value-based care, said Annette Guarisco Fildes, CEO of The ERISA Industry Committee. Many government leaders are looking for specific, proven ideas that will help make health care better and more affordable for all. DRIVE Health Initiative has the Blueprint to make that happen.

Engler served as the Governor of Michigan for three terms, from 1991 to 2003, and prior to that served for 20 years in the Michigan State Legislature, finishing his term as the Senate Majority Leader. In his role as Governor, Engler signed 32 tax cuts into law that led to 800,000 new jobs and the lowest unemployment rate in Michigans history. He also previously served as the President and CEO of two organizations that represented Americas largest employers  the Business Roundtable and National Association of Manufacturers; health care reform was a key priority for both of these organizations. Engler earned a JD from Thomas M. Cooley Law School and a BS from Michigan State University.

About The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC)

The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) is the only national association that advocates exclusively for large employers on health, retirement and compensation public policies at the state, federal and local levels. ERIC members are the largest companies in the country, leaders in every sector of the economy and innovators in health care design and delivery through providing health coverage to their employees, retirees and families across the country. Learn more at eric.org.

About the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH)

The Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH) is a non-profit business coalition focused on improving the quality and affordability of health care. The group represents more than 60 large employers and other health care purchasing members, who provide coverage for nearly ten million individuals in the United States. PBGH supports some of the largest companies in the country in implementing innovative solutions to improve health care outcomes and value. Learn more at pbgh.org.
Turkish warplanes hit Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets in northern Iraq on Monday and killed 29 of the group's militants, Turkey's armed forces said.

The PKK fighters were believed to be preparing an attack on Turkish border posts from the Hakurk and Metina regions of northern Iraq, the army said in a written statement.

Several caves and shelters used by the militants were destroyed in the air strikes, it said.

The PKK, which has been waging an insurgency in southeast Turkey since the 1980s, is designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

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We share the same commitment with our partners in providing the highest quality of service, ensuring that website security is accessible to all. In a region as large and as varied as Europe, weve opened new doors through partnerships to extend our WAF service to a greater consumer base.

Through the opening of a new IDC (data center) in Nuremberg, Cloudbric will be extending its website security and WAF service to Germany and Central Europe in a strategic partnership with Trendhosting, a major player in the hosting sector in the region.

While the repercussions of recent cyberattacks are felt across European countries, many businesses either lack the time, personnel, or resources to effectively take actions to prevent cybersecurity incidents from occurring. In Germany, the digital association Bitkom reported that close to 70% of companies were subject to cybercrimes such as data theft over the past two years. This has propelled the need for an accessible, reliable, preventive security solution.

Among the current cybersecurity offerings in the market, WAFs offer the necessary protection that companies need to thwart common cyberattacks and protect against the theft of data. The partnership between Cloudbric and Trendhosting will connect German users to Cloudbric and to those in Central Europe, allowing for more convenient and affordable access to Cloudbrics website security services, including its award-winning WAF for websites.

Cyber threats are a huge concern for online businesses, so organizations specifically look for security solutions with the ability and effectiveness to combat modern threats, and in Central Europe these solutions will be critical in combating cybercrime. Cloudbrics advanced technology, more specifically its unique logic-based detection engine, generates one of the lowest false positives in the industry.

TJ Jung, VP of Product & Technology, said, We share the same commitment with our partners in providing the highest quality of service, ensuring that website security is accessible to all. For this reason, in a region as large and as varied as Europe, weve opened new doors through partnerships to extend our WAF service to a greater consumer base. Companies are required to incorporate measures for ensuring information is handled in a confidential manner and protected from cyberattacks. We are glad that Cloudbric can be of great help.

Mustafa Beciragic, CTO of Trendhosting, stated, We like how Cloudbrics firewall engine focuses on performance and commits to low false positive rates. This matched our main objective to deliver a high performance platform to our customers, especially during this time of rising security requirements.

The IDC in Nuremberg marks the launch of Cloudbrics fourth data center on the European continent. Cloudbric is anticipating to open additional IDCs across Europe and other regions within the next year.

About Cloudbric

Cloudbric is a cloud-based web security service, offering an award-winning WAF, DDoS protection, and free SSL as a full-service package. Boasting 20 years of IT security expertise, Penta Security Systems developed Cloudbric, which utilizes an award-winning logic analysis engine to filter malicious website traffic with industry-leading precision. It delivers one of the lowest false positive rates among competitors. Please visit http://www.cloudbric.com for more information and direct all partnership inquiries to cloudbric(at)pentasecurity(dot)com.

About Trendhosting

Trendhosting is a Switzerland-based hosting company focused on delivering high performance and a high availability hosting platform, powering big ecommerce and content management sites since 1997.
Traditional NAV Customizations VS TRIMIT Industry-Tailored Solutions IT Lab and TRIMIT share a strong focus on bringing our customers true value from the applications and support services we provide

TRIMIT and IT Lab are proud to announce a new partnership that enables IT Lab to enhance Microsoft Dynamics NAV with TRIMITs Microsoft gold standard industry-specific functionalities for the fashion, furniture, and general manufacturing industries.

To stay ahead of the competition, companies today recognize the value of real-time insight into their entire business as well as automated and optimized business processes. TRIMIT meets these needs by offering an industry-tailored software solution that brings data from the entire company together. Businesses no longer have to work in disparate IT systems and worry about integrations and manual updates. With TRIMIT, PDM, ERP, and e-commerce comes in one single solution.

David Mackay, Business Development Manager at IT Lab, said IT Lab and TRIMIT share a strong focus on bringing our customers true value from the applications and support services we provide. Utilising the sector experiences and expertise from both parties this is an exciting time for our existing and potentially new clients. With further enhancement to what is already a solid foundation and functionality rich offering due in Jan 2018, we see the partnership being a huge success for all parties involved.

There is an excellent match between IT Lab and TRIMIT, said TRIMIT Head of Sales Troels Rasmussen. He continued, "IT Lab is a highly experienced Microsoft Dynamics partner. They have the in-depth business knowledge and experience needed to successfully deliver an outstanding service and successful projects to their customers. This is what we look for in partners.

IT Lab will work with companies to help them envision and implement TRIMITs industry-tailored business software. Hence, their customers will be able to optimise their business, bolster relationships, and drive growth.

Rob Jones, Director of Enterprise Applications at IT Lab, added were delighted to add TRIMIT into our Dynamics portfolio and eager to build on our existing experience in the sector. This represents a significant step to extending our pedigree in this vertical market and reflects the growing shift towards an app strategy and an adaptive technology model.

Were already busy kicking the partnership off to a good start, and we look forward to working with IT Lab for years to come, said Troels Rasmussen.

About IT Lab

IT Lab is a national award-winning IT support and technology services provider delivering outsourcing, cloud, application and consultancy services based in London and Manchester

Additional information about IT Lab is available at http://www.itlab.com.

About TRIMIT

For more than 27 years, TRIMIT has been a front-runner in providing companies worldwide with the platform they need to focus on doing business and perform at their very best.

The industry-tailored solution is based on Microsoft Dynamics NAV and works by seamlessly combining PDM, ERP, and E-commerce in one single powerful software solution that covers the entire lifecycle of a product and provides companies with the insight they need to stay ahead of the competition.

Today, more than 400 companies in the fashion, furniture, and manufacturing industries use the TRIMIT solution to automate and optimise their business from design to delivery.

Additional information about TRIMIT is available at http://www.trimit.com.
Attackers can use the Janus vulnerability to get unverified code with powerful permissions installed on the devices of unsuspecting users.

GuardSquare's CTO Eric Lafortune has discovered a serious vulnerability in Android that allows attackers to modify the code in applications without affecting their signatures. The root of the problem is that a file can be a valid APK file and a valid DEX file at the same time. GuardSquare has named it the Janus vulnerability, after the Roman god of duality.

Janus vulnerability

The Janus vulnerability stems from the possibility to add extra bytes to APK files and to DEX files. On the one hand, an APK file is a zip archive, which can contain arbitrary bytes at the start, before its zip entries (actually more generally, between its zip entries). The JAR signature scheme only takes into account the zip entries. It ignores any extra bytes when computing or verifying the application's signature. On the other hand, a DEX file can contain arbitrary bytes at the end, after the regular sections of strings, classes, method definitions, etc. A file can, therefore, be a valid APK file and a valid DEX file at the same time.

Another key element is a seemingly harmless feature of the Dalvik/ART virtual machine. In theory, the Android runtime loads the APK file, extracts its DEX file and then runs its code. In practice, the virtual machine can load and execute both APK files and DEX files. When it gets an APK file, it still looks at the magic bytes in the header to decide which type of file it is. If it finds a DEX header, it loads the file as a DEX file. Otherwise, it loads the file as an APK file containing a zip entry with a DEX file. It can thus misinterpret dual DEX/APK files.

An attacker can leverage this duality. He can prepend a malicious DEX file to an APK file, without affecting its signature. The Android runtime then accepts the APK file as a valid update of a legitimate earlier version of the app. However, the Dalvik VM loads the code from the injected DEX file.

Threats

Although Android applications are self-signed, signature verification is important when updating Android applications. When the user downloads an update of an application, the Android runtime compares its signature with the signature of the original version. If the signatures match, the Android runtime proceeds to install the update. The updated application inherits the permissions of the original application. Attackers can, therefore, use the Janus vulnerability to mislead the update process and get unverified code with powerful permissions installed on the devices of unsuspecting users.

GuardSquare's CTO Eric points to a few severe scenarios: "An attacker can replace a trusted application with high privileges (a system app, for instance) by a modified update to abuse its permissions. Depending on the targeted application, this could enable the hacker to access sensitive information stored on the device or even take over the device completely. Alternatively, an attacker can pass a modified clone of a sensitive application as a legitimate update, for instance in the context of banking or communications. The cloned application can look and behave like the original application but inject malicious behavior."

The zip file format is archaic and prone to problems like the Master Key vulnerability and this Janus vulnerability. Ambiguous zip files likely give rise to similar vulnerabilities in different contexts and on different systems. The root cause is redundancy in the format. When designing data formats, protocols, data structures and code in general, one should always strive to avoid redundancy. Any discrepancies lead to bugs or worse.

Scope and mitigation

GuardSquare has created a simple internal tool to create Janus applications as a proof of concept. At this time, the company has not seen any such applications in the wild.

Any scenario still requires the user to install the malicious update from a source outside the Google Play store. It may be relatively easy to trick some users because the application can still look exactly like the original application and has the proper signature. For experts, the common reverse engineering tools do not show the injected code. Users should always be vigilant when downloading applications and updates.

The Janus vulnerability affects recent Android devices (Android 5.0 and newer). Applications that have been signed with APK signature scheme v2 and that are running on devices supporting the latest signature scheme (Android 7.0 and newer) are protected against the vulnerability. Unlike scheme v1, this scheme v2 considers all bytes in the APK file. Older versions of applications and newer applications running on older devices remain susceptible. Developers should at least always apply signature scheme v2.

Android applications using DexGuard's tamper detection mechanism are hardened better against cloning attacks. The mechanism performs additional checks to make sure the protected applications have not been modified in any way. GuardSquare recommends the use of tamper detection and DexGuard's other layers of protection against reverse engineering and cloning.

Disclosure and resolution

GuardSquare has reported this issue to Google on July 31, 2017, and received acknowledgment the same day. Google has released a patch to its partners in November. They have published the bug (CVE-2017-13156) in the Android Security Bulletin on December 4, 2017 (https://source.android.com/security/bulletin/2017-12-01).
EcoFoil_Logo_2017 Our new website layout will make it easier for customers to learn about how radiant barrier works, as well as which product they will need for their application.

EcoFoil, a leading supplier of radiant barrier, bubble insulation and concrete insulation for homes, pole barns and metal commercial buildings has made a big change for its online customers. While the company has established itself as a top distributor of reflective insulation in the market, they continue to make improvements to the customer experience. One important factor always at play is making experiences better for customers.

The new website has been designed to provide the ultimate user-friendly experience with improved navigation and functionality throughout, allowing customers to access detailed product information, technical data, videos and application usage pages to offer an overview of EcoFoils capabilities across a wide range of areas, including do-it-yourselfers, local construction companies and large job contractors.

Eric Youngblood, Director of Marketing, says the impact of the new website will be beneficial for both customers who call in and customers who choose to order online.

Our new website layout will make it easier for customers to learn about how radiant barrier works, as well as which product they will need for their application, said Youngblood.

Along with the launch of the revamped website comes a brand-new logo for the EcoFoil brand. The new logo marks the most dramatic change in EcoFoils visual identity since the beginning of the companys onset. Designed in-house, the visual identity presents EcoFoil as modern and evolving, reflects the strength and direction of the brand and highlights its commitment to sustainability.

Tammy Karr, President of Clickstop Accelerator stated, With the new website, we thought a fresh new logo would better help our visitors connect to what we are about and align with our simplified website.

EcoFoil can be purchased online at EcoFoil.com or by calling (888) 349-3645, where expert product specialists can help guide customers through the process of choosing the right products for their needs.

About EcoFoil

EcoFoil is a leading supplier of radiant barrier, bubble insulation and concrete insulation for your home, pole barn or metal commercial building. EcoFoil products are manufactured in the United States and Canada exclusively - we do not sell radiant barrier product that is imported from overseas. EcoFoil is a division of Clickstop, Inc., located in Urbana, Iowa. Clickstop was founded in 2005 as a manufacturer's representative and distributor of building materials to customers in the Midwest. The company expanded to develop an e-commerce business and now sells EcoFoil direct to customers in all 50 states and internationally through our website, EcoFoil.com. Clickstop has earned an A+ Rating from the Iowa division of the Better Business Bureau. For more information, visit EcoFoil.com.
Whenever we talk to prospective investors, we stress the importance of transparency. Thats why we list NES Financial as the first partner we work with.

NES Financial announced today that LCR Capital Partners, the private investment firm sponsoring the EB5 issue for the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences at the Surf Club in Miami, Florida, has selected NES Financials suite of EB-5 solutions for the project. LCR Capital Partners will utilize NES Financials EB-5 Capital, Process, and Accounting Administration Suites, which are designed to help developers raise and deploy EB-5 capital more quickly, minimize risk, and streamline project efficiency.

The EB-5 program, created in 1990, encourages foreign investment into projects that stimulate U.S. job growth. Once relatively obscure, in recent years there has been an exponential rise in the use of EB-5 capital in projects of all types and sizes. NES Financials Intelligent EB-5 Solutions have been used on more than 550 projects, representing over $20B in EB-5 capital  more than any other service provider in the market.

Use of these EB-5 Solution Suites has earned the Surf Club Four Seasons EB-5 offering the NES Financial Platinum Medallion, signifying the projects commitment to industry best practices and to providing investors with the highest levels of security, transparency and compliance.

LCR Capital Partners is a private investment and advisory firm that deploys EB-5 investments in the U.S. hospitality and franchise industries, which it believes are ideally suited for EB-5 investors. These high-credit, US businesses have proven histories of operating success and are some of the most efficient converters of capital into jobs. Over 90% of LCRs investors are from India, Brazil, Latin America, South Africa and other rapidly emerging EB-5 markets.

Whenever we talk to prospective investors, we stress the importance of transparency, said Scott Schweitzer, CFO at LCR Capital Partners. Thats why we list NES Financial as the first partner we work with. Our investors love that they have comprehensive, 24/7 tracking of their funds through the NES Financial portal. And the ability to generate documented audits is a big help as they complete the immigration process.

NES Financials suite of Intelligent EB-5 Solutions is designed to cover the unique requirements of the entire EB-5 process, start to finish. Whether utilizing select products or the entire bundle, these solutions take care of the middle- and back-office administration so issuers can focus on project success.

In todays EB-5 market, competition for investors is greater than ever before, said Reid Thomas, Executive Vice President & General Manager at NES Financial. Our solutions represent the industrys best in technology-enabled security, transparency, and compliance throughout the EB-5 life cycle  savvy investors know this, and as a result, LCR Capital Partners have found that NES Financials Platinum Medallion helps their projects fund faster.

About NES Financial

NES Financial provides technology-enabled services for the efficient middle- and back-office administration of highly specialized financial transactions. Their technology-enabled solutions include EB-5 administration, 1031 exchanges, and private equity fund administration services.

Many of the worlds largest financial institutions and corporations rely on their proprietary technology, unparalleled expertise, and outstanding services to ensure the secure, transparent, and compliant management of funds while also lowering operational costs, reducing risk, and improving ROI. For more information, please visit nesfinancial.com.

About LCR Capital Partners

Founded in 2012 by first-generation U.S. immigrants who met at Harvard Business School in the mid-1990s, LCR Capital Partners (LCR) is a partner-owned investment firm that deploys EB-5 investments as growth capital in the well-established U.S. franchise industry, as well as in signature real estate and hospitality projects, thus fueling American job creation via new store and hotel developments across the United States. LCR is headquartered in Westport, CT, and has offices in Miami, Sao Paulo, Mumbai, Cape Town, Dubai and Shanghai.
Pictured from left: George Ehrgott, Mark Koszyk, Adam Breese, Krish Moorthy, Valarie Cofield, Reshma Moorthy, Jayshree Moorthy, Carlos Diggs, Kadreana Mack. We are the company that helps you become the next Airbnb in your industry, rather than being disrupted by it.

Frontier Technologies, Inc. received the EMSDC Class III Supplier of the Year Award on Friday night, December 1st, at the 2017 annual EMSDC Choice Awards Gala.

Frontier Technologies has been involved with the EMSDC for many years. The EMSDC helps connect diverse suppliers with corporate buyers to foster economic development and make use of the value inherent in a diverse supply chain. They have recognized diverse, minority owned companies like Frontier Technologies, at these Awards Galas for their contributions to this cause and in celebration of their achievements.

11 years ago, Frontier was on the same stage, winning the EMSDC Supplier of the Year Award in 2006. Back then, it was the Class I Award. Friday night, they were humbled to have achieved Class III, representing an exponential growth in revenue and a significant change in the way they do business.

Frontier Technologies is a forward thinking organization that is committed to progress at the speed of change year over year. This is necessary to remain relevant and always add value for their clients in the fast-paced world of technology. They have developed a unique model that has allowed them to be on the forefront of innovation for three decades.

Some of you probably still remember us as a run of the mill technology integrator from our Class I days  good times! said Jayshree Moorthy, CEO, during her acceptance speech. But what many of you probably dont know, is our key to achieving exponential growth year over year and nimbly innovating in an industry thats famous for making even the largest corporations irrelevant.

Moorthy says this key to their success is what has allowed them to earn the Class III Supplier of the Year Award this year.

Were extremely proud of what the new Frontier has become: our tagline is still 'Integration Done Right', but the meaning of 'right' has totally changed, she said.

According to Moorthy, 'IT Integration Done Right' once meant to save money, make things more efficient, and increase profitability  all of which they still do, she assured us. But everyone else claims to do the same thing, and at that point technology devolves into a commodity.

What differentiates Frontier Technologies, is that they design solutions that help their clients innovate. Yes, they can help increase profitability, but what really sets them apart is that they turn their clients into a disruptive force in their respective industries.

Our technology is just a vehicle to drive you to innovation. We forge the path, says Moorthy.

Think about companies like Airbnb or Uber  these are new startup companies that totally disrupt and change their industries. And the companies that fail to innovate eventually become obsolete.

Let me put it this way, says Moorthy. Since we won the Class I Supplier of the Year award, 52% of the Fortune 500 no longer exist. Three fourths of the current Fortune 500 are vulnerable to disruption within three years.

Our new mission, as Class III Supplier of the Year is this: we are the company that helps you become the next Airbnb in your industry, rather than being disrupted by it.

And let me tell you - we would not be here tonight if it werent for the EMSDC. The diversity of our innovative ideas would have no reach without the commitment to diversity the EMSDC has achieved.

About Frontier Technologies, Inc.

Frontier Technologies, Inc., headquarters in Wilmington, DE, along with operations and clients across the US, is a full-service Information Technology (IT) Infrastructure Systems & Staff Augmentation companyenabling enterprises to meet or exceed their IT goals on-time, on-budget, and on-spec. A minority-woman owned business as classified by the government for supplier-diversity initiatives. Leveraging almost 30 years in business, forming strategic partnerships with IT giants like IBM, Dell-EMC, VMware, Microsoft, HP and small businesses alike to provide clients the best-of-breed solutions with ease. Frontier is brand and technology agnostic. Frontier provides the consultative services for evaluating and selecting the best solutions providing clients peace of mind and a sustainable ROI.

About the EMSDC

The mission of Eastern Minority Supplier Development Council is to stimulate and support economic development with minority-owned businesses (Asian, Black, Hispanic, and Native American). While our outreach addresses both national and international entities, our primary focus area includes Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and Delaware. The council fosters the development of minority business enterprises to better align them with corporations in an effort to initiate growth and opportunity through Supplier Diversity channels.
Leading from the Classroom TOY podcast series from NWEA I realized, Im much more than a teacher of standards. Im a teacher of the human heart  Abdul Wright 2017 Minnesota Teacher of the Year

The 2017 State Teachers of the Year share personal and powerful stories of the moments that have mattered most to them and their students in the second season of the podcast series Leading from the Classroom, launching today on TeacherPodcasts.org. The 45-part series is produced by NWEA, the not-for-profit creator of assessment solutions, and new episodes will be released twice a week through the end of January.

From childhood stories of poverty and violence to the immense struggles that English language learners face today, each episode features a teacher sharing a personal and poignant moment that crystallized the importance of teaching. The educators speak as advocates and ambassadors for their students, for the teaching profession, and to influence meaningful education policy change.

NWEA is a partner of the National Teacher of the Year program run by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). The national program identifies exceptional teachers throughout the country and recognizes their effective work in the classroom and the community. During their tenure, Teachers of the Year engage in diverse professional learning opportunities, amplify their voices, participate in policy discussions, and serve as champions for all students.

Listening to these teachers, we should at once be thankful that we have such dedicated people advocating for our children, and be cognizant of what these professionals tell us they need to do their jobs well, said Matt Chapman, CEO of NWEA. We wanted to provide Teachers of the Year the opportunity to tell us in their own words what it truly means to be a teacher, from the rewarding and joyful moments to the struggles that educators often face. Were proud to help teachers elevate their voices to share their stories widely and help others understand the impact that teaching has on educators, students, families, and the community. Teaching is a great profession that deserves our respect and support.

"State Teachers of the Year are representatives of the incredible educators working in classrooms across this country every day. Their stories reflect the professionalism and devotion required for ensuring all students have equitable educational opportunities and I hope everyone draws inspiration from these leaders," said Carissa Miller, deputy executive director of CCSSO.

The 45-part series launches on TeacherPodcasts.org today, December 11th, with episodes featuring Indiana, Alabama, and Minnesota Teachers of the Year. Three additional episodes will be released on Wednesday, December 13th. The first six episodes are:



Indiana Teacher of the Year, Jitka Nelson, tells of the immense struggles of her English language learner students and encourages teachers to be their students voice until they have a voice of their own.

Alabama Teacher of the Year, Dana Jacobson, recounts how a chance meeting with a high school junior inspired her to advocate for strong educators and help turn students dreams into reality.

Minnesota Teacher of the Year, Abdul Wright, relates the story of his life, which began with poverty and violence, and how he learned that hes much more than a teacher of standards, but a teacher of the human heart.

Department of Defense Teacher of the Year, Kelisa Wing, tells of how, inspired by her role model, Rep. John Lewis (GA), she caused good trouble in the Oval Office.

Colorado Teacher of the Year, Sean Wybrant, explains how STEM education is an equity issue and why his students stories inspire him to advocate for better learning opportunities.

Massachusetts and National Teacher of the Year, Sydney Chaffee, shares her most profound moment: contemplating the purpose of learning while working with students and teachers in Ethiopia.

Additional episodes of Leading from the Classroom will be released starting the week of December 18 on TeacherPodcasts.org. Headshots of the State Teachers of the Year, as well as more information on the Leading from the Classroom series and the National Teacher of the Year program can also be found on the site. For the latest updates on the Leading from the Classroom podcast series on social media follow hashtag #ntoy17.

About NWEA

NWEA is a mission-driven, not-for-profit organization that supports students and educators worldwide by creating assessment solutions that precisely measure growth and proficiencyand provide insights to help tailor instruction. For 40 years, NWEA has developed innovative Pre-K12 assessments, professional learning that fosters educators ability to accelerate student learning, and research that supports assessment validity and data interpretation. Educators in 140 countries and more than half the schools in the US rely on our flagship interim assessment, MAP Growth; our progress monitoring and skills mastery tool, MAP Skills; and the OECD Test for Schools (based on PISA). Visit NWEA.org to find out how NWEA can partner with you to help all kids learn.
The Partners This partnership gives us a voice and a way to share our unique stories [about the West].

The Buffalo Bill Center of the West and Wyoming Public Media (WPM) recently launched their journalism and production collaboration with the hiring of Kamila Kudelska, a graduate of the Columbia School of Broadcasting, as their first multi-media journalist. Based in Cody at the Center of the West, Kudelska will report on northwest Wyoming for WPM and produce multi-media content for the Center. Both organizations are set to make the content available on their respective websites, including those heard on Wyoming Public Radio and distributed regionally and nationally. The Center provides a sound booth in the museum that is equipped for recording and is visible to the public.

Kudelska joined WPM on November 6, arriving at the organizations headquarters at the University of Wyoming in Laramie. After orientation and training, she traveled to Cody on November 14 to wrap up equipment set-up and experience a second round of briefings at the Center of the West. On November 20, she filed her first story on grizzly bear management in the area.

"This collaboration between the Center and WPM is an amazing opportunity for any journalist, Kudelska says. Im thrilled to be part of it and look forward to sharing the stories of northwest Wyoming, as well as the stories of the many treasures within the Center.

The partnership between the two groups took shape two years ago when Center Trustee Naoma Tate and WPMs General Managers met at a public radio function. Through their conversation, it soon became apparent that the two organizations complemented each other in both mission to tell Wyomings story, and their desire to raise awareness for Wyoming and American West-centric content.

Quite often, the Wests perspective isnt necessarily heard nationally, Tate says. This partnership gives us a voice and a way to share our unique stories, perspective, and culture throughout Wyoming and beyond.

According to General Manager Christina Kuzmych, the collaboration allows WPM to solidify its statewide presence and generate high-quality content for distribution. The Center is a treasure chest of material for radio and digital production to share through media, Kuzmych says. Its broad approach to American Western history and culture, coupled with the world-renowned caliber of its curators, make it a strong partner.

Having a reporter based in Wyomings northwest quadrant is critical for us, WPM News Director, Bob Beck, explains. In the past, there were many stories we simply couldnt cover because of the time and resources required to get a person from Laramie to the Cody area, some 400 miles away. With a reporter onsite, well especially have greater access to important stories originating from the Greater Yellowstone region. Collaborating with the Center of the West is truly a win/win for both our organizationsand more importantly, for our respective constituents.

Speaking on behalf of the Centers curatorial staff, Dr. Jeremy Johnston, Curator of Western American History, adds, We look forward to working with Kamila to not only provide our insight on current news stories related to our respective fields of study, but to also generate multimedia content that can be incorporated into our current and future exhibitions. Kamilas multimedia products will greatly enhance the experiences of our guests visiting the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

The collaboration is made possible through the generosity of the Hal R. and Naoma J. Tate Foundation. Were excited about this unique collaboration and grateful to the Tate family for making this pilot program possible, notes Bruce Eldredge, the Centers executive director and CEO. Both organizations have countless stories to tell; our partnership ensures that each one reaches the broadest possible audience.

Learn more at the Center's website and Wyoming Public Media's website.

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Since 1917, the award-winning Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming, has devoted itself to sharing the story of the authentic American West. The Center, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is now in its winter schedule, open Thursday  Sunday, 10 a.m.  5 p.m., closed Monday  Wednesday. For additional information, visit the Center's websites or its pages on Facebook and Google+.
Reshma Moorthy - President of Frontier Technologies, Chair of Minority Business Enterprise Input Committee at EMSDC Let's look to the future and work together so that one day, everyone will understand that diversity and minority-owned businesses mean greater success for everyone.

Reshma Moorthy, President of Frontier Technologies, Inc. received the EMSDC Minority Advocate of the Year Award on Friday night, December 1st, at the 2017 annual awards Gala.

I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to serve and advocate on behalf of MBEs, said Moorthy in her acceptance speech. It truly has been an honor.

This has been an exciting year at the EMSDC for Moorthy, who received this award after winning an election to Chair the MBEIC  the Minority Business Enterprise Input Committee  earlier this year. She has already begun to revolutionize the committee, driving it to accomplish more in these last few weeks than the committee had in the last few years.

Weve accomplished so much already, and Im fully dedicated to revamping the committees efforts to better serve MBEs in the future, says Moorthy.

This is not Moorthys first public appearance, by any means. She has developed quite the reputation as a thought leader for supplier diversity and technology over the last 10 years, demonstrating her leadership among peers. Just this October, during MEDweek Philly, Moorthy was asked to speak on a panel of Asian business leaders on behalf of the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia.

Despite all of the success she has achieved and the attention she has received, Moorthy says she wants to empower all women and minority business leaders and team members.

I think we all deserve this award, said Moorthy in her acceptance speech. I know so many of you work tirelessly to advocate for diversity, and I know we have so much still to accomplish. Lets look to the future and work together so that one day, everyone will understand that diversity and minority-owned businesses mean greater success for everyone.

And while many would view this honorable recognition as the achievement of a lifetime, Moorthy says that for her, it is just the beginning.

I promise I will view this as the beginning of a journey of advocacy, not just an award to place on my resume and leave behind.

About Frontier Technologies, Inc.

Frontier Technologies, Inc., headquarters in Wilmington, DE, along with operations and clients across the US, is a full-service Information Technology (IT) Infrastructure Systems & Staff Augmentation companyenabling enterprises to meet or exceed their IT goals on-time, on-budget, and on-spec. A minority-woman owned business as classified by the government for supplier-diversity initiatives. Leveraging almost 30 years in business, forming strategic partnerships with IT giants like IBM, Dell-EMC, VMware, Microsoft, HP and small businesses alike to provide clients the best-of-breed solutions with ease. Frontier is brand and technology agnostic. Frontier provides the consultative services for evaluating and selecting the best solutions providing clients peace of mind and a sustainable ROI.

About the EMSDC

The mission of Eastern Minority Supplier Development Council is to stimulate and support economic development with minority-owned businesses (Asian, Black, Hispanic, and Native American). While our outreach addresses both national and international entities, our primary focus area includes Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and Delaware. The council fosters the development of minority business enterprises to better align them with corporations in an effort to initiate growth and opportunity through Supplier Diversity channels.
The online silver and copper jewelry that are designed and crafted by Zeina El-Shazly

At a little design-and-craft studio that built into family house space, Zeina El-Shazly is hard at work with her pliers, beading needle and wire cutters to produce a bunch of earings, rings and bracelets that are to be put on display on the Facebook account of her online accessories making service: Zee Accessories.

The items that Zeina is producing for the coming weeks are mostly made of simple designs in which she brings together colourful beads with silver and copper charms that are mostly inspired by the Egyptian folk culture like Kaf Fatima (the full-stretched palm) or the blue round eye-shaped stone, both of which are meant to ward off the evil eye.

These are the extension of the production I have been working on since the summer of 2012  an assembly of items that are essentially inspired by the mix of colours of beads and stones that I often like to use, El-Shazly said.

Those, she said, would be available for clients who are interested in an online Christmas shopping experience.

But by the spring of next year, ElShazly is planning to put out her first collection that she promises would take her rings and bracelets to a new horizon.

It would not be sporadic designs but a theme that I would develop into several items; it would be in copper essentially but also in silver, she said.

Copper, El-Shazly explained, is a metal that is gaining ground - not just with new designers and crafters but also with clients.

The very simple fact is that it is quite less expensive than silver and it does mold into beautiful shapes of accessories, she suggested.

Throughout her close to five years in a slowly growing business, which really started off as a childhood hobby that was bravely encouraged by my mother," this designer-crafter has been seeing a growing interest in beautiful but not so expensive jewelry items  it is the growing world of accessories."

At 24 years of age, and with a job as a psychologist in a leading hospital, El-Shazly is not short on energy or passion to advance her small online business.

Having absorbed the pick-and-go experience while walking around the workshops in the alleys of Old Cairo where she had put hands on her first pliers a few years ago, El-Shazly finished a metalsmithing and jewelry-making course this year at the Azza Fahmy School.

Like other graduates of this school, El-Shazly is fully inspired but is firmly determined to innovate and never to imitate.

I guess one thing that has happened in the business of accessories and jewelry making is that there was a bit of laxity to find new inspiration; there were a few successful models offered and then they become too easily imitated, El-Shazly said.

She added that part of the contribution that young and aspiring designers and crafters could offer is to find a new inspiration and to explore with some daring art ideas - because otherwise it becomes all one in the same, and this would be boring."

It was the genuine want of the new and different lines that had helped ElShazly, as she thinks today, in earning her first items a warm welcome in the few open houses and bazaars to which she has contributed.

And it was this positive reaction to her work that added enthusiasm to passion and prompted her to do her online business while still studying psychology at St. Andrews University in Scotland.

For El-Shazly, what brings psychology and crafts together is nothing but the passion for the unhindered - because for her, souls and designs are meant to be free and rejoicing.

And with a growing number of online jewelry options, El-Shazly said, what really makes one designer stand out is their ability to find new inspiration, so that a potential client scrolling through the many pages can find something captivating on one particular page.

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Historic Families (Le Famiglie Storiche), the organization that represents thirteen quintessential producers of Amarone della Valpolicella, the Italian noble red that hails from Italys Veneto region, will be coming to the United States in January 2018 to host two tasting events in New York City. Historic Families aims to educate trade and consumers about the traditions, quality, and nuances of Amarone della Valpoicella, which is celebrated as one of Italys finest wines.

The tastings will take place on January 31 at Del Posto, the famed Italian restaurant in Chelsea owned by the Batali & Bastianich (B&B) Hospitality Group. They will give trade and press the opportunity to meet the producers and taste fine vintages of Amarone della Valpolicella.

Jeff Porter, Beverage Director of the B&B Hospitality Group, will host a guided vertical tasting of the 2009, 2010, and 2011 vintages of Amarone della Valpolicella. During the seminar, Porter and the producers will explain and explore the many nuances in the wines that result from the terroir of the Valpolicella area as they demonstrate that Amarone is as much about terroir as it is about technique.

Following the seminar, there will be a walkaround tasting showcasing select Amarone bottles of each of the thirteen producers. Both events are reserved exclusively for trade and press.

The wineries of Historic Families are rooted in traditional values and craftsmanship, says Sabrina Tedeschi, owner of Tedeschi Winery and President of Historic Families. We combine generations of know-how with modern innovation to produce one of Italys greatest red wines. Amarone has always been well-received in the United States, and were eager to showcase three excellent vintages from wineries whose standards guarantee high quality and honor the long history of Valpolicella.

The entry of new producer members into Historic Families has strengthened the interest and prestige of the association over time, making it the recognized and influential institution that it is today, increasingly active in decisions in favor of high quality Amarone.

About Le Famiglie Storiche/Historic Families: The group was founded in June 2009 (previously Le Famiglie dellAmarone dArte/Amarone Families) by ten historic Valpolicella companies. Today, it boasts 13 partners, prestigious wineries that have sustained and promoted the Valpolicella wine territory in the Veneto region of Italy territory for centuries: Allegrini, Begali, Brigaldara, Guerrieri Rizzardi, Masi, Musella, Speri, Tedeschi, Tenuta SantAntonio, Tommasi, Torre DOrti, Venturini, and Zenato. Together, the wineries bring a heritage of knowledge consolidated from an unwavering commitment to quality, tradition, and innovation as testimony to this great wine.
Phil with Kenya Orphans These awards are a testament to RippleNamis commitment towards our bold vision of connecting unconnected people with an easy-to-use solution.

RippleNami, Inc., a blockchain data visualization solution provider, announced that Phil Gahn, Founder and Chief Business Development Officer, has been named winner in the prestigious One Planet Awards as Business Development Executive of the Year. The coveted One Planet Awards is world's premier awards program honoring best in business and professional excellence in every industry from around the world. Organizations from all over the world submitted nominations including public and private, for-profit and non-profit, largest to smallest and new start-ups.

Phil is a true visionary, business development leader and not to mention survivor like no other. His story is one that had the potential to cut him off from any kind of future. As a young child, Phil witnessed terrible violence and at five-years-old was literally dropped off at a South Korean orphanage door. But Phil did not let his difficulties stop him; his resilience, strength and determination drove him to work and study hard. He vaguely remembers his father telling him to move to America if he ever got the opportunity. Luckily adopted by an Ohio family, Phil thrived in aeronautics and received a scholarship to MIT at fourteen years old graduating at seventeen.

While in Africa, Phil grew frustrated by how each year billions of humanitarian aid in developing nations never reached those in need. He asked the simple question, "why cant we connect to unconnected populations?" He was not afraid to dip his toe in the sand when he set out to do social good. He had a vision of connecting 5 billion unconnected people with an easy-to-use blockchain and mapping solution that leverages the mass adoption of mobile phones. Gahn knew that if he could take his technology solution into developing countries, the world would forever be changed. First stop: why not Africa?

Its an honor to be named a winner by One Planet for this esteemed industry and peer recognition, said Phil Gahn. These awards are a testament to RippleNamis commitment towards our bold vision of connecting unconnected people with an easy-to-use solution.

For a US based start-up, developing an African market is virtually impossible but not for Phil and his tenacity. He has fought off every disease known to man, avoided corruption at the highest level and deals with threats every day. We are honored to work with Phil and congratulate him on his recognition, said Jaye Connolly-Labelle, chairman and chief executive officer at RippleNami.

About RippleNami, Inc.

RippleNami develops and deploys complete blockchain-based solutions to accelerate mass adoption of digital technologies in developing countries. RippleNami solutions drive new standards for cost-effectiveness and scalability, empowering any nation through digital transformation, and swiftly benefitting from its Smart Country status. RippleNamis blockchain data visualization platform integrates diverse data sets from unlimited sources. The platforms visualization capabilities paint a multi-dimensional picture of all strategic information to promptly identify trends, patterns and gaps to design and inform strategies faster. RippleNami solutions enable emergent economies to generate process, manage, share and transact information on a national scale  opening up a world of opportunities for economic inclusion for its citizens and independence for the nation. For more information about RippleNami, visit http://www.ripplenami.com.

About the One Planet Awards

One Planet Awards recognizes companies for their business and professional excellence. The One Planet Awards honors are currently conferred in category sections which include outstanding individuals, executives, teams, new products and services, PR, Marketing, and Corporate Communications, and organizations from all over the world. Learn more about the One Planet Awards at http://www.oneplanetawards.com and participate.
Since we specialize in eSports, live events and brand activations, coming on as a Presenting Sponsor for XLIVE seemed like a natural fit for us.

At XLIVE 2017, The Trade Group will join forces with a host of influencers who specialize in transforming live events into memorable experiences. The event will be held December 10-13, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The annual conference draws players from the music, advertising, sports, film, culinary, beverage, eSports and tech industries.

This will be the first year that The Trade Group will be a sponsor of the growing event. According to Chris Stone, President and Co-Founder of The Trade Group, Since we specialize in eSports, live events and brand activations, coming on as a Presenting Sponsor for XLIVE seemed like a natural fit for us.

XLIVE also provides an ideal environment in which to feature the companys AirClad line of modern, portable, architectural structures. The Trade Group rents the customizable structures for festivals and brand activations, as well as other live events and experiences.

The Trade Group will provide two larger AirClad units for the event, including an XPO6x5 for XLIVEs booth and speakers lounge and an XPO6x2.5 unit for co-sponsor FISH Technologies. Three smaller AirClad structures will also be featured at the show: An OiO with charging stations; a Yum Yum for disbursing bottled water; and a Snoozy positioned in The Trade Groups booth.

To help raise awareness about the AirClad line, all attendees will receive an AirClad Passport upon entry to the event. Visiting and receiving a passport stamp at all five featured AirClad structures will qualify the attendee for entry into a $250 gift card drawing. The winner will be announced during the cocktail reception The Trade Group is hosting for XLIVE exhibitors and attendees on Tuesday, December 12, from 6:45-8:45 p.m. in the exhibit hall.

The reception will feature an apres ski vibe, where guests can enjoy music by DJ group TELYKast. The DJ space will include a high-tech, LED backwall sponsored by our A/V partner, Reaction Audio Visual. Along with cocktails and music, guests can also take advantage of a Christmas-themed multi-cam photo opportunity, says Stone.

Another $250 drawing will be held for entrants into the companys Gingerbread Snoozy contest. Fifty attendees received the Gingerbread Snoozy kits prior to the show and were asked to post photos of their completed work on The Trade Groups social media sites. The Trade Group also created a diorama of a Snoozy Village that will be featured at its booth throughout the show.

Lastly, The Trade Groups Neeshu Hajra, VP of Business Development and leading expert on eSports activations, will be moderating as well as sitting on several panels for the XLIVE 2017 eSports Workshop being held on Monday, December 11th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

To learn more about The Trade Group, the AirClad line of mobile, architectural structures and the companys comprehensive line of products and services for the eSports and live event industries, call 800-343-2005 or visit http://www.tradegroup.com.

About The Trade Group:

The Trade Group is a full-service, award-winning provider of products and services for trade shows, corporate events, retail environments and an endless array of face-to-face experiences and activations. The organization helps clients share their unique stories through a comprehensive suite of solutions that includes: exhibit design and fabrication, graphic design and production, exhibit management, digital applications, experiential marketing activations, event coordination and production, videography, strategic marketing and more.
Jeff Pedowitz, President & CEO, The Pedowitz Group Being named a finalist in all of the categories for which we were nominated is a testament to the quality of our marketing content to engage customers and move the sales needle.

Revenue Marketing consulting firm, The Pedowitz Group, announces its selection as a finalist in Top Sales Worlds (TSW) 2017 Sales & Marketing Awards in three separate categories including white papers, corporate blogs and videos.

Currently in its seventh year, TSWs annual content received over 1500 nominations this year, up 40% over last year. A panel of judges will choose winners in 10 unique categories, which will be announced on December 19th.

TPG is honored and humbled to have made it into the finals this year, given the intense competition in this very popular sales and marketing contest, remarks Pedowitz Group CEO, Jeff Pedowitz. Being named a finalist in all of the categories for which we were nominated is a testament to the quality of our marketing content to engage customers and move the sales needle.

TPGs three entries include: Rise of the Marketing Operations Function (white paper); Revenue Marketer blog (corporate blog) and CMO Insights (video series). Heres the skinny:

Based on interviews with ten MO leaders, TPGs Rise of the Marketing Operations Function white paper by Debbie Qaqish, Chief Strategy Officer, presents a solid case for the birth and growth of the MO function and offers a powerful blueprint for structuring an organization to master marketings top challenges.

TPGs Revenue Marketer blog caters to B2B marketers on a mission to transform their departments from cost centers to revenue centers. The series is intended to educate and inspire marketers to embrace revenue accountability and impact their organizations in a measurable way. Written by industry thought leaders, this forum provides rich content that spans best practices in marketing automation usage to demand generation strategy. The objective of the blog series is share best practices in technology, process and people so aspiring marketers can up their game and achieve quantifiable results that impact topline sales revenue. Each week, TPG shares proven strategies and interviews with real-world CMOs who have been there / done that.

CMO Insights is a video series hosted by Jeff Pedowitz, and features 1:1 conversations with B2B marketing thought leaders such as Scott Brinker, Michael Brenner and Joe Pulizzi. The sophistication of todays educated buyer, coupled by the avalanche of new marketing technologies makes the job of todays B2B marketer extremely challenging. The concept behind CMO Insights is to share the wisdom of todays most innovative marketing thinkers. Each episode is filled with rich lessons listeners can apply to their own circumstances to meet the challenges within their own organizations. During each 15-minute video interview, guests share their perspectives on strategy, skills, process, technology and content that fuels marketing transformation.

"The annual Top Sales & Marketing Awards is now in its seventh year and has established itself as an eagerly anticipated sales and marketing competition, notes Jonathan Farrington, Editor of Top Sales World. This end-of-year contest provides us with an opportunity to reward both companies and individuals who have endeavored to raise that bar of excellence."

About Top Sales World

Top Sales World (TSW) is the worlds first online sales hypermarket, launched by Jonathan Farrington in 2008. Shelves are stacked with every conceivable resource sales & marketing professionals and managers could possibly need. Contributors bring a unique element of expertise and experience in specific sales & marketing disciplines. TSW publishes the hugely popular monthly Top Sales Magazine and a weekly newsletter, Around Top Sales World in 7 days. Annually, they publish the Top 50 Sales Blogs, Top 50 Sales Books and stage the Top Sales & Marketing Awards, which is now in its 7th year. Visit https://topsalesworld.com/.

About The Pedowitz Group  Connecting Marketing to Revenue

The Pedowitz Group wrote the book, and is the undisputed thought leader on Revenue Marketing. As your partner, TPG helps you plan, build and optimize your revenue engine by delivering services in MarTech, demand generation and marketing operations. We believe that Marketing is the driver of customer engagement that fuels the revenue engine. The Pedowitz Group customers have won over 50 national awards for their Revenue Marketing excellence. To discover how we can help your organization become successful Revenue Marketers, visit http://www.pedowitzgroup.com, or call us at 855-REV-MKTG or visit Revenue Marketer Blog.

# # #

Media/Analyst Contact

Elizabeth Fairleigh

thE Connection, Inc.

404.874.4562

Elizabeth(at)EConnectionPR(dot)com
VABeachBio Innovation Challenge The challenge is the first of its kind in the United States. We anticipate the impact of the startups will greatly improve the lives of our veterans in the region and around the world and their families. Virginia Beach Economic Development Director Warren D. Harris

The City of Virginia Beach and the Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development have partnered with the Center for Advancing Innovation (CAI) to launch the VABeachBio Innovation Challenge. This is an unprecedented, open innovation challenge that will launch 20 startup companies focused on creating therapeutics, vaccines and devices for veteran-related illnesses including cardiovascular, neurological disorders, diabetes, oncology and regenerative medicine.

Our mission is to identify breakthrough inventions and maximize their commercial potential, said Rosemarie Truman, CEO of CAI, a global nonprofit public-private partnership and startup catalyst to commercialize federally- funded research and development. We have launched hundreds of companies all over the world through our startup challenges, but for the first time ever we are partnering to create a whole challenge around one city. With the VABeachBio Innovation Challenge, entrepreneurs, industry, inventors and academia are coming together to turn some of the most dynamic inventions into successful startup companies. Inventions are being sourced from federal research labs, hospitals and universities.

Virginia Beach is proud to partner with the award-winning Center for Advancing Innovation, said Virginia Beach Economic Development Director Warren D. Harris. The challenge is the first-of- its kind in the United States. We anticipate the impact of the startups will greatly improve the lives of our veterans in the region and around the world and their families.

The challenge, to be administered by CAI, will spin out 20 startup companies to bring to market commercially viable veterans health-related inventions, many of which began as federally-funded initiatives, but have not yet progressed out of the lab.

Teams entering the challenge have an unparalleled opportunity to receive world-class mentoring, robust accelerator training, prize money, significant media attention and, most importantly, seed funding to launch a company and make an impact on human health. The 20 selected startups are encouraged to have veteran leadership on the teams. Winners will have access to VABeachBio Innovation Park, home to one million square feet of Class A lab, wet lab, office and industrial space that is being developed in Virginia Beach.

CAI has sourced federally-funded, veteran-related inventions and will recruit multi-disciplinary teams to compete in commercializing the most valuable of these inventions. Entrants must submit comprehensive business plans to explain the market potential of the technologies and proposed paths to commercialization, which they will pitch to CAIs world-class panel of judges, advisors and mentors.

Winners will be selected based on the quality of an elevator speech, business plan, financial model, live presentation and other deliverables. With the assistance and entrepreneurial training from CAI, the selected startups will incorporate their companies and pursue licensing and/or collaboration agreements from the institutions where the inventions were sourced. The startups will be expected to bring the technologies to market or to advance them to the point where they can find commercial partners.

Its extremely important for this region to diversify its economy, and bioscience offers a wonderful opportunity for advancing jobs, improving the economy and really taking advantage of the opportunities that our institutions have, including Eastern Virginia Medical School, said Dr. Jerry L. Nadler, internal medicine chairman and vice dean of research, Eastern Virginia Medical School.

To spin out 20 startups through the VABeachBio Innovation Challenge, CAI will leverage its award-winning challenge-accelerator model. CAIs notable track record includes spinning out 58 companies from 2013-2016. In November 2016, a CAI oncology spin-out, Oncolinx, was awarded the worlds largest startup investment prize ($1M) by the 43North Startup Competition and the state of New York. In the same month, another CAI oncology spin-out, OneTest Diagnostics, was named one of the top ten hottest startups in the world by CNBC. Overall, CAI startup challenges have created 1,200+ jobs. As a follow up to CAIs largest startup challenge, the Freedom from Cancer Startup Challenge, the VABeachBio Innovation Challenge has the potential to create as many as 2,000 knowledge-based jobs and amplify the Virginia Beach entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Applications are available at http://www.vabeachbiochallenge.com/, and the acceptance process will be ongoing.

About the Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development

The mission of the Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development is to attract and retain national and international businesses to stimulate capital investment and create jobs. Virginia Beach is the most populous city in Virginia with a population of 450,000, and it is the 37th largest in the United States. The Department of Economic Development received re-accreditation through the International Economic Development Council in 2016 and is one of only 50 economic development organizations in the world to have this recognition. Most recently, Virginia Beach was named Americas #1 best big city to live in by wallethub.com. For more information, visit http://www.yesvirginiabeach.com.

About the Center for Advancing Innovation

The Center for Advancing Innovation is a global public-private partnership, non-profit focused on creating a virtuous circle of innovation and driving growth breakthroughs through novel, creative paradigms and models. CAI's mission is to accelerate and increase the volume of research commercialization in support of high-growth business to ignite entrepreneurship, bolster the global economy and maximize the commercial and knowledge-based potential of promising inventions. CAI's award-winning challenge-based accelerator, rigorous evidence-based due diligence and capital-efficient lean management models serve to hyper-accelerate gazelle high-performing startups for outsized investor returns. Through its National Institute of Health-sponsored Breast Cancer Startup Challenge, Neuro Startup Challenge and Nanotechnology Startup Challenge in cancer competitions, as well as its NASA-supported SPACE RACE startup challenge, CAI has launched 58 startups and trained more than 2000 entrepreneurs. For additional information about CAI, visit http://www.thecenterforadvancinginnovation.org.
SmartTRAK is known for a staff of expert analysts in their fields and we are delighted to highlight these industry professionals

BioMedGPS, announces the top 10 SmartTRAK Blog Posts in 2017. The newly launched SmartTRAK Blog highlights industry trends and insightful analysis from SmartTRAK Business Intelligence experts, all former business development, marketing and competitive intelligence professionals from major orthopedic, wound care and neurotherapies companies.

The SmartTRAK Top 10 Blog Posts include:

1. Nevros Growth Strategies and Challenges in the Spinal Cord Stimulation Market.

Nevro CEO Rami Elghandour discussed the Companys success, its growth strategies, and some of the challenges of being the one to beat in the spinal cord stimulation (SCS) market ...

2. OrthoBio Market: SmartTRAK Predicts Strong Growth Ahead.

Robust growth is predicted for the US OrthoBio market, driving revenues to over $4B by 2021E according to...

3. BioMedGPS Announces Coverage of China Advanced Dressings in Wound Care.

BioMedGPS announces expanded coverage of SmartTRAK for Advanced Wound Care with the addition of its newest module, China Advanced Wound Dressings...

4. DKOU Spotlight: NavaSwiss  Miniaturized navigation Tech for Computer-Assisted Ortho Surgery.

SmartTRAK's President & CEO Sharon O'Reilly attended DKOU2017, in Berlin Oct. 24-27, 2017 and uncovered several new and innovative orthopedic, trauma and spine technologies...

5. SmartTRAK Quoted in Wall Street Journal: Ankle Replacement Market.

SmartTRAK was cited by the Wall Street Journal on Nov. 12, 2017 in a fascinating article by Laura Johannes, "Ankle Replacements Take Off as Devices Appear Durable."

6. Joint Fluid Market: New Players, New Products.

With few options available for treating OA pain, joint fluid injections have become a standard part of the treatment regimen for patients with painful arthritic knees...

7. Top 5 Trends in Joint Replacement.

Over the next twelve months, BioMedGPS projects the US Joint Replacement Market will grow in the low single digits at approximately 3%...

8. The Future of Neuro-Interventional Surgery: A SmartTRAK Interview with Don Frei, MD.

Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS) President Donald F. Frei, MD talked with SmartTRAK at the SNIS 14th Annual Meeting regarding the future of neurointerventional surgery...

9. Innovation and Clinical Outcomes Shaping the Future of Hernia Repair.

Innovation and clinical outcomes are shaping the future of the US ventral hernia market. Over the next several years, the market will see a continued shift from biologic mesh to synthetic mesh...

10. NASS/CNS: Hot Topics and Bright Spots in Spine.

SmartTRAK reviews hot topics from the fall Spine meetings and identifies bright spots in an otherwise soft Spine market...

SmartTRAK is known for a staff of expert analysts in their fields and we are delighted to highlight these industry professionals, says CEO and Founder Sharon OReilly.

Read the SmartTRAK Top 10 Blog Posts today!

About BioMedGPS

BioMedGPS, LLC is the developer of SmartTRAK Business Intelligence, the leading portal for real-time data and analysis on the life sciences industry for the orthopedic/spine, wound care, regenerative medicine and neuro therapies markets. Known for expert analysis and innovative tools, SmartTRAK provides daily updates, strategic insights, and in-depth analyses of the orthopedics, wound care, regenerative medicine and neuro therapies markets. SmartTRAK has become an integral resource for some of the largest medical device companies currently used by the top ten orthopedic/spine implant manufacturers and nine of the top ten wound care companies.

For more information about SmartTRAK please visit SmartTRAK.com or contact BioMedGPS.
Pepperoni fans rejoice! Wisconsin-based franchise chain Toppers Pizza is piling it on thick with the introduction of the new Ragin Pepperoni pizza. The new limited time offer pizza launches December 11 and runs through mid-April and features three different types of the classic pizza topping: traditional pepperoni, diced pepperoni and thick-cut spicy pepperoni. The three types of pepperoni combine with 100% Real Wisconsin mozzarella cheese and Toppers Pizzas classic homemade pizza sauce for a delicious way to end 2017 and enter the new year.

Pepperoni is Americas favorite topping and were giving it to our fans three times over with the Ragin Pepperoni, said Scott Iversen, vice president of marketing for Toppers Pizza. This isnt the same bland pepperoni pizza you can get at any other pizza place.

Toppers Pizza has pioneered many innovative trends, ingredients, and combinations since emerging onto the pizza industry scene more than 25 years ago. The Ragin Pepperoni is another example of the companys commitment to research and development creativity based on consumer feedback and insight. The company plans to build on the momentum sparked by the new limited time offer pizza in 2018.

We have always been on the cutting edge of new flavor profiles and we have big plans to focus even more on unique and bold options in the coming year, said Mac Malchow, director of national marketing & menu innovation for Toppers Pizza. We listened to our fans and like the tripling down of the Ragin Pepperoni, we are planning to triple down on introducing new items and creating more exciting takes on pizza favorites in 2018.

Toppers Pizza is set to open 16 locations by the end of 2017, tying the biggest year for openings in the companys history. The brand enters 2018 with a focus on investing in existing franchisees and enhancing the in-store, delivery and online ordering experience while also continuing growth momentum through strategic expansion in targeted markets with qualified franchise candidates.

ABOUT TOPPERS PIZZA

Capitalizing on the booming better pizza category and fueled by the passion of Founder & President Scott Gittrich and a team of experienced industry veterans, Toppers Pizza has formulated the perfect recipe to appeal to both pizza enthusiasts and savvy investors. Headquartered in Wisconsin, Toppers is one of the fastest growing better-pizza chains in the United States. The brand has doubled in size over the last three years and completely sold out three states based on growth spurred by both existing franchisees and established multi-unit operators. Now with restaurants in 16 states and with territories immediately available across the country, Toppers is on its way to becoming a nationwide brand. Toppers is committed to quality and consistency throughout the system, and plans to maintain corporate ownership of 25 percent of all locations while the brand expands to continuously improve on best practices and product development. Toppers fanatics love the brands fresh, handmade and customizable pizza baked in about 360 seconds and delivered extremely fast, with more than a million combinations of fresh, high quality toppings, and the brands signature line of flavored Topperstix and baked Buffalo wings. In 2017, Entrepreneur Magazine ranked Toppers as one of the top 500 franchises in the U.S for the third year in a row and in 2016, QSR Magazine listed the company as one of the years Best Franchise Deals. For more information on how to join the rapidly growing Toppers family and for a sneak peek into the Toppers experience, visit http://www.toppersfranchise.com/.
"It makes me grateful to be part of the altruistic side of the legal community" - Michael Dalewitz, CEO

Inspired Review will once again be sponsoring the 2017 Life Preservers Project Holiday Benefit #2017LPPHolidayParty and Marine Toys for Tots #toydrive on December 11th at Proper West in NYC! We ask all in the legal industry to join us for an evening of good cheer and networking for two good causes. Life Preservers Project has collected hundreds of toys over the last 9 years to help children in NYC celebrate the holidays. The organization has also pledged net proceeds from the evening will go to help those affected by the hurricanes in Texas, Florida, and the Caribbean.

Please visit http://www.lifepreserversproject.org/event/2017-holiday-party-toy-drive/ for more information.

Michael Dalewitz, CEO of Inspired Review, had a few words that he wanted to share. "Thank you Shana Pederson, LPP Board of Directors, Maribel Rivera, and all the Supporters of The Life Preservers Project. It is always an honor and an inspiration to participate in your passionate causes and it makes me grateful to be part of the altruistic side of the legal community."

About Inspired Review

Founded in 2013, Inspired Review is the most groundbreaking document review firm in the legal industry and the Pioneer of Remote Document Review. With advances in data security and skills testing and metrics technology, through its proprietary software, ReviewRight, Inspired Review has built the largest network of highly qualified document review attorneys in the United States. Inspired Review ensures the defensibility of your review and minimizes the risk of error through statistically validated quality control, developed in-depth validation and targeted search methodologies. Inspired Review is also very concerned with igniting change in the world by giving back. A percentage of all the company's profits are donated to a monthly sponsored charity.
Kirschner and Caracciolo From Toronto to Caracas and Brussels to LA, were connected to our clients in a very special way. We absolutely love what we do.

Haute Residence welcomes acclaimed realtors, Frank Kirschner and Veronica Caracciolo to its invitation-only network of top brokers. As Haute Residence partners, Kirschner and Caracciolo exclusively represent the high-end real estate markets in West Palm Beach, Jupiter and Wellington, Florida.

Combining well over 25 years of international real estate experience, Kirschner and Caracciolo provide a depth of knowledge and industry insight few possess. As founders of Palm Beach Lux Group, they blend disparate backgrounds to deliver unsurpassed services that are rooted in professionalism and integrity.

Raised in Venezuela, Caracciolo speaks Italian, Spanish and English. She focuses on luxury homes and condominiums. She has worked with the team at the Ritz Carlton and knows the South Florida market extremely well.

Kirschners resume runs deep and wide, from Top Sales Awards to Company ownership and several executive leadership roles over an impressive history in the US and Canada. He has served as Vice President/Director of Canadian Operations for Prudential RE. Kirschners negotiation skills and knowledge of the South Florida market give his clients a definite edge.

Accomplished brokers on their own, Kirschner and Caracciolo are a respected internationally experienced couple who clients love working with.

From Toronto to Caracas and Brussels to LA, were connected to our clients in a very special way," they say. We absolutely love what we do.

About Haute Residence:

Designed as a partnership-driven luxury real estate portal, Haute Residence connects its affluent readers with top real estate professionals, while offering the latest in real estate news, showcasing the worlds most extraordinary residences on the market and sharing expert advice from its knowledgeable and expe-rienced real estate partners.

The invitation-only luxury real estate network, which partners with just one agent in every market, unites a distinguished collective of leading real estate agents and brokers and highlights the most extravagant properties in leading markets around the globe for affluent buyers, sellers, and real estate enthusiasts.

HauteResidence.com has grown to be the number one news source for million-dollar listings, high-end res-idential developments, celebrity real estate, and more.

Access all of this information and more by visiting: http://www.hauteresidence.com
Rendering of AHN Hempfield-Neighborhood Hospital With this neighborhood hospital, we are bringing to Westmoreland County an innovative, patient-centered model that will provide the best possible experience, quality and outcomes for those requiring emergency care, short hospital stays and other outpatient services

Highmark Health and Allegheny Health Network (AHN) today identified Hempfield Township in Westmoreland County as the first location for one of four new neighborhood hospitals the organizations plan to construct across western Pennsylvania over the next two years. The facility will be built at the junction of Agnew Road and Route 30 and will be called AHN HempfieldNeighborhood Hospital. AHN is in the process of securing regulatory approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and fully expects to comply with all applicable hospital licensure rules and regulations. Pending state approval, the hospital is targeted for a 2019 opening.

With this neighborhood hospital, we are bringing to Westmoreland County an innovative, patient-centered model that will provide the best possible experience, quality and outcomes for those requiring emergency care, short hospital stays and other outpatient services, said Cynthia Hundorfean, AHN President and CEO. We have taken a number of important steps over the past year to expand access to AHN physicians and programs in Westmoreland County, and this wonderful new facility will further ensure that the people who live here have exceptional choices close to home for their health care needs.

AHN Hempfield is part of a plan announced by Highmark Health and AHN in October to invest $1 billion in new facility construction and existing facility expansion and renovation over the next four to five years to further improve access to affordable, high-quality health care services in the western Pennsylvania region. A key component of that strategy is the formation of a joint venture with Emerus, the nations leading developer and operator of neighborhood hospitals.

AHN will be among the first health systems east of the Mississippi to incorporate the Emerus neighborhood hospital concept into its care delivery model. AHN Hempfield will offer an assortment of onsite clinical services, including an emergency department, 10 inpatient beds for observation and short-stay use, diagnostic care, primary and specialty care, and other complementary services. Among the planned physician practices at the site will be specialists in neurosurgery, cardiac surgery, thoracic surgery, cardiology, general and breast surgery, and womens subspecialties.

Unlike standalone emergency departments or urgent care centers, the facility will be a fully licensed hospital that is open 24/7 and able to accommodate patients who require certain inpatient services. It will be staffed by board-certified physicians, nurses and other experienced health care professionals, all of whom are aligned around a proven, high-quality care model. Emerus has received the prestigious Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award, which recognizes top-performing health care organizations that have consistently achieved the top 95th percentile or above for exceptional patient experience, for five consecutive years.

We are excited to partner with AHN to deliver what will be a truly differentiated health care experience in this community. Our model is focused entirely around the needs of patients, and the importance of providing excellent care in an expedited and compassionate manner to those who seek our services, said Craig Gogeun, CEO of Emerus.

Among numerous patient-friendly design elements, AHN Hempfield will feature nursing stations uniquely configured to maximize sightlines and accessibility, allowing staff to easily monitor exam rooms and minimize response times. Aesthetically pleasing and technologically advanced CT and X-ray procedure rooms will provide comfort for patients of any age, with adjacent observation rooms that keep families together during procedures. An onsite lab will expedite testing processes so patients dont have to wait long for results.

AHN Hempfield will offer coordinated service, from emergency care to referrals to onsite primary and specialty care physicians if needed and as appropriate. The hospital will be integrated into AHNs EPIC electronic health record, allowing medical records to be accessed and shared seamlessly for the best quality of care possible.

The new hospital is the latest and largest expansion of AHNs footprint in Westmoreland County. In October, AHN opened a walk-in clinic at the lower level of the Premier Medical Associates medical office building at 4044 State Route 130 in Penn Township. The clinic features the providers of the Allegheny Family Medicine East practice and offers appointment-free care for a variety of aches and ailments, with extended evening hours available two nights a week.

Earlier this year, the AHN Outpatient CenterWestmoreland also opened on Nature Park Road in Hempfield Township. The 23,000-square-foot facility provides access to medical and surgical specialists and features a state-of-the-art endoscopy center for patients requiring gastrointestinal procedures. The Outpatient Center also offers physical and occupational therapy services, a lab for blood draws and both X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) services.

About Highmark Health

Highmark Health, a Pittsburgh, PA based enterprise that employs more than 40,000 people nationwide and serves nearly 50 million Americans in all 50 states, is the second largest integrated health care delivery and financing network in the nation based on revenue. Highmark Health is the parent company of Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, and HM Health Solutions. Highmark Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates provide health insurance to more than 5 million members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Delaware as well as dental insurance, vision care and related health products through a national network of diversified businesses that include United Concordia Companies, HM Insurance Group, Davis Vision and Visionworks. Allegheny Health Network is the parent company of an integrated delivery network that includes eight hospitals, more than 2,800 affiliated physicians, ambulatory surgery centers, an employed physician organization, home and community-based health services, a research institute, a group purchasing organization, and health and wellness pavilions in western Pennsylvania. HM Health Solutions focuses on meeting the information technology platform and other business needs of the Highmark Health enterprise as well as unaffiliated health insurance plans by providing proven business processes, expert knowledge and integrated cloud-based platforms. To learn more, please visit http://www.highmarkhealth.org.

About the Allegheny Health Network

Allegheny Health Network (http://www.AHN.org), a Highmark Health company, is an integrated healthcare system serving the greater Western Pennsylvania region. The Network is composed of eight hospitals, including Allegheny General Hospital, its flagship academic medical center in Pittsburgh, Allegheny Valley Hospital in Natrona Heights, Canonsburg Hospital in Canonsburg, Forbes Hospital in Monroeville, Jefferson Hospital in Jefferson Hills, Saint Vincent Hospital in Erie, West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh and Westfield Memorial Hospital in Westfield, NY. The Network provides patients with access to a complete spectrum of advanced medical services, including nationally recognized programs for primary and emergency care, cardiovascular disease, cancer care, orthopedic surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, womens health, diabetes and more. It also is home to a comprehensive research institute; Health + Wellness Pavilions; an employed physician organization, home and community based health services and a group purchasing organization. The Network employs approximately 17,000 people, has more than 2,800 physicians on its medical staff and serves as a clinical campus for Drexel University College of Medicine, Temple University School of Medicine, and the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.

About Emerus

Emerus is the nations first and largest operator of neighborhood hospitals. Emerus partners with leading health systems to provide excellence, empathy and innovation in health care delivery through a network of efficient, value-based neighborhood hospitals. The Emerus network brings high-quality, patent-centric acute episodic and ambulatory clinical services to communities across a given market. This helps patients by positioning best-in-class provider services in the communities where they work, live and play. Emerus distinctive level of care earned the Guardian of Excellence Award for Superior Patient Experience in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. More information is available at http://www.emerus.com (http://www.emerus.com).
Dr. Sophia Wisniewska I am greatly humbled and honored to be recognized by the Pinellas Urban League for my initiatives and efforts to improve diversity.

Respected scholar and visionary leader Dr. Sophia Wisniewska was honored with an award at Pinellas County Urban League's 2017 Equal Opportunity Gala, which took place on December 2, 2017 in Clearwater, Fla. Dr. Wisniewska was recognized for her long-standing track record of success in improving diversity and fostering an equal opportunity environment during her tenure as Regional Chancellor at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg (USFSP).

I am greatly humbled and honored to be recognized by the Pinellas Urban League for my initiatives and efforts to improve diversity, said Dr. Wisniewska. However, I am most grateful for this honor on behalf of the entire USFSP campus. Our faculty, staff, and students remain staunchly committed to building a university that models and celebrates a diverse community.

Under Dr. Wisniewskas leadership, the University of South Florida St. Petersburg was able to achieve several important goals that promote diversity, including the introduction of: a Minority Postdoctoral Fellows Program, a Cabinet-level position of Campus Diversity Officer, several tenure track faculty positions that enhance domestic and global diversity, and the first female African American Dean of Education.

The Equal Opportunity Gala is the Pinellas County Urban League's annual fundraising event that celebrates the achievements of those who strive to create an equal opportunity environment for every citizen. The event is traditionally supported by members and leaders of the local community, as well as state and federal officials, and a number of Fortune 500 companies.

About Sophia Wisniewska

A visionary leader and respected scholar, Dr. Sophia Wisniewska possesses extensive experience and a proven track record of success in higher education. Her signature accomplishments include developing strategic plans and forging key partnerships with community leaders, creating innovative academic programs, fiscal management, and vigorous resource development. Dr. Wisniewska formerly excelled in leadership roles at Penn State, Temple, and the University of South Florida St. Petersburg (USFSP).

Dr. Wisniewska holds a PhD and a Master of Arts in Russian from Bryn Mawr College, and a Bachelor of Arts in Russian with a minor in history from Penn State. She also participated in Harvard Universitys Institute for Management and Leadership in Education.
By combining ConnectAndSell's unmatched ability to deliver targeted live conversations on demand with Outreachs comprehensive sales engagement platform, together we enable every salesperson to execute at an unprecedented level of precision and productivity.

Chris Beall, CEO of ConnectAndSell, Inc., announces a deep product-integration and partnership with Outreach to market a joint offering that combines ConnectAndSells one-of-a-kind advanced conversations-on-demand solution with Outreachs leading sales engagement platform.

ConnectAndSell, a Silicon Valleybased corporation established in 2007, has developed the worlds only patented sales-acceleration technology. They have been recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the 10 Innovative Companies to Watch in 2016 and by Inc. Magazines online publication in its list of 18 Tech Companies to Get Excited About (March 31, 2016). ConnectAndSell has made more than 100 million dials and delivered over five million conversations to more than 1,000 B2B customers, ranging from aggressive startups to the most established enterprises.

Beall commented, At ConnectAndSell, we believe that conversations matter. Our flagship product, Lightning, lets salespeople effortlessly connect with targeted decision-makers in minutes. By combining ConnectAndSell's unmatched ability to deliver targeted live conversations on demand with Outreachs comprehensive sales engagement platform, together we enable every salesperson to execute at an unprecedented level of precision and productivity.

Outreach, a privately held company based in Seattle, Washington, is the leading sales engagement platform. Outreach automates and prioritizes customer touch points throughout the sales process, resulting in increased productivity for sales teams. Thousands of customers rely on Outreach to transform the sales process, drive collaboration between sales and marketing, and deliver higher revenue per sales rep.

Commenting on Outreach's addition of conversation acceleration to make sales people even more successful, Greg Mushen, VP of Product Development, said, "Our team believes in giving our customers the tools they need to scale up and spend more time connecting with prospects. We're excited that this integration will help set our joint customers up for success."

For more information about the ConnectAndSell + Outreach partnership, contact ConnectAndSell at 888-240-7737 or visit connectandsell.com. To learn more about Outreach, visit http://www.outreach.io.
Southern California wildfires Our church partners have deeply engaged ministries, said Katie Mears, Director of Episcopal Relief & Developments US Disaster Team. As the fires continue, we will leverage the expertise of our congregations and diocesan disaster coordinators.

Episcopal Relief & Development is partnering with the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles to provide emergency support to help the most vulnerable impacted by the wildfires spreading across Southern California. This assistance includes gift cards and spiritual care for homeless and undocumented people in Ventura, Ojai and Santa Paula.

One of the challenges in a situation like this is figure out a response when new needs become apparent, noted The Very Rev. Canon Michael Bamberger of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, a member of Episcopal Relief & Developments Partners in Response team and the Diocesan Disaster Coordinator for Los Angeles. We used an asset based approach and identified that there are active Laundry Love ministries in Ojai and Ventura. It was easy to see how the existing ministry could be amplified to meet the needs of a community to clean their clothes of the smoke residue. In the days ahead, when we become aware of more needs, we will do our best to address them.

California has one of the highest rates of homelessness in the country due, in part, to the lack of affordable housing and shelters with long waiting lists, forcing an increase in the number of people living in encampments and on the streets.

In partnership with St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Ojai, St. Pauls Episcopal Church in Santa Paula and St. Pauls Episcopal Church in Ventura, the Diocese of Los Angeles is providing gift cards to help people who are homeless and undocumented to replace belongings lost in the fires. All three churches have strong interfaith relationships in their communities. Laundry Love, a national program that assists people struggling financially to have the dignity of clean clothes, is working with St. Andrews and St. Pauls in Ojai to provide laundry services.

Canon Bamberger and diocesan leadership are in regular communication with clergy and congregational leaders through AlertMedia, an emergency notification platform, to assess and organize responses.

Driven by high, unpredictable winds and mountainous terrain, six fires continue to burn and have destroyed approximately 800 buildings and charred 230,000 acres. More than 5,700 firefighters are battling these swiftly moving fires for the second week. The Southern California wildfires erupted less than two months after thousands of acres and hundreds of buildings and homes were destroyed in wildfires in the northern part of the state.

Our church partners have deeply engaged ministries, said Katie Mears, Director of Episcopal Relief & Developments US Disaster Team. As the fires continue, we will leverage the expertise of our congregations and diocesan disaster coordinators.

Donations to the US Disaster Fund will help those affected by the devastating wildfires in California.

For over 75 years, Episcopal Relief & Development has served as a compassionate response to human suffering in the world. The agency works with more than 3 million people in nearly 40 countries worldwide to overcome poverty, hunger and disease through multi-sector programs, using the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework. An independent 501(c)(3) organization, it works closely with Anglican Communion and ecumenical partners to help communities create long-term development strategies and rebuild after disasters.

Photo Credit: LAFD Photo | Harry Garvin
Lowest cost cell phone plan in the industry - Republic Wireless announces new My Choice Plan - $15 for unlimited talk and text and pay as you go cell data for $5 per gigabyte. At just $5 for each gigabyte of cell data, the My Choice Plan is designed to make it easier than ever to save on your cell phone bill so you spend your money on the people and things that are most important to you - not your cell phone bill.

Long lauded for disrupting the wireless industry and saving consumers money, WiFi calling innovator Republic Wireless today announced a new simpler, even less expensive and more flexible way to buy cell phone service. Starting tomorrow, Republics new "My Choice Plan" starts at $15 for basic unlimited talk and text. Each gigabyte of nationwide 4G LTE cellular data is only $5. The new plan will continue to offer everything customers love about Republic: two nationwide 4G LTE carrier partners, a strong Android device portfolio and a terrific customer experience with a simpler, less expensive and more flexible offer.

Designed for complete flexibility, Republic is introducing both one time cellular data buys as well as an option to select an ongoing plan with just the amount of cellular data a customer believes they need. Cell data can be added or removed via an app on the phone, and changed at any time without penalty, contracts or other restrictions. As always, Republic does not charge activation fees, require contracts or assess early termination fees.

The My Choice Plan is designed to make it easier than ever to save on your cell phone bill so you spend your money on the people and things that are most important to you - not your cell phone bills, said Chris Chuang, chief executive officer, Republic Wireless. The overwhelming majority of our members today use less than 2GB of cell data each month and many new customers who come to Republic Wireless tell us within weeks that they realize they have been overpaying for years for cell data they werent using.

As always, we are committed to providing our members with more value, more flexibility, and the best customer experience. This commitment drives all of our decision-making, from pricing, to the data-saving and monitoring tools in our app, to the ability to bring your own Android phone to the Republic network, all the way through to our award-winning customer support."

About Republic Wireless

Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina and recognized as an industry innovator and disruptor, Republic Wireless pioneered the concept of WiFi calling. Republic leverages the power of both WiFi and LTE cellular networks to offer both nationwide smartphone service as well as new screenless devices designed to help people simply and affordably connect. The company has been recognized as a top carrier choice by Consumer Reports; best basic plan by Money magazine and for excellence in customer service by PC Magazine.

Visit http://www.republicwireless.com/ for more information. Media resource center here.
LONDON  The Irish government has warned Britain that it will be held to account over the agreement on phase one of Brexit talks after Davis Davis suggested the deal was merely a "statement of intent" and not legally binding.

The Brexit Secretary told the BBC's Andrew Marr that the deal reached by British and EU negotiators last week was not "legally enforceable" and could be scrapped if the EU doesn't offer Britain satisfactory future trading terms.

Prime Minister Theresa May is set to make a similar statement to MPs in a Commons statement on Monday.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed," May will tell Parliament in a speech on Brexit negotiations.

However, the Irish governments chief whip, John McHugh, told the countrys RTE broadcaster that the UK government's refusal to accept the phase one agreement as binding was "bizarre" and will not be accepted by the EU27.

"We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union," McHugh said, responding to Davis' remarks.

"My question to anybody within the British government would be: why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they werent going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me. This, as far as were concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

A spokesperson for the Irish government added: "Both Ireland and the EU will be holding the UK to the phase one agreement."

EU leaders are set to agree this week that the deal represents "sufficient progress" on the terms of Britain's divorce, meaning talks on future trade and transition can get underway before the New Year.

Ireland's deputy prime minister, Simon Coveney, has pointed out that the text of the agreement contradicts the UK Brexit Secretary's claims, as the British side agreed to uphold all commitments on the Irish border question no matter what trade arrangements it is offered by the EU.

The text states that the commitments Britain made on the Irish border in phase one negotiations will be "upheld in all circumstances, irrespective of the nature of any future agreement between the EU and UK."

Coveney has previously suggested that the EU27 will not hesitate to support Ireland and veto further progress in Brexit negotiations if the UK government fails to adequately address Ireland's border concerns.

"I don't think Ireland will have to block anything on its own," he told an Irish parliamentary committee last month.

"There is absolute solidarity across the 27 countries here. They are with Ireland on this because we are making a fair but very firm case and I believe other European countries will stick with Ireland."

May will tell MPs today that there is a "new sense of optimism" around Brexit negotiations.

"I have always been clear that this was never going to be an easy process. It has required give and take for the UK and the EU to move forwards together. And that is what we have done," she is set to say.
Aamin Ambulance is the first and only free private ambulance services in the Somalias capital, Mogadishu. The ambulance service is widely known to be the first emergency service that usually arrives bomb blast scene in the country. One which is frequent in the country due to activities of the As-Shabaab insurgent group.

According to Aamin, Abdi Addow and Nadifa Mohamed were two individuals that coordinated the process. Abdi Addow was credited to have opened a gofundme page. He did this to raise funds to support the ambulance service right after the twin bomb blasts that hit Mogadishu on October 12, 2017.

Nadifa Mohamed also played a key as a major mobilization for the process.

At the beginning, Abdi Addow had hoped to raise 100,000 Swedish Krona (US $12,286) for Aamin Ambulance. Please support the unsung heroes and heroines of Aamin Ambulance, Abdi appealed on the page.

However, within 16 hours after the page was created, 38,213 Swedish Krona (the US $4,694) was raised by 198 people.

About Aamin Ambulance Service

Aamin was established in 2006 by Somali professionals to provide some of the most needed services across the country. Currently, the service owns a fleet of 10 ambulances which is the largest in the country.

AAMIN is currently implementing the largest single fleet of Ambulances in the country with an unparalleled record of quick response for the affected of any disaster," the agency stated on its website.

"Its nation-wide network equipped with the latest communication system now covers the remotest areas of Mogadishu."
According to the analysis published by the Economic Times of India, the exit from East Africa and the monetisation of tower assets in five other non-profitable markets would help the company boost margin and reduce leverage.

Airtel has been exploring strategic exits from Africa as it looks to focus on its Asian operations and its chairman, Sunil Mittal has already indicated that the company needs to exit the the markets in Kenya,Tanzania and Rwanda which have margins significantly lower than the current Africa average.This exit will be explored via intra-country sales,purchase or a merger.

In Ghana for instance the company has completed a merger with rival Tigo to create the second largest telco in the West African country.

Separately, analysts said if Airtels stated interest in buying 9mobile (formerly, Etisalat Nigeria)  the fourth largest mobile carrier in Nigeria  translates in a deal, it would become the largest telco by subscribers in a market that is Bhartis largest in Africa and generates 30% of its revenues in the continent.

We take no view on a potential transaction, but a simple sum of the respective market shares of Bharti and 9mobile would suggest a No 1operator in Nigeria by subscribers, slightly ahead of present market leader MTN, Goldman Sachs said.

Mittal had also told ET in a recent interview that Airtel is keen on erstwhile Etisalat Nigeria, which is now called 9mobile, and is up for sale.

At present, Bharti is the third-largest telco in Nigeria with a 25% subscriber market share, while fourth largest, 9mobile has 12%. If Airtel were to acquire 9mobile, its customer market share at 37% would be a tad higher than MTNs 36%.

According to analysts, although the Africa operation has historically been a drag on Bharti Airtel, over the past 3-4 years, the Sunil Mittal-led telco has divested $3.3 billion worth of assets, which has helped reduce Africa debt levels by as much 40%.
Gifty Osei was responding to a question from a fellow panellist on Accra-based Kasapa FM.

The panellist whose name has been given as Chris asked why Gifty Osei did not marry him. She jokingly responded that she does not like bald-headed men.

READ ALSO: Samira Bawumia honours singer with gold plaque

Im sad that when Chris saw me, I was already married. I know Chris is joking and he knows I dont like men with bald head.

Empress Gifty Osei, is currently celebrating her 10th anniversary in the gospel music industry.

She earlier disclosed that she dropped a whopping GHC50,000 just on decorations at her executive album launch and the 10 years anniversary celebration.

She also indicated that she spent more than $10, 000 on her dress for the event.
Joy Ezechikamnayo is expected to be sworn in by the incumbent governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

According to Africanspotlightlight.com, the senior prefect of Intellectual Giants Christian Academys unprecedented privilege follows her emergence as top performer in an essay competition that lasted over a week.

As part of the prize, she is taking charge of the administration of the Abia state with the support of other 19 students, all of whom emerged as the top 20 performers of in the competition.

Reports suggest that the governor-to-be is currently attending a leadership retreat with members of her cabinet after which the swearing in ceremony will take off.

Aside Joy Ezechikamnayo being the governor, the remainder of the top 20 performers are also holding various relevant positions that matter in the administration of the state for the next 24 hours.

Here is are the positions in hierarchical order:

1st position-Governor

2nd position  Deputy Governor

3rd position  SSG
Apparently, Ho Van Lang was only 4 years old or less when his 85-year-old Ho Van Thanh, 85 fled into the jungle with him, after US bomb killed his mother and two other siblings.

Thesun.co.uk reported that Quang Ngai province where Ho Van Thanh had been living with his family was a Viet Cong stronghold and was the scene of fierce jungle battles as the US military attempted to flush out the communist insurgents.

Reports say they had been living in the Tay Tra forest of the Quang Ngai province since then, until in 2013 when some residents discovered them.

They are gradually getting used to civilian life and are reportedly living in a house near the forest.

Ho Van Lang recently opened up about his life in the forest to Docastaway, an organisation which offers holidays to remote, uninhabited parts of the world.

The organisations managing director, Alvaro Cerezo had reportedly met with Ho Van Lang to simply ask him about how survival in the forest was like, but ended up spending five days with him in the jungle.
The Akyem mine was also named the Second Best Company in Corporate Social Responsibility and the Third Most Profitable Company in Ghana for 2016.

READ ALSO: ECG resolves BOT vending challenges

This years ceremony marked the 16th anniversary of the Ghana Club 100 awards organised annually by the GIPC to recognise and celebrate successful enterprise building. Overall standings are based on companies weighted average rank in profitability and growth over their three most recent operating years, as well as their turnover for the year under assessment.

Ghanas Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo, presented the award for the Overall Best Performing Company to the Akyem Mine on behalf of President Nana Akufo-Addo. He commended the company and others on the ranking for their continuous support to the Ghanaian economy and pledged his governments commitment to creating the enabling environment for businesses in the country to thrive.

The General Manager of Newmont Golden Ridge Limited, Joep Coenen, attributed the achievement to the joint effort of the company, employees and all stakeholders towards the business strategy. He said the companys commitment to responsible and sustainable mining is one factor that distinguishes Newmont from other businesses.

READ ALSO: Finance Minister buys Kantanka car

One thing that we are doing very differently is focusing on our environment, focusing on our safety, focusing on our communities and it is my view that if you have those things right then the production and cost control efforts become much easier, he said.

In a bid to ensure its long-term sustainability, Newmont Ghana has over the years implemented a number of business improvement initiatives in its Ahafo and Akyem Mines to improve cost and ensure its profitability.

We are excited about this recognition, but more pleased that our commitment to create value and improve lives through sustainable and responsible mining is making an impact in our communities and in the larger Ghanaian economy, he added.

The General Manager of the Ahafo Mine, Bernard Wessels expressed optimism that with the governments continuous support, Newmont Ghana will continue to contribute positively to the economic and social development of its host communities and the country at large.

The Regional Senior Vice President, Newmont Africa, Alwyn Pretorius expressed gratitude to the companies employees and business partners and reiterated Newmont Ghanas commitment to working with the government and all relevant stakeholders to ensure business improvement and benefit for all.
The Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul had accused the management of the factory for its woes.

According to him, the Armed Forces have been sidelined, with no accounts rendered to private managers of the facility.

The company had a total of 200 workers since it was refurbished in 2012 but there are now only 49, a situation the Minister had blamed on management.

But addressing a press conference on Monday, the acting General Manager of the company, Nii Konnie Laryea said the company is in the state it is because the security agencies they produce do not patronize their products.

It is a fact that all the government security agencies, including the Ghana Police, Ghana National Fire Service, Prisons Service, the Immigration Service and even the Ghana Armed Forces still order their boots and shoes from China and India, he said.

the security agencies which constitute our primary market have refused to buy our boots and shoes, he added.

Mr Laryea believes that the absence of a definite policy to force these security agencies and other government agencies to purchase their products is also a factor.
Confirming the incident to Accra FM, Appiah Stadium said that he suspects that Invincible Forces, a private security arm of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), are behind the attack.

I will never stop supporting John Mahama, I wont stop. NPP will have to kill me. I have realised that I am a pillar and an impediment in the way of the NPP. They first arrested me, they later stormed my house with guns and now they have burnt my house and car.

He believed that The NPPs Invincible Forces did that.

Meanwhile, members of the Invincible Forces have denied setting the house ablaze.I will plead with our youth to respect each other. No member of Invincible Forces did that. For what reason? Kwabena Boakye, spokesperson for the Invincible Forces, told host Forson.
The UN on Sunday revised down the death toll from 15 to 14. While the Tanzanian press has said two other soldiers are missing.

"The death of our Tanzanian friends shall be written in the history of the Congolese nation, in tribute to their sacrifice," said Congolese General Leon Mushale. "They will remain in the hearts of the Congolese people."

The soldiers were killed on Thursday in the conflict-torn east of the country after clashes with suspected Ugandan Muslim rebels, the so-called Allied Democratic Forces.

David Gressly, the UN's deputy special representative for the DRC, said the peacekeepers would not step back from their work.

"The Blue Helmets will continue to protect the people of Beni," he pledged.

The attack is the bloodiest against MONUSCO, a force that was deployed in DRC in 1999, and the worst against a UN force since the death of 24 Pakistani peacekeepers in Somalia in June 1993.

The European Union on Monday said the "unacceptable attack... underscores the fragility of the security situation in eastern DRC, amplified by the current uncertainty over the country's political situation."

It called on the DRC authorities to carry out an inquiry "so that those responsible can be swiftly brought to justice," according to an EU statement issued in Kinshasa.
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The demonstrators want the withdrawal of proposed legislation that would overhaul Romania's justice system and reduce the powers of the respected anti-corruption directorate, the DNA.

Critics say the changes would dent progress in tackling graft, which Brussels has long complained about in the 10 years since Romania joined the European Union.

In Bucharest's central Victory Square, thousands gathered holding European Union and Romanian flags and shouted "Resign", while branding the ruling Social Democrats (PSD) "the red plague".

"They are doing everything so that they can steal legitimately. They are changing the laws in their favour, not for the benefit of the country," said a 36-year-old who refused to give his name.

"Don't force us to leave our country," he said.

This week, Romania's prosecutor general Augustin Lazar denounced moves to "weaken the independence of prosecutors".

The protests saw several thousands take to the streets of Bucharest. More than 2,000 people demonstrated in the central city of Sibiu and in western Timisoara.

The PSD returned to power after a thumping election victory last December but has had a rocky ride.
About 2,000 people filled the main concert hall where the memorial was held, while hundreds more crowed into the building's entry and hallways to watch on giant screens.

Praljak had a private funeral in Zagreb last week, according to media reports.

The 72-year-old took his life just seconds after appeal judges in The Hague upheld his 20-year jail sentence for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Bosnia's 1990s conflict.

'Theatre of the absurd'

The judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia confirmed that Praljak and his five Bosnian Croat co-defendants were part of a "joint criminal enterprise" to ethnically cleanse Bosnian Muslims in the war.

But since Praljak's death, Croats have paid multiple tributes to the late general, laying flowers and lighting candles in town squares in Croatia and Bosnia.

Monday's commemoration, organised by the Croatian generals' association, was attended by at least one government minister in the EU member state, along with top officials of the ruling conservative HDZ party.

The event, which lasted around an hour, included music, recitals and speeches by Praljak's associates and friends from the military, politics and theatre.

"No one can compare to a great man like Slobodan," said Miroslav Tudjman, an MP with the HDZ and son of late Croatian nationalist president Franjo Tudjman.

Tudjman branded the UN court's verdict as a "degradation of international justice".

"It's a parody, a theatre of the absurd," said Tudjman, slamming "incompetent and irresponsible judges at the court in The Hague".

'Croatian martyr'

Zlatko Vitez, a well-known actor in Croatia, said that Praljak, who worked in film and theatre before joining the military, would be remembered as a "Croatian martyr".

The commemoration ended with a rendition of the Croatian national anthem led by a choir. The crowd, some of whom had travelled from Bosnia, stood up and joined the singing.

Before the ceremony, visitors queued up to sign two books of condolences.

Vjekoslav Balen, a 74-year-old pensioner in the queue, said Praljak was a "hero" who "took his own life for Croatia's wellbeing, for the future".

Later on Monday, a mass for Praljak was due to be held in a Zagreb church.

The appeals verdict for Praljak and his co-defendants was the last ruling from the ICTY before it shuts down at the end of the year.

Their convictions were upheld for crimes including murder, persecution and inhumane treatment.
While Christmas time may be family bonding time and reunions between relatives that havent seen each other all year, its also a great time to go away to somewhere new.

Here are some places where you can go out and have fun on a budget.

1. Lekki Conservation Centre, Lagos

With little or no money this is a great place to go for the holidays. You can go with friends or family and have a lot of fun. Its affordable and also has quite a few attractions that are bound to keep the attention of everyone that goes.

For old time visitors, you can spice it up a bit and take a picnic basket and a blanket to relax on while playing family-friendly games there.

2. Olumo Rock, Abeokuta

Olumo Rock is not only an affordable place to go and fun but also a great place to get a quick history lesson. It is a historic monument of the Abeokuta people with ties deeply rooted in their cultural history. To enjoy your trip its best to be accompanied by a tour guide as they will help you better understand the significance of the location.

3. Idanre Hills, Ondo

Idanre Hills is located in the serene town of Idanre town in Ondo state and is a great place to also have a history lesson while having fun, rock climbing. It is affordable and budget friendly with a lot of cultural history to be learned on the way up the rocky hill.

4. Obudu Cattle Ranch Resort, Calabar

Obudu Cattle Ranch Resort is located close to the Cameroon Border in Cross River State. The resort features a cable car which gives guests a scenic view of the surrounding, mountains and offers free WiFi to all guests.

5. Lekki Leisure Lake, Lagos

It is a lakeside resort that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. The resort has jet skis, quad bikes and other fun water activities. Worthy of note is that food and drinks cannot be brought into the resort but are sold at the resort.

6. Oniru Beach, Lagos

Oniru Beach is ideal for a day out with friends and family to swim, swim or walk beside the water. Its affordable along with the fact that you can bring your own food and drinks to the beach while you spend a day with nature.

7. Tinapa resort, Calabar

This is another choice location in Cross River. The Tinapa Free Zone & Resort has a Casino (Bye Vegas, hello Tinapa), cinemas, arcades, restaurant and clubs. This is an amazing location for family trips because theres something for everyone. If youre in the area this Christmas, dont forget to enjoy the Calabar carnival experience.

8. Millennium Park, Abuja
Asia and African are two continents that are widely stereotyped for so long to be places of poverty, war, and diseases. However, there are many beautiful places in the region which are better than many metropolis in the developed nation.
The world is "one tiny tantrum away" from a nuclear crisis, said on Sunday as it accepted the Nobel Peace Prize.

"We have a choice: the end of nuclear weapons or the end of us," the group's

Speaking at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway, Fihn said the threat of nuclear weapons being used was "greater today than in the Cold War" and warned that a country's "moment of panic" could lead to the "destruction of cities and the deaths of millions of civilians."

Referring to current relations between the international community and North Korea, Nakamitsu said: "

Last week, the White House national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, said the chances for war on the peninsula were growing,CNN reported.
President Donald Trump's transition team  and, later, his nascent administration  was warned at least six times about potential conflicts of interest and compromising conversations between Michael Flynn, the incoming national security adviser, and Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the US at the time.

But Flynn was not asked to step down until February 13, nearly a month into his tenure as the country's senior-most national security official.

That timeline has become a focus for Robert Mueller, the special counsel who is examining why it took 18 days for the White House to remove Flynn after a stark warning from Sally Yates, the acting attorney general.

She had told the White House counsel, Don McGahn, that Flynn most likely lied to Vice President Mike Pence about his calls with Kislyak.

That was far from the first time, however, that an official had urged Trump and his advisers to rethink bringing Flynn into the White House.

By January 26, Yates was at least the fourth person to sound the alarm. And she warned McGahn about Flynn in two meetings and a phone call before she was fired on January 30 for unrelated reasons.

Obamas warnings

The first warning came from President Barack Obama on November 10.

A former Obama White House official confirmed to Business Insider on Monday that Obama cautioned Trump against appointing Flynn "based on the president's experience with Flynn in his administration."

"President Obama underscored with President-elect Trump how important a role the NSA is  and how it demanded a serious person with sound judgment, impeccable credentials, and unimpeachable character," the official said, referring to the National Security Agency. "In other words, [Obama] relied heavily on his national security advisers and wanted to convey how critical the job had been in our administration."

After Flynn pleaded guilty earlier this month to lying to the FBI about his conversations with Kislyak, Ty Cobb, the White House special counsel, characterized Flynn as a "former Obama administration official." Trump has pointed to Flynn's security clearance renewal in January 2016 as evidence that high-level officials once trusted Flynn.

But Obama fired Flynn as the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014  and Flynn's security clearance would have been renewed at the DIA level rather than by the upper echelons of the White House.

Susan Rice, a former national security adviser, said in April that the renewal of Flynn's security clearance by the DIA would have been "a very separate thing ... from the vetting that goes into the appointment of any senior White House official, or any senior administration official."

The Trump White House, by contrast, in its vetting of Flynn either failed to detect or overlooked the fact that Flynn had been lobbying on behalf of Turkish government interests throughout the latter half of 2016.

Flynn also reportedly brought with him into the White House a private project he had been working on to promote the building of nuclear power plants in the Middle East.

A top congressmans warnings

Sean Spicer, the former Trump White House press secretary, said in March, just after Flynn registered as a foreign agent with the Justice Department, that Trump had not been aware that Flynn had been paid to lobby for Turkish interests in the months before the US election.

But The Daily Caller and Politico reported in November last year that Flynn's consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, had been hired to do that.

And days later, on November 18  just over a week after Obama warned Trump about Flynn  Rep. Elijah Cummings sent Pence a letter requesting more information about potential conflicts of interest posed by Flynn's lobbying work.

"Recent news reports have revealed that Lt. Gen. Flynn was receiving classified briefings during the presidential campaign while his consulting firm, Flynn Intel Group, Inc., was being paid to lobby the U.S. Government on behalf of a foreign government's interests," said Cummings, the ranking Democratic member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Cummings told Business Insider through his office at the time that he thought "the problems that have occurred with Lt. Gen. Flynn" could have been avoided had Pence heeded his warnings.

Pence headed Trump's transition team, but he has insisted that he did not know about Flynn's lobbying work or conversations with the Russian ambassador before Flynn's ouster in February.

Chris Christies warnings

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey recently suggested he thought he was abruptly dismissed from leading the transition team on November 11 largely because he had warned transition officials against hiring Flynn as national security adviser.

Two people familiar with the transition team's deliberations told Politico last month that Christie had expressed concern about Flynn being "in a leadership position."

"We were active in the effort to stymie his advances," one former transition official told the publication. "But Trump liked him. It seemed to me that they were going to take care of him."

In the days after the election, Flynn apparently crashed a meeting at Trump Tower in which Christie presented his suggestions for top national security roles in the incoming administration, Politico reported, citing people familiar with the transition. Flynn told the group  which included Ivanka Trump, Steve Bannon, and Jeff Sessions  that he wanted to be secretary of state, secretary of defense, or national security adviser, the people told Politico.

He was given the national security role in large part, reports suggest, because of his loyalty to Trump during the campaign.

"Suffice to say, I had serious misgivings, which I think have been confirmed by the fact that he pled guilty to a felony in federal court," Christie said at a press conference last week.

Asked whom he would have appointed instead of Flynn, Christie replied, "It's in about four volumes of books that were apparently thrown out the day I was terminated."

Flynn and Bannon, the former White House chief strategist who was then a top transition adviser, "celebrated" Christie's dismissal "by tossing binders full of potential personnel picks, carefully culled by Christie's team, into trash bins with a sense of ceremonial glee," according to Politico.

Christie said last week that he thought that "what folks who were involved in that transition have now painfully learned at the expense of the country is that experience matters."

Sally Yates warnings

Yates, the former acting attorney general, told a Senate Judiciary subcommittee earlier this year that she had had "two in-person meetings and one phone call" with McGahn in January about Flynn's contact with Kislyak.

Yates said she called McGahn with "a very sensitive matter" she needed to discuss with him in person. She and another career Justice Department official then traveled to the White House to meet with McGahn and one of his associates in his office, where she told them that there had been news reports related to Flynn's conduct that the DOJ "knew to be untrue," she said.

Yates and the official told them "how we had this information, how we had acquired it, and how we knew that it was untrue," she recalled.

While he was vice president-elect, Pence insisted in an interview with CBS that Flynn and Kislyak "did not discuss anything having to do with the United States' decision to expel diplomats or impose censure against Russia"  a statement that turned out to be untrue and that set off alarm bells at the Justice Department.

Yates said that "the Russians also knew that General Flynn had misled the vice president and others."

"This was a problem because not only did we believe that the Russians knew this, but that they likely had proof of this information, and that created a compromise situation  a situation where the national security adviser essentially could be blackmailed by the Russians," she said. "We told them that we were giving them all of this information so that they could take action, the action that they deemed appropriate."

She continued: "I remember that Mr. McGahn asked me whether or not General Flynn should be fired, and I told him that that really wasn't our call  that was up to them."

Yates met with McGahn again on January 27, when McGahn then asked her why the DOJ would be concerned "if one White House official is lying to another," she said. He also wanted to know whether the department was pursuing a criminal case against Flynn and expressed concern that taking action against Flynn could "interfere with the FBI investigation," she said.

Yates said McGahn also asked her to see the DOJ's evidence of Flynn's conversations with Kislyak.

The FBI interviewed Flynn about his conversations with Kislyak on January 24 as part of its investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Flynn has acknowledged that he misled the federal agents by telling them that the issue of US sanctions on Russia had not been discussed when, in fact, it had.

Yates said in her testimony that she told McGahn she could not disclose how Flynn did in that FBI interview because the investigation was ongoing. But she indicated to him that Flynn told the bureau the same thing he had told Pence.

Yates called McGahn again on January 30  hours before Trump fired her for refusing to enforce his first travel ban  to tell him he could come over to the DOJ to review the details of Flynn's communication with Kislyak.

Neither McGahn nor his lawyer has returned requests for comment about whether he ever took the DOJ up on that offer. Yates testified that, because of her firing, she didn't know whether he did.

Yates told Democratic Sen. Chris Coons that in the course of the meetings, "Mr. McGahn certainly demonstrated that he understood that this was serious." But she said she didn't know whether the White House took any additional steps to restrict Flynn's access to sensitive or classified information.
Speaking at the second founders lecture he delivered at the University of Medical Sciences in Ondo state, Babalola said Nigerian Universities are facing some challenges.

While delivering a lecture titled, The Secret of Founding'', the legal icon highlighted poor workers' attitude to work; incessant industrial action by the labour unions; lack of modern curriculum and paucity of good leadership as the major problems stunting the growth of Nigerian Universities.

He said the bad attitude of workers towards their job, according to Babalola is a major challenge facing public institutions in Nigeria. He added that some workers believe that employers job is not worthy of being done properly.

One of the major problems in this country is the attitude of staff to work, particularly in public institutions. Hardly will you find Nigerian worker who sees works as his business.'' He said

They all see the employers business as the employers business that one doesnt have to stress himself or herself about.

For me, I see where I work as a personal business; but workers in public institutions and civil service think otherwise. That is why it would be very difficult to for most Nigerian universities  unlike their counterparts overseas  to become world-class universities. He concluded.

Babalola has spent N78 billion Naira on his university

Afe Babalola in May 2016 said he had spent over N78 billion Naira on the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, ABUAD.

He said that the figure represented what had been spent on building of structure and provision of modern academic equipment in the last six years of its establishment.
The Professor before coming to Nigeria in October was advertised to UNILORIN students as a Chair and Founder of Excellence in Education Programme, Oxford, UK; Consultant to Presidents, European and American Government, Monarchs and Corporate Leaders as well as Patriarch of Britain's Smartest family.

It is a bragging right for UNILORIN to have brought a Professor from Oxford University to deliver a lecture at its Convocation. The students were jubilant to listen to a Professor all the way from Oxford University to lecture them.

It was indeed a huge honour the students could not contain as the hall erupted when Prof Chris Imafidon walked into the Convocation Hall. UNILORIN almost exploded with screaming students.

Of course, no student would see or read the Prof's profile without screaming, laughing and do everything that could be prompted by excitement. His Linkedin profile is too amazing and it is garnished with a long list of endless achievements in academic.

Check his profile and tell me why it is a sin to scream at the sight of such an academic figure.

Imafidon genuinely impressed the crowd that listened to his lecture. He wowed students and lecturers and even promised to give a scholarship to the worst graduating student in the University, saying that any poor student he adopts would do better than any Nigerian best graduating student.

Everyone was amazed at his confidence, endless applause punctuated his speech as his incredible aura shook the University.

However, the euphoria of receiving Prof Chris Imafidon has not petered out in UNILORIN when his profile began to attract stains. Stains that could destroy and exterminate his name and profile from the hearts of everyone that listened to his beautiful lecture.

While in Nigeria, Prof Imafidon granted an interview with the Punch Newspaper. The interview endeared him more to many other Nigerians who read about how he overcame autism to achieve greatness; and about how he placed a bet with the former British Prime Minister, David Cameron when he turned around the fortunes of the worst performing schools in the UK.

He won the minister's $25m and used the money to build his first school in Birmingham.

A Punch in the face of the Prof

After the Interview, Punch Newspaper took a step further to confirm if Imafidon is truly a Professor at Oxford University.

The first reply to Punch's email to Oxford University disowns the Prof.

ALSO READ: Nigerian Army Officer emerges best graduating student in UK Varsity

Thank you for your email. Our records show that Chris Imafidon has no affiliation with Oxford University or any of its colleges or departments. I hope this information is what you are after; please let us know if we can be of any further help. The email reads.

In case the response to the mail was a mistake, Punch tried to confirm again from the schools Media Relations Manager, Dr. Julia Paolitto and the second response is as succinct as the first.

Thank you for your email. Our records show that Chris Imafidon has no affiliation with Oxford University or any of its colleges or departments. I hope this information is what you are after, please do let us know if we can be of any further help.

At this point, a dark cloud was already gathering on the Professor's profile, ready to darken and blow away his academic claims.

Punch in its report said it informed Imafidon about Oxford's denial but he insisted he is a Professor at Oxford-owned Keble College.

He showed his library ID as an evidence to tell that he has an affinity with the Ivy League school. But the University reps keep saying they do not know anybody called Professor Chris Imafidon.

Again, since Imafidon identified himself with Keble College, Punch reportedly sent another mail to the College and the response from the school's Communications Manager, Boriana Boneva, says, ''the only formal connection between Chris Imafidon and the college of which we are aware is that his daughter was a student here.

All along, the Prof stood his ground that he is a Don at Oxford University, even when it was put to him that his name is not on the University website either as a lecturer or researcher.

The back and forth between Oxford University and Punch Newspaper casts a cloud of doubt on Imafidon's pedigree as the man whose children are adjudged to be the smartest in the United Kingdom was caught in what is already looking like an academic fraud.

ALSO READ:10 pictures that show the terrible state of education in Nigeria

Oxford keeps denying, Imafidon keeps insisting and can't accept to be stripped of his honours, yet he has not come up with any other evidence to support his claims about his affiliations with Oxford University than his Library ID, which the University says it does not know how he got it.

Something is wrong somewhere and someone is obviously not telling the truth. Oxford and Imafidon should come out with more evidence and save us from this dark back and forth.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Babyface, last June set up a virtual academy called Teju Babyface Mentorship Academy to mentor some youths.

The insurance graduate from the University of Lagos said the academy was open to all youths, ready to learn through the easiest means, the social media.

The virtual academy according to him is to discover and develop young Nigerians and help them to solve their problems through interface with tutorials on the internet.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals Ambassador said that his real person was the one who would like to guide the youths on what they could achieve in life.

I went into academy to fulfill my real purpose in life which is mentorship. I am going into it because I want to develop others. I think that is my next passion.

I went online because it is like a land grab where everybody is grabbing what they want and for me, I established my own academy there, although I am still planning for more.

The academy is like coming together of many things. I discovered after a while that the best expression of my gift is not comedy. Comedy only brought me to limelight.

Something has to bring you out to the party and that is comedy. It brought me out but at first it wasnt comedy per se it is my first movie, Diamond Ring.

Babyface said that he later realised that he would be a better person by impacting the knowledge of his vast experience to the upcoming generation.

I have found out that the highest expression of my gift is impacting knowledge and mentorship. In the past years, I was better in collating my experiences and weaving it down around the young ones.

Now it dawned on me to set up the academy to make more impact, especially when those that trained us like Ali Baba may be too busy to groom others, we need to step up.
Afolayan, the director of the recently premiered movie, ", told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the availability of adequate funding would help increase the potential of movies emanating from Nollywood.

It would also ensure that they attained international standards, he said.

The actor said that the producers of `The Bridge borrowed about to N50 million from the Bank of Industry (BoI) to produce it.

NAN reports that the movie was recently premiered in Lagos.

The director also said that movies produced within short periods of time usually lacked credibility and originality.

He said that this was why some of them in Nollywood could not compete with their contemporaries when aired on international broadcast stations.

Access to finance is one of the major challenges to ensuring that the production of movies has rich cultural content.

The accomplished Nigerian actor, film producer and director, known for films like: Phone Swap (2012), The CEO (2016) and October 1 (2014), said that he was excited to have produced his latest movie.

Afolayan said that it gave him an opportunity to work with accomplished thespians.
CESJET made this declaration at a press conference held in Abuja where it said it had observed that there has been an escalation of activities targeted at destabilizing Nigeria in recent weeks, but that such attempts will continue to hit the rocks.

In a statement signed by the Executive Secretary of the group, Comrade Isaac Ikpa, the group said the success story of the Nigerian military on its campaigns against the insurgency is too golden to be dwarfed by some selfish individuals that are out to blackmail the leadership with falsehood and campaign of calumny.

Comrade Ikpa observed that similar plots have been hatched in the past and had prompted CESJET and other civil society organizations with similar convictions, to rise up to the task of calling out those that want the country to fail.

"As we have seen in the renewed onslaught on the integrity of Nigeria, the new round of attack is focused on undermining the ability of the country to defend itself against external and internal threats," the statement begins.

Continuing, it reads further:

"This, we understand, is to be achieved by distracting and disorienting the military and security services such that they are either busy dealing with distractions or soldiers become overly conscious of threats and blackmail in a way that leaves them too worried to do their work.

From what we have observed, the plan has been well hatched between foreign interests and their local representatives. Some components of the plot have already been activated, some phases are in progress, while others are awaiting implementation.

The components we have become aware of through our contacts are;

1. The release and publication of fictitious and bogus reports by NGO affiliates of the detractors: these reports will make allegations of rights abuses against the military and would be given the widest international and local coverage possible.

2.A variant of the reports would claim that there has been a disproportionately high casualty on the part of the Nigerian military in the fight against Boko Haram.

In the later stages of the plot, the detractors will procure the kind of weapons used by Nigerian troops and make same available to either actors of Boko Haram fighters for photo opportunities while some of the NGOs will then circulate pictures purporting to show captured weapons from the Nigerian military.

3. Exploitation of advisories by the diplomatic missions of several countries: routine advisories issued by countries to their nationals are to be exploited to create the impression that to take over several Nigerians cities and that they will soon be able to carry out large-scale attacks.

4. This component is not just to tarnish the military and the government but is also aimed at eroding investors' confidence in bringing business to Nigeria.

It is curious that this component has been activated at a time when the economy is in recovery mode.

5.Lying about routine postings and deployments: these unsavoury elements are also exploiting routine postings in the military to insinuate things that are not happening.

The objective of this is to ensure the Armed Forces are constrained from making routine changes for operational efficiency.

This was why such persons immediately began insinuating the worst when former Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, was redeployed to Army Headquarters as the Deputy Chief of Policy and Plans.

6.Compromising and recruiting military personnel to become part of their macabre plot: not satisfied with the other areas in which they have done damages, it has now been confirmed that those behind these plots to discredit the military are scouting for military personnel that they will feature in 'exclusive interviews' and anonymous sources that they will use to attempt giving credibility to the lies they have been telling.

What was further found out about this component is that they have drawn up a list of soldiers with pending disciplinary issues whom they have convinced to take part in their lies so that they are can then claim they were being punished for speaking up as a way of blackmailing the military from handling their cases in the deserving professional manner.

7.Manipulation of the news media: the services of western media conglomerates have been procured to run damaging stories on the Nigerian government and the military.

The content of such stories would either accuse soldiers of rights abuses or insinuate that there has been a mutiny within the ranks.

While such stories have been a staple of several foreign news organizations, those behind the plot are counting on encouraging local news media to repeat their contents to be able to do maximum damage.
According to a report by Punch, the incident happened in block-moulding factory owned by the community head on Thursday, December 7, 2017.

The couple reportedly had a disagreement and after the altercation, the deceased was said to have gone to the community heads factory and damaged some blocks on the premises.

The angry community chief reportedly entered his Toyota Highlander jeep, and was driving out of the premises in anger when he knocked down his wife.

Speaking on the incident a community leader, Akinsipe, said the wife died on the spot, adding that the corpse had been deposited at the Epe General Hospital.

He said, He (Taibu) is the baale of the community. He and his wife had been having issues since they got married. I did not know what actually happened between them on that day, but I learnt that they had a disagreement in the morning.

She went to his block factory and destroyed some blocks arranged on the premises. He entered his vehicle angrily and as he was driving out of the premises, the wife tried to stop him. He hit her and she died on the spot.

ALSO READ:

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Chike Oti, who confirmed Rotimis death, said the command would investigate the matter to unravel the motive behind the baales action.

He said, We are investigating the matter to find out what transpired between the man and his wife before the incident happened. They were having family issues, which led the woman to the block industry to destroy things.

We want to know whether what the man did was a reaction to what his wife did. We believe there is more to the accident than meets the eye because there was an altercation between them before the incident occured.
That decision ended in regrets as she was repeatedly raped, tortured, sold into slavery and now, she is back with a pregnancy for her rapists.

The 25-year-old Ekumabo who spoke to Punch at the returnees' rehabilitation camp in Benin City, the Edo State capital, revealed that when she could no longer cope with her father's incestuous behaviour, she fled for safety and met some traffickers who promised to take her to Europe to seek for greener pastures.

The mother of one who hails from Uhunwode Local Government Area of Edo State, recounted how she also became a victim of serial rape by Arab men as she tried to cross over to Europe, a move that turned out futile and almost took her life in the process.

She narrated that she spent seven months in the North African country before she could find her way back home to the anger of her family who insisted she should stay back in Libya and try to cross into mainstream Europe.

After I exposed what my father wanted to do to me, a fight broke out at home and I had to run away for my safety," Ekimabo began.

I went to stay with my friend who introduced me to the man that helped people to Europe. I did not have any money, so, I was made to swear an oath in a shrine in Benin that I will pay back every kobo when I get to Europe.

We agreed that I will pay back N200,000. I left Benin for Kano in April 2017. From Kano, we were transported in a Hilux truck through the desert, with no food or water, to Agadez in the Niger Republic and from there to Tripoli in Libya.

If you want to cross from Agadez to Tripoli without money, . The agency can also sell you out as a slave to get their money before you are allowed to cross to Tripoli with your new owner.

I saw dead people; boys being killed; girls raped to death, and people sold as slaves. The worst part is that Nigerians are among those Arabs who treat fellow Nigerians badly.

It was while I was about to cross to Tripoli that four Arab men raped me continuously without stop, after which I was allowed to cross to Tripoli where I discovered that I was pregnant.

The church where Nigerians worship in Tripoli advised me to go back to Nigeria since I cannot do any other work now that I am pregnant.

When I called my family that I was coming back, my mother asked them to tell me to stay back and try my best to cross to Europe.

But I said to myself that since she was not the one who sent me to Libya, she had no right to tell me to cross to Europe.

It has been discovered that more than 2000 Nigerians are still trapped in Libyan slave camps in their bid to cross into Europe in search of greener pastures. The story of Ekumabo is a sure fresh angle as many of those who tried to get to Europe always use the economic situation of the country as their reason.
According to reports, the policemen, led by Inspector Oladele Ojelabi arrested the victim as well as others on Tuesday October 17, 2017.

This was perceived as an act of intimidation by Ojelabi who had displayed a lustful interest in the wife of the deceased identified as Mrs. Gbemisola Okoro.

The latter who is also a police officer had repeatedly turned down the advances of the inspector, insisting that she was married with children. But this only encouraged a determined Ojelabi to take drastic measures.

Through an act of bullying, Ademilola, a hairdresser apprehended at her shop in Oke-Aro located in Ondo, led the SARS operatives to the resident of Okoro and the deceased. In a chat with the Daily Post News, she insisted the policemen failed to state her offence yet found herself at the state police command in Akure.

The SARS officers didnt release me until 8am the following day but refused to release others.

As I was trying to secure their release, I met Inspector Ojelabi who promised to help me and had sexual intercourse with me, Ademilola told the Daily Post News of her encounter.

Mr. Femi Joseph, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for the Ondo State Command confirmed reports concerning the incident. This was following pressures from the family of the deceased who urged the state commissioner to look into the matter.

The PPRO maintained that the officer concerned Ojelabi is still only a suspect until proven guilty. He assured that the police inspector will face penalties if found guilty of the allegations.

Ongoing protests against SARS

Meanwhile, in Lagos, Abuja and Warri,protesters have taken to the streets to state their concern over the excesses of some officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

The marchers carried placards with various disapproving inscriptions that expresses dissatisfaction over the abusive behaviour of SARS operatives who have appeared in online videos where they were seen assaulting civilians.
But Chinwe, 35, amid tears, urged the court not to grant the petitioners application on the grounds that she had aborted several pregnancies for him before their union was legalised.

The petitioner, a native of Ibadan in Oyo State, told the court that he was no longer interested in the marriage.

Ajadi, who lives at No. 26, Bamgboye St., Mushin, Lagos, described his wife as arrogant and a trouble maker.

My wife is a party freak; I warned her to desist from moving around with bad friends but she did not heed my warning.

 She also likes frolicking with different men.

She is not caring and lacks respect for the institution of marriage; please separate us, I can no longer live with her, he said.

The respondent, who denied the allegations, pleaded with the court to save her marriage.

Chinwe, who hails from Imo, described her husband as a drunk and wife beater.

She alleged that the petitioner beats her at will and abuses her emotionally because she could not conceive.

My husband usually drinks to stupor and misbehaves and this usually leads to serious misunderstandings between us.

The respondent, who vowed to resist the planned divorce, said:  l have aborted on several occasions for him before legalising the marriage and have wasted the better part of my life.

In spite of my husbands attitude toward me, l still love him and do not want the marriage dissolved, she said.

Reacting to the courts plea to him for a change of heart, however, the petitioner urged it not to waste its time in appealing to him, saying he was committed to the dissolution of the union.

I wasted several millions of naira on the respondent through Invitro fertilization (IVF) but lost the pregnancy due to her stubbornness and nonchalant attitude, he said.
The incident, according to Hits2babi.com, a popular online news portal in the West African country, happened in the Kouasi Agbavi region of the country when the woman, a single mother, met a rich man who was willing to marry her but said he did not want the baby.

To please the man and convince him to marry her, the mother reportedly buried the little baby alive on Saturday, December 2, 2017, but the secret was blown open when her family members questioned her on the whereabouts of the baby.

When she could not give them a reasonable explanation, the matter was reported to the police and she was arrested. During interrogation, the suspect confessed that she had buried the baby alive and led police operatives to the grave of the toddler who was exhumed.

This is how Hits2babi.com captured the ugly incident:

The woman [single mother], ran into a rich man who asked her to get rid of her baby before he would marry her because he would want a woman without a child.

That young lady buried her baby of three months last Saturday in Agbavi; she just dug it up after the intervention of the paternal family and law enforcement officials on Monday. May God forgive this God.
The collection offers a wide range of styles from party look to formal chic, sensual and bold, laidback yet cool styles for SS18.

ALSO READ:See Nollywood actors light up red carpet in Arabian styles

Guys get bomber jackets in solid black and red, tapered pants, velvet co-ords, pink graphic tracks and more modern styles with ladies offered tulle details on baby doll dresses, fluffy feather details on boned midriff baring pieces, trumpet hem pants, bandeau dresses, 2-pieces paired with embellished kimono. For the ladies, pretty and more sensual details were infused in the styles.

The creative director Mariam Afolabi was inspired by "interpretation of the stages of love". "I wanted a collection that symbolizes the different stages of love we experience in a lifetime. The collection starts off white symbolizing the childlike innocence at the beginning tages of love, then it moves into pink which symbolizes the first stage of love, the infatuation- she begins to notice her beauty, femininity and so does he.

The red symbolizes the crescendo, when things are at its peak and the black symbolizes the heartbreak. In the end one must pick themselves back up and the cycle starts again until the end", Afolabi shares.

ALSO READ:Mai Atafo on why he goes dramatic to close his shows

Mazelle Studio is a two-part fashion house featuring Mazelle RTW with core competences in male & Female ready to wear pieces and Mazelle Bridal. The company was formally known as Mademoiselle Aglaia.

See the full collection below.

Credits:

Photographer- Bolaji

Studio - Studio Fresco

Make-Up Artist - Artistry by Tolani
ALSO READ: 7 Nigerian brands with pretty pieces for ladies this holiday

Though a lot missed the Arabian style interpretation, most opted for Indian meets Northern inspired styles but they sure made glitzy efforts!

Easily stealing the spotlight for the night, Beverly Naya chose a custom barely there peek-a-boo Weizdhurm Franklyn piece with elaborate sheer cape cascading into train.

Rita Dominic was a sparkly princess in an asymmetric form fitting piece from Lanre Da Silva Ajayi complete with a cape crafted into a train. She accessorized the look with a bejewelled hair pin. Omotola Jalade Ekeinde went all out with her dress from Nonnistics.

Omoni Oboli went all out bridal with Ufuoma McDermott who opted for a 2-piece from Avant Garde By Elizabeth R.

Adesua Etomi made a style comeback sizzling a beaded fringed out black piece from Tubo complete with silver embellished head dress. Tiwa Savage chose a custom black and gold piece from Lanre Da Silva complete with a super bronzed finished makeup look.

Bolanle Olukanni chose a custom jumpsuit from Mazelle Studio with Nancy Isime opting for a delicately embellished frock with detachable tulle train from Tiannahs Place paired with a stoned turban.

Inidinma Okojie, Mimi Onalaja, Kemi Lala Akindoju and more sizzled in bold looks.

The stars interpreted the styles in dazzling pieces they chose and the Nigerian brands they chose came though.
From culture, festivals and beautiful sites, the North is a very beautiful place to visit.

Try going for a Durbar or polo and you'll understand there is so much to see and do and many waiting to be explored.

Add these laces to your bucket list and thank us later.

1. Mambilla Plateau, Taraba

With the highest point in Nigeria stands at about 1,600 meters (5,249 ft) above sea level, Mambilla plateau should be on the top of your list.

The plateau has a combination of waterfalls, hills and mountains. The highest mountain Chappal Wadi which stands at 7,936 ft above sea level is the highest mountain in Nigeria is found at the northeastern flank of the Plateau. The plateau is Nigerias northern continuation of the Bamenda Highlands of Cameroon.

ALSO READ: 5 more trips to undertake before the end of the year

2. Matsirga Falls Kafanchan, Kaduna

Matsirga Falls, located in Madakiya, Kafanchan Kaduna is another beautiful waterfall in the North.

With a height of about 30 meters, it gets its source from springs on the Kagoro hills. The water at the Matsirga Falls drops into a gorge that has been supported by beautiful rocks. Something magical happens at the point of impact with the river, the avalanche of the fall creates a rainbow-like mist which appears and disappears mysteriously.

3. Kajuru Castle

Kajuru Castle is an exclusive and luxurious getaway built in an early medieval style at Kajuru village in the trade city of Kaduna, a major commercial hub in the northern part of Nigeria. This gorgeous architectural masterpiece with breathtaking ambience is set upon elevated peaks with staggering views and is the ultimate holiday getaway in the north.

4. Gurara Waterfalls, Niger

Discovered by a Gwari hunter called Buba in 1745, this waterfall is one of Nigers major tourist attractions. It was named after two deities Gura and Rara which were worshipped by the Gwari people. The waterfall is very beautiful and it stands at a height of 30 meters and a gushing width of 200 meters. When you visit Niger or Abuja, be sure to stop by at Gurara waterfalls.

5. Shere Hills, Jos

Located in Jos, Shere hills is one of the foremost tourist attractions in the North. Quite an adventure to hike on as it is a combination of various hills and rock formations with the highest hill standing at 6,001 feet above sea level.
The Creative Youth Challenge(CYC), a social responsibility initiative coupled with the Influence Contest initiated by the group to reward creative minds in visual arts, creative writing, audio and others are in the line-up of activities to celebrate the groups 30 anniversary.

The contest which was thrown open in November, 2017 evoked creativity as participants were asked to describe the term, Influence in the Audio, Visual Arts, Creative Writing and others categories of the $12,000 contest.

12 winners, three for each category, selected carefully by the contests judges- Babatunde Sule, Kelechi Amadi-Obi, Michael Epacka and Osa Okunkpolor will be unveiled and presented with cash prizes at the groups 30 anniversary dinner and grand exhibition on December 13, 2017 in Lagos.

Chairman, Casers Group, Enyi Odigbo is optimistic about the efficacy of the youth-driven creative platforms which will help nurture talents and address the dearth of creative minds in Nigerias creative industry.

Speaking at the press conference to kick-start the groups 30 anniversary celebration, Odigbo said, The Casers Group believes sturdily in using creativity to drive and ignite influence. This gave birth to our Influence Contest and the Creative Youth Challenge platforms to discover, nurture and reward young creative minds. With these intellectual avenues, were setting a new agenda for the next 30 years as a group and by extension, Nigerias creative industry.

Narrating the Casers Group success story to journalists at the conference, Vice Chairman, Ikechi Odigbo identified perseverance, commitment and high premium on telling brand stories through influence as key components of the brands philosophy.

"Through the years, the quest to always do things better has enabled the premium positioning of Casers Group as a thought leader, change agent and builder of enduring client relationships. Our successes as a group is tied to commitment, dedication, and creative intellect brought to the fore by creative minds with our efforts right from our formative years with creatives for our first set of clients-First Aluminium, African Continental Bank, Mililo Rough Rider Condoms, Carnco and Globe Motors.

The Vice-Chairman added that the groups decision to extend its tentacles to countries in West and Central Africa has made the group the leading force in both regions whilst adding value to its network of resourceful staffers with opportunities and schemes.

"In 2015, Casers Group expanded its frontiers beyond Nigeria by acquiring MAWAL Group, owner of MW Marketing Services.

"At the turn of the millennium in 2000, Casers became affiliated to DDB, one of the biggest advertising networks in the world/global advertising networks. Hence, their affiliation with Publicis was ended because DDB offered better competitive advantage and the opportunity to develop people. Our Child Education Scheme has eased the burden of payment of school fees for our staff.

From being a leading agency in Nigeria, Casers group has grown to become the largest regional agency in West and Central Africa with businesses in Nigeria, Cameroon, Cotedvoire, Congo, Benin, Guinea Conakry and Ghana.

Since inception, Casers Group has provided creative solutions to clients with laudable storytelling and creative mind-set.

The groups core advantages include its recruitment philosophy of engaging the services of brand managers whose vista goes beyond client servicing to providing business solutions and thought leadership. The philosophy is still very much alive. The groups creative process is all-inclusive. It is afusion of ideas from the client service, media and creative departments.

According to Enyi Odigbo, chairman of the group, "Casers is well-equipped for the future. Weve entered into a strategic partnership with Space,a South African integrated marketing agency to learn best practices that will be adopted for our businesses in West and Central Africa. In the coming years, well expand our business interests with beneficial partnerships and relationships.

"In developing our financial strength, were focusing on harnessing and exploiting aspects of our business that we are currently outsourcing. Were shifting attention to commercial opportunities and strength beyond client businesses (campaigns). Were well positioned for the future and the next 30 years of adding value to brands and businesses with creative solutions.

"Well continue to tell evoking stories for our clients and improve on what we have created in the past.

The Caser group consist of Magenta, a brand management and design company, Capital Media Limited, a media independent company, Activ8, a leading events and activation company, Nexus, an out of home company and BBDO, a global creative force are already.
Mining in Australia is a significant primary industry and contributor to its economy with the country reportedly among the top five mining nations globally.

Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Paul Lehmann, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday that Australia was willing to harness Nigerias mineral potentials and expand relations between both countries.

For us, it is not all about gaining expertise, or the experience but also the willingness to engage with countries that are invigorating their mineral sector.

For our Australian mining companies, Nigeria should be seen as a land of opportunity.

Certainly, there are challenges in Nigeria, but it is so for any mining company when it comes to infrastructure, and other elements of doing business.

What we want to do is to work together with the Nigerian government to make the connections between the expertise, the experience, the know-how and the equipment, and the investment fund in some cases, Lehmann said.

The envoy said that there were Australian mining companies already active in Nigeria who sought other ways to develop the mining sector.

That is an ongoing story, we are hoping that in months and years announcements will be made of production and development of those deposits, he said.

He also said that trade relations between both countries were patchy and often dominated by the Nigerian side by its export of crude oil.

He added that Australias main exports to Nigeria were wheat products and both countries had shared interests to enhance relations in other areas to move beyond bulk commodities.

We are looking at how to increase trade and services and other manufactured products; food and beverages and to bring the trade relations up-to-date and forward.

In the areas of education, Lehmann said that there were 2000 Nigerian students currently studying in different institutions in Australia.

A few years ago, it was about a few 100 Nigerian students studying in Australia. When you think about the potential for that number to increase further that is a great course for excitement and opportunity.

The envoy further expressed his governments commitment to providing scholarships for Nigerians to study for Masters Degrees and in short courses to develop their expertise in areas of priority to the country.

In addition to a growing number of fee paying students in Nigeria, we continue to offer our Australia Award Scholarships.

In fact, only a couple of weeks ago, we said farewell to the latest 22 cohorts Nigerians leaving to study in Australia.
The president's departure was disclosed by his Personal Assistant on New Media, Bashir Ahmad, on his Twitter account , on Monday, December 11.

The president was accompanied by Adamawa State governor, Jibrilla Bindow; Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje; Ondo State governor, Rotimi Akeredolu; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema; and Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Jibrin.

According to a press statement signed by the president's Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, on Sunday, December 10, the president will attend a lunch hosted by President Emmanuel Macron of France for Heads of State and Governments at the Elysee Palace, before heading for the venue of the summit.

The statement read, "The summit, jointly organised by the United Nations, the World Bank Group, and the French Government in partnership with non-governmental organisations concerned about reversing the negative effects of climate change, like Bloomberg Philanthropies, holds at the eco-friendly La Seine Musicale, situated on the picturesque Seguin Island in western Paris.

"The main focus of the summit, with the theme, "Climate Change Financing," according to the organisers, will be to innovatively pool public and private finance "to support and accelerate our common efforts to fight climate change."

"While recognising that all countries are affected by the effects of climate change under "One Planet" but some are more vulnerable, the summit seeks for tangible collective action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"Before heading for the Summit venue, the Nigerian leader will attend a lunch hosted by President Emmanuel Macron of France for Heads of State and Governments at the Elysee Palace.

"President Buhari and other world leaders and participants will make presentations under four sub-themes namely: Scaling-up Finance for Climate Action; Greening Finance for Sustainable Business; Accelerating Local and Regional Climate Action; and Strengthening Policies for Ecological and Inclusive Transition.

"It would be recalled that while signing the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the sidelines of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 22, 2016, President Buhari had said it "demonstrated Nigeria's commitment to global efforts to reverse the effects of the negative trend."

"He followed that significant step by signing the Instrument of Ratification of the Paris Agreement on March 28, 2017 at the State House, Abuja, making Nigeria the 146th party to the Paris Treaty.

"It became binding on the country effective June 15, 2017, one month after the submission of the Ratification instrument to the United Nations on May 16, 2017 by Nigeria's Permanent Representative to the UN, Prof. Tijjani Bande.

"The participation of Nigeria's delegation at the One Planet Summit will reinforce the country's commitment to realising the objectives of the Paris Agreement."

The president is expected to return to Abuja on Thursday, December 14.

Daura stay

Before the president's departure for France, he had travelled to his hometown of Daura to rest after a two-day visit to Kano State.

The president had commissioned a host of projects by the state governor, Ganduje, and also met with political and traditional leaders in the state.

Recent trips abroad

The president's trip to France is his third foreign trip in the space of two weeks after recent work visits to Cote d'Ivoire and Jordan.

The president went to Jordan to attend a 2-day counter-terrorism summit tagged Aqaba Retreat between December 2 and December 3.
The former Governor also said that the President came into power on the basis of false promises.

Musa also said that Buharis administration has shown a lack of co-ordination in the handling of the economy.

He also said As you are all aware, our nation today remains in a very sorry state despite all the lofty promises and flowery speeches made by the ruling government of the All Progressive Congress (APC) at the inception of the Administration in 2015.

The economy remains comatose, and in some sectors, particularly in industry and commerce, it is even getting worse.

Monetary and fiscal management has continued to lack coherence and consistency, or even predictability and strategic planning.

Unemployment, particularly amongst the youth, who constitute the bulk of our population, has assumed critical proportions and is now, for all practical purposes, a national emergency.

Yet, this APC Administration, which rode to power on the back of false promises to this generation of hapless young men and women, seems to have no answers to this ticking time bomb beyond slogans such as N-Power.

In fact, instead of creating jobs, the Administration is busy cutting existing ones in the name of rightsizing or downsizing.

This government, both at the centre and in the States that it controls, has proved that it has little or nothing else to provide Nigerians other than further mass impoverishment, frustration and hardships.

If we turn to the security front, the same sad picture confronts us. Perhaps, President Muhammadu Buharis greatest appeal for many in 2015 was the belief that he was capable of dealing a death blow to the insurgency, particularly as manifested by Boko Haram.

In these almost three years that the APC has been in power, the reality has been otherwise.

Yes, the Boko Haram camps in the Sambisa forest may have been wiped out, but the security menace that the group poses continues to manifest, with suicide bombs exploding almost on a weekly basis, particularly in the North Eastern parts of the country.

But apart from the Boko Haram insurgency, others have emerged in different parts of the country.

Recently, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) unleashed mayhem in the South East. Similarly, the militants in the Niger Delta are yet to sheath their swords.

And even more ominous is the threat to public safety and the security of lives and property posed by the marauding gangs of cattle rustlers, killer herdsmen and armed kidnappers.

We ask, where is the security promised Nigerians by this APC administration?.

In so far as the political environment is concerned, again the story is a sad one. Lacking any internal cohesion within itself, the APC administration has only spawned and promoted institutional political decay in the country.

In the name of an anti-corruption campaign, the government has been consistently assaulting due process and the rule of law.

Court orders are flagrantly disobeyed by the very institutions that should enforce them.

Basic democratic rights are being cynically abused. While talking glibly about fighting corruption, the government shamelessly looks askance where corruption is exposed within its own very ranks, closets and cocoons.

Buhari has wasted goodwill of Nigerians

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar also told newsmen that Buhari has wasted his massive goodwill with the economic hardship Nigerians are experiencing everyday.
From alleged harassments, shooting, extortions and killings, Nigerians from various parts of the country have joined the conversation against the inhumane treatment meted out to "defenseless" citizens.

While some Nigerians have called for the scrap of this unit of the Police, others have advocated for reforms that will reshape the unit for better service delivery.

Against this backdrop, some Nigerians across the country took to the streets on Monday, December 11, 2017, to protest these alleged human right abuses.

Addressing Nigerians at the Unity Fountain, Abuja, Segun Awosanya lamented the actions of SARS personnel across the country.

The called for the scrapping of the Police unit within twenty-one days.

Nigerians have spent the last one week highlighting the travails have suffered in the hands of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Awosanya.

The stories that have been recounted on social media includes story of torture, lack of respect for the rule of law, extortion, extra-judicial murder and disappearance of hundreds of people.

These actions are indicative that this unit have outlived its usefulness and now constitute a clear and present threat to the safety, welfare and wellbeing of Nigerians.

We demand for an outright scrapping of the entire SARS unit across the country. Its members have become engrossed in crime, murder, brutality, extortion and disrespect for the rule of law in a manner that makes any attempt at reform a waste of time.

We demand for the constitution of a panel by the Police Services Commission to reform the Nigerian Police in its entirety. The agenda must include provisions for better training of police officers; provision of better equipment and firearms; better welfare including housing, insurance, prompt payment of salaries and pensions etc; establishment of a code of conduct and strict compliance thereto as well as strong disciplinary measures for any officer who violates the code of conduct.

We also demand for a public hearing at the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to enable Nigerians table their grievances before our elected representatives as well as the submission of memoranda on reforms of the Nigerian Police including recommendations on the amendment of laws to ensure a more efficient police force.

We demand thorough investigations into complaints filed against SARS officers. We demand that such officers be identified and immediately brought to justice. In some cases, we will provide video and pictoral evidence against officers who have been seen to be involved in such acts of brutality and extortion.

We give the authorities 21 days within which to meet these demands failing which we will be compelled to resort to other measures to embarrass them into taking action, he added.

Similarly, the convener of Concerned Nigerians Movement, Deji Adeyanju said the Nigerian public have "lost confidence" in the Police.

It's so bad to the point that SARS officers and some police officer escort people to ATM machines to give them bribe, we have now seen some videos on social media where some police officers now ask for bribe in dollars.

The police must look inward and stop blaming people, police have blamed us to say that we are sympathizers of armed robbers being sponsored by some politicians. The generality of Nigerians does not have confidence in the police, he decried.

At the Eagles Square, a group of Nigerians  mostly women  had gathered in support of SARS.

The deputy national chairman (North) of the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), and leader of the Eminent Persons Forum, Sanusi Maijamaa Ajiya told that armed robbers would take over the country if SARS is scrapped.

His words: "IGP has assured that he will put SARS in the right position and take action on any officer found violating rights of citizens. IGP is a leader has taken the step to reform SARS.

"The recent campaign in the social media calling for the scrapping of the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), a unit of the Nigeria Police Force is not in the interest of Nigerians, most especially for the armed robbery and kidnap victims and their families.

"We call on all Nigerians to continue to support the reform of SARS as announced by the Inspector General of Police to make it better under the federal SARS arrangement and a Commissioner of Police already appointed by the IGP to head SARS to be allowed to work to make F-SARS more effective and efficient.

"SARS has over the years, performed excellently well as it has assisted in arresting some notorious criminals in different parts of the country and allow Market Men and Women to continue to do their business and other activities very well nationwide"

"If SARS is scrapped and armed robbers take over, they will not be affected. So all Nigerians are once again called upon to support reform of SARS, he added.

At the Police Force Headquarters, the deputy inspector general of Police (Operations), Habila Joshak assured Nigerians that the SARS unit would be repositioned for a better service delivery.

DIG Joshak said the complaints of Nigerians against the unit are been investigated and SARS officers found wanting would be taken out of the system.

I want to assure you that the IGP has already given directive that SARS must be reorganized to meet the expectation of the community, Joshak said.

I want to promise you that we will carry everybody along. The SARS will take the shape of a Commissioner of Police that will head the unit, and make a selection of those who have acquired courage. A lot of them have acquired courage, but if they have abused that courage, it will be addressed publicly.

I want to invite anyone whose right has been abused to come out and report these officers. We also want also human rights organization, and some of you that have pointed out to us some of the wrongs that our men have done in the past to join us so that whatever outcomes of such complains will be put on the table for public view.

This administration will be open and also cooperate with them to suggest to us how they want us to police them. We will address all complains about SARS, we will address from state to state, from division to the last station. We will bring individuals to account for their actions without fear or favour. We promise Nigerians that we will not abuse their rights.

SARS have something to offer, but if they have gone contrary to their assignment, we are going to address that and we are going to ensure justice is done and justice prevails, he emphasized.

Joshak said all complains on against SARS on social media were been collated by the Force Public Relations Officer, Jimoh Moshood.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, gave the figure during a meeting with a delegation of investors from France in Abuja.

Adeosun told the delegation, made up of 30 companies from France, that government had previously released N450 billion for capital projects, and with additional N750 billion, a total of N1.2 trillion would have invested in infrastructure in the country.

She also told the delegation, who expressed readiness to invest in key sectors of the Nigerian economy, that what the government is doing is to provide enabling infrastructure that will bring potential into reality.

Last year (2016), we released N1.3 trillion of capital and so far this year we have released N450 billion and this week, we will release another N750 billion and this will take the release to N1.2 trillion by the end of the year.

The Head of the French delegation, Mr Philippe Labonne, said the investors had indicated interest in key sectors of the economy such as banking, infrastructure, renewable energy, agriculture and youth empowerment.

He said the decision of the companies to invest in Nigeria was taken following a directive by government of France for French companies to increase their investments in Nigeria.

He described the Nigerian economic environment as encouraging, following the recent stability in the countrys foreign exchange market.

To achieve their investment objective, Labonne said, most of the French companies would form strategic partnerships with their Nigerian counterparts.

He said we are here to assess the investment environment in Nigeria to enable us to take advantage of the opportunities.

We have about 30 companies in this delegation in sectors such as infrastructure, services, agriculture and banking and the purpose of this meeting is to identify key sectors where we can invest.

We are interested in many areas such as energy, agriculture, services, especially toward youths and we will identify other areas subsequently.

Before the meeting with Adeosun, the delegation had earlier met with Ms Yewande Sadiku, the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission.

Sadiku had told them that Nigeria remained a top destination of capital inflows in the African continent.

She said Nigeria is strategically located in Africa to serve the needs of many countries as regional hub to the continent.

We have a compelling population that provides the market which means that Nigeria can serve as manufacturing hub for investors.

She expressed delight over the interest of the investors in Nigeria, noting that France was one of the many countries that Nigeria was targeting in its investment strategy.
In a congratulatory letter issued by the state government at the weekend, by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Yemi Olowolabi, on behalf of "government and people of Ondo state" to the Aare Ona Kakanfo designate, the Kakanfo title was described as "a rare honour bestowed on him by the great monarch, Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi"

Olowolabi said "I write to convey to you the good wishes of the people and government of Ondo State over your recent appointment as the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land.

"This is a rare honour attesting to your bravery and broad minded commitment to Yoruba nationalism."

The government also said Gani Adams, who is also a native of Arigidi Akoko in Ondo state, in the last two decades, had carved a niche for himself "as a courageous advocate of cultural renaissance and a front line defender of the interest of your people"

Stating further that "having come this far in his career as cultural revivalist and a leader of the famous Oodua peoples congress ,no one was surprised that you have been so honoured.

"It is therefore , our fervent prayers that God will give you the wisdom to succeed in your huge historic task of fostering unity, upholding integrity and development of Oduduwa sons and daughters " the letter concluded.

Recently, the Governor Of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, joined the list of prominent Nigerians that have sent goodwill messages to the recently proclaimed 15th Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Otunba Gani Adams.

ALSO READ: Monarchs urge Aare Ona Kakanfo not to forget Yorubas in Kwara

According to Obaseki, Adams deserves the appointment based on the sterling leadership qualities exhibited as the National Coordinator of the Odua Peoples Congress.
Dr Godwin Tijani, state Chairman of the chapter, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lokoja.

He said that the extension of the date was due to the reassurances from the state government to meet the demand members of the association before Dec. 31.

Congress resolved to extend the ultimatum to Dec. 31, for the actualisation of those promises.

However, with effect from Jan. 1, 2018, NMA will be left with no option but to commence total withdrawal of services in all hospitals in Kogi.

This is on the condition that the state government fails to properly address the demands on or before Dec. 31," Tijani said.

According to Tijani, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Saka Haruna had also assured NMA that government would address its demands.

He said Haruna gave the assurance during the Emergency Congress Meeting (ECM) of the association on Dec. 8 he attended with other top government officials.

The Kogi NMA appreciates the Commissioner for Health, the Special Adviser on Health Matters and the Medical Elders for their role to ensuring industrial harmony in the health sector.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the chapter, on Nov. 24, gave the state government the ultimatum to redeem the promises it entered into with the association June 2017.

The state chairman said the decision to extend the ultimatum also emanated from the communique from the State Executive Council Meeting (SEC) of the association in Lokoja.

He said the the demands of the association include; failure of the state government to correct the salary underpayment of doctors in the Hospital Management Board (HMB).

NMA also demanded that continuous implementation of new tax regime be commensurate with implementation of staff promotion and annual increment.

Other demands are; that: the eight doctors cleared over three months ago should be paid their 11 to 12 months backlog salary arrears.

Implementation of adjusted Consolidated Medical Salary Sale and Skipping for its members and payment of four to five months backlog of salaries of doctors in public hospitals in the state.

NMA also called for payment of salaries of the newly employed doctors who it said assumed duty August 2017.

According to the association, its members did not understand the nitty-gritty of their duty schedule in the planned application of Clocking System and the payment of their salaries.
Akande, who represents Ojo Constituency 1 in the Lagos State House of Assembly, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

The lawmaker spoke on the sideline of the conferment of a chieftaincy title on him as the Otunba Amo Eto of Ojokoro by Oba Rilwan Oluwalambe of Ojokoroland in Lagos.

NAN reports that Akandes wife, Olaide, was also made the Yeye Amo Eto of the area.

According to him, the constitutional roles for the traditional institutions will also allow the royal fathers to effectively contribute to development in the society.

As political office holders, we are going back to our communities and become subjects of the traditional institution, so we should respect the institution while in office, he said.

He, however, urged traditional rulers to refrain from begging politicians for money to be relevant in the society.

They should do what is right at all times and guide our traditional institutions jealously.

Akande, who is the Chairman, House Committee on Central Business District (CBD), also urged the constituted authorities to respect royal institution by preserving the cultural heritage.

He said the roles expected to be played by the traditional institutions under democratic setting were been underestimated.

Akande said Nigeria had not achieved sustainable development because government had not effectively harnessed potential of the traditional institutions.

He promised to do his best to represent the people of his community and contribute to the development of Ojokoro area.

The lawmaker urged the political class to do its best to promote harmonious living and better the welfare of the people.
In a coordinated #EndSARS protest currently taking place in cities like Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Warri, Ibadan, Akwa, Makurdi, Jos, Kaduna and Owerri on Monday, December 11, 2017, Nigerians protested against the alleged brutality of the unit.

Over the past week, the internet has been awash with a lot of anger directed towards one of the country's most notorious law enforcement units.

The outrage resulted in the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, ordering for a reorganisation of the unit on Monday, December 4.

Under the new reform, state Commissioners of Police are now the overall heads of the Federal Anti-Robbery Squad nationwide, meaning the unit now operates in the State and Zonal Commands with immediate effect.

The IGP also ordered for all SARS personnel nationwide to undergo a new training program to be organized in collaboration with some Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Local and International NGOs, and other Human Rights Organizations.

ALSO READ: Nigeria has a SARS problem that needs to go away

Nigerians have expressed very low confidence in the reorganisation of the unit and called on the government to put an end to it.

Port Harcourt Youths support SARS

Despite the public outrage against SARS, a group of youths in Rivers State took to the streets of Port Harcourt to march in support of the unit and against the campaign targeted at eliminating them.
Last week, the governor's decision to name his sister, Ogechi Ololo, as the Commissioner for the Ministry of Happiness and Purpose Fulfilment was heavily criticised by Nigerians on social media.

However, during a visit by Air Force personnel, led by the Air Officer Commanding Ground Training Command, Sampson Akpasa, in Owerri, the governor said that most people just don't understand the importance of the department.

According to him, the department would help the Air Force deal with agitations and address officers' dissatisfaction in the discharge of their duties.

He said, "Agitation comes up when people are not happy, and the whole essence of life is to be happy. For this reason, I will advise that the Air Force too, just like I did recently, which most people didn't understand, should create a department for Happiness and Purpose Fulfilment.

"This will help to address the need of even junior officers, who may have some forms of dissatisfaction in the discharge of their duties. Sometimes, you may think they are happy when they are not, and this sabotages the efforts of the Federal Government.

"If people are happy, there will be less agitation. The amount of money we spend on aircraft and in the purchase of arms would have reduced by 50 per cent. This could also end issues of restructuring, Niger Delta and all other forms of agitations."

The governor also disclosed that his administration has just donated a 200-bed hospital to the force in appreciation of establishing Regiment 211 to Imo State.
Ajimobi made the plea at a programme organised by the Women Intercessory Network (WIN) in Ibadan on Sunday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that WIN is a quarterly prayer and fasting session organised by the governors wife.

Ajimobi also urged the women to move closer to God if they desired favour.

Expecting favour from God without being hardworking, prayerful and obedient to the commandments of God would end up in vanity.

 We must be prepared for the favour by obeying the commandments.

Government is an authority ordained by God and we must perform our civic responsibilities by paying our taxes and obeying the laws of the land. No one gets favour through mischief, she said.

She also counselled the women on their basic responsibilities in their homes, saying they must train their wards, love their partners and support them in prayers.

Without fulfilling our responsibilities, being prepared and prayerful and obeying Gods commandment, it would be difficult to attain our desired success, she said.

Some Christian clerics, Mary Popoola, Deborah Ayokunle and Elizabeth Ayodele, in their separate messages also urged women to be more prayerful.
Over the past week, the internet has been awash with a lot of anger directed towards one of the country's most notorious law enforcement units.

The outrage resulted in the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, ordering for a reorganisation of the unit on Monday, December 4.

Despite the reorganisation, a nationwide #EndSARS protest is currently ongoing across many cities in the country calling for the scrapping of the unit.

However, the group of youths campaigning for the unit to stay said they're very important for fighting violent crimes in the country.

The coordinated #EndSARS protests is taking place in cities like Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Warri, Ibadan, Akwa, Makurdi, Jos, Kaduna and Owerri on Monday.

Wike calls SARS 'criminals'

The support of the Port Harcourt youths is in conflict with the attitude of Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, towards the unit.

While speaking on Channels Television on Friday, December 8, he alleged that rather than protecting lives and properties, the police unit has been used to serve political and personal agendas.

He said, "I was the one who said the operatives you have in the state are not protecting lives and property. The Head of SARS in Rivers State, whom I knew very well, cannot help the security architecture of the state.

"I have also said these operatives here have a different agenda which is not for them to protect lives and property but to be part of the election process.

"Instead of protecting lives and property, they're even part of committing criminal activities."

He also expressed his low confidence in the ordered reorganisation from the office of the IGP.

He said, "I don't believe in the so-called review, I don't believe in the so-called restructuring because there's nothing that'll come out of it."

ALSO READ: Nigeria has a SARS problem that needs to go away

SARS 'reorganisation'

Under the new reform, state Commissioners of Police are now the overall heads of the Federal Anti-Robbery Squad nationwide, meaning the unit now operates in the State and Zonal Commands with immediate effect.
In a report by Punch, Akoluche, a recent returnee from Libya, narrated his ordeal to Southern City News.

Akoluche was quoted as saying The Libyans killed people the way they liked. When they bought new guns, they used human beings to test the guns. They call us black monkeys.

Reasons for departing Nigeria

I left Nigeria for Europe on April 25, 2016. I wanted to go to Germany, but I had to go through Libya. I left Nigeria because of the suffering that my family and I were facing.

I was in the second semester of my first year in Ozoro Polytechnic. But I could not continue because of lack of money to pay my fees, Akoluche explained.

Continuing, Akoluche said: "So, my sister assisted me with some money, which I used to travel. My friends also advised me to go. I spent about N2m."

ALSO READ: A Nigerian migrant sells for N145,000 in slave market

Regrets and The Libyan experience

Akoluche obviously has sad memories of his trip and has quite a number of regrets.

He said: I regret abandoning my studies for a trip abroad. Libya is not good; I did not know that it was like that. I should have searched for something to do here in Nigeria.

It is better to stay in Nigeria because many people are dying in Libya. There was no water and food for days.

People die at sea. About 10 persons died in my presence due to lack of water and food for up to a month. Some decomposing bodies were seen in the desert as we were travelling.

I thank the government for bringing me back. But I appeal to the government to help me with my treatment. I am also willing to work, he reeled out.

The report also revealed that the returnee was repatriated with an injury in his right hand, which he said he sustained during a fight with a Gambian migrant.

The Federal Government has identified 5,000 more Nigerians trapped in Libyan detention camps.
Dr Faisal Shuaib, Executive Director of NPHCDA disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday in Abuja.

He said that Agency in collaboration with Nigeria Centre for Disease Control mounted the yellow fever response initiative.

The vaccination campaign is to ensure that children that are vulnerable to the disease are aware and get vaccinated in those states, he said.

In a related development, Shuaib said the agency would no longer accept false data of vaccination reaching all Nigerian children.

He said that the 2016/2017 Multi Indicator Cluster Survey and National Immunisation Coverage survey was an eye opener to the agency.

He explained further that most of the key players in the health sector had suspected that the Agency was not reaching Nigerian children with the vaccines, as the administrative coverage data suggested.

What the coverage survey told us was that the data that we relied on in the past few years was not accurate data.

We have health workers from the facilities level falsifying data; given the impression that we are doing well and in the actual fact, we have not been doing very well in the past.

We accept that we are doing a good job but with low coverage; we have a platform and foundation to build a more sustainable and efficient immunisation system.

This government has made it very clear that health is a priority; NPHCDA has also declared the state of public health concern around the number of children that were vaccinated.

Shuaib said that no fewer than a million children in Nigeria were yet to be reached with the vaccine they ought to have received before now.

He said the agency has setup the national routine immunisation coordination centre as an engine room to ensure better coordination for routine immunisation activities nationwide.
He said whether anyone likes it or not, Atiku is a major force to reckon with in Nigeria's political sphere.

Atiku recently defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying the APC has failed Nigerians.

Okorocha stated this on Saturday, December 9, 2017, after receiving an honorary doctorate degree at the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State.

"I have taken a holistic view of our party, it (Atikus exit) is not the best because no matter how anybody thinks, Atiku carries some political weight. His leaving our party is not the best," he said.

Okorocha, however, said the APC will make amends and fill up the vacuum Atiku left.

The Governor also reacted to the statement credited to the APC National Leader, Bola Tinubu, that there would be no automatic ticket for President Muhammadu Buhari ahead the 2019 Presidential Election.

He (Okorocha) maintained that he that he would support Buhari for a second term.

Earlier, the APC Governors' Forum had said all the governors will support the party's sole candidacy of Buhari in 2019 election.

ALSO READ: Nigerians roast Okorocha for appointing sister Commissioner

But Tinubu opposed the Forum's stand, insisting that the APC's presidential candidate must emerge through a primary.

Okorocha said, "The (Tinubus) statement came to me as a surprise, come to think of it, I never referred to him. I refer to the governors of Nigeria including the PDP governors and I said only one or two of them have not joined yet.

"Since I made the statement, no governor has said something contrary to what I said. I am surprised that Asiwaju will now be speaking for the governors. He looks like somebody crying more than the bereaved. I did not see reason for the statement actually. But he commands my respect and I dont want to join issue with the National Leader of my party.

"What I mentioned was for the governors and secondly what I said is support. The word I use is support that does not mean there will not be primary. Governors can only contribute only 37 votes, we still have over 5,000 votes up there. What I was talking about was governors. I was not talking about other party members. Governors alone do not determine the flagbearer of a party.

"If you recall, I said but for Buhari, I would have run for presidency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. But I found in him a man credible and he still has four years term to do. I will allow him to complete and I will go back to my political trenches because I would still run for presidency anyhow. I consider myself young enough to wait until 2023 and I dont hide my stand on any issue. But for now, my support goes to President Muhammadu Buhari."
The announcement came as Russian leader Vladimir Putin ordered a partial withdrawal of Russian forces in Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country earlier Monday.

Nearly all of the seven rounds of Syria negotiations in Astana have involved representatives of the Syrian regime and the armed opposition, as well as the three power-brokers: Russia, Iran and Turkey.

Moscow has spearheaded the talks in Astana since the start of the year as it tries to turn its game-changing military intervention into a negotiated settlement.

Both Russia and Iran have thrown their support behind the regime of Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey has provided backing to the rebels.

The negotiations, which run in parallel to broader UN-backed talks in Geneva, involved armed rebels and government officials and have focused mainly on military issues.

The Kremlin also hopes to convene a political congress in the Black Sea resort of Sochi which would bring together regime officials and the opposition to reinvigorate a hobbled peace process.
As near universal criticism of Trump's decision mounted, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with EU foreign ministers in Brussels, declaring that the move he has lauded as historic "makes peace possible".

But further protests were being planned for Lebanon and Iran as well as in east Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories.

Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006, called for the demonstration in Beirut's southern suburbs, with large crowds and a speech by the Shiite group's leader Hassan Nasrallah expected in the afternoon.

A large turnout was also expected for a protest in Tehran.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday that Trumps decision threw "fuel on the fire" of Middle Eastern tensions and would not be tolerated.

A protest was being organised in the afternoon in front of a US cultural centre in east Jerusalem, while another was planned for Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.

In Ramallah on Monday, dozens of Palestinians threw stones at Israeli soldiers in the latest such clash.

Palestinian demonstrations have declined in number and intensity since reaching a peak on Friday, but there are concerns they will again increase later this week.

Four Palestinians have so far been killed in clashes or Israeli air strikes in response to rocket fire from Gaza, while hundreds have been wounded.

Tens of thousands have also demonstrated in a range of Middle Eastern and Muslim nations.

'Rejected and denounced'

Palestinian leaders have been outraged by Trump's move, but they also face difficult choices in how to respond since they rely on US aid and would like to salvage remaining hopes of a two-state solution to the conflict.

Abbas will refuse to meet with US Vice President Mike Pence when he visits the region later this month, Palestinian officials say, a move that led Washington to accuse the Palestinian leader of "walking away" from a chance to discuss peace.

Abbas was on Monday to hold talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt -- a key US ally in the region -- ahead of a summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the main pan-Islamic body, on Wednesday.

"Our message to the entire world is that Jerusalem is a Palestinian city and the US decision is rejected and denounced," Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said, quoted by official news agency WAFA.

"What is required now are bold Palestinian and Arab decisions for the coming stage, which is very important and very critical. The Palestinians and Arabs should stand together."

Netanyahu, who has been dogged by corruption investigations against him at home, has lauded the US president's declaration and called for other countries to follow suit.

On Monday, he was in Brussels as part of a two-day trip to Europe after having met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris the previous day, with the visits having been planned before Trump's declaration.

Macron urged Netanyahu to "show courage" and take measures to restart long-stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts, including freezing settlement construction in the West Bank.

Netanyahu, who heads what is seen as the most right-wing government in Israeli history, showed no sign of obliging, instead seeking to place blame on the Palestinians for stalled peace efforts.

He met EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday, the first such talks with an Israeli premier in 22 years and after the bloc's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini warned Trump's move could take the situation "backwards to even darker times".

Netanyahu had a starkly different view.

"It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," Netanyahu said alongside Mogherini.

Mogherini said the "worst thing that can happen now is an escalation of tensions, of violence" and restated the EU's position that a two-state solution with Jerusalem as capital for both Israelis and Palestinians was the only sustainable way to resolve the conflict.

Global condemnation

Trump's Jerusalem declaration upended decades of precedent and broke with international consensus, drawing global condemnation.

Jerusalem's status is perhaps the most sensitive issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel sees the entire city as its undivided capital, while the Palestinians want the eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

Trump noted in his decision that Jerusalem's final status would have to be decided in negotiations between the two sides, but the Palestinians have not been convinced.

Many analysts have questioned how a fair peace process could be possible with such a major concession without seeming to demand anything in return.

Jerusalem is also home to sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, and the Arab and Muslim world has seen it as an afront.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been perhaps the most outspoken in warning over the consequences of the move, while on Sunday he lashed out by calling Israel a "terrorist state" that "kills children".

Netanyahu hit back, calling Erdogan a leader who "bombs Kurdish villagers" and "helps terrorists".
The bloc said developments in Thailand this year, including the adoption of a new constitution and a pledge by junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha to hold elections in November 2018, meant it was "appropriate" to resume ties.

But the European Union repeated its call for the restoration of full democracy and said it was still concerned about harassment of human rights activists and the curtailing of free speech in Thailand.

A meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels said they considered it was "appropriate to pursue a gradual political re-engagement with Thailand".

The EU "has decided therefore to resume political contact at all levels with Thailand in order to facilitate meaningful dialogue", the ministers said in a text approved at the meeting.

EU ministers halted all official visits to Thailand and suspended the signing of a partnership and cooperation accord with Bangkok in June 2014 after the army ousted the elected government.

But Prayut's election promise and other measures such as the end of prosecuting civilians in military courts for certain offences have persuaded the EU to re-engage.

The bloc said it would look at possibly resuming talks on a free trade agreement with Thailand -- as well as the partnership and cooperation accord -- "with a democratically elected civilian government under the new constitution".

But even when Thailand holds elections, they will not restore the same level of democracy the country had before the coup -- a new junta-drafted charter curbs the power of elected politicians and calls for a fully appointed upper house, with several spots reserved for military leaders.
Foreign ministers from the 28-member bloc are set to urge Netanyahu -- making the first visit to the EU by an Israeli premier in more than two decades -- to restart "meaningful" dialogue aimed at reaching peace with the Palestinians.

The visit comes after US President Donald Trump officially recognised Jerusalem as the Israeli capital -- a move widely condemned by international leaders but which Netanyahu said made peace "possible".

"Let me condemn in the strongest possible way all attacks on Jews everywhere in the world, including in Europe, and on Israel and on Israeli citizens," Mogherini said ahead of an informal breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and the EU foreign ministers.

Her remarks come after Netanyahu criticised Europe for "hypocrisy" for condemning Trump's announcement but not rockets fired into Israel from Gaza.

She said the "worst thing that can happen now is an escalation of tensions, of violence" and restated the EU's position that a two-state solution with Jerusalem as capital for both Israelis and Palestinians was the only sustainable way to resolve the conflict.
Electoral authorities have not yet declared a winner from the election, despite full results and a partial recount showing a slight lead for Hernandez, 49.

International observers have expressed reservations with "irregularities" in the election, while Amnesty International has slammed "dangerous and illegal" tactics to silence anti-Hernandez dissent.

Initial results pointed to a victory for Nasralla, a 64-year-old former TV presenter with little political experience. But a much-interrupted and extraordinarily slow count by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal then reversed the trend to suggest an advantage for Hernandez.

Security forces extinguished burning tires that had been set up across roads in the capital by protesters backing Nasralla's Alliance Against the Dictatorship coalition.

In other parts of the country, protesters blocked some zones despite police and army action.

"The people are defending the popular will," one opposition lawmaker, Jari Dixon, told AFP on the eastern outskirts of the capital Tegucigalpa.

"Nasralla won the elections but they want to declare illegal candidate Juan Orlando Hernandez the winner," he said.

The opposition stresses that the constitution bars re-election for Honduras's presidents. Hernandez's rightwing National Party says a 2015 ruling by the country's supreme court voided that rule.

Road blocks were reported in Tegucigalpa, and in the north, west and south of the small Central American nation of 10 million people.

In the southern province of Choluteca, there was a report of soldiers firing at a television crew's vehicle, but no one was wounded.

Amnesty International has said at least 14 people have died in post-election violence. Officials have spoken of only three deaths: that of a 19-year-old woman, whose killing allegedly by police was being investigated; and of two police officers on patrol.

The opposition has demanded a full vote recount supervised by independent foreign observers.
"Those who demonstrate in Israel holding Hezbollah, Hamas and PLO flags are not part of the state of Israel," Lieberman said, referring to the Palestine Liberation Organisation.

"They are acting to harm us and destroy us from within," he said in a statement.

"I therefore call on Israeli citizens to impose an economic boycott on Wadi Ara -- don't shop there, don't eat in the restaurants and don't buy services from them."

Speaking on army radio, Lieberman reiterated his stance on land-swaps in a peace deal that would see Arab areas of Israel handed over to the Palestinians.

"These people don't belong to Israel," the minister said of Wadi Ara residents.

"As part of a final agreement, they must be part of Ramallah," while Israel would annex settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank.

Israelis must simply "give them the feeling they're not wanted here," he said, noting instances in which Arabs from the area carried out attacks against Israelis or supported militant activities.

Dozens of Arab Israelis had on Saturday night blocked the Wadi Ara intersection in northern Israel, police said, throwing stones at vehicles and burning tyres in protest over Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The windows of a bus were smashed and its driver was slightly injured. Police arrested two minors and a man from Arara, an Arab town in the Wadi Ara area.

Ayman Odeh, head of the parliament's mainly Arab Joint List alliance, firmly condemned Lieberman's comments.

"Calling to boycott citizens only because of their national and religious identity reminds the darkest regimes in human history," he said in a statement.

"The notion that such a person is in charge of the state's security should concern any sane citizen."

Clashes and protests erupted in the Palestinian territories after Trump's declaration on Wednesday, but there has been little unrest within Israel.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the guard being treated was in serious condition, while the assailant had been arrested following the attack at the Jerusalem central bus station.

In a post on Twitter, Rosenfeld described it as a "terrorist attack".

Medics said they evacuated a 25-year-old male to hospital with "stab wounds to his upper body", with the suspected assailant suffering a head wound, his condition unclear.

The assailant was identified by police as a 24-year-old Palestinian from the occupied West Bank.

The attack comes as new protests flared in the Middle East and elsewhere over US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital on Wednesday.

Two Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were killed in clashes on Friday and another two from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Palestinian enclave.

On Sunday, clashes broke out in Al-Arroub refugee camp in the south of the occupied West Bank, leaving one Palestinian wounded from rubber bullets, the Palestinian health ministry said.
The new agreement -- reached during a strained two-day visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan -- aims to reduce the more than 15,000 people packed into refugee camps on the islands of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Kos and Leros, another source said.

The camps are filled to triple their capacity, forcing many migrants to sleep in tents and creating tensions with locals.

Over a million people, mainly fleeing the civil war in Syria, crossed to Greece from Turkey in 2015 with the onset of the bloc's worst migration crisis since World War II.

Last March, Ankara had pledged to take back illegal migrants landing on Greek islands in exchange for sweeteners including financial aid and eased EU visa rules for Turkish citizens.

The deal, criticised by rights groups, sharply reduced the number of migrants trying to cross the Aegean Sea.

However, the pace of migrant returns to Turkey fell dramatically after a state crackdown on civil servants that followed an attempted coup against Erdogan last year.

Until now, Greece has only been relocating populations deemed "vulnerable" -- non-accompanied minors, single parents and victims of torture -- to the mainland, exempt under the EU-Turkey pact.

The other illegal migrants are being kept on the islands until their deportation to Turkey, for fears that too many will try to travel north to wealthier EU nations.

Athens hopes that its deal with Ankara will help speed up the transfer of these people to Turkey via the mainland.

Meanwhile, Greece has already intensified its relocation of vulnerable persons to the mainland, transferring more than 1,000 in recent days.

In total over 3,500 people were moved between October and November, the migration ministry said.

According to Oxfam, 5,000 people are to be transferred from the islands in December, before temperatures drop.

Aid groups have repeatedly warned that transferring refugees to heated accommodation before winter is a matter of life and death.

Three refugees died last year in their tents on Lesbos from apparent carbon monoxide poisoning caused by makeshift stoves.
"In the course of today's work we finally agreed a credit agreement which I hope, and I emphasise this, will be signed in the nearest time," Putin said, but at no point did he mention the S-400 deal directly.

"We see a considerable perspective to widen cooperation in the military technical sphere," he added during his visit to Ankara.

The purchase of the surface-to-air missile defence batteries, Ankara's most significant deal with a non-NATO supplier, comes with Turkey in the throes of a crisis in relations with several Western states.

There are also worries in the West, including in the US, over the missile system's technical compatibility with the alliance's equipment.

The Pentagon previously said that "generally it's a good idea" for NATO allies to buy inter-operable equipment.

Putin was in Ankara after a sprint across the Middle East and North Africa region.

He began with a surprise first visit to Syria to meet President Bashar al-Assad at a Russian airbase before meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, two of Ankara's prime foes in recent years.
Erdogan bitterly opposes Trump's decision and has sought to mobilise the Muslim world against it, calling a summit of Islamic countries on December 13 in Istanbul.

The Turkish president, who regards himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause, said the "struggle" of Muslims would not end until there was an independent Palestinian state.

"They will never be able to clean the blood," he said in a speech in Ankara.

"With this recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, it (the United States) has become a partner to this bloodshed. We do not recognise this decision, we will not," he added.

Turkey had high hopes for relations under the Trump presidency, but ties have frayed with rows over the Syria conflict, a New York legal case and now Jerusalem.

Erdogan said that the current "vandalism and cruelty" in Jerusalem would not last. "Those who think they own Jerusalem today will not find trees to hide behind," he said.

Trump's move has ignited protests across the Islamic world and deadly violence in the Palestinian territories.

He said Wednesday's summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul would be a "turning point" on the issue.

Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had traded verbal blows at the weekend, with the Turkish leader describing Israel as a "terrorist state" that kills children.

Hours later Netanyahu hit back, calling his counterpart a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers and supports terrorists, during an official visit to Paris.

However Erdogan did not refer to Netanyahu in his latest speech.

Last year, Turkey and Israel ended a rift triggered by Israel's storming in 2010 of a Gaza-bound ship that left 10 Turkish activists dead and led to a downgrading of diplomatic ties.
It is made acceptable to conservative ears with the addition of lyrics such as "the US is a murderer" and "Palestinian mothers are losing their children" and, of course, the ubiquitous "Death to America".

Participants blamed the middling turnout on rushed preparations.

"The publicity was a bit weak. I only learned about today's demo around midnight, and I'm coming directly from the hospital because I'm a medical student," said Ali Esfahani, 23.

He said Trump's decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, which was widely condemned across the globe, "was one more cruelty on top of America's previous oppressions" and could not be tolerated.

Such protests tread a fine line, pledging support for the Palestinian cause without calling for direct military action by Iran.

"I don't think there will be a need to send any troops because there are a lot of people in Lebanon, Syria and inside the Palestinian Territories. They will be enough to get rid of the Israelis," a cleric, Seyed Abdullah Hosseini, told AFP.

A neon board on the side of the square announced that there were only 8,240 days left for Israel -- a reference to a speech by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in which he predicted the end of Israel by 2030.

"Mr Trump has done a good job of speeding things up. We were expecting Israel to be dismantled later... but this is the beginning of the end of Israel," said Hosseini.
The Buenos Aires meeting, which lasts through Wednesday, is the first in the era of US President Donald Trump, who has pummeled the body relentlessly since taking office, describing it as a "disaster."

The Trump administration has made the WTO a preferred target of its "America First" policy, threatening to pull the US out of the trade organization it says is hampering its ability to compete.

Argentina's President Mauricio Macri said, in opening remarks, that "WTO problems get fixed with more WTO -- not with less WTO."

Trump has already withdrawn the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and insisted on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada.

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said Sunday he will ask US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer for "political commitment, political will and flexibility."

"Without flexibility we will not get anywhere," Azevedo said at an opening press conference at a Buenos Aires hotel.

Washington has been blamed for blocking appointments of judges to the WTO's dispute settlement system, saying it was ineffective and insisting on a more aggressive approach to defending its interests.

The dispute body arbitrates international rows over subsidies or tariffs, among other things playing an important role in the standoff between US and European plane-makers Boeing and Airbus.

The European Union, on the other hand, comes to the conference with a robust spirit of multilateralism. The EU and Japan announced Friday that they have finalized a major trade agreement.

EU officials will also meet with counterparts from the South American trade bloc known as Mercosur to continue talks on a free trade accord. These discussions have been going on for nearly 20 years.

Low expectations

Expectations for any kind of a breakthrough at the Buenos Aires meeting are low.

For the past decade the WTO has failed to make progress in the so-called Doha Round of trade liberalization talks, which began in 2001.

The WTO is also accused of failing to do enough to resolve problems that some of its members have with China.

"There is life after Buenos Aires," said the president of the conference, Susana Malcorra of Argentina.

She has said a deal was likely to end harmful fisheries subsidies, of keen interest to developing countries.

Beijing, meantime, wants to be seen by the WTO as a "market economy," but the Europeans and the United States -- for once on the same wavelength on trade issues -- oppose this. Any such recognition would entitle China to preferential economic treatment under WTO rules.

It is currently classed as a non-market economy. That status allows the US and others to use a special recourse to levy anti-dumping duties against China if they determine that it is selling its goods -- notably steel and aluminum -- at unfairly low prices abroad.
Major U.S. freight railroads have reached a tentative contract agreement with the second of three coalitions representing unionized employees.

The National Railway Labor Conference representing employers announced that it had reached agreement with Brotherhood Railway Carmen (BRC), the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), and the Transportation Communications Union (TCU).

The new agreements cover wages, benefits and other issues for more than 31,000 employees and are subject to membership ratification. The Transport Workers Union, which represents a limited number of employees in this bargaining, is also a party to these agreements.

The railroads have now reached agreements with unions covering 116,000 employees, or 80% percent of the 145,000 employees in this bargaining round. The following unions, which represent 81,000 employees in the bargaining, have already ratified their agreements with the railroads: American Train Dispatchers Association; Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen; Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, and International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers  Transportation Division including Yardmasters.

Contracts are still to be worked out with the third labor coalition consisting of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes, and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers representing the final 20% of affected unionized rail workers.

These new agreements, which follow the terms established in the earlier agreements, bring us closer to the resolution of negotiations with all the unions, said A. Kenneth Gradia, Chairman of the National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC), the railroads bargaining representative.

The NCCC represents more than 30 railroads, including BNSF, CSX Transportation, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific, in national bargaining with 12 rail unions. Bargaining began in 2015.
Case over non-return of ancient icons to Russia sent back to prosecutors

MOSCOW, December 11 (RAPSI, Nikita Shiryayev)  Moscows Presnensky District Court on Monday ruled to send a case against ex-director of private non-profit Museum of Russian Icons Elena Knyazeva, who allegedly failed to return 16 orthodox icons of XVI-XVIII centuries to Russia, back to prosecutors, the courts press service told RAPSI.

Knyazeva has been charged with non-return of cultural values to Russia committed by an organized group. She has pleaded not guilty.

According to investigators, the woman has entered into a criminal conspiracy with members of a gang organized by a foreign citizen. On September 30, 2010, she filed a declaration for temporary export of 16 orthodox icons of XVI-XVIII centuries to hold the exhibition From Russia With Love in the U. S. In November 2015, the term of temporary export expired but icons have never been submitted to the Moscow Customs.

During investigation, all icons have been returned to Russia.
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Ex-official of Russias Drug Control Service gets 7 years in prison

ST. PETERSBURG, December 11 (RAPSI, Mikhail Telekhov)  Ex-chief of a regional office of the defunct Federal Drug Control Service Kirill Kalinin has been sentenced to 7 years in a high-security prison for extortion of a 10-million-ruble (about $170,000) bribe, the Unified press office of St. Petersburg courts has told RAPSI.

Kalinin has been also found guilty of provocation of a drug deal.

Three former subordinates of Kalinin have also received terms in a high-security prison. Yevgeny Zhileykin has been sentenced to 4 years, Alexey Amirov has received 3.5 years, and Vasily Belikov has been given 3 years. One more defendant has been acquitted, the statement reads.

According to investigators, the defendants have extorted 10 million rubles from an individual suspected of buying about 100 grams of cocaine from Kalinin instead of attending to arrest him. However, the men failed to execute their plan because they were arrested.
Heads of Russian and Finnish Supreme Courts to exchange experience on ecology cases

MOSCOW, December 11 (RAPSI)  Chairman of Russias Supreme Court Vyacheslav Lebedev and his colleague, chairman of Finlands Supreme Court Timo Esko, will exchange their opinions on legal protection in cases related to ecology and land use, according to the press-service of the Russian court.

Lebedev is currently on an official visit to Finland. The chairman is also expected to meet the head of Finlands Supreme Administrative Court Pekka Vihervuori.

The focus of discussion is going to be the theme of appeals against administrative decisions in court and the implementation of legal protection. Among the issues of interest for representatives of Finland is the system of legal protection in cases concerning the environment and land use, the Russian Supreme Courts press-service told RAPSI.
Allowing U.S. companies to repatriate their profits in a tax-free manner  if used for job-related education  would drive far more national value than the tax-repatriation policy currently being proposed by Congress. History has proven and Wall Street has already declared that with the current repatriation proposals, which range from a 10 percent to-14.5 percent tax rate paid over several years, well see little in terms of job creation and mixed results in terms of long-term shareholder value.

Cheap repatriation schemes have resulted primarily in share buybacks and one-time dividends, creating almost no jobs and or real new investment in the United States. Instead, tax-free repatriation for education should be added to the current tax bill as an alternative option for companies to utilize.

Our economy and U.S. companies need skilled talent more than cash. Structured correctly, this kind of corporate-directed tax benefit for education can deliver greater long-term value to U.S. companies and shareholders, more value to our economy and more and better jobs than previous repatriation initiatives, which did little of any of the above. With $2.7 trillion in total potential to repatriate, we can create a massive long-term benefit for job growth and our education infrastructure (i.e., program development, number of educators, etc.) as well as improve our companies and strengthen our workforce.

Of the $2.7 trillion in un-repatriated profits, more than half of the funds are held by just 50 companies. The companies span industries and include Apple, Pfizer, Microsoft, GE, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Exxon, Google, Citigroup, Honeywell, Caterpillar and HP. Many of these companies are also big proponents for improving American education and expanding visas to bring talent to the U.S. Indeed, the U.S. business community at large agrees on the need for more talented workers, with 46 percent of U.S. employers having a difficult time filling jobs. A survey of CIOs in the U.S. reported that 64 percent of IT leaders in the U.S. said that skills shortages were holding them back.

To solve this problem, companies should be permitted to repatriate some of their money tax-free and deploy those funds tax-free over four years if used for job-related education and training. To qualify for the tax break, the amount would have to exceed the average of the companys prior three years of spending on training and education and should be used for non-executive training. The money could be used for anything from technical and engineering education to providing scholarships for high school students and post-secondary education, whether management oriented or vocationally oriented. For current employees, training could be provided on advanced manufacturing, general workforce technology skills, IT, marketing, sales and service and product development.

Here is some perspective on the impact businesses could have on American education and the economy, even with low participation. For starters, a 3 percent participation rate would be equivalent to $78 billion and 18 times the size of Race to the Top and equivalent to 5.5 percent of the entire U.S. student loan debt load. Now, imagine if that was a corporate investment that students knew would be paid back? A 3 percent participation rate would be the equivalent of infusing the following into the skills-based education infrastructure over four years:

The benefits to corporations are many. Companies need more skilled talent for organic growth. Capital is cheap, yet talent and skills are scarce. If companies dont hire, they might lag the markets. If they hire people who are not yet prepared, that drags down current teams and performance and creates difficult working atmosphere. Companies can recruit more from overseas, but that takes time and adds cost. If companies cant fill the jobs, they outsource the whole function overseas, requiring a short-term reduction in profits for transitioning the work and loss of efficiency for the hope of a longer-term gain. Wouldnt it be better to invest in getting it right in the U.S.?

Another major benefit for the companies with un-repatriated profits is the potential to improve their workforces who are aging or have aging skill sets and are in need of updated training or re-training.

On a national basis, if we can keep our older population working for more years, theyll contribute more to Social Security and the tax base while drawing less from it. People who are engaged and productive need fewer health care resources, helping us manage another national cost that draws from corporate tax dollars and individual taxes. According to Fox Business, the average 50-year-old has less than $60,000 saved for retirement and more than 50 percent of Baby Boomers have less than $100,000 saved for retirement. Further, a substantial percentage of the retired population relies almost entirely on social security for their income, including 47 percent of single seniors and 22 percent of married seniors. There is no avoiding this simple math. With more people educated and having relevant skills, working longer, saving more and paying taxes, it will save our nation precious tax dollars and improve the economy.

Finally, a good number of the companies with the biggest hoards of cash to repatriate already sponsor education in a variety of manners and have proven willing to move their assets to capitalize on the value of education. GEs relocation to Boston to be near world-class universities is just one example. These companies and their shareholders should embrace the opportunity to invest in their employees and potential employees, creating an easier path to passage for this legislation.

We have a chance to bring back funds, educate our workforce, build up our economy and strengthen our future. What could be more re-patriotic than this?

Rafi Musher is the CEO of Stax Inc.
So much for the notion that higher trade deficits lead to higher unemployment levels. Last month, the U.S. economy created over 220,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the countrys trade deficit widened, on track to its highest level in nine years. This is far from the first time that imports and job creation both increased. It happens almost every month. The seeming contradiction illustrates the fact that imports do not increase unemployment. They actually help reduce it.

More imports do not equal fewer exports, and they certainly do not equal fewer jobs. The latest jobs data from the Department of Labor confirms that: In November, the U.S. economy maintained a 4.1 percent unemployment rate, the lowest rate in 17 years. But the U.S. trade deficit has hit a nine-month high, the highest level of imports in years.

It should not be surprising that trade deficits go up while unemployment goes down. In fact, higher levels of imports are essential to economic growth. Companies requiring inputs toward a finished product need to get the best price, quality and service levels they can to be competitive. That means they need the widest possible network of potential suppliers, including foreign suppliers. Being able to import is crucial to being able to efficiently make products for export. Imports are not a necessary evil; they are a necessary ingredient.

The proof is in the data. In October, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the trade deficit hit $48.7 billion, up $3.8 billion from the previous month, primarily because of an increase in the goods deficit. That put the combined U.S. goods and services deficit up almost 12 percent from the same period in 2016  even as the national economy created 174,000 jobs a month this year (and 187,000 jobs a month last year), and continued to reduce unemployment rates.

An even closer look into the Census Bureau data gives a clearer sense of how increased imports actually bolstered the U.S. economy. It shows that the biggest increase in imports by far is among industrial supplies and materials, which went up by $1.8 billion, more than twice the increase in imported consumer goods. In other words, U.S.-based companies were importing more in order to producemore  which is what leads to a higher standard of living. (And by the way, to more exports.) Imports were increasing because U.S. businesses were investing more.

A positive relationship between trade deficits and strong economies is hardly an aberration. In 2006, for example, the U.S. economy was in the midst of an economic surge. At the same time, the countrys trade deficit hit its highest level in history. In 2009, on the other hand, when the U.S. economy was in the midst of the great recession, the country recorded its lowest import deficit in recent years.

Economic booms in the late 1980s and late 1990s were accompanied by steep increases in trade deficits. On the other hand, the last time the United States recorded a trade surplus was in 1975, when the U.S. economy was stuck in a recession in the middle of a decade characterized by stagflation.

Running trade deficits in the midst of rising prosperity is not limited to the United States. Over the past two years, more than half of the 35 nations belonging to OECD, the rich countries club, have run trade deficits, as have more than half of the G7 countries. But Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Angola all ran trade surpluses. Which economy would you rather have?

The opportunity to import actually helps achieve productivity and prosperity more than the opportunity to export, because it does more to broaden choice. Importing widens the circle of potential suppliers competing to meet the needs of intermediate producers. The companies that imported more industrial supplies and materials in October were doing it in order to make finished products  and create jobs. When a country opens its borders to imported goods, it facilitates comparative advantage, importing inputs from countries that are more efficient at making them  and thereby making domestically-produced final products more competitive.

Growing an economy is not a matter of turning imports into exports. Robust economies do more of both.
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The settlement with Sebi was seen as Infosys admitting guilt of the lapse, clearing out any legal or regulatory challenges and preparing ground for new chief executive officer Salil Parekh.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, a board member at Infosys, has sought an end to fresh concerns raised over alleged irregularities in the severance pay offered to former chief financial officer (CFO) Rajiv Bansal, saying that the companys co-founder and hhairman Nandan Nilekani had reinvestigated the issue and found no wrongdoing.

Mazumdar-Shaws appeal for a closure comes after an internal whistle-blower recently asked market regulator Securities and Exchanges Board of India (Sebi) to order an independent forensic probe on the $200-million acquisition of Israeli tech firm Panaya and the subsequent deal of Rs 17.38 crore severance pay to Bansal.

Last week, Infosys had reached out to Sebi with a consent plea to allegations of disclosure lapses by its former management led by Vishal Sikka to its board on the severance pay pact with Bansal.

The settlement was seen as Infosys admitting guilt of the lapse, clearing out any legal or regulatory challenges and preparing ground for new chief executive officer Salil Parekh, who takes charge in January.

Infosys appeal to Sebi prompted two former Infosys board members, T V Mohandas Pai and V Balakrishnan, to ask the company to apologise to founder N R Narayana Murthy, who had flagged the failure to disclose the pact to the board and shareholders.

They also sought resignation of two Infosys board members - Ravi Venkatesan and Roopa Kudva - for the lapse.

Subsequently, the whistle-blower wrote a letter to Sebi on Saturday, seeking fresh probe and asking the regulator to prosecute Infosys by rejecting its appeal.

The matters were reinvestigated (a)n(d) no wrongdoings were found by new chairman. Lets bring this to a closure (a)n(d) move on. It helps no one, Mazumdar-Shaw wrote on the microblogging platform, Twitter, responding to Pai who called the lapse a substantial matter.

A February letter to the regulator by the anonymous whistle-blower led Infosys to do independent forensic probes that gave clean chit to both Sikka and the board.

However, Murthy was not satisfied and asked Infosys to reveal the full contents of the probe report.

This was rejected by the then chairman and director of Infosys Board R Seshasayee, citing confidential details could be revealed if made public.

In August, Sikka quit and investors started to flee the stock.

It forced the board, former employees and other founders of Infosys to bring back a reluctant Nilekani as the chairman.

Among the promises made by Nilekani on his return was to look at the probe report dispassionately and give his verdict.

In October, he gave a clean chit to Sikka of any wrongdoing. This was met with a curt response from Murthy, who criticised the company, but also admitted that Sadly, it appears we will no longer know the truth.

Mazumdar-Shaw on Saturday said Infosys had admitted to procedural lapses and the move to file a settlement plea with Sebi was to pay a fine for that.

I hope (yo)u recall that procedural lapses were admitted (a)n(d) (former Infosys chairman R) Seshasayee apologised at AGM (annual general meeting). Settlement is to pay fine for unintended procedural lapse, Mazumdar-Shaw tweeted on Saturday.

Bansal and Infosys are fighting a separate arbitration after the former CFO filed a case in April against the company for violating the terms of the settlement.

In September 2016, Infosys had suspended payment to Bansal after the controversy erupted into public space.

Photograph: Jagadeesh NV/Reuters
Just before the elections, the government waived interest on loans up to Rs 300,000 for farmers. But this may not really help small and marginal farmers in the state, who make up for two-thirds of the total and are still dependent on informal channels of credit.

Lakshman Dobariya of Jasdan in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat has seen his realisation drop from Rs 1,200 per 20 kg of groundnut to Rs 600 per 20 kg in the past five years.

Although the state government announced a minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 900 per 20 kg right before the Assembly elections in the state, Dobariya is forced to sell his produce at market prices of Rs 500-600 per 20 kg.

The queues at government procurement centres are unending.

My costs have risen from Rs 5,000 per bigha to Rs 8,000 while realisations have fallen from Rs 1,000-1,200 per 20 kg to Rs 500-600. This is accentuated by rising pest infestation and an erratic monsoon, says Dobariya.

Dobariyas experience shows how farm distress is brewing discontent among Gujarats rural electorate.

The state government has pulled out all the stops to assuage the rural voter in the run-up to a crucial election.

Among other things, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government announced a support price of Rs 900 per 20 kg of groundnut (or Rs 4,500 per quintal) last month, after market prices had crashed to Rs 3,250 per quintal.

The state government also unveiled a Rs 500-crore Budget for procuring groundnut.

Sagar Rabari, convenor of Jamin Adhikar Andolan Gujarat that works with farmers, says with that kind of Budget, the government will be able to procure 110,000 tonnes of groundnut this season.

The output was 2.96 million tonnes last year, and estimates suggest production this year will be 3.2 million tonnes. The majority of Gujarats groundnut farmers will be left in the lurch.

The government cannot procure all the stock because it also has to sell in the open market where prices are low. The roots of the problem lie elsewhere, in the lack of market and support infrastructure, says Rabari. But Chimanbhai Shaparia, Gujarats agriculture minister, says the government has increased the collection centres to 215 this year from last years 87.

We are trying to reach where the farmers are, he adds.

Dobariya's woes do not end with low prices for his produce. Add loan repayments and crop insurance, and Dobariyas profits shrink drastically.

Gujarats agriculture grew at an average eight per cent between 2002-03 and 2013-14 and the slowdown since 2014-15 seems has delivered a crushing blow to the farming community. After shrinking by 1 per cent in 2014-15, farm GDP in the state has not recovered much in 2015-16.

Gujarat has faced drought, floods and delayed monsoon in the past five years.

Experts say farmers woes have been aggravated by the lack of last-mile connectivity for irrigation with water from the Narmada.

This has rendered many regions dependent on the monsoon, especially Saurashtra and north Gujarat.

A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on the Gujarat government has pulled it up for allowing Rs 97 crore worth of irrigation projects to remain incomplete for 14 years.

Agricultural expert Hemant Shah says the area under Narmada water irrigation grew from 193,683 hectares in 2011-12 to 209,057 hectares in 2012-13 but remained stagnant over the next two years.

At 209,057 hectares, this is 11.67 per cent of the target 1.792 million hectares, Shah points out.

But Shaparia does not think lack of irrigation will be a major issue in this election.

This year, not only has rainfall been good but the government has ensured procurement at MSP for key crops. We will continue to work towards taking Narmada water into the hinterlands, he adds.

Not just groundnut, price erosion has affected Gujarats cotton crop as well. Five years ago, cotton yielded Rs 1,400 per bale of 170 kg. This has now declined to Rs 800.

As a result, farmers have over the years reluctantly shifted to crops that require less water.

A V Barad, dean of Junagadh Agricultural University, attributes the change in cropping in Gujarat to the monsoon and availability of Narmada water.

After groundnut, Saurashtra was known for its wheat production. In the last five years, wheat has been replaced by spices such as coriander and cumin and pulses such as chana, he points out.

Debt trap

Just before the elections, the government waived interest on loans up to Rs 300,000 for farmers.

But this may not really help small and marginal farmers in the state, who make up for two-thirds of the total and are still dependent on informal channels of credit.

Agricultural advances in Gujarat stood at Rs 76,232 crore in June, according to the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC), and gross non-performing assets (NPAs) were 5.76 per cent, or Rs 4,390 crore, of these advances.

In fact, the gross NPAs have risen from 2.9 per cent of advances in March 2014 to six per cent now.

Experts point out that the level of NPAs in Gujarat is lower than many other states, but this is primarily because farmers in the state borrow from moneylenders in years when the crop realisation is weak to repay banks.

An estimated 4.8 million families in Gujarat depend on agriculture for their livelihood, but agriculture accounted for only 16.6 per cent of the states GDP in 2014-15.

Capital-intensive industries in the state have not created enough jobs.

The average monthly income of an agricultural household in Gujarat was Rs 7,926 in 2013.

While this is obviously lower than in agrarian states like Punjab (Rs 18,059) and Haryana (Rs 14,434), the average daily income of a farmer in Gujarat (Rs 264) is lower than the daily wage of an unskilled farm labourer nationally (Rs 341).

It is not surprising that only 11 per cent of the crop area in the state was insured until 2014-15.

The figure was higher for Rajasthan (49.7 per cent) and Madhya Pradesh (45.91 per cent).

But there has been improvement - according to the SLBC data, around 1 million farmers have been covered by the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana till August 2017.

Around one-fourth of the states cultivable area has some crop insurance.

The job ahead is to push up Gujarats agriculture GDP. It has remained in a slow growth trajectory for a couple of years, rising from Rs 93,481 crore in 2011-12 to Rs 99,591 crore in 2014-15.

Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters
Toll booths may be kept 50 km apart for seamless travel

How and where highway tolls would be paid is set to change soon.

The government is working on a policy to plan tolling booths in such a way that it leads to minimal disruption of traffic and time.

Toll booths on a highway would be at least 50 km apart and would only be at major cities, according to a policy in the works.

The definition of a major city would be changed to one with a population of more than 200,000.

The proposal of the ministry of road transport and highways would require clearance from the Cabinet.

Once we finalise the details, we will send the note to the ministries concerned for their comments and thereafter to the Cabinet for its approval, an official told Business Standard.

The rationale behind the proposal is to provide relief to an average commuter on the national highways.

For instance, a person travelling from one city to another in a state like Rajasthan pays toll at least four times because there is a toll plaza every 50 km.

Why should anybody pay a levy three-four times while travelling within one state.

"The toll should be levied only between major cities and the definition of a major city that we have derived at is one with a population of over 200,000, the official said.

So, if one is commuting from Delhi to Ambala in Haryana on the National Highway1, the commuter would pay toll at only two spots instead of four-five places at present, he said.

The proposal would be another step towards seamless travel on national highways, after the introduction of electronic tolls. In August, the National Highways Authority of India introduced two mobile apps - MyFASTag and FASTag Partner - as part of its efforts to facilitate availability of the tag towards electronic toll payment.

FASTag is a reloadable tag fixed on a vehicles windscreen. It has radio frequency identification (RFID) technology that is linked to a prepaid account for automatic deduction of toll charges.

A vehicle with this technology would not have to stop at toll booths for cash transaction.

The e-tolling facility is available at over 300 toll plazas across the country.

The ministrys proposal would be easy to implement on the engineering-procurement-construction contracts as compared to build-operate-transfer projects as there could be multiple concessionaires for one stretch of a highway.

Photograph: Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters
While brick-and-mortar retailers have been the most vocal in their protests, e-tailers do not seem to be in a hurry.

After hitting out at the government on social media, retailers are gearing up to protest against revised merchant discount rates (MDRs) for debit card transactions.

MDR is the rate charged to a merchant by a bank for providing debit card transaction service.

On Wednesday, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) changed the basis of MDR as per the category of a merchant from the existing rule for the charges to be based on size of transactions.

The RBI has increased MDR for all organised retailers to 0.9 per cent for point of sale (POS) transactions up to Rs 2,000, from current rates of 0.25 per cent for transactions up to Rs 1,000 and 0.5 per cent for transactions between Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000.

Since a majority of debit card transactions are below Rs 2,000, the marginal benefit of cost coming down to 0.9 per cent from 1 per cent for transactions above Rs 2,000 has not helped retailers.

This is not a fully thought out step. This is going one step forward and two steps backward, said Anand Agarwal, chief financial officer, V-Mart Retail.

From 10 per cent in pre-demonetisation days, digital transactions in rural areas for us has gone up to 25 per cent, and it is still on an upswing.

"If the cost of operation goes up, we would not be inclined to promote digital payments.

Rakesh Biyani, joint managing director at Future Retail, said, Using debit card is directly debiting the account of a person and nobody takes a risk. It is as good as a RTGS transaction.

"So, why should there be 0.9 per cent charges? Who will bear this cost, if retailers net profit margins are 3 per cent. How can we absorb 0.9 per cent?

Earlier, Damodar Mall, chief executive officer for grocery at Reliance Retail, said on Twitter: This move contradicts #DigitalIndia that we are all driving. I hope, @NITIAayog will notice the avoidable contradiction. We would like to be encouraged to drive digital payments, not punished! Please, @amitabhk87!

With leading retailers getting vocal, the Retailers Association of India (RAI) is spearheading the protest against the changed rates.

After running a campaign on social media, RAI plans to up the ante. Kumar Rajagopalan, chief executive at RAI, said, We will send letters to the government and the RBI early next week regarding the issue and ask for an appointment.

RAI has members such as Future Group, Tata-owned Trent, and Shoppers Stop, among others.

The letter would explain how the revised MDR would discourage debit card usage, the very objective of the RBIs move.

Even RuPay cards are underutilised here, it should be encouraged and made popular. For such cards, the government should bring the charges below 0.2 per cent, like China has for UnionPay cards, Rajagopalan said. RuPay is a domestic card promoted by the RBI.

Other traders organisations such as Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) are also planning to approach the finance ministry with their memorandum on how the government should deal with MDR.

Lower or higher, MDR is ultimately an extra financial burden on either the merchant or consumer, said Parveen Khandelwal, national general secretary CAIT, explaining that it would shift the transactions to cash based.

If digital payments are encouraged without any MDR, more and more people could be lured to use that mode.

Among the list of recommendations traders plan to take to the finance ministry, they want the government to subsidise MDR directly to banks.

If all this does not work, traders plan to call for protests. Traders are also collaborating with associations of other industries, especially telecom and aviation.

Margins for mobile handsets are already very low - in the range of 4-5 per cent. As many of the stores selling handsets have an annual turnover of above Rs 20 lakh, the 0.9 per cent MDR would further squeeze their margins.

While brick-and-mortar retailers have been the most vocal in their protests, e-tailers do not seem to be in a hurry.

We are still studying the RBI direction to understand it better. We will engage with regulatory bodies to present our views on the same, an Amazon spokesperson said.

With additional inputs from Kiran Rathee and Nikhat Hetavkar

Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters
The distinction between cheap and affordable is a fine one, but no one understands this better than Indias aspirational first-time car-owner, says Kanika Datta.

Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters

Do dwindling sales of the Tata Nano reflect natural market attrition or the hubris of the bottom-of-the-pyramid business model? The latter, the Nanos brief history suggests. Here is why.

On the face of it, a nine-year run for the Nano appears to be par for the course.

Auto industry professionals put the average market life of a small car at about a decade, though this timeframe is contingent on refurbishing the product or introducing product extensions every fifth or sixth year.

Set against expectations that this peoples car alone would more than double the size of the car market at its extraordinary price of Rs 100,000 in 2008 -- about half the cost of the no-frills small car in those days -- the Nano enjoyed a decent run only for about two financial years.

In 2010-2011 and 2011-2012, when annual sales exceeded 70,000 units, though Tata Motors never enjoyed a profit from this appealing little blimp of a car.

From 2012, sales shifted steadily down to hit a little over 1,500 in May to October of the current fiscal year.

This is a long way from its goal of annual sales of 1 million units, which the company announced at the Delhi Auto-Expo launch that Reuters described as a media circus more worthy of a pop concert or an Oscar ceremony.

Compared with other peoples cars, the Nano was gone in -- pardon the poor pun -- a nano-second.

Excluding the Maruti 800, which enjoyed a three-decade run in conditions of limited competition before it made way for the upgraded Alto, Hyundais Santro, the next major small-car challenger, enjoyed a 16-year run, ending up, after a butt-tuck, as the Xing.

And considering that the Nano riveted global attention after Ratan Tata singled out the Financial Times for his announcement, the Nano compares poorly with other famous global peoples cars.

The Model T, the car that pioneered assembly line factory production, and was marketed on the principle that those who produced it should be able to afford it, lasted almost two decades starting 1908.





Photograph: Kind courtesy, Neodarkshadow/Wikimedia Commons

It also enjoyed one of the longest production runs in automobile history until another famous peoples car, the Volkswagen Beetle, bettered the record in the early seventies.

Before it was even produced, the Nano was an embodiment of all the imagined virtues of frugal engineering.

But it also attracted publicity for its high-profile exit from Singur, after an unruly argument with a future chief minister of West Bengal, to Sanand in Gujarat, a move that was widely seen as an early endorsement of Narendra Modi as Indias next prime minister.

The judgement on Mamata Banerjees anti-industry faults and Mr Modis pro-business virtues (remember Bad M and Good M?) changed a little when it became clear that, whether in Bengal or Gujarat, the peoples car was being funded pretty much by peoples taxes.

Image: A file photo of the closed Tata Motors Nano car factory in Singur, West Bengal. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters

The Left Front government that Ms Banerjee overthrew gave the Tata group 900-odd prime acres and loans at throwaway prices, sales and excise concessions, heavily subsidised power and other giveaways that would last for decades.

Then it turned out that the Modi government in Gujarat had gone even further to attract the Nano plant, with concessions that would, according to one report, benefit the Tata group to the tune of Rs 30,000 crore for 20 years.

This may not sound so extraordinary, since successful people cars have rarely been viable without heavy governmental concessions.

In India, we know of Marutis antecedents as a government company, which sustained it until Suzukis entry.

Bar the Santro, other small cars such as the Daewoo Matiz and the Renault-Bajaj Logan made quick exits from the market.

Globally, the Model T enjoyed a first-mover monopoly in that huckstering business environment of early 20th century America.

But the Volkswagen would never have made it to the market had it not been backed by Adolf Hitlers dirigist policies, including offering subsidised loans for people to buy the car (it is ironic that the cheap small car the world over retails in India at over Rs 28 lakh, is the Mini Cooper).

Even the most generous of government subsidies cannot compensate for misreading the market, however.

The distinction between cheap and affordable is a fine one, but no one understands this better than Indias aspirational first-time car-owner.

Add in serious safety doubts and low production values, both banes of the early Nano models, and the worlds cheapest car never stood much of a chance.
Last updated on: December 11, 2017 11:08 IST

The Dangal star has some lovely times on the Continent.

Stars go on the loveliest holidays -- exotic locations with a lot of adventure thrown in.

Preity Zinta went on a holiday to South Africa.

Priyanka Chopra traveled to Prague.

Ranveer Singh took us on a Swiss tour.

Amy Jackson explored Cannes.

Nargis Fakhri had a great Greek holiday.

Raai Laxmi took a trip to the US.

Television actors Barkha Bisht Sengupta and Indraneil Sengupta toured Thailand.

Nia Sharma holidayed in the Maldives.

Sanya Malhotra always dreamt of going to Europe.

She made sure to share pictures from her trip and they looked super fun! Take a look.

The smile doesn't seem to leave Sanya's face.

Posing by the beach in Monterosso al Mare, Italy.

Sanya was in love with the place. We would be too!

What a backdrop this is!

The cast click from her holiday. The Colosseum, Rome.

The view in Venice.

'Ciao Venice.'

Kinderdijk, Holland.

Sanya gets herself a treat.

When you go to Belgium, you need to have a waffle! Showing off her waffle from Bruges.

Cycling in Keukenhof, Holland.

The picture couldn't get any prettier.

Lost in thought.

When in Paris, the Eiffel is a must. By night.

Fangirling at the magnificent Palais Garnier... sigh!

'Can't wait to have dal makhni and Rajma chawal sittingattheairportdreaming.'

Photographs: Kind courtesy, Sanya Malhotra/Instagram
'This is a negative campaign, of slurs and fears.'

The BJP has no desire to fight a positive campaign as it did in 2014, on the issue of governance and achche din.'

'Where the BJP can use these tactics, it will,' says Aakar Patel.



IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi on the campaign trail in his home state Gujarat. Photograph: PTI Photo

Who would have thought that something Mani Shankar Aiyar said would become an issue, and perhaps THE issue, of a Gujarat election?

I certainly did not and nor do I think it is an issue of the size in Gujarat that people think outside it is.

When I heard about the scandalous remark, I checked my Gujarati dictionary, which translates 'neech' as 'dusht'.

The English translations are 'wicked', 'vile' and 'mean'.

Should Aiyar have used the word? No: Political debate, and all debate must be civil. But does it have a meaning that links it to caste? No.

The second thing is the issue of Modi's caste. The prime minister belongs to a very successful community called Ghanchi. These are people who run kirana stores, and also press oil and sell grain (and tea) from shops.

The word Modi itself means an individual who owns and runs the neighbourhood kirana store, and it has the same meaning as the name Gandhi.

The Ghanchi community is not seen as a backward caste by Gujaratis and it became a backward class, or OBC, only in 1999 under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

And so, for many Gujaratis, the word 'neech' will not be an automatic link to caste abuse for the PM.

These are the reasons that I thought that the issue was overblown and would not be particularly effective as a campaign weapon.

Time will tell, though, of course, we will have no way of knowing specifically which issues led to a BJP win (and I expect the BJP to win, as I wrote in my previous column) and which were only hot air from the media.

The one story which I thought would be damaging when I heard about it was the matter of the Somnath register.

Subsequent reporting has shown that the story was not what it was made out to be, but certainly it would have interested many Gujaratis and they would have been concerned that Rahul Gandhi had chosen to be registered as a non-Hindu (which he hadn't). But that story is now history and the media interest has moved on.

Then there was the one about Aiyar comparing Rahul Gandhi's ascension as Congress president to that of Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb. He was apparently not quoted fully on the matter by many who subsequently commented on it, including me.

But he should have known that anything that brought in Gandhi and Aurangzeb would have been used by Modi, as it was. How effective was this?

Again, I do not think people decide whom to vote for one something like this but it gave the BJP the space to talk about the Congress rather than performance in a state it has ruled for two decades.

Before that the BJP leaked a report about a hospital that Ahmed Patel was a trustee in, had an employee or a former employee, who had been named a terrorism charge.

This was a bogus story in the sense that there was no link between Patel and the man accused.

It was pushed because the BJP usually profits from showing the Congress as being soft on terrorism, though the history and the data shows otherwise.

Then there was the story only a few days ago about Kapil Sibal, the Congressman who is also a laywer, asking the Supreme Court not to deliver the Babri Masjid case verdict till the 2019 election.

Modi had another opportunity to make the news cycles with ready made material provided to him. The Ayodhya matter, which made the BJP a national party and which is an issue which is politically dead, was again made deliberately prominent.

In the latest story to make the headlines the PM has levelled the allegation that Aiyar, who has confessed he has zero ability to keep his mouth shut, told the Pakistanis to take out a 'supari' on Modi. This is, of course, not true.

It is either the case that the prime minister really believes it, which is worrying, or is making something up because it helps him in an election, which is also worrying.

As can be seen, all or most of the major issues that have made the news cycle have been things that the BJP has introduced against the Congress, with media support.

This is a negative campaign, of slurs and fears.

The striking thing is that the BJP has no desire to fight a positive campaign as it did in 2014, on the issue of governance and 'achche din'.

This is unfortunate, but it is also the way politics is done on the subcontinent.

Where the BJP can use these tactics, it will. It is up to the Congress to think up its own issues that the media finds attractive enough to push.

And it is definitely up to the Congress to not make deliberate mistakes of the sort it has made in this election.

Aakar Patel is Executive Director, Amnesty International India. The views expressed here are his own.
'Islamabad is only as big as a Delhi suburb.'

'How can a city with just two five star hotels and only one departure gate at their international airport be compared to Delhi with its sprawling airport?'

Ambassador T P Sreenivasan finds the pulse of Pakistan after visiting Islamabad for the first time.



IMAGE: A passerby takes a selfie in front of a police van destroyed during clashes near the Faizabad junction in Islamabad, November 26, 2017.

The Tehrik-e-Labaik Pakistan had blockaded the national capital, demanding the law minister's resignation.

The Pakistan army brokered a truce between the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) government and the Tehrik; the law minister resigned; many Pakistanis were outraged that the government had caved to the outrageous demands from an Islamist political party.

Photograph: Caren Firouz/Reuters

Getting ensconced in the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad for three days to attend a conference is not the way to feel the pulse of Pakistan, but a physical glimpse of the capital for the first time, after having professionally followed the events there for decades, helped me to confirm some impressions and to explode some others.

As expected, the country is paranoid with India and is desperately fighting against heavy odds to maintain its rival status in the eyes of the world.

The current freeze in relations with India, except for the thrust and parry on the Line of Control, the tough US position on terrorism, and Afghanistan having become an 'extension of India' seem to bother Pakistan's intelligentsia.

At the drop of a hat, they would lambast India for having annexed Jammu and Kashmir, using the excuse of a tribal rebellion, for sending Indian forces before the accession was completed and for having forged an Instrument of Accession, which itself has been lost, and for not holding a plebiscite.

Indian demands, they would say, would not be acceptable to any self-respecting nation.

They have no vision of peace and mutually beneficial relationship with India in the near future.

Their expectation is that China and Russia would come to their rescue, now that the US was discarding them.

They are optimistic that a Taliban dominated dispensation will wean Afghanistan away from India and bring it to their camp.

More of geopolitical involvements, balance of power, friends and masters and overarching presence of nuclear weapons are in the horizon, not peace, cooperation and beneficial and balanced trade.

Pakistanis attribute their economic ills to the military control of the civilian government and growth of religious extremism.

On the day of my departure from Pakistan, Dawn published an op-ed by Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, a former ambassador to the United States, entitled 'Why should India try to destroy Pakistan when the country's rulers are doing it themselves?'

Qazi argues that Pakistan, despite its poverty and inequalities, does not have a single significant pro-poor or progressive political party. There are only religious, nationalist and populist leaders, who are all right wing, conservative and pro-establishment.

He virtually calls for 'a historic struggle to rid Pakistan of rulers without a cause, other than to escape accountability.' He sees the signs of a failing State in every walk of life.

The myth that exploded on stepping on the soil of Pakistan was that Pakistan was in some ways comparable to India.

Most countries equate India and Pakistan as though there is some parity between them and they are of the same strength and size, because they believe that the two countries are equally responsible for the debacle in Kashmir.

The hyphenation that many countries have developed between India and Pakistan is the priceless legacy that Pakistan has acquired because of the internationalisation of the Kashmir issue and other differences.

Such a comparison is an existential need for Pakistan as if all disputes were to disappear, the question will arise as to what the justification for Pakistan was.

There is no comparison between the two in any area, particularly after the liberation of Bangladesh. Islamabad is only as big as a Delhi suburb with a two million population and broad roads with modest traffic.

How can a city with just two five star hotels and only one departure gate at their international airport, named after Benazir Bhutto, be compared to Delhi with its sprawling airport, named after Indira Gandhi?

Like the 'parity' between the US and the USSR during the Cold War era, the best kept secret is that there is nothing to equate Pakistan and India except the nuclear capability, which eliminated the military imbalance.

Pakistan is many years behind us in virtually everything. The style and sophistication of the Pakistani diplomats abroad had led me to expect a better style of living in Pakistan.

The fond hope that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Chinese investment in the country will pull the country out the morass is universal in Pakistan.

The country's political parties and regions, however, have been deeply divided on the subject of equitable distribution of and control over CPEC projects.

The expectation is that the CPEC will begin to address Pakistan's energy and infrastructure needs in the near term. They expect that the CPEC could prove an opportunity to decisively overcome the Balochistan insurgency.

A broader CPEC authority is necessary to ensure that the project moves forward on a consensus basis. Neither the Pakistani military nor the civilian bureaucracy has the economic and political aptitude to steward the project to success.

It may well be that the strategic content of the CPEC is being exaggerated. Pakistan's primary goal should be to put itself on a trajectory of rapid, equitable, and sustained macroeconomic growth.

The ultimate evidence of the success of CPEC will be whether it boosts industrial productivity, exports, and job creation in Pakistan, putting the country on a path toward sustained, high levels of equitable economic growth.

Russia is expected to provide political and moral support to fill the gap being left behind by the United States, when it leaves Afghanistan.

The present policy of India to leave Pakistan alone to deal with its problems without chasing a dialogue process and merely dealing with the military situation on the border and terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir appears well-advised.

Prime Minister Narendra D Modi appears to have exhausted all his weapons of a peace offensive with Pakistan. Nobody will lament the dormant state of SAARC, as long as modest bilateral cooperation and trade is maintained with our other neighbours in South Asia.

In the meantime, what remains is Track II sherpas and other peace merchants who jet themselves to Bangkok and Macao in search of elusive peace.

India has more options with regard to Pakistan than Pakistan has with India because our economic development and position in the world are not determined by our relations with Pakistan, which is only a sideshow.

But for Pakistan, respectability is contingent upon good relations with India. The United States had wanted India and Pakistan to maintain a dialogue essentially to prevent a nuclear confrontation between them.

Pakistan's conditions and terrorist attacks have finally frozen the dialogue and there is no pressure on either country to resume the dialogue.

For India, the frustration is on account of Pakistan's refusal to take any action on terrorist leaders, even after clear evidence has been produced about their complicity.

The recent decision to allow consular access to Kulbushan Yadav is indeed a welcome development, which may help reduce tensions.

The Indian high commission in Islamabad is about to have a leadership change when Ambassador Ajay Bisaria shifts from cold Warsaw to hot Islamabad. These two developments may augur well for the future.

But peace cannot come unless Pakistan realises that good relations with India will be more important to them than the illusory parity they perceive in keeping the Kashmir pot boiling.

T P Sreenivasan, (IFS 1967), is a former Ambassador of India and governor for India of the IAEA; chairman, Academic Council; and director, NSS Academy of Civil Services; director general, Kerala International Centre.
The Ahmedabad Police has denied permission to the roadshows of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and the Bharatiya Janata Party which were to be held in the city on Tuesday, a senior police official said on Monday.

The BJP had sought permission for the roadshow from Dharnidhar Derasar to Bapu Nagar in the city, while the Congress wanted the nod for its roadshow from the Jagannath temple to Menco area and corner meetings on the route, Deputy Commissioner of Police (traffic) H R Muliyana said.

However, Ahmedabad Police Commissioner A K Singh has denied the permission to both the parties, citing traffic congestion and some main markets and old city areas, which are communally sensitive and have narrow roads, falling on the routes of the roadshows, he said.

The Congress confirmed that it had sought permission for Rahul Gandhis roadshow and corner meetings.

However, the BJP did not spell out as to which party leader was to take out its roadshow in the city on Tuesday.

Image: Rahul Gandhi, vice president of the Congress, greets his supporters during a rally in Gujarat. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday condemned the unwarranted statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections, and seemed to suggest that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party.

Prasad said Indians were capable of contesting the countrys democracy on their own.

This came after Pakistans foreign office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted: India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed at an election rally that there was an attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the Gujarat polls.

Modi also raised questions about the alleged appeal by former director general of the Pakistan army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel chief minister of Gujarat.

Modi alleged that Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar had held a meeting at his house which was attended by former prime minister Manmohan Singh, a former Indian vice president, Pakistans high commissioner in India, and a former Pakistani foreign minister.

Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into Indias election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own.

Yes, I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting Indias democracy on their own as they do... Indias prime minister is a popularly elected PM and so is the Bharatiya Janata Party, Prasad told reporters.

India, he said, completely abhors any outside interference in Indias electoral affairs.

The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world and Pakistan. Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of Indias democracy, he said.

We are very productive of Indias democracy and totally condemn this unwarranted statement from Pakistan, he said.

Image: Prime Minister Narendra Modi being presented a lotus-garland by the BJP workers during an election campaign rally in Sanand on Sunday. Modi raised questions about the alleged appeal by former director general of the Pakistan army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel chief minister of Gujarat. Photograph: Santosh Hirlekar/PTI Photo
Singh, in a statement, stressed that the Gujarat election was not discussed during meeting with some Pakistani officials at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house.

In a sharp counter-offensive on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his 'conspiracy with Pakistan' remark, former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said he was setting a "dangerous precedent" with his "ill-thought transgression" and asked him to apologise to the nation.

In a strongly-worded statement, Singh rejected as "innuendos and falsehoods" Modi's comments, saying he did not discuss the Gujarat assembly elections with anyone at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar for Pakistan's former foreign minister Kurshid Kasuri in New Delhi.

"I sincerely hope that prime minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

"I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies," he said.

Singh said he was "deeply pained and anguished" by the "falsehood and canards" being spread to score political points by the prime minister in what he said was a "lost cause" in Gujarat.

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of prime minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a former prime minister and army chief," he alleged.

Addressing an election rally in Palanpur in Gujarat on Sunday, Modi suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence the assembly polls in the state.

He claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi that led to his suspension.

The Congress Party, Singh said, needs no sermons on "nationalism" from a party and prime minister, whose "compromised" track record on fighting terrorism is well known, while reminding Modi of his "uninvited" visit to Pakistan after terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

"Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan," he said.

Claiming that his track record of public service to the country over the last five decades is known to all, he said no one, including Modi, can "lamely question it to gain lost political ground".

Singh said the Gujarat issue was never raised by anyone present at the dinner and the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations.

He said besides himself and former vice president Hamid Ansari, others present at Aiyar's dinner hosted for Kasuri, were the Pakistan High Commissioner, Natwar Singh, K S Bajpai, Ajai Shukla, Sharad Sabharwal, Gen Deepak Kapoor, TCA Raghavan, Satinder K Lambah, M K Bhadrakumar, CR Gharekhan, Prem Shankar Jha, Salman Haider and Rahul Khushwant Singh.

"None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti- national activities," he said.

Here is Singh's full statement:-

Jaitley rules out PM apology for targeting Manmohan

Ruling out an apology by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday charged Manmohan Singh with defying the stated national policy on terror by meeting Pakistani diplomats and demanded to know the context, relevance and necessity of such a meet.

He termed the dinner meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence as "political misadventure" and said the main opposition party is expected to follow the national line that terror and talks cannot go hand in hand.

Addressing a press conference hours after Singh demanded an apology from Modi, Jaitley said the Congress must explain the context of the meeting.

"It is surprising that for a misadventure that the Congress party indulged in, to which some of its senior leaders became a party, they should expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it," he said.

India's national position on talks with Pakistan is well known and all responsible groups in India, including the main opposition party, are expected to honour that, Jaitley asserted.

Stating that this was not the first time that such "misadventures" have taken place, he referred to the Sharm el-Sheikh declaration after Indo-Pak talks "when Baluchistan issue was allowed to enter the text of the agreement and the condition precedent for a dialogue that Pakistan territory should not be used for terrorism was done away with".

He said the Congress and its leadership should come out with detailed facts on what transpired in the meeting and what was its necessity under the present circumstances.

Jaitley said that till yesterday the Congress was denying the meeting and "today instead of accepting this as a misadventure, they try to blame those who are raising this issue".

Asked if the leaders present at the meeting should be tried for treason, he said it is a political misadventure and "it has a political cost".

Asked about Singh's statement that Gujarat elections, as stated by Prime Minister, was not discussed at the dinner, Jaitley said the party must explain the context, relevance and necessity of such a meet.

On Aiyar, he said the suspended Congress leader "has always had an inconsistent position" and maintained "a parallel line of dialogue", "underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and they continue to engage with them".

"But that responsible section of the Congress party should have become privy to that engagement is indeed worrisome. It's admittedly as I said, a complete misadventure for very senior people in India's public life to have done what some of the senior Congress leaders did.

"And having done that, to expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for having flagged the issue is indeed beyond comprehension," he wondered.

He said the main Opposition party is expected to follow the national policy, which states that terror and talks cannot go hand in hand.

"Is (the) main opposition party not part of the State?" he asked.

Jaitley said that if anyone defies the national line, he should be prepared to answer questions.

He wanted the former prime minister to explain what transpired at the meeting and went on to defend his government's track record of fighting terror, saying no government in the past has a track record this government has in fighting terrorism.

In response to Singh's demand for apology, Jaitley further said people who have violated the national policy of talks and terror not going hand in hand should apologise.

On Singh's comment that remarks by Modi at a public rally had demeaned the office of the Prime Minister, Jaitley said debate never demeans any office.

"When you have meeting of such kind, you should be prepared that questions will be asked," he said. "If anyone of us defies a national line which is inconsistent with India's line, we should be prepared to answer questions."

The finance minister also said: "(The) misadventure is a political misadventure and it has political fallout."

He also claimed that the BJP is comfortably winning in Gujarat.
Congress president-elect Rahul Gandhi on Monday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for talking about Pakistan, China, Afghanistan and Japan in the Gujarat elections but avoiding speaking about his home state.

Gandhi also questioned Modi's 'silence' on the company promoted by Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah's son Jay Shah whose turnover was claimed to have shot up manifold after the BJP came to power at the centre.

Gandhi, who was declared elected as Congress president on Monday, said Modi was frequently shifting his campaign plank in Gujarat.

He said, first it was the Narmada water, but after farmers started saying it has not reached their fields, Modi changed tack and began speaking about OBC issues. When that also did not find favour with people, he went for development issues "but people punctured it", he said.

"Now, Modiji speaks about Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and Japan. Modiji, this is the election about the future of Gujarat. Please say something about Gujarat also," he told a well-attended rally in Tharad in Banaskantha district.

Gandhi was apparently targeting the prime minister over his Sunday's suggestion that Pakistan was trying to influence the Gujarat assembly polls and that some current and former officials of that country had met Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence a day before Aiyar's 'neech' remark against him.

The Congress leader said, in his speeches in the last couple of days, the prime minister devoted half the time to Congress-bashing.

"On one hand he is claiming that he has finished the Congress party from India, and on the other, he devotes half of his time to Congress. The other half of his speech is devoted to Narendra Modiji himself," the 47-year-old leader said.

"Modiji please devote two-three minutes of your speech to (talking about) the future of Gujarat," he said.

He questioned Modi's silence on corruption, as he targeted him over the alleged exponential rise in the turnover of a company owned by Amit Shah's son.

"You listen to his entire speech, corruption is totally missing from it. Jay Amit Shah's company converted Rs 50,000 to Rs 80 crore in three months but the chowkidar is silent, not a word is coming out of his mouth."

"Narendra Modiji fears Amit Shah, that is the reason he is not saying a word about Jay Shah," he claimed.

Gandhi reaffirmed his promise that the Congress, if voted to power in Gujarat, will waive farm loans within 10 days.

He claimed the NDA government waived Rs 1.30 lakh crore loans of 10 richest people in the country. He said when farmers also ask for a loan waiver, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley and the prime minister say it is not their policy.

"Why the loans of farmers are not waived," Gandhi asked, and in the next breath gave the reply "as they do not fly in planes, they do not have big cars, and they do not have suit worth Rs 15 lakh."

Gandhi again alleged there was corruption in the Nano deal between the Gujarat government and the Tatas.

"The Congress allocated Rs 35,000 crore to MNREGA, while the BJP government gave Rs 33,000 crore to the Tata Nano factory. The water from Narmada went to that factory. The factory gets electricity for 24 hours even when you get it only at night," he alleged.

The Congress leader claimed land in villages in and around Mundra were given to the Adani group at the rate of Re 1 per square metre, which the latter sold back to the government at Rs 3,000 for every square metre.

Assailing the government over demonetisation and the GST, he said half the money of common people was "looted" by the note ban and the rest by the "Gabbar Singh Tax".

Tuesday is the last day of campaigning for the second and final phase of Gujarat polls which has been high-pitch and vitriolic, with both Modi and Gandhi often making personal attacks against each other. Polling will be held on December 14. Votes would be counted on December 18.

Photograph: Courtesy @INCIndia
The man who allegedly molested actor Zaira Wasim on board a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night was arrested on Sunday after a huge public outcry over the incident prompted the Maharashtra State Commission for Women to seek an inquiry into the shameful incident.

The 39-year-old Vikas Sachdev was arrested late Sunday evening, police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police Anil Kumbhare said he will be produced in the court on Monday.

Sachdev has been booked under section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of IPC, and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act since the actor is a minor, Senior Police Inspector, Sahar, Lata Shirsat, said.

The airline -- Vistara -- said it has submitted an initial report to the regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation about the incident which created an uproar and invited all-round condemnation.

Vistara, which is a joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, regretted the unfortunate experience and apologised to Wasim.

It also said senior members of the management team have been flown to Mumbai to meet the Dangal actor, who narrated her ordeal on Instagram.

Wasim said she was on a Vistara flight from Delhi to Mumbai when a co-passenger sitting behind her put his feet on her armrest.

We are deeply concerned and regret the unfortunate experience Zaira Wasim had onboard our flight last night. We continue to give this case our highest attention and are extending our full support to all relevant authorities for the investigations underway, the airline said in a latest statement issued on Sunday evening.

In addition, Vistara has submitted an initial report to the DGCA and also given all necessary details to the police, the airline said.

In the video, which Wasim recorded immediately after deboarding the flight, the 17-year-old actor broke down several times.

So, I was in a flight travelling from Delhi to Mumbai today and right behind me one middle-aged man who made my two-hour journey miserable. I tried to record it on phone to understand it better because the cabin lights were dimmed, I failed to get it she said.

The lights were dimmed, so it was even worse. It continued for another five to ten minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck, the Kashmiri teen, who shot to fame for her stellar performance in Aamir Khans blockbuster Dangal, said in the post.

This is not done, I am disturbed... Is this how youre going to take care of girls? This is not the way anybody should be made to feel. This is terrible! she said. No one will help us if we dont decide to help ourselves. And this is the worst thing, she added.

Terming the incident as shameful, Maharashtra State Commission for Womens chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said they will seek a detailed inquiry into it from the DGCA.

Rahatkar said there should also be an inquiry into why the cabin crew did not help the actor.

Image: Zaira Wasim narrated her ordeal via an Instagram video. Photograph: Zaira Wasim/Instagram
Terrorists wont win, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said after a blast at the Port Authority terminal in Manhattan during the morning rush hour on Monday, which injured four.

IMAGE: Members of the New York Police Department walk by a subway entrance on 42nd Street following an attempted detonation during the morning rush hour in New York City. Photograph: Andrew Kelly/Reuters

An Islamic State-inspired Bangladeshi-origin man, wearing a homemade device, triggered a blast at a metro station in New York City during the morning rush hours, injuring four persons and causing chaos in one of the busiest commuter hubs in the metropolis, officials said.

Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspected bomber, had wires and a pipe bomb strapped to his body. The device prematurely exploded between two subway platforms near Port Authority, which is Americas largest bus terminal, police said.

The suspect was taken into custody after the device partially exploded. The subway station was evacuated and Port Authority terminal was shut down.

Ullah was alone, the police said, adding that the explosion was recorded on surveillance video.

IMAGE: Members of the Port Authority Police Counter Terrorism Unit patrol the area outside the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal following an attempted detonation during the morning rush hour, in New York City. Photograph: Andrew Kelly/Reuters

No group has claimed responsibility for the explosion so far, though it was being treated as terror-related.

This was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God he did not achieve his goal, Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters.

At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims, Blasio said.

There are also no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time. But we will give you more information as the investigation unfolds, he said.

Our lives revolve around the subway. The choice of New York is always for a reason, because we are beacons of the world. We show that a society of many background and many faiths can work... The terrorists want to undermine that. They yearn to attack New York City, he added.

IMAGE: Police officers stand outside the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal after reports of an explosion. Photograph: Lucas Jackson/Reuters

A total of four injuries were reported at the scene of the explosion at Port Authority, the New York Police Department said, adding all injuries are non-life-threatening.

The suspect, who lived in Brooklyn, suffered serious burn injuries and is currently admitted at a hospital. He had arrived in the US some seven years ago from Bangladesh.

Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device, Police Commissioner James ONeil told reporters.

ONeill told reporters the suspect is being questioned. But he refrained from giving any detailed information on the investigation.

He did make statements, but were not going to talk about that right now, he told reporters in response to a question.

IMAGE: Police and fire crews block off the streets near the New York Port Authority after reports of an explosion. Photograph: Edward Tobin/Reuters

Soon after the explosive device went off prematurely at a metro station in a busy New York transit place, the police found Ullah with wires attached to his body.

He had attached the pipe bomb to himself with a combination of Velcro and zip ties, ONeill said.

He suffered burns to his hands and abdomen and was in a serious condition at Bellevue Hospital Center, New York Fire Department Commissioner Daniel A Nigro said.

US President Donald Trump was briefed on the New York explosion, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has joined the investigation.

IMAGE: Commuters exit the New York Port Authority in New York City after reports of the explosion. Photograph: Edward Tobin/Reuters

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that New Yorkers would not be disrupted by such an attempt.

We are a target by many who would like to make a statement against freedom... Lets go back to work we are not going to allow them to disrupt us, he said.

The reality is that we are a target by many who would like to make a statement against democracy, against freedom. We have statue of Liberty in our harbour and that make suspect an international target. We understand that, he said.

Former New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that the man was inspired by the Islamic State terror group and originally came from Bangladesh.

The attack is being investigated by the Joint Terrorism Task Force, which comprises of FBI and other federal, state and city investigating and law enforcement agencies.

IMAGE: An armoured police truck occupies the street outside of the New York Port Authority. Photograph: Edward Tobin/Reuters

The Bangladeshi Embassy in Washington condemned the incident.

Government of Bangladesh is committed to its declared policy of Zero Tolerance against terrorism, and condemns terrorism and violent extremism in all forms or manifestations anywhere in the world, including Monday mornings incident in New York City, the embassy said in a statement.

A terrorist is a terrorist irrespective of his or her ethnicity or religion, and must be brought to justice, said the embassy in statement.

Its officials were in touch with officials of the New York Police Department regarding his legal status and his origin in Bangladesh.

Earlier, the New York Police Department tweeted that it was responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, Manhattan.

I was exiting the Port Authority and the National Guard was running towards something shouting Go, Go, Go, commuter Keith Woodfin tweeted, according to New York Daily News.

Designer Chelsea LaSalle tweeted that she was stuck in a running stampede at port authority bus terminal due to bomb scare. Cops EVERYWHERE.

IMAGE: No group has claimed responsibility for the explosion so far. Photograph: Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Security was enhanced in several major American cities after the explosion in the New York City.

We are monitoring the incident that occurred in New York City this morning. At this time, there are no current threats to the District of Columbia. We ask all residents and visitors to remain vigilant, said the Washington DC Police Department.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M Nielsen spoke with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York Police Department Commissioner James ONeill regarding the details of the attempted terrorist attack in New York City.

The Department of Homeland Security is taking appropriate action to protect our people and our country in the wake of todays attempted terrorist attack in New York

City, he said.

We will continue to assist New York authorities with the response and investigation and we urge the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity, he said, adding that the administration continues to adopt significant security measures to keep terrorists from entering the country and from recruiting within its borders.

The enemy we face is persistent and adaptive. But they should know this: Americans will not be coerced by terrorism, and we will not allow it to become the new normal. We will fight back aggressively and bring terrorists to justice, Nielsen said.
'The military aim in a future conflict, if it can't be avoided, should be to cause maximum damage to the adversary's war waging capability and capture limited amount of territory as a bargaining counter,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).

The foremost challenge for India to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific will be to manage the rise of a militarily assertive China that is seeking to achieve a 'favourable strategic posture'.

Having come close to completing its four modernisations, China has discarded Deng Xiaoping's 24-character strategy to 'hide our capacity and bide our time' and has begun to flex its military muscle.

China senses the emergence of a security vacuum in the Indo-Pacific and is rushing to fill it.

India must join the US and other strategic partners, such as Australia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam, to establish a cooperative security framework for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, for the security of the global commons and to deal with contingencies like those described below.

If China is willing to join this security architecture it should be welcomed.

With its proclivity for solving territorial disputes by using military force and its growing military power, China may behave irresponsibly somewhere in the Indo-Pacific, including against India.

China could decide to intervene militarily in the South China Sea, or to occupy one or more of the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands or decide to resolve the remaining territorial disputes, like that with India, by using military force.

Also, China has deep internal fault-lines.

Its rapid economic growth, now slowing, has been fairly uneven and non-inclusive. There is a deep sense of resentment against the leadership of the Communist Party for the denial of basic freedoms.

The discontentment simmering below the surface could boil over and lead to a spontaneous implosion that may be uncontrollable.

The recent crash of Chinese stock markets and continuing volatility also point to the possibility of a meltdown.

Both the contingencies -- implosion and military adventurism -- have a low probability of occurrence, but will be high-impact events with widespread ramifications around the Indo-Pacific should either of them come to pass.

Both contingencies will shake up the markets, result in millions of refugees and lead to a bloodbath.

India and its strategic partners will need to cooperate closely to deal with the fallout and to manage the disastrous consequences as either of these contingencies unfolds.

In this context, the India-US strategic partnership makes eminent sense as a hedging strategy for both countries.

In more senses than one, it is India's 'principal' strategic partnership, as then prime minister Manmohan Singh had described it. His predecessor, then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had gone further and had said that India and the US were 'natural allies'.

Whichever term is used to describe the relationship, clearly, the US cannot be expected to pull India's chestnuts out of the fire, and vice versa.

Only when the vital national interests of both are threatened will the two countries come together and act in concert.

Defence cooperation, a key component of the strategic partnership, must be enhanced to take it to the next higher trajectory to enable the two countries to undertake joint threat assessment; contingency planning for joint operations; sharing of intelligence; simulations and table-top exercises -- besides training exercises with troops; coordination of command, control and communications; and planning for operational deployment and logistics support.

All of these activities must be undertaken in concert with India's other strategic partners in Asia.

The growing China-Pakistan nuclear warhead-ballistic missile-military hardware nexus is a matter of concern.

China is now engaged in developing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to link Xinjiang with Gwadar on the Makran coast as part of its One Belt, One Road initiative to counter the US influence in the Indo-Pacific.

China has vetoed several resolutions in the UN sanctions committee aimed at censuring Pakistan and designating Pakistani extremist leaders as terrorists. China tends to forget that it is itself a victim of terrorist activity that has its roots on Pakistani soil.

Elsewhere in Southern Asia, China is vigorously pursuing its strategic encirclement of India by making inroads into each of India's land neighbours and through the acquisition of port facilities for the PLA navy to operate, as part of its string of pearls strategy in the northern Indian Ocean.

While China is too large to be effectively contained, India can and must raise the cost for China. India should do this through political and diplomatic means and through pro-active defence cooperation with its strategic partners.

Because of its claims over the South China Sea, China has been objecting to India's ONGC prospecting for oil and gas within Vietnam's territorial waters.

Future ONGC operations should be backed up with support from the Indian Navy by way of providing point defence to offshore oil installations and conducting maritime patrolling in the South China Sea jointly with the US and other strategic partners.

Vietnam has often expressed an interest in Indian weapons systems. These must be provided on soft loans, including ballistic missiles that do not violate MTCR guidelines such as the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, Prithvi I and II and Prahar SSMs. The indigenously-designed and manufactured Pinaka MBRL should also be provided.

Initial batches of these weapons systems could be gifted and training teams sent to provide in situ training assistance. Notably, the US recently lifted its 50-year old embargo on the sale of arms to Vietnam.

Afghanistan has given India a wish list of weapons and equipment in accordance with the provisions of its strategic partnership with India. So far India has given only non-lethal defence equipment, including a few utility helicopters.

The other items required by the ANSF in order to improve combat capability should also be provided. The training assistance being provided to the ANSF should be stepped up by an order of magnitude.

If invited to do so by the Afghan government, India should be prepared to train ANSF personnel inside Afghanistan. The Indian training teams should be self-sufficient and capable of organising their own local security, including limited counter-terrorism measures.

The trilateral agreement with Iran and Afghanistan for India to develop the Chabahar port and link it with the Zaranj-Delaram highway, built by India in Afghanistan, to gain access to the Central Asian Republics and beyond to the CIS countries is a positive development.

It will also provide a suitable route for logistics support should India be called upon to send an infantry division to Afghanistan to support ANSF operations if it becomes necessary.

Similarly, India should reach out to Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka and the countries on the Indian Ocean littoral in order to minimise the negative impact of the overtures being made by China to them.

As for hard power, India must maintain continuous vigil over the frontiers and carefully note Chinese and Pakistani activities across the disputed boundaries. Surveillance technology should be exploited to add to human vigilance.

From the efforts being put in to develop infrastructure along the land borders, including the refurbishment of advance landing grounds (ALGs) in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh, and the raising of new forces, it is clear that army and the air force are gradually pivoting to the mountains.

The raising of potent forces like the 17 Corps, popularly called the Mountain Strike Corps, will help to upgrade the quality of India's deterrence. Two additional divisions (56 and 71 Mountain Divisions) have been raised recently for defensive operations in Arunachal Pradesh.

Similarly, one Strike Corps out of three in the plains and one additional infantry division with high altitude air assault capability need to be placed on high alert to counter aggression.

The addition of new combat capability in the mountains, particularly the ability to launch and sustain offensive operations across the LAC, will send an appropriate signal to China.

The ability to launch offensive operations into Chinese territory will upgrade India's military strategy against China from dissuasion to deterrence.

Deterrence in the maritime domain should also be enhanced so as to be prepared to confront Chinese and Pakistani navies and, if necessary, even their merchant shipping as a counter strategy to exploit the weaknesses of the adversaries in the maritime domain should a war break out on the LAC or the LoC.

The essence of India's military strategy should be to deter war, but if war is thrust on India, to fight synergised tri-Service operations and ensure that conflict termination takes place on favourable terms.

The military aim in a future conflict, if it cannot be avoided, should be to cause maximum damage to the adversary's war waging capability by kinetic means and to capture limited amount of territory as a bargaining counter.

Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd) is Distinguished Fellow, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), New Delhi.

This is an excerpt from The New Arthashastra: A Security Strategy for India, Edited by Gurmeet Kanwal, with the kind permission of the HarperCollins Publishers India Limited.

IMAGE: An Indian soldier maintains vigil on India's border with China.
Disclaimer

This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.
Note all articles are independently researched and written by myself. However, if you buy via one of the links it may be an affiliate and I may earn a small commission.

Nice to see one of our personal favourites return to the racks  the Adidas Montreal 76 trainers.

Its not a shoe reissued regularly, I have a pair in the wardrobe, but they do have quite a lot of mileage on them. Perhaps a good 10 years or so.

The shoes do date back a lot longer than that. As the name suggests, these were designed back in 1976 for the Montreal Olympics, specifically for the athletes taking part in the event. Note that collapsible heel, which made getting the shoes on and off just a little bit easier.

The reissue comes in two versions, one using the original colours, the other in a black finish. Both have a a suede upper, perforated round toe and that distinctive heel from the original design.

13th December is the date for your diaries at selected retailers, including End Clothing. Except the price to bed around 80.

End Clothing website

Via His Knibs
More than a thousand Cambodians living in the United States, Canada, and France demonstrated in front of the Cambodian embassy in Washington on Sunday to demand that Cambodia release political opposition leader Kem Sokha from prison.



Rallying earlier at the White House, they also urged stronger U.S. pressure on Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen to reverse the Southeast Asian nations retreat from democracy and slide into authoritarian rule.



Speaking at the rally, Kem Monovithyadaughter of jailed Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) chief Kem Sokhasaid that while the U.S. and other concerned countries may do their best to help Cambodia, the real power to effect change in the country lies in the hands of the Cambodian people themselves.



The bottom line is that you yourselves should be prepared to decide what you want your country to be, she said.



Pa Nguon Teang, executive director of the Phnom Penh-based Cambodian Center for Independent Media, called the demonstration on International Human Rights Day a message to Hun Sen that Cambodias people will not accept living under a dictatorship.



If the government makes no move to reconsider its actions in a timely manner, there will be more mass protests [in Cambodia] too, he said.



Hun Sen has robbed the CNRP of its legitimate seats [in the countrys parliament], Montreal resident Soeu Sokhom said.



He has dissolved the opposition party and betrayed the over three million Cambodians who voted for the CNRP in local elections held earlier this year, she said.



We strongly disagree with what he has done to the political opposition and to our country, she said.



Widespread condemnation



Hun Sen has faced widespread condemnation in recent months over his governments move to formally dissolve the CNRP, his only effective political opposition, as well as for orchestrating the closure of independent media outlets and cracking down on nongovernmental organizations ahead of national elections scheduled for next year.



Speaking in front of the Cambodian embassy on Sunday, CNRP deputy president Eng Chhai Eang said We ask Hun Sens government to reverse its decision and allow the CNRP to engage in politics as normal.



We also demand the immediate and unconditional release of Kem Sokha and all political prisoners.



Cambodias ambassador to the U.S. should work to represent Cambodias people and not the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) controlled by Hun Sen, he said.



We hope Hun Sen will address our concerns in a timely manner in order to avoid more international sanctions.



Writing on social media on Monday, CPP spokesman Sok Eysan rejected the demands raised by protesters on Sunday, adding, Any protests by Cambodians abroad have violated the rules of law and democracy of Cambodia.



The dissolution of the CNRP was done according to judicial procedures, he said.



Cambodian Council of Ministers spokeman Phay Siphan meanwhile threatened the use of force against demonstrations in Cambodia itself.



We and the armed forces are prepared to suppress all such forms of protest, he said.



Visa restrictions



Hun Sens crackdown on his opponents has also brought condemnation from Washington and restrictions on travel visas to the United States by Cambodian government officials.



Writing in support of the restrictions, Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who has emerged as a strong critic of Hun Sens actions, called the visa curbs a good first step toward restoring democratic gains in Cambodia and a much-needed response to Chinas growing influence in Phnom Penh.



Hun Sen faces a simple choice: release opposition leader Kem Sokha, allow Sam Rainsy to return, reinstitute the Cambodia National Rescue Party, lift his ban on open broadcasting and free speech  or risk further punitive action from the United States, Cruz wrote on the blog Texas GOP Vote.



Sam Rainsy was the CNRP president until went into exile in November 2015 in the face of arrest warrants issued by courts beholden to Hun sen.



Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Nareth Muong. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Hundreds of migrant workers took to the streets of the Chinese capital on Human Rights Day in protest at recent mass forced evictions targeting low-income workers.



Thousands of Beijing-based workers and small traders on low incomes, referred to in official documents as the "low-end population," have been forced from their homes in unlicensed, rented accommodation in the wake of a fire that left 19 people dead in the city's Daxing district last month.



Hundreds of them turned out in protest in Cuizhuang township in Beijing's Chaoyang district on Sunday, according to a video of the protest shared with RFA.



Holding banners and shouting: "Forced evictions violate our human rights!" they gathered outside the gate of what appeared to be an official building.



Repeated calls to the Cuizhuang township and local government offices, and to the local police station, failed to be connected on Sunday.



A migrant forced to leave Xinjiancun in Beijing's Chaoyang district told RFA on Sunday that he has been forced to relocate dozens of miles from his business, and said many migrants want compensation for broken rental contracts and financial losses caused by the evictions.



The migrant, a textiles wholesaler surnamed Zhang, said the authorities had used the fire as an excuse to speed up a long-planned removal of lower-income migrants from the capital.



"Before the fire, there was already a mass-eviction strategy planned for Xinjiancun. This is what my landlord told me," said Zhang, who now lives in a newly rented place some 56 kilometers away from his business premises.



"But [those plans] included compensation of 10,000 yuan ... to help defray the costs of finding a new place to live," he said. "But now they are moving ahead without waiting for that part."



"Some people are waiting to see what happens, if the authorities haven't already been to inspect their place. But actually they can't afford to move outside of Beijing," Zhang said.



Evictions continue



Zhang, who says he has sustained losses of 50,000-60,000 yuan as a direct result of the government-backed evictions, said they are still continuing apace across the city.



"Just a few days ago, they started to clear [another area]," he said, adding that his flatbed rickshaw and a full load of cloth was confiscated by police for no reason during the eviction process.



He said he later heard that police have confiscated large numbers of bikes, scooters, and rickshaws from migrant evictees.



As migrants staged public protests on World Human Rights Day on Sunday, the ruling Chinese Communist Party issued a joint communique at the end of a conference in Beijing setting out a much narrower definition of human rights than that adopted by the United Nations in 1948.



"China develops human rights based on national conditions, with the right to subsistence and the right to development as the primary basic human rights," the statement said.



"The cause of human rights must and can only be advanced in accordance with the national conditions and the needs of the peoples," it said, adding that human rights other than that of subsistence and "development" should be regarded as "specific," rather than universal.



Human rights should also include "the maintenance of peace, security and stability," the communique said, concluding: "The satisfaction of the people is the ultimate criterion to test the rationality of human rights and the way to guarantee them."



'Cold-hearted, really'



A clothing trader surnamed Li from the northern province of Hebei, which borders Beijing, said his life has been turned upside down by the evictions.



"They said that clothing traders like us are 'low-end population,' and that we are unregulated, so they just got rid of us, and that was that," Li said.



"It's pretty cold-hearted, really," he said. "So much for human rights. There's really nothing human about about it."



Li said he has no idea what to do next.



"What would I do if I went back there? It would be pointless," he said. "I'll have to get through this somehow. That's the only way to deal with it."



Calls to the Chaoyang district government rang unanswered on Sunday.



In Washington, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China said it is greatly concerned for the plight of Chinese prisoners of conscience, many of whom have been imprisoned, disappeared, detained, or tortured for speaking out for human rights.



"The Chinese government and Communist Party severely, and sometimes brutally, restrict universally-recognized rights," it said in a statement on Friday, adding that human rights in China are under growing threat from "resurgent authoritarianism."



Reported by Yang Fan for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Wong Lok-to and Wong Siu-san for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Concerns were growing on for Beijing-based artist and activist Hua Yong, who has been incommunicado since last week after documenting the plight of evicted migrants.



Hua, a resident of Beijing's Songzhuang Artists' Village, is believed to be hiding from the authorities after reporting on the authorities' bid to rid the city of its low-income, migrant population in the wake of a fatal fire in Daxing district last month.



His last communication with the outside world came in the form of video footage shared with RFA that showed around 100 residents of Daxing district blocking a major highway in protest at being evicted.



In the video, Hua alludes to his forthcoming "disappearance," and his desire to protect his loved ones from police harassment.



"This video will be my last video, because I know that if I get arrested, a lot of my friends will be implicated, as well as my family," he says. "So, I won't be calling in to tell them I'm safe any more after ."



The Daxing protest, the latest of several in the district, erupted into violent clashes after police tried to move the protesters off the highway, where they had brought traffic to a standstill.



A friend of Hua's said the artist had been invited to observe the protest by its participants, and was last seen leaving the protest site under their protection.



But nothing has been heard from him since, she said.



"There's been no news of him," He said. "I haven't been able to get in touch with him since about 1.00 p.m. ."



A second friend of Hua's who asked to remain anonymous said he had made inquiries and heard that his friend is currently safe.



"I think he actually went missing just past 3.00 p.m. [on ], that's when I lost touch with him," the friend said. "His cell phone just said it was unable to connect the call."



"I heard through [a contact] that someone had found out that Hua Yong is safe for the time being, but now [my contact] is also likely under surveillance," he said. "I can't really say any more than that, just that Hua Yong isn't in danger."



Mass incidents usually suppressed

Repeated calls to Hua Yong's cell phone went unconnected on . Calls to the political police department of Hua's home district of Tongzhou also rang unanswered.



A third source who asked not to be named said Hua is currently on the run from police, and is no longer in Beijing.



"The police are looking for him, but he has already left Beijing," the source said. "He's safe for the time being."



"I am getting dozens of text messages a day asking if he's OK, but I have no way to respond to them," said the source.



A handwritten note left by him and posted to Twitter said Hua had decided not to leave China, however.



"I didn't expect things to get this serious," the note reads. "It looks as if I am facing a lot of risks, including that of secret detention and even assassination, but I still don't want to leave the country."



"If I am caught, I'll be as good as dead, and I want my blood, body and my ashes to be scattered on the earth of my homeland," it says. "There, I hope it will turn into stardust, and contribute to even more people's awakening ... to civil rights for Chinese people."



Fellow Songzhuang resident and poet Wang Zang said he thinks Hua may not last long if he refuses to leave China, however.



"I think he will probably be detained," Wang said. "As we all know, China has such a thing as detention centers and black jails, and I worry that he will suffer."



"It would be better for him to leave, as long as he has friends who are willing to help him."



Wang said the authorities do everything in their power to crack down on "mass incidents" like the Daxing protest, and to ensure that news of them is never made public.



"They absolutely hate mass incidents, which is what they call them," Wang said. "He may be able to evade capture for a few days, but it won't take them long to catch him."



Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Wong Siu-san and Hai Nan for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Myanmars Labor Ministry is seeking labor migration agreements with the governments of other Southeast Asian countries and territories to send women there to work legally as maids, a government labor official said Monday.

Government officials are hoping that labor migration will boost Myanmars developing economy by providing employment for impoverished citizens and increasing the remittances they send back home.

They are targeting Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand, wealthier areas of the region where there is a growing demand for cheap domestic laborers to fill a shortage of unskilled labor.

More than five percent of Myanmars estimated population of 53.6 million people works as migrant laborers in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Middle Eastern countries, according to government estimates, with most working in fishing and agriculture, and women working as housekeepers and maids.

We have been trying to sign memorandums of understanding with those countries and regions, said Win Shein, director-general of the Factories and General Labor Law Inspection Department under the Ministry of Labor, Immigration, and Population.

Actually, we have been talking with Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Taiwan for a long time, but this time it is more comprehensive, he said.

On Nov. 14, Myanmar and the other nine member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed a Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of Rights of Migrant Workers, an agreement giving migrant workers from other nations the same level of protection that they give their own citizens.

The agreement ensures protection regarding labor contracts and standards, access to legal representation, and fair treatment with respect to gender and nationality. It also prevents recruiters from charging excessive job placement fees, protects workers against violence and sexual harassment in the workplace, and respects their right to fair and appropriate pay and benefits and their right to join trade unions.

The consensus is a follow-up document to ASEANs Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers adopted in January 2007 in Cebu, the Philippines.

Myanmar workers need to have rights according to the law, Win Shein said, referring to the necessity of having protection against abusive labor practices abroad.

Myanmar sent women to Singapore in 2013 and Hong Kong in 2014 to work as maids and housekeepers, but ended the program over labor disputes and rights violation cases, the Myanmar Times reported in September.

As a result, the Myanmar government in September 2014 placed a temporary ban on women going abroad to work as domestic workers.

Migrant workers from Myanmar, however, continued to flock to Southeast Asian countries as tourists after paying bribes to get around the ban and land work, making them vulnerable to traffickers and abuse because they were not protected by labor or migration laws.

Escape from poverty

Labor migration from Myanmar to other countries in Southeast Asia has been increasing since Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy came to power in April 2016.

The state counselor, who is Myanmars de facto leader, has pursued polices to foster economic development, including those that secure livelihoods for Myanmars rural poor, and has sought greater integration with the ASEAN economic bloc.

Labor migration and remittances are part of the governments efforts to facilitate economic development.

Myanmar received about U.S. $118 million in remittances in 2015, according to official estimates, though the former Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Security said they could tally as high as U.S. $8 billion, according to a World Bank migration and development brief.

Myanmar is now the largest migration source country in the Greater Mekong subregion, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Geneva-based migration agency of the United Nations.

Workers are attracted by higher wages in other ASEAN countries as well as by an escape from rural poverty, Myanmars internal armed conflicts, and natural disasters.

About 70 percent of Myanmar migrants living abroad are based in Thailand, followed by Malaysia (15 percent), China (4.6 percent), Singapore (3.9 percent), the IOM said, with most coming from Mon and Kayin states in southern Myanmar, and from Shan state in the eastern part of the country.

The states have experienced clashes between ethnic armed groups and the Myanmar army in recent years, which have driven thousands from their homes to seek safety in other areas.

Singapore has become an increasingly popular destination for domestic workers from Myanmar, who are less expensive to hire than are workers from traditional source countries, such as Indonesia and the Philippines, according to a January report by the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington-based think tank.

Domestic workers from Myanmar earn about U.S. $330 a month, compared to more expensive Indonesians and Filipinos who usually earn U.S. $385 and U.S. $460, respectively, the report said.

Reported by Thiri Min Zin for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
Writers and democracy advocates jailed in Vietnam for the peaceful expression of their opinions were honored in absentia by an exile group in a ceremony held in California on Dec. 10, International Human Rights Day.



Recipients of the award, the Vietnam Human Rights Award, included the well-known blogger Mother Mushroom, blogger Anh Ba Sam, Protestant pastor Y Yich, and the online Brotherhood For Democracy advocacy group.



Speaking at the ceremony, Nguyen Kim Binhrepresenting the California-based Vietnam Human Rights Networkcalled those honored in Sundays ceremony in Westminster city among the bravest of our people.



All through the present crackdown by the Communist Party, there have been people willing to sacrifice their lives to fight for human rights and for the [Vietnamese] people, Binh said.



Some of them have passed away, and there are others who are still very young but are already serving prison terms of from five to ten years, he said, adding that among those now jailed in Vietnam are veterans from both sides of the Vietnam War and many who were born after the war ended.



All have paid a heavy price, he said.



Each year, our laureates are either prisoners of conscience or former prisoners of conscience. Some are still on probation and are living under intimdation, Binh said.



Also speaking at the ceremony, Dinh Ngoc Thua former associate of blogger Anh Ba Sam, also known as Nguyen Huu Vinhsaid that to counter authoritarian rule in Vietnam, the people must be provided with information.



This is the only way to change their perception, with changes in perception leading to changes in behavior, he said.



Punishing dissent



Anh Ba Sam, a former police officer and son of a late government minister, was handed a five-year prison term in March 2016 after publishing writings critical of Vietnams government on his Ba Sam blog site.



He had been convicted on a charge of abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on the interests of the state" under Article 258 of Vietnams penal code.



His assistant Nguyen Thi Minh Thuy was given three years in prison on the same charge. The two had been in prison since their arrests in May 2014.



Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, better known by her blogger handle Mother Mushroom, is currently serving a 10-year prison term for publishing politically sensitive material online.



She had blogged about human rights abuses and corruption for more than a decade, and more recently voiced criticism over Vietnams policy toward Chinas territorial claims in the South China Sea.



She has also criticized the governments response to a 2016 toxic waste spill by a Taiwanese firm that destroyed the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Vietnamese living in four coastal provinces.



Pastor Y Yich, a resident of Gia Lai province in Vietnams central highlands, was arrested in 2007 and sentenced to six years in prison for his role in demonstrations demanding land and freedom of religion for Vietnams Montagnard people.



Arrested again in 2013, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.



'Don't lose hope'



In August and September of this year, six members of the Brotherhood for Democracy, an online advocacy group founded in 2013, were arrested and jailed under vaguely worded provisions of Vietnams penal code used to silence dissenting voices in the country.



In May, jailed human rights attorney and activist Nguyen Van Dai, a founding member of the group, received an award in absentia from the German Association of Judges, the Deutscher Richterbund, honoring him for his work in human rights.



Speaking in an interview with RFAs Vietnamese Service, EU Special Envoy for the Promotion of Religious Freedom Jan Figel urged the people of Vietnam, a one-party communist state, not to lose hope in their work for greater freedom.



Communism in Europe collapsed because it was unsustainable. People stopped believing in it, Figel, a native of Slovakia, said.



We need free and fair societies, and this is a dream that I hope will sooner or later, but surely, be achieved in Vietnam and by everyone in the world.



Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Viet Ha. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Abu Sayyaf Group members gather in the jungles of the southern Philippine island of Basilan in this undated file photo.

Abu Sayyaf kidnapers executed a Vietnamese hostage after holding him captive for more than a year in the southern Philippines, the military said Monday.

The body of Pham Minh Tuan, the captain of the M/V Royal 16 vessel who was taken hostage along with five crew members by Abu Sayyaf militants in November 2016, was recovered in a coastal village on Jolo island at the weekend, military officials said.

Tuans remains were airlifted to Manila and turned over to the Vietnamese Embassy, said Chief Superintendent Graciano Mijares, head of the regional police.

M/V Royal 16 was carrying cement from northeastern Vietnam to the Philippines when it was attacked off the island of Basilan in the south.

The boat had 19 crew members aboard, according to the Vietnamese embassy in the Philippines, but the attackers took six, including the captain, as hostages and let the rest go.

Tuan and his five crewmen apparently were taken to the jungles of Jolo island farther south, military officials said. One of the five escaped in June, while two were beheaded a month later.

Mijares said the gunmen initially thought the boat captain could be ransomed for a big amount, but they were mistaken. He did not elaborate.

Last month, troops rescued four Vietnamese hostages from the Abu Sayyaf but found a fifth dead. This group was taken from another ship gunmen boarded in February.

At least six foreigners are believed to be held captive by Abu Sayyaf, officials said. The bandits last year had beheaded two Canadians and a German national held separately, after ransom payments demanded by the captors were not met.

Following the recovery of Tuans body, the military said it launched pursuit operations that led to a clash in the seaside town of Panamao in Sulu, where three Abu Sayyaf suspects were killed.

Numbering in the low hundreds, the Abu Sayyaf (Bearers of the Sword) was founded in the 1990s by Afghan-trained militant Abdurajak Janjalani. It is the most violent of Muslim rebel factions in the southern Philippines, and was blamed for a ferry bombing in Manila Bay that killed more than 100 people in 2004.

Janjalani was eventually killed in a police operation in Basilan. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Khadaffy, under whose command gunmen launched a series of spectacular kidnapping raids that netted dozens of European, Asian and American hostages during the previous decade.

Khadaffy was killed, but Abu Sayyaf later split into several factions, including one led by Isnilon Hapilon, who pledged allegiance to the IS and led the siege of Marawi city in May.

Hapilon was among more than 1,000 people killed in five months of gun battles in Marawi, but the military said that his death did not automatically mean the end of the Abu Sayyaf.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
When Kosmo Machine Inc. was founded in 1976, brothers Pat and Ted Smook operated the business  a maker of machine components  in a 2,000-square-foot building just a few miles south of Ashland.

An aerial photograph of the original site hangs in the companys office, now located in a former U.S. Postal Service sorting facility in eastern Henrico County.

Back in the old days, it was just Ted and I, recalled Smook, 57, the companys vice president of sales.

Now, after a series of expansions over four decades, the company employs nearly 60 people and has a 62,000-square-foot office and manufacturing plant near Richmond International Airport.

On the factory floor, the companys staff of skilled machinists produce precision components for customers in diverse industries, locally and all over the world. The plant has made parts for companies in Japan and Germany.

We are neighborhood boys who have done fairly well, Smook said. It has been 40 years, and we are a world-class producer of machine parts now.

Kosmo Machine  the name is an anagram of Smook  is now in the midst of another expansion. In August, the company announced plans to invest $1 million in new equipment while adding more than 30 jobs to increase production at its plant.

When the company was founded, its work was closely tied to the regions tobacco industry  supplying parts that helped keep cigarette factories operating. It later moved into supplying parts for the packaging industry.

Since then, we have really grown into whatever the market needs, Smook said. We have made a lot of technological advances.

The latest expansion comes as Kosmo Machine has added new customers and earned certifications enabling it to make a wider range of machine components, such as for the aerospace industry.

When the company moved into the eastern Henrico plant four years ago, about 90 percent of our work came from four customers, Smook said. Now, 30 percent of the pie is split 12 ways.

Much of the work done by Kosmo Machines machinists involves operating computer numerically controlled, or CNC, machines, large pieces of high-tech equipment that can produce machine parts with microscopic precision.

Among the new pieces of equipment acquired as part of the $1 million investment are two electrical discharge machines, or EDMs, one of which  a wire EDM  uses an electrical discharge from a thin wire to craft metal parts at about one-30th the width of a human hair.

Quality management is vital. Quality is what we sell, really, Smook said. We learned early on that anybody can buy a building and a bunch of machines, but it is the people that matter.

We have a culture of constant improvement, and it shows in our work, he said.

As part of its expansion, Kosmo Machine also has added a machine parts cleaning service. The company buys dry ice pellets and compresses them into blocks. The staff built blasting equipment that uses dry ice to clean machine parts sent by customers.

It does not hurt the parts at all, Smook said. There is no water. There is no sand. It is the greenest form of cleaning on the planet.

While the company does not disclose its customers, it does work for such industries as electric power generation, electric motor components and shipbuilding.

The aerospace industry, especially the emerging aerial drone industry, is a relatively new client base the company is cultivating.

The company has limited its own growth to focus on getting the right skilled workers in place, Smook said over a lunch of baked salmon, vegetables and peach cobbler at the plant  the company has a professional chef who prepares lunch four days a week for the entire staff.

The lunches are free. Its a great benefit financially, and healthy options are always available, Smook said. It saves employees time and money. The company benefits because our equipment gets back in production mode quicker. The best part is the fact its a team-builder and always a relaxing atmosphere. Everyone wins.

Smooks older brother, Ted, 66, who founded the company, is phasing his career toward retirement. He now manages the kitchen at the plant.

***

The high-tech manufacturing sector remains a key job sector for the Richmond region, and Kosmo Machine is one example of the companies in that sector.

Distribution and manufacturing are expected to create about 19,000 jobs in the region in the next 10 years, said Barry Matherly, president and CEO of the Greater Richmond Partnership, a regional economic development group.

We are steadily hiring, Pat Smook said. Our biggest challenge is finding people to complete the training program.

The company has an in-house apprenticeship training program, which involves on-the-job training and an online training curriculum, said Mike Redden, a 38-year employee of the company and its vice president of manufacturing. It can take three to five years to fully train a machinist.

It takes all different skill sets to run the business, but the hardest positions we have to fill are the machinist positions  they are a rare breed, Redden said. It is starting to get better now that high school counselors are steering the appropriate kids toward the skilled trades.

The company works with community colleges to find workers. It also has hired some military veterans soon after their discharge from service.

We interview people of all walks of life, Redden said. We have hired people straight out of high school, and it worked out. The highest success rate, so far, are the veterans. They can hit the ground running They are mature and know what they want to do with their lives.

One of the companys recent veteran hires is Gavin Keisling, who joined Kosmo Machine in November 2016 after four years of service in the U.S. Army.

It was a seamless transition, said Keisling, a native of Arizona who studied philosophy at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn.

When considering what to do after leaving the Army, I talked to my father  he has been a welder his whole life  and he said machining is a great trade.

Keisling sped through an apprenticeship program at Kosmo in less than a year and is also studying mechanical engineering technology at John Tyler Community College. He now works in the production planning department at Kosmo.

It is good honest work, Keisling said. It is the backbone of the country. I think the technology and metal working is fascinating, and I like the quality management aspect of it.
The law firm LeClairRyan is offering a new legal service designed as a low-cost way for entrepreneurs to quickly form new corporations and limited liability companies.

The national law firm, which has its largest office in Richmond, said the new service, called acceLR, offers a streamlined way of completing legal documents for single-owner entity formation and organization.

The firm decided to offer the service because entrepreneurs are looking for more cost-effective ways to start companies, said David M. Lay, a shareholder in the firms Richmond office.

We see a lot of entrepreneurs who are quite young and dont have as many resources, he said. The trend these days is a lot of college students and graduate students are starting their own companies, as well as many other entrepreneurs who have ideas but not resources.

We were looking for a way to provide a cost-effective but high-value service to them for organizing companies, he said.

The fee is $199 for basic service, plus state filing costs, and includes such documents as articles of incorporation and bylaws.

The service is available to Richmond-area entrepreneurs forming corporations or LLCs in Virginia or Delaware. LeClairRyan attorneys from several practice teams, such as securities, mergers and acquisitions, and commercial contracts, will help advise entrepreneurs.

The firm also is offering a premium service that includes such documents as stock incentive plans and employment agreements. The fees for that depend on the nature and complexity of the documentation required.

LeClairRyans acceLR service is intended to compete with online-only services that offer do-it-yourself legal documents for entrepreneurs. Unlike those services, the firms service is a mixture of electronic and in-person meetings, Lay said.

An important part of this would be having them (entrepreneurs) come to meet us so we can get more information and have the right documents for them, he said.

We are kicking off acceLR in the Richmond market, where the firm was founded and has a track record, Lay said. The goal will be at some point to expand the program across the footprint of the firm.

LeClairRyan has more than 300 attorneys in 27 offices.
Open enrollment for plans on the Affordable Care Acts marketplace will come to an abrupt end at midnight Friday, and the director of Virginias statewide navigation program is urging stragglers to sign up as soon as possible.

Jill Hanken, an attorney with the Virginia Poverty Law Center and director of Enroll Virginia, said her staff of navigators are preparing for an onslaught of signups this week, so she encouraged anyone who needs help to call sooner rather than later to set up an appointment or get questions answered over the phone.

We are a country full of procrastinators, so I think its not unusual to have crunch time close to deadlines, and we are at a very important deadline right now, Hanken said.

Not everyone will need help, she noted, so she hopes those who can handle the healthcare.gov sign-up process on their own do so. Many questions can also be simply answered over the phone by calling the federal websites help line at (800) 318-2596, which is staffed 24 hours a day.

This years open enrollment period looked very different than it did in the past, causing confusion that many feared would result in fewer people signing up. At just six weeks in length, the period is half as long as those held in the past, and healthcare.gov was taken down for maintenance routinely throughout the six weeks.

But, based on the numbers available, Hanken said she is optimistic that Virginia will have roughly around the same number of people enrolled as in past years.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services most recent weekly enrollment snapshot, as of Dec. 2, 156,195 people had signed up for a marketplace plan in Virginia.

I believe that represents more than one person per application in many cases, so were getting over 200,000 already, and that does not include automatic renewals that are taking place, Hanken said. So were hoping well get up to the upper 300,000s, as we have in previous years.

Insurance companies dropped out of the federal marketplace left and right this year in the face of uncertainties, such as President Donald Trumps decision not to pay cost-sharing reduction payments, which insurers are required by law to offer low-income members so they can afford their deductibles.

Many Virginians have only one insurer option on the marketplace this year, as well. For those who are automatically re-enrolled, Hanken said the system will identify the most closely related plan to what they had the previous year and enroll them in it. But they must pay their premiums by the end of December for coverage to start in January.

Simultaneously, premiums have skyrocketed this year. Many can still purchase affordable plans, though, through tax subsidies that help them cover premiums and cost-sharing reductions that cover deductibles. About 80 percent of those who purchase on the marketplace get some kind of tax credit to help them pay for premiums.

Those who do not qualify for aid, though, are seeing enormous prices.

Because theres been so much confusion about whats happening in Congress, people do need to be aware that the law is still in place, the requirement to have insurance is still in place, Hanken said. So if people have been doing other things in the last few weeks, they need to sign up now.
Officials in Charlottesville on Monday denied a special event permit requested by an organizer of the disastrous Aug. 12 white nationalist protest, who had asked for permission to hold a two-day rally coinciding with the event's one-year anniversary.

City Manager Maurice Jones wrote that the "proposed demonstration or special event will present a danger to public safety."

Jason Kessler, a Charlottesville resident who was the primary organizer of the Aug. 12 protest, called "Unite the Right," requested the permit last month.

In his permit application, Kessler described the event purpose as a "rally against government civil rights abuse and failure to follow security plans for political dissidents."
A woman was shot and wounded late Monday morning in the 400 block of Gilmer Street near the Virginia Commonwealth University campus, Richmond police said.

Police responded at 11:37 a.m. to a report of an adult female shot on Gilmer Street near West Marshall Street. She was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, a police spokeswoman said.

VCU police issued an alert that requested that people on campus stay indoors and avoid the area.

Campus police said they received a report of one person shot in a home in the 400 block of Gilmer Street. An individual entered the residence and shot the person before fleeing on foot. VCU police and Richmond police were actively pursuing one suspect in the area immediately afterward.
New technology corner opens at Redd Elementary

RICHMOND  A technology corner that features a smart board and new desktop computers was opened Thursday at E.D. Redd Elementary School. The corner also has a new layout, design and furniture.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney and Richmond Public Schools Interim Superintendent Tommy Kranz were on hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Volunteers from Capital One and Heart for America completed the project.

Coding session offered to Mecklenburg students

SKIPWITH  As part of Computer Science Education Week across the U.S., Microsoft hosted an Hour of Code at Blue Stone Middle and High School in the Skipwith area of Mecklenburg County.

High school students led a coding session for the middle schoolers.

Virginia became the first state in the U.S. last month to adopt mandatory computer science education standards.

Chesterfield schools part of Bush Institutes Cohort

CHESTERFIELD  The George W. Bush Institute named Chesterfield County Public Schools as part of its first School Leadership District Cohort.

Four school districts  the others are Austin, Fort Worth and Salt Lake City  will implement the Bush Institutes Education Reform Teams Principal Talent Management Framework over three years.

UR student awarded international scholarship

RICHMOND  A University of Richmond student has been awarded a Gilman International Scholarship.

Rylin McGee of Rochester, N.Y., received the scholarship to study in Russia this spring. She will complete a program focused on environmental studies through the scholarship, which is through the U.S. Department of State.

McGee is Richmonds 19th Gilman Scholar.

W&M sorority suspended amid hazing allegations

WILLIAMSBURG  A sorority at the College of William & Mary has been suspended after officials say the group violated the universitys hazing policy.

William & Mary officials said in a statement that Sigma Iota Alpha engaged in hazing that included limiting or prohibiting contact with nonmembers, social isolation and the forced eating of food.

The hazing resulted in a physical and mental toll on new members, according to the statement.

Local media outlets reported that the sorority has been suspended as a recognized student organization until at least the end of the spring 2018 semester.
MONDAY

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, Richmond City Council and the Richmond School Board will hold a joint meeting at 9 a.m. at the Richmond Police Training Academy, 1202 W. Graham Road.

The Richmond City Council will meet at 6 p.m. at Richmond City Hall, 900 E. Broad St., in the second-floor council chambers.

The Prince George County School Board will meet at 6:30 p.m., 6602 Courts Drive.

TUESDAY

The Dinwiddie County School Board will meet at 4 p.m., 14016 Boydton Plank Road.

The Colonial Heights City Council will meet at 7 p.m., 201 James Ave.

The Prince George Board of Supervisors will meet at 7 p.m., 6602 Courts Drive.

WEDNESDAY

The Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors will meet at 3 p.m., 9901 Lori Road, followed by a 6 p.m. session at 10001 Iron Bridge Road.

The Dinwiddie Planning Commission will meet at 7 p.m., 14016 Boydton Plank Road.

THURSDAY
The new owner of Essex Village is calling on Henrico County to support plans for renovations that go beyond what is required by a federal housing agency, but the countys top official wants more specifics before signing off on anything.

Ernst Valery, president of SAA | EVI Development, said he needs the countys backing for a roughly $30 million renovation in the works for Essex Village but is frustrated with the countys insistence he provide more details about the plan after months of discussions and recommendations from county staff.

If you had a building in your county that was troubled and you called it the worst of the worst, when someone came in with almost $30 million in their hands ready to fix it, would you then turn around and say, Well, theres a process? Valery said.

SAA | EVI Development bought Essex Village in October for $42.5 million. The previous owners had drawn the countys ire for problems with the 496-unit apartment community that was built in 1982. The scrutiny involved failing an inspection by the Department of Housing and Urban Development followed by another HUD inspection the property passed. But in passing that inspection, HUD included demands for repairs of the property.

Essex Villages future came up at one of the countys most high-profile events on Friday when County Manager John Vithoulkas discussed it during his State of the County address. After going through the highlights of the countys developments in 2017, Vithoulkas cited ongoing efforts to improve the Laburnum Avenue corridor where Essex Village sits.

Do we demand less of investors in an industry where profit and poverty converge in the same sentence or do we hold them accountable to submitting detailed plans of development with specificity required by all those developers I mentioned? Vithoulkas said. Or do we take the easy way, the most politically expedient?

In an interview after his remarks, Vithoulkas said the county is asking SAA | EVI Development to go through the same process it asks of other developers. Interviews with five members of the local real estate scene suggested the back-and-forth between SAA | EVI Development and the county isnt unusual. They agreed it isnt unreasonable for Valery to want informal assurances that any formal plans he submits are in line with what the county wants to see.

If you want serious consideration, submit serious plans, Vithoulkas said. I am optimistic that (Valery) is considering gates and 24-hour security.

In interviews on Monday, 11 residents said they agreed that Essex Village needs improvements to address vermin and sewer problems at certain units, but they were split on whether it would be best to renovate the complex or tear down and rebuild.

The discussions between Henrico and SAA | EVI Development have focused on at least three options for the future of Essex Village.

Per the companys agreement with HUD, SAA | EVI Development is required to do at least $12 million worth of renovations, Valery said. Valery said he would prefer to do the roughly $30 million option with the countys support in getting financing from the Virginia Housing Development Authority.

The more expensive plan SAA | EVI Development formed with input from the county calls for replacing walls to address bed bug infestation; closing down Delmont Street and making it a green space; a new community building; and 24-hour security for cars coming in and out of the community.

If we dont do this heavy renovation, the thing that theyre saying they dont want, which is lipstick on a pig, is what theyre pushing us into a corner to do, Valery said, referring to the $12 million option. Weve got to decide which scope are we doing.

The other option thats been discussed is tearing Essex Village down and rebuilding. The county has said it supports systematically breaking Essex Village down, building by building, and reconstructing it to current building standards. Vithoulkas said vacancies at Essex Village could be utilized to avoid displacing people.

Valery said it would be too expensive to tear down and rebuild Essex Village. He estimated it would cost roughly $60 million for such a plan but the financing isnt there.

If they want to fill the (funding) gap, we will absolutely do it, Valery said of the county.

Vithoulkas questioned the need for the county to finance a renovation on Essex Village in light of the HUD subsidy the property gets.

This would not be an appropriate use of Henrico County tax dollars, Vithoulkas said.

Valery said his first contact with the county was in June, months before SAA | EVI Development closed on the acquisition in October. When SAA | EVI Development took Essex Village over, it brought in a new management company called CAPREIT to handle maintenance and leasing. Valery said one staff member was let go in response to tenant complaints and there has been an increase in the number of people taking care of the property. He said no work orders have been deleted.

In recent weeks the county has been subjected to automated emails and calls imploring them to support renovations on the property. The county thought it was being targeted in a quasi-professional PR campaign that somehow was linked to SAA | EVI Development. Valery denied any such involvement or knowledge of who might be behind the effort.

He was getting calls for whatever was happening at this property before we bought the property, Valery said of Vithoulkas.
BLACKSBURG, Va.  Naps are no longer just for the pre-K set. Performance-boosting siestas in specially designed sleep pods are being promoted at Google, NASA, and the Cleveland Indians.

And now at Virginia Tech.

Earlier this year, three futuristic nap pods were installed on the Virginia Tech campus. Looking a bit like space capsules, these domed recliners offer students and staff a private, comfortable place to catch some zs. Soft music blocks out campus noise and light vibrations help the user to relax.

The futon-sized pods are growing in popularity as a response to studies that reveal the harms of being sleep-deprived. Sleep pods are popping up at numerous companies, where they are touted for ramping up productivity. Schools hope to enhance student brain power and focus by facilitating catnaps on campus.

The request for napping facilities at Virginia Tech first came from the students, says Cathy Kropff, director of Hokie Wellness.

Students presented the idea, Kropff said. Our student wellness advisory team identified lack of sleep as a big, big concern at Tech.

The average college student sleeps about six hours a night 120 minutes less than what is recommended, according to a University of Georgia survey. People who dont get enough sleep are likely to be cranky and depressed; theyre also prone to getting sick more often. They arent performing at their best and are shortchanging their learning ability by missing out on the REM sleep that allows their brains to process the information theyve taken in during the day.

Sleep is now recognized as an important component of wellness, right up there with eating right, exercise and avoiding unhealthy habits, Kropff said. People shouldnt be bragging about how little sleep theyre getting by on but how well theyre taking care of themselves by getting enough sleep.

Kropff and the student wellness group organized a sleep awareness week to emphasize the need for sleep. Hokie Wellness also offered a workshop on good sleep techniques. But the students still felt something was missing  a good place to sleep during the day.

Chris Wise, assistant vice president for student affairs, examined and tried out several models of sleep pods at a student services expo. He was impressed.

It was comfortable, semi-private, and maybe a good way to take a nap that might just appeal to our students, as opposed to sleeping in uncomfortable positions on sofas or chairs around campus, Wise said.

Wise expects that the presence of these conspicuously modern devices on campus will signal the crucial role that adequate sleep plays in learning.

Our goal is to not only provide an opportunity for naps on campus, but more importantly, to use the pods as reminders of the importance of quality sleep for college students, and really all people, he said, as well as the relation of quality sleep to academic success and improved mental and physical health.

By the end of April, Virginia Tech was testing an EnergyPod, the signature product of the MetroNaps company. The pod was placed in a high traffic area of Squires Student Center, Techs activity hub. During the hectic final weeks of classes and exam week, students tried out the sleep pod and gave feedback.

Their response was overwhelming. They really liked it, Kropff said. So in the summer we bought two more with end-of-fiscal-year savings.

EnergyPods arent cheap; they range from just over $8,000 to $13,000, according to the MetroNaps news release. Virginia Tech purchased their sleep pods at the low end of that range, about $8,400, Wise said. He thinks of them as highly visible reminders of the importance of sleep, as well as sites where students and staff can recharge.

The sleep pods are tucked into corners just off the main flow at Newman Library, Squires Student Center, and in the Wellness Room of Techs Graduate Life Center. As soon as you position the rotating hood  it looks like a huge bike helmet  youre enclosed in a comfortable, shady bubble of silence or tranquil music. Occasionally you hear the whoosh of ocean waves. You snooze in anonymity with only your legs visible. The pods are preset for 20 minutes. When its time to awaken, soft lights begin to flicker, the pod vibrates, and the background music becomes gradually louder.

Junior computer science major Taylor Thackaberry said her 20 minutes in the Squires EnergyPod was enjoyable but found she couldnt nap. Maybe the waves were a little too loud; maybe I dont think sleep when I hear waves, she said. But it was relaxing.

Not everyone falls asleep in the pod, but according to surveys, only 2 or 3 out of 200 said they did not benefit from the respite from everyday stimuli, Wise said. The overwhelming majority felt their EnergyPod session was relaxing. In New Mexico, some health officials give testimony to the pods ability to relieve stressed students headaches and anxiety.
If the House version of a Republican tax plan going through Congress triumphs, Sarah Brauns federal taxes would spike 250 percent.

Shes not alone. The fifth-year clinical psychology graduate student and her peers at Virginia Commonwealth University have all been on edge since the future of tax waivers that allow them to attend school was plunged into uncertainty.

It would definitely prevent me from being able to go to graduate school because I dont come from a family thats independently wealthy, Braun said. I would be one of those  and I think thats why so many graduate students are upset  that would be prevented from studying at the Ph.D. level.

Theres still a chance the tuition waivers wont be taxed. The House plan passed last month includes the tuition waiver tax, but the Senate version passed last week does not. The two bodies are currently in a reconciliation period, working through the two respective versions of the bill.

Rep. Dave Brat, R-7th, who voted for the plan in the House, said he expects there to be no significant changes for students once the House and Senate resolve the differences in their bills.

I think people recognize that accusations to the contrary is just people opposed to the bill playing politics, Brat said in a statement through a spokesperson.

A spokesperson for Rep. Rob Wittman, R-1st, did not return a request for comment. Wittman also voted in favor of the House bill.

The tax bill has been the talk of VCUs clinical psychology student circles since students realized their taxes could drastically rise. Its discussed at social events, holiday parties and before clinic. There are frequent posts on Facebook. Professors have talked about it in and outside the classroom.

Graduate students are paid a stipend  for clinical psychology, its around $20,000  for the psychology work they do and tuition waivers help fund their six-year education. The stipends serve as a students income and rarely are they able to hold a separate part-time job because of the hours they spend in clinic and in the classroom.

Schools give students tuition waivers, which help them pay for the classroom work they do. Those waivers, also about $20,000, would be taxed in the House bill. The stipends are taxed but the waivers currently are not. Taxing the waivers would essentially double the amount of a students income that is taxable.

Braun, for example, has a $21,000 stipend thats taxed at a low rate. By adding the tuition waiver to her taxable income, it would significantly raise her tax rate.

Republicans are in the midst of reforming the federal tax system in an effort to simplify the tax code.

Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, questioned the fairness of the waivers for graduate students working off-campus jobs, The Washington Post reported. Those students, unlike the VCU clinical psychology students, dont get the tax breaks because they dont work for the university.

Outside of the university world, there is some controversy to the current tax provisions, Brady said, according to The Post.

Brat, the Richmond-area congressman, was a professor at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland before he was elected. In his statement, Brat said the tax reforms economic impact is what students and college parents want after graduation.

After years of anemic economic growth where real wages remained stagnant, this tax bill is about providing the next generation with a growing economy that produces more jobs at higher wages, he said. We must make our tax code more competitive for businesses and students who are and will be competing in a global economy.

House Republicans say their tax plan would save the average family of four $1,182 per year. The bill is also being seen nationally as a win for businesses.

The legislation would impact all graduate students, not just those studying clinical psychology, but theres increased concern from students that a student cohort serving a diverse city like Richmond would be made less diverse as the cost of graduate school rises.

It would limit the number of grad students who could come to a place like VCU, and we need a diverse set of clinicians to best serve our community, said Allie Williams, 28, a Richmond native who returned to the city to study in VCUs clinical psychology program. The graduate tax would be a huge financial hit for grad students, with ripple effects that would hurt the entire Richmond community.

The department prides itself on its pro bono care across the city, including a recent surge in work in the South Side Latino community as well as in the East End.

These people would otherwise not have access, said Bruce Rybarczyk, a clinical psychology professor at VCU. Transportation and the stigma of care make it difficult, so by embedding, were able to serve these underserved populations.

Annie Wright, a fourth-year student, for example, works two days per week at Child Savers, a childrens psychology center in Church Hill that treats children who have experienced trauma. The 27-year-old Vermont native has aspired to treat foster children and those in orphanages since a trip to Ghana got her interested in working with kids separated from their parents.

Her father is a dairy farmer and her mother is a special education teacher. Having tuition waived  without being taxed  was one of the main reasons she chose VCU.

Im already maxing out my loan options without having family support or savings from before grad school, Wright said. Even a year or two of having to pay higher taxes is pretty scary to think about.

Since the initial draft of the House tax bill was made public, graduate students from across the U.S. have protested the measure. More than a dozen protested outside the office of House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., on Tuesday, with some getting arrested, Politico reported.

In an email to graduate students, the VCU Graduate Student Association encouraged students to contact their legislator while voicing its displeasure with the measure.

Taxing the tuition waivers that graduate students receive on their stipend for research and teaching assistance would cause a staggering increase in our cost of living and greatly discourage enrollment in graduate school, said the email, dated Dec. 6.

VCU Graduate School Dean F. Douglas Boudinot signed a letter, dated Nov. 13, coming out against the taxation of tuition waivers. The letter from the Virginia Council of Graduate Schools was sent to Virginias congressional delegation.

The two bills will now be discussed in committee with the hope of having an agreed-upon bill passed before Congress breaks for the holidays.

As the two bodies work out their bills differences, theres still worry among graduate students across the country, among Virginias graduate school leaders and especially among those who could see a tax hike.
Virginia Republicans reportedly are trying to find someone who can keep Corey Stewart from winning the GOP nomination to run against Sen. Tim Kaine next year. They should redouble their efforts. On Sunday, Stewart  seen earlier this year palling around with Jason Kessler, organizer of the Unite the Right disaster in Charlottesville  traveled to Alabama to campaign for Roy Moore, who has done much to drag the Republican Partys dignity through the mud.

Even if one set aside the recent accusations against Moore  and that is setting aside a great deal indeed  he is still unfit for the office he seeks. As chief justice in Alabama, Moore instructed other justices to ignore the Supreme Courts decision on gay marriage, and was suspended for doing so. That was the second time he was removed from the bench. The first time, he disobeyed a federal court order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the Supreme Court building.

Moore considers homosexuality an inherent evil that should be outlawed, contends Islam is a false religion, and said Rep. Keith Ellison, a Muslim, should have been kept from holding congressional office because of it, despite the Constitutions prohibition on religious tests for public office.

He has even said getting rid of all the federal constitutional amendments after the 10th Amendment would be a good idea. Those include the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery; the 14th, which applied equal-protection and due-process rights to the states; the 15th, guaranteeing the right to vote regardless of race; and the 19th, guaranteeing the right to vote for women. Views like that might thrill the hearts of the yahoo demographic, but they have no place in the Senate.

And those disqualifications hold true even before bringing the allegations about Moores sexual predations back into the picture. Throw those into the mix, and support for his candidacy defies rational explanation. Nothing but blind, knee-jerk partisanship can account for it. The country has far too much of that already.
There is a common misconception that the housing market has returned to its pre-recession strength. Nearly a decade after the crash, the data indicates that this is simply not true. In fact, market indexes indicate that the industry is below 50 percent of the 2004 market. Nationally, the number of new single-family homes being constructed is down by about 40 percent. In the commonwealth, 49,959 permits were issued for single-family residential construction in 2004, before the height of the market; fewer than half that number were issued in 2016. In July, housing construction starts in Virginia were down 14.1 percent on a year-over-year basis.

When an industry at only half of its normal capacity is the sixth largest private sector industry in the state  and contributes $47.8 billion to the Virginia economy, creates 314,299 jobs, pays $1.66 billion in taxes, and directly pays a labor income of $14.2 billion  there are considerable external variables influencing the marketplace. However, its not a lack of demand causing the construction slowdown. The Housing Market Index, an indicator of demand for new homes, exceeds the supply capacity of new homes by a factor not seen in decades. But with tight home inventories and extensive regulatory frameworks, the average home price in the Richmond metro area has increased to over $280,000  up 6 percent from just last year  effectively pricing out many of our neighbors.

So, what is driving up the price of new construction?

According to research conducted by the National Association of Home Builders, the average cost of federal, state, and local government regulations during the development phase of a lot is 54.7 percent of the total development cost. Then another wave of regulations and fees comes during the actual building of the home, from water hookup fees to building code regulations that drive up the cost of construction for the homeowner. These building fees and regulations make up, on average, 9.7 percent of the total home price for the consumer. Adding all of the regulations and fees together, nearly 25 percent of the price of a new home comes from government regulations. In real numbers, the average price of government regulations on a new home is $84,671, up from $65,224 just six years ago.

One of the most concerning facets of the red tape that has suppressed the housing industry is that very few homes are being built in the affordable market. This is not due to a lack of willingness by the private industry to satisfy the demand, but because it has become nearly impossible to build a new home at an affordable price while still earning even a modest profit. The math just doesnt work.

This unfortunate equation has denied the possibility of home ownership to an entire population. Owning a home is considered the American Dream because it allows citizens to pass along to their descendants something of value, building intergenerational wealth. And when people invest in their homes, they invest in their neighborhood as well, benefiting the entire community.

Notably, the affordability challenge is a recent dilemma.

In 1999, the average cost of a new home was $189,300. By 2017, weve seen a 49 percent increase in price. Meanwhile, real median household income in Virginia has increased by only 1 percent, from $65,868 to $66,461 in 2016 dollars. To exacerbate the problem, only 17 percent of new construction was under $200,000 in 2017. Compare that to 2007, when 35 percent of new homes cost less than $200,000; in 2002, that number was 51 percent. This is a simple problem of economics: Demand is much higher than supply, and the supply side is being arbitrarily constrained by different government policies.

I have been building homes in the Richmond metro area for decades and can unequivocally say that homebuilding has never been more difficult. Not only do voluminous regulations make prices higher for the consumer, but they also discourage entrepreneurs from entering the market, further limiting housing stock by creating artificial shortages.

With changing market preferences and a new generation of homebuyers coming along, we need to take a hard look at the effectiveness of regulations and processes, many of which are driving up the prices of homes faster than the average consumer can afford. Every regulation  such as setbacks, garage requirements, wide streets, and low-density requirements  forces a developer to build fewer homes with less creativity, resulting in a lesser product that is nonetheless more expensive.

If we want to open the American Dream to all of our neighbors, we must re-evaluate the status quo.
The weekend winter storm added up to a 3.1-inch snowfall total at Richmond International Airport.

Broken down by day, 2.4 inches fell on Friday, followed by 0.7 inch on Saturday. Neither figure was high enough to set a daily record for the location.

Now that Richmonds snow season is actually underway, here is a comparison with some past ones.

Reminder: A hefty snowfall in early December isnt a reliable predictor of how much more will fall before spring.

Average snowfall through Dec. 12: 0.9 inch

2017-18 season to date: 3.1 inches

Last season to date: no snowfall

The most recent season in which any measurable snow happened by Dec. 12: 2010, with 0.6 inch

Highest season to date total: 9.4 inches as of Dec. 12 in the 1917-18 winter

Look for more updates to these figures in the month ahead.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
Pulaski Countys Volvo Trucks is gearing up for a hiring spree that will add several hundred new employees to its ranks, according to company spokesman John Mies.

Mies wrote in an email that its too soon to know exactly how many workers the company will bring on, but the plant needs help to keep up with strong industry demand.

Right now, it employs about 2,600 people.

The truck market continues to improve, and weve seen strong interest in the new Volvo VNR and VNL models we introduced this year, Mies wrote.

The company will hold job fairs across Southwest Virginia to meet with applicants, beginning Tuesday in Bluefield, Virginia.

According to a poster advertising the event, the company is looking for full-time welders, painters, electricians, general maintenance and assembly production workers.

Production wages range from $16.77 per hour to $17.67.

The hiring spree is the latest turn for the up-and-down business, which has been one of the regions largest employers for decades.

The plant struggled in 2016, as a dip in the overall industry prompted multiple rounds of deep layoffs. It cut about 500 workers in February, 300 in September and then announced 500 additional layoffs in December.

But thats when things started to look up. Inventory, or the number of trucks waiting to be put to use, was low and so the industry began to correct itself. The last round of layoffs was canceled.

Instead, every eligible worker who had been laid off was offered a job back with the company.

With no employees left to recall, Volvos latest hiring spree will be all new workers.
OMAHA, Neb. - Your computer locks up, and an authoritative warning pops up on the screen.

The warning offers a solution with a toll-free number to call. You cant make the warning box disappear.

So you dial the number, and a purported tech support person asks to take over your screen so he can diagnose the problem. Sure, you say, lets get this over with.

He makes a few clicks on your computer, your screen shows a flurry of activity and he says hes diagnosed the problem: You have a virus, and your personal data is compromised.

He says he can download a fix, authorized by a well-known software brand, and itll take about a half-hour. Only $500. Just tell me your credit card number, please. The explanation sounds logical, and the technician is patient, courteous and seems competent.

But before you pay, it just might hit you: Is this the real deal?

Sadly, no.

Its another computer scam, this one growing in popularity because it plays on your computers tendency to malfunction, your faith in friendly tech support folk and your desire to return to a computer-normal status.

It almost happened to Sally Komrofske of Omaha. A blinking alert box froze her screen when she clicked a read more line on Facebook, the Better Business Bureau said Monday.

She called a number and talked to a man who said he was from a Microsoft company called MicraTech. She gave him remote access to her computer, and he said her computer had a virus, fixable for $200 for one years tech support, $300 for three years and $500 for five years.

Komrofke hung up, saying she had to talk to her son-in-law first. She ended up paying $88 to a local technician to remove some software from her computer and reported the incident to the Omaha BBB.

Nationally, consumers have reported more than $13 million in losses through such scams, according to the Federal Trade Commission, which estimates the true figure is at least 10 times higher because so few people bother to report their losses.

Jim Hegarty, president and CEO of the Omaha BBB, said many victims dont realize they have been scammed, instead believing that the scammers actually fixed genuine problems with their computers.

Now theyve got these bad guys roaming around in their computers, Hegarty said. Its a nasty situation.

After the initial encounter, the fraud may continue. If the scammer loaded software that can read your computers innards, your bank account and other vital information may become easy pickings.

Scammers sometimes call again and try to arrange other payments or refunds, ending up trying to get the victims bank account information to pull out more money.

Instead of pop-up warnings, some victims are hooked when they respond to unsolicited phone calls saying that viruses have been detected on their computers.

A new study of whats now called the Tech Support Scam by the Better Business Bureau, made public Monday, shows people between 18 and 34 are more likely to fall victim to the scam than other age groups, possibly because they may be more active computer users.

Microsoft, a name often dropped by the online thieves, is fielding 12,000 complaints a month. The scammers may claim they are authorized to fix Apple computers, too.

They arent.

The warning screen sometimes causes the computers window to freeze so the warning cant be removed without restarting the computer. The messages may warn against shutting the computer down, saying its data would be destroyed. Some alerts have audio voice messages or noises.

The Better Business Bureau said coordination by law enforcement agencies and tougher laws in the United States and India  where many of the scams originate  could help stop such scams. Anyone with an Internet connection is at risk, the BBB said.

The BBB said search engine software companies should set standards for advertising tech support links. Microsoft, for example, has taken steps to stop pop-up viruses.

Some arrests have been reported in England and India, and a federal court ordered an Alabama company to pay $2.1 million in damages, although most of that was later suspended.

Criminal charges were filed in Illinois against a company that stole $25 million from an estimated 40,000 consumers, the BBB said.

Courtney Gregoire, assistant general counsel with Microsofts digital crimes unit, said the company is working with computer manufacturers to stop tech support fraud.

The BBB said the India connection stems from the fact that U.S. companies outsourced customer service operations by opening legitimate call centers there. Skills learned at call centers are being turned sometimes toward fraud, the BBB said.

Besides the FTC, consumers file complaints with the BBB, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, state attorneys general, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the FBI.

The BBB had 7,000 complaints in the past two years; the Federal Trade Commission estimates it will have 44,000 calls about the scam this year. In the United Kingdom, more than 34,000 complaints were lodged over the past year.

Idaho had the highest number of complaints per capita, followed by Hawaii, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Alaska, Ohio and Washington, the BBB said. About equal numbers of men and women report such scams.
Coy Ferreira stood inside a rural California classroom, more than a dozen 5- and 6-year-olds huddled in the corner as a gunman sprayed bullets at the school and tried to break his way in. Ferreira was terrified that people would die.

But the doors were locked and all of the children were inside, part of a school plan the staff and students had practiced in drills and knew by heart. They barricaded the school in just 47 seconds that morning last month, probably saving the lives of countless people at Rancho Tehama Elementary School.

"They all knew what to do," said Ferreira, who was dropping his daughter off at school when they heard a gunshot nearby. "No one stumbled. No one was hiding. They just ran to their classroom, like they had been told to do."

The near-flawless response to what could have been a bloodbath during a deadly shooting rampage on Nov. 14 came almost exactly five years after 20 children and six teachers were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. That attack, which involved a mentally unstable man using an assault-style rifle, shattered the sense of security felt in the nation's elementary schools.

The massacre on Dec. 14, 2012, led to calls for gun control, as families mourned the loss of their innocent children. Five years later, little about the nation's federal gun laws has changed. But the Newtown shooting forever altered the way American schools approach safety and assess risk, ushering in an era in which schools feel particularly vulnerable to the threat of shootings and students must know what to do in case one happens.

The result is that for America's students, lockdowns like the one that helped save lives at Rancho Tehama Elementary and active-shooter training is now as commonplace as fire drills. Buzzers and locks have fortified school doors that were once left wide open. The sight of police officers, even in elementary schools, is now common. And some districts allow staff members to carry weapons at school for what they believe is an added layer of security.

"There was something about Sandy Hook," said Telena Wright, superintendent of schools in Argyle, Texas, whose district has stepped up security measures since that shooting. "It was such a massacre that I think it captured the attention of school employees and school administrators and police officers that work in schools across the nation."

One of those places was the Corning Union Elementary School District, which includes Rancho Tehama Elementary, an hour northwest of Chico in northern California.

"I have no doubt that the experience of Sandy Hook informed our response as a district, to any emergency event and to this one in particular," said Superintendent Rick Fitzpatrick.

The era of the school lockdowns started in 1999, after two students killed 13 people and themselves at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. High schools started drills where doors are locked and windows are secured - actions meant to be replicated should there be an emergency.

After the Newtown shooting, lockdowns became a regular part of school for younger children. So, in some places, did armed officers in elementary schools.

"There was a broader awareness that elementary and middle schools were at risk as well," said Heidi Wysocki, a co-founder of Texas-based First Defense Solutions, which helps schools protect themselves and plan for shootings and other emergencies. "Nobody thinks somebody is going to murder 26 children and teachers, because it's appalling. It's just an unthinkable horror and that wasn't part of the conversation that was being had."

Sandy Hook also created a new, controversial approach to school safety: the armed assailant drill, when schools run a scenario involving a mass shooter, sometimes including police in the exercise. The practice has drawn scrutiny, some criticizing it as being potentially traumatizing for students, especially those in younger grades.

In Akron, Ohio, schools started active-shooter training around the time of the Sandy Hook attack. The shooting also spurred the district to retrofit some schools with secondary doors, buzzers and thick glass.

The district now runs active-shooter drills four times a year, drills that are tailored to each age group, said Dan Rambler, the district's director of student support services and security. Parents are invited to watch training videos and give input.

In younger grades, the issue is addressed as one of stranger danger. But children, he said, often know what is happening: Rambler's son was in kindergarten during one of the first training sessions and told his father that while it focused on bad people, "there are people who go to schools and shoot people," Rambler remembers the boy saying.

Jeff Fritz, superintendent of schools in Clay County, Indiana, said that when he started his career as an educator 35 years ago, the "doors were wide open" at the school where he worked. No more.

The county's 4,000 students now drill for an active shooter. Fritz said students are taught to run, hide or fight - with fighting being the very last option.

"It's no different than we do with tornado drills or fire drills," he said. "This has been in the forefront. I tell our staff and our students our number one priority, above test scores or building projects . . . is school safety."

Some states and districts are allowing staff members to carry weapons at schools. At least eight states allow concealed-carry permit holders to have a firearm at a K-12 school, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

In Argyle, Texas, signs outside schools say staffers are armed and "may use whatever force is necessary to protect our students." It was a decision, Wright said, that stemmed directly from Sandy Hook.

When officials in the Briggsdale School District in rural Colorado heard about the shooting at Sandy Hook, they kept thinking about the time it would take police to respond to their schools. In their remote area of northern Colorado, emergency response was likely to take a minimum of 25 minutes.

Now there are staff members who carry concealed guns and have been trained to act as security guards if needed. Their identities are secret. Superintendent Rick Mondt said response from parents has been positive: They feel better with the school not being a soft target.

"We've had parents who brought their kids here because of this," he said.

Some of the parents of the children killed in Newtown have channeled their grief into making schools safer.

Michele Gay and Alissa Parker co-founded Safe and Sound Schools, which looks to improve school safety through training, discussion and partnerships. They both lost daughters at Sandy Hook; Gay's 7-year-old, Josephine, and Parker's 6-year-old, Emilie. Gay said there has been a profound shift in the way schools think about safety and plan for the worst, with parents and students now heavily involved, and much greater collaboration between different agencies and groups.

Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son Daniel was killed, co-founded Sandy Hook Promise with Nicole Hockley, who lost her son, Dylan. The organization is working in all 50 states with schools and other organizations to teach the warning signs often exhibited by potentially violent people both in person and on social media.

Barden said the past five years have been "indescribably difficult and challenging." He said he is honoring Daniel's memory by making schools safer and saving lives.

"Hopefully, if we have this conversation in five or 10 years, we're not going to need to be training our kids with how to deal with an active shooter," he said.

But school shootings continue unabated. Beginning with Columbine 18 years ago, more than 135,000 students attending at least 164 primary or secondary schools have experienced a shooting on campus as of April 2017, according to a Washington Post analysis of online archives, state enrollment figures and news stories. That doesn't count dozens of suicides, accidents and after-school assaults that have also exposed children to gunfire.

There have been at least three shootings at K-12 schools this school year. In September, a 15-year-old student in Rockford, Washington, killed one student and injured three others; that same month, a 14-year-old student shot and wounded a classmate in Mattoon, Illinois. Two students were killed Thursday in a high school shooting in Aztec, New Mexico, after a 21-year-old local resident entered the school pretending to be a student and carried out what authorities said was a planned attack with a legally purchased Glock handgun; the gunman also died.

"We obviously do drills and hope that nothing ever happens," said Aztec Municipal School Superintendent Kirk Carpenter. "Our staff and even our substitutes reacted in a way that saved a lot of lives."

In Rancho Tehama, California, officials credit their drills, quick action by staff and parents and a measure of good fortune for ensuring that no one was killed in the November attack there.

Ferreira and his 5-year-old daughter were standing outside before school, when they heard a pop. He thought it was a firecracker. But it was loud enough that some children dropped to the ground.

When the school secretary heard two more bangs, she announced a lockdown.

A teacher called for everyone to get inside. Ferreira heard a crash, as the gunman's truck smashed into the elementary school's gates. He told his daughter to run and urged other children to get inside.

Everyone quickly made it into classrooms, except for one little girl who was across the playground, too scared to move. Ferreira ran to her, scooped her up and ran her inside. He looked out the window, and the teacher told him to move away.

The blinds fell back into place as he stepped back, and bullets began smashing through them.

The children didn't move or make a sound. Just as they had practiced.

Ferreira thought about Sandy Hook and the teachers who died to protect children. He thought maybe he could use the fire extinguisher as a weapon if the shooter got through the door.

But the door was locked. The children had gotten inside. Two little boys were hiding under desks. One of them, Alejandro Hernandez, was bleeding; he was hit once in the foot and once in the lung by bullets that went through the wall.

Alejandro didn't cry. Only later did he tell Ferreira, "I want to be with my mommy."

The gunman left the school, unable to get in. Law enforcement officers took over, and Alejandro was taken to the hospital. He is back home now, too scared to go back to his classroom, unwilling to talk about the shooting, but recovering well enough to no longer need painkillers for his wounds. His mother, Angelica Monroy, is grateful the school locked down so quickly.

"I really . . . " she said, struggling to compose herself. "I thank them so much for everything."

In those few seconds that day, the children followed the drill they had practiced. The adults knew what to do.

If not for the lessons of Sandy Hook, if not for their plan, if it had all been like any other Tuesday morning, parents and school officials shudder to think what might have befallen Rancho Tehama.

"He would have caught us all outside," Ferreira said. "He would have had free range."
Friday is the last day for people to purchase individual health insurance coverage for 2018 through the governments marketplace exchange.

Demand is always higher near deadlines. Its crunch time now, said Jill Hanken, director of Enroll Virginia, in a news release. Enroll Virginia provides certified navigators to help people compare and select a policy.

Hanken said enrollment has been robust, and from Nov. 1 through Dec. 2, people living in 156,195 Virginia households had selected health plans. That figure does not show if more than one person in a household enrolled, nor does it count people who chose to automatically renew their 2017 policy.

This year, more than 364,600 Virginian had purchased individual coverage through the Marketplace. The window to do so for 2018 was narrowed when President Donald Trumps administration shortened enrollment by a month, and cut the budget for navigators to help people select plans.

In much of Virginia, only one insurer is offering plans and those may not include someones health care providers. In Bedford County, for example, the lone insurer considers Carilion Clinic and LewisGale providers to be out of network.

And for people who earn too much to qualify for tax credits, 2018 premiums are substantially higher than this years.

A bipartisan coalition of Virginias senators and several House members last week asked the administration to extend the deadline. As of Monday the deadline remained midnight Dec. 15.

Marketplace plans can be found at healthcare.gov or by calling 1-800-318-2596. The call center operates 24 hours a day.

Hanken said Enroll Virginia navigators can still offer one-on-one assistance, but appointment slots are filling fast. Call 1-888-392-5132 or find a local office at www.enrollva.org/get-help.
Orion secures pre-development funding for Okiep copper project Orion Minerals has entered into definitive agreements that will see the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC) acquire 43.75% of the shares in the New Okiep Mining Company (NOM). This triggered pre-development funding...

Angolas SODIAM realises $28,7mln from fifth international diamond tender Angola's state-owned diamond trading company, SODIAM realised $28,7 million from the sale of 1,819.79 carats at its fifth international rough tender held in the capital, Luanda. The diamonds sold were special productions from Lulo, Catoca, and Luele...

Christies presents Fancy Vivid Pink Diamond of 13.15 carats Christies presents one of the finest fancy vivid pink emerald-cut diamonds ever to be offered at auction which will be part of the Magnificent Jewels sale on 6 December during Luxury Week. The Fancy Vivid Pink Diamond Ring (estimate...

Sama reports high-grade copper-nickel intercepts at Cote divoire project Sama Resources has reported high-grade copper-nickel intercepts following the drilling of 21 holes at its Samapleu deposit, in Cote d'Ivoire. Company chief executive Marc-Antoine Audet said this is an indication of the potential for additional high-grade...
Alaska Railroad

The Alaska Railroad (ARRC) has promoted Clark Hopp, vice president of engineering, to serve as chief operating officer (COO) beginning Jan. 1, 2018.

Hopp will begin his new role following the retirement of current COO Doug Engebretson. ARRC said the COO manages operations including rail transportation, engineering, mechanical, safety and grant administration.

Involved with railroading for more than two decades, Clark has exceptional insight into railroad infrastructure and operations, said Bill OLeary, ARRC president. During the 17 years he has worked at the Alaska Railroad, Clark has proven to be a high-caliber leader. These qualities are essential to being an effective COO.

Hopp has led the railroads Engineering Department since February 2013, initially joining ARRC in 2001 as a capital projects manager. He became manager of civil projects in 2003 and in 2011, he was promoted to act as director of special projects, a role that allowed him to oversee the Port MacKenzie Rail Extension and Northern Rail Extension Phase One mega rail extension projects.

Prior to joining ARRC, Hopp worked for Transystems Corporation, a Nebraska-based engineering consulting firm. From 1995 to 2001, Hopp worked on project management for BNSF and Union Pacific (UP) railroads. An alumnus of Iowa Western College, Hopp earned a degree in Construction Engineering Technology.

I am humbled and appreciative for the opportunity to lead the Alaska Railroad operation. I look forward to working with world class railroaders in continuing our commitment to safe and efficient operations, Hopp said. Over the years, I have seen the safety and operational benefits from our investment in the railroad infrastructure and believe that focused investment in our railroad and our people will be key to our success in the future. The railroad is a remarkable organization with exceptional people and I know we are ready to face the challenges in front of us.

Engebretson, a third-generation railroader, joined ARRC in 1984 as a carman. He spent about 30 years working in the mechanical field, working his way up to serve as chief mechanical officer in 2008.

Engebretson was named COO in late 2013, ARRC said.

Having risen from the ranks, Doug has been a well-rounded leader. We have benefitted greatly from his extensive experience with regulatory compliance, safety and personnel management, OLeary said. The railroad will miss him.
(Agencia CMA Latam) - The Brazilian House of Representatives could vote on the pension reform bill on December 19, but the legislation would lack the required support to move on to the Senate, said House Speaker Rodrigo Maia.

"Today, President Michel Temer said he would gather the leaders to gauge votes one-by-one. He will try to identify the biggest problems to secure enough votes to pass the bill on next Tuesday," Maia said while leaving an event at the Federation of Industries of the State of Sao Paulo (Fiesp).

"As of today, looking to next Tuesday, it is not an easy task" to vote on the bill, he warned before saying that a pension reform vote would only occur when there are enough votes.

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) - The World Organization for Animal Health restored Colombia's sanitary status as a country free of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) with vaccination less than six months after outbreaks hit three Colombian states.

The Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA) said that the decision grants the FMD free status to 29 states. Those areas export live animals and meat to 17 international destinations.

Some areas in Colombia, however, are still under watch for FMD, with restrictions applying to 111 of the 117 municipalities of Cundinamarca, 118 of the 123 municipalities of Boyaca, the entire department of Arauca, and two municipalities of Casanare.

From now on, the Colombian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the ICA will reactivate sanitary diplomacy in order to recover such as Russia, Curacao, Chile, Angola, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Venezuela, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Arab Emirates, Egypt, Cuba and Georgia and to complete the advanced negotiations with China and Panama.

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.
Ural Airlines is exploring Inner Mongolia

11.12.2017  News

NOVOSIBIRSK

On December 4, 2017 Ural Airlines launched a new flight between Ordos (Inner Mongolia, China) and Novosibirsk. The U6-899 flight to China is scheduled for Mondays at 9.45; the U6-900 return flight departs from Ordos on Tuesdays at 3.25 (the local time is used for each airport). The schedule remains effective till March 19, 2018. Flights are performed by Airbus A320 airliners having business and economy class cabins, as RusBusinessNews has been informed by the airlines Press Service.

Ural Airlines ranks among the top Russian airlines in terms of air traffic volume. From January through November 2017, the airline provided services to 7.4 million passengers. The Ural Airlines aircraft fleet consists of 43 Airbus airliners.
Three militants and a woman were killed on Monday in a gunfight between the security forces and the militants in north Kashmir's Kupwara district.

"Three terrorists, apparently Pakistanis, were killed in Handwara encounter," Director General of Police (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir, S.P.Vaid, said.



A woman trying to escape from the house in which the militants were hiding was also killed in the cross fire.



Following specific information about the presence of the militants in Unsoo village, the security forces had surrounded it late on Sunday evening.





As they were closing in on the hide out, they were fired upon triggering the encounter.



Firing exchanges have ended, but police said searches were still on in the area.


Alleging humiliation, senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan on Monday wrote to Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra that henceforth he will not practice in the court, days after the CJI took exception to the conduct of some senior lawyers.

Chief Justice Misra had last week voiced strong objection to the conduct of certain Senior Counsel raising their voices during hearing at the conclusion of Delhi government's plea and also the Ayodhya matter.

In the brief letter that was delivered to the office of the Chief Justice on Monday, Dhavan said: "After the humiliating end in the Delhi case, I have decided to give up court practice."

Dhavan in his letter also told the Chief Justice: "You are entitled to take back the Senior Gown conferred on me, though I would like to keep it for memory and service rendered."
Hitting out at Narendra Modi for dragging Pakistan into the Gujarat elections, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that rather than talking about foreign countries in his election campaign speeches in Gujarat the Prime Minister should say something about the state.

"The Prime Minister talks sometimes about Pakistan and sometimes about China and Japan. Modiji, this is the election for the future of Gujarat. Talk something about Gujarat too," Gandhi said while addressing an election rally in Tharad assembly constituency of Banaskantha district.

Rahul Gandhi's remark came in the wake of Modi's accusation that a group of Congress leaders met Pakistan's High Commissioner at party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence in New Delhi, before the latter called him (Modi) "neech".

Addressing an election rally at Sanand, Modi on Sunday said: "There was a meeting convened at Aiyar's residence where Pakistan's High Commissioner, Pakistan's Foreign Minister, (former Vice President of India Hamid) Ansari and (former Prime Minister) Manmohan Singh were present. The meeting lasted three hours."

"The next day Mani Shankar said I am a 'neech'," said the Prime Minister. Aiyar was promptly suspended from Congress' primary membership for the remark, and he also apologised for his comment.

Gandhi said that since the last 2-3 days the Prime Minister has "left behind all other issues and talks about only two things".

"During his entire speech half of the time he talks about Congress. You (Modi) claim that the country has been 'Congress-free' then why are you giving so much prominence to the Congress in your speeches?" he said, adding that Modi spends half the time talking about himself.

Accusing Modi of maintaining silence over the development of Gujarat, Gandhi said that despite it being election time in Gujarat the Prime Minister is not talking about development of the last 22 years under the BJP government.

"It seems that he has lost faith of the people of Gujarat. Speak about development at least for two-three minutes," he said in a jibe.

Gandhi said that BJP President Amit Shah "runs Gujarat by remote control" and even Prime Minister "is scared of him".

"The Prime Minister seems to be scared of Amit Shah. Listen to his speeches. He does not talk even a word about corruption," he said.

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For any Samoan student, there is always another life after the books.

This is the life of Philip Iuomaga, 24, from the village of Saanapu.

Mr. Iuomaga was on his way back home from his plantation when he met the Village Voice team last week.

Mr. Iuomaga says life is difficult and he works hard to cope with it.

I just finished my second year in nursing this year and next year will be my last and final year.

Life here in Samoa is not that easy anymore but I am trying my best to complete my studies so I can get a good job to support my family.

I am pushing myself hard because I know nowadays, without a paper, you will never get to find a good job to support your family.

Mr. Iuomaga enjoys his life apart from reading books.

As you guys can see now that I just came back from my plantation, well this is what I do when Im not studying.

I have to go plant and look after my plantation because this is the source of food for my and family and I.

The plantation has been a good provider for my family because we do not have that much. People work, but this is what we rely on for food most of the time.

Mr. Iuomaga added since he was on school break, he would take his farming responsibilities seriously.

School is done for this year now and now I am back here at home and I am willing to invest most of my time here.

I am thinking of putting in a lot of work for now on my plantation so that by the time school starts, it will be easier for my family to have food from the plantation while Im away for school.
We must nurture our children.

A 61-year-old mother and grandmother Saanapu Sua from the village of Faleasiu, believes this.

The Village Voice team approached her while she was attending her granddaughters graduation at Leulumoega College last week.

She said it was one of the important things parents and elders should do.

As parents we must fully understand our role as adults to nurture our childrens self-esteem positively by helping them discover what they are good at doing, Saanapu said.

They should learn how to sit and eat, how to respect others, what clothes to wear when people or visitors are around or when they go to a pastors house or the village meeting.

We must understand that part of a childs self esteem comes from feeling competent and skilled at something they enjoy.

When we create something, when we act on something, we must know that our children will follow as well.

What comes out of our mouths whether its good or bad, are the same words that our children will use to others.

It all starts from the family.

Saanapu said when we plan opportunities with childrens unique personality styles in mind; we also help them build a positive mentality.

We understand that building a loving and caring relationship is not always easy.

Because most parents dont want to show that love to their children straight away, we Samoan parents have our own way.

Some use the broom, stick, and sandal but at the end of the day we want them to become good adults in the future.

But with patience and love, Saanapu said together we can do it.

We grandmothers are important people because theres a saying that we know much and better in life than our children.

So our love can make family members comfortable, make life easier and unite family members, most importantly we gather our children and grandchildren during faigaloku every evening.

That makes a family strong when we lead them to God.
Its a hard one to accept  let alone comprehend.

Its difficult really to figure out what drives the decision making by some leaders of American Samoa. One day they are screaming from the top of the hill that we are one, the next theyre downright unkind.

Look at the front page story titled Shocking breach of human rights on the front page of the Samoa Observer last Thursday.

The idea that pregnant women from Samoa with valid entry permits into American Samoa had been rejected at the American Samoa border and sent back to Upolu is not only disturbing, it smacks of arrogance, rudeness and the type of condescending attitude of the colonial era.

Keep in mind were not talking about New Zealand, Australia, Fiji or any other foreign country. We are talking about American Samoa. Yes thats right, our very own brothers and sisters across the waters.

Lets think about this carefully. Samoa and American Samoa share the same race, language, culture and customs, religious inclination and many other traits. We enjoy similar things; have a funny sense of humour and we love the same kind of food.

Historically speaking both countries are victims of war. Whereas Samoa was administered by Britain and later New Zealand, American Samoa was governed by the United States of America so that today they still proudly carry the name American Samoa. Maybe it is those quirks in history that has allowed them to behave very strangely. Who knows?

Whatever it is, it is clear certain American Samoa leaders harbour ill feelings towards Samoans from this side, especially pregnant women.

For the uninitiated, the treatment of pregnant women surfaced during the recent inter-Samoa talks held in Apia where the Samoan government raised concerns about the treatment of Samoan women by American Samoa.

Samoa raised the concern relating to pregnant women from Samoa not being able to disembark the vessel upon arrival but simply asked to take the return trip of the ship even with the issuance of a valid entry permit, the official documents of the meeting obtained by the Samoa Observer said. American Samoa noted that this may be related to an immigration issue to prevent foreign women from exploiting medical care in American Samoa.

Are you serious? What if a woman needed to give birth on the ferry? Would they insist on putting their silly medical care above a human life?

Maybe they should have an official at the Matautu wharf to check all the women boarding to see if they are pregnant. How about that for progression in the 21st century? Yes and this is Samoans doing it to other Samoans?

Which is perhaps the most disappointing aspect to all this.

We accept that American Samoa makes their rules based on what the United States allow them to do. Fine.

But the idea of rejecting pregnant women and sending them back to Samoa is not only odiously heartless, it has got to be one of the worst things one Samoan could do to another.

Lets be reminded once more that Samoa and American Samoa are the same people. We are one.

Just about everyone have families and links on both sides of the equation which means we have got to be kind to one another.

This is something perhaps someone should remind those officials in American Samoa who came up with this stupid decision to send pregnant women back to Samoa  even with valid permits.

Maybe they should test every woman who applies for a permit to see if they are pregnant first and foremost before they even grant them? What a joke!

Tell us what you think.

Have a wonderful Tuesday Samoa, God bless!
More and more young children are turning up at the Tafaigata Landfill to hunt for food and other items to help their families survive.

Thats according to a concerned citizen who sent this photo to the Samoa Observer hoping that the relevant authorities would take notice do something to stop it.

The citizen asked for his name not be printed, fearing potential repercussions on his work.

But he is saddened that this has been allowed to continue for a long time now.

I visit that place (Tafaigata landfill) all the time to drop off my rubbish and I always see these young people walking around in gumboots looking for things to take home, some are as young as seven years old, he said.

Its a real problem because those small gumboots will do little against broken glass, needles and sharp tin cans that litter the area.

I read in the paper not long ago that the government is looking into the issue and that they are trying to do something about it but it seems to me that what theyre doing is not enough.

The concerned citizen explains that the government needs to reassess their approach.

Just talking to these children wont be enough, he said. Building a bigger fence wont help either because they can just climb over and continue doing what they are doing.

Maybe its time for some more harsh treatment. I suggest fines or something to scare the parents to the point that they leave their children out of such a place.

He added that the children are almost always there after the 4pm closing time.

At times I would arrive late to the rubbish dump and Ill give the guard some money to let me drop off my truck load, he said.

While Im driving in, the children will scream out to bring my rubbish to where they are standing and dump it there, maybe they want first pick of the trash I bring in.

There are those who block their faces because they are embarrassed, I can tell they do not want to be there and are forced by their family; but I guess they have no other options if their family is struggling.

In an earlier interview with the Samoa Observer for a similar story published on the 17th of September this year, the Assistant Chief Executive Officer of the Division of Environment and Conservation of the M.N.R.E, Tauti Fuatino Leota, said the Ministry is monitoring the landfill.

What we are looking at now is a permanent fence for the landfill because thats where most people enter, she said. But its true that many children are seen at the place and the Ministry has not taken those reports lightly.

Tauti said they do have officials who enforce the safety regulations for those people involved that that the parents are told to not bring their children. She recalled one occasion when Police had to be called in because these parents did not adhere to the regulations at the landfill.

We are trying our best to advise them every single day to wear safety gear and that they are not allowed to bring their children with them...but its just that our people they dont want to comply with rules and principles.

As Ive mentioned earlier, the Ministrys option to control the people that enter the landfill without our knowledge is a permanent fence to avoid problems there.

Asked if such actions are seen at the landfill, the concerned citizen said he hasnt seen anything done.

Im there at least once every two weeks, mainly on the weekend to drop off things, and I havent seen anyone approach these children to tell them to go home, he said.

Maybe they do it while Im not there for my weekly drop offs but I havent seen it done. What I do notice are the workers at the rubbish dump doing their duty and paying no attention to the children walking around them searching.
The Controller and Auditor General, Fuimaono Mataafa Papalii C.G Afele Taimalelagi, has responded to questions raised by the Samoa Observer about his role and that of his office, Audit Office, in relation to audited reports.

He writes:

11th December 2017,

Afioga Gatoaitele Savea Sano Malifa

Editor-In-Chief

Samoa Observer

RE: EDITORIAL 8/12/17  PRIME MINISTER TUILAEPA SAILELE MALIELEGAOI THE FULCRUM ON WHICH THE WHEEL IS TURNING

I refer to your Editorial of the 8th December 2017. You asked in your Editorial as to where I am and whether I am still Samoas Controller and Auditor General. You also said that it would be good to know. With the utmost respect, lau Afioga Gatoaitele, please find hereunder is my response to your questions:

AUDITED PUBLIC ACCOUNTS

1. For the last 2 weeks my Staff and I were called before the Finance and the Expenditure Committee (F.E.C.) of Parliament to assist with the parliamentary examination and scrutiny of the Public Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2016.

2. For your information, the preparation and compilation of the Public Accounts is the responsibility of the Chief Executive and Ministry of Finance. It is the responsibility of the Audit Office to audit the Public Accounts.

3. All Public Accounts since my appointment in 2010 which is 7 years now have been audited up to financial year ended 30 June 2016. The Public Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2017 are currently being audited to be completed by January 2018.

4. The submission of the Audited Public Accounts to Parliament through the Speaker of Parliament is the responsibility of the Minister of Finance. The Public Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2016 was submitted by the Minister of Finance to the Honourable Speaker of Parliament on the 20th June 2017 and tabled by the Honourable Speaker in Parliament on the 13th November 2017.

5. The examination and scrutiny by F.E.C of the Audited Public Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2016 commenced in late November 2017 and completed last Thursday 7th December 2017. These are the requirements of the Public Finance Management Act 2001. I am sure that the Chief Executive Officer and responsible staff of the Ministry of Finance, the Honourable Minister of Finance and F.E.C. will be more than willing to assist with Samoa Observer for any further information required on the Audited Public Accounts.

6. The completion of the parliamentary examination and scrutiny by F.E.C of the Public Accounts for the year ended 30 June 2016 last week is proof that since my appointment in 2010, all the Audited Public Accounts up to financial year ended 30 June 2016 have been submitted by the Minister of Finance to Parliament. I believe F.E.C will be more than willing to assist with Samoa Observer for any further information required.

7. False information has been unfairly and rampantly circulated in both the print and social media about the Controller and Auditor General being responsible for the preparation and submission of the audited Public Accounts and the failure of the Controller and Auditor General to submit the audited Public Accounts to Parliament for the last 17 years.

The accusations have even accused the Controller and Auditor General of cooking the books. The books are under the custody, control and accounting of the Ministry of Finance and not the Controller and Auditor General. I believe l have clarified in paragraphs 1 to 5 the truth about the false information being circulated and published. Also please refer to our Information Paper on our website dated 21 November 2017 for corrections and clarifications on some of the false accusations and questions raised in the print and social media. Still the false accusations continue to be spread and published in the social and print media.

AUDIT REPORTS TO PARLIAMENT

8. The Audit Reports to Parliament are different from the Audited Public Accounts. For your information the Audit Reports to Parliament are the responsibility of the Audit Office in terms of preparation and compilation and submission to the Speaker of Parliament. Before the reports of 2012, we combined both our Report on Irregularities and our Main Report on Audit Findings into one Report. From the reports of the financial year ended 30 June 2012 onwards we separated these two reports so that irregularities are given specific attention by the Parliamentary Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices instead of just the Main Report.

9. The main objective of the irregularity and main reports of the Audit Office are for Parliament and its Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices to be informed of the weaknesses and breakdown in internal controls in the Executive Government and its Offices and for the Executive Government and its Offices to explain and account to Parliament and its Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices the reasons and corrective actions for these weaknesses and breakdown in internal controls.

The finances of the Government and the audit report/opinion on the finances of the Government remain captured in the Audited Public Accounts that are examined and scrutinised in detail by the Finance and Expenditure Committee (F.E.C.)

10. Since my appointment in 2010 (7 years now in Office), I have already submitted 11 audit reports to Parliament. I recall your reporters covering the submission of all my audit reports to Parliament in the Samoa Observer in the past. You have correctly identified that 4 had already completed the parliamentary procedures. The other 7 are currently under the scrutiny and examination of the Parliamentary Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices.

11. We also issued an information paper to the media and also on our website on the 31st August 2017. This was published by Samoa Observer on the 16" September 2017. The Information Paper and supporting documents further explained and provided other details on the reports of the Audit Office to Parliament and other duties and reforms. Still the false accusations continue to be spread and published in the social and print media.

12. Before I conclude can I just clarify the application and interpretation of the reporting functions of the Controller and Auditor General under legislations. The principal and primary legislative provision on the reporting obligations of the Controller and Auditor General are laid down in Article 98 of the Constitution of Samoa 1960. Other legislative provision in the Audit Act 2013 and other legislations are supplementary and secondary to the constitutional requirements.

13. In paragraphs 8 to 10 of your Editorial you emphasised Sections 39 and 40 of the Audit Act 2013 and the notification of the Prime Minister before submitting the audit reports to the Speaker of Parliament. Can I now clarify the process for preparing and compiling audit reports to Parliament and the correct application of section 39 and 40 of the Audit Act 20l3 which also follow the principles of natural justice, procedural fairness, right of reply and the international standard on auditing for communicating with those in charge of governance.

i. When the audits of each public entity are completed the audit report is given to the Chief Executive Officers for comment

ii. When the audit reports from each public entity with the Chief Executive Officers comments/inputs are collated and compiled into a Report to Parliament of the Audit Office, the relevant extracts of the Report to Parliament are given again to the Chief Executive Officers for an update comment on remedial actions taken since the completion of the audit.

iii. This extract that is sent to the Chief Executive Officers at this stage of the process is also copied to the Responsible Ministers including the Prime Minister for the Public Entities he is responsible for.

iv. The copying of the Responsible Ministers including the Prime Minister with the extracts is not an invitation to the responsible Ministers to comment. The demarcation of duties and responsibilities between the Ministers and Chief Executive Officers is clear in relation to policies and outcomes (Ministers) and operations and outputs (Chief Executive Officers).

The Responsible Ministers are copied so that they are aware of the issues raised with the Chief Executive Officers and Public Entities that will be reported to Parliament. Responsible Ministers provide oversight on their Chief Executive Officers and Portfolios so this is another essential step in the oversight and accountability process within the Executive Government before the oversight and scrutiny of Parliament and its Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices.

v. The audits on which the reports to parliament are based are conducted on the operations and outputs including the financing and expenditure of Public Entities. Since the beginning of state auditing internationally it has been restricted to operations and outputs of auditees and their financing and expenditure.

The merits of executive policies and outcomes have been a no go zone for the Auditors. The traditional and universal view of the State Auditors internationally is that the merits of executive policies and outcomes of the Executive Government including legislations are the domain of the residents, electorate, media and parliament including opposition parties to scrutinize and oversee.

vi. While these steps in the communication and reporting process are undertaken to recognize and observe the principles of natural justice, procedural fairness, right of reply and the international auditing standards for communicating with those in charge of governance, the report of the Audit Office to Parliament will not be interfered, directed or compromised as a result of these preliminary communications with Chief Executive Officers copied to Responsible Ministers.

You also asked Gatoaitele in your Editorial that if I am still Samoas Controller and Auditor General then why is it that the eight reports to Parliament on Irregularities have not been submitted, tabled and debated in Parliament as they are required by law.

I believe as you can see in my response above that I have already submitted 11 reports to Parliament. The Speaker of Parliament has tabled all these reports in Parliament. The protocols and procedures of Parliament in relation to audit reports to parliament are well documented in the Standing Orders of Parliament 2016.

The question about the debate of the audit reports in Parliament is one that the Clerk and the Honourable Speaker of Parliament and the Parliamentary Committee for Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices can only answer.

That is the same for questions on the status of parliamentary procedures relating to the examination and scrutiny of the other 7 audit reports submitted to Parliament besides the 4 that you have correctly pointed out as having completed the parliamentary procedures. All l can say is that I believe the parliamentary procedures for the other 7 audit reports with parliament are in progress.

I am sure the Clerk and Honourable Speaker of Parliament and the Parliamentary Constitutional/Parliamentary Offices Committee are more than willing to assist with Samoa Observer for any further information required.

Right now we are also preparing four (4) more audit reports to Parliament to be submitted to the Speaker of Parliament by the end of March 2018. That will take the number of my audit reports to Parliament to 15 reports in 7 years in Office.

The Audit Office can only deliver one part of the chain of state accountability and oversight. It is up to Parliament, the Executive Government, the Media and the Residents/Civil Society to complete the rest of the process.

I trust Sir I have answered your questions satisfactorily in that I am still serving Samoa faithfully as Samoas Controller and Auditor General. I recall that this letter is my first direct communication with Lau Afioga Gatoaitele ever since I was appointed to this Office in 2010.

In December 2013, I sent an email to your former reporter, Ms Sophie Price, thanking the Samoa Observer for making me Samoa Observer Person of the Year 2013. This email I think was printed by Samoa Observer in one of your subsequent issues.

I want to do that again now by thanking you and Muliagatele personally for that honour and vote of confidence back in 2013. I trust that the explanations and clarifications on your questions above have given you re-assurance on my non-failing commitment in the service of Samoa and hopefully proving to you that the vote of confidence and trust you had in the Audit Office when you gave me the Samoa Observer Person of the Year in December 2013 was not misplaced.

As I am continued to be accused falsely even up to this day, I just pray and meditate on the sorrowful passion of our Lord who received far more false accusations focusing specifically on the 9th of the 10 Commandments. Every time I do my job I have to be very careful not to break the 9th Commandment as I know that God is watching us all.

Momoli atu faamanuiaga ole Kerisimasi ma le Tausaga Fou i lau Aoga Gatoaitele faapea le Aoga ia Muliagatele ma le Aufaigaluega. Faamalo mo galuega o lenei tausaga. Faia ma le faaaloalo tele,

Fuimaono Mataafa Papalii C.G Afele Taimalelagi

CONTROLLER & AUDITOR-GENERA, SAMOA AUDIT OFFICE

RESPONSE FROM THE SAMOA OBSERVER:

Talofa i lau Afioga Fuimaono,

Samoas Controller and Auditor-General,

On behalf of Samoa Observer's Publisher, Muliaga Jean Malifa, Editor Mataafa Keni Lesa, and the Samoa Observers Staff, I want to say thank you very much for taking the time to respond to the editorial in question.

With respect, I also want to say it was never an intension of ours to question you in the carrying out the responsibilities, and the duties of your office.

Ours was simply an effort to find out if there was any truth in the reports that have been going around, in connection with our governments Audit Public Accounts, for the last 7 years.

And now that you have given a thorough explanation about this very matter, as well as about other alleged discrepancies members of the public have been concerned about, we trust that Parliament and the government will now see to it that the law that theyd made will be obeyed from now on.

Ia manuia tele le Kerisimasi ma le Tausaga Fou i lau Afioga Fuimaono ma le Aiga, ae tainane le Aufaigaluega Mamalu.

Ma le faaaloalo tele,

Gatoaitele Savea Sano Malifa,

Faatonu
A private specialist facility in Motootua is due to open its doors in the New Year under the patronage of New Zealand-based Aiono Dr. Alec Ekeroma.

The Health Specialist Centre (H.S.C) on Salenesa Rd. is a social enterprise based on a unique model that has been developed by the doctor to provide not only health benefits for the people of Samoa but with room to grow the potential of medical tourism in this country.

Dr. Ekeroma is not a stranger to the medical sector. He has a medical practice in Auckland and has been a visiting specialist to Samoa for 20 years.

The H.S.C will offer premises, which include medical equipment for Samoas local health specialists from the fields of gynecology, podiatry, obstetrics etc, interested in leasing/ contracting at the H.S.C.

The unique part is that the health centre will be co-located with Alecs Home Away - a 3-star 15 bedroom (20 bed) motel which will be key to providing sustainability for the social enterprise.

A stay at Alecs Home Away motel enables and sustains the H.S.C, said Dr. Ekeroma. The H.S.C, given the cost of equipment, will not be profitable for at least three years. So the motel provides the funding that will keep the H.S.C. open.

I am hoping that a feasibility study in the future may inform that a private hospital in Samoa is sustainable. In which case, alterations of approximately $200,000 will turn the whole complex into a private hospital.

When Medcen Hospital folded, Dr. Ekeroma saw a need to develop a health specialist service that was sustainable so he set about creating a different model that would provide Samoans with access to specialist services,

Affordability is key to access, he said.

However, private specialist care is not cheap (the late Medcen is a reminder!).

But by lowering cost barriers of clinical providers, we may be able to hold down prices which vary up to $350 in Apia for a consultation. I have mentioned to potential providers informally that they will take 70% of the takings but they can charge what they feel their service is worth.

So I have not mandated prices as in New Zealand noncompetitive behaviour in business is not allowed. By providers charging their own fee, some level of internal competition will be created.

I do not aim to duplicate specialist services provided in public where accessibility and quality are not issues. I aim to have a physician, pediatrician, surgeon and a gynecologist as a minimum. We do not have a qualified E.N.T surgeon in Samoa but I can negotiate such specialist from New Zealand if there was a demand for that service.

I have always loved launching new projects and this is certainly one of my most challenging, managing this on a part-time basis. Hopefully in ten years time I can look back and say that this social enterprise has been worth the effort and investment.

Dr. Ekeroma also expects that the H.S.C will fully utilize the telehealth capabilities, which will be enhanced by the Tui Samoa cable to connect to specialists overseas to assist with diagnosis, management and/or treatment of appropriate cases.

The doctor also mentioned that curative and palliative cancer care in conjunction with overseas specialists is a capability that they will also look at.

For the most part, the local specialists who apply and are credentialed to work from the H.S.C will be supported by the telehealth capability, he said.

That will involve training and equipment - resourcing which will be a fraction of usual setup cost - I will approach development partners to assist although other funding mechanisms will be explored. Such a capability will be of interest not only to our own government but governments and potential clients in the region which will hopefully, be an incubation of a medical tourism initiative.

For Aiono Dr. Ekeroma, the facility will fulfill a long time dream of his to give back to the country that he grew up in.

While the social enterprise will not see any profits for the first three years as forecasted by the doctor, it is Ekeromas objective to leave a lasting legacy in Samoa and the financial cost to him is worth the possibility.

I am setting it up because I have the business and professional skills to do it, he said.

More so, I have been blessed with the financial resources in order to assist others. Instead of purchasing more property in New Zealand I thought that a social enterprise in Samoa, addressing a need and equally supporting a spirit to serve and to give back at a different level, was a better legacy.

Aiono Dr. Alec Ekeroma grew up in Samoa and attended St. Josephs College before leaving for Papua New Guinea to study medicine.

On his return from P.N.G, he worked in Apia and Sataua for two years in 1984 and 1985 before leaving for New Zealand to specialize in obstetrics and gynecology.

He retained his affinity with Samoa as a visiting specialist to Samoa for two decades.

He led the group from the universities of Otago and Auckland that created the curriculum of the new medical school at N.U.S three years ago and he continues to support the growth of the medical school.
Positive and encouraging words spoken over children have the power to transform their fortunes.

Chloe Pereiras success as the dux of Peace Chapel Christian School 2017 is an example. She believes that it was through kind and encouraging words spoken over her by her parents, teachers and loved ones motivated her to do well.

Encouragement for me was the biggest thing that I have learnt, she said. One thing for sure is that it was through those words I was able to believe in myself and make it this far. Just being very positive and nice it really changes the way you think about things.

She said the year was challenging but she persevered.

Even though there was a big competition among the students, everywhere I turned there was always somebody that would always inspire me not to give up. In school when something is difficult the teachers they would give you words of encouragement.

Including my parents as well they always tell us to try our best and that there is still more room for improvement.

Whatever we do, they would tell us that they are always proud of us.

The second eldest of five children acknowledged her older sister for helping her.

My sister was always working hard and I saw that she always got good marks and I wanted to be like her. She topped her class at Samoa College and I have already been accepted to go Samoa College as well.

The 12-year-old does not know what she wants to become yet. But teaching interests her.

The teachers are what makes this school stand out for me.

They are really different; they really care about where you would head to next and what you will do in the future.

She said one of her favourite teachers is Mr. Neal Niupulusu, her Mathematics teacher.

Hes really good at communicating with us and just by listening to him it motivates us into becoming better and that the sky is the limit.

Chloe added that she has grown a lot during her time at Peace Chapel.

This school has helped me grow both physical and spiritual. Every morning we always do devotions and our teacher always talk about life and how we should treat others. I know that I wouldnt have been able to make it this far without God, he is the reason I am here.

Her proud mother, Lisi Vaai-Pereira, said she is humbled about Chloe has achieved.

To be honest I did not really expect this from my daughter, she said.

Everyone is competitive in their class. She has been studying very hard for it. She wanted to go Samoa College and she got in. We are thankful to God because this is all part of his blessings on our family.
Three physician-scientists, including a top San Diego-based Alzheimers researcher, will get up to $70 million to accelerate clinical trials to find new treatments, under a grant from the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. Paul Aisen, of the University of Southern California but based in San Diego, leads the new Alzheimers Clinical Trial Consortium along with two peers. They are Dr. Ronald Petersen from Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, and Dr. Reisa Sperling from Brigham and Womens Hospital in Massachusetts.

The consortium will implement more efficient methods to recruit participants for clinical trials, USC said in a statement announcing the grant.

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Funds are to be given over five years. They will pay for support services, allowing researchers to design better clinical trials, and manage the great amount of data, and recruit participants from varied ethnicities.

The consortium will set up 35 Alzheimers clinical trial sites at universities across the country. The NIH said more sites may be added later. Funding is contingent upon availability, meaning that any budget cuts or delay in authorizing funds could delay or prevent the awards.

Its among one of our largest, but its within a large group of large infrastructure grants, said Laurie Ryan, chief of the Dementias of Aging Branch in the National Institute on Agings Division of Neuroscience. The NIA is part of the National Institutes of Health.

Treatments needed

The NIH has rapidly increased Alzheimers research funding over the last four years. In fiscal 2013, it allocated about $420 million; this fiscal year the total is about $1.3 billion.

What were hoping to do is to run the trials more quickly, because obviously we wont know until a trial is done if a therapeutic is going to actually hit the mark, Ryan said.

Better treatments for Alzheimers are urgently needed. The neurodegenerative disease is different from other major killers in that there is no effective means of prevention or treatment. Drugs currently on the market can temporarily slow down disease progression, but dont affect its underlying course.

About 6 million Americans are estimated to have Alzheimers or mild cognitive impairment, which can lead to Alzheimers, according to the National Institutes of Health. If current trends continue, that number is projected to reach 15 million by 2060.

A 2013 study found that care for people with dementia costs an estimated $159 billion to $215 billion in 2010. The largest single cause of dementia in older adults is Alzheimers.

Alzheimers is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, and the third leading cause in San Diego County.

Aisen and his peers have been working for years to develop a more focused approach, combining a deeper understanding of what Alzheimers actually is along with drugs to target the disease at the earliest possible stage.

The roots of Alzheimers are thought to begin many years or even decades before patients begin to show cognitive impairment. So researchers have developed medical imaging methods that can detect abnormal proteins involved in Alzheimers, called beta amyloid and tau, in the brains of living people. Those with elevated levels of these proteins, but who are cognitively normal, are being sought to test Alzheimers drugs.

More biological markers are being sought to improve Alzheimers detection. A number of studies to find such biomarkers are being managed at USCs San Diego-based Alzheimers Therapeutic Research Institute, or ATRI, which Aisen heads. Go to j.mp/atristudies for more information.

Centralized review

The consortium streamlines the start-up of trials by using a centralized Institutional Review Board, along with standardized contract language for all sites, Aisen said by email.

The award supports a biorepository facility (located near ATRI in San Diego) to facilitate the processing, storage, analysis and sharing of specimens from Alzheimers disease trials, Aisen said.

The ACTC includes a Neuropathology Unit to facilitate the post-mortem study and sharing of tissue specimens from trial participants. These and many other innovations will assure the most efficient pursuit of new therapeutic approaches and optimize the dissemination of ideas, methods, specimens and data.

To those affected by Alzheimers, Aisen said the outlook will brighten in coming years.

The field of AD therapeutics is poised for major advances in the coming years, and this consortium will assure the rigorous, efficient and collaborative pursuit of the best ideas for new treatments, Aisen said.

Related reading

Discovery may show earliest stage of Alzheimers

Alzheimers begins long before symptoms of memory loss appear, study suggests

Ionis begins human trials of Alzheimers drug

Science Playlist  On Now In a first, scientists rid human embryos of a potentially fatal gene mutation by editing their DNA On Now Space station flyovers visible from San Diego this week 0:55 On Now UCSD's 'ghost drivers' begin testing people's reaction seemingly empty cars 1:29 On Now 10 interesting facts about Mars On Now Kids can add years to your life On Now LA 90: SpaceX launches recycled rocket On Now Big passions, big giving: Malin Burnham 2:30 On Now Big passions, big giving: Darlene Shiley 2:40 On Now Big passions, big giving: Joan and Irwin Jacobs 2:45 On Now Ocean temperatures warming at rapid rate, study finds

bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1020
The Ninth Circuit Court recently upheld the ruling of a San Diego federal judge who found that Federal Express paid one of its pilot-employees a bonus that was $10,300 less than he deserved after returning from 3  years of Air Force duty. The underpayment of a bonus it is reasonably certain the airman would have received had he continued to work for the company instead of serving his country during those years violated his rights under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.

The ruling matters to San Diego employers because of the large number of military reservists subject to redeployment while holding jobs in the civilian workforce here.

In 2001, Federal Express hired Dale Huhmann to pilot a narrow-body aircraft. Huhmann then also was an officer in the U.S. Air Force Reserve. Huhmann was selected for training for a higher-paying first officer position on a wide-body aircraft. The training was to begin on Feb. 19, 2003, but on Feb. 7, Huhmann was mobilized for active duty and was deployed overseas until Aug. 31, 2006.

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On Aug. 26, 2006, days before Huhmann was released from active duty, Federal Express sent a letter to Huhmanns union offering a bonus if crew members ratified a proposed collective bargaining agreement. Pilots employed on the day the CBA was signed, including those on military leave, were entitled to a bonus of $7,400 for pilots of narrow-body planes and $17,700 for pilots of wide-body planes.

Huhmann, then a narrow-body plane pilot, received the $7,400 bonus upon his return to Federal Express in December. On Dec. 1, 2006, days after his return to active pay status at Federal Express, Huhmann opted to train to become a first officer on the wide-body aircraft, the training he was to have undergone before his mobilization. Huhmann successfully completed the rigorous training and was activated as a wide-body aircraft pilot in February of 2007.

Huhmann contended that, under USERRA, he should have received the $17,700 bonus upon his return from duty since it was reasonably certain he would have become a wide-body plane pilot had he not left. San Diego federal judge Cynthia Bashant agreed and so did the Ninth Circuit.

Under the escalator principle that applies to claims under USERRA, a service member returning to a job in the civilian workforce is entitled to receive the job and benefits he would have had if military service had not interrupted his employment. The court is required to use foresight to determine if, but for his military leave, it is reasonably certain the service member would have attained the status entitling him to benefits he was denied and to use hindsight to determine if the service member did attain that status.

Federal Express conceded that Huhmann satisfied the hindsight test because he successfully completed the wide-body pilot training. The Ninth Circuit found that Judge Bashants conclusion that, at the time he returned to Federal Express, Huhmann was reasonably certain to complete the wide-body training was cogent and logical, even though Huhmanns successful completion of the demanding training program was not guaranteed. That was because, among other things, he was a seasoned military and civilian pilot and he had been scheduled to begin the training before being mobilized.

I emailed Huhmanns San Diego attorney Brian Lawler to ask why the parties had fought so hard over the $10,300 difference between the bonus Huhmann received upon his return and the bonus to which he was found to have been entitled. Lawler said that, for his part, USERRAs requirement that Federal Express pay Huhmanns over $250,000 in attorneys fees when he won made it worthwhile for Lawler, a national authority in USERRA litigation, to take this case.

Lawler believes the Ninth Circuit sent a loud message to service members and their employers, one with particular resonance in San Diego. [T]he Courts ruling makes it clear that Congress intent that USERRA be broadly interpreted in favor of the service member still holds. . . . [I]t would behoove employers to make sure that their human resources and general counsel are well-versed in the statute and aware of their obligations to returning service members.

A prudent employer will take a realistic view that tilts optimistic in determining the status and benefits a service member would have attained had he not been called away to serve and to which he therefore is entitled upon his return.

Dan Eaton is a partner with the San Diego law firm of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek where his practice focuses on defending and advising employers. He also is an instructor at the San Diego State University Fowler College of Business where he teaches classes in business ethics and employment law. He may be reached at eaton@scmv.com. His Twitter handle is @DanEatonlaw.
A pro-business group released a report last week, saying the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) is too concerned about going green than it is about making green.

The American Council for Capital Formation (ACCF) said CalPERS board members have overemphasized what are called Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investments  and the sluggish returns on those investments are dragging down the pension funds bottom line.

The 30-page critique said CalPERS ESG investments have not been translating into wins for its pensioners or the taxpayers who bear the burden for covering shortfalls and the use of these funds to advance an environmental agenda has plunged the system and California into a building financial crisis.

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CalPERS officials fired back, defending the financial stability of the fund and the rationale for ESG investments.

Were passionate about and fully committed to advocating on behalf of shareowners for the right to have a say in how the companies we invest in are run, CalPERS information officer Megan White said in an email. We stand behind our efforts. Any suggestion that we stop engaging with companies on behalf of our members is laughable.

Established in 1932, the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) is the nations largest public pension fund, covering 1.8 million public workers and retirees in California. Earlier this year, the fund reported $326 billion in market value.

But the ACCF report, pointing at CalPERS annual report released last month, said the pension funds future liability exceeds its assets by $138 billion.

The report takes aim at CalPERS nine worst-performing funds, four of which were ESG investments. By contrast, the pension funds 25 top-performing funds were not ESG investments.

ACCF criticized CalPERS investments in a number of solar panel manufacturers that soured when the market hit a glut. The report also questioned the pension boards plans to increase climate-related shareholder proposals from 12 to 17.

The report also takes aim at individual board members. ACCF said a review of public disclosure records of the funds chief investment officer and two senior executives did not show any ESG investments, prompting the report to call itESG investing for thee  but not for me.

Click here to read the CalPERS annual report

Click here to read the ACCFs report criticizing CalPERS

White at CalPERS said the pension funds board members are reflecting the wishes of its constituents.

We have successfully pushed companies to publicly report on the impact that climate change is having on their business, and we have successfully pushed them to open up their board selection process because companies with a diverse group of talented people on their boards perform better financially, White said.

ACCF said the CalPERS boards fiduciary responsibilities should take ultimate priority because shortfalls would ultimately be borne by taxpayers.

Individual investors have every right to invest in assets, ventures or enterprises that align with causes and issues they deem worthy and important  irrespective of expectations on returns or long-term performance. After all, its their money, the report said.

But large, public funds like CalPERS should be held to a different standard, and be expected to execute an investment strategy that prioritizes stable, long-term performance for beneficiaries who expect and need these resources to be available to support their retirement.

Ironically, the ACCF report comes at a time when CalPERS has been criticized by some for not taking a more aggressive stance on environmental, political and social issues.

Activists and some Democrats in the California Statehouse earlier this year called on CalPERS to divest from some companies with investments in projects ranging from the Dakota Access Pipeline to President Donald Trumps plans to build a border wall.

CalPERS has already stopped investing in coal and tobacco interests.

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rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski
Qualcomm appears to have yet another fight on its hands  this time over its pending $38 billion bid to buy Dutch automotive and Internet of Things chip maker NXP Semiconductors.

Activist investor Elliott Advisors Ltd., which owns 6 percent of NXPs shares, on Monday submitted a letter and financial analysis to shareholders outlining its case as to why NXP is worth $135 per share on a stand-alone basis.

Elliott said it would not tender its shares in support of the acquisition at the current price, and urged other NXP shareholders to also withhold support.

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Qualcomm needs 80 percent of NXPs shareholders to agree to sell their shares in order to close the deal. As of last month, less than 5 percent have agreed to do so,

In October 2016, Qualcomm inked a deal to buy NXP for $110 per share in a move to diversity its business beyond smartphones. NXP makes chips and micro-controllers used in cars, secure payment cards and the industrial Internet of things.

Elliott argues that NXP signed the agreement at a time when its stock price was temporarily depressed.

We believe NXPs prospects are bright. Approximately half of NXPs revenue is exposed to exciting growth engines of the semiconductor market  automotive and industrial, Elliott said in its letter to NXP shareholders. We believe NXP shareholders have the opportunity to unlock a material valuation gap that exists today.

The proposed merger has been bogged down in part by delays in winning approval from nine global regulators. Six have given the go-ahead, but Europe, China and South Korea have yet to sign off.

Qualcomm expects to get all regulatory approvals by year end or early next year. In a statement, the San Diego company said it disagreed with Elliotts calculations as to what NXP is worth.

Elliotts value assertion for NXP is unsupportable and clearly nothing more than an attempt to advance its own self-serving agenda, Qualcomm said. We remain fully committed to closing the acquisition of NXP and believe that the agreed-upon price of $110 (a share) is full and fair.

Elliotts move for a higher price has been expected by analysts for some time. Qualcomm has said any discussions should be held after regulatory approvals.

Analysts see Qualcomms acquisition of NXP as critical for its case to fend off a $103 billion hostile takeover bid Broadcom Ltd.

Last week, Broadcom nominated 11 alternative candidates to Qualcomms board of directors after Qualcomms current board rejected its $70 per share acquisition offer. Shareholders will vote on Qualcomm board candidates at its March 6 annual meeting.

Broadcom says its offer to buy Qualcomm stands whether the NXP deal is completed at the current $110 per share price or is terminated.

It is unclear whether Broadcoms offer would stand if Qualcomm agreed to pay more for NXP..

Qualcomm also is fighting in court with Apple and antitrust regulators over its patent licensing business practices. The legal battle has depressed the companys stock price this year, paving the way for Broadcoms takeover offer.

Qualcomms shares rose 94 cents to close at $65.18 Monday. NXPs shares gained 55 cents to $115.84. Broadcoms stock was up 4 cents to close at $259.95.

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mike.freeman@sduniontribune.com;

Twitter:@TechDiego

760-529-4973
San Diegos elected leaders on Tuesday will weigh two rival proposals for regulating the citys thousands of short-term rentals, following years of heated debate.

Short-term rentals on platforms like Airbnb are currently deemed illegal by the City Attorneys office.

One proposal, drafted by four of the nine council members, would allow short-term rentals to operate year-round, but would require a three-night minimum stay in the heavily impacted coastal communities. Owners would be limited to no more than three short-term rentals.

A competing proposal is more restrictive, allowing hosts to rent out only their primary residence for up to 90 days a year.

Whatever regulations are eventually adopted, permits would be required, with part of the fee going to pay for 13 more code enforcement positions to address nuisance and noise violations.

Short-term rental debate: Heres the full story

Nearly three years ago, hundreds of people showed up at San Diego City Hall, half of them pleading with their elected leaders to shut down the short-term vacation rentals flooding their neighborhoods, the other half begging for restraint in over-regulating a home sharing enterprise they said was helping pay their bills.

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This Tuesday, expect the same passionate pleas and the same deep divisions in the community as the City Council weighs two rival proposals for regulating the thousands of San Diego vacation rentals popularized by the online home sharing platform, Airbnb.

What is different this time -- following multiple hours-long public hearings  is that a majority of the council appears poised to embrace new rules that would allow short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods while imposing some limitations on investor-owned properties. And in a nod to heavily impacted beach communities, a three-night minimum stay would be required in only those areas.

Still, major challenges remain for what is being billed as a compromise approach drafted by four of the nine council members. For one, there are lingering legal questions raised by the City Attorneys Office, plus there is still a strong constituency favoring a competing proposal by City Councilwoman Barbara Bry that would allow individuals to rent out only their primary residences and for no more than 90 days a year.

Where there is little disagreement is over the need to act swiftly on long overdue regulations of a home-sharing industry that shows no signs of slowing.

In San Diego, listings on Airbnb alone, from shared rooms to entire homes, have nearly quadrupled to more than 8,400 in just three years, according to AirDNA, a company that tracks rental activity on the platform.

We cant keep doing the wild, wild West, and we cant do a ban, said Councilman Scott Sherman, one of the four council members supporting the more permissive plan for short-term rentals. Theirs is a bipartisan coalition, with Democrats David Alvarez and Chris Ward joining Republicans Sherman and Mark Kersey. Councilman Chris Cate, also a Republican, has said he is supportive of their approach.

One of the more controversial provisions, though, would allow individuals to rent out up to three properties on a short-term basis, defined as less than 30 days. Sherman said he had been opposed to any limitation while Ward had favored allowing no more than one rental per operator.

This is a compromise in the middle, Sherman said. I dont think at the end of the day youre going to have an effect on the housing stock because at some point youll reach a point of market saturation (of short-term rentals).

Bry counters that her colleagues proposed regulations are not really a compromise because they continue to encourage the operation of investor rentals that she is certain are depleting the stock of vitally needed housing.

How many such rentals would actually revert to long-term housing were they curtailed remains open to debate. Some suggest that they would simply go underground, but Bry is convinced that the competing plan will only exacerbate the citys shortage of housing.

Our proposal truly focuses on the preservation of housing stock, said Bry, whose council district includes La Jolla where hundreds of homes are being rented out on a short-term basis. Were not producing enough housing every year, and whats clear is every year more and more residences are being turned into short-term rentals. If something close to the Ward proposal passes, investors will come here in droves to buy homes in our single-family neighborhoods and turn them into mini hotels.

Just how many are there?

While figures vary wildly on the number of entire homes, condos and apartments that are being rented out on a short-term basis in San Diego, the best estimate to date is nearly 9,000. Thats according to a report released last week by Host Compliance, a San Francisco-based data analytics and consulting firm that works with dozens of cities across the country.

There also about 2,500 more homes, the company reports, where hosts remain on site and rent out their spare bedrooms. There is no disagreement among council members on that category of home sharing, which they support.

While short-term rentals have popped up throughout San Diego, the Host Compliance analysis shows the heaviest concentration is in 10 neighborhoods, with about half of the rentals in just five communities  Mission and Pacific Beach, downtown, La Jolla and Uptown.

In order to address the rising number of nuisance complaints around vacation rentals, any new regulations adopted by the council would require hosts to apply for a permit and pay a fee, now proposed at $912, which would help pay for 13 more code enforcement positions.

Like other cities that have wrestled with how to tame the Airbnb-fueled rise in vacation rentals, San Diego leaders are having to balance a number of vexing issues raised by both sides.

Bound up in the debate are growing concerns about the impact short-term rentals are having on the housing market vs. the rights of property owners to manage their homes as they see fit.

Elected leaders also have been warned by the California Coastal Commission to not overly restrict a form of lodging that it says widens access to the coast by providing affordable overnight stays in typically high-cost communities.

In a letter delivered Friday to the city, the commission staff said it has concerns with a 90-day limitation on vacation rentals or any maximum-stay limit

Impact on housing supply

The report by Host Compliance sheds some light on just how frequently homes are being rented out and what share might otherwise be long-term housing were it not for the financial appeal of a vacation rental.

An estimated 22 percent of the citys whole-home rentals, or 1,951 homes, are being rented out for more than 90 days a year, says the company, which scrubbed 24 home-sharing sites and filtered out repeat listings to come up with unique rentals. A far larger share  57 percent  are being rented to visitors less than 31 days a year, suggesting many of those may already be occupied year-round and not available to people in need of long-term housing.

Airbnb executives strongly refute the notion that platforms like theirs are contributing to a housing shortage when short-term rentals represent a small fraction of the citys housing stock  although they do account for a much larger share of the citys more than 26,000 vacant units.

Lobbyists for the San Francisco company have met with a number of council members in recent months, as have neighborhood groups pushing for a crackdown on short-term rentals. In recent years, Airbnb has done battle with cities like San Francisco and New York, which have imposed more stringent restrictions. Brys proposal closely mirrors regulations in San Francisco.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles, which also has been struggling to agree on regulations, is weighing a proposal to limit such rentals to 180 days a year but only in hosts primary residences.

I started my career in labor and this is an issue I care about very much, but the reality is the mass just isnt there, said Christopher Nulty, Airbnbs head of public affairs. Trying to draw a line between decades of housing challenges in California and a platform that has existed for eight years is disingenuous. Theres always been a vacation industry in San Diego but now there will be clear rules to address issues that people have been concerned about for a long time.

San Diego economist Alan Gin disagrees, asserting that any amount of short-term rentals diminishes the supply of housing in the face of mounting demand. A study released earlier this year by researchers from USC, UCLA and MIT lends some support to a correlation between short-term rentals and housing prices.

It found that for every 10 percent growth in Airbnb listings, rents increased by 0.42 percent and home prices by 0.76 percent.

My guess is if a unit wasnt used for Airbnb, it would be rented out, generating income, Gin said. I dont think an absentee owner is just going to let the property sit there unused.

Also underlying the debate over short-term rentals is a legal opinion issued earlier this year by City Attorney Mara Elliott, who broke with her predecessors and concluded that because they are not defined anywhere in San Diegos municipal code they are not allowed, despite a long history of vacation rentals in the citys beach communities.

Her office also still has legal concerns with key provisions in the four council-member proposal, among them the limit on investor properties. It raises questions, she said, of equal protection by imposing different regulations for different types of short-term rental hosts.

Critics of vacation rentals have called on Elliott to enforce the law, but its not that simple, she said.

I cant prosecute someone because the law is not clear in what they can and cannot do so we have to begin with what is a short-term rental? Thats what we need to accomplish next week, she said. In my opinion theyre clearly prohibited but the question is what is they?

Hosts vs. neighborhoods

Until six months ago, Ronan Gray would feel his stress level rising as he headed home each night to Pacific Beach, wondering what new set of visitors would be occupying the house next door, what loud parties would be interrupting his familys sleep.

In the months since the three-bedroom home was sold to new owners, he has slept through the night and his health has improved, but he said hes no less determined to see the City Council outlaw the rentals he said are clearly illegal.

In March, Mara Elliott said, youre right, theyre not allowed in residential zones, and we believe there are good reasons why they shouldnt be there, said Gray, CEO of Save San Diego Neighborhoods, which has been holding rallies, lobbying council members and sending emails to build support for its position. Why do they want to change the law? Its to benefit a small group of people who own these. We just dont want them.

San Diego restaurateur David Contreras-Curiel, whose family owns a half-dozen restaurants, said hes invested considerable money rehabbing the four short-term rentals he owns, which he estimates yield roughly twice the rent he would collect from long-term tenants. The revenue, he said, has helped him cover the last two years of his nieces college tuition.

I believe in regulations, but I dont think you should be restricted as to what you can do with your property as long as youre a responsible host, said Curiel, who is contemplating opening a boutique hotel. Im in the hospitality business already so this is a different aspect of that where Im hosting people in my home.

San Diego hoteliers, like the hotel industry as a whole, have long argued for much tougher regulations of short-term rentals. They have come out in support of Brys proposal.

This is not because the competitive nature of this, insists Bill Evans of Evans Hotels, which operates hotels on Mission Bay and La Jolla. My whole feeling about this issue is that it is about as anti-affordable housing as you can get. If our employees dont have a place where they can live, theyll move to another place where there is affordable housing.

While the councils ability to take action Tuesday seems more likely than ever, there is one thing that is certain, said Councilman Sherman.

No one will be totally happy with whatever passes. Its such an emotional issue.

Union-Tribune staff writer Phillip Molnar contributed to this report.

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lori.weisberg@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-2251

Twitter: @loriweisberg
ABOARD THE CORONADO  When the littoral combat ship Coronado sailed into San Diego last week after its maiden deployment to the Far East, controversy followed in its wake.

Maligned for a decade of design glitches, cost overruns, shipyard delays and leadership snafus, the LCS program was mired in dysfunction when the nimble, futuristic, trimarin-hulled vessel departed Naval Base San Diego for Singapore on June 22, 2016.

The Coronado broke down five weeks later and spent a month in Hawaii undergoing repairs before it resumed its journey. Five of the eight LCS warships delivered to the Navy already had suffered what sailors call engineering casualties  expensive mechanical breakdowns at sea that sideline vessels for weeks, often tied to shoddy design and poorly trained crews.

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Originally conceived as a high-tech fleet of cheap and fast minimally-staffed warships capable of fighting in the shallow waters of the Pacific Ocean and Persian Gulf, the LCS program ended up generating more than $12.4 billion in wasted spending, according to U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

But the return of the Coronado following a relatively trouble-free and boring tour after it left Hawaii might have proved the naysayers wrong, according to Capt. Jordy M. Harrison, once a bitter critic of the program but now one of its strongest champions as commander of San Diego-based Littoral Combat Ship Squadron 1.

Are the criticisms valid today? Or are they criticisms that were valid five or seven years ago? Harrison said. The programs matured. Weve made systematic changes from crew training, crew readiness, the hull development and improvements to the repairability of the ships.

A dozen other Coronado leaders echoed Harrison while sailing home. They pointed to reforms instituted by Vice Adm. Tom Rowden, the commander of Naval Surface Forces, late last year that improved the program.

They said that Rowdens blueprint to revamping the troubled LCS fleet worked, leading to better training for sailors, larger crews to address shipboard problems, tougher accountability standards for commanders and a radical reconception of how the vessels would be organized, equipped and deployed for combat.

For example, the troubled LCS warships that preceded the Coronado in Southeast Asia  the Freedom and the Fort Worth  were converted to testing and training vessels and will no longer deploy, replaced by more dependable and newer warships that would be marked for specific combat duties such as mine sweeping, anti-submarine operations and surface warfare.

Before, they had been envisioned as jack-of-all trades ships boasting small crews of around 40 sailors and increasingly dependent on automation while patrolling the bustling sea lanes in the western Pacific. Now it goes to sea with at least 70 sailors. Even for ships based outside the U.S.  known as forward-deployed  crews will continue to train in San Diego before rotating out to Singapore for six-month tours overseas.

They plus-upped the crew, said Chief Quartermaster Paul Sanchez, a 24-year veteran of the Navys surface force, more than a third of his time spent on the Coronado and three other littoral combat ships. That made a huge difference. And our crew right now? Theyre great. Because were minimally-manned, we learn to do multiple tasks. When I went on a (destroyer) or any other ship, I had a team of quartermasters. Here, Im one of one. Im the only quartermaster, but technology helps.

Over the past eight months, the Coronado performed far better than expected, recording superior fuel endurance and improved weapons reliability, according to the Navy. While typical equipment snafus require two weeks of repairs, Coronado brought it down to about four days, officials say.

Theres something that comes from being forward deployed and having your sustainment and your equipments endurance stressed, particularly when youre forward deployed for 18 months, said the Coronados skipper, Cmdr. Douglas Meagher. I think that we learned that equipment on a legacy ship struggles to get through a six- or eight-month deployment, but the Coronado maintained its readiness for the duration of the 18 months.

Between April and its return home, Meaghers crew conducted maneuvers with the navies of 16 nations during 11 training exercises and made 10 port visits across the region to bolster ties to partners. On Aug. 22 during the Pacific Griffin war games with Singapores navy, the Coronado launched an MQ-8B Fire Scout to find a target far beyond the visual range of the deck and then fired a Harpoon Block 1C anti-ship missile to kill it.

To Meagher and Harrison, that kill also confirmed Rowdens distributed lethality concept, a suite of tactics designed to put a potential enemy at risk by striking from multiple places at once. Relying on stealth, speed, cunning and weapons like the Harpoon, its designed to let a pawn like the Coronado take down a queen like a foes carrier.

The lethality capabilities the LCS brings with a Harpoon missile is equivalent to the greatest surface warfare capability we have in the fleet, Harrison said.

Unlike traditional warships, the Coronado boasts a light aluminum hull, shallow draft and water jets instead of propellers. Once armed with missiles and a deck gun, the Navy hopes it will become the worlds most lethal jet ski. Harrison sees it and its sister ships operating far beyond a destroyer screen, speeding from carrier strike groups to nuzzle near a shoal.

The high speed, the maneuverability and the ability to tuck in close to an island chain make the targeting solution for an adversary very complex because of the radar clutter or even just picking out the ship, Harrison said.

The littoral combat ship Omaha will be commissioned in San Diego on Feb. 3. Designed to replace the aging fleet of Avenger-class minesweepers, the Manchester is expected to join it here over the summer.

Mandy Smithberger, director of the Straus Military Reform Project at the nonprofit Washington, D.C.-based Project on Government Oversight, believes the Navy will try to keep making the littoral combat ships work for their needs, but the path they took to get here was unnecessarily wasteful, forcing taxpayers to pay for costly changes and retrofits during a set sail before it fails strategy.

She pointed to the Navys decision to seek bids on a new frigate to replace the LCS as a sign of a program thats still bedeviled by longstanding problems.

There are still concerns about the survivability of the LCS and whether it can survive a hit, which is what the frigate program may address, she said by email. But its clear that most of the decisions about this program were to protect jobs, not about what was best for the Navy. Right now it looks like the LCS wont be able to fulfill the mine countermeasure mission, and cant perform traditional frigate missions, either.

But Bryan McGrath, a retired destroyer commander who directs the Maryland-based FerryBridge Group of consultants, said hes bullish on LCS and its ability to do the limited things we designed it to do, like minesweeping and anti-submarine warfare.

Im actually beginning to think that there might be value in continuing to build LCS even as the (frigate) acquisition is underway. We simply need more ships, and one way to get the platform numbers up is to build relatively inexpensive ships already in serial production. That said, we have to insist that the base model LCSs evolve to become more lethal than they currently are, he said by email.

As the Coronados quiet return to San Diego showed, thats exactly what the Navy plans to do.

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cprine@sduniontribune.com
A decision handed down recently in a military appellate court sheds light on a sexual scandal that rocked Marine Corps Air Station Miramar last year, detailing a senior enlisted leaders escapades with a superior officer in their offices and inappropriate dalliances with his junior troops.

A tribunal at the United States Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals has refused to vacate the conviction of ex-Master Sgt. Frederico A. Rico Williams, a 21-year veteran of the service and one of Miramars senior enlisted leaders before his Jan.16, 2016, court-martial conviction and dramatic fall from power.

A Marine jury  called a panel in the military  found him guilty of disobeying a lawful general order, uttering a false official statement, adultery, larceny and obstructing justice. He was sentenced to six months in the brig, busted down to private and evicted from the corps on a bad-conduct discharge, which prevented him from retiring from the service and collecting military pension and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs benefits.

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In his appeal, Williams, 41, of San Diego, argued that his transgressions were minor and the discharge too severe, but the three judges disagreed and said the punishment fit the litany of crimes he committed.

This characterization of (his) misconduct demonstrates failure to grasp its true impact, and to understand how inimical it is to military service, wrote Navy Capt. Colleen Glaser-Allen,the chief judge, in her 10-page opinion. Senior enlisted noncommissioned officers like the appellant are the backbone of the Marine Corps and the naval service as a whole  and as such, have a particular responsibility to lead by example.

Reached by telephone, Williams said he was disappointed by the ruling but knew he did wrong. He vowed to appeal the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces in Washington, D.C. In the meantime, a separate case is percolating through the Naval Clemency and Parole Board.

I definitely have a sour taste in my mouth. I sat in the brig for six months and wasnt allowed to retire from the Marine Corps after a good 21-year career, he said.

Married in 2008, Williams was posted to Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 3 at Miramars 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing four years later. He served as both the maintenance management chief and one of the most senior non-commissioned officers inside the Wing, responsible for overseeing supplies flowing to mechanics.

During an investigation into a discrimination complaint against other senior leaders, a witness mentioned a problem in a $332 travel claim Williams submitted for a trip to Arizonas Marine Corps Air Station Yuma. According to the corps, his claim was based on a forged letter stating that there was no on-base lodging for Williams to use, triggering a probe by Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Agents soon learned about his extramarital affairs and other inappropriate relationships. The women included a superior officer identified only as 1stLt SS, a pair of unnamed sergeants below the rank of Williams and a female friend from his high school days who accompanied him to Yuma on the trip.

Williams told the woman to lie and say that she was his cousin, if anyone asked, according to his court-martial documents. The military outlaws adulterous relationships and fraternization between the ranks and will prosecute them if they threaten to destroy unit cohesion, are tied to other crimes or bring the service into disrepute.

The appellant repeatedly acted with flagrant disregard of the consequences upon his unit by having regular adulterous intercourse with a superior officer in his office, suggesting a subordinate sergeant hold the camera to film his sexual escapades, having sex with a different subordinate, stealing from the government, and telling a civilian mistress to lie about the nature of their relationship to anyone who asked, the chief judge wrote.

Significantly, when word of the adultery and fraternization spread to other active-duty Marines, (Williams) feigned offense at the rumors, continued his behavior and blatantly lied to an NCIS agents just hours after having sexual relations with the superior officer, stating six times, I dont deal with military when referring to his sexual exploits, she wrote.

The superior officer received nonjudicial punishment for conduct unbecoming an officer, an administrative sanction that falls far below a federal criminal conviction. She resigned her commission and exited the service, according to Marine spokeswoman Capt. Morgan M. Frazer.

This type of behavior and mindset is not tolerated within 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and is not consistent with our core values of honor, courage and commitment that are demonstrated by the vast majority of Marines on a daily basis, Frazer said by email.

Williams told The San Diego Union-Tribune that two senior commissioned officers in the command were allowed to quietly retire after they were caught in unlawful romances. He insisted that the lieutenant in his case testified against him only after she reached a plea deal that gave her a much lighter penalty for the same conduct.

We are confident that the command conducted a thorough investigation into the matter and took appropriate administrative or disciplinary action for all persons involved, Frazer said, adding the the wing regularly assesses command climate and conducts annual training to ensure Marines understand and comply with Marine Corps policies and procedures.

Williams hopes that new judges will reward him for his two deployments each to Iraq and Afghanistan, three meritorious promotions, two Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals and five Navy Achievement Medals for superior service and let him retire at a lower rank. He remained married and said he counted on a military pension to help support four children, he said.

The clerk of court for the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces said that paperwork requesting a review of Williams case had yet to be submitted.

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cprine@sduniontribune.com
An armored amphibious vehicle stuck in a rut along a Camp Pendleton road nicked a hidden gas line during a September exercise, engulfing 14 Marines and a sailor in a fireball that grew into a 20-foot pillar of flames, according to an official report released by the Marine Corps on Monday.

While its driver tried to extricate the assault amphibious vehicle  nicknamed an amtrack in the Marines  from a ditch, a backfiring engine sparked the gas detonation shortly after 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 13 along Range 301 Road near the Bravo 3 combat town training site, 1st Marine Division investigators concluded.

They attempted to get unstuck several times and then I heard a pop sound and then it exploded, wrote an unnamed Marine in an official statement included in the heavily redacted 210-page report.

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Four amtrack crew members from 1st Platoon, A Co., were burned as were nine Marines and a Navy corpsman from C Co., 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, which was conducting pre-deployment war games when another vehicles tread got tangled in communications wire, forcing them off the road to let smaller trucks pass.

Many of the facial and hand injuries might have been lessened if Marines had been wearing flame retardant clothing on those affected areas, wrote Maj. Gen. Eric M. Smith, the commander of 1st Marine Division, on an endorsing document attached to the report.

Smith noted, however, that the amtrack crew wore their special protective equipment and still suffered burns. Those flames were described by unnamed witnesses in the report as rolling and like a blowtorch in intensity.

Temperatures were so high that the gas pipe welded to the vehicles steel tread. Photographs included in the report show recovered weapons that appear melted in places, with warped barrels and missing metal pieces.

Along with the stream of natural gas, about 170 gallons of diesel fuel also fed the fire, which consumed the entire steel roof and the right side of the armored vehicle.

One of the unidentified witnesses recalled seeing a Marine with very bad burns to his upper body which was exposed through his tattered blouse. One was lying on his back and the other was on his knees looking at his hands. Both were conscious and screaming.

Six paramedic units, three brush fire engines, a ladder truck, five aero-medical ambulances and a firefighting aircraft rushed to the mishap, but the blaze wasnt extinguished until more than six hours later, after workers closed off the gas line.

The report revealed that the officials planning the exercise did not know that a Marine D8T bulldozer three months earlier had ruptured the same line about 90 feet north of the Sept. 13 accident.

Once the dozer was out of the rut, the operator shut the dozer off, heard a hissing sound and cleared all personnel from the area, according to a separate report by Camp Pendletons Range Control office that was attached to the 1st Marine Division probe.

The gas line apparently cut by both vehicles was painted gray and blended in with earth that had eroded during winter storms, exposing the pipe; three nearby signs that might have warned of an underground hazard were faded by the sun and overgrown with weeds, investigators found.

With that said,even if the signs had been clearly readable, the average person would interpret them to mean that no digging should occur in the vicinity of the gas line, but that driving in the area would be safe, Smith wrote.

The Range Control report noted that the troops had slept only about seven hours over two nights of training before the accident occurred, indicating sleep deprivation might have contributed to the calamity.

A separate investigation conducted by Camp Pendleton-based Marines Corps Installation West has not been released.

The probe released Monday did not assign blame to any Marine or sailor. It also did not address who owned or was responsible for maintaining the gas line

In September, officials at San Diego Gas & Electric, which supplies natural gas to the base, insisted it was not their pipe and Camp Pendleton officials have declined comment.

SDG&E is the target of a lawsuit filed Dec. 5 by attorneys representing one of the Marine victims, Cpl. Carlos Tinoco. He and his wife, Maria, allege the gas utility was negligent because of substandard installation of the pipes on base.

Tinoco suffered third-degree burns that have permanently injured him, according to the lawsuit. He was one of 13 troops sped to civilian hospitals after they escaped the fire.

Eight went to the burn center at the University of California San Diego medical center. The University of California Irvine medical center in Orange County received four more and one was transported to Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla.

I am grateful to the medical staff at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, the Burn Center at the University of California San Diego, the Burn Center at the University of California Irvine, Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, and Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton for their expert and compassionate care for our Marines and Corpsman, said Smith in a written statement provided to The San Diego Union-Tribune. The injured Marines and Corpsman have all been released from the hospital, but several are still receiving care for their burns.

The report recommended that an unnamed person receive the Navy and Marine Corps medal for bravely rushing into the burning amtrack to pull a victim to safety. Three other unidentified people were commended for setting up medical triage and treating the burned troops.

The Marines and sailors inside the amtrack survived because they followed their escape training, the report indicated. They and other Marines and corpsmen applied immediate first aid, which also helped to save lives.

Military training is an inherently dangerous task, and I am proud of every Marine and sailor who volunteers to serve their country and this division. My commitment is to ensure that our training is as safe as possible. The training we conduct ensures our readiness to respond to any task we are assigned, Smiths statement said.

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cprine@sduniontribune.com
Shortly after deplaning in Tijuana, Ed and Carol Asbury and seven family members stepped into San Diego on Thursday, rested and tanned after three weeks of fishing and sunbathing in Cabo San Lucas.

Like a growing number of U.S residents traveling to Mexico, the Poway retirees were testing the pedestrian port of entry known as the Cross Border Xpress, or CBX. The verdict: It saved time, and money, and they would do it again.

A first for the U.S.-Mexico border, the facility is celebrating two years of operation this month with a record number of travelers as the busy Christmas season approaches. CBX is a port of entry that is privately operated, though staffed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. The only users are toll-paying airline passengers flying in and out of Tijuanas A.L. Rodriguez International Airport.

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The facilitys opening in December 2015 drew widespread attention as an innovative public-private partnershipan alternative model for building badly needed border infrastructure. Years in the planning and negotiating, CBX has also been held up as example bilateral collaboration between Mexico and the United Statesa 390-foot bridge that spans the border wall separating Tijuana and San Diego.

For a two-way ticket of $30 per person, users can avoid border lines, with discounts for family groups. Directly connected to the Tijuana airport, the bridge gives travelers access not only to cheaper flightscosts on average are 35 percent less expensive than those of U.S. based airlines--but also to a broad range of destinations to Mexicos interior that are not served by the San Diego International Airport.

We see it as a growing opportunity to bring more international visitors to San Diego, said Joe Terzi, president and CEO of the San Diego Tourism Authority. Its a great addition to our community.

Members of the Asbury family of San Diego County at the Cross Border Xpress facility in Otay Mesa. They were returning from family vacation in Cabo San Lucas. (Sandra Dibble/San Diego Union-Tribune )

A small but growing number are U.S. travelers like the Asburys are flying for the first time out of Tijuanatypically for Mexican beach destinations. They can be seen in flip flops and shorts, walking through the Cross-Border facility, mingling with upscale Mexican travelers carrying designer-brand luggage and Mexican-Americans pushing piles of suitcases bursting with clothes and gifts for family members back in Mexico.

One afternoon last week, the four members of the Abarca Castillo family of Tepic, Nayarit, prepared to return home after visiting Disneyland and Hollywood.

Nearby, Brenda Miranda of Delano was beginning her journey to Iramuco, Guanajuato, with three of her sons, eager to see her parents for the first time in 10 years.

Maria Jose Alanis, a psychologist and designer, was going home after a five-day visit with friends in San Diego and Tijuana. Her suitcase was filled with books purchased at the Barnes & Noble in Otay Ranch.

I think its amazing, said Alanis as she prepared to cross to Tijuanas airport. The biggest benefit has been avoiding the lengthy northbound waits, she said.

I have been coming here since I was little, and when I used to cross at San Ysidro, it would be about three or four hours by car.

The rapidly rising demand for the CBXs services has exceeded even the expectations of its private operator, Otay-Tijuana Venture LLC. Last year, in its first full year of operations, 1.3 million people used the bridge, and the projection this year is for 1.9 million users. The forecast for next year is 2.4 million.

For Raul Revuelta, CEO of the Cross Border Xpress, the bridge is daily evidence of the strong ties that bind Mexico and California. When the Oakland Raiders squared off against the New England Patriots last month in Mexico Citys Estadio Azteca, the bridge saw a spike in Mexican-Americans fans in Raiders hats heading south to support their team.

Another surge came in October, when CBX users stepped through the covered bridge bearing religious crosses as they returned from Guadalajara, where they had traveled to attend the citys giant festivities honoring the Virgen de Zapopan.

The last Friday of each month, when Mexican students have a day off, typically brings Mexican families flying into Tijuana, then using the bridge to cross into southern California for the long weekend.

The most traveled period is the December Christmas season, which draws all categories of travelers going in both directions, Revuelta said.

The bulk of CBXs users, close to 70 percent, are Mexican-Americans traveling to and from Mexicos interior. The second largest group, about 25 percent, is made up of Mexican travelers able to afford U.S. vacations to shop and visit attractions such as Disneyland. U.S.-based travelers without family ties in Mexico make up less than five percent of the total.

In the coming years, we are going to see a big growth of San Diegans, said Revuelta. But today, they represent a tiny fraction of the bridges userswith the majority of travelers are coming from the Los Angeles area.

CBXs operations and ownership are closely linked the Tijuana airport, operated by Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico (GAP). Though other factors such as the peso-dollar exchange rate and regional economic growth have played a role, the airports operators say the bridge has contributed to their dramatic growth--from 4.83 million passengers in 2015, before the bridge opened, to a 7.2 million passengers this year.

According to GAP, the fast-growing Tijuana airport is Mexicos second best connected, and its fifth largest in terms of traffic. Users can choose among 30 Mexican domestic destinations and three foreign ones: Shanghai, China; El Salvador, and Guatemala. The Mexican airline Aeromexico next year is preparing to add a second Chinese flight to Beijing.

In Tijuana, CBXs opening generated criticism from those who said the city was reaping few of its benefits, with small businesses and airport shuttles in the city especially worried about a drop in clientele.

David Moreno Laveaga, the citys Secretary of Economic Development, said the project is good in terms of image, but I wish Tijuana would get a piece of the revenues that they are generating, so we could invest in our city in terms of infrastructure.

Even as CBX has helped draw unprecedented numbers of travelers to the Tijuana airport, San Diegos passenger numbers have been on the rise as well, from just over 20 million in 2015 to more than 21 million expected this year, airport figures show.

San Diego continues to offer flights to Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta and Mexico City.

sandra.dibble@sduniontribune.com

@sandradibble
Palestinian rights groups rallied in Los Angeles Sunday afternoon against President Trumps announcement that the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

More than 300 protesters gathered peacefully outside the federal building on Wilshire Boulevard near UCLA, holding signs that proclaimed Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine. They chanted, Free, free Palestine, occupation is a crime, and, No wall, no ban, no embassy on stolen land.

Jerusalem is, and will remain a Palestinian city, said Amani Barakat, national chair of Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return, who organized the rally. A city of inclusion and coexistence rather than exclusion and bigotry.

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A group of about 30 counter-protesters gathered across the street holding Stand with Israel signs and yelling, Stand with Gods people.

Many protesters were Trump supporters and familiar faces at Southern California rallies. Rabbi Moshe Parry, who held a flag of Israel, said he came to show that Israel belongs to Jewish people and has for thousands of years.

God gave it to us, he said.

Trump made the announcement on Wednesday, saying old challenges demand new approaches, and he initiated a process to transfer the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to the ancient city.

Today we finally acknowledge the obvious: that Jerusalem is Israels capital, he declared in a speech at the White House. This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality. It is also the right thing to do.

The change reversed decades of U.S. policy and sparked widespread international criticism.

Sundays protesters said Palestinians have endured discrimination, ethnic cleansing and occupation, with illegal Israeli settlements built on land they see as a future Palestinian state. Many said they recognize that Jerusalem is an important site for Jewish people, but said it should be regarded as important for people of other faiths as well.

Protesters were unsurprised by Trumps announcement but saw it as a reckless move that crossed the line and eroded chances for both sides to reach a peaceful agreement.

I thought it was wrongheaded and dangerous, said Estee Chandler of the group Jewish Voice for Peace. I fear for the safety and security of all people in the Middle East.

The protesters also took aim at Saturdays bombing of Gaza by Israel.

Israeli airstrikes killed two Hamas members early Saturday following a rocket attack on Israel, according to the Associated Press. The Israeli military said it targeted four Hamas facilities in response to rockets fired the previous night, including one that landed in the town of Sderot without causing casualties or major damage. The military said it struck warehouses and weapons manufacturing sites, after which Hamas said it had recovered the bodies of two of its men.

Trumps announcement sparked protests around the world. Others were not as peaceful as in Los Angeles.

Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons Sunday into crowds gathered near the U.S. embassy in Beirut. The New York Times reported that thousands of protesters chanted slogans against Trumps orders. Some threw rocks and set tires and a large trash container on fire outside the embassys gated compound.

Other news outlets reported Sunday that a security guard was stabbed in Jerusalem in what appeared to be the first attack since Trumps announcement.

Trumps declaration proves the very points we have been making for years: The U.S. is incapable of being an even-handed mediator, said Yousef Munayyer, executive director of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights.

andrea.castillo@latimes.com

@andreamcastillo

UPDATES:

6:15 p.m.: This article was updated with additional comments from protesters and counter-protesters at the rally and information about violence at other protests in the Middle East.

This article was originally published at 2:30 p.m.
A ghostly chant of Bill of Rights, Bill of Rights drifted out of a sidewalk tent as the United Nations monitor on extreme poverty walked the streets of skid row as part of a national tour investigating human rights conditions for the poorest U.S. citizens.

Philip Alston, an Australian and a New York University law professor, got a full taste of the epicenter of L.A. homelessness last week, passing by a shelter courtyard with dozens of people bedding down on the concrete because there was no room inside.

He and his entourage veered into the street to avoid a shirtless man who lay groaning across a wheelchair, a colostomy bag showing below his shorts hem.

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I think its on a scale I hadnt anticipated, block after block of people, Alston said at the tours end. When you see how concentrated it is, its more shocking.

Alston was appointed by the U.N. human rights council as the special rapporteur on extreme poverty to investigate the plight of the most vulnerable people in the economic doldrums of the richest nation in the world. The two-week mission visited four states, with stops in Washington and San Franciscos Tenderloin district, another homeless enclave.

Los Angeles was the only two-day stop for Alston, who met privately with local government officials and civil rights lawyers, presided over a skid row town hall and walked its streets.

Alston said that because the United States  alone among big industrial nations  has consistently rejected access to housing and sanitation as essential human rights, he is probing whether economic disparities prevent poor people from exercising their full political and civil rights.

The U.S. is not expected to face sanctions if violations are found, but Alston said his recommendations will be closely watched. In his previous post as special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, Alston drew international attention with a scathing report describing the Obama administrations drone war as a vaguely defined license to kill.

There is a significant international audience and other countries are watching, Alston said to open the town hall Wednesday. They want to know if the U.S. is living up to its great standards as far as human rights.

Much of the town hall testimony focused on racism and what speakers described as the pervasive criminalization of poverty.

The omnipresence of law enforcement induces fear in people already dealing with a high level of stress and trauma, said Danny Park, who runs a skid row pop-up cafe.

Alstons street ambassador for the tour was General Dogon, a skid row organizer with the Los Angeles Community Action Network, which hosted the town hall.

Dogon was highly critical of the citys approach to homelessness as he led Alston on a walking tour. He said the street cleanings were designed to harass homeless people, accused police of confiscating their belongings and said skid row enforcement was aimed at driving the poor out of downtown.

But theres no place for people to go, said Dogon, who recommended the police budget be diverted to building low-cost housing on city-owned lots.

Alston acknowledged Dogons street-level view was very different from what he heard in the halls of power.

Politicians in any context are there to put a positive spin on what theyre doing and to insist that existing problems are about to be resolved, he said. Thats all to be expected.

As Alston wrapped up the tour, a woman tried to give him some money for your foundation.

No, I couldnt take your money  youre very kind, Alston said. I should be giving you money. Buy something good with it.

Alston plans to release his preliminary findings Friday, with a full report due in the spring.

gholland@latimes.com

Twitter: @geholland

ALSO

Up to 600,000 expected to apply when L.A. reopens Section 8 housing list this month after 13 years

Californias housing costs are driving its citizens into poverty. Lawmakers need to act now

Getting affordable housing in L.A. shouldnt be like winning the lottery
About two hundred people, including several members of Congress and a few activists from San Diego, were arrested on the steps of Capitol Hill on Wednesday after they sat down and refused to move.

Through the act of civil disobedience, the group hoped to pressure Congress to include legislation for unauthorized immigrants who came to the U.S. as children in one of the bills that must pass before the end of the year, like the spending bill. Congress extended the deadline for the spending bill last week to the Friday before Christmas.

As police processed those arrested in groups of 15, others who had attended a rally for the DREAM Act before the demonstration cheered and chanted We see you! We love you!

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Andrea Guerrero and Christian Ramirez, both of Alliance San Diego, were among those arrested. They were fined $50 each for an obstruction infraction.

Civil disobedience is itself an escalated tactic, Guerrero said. You engage in it when the normal course of business is not enough, in this case when negotiations stalled around the DREAM Act. We are stuck right now.

Guerrero and Ramirez have been campaigning for the DREAM Act to pass since the Trump administration ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in September.

The administration gave Congress until March 5 to pass legislation to protect DACA recipients.

Campaigning across the country has escalated in the last couple of weeks as many hoped that such legislation would come before the end of the year.

We have 40,000 dreamers in San Diego who are waiting on pins and needles to see if Congress is willing to act, Guerrero said. The reason why were pushing so hard for the DREAM Act to be attached to the must-pass bills is because we dont have faith that congressional leadership, which is in Republican hands, will bring a standalone bill to the floor of the House or Senate before March 5th.

Guerrero flew back to Washington on Monday to continue meeting with members of Congress about the issue.

Immigration Videos On Now New developments in family separation case 9:53 On Now A San Diego woman volunteered as a medic in Texas helping migrant families 2:35 On Now Immigration policy protests in Carlsbad nearly cancelled after permit issue 1:38 On Now When children are separated from their parents at the border, here is where they go next On Now Prospects of a deal for 'Dreamers' may hinge on separating Trump from hard-liners on his staff On Now What is DACA? On Now Border wall prototype contractors selected On Now Video: Ukrainian boxer wins asylum in U.S. On Now 30 apprehended after Border Patrol agents discover tunnel On Now Video: Kurdish diaspora prepare to vote on independence

Follow me on Facebook for live updates about immigration news

kate.morrissey@sduniontribune.com, @bgirledukate on Twitter
A North County foster group home for teenage girls has a new plan to prevent runaways: volunteer investigators watching to see where the girls are sneaking off to.

The volunteers have no interaction with the kids, some of whom have a history as victims of sex trafficking. Their only job is to observe.

But the volunteers whom Casa de Amparo wants to use carry guns. Thats a problem.

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State regulators have nixed the plan to allow these volunteers  former Navy SEALs or retired peace officers who are now licensed private investigators  to continue to work with Casa de Amparo. The state determined that use of armed security in preventing a child from taking off violates a foster childs personal rights.

The volunteers are with Saved in America, a North County-based nonprofit that works for free to locate missing and runaway children. They say they carry guns only for personal protection, especially when they are patrolling the rural areas such as around Casas campus in northern San Marcos.

Casa de Amparos Executive Director Tamara Fleck-Myers said last week she wants to see the volunteers work with her organization.

She pointed to a six-week pilot program earlier this year in which the volunteers working on the weekends helped prevent four Casa runaways from getting into cars with men. And, she said, the number of runaways  often referred to as AWOLs  dropped by 18 percent during the program, and continued to drop after the pilot ended.

Its innovative, and it works, Fleck-Myers said. We are not going to give it up. We are willing to fight it to the state level.

County officials, who are responsible for placing the girls at Casa, had concerns about the presence of guns. County Health and Human Services spokesman Craig Sturak said in an email that the county expects that group homes will comply with the state regulation.

On Wednesday, Casa learned that the states Community Care Licensing Division rejected its bid. According to the letter, the division found that any use of an armed security vendor in order to prevent AWOLs violates a foster childs personal rights to be free from, among other things, intimidation, coercion and threat.

Joseph Travers, who founded Saved in America, said his volunteers at Casa dont carry the firearms per se for the surveillance we do. The firearms we carry are for our own self-protection.

They are not security guards, he said, but are investigators conducting surveillance to make sure that predators dont harm the girls.

Many of the girls who land at Casa de Amparos relatively rural 11 acres in San Marcos are among the most vulnerable, high-risk population in foster care. Many have been sexually abused, and some have already been victims of sex trafficking.

Sometimes the girls walk away from campus, lured out by boyfriends who had previously pimped them out or may want to do so.

When a child is about to bolt, staffers try to persuade her to stay, and walk with her as she leaves the grounds. They call deputies to report her as a runaway, but they cant prevent her from going, or from getting into a waiting car. Nor can the Saved in America volunteers. During the pilot program, they were notified when a girl was leaving, and kept an eye on the child until deputies arrived.

People have this misguided notion that they grab girls.  They are not doing any of that. These guys are just laying back, doing undercover surveillance, Fleck-Myers said.

She later said: I am more concerned about what one of these pimps would do to these girls than what the Saved in America guys would do.

In the six weeks before the pilot, 60 AWOL incidents occurred. During the pilot from mid-May into June, it dropped to 49 over six weeks. And in the six weeks that followed, there were 44 AWOLs.

Fleck-Myers said the girls got the message that they were being watched, and so did the people trying to lure them out.

By October, the number of AWOL incidents had dropped to 12.

We are worried that they (AWOLs) are going to crop back up if we dont get them out here, she said of the Saved in America patrols.

Last weekend, six girls took off. (They all returned, and campus officials dont suspect human-trafficking took place.) Fleck-Myers said that in the five years the San Marcos campus has been open, every girl who had left without authorization returned.

As part of the efforts to increase security, a private company, Nortek Security and Control, just donated and installed about $12,000 worth of gear to Casa, including gating off a parking lot and installing a pass-code system to restrict access to parts of the campus.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

(760) 529-4945

Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT
A Santee couple died in what authorities described as a murder-suicide in Grantville Sunday night when the husband came to the home where his wife was staying, shot and killed her and then himself, police said.

Police were called to the residence on Elsa Road near 48th Street around 10 p.m. Sunday after someone called 911 to report a shooting.

Police found 36-year-old Marguerite Elliot and 39-year-old James Elliot dead inside the home, said San Diego police Lt. Mike Holden. They were having marital problems and the wife had gone to her sisters Grantville home to stay the night, Holden said.

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Our suspect arrived at around 10 p.m, parked his vehicle on the street here facing the wrong way, quickly entered the house, shot his wife and then shot himself, Holden said.

Marguerite Elliot was killed in a bedroom. Her husband shot himself in the living room.

Marguerite Elliots sister, husband and young children were at the house but were not injured, Holden said.

San Diego police had been called to the womans workplace hours earlier on a preserve the peace call. She asked officers to accompany her while she retrieved some items from her home, but since she lived in Santee, she was advised to contact sheriffs deputies, Holden said.

She wanted officers to stand by while she got some stuff, he said. There was no prior crime, no prior assaults.

Holden said the department fields such calls frequently, particularly in cases where someone doesnt want to have an argument or is uncomfortable meeting with someone.

Marguerite Elliot told officers shed call deputies the next morning and that she was going to stay with her sister.

Holden said the couple had two children, ages 5 and 10.

Friends of Marguerite Elliot set up a GoFundMe account to support the couples children. By Wednesday morning, the fund had raised more than $26,000.

karen.kucher@sduniontribune.com

UPDATES:

10:50 a.m.: This article was updated with additional details.

This article was originally published at 6:50 a.m.
A La Mesa police reservist shot at a pit bull Monday morning after the animal bit him at least twice, a police official said.

The officer is fine, suffering just an abrasion, Lt. Brian Stoney said. The dog was not injured; the officers bullet embedded into the asphalt.

However, the dog was taken in to be quarantined following the attack.

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Stoney said the reservist was driving south on Harbison Avenue, a block or so south of El Cajon Boulevard, about 9:30 a.m. when he spotted a chair and a roll of carpet in the road in front of a home.

He stopped to address the matter, and as he was talking to the resident, the dog came out of the home and started to behave aggressively. After a short while, the pit bull aggressively charged at the officer and bit him in the leg, kind of backed off and then bit him again, Stoney said.

Stoney said the officer backed up against the patrol car trying to get away from the dog, then opened fire.

He fired one shot, right into the pavement, Stoney said.

The dog ran back into the home. A short time later, the dogs owner agreed to turn him over to animal control officials.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

(760) 529-4945

Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT
Its one of the most closely watched Senate campaigns in years  and one of the most confounding. The battle in Alabama between Roy Moore and Doug Jones has pollsters thoroughly flummoxed.

In recent days, reputable polling organizations have produced results ranging from a 10-point lead for the Democrat, Doug Jones, (Fox News) to a 9-point lead for the Republican, Roy Moore, (Emerson College).

Other recent polls include a Washington Post survey showing Jones ahead by 3 points, a CBS News/YouGov survey showing Moore up by 6 and a Gravis poll putting Moores lead at 4 points.

Heres a closer look at whats going on.

Why has it been so hard to poll the race?

The central problem is predicting who will vote.

For polling organizations, calling potential voters and counting their responses is often the easiest part of the job. The real challenge is to predict who is actually going to show up to cast a ballot.

In the last two off-year elections in Alabama, somewhere between 40% and 50% of registered voters cast ballots. The Alabama secretary of state has estimated that this years special election will draw a smaller turnout, more on the order of 25%.

As the electorate shrinks, it usually doesnt do so evenly. One side or the other usually benefits. Pollsters need to adjust their results to take into account who is most likely to turn out. Polling organizations have a variety of techniques to try to forecast what the electorate will look like, and right now, those different approaches are giving very different answers.

How much difference can a turnout model make?

A lot.

To see how much, the pollsters at SurveyMonkey ran an experiment last week. They surveyed 1,559 registered voters in Alabama. Then they applied a series of different turnout models to their data.

One approach simply asks people how sure they are that theyll vote. When SurveyMonkey did that, counting as a likely voter those who said they were certain to vote or probably would, they found Jones had a 9 point lead over Moore.

Another approach looks at peoples vote history: Rather than ask them about their future behavior, ask them about the recent past. Did they vote in the last couple of elections?

When SurveyMonkey defined as likely voters those who reported that they had voted in 2014 (plus those who were too young in 2014 but said they were certain to vote this time), Moore led by 3 points.

Testing other approaches, the pollsters came up with results ranging from an 8 point Jones lead to a 9 point lead for Moore  all using the same underlying survey data.

Monday afternoon, Monmouth University released a survey showing three different turnout models. Under a standard midterm turnout similar to 2014, Moore would lead, 48%-44%. A higher turnout, more similar to a presidential year, would yield a lead for Jones. And a turnout model based on the midterm election last month in Virginia showed the two candidates tied, with 6% still undecided, they found.

Black voters are key to Democratic hopes in Alabama's Senate race. Will they turn out? 

When combined with the potential for purely random error inherent in all surveys, the findings make a projection of the outcome virtually impossible.  Mark Blumenthal, SurveyMonkey

Why is the variation in results bigger than usual in this election?

Most of the time, pollsters have a pretty good idea of who will show up: Elections tend to follow predictable patterns.

Those patterns dont exist in this case. Its a special election, with nothing else on the ballot in much of the state, being held in December, which is not a typical election time. So past voter history isnt as useful as usual.

That alone would greatly complicate predicting who will vote. On top of that, Moore is a polarizing candidate with some deeply committed followers, but also many Republicans who disapprove of him. And the multiple accusations by women who say he pursued them when they were teenagers add a whole additional layer of complexity.

Are there other significant differences between the polls?

Maybe.

The two most recent polls conducted by telephone with live interviewers, who called both cellphones and landlines, were the ones done by Fox and the Washington Post. Both showed Jones ahead.

By contrast, automated polls, which by law cannot call cell phones, have tended to yield results more favorable to Moore. Pollsters who use automated techniques, which are much cheaper than live-interviewer polls, have a variety of ways to adjust for the limitations of their methodology, but its possible that this time around, they are missing a significant part of the electorate.

The Fox poll found, for example, that Jones led by 30 points among people reached on cellphones, who tend to be younger than people who usually use a landline.

Could there be a hidden vote for one side or the other?

Perhaps some people dont want to admit to an interviewer that they plan to vote for Moore, given the air of scandal surrounding him. In that case, the automated polls could be more accurate in showing Moore leading.

On the other hand, Moores supporters dont seem shy about stating their position, as reporters on the ground in Alabama have found. And its also possible that some longtime Republicans dont want to admit to a pollster that theyre planning to vote for a Democrat.

If the result is so uncertain, why bother with polling?

Everyone wants to know whos going to win, but forecasting the outcome isnt the only reason  or even the main reason  for polling.

Polls also tell us a lot about which voters are backing which candidate  younger Alabamians, especially younger women, favor Jones by a big margin, for example. Repeated polls can show how a race develops over time.

And polls can also tell us a lot about which issues have had an effect on voter opinions. As a result, they serve as a check on the self-serving spin that voters inevitably will hear starting Tuesday night, once the actual results are counted.

ALSO

Roy Moore calls sexual-assault allegations 'ritual defamation'

'Got to be some fire somewhere': Sen. Shelby bucks Alabama GOP leaders in voting against Moore

Bitter Senate race tests Alabama's image in the country  and at home
It was two days before Thanksgiving 2015, early in the morning and K.P. was exhausted. Shed spent hours clearing out her storage shed and made a snap decision to grab a snack from 7-Eleven on the way to pick up her boyfriend.

Maybe the bright pink running lights on her aging Honda are what drew attention from the sheriffs deputy whose cruiser was passing the parking lot, K.P. isnt sure.

Clearly, Im a woman, she said in a telephone interview this past week.

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The cruiser made a swift U-turn and lurched into the parking lot, just behind K.P. What followed was a 12-hour ordeal that left the 29-year-old hotel worker shaken to this day.

According to a San Diego Superior Court lawsuit filed last month, the woman identified only through her initials was arrested for possession of a trace amount of drugs and repeatedly groped by Deputy Richard Fischer.

This second search Fischer conducted was prolonged and invasive, the lawsuit said.

Later, the deputy transported the woman to the Las Colinas jail in Santee by way of the old entrance, where lighting was scarce and a fence shielded oncoming cars from view, the complaint said.

Fischer was chuckling and asked K.P. if she was scared yet and then remarked that he wanted to get to know her better, the lawsuit states. When they pulled up at the entrance of Las Colinas, Fischer unbuckled K.P.s seatbelt and smirked at her as he ran his hands across her breast.

K.P. scraped together $500 and bailed out by mid-afternoon, but the deputy continued to stalk her, the lawsuit alleged.

Fischer would drive by K.P.s home slowly at night, shining his lights into her home ensuring that his presence there was known, the complaint says. On another occasion, Fischer pulled up to K.P. while she was at a stoplight, revved his engine loudly next to her, then raced past her when the light turned green and flickered his lights.

Since K.P.s encounter with Fischer two years ago, eight more women have come forward with complaints about sexual misconduct by the Sheriffs Department veteran of almost six years.

Fischer was placed on leave last month while officials investigate the accusations on two tracks: as an administrative matter and as a criminal case.

Sheriffs Department officials say they are responding to the complaints appropriately and as expediently as possible. They pledge to figure out what happened and take whatever steps are necessary to protect the public.

Weve taken any allegations of this nature extremely seriously, spokesman Ryan Keim said by telephone. At the end of the day, its important to realize and understand we acted immediately, decisively and effectively.

Most of the alleged unwanted attention and groping occurred when the victims were in a vulnerable state, just after a medical emergency or burglary or other call for help. K.P. was so afraid of Fischers stalking, she says, that she warned the Sheriffs Department by letter six months after her arrest.

Please contact me for more details, as its not fair to be taken advantage of and he is a predator not an officer, her handwritten note concludes.

The Sheriffs Department said it has no record of receiving the letter, which K.P. kept a copy of.

Fischer, 31, has not responded to multiple calls seeking comment about the investigation.

* * *

Experts say officer misconduct is as old as law enforcement itself. The best police and sheriffs departments adopt tough standards and policies aimed at limiting any abuse of authority and, perhaps more important, responding appropriately when complaints are leveled.

You have to have a robust internal-affairs function, said Chief Louis Dekmar of the LaGrange Police Department in Georgia and president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Whenever any complaint is mishandled it undermines the confidence the public has in the department.

Dekmar said improper police behavior is relatively rare. He said most departments, including his own, generate one complaint for every 1,000 or so recorded contacts. The majority of those come from citizens who feel an officer was rude or unfair, or otherwise treated them poorly.

More serious misconduct accusations are reported far less frequently, Dekmar said  about one of every 10,000 contacts. The majority of those, he said, up to 70 percent, result in the officer being exonerated or the allegations being found unsubstantiated.

Generally officers do what they are supposed to be doing, Dekmar said. But when they arent, it has to be addressed quickly and it has to be addressed competently.

The San Diego Police Department has not always addressed allegations of impropriety by its officers as quickly as it might have.

In 2015, the department released a yearlong independent review that cited 17 cases of officer misconduct over a five-year period. The 85-page audit was commissioned after a spate of cases cost the city millions of dollars in legal settlements. Reviewers found internal weaknesses in department practices and included 40 recommendations for improvement.

San Diego police Lt. Scott Wahl said Chief Shelley Zimmerman implemented all 40 suggestions  and terminated 11 employees within her first year on the job.

While this isnt something to be proud of, it is something that had to be done, Wahl wrote in an email. I can tell you this, no one wants a bad cop held accountable more than a good cop.

Among the changes Zimmerman made after taking over as chief in 2014 was reinstatement of the professional standards unit, the team charged with investigating criminal wrongdoing by officers, Wahl said. She also implemented a mandatory reporting policy for employees who witness or learn about officer misconduct.

Having the systems and structures in place to hopefully identify and prevent employees from becoming derailed is our goal, Wahl said. Also, being able to quickly address those that choose to dishonor our profession and hold them accountable should they step outside the law.

* * *

The warning K.P. sent the Sheriffs Department in May 2016 was a single-paged note addressed only to unnamed investigators. It had difficult-to-read handwriting squeezed onto line after line and ended with a thank you, two phone numbers and an email address.

The department could not explain what happened to the letter, but said its appearance should not have affected how it was handled.

We have done a very thorough investigation and we have no record of any complaint prior to late October 2017, Keim said. Most likely, it was forwarded to Internal Affairs and looked at.

K.P. says she never got a response. Fischer remained on patrol.

In early 2016, a husband and wife were driving home from Arizona when Fischer pulled them over, according to another claim. The woman had placed her medicine into baggies  absent the prescription bottles  and Fischer ended up arresting her for drug possession.

The deputy rubbed L.R.s breasts up and down a half dozen times during the arrest, the claim said. At one point, her blood pressure was so high from stress she required medical attention, her complaint states.

Fischer was tasked with driving her to a hospital, but thats not where they went.

L.R. was terrified, wondering why Fischer was parking where he did, the claim said. He assaulted her once more before writing her a ticket and telling her to go, the complaint states.

In August 2016, a San Marcos woman whose home was burglarized said Fischer returned to her house hours after completing his initial report. He said he wanted to make sure she was all right and requested a hug.

Fischers hug was unsolicited and unwanted, the lawsuit said.

In November 2016, Fischer responded to a 911 call accidentally placed by a San Marcos woman whose mother had just suffered a stroke and whose father died two days earlier.

Fischer walked in and quickly assessed the vulnerability of his next victim, states a claim filed against the department last month. Without her consent, he then hugged (the woman) with a full embrace that included fondling of her buttocks with his hands and inappropriate massaging of her breasts with his own chest.

The alleged victim said she pushed Fischer away but he persisted, and tried to kiss her. She insisted he leave, the claim adds, but before he complied he said he would be in the neighborhood watching out for her.

* * *

This past May, a Vista woman was pulled over for a missing taillight and claims she was hugged against her will. Her claim says Fischer followed her home  for her own safety, he said  then walked toward her front gate and backed off only when the womans male landlord appeared.

Claimant entered the building and then returned outside to gather some belongings and Dep. Fischer was still present, the claim said. After some further conversation, Dep. Fischer eventually left the claimants house.

A week later, a 58-year-old nurse claims, Fischer handcuffed her in Escondido and sat her on a curb. Then he shoved his groin area close to her and said You dont look 58. If I was older would you date me?, her claim said.

In June, another claims alleges, Fischer stopped a woman for a missing taillight, discovered she had a suspended license and rubbed her genitals and backside during a search.

Then he had her drive her car to a nearby parking lot, followed in his own car and asked if she wanted to make out, the claim said. The woman declined; just then, a timely radio call summoned Fischer away.

The deputy sexually assaulted another woman in August after he responded to a call seeking a welfare check, her claim alleges.

Fischers hands rubbed and fondled Jane Does torso, shoulders, arms, back and buttocks, the claim said. After the hug was over, Fischer looked at her and commented again that he thought she was good looking.

Days before he was placed on desk duty in October, according to yet another claimant, Fischer answered a 911 emergency call. He ended up groping the 61-year-old woman and running her hand over his genitals, she claimed.

* * *

Law enforcement officers carry more than a badge and gun.

They shoulder incredible responsibility because they are vested with the right to stop and interrogate people, to deprive citizens of their liberty as they see fit and to subdue anyone who fails to cooperate or threatens their personal safety. Police and sheriffs deputies also enjoy professional benefits that protect them from vengeful crooks and false allegations.

Jonathan Blanks, a research associate at the Cato Institute Project on Criminal Justice, has studied police misconduct for years. He said sheriffs and police chiefs need to work early to identify problem officers and weed them out before they pass probation and secure the protections negotiated by their unions.

The leadership wants to get bad cops out  dont get me wrong, they are a liability, he said in a telephone interview. However, due to the police-union protections they cant easily be fired.

San Diego sheriffs Lt. Karen Stubkjaer rejected the idea that the local Deputy Sheriffs Association can influence any decision in disciplinary proceedings.

The decision whether or not to discipline a deputy sheriff and how to discipline a deputy sheriff is far too important to allow political interests to interfere, she wrote in an email. Addressing instances of misconduct decisively and appropriately is in the best interest of the community at large and the department.

The department employs about 4,000 people. According to Stubkjaer, the sheriff disciplined 13 employees for misconduct so far this year, only one for sexual harassment. One worker was fired.

In the four previous years the department disciplined 80 people, three of them for sexually related misconduct. Over the same period, seven employees were fired for general misconduct.

* * *

Sheriffs deputies recorded more than 435,000 contacts in 2016, about evenly split between calls for service and deputy-initiated meetings. In 2012, deputies reported just over 512,000 public contacts.

The vast majority of deputy encounters are routine traffic stops, emergencies, witness and suspect interviews and assorted arrests and bookings.

The department does not publish specific reports of deputy misconduct. But according to its annual statistical reports, the department has been making fewer arrests while the numbers of internal-affairs and use-of-force cases are climbing.

Arrests in the budget year ending June 30, 2016 totaled 25,386  an 11 percent slide from 2012, the department reported. Over the same period, the number of internal-affairs cases opened by the department rose 49 percent, to 119 from 80.

While more internal investigations are being opened, fewer of those complaints are being validated. In 2016, for example, 45 cases were sustained, a 15 percent decline from four years earlier.

Stubkjaer said such statistics fluctuate from year to year due to the nature of the work.

Law enforcement is both reactive and proactive, she said. The number of arrests for any given year depends on the reported or observed crimes committed for which probable cause can be developed to effect an arrest.

San Diego attorney Dan Gilleon represents the nine women who filed claims and lawsuits resulting from their contacts with Fischer. He says he sees at least one constant.

Ive been dealing with these law enforcement agencies and officers for quite a while, Gilleon said by telephone. The one theme that comes back time and time again is that sex in the workplace is a lot more common than in most organizations.

Theres some sort of adrenaline rush, a lot of power and its a very male-dominated industry, he said.

Each claim against the county seeks in excess of $6 million in damages. They also request punitive damages against Fischer himself in an amount sufficient to punish him and his evil conduct, and to deter others from doing what he did.

Watchdog Videos On Now Sexual misconduct accusers worry deputy is being protected 6:16 On Now City funded $2-million waterfront bathroom 1:26 On Now Public water district charges customer for legal work, response to records request On Now Video: Tiny homes won't be reused amid housing, homeless crisis On Now Attorney General seeks documentation for Miss Middle East On Now Rep. Hunter probe covers possible fraud On Now Video: SDG&E delaying solar credit for some low-income housing tenants On Now Video: Former San Diego Junior Theatre teacher sentenced for sex with teen girl 0:24 On Now Video: Shelter volunteers believe they were fired for finding a dog a home 0:49 On Now McKamey Manor is leaving San Diego 3:35

jeff.mcdonald@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1708 @sdutMcDonald
In 2013, Gov. Jerry Brown shepherded to passage what he called the truly revolutionary Local Control Funding Formula, one of the biggest changes in California public education in decades. It rewrote school funding formulas to ensure that more money went to districts with high-needs students  English-learners, foster children and kids from impoverished families.

While Brown and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson say the formula change has already been a substantial success story and has laid the groundwork for future gains, thats not how it looks to a lot of other people. A comprehensive CALmatters investigation posted in June found little evidence that the $31 billion in funds allocated under the new formula had actually helped the states most disadvantaged students. The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board and some state lawmakers, led by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego, have long called for far more transparency about how the diverted funds are being used.

Now a provocative piece by John Fensterwald on the EdSource website may reframe the debate. It notes that with Brown only on the job for 13 more months, he has a choice: Does he want to shape the inevitable efforts to amend the law or decide to punt the job to the next governor and State Board of Education?

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Our view is that Brown should try to fix the funding law as soon as possible. For the governor to accept the laws flaws and leave cleanup to his successor amounts to an abdication of leadership on a crucial issue. A companion EdSource piece provided suggestions from 24 education policy veterans that Brown should consider. Some of the best ideas:

--Weber said that justice requires we track funding intended to help these disadvantaged students so they dont continue to be sacrificed to the misguided priorities  or mismanagement  of adults. This must be the first fix. If the main use of the billions of dollars allocated under the law has been to pay for teacher raises, that will cast a pall over the entire state education establishment.

--Former San Diego Unified Superintendent Carl Cohn blasted the document that every district must prepare to show compliance with the funding law  the Local Control and Accountability Plan  as time-consuming, onerous and maybe pointless, given that it will be read by no one but county office of education bureaucrats. He calls for a simpler compliance process.

--Ryan Smith, executive director of The Education Trust-West, a student advocacy organization, said there should be more of a focus on professional development for educators and more opportunities to learn from districts getting results. Hes right. Too many districts try to start from scratch instead of adopting whats worked elsewhere.

--Liz Guillen of Public Advocates, a legal civil rights group, said the funding law was supposed to ensure that districts work closely with local stakeholders on policy changes, which is not yet happening  contrary to oft-made promises.

--Mary Perry, vice president for education for the California State PTA, faulted efforts to ensure parent engagement and called the accountability expectations frankly anemic. She noted that any district is able to meet state standards by inviting parents to a meeting and counting how many attend. Thats not just anemic. Thats ridiculous, and good on the PTA for pointing it out.

All of these suggestions are strong ideas that would help the Local Control Funding Formula live up to the lofty rhetoric that accompanied its enactment. There is no reason to wait until after Gov. Brown leaves office in January 2019 to pursue them.

Twitter: @sdutIdeas

Facebook: San Diego Union-Tribune Ideas & Opinion
Re GOP to target welfare, Medicare, Medicaid spending (Dec. 7): What a surprise. Congress is on the verge of passing new tax reform legislation in order to give massive tax cuts to corporations and the wealthy. As a result of this legislation, over $1 trillion will be added to the deficit and, lo and behold, the deficit will then be too high.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, citing the need to now reduce the deficit (which they just increased), thinks that health care entitlements are the cause of this increase (not the just-passed tax cuts) and proposes cuts to welfare, Medicare and Medicaid spending to correct the problem.

Ryan left out Social Security, probably because the president promised during the campaign he wouldnt touch that. But then he seems to be very flexible when it comes to promises he has made.

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I feel like we are living in an alternate universe, where up is down, left is right and the whole world is crazy.

John E. Gahan

San Diego

I see where Sen. Charles Grassley, a member of the Senate Finance Committee that just gave us the Trump tax plan that promises to explode the deficit, explained his thoughts on the estate/death tax.

He is quoted as saying to the Des Moines Register that he thinks abolishing the tax recognizes the people who are investing as opposed to those that are just spending every darned penny they have, whether its on booze or women or movies.

Wouldnt you know it, an old white male Republican politician would be blaming women along with Americas other two big vices, booze and movies, for the masses not being able to save a darned penny, let alone $5.5 million to $11 million?

And this is how Republicans are making America great again? I think not.

Pete Powell

San Diego

It may appear Republicans are delusional thinking tax cuts for the rich will grow the economy and the benefits will trickle down to the rest of us mere mortals. They are not delusional. They know this has been tried unsuccessfully many times before, most recently George W. Bushs tax cuts that did not pay for themselves despite assurances they would.

The GOPs strategy is to increase the federal debt through tax gifts to corporations and the rich as a pretext to slashing welfare, Medicare and Medicaid for the poor and elderly. Getting rid of those liberal giveaways that waste taxpayers money has been the long-held goal of the GOP.

In a nutshell: create a big self-inflicted problem (growing federal debt by $1.5 trillion to fund tax cuts for the wealthy) and then slash spending on programs for the poor and elderly as the solution to balancing the budget. Its akin to lavishing expensive gifts on one of your kids to rationalize why you dont have enough money to feed the rest of your children. Its immoral.

Bill Loeber

Del Cerro

Moved by recent U-T coverage of the GOP tax plans, I offer these words from Hamilton, the Musical: When are these colonies going to rise up?

The article McConnell: Tax bill winning issue (Dec. 4) cites national surveys showing only one-third support for the tax plan with only one in six expecting a tax reduction. Sixty percent of Americans hold the position that GOP tax cuts favor the rich.

Your editorial GOP tax plans have become  in a word  monstrous (Dec. 3) labels the GOP tax plans monstrous, concluding that its core goals seem to be helping the rich get richer, giving the shiv to political enemies and injecting massive uncertainty into institutions like higher education and health care.

Our country was founded on cries of taxation without representation. Have we again come to a point where the peoples voice is irrelevant?

Jan Hintzman

Rolando

Re Ryan: GOP to target welfare, Medicare, Medicaid spending (Dec. 7): House leader Paul Ryan suggests cuts in Medicare and Medicaid to help finance the huge tax cuts for the rich.

Another one of the many Donald Trump promises to not do when he was running for office that hes gone 180 degrees opposite on. When will the lying stop? I wont feel sorry for all the nonwealthy Trump supporters when the suffering begins.

Steve Saint-Martin

Loma Portal

Re Trump formally endorses Moore in Alabama race (Dec. 5): Recently, Ivanka Trump said Theres a special place in hell for people who prey on children, yet President Trump and the Republican National Committee endorsed Roy Moore, an accused child molester, for the Senate.

Trump and his minions are so desperate to win a Senate seat that theyre willing to sell their souls to the devil.

Bunny Landis

Oceanside

Re Nothing about Trump shows any patriotism (Dec. 3): I and most people disagree with the writer who is sick and tired of President Trump criticizing the athletes patriotism.

The athletes are disrespectful of the American anthem. And if they want to take a knee, why dont they take a knee at Arlington National Cemetery? They are making millions because of that national anthem.

And of the sacrifice of the men and women of our great armed services: President Trump is doing what the American people voted him into office to do, that is to stick up for the America we know and love.

Dan Carr

Rancho Bernardo

As Congress is poised to pass the tax bill, the corporations and the rich are salivating at the prospect of gorging themselves even more at the table of gluttony.

Its a Merry Christmas for them. And the poor? Ah, are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?

Jan Lenhert

Rancho Bernardo

Letters and commentary policy

The U-T welcomes and encourages community dialogue on important public matters. Please visit this page for more details on our letters and commentaries policy. You can email letters@sduniontribune.com or leave a comment below.

Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook.
LAS VEGAS (AP)  A 43-year-old former Las Vegas firefighter and U.S. Military Academy graduate should never get out of prison for hiring a homeless ex-convict to kill his cocktail server wife, a jury decided Friday.

The same seven men and five women who found George Miguel Tiaffay guilty Thursday of first-degree murder, conspiracy and other charges in the September 2012 slaying of Shauna Tiaffay chose the most severe penalty they had available.

Tiaffays defense attorney, Robert Langford, said hell appeal.

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Prosecutors didnt seek the death penalty, because Tiaffay wasnt the one who carried out the slaying.

Shauna Tiaffay, 46, the working mother of an 8-year-old daughter, was attacked and killed by Noel Scott Stevens.

Stevens, 40, took a plea deal that spared him the death penalty, and testified against Tiaffay. He pleaded guilty to murder, conspiracy and other charges and faces 21 years to life at sentencing next month.

Stevens admitted hiding in an apartment and attacking Shauna Tiaffay as she returned home alone from a night shift as a cocktail server at the Palms Casino Hotel.

Stevens testified that George Tiaffay promised him $5,000, bought the murder weapon and other supplies, and plotted several methods before the deed was done.

Who told you to kill Shauna? DiGiacomo asked during Stevens testimony last week.

George did, Stevens responded.

Tiaffay was at work when the murder occurred, and their daughter was with him when he went to Shauna Tiaffays apartment later that morning and discovered her bloody body.

The jury heard testimony on Tiaffays behalf Friday from his sister and brother and a firefighter friend, and from a sister and brother of Shauna Tiaffay before deliberating several hours.

As during his trial, Tiaffay didnt take the witness stand. He gave no visible reaction as the sentence decision was read.

The jury rejected 20-years-to-life and 20-to-50 year options.

Clark County District Court Judge Eric Johnson scheduled sentencing Oct. 27.
Albany, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/11/2017 -- A report by Transparency Market Research predicts the global distributed antenna system market to expand at a solid CAGR of 11.2% during the period between 2017 and 2025 to become worth US$17.12 bn by 2025 from US$6.61 bn in 2016.



The study provides a comprehensive analysis on market growth throughout the above mentioned forecast period in terms of revenue estimates (in US$ Mn), across different geographies. Distributed antenna system (DAS) is an organized network of separated antenna nodes connected to head-end units via fibers and cables. DAS is deployed for indoor as well as outdoor applications. It provides seamless communication network by providing network coverage in every corner of the building or area where DAS is being implemented.



The report also includes key market indicators in the distributed antenna system market. Porter's five forces analysis is also included in the report. Value chain Analysis which identifies the process of distribution of the product in the distributed antenna system is covered in the report. The report also includes segment wise comparison matrix and market positioning analysis in the scope of our research. The report provides market attractiveness analysis for all the segments and for all the regions in the scope of study which identifies and compares segments' market attractiveness on the basis of CAGR and market share index.



Global Distributed Antenna System Market: Segmentation



The distributed antenna system market has been segmented on the basis of component type, technology, service and application. Based on component type, the market has been further classified into hardware and service segment. By technology, the market is further classified into commercial/cellular DAS and public safety DAS. Furthermore, the DAS application segment is classified as offices/corporate campus, hospitality, health care, education, transportation, government, industrial, stadiums & arenas, and others.



Request for sample copy of this report : https://www.marketresearchreports.biz/sample/sample/1301610



Geographically, the report classifies the global distributed antenna system market into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (MEA), and South America; the regions are analyzed in terms of revenue generation. Furthermore, the study also includes quantitative analysis of the competitive scenario for region wise prominent countries. These countries include the U.S, Canada, Germany, France, the U.K., China, Japan, Australia, South Korea, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Brunei across APAC. In MEA and SA report includes UAE, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Brazil DAS market analysis. The market size and forecast for each region has been provided for the period from 2015 to 2025 along with the CAGR (%) for the forecast period from 2017 to 2025.



Global Distributed Antenna System Market: Competitive Landscape



The report also includes competition landscape which covers competition matrix, market positioning analysis of major players in the global distributed antenna system market based on their 2016 revenues, profiling of major players (distributed antenna system vendor). Competition matrix benchmarks leading players on the basis of their capabilities and potential to grow. Factors including market position, offerings and R&D focus are included to explain the company's capabilities. Parameters including top line growth, market share, segment growth, infrastructure facilities and future outlook are attributed to company's potential to grow. This section also identifies and includes various recent developments related to the leading players.



Company profiling includes company overview, major business strategies adopted, SWOT analysis and market revenues for past years. The key players profiled in distributed antenna system market. American Tower Corporation, AT&T, Inc., Bird technologies, Cobham Wireless, Commscope, Corning Incorporated, Dali Wireless, SOLiD, Boingo and Tessco are the few key players which have been profiled in this study.



Send an enquiry here : https://www.marketresearchreports.biz/sample/enquiry/1301610



Market Segmentation:



Distributed Antenna System Market, by Component



Hardware

Active

Head- End and Remotes

Trays

Antennas

Others

Passive

Donor Antennas

Trays

Repeaters

Others

Cabling

Coaxial

Optical Fiber

CAT5

Others

Hybrid

Head- End and Remotes

Repeaters

Services

Design and Installation

Maintenance

Distributed Antenna System Market, by Technology



Cellular/Commercial DAS

Public Safety DAS

Distributed Antenna System Market, by Application



Offices/Corporate Campus

Hospitality

Hotels/Resorts

Retail/Shopping Malls

Health Care

Education

Transportation

Airport/Train Stations

Parking Structures/Underground/ Tunnels

Government

Industrial

Stadiums and Arenas

Others

In addition, the report provides analysis of the distributed antenna system market with respect to the following geographic segments:



North America

The U.S.

Canada

Rest of North America

Europe

The U.K.

Germany

France

Italy

Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC)

Indonesia

Thailand

Philippines

Malaysia

Singapore

Vietnam

Myanmar

Cambodia

Laos

Brunei

India

Australia

New Zealand

China

Japan

Korea

Rest of Asia Pacific

Middle East and Africa (MEA)

United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.)

Saudi Arabia

South Africa

Rest of MEA

South America

Brazil

Rest of South America
Albany, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/11/2017 -- Australia, New Zealand and India Building Information Modeling (BIM) Market: Report Scope



The Building Information Modeling (BIM) market report provides an in-depth analysis of the BIM market for the period 2014  2024, wherein 2015 is the base year and the years from 2016 to 2024 is the forecast period. Data for 2014 has been included as historical information. The report covers all the prevalent trends playing a major role in the growth of the BIM market over the forecast period. It also highlights various drivers, restraints, and opportunities expected to influence the market's growth during the forecast period. The study provides a holistic perspective on market growth in terms of revenue estimates (in US$ Mn), across the countries. The report provides analysis of the BIM market in terms of market estimates and projections for all the segments across country. The report also covers profiles of major players, their growth strategies, various recent developments, and includes market positioning analysis of key players operating in the BIM market.



Australia, New Zealand and India Building Information Modeling (BIM) Market: Overview



Building information modeling (BIM) is a three-dimensional (3D) graphical presentation of a technical diagram which includes the elevation, plan, and segment of a building. It is a type of digital building system in which the real model of the structure with precise value is digitally constructed. The BIM market is expected to experience high growth in the coming decade owing to factors such as rise in construction activities and government initiatives to lift BIM adoption rate in these countries.



Get the sample copy of this report : https://www.marketresearchreports.biz/sample/sample/905062



Australia, New Zealand and India Building Information Modeling (BIM) Market: Segmentation



This research study on the BIM market provides a detailed analysis of various solution types of building information modeling available in the market. Based on solutions, the market is further segmented into software, and professional & consultancy service. The software BIM market is further categorized into on-premise and cloud-based. Based on end-use industry, the BIM market is categorized into water and waste water, rail, transit and aviation, bridges, roads and highways, energy generation facilities, educational institutions and commercial spaces, houses and apartments, factories and warehouses, government buildings, health care infrastructure and dams and others. On the basis of end-users, the market is segmented into engineers, architects, contractors and developers. The report includes a comprehensive coverage of the underlying economic development factors under the key trend analysis section. To depict holistic view of the BIM market, value-chain analysis and ecosystem analysis is included in the report. The section describes current supply chain model and potential impact of forward  backward integration.



The report aims to provide a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the BIM market across different countries, which is also provided based on solutions, end-use industries, and the end-users. The report also provides country level key trend analysis for different segmentations included.



Send an enquiry here : https://www.marketresearchreports.biz/sample/enquiry/905062



Australia, New Zealand and India Building Information Modeling (BIM) Market: Competitive Dynamics



The report highlights the competition matrix of the BIM market, positioning all the major players according to their geographic presence, historical roadmap, competitors, market position, key recent developments, and segment growth. The matrix has been designed to show comparative strength of players active in the BIM market. The important business strategies adopted by them, their market positioning, and recent developments have also been identified in the research report. Also, distinct representation of market competition in terms of market shares of global and regional/local players has also been included.



Under the company profiles section, the report provides an overview of the players operating in the market, the strategies adopted by them to gain competitive advantage, the annual revenue generated by them in the past two or three years, and their relevant business segment revenue. The report also provide market share analysis of the BIM market. The key players profiled in this report include Autodesk Inc., AECOM, Dassault Systemes SA, Beck Technology Ltd., Synchro Software Ltd., Bentley Systems, Inc., Tekla Corporation, Pentagon Solutions Ltd., GRAITEC and Nemetschek AG.



Browse more related reports : https://www.marketresearchreports.biz/category/96



Market Segmentation:



Building Information Modelling Market Analysis, by Solution



Software

On-premise

Cloud

Professional & Consultancy Service



Building Information Modelling Market Analysis, by End-use Industry



Water and Waste Water

Bridges, Roads and Highways

Rail, Transit, and Aviation

Energy Generation Facilities

Houses and Apartments

Factories and Warehouses

Educational Institutions and Commercial Spaces

Government Buildings

Healthcare Infrastructures

Dams and Others



Building Information Modelling Market Analysis, by End-user



Engineers

Architects

Contractors

Developers



Building Information Modelling Market Analysis, by Country



Australia

New Zealand

India
[NEW DELHI] Indias ambitious plans to force its 1.3 billion citizens to use biometric identity cards to access government benefits have fallen foul of the countrys highest court which says the project could undermine rights to privacy.

After finding that the biometric ID, referred to as Aadhaar ID, infringes on the right to privacy, the Supreme Court decided that the issue was a constitutional matter and therefore should be resolved by a constitution bench. Benches have at least five judges interpreting substantial matters that impinge on Indias constitution. The court has appointed to hear this month petitions filed against the Aadhaar scheme by a number of individuals and groups. The benchs decision will likely decide the future of what has evolved into the worlds largest biometric database.

Meanwhile, following the Courts intervention, the government last week (December 8) issued orders extending a yearend deadline for citizens to link their biometric ID numbers to income tax returns, bank accounts and other services until March 31, 2018.

What needs to be understood is that they are building databases by putting together your biometric Aadhaar card Usha Ramanathan

Launched in 2009, Aadhaar was originally voluntary and was designed to ensure that government benefits go to the intended beneficiaries rather than impersonators, middlemen and corrupt officials.

But in 2014 after the Congress party, which are the proponents of the scheme, lost power to the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the new government began aggressively pushing Aadhaar cards on to every possible sphere of activity  from university admissions to getting a cooking gas cylinder.

Now Aadhaar identity cards are mandatory for opening a bank account, property purchases, filing income tax returns, getting a telephone connection and for the registration of deaths.

Several civil society groups, such as the Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties, voiced fears that the government has intentions of turning the country into an intrusive police state by cross-linking data gleaned from the different services that are linked to it. The benefits were originally meant for the poorer sections of population who had little to lose from close government scrutiny. But linking it to banking and many other financial transactions exposes everyone especially the middle and upper classes to possible unscrupulous use of databases.

Aadhaars chief executive officer, Ajay Bhushan Pandey, said this was not the case. Contacted by SciDev.Net, Pandey declined a formal interview and instead referred to his article that was published in several local dailies including the Times of India (11 November). In the article he said, biometrics used  photographs, fingerprints and iris image  are the least intrusive.

According to Pandey, Aadhaar has already emerged as a powerful instrument which enables people to establish their identity, receive their entitlements and exercise their rights without fear of being excluded or having their rights taken away.

However, aside from surveillance fears, critics also worry about the governments ability to protect the confidentiality of the information and data collected  and with good reason as there already have been several breaches.

In March this year, the government was forced to admit that personal details such as telephone numbers, addresses and email identities of over 10 million Aadhaar cardholders had somehow been leaked. According to information provided by the Unique Identity Development Authority of India (UIDAI), entrusted with the biometrics of the Aadhaar cards, responsibility for the implementation of the Aadhaar card project was entrusted to 25 different private companies hired without open tender.

Thats a lot of private companies and they all have access to sensitive data, says Usha Ramanathan in an interview with SciDev.Net. Ramanathan is a well-known human rights lawyer in India but a litigant in Aadhaar cases before the Supreme Court.

What needs to be understood is that they are building databases by putting together your biometric Aadhaar card, bank account number and mobile number on several of the services (banking, passports, income tax returns, university admissions, etc.)  remember that data is the new oil. she says.



This piece was produced by SciDev.Nets Asia & Pacific desk.
Press Release

December 11, 2017 Transcript of Sen. Bam's questions during hearing on GenSan road right of way project Sen. Bam: So so far, nasuspend niyo na yung mga pambayad sa claimants. And I think, one basic issue here is the payment of DPWH to these so-called consolidators - mga abogado in some cases, probably dummies in other cases. You can actually make a policy decision na babayaran niyo lang yung talagang may-ari ng lupa na matagal na, for example. Of course, ibig sabihin niyan, libo-libo talaga yung kailangan niyong kausapin, which is probably the right process. Have you made a determination on not entertaining these so-called consolidators, or dummies, to begin with? USec Karen Jimeno: Mr. Chairman, I think by law, we're really not supposed to entertain any dummies because in the first place, the reason why we can't make a policy decision to exclude special powers of the attorney because it is allowed by law. It is part of our civil code in terms of underagencies, and partnerships, specifically that branch of law. But in terms of validating the claims, that's why historically, we had DO 34 when I first started with DPWH, but as Undersectretary for Legal Affairs, I also saw the flaw in the system, that the approving authority when it comes to the central office, and then later on the endorsement comes from- at that time, because I believe the Undersecretary of Legal Affairs, it will be from me to the Secretary of DPWH. But because we were not part of the transaction historically, which was the same scenario that former Secretary Singson found himself in, na you're there to approve claims na minana mo na from previous secretaries, and then you're supposed to rely on all the endorsements of all the people in the bureaucracy based on the hierarchy. It's humanly impossible, so that is why I proposed to our Secretary at that time to come up with the department order that delegates the approving authority to each of the higher authorities that are tied to the projects. So in this case, pagka regional director, depending on the regions, and then the PPP Director for PPP Projects, and we have a task force. So, in terms of the requirements, land ownership is one of the proof that is required, but if you have a special power of attorney, because there are instances also na yung owner of the property, either matandang matanda na, may sakit, so they have a special power of attorney. Or if you have heirs that have not settled the estate yet, they tend to have a special power of attorney while the settlement of the estate is ongoing. Sen. Bam: Okay, so let me clarify. So yung pagkakaroon ng special powers of the attorney, you allow dealing with people with SPAs? USec Karen Jimeno: Yes, because it has basis in law. Sen. Bam: It has basis in law. The question is, kung yung may mga SPA, meron ba silang ka-deal sa loob ng DPWH doon sa tinutukoy ni Sen. Lacson na mga speculation on land value, that's illegal. So yung pagkakaroon ng SPA, hindi illegal, pero kung yung mga may SPA ay may kakuntiyaba sa loob, yun po, illegal yun. Now, of course, if you really want to solve this problem moving forward, you can simply say - no SPA. Can you do that? Or kaya niyo ba yun gawin as a policy, o masyado bang komplikado iyon? USec Karen Jimeno: I think, Mr. Chairman, that blanket prohibition is not only impractical, it would also be unfair for those who need SPAs talaga. For instance, as I've mentioned earlier as an example, land owners who are very old, incapacitated, physically incapacitated... Sen. Lacson: Sen. Aquino, may I... Pero dapat magtaka rin kayo kung tatlong tao lang lagi may SPA. USec Karen Jimeno: Yes. Uhm, Mr. Chairman that's a very good point. In fact, just to give you- I'd like to also quote here, yung- nung July 2017, I received a memo from our Regional Director for Region 12, si RD Ibrahim*, he pointed to several indicators ng fraud, or what makes validation, kasi by then we already had Department Order 65, which meant siy ana yung approving authority for the payment of Right-Of-Way Claims. And he raised certain concerns sa Region 12. And, among them, he raised na.. I'm going to look for the memo here. Ah, okay. So, here. This was dated July 3, 2017, and among the problems that he raised were "irregular manner of revocation of Special Power of Attorney and substitution or delegation of new authority to second persons." And I think, for those on the ground, which is precisely the point why we really need to, one, delegate dun sa mga regions talaga, but even then, yung mga nandoon on the ground na malapit sa projects, they found yung mga irregularities like this, na mga SPAs na mukhang illegitimately obtained. So, I think what we can do, kasi we saw this memo from RD Ibrahim; what happened was, one - we created a special task force to validate the claims in Region 12. But even then, we started getting more and more reports of fraud in that area. And even RD Ibrahim later told us na kahit daw mag special task force doon, feeling niya mathethreaten lang yung mga ipapadalang tao doon. That's why what happened was, later on, we suspended the payment of all claims, and then pinanigit pa namin yung funds. That is why Region 12 returned lahat ng funds for Right-Of-Way payments to the Central office. Kaya hawak pa po namin lahat ng pera for those claims. And, in fact, one of our lawyers in the Central Office raised to me a concern na because partially paid na yung ibang Region 12 claims, including those in General Santos City, baka naman daw kami yung i-sue for breach of contract, kasi partially paid na, which means it's like saying na validated na yung claims na iyan, bakit ayaw niyo na ituloy yung pagbayad? But it was because we were getting several warnings, and red flags, and reports of fraud. Sen. Bam: Okay. In short, yan yung sinasabi ni Secretary Singson na the court is already telling you, ituloy niyo na yung bayad. Now, going back to my earlier point, yung dealing with people with SPAs. Kasi obviously yung 112 na taong iyan, they're not really the original owners of that land. Hindi naman talaga sila. I think it's pretty clear. Kasi grabeng laking lupa naman yung pagmamay-ari nila, kung 112 lang sila dun sa napakaraming lupain na yan. I think we can safely assume yung karamihan diyan, mga nag-SPA iyan, Special Power of Attorney, or they represent a set number of true land owners. My question is, yung due diligence ba ng DPWH goes to the next layer, yung ginagawa niyong investigation; kung totoo nga na iyong mga totoong may-ari, or yung may-ari noon, or yung may-ari pa rin sila ng lupa; If they are really in partnership with that person. Kasi kung coerced yung SPA, or hindi maexplain ng maayos, then obviously, may fraud na nangyari diyan. My question is, is Region 12 currently- and sabi niyo nga, it's dependent now on their regional office- are they going the next step, and going beyond nitong 112 na tao, chinecheck talaga nila sino ba talaga yung mga nakatira diyan, sino yung may-ari ng mga lupang iyan; are you doing that now? USec Karen Jimeno: Well, answering from a Policy perspective, based on not only Department Order 65 but also we have, right now, recently issued DPWH Right-Of-Way Acquisition Manual, it's very voluminous, makapal siya, because it names all of the requirements in order to pay Right-Of-Way claims. 'When ito comes to, for instance, SPAs, there are requirements under the law as to what constitutes a valid SPA. So it has to be notarized, it has to comply with the requirements of an SPA. But I think following also jurisprudence in terms of when you're the validating authority, when you receive, even if it looks like a valid SPA- if you have knowledge of other circumstances which would lead you to suspect any fraud, then you have the duty to also investigate. Sen. Bam: Yes, so ginagawa niyo iyan ngayon? USec Karen Jimeno: Okay, I have to qualify my answer because it's not the scope of my function to that. Even if it's the RD. Sen. Bam: RD, if I may ask. So, sa pagkakaalam ko po, my understanding is, merong task force na binuo ang DPWH currently para i-check lahat ng mga titulong ito. Is that correct? A: Your Honors, actually, *inaudible*. Sen. Bam: Okay. Are you going the next level? Apart from the 112 na claimants natin for the 2 Billion or so, chinecheck niyo po ba kung sino? Kung sila po ay representative, whether legally or not, ng iba pang mga may-ari ng lupa? Chinecheck niyo ba iyon? A: Yes po, pero as of the moment, we suspended the processing of all of this because of these pending issues. Sen. Bam: Well, palagay ko po baliktad. Baka yung investigation niyo yung makatulong sa hearings natin at tsaka sa investigation ng DOJ, kasi I guess yung tanong diyan, were these SPAs illegally obtained or not? Yung totoo bang may-ari ng lupa ay kinoerce, or finorce na pumirma ng mga SPA, I guess that's the first question. Second question is, kung sila ba - ito naman yung tanong ni Sen. Lacson - kung may kakuntiyaba sa loob na ibang mga miyembro ng DPWH. But let me first begin with - yung mga 112 pong iyon. I guess we can assume, RD, na they represent, or they should be representing more individuals, kasi hindi ko rin maisip na 112 lang yung may-ari ng lupang iyon. So tama ba yung assessment na iyon, RD? A: In my case, your honors, ginagawa ko kaagad. I didn't have to personally check. Sen. Bam: May nakausap ka na ba doon sa 112 na claimants? A: Wala pa po, kasi hindi pa kami nagpoprocess nung *inaudible*. Sen. Bam: Okay, pero balak niyo pa po sila kausapin? A: Supposed to be that that is the subject of our new task force, to be created by the department. Sen. Bam: Okay. So, USec, nabuo na ba yung task force formally, or plano pa lang iyan? USec Karen Jimeno: It was formed, but because we were also told that it would be ineffective to use the task force; in fact I even have the message that the day before the Task Force was already- yung mga galing sa central office na pupunta ng General Santos to conduct the revalidation- they were even following up with me na, 'Tutuloy pa ba kami?' Because the Region 12 has been coordinating with us, they've made arrangements, and then I told them, hindi, hindi na tuloy. Because we were, at that time already coming up with a different solution for Region 12 in light of all the reports, and that is for us to require, as a matter of policy, judicial determination for all claims related to Region 12. Sen. Bam: Judicial determination? Eh meron nang mandamos, eh. USec Karen Jimeno: That's different, Mr. Chairman, because the mandamos also only relates to claims that were filed by certain claimants, meaning, those who only filed a petition for mandamos in the RTC of Gen San would be covered, but there were so many other outstanding claims, in Gen San and the rest of Region 12 that were also parts of reports that we received that were related to fraud. Sen. Bam: Sorry, very quick question - yung mga proyektong ito, tapos na ba? USec Karen Jimeno: It's a- may mix po. Pag sinabi naming outstanding claims, tapos na iyon. Sen. Bam: Okay, so these roads have been completed already, tapos na po yung mga proyektong ito? USec Karen Jimeno: Dapat, yes. Kasi that's the only way that they would be an outstanding Right-Of-Way claim. Sen. Bam: Kung tapos na yung proyekto. So these projects are already completed, kailangan niyong bayaran yung totoong may-ari nito. Yung humaharap po sa inyo at mayroong titulo ay 112 na tao, at mukhang lumalabas, although hindi rin tayo sigurado, na they just represent other people who may have owned the land previously. Is that correct in your estimation? Tama ba yung logic na iyon so far? USec Karen Jimeno: Mr. Chairman, when it relates to these claimants na kakaunti lang yung may hawak na SPA, I think our Director... Sen. Bam: Yes, Director Saldivar, please answer. Tama ba yung logic na iyon, na yung mga kailangan bayaran, pero yung mga humaharap sa inyo, yung mga mayroong totoong titulo, ay probably consolidator lang sila nung mga totoong may-ari ng lupa? A: Mr. Chair, as part of the due diligence that the legal service had exercised before recommended funding or payment, I myself called up the cashier of the Regional Office, Region 12, asking them how they do the release of payments. they told me, the one who I talked with, I just could not *inaudible* the name, but the lady- initially, even before payment was released dun sa unang releases, they asked the land owners to appear in the office, along with the attorneys, in fact, with their corresponding IDs and the ID of the attorney, in fact, and side-by-side; truck loads nga daw po sila eh. So, upon that representation, I was given the confidence that not only are we exercising due diligence in going over the documents, but also in ensuring that payments will just go to the land owners so if ever, meron ngang attorneys, in fact, their share- kung ano pa yung natitira na dapat ibibigay sa kanila, ay matatanggap nila. Sen. Bam: Okay, so sinasabi niyo na yung nirerepresent nila, kasama naman nila nung nangolekta sila? A: Yes sir, yan po ang representation sa amin. Sen. Bam: Well, I guess, USec, it really boils down to a policy decision. Are we allowing yung ganitong klaseng pangangalakad? My understanding is that ito talaga yung pangangalakad sa DPWH, that you allow dealings with consolidators. Now, maybe some of us here feel na it's not at the right practice, and if so, ano yung policy decision? Because you can actually make a policy decision, we will only pay whatever, kung ano man. Will you be considering that, USec? USec Karen Jimeno: Mr. Chairman, I think that's worth looking into at the moment, because of the problems we've encountered with Region 12. We have a draft departnment order that is ready for the Secretary's signature that requires judicial determination for Region 12 claims, because not only is it difficult to verify, but also, we've received reports from our Regional Director for Region 12 that there are physical security threats to people who validate claims. So it's not just an issue of how fool-proof your requirements are on paper; it's also an issue of security, and talagang threat to also life. In fact, I'm sure Mr. Katapang will share more. But during my first month pa lang sa DPWH, nakatanggap na ako ng anonymous letter noon that there was an attempt to kill one of the whistleblowers dito sa Right-Of-Way scam, and in fact, the person riding the car with him died. At that time I even thought na dapat hindi mabasa 'to ng parents ko or else they'll make me resign from DPWH right away. But it's that serious po. Merong mga issues on bodily and also talagang life-and-death situation. Sen. Bam: Okay, thank you Mr. Chairman.
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December 11, 2017 De Lima pays tribute to late SC Justice Romero Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima today joined the rest of the nation, notably the legal community, in mourning over the demise of human rights champion and retired Supreme Court (SC) Justice Flerida Ruth Romero. De Lima, a former justice secretary, said Romero will always be remembered for shaping the lives of Filipinos through her legal works and efforts in promoting human rights and the rule of law. "Everything she touched was a step towards uplifting the lives of Filipinos. Indeed, at a time when many that dare call themselves public servants are bent on demeaning, destroying and maligning lives, public figures and legal luminaries like her will truly be missed," she said in a Dispatch from Crame No. 209. Romero has passed away at the age of 88 on Dec. 8. The late magistrate served as director and dean of the UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations from 1962 to 1963 before her SC appointment. She assumed office on October 21, 1991, and served until August 1, 1999 after reaching the compulsory retirement age of 70. De Lima encouraged her fellow lawyers, public servants, and legislators to emulate Romero and let her legacy live, especially now that the present administration has not relented in its attacks on democratic institutions. "With her passing, another light in the legal, nay, the Filipino community goes out, and the end of an era grows ever nearer. An end of an era when respect for others mattered. When dignity and integrity mattered. When Truth and Justice mattered. When rights mattered. When being right mattered," she said. "Her watch has ended. But, perhaps, if we public servants, members of the legal profession, and leaders in the community followed her example and helped breathe new life into her advocacies, perhaps her legacy will live much longer and benefit our people for a longer time," she added. Recalling Romero's accomplishments, De Lima said the magistrate helped establish what would later become the UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations, and also played a key part in the drafting of the Family Code. As a human rights advocate, De Lima said Romero had a key role in promoting women and children's rights locally and in the international sphere. The Senator from Bicol shared Romero was one of her inspirations as lawyer, a public servant, and as a human rights advocate, whose memories continue to guide her in her personal and professional life.
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December 11, 2017 POE: PILOT TEST JEEPNEY MODERNIZATION PLAN FIRST Sen. Grace Poe today recommended that the government should conduct a pilot test of the planned jeepney modernization in the light of sketchy details and purported lack of consultations with transport groups. "Gusto ko sana magkaroon na muna ng mga pilot projects. Hindi pwedeng sabay-sabay, lahat ng areas. Kung compliance sa safety, road worthiness at saka emissions, pwede munang yun ang unahin tapos yung iba naman, like side door accessibility, persons with disabilities," Poe, chairperson of the Senate committee on public services, told reporters on the sidelines of the hearing on the jeepney modernization program. Transport groups present during the hearing were one in backing the proposed modernization, but they lamented that there seemed to be lack of consultations, particularly on the issuance of Department Order No. 2017-011 or the omnibus franchise guidelines issued last June. The said policy contained a set of standards for franchise issuance such as door location on the curbside door and not the rear door for boarding and alighting, access for persons with disability, and jeepneys must be below seven meters in length. Jeepneys must also be able to pass the emission standards. "Yung mga pwede pang tumakbo dahil maayos pa naman, i-allow. For sure marami ng kailangang palitan, yun ang dapat na maging--iyong prototype na nila. Linawin rin sana sino ang suppliers kasi bagama't yung mga engine Euro4, pero kung ang magtatagpi-tagpi ng sasakyan rin, mga chop-chop naman, baka delikado. Pangalawa, kung kukuha naman tayo ng mga accredited na kumpanya, siguraduhin nating walang kumpare system dito na ang ma-aaccredit nila ay mga kumpanyang talagang merong kredibilidad at kakayahang gawin yun," Poe added. But will jeepney drivers and operators afford millions in loans for new jeepneys as part of the government's modernization program for public utility vehicles? Poe raised this question as the planned jeepney modernization plan is set to initially roll out next year, with the government subsidizing P80,000 of the P1.5 to P1.8 million estimated cost of a new jeepney. "Kaya ba ng bulsa--hindi lang ng mga drayber/operator kung 'di pati na rin ng mga mananakay? Kaya ba ng ating mga jeepney drayber at operator na bayaran sa loob ng itinakdang panahon ang utang para sa bagong mga jeep? May kasiguraduhan ba na papautangin sila ng bangko?" Poe said as she quizzed Transportation officials during the public hearing on the proposed jeepney modernization plan. Poe appealed to Transport officials to reconsider the "high unit cost and burdensome financing terms" to be extended to jeepney driver-operators. "Come to think of it, if government is subsidizing trains run by rich companies to the tune of billions, then why should it allow jeepney drivers and operators to foot the bill for new units almost all by themselves?" said Poe. Poe also said if the government can provide a flurry of incentives to the private sector under the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme, then all the more it is well within its means to provide more funding support to jeepney driver-operators. "If PPP grantees are given incentives, in amounts with dizzying number of zeros, and are hailed as patriots, then why are jeepney drivers who are asking for a little more help treated as pests?" the senator said.
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December 11, 2017 HIGHEST NATIONAL AWARD TO BE BESTOWED ON MIRIAM SANTIAGO--POE The late Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago is set to be the latest recipient of the prestigious Quezon Service Cross, the highest award the nation can bestow on a person for outstanding civilian service, Sen. Grace Poe confirmed today. Poe, who earlier brought to the Senate floor a resolution urging the President to nominate Santiago for the award, has filed Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 8 concurring in the posthumous conferment of the Quezon Service Cross to the late lawmaker. "In typical Miriam fashion, she managed to exceed her fellow awardees as the first female recipient of the Quezon Service Cross. That's Senator Miriam for you, always striving to be the first or the best," Poe said in sponsoring the resolution. Five years since the previous highest award for Filipinos was bestowed on the late Interior Sec. Jesse Robredo, Santiago becomes the sixth in history and the only woman to receive the award. Only five people have been awarded the Quezon Service Cross: Robredo (November 2012), Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. (August 2004), President Ramon Magsaysay (July 1957), President Emilio Aguinaldo (June 1956) and President Carlos P. Romulo (April 1951). "The inscription on the Quezon Service Cross reads: Sic Floret Res Publica, 'Let the Republic flourish'. Perhaps it should also read: 'Amor Mundi', or 'To Love the World'. Senator Miriam's love for country drove her to greatness and to serve with fervor and utmost dedication her fellow Filipinos until death. Bestowing this award upon the former senator enables her to live on as our country's north star, inspiring future generations to love the nation and serve it in the best way they can," Poe added. Both the Senate and the House need to concur with the proclamation for conferment of the award. The move comes as President Rodrigo Duterte adopted Poe's recommendation some three months ago to award the highest civilian medal to Santiago, posthumously. "Even at an early age, Miriam Defensor Santiago displayed exceptional intelligence, talent and skill--qualities that she demonstrated in all of her endeavours over the decades. Her brilliance gave her the chance to land lucrative careers in the private sector, yet she chose to join government and serve the Filipino people," Duterte said in his letter to Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III dated Nov. 20. "Throughout her life, Miriam Defensor Santiago used her considerable talents for the service of our people and our nation while exhibiting remarkable passion, courage, and integrity. She inspired generations of Filipinos to aspire for excellence and remain steadfast against any challenge and adversity. Truly, she has been an agent of positive and meaningful change in our society. For this reason, she deserves the highest recognition that the Republic can confer," the letter read. The President's message was read at the Senate plenary session last Nov. 29 and was referred to the Senate committee on rules. Santiago's 46-year stellar career in government earned her several accolades, which included the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award, Asia's version of the Nobel Prize, in 1988; the Philippine Judges Association Hall of Fame in 2015; outstanding alumna of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association (Iloilo Chapter) in 2015; Girl Scouts of the Philippines Golden Jubilee Achievement Award for Public Service in 1990; YMCA Philippines Gold Vision Triangle Award for Government Service in 1988; Civic Assembly of Women of the Philippines Republic Anniversary Award for Law Enforcement in 1988; University of the Philippines' Most Outstanding Alumna in Law in 1988; The Outstanding Women in Nation's Service Award for Law in 1986; and Outstanding Young Men Award for Law in 1985. Congress institutionalized the award through the approval of Joint Resolution No. 4 in 1946. The award is granted to a person for exemplary service to the nation in memory of the late President Quezon. "Santiago was known to be fearless in her views and always blunt with her words; a paragon of passion, courage and integrity; and the embodiment of the very characteristics she demanded in any public servant: academic, professional and moral excellence," Poe said in the resolution. "The values, ideals and service demonstrated by former Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago compare favorably to the standard exemplified in public service by the late President Manuel L. Quezon," the resolution read.
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December 11, 2017 Senate Oks PH qualifications framework to address job mismatch The Senate today approved on third and final reading a bill which would institutionalize the Philippine Qualifications Framework (PQF), in order to address job mismatch, and align training and education of Filipino workers with actual industry standards and needs. Senate Bill No. 1456, or the Philippine Qualifications Framework Act of 2017, was authored and sponsored by Senator Joel Villanueva, and was passed with 14 affirmative votes, two negative votes and one abstention. Villanueva said that the measure was a "big dream of our education sector" that would benefit students and workers, training providers and the government. "One promise of the PQF is that it could bridge lifelong learning and enhance the link between education and the economy or the labor market. This will put an end to our perennial problem of job-skills mismatch," he said. The Philippine Qualifications Framework (PQF) is defined by the bill as "the national policy which describes the levels of educational qualifications and set the standards for qualification outcomes. It is a quality assured national system for the development, recognition and award of qualifications based on standards of knowledge, skills and values acquired in different ways and methods by learners and workers of a certain country." Villanueva said that under SBN 1456, the PQF would "adopt national standards and levels of learning outcomes of education, and as well as support the development and maintenance of pathways and equivalencies that enable access to qualifications and assist individuals to move easily between the different education and training sectors and the labor market." "The PQF will pave the way for every Filipino to become a lifelong learner by allowing him or her to start at the level that suits him or her and then build-up his or her qualifications as his or her needs and interests develop and change over time," Villanueva said. He noted that under the PQF, school curriculums would not be fixed, as these "should correspond to the progress of technology and development of new work especially in Information Technology, Robotics, Logistics, Renewable-Energy, Travel and Hospitality, etc." "For our students, the framework provides a clear picture of the competencies they need for the jobs they want while employers can easily identify the competencies their employees must possess," he added. To accomplish this, the bill said that training and educational institutions would now have to conform to standards and qualifications set by the Philippine Qualifications Framework-National Coordinating Council (PQF-NCC) mandated to "to harmonize and promote a seamless education and training system." The PQF-NCC will be composed of the heads of the Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), and a representative from the economic sector. The new body will be chaired by the DepEd Secretary. Villanueva added that the bill would also align the PQF with international qualifications frameworks, such as the ASEAN Qualifications Reference Framework, which would enhance "recognition of the value and comparability of Philippine qualifications and supporting the mobility of Filipino students and workers." He said that the PQF was necessary amid increasing regional integration, and pointed to the endorsement of the ASEAN Qualifications Reference Framework (AQRF), which was implemented starting in 2016. The AQRF, he said, "created an impetus to ASEAN member states to develop their own national qualification frameworks." "Because of the breakdown of borders and increased labor mobility, there is a high demand for comparability. Due to greater mobility of people - students, workers, professionals are moving, the question is whether their qualifications are also the same as the qualifications of other countries," he said. Villanueva said that the over 10 million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) scattered in nearly 170 countries would particularly benefit from the PQF. "With the help of the PQF, employers will easily see what skills our workers possess, and he or she can show proof of these skills through diplomas or national certificates. In countries with their own qualification frameworks like Singapore, our OFWs can now have their eligibility matched with that of Singaporeans and other foreign workers, and now earn the position, salaries and benefits befitting their status and accomplishments," he said. "In short, the PQF offers a very flexible system where a Filipino can benefit from formal, non-formal and even informal learning opportunities," Villanueva concluded. (JC)
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December 11, 2017 Senate adopts joint reso empowering NHA to distribute unoccupied houses to informal settlers The Senate adopted today a joint resolution authorizing the National Housing Authority (NHA) to award the unoccupied and unawarded housing units of uniformed personnel to other qualified beneficiaries like the informal settlers, calamity victims as well as middle income and low-salaried employees. Senate Joint Resolution No. 8 was adopted with 17 affirmative votes, zero negative vote and no abstention. The resolution was introduced by Senators Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito and Loren Legarda. A joint resolution, like a bill, requires the approval of both houses and the signature of the President. It has the force and effect of a law if approved. The House earlier approved the joint resolution and transmitted it to the Senate for adoption. Ejercito said the NHA was mandated to build shelters for the military and police personnel through Administrative Order No. 9 issued in 2011 by then President Benigno Aquino III in recognition of their sacrifices "for putting their lives at risk to uphold the laws and maintain peace and order in the country." He said the government appropriated P20.87 billion to fund the housing program of the uniformed and military personnel from 2011 to 2015. This program, called the AFP/PNP Housing Program, catered to the housing needs of the low-salaried uniformed personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), and later on included the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and Bureau of Corrections (BuCor). However, Ejercito said, after six years of implementation of the AFP/PNP Housing Program, only a handful of the uniformed and military personnel had actually benefitted from the project. He cited an NHA report which showed that as of July 31, 2017, only 14 percent or 8,837 units of the total 63,836 completed units were actually occupied. "As your chairman of the Senate Committee on Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement, I had conducted several hearings and site inspections. It is with a heavy heart that I learned that after almost six years, an alarming total of 54, 999 units or 86 percent of the completed units remained unoccupied," Ejercito said in his sponsorship speech. He attributed the low occupancy rate to the constricted space of the housing units, lack of basic services such as water and electricity and lack of "proper consultation" with the intended beneficiaries. "The housing unit size built for our uniformed personnel is only 18 to 22 square meters and the standard habitable space per person is seven square meters. The salaries of the uniformed personnel could well afford two to six times the house built for them. Sadly, this was not considered," Ejercito said. "The housing site also lack basic services such as water and electricity. This perennial problem in all of our housing and resettlement sites stem from improper site selection. There is difficulty of installing connections of water and power because the sites are located in far flung areas. Likewise, there is either limited or no access at all to transportation links," he added. With the joint resolution, Ejercito said, the NHA would have a broader authority to award the shelters, not only to military and uniformed personnel, but also to low-salaried government employees and other qualified beneficiaries with the priority to the lower 30 percent income earners. He said housing units to be awarded to other qualified beneficiaries include 1. unawarded housing units; 2. awarded housing units that are not yet occupied and whose ownership and possession are surrendered by their respective awardees in favor of another unit in another housing project and 3. housing units whose respective awards were cancelled by reason of default in the payment of amortization or for any violation of the terms and conditions of the individual loan agreement in accordance with existing laws. "Every single housing unit is important to this government. Most especially now that there is a growing number of homeless families that we need to relocate and resettle. It is our sworn duty and responsibility to account for every single housing unit that this government built," Ejercito said. (PM)
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December 11, 2017 Senate proposes establishment, conversion, separation and renaming of schools The Senate approved today on third and final reading 36 bills that seek to establish, convert, separate and rename state universities, colleges high schools and elementary schools nationwide. Approved were the establishment of Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) Campuses in Occidental Mindoro and Metro Manila. Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero, chairperson of the Committee on Education, Arts and culture, said the establishment of PUP campuses in Occidental Mindoro and San Juan City, Metro Manila would help deserving students get affordable education. Escudero said with the passage of Senate Bill Numbers 1103 and 884, filed by Senator Joseph Victor Ejercito, the expenses of of both the PUP campuses shall be charged to the National General Appropriations Act (GAA), thus reducing the expenditures of the local government units. "The establishment of PUP in Sablayan and San Juan will promote growth and modernization of the campus' facilities that will help the students to be more competitive," he said. The Senate also approved the establishment and conversion of several state universities in Compostela Valley, Davao Region; Iloilo, Surigao del Norte, Talisay, Cebu; Barangay Concepcion, Marikina City; Oriental Mindoro, Cotabato City, Municipality of Bontoc in Mountain Province and Province of Benguet. Also approved were measures seeking the establishment, separation, renaming and convertion of 23 national high schools nationwide and an elementary school in Valenzuela City. Escudero said the country was on the right course when it recognized the fundamental role education played in national development. "Studies show that the quality of a country's human capital is directly proportional to the quality of its education therefore, far-reaching reforms in our education system must be undertaken in order to ensure the development of our human capital," he said. Approved for establishment and conversion were the Emilio Jacinto National High School in Quezon City; Ligao City National Technical-Vocational High School in Ligao, Albay; Malabon City National Science and Mathematics High School in Malabon City, Manila; Hampangan National High School, Manlilisid National High Shool and Banahao National High School in Leyte; San Rafael Technological and Vocational High School in Navotas City, Manila; Pagadian City Science High School and Depase National High School in Zamboanga del Sur; Paso de Blas National High School, Bagbaguin National High School, Justice Eliezer R. Delos Santos High School and Antonio M. Serapio in Valenzuela City; Santor National High School and Malagnat National High School in Kalinga; Don Bosco National High School and San Antonio National High School in Paranaque City; Daklan National High School in Bokod, Benguet; Laoag City National Science Hight School in Laoag, Ilocos Norte; Caibiran National High School in Caibiran, Biliran; Musimut National High School, Sacpil National High School, Tawit National High School and Guina-ang National High School in Apayao. The Senate also approved the establishment of Antonio M. Serapio Elementary School in Barangay Ugong, Valenzuela City. (MaeJoy Albano-Miranda)
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December 11, 2017 Villar SIPAG hosts special Christmas treat to 150 Baseco and Iruhin kids VISTA Land Chairman and former Senate President Manny Villar has never forgotten his Tondo roots. And as a way of giving back to the children of Tondo, Villar and his wife, Sen. Cynthia A. Villar has once again gave a one-of-a kind Christmas treat to 150 children from Baseco, Tondo and Bgy. Iruhin, Tagaytay. The Christmas party and gift-giving for the kids was held at the charming Christmas Village of the posh Swiss luxury sanctuary, Crosswinds in Tagaytay. Now on its 8th year, the annual gift-giving of Villar SIPAG (Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance) is an activity that the Baseco and Iruhin children always look forward to every Christmas season. "We have been so blessed to have achieved a lot of things in both our public and private endeavors and this annual Christmas treat to the Baseco and Iruhin kids is our way of paying it forward to them," Sen. Villar said. The children, aged 2 to 13 years old, were treated to fun-filled activities at the Crosswinds Christmas Village, set in a 100-hectare estate in the rolling hills of Tagaytay City's upscale portion, with a nippy weather that all the more evokes the Christmas vibe. Sen. Villar adds that the children of Baseco were made annual beneficiaries of this special Christmas treat as Tondo was the birthplace of her husband. The children were amazed as they visited the Christmas Store and Santa's House at the state-of-the-art Christmas Village, decorated with 23,000 pine trees and artificial snow. They also had a grand time playing with the various toys made available to them around the area. The Christmas Party featured a magician's show and lots of games where the children danced, sang and had fun with the Villar couple and their children. The children were also delighted with the prizes they won in the parlor games and raffle draw plus the sumptuous meal and gifts that they shared for everyone. Sen. Villar said that Crosswinds, a premier development of Brittany Corporation which is the luxury real estate developer of innovative and creative communities under the Vista Land Group, is the perfect place for the annual Christmas party for the Baseco and Iruhin children as the place has a natural "Christmas charm" that the kids enjoy. "The Crosswinds Christmas party has become a ritual for the Baseco and Iruhin kids and we won't get tired of bringing them here every year to share with them the happiness of the Christmas Season," Sen. Villar adds.
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As express lanes reach deeper into the Bay Area, electronically snatching tolls from a growing number of solo drivers willing to pay for the convenience of riding in the carpool lanes, one set stands out as a big moneymaker.

The Interstate 580 express lanes, which cover 11 miles eastbound and 14 miles westbound between Dublin and Livermore, have been open a little less than two years. But theyve already become the regional leader, earning more money and luring in more solo drivers than the other two established express lanes combined.

In their first full year, the I-580 lanes produced more than $9 million in net revenue from tolls. By comparison, the Interstate 880-Highway 237 express lanes recorded $405,000 in net revenue, and the Interstate 680 express lanes over the Sunol Grade earned $290,000. The I-680 Contra Costa lanes, which opened in October, were too new for meaningful figures.

The I-580 lanes carried 7.9 million vehicles  about 31,000 per weekday  in the 12 months that ended in October. The other two express lanes were used by about 3 million vehicles a year apiece.

Officials point to I-580s consistent, and persistent, congestion as a probable reason for those express lanes popularity. Compared with the Bay Areas other established express lanes, the I-580 lanes attract far more solo drivers and fewer carpoolers and clean air vehicles, which travel for free. About 66 percent of the drivers using them are solo occupants, while 27 percent using the I-680 Sunol lanes and 15 percent using the I-880-Highway 237 lanes are driving solo.

Many of the Bay Area-bound motorists on I-580 drive long commutes to and from the San Joaquin Valley and may be more willing to pay a fee to bust through the backup through the Tri-Valley. For some commuters, the ability to shorten an hour-and-a-half commute by 15 minutes can be enticing enough for them to fork over a couple of bucks to drive the express lanes.

The 580 lanes are more successful because the (congestion) problem was bigger, said Randy Rentschler, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. If you drove there before the lanes opened, you know theres a difference.

The biggest difference comes in the eastbound direction, which features two lanes that speed the evening commute. The westbound lane on I-580 offers just a single lane, as do the express lanes on I-680 and I-880-Highway 237.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

With the opening of the I-680 Contra Costa express lanes between Walnut Creek and San Ramon, the Bay Area now has four sets of them. The combined carpool-toll lanes allow vehicles carrying two or more people, or qualifying as clean-air vehicles, to enter free while vehicles carrying only a driver must pay a varying toll, based on congestion, to enter.

They are separate from each other, operated by three different agencies and fairly far-flung, creating a disjointed system for now. Each agency has been given authority to use the tolls, collected via FasTrak, for the operation and maintenance of their lanes. But they can also use the money to expand their express lanes, with an eye toward helping the Bay Area assemble a 550-mile regional express lane network by 2035.

The money may also be used to operate express buses that can use the lanes, or help pay for BART or other rail extensions that could take traffic off those highways.

The idea is not primarily to make money, Rentschler said.

So far, little money has been set aside for I-580 express lane maintenance.

Tess Lengyel, the commissions deputy executive director of planning and policy for the Alameda County Transportation Commission, said thats because the lanes, at less than 2-years old, are still relatively new. But that wont always be the case, and the commission plans to set aside some of the $9 million to cover future maintenance needs.

For now, Lengyel said, there are no plans to spend that money on express-lane expansion.

Transportation officials say they had few initial goals or expectations of how much money theyd collect or how many cars theyd attract when they initiated the lanes.

The goal (for I-580) was that we wanted to improve the capacity of the corridor by selling unused space in the carpool lanes, Lengyel said.

John Goodwin, an MTC spokesman, said that when lanes are created, it is difficult to determine what will drive commuters to decide its worthwhile to pull into the express lane and pay a toll.

Its all a guess until the lanes are open, they stabilize and you see what the patterns are, he said.

State legislation directs express lane operators how to spend the tolls they collect. They must be used first to pay for upkeep of the electronic toll collection gear, updating the software that calculates congestion and sets tolls, plugging potholes and hiring extra CHP officers to ticket toll violators.

Any freeway has maintenance, but on express lanes we have operations as well, Lengyel said. There are lot of costs I dont think people think of.

Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan

I-580 lanes a huge hit

$9 million

Net revenue from tolls in first full year

7.9 million

Vehicles using lanes in past 12 months

66 percent

Solo drivers using the express lanes
The UC Santa Barbara chancellor postponed final exams Sunday evening, a day before they were scheduled to begin, because of the growing Thomas Fire thats sent smoke and false alarms into the university.

Tests that were set to start Monday will instead take place the week of Jan. 8, Chancellor Henry Yang said in a letter to students. He cited an accidental late-night evacuation notice, poor air quality, concerns about power outages and jammed-up transportation in postponing the exams.

Continuation of scheduled exams has become untenable, Yang said. Though there is no need to evacuate campus, again, we are recommending that students make arrangements to leave.

Students will now take their finals when their winter quarter classes were scheduled to begin  the week of Jan. 16. The quarter will be pushed back and shortened by one week, according to an FAQ distributed by the campus.

A petition calling on the campus to cancel classes and be flexible about its finals schedule had gained more than 7,000 signatures prior to Yangs announcement.

On social media, parents expressed relief that their children were coming home from the smoke-filled campus. While many students celebrated the news, some criticized the administration for taking too long to make the call. Others lamented the hours of preparation and studying they had put into their exams.

Ive been working ALL. QUARTER. to be prepared for these finals, Twitter user Genna Javigan posted. (Im) not trying to spend my winter break studying ecology and waste management. ... Thanks UCSB for prolonging the most stressful quarter of my life into my break.

UCLA, which canceled classes for the second half of the past week because of the Skirball Fire, has not made any announcement about rescheduling its final exams.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The Santa Ana-wind-driven wildfires in Southern California have burned more than 200,000 acres, destroyed more than 800 buildings and forced thousands of people to evacuate their homes.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
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Caretakers of the Golden Gate Bridge are rolling out plans for a five-year, $660 million earthquake retrofit that includes installing more than three dozen custom-made shock absorbers and replacing 8.5 million pounds of steel bracing.

Its not that the bridge is in danger of falling down, but without the retrofit it could be significantly damaged in a significant earthquake and not be usable for a long, long time, said Denis Mulligan, general manager of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District.

The goal is for work to start in 2019 and be completed in 2024  if the district can find the cash.

One problem: The district has only about one-third of the money lined up. Mulligan wouldnt rule out increasing tolls to help with the bill.

Officials say the retrofit isnt optional. As a state-designated lifeline bridge, the span has to be able to survive the Big One with only minor to moderate damage and be open within a few days at the most, if only to emergency vehicles.

The good news is that the bridge is anchored into rock, said district engineer Ewa Bauer. The bad news is that its also between the San Andreas and Hayward faults.

The bridge came through its last big test unscathed, when it rode out the Loma Prieta quake of 1989. But Bauer noted that the epicenter then was 75 miles to the south. A quake on the San Andreas could strike as close as 7 miles west of the span.

The district still has to find at least $430 million for the job. Were talking with our state and federal partners, Mulligan said.

Even then, as with all big projects, the final cost is uncertain. The retrofit price tag has already risen by $100 million since the district last priced it two years ago.

Its a lot of money, but its obviously a special job. This bridge is an icon  every piece, every joint, every brace has to fit its historic design, Bauer said.

Matier & Ross/Courtesy Golden Gate Bridge District

For example, the 38 shock-absorbing energy-dispersal devices  each 17 feet long  have to be specifically designed and built for the bridge. Cost: about $1.5 million each.

Theyll be installed under the bridge roadway, and officials promise they wont change the look of San Franciscos most famous tourist attraction. The steel bracing and other items to strengthen the suspension span will blend into the framework as well.

Just getting the pieces to the bridge will be a challenge, because both sides of the span are surrounded by the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. We have to cross land that tourists and visitors use, so that adds to the cost as well, Bauer said.

Keeping park visitors happy and keeping the bridge open to traffic also means that most of the work will be done at night.

As long as theyre at it, bridge officials figured they might as well replace and repaint the Art Deco facade of the bridges south tower for $50 million. The north tower was repainted more recently.

Considering the $400 million that the district has already spent on retrofits to the north and south approaches to the span, this will be the most expensive Bay Area bridge retrofit ever  topping out at more than $1 billion.

Proving once again that the Golden Gate Bridge really is golden.

Breakup: With the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agencys parking and traffic management becoming a bigger political issue, plans are being revved up for a City Charter amendment that would hand those jobs to a new Department of Livable Streets.

At least thats the working name among backers of the proposed Charter amendment, which would leave the MTA staff with oversight of Muni  but not much else.

The MTA board would still hear all parking and traffic matters, but the Board of Supervisors would have the final say over parking rules, stop signs and the like.

The buck stops with the Board of Supervisors, said Supervisor Ahsha Safai, one of the initiatives sponsors. I dont want to be held accountable for something I have absolutely no control over.

Safai cited his frustration over the MTAs decision to reject a two-year effort by his Excelsior constituents to get a four-way stop sign at the corner of Avalon Avenue and Edinburgh Street  where a pedestrian was later struck and injured.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who is co-sponsoring the ballot move, said the final straw for him was hearing that Mayor Ed Lee, with support from the MTA, was negotiating with ride-hailing giants to turn parking spaces into designated pickup stops for Uber and Lyft.

The mayors office says the pickup stops are to make streets safer. But Peskin sees it as a giveaway to the mayors friends, especially tech investor Ron Conway  who Peskin has heard is tied financially to Lyft. But a source close to Conway told us he has no investments in that or any other ride-hailing company.

The Chamber of Commerce, business think tank SPUR and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition are lining up in opposition to the proposed Charter amendment.

We all agree there are improvements that can made ... but a Charter amendment coming out of the blue isnt a solution, said chamber Vice President Jim Lazarus.

Safai and Peskin need four more supervisors to sign onto the Charter amendment to get it on the June 5 ballot. Theyre confident theyll get there.

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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Editor s note: Here are three Bay Area startups worth watching this week.

A San Francisco startup says its Apple Watch accessory can detect certain heart conditions without the patient needing to go to the hospital.

AliveCors KardiaBand EKG reader is the first medical-grade accessory for the Apple Watch cleared by the Food and Drug Administration. This means the consumer is getting a medical-grade EKG reading right on their wrist. And the device can now be sold in the U.S.

The band has a tiny sensor that can embed into an Apple Watch band. With a corresponding app, that sensor can take an EKG reading to detect abnormal heart rates and atrial fibrillation, a heart condition that impacts millions of Americans.

Now you can do this at home, anytime, AliveCor CEO Vic Gundotra said

FDA clearance, which the KardiaBand obtained last month, means that a device is substantially equivalent to another legally marketed device, the agency says.

The KardiaBand is hardly the only heart-related accessory out there. Apple Watch users can check their heart rate at any time using its Heart Rate app. Other third-party apps, such as Cardiogram, say their technology can use heart-rate data from the Heart Rate app to prevent and detect heart disease.

The KardiaBand costs $199.

Gundotra declined to say how much money the company raised to date. But according to Crunchbase it has raised $43.5 million.

Every year, about 1 in 4 of the deaths in the U.S. are from heart disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At a time of increasing health care costs, new technology may be able to help alert people to seek medical help.

One hurdle for AliveCore: Can it convince older users, who are often reluctant to replace a traditional doctors visit with an app or device, to trust the technology?

Gundotra said he isnt worried: You would think some older users would have some reluctance to this, but they are actually more aware of their need for heart health.

Also trending:

What it does: Creates a heads-up navigation display that can sit on the dashboard of a car.

What happened: The company did not respond to a request for comment, but according to TechCrunch, it is preparing to liquidate.

Why it matters: Even a company that receives more than $41 million in venture capital and lots of hype in the media can fail. Hardware in particular can be a difficult business to sustain, as it is often less profitable and initially requires more capital than software.

Headquarters: San Francisco.

Funding: $41.8 million, according to Crunchbase.

Employees: 51-100, according to Crunchbase.

What it does: A global online payments software that helps big companies like Amazon, Twitter and GoPro manage their cross-border payments.

What happened: It is unclear why this company, which could not be reached for comment, is trending this week. Last month it was given the PayStream Advisors Innovative Technology Award for its approach to automating financial processes.

Why it matters: When a company scales by either acquiring other companies or spinning off parts of its business, it can become complicated to manage internal payments  especially if the company operates across international borders. Tipalti aims to streamline that process.

Headquarters: San Mateo.

Funding: $30 million, according to Crunchbase.

Employees: 51-100, according to Crunchbase.

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani

How we pick the companies

Every week, The Chronicle and Crunchbase, a San Francisco firm that tracks key businesses in technology, analyze private Bay Area companies based on their financial backing, employees and activity on Crunchbase. We feature three that are moving up in the ranks. For more information on the companies: www.crunchbase.com
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As all cannabis-related California businesses  from the growers to the distributors  make the jump from the black market to the free market in the coming year, they will need to officially register with the secretary of states office.

When new state regulations allowing consumers to buy recreational marijuana take effect Jan. 1, industry experts estimate that tens of thousands of informal cannabis-related businesses will have to transition into the regulated market. On Monday, the secretary of state announced a digital tool to help streamline that process: Cannabizfile, a new online portal where entrepreneurs can officially register their businesses with the state.

Marijuana businesses in California exist on a spectrum  from incorporated, tax-paying, locally licensed operators all the way to fly-by-night delivery services that have black-market roots and are medical in name alone. Once the state issues the first licenses after Jan. 1, Californias vast mix of informal medical marijuana collectives have 18 months to conform to the new business rules.

Sam Wolson / Sam Wolson / Special to The Chronicle 2015

We are making sure we are as prepared as possible for new applications, Secretary of State Alex Padilla said in an interview. Its more efficient for the entrepreneur, and its more efficient on our end.

After the new regulations take effect, the University of California Agricultural Issues Center projects that about half the demand that is currently in the illegal adult-use industry will shift over to the legal entities.

This will avoid the inconvenience, stigma, and legal risks of buying from an unlicensed seller, according to the study, which was reported by the Los Angeles Times in June.

Zeta Ceti, founder and CEO of Green Rush Consulting, said the new online portal will make it much easier for his cannabis consulting company to help its clients obtain permits and licenses.

Otherwise, you would need to turn in (the application) in person, or mail it in, he said. It makes it a lot easier for us, and on the back end for those folks as well.

Still, about 29 percent of cannabis consumers will initially stay in the illegal market to avoid the cost of adhering to new regulations, such as increased taxes, the study projected.

When Nat Buttrick, CEO of cannabis farmer collective Madrone, officially registers with the state, he said he will have to deal with increased costs and operating hurdles.

Compliance is costly, he said. This is a culture that turned into an industry almost overnight, and the culture is not used to dealing with (regulators).

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

But, he said, he is left with little choice.

Once you go for a state license, then you can only work with another state license holder, he said. And the majority of the dispensaries we work with are getting a license.

San Francisco Chronicle

staff writer David Downs contributed to this report.

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani
Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle

Uber has settled a second lawsuit filed by a woman who was raped by her Uber driver in Delhi, India, and who alleged Uber executives pried into her confidential medical records.

A court filing last week said the plaintiff, identified only as Jane Doe, had reached a settlement with former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick and Eric Alexander, the companys former president of business in Asia Pacific, through private mediation. The filing said the case is expected to be dismissed in January. The womans lawsuit originally named Emil Michael, former Uber senior vice president for business, as a defendant, but the claims against him were dismissed in October.
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Ayesha Curry admits fame can be a strange thing, sometimes.

A little notoriety can turn personal interests into platforms. Take her involvement in No Kid Hungry, part of the national anti-hunger organization Share Our Strength. Curry, who opened International Smoke in San Franciscos Millennium Tower last month, started regularly donating to the national campaign about five years ago, around the time her oldest daughter, Riley, was born.

On Saturday, Curry was presented with the No Kid Hungry Champion award, a designation given to ambassadors of the campaign who have taken significant measures to ending childhood hunger. Actor Jeff Bridges is a past recipient of the award. Notable chefs like Traci Des Jardins and Melissa Perello have also contributed to the cause.

I had been doing this silently for a long time, Curry told Inside Scoop over the weekend.

I was always looking for something to be a part of and a way to give back but I didnt want to be that person who had their hand in so many things that they werent focusing on what they truly cared about, Curry said. A lot of people get involved with causes that they just arent actually passionate about. I genuinely care about this.

According to No Kids Hungry representatives, through her presence alone  through speaking engagements about childhood hunger and using her cookware line to prepare and fund meals  Curry has helped connect children with 2.5 million meals.

Nationally, one in six kids will face hunger this year, according to data compiled by No Kids Hungry. Locally, SF-Marin Food Bank data shows 23 percent of all San Francisco residents struggle with hunger.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

Curry and her husband moved to the Bay Area around 2009, at one point living in Oaklands Jack London Square. It was in Oakland, Curry said, she first noticed the prevalence of the issue throughout the Bay Area, and especially in the East Bay.

Ive gone into schools deep in Oakland and its hard to see, Curry said. For many years I didnt understand how you can do more for organizations like this than just donating money. Now, Im spreading awareness about this issue. Knowing now that I can make a change is what motivates me daily.
Star Wars: Episode I  The Phantom Menace

Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his young assistant, Obi-Wan Kenobi, are traveling with the Naboo Queen Amidala, most noted for her weird way of applying lipstick. They arrive on a desert planet, where they meet a 9-year-old slave boy, Anakin Skywalker. Qui-Gon senses the force within Anakin and resolves to train him as a Jedi knight, even after the Jedi Council expresses misgivings. They cant put their finger on it  they just get a certain black-helmet vibe from him. During one of the periodic wars, prevalent in this part of the Galaxy, Qui-Gon dies, but not before extracting a promise from Obi-Wan to train Anakin as a Jedi. Everybody seems to know this really isnt a good idea.

Star Wars: Episode II  Attack of the Clones

Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin are charged with protecting Queen Amidala, following an attempt on her life. She and Anakin fall in love. On a remote planet, Obi-Wan discovers that the Republic is producing lots of clones, every one of which has to be killed. Meanwhile, Anakin discovers that his mother has been murdered, which does nothing for his personality. In what will become a life pattern, he goes on a murderous rampage. Anakin loses his arm in a subsequent battle, but he is fitted with a robotic arm and marries Amidala on Naboo, which is sort of like getting married in Vegas, only different.

Star Wars: Episode III  Revenge of the Sith

In between the usual battles, Anakin is tormented by premonitions that his wife will die in childbirth. To gain power over death, he goes over to the Dark Side and swears allegiance to Palpatine, who gives him the name Darth Vader. (This title has more the ring of authority than say, Nice Fella.) In a fight with Obi-Wan, Vader is dismembered  this just keeps happening to him. He is also burned. But thats OK, because Palpatine rescues him and fits him with a robotic body and a fetching black helmet. (No explanation where the voice comes from.) Meanwhile, the estranged Mrs. Vader gives birth to fraternal twins and dies, which means Anakin gave up his soul for a helmet. On the plus side, he does look good in it.

Star Wars: Episode IV  A New Hope

Luke discovers a recording from Princess Leia, leader of the rebel forces, and teams up with Obi-Wan Kenobi, who, in old age, has fallen on hard times. (He has, however, developed a lovely speaking voice.) The two, in turn, join with Leia and enlist the help of the rakish Han Solo, and the three do battle against the Death Star. Obi-Wan is killed by Darth Vader. Luke, using the Force, and with some supernatural help from Obi-Wan, destroys the Death Star, and everyone is so happy youd never know they even needed a sequel.

Star Wars: Episode V  The Empire Strikes Back

The rebels are in retreat from the Empire. Han and Leias verbal sniping transforms into a romantic connection. They kiss, but they shouldnt, because we know where this will lead. In fact, you just want to shout, Stop this! Or else youll have a son who will stab you and make you fall off a bridge. Anyway, Luke takes instruction from Yoda and later gets into a lightsaber battle with Darth Vader, who cuts off Lukes hand, thus making him a chip off the old block. The latter disturbing fact Luke discovers only moments later, when Vader reveals that he is Lukes father. Despite these paternal inducements, Luke resists going over to the Dark Side and later is fitted with a robotic hand. No one knows what will happen next, except that Luke probably shouldnt scratch his face for a while, until he really knows what hes doing with those metal fingers. He doesnt need a robotic eye, too.

Star Wars: Episode VI  Return of the Jedi

After much effort, Han Solo and Leia are rescued from the clutches of Jabba the Hutt. Yoda, close to death, tells Luke that Leia is his sister. While trying to attack the new Death Star, the newly minted brother-sister team is captured by the Empire forces. Vader tries once again to enlist Luke into darkness, and in the ensuing lightsaber battle, Vaders prosthetic hand is cut off. This kind of thing happens a lot in that family. Really, for all their vaunted skill with the lightsaber, theyre a disaster. But when the emperor tries to kill Luke, Vaders last shred of conscience kicks in, and he kills the emperor and saves Luke. Luke pulls Vaders helmet off, and the old man dies. At this point, Vader not only looks nothing like Hayden Christensen; he doesnt even look like Stephen Glass as played by Hayden Christensen. The episode ends with the rebels celebrating their victory.

Star Wars Episode VII  The Force Awakens

The main thing you need to know going in is the Han Solo situation. How can we put this gently? Well, uh, the thing about Han Solo  youre not going to be seeing much of him no more. Uh-uh. Oh, maybe a flashback or two, but  spoiler alert  he gets stabbed and falls off a bridge. Just sort of drops into the darkness, full of pain and with his entire world shattered. Lousy, isnt it? (Its the worst thing to happen since Captain Kirk died from having a thing fall on him.) In any case, this new installment begins 30 years after Episode VI. Thats the problem with defeated enemies. You turn your back on them for a generation or so, and they rebuild their strength or tamper with your election. As this installment starts, the former Empire has practically reached critical mass, just as the Republic is realizing its peril.

There are new heroes, Rey (female) and Poe (male), and they team up with Han Solo and Chewbacca. This also calls for a reunion with Princess Leia, who is now Gen. Leia. Meanwhile, the new leader of the Empire forces is Ren (also known as Ben), who happens to be the son of Han Solo and Leia. For some reason, Ren has become the embodiment of evil, which calls into question Han and Leias parenting skills. In any case, the movie ends with Rey scoring a temporary victory over Ren, but you know Rey will have to face him again, this time with the help of Luke Skywalker, who shows up at the end of this installment looking bearded and contemplative. Maybe hes just contemplating whether to shave the beard. Shaven or hirsute, Luke has his work cut out for him.
Lake Fong/TNS

The fallout from Mario Batalis sexual harassment allegations is visible in the Bay Area as the local, sustainable butcher shop/restaurant Belcampo Meats has announced it is severing ties with the celebrity chef.

Back in 2015, Batali partnered with Belcampo to release a line of organic salumi that have been sold at the various Belcampo shops.
SACRAMENTO  With sexual harassment and assault allegations ricocheting through the state Capitol, two female lobbyists say they soon faced the consequences of speaking out  a state senator who suddenly wanted to avoid meeting with them.

A client of theirs relayed that the senator wanted women excluded from a meeting at a nearby watering hole. The reason: The senator and some of his colleagues had decided that, with accusations of bad behavior mounting against their fellow legislators, it would be safer to simply stop having drinks with lobbyists who happen to be female.

Cutting off an entire gender from that access is clearly harmful, said lobbyist Jodi Hicks, whose client alerted her of the senators intent. If we are saying we need to change the culture, this is the opposite of that.

Hicks is one of nearly 150 women who signed a letter in October condemning what they called the pervasive culture of sexual harassment in California politics. The movement, known as We Said Enough, began as a general outcry. It has since evolved into a series of specific and disturbing allegations that have toppled two lawmakers and have a third fighting for his political career.

And as women come forward with stories of being propositioned, groped and even assaulted by male colleagues in politics, an undercurrent of retaliation has begun rippling through the state. Men have threatened to sideline women from private meetings. Critics, hiding behind anonymous emails, are trying to shame some of the women speaking out.

One lobbyist already has lost her job. She was publicly outspoken about the movement and the contents of the letter. And when she notified her employer that she was a signatory to the letter, she was promptly dismissed, said employment lawyer Micha Liberty, whom the lobbyist hired. It was completely retaliatory and extraordinarily damaging.

Liberty declined to name the lobbyist or the firm she was fired from, citing attorney-client privilege and saying they are exploring how to proceed.

Together, the incidents point to the risk that this wave of activism could inadvertently exacerbate the Capitols boys club environment. More than three-quarters of state lawmakers are men, and though many women work as lobbyists, most of the partners at big firms are men.

Three California legislators  all Democrats from the Los Angeles area  have been accused of sexual misconduct in recent weeks. Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra resigned after several female staffers said he had groped them, and Assemblyman Matt Dababneh announced his resignation following a lobbyists accusation that he trapped her in a bathroom and made her watch him masturbate. State Sen. Tony Mendoza lost his chairmanship of a powerful committee after people who worked for him said he repeatedly invited young female employees to come to his house or a hotel room late at night.

Women confronting abuse in their professional lives are now also fighting to keep their positions in a male-dominated field. After Hicks heard from the client who said senators didnt want women coming out for drinks, she says she and her business partner sprang into action behind the scenes: They called the senator and other legislators to make plain that discriminating against women lobbyists would worsen the Capitols sexism.

Eventually, Hicks said, the senator apologized and assured them he would not bar women from the kinds of meetings he holds with men. The lobbyists, in turn, told him they would not reveal his name so long as the threatened ban never came to pass.

Yet whispers endure about California lawmakers implementing a Mike Pence rule  a reference to the vice presidents custom of eating a meal with a woman or attending an event where alcohol is served only if his wife accompanies him. Two male lobbyists, who spoke on condition of anonymity to convey private conversations with legislators, said theyve heard from male lawmakers who say theyll no longer meet alone with any woman  whether a lobbyist, staff member or constituent. They see it as a way to guard their reputations.

Others called that a needless overreaction.

Anybody who is behaving like a moral adult shouldnt worry about that, said Assemblywoman Laura Friedman, a Democrat from Glendale (Los Angeles County) who is chairing the Assembly committee tasked with updating sexual harassment policies.

She said she has not heard any discussion among her colleagues about male lawmakers refusing to meet alone with women: Most of us are grown-up enough to know the way we should be behaving, and what is acceptable ... and when you are crossing some lines.

Pamela Lopez, the woman who lodged the accusations against Dababneh, said she waited almost two years to go public because she feared retaliation  public officials who would stop meeting with her, clients who could cut off business, slut-shaming whispers in the Capitol hallway.

So much of the business of politics is based on relationships, Lopez said in an interview. So if I am shunned informally that really affects my business and my ability to do my job.

Laurel Rosenhall writes for CALmatters.org, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.
With House Speaker Paul Ryan pledging to push major Medicare cuts to reduce the added $1 trillion in federal debt created by the huge tax gifts for corporations and the super-rich proposed in versions of the House and Senate tax bill that Republicans are working to reconcile  the urgency mounts for state action to protect the health security of Californians.

The Medicare cuts are just one sign of the health care threats posed by the expected final bill. Among other provisions that could be in the final bill are:

Elimination of the mandate to buy insurance, which analysis suggests would prompt insurers to levy new double-digit premium hikes; and,

An end to tax deductions for people whose medical expenses exceed 10 percent of their income, which would punish millions of people with severe health problems such as cancer and certain chronic illnesses.

Fortunately, theres an alternative for California, a state bill that would guarantee health coverage to all, SB562, and will be eligible for legislative action again early next year. It builds on an illustrious history in our state, dating back more than a century to legendary California reformer Hiram Johnson.

In 1912, then-Gov. Johnson was the running mate for former President Teddy Roosevelts insurgent, though unsuccessful, campaign to return to the White House on a Progressive Party platform that prominently included a universal system of social insurance to protect all Americans from the hazards of sickness.

It was an early version of what became more than a century of national efforts to assure health care for all as a public responsibility and moral imperative.

Johnson continued that push by appointing a Social Insurance Commission in 1915 to study state solutions.

It proposed a state constitutional amendment that went before voters in 1918 to develop a system for universal coverage for California. The private insurance industry, joined by a large group of doctors, led the opposition, a pattern that would recur again and again.

It would be the first of repeated efforts over the past century by some of Californias most legendary political figures, joined by nurses and other reformers to guarantee health care for all Californians. They were not deterred by critics, like those today, who insist California must wait for a federal solution, rather than act here to protect our own people.

The honor roll over the years included such notables as Johnson; governor, soon to be Supreme Court chief justice, Earl Warren; martyred San Francisco Mayor George Moscone; and Democratic Party icon John Burton.

Bill after bill laid out frameworks that show a striking parallel to what the California Nurses Association and activists have proposed in SB562.

These include a single-payer-type structure with a new state agency to administer the funding from existing revenue and new state revenue to be paid to private providers for care delivery.

Nearly all featured universal, guaranteed coverage, without forcing Californians to be bankrupted by huge medical bills or skip the care they need due to the high cost, and comprehensive benefits, from hospitalization to physician services, dental, mental health, prescription drug coverage, and long-term care.

All those elements are the basic framework of SB562 as well.

Heres Gov. Culbert Olson in 1939: It is no longer seriously debated that a fundamental change is needed in the method of meeting the costs of medical care and the risks and loss of sickness, especially for wage earners and others of small or moderate income.

Warren initiated at least four legislative efforts, starting in 1945 with an effort to provide universal coverage for all Californians modeled after similar European systems.

In his 1947 gubernatorial inaugural address, Warren noted it is not sufficient to have medical services, hospitals, clinics and laboratories ... unless the people have economic access to them.

Burton, who retired in May as chair of the California Democratic Party, pushed his own plan as an Assembly member in 1961 for a prepaid health service system.

Three years before his election as San Francisco mayor, state Sen. George Moscone sponsored the Consumer Health Protection Act of 1972 to provide single-payer, universal coverage with no co-pays or deductible payments  a reminder that SB562s plan to eliminate co-pays and deductibles also has a long precedent.

Virulent opposition, led by those who profit from sickness and suffering, and their allies in elected office, has blocked proposals, but not slowed efforts for a social insurance system to safeguard Californians.

In 1994, a single-payer initiative, Proposition 186, united CNA with major senior, small-business, consumer, womens and progressive doctors groups. The initiative lost only after being outspent by insurance companies by about 10-1.

California came even closer to achieving this goal in 2006 and 2008 with single-payer bills by former state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, also sponsored by CNA, that twice reached the governors desk, only to be vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Those bills, like SB562, featured public administration, the use of existing federal, state and local health care spending with new revenue, comprehensive benefits and universal coverage.

We dont have to reinvent the wheel, a proud legacy of California leaders and activists has lighted the way.
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A new political battle over marijuana is exploding less than a month before Californias recreational cannabis market opens, as two legislators want state regulators to change a policy they worry rolls out the red carpet for large corporations to crush the livelihood of small family farmers.

Those legislators, state Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, and Assemblyman Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, are irate that the thousands of small cannabis farmers they represent in the nations marijuana-growing heartland were told one thing during the Proposition 64 legalization campaign but something else when regulations were announced last month.

Pro-legalization forces repeated a consistent refrain during their two-year campaign, which was led by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom: Were going to protect small cannabis farmers, many of whom have grown the crop for generations on plots of land smaller than a suburban backyard. Prop. 64 organizers were trying to address the fears of residents of the Emerald Triangle  Mendocino, Humboldt and Trinity counties, where cannabis farms are abundant  as those counties didnt support a failed legalization effort in 2010.

This time, California voters approved legalization. But when it came time for state regulators to write the rules about cultivation, some farmers felt betrayed.

The new rules allow a single entity to own an unlimited number of 1-acre plots. Small farmers fear that will enable corporate owners to buy up many small farms. If that happens, large growers could harvest so much marijuana at a lower cost that it would drive down prices and put small farmers out of business.

Three years ago, farmers could get $1,900 to $2,200 a pound. The price is now half that much in some areas. According to a January report prepared for the California Department of Food and Agriculture, California produces 13.5 million pounds of marijuana a year  more than twice as much as it did a year ago, but Californians consume just 2.5 million pounds, with the rest being sold out of state.

The state legislators are concerned that the market could be oversaturated if there isnt a restriction on large growers.

Regulating cannabis and protecting small farmers will become exceedingly difficult if (the state Department of Food and Agriculture) doesnt close the loophole they created that allows large industrial grows contrary to Proposition 64 and the legislative agreements that have been struck over the past 36 months, said a letter McGuire and Wood sent to the state agency. The two represent much of the Emerald Triangle.

Regulators didnt include a cap in the new rules because they preferred to allow local jurisdictions to maintain control over size or license limitations as they deem appropriate, said Department of Food and Agriculture spokesman Steve Lyle.

The responsibility of determining whether a particular grower was gaining too much land and power, Lyle said, would be up to local jurisdictions based on the needs of their constituents.

McGuire said he was shocked and appalled to see this recommendation go forward. Until then, I thought we were all on the same page.

There has been a lot of doublespeak in this process over the past 24 months, McGuire said. This goes against the concept of family farms. All it does is roll out the red carpet for the Walmart of weed. We will fight this tooth and nail. We are not about to be rolled by some backroom deal.

McGuire said he will fight to change the ownership rules when the Legislature returns in January.

Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press

Meanwhile, many growers remain frustrated that the political promises they heard during the campaign didnt translate into the regulations they will be required to follow.

Casey ONeill, whose family has been growing cannabis on its small Mendocino County farm for two generations, said the new state regulations arent what Prop. 64 promised. Specifically, the ballot measure said it would ensure that the nonmedical marijuana industry in California will be built around small- and medium-size businesses by prohibiting large-scale cultivation licenses for the first five years.

Small farmers were counting on that five-year head start to give them a fighting chance against larger corporations, which are much more familiar with wending through a government bureaucracy.

Seeing the cap might not be part of the regulations was deeply frustrating and disheartening, ONeill said.

Most of the estimated 7,000 cannabis farmers in Mendocino County grow between 25 and 50 plants, said ONeill, who is development director for the California Growers Association. Its a tiny backyard. Youre looking at one-sixteenth of an acre.

The process to bring farmers into compliance has been slow there. Only about 700 Mendocino cannabis farmers have begun the legal application process  roughly 1 in 10  since the application window opened in May. He worries that many local economies near him will collapse if the local marijuana industry isnt healthy.

These are rural communities were talking about, ONeill said. Cannabis cultivation is a huge part of the economy. If it goes away ...

That wasnt the mood ONeill and others felt in May 2015, when Newsom led a group of politicians and health and environmental experts to Humboldt County on what was billed as a Cannabis Fact Finding Tour.

There, at a community meeting in Garberville, they reassured the audience of small cannabis farmers that they wouldnt let corporate growers dominate Californias market if voters approved legalization. Newsom told the crowd of 200 that he understood corporate interests would try to rewrite the regulations and they will try to write you out. We cannot let that happen.

The audience gave him a standing ovation. Months later, the Blue Ribbon Commission on Marijuana Policy that Newsom convened included similar goals on protecting small farmers.

The commissions report stated that the goal should be to prevent the growth of a large, corporate marijuana industry dominated by a small number of players, as we see with Big Tobacco or the alcohol industry.

Keith Humphreys, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University who served on the panel with Newsom, said allowing an unlimited number of 1-acre plots will completely undermine the commissions intention to protect small farmers. It is disappointing.

Not every corner of the cannabis industry is as concerned. Some worry that there wont be enough cannabis to keep up with market demand once the recreational market opens.

Josh Drayton, deputy director of the California Cannabis Industry Association, whose 400 members come from all corners of the business, said we support small farmers and craft cannabis. But we also understand diversity of farm sizes will be necessary.

Were comfortable (with the new regulations) but still digesting them and trying to see solutions, Drayton said.

Newsom sought to chart a middle ground, cautioning that legalization is a process unfolding over many years and that the rules would need constant re-evaluation to make the market work for small growers, while squeezing out the cartels, and protecting kids and consumers.

Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
For Bay Area performer Sgt. Die Wies, whose given name is Latashia Govan, burlesque is about more than taking off her clothes for an audience.

Its so much more than taking off your clothes and a lot of people dont know that. They think that youre just up there to be a sexual object, says Govan. They dont think that youre up there trying to break body stereotypes or typecasts and all the different constraints that society tries to put on us.

When Govan discovered burlesque she was not seeing performers who looked like her. Now Govan, who describes herself as full-figured, uses her time on stage to address body-image stereotypes.

There are things bigger than having a little extra fluff on you, says Govan. Its all beautiful. The perfect package doesnt come in a perfect package. Imperfection is perfection, thats the point.

In addition to providing her with a platform, burlesque also gave Govan, a sexual assault survivor, access to a supportive community which taught her how to be a survivor instead of a victim.

I never talked about it, actually, Govan says, before burlesque I never addressed it.

I talked to my therapist about it, but it never really sank in until I started learning how to take my clothes off onstage. Its weird, I know, but its very cathartic for me.

Govan was in need of that support after her father, U.S. Army veteran Sgt. Nelson Govan, a big supporter of her burlesque community, died on New Years Day 2013. She keeps his memory alive through her performances and by being who she is.

He wanted me to be the best human I could be, she says. Hed be blown away that Id done all the things I do, but Im betting you anything hed want me to start upping my ante and going bigger.

Govan credits the burlesque community with getting her through everything from losing her father to her divorce.

Those are my people, and they embrace all of my imperfections, Govan says. I still go out there and I do my thing, because Im proud of myself and Ive learned to love myself through burlesque.

Watch an accompanying video at www.sfchronicle.com/theregulars. The Regulars is a photo and video column that offers a glimpse into the lives of ordinary people in the Bay Area, caught in routine activities of modern urban life.
Judd Apatow has come out from behind the camera and onto the stage again. The director returns to his standup roots with a special on Netflix, available today for streaming. Its called Judd Apatow: The Return.

The CW gets right to the true meaning of the holidays with the special Greatest Holiday Commercials Countdown 2017 at 8 p.m.

More fall finales air tonight: Lethal Weapon on Fox at 8, The Middle on ABC at 8, Fresh Off the Boat at 8:30 on ABC, Black-ish at 9 on ABC, Brooklyn Nine-Nine with an hour-long episode at 9 on Fox,The Mayor at 9:30 on ABC, Kevin (Probably) Saves the World at 10 on ABC, Chicago Med at 10 on NBC.

Gwen Stefani gets in the holiday mood in her NBC special Gwen Stefanis You Make It Feel Like Christmas at 9 p.m.

And so it begins: the first brick in the wall-to-wall coverage of Harry and Meghans engagement and forthcoming marriage as TLC presents When Harry Met Meghan: A Royal Romance at 9 p.m.

Chrisley Knows Best wraps season five on USA at 10 p.m.

The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer miniseries wraps on the History Channel at 10 p.m.

TV NEWS

KNTV has won the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award for its investigative series Arrested at School, the product of a two-year probe into schools across the country, including in the Bay Area, calling the police on minority students and students with disabilities at a proportionately higher rate than for other students.

The awards recognize fewer than 20 stories each year from a pool of hundreds of entries. News outlets are selected based on the strength of their reporting and ability to produce stories that create an impact in the public interest. The series also won the George Foster Peabody Award.

In other news, former Bay Area newswoman Soledad OBrien scored big for KNTV in the November sweeps with her Hearst-produced show Matter of Fact With Soledad OBrien. The show registered a 50 percent ratings boost over prior programming in its slot.

The Writers Guild of America has announced its nominations in various TV categories in advance of its awards show in February, which will be hosted by Patton Oswalt at the Beverly Hilton. Former Bay Area resident Gina Welch is among the writers nominated for long form original for the Ryan Murphy-Brad Falchuk drama Feud: Bette and Joan.

Writers for the following shows have been nominated in the drama category: The Americans, Better Call Saul, Game of Thrones, The Handmaids Tale, Stranger Things. For comedy: Curb Your Enthusiasm, GLOW, Master of None, Silicon Valley, Veep.

New series: American Vandal, The Deuce, Ozark, The Handmaids Tale, GLOW.

Long-form original: Feud, American Horror Story: Cult, Flint, Godless, Manhunt: Unabomber.

David Wiegand is an assistant managing editor and the TV critic of The San Francisco Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook. Email: dwiegand@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @WaitWhat_TV
The grueling battle to halt the fire threatening Santa Barbara and celebrity-filled communities along the coast of California is being waged over a vast rolling backcountry stretching inland over steep mountains, through wooded gullies and along inaccessible chaparral-covered cliffs.

Nearly 7,000 firefighters, tanker planes and helicopters pounded the Thomas Fire on Monday after stubborn Santa Ana winds died down, slowing the relentless march of flames through Southern California.

The fire, which was 20 percent contained Monday morning, grew to 231,700 acres and late in the day was burning around Carpinteria and headed toward multimillion-dollar celebrity homes in Montecito. It is the largest and most destructive of six wind-driven fires burning between Santa Barbara and San Diego.

Were sending ground resources everywhere where we can send them in, but if those areas dont have roads we cant send people in there, said Capt. Issac Sanchez of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire. Weve got the best firefighters in the country engaged on this fire right now. Our goal is certainly to keep it away from all of these communities, but its an incredibly dynamic fire and we have to deal with a lot of variables.

The Thomas Fire, which started in Ventura County on Dec. 4, is now the fifth-largest wildfire in modern state history. It has forced evacuations of 94,607 people as it has crackled through neighborhoods, woodlands and grasslands, jumping roads and destroying 867 structures.

More than 18,000 homes are being threatened over an area measuring nearly 360 square miles, and flames are licking up against the Los Padres National Forest on three sides. Cal Fire said the estimated damage was just over $48 million so far.

This things a monster, Jason Hodge, a firefighter with the Ventura County Fire Department, said Monday. Right now the thing thats really unique about this fire is just the sheer width of it. Just to drive from one end of the fire (in Fillmore in Ventura County) to the other (in Santa Barbara County) with no traffic takes 45 minutes.

Nearly 2,000 more firefighters from all over California and the western United States, including fire departments in San Francisco, Oakland, Alameda County, Hayward and Fremont, were brought in Sunday to fight the fire, bringing the total to 6,397  one of the largest deployments in California history. One firefighter from Redding broke his leg fighting the fire over the weekend, Cal Fire officials said.

Planes, helicopters and fire crews attacked the northwestern edge of the fire Monday in an attempt to prevent flames from rolling further into Carpinteria and Summerland.

Hodge said six structures in Carpinteria, just 11 miles southeast of Santa Barbara, have been destroyed.

Montecito and Carpinteria are home to such celebrities as talk-show hosts Ellen Degeneres and Oprah Winfrey and actors Rob Lowe and Jeff Bridges.

Degeneres tweeted Sunday that she evacuated her pets from the $7.2 million Montecito home she purchased last December.

Everyone in the Montecito area is checking up on each other and helping to get people and animals to safety, Degeneres tweeted. Im proud to be a part of this community. Im sending lots of love and gratitude to the fire department and sheriffs.

Peace be Still, is my prayer tonight, tweeted Winfrey. For all the fires raging thru my community and beyond.

Janet Upton, a deputy director of Cal Fire, said celebrities living in the area have been extremely helpful transmitting fire information to their neighbors.

They just help us try to keep people calm and give validated information, amplifying what public safety officials are saying, Upton said. We appreciate the assist there.

Upton said Lowe and other stars living in the area were also helpful during previous fires, including the Jesusita Fire, which burned 8,733 acres in the Santa Barbara hills in 2009, and the Zaca Fire, which scorched 240,207 acres in the San Rafael Mountains northeast of the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County in 2007.

Mandatory evacuations were in place Monday for some Santa Barbara neighborhoods and the community of Montecito, north of Highway 192, and eastern parts of Carpinteria, according to officials in Santa Barbara County. An evacuation shelter was set up at UC Santa Barbaras Recreation Center.

If there was one bright spot Monday, it was how few casualties there have been during the disaster. Only one person has died, a 70-year-old Santa Paula woman killed in a car crash as she attempted to evacuate.

For all the challenges that this fire has presented, Hodge said, the fact that weve had so few injuries and really havent seen the lives lost that this fire has the potential for has kept people in pretty good spirits overall.

A red flag warning was in place for Santa Barbara County through Monday evening, but although the Santa Ana winds had died down, they were expected to continue throughout the week, forecasters said.

Gusts on Monday were forecast to reach up to 30 mph at higher elevations, with gusts up to 20 mph in the valleys, said Matt Mehle, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

The air mass is still extremely dry, Mehle said. Thats why there is still concern out there. Warm and dry conditions will continue through Thursday.

Tom Rolinski, a senior meteorologist for the U.S. Forest Service, said it is not at all unusual to have offshore winds in December and January, but rarely has he seen it this dry this late in the year.

What is unusual is that we haven't had any significant or meaningful precipitation since last March, Rolinski said. Weve had this in October, but I cant recall  and Ive been here 22 years  when weve had everything come together for a fire siege in December.

There is a slight possibility of rain around Dec. 20, Mehle added.

As the Thomas Fire raged on, firefighters made headway in the battle against four other blazes that sprouted throughout the region last week.

In San Diego County, the Lilac Fire  which has burned 4,100 acres, leveled at least 151 structures and damaged 56 others  was 80 percent contained Monday. Full containment on the blaze was expected by Dec. 21, Cal Fire reported.

The 15,619-acre Creek Fire, which ignited in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles County, was at 95 percent containment. At least 60 residential buildings and 63 outbuildings were destroyed in the fire, and 81 other structures were damaged.

The 6,049-acre Rye Fire in Santa Clarita (Los Angeles County) that started Tuesday was 93 percent contained. Six structures were destroyed and three were damaged.

The 422-acre Skirball Fire, which broke out Wednesday in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, was 85 percent contained. Twelve structures were damaged and six destroyed.

Meanwhile, evacuations were lifted for most of Ventura and Santa Paula, where the Thomas Fire started near Thomas Aquinas College around 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 4.

Most school districts throughout Santa Barbara County remained closed Monday, with some, including Santa Barbara Unified, Carpinteria Unified and Montecito Unified, expected to remain closed until after the holiday break.

Last week President Trump declared a federal state of emergency for the second time since wildfires ravaged Northern California in October and killed 44 people, ordering federal assistance to supplement state and local emergency response.

In a visit Saturday to the fire-torn areas, Gov. Jerry Brown called on the federal government to invest more in infrastructure and firefighting capacity.

Peter Fimrite and Sarah Ravani are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: pfimrite@sfchronicle.com, sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @pfimrite, @SarRavani
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A short story published in the latest issue of the New Yorker has gone viral in what is, quite possibly, the first time a work of short fiction has accomplished such a feat.

The line between a high-brow (New Yorker) and low-brow (social media) converged this week when Kristen Roupenian's short story "Cat Person" caused ripples in the Twitter-sphere. Many deemed the story chillingly relatable; some called it "triggering."

Published in the Dec. 11 issue of the New Yorker, the story follows a brief encounter between a 20-year-old student, Margot, and a man named Robert with an urban "lumberjack aura". The pair meet at an arthouse cinema where Margot works concessions. Romance  brief, ill-fated  ensues, peppered with totems of 21st-century dating (drawn-out texting conversations, ghosting, emojis).

A taste: "'My parents are asking about u,' Margot texted, and Robert sent her back a smiley-face emoji whose eyes were hearts."

Margot and Robert eventually have sex, the consensual but sloppy kind. The encounter leaves Margot feeling, for lack of a better word, icky.

Story continues below.

Now Playing: Time magazine has named the social movement epitomised by the #MeToo hashtag as its "Person of the Year" for 2017. Video: Euronews

A remorseful Margot stops responding to Robert's text messages, and the short union is broken off, though immortalized by the collegiate gossip mill of Margot's friends. The tale ends, poignantly, with a string of texts from Robert that begin friendly, complimentary and end with a single word  "Whore."

Many women on Twitter are celebrating the story for its realistic depiction of the oft-frightening, dread-filled experience that is sex and dating.

"I want an investigation on how she wiretapped my inner monologue," wrote one woman.

"Basically anyone who's ever used a dating app could write Cat Person, just maybe not as well," said another.

Of all the New Yorker's fiction published online this year, "Cat Person" is the most read, a magazine spokesperson told The Atlantic's Olga Khazan.

Khazan writes: "This weekend, the story went unexpectedly viral. Or, perhaps, in this #MeToo moment, it went expectedly viral, by revealing the lengths women go to in order to manage men's feelings, and the shaming they often suffer nonetheless."

The story's resonance is built upon a foundation of reality. In an interview with the New York Times, the author explains she wrote "Cat Person" after a negative online encounter.

"It's not autobiographical; though many of the details and emotional notes come from life, they were accumulated over decades, not drawn from a single bad date," said Roupenian, who is on a writing fellowship at the University of Michigan.

Unsurprisingly, the positive reactions were met with negative ones, provided mostly by men.

"It all seems very mundane to me. I don't get it," one wrote.

"Man.. I was really bothered for and by Robert," said another. "He ultimately is the victim in this story."

It's all very meta when one considers the themes of "Cat Person"  digital culture, male-female relations, vitriol that is typed not spoken.

The story came full circle Sunday morning when an anonymous person began a "Men React to Cat Person" Twitter account. Within 21 hours, the account gained 5,000 followers.

A pinned tweet at the top of the page reads: "Are these reposts meant to make fun of these guys who are making perfectly good points? Or.."

Michelle Robertson is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @mrobertsonsf.
A 58-year-old woman was shot and killed in a Martinez home Saturday evening, and a Concord man is in custody.

Contra Costa County sheriffs deputies were dispatched to a home on the 1200 block of Santa Fe Avenue in an unincorporated area of Martinez at about 8:30 p.m. The caller reported that there had been an accidental shooting.
A Southern California man was arrested for allegedly kidnapping a 9-year-old girl in 1995, Hillsborough police said Sunday.

Kevin Lin, 68, had an active warrant for his arrest in connection with the 22-year-old kidnapping case, officials said. He was taken into custody Friday in the Los Angeles area.

Hillsborough police said they made the arrest based on information from the U.S. State Department. Lin is being held in the San Mateo County jail on $5 million bail.

Police on Sunday did not identify the victim of the kidnapping. But at the time of the case, officers then said three kidnappers had grabbed a girl as she walked home from school in Hillsborough, then tried to extort $800,000 from her father. She was held captive for 10 hours before the kidnappers realized that her parents were in Taiwan.

The men ultimately released the girl unharmed. No ransom was paid, and her captors even gave her change to make a phone call, according to testimony from Doug Davis, now a Hillsborough police captain who investigated the case. Davis did not return calls Sunday.

One of the other three suspects, John Paul Balocca, was convicted in 1997 of kidnapping, following an initial mistrial. Authorities have been looking for his alleged accomplices for the last two decades.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
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The highest-paid college president in the nation quadrupled his pay in a single year to $4 million thanks to a hiring deal, according to a new survey of executive compensation at private universities.

Nathan Hatch, president of Wake Forest University in North Carolina, earned slightly more than $1 million in 2014. He took home four times as much in 2015, the most recent year of data available, because a lucrative agreement kicked in  a $255,000 annual set-aside  that he would receive after 10 years on the job.

The bonus sent his pay soaring beyond that of other scholarly tycoons in the loftiest ranks of academia  including the heads of Stanford University and the Ivy League schools  and reflects a spiraling up of executive pay that critics say is rarely linked to quality. Even those who negotiate such pay packages acknowledge that there are factors at work besides merit.

The Chronicle of Higher Educations latest yearly look at top-tier pay packages within that competitive world reveals the bonuses, base salaries and pay deals of 568 presidents at 500 private, nonprofit campuses with the largest endowments. The news outlet compiled the data from the schools 990 federal tax filings.

Private university presidents earned an average of $569,932 in 2015  up 9 percent from the year before, the study found. In all, 58 presidents each took home more than $1 million in 2015, compared with 39 the year before.

Californias best-compensated academic was C.L. Max Nikias, president of the University of Southern California. At nearly $3.2 million, he was the third-highest paid president in the country.

Stanfords former President John Hennessy took home $1.2 million, placing him 38th  two slots above Peter Salovey of Yale University, at $1.16 million, but well below Harvards Drew Gilpin Faust, at $1.57 million, in the 21st spot. By contrast, Janet Napolitano, president of the public University of California system, earned $570,000 that year.

Private university officials cite the stellar achievements of their leaders to justify such pay packages, as does Raymond Cotton, a partner with the Washington, D.C., law firm Nelson Mullins, who has negotiated more than 350 presidential contracts at private and public universities since 1980.

But Cotton identifies another, more concrete reason for the high pay: executive recruiters, who have an incentive to promote a compensation arms race. They get a third of the presidents first-year salary.

We have in higher education very competent recruiting companies, many of them made up of former university presidents, Cotton said. They look at the 990 (tax) forms and see who is underpaid vis-a-vis the market  then try to recruit them out of that school into another, which will pay them more.

The incentive is all money.

When Cotton began negotiating executive compensation packages nearly 40 years ago, he said, there were no bonuses.

But gradually, university boards of trustees filled up with executives from the business world, and thats where the bonuses came from, Cotton said.

Of the 10 highest-paid presidents in the study, nine earned more from bonuses and deferred compensation deals like Hatchs than they did from their base pay.

The fervor for negotiating those perks and packages turned 2015 into an unusually high year for presidents earning more than $1 million, said Dan Bauman, database reporter for The Chronicle of Higher Education and co-author of the study.

There is zero data that show that high salaries produce better executives, said William Tierney, a professor of higher education at the University of Southern California and co-director of its Pullias Center for Higher Education, which studies ways to improve colleges performance.

The University of San Francisco, for example, earns a place in the Princeton Reviews Best 379 Colleges for 2015  yet its president, Fr. Paul Fitzgerald, was among 18 in the new study who took no salary and no bonus. The Jesuits pay his living expenses.

In the last century there has never been as great a discrepancy between the highest paid (presidents) and the lowest paid (janitors and maintenance staff), Tierney said. Universities are simply mimicking the behaviors of Wall Street. In doing so, we lose any right to claim a moral advantage. We are a business like any other.

Universities also escape capital gains taxes and investment taxes, while gifts to universities remain tax deductible, said Richard Vedder, a professor emeritus of economics at Ohio University, and director of the Center for College Affordability and Productivity.

Were giving these people tax privileges because we think theyre serving the public good, he said. But it seems that a disproportionate share of the benefits go to executives.

Vedder said running a university is tough, and that leaders have to be good fundraisers, brilliant academics and skilled diplomats as they deal with campus protests.

But thats been true for decades, he said. I think we are overpaying.

Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov
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This story originally appeared on Hoodline.

Mojo Bicycle Cafe at 639 Divisadero St. (and Grove) is closing. The cafes last day will be December 22nd.

In a note, the coffee shop thanked customers, friends and neighbors "for the years of coffee, bagels, flat fixes, and beers that we've shared," but said it was "time for Mojo to move on, and we need some time to figure out what that means."

The cafe has been around since 2007, but it may not be gone for good. Mojo is set to "shut its doors for a period of rest and reinvention."

However, we also found a real estate listing posted in September listing the property for $175,000 or $5,250 per month. Cafe comes furnished with a beautiful brass overhead tap system with 10 taps, it stated. Large storage space with many possible uses awaits your vision.

A sign bids goodbye to the neighborhood  for now.

For those planning to visit the laptop-free cafe before the closure, Mojo is no longer serving breakfast. However, it will continue to serve coffee and pastries on the weekend from 9am onwards.

We also reached out to owner Remy Nelson for additional comment, but at press time, we have not yet received a response.

In July, Nelson closed the bike shop in the back of the eatery. "Bikes are my passion, my customers have been amazing, and I have no regrets," Nelson said back then.

Mojo also was a regular host of live music performances and workshops, such as a holiday themed wreath-making this past Sunday.

Patrons have already expressed their gratitude to Mojo on its Facebook page and its Instagram account. "Thank you for providing the community with such a cozy place for all comers," Instagram user ohsynapse said.

"Change is hard but I know something amazing will grow from this moments[sic] rest," added nomad69, another Instagram user.

"This neighborhood is pretty much like a village," Nelson told us in 2015. "I like the sense of community and I feel a sense of pride in creating a space for people to come together and meet each other."

A San Francisco native, Nelson grew up in Noe Valley and was inspired to create a bike cafe after a visit to Zeitgeist in the early 2000s.

"There were all these bikes in the back, and we were like, 'What if this place had a bike shop? It would totally survive.'"

Thanks to tipster Tyler C.




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This article first appeared on The Oregonian/OregonLive.

A particularly fractious meeting between the right-wing group Patriot Prayer and counter-protesters in downtown Portland, Ore., erupted in several scuffles, one of which left a counter-protester bloodied.

At least one member of the Patriot Prayer contingent was detained by police during the demonstration, which began as a rally in Terry Schrunk Plaza and turned into a march up and down Tom McCall Waterfront Park.

The day began with a light police presence, but after an initial scuffle when counter-protesters crossed the street from their rally site in Chapman Square, officers in riot gear lined up on the perimeter of the plaza to separate the groups.

Shortly thereafter, a brawl broke out in Chapman Square in which several people traded punches. After the groups were separated, an Oregonian/OregonLive journalist saw a Patriot Prayer affiliate cross the street and strike a counter-protester, who suffered a bloody nose.

The Patriot Prayer affiliate was later taken into custody. The Portland Police Bureau said Tusitala Toese, 21, was being held in Multnomah County Jail on suspicion of second-degree disorderly conduct, harassment, fourth-degree assault and and a warrant for a previous charge of second-degree disorderly conduct.

Now Playing: Though the 2015 shooting death of Kate Steinle became a flashpoint in an intense national debate over immigration, the issue was never addressed inside the courtroom where a jury acquitted a Mexican national of murder and manslaughter -- a verdict President Donald Trump called a "complete travesty of justice." Video: KCRA

In the waterfront park, the two sides marched together mostly peacefully, heckling one another as police followed to one side.

Late in the event, however, a demonstrator and counter-demonstrator were pepper sprayed by person in the crowd. Both were treated by Portland Fire & Rescue medics, police said.

The day brought a notable meeting between Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson and Micah Fletcher, the man who survived a brutal knife attack on a MAX train in May that killed two others. The suspect in that case, Jeremy Christian, had once encountered Fletcher at a previous Patriot Prayer event.

Fletcher said he attended specifically to ask why Gibson held events like Saturday's, which frequently result in violence between demonstrators and counter-demonstrators.

"I believe that God wants me to go to the darkness," Gibson replied. He said that he wanted to "protect the truth" and "promote freedom."

The two spoke for several minutes, but Gibson said little. The conversation ended prematurely as a scuffle broke out at the edge of the Patriot Prayer gathering, where some counter-protesters had gathered, and Gibson moved toward the fracas.

"It was not as helpful as I thought it would be," Fletcher said afterward.

Fletcher would go on to intervene in a scuffle between two men, a Patriot Prayer demonstrator and a counter-protester who grabbed at his sign. Fletcher also got in between members of both groups in a fistfight. He later told an Oregonian/OregonLive reporter that he had been pepper sprayed in the confrontation.

The Patriot Prayer event was organized to protest the acquittal of a man in the 2015 shooting death of Kate Steinle. Jose Ines Garcia Zarate, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who had been previously deported five times, was accused of murder and involuntary manslaughter in the San Francisco case.

Garcia Zarate's attorneys argued that the shooting had been accidental, and that the bullet had ricocheted off the ground before hitting Steinle. A jury found Garcia Zarate not guilty on Nov. 30 of the most serious charges, though he was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The case has become a standard for those calling for stricter immigration controls and opposing "sanctuary city" policies like those of San Francisco, where officials had released Garcia Zarate from custody prior to the shooting rather than turning him over to immigration officials. President Donald Trump has referenced the case on Twitter and in public appearances in recent weeks, calling the verdict "disgraceful."

This article first appeared on The Oregonian/OregonLive.
BATON ROUGE, La.  A Louisiana private investigator pleaded guilty on Monday to misusing Donald Trumps Social Security number in repeated attempts to access the presidents federal tax information before his election last year.

Jordan Hamlett, 32, faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine following his guilty plea in federal court.

Authorities have said Hamlett failed in his attempts to get Trumps tax information through a U.S. Department of Education financial aid website.

Trump has refused to release his tax returns, bucking an American tradition honored by every president since Jimmy Carter.

A court document accompanying Hamletts plea agreement says he used Trumps Social Security number and other personal information to open an online application for federal student aid on Sept. 13, 2016. After obtaining a username and password, he tried to use an Internal Revenue Service data retrieval tool to obtain Trumps tax information, the document says.

The defendant made six separate attempts to obtain the federal tax information from IRS servers, but he was unsuccessful, says the document. It doesnt specify how much of Trumps tax information could have been retrieved with the online tool.

Hamlett, a Lafayette resident, was indicted in November 2016. His trial had been scheduled to start this week, but the judge originally assigned to the case died on Saturday after a brief illness. U.S. District Court Judge John deGravelles, who inherited the case, didnt immediately schedule Hamletts sentencing hearing.

Defense attorney Michael Fiser had argued Hamlett didnt have any intent to deceive and simply tried out of sheer curiosity to discover whether Trumps tax information could be accessed through the government website.

Federal agents confronted Hamlett two weeks before last Novembers election.

Michael Kunzelman is an Associated Press writer.
NEW YORK  A man inspired by the Islamic State group set off a crude pipe bomb strapped to his body Monday in a crowded subway corridor near Times Square, injuring the man, slightly wounding three others and sending New York commuters fleeing in terror through the smoky passageway.

Surveillance cameras captured the man moving casually through the crowded walkway when the bomb went off at 7:20 a.m. amid a plume of white smoke, which cleared to show the man sprawled on the ground and commuters scattering to get away. Investigators said it was not clear if he set the bomb off intentionally or prematurely.

This was an attempted terrorist attack, said Mayor Bill de Blasio. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

The suspect, who was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, was being treated at a hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.

Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by the Islamic State group but apparently did not have any direct contact with the militants and probably acted alone. Gov. Andrew Cuomo later told the NY1 cable channel that the suspect went online to learn how to make a bomb.

We have no evidence at this time that there were any secondary devices or it was part of a larger plan, Cuomo said.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.

Ullah, who lives in Brooklyn, came to the U.S. from Bangladesh almost seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a livery cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission. He was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, they said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity.

Ullah arrived in the U.S. in 2011 on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the U.S. who are citizens, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security said.

Investigators were searching Ullahs apartment, interviewing witnesses and relatives and looking for surveillance footage that may show his movements in the moments before the attack.

Ullah lived with his father, mother and brother in a residential area of Brooklyn with a large Bangladeshi community, neighbors said. The home was just off a shopping strip  a red two-story brick building.

Alan Butrico owns the house next door and a locksmith business two doors down. Its very weird, he said. You never know who your neighbors are.

The explosion, which happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal. Its the citys busiest subway station and a major transit hub, with 64 million subway riders passing through every year.

Everything around Times Square was shut down, halting what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour at the Crossroads of the World.

Colleen Long is an Associated Press writer.
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She cheered the Raiders from the sidelines as a Raiderette back in the 1980s, and now Stephanie Belleci is cheering women who want control over their makeup foundations.

I created a multipurpose, multifunctional system because I dont think women should ever have to settle when it comes to beauty, said the founder of Belleci Cosmetics, now in her 50s.

It is mistake-proof and easy to use, Belleci said. This will be the new way of beauty  she can adjust her foundation anytime and anywhere.

The Danville resident got her start as a professional freelance makeup artist for national brands such as Shiseido, Lancome and Orlane before signing with Benefit Cosmetics and working with Jean and Jane Ford.

It took her 10 years to create the Belleci Color Control Anti-Aging Foundation System.

I started to create this formula in the salon and testing it on all my clients, she said. Getting the right chemist was very tough. I went through four of them before I found my perfect chemist, Sam from Allure Labs.

She is referring to Sam Dhatt, CEO and founder of Allure Labs Inc. and DermaQuest Inc. in Hayward, who believes Bellecis foundation will meet the needs of the market.

It solves a problem in the industry where the consumer can take control of their own beauty needs when it comes to their foundation, Dhatt said. Stephanie created an easy-to-use, convenient foundation system, and its an anti-aging product that smooths the skin where the consumer doesnt need to use a primer.

Sold in Bellecis space at Salon One 50 in Alamo and online, the $125 kit includes a 30 ml foundation, three 15 ml adjusters, a frosted travel jar and stir stick. Adjustors last about two years, and base foundation refills cost $65.

Much like a sheer base primer, clients add drops to the base foundation from one of three adjusters to lighten, darken or hydrate with a luminous sheen.

The final color is already done, so all she needs to do is either lighten her foundation or darken it, said Belleci. The adjusters have the perfect color ratio, so when she adjusts her color, shes not going to change the undertone of the foundation  which means the foundation on her skin will never turn too pink, too yellow or too ashy.

Belleci said shes proud that her foundation product is free of paraben, propylene, glycol, gluten, fragrance, dyes, alcohol, oil and talc, in order to promote healthy skin.

Her top five ingredients include plant stem cells,which stimulates the skin to help fight the aging process; hyaluronic acid; antioxidants; vitamin B5; and Tremella mushroom extract, which is a hydrating powerhouse, she said.

Belleci decided to use her Italian maiden name for the line because it means beauty in Sicilian dialect, she said.

Jennifer Jones, project coordinator at Allure Labs, tested the foundation products ahead of time and said, I think consumers of all ages will enjoy the benefits of her products.

Belleci feels her own confidence came from her four years of cheering for the Oakland Raiders.

Being a Raiderette was fabulous because it brought out more confidence in me and took me out of my comfort zone, Belleci said. At that time, 500 women tried out and only 40 made it.

As a Raiderette, that confidence taught me to conquer life and go for what I want as a strong woman. As someone who created her own cosmetic line, I had some fears, but I had that confidence to be strong.

Charleen Earley is a freelance writer in the Bay Area. Email: style@sfchronicle.com

Belleci

www.bellecicosmetics.com
Fihn warned that in particular, warlike threats exchanged between North Korea and the United States amid nuclear tests by Pyongyang were forcing the world to live "under the conditions where our mutual destruction is only one impulsive tantrum away."

"Will it be the end of nuclear weapons, or will it be the end of us?" Beatrice Fihn, who accepted the award on behalf of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), asked in her speech following the group's acceptance of the award.

Winners of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize warned that the world was "one impulsive tantrum" away from destruction, urging nuclear nations to adopt a UN treaty banning atomic weapons.

The Geneva-based group, which received the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this year, consists of about 500 organizations in more than 100 countries that are working toward global nuclear disarmament.

The Nobel committee praised ICAN's efforts toward securing the 2017 UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. A total of 122 nations adopted the deal -- but none of the nine known nuclear powers signed up.

In a break from tradition, the three western nuclear powers -- the U.S., France and Britain -- sent second-ranking diplomats rather than their ambassadors to Sunday's ceremony.

Receiving the award with Fihn was 85-year-old Setsuko Thurlow, a survivor of the Hiroshima atomic bombing and now an ICAN campaigner, who described horrible scenes in the aftermath of the atomic bomb in 1945 when she was 13 years old. "Listen to our testimony. Heed our warning. And know that your actions are consequential," Thurlow said during her speech at the ceremony.

The nine nations that have nuclear weapons boycotted the UN treaty negotiations, which began in February. They are Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel.

Nearly three decades after the end of the Cold War, the debate between disarmament versus deterrence is still being fought.
A new wave of protests against U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital erupted Sunday in parts of the Muslim and Arab world.

Lebanese security forces outside the U.S. Embassy in Beirut fired water cannons and tear gas to beat back Lebanese and Palestinian protesters who hurled projectiles at the embassy and burned Trump in effigy, along with U.S. and Israeli flags.

In Indonesia, home to the world's largest population of Muslims, thousands of protesters mounted a demonstration outside the U.S. Embassy in the capital, Jakarta, while other protests occurred in Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt and the Palestinian territories bordering Israel.

 Netanyahu in Paris

Before he left late Saturday for meetings with European leaders, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked what he said was their hypocrisy in condemning Trump's decision to eventually move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv, where most foreign governments have their embassies in Israel.

"While I respect Europe, I am not prepared to accept a double standard from it," Netanyahu said. "I hear voices from there condemning President Trump's historic statement, but I have not heard condemnations of the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it. I am not prepared to accept this hypocrisy."

After meeting with Netanyahu, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned attacks on Israel, but said he opposes Trump's decision on Jerusalem. Macron described it as a "breach of international law and at risk for peace. In risk for peace because I believe these statements do not serve security, including the security of Israel and the Israelis."

Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, defended Trump's decision in an interview on CNN. She said Israel already has numerous government agencies in Jerusalem, adding, "Why shouldn't we have the embassy there?" She said Trump "did the will of the [American] people" by making a decision that previous U.S. presidents refused to dco.

Police in the Swedish city of Gothenburg arrested three people for allegedly throwing firebombs at a synagogue. A police spokesman said Sunday the incident is being investigated as attempted arson. No one was hurt in the incident.

Officials in Stockholm say security has been tightened around a synagogue in the capital. Israeli police said a security guard was stabbed and seriously wounded near the Jerusalem bus terminal. His attacker was arrested.
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Californias forests are seeing a continued die-off of trees even a year after last years heavy rains ended the states crippling drought.

The U.S. Forest Service announced Monday that 27 million trees died over the past 13 months after five dry years left them severely dehydrated and vulnerable to bark beetle attack.

The unprecedented casualties, which run rampant across the Sierra Nevada as well as parts of the coast, have turned patches of forest into a somber rust color for mile after mile. The mortality is so great in some places that foresters have closed roads and campgrounds for fear of the dried-out, lifeless trees falling on people. Tourists to Yosemite and Sequoia national parks, meanwhile, have been stunned by the unexpectedly grim views.

State officials also worry about dead groves becoming easy tinder for the lethal wildfires that have plagued California in recent years. Efforts to remove hazardous stands have been slow due to the sheer volume of death.

An estimated 129 million trees across some 8.9 million acres have died since 2010, according to the Forest Service.

It is apparent from our survey flights this year that Californias trees have not yet recovered from the drought, said Randy Moore, a forester at the Forest Services Pacific Southwest Region office. The Forest Service will continue to focus on mitigating hazard trees and thinning overly dense forests so they are healthier and better able to survive stressers like this in the future.

Federal foresters alongside state and local land management agencies and state utilities have removed an estimated 860,000 dead trees since the drought began. Crews have prioritized stands near communities and along roads.

As bad as the die-off is, Forest Service records suggest it may be slowing. The death toll over the past year is less than half of 2016s  when more than 60 million trees fell prey to drought and bark beetles.

Last winter brought near record rainfall to many parts of the state, providing welcome relief for many stands.

The upshot of the vast tree loss remains a matter of debate. Some scientists worry that the casualties may mark the beginning of a downward spiral for Californias forests as the changing climate promises longer, more intense droughts. Trees, they say, will eventually be replaced by hardier shrubs and grasslands.

Others, though, say that die-offs are natural to forests. They allow weakened woodlands to be replaced by a sturdier crop of trees and ultimately provide a healthier habitat for a whole host of wildlife.

Kurtis Alexander is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexaner
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Warriors center Zaza Pachulia has been ruled out of Monday nights game against Portland.

Pachulia missed last Mondays win over New Orleans with left shoulder soreness. He returned for the Charlotte game, but didnt come back after heading to the locker room with a recurrence of shoulder pain less than five minutes in. Pachulia then sat out Fridays game in Detroit.

With Pachulia set to sit out for his third time in four games, JaVale McGee, David West, Kevon Looney and Jordan Bell are poised for more playing time. McGee has started the two recent games Pachulia has missed.

Reserve guard Patrick McCaw, who has missed the past two games with a bruised nose and concussion, must get approved by a physician before being cleared to play Monday night against Portland. Forward Draymond Green is listed as probable against Portland with a sore right shoulder.

Stephen Curry isnt expected to get his sprained right ankle re-evaluated for another week-plus, but he continues to make progress in his rehab. He was seen after shoot-around Monday working out with some thick rope before hopping on the exercise bike.

Connor Letourneau is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cletourneau@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @Con_Chron
JERUSALEM  The French and Israeli leaders verbally sparred Sunday over the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, while new violence rippled across the region after the move by President Trump.

In Jerusalem, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard, seriously wounding him in the first attack in the volatile city since Trumps pronouncement Wednesday. In Beirut, scores of Lebanese and Palestinian demonstrators clashed with security forces outside the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy, and Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo demanded that the United States rescind the decision.

The move upended decades of U.S. policy, and international consensus, that the fate of Jerusalem be decided in negotiations. Israeli and Palestinian claims to the citys eastern sector form the emotional core of their conflict, and Trumps announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis and has drawn international criticism.

At a meeting in Paris with Israels visiting prime minister, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned recent violence against Israelis. But he also expressed disapproval of Trumps decision, calling it dangerous for peace.

It doesnt seem to serve, in the short term, the cause of Israels security and the Israelis themselves, Macron said.

He urged Israel to freeze its construction of settlements on occupied lands and called for other confidence-building measures toward the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has called Trumps decision historic, said Israel has maintained its capital in the city for 70 years and the Jewish connection to Jerusalem goes back 3,000 years.

Paris is the capital of France, Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, he said. We respect your history and your choices. And we know that as friends, you respect ours.

I think the sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we move toward peace, he added.

The exchange between the two allies set the stage for what could be a tense meeting Monday for Netanyahu with European Union foreign ministers in Brussels. The Jerusalem issue and the moribund peace process are expected to be high on the agenda.

Last week, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that Trumps decision has the potential to send us backward to even darker times than the one we are already living in.

The meeting could be a precursor for what seems to be an emerging rift between Israel and the U.S. on one side, and Europe and the Palestinians on the other.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said Trumps decision has in effect disqualified the U.S. from continuing in its role as the traditional mediator of peace talks.

Israel captured east Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the area to its capital in a move that was not internationally recognized. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Josef Federman and Tia Goldenberg are Associated Press writers.
HONG KONG  Amid fears that North Korea is rapidly developing its submarine-launched ballistic missile technology, the United States, Japan and South Korea are teaming up for a drill to track such hard-to-detect missiles, military officials said Monday.

The drill is taking place over two days in waters between Japan and the Korean Peninsula, said South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff, and will involve destroyers from the three nations doing computer-simulated training to track submarine missile launchings by North Korea.
GM Korea's compact SUV Trax is expected to be the top exported car for the second year running.

The automaker exported 233,503 units of Trax from January to November and it is likely to exceed 250,000 units by the end of this year. But in the domestic market, it lags behind Hyundai's Kona and Ssangyong's Tivoli in terms of sales.


PARIS  Eighteen climate scientists from the U.S. and elsewhere hit the jackpot Monday as French President Emmanuel Macron awarded them millions of euros in grants to relocate to France for the rest of Donald Trumps presidential term.

The Make Our Planet Great Again grants  a nod to Trumps Make America Great Again campaign slogan  are part of Macrons efforts to counter Trump on the climate change front. Macron announced a contest for the projects in June, hours after Trump declared he would withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate accord.

More than 5,000 people from about 100 countries expressed interest in the grants. A majority of the applicants  and 13 of the 18 winners  were U.S.-based researchers.

Macrons appeal gave me such a psychological boost, to have that kind of support, to have the head of state saying I value what you do, said winner Camille Parmesan of the University of Texas at Austin. She will be working at an experimental ecology station in the Pyrenees on how human-made climate change is affecting wildlife.

In an interview, Parmesan described funding challenges for climate science in the U.S. and a feeling that you are having to hide what you do.

Trump has expressed skepticism about global warming and said the Paris accord would hurt U.S. business by requiring a reduction in climate-damaging emissions.

We will be there to replace U.S. financing of climate research, Macron told the winners in Paris on Monday. If we want to prepare for the changes of tomorrow, we need science.

The research of the winning recipients focuses on pollution, hurricanes and clouds. A new round of the competition will be launched next year. About 50 projects will be chosen overall, and funded with 60 million euros ($70 million) from the state and French research institutes.

Mondays event was a prelude to a bigger climate summit Tuesday aimed at giving new impetus to the Paris accord and finding new funding to help governments and businesses meet its goals.

More than 50 world leaders are expected in Paris for the One Planet Summit, co-hosted by the U.N. and the World Bank. Trump was not invited.

Sylvie Corbet is an Associated Press writer.
1 Lebanon protest: Tens of thousands of people attended a Hezbollah rally in Beirut on Monday, where the militant groups leader vowed to return its focus to Israel after years of fighting in Syrias civil war. At the rally, called to protest President Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said he hoped the foolish decision would mark the beginning of the end of the Jewish state. Death to Israel! Nasrallah said in the fiery address, which was broadcast from an undisclosed location and shown at the rally. The Iranian-backed militant group is believed to have a massive arsenal of rockets capable of hitting much of Israels territory.

2 Yemen fighting: State news agency SABA reported Monday that Shiite rebels have killed at least 20 people and detained dozens across the countrys north since killing their onetime ally, former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The rebels known as Houthis appear to be escalating their crackdown on any possible sign of rebellion among their former allies from Salehs party, the General Peoples Congress. The Houthis also blew up 20 houses in the northern province of Hajja and replaced the provinces governor who was a Saleh associate.
MANILA  Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte asked Congress on Monday to extend the martial law he declared in the countrys south by one year to ensure the total eradication of pro-Islamic State group extremists, warning they plan more uprisings after a disastrous siege of Marawi city.

Duterte said the remaining militants still hope to establish a caliphate in the Philippines and Southeast Asia after government forces killed more than 900 fighters and quelled the five-month Marawi siege in October.

Left-wing and pro-democracy groups have protested Dutertes imposition of martial law because of human rights concerns, but the Supreme Court has upheld its legality.

In a letter to the Senate and the House of Representatives, Duterte said extending martial law in the southern Mindanao region through the end of 2018 would allow government forces to press offensives against other armed groups, including the Abu Sayyaf and communist guerrillas, who have intensified attacks.

Despite the killing of Isnilon Hapilon, long wanted by the United States and the Philippines, and other leaders of the Marawi attack, the remnants of their groups have continued to rebuild their organization through the recruitment and training of new members and fighters to carry on the rebellion, Duterte said in his letter.

Rep. Edcel Lagman said Congress should reject Dutertes request because there was no more constitutionally outlined ground for martial law after the president declared Marawi had been freed from terrorist influence. Congress, which is dominated by Dutertes allies, approved Dutertes martial law declaration this year. The Senate and House will meet jointly on Wednesday to decide.

Dutertes request for a martial law extension amounts to a patent violation of the safeguards which the 1987 constitution imposes for the limited grounds and duration of martial law and its extension, Lagman said.

The Marawi violence displaced about half a million people and turned mosque-studded Marawis central business and residential districts into a smoldering war zone.

The uprising that began on May 23 prompted Duterte to declare martial law and reinforced fears that the Islamic State group was taking steps to gain a foothold in Asia and elsewhere as it faced battle setbacks in Syria and Iraq.

One of the militants who might replace Hapilon, Esmail Abdulmalik, who uses the nom de guerre Abu Turaife, has been planning bombings in the south, Duterte said. An Islamic State-linked faction in another militant band, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Group, has intensified roadside bombings and attacks on troops.

Communist New Peoples Army guerrillas, meanwhile, have taken advantage of the militarys preoccupation with Muslim extremists and increased their attacks on troops and businesses in the south, killing 41 government security personnel and destroying at least 2.2 billion pesos ($43 million) in property, Duterte said.

Jim Gomez is an Associated Press writer.
MOSCOW  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday made a surprise visit to Russias Hemeimeem air base in Syria, announcing an imminent drawdown of Russian forces in the wake of his declaration of victory in its intervention in the Syria war.

In his first visit to the air base since Russian warplanes secretly flew to Syria in late 2015, Putin ordered his defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, to begin the withdrawal of Russian troop contingents to their permanent bases.

But Putin left open the door to a continued Russian presence in Syria, saying that both Russias air base at Hemeimeem and naval base at Tartus would keep operating. He promised further strikes in the future if terrorists raise their head again  an apparent reference to forces in Syrias long civil war that sought to topple the regime of President Bashar Assad.

We will deliver such strikes on them that they have not seen yet, he said in remarks to military personnel at the air base.

Russias military intervention in Syria bolstered Assads government and gave Syrian forces a critical edge against rebel factions backed by the West and its Middle East allies. Iran, another key supporter of Assad, provided military advisers and other aid.

Putin, who declared last week that he would run for a fourth term as president, has largely staked his legacy on Russias revival as the dominant military power in its region. The speech to the troops also had the whiff of a re-election rally.

You are victorious and you are going home to your families, parents, wives, children, and friends, Putin told pilots at the air base, in remarks carried by Russian news services. The fatherland is waiting for you, my friends. Have a safe trip home. I am grateful for your service.

The deployment of troops to Syria marked Moscows first major overseas military campaign since the invasion of Afghanistan under the Soviet Union. In July, Russia extended its lease of the Hemeimeem air base for 49 years, giving Moscow a military foothold in the region for several generations.

At the air base, Putin met with Syrian leader Assad, whose regime appeared close to defeat in the summer of 2015 before the Russian intervention. At the time, it appeared Assad would be forced to step down.

I have come, as I promised, Putin told him, according to remarks carried by the Interfax news agency. While hailing the fall of the extremist Islamic State group, Putin also noted the rebuke to Western plans in the region. Syria has been preserved as a sovereign independent state, he said.

Putin has been eager to declare the intervention a victory, and has already announced several times that he would order Russian troops to withdrawal. The first drawdown was announced by Putin in March 2016, as Syrian troops backed by Russian air power and special forces, made a final push to recapture the ancient Roman city of Palmyra.

Andrew Roth is a Washington Post writer.
New Zealand national guest nights rose in October from a year earlier as demand was bolstered by good weather, a longer ski season and more school holidays.

Total guest nights gained 4.8 percent to 3.15 million in October from the same month a year earlier, Statistics New Zealand said. Guest nights in the North Island rose 2.5 percent while South Island guest nights climbed 8.4 percent.

Of that, domestic guest nights rose 9.5 percent in the South Island, while international guest nights advanced 7.4 percent. In the North Island, domestic guest nights rose 2.3 percent and international guest nights rose 2.9 percent.

New Zealand has been experiencing record levels of tourism in recent years, putting a strain on the accompanying infrastructure which has often struggled to keep up with demand.

Eleven of the country's 12 regional areas reported more guest nights in October, with Taranaki, Manawatu and Wanganui up 15 percent and Southland up 20 percent.

More than half the national increase came from Canterbury, Otago, and the Bay of Plenty, where guest nights rose 7.5 percent, 7.3 percent and 9.2 percent respectively.

The strong growth in Canterbury was driven by more guest nights spent in hotels and backpackers than in October last year. In Otago, motel and hotel guest nights increased the most, boosted by tourist hot spots Wanaka and Queenstown. The growth in the Bay of Plenty was driven by increases in motel and holiday park guest nights, accommodation statistics manager Melissa McKenzie said.

The only exception was Auckland, typically the first port of call for international visitors, where guest nights declined 6.3 percent in October from a year earlier.

Hotel guest nights rose 1.2 percent from October last year to 1.15 million, while motel nights rose 4.6 percent to 1.04 million and backpacker stays rose 1.5 percent to 408,000. Holiday park nights jumped 16 percent to 545,000.

The hotel occupancy rate edged up 0.3 percentage points to 68.2 percent, while the holiday park rate rose 1.9 percent to 16.3 and the backpacker rate advanced 0.5 percentage points to 41.0 percent. Meanwhile, the motel rate slipped 0.8 percentage points to 58.2 percent.

(BusinessDesk)

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New Zealand Superannuation Fund chief executive Adrian Orr has been named the next Reserve Bank governor, starting in late March 2018.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson announced the appointment today which is effective from March 27 and based on a unanimous recommendation from the Reserve Bank board. Orr will take up the role as the new Labour-led administration stamps its own mark on the central bank with a review of its governing legislation.

The kiwi dollar jumped to 68.87 US cents from 68.54 immediately before the announcement

Mr Orr has the technical and leadership qualities required to be governor and CEO of the Reserve Bank," Robertson said in a statement. "Further, I consider that he has the skills necessary to successfully lead the Bank through a period of change."

Orr was a former deputy governor at the Reserve Bank before heading to the NZ Super Fund, which he's steered since its inception in 2007.

Reserve Bank chair Neil Quigley said Orr had "significant breadth of knowledge across central and commercial banking, economics, financial markets and regulation" and with his executive experience at NZ Super Fund, was a unanimous choice for the board.

Orr will replace Grant Spencer, who is acting governor for a six-month spell after Graeme Wheeler departed in September.

Robertson said he will sign a new policy targets agreement with Orr in March, and by the time Orr starts, the first phase of its review of the Reserve Bank Act will be substantively completed.

"While it will not be possible to pass legislation to amend the act to reflect any changes from the review before the PTA is signed in March 2018, we will ensure that the new PTA is developed in a manner consistent with the direction of reform," Robertson said. "If necessary, the PTA will be revised again after the act has been amended to reflect any changes from the review that cannot be reflected within the provisions of the current Act."

(BusinessDesk)

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New Zealand shares rose, led by Metro Performance Glass and Heartland Bank, while dairy-related companies A2 Milk Co and Synlait Milk continued to weaken.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index gained 42.42 points, or 0.5 percent, to 8,277.51. Within the index, 30 stocks rose, 16 fell and four were unchanged. Turnover was $118 million.

"We had pretty good leads from offshore markets," said Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners. "Sentiment is still very buoyant and we're in the time of year that is traditionally quite strong."

Metro Glass led the index, up 5.6 percent to 95 cents. The stock has dropped 53 percent this year after multiple earnings disappointments.

"I don't think there's anything fundamental in that, the stock is so beaten up it's probably attracting a few value hunters," Lister said.

Heartland rose 3.5 percent to $2.07 and Auckland International Airport gained 2.8 percent to $6.71.

A2 Milk Co was the worst performer, off 2.1 percent to $7.78, with Synlait Milk down 2 percent to $6.70.

"I don't think there's much in that, it's really just profit-taking on the back of a strong run. They've been coming off the boil for the last few weeks," Lister said.

Xero dropped 1.9 percent to $30.30. In November, the cloud-based accounting software firm announced it will delist from the local stock market in favour of an ASX listing to broaden its pool of investors and analysts.

"It has come off quite a bit in the last month or so, basically ever since they announced they were leaving," Lister said. "They're off a good 12 percent from where they were back in early November. It's further positioning from the local investors, more technical selling than anything fundamental to do with the company."

Kathmandu Holdings fell 0.9 percent to $2.34.

"There's not a huge demand for cold weather gear at the moment, they're probably a victim of the weather that we're all enjoying," Lister said. "You do get the feeling that the retail sector is poised for a fairly decent Christmas, but obviously it depends on where you are and Kathmandu - winter is more their scene."

Vital Healthcare Property Trust was flat at $2.19. It has bought Eden Rehabilitation Hospital in Cooroy in Queensland, Australia, for A$23.8 million as part of its ongoing diversification strategy.

Outside the benchmark index, Pyne Gould Corp gained 2.1 percent to 24 cents. It has reached a confidential deal with Australia's Wilaci over late payment fees, which it says will be smaller than the 20.5 million British pound cost of its Supreme Court-ordered payout.

New Zealand Refining dipped 0.7 percent to 70.5 cents. It says yesterday's outage on the refinery-to-Auckland pipeline was caused by a "false alarm" and that it's back up and running. The pipeline was shut down temporarily yesterday over fears of a leak, which were later discovered to be unfounded, the Whangarei-based company said in a statement.

Augusta Capital was unchanged at $1.04. It has unconditionally purchased a Wellington industrial property as a seed asset for a new industrial fund that is expected to initially raise between $50 million and $70 million of equity when it launches early next year.

(BusinessDesk)

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Pyne Gould Corp has reached a confidential deal with Australia's Wilaci over late payment fees, which it says will be smaller than the 20.5 million British pound cost of its Supreme Court-ordered payout.

NZX-listed, Guernsey, UK-based Pyne Gould posted a loss of 17.1 million pounds in the year ended June 30, from a profit of 6.5 million pounds in 2016, due to recognising the "abnormal expense" of the payment to Australian businessman John Gill's Wilaci, which the Supreme Court confirmed in July when it denied leave to appeal an earlier ruling by the Court of Appeal.

Managing director George Kerr today said the deal "is for less than the amount provisioned in PGC's 2017 annual report, which will have a positive impact on PGC shareholder equity."

"It is not yet possible to quantify the overall impact due to Torchlight Fund LP also incurring ongoing litigation expenses in respect of the Cayman litigation," the company said. "The impact will be reflected in Pyne Gould Corporation's next half year report." The settlement will be expensed via Torchlight Fund LP, which is consolidated by Pyne Gould, it said.

The Cayman litigation refers to attempts by some Torchlight Fund LP limited partners to have the fund wound up via legal action in the Cayman Islands, which has been going on since 2015. Hearings for a petition for an order to wind up the fund began in February 2017, while a date has yet to be set for proceedings brought by Pyne Gould's local subsidiary which alleged that the petition "was being brought as part of an unlawful means conspiracy", in its latest annual report.

The company signalled in that report the litigation was a material uncertainty which may cast significant doubt on Torchlight Fund LP's ability to continue as a going concern and said it could have a significant impact on the realisation value of assets in the group's financial statements.

The Wilaci litigation concerned Torchlight Fund 1, an associate of Pyne Gould which was placed into receivership in 2014. Wilaci lent Torchlight the funds in August 2012 and were due in October that year. Wilaci didn't immediately call on the loan but managed the repayment in tranches between October 2013 and May 2014. In late May of that year, Wilaci issued a demand for payment of A$33.6 million, which included a $5 million facility fee, A$320,000 of interest and late payment fees which by then totalled A$28.3 million. Payment was not made and TLF1 was placed in receivership in 2014.

In October 2015, the High Court ruled that a late payment fee claimed by Wilaci was a penalty fee and was unenforceable, a ruling which the Court of Appeal overturned this year, ordering TLF1 to pay A$31.5 million in late payment fees.

Pyne Gould's shares last traded at 23.5 cents, and are up 15 percent this year.

(BusinessDesk)

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Microsoft New Zealand lifted annual profit 15 percent as the local arm of the world's biggest software developer boosted sales of its consulting services, while its smaller rival Oracle New Zealand sank into the red after booking an impairment charge.

Auckland-based Microsoft NZ reported a profit of $14 million in the 12 months ended June 30 compared to $12.2 million a year earlier, financial statements lodged with the Companies Office show. The software developer lifted revenue 7.6 percent to $115.2 million as consulting sales jumped 42 percent to $36.1 million, offsetting a 3.6 percent decline in related party commission revenue to $74.4 million. That also outpaced a 27 percent increase in consulting expenses to $5.6 million.

Despite the increase in external revenue and profitability, Microsoft didn't declare a dividend to its parent group, the first time since the 2008 financial year.

A spokesman for Microsoft said the company declined to comment, however, group accounts show the Seattle, Washington-based company's consulting and product support service revenue slipped 0.9 percent to US$5.56 billion. Those services fall under the enterprise umbrella, which helps customers develop and deploy Microsoft IT systems.

Microsoft is now challenging New Zealand's incumbent IT services firms such as Datacom and Spark New Zealand, with research house IDC's recent New Zealand IT Services Ecosystem Study 2017 finding Microsoft the third-most cited top-3 IT services providers.

Oracle New Zealand posted a loss of $16.2 million in the 12 months ended May 31, compared to a profit of $495,000 a year earlier, with revenue falling 4.5 percent to $140.7 million. That included a $17.5 million impairment charge to goodwill, which was valued at $$16.6 million after the writedown. About $32.8 million of that goodwill arose from Oracle's 2010 Sun Microsystem acquisition and a further $1.2 million came from its purchase of eServGlobal.

Like Microsoft, Auckland-based Oracle NZ didn't make a dividend payment to its parent in the 2017 financial year.

(BusinessDesk)

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Feltman started his visit to the North on Dec. 5.

UN Under Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman made the remarks on returning from a trip to North Korea last Saturday.

A senior UN envoy says North Korean officials agreed with him that "the current situation was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today."

He said he exchanged views with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-guk.

Feltman emphasized "the need for the full implementation of all relevant Security Council resolutions," according to a UN secretariat statement. "He also said there can only be a diplomatic solution to the situation, achieved through a process of sincere dialogue. Time is of the essence."

The statement also quoted him as "noting the urgent need to prevent miscalculations and open channels to reduce the risks of conflict."

The statement makes no mention of what the North Koreans told him.

But Japanese media said his demand that the regime stop its nuclear weapons and missile programs fell on deaf ears.

Feltmnan did not answer questions from reporters on arrival at Beijing Airport that day.


North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has climbed Mt. Baekdu, the mythical origin of the Korean nation and allegedly of his grandfather Kim Il-sung, according to state media on Saturday.

It said Kim recalled "the emotion-charged days when he realized the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force," after reaching the peak.

The portly leader has repeatedly climbed the mountain ahead of making momentous decisions.

Some North Korea watchers are guessing that the North is preparing a new tactic in the midst of increasing international sanctions amid rumors of a March deadline in resolving the nuclear standoff and of a possible preemptive U.S. military strike.
Korea's record low birthrates seem to start having worrying effects on the labor market as it has led to a decline in the working-age population between 15 and 64.

The Korea Labor Institute said in a research paper last week that the number of newly employed workers next year is estimated at 296,000, about 10 percent less than this year's 324,000, due to dwindling numbers of economically active people and a retiring baby-boomer generation.

The institute said it typically estimates the number of newly employed workers at more than 300,000 in times of a positive economic outlook. "But we may see an age when the number falls to the 100,000 range," it added.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Law enforcement officials have identified the Port Authority Terminal pipe-bomb suspect as Akayed Ullah, 27.

Ullah was wearing a low-tech, homemade explosive device, affixed to his body with zipties and Velcro when he detonated the bomb at approximately 7:20 a.m. on Monday in an underground subway passageway between 42nd Street and 8th Avenue and 42nd Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan, officials said during a press conference moments ago near the site of the blast.

Officials are calling the incident a terrorist attack.

Ullah suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, including burns to his hands and abdomen and lacerations, according to FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro.

He was taken into custody and transported to Bellevue Hospital.

Three people in the vicinity of the explosion went to area hospitals with minor injuries that include headaches and ringing of the ears, Nigro said.

Miraculously there were no other injuries.



Photos purported to be the suspect lying on the ground are circulating on social media.

Another photo allegedly of the terrorist: pic.twitter.com/racDVvHxu8  Joe Borelli (@JoeBorelliNYC) December 11, 2017

It was not immediately clear if the walkway was Ullah's initial target, authorities said, or if his intention was to find a more heavily-populated area.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals," Mayor Bill de Blasio said during the press conference.

The suspect tried to detonate the device but only part of it went off, according to the New York Daily News.

Several Port Authority Police officers stepped in and took him into custody, the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association said.

GREAT JOB PAPD TAKING DOWN SUBWAY BOMBING SUSPECT. THANK YOU POs JACK COLLINS, SEAN GALLAGHER, DREW PRESTON, ANTHONY MANFERDINI.  Port Authority PBA (@PAPD911) December 11, 2017

According to published reports, Ullah is a Bangladeshi native living in Brooklyn. Officials did not confirm any details about him beyond his name and age.

When asked if the suspect was inspired by ISIS, NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill said he made statements to authorites, but did not elaborate on the nature of those statements.

Some officials, including former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton and Rep. Daniel Donovan said on television or social media he was indeed ISIS inspired.

BREAKING: Terrorist has been identified as Ullah Akayed, 27 years old lives in Brooklyn. See the moment of the explosion. pic.twitter.com/ro1AygI1V1  NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) December 11, 2017

"It's very important for my fellow New Yorkers to know there are no additional known incidents at this time, there are no additional known activities," de Blasio said.

Still, officials said city residents can expect to see an enhanced NYPD presence across the five boroughs.

A law enforcement source said that may indeed be the case on Staten Island.

"This is NYC, we don't live in fear," O'Neill said. "But if you see something suspicious you have an obligation to come forward and tell us."

The Port Authority Bus Terminal has been re-opened.
(Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Nausheen Rahman, 30, the New Springville mother who was charged for throwing her newborn baby in the trash after giving birth, begged a judge for leniency Monday before she was sentenced.

Here is her full statement:

"Your Honor, I rise to ask this court for leniency in my case. Although I'm fully aware of the offense that I have committed, I can tell you that I am truly sorry for what I have done. My actions were an offense against my character and personality, as well as an offense against my family and community. Today, for my actions, I take full responsibility.

"Humiliation and shame have been visited upon me beyond my ability to put into words. To my mother and father, my beloved parents, I am truly sorry for what I have done. I ask both of you to forgive me for the pain and heartache I've put you through. To my community who were traumatized by what you learned of my actions, I pray to God that you can find it in your heart to forgive me. I ask that all who were impacted by my case understand the backdrop from which these dreadful actions were undertaken.

"Perhaps, you will learn the truth of my story from the perspective of an Indian-American-Muslim woman.

Don't Edit

(Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

"What many Americans may not know is that Muslim women in the Indian-Pakistani culture are oppressed in her own land. Women are beaten and even killed for committing minor infractions. I have read many accounts of women just like me being brutalized by their husbands and family and ostracized from their community for mere accusations of offensive behavior. When I became pregnant, I was terrified of the response of my father and the cultural backlash that I knew I would experience, so I hid my pregnancy out of fear; fearing condemnation and estrangement from the family and an unspoken terror that would brand me as an evil and wicked person for the rest of my life. In the Islamic-Indian culture, there is no room for women to make mistakes.

"Don't get me wrong, Islam is a beautiful faith tradition and I do honor my mother and father in accordance with the teachings of Islam. However, it is the cultural corruption that places young girls and women under very rigid and unforgiving circumstances. Under these conditions, the corruption sets into the true teachings of Islam and the true spirit of Islam is lost. It is my solemn duty to give back to society by speaking out against the corruption that I have witnessed and experienced and has become an overwhelming threat to millions of young Muslim women like me. I want to free young women from the domination and oppression that is experienced all over the world by young Muslim women on a daily basis.

Don't Edit

(Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

"My culture and the misinterpretations of Islam have played a significant role in my behavior. I acted under a cultural fear and intimidation. This is certainly not an excuse for my actions. Your Honor, as you may know, the plight of women in the Indian-Pakistani Islamic culture is without doubt oppressive to women, but the reality is far more grave and complicated.

"The Indian-Pakistani Islamic culture has a strictly patriarchal social structure which does not identify women as individuals; women are identified in society by the male figures in their lives. Individuality does not exist for women in my culture. Consequently, women are punished not only for their mistakes, but for the mistakes made against them by others. It is not uncommon to punish women for being raped or molested in the street. Somehow, it is the woman's fault for enticing the rapists and the molesters, even though the Islamic faith tradition requires society to stand upon justice. Still, major violations of justice occur against women on a daily basis.

Don't Edit

(Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

"Your Honor, I am already paying the price for the loss of my innocent baby. I know what I did was wrong; it was a terrible mistake that I cannot take back. If I could, I would. I have ruined my family's reputation and their lives, including mine. The damage I caused to my family is irreparable. It is now affecting the health of my mother. My mother, who is under tremendous stress, lost her ability to speak. She is now mute, and there are no medical remedies or cures to restore her ability to speak. My father and my immediate family have suffered immensely from this ordeal. The have made untold sacrifices for me under these very trying conditions. I know our lives will never be the same. Therefore, I ask for leniency in sentencing from this court.

"Today, I am stepping out of the shadows of silence and secrecy, and becoming a woman who is not afraid to speak up. Surely, out of this horrible situation can come a lot of good. I have lived in silence all of my life and now I am ready to face the challenges and difficulties of life with courage and confidence. I now know the penalty of silence, for indeed these moments which I presently live are teachable moments. If my mother's muteness doesn't change, I will speak for her because I believe I know what she wants and what she feels. I understand her agony and pain. I can say for her what she was never able to say. I want to be by my mother's side for the rest of her life.

Don't Edit

(Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

"The [assistant district attorney] has offered me 12 years. However, in light of what I have shared with this court regarding my circumstances, I am asking this court for leniency in my case. Attached to this letter are a few cases similar to mine that I would like this court to consider. I have no criminal record and I have always been a productive member of society. I understand that everyone who breaks the law should be punished, and I have accepted full responsibility for my actions. Therefore, I'm asking for leniency and the mercy of this court.

"Your Honor, I am thankful to you for allowing me to read this letter and grateful for any consideration you may give me."

Don't Edit
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Two children fell out of a window and were rushed to the hospital Sunday afternoon in Dongan Hills, according to an NYPD spokesman.

At approximately 12:58 p.m., a 6-year-old girl and 4 year-old boy tumbled out of a 3-story-high apartment window inside the Berry Houses complex on Seaver Avenue, the spokesman said.

Both children were rushed via ambulance to Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) in Ocean Breeze with unspecified injuries, police said.

According to NYPD, both children's injuries were believed to be non-life threatening.

Police are still investigating the incident, added the spokesman.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Hundreds of Staten Islanders were involved in deep discussions regarding some controversial issues, such as political, racial and ethnic divisions that occur on Staten Island and nationwide.

The 14th annual Anti-Bias/Anti-Violence Summit was held on Sunday -- on International Human Rights Day -- at Port Richmond High School. The theme of the gathering was "Human Rights in our Fraught Times."

Discussions involved race, violence, tolerance and growth, and offered opportunities for philosophical interactions. There were keynote speakers from Charlottesville, Va., and a theater performance.

The violence that occured during a rally to remove a Confederate statue in Charlottesville on Aug. 12 was a large part of the discussion.

"It's important that we have a vehicle by which the dialogue can be conveyed because what happened in Charlottesville could very easily happen anywhere," said Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore).

Rev. Terry Troia kicked off the event describing the importance of the summit, noting that these talks will be held as long as there are divisions.

Along with free dinner, there were opportunities for community interaction, round-table discussions, anti-racism training and small group conversations.

"It's very important that we have that conversation because even here on Staten Island, we've had incidents that have not been dealt with," said Rose. "We've kind of covered over them and I think that's a dangerous place to be because they're just festering for the next time something happens."

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Keynote speakers included: Rev. Seth Wispelwey, a United Church of Christ minister; and Dr. Diane Gartner Hillman, the vice president of a Charlottesville synagogue surrounded by white supremacists during August's "Unite the Right" rally.

"We tried to get past not just what happened, but to the racism and to the negative parts of our lives," Gartner Hillman said. "There's a lot being done, but there's not enough."

A READING

Brooklyn Councilman Jumaane Williams, well-known actors and media personalities performed the NYC Theater of War Productions project, "Hercules in Staten Island."

The reading was staged by seasoned actors: Frankie Faison (Coming to America, Hannibal and The Wire); Glenn Davis (24, The Unit and Jericho); Chinasa Ogbuagu (Law and Order, Nurse Jackie, The Following); and Williams.

The interactive and collaborative workshop -- hosted by the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene -- focused on how to be reflective and effective racial justice advocates.

Participants of the "Building Just Communities -- a Racial Justice Interactive and Collaborative Workshop for Change Makers Who Want to Create Equitable Community Spaces," left with tool kits for social change.

The event was organized by Communities United for Respect and Trust and co-sponsored by Take Care New York 2020. Other sponsors include houses of worship, not-for-profits, city agencies and other local, city and national groups.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- United States federal officials have announced that endangered right whales could become extinct, unless action is taken to protect them.

North Atlantic right whales are among the rarest marine mammals in the world. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said there are only about 450 whales left, and 17 of them have died in 2017.

Right whales have been on the decline since 2010, and it's estimated there are significantly fewer female right whales in population.

The comments were made by NOAA officials and researchers during a meeting last week with the New England Fishery Management Council.

Mark Murray-Brown, an Endangered Species Act consultant for NOAA, led the presentation of the five-year review of right whales.

The five-year study found that whales have low rates of reproduction; longer calving intervals; declining population abundance; changes in prey availability; increased transboundary movement and risk; and continued mortality from vessel and fishing gear interactions.

In the early 1890s, commercial whalers hunted right whales in the Atlantic to the brink of extinction. While whaling is no longer a threat, human interaction is still the greatest danger to the endangered species.

The leading causes of known mortality is due to entanglement in fishing gear and vessel strikes.

NOAA Fisheries and partners are continuing efforts to conserve and rebuild the North Atlantic right whale population -- studying, protecting and rescuing endangered whales.
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PHILIPSBURG - On Saturday December 9th the St. Maarten Youth Brigade, along with family and friends celebrated the promotion of its new recruits, cadets and Sergeants in a wonderful ceremony and reception which was also supported by the Prime Minister Rafael Boasman and Minister of Youth Silveria Jacobs.

Founder Zulayka Peterson spoke of the history of the St. Maarten Youth Brigade and its journey from inception to present, highlighting its challenges as well as great achievements including the personal and collective growth of its members. The members also engaged in community support and volunteering before and after Hurricane Irma, along with training and development which they endured and are now thankful for and so much more. Mrs. Peterson also mentioned in her address that members got permission to wear their uniforms to school on the 5th anniversary of the Voice of our Youth Foundation earlier this year which led to more recruits joining the SMYB.

Mrs. Peterson also highlighted the accolades the members have received from the Dutch Marines whom they assisted directly after Hurricane Irmas passing, working at the NIPA Shelter, assisting with food and water distribution, with cleaning up schools and in the community and helping those who had lost roofs including their own members.

Minister Jacobs in her address, congratulated the visionaries who saw the possibilities 5 years ago and who saw it through to the point where they have so many youth positively busy in their own lives and making an impact in the community. Minister Jacobs also thanked all those who had worked with the youth to make it possible for them to move to the next level today.

Minister Jacobs further pledged to continue to support in whatever way she could, both in and out of office, and encouraged the general public to find some way to support youth groups such as these and to encourage and support their children to take part in such positive initiatives. The Youth Brigade should not be seen as a boot camp but as a way through military type training to groom youth to join our uniformed services as well as to grow in character and discipline. One young member who has been promoted to Sergeant, Corporal Rupshen is already enlisted in the VKS.

Setting a day per month in which the SMYB members could wear their uniforms to school at least once per month to share their goals and experiences with their friends at school was promoted by the Minister and received loud cheers of agreement from the recently promoted members. Minister Jacobs pledged to make it possible.

Prime Minister Rafael Boasman also gave some encouraging remarks to the organization, members, families and friends and further echoed the sentiments of his colleague Minister for continued support for the St. Maarten Youth Brigade as an alternative to incarcerating youth offenders and thereby retraining and preparing them to be productive and positive citizens and role models to their peers and younger children on St. Maarten.

The newly promoted members and their peers marched through Philipsburg with pride after the ceremony and returned to enjoy the reception with their guests.
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The Australian National University will seek accreditation from the Australian Breastfeeding Association as part of its bid to become the world's top institution for gender equity.

The university will also develop a breastfeeding policy across campus and ensure that parenting facilities are considered when new buildings are designed. New parents who return to work will be made aware of the university's flexible hours policy.

Supporting Breastfeeding at ANU project leader Andrea Butler chats to Mel Collings, an ANU childcare educational leader, about the program. Credit:Karleen Minney

The commitments were made on Monday after authors of an audit into breastfeeding facilities handed the ANU's executive a suite of recommendations, including that the university buy a pool of bar fridges and make available more change tables.

Andrea Butler, who worked on this year's audit, said she wanted everyone to have the positive experience she had in returning to work while breastfeeding, when she was given her own office with blinds and a bar fridge.
A Canberra man caught red-handed as he peddled drugs to an undercover cop has avoided more time behind bars after a judge said his attempts to rehabilitate had been "very pleasing".

But Justice John Burns warned drug trafficker Robert James Masling, 28, his early progress was "only the beginning" and he couldn't let his guard down when he learned his fate in the ACT Supreme Court on Monday.

Masling and his childhood friend, former public servant Joel Andrew Lemmon, 27, were charged over a string of drug transactions involving ice, MDMA and cocaine between August and October in 2016.

They pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to drug charges.

The men were arrested when police raided properties in Amaroo and Kaleen after a long-running investigation into an illegal drug syndicate operating in the territory.
The Canberra Liberals' Candice Burch has won a countback of 2016 ACT election preferences to secure the Kurrajong seat in the Legislative Assembly vacated after Steve Doszpot's death last month.

But Ms Burch will not be confirmed until an official announcement, expected on Wednesday, as the Electoral Commission allows for some time for any successful candidate in a casual vacancy countback to resign from any relevant public office if needed.

Incoming Canberra Liberals MLA Candice Burch, centre, with Nicole Lawder and Opposition leader Alistair Coe at Monday's countback. Credit:Daniel Burdon

The formal swearing in ceremony for Ms Burch to take the seat is expected in the second week of February next year when the Assembly returns from its summer recess.

Ms Burch is an economist who has worked as an assistant director at the federal finance department, but has recently returned home from a working holiday in the United States and Canada.
Chinese tourists spent a whopping $253 million in the ACT over the past year, according to figures from the latest International Visitor Survey.

The survey found that more than 51,000 Chinese tourists visited the ACT in the past 12 months, accounting for 46 per cent of all tourism spending.

More than 150,000 tourists visited the Australian War Memorial last year. Credit:Australian Capital Tourism.

According to the survey, the total number of Chinese visitors has grown by 30 per cent in the last year.

In total the ACT welcomed 228,000 international visitors last year, an annual increase of 10 per cent.
Developers will pay Icon Water $1200 for every extra person they squeeze into an established suburb in an effort to help pay for upgrades to the water and sewerage network.

The ACT's Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission has approved the water utility's new Capital Contributions Code, which will force developers to co-fund work on suburb infrastructure under pressure from infill.

Icon Water will charge developers an extra $1200 per additional person they add to a suburb from January 1. Credit:Heath Missen

The code is effective from January 1 with an 18-month transition period for properties that were bought before then.

It will raise about $77.1 million to be spent on upgrades to sewers in Belconnen, Fyshwick, north Canberra, Woden and water storage in Campbell and Ainslie.
Australians are using more data than ever on their smartphones, but consumers would only be willing to pay about $50 to have endless data on their mobile, a new survey shows.

Despite Australians busting their phone caps by a collective $30 million a month, the average Australian smartphone owner would be unwilling to spend more than $53 a month on an unlimited mobile data plan, a survey of 2000 people by comparison site Finder found. The theoretical plan would include unlimited calls and texts.

The average Australian smartphone owner would be unwilling to spend more than $53 a month on an unlimited mobile data plan, a survey of 2000 has found. Credit:Glenn Hunt

Mobiles are now the most common device used to connect to the internet, and across all devices 3.1 terabytes were downloaded over the June 2017 quarter - up 43 per cent year-on-year, the Australian Communications and Media Authority latest report found.

But even the most data-hungry Australians, Generation Y, were not willing to spend much more than this - at an average $60 on unlimited data plans, compared to $46 for Baby Boomers.
Fairfax Media has become the first traditional media company to form an advertising partnership with search giant Google in a deal aimed at stemming the decline in digital advertising that is hurting news organisations around the world.

In a politically significant deal management believe could be a breakthrough for the publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, Fairfax will in effect outsource of the job of booking some digital advertisements that appear on its websites to Googles automated system.

Fairfaxs managing director of Australian Metro Publishing, Chris Janz, said the partnership was about playing to the strengths of Fairfax and not trying to be everything to everyone. Credit:Dallas Kilponen

While many media companies have battled the disruptive influence of US technology giants such as Google and Facebook, Fairfaxs managing director of Australian publishing, Chris Janz, said partnership would allow both companies to concentrate on their respective strengths.

It is important Fairfax doesnt try to be everything to everyone, he said.
News Corp Australia's decision to no longer publish audited data of how many copies of its newspapers are circulated comes amid speculation it is looking at cost cutting by getting rid of "unprofitable distribution".

The news organisation stopped the independent auditing of its print titles' distribution and circulation by the Audited Media Association of Australia (AMAA), instead making Enhanced Media Metrics Audience (EMMA) its sole provider.

The change was described by News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller as a result of consultations with advertiser and media agency partners that made it clear that circulation is not an indicator of how media is consumed today, and is out of step with how the advertising industry now operates.

News Corp denied the decision had been made due to declining print circulation. Credit:Phil Carrick

But the decision could signal the start of the company's move to slash its unprofitable distribution, where newspapers are given out for free or very low prices at a financial loss.
Singtel Optus will offer compensation to more than 8700 customers after offering maximum speeds on national broadband network plans that could not be delivered.

By promoting and offering these speeds that were unable to be provided, the company admitted it had likely contravened Australian Consumer Law.

The Optus NBN plans, offered from 1 September 2015 to 30 June 2017 marketed a range of speed plans, including a Boost Max with maximum download speeds of up to 100 megabits per second, and maximum upload speeds of up to 40 megabits per second, or 100/40 plans.

Due to technical limitations on fibre to the node and fibre to the building NBN connections, customers were unable to get the advertised speeds.
Retail Food Group's shares plunged more than 27 per cent hitting a five-year low in the wake of a Fairfax Media investigation that revealed hundreds of Donut King, Brumby's and Gloria Jean's stores were going to the wall.

The company's market value shed hundreds of millions of dollars on Monday as shareholders dumped their stock in the wake of claims that RFG charges franchisees with crippling costs and was driving a stable of brands into the ground.

Tony Alford at the time of the RFG float in 2006. Credit:Robert Rough

The company's shares closed the day down 26.14 per cent at $3.25.

The massive share price fall and heavy trading triggered a query from the Australian Securities Exchange.
It's that time of year when people think about getting away from the grind and disappearing from their daily business.

However, it's not every day that a business itself seeks to disappear.

Yet, that's what beleaguered Retail Food Group is seeking to do. Of course, CBD can understand why a business in RFG's position might want to hide under the counter at one of its Donut King, Gloria Jeans or Michel's Patisserie outlets and pretend the world doesn't exist.

After all it has spent most of the weekend watching on as a Fairfax Media investigation pointed to widespread angst in its franchise network about the difficulty of making money.
Former Victorian premier Steve Bracks is joining the board of Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, broadening his post-politics corporate career beyond the financial sector.

Mr Bracks, who led Labor to three election wins between 1999 and 2006, will in February commence as a non-executive director of the plaintiff law firm, it will announce on Tuesday.

Former Victorian premier Steve Bracks will join the board of Maurice Blackburn. Credit:Jessica Hromas

He will be the second non-executive director on the board alongside Joan Fitzpatrick. The remaining directors are lawyers from within in the privately-owned firm, including chair Steve Walsh and chief executive Jacob Varghese.

The former premier is also chair of the $41 billion industry superannuation fund CBUS, a non-executive director of insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson Australia and the Bank of Sydney.
Canberra public servants hoping the unplanned departures of Barnaby Joyce and Fiona Nash from the House of Representatives and the Senate respectively might have derailed The Nationals assault on jobs in the Federal Capital are in for a bitter disappointment.

While Ms Nash has definitely left the building, Mr Joyce made a triumphant return after the voters of New England rewarded him for his inability to fill out paperwork with an increase in his first preference vote.

Mr Joyce's by-election victory has, if anything, strengthened The National's position in the Coalition.

This will likely manifest itself in the New Year with increased pressure for more Canberra jobs to be sent to the bush as part of an exercise in pork barrelling designed to help the lesser coalition party fight off One Nation.
In a perverse way, Labor Senator Sam Dastyari has done Australia a favour. Not that anyone wants to thank him for selling the national interest to a Chinese billionaire with opaque ties to the Communist Party of China. But for providing such a clear-cut case study in how easy and cheap it is for a foreign power to extend its reach covertly into Australia's Parliament.

China's President Xi Jinping calls the party's global foreign influence program one of its "magic weapons" in shaping other countries' politics to suit China.

But there wasn't much magic, just naked greed, in the way Dastyari took Huang Xiangmo's money in return for preaching China's righteousness in taking disputed territory from its neighbours. Australia's policy was wrong, his own party's policy was wrong, and Beijing was right, according to Dastyari.

It's also proved to be a clear-cut case in how pathetic a major political party can be in dealing with such subversion of the national interest. Even after Dastyari's been exposed and shamed, Labor leader Bill Shorten has kept him on as one of its 26 senators. Twice. He's still there, still collecting his $203,000 annual basic salary, plus his 15 per cent superannuation, car and other taxpayer-funded entitlements worth tens of thousands of dollars more. This simply shows how a political leader can shamelessly put his party's institutional interests above the nation's. The political parties cannot be trusted to cleanse themselves.
Malcolm Turnbull has expressed regret for citing the loss of 30 consecutive political polls by Tony Abbott's government on the day he took over as Prime Minister.

"I do regret having said it," he said, "only because it allowed people to focus on that rather than the substantive reasons."

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull seemed full of Christmas spirit during his interview with The Daily Telegraph's columnist Miranda Devine. Credit:Lukas Coch

Mr Turnbull declined to say whether he would step down if his government surpassed the Abbott government's Newspoll losing streak.

"Well, I'm not going to speculate on that," he told The Daily Telegraph's columnist Miranda Devine. "But I can assure you ... I'll keep on delivering for the Australian people and that's my job."
Q&A hosted fiery and emotive scenes as Malcolm Turnbull was challenged about his record on Indigenous recognition, culminating in a visibly offended Prime Minister urging his critics to support Indigenous MPs from both sides of parliament.

The Prime Minister was appearing as the sole guest on the program and received a grilling about issues from the MPs with dual citizenships, to the same-sex marriage plebiscite, the influence of the right-wing of the party, his views on climate change and, finally, the National Broadband Network.

But perhaps the most emotional exchange was with two Indigenous Australians over the government's canning of an idea to enshrine an Indigenous voice in federal parliament in the constitution as part of the Uluru Statement from the Heart released earlier this year.

Mr Turnbull said that would effectively create a third chamber of parliament in addition to the House of Representative and the Senate, a view disputed by some Indigenous leaders, including the prominent coalition adviser Noel Pearson.
Adriana Lima had an abrupt about-face on Monday. The Brazilian model, who has donned the angel wings for Victoria's Secret since 1999 when she was just 18, posted a lengthy manifesto to her Instagram account, denouncing the lingerie giant as "an empty cause" that was "not physically [or] mentally healthy."

She also unfollowed Victoria's Secret on Instagram.

Model Adriana Lima at the Victoria's Secret fashion show in Shanghai in November. Credit:AP Photo/Andy Wong

Lima, who has 11 million followers on Instagram, and is arguably the most high profile of all the angels, is in many ways the embodiment of the brand. So devoted was she to the cause, she once walked the VS runway just two months after giving birth. If she keeps her word, she stands to lose an enormous amount of money.

But Lima, 36, claims that a comment from a friend about feeling "unhappy with her body" made her examine her own motivations regarding modelling, and the demands the job places on her, and she then decided to turn down a "sexy video" that would have been broadcast over Instagram.
In recent times actress Sarah Paulson has moved from strength to strength, but there was a time where she was warned her relationship would affect her "career negatively".

In an interview with The Edit, the 42-year-old American Horror Story star said she never worried about balancing her professional life and private relationship with 74-year-old actress girlfriend Holland Taylor until people told her to "be careful".

Sarah Paulson arrives at the 71st annual Tony Awards, 2017. Credit:Evan Agostini/AP

"Early on, when people found out I was with [Taylor], some said, 'I think you have to be careful, I'm afraid it's going to affect your career negatively,'" she said.

"I was like, what? It never occurred to me at all."
Over the weekend I saw an ad for Best and Less that really disturbed me. They were advertising thongs for $2, with a guarantee they will last 100 days.

"Only 100 days?" was my reaction.

An image from the Wardrobe.NYC launch campaign. Credit:Jackie Nickerson

In this fast-fashion world, it's a reality that clothing isn't built to last anymore. And at the centre of this phenomenon is the humble T-shirt.

My Daily Life colleague Clare Press, author of Wardrobe Crisis and host of the podcast of the same name, has written for this website about what a T-shirt should cost from a sustainability point of view. Her argument is that there has to be a floor price to ensure the workers are being fairly paid. Further, if you paid $20 for a T-shirt, you're also less likely to throw it out after a month or a season  the proverbial 100 days  than if you paid $5.
Ellis is much more speculative for the four-week Shares Race than she is with the one-year game and her family portfolio. Ellis likes companies that have a global outlook. Credit:Simon Schluter For the four-week race, in which eight competitors select 10 stocks with a hypothetical $10,000 in each, she likes to see strong share price gains with no down days before the race starts. "It has to be an easy-to-understand business that is also a 'hot' share," Ellis says. "I pick shares in sectors that are trending up and that are receiving a lot of media attention." Ellis also likes to see the directors of the company themselves as well as fund managers buying shares in the company.

With her star pick Digitalx, a facilitator of overseas money transfers using digital currencies, Ellis ended the last four-week race of the year, which she won, with her original $10,000 worth $31,250. "I like companies that have a global outlook and a lot of my shares are not just Australian based," she says. Ellis has done very well from A2 Milk Company in her family portfolio, whose products include infant formula. "There were a lot of articles in the Australian Financial Review about A2 Milk and about milk formula generally in China," she says. "I went to the supermarkets and you could see that it was flying off the shelves and I spent the whole week looking at A2 Milk.Then, I was helping a girlfriend out who had broken her knee and I opened her fridge and there were half-a-dozen bottles of A2 Milk in her fridge and I started buying A2 Milk at about 80c."

A2 Milk's shares are now worth almost 10 times that. Of course, just like any share investor, Ellis has had her fair share of disappointments. For her family portfolio she bought Buddy Platform, a platform for monitoring and reducing consumption of electricity, water and gas, among other things. She bought the shares for about 13c in May last year and sold out a year later for 5c. Almost immediately after selling the shares, they rocketed to about 35c.

"I've learnt that sometimes it takes a while for the market to catch-up on why these businesses are amazing," Ellis says. Year-long race For the one-year shares race and for her family portfolio she puts more emphasis on companies with strong revenue and profit growth and good "tailwinds" for the business. She wants to know how a company is going to generate cash, grow its business and strengthen its economic "moat", the barrier to entry for new competitors. Ellis' pick of Big Un, the parent company of Big Review TV, helped to finish in the long race as well as helping her to win many of the four-week races.

She bought shares in the company in late January this year for 42 cents and they are now trading at about $3.50. The Big Review TV platform integrates multimedia to provide a hub for people to search, view and review businesses, events and destinations. It has a global focus and strong revenue growth. She took the time to understand the business model and contacted a few of its customers to see if they were happy and would be likely to resubscribe to the service. Ellis took the opportunity to realise her huge gains from Big Review TV to plough 80 per cent of the sale proceeds in jewellery retailer Lovisa, which became her largest holding in her year-long portfolio. The company is rapidly expanding overseas and recently opened a "pilot" store in Los Angeles.

Ellis has a contact in Los Angeles who sent Ellis some photos of inside the store showing it bustling with customers. Last year, Ellis visited a QVB store in Sydney with her daughter and after seeing the store doing a brisk trade, bought more of the company's shares. Ellis attends the company AGMs to make a point of meeting the chief executive and the board. Offshore holdings Ellis has 30 per cent of her family portfolio invested in global markets with much of her international exposure held in Australian-listed exchange traded funds (ETFs).
The Coalition will stage the move of major national security agencies into the new Home Affairs department over two phases and expects Australia's federal police and intelligence outfits will work under its tent by the end of this year, its future minister says.

But Home Affairs minister-designate Peter Dutton on Sunday said ASIO was not likely to join other security agencies until next year, when the government expects Labor's support for laws letting it move into the mega-department.

Home Affairs minister-designate Peter Dutton says the creation of the new department will happen in two stages.

Mr Dutton revealed the timetable after the Finance Department told senators the government had canvassed the security shake-up as early as February this year, five months before Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced the project.
Most Australians want the government to create a federal anti-corruption commission, make its national agencies more independent and set four-year parliamentary terms, according to a new report led by one of the nation's most respected former public servants.

The findings come as Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull for the first time suggested he was prepared to consider creating a federal anti-corruption watchdog, but said he was not yet persuaded the case had been made for such a body.

Australia's former top public servant Terry Moran with then prime minister Julia Gillard in 2011. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

While the discussion paper released on Tuesday by the Centre for Policy Development found its respondents wanted change and felt Australia's democracy was controlled by vested interests, it said they believed its problems could be fixed and that unlike in the United States they didn't want to "blow the system up or drain the swamp."
More than eight years since the bloodied body of Anthony Cawsey was found in Sydney's Centennial Park, a coronial inquest will re-examine the role of a homeless man who was previously charged with murder, only for that charge to be later dropped.

A local dog walker found Mr Cawsey's body face down on the banks of Busby Pond in Centennial Park on September 26, 2009.

Anthony Cawsey's body was found in Centennial Park in 2009. Credit:Police Media

The 37-year-old had suffered a single stab wound to the chest and his pants had been pulled down, revealing a black G-string.

Alongside his body lay the butts of both a rolled and tailor-made cigarette and a lighter. Unmarked DNA samples found on the G-string and the rolled cigarette have never been identified.
An elderly Gold Coast businessman ought to receive a "significant custodial sentence" for his role in multi-million dollar tax evasion and money laundering schemes, a Sydney court has been told.

Crown prosecutor Michel McHugh SC on Monday also said Michael Issakidis and his wife, who were found unconscious at their Paradise Point home in October, now "wanted to live for each other".

Gold Coast businessman Michael Issakidis is escorted into a prison van at the Supreme Court in Sydney. Credit:Brendan Esposito

The frail 73-year-old faced a sentence hearing in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday after a jury found him guilty in June of conspiring with Anthony Dickson to defraud the Australian Taxation Office of more than $60 million and conspiring with him in a money-laundering scheme.

The offences occurred when they were directors of NeuMedix Health Australasia, a consortium of investment and technology companies.
A woman has been arrested in Sydney's south-west over alleged historic child sex offences.

Police allege the teacher committed sex offences as a 27-year-old against a 15-year-old boy at a high school in Birrong in 1997.

It's also alleged she sexually assaulted another 15-year-old boy at the same school that year.

Officers from the Bankstown Local Area Command launched an investigation into the alleged sex offences in February, and at 7am on Monday they arrested a woman, now aged 47, at her Padstow home.
A woman who stabbed her 13-month-old daughter  most likely in front of another of her children  was discharged from hospital less than a fortnight earlier, a court has heard.

The woman stabbed her youngest child to the throat with a kitchen knife in their Reservoir home on June 5, and afterwards telephoned her husband and said: "I think the baby is dead. I don't know what I have done."

The Supreme Court heard that the woman had been receiving treatment. Credit:Vince Caligiuri

The 28-year-old, who cannot be named so as to protect the identities of her other children, has pleaded guilty to infanticide, and the Supreme Court on Monday heard she received "episodic" treatment for mental-health problems for more than three years before she killed her daughter.

But she had also not taken her medication for schizophrenia for almost two years before the death, the court heard.
This just in:

Our reporter Joe Hinchliffe has just spoken to the driver of that scrap metal truck.

The man said one of his tyres blew before he lost control of his semi-trailer.

He said he had been lying on his side for 20 minutes when the driver of the Ford Sedan reportedly drove straight under his truck about 4am this morning.

We'll bring you more soon.
An 82-year-old man has died in hospital following a collision in Springvale last month.

His death takes the number of pedestrians killed on the state's roads this year to 27, while at least two other Victorians remain in hospital with life-threatening injuries after being hit by cars while walking.

An elderly pedestrian has died in hospital, after being hit by a motorcycle.

The elderly Springvale man was crossing Springvale Road when he was struck by a motorcycle about 5pm on 20 November.

He was taken to hospital where he died on Friday.
Motorists face hefty CityLink toll rises for an extra decade under a deal with Transurban that Premier Daniel Andrews will attempt to ram through Parliament.

Mr Andrews on Tuesday revealed a massive and unexpected blowout in the cost of the West Gate Tunnel, with projected costs escalating to $6.7 billion, up from last year's estimated $5.5 billion.

With Labor moving to stop the road becoming an issue at next year's state election, Transurban locked in a major victory for its shareholders: the guarantee of a big government payment if funding is blocked by the Parliament.

The Premier announced on Tuesday the government had signed contracts, with work starting in January.
Barcelona: For more than two decades, the medieval treasures of Spain's Sijena convent have been at the centre of an ownership battle between the autonomous communities of Catalonia and Aragon.

Now, the 44 artefacts kept in Catalonia's Museum of Lleida have become a flashpoint in the independence crisis, as Aragon takes advantage of direct rule to retrieve the pieces it says were illegally sold by Sijena's nuns.

Spanish authorities take advantage of their direct powers over Catalonia to relocate 44 disputed art works from a museum in the Catalan city of Lleida to the neighbouring Spanish region of Aragon. Credit:MANU FERNANDEZ

On Monday the town of Lleida is braced for a stand-off between police ordered to remove the artefacts and pro-independence Catalans who have vowed to come to their defence.

With the Catalan government dissolved, Spain's culture minister stepped into the dispute, signing a judicial order for the return of the treasures, with a midnight on Sunday deadline. Last-minute challenges have been launched by local authorities and the museum, arguing that the case is still under appeal and the fragile treasures would suffer if they were then ordered back to Catalonia.
Beijing: The diplomatic row with China has worsened with the authoritative Communist Party newspaper People's Daily taking the unusual step on Monday of calling on the Australian government to "reject political prejudices and paranoia".

People's Daily is required reading for 89 million Communist Party members.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's statement in Chinese at the weekend that Australia had "stood up" to foreign interference has also been widely criticised, as it borrows from a famous line that the Chinese people had "stood up" when the republic was founded in 1949.

Under the pseudonym Zhong Sheng (the sound of the bell), People's Daily on page three wrote that Australia had lost its sunny disposition, with prejudice undermining Sino-Australian relations.
R Bindu also said the quality of education in Kerala had not dipped contrary to the opposition's claims.
Beijing: China on Monday rejected accusations that it had used LinkedIn and other social media sites to infiltrate the German government, responding to claims from German intelligence services that more than 10,000 citizens had been targeted by Chinese spies.

In a scathing investigation released Sunday, Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, accused Beijing of using social media to connect with lawmakers and other government employees.

To win their trust, the agency said, Chinese agents posed as leaders of think tanks and headhunters, and offered all-expenses-paid trips to China and meetings with influential clients.

In Beijing on Monday, Lu Kang, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called the investigation "complete hearsay and groundless." He urged German officials to "speak and act more responsibly."
New York: Three women who have accused US President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have called for a congressional investigation into his behaviour amid a wave of similar accusations against prominent men in Hollywood, the media and politics.

Over the past two years, more than a dozen women have accused Trump of making unwanted sexual advances against them years before he entered politics.

Three of his accusers, Jessica Leeds, Rachel Crooks, and Samantha Holvey said at a news conference on Monday that the accusations warranted new consideration given the broader discussion of sexual harassment in US society.

Brave New Films, a non-profit filmmaker, produced a video featuring 16 of Trump's accusers and organised the news conference in New York on Monday. In the film, women accused Trump of kissing them without permission, grabbing their private parts, putting his hand up their skirts, or making other unwanted advances.
Indonesia and Australia's trade ministers will meet in Argentina this week amid growing doubt the free trade deal between the two countries will meet the end-of-year deadline.

Sources close to the negotiations say it is hoped the deal will be signed at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit to be held in Sydney in March next year, although some say even this is ambitious.

Indonesian Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita with Australian Trade Minister Steve Ciobo

Negotiators failed to reach a deal in November - despite both ministers buoyantly predicting it would be the last round - with an eleventh round of negotiations held in Jakarta last week.

Both sides are tight lipped about the roadblocks but market access and legislative constraints to Australia opening university campuses in Indonesia are understood to be among them.
London: Snow has caused travel disruptions across parts of Europe and Britain grounding flights, shutting down roads and triggering traffic accidents in which at least one person died.

Frankfurt, Duesseldorf, Birmingham, London Stansted and London Luton airports suspended flights on Sunday as runways were cleared. The airports advised passengers to contact their airlines to check the status of flights.

A snow covered phone box in Marlow, England, after heavy snow fell across parts of the UK. Credit:AP

In neighbouring Switzerland, 80 flights to and from Zurich airport had to be cancelled amid heavy snowfall and high winds on Sunday.

Airports worked through the early evening to clear the backlog of flights. But in the world of interconnected air travel, the effects of any extended disruptions can persist for hours, with planes and flight crews quickly knocked out of rotation for their next assignments.
Washington: President Trump is 'on trial' in Roy Moore's campaign for the US Senate in Alabama, the Republican candidate's top political strategist said on Sunday.

Two days before voters go to the polls, GOP strategist Dean Young said Trump's endorsement of the former Alabama Supreme Court chief justice despite sexual harassment and assault allegations has made the election "ground zero" for the president.

Former Alabama Chief Justice and US Senate candidate Roy Moore speaks at a campaign rally, in Henagar, Alabama. Credit:AP

"This is President Trump's agenda, and that's why it's so important that Judge Moore wins this race," Young said on ABC's This Week. "If they can beat him, they can beat his agenda."

Moore's campaign against Democrat Doug Jones in a state that voted overwhelmingly for the president last November dominated the network and cable news shows Sunday. Most of those interviewed, including fellow Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama, stuck by their denunciations of Moore over his alleged involvement with girls as young as 14.
Last year September, the St. Maarten Christian Party contested the elections and received 848 votes. We were close to winning one seat but in elections close if not enough and one vote can make the difference.

As we took in the results at our campaign headquarters, our brief disappointment about the results was quickly met with an ENERGIZED sense of achievement and gratitude for running a campaign with integrity, void of empty promises and vote buying. We realized this was the first chapter in our long-term commitment as a movement to SERVE THE PEOPLE FOR A CHANGE!!

Since then, we have lived up to our commitment to remain engaged in enlightening the people and keeping them informed. We became the EXTRA-PARLIAMENTARY OPPOSITION while UP seemed to have abandoned the people after their failed attempt to execute their hastily signed coalition agreement with NA, when Theo and Frankie did not pass the Minister Screening.

For the last 14 months, unlike most of the 126 candidates in 2016 and other new parties, SMCP has written almost weekly articles highlighting the functioning of Parliament and has maintained a very active presence on the issues plaguing our people via Facebook and in the community. This was always our plan and we actually intended to start our town hall information sessions in all the districts in January 2018.

Since last year we have been monitoring the political scene and were very well aware that all Ministries were operating as individual islands, each making decisions which negatively affected the others. The Council of Ministers was clearly not working in cohesion with one another. I distinctly remember in one of our work meetings, we discussed that this supposedly strong coalition of 10 would not last beyond one year.

Little did we know, Irma would devastate our island in so many ways. Not only did the hurricane destroy people's homes, personal belongings created looting but it also exposed the now very visible cracks in the shaky coalition held together by the fact that Ship jumping became the new political sin.

It became very obvious the Prime Minister lost control of the island and became a ROGUE PM. It became very evident to me that he would lose his majority support in parliament after he not only alienated his coalition partners and the entire population but also put the island in a winless feud with the Dutch at a time when they are our only dependable source of relief and reconstruction aid for our island and people.

We lost more than two months in the recovery process while he tried to demonize the Dutch. In the process, our people have been suffering as the island sinks further in depression from the trauma, crime, unemployment, and homelessness.

During this period we saw another political saga play out which led to a vote of no confidence (article 33), a ship jumping from the US party followed by the PM dissolving parliament and calling new elections (article 59). Finally, the postponing of the election dates to line up with the Electoral ordinances on new parties registering and first-time voters being able to register. Needless to say, it has been another learning experience for our party on exactly what behavior we should never exemplify.

Early on, I was one who called for a NATIONAL GOVERNMENT consisting of a Non politically affiliated Council of Ministers. This COM would be supervised by a Parliament consisting of all the political leaders. They would commission a short-term recovery plan as well as a long-term Holistic reconstruction plan which should include the following areas:

A hurricane proof public infrastructure Including making each district community center and public school a Hurricane shelter with a concrete roof, generator, diesel tank, medical emergency supplies and food supplies. These shelters would be manned as part of the new disaster management plan with nurses, marines, police/VKS and community leaders. These would need to be self-sufficient for at least 2 weeks in case of another monster hurricane or other natural disaster.

An amended building code which should require homeowners to have a cistern and at least 30-40 of the house covered by a concrete roof.

A new public transportation policy and infrastructure. This policy should address the serious traffic congestions and start to implement measures to restrict the amount of cars on the island.

A new energy policy to address areas like solar energy, green energy, and waste management. This needs to include dealing with the dump, recycling and GEBE's role in this area not only to secure the future of its employees but mostly to deliver cheap electricity and water to the people.

The implementation of a Waste to Energy plant not only deal with the Dutch side waste but also French side, Saba, Statia, Anguilla, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Barths. Taking this approach would secure that the plant would be more sustainable and be able to deliver cheaper electricity to our consumers. Eventually, Government should own this waste to energy plant and it can become a source of revenue for our island as we cater to the region.

A sustainable environmental policy including developing eco-tourism. Bird watching tourism needs to be developed and other eco friendly sites need to be maintained. We need to reinforce the Nature Foundation and make sure they have enough funding to protect and preserve our environment. This can be done via an environmental tax.

An improved tourism marketing plan to revitalize our stakeholders and reboost our economy. It is imperative we strike the right balance between cruise, timeshare and stay over tourism.

An amended labor policy including the elimination of the minimum wage for a livable wage. No longer should our economy be based on the exploitation of cheap labor. This is important if we are to reestablish the family values in our community, prevent and reduce crime.

A new agriculture policy to maximize the potential for farming and fisheries in a sustainable fashion. We need to be innovative and seek to implement new methods.

A new health care policy which should not only include a new hospital but which should revisit the sustainability of the proposed National Health insurance plan.

A new law for tertiary education and the development of a state of the art accredited University. It is time we develop Sxm as the BRAIN HUB of the Caribbean to attract students from around the region and the world.

An amended immigration policy to address the land size limitations of the island and the availability of jobs.

A Sxm development bank to facilitate soft loans for local entrepreneurs as well as assist in the development of affordable homes.

A new tax system such as going to indirect taxes so that the tax burden is spread out over every single citizen and visitor on the island. This policy should include incentives to boost investment in the island locally and internationally.

A redevelopment of our sports and cultural facilities so that the island can be promoted In those areas. Sports tourism can be a great source of revenue for the island if managed and promoted properly.

A definition of the Sxm identity in our constitution taking into account our heritage as well as our present social demographic reality.

A Unified Congress between the French and Dutch side local governments with honorary observer positions for Holland and France. An idea mentioned by the present President of the Collectivitee. Please note that the reconstruction of the Dutch side absolutely needs to be carried out in synergy with the French side. All attempts should be made to unify forces to combat so many of the common ills plaguing both sides. Both local governments already control many competencies such as fiscal affairs, social affairs, transportation, tourism and urban development.

SMCP does not feel now was the appropriate timing for an election but the constitution has played out. We believe our constitution is sacred and should not be trampled on every time our immature and self-interested politicians decide to use it to spite each other or grab power. For the last 40, 30, 20 years, our people have been misled and taken for granted while our Politicians have enriched themselves.

Since we have received Status Aparte on 10-10-10, we have seen every single combination of the NA, DP, US and UP coalitions with no tangible results for the island. It is time that we break the political indoctrination which has destroyed our fabric of life, our strong middle class and show the world we can evolve as a people and embrace change. SMCP asks our people to reject vote buying. Do not sell your future and that of your children.

For this reason, we feel it is our duty to contest the elections on February 26, 2018. We are more than ever energized to fight for the people of Sxm and bring about the much needed STABLE GOVERNMENT the island will require to rebuild and reintroduce a strong middle class among our people.

Integrity, Transparency, Accountability, and ethics should not be used as words only during a campaign or on a rubber wristband. Instead, they need to become our way of life as a people and definitely for our leaders of the future.

With stability in mind, we will be asking the population to WAKE UP and vote for a change. It is time we introduce new blood into our political system. After 6 governments in 7 years, it should be more than evident that the present older party leaders and older politicians from the Island Council days are the very same politicians failing the island year in, year out for decades.

If given overwhelming support, SMCP will seek to form a Multi-Partisan Coalition majority of Parliamentarians across all party lines who will, in turn, appoint a Non politically affiliated Council of Ministers to rebuild St. Maarten over the period of 2018-2022. Only the Prime Minister position could be selected from the parties if that candidate can receive unanimous support from this coalition.

It is time we end the fighting to own a Minister and focus on becoming an island with an exemplary Government apparatus, Parliament, and Society. Both the Multi-Partisan Parliamentary Coalition and the Non-Political COM will seek to work in an accountable and transparent manner with the Kingdom Government (including Aruba, Curacao, Saba, and Statia), the Collectivitee of St. Martin and the French government.

Now more than ever it is time all four governments to honor our forefathers and exemplify the spirit of the Treaty of Concordia which was based on the cohabitation of our people.

The Post Irma Legacy for our future generations should be a NEW ST. MARTIN/ST. MAAREN: ONE ISLAND, ONE PEOPLE, ONE DESTINY FOREVER!!!

Claude Chacho Peterson
Would female leadership change the Caribbean? Most likely it will! It is all about the characteristics of how the members of the male and female gender have a different way of approaching a task, a challenge, or stress. Women leaders take care, whereas men leaders take charge. Researchers suggest that the vital difference might all come down to one gene that only men have, called the SRY gene. According to scientists, it is demonstrated in the mens response to stress with Fight-Or-Flight, while women Tend-And-Befriend. While men favor punching or running away, women are more likely to try to diffuse a situation and seek out social support.

Transformational leadership is a prerequisite for Caribbean development. Instead of giving you a definition of transformational leadership, Ill present to you a role model of a Transformation Leader who just so happens to be a woman. After reading it, tell me, whether I need to say more of what I believe the Caribbean needs in regard to leadership.

Oprah Winfrey is one of a handful of black billionaires across the globe and her net worth estimated at US$ 2.5 billion. She defied the odds stacked against her in life. Born to unmarried parents, a miner father and a mother who worked as a maid, Oprahs early years were filled with abuse, loneliness, and heartache. What she was forced to overcome, became a driving force for making her an incredible entrepreneur and mentor to women and men around the world. Her unprecedented success may serve as the undisputed blueprint for many minority entrepreneurs.

Winfreys leadership has broken down barriers; her business instinct is stuff of legend; and her innovation is unprecedented. She has spent her entire career beating the odds  and has inspired millions of business-minded minorities in the process. Her entrepreneurial mind-set and willingness to take risks has paid off by propelling her forward throughout her career. Oprahs leadership style demands that nothing should be taken for granted. I dont yell at people, I dont mistreat people, I dont talk down to people. Treating people with respect is the most important thing to me. Its not just talk. She has proven that it doesnt matter from where you come; what matters is where you want to go, how you get yourself there, and how you treat people along the way. She has shown that to be a successful leader it takes courage and the ability to try new things, even in the face of uncertainty.

Studies are suggesting that women are better leaders. Performing twice as well in order to be thought of as half as good as male counterparts, is the most prevalent reason why women are perceived to be better leaders. Often the double standard demand that women work harder than men. Therefore, they get more things done, deliver results, and are seen as better role models to peers and subordinates. Compassion and being more organized are strengths to be added to their leadership competence. Women are also more likely to be trusted and respected and they show greater concern for individual needs. Women tend to be more nurturing, caring and sensitive than men. These characteristics are more aligned with transformational leadership.

Caribbean democratic development requires transformational leadership that values equality, equity, non-violence, caring, cooperation, service, transparency and accountability, and zero tolerance for corruption in political and public life. That was one of the conclusions of the Caribbean Regional Colloquium on Women Leaders as Agents of Change.

There is a typical Caribbean problem with this Colloquium just like many high-level summits; lots of high-level talk, conclusions, but no action. Its like letting the pressure of the kettle and letting the boiling water cool off again. So, whether this was in last weeks news or a date farther in the past, it doesnt matter when nothing is done. It was actually an event of 2011, which may show the amount of progress made in six years.

Another conclusion was: Women with a vision of social justice, individually and collectively transform themselves to use their power, resources and skills in non-oppressive, inclusive structures and processes, to mobilize others around a shared agenda of social, cultural, economic and political transformation for equality and the realization of human rights for all.

However, at the most senior levels of leadership in the Caribbean, men still dominate. Few men in leadership positions may be realizing that the old way of leading - taking charge (command and control) - may not be as effective in today's world and in the future.

Some of you readers may still be puzzled by the SRY-gene, exclusive to men, that was mentioned in the beginning of this essay. Womens responses to stress are regulated by other genes than the SRY. Tend-And-Befriend is a behavior typically exhibited by females in response to threat. It refers to protection of offspring (tending) and seeking out the social group for mutual defense (befriending). In evolutionary psychology, it is theorized as having evolved as the typical female response to stress, just as the primary male response was Fight-Or-Flight.

There are many physiological gender differences, where men differ on average from women but there is overlap in the distribution of the trait. Men have, on average, much more testosterone in their body than women, yet, there are women whose testosterone is as high as, or even higher than men's testosterone. Recent studies conducted in Australia have shown that when these high-testosterone women respond to stress, particularly stress caused by men, such as being held at gunpoint by a guy in a dark alley, they show the unique and highly effective "kick-the-man-in-the-groin" response.

by Cdr. Bud Slabbaert
GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Persons with disabilities according to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF), defines disability as an umbrella term for impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions.

Disability is the interaction between individuals with a health condition (e.g. cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and depression) and personal and environmental factors (e.g. negative attitudes, inaccessible transportation and public buildings, and limited social supports).

Over a billion people are estimated to live with some form of disability. This corresponds to about 15% of the world's population. Between 110 million (2.2%) and 190 million (3.8%) people 15 years and older have significant difficulties in functioning. Furthermore, the rates of disability are increasing in part due to aging populations and an increase in chronic health conditions.

Disability is extremely diverse. While some health conditions associated with disability result in poor health and extensive health care needs, others do not. However all people with disabilities have the same general health care needs as everyone else, and therefore need access to mainstream health care services.

Article 25 of the Unite Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) reinforces the right of persons with disabilities to attain the highest standard of health care, without discrimination.

The Collective Prevention Services (CPS), a department in the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour (Ministry VSA), says in the Americas, about 140 million people live with any type of disability.

People with disabilities face barriers to inclusion in all aspects of life: education, employment, social and political life and health. As a result, many persons with disabilities do not enjoy access to society on an equal basis with others. Sometimes, stigma and discrimination are the greatest barrier to the full and equal participation of people with disabilities, including the access to health services.

CPS urges the community to work with local organizations who represent people with disabilities in order to make the transformation towards sustainable and resilient society for all a reality.

In 2017, significant progress has been made to improve access to healthcare for persons with disabilities and continue working towards Pan American Health Organizations (PAHO) Action Plan on Disability and Rehabilitation 2014-2019.

This Action Plan underwent its midway review at the 29th Pan American Sanitary Conference, and the advancement was noted by several member states. Other key achievements have included Chile became the first country of the Region to conduct the Model Disability Survey  which used its findings to help revise policies, laws and activities across the country.

On 28 November 2017, PAHO signed a collaboration agreement with Special Olympics to increase attention and action on inclusive health for persons with intellectual disabilities, including promotion of physical activity.

In addition to that, the first two regional meetings on rehabilitation took place in Sao Paulo in November of this year which focused on leadership and health information respectively, with the participation of representatives from across the region.

The leadership meeting included representatives from the mental health sector to bring more attention to the importance of psychosocial rehabilitation.

These regional meetings follow on from the significant WHO initiative for "Rehabilitation 2030", which was launched in February this year. More meetings are being planned for 2018 in the areas of workforce and assistive technology.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On Saturday, December 9th the St. Maarten Youth Brigade, along with family and friends celebrated the promotion of its new recruits, cadets and Sergeants in a wonderful ceremony and reception which was also supported by the Prime Minister Rafael Boasman and Minister of Youth Silveria Jacobs.

Founder Zulayka Peterson spoke of the history of the St. Maarten Youth Brigade and its journey from inception to present, highlighting its challenges as well as great achievements including the personal and collective growth of its members. The members also engaged in community support and volunteering before and after Hurricane Irma, along with training and development which they endured and are now thankful for and so much more. Mrs. Peterson also mentioned in her address that members got permission to wear their uniforms to school on the 5th anniversary of the Voice of our Youth Foundation earlier this year which led to more recruits joining the SMYB.

Mrs. Peterson also highlighted the accolades the members have received from the Dutch Marines whom they assisted directly after Hurricane Irmas passing, working at the NIPA Shelter, assisting with food and water distribution, with cleaning up schools and in the community and helping those who had lost roofs including their own members.

Minister Jacobs in her address, congratulated the visionaries who saw the possibilities 5 years ago and who saw it through to the point where they have so many youths positively busy in their own lives and making an impact in the community. Minister Jacobs also thanked all those who had worked with the youth to make it possible for them to move to the next level today.

Minister Jacobs further pledged to continue to support in whatever way she could, both in and out of office and encouraged the general public to find some way to support youth groups such as these and to encourage and support their children to take part in such positive initiatives. The Youth Brigade should not be seen as a boot camp but as a way through military-type training to groom youth to join our uniformed services as well as to grow in character and discipline. One young member who has been promoted to Sergeant, Corporal Rupshen is already enlisted in the VKS.

Setting a day per month in which the SMYB members could wear their uniforms to school at least once per month to share their goals and experiences with their friends at school was promoted by the Minister and received loud cheers of agreement from the recently promoted members. Minister Jacobs pledged to make it possible.

Prime Minister Rafael Boasman also gave some encouraging remarks to the organization, members, families and friends and further echoed the sentiments of his colleague Minister for continued support for the St. Maarten Youth Brigade as an alternative to incarcerating youth offenders and thereby retraining and preparing them to be productive and positive citizens and role models to their peers and younger children on St. Maarten.

The newly promoted members and their peers marched through Philipsburg with pride after the ceremony and returned to enjoy the reception with their guests.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On Thursday, December 7th, in the presence of colleagues from the Prosecutors Office, colleagues from Dutch National Police Force, the Police Chief Carl John and his management team and colleagues from the KPSM, the outgoing Chief Prosecutor for Sint Maarten Ton Maan took the opportunity to say farewell. Ton Maan has been Chief Prosecutor for Sint Maarten for a number of years and has established a very close working relationship with the KPSM.

During this gathering, the Police Chief thanked Ton Maan for the great cooperation he had given to the KPSM during the time he was in office as Chief Prosecutor. John further stated that it was definitely an honor to have worked with Ton Maan and wished him all the best in his future endeavors. Ton Maan will be returning to the Netherlands where he will continue his duties. The successor of Ton Maan is Chief Prosecutor Jeroen Steenbrink.

KPSM Press Release
SIMPSON BAY:--- On Friday evening, the Beyond Kultura Foundation launched its latest childrens book Chella and the Weird Woman by Loekie Morales at OBA OBA Restaurant and lounge in Simpson Bay. The book was baptized by the author in the presence of its godparents Francis Carty and Claudette Forsythe-Labega.

The bilingual book (Dutch and English translation on each page, is well written and utilized imagery and a fast-paced storyline to capture the imagination of readers. Many collaborators gave their experience in the production of this book, and the author Loekie and some children from the after-school program depicted a riveting scene from the book. The message of the story brings awareness to children about ways to keep safe, which is very important in todays society.

In her remarks, Minister of Education Silveria Jacobs stressed the importance of reading and building vocabulary which aids in speaking and writing not just for children but for all. Reading also opens up the imagination and encourages creativity. Minister Jacobs further encouraged adults in attendance to read often and continue to learn at every opportunity. The fact that the author translated the book into English also gives readers opportunity to utilize and broaden vocabulary in both languages.

Minister Jacobs also commends the Beyond Kultura Foundation on the launch of another St. Maarten book and for making the book accessible to children in our schools with the donation they will make to each school in the coming weeks.

In conclusion, the Minister of Education encourages the general public to purchase the book and make it a special gift for children this Christmas.

DCOMM Press Release

Successful Book launch Thriller Chella and the Weird Woman.

SIMPSON BAY:--- Last Friday, the latest spiritual child of author Loekie Morales, Chella and the Weird Woman/Chella en het vreemde vrouwtje, was baptized at OBA OBA, Simson Bay, in the presence of the many visitors, the illustrator Penka Petkova, Morales herself and of course the Padrino, Mr. Francis Carty and Madrina, Mrs. Claudette Labega.

Loekie Morales stated: The event was well visited. We got much more people than we have expected and that is a good sign. A Madrina and a Padrino are like the Godfather and Godmother of the book, and often we select for these functions two highly respected persons within our community, who have shown interest with actions in literature (reading & writing), culture and youth, but moreover who have their hearts at the right place when it comes to our society and especially our youth.

The Honorable Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and sport, Silveria Jacobs attended the event and has spoken about the importance of reading, starting from a very early age.

The baptizing of the book Chella and the Weird Woman/Chella en het vreemde vrouwtje, is a ceremony that marks that the book is now available for the general public to read. During the Launch, a Chella act was played by Yvania Richardson (as Chella) and Loekie Morales (as the Weird Woman) and Dawryles Carty - Ozuna, Jaldon Giterson and Li'Anne Peterson have sung nicely the Chella Song, a Tumba composed by Loekie Morales and arranger Dennis van Putten. Two persons have won a door prize and have gotten a Chella book as a present.

The coming two weeks, starting from Monday 11th December, Beyond Kultura Events representatives and in some cases some sponsors, will be visiting schools to hand over a box of 27 books per school, as part of BKEs reading and storytelling program.

Thousands of children of Sint Maarten and Curacao will read this book that is to be used as comprehensive reading material, thanks to the donation not only the Windward Island Bank, Henderson Insurance Risk-Management Investment Consultants, the Prince Bernhard Cultural Fund and the Representative of Holland in Philipsburg, but also the Central Bank. The proofreaders Elsje Bosch and Mariette Schrijver have given their cooperation free of charge and the translator Rietje Sint and HD Ontwerp and the illustrator have given their cooperation for a friends price, with the best interest of the youth of Sint Maarten in mind. OBA OBA owner has facilitated with the usage of their cozy room and allowed to transform it into a scary house.

Morales: I got already enthusiastic reactions from the schools, that they cannot wait to have us visiting them and mentioned that the books are such a great welcome in a time that Sint Maarten is recovering from the devastating hurricane Irma. We of Beyond Kultura Events Foundation are always happy to see all those happy faces in the schools.

Beyond Kultura Events Foundation Press Release
In the second incident, police say a male is hospitalized in critical condition after he was stabbed by his father.
US warns Russia over Ukraine at OSCE meeting







Vienna (AFP) Dec 7, 2017





The United States warned Russia on Thursday that its ties with the West can never recover until it pulls its forces out of Ukraine, as OSCE foreign ministers met in Vienna. Diplomats had hoped that meetings on the sidelines of the 57-nation body would make progress on agreeing terms for a UN peacekeeping force for war-torn Ukraine. But the major powers in the dispute are still far apart, and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson went so far as to declare that the stand-off over Ukraine was the sin ... read more
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However, members of Berlin's city parliament have already registered that the tone is shifting. The city-state's finance minister, Matthias Kollatz -Ahnen, a Social Democrat, recently declared that the priority was to get the BER off the ground, and the terminal could follow.

And what about the costs? The plans for the new buildings could up-end the project's billion-euro budget. Up until now, the financial planning has only taken the T1-E extension into consideration. However, internally the airport operator has calculated that the delays will add an additional 600 million euros to the bill. One reason is that Tegel, currently the city's main airport, will have to remain open longer. And then there are the construction costs and missing income from the multistory carparks and duty-free shops. If bank loans don't suffice, then the board is going to have to go looking for even more funding.

Keeping Tegel Open

The consultancy firm Steer Davies Gleave recently estimated that the number of passengers traveling to Berlin could reach 37 million annually by 2020. However, the interim solution at the airport would provide enough capacity to handle those numbers. At least 8 million passengers would have continue to use Tegel Airport, according to one member of the supervisory board.

Yet, it may not be so easy to keep the old West Berlin airport open. If BER does open then Tegel is required by law to be closed within six months. In the worst-case scenario, Tegel would close before BER has even opened its doors. The reason being that the old city airport, much loved by many Berliners because of its central location, has only remained in operation thanks to a special permit. It expires at the end of 2019, and the airport doesn't meet current airport standards.

The Federal Transport Ministry is concerned that residents who live near the airport could successfully sue if it continues to operate after the permit runs out. That could leave the German capital without either the BER or Tegel Airport. To prevent that scenario, the federal government would like to see Tegel continue operating. That would require that the airport operator soon start drawing up plans for noise abatement and the renovation of the existing airport buildings. Keeping Tegel open would at least, in the view of the ministry, take the pressure off BER.

That's also the view of the Berlin chapter of the pro-business Free Democrats. Earlier this year, the party successfully pushed through a referendum on keeping Tegel open. Nevertheless, the governments of the states of Berlin and Brandenburg want to see that airport close as soon as the BER is fully operational.
The woman who can answer Baraket's questions is very busy - trying to defend herself. She has become the focus of the entire country's hatred. Some people hate her because they are unhappy with her performance, while others want to see the process brought to an end as quickly as possible. Sihem Bensedrine, also known as "The Lioness," was a journalist and human-rights activist who was herself imprisoned under Ben Ali, but now, she is president of the Truth and Dignity Commission, a slight, elegant woman with energetic eyes. Her haircut has been the subject of public criticism as has her official car. She has been called a prostitute and received death threats. Despite all that, though, she has refused the protection of a bodyguard. "If someone wants to kill me, then he'll do it. He won't call ahead of time," Bensedrine says.

The commission's hearings were inspired by similar proceedings in Poland and South Africa and a broad spectrum of crimes is to be made public, ranging from corruption to electoral fraud, from torture to murder. But unlike in South Africa, where the Truth and Reconciliation Commission examined the crimes of the apartheid regime, the torturers thus far have said almost nothing in public. "A direct encounter between the victims and the perpetrators doesn't make sense," says Bensedrine, claiming that such an experience would be traumatic. In South Africa, she says, victims committed suicide after the hearings. "And people went to the houses of the perpetrators and murdered them."

The Appearance of Justice

A separate hearing for the perpetrators, she says, is still planned. But, she says, it is important to prevent the people who were in charge from fobbing off responsibility onto the torturers on site. "As long as we cannot protect them, we cannot reveal who they are," says Bensedrine.

Still, the transition to a constitutional state also requires the legal prosecution of crimes. For this reason, the commission is meant to pass serious cases to special courts and thus to integrate them into the justice system. So far, though, that has not happened. The commission is concentrating on assembling witness testimonies and the public hearings on television, while an important part of transitional justice, punishing the perpetrators, has been given short shrift.

When asked if the truth commission was primarily there to create the appearance of justice, Bensedrine was quick to answer: "I reject that. Of course not." She adds: "We are making progress. We will soon pass along the first cases."

Even then, though, it is unclear if legally binding verdicts will be the result. The bill on transitional justice, passed in 2013, includes several points that are in violation of the Tunisian constitution. It lists several crimes, for example, that do not appear in the Tunisian criminal code, a situation that could become a problem for the judges. Legal experts also complain that many appointments to the commission were made out of political considerations and not because of technical expertise.

Bensendrine doesn't deny that her commission is in trouble. But she lays the blame elsewhere. "We are working in an uncomfortable environment," she says. Those who have power in the country, she says, don't believe in transitional justice. Today, Tunisia is being run by a coalition between Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes, a party that has become home to many of those who were active in the old regime. The post-revolutionary, purely Islamist government only survived for a limited time. After two political murders of left-wing opposition figures in 2013, they voluntarily ceded power in response to public pressure. The so-called Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet even won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2015 for the relatively peaceful transition to a democratic state.

'A Tool of the Opposition'

Now, both the prime minister and the president are members of Nidaa Tounes. The government approved a change to the law in October that would guarantee immunity to corrupt former officials if they give back the money that they took. President Beji Caid Essebsi, who was interior minister and defense minister during the dictatorship, declared publicly that the past should be laid to rest and refused to take part in the public hearings.

The conflict surrounding the truth commission is laying bare the divisions in Tunisian society, showing the tension between the heirs of the old system and the many victims who are now supposed to govern and live with them. The old establishment sees the commission as a threat and is branding it as the "tool of the opposition." The commission still doesn't have any access to files from the Interior Ministry, the Justice Ministry, the police or the military courts. In late 2014, Bensedrine accompanied a convoy to the president's archive in order to demand the release of files from 60 years of authoritarian rule. Armed security guards prevented her from entering.

"We know everything, but we have no proof," says Bensedrine. Her commission's work is supposed to take four years, with the possibility of a one-year extension. But time is going fast. "We are not getting to the leaders, to the ones who gave the orders," she says, adding that the old system isn't cooperating while the new system is permeated by the old one. The higher one goes, she claims, the more people from the old system can be found.

Shortly before 1 a.m., it's finally time and Ghariani's testimony flickers onto the TV. He is wearing a gray jacket and a well-ironed shirt, but no tie. That subtle smile can once again be seen on his face. He avoids words like "I" or "we," instead speaking of "them," of the "government's office," or about how things "were arranged." He seems to be perspiring slightly.

Afterwards his daughter and his wife call to tell him they are proud of him. A few former colleagues also call, congratulating him for his bravery.

After the revolution, Mohamed Ghariani spent over a year in jail, accused of abuse of power. His family wanted him to leave politics, but Ghariani has been a politician since he was 17 and he had other plans. He thought it was time for a new beginning. At first, he joined Nidaa Tounes, but it wasn't long before he left the controversial party and joined a new party called Almoubadara. Now, he is one of its leaders. His goal, he explains, is to "preserve Ben Ali's legacy and to combine it with the spirit of the revolution." He says he is a sociologist and that "adaptation" is the most important human attribute.

He doesn't believe that he should pay for his crimes during the dictatorship or even that he is guilty of anything. "It is about changing the system, not about punishing individuals," Ghariani says. What's needed is to break though the endless cycle of abuse and punishment, he says, otherwise things would continue as they did before the revolution. "It is not in the interest of the country to bring all of these cases to court." He says reconciliation is the job of the truth commission. Ghariani was once an ambassador in London and governor of Sidi Bouzid, where the revolution began six years ago. "The people there still say nice things about me," he says, reaching for a chocolate bar.

A New Beginning or Humiliation?

Standing at his brother's grave, Jamal Baraket stretches his arms skyward. Two grave markers stand side by side under an olive tree. The first is a simple one, from before the exhumation, while the family added the second one, made of marble, at the second burial. Baraket prays. He is disappointed in the fact that he has received no compensation nor have his brother's torturers confessed. The only thing he has received so far is a season ticket for a television show.

"In the beginning, the perpetrators were afraid," he believes, "but now they think that they can sit it all out." There must be some verdicts handed down, he says, "otherwise they will think they are unassailable. Otherwise there will be no end to torture in Tunisia." And his brother's death, his family's suffering, his own suffering and the 25-year battle to find the truth: All of that will have been in vain.

Ghariani's new beginning is a humiliation for Baraket. It is difficult for the victims to accept a situation in which the truth is revealed but there are no legal consequences. How are citizens supposed to regain their trust in the state? The process of transitional justice in Tunisia is partly financed by the UN and by the German Foreign Ministry. But it is doubtful whether it can reach its goals. Studies have shown that transitional justice and reconciliation only work when accompanied by court cases.

Tunisia is largely viewed as the Arab Spring's only success story, having avoided the kind of chaotic collapse seen in Libya and Syria , and sidestepped a return to rigid military dictatorship like in Egypt. Yet it could still fail if the process of transitional justice does not succeed.

Jamal Baraket is just one of thousands. Another is Sami Braham, an academic who was imprisoned for years and told the commission how he was systematically tortured and sexually assaulted. Then there's the feminist activist Ahlem Belhadj, who described how she was arrested multiple times, her car set on fire and her internet connection and phone line cut off. And how she received threats that her children would be kidnapped.

Who must be punished so that a society can find peace? The decisionmakers, like Ghariani, who hide behind the "system?" Those who collaborated, allowing the regime to get away with violence and abuse by looking the other way? Or the many torturers who live right next door?

In Tunisia, it looks like the main perpetrators will go unpunished since they are still in power. They are trying to recreate a police state with rigid anti-terror laws and amnesties. The neighborhood torturers may not be given amnesty, but they too will go unpunished, protected by the powerful who want to draw a line under the past.

The path to Baraket's erstwhile torturer leads through a poor neighborhood along an unpaved street. The man lives in the village of Niara. "Big and strong, with a gray beard and piercing eyes," Baraket described him. He's standing in the street.

"Are you Mohamed G.?"

"Why?"

"We'd like to speak with you about your time at the police station in Nabeul."

"I'm not Mohamed G." the man says, before climbing into a gray Peugeot and racing off.

But then, he apparently changes his mind and the Peugeot speeds back in reverse. He tells us to come with him to a police station, just 200 meters away, where we are detained.

The torturer's family remains standing in the doorway to block the exit while the police officer on duty calls his superior. Mobile phones, we are told, may not be used and an attempted call is prevented by the members of the torturer's family. Mohamed G.'s daughter, who is also a police officer, arrives followed half an hour later by the senior officer. In the end, the decision is made not to release us but to bring us to the nearest military police station in Grombalia.

The Same People

On the way to the station, it's possible to send a text message to our editors back home.

It's a Friday afternoon and in the local military police station, everyone is waiting for a higher-ranking officer. All cell phones have to be placed on the table, no calls are allowed. The interrogation takes two hours, with most of that time filled with the yelling of a police officer. He wants to know what we are working on. "An article about the truth commission." How did we know the name of the torturer? "From the internet." That just seems to make the police officer even more irate. After all, it's about one of their own.

"We only asked a question. Is it a crime to ask a question?"

"Perhaps," one of the men says.

We know that it won't be long, that we have both a large media company and an embassy behind us. We know that we have German passports. That, though, makes us think of those who have less power than us. Not just stories from the past, like that of Faysal Baraket, but also those who say they still experience intimidation, violence and sexual assault, like gay people, refugees or relatives of the young men who have joined Islamic State.

It's the same kind of people that we now find ourselves confronted with. It is still happening.

By the time yet another higher-ranking officer appears, the German Embassy has already called and the Interior Ministry in Tunis has been informed. The tone quickly changes. Everything that has taken place here was merely to ensure our security, one of our interrogators explains.

"Since the revolution, we've all been fucked," grumbles another in the background.

One of the men calls us later. He wants to know where and when to find this truth commission on television. He wants to see it for himself.

Then, late at night, the phone rings again: They want to know in what hotel we are staying.
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Same name, same energetic scene but in a different place.

The five co-owners behind Norwalks The Spread and El Segundo plan to open a second Spread location in downtown Greenwich on Tuesday.

Bob Luckey Jr. / Hearst Connecticut Media

With this weeks restaurant opening, the owners  chef Carlos Baez, Andrey Cortes, Chris Hickey, Shawn Longyear and Chris Rasile  hope their industrial rustic design featuring a 70-foot bar and chefs table will set the backdrop for a dynamic culinary experience.

We combined the coolness of California and modesty of Brooklyn feel, said Rasile, a Greenwich native whos largely overseen their new restaurants construction. We want to bring back the vibe that Bleu and Barcelona provided that we feel Greenwich is lacking now but we can offer.

The Spread team has taken over Barcelona Wine Bars former space at 18 W. Putnam Ave., at the top of Greenwich Avenue. An electrical fire prompted Barcelona owners to shutter their Greenwich restaurant this spring, and The Spread signed a lease for it about six months ago.

Bob Luckey Jr. / Hearst Connecticut Media

Greenwichs Spread menu will keep many of the restaurants core dishes, such as its cheeseburger and veal and ricotta meatballs, but it will look largely different aside from those, the owners said during an opening preview Friday.

The West Putnam Avenue location offers a main dining area highlighted by a gleaming walnut bar sourced from Ridgefields Board Silly that wraps around the room. At the back, a chefs table gives diners a front-row seat to Baez, The Spreads animated chef, whos become known for his internationally influenced cuisines.

In the restaurants private dining room, the tangled roots from an oversized piece of driftwood bulge from the ceiling, serving as an intriguing focal point.

The decor could appear as a symbol of the owners relationships that ultimately brought The Spread to Greenwich.

They trace the roots of their business partnership back through years of overlapping jobs in southwestern Connecticuts competitive dining scene, including at Barcelona, the same site of their latest venture. Several of them tended bar at Barcelona in Greenwich while others worked at the brands Norwalk location.

Most of them have worked in Greenwich restaurants at some point and theyd originally looked for a space in town to open The Spread before landing in Norwalk. Five years later, theyve returned to Greenwich with a reputation for great food and ability to foster a vibrant atmosphere.

We feel like were coming home, Rasile said.

Contact the writer at mbennett@greenwichtime.com; Twitter @Macaela_
STAMFORD  The National Institute on Drug Addiction estimates that more than 90 Americans die each day from opioid drug overdoses.

In Connecticut, more people are dying of drug overdoses than from homicides, suicides and motor vehicle crashes combined, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

In 2016, 917 people died of accidental drug overdoses in Connecticut compared to 87 homicides, 387 suicides and 319 motor vehicle accidents.

The medical examiners office reports there were 538 overdose deaths in Connecticut during the first half of 2017, more than half of which involved some form of opioid. That number, the office projects, could climb to nearly 1,100 deaths by the end of the year.

Solution or substitution?

In the face of rising opioid deaths, some medical experts are advocating the use of methadone and buprenorphine  both opioid replacement therapies  to treat opioid addiction.

There is absolutely no cure, right now, for addiction, said Dr. Yngvild Olsen, medical director of the Institutes for Behavior Resources and REACH Health Services in Baltimore, Maryland. Theres no magic bullet thats going to work for everybody. But there can be lifelong management and people can do that in different ways, depending on the severity of their addiction.

Effective treatment of opioid addiction, Olsen said, often combines the use of medications, such as methadone or buprenorphine, and behavioral intervention.

Olsen and Dr. Robert Newman, president emeritus of Continuum Health Partners  a New York organization that helps diagnose patients who have an opioid-use disorder  and director of The Baron Edmond de Rothschild Chemical Dependency Institute of Beth Israel Medical Center, advocated for opioid replacement therapy during a recent lecture at the Hilton Stamford.

More Information Death toll In 2016, more people died in Connecticut from accidental drug overdoses than suicides, car accidents and murders combined. 917: accidental fatal drug overdoses 387: suicides 319: car accident deaths 87: homicides See More Collapse

No treatment of opioid addiction in the last 50 years has been as capable of attracting patients, of retaining patients and of helping patients as methadone, Newman said. What methadone does in most people is it reduces the craving for opiates.

Dr. John Douglas, service chief of the Outpatient Addiction Program at Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan and a fellowship-trained addiction psychiatrist, said opioid replacement drugs reduce the probability of relapse, thereby reducing the risk of death.

The reality with opioid addiction is that most people will relapse without taking a maintenance medication, and that relapse is usually very unforgiving and often results in death, he said.

The opioid replacement therapies help treat a persons craving and physical withdrawal symptoms so they can break the cycle of drug seeking and engage in treatment, Douglas added.

Though there is some risk that patients could abuse methadone or buprenorphine, Douglas said theyre not as fast-acting as heroin or the other opioid drugs that people tend to abuse, making them less abusable than fast-acting opioids that people would prefer to use when trying to get high.

Focus on treatment

The focus has to be on those who are dealing with addiction today and those who do not have access to treatment, Newman said. As long as methadone and/or buprenorphine are not a widely available to treat addiction, more people will continue to die.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, methadone works by changing how the brain and nervous system respond to pain. It lessens the symptoms of opiate withdrawal and blocks the euphoric effects of opiate drugs.

Starting in the 1950s, Newman said methadone was widely used in the United States to treat opioid addiction. As communities saw positive results, Newman said clinics opened across the country to combat the increasing abuse of heroin and other opioid drugs.

Then came the controversy.

The efficacy of methadone has been repeatedly shown to be beyond any question, Newman said. And yet has been rejected over the course of the last 40 years by medical professionals and by politicians, and it continues to be rejected, because methadone has been mischaracterized as a crutch or substitute drug rather than a means of saving lives.

As the belief mounted that methadone substituted one addiction for another, Newman said funding for clinics decreased and many closed their doors, sending recovering addicts back to the streets looking for a fix.

Its just inconceivable, he said. And its based on this false notion that all were doing is substituting one drug for another.

Until public perception changes and policymakers view methadone funding as a priority, Newman said the countrys opioid crisis will continue.

But thats not all that needs to change, Olsen said.

Though addiction is characterized as a chronic disease, Olsen said the medical community and insurance companies treat addiction as an acute problem, only offering short-term solutions.

We have people go through detox and thats it, she said. Insurance companies may pay for 60 days or 90 days or 120 days of treatment and thats it. That may work for a broken leg, but thats not going to work for a chronic disease such as addiction.

Olsen said until addiction treatment is viewed as a condition that requires lifelong maintenance, addicts will continue to struggle in their recovery.

In his practice, Douglas said he recommends patients take methadone or buprenorphine once a day for at least one year.

Evidence shows the longer people take these maintenance treatments, the better they do, he said. There is no time restriction as to how long a patient can take them.

After a year, Douglas said a patient may re-evaluate taking the opioid replacement drugs, but discontinuing the treatment does come with a risk of relapse.

In addition to the medication, Douglas said therapy and participating in support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous are crucial components to learning how to maintain sobriety.

None of these drugs on their own are going to cure the problem, he said. These substances need to be used in tandem with a treatment program and while working on constructive coping skills that dont involve abusing drugs.

We know what can help, Olsen said. From decades of research, we know that the benefits of treatment that includes a medication for opioid addiction, reduces the risk of HIV infection by about six-fold, it reduces the risk of inflectional hepatitis B and C, it increases rates of employment, decreases crime, decreases loss of life and, most importantly, it reduces the risk of overdose. And that to me right now, in the era of fentanyl where we are losing all of these people  our neighbors, our friends, our family members  that is imperative No. 1.

kat.russell@stamfordadvocate.com
It may be the most wonderful time of the year, but it can be the trickiest. We asked six entrepreneurs: What are you giving your teams for the holidays?

Im giving the same thing I always give: cash. Some of our staff are young single moms, some are empty-nesters who are my age, and then weve got everything in between. The best [gifting] success weve had historically has been the one thing everyone seems to like: greenbacks. To mark other occasions, weve sent plenty of folks on weekend getaways over the years, just not at holiday time -- I know how valuable that time is.

-- Andrew Zimmern, creator, executive producer and host, Bizarre Foods on Travel Channel

Related: The Importance of Properly Managing a Startup Team During the Holidays and Beyond

2. Puppy (and pig) love

Our staff are all crazy animal people -- we have everything from pigs and dogs to cats and chickens. So Im giving everyone Zookies Cookies: mason jar pet-treat mixes that you bake into what can best be described as critter crack! Its a quirky, local Raleigh startup thats near and dear to our hearts. My dog, Mouse, was an early taste tester. Love the flavors, love that theyre fun to make, and love that this honors something we all cherish outside of work.

-- Cindy Whitehead, CEO, The Pink Ceiling

3. High spirits

Id love to give helicopter tours, but more likely, booze. Helicopters arent in our budget, and booze helps mitigate the emotional roller-coaster of building a business. As a team, we came together this year to launch Revere, so we certainly have a lot to celebrate, but as a startup, were all about that capital efficiency. And a well-aged bottle of mescal makes for a more memorable evening than pretty much anything else money can buy. So, booze it is!

-- Matt Scott, co-founder and CEO, Revere

Related: 5 Ways to Relax and Recharge During the Holidays

4. Brand DNA

I want to give my team original copies of the [now defunct counterculture magazine] Whole Earth Catalog -- one of my biggest points of inspiration, encouraging a life of adventure, using your hands to create things and maintaining a connection with the great outdoors. Its in that same spirit that we at Best Made Co. live and breathe. Actually, a friend said she can introduce me to Stewart Brand, the man behind the catalog. Maybe Ill get him to sign them!

-- Peter Buchanan-Smith, founder, Best Made Co.

5. Words of wisdom

Were asking each employee to name a book that impacted their life in a positive way. Well purchase all of them, and each team member will sign their recommendation with a little note about why its special. No spoilers, of course! Were going to create a holiday library, and our team will browse wrapped books with teaser descriptions on the front and select what theyre drawn to the most. Getting lost in a book is a powerful tool for creativity and invention.

-- Gina Waldhorn, president, Quirky

Related: 5 Tips to Get Your Website Ready for the Holidays

6. Quality time

My team is close-knit, but were physically spread across multiple continents. We work with artists all over the world, and being remote helps us build strong communities in various cities and test ideas in different markets. Because of that, we want to give our team the gift of time spent together. We plan on traveling to a destination where none of us has ever been. Weve done this before with a small part of the team and visited Nairobi. Our next destination is up for a vote!

-- Nahema Mehta, co-founder and CEO, Absolut Art

Related:

Holiday Gift Guide: What to Give Your Team Members

8 Ways to Increase Holiday Cheers and Minimize January Jeers

A Business's Guide to Corporate Gifting



Copyright 2017 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved



This article originally appeared on entrepreneur.com


Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media

STAMFORD  Mayor David Martin is one of 60 city leaders from across the country who signed a letter last week to the Federal Communications Commission demanding the agency protect net neutrality.

A free and open Internet forms the backbone of the 21st century economy, and as leaders of local communities we are acutely aware of the threat to education, innovation and economic growth posed by the proposal, the mayors wrote.
BLACKSBURG, Va.  Naps are no longer just for the pre-K set. Performance-boosting siestas in specially designed sleep pods are being promoted at Google, NASA, and the Cleveland Indians.

And now at Virginia Tech.

Earlier this year, three futuristic nap pods were installed on the Virginia Tech campus. Looking a bit like space capsules, these domed recliners offer students and staff a private, comfortable place to catch some zs. Soft music blocks out campus noise and light vibrations help the user to relax.

The futon-sized pods are growing in popularity as a response to studies that reveal the harms of being sleep-deprived. Sleep pods are popping up at numerous companies, where they are touted for ramping up productivity. Schools hope to enhance student brain power and focus by facilitating catnaps on campus.

The request for napping facilities at Virginia Tech first came from the students, says Cathy Kropff, director of Hokie Wellness.

Students presented the idea, Kropff said. Our student wellness advisory team identified lack of sleep as a big, big concern at Tech.

The average college student sleeps about six hours a night 120 minutes less than what is recommended, according to a University of Georgia survey. People who dont get enough sleep are likely to be cranky and depressed; theyre also prone to getting sick more often. They arent performing at their best and are shortchanging their learning ability by missing out on the REM sleep that allows their brains to process the information theyve taken in during the day.

Sleep is now recognized as an important component of wellness, right up there with eating right, exercise and avoiding unhealthy habits, Kropff said. People shouldnt be bragging about how little sleep theyre getting by on but how well theyre taking care of themselves by getting enough sleep.

Kropff and the student wellness group organized a sleep awareness week to emphasize the need for sleep. Hokie Wellness also offered a workshop on good sleep techniques. But the students still felt something was missing  a good place to sleep during the day.

Chris Wise, assistant vice president for student affairs, examined and tried out several models of sleep pods at a student services expo. He was impressed.

It was comfortable, semi-private, and maybe a good way to take a nap that might just appeal to our students, as opposed to sleeping in uncomfortable positions on sofas or chairs around campus, Wise said.

Wise expects that the presence of these conspicuously modern devices on campus will signal the crucial role that adequate sleep plays in learning.

Our goal is to not only provide an opportunity for naps on campus, but more importantly, to use the pods as reminders of the importance of quality sleep for college students, and really all people, he said, as well as the relation of quality sleep to academic success and improved mental and physical health.

By the end of April, Virginia Tech was testing an EnergyPod, the signature product of the MetroNaps company. The pod was placed in a high traffic area of Squires Student Center, Techs activity hub. During the hectic final weeks of classes and exam week, students tried out the sleep pod and gave feedback.

Their response was overwhelming. They really liked it, Kropff said. So in the summer we bought two more with end-of-fiscal-year savings.

EnergyPods arent cheap; they range from just over $8,000 to $13,000, according to the MetroNaps news release. Virginia Tech purchased their sleep pods at the low end of that range, about $8,400, Wise said. He thinks of them as highly visible reminders of the importance of sleep, as well as sites where students and staff can recharge.

The sleep pods are tucked into corners just off the main flow at Newman Library, Squires Student Center, and in the Wellness Room of Techs Graduate Life Center. As soon as you position the rotating hood  it looks like a huge bike helmet  youre enclosed in a comfortable, shady bubble of silence or tranquil music. Occasionally you hear the whoosh of ocean waves. You snooze in anonymity with only your legs visible. The pods are preset for 20 minutes. When its time to awaken, soft lights begin to flicker, the pod vibrates, and the background music becomes gradually louder.

Junior computer science major Taylor Thackaberry said her 20 minutes in the Squires EnergyPod was enjoyable but found she couldnt nap. Maybe the waves were a little too loud; maybe I dont think sleep when I hear waves, she said. But it was relaxing.

Not everyone falls asleep in the pod, but according to surveys, only 2 or 3 out of 200 said they did not benefit from the respite from everyday stimuli, Wise said. The overwhelming majority felt their EnergyPod session was relaxing. In New Mexico, some health officials give testimony to the pods ability to relieve stressed students headaches and anxiety.

Kropff says shes glad to offer tired students an alternative to sleeping on the floor. Ive seen students sleeping in all kinds of places, but especially on the floor. The pods are much more comfortable and hygienic. We have wipes beside the devices so users can sanitize them after use, just like exercise equipment. Im so glad they have another sleep option.
Ford Martin Stewart has helped friends and family for over 60 years. But don't feel bad if the name doesn't ring a bell. That's because folks round here call him Pike.

Pikes BP and Wrecker, 210 N. Broad St., smack in the middle of downtown Mooresville, offers patrons a slice of yesteryear. Mooresville's last full-service fillin' station has afforded the owner some impressive accolades.

For example, the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. insisted Pike detail his personal vehicles. Hollywood has also called a time or two. The Showtime series "Homeland," a popular music video production featuring Colt Ford and Danica Patrick, and most recently the Fox networks "Shots Fired" have all been drawn to include Pike's BP and Wrecker in their productions.

An avid country music fan, 84-year-old Pike remembers meeting Porter Wagoner and the father of bluegrass, Bill Monroe. "They used to set up a big tent down the block from here. I'd always go and listen. Boy, they were good!" recalls Pike.

Black-and-white celebrity photos line the station walls. Ball caps with race car drivers' signatures, half a rack of peanut butter crackers, oil cans and spark plugs, a Bible, and magazine clippings of presidents Kennedy and Obama help round out the look and feel of how a gas station used to be.

Pike's daughter, Rhonda, helps with the day-to-day operations; she even pumps customers gas, something you wont see at too many other places. Rhonda notes they are the only of a few in town who sell ethanol, 100 percent pure gasoline. And when taking the time to interact with the Stewarts, one will discover they are just as genuine as the product they pump.

Pike has always been an entrepreneur. In addition to the station, the tall, lanky octogenarian has run a successful concession stand complete with snow cones, cotton candy and caramel apples.

He's been known to hire and mentor young people, allowing them the chance to earn money and work with the public.

"I'd tell them to look customers in the eye, say yes ma'am and no sir, and please and thank you, Pike says. It don't cost nothing to be nice."

Like any hometown fillin' station, Rhonda mentions it's a hangout for locals. She refers to casual get-togethers as tea time.

Rhonda exudes a sense of pride when discussing the role her father has played in the community. Pike is a member of Morrow Chapel United Methodist Church and Price Masonic Lodge 290. He and wife Bessie Ann recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary and have five daughters, four grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Still lean and wirey, it's easy to see that Ford Martin "Pike" Stewart is a vessel of knowledge. He sums up our morning tea time with some words of advice. "If you have anything, you're gonna have to work for it. Hard work ain't never hurt no one." The pearls of wisdom continue. "You better watch your money or someone else will."

At first glance, Pikes BP and Wrecker may not seem like much. But underneath, it is a shining jewel, a piece of downtown Mooresville history, and a portal to a simpler and friendlier time.
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Megyn Kelly's hour of NBC's "Today" show is still struggling but showing slight ratings improvement.

During the first month after the show's Sept. 25 debut, its ratings dropped severely  and remained low. They began to climb in late October, when Kelly shifted the focus of her show from lighthearted banter to the ongoing discussion about sexual harassment, including interviews with accusers of Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein as well as media titans Bill O'Reilly and Mark Halperin.

And now she's taking on President Donald Trump, despite her pledge to avoid politics, by interviewing three women who have publicly accused him of sexually inappropriate behavior  allegations that he denies. On Twitter Sunday night, she announced plans to interview Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey and Rachel Crooks on Monday morning.

After the show, the women will participate in a news conference "calling for an investigation by Congress of sexual misconduct by the president," according to a news release by Brave New Films, which is hosting the event. The media company released a documentary on Trump's accusers in November.

At least 13 women have accused Trump of sexual harassment, according to The Washington Post.

Leeds told the New York Times that Trump groped her breasts and tried to put his hand up her skirt on an airline flight more than 30 years ago, while Crooks told CNN that Trump kissed her against her will in 2005. Holvey, a former Miss USA contestant, told CNN that Trump personally inspected contestants as though they were sexual objects during the 2006 pageant. It was "the dirtiest I felt in my entire life," she said.

The interviews with Trump's accusers are emblematic of the shifting identity of Kelly's morning talk show, which has struggled in the ratings since its debut.

On the show's premiere, Kelly had promised to avoid politics and invited audience members "to have a laugh with us, a smile, sometimes a tear, and maybe a little hope to start your day. Some fun! That's what we want to be doing. Some fun."

She mostly stuck to this format her first four weeks, and the reviews of the show were fiercely negative. And her gaffes made headlines. On one occasion, she asked a "Will & Grace" fan whether he was homosexual because of that show. On another, she asked then 79-year-old Jane Fonda about her plastic surgery. Fonda, who had come to talk about her new Netflix movie, was heralded for being dismissive of Kelly's question.

Kelly's ratings were well below those of her predecessors Tamron Hall and Al Roker. During its first week, Kelly's show was down 12 percent in total viewership from that time slot last year. The second week brought in 24 percent fewer viewers, and the third week saw a 23 percent smaller audience, according to Nielsen data obtained by Variety.

Things began turning around on Oct. 23 after Kelly delivered a pointed monologue critical of her former employer, Fox News, for its handling of sexual abuse allegations. She targeted former talk show host Bill O'Reilly, who was forced out of the network in April amid various sexual harassment allegations, as The Washington Post reported.

She railed against comments he made during a CBS News interview before his ousting. When asked about the culture of sexual harassment at Fox News, O'Reilly said he wasn't interested in having a conversation "that makes my network look bad." He also said no one ever complained about his behavior.

"O'Reilly's suggestion that no one ever complained about his behavior is false," Kelly said. "I know because I complained." (Kelly has previously accused the network's ousted chairman Roger Ailes of sexual harassment. Ailes died in May.)

"Women everywhere are used to being dismissed, ignored or attacked when raising complaints about men in authority positions," she continued. "They stay silent so often out of fear. Fear of ending their careers. Fear of lawyers, yes. And often fear of public shaming, including through the media."

The monologue was widely praised. Vanity Fair's Emily Jane Fox noted that Kelly "brought some of her old cutthroat flair" to the show. During an interview with Kelly on "Late Night," Seth Meyers thanked her for the speech, which he called both "impassioned" and "wonderful."

Kelly addressed sexual harassment on the next several installments of her show, discussing various powerful men accused of misconduct, including Trump, former president George H.W. Bush and NBC political analyst Mark Halperin. She also interviewed Halperin accuser Eleanor McManus, and two of the dozens of Weinstein accusers: actress Dominique Huett and former production assistant Mimi Haleyi.

Audiences responded immediately. The show's ratings jumped by 10 percent, according to Nielsen data obtained by the Wrap. It was Kelly's best-rated week.

The show has retained this boost, drawing an average of 2.296 million viewers through most of November, the Wrap reported. While this marks an improvement for the show's ratings, it is still "historically low" for the month, according to the blog.

Jackie Levin, the show's executive producer, said the shift was in keeping with the show's goals.

"Our goal from the beginning was to present a smart, informative program that would uplift, inspire and empower," Levin told Variety in a statement. "Sexual harassment is not only dominating headlines, but is pervasive, affecting nearly half of women in the workplace, according to recent polls. Given it's a topic that Megyn also feels very strongly about, it's been a natural fit for her to cover in a way that has hopefully helped empower viewers."

When her "Today" colleague Matt Lauer was fired last month after an employee complained about "inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace," Kelly noted "this one does hit close to home." Then she opined about the plight of sexual harassment victims.

"When this happens, what we don't see is the pain on the faces of those who found the courage to come forward. And it is a terrifying thing to do," she said. "We don't see the career opportunities women lose because of sexual harassment or the intense stress it causes a woman dealing with it when she comes to work each day. I am thinking of those women this morning and hoping they are okay. The days to come will not be easy."

Last week, her interviews also included actress Alyssa Milano, who encouraged women to share their personal stories of sexual harassment with the hashtag #MeToo.

Kelly hasn't eliminated the lighter sequences  she recently cooked a holiday ham with Bon Appetit editor Adam Rapoport. But she weaves those kind of stories in among critiques and commentary about sexual assault.
Joe Holleman Joe Holleman is a reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Follow Joe Holleman Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

A tip of the technology cap is in order for Mike Eilers, a former STLer who now is soaring in the aviation field.

Eilers, a Webster Groves native and graduate of St. Louis University High, has been named to the Forbes list "30 Under 30 in Manufacturing."

Eilers is a data expert for GE Aviation, a subsidiary of General Electric located near in Cincinnati. He developed a digital thread tool that combines data about materials and parts used in engines, taking information from 12 different factories using seven different databases, in three different countries.

The magazine notes that his tool has saved "his employer $4.4 million this year. Prior to his work, there was limited visibility into inventory, quality, and production levels."

Eilers, 29, left STL to attend Miami University in Ohio. He is the son of Gregg and Mary Eilers, who still live in Webster Groves.
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CHICAGO  The Chicago Police Department says all patrol officers are now equipped with body cameras.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said Sunday the city reached its goal to provide the cameras to more than 7,000 officers one year earlier than originally planned. They say it's the largest deployment of the technology in the U.S.

Emanuel says the cameras are "an essential tool" in the city's efforts to rebuild trust between police and the community. He says they improve transparency and help in investigations and resolving disputes.

The U.S. Justice Department in January issued a scathing report on civil rights abuses by Chicago's police over the years. An investigation began in 2015 after the release of dash cam video showing an officer shoot black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times.
JEFFERSON CITY  Gov. Eric Greitens has replaced five members of the Missouri Veterans Commission after saying an outside investigation into the St. Louis Veterans Home found serious problems.

In a press conference at the North County facility Monday morning, Greitens said he expected the nine-member Missouri Veterans Commission to meet this week. He said he believed it should move to fire Rolando Carter, the director of the St. Louis home, and Larry Kay, director of the commission.

The 300-bed St. Louis Veterans Home has been under a microscope over complaints by residents, employees and families that the facility is failing to adequately care for veterans. Complaints by veterans and family members about care at the St. Louis home were first made public in a Post-Dispatch column by Tony Messenger in October.

The concerns include improper medication, particularly of antipsychotics; the inability to hire and retain quality personnel; a lack of transparency and honesty in investigating complaints; and a loss of faith between veterans and their families and the administration of the Missouri Veterans Commission.

Three weeks ago, Greitens announced that an outside firm  Harmony Healthcare International  would conduct an independent investigation of the complaints.

Although the governor said his removal of members of the Missouri Veterans Commission and call for the firings of Carter and Kay were based on the results of HHIs investigation, one of the new appointees said hed been in discussions about the move with the governors office for weeks.

Ive been talking with his office folks for probably the last month, Dr. John Buckner told the Post-Dispatch Monday.

Buckner, a retired Army colonel and a surgeon at the Ferrell-Duncan Clinic in Springfield, said the governor had not asked him to fire Carter or Kay.

We have not had discussions about any of those factors and specifics, Buckner said.

The remake of the board marks the third time in recent months that the first-year governor, a Republican, has used his power to put new people in charge of state policies. He earlier named new members to the state school board, who voted to fire former state school Commissioner Margie Vandeven.

At his press conference, Greitens said HHI had found serious problems, from outdated policies to, in some cases, failure to provide adequate nutrition and hydration, resulting in malnutrition. Some veterans were left soiled and unwashed, or werent moved often enough to prevent bedsores.

They found, in short, that these veterans were not being treated with the dignity, the respect or the care that they deserved, said Greitens, a former Navy SEAL who campaigned on a platform that included helping veterans.

Staffers, he said, felt threatened and intimidated into not reporting problems.

When people are being hurt, when bureaucrats fail to act, when they fail to listen, when they offer only excuses  were going to find out, and they need to be fired, Greitens said.

He said he also had ordered a full investigation into all the states veterans homes.

Greitens said his office first became aware of reported problems at the St. Louis Veterans home in July. He said he had asked the Missouri Veterans Commission, which oversees the homes, to investigate.

The commission reported it was unable to confirm the allegations. The governor then asked the Department of Public Safety to investigate, with an eye toward potential criminal misconduct. The Department of Public Safety suggested another investigation, this time by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

A 57-page report from the VA, the second from the agency this year, again found the care at the home to be satisfactory.

In late October, more than 100 family members, employees and veterans asked for an independent investigation of allegations of abuse, mistreatment and neglect at the facility. Missouris two U.S. senators also asked for an investigation.

Greitens hired HHI to conduct a probe, at a cost of about $50,000 to $60,000.

In all, the HHI investigation is the fifth time the home has been surveyed for problems in the past year. HHI found the problems that prompted Greitens press conference Monday. That included substandard qualities of care and triggers for immediate jeopardy, defined as problems that have caused or could cause serious injury, harm, impairment or death.

Big government failed these veterans, Greitens said. The Missouri Veterans Commission and VA told us that there was nothing wrong with these homes. Based on what the families told us, however, we were still concerned. So we launched an independent investigation. It found failures at the St. Louis Veterans Home that the VA and Missouri Veterans Commission missed or ignored.

The five members of the Missouri Veterans Commission whom Greitens replaced were appointed by his predecessor, Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, according to Greitens. The four others on the commission are appointed by the Missouri Legislature.

Along with Buckner, new members of the Missouri Veterans Commission named by Greitens are:

 Dr. Jose Dominguez, a retired lieutenant colonel with service in the Missouri National Guard and U.S. Army Reserves. He is also a surgeon at the Ferrell-Duncan Clinic in Springfield and serves as a reserve deputy for the Greene County Sheriffs Office.

 Meredith Knopp, who served in the Army as a captain and co-founded a nonprofit for veterans. She is senior vice president of programs and operations at the Mission Continues, the St. Louis-based nonprofit group that Greitens founded for returning veterans before he entered politics.

 Tim Noonan, who served in the Marines as a captain and is a founding board member of the Friends of Soldiers Memorial. He is a retired Boeing executive from St. Louis.

 Tim Smith, who served as a sergeant in the Army. He owns Patriot Commercial Cleaning, a St. Louis firm that has hired more than 40 veterans.

Bellefontaine Neighbors Mayor Bob Doerr said he was ecstatic that the new commission would include three people from the St. Louis area. He said he wanted them to make unannounced visits to the veterans home.

Doerr said he also had heard horror stories from relatives of veterans at the home and tended to believe the report by the independent investigators.

Theyre independent. It didnt come from the state, so that makes it more believable, the mayor said.

Carter, the director of the home, did not attend the press conference. Doerr said the administrators told him that Carter, who lives in Bellefontaine Neighbors, was at home taking time off.
EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story included a photo of the wrong Tony T. Bailey. The photo has been replaced with the correct image.

ST. LOUIS COUNTY  An employee of a nursing home near Florissant has been charged with sexually abusing three residents.

Tony T. Bailey, 39, of Flamingo Drive, was charged Thursday in St. Louis County Circuit Court with misdemeanor counts of assault, illegal deviate sexual intercourse with a resident of a skilled nursing facility and sexual conduct with a nursing facility resident.

Charges say a 71-year-old resident of the Crestwood Health Care Center, 11400 Mehl Avenue, reported that Bailey grabbed her bare buttocks as she came out of the shower. The woman described the contact as "surprising and shocking and unwanted," charges say.

St. Louis County police investigated the case and discovered that two other female residents, both in their late 20s, had performed sex acts on Bailey while he was on the job, court records say.

The crimes took place between Dec. 8, 2016, and Jan. 20 of this year, charges say.

No lawyer was listed for him in court records. Jail officials said Bailey was not in custody yet.

A woman who answered the phone at Crestwood on Friday told a reporter, "I have no idea who you're talking about," and hung up.

Crestwood's parent company is Maryland Heights-based Reliant Care Management, which says on its website that it operates about two dozen nursing homes across Missouri. Calls to the company headquarters Friday were not returned.

It mission statement says its facilities are "dedicated to providing quality care in a caring and dignified manner" to those 18 and older who are frail, elderly and mentally ill: "Our goal is to provide unparalleled care using a team like approach through empowering employees while at the same time meeting the needs of the respective communities, physicians, hospitals and other health care providers."

This past summer, Reliant's holding company agreed to pay $8.3 million to settle claims that the company and affiliates provided unnecessary physical, speech and occupational therapy to nursing home residents and billed Medicare. The company also has agreed to a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.

The 100 block in the suspect's address has been removed from this post because a resident of that block said he was being harassed about the crime, even though he had no connection to it.
JEFFERSON CITY  Attorney General Josh Hawley says text messages are public records under Missouris open records law, raising fresh concern about fellow Republican Gov. Eric Greitens use of a secretive app that deletes text messages after theyve been read.

Hawley said his office policy  and legal view  was that text messages sent or received by state employees about state business should be subject to the same rules as emails when it comes to public records under the states Sunshine Law.

Our view is that text messages are like emails, Hawley told reporters Monday during the presentation of a new program for veterans in his office.

That doesnt necessarily mean all text messages would be made available upon request, just as all emails are not.

There is a process for determining what is a record. Whats a closed record? Whats an open record? Our view is that text messages are emails in that respect and should be subject to the same analysis, Hawley said.

His comments came as Greitens called reports about the use of the app Confide within his office fake news.

This is another nothing story thats come from a liberal media outlet that is just desperate for salacious headlines, Greitens said during a separate briefing in Bellefontaine Neighbors.

The Kansas City Star reported Thursday that Greitens and members of his senior staff had the app Confide downloaded to their personal cellphones. The app deletes messages and prevents recipients from saving, forwarding, printing or taking screenshots of messages.

It is the latest in a series of incidents that point to a governor who prizes secrecy, ranging from not revealing how much donors gave to his inaugural celebration to installing a lock on the door to his press office.

The Confide revelation triggered a call from Sen. Scott Sifton, a Democrat from the Affton area, for Hawley to investigate the governor and his staff for potential open records law violations.

Hawley confirmed he is reviewing case law to determine whether to appoint a special investigator. He said he cannot directly investigate Greitens because his office is already defending the governor in other legal cases.

Its a very complicated issue, Hawley said. The legal complexities are significant. Well have more for you soon.

The Sunshine Law statute also gives jurisdiction on the issue to the Cole County prosecutor. He could not immediately be reached for comment Monday.

It remains unclear whether the governor and his staff are using the app for state business, campaign work or other government communication, or for personal matters.

Parker Briden, the governors spokesman, told the Star he was unaware of anyone in the governors office downloading the app to a state-issued device.

But Hawley said he believes the law also would cover text messages about state business being sent on private cell phones.

I dont think it settles the matter just because it is a private device or a personal device. That alone, I believe, would not qualify that as a non-record, Hawley said. This is one of the difficulties we face with a Sunshine Law that was written decades and decades ago and has not been updated to take into account modern technology.

Meanwhile, Hawley, who is running for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, unveiled a plan to create a program to provide free legal help to military service members.

The new Military Legal Assistance Team will work with attorneys from military bases in Missouri to find private attorneys who will provide free services to service members with certain legal needs.

A new advisory board will determine which legal needs would qualify for the program and create a strategy for recruiting attorneys to provide the help.

I cant think of a better way for the law profession to give back to our troops, said advisory board member John Comerford, a former Navy officer who is a partner at the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis.
Gov. Eric Greitens has the right goal in mind to protect the safety and welfare of Missouris veterans by calling for the ouster of Rolando Carter, director of the St. Louis Veterans Home, and Larry Kay, director of the Missouri Veterans Commission. But in an effort to accomplish his goal, Greitens replaced five members of the commission  all former Gov. Jay Nixons appointees  bypassing procedures mandated by law.

Greitens has known since July that veterans and their families were complaining about mistreatment and inadequate care at the St. Louis Veterans Home. They said that care had declined dangerously since Kay hired Carter a year earlier. The governor said in a statement that a $45,000 independent investigation he ordered to look into complaints prompted his action.

Kay has had a checkered history of leadership at the veterans commission since 2006. A Cole County jury issued a $2.8 million verdict against him for sexual discrimination and harassment of a former employee. This newspaper called for his resignation. So did Sen. Scott Sifton, D-Affton, who was the only commission member to do so.

Greitens wholesale replacement of a majority on the nine-member board is a heavy-handed tactic, similar to one he used to manipulate the State Board of Education to force the ouster of state Education Commissioner Margie Vandeven. Many less-drastic alternatives were available to get rid of Kay.

Perhaps current commission members would have acted on behalf of veterans if given the chance based on updated investigations. Greitens himself had four previous opportunities to confirm allegations of abuse and neglect at the veterans home, in addition to details provided in a series of reports by the Post-Dispatchs Tony Messenger. The governor only took action after announcing a fifth investigation three weeks ago, which Greitens said found serious problems at the home.

His actions Monday followed last weeks call by Republican Lt. Gov. Mike Parson and the top Democrat in the Missouri Senate, Gina Walsh, D-Bellefontaine Neighbors, for the removal of Carter and his assistant, Aneeqa Khan. Carter came to the job with a troubled background, including allegations that a resident in an Illinois nursing home where he was the administrator died from medications errors in 2010.

When former state Rep. Rick Stream, R-Kirkwood, and a veterans home volunteer delivered a 48-page report to Greitens in July detailing complaints, he handed the issue to Kay. Greitens then took offense when Missouris U.S. senators, Republican Roy Blunt and Democrat Claire McCaskill, asked for an investigation of the home and implied that Greitens was ignoring problems.

On Monday, Greitens tried to blame the failures on big government. The size of government isnt the problem if attentive leaders are doing their jobs. A look at Greitens travel schedule during this period suggests his attention was elsewhere.
A muestra is the vision of the ligador and torcedor realized, it is the promise of a new experience and possibly the key to financial success for the fabrica, says Steve Saka, founder and Master Ligador of Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust. Muestras are hoarded and coveted by not only their makers, but by the cigar smokers who seek to catch a glimpse into the cigar makers soul within their smoke.

In its young history, Dunbarton has amassed acclaim from seasoned cigar devotees that is as well-deserved as it is widespread. Sought-after brands like Sobremesa and Mi Querida are virtually universally praised by cigar veterans who trek to meet Saka at retailer events and hang on his every Facebook post. So when Saka introduces a muestra, you have to take notice.

Nacatamale is the second muestra from Dunbarton. It was announced in July and is intended to be considerably more robust than its predecessor, Exclusivo. It is made in the old farm style, meaning all the filler tobaccos are from a single operation (in this case, an undisclosed farm in Jalapa, Nicaragua).

Nacatamale (6 x 48) comes flawlessly presented in an individual wooden coffin. I paid over $20 for mine (including insane tobacco taxes here in Chicago; the MSRP is $15.95). Inside is a gorgeous, beautifully constructed cigar with a dark Ecuadorian Habano wrapper. It has tight seams, a firm feel, thin veins, and a smooth cold draw. The pre-light notes remind me of green raisin with milk chocolate and cinnamon.

After setting an even light with a wooden match, a spicy, bold, well-balanced introductory flavor emerges that reminds me of cayenne heat, dark chocolate, black coffee, and sweet nougat. The medium- to full-bodied profile steps off the accelerator as the midway point approaches. Here, hints of cinnamon, cedar, cream, and leather play a more active role, and the spice is more subdued. The finale witnesses a reprise of spice with notes of black pepper, dry oak, espresso, cedar, and a frothy, marshmallowy sweetness at the fore.

As you would expect from Saka (and any cigar at this price point), the combustion properties are sublime. The burn line stays straight and true from light to nub with torch touch-ups completely unnecessary. In addition, the draw is smooth, the ash holds firm, and the smoke production is outstanding.

What makes Nacatamale so outstandingand, yes, it is absolutely outstandingis not any individual flavor. This cigar is a great example of how the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts. The overall balance, complexity, and harmony is simply on point. That Saka handicapped himself by relegating the entire filler recipe to one farm and still composed a symphony of deliciousness well, thats head-scratching. Pony up and grab one of these while you still can. Any rating besides five stogies out of five would be inappropriate.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here. A list of other five stogie-rated cigars can be found here.]

Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys
Changing of the guard at John Keells By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):

John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), Sri Lankas largest listed conglomerate, will see some significant changes at the top in the next 12 months including the expected ascension of Krishan Balendra as the new group chairman.

Company sources said that while Mr. Balendra as chairman-designate has been announced internally, it was unclear whether he would take over the position of Deputy Chairman with the retirement of Ajit Gunewardene, current Deputy Chairman in end 2017.

The sources said that an announcement on the deputy chairmans position on whether it would be continued or not is widely expected in coming weeks.

It would be a historic occasion where a father and son has and would (soon) assume this top position. Ken Balendra was the first Sri Lankan and iconic chairman of JKH for 10 years, recently releasing a book on his corporate life.

While Mr. Gunewardene steps down this month, JKH chairman Susantha Ratnayake, appointed in January 2006 and taking over from Vivendra Linthotawala, steps down in December 2018. The impending retirements of Mr. Ratnayake and Mr. Gunewardene were announced in November 2016 with the company also detailing its succession plan through the entry of Krishan Balendra and Gihan Cooray as executive directors in the same month.

The current board comprises Susantha Ratnayake (Chairman/CEO), Ajit Gunewardene (Deputy Chairman), Ronnie Peiris (Group Finance Director), Krishan Balendra and Gihan Cooray (both Executive Directors) and Messrs. Nihal Fonseka, Premila Perera, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, Ashroff Omar and Amal Cabraal (all Non-Executive Directors).

The changes also see Ronnie Peiris, who launched his book Tough journey; Great destination at the Cinnamon Grand on Thursday before a high-profile audience including JKH directors, retiring from the company and his position being filled by Mr. Cooray.

With the retirement of two directors as at December 2017, these board positions are expected to be filled by two senior management staff.

A top official told the Business Times that the group has, over the years, developed a large pool of young, talented individuals and that the depth of leadership augurs well for the groups future.

At present Mr. Balendra is the President of the Leisure Industry Group at the company and is also the Chairman of Nations Trust Bank PLC.
Leo Burnett wins gold at Campaign Asia awards; honours continue from 2012 View(s):

Leo Burnett Sri Lanka, the local office of the global advertising network Leo Burnett Worldwide, recently won yet another Gold award at Campaign Asias Agency of the Year awards presentation. The agency secured its fifth Gold award in the Rest of South Asia Creative Agency of the Year category, emerging as the best all-round creative agency in the region. This award adds yet another Gold to the Agencys winning streak which has brought 17 metals since Campaign Asia introduced the Rest of South Asia category in in 2012, the agency said in a media release.

Campaign Asia is the advertising industrys most respected publication that has a presence across five continents.

Campaign Asias annual Agency of the Year (AOY) awards programme recognizes all aspects of an agencys performance along with the creative successes achieved throughout the year.

Commenting on the win, Ranil de Silva  Managing Director, Leo Burnett Sri Lanka said: We are truly proud to have secured Gold as the Rest of South Asia Creative Agency of the Year at the AOY Awards. This particular award takes our tally to 5 Golds and our third consecutive win in this category. This award recognizes our all-round performance as an agency, specially our commitment to our people and the industry as well as our ability to deliver an outstanding business performance, whilst creating inspiring and innovative creative ideas. Leo Burnett Sri Lanka has been winning at Campaign Asia for many years since 2012.
Sri Lanka Iran banking transactions to resume soon By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s):

Sri Lanka Iran banking transactions will resume soon paving way towards boosting investment and trade between the two countries after the lifting of US economic sanctions against Iran in 2016, Iranian Embassy sources confirmed.

Banking issues in trade between the two countries are still to be resolved, a spokesman of the embassy told the Business Times adding that the issues in banking transactions will be sorted out within the next two or three weeks.

At the moment the payments between the two countries are being made through a third party bank acceptable for both sides, a senior Treasury official said.

Also stepping in to expedite banking transactions is the Central Bank (CB) which called a meeting of the tea sector, worst affected by banking issues, along with the Peoples Bank on Friday evening. Details of that meeting were not immediately available.

The Treasury official said the regular banking channels will operate after settling certain issues adding that the CB and local banks, especially major ones, are very cautious in the resumption of transactions.

He noted that although the US economic sanctions have been lifted, the US Treasury Departments office of financial assets control has made a directive that no payments linked to Iran may be processed through the US financial system.

Addressing a ceremony in Colombo on Wednesday, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya said that doing business with Iran will not be a problem following the restoration of banking transactions soon.

He also called for the development of trade and economic ties between the two countries, especially after the resumption of two-way banking.

Trade and investment relations between Sri Lanka and Iran which were affected following US sanctions will regain momentum after the removal of banking barriers, he claimed.

Some of the payment issues relating to trade between the two countries are yet to be resolved, a senior Treasury official said emphasising the need to settle debt in a phased out manner with mutual understanding.

The agreement of purchasing crude oil from Iran should also be renewed as oil imports from the capital, Tehran came to a standstill after the imposition of sanctions, he disclosed.

Sri Lankas oil debt to Iran was US $251 million as the country used to import 40,000 barrels of crude per day, he said adding that the oil refinery at Sapugaskanda can only process crude oil imported from Iran.
Sri Lanka public sector grapples with computer upgrades View(s):

Amidst the lack of public sector IT experts and severe budgetary constraints, Sri Lanka is seeking foreign agency technical and financial assistance to upgrade its ailing computer systems, software solutions and apps which were installed several years ago, and introduce new systems in state institutions.

Upgrading IT systems or procuring new software solutions for crucial state institutions has become a major issue at present owing to the shortage of IT professionals and related issues, a senior government official said.

Several public sector institutions are still using outdated computer systems and software and many such institutions find it difficult to update it due to lack of professional IT staff for the documentation and evaluation of procurement tenders, he disclosed.

Another key issue was the mainframes installed by foreign IT firms which have to be replaced in order to upgrade the existing systems, he said, adding that it is a costly affair.

Under these circumstances, such public institutions have no option other than go back to the original IT firm and purchase the IT solutions compatible to existing mainframe.

This practice has deprived the public sector institution of purchasing modern systems and carry out its functions efficiently, he said.

Another factor was that the public sector has to seek assistance of Moratuwa University or the ICTA for the preparation of tender documents with technical specifications and evaluation of bids due to lack of professional staff, he pointed out.

There were instances where the government institution had to seek the assistance of IT vendors for technical specifications; he said adding that this has created many irregularities and malpractices in the past.

The Committee on Public Accounts (CoPA) has identified many IT related issues confronting 38 state institutions, Deputy Finance Minister and Chairman of the committee Lasantha Alagiyawanna told an official meeting in Colombo recently.

He noted that these institutions lacked adequate financial resources and faced shortages in support services by vendors.

They also had difficulty in recruiting IT professionals for the public institutions because of low wages in the public sector, he said adding that many of the institutions had ineffective or inadequate IT programme management.

(Bandula)
Giving us lessons, British style View(s):

With Prime Minister Wickremesinghes ire on fire as he pitched into some of the local media at a UNESCO- sponsored conference in Colombo it seemed an appropriate subject to comment on. But then our former colonial masters intervened to remind the ignorant Sri Lankans a lesson or two on how parliamentary democracy functions and also teach us a few other things. It might well be that the high commission response was intended for a local newspaper that posed a couple of questions. But since that response is now public knowledge it is fair game for comment.

Back to the classroom boys seemed to be the attitude of the British High Commission in Colombo as it too tried to use a tactical smoke- screen to divert attention from the recent controversy stoked by the Naseby disclosures at the House of Lords almost two months ago. First it was our foreign ministry that issued an embarrassing statement talking of the President Sirisena governments 100-day programme and all sorts of irrelevancies in an attempt to cover up one of the ministrys fatal flaws in co-sponsoring a damaging resolution at the UN Human Rights Council two years ago.

Two days later the ministry did a back slide trying to minimise the impact of its messy affair. One thought all that had now been done and dusted. The Unity Government finally recognised that the information Lord Naseby presented at the Lords debate was of much import to Sri Lankas own post-war case that was being built up by international critics and the Tamil diaspora working in cahoots with media engaged in fake news, in the memorable words of Donald Trump.

The first to accept the importance of Nasebys contribution to our defence was State Minister of Foreign Affairs Vasantha Senanayake who officially thanked the British peer for the good deeds he had done. This was followed up by President Sirisena and finally the Foreign Minister Marapana who thought he was concealing an ace though everybody with any interest in the issue knew all about it by then.

But once the British High Commission (BHC) representing the Theresa May government which has enough problems trying to survive, got into the act with some puerile remarks one had to drop everything else and return to the Naseby issue. In responding to a media query the High Commissioner James Dauris and his diplomatic cabal down Bauddhaloka Mawatha gave the ignorant Lankans an elementary lesson in the functioning of parliamentary democracy.

Lord Naseby was not speaking for the British Government when speaking recently in a debate in the House of Lords. As a Member of Parliament he is entitled to express his own views.

Besides the unmistakable sense of hauteur evident in the tone of the BHC statement, whoever authored this statement seems to think we need to be taught a few things about how parliament functions and Nasebys role in it as though the peer was playing for the minor countries. If anybody needs to be taught a lesson it is the author of the high commission missive which the pundits at the British mission seem to have thought that its verbal missile would end all further discussion of the subject.

Had the diplomat or whoever wrote it had done his/her homework prior to arriving in Colombo the individual concerned would have known that Sri Lanka has had a functioning parliamentary democracy since independence in 1948. Admittedly the democracy has been somewhat shaky at times but parliament did function.

Secondly any dimwit would know that Lord Naseby was not speaking for the British Government. One does not need the high commission to point this out. Those who read his speech would surely understand that.

Maybe those in the mission needed some assistance in sorting out what Naseby was saying. But one does not believe that the BHCs assistance is needed to elucidate to a Sri Lankan audience Nasebys line of argument. Nasebys position is clear enough. Having struggled for three years to extract some despatches sent by the British Defence Attache in Colombo Lt. Col Anton Gash, some of which were withheld or heavily edited as to be left at times with only Gashs name or otherwise, pieces of meaningless paper.

Even so Naseby was able to squeeze out enough information which coupled with other sources, provided a credible platform from which to challenge the number of civilian deaths of 40,000 or more touted by Ban Ki-moons committee of experts which had also picked up bits and pieces from other sources.

That figure with little credible and supportive evidence to buttress it came to be accepted as bona fide by those determined to castigate Sri Lanka including the UK and US governments.

What is so galling is the condescending attitude of the British High Commission which appears to think that Sri Lankans needed to be taught some basic principles on how parliamentary democracy functions. Lord Naseby was not speaking for the British Government when speaking recently in a debate in the House of Lords. As a Member of Parliament he is entitled to express his own views.

It is pretty obvious that Naseby was not speaking for the government. He was trying to have the Conservative Party government make some course corrections in the light of the information he had collated and which  and much more  was available to the government. That is why the FCO redacted so much from the despatches.

Now that we have learnt that a member of parliament is entitled to express his own views let us pick up the other issue which the British mission flaunts as a telling argument.

A point that has not been in dispute in all that has been written and said since Lord Naseby spoke is that many thousands of civilians died during the conflict.

Surely that is obvious from the underlying case that Naseby has been urging the British government to accept and advice the UN and UNHRC about it.

It would be ludicrous for any knowledgeable person to take up the position that thousands of civilians did not die in the last stages of the war. It would be an unusual war if it did not happen. After all Britain of all countries should know that, given its colonial and post-colonial history when it was directly involved in such killings or was a party to them.

Perhaps the panjandrums at the high commission might profitably spend their time pondering the civilians being killed even today in Syria and Yemen not to mention other sovereign countries where Britains finger prints are visible. Of course it is not disputed that civilians died. After all Lt. Col Gashs despatches say so. Moreover they say that the LTTE was responsible for some killings, especially of Tamil civilians held hostage by the Tigers and shot at if they try to escape to cross over to the government lines.

The question here is not whether it happened. What is crucial is how many were killed. The high commission talks of many thousands. Surely the question is how many is many. That lies at the heart of this particular debate. The British Government seems happy to go along with the figure of 40,000 or more. The figures that Naseby has collected and collated from multiple sources that are not particularly pro-Sri Lanka Government gives the British peer anything between 7000-8000.

In fact the high commission is repeating what a Minister of State of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon said at the debate on behalf of the government. Referring to the numbers he said that while the differential may remain what is undisputed is that a number of civilians died in the final stages

But the differential is huge. There is a gap of 32,000 between the 40,000 that has now become an accepted figure though it has never been proven and the maximum 8,000 that Naseby has gathered from varied sources. Surely that is an enormous gap which cannot be allowed to stand uncontested. The British high commission keeps harping on Resolution 30/1 and the unfulfilled promises by the Sri Lanka Government. There is some truth in that. But the British mission is on much shakier ground when it refers to the non-appointment of a Truth Commission.

In the case of Sri Lanka Britain is particularly concerned in arriving at the truth. Whether this is to divert international attention from Britains own follies and constant bombings and shellings that are killing civilians or by providing weapons of war to its allies, or a genuine interest in finding the truth as a step towards reconciliation.

If it is the latter then would Britain be ready and willing to assist in finding the truth? Would Britain permit Lt. Col Anton Gash to appear before a Truth Commission and tell under oath what he knows and what was contained in the despatches that were denied to Lord Naseby. Would Gash be permitted to give evidence and tell of his own experiences and what he gathered without being punished for it? Will his unredacted despatches be made available to the commission?

Then Sri Lanka will believe that Britain is genuinely interested in the search for truth. Otherwise its sanctimonious appeals to fulfill some of the promises made would be discarded as pretentious prattle.
Picket Republic: Meeting the citizens we can all identify with Kaveesha Fernando talks to the cast of an upcoming production that will resound with some home truths View(s): View(s):

Picket Republic hopes to depict the protest culture in Sri Lanka through the travels of a young orphan from Sri Lanka who lands in an alternate reality and travels through the republic, learning of many issues along the way. While the play is written and directed by Ishtartha Wellaboda, Rajitha Hettiarachchi and Nishantha de Silva, the cast has contributed a lot to the final script and have lots of insight to share on the issues their characters deal with and what it teaches them.

Leeth Sinhage plays the role of the orphan boy who gets caught in a flood and lands in a parallel universe. I find out about all these problems in the republic, he says, explaining that his character travels with a group of people who help him out. Theres the lady tuk driver, the soldier and the prisoner. Dinoo Wickramage is the lady tuk driver  a forthright character who thinks on her feet. She brings in the girl power aspect to the play, says Dinoo, adding that her character calls the shots within the group, while also having great depth in character.

Lakshitha Edirisinghe acts as the prison guard, a seemingly hardened man who takes a liking to the orphan and decides to help him. Im not a person who shows emotion but I feel bad for the boy, explains Lakshitha. Hidaayath Hazeeer assumes the role of a prisoner, his character bringing in what could be perceived as the comic element, he explains. Hidaayath feels that each character in the group who help the young orphan can easily be found in daily life.

There are also the different protestors. Pasan Ranaweera plays the leader of the student union. He explains that the cast members who are part of this student union have made every effort to represent the behaviour of the typical student unions of Sri Lanka. Theyre always motivated by something happening around them either inside or outside the university, explains Pasan.

Lithmal Jayawardena takes on the role of the leader of the racists. Lithmal attributes the direct nature of the play (and the cast) for his unabashed reference to his character as racist.They feel threatened and what we realized while playing these roles is that their racism stems from fear, he says, adding that the characterization isnt overtly comic, something he notices in many other productions.

Sachi Gamage plays the leader of the porcelain people. These are the kind of people who would attempt to solve issues using social media at a superficial level Were trying to be a part of an empathetic society but without actually contributing anything, he says, explaining that he hopes people will learn how to genuinely help people.

If you want to try and solve a problem you cant solve it by posting about it on social media, he says.

There are also the politicians of the republic. Tasmin Anthonisz plays the role of a politician whos in power in the republic. Im a bit of a control freak, and thats putting it mildly, so my overarching goal is to have everything the way I see it, she explains.

Dmitri Gunatilaka plays the role of a political leader who she describes as the exact opposite of Tasmins character. Her character is more charismatic and charming, while her policies are nationalist, she explains. Ishthartha explains that the two political leaders aim to portray how they are both interested only in their own agendas.

The characters bring out the roles different people play in the many protests which take place in Sri Lanka, and they hope that people will come and enjoy their play while learning something important about Sri Lankas protest culture. Because its not set in Sri Lanka hopefully people will get a new perspective of protest culture, says Pasan.

Picket Republic will be held on December 17 at 3.30 p.m., and on December 16 and 17 at 7.30 p.m. at the Lionel Wendt. Tickets are priced at Rs. 800, 1200, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 and will be available at the venue.
Debt-ridden SriLankan Airlines faces closure Chairman writes to employees saying only two options left; attract partner or restructure View(s): View(s):

The national carrier SriLankan Airlines faces closure in the larger interest of the countrys economy if tangible and sustainable restructuring cannot be achieved, its Chairman Ajit Dias has warned. Pointing out that the airlines principal lenders, the two state-run banks, are at a risk situation, he has said in a message to all SriLankan employees that there were only two options.

One was to restructure the company in such a way as to attract an equity partner. The other, he has said, is to carry-out the restructuring in a manner that the airline can manage its own affairs without Government funding if finding a partner fails. So far, the airline has been unsuccessful in persuading partner airlines or other entities to invest. They have backed out after studying the financial status. Both the Bank of Ceylon and the Peoples Bank have been issuing guarantees to SriLankan to the tune of billions of rupees to raise loans. This is besides huge loans obtained from them. They remain unpaid.

The SriLankan Chairman has disclosed that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has requested the Government to correct this situation by coming up with a solution to the predicament of the airline before they agree to release funding pledged for vital development efforts in the country. The two state-run banks, which are currently funding SriLankan, he has said, will face issues over solvency and credit rating and such a situation could affect the national budget.

Mr Diass bad news for SriLankan employees, during the Christmas season, comes as President Maithripala Sirisena has declared that a Commission of Inquiry would be appointed to probe the national carrier. Several ministers have complained to him about alleged widespread corruption and salaries in millions of rupees drawn by the top rungs in the airline.

Mr Dias has also disclosed that the Government has appointed a Ministerial Committee headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and including Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera, Special Assignments Minister Sarath Amunugama, Transport Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, Public Enterprise Development Minister Kabir Hashim, Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrema to oversee the re-structuring. They are assisted by a Task Force chaired by Treasury Secretary R.H.S. Samaratunga and including Public Enterprise Ministry Secretary Ravindra Hewavitharana, Thilan Wijesinghe (convenor), Mano Tittawella, Dr. Rohan Perra, Chairman Dias and SriLankan CEO Suren Ratwatte.

The Sri Lankan Chairman has said the process would address all aspects of the airline from the revenue to the cost angles.There would be hard decisions taken to rationalise the network, right-size the fleet, cut costs, rationalise people costs and be able to re-negotiate CBAs. As a result the company would not renegotiate or enter into new collective agreements until March 2018 when the process is scheduled to be completed.

The cost cutting, sources at SriLankan said, would include pay cuts. Unions say that such cuts should first be taken by those at the higher levels of management and allege that some are directly answerable for the current state of bankruptcy of the airline.
ICC says claims of war crimes by UK troops have reasonable basis View(s):

The chief prosecutor at the international criminal court in The Hague, Fatou Bensouda, has declared there is a reasonable basis to believe that UK soldiers committed war crimes against detainees during the Iraq conflict, the London Guardian newspaper said.

The announcement on Monday means the ICC will press ahead with its investigation into claims that British troops abused and unlawfully killed prisoners after the US-led invasion.

It came in a 74-page report delivered in New York to the annual assembly of states parties that participate in the jurisdiction of the court.

In her conclusion on the long-running inquiry into the role of British troops in Iraq between 2003 and 2008, Ms. Bensouda said: The [prosecutors] office has reached the conclusion that there is a reasonable basis to believe that members of the UK armed forces committed war crimes within the jurisdiction of the court against persons in their custody.
Jerusalem crisis: Lankan embassy will remain in Tel Aviv View(s):

Sri Lanka has reaffirmed its position that Jerusalem should be the shared capital of Israel and Palestine and said the countrys embassy in Tel Aviv will not be shifted. On Wednesday, the United States President Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israels capital and announced plans to relocate the US embassy there. But Sri Lanka would not follow suit, the Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a written response to the question as to whether Sri Lankas stance had also changed.

Sri Lanka has always stood by the position that Jerusalem is a final-status issue that must be resolved through negotiations between the two parties on the basis of the relevant United Nations resolutions, taking into account the legitimate concerns of both partiesPalestinians and Israelisand that Jerusalem should be the shared capital of the Israeli and Palestinian states, the ministry said.

Sri Lanka continues to stand by its position that it is only by realising the vision of two states living side-by-side in peace, security and mutual recognition, with Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and Palestine, with all matters resolved permanently through negotiations, that the legitimate aspirations of both parties and sustainable peace can be achieved.

Therefore, Sri Lanka continues to urge all parties in the region to work with restraint, and focus on creating conditions for direct and meaningful negotiations that can resolve all final status issues required for a negotiated settlement, the response said. In this context, the question of shifting Sri Lankas Embassy does not arise.

Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana on Friday also handed over a deed for a plot of landat No 4, Hewa Avenue, Colombo 7to Palestine Ambassador Zuhair M H Zaid as a gift from Sri Lanka to the State of Palestine to build its new embassy in Colombo.

The Minister recalled that Sri Lanka had recognised the State of Palestine in 1988 and supported Palestine for non-member observer status in the UN. Sri Lanka would continue to support Palestine for full membership in the UN, he assured Ambassador Zaid, also expressing commitment to expand cooperation.

Ambassador Zaid expressed appreciation to the Sri Lankan Government for the plot of land and remarked that the gesture demonstrated Sri Lankas conviction in supporting the just cause that the Palestinian issue represents, the Foreign Ministry said.
Part-EPF-owned company ordered to pay Rs. 1.3 billion as damages to Italian firm By Namini Wijedasa View(s): View(s):

A Singapore-based arbitration tribunal has ordered SinoLanka Hotels and Spa (Pvt) Ltda subsidiary of Canwill Holdings (Pvt) Ltd of which the shareholders are Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation, Litro Gas Lanka Ltd and the Employees Provident Fundto pay Euros 7.432 million (Rs 1.3 billion) in damages to an Italian company for the 2015 termination of an interior decoration contract for Grand Hyatt, Colombo.

The failure of SinoLanka to comply with the arbitration order has now resulted in Interna Contract Spa, the Italian company, petitioning the Colombo High Court for relief. Last week, the Court issued notice on SinoLanka, pursuant to the company failing to satisfy the arbitral award.

The dispute between Interna and Sinolanka is consequent to the termination of a contract for the interior works package of the Grand Hyatt Colombo. The dispute was referred to arbitration in Singapore. Interna has petitioned the High Court to enforce the unanimous arbitral award in its favour against Sinolanka. The award which it says, in damages and costs, amounts to more than Rs 1.5 billion.

The matter will be called on February 5, 2018, for notice returnable. The Sunday Times obtained copies of the arbitral award and related documents from Court. Interna Contract Spa is a subsidiary of the Interna Group, an Italian industrial concern specialising in interior work for hotels, cruise ships, boutiques, offices and high-end residential units.

Interna, by an expression of interest in June 2013, informed SinoLanka of its intention to participate in a tender for the supply of interior works for the Hyatt Regency, Colombo. After it completed the mock up room stage of the project, SinoLanka in July 2014 invited Interna to participate in the tender for construction, supply, installation, completion and remedying defects of interior works package for the Grand Hyatt, Colombo.

In September 2014, Interna submitted an offer. After a final round of negotiations in October that year, Interna sent its final offer to SinoLanka whose representatives visited its head office in Italy for a due diligence assessment. SinoLanka accepted Internas offer in December 2014 and the following month, the latter confirmed that it will proceed with execution of works as instructed.

The contract was signed on January 7, 2015 (the day before the presidential election in Sri Lanka). Interna had already started work such as pursuing and finalising financial agreements to put on place bonds and lines of credit, insurance for the project, interviewing and employing additional personnel, preparing safety documentation, elaborating the preliminary work programme, reporting, researching and sampling architectural finishes.

But in March 2015, SinoLanka sought to wrongfully terminate the agreement, purportedly due to a breach of contract by Interna. Despite the Italian firms efforts to affirm the contract and demand performance thereof on several occasions, SinoLanka continued to act in continuous repudiation of the contract.

The dispute resolution mechanism in terms of the contract is stated as: All disputes arising out of or in connection with the Contract shall be finally settled under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce by one or more arbitrators appointed in accordance with the said Rules. The venue shall be Singapore and the proceedings shall be in English.

In a Request for Arbitration dated August 2015, Interna submitted the disputes that had arisen to be finally determined by arbitration in accordance with the relevant clause. The proceedings were conducted under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

The arbitral tribunal comprised Andre Yeap (Internas nominee), Upul Jayasuriya (SinoLankas nominee) and Vinayak Pradhan appointed as President by the ICC Court. The place of arbitration was fixed as Singapore. The process continued from August 2015 (when Interna submitted its Statement of Claim) till May 2017, when the tribunal declared the proceedings closed.

The award was made on September 29, 2017. The tribunal ordered and directed SinoLanka damages amounting to Euros 7,432,062.79 with simple interest thereon at the rate of two percent per annum from August 14, 2015, to the date of full payment; and costs amounting to US$ 483,500 (Rs 73.8mn) and Euros 516,597.17 (Rs 92.8m), both with simple interest at the rate of two percent per annum from the date of the award to the date of full payment.

Attorneys for Interna have sought payment from SinoLanka by way of a letter of demand sent in October. But no payment has been received. Interna has requested the Court to issue notice of its application to the respondent; to make order to file, recognise and enforce the arbitral courts award; to enter judgment and decree in terms of the award; and costs.

The Petitioner, Interna, was represented by Counsel Avindra Rodrigo and Kasuni Jayaweera instructed by M/s F J & G De Saram.
From running a school of 140 needy kids, she now plays a hand in running the country. And its come at a personal cost.

I was at an event recently when one of my children launched herself at me and gave me a big hug.

She calls them her children - thats the nurturing regard she has for her former pupils. And the spontaneous embrace was a measure of their regard for her.

I thought thats what I am missing, because at Merivale Primary I was getting that sort of interaction on a daily basis. You dont get that so much in Parliament. Funny that.

But the Labour list MP concedes theres a greater good. I am in the right place in Parliament. I see how I can influence things and make things better. Make them better for her children in Merivale, for all kids, and for everyone.

There was another significant hug recently. It was delivered at the Labour Party Council meeting and was an eight or nine pointer on the political richter scale. She just comes up and gives me a big hug. She being Jacinda.

Theres something surreal about the fact the Prime Minister is there, knows who you are and gives you a hug and starts chatting to you. I am thinking wow, my life has changed in the last wee while.

Tinetti says its also testament to Ardern  down to earth, extremely smart and not to be underestimated.

All of this may sound a bit fluffy and fawning, but Tinetti also has a well-honed cutting edge.

She has spent many years steering an unfashionable, decile one school through a minefield of deficit budgets. She was a union exec  a member of the New Zealand Educational Institute Te Riu Roa Education Union dedicated to advancing the interests of teachers and principals.

Her experience has been recognised with responsibilities not normally handed down to new MPs. It probably means they have stereotypes about teachers. They think teacher, they think organiser. Thats probably what it says, laughs Tinetti.

Shes caucus secretary, responsible for the secretarial duties for the entire caucus, and caucus representative to the Labour Party Council, the partys governing body. And the role shes most pleased about, deputy chair of the education and workforce select committee. The engine room of anything to do with education and the workforce which includes immigration and industrial matters.

And there are a few of those sensitive issues smouldering away.

Hand her a loaded gun to fire at the opposition and she lays the gun down  she doesnt do confrontation or toxicity.

I step aside from that  education, being a principal and my union work were political beasts and I could have been like that. But I wouldnt let it  I would shut it down smartly.

But she has yet to experience any toxicity or confrontation in Wellington.

I can only be positive about it, she says.

And she embraces positivity.

Like when the opposition slammed the governments plan for a commission to examine homelessness, the state of the rentals market and the decline of home ownership. Firstly, we absolutely need the commission, says Tinetti. And she politely explained it away as an opposition probably finding its way  learning to be an effective opposition.

When Bill English attacked the governments $1 billion regional development, Tinetti riposted: That probably tells us how exciting it is.

Then 6254 written questions from the opposition in a month  was that trivial and vexatious? They probably think its democracy at work. But she did look at some of those questions and wondered if asking ministers where they were on particular days was helpful in any way?

But the written question process is an absolutely critical part of democracy because it does hold the government to account. Tinetti will find good in everyone and everything.

An eyebrow is raised at the suggestion of Santa-cinda  as some wag, or cynic, referred to government handouts.

Look, there are some major issues in this country  areas where there hasnt been enough spending. Yeah, we are taking tax cuts off the table but rebuilding services like health and education.

And now seems a good time.

Cabinet wasted little time in fast-tracking free tertiary education for new students - university, apprenticeships, anything thats post-secondary school training  and boost student allowances.

I struggle with why people struggle with this, because I came through a system that didnt have student loans. In fact, I was paid to go to university and teachers college, and I was able to buy my first house at 24-25 because I was able to save for my mortgage.

On the other hand, her son, aged 22, has a debt of about $60,000. Thats a terrible way to start your adult life, having such a debt. Her youngest son lives in Auckland. I am having to pay his rent. He is fortunate I can do that, but a lot of people cant.

She says its better for the economy, better for individuals and better for everyone to get people into training rather than scare them off with debt fears. She has moved on from Merivale but her heart is still there.

I think of the young people who I have worked with in Merivale  not many of them go through to post-secondary education because they simply cant afford it. They are desperate to get into jobs so they can pay their way. Theres no back up.

Jan Tinetti will be talking to and listening to everyone  from Priority One to the Merivale Community Centre, from councils to Maori education and health groups. Their priorities will become my priorities, she says.

She understands not everyone loves what she thinks or says. But I love the challenge of that. I absolutely love the debate and being held to account.

She missed out on vistas of Wellington Harbour from her 11th floor Bowen House parliamentary office, but she does have doorways  access to powerbrokers  and a couple of cabinet ministers are her immediate neighbours. Thats handy.

I have come out of a job where I am the one whos in control of everything. I made the decisions and things would happen according to me. Its not like that anymore. Shes always told her kids that its about lifelong learning, and now its her turn to take her own advice on board.

It would be easy to let your ego take over. But the reason I am in parliament is not about me.

I know there are people who see parliament as their personal pathway. It is not mine, it is for a greater good that I am there. I am there because I know I can make things better for people, and I am loving it.
Police are on the hunt for a man they describe as a violent offender with links to the Western Bay of Plenty.

George Christopher Pomee, from Auckland, has a warrant for his arrest for failing to appear in the Auckland High Court.

The 23-year-old is a violent offender who is currently before the court in relation to a number of charges including kidnapping, aggravated robbery, threatening to kill and assault with intent to injure, says a statement released from police today.

Pomee is described as medium build, approximately 185cm tall and has distinctive tattoos under both eyes and on the lower part of his neck.

He has links to the Head Hunters gang and has contacts across Auckland including the North Shore, Te Puke, Tauranga and Napier.

He is actively avoiding police and is considered dangerous and could be armed. He should not be approached by members of the public.

If you see George Pomee, please call 111 immediately.

If you have any information about his whereabouts, please contact Detective Daniel Freymark from North Shore Police on (09) 477 5004.

Information can also be provided anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Students from Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology assembled at the bottom of Devonport Road to parade through town today, as part of their graduation ceremony.

Among them was Leah Jackson, a graduating Bachelor of Creative Industries student, majoring in graphic design.

Shes recently completed an internship with Wave Design, thanks to a successful three years at Toi Ohomai, and also runs her own Kiwi-inspired giftware business, Daffy & Yarn. A particular highlight for her has been mixing her business with her studies.

It was awesome to spend half a year branding my own business, and then launching it the following semester, she says. I could actually see the results of my work.

She says the course is structured so that students take more classes in their first two years, before becoming more self-directed in their final year.

We all had studios on campus to work from. And the tutors were amazing  theyre easy to talk to, and offer different perspectives.

For Leah, other benefits of studying include meeting and collaborating with new creatives, and gaining reassurance in her abilities.

Initially I had my doubts as to whether I was creative enough to do the course, she says. But you do gain confidence.

Toi Ohomai council chair Cathy Cooney, who took part in the parade, says she is always very proud of the graduating students.

Theyve all worked very hard to get this far, supported by family, friends, and tutors  theres a whole lot of people behind the scenes.

She says Toi Ohomai has been going from strength to strength for 18 months, with around 14,000 students and 1000 staff across five main campuses and 68 smaller sites in the North Island.

Were the third biggest institute of technology in the country now. Were very proud of our name and the successful story were building.

Chief executive Dr Leon Fourie agrees, emphasising the high number of students who go on to have careers in their fields of study  more than 80 per cent are either in further study or employment within their first year since graduating.

Student satisfaction is very high  theyre enjoying their learning journey. I think our success comes from how closely we align with the industries these students want to work in.

Around 6000 students will meet the requirements to graduate at Toi Ohomai this year, with the majority studying business or IT.
Two houses  one from Katikati and one from Papamoa  have been chosen as winners of Sun Medias Christmas Lights Drive for 2017.

The winners, judged by a panel of Sun Media experts, each take home a hamper worth $140, filled with delicious goodies.

In Papamoa, Kristy and Jon Parkers Wairakei Ave home was chosen as one of the winners.

Kristy says its mostly been Jons doing, and includes a net light spread out across the front lawn.

Initially we did it over one weekend, but were still adding to it  it has a smoke machine now that covers the lights on the grass, to make it look like fog.

The family has been in Papamoa for nearly six years, and have decorated their home for the past five.

Its really the first house weve lived in with street frontage. We also have a young son who enjoys it very much.

Theres around 14 houses in our little stretch that do it, so its very social. Its a good neighbourhood.

Wairakei Ave.

Vince and Heather Rowlands Park Road property in Katikati was also chosen as a winning entry.

Vince says they moved to Katikati 14 years ago, and have been getting out the Christmas lights every year since.

The other winning property on Park Road, Katikati.

We add a bit each year. My wife puts a little aside every week to buy some lights, if she sees something she likes.

The display is made up of a mix of electric and solar lights, and includes Santas sleigh and reindeer.

We had the sleigh made by a friend of ours. The criteria was it had to take at least two adults or three children, so kids can sit in it and have their photos taken.

Vince says he and Heather are already thinking about what to add for next Christmas.

We went to Paeroa and looked at the maritime museum. Theyve got two acres of lights going, and its fantastic. So we got a few ideas out of that for next year.

Park Road.

The Christmas Light Drive has been gaining in popularity year-on-year. Not only are more people joining in and decorating their houses, but more people are getting into the spirit and driving around to admire the lights.

Sun Media has even had people from other cities letting us know about their Christmas lights, with entries received from as far away as Wellington, Hastings, Whangarei, and Omarama  just another example of SunLives great reach.
Torremolinos participated in events commemorating Worlds Aids Day last Friday.

Organised by the Torremolinos town hall and several local LGBTI groups, a programme of informative, educational and recreational activities were staged at different locations in the town.

World Aids Day, commemorated on 1 December every year since 1988, is dedicated to raising awareness of the pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, and mourning those who have died of the disease.

In 2016, Torremolinos joined the Paris Declaration, a platform aimed at the prevention, detection and early treatment of the illness with the ultimate goal of eradication by the year 2030. Torremolinos became the fifth city of Spain, behind Seville, Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, to join the initiative.

This year's events began with a meeting held outside the town hall, when the mayor of Torremolinos, Jose Ortiz, and several members of his council participated in the deployment of a huge red ribbon formed by 20 umbrellas.

The red ribbon is the global symbol for solidarity with people infected with HIV and those living with Aids.

Informative advice

Following the presentation in Plaza Blas Infante, the emphasis shifted to the town centre, where the Spanish Confederation of LGBTI (Colega) manned an informative stand offering HIV tests and advice about protection from sexually transmitted diseases as well as free condoms.

Other activities included a special World Aids Day gala that was held in the Pablo Ruiz Picasso Cultural Centre. The show, which was attended by the councillor for equality, Aida Blanes, presented the LGBTI Polyphonic Choir of Torremolinos, the only one of its kind in Andalucia.

The grand finale was held in the bar Eden in La Nogalera on Friday night, where a benefit drag show was staged by some of the town's top entertainers. The show was put on to raise money for Apoyo Positivo, a Malaga-based association that offers advice and assistance to those infected with HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

There has been a significant reduction in HIV diagnoses for gay men due to frequent testing, rapid treatment and PrEP, a medicine that lowers the chance of infection and stops HIV from taking hold and spreading throughout the body.

For help and advice about sexually transmitted diseases, contact info@apoyopositivo.org
Andalusian writer Elvira Navarro is under no illusions about the stylistic influence possessed by translators. A translated book, she tells me by email in Spanish, has a co-author: the translator. Their job is to find the best version of [the writer's] style in a foreign language, so necessarily your style changes.

We are discussing her powerful and disturbing 2014 novel La Trabajadora, translated into English as A Working Woman by Christina Macsweeney and released earlier this year by the US publisher Two Lines Press. Navarro is a pleasure to correspond with: always prompt in her replies - a gift for a journalist with a deadline - she is open and friendly, soon signing off with hugs instead of regards.

The Huelva-born novelist couldn't have found a better co-author for A Working Woman, the book with which SUR in English concluded its Found in Translation series last week.

A book shouldn't think about readers but, once written, find its own

Macsweeney is a celebrated translator of Latin American authors and last year won a prize for her English version of a book by Mexican writer Valeria Luiselli. Her translation of La Trabajadora is marked by a directness that challenges and, at times, shocks the reader. In this sense, it reflects the uncompromising narrative voice of the original Spanish version. As Macsweeney told the San Francisco-based Centre for the Art of Translation last month, What really drew me into this novel was the way it posited me as an active reader. There was no way I could, or wanted to, sit back passively and wait for the narrator to explain what was going on.

Just how closely, I wonder, did Macsweeney and Navarro collaborate on A Working Woman? Navarro, 39, claims that her English is very bad and that she was therefore of little use to Macsweeney during the translation process. But interestingly, she reveals that there is far more to translating a book than just converting sentences from one language into another: [Christina] took the trouble to come to Madrid to explore the neighbourhoods through which the protagonist of the novel moves, which demonstrates her commitment and her enormous generosity and enthusiasm. We had a very nice meeting and I made her a map showing the journeys of Elisa, the novel's main character.

Elisa's journeys take the form of nocturnal walks through Madrid's gritty suburbs, during which she contemplates her own life and that of her mentally unstable flatmate Susana. In these crucial passages - which reveal Navarro's virtuosic descriptive talent - Madrid becomes a character itself, contributing as much to the novel's unsettling atmosphere as the complex relationship between Elisa and Susana. Making a city live on the page in this way is no small feat - one that, in this case, was the result of a joint effort by novelist and translator. Although Navarro says she can't fully assess La Trabajadora's English version, she is sure that Macsweeney's three-dimensional approach to translating has resulted in a fabulous book.

Navarro's own experiences of living in the Spanish capital - indeed in the same suburb in which Elisa rents her tiny flat - were a major part of her inspiration for A Working Woman.

The story is based on a text that I wrote in 2003, she explains, when I shared a flat in the Carabanchel neighbourhood of Madrid and was looking for work. At that time I saw the horizon of my middle class expectations fade away [and] the difficulty of finding work when...president Aznar [Jose Maria Aznar, conservative prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004] was cackling that 'Spain is doing well'. Like her narrator, Navarro also worked as an external proof-reader for a publishing company, an insecure position that paid badly when it paid at all: she once went for six months without receiving a cent, and it was then that the idea of a novel about precariousness became strong. The character of Elisa is based on this biographical substratum.

Navarro's mention of Aznar - who in 2003 selected Mariano Rajoy to succeed him as leader of the Popular Party - prompts me to ask her what she thinks about the current situation in Catalonia. Is it damaging Spain's international reputation? Her scathing reply suggests that to do so would be difficult: Spain's reputation has been damaged for centuries, ever since it stopped being an empire and developed an inferiority complex that it still hasn't left behind. The Catalonia problem is an old one; whoever knows a little Spanish history will not be seeing anything new.

We shouldn't be fooled, warns Navarro, by the secessionists' argument that Catalonia's wings are being clipped by a repressive government in Madrid: [The independence movement] is not the liberation movement of an oppressed country, but one of the Catalan elites, who don't want their money going to the poor regions of Spain. It's also a smokescreen to divert attention away from the serious corruption cases of the Catalan elite.

Although her thought-provoking novels are now reaching an international audience, Navarro says she never thinks about a non-Spanish public when working: It would be useless, because there is not one reader but many types of readers. A book shouldn't think about readers but, once written, find its own. Now, thanks to her co-author Macsweeney, A Working Woman will bring amazement and other universes to non-Spanish readers - exactly the things that Navarro was discovering in books at the age of eleven, when she decided to become a writer.
Malaga. Asuncion Mejias, who studied medicine at Malaga university and has worked in the paediatric department at the Gregorio Maranon hospital in Madrid, has been in the USA since 2001, carrying out research into the human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). She is now a world expert on the subject, and last week she organised the ResVINET conference in Malaga to bring together the greatest experts on RSV, an infection that is the second most common cause of infant mortality. The aim was for the more than 300 participating researchers to share their knowledge, and see what can be done to develop vaccines against RSV.

What is respiratory syncytial virus, exactly?

It is a virus which causes bronchiolitis in children. In some it can start with catarrh, but in most cases it progresses and affects a lung. It is one of the most common causes of hospitalisation of children in their first year of life, in Spain and the world in general.

Does it only affect children?

No, adults as well. What happens is that when it occurs in adults it is more viral, a little less benign. An adult's lung is more developed, and they also have a certain degree of immunity.

Which time of year is the most problematic?

In Spain and the rest of Europe it is a winter virus; it starts in late October or early November and lasts until the cold weather ends. The winter months, in other words. In some tropical countries it exists all year round.

What makes RSV different from other viruses?

This virus leaves no memory. When someone gets measles or chickenpox, they get it once, but with respiratory syncytial virus children can be infected several times. It can also be the case that the first time the virus comes into contact with the host, the baby's condition is serious. In developed countries they are admitted to hospital, but in undeveloped or developing countries they aren't, and they can die.

Why is this virus so dangerous for children?

Malaria is the main cause of child mortality, and RSV is the second. It is a huge problem in a child's first year of life. Also, as people get older, it can be very serious in the elderly. Children don't have a developed immune system and in elderly people the immune system wears out.

Is it contagious?

Yes, very contagious. It is transmitted through contact, through secretions. It's very difficult to stop it being transmitted. Washing your hands is the most important thing.

Is there any effective treatment?

So far the treatments tend to be supportive. Fundamentally, in serious cases: oxygen, intravenous liquids and suction of the secretion. However, in the past five years great efforts have been made to develop new therapies and vaccines, and new antivirals as a treatment.

Strategies for prevention

What is the research into RSV focusing on?

On prevention. There are different strategies. The worst age is two months, when the immune system is still very immature. There is a small risk in giving a vaccination, which can sometimes have a negative effect of some type. What we are thinking of is vaccinating mothers, as we do for flu or whooping cough, so it is passively transferred to the baby and later, when the baby is six months old, giving another type of vaccine. Another strategy is to develop antibodies, which can be given to the baby at birth and can prevent the infection during the first five or six months of life. But all this is still in development and being researched.

And what about elderly people?

We are at a stage in which there is a great deal of emphasis on this and many foundations and specialist companies want to produce vaccines, because RSV is a very serious virus. The World Health Organisation has set itself the objective of finding a vaccine.

What are the other effects?

We know that when a baby is infected, and it is a serious infection, about 50 per cent will develop episodes of wheezing afterwards. Those can last until they are 11 years old, and they are very intense in the first three years. There are studies which have shown that by giving monoclonal antibodies to prevent acute infections, these after-effects can be prevented. The impact this will have when RSV can be prevented or treated will be enormous.

Are monoclonal antibodies an effective treatment?

It is a preventive treatment. Until now the focus has only been on children at high risk. Now there is an attempt to develop new therapies which can be applied to the whole population.

When could there be a vaccine against RSV?

In five years we will have, at least, one type of vaccine, the maternal one. In five to ten years we will have developed some type of strategy, but it is not easy. First we need to find out exactly how the virus acts. The effort is enormous. In my case, we are working in the United States to develop a vaccine which can be given to an older baby intranasally. It's an attenuated virus vaccine. There are different vaccines, depending on the target population. There are about 50 projects under way at present.
Malaga University (UMA) is conducting a study to compare the expat communities on the Costa del Sol and the Algarve. The research is based in Malaga and is in collaboration with other Spanish universities, Vigo and Alicante, as well as international ones, Algarve and Loughborough. This study is part of the greater National Research and Development Project, which is led by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science.

To aid the research UMA has compiled a questionnaire and needs the responses of at least 400 foreign residents of the Costa del Sol. Any British, Russian, or German national who has been living on the Costa del Sol for over five years is asked to complete the quick questionnaire, which will take around five minutes. The survey is entirely anonymous and results will not be shared with anyone outside of the research team. To take part in the investigation, click here for the English version, here for the survey in German, and here for the Russian version.

For any questions about the research or the survey, email Professor Laura Lopez Romero, lauralopezr@uma.es.
A joint operation between the authorities in Spain and Colombia has resulted in the seizure of 5.8 tonnes of cocaine in a container in Algeciras port (Cadiz province).

The haul had an approximate black-market value of 210 million euros.

The drugs were found on a container ship hidden in a consignment of bananas. The ship had arrived from Medellin, in Colombia, and was on its way to El Prat de Llobregat, in Catalonia.

During the operation, the police arrested a Spanish man who lives in Barcelona and runs the import section of a fruit and vegetable distribution company. He is believed to be the person who contracted the container.

Two alleged accomplices were also detained, one Portuguese and the other from Honduras. They also live in Barcelona.

In a statement, the Spanish interior ministry said this is the largest haul of this type of drug ever to be seized in Spain from a container, and one of the largest in Europe. The statement also indicated that investigations are continuing and more arrests cannot be ruled out.
In 2000, a young Danish traveller, qualified in IT, decided to look for work in southern Europe to get away from the cold weather in Scandinavia. He was offered a job sooner than he expected, with an estate agency in Fuengirola, to design a website to advertise the properties it had for sale. He soon realised that many of the houses were being bought by foreigners, who were only going to spend a couple of months a year in them.

I thought: these properties are going to be empty for ten or eleven months at a time. I need to do something about this. So I did, says Claus Sorensen, who is now the founder and CEO of Spain- Holiday.com, which is based in Malaga and has been established for 15 years. For me it was easy, because in Denmark people had been renting houses for holidays since the 1950s. I knew there was a future in this, but at first it wasn't so easy because Spanish people were very reluctant to rent out their properties. Now, though, they have embraced the idea with a passion, he explains.

He started with around 100 properties owned by foreigners, offering to advertise them free of charge on a website. It only cost him 100 euros to set up his project: a website for holiday lets. This predecessor to the now gigantic Airbnb, which started small in 2002, now offers over 11,700 properties all over Spain, including villas in Marbella which rent for 28,000 euros a week in high season.

For the first 14 months the owners of the properties didn't pay anything. Then, when there were 500 properties on the website, I started to charge 125 euros a year to advertise. I knew it would work, he says. And it certainly did: The turnover this year is expected to be 1.9 million euros, rising to three million in 2018 after it starts to charge a commission for bookings. This is what the big platforms do, the ones which have transformed the tourism industry and revolutionised the idea of holiday accommodation to the extent that there is now more self-catering accommodation on offer on the Costa del Sol than hotel places.

This pioneer in holiday rentals has no fear of competition from the major companies. He insists that the future lies in specialisation, which is something he envisaged right from the start.

We only offer properties in Spain, with international clients in mind so they can enjoy the destination to the full. That is something unique. That's why I'm not worried. There is an active market and we have the advantage that we live here and we know the essence of the product and the destination. We are constantly updating our content and information, he says. He started off with one employee, Helea de Vlieguer, who is Dutch. She still looks after foreign clients who want to rent out their properties. Helea translated the initial website into Dutch, while Claus Sorensen did the same into Danish. Today the portal has versions in 13 languages, ranging from the traditional English and German to Swedish, Polish, Russian, Portuguese and Finnish. These same languages can be heard in the office, where there are now around 20 employees, all of whom speak at least two languages . This is appreciated by the owners, as well as would-be clients.

Work ethic

In Denmark we have a philosophy of work in which everyone is at the same level. Responsibility is delegated, we listen to the employees and accept that mistakes are part of learning. The idea is that the staff are happy because they feel part of the company and nobody has to control the hours they work or what they do. That gives the best results, explains Jannich Petersen, the general manager. Most of the staff are aged about 30, and the majority are foreigners who are living on the Costa del Sol.

We have published more than 200 articles about the city of Malaga and 78 videos in 13 languages. In the past year, the portal received 852,000 visits to properties which are for rent and 933,000 visits overall, says Kaajal Mansukhani, the head of Communication.

From the time the business started, it is estimated that over two million tourists have stayed in a property rented through Spain-Holiday.com, which since last May has insisted that owners in Andalucia comply with the new regulations and register with the tourism authorities in order to be able to advertise their property.

Sorensen says it is a myth that tourists choose the cheapest properties for holidays. He says 80 per cent of clients are prepared to spend money; they are mainly families who want the comfort that they can't find in a hotel, or groups of friends who want privacy. Most are British.

One of the most expensive villas, which has room for 20 people, is already booked for 40 days next summer. The clients will be paying 50,000 euros. That's why hotels, no matter how much they transform themselves, will never be able to offer the privacy which tourists are looking for these days, and that's why holiday properties are so successful, he insists.
A group of 40 scientists from different countries, chosen specifically by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, were in Ronda for their annual meeting this week. They are trying to end hunger in Africa by studying ways to prevent whitefly spreading viruses to different plants and causing repeated famines.

Among the group were a team from La Mayora Institute of Subtropical and Mediterranean Horticulture (IHSM), which was created by Malaga University and the Senior Scientific Research Committee (CSIC).

The Malaga representatives were doctors Jesus Navas and Elvira Fiallo, technician Remedios Tovar and Tanzanian student Happyness Mollel.

To carry out this project, which is called Cassava Whitefly, the scientists were given a grant of 17 million dollars from the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) of the University of Greenwich in the UK, which had been provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The NRI is leading the project, but researchers from many other countries are also taking part.

La Mayora has been carrying out research into whitefly and the virus it transmits for 20 years; the insect affects many vegetables and fruits in Spain, including tomatoes, peppers, melon and green beans, among others.

The whitefly of the African yucca transmits many viruses to plants, some of which have caused devastating pandemics in East Africa. The numbers of whitefly have increased to an unprecedented level, and they are also spreading rapidly towards West Africa.

The Cassava Whitefly project began in October 2014 and will end in October 2018. The progress made so far, and the importance of the problem, means it is likely that the Foundation will finance a second phase, from 2018 to 2022, with the aim of being able to apply the knowledge which has been gained and design effective and longlasting methods of controlling the plagues of whitefly.
Spanish Prime Minster, Mariano Rajoy, met with his British counterpart, Theresa May in Downing Street on Tuesday. It is the first official visit by Rajoy to London since May became prime minister in 2016. Ahead of a working lunch, both leaders praised the strength of the relationship between the two countries and stressed the desire to work together over Brexit.

May also showed her support for Madrid and its handling of the ongoing political crisis in Catalonia, saying she would not recognise a separate Catalan state.
This week saw the Basque Country's president Inigo Urkullu defending the region's special financial deal with Madrid. Known as the Cupo Vasco and hardwired into Spain's 1978 Constitution, this pact enables the northern region to collect its own taxes and choose how much money it returns to the Spanish government every year.

The Basque premier was not only responding to Ciudadanos' recent criticism of the Cupo Vasco - who have branded the deal unfair and [against] the principle of solidarity - but holding it up as the model for a new decentralised system for the rest of Spain. Implied in his remarks, of course, is the idea that giving Catalonia the kind of fiscal autonomy enjoyed by the Basque Country would go a long way towards defusing the tensions over Catalonian secession.

Urkullu argues that the Basque deal, which has just been renewed for another five years by Mariano Rajoy's government, ensures that a region has the resources it needs for public spending. This is guaranteed, he says, if you decentralise tax-control and allow regions to raise or lower taxes as they need to. And against the argument that doing so lays the legal basis for domestic tax havens, he says that the average tax burden in the Basque Country has been higher than in the rest of Spain since 1981. Urkullu also points out that the region pays 6.24% of state costs despite only accounting for 6% of the country's GDP.

The Basque premier's remarks go to the heart of the economic case for Catalonian secession. Separatists say that they want to divorce Spain because Catalonia - a wealthy region that accounts for a fifth of Spain's GDP - pays more to Madrid in taxes than it receives back for public spending. Never mind, for the moment, the dubious statistics often evidenced to support that claim. Or the frequently-made objection that economics is nothing but a smokescreen disguising political and cultural desires for secession. Leave those things aside for now, because the real question here is one of fairness.

Urkullu's argument for a new and decentralised approach to regional tax affairs in Spain deserves serious consideration - but only if what's being proposed is that all regions are given a similar deal. The rest of Spain will be justifiably furious if Rajoy is seen to be considering, as a UK newspaper recently suggested he is, giving something like the Cupo Vasco to Catalonia and only Catalonia.

In its outspoken opposition to the Basque arrangement, Ciudadanos - the centrist party now being billed as the leader of Spain's pro-Constitution camp - has drawn furious criticism. Predictably, its loudest detractors have been Basque politicians, who brand the party as promoting quasi-Franco nationalism. Hardly: all Ciudadanos has done is highlight the unfairness of a situation in which some regions have greater fiscal autonomy than others.
There was bitter disappointment from British in Europe to a 17-page report which talks of agreements in principle and states the caveat nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, leaving millions of EU in UK citizens uncertain about their futures, 18 months after the referendum.

Chair of British in Europe, Jane Golding, said: "This deal is even worse than we expected. After 18 months of wrangling, the UK and EU have sold 4.5 million people down the river in a grubby bargain that will have a severe impact on ordinary people's ability to live their lives as we do now."

The key areas that the two parties focused on during the first talks were citizens rights, the Irish border and financial settlement and following the publication of the report, announced that sufficient progress had been made, allowing them to move on to phase two.

In terms of citizens rights, the joint report covered stipulated that Brits living in EU countries and vice versa would still be entitled to the European Health Card (EHIC) once the UK left the EU and that any social security payments made before Brexit would still be amalgamated. However, with the nothing is agreed until everything is agreed caveat, these and other decisions remain in the balance.

With regards to the Irish border situation the report states that the two parties respect the importance of the achievements made in the peace process following the 1998 Good Friday Agreement (signed 10/04/98) and recognise the importance of a soft border between the two countries.

On the third point; the financial settlement, the joint report refers to the UKs budgetary commitments up to 2020, which includes a number of ongoing funding projects to which the UK has already signed up. The UK will continue to participate in the current phase of European Development Funding (EDF) which is currently in its eleventh round. This also means that the UK will continue to be a beneficiary of EDF money where projects are ongoing.

The report is due to be heard in the European Parliament in Strasbourg this Wednesday and assuming MEPs vote to accept it, which they are expected to do, an announcement will be made on Friday that the negotiations will enter phase two. However, some Euro politicians have voiced concerns about the lack of real progress in terms of citizens rights.

Phase two of the negotiations are set to cover the UKs membership of EURATOM (European atomic energy community) as well as its relationship with the EU vis a vis security, defence, terrorism and international crime and the role of the European Court of Justice. With little more than a year to go before the UK is due to leave the EU, on 31 March 2019, Bremain in Spain Chair, Sue Wilson said in a press statement on Friday, Those issues are far from resolved and will no doubt remain a major bone of contention. As we are moving to phase two of the negotiations, citizens' rights issues will be buried under discussions of trade and transition. If the outstanding issues could not be resolved when we were supposedly one of only three priorities, what chance is there when we are one of many more?"
Some people have limited choice when it comes to where and what they eat. The request by the Belgian authorities to the Spanish government regarding what sort of treatment the Catalan rebels could expect to receive should they be extradited to, and detained in, Spain, lifted the curtain slightly on culinary aspects of the prison regime.

Apparently the food is not too bad, surprising perhaps when the budget per prisoner is 3.66 euros daily to cover everything. In nearly all the prisons the inmates are responsible for the preparation, cooking and serving of meals, although in some exceptional cases outside caterers are employed.

There has never been any lack of enthusiasm on the part of the prisoners to learn cooking, and in another famous ongoing prosecution, the Gurtel case, the principal defendant, Francisco Correa, asked for his appearance in a court hearing to be got through as quickly as possible so he wouldn't miss too much of the cooking class he had signed up to at Picassent jail.

In some Spanish penitentiaries the regime includes producing fruit and vegetables on prison land and in some cases caring for farm animals. In Britain they have gone a step further and opened restaurants accessible to the public.

Brixton jail's restaurant 'The Clink' is run entirely by convicts, many of whom have learnt their skills in prison. Not all though. Previous to the ban on asking the prisoners why they were locked up, one of them had answered a questioner that he was a professional chef, and was serving time for having killed his sous-chef in the kitchen of his restaurant.

In America the best-known prison restaurant is possibly the Serving Time Cafe in Utah, unique until recently for being staffed by female time-servers. Unusually for a fast-food eating-place, the clientele is mostly male and seems in no hurry to leave.
VAN BUREN, N.Y. -- A 40-foot Winnebago RV caught fire Sunday in Van Buren while the owner and a friend tried to fix it, Warners Memphis District Fire Chief Michael Knowlton said.

The RV owner, who lives out of town, had been storing his RV at a friend's house on Van Buren Road, Knowlton said. The owner had planned to take the RV to Florida, he said.

The exact cause of the fire is unknown, but Knowlton said the RV had been having electrical problems.

The owner and his friend were using an external battery charger to power the motor to get the pull-outs, or sides back in, he said. Once they did that, they moved to the back of the RV to continue to work on the vehicle. That's when they noticed the fire where they had just been working and called 911, Knowlton said.

Warners Memphis, Lakeside, Plainville and Solvay fire departments responded to 7181 Van Buren Road; Camillus firefighters stood by at the Warners Memphis fire station.

State police and Onondaga County sheriff's deputies helped block Van Buren Road, from Peck to Conners roads, for about an hour while volunteer firefighters battled the fire.

No one was injured, but the RV was a total loss, he said. The owner told firefighters he had insurance.
CAMILLUS, N.Y. -- A Camillus woman was arrested Sunday after she crashed her mother's SUV into two poles on West Genesee Street in Camillus, police said.

Laura Alderman, 59, of Robinhood Lane, was charged with driving while intoxicated and aggravated DWI, both misdemeanors, and having an open container of alcohol in the vehicle, a traffic violation. Police say they found an open Vodka bottle in the SUV after the crash.

Alderman crashed a 2007 Honda CRV into a metal pole that holds the traffic light for West Genesee Street and Onondaga Road, Camillus police Sgt. Mike Schreyer said. The SUV then continued about 50 feet and struck a light pole in the westbound lane of West Genesee Street, in front of Empower Federal Credit Union, he said.

Someone called the Onondaga County 911 Center to report the crash at 4:52 p.m. Police initially received reports that the driver was unconscious after the crash, but when officers arrived Alderman -- the only person in the vehicle -- was conscious and not injured, Schreyer said.

The officer immediately noticed the driver's slurred speech and watery eyes, as well as the smell of alcohol on her breath, Schreyer said.

Camillus police say Alderman had difficulty standing and swayed while she walked after the crash. She failed both a standardized field sobriety test and a breathalyzer test, Schreyer said. Her blood alcohol level was 0.19 percent, more than twice the legal limit, the sergeant said.

Emergency crews closed the westbound lane of West Genesee Street while police investigated the crash. The road has reopened.

Alderman, who previously lived in Texas and is now living with family in Camillus, was driving an SUV registered to her mother, police said. The vehicle has minimal damage from the crash, but was towed from the scene as a result of Alderman's arrest, Schreyer said.

The light pole in front of the credit union broke at the base and needs to be replaced, police said.

In addition to Camillus police, WAVES ambulance and Fairmount volunteer firefighters also responded to the crash.

Alderman was released to a family member after the crash. She is scheduled to answer the charges at 3 p.m. Jan. 9 in Camillus Town Court.
State Police in Fulton are seeking the public's assistance with identifying two people involved in a town of Oswego burglary.

OSWEGO, N.Y. -- New York State Police in Fulton are asking for the public's help with identifying a pair of suspected liquor thieves.

A male suspect and female suspect are wanted for burglary in the town Oswego, police said.

At 3:08 a.m. Nov. 17, the pair entered Malone's Irish Hideaway on Barker Road, and stole bottles of liquor.

Police ask anyone with information regarding the identities of the two suspects to call 315-366-6000.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Syracuse police arrested a former Uber driver and taxi driver in two separate sex offense investigations.

Ibrahim M. Aden, 34, is accused of trying to sexually assault a Syracuse University student in September. Aden was driving an Uber at the time. While driving a taxi cab in October, Aden is accused of sexually abusing a 22-year-old woman, police said.

Aden was charged Thursday with second-degree unlawful imprisonment and second-degree harassment for the Uber incident, and first-degree sexual abuse for the taxi cab incident, police said.

At about 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 17, an 18-year-old SU student reported to police that she requested a ride to her home from Ostrum Avenue utilizing the Uber App on her phone. The victim reported that on the ride home, the driver reached back and started to rub her leg and thigh area, police said.

The driver then reportedly drove to a secluded parking lot and began to make lewd comments to her. The victim was able to run away from the vehicle to her home, and called for the police.

The incident was posted on Facebook by a SU parent and the post was shared hundreds of times before it was deleted. Uber removed the driver's access to the app and cooperated with the investigation, according to a statement from the company in September.

Syracuse police said after Aden was suspended by Uber he was then employed by Yellow Taxi Company, which is where he worked when the second incident took place.

A 22-year-old woman told police that she was walking in the 1200 block of West Fayette Street at about 1:30 a.m. Oct. 29 when she was approached by a taxi cab. The driver of the cab offered the victim a ride home, indicating that he would not charge her, police said.

The victim reported that she sat in the front seat, and during the ride home, the driver grabbed her hand and pulled it towards his lap. The victim stated that the driver had his pants unzipped, and continued to push her hand into his lap, police said. The victim demanded that the driver stop the car and she ran home to call police.

Detectives from the Syracuse Police Department Abused Persons unit working on the investigations determined that the suspect from both of the incidents was the same person. After several interviews, and collecting evidence about these events, detectives were able to identify Aden, police said.
It's time to take right whales' threats of extinction seriously, according to officials with the federal government. These endangered North Atlantic right whales could face full extinction unless new steps are taken to protect them.

Endangered Right Whales Facing Extinction

This species of whale is among the most endangered in the entire world, and they could be wiped out if their population isn't recovered soon, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA.

The prediction comes a year after low reproduction levels and high mortality rates for the whales, announced NOAA officials during a meeting Tuesday, Dec. 5, as the Associated Press reports. NOAA estimates that there are only 450 of these whale species left in the entire world after 17 were found dead this year.

The situation has become so appalling that U.S. and Canadian regulators need to consider that right whale population won't recover without significant efforts soon, according to John Bullard, NOAA Fisheries's northeast regional administrator.

"You do have to use the extinction word, because that's where the trend lines say they are," said Bullard. "That's something we can't let happen."

Right Whales Population Diminishing

Right whales have been in decline since 2010, according to Mark Murray-Brown, consultant for the NOAA. Two of the most frequent causes of death for these endangered whales involve humans, as these whales often get killed by being hit with vessel strikes or being entangled in fishing gear.

In 2017, all right whale deaths occurred in New England in Canada. Right whales give birth in Southern waters then head to both these places to feed every spring and summer.

There are only about 100 breeding female right whales in the species, which makes threats of extinction more alarming. What's more, entrapment in fishing gear stresses the male right whales, affecting their ability to reproduce, according to a study published in Endangered Species Research.

Why do right whales get killed so often? Well, one theory posits that whales move around so much and go outside protected areas in search of food, which puts them in danger. This will likely worsen as "as water temperatures continue to rise, forcing movements towards both favorable oceanographic conditions and food sources elsewhere," according to the study.

Federal law currently requires that vessels must be 1,500 feet away from right whales, and those that are 65 feet or longer must slow to 10 knots or even lesser in certain areas along the East Coast during calving or nursing season.

More right whales are killed each year than born, said Christin Khan, a fisheries biologist for the NOAA, in November.

"If we don't reverse this trend soon, they could go extinct within our lifetime."

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The "Out of Africa" theory of human migration proposes that our ancient Homo sapiens ancestors evolved in Africa before migrating in a single wave to the Asian continent about 60,000 years ago. Studies made over the past 15 years, however, raise questions on the theory.

Out Of Africa Migration Model In Need Of Revision

A new study, which was published in the journal Science on Dec. 8, suggests that new discoveries made over recent years show that modern humans may have originated from several migrations from Africa, which started as early as 120,000 years ago, or 60,000 years earlier than previous estimates. Researchers, for instance, have found Homo sapien specimens in China, Southeast Asia, and even Australia that were dated between 70,000 and 120,000 years ago.

Early Migrants Were Possibly A Group Of Foragers

Study researcher Michael Petraglia, from Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, said that the early migrants were possibly a small group of foragers and that the later, major "out of Africa" event most likely happened about 60,000 years ago.

"The traditional 'out of Africa' model, which posits a dispersal of modern Homo sapiens across Eurasia as a single wave at ~60,000 years ago and the subsequent replacement of all indigenous populations, is in need of revision," the researchers wrote in their study. "Important findings highlighted here include growing evidence for multiple dispersals predating 60,000 years ago in regions such as southern and eastern Asia."

Interbreeding Among Ancient Human Species

The modern humans that moved into Asia met other species, which include the mid-Pleistocene Homo, the Denisovans, Neanderthals, and possibly the H. floresiensis.

Hereditary investigations revealed that some degree of inbreeding occurred during these interactions, which scientists said has led to some beneficial traits in modern humans such as having a strong immune system. The Melanesians were found to be part Denisovan. Non-Africans likewise carry at least 1 to 4 percent Neanderthal DNA in their genes.

It was previously thought that the interbreeding happened after the "Out of Africa" migration but a 2016 study showed that the early modern humans, who originated from Africa and Neanderthals, had lived outside of the continent interbred earlier than previously thought.

"Interbreeding between several archaic Homo sapiens populations certainly occurred in Africa," said Christopher Bae of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

"This greater biogenetic diversity in Africa has long been recognized part of the argument to consider Africa as having a longer history for contemporary humans than Asia."

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A report by the Edinburgh International TV Festival and 5 News has revealed widespread sexual harassment and bullying in the TV industry.

A total of 315 people completed the anonymous, industry-wide TV: A Culture of Abuse survey, including employees and freelancers from broadcasters and independent production companies, in roles ranging from commissioners and executive producers, to development producers, production managers and series producers.

The results showed that 71% have experienced bullying at work with 65% reporting that it took place in the office and 22% on set or location. Of those reporting as victims of bullying, 78% are female and 22% male and 38% are from indie sector, 31% are freelancers, 17% broadcasters, 14% other. 68% of those surveyed didnt report it, 78% of which were concerned that if they did, they would lose their job, or it would have negative repercussions on their career.

The survey also included anonymous comments which reflect the realities of the work place such as:

The stigma of reporting bad behaviour needs to be removed. If anyone (especially junior team members) complain about bullying behaviour / harassment, it is them who are isolated and struggle to find work again, rather than the perpetrator.

Freelancing keeps people silent because they fear that todays bully is tomorrows boss.

Meanwhile 54% of people have experienced sexual harassment at work, 84% of whom didnt report it. Of those, 88% are female and 12% male and 43% are from indie sector, 30% are freelancers, 10% broadcasters, 22% other. 68% also admitted to being aware of bullying and sexual harassment happening to others at work. 62% of those who had experienced sexual harassment reported it had taken place in the last five years.

In a special debate, hosted by the Edinburgh International TV Festival and ITN, and

supported by 5 News, journalist and broadcaster Sian Williams will be joined by TV presenter Anna Richardson, 5 News editor Rachel Corp, chief executive at UKTV Darren Childs, Senior Lecturer in Forensic Psychology Dr Afroditi Pina and former High Court Judge, Dame Janet Smith, as they examine the practical steps both organisations and individuals can take to deal with inappropriate behaviour, particularly bullying and intimidation  in the workplace, out of hours and on location.

HR advice will be provided by Karl Burnett, VP Human Resources at A&E Networks and former director of HR at BBC News and Radio.

Sian Williams said: The abuse of power is one of the most important issues facing society today. Weve already seen how prevalent and systemic this type of behaviour has been in other creative sectors, so it is vitally important that we now turn the spotlight onto the television industry here in the UK.

More than 90% said that they were confident in their knowledge of what constitutes bullying and sexual harassment, but less than half  47% understood their rights in respect of taking action at work if confronted with such behaviour.

However, 65% were unsure or didnt have faith in their employer to deal with any issues, and 70% were unsure or not aware at all with the grievance process. Some comments reflected this:

Having worked in many industries prior to my move into TV, never have I been in an industry that is so unregulated on so many levels.

Companies are now paying lip service to allegations by having HR departments send out trite emails. Meanwhile I can tell you of several senior staff at indies who have been formally reprimanded for bullying but nothing ever happens.

90% did not think or were unsure whether the BBCs Respect at Work Review, and subsequent debates around bullying, had had any impact on staff or talent behaviour in recent years. One survey respondent said:

There is no desire to change and I dont believe recent revelations will affect anything. I saw this all before in 2012 and the big circus the BBC put on about investigating, and fundamentally, apart from putting a few heads on a stick for show, nothing changed and nothing will ever change. There is no desire for a cultural shift to do the right thing if people can ignore and get away with it.

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530-million-year-old fossil has look of world's oldest eye, study suggests



by Staff Writers



Edinburgh UK (SPX) Dec 11, 2017



A 530-million-year-old fossil contains what could be the oldest eye ever discovered, a study reveals.

The remains of an extinct sea creature include an early form of the eye seen in many of today's animals, including crabs, bees and dragonflies, researchers say.

Scientists made the finding while examining the well-preserved fossil of a hard-shelled species - called a trilobite. These ancestors of spiders and crabs lived in coastal waters during the Palaeozoic era, between 541-251 million years ago.

They found the ancient creature had a primitive form of compound eye - an optical organ that consists of arrays of tiny visual cells, called ommatidia, similar to those of present-day bees.

The team, which included a researcher from the University of Edinburgh, say their findings suggest that compound eyes have changed little over 500 million years.

The right eye of the fossil - which was unearthed in Estonia - was partly worn away, giving researchers a clear view inside the organ. This revealed details of the eye's structure and function, and how it differs from modern compound eyes.

The species had poor vision compared with many animals today, but it could identify predators and obstacles in its path, researchers say.

Its eye consists of approximately 100 ommatidia, which are situated relatively far apart compared to contemporary compounds eyes, the team says.

Unlike modern compound eyes, the fossil's eye does not have a lens. This is likely because the primitive species - called Schmidtiellus reetae - lacked parts of the shell needed for lens formation, the team says.

The team also revealed that only a few million years later, improved compound eyes with higher resolution developed in another trilobite species from the present-day Baltic region.

The study is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It was carried out in collaboration with the University of Cologne, Germany, and Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia.

Professor Euan Clarkson, of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, said: "This exceptional fossil shows us how early animals saw the world around them hundreds of millions of years ago. Remarkably, it also reveals that the structure and function of compound eyes has barely changed in half a billion years."

Professor Brigitte Schoenemann, of the University of Cologne, said: "This may be the earliest example of an eye that it is possible to find. Older specimens in sediment layers below this fossil contain only traces of the original animals, which were too soft to be fossilised and have disintegrated over time."

Austin TX (SPX) Dec 05, 2017





Scientists have long pondered how rocky bodies in the solar system - including our own Earth - got their metal cores. According to research conducted by The University of Texas at Austin, evidence points to the downwards percolation of molten metal toward the center of the planet through tiny channels between grains of rock. The finding calls into question the interpretation of prior exper ... read more

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The trial of Jace Crehan in the 2015 stabbing and strangling of his girlfriend's convicted molester began Monday with a prosecutor telling jurors the second-degree murder case is about "choices and consequences," while the defense portrayed the case as a Shakespearean tragedy and insisted "this is not murder."

One of the state's first witnesses, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office Cpl. Jason Fitzpatrick, said he made the discovery of Robert Noce Jr.'s cold and lifeless body stuffed inside a 55-gallon barrel in Noce's trailer on South Vernon Road in north Zachary on July 4, 2015.

Fitzpatrick said he removed the lid of the container after he noticed blood on the outside of the barrel and found Noce's body under a number of bloody towels.

East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner Dr. William "Beau" Clark testified that Noce, 47, died of multiple sharp force injuries to the front and back of his neck, and strangulation.

"Both things contributed to the death," he said as the jury viewed graphic autopsy photographs on a television monitor inside state District Judge Tony Marabella's courtroom.

Crehan, 23, of Walker, faces a mandatory sentence of life behind bars if found guilty of second-degree murder.

His girlfriend, 19-year-old Brittany Monk, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the case and is awaiting sentencing next month. She faces up to 40 years in prison.

Just 13 days before he died, Noce pleaded "no contest" in Baton Rouge state court to sexually abusing Monk and was put on probation for five years.

Enoch Sims, a Zachary police detective who was involved in the Noce slaying investigation, testified he spoke with Noce the day he was arrested in the summer of 2012 in the rape of Monk, and Noce denied the allegation.

During a peculiar in-court exchange Monday between prosecutor Darwin Miller and Sims, the prosecutor asked the detective if there was any documentation  medical or otherwise  to back up Monk's rape claim against Noce. When Sims said there was none, Miller replied by saying the arrest was based solely on "the words of a kid."

"Just words," the prosecutor repeated.

East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore III was asked after court about that exchange and he said, "We're trying a second-degree murder case. We're not re-visiting any other allegations that were made."

Franz Borghardt, one of Crehan's attorneys, said the exchange between Miller and Sims was curious to say the least. The state prosecuted Noce for the rape of Monk, he said outside the 19th Judicial District Courthouse, but now it sounds as if Monk might say something different if she testifies.

Prosecutors have said Monk and Crehan were on board with Noce's plea, something Carson Marcantel, who also represents Crehan, questioned Monday.

"If everybody was on board, how do we end up with the killing of Robert Noce?" he asked the jury rhetorically in his opening statement.

Crehan has confessed to law enforcement and in letters and phone calls to The Advocate that he killed Noce to prevent him from ever harming Monk again.

Borghardt said after court the defense does not dispute Crehan's participation in the slaying but does contest the murder charge.

"This is not a second-degree murder. It's something else," he said.

Prior to Fitzpatrick making his discovery of Noce's body, Sims said he was dispatched to the trailer in response to a missing person report and found water pouring out of the mobile home. The sink in the master bathroom had been purposely stopped up, he said.

Sims said he still found a large amount of blood on the flooded carpet at the foot of Noce's bed, as well as blood streaks on the footboard.

Prosecutor Eli Abad told the jury in his opening statement that Crehan and Monk made the choice to break into Noce's trailer in the pre-dawn hours and take his life, and their decision comes with consequences.

"Two words: choices and consequences. That is what this case is about," Abad said.

"They chose to seek out Robert Noce's residence, to find Robert Noce," he added. "They had a specific purpose in entering into that trailer."

Marcantel told the jury that the story of Crehan and Monk is a "modern day version" of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Marcantel said Noce sexually abused Monk from the age of 4 to 12, and that Crehan became her protector after he met her and fell in love. Monk was seven months pregnant with Crehan's child when Noce was killed. They were engaged to be married.

Marcantel said Crehan "took a bullet" for Monk.
A Louisiana private investigator has pleaded guilty to misusing Donald Trumps Social Security number in repeated attempts to access the candidates federal tax information during the presidential campaign.

Jordan Hamlett faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine following his guilty plea in federal court on Monday.

Authorities have said Hamlett failed in his attempts to get Trumps tax returns through a U.S. Department of Education financial aid website.

The 32-year-old Lafayette residents trial had been scheduled to start this week, but the judge originally assigned to the case died Saturday.

Hamletts attorney had said he didnt have intent to deceive -- a key element of the charge he faced.

Every president since Jimmy Carter has released tax returns. Trump has refused to release his.
After a timeout in August, the Louisiana Board of Regents is set Monday to consider tightening the rules on how high school students can earn college credit, without unduly curbing access to the popular classes.

The board delayed action on the initial proposal at the request of Gov. John Bel Edwards' office and amid concerns by Jim Henderson, president of the University of Louisiana System.

Henderson said the revised draft is far better than the proposed changes unveiled in August, which he said would have overly restricted access to the courses.

Higher Education Commissioner Joseph Rallo said the latest draft follows months of input from a wide range of groups with the aim of enacting guidelines that are neither too strict nor too lenient.

"We are trying to work with the high schools and the principals," he said.

Dual enrollment allows high school students to take classes that provide credit for both high school and college.

Why aren't more Louisiana high school students earning college credit? 'The answer is money' It seems like a no brainer  high school students earning up to a year of college credit, which means big savings for students, families and t

Students and their families can earn 30 credit hours or more before they formally enter college, saving money and time.

The classes are so popular that enrollment has more than doubled in the past seven years to 20,036 public school students last year, compared with 9,651 in 2009.

The issue has sparked interest in the Legislature, including what steps the state can take to get more students enrolled, especially since nearly half of public high school seniors take less than a full course load.

Despite big push, Louisiana woeful in getting high schoolers to earn college credit; why? Louisiana's five-year push to reach the national average for public high school students earning college credit missed the target  by a lot.

But the growth has also set off alarms about the quality of the classes and how to ensure that high school students are being challenged as they would be if taking the class on a college campus.

"Concerns around lack of uniformity in course content and rigor, access and eligibility, faculty qualifications and cost and funding models are consistently raised, not only in Louisiana but across the nation," according to documents prepared for the Regents.

The aim of the changes is to make dual enrollment identical to a college course "whether the class is made up of high school or college students and taught at the school or on the campus," according to the Regents' staff.

Dual enrollment classes are also offered online.

One of the proposed changes would toughen rules for dual enrollment instructors. Those who are not college faculty members would have to undergo training by the college on how to deliver and grade the course.

Colleges and universities would have to spell out to the Board of Regents what training instructors undergo before they could teach the class to high school students.

The lack of credentialed instructors is a "major barrier" to expanding access to the classes, according to a report prepared by the staff of the state Board of Regents and the state Department of Education earlier this year.

But a competing concern among some higher education officials is the rigor of the course.

Rallo has said that just because a teacher has taught algebra for 20 years and has a master's degree, it does not mean he or she can teach a college-level course.

Under current rules, both high school and college officials have to sign off on who teaches dual enrollment classes. However, the current guidelines on the quality of instruction carry less rigor than the proposed ones.

Another change under review by the regents would require agreements between colleges and high schools on how the courses are to be taught.

In a third area, students would have to address any remediation needs in math and English while they are taking dual enrollment courses. Under the previous proposal, those students would have had to finish their remediation before tackling a dual enrollment class.

Details on why the governor's office sought a delay on the change in August is unclear. Aides to Edwards did not respond to requests for comment.

Donald Songy, the governor's educator adviser, asked the Regents to have the College and Career Readiness Commission, previously inactive, review the issue, according to board minutes.

Henderson, the newly named chair of the panel, said the delay allowed the commission, the Regents staff, public school officials and others to craft a better plan.

"We have gone from a policy that I thought was probably contrary to what our goals should be in dual enrollment to one that is much better aligned ... so that more students have access to dual enrollment," he said.

State Sen. Bodi White, R-Central, a member of the Senate Education Committee, said he is concerned that new rules would dampen interest in dual enrollment and force students to pay more for the same classes in college.

Edwards has made dual enrollment one of his public school priorities.

At his request, the Legislature this year increased spending on dual enrollment by $10 million per year, to $17.5 million.
Deputy Chief of Staff, Programming and Planning Johnny Anderson, appointed by Louisiana Governor-Elect John Bel Edwards, at a press conference, Wednesday, December 16, 2015, at LSU's West Campus Apartments' Activity Building in Baton Rouge, La.
Man who shot N.O. carjacking suspect: 'He needs to go to jail ... should learn his lesson'

Man who shot New Orleans carjacking suspect: 'He needs to go to jail ... should learn his lesson'
AGL's shutdown of the Liddell coal-fired power station is a win for renewable energy and lower emissions, but don't expect a steep fall in prices.

The Australian energy giant over the weekend confirmed its plan to shut its Liddell coal-fired power station in 2022 and replace it with a mix of renewable energy sources and gas peaking power.

Of the eight terawatt-hours of annual output now supplied by Liddell, six will be replaced by renewables, one by gas, and one from other sources including an upgrade of its Bayswater coal-fired power station.

This plan sees them align with the National Energy Guarantee, so it gives confidence to the market and those concerned as the Energy Security Board carries out its review, Grattan Institute Energy Director Tony Wood said.

This is the perfect example of a technologically neutral response to help the transition to a low emissions future, Mr Wood said.
ASX-listed Cleanaway Waste Management will tap investors for $590 million to fund the acquisition of smaller competitor Perth-based Toxfree Solutions.

The deal announced on Monday will see Cleanaway offer $3.425 a share in cash, valuing Tox at $671 million on a diluted basis. The Cleanaway offer is at a significant 20.6 per cent premium to Toxfree's closing price on Friday of $2.84.

The Cleanaway offer is at a 20.6 per cent premium to Tox's closing level on Friday of $2.84. Credit:Joe Armao

Under the deal, Toxfree shareholders would be entitled to receive an interim dividend of $0.05 a share in fiscal 2018, the company said in a statement.

Cleanaway plans to fund the deal through a $590 million rights issue on a 1-for-3.65 basis with the remainder of the $671 million to come through existing debt facilities.
Perhaps the most wonderful thing about living in a prosperous nation is that instead of struggling each day for the fundamentals of life  food and shelter  people have options that allow them to explore the possibilities of existence. When half the world lives on less than $3 a day, Australians, with an average annual income per person of close to $70,000, have it far better than most. Sure, there's no joy in poverty or financial stress, but the most contented, genuinely rich Australian residents are not those who have amassed the most financial and material wealth, but, as numerous psychological studies show, those who choose altruism over greed and self-interest.

These people get more out of their community generosity than they put into it. A quarter of us are volunteers. There are 60,000 community organisations in Australia. The not-for-profit sector generates about 5 per cent of our national economic output and about one in 12 jobs.

Illustration: Joe Benke

But there is much evidence, too, of wrongdoing. Two of the main causes of this social malignancy are greed and the abuse of power. Over the past several years, investigations by The Age, sometimes in collaboration with the ABC, have revealed the rottenness at the core of one of Australia's biggest sectors, franchising, which generates sales of about $170 billion a year. One would like to think the students and migrants who staff the fast-food joints that comprise a massive chunk of franchising get a fair go. They don't. They get cheated, bullied and threatened.

As the journalism of Adele Ferguson and Sarah Danckert has demonstrated, these young and vulnerable people have long been the victims of wage fraud while working punishing hours. The Age's investigations have led to law reforms, but more needs to be done. The most recent work of Ferguson and Danckert emphatically shows it is not just the workers who are being illegally short-changed. Franchisees, too, are being driven to despair, bankruptcy, mental illness and marital collapse by the greedy and manipulative choices of franchisors.
Some of the carbon offsets operating under a controversial $2.5 billion fund set up by the Abbott-Turnbull government are at "significant risk" from bushfires, according to a review by the Climate Change Authority.

The audit of the Emissions Reduction Fund, released by the authority on Monday, released by the authority on Monday, found that evidence of systemic problems had yet to emerge, but that there were questions over whether some of the carbon stored under the scheme would have been stored anyway.

The report noted the fund had so far paid out $2.23 billion for 189 million tonnes of emissions reductions, or about $11.80 per tonne. Some 26 million tonnes had already been delivered.

"Overall, this review has found that the ERF is generally performing well," the report said. "It has successfully incentivised new domestic abatement at low cost that will help contribute to Australia meeting its international target commitments."
Call it smart, or perhaps crazy-brave. Noteworthy at least, that a government with a majority of just one chose right now to prosecute the most muscular case against a foreign power since the Cold War, while also contesting a byelection in a seat notable for that country's nationals.

So eager is the Turnbull government to increase Bill Shorten's pain over Sam Dastyari's China connections, that it has dialled to 11 its anti-Beijing espionage/influence warnings, potentially alienating swathes of voters in Bennelong this Saturday.

And right on cue, Labor's Kristina Keneally pounced, branding Malcolm Turnbull's utterances "China-phobic rhetoric" that is causing alarm locally and thus harming John Alexander, the Liberal candidate.

As business interests  including universities  shift uncomfortably in their seats over the anti-China sentiments emanating from Canberra, the Liberal Party seems to have concluded that its 10 per cent margin in the Sydney seat is enough to withstand a small exodus of Chinese-speaking voters who feel insulted on the grounds of race.
What's the difference between an expat and an immigrant? The former brings to mind a carefree barista slinging flat whites in LA; the latter, emotional scenes in airports after Donald Trump's US travel ban. Expat implies a choice has been made. Questions have been asked, merits have been weighed. Which city has the best yoga studio? Where will I pay less income tax? The immigrant, on the other hand, has had less say in the matter, and has gone through hardship to arrive in a place of greater opportunity than their homeland.

Fraught assumptions about race and class simmer below the surface of both descriptions. Perhaps that's why Australians abroad are almost always described as "expats". Think of Germaine Greer, Clive James, Hugh Jackman, Peter Carey. They've made their lives in another country, built careers of a kind which wouldn't be possible at home  yet they'd never be called "immigrants".

Illustration by Simon Letch.

I bristled whenever I was described as such through my 15 years in the US. In a legal sense, I wasn't an immigrant; I was a "resident alien". Even as I accrued a twang and social ties to last a lifetime, I never got my papers. Never felt ready to commit to the country in a more permanent way. Now I realise I was exercising all kinds of privilege in being able to choose. Don't get too comfortable with me being here, I was saying to an indifferent America. I could leave at any time, on a whim. I'm not one of those huddled masses you're so fond of saving. (This was the Obama era; immigrants were still widely seen as a net positive.)

I thought of an Australian friend with a different approach, who's now a US citizen. She and her husband, also dual Australian-American, recently returned to Sydney after years in Manhattan. When I reached my friend for this piece, she wasn't at the beach enjoying the balmy spring day. Instead, she was slaving over a hot stove, preparing the sweet potato casserole and roast turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. That's what Americans do, the third Thursday in November.
Sydney commuters faced chronic overcrowding at train stations in the central city and major delays across the rail network during the evening peak on Monday, after a fatality on tracks at Wentworthville in the outer west early in the morning.

Sydney Trains advised commuters to avoid Town Hall and Wynyard stations due to overcrowding, and walk to other stations such as Central and Martin Place to catch trains, or hold off unnecessary travel due to the "major delays".

Commuters wait to enter Town Hall station, more than 12 hours after a fatality in the city's outer west. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

Station staff at Town Hall temporarily stopped people from entering the station to avoid dangerous overcrowding on platforms during the rush hour.

The death that led to the commuter chaos late in the day occurred at Wentworthville near Parramatta at about 6.30am, resulting in police setting up a crime scene for more than three hours. The incident caused a ripple effect on train services across Sydney's rail network.
A lady lost her life to a man who should never have then been driving, and this driver simply ignores court orders as he drove again just four weeks after being disqualified by the court, he said in 2015. Accordingly the recommendation I make is the issue of a new mid-range driving offence be referred to the Attorney-General to consider changing the law to introduce a new mid-range driving offence between the existing Dangerous Driving offence, and the Driving without Due Care and Attention offence. Two years later, on October 25, Mr OConnell made the same recommendation, well aware the Queensland government was reforming its driving laws. This year, he investigated the March 2016 death of Jo-Anne Peter Fuller in a road accident. The car she was driving was struck head-on in Hervey Bay when a car driven by a "tired" driver, whose licence had also been disqualified, crossed the centre line of a main road.

Mr OConnells investigation found the other driver had been out to nightclubs the night before, had his last alcoholic drink at 2am, went to bed about 4am and got up at 10am to drive. The driver told police at the scene he was feeling "dozy, tired and hazy. No doubt many consider that a person who drives whilst their licence is suspended warrants a higher penalty than a person who holds a valid drivers licence at the time that an incident such as this one occurs, Mr O'Connell said. For the second time in two years, Mr O'Connell recommended the Queensland government introduce a third charge  reckless driving. Whilst it is pleasing to see that the government has announced an increase in certain penalties, it remains that that is only part of the whole issue, he said.

In view of all the circumstances of the matter - particularly the admissions of the driver made at an interview of being tired before the crash occurred and only getting to bed at 4am, a more serious charge of reckless driving - if that new offence was available - would certainly have been a viable option, and may very well have been proven. The [Queensland Police Service] felt that their prosecutorial options were limited due to the absence of a mid-range offence such as reckless driving. A Queensland coroner has twice recommended a new charge of reckless driving be introduced into Queensland. Credit:Max Mason-Hubers The Queensland government instead proposes an extra category of the lesser charge of careless driving with a degree of aggravation, where the maximum fine is $20,184. A person convicted could face two years' jail and losing their licence for at at least six months.

In 1997, 13-year-old Lisa Jensen walked out onto a zebra crossing while on family school holidays at Golden Beach, Caloundra, where she was struck by a car. She and her brother were off to get fish and chips. The initial impact killed me, my heart stopped, Ms Jensen said. The doctors told my parents if I survived, I would not be able to talk. The driver received a suspended jail sentence and lost his licence for 18 months. Ms Jensen was in a coma for 22 days in the Royal Brisbane Hospital, recovered from serious brain injuries, before learning to speak again, completing two degrees to become a science teacher.
Police have released CCTV of a car ploughing into pedestrians in South Bank on Sunday evening.

It will be alleged the driver, a 35-year-old woman, had just been kicked out of the Plough Inn before she allegedly deliberately drove at four random pedestrians on Little Stanley Street.

The moment a car mounts the footpath and heads towards four pedestrians in South Bank. Credit:Queensland Police Service

The alleged incident happened about 6.20pm and left one man with minor injuries.

The Coomera woman allegedly fled the scene at high speed, but was eventually located about 130 kilometres drive away in the Toowoomba suburb of Wilsonton.
Fairfax Media can reveal that vulnerable people seeking psychiatric treatment in state-run hospitals continue to face unacceptable rates of sexual assault and violence, mostly from other patients, amid accusations that some staff are trying to cover up the extent of the problem. Insiders, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have accused managers of failing to log information properly, of doctoring and downplaying reports, or of not immediately alerting police. And Victoria's chief psychiatrist, in a rare public interview, has conceded that the number of serious incidents that land on his desk continues to rise, with a fresh review of guidelines now under way into how allegations of sexual assault should be managed. "I've certainly got more reports," Dr Neil Coventry told Fairfax Media. "Whether that means there's actually been more instances, or that there's a stronger cultural awareness around reporting, I can't say. But my view is that one assault is too many. Every story has a tragedy behind it." The tragedy here is that the issue of sexual safety in the mental health system is not new, yet years of appalling abuses have failed to force the kind of sweeping reform that is needed.

Indeed, alarm bells were ringing years ago, when a 2013 survey by the Victorian Mental Illness Awareness Council found that 45 per cent of women treated in psychiatric hospitals had been sexually assaulted in state care. The study found more than two-thirds  67 per cent  had been sexually harassed and 85 per cent reported feeling unsafe. Fairfax Media has spoken to patients and carers, mental health lawyers, researchers in the field, and state watchdogs  and all fear that too many patients are still being put at risk. "The situation hasn't changed; if anything, I'd have to say we're worse off," says Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, the director of the Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, who has spent decades researching women's mental health and is advocating for single-sex wards. "It's disgraceful." 'It's disgraceful': Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, Director of Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research centre.

While the department has refused to release figures showing the scale of sexual assaults  or indeed, any critical incident reports from the mental health system  an analysis of publicly available data paints a troubling picture. Statistics from Public Advocate Colleen Pearce, for instance, show that Community Visitors  the independent volunteers who visit psychiatric patients as part of unannounced spot-checks  have recorded rising sexual assault and violence allegations every year, from 27 in 2011-12 to 101 last year. "(That) is dangerous by any standards," Ms Pearce says. The Mental Health Complaints Commissioner received 1638 complaints last financial year covering a broad range of matters - 249 more complaints than the year before. The office won't say how many relate to sexual allegations, but the issue sparked enough concern in the past 12 months that it recently commissioned Professor Kulkarni to help with an inquiry into sexual safety in mental health wards. Whether it paves the way for much needed change is yet to be seen. Part of the problem, after all, is cultural: the tendency for women with severe mental disorders to be viewed as "too unreliable" when they make complaints; the inability of some staff to recognise inappropriate behaviour; and an expectation by some that sexual activity in psychiatric wards is unavoidable because acute, drugged-up patients can be "disinhibited" and highly sexualised.

But part of it, too, is that basic protocols simply aren't being followed. As many have pointed out: if this happened in general hospitals, there would likely be a public outcry. Last November, when a woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a male patient in a seclusion unit of Barwon Health's Swanston Centre, it didn't take long for the chief psychiatrist to discover a litany of "serious deficiencies" in the way seclusion areas had long been used. It was an accident waiting to happen: little oversight by staff and too much risk for patients. Public Advocate Colleen Pearce. Concealing a crisis Or take St Vincent's Hospital, when Julie Preston was physically assaulted in the weeks before she was raped. Her carer, Karen Field says she'll never forget arriving at the ward one afternoon to find Julie with a black eye. Yet, it took another two attacks before a male patient was finally removed, she says.

"We know that most women who end up in the mental health system have a history of childhood or sexual abuse, or in some cases both, so you're often dealing with exceedingly high-risk, traumatised individuals," says Ms Field, who now works in social services. "Julie was supposed to be in their care, but it felt like we were on a hiding to nothing." The lack of transparency in reporting has also led to fears that some managers are trying to conceal a growing crisis. Insiders have told Fairfax Media of cases where serious assaults have been downplayed by hospital staff, or of incident reports either being heavily redacted, delayed, or not provided at all. In the push to drive change, some of these concerns have even been documented in annual reports tabled in parliament. After the Barwon Health assault last year, for instance, it took Community Visitors from the Public Advocate's office five months to receive an incident report, despite a departmental code of practice reinforcing their right to view such information. Closer to town, at the Banksia Ward of the Royal Children's Hospital, Community Visitors recently waited an hour to view incident reports that ultimately were not provided. This was despite an agreed protocol in place that was prompted by an earlier assault. In that case, a male teenager was bashed after he refused to perform a sex act on another male patient. Both were in a high dependency unit at the time, with no staff present. As one insider told Fairfax Media: "If you don't know what's going on you can't monitor the situation, and you can't make improvements."

Ice, crowding and a lack of staff So why has it come to this, and what is the solution when the mental health system is a such a complex beast with finite resources? Victoria has 39 acute inpatient units, delivered through 18 designated hospital services, from Eastern Health and Monash Health in metropolitan Melbourne, to Albury Wodonga Health or the New Mildura Base Hospital in regional Victoria. The trouble is, beds and staff are so thinly spread that in order to cope with demand, hospitals have reduced a patients' length of stay and increased the threshold at which they can be admitted to a ward. As a result, the average mental health patient is sicker both on admission and on discharge than they were five years ago. Add to this a chronic lack of funding, the proliferation of ice, and the design of inpatient units  most of which are mixed-sex environments in which male patients tend to outnumber females  and it's not hard to see why the system is under so much strain.

A number of improvements have been made in recent years: gender-sensitive training here; a women's-only lounge there. But most agree there's much more to do. Some, like Health and Community Services Union official Paul Healey are pushing for more staff, with the union claiming there are about 350 state-wide vacancies. Others, like Professor Kulkarni, believe that one way to improve safety is to establish single-sex units, which is how psychiatric wards operated in Victoria until the 1960s. Such a shift took place in the UK in 2006, when the government adopted a strict policy of gender segregation following escalating assaults in inpatient units. Others, however, are not convinced that women's-only wards are the answer. Consensual sex? "One of my concerns is that people had a very black and white view that we're only talking about vulnerable women being preyed on by aggressive males. Yes that happens, but this cuts across all ages and all genders, including people in the LGBTI community," says chief psychiatrist Neil Coventry.

"My view personally, is that units need to be safe for everybody coming in." Coventry cites a range of measures that could be applied instead: more secure rooms with swipe-card-only access; improved staff-to-patient ratios; better risk assessment when patients are admitted and staff are well aware of their history and trauma "triggers". He's also conducting a review of safety guidelines to ensure that staff properly report alleged incidents, admitting that in the past, such disclosures have been "patchy." The new guidelines will encourage hospitals to be more open with families "so there's no sense of a cover-up" and will emphasise the need to fully consider the long term effects of trauma when treating patients. Importantly, they will also seek to clarify an issue that causes ongoing confusion among some staff: that consensual sex between psychiatric patients is appropriate. Put simply, says Coventry, it's not and never can be. "People who come into psychiatric units are very unwell. One must assume they don't have capacity to be making decisions like that, so there's no point thinking about consensual versus non-consensual," he says.
Social housing tenants will drag down the price of private apartments if they're placed in mixed buildings, a major developer says.

Citta Property Group director Stephen McMillan told a parliamentary inquiry that placing social housing tenants in the same building with private apartments created a "much tougher job" for agents trying to sell units.

A public-private housing development in Carlton that the government is using as a model. Credit:Eddie Jim

"If each of the social housing apartments are sprinkled through a private dwelling there is no doubt that building would have to be discounted in the market," he said.

Mr McMillan, whose company is a prospective bidder on the government's social housing development program, said he would need to have a "hard think" if the government insisted on so-called "salt and pepper" developments combining public and private units.
Blue ringed octopuses, tiger sharks and a crayfish punch-up  if you were one of thousands who headed top any of Perth's metropolitan beaches over the weekend, you've probably returned to work on Monday with your own story to tell.

Sunday's warm weather brought complete chaos to boat ramps across Perth, with anxious crayfishers, fishermen and recreational boaters all battling to get their vessels on the water as the temperatures peaked at around 38 degrees.

There was mayhem at Ocean Reef boat ramp on Sunday morning. Credit:Facebook/Nicole Abbott

Some people arrived at Perth boat ramps as early as 3.30am to ensure they were able to get their craft out on the water ahead of the rush.

There were big queues at 6am for the East Fremantle boat ramp, and fishers who arrived after 7.30am to the Ocean Reef boat ramp received a shock with a large backlog of traffic bringing some major roads to a standstill.
Washington: President Donald Trump directed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to send American astronauts back to the moon and eventually to Mars, shifting the agency's mission from the study of Earth.

"This is a giant step toward that inspiring future and toward reclaiming America's proud destiny in space," Trump said on Monday at a White House ceremony, where he signed the new NASA directive. "And space has to do with so many other applications, including a military application. So we are the leader and we're going to stay the leader and we're going to increase it many fold."

Deputy White House Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement that the new policy reflects recommendations from the National Space Council, a White House advisory panel Trump appointed earlier in the year. The White House didn't provide details about how NASA's work to return to the moon would be funded, or whether any current programs would be cut.

"This is the first step in a very long process," John Logsdon, founder and former director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, said in an interview. "The crucial next step is: Is there money for returning to the moon in the budget? It's been 45 years since we've been to the moon, and a lot of people have a lot of ideas."
if the people of Biafra want Republic of Biafra, it will be a reality during my administration. ----Donald Trump Donald Trump I wi...
chinadaily.com.cn

World's largest Class A biology laboratory, ATLATL opens in Zhangjiang "Science City."[Photo/ pudong.gov.cn]

One of the world's largest Class A biology laboratory, ATLATL, has just opened in Zhangjiang "Science City," according to a news report published on the website of Pudong, Shanghai.

The article, dated Dec 7, reports that the new laboratory will further China's research and development in bio-medical sciences, as well as collaborate with entrepreneurs, investors and drug companies on new innovations.

It is certified Class A, the highest standard awarded to a research facility, assessed according to an American evaluation system. There are high requirements on its construction. Multinational pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer, Novartis and Johnson & Johnson are equipped with such facilities.

Class A labs provide researchers a comfortable working environment, secure operating system and enhanced working efficiency. For instance, the ATLATL lab uses space efficiently and shares resources to help new enterprises overcome cost challenges in the initial start-up phase.

Meanwhile ATLATL is trying to attract top researchers from around the world.

Other pharmaceutical companies and research institutions have also settled in Zhangjiang. At present, Zhangjiang has developed an integrated industry value chain that encompasses pharmaceutical research and evaluation, clinical trials, drug registration, manufacturing and marketing.




Whitbread releases coffee infused beer; 1742

Whitbread is celebrating its 275th anniversary with the release of a limited-edition coffee infused beer called 1742.

The beer has been made with Costa's Mocha Italia beans with just 5,000 bottles available at select Premier Inns across the UK.

Combining its coffee roasting with its brewing heritage, 1742 will be Whitbreads first beer since it turned off the taps in 2000. Partnering with Black Sheep Brewery, Whitbread has created a coffee stout using WGV, one of Whitbreads original hops.

Marking the year Whitbread was born, 1742 is a beer that tells a story, from Samuel Whitbreads beginings as a brewer in London, to becoming the third oldest company in the FTSE 100. Built on a history of innovation, Whitbread was the first brand to pair beer with food, and use celebrities in its advertising campaigns. Whitbread bought Costa Coffee in 1995.

Alison Brittain, Whitbread chief executive comments: 275 years is a huge milestone for Whitbread, its an occasion to celebrate our heritage, history of innovation and most importantly, the people  our 50,000 employees  who make it what it is today. As a company that has evolved with consumer tastes and trends, 1742 seemed the perfect way to both tell our story and celebrate.

Gennaro Pelliccia, Costas master of coffee comments: What better way to celebrate Whitbreads rich history of innovation, than by combining our past brewing expertise with the nations favourite Costa Coffee Mocha Italia blend? 1742 celebrates the current growth and trend of coffee and craft beer  offering a smooth and creamy coffee flavoured beer with a touch caramel. Its a truly unique drink that Im excited for customers to try. Cheers to Whitbread!

11 December 2017 - Sam Coyne The Drinks Report, news editor
Update: The name of the driver killed in Saturday's wreck has been released. Maria Palomares, 63, died at CHI St. Joseph hospital.

A two-car accident that killed a 63-year-old Bryan woman over the weekend remained under investigation by College Station police late Sunday. The accident happened at about 12:45 p.m. Saturday in the 900 block of University Drive, not far from the Texas A&M campus.

The woman who died was driving west on University Drive turning left into a parking lot when her car was hit by an eastbound vehicle, according to police, who added that the woman's vehicle rolled several times and hit a tree. The passenger in the woman's car and both occupants of the other vehicle were taken to the College Station Medical Center.

The extent of their injuries was not known Sunday. The woman was pronounced dead at CHI St. Joseph hospital in Bryan.The name of the driver killed was not released pending notification of family. Police said she was not wearing a seat belt.
President Donald Trump inherited a Middle East convulsed by crisis and civil war with two fragile exceptions: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Iran's nuclear program, both of which were quiescent. With two impulsive, egotistical decisions, taken against the strong recommendations of his national security team, he has endangered the status quo on both fronts. Now the question is whether Congress or European allies will save him from a potentially disastrous third strike.

The similarities between Trump's refusal to recertify the Iranian nuclear deal in October and his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital last week are striking - and revealing. In each case, he was presented with a congressionally mandated requirement to renew a policy of previous presidents. His secretaries of defense and state urged him to preserve it, lest he disrupt U.S. policies and endanger U.S. interests across the Middle East and beyond.

Each time, Trump bridled - essentially flipping over the table and insisting he would not do what Barack Obama or George W. Bush or Bill Clinton would have done. He made no secret of the fact that his primary - maybe his sole - motivation was to prove that he was a different and somehow better president. "Previous presidents . . . failed to deliver," he boasted in announcing the Jerusalem move. "I am delivering."

Trump's advisers have scrambled to embed these impetuous decisions into something resembling a strategy: a bid to enlist Congress and European allies in a campaign to fill the loopholes in the nuclear deal; a Mideast peace plan that draws Palestinians and Arabs back into diplomacy. But this is window dressing. In fact, neither Trump nor anyone else in the administration planned beyond his decisions or is prepared for their fallout - whether it is renewed violence in the Palestinian territories or a deepening rift with vital allies.

Some of that reckoning is already occurring. Rex Tillerson, Trump's beleaguered secretary of state, got an icy reception when he arrived in Brussels last week for a European tour. Descriptions of Trump's Jerusalem decision by European ministers included terms such as "very dangerous" and "catastrophic." Predictably, rioting broke out in the West Bank; Americans can only hope that Arab extremists elsewhere are too preoccupied with other conflicts to lead Benghazi-style assaults on U.S. targets.

Iran stands to be the biggest beneficiary of Trump's recklessness. The Jerusalem recognition will make it harder for the United States to counter Iranian aggression across the region through an alliance including the Persian Gulf states, Jordan and, tacitly, Israel, because that alliance is now split by the Jerusalem question. Iran's proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah, is calling for another Palestinian uprising. If it occurs, the Palestinian Authority's secular Sunni leader, Mahmoud Abbas, probably will be swept away - and Iran's ally Hamas empowered.

Tehran's biggest gain will come if Trump makes a third china-breaking choice that is looming on the horizon. His decertification of the nuclear deal gave Congress 60 days - until this week - to decide on the reimposition of sanctions on Iran. It will not do so, which means that in January, Trump will be presented with yet another legally mandated decision on whether to preserve the sanctions' suspension or blow up the nuclear deal once and for all.

His staff, congressional leaders from both parties and European leaders worry about another senseless but attention-grabbing rupture. Because U.N. inspectors have repeatedly certified Iran's compliance, neither Europeans nor Russia and China - the other parties to the pact - would accept Trump's voiding of the accord. The regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would have a delicious choice: either stick with the deal and isolate the United States, or use the reimposition of U.S. sanctions as an excuse to resume the stockpiling of highly enriched uranium. Trump would have no recourse but a war for which the United States is entirely unprepared.

There is a quiet scurry among congressional and European leaders to head off this disaster. Republican and Democratic leaders on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week discussed possible legislation with national security adviser H.R. McMaster, sources told me. The idea is to provide for some additional constraint on Iran that does not violate the existing deal and is acceptable to the Europeans - a tricky, and perhaps impossible, needle to thread. This would be balanced by a new curb on Trump, such as a provision impeding him from voiding the nuclear agreement without congressional consent.

The Europeans would consent to work with the administration on steps to stop Iran's development of long-range missiles, which are not covered by the accord - again, on condition that Trump not break the existing pact.

This bipartisan, transatlantic effort to simultaneously appease and hem in the U.S. president has few precedents. It may well fail. But Trump's demonstrated willingness, in his ignorance and opportunism, to endanger vital American and Western interests has made it urgent.

mideast-trump-comment
Making a return to our two favourite summer locations, Mount Maunganui and Nelson in early January 2023, we've got whiff of the first release lineup and me oh my, yes boy
To Grand Island Senior High senior Ashley Bogatz, not only has she changed the GISH Air Force Junior ROTC program, but the program has changed her as well.

Bogatz entered the second semester of her freshman year following a move to Grand Island from Highlands Ranch, Colo., and was looking to try something new. To earn her P.E. credits, she decided to join the AFJROTC program.

It definitely helped me make a lot more friends, Bogatz said. When I got here, everybody was just so nice. We get to know each other well. It helped me get out of my comfort zone a lot because before coming here and joining ROTC, I was a very closed person. I didnt have many close friends at all. After (joining ROTC), I could definitely tell I was coming out of my shell a lot.

Starting out as a freshman in the AFJROTC program, she did not do much of any community service work. Her sophomore year, she said the ROTC cadet leaders helped push her and motivate her to do more within the program.

I got into some color guard then and did some community service, Bogatz said. I realized it was a lot of fun, so I did more and I got more involved. I just kept opening up.

At the beginning of her junior year, Bogatz was given a leadership position as a team leader in charge of a community service event at The Salvation Army.

I had everything all planned out and it was super successful, she said of the community service event. It was such a huge accomplishment to me and I wanted to do more. It just got me really focused on wanting to do more.

The following semester, Bogatz earned her first position on staff in logistics. From there, she said she pushed herself really hard and ended up in a leadership position as one of four cadet sergeants in the AFJROTC program.

I was dead-set on getting a leadership position, Bogatz said. I really wanted to be up there so I could help people and so I could help the corp find ways to get things done.

Through hard-work and determination, Bogatz accomplished her goal as she was named a cadet sergeant for the 2017-18 school year.

When they offered me the position, I was in tears, she said. It is a very big honor to be in the top four.

AFJROTC instructor Lt. Col. Don McQuown said he has been impressed by how much Bogatz has progressed in her four years in the program.

Her first year, she was kind of observing and seeing what was going on. The second year, she started to step up a little bit more, McQuown said. Then the third year, she really blossomed, started doing a whole bunch of stuff, participating more and really leading the corp. That is what advanced her into the position she has now.

Bogatz said some of her involvements within the AFJROTC program have included doing color guards, serving at The Salvation Army and being involved in the community. As a cadet sergeant this year, she said one of her key involvements has been leading a cadet-led inspection by HQ AFJROTC. Every three years, HQ AFJROTC dispatches an Air Force colonel to inspect and review the AFJROTC program.

There was a lot of pressure because it is cadet-led. We had to get the inspection done ourselves, Bogatz said. To fail the corp, I cannot even begin to think of how upsetting that would have been. For months, we worked and worked, and pushed.

In the end, the GISH AFJROTC program earned a rating of Exceeds Standards, the best rating the program could receive.

I think that it was challenging, but was a weight lifted off my shoulder, Bogatz said. Being a leader, there are going to be challenges and things you have to overcome. But any good leader is going to find a way to get over that and keep going.

McQuown said he admires Bogatzs leadership skills and her ability to speak to the AFJROTC cadets.

She can get in front of the cadets and she can motivate them or chew them out without it being personal, he said. That is knack. Not a lot of people can do that because their eyes and their expressions make it look like it is personal. She doesnt do that when she is upset with them. She can say it without them feeling like it is a personal attack. That is a leadership quality that few people can master and she has mastered that.

But, McQuown said the thing that really makes Bogatz special is her character. He said there are three character traits she possesses that make her stand out: service, excellence and integrity.

Her sense of service to the GISH AFJROTC program sets her apart, McQuown said. It is service that is not selfish, but truly centered on the growth of the corps. When it comes to excellence, she completes every endeavor with 100 percent effort. Also, her integrity to her word is her bond. I have no doubt about what Ashley says or how she will attack a project. She is a bright star for the Grand Island community.

AFJROTC instructor Master Sgt. Mike Evans echoed McQuowns comments, calling Bogatz a good kid.

When I have asked her to do things, she gets things done, Evans said. She has a good sense of humor, too. She is one of those kids you want to be around. Ashley is a go-getter. I do not see her not accomplishing anything she puts her mind to.

Upon her graduation from GISH, Bogatz said she plans to enlist in the military and go to boot camp this summer. From there, she plans to join the National Guard or the Reserves while attending college, before switching to active duty once she earns her degree.

I want to be a combat nurse in the military, Bogatz said. That is something I really want to do because I know they really need that in the military. They are looking for combat nurses to go out and help people. That was something that I really wanted to do and it is within the career field I am interested in.

Bogatz said she has applied to Creighton University and the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, and plans on applying to Chadron State College. She said Creighton is her top choice for college.

As for her future, Bogatz gives credit to the AFJROTC program for making her the person she is today.

I thought I was not going to go anywhere in life, but I pushed myself and got out of my shell to become a leader and to get where I am, she said. I just want people to know that you have to keep pushing yourself. You have to just have to want and keep being motivated to do something. Thats how I was. I saw what I wanted, I kept making goals and those are goals I really want to accomplish.
Dale Crandell has a kind face that people remember. Even President John F. Kennedy remembered him by name as they passed each other walking through the White House.

Crandell, 81, is devoted to helping others and volunteering his time, especially with his culinary talents.

He is involved in the United Methodist Men group from Trinity United Methodist, and has helped with the soup supper at the Live Nativity at Fonner Park since 1983. Last year was the first year he didnt lead the soup supper, as the Volunteers in Mission now head it up. However, Crandell still helps out each year with the meal that prepares enough for about 400 people. He said it takes about four days of preparation.

Sometimes the recipes dont show up, and I have those in my head, Crandell said.

And, of course, someone has to taste-test the soup, so Crandell now steps in for that.

Grand Island is a pretty giving town, Crandell said, referencing the soup supper.

Dale and his wife, Gay, volunteer at several places in town. They both volunteer at the Crane Trust in Alda and at the Nebraska State Fair. Dale is originally from Kimball and Gay is from Blair.

The Crandells said they go wherever were needed.

Each year, Dale makes 40 dozen cookies for the State Fair volunteers, just because. Among the varieties he makes are oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip, cowboy and molasses.

Dales cookies are so good, Gay said their niece hid a stack so she could have some for herself. He makes the cookies and other treats and candies for Christmas, too. Dale started putting the cookies in a Pringles can so his family could take them home. He said his daughter hid the cookies in the can and placed them on top of the fridge because her kids kept eating them all, and she wanted some left for herself.

Crandell said he tricked his kids into eating raisins in his oatmeal cookies. Dale purees the raisins before putting them in the mix, so his kids couldnt tell the difference.

Its just creation, Crandell said about why he likes to cook and bake. I liked to do it and I always have.

He said he grew up on a farm, but never liked blood, especially when branding time came around. As a boy, he asked his mom if he could help her in the house instead. Thats where he learned his culinary skills, from his mother and grandmother.

Thats the best place to learn, Crandell said.

Also a hobby woodworker, Crandell was drafted into the Marines in the 1950s. He and Gay married in 1960. Dale then worked for IBM and was on duty in the White House. He recalls meeting JFK and his family, President Lyndon B. Johnson, and many other staff members including Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, speechwriter and Nebraska native Ted Sorensen, and LBJs assistant Jack Valenti. He said he met JFK once, and when he passed him in the White House hall, Kennedy greeted him by name. Crandell said Kennedy was always kind and he was impressed he greeted him by name, even if an assistant helped him remember.

Crandell said he remembers an amusing story from his days in Washington. He had to fix something and set his toolbox down. JFK Jr., a boy then, got into Crandells toolbox and started playing with it.

How do you tell the presidents son to get the heck out of there? Crandell said.

Crandell said he remembers the environment in the White House on Nov. 22, 1963, when JFK was assassinated. He said it was very somber. Crandell said he remembers everyone rotating in and out.

There was no time to breathe, he said.

Kennedys staff was out and Johnsons staff was in within a day of JFKs death. The Crandells left Washington, D.C., in 1965 and moved to Omaha before coming to Grand Island.

He said he gets to meet many different people between volunteering at the Crane Trust, the State Fair and being involved in his church.
President Trumps son-in-law and designated Middle East peace envoy, Jared Kushner, told the Brookings Institutions Saban Forum recently that a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is key to solving larger goals, such as stopping Iranian aggression and Islamic extremism.

If he believes that, he has fallen into the trap numerous and more seasoned diplomats have experienced.

The most obvious impediment to peace in the region is a religious one. A visceral hatred of Jews is promoted in Palestinian media and many mosques and schools throughout the region. The destruction of Israel and elimination of Jews from land that has been historically and legitimately theirs for thousands of years is their goal. Radical Islamists believe Allah has ordered it. Why would they risk perdition by violating his command?

Duplicity and deception are the coin of the realm in the Middle East. It is why many Palestinian leaders say one thing to the West and another to their own people.

Here is one of many examples, which contradicts what Palestinian leaders say to Western ears. In a 2013 interview on Syrian TV, Abbas Zaki, a close associate of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the Palestinian Authority would not enter into any peace agreement with Israel unless it includes Israels withdrawal to indefensible 1967 borders. Zaki stated: Even the most extreme among us, Hamas, or the fighting forces, want a state within the 67 borders. Afterward, we [will] have something to say, because the inspiring idea cannot be achieved all at once. [Rather] in stages.

In other words, incremental steps toward a shared goal: the elimination of the Jewish state, which Iranian mullahs have described as a cancer in the Middle East.

Does this sound like the language of people who wish to live in a peaceful state adjacent to Israel? A person not deceived by the mirage of a Middle East peace agreement should consider the numerous and unreciprocated concessions Israel has already made to advance the peace process, which seems more like a war process from the Arab and Palestinian perspective.

This is all about increasing pressure on Israel to do more, as if Israel were the one advocating genocide. Many Palestinian and Arab leaders hate Israel (and Jews) not for what they do or dont do, but because they exist. If Mr. Kushner believes he can be a peace broker without understanding and accepting this basic fact, he is bound to end up like all the others who have inserted themselves into the region.

What is the answer, if there is one?

Writing in the Israeli publication, Al-Monitor, following President Trumps visit to Saudi Arabia in May, columnist Akia Eldar says: ... (an) American president may be able to bring the sides to the table, if he is lucky, but they will only eat what is on it if they are dying of hunger. He would have realized that the hunger for peace only comes after the thirst for blood is quenched.

Isnt that what happened when Egyptian President Anwar Sadat decided enough blood had been spilt and made peace with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin?

As unlikely as it might seem, perhaps the road to settlement and stability might go through Riyadh. While Saudi Arabia has been a principal exporter of an extremist view of Islam through its media, funding mosques in Western countries and textbooks for school children that promote anti-Semitism, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has said he wants a return to a more moderate Islam that allows for peaceful co-existence with other religions and the world.

One eagerly awaits such a transforming message within Islam, but will other Islamic countries who also hate Jews and Israel accept this move toward peaceful co-existence when, and if, it comes?

Does Kushner fully understand what he has gotten himself into?
The top 35 artworks from students in seven metro east high schools are on display currently in the DeToye Student Gallery of the Edwardsville Arts Center. The art is a part of the EACs annual Southwestern Conference Art Competition, a juried show between Alton, Belleville East, Belleville West, Collinsville, East St. Louis, Edwardsville and OFallon High Schools.

EAC Gallery Manager Carolyn Tidball explained that Mike Gesiakowski served as the judge for this years competition. Hes a teacher at John Burroughs, a graduate of SIUE in ceramics and also has a background in graphic design. So hes been working in the arts for many years, she said.

The competition awards individuals for first, second, third, fourth, and two honorable mentions. Then a school is awarded the Southwestern Conference school winner. Schools are also awarded for second and third place for the conference title.

Belleville Wests Sofia Sierra won first place with her colored pencil drawing entitled Circle Game. Its very colorful and vibrant, and she did a great job with the aspects of the face and body. Hands are really difficult to do so that was impressive to the judge, Tidball noted. This piece is obviously very technically skilled, but also the use of color is really interesting and brings a lot more to the piece than just a portrait.

Second place went to Alton High Schools Noah Bevenour for his photography piece entitled, The Boy Hiding Inside The Boy. This piece is interesting because theres a theme of repetition with the red, Tidball pointed out. Theres the red shirt, the red brick, the red frame, another red frame, another red frame, and then another red shirt.

You can tell from the title theres an interesting concept going on and there was some thought put into the composition of this piece, and it means something to him, Tidball added. Hes putting thought into his technique as well as the concept. When you can blend those two together  your skill and your concept  that often makes for a really interesting artwork.

Edwardsville High Schools Maria Grimm was awarded third place for her graphite on paper portrait entitled Portrait with Big Hair. The judge commented that she did a really great job with the features of the face which are really hard to do, Tidball said. He thought she did a really great job with the hair. Hair is hard to do. Especially messy hair rather than one big clump. She did a great job of sort of separating out the pieces.

Jordan Baskette from OFallon High School earned fourth place honors with a sculpture entitled, An Eternal Thought. Its another portrait piece thats also combined with an interesting concept, Tidball explained. This person sculpted a face and a hand. We talked about how those are difficult to do. Hands are easy to make look clunky and awkward. They are pretty complex things. They are very hard. Sculpting the face theres a whole other aspect for you to think about. You have to make it 3D, Youre not just using shapes to create the illusion of 3D you have to get the curves just right. This person did a great job of that.

The two honorable mentions went to Belleville West High Schools Emily Wiemer for her mixed media entitled, Metastasis and to Nigel Hilgert from Alton High School for his photography and mixed media piece entitled Les Poteauv Telephoniques DAlton.

The judge awarded the Southwestern Conference awards by ranking the 35 art pieces from one to 35. He then added up the points for each high school and awarded first place to the school with the lowest points. Alton High School placed first, Belleville West High School placed second and Belleville East High School took third place honors.

The Southwestern Conference Art Show will be shown at the EAC, located at 6165 Center Grove Road in Edwardsville, until Dec. 29. EACs hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and it is closed Sunday through Tuesday.
Illinois Lt. Governor Evelyn Sanguinetti will be at the Glen Carbon Police Department on Tuesday to honor the achievement of the departments intergovernmental cooperation of the 911 and dispatch center.

The Glen Carbon Police Department, the Maryville Police and Fire departments and the Glen Carbon Fire Protection District entered into an intergovernmental agreement to share the services and costs of one emergency dispatch center and public safety answering pointSanguinettis office recently published the first annual Journal of Local Government Shared Service Best Practices that highlighted the best examples in the state of shared government.

The publication is the result of the Local Government Consolidation and Unfunded Mandate Task Force that made 27 public policy recommendations to make local government more efficient, effective and streamlined.

According to Sanguinetti, the core of the effort was the firm belief that local leaders and residents know what is best for their communities and the communities should be empowered to find solutions that will serve their unique interest.

The examples in the report were collected via a survey distributed by many local governments. My office received more than 230 responses to the survey, from which the best practices were selected, Sanquinetti said. The Glen Carbon Police Department was one of 27 shared-practice partnerships that serve as the best examples in Illinois of local governments working together to drive more effective and efficient local government for their communities.

Glen Carbon Chief of Police Todd Link said the goals of the dispatch center project were to save money for the communities involved, eliminate duplicate services and to deliver more efficient emergency services to the communities involved.

As a result of the collaboration Link said the project has created a much closer and cooperative relationship between all of the partner agencies.

Sanguinetti said she hopes the programs highlighted in the report will serve as inspiration for other communities to build momentum for additional legislative changes at the state level.
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Linkedin Imanuddin Razak (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 08:17 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cd82f1 1 Opinion Indonesian-Military,#TNI,TNI,Jokowi,#Jokowi,Jokowi-administration,#GatotNurmantyo,Gatot-Nurmantyo,Hadi-Tjahjanto Free

The handover of the baton of command in the Indonesian Military (TNI) from Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo to Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto on Saturday was the climax of a political drama in the country over the past few weeks.

In reality, the power transfer cannot be viewed in isolation from the idiosyncratic leadership style of the President, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the TNI, when assessing and promoting his aides.

The ceremony on Saturday was the result of a long and carefully thought through evaluation of Gatots performance after two years and five months at the helm of the TNI. Traditionally and systematically, power transfers in the TNI involve a long-term and thorough career-development system.

Yet, the quick process of the TNI succession  starting from President Joko Jokowi Widodos nomination of Hadi as the sole candidate on Dec. 4 and the House of Representatives approval of Hadis candidacy on Dec. 7 until the issuance of presidential decrees on the immediate transfer of the TNI leadership, even though Gatot still had three more months of military service, raised many eyebrows. Speculation was rife that the whole process of the change of guard went beyond normal procedures and considerations.

There is no ruling on when a president can replace a TNI chief, because it is entirely his or her prerogative. However, normally a TNI commander is replaced as his retirement age of 58 years old nears. It is possible, though rare, for a president to extend the tenure of a TNI commander.

It was therefore not exceptional for President Jokowi to order Gatots immediate replacement despite the latter not retiring until mid-March next year.

Records reveal that it was not the first time for Jokowi to order the immediate replacement of a state official who had not yet arrived at retirement age. The President dismissed then National Police chief Gen. Sutarman in January 2015, nine months before the latters retirement. Jokowi named Sutarmans deputy, Badroddin Haiti, the new police chief.

The presidential decree on Sutarmans dismissal, dated Jan. 16, 2015, did not specifically stipulate the reasons behind the change of leadership. But the media and observers had speculated that the early succession in the police corps had a correlation with the unfinished prosecution of the founder of the controversial tabloid Obor Rakyat, Setiyardi Budiono, and its editor, Darmawan Sepriyossa, who had been named suspects in publishing hate speech and defamation against Jokowi.

The President has also replaced several ministers because of their failure to meet his expectations, stipulated in a memorandum of understanding each minister signed before he or she took office.

Perhaps in a similar fashion, Jokowis decision to expedite the power transfer in the TNI headquarters might have had something to do with the failure of Gatot to live up to the Presidents expectations. It should be borne in mind that it was Jokowi who nominated Gatot for the top TNI post in 2015.

Gatot issued a number of controversial statements and policies that reportedly discomfited the President. At the 71st anniversary of the TNI last year, Gatot issued a statement calling for the reinstatement of TNI soldiers political rights. He was also present among participants of the Dec. 2, 2016 rally demanding the prosecution of then Jakarta governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama for blasphemy and later on jumped to the defense of the rally participants against the allegation that the demonstration was aimed at toppling President Jokowi.

Gatot was in disagreement with Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu over the TNI budget management in February this year. He also controversially organized screenings of the Sept. 30, 1965 movie, a move that was personally opposed by Jokowi himself, who wanted to see the movie remade, to accommodate fairer accounts of the parties affected by the 1965 tragedy.

The last controversy Gatot stirred up was in October when he revealed unauthorized arms imports by non-military institutions. Later on it was revealed that the weapons were for use by the State Intelligence Agency and the National Police.

The political dynamics sped up after the President, through State Secretary Pratikno, submitted Hadis name for the TNI chiefs post to the House last Monday. It was reported that as recently as a month ago Jokowi was still of a mind to replace Gatot upon his retirement in March.

A shift in the Presidents mind came after the Houses Commission I overseeing defense interviewed Hadi and approved his nomination last Wednesday. The decision was upheld in a House plenary session on the following day.

One significant turning point appears to have been a statement by Gatot last Tuesday, when he called for the handover of the TNI leadership immediately after the House endorsed Hadis nomination as the next TNI chief. The statement was made after Gatot met President Jokowi at the Bogor Palace earlier in the day.

Deciding to reshuffle the top brass in the military is within the political domain of the President. However, the whole process of the recent TNI succession is worth examining closely, especially because the April 2019 presidential election is approaching. We can therefore assume that further surprising developments may continue even after the military reshuffle.
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Linkedin Fahmi M. Nasir and Hidayatul Ihsan (The Jakarta Post) Kuala Lumpur/Padang  Mon, December 11, 2017 15:36 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce9b5f 3 Opinion islamic-finance,waqf,#Islam,#IslamicFinanceforSDGs,development,development-fund Free

Endowments from Muslims or waqf have played an important role in the social and economic development of Muslim societies. However, many waqf properties in Indonesia suffer from abuse and neglect due to many reasons.

Newly elected chairman of the Indonesian Waqf Board (BWI) Mohammad Nuh in his inaugural speech urged the transformation of the great potential of waqf into a real force to increase welfare in various fields and to support the national economy.

Current development of waqf is hindered by five core issues i.e. misperception, legislation, governance, professionalism and the availability of funding, according to Securities Commission Malaysia in 2014.

First is the misperception. Waqf is traditionally associated with religious purposes such as mosques and Islamic boarding schools or pesantren. However, Daud Bakar, the chairman of the shariah advisory council at the Central Bank of Malaysia, has pointed out that waqf is a financial institution with potential to finance various projects. Murat Cizakca of Turkey, a leading scholar in the comparative economics and Islamic civilisation, explains that waqf can significantly reduce government expenditure by providing many essential services such as health, education, infrastructure, municipal, and etc. Back in 1948, endowments from Acehnese Muslims helped Indonesia buy its first two airplanes to fight colonial aggression.

Second, regulation plays an important role in revitalizing waqf institutions. To some extent the Law No. 41/2004 on waqf has encouraged the government and civil society to manage waqf assets productively, while many previous regulations on waqf did not cover the issue comprehensively, according to Uswatun Hasanah, an Indonesian expert earlier involved in the drafting of the law. Among others this law lay the basis for the BWI for developing and improving Indonesias waqf assets.

However, some important issues such as the provisions of a survey or census on waqf and tax incentives are lacking in the current law.

A survey on waqf is crucial in mapping the current problems and status of waqf assets. Existing literature often mentions the big potential of Indonesias waqf assets, no precise data is available so far. Certainly, many stakeholders are eager to know the real potential. The survey could also provide the updated database of waqf properties across the country, which in turn would influence the development and governance of waqf in the future.

Hence, revision towards Waqf Law No. 41/2004 is necessary, particularly related to census and tax incentive. Provisions for a census in the waqf law could enforce allocation for the purpose in the national budget. Meanwhile, the inclusion of tax incentive could encourage more people to create a new waqf.

The next pressing matters are governance and professionalism. The BWI could learn from the Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) in managing waqf effectively and efficiently. In 2000, MUIS corporatized its Property Development Department into a wholly owned subsidiary called Warees Investments Pte Ltd (Warees). Subsequently, MUIS handles all administrative and regulatory matters, while Warees focuses on the income-generating development of waqf assets.

In discharging its responsibility, Warees is putting the right people in the right jobs. Zaini Osman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Warees asserted that its staff comprise task-oriented, technology-savvy individuals and most importantly are professionals in various fields such as finance and accounting, real estate, engineering, architecture, economics and statistics, Islamic finance, business administration, marketing, construction management and project management.

Finally, the issues of financing waqf properties should also be addressed to speed up the revival of waqf. Sadly in Indonesia waqf institutions are largely not bankable and hardly have a channel to financial institutions in financing the development of their properties.

With the current development of Islamic finance in Indonesia and across the globe, various modes of financing are available to support waqf institutions. Magda Ismail Abdel Mohsen and other researchers have examined 95 cases of waqf development in 11 countries. They found that Turkey, Malaysia, Singapore, Sudan, Indonesia, Iran, New Zealand, Kuwait, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh used 13 classic and innovative modes of financing waqf properties.

Among the modes of financing are substitutions, long lease, construction financing, diminishing partnership, build, operate and transfer schemes; build, lease and transfer schemes, joint ventures, sukuk/partnership bond, partnership, self-finance/donations, waqf shares, corporate waqf and waqf entrepreneurship.

We can also learn from the successful sukuk issuance for the development of waqf assets in Singapore and Saudi Arabia. In Singapore, sukuk musharakah (Islamic investment certificate which allows investors to have rights of ownership of the asset) was introduced to develop commercial building on waqf land in Bencoolen Street in 2002. In Saudi Arabia the issuance of sukuk al-intifa (timeshare) has been successfully implemented to develop the Zamzam Tower in Makkah.

Back in 2006, there were sparks of interest towards waqf in Indonesia when every pilgrim from Aceh province received supplementary money for accommodation in Makkah from the provincial administration. From then on, every pilgrim from Aceh has been receiving between Rp 4.3 million to Rp 7.2 million from the income of the local waqf body, the Bait al-Asyi Waqf, which was established in 1809 through crowd-funding by the Acehnese community of that period. This indicates that, if the waqf properties are managed effectively, the profit generated from those assets would be very promising.

The newly appointed Indonesian waqf board commissioners should identify priorities in the near future. With good planning, careful implementation and better administration, the revival of waqf institutions in Indonesia is only a matter of time.

***

Fahmi M. Nasir is the founder of the Center for Study and Consultancy of Waqf, Jeumpa DMeusara and Ph. D Student in waqf law and governance at Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws, International Islamic University Malaysia. Hidayatul Ihsan is a lecturer at Padang State Polytechnic.

---------------

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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
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Linkedin Prapti Widinugraheni (The Jakarta Post) Perth  Mon, December 11, 2017 08:53 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cd9598 4 Books books,#books,Indonesian-literature,diaspora,Indonesian-writer Free

Through genres ranging from self-help and travel to childrens fiction, old peoples biographies, personal memoirs, scholarly non-fiction and everything in between, new Indonesian authors are reaching out to the public to tell their story, share their knowledge and sometimes, attempt a bit of everything.

Among the non-historical subsection of books that has recently emerged and seems to have piqued public interest is the story of the diaspora: the Indonesians living abroad and making their mark in a land far away.

To many Indonesians, being able to read about places that would otherwise be unimaginable (and unattainable) is perhaps why narratives about contemporary diasporic characters, both real and fact-based fictitious, have found a niche in the popular inspirational-reading market.

For example, there is the diaspora-themed novel Green Card (2014, Gramedia Pustaka Utama) by Ramdani Sirait about the life and dreams of struggling Indonesians living in America.

Having been the New York-based correspondent of national news agency Antara in the early 2000s, Ramdani had plenty of material to work with and more than enough inspiration to create characters that resonated with the average Indonesian dreamer/explorer.

Then there are diasporic non-fiction books: these tend to be compiled chapters by overseas Indonesians  personal accounts, valuable experiences, life-lessons learned  edited by one or two writers.

Examples of this include Surat dari Rantau (Letters from Foreign Lands, 2015, Kreasi Mitramedia Utama), edited by Bina Bektiati and Nugroho Dewanto, containing snippets of insights by about two dozen diasporic Indonesians; Going Global (2017, Grasindo), Ramdanis first diaspora-themed non-fiction, encouraging aspiring members of the diaspora to explore the world.

And most recently, there is the lengthy-titled Berlibur, Berburu Beasiswa, Belajar, Bekerja dan Bermukim di Australia Barat (2017, Gramedia Pustaka Utama), written by Novi Wilkinson and a small band of other Indonesians living in Western Australia. This book is about everything listed in the title: holidaying, pursuing scholarships, studying, working and living in Western Australia.

When authors of diaspora-themed books are asked why they write, two themes seem to emerge. The first is a desire to share knowledge.

In a recent interview, Novi described how her struggle to find practical information about Perth inspired her writing. When I first arrived in Perth I didnt know where places were, or how to do things, she said.

Soon she met other Indonesians who shared her frustration and eventually became the books co-writers. Contributors to Berlibur, Berburu include students living in Perth for up to four years: some are scholarship-holders with families, some are single self-funding students, others are working-holiday visa-holders.

Co-author Tio Novita Efriani said the books many writers exposed readers to a variety of experiences and perspectives. Its not always easy being part of the diaspora and readers will learn about some of the hardships weve had, such as what its like to live as a single-parent scholarship-holder with kids and having to temporarily leave a spouse behind.

While recent arrivals and temporary diaspora members like Novi and Tio tend to write about surviving and thriving in a new country, Indonesians who have lived overseas for much longer have a second reason for writing  that is, to give back to the country.

These diasporic Indonesian writers have gained permanent residency, perhaps obtained foreign citizenship, and readily call their adopted country home.

Monique Arianto, a mother of two young girls, is a Perth-based author of a childrens fiction book titled Kamu Anak Hebat! (You Are a Super Kid!, 2017, Gramedia Pustaka Utama).

This book is my response to Indonesias current sad state of affairs; I hope it will help Indonesian children navigate the moral uncertainty and polarizing hatred that seems so prevalent today, she said. As a permanent Australian resident living a comfortable life, she could have chosen to do nothing, But I felt writing this book was something I had to do.

Kamu Anak Hebat! tells the story of friends who face ethical dilemmas and friendship issues. Written bilingually with paragraphs alternating between Bahasa Indonesia and English, the book contains four stories carrying moral messages encouraging appropriate behaviour.

Monique said she was amazed at how well her book was received by the publisher, who agreed it was a timely topic for Indonesian children today. The book has since been reprinted and distributed to children living in remote eastern Indonesia.

As travelers, workers, spouses and students of the Indonesian diaspora write their stories, they are finding support for their work in Indonesian publishing houses. This suggests there is a sizable market of compatriots ready to read them. But that is another story.
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Linkedin Rumy Doo (The Korea Herald/Asia News Network)  Mon, December 11, 2017 18:03 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cefef4 2 Art & Culture K-pop,South-Korea Free

K-pop may have led to an increased interest in Korean among foreign students, but those seeking to study the language in higher level education still face huge obstacles, according to professor Ross King.



King, a Canadian national who has been helming the Department of Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia since 2008, says that compared to nine years ago, the base has expanded for Korean studies abroad. The rise of K-pop has been a contributing factor, he says.



K-pop is definitely a big motivation for students who want to learn beginner Korean, King told The Korea Herald in an interview at the Academy of Korean Studies in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province Friday. The Korean language and literature scholar was attending a conference on the translation of Korean classics.



The vast majority of the population at UBC seeking to study Korean are ethnically Chinese, King points out, because K-pop is so popular among Asian and Asian-Canadian students. Korean can also be useful for career prospects if theyre going to work in Asia, he added.



Two decades ago, meanwhile, Korean studies classes consisted mainly of second-generation Korean-Canadians, or kyopo. Now, theyre all gone, King says, possibly due to greater access to Korean culture via the internet -- theres no need for kyopo to take courses to reconnect with their roots.



But the challenges remain more prominent than ever for foreign students who aim to study pre-modern, classical Korean literature, King says. Unlike in the past, the issue is no longer about a lack of funding, but how the money is being used, he points out.



Ten, 15, 20 years ago ... Korea was a poor developing country. Now, theres too much money and people dont know what to do with it, he said. There are plenty of talented foreign students who would love to study and translate Korean classics, but there are no graduate fellowships, no sufficient opportunities for them to come to Korea and learn Hanmun, he said, referring to the writing system used in Korea until the 1400s that borrowed Chinese characters.



The problem lies in the misappropriation of funds, according to King -- most of the funding is oriented toward immediate results.



Money is being spent on conferences and other short-term glitzy things that can be put on an annual report, instead of training and investing in scholars in the long-term.



Most classics translations are being done by Koreans who havent studied classical literature or Hanmun. Instead of paying those people to translate texts, they should use that money to train good translators. Theyre focusing on products, not people.

Read also: ESSAY: Hallyu, the Korean wave

Ross King, professor of Korean language and literature, speaks at an interview at the Academy of Korean Studies on Friday. (Academy of Korean Studies via The Korea Herald/File)



A thorough education in Hanmun, the cornerstone of Korean classics, is essential for classics scholars, King says. You have Hanmun training workshops that last three weeks but thats not enough.



A serious foreign student of Korean classics would need to come to Korea to study for at least a year and read texts everyday with other Korean graduate students, he said. Thats not something you can learn anywhere else.



King, 56, who is self-taught in Hanmun, obtained his M.A. and Ph. D. degrees in linguistics at Harvard University, and has authored numerous publications with a focus on Korean historical linguistics. He founded the Korean Language Village in Bemidji, Minnesota in 1999 and won the Prime Minister Award in 2000 for contributions to the advancement of the Korean language.



Currently, though job opportunities in Korean studies academia remain scarce and the competition high, they are growing, he says. In North America, almost 10 new faculty positions are being advertised for Korean studies this year -- only one in pre-modern, the rest in modern studies. Its the biggest number in my memory for the past 20 years. Last year there were maybe only four.



In contrast, there are no fellowships or funding in the field for aspiring Korean language scholars -- or even sufficient programs for undergraduates, King says.



Students who want to study abroad in Japan, China, Taiwan have access to any number of really helpful scholarships that will provide incentive for them. ... For Korea, there is almost nothing.



Support for classics studies is better in China, King says. Theres a lot of effort going into excavating texts and spending time to study and translate them.



And while significant progress has been made in establishing and developing Korean studies departments around the world for the past 20 years, it could quickly disappear without effective government funding.



Just to maintain a tiny portion in the worlds intellectual map, Korea is going to have to work very hard, King said. As of now, Korea is unrealistically putting all of its eggs in the wrong basket. ... Interest (in Korean studies) has increased but targeted, strategic investment has not been made by the government to turn that interest into long-term commitments.



King calls for the need for cooperation between relevant organizations.



The Academy of Korean Studies has all the money. All the know-how is at the Korea Foundation, but they dont have any money. These two government organizations need to cooperate better and figure out a way for long-term investments in students.

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This article appeared on The Korea Herald newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
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Linkedin Jessicha Valentina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 15:05 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce79ed 1 Lifestyle radio,#radio,Silence,Jokowi,#Jokowi,joko-widodo Free

Private radio stations in Jakarta were temporarily shut down on Monday morning.

On social media, radio stations across Jakarta uploaded a photo, encouraging listeners to respond to the dead air with the hashtag #radioguemati (my radio is dead).

A post shared by 101.8 Bahana FM Jakarta (@bahanafmjkt) on Dec 10, 2017 at 4:50pm PST

The silence was responded to with various tweets.

for yall to know, the whole radio channels in Jakarta is being shut down for the campaign #RadioGueMati and this is actually kinda awesome  dea (@dheafadhilah13) December 11, 2017

I knew theres surprise in store at 7.45 am. But being cut out from great 80-90 hits from MOSTFM while driving this morning was kinda sucks. Thank God I only had 10 mins left to drive :) #radioguemati  Ibnu Agung Mulyanto (@IBeNimages) December 11, 2017

#radioguemati is the best hashtag and moment to end the year #radiowillneverbeforgotten  Irumi (@mraofficial30) December 11, 2017

Read also: Ed Sheeran is tired of hearing Shape Of You on the radio

The shutdown started at 7:45 a.m. After 15 minutes of silence, all of the stations began on air with remarks from President Joko Jokowi Widodo.

Emang enak nggak ada radio. Saya Joko Widodo, pendengar radio. Kalau kamu? -Jkw pic.twitter.com/taiUutAvhv  Joko Widodo (@jokowi) December 11, 2017

The President said, Emang enak enggak ada radio? Saya Joko Widodo, pendengar radio. [It is not fun without radio, right? I am Joko Widodo and (I am) a radio listener].

Ratri Taluningtias, a public relations officer from Masima Radio Network, the parent company of Prambors Delta FM and Bahana FM, told The Jakarta Post via messaging app that the shutdown was initiated by the Indonesian National Private Radio Association (PRSSNI) Jakarta.

The association chose Monday as Radio Day 2017 campaign, requiring all radio stations in Jakarta to go to dead air for 15 minutes and post on social media with the hashtag #radioguemati.

The campaign aimed to encourage people to listen to the radio and to inform advertisers that radio was an effective platform to place ads.

Ratri said the campaign received positive feedback, as many of the radio's loyal listeners sent direct messages on social media or to the announcers, asking why the stations suddenly went silent. (kes)
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Linkedin Tiffany Fumiko Tay (The Straits Times/Asia News Network)  Mon, December 11, 2017 14:07 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce5741 2 People Singapore,photographer,Nobel,Nobel-Peace-Prize,Sim-Chi-Yin Free

A sudden phone call in September set documentary photographer Sim Chi Yin on a whirlwind two-month journey from the China-North Korea border to six states along the American west coast.

Her mission: to create a series of photos that reflect on mankind's experience with nuclear weapons.

Ms Sim, who was commissioned to showcase this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner - the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons - is the first Singaporean Peace Prize photographer in the exhibition's 13-year history, the Nobel Peace Centre's executive director Liv Torres told The Straits Times.

The result of her work is titled Fallout, comprising a series of 36 photographs and a short video installation.

They are part of a year-long exhibition called Ban The Bomb that will open to the public tomorrow at the center in Oslo, Norway.

Speaking to The Straits Times from Oslo on Saturday, Ms Sim, 39, said she agreed to the "once-in-a-lifetime commission" even before knowing who her subject would be.

When the nuclear disarmament group was awarded the Peace Prize on Oct 6, Ms Sim, a Beijing-based former Straits Times correspondent, swung into research mode.

"It was a bit overwhelming because of how big the topic is... but I dug into my training as a history student; I'd done a lot of Cold War history," she said.

Read also: Indonesian photographer thrives despite not having arms, legs

She settled on the idea of a series of diptychs, or paired pictures, juxtaposing the landscapes of North Korea - the only country to test nuclear weapons in the 21st century - with that of the United States - the only country to have used them.

"These two countries are also in present times at tension with each other... It's a timely issue," said Ms Sim, whose work has been shown in museums, galleries and photo festivals globally, including a show at the Istanbul Biennial this year.

"There are surprisingly a lot of visual and historical parallels, and from the beginning I wanted to anonymise the places, so you don't know where you're looking at in the pictures," she added.

Over the last two months, she travelled along the North Korean border near missile testing facilities, and decommissioned missile silos in US states like Washington, Arizona and Nevada.

"I got to go into missile silos that were actually used during the Cold War... underground control rooms with walls meters and meters thick. The whole project was extremely fascinating and sobering," she said.

Ms Torres said the center wanted to choose a photographer from Asia for the first time this year.

"When the prize was announced in October, it became obvious that Sim Chi Yin was the right choice. Her background as a historian and correspondent in Asia, together with her strong visual expression, made her the perfect artist for this year's exhibition," she said.

Previous Peace Prize photographers include award-winning Danish documentary photographer Mads Nissen and Dutch photographer and director Anton Corbijn.

Topics :

This article appeared on The Straits Times newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 19:18 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cf47fc 1 City mental-health,hospital,East-Jakarta Free

The Jakarta administration will allocate Rp 229 billion (US$24.8 million) to build a mental hospital next year.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Sandiaga Uno said the Duren Sawit Regional Hospital in East Jakarta would be developed into a mental hospital.

"We want the Duren Sawit Hospital to be a special hospital for psychiatric patients. We have just started budgeting for the development. Moreover, the bidding process will start soon and we hope that the development project will be finished by 2019," said Sandiaga on Sunday, as quoted by kompas.com.

The head of the Jakarta Health Agency, Koesmedi Priharto, said the development was needed because the capacity of the existing hospital was not enough to accommodate all the patients.

We will add more beds in the hospital and we will construct one more building too. We will also provide patients with jobs and more activities to facilitate the healing process, said Koesmedi on Monday. (roi)
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Linkedin News Desk (AFP) New York, United States  Mon, December 11, 2017 09:00 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cdaf71 2 Business Bitcoin,digital-currency,Chicago-Mercantile-Exchange,Wedbush-Securities,Cboe-Futures-Exchange,futures,trading Free

Bitcoin makes its debut on a major exchange Sunday, a milestone for the digital currency that has some investors excited but others nervous.

The Cboe Futures Exchange in Chicago will open trading in bitcoin futures at 2300 GMT on Sunday, a move that is expected to be followed a week later by a rival listing on Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

"Sunday night is the equivalent of what would be the first person using an Uber or a Lyft or going to a Airbnb," said Bob Fitzsimmons, head of futures contracts at Wedbush Securities.

"It gives it legitimacy. It recognizes that it's an asset you can trade," added Nick Colas, of Data Trek research.

Among those cheering the launch are the Winklevoss twins, who have been called the first bitcoin billionaires. Critics include financial commentator Jim Cramer, who warns that prices could tumble once the new trading venues open the door to "short sellers," who bet on downward moves in assets.

The two launches were made possible after a key US regulator, the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), gave the green light to the exchanges on December 1, while warning "of the potentially high level of volatility and risk in trading these contracts."

Anticipation of the first mainstream listings for the digital currency has been a catalyst for a sharp price increase in recent weeks. Bitcoin opened 2017 at around $1,000, surged past $10,000 for the first time last month and soared as high as $16,777 on Thursday before retreating somewhat.

The actual opening of the Cboe market, an electronic trading venue, was expected to be a low-key affair, lacking the pomp of an initial public offering, which is often marked by the new entrant ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange.

"There won't be any ceremony, no champagne," said a person close to the Cboe process.

"It's going to happen quietly, a switch flipping," the person added. "There are not going to be many people in the office."

- Going mainstream -

The embrace by mainstream exchanges of bitcoin futures -- a type of derivative contract that allows trading based on bitcoin's movement, without taking ownership of the currency itself -- marks a sea change from the days when the digital currency was associated with drug dealing and other illicit activities.

The Cboe said it has taken precautions to address wild fluctuations: trading will be suspended for two minutes if bitcoin prices go up or down 10 percent, for instance.

"We are committed to continue to work closely with the CFTC to monitor trading and foster the growth of a transparent, liquid and fair bitcoin futures market," the Cboe said.

Still, plenty of key figures in and around markets are taking a cautious approach to bitcoin, which has no central bank backing it, and no legal exchange rate.

The Futures Industry Association, which includes some of the world's biggest derivatives brokerages, criticized the CFTC's move in a letter to the regulator, saying contracts are being rushed through without properly weighing the risks.

"A more thorough and considered process would have allowed for a robust public discussion among clearing member firms, exchanges and clearing houses," the association said.

Several leading financial heavyweights are still studying bitcoin and not serving as financial intermediaries. This group includes JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Barclays, Morgan Stanley and Societe Generale, said people close to the matter.

Of the larger banks, only Goldman Sachs and ABN Amro are serving as intermediaries for the trades. That means most of the terrain will be dominated by smaller entities that are typically requiring larger than usual margin requirements -- funds set aside as collateral in case of losses.

Wedbush Securities has lifted its margin requirements and is only permitting trades from clients on a "selected" basis, said Fitzsimmons.

"We are commissioning only the select clients who have experience in bitcoins," he said.

"Our risk systems are ready and we have made sure we have our customers and firm protected by increased margins and increased scrutiny." (**)
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Linkedin Panca Nugraha (The Jakarta Post) Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara  Mon, December 11, 2017 18:22 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cf0c0f 1 National conservation,tree-planting,Mount-Rinjani,Gawe-Gawah,Pawang-Rinjani,North-Lombok,Lombok,West-Nusa-Tenggara Free

Lombok-based environmental activist group Pawang Rinjani plans to plant some two million tree seedlings across five districts in North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, that serve as a buffer zone to Mount Rinjani. The trees are all endemic to the region.

The event, called Gawe Gawah, is a reforestation program that follows a local wisdom tradition as a tribute to the forest.

Gawe Gawah is not only an event to plant trees but also an opportunity to raise peoples awareness of the importance of taking care of the natural environment that surrounds them, said Pawang Rinjani public relations officer Abdullah Apink Al Kaff on Monday.

We plan to plant about two million trees that are endemic to Lombok, such as sengon (silk trees), gatep (Tahitian chestnut) and flamboyan (Royal poinciana).

The event, which will be held on Dec. 24, will see tree seedlings distributed to thousands of people who reside in the five buffer-zone districts in North Lombok.

Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya will attend the event, Abdullah said.

Representatives of the North Lombok regional council (DPD) and environmental activists will also be invited to attend.

Pawang Rinjani is focused on environmental conservation. In 2016, the group planted more than 40,000 flamboyan trees in several conservation areas within the regency through a program called Daulat Pohon.

This year, the organizations has continued its efforts to promote the spirit of environmental conservation, starting from the smallest steps, such as encouraging people to plant trees in their surrounding areas. (nmn/ebf)
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Linkedin Nadege Puljak and Adam Plowright (AFP) Paris, France  Mon, December 11, 2017 09:30 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cdb3f8 2 World France,Emmanuel-Macron,Marine-Le-Pen,center-right-party,centrist Free

Demoralized and divided, France's traditional center-right party is expected to move closer to the far-right on Sunday after picking a tough-talking devout Catholic as its new leader to take on centrist President Emmanuel Macron.

The Republicans party, which represents the dominant conservative force in post-war French politics, turned to Laurent Wauquiez as it looks to recover from a disastrous year.

The 42-year-old gained 74.6 percent of the Sunday's vote, outstripping his two rivals as widely expected.

"This evening is the start of a new era for the right," Wauquiez said after the results were announced.

"We will reinvent, we will rebuild everything," he said. "The message is unambiguous. Yes, we can say the right has returned."

The emergence of Wauquiez is the latest act in the redrawing of France's political map sparked by Macron's victory this year at the head of his new centrist Republic on the Move party.

Wauquiez holds hardline positions on French identity, security and immigration which are close to the far-right, leading the National Front (FN) and its leader Marine Le Pen to offer an alliance last month.

"He had the chance to put an end to this right wing which doesn't defend the French people. He refused our outstretched hand. It's a shame," FN vice-president Nicolas Bay said on Sunday.

Wauquiez, leader of the southeastern Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region and a former mayor, MP and minister, has also pledged to fight the "waste of public funds."

Some 230,000 Republicans were eligible to vote for their choice to take over from ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy.

- 'Truly rightwing' -

The Republicans -- one of the two traditional parties of government in France along with the Socialists -- were widely tipped to win the presidency and parliament at the start of the year before being eclipsed by Macron.

The 39-year-old leader ran as an independent in the presidential election in April and May and was given a clear path to victory by a major scandal over fake jobs that engulfed the Republicans candidate, former premier Francois Fillon.

Macron also gambled that angry voters wanted fresh faces and saw an opportunity to restructure political life with his Republic on the Move party in the center, which would then push the left and right into more hardline positions.

Wauquiez's victory will see his prophecy come true to a large extent, with the Republicans clearly shifting their political positioning, while the Socialists have been outshone by a new hard-left party, France Unbowed.

The Republicans remain the biggest opposition in parliament with 100 lawmakers, but they have splintered into two groups: one which backs Macron's pro-business and pro-European agenda, and the other which is broadly behind Wauquiez.

"By running after the National Front, we will end up giving the far-right power," Franck Riester, a former Republicans lawmaker who has broken away from the party, said recently.

The boyish but grey-haired Wauquiez who is from the eastern city of Lyon was elected an MP for the first time aged 29 and became a junior minister in his early thirties under Sarkozy's rightwing presidency from 2007-2012.

He has promised to bring the party together but he sees the solution as making the Republicans "truly rightwing" on immigration, security and sovereignty. (**)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 16:59 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ceb84f 1 City firefighters,GPS,South-Jakarta Free

In a bid to assist firefighters in carrying out their duties, the South Jakarta Fire and Rescue Agency have installed Global Positioning Systems (GPS) on its 56 trucks.

"The installation aims to help officers when heading to fire locations," Agency head Irwan said on Monday as quoted by beritajakarta.id.

The GPS is expected to help firefighters find the easiest and quickest routes to a fire location as well as to let them know the locations of other firefighters on duty to allow for better coordination during emergencies, Irwan said.

He added that the GPS had been installed on six types of trucks, namely rescue standard, water pump, light rescue, heavy duty rescue, quick response and firefighting vehicles.

He said the agency would conduct training for personnel to familiarize them with the newly installed technology. (fac)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 20:58 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cf950c 1 City floods,BPBD,BMKG Free

The Jakarta Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has called the heavy rainfall, which inundated many areas across the capital on Monday, "extreme" and unanticipated.

"It was beyond our predictions. I was in a meeting when the heavy rainfall occurred. Yesterday, the BMKG did not tell me anything like this," Jakarta BPBD head Jupan Royter said on Monday night, referring to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency.

He added that no casualties had yet been reported to the agency.

He claimed that officers on duty from various agencies had made great efforts to mitigate the effects of the rainfall, which persisted for two hours and was accompanied by strong winds.

Jakarta saw one of the worst floods in recent months on Monday, when the heavy rains and wind toppled several trees and inundated many areas, leading to prolonged disruption to traffic and public transportation. A dam in Jati Padang area in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, collapsed.

Jupan said Governor Anies Baswedan had reminded all working units in the administration to be vigilant for any potentially dangerous scenarios.

"On Nov. 18, the governor convened a meeting with all working unit heads in the city and told us to be on alert during December, because we will have some big events such as Christmas and New Year's Eve," he said. (fac)

Topics : floods BPBD BMKG
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 11:11 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce0850 4 Business household-consumption,consumer-confidence,expert,comments Free

Several economists say people will still prefer keeping their money in banks next year.

People will still prefer saving because they are waiting for government policies, especially those related to administered prices such as fuel prices, next year Permata Bank economist Josua Pardede said as quoted by kontan.co.id, recently.

The increase of global crude oil prices is likely to push the government to increase the prices of subsidized fuels next year.

Josua also said people were anticipating possible food-price hikes in the next three months amid heavy downpours.

The government needs to announce its policy for next year so as to not boost household spending, he said.

Meanwhile, Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) director Enny Sri Hartati added that low consumer spending was sparked by negative sentiment over lack of employment opportunities in the next six months, as indicated by the Availability of Employment Expectations Index, which was stagnant at 120.9 in November.

It means there was no significant addition of jobs in November, Enny added.

A Bank Indonesia survey shows that the consumer confidence index in November stood at 122.1, an increase of 1.4 points from the figure in October, sparked by the better expectations index, which increased one point from 133.8 to 134.8.

Although there was optimism, the respondents spending allocation decreased 0.4 percent to 65.3 percent. (srs/bbn)
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Linkedin Rachmadea Aisyah and Kharishar Kahfi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 18:53 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cf2cf2 1 Business MLFF-multi-lane-free-flow,cashless-transaction,toll-fee,Basuki-Hadimuljono Free

Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono said on Monday that the ministry was currently studying offers from several countries to implement the multi-lane free flow (MLFF) system as part of the final phase of a nationwide, cashless toll road payment program.

The MLFF is expected to significantly reduce queues at toll gates as the system would simply scan cars for payments.

"We have yet to decide which technology [we are going to use]. There are so many options," Basuki told The Jakarta Post in Jakarta on Monday.

The ministry's directorate general of roads is currently examining the offers, he added.

"We have received offers from countries such as [South] Korea, Hungary and Japan," Basuki said.

As the government successfully implemented a cashless toll gate system using electronic money in October, Basuki was optimistic that the MLFF could be applied by December 2018, as scheduled. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 18:54 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cf3ae1 1 Business Sarinah,online-shopping,revenue,target Free

Jakartas city-owned retailer Sarinah department store is set to go online this month as part of an effort to collect Rp 500 billion (US$36.9 million) in revenue next year.

The decision came after Sarinah was named the official retailer for 2018 Asian Games merchandise.

Sarinah president director GNP Sugiarta Yasa expressed his optimism that the retailer would be able to achieve the target.

Were very sure that our sales will grow more than 20 percent in the upcoming years, he said on Sunday as reported by kontan.co.id.

He added that Sarinah had collected around Rp 400 billion in revenue as of November, and still expected to collect another Rp 40 billion by year-end.

Initially, Sarinah planned to go online in August, but the move was postponed to Dec. 22 for several reasons.

Sarinah is also planning to offer customers a mobile application in 2018.

In constructing its online infrastructure, the company cooperated with state-owned technology firms and received support from private e-commerce Lazada, said Sarinah retail director Lies Permana Lestari.

Sugiarta said Sarinah spent Rp 150 million on constructing its online infrastructure and to introduce the digital platform.

The retailer has targeted to collect 30 percent of its sales from the new online platform, and the remainder from in-store transactions. (sha/bbn)
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Linkedin Kharishar Kahfi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 13:52 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce50c7 1 National KPK,KPK-chairman-Agus-Rahardjo,LHKPN,wealth-reports,corruption,graft Free

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has launched an electronic wealth reporting (LHKPN) system that is claimed to be effective in facilitating officials in reporting their wealth.

KPK chairman Agus Rahardjo launched the new system at the opening of Monday's commemoration of International Anticorruption Day in Jakarta. President Joko Jokowi Widodo witnessed the launch of the system.

As of today, officials will no longer need to submit many forms and letters to the KPK. With this system, they can fill the forms in their offices, Agus said in his opening speech.

Law No.28/1999 on Good Governance and Freedom from Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism, and Law No. 30/2002 on the KPK require all high-ranking state officials to report their wealth to the anti-graft body before, during and after their terms in office.

The KPK released data earlier this year showing that the highest compliance in wealth reporting was seen among ministries and state institutions, while the lowest compliance was seen among regional representatives councils (DPRDs).

We also hope that the system can be used during the simultaneous regional elections in 2018. Electoral candidates can submit their wealth reports through the system, Agus said.

The 2015 Regional Election Law requires every regional candidate to submit a wealth report before an election. (ebf)
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 17:42 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cecde3 1 National Jokowi,Joko-Widodo,corruption,bribery,bribery-case,KPK Free

President Joko Jokowi Widodo has said the deregulation program is an effective method of eradicating corruption because more rules tend to result in more corruption.

Regulations that protect the public interest are important but each time a new regulation is made, there will always be a chance for corrupt transactions to occur, he said in his remarks during the opening ceremony of the 2017 International Anticorruption Day celebration in Jakarta on Monday.

Jokowi said the issuance of licenses required by regulations had often become transaction targets for local administrations and related stakeholders.

Each license becomes a transaction object. We should not let this happen," he said.

(Read also: KPK launches electronic wealth reporting system)

Since 2015, the government has been attempting to abolish at least 42,000 regional administration regulations deemed as unnecessarily burdensome for businesses. However, in June, the Constitutional Court revoked the central government's authority to abolish regional administration regulations

I will make a competition. I will give a reward to the entity that can cut the most rules, Jokowi said.

The central government will soon create an integrated licensing system that will connect the central and regional administrations, Jokowi said.

With the new system, he said, the central government could trace the bottlenecks in the licensing process. As of August, 531 out of 538 regencies and municipalities have implemented the one-stop integrated service system (PTSP). However, only 405 of them have applied standard operating procedures and only 200 have included all of their licenses in the PTSP.

Jokowi pointed out that most corruption cases taking place in Indonesia involved bribery of government officials. Since 2004, 12 governors, two Bank Indonesia (BI) officials and 64 regents and mayors have been prosecuted for corruption. (ebf)
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Linkedin Adam Plowright and Valerie Leroux (AFP) Paris, France  Mon, December 11, 2017 08:00 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cd6c9b 2 World BenjaminNetanyahu,Europe,Jerusalem,Israel,Palestine,Middle-East,Emmanuel-Macron,France Free

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began a trip to Europe on Sunday facing widespread criticism of the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state and pressure to engage in the peace process.

In his first meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, he was urged to re-engage with the Palestinians to build goodwill following widespread protests over the capital move.

Speaking alongside Netanyahu after a working lunch, Macron again condemned the unilateral decision on Jerusalem last week by US President Donald Trump as "contrary to international law and dangerous for the peace process."

"I urged the prime minister to show courage in his dealings with the Palestinians to get us out of the current dead-end," Macron said after talks in Paris with the Israeli leader.

"Peace does not depend on the United States alone...it depends on the capacity of the two Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," the French leader said.

Echoing a message that European foreign ministers are set to carry during further talks in Brussels on Monday, Macron also urged him to freeze Israeli settlement building in the occupied territories.

Netanyahu has praised Trump's decision as "historic" and he explained Sunday that Jerusalem "has always been our capital and it has never been the capital of any other people."

"It has been the capital of Israel for 3,000 years, it has been the capital of the Jewish state for 70 years. We respect your history and your choices and we know that as friends you respect ours. I think this is also central for peace," he said.

"The sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move toward peace."

Before leaving Israel, Netanyahu had taken aim at what he called Europe's "hypocrisy", for condemning Trump's statement, but not "the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it."

Pointedly, Macron began his pre-prepared remarks with a clear condemnation "with the greatest of clarity of all forms of attacks in the last hours and days against Israel."

Despite the obvious differences between the 39-year-old French leader and the Israeli hardliner, there were also attempts to show they had developed a good early working relationship and held common views.

"Does this mean Emmanuel Macron and me agree on everything? No, not all of it, but we're working it," Netanyahu said at one point, joking later: "The lunch in the Elysee is superb, the conversation is superb too."

The two countries are keen to reset ties after often difficult exchanges under ex-president Francois Hollande.

- No French initiative, for now -

Netanyahu travels to Brussels on Monday where he is expected to hold informal talks over breakfast with Europe's foreign ministers who will also pressure him over the moribund peace process.

The EU's diplomatic chief warned on Thursday that the US decision on Jerusalem "has the potential to send us backwards to even darker times than the ones we're already living in."

Trump's announcement on Wednesday has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories.

Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.

Tens of thousands have also protested in Muslim and Arab countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia.

Further protests were held in Lebanon, Indonesia, Egypt and the Palestinian territories on Sunday.

Macron was also asked if France would attempt to launch another peace initiative to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict following failed efforts in the past.

"There's a desire by the Americans to mediate which remains and I don't want to condemn it ab initio (from the beginning)," he said. "We need to wait for the next few weeks, the next months to see what will be proposed.

"And I think we have to wait to see whether the interested parties accept it or not."

Netanyahu was an outspoken critic of efforts by former French president Francois Hollande to push a Middle East peace process. (**)
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Linkedin Mike Smith (AFP) Jerusalem  Mon, December 11, 2017 07:30 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cd6233 2 World Jerusalem,DonaldTrump,Donald-Trump,Israel,Palestine Free

New protests flared in the Middle East and elsewhere Sunday over US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a move that has drawn global condemnation and sparked days of unrest in the Palestinian territories.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Palestinians needed to come to terms with Jerusalem's long Jewish history.

"It's always been our capital," he said at a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

"I think the sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move towards peace."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has repeatedly warned of the consequences of Trump's move, lashed out Sunday by calling Israel a "terrorist state" that "kills children".

Netanyahu hit back, calling Erdogan a leader who "bombs Kurdish villagers" and "helps terrorists".

Trump's announcement on Wednesday sparked days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories. Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or by Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.

On Sunday, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard at Jerusalem's central bus station, seriously wounding him. The assailant was arrested.

Tens of thousands of people have protested in Muslim and Arab countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia.

On Sunday, further protests were held in countries including Lebanon, Indonesia, Egypt and Morocco as well as in the Palestinian territories.

Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at several hundred demonstrators near the American embassy.

Tens of thousands also rallied in Morocco's capital Rabat.

- Protests in Cairo, Jakarta -

In Jakarta, some 5,000 Indonesians protested in solidarity with the Palestinians, gathering outside the US embassy in the world's most-populous Muslim country.

Students and professors in Cairo demonstrated at the prestigious Al-Azhar University, a spokesman said, and dozens of students protested at two other Cairo universities.

Palestinian protests on Sunday were smaller than in previous days.

Protests and clashes erupted in Al-Arroub refugee camp in the south of the occupied West Bank, leaving one Palestinian wounded by rubber bullets, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Separately, the Israeli military said it destroyed a Hamas tunnel from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory -- an incident unrelated to the recent unrest, but which threatened to further increase tensions.

Such tunnels have been used in the past to carry out attacks.

Trump's declaration prompted near universal condemnation and diplomatic fallout, with warnings that it risks setting off a new round of violence in the turbulent Middle East.

US Vice President Mike Pence is due in the region later this month, but Palestinian officials say president Mahmud Abbas will refuse to meet him.

A US official said Sunday such a snub is tantamount to "walking away" from a chance to talk about peace in the Middle East.

"It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region," Jarrod Agen, Pence's deputy chief of staff, said in a statement.

Abbas was to meet Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo Monday for consultations "to discuss developments related to the United States' recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital", said Bassam Radi, a spokesman for the Egyptian presidency.

Arab League foreign ministers on Saturday called on Washington to rescind the decision.

Despite the outrage, Trump's UN Ambassador Nikki Haley insisted Sunday the Jerusalem declaration would "move the ball forward" on peace efforts.

However, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told CNN it might "compromise" the US drive for an Israeli-Palestinian accord.

- Netanyahu in Europe -

Netanyahu's Europe trip was long planned, but came after both Macron and EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini criticised Trump's decision.

There have also been tensions between Netanyahu and EU officials over Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.

Macron during their talks Sunday called on Netanyahu to freeze settlement building and to show "courage" to help restart peace efforts.

At their press conference, Netanyahu called the White House's bid to restart peace efforts with the Palestinians a "serious effort".

Netanyahu was due in Brussels for talks with EU foreign ministers on Monday in what would be the first of their kind with an Israeli premier in 22 years.

Trump's decision upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus.

It drew criticism from every other UN Security Council member at an emergency meeting on Friday.

Clashes in the West Bank and along the fence dividing the Gaza Strip from Israel have seen Palestinians burning tyres while hurling stones and firebombs at Israeli troops, who responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds.

Retaliatory air strikes on Gaza in response to rockets killed two Hamas militants on Saturday, while two other Palestinians died in clashes near the border fence the day before.

- US isolated -

Palestinian health officials say more than 1,100 people were wounded by tear gas, rubber bullets, live fire and other means between Thursday and Saturday.

There have been fears of a much larger escalation of violence after Hamas leader Ismail Haniya called for a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising.

In Rome, Pope Francis called Sunday for "wisdom and prudence", asking world leaders "to avert a new spiral of violence".

Trump said his defiant move -- making good on a 2016 presidential campaign pledge -- marked the start of a "new approach" to solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

But Washington has found itself isolated on the global stage.

Five European countries on the Security Council insisted the new US policy was inconsistent with past resolutions.

The decision was further complicating domestic Palestinian politics, particularly between Abbas's Fatah and the Islamist Hamas, now at a key stage in a fragile reconciliation process after a decade of bitter enmity.

Hamas, which violently seized Gaza from Fatah in 2007, was due to formally hand back power to the Palestinian Authority on Sunday, but Fatah's chief negotiator said "obstacles" remained. (**)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, December 11, 2017 15:21 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2ce897b 1 National Gatot-Nurmantyo,Hadi-Tjahjanto,Indonesian-Military,TNI,Ryamizard-Ryacudu,Jokowi,Joko-Widodo Free

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu has called on newly inaugurated Indonesian Military (TNI) Commander Air Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto to strengthen the unity of the TNI, tempo.co reported on Saturday.

The TNI must be solid. It should not be fragmented. It must move as one. Its loyalty must be steadfast, to the President, he said on Saturday following the TNI Commander succession ceremony from Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo to Hadi at TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta.

Ryamizard asked Hadi to work harder to face increasingly tougher challenges in the future.

Replacing Gatot who will retire on April 1, Hadi was installed as TNI Commander by President Joko Widodo on Saturday.

Hadi, who served previously as the Air Force Chief of Staff, said he was committed to developing military personnel that were professional, disciplined, combat-ready and humble. These qualities will make the TNI greater, stronger and more confident in all its active duties, he added.

This is not rhetoric, but a goal that we must achieve through dedication, Hadi said during the ceremony. We must be optimistic that we can achieve those goals, he added.

High-ranking military officials, including Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mulyono and Navy Chief of Staff Vice Adm. Ade Supadi, National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) chief Air Vice Marshal M. Syaugi, also attended the event. (nmn/ebf)
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Linkedin Ilgin Karlidag (AFP) Oslo, Norway  Mon, December 11, 2017 08:44 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cd905e 2 World Nobel,Nobel-laureate,Nobel-Peace-Prize,Nobel-Prize,ICAN,Nuclear,nuclear-arsenal,missile,missile-test,Hiroshima,Hiroshima-atomic-bombing Free

Mankind's destruction caused by a nuclear war is just one "impulsive tantrum away", the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), warned on Sunday as the United States and North Korea exchange threats over the nation's nuclear tests.

"Will it be the end of nuclear weapons, or will it be the end of us?" ICAN head Beatrice Fihn said in a speech after receiving the peace prize on behalf of the anti-nuclear group.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula have spiralled as Pyongyang has in recent months ramped up its number of missiles and nuclear tests.

North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un has exchanged warlike threats with US President Donald Trump, who has ordered a military show of force.

"The only rational course of action is to cease living under the conditions where our mutual destruction is only one impulsive tantrum away," Fihn added.

ICAN, a coalition of hundreds of NGOs around the world, has worked for a treaty banning nuclear weapons which was adopted in July by 122 countries.

The text was weakened by the absence of the nine nuclear powers among the signatories.

In an apparent snub of the ICAN-backed treaty, the three western nuclear powers -- the US, France and Britain -- broke with tradition by sending second-ranking diplomats rather than their ambassadors to Sunday's ceremony.

- 'Bruised ego'-

Supporters of nuclear weapons argue that they serve as a deterrent for starting a major conflict as it would guarantee mutual destruction for the nations involved.

"They are a madman's gun held permanently to our temple," Fihn said.

"These weapons were supposed to keep us free, but they deny us our freedoms."

Berit Reiss-Andersen, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said in her lecture during the ceremony that ICAN's "message resonates with millions of people who perceive that the threat of nuclear war is greater than it has been for a long time, not least due to the situation in North Korea".

Senior UN envoy Jeffrey Feltman on Saturday warned there was a grave risk that a miscalculation could trigger conflict with Pyongyang and urged the reclusive state to keep communication channels open.

Kim and Trump have taunted each other in recent months, with the US President pejoratively dubbing his rival "Little Rocket Man" and a "sick puppy".

"A moment of panic or carelessness, a misconstrued comment or bruised ego could easily lead us unavoidably to the destruction of entire cities," Fihn said.

- Hiroshima remembered -

Several survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombings, which killed more than 220,000 people 72 years ago, attended the ceremony in the Oslo City Hall.

One of them, Setsuko Thurlow, received the Nobel on behalf of ICAN jointly with Fihn.

Speaking to AFP ahead of the ceremony, Thurlow recalled the horrific aftermath of the first atomic bomb in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, when she was 13 years old.

Thurlow described corpses lying on the ground, the injured and dying calling for help and the survivors looking like "a procession of ghosts".

"The hair was standing up and they were all burned on the skin and their flesh was hanging from their bones," she said.

"Some were carrying their eyeballs. It just was like hell on earth," added the 85-year-old who now lives in Canada and uses a wheelchair.

- 'Heed our warning' -

Although the number of nuclear weapons has dropped since the end of the Cold War, there are still around 15,000 atomic bombs on earth.

"Listen to our testimony. Heed our warning. And know that your actions are consequential," Thurlow said during her speech at the ceremony, referring to the leaders of nuclear-armed nations.

At a separate ceremony in Stockholm on Sunday, Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf handed over the Nobel prizes in literature, physics, chemistry, medicine and economics.

Each prize consists of a diploma, a gold medal and a cheque for nine million Swedish kroner (900,000 euros). (**)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Star/Asia News Network) Phu Quoc, Vietnam  Mon, December 11, 2017 16:33 1802 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2cea8d2 2 News AirAsia,Air-Asia,#AirAsia,Airlines,low-cost-carrier,award,#awards Free

AirAsia Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes paid tribute to his staff for winning two awards at the prestigious World Travel Awards 2017 Grand Finals.

The airline was named the Worlds Leading Low-Cost Airline for the fifth year in a row.

It also won the WTAs inaugural Worlds Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew award at the ceremony held at the JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay in Vietnam.

Fernandes said he was proud to receive the fifth WTA Worlds Leading Low-Cost Airline award in as many years

Ive always said we are the worlds true low-cost champion, and Im thrilled to see Im not the only one and the industry agrees with me, he added.

Fernandes said that AirAsia will get better as it continues on its digitalization journey in order to better understand the demands of its guests and provide them with a richer and more enjoyable flying experience as well as world-class service at the lowest fares.

AirAsia edged out budget airlines Southwest Airlines, JetBlue, Ryanair, easyJet, Jetstar Airways, Norwegian Air, West Air, flydubai, Air Arabia, flynas, kulula, Mango and fastjet to bag the award.

Read also: AirAsia Indonesia launches Wi-Fi, inflight entertainment service

AirAsia Group cabin crew head Suhaila Hassan said an airline is only as good as its people, and AirAsia has some of the best.

She said two years ago the airline was named Asias Leading Cabin Crew by WTA, beating a field of full-service carriers.

Since then, weve gone from strength to strength, winning the Worlds Leading Inflight Service award in 2016, Asias Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew earlier this year and now, the first ever Worlds Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew award by WTA.

This shows our unwavering commitment to excellence and, as the worlds best low-cost carrier, we promise to continue delivering to our guests the best experience that money cant buy, she said.

The win was built on AirAsias success earlier this year when it secured WTAs first-ever Asias Leading Low-Cost Airline Cabin Crew award. In 2015, it became the first-ever low-cost carrier to win Asias Leading Cabin Crew, ahead of full-service carriers like Singapore Airlines, Korean Air and Cathay Pacific.

AirAsia Group chief commercial officer Siegtraund Teh and senior cabin crew Rosita Sulaiman accepted the awards at a gala ceremony in Vietnam on Sunday.

Apart from Fernandes, the others present were AirAsia Berhad executive chairman Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, independent non-executive director Datuk Fam Lee Ee and AirAsias Vietnam joint-venture partner Tran Trong Kien.

The WTA is one of the most prestigious, comprehensive and sought after awards in the global tourism industry.

Topics :

This article appeared on The Star newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
A standing room only crowd turned out at the 7th Precinct last Wednesday evening to ask a top official from the citys Department of Transportation (DOT) questions about the worsening traffic situation at the intersection of Grand and Clinton streets.

As we reported last week, Community Board 3 and local elected officials have asked the DOT to propose solutions for making the area safer and less congested. At the meeting, Manhattan Borough Commissioner Luis Sanchez said traffic planners are still studying the situation and hope to have an action plan in the months ahead. Here are some of our notes from the meeting at the regularly scheduled Community Council meeting.

Sanchez acknowledged that theres simply too much traffic navigating the streets of the Lower East Side on the way to the Williamsburg Bridge. He said the lengthy East Houston Street reconstruction project likely prompted many drivers on FDR Drive to take Grand Street instead. Now that the construction is coming to and end, DOT is looking at redirecting (through signage and signal timing adjustments) cars back onto Houston Street.

Sanchez said DOT is looking at lengthening the exit on FDR Drive above Grand Street in an effort to reduce the number of cars flowing onto Grand Street at any one time.

Planners are studying whether some bridge-bound traffic on Grand Street can be funneled to Norfolk Street. While it could help relieve Clinton Streets bottleneck, Sanchez said the adjustment might simply create more problems. If we change it, said Sanchez, a year from now people will be saying, You messed up another intersection.'

Sanchez said DOT is looking at whether the south side of Delancey Street (from FDR Drive to Clinton Street) could be turned into a westbound access road to the Williamsburg Bridge. Engineers will be studying whether theres enough room for vehicles to turn right onto the bridge at Delancey/Clinton.

While a study of the Clinton/Grand intersection was completed, more work needs to be done. It was difficult to collect accurate date, said Sanchez, due to construction at Essex Crossing. That construction work on Clinton Street will, of course, be ongoing for another couple of years.

Sanchez urged residents to continue calling 311 about traffic problems on the streets leading to the bridge. He said its important to document the trouble spots. People at the meeting begged police officers to step up enforcement of drivers leaning on their horns at all hours of the night.

Without offering any specifics, Sanchez said the plan for dealing with the looming L Train shutdown would, help alleviate traffic in the general area. DOT and the MTA have come under criticism for failing to release the plan in a timely manner. Sanchez it would be made public very shortly.

Part of the L Train traffic management plan entails the installation of a protected bike lane on the south side of Delancey Street. Work will begin on the bike lane in April or May of next year, once the Essex Crossing developers complete construction on their building at Delancey and Essex streets, said Sanchez.
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Britains Department for Education (DfE) said on Sunday that it plans to introduce accelerated two-year degree courses in universities, reducing the time taken to get a bachelors degree by a year.

Reducing courses by a year would leave students around $34,000 better off compared to the traditional three-year courses, Xinhua news agency reported.

The proposals were set out in a new government consultation which will run until February when a final decision will be made.

Accelerated degrees offer the same qualifications and are quality-assured in the same way as a standard degree, but delivered over a shorter, usually two-year timespan.

This means when most students are completing their third year of study, an accelerated degree student will be starting work and getting a salary, said a Dfe spokesman.

The proposals announced on Sunday include 20 per cent saving worth $7,400 for students in total tuition costs compared to a standard three-year course. When added to the average salary of $25,000 in the first year after graduating, it means a potential $34,000 benefit overall.

Although the proposals allow institutions to charge up to 20 per cent more each year for accelerated degrees, the overall tuition fee cost of the degree to the student is 20 per cent less than the same degree over three years.

The new fee arrangements for the two-year degrees are set to be in place by September 2019, subject to parliamentary approval.

For too long we have been stuck with a system that has increasingly focused on offering only one way of benefiting from higher education, via the classic three-year degree programme, said Universities Minister Jo Johnson.

Many will want to stick with the classic three-year university experience, but for highly motivated students hungry for a faster pace of learning and a quicker route into or back into work, at lower overall cost, two-year degrees will be well worth considering, he added.

Professor Les Ebdon, director of Fair Access to Higher Education, said: Accelerated degrees are an attractive option for mature students who have missed out on the chance to go to university as a young person.

The DfE said universities offering accelerated degrees will need to meet exactly the same quality assurance measures as for the standard three-year equivalent degrees.
Citing Delhi and Gujarat, the Ghaziabad Parents Association (GPA) on Sunday hit out at the Uttar Pradesh government for allowing private schools to raise fees at will.

GPA President Seema Tyagi and her colleagues berated the UP Fee Regulatory Bill, whose draft has been uploaded, and pledged to challenge it in the Supreme Court.

The draft is rejected totally. It is against the spirit of the Constitution which guarantees education as a fundamental right, Tyagi told the media.

She said that parents had been fighting the unchecked hikes in tuition fee by private schools.

Now, parents were shocked to see that the new bill allowed school managements to increase the fees whenever they want, she said.

Tyagi said the Delhi and Gujarat governments in contrast had put curbs on private schools.

She also said that schools cannot charge fees quarterly, half-yearly or annually. They can only charge fees every month. But this draft has given them the liberty to charge fees at their will.

Added Satya Pal Chaudhary, the patron of GPA: We will be challenging this draft in the Supreme Court and urge it to issue contempt notice to Sanjay Agrawal, the Principal Secretary (Education) in the Uttar Pradesh government, for acting against law.
Global arms sales increased for the first time in five years in 2016 as rising geopolitical tensions fuelled defence spending, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Sales by the worlds 100 biggest arms producers increased 1.9 per cent from the previous year to reach $374.8 billion, CNN quoted SIPRI as saying in an official report on Sunday night.

The growth in arms sales was expected and was driven by the implementation of new national major weapon programmes, ongoing military operations in several countries and persistent regional tensions that are leading to an increased demand for weapons, the report said.

Arms producers in South Korea, which increasingly supply the countrys military, saw the largest percentage increase among developed countries.

The spending splurge reflects fears of a potential conflict with North Korea. Sales by South Korean firms increased by over 20 per cent in 2016, to $8.4 billion.

While consumer purchases are included in the sales figures, national governments are by far the largest purchasers of arms and weapons systems, according to the report.

American firms remained at the top of the industry in 2016, with sales increasing by 4 per cent to more than $217 billion which was 58 per cent of the global total.

American defence firm Lockheed Martin  the worlds largest producer  saw sales surge 11 per cent in 2016, thanks to increased deliveries of its F-35 fighter and its acquisition of helicopter producer Sikorsky.

Aude Fleurant, director of the Arms and Military Expenditure Programme at SIPRI, said that US growth was likely to continue.

Sales by Russian firms increased 3.8 per cent to $26.6 billion, a slower expansion than in recent years, CNN quoted the report as saying.

Moscow has boosted spending in order to overhaul its military capabilities, but procurement has slowed recently because of the countrys strained finances.

Its a money issue They have been hit very severely by the drop in oil and gas prices, said Fleurant.

She pointed to regional disputes, such as the standoff over islands in the South China Sea, as a major source of increased arms sales.

The area is home to crucial shipping lanes, and its rich in oil and gas reserves. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have all made territorial claims to islands in the area.

Countries like Vietnam order submarines and maritime patrol aircraft, because of what they consider Chinas assertiveness in these territorial disputes, Fleurant added.
Former chief minister and leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal on Monday said the BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) would form government in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat by clear majority.

Talking to mediapersons at his residence in Hamirpur, Dhumal, who is BJPs chief ministerial candidate, said after coming into power, the BJP government would work towards restoring law and order in the state. We will create a better mechanism for women safety.

He said the BJP government would take stringent steps to curb rampant corruption in HP. He said that efforts would also be made to end mafias which flourished under the Congress rule.Dhumal expressed concern over drug mafia spreading wings in the state, which has resulted in youth falling prey to the menace. He said on coming into power, the BJP government would end illegal drug smuggling to protect the future generations from this social evil.

Various steps to curb the drug smuggling rackets would be initiated on war footing forming government in Himachal Pradesh, he said.

The former chief minister said the development works which has been stalled during the Congress regime would be restarted with the help of Central government.

Himachal will once again tread on the development path with the government implementing all central projects on time and this would lead to generation of employment opportunities for the youth of the state, he said.
Actress Suchitra Pillai, who won the Best Lead Actress honour at the Milan International Filmmaker Festival earlier this month, is ecstatic about the recognition.

Suchitra couldnt make it to the festival, so the American indie movies director Saila Kariat received it on her behalf.

I am on cloud nine, I cant express it in words. I am just waiting now to have the award in my hands, Suchitra said in a statement.

The movies plot, which brings out an important message on depression, follows a distraught father as he searches for answers after his college-age daughters suicide.

Films with such topics are to be handled with care and Saila as a director has nailed it, Suchitra added.

Kariat said: Its only Suchitra who could do justice to the role she played and I am glad with the love and affection the film has been receiving internationally.
The Congress on Sunday dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an impartial probe into the note-ban decision that the opposition party dubbed the biggest scam ever and the largest money-laundering scheme.

In September 2016 (before demonetisation announced on November 8, 2016), a whopping Rs 5,88,600 crore was deposited in banks, of which Rs 3 lakh crore was in fixed deposits. Whose money was it and what happened to it? Congress Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said at a press conference here.

In October 2016, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar purchased eight properties. In Odisha, it purchased 18 properties, just ahead of demonetisation. Will Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah tell the people as to how many properties they purchased just before demonetisation? Will they disclose the details of the partys bank accounts of the months preceding demonetisation? Surjewala said.

Modi had announced the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

Also, Rs 500 crore was deposited in the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank three days before demonetisation. Amit Shah is a Director of this bank. Was he questioned by the Income Tax Department or the Enforcement Directorate regarding this money? he said.

The Congress leader said that after demonetisation, Rs 10.1 crore was seized from a Vaidyanath Cooperative Urban Development Bank van, in which BJP leader and Maharashtra Minister Pankaja Munde has a stake.

It is public knowledge that the cooperative banks were not given any new currency. Then how come this cooperative bank got new currency of Rs 10 crore? Whose money was it? Is there any probe into this case? Surjewala said.

He said at a time when the common people were struggling in bank queues to get a few lakh of rupees in new currency for their daughters weddings, mining baron G. Janardan Reddy splurged Rs 500 crore on his daughters wedding.

The BJP top brass made a beeline to this function as Reddy is considered very dear to Prime Minister Modi. Why was no investigation launched against Reddy as to where from he got so much money in new currency, when notes were being rationed to the common people? Surjewala said.

We challenge the Prime Minister to order an impartial probe into all these cases, and many more such cases, and bring out the facts before the people, he added.

The Congress leader called All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi as the B-team of BJP and said people should not pay attention to the polarising antics of such people.
A day after an first information report (FIR) was lodged against the Fortis hospital in Gurgaon in connection with the death of a 7-year-old dengue patient, the Haryana government on Monday said criminal sections in FIR would be added on the basis of irregularities found in investigation report.

The health minister, Anil Vij said besides the sections filed in the FIR, other criminal sections in FIR would be added on the basis of irregularities found in investigation report concerning death of a girl child due to dengue and bill of about Rs 16 lakh.

In this direction, FIR number 639 had already been lodged against the Fortis hospital, Gurugram, he said. The FIR was registered on Sunday against the hospital under section 304 (2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the SushantLok Police Station (Gurugram).

Vij said that appropriate action would be taken against the hospital management on the basis of the report. Those found guilty would not be spared at any cost, the minister added.

Criminal sections would be added on the basis of irregularities found in investigation report such as overcharging for medicines, forged signature, not providing ambulance on time, overcharging for platelets transfusion, ignoring norms of Indian Medical Association and Medical Council of India, and violation of treatment protocol.

A probe committee constituted to investigate the matter had earlier submitted its report to the health department. It found several irregularities including protocols not being followed in a case related to the death of a 7-year-old girl. The bill for the treatment of seven-year-old Adya Singh had shot over Rs 15 lakh even as she died of dengue, according to officials. On Friday, Adyas father had filed a complaint against Fortis Hospital in relation to the death of his daughter due to dengue-related complications.

In his complaint, the deceaseds father Jayant Singh held the hospital responsible for culpable homicide and also alleged forgery, cheating, destruction and alteration of evidence and criminally negligence in the course of her treatment.The matter came to fore in mid-November after a family friend of the deceased girl posted on social media images of the bills of over Rs 16 lakh. The bill included charges for 660 syringes and 2,700 gloves, and triggered outrage among people that the family was overcharged.
The Union Road Transport and Highways Ministry on Monday said the Mechi River Bridge, part of India-Nepal connectivity projects, is on track.

Mechi River Bridge project to be implemented at the Indo-Nepal border is on track. LOI is likely to be issued to the contractor shortly, said the Ministry in a statement after reviewing the project.

Piprakothi-Raxaul Road (NH57A)  NHAI has received bids for restoration of this highway. Award of contract for repair is likely to be done by the end of this month.

It also said that for the Mirganj Bridge (NH 57A), the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has done a survey and a proposal for temporary bridge strengthening will be formulated in January 2018.

India is mentoring construction of over 600 km of postal roads in the Terai region bordering India. A postal road is designated for the transportation of postal mail.

According to an MoU inked between India and Nepal, the decision was taken after a similar attempt by the Nepal government failed to take off due to the negligence of the contractors in 2010.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday met the Foreign Ministers of Russia and China at Rashtrapati Bhavan and said that a stronger bilateral relation between the three nations was in the interest of all.

Kovind met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov individually ahead of the 15th round of Russia-India-China trilateral meeting that was hosted by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.

Welcoming the Russian Foreign Minister, Kovind said: India-Russia bilateral ties are strong. This year we have witnessed intensification in our high-level engagements.

The President was happy to note that bilateral trade between India and Russia registered a growth of 22 per cent in the first six months of this year.

He stated that early operationalisation of the International North South Transport Corridor can play a significant role in achieving our bilateral trade targets.

The President said that institutionalisation of the India-Russia Heads of Think Tanks Forum, which held its 2nd session in Delhi on December 4-5, would be most helpful to both countries.

We should continue with our efforts to bring our think tanks and academic communities closer, he said.

In his meeting with Wang, the President congratulated him on the successful conclusion of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China and said that India was looking forward to working with President Xi Jinping to take the Indo-China developmental partnership to greater heights.

We view India-China ties as important in our foreign policy. Our high-level exchanges and interactions have maintained momentum. Our economic engagement is growing. We are also seeing cooperation on many international issues, he said.

The President said that as two major countries in the world, expansion of cooperation bilaterally as well as regionally is in our mutual interest. He was confident that multifaceted relations between India and China will continue to make progress and acquire even greater salience.
On the lines of its anti-polio drive, the health ministry has launched a 15-day door-to-door campaign across the country for early detection, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis to eliminate the disease.

Under the campaign, health department workers, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and TB supervisors will make door-to-door visits to find TB patients and give them free medical treatment till they are cured, said Dr Sunil Khaparde, Deputy Director General (TB), Health Ministry.

According to the World Health Organisation, an estimated 2.8 million cases of TB occur in India every year, out of which 1.7 million cases are reported.

Around one million cases of tuberculosis get missed every year. The aim is to detect these missed out cases by going to every household.

These are the most vulnerable population including those living in slums, mine workers, unorganised labourers, prisoners and migrants among others, Khaparde said.

Under the third phase of the Revised National TB Control Programme, the centre in collaboration with the states have identified 186 high-risk districts. The phase is called Active Case Finding (ACF).

The programme was launched in January last year and the second phase of the exercise was carried out in July.

In both the campaigns together, 15,000 cases of TB were detected and the patients were put on treatment.

The health ministry aims to reduce incidences of TB by 90 per cent by 2025 and reduce mortality due to the disease by 95 per cent by 2030 under the Revised National TB Control Programme, Khaparde said.

Talking about the challenges faced in TB elimination, Kharpade said that more than 60 per cent of the patients go to private hospitals during the first contact.

There is no adherence system. Also the treatment protocol as prescribed under the standards for TB cases is not followed as a result of which the treatment is not completed and in majority of the cases there is a relapse.

So we are sensitising the private hospitals so that they notify us the cases, he said.

In a bid to achieve the goal of eliminating tuberculosis (TB) by 2025, the ministry recently rolled out the daily drug regimen to combat the disease across the country.

Under the new treatment policy, patients are being given fixed drug combinations (FDCs), three or four drugs in a single pill, on a daily basis instead of thrice a week (the intermittent drug regimen).

Patients are being given fixed drug combinations (FDCs), three or four drugs in a single pill, as against seven tablets, which will reduce the pill burden.

Besides, dosage will be determined according to the patients body weight. Previously, it was same for all adults, Khaparde said.

Also, children suffering from tuberculosis wont have to take the bitter tablets anymore as they will be replaced with easily-dissolvable and flavoured drugs, he said.

Since 1997, under the RNTCP, patients were being administered drugs thrice a week (the intermittent drug regimen).

According to a senior health ministry official, daily treatment regimen is likely to be more effective with lesser relapses and it is expected to reduce drug-resistance with greater compliance. The World Health Organisation revised its TB management guidelines in 2010, recommending that the daily drug regimen be adopted under the RNTCP.

According to the health ministry data, the TB incidence was estimated to be 217 per lakh population in 2015 which reduced to 211 per lakh population in 2016.

Despite the reduction, India topped the list of seven countries, accounting for 64 per cent of the 10.4 million new tuberculosis (TB) cases worldwide in 2016, according to a new global report which was released by the WHO yesterday.

Also, India along with China and Russia accounted for almost of half of the 490,000, multi drug-resistant TB (MDR- TB) cases registered in 2016.

According to the report, under-reporting and under-diagnosis of the TB cases continues to be a challenge,especially in countries with large unregulated private sectors and weak health systems.
Donald Trump has ignited a major flutter in the Arab roost. On the eve of the seventh anniversary of the Arab Spring, the ferment has intensified if Sundays meeting of foreign ministers in Cairo is any indication. Prompt and swift has been the collective outcry against the White House, couched in the demand that the United States must rescind President Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The foreign ministers have treated the issue, indeed the US Presidents reckless foreign policy gambit, as a flagrant violation of international law, condemning the shift of capital as a grave development that places Washington on the same side as occupation. The charge is as serious as it could be, and Mr Trump could scarcely have anticipated so furious a diplomatic offensive from the Arab world.

The Cairo resolution may be long on rhetoric and short in terms of concrete action. The respective countries in the bloc have been direly fractious; but it is the united stand of the ministers that has conveyed a resounding message to the White House. The Cairo document has appealed to the UN Security Council to adopt a resolution condemning Mr Trumps deeply controversial decision, acknowledging nonetheless that America will almost certainly veto the same.

A veto in the Council will not in itself be reassuring to the President and his frequently reshuffled cabal; the Arabs will seek a similar resolution in the General Assembly going by the signal of intent emitted by the Palestinian foreign minister, Riyad Al-Maliki, at a pre-dawn press conference in Cairo. The timing of the media interaction is suggestive of the gravity of the situation. Given the Councils prevarication on the Arab storm-centres ~ pre-eminently Syria and Libya ~ a counter-resolution cannot be readily expected. Yet it is the counter-blast of the Arab bloc that lends a new dimension to international relations.

A two-page resolution adopted by the emergency meeting did not mention any punitive action against the United States, like a call for a boycott of American products or suspending or downgrading ties with Washington. Given the persistent turmoil in the Arab world, notably in Egypt, Syria, and Libya, drastic measures seem unlikely quite yet.

The focus is on the Palestinians, who since the December 6 announcement by Trump have been rendered a furiously infuriated segment in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, exemplified by the arson and violent protests over the past three days. The Middle East is no stranger to such violence; it is the context that has lent an emotive edge to the reprisal against the attack on the certitudes of international law. Jerusalem has been occupied for 50 years. This is an extended battle, a battle that will be escalated, is the succinct response of the Arab League. The confrontation has only just begun. The epitaph on the seventh anniversary of the Arab Spring can be as stark as that.
Information on the Armed Forces Flag day was for the first time well disseminated across the nation employing every medium, mainly social. While the event did get good coverage and possibly reasonable contributions flowed in, the very concept and methodology of the flag day needs a rethink. It has followed a laid down schedule since 1949, with an increased emphasis this year on employing digital media to enhance contributions.

It was first celebrated in 1949 on 7 December and has since become a ritual. There is no specific historical reason for the selection of this date except the fact that the Defence Ministers Committee in August 1949 took a decision to celebrate Armed forces flag day every year on 7 December. The nation had yet to face any major external threat, hence any day was suitable.

In the past, NCC cadets and volunteer schoolchildren would be visible at crossings with small donation boxes and flags. Motorists would stop to make their contributions and a flag would be pinned on them. The smile on the faces of young volunteers was enough to even melt the heart of people.

Now, there is no organised system of collection, hence the Flag day largely remains unknown. Photographs in newspapers on the next day invariably show a flag being pinned on the jacket of the state governor and chief minister.

In the present digital era, contributions can easily be made online. The funds collected on Flag day are employed for three principal tasks. Firstly, rehabilitation of families of battle casualties; secondly, welfare of serving personnel and finally for resettlement and well-being of ex-servicemen, including battle casualties. In addition to the Flag day, there is always an option for those seeking to donate for the welfare of armed forces personnel to deposit funds online to either the National Defence Fund or the Indian Army Welfare Fund.

In the initial years, the three services would hold a variety of traditional and cultural programmes, plays, festivals and other activities to showcase their unity in diversity on Flag day. This has taken a backseat and so have serious efforts at interacting with the common Indian. The day has largely remained ignored by the serving military community and the masses. With passage of time, even efforts at increasing public donations have reduced.

Collection of donations at national levels is coordinated by the Kendriya Sainik Boards (KSB). At state levels it is the Rajya Sainik Board (RSB) and Zila Sainik Boards, which are quasi-independent bodies and operate under the KSB at the central level. While advertisements are few for donations, this year however the government went on an overdrive on social media to enhance awareness amongst the public.

In the present era, there is a requirement to reconsider the date and manner of conduct of the Flag day. In India, there are specific days when the public remembers armed forces martyrs and functions are held in their memory. Well known are Vijay Diwas, which marks victory over Pakistan and creation of Bangladesh celebrated on 16 December every year and Kargil Diwas, which marks victory in Kargil and is celebrated on 26 July. On these two dates, the nation collectively pays homage to martyrs in organised events including candle light vigils.

Since 7 December has no specific significance, it would be advisable to change the date to one that the nation can relate to, thereby inviting better participation. It would then see the conduct of multiple events, all with a cause, with fund raising being just one of them. Once the public relates to an event, everything including contributions change.

Between the two dates, the most ideal would be Vijay Diwas. This is mainly because it was a major victory and changed the sub-continent for eternity. Further, this war involved the active participation of and sacrifices by all three services and hence would be more symbolic, especially in areas where there are naval and air force bases. Donations are not as important as the common Indian declaring solidarity with members of the military.

The new concept should involve all academic institutions and corporate houses inviting few serving and veteran members of the armed forces from the nearest cantonment or town. They could address the audience on the nature of operations of the 1971 war and on issues concerning their present role and tasks. Talks by soldiers and veterans who had either participated in operations or in counter insurgency, would rekindle nationalism and support to the armed forces. It would enhance trust and belief in their role and task.

Collection of funds should remain the responsibility of the KSB and its affiliates. They could involve those institutions and corporate houses that invite service representatives on that day. These institutions could collect donations, and hand these over to the representatives of the RSB. NCC cadets could also be involved in the event, enthusing them with a strong feeling of nationalism and making them feel special, as they remain the closest link of the masses with the armed forces.

The Armed Forces Flag day has begun losing significance since it is a standalone event, with no correlation to Indias major victories post-Independence. Since the day had been selected at random, its continuance is not sacrosanct. Changing it to Vijay Diwas has no political connotation, hence could be considered. For a nation with short memories, maximum participation and contributions would flow if the date of the Flag day is changed to 16 December, coinciding with Vijay Diwas. Changing the manner of its conduct would enhance solidarity of the common public with the armed forces.

The writer is a retired Major-General of the Indian Army.
Perhaps appropriately, the first heavy rain after weeks of sunshine was s plashing off the paving stones outside bookseller Imad Munas news and stationery shop in Saladin, the busy main shopping street of Arab East Jerusalem.

Inside, the proprietor, his 27-year-old son Ahmad, and a 70-year-old customer Adnan Abdel Razeq were holding a well-informed debate on the probable meaning of President Donald Trumps speech they would be watching on television several hours later. Mr Abdel Razeq pointed out that the UN Security Council had in 1980 roundly declared null and void the law passed by the then Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin declaring Jerusalem the complete and united capital of Israel.

While agreeing with that, Ahmad disputed another of the old mans points  namely that it would not be so bad if Mr Trump stressed he was specifying West Jerusalem as Israels capital which would have left open the possibility that East Jerusalem might still in future be that of the Palestinians. It was a distinction the US President would not make.

Suggesting that Mr Trump might be attempting to provoke Hamas into breaking off reconciliation talks with its Fatah rivals, Ahmad said: Trump should not be talking about this at all. It is very dangerous. Im sure there will be big demonstrations. His father added that for the Palestinians an equal stake in Jerusalem was the last bottom line. If Mr Trump was to challenge that, thats it for the peace process.

Given the rhetoric raging among Arab leaders in advance of Mr Trumps speech, the trio in Occupied East Jerusalem  and it is worth remembering that is how every almost every Western government officially sees it  sounded sober, even restrained. But this seemed bred from a weary but steely determination not to let one more betrayal bully them into acceptance of that 50-year-old occupation. Even were Riyadh and other Arab leaders tacitly to support Mr Trump, which they did not seem to be doing in the wake of the announcement, they will never part the Palestinian people from their national aspiration exclaimed Mr Abdel Razeq.

From a rain sodden Jerusalem, it was hard to figure out just what had possessed the pyromaniac  to use the Arab Knesset member Ayman Odehs word  Mr Trump to unravel at a stroke the delicate Western consensus on the most inflammatory of all the issues between Israel and the Palestinians. There was no doubt a complex of motives in the decision finally to move the US embassy to Jerusalem in defiance of international edicts dating back to 1948.

But was one the influence of Sheldon Adelson, Mr Trumps most lavish funder in the 2016 campaign, a zealous supporter of right-wing Israeli nationalism, and the original bankroller of Israel Hayom, the free newspaper which has been Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus most unflinching cheerleader?

What is clear is that if this was an attempt for Mr Trump to reconcile his dream of the ultimate deal with the search for a campaign promise to fulfil, at whatever cost, the latter won.

Some of this must have gathered momentum in the apparently cordial dialogue  maintained according to some diplomats by WhatsApp  between two fabulously rich young men, Mr Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner and Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It appears that this may have given birth to the idea  first reported in The New York Times  of an emerging Trump-planned peace deal. This would, among other things, have offered the Palestinians a capital away from the heart of East Jerusalem proper, in the suburb of Abu Dis. This was first mentioned after [the] Oslo accords [in the early nineties], Mr Abdel Razeq said of the reports, and we laughed about it then.

If Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman really thought  and it has not of course been confirmed  that he could ignore the Palestinians last bottom line, then he may have seriously underestimated the extent to the place Jerusalem holds in the hearts of not only Palestinians  but those throughout the Muslim world, including his own country. That may well be why the King of Saudi Arabia has appeared to reject the formula allegedly thrashed out with Mr Kushner, instead reinforcing the long held Arab Peace Initiative under which Israel would be recognised throughout the Arab world in return for a Palestinian state in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and based on June 1967 borders.

Its hardly a secret that Saudi Arabia and Israel are seeking to nurture an alliance to challenge their common opponent Iran. Perhaps some in the Kingdom were prepared to forsake the Palestinians in pursuit of that cause. But Jerusalem is at the heart of why they dare not do that.

The heroically optimistic glosses on Trumps announcement on Wednesday afternoon pointed to his stated recommitment to a negotiated peace if the two sides agreed its terms  rather ignoring the fact that almost every utterance by members of Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahus coalition government  including the Prime Minister himself  has suggested that Israel is not prepared for any deal a Palestinian leader could literally  let alone politically  live with. It was true too that he did not repeat the phrase beloved of the Israeli right  Jerusalem as the eternal and undivided capital of Israel, at least in theory opening the possibility of East Jerusalem as a Palestinian capital.

But nor  and this is a striking point  did he simply specify, as all governments in the past including his own have assumed in the past it would be  that West Jerusalem would be the site of a future of an Israel capital. It was hard in other words to escape the conclusion that his administration was indeed also open to Jerusalem as an undivided capital.

The glaring fallacy in Trumps logic is that because not recognising Jerusalem as the capital or moving the US embassy there had not produced peace  as if there were no other obstacles  doing both things might. Does he think that the Palestinians will somehow agree to utterly humiliating terms in order to prevent the construction of the embassy being completed? If so, he simply doesnt understand the conflict. The immediate results of this lack of understanding remain to be seen. As Mr Abdel Razeq said, much will depend on how Israeli security forces, now being busily deployed in advance of Friday prayers, handle the promised Palestinian days of rage.

One of the wisest Israelis in Jerusalem is Daniel Seidemann, the man who has advised successive US and other foreign governments on the hugely delicate issues the city presents for any peace process. He warned ahead of Mr Trumps announcement that it could spell the end of the USs role as a peace broker. Jerusalem is a kind and dignified place if its treated with respect, he told me. But those who ignore its complexities find it comes back to bite their sensitive parts.

That may be what happed to the Saudi Crown Prince. But it doesnt seem to have bothered Mr Trump, even as the State Department warns its diplomats of the security risks to their missions in the Arab world from protests against his announcement.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday criticized the policies of US President Donald Trump in Middle East regarding Jerusalem, Press TV reported.

Trump has made an incorrect decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Rouhani said in a meeting with the visiting British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in the capital Tehran.

The regional situation is such that one should not fan the flames and the US Presidents recent decision to move the countrys embassy to al-Quds (Jerusalem) was an incorrect decision and was pouring gasoline on the flames in the region, Rouhani was quoted as saying.

Over the past years, Iran sought to establish sustainable peace and stability, helped end war and bloodshed and uproot terrorism in the region, he said, adding that Tehran-London talks could lead to the development of regional stability.

It is clear that Irans constructive role saved two regional countries from the threat of terrorism, he said. No one can doubt Irans positive measures in the region, he pointed out.

The Iranian President also stressed the importance of boosting cordial relations between Tehran and London after the implementation of the landmark nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries in 2015.

He expressed dissatisfaction with the current level of Tehran-London cooperation after the JCPOA implementation and urged the two sides to make more efforts to reach a desirable point in relations.

The British foreign secretary said Iran had taken positive measures in the fight against terrorism and promoted regional peace and stability.

Johnson said that London did not regard Trumps decision on Jerusalem as an appropriate move.

Besides, he said that the JCPOA was a positive accord, which should be upheld in a way that the Iranian nation could take advantage of its economic benefits.

He also expressed Britains willingness to participate in Irans investment projects.

Johnson headed a high-ranking politico-economic delegation in his trip to Tehran is part of an effort to improve Tehran-London relations.
South Korea, Japan and the US have begun joint missile detection exercises amid escalating regional tensions over North Koreas nuclear weapons program, Seouls Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday.

The drill, which will last two days, is taking place off the Korean peninsula, and comes after Pyongyang fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on November 28 that it claimed could strike anywhere in the US.

The three countries are testing their abilities to detect and track North Korean missiles and share information, Efe news reported.

The drills will feature several destroyers equipped with the Aegis radar system.

The trilateral defence exercises are the sixth of their kind since 2016, and come after South Korea and the US held the annual bilateral Vigilant ACE drills, which ended last week.

Pyongyang claims that the latest ICBM, called the Hwasong-15, is the regimes most powerful to date.

It was the latest in a series of nuclear weapons tests North Korea has conducted in 2017, leading to repeated UN sanctions and threats of destruction from US President Donald Trump.

Trump in August promised to respond to Pyongyangs nuclear ambitions with fire and fury like the world has never seen.


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Organisation: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Position No.: 10026847

Vacancy Notice: 032/2017

Duty Station: Uganda

Post Grade: NOA

About UNHCR:

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was established on December 14, 1950 by the United Nations General Assembly. UNHCRs mandate under the Statute of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is to lead and co-ordinate action for international protection to refugees; seek permanent solutions for the problems of refugees and safeguard refugee rights and well-being. UNHCR has an additional mandate concerning issues of statelessness, as it is given a designated role under Article 11 of the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.

Job Summary: The Assistant Information Management Officer will assist in the production and dissemination of information on the population of concern, including but not limited to Protection and Programme information. The incumbent will operationalize data standards developed at the central level in field operations, will compile data and analyses information from all populations of concern. S/he will support the Programme Team and UNHCR implementing partners in the choice of indicators for monitoring to be included in sub-agreements as well as the Protection Team in operationalizing protection monitoring systems.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Operationalize country-specific common data standards and promote them with partners, including UNHCR data standards and the IASC Common Operational Datasets.

The incumbent will compile, aggregrate and analyze data and information elements required to produce standardized information products and implement data/information collection plans for baseline and context-specific data.

Support the operation in the analysis of processed data and information and perform data quality and consistency control.

Facilitate the analysis of cross-border information between relevant countries.

Assist in training staff involved in information management activities, including data collection and data entry teams.

Support and leverage geographic data for map production and use in geographic information systems (GIS).

Share UNHCR data with partner agencies and maintain Portal data and information in-line with agreed frequencies.

Provide technical Information Management support to Needs Assessment processes, specifically in data collection, processing/collation and analysis.

Perform other duties as required.

Key Performance Indicators:

The Office delivers reliable, accessible and user-friendly, relevant, predictable, appropriate and timely information.

Global data standards, and where appropriate, the establishment of country-specific common data standards are adopted by UNHCR and its partners.





Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

The ideal candidate for the United Nations UNHCR Assistant Information Management Officer career opportunity should hold a good University degree in information technology, demography, statistics, social sciences or any related area.

A minimum of two years of relevant work experience.

Knowledge of the UN system and the humanitarian community.

Proven skills to analyse statistical information.

Advanced Excel skills (e.g. pivot tables, functions, etc.).

Ability to formulate IM-related technical requirements and Operating Procedures.

Previous experience with handling confidential data and demonstrated understanding of different data collection methodologies.

Excellent knowledge of English and working knowledge of another UN language.

How to Apply:

All interested Ugandan nationals who wish to join the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the aforementioned capacity are encouraged to click on the link below and follow the application instructions after reviewing the job details.

Deadline: 18th December 2017
Patnaik's close aides say that to understand him, one has to understand his empathy

By Pratul Sharma/Photos Sanjay Ahlawat
Up in arms against the revised debit card charges, retailers are now raising their voice by writing to the Reserve Bank of India as well as drawing the attention of the government to the central bank's move to rationalise merchant discount rate on debit card payments, a move which retailers say goes against the digital payments push and one that will drive retailers ask customers to pay more by cash, particularly for lower value transactions.

Merchant discount rate (MDR) is the rate that banks charge a merchant for providing debit and credit card services.

The RBI had issued a notification rationalising the framework for MDR on debit card transactions, based on a category of merchants on December 6, essentially prescribing a lower MDR for small retailers. The move, it felt, would drive more retailers to accept debit cards for payments and further boost debit card payments.

As per the new norms, effective from January 1, 2018, MDR on debit card transactions would be 0.4 per cent (capped Rs 200 per transaction) for merchants with a turnover of up to Rs 20 lakh in the previous financial year. For other merchants with a turnover of over Rs 20 lakh, the MDR cannot exceed 0.90 per cent (capped at Rs 1,000 per transaction).

Earlier, banks were allowed to charge MDR of up to 0.25 per cent on transactions of up to Rs 1,000, transactions between Rs 1,000 - 2,000 were charged 0.5 per cent and MDR was capped at 1 per cent on higher value transactions.

This move is absolutely against the Digital India thought process. If you tell a retailer that if you accept a digital card, I am going to charge you more, why would a retailer then want to accept a digital card payment. Today most of us don't use cheques, but make RTGS payments, as we find there are no charges on RTGS. Similarly, a debit card payment is also a direct transfer from a bank account, so it shouldn't incur that kind of cost, Kumar Rajagopalan, the CEO of Retailers Association of India (RAI), told THE WEEK.

RAI, which counts many small and large retailers including top players like Future Group, Shoppers Stop and Tata-owned Trent among its members, is about to write in to the RBI. It will also mark a copy to the finance ministry and seek their intervention if there is no response from the central bank.

Either the RBI should switch back to the way things were earlier, or bring every retailer under the 0.4 per cent MDR. If RBI feels that smaller retailers will be happy with 0.4 per cent, why should the larger retailers be made to pay a higher per cent, questions Rajagopalan.

The immediate impact of the RBI's move will be for large merchants like Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), supermarkets like Big Bazaar, e-commerce players and cab aggregators, all of whom have large volumes with ticket size of less than Rs 1000, but turnover of more than Rs 20 lakh, pointed out V. Balasubramanian, president, merchant and terminal business at Financial Software and Systems, a Chennai-based payments technology and transaction processing firm.

The current MDR for large merchants for transaction value less than Rs 1,000 is at 0.25 per cent. From January 2018, this will be increased to 0.90 per cent, which is an increase of 65 basis points that has to be borne out by them. In case of small merchants, currently the MDR is at 0.25 per cent for debit card transactions of Rs 1,000 on point of sale terminal or online. This would increase to 0.40 per cent from January 2018, which is a 15 basis point increase that has to be borne by the merchant. This may lead them to continue accepting cash for transactions below Rs 1,000 to avoid the additional cost, said Balasubramanian.
At a time when Russia has offered to mediate between moderate Taliban and Afghanistan's ruling government, Afghan army chief is seeking Indian army's enhanced role in training of their military.

Chief Afghan National Army Lt Gen Mohd Sharif Yaftali, who arrived in New Delhi to boost military and strategic cooperation between the two nation, met his Indian army counterpart General Bipin Rawat. During an hour long meeting in the South Block, both Generals discussed the changing security dynamics in the continent.

" Besides discussing military and strategic issues, Afghanistan army chief has expressed his desire to accommodate more number of officers and cadets of Afghanistan National Army for counter-terrorism operations,"a defence source told THE WEEK.

This comes a week after Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, during a meeting with lawmakers in their Parliament, had hailed India's contribution in various sectors of the country. Emphasising that India is a good partner, President Ghani insisted that the Afghan government is committed to further strengthening bilateral cooperation with India.

The development is in the backdrop of Russia looking to assert itself in Afghanistan with its civil and military engagement. Both Russia and China have offered to mediate between Taliban and civilian government of Afghanistan.

Indian army has trained over 5000 Afghan national army personnel including officers since 2004. Through agreement to part military training happened between the two neighbours in the year 2004, but the number started picking up only after 2014, as the NATO forces decided to drawdown their forces from the trouble-torn hilly nation.

Annually, Indian army trains approximately 1000 Afghan military personnel. In fact, early this month, for the first time, a group of 20 women army and air force officers from Afghanistan was landed to be trained at the Officers' Training Academy in Chennai.

Sources also claimed that the Afghanistan army also wants New Delhi to set up a military training facility for its officers and soldiers in Afghanistan and send a training team for the purpose, which has been denied by the New Delhi as India does not want its foot soldiers' presence there.

Besides, asking for enhanced role of parting military training, Afghanistan army chief has come up with his wish list of military hardware, which Kabul has been asking for long time.

To be specific, Afghanistan has asked for as many as 150 battle tanks of T 72, 120 (105 mm) field guns, a large number of 82 mm mortars, one medium lift transport aircraft (AN-32), two squadrons of medium lift and attack helicopters, and a large number of trucks. India and Afghanistan have a Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) in place since 2011, under which India has been providing military training to Afghan military officers and non-lethal aid.

It is notable that the Pakistan has been opposing presence of India in Afghanistan, which has also been endorsed by the United States in providing constructive role in the rehabilitation of Afghanistan.
Hitting out at Congress for asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "apologise in Jama Masjid" for the 2002 riots, the BJP on Monday said only those who commit mistake should offer an apology.

"This is a shameful statement by the Congress. They apologised for their deeds in 1984 anti-sikh riots and now they are creating a baseless controversy. The truth is only those people who have committed mistakes apologise, but those who have not done anything wrong why they will serve an apology," BJP leader Bizay Sonkar Shastri told ANI.

Another BJP leader S. Prakash, in Bengaluru, said instead of focusing their attention on development, the Congress was trying to evoke Gujarat riots to win over the Muslim votes. "The Congress has once again brought the 2002 riots into the campaign. Till now, they were silent on the issue. They are demanding an illogical apology from the prime minister. It was a communal riot where both Hindus and Muslims were killed which happened in the aftermath of Godhra incident.

"Several cases have been filed and many have been convicted as well, unlike in 1984 riots, where the Congress did not show any interest to convict those who were involved in the Sikh massacre," Prakash added.

Earlier on Sunday, BJP chief Amit Shah tore into Congress' demand, saying the matter was being raised to consolidate votes in the ongoing Gujarat Assembly election.

"Congress' Charan Singh said Prime Minister Modi must go inside Jama Masjid and apologies for 2002 riots. Entire nation knows the allegations levelled on the prime minster by the Congress backed NGO were all false. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017," Shah told the media in Gandhinagar.

The first phase of polling took place on Saturday and recorded a voter turnout of 66.75 per cent in 89 of 182 constituencies.

The second-phase voting in remaining 93 constituencies is on December 14, and the votes will be counted on December 18.
A day before Gujarat witnesses second and last phase of polling for the assembly elections, a seaplane will land in the Sabarmati Riverfront on Tuesday to fly off Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Dharoi Dam.

BJP national president Amit Shah claimed on Monday night that the seaplane that would land in Ahmedabad waters would be the first one to land in the country.

At the Sabarmati Riverfront on Monday, Modi said that 106 such water ways had been planned in the country.

The seaplane will land near the Sardar Bridge at 9.30 am. From there it will take the prime minister and go to Dharoi, which is 188 km by road from Ahmedabad. From there, Modi will go by road to seek the blessings of Goddess Amba at the famous Ambaji Temple. The temple is 48 kilometer away from the Dharoi Dam.

After having the darshan, he will again board the seaplane from the dam site and reach Ahmedabad by 2.30 pm.

Elections to 93 assembly seats will be held on December 14.

Sources said that the expenses incurred for the trip would have to be accounted in the party's election expenditure.

Two days ago, Spicejet had conducted seaplane trials at Mumbai's Giragum Chowpatty. The trial was conducted in association with a Japanese company.
At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been campaigning aggressively for the second phase of assembly polls in Gujarat, Lokshahi Bachavo Abhiyaan (Save Democracy Movement) has alleged that the condition of farmers in the state is dismal.

While Modi has been bringing Pakistani references in his speeches and talks about development of Gujarat and works done by the Central government, Abhiyaan, a forum of like-minded people, has held that as the farmers were not getting viable price for the produce, they were getting under debt.

The Abhiyaan has under its umbrella people of the likes of former chief minister Suresh Mehta, economist Rohit Shukla, environmental activist Mahesh Pandya, political observer Hemant Shah and Gautam Thaker of PUCL.

During the ongoing elections, the Abhiyaan had also organised lectures by BJP leader Yashwant Sinha.

Shah held that in the last 17 years, 10,000 farmers have committed suicide. The figures are based on the records placed in the state assembly. He further claimed that during 2013 - 2015, as many as 1,483 farmers had committed suicides in Gujarat. They even alleged that the government was not providing assistance to the dependent family members of the farmers, who had committed suicide.

The activists also alleged that under the government's crop insurance scheme, the farmers do not get 100 per cent benefit.

According to them, livelihood of 3.60 crore people of Gujarat is derived from agricultural activities. This, according to them, represents 55 per cent of the total population.

Questioned as to what has been the reason that the BJP has been ruling the state for the last 22 years in spite of so many issues, Shah said that they have succeeded in coming to power by fooling the innocent people of Gujarat and by spreading lies.

Shukla pointed out that the PM was trying to polarise the voters by bringing reference of Congress leader Ahmed Patel.

Modi had on Sunday claimed that Pakistan had spoken about making Patel the chief minister of Gujarat. Pakistan has officially denied the allegation and said that it should not be dragged in the elections.

Talking about a hypothetical possibility, Shukla questioned as to why Patel could not become the chief minister of Gujarat since he was a registered voter of the state. By saying that Patel can not become the chief minister, do you mean to say that no Muslim can become chief minister of any state of India, Shukla questioned.

The activists also asked that by talking about Patel as the chief minister whether the BJP has conceded defeat.
Around the time Rahul Gandhi was locked in a face-off with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Ahmedabad as he campaigns for the assembly elections in Gujarat, an announcement at the Congress headquarters in Delhi turned him from party vice president to the president-elect.

"...I hereby declare Shri Rahul Gandhi elected as president of the Indian National Congress," announced Mullappally Ramachandran, chairman of the Congress' Central Election Authority.

The 47-year-old Rahul was elected unopposed, and will be handed over the certificate of his election as Congress president at a grand function at the party headquarters on December 16.

A large number of Congress workers descended upon the party headquarters, where they raised slogans in praise of Rahul, and burst customary crackers. Banners lined the road leading to the Congress office, congratulating him on his election as party president.

While celebrations have begun, it will be an uphill task for Rahul to revive the grand old party, which is at its lowest ebb at present. The immediate challenge for him is the Gujarat Assembly elections. His election as Congress President comes amidst a bitterly fought electoral contest in Gujarat, where he is leading a spirited campaign for his party. The state is crucial since it is Modi's home turf, and getting the better of him in his own backyard would come as a big morale booster for the Congress ahead of the coming round of assembly elections, and more importantly, the Lok Sabha elections scheduled for 2019. As Rahul leads the Congress campaign, Modi and his right-hand man, BJP president Amit Shah, are also leaving no stone unturned to neutralise the Congress' challenge.

Rahul would want to start his presidentship of the Congress on a winning note, with a triumph in Gujarat. A win or even a major dent in the BJP's tally would bolster his stature as a national leader. It would come as a morale booster for the party as it would be locked in a direct fight with the BJP in elections to Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Rajasthan in 2018. It would also help him get allies in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

Reviving Congress in huge swathes of territory where it held sway earlier, such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, will be a major challenge for him.

Rahul is expected to bring in changes in the Congress organisation and put in place a new team that reflects his ideas and his way of functioning. However, sources close to him insist that there will no major overhaul, and that he would endeavour to balance experience with the enthusiasm of the youth. He would be expected to take steps to fulfil his commitment to bringing in inner party democracy in the Congress.

Rahul's ascension is also a generational change, and he would take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi, who has been Congress president for almost 20 years. The fifth generation from the Nehru-Gandhi family to head the Congress, he has big shoes to fill. Sonia too has a formidable political legacy, as under her, the Congress was in power at the Centre for ten years.
India didn't get Russia and China to name and shame Pakistan, as it had managed earlier during the BRICS outing in Xiamen. However, the joint statement after the foreign minister level talks of the RIC (Russia India China ) trilateral on December 11 made a clear denouncement of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the recent heinous terrorist attacks around the world...''

The statement stressed on the need for a comprehensive effort to combat terrorism, the spread of terror ideology, its propaganda and radicalisation, and also to stop sources of terrorist financing. It stressed the need to disrupt recruitment and foreign terrorist fighters.

The group stressed on the need to implement existing international commitments on countering terrorism, like the UN global counter terrorism strategy. In fact, it also expressed concern that weapons of mass destruction should not fall into the hands of terror groups.

Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi were in the country for the RIC, a significant trilateral, in its 15 session this year. RIC predates BRICS, but still exists as a separate entity.

The joint statement also emphasised that there needs to be a prevention of arms race in outer space, and said it supported the Conference on Disarmament. The ministers added that outer space should be preserved for peaceful exploration and use by the current and future generations.

Despite China's recent rejection of the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on Laws of the Open Seas) decision on the South China Sea issue, a vexing issue with other island nations like the Phillipines, the statement went on to say, We agree that maintaining regional security and economic architecture in the Asia Pacific that is open, inclusive and based on multilateralism, universally recognised principles of international law, is imperative for lasting peace and stability in the region.''

In fact, the RIC actually said that recognising the growing importance of maritime trade in a globalised world, it supported freedom of navigation and overflight rights based on principles of international law, particularly UNCLOS.

Taking note of the the recent announcement of Trump government in the US to shift its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, the statement said: We reiterate the need for a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Israeli - Palestinian conflict on the basis of the relevant US resolutions, the Arab peace initiative and previous agreement between the parties aimed at creating an independent, viable, territoriality contiguous Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel. India has so far been careful in wording its own response, saying that its opinion on Palestine was not influenced by any third nation.

In another snub to Trump's rejection of the Paris Accord on climate changean accord that his predecessor Barack Obama was an architect ofthe RIC reaffirmed its commitment to the implementation the Paris Agreement. We recognise the importance of parties to fulfill their obligations in the pre-2020 period and call on parties to ratify the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol.''
At least three terrorists allegedly from Pakistan were neutralised by a joint team of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Rashtriya Rifles (RR) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Unisoo of Handwara in Jammu and Kashmir, official sources said on Monday.

Director General of Police (DGP) of Jammu and Kashmir S.P. Vaid took to Twitter and said, "In Unisoo, Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by joint team of J&K Police, RR & CRPF."

"It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold," he tweeted.

According to police, a local woman also lost her life during the late night cross firing on Sunday as she was trapped in a house where the terrorists were hiding.

Along with the deceased woman, around six to seven people were stuck inside the house and were later rescued by the security forces.

Police said the terrorists were likely to be members of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and arms and ammunition were also recovered from their possession.

The search operation is on in the area.

More details are awaited.
The winter session of Maharashtra legislature began on a stormy note on Monday in Nagpur as an aggressive opposition kept raising demand for an immediate discussion on the issue of farm loan waiver thus leading to adjournments in both the houseslegislative assembly and legislative council.

The legislators from opposition sat on the stairs of Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur and raised demands like 'Jo Sarkar Nikammi Hai, Woh Sarkar Badalni Hai' (This uselsess government ought to be changed), 'BJP Sarkar Hatao, Kaapus Bachao'( Save Cotton, Remove BJP government) and 'He Maza Sarkar Nahi' (This is not my government).

Senior NCP leader and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar dared the Fadnavis government provide a detailed explanation as to what all work was carried out during the last three years. Don't keep asking what our government did in 15 years of its rule, instead provide an account of the work you have done, Ajit Pawar said.

An aggressive opposition means that the government will have tough time in the days ahead in order to carry out business during the legislature session. Opposition is firm on raising wide ranging issues like the attack of bollworm on cotton crop resulting in losses to the tune of thousands of crores of rupees, deaths of farmers due to pesticide poisoning in Yavatmal, continuing suicides by farmers, and more importantly what opposition claims as 'failure of the ambitious farm loan waiver ' announced by Fadnavis government.

In the legislative assembly, the opposition benches demanded an immediate discussion on the issue of farm loan waiver scheme. However, the Speaker did not accept the demand raised by the opposition. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, too, launched a scathing attack on the opposition. He pointed out that the amount of funds received by Buldana district in the course of farm loan waiver this year was equal to the entire amount spent in Vidabha region during the loan waiver in 2008. Farmers suicides have continued because of the faulty policies that previous government implemented, he said.

A united opposition has given a call for 'HallaBol' march against the Fadnavis government on Tuesday in Nagpur.
South Korea, Japan and the US have begun joint missile detection exercises amid escalating regional tensions over North Korea's nuclear weapons program, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said on December 11.



The drill, which will last two days, is taking place off the Korean peninsula, and comes after Pyongyang fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on November 28 that it claimed could strike anywhere in the US.



The three countries are testing their abilities to detect and track North Korean missiles and share information, the media reported.



The drills will feature several destroyers equipped with the Aegis radar system.



The trilateral defence exercises are the sixth of their kind since 2016, and come after South Korea and the US held the annual bilateral Vigilant ACE drills, which ended last week.



Pyongyang claims that the latest ICBM, called the Hwasong-15, is the regime's most powerful to date. It was the latest in a series of nuclear weapons tests North Korea has conducted in 2017, leading to repeated UN sanctions and threats of destruction from US President Donald Trump.



Trump in August promised to respond to Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions with "fire and fury like the world has never seen".
Ashok Gehlot

Both the BJP and the Congress have their party bigwigsAmit Shah and Ashok Gehloton ground zero for an election that has thrown up a do or die situation.

Shah has stayed put in Gujarat since Diwali and Gehlot, too, has more or less remained in the state. They have travelled extensively to meet party workers across the state.

Amit Shah, who is considered the 'Chanakya' of politics and credited for BJP's landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh, has been campaigning aggressively.

A senior BJP leader said, Even before campaigning began, Shah was deciding caste equations and held meetings with party workers till the booth level. He said the BJP is giving emphasis to seats that it lost by a thin margin in the 2012 polls.

Gehlot keeps a low profile and coordinates with the teams sent by Rahul Gandhi. The team which surveyed the mood of the people also spoke to potential candidates. Gehlot has also brought his own team of workers from Rajasthan.

A senior Congress leader said, He would not require a separate chamber to discuss things. He can also be found discussing poll nuances with party leaders. Sources within the party said Gehlot had been instrumental in ensuring that the rebels withdrew in favour of the official candidates.
Admiral Sunil Lanba is a man of few words on personal matters. Asked why he spells his name with an N, instead of M like other Lambas, the admiral retorted: You have to ask my forefathers. But the navy chief, who is currently the chairman of the chiefs of staff committee, is eloquent on professional matters. Excerpts from an interview granted on the eve of the Navy Day:

It has been a year and half since you came to head the Navy. What have been your achievements?

The Navy itself is like a ship whose performance is dependent on team work. It would be inappropriate to attribute the progress made to any one individual.... As a proud member of this fine team, I am satisfied with where we stand today, but I am also cognisant of the fact that theres much more to be done.

The achievements of the Navy over the last year and a half, on the operational front as well as capability accretion, are very credible. There has been a steady improvement in maintenance standards, as also human resource management practices. An ocean free of maritime threats, secure coastline, unimpeded movement of vessels through piracy-prone areas and our outreach to provide humanitarian relief far from our shores have been demonstrative of our capabilities and resolve....

Can you tell us about your acquisition plans.

We aim to be a 200-ship navy in the coming decade. The surface arm will get a boost with the induction of next-generation frigates, destroyers, corvettes and missile vessels. We will expand our capabilities in niche areas such as aircraft-carriers and nuclear submarines. Revitalisation of the aviation arm is being accorded due attention....

Till a decade and half ago, China didnt even have a carrier, whereas we have been operating carriers for four decades. Pakistan still doesnt have one. We had a superior submarine arm, till those accidents happened. Today, are we losing that maritime edge?

Let me assure you, our modernisation and accretion plans are on track in all three disciplines of naval warfaresurface, subsurface and air. In order to tide over temporary delays in new submarine programmes, we are modernising our older submarines, through medium refit-cum-life certification programmes.... Lease of a nuclear-powered attack submarine [from Russia] has given further boost to our subsurface fleet. Deliveries of submarines under Project-75 have commenced. Project-75 (I), which is being pursued under the strategic partnership model, holds a lot of promise not only in terms of technology but also our domestic capabilities.

The indigenous carrier programme is progressing well for delivery in three years. As on date, we have more than 30 ships under construction in various Indian shipyards. We are confident of timely deliveries. Acquisition process has also been initiated to induct more capable and versatile aviation assets including UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles]....

Your decision to forego the Tejas naval version was a surprise to the champions of indigenisation.

We have always been supporting indigenisation, and have always supported the LCA [Light Combat Aircraft] programme.... The Navy not only provided financial support to this prestigious programme, but also contributed manpower and other resources. However, there have been some delays in respect of the carrier compatibility tests of these aircraft. Therefore, we had to explore an alternate option to meet the timelines for operationalisation of IAC-1 [Indian Aircraft Carrier]. It was not an easy decision; it was taken after lot of deliberations.

Look-East has been turned into Act-East in our foreign policy doctrine. But now, there is much talk about Indo-Pacific. How do you view this new concept?

Indo-Pacific is a term being increasingly used in international discourse to refer to a very wide but interconnected maritime area, stretching from the east coast of Africa and the Persian Gulf to the central Pacific. This region has emerged as the locus of world economics and politics in the 21st century. India, Japan, China, Australia and a number of ASEAN countries are major economic and military powers of the world. Together, they account for more than 50 per cent of global GDP. These growth engines are fed from the sources of energy in West Asia and Africa....

Neither the Indian Ocean littorals nor those in the Western Pacific can be spoken about in isolation. This is why the expanded nomenclature of Indo-Pacific is gaining recognition.... As the primary manifestation of maritime military power of a responsible nation at the heart of Indo-Pacific region, the Indian Navy is fully seized of its responsibilities towards ensuring good order and security in the region.... Assistance to smaller countries for developing their capabilities and promoting a wider dialogue for evolving a universally acceptable framework for maritime cooperation are some of the efforts....

There is a lot of talk about jointness of operations, about integration, about theatre commands and even a chief of defence staff. But, we havent integrated our services.Your views?

There is consensus amongst the services on the requirement of reforms in our higher defence organisation. The aim is to enhance our joint war-fighting capabilities, establish an efficient and result-oriented military-political interface and optimise the overall defence expenditure. These outcomes are more important than any proposed nomenclature for the future organisations. Creation of theatre commands need not necessarily be seen as a beginning, but as a culmination of several sequential structural, organisational, operational and administrative reforms in the three services.

Having said that, I think it would be incorrect to say that jointness is lacking within the present set-up. The extent and level of jointness between the services has substantially increased after HQIDS [Integrated Defence Staff HQ] and HQANC [Andaman & Nicobar Command HQ] came into being in 2001, followed by HQSFC [Strategic Forces Command HQ] in 2003. Efforts are under way to synergise training infrastructure between the three services and enhance the extent of cross-staffing in each others headquarters and training institutions. A tri-service defence space agency and a tri-service special operations division are also on the anvil....

How do you plan to address the issue of gender parity?

The Navy has been committed to the cause of gender parity. Women officers are currently being inducted into eight branches and cadreseducation, law, logistics, air traffic control, naval constructor, observers, pilots and armament inspectorate. The women pilots and observers on our reconnaissance aircraft are actually performing combat roles. In all these cadres, there is complete gender parity in terms of induction, training, career progression as well as consideration for grant of permanent commission.
The prospect of Jeremy Corbyn stumbling into Downing Street to the sound of the Red Flag is alarming to much of the City of London.

Conversations with senior bankers from Britain and the US suggest that even before Theresa Mays Brexit deal with Brussels, they regarded Corbynomics as a greater threat to financial stability than Britain leaving the European Union.

The prospect of wholesale nationalisation and the need to finance exploding borrowing and debt together with the profound ignorance of Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell are matters of foreboding.

This does not mean that everything Labour proposes is dangerous.

The prospect of Jeremy Corbyn, right, as Prime Minister and John McDonnell, left, as chancellor is seen by many as a graver threat to Britain's financial stability than Brexit

Supporters of Bank of England modernisation will clearly see merit in empowering the Bank of Englands regional agents. The network across the country already is a valuable influence on the Monetary Policy Committee.

The agents view of prospects for wage settlements was among the reasons behind the November rate hike.

My own brief role in the Bank of Englands Open Forum in Edinburgh two years ago demonstrated the ability the Bank has to bring together some of the most impressive entrepreneurs in Scotland and the North-East.

Skyscanner, one of the tech firms present, has since been snapped up by Chinas Ctrip for 1.4billion.

Knitting the Bank more closely into the financial and business infrastructure of newly-elected super-mayors in the Northern Powerhouse, Birmingham and the West Midlands makes enormous sense.

The Banks regulatory and monetary policy functions plainly have to remain in the heart of the City or at Canary Wharf.

But there is no reason why, for instance, its economic research and outreach to business could not be distributed around the country. The Office for National Statistics, the BBC and HSBC are showing that with the help of generous moving allowances, big organisations can create clusters of excellence and growth in the regions.

The City is invaluable to Britain and nothing should be done to weaken its capabilities. After all, it generates some 71billion of tax income and the nations trade in services produces a 90billion surplus.

A stronger Bank presence outside London, together with a revival of stock exchanges in major cities, could make a real difference in closing the gap between the high-gross value added by the London economy and lagging regional performance.

Caring and sharing

Guy Hands Terra Firma is determined it should not take the blame for the implosion of the Four Seasons care homes group.

It says its ownership since 2015 has been positive, improving standards of care for the 17,000 residents, strengthening cash flow and income.

It has faced up to any misjudgement about the investment value of the company by a 400million write-down of equity. The villain of the piece, in its view, is secretive vulture fund H/2 Capital Partners.

Run by animal loving former Lehman banker Spencer Haber it has forced the current existential crisis.

Be that as it may, the way in which 350 care homes, employing 25,000 staff, have been subjected to the worst excesses of extreme capitalism is shameful.

In less than a decade some of the homes have been through the financial wringer, partly owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland, rapacious US private equity group Blackstone, collapsed public company Southern Cross and another financial outfit HC-One before being rescued by Hands.

At a time when care for Britains oldest and most vulnerable citizens is at a premium, this is a disgrace.

Not before time the Care Quality Commission has become involved. Its objective should be to wrestle the homes free from the vultures and establish some kind of trust or mutual ownership similar to that of the Bupa homes.

Only then will elderly citizens and families paying vast fees be able to rest and sleep easily again.

Date with destiny

The London Stock Exchange is optimistic that its chairman Donald Brydon will see off the challenge of Sir Christopher Hohns TCI at the December 19 general meeting.

Indeed, it is confident enough to have speeded up the selection of a successor to ousted chief executive Xavier Rolet.

Brydon may see TCI off the field of battle but there will be no excuses for the chairman to hang around once Rolets successor is in place.

Brydon should take personal responsibility for the Deutsche Boerse debacle and succession farce.
The liberal elite's loathing of President Trump here in New York is eclipsed only by their disdain for Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin's Scots-born wife Louise Linton, 36, a manque actress whose fondness for private air travel and designer schmutter has led the media to portray her somewhere between Cruella de Vil and barrel-bottomed reality TV star, Kim Kardashian.

President Trump, left, watches as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, centre, takes his oath of office watched by fiancee Louise Linton in February

She and Mnuchin, 54, were recently ridiculed for posing with sheets of newly minted dollars bills, Linton's leather-gauntleted hand caressing the wonga.

A Twitter wag captioned it: 'Louise Linton with the great love of her life. Also pictured, her husband.'

Goldman Sachs's 20million-a-year boss Lloyd Blankfein's future is much discussed here after dropping recent hints about retirement.

Blankfein, 63, who in his 11 years at the helm has seen off both the credit crunch and cancer, suggests his joint deputies Harvey Schwartz and David Solomon could both succeed him in a power-sharing arrangement.

A third contender is chief financial officer Martin Chavez, who bucks the trend among Goldman executives by having a full head of hair.

Though Marty's racy hinterland  he's a reformed alcoholic with tattoo 'sleeves'  might rattle boardroom crockery.

Men's dress codes on Wall Street aren't what they were. Forget the two-toned shirts and Brooks Brothers suits of yesteryear.

It is now over-run with men casually attired in Chino trousers and fleece gilets.

The fleece trend started as a self-preservation measure at SAC Capital, the former hedge fund run by Steve Cohen, 61, who maintained an office temperature of 69 degrees to keep his traders on their toes.

Cohen was the subject of an insider trading investigation by the FBI, resulting in a record $1.8billion fine in 2013.

Their ten-year cat-and-mouse chase is the basis for Showtime's hit series Billions, which has been shooting its third series around Midtown.

For the uninitiated, the Cohen character, Bobby Axelrod (played by our own Damian Lewis) is a wrong 'un, but you can't help root for him as he's handsome, fun to be around and wolfishly charming.

Ogre-like Cohen, I should point out, is none of these things.
Too long in the job? Land Securities chairman Alison Carnwath

More than a quarter of FTSE 100 chairmen fall foul of plans to shake-up British boardrooms so they are not full of the same old faces.

Reforms to the corporate governance code proposed by the Financial Reporting Council state that chairmen should not serve more than nine years on the board.

Research by governance analysts Manifest found more than 90 major UK-based companies have chairmen who have been on the board for longer than this  including 27 in the FTSE 100 index.

Among those are 64-year-old Alison Carnwath at Land Securities, Gerry Grimstone, 68, at Standard Life Aberdeen and Nicholas Wrigley, 62, at Persimmon.

John McAdam, the 69-year-old chairman of United Utilities and Rentokil Initial, falls foul of the rules at both companies having joined the board of each in the first half of 2008.

The corporate governance code is not mandatory  meaning companies do not have to follow the guidelines  but those that do not must explain the decision to shareholders.

But the proposals to limit a chairman's stint to nine years is particularly controversial because it includes previous positions on that board, such as non-executive director or deputy chairman.

Sarah Bates, 58, has been chairman of wealth manager St James's Place for just under three years, having taken the job in 2014.

But she has been on the board for more than 13 years having previously served as non-executive director.

At Wolseley owner Ferguson, Gareth Davis, 67, has been on the board since 2003 but only became chairman in 2011.

The FRC proposals said: 'Where an individual has served on the board for more than nine years they are no longer considered independent.

'This is consistent with the revised code's approach to succession planning and the importance of board refreshment.'

But experts said proposals that would see chairmen stand down after nine years on the board would alarm directors and shareholders.

'This provision may get a lot of pushback from both corporates and investors,' one told the Financial Times.

'The FRC is right to focus upon the issue of chairman tenure, but I don't think it should be so mechanistic,' he added.

'If you have someone who has been on the board for five years and is a natural person to go on to become chairman, you don't want to acknowledge that they can only be chairman for four years.'

Sarah Wilson, chief executive of Manifest, said: 'The purpose of the new code is to get companies to think harder about succession planning and nomination processes.

'Tone and culture flows from the top down and it will be this process of refreshment which encourages boards to look at diversity, skills and experience as a whole rather than just relying on robotic rules.

'Some other important, but so far overlooked, ideas include advertising jobs in the public domain rather than just going through headhunters.

'This is putting board positions closer to the public bodies appointment process than it has been previously and as such is quite a break with the past.'
HSBC will not face any further action for money-laundering in Mexico after American authorities agreed to drop their threat of prosecution.

The tainted bank was fined 1.2billion in 2012 for handling dirty cash from drug lords, and only just escaped criminal proceedings.

Investigators warned they would take it to court for the debacle if it did anything else wrong  putting HSBC at risk of losing its dollar banking licence.

Colombian cartel crooks are paraded by the Mexican authorities alongside a hoard of guns and cash in 2001. That year HSBC was fined 1.2bn for handling dirty money from drug lords

But this so-called deferred prosecution agreement has now ended, following a 750million push by the bank to clean up its act.

The US Department of Justice has said it will file a motion with the court for the Eastern District of New York to dismiss the charges, rather than seeking to extend the DPA beyond its initial five-year term.

It presents Mark Tucker and John Flint, HSBC's new chairman and chief executive, with an opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

Traders cheered the deal yesterday, sending shares up 2.5 per cent or 18.5p to 751.7p and adding 2.9billion to the value of the business.

The agreement also allows previous chairman Douglas Flint and Stuart Gulliver  who will stand down as chief executive in February  to escape with some dignity intact.

When Gulliver took over in 2011, he pledged to encourage a culture of 'courageous integrity' and said his time at the top would be judged on whether the bank was 'seen as a moral and decent firm'.

But the bank has since been sucked into a string of scandals with senior staff jailed for currency rigging and allegations it helped tax evaders in Panama and Switzerland.
Situation vacant: The LSE is already interviewing candidates for chief executive

The embattled London Stock Exchange is already interviewing candidates for chief executive as it scrambles to head off a campaign by billionaire investor Sir Chris Hohn.

Hohn, 51, is seeking to oust chairman Donald Brydon, who he blames for forcing former chief executive Xavier Rolet to quit.

Shareholders will vote on whether 72-year-old Brydon should go at a crunch meeting later this month.

Rolet only left two weeks ago but the exchange is already lining up a replacement.

Sources said it has appointed headhunter Egon Zehnder to find a boss, with candidates being considered from across the globe.

Finance chief David Warren has stepped in to run the business on a temporary basis but is not thought to want to do it permanently.

Internal names mentioned in connection with the role include Mark Makepeace, head of the companys data business.

Shares in LSE rose 1.1 per cent, or 43p, to 3833p.
BREXIT HOPE Big banks have scaled back their estimates of jobs that may have to move after Brexit, accountant EY said.

In 2016, 12 firms said 12,500 roles would move abroad. Now, 26 are expecting just 10,500 relocations in total.

PROFITS POUNDED Investment bank Investec has warned it could lose up to 3 per centof its profits due to the crisis at Poundlands South Africa owner Steinhoff whose shares crashed more than 80 per cent last week when it ordered an investigation into its accounts.

AMAZON ROW Sandal maker Birkenstock has stopped selling through Amazon in the EU, accusing it of breaking the law by selling counterfeit goods.

STRONG SALES Online fashion retailer Sosandar reported strong sales in the three months to the end of November.

LISTINGS SURGE Cash raised in stock market listings has surged 75 per cent this year with 91 floats raising 10.2billion since January, said PwC.

VACANCIES GROW City job vacancies climbed 5 per cent in November as firms increased their offers to try and tempt workers, according to recruiter Morgan McKinley.

BUSINESS BOOST More firms  218,000  were set up in Britain than any other major economy last year, accountant UHY Hacker Young said.

JOBS RETURN Finance firms are bringing offshore jobs back to Britain because of rising costs, Robert Half Financial Services found.

CAB APPEAL Taxi app Uber will appeal to keep its London license next year after TfL rejected a bid to renew it in September.

COBALT QUEST Sierra Leone-focused miner Sula Iron & Gold will mine for cobalt  which is used in electric cars  in the Democratic Republic of Congo and is changing its name to African Battery Metals.

BOSS QUITS Neil McCulloch, 47, chief operating officer of oil producer Enquest, is stepping down.

PIPELINE SALE North Sea oil producer Premier Oil is selling its interest in the Esmond Transportation Pipeline for 23.6million to gas transporter Cats Management.

CHIEF ROLE Sausage-casing maker Devro has named group finance director Rutger Helbing chief executive.
Four Seasons is 525m in debt

More than 360 care homes will fall into the hands of a secretive American hedge-fund boss who specialises in snapping up struggling businesses.

Tycoon Spencer Haber has over the last two years bought up debt from the struggling Four Seasons care home chain, which is home to 17,000 vulnerable and elderly residents and looks likely to take over the firm outright.

But last night some expressed horror that the futures of these residents could be put into the hands of a mystery firm that few know anything about.

It is understood senior City figures have tried to delve into the background of Haber, 49, and his hedge fund, but so far few details of his intentions have been uncovered.

Four Seasons is thought to be one of Haber's first investments in the UK, and one of his main bets.

The financier made his fortune at collapsed Lehman Brothers, and real estate finance firm iStar before starting his own hedge fund H/2 Capital Partners in Connecticut in 2004.

He is an expert in buying bad debt, but little is known about Haber's personal life other than he studied at the University of Pennsylvania and is a director of an animal welfare charity. He is passionate about helping poorly treated animals.

Despite his charitable interests, H/2 has proved a ruthless negotiator in the scrap over Four Seasons with present owner, financier Guy Hands' group Terra Firma.

Haber is directly involved in the talks, the Mail understands, directing from the US. He also insists on getting an extra 24 lucrative care homes as part of the deal, which Terra Firma wants to hang onto.

Liberal Democrat MP Norman Lamb, former minister of state for care, said: 'It's an intolerable situation that responsibility for huge numbers of very vulnerable people could be in the hands of an organisation that we know nothing about.

ANIMAL-LOVING MOGUL Spencer Haber, 49, is known as a smart, tough negotiator. Little is known of his personal life or fortune. But his biggest interest is animal welfare through his H/3 Foundation. In September it evacuated cats and dogs trapped by Hurricane Irma in the British Virgin Islands. Haber also worked as a producer of Toucan Nation, a film about a Costa Rican toucan named Grecia whose bill had been mutilated by thugs.

The Care Quality Commission could seek to broker a resolution to this and ultimately I think they have got a responsibility to get it sorted.'

H/2 Capital Partners is owed around 525million from Four Seasons and will take control under a restructuring deal yet to be agreed.

Last night H/2 and Four Seasons were still battling how to defer an interest payment due on Friday that it cannot afford. Terra Firma will also need to agree. If no agreement is reached, H/2 could put Four Seasons into administration.

H/2 has invested around 29billion since it was set up, including 2.8billion in healthcare. The firm says it invests on behalf of leading institutional investors, including pension funds, sovereign funds and other institutions.

H/2 has put forward a restructuring plan for Four Seasons that includes installing former chair of Barchester Healthcare Baroness Ford as chairman. Haber has defended his motives in taking over Four Seasons.

He said last month: 'I firmly believe that with the right stewardship, enterprises like Four Seasons best serve their investors when they best serve their residents.

Responsible private capital understands the primacy of resident care and peace-of-mind for their families.'

He added: 'Four Seasons' dedicated managers and employees are more than capable of setting an example here, right across the social care community.

'While we share a mission with these talented individuals, it is their role  and not ours  that holds the consequence and the challenge.

'We just need to do the easy part, which is to enable them by providing the bedrock of financial stability, aligned incentives, and a fair cost of capital that enables the group to carry out the solemn responsibility of caring for 17,000 vulnerable people.'
MBABANE  It is now official, non-Swazi citizens will not be allowed to operate businesses such as takeaway outlets and grocery shops as of January 1, 2018.



This follows the adoption of the Reservation of Certain Trades and Businesses for Swazi Citizens Regulations 2017 by the House of Assembly last Thursday.



According to the law, the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, Jabulani Mabuza, is now allowed to set the regulations into law within the next 14 days. The move was unanimously agreed to by the House.



In total, 31 kinds of businesses will now strictly be for Swazi citizens following the adoption of the regulations by the legislators.

However, foreigners who already hold licences in these businesses will not be affected, but only new entrants.



Other businesses listed in the regulations include a dealer in household and proprietary, grocery, produce and handwork, private investigator, dealer or speculator in livestock, debt collector, street vendor and funeral parlour, and street vendors.



The regulations come under Section 20 of the Trading Licensing Order, 1975 and shall come into force on the date to be determined by the minister in a gazette.



The regulations state that the businesses or trades listed in schedule one are reserved for Swazis although a non-Swazi may obtain a licence, but it shall only be granted to a foreigner if there was reasonable justification for such a grant.

In welcoming the new law, Hhukwini Member of Parliament (MP) Saladin Magagula said it was up to all the MPs to protect Swazis in ensuring that the trades are strictly reserved for them.
Mark Wilson/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will not meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence during his upcoming trip to the Middle East because of the Trump administration's decision to name Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, according to Palestine's foreign minister.

Riyad al-Maliki said at the meeting of the Arab League in Cairo on Saturday that because of the decision, the U.S. has now "positioned itself as a party in a dispute and not as a mediator," according to Al Jazeera.

Alyssa Farah, the vice president's press secretary, said in a statement, "It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region, but the Administration remains undeterred in its efforts to help achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians and our peace team remains hard at work putting together a plan."

President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel last week and said the U.S. would begin the process of moving its embassy from Tel Aviv. The decision sparked protests and backlash across the Muslim world.

Protests have continued four days after the president's speech with demonstrations on Sunday outside U.S. embassies in Beirut, Lebanon, and Jakarta, Indonesisa, where both countries have a majority of Muslims. The Beirut protests turned violent when security forces fired tear gas and water canons into the crowds.

In Jerusalem on Sunday, Israeli police said a Palestinian assailant stabbed a security guard at the city's central bus station.

The Arab League is petitioning other countries to recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state. Palestinian President Abbas on Sunday visited Amman, Jordan, where he met with King Abdullah and said he was rallying international opposition to the U.S. decision.

"We communicated with the entire world and fortunately there was a positive response from all the countries in the world, from Europe, and from Africa and countries close to America that don't support the U.S. in this behavior, Abbas said. The world's general opinion is very important. The actions taking place in the world now including the Arab region like Palestine, Jordan and others are very important. These all are messages to Trump that what he did is an unacceptable crime."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
PIGGS PEAK  Failure to come to terms with the likelihood of repeating a class for the third time, coupled with allegations of abuse, was enough to push a teenage girl to commit suicide.



Another young person has been lost to suicide, this time, it is a Form IV pupil of Timphisini High School. The incident happened after the pupil had just fetched her results, which reflected that she had not performed well enough to be promoted to the next class. This meant that she was expected to repeat Form IV. It would have been the third time for her to repeat the same class.



Thabani Tercia Motsa, who is said to have ingested an undisclosed number of the deadly weevil tablets had been living with her grandparents near the high school where she had been enrolled.

On the day of the suicide, Thabani had been visiting her father, who is said to reside at Nkomazi in northern Hhohho. She is said to have left behind a note giving reasons for her killing herself.



In the letter, Thabani blamed her father for her troubles that led to her take her own life.

She alleged that her father was abusive in that he overworked her in doing household chores.



She also made reference of instances when her father made them work like tigulumba (tractors). The pupil, in the letter, also accused her father for using abusive language when addressing her and her other siblings.



This was also confirmed by her grandfather, who introduced himself as Gama. He said he was hurt by the manner in which his granddaughter died.


ALBANY  When Peter Bishop attended Vincentian Institute High School in the 1960s, he always walked by the grotto placed in the center of the building without much thought. It wasn't until years later, when he returned to live in the now-senior housing building, St. Vincent's Apartments, that he rediscovered the secluded, peaceful grotto in awe.

"I had the opportunity to stay and sit in the grotto quietly, and realized this little jewel had been untouched for the last 100 years," Bishop said. "It's like a little time capsule, but it also has such a strong spiritual component."

As beautiful as the grotto is, though, the 100-year-old structure is in need of major repairs that are currently estimated to cost $750,000 to $1 million. The repairs include some costly items: the lead of the intricately hand-painted windows needs to be tightened up, the original confessional boxes need rehydration, and the marble flooring needs retouching.

Bishop partnered with Father Brian Slezak, a priest at the Cohoes Holy Trinity Parish, in 2014 to not only repair the grotto, but to make it open and accessible to the public.

"I brought Bishop Edward Scharfenberger (of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany) into the grotto and the first words out of his mouth were, 'What a gem this is,'" Slezak said. He told the Bishop his goal of making the grotto "a place of public worship and devotion," to which the Bishop responded, "Make it happen."

Bishop's predominant passion for the grotto lies in its history. Not only is it 100 years old, but the entrance is also donned with plaques engraved with the names of World War II veterans who graduated from VI.

Slezak's passion lies in the spiritual significance of the grotto, which was modeled after the Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine in France. Together, the pair formed The Friends of the Grotto, a board comprised of eight people who have been meeting for almost a year to bring the grotto back to life and to the public with Mass, devotions, healing services and more.

The board is in the process of signing off on a lease agreement with DePaul Housing, the current managers of the grotto, to shift management to the diocese. The next step is to raise funding for the needed repairs. The board is looking at VI graduates, veterans and the general public to support the effort. They currently plan on holding a fundraising event on Feb. 11, which is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Lourdes.

"From the moment I was aware of this place, it's been very clear that Mary's hand has been involved," Slezak said. "The people of God deserve to call this place their spiritual home."
Bethlehem

The town of Bethlehem is set to award roughly $4 million in construction contracts for the new Delmar-Bethlehem emergency services building.

The town has been working with the Delmar-Bethlehem EMS to find it a new station because its lease expires soon with the Delmar Fire Department on Nathaniel Blvd.

A town-owned building at 114 Adams St. was chosen for the new location. The building will be renovated and get an addition to house the ambulance service.

Last month, the town and CHA, the engineering firm hired to work on the project, opened construction bids for the project, and on Wednesday night the town board will vote to approve the contracts.

Gallo Construction Corp. of Watervliet will get the largest contract at $3.09 million.

Postler & Jaeckle would get the mechanical contract, valued at $469,000. O'Connell Electric would be awarded a $347,590 contract, and the plumbing contract of $429,500 would go to DeGesare Mechanical.

CHA is being paid $430,000, bringing the total to $4.77 million, most of which is being paid for through a bond issue approved back in May, with about $731,000 coming from the sewer fund capital reserve.

The town will also use the newly renovated space for the Department of Public Works, and the renovated building would have meeting space for the town.








Albany

University at Albany President Havidan Rodriguez has been named co-chair of the Capital Region Economic Development Council.

Rodriguez will be co-chair with James Barba, CEO of Albany Medical Center. He replaces James Stellar, who is UAlbany's provost and had been UAlbany's interim president from September 2016 to September 2017, when Rodriguez was hired.

The Capital Region Economic Development Council is one of 10 state-created councils across New York that vie for hundreds of millions of dollars in state economic development funding each year. This month, another $800 million in grants and tax breaks are expected to be awarded by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The co-chairs lead the councils, which have influence over which projects are chosen for potential funding by the state.

"Dr. Rodriguez brings to the table more than 25 years as a leader in higher education and a deep understanding of diverse populations and we are excited to welcome him as academic Co-Chair to the Capital Region Economic Development Council," said Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who oversees the council for Cuomo. "We have an ambitious agenda ahead of us as we continue to transform the Capital Region into a leader of technology, creativity and ingenuity."

"I am looking forward to serving the region and the state alongside Jim Barba as CREDC co-chair," Rodriguez said. "I want to thank Gov. Cuomo for his leadership through this visionary approach to economic development, and for appointing me to serve on behalf of the University at Albany. I also wish to thank Jim Stellar for his very hard work as co-chair for Round VII and for supporting the ongoing success of the Council."
Albany

Trevor Noah, the whip-smart but amiable host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" for the past two years, moved from his native South Africa to the United States at the suggestion of a friend who lived in California. But he waited a few months after the invite.

"I didn't want to leave Africa and go to America with a white man," Noah said Saturday night on the stage of the Palace Theatre in front of an adoring, sold-out crowd. As the implication settled in and laughter grew, he paused, then said, "I've read history books."

It's almost a throwaway joke, but its subtlety and delivery made it emblematic of Noah's witty, engaging set during his first major-stage appearance in the Capital Region. Over the course of 75 minutes, during which he didn't mention Donald Trump until the final half-hour, Noah exhibited the active, ranging intelligence and easy charm that define his appeal. Only an unnecessarily extended bit about Mexican food and diapers seemed facile, beneath his talents. He confessed to being baffled by the term "wife-beater," wondering if the behavior was so widespread that it earned its own garment and asking, "What else do you have in your laundry basket  pedophile pants?"

More Information Comedy review Trevor Noah with Angelo Lozada When: 7 p.m. Saturday Where: Palace Theatre, 19 Clinton Ave., Albany Length: Lozada, 20 minutes; Noah, 75 minutes The crowd: Sold out, largely young and enthusiastic See More Collapse

Americans seem more willing today to exhibit their bigotry in public, Noah observed, whereas in the recent past, "People treated racism like farts  something done in private, at home."

To his foreign-born ear, Southern accents are like a comedic put-on, Noah said: "Every single time (Southerners) speak, it sounds like someone's playing a banjo in their mouth." He demonstrated the sound, then amplified the joke with this: "Two guys arguing in Kentucky sounds like a Mumford & Sons concert."

People from other countries make America richer in flavor, literally and metaphorically, he said: "No immigrants, no spice." He went on to speculate that boring food led Europeans to leave their native countries: "A life without spice was so hard that it made people sail around the world to find it," he said, imagining an explorer "eating some white lady's cooking until he's like, 'I can't take this anymore!'"

While Noah isn't an especially accurate mimic  his Trump and Obama voices are recognizable but barely qualify as impressions  he's gifted vocally, as evidenced by his banjo argument and a bit about trap music. To him, the hip-hop subgenre's vocalists sound like "a toddler complaining about life."

Noah's audience, which seemed largely in line with him politically, was especially appreciative of his Trump material. "He strikes me as someone who could quit," Noah said, adding in Trump's voice, "Unlike most presidents, I did it in half the time, folks." He later derided the seriousness of Trump's interest in being president, saying, "We could have just bought him a Fisher-Price President's Set."

The Trump presidency reminds Noah of a "giant asteroid headed toward Earth shaped like a penis. I think I'm going to die, but I know I'm going to laugh." But, for him, the president is a symptom, not a cause. "I hope we don't blame Trump for everything that's wrong with America," Noah said. "Trump didn't make America racist. America's racism made Trump."

Noah's regular opener, Angelo Lozada, started the show with 20 minutes of pedestrian material. He began with a couple of jokes about downtown Albany being small, gave a shout-out to McGeary's pub across the street and within two minutes was doing crowd work, asking questions of those in the front rows and riffing on their jobs and relationships. If he was intent on setting the bar low to allow Noah to shine, he succeeded.

sbarnes@timesunion.com  518-454-5489  @Tablehopping  http://facebook.com/SteveBarnesFoodCritic
ALBANY  In a preview of a potential future gubernatorial debate, Democratic Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner and state Senate Deputy Republican Majority Leader John DeFrancisco disagreed on policy during a panel discussion Monday.

But they found common ground on one issue: the need to change the current tenor of politics.

We think that to have a vibrant, civic dialogue is important, Miner said after the pair took questions at an event hosted by the Bull Moose Club. The fact that its been missing, weve all suffered from that.

Ditto, DeFrancisco quickly added.

Both officials are mulling bids for governor, though neither had a final a decision to announce on Monday. Miner also is reconsidering her earlier decision not to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. John Katko in next year's race for Congress.

Mondays discussion at the University Club ranged from their views on marijuana (Miner supports legalization; DeFrancisco does not) to economic development (both criticized the state's Regional Economic Development Council process) to a decline in civic participation among the electorate.

DeFrancisco said people are tired of constant divisiveness in politics.

And people are also of the opinion they cant do a damn thing about it because big money controls politics and people that are going to be benefiting from the government are those who are going to be on the inside, he said.

The only way I think its going to change is theres going to have to be some ability to make sure people believe, and the rules are such that people believe that the process is fair, Number One, and and, Number Two, that their vote means something, he added.

Miner pointed to a need to improve access to the ballot box and for nonpartisan redistricting. She suggested that tying someones ability to vote to their residence depresses turnout among transient populations like the poor and young, and that voting by mail  as is allowed in Oregon, for example  could drive up turnout.

Imagine how different our politics would be if we had to  appeal to 80 percent of the electorate, Miner said. All of a sudden the ideas and the policies and how you think about it change dramatically. Instead of saying, Well, geez, Im just going to think about people who give campaign donations because thats going to help me appeal to this very small select group of people that already vote, we would be widening that, in essence doing what I believe our founding fathers through this process wanted us to do.

The amicable hour-long discussion isnt necessarily a signal that a joint DeFrancisco-Miner ticket (or vice versa) is likely in 2018. But they agreed that next years gubernatorial race will be competitive for Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, regardless of who runs.

Should either run and win, theyd be the first governor from upstate in years.

The numbers are obviously against anybody from upstate winning statewide office, DeFrancisco said. He later added that the consequence is the philosophical upstate-downstate divide.

The solution to that: Elect an upstater next year in November as governor, he said, joking alluding to himself.

mhamilton@timesunion.com  518-454-5449 @matt_hamilton10
A State University at Oneonta student from Schenectady faces an attempted murder charge after he allegedly stabbed a woman several time, inflicting wounds that required treatment at Albany Medical Center, the Daily Star of Oneonta reported.

Julian Vancourt-Wels, 20, was arrested late Friday night, the newspaper reported.

He was charged with attempted first-degree murder, assault and weapons possession for an attack the newspaper described as domestic dispute with a female roommate.

The case was investigated by the Oneonta police department, the newspaper reported.

Vancourt-Weis and the woman lived in an off campus house, the newspaper reported. The victim was taken to a local hospital but transferred to the trauma center at Albany Med.

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EDINBURG - A former priest accused of killing a Rio Grande Valley beauty queen in 1960 was found guilty of murder with malice aforethought Thursday after a jury deliberated for about six hours.

John Feit, now 85, sat stone-faced and showed no emotion as he was convicted of killing Irene Garza, a 25-year school teacher, when he was 27 and serving as a fill-in priest in the Valley. Family members of the victim hugged each other after the verdict was read.

Garza was last seen going to Sacred Heart Catholic Church in McAllen where Feit heard her confession. Her body was found five days later in a canal. Autopsy results showed she had been raped while unconscious and died of asphyxiation, likely from suffocation.

Garzas grisly killing during Holy Week 1960 haunted South Texas for decades and was the subject of a 48 Hours television special.

Feits conviction brings an end to one of the oldest cases in the Hidalgo County judicial system, but leaves unresolved allegations of a deal cut between the district attorney and church leaders to stop the investigation into Feit and avoid a scandal.

The trial had been expected to take up to two weeks, but ended Wednesday after five days of testimony.

This is a case about betrayal, murder and a cover-up, said Assistant District Attorney Michael Garza, lead prosecutor, in closing arguments Thursday. (Feit) was a wolf in priests clothing.

Garza, no relation to the victim, described Feit as a predator set loose on the young, devout women of McAllen, then a small agricultural community where no one doubted the moral authority of the Catholic Church.

In his closing, Feits attorney O. Rene Flores was critical of the lack of physical evidence linking Feit to the crime, and pointed out conflicting eye witness testimony that placed Garza at the church after the attack is thought to have occurred.

Much of the evidence appeared circumstantial, and Flores questioned witnesses who waited decades to come forward with testimony, including Father Joseph OBrian, an assistant pastor who told a Dallas Morning News reporter in 2004 that he elicited a confession from Feit.

Responding to the lack of physical evidence, Garza noted that even OBrien, now deceased, was complicit, helping dispose of items found at the rectory belonging to the victim, Garza said in his closing.

How can you test what you cant collect? Garza questioned. The cover up continues.

The elderly Feit added to the courtroom drama Wednesday when he briefly considered taking the stand to address "several things that have been said about me that I feel like I need to correct. He decided not to testify on the advice of his attorneys, he said.

Garza was a second-grade teacher who had been Miss All South Texas Sweetheart in 1958 and a former prom and homecoming queen at what then was Pan American College.

The cold case lay dormant for decades until Dale Tacheny, a former monk at the monastery, contacted San Antonio police, claiming that years before Feit had confessed to putting Garza in a bathtub at the pastoral house. As he left the room Feit heard her say, I cannot breathe, Tacheny testified.

He felt no remorse for what he had done, Tacheny said, only that he was haunted by the sound of Garzas heels.

OBrians testimony came later.
The Coal Oil Johnny House is located at Rynd Farm within Oil Creek State Park. The exterior was returned to how it looked in a early postcard. The interior has also been restored. The home is owned by the Oil Region Alliance.
[December 11, 2017] Canada's Residential School Story Launches on Google Earth Voyager

OTTAWA, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Residential schools for First Nations, Metis and Inuit children were first established in 1831 and ran for 165 years until 1996. This system had one goal: to forcibly assimilate Canada's Indigenous Peoples into the non-Indigenous population. Canadian Geographic Education (Can Geo Education), the first Canadian organization to produce Google Earth Voyager content, has worked closely with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) of the University of Manitoba to create an educational tool that will help students learn about this dark chapter in Canadian history. "This is a harrowing tale but reqired learning on our journey towards reconciliation with Canada's Indigenous Peoples," says Ellen Curtis, Director of Can Geo Education. "Our Google Earth Voyager residential school story provides a much needed primer for elementary and secondary school students. "



Told through a geographic lens, the Google Earth Voyager residential school story shows students where each school is located on a map of Canada, and often providing an overhead view of the school itself. The story explains why the schools were built, what attending a residential school was like for Indigenous children, the effects of the system on students, and how residential school survivors are working to move forward. The poignant testimonials of residential school survivors, providing detailed accounts of their abuse inside this educational system, will have an indelible impact on readers. These honest accounts of childhood loss and abuse will hopefully help students to break down any learned prejudices and build understanding that will aid in the reconciliation process. "The Google Earth's Voyageur residential school story is an extremely important tool that encourages discussion in a way that compliments the learning styles of today's students," says Ry Moran, Director of the NCTR. "This is exactly what we need for a tough topic like the residential school story, if reconciliation is to begin."

This tale about Canada's residential schools is the latest installment in Google Earth's Voyager series. Google has been working with prestigious partners, such as NASA, BBC, and now, Can Geo Education, to bring storytelling functionality to its popular Google Earth mapping service. Over the past four years, Google has also supported the refresh materials to ensure they dovetail with current trends in geography teaching. Just this past summer, Google worked with Can Geo Education to provide professional development training for teachers on the use of popular geographic tools, such as Google Maps, Google Street View and Google Expeditions. Working with Google is just one of the ways Can Geo Education is helping to develop 21st century geographic skills among Canadians to maintain our nation's reputation as a geography powerhouse. SOURCE Royal Canadian Geographical Society

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[December 11, 2017] Unified APP of China's Banking Industry, "Mobile QuickPass" Officially Launches Today

SHANGHAI, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ -- On December 11, China UnionPay joined hands with over 30 Commercial banks and payment institutions to launch "Mobile QuickPass", the unified APP for China's banking industry. By integrating mobile payment fuctions and benefits offered by various institutions, the newly launched APP is the first of its kind, which involves multiple players in financial services and related industries. It offers users an easy, smooth and seamless mobile payment experience. The launch of this unified APP is aimed at unifying user experiences, saving users from the hassle of having to learn to use APPs from different providers, to meet the increasingly diverse needs of users, and provides an open platform for all players to collaborate on while promoting more financial innovations. Fan Yifei, Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China, Yu Bangli, Chief Accountant of China Railways Corporation, Shi Wenchao, President of China UnionPay and heads of 17 national commercial banks and 14 regional banks, as well as representatives from the People's Bank of China, Payment and Clearing Association of China, non-bank payment institutions, mobile phone manufacturers as well as cooperating merchants jointly attended the ceremony. The "Mobile QuickPass" APP is a unified mobile payment portal jointly developed and maintained by commercial banks and UnionPay, under the guidance of the People's Bank of China. Customers are able to link their bank cards to the APP, manage different bank accounts, and enjoy the mobile payment services and benefits offered by each bank. The services offered by this APP also include UnionPay QR code payment, signing up for various mobile payment solutions, comprehensive credit card services, P2P real-time transfer and payment services in various scenarios. In fact, all payment functions commonly available to mobile phones will be realized through this Mobile QuickPass. To help customers know clearly where they can use this APP, UnionPay has launched its brand-new optimized Visual Identity. Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China, Fan Yifei said, "The rapid development of China's payments industry over the past few years has played a crucial role in promoting financial innovation and sustaining rapid economic growth. The People's Bank of China executes the instruction given by Chinese government, and is devoted to creating a level playing field for competitors in the payment industry by implementing strict regulations, preventing financial risks, and facilitating consumptions so as to better support the real economy and the Inclusive Financial System." Fan added, "This jointly launched mobile payment APP adopts unified portal standards in user identification and user experiences. It is a significant measure in enhancing financial innovation and promoting seamless retail payments for customers. Entrepreneurs shall accurately identify people's needs, improve the service level in mobile payments and brng convenience to people's life in a comprehensive way. While promoting further innovation on financial technologies, we must maintain a high level of payment security, giving priority to the customers' interests and safeguard the people's funds and personal information. I sincerely hope that all the parties involved will use the launch of this mobile APP as a starting point to continue expanding cooperation and integrating resources, and to jointly provide comprehensive, multi-faceted, convenient and efficient mobile payment services to meet the increasingly diverse needs of the people."



According to Shi Wenchao, President of China UnionPay, the unified APP jointly developed by Commercial Banks and China UnionPay is the result and further development of the long-term cooperation in the banking industry, demonstrating the collective wisdom of all parties. Based on the principle of "three-uniformity", Commercial Banks and China UnionPay gave due consideration to the requests of all parties, to jointly complete the initial development of the APP. During the process of developing and promoting the APP, China UnionPay adheres to its principle of "Openness, Collaboration and Services", and is committed to being a service provider that does not engage in card issuance or acquiring, and not competing with public service providers. Instead, we will continue to provide more diverse and comprehensive payment solutions to corporations of all industry by leveraging on our advantages as an open platform. We will continue to enhance user experiences and product capabilities to provide more convenient, efficient and secure payment services to the market." Promote financial technological innovation and build safety control system

In terms of payment innovation, the development of this unified APP applies advanced technologies such as mobile Internet, big data, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things to various mobile payment service scenarios, making retail payment convenient. The APP is compatible with various QR code scanning payment and mobile payment solutions, as well as the technologies of Tokenization and HCE, offering more personalized and diversified payment experiences to customers. In terms of payment security, the unified APP adopts technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data analysis to build a comprehensive and real-time security control system via chip security, biological information and geographical locating. It offers comprehensive risk management services and guarantees convenient, secure and effective mobile payment services to the users. Build an open platform, unify mobile portal, and create "solid scenarios" and feature service systems for convenient payments As a unified mobile portal, the "Mobile QuickPass" APP integrates the payment services, payment scenarios and feature services of UnionPay that covers major banks. It has following four features: First, it is an open platform. The APP is a brand-new open platform that integrates online and offline payment tools, and is based on the technologies of big data, cloud computing and artificial intelligence. It provides open and unified payment service portal for Commercial Banks and cooperation partners, offering value-added merchant services, marketing campaign implementation, card application and online sales for partners. Therefore, the APP serves as a platform that connects and serves all parties. Second, it is accessible to all banking system. The APP is compatible with various bank accounts, and optimizes user experience through integrating the payment service tools previously offered by each institution. It provides various payment functions including mobile NFC payment, QR code payment, fund collection and transfer as well as remote payment. Third, it covers a wide range of payment scenarios. The APP covers all the major online and offline payment scenarios. Now, it is available at railways, air flights, 100,000 convenient stores and supermarkets, over 30 universities and colleges, over 100 food markets, as well as more than 300 public services utilities. Next, it is expected to provide more functions including bank account balance enquiry, traffic fine payment, etc. In addition, the UnionPay QR code payment offered by "Mobile QuickPass" APP is already accepted by merchants in Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong, and will be launched in other parts of Southeast Asia and the Middle East soon. Meanwhile, UnionPay mobile QuickPass is accepted at over 600,000 POS terminals outside mainland China, covering 10 countries and regions including Hong Kong, Macau, Southeast Asia, Australia and Russia, etc. Fourth, it offers comprehensive payment services. The APP integrates functions and benefits provided by both UnionPay and the banks, including balance enquiry, easy transfer, one-stop installment, credit cards services, bill enquiry as well as the discounts and benefits provided by banks and UnionPay. Meanwhile, customers are able to get the information on the acceptance of UnionPay in more than 160 countries and regions, overseas marketing campaigns and get notification of merchant discounts, as well as the progress of tax-refunds for overseas purchases. Thus the APP helps users to manage various bank accounts while enjoying diverse payment services. To provide more value to cardholders and to encourage more customers to experience the functions and services of the "Mobile QuickPass" APP, China UnionPay has collaborated with commercial banks to launch 50%-off discount for the big sales in China on "1212" (December 12th). When paying with the "Mobile QuickPass" APP and UnionPay mobile QuickPass (including Huawei Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and MI Pay) at 100,000 merchants in China, customers are able to enjoy 50%-off instant discount. Besides, users of "Mobile QuickPass" APP may enjoy more exclusive benefits and privileges before March 31, 2018. The "Mobile QuickPass" APP can be downloaded in Apple or Android APP Stores. More user guide and marketing activity information can be found in the official WeChat and Weibo account of China UnionPay as well as the webpage of this promotion (http://62.95516.com). View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/unified-app-of-chinas-banking-industry-mobile-quickpass-officially-launches-today-300569549.html SOURCE China UnionPay

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[December 10, 2017] To Seize Taiwan's Offshore Wind Power Business Potential TUV Rheinland Emphasizes Risk Management

TAIPEI, Taiwan, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In the 5+2 industries currently targeted for development in Taiwan, green energy technology is a key development item. Policies are strongly promoting the offshore wind power industry within the green energy industry. In order to assist Taiwan in the implementation of offshore wind power, this year, a wind power forum was jointly hosted by TUV Rheinland and the Taiwan Wind Turbine Industry Association . TUV Rheinland specially invited one of its foreign experts on offshore wind power safety assessments from Risktec Solution to share information on topics such as offshore wind power life-cycle risk management and analysis, international wind power standards, underwater infrastructure certification, as well as implementation and planning of offshore wind power industrial localization in Taiwan. These specialized topics brought new perspectives to a captivated audience. The world is entering an era where clean energy is causing revolutionary changes. The power grid is undergoing a transformation as countries across the globe seek to achieve zero emissions for power systems before the year 2050. Due to the uncertainty of the global power market, along with changes in renewable energy policies in various nations, the outlook for the wind power industry can be unpredictable. The one thing that is certain is that wind power will continue to play a significant role in energy systems in the future. Accoding to a survey conducted by the international organization 4C Offshore, 18 of the top 20 best offshore wind power sites in the world are located within the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan's promotion of wind power can contribute to efforts in achieving a non-nuclear homeland, outstanding wind farms in the Taiwan Strait, and stimulating development of emerging industries. This is the reason that as part of the Taiwan's 4-Year Wind Power Implementation Plan, an additional 652MW of power generation from land and offshore wind power sources is expected to be in place by the year 2020. The mid-to-long-term plan is to achieve cumulative power generation capacity of 4200MW by the year 2025, realizing the vision for energy transformation and a green economy.



As a key energy source for the future, risk management throughout the entire wind power life cycle is essential to ensuring wind farms remain in regular, efficient operating condition. Risk management for offshore wind power projects requires detailed identification of risks and implementation of risk-specific measures for processes such as transportation, geological surveys, construction, and installation involved in ocean wind power projects. Hazards contributing to ocean risks include working at heights, lifting operations, transportation of personnel, flammable materials, pressurized systems, maritime transport, and structural failure, amongst other factors. Safety is key in ocean wind power, and identifying risks and knowledge of risk management systems will maximize production and profit while minimizing unplanned shutdowns. Offshore wind power policies have been implemented in the hope of stimulating development in three major industries: wind turbine production, maritime construction, and wind farm operations and maintenance. As Taiwan's offshore wind power sector has only recently emerged, issues such as wind power technology, talent, and bank financing pose certain challenges. Since working on an ocean wind farm entails significant risk, the unique work and living environment can have a great impact on the health and safety of those employed. Grueling physical labor, frequent working at heights for prolonged periods, exposure to extreme heat and extreme cold, limited personal space, and significant periods away from one's family can have pronounced impacts on employees' mental and physical health. This is the reason why risk assessment focused on occupational and operational safety are absolute necessities for the welfare of those working on ocean wind farms, including periodic environmental inspections and physical exams.





TUV Rheinland excels in comprehensive life-cycle services within the wind power field, from site selection and design to operation of wind farms. As an increasing number of corporations enter the wind power market across the world, safety considerations related to wind turbines, steel structures, and components will become an important threshold. Certification of wind turbines and related components is conducted upon the basis of the IEC 61400 series and related German standards and guidelines such as the DIBt and GL guidelines. TUV Rheinland offers expert inspections, summation check analyses for land and ocean wind farms, quality and safety certification for wind turbines, and assistance in ensuring safe, highly efficient wind power operations and maintenance. As offshore wind power construction continues to surge in Taiwan, the effective reduction of construction risk holds substantial social and economic significance. Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20171208/2010910-1 SOURCE TUV Rheinland

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[December 11, 2017]

Candere, by Kalyan Jewellers, Launches its New Collection - The Meraki Story

MUMBAI, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

The collection brings gold jewellery cutwork designs with diamond accents in pave setting. Inspired by the play of light and shadow, Candere, Kalyan Jewellers online store launched their winter collection - The Meraki Story.

(Photo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/617850/Candere_Meraki_Collection.jpg )



Meraki is a Greek word that describes submission of self to creative passion. The collection brings gold and diamond jewellery designed with novel cut-out motifs based on the veins of forest flowers and leaves. The product line contains 40+ products that include earrings, rings, pendants and necklaces in diamond and a few earrings in 18k gol, designed exclusively for gold lovers.







Sharing the inspiration behind Meraki, Naushaba Ara, Candere designer said, "To design a collection means to create something exclusive and exclusivity cannot come without inspiration and imagination. The Meraki Story is about one such imagery of light and shadow translated into jewellery."

The leafy motifs and curly flow of the designs give it a look close to nature, making a statement but maintaining its ineffable appearance.

The product line starts at INR 13,700 only.

To view the collection click on https://www.candere.com/trending/meraki-collection.html

About Candere.com:

Candere.com is one of India's growing e-commerce companies dealing majorly in diamond jewellery and has shot to limelight with its recent merger with Kalyan Group. Candere commenced business with a vision of bringing the offline diamond industry to the online market, making it available to the masses in India.

To visit the website, click on https://www.candere.com/

Media Contact:

Naushaba Ara

[email protected]

+91-22-61066202

Media & Content Head

Enovate Lifestyles Pvt Ltd


[December 11, 2017] NetGuardians Partners With Masaref - BSC in Middle East

YVERDON-LES-BAINS, Switzerland, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Masaref will provide local support for both implementation and alliance Swiss Fintech leader NetGuardians has joined forces with Masaref Business & Systems Consulting, who will provide on-the-ground support for business development in the Middle East. This partnership will give financial institutions enhanced access to NetGuardians' unique anti-fraud technology and first-class fraud prevention services. (Photo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/617497/NetGuardians.jpg )

With solid experience in the Middle East and North Africa, Masaref is highly regarded and trusted for their implementation of T24 core banking systems and added-value services. As a Temenos complementary solution provider for fraud prevention, NetGuardians brings solutions that fit in perfectly with Masaref's mandate. NetGuardians is recognized for their innovative enterprise risk platform to prevent banking fraud and digitize compliance. The solution uses a patented Big Data model to correlate and analyze behaviors across the entire bank system, and applies advanced analytics capabilities to predefined out-of-the-box controls. "We are confident that thiswill prove to be a very fruitful partnership," says Dr. Mohamed Goneid, Chairman of Masaref. "More Banks and Financial Institutions using T24 will finally have the peace of mind of top fraud protection." Mr. Ahmed Abdel Aziz, Masaref CEO added, "Together with NetGuardians, we will help financial institutions in the Middle East to cater for their most challenging requirements."



"Fraud is a growing concern worldwide and the Middle East is no exception," says NetGuardians Director & Board Member Olivier Trancart. "So we think that NetGuardians' expertise can really make a positive impact. Working with a local partner with Masaref's strong reputation will help grow the client base in a highly effective and efficient manner." NetGuardians' current clients in the region include Alinma Bank, Aljazira Capital and the National Bank of Kuwait. NetGuardians Middle East Business Development Manager Abdallah Djedid echos Mr. Trancart in praise of Masaref: "Masaref was an obvious choice for a local partner given their specialization in Temenos T24 Conventional and Islamic core banking systems, into which our solution integrates rapidly and seamlessly."

ABOUT MASAREF BSC

Masaref is a major Temenos T24 implementation partner of Temenos in the Middle East. Masaref employs 35 highly specialized consultants. Masaref knowledge of the local banking products and special banking requirements in the region has been instrumental in developing country layer to provide performing local T24 Model Banks in the countries covered by Masaref. Masaref extended developments include local Central Bank and statutory reporting utilities. Masaref was granted the Best Core Banking Implementer in Egypt in 2015 ABOUT NETGUARDIANS SA

NetGuardians is a leading Fintech company recognized for its unique approach to fraud and risk assurance solutions. Their software leverages Big Data to correlate and analyze behaviors across the entire bank system - not just at the transaction level. Predefined controls enable banks to target specific anti-fraud or regulatory requirements. A controls update service ensures financial institutions benefit from ongoing protection in the face of the continually evolving risk challenges. Headquartered in Switzerland, the company has offices in Kenya, Singapore and Poland.

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[December 11, 2017] Validus Capital is awarded a full Capital Markets Services (CMS) license to Deal in Securities from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) under the Securities and Futures Act

SINGAPORE, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Backed by Vertex, a Temasek Holdings Company, Validus helps Small and Medium Sized Entities (SMEs) secure short and medium term financing from accredited and institutional investors via its online marketplace. This CMS license has come at an opportune time for Validus, as limited access to financing has emerged as one of the top challenges faced by SMEs in Singapore. The newly acquired CMS license now allows Validus to offer underserved SMEs a whole suite of financing products, including project financing and working capital loans. Ajit Raikar, CEO and Co-Founder, Validus Capital, said, "We are delighted to obtain the much anticipated CMS license as it will allow us to forge ahead with a wide range of products to help SMEs scale and grow their businesses. We have been working diligently in the last year to ensure that our processes are robust enough to meet MAS' guidelines. Fintech is an area of focus for Singapore which is clearly demonstrated in the forward looking vision of the authorities. We are the #1 curated financing marketplace in Singapore and are committed to contributing to a robust SME ecosystem and matching them with our expanding investor base. Through our unique relationship with VISA Internatonal and our tie up with EQ insurance offering investors credit insurance on loans made through the platform, we are transforming SME debt from an alternate to a primary asset class."



Singapore has been one of the top Fintech hubs in the world and the Monetary Authority of Singapore ( MAS ) has been supporting fintech innovation in a safe and controlled environment. This demonstrates MAS's commitment towards the transformation of Singapore into a Smart Financial Centre," Says Ajit Raikar, CEO, Validus Capital. About VALIDUS

Validus Capital Pte Ltd, founded in 2015, is a curated financing marketplace focused on bridging cash flows to growing SMEs in Singapore. Till date Validus has facilitated disbursals of over SGD 45m. Validus has built a highly experienced management team led by a CEO with over 30 years of SME banking experience across Citibank, Fullerton (Bank Danamon) and DBS. Validus has a triple layer risk algorithm built in partnership with the Credit Research Initiative (CRI) team of NUS-RMI using forward-looking Probability Default (PD) as a building block. It is also the only platform in Singapore to have an Insurance cover from EQ Insurance, for lenders on the platform (up to 90% capital protection for lenders participating in Working Capital deals). The leading global payments technology company, Visa has partnered with Validus to provide Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with virtual card based account receivable solutions to help scale their business. In Singapore this is the first of its kind collaboration between a fintech marketplace, a global bank and a leading payments company. With institutional participation on the platform from accredited investors, leading family offices and hedge funds, Validus offers the investors opportunities to participate in the growth of Singaporean SMEs. Please visit www.validus.sg for more info. For further information and details, please contact: Ambica Kuthiala

Director Marketing &Corporate Communications

Validus Capital Pte Ltd.

+65-97670686

[email protected] https://www.linkedin.com/company/10471166/

https://www.facebook.com/Validus-Capital-486597981721304/

https://twitter.com/ValidusCapital/followers Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20171211/2011908-1 SOURCE Validus Capital

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[December 11, 2017] Nokia appoints Joerg Erlemeier as Chief Operating Officer and member of the Nokia Group Leadership Team

Nokia Corporation

Stock Exchange Release

December 11, 2017 at 09:30 (CET +1) Nokia appoints Joerg Erlemeier as Chief Operating Officer and member of the Nokia Group Leadership Team Espoo, Finland - Nokia today announced the appointment of Joerg Erlemeier as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and member of the Group Leadership Team (GLT) with immediate effect. Erlemeier will report to Nokia President and Chief Executive Officer Rajeev Suri. Monika Maurer, who previously held the COO position, will support Erlemeier during a transition period and then leave Nokia to pursue new opportunities outside the company. "I want to thank Monika for her contributions to Nokia, and Alcatel-Lucent before that. I warmly welcome Joerg to the GLT, and look forward to working together to further strengthen our disciplined operating model," said Rajeev Suri. Erlemeier was most recently Senior Vice President, Nokia Transformation, and holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Electronics and Telecommunications) from Fachhochschule Aachen in Germany. He has over 20 years of experience in various leadership positions in Nokia, including heading the Middle East and Africa region; leading Services in Asia-Pacific and Japan and North America; and serving as COO of the Mobile Networks business group. As a result of this change, Nokia's Group Leadership Team will, effective as of December 11, 2017, consist of the following members: Rajeev Suri, Basil Alwan, Hans-Juergen Bill, Kathrin Buvac, Ashish Chowdhary, Joerg Erlemeier, Barry French, Bhaskar Gorti, Federico Guillen, Gregory Lee, Igor Leprince, Kristian Pullola, Marc Rouanne, Maria Varsellona and Marcus Weldon. A photo of Joerg Erlemeier can be downloaded at: https://www.nokia.com/en_int/news/media-library/nokia-group-leadership-team Additional background on all members of the GLT can be found at http://www.nokia.com/en_int/investors/corporate-governance/group-leadership-team About Nokia

We create the technology to connect the world. Powered by the research and innovation of Nokia Bell Labs, we serve communications service providers, governments, large enterprises and consumers, with the industry's most complete, end-to-end portfolio of products, services and licensing. From the enabling infrastructure for 5G and the Internet of Things, to emerging applications in digital health, we are shaping the future of technology to transform the human experience. www.nokia.com Media Inquiries:

Nokia

Communications

Tel. +358 (0) 10 448 4900

Email: [email protected] FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

It should be noted that Nokia and its businesses are exposed to various risks and uncertainties and certain statements herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, those regarding: A) our ability to integrate acquired businesses into our operations and achieve the targeted business plans and benefits, incuding targeted benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies; B) expectations, plans or benefits related to our strategies and growth management; C) expectations, plans or benefits related to future performance of our businesses; D) expectations, plans or benefits related to changes in organizational and operational structure; E) expectations regarding market developments, general economic conditions and structural changes; F) expectations and targets regarding financial performance, results, operating expenses, taxes, currency exchange rates, hedging, cost savings and competitiveness, as well as results of operations including targeted synergies and those related to market share, prices, net sales, income and margins; G) expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or to business collaboration agreements or patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration or partnership, agreement or award; H) timing of the deliveries of our products and services; I) expectations and targets regarding collaboration and partnering arrangements, joint ventures or the creation of joint ventures, and the related administrative, legal, regulatory and other conditions, as well as our expected customer reach; J) outcome of pending and threatened litigation, arbitration, disputes, regulatory proceedings or investigations by authorities; K) expectations regarding restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, uses of proceeds from transactions, acquisitions and divestments and our ability to achieve the financial and operational targets set in connection with any such restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, divestments and acquisitions; and L) statements preceded by or including "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "foresee," "sees," "target," "estimate," "designed," "aim," "plans," "intends," "focus," "continue," "project," "should," "is to," "will" or similar expressions. These statements are based on management's best assumptions and beliefs in light of the information currently available to it. Because they involve risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from the results that we currently expect. Factors, including risks and uncertainties that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: 1) our ability to execute our strategy, sustain or improve the operational and financial performance of our business and correctly identify and successfully pursue business opportunities or growth; 2) our ability to achieve the anticipated benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies of acquisitions, including the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent, and our ability to implement changes to our organizational and operational structure efficiently; 3) general economic and market conditions and other developments in the economies where we operate; 4) competition and our ability to effectively and profitably compete and invest in new competitive high-quality products, services, upgrades and technologies and bring them to market in a timely manner; 5) our dependence on the development of the industries in which we operate, including the cyclicality and variability of the information technology and telecommunications industries; 6) our global business and exposure to regulatory, political or other developments in various countries or regions, including emerging markets and the associated risks in relation to tax matters and exchange controls, among others; 7) our ability to manage and improve our financial and operating performance, cost savings, competitiveness and synergies generally or after the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent; 8) our dependence on a limited number of customers and large multi-year agreements; 9) exchange rate fluctuations, as well as hedging activities; 10) Nokia Technologies' ability to protect its IPR and to maintain and establish new sources of patent licensing income and IPR-related revenues, particularly in the smartphone market; 11) our ability to successfully realize the expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or business collaboration agreements and patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration, partnership, agreement or arbitration award; 12) our dependence on IPR technologies, including those that we have developed and those that are licensed to us, and the risk of associated IPR-related legal claims, licensing costs and restrictions on use; 13) our exposure to direct and indirect regulation, including economic or trade policies, and the reliability of our governance, internal controls and compliance processes to prevent regulatory penalties in our business or in our joint ventures; 14) our ability to identify and remediate material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting; 15) our reliance on third-party solutions for data storage and service distribution, which expose us to risks relating to security, regulation and cybersecurity breaches; 16) inefficiencies, breaches, malfunctions or disruptions of information technology systems; 17) Nokia Technologies' ability to generate net sales and profitability through licensing of the Nokia brand, technology licensing and the development and sales of products and services for instance in digital health, as well as other business ventures, which may not materialize as planned; 18) our exposure to various legislative frameworks and jurisdictions that regulate fraud and enforce economic trade sanctions and policies, and the possibility of proceedings or investigations that result in fines, penalties or sanctions; 19) adverse developments with respect to customer financing or extended payment terms we provide to customers; 20) the potential complex tax issues, tax disputes and tax obligations we may face in various jurisdictions, including the risk of obligations to pay additional taxes; 21) our actual or anticipated performance, among other factors, which could reduce our ability to utilize deferred tax assets; 22) our ability to retain, motivate, develop and recruit appropriately skilled employees; 23) disruptions to our manufacturing, service creation, delivery, logistics and supply chain processes, and the risks related to our geographically-concentrated production sites; 24) the impact of litigation, arbitration, agreement-related disputes or product liability allegations associated with our business; 25) our ability to optimize our capital structure as planned and re-establish our investment grade credit rating or otherwise improve our credit ratings; 26) our ability to achieve targeted benefits from or successfully achieve the required administrative, legal, regulatory and other conditions and implement planned transactions, as well as the liabilities related thereto; 27) our involvement in joint ventures and jointly-managed companies; 28) the carrying amount of our goodwill may not be recoverable; 29) uncertainty related to the amount of dividends and equity return we are able to distribute to shareholders for each financial period; 30) pension costs, employee fund-related costs, and healthcare costs; and 31) risks related to undersea infrastructure, as well as the risk factors specified on pages 67 to 85 of our 2016 annual report on Form 20-F under "Operating and financial review and prospects-Risk factors" and in our other filings or documents furnished with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying assumptions subsequently proven to be incorrect could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.





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[December 11, 2017] Exscientia Appoints Alex Snow, Founder of Oxford Innovation Sciences and Former CEO of Lansdowne Partners, as Deputy Chairman

OXFORD, England and DUNDEE, Scotland, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Exscientia, the innovative company at the forefront of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Alex Snow to its Board of Directors as Deputy Chairman. He brings significant strategic development and financial experience to the board. Alex is an experienced investor, banker and entrepreneur, having previously founded Oxford Sciences Innovation (OSI) and raised more than 600 million to commercialise world-leading science originating at Oxford University. Prior to OSI, Alex spent 20 years in investment banking and fund management, most recently as CEO of the hedge fund Lansdowne Partners. He was also the founder and CEO of Evolution Group, a UK investment banking and securities firm, which was sold to Investec Bank for 232 million in 2011. Alex is a former professional rugby player with Harlequins and England and was educated at Harrow School and St Andrew's University. Andrew Hopkins, Chairman and CEO of Exscientia, said: "We are delighted to welcome Alex to Exscientia. Alex brings deep investor knowledge and unique entrepreneurial skills to the Board. He has a passion for translating-cutting edge science into long-term, tangible value. The deep and active commitment Alex has shown to the Company and the energy he brings to the role of Deputy Chairman will bring immense value. We are confident that his extensive experience in the investment community and wide networks will be invaluable in supporting the Company's strategy for growth. We have made great progress in 2017, having announced collaborations ith GSK, Sanofi and a significant investment from Evotec; with Alex joining us, we look forward to an exciting year in 2018."



Alex Snow added: "Exscientia is a truly exciting company with the potential to be a game-changer in the pharma industry, as a tech company that discovers drugs. There is growing realisation of the disruptive potential of AI in pharma, and Exscientia is leading the field. With the successes so far achieved, we are beginning to see exciting evidence of acceleration of the discovery of new medicines through application of its unique AI platform. The Company has signed some impressive deals to date and is poised to move to the next phase of its development. I am very much looking forward to making my contribution to building a great company." A photo of Alex Snow is available on request by emailing: [email protected]

About Exscientia Exscientia is at the forefront of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven drug discovery and design. By fusing the power of AI with the discovery experience of seasoned drug hunters, Exscientia is the first company to automate drug design, surpassing conventional approaches. Exscientia's innovative platform enables breakthrough productivity gains as well as new approaches to improve drug efficacy. Novel compounds prioritised for synthesis by its AI systems simultaneously balance potency, selectivity and pharmacokinetic criteria in order to deliver successful experimental outcomes. By applying a rapid design-make-test cycle, the Exscientia AI platform actively learns from the preceding experimental results and rapidly evolves compounds towards the desired candidate criteria. Exscientia systems learn from both existing data resources and experimental data from each design cycle. The principle is similar to how a human would learn, but the AI process is far more effective at identifying and assimilating multiple subtle and complex trends to balance potency, selectivity and pharmacokinetic criteria. As a result, the AI-driven process is more likely to achieve the end goal and to do this more rapidly and efficiently than traditional human endeavour. Exscientia is collaborating with several leading pharmaceutical companies. In addition to Evotec, partners include Sanofi (metabolic disease), Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma and Sunovion Pharmaceuticals (CNS) and GSK. Exscientia has offices in Oxford and Dundee, UK. For more information visit www.exscientia.co.uk or follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/exscientialtd Media enquiries: Mark Swindells - Chief Operating Officer

[email protected]

Mark Swallow / Pip Batty / Sylvie Berrebi - Citigate Dewe Rogerson

[email protected]

+44-207-638-9571 SOURCE Exscientia

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[December 11, 2017] NEXWAFE GmbH Closes EUR 8 Million Financing

FREIBURG, Germany, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- New funding to commission NexWafe's 5 MW EpiWafer production NexWafe GmbH, a spinoff from the Fraunhofer ISE commercializing breakthrough technology for epitaxial fabrication of silicon wafers for photovoltaics, announced today the completion of Euro 8 million financing. The round was led by Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures (SAEV) and included Green Gateway Fund 2 (GGF2) advised by Wermuth Asset Management GmbH (WAM) and existing investor Lynwood (Schweiz) AG. Funds will be used for the commissioning of NexWafe's 5MW wafer production line in Freiburg, and for initial customer qualifications. "NexWafe's technology provides superior quality monocrystalline wafers that are a drop-in replacement for current products, at dramatically reduced cost and with fewer processing steps and lower energy consumption," said Bruce Niven, Chief Investment Officer of SAEV. "We are excited to be leading this investment into NexWafe at a time when the photovoltaic market continues to expand and with the Middle East region poised for accelerating growth in renewables deployment." Dr. Claas Helmke, Growth Partner of GGF2 commented, "We have been looking at and investing into solar technology since 1999, and this investment is one of the most exciting opportunities we have come across, both in technical and economic terms. We expect this investment to deliver outstanding financial returs and major positive impact on the environment."



"We are extremely excited to have SAEV and GGF2 joining us in transforming the silicon wafer business into a new era, within the rapidly growing photovoltaic industry," said Marina Groenberg, CEO of Lynwood. Prof. Eicke R. Weber, Chairman of NexWafe's Board added, "In addition to its economic advantage, our EpiWafer has superior qualities which can't be reached with current fabrication technologies." About NexWafe GmbH

NexWafe GmbH headquartered in Freiburg, Germany, will supply to solar cell producers superior quality monocrystalline wafers that are fully compatible with standard cell and module fabrication processes.

In its disruptive EpiWafer process, crystalline silicon layers are deposited on seed wafers and subsequently detached to produce freestanding wafers, of any desired thickness without kerf loss. About Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures (SAEV)

Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures is the corporate venturing subsidiary of Saudi Aramco, the world's leading integrated energy and chemicals company, with a mission to invest globally into early-stage and high growth companies with technologies of strategic importance to Aramco. SAEV invests in upstream and downstream oil and gas, petrochemicals, renewables, energy efficiency and water sectors. About Wermuth Asset Management GmbH & GGF2

Wermuth Asset Management GmbH is a German family office. WAM pursues an impact-based investment approach across all asset classes with the goal to achive high returns, as well as to have a positive impact on the environment. The Green Gateway Fund 2 advised by WAM invests in early growth stage companies with the potential to be highly profitable and have positive impact on the environment. About Lynwood (Schweiz) AG

Lynwood (Schweiz) AG is a Swiss arm of the international investment group Lynwood founded in 2002, with focus on Eastern and Western Europe with more than $2bn assets under management. Lynwood portfolio includes LSE premium listed firm Polymetal International Plc, one of the world's largest gold and silver producer, Waterstones - largest British bookstore and Marenco Swiss Helicopters. About Fraunhofer ISE

The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg, Germany, is the largest solar energy research institute in Europe. Focusing on energy efficiency, conversion, distribution and storage, Fraunhofer ISE contributes to an energy supply system based on renewable energies. Further information for NexWafe: http://www.nexwafe.com NexWafe GmbH, Phone +49-761-7661-18600, [email protected]

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[December 11, 2017] N. L. Dalmia Partners up With the Global Analytics Leader - SAS Institute Pvt. Ltd. for Post Graduate Programs in Big Data and Advanced Analytics

MUMBAI, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Raja Roy Choudhury - Director at N. L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies & Research says, "Big Data is the new science which empowers the world." Indeed, there's no denying the fact that companies backed by strong Big Data capabilities are bound to dominate the markets in the near future. Artificial Intelligence, Mobile, Social Media and Internet of Things are driving data complexity in various forms and from a variety of sources. The importance of Big Data doesn't revolve around how much data an organization has, but with what all they do with it. The combination of Big Data with high-powered analytics enables managers to accomplish business related tasks that aim at cost/time reductions, optimized product offerings and majorly smart decision making. The use of advanced analytics techniques like text analytics, machine learning, predictive analytics, data mining, statistics, and natural language processing has empowered companies with the ability to make numerically backed and quicker decisions by using data which was previously inaccessible or unusable. Today, data is omnipresent; almost 95% of the data that exists today has been created over the last 5 years. This figure itself demonstrates the humongous potential which can be unleashed by efficient processing of this data. The Big Data Industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 23.1% during 2016-2020. India currently contributes to 12 per cent of worldwide analytics and data science job openings, making it the largest analytics hub in theworld, outside the US. But, as per TeamLease Services - A leading HR Services Agency, India will face a Demand-Supply gap of 2 Lakh Data Analytics Professionals by 2020.



(Logo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/607583/Niranjan_Dalmia_educational_society.jpg )

N. L. Dalmia envisions of empowering the future of the Indian Analytics Industry by kick-starting its School of Quantitative Science which offers Post-Graduate Programs in Big Data and Advanced Analytics in collaboration with one of the world's largest Analytics Solution Provider - SAS Institute (India) Pvt. Ltd. The program is expected to commence from March 2018.

Post-Graduate Program in Big Data with SAS  Institute India Pvt. Ltd.: The institute, collaboratively with the technological partners SAS, will train students to become core data scientists. The entire course would be conducted over a period of 480 hours, 240 Hours by each N. L. Dalmia as well as the SAS Institute. The course will encompass areas but not limit to AS programming, Introductory Statistics, Data Management & Manipulation, Data Quality, Working with Hadoop, Hive & SAS and Data Visualization. Learn from the best minds with over 15+ years of industry & quantitative science management experience. The course offers the perfect blend of conceptual classroom teaching and practical business applications. The program is suitable for Working Professionals and Students with a strong background in Mathematical Sciences.

Pedagogy The entire course would be holistically covered through: Extensive Conceptual Classroom Teaching. Exclusive Guest Sessions and Interactive Webinars/Video Conferencing by Industry Stalwarts and International Faculty. Live Capstone Projects. Industry Exposure in the form of Paid Internships.

About N. L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies & Research N.L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies and Research (NLDIMSR) was established in the year 1995 by the Late Shri Niranjanlalji Dalmia with a vision to become a World Class Management Institute. Currently, NLDIMSR ranks amongst the top B-schools of India and is one of the most preferred business schools in Mumbai. The institute offers a plethora of academic services including Full Time and Part Time Post-graduate management courses, Global MBA Programs and the latest one - Post Graduate Programs in Quantitative Science. Media Contact :

Dr. Raja Roy Choudhary

[email protected]

+91-9920888111

Director

N. L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies and Research



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[December 11, 2017] Jumei to Hold Annual General Meeting on December 25, 2017

BEIJING, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Jumei International Holding Limited (NYSE:JMEI) ("Jumei" or the "Company"), China's leading online retailer of beauty products, today announced that that it will hold its annual general meeting of shareholders (the "AGM") at 20th Floor, Tower B, Zhonghui Plaza, 11 Dongzhimen South Rd, Dongcheng District, 100007 Beijing PRC on December 25, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. (Beijing time). No proposal will be submitted to shareholders for approval at the AGM. Instead, the AGM will serve as an open forum for shareholders and holders of the Company's American depositary shares ("ADSs") to discuss Company affairs with management.

The Board of Directors of the Company has fixed the close of business on December 11, 2017 (Eastern Standard Time) as the record date (the "Record Date") for determining the shareholders entitled to receive notice of the AGM or any adjournment or postponement thereof. Holders of record of the Company's Class A or Class B ordinary shares, par value US$0.00025 per share, at the close of business on the Record Date are entitled to attend the AG and any adjournment or postponement thereof in person. Holders of the Company's ADSs are welcome to attend the AGM in person.



Shareholders and ADS holders may obtain a copy of the Company's annual report on Form 20-F, free of charge, from our website at http://ir.jumei.com/, or by writing to Investor Relations Department, Jumei International Holding Limited, 20th Floor, Tower B, Zhonghui Plaza, 11 Dongzhimen South Road, Dongcheng District, Beijing 100007, Peoples Republic of China, or by sending an email to [email protected]. About Jumei

Jumei (NYSE:JMEI) is Chinas leading online retailer of beauty products. Jumeis internet platform is a trusted destination for consumers to discover and purchase branded beauty products, baby, children and maternity products, light luxury products, health supplements and other products through the Companys jumei.com and jumeiglobal.com websites and mobile application. Leveraging its deep understanding of customer needs and preferences, as well as its strong merchandizing capabilities, Jumei has adopted multiple effective sales formats to encourage product purchases on its platform, including curated sales, online shopping mall and flash sales. More information about Jumei can be found at http://ir.jumei.com. For investor and media inquiries, please contact: Jumei International Holding Limited

Ms. Cindy Cao

Senior Reporting Manager

Phone: +86-10-5676-6824

Email: [email protected] Christensen

In China

Mr. Christian Arnell

Phone: +86-10-5900-1548

Email: [email protected] In US

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Phone: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected]

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[December 11, 2017] Dahua Technology Releases Its First Battery Powered Wi-Fi Video Doorbell DB10

HANGZHOU, China, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ -- Dahua Technology, a leading solution provider in global video surveillance industry, releases its first battery powered, Wi-Fi video doorbell -- DB10. As the society rapidly develops, people's social circles are expanding. They are either in a get-together, in a vacation overseas, or at work. They spend less time at home. Traditional digital doorbells become less helpful to residents who are always on the go. With no network connectivity and no video recording, the householder is likely to miss important visitors and information. To solve these problems, Dahua releases the Wi-Fi video doorbell DB10 to enable you to answer the door from anywhere. Key Product Features Mobile App & Cloud Services With an app in your mobile phone and Cloud Services, you can answer the door from anywhere in the world. The app will forward in near real-time a video call which you can control and review even when you're in the other side of the globe. Short-time Charge for Long-time se DB10 supports up to 5 months' service period in a single charge and can be recharged in 3.5 hours, enabling you to spend as less time and attention in maintenance as possible.



Wire-free Installation and Wi-Fi Connection DB10 is easy to install and use. Requiring no cabling or punching, you can just install the doorbell yourself. Clear Image and Wide Angle FOV DB10 supports Up to 1080P HD video intercom with super wide horizontal field of view (FOV=140 degree). These enable you to see in the house or through your cell phone clearly who is visiting, largely reducing the risk of mistakenly letting someone unknown in.

PIR Detection with 5 Configurable Zones This enables you to set up advanced motion detection with specific detection areas, allowing you to detect approaching visitors while greatly reducing false alarms. Click DB10 product page for more specifications and applications. The release of its first battery powered Wi-Fi doorbell demonstrated Dahua's commitment to continuous innovation and services. With a mission of "Enabling a Safer Society and Smarter Living", Dahua will continue to focus on "Innovation, Quality, and Service" to serve partners and customers around the world. Visit http://www.dahuasecurity.com to learn more and follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn. *Product launch date might be varied depends on countries. View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dahua-technology-releases-its-first-battery-powered-wi-fi-video-doorbell-db10-300569451.html SOURCE Dahua Technology

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[December 11, 2017] Lieberman Software Achieves Microsoft Azure Government Certification

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lieberman Software Corporation today announced that Lieberman RED  Rapid Enterprise DefenseTM Identity Management has been certified for Microsoft Azure Government.

RED Identity Management automatically secures privileged credentials, which are high value assets in cyber attacks against government agencies. It can change privileged credentials faster than attackers can compromise them  up to 2,000 passwords per minute per node. Even when an intruder penetrates a government agencys network and compromises a credential, the credential has a limited lifetime and cannot be used to expand privileged access within the agencys environment. RED Identity Management operates in cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments.



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at

//www.globenewswire.comNewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ef8a9d4a-5c83-44cd-8b58-48add3f38b49



Jane Grafton, director of marketing for Lieberman Software, affirms, We are thrilled to be a privileged identity management solution provider now hosting our platform in the most trusted cloud for US government agencies and their partners. Our software is 100% made in the USA, so hosting it in the Microsoft Azure Government cloud is a natural fit. RED Identity Management automatically secures privileged credentials, which are high value assets in cyber attacks against government agencies. It can change privileged credentials faster than attackers can compromise them  up to 2,000 passwords per minute per node. Even when an intruder penetrates a government agencys network and compromises a credential, the credential has a limited lifetime and cannot be used to expand privileged access within the agencys environment. RED Identity Management operates in cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments.

Azure Government is the only exclusive government-only cloud with a dedicated physical datacenter network nationwide, designed for use by US federal, state and local agencies and their partners. It provides the public sector with a trusted cloud technology that delivers the highest regulatory compliance with more than 70 major certifications and attestations meeting current government security regulations, while adapting to ensure ongoing compliance. Government agencies can be assured that products in Azure Government  like RED Identity Management  can deploy and operate at massive scale in the largest environments. Lieberman Softwares focus on driving innovation in privileged identity management makes this an ideal collaboration for us, said Tom Keane, head of global infrastructure, Microsoft Azure at Microsoft Corp. As we continue to enable digital transformation for our government customers, this advancement for RED Identity Management is yet another example of how were helping create a more secure, connected and productive world so they can achieve more. Lieberman Software is a noted Microsoft technology solution provider. The company is a Microsoft Gold Application Development Partner and a Gold Cloud Platform Partner. Lieberman Software also won the 2015 Microsoft Partner of the Year award in the Application Development category. RED Identity Management is available in Azure Government at https://azuremarketplace.microsoft.com/en-us/marketplace/apps/liebsoft.lieberman-red-identity-management. From there it can be securely launched and fully deployed within minutes. A product demo is also available to qualified prospects at https://liebsoft.com/request-a-demo/. About Lieberman Software Corporation Lieberman Software provides cyber defense products which contain cyber attacks that penetrate the network perimeter. The Lieberman RED  Rapid Enterprise Defense Suite focuses on different areas of cyber security, systems configuration and privileged identity management to successfully analyze and remediate compromised environments. The suite provides automated countermeasures against sophisticated cyber attacks to reduce losses to acceptable levels, even during constant attack. For more information, visit https://liebsoft.com, or follow us on Twitter @liebsoft or LinkedIn. Product and company names herein may be trademarks of their registered owners. Contact:

Dan Chmielewski

Madison Alexander PR

Tel: +1-714-832-8716

M: +1-949-231-2965

www.madisonalexanderpr.com

[email protected]



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[December 11, 2017] Cedar Electronics Names Christopher Cowger as President and CEO

CHICAGO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Cedar Electronics, holding company for leading automotive and consumer electronics brands Cobra Electronics, Escort, Snooper and Beltronics, today announced the appointment of Christopher Cowger as President and CEO effective immediately. Cowger was most recently the Chief Operating & Financial Officer for ClipCast Technologies in Charlotte, North Carolina. A passionate and energetic leader, Chris comes to Cedar with a very strong operational background, as well as extensive sales and marketing experience. His knowledge within the tech space includes consumer electronics, semiconductors, industrial materials, technology systems and manufacturing. Prior to joining the team at Cedar, Cowger has held several senior executive management positions including President of Celgard and CEO of Enerdel. Chris also spent ten years at Dell, Inc., last serving as Vice President and General Manager of its Global Consumer Software and Peripherals division.



Chris started his career in various engineering capacities at General Motors Corporation after receiving a degree in electrical engineering from Duke University. He also earned graduate degrees in electrical engineering and business administration from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Chris is a highly-skilled and effective executive who has successfully led several sales and marketing efforts at top consumer and technology companies for more than 15 years," said Jeff Unger, Cedar Electronics Board of Directors. "The Cedar Electronics board is confident in Chris' ability to provide strong strategic and fiscal leadership over the entirety of our industry-leading brand portfolio."

"I couldn't be more excited to join the Cedar team," said Cowger. "I'm looking forward to bringing my passion for product innovation, demand generation and operational excellence to a company with such iconic brands and rich history of leadership in driver alert and information technologies." About Cedar Electronics

Cedar Electronics Corporation, a leading global supplier of mobile and consumer products, possesses a portfolio of industry leading electronics brands including Cobra Electronics, ESCORT, Snooper and Beltronics. With locations in North America, Europe and Asia, Cedar is the largest designer & marketer of radar detection systems at every price point in every sales channel and the industry leader in Citizens Band radios. Cedar continues to aggressively grow its portfolio with an ever-expanding family of products that include dash cams, power inverters, portable jump starters, driver alert and information applications and more. Media Contacts:

Chris Kooistra

Escort Inc. | Cobra Electronics | Beltronics

(773) 972-0691

[email protected] View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cedar-electronics-names-christopher-cowger-as-president-and-ceo-300569139.html SOURCE Cedar Electronics

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[December 11, 2017] OnTime Networks joins Cisco Solution Technology Integrator (STI) program to add Cisco technology to its cutting-edge rugged military Ethernet router solutions

DALLAS, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- OnTime Networks, a leading supplier of fully rugged and embedded network connectivity products and systems, announced today that they have entered a Solution Technology Integrator (STI) agreement with Cisco Systems. The STI agreement enables OnTime Networks to incorporate Cisco technology into its fully rugged military grade Cloudberry products, as well as other next-generation solutions. "As a member of the Cisco Solution Technology Integrator program, we now can offer our customers Cisco's secure routing technologies," said Scott Killian, Director of Sales in the Americas. He continued, "Bringing Cisco technology to our Cloudberry product family has long been an important requirement for our customers and this agreement will further enhance the value and quality we deliver to customers seeking next generation solutions." He continued, "With the fully rugged CR-6200 and CR-6900 Series products, OnTime Networks has been supplying the Aerospace and Defense market a rugged SWaP optimized Ethernet Switch, Time Server and Router. Now we can also offer the Cisco 5921 Embedded Services Router (ESR) with the Advanced Enterprise router package to our Aerospace and Defense customers. Our Cloudberry solutions coupled with the Cisco 5921 ESR meets customer needs for fully rugged and seamless routing performance in mobile or statinary applications. The CR-6200 and CR6900 Cloudberry platforms are designed for deployment in harsh environments, with the highest level of reliability and unmatched performance. These platforms provide highly secure data, voice, and video communications to stationary and mobile network nodes across wired and wireless links."



About Cisco 5921 ESR

The Cisco 5921 ESR is part of the Cisco 5900 Series ESRs, all optimized for mobile networks that require IP routing and services. The fully rugged Cloudberry products, complemented by Cisco IOS Software and Cisco Mobile Ready Net capabilities, provide highly secure data, voice, and video communications to stationary and mobile network nodes across wired and wireless links. The Cloudberry products are specifically designed to provide reliable, high-performance connectivity for extremely demanding size, weight and power (SWaP) constraints in harsh demanding environments (e.g. high altitude, extreme shock & vibration, extended temperatures, humidity, dust & water exposure, noisy EMI, dirty power).

The Cisco 5921 ESR meets the critical need for on-demand network connectivity for industrial, commercial, military, homeland-security, and emergency-response applications. It offers: High performance

Portability

Security to protect the network and data transmitted over the network

Remote voice services with Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express (CME)

Streaming multicast video support It also integrates sophisticated networking capabilities, such as quality of service (QoS), to help ensure the most important data gets through when links are degraded. The Cisco 5921 ESR more securely extends enterprise network resources to public safety and defense markets. The Cisco 5921 Embedded Service Router can be deployed in mission-critical mobile communications to take advantage of Cisco Mobile Ready Net capabilities that provide: Transparent access of mission-critical voice, video, or data information

Infrastructure-less networking, reaching beyond the range of a fixed network

Radio-aware routing, immediately recognizing and reacting to changes in neighbor status

Self-forming networks, offering immediate connection with no required pre-configuration of peers, and eliminating the need for connectivity to the centralized network Cisco certified routing protocols enable nodes to quickly adapt to changing network topologies and establish ad hoc networks as nodes move in and out of a fixed network infrastructure. As an approved Cisco STI partner, OnTime Networks combines its expertise in system integration, networking technology and rugged design across a wide range of harsh demanding environments with the proven solutions of Cisco mobile routing. About OnTime Networks OnTime Networks is a technology leader for rugged, time synchronized, fully managed, modular Gigabit Ethernet switches, specifically designed to operate reliably in the harsh and climatically demanding environments of the Aerospace and Defense Industry. Recognized for innovation and excellence, OnTime focuses on precise time over Ethernet according to IEEE 1588 (PTP) as core technology. For more information, please visit www.ontimenet.com . View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ontime-networks-joins-cisco-solution-technology-integrator-sti-program-to-add-cisco-technology-to-its-cutting-edge-rugged-military-ethernet-router-solutions-300569167.html SOURCE OnTime Networks

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[December 11, 2017] Taoglas Opens Office in Shenzhen to Meet Growing Demand in Asia-Pacific Region

To support growing demand for its high-quality, precision antenna solutions in the Asia-Pacific region, Taoglas, a leading provider of IoT and M2M antenna products, today announced the opening of its new office in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. The office, which will have full RF design and testing facilities, demonstrates Taoglas' (News - Alert) strong commitment to providing wireless and IoT manufacturers in the region with the expertise and support they need to bring innovative products to market quickly. Known as China's "Most Innovative City" and home to more than 1 million companies, Shenzhen provides Taoglas with the expansion capabilities to accelerate the adoption of IoT and Connected Automotive technologies throughout the country and region. The Shenzhen office will work hand-in-in hand with Taoglas' development centers in Taoyuan and Tainan, Taiwan, to deliver high-quality antenna, filter and connector solutions to its Asia-Pacific customers. Taoglas has appointed new Vice President of Sales Lawrence Lin, a Silicon Valley veteran and a native of nearby Hong Kong, to drive business traction throughout the region. Lin has more than 18 years of global experience in product deelopment, business development, marketing and sales management. Prior to joining Taoglas, he was the vice president of marketing and sales at Laxcen, a leading RFID company located in Hong Kong. He also held various engineering and marketing positions at Analog Devices (News - Alert) and Atmel in the U.S. Lin earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from San Jose State University, and is now pursuing his EMBA from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.



"The opening of our new office in Shenzhen underscores our long-term commitment to providing our customers around the world with not just the antenna solutions they need to accelerate the product development cycle, but also the hands-on RF expertise to help deliver successful connected products to market," Lin said. "Our Asia-Pacific customers have been clamoring for deeper local support to help drive new wireless and IoT product development, and Taoglas' state-of-the-art facility in Shenzhen will help them achieve their goals." To learn more about Taoglas' new Shenzhen office, visit www.taoglas.com.

About Taoglas Taoglas provides advanced antenna and RF solutions to the world's leading wireless and IoT companies. With six world-class design, support and test centers in Ireland, Germany, Taiwan, China and the USA, Taoglas works with its customers to provide the best solution for their unique antenna and RF challenges, quickly and easily. In-house manufacturing in Taiwan and USA enable us to deliver the highest quality products. Our team of professionals live and breathe RF solutions, with expertise and experience across different wireless and IoT use cases, from LTE (News - Alert) to GNSS, DSRC, and NFC and beyond to 5G. This expertise is proven in the huge number of success stories across a variety of applications, including Telematics, Automotive, Metering, Smart Grid, Wearables, Medical Devices, Remote Monitoring, and High-Speed Video Broadcasting. For more information, visit www.taoglas.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171211005119/en/

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[December 11, 2017] Intercell USA Changes Name to Valneva USA, Inc. and Expands Commercial Presence

Valneva SE, a fully integrated commercial stage biotech company focused on developing innovative, lifesaving vaccines, today announced that its subsidiary Intercell USA, Inc. has formally changed its name to Valneva USA, Inc. (Valneva USA). Intercell USA was acquired by Valneva SE (Lyon, France) in May 2013 and has been operating as a fully owned subsidiary. Additionally, the company has taken control of full U.S. marketing and distribution rights for the IXIARO vaccine, which is indicated for prevention of disease caused by Japanese Encephalitis, a mosquito-borne virus found in Asia that causes inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). Charles Daily, General Manager, U.S., commented, "Japanese Encephalitis is a potentially devastating and deadly disease for travelers visiting Asia. In many countries where travelers are visiting, local individuals have been vaccinated starting at a very young age. Yet many travelers don't seek preventative treatment with a vaccine, resulting in a lower immunization rate for U.S. travelers compared to certain European countries. By taking full control of IXIARO and building out our commercial structure in the U.S., we intend to increase disease awareness and product access to doctors and travelers and improve immunization rates." Valneva has successfully established its own commercial infrastructure in key international travel markets over the past two years after it regained global distribution rights of IXIARO in June 2015. The Company has been distributing the vaccine in the U.S. directly to its largest customer, the U.S. military, and in 2015 entered into an exclusive marketing and distribution agreement for the U.S. private market with a leading local distributor. With the recent expiration of this exclusivity, Valneva now has full commercial control of IXIARO in the United States and is building a stronger commercialization structure through its subsidiary Valneva USA, Inc., with a new dedicated sales and marketing team, a broader distribution network, and improved packaging that is reduced in size by 30 percent to help with customer storage. To learn more about how you can purchase IXIARO please call 866-223-7118. About IXIARO Valneva's Japanese Encephalitis vaccine is indicated for active immunization for the prevention of the disease for people who travel to, or live in, endemic areas. It has received marketing approval in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Israel under the trade name IXIARO and in Australia and New Zealand where it is marketed as JESPECT. It is the only vaccine available to the U.S. military for Japanese Encephalitis. IXIARO is approved for use in individuals two months of age and older in the U.S. and EU member states, Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Israel. In all other licensed territories, IXIARO/JESPECT is indicated for use in persons 18 years of age and above. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION Severe allergic reaction (e.g., anaphylaxis) after a previous dose of IXIARO, any other Japanese Encephalitis Virus vaccine, or any component of IXIARO, including protamine sulfate, is a contraindication to administration of IXIARO. Alternatively, because of uncertainty as to which component of the vaccine may be responsible, individuals with a history of severe allergic reaction to another Japanese Encephaitis vaccine may be referred to an allergist for evaluation if immunization with IXIARO is considered.



IXIARO contains protamine sulfate, a compound known to cause hypersensitivity reactions in some individuals. Appropriate medical care should be readily available in case of anaphylactic reaction. Vaccination with IXIARO may not protect all individuals.

Immunocompromised individuals may have a diminished immune response to IXIARO. In infants 2 months to <1 year of age, the most common injection site reaction was redness (>15%); the most common solicited systemic adverse reactions were fever (>20%), irritability (>15%), and diarrhea (>10%). In children 1 to <3 years of age, the most common solicited systemic adverse reaction was fever (>20%). In children 3 to <12 years of age, the most common solicited systemic adverse reaction was fever (>10%). In adolescents 12 to <18 years of age, the most common solicited injection site reactions were pain (15%) and tenderness (10%). In adults 18 years of age and older, the most common injection site reactions were pain (>25%) and tenderness (>25%); the most common solicited systemic adverse reactions were headache (>20%) and myalgia (>10%). Healthcare practitioners are encouraged to report inadvertent use in pregnant women to Valneva at 844-349-4276 (8443-IXIARO). Please see full Prescribing Information. About Japanese Encephalitis Japanese Encephalitis (JE) is a deadly infectious disease found mainly in Asia. About 68,000 cases of JE are estimated to occur in Asia each year, although the actual number of cases may be higher due to underreporting in rural areas. JE is fatal in approximately 30 percent of those who show symptoms, and leaves up to half of survivors with permanent brain damage. The disease is endemic in Southeast Asia, India and China, a region with a population of more than three billion. In 2005, JE killed more than 1,200 children in only one month during an epidemic outbreak in Uttar Pradesh, India, and Nepal.1 According to the CDC2, the risk of JE is low for most travelers to Asia but can vary based on various factors, such as where a person spends time, when and for how long they are traveling and their activities. Travelers may have an increased risk of being exposed to mosquitos carrying the JE virus if they spend substantial time outdoors or in rural areas, especially at night; participate in active outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, biking, fishing or hunting, or sleep in accommodations without mosquito nets. The JE vaccine should be considered for such travelers, and is recommended for travelers visiting Asia for more than one month (for example, military members and their families, study abroad students or employees with extended work assignments). About VALNEVA USA, Inc. Valneva USA, is a subsidiary of Valneva SE, a global pure play vaccine company specialized in the development, manufacture and commercialization of innovative vaccines. The company's mission is to protect people from infectious diseases through preventative medicine. Valneva USA is focused on the marketing and distribution of Valneva's vaccines, including IXIARO, in the United States. For more information, visit www.valneva.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to the business of Valneva, including with respect to the progress, timing and completion of research, development and clinical trials for product candidates, the ability to manufacture, market, commercialize and achieve market acceptance for product candidates, the ability to protect intellectual property and operate the business without infringing on the intellectual property rights of others, estimates for future performance and estimates regarding anticipated operating losses, future revenues, capital requirements and needs for additional financing. In addition, even if the actual results or development of Valneva are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, those results or developments of Valneva may not be indicative in the future. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by words such as "could," "should," "may," "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "aims," "targets," or similar words. These forward-looking statements are based largely on the current expectations of Valneva as of the date of this press release and are subject to a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievement expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. In particular, the expectations of Valneva could be affected by, among other things, uncertainties involved in the development and manufacture of vaccines, unexpected clinical trial results, unexpected regulatory actions or delays, competition in general, currency fluctuations, the impact of the global and European credit crisis, and the ability to obtain or maintain patent or other proprietary intellectual property protection. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements made during this presentation will in fact be realized. Valneva is providing the information in these materials as of this press release, and disclaim any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. All trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 1 Kumari, R and Joshi, PL, WHO South East Asia J Public Health. 2012 Oct-Dec;1(4):374-395. 2 https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2018/infectious-diseases-related-to-travel/japanese-encephalitis View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171211005216/en/

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[December 11, 2017] Boehringer Ingelheim Marks Great Progress in Immuno-oncology Research Partnerships in 2017

2017 marks a year of significant advancement for Boehringer Ingelheim as it secured a range of external partnerships with the goal of transforming the lives of patients and winning the fight against cancer. External partnerships complement Boehringer Ingelheim's two-pronged research strategy - investigating both cancer cell-directed therapies and immune cell-directed therapies. This multi-faceted approach offers the potential to bring innovative opportunities to the Boehringer Ingelheim oncology portfolio and novel therapies to patients. "Immuno-oncology is radically shifting the research and treatment landscape in oncology. We believe that the greatest success in difficult-to-treat cancers will be achieved with immuno-oncology and its combination with cancer cell directed therapy, which is why we are committing significant resources in both areas," said Jonathon Sedgwick, Ph.D., Vice President and Global Head, Cancer Immunology and Immune Modulation. "In the immuno-oncology space, Boehringer Ingelheim is poised for the next wave of innovation with clinical phase projects ranging across checkpoint inhibitors, oncolytic viruses, cancer vaccines and T-cell engagers. As such, the expansion of our external partnerships is designed to complement our own R&D, push boundaries and foster innovation - all with the goal of bringing medicines of high therapeutic value to patients sooner." With approximately 50 percent of its overall early-to-mid-stage pipeline emerging from collaborations, the company's research strategy is firmly anchored in external innovation for all therapeutic areas, and the breadth and depth of exploration demonstrates Boehringer Ingelheim's commitment to oncology, including the comprehensive oncology pipeline that encompasses more than 10 clinical stage assets in development for various cancer and tumor types. This is supplemented by the ongoing Corporate Venture Fund activities, which continue to drive innovation through strategic investments in early-stage science and technology. Bringing together the most creative minds across public and private institutions, including academia and industry, Boehringer Ingelheim has entered into numerous new external partnerships or expanded existing relationships, many of which are researching oncology. These partnerships cover a range of areas from basic science to clinical development and build on past successes. Over the past year, a number of oncology collaborations relating to immunology have generated excitement and fueled innovation, including: University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles,CA (News - Alert) - This collaboration with UCLA's Technology Development Group aims to develop a promising vaccine technology platform developed by the research team of Drs. William Gelbart and Charles Knobler based on using the protein shell of a plant virus to deliver a self-replicating RNA vaccine cargo to cancer patients' antigen-presenting cells, which in turn would direct the immune system to eliminate the cancer.

- This collaboration with UCLA's Technology Development Group aims to develop a promising vaccine technology platform developed by the research team of Drs. William Gelbart and Charles Knobler based on using the protein shell of a plant virus to deliver a self-replicating RNA vaccine cargo to cancer patients' antigen-presenting cells, which in turn would direct the immune system to eliminate the cancer. Siamab Therapeutics, Newton, MA - This partnership is utilizing Siamab's proprietary technology platform and aims to identify anti-cancer therapeutics that target tumor associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs), which are present in the majority of solid tumors including ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, colon, gastric and breast. TACAs that are selectively expressed on cancer and not normal healthy cells represent one way of directing cancer killing therapies.

- This partnership is utilizing Siamab's proprietary technology platform and aims to identify anti-cancer therapeutics that target tumor associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs), which are present in the majority of solid tumors including ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, colon, gastric and breast. TACAs that are selectively expressed on cancer and not normal healthy cells represent one way of directing cancer killing therapies. AbeXXa Biologics, Arlington, TX and Cambridge, MA - AbeXXa is looking to identify a new series of selective molecular targets for cancer from the many thousands of proteins found on the interior of a tumor cell. This new field of research could potentially result in immunotherapies that prove effective for a broad range of patients. In addition, AbeXXa won the 2016 Boston Innovation Prize sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and has also received funding through the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund.



From discovery and development through to commercialization, Boehringer Ingelheim is seeking strong, long-term, innovation partnerships to improve our understanding of cancer and transform patient lives. With long-term exploration and investment in mind, the company works to build relationships based on common goals, mutual trust and commitment that involve a "bench to bedside" method, incorporating extensive resources and professionals ranging from scientists in labs to a global sales force.

NOTES TO EDITORS About Boehringer Ingelheim Innovative medicines for people and animals have for more than 130 years been what the research-driven pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim stands for. Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the pharmaceutical industry's top 20 companies and to this day remains family-owned. Day by day, some 50,000 employees create value through innovation for the three business areas human pharmaceuticals, animal health and biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing. In 2016, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of around 15.9 billion euros. With more than three billion euros, R&D expenditure corresponds to 19.6 percent of net sales. Social responsibility comes naturally to Boehringer Ingelheim. That is why the company is involved in social projects such as the "Making More Health" initiative. Boehringer Ingelheim also actively promotes workforce diversity and benefits from its employees' different experiences and skills. Furthermore, the focus is on environmental protection and sustainability in everything the company does. More information about Boehringer Ingelheim can be found on www.boehringer-ingelheim.com or in our annual report: http://annualreport.boehringer-ingelheim.com. This press release is issued from our Corporate Headquarters in Ingelheim, Germany and is intended to provide information about our global business. Please be aware that information relating to the approval status and labels of approved products may vary from country to country, and a country-specific press release on this topic may have been issued in the countries where we do business. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171211005535/en/

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[December 11, 2017] LINE FRIENDS Unveils BT21 Merchandise at Its Flagship Store in New York

"Welcome the Arrival of BT21 Products Created by Popular Global Boy Band BTS in New York City!" LINE FRIENDS launches BT21 character products at its flagship Store located in New York and features BT21 video clips on Times Square LED Billboards .

BT21 character brand is the first outcome of " FRIENDS CREATORS ," a LINE FRIENDS' initiative to collaborate with global artists for new IP creation.

Since their launch, BT21 characters have garnered phenomenal popularity across various social media platforms: 17 million stickers download, 250 million Twitter exposures .

Triggered by the group's recent debut in major US media, the BTS fever in the US will boost the excitement for BT21, a unique collaboration attuned for millennials .

Followed by the worldwide premiere in NYC and Seoul , BT21 products, ranging from plush, apparel, and fashion accessories, will be available in more markets in the near future . NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- LINE FRIENDS, one of the world's fastest-growing global character brands, will premiere BT21 products at its New York Flagship store located at 1515 Broadway, New York from December 16. The newly launched BT21 product line includes dolls, cushions, T-shirts and more. The LINE FRIENDS flagship store in New York will exhibit a futuristic space-themed area, where customers encounter Mega Van, a massive BT21 character statue and meet BT21 character-themed products displayed to attract customers' attention. Moreover, the store will feature BT21 vieo clips on Times Square LED Billboards.



BTS, a globally renowned boy band, is the first K-POP group to enter a US Billboard Hot 100. BTS recently fired up the audience with their American Music Awards (AMA) performance, standing on one of the biggest stages in the music industry. Prior to their AMA performance, BTS was featured on major US TV channels and Radio stations including CBS's "The Late Late Show with James Corden," ABC talk show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," adding to their considerable appearance worldwide. With such BTS' successful performances in the US, it will draw many fans' interest and attention for the final arrival of BT21 merchandise in LINE FRIENDS' flagship store in New York. Recently, LINE FRIENDS introduced a total of eight new BT21 characters, inspired by each BTS member, through its LINE STORE and official BT21 social media channels. The BT21 character set is the first output from LINE FRIENDS' new "FRIENDS CREATORS" project, an initiative to collaborate with global artists on creating new IP (Intellectual Property).

Since their release, the BT21 characters have scored more than 17 million sticker downloads and 250 million Twitter exposures. Additionally, official social media channels for BT21, including Twitter (twitter.com/BT21_), Instagram and YouTube, have reached over 2.5 million users within less than three months, boasting how quickly these characters have become global favorites. In fact, many fans from around the world have already created art pieces and banners for BTS using the BT21 characters on their own, demonstrating the high demand for BT21 items and further increasing the buzz around the characters. "LINE FRIENDS is thrilled to showcase the new BT21 products at our flagship store in New York for the fans around the world because of the huge popularity of the BT21 characters, as well as BTS worldwide through social media channels," said LINE FRIENDS. The company added, "Starting with the successful partnership with BTS for BT21, LINE FRIENDS will continue to enrich its brand assets by collaborating with other world-renowned artists for new IP and contents for the millennials." The BT21 merchandise is also available at the famed Korean's first modern luxury specialty store BoonTheShop, in Seoul, South Korea, and will soon be on the shelves of Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Thailand. About the BT21 Characters : TATA, who was always curious about everything outside of his universe, decided to become a superstar on Earth after accidently landing there during his travels. He soon begins his journey with members RJ, CHIMMY, COOKY, MANG, SHOOKY and KOYA to become BT21, becoming a global superstar. And this is how BT21 begins. About LINE FRIENDS LINE FRIENDS is a global brand featuring 11 characters which were originally created for use as stickers for leading mobile messenger application LINE and its 200 million active worldwide users. With signature characters such as Brown, Choco and Cony, LINE FRIENDS has collaborated with a number of renowned brands around the world, including LAMY, L'Occitane, Brompton and others. LINE FRIENDS has operated 91 stores globally in a total of 11 markets worldwide, in cities such Seoul, New York, Shanghai, and Tokyo. LINE FRIENDS became an independent company in January 2015. For more information please visit www.LINEFRIENDS.com. View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/line-friends-unveils-bt21-merchandise-at-its-flagship-store-in-new-york-300569485.html SOURCE LINE FRIENDS

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[December 11, 2017] Technologies Maid Labs intensifies U.S. market penetration - Government of Canada awards $50,000 in financial assistance to this Granby business

GRANBY, QC, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) Technologies Maid Labs will be able to proceed with an ambitious U.S. market development project. In 2017, the Government of Canada adopted a plan to support Canadian entrepreneurs in their search for innovative solutions that will serve communities. The funding granted to Technologies Maid Labs is in line with the intent to provide innovative businesses with adequate resources to create and commercialize innovative products. As a true catalyst for change in the business world, innovation is driving the Canadian economy and generating economic growth that benefits businesses and communities. The announcement was made this morning by Pierre Breton, Member of Parliament for Shefford, acting on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for CED. Founded in 2013, Technologies Maid Labs Inc. manufactures monitoring, measurement and data-logging instrumentation and software for wastewater and drinking water pumping stations. The business has just filed a patent application to confirm its position as a global leader in the development of a computational algorithm that gives its technology a high degree of precision in data interpretation. Technologies Maid Labs provides municipalities and wastewater management organizations with instrumentation that helps them achieve cost savings, carry out preventive maintenance and make better use of their existing equipment, based on theevents that need to be addressed.



CED's $50,000 contribution will help Technologies Maid Labs respond to the interest that U.S. cities have shown in their products and to implement its U.S. market development strategy. With the delivery of this project, the business is well on the way to achieving its growth objectives for the coming years. This repayable contribution was awarded through CED's Quebec Economic Development Program (QEDP), within the broader framework of the Government of Canada's Innovation and Skills Plan. The project will also create one permanent job in the company.

Quotes "Technologies Maid Labs is leveraging products that combine precision and flexibility without the costly infrastructure work that is needed for the installation of traditional technologies. This technological breakthrough gives the company a strong competitive advantage to continue to penetrate the U.S. market. I am proud to support the growth of this SME, which has combined know-how with technology." Pierre Breton, Member of Parliament for Shefford "In adopting the Skills and Innovation Plan, the Government of Canada has implemented an ambitious approach to supporting innovative Canadian businesses that come up with new ways of generating value and want to conquer new markets. This is a firm commitment to create sustainable jobs and generate wealth for communities." The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister responsible for CED "The funding from CED will help us step up our commercialization efforts in the United States, giving more North American municipalities access to innovative and less costly solutions that will ensure sound wastewater management." Valerie Caron, Director General, Technologies Maid Labs Quick facts CED is one of the six regional development agencies under the responsibility of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.

For more information on CED's key directions until 2021, consult Strategic Plan 2021 or visit www.dec-ced.gc.ca. Stay connected

Follow CED on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube

Follow Technologies Maid Labs on YouTube SOURCE Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions

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[December 11, 2017] Pick to Light Market Worth 538.2 Million USD by 2023

PUNE, India, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the new market research report "Pick to Light Market by Method (Auto Guided & Manual), Power Source (Wired and Wireless), Operation (Putting and Picking), Industry (Assembly & Manufacturing, Retail & E-commerce, and Pharma & Cosmetics), and Region - Global Forecast to 2023", published by MarketsandMarkets, the market is expected to grow from USD 323.7 Million in 2017 to USD 538.2 Million by 2023, at a CAGR of 8.84% between 2017 and 2023. Pick to light is also known as digital picking system. Factors driving the growth of this market include the emergence of automated warehouses and connected intralogisitcs, growth of the e-commerce industry, and globalization of supply chain network. Moreover, pick to light offers error-free operations, enhanced productivity, and enhanced labor utilization. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 )

Browse 36 market data Tables and 44 Figures spread through 122 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Pick to Light Market - Global Forecast to 2023" https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/pick-to-light-market-7015816.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report Manual method expected to hold larger share of pick to light market during forecast period In the manual method, the picker needs to manually confirm the picking activity, whereas in the auto guided method, sensors (primarily photoelectric sensors) are used that automatically acknowledge the picking activity. The manual method is cost-effective and provides high ROI. OMRON (Japan), Wenglor Sensoric GmbH (Germany), and Panasonic (Japan) are some companies that provide sensors for auto guided picking systems. The adoption rate of auto guided systems is higher in APAC than in Europe and North America. Download PDF Brochure @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownload.asp?id=7015816 Market for wired pick to light expected to grow at higher CAGR during forecast period Advancements in wireless technology help manufacturers design and develop wireless pick to light systems. These are advanced systems in which pick to light modules and controllers are wirelessly connected, and the picking module is powered by a battery. These are plug-n-play systems that are easy to use in warehouses. Wireless pick to light systems gained traction in recent years; however, due to the ireless feature, these cost higher than wired pick to light systems. The adoption of wired pick to light systems is high owing to their high ROI and short payback period.



Putting operation expected to gain traction in coming years Pick to light systems support picking and sorting operations from shelves to other locations. Light-directed picking and putting offer better productivity and error-free operations, resulting in high ROI. Picking operations are widely used for order fulfillment process in the e-commerce industry. They are most suitable for piece picking and broken case picking of items. Pick to light is considered an ideal picking solution where the goods from warehouses go to customers directly. However, the use of pick to light for putting operation is expected to gain traction in the coming years.

Inquiry Before Buying @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=7015816 Retail & e-commerce industry expected to capture largest share of pick to light market by 2023 Growing SKUs, increase in the number of orders, and last mile deliveries are some factors responsible for the huge adoption of pick to light solutions in the e-commerce industry globally. Amazon (US) is one of the leading players in the e-commerce industry, which is significantly contributing to warehouse automation. Pick to light market in APAC to grow at highest CAGR during forecast period APAC is an emerging market for pick to light. Fast-growing e-commerce industry, booming manufacturing sector, and increasing emphasis on domestic production by emerging economies such as China and India are the key factors for the significant growth of the pick to light market in this region. The pick to light market is dominated by various players according to their core competencies. Key players in this market are Daifuku (Japan), Murata Machinery (Japan), SSI Schaefer (Germany), Dematic (US), and Honeywell Intelligrated (US). Browse Related Reports Warehouse Management System Market by Component (Software, Services), Implementation (On-Premise, On-Cloud), Tier Type (Advanced, Intermediate, Basic), Industry (Automotive, Food & Beverages, Healthcare, E-Commerce), and Region - Global Forecast to 2023 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/warehouse-management-system-market-41614951.html Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS) Market by Type (Unit Load, Mini Load, Vertical Lift Module, Carousel, Mid Load, Autostore), Function (Assembly, Kitting, Order Picking, Distribution, Storage), Industry, & Geography - Global Forecast to 2023 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/automated-storage-retrieval-system-market-195267987.html Subscribe Reports from Semiconductor Domain @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Knowledgestore.asp About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets provides quantified B2B research on 30,000 high growth niche opportunities/threats which will impact 70% to 80% of worldwide companies' revenues. Currently servicing 5000 customers worldwide including 80% of global Fortune 1000 companies as clients. Almost 75,000 top officers across eight industries worldwide approach MarketsandMarkets for their painpoints around revenues decisions. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. MarketsandMarkets now coming up with 1,500 MicroQuadrants (Positioning top players across leaders, emerging companies, innovators, strategic players) annually in high growth emerging segments. MarketsandMarkets is determined to benefit more than 10,000 companies this year for their revenue planning and help them take their innovations/disruptions early to the market by providing them research ahead of the curve. MarketsandMarkets's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. Contact:

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[December 11, 2017] Grocers in the Market for a Sales Tax Compliance Solution Turn to Avalara

SEATTLE, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tennessee recently reduced the rate of tax on food and food ingredients, Utah lawmakers periodically consider increasing it, and Kansas legislators often discuss exempting fresh foods altogether. Grocery taxability is a moving target, and sales tax compliance is too much for many grocers to swallow. The Missouri and Wisconsin Grocers Associations and the Texas Retailers Association have partnered with Avalara to make life simpler for its members struggling to make the right call on tax rates, rules, and exemptions. As Avalara partners, the associations will refer members to Avalara MatrixMaster, a sales tax calculation service that integrates with point-of-sale (POS) systems.

As states look to generate additional revenue through new sales tax regulations and enforcement tactics, the nations grocers are finding compliance a costly burden. Most grocers maintain tax rates manually, constantly tracking down government and manufacturer websites to research changing rules, rates, definitions, product ingredients, and more. But this process is complicated, time consuming, and error-prone. Wisconsins hodgepodge taxation of food makes it nearly impossible for retailers to determine taxability, and the resulting audits have been enough to shutter a business, said Michelle Kussow, Executive Vice President, Wisconsin Grocers Association. The WGA pushed our Department of Revenue to create a Sales Taxability Database for more than a decade to no avail. And then we came across Avalara and realized that the solution we were seeking was MatrixMaster. Through Avalara, we now are able to offer taxability information to our members. The Avalara MatrixMaster sales tax service tracks more than 15 million universal product codes (UPCs), as well as complex Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and sales tax holiday determinations. Grocers using the service automate the process of tracking and using accurate tax codes, and receive regular updatesof changes, avoiding frustrated customers and state revenue departments. Avalara MatrixMaster offers an initial review of a retailers current tax mapping against its database to determine existing discrepancies or potential errors.



Today, more than 65 grocers and retailers already use MatrixMaster to achieve compliance while focusing on business growth, including Hy-Vee, The Fresh Market, Ahold Delhaize, Kum & Go, and Circle K. The huge amount of time and effort grocers now spend on sales tax compliance can be much better spent on exploring ways to improve how they serve their customers, said Scott Peterson, Vice President of Government Relations at Avalara. We welcome the opportunity to work with the Missouri and Wisconsin Grocers Associations and the Texas Retailers Association to provide their members with a very simple and straightforward way to ensure the accuracy of their sales tax reporting right at the point of sale.

For more information about Avalara MatrixMaster or becoming an Avalara partner, visit the Avalara website. About the Missouri Grocers Association

The Missouri Grocers Association is a nonprofit, state-wide organization representing over 1,300 members including the retailers, wholesalers, distributors, brokers, suppliers, vendors and manufacturers that constitute the grocery industry in the State of Missouri. About the Texas Retailers Association

The Texas Retailers Association represents retailers across Texas, ranging from Texas-based companies of all sizes, to those with a significant presence in Texas, to independent shops and stores, to renowned household names. Collectively, TRA represents more than 320,000 retail establishments. About the Wisconsin Grocers Association

The Wisconsin Grocers Association represents nearly 700 independent grocers, retail grocery chain stores, warehouses and distributors, convenience stores, food brokers, and suppliers. Wisconsin grocers employ over 93,000 people with $2.8 billion in payroll and generate more than $15 billion in economic activity statewide. About Avalara

Avalara helps businesses of all sizes achieve compliance with transaction taxes, including sales and use, VAT, excise, communications, and other tax types. The company delivers comprehensive, automated, cloud-based solutions designed to be fast, accurate, and easy to use. The Avalara Compliance Cloud platform helps customers manage complicated and burdensome tax compliance obligations imposed by state, local, and other taxing authorities throughout the world. Avalara offers more than 600 pre-built connectors into leading accounting, ERP, ecommerce and other business applications, making the integration of tax and compliance solutions easy for customers. Each year, the company processes billions of indirect tax transactions for customers and users, files more than a million tax returns, and manages millions of tax exemption certificates and other compliance documents. A privately held company, Avalaras venture capital investors include Sageview Capital, Battery Ventures, Warburg Pincus, Technology Crossover Ventures, Arthur Ventures, and other institutional and individual investors. Headquartered in Seattle, Avalara has offices across the U.S. and overseas in the U.K., Belgium, Brazil, and India. More information at www.avalara.com. Media Contact

Jesse Hamlin

[email protected]

P. 518-281-0631

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[December 11, 2017] Extenua "End-to-End Storage Security" Automated Dynamic Encryption Key Management System

No Key Stored Anywhere - Defeating Common Cyber-Attacks



Extenua Founder and CTO, Federico Simonetti, and CEO, Steve Visconti, Discuss Solutions In The Boardroom" NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Extenua Inc., a pioneering developer of the worlds most advanced methods of cybersecurity software purpose built for todays hostile environments, announces its revolutionary End-to-End Storage Security (ETESS) providing automated dynamic and stateless encryption key management in response to the critical industry needs which are facing ever increasing massive and destructive cyber-attacks. With ETESS Dynamic Key management encryption keys are generated in RAM at the precise moment they are needed and only remain there until the data is encrypted or decrypted. The key is then wiped clean from RAM with a DoD secure erasure algorithm. No key is ever stored anywhere which is instrumental in defeating many of the common cybersecurity vulnerabilities known to exist with traditional static key management systems. Extenua s ETESS takes security to an additional level by slicing data in to smaller fragments, stripping it of all metadata and encrypting each chunk of data with a unique encryption key. These encrypted chunks of data are then scattered around in random directories that reside in many locations to ensure against even brute force attacks, government snooping or FISA warrants served to your cloud service provider. ETESS is a product feature built into Extenua s Cloud2Drive and SaferNAS products. Extenuas products are software-only solutions that present cloud object storage as virtual network drives on Windows operating system, Windows Server with network attached storage or as folders with Android or iOS devices. You now have unlimited amounts of secure storage available on demand and you may utilize any cloud vendors object-based storage such as Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure Blob storage, IBM Cloud object storage or any OpenStack standard cloud object-based storage. More information may be found on our website at: https://www.extenua.com/cloud2drive/ Cloud2Drive ETESS and SaferNAS enable unlimited scalability of cloud object-based storage on-demand for todays hybrid cloud architectures. Further, there is no complexity or single point of failure  no VPNs, no gateways, no proxy, no-bottlenecks. ETESS is not susceptible to common successful attacks such as man-in-the-middle MITM attacks

to common successful attacks such as man-in-the-middle MITM attacks ETESS is not susceptible to endpoint attacks which steal a stored encryption key

to endpoint attacks which steal a stored encryption key ETESS never allows the actual encryption keys to be stored anywhere!

ETESS generates keys and destroys keys dynamically in RAM at the moment the key is needed to encrypt or decrypt the chunk or slice of the data

ETESS generated encryption Keys are always generated at the end node for absolute control

ETESS is generating many unique keys developed based on a set of rules and circumstances that trigger a specific transformation of the random pool

ETESS uses Eliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman with our unique assembling and decrypting the random pool while calculating each transformation of the pool then extracting Initialization Vectors and Keys from the pool thus encrypting/decrypting the file chunks at each endpoint independently There is no safer way to secure unstructured data than with ETESS said Federico Simonetti, Founder and CTO of Extenua, We started with a clean slate approach to solve this enormous problem of Big Datas need for a new approach to encryption and key management. What we designed is the most secure method to utilize encryption known today and is the easiest key management system to deploy and manage because it is fully automated and dynamic.

Enterprises large and small face security challenges in taking advantage of the productivity and economics f cloud storage. Extenua Cloud2Drive and SaferNAS with ETESS makes shared cloud storage secure, easy-to-access and simple to deploy with either new or existing cloud storage deployments and providers, said Steve Visconti, Extenua Chief Executive Officer Applying superior encryption methods with a fully automated dynamic encryption key management platform is truly a game changing technology which is very much needed in todays hostile environment. The enterprise require superior protection with less complexity in order to avoid the many well publicized attacks recently reported by Equifax, Yahoo, Uber and many more.



For our complete interview with Steve Visconti please click here or here:

http://www.securitysolutionswatch.com/Interviews/in_Boardroom_Extenua_Visconti.html About Extenua

Extenua Inc. is an award-winning developer of enterprise security software that simplifies and secures cloud storage technologies in revolutionary ways. Extenua s customers include Fortune 500 companies IBM, Fujitsu, Boeing, Nokia, Sony, Toyota, Kaiser Permanente, US Bank and Motorola as well as government institutions, security agencies, and thousands of small and mid-size businesses. Additional information about Extenua and Cloud2Drive is available at www.Extenua.com. Extenua Inc. is a privately-held corporation based in San Jose, California.

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[December 11, 2017] CapTech CapTFood Fight Raises Over $25,000 for FeedMore

RICHMOND, Va., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Competing in their 5th annual Food Fight for FeedMore, Central Virginia's core hunger-relief organization, CapTech Richmond raised over $25,000, increasing contributions to FeedMore 65% over the 2016 campaign. This friendly competition against CapTech consultant and corporate teams will help provide over 100,000 meals for neighbors who struggle with hunger throughout Central Virginia. The check presentation took place at FeedMore headquarters on December 8, 2017. This year CapTech expanded the Food Fight program to its other office locations, modeled after the success of the Richmond campaign. In its inaugural year, the national CapTech Food Fight raised over $40,000 for food banks across the US. Launched in 2013, the annual CapTech Food Fight for FeedMore has donated a combination of food and funds to provide more than 200,000 meals locally over the past five years. "I am in awe of the generosity, creativity, and drive of CapTechers to support the fight against hunger," said CapTecher and Food Fight Lead Jeanine Cook. "The enthusiasm and excitement during the Food Fight was electric and it is incredible to watch the program and its impact on the community continue to grow." "We are thankful to have CapTech standing beside us as we fight hunger in our communities," said Doug Pick, Chief Executive Officer at FeedMore. "We love the spirit of CapTech's Food Fight and continue to be impressed, and humbled, by theoutpouring of love and support we receive from the CapTech family."



Utilizing FeedMore's online giving platform, the teams easily kept track of monetary donations. Clever fundraising methods this year even included leveraging body piercing. When one team exceeded their fundraising goal, the team captain pierced his eyebrow, donated by Lucky 13. FeedMore provides comprehensive hunger relief programs that impact more than 200,000 individuals with a focus on feeding children, families, and seniors. With programs like Meals on Wheels, the Mobile Pantry, Kids Cafe and weekend Back Pack program, FeedMore serves 34 counties and cities across Central Virginia and last year, distributed nearly 23 million meals to neighbors in need across the Commonwealth.

About FeedMore: FeedMore is Central Virginia's core hunger-relief organization dedicated to providing neighbors in need with healthy meals and hope for a better tomorrow. With a service area that stretches across 34 cities and counties, FeedMore helps the more than 200,000 children, families and seniors in Central Virginia who struggle with hunger. Working to efficiently and effectively fight hunger, FeedMore's multi-tiered approach, comprehensive programs and network of more than 300 partner agencies are dedicated to providing neighbors who face hunger with one of the most basic necessities: nourishment. For additional information, please visit FeedMore.org, find us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter. About CapTech: CapTech (www.captechconsulting.com) is a national IT management consulting firm that bridges the gap between business and technology. We partner with some of the world's most successful companies to design, develop, and manage technical and digital solutions that delight customers, drive insights, and meet strategic objectives. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, CapTech has locations in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Columbus (Ohio), Denver, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington DC. Contact: Emily Krause | CapTech

[email protected] | 804-615-3712 View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/captech-captfood-fight-raises-over-25000-for-feedmore-300569652.html SOURCE CapTech

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[December 11, 2017] Saudi Telecom Company and Thales launch enterprise cloud encryption service

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Thales, a leader in critical information systems, cybersecurity and data security, and Saudi Telecom Company (STC), the largest telecoms company in Saudi Arabia, announce the launch of a cloud encryption service for enterprise customers allowing them to protect and control their data in the cloud. Thales signed a Cloud Service Provider agreement with STC to provide data encryption solutions through the STC cloud platform and to further develop secured Information Communications Technology (ICT) business in Saudi Arabia. Enterprises are increasingly turning to cloud environments to help them save time and money. While these technologies are digitally transforming businesses, they present some challenges. Enterprise data is fair game for cybercriminals, regardless of operating environment, and meeting compliance and best practices requirements isn't always straightforward. Vormetric Transparent Encryption from Thales encrypts sensitive data before it leaves the enterprise and is saved in the cloud storage environment, enabling information security teams to establish the visibility and control they need around sensitive assets. This solution ensures that data in the STC public cloud is secure and trusted by delivering seamless high performance encryption, access control and strong key management. Talal Albakr - Vice President Cloud Services at Saudi Telecom Company says: "Digital transformation is at the heart of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 for a strong, thriving and stable economy that provides opportunity for all. Our partnership with Thales is designed to deliver secure and trusted public cloud services to STC customers across the Kingdom and the wider Middle East region, allowing them to establish strong safeguards around their sensitive data and applications in the cloud, satisfying local compliance requirements and providing greater control and flexibility." Philip Schreiber, Regional Sales Director, at Thales eSecurity Middle East, Africa and South Asia says: "It is a common misconception that by moving to the cloud, businesses are relinquishing all control of their data. By applying encrytion and practicing secure encryption key management, companies can ensure that only authorized users have access to sensitive data. Even if lost, stolen, or accessed without authorization, encrypted data is unreadable and essentially meaningless without its key. STC have selected a best-in-class data encryption solution that not only ensures their customers remain firmly in control of their data but also ensures that data remains secure and trusted in their cloud environment."



About Saudi Telecom Company

Saudi Telecom Company (STC) is the leading national provider of telecommunication, mobile, voice, broadband, internet & cloud services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. STC Cloud offers a full range of cloud services at cloud.stc.com.sa. This includes Virtual Data Center, Ready-Made Deployments, and Subscription-Based Services. Cloud Computing provides customers with the ability to have their computing needs addressed through STC's secure, robust, and highly redundant cloud, away from resource intensive and IT management heavy setups.

STC Cloud offers its own Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), and has partnered with leading technological vendors for Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings. All STC Cloud services are managed via its cloud marketplace which is available at cloud.stc.com.sa About Thales eSecurity

Thales eSecurity is the leader in advanced data security solutions and services that deliver trust wherever information is created, shared or stored. We ensure that the data belonging to companies and government entities is both secure and trusted in any environment  on-premises, in the cloud, in data centres or big data environments  without sacrificing business agility. Security doesn't just reduce risk, it's an enabler of the digital initiatives that now permeate our daily lives  digital money, e-identities, healthcare, connected cars and, with the internet of things (IoT), even household devices. Thales provides everything an organisation needs to protect and manage its data, identities and intellectual property, and meet regulatory compliance  through encryption, advanced key management, tokenisation, and privileged-user control and high-assurance solutions. Security professionals around the globe rely on Thales to confidently accelerate their organisation's digital transformation. Thales eSecurity is part of Thales Group. Industry insight and views on the latest key management trends can be found on the Thales e-Security blog at blog.thalesesecurity.com. Follow Thales e-Security on Twitter @Thalesesecurity, and on LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube. About Thales

Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace, Transport, Defence and Security markets. With 64,000 employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of 14.9 billion in 2016. With over 25,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design and deploy equipment, systems and services to meet the most complex security requirements. Its exceptional international footprint allows it to work closely with its customers all over the world. Positioned as a value-added systems integrator, equipment supplier and service provider, Thales is one of Europe's leading players in the security market. The Group's security teams work with government agencies, local authorities and enterprise customers to develop and deploy integrated, resilient solutions to protect citizens, sensitive data and critical infrastructure. Thales offers world-class cryptographic capabilities and is a global leader in cybersecurity solutions for defence, government, critical infrastructure providers, telecom companies, industry and the financial services sector. With a value proposition addressing the entire data security chain, Thales offers a comprehensive range of services and solutions ranging from security consulting, data protection, digital trust management and design, development, integration, certification and security maintenance of cybersecured systems, to cyberthreat management, intrusion detection and security supervision through cybersecurity Operation Centres in France, the United Kingdom, The Netherlands and Hong Kong. SOURCE Thales

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[December 11, 2017] CapTech Food Fight Raises Over 4,200 Meals for Food Bank of the Rockies

DENVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Competing in the inaugural CapTech National Food Fight, the Denver office of CapTech raised $1,050 for Food Bank of the Rockies. The CapTech Food Fight is a friendly rivalry among the consulting firm's eight office locations. The check presentation took place at Food Bank of the Rockies on December 7, 2017. "It is amazing and humbling to see our organization rally in such spirit to make an impact against hunger," said CapTech Director Greg Kintzele. "I'm so proud to see the commitment to community that the Food Fight inspired among Denver CapTechers and across our company." CapTech's National Food Fight raised over $40,000 for local food banks across the country this year. Over a two week period in November, CapTechers in the Denver office competed in the friendly rivalry against other CapTech markets to raise the most funds per capita for local food banks. The Food Fight started as a local competition in 2013 at the company's headquarters in Richmond, VA and was expanded company-wide this year with enthusiasm and excitement. "We're so grateful for CapTech's generous gift. This contribution helps us provide 4,200 more meals for hungry men, women and children across our service area. Too many families worry about where they'll get their next meal and many are forced to make difficult choices between purchasing food or medicine, heat, or transportation. The holiday seasoncan be especially challenging. This donation brings hope and meals to help hungry families in our community thrive. Thank you!" said Kevin Seggelke, President and CEO, Food Bank of the Rockies.



Food Bank of the Rockies helps provide 134,000 meals a day for men, women, and children across 30 counties in Colorado and the state of Wyoming. Their mission is to help families thrive by efficiently procuring and distributing food and essentials to the hungry through their programs and partner agencies. To learn more about donating or getting involved, visit www.foodbankrockies.org. About Food Bank of the Rockies: Food Bank of the Rockies, a non-profit organization, distributed nearly 49 million meals last year through our direct service programs and partner agencies, serving clients in Northern Colorado, including Metro Denver, and the entire state of Wyoming. 1 in 10 Coloradans, including 1 in 6 Colorado children, struggle with hunger. Since 1978, FBR has provided more than 615 million meals to people in need in our community. Food Bank of the Rockies is a member of Feeding America. For additional information, please visit www.foodbankrockies.org. "Like" FBR on Facebook and Instagram, follow us on Twitter and subscribe to our blog!

About CapTech: CapTech (www.captechconsulting.com) is a national IT management consulting firm that bridges the gap between business and technology. We partner with some of the world's most successful companies to design, develop, and manage technical and digital solutions that delight customers, drive insights, and meet strategic objectives. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, CapTech has locations in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Columbus (Ohio), Denver, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington DC. Contact: Emily Krause | CapTech

[email protected] | 804-615-3712 View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/captech-food-fight-raises-over-4200-meals-for-food-bank-of-the-rockies-300569599.html SOURCE CapTech

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[December 11, 2017]

ValiMail Webinar Takes Aim at Demystifying Federal Email Authentication Enforcement

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- ValiMail, the world's only provider of automated email authentication, announced today that it will be presenting a webinar aimed at demystifying the Department of Homeland Security's recent email security directives.

On October 16, 2017 the Department of Homeland Security issued Binding Operational Directive 18-01, mandating that all federal agencies implement HTTPS, STARTTLS, and DMARC, with complete enforcement by October 16, 2018.

These changes will greatly improve the security posture of the U.S. government by closing off avenues that hackers and foreign state actors have used to impersonate federal agencies.

But there isa lot of confusion around email authentication. This webinar, from recognized experts in the field of email security, will demystify the process.







Steve Cooper, a partner at Fortium Partners and the former CIO of DHS, FAA, and the Department of Commerce, will kick off the presentation with an overview of DHS BOD 18-01 and the resources available to meet its requirements.

Shehzad Mirza, the director of operations for the Global Cyber Alliance, and ValiMail's director of industry initiatives, Seth Blank, will cover the importance of DMARC enforcement and explain how to comply with BOD 18-01.

The free webinar is scheduled for Wednesday, December 13, at 10am Pacific/1pm Eastern. To register, visit https://cc.readytalk.com/registration/#/?meeting=k46wzd07oyi1&campaign=epvim3lwluk1.

About ValiMail

ValiMail has developed the world's first cloud service that fully automates email authentication, giving our customers brand and fraud protection across 4.8 billion mailboxes worldwide. ValiMail enables organizations to stop phishing attacks, control shadow email, and improve the reputation of their email domain. ValiMail's patented, standards-compliant technology provides the only zero-administration solution to enable trusted email for enterprises. For more information visit www.ValiMail.com.



SOURCE ValiMail
[December 11, 2017] Aileron Therapeutics Presents New Data on ALRN-6924 in Oral Presentations at 2017 American Society of Hematology Meeting

Preclinical data show dual inhibition of MDM2 and MDMX restores p53 function Data demonstrate strong anti-cancer effects in models of T-cell lymphomas and acute myeloid leukemia ATLANTA, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aileron Therapeutics, the clinical-stage leader in the field of stapled peptides developing therapeutics for cancers and other diseases, today announced two oral presentations of preclinical data from collaborators on ALRN-6924 in T-cell lymphomas (TCL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). ALRN-6924, a stapled peptide therapeutic, is believed to be the first product candidate undergoing clinical evaluations that has been shown to disrupt both MDMX- and MDM2-mediated inhibition of the wild type p53 tumor suppressor gene. The data were reviewed in separate oral presentations by researchers from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine during the 2017 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting. We are encouraged by these positive preclinical data from our collaborators, which demonstrate that dual inhibition by ALRN-6924 induces strong p53 activity that leads to anti-cancer effects, said Dr. Manuel C. Aivado, Chief Medical Officer. These data support the clinical results we saw in our Phase 1 all-comers trial, and we look forward to continuing to evaluate ALRN-6924 in our ongoing PTCL and AML clinical trials. TCL Study Highlights (Abstract #571) In an in vitro and in vivo preclinical study, MDMX and MDM2 were evaluated as potential targets for treating wild type p53 T-cell lymphomas by using ALRN-6924 to inhibit their expression. The data showed that ALRN-6924 induced apoptotic cell death in TCL lines, and significantly reduced tumor burden compared to the vehicle in animal models. Furthermore, ALRN-6924 had a favorable safety profile and demonstrated superior efficacy across multiple TCL subtypes compared to the current standard-of-care. Commented David Weinstock, M.D. of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Given the need for new treatment approaches for T-cell lymphomas, we evaluated ALRN-6924 in animal models and found that the compounds dual inhibition mechanism for restoring the function of p53 showed promising activity across multiple TCL subtypes, including PTCL. Animal models in our studies displayed key markers that demonstrated consistency with on-target p53 activation and apoptosis, supporting further clinical development of ALRN-6924 for PTCL. i AML Study Highlights (Abstract #795) The preclinical data presented showed that dual inhibition of MDMX and MDM2 by ALRN-6924 led to activation of p53-dependent pathways in AML cells. The disruption of MDMX/p53 and MDM2/p53 interactions resulted in strong anti-leukemic effects, and induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in cell lines and wild type p53 AML patients cells. The compound exhibited strong on-target activity in AML cell lines and primary cells in vitro, as well as in a patient who received ALRN-6924. The data further demonstrated that ALRN-6924 showed superiority over MDM2-only inhibition, an led to improved survival in in vivo AML models.



These results support our understanding that in most patients with acute myeloid leukemia, a devastating disease with limited therapeutic options, p53 is circumvented by activation of its natural suppressor proteins, MDMX and MDM2, said Ulrich Steidl, Ph.D., M.D. of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. The ability to reactivate the p53 pathway by inhibiting both MDMX and MDM2 using a novel therapeutic modality such as stapled peptides is an exciting new chapter in p53 research. The studies presented today strengthen the rationale for the use of ALRN-6924 in acute myeloid leukemia and other wild type p53 cancers. ii About ALRN-6924

ALRN-6924 is a first-in-class product candidate designed to reactivate wild type p53 tumor suppression by disrupting the interactions between the two primary p53 suppressor proteins, MDMX and MDM2. Aileron believes ALRN-6924 is the first and only product candidate in clinical development that can equipotently bind to and disrupt the interaction of MDMX and MDM2 with p53. Based on preclinical data and preliminary evidence of safety and anti-tumor activity in its ongoing clinical trials, there may be a significant opportunity to develop ALRN-6924 as a monotherapy or combination therapy for a wide variety of solid and liquid tumors. ALRN-6924 is currently being evaluated in multiple clinical trials for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), advanced myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL). For information about its clinical trials, please visit www.clinicaltrials.gov.

About Aileron

Aileron is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company advancing stapled peptides, a novel class of therapeutics for cancers and other diseases. Stapled peptides are chemically stabilized alpha-helical peptides that are modified to improve their stability and cell penetrability while maintaining high affinity for large protein surfaces. Our goal is to use our proprietary stapled peptide drug platform to create first-in-class therapeutics, like ALRN-6924, that may be able to address historically undruggable targets and complex mechanisms that underlie many diseases with high unmet medical need. Our platform enables us to chemically stabilize and improve the performance and activity of a broad range of alpha-helical peptides that we believe can potentially activate and inhibit key cellular functions that are otherwise difficult to target with existing drug technologies, including small molecules and monoclonal antibodies. For more information, visit www.aileronrx.com. Forward-looking Statements

Statements in this press release about Aileron's future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about the companys cash forecast, the sufficiency of the Companys cash resources and the timing of clinical trial enrollments and data. The words anticipate, believe, continue, could, estimate, expect, intend, may, plan, potential, predict, project, should, target, would and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including whether Ailerons cash resources will be sufficient to fund its continuing operations for the periods and/or trials anticipated; whether results obtained in preclinical studies and clinical trials will be indicative of results obtained in future clinical trials; whether Ailerons product candidates will advance through the clinical trial process on a timely basis, or at all; whether the results of such trials will warrant submission for approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration or equivalent foreign regulatory agencies; whether Aileron's product candidates will receive approval from regulatory agencies on a timely basis or at all; whether, if product candidates obtain approval, they will be successfully distributed and marketed; and other factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of Aileron's quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2017, filed on November 9, 2017, and risks described in other filings that Aileron may make with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Aileron specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise. Contacts Investors:

Aileron Therapeutics

Don Dougherty, CFO

617-995-0900

[email protected] Media:

BMC Communications

Brad Miles, 646-513-3125

[email protected] Source: Aileron Therapeutics i Dr. Weinstocks research was financially supported by Aileron under a sponsored research agreement.

ii Dr. Steidls research was financially supported by Aileron under a sponsored research agreement.

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[December 11, 2017] AI for Earth can be a game-changer for our planet, says Microsoft President Brad Smith

PARIS, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On Monday, Microsoft Corp. President Brad Smith announced a $50 million commitment, over the next five years, to put artificial intelligence in the hands of individuals and organizations around the world who are working to protect our planet through a major expansion of the company's AI for Earth program. The news was disclosed on Microsoft's On the Issues blog; full text below: On the two-year anniversary of the Paris climate accord, the world's government, civic and business leaders are coming together in Paris to discuss one of the most important issues and opportunities of our time, climate change. I'm excited to lead the Microsoft delegation at these meetings. While the experts' warnings are dire, at Microsoft we believe technology advances can help us better understand and address the environmental issues facing our planet. That's why we're announcing in Paris that we are broadening our AI for Earth program with an expanded strategic plan and committing $50 million over the next five years to put artificial intelligence technology in the hands of individuals and organizations around the world who are working to protect our planet. At Microsoft, we believe artificial intelligence is a game changer. Our approach as a company is focused on democratizing AI so its features and capabilities can be put to use by individuals and organizations around the world to improve real-world outcomes. There are few societal areas where AI can be more impactful than in helping address the urgent work needed to monitor, model and manage the earth's natural systems. Data can help tell us about the health of our planet, including the conditions of our air, water, land and the well-being of our wildlife. But we need technology's help to capture this vast amount of data and convert it into actionable intelligence. AI can be trained to classify raw data from sensors on the ground, in the sky or in space into categories that both humans and computers understand. Fundamentally, AI can accelerate our ability to observe environmental systems and how they are changing at a global scale, convert the data into useful information and apply that information to take concrete steps to better manage our natural resources. Already, we are seeing the transformative potential of AI. In the energy sector, companies like Agder Energi, a utility in Norway that produces renewable energy, are using Microsoft's cloud and AI to better capture, analyze and act on the intelligence gathered across its electrical grid. Through these technologies, Agder is now able to predict and prepar for vacillating energy needs in response to changes in demand as electric vehicles increasingly tax Norway's grid; data and AI have enhanced the performance of existing infrastructure, reducing the need for expensive new projects. AI is helping create a more effective, reliable and autonomous grid, while enabling customers and the country to consume more renewable energy as it transitions to a more electricity-based future.



In a similar way, we're seeing new AI and cloud technologies being used to improve the electrical efficiency of buildings. In Singapore, JTC, responsible for the development of the nation's industrial infrastructure, has centralized its operations on the Microsoft Cloud to monitor, analyze and optimize 39 of its buildings. Using sensor data and analytics, JTC can now identity and rectify faults before breakdowns occur, resulting in a 15 percent drop in energy cost avoidance in the first three buildings. It's worth imagining what these types of steps can mean if we can help bring them to scale globally. Estimates suggest that in the United States, buildings are responsible for about 40 percent of total energy consumption. That means an efficiency improvement of even 15 percent in buildings globally would translate into a 6 percent reduction in global energy consumption. And as AI continues to advance, we have the opportunity to learn more and aim even higher.

We're seeing a similar cause for optimism when we see how AI is being used in agriculture. In Australia, high labor and import costs, dry weather and the highest variability in climate of any country in the world make farming increasingly challenging. The Yield, a Tasmanian ag-tech company, has created a solution that uses sensors, analytics and apps to produce real-time weather data, right down to field level, helping growers make smarter decisions that can reduce their use of water and other inputs while also increasing their yield. In the sea, the Yield is working with local oyster farmers to create the first product to increase aquaculture production using machine learning. The solution already has reduced harvest closures caused by rain by 30 percent, giving growers back four weeks a year of harvest time. It's these kind of results that motivated us to step up our ambition when it comes to AI for Earth. As we look to the future, we're committed to working with farmers around the world. We envision a future with broadband connectivity for every farm and internet sensors for every acre of land. Building on cutting edge-work in Microsoft Research, we'll help farmers put AI to work not only to better analyze soil and rainfall conditions, but also to use predictive analytics to improve agricultural yields and reduce adverse environmental impacts. With the world's population continuing to grow, these changes cannot come fast enough. At Microsoft, we believe AI for Earth will be a force multiplier for groups and individuals like these who are creating sustainable solutions. That's why we're not just putting more resources into this effort, but also coupling this with a long-term commitment to applying AI to grow and scale in four key areas  climate, water, agriculture and biodiversity. We'll do this in three ways. First, we'll expand seed grants around the world to create and test new AI applications. Since our launch of AI for Earth six months ago, Microsoft has awarded over 35 grants in more than 10 countries for access to Microsoft Azure and AI technology. We will also provide universities, nongovernmental organizations and others with advanced training to put AI to its best use. Already, we're seeing success around the world in projects that are putting AI to work on climate, water, agriculture and biodiversity. Next, as these projects and our work in this area matures, we will identify the projects that show the most promise and make larger investments to help bring them to scale. We'll do this not only by providing greater resources for these projects, but also by partnering closely and working in depth with a new multi-disciplinary team at Microsoft that will bring together AI and sustainability subject matter experts. As we help groups scale promising AI technology solutions, we'll help them commercialize these services, so they can have a global impact as quickly and broadly as possible. These will be in addition to our existing efforts: enabling real-time precision conservation and improving land cover mapping, precision agriculture to increase yield with fewer resources with FarmBeats and more efficient, effective biodiversity tracking and protection approaches through Project Premonition. Finally, as these projects advance, we'll identify and pursue opportunities to incorporate new AI advances into platform-level services so that others can use them for their own sustainability initiatives. Some of this will involve platform services that will be offered by others. In other instances, these may be incorporated into Microsoft's own platform services. We face a collective need for urgent action to address global climate issues. When we think about the environmental issues we face today, science tells us that many are the product of previous Industrial Revolutions. As we enter the world's Fourth Industrial Revolution, a technology-fueled transformation, we must not only move technology forward, but also use this era's technology to clean up the past and create a better future. View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ai-for-earth-can-be-a-game-changer-for-our-planet-says-microsoft-president-brad-smith-300569793.html SOURCE Microsoft Corp.

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By Trend





Azerbaijan and seven other countries are ready to increase their contribution to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, the UN website reported on December 11.

"36 donors pledged $383 million to the Fund. Furthermore, Azerbaijan and seven other countries announced intention to increase their contribution compared to last year. These donors are Australia, Azerbaijan, Russian Federation, Estonia and Mongolia. However, this amount is far from the requested $1 billion," the report reads.

The Organization's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), established in 2016,is a pool of funding that supports critical relief operations in crises around the world  as humanitarian needs have increased from $5.2 billion in 2005 to over $24 billion today.

This year, CERF, managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has funded life-saving work, allocating nearly $130 million to help prevent famine in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

The fund also supported relief responses in other places, including for Palestine refugees in Gaza, for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, and those affected by hurricanes Irma and Maria in the Caribbean.
#banks-interest income Banks log record interest income through Sept. on rising rates Banks in South Korea earned record net interest income in the first three quarters of the year, helped by sharp rate hikes by the central bank, data showed Thursday. Their intere...

#BTS BTS' Jin to release photo book before joining military Jin, a member of the K-pop megastar BTS, will put out his individual book of photography next month before joining the military, the group's management agency said Thursday. The...
AND WE'RE BACK!!!

Tech Ranks Kansas City Commute

App rates Kansas City as a top city for drivers - Kansas City Business Journal Kansas City drivers can rest a little easier knowing that they're navigating one of the nation's best cities for driving. Kansas City ranked No. 8 on Waze's annual Driver Satisfaction Index, USA Today reports. The index is based on data regarding safety, traffic and road quality.

Talking KCMO Tragedy Aftermath

Neighborhood mourns death of boy run over by garbage truck Kansas City Police say an eight-year-old boy died after being hit by a garbage truck outside his grandparents' home. Dra'Viontay Baker and a nine-year-old friend were playing with a small wagon when the truck hit him Friday afternoon. "I'm praying for the family, we're going to make it through this," said Ricky Johnson, a neighbor.

Morning Wreck Aftermath

One person suffers serious injuries in rollover crash on I-435 at Front Street Kansas City Police are investigating a rollover crash with possible serious injuries on I-435 at Front Street. That incident happened around 8:15 p.m. on I-435 northbound on the exit ramp onto Front Street. One vehicle was involved and one person was ejected from that vehicle. Authorities rushed one person to the hospital with serious injuries.

Kansas City Forecast For Now

Joe's Weather Blog: I feel like a broken record (MON-12/11) I took the weekend off but, as usual, I was always checking in with some of the extended model forecasts for 8-15 days into the future...not so much because of the temperatures but more because of the moisture situation.

The Eternal Kansas City Chiefs Question

Can the Kansas City Chiefs salvage their season? The Kansas City Chiefs finally got back to winning on Sunday as they held off the Oakland Raiders 26-15. It was an up and down game. The Chiefs completely dominated the Raiders for the first three quarters as they built up a 26-0 lead.

We begin our Monday withand come from behind to catch up with some of the more important Kansas City MSM links for right now. Take a peek:is the song of the day and this is the OPEN THREAD for right now . . .
Harvard University recently , a tool that - at a block-by-block scale - detail residents' access to internet connectivity overlaid with poverty levels. highlighted the City of Kansas City, Missouri's Digital Inclusion map "This visualization was chosen as Harvard's Map of the Month for its ability to reveal insights on the far-reaching influence of Internet connectivity," Harvard's Chris Bousquet .
TOMORROW NIGHT MAYOR SLY DEBUTS HIS NEW BOOK IN AN ATTEMPT TO BUILD A LOCAL LITERARY LEGACY!!!

Kansas City Mayor Sly James will leave a literary as well as a political legacy. Daughter Aja James has seen to that, making her dad the star of a new childrens picture book, Mayor Sly and the Magic Bow Tie, highlighting the history of their hometown. Through the magic of his trademark bow tie, the mayor takes young readers back through time for a tour of his favorite locations and landmarks and introduces many of the historical figures whove left their imprint.





Launching the book  illustrated by Rob Peters  Sly and Aja James join co-author Audrey Masoner in a discussion of the unique project.





The program begins with a 6:30 p.m. performance by the Millennium String Quartet, featuring members of the Kansas City Symphony. They will play KC-themed selections, culminating with an original arrangement of Goin to Kansas City.

We conclude Sunday night posting with story time and a bit of a reminder for avid Kansas City readers . . .To be fair, let's consider both sides . . .Yes, this is just another feeble attempt to brand the Mayor as a caring, kind politico who puts youngsters first and foremost while the reality is that his development agenda at the behest of political cronies has actively worked to siphon tax revenue away from schools, libraries and neighborhoods.However . . . The event seems to be the culmination ofand helped to provide a groundbreaking after school reading program, books and tutoring for some of the best and brightest local students.We talked about this eventon the upcoming party . . . Checkit:#########More deets . . .Tomorrow at 6:15 PM - 8:15 PMKansas City Public Library - Plaza Branch4801 Main St, Kansas City, Missouri 64112You decide . . .
Panel Recommends Public Reprimand For Platte County Prosecutor A disciplinary panel has found Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd guilty of professional misconduct and recommended that he be publicly reprimanded. The matter now goes to the Missouri Supreme Court, which will decide whether to accept or reject the panel's findings and recommendation.

Quick legal note for so many lawyers reading this blog . . . Here's follow-up on the ongoing mess up North and proof that suburban politics can get just as screwed up any other municipal debacle . . . Read more:
Better than any other news outlet we've dived deep into the political ramifications of this move and revealed that Westport biz owners are angry with Council Lady Jolie Justus for her alleged betrayal.

URBAN PLANNERS, ACTIVISTS AND ACADEMICS TALK TRASH AGAINST 'BAR OWNERS' GARNERING CONTROL OF KANSAS CITY STREETS!!!

KANSAS CITY URBAN PLANNERS NOW DEMAND AN EXTENSIVE STUDY FROM CITY COUNCIL ON WESTPORT STREET PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS!!!

URBAN PLANNERS AND ACTIVISTS MIGHT ACTUALLY GAIN MORE CONTROL AND INFLUENCE AGAINST WESTPORT BAR BIZ IF STREET PRIVATIZATION IS ENACTED!!!

The fight for control of Westport streets continues this week as locals inundate City Council with demands for action amid growing violence in and around this party district.Here on TKC we've covered nearly every aspect of this debate over the past year.We've considered the social justice angle and claims of hip-hop discrimination.The current plan according to legislation sponsored by Council Lady Katy Shields actually vacates even more streets from local control.And this leads us to the latest chapter in this fight . . .Kansas City class warfare:The latest round of talking points focuses on "bar owners" and theirlack of qualifications to equitably, fairly and legally govern public streets. Like it or not, this bit of rhetoric that kinda focuses on class issues is gaining traction.Evidence . . .Like it or not, the document should be over the head of the bar crowd who are way too busy trying to eek out a living and can't really afford to dive deep into urban planning jargon.Moreover, the "study" of Westport street privatization will reportedly call for Council-appointed oversight into any quasi-private group that administers public streets.Translation:Even better or worse, this stalling tactic could delay a decision on street privatization for another year.Meanwhile, the homicide count in and around Westport continues to rise.Developing . . .
The Bank of Greece published a report indicating that local banks including Piraeus Bank (Caa3 stable, caa2), National Bank (Caa3 positive, caa2), Alpha Bank (Caa3 positive, caa2), Eurobank (Caa3 stable, caa2) and Attica Bank (Caa3 stable, caa3), which comprise around 97 pct of the banking system, have met their third-quarter 2017 targets for nonperforming exposures (NPEs). This is credit positive for the banks because it gradually alleviates the sizable NPE burden that weighs on their balance sheets, Moody's said on Monday.

NPEs in the system were around 99.1 billion euros as of September 2017, or around 56 pct of GDP, outperforming banks' 99.9 billion euro NPE target by 800 million euros. The target was more ambitious relative to the targets set in 2016, despite worse macroeconomic assumptions.

The report forecast a drop in the balances of nonperforming loans (NPLs) of around 45 pct by the end of 2019, and a reduction in NPEs of around 35 pct over the same period. Reducing NPLs, and ultimately NPEs, is Greek banks' most significant challenge, and will require sustainable economic growth over the next two years. The reduction in problem loans is necessary to improve Greek banks? financial soundness and to free up capital to support productive economic sectors.

The Bank of Greece, in cooperation with the European Central Bank's banking supervision arm, has asked that banks set targets for both NPLs and NPEs. The regulators are closely monitoring these targets on a quarterly basis, and encourage banks to dedicate sufficient resources to tackle what is one of the economy?s most difficult challenges. Accordingly, banks have reduced their stock of NPEs by 7.6 pct since stocks peaked in March 2016, over-performing their initial NPE target set in 2016 by around 2.9 billion euros and their NPL target by 300 million euros.

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: ANA-MPA
Greek Americans have always been a very active community in the United States reinforcing the historic ties between the two nations and certainly boosting tourist inflows over the years

Greece will have exited the bailout program in the summer of 2018, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras claimed in a videotaped message to the 19th Annual Capital Link Invest in Greece Forum in New York on Monday.

Tsipras noted that Greece is in a comeback and that the Greek economy is showing positive signs after years of recession.

A growth rate of close of 2 pct is forecast for 2017, the PM said, while he cited EU Commission estimates that the growth rate would reach 2.5 pct in 2018. Unemployment has dropped 6 pct since this government came to power, and foreign direct investments reached 3 billion euros the first 9 months of 2017, up by 69 pct compared to the same period in 2016.

"All these have led to an overperformance of our fiscal targets," he stressed, and made the government "extremely focused on the next chapter of Greece, the upcoming era beyond austerity and recession."

Addressing the forum, Tsipras pointed out that "American investors are one of the largest contributors of foreign investments in Greece so we expect that they will remain as such in light of investment opportunities, in order to make the most out of our country?s growth potential."

The decision to make the United States the honored country in the Thessaloniki International Fair "shows our determination to foster further the business ties of our countries", he concluded.

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: ANA-MPA
YBA Kanoo, one of the largest family-owned multinational businesses in the Middle East,

has announced the official opening of its new workshop for industrial valves in the Jubail region of Saudi Arabia.

The new facility will provide key services such as assembling, maintenance and repair of valves besides retrofit and upgrade of various industrial valves; replacing and reconditioning of mechanical seals and rupture discs; and also steam trap inspection/survey and replacement.

The opening ceremony was held in the presence of Saudi Kayan contractor and services manager Mulfi Salem Al Qahtani, YBA Kanoo Group CEO Dr Patrick Chenel, Industrial & Energy executive general manager Fergus Burke and other high ranking officials.

The opening of this facility is a major milestone in our transformation plan, stated Chenel.

It also reaffirms our commitment to the country through the Saudi Aramco value added programme, IKTVA, and helps develop a world of opportunity for young Saudis.

Its strategic location and proximity to our customers allows us to reduce lead time, giving us a higher advantage over our competitors.

Within our immediate surroundings we have also begun to work with potential customers who would benefit both from the products produced and service capacity of the workshop, he added.

The YBA Kanoo workshop is also an authorised service centre for Colfax pumps, BRDR Christensen plug valves, Faris safety relief valves and Groth pressure and vacuum relief valves.

"This is part of Kanoo Industrial & Energy strategy to expand its range of solutions to clients within the Operations & Maintenance phase of projects," remarked Burke.

"The new workshop will deliver a quality service to its clients with a commitment to the safety and wellbeing of its personnel," he noted.

"Kanoo Industrial & Energy will be manufacturing valves in the near future, and the next step will be to expand our workshop to repair and overhaul pumps and motors to support with the maintenance of our clients facilities in Jubail," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company's (Adnoc) is set to raise over Dh3.1 billion ($843 million) from the its initial public offering (IPO) of its fuel distribution unit after lowering the top end of the offer price and deciding to only sell a 10 per cent stake.

This transaction represents an important further step in Adnocs ongoing transformation and value creation strategy announced earlier this year.

The price was set at Dh2.5 and the deal size comprises 10 per cent of all shares of Adnoc Distribution, said a statement from First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), the only regional bank acting as a joint global co-ordinator on this transaction and the sole lead receiving bank.

The crude producer reduced the price range to Dh2.35 to Dh2.65 for the shares of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company for Distribution (Adnoc Distribution).

The initial price range was Dh2.35 to Dh2.95. The company initially planned to sell as much as 20 per cent.

The retail tranche of the offering, which closed on December 7, secured significant local interest and was oversubscribed by 22 times at the initial tranche size, raising Dh3.49 billion in retail subscriptions alone.



This enabled the issuer to double the size of the retail tranche from 5 to 10 per cent of the total offering size. The institutional tranche has garnered substantial engagement from high quality, global institutional investors, and was oversubscribed multiple time, said the statement from FAB.

Specifically, the IPO forms part of Adnocs more proactive and smarter approach to managing its assets and capital as it looks to unlock and drive greater value from across the entire Adnoc Group business, it added.



Andre Sayegh, the deputy group CEO and head of corporate and investment banking at FAB, said: "The response from investors for this IPO has been very positive, generating a record demand of Investor Number applications."



"The launch of this unique offering marks a series of firsts for the market. It is the first bookbuild IPO for the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), the first international offering, and it will also be the first and largest retail sector stock on the ADX. This IPO will help further diversify the market and provide investors with a greater choice," stated Sayegh.



"The company will also be amongst the largest stocks on ADX, helping to attract more foreign direct investment into the UAE," he added.



The IPO is a milestone for Adnoc, as it represents the first time the Abu Dhabi firm has listed any of its group companies. The IPO also follows on from the first-ever capital markets bond issuance for an Adnoc company, Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), last month, where FAB was also joint global co-ordinator.-TradeArabia News Service
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The winners of the 2017 British Youth Travel Awards



(TRAVPR.COM) UK - December 11th, 2017 - The British Youth Travel Awards are co-ordinated by BETA, reward and celebrate the excellent work and high standards that our members and industry stakeholders demonstrate through their work year on year.

From creating new and innovative products and programmes for young travellers, to outstanding examples of customer service and responding to the needs of this important sector  a sector that is worth over 22.3 billion to the UK economy per annum.

Having grown from a single category back in 2007, these awards have matured in stature and importance. For many these awards represent something special, something to work towards and this is demonstrated in the high quality of entries received.

Emma English, BETAs Executive Director said The 2017 competition kicked off with a bang and in celebration of our 10th anniversary by introducing a new look and brand identity, new website and a new online submissions process making it even easier for businesses to enter.

The result being that the number of entries in the 2017 competition grew by 41% - a competition record! and our judges had a tough time in choosing who scooped the top spots, with some categories being separated by 0.5 of a point!

The judging panel are made up of a group of industry experts, each dedicating their time to meeting, debating and scoring each submission.

Clare Mullin, Marketing Director of VisitBritain and BYTA Judge said It was great to be part of the judging panel for the 10th anniversary British Youth Travel Awards. Youth travel is such a vibrant and important sector for destinations to capture. I was particularly impressed with the marketing category and looking at the innovative ways that people are engaging with their audience on budgets large and small!

Graham McKenzie, Managing Director of Travelmole.com and BYTA Judge said Having judged these awards for a number of years not only were there more than ever before, but the quality and standard of this years submissions was excellent. The demonstration of new and innovative ways in which businesses are engaging their audience and developing their brands is very impressive.

The award winners in each category shown here as follows:

Best Accommodation 2017 : St Christophers Inns, London Bridge

Silver Award: Hatters at Hilton Chambers

Bronze Award: Cohort Hostel

Best Educational Product 2017: World Nomads Travel Scholarships

Silver Award: Oxford Royale Academy

Bronze Award: FSC Blencathra Centre

Best Leisure Product 2017: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London  The Making of Harry Potter

Silver Award: BBC Tours at MediaCityUK

Bronze Award: ArcelorMittal Orbit

Best Support Service 2017: NST Travel Group

Silver Award: Vagaband

Bronze Award: GTi Travel Group

Best Use of Social/Mobile Media 2017: Warner Bros Studio Tour London  The Making of Harry Potter

Silver Award: St Christophers Inns

Bronze Award: London Nest

Best Volunteering Organisation 2017: Pod Volunteer

Silver Award: Kaya Responsible Travel

Bronze Award: Madventure International

Best Marketing 2017: Busabout  The Best Job in the World

Silver Award: YHA (England & Wales)  48 hours of freedom

Bronze Award: Londonist DMC  Find a place you can call home

Rising Star 2017: Rebecca OHare, Campus Living Villages

Silver Award: Yogesh Mistry, Anglo Educational Services

Bronze Award: Harry Spear, Caribbean Elective

Best Customer Service Award 2017: LILA* Liverpool

Silver Award: Smaller Earth  Camp Leaders

Bronze Award: WST Travel

Peoples Choice 2017: Hostelworld

Silver Award: Camp America

Bronze Award: LILA* Liverpool

Best UK Youth Destination 2017: Edinburgh

Silver Award: Oxford

Bronze Award: Chester

Best International Youth Destination 2017: Australia

Silver Award: Germany

Bronze Award: France

To read more quotes from our individual judges: Click Here

To read quotes from our winners & finalists: Click Here

NOTES:

The British Educational Travel Association (BETA) represents some of the biggest and best-known businesses in the UK youth, student and educational travel industry.

Did you know?

 Youth travellers contributed 22.3 billion to the UK economy in 2016 which is more than the combined tourist spend of Poland and Sweden

 14.9 million young travellers visited the UK in 2016 to work, study and tour  enough to fill Wembley Stadium 166 times over!

 Youth Travel to the UK is more than twice the value of Twitter

 In 2016 38% of all international arrivals were from youth travelers



Our members cover the whole spectrum of inbound, outbound and domestic youth, student and educational travel including work exchange, gap years, school visits, language schools, activity holidays, adventure travel, as well as a whole host of specialist agents and operators.

For further details contact: eenglish@betauk.com
Sucha Singh Gill

Sucha Singh Gill

Professor, CRRID, Chandigarh

DEVELOPING countries did not understand the full implications of the Agreement on Agriculture (AOA) while signing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1994 that led to the formation of WTO the next year. It was agreed under the AOA that price support, including input subsidies, led to market distortions, therefore, they were to be limited to the 20 per cent of the value of produce. This was to be calculated as a difference between the support price minus the international reference price (average of 1986-88) in dollar terms. Subsidies beyond this limit would invite punitive action. At the same time, countries could resort to public stockholding of foodgrains as food aid for nutritional objective for the poor, but this was restricted to 10 per cent of the total value of domestic production. The procurement was also exempted from the 20 per cent subsidy limit.

Green, Blue and Amber boxes

The subsidies in agriculture were divided into three categories  1. Green Box or environmentally beneficial Green Box subsidies, 2. Blue Box subsidies for reduction in production and 3. Amber Box subsidies for encouraging production. The first two categories were exempted from any limit. Interestingly, most of the subsidies of the developed countries were in these two categories. But the Green Box subsidies were put in the category of reductionable subsidies. The subsidies provided by the developing countries were in this category. A decade after WTO formation, the developing countries realised the adverse implication of grading subsidies: these provisions inhibited investments in agriculture and achievement of food security. This forced developing countries to join hands to get changes in these rules.

At the Bali Ministerial in 2013, a group of 33 developing countries wanted to amend AOA to shift subsidies for public stockholding of grains from the Amber Box to the Green Box. Pressure from countries like India and China led to a Peace Clause exempted subsidies on account of public stockholding from any complaint at WTO till a permanent solution was reached at the 2017 Ministerial Conference, ie the 11th Ministerial Conference (MC11), scheduled for December 10-13, 2017 at Buenos Aires.

At the General Council meeting of the WTO in 2014, India took a tough position. It refused to proceed with adopting the Trade Felicitation Text (extension of WTO agenda) till a permanent resolution of the issue of public stockholding of foodgrains was achieved. Compared to this resolute stance, Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu is taking a soft line by refusing to make a permanent solution on public stockholding at the MC11 a prestige issue.

Looming threat for India

It is apparent that there is no indefinite assurance to India or other developing countries for public stockholding of grains beyond 10 per cent of production after 2017. It is, therefore, important that India understands the looming threat to its food procurement and agriculture and make preparations to protect the farmer. As per the provisions of the WTO, India will be allowed to procure 20-22 million tonnes of foodgrain against the present level of over 50 million tonnes. If the Food Security Act 2013 is implemented, India's procurement requirement could exceed 60 million tonnes.

India and other developing countries are pitted against the US, the EU and Australia which are better prepared and possess capacity to manoeuvre proceedings. They are the biggest subsidisers who have managed to keep their subsidies in the Green and Blue boxes and pushed subsidies of developing countries in the Amber box. They are also host to big corporations like Cargill, Tyson, BRF, and Monsanto, which have a deep interest in the trade of foodgrains. Non-resolution of the public stockholding issue is likely to create a serious crisis in states like Punjab, Haryana, UP and Andhra Pradesh, the foodgrains-surplus producing states. Prices will crash and farmers will face crises and gluts at the time of harvesting in the absence of sufficient procurement by the government agencies. Such crises are common with vegetable and horticulture crops in the country. The Punjab farmers faced a similar crisis in 2016 in the case of PB 1509 Basmati rice when its price crashed and farmers blocked major roads in the state.

Cooperative federalism

There is talk of cooperative federalism in the country. The Fourteenth Finance Commission suggested that each level of the government takes decisions independently but an exchange of views is necessary before taking a decision that impacts the other. In this context, it recommended that such issues be discussed at the Inter-State Council.

Interestingly, agriculture is a state subject, about which a decision going to take place at the international level with the involvement of the Government of India without the consultation of the states concerned. This has created a situation of non-seriousness at the level of the Union government, with adverse implications for several states. Even kisan unions, which have shown some mobilisation at the national level, unfortunately, have not shown any concern. Without pressure of the stakeholders the interests of the farmers and farming community will be adversely affected.
Sushma Ramachandran

Sushma Ramachandran

CENTURIES ago, India was a major exporting civilisation. It exported gems, spices and textiles to all major markets of the world. Indian goods were known for their excellence and quality. The situation has changed radically. It now accounts for a minuscule 1.7 per cent of the worlds trade. Besides, quality of Indian goods is considered questionable. As a result, the country is fighting a battle against what are considered unjustified frequent testing of products in some developed world markets. The importance of exports to economic growth has also not been fully recognised even by policy makers. The fact is that economic powerhouses like China and the Asian tiger economies have achieved this status largely on the back of extremely high export growth. Indian industry, on the other hand, has been content to meet the needs of a large domestic market without making too much of an effort to target overseas consumers.

For the past few years, export growth has slowed down considerably. Exports actually fell from $468 billion in 2014-15 to $437 billion in 2016-17. This is far from the declared target of reaching $900 billion by 2019-20. With the uptick in demand from developed markets which are now on an even keel, exports showed a positive trend about 14 months ago. But it was a slow rise till last September when there was a spurt by 26 per cent over the previous year. This was followed up by an unexpected drop in October, possible due to the impact of GST. Clearly, export growth is not rising in a sustained way.

It is in this backdrop that the government announced a host of incentives for the export sector. The sops are estimated to cost the exchequer Rs 8,450 crore. They have been given to small and medium enterprises, labour-intensive industries and agriculture-based enterprises. While these may provide short-term support for export industries hit by demonetisation last year and the rigours of shifting to the GST regime this year, more long-term measures are needed to ensure exports rise consistently by at least 15 per cent annually.

These would include first of all, an overhaul in the approach by government agencies to the export effort. It should not be the responsibility only of a single ministry to ensure the success of the countrys exports. All departments of the Central and state governments need to recognise the critical role of exports to the economy. The revenue agencies, for instance, are crucial in providing duty credits and refunds to exporters. Red tape needs to be cut down so that exporters receive their dues promptly and without needing innumerable clarifications. In the area of processed foods as well, the installation of cold chains to help in the export of fruits and vegetables is imperative. A tremendous amount of micro-management is needed to ensure that each export industry is given much-needed assistance.

Secondly, infrastructure needs to be upgraded on a priority basis, especially for export industries. This covers the entire gamut of power, telecom, ports and airports. It is here that exporters costs are higher than in other countries. Logistics costs alone are estimated to be 50 per cent higher compared to developed countries. One must point out that these issues have been flagged repeatedly over the years. It is a cliche by now to say that transaction costs are higher in this country as this is a well-known fact. What is needed are steps to ensure that export-oriented industries are given priority in provision of critical infrastructure to ensure that their costs are kept low enough for them to be competitive in world markets.

Thirdly, it has to be recognised that India is by all accounts fast losing its edge in labour-intensive industries. Other countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh are reported to record lower costs in labour-intensive sectors like apparel. One of the reasons is the greater flexibility in these countries to close down unviable units. At the same time, this does not imply that proper wages should not be made to those in these sectors. In fact, improved revenues by labour-intensive units in the export market should actually enable better wages and working conditions for employees.

Fourthly, much greater focus needs to be put on the quality of export-oriented industries. Pharmaceuticals is a glaring case where production of substandard drugs by a segment of industry has affected the reputation of the entire country. India has in the past been held up as a global model for producing high quality generic drugs at affordable costs. Sadly, the failure of Indian regulators to ensure that the highest standards are maintained in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals has tarnished this reputation. Though this may not be true of most manufacturers, it has led to stringent testing and safeguards being carried in developed country markets.

Maintenance of the highest quality standards needs to become part of the fabric of export industries. Brand India needs to become a symbol of excellence rather than of average quality. This is an issue that needs to be addressed with seriousness by the government if it really seeks to make India a significant player in global trade.

And finally, both regional and multilateral trade agreements need to be tied up with great care. As far as the WTO is concerned, India has been facing pitched battles with developed countries on issues linked to farmers livelihood issues. But regional or bilateral trade pacts are now becoming more relevant as these come into effect more quickly than decisions in the multilateral arena. It is for India to ensure that interests of domestic industries and consumers are kept paramount in entering into such agreements.

In sum, the short-term incentives given now cannot be the only panacea to push up export growth. A long-term vision has to be taken of exports and the role of India in world trade. Few countries have achieved rapid economic growth without ensuring a significant rise in exports over the long run. Unless India too can achieve this goal on the trade front, it is likely to falter in its efforts to reach a high growth rate as quickly as possible.
EVEN though an election platform permits considerable rhetorical latitude, yet when the Prime Minister chooses to allege a foreign hand in an ongoing state-level poll battle the matter acquires a serious dimension. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused the Congress, particularly its suspended leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, of colluding with Pakistan to affect the outcome of the Gujarat election. It must be presumed that the Prime Minister has sufficiently credible information to make the charge. National security interests demand that stern penal action be taken against Mr Aiyar for hosting a meeting at his residence for visiting Pakistani interlocutors; among those who attended the meeting include a former prime minister, a former vice-president, a former chief of the Indian Army and a number of retired distinguished diplomats. A message should go out that India is not a banana republic that foreigners can meddle in its internal affairs; nor is India a United States where the Russians could wantonly interfere in the presidential electoral process.

If there is even an iota of credibility in the Prime Ministers fusillade against Mani Shankar Aiyar, then it invites very serious questions about the management of our national security on Modis watch. Questions need to be asked as to when did the Prime Minister or his national security team come to a conclusion that Pakistan was becoming an active source of interference in our internal political affairs; and, why has the government so far failed in its duty to act against those who attended this anti-national gathering. To keep this serious breach of security under wraps and use it as a smoking gun in an assembly election, raises doubts about the competence and commitment of those entrusted with our national security.

No keen observer of the Gujarat scene would be surprised that Pakistan has been weaved into the election rhetoric. Faced with the heavy baggage of a 22-year-old anti-incumbency, the BJP leadership feels desperate enough to invoke, once again, Pakistan, as an election issue. The sub-text of this sales pitch, sadly enough, is introduction of the old Hindu-Muslim divide. The poor, old Gujarat model of development stands totally forgotten and abandoned.
Tribune News Service

Rohtak, December 11

The police have arrested four persons for allegedly defrauding a local farmer of about Rs 80 lakh. The arrested persons had allegedly posed as godmen (tantrik) and promised the farmer of getting him a treasure buried in his fields.

Veerbhan, a farmer of Baliyana village in the district, had lodged a complaint with the police in this regard. He had stated that his land measuring 12 acres had been acquired by the state government in 2009, for which he got around Rs 2.75 crore.

The farmer said he bought 10 acres of land and two plots for Rs 2 crore, while the remaining amount was in his bank account.

However, some youths posing as godmen took Rs 80 lakh from him on the lure of unearthing a treasure hidden in his fields.

Acting on his complaint, the police arrested the kingpin of the gang, Lalit, of Rajaldesar village in Churu district of Rajasthan, and his accomplices Karan of Pahari village in Bhiwani district, Anil of Kairu village in Bhiwani district and Narender of Singhwa village in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan.

The investigation revealed that Karan, Anil and Lalit are related to each other and cheat people by posing as godmen.
Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 11

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has rapped Faridabad judicial magistrates for treating a fatal accident case in a casual manner.

Justice Kuldip Singh asserted that close scrutiny of the lower court file showed that the accident case involving a roadways bus and a scooter was tried in a casual manner by different magistrates by granting long adjournments and without trying to enforce the presence of witnesses.

A perusal of interim orders showed that long adjournments were granted, mostly for about six months, after the charges were framed on July 6, 2004. Once, an adjournment was granted for nine months.

The case was registered after the bus the accused was driving hit the scooter SP Gupta was riding on February 29, 2004. Gupta succumbed to his injuries on March 5.

Justice Kuldip Singh made it clear that the law on rash and negligent driving was required to be enforced with an iron hand as more than 400 persons died in road accidents and three times more injured everyday in India.

Bus driver Bijender Singh had moved the High Court after Faridabad Judicial Magistrate First Class convicted him for rash driving, causing death by negligence and other offences before sentencing him to rigorous imprisonment for one year. The Bench was told that the Faridabad Additional Sessions Judge had reduced the sentence to nine months on his appeal.

Referring to the interim orders, Justice Kuldip Singh added that it was simply recorded that one or two prosecution witnesses were examined and the rest remained unexamined.

They were ordered to be summoned, without recording whether any or all prosecution witnesses were served or not. In none of the orders were coercive steps taken to enforce the presence of witnesses.

Justice Kuldip Singh added, The perusal of the challan shows that there were 11 witnesses. Different magistrates at different times summoned all prosecution witnesses without noticing whether the court would be in a position to examine all prosecution witnesses if they are served.

Thereafter, without taking any coercive steps to procure the presence of witnesses, not being served or not coming forward, the process of granting last opportunity was started. After recording that four last opportunities were granted, evidence was closed by order. This is a casual approach to deal with the case involving death of a human being.

Dismissing the petition, Justice Kuldip Singh asserted that the court did not find any ground to reduce the sentence or release the petitioner on probation.
Vishal Joshi

Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, December 11

The Haryana chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday announced to completely suspend the healthcare services at all private hospitals on Friday to oppose the Haryana governments decision of introducing the Central Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act.

Dr AP Setia, state IMA president, told The Tribune the decision was taken unanimously at an emergency meeting of the association late last evening in Karnal. He said the IMA would not allow the state to introduce the Central Act that was aimed at wiping out small and medium medical establishments.

He said any patient with emergency care would also be referred to the government hospitals on Friday. OPDs will be suspended and no private hospital will admit any new patient from 6 am until midnight on Friday.

Setia said the IMA was forced to take the step to oppose the state governments autocratic decision.

Office-bearers of all 34 branches of IMA Haryana and the state executive council unanimously agreed to take more stringent ways in the next phase to oppose the state authorities. Any inconvenience to the patients is deeply regretted as IMA is fighting for the professional interests of the doctors, said Setia.

He blamed the Manohar Lal Khattar government for backtracking by rejecting to change mutually agreed upon amendments in the Haryana Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act.

The Central Act passed in 2010 failed to implement due to several impractical provisions in it. There is a provision of fixing fee structures of doctors prescription and treatments that are not acceptable to the medical fraternity. The government wants the private doctors to treat the trauma patients for free with no provision to financially support the clinic for such cases, he said.

IMA held six meetings with the government since May to bring changes in the Haryana Act. Forty objections were agreed upon by the authorities. But now the government is now adamant to roll out the Central Act and the IMA raises strong objections of this rolling back, he said.

Setia said the state government was introducing the Central Act in view of a case in Gurugrams Fortis hospital case.

Neither Fortis nor most of the doctors in such corporate hospitals are members of the Haryana IMA. Our association in no way is supporting or lobbying for the accused hospital or its medical staff. Hasty decision will crumble the healthcare sector in Haryana and the onus will be on the government, he said.
Tribune News Service

Hisar, December 11

The police are yet to make any headway in the rape and murder case of a six-year-old girl in Uklana town of the district. After committing the crime, the accused dumped her body near the Telephone Exchange building in the town on Friday night.

Under pressure from various quarters, Superintendent of Police (SP) Manisha Chaudhary today camped at the Uklana police station where number of suspects were summoned and interrogated in a bid to solve the case.

Director General of Police (DGP) BS Sandhu said, The police have been zeroing in on suspected persons from the area, including drug addicts. It will take some time, but I am hopeful that the accused would be nabbed soon. We are taking care in the investigation so that no innocent person is harassed unnecessary, said the DGP.

The DGP said, It is a very heinous and barbaric crime and the police are making sincere efforts to crack the case. The investigation is going on from different angles and suspected persons from even the neighbouring districts will be questioned.

However, the SP and other members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to probe the case could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.

One of the youths who were questioned by the police revealed that there were nearly 15-16 youths inside the police station. Around 4-5 youths have been separately questioned by the SP, he said.
Kullu/Sundernagar: At least 14 people were killed in four accidents across Himachal Pradesh during the past 24 hours. Six persons were buried alive when the car they were travelling in was hit by boulders following a landslide near Nirmand in Kullu district. Elsewhere, six persons died when a Tempo traveller fell into a gorge at Kangoo, near Sundernagar, on the Manali-Chandigarh National Highway. The victims were returning to Ambala after attending a marriage.

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A woman was killed when a car rammed into a truck near the Gammon bridge, while a five-year-old was killed after a private school vehicle swerved off the road at Thati Beed in Banjar, Kullu.
Mahesh Chander Sharma

Sundernagar, December 11

Six of a marriage party were killed and eight injured when when the tempo traveller they were travelling in fell into a gorge at Kangoo near Sundernagar on the Manali-Chandigarh National Highway today. The condition of three victims has been stated to be critical. They were referred to the PGI, Chandigarh. The grooms mother was among those killed in the mishap. According to information, the occupants were going back to Ambala after attending a marriage party at Nerchowk near Sundernagar. The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle while trying to save a motorcyclist coming from the opposite direction and fell into a gorge.

Four persons died on the spot, while two died at the Civil Hospital, Sundernagar. All the injured were shifted to the Sundernagar hospital, from where three were referred to the PGI, Chandigarh.The deceased have been identified as Mohinder Pal (54), his wife Santosh Rani (50), Neelam Sethi (65), grooms mother, Dharam Pal Kumar (64), Shashi Oberoi (59), all residents of Ambala, while Ravinder Kumar (48) belonged to Panchkula. The injured are Gurdeep Singh from Ropar; Ranju from Panchkula, Harish Sethi from Ambala, who is the father of the groom, Reema from Ambala City, Priesh Thakur from Bihar, Gurdeep Singh from Ropar, Darshgan Rani from Ambala and driver Vikram Singh from Ambala Cantt.

Locals gathered on the spot after the accident and helped in the rescue work. Sundernagar DSP Taranjeet Singh said the police had registered a case under Sections 279, 337, 338 and 304-A of the IPC and further investigations were on. The district administration gave Rs 10,000 each to the next of kin of those killed and Rs 5,000 and Rs 3,000 to the injured.

The deceased

The deceased have been identified as Mohinder Pal (54), his wife Santosh Rani (50), Neelam Sethi (65), grooms mother, Dharam Pal Kumar (64), Shashi Oberoi (59), all residents of Ambala, while Ravinder Kumar (48) belonged to Panchkula.
Suhail A Shah

Anantnag, December 11

Two guards of Jammu and Kashmir Bank were shot dead and three others injured when militants opened fire on a cash van in south Kashmirs Shopian district today. There was no cash in the vehicle, a bank official said.

This is the second such ambush on a cash van of the bank. On May 1, five policemen and two guards were shot dead by militants at Pumbai village in south Kashmirs Kulgam district.

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The cash van, a Scorpio (JK-01-M-3941) belonging to the Pulwama zonal office, was targeted around 2.30 pm at Poju village in the Kralcheck area, 12 km from Shopian.

The deceased were identified as Tariq Ahmad from Pulwama and Mushtaq Ahmad from Anantnag. The condition of the van driver was stable. A search was on to nab the attackers, police said.

The vehicle was returning to the office after delivering cash at a branch in Shopian, a bank official said. The police said it overturned as it came under heavy fire.
Tribune News Service

Srinagar/Handwara, dec 11

At least three militants of the Lashkar-e-Toiba were killed in a gunfight in north Kashmirs frontier Kupwara district. A 25-year-old woman was also killed in the crossfire, triggering protests.

The gunfight erupted around 12.30 am when joint teams of the police, Army and the CRPF launched a cordon and search operation at Unisoo in Handwara, 70 km from Srinagar, after a specific input about the presence of militants.

The militants tried to break the cordon and fired indiscriminately. In the six-hour gunfight, three militants were killed. Unfortunately a woman, Mysara, was inside the house where the militants were holed up and was wounded in the crossfire. She later succumbed, said Deputy Inspector General of Police, north Kashmir, Vidhi Kumar Birdi. The other family members in the house where the militants were hiding were taken out by the forces.

The three slain Lashkar-e-Toiba militants are suspected to be Pakistan nationals. Three AK rifles along with ammunition were recovered from the encounter site.

While the security forces maintain that the three militants were killed during gunfight, sources, however, said one of the foreign militants was arrested in an injured condition during the gunfight. He succumbed to his injuries later.

As the news about the death of the woman spread in the area, a large number of people came out on streets to stage a protest against the killing. The protesters shouted pro-freedom slogans and also blocked the Sopore-Handwara road for some time. The woman is survived by a 5-month-old baby girl and husband.

Meanwhile, internet services were suspended in Kupwara district to foil protests.

Suspected to be Pak nationals
Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 11

The Supreme Court on Monday said it cannot direct the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly to enact a law to set up a minorities commission in the state where Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians are not identified as minorities despite being lesser in number than Muslims who constitute more than 68% of population.

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How can we ask or direct the state legislature to legislate in a particular manner? The Centre says they will deliberate on it and get back to this court, a bench headed Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra told advocate Ankur Sharma who has filed a PIL seeking a direction to the state to establish a state minorities commission.

We cannot issue any direction on a subject like thisits up to them, said CJI Misra.

The top court had on August 8 took exception to Mahbooba Mufti governments affidavit on the issue of setting up a minority commission in the state terming it disastrous.

It had given three months to Centre and Jammu and Kashmir government to jointly take a considered view on the contentious issue.

According to the 2011 Census, Hindus constitute 28.4 per cent of the total population in Jammu and Kashmir, followed by Sikhs (1.9 per cent), Buddhists (0.9 per cent); and Christians (0.3 per cent).

In Kashmir Valley, about 96.4 per cent are Muslims, followed by Hindus (2.45 per cent), Sikhs (0.98 per cent) and others (0.17 per cent).

Petitioner Sharma, a Jammu-based advocate, alleged that the benefits meant for minorities were going to the majority community i.e. Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir. Sharma alleged that crores of rupees were being squandered away as the state was spending money on unidentified minorities.

The Narendra Modi government had on May 1 told the top court that a high-level committee comprising officials of the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government had been constituted to look into the issue of setting up of a minority commission for the state.

The committee consisting of union minority affairs secretary, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary and certain other officials was constituted pursuant to the courts March 27 order. The panel is supposed to submit a joint proposal before the top court suggesting solutions to the problems faced by Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians owing to their non-identification as minorities in the state where Muslims constitute more than 68% of the population.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had told the court that consultations regarding setting up of the commission were at an advanced stage.

Even as the Narendra Modi government dithered on the issue, the Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP-BJP government of Jammu and Kashmir had opposed creation of a minority commission in the state, saying it was not the only state where minorities declared under the National Commission for Minorities Act were in majority and there was no such body.

Terming it a very very important issue, the top court had asked them to deal with it jointly. It had asked both the governments also to decide if Muslims can be treated as minority in the state where they outnumber other religious groups. The bench wanted both the governments to resolve the issue and submit a report to it.

In an affidavit filed in the top court in February, the Jammu and Kashmir government had opposed a petition filed by advocate Ankur Sharma in 2016 seeking a direction to the state to set up a minority commission in the state to safeguard the interests of religious and linguistic minorities.

The state governments affidavit stated: There are other states/Union Territories in the country where such population (declared minorities under the NCM Act) is in majority. The situation is similar in the states of Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Punjab and Lakshadweep.

Earlier, it had said that the central Act was not applicable to the state and as such it did not have to set up a state-level minorities commission.
New Delhi, December 11

Suspected Lashker-e-Toiba operative Abdul Nayeem Sheikh, who was arrested last month from Lucknow, had spent some time in trouble-torn south Kashmir and filmed some Army installations, officials said.

Sheikh, a resident of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, was on the radar of central intelligence agencies for quite sometime before he was nabbed with the help of Uttar Pradesh police in the last week of November.

The case was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), a central probe agency mandated to investigate all terror modules in the country.

The central security agencies, which interrogated Sheikh at length, had told the investigators about his accomplice, Tauseef Ahmed Malik, in Pulwama district of south Kashmir. He was placed under arrest by the NIA on December 9.

During interrogation, Sheikh disclosed that he had stayed in Pulwama, moved to various places with the help of Malik and even photographed some Army and para-military camps, the officials claimed.

Sheikh, who was wanted in connection with a 2014 terror case and was since on the run, told investigators that some important power projects and railway tracks in the Valley were surveyed, they said.

He had also visited some places in Himachal Pradesh, especially Kasol, which is frequented by Israeli nationals visiting India, according to the officials.

Security agencies have claimed that Sheikh was roped in for a recce mission similar to that undertaken by David Headley, a Pakistan-American, who is at present serving a prison sentence of 35 years at a US jail for his involvement in terror activities and the 26/11 Mumbai attacks of 2008.

They said Malik's association with the Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Toiba also came to light during Sheikh's interrogation.

Malik had shown to probe officials the places where Sheikh had stayed with the terrorists for over three months, they added. PTI
Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 11

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday lashed out at incumbent Narendra Modi for spreading canards to score political points in a lost cause and asked him to apologise to the nation.

Referring to the discussions at a dinner hosted by suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar in the honour of a former Pakistan minister, Singh said I did not discuss Gujarat elections there. The discussions were confined to Indo-Pakistan relations. The issue of Gujarat was not raised by anyone at the dinner. I am pained by canards being spread by the PM. I sincerely hope he apologises to nation for this ill thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he holds.

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Singh and former vice-president Hamid Ansari were among those who attended the dinner the Prime Minister was referring to during his Gujarat election trail. Modi has accused the Congress of taking Pakistans help to fight the BJP in the high stake election.

In a rare statement, former prime minister Singh said Congress did need any certificates of nationalism from a party whose compromised track record on terrorism is known to everyone".

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Let me remind Mr Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him tell the reason why Pakistan spy agency ISI was allowed in Pathankot Air base to investigate an attack that a emanated in Pakistan, Singh said adding that his own tenure of public service needed no stamps.

Rejecting  falsehoods and innuendos about the dinner, Singh accused Modi of setting a dangerous precedent with his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office including that of the former PM and Army Chief.

Singh said Modis accusations were being driven by a sense of loss in Gujarat.

Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of the PM to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable, the former prime minister said on the eve of last day of campaigning in Gujarat, where the second phase polling is scheduled for December 14.

The Congress reproduced the statement, as well as a list of people who attended the December 6 meeting, on Twitter. The list included former vice-president Hamid Ansari and Pakistan High Commissioner, as well as some senior Indian journalists.


Manas Dasgupta

Tribune News Service

Ahmedabad, December 11

Barring a Modi magic, the BJP is unlikely to have an easy passage in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shahs home within home, the north Gujarat region which had caused the ruling party a setback in the last elections even when Modi was the chief minister.

The setback for the BJP in north Gujarat region in 2012, when the situation was considered to be conducive for the ruling party, was surprising because it was expected that success for the third consecutive term for Modi, their son of the soil, would make him a strong contender within the BJP for staking claim for prime ministership in the 2014 Parliamentary elections.

It did happen but such a prospect still failed to excite the voters of his home region then.

Modi hails from Vadnagar in Mehsana district, the hotbed of the Patidar movement for reservation benefits, while Amit Shah is from Modasa in Sabarkantha district.

But neither of them ever contested any election from there. Modis introduction to the electoral politics was from Rajkot West from where he shifted to Maninagar in Ahmedabad city and then to Vadodara in central Gujarat and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh for the Parliamentary elections.

Amit Shah all along contested from different seats in Ahmedabad city in the Assembly elections. Ahmedabad city has remained a BJP citadel for the last two decades or so.

Though Mehsana had earned the distinction of having elected one of the two BJP MPs from all over the country when the entire party was wiped out in the sympathy vote after Indira Gandhis assassination, the north Gujarat region was traditionally a Congress stronghold till it changed from the days of the 2002 communal riots.

While most other parts of the state remained unaffected in the aftermath of the Godhra train carnage, the north Gujarat region witnessed the worst kind of communal riots and surprisingly for the first time the tribals in the region joined in launching vicious attacks on the minorities, though other parts of the vast tribal belt stretching from Bulsar in south Gujarat to Banaskantha in north through the Panchamahals and Dahod districts in central Gujarat remained peaceful.

In north Gujarat, the tribals mainly worked as land labourers in the fields owned by upper castes due to which perhaps they were forced to join in the attack on the minorities.

The undercurrent of the Hindutva wave that started from 2002 was clearly visible in the 2007 elections also when the BJP romped home with 38 of the 53 seats in seven districts in the region, including Ahmedabad which alone accounted for 21 seats, but the 2009 Parliamentary elections saw return of the tribals to the Congress fold.

The last state Assembly elections in 2012 witnessed considerable erosion of the BJP base in the region in terms of both the number of seats and vote share.

While the number of seats dropped to 32 with 21 going to the Congress, the BJP suffered about two per cent loss in vote share directly benefitting the Congress.

But for Ahmedabad city and district, which strongly backed the BJP better than even in 2007, the ruling party would have suffered even heavier damage in the region.

The Patel reservation agitation which started from Mehsana and spread to other parts of the state has further complicated the situation for the BJP in the current election.

With both OBC Manch convenor Alpesh Thakor, who has since joined the Congress, and Dalit face Jignesh Mevani, who is also contesting the elections from this region, the OBC and Dalit agitations are also likely to impact the BJPs fortunes.

In addition, the recent heavy floods in the Banaskantha and Patan districts with the affected complaining of governments failure to provide them timely relief has also become a major election issue.

The BJP is trying to counter it by launching an anti-Congress tirade that its elected representatives had run away to the comforts of a luxurious resort in Bengaluru when the flood-hit people in north Gujarat were fighting for their lives.

The insinuation was directed at the political tussle going on at that time over Ahmed Patel, the political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, fighting for the Rajya Sabha elections and flew away 43 Congress MLAs to Bengaluru for protecting them against alleged poaching by the BJP.

The BJP is also seeking votes in the name of the Sujalam-Sufalam and the Narmada projects which have substantially improved the irrigation potential in the region where depleting subsoil water level had always been a serious matter of concern for the farmers and the governments owing to overuse since the region perennially was a drought-hit area.

It was from here in Mehsana and Visnagar that Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti convenor Hardik Patel and his team began the reservation agitation in July, 2015, and in response Alpesh Thakor mobilised vast sections of OBCs to send warning signals to the government against tampering with the existing reservations model.

The Congress is pinning its hopes on consolidation of Patel-OBC-Dalit votes, primarily due to unprecedented support to the three youngsters  Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakor and Jignesh Mevani, all the three drawing large crowds to their rallies.

While Patels dominate the political landscape in Mehsana, Visnagar and Viramgam, Thakors play a key role in Sabarkantha, Banaskantha, Patan, Arvalli, Gandhinagar and Mehsana districts.

If the young Troika, particularly Hardik, who led a massive road show in the city, can make any difference in Ahmedabad, it would be a huge bonus for the Congress.
New Delhi, December 11

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday demanded to know what happened at a meeting held between Congress leaders and Pakistani diplomats, hours after the Congress condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modis insinuations that the party was taking Pakistans assistance to interfere with the ongoing Gujarat Assembly elections.

After former prime minister Manmohan Singh called Modis allegations canards and falsehoods made fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, Jaitley  a leader of the Bharatiya Janata Patry  responded saying that the meeting was a "misadventure" of former prime minister Singh and other Congress leaders with Pakistani diplomat that the party must explain.

Congress must come out with detailed facts what transpired in that meeting and what was the necessity of having it in present circumstances.Yesterday they were in denial about it and today instead of accepting it as a misadventure, they try to blame those raising the issue, he said.

Former PM Manmohan Singh has issued a statement asking PM Modi to apologise for what he said in an election rally with regard to a meeting involving Pakistani delegations. It is surprising that Congress party expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it, he said.

No govt in the past has track record that this govt has had in fighting terrorism, he said, addressing Singhs allegations that the Prime Minister chose to pay Pakistan a surprise visit in December 2015 despite two militant attacks  in Gurdaspur (July 2015) and Udhampur (August 2015)  earlier that year.

Singh said in a statement that he was pained and anguished at the canards and falsehoods that his successor Modi was spreading to score political points. He was referring to the Prime Ministers statements that Congress leaders  including Singh and suspended Congressman Mani Shankar Aiyar  met Pakistan diplomats at Aiyars house on December 6 to collude to "interfere" with Gujarat elections.

Congress has since clarified that the meeting was held to discuss relations between India and Pakistan. Besides Singh and Aiyar, former vice-president Hamid Ansari, senior journalists and Pakistani diplomats attended the meeting.

Also on Monday, Pakistan asked India to stop dragging in into the latter's domestic politics.  Agencies
Beijing, December 11

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said India and Chinas strategic interests outweigh partial frictions and handling of the Dokalam standoff through diplomatic means reflects the importance of bilateral ties.

Ahead of his visit to India to attend the Russia-India-China (RIC) foreign ministers meeting to be held in New Delhi on Monday during which he would also hold talks with top Indian officials, Wang said China always valued good neighbourliness and friendship between the two countries as we are each others big neighbours and ancient civilisations.

He said India-China strategic interests outweighed differences and partial friction.

We have handled the issue of cross-border incursions by the Indian border troops into Chinas Donglang (Dokalam) area through diplomatic measures, Wang told a symposium here last week, maintaining Beijings stand.

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Through diplomatic means, the Indian side withdrew its equipment and personnel which reflected the value and importance of China-India relations and demonstrated sincerity and responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability, he said in his speech in Chinese posted on the website of the foreign ministry.

China and India have far greater shared strategic interests than differences, and far greater needs for cooperation than partial friction, he said.

As long as China and India continue to engage in in-depth strategic communication and promptly dispel strategic misgivings, the strategic value of bilateral cooperation will be presented more clearly to the people, there will be a prospect of the dragon and the elephant dancing together with 1+1=11 outlook, Wang said.

The references to India by Wang were part of a lengthy speech about Chinas diplomatic achievements in 2017 and its relations this year with various countries, including the US, Russia, Japan and countries in the disputed South China Sea region.

Wangs visit to New Delhi is the first by a top Chinese official to India after the 73-day Dokalam standoff and after the commencement of the second five-year term of President Xi Jinping.

The over two-month Dokalam standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to Indias Chicken Neck corridor. India had objected to the construction highlighting its security concerns. The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.

Wangs visit to Delhi is expected to be followed by top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechis trip later this month to attend the 20th round of China-India boundary talks.

Yang and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval are the designated special representatives for the border talks later this month. Both officials are also mandated to discuss the state of entire gamut of bilateral ties.

In his address, at the symposium themed on international developments and Chinas diplomacy in 2017, Wang spoke about Chinas foreign policy outlook enunciated by the once-in-five-years congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October.

The 19th CPC National Congress had charted the course for Chinas external relations. Wang said China needed to create a more favourable external environment and stronger external impetus to create a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

For Chinas diplomacy in the new era, we will take a longer and broader perspective and be even more open-minded and resourceful, he said.

He reiterated that war is by no means acceptable in dealing with the nuclear issue related to North Korea, stressing that the possibility of negotiations remains.

On ties with the US, he said, China is willing, on the basis of mutual respect, to live peacefully with the American superpower. The US needs to understand and accept a China that is following its own path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, one suited to its own conditions, official media quoted him as saying.

He said the China-Russia relationship had become a major cornerstone for world peace and stability, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

On the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), he said it had become the most popular international public goods programme.

Chinese businesses had invested over USD 50 billion and created nearly 200,000 local jobs in countries that were participating, he said.

India has objected to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). CPEC is a part of the BRI.

On Wangs visit to Delhi, Chinese think-tanks said RIC foreign ministers meeting offered Beijing and New Delhi an opportunity for face-to-face communication, which would effectively help both sides step out of the shadow of the Dokalam standoff.

Admittedly, the past months have witnessed a downbeat narrative between the neighbours rather than a positive one, but with the meeting, China and India will send a message to the world that they will return to a stable and peaceful track, said Qian Feng, an analyst at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies told state-run Global Times.

China and India have disagreements on counter-terrorism, especially when it involves Pakistan, and China is unlikely to give up its stance on this issue during this meeting, Wang Dehua, head of the Institute for South and Central Asian Studies, told the daily.

China has opposed Indias moves to get Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar listed as a terrorist by the UN.

Wang Dehua also said persistent and honest talks between the two sides might help sort out differences on BRI.

China also continues to oppose Indias bid to enter the NSG primarily on the grounds that New Delhi is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). PTI
Smita Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 11

Amid heavy security and barricading in the capital to keep away Tibetan protesters, Foreign Ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) met on Monday in an effort to find common positions on contentious and crucial issues.

Discussions focussed on global economy, terrorism, transnational organised crime, climate change, political scenario in Middle East, North Africa and the Afghan and Korean situation.

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov stressed that the fight against terrorism should be united and there must not be any kind of compromise in this regard.

I put across my view that significant rise in acts of terrorism by terrorist organisations like Taliban, Daesh (ISIS), al-Qaeda and LeT directly undermine international peace and security and endanger ongoing efforts to strengthen the global economy and ensure sustainable growth and development, remarked Sushma Swaraj.

Terrorism found substantial play in the joint communique issued after the talks. Without naming and shaming Pakistan-based terror masterminds and outfits, the communique said, We stress that those committing, organising, inciting or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with the obligations under international law, including the principle of "extradite or prosecute as well as the applicable domestic legislations.

We agree to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities, the joint release further added.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi informed his dialogue partners about the 19th Communist Party Congress developments. In veiled remarks dismissing allegations around One Belt One Road, Wang Yi stressed that China believes Connectivity projects should complement not conflict with each other and is committed to work with other countries for an inclusive world.

We underline the importance of establishment of a just and equitable international order based on international law and featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice in international relations, the communique said while pitching for dialogue instead of external force to resolve ongoing global crises. The RIC also sought a two-state solution to the Palestinian conflict.

Sushma Swaraj also held separate bilateral dialogues with Wang Yi and Lavrov. With the Chinese the main objective was to look at ways to bridge the trust deficit that was widened post the Doklam standoff.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi and I agreed that we should further strengthen our mutual trust to develop a better understanding between the two parties. And it will be better to meet again and without agenda, which will help us to expand our mutual understanding, said Swaraj.
New Delhi, December 11

Former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh today lashed out at PM Narendra Modi for spreading canards about a recent dinner between some Indian and Pakistani dignitaries and said the PM should apologise to the nation for his ill-thought transgression.

He was speaking after Modi accused the Congress of hobnobbing with Pakistan in attempts to impact election results in Gujarat.

Editorial: Arrest them all

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than PM Narendra Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of PM to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable, Singh said in a statement, adding that the PM, with his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of the former PM and Army Chief, was setting a dangerous precedent.

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In a signed statement, Singh said Gujarat elections were not discussed at the recent dinner meeting, which former Congress MP Mani Shankar Aiyar hosted. The dinner was attended among others by former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri.

I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner as alleged by Mr Modi, nor was Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations. None of those who attended the dinner could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities, Dr Singh said.

The former PM hoped the PM would show maturity expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points. I hope the PM will apologise to the nation.

Dr Singh, who attended the dinner along with former Vice-President Hamid Ansari, added that the Congress did not need any sermons on nationalism from a party and PM whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

Let me remind Shri Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic airbase in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan, Singh added.  TNS

Dont lamely question public service record

"My track record of public service to the country over the last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Shri Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground." Dr Manmohan Singh, Ex-PM

Must be prepared to answer questions

"The meeting was a political misadventure... Congress should explain the context of attending the dinner hosted by suspended party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for Pakistan diplomats. The main Opposition party was expected to follow the national policy, which states that terror and talks cannot go hand-in-hand. If anyone defies the national line, he should be prepared to answer questions." Arun Jaitley, FM
Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 11

Punjab has been battling financial crunch, but austerity seems to be meant only for the common man as the government has recently almost doubled the allowance for treatment of its ministers, legislators, former MLAs and their dependents.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed with 33 top corporate hospitals of the region and the empanelment rates  those applicable under the Central Government Health Scheme  would be double than that for the government staff.

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Among others, Medanta, Gurgaon; Delhi-based Escorts and Centre for Sight and Max and Fortis hospitals in Mohali are on the empanelment list.

The VIPs and employees were earlier paid equally at rates charged by PGI, Chandigarh, and AIIMS, New Delhi.

Sources said the move was initiated by the state department of parliamentary affairs and a brief given to the health department was to empanel all top hospitals of the region.

Principal Secretary (Parliamentary Affairs) KAP Sinha did not respond to repeated calls by The Tribune.

The idea to empanel major private facilities was the brainchild of the previous SAD-BJP coalition and it had begun the process in its last year of rule.

After taking charge, the Congress government ordered a review of various decisions taken by the previous regime, but for the one to empanel the hospitals so that the VIPs and their family members didnt face any difficulty when it came to treatment, said an official.

In 2016, the government had introduced cashless health insurance for its employees and dependants and had even tried to bring the legislators under its ambit. But the MLAs, cutting across party lines, gave a big thumbs down to the proposal and insisted on empanelment of top private hospitals, a demand the Congress government has fulfilled, the official added.
Chandigarh, December 11

The state government is making all round efforts to provide skill training to the youth of the state and provide them job opportunities at both home and abroad. As part of this initiative, a delegation from South Korea today called on Technical Education and Industrial Training Minister Charanjit Singh Channi.

The delegation included chief of Daora Trading Company of South Korea Seong G Kim and CEO of Biotrack International Hee Seung Kang. The minister said the South Korean delegation had proposed to provide job avenues to 10,000 youth from Punjab annually and for this purpose, the delegation members had also proposed opening a centre in the state teaching Korean language.  TNS
AT a general meeting of the Association of Medical Women in India held at Bombay last week Lady Willingdon made an encouraging speech on the increasing capacity shown by medical women in India. "One of the greatest lessons we have learnt in the war," said her Excellency, "is the extent to which women can undertake with success the most diverse forms of public duty." She then referred to the work of the Women's Branch of War Relief Work which impressed upon her the versatility, ability and self-sacrifice which women could bring to bear upon a task which inspired them above all things. One of the war hospitals in Bombay, Her Excellency pointed out, was entirely staffed by women-including the surgical staff and this gave no small encouragement to the women doctors who found immense scope for their work in India. After the war, she urged the women workers should redouble their efforts and extend their work and there was no doubt that the substantial work already done would ensure their success in future.
THE gracious message for that 'Our Day' which Lady O'Dwyer has addressed to the school girls of this province will, we feel sure, be read with deep interest and attention throughout the province. Lady O'Dwyer has already done a great deal in connection with the Comforts for Soldiers Fund associated with her name and other War Funds and led the movement in this province for alleviation of the sufferings of our gallant soldiers, which has recently come in for a deserved recognition in the form of the Commandership of the Order of the British Empire. An appeal from her Ladyship to the women and girls of the Punjab would therefore, command attention.
Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 9

Lt Gen Sagat Singh was brought alive today at the Military Literature Festival when his audio recording was played at a session where he talked about his role in transporting nearly 2,500 men across Meghna river to the gate of Dhaka in helicopters.

...I was commander of para-brigade and I had full experience in the use of helicopters in offensive role the directive was issued that helicopter could carry one company only and they also asked for my firm plans... I told them I couldnt give firm plans... said Lt Gen Sagat, in an audio recording of 1974.

Maj Gen Rajendra Nath (retd), who fought the 1971 war on the eastern front, said Dhaka was well defended by rivers on two sides, so crossing over in helicopters was decisive. Lt Gen Sagat was the best commander the world has ever seen. Had he not been commanding 4 Corps in the 1971 war and Group Captain CS Sandhu (retd) not been there, Bangladesh would still have been East Pakistan. He had the courage to say no to his superiors, said Major Chandrakant Singh (retd), who was part of the first sortie of helicopters that flew across the Meghna. He won the Vir Chakra for his role in the war.

Major Singh said Lt Gen Sagat crossed the Meghna without any orders as he wanted to capture Dhaka. Defying orders, Lt Gen Sagat had opened artillery fire on the Chinese to defend Nathu La in 1967. Thereafter, he was sidelined and given an administrative post.

Group Captain Sandhu said they only had five Mi-4 helicopters that carried 17 troops each, five more than their capacity. Hundreds of sorties had to be carried out despite the copters being hit by small firearms.

Group Captain Sandhu, squadron leader during the war, also got the Vir Chakra. Pakistan surrendered on December 16, 1971.

Maj Gen VK Singh (retd), who has written biography of Lt Gen Sagat, said, He was the best combat leader who never got any gallantry award. About his plans to airlift troops, he said, The Air Force Headquarters said they wouldnt take the risk of landing at an unknown place. Group Captain Chandan Singh told them that the biggest boots had left his footprint there. He was referring to Lt Gen Sagat. So, without permission, they landed at an unknown location.

Lt Gen GS Sihota (retd), former Army Commander of the Southern Command, who too was part of the 1971 war, said, None of us dared to say no to him. He never showed he was worried.
CAIRO, December 11

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday intensified efforts to rally Middle Eastern countries against US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, setting up talks with Arab leaders beginning in Cairo.

Abbas will meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, which has been a key broker in past peace talks with Israel and between fighting Palestinian factions, before heading for Istanbul to give a speech, his office said.

Arab states condemned US President Donald Trump's Jerusalem decision last week, and vowed to press international bodies to take action against it. The Arab Parliament held an emergency meeting on the issue in Cairo on Monday, state news agency MENA reported.

Sisi, after a separate meeting with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin, said the US moving its Israel embassy to Jerusalem would have "dangerous effects on peace and security in the region".

Abbas met the head of the Arab League in Cairo on Monday, local media reported. Arab foreign ministers held an hours-long emergency meeting at the weekend and vowed to seek a UN Security Council resolution rejecting the US move, but gave few details on other measures they would take.

The Palestinians hope for concrete action.

"Daring Palestinian and Arab decisions are required in the coming stage, which is very important," Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah told Palestinian official news agency WAFA.

World powers have said the US move will impede peace efforts in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict as anger spreads across the region.

The Trump administration says it is still committed to the peace process.

Abbas will not meet Mike Pence during the US Vice President's visit to the region later this month, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said on Saturday.

Egypt's top Muslim and Christian religious leaders also said they would not meet Pence.

Abbas is expected to make a statement after his meeting with Sisi, the Palestinian embassy in Cairo said, without giving details.

Egypt, along with Jordan  a key US ally in the region that has helped broker past peace deals and has good relations with Israel  has said the Jerusalem move undermines efforts to end the conflict.

It has also brokered reconciliation deals between Abbas's Fatah party and Gaza-based Islamist group Hamas, which called for a new uprising against Israel last week.

The planned handover of control of Gaza to the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority under the latest deal hit another delay on Sunday, with a Fatah official blaming "obstacles" without elaborating.

Israel launched fresh air strikes in Gaza on Saturday in response to rocket fire from the enclave, where it fought a war in 2014 that killed more than 2,000 people, most of them civilians. Reuters
Moscow, December 11

President Vladimir Putin ordered a significant part of Russias military contingent in Syria to start withdrawing on Monday, saying Moscow and Damascus had achieved their mission of destroying Islamic State in just over two years.

Putin, who polls show will be re-elected comfortably in March, made the announcement during a surprise visit to Russias Hmeymim air base in Syria, where he held talks with President Bashar al-Assad and addressed Russian forces.

The Kremlin first launched air strikes in Syria in September 2015 in its biggest Middle East intervention in decades, turning the tide of the conflict in Assads favour, while dramatically increasing Moscows own influence in the region.

Syrian state television quoted Assad as thanking Putin for Russias help, saying the blood of Moscows martyrs had been mixed with the blood of the Syrian army.

Russias campaign, which has been extensively covered on state TV, has not caught the imagination of most Russians. But nor has it stirred unease of the kind the Soviet Union faced with its calamitous 1980s intervention in Afghanistan.

The use of private military contractors, something which has been documented by Reuters but denied by the defence ministry, has allowed Moscow to keep the public casualty toll fairly low.

Russias mission completed moment in Syria may help Putin increase the turnout at the March presidential election by appealing to the patriotism of voters.

Though polls show he will easily win, they also show that some Russians are increasingly apathetic about politics, and Putins supporters are keen to get him re-elected on a big turnout, which in their eyes confers legitimacy.

Putin, who has dominated Russias political landscape for the last 17 years with the help of state television, told Russian servicemen they would return home as victors.

The task of fighting armed bandits here in Syria, a task that it was essential to solve with the help of extensive use of armed force, has for the most part been solved, and solved spectacularly, said Putin.

Wearing a dark suit and speaking in front of a row of servicemen holding Russian flags, Putin said his military had proved its might, that Moscow had succeeded in keeping Syria intact as a sovereign independent state and that the conditions had been created for a political solution.

Putin is keen to organise a special event in Russia -- the Syrian Congress on National Dialogue  that Moscow hopes will bring together the Syrian government and opposition and try to hammer out a new constitution. I congratulate you! Putin told the servicemen.

A significant part of the Russian military contingent in the Syrian Arab Republic is returning home, to Russia. The Motherland is waiting for you.  Reuters
Riyadh, December 11

Saudi Arabia lifted a 35-year-old ban on cinemas on Monday, prompting celebrations from film fans, directors and movie chains eyeing the mass market in the Middle East.

The first theatres could start showing films as early as March, the government said, part of a liberalising reform drive that has already opened the door to concerts, comedy shows, and women drivers over the past year.

Cinemas were banned in the early 1980s under pressure from Islamists as Saudi society turned towards a particularly conservative form of the religion. But reforms led by 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman have eased many of those restrictions, as the government tries to broaden the economy.  Reuters
Seoul, December 11

South Korea says it has added several North Korean groups and individuals to its sanctions list as part of efforts to cut off funding for the North weapons programmes.

South Koreas government says the sanctions on 20 North Korean groups and 12 individuals took effect from today.

Seoul is among the first to respond to North Koreas November 29 missile launch with fresh sanctions. The government says it hopes its move will prompt the international community to do likewise.

US President Donald Trumps UN ambassador has been urging the world to cut trade and diplomatic ties with Pyongyang.

Separately, South Korea, the United States and Japan started their two-day missile tracking drills today.  AP
Wagoner Community Hospital at 1200 W. Cherokee St. will host an American Red Cross blood drive Sunday, Dec. 17 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

All area potential blood donors are invited to stop by and donate. Donors will receive a long-sleeved Red Cross T-shirt, while supplies last.

Jane Hale with the ARC said in December, donations decline but the needs of patients remain steady.

Alison Wissen knows the power of blood donations. She received 22 units of blood products after experiencing complications during childbirth.

I truly owe my life to blood donors, she said. Even the skilled hands of my surgeons could not have saved me without the blood.

Because of blood and platelet donors, Wissen will celebrate the holidays with her three children and husband.

During the holiday season, please set aside an hour to give the most important gift, Hale invites. Give blood and give more life.

To make an appointment, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-733-2767.

A blood donor card or drivers license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age and weigh at least 120 pounds in general good health may be eligible to donate.
More than 10,000 Tulsa Public Schools students are chronically absent.

The states second-largest district  with about 39,000 students  wants to lower its chronic absentee rate from just above 25.7 percent to 24 percent. That would still be far higher than the national average  13.7 percent.

TPS has started what it calls a district-wide shift in managing attendance, setting goals of raising the attendance rate and lowering the number of students who are chronically absent, which means a student misses 10 percent or more of the school year. The initiative is a considerable investment of resources for TPS  creating teams across departments to make attendance a higher priority at every school.

We realized that our schools needed an actual structure in place in order to make this body of work pretty prevalent, relevant and in the face of school leaders and parents every day, said Ebony Johnson, executive director of family and student support services for TPS.

And the attendance data shows that the district has a considerable way to climb. Some TPS high schools that have typically lower graduation rates and test scores also have some of the districts higher rates of chronic absenteeism. At Webster High School, 31.8 percent of students were chronically absent in the 2016-17 school year. McLain High School for Science & Technology had a 38.9 percent chronic absentee rate.

The districts efforts are focused on uniformity across the district, Johnson said.

Theres about three to four people every single day that designate a portion of their day to actually look at data, whos missing, which teachers didnt take attendance and how can we move the needle on a daily basis, she said.

On a near daily basis, the district tweets about attendance. It sends notifications to parents through mobile applications. In the coming months, there will be a district-wide messaging system that will let parents know when their child doesnt show up, and the district plans to experiment with attendance incentives.

TPSs new focus on real-time data is coming into play as officials work to manage attendance.

The districts data team, Johnson said, has trained the attendance clerks who work in the main offices of schools to use the data dashboard to see which teachers havent taken attendance and how trends are looking in real time.

That real-time data, she said, has already revealed what teachers have long known: Attendance dips just before Thanksgiving and Christmas.

A TPS report that Johnson presented to the TPS school board on Monday showed that gifted students and English language learners attended school at a higher rate. Poverty also seems to be a factor, as the report said students who qualified for free and reduced lunch went to school less than those who didnt. Asian and Hispanic students had higher rates of attendance than any other demographic.

The report touted some small gains the district had made, noting gains in attendance rate of less than a percentage point at Key, Whitman and Wright elementary schools.

Less than a percentage point meant a sizable uptick, staff noted, because of how many total instructional days the district has.
| By Patricia Fanning

A University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)-led clinic has begun helping patients who are discharged from the University of Maryland Prince Georges County (UMPG) Hospital Center to succeed in their transitions from hospital or the emergency department to home by addressing circumstances that could harm their health and lead to readmissions.

The new Interprofessional Care Transitions Clinic (ICTC) in Cheverly, Md., is designed to expand access and continuity of care for Medicare, Medicaid, and newly insured patients who lack access to a primary care provider by addressing that gap after their discharge.

We saw a way to assemble around these patients a team of professionals who can integrate the kind of treatment and services that promote health and well-being, said UMB President Jay A. Perman, MD. We saw a way to keep patients out of the hospital and the emergency department and in their home communities.

Partially supported by a two-year, $1.2 million grant to UMB from the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission (CHRC), several collaborating institutions established the clinic in June at the University of Maryland Family Health and Wellness Center on the UMPG hospital centers campus. Leaders of UMB, the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), and University of Maryland Capital Region Health (UMCRH) celebrated its formal opening on Nov. 28, 2017, with remarks and a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

(View a photo gallery.)

Magaly Rodriguez de Bittner, PharmD, FAPhA, professor and associate dean at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, leads an interprofessional team helping to improve patients' continuity of care in Prince George's County.

To facilitate patients linkages to providers within the community, the ICTC combines the clinic and two UMB-managed resources: the Governors Wellmobile operated by the UM School of Nursing (UMSON) and the e-Health Center operated by the UM School of Pharmacy (UMSOP). The clinic is an interprofessional, team-based program that includes pharmacists, nurse practitioners, social workers, and lawyers.

This rich representation is critical, because we know that collaboration among a health care team is essential for vulnerable patients, said Perman, who conducts his own interprofessional pediatric clinic each week at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.

Howard Haft, MD, deputy secretary for public health at the Maryland Department of Health, called the ICTC an important development in health care delivery by providing an interprofessional model for times of transition to care from hospital to community.

Services provided by the ICTC are funded by the University of Maryland schools of pharmacy, nursing, social work, and law; UMPG hospital center; and the CHRC.

This important and innovative project will help expand access to health care for vulnerable populations in Prince Georges County, said Mark Luckner, CHRC executive director. The commission is thrilled to support this project, which is innovative, sustainable, and replicable.

The ICTC has transitions in its name because it offers patient-centered services to hard-to-reach individuals and those with complex cases as these patients undergo transitions in care.

Transitions, such as moving from hospital to home or hospital to long-term care facility, increase the risk of adverse events due to the potential for miscommunication as responsibility is given to new parties, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, which also notes that hospital discharge is a complex process representing a time of significant vulnerability. Nationally and locally, measures are in place to reduce readmissions.

The new clinics model is to provide continuity of care as people go through these transitions, which also may include release from an emergency department after an urgent health issue. To do so, the ICTC relies on three elements: services provided at the UM Family Health and Wellness Center; services offered by the Wellmobile at locations in Bladensburg, Greenbelt, Langley Park, and Laurel; and an e-Health Center that connects with patients via telephone and/or telehealth.

Magaly Rodriguez de Bittner, PharmD, FAPhA, professor and associate dean at the UMSOP, directs the ICTC. In describing the clinics innovative model, she introduced many of the individuals who would otherwise remain behind the scenes. And in thanking them for the many ways in which they care for newly discharged patients, she gave an example of one team member who literally went the extra mile.

Imagine you get home, within 48 hours you get a phone call from our e-Health Center asking you what your needs are, she said. In this case, there was a medication problem. To resolve it, one of the clinics pharmacists drove to a Prince Georges County pharmacy to ascertain that the homebound patient would get the prescription.

We take into account patient preferences, she said, such as whether people wish to be seen at the clinic in Cheverly or in the Wellmobile closer to their homes. This expanded, interprofessional team care model will meet patient needs where they are  either at the clinic or right in their neighborhoods  creating flexibility and innovation in a true, patient-centric model.

The clinics objectives are to address patients needs across the continuum of interprofessional practice by utilizing nurse practitioners, clinical pharmacists, nurse care managers, lawyers, and social workers to reduce wait time for follow-up appointments post-discharge from the hospital or emergency department; to increase the percentage of patients receiving transitional care in the community post-discharge; to connect patients with primary care providers; and to assist patients with social and legal issues that impact their health.

Sherry B. Perkins, PhD, RN, FAAN, executive vice president and chief operating officer of UMCRH, spoke of the rapport that team members create with patients: Mary, 67, who had been hospitalized more than once, was discharged after being treated for chest pain and revealed that she was about to become homeless.

The ICTC team helped Mary mange her social, housing, and medication issues, briefed the doctor on her concerns, and scheduled her follow-up visit, Perkins said. Mary had lacked a primary care provider; now she sees one right in our building.

The ICTC expects to care for 1,200 to 1,500 people in Prince Georges County over the two-year period. The intent is to link them to primary care providers within 60 days, despite gaps in the countys provider workforce.

Bradford L. Seamon, chair of the board of UMCRH, alluded to the provider challenges facing Prince Georges County in his remarks, saying he hopes the program will bring in people who will train here, serve here, and hopefully stay here.

Also participating in the ceremony were Robert A. Chrencik, MBA, CPA, president and and chief executive officer of UMMS; and Neil J. Moore, MBA, MPH, MPA, president and chief executive officer of UMCRH.

UMB was represented at the event by, among others, Jane M. Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean of UMSON; Richard P. Barth, PhD, MSW, dean of the UM School of Social Work; and Bruce Jarrell, MD, FACS, executive vice president, provost, and dean of the Graduate School.

Team members conducted tours of the ICTC and of the Wellmobile during a reception after the ceremony.
| By Laura Lee

University, state, and technology leaders gathered at the newly renovated Lion Brothers Building in the BioPark to launch UM Ventures 2.0, the next step in a joint technology commercialization initiative of the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP).

The Lion Brothers Building, once an abandoned embroidery factory, now features a sleek, modern space designed to attract startup entrepreneurs seeking a place to develop and grow their business ideas. And its not just for students, according to UMB President Jay A. Perman, MD. This is truly a community space where students, faculty, staff, alumni, and entrepreneurs  inside and outside the University and the University System  can work shoulder to shoulder on the next big thing or the next small thing that can make a big difference, he said to the crowd of about 150 that attended the launch.

The innovation center, dubbed the Grid, an acronym for Graduate Research Innovation District, will have on-site experts, including an intellectual property law clinic staffed by a University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law professor and a Maryland Small Business Development Center where budding entrepreneurs can receive advice and support for their business ventures.

The space also will be home to educational opportunities such as workshops and a new degree program in health and social innovation, whose students will be able to concentrate in areas like life sciences, user experience, or science communication. Jenny Owens, ScD, MS, faculty executive director for the GRID, said the opening of the new space feels wonderful. The building has been under construction since the summer and the degree program weve been working on for a year, so its a big day for us, she said with a satisfied smile.

"What you see here today is the opening of a facility that represents the future, said UMCP President Wallace D. Loh, PhD, JD. Were no longer just research universities. We are research and innovate universities.

Christian Kinney, a graduate school student working on a PhD in genetics, is a future innovator. As a newly chosen Presidents Entrepreneurial Fellow, hes been working with UM Ventures to have an invention patented. Kinney said he likes the open floor plan of the space, but more importantly he likes the planning hell be able to do with like-minded entrepreneurs. I think this will be really beneficial, he said. I can talk with other entrepreneurs here, people whove already been there and done all this, as well as people who are in my shoes just starting out.

UMCP President Wallace D. Loh, USM Chancellor Robert Caret, and UMB President Jay A. Perman at the launch of UM Ventures 2.0

Perman said the GRID is a way to connect people, ideas, and universities. Its a way to connect our institutions  because this is truly a system-wide space, and everyone in the system will make it what its meant to be.

University System of Maryland Chancellor Robert L. Caret, PhD, agreed. Today we see an example of a great partnership between two of our major research universities in the system and the state, he said.

[Both universities] will continue to do what they do first for the students that we serve, but also for the economic vitality of the state as a whole.

The GRID was a natural next step for the UM Ventures partnership, which in just five years has doubled the number of technologies licensed to commercial partners and launched 35 new startup companies in the last two years.

Another important aspect of UM Ventures 2.0 is funding. The Baltimore Fund, a part of the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State, will provide rent subsidies to companies affiliated with any system institution, including Morgan State and St. Marys College. The funding, which can subsidize rent for up to a year, is intended to build upon a growing urban culture of entrepreneurship.

The innovation center also will house UMCPs Robert E. Fischell Institute for Biomedical Devices, which accelerates the commercialization of medical devices.

Maryland Deputy Commerce Secretary Benjamin Wu noted the state has been a proud supporter of the Fischell Institute, which has been a force for innovation and an economic engine for the state. The Fischell Institute, he said, will help train the next generation of workers in the life sciences field and will help create jobs that will help sustain our biotech preeminence.

UM Ventures 2.0 is about innovation and entrepreneurship. Its about connecting makers, doers, and creators with one another and providing the resources to make their dreams a reality.

Albert Zhou, an MDPhd candidate, is studying epidemiology and human genetics. He plans to make use of the GRID to pursue a business idea. Having a place like this and having a place where you can develop your ideas is wonderful, he said.
Refugees and migrants sleep on the floor at the Tariq al-Sikka detention facility in Tripoli, Libya.  UNHCR/Iason Foounten

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, launched today an urgent appeal calling for 1,300 resettlement places to be made available by the end of March 2018 for highly vulnerable refugees stranded in Libya.

This is a desperate call for solidarity and humanity. We need to get extremely vulnerable refugees out of Libya as soon as possible, said Volker Turk, UNHCRs Assistant High Commissioner for Protection.

Many refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons in Libya are victims of serious violations of human rights, including different forms of inhumane, cruel and degrading treatment, says UNHCRs Flash Appeal, which also notes that a large number of them are detained for an indefinite period of time in deplorable conditions.

As the refugee protection agency, UNHCR is strongly opposed to the routine detention of refugees and displaced people, and continuously advocates for alternatives to detention and for fair asylum systems.

Given the imminent humanitarian needs and the rapidly deteriorating conditions in detention centres in Libya, UNHCR is actively working to organize more life-saving refugee evacuations to Niger in the coming weeks and months, said Turk. A first group of 25 refugees of Eritrean, Ethiopian and Sudanese nationalities were evacuated from Libya to Niger last month.

Vulnerable refugees are to be evacuated to Niger and hopefully other emergency transit mechanisms pending their resettlement to other countries. They include unaccompanied children, single female parents, women at risk, people with serious medical conditions as well as people who have been severely tortured or ill-treated during their journey or in detention in Libya.

In view of the current critical humanitarian situation in Libya and the appalling conditions in detention centres, UNHCR once again calls upon the solidarity of the international community, said Turk.

Given the seriousness of the situation for refugees in Libya, we need to explore all sorts of solutions, including resettlement, family reunification, evacuation to UNHCR-run emergency facilities in other countries, or voluntary return, he added.

UNHCRs Resettlement Flash Appeal for Libya

For more information on this topic, please contact:
UW Initiates Unique Program to Increase Promising Minds Entering Teaching Profession

UW Associate Professor Alan Buss teaches College of Education students in an elementary school math class. A newly approved UW program, UW Enterprise for Elevating Educational Excellence, aims to create a pipeline of prospective teachers by connecting with them when they are sophomores in high school. (UW Photo)

The University of Wyoming aims to create a new pipeline of future educators by connecting with high school students across the state in an innovative teacher training program.

In Wyoming and across the nation, too few top students are choosing to pursue careers in education, which is resulting in a shortage of qualified teachers in some areas. Additionally, many new teachers do not have enough classroom experience as they enter the career, causing both them and their students to struggle.

The UW Board of Trustees recently approved a Trustees Education Initiative (TEI) innovation proposal to address these problems. The initiative will create a unique fellowship program called UW Enterprise for Elevating Educational Excellence, or UW-E4. It is expected that the first students will begin the program in summer 2019.

The Board of Trustees created the TEI in 2015 to develop innovative and modern methods to ensure UW prepares effective educators for Wyoming. UW-E4 is one of four TEI proposals to date approved by the Board of Trustees to move forward for implementation at the UW College of Education.

This model not only will help to expand a teacher candidates view of the profession, but it also ostensibly will get them to follow a pathway that is a high-need pathway in Wyoming, says TEI Executive Director Rebecca Watts.

The program starts enveloping students in the profession as sophomores in high school through Educators Rising chapters at their schools. These chapters promote the educator professions and function much like the National FFA Organization does for agricultural careers.

UW Trustees Education Initiative Executive Director Rebecca Watts

Fellows will complete dual-enrollment, Advanced Placement and/or International Baccalaureate courses in high school, earning college credit that will result in them entering UW as rising sophomores immediately after high school graduation. This aspect of the program is critical, as it provides the students with time to complete a full-year student teaching residency during their fourth year at UW.

At the university, candidates will undergo in-depth clinical experiences through augmented reality simulations and guided in-class observations to provide them with innovative techniques and a deep understanding of the profession. Modules and competency-based learning, in place of the traditional course structure, ensure participants are developing and honing strong skills through a practice-based approach.

Modeling on the professional preparation practices in medicine and nursing, UW-E4 candidates will not be allowed to declare an area of teaching specialization until they have completed clinical observations in all grade levels and content areas. This will allow them to discover which areas they are most passionate about and gives them flexibility to choose those that are in high demand.

After completing their preparation in teaching methods and gaining deep content knowledge, UW-E4 candidates will receive a housing stipend to complete a full-year residency in a Wyoming school, compared to the traditional 16 weeks of student teaching. This will provide them with invaluable experience throughout the entire classroom cycle and be followed by a four-year professional induction and mentorship program to help guide them through their first years as Wyoming teachers.

The incentive here is to support Wyoming schools with highly prepared, novice educators that meet the needs of Wyoming schools, Watts says.

This program will upend how teachers are prepared at UW. From their first exposure as high school sophomores through the last days of the mentorship and induction program, graduates of the fellowship will have been fully immersed in the profession for 11 years. Armed with novel techniques and wisdom passed on by mentors, these beginning teachers will be well-prepared to lead the great minds of tomorrow, Watts says.
Firefighters light backfire while trying to keep a wildfire from jumping Santa Ana Road near Ventura, California. (Photo source :AP/Noah Berger)

The so-called Thomas fire is only 15 per cent contained, now threatening the city of Santa Barbara and the nearby coastal town of Carpinteria, and is on track to become one of the worst wildfires in California history. It has already destroyed 600 structures and scorched 173,000 acres (70,000 hectares), the authorities say.

"Praying for my town. Fires closing in. Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now," actor Rob Lowe, who lives in Santa Barbara, wrote on Twitter.

A photo posted by Santa Barbara police on Sunday morning showed a wall of flames several metres high very close to buildings in Carpinteria.

Evacuation orders were issued overnight for some parts of Carpinteria close to Los Padres National Forest, where fire was raging.

Conditions remained very dry in southern California, according to the National Weather Service, but strong winds that have fueled the fires for much of the week have eased significantly.

It said "critical fire weather conditions will wane Sunday night" but that dangers would persist through most of the coming week.

"Firefighters continue to improve and increase the containment lines," helped by the weather, said the state agency Calfire.

At least five other blazes in southern California are now largely contained, Calfire said.

After a five-day siege, some Californians were finally able to return home to inspect the damage wrought by the wildfires, which together have forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee and destroyed more than 850 structures, including multimillion-dollar mansions.

Cindy Nava, from the town of Sylmar, was one of those returning home - or to what once was her home.

"Oh, my God, there's nothing, nothing, nothing," she sobbed, according to the Univision website. "What are we going to do?"

Despite the intensity of the fires that raged on multiple fronts - stretching from areas north of Los Angeles down to the San Diego region - authorities have reported only one fatality.

US President Donald Trump has issued a state of emergency for California, authorising the release of federal funds.

The week's infernos capped California's deadliest year ever for wildfires. More than 40 people died in October when fires swept through the state's wine-producing counties north of San Francisco.
Foreign tourists visit Ngo Mon (Moon Gate) in Thua Thien - Hue province

Although tourist arrivals to Vietnam have been rising, the expenditure of international visitors remained low, especially spending on Vietnamese goods.

According to statistics of the Vietnam National Tourism Administrative, Vietnam received 11.6 million international tourists in the first 11 months of 2017, a rise of 27.8 percent year-on-year.

The figure is expected to hit 12.8 million at the end of the year, with visitors from Asia surging 45.6 percent.
An airplane of British Airways is being de-iced as it stands on the tarmac of the airport in Duesseldorf, western Germany, as flights in Frankfurt also faced snow-related delays. (AFP/David Young)

Hundreds of air passengers were stranded in Frankfurt, Germany's financial capital, as well as Britain, and many took to Twitter to complain.

Some 330 flights were cancelled by 5.00pm (12.00am Singapore time Monday) after heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures struck the region around Frankfurt, a spokesman for airport operator Fraport told AFP.

The airport - Germany's largest air hub and the home base for major carrier Lufthansa - had been scheduled to handle a total of 1,260 flights over the day.

Duesseldorf airport was also forced to close for four hours during the afternoon, news agency DPA reported.

Meanwhile, trains were delayed, redirected or cancelled across western North Rhine-Westphalia state.

'LIKE A WAR ZONE'

In Britain, Birmingham airport, serving the country's second biggest city, suspended flights for all of Sunday morning, as staff worked to clear the runway in heavy snow.

The airport typically handles around 30,000 passengers and 200 flights a day in December. It diverted 11 flights elsewhere and expected to cancel more than that, a spokeswoman said.

London's Luton Airport closed its runway for two hours before reopening around 1130 GMT to departing aircraft, according to a spokesman.

It had opened to incoming flights by early afternoon.

One frustrated traveller described the airport as "like a war zone".

Police forces in worst-hit Wales and central England urged motorists not to travel unless "absolutely necessary" as they dealt with surging calls.

A spokesman for the Highways England agency said there had been road incidents "all over the place".

The flurries continued to fall into the afternoon, threatening to block roads.

Swathes of Britain were hit by the snowfall, particularly in central and western regions, according to the country's official weather service.

Sennybridge, in Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales, topped the records with 30 cm, while Coleshill, close to Birmingham, received 10 cm, it reported.

Meanwhile, light snow and sleet fell through the morning in London, leaving Northolt, on the outskirts of the capital, with a covering of 2 cm, the Met Office said.

"We've gone through the worst of it," said Oli Claydon, a spokesman, in the early afternoon.

Most areas impacted would have a "bright, sunny start to Monday," he added.

Claydon said the last time Britain saw this much heavy snow nationwide was March, 2013, and during the winter of 2010.

FERRY RUNS AGROUND

In France, a ferry with more than 300 people on board ran aground in high winds in Calais, interrupting traffic in one of Europe's busiest passenger ports but causing no injuries.

Having been stranded for several hours, the P&O vessel was secured and passengers were finally able to disembark after they were given food and drinks.

The ferry, The Pride of Kent, ran aground around noon after it hit a gangway while making to leave for Dover in southeast England.

Five tug boats were used in the operation to free the vessel, as winds gusting at up to 110 kilometres per hour made the task difficult.

Elsewhere in France, 32 departments were placed on orange alert with winds of more than 100 kilometres forecast in some areas.

In the northern Pas-de-Calais and Nord regions, some 20,000 homes were without electricity due to gale-force winds which affected supply, power provider Enedis said.

Heavy rain also led to the closure of two airports in the French Mediterranean island of Corsica, including the one serving the capital Ajaccio.

Heavy winds lashed northern Portugal. A 45-year-old woman died when a tree landed on her car near the city of Porto, Luis Belo Costa from the national civil protection agency said.

The weather service forecast winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour in the area until Monday morning.
Big shot Hanoi buyers are looking to spread the wealth to the provinces

A range of real estate projects have been introduced to Hanois market from Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Danang and Nha Trang. The projects include The Charm, Sunrise City, Ocean Villas, Hyatt Regency, Olalani, Fusion Alya, Azura and Blooming Park.

Talking with VIR at a recent road show to introduce Sunrise City, located in Ho Chi Minh, in Hanoi, Novaland Joint Stock Company marketing deputy director Huynh Du An said many units were sold to Hanoians and those from northern provinces.

Meanwhile, a range of other central and southern projects have been rushing into Hanoi. Setia Becamex launched Binh Duong provinces Ecolakes My Phuoc in the capital late last week, a week before TD Group introduced the Costa Nha Trang to Hanoians. This week Singapores Guoco Lands Canary, located at the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park in Binh Duong province, will be unveiled to northern customers.

Bringing Ecolakes My Phuoc to Hanois market is one of our key marketing strategies. Hanoians are paying more attention to higher standards of living and are interested in ecological housing, said Khoo Teck Chong, general director of Setia Becamex.

VIR was told that for many projects in the central and southern parts, roughly 70 per cent of customers were from Hanoi and other northern provinces.

Matthew Koziora, sales director of VinaCapital - developer of the Azura in Danang, said the first 60 units, out of 225, were launched in Hanoi recently.

Out of the 40 units sold, 90 per cent of the buyers had come from Hanoi.

Hanoi has, according to Koziora, proven itself to be a key market for most new projects in Vietnam, given the demographics of these immediate catchments.

While condominium offerings will always be available in Hanoi due to previous pent-up demands, we can see that not all projects will enjoy a healthy sell-through, as was seen 12 months ago.

We do see, however, given the price differentials between house and land packages in Hanoi versus Ho Chi Minh City, that this market will be better received in the current marketplace and over the next six months as opposed to condominium project offerings at this time, Koziora said

Ngo Huu Truong, managing director of a real estate agency in Ho Chi Minh City, said many customers from Hanoi and Haiphong had come to Ho Chi Minh City to find out information about new projects there.

Demand is real and many projects investors have realised this trend and they are coming to Hanoi to promote their projects, Truong said.

He also said the jury was still out on how effective the promotions were.

I think that these developers [who bring their projects to Hanoi] have at least seen their target to raise their image and brand names in northern customers, Truong said.
Houses and buildings along Han River in Da Nang City. Tourism property products should be diversified to meet demand of travellers, experts said.  File Photo

According to Mauro Gasparotti, director of Savills Hotels Asia Pacific, the hotel and resort property market of Viet Nam was growing, driven by strong increase in the number of foreign tourist arrivals in recent years.

Recent updates of the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism showed that the country received 11 million foreign tourists so far this year, representing a rise of 27.8 per cent over the same period last year.

The increase was thanks to the launch of a number of international flight routes, together with easier visa policies.

Hotel occupancy rates saw a significant increase in major tourism cities such as Ha Noi, HCM City, Da Nang and Nha Trang, according to Savills Hotels.

However, a majority of the hotel rooms were located in coastal areas while condotel count outnumbered resort rooms, Gasparotti said, warning that this would lead to serious competition in hotel room prices.

He said several developers did not pay adequate attention to the planning of their projects, adding that some focused simply on building their hotel projects with as many rooms as possible without giving thought to how to increase the added value of their projects.

It was critical for the hotel and resort real estate segment of Viet Nam to have a comprehensive plan to ensure long-term sustainable growth, he said.

Vo Kim Trang from Savills Hotels also said developers needed to have a long-term vision. Developers will need to know tourism trends and changes in tourist demand, which will affect the development of hotel and resort products in the medium and long terms, rather than just focus on revenue in the short-term.

Savills Hotels also pointed out that Viet Nam lacked diversification in products compared with destinations such as Thailand and Indonesia.

The global market was currently witnessing new kinds of developments, such as resort wellness, resort spa, poshtel, co-working hub and hi-tech hotel.

Morris Sim from Next Story Group, a hospitality management, marketing, design, franchising, investment and development company headquartered in Singapore, said developers in Viet Nam should diversify their hotel and resort products to meet the increasingly diversified demand of tourists.

Sim also said the sharing economy and social marketing were significantly affecting the hotel and resort property market with a new technology-savvy generation showing a new trend for working and traveling.

Next Story Group said hotels and resorts must make changes to maintain and improve competitiveness.
Areas severely eroded by illegal sand mining have been discovered near the foot of the dyke, threatening 200ha of faming land in Coc Luong Village. - Photo phapluatplus.vn

The papers reporters witnessed the illegal mining at the section of Cau River that passes Coc Luong Village of Tan Hung Commune in Soc Son District. Boats and barges operated under cover of darkness from 8 p.m. until early the next morning.

People on boats and barges dug up sand and gravel close to the foot of the dyke, the newspaper reported. High-capacity sand sucking equipment operated regularly. At night, a barge took away hundreds of blocks of sand and grave.

Most of the illegal sand mining boats were here for yellow sand and gravel, a natural resource that currently fetches a high price.

With such big benefits, more and more illegal sand miners appeared and employed tricks to evade the oversight of local authorities.

Nguyen Van Thu, Tan Hung Commune Partys Committee secretary, said owners of illegal sand mining boats were people from Coc Luong Village . Their close ties to the area complicated the situation of illegal-mining, as they cannot be dismissed as outsiders stealing local resources.

As a consequence of illegal sand mining, hundreds of meters of mudflats suffered erosion every day and night.

The eroded areas were close to the embankment, threatening the safety of the dyke system surrounding the two communes of Tan Hung and Trung Gia.

More dangerously, 200 ha of cultivated land in four villages lie just a few meters from the foot of the dyke. The farmers of the land now face the prospect of a dyke break.

Thu said Coc Luong Village s seriously eroded area was formerly under the management of local households. In recent years, they agreed to sell to a local company.

The company was licensed to engage in agricultural production and trade, not sand mining.

It was impossible to resolve the current situation because local authorities lack police forces and equipment to conduct arrests and issue sanctions.
Investors on Saigon Securities trading floor in Ha Noi  VNS Photo Viet Thanh

The benchmark VN-Index ended nine straight weeks of gains with a loss of 2.1 per cent in the first week of December, closing Friday at 940.16 points.

Viet Nams benchmark index had expanded nearly 14 per cent in November.

After a brief rise on Monday, the market experienced three consecutive falling sessions as profit-taking selling increased, especially of large caps, which sent their prices down.

The biggest listed company Vinamilk (VNM) gave up 4 per cent in value last week while brewer giant Sabeco (SAB) declined 6.4 per cent. Two large real estate companies, FLC Faros Construction (ROS) and VinGroup (VIC), slid 14.2 per cent and 2.1 per cent.

Bank stocks that gained substantially in the past rallies were also caught in downtrend. Shares of the big four (four biggest banks by total assets and market value)  Vietcombank (VCB), Vietinbank (CTG), BIDV (BID) and Military Bank (MBB)  decreased by between two and four per cent.

We believe there is a strong selling pressure in the market. Besides, lower liquidity, which may come from the reduction of margin positions, indicates that investors are less exposed to risk than before, Quang Vo, senior analyst at Viet Dragon Securities, wrote in a weekend report.

Predicting the VN-Index could return to an uptrend, Vo advised that investors protect their gains and reduce margin positions until the market shows clear recovery signals.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange also edged down 1.5 per cent last week, closing Friday at 113.81 points.

Liquidity weakened with an average of 277.4 million shares worth VND5.8 trillion (US$254.4 million) being traded in the two markets per session, down 12 per cent in volume and 20 per cent in value compared to the previous week.

Foreign investors concluded as net sellers last week, offloading 2.8 million shares worth VND942.7 billion on the two exchanges. Their net selling was a negative factor, given that they posted not purchases of VND11.3 trillion ($495.6 million) in November.

According to Nguyen Viet Duc, a market strategist with MB Securities Co, a number of funds and investors began to realise cash profits towards the end of the year and look for new investment opportunities. He said it was typical that the market gets dull before the ETFs portfolio restructuring.

The market may level off in one to two weeks and is likely to continue to rise after ETFs finish reviewing their portfolios, Duc said.

Nguyen Van Hanh, a senior broker at Sai Gon-Ha Noi Securities Co, said downward correction was necessary during an uptrend to consolidate the new price base and reduce market risks.

Hanh said large-cap stocks may recover in early trading this week but general trading will likely slow down as investors will continue to realise profits and then wait to get a clearer sign of the next trend.

He predicted that the VN-Index will move in the 930-950 points range this week.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a rally in Sivas. (YASIN BULBUL/TURKISH PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would fight against the controversial declaration, describing Israel as a "terrorist state" that kills children, in a speech in Istanbul.

Hours later Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hit back, calling his counterpart a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers and supports terrorists, during an official visit to Paris.

The two countries had normalised relations in recent years, but Sunday's flare-up came after Turkey was angered by US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Trump's move has sparked protests in Muslim and Arab countries for four days.

"Palestine is an innocent victim ... As for Israel, it is a terrorist state, yes, terrorist!" Erdogan said in a speech in the central Turkish city of Sivas. "We will not abandon Jerusalem to the mercy of a state that kills children."

Erdogan earlier described the status of Jerusalem, whose eastern sector Palestinians see as the capital of their future state, as a "red line" for Muslims.

Netanyahu was quick to counter the assault when he spoke later during a press conference alongside French President Emmanuel Macron.

"I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran go around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people," he said.

"That is not the man who is going to lecture us."

Erdogan has used his position as the current chairman of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to call a summit of the pan-Islamic group on Wednesday.

"We will show that applying the measure will not be as easy as that," he added on Sunday, referring to the US recognition of Jerusalem.

He said it was "absurd" to deny the Jews' "ancient connection" to Jerusalem.

During his speech, Erdogan held a picture of what he said was a 14-year-old Palestinian boy from Hebron, in the Occupied West Bank, being dragged away by Israeli soldiers.

Turkey and Israel had improved diplomatic ties in recent years but Erdogan has continued to defend the Palestinian cause and has regularly criticised Israeli policy.
Alexandre Dardy

Is this the first time Lazada and a Vietnamese bank have co-operated on payment services?

We strike partnerships with other banks all the time to facilitate our promotions. For example, we managed to carry out a 10 per cent price deduction on orders paid through VietinBank accounts. However, regarding international arrangements, this is indeed the first time Lazada co-operates with a Vietnamese bank.

What benefits could this partnership offer in terms of payment methods?

More than 90 per cent of our customers pay by cash on delivery (COD), so now we attain a new mechanism for Vietnamese customers to pay via cash for cross-border goods. Especially, during the December 11-14 mega sales, customers will be given more payment options than only Visa and MasterCard. Lazada will be the first online shopping website that enables customers to purchase cross-border products with the COD method.

Since the COD payment method could pose a threat to our website and damage our suppliers, we decided to shorten the time window between customers deciding to make a purchase and the orders arrival. It has come to our notice that customers have the tendency to have second thoughts during this time period, so we are doing our best to minimise the delivery time. This way, our customers will be less likely to cancel orders.

How is Online Revolution different from sales campaigns run by other online shopping platforms?

Let me briefly introduce the concept of Online Revolution. In its essence, it is simply when Lazada partners up with plenty of brands, merchants, and marketing partners to make sure the promotion and the assortment of prices will be exceptional during the event and the rest of the year. There is no actual difference between this years and last years campaign, as we consistently manage to supply the most sought-after products at the most reasonable price.

The concept remains unchanged except that we have partnered up with more brands and more merchants this year. As a result, while the concept is fixed, the website of our business alters from one year to the next, offering better performance and faster operation.

In 2018, I will tell you the same about our Online Revolution, only with a longer list of striking achievements. Our plan for 2018 is to continue growing with an impressive speed as previous years to attract more people to go shopping online, and in order to complete Lazadas mission to improve the quality of the Vietnameses life.

The reason behind our seemingly unattainable objective is that over the last four years of our operations in Vietnam, the one thing I am certain of is that Vietnamese peoples mindset has changed incredibly. Also, also the sheer scale of the e-commerce market holds great promise for the industry.

Alibaba has recently become the owner of Lazada. Could you share what has changed at Lazada since the acquisition?

Of course, there is a huge difference. Obviously, as the main shareholder, Alibaba now wields a lot more influence over Lazadas strategy and vision. Fortunately, there is not much of a difference between the visions of the two parties, which is to eventually develop the economy and support the community as an online shopping mall. Alibaba is one of the leading e-commerce platforms in the world, meaning they have considerable experience and expertise, which will definitely come in handy in picking Lazadas strategy in the future.

I firmly believe that Lazada stands only to gain from all that Alibaba brings to the table in this partnership which is an open and clever entrepreneurial mindset.
AFP Photo/Jean-Sebastien Evrard

Company spokesman Michel Nalet told AFP "nearly 7,000 tonnes" of production may have been contaminated, but the company is unable to say currently how much remains on the market, has been consumed or is in stock.

Lactalis is one of the world's biggest producers of dairy products. It sells its baby milk in packets ranging from 350-950 grammes which are marketed globally under a host of brand names, including Milumel, Picot and Celi.

The recall will affect consumers in countries including China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Britain and Sudan, underlining the reach of the company and the difficulty in trying to trace all the potentially at-risk powder.

Sunday's (Dec 10) announcement by the company and regulators in the French economy ministry significantly widens the scare which first emerged at the start of the month with reports of 20 sick children under the age of six.

A statement from the economy ministry said the measures put in place by Lactalis since Dec 2 were "not sufficient to manage the risk of contamination" and a broader recall was necessary.

Salmonella symptoms include severe diarrhoea, stomach cramps and vomiting. The illness - caused by intestinal bacteria from farm animals - is dangerous for the very young and elderly because of the risk of dehydration.

The victims in France have since recovered and, asked if any cases had been reported abroad, Lactalis spokesman Nalet replied: "Not as far as I am aware."

BRAND DAMAGE

The company believes the salmonella outbreak can be traced to an evaporation tower - used to dry out the milk - at a factory in the town of Craon in northwest France.

All products made there since Feb 15 have been recalled, Nalet said, adding that the company was taking fresh precautionary measures of disinfecting all of its machinery at the factory.

The baby milk industry was shaken by a huge scare in China in 2008 when local manufacturers were found to be bulking their product with an industrial chemical.

Six babies died and around 300,000 others were made ill. The scare benefited rival companies such as Lactalis and fellow French giant Danone.

In 2013, Danone suffered what turned out to be a false alarm about botulism in its baby milk which did huge damage to its reputation and undermined group profits.
Palestinian protesters throw stones towards Israeli forces during clashes at the main entrance of the West Bank town of Bethlehem, following a demonstration against US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. (Musa AL SHAER/AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Palestinians needed to come to terms with Jerusalem's long Jewish history.

"It's always been our capital," he said at a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

"I think the sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move towards peace."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has repeatedly warned of the consequences of Trump's move, also lashed out by calling Israel a "terrorist state" that "kills children".

Netanyahu hit back, calling Erdogan a leader who "bombs Kurdish villagers" and "helps terrorists".

Trump's announcement on Wednesday has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories. Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or by Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.

On Sunday, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard at Jerusalem's central bus station, leaving him in a serious condition. The Palestinian was arrested.

Tens of thousands have also protested in Muslim and Arab countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia.

On Sunday, further protests were held in countries including Lebanon, Indonesia, Egypt and Morocco as well as in the Palestinian territories.

Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at several hundred demonstrators near the American embassy.

Tens of thousands also rallied in Morocco's capital Rabat.

PROTESTS IN CAIRO, JAKARTA

In Jakarta, some 5,000 Indonesians protested in solidarity with the Palestinians, gathering outside the US embassy in the world's most-populous Muslim country.

Students and professors in Cairo demonstrated at the prestigious Al-Azhar University, a university spokesman said, with pictures on social media showing several hundred protesters. Dozens of students protested at two other Cairo universities.

Palestinian protests on Sunday were smaller than in previous days.

Protests and clashes broke out in Al-Arroub refugee camp in the south of the occupied West Bank, leaving one Palestinian wounded by rubber bullets, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Several dozen Palestinians in Bethlehem, also in the West Bank, burned tyres and threw stones at Israeli soldiers, who fired tear gas.

Separately, the Israeli military said it destroyed a Hamas tunnel stretching from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory - an incident unrelated to the recent unrest, but which threatened to further increase tensions.

Such tunnels have been used in the past to carry out attacks.

Trump's declaration has been followed by near universal condemnation and diplomatic fallout, with warnings it risks setting off a new round of violence in the turbulent Middle East.

US Vice President Mike Pence is due to visit the region later this month, but Palestinian officials say president Mahmud Abbas will refuse to meet him.

A US official said Sunday such a snub is tantamount to "walking away" from a chance to talk about peace in the Middle East.

"It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region," Jarrod Agen, Pence's deputy chief of staff, said in a statement.

Abbas was to meet Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Monday for consultations "to discuss developments related to the United States' recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital", said Bassam Radi, a spokesman for the Egyptian presidency.

Arab League foreign ministers on Saturday called on Washington to rescind the decision.

Despite the outrage, Trump's UN Ambassador Nikki Haley insisted on Sunday that the Jerusalem declaration would "move the ball forward" on peace efforts.

However, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told CNN it might "compromose" the US drive for an Israeli-Palestinian accord.

NETANYAHU IN EUROPE

Netanyahu's Europe trip was long planned, but came after both Macron and EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini criticised Trump's decision.

There have also been ongoing tensions between Netanyahu and EU officials over Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.

Macron during their talks on Sunday called on Netanyahu to freeze settlement building and to show "courage" to help restart peace efforts.

At their press conference, Netanyahu called the White House's bid to restart peace efforts with the Palestinians a "serious effort".

Netanyahu was due in Brussels for talks with EU foreign ministers on Monday in what would be the first of their kind with an Israeli premier in 22 years.

Trump's decision upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus. It drew criticism from every other UN Security Council member at an emergency meeting on Friday.

Clashes in the West Bank and along the fence dividing the Gaza Strip from Israel have seen Palestinians burning tyres while hurling stones and firebombs at Israeli troops, who responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds.

Retaliatory Israeli air strikes on Gaza in response to rockets killed two Hamas militants on Saturday while two other Palestinians died in clashes near the border fence the day before.

US ISOLATED

Palestinian health officials say more than 1,100 people were wounded by tear gas, rubber bullets, live fire and other means between Thursday and Saturday.

There have been fears of a much larger escalation of violence after Hamas leader Ismail Haniya called for a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising.

In Rome, Pope Francis called on Sunday for "wisdom and prudence", asking world leaders "to avert a new spiral of violence".

Trump said his defiant move - making good on a 2016 presidential campaign pledge - marked the start of a "new approach" to solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

But Washington has found itself isolated on the global stage.

Five European countries on the Security Council insisted the new US policy was inconsistent with past resolutions.

The decision was further complicating domestic Palestinian politics, particularly between Abbas's Fatah and the Islamist Hamas, now at a key stage in a fragile reconciliation process after a decade of bitter enmity.

Hamas, which violently seized Gaza from Fatah in 2007, was due to formally hand back power to the Palestinian Authority on Sunday, but Fatah's chief negotiator said "obstacles" remained.
One award-winning graphic design is displayed at HCM City Exhibition House in District 1 from December 9-12.

The opening ceremony of the exhibition was held on Friday by the New York Type Directors Club (TDC), in collaboration with Ton Duc Thang University, FPT Arena, and the Goethe Institute  the Germanys cultural institute.

The annual International Typography Exhibition aims to bring together those who love fonts and text applications in various media such as brand communication, advertising, education, marketing, publication and film titles.

The best typography works have won awards at the years annual TDC competition for both communication and typeface design, which attracted around 1,700 entries from 50 countries.

The designs were in a large range of categories, including books, posters, corporate branding, logos, web graphics, film and TV titles, products and magazines.

The exhibition has also been held in many other countries around the world, such as the US, South Korea, Japan, Poland, Russia, Thailand, Spain, Germany, and others.

The TDC has been the worlds leading international organisation for support and recognition of excellence in typography, both in print and on screen, for many years.

The TDC is a good opportunity for graphic designers to meet with industry professionals from around the world.

The exhibition opens to the public from 9am to 6pm until December 12 at the HCM City Exhibition House at 92 Le Thanh Ton Street in District 1.

Organisers expect to attract thousands of visitors at the exhibition this year.
Petting zoos at the office are the latest perk for stressed-out employees
Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., has publicly bucked President Donald Trump and the rest of Alabamas statewide Republican leaders by opposing Roy Moores candidacy for the U.S. Senate.
'SNL' cold open: Kids wonder if Al Franken, Roy Moore and Trump are on Santa's naughty list
Opposition MPs to Receive Further Brexit Briefing

Upon the return of the Deputy Chief Minister to Gibraltar from the Joint Ministerial Council on Gibraltars Exit from the European Union, the Chief Minister will convene a meeting of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Exiting the European Union in order to brief GSD and independent Opposition MPs and keep them abreast of recent developments.

The Deputy Chief Minister will provide the briefings alongside Mr Picardo.

These briefings will be confidential and will allow Hon Mr Picardo and Hon Dr Garcia to share some of the more sensitive information available to the Government with Members of Parliament about the progress of discussions and the expected effect of recent events and agreements for Gibraltar.

There have already been two informal briefings of Opposition MPs, including Independents, to date. The Government envisages continuing with this process until Gibraltars departure from the European Union has been finalised.

The Chief Minster said: It is important that, at this sensitive time for Gibraltar, we are as united as we are able to be on issues which arise from the Brexit negotiations. That is the best way to protect the interests of Gibraltar and of future generations. Much of what we read in the international press is relevant to Gibraltar, but not necessarily in the way that matters are interpreted by commentators who are considering things from the perspective of other jurisdictions. We have to be clear about where Gibraltars interests lie and the Deputy Chief Minister and I will, therefore, continue to brief GSD and independent MPs on the information and analysis available to the Government and on what is informing our thinking as we take these discussions and negotiations forward.
'West'- Debut Poetry Collection By Giordano Durante Launched This Week

A collection of poems by Giordano Durante will be launched this Thursday 14th December. Titled West, the book brings together 42 poems written in the last year and a half.

The first section is a series of poems about Gibraltar. The central poem of this section is Alameda Interlude which combines historical reflection and autobiographical reminiscence.

The second section looks at Andalucia and its cities. Durante examines the rituals of Catholicism and the emotional tug they still exert in Semana Santa and Folklore.

The third section inhabits the metropolitan gloom of England and contains the title poem West and meditations on the unacknowledged beauty of the unloved towns and suburbs.

The final section contains the deeply personal Katie and Ghost Train, a tribute to a fairground entertainer.

Speaking ahead of the launch, Durante said: After over a year of sharing my poems among friends and trying them out at some poetry recitals, I decided to bring them together as a published collection so that they could reach a wider audience.

The book is published by The Dabuti Collective.
This article originally appeared on TheLegalGeeks.com. Its being reprinted here, in slightly edited form, with permission.

Han Shot First. There is no question about it. And in 1977, no one questioned it.

However, the legal question remains, was Han Solo legally justified in killing Greedo (provided the Empires Doctrine of Fear had similar common-law traditions)?

For those who do not have the scene memorized, view it here (starting at 5:04):

And heres the dialog from the original version via IMDB:

Greedo: [In Huttese; subtitled] Going somewhere, Solo?

Han Solo: Yes, Greedo. I was just going to see your boss. Tell Jabba Ive got his money.

Greedo: Its too late. You should have paid him when you had the chance. Jabbas put a price on your head so large, every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be looking for you. Im lucky I found you first.

Han Solo: Yeah, but this time Ive got the money.

Greedo: If you give it to me, I might forget I found you.

Han Solo: [stealthily going for his blaster] I dont have it with me. Tell Jabba 

Greedo: Jabbas through with you! He has no use for smugglers who drop their shipments at the first sign of an Imperial cruiser.

Han Solo: Even I get boarded sometimes. Do you think I had a choice?

Greedo: You can tell that to Jabba. At best, he may only take your ship.

Han Solo: Over my dead body!

Greedo: Thats the idea  Ive been looking forward to this for a long time.

Han Solo: Yeah, Ill bet you have.

[Han blasts Greedo, then heads out, tossing the bartender a coin]

Han Solo: Sorry about the mess.

Here are the basic facts: Han is stopped at gunpoint by Greedo. During the entire conversation in the bar, Greedo has his weapon pointed directly at Han. There is a dispute over money, with Han saying Over my dead body, to which Greedo replies, Thats the idea. Ive been looking forward to this for a long time.

(The 1997 re-release of Star Wars has Greedo firing his blaster before Han. Moreover, Greedo wildly misses in extremely close quarters, if not point-blank range. This made Greedo not just a horrible shot, but an extremely bad bounty hunter. Greedo should have been a Nerf Herder.)

Lets review the Model Penal Code on using deadly force in self-defense. The MPC states (and Ive bolded significant in-line terms or phrases):

 8.02 Use of Deadly force [A] Common Law  Deadly force is only justified in self-protection if the defendant reasonably believes that its use is necessary to prevent imminent and unlawful use of deadly force by the aggressor. Deadly force may not be used to combat an imminent deadly assault if a non-deadly response will apparently suffice. [B] Model Penal Code  The Code specifically sets forth the situations in which deadly force is justifiable: when the defendant believes that such force is immediately necessary to protect himself on the present occasion against: 1. Death; 2. Serious bodily injury; 3. Forcible rape; or 4. Kidnapping. The Code prohibits the use of deadly force by a deadly aggressor, i.e., one who, with the purpose of causing death or serious bodily injury, provoked the use of force against himself in the same encounter. [MPC  3.04(2)(b)(i)]

The issue under common law is whether Han reasonably believed that deadly force was necessary to prevent imminent and unlawful use of deadly force by the Greedo. Did Han feel that he needed to fire first in order to protect himself against: 1. Death (in the event Greedo fired first); 2. Serious bodily injury (a blaster wound likely do serious injury if not fatal); or 3. Kidnapping (Greedo arguably only intended to take Han to Jabba the Hut.)

The next question is whether Han was required to retreat from Greedo. The rules state:

 8.03 Retreat Rule [A] Common Law  If a person can safely retreat and, therefore, avoid killing the aggressor, deadly force is unnecessary. Nonetheless, jurisdictions are sharply split on the issue of retreat. A slim majority of jurisdictions permit a non-aggressor to use deadly force to repel an unlawful deadly attack, even if he is aware of a place to which he can retreat in complete safety. Many jurisdictions, however, provide that a non-aggressor who is threatened by deadly force must retreat rather than use deadly force, if he is aware that he can do so in complete safety. A universally recognized exception to the rule of retreat is that a non-aggressor need not ordinarily retreat if he is attacked in his own dwelling place or within its curtilage [the immediately surrounding land associated with the dwelling], even though he could do so in complete safety. [B] Model Penal Code  One may not use deadly force against an aggressor if he knows that he can avoid doing so with complete safety by retreating. Retreat is not generally required in ones home or place of work. However, retreat from the home or office is required: (1) if the defendant was the initial aggressor, and wishes to regain his right of self-protection; or (2) even if he was not the aggressor, if he is attacked by a co-worker in their place of work. However, the Code does not require retreat by a non-aggressor in the home, even if the assailant is a co-dweller.

Finally, we must consider whether Han had a reasonable belief about Greedos threat. The Model Penal Code states:

 8.04 Reasonable Belief The privilege of self-defense is based on reasonable appearances, rather than on objective reality. Thus, a person is justified in using force to protect himself if he subjectively believes that such force is necessary to repel an imminent unlawful attack, even if appearances prove to be false. Courts are increasingly applying a standard of the reasonable person in the defendants situation in lieu of the reasonable person standard. Factors that may be relevant to the defendants situation or circumstances include: 1. The physical movements of the potential assailant; 2. Any relevant knowledge the defendant has about that person; 3. The physical attributes of all persons involved, including the defendant; 4. Any prior experiences which could provide a reasonable basis for the belief that the use of deadly force was necessary under the circumstances.

Now we can consider the entirety of the situation as the laws apply to it. Without a doubt, having a blaster pointed directly at Han put his life in danger. Additionally, Greedos statement, Thats the idea. Ive been looking forward to this for a long time, communicated Greedos intent to kill Han. Shooting first was seemingly the only way to prevent Greedo from using deadly force himself.

Regarding the retreat issue, Han was already at gunpoint and cornered in the booth when Han shot Greedo. It is unlikely Han could have retreated with his back to the wall and in a seated position. Shooting his way out appeared to be his only option. Finally, reasonable belief wouldnt be hard to prove. Han was in Mos Eisley Spaceport, a wretched hive of scum and villainy. Greedo had his weapon pointed at Han the entire time, with Han cornered in a booth. This should be sufficient to show the reasonableness of the threat to Hans life.

Applying the facts to the Model Penal Code and Common Law, then, its clear that Han was justified in shooting first and killing Greedo.

Now, Malcolm Reynolds shooting the Alliance pilot in Serenity? Thats less cut-and-dry.
Photo: Getty Images

Last week, Outlanders resident witch and Scottish revolutionary Geillis Duncan returned to the show in a literal blood bath. In Sundays season finale, she went out in one. After threatening to murder Claire and Jamies daughter to fulfill a prophecy that would restore a Scottish king, Claire swung a cane axe at Geilliss throat, almost taking her head clear off. Geillis suffered a bloody end, but she died how she lived: fighting for a revolution in Scotland. But is this really the end of our favorite time-traveling Scottish cougar? Could she return to the show through flashbacks or other magic? I think everything is possible, Verbeek told Vulture ahead of the big finale. Below, the rest of our chat.

What were your thoughts when you first read that cave scene? What was your reaction?

I really liked the idea of being murdered by Claire, my frenemy. I thought it was really good. I didnt know where we were going to be shooting and it turned out that we built the whole cave structure in the studio. So we were there for a day. The scene has so many elements with the water and the fight between Hercules and Jamie. I think we did a good job  I hope.

How did you prepare? How did you slip into playing Geillis again?

Well, we shot the previous episode before that final cave scene. I was already in Cape Town for a month or so, getting back into her skin. Obviously shes now in her 50s and 60s, and so shes a little different. She was overweight and now shes skinny. We made changes through her hair and some prosthetics. I like the thought of her having been in the Caribbean for so long by herself, holding onto that hope, not knowing when the new Scottish king will rise, but also a little bit defeated. Not completely, of course, because she hasnt given up, but also shes growing weary. And so, I used that in the character. It was really cool to see where she went, what had become of her.

Can you talk about filming that battle scene between Geillis and Claire? What kind of notes were you and Caitriona giving each other? What was that choreography like?

Things can get really technical, but there wasnt too much choreography apart from that they wanted the torch I held to keep flashing through the screen. I remember looking at that scene and saying, I hope youre not actually going to be dead after this with all this fire. [Laughs.] It was a small space, and meanwhile Young Ian is on the ground, tied up, laying there. But yeah, that went well, and it was very technical. Its a standoff and it has to feel like there are really high stakes. The way it ends, I dont think Claire would have ever planned that out. Shes reacting to what happened and its just how somebody gets murdered.

How many takes did you guys do of Claire swinging that axe?

Oh gosh, honestly, I dont really remember. It doesnt feel like a long time with that. Obviously we used a dummy for the dead body, with the blood gushing out.

That last scene with the blood dripping down her neck, how was that done? That was a dummy?

Yes, so they took a full face cast of me back in February  luckily nothing really changed during that time, so they put that onto a body. They took all of my measurements and made a second me. So it was interesting, when I walked into the makeup room, to see myself laying there in my outfit. Apparently its hard to get the eyes right, because when they make a face cast your eyes are closed. When they have to open your eyes, you look quite dead, which, you know, isnt all that wrong in that moment because shes supposed to be dead. So yeah, thats how that was done. I wasnt there when that was shot, so it was interesting to see that  the out-of-body experience. Of course, it was an important moment, not just for Geillis, but also for Claire to realize that she just killed somebody.

How would you say Geillis in the cave is different from Geillis in season one? What fundamental things about her have changed?

Shes changed from picking older men with big houses to young boys. [Laughs.] Shes become a little tired, a little wary. Shes quite cold and fearful. She has to walk that fine line where youre standing out in the crowd, but still she needs to be part of the world she has traveled to, from the 60s to the Scottish countryside. Thats not without a danger  they actually did burn people for being witches at that time. Later, when shes on the island, she is changed. When you first see her, she thinks she can change the course of history. She obviously didnt change the course of history and she doesnt know when the next Scottish king will rise. So she has to readjust to reality, as life does.

Do you think Geillis is a witch?

No, no! I never understand why people even say that. I mean, shes batshit crazy, but shes not a witch. No. What is a witch even, really?

Women like Claire and Geillis, who are smart and capable, are considered untrustworthy and get labeled witches. Do you think thats still true today? That those kind of judgments still exist?

Oh yeah, we would have had a different president if we werent afraid of powerful women. Ill just leave it at that.

Do you think well ever see flashbacks to Geilliss life in the 60s?

We might. I know they have been flirting with that idea. They were asking me, Would you? Or who knows? Or lets see! So its all very ambiguous. I mean, I havent read the books. I know that throughout the books, theres more to her. There could be ways of bringing her back. Yeah, I think everything is possible.

What do you think a Geillis spinoff would look like?

Oh my God, that would be wicked. Maybe theyre traveling to the future as well? I quite like that.
Josh Homme. Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for KROQ

Shutterstock photographer Chelsea Lauren was shooting KROQs Almost Acoustic Christmas concert in Morningside Park, California, on Saturday night when Queens of the Stone Age front man Josh Homme suddenly kicked her in the head from the stage. As Lauren told Variety, I saw him coming over and I was shooting away. The next thing I know his foot connects with my camera and my camera connects with my face, really hard. He looked straight at me, swung his leg back pretty hard and full-blown kicked me in the face. In a video posted to the photographers Instagram, which you can see below, Homme can be seen nonchalantly booting Laurens camera as he walks by. After shooting two more acts, Lauren reportedly sought medical treatment at L.A.s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

In an apology posted to the Queens of the Stone Age Twitter account Sunday evening, Homme says he had kicked over various lighting and equipment during the bands set. It wasnt until Sunday, however, that news of Laurens injury allegedly reached him and he realized what he had done. I would never intentionally cause harm to anyone working at or attending one of our shows and I hope Chelsea will accept my sincere apology, Homme says in part. Prior to his apology, Lauren told Variety that she plans to file a police report about the incident. I feel like if I dont do anything, he gets to kick people in the face and not get in trouble because hes a musician, she explained. Thats not right.
Did anyone else think this would end with the Housewives getting kicked off that train to Napa? That it would be a repeat of what Very Smart Brothas called the Blackest thing to ever happen this week? If the Housewives got kicked off the wine train for being too rowdy, it would be proof of intelligent design; that our universe is being guided by a hand and that hand is well-manicured and lives for drama. Unfortunately, the train ride to Napa is uneventful but this episode is still full of fun.

The episode kicks off with the finale of the NeNe-Porsha-Bun fight. NeNe is pulled away by the rest of the gals and Porsha is left with Sheree. NeNe says that she started this shit (read: The Real Housewives of Atlanta) and Porsha wouldnt be there if it werent for NeNe. This is a very generous reading of the history of the Real Housewives. NeNe is repeating, The door is CAH-LOWSED as the elevator door closes and Sheree is holding Porsha as she weeps. Sheree can feel the fun of the trip slipping away and Kandi is mostly concerned that they had to leave the table even before the food arrived. Marlo suggests getting a pizza.

We keep cutting back and forth between NeNe and the rest of the gang in NeNes hotel room and Porsha and Sheree sitting at the table. Porsha wants NeNe to own up to everything shes done and is furious that she has to atone for SPREADING A LIE THAT KANDI TRIED TO DRUG AND RAPE HER. How unreasonable that everyone is still weirded out by that. NeNe says that Porsha is just acting like a victim. This is one of those situations where everyone is wrong and everyone just needs to lie down and take a nap. Instead of a trip, everyone should have gone into sensory-deprivation tanks for a couple hours to think about what theyve done.

The next morning, Cynthia goes to pick up Marlo and Sheree. Marlo has laid out all of her accessories and jewelry in the hotel room. Can you imagine that nightmare for the staff? Trying to clean around a department-store display of Louis Vuitton bags? Porsha takes a call from her mom and says shes just going to soak up all the cool California vibes. Yeah, Porsha. You do that. Theyre all piling into a trolley to zip around the city and theyve decided to split up to avoid fights. Half of the gang will be heading to Fishermans Wharf and the other half will go to Chinatown.

But Kenya has to leave the trip a day early because shes going to her grandmothers funeral. I dont know how to say this without sounding really insensitive. Because Kenya has  faked emotion so many times  its hard to take  genuine emotion  seriously. Does that make sense? Shes the woman who cried wolf. Especially when its possibly shes faking an entire marriage. Its just a lot to try to reconcile.

While Sheree, Porsha, and Marlo are in Chinatown (or as Porsha says, Just like Tokyo), they decide to throw Kenya a fake wedding ceremony. They werent invited to the real one, so theyre going to have one in a hotel conference room. They buy a bunch of $3 junk and have a store make a banner that says Congratulations Kenya! Meanwhile, the rest of the gang is posing in front of Alcatraz and NeNe just happens to bring up that Sherees new boyfriend stole over four million dollars from his company. Yknow, just brings it up in a suuuuper casual way.

When they all get back to the hotel, they have purchased a cardboard cutout of a man to stand in for the wedding. Then they bring in a few guests. Its just a series of men in crop tops who Im sure are vibrating with excitement to witness Kenya marrying a cardboard cutout. Say what you will about these Housewives, but they are more than willing to put on some kind of skit or prank or elaborate theme party. It keeps it interesting.

Kenya is a good sport about the whole thing. Cynthia, who has appointed herself Chief Kenya Officer, has a good laugh about it too. NeNe officiates the wedding and Kandi sings Here Comes the Bride. The whole thing is a delight until Porsha takes Kandi aside and apologizes for the role she played in the whole Phaedra situation. I hate when people apologize for the role they played. It wasnt a play. You werent in Rent, Porsha. Phaedra didnt have you prepare two contrasting monologues. Is it so hard to say, I screwed up and Im sorry. I shouldnt have done it.

They all set off to Napa Valley. After a bus ride, its time to get on the wine train! Dont worry, they brought Flat Marc along. Porsha spends the entire time describing exactly how her husband likes her body. Its creepy and Im not a fan.

They go to a vineyard and have a weird flirtation with the vineyard owner. By the end of the evening, Kenya heads off to catch her flight and the gals sit down for a nice fancy dinner  that Marlo immediately ruins by asking if Kenyas marriage is real. Cynthia walks out because she doesnt want to hear anyone bad-mouth Kenya. This is the wrong group for that.

Cynthia gets coaxed back to the table and confesses that shes mostly just upset that Kenya didnt invite her to her wedding and hasnt introduced her to real, non-flat Marc.

I mean  if he is real, which we have no evidence of.
The Force Awakens. Photo: Lucasfilm

In December of 2015, the Force heard its alarm clock, winced, squirmed in its high-thread-count sheets, contemplated hitting the snooze button, then thought better of it and chose to awaken. This week, Disney and Lucasfilm are finally picking up the threads laid down in Star Wars: Episode VII  The Force Awakens and revealing what the nutty ol Force does next in Episode VIII  The Last Jedi. But two years is a long time in our dense media environment. What if you cant remember all the mystical ins and outs of what went down such a long time ago in a Galaxy so terribly far away? Deep breaths, my young apprentice. Were here to tell you where everybody left off.

The Resistance and the First Order

Although it may have seemed like everything was wrapped up in a nice bow at the end of the original Star Wars trilogy, politics is a messy business. Even after the destruction of the second Death Star, fighting continued between the evil Galactic Empire and the generally nicer Rebel Alliance, which founded a new government called the New Republic. Eventually, a peace treaty was signed, but there was no unconditional surrender  the remnants of the Empire were allowed to survive in circumscribed sections of space. Over the years, warmongering revisionists from those areas moved into the Galactic hinterlands and formed a movement called the First Order, which sought to regain the glory of the Empire. It came to be controlled by a mysterious dude named Supreme Leader Snoke, who seems to have some kind of connection to the Dark Side of the Force. The New Republic didnt want to jeopardize the peace by attacking them, but it looked the other way when erstwhile princess Leia Organa formed a paramilitary force called the Resistance to fight the First Order. That turned out to be a good idea, but it arrived too late: In The Force Awakens, the First Order deployed a superweapon/planet called Starkiller Base, which destroyed the New Republics capital and starfleet. The Resistance destroyed the weapon and sent the First Order into retreat, but both sides remain bloodied and viciously at odds.

Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill)

Despite having literally zero lines in The Force Awakens, everyones favorite walker of the Heros Journey loomed large in reputation. Back in the original trilogy of Star Wars flicks, Luke went from podunk farm boy to last living practitioner of the ancient Jedi arts. After he and his buddies defeated Emperor Palpatine, Luke set out to find and train new Jedi. He set up a school for them and one of his students was his own nephew, Ben Solo, the child of Han Solo and Leia Organa. Alas, Ben turned evil, adopted the name Kylo Ren, killed all his fellow students, and burned the school to the ground. Luke felt responsible for what happened and went into self-imposed exile, searching for the first temple of the Jedi. The First Order wanted to find and kill him, and he became something of a legend throughout the Galaxy. He found the temple on a planet called Ahch-To and thought he could have some damn time to himself, so imagine his surprise when he stepped outside at the end of TFA and saw 

Rey (Daisy Ridley)

Luke had no idea who she was and, to a certain extent, neither do we. She was one of a handful of new protagonists introduced in TFA, but her past is a mystery. When she was a little girl, she was abandoned on the desert planet of Jakku, never knowing anything about her parents or lineage. Though she dreamed of off-world adventures, she was stuck in the life of a scavenger until fate intervened: She came across a Resistance droid named BB-8, who was on the run from the First Order, then ran into a deserter Stormtrooper named Finn. When the First Order came a-calling, the trio escaped on Han Solos old ship, the Millennium Falcon, which happened to be right near where they were all situated (you have to get used to such convenient coincidences in order to enjoy TFA). Han tracked down the Falcon and joined up with them, and they went to the castle of a diminutive alien named Maz Kanata (Lupita Nyongo) for assistance. Rey was drawn to some mysterious noises and found Lukes lightsaber, which Maz possessed for some reason. When she touched it, she experienced a vision in which she saw her younger self being abandoned on Jakku, then saw Kylo destroying Lukes Jedi academy.

Maz told Rey that her destiny was calling and that she should take the lightsaber, but Rey declined and tried to leave behind the mission. The First Order and the Resistance both showed up and launched into a battle, during which Kylo nabbed her. He attempted to torture her for information on Starkiller Base, but she surprised herself by using the Force to resist him and break out, demonstrating that shes a potential Jedi. She ran into Finn, Han, and Chewie and the three of them planted bombs around the base, then watched helplessly as Kylo killed his papa, Han. Rey fought Kylo with Lukes lightsaber, which Finn had held onto. She managed to knock him down and scar his face before an earthquake separated them and prematurely ended the scuffle. Chewie picked her and Finn up in the Falcon and they fled back to the Resistance base right before Starkiller Base was destroyed. The good guys figured out where Luke was, thanks to the combined efforts of BB-8 and fellow droid R2-D2. In the finale of TFA, Rey, Chewie, and R2 flew off to Ahch-To and find the grizzled Jedi Master. She offered him his lightsaber, and the credits rolled.

Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)

Its all-black everything for this sullen kid. Kylo was, as weve established, the Force-sensitive child of Han and Leia, trained by Luke before he was seduced by Snoke and turned to the Dark Side. Once hed destroyed the Jedi academy, Kylo joined up with Snokes First Order and sought to be as powerful a practitioner of the dark arts as his idolized grandfather, Darth Vader (Leia was Vaders daughter, in case you forgot). There, he became frenemies with General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson). In the opening of TFA, Kylo captured Resistance soldier Poe Dameron (well get to him) on Jakku and attempted to retrieve a piece of a map that revealed Lukes location. BB-8 slipped (well, rolled) away with the piece and after a little torture of Poe, Kylo learned about the droid and set out to find it.

When Poe escaped with the help of Finn, Kylo guessed that Finn was the culprit. He got mad at Hux for having such a shitty Stormtrooper on the payroll, and its generally important for you to know that he and Hux are competing for the affections of Snoke. You should also probably know that he leads some kind of elite squad of baddies called the Knights of Ren, though weve only seen them in Reys Force-vision and heard them briefly mentioned by Snoke. Its also important to know that Kylo gets very mad at times and has a habit of crying and hitting things with his lightsaber. He gave an order that BB-8 and Finn were to be captured on Jakku, and though it failed, he learned of the existence of Rey and went with some First Order forces to Maz Kanatas castle, where he caught her and took her back to Starkiller Base. After Reys torture and escape that we discussed earlier, Kylo got very mad once again, but he got distracted by the fact that Han had shown up on Starkiller Base. He tracked his daddy down and, after some light angry-crying, killed Han to reconcile the warring emotions within him and kill off any lingering goodness. He fought Finn, then Rey, got injured, got separated from Rey, then escaped Starkiller Base along with Hux. Thats where we left off with our sadboi bad boy.

Finn / FN-2187 (John Boyega)

The First Order got into some nasty business in their march toward war, including drafting child soldiers into service as serial-numbered Stormtroopers. One of them was FN-2187, who at the beginning of The Force Awakens discovered that he just wasnt cut out for the Stormtrooping life. He refused to follow Kylos order to fire on some innocent civilians on Jakku and, upon returning to the ship where he was stationed, decided to go AWOL. He broke captured Resistance pilot Poe Dameron out of the ship and Poe nicknamed him Finn. The two were separated when their escape vehicle was hit above Jakku, and Finn wandered the planet until destiny linked him up with Rey and BB-8, to whom he lied and said he was a Resistance soldier. At Maz Kanatas castle, he gave up his little fib and tried to abandon the mission out of fear, but was reinvigorated after seeing the First Order blow up the New Republican capital (which, somehow, everyone could see in the sky). He and Han linked up with the Resistance at its secret headquarters, where Finn lied about having key information on how to disable the shields of Starkiller Base in order to get Han and Chewie to help him rescue Rey from it. Nevertheless, the trio improvised: They held Finns old boss Captain Phasma (more on her below) at gunpoint and had her turn the shields off. After the aforementioned bomb-planting and Han-death-witnessing, Finn briefly fought Kylo with Lukes lightsaber and was knocked out and severely wounded in the tussle. At the end of TFA, he was in a coma, receiving medical care.

Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac)

Where would Star Wars be without its cocky hotshots? TFA took away an old one in the form of Han, but gave us a sexy new one in the form of Poe Dameron. The child of Rebel Alliance heroes, he began his career as a New Republic pilot, but he decided that the First Order was too big a threat to ignore and joined the Resistance shortly before TFA began. He was sent by General Leia to Jakku to get the piece of map that had Lukes location. He was captured and tortured by Kylo, then busted out by Finn, only to get tossed from their getaway vehicle when it crashed. He managed to find his way back to the Resistance and led the sortie between their forces and the First Order outside Maz Kanatas castle. He and Finn were bro-ily reunited and Poe then led the Resistance attack on Starkiller Base, successfully blowing it up thanks to the explosive help of Rey, Finn, Han, and Chewie. Back at Resistance HQ, he met Rey for the first time and was demoted for acting recklessly, though we only learned that in tie-in materials, not the movie itself. Thats where were at with handsome Poe.

Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher)

The Galaxys premiere badass member of a royal family had a rough go of it in TFA. As we mentioned earlier, she was the leader of the Resistance, having formed it in response to the New Republics inaction to the rise of the First Order. After the Republic leadership and fleet were blown up by the First Order, she coordinated the successful counterattack on Starkiller Base. But she had little cause for celebration, because her beloved Han was killed in the battle. The two of them had been estranged for years after Bens darkward turn, after which Han had run off to chase his troubles away by being a smuggler again. They were briefly reunited at Resistance headquarters before the assault on Starkiller Base, and it was adorable, but she instantly knew through the Force (shes Force-sensitive, though not a Jedi) when he was killed off. Rey gave her a big hug after the fighting was over, Leia told Rey that the Force would be with her on her journey to Luke, and Leia went back to running the increasingly dire fight against evil.

Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis)

We know basically nothing about Snoke. Indeed, weve only seen a giant hologram of him so far. He somehow recruited Kylo when the lad was in his teens and has been a puppet master ever since. When we last saw him, he told Hux to get Kylo and escape Starkiller Base so Snoke could complete Kylos training.

The Droids (various)

Weve already addressed pretty much everything BB-8 has done, and he ended the movie in the company of the Resistance. C-3P0 made a few appearances at Resistance HQ during TFA, but didnt do a whole lot. R2-D2 was dormant in low-power mode for the majority of the movie, a state hed gone into after Luke left on his vision quest. He woke up in the presence of BB-8 and the two of them assembled the map that revealed Lukes location. He went off to meet his old buddy Luke alongside Chewie and Rey in the Falcon at the end of TFA, and now he has to somehow roll around the droid-inhospitable terrain of Ahch-To.

Han Solo (Harrison Ford)

Dead, dead, dead. Which is too bad, because Harrison Ford is always a delight on press tours.
The Waco Community Band Concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Ball Performing Arts Center at McLennan Community College.

Admission is free. Call 299-8283 for more information.

Red Cross Blood Drive

The Red Cross is having a blood drive from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 20 at the Doris Miller Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 4800 Memorial Drive, Building 6.

Make an appointment to give blood by downloading the free Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting redcrossblood.org or calling 800-733-2767.

Providence Park Blood Drive

Providence Park is having a blood drive from noon to 4 p.m. Dec. 20 at 300 W. Highway 6 in the community room. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call J.W. Musil at 761-8039.

Clothes for Salvation Army

The Salvation Army Thrift Store is in need of mens clothing. Donated clothing is sold and supports services to help the homeless and people in poverty find a way back to financial stability through the teaching of life skills, employment guidance, budgeting and counseling.

Clothing should be clean and free of tears or stains. Drop off donations at the Salvation Army store at 4721 W. Waco Drive. At-home pickups in McLennan County can be scheduled by calling 756-7271.

West Christmas

An exhibit of old toys, dolls and Christmas trees is on display for the Christmas season at the History of West Museum, 112 E. Oak St.

Admission is free. Exhibit hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The exhibit runs through Dec. 30.

For more information, call 755-6762.
In Waco Independent School Districts effort to protect five schools from potential closure by the state next year, two things are now certain: Whatever turnaround plan the district develops will include a blended learning model, and the deadline to submit a plan to the state is March 1, Superintendent A. Marcus Nelson announced at a board meeting Thursday night.

As I said last month, our faculties and staff are working so hard to meet state standard this year, Nelson said. But were down to our last semester. We fervently believe our campuses are capable of exceeding all state and federal standards. We believe that with everything thats in us. This is an adult issue, and our campuses and our curriculum teams are very laser-like focused on accomplishing this district goal.

Alta Vista Elementary School, Brook Avenue Elementary School, J.H. Hines Elementary School, G.W. Carver Middle School and Indian Spring Middle School have each failed state academic standards for five consecutive years or more, which leaves them open to closure if they do not pass this year.

Originally, the district expected to have to have turnaround plans approved by January for state approval by February, Nelson said during community meetings in October and early November about the issue. If the schools meet academic accountability standards in May, the improvement plan wont matter, Nelson said.

He said people have told him outside of the community meetings they feel Waco ISD is backed into a corner.

Theres some truth to that, Nelson said. If our campuses dont make it, according to the Texas Education Agency representatives, we really only have three choices: close the schools, allow the TEA to replace the board of trustees or identify a partner, or an entity that can basically operate those campuses. Thats it. Weve had some discussions about making sure those are our only options, and we want to emphasize to the public that thats it.

We can look at getting new campus IDs, but at the end of the day, we can close the schools, get a board or find a partner. In my humble opinion, the TEA wants us to partner with a charter network. Theyve also allowed, through Senate Bill 1882, us to explore partnering with members of our own community that are local nonprofit organizations, and thats why weve been exploring that partnership and how it would function.

A significant part of Prosper Wacos efforts has been focused on supporting Waco ISD and other local schools, executive director Matthew Polk said in an email to the Tribune-Herald last month.

Our board has told Dr. Nelson that were ready to step up that partnership however needed to serve students on the campuses that could be closed if they fail to meet state standards this school year, Polk wrote.

While part of the work to develop a plan has involved getting feedback from community members, Nelson said the other part has been about finding strategies to improve the quality of instruction.

Were going to implement this through what we call a blended learning model. Well be taking advantage of our technical advances and really making a commitment to our state-of-the-art hardware and software and unprecedented professional development for our teachers and staff, Nelson said.

The model will help improve literacy skills and augment achievement in other core areas, he said. With only 54 percent of Waco ISDs third-graders reading at their grade level or higher, district officials have said improving literacy is the most important academic challenge of the next few years.

(The blended learning model) better meets the needs of individualizing learning for each kid, Nelson said Thursday. Teachers can match each student with instructional materials based on his or her reading level. As a result, students at different levels are appropriately challenged in the same classroom at the same time.

The districts curriculum department has already trained all principals on the blending learning system, and later this month, officials will train about 600 teachers, Nelson said.

Literacy is the fundamental challenge we have in our school system, and were trying to address that issue aggressively, Nelson said. And when we implement a transformation plan for our improvement required schools, that plan will include comprehensive technology and training programs for enriching instruction through blended learning.

The school board is expected to approve the plan to send to the state during the regularly scheduled board meeting Jan. 25, Nelson said.

Our plans are to have this plan completed, identify a partner and hopefully we wont even have to have this discussion because the work we do this next semester will lift all of our campuses out of improvement required status, Nelson said.
Representatives with the Texas Municipal Police Association stopped in Waco during a media tour Monday to voice their concern about police brutality, national protests and the state of law enforcement views across the state.

Deputy Executive Director Mitch Slaymaker and media coordinator Andrea Coker met with local media members as part of their 13-site tour that will continue across the state into the spring. Slaymaker, a retired Brownwood Police Department patrol sergeant, said incidents of true police brutality are rare, but citizens may reach a conclusion about incidents before a full investigation has been completed.

"We are trying to get the true narrative that surrounds not only law enforcement in Texas but also in the nation to combat the false narrative that has gone viral that police are nothing but jack-booted thugs and that police brutality is out of control," Slaymaker said. "There are things that are simply falsehoods.

"There are people who don't want to look at statistics, who don't want to look at the facts and don't want logic to play a part of the narrative."

According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics study of contact between police and the public, a total of 60,000 people were interviewed in 2008. About 1.4 percent of residents said the police used or threatened to use force against them during their most recent contact with police in 2008, and 74 percent of the people said police used or threatened force against them in 2008, which they felt was excessive.

"When it comes down to the end of the day, officers are a part of the community and it's a community they are sworn to protect," Slaymaker said. "There is nothing further from the truth that an officer wakes up for their day and decides that they want to get into a fight with someone, regardless of race or ethnicity."

Slaymaker said he encourages local law enforcement to speak with residents about their concerns and the roles police play in daily duties. He said an open dialogue can combat false narratives and keep a strong community conversation with police and residents.
For every private school student the burden decrement on the public system is fairly small, but the personal advantage is immense. Credit:Tamara Voninski Three arguments are usually advanced for private schools. One, choice. Parents should be free to choose expensive or religious education for their kids if they wish. Two, quality. Private schools offer better education and, regardless of politics, the kid's interests should prevail. Three, burden: private schools, far from siphoning wealth from the public system, lightens its load. None of these arguments stack up. Take choice. Choice relies on comparison, product to product. But education is not shampoo. You can't try a school for a few weeks or years and know that how your kid tracks is a direct result, or how things might have been different elsewhere. So comparison is illusory. Indeed, a new paper suggests that the focus on choice and competition may itself be distracting us from the content and purpose of education, in favour of its trappings. Which goes directly to the quality argument. Many parents send their kids to private schools, even when they don't approve, because they think the education is better and there's at least a modicum of discipline. And yes, private schools are more able to impose order and sack teachers for non-performance. But, given that these students are already more biddable and more literate, it's impossible to prove any net educational benefit.

Three years ago, David Gillespie (author of Free Schools) argued persuasively that, once you correct for socioeconomic advantage, even the most expensive schools add nothing to educational outcome. This may be one reason why  it's now reported  more wealthy parents are choosing to put their kids in the public school system. Across the board, though, quality is low and falling, with consistently dropping international test scores in maths and science. Even a recent and welcome improvement in reading, mainly because girls love books, still takes us only to about the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development average. Could do better. And that leads immediately to the idea of burden. Does anyone suggest sport's Big Money dudes  the sponsors and gravy-trainers, the owners and big-bucks players  are taking the burden off the public sport system? No, they're creaming off the talent, quarantining it from public access for vast private profit and getting a public leg-up on the way. This is so wrong on so many levels. What's weird is that we can see it with sport, but with schooling  where the bill is six times the size, and annual  we're blind. But honestly  burden? According to the ABC, almost a quarter of the $53 billion funding of schools ($12.7 billion) goes to private schools  which educate roughly a third (34 per cent) of populace. So each private school student sucks almost two-thirds as much as each public one. Before the benefit of their $30,000 in fees.

In other words, for every private school student the burden decrement on the public system is fairly small, but the personal advantage is immense. This is manifestly unfair. Private schools heighten inequality, privileging the privileged, hogging the teaching talent and siphoning off kids already equipped with reading backgrounds, so depriving the public system of beneficial peer-to-peer learning. But that's not all. Tribalising children before they outgrow the booster seat can only encourage class-based and religious sectarianism. Friendly rivalry is one thing. But you can't allow a lovely school like Loreto Normanhurst without also allowing schools that demand your mother's birth certificate, or preach against infidels. This can only bring hatred. But the best argument against private schools is productivity. Squabble all you like about divvying up the pie but far more useful  and more fun  is growing it. Technically, yes, education is a burden, but as an appreciating asset it's more house than car; an investment. Forty years ago, Finland stunned the world by nationalising schools, revering teachers, ending streaming, entering school late, shrinking the school day, reducing homework and extending holidays  then topping every test. Lately, its schools slipped a little, mainly due to global financial crisis-driven reductions. But its schools are still up there, and in an extraordinary turn-up Dr Pasi Sahlberg, who as minister designed the Finnish system, will move to Sydney next year, to teach.
Bill Shorten is long way from the record of Harold Wilson, Britain's prime minister between 1964-70 and 1974-76, but in one respect he would identify with a much-quoted Wilson observation

During the sterling crisis of 1964 when the British pound was under enormous stress, a hard-pressed Wilson said this to lobby correspondents: "A week is a long time in politics."

This observation might have become a political cliche, but it does not make it any less pertinent.

Shorten has just endured one of his worst weeks as Opposition Leader. He will be hoping Wilson is right and he can put behind him a horror few days thanks to the appalling judgment of one of his own.
There are many reasons why companies might legitimately pay no tax. But that's no reason why Australians shouldn't get to see who is paying what. And given the intense debate swirling about whether the company tax rate should be reduced from 30 per cent to 25 per cent, it would be interesting to know exactly how much they are paying. Qantas has returned to profitability, but only after several years of substantial losses. Credit:Glenn Hunt Hint: it's much less than 30 per cent.

Legislation was eventually passed to increase corporate tax transparency, and we now have access to three years of data on individual company tax paid. Australia's four big banks are our largest corporate taxpayers. Credit:Brendon Thorne This year's spreadsheet was released, somewhat suspiciously, last week on the same historic day that same-sex marriage passed Parliament. Perhaps you missed it? No matter, I can get you up to speed. The 2015-16 tax year was a particularly tough one for energy and resource companies. Credit:Bloomberg

This year's spreadsheet details the taxes paid in 2015-16 by 2043 of Australia's biggest companies, comprising 1693 Australian public and foreign-owned companies that generated an income of $100 million or more, plus another 350 Australian-owned and resident private companies with an income of $200 million or more. Together, these companies chipped in $38.2 billion to government coffers through company income tax  about 60 per cent of the $62.9 billion of total company income tax paid that year. They did so off the back of $172 billion in taxable income, giving an average corporate income tax rate of 17 per cent. I warned you it was much lower than you might think. Australia's big banks emerge as our four biggest corporate taxpayers, with the Commonwealth Bank topping the list at $3.3 billion (a tax rate of 29 per cent), followed by Westpac at $3 billion (28 per cent), NAB $2.4 billion (21 per cent) and ANZ $2 billion (24 per cent).

Rounding out the top 10 corporate taxpayers' list were Telstra $1.7 billion (29 per cent), BHP Billiton $1.3 billion (25 per cent), Rio Tinto $1 billion (23 per cent), Wesfarmers $931 million (29 per cent), AMP $681 million (11 per cent) and Woolworths $497 million (27 per cent). Together these 10 companies paid more than a quarter of all company tax collected that year. And BHP chipped in another $488 million in petroleum resource rent tax. So far, so good. Turns out, a total of 762 companies  just over a third paid within 1 decimal point of the statutory rate. And this includes a number of large multinational corporations, including Aldi, Ikea, Citigroup, Audi, BMW and Volkswagen.

But a further third  732 in total  paid absolutely no corporate income tax. Nada. Zip. Zilch. They include: Bluescope, Alcoa, CSL, Elders, Healthscope, IBM, Lendlease, Mirvac, Origin Energy, Qantas, Pratt Consolidated Holdings, Pfizer, Shell, Seven, Transurban, Energy Australia, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Glencore, Santos, Stocklands, Sydney Airport and Toll Holdings. Now, as explained, there are many reasons why these companies might be able to legitimately pay no tax. The most simple of which  as surprising as it might seem  being that Australia's biggest companies are not beyond turning a loss.

According to a Tax Office analysis, around 20 to 30 per cent of ASX500 firms report a net loss to their shareholders in any given year. "Importantly, this shows that even extremely large companies will sometimes make a loss in a particular year." The nation's biggest airline carrier, Qantas, for example has recently returned to profitability, but only after several years of substantial losses. The 2015-16 tax year was a particularly tough one for energy and resource companies, which faced falling prices, and were the main reason for disappointing company tax collections that year. Appearing before a parliamentary inquiry into corporate tax transparency in 2015, Treasury's then head of revenue, Rob Heferen, observed that it was a deliberate choice of governments to allow companies to reduce their tax paid through various concessions: "So an observation that a company has an effective tax rate of less than 30 per cent is merely that  an observation of fact. It gives no insight as to whether the tax paid is appropriate or not."
Labor frontbencher Linda Burney has called on Sam Dastyari to "consider his position" after Fairfax Media revealed the controversial senator attempted to pressure Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek to abandon a meeting with a pro-democracy activist opposed to Beijing's interference in Hong Kong.

Ms Burney said Labor leader Bill Shorten had taken "decisive action" when he sacked the NSW senator from his parliamentary positions earlier this month but questions about his conduct would continue to "bubble away".

"It's now up to Mr Dastyari to consider his position and I'm sure that he's doing that," Ms Burney, the opposition's human services spokeswoman, told Sky News on Monday morning.

"In relation to the continued role of Sam Dastyari within the Parliament, that is a matter, I think, very much for Sam. Tanya Plibersek has made a very clear statement. Bill Shorten has taken decisive action. Sam Dastyari, I've very sure, is thinking very deeply about his role within the party."
Dear Sir,

The discussions on the Commercial Enterprises Bill cause other considerations to be made.

Firstly much is being made concerning the ease and simplicity(?) of obtaining work permits, with people making wildly false and fatuous statements that a foreign employer will not employ Bahamians as he will be able to bring in his own staff; not really very likely, anybody in business is trying to make a profit, no serious, sensible employer is going to pay the astronomic permit and relocation costs involved to bring in foreign staff if there is an adequate pool of satisfactory local labour.

Of course a foreign employer is going to want his senior management from his home office, knowledge of and trust in those people being paramount.

Consider this. If Mr. Atario Mitchell, of Bahamas Striping, was considering setting up a subsidiary in (say) Trinidad or Guyana it is quite certain he would transfer members of his own senior management team to run that business in the foreign country, and employ local labour for the day to day operations.



Secondly, and a point totally missed by everyone, if a foreign company sets up in the Bahamas but does not employ any Bahamian staff, that company is still paying substantial fees and taxes to the Bahamian Exchequer and other expenses to the general economy, this is definitely not a scenario condoned by this writer, but must be considered, since if that company did not come there would be neither employment nor national income.



Just wondering when certain people might engage brain before mouth.



George Francis
By West Kentucky Star Staff Dec. 10, 2017 | 02:55 PM | LIVINGSTON COUNTY, KY

Two people found asleep inside a running vehicle face numerous drug charges.

Livingston County Sheriff Bobby Davidson said he received a call from a citizen on Saturday, about a vehicle parked in the travel portion of the roadway on Joiner Road off of Pisgah Road. The caller said there appeared to be two people asleep in the vehicle and the vehicle was running.



When Davidson arrived, the vehicle was still sitting in the road running with two occupants inside. According to Davidson, both occupants, 34-year-old Joshua Williams of Princeton and 23-year-old Alysa Mallory of Hampton, appeared to be under the influence of drugs and were taken into custody.

A search of the vehicle revealed over seven ounces of suspected crystal methamphetamine, over $3,000 in cash, a small quantity of marijuana, two types of prescription pills packaged for sale, a rifle and a handgun. The vehicle, a 2008 Ford Mustang, was seized along with the money, firearms and drugs. Police said the approximate street value of the seized crystal methamphetamine is $15,000.

Both Williams and Mallory were arrested and charged with public intoxication, trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a controlled substance, trafficking marijuana, and two counts of trafficking in a controlled substance. Williams was also charged with possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Both Williams and Mallory were lodged in the McCracken County Jail.
By Jim Waters, Bluegrass Institute Dec. 10, 2017 | 04:35 PM | FRANKFORT, KY

WLEX weather anchor Bill Meck was no doubt the most interesting speaker at this year's Kentucky Public Retirees' Annual Conference in Frankfort.

Since I didn't receive an invitation to this glorious affair, I'm not privy to what Meck, a storm chaser who once created "Danger From the Sky," an award-winning documentary on severe weather, said that might relate his illustrious career forecasting weather patterns to the clashing of budget realities with promises  real and perceived  made to Kentucky's public pensioners.

Perhaps Meck warned his audience that allowing distractions like deceptively calm weather prior to a tornado to delay taking cover from a fast-arriving storm is akin to ignoring or downplaying the seriousness of situations, whether they involve storms or diminishing retirement plans.

Opponents of proposals containing meaningful changes in the manner and level at which benefits are awarded by Kentucky's retirement systems appear only too eager to allow distractions to result in more of the same kind of timid legislation passed in recent years and inaccurately labeled "substantive pension reform."

Had such measures been sufficient, we wouldn't find ourselves with a $65 billion-and-growing unfunded liability and retirement systems sliding toward the precipice of insolvency.

Nothing, including the ongoing sexual-harassment scandal, should waylay Frankfort from tackling this crisis.

In fact, failing to do so will only darken the black cloud hanging over the Capitol.

An unwillingness to create a fairer, properly prefunded and more sustainable retirement-benefits structure cannot in any sense be considered consequential progress.

We've seen too many fluffy proposals in recent history epitomizing little more than whistling Dixie past Kentucky's economic graveyard as communities scrape for dollars to pay ballooning pension bills while still funding services citizens expect from local governments.

It's substantially affecting taxpayers in places like Hopkins County, where in just the past few years, workers from outside Madisonville who work in the county seat were hit with an occupational tax while payroll taxes on employees in the city increased, property taxes rose by maximum-allowable rates and diners began forking over a supersized 3 percent restaurant tax.

Taxpayers across the commonwealth facing similar predicaments want such whistling to end.

But it doesn't have to end with a forced special legislative session in December.

Successful special sessions require a ton of solid agreement among legislators before the opening gavel falls.

Excessive debate in such a session likely would cause it to either run too long or shut down without a decision, which would be an unmitigated political disaster for the GOP.

Gov. Bevin's intentions are right in his desire to call the legislature back to Frankfort during the interim to address the pension predicament.

However, using his considerable leadership skills to make 2018 the most productive legislative session in Kentucky's history would in no way diminish his standing.

For years, House Democratic leaders enabled by their party's governor wasted time with frivolous legislation, ensuring that General Assembly sessions  especially in earlier weeks  moved lethargically and avoided any real meaningful reforms in most policy areas.

Hitting the ground running on pension reform during the regular budget session in early January would allow for the quantity and quality of debate in a Republican-led House that allows for fresh ideas, including a new paradigm for retirement systems protecting taxpayers, benefitting beneficiaries, offering real changes and garnering enough votes.

Republicans' greatest accomplishment during the 2017 General Assembly was their focus and impressive work ethic during the first week of the session.

The results added up to possibly the most-productive week in Kentucky's 225-year legislative history.

For an encore, why not spend the first 30 days of the 2018 session fully debating and fixing the pension systems with politically successful legislation and the second half passing a tough, conservative budget, making it Kentucky's most momentous legislative session in history?







Jim Waters is president and CEO of the Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, Kentucky's free-market think tank. Read previous columns at www.bipps.org. He can be reached at jwaters@freedomkentucky.com and @bipps on Twitter.
US 60 open after Salem fire, but may be icy
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The Putz family has had a busy year.

On top of Kami Putzs in-home daycare, the family has welcomed a foreign exchange student from Germany into their home, while continuing to parent and care for their two elementary school-aged children and the family dog, Zoey.

And they started another business, creating and establishing The Barkery on Third Street in downtown Winona.

Opening officially in November 2017, The Barkery features pet and environmentally-friendly treats and toys for dogs. The shop also supports local organizations and humane societies dedicated to the safety and well-being of pets, donating a portion of their proceeds from its grand opening to the Winona Area Humane Society and selling calendars on behalf of the Trempealeau County Humane Society.

And while Craig Putz said his wife, Kami, has been a tremendous help in establishing and running the business, Kami said she knows the store is truly Craigs own passion project.

Were in it together; this is more his baby, Kami said. Im very supportive.

The idea for a business that specializes in healthier dog treats and toys came from a family trip to visit relatives in North Carolina. While at a flea market in the state, the Putzes struck up a conversation with a dog bakery vendor and began to think of starting that same kind of business in Winona.

But it was care for Zoey  who the family originally got as an emotional support dog, Craig said  that inspired the opening of The Barkery.

Shes a big part of the family, Craig said, adding The Barkery logo used to feature her in it before they went with a simpler logo.

After making their own treats, much to the approval of their focus group  Zoey and their friends dogs  the Putzes decided it was time to open a physical shop.

Purchasing a small portion of the building next to The Oaks from family friends and owners of the wine bar, Kelly and Jeradiah Welti, The Barkery became a physical place to sell safe treats and toys to their fellow dog families and owners.

The Barkery is currently unable to sell their own treats because of need for USDA nutritional analysis, but Craig is hopeful that will change around mid-December once The Barkery has its treats OKd by the USDA. Craig does sell their homemade treats at craft fairs, since those spaces are not brick and mortar establishments, but rather a place to sell homemade craft goods.

Dogs are also not allowed in the stores current site due to insurance concerns with the size of the shop and potential dog reactions.

The toys the shop sells are also Zoey-approved, such as toys from West Paw Design. Craig said Zoey has had one toy in particular from the company for a few years, and while it has shown some wear and tear, it has remained a safe playtime favorite, Craig said.

Its her best friend, 9-year-old Gabriella Putz said of Zoeys toy.

The Barkery, Craig said, wants to only sell toys that will be durable and non-toxic to dogs. Dog owners can also shop for water and food bowls, among other dog accessories and goodies.

The excitement and curiosity for the Putzes children, including Asher, 7, and Paul Johring, 16, of Muhlhausen, Germany, hasnt been diminished.

It was really fun when Daddy told us we were going to start our own business, Gabriella said. I was really excited when we were going to open it.

After the announcement by her dad, Gabriella began writing down ideas and suggestions for The Barkery, and her own handkerchiefs for dogs to wear are for sale in the store  the same kind Zoey used to wear.

As for Johrings perception, he said he had never heard of a bakery for dogs and was surprised when his host parents told him they were in the midst of starting a new business.

I see how hard they work, Johring said. I like the idea.

If you ask Asher, hes pretty confident in the future of The Barkery.

I think The Barkery is a success so far, Asher said.

As for the future of the months old establishment, Craig said he hopes to see the business find a larger space to not only sell their products but to host a dog cafe of sorts, where owners and their dogs can have their own (nontoxic) treat.
Submit an event for Around Town by emailing calendar information to bnr-news@wiscnews.com at least three business days before the event date. For a complete listing of calendar events for the next week, visit baraboonewsrepublic.com.

Today

Womens meeting: 11:30 a.m., Reedsburg Area Womens Club, Reedsburg Country Club, 3003 E. Main St., Reedsburg. Members will be sharing their favorite Christmas treats by bringing a dozen of their famous cookies, candy etc. To check availability, call Belinda Bowers at 985-7417 or beebowers@yahoo.com.

Tuesday

Hospice training: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., SSM Health at Home, training session, SSM Health Hospice House (formerly known as St. Clare Hospice House), 915 12th St., Baraboo. Volunteers are needed in both administrative and patient-interactive areas. For more information or to register for training, call 877-356-4514 or email volunteers@hhuvns.org or visit ssmhealthathomewi.com.

Chocolate sale: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friends of Sauk Prairie Healthcare, 260 26th St., Prairie du Sac. Pauls Chocolates fundraiser. Samples will be available. Twenty percent of sales will be donated. Proceeds will support health care scholarships and resources for our hospital and clinics.

Veterans coffee: 10 a.m. to noon, Madison College, Room 114, 300 Alexander Ave., Reedsburg. All veterans are invited for coffee and conversation.

Craft fair: 1-7 p.m., Sauk Prairie Area Food Pantry, former Sauk Prairie Harley Davidson location, 836 Phillips Blvd., Sauk City. Third annual Holiday Shop with bake sale, specialty foods and about 40 vendors and crafters.

Wednesday

Senior luncheon: 11 a.m., City of Baraboo Parks and Recreation Department, Baraboo Civic Center, gym, 124 Second St., Baraboo. The 33rd annual Senior Holiday Luncheon at noon with school choirs at 11 a.m. Cost is $10. For tickets or more information, call 355-2760 or email parkrec@cityofbaraboo.com.

Blood drive: noon to 5 p.m., Weston National Honor Society and BloodCenter of Wisconsin, school gym, E2511 Highway S, Cazenovia. Permission and sign-up slips are located in the Weston High School office. For more information or to make an appointment, call Kay Amborn at 608-986-2151, ext. 230.

Grazing event: 2-3 p.m., Sauk County Conservation, Plannning, and Zoning, Yankes Echo-Y Farm, S7909 Skyview Road, Loganville. Grazing Stockpiled Forages and Out-Wintering Cattle will be presented.

Meeting: 3 p.m., SSM Health St. Clare Hospital, 707 14th St., Baraboo. Better Breathers Club will hold a discussion on tips for staying healthy during the holidays, energy conservation and managing lung disease with co-occurring conditions.

Thursday

Author visit: 6 p.m., La Valle Public Library, 101 W. Main St., La Valle. Darcy Miller will discuss her book, Roll, about competitive pigeon rolling. Meet her birds, Crow and Squirrel. For more information, call 608-985-7323.

Pottery painting: 6-8 p.m. River Arts, River Arts on Water Studio, 590 Water St, Prairie du Sac. A selection of ceramic pottery pieces will be provided, $15-70, for students to paint. Guidance, color options and surface ideas, along with reference materials and samples will be provided. Fee is $15. For more information or to check availability, email Kristina at riverartsinc.org" target="_blank">kcoopman@riverartsinc.org, call 608-643-5215 or visit riverartsinc.org.

Court program: 6:30 p.m., Baraboo Public Library, 230 Fourth Ave., Baraboo. Primer on the Criminal Court System in Wisconsin with Appellate Judge Brian Blanchard, District IV, Wisconsin Court of Appeals. He will present a non-partisan program about Wisconsins criminal court system. For more information, call 608-356-6166.

Friday

Senior coffee hour: 9-11 a.m., Friday Senior Coffee Hour, Baraboo Area Senior Center, 124 Second St. Room 24, Baraboo. Gourmet coffee hour, light refreshments and fellowship free of charge. For more information, call Diane Pillsbury at 608-356-8464.

Chair yoga: 10:10-11 a.m., Baraboo Area Senior Center, 124 Second St., Room 21, Baraboo. Instructor Tatsiana ONeil will lead the group in stretches while seated. Cost is $1 per class. For more information, call Diane Pillsbury at 608-356-8464.

Blood drive: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., American Red Cross, St Pauls Lutheran Church, 727 8th St., Baraboo. To make an appointment or for more information, call 800-RED-CROSS (800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org.

Live music: noon, Baraboo Public Library, 230 Fourth Ave., Baraboo. An Interlude of Seasonal Music presented by Zach Ott and Gretchen Roltgen performing holiday piano music arranged for one piano, four hands. This program is free. For more information, call 608-356-6166.

Open stage: 7:30 p.m., The Village Booksmith, 526 Oak St., Baraboo. Mostly Musical Toast of the Town Open Stage will take place with host Ron Frye. All acts, musical or otherwise, are welcome to the stage. For more information, call 608-355-1001 or visit villagebooksmith.com.

Saturday

Craft fair: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sauk Prairie Area Food Pantry, former Sauk Prairie Harley-Davidson location, 836 Phillips Blvd., Sauk City. Third annual Holiday Shop with bake sale, specialty foods and about 40 vendors and crafters.

Senior luncheon: 11 a.m., City of Baraboo Parks and Recreation Department, Baraboo Civic Center, 124 Second St., Baraboo. 33rd Annual Senior Holiday Luncheon for those age 55 and older will feature holiday music performed by area school choirs and lunch for $10 per person. Tickets must be purchased in advance and paid for in person at the Parks and Recreation Department Office located in Room 17 at the Civic Center. For more information, call 608-355-2760 or email parkrec@cityofbaraboo.com.

Christmas party: 1 p.m., Baraboo Elks Lodge 688, Al. Ringling Mansion, ballroom, 209 5th Ave. Baraboo. The 100th annual kids Santa will provide a gift stocking to attending children.

Santa: 1-5 p.m., Parkview Bed & Breakfast, 211 N. Park St., Reedsburg. Milk & Cookies with Santa and photo for $5, additional for horse-drawn wagon rides. A limited number of tickets are available at the Reedsburg Area Chamber of Commerce, 240 Railroad St.

Sunday

Fundraiser: 8 a.m to noon, Reedsburg Knights of Columbus, Sacred Heart School gym, 545 N. Oak St., Reedsburg. Brunch to support the Reedsburg Area Food Pantry; menu includes French toast, hash brown potatoes, scrambled eggs, sausages, sliced ham, applesauce, donuts and beverages. Tickets are $7 adults, $3 ages 4-10. Free will donations accepted. Open to the public.

Christmas event: 7 p.m., Calvary Baptist Church, 309 Water St., Sauk City. Annual Christmas Program with Jan Housley presenting a monologue entitled Marys First Christmas, with childrens Christmas pageant. For more information, call 608-643-2101 or visit saukprairiecalvary.com.
Kudos to Common Cause in Wisconsins Jay Heck for taking a cue from my many columns that wonder why the Wisconsin Legislature is paid full-time salaries and benefits when it works but a few months a year.

Hecks complaint centered around the Legislatures failure to even hold a public hearing on bills that would take redistricting duties away from the politicians and give them to a nonpartisan commission.

These full-timers apparently cant find enough time to listen to the arguments.

The Common Cause in Wisconsin executive director noted that Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald already have declared that the Legislature is by and large finished with its agenda for 2017-18 and is expected to return for a brief session in mid-spring, when he said they will undoubtedly concentrate on stockpiling special interest campaign cash for their campaigns while drawing full-time salary and benefits.

Great gig, if you can get it, mused Heck, who then added, Keep in mind, Wisconsin is by far the smallest state in the nation, population-wise, that has a full-time Legislature.

For what? he asked.

In other words, these Republicans who have had control of the Legislature for the past seven years should surely have enough time while drawing their pay and benefits to spend a few hours hearing arguments about why we need to change the system that results in gerrymandered legislative and congressional districts every 10 years.

Vos and Fitzgerald have bottled up any attempts to address the states redistricting problems even as tens of thousands of voters, nearly all of the states newspapers, and good government groups have begged them to do so. Not even court decisions that have held that the gerrymandered districts drawn by the 2011-12 Legislature are unconstitutional have moved them. The case is now pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, yet Vos and Fitzgerald still oppose scheduling something as simple as a public hearing.

Hecks complaint spotlights the absurdity of Wisconsin paying its legislators enough salary, per diems for food and housing, and office and travel expenses so they can make a full-time job out of what is clearly a part-time position.

Both political parties have contributed to this nonsense, which has cost taxpayers untold amounts of money the past four decades. Not only do their pay and benefits hover around $75,000, they have padded their staffs with administrative aides and clerks and commandeered most of the space in the state Capitol, forcing departments that once were conveniently located there to lease expensive commercial offices in downtown Madison and beyond.

Meanwhile, legislators saw fit last year to raised their per diems because, after all, the cost of eating and sleeping in the capital city has gone up.

Yes, it certainly has, but that doesnt seem to bother legislators enough to take a look at the $7.25 per hour state minimum wage that has been in effect for going on a decade now.

Hecks letter to Common Cause members noted that not only has Vos not been able to find time to schedule a hearing on redistricting legislation, he was able to go out of his way to criticize Republican Gov. John Kasich of Ohio for having the audacity to support fair election maps and oppose hyper-partisan gerrymandering.

How dare that Kasich side with citizens over political bosses! exclaimed Heck.

He then issued a plea to Common Cause members to write and phone their legislators  again  to demand a hearing.

He might as well save his breath. These full-time politicians havent the time to actually consider legislation that might make our government a bit more fair.
WAUPUN  Local dairy farmer and Waupun School Board President Bill Bruins has received the Distinguished Service to Wisconsin Agriculture award Dec. 3.

The award, in recognition of Bruins contributions to Wisconsins agricultural industry, was presented at the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federations 98th annual meeting in Wisconsin Dells.

Bruins was born and raised in the town of Alto and is a sixth-generation dairy farmer. He is general manager of Homeland Dairy, his familys dairy partnership. In addition, he is president of the Waupun School Board,

I have 20 grandkids, they are the seventh and eighth generation, so in 2010 I decided to run for school board. I wanted to keep Waupun a safe community, and I could serve the community because the family ran the day to day business, Bruins said.

Bruins, who was just appointed to his second six-year term as agriculture representative on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Board, says hes always enjoyed serving.

If people quit volunteering it will be the end of our society as we know it. Too many people want the government to do it. Volunteering is part of the culture of our community. Look at Alto Fair, its all volunteers. Volunteering is the price you pay for the space you occupy, he said.

Over the years, Bruins served on numerous Wisconsin Farm Bureau committees including rural health and safety, dairy, policy development and young farmers. He is also a former state Discussion Meet winner. Nationally, he served on the American Farm Bureau Federations Dairy Advisory Committee.

Bill has served Wisconsin agriculture in many different capacities during his lifetime, said WFBF President Jim Holte in a press release. He represented District 5  for 24 years, serving nine years as president. His skills were critical in serving farmers and building strong relationships with Farm Bureau and agriculture statewide.

Bills commitment to the agriculture community is admirable, said Holte. He is extremely deserving of this award.
New body camera footage captures the tense moments before an Arizona police officer shot an unarmed man dead last year, as the man begged officers not to fire.

Police in Mesa, Arizona released the footage last week, after a jury acquitted former Mesa officer Philip "Mitch" Brailsford of second-degree murder and reckless manslaughter charges related to the January 2016 shooting of Daniel Shaver, of Texas.

Brailsford shot Shaver after police responded to a call saying a man was pointing a rifle out of the window of a La Quinta Inn. The former officer testified he believed Shaver was reaching for a gun in his waistband as he moved toward officers, CNN affiliate KTRK/KPHO reported. No weapon was found.

An attorney for Shaver's widow said the footage shows the shooting was unjustified, while Brailsford's lawyer said his client's actions were consistent with his police training.

"That's an execution, pure and simple. The Justice system miserably failed Daniel and his family," Mark Geragos, the attorney for Shaver's widow, Laney Sweet, said in a statement.

In an interview last week with CNN, Brailsford's attorney, Mike Piccarreta, said jurors heard six weeks of testimony and watched the body camera footage several times before acquitting the former officer.

"While it's a compete tragedy, he's comforted by the fact that his response was in view with the way he was trained," Piccarreta said.

The graphic footage prompted anger on social media.

Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson tweeted: "I keep thinking about how effortlessly that police officer killed #DanielShaver in that hotel hallway. And how the officer was acquitted. The only person to fear in that entire situation was the officer himself."

"God bless #DanielShaver," director and producer Ava DuVernay tweeted.

'Please, don't shoot me'

When police arrived at La Quinta, they ordered Shaver and a woman to come out of a room on the fifth floor, KTRK/KPHO reported.

The body camera footage shows Shaver on his knees in the hotel hallway, a few feet away from the barrel of a police officer's gun.

"Hands up in the air," an officer says.

Shaver puts his hands on the floor, then behind his back, then moves them forward again before an officer yells "Hands up in the air!" Shaver moves his hands up above his head.

"You do that again, we're shooting you, do you understand?" the officer said.

"Please, do not shoot me," Shaver said.

"Then listen to my instructions," the officer said.

"I'm trying to just do what you say," Shaver said.

"Do not put your hands down for any reason!" the officer later says to Shaver. "You think you're going to fall, you better fall on your face. Your hands go back in the small of your back or down, we are going to shoot you! Do you understand me?"

"Yes, sir," Shaver says, sobbing.

An officer then orders Shaver to crawl toward him. As Shaver crawls, he appears to reach behind him with his right hand.

That's when Brailsford fired five rounds, killing him.

After the shooting, several witnesses and hotel employees told police Shaver was drunk. An autopsy revealed Shaver's blood alcohol level was .29, more than three times the local definition of intoxication, KTRK/KPHO reported.

Witnesses later told police Shaver was showing them an air rifle he had used in his job as a pest exterminator.

Brailsford was fired because of the pending second-degree murder charge and for having the words You're F***** engraved on a part of his personal, department-approved AR-15, Mesa police spokeswoman Sgt. Diana Williams told CNN.

Ben Meiselas, an attorney with Geragos' firm, confirmed that the AR-15 that Brailsford used in the shooting had an expletive etched into it. But the judge did not allow the AR-15 into evidence because he ruled it "too prejudicial" and "not sufficiently relevant," he told CNN.

Brailsford had worked for the department for two years, KTRK/KPHO reported.

During the trial, Brailsford told jurors he was trained to deal with a threat.

"I was doing what I needed to do to protect my fellow men and the woman we had just taken into custody," Brailsford testified, according to CNN affiliate KTRK/KPHO.

Brailsford testified Shaver disobeyed orders not to put his hands behind him on several occasions, the station reported.

"For some reason, he placed his hands behind his back," Brailsford said. "For one, I don't know why he did that."

The grand jury handed down the verdict on the same day a federal judge sentenced Michael Slager, a white former North Charleston, South Carolina, police officer, to 20 years in prison for fatally shooting Walter Scott, a 50-year-old unarmed black man, in the back as Scott ran away.

Scott's death, one of several recent killings of unarmed black men by police, was captured in a bystander's cell phone video.

CNN's Polo Sandoval, Samira Said, Laura Diaz-Zuniga and Artemis Moshtaghian contributed to this report.
A West Point man has been sentenced to three years in prison for his part in the 2015 overdose death of a Lodi man.

Chase Thistle, 28, appeared for his sentencing Friday for first-degree reckless homicide.

The conviction, at the end of a two-day jury trial in August, found Thistle criminally liable for helping 26-year-old Nicholas Klamer find a heroin dealer late on the night of Aug. 17, 2015. According to trial testimony, Thistle was the last person to see Klamer alive, leaving him to sleep in a boathouse after they had both shot up.

Klamer was found dead the next day, while Thistle was found at his grandparents home where he had also overdosed, but had been revived.

Columbia County Judge Alan White, who oversaw the trial in August prior to his retirement the following month, returned to the bench for sentencing. He ordered Thistle to serve three years in prison, followed by 10 years of extended supervision.

In October, Patrick Sawyer, 47, whom Thistle and Klamer had met in Madison that night and delivered the fatal heroin, was convicted of the same offense as Thistle and sentenced to four years prison and 10 years of supervision.
A Reedsburg man was arrested for bail jumping and resisting arrest of an officer Dec. 5.

Robert Cheek, 29, has been charged with three counts of felony bail jumping and one count each of criminal damage to property and resisting arrest of an officer. If convicted, he faces a Class A misdemeanor, a $10,000 fine or imprisonment for nine months or both for criminal damage to property and resisting arrest of an officer. For the three counts of bail jumping, a Class H felony, he faces up to a $10,000 fine and six years in prison. Cheeks sentence could be lengthened because of a prior conviction of possession of narcotic drugs in June 2015.

According to a criminal complaint, officers of the Reedsburg Police Department were called at approximately 7:46 p.m. to 123 Silver Drive in Reedsburg for a report of Cheek acting strangely at the residence. Upon officer arrival, Cheek was sitting on the floor talking to a cable box located on a television stand. After officers got Cheeks attention, he began saying You are all dirty cops and grabbed the cable box and held it in front of him.

Cheek then proceeded to communicate with the cable box, calling it Robby. He resisted arrest by tensing his muscles and gaining control of an officers cargo pocket. Officers were able to gain control and arrest him.

Cheek is currently out on a $500 cash bond, a court date is set for Jan. 12, 2018.
W&M professors exhibition celebrates the complexity of Goan identity

An artist in action: Vamona Navelcars story embodies the multiplicity of experiences and cultures that constitute the Goan identity. Courtesy photo Photo - of - Hide Caption

As students begin departing for their winter holiday break, R. Benedito Ferrao will spend his new year in Goa, employing the power of art and remembrance to actualize a modified understanding of the regions cultural identity.

I think art is so important because it literally illustrates the kinds of things that get forgotten, said Ferrao, enthusiastically explaining the significance of one octogenarian artist  Vamona Navelcar  who represents the complexity of a hidden culture and serves as the subject of Ferraos research initiative.

Ferrao, an assistant professor of English and Asian & Pacific Islander American studies at William & Mary, will be presenting an exhibition in Goa from Dec. 12, 2017, to Jan. 12, 2018. Titled Goa/Portugal/Mozambique: The Many Lives of Vamona Navelcar, the event will feature and celebrate Navelcars artistic work, complex story and cultural legacy.

Ferrao emphasized that Vamona Navelcars story embodies the multiplicity of experiences and cultures that constitute the Goan identity. Having become indirectly embroiled in the historical and cultural consequences of decolonization, Navelcar speaks to a forgotten time and place in the world.

Before fully addressing the value of Navelcars story, Ferrao articulated the importance of understanding the world Navelcar inhabited as a Goan artist during the period of decolonization.

Navelcar grew up in Goa, what Ferrao termed a very tiny part of the world that was colonized by the Portuguese in 1510. In 1961, India invaded Goa, seizing control from the Portuguese. Shortly before this claim to power, Ferrao explained that the young artist, Navelcar, became unexpectedly enmeshed in the regions political affairs. He received a scholarship from the then-Portuguese-dictator to travel to Portugal and practice his art.

I think the dictator was doing a little bit of PR here, said Ferrao with a laugh. These are the waning days of colonialism. British India has already disbanded. The Portuguese are holding on as steadfastly as they can to these few dominions they have left around the world.

Following Navelcars travel to Portugal and the 1961 Indian takeover of Goa, Navelcar found himself in a precarious situation: He is a Portuguese citizen of Goan origin, but now Goa is no longer Portuguese, Ferrao said. Instead of returning home, Navelcar traveled to Mozambique, where the newly decolonized government places him, among other artists, into a hard labor camp. When he is freed, Ferrao said, Hes so heartbroken from what happened to him that he decides to leave and return to Portugal. He gets to [Portugal], but his suitcase doesnt. In one fell swoop, he loses everything. His suitcase is never found.

In a few years, when the artist returns to Goa, then under Indian control, he finds the aesthetic, the way of thinking about art, does not include him. The artistic mores of India, having communicated themselves to Goa, had developed into the dominant strain of culture and heritage, Ferrao explained.

Theres a push towards the fixity of Goan identity as it must only mirror Indian identity  I call it a push because thats not what Goan identity is, it is these multiple things, he said.

At the time, Ferrao said, Navelcars art doesnt fit into the larger imaginary of the way in which India thinks of itself and the world thinks of India, which had become intertwined with the global understanding of Goa. As a result, Navelcars art, which embodies a distinct cultural complexity of his own life, and the Goan experience, becomes largely unappreciated.

When Ferrao first learned of Navelcars story while residing in Goa, he was captivated. He recognized an overlap with his own personal history, his mother having been born and raised in East Africa, and his father having lived in Portuguese Goa.

These stories were not foreign to my own existence, but they seemed to be rapidly forgotten in the contemporary moment, he said. Here is a man from that past who is still living, but yet seemed to be forgotten. To this day, he continues to produce art that speaks to these multiple strands of Goan history, and also world history at the same time.

Today, Ferrao is encouraging more people to stand up and pay attention. As a member of the Al-Zulaij Collective, working in conjunction with the Fundacao Oriente to host the event in Goa, Ferrao is offering the exhibition to resurface not only [Vamona Navelcar,] but a kind of heritage thats still living.

Asked to articulate the implications of the exhibition for the Goan, and global, community, Ferrao explained, Theres a Portuguese word, saudade, which means loss, yearning and nostalgia. Even in saying that, theres no direct equivalent in English. The condition of saudade could be taken to mean loss, but the word is both loss and nostalgia. Theres that small space in this strange word that tells us just because something is not seen, it doesnt mean it goes away.

Navelcars very presence, his art and life story are a reminder that even though the politics of place or the dominant heritage of a place might represent one thing, there are several things on the margin that dont go away. By not paying attention to them, were doing them a huge disservice.

Ferraos month-long exhibition will tell a story about Goa that corrects this disservice by connecting the region to multiple paths of the world, addressing the intricacies of Goan identity, and bringing back to life that which has been forgotten, but will never go away.
Paladin creditors agree to proposed restructuring

11 December 2017

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Paladin Energy's creditors have agreed to a proposal to restructure the company's debt and reinstate it to quotation on the ASX. The Western Australia-based company's creditors have executed the proposed deed of company arrangement (DOCA). Major creditor Electricite de France (EDF) previously said it may seek to have the DOCA, which it claims is unfairly prejudicial towards it, terminated.

Paladin, owner of the Langer Heinrich uranium mine in Namibia, appointed administrators in July after failing to agree a delay to the repayment of a $277 million debt to EDF. The company has been undergoing a balance sheet restructuring since February and is administered by Matthew Woods, Hayden White and Gayle Dickerson of KPMG.

The administrators said on 1 December that they had been seeking possible recapitalisation and restructuring alternatives for the companies - Paladin Energy Ltd, Paladin Finance Pty Ltd and Paladin Energy Minerals NL - and had received only one proposal, from a group of Paladin's unsecured bondholders known as the Ad Hoc Committee. In their annual report to shareholders, issued on 30 November, the administrators advised creditors to accept the proposed DOCA put forward by the Ad Hoc Committee as being in the creditors' interests.

The key terms of the proposed DOCA include a debt for equity swap, which would see 98% of Paladin's issued shares transferred to creditors (with existing shareholders retaining 2%); the raising of $115 million pursuant to the issue of a high-yield secured note; and the reinstatement of Paladin to official quotation on the ASX.

The administrators on 7 December said EDF had rejected their conclusion that the proposed DOCA was in creditors' interests. "EDF has also claimed that the proposed DOCA is unfairly prejudicial to it and has foreshadowed that it may seek to have the DOCA terminated if creditors resolve that the DOCA be executed," they noted.

On 8 December, Matthew Woods of KPMG announced that the creditors of each of the companies had agreed to the proposed DOCA and the administrators and the respective companies had accordingly executed the deeds. The administrators have estimated that the recapitalisation will be completed before 31 January 2018.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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Iter fusion project passes construction milestone

11 December 2017

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Construction of the Iter fusion reactor, being built at Cadarache in the south of France, is now 50% complete, the Iter Organisation has announced. The reactor - construction of which began in 2010 - is scheduled to achieve first plasma in 2025.

The Iter construction site, pictured in October 2017 (Image: Iter)

The organisation said: "According to the stringent metrics that measure project performance, 50% of the 'total construction work scope through First Plasma' is now complete."

It said that almost 53% of construction activities (on the Iter site at Cadarache) and manufacturing activities for components and systems needed for first plasma have been completed. "The performance metrics used in Iter assign a relative weight to every activity category within the project," the organisation said. "Design, for instance, accounts for 24%; buildings construction and manufacturing for 48%; assembly and installation for 20%."

"After having compounded the percentage of completion of each category, the metrics produce a figure for the totality of the work scope through the launch of operations ('first plasma')." Design, which accounts for approximately 25% of the scope, is now close to 95% complete; manufacturing and building, which represents almost half of the total activities is close to 53% complete.

Iter Director-General Bernard Bigot said the passing of the 50% milestone reflects "the collective contribution and commitment of Iter's seven members".

Iter, which stands for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, is a major international project to build a 500MW tokamak fusion device (requiring an input of 50MW) designed to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy.

The European Union is contributing almost half of the cost of its construction, while the other six members (China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the USA) are contributing equally to the rest. Under a revised schedule established by the Iter organisation last year, first plasma is planned for 2025, with deuterium-tritium fusion experiments commencing in 2035. Construction costs are expected to be around 20 billion ($22 billion), with components contributed by the Iter members on an 'in-kind' basis.

Iter's specialised components - some 10 million parts in total - are being manufactured in industrial facilities all over the world. They are subsequently shipped to the Iter worksite, where they must be assembled, piece-by-piece, into the final machine.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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'Notice to proceed' contracts signed for El Dabaa

11 December 2017

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Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachov and Egypt's Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy Mohamed Shaker today signed notices to proceed with contracts for the construction of four VVER-1200 units at the El Dabaa nuclear power plant.

Presidents Putin and El Sisi pictured in Cairo today (Image: Kremlin)

The contracts, signed in the presence of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi of Egypt and President Vladimir Putin of Russia, follow a November 2015 intergovernmental agreement, which included the provision of a Russian state-backed loan of $25 billion for the $30 billion project. The Russian loan will cover about 85% of the plant's construction costs, with Egypt to raise the remainder from private investors.

According to the contracts signed today, Rosatom will build four VVER-1200 reactors at El Dabaa, in the Matrouh region on the Mediterranean coast, and supply nuclear fuel throughout the plant's entire lifetime. Rosatom will also train personnel and will assist its Egyptian partners in operation and maintenance during the first ten years of the plant's operations. The contract also includes the construction of a purpose-build storage facility and the supply of containers for the storage of used nuclear fuel.

The first unit is to be commissioned in 2026, Rosatom said.

Likhachov said the contracts were "a record-breaking deal in the history of the nuclear industry", with the cost of all four contracts amounting to billions of US dollars, as well as being the biggest non-feedstock deal in Russian history. "We offered our partners in Egypt a unique comprehensive agreement that spans the power plant's entire life cycle, i.e. 70 to 80 years. Today Rosatom is the only company in the world that is capable of providing the full range of peaceful nuclear services. The development of Egypt's nuclear power industry is also important to Russia's economy as dozens of Rosatom enterprises will be awarded significant contracts and will have an opportunity to showcase to the global community the advantage of Russian nuclear technologies," he said.

Rosatom will also help Egypt to develop its nuclear infrastructure, as well as increasing the level of localisation and supporting Egypt in training its nuclear personnel training and working on public acceptance of nuclear energy. Future nuclear employees will be trained both in Russia and Egypt, with hundreds of Egyptian students to study nuclear disciplines in Russia over the next few years, Rosatom said.

"Several dozen" Egyptian companies will be involved in the construction project, and the first unit is expected to have a localisation level of at least 20%. Subsequent units will be "even more localised".

The VVER-1200 is described by Rosatom as a generation 3+ plant that is fully compliant with all post-Fukushima International Atomic Energy Agency requirements. Russia's first VVER-1200, unit 1 of the Novovoronezh II plant, entered commercial operation earlier this year. El Dabaa will reference unit 1 of the Leningrad Phase II nuclear power plant in western Russia, where fuel loading began on 8 December. Construction work recently began on a VVER-1200 at Rooppur in Bangladesh.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

Related topics
List of Wrexham school closures for Tuesday 12th December  Yellow ice warning in place

This article is old - Published: Monday, Dec 11th, 2017

Many schools have said they are closing tomorrow (Tuesday 12th) as well as having been closed today.

The closure list for today emerged on Sunday afternoon and throughout the evening, and much like yesterday we will be updating this list through the evening as and when schools declare their position.

An issue with the Councils website meant that this morning Wrexham.com was the only location to get the full closure list, so it is worth noting that if the information on the Council site zeros at midnight it does not automatically mean there has been a change in status at schools.

We have had several people in touch reading old articles over the last few days (thus the more blatant title!) but would encourage those who use social media to keep in touch to look at sources of information direct and check dates  as you could not be getting the most current information.

A Yellow Warning is in place until 11am tomorrow morning for ice, with temperatures to hit -3 in Wrexham overnight and into the morning.

During the 7am to 9am period the temperature is due to be -3C and with added wind chill, is predicted to feel more like -6C.

From 5am to 8am there is forecasts of light snowfall in the Wrexham area.

Glyndwr University has said All campuses will be open tomorrow (Tuesday) and lectures are expected to take place.

Coleg Cambria told us All our sites are closed to staff and students tomorrow due to icy conditions forecast tonight, please see our website for full details  www.cambria.ac.uk.

As always parents should have various digital notifications in place to inform them direct, however below is the list we are collating and updating this evening on schools that come under Wrexham Council control.

We will be updating this list through the evening, with the latest changes at the top.

Some schools have not yet updated their status from today (when they were closed).

List below last updated 6:40pm 7:50pm 9pm 9:30pm 10pm 9am (although due to error on Council site not all information is being displayed)

Maelor School Penley has told us we are open too! They have now said they are closed this morning.

We have also been passed this update: Straffords coaches operating school runs tomorrow , picking up from Main road pick up points only , we will Not be going to Gwynfryn Minera or Bwlchgwyn children need to go to Five Crosses Coedpoeth bus stop please , we will not be going to College Hill Tanyfron main roads only please share with any parents with children at Ysgol Clywedog , St Marys Wrexham , St Joesphs , Bryn Alyn School , Ysgol Morgan Llwyd & Ysgol Bryn Tabor

CLOSED

Madras Voluntary Aided, Penley  Closed

Wrexham Early Years Centre  Closed

Froncysyllte CP  Closed

Garth CP  Closed

St Christophers School, Wrexham  Closed

Ysgol y Waun, Chirk  Closed

REOPENING:

Park Community Primary School, Llay  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Sant Dunawd CP, Bangor on Dee  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Penrhyn, New Broughton CP  Open

Borras Park Community Primary, Wrexham  Open

Ysgol Min y Ddol CP, Cefn Mawr  Reopening Tomorrow

Pentre Voluntary Controlled, Chirk  Open

Borderbrook School  Reopening Tomorrow

St Pauls Voluntary Aided Primary School, Isycoed  Reopening Tomorrow

Alexandra CP School, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Penygelli CP School, Coedpoeth  Reopening Tomorrow

Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog CP  Reopening Tomorrow

Rhosddu Primary School, Wrexham  Open

Hafod y Wern Community Primary School, Wrexham  Open

Ysgol Heulfan, Gwersyllt  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol I.D. Hooson CP, Rhos  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Maes y Mynydd, Rhos  Reopening Tomorrow

Acton Park Community Primary, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Rhosnesni High School, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Minera Voluntary Aided School  Reopening Tomorrow

St Marys Aided, Brymbo  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Plas Coch CP, Wrecsam  Reopening Tomorrow

The Rofft CP, Marford  Open

Ysgol Bro Alun, Gwersyllt  Reopening Tomorrow

Wats Dyke CP, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Penycae Community Primary  Reopening Tomorrow

Gwenfro Community Primary School, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Rhosymedre Community Primary School  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Bryn Tabor, Coedpoeth  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Deiniol CP, Marchwiel  Reopening Tomorrow

Eyton Voluntary Controlled  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Morgan Llwyd, Wrecsam  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Cefn Mawr CP, Cefn Mawr  Reopening Tomorrow

Tanyfron CP, Southsea  Reopening Tomorrow

St Josephs Catholic & Anglican High Sch, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

St Peters Voluntary Controlled, Rossett  Reopening Tomorrow

St Annes Catholic Primary, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

All Saints Voluntary Aided, Gresford  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Clywedog, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

St Marys Voluntary Aided, Overton on Dee  Reopening Tomorrow

Gwersyllt Community Primary School  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Rhostyllen, Rhostyllen  Reopening Tomorrow

Darland High School, Rossett  Reopening Tomorrow

St Giles VC Church in Wales Primary, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Barkers Lane CP, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

Black Lane CP, Pentre Broughton  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Yr Hafod, Johnstown  Reopening Tomorrow

Victoria Primary School, Wrexham  Reopening Tomorrow

St Marys Catholic Primary, Wrexham  Open

Ysgol y Grango, Rhos  Reopening Tomorrow

Brynteg CP  Reopening Tomorrow

Acrefair CP School  Reopening Tomorrow

St Marys Church in Wales, Ruabon  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Bodhyfryd CP, Wrecsam  Reopening Tomorrow

Holt CP  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Bryn Alyn, Gwersyllt  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Cynddelw CP, Glynceiriog  Reopening Tomorrow

Pontfadog CP  Reopening Tomorrow

Ysgol Rhiwabon High School, Ruabon  Open

Top picture shared with us by Dawn from over the weekend.
In the early morning hours on Thursday, armed militants carried out a raid on a UN base in Eastern Congo, killing 15 UN soldiers and five troops with the Congolese army. Some 40 more were critically wounded. The UN casualties, all soldiers from Tanzania, were deployed to the Congo under the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).

Thursdays attack is the deadliest assault on UN forces since 1993 in Somalia, when 22 UN soldiers were killed in the course of supporting the US military effort to prop up its puppet government. That military effort resulted in a devastating setback when 18 US special forces soldiers were killed during a raid on Mogadishu.

MONUSCO officials characterized the attack as a well-coordinated and complex operation launched at dusk by attackers armed with mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, declaring the attack represented a serious escalation. In addition to the casualties, the militia took out two armored personnel carriers and an ambulance and truck before withdrawing.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack, and said it constituted a war crime. I want to express my outrage and utter heartbreak at last nights attack on United Nations peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is another indication of the enormous sacrifices made by troop-contributing countries in the service of global peace.

Spokesperson for the US State Department Heather Nauert stated that Washington was appalled by the horrific act.

MONUSCO head Maman Sidikou issued a statement condemning the attack: Attacks against those who are working in the service of peace and stability in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are cowardly. MONUSCO will take all actions to ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable and brought to justice.

In fact, the so-called UN peacekeepers are doing anything but keeping the peace. With their mandate as a rapid force brigade, the UN troops stationed at the base carry out offensive military operations, executing deadly raids and carrying out seek and destroy missions to neutralize rebel militias.

The UNs deployment of its Force Intervention Brigade in 2013 to Eastern Congo marked a new stage in the UNs offensive operations in the country, and was directed against the Rwandan M23 militia, marking a complete turn from the previous mandate restricting it to defensive operations.

Thursdays attack took place near Semuliki in North Kivu province, by the Ugandan border. Officials with MONUSCO claimed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) were behind the attack.

Rebel militias have carried out attacks across North Kivu for the last several years in the aftermath of the Congo War, which devastated the country between 1996-2003. The war drew the military forces of six African countries into the conflict, resulting in an estimated 5 million killed. The ADF, along with other militias, have increased their ranks and influence amid the collapse of Congolese society, in particular Eastern Congo, which the seven-year war left in ruins.

In recent years, the 18,000-strong MONUSCO force has become a frequent target of various rebel militias in the mineral-rich region of Eastern Congo, with the militias battling for control over the spoils.

The ADF attack on the UN base is only the most recent offensive by the group. In October, ADF rebels ambushed a convoy of Congolese officials and civilians near the town of Beni, also located in North Kivu and close to the Ugandan border. Twenty-six people were killed and 12 wounded; two UN soldiers were killed in a separate attack.

Frequently crossing the porous border between Congo and Uganda, the ADF have waged war with government forces from both countries since 1995. A key component of the conflict is the vast economic resources of the region, in the form of minerals and precious stones, such as diamonds.

Speaking to the UK Guardian, Jason Stearns, the director of the Congo Research Group at New York University, stated, The ADF is an Islamist armed group which imposes discipline based on a strict interpretation of the sharia and which is known to be extremely brutal. It is very likely the ADF were involved but also other groups... The ADF have been in the area for 20 years and has deep links with all kinds of people.

Despite its members holding religious affiliation with Islam, US officials have found no substantial ties or allegiances to other Islamist groups in Africa, such as Al-Shabaab in Somalia or Boko Haram in Nigeria.

The escalating conflict between various militias and UN forces takes place against the backdrop of a dire refugee crisis, economic deterioration, and political instability in the Congo.

Amidst the chaotic stew created by decades of imperialist interventions from Washington and Europe, the country has experienced a sharp increase of impoverishment and social misery, with 80 percent of the population living on a mere $1.25 a day. Treatable diseases run rampant, with health care nonexistent over vast areas of the country while the use of child labor is rampant.

Speaking to the refugee crisis, last week Ulrika Blom, the director of the Norwegian Refugee Council for the DRC, said, The scale of people fleeing violence [in the DRC] is off the charts, outpacing Syria, Yemen and Iraq.

The escalation of conflict in the Congo coincides with the expansion of US military influence across the continent, particularly in Somalia and West Africa.

Roughly the size of Western Europe, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been the stage for an array of imperialist forces circling the country, above all the United States, which is seeking to exploit Congos vast economic resources and impoverished working class in the interest of American corporations and banks.

In its scramble for Africa, Washington aims to secure for American capitalists the vast economic resources of the continent and to neutralize its economic rival China, which has procured significant economic influence across Africa over the last decade.

Washingtons relationship with its erstwhile partner in the ruling government of President Joseph Kabila has soured after the latters refusal to hold elections in 2016. Kabila is facing growing calls to step down.

Notably, Kabila recently provoked the ire of Washington when he secured deals with Beijing for the development of Congos mining sector and infrastructure, essentially cutting out American firms from the negotiations. Washington has indicated it is weary of Kabila, and is looking to place a more pliant government in Kinshasa, raising the specter of a wider military conflict which could surpass the horrors of the Congo War.
Early on Saturday Ivan Bridgewater III, an electrician, was killed in a tragic accident while working third shift at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant (KTP) in Louisville, Kentucky. He was 41 years old. He left behind his wife, Megan, and their young son in Seymour, Indiana, near Louisville.

Shortly before 1:00 AM on Saturday morning, Louisville Metro Police responded to a call of a person down at Ford KTP. According to a police report, when officers arrived they found Ford Security and Louisville Emergency Medical Service personnel giving CPR to Bridgewater, who died at the scene.

Media reports give conflicting accounts of Bridgewaters death. Several media outlets, including the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Fox23, and WHIOTV7 reported on Saturday that the police believed the cause of death to be electrocution. However, WTHR Indianapolis News reported the next day, Ford has clarified that the worker was not electrocuted.

A post by Bridgewaters father, Ivan Senior, a fiction writer in Florida, commemorates his sons life and has received over 5,100 reacts and 2,569 shares as of this writing. He writes: Hello everyone. This is a picture of me, and my son Ivan. My son was killed last night in an industrial accident at the Ford Plant in Louisville Kentucky. I am at a loss for words as I type this. If you are a member of my family, please spread the word. He left behind a beautiful wife, and a wonderful son. He was a fine young man. I was very proud of him. Parents should never outlive their children. The pain is too great to bear.

Another worker, 54-year-old Ronald Cassady, died at KTP in December 2009 from blunt force trauma after being hit in the head and chest with a beam that fell while workers were carrying it inside the plant. According to workers interviewed after Cassadys death, It was the first death of a UAW member in an accident at the plant in many years.

Ford Motor Company was fined only $25,000 for Cassadys death, according to inspection reports by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) web site, and issued only two serious citations out of a total of five.

A worker at the nearby Ford Louisville Assembly Plant (LAP) spoke to the World Socialist Web Site Autoworker Newsletter after Bridgewaters death. He described the stressful conditions that electricians face at KTP in order to meet Fords production standards. The two Ford factories in Louisville employ nearly 14,000 hourly and salaried workers, the largest concentration of Ford workers in the US.

At KTP, the electricians typically work 12-hour days. They ride them so hard just to keep the line running. When youre already tired and stressed out like that, mistakes are bound to happen.

There will be four to five supervisors on them [the workers] if they stop the line for any reason. There are harsh penalties if you do that. They watch you on the video screens, and have scoreboards that can tell them where you are at, when the line went down and what part.

He informed the Autoworker Newsletterof similar conditions at Louisville Assembly. One worker on the line had a heart attack. Someone stopped the line and they wrote him up for not turning the line back on.

He described the ways in which the union acts hand-in-hand with management to enforce labor discipline. We have alternative work schedules, so no one knows what time theyre going to get off. They have people called quality leaders, who are union members that act like supervisors. They go to management meetings. The company managers just sit and watch the screens [surveillance cameras] the whole time.

The quality leaders come in on your lunch break and tell you how much longer you have to stay over your scheduled shift. We often end up working over.

The worker explained that electricians are forced to work without backup. There is usually only one electrician for each line. So they usually work alone.

He also described hazards with the machinery. The robots will completely lose memory, so all sorts of things can happen then. There is a lockout procedure, but they are under so much pressure that most of the time they dont have time to lock any of the equipment out.

Skilled trades workers, which include electricians, work under a different contract than production workers. According to the LAP worker, the United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 862, the unit which covers workers at both KTP and LAP, conducted a contract vote over the summer of 2017 for the skilled trades workers that resulted in the proposed deal being voted down. A second vote was scheduled to take place on December 9, but the vote was cancelled due to the death.

Nothing can be expected from the joint UAW-Ford joint committee on health and safety, which operates as a front for management. These committees do nothing to protect workers lives, while providing cushy jobs for union officials.

Local 862 has worked with Ford Motors and the Kentucky State Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to cover up dangerous working conditions at both plants in order to maintain production.

To give one example, the 2015 contract for LAP workers included a letter of agreement between Ford and the UAW Local 862 that required management to give extra breaks to workers when the actual temperature reads above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. However, federal OSHA guidelines recommend that employers use the heat index, which takes into consideration humidity and actual temperature, and implement precautions when it reaches above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (still an absurdly high limit, given that production workers also must wear heavy protective gear on the job).

However, the union local and Ford decided that LAP was to continue to use actual temperature to gauge the safety hazard to workers, and provide only two free bottles of Gatorade to prevent heat-related hazards, despite federal guidelines. Several workers have complained of overheating at the plant.

The complete indifference of the UAW to workers health and safety is demonstrated by the fact that the union has said almost nothing about Bridgewaters death. No mention of it is made on the Local 862 web site. The Local 862 Facebook page has only one post, which reads, In Memoriam of our Brother! It does not mention Ivan Bridgewaters name or any known details of his death; his family, who is no doubt suffering greatly; and says nothing about the brutal conditions that led to this tragedy.
Patricia Noonan Jukovsky, an active member of the Trotskyist movement during the period of the struggle against the imperialist war in Vietnam, died on November 30 at the age of 69. She succumbed to lung cancer two years to the day after her diagnosis.

Pat was the devoted wife and companion to Martin Jukovsky, a founding member in 1966 of the US Workers League, the predecessor organization of the Socialist Equality Party. Marty remains a staunchly committed supporter of the SEP, active in the editorial work of the World Socialist Web Site as well as on social media.

Pat was born on December 22, 1947 in Beekmantown, New York, in the North Country, not far from the High Peaks of the Adirondack Mountains and close to the Quebec border. She was raised on a dairy farm, along with her six siblings, by her parents Daniel and Virginia Noonan. Pat exhibited an early anger against injustice, hypocrisy and prejudice. She attended Plattsburgh State University for one year, where she was part of a largely working class student body.

After moving to New York City in 1967, Pat resumed her studies at the New School in Manhattan. Soon after her arrival, she met Marty Jukovsky, who became her lifelong companion. They married in 1969 and their relationship would last 50 years.

Pat soon joined the Workers League. For a number of years, she was active in New York, especially in the political struggle within the anti-war movement against the pernicious influence of the Stalinist Communist Party and the ex-Trotskyist Socialist Workers Party. Both of these political tendencies worked to tie the student protest movement to the Democratic Party, in opposition to the fight for the political independence of the working class.

Although she left political activity in the 1970s, Pat never lost her sympathy for Trotskys courageous struggle against the Stalinist degeneration of the Russian Revolution, or her belief in the necessity of a worldwide socialist revolution.

She, like many others, had been radicalized during the turbulent period of the late 1960s and 1970s. The postwar capitalist boom was unraveling. The deepening crisis of American and world capitalism found its expression in the imperialist aggression in Vietnam, alongside the escalating class struggle in the US. Millions of students and working class youth, in the US and internationally, looked for a way to fight poverty, inequality, war and dictatorship. The most advanced found what they were looking for in the Trotskyist movement.

In 1971, Pat and Marty moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts. She entered the printing trades and worked as a typesetter for most of the next two decades. In the early 1990s, desktop publishing wiped out typesetting jobs such as Pats. For the next 19 years, she worked as a proofreader and then a web designer at the Massachusetts Medical Society.

After retiring in 2010, she went on to teach English as an adjunct professor at Middlesex Community College in Lowell, Massachusetts. Pats rapport with her working class students, mainly immigrants and the children of immigrants, was immediate. Her style of teachingher eagerness to relate the readings to students lives and concerns, her willingness to adjust rules to a students circumstances, her ability not only to speak at length but to listen carefullywon the confidence of young people. She patiently but firmly showed her students what they were capable of.

Pats identification with the working class and its struggles was also manifested in her generosity and helpfulness toward young people, including her daughters classmates and friends. The Jukovskys literally opened their home to many who needed support and someone in whom to confide. Pat touched the lives of scores of young people, many of whom have remembered her on Facebook since her death.

At Pats burial on December 5 in Cambridge, many of the 70 in attendance spoke movingly at graveside about how she had affected and in some cases changed their lives.

Pat is survived by her husband Marty, her immediate family, as well as a large extended family.

Pat was a woman of principle, a fighter, with strongly held views about politics, war and social inequality. To her last days, she never wavered in her confidence in the human race. A convinced atheist and materialist, she was totally unafraid of death. Her optimism, high spirits, intelligence, wit and good humor will be warmly remembered by her friends and family.
Students, actors and workers in Sydney and Melbourne have spoken out against the Sydney Daily Telegraph s defamatory and witch-hunting attacks on well-known Australian actor Geoffrey Rush.

Socialist Equality Party campaigners distributed the World Socialist Web Site article Acclaimed Australian actor Geoffrey Rush becomes the latest witch-hunt victim outside the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in Sydney on Tuesday. The school was holding a series of events related to the annual Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) awards. The next day hundreds of copies of the article were distributed to actors and filmmakers attending the AACTA awards night at Star City Casino.

Many taking the article denounced the witch-hunt of Rush and voiced their agreement with the WSWSs analysis. Some of those expressing appreciation were nervous about making comments, an indication of the intimidating atmosphere that has been created by the media campaign and its underlying agenda.

Jana, a young actor from Melbourne, said anyone accused of inappropriate behaviour should be given the evidence and details before anything goes to the media, and in Geoffreys case, the person who is making accusations.

The allegations should have been raised with him when they were supposed to have happened, instead of bringing them out 18 months later in the media. And to hold this information back and then publish it just before the [AACTA] awards is disgraceful and especially because this is a body that Geoffrey established and always supported.

Ive come from Melbourne for the awards event, but it has left a sour taste because the president has had to stand down over allegations that have no evidence behind them. Its really disappointing.

I hope they [the accusations] are not true, but theres no detail around anything. Inappropriate behaviour could be as simple as he swore at me. It could be that someone has got really petty and pathetic and decided to be an arsehole about it.

An AFTRS teacher said: I was shocked to hear the allegations, but now theres this sort of media momentum. Its good that people are able to speak out, but its got to be tempered by due process.

A young acting student said: The media is pretty unfair and will take any opportunity to make money on account of anyones career, no matter who they are. This is really sad. I want a career in this industry, but I reacted with disbelief to the allegations.

In Melbourne on Saturday, SEP campaigners distributed the WSWS article outside the National Gallery of Victoria. There was broad support and sympathy for Rush. One young man commented: If anybody sticks their head up and speaks out they can become a victim of this. It is a bit like Julian Assange.

Christopher, a retired teacher, said: I believe in a free media because we live in a democracy. But I wonder, whats the agenda of the media today in calling out and taking down people and then declaring that this is newsworthy?

Im shocked that this [the Hollywood sexual allegations] has come to Australia. Your article is a good one because it shows how easy it is for the media to attack somebody

Even if Geoffrey Rush wins the court case and gets damages, his reputation is still sullied, and financially a court case wont really affect an organisation like the Murdoch media empire. Its one thing if theyre just doing it for publicity or just to sell the papers, but maybe theyre out to destroy him for another reason.

Anne, a young retail worker, said the Daily Telegraph had provided no evidence to substantiate its allegations. Anyone can spread gossip and rumours, and thats all it is really. But this has now escalated into a massive thing. Its putting doubt in some peoples minds.

No one should jump to conclusions without proper evidence, and I think Geoffrey Rush should be given the respect he deserves, that he has built up over all these years as a family man and a career actor. People need to differentiate between what is a serious allegation and whats just gossip.

Commenting on Rushs move to sue the Murdoch press, she said: I think thats good. Hes standing up for what he believes in and Im sure a lot of other people will be behind him and support his decision.

Stephanie, a legal worker, said, The whole thing seems odd. I dont know what the Sydney Theatre Company was doing, or if they knew what they were doing, she said.

Ive also seen that the Melbourne Theatre Company issued a statement saying that Rush would be appearing in a production next year as planned. Why did they do that? Of course he will be appearing. If people are now going to be denied work based on mere hearsay, thats wrong.

Hugh and his wife Marlene discussed the broader issues at stake. Anonymous accusations can now be made and publicised without knowing what they are, who theyre coming from, or what the motive might be, Hugh said. This is becoming an ever-increasing phenomenon. You should have the right to know the identity of your accuser and what the charges are.

The word Kafkaesque comes to mindits unbelievable that this kind of thing could happen. Every principle of natural justice weve had since the Enlightenment seems to have been thrown out of the window.

Hugh explained that unspecified allegations had been used against him and his friends at their workplace.

Dont make the mistake of thinking that this kind of thing only happens to celebrities. This is becoming a general phenomenon and I think it is particularly used against older peoplethis can be an excuse to get us out of the work force. Scores are being settled, and often the motives are extremely dubious.
After six days of fighting, the Volunteer Army commanded by the counterrevolutionary General Kaledin defeats the local Red Guard companies and occupies Rostov, a major industrial center in southern Russia. Meanwhile, conflict continues to rage in the Bolshevik leadership over the question of the Constituent Assembly.

Vladivostok, December 11 (November 28, O.S.): Japanese army occupies key strategic port

It is reported abroad on December 11 that Japanese forces have occupied the central rail terminal at Vladivostok, a key industrial port and the eastern endpoint of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The importance of this action at this juncture cannot be overestimated, the New York Times gloats on December 11. It means that the vast quantities of supplies assembled at Vladivostok for use by the Russian Provisional Government will not fall into the hands of the Bolsheviki, who have been casting eager eyes towards these for use in the civil war that has been precipitated throughout Russia by the action of the Bolsheviks Government in seeking to negotiate a separate peace with the Central Powers.

The spoils of Vladivostok include railroad cars, stockpiles of ammunition, and locomotives shipped from the US, under Russian credit purchases, for use in the Great War. The New York Times welcomes the actions of the Japanese army, insisting that the captured materials should at all costs be kept out of the hands of the Bolsheviks, who could then use them against the White forces that are being supported by France, Britain, and the United States.

During the Russian Civil War, Vladivostok will serve as a headquarters for imperialist and counterrevolutionary intrigues and campaigns, including the Siberian Expedition, against the Soviet Government.

San Antonio, Texas, December 11: Thirteen black soldiers executed after court martial

Thirteen African American soldiers, part of a group of 150 that had rioted in Houston against racist abuse on August 23, are hanged in the early morning hours today at a military base near San Antonio. Six more will follow them to the gallows, while another 41 are sentenced to life in prison.

The men were convicted in a court martial for their role in a mutinous rioting in August. After suffering systemic racial abuse and oppression in Houston, including the pistol whipping of one of their comrades, the soldiers had marched into the city with their military weapons. In the ensuing fighting, 16 Houston police and civilians died.

In a departure from many public executions of black men in the South, the mass hanging is carried out in the dark of night in an unknown location, without publicity and with only a few witnesses. The Wilson administration sees to it that the mutinous soldiers do not face the Texas authorities, but a military tribunal.

The silence is intentional. Wilsons war for democracy is permeated with hypocrisy, no more so than in the case of African Americans, 350,000 of whom are mustered into the military in segregated units. The gross injustice blacks suffer is most glaring in the cities and towns of the Jim Crow Southincluding Houstonwhere the regime of racial segregation and all its daily humiliations is enforced by brutal violence, including scores of lynchings every year.

Jerusalem, December 11: British troops enter city after seizure from Ottoman forces

General Edmund Allenby leads units of the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) on foot through the Jaffa Gate and into the Old City. Britain gained possession of the city on December 9 after defeating the Ottoman Yildirim Army Group in over two weeks of battles.

The capture of the city is part of a major advance by British and allied forces since early November. It began with the breaching of the Ottoman Gaza-Beersheba line. Fighting over Jerusalem began with the advance of British forces into the Judean Hills starting November 17. By December 9, the EEF surrounded the city.

The Ottoman forces issued a decree surrendering the city late on December 9, which declared, Due to the severity of the siege of the city and the suffering that this peaceful country has endured from your heavy guns; and for fear that these deadly bombs will hit the holy places, we are forced to hand over to you the city through Hussein al-Husseini, the mayor of Jerusalem, hoping that you will protect Jerusalem the way we have protected it for more than five hundred years.

British Prime Minister David Lloyd George describes Jerusalems capture as a Christmas present for the British people. It has been paid for with the lives of tens of thousands. Total casualties during the advance on Jerusalem after the capture of Beersheba have amounted to 43,000: 18,000 British soldiers and 25,000 Ottoman. From November 25 to December 10, when fighting over control of the city itself raged, there were 1,667 British casualties.

The advance of British and colonial troops has enabled them to establish a strategically important line from the Mediterranean to close to the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea will be reached in February 1918, and this line will be held until a major offensive to take Damascus and Beirut is launched in September 1918.

Petrograd, December 11 (November 28, O.S.): First Congress of the Left SRs concludes

The First Congress of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries, who after months of bitter conflict have broken with the Socialist Revolutionary Party, is concluding today in Petrograd after nine days of sessions. The Left SRs are in the midst of tense negotiations with the Bolsheviks over the formation of a coalition government. While supporting Soviet power, the Left SRs have opposed the moves of the Bolsheviks against the Petrograd City Duma and other steps aimed at combating the counterrevolution.

A central point on the agenda of the congress is the attitude toward the Constituent Assembly. During a discussion on the current moment, Ekaterina Kats declares that the Constituent Assembly must take account of the will and tactics of the soviets. Insofar as the Constituent Assembly opposes their will, we will not support it and no fetishes will change us. Another delegate, Prosh Proshian, states that if we believe and see that the socialist revolution has begun, then state power must belong to the soviets of workers, soldiers, and peasants deputies [O]bviously we cannot and should not lay down our arms and give state power back to the Constituent Assembly If the Constituent Assembly starts off by attempting to organize state authority we wont allow it.

Their line is opposed by a moderate wing, headed by Shteinberg, Karelin and Kamkov, who assert that the Constituent Assembly still has significant support among the masses and should therefore be convened so that it can prove its bankruptcy before the eyes of the masses. Most leading Left SRs think that the Constituent Assembly should be convened as elected. The congress passes a resolution that attempts a compromise between both positions.

According to historian Alexander Rabinowitch, the resolution states that immediate implementation of worker and peasant power was essential and that, to the extent that the Constituent Assembly constituted such a power and pursued the fundamental positions of the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers and Soldiers Deputies and of the Emergency Congress of Soviets of Peasants  Deputies, it should be fully supported. However, any attempt by the Constituent Assembly to transform itself into an organization for struggle against soviets of workers, soldiers, and peasants deputies as organs of state power would be considered an attack on the achievements of the revolution and would need to be decisively rebuffed.

Quotes from: Alexander Rabinowitch, The Bolsheviks in Power, Indiana University Press 2009, pp. 73-74.

Petrograd, December 12 (November 29, O.S.): Bolshevik CC meeting rejects request by Kamenevs faction for reinstatement

Conflict continues to rage within the Bolshevik leadership over the question of convening the Constituent Assembly. The conflict pits Lenin and Trotsky, who are oriented to world socialist revolution, against a faction led by Kamenev and Zinoviev, which is oriented towards creating a homogenous socialist government" in Russia by entering a coalition with the Mensheviks and SRs. In the immediate aftermath of the October insurrection, Kamenevs faction resigned from the Central Committee after their secret negotiations with the Mensheviks and SRs, in direct violation of party discipline, were exposed. In these discussions, Kamenev was prepared to entertain demands that Lenin and Trotsky be excluded from the new government.

On December 12, the CC considers a request for reinstatement from Kamenev, Rykov, Miliutin and Nogin. The request, discussed as the Letter of the Four, is rejected. Moisei Uritsky remarks that positions of the four have not changed, and there is no guarantee that if the four are reinstated, they would not behave in the same undisciplined manner as previously.

Kamenevs faction supports convening the Constituent Assemblya demand shared by the counterrevolutionary Kadets who are massing troops to attack the Soviet government. Lenins position is that the government based on Soviet power that was established in the October Revolution is a higher and more advanced form of government than the Constituent Assembly, which corresponds to a national congress of a bourgeois republic. Lenin and Trotsky insist that to cede power to the Constituent Assembly would represent a step backwards, embolden counterrevolutionary elements, and ensure the ultimate victory of the counterrevolution.

On December 11 or 12, Lenin pens his Theses on the Constituent Assembly, which will be published in Pravda in the coming weeks. The first three of 19 theses are as follows:

1. The demand for the convocation of a Constituent Assembly was a perfectly legitimate part of the program of revolutionary Social-Democracy, because in a bourgeois republic the Constituent Assembly represents the highest form of democracy and because, in setting up a Pre-parliament, the imperialist republic headed by Kerensky was preparing to rig the elections and violate democracy in a number of ways. 2. While demanding the convocation of a Constituent Assembly, revolutionary Social-Democracy has ever since the beginning of the Revolution of 1917 repeatedly emphasized that a republic of Soviets is a higher form of democracy than the usual bourgeois republic with a Constituent Assembly. 3. For the transition from the bourgeois to the socialist system, for the dictatorship of the proletariat, the Republic of Soviets (of Workers, Soldiers and Peasants Deputies) is not only a higher type of democratic institution (as compared with the usual bourgeois republic crowned by a Constituent Assembly), but is the only form capable of securing the most painless transition to socialism ...

After the onset of Lenins illness in 1922-23, the Troika of Kamenev, Zinoviev, and Stalin will attempt to erase and invert the entire record of this struggle.

Rostov, December 15 (December 2, O.S.): Volunteer Army captures Rostov

After six days of bitter fighting, a newly formed anti-Bolshevik Volunteer Army defeats local Red Guard companies, marching into the city of Rostov, a major industrial center in southern Russia. The Volunteer Army, under the leadership of right-wing generals from the old regime such as Alexei Kaledin, consists primarily of the upper castes of the old tsarist armies. There are only 12 enlisted soldiers among the first 3,000 recruits, the rest of which are officers, cadets, students, and Cossacks. Kaledin, who commands the Don Cossack Host, has proclaimed that his forces will place the region under martial law until the Provisional Government is restored.

Kaledin is an ultra-reactionary who refused to accept the February Revolution. Kaledins forces declare war on agitators who have come in large numbers from Germany, meaning the Bolsheviks. In the territory controlled by the Volunteer Army, all organizations of workers power, including the Soviets, are forcibly dispersed and their headquarters are ransacked. In Iasynivka, around 20 Bolshevik workers are murdered, and their bodies are dumped into cesspools. The Volunteer Armys forces are lawless, corrupt, and disorganized, killing and looting with impunity in the territories under their control.

Bremen, December 15: Left-wing group calls for building a revolutionary party in Germany

The Bremen newspaper Arbeiterpolitik (Workers Politics) prints a lead article by Johann Knief, writing under the pseudonym Peter Unruh.

In this article, Knief welcomes the overthrow of the Provisional Government in Russia and the seizure of power by the Bolsheviks. In his words, they have cleared the path for the further progress of social revolution until the final victory of socialism. An extraordinarily great deed was done in just a few weeks; something extraordinarily monumental, which knows no parallel in world history [has occurred] 

Knief emphasizes that proletarian democracy must function as a lever for social revolution. The military victory of the Bolsheviks has brought about social upheaval, and if the economic conditions in Russia are, in contrast to the economic conditions in Western Europe and the United States of North America, not yet ripe, then the reconstruction of Russian economic life by the revolution will vastly accelerate the process of maturation.

He highlights the decisive role of the Bolshevik Party and its leadership in the revolution, as well as the courage and sacrifices of all of its members. He then repeats the criticism that Arbeiterpolitik had earlier advanced of the entry of the International Group (Spartacus) into the Independent Social Democratic Party (USPD). Following the victory of the Bolsheviks, any semblance of legitimacy for the merger with the Independents was gone, he argues.

According to Knief, the international situation demands the formation of an independent left-radical party as the most urgent necessity. Knief concludes with a call to the friends of the group International to immediately and publicly separate themselves from the pseudo-socialists of the Independents and to form an independent left radical party.

Along with Karl Radek, Paul Frolich and Anton Pannekoek, Knief is one of the leaders of the so-called Bremer Linksradikale (Bremen Left Radicals), which have formed the left wing of the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) since 1905. They have been close to Lenin in the question of the imperialist war since 1914. However, their call to build an independent left radical party is based on their concept of the independence of the masses, which, in their view, needs to be brought to fruition through the deed and will of the revolutionaries.

By contrast, Lenins concept of the party focuses above all on the political leadership and the education of the masses in the class struggle. Independence in the sense of a revolutionary struggle of the working class independently from hostile classes can only be achieved through a Marxist leadership with an internationalist and socialist program. The views of Pannekoek and Knief on this question are influenced more by Nietzsches voluntarism than by Marx.

December 16 (December 3, O.S.): Soviet government issues manifesto to the Ukrainian people

Under conditions in which, after decades of state discrimination in the Tsarist Empire, there is broad popular support for an independent Ukraine, the Sovnarkom issues a Manifesto to the Ukrainian People, assuring them that:

Proceeding from the interests of the unity and fraternal alliance of factory workers and the working and exploited masses in the struggle for socialism, and also from the recognition of these principles by numerous decisions of the organs of revolutionary democracy, the Soviets, and especially the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets, the Council of Peoples Commissarsthe Socialist government of Russiareaffirms that the right to self-determination belongs to all nations oppressed by tsarism and the Great Russian bourgeoisie, up to and including the right of these nations to secede from Russia We, the Council of Peoples Commissars, recognize at once, unconditionally and without reservations everything that pertains to the Ukrainian peoples national rights and national independence. We have not taken a single step, in the sense of restricting the Finnish peoples national rights or national independence, against the bourgeois Finnish Republic, which still remains bourgeois, nor shall we take any steps restricting the national independence of any nation which had beenor desires to bea part of the Russian Republic.

At the same time, the Manifesto includes an ultimatum to the Ukrainian Central Rada which, since the proclamation of the Third Universal, has undertaken active steps to undermine pro-Soviet tendencies and institutions in Ukraine and facilitate the counterrevolutionary onslaught against Soviet Russia. The Manifesto states:

We accuse the Rada of conducting, behind a screen of national phrases, a double-dealing bourgeois policy, which has long been expressed in the Radas non-recognition of the Soviets and of Soviet power in the Ukraine (incidentally, the Rada has refused to convoke a territorial congress of the Ukrainian Soviets immediately, as the Soviets of the Ukraine had demanded). This ambiguous policy, which has made it impossible for us to recognize the Rada as a plenipotentiary representative of the working and exploited masses of the Ukrainian Republic, has lately led the Rada to steps which preclude all possibility of agreement. These, firstly, were steps to disorganize the front. The Rada has issued unilateral orders moving Ukrainian units and withdrawing them from the front, thereby breaking up the common united front before any demarcation, which can be carried out only through a formal agreement between the governments of the two republics. Secondly, the Rada has started to disarm the Soviet troops stationed in the Ukraine. Thirdly, the Rada has been extending support to the Cadet-Kaledin plot and revolt against Soviet power. On the patently false plea of the Don and the Kuban having autonomous rights, a plea that serves to cover up Kaledins counterrevolutionary moves, which clash with the interests and demands of the vast majority of the working Cossacks, the Rada has allowed its territory to be crossed by troops on their way to Kaledin, but has refused transit to any anti-Kaledin troops At the present time, in view of the circumstances set forth above, the Council of Peoples Commissars, with the full cognizance of the peoples of the Ukrainian and Russian Republics, asks the Rada to answer the following questions:

1. Will the Rada undertake to give up its attempts to disorganize the common front? 2. Will the Rada undertake to refuse transit to any army units on their way to the Don, the Urals or elsewhere, unless it has the sanction of the Commander-in-Chief? 3. Will the Rada undertake to assist the revolutionary troops in their struggle against the counterrevolutionary Kadet-Kaledin revolt? 4. Will the Rada undertake to stop attempts to disarm the Soviet regiments and the workers Red Guard in the Ukraine and immediately return arms to those who had been deprived of them? In the event no satisfactory answer is received to these questions within 48 hours, the Council of Peoples Commissars will deem the Rada to be in a state of open war with Soviet power in Russia and the Ukraine.

In the months and years to follow, the collaboration between Ukrainian nationalist tendencies and the imperialist powers would be a major factor in the Civil War and the struggle of the Whites against the fledgling Soviet regime.

Washington, December 17: US Congress passes amendment to prohibit alcohol

By a vote of 282 to 128, the US House of Representatives passes a bill for a Constitutional amendment that will prohibit the sale and distribution of alcoholic beverages. The Senate had passed a similar measure in the summer. The slightly amended House bill will be returned to the Senate for concurrence, and then sent to the state legislatures, where, if three-quarters approve, the measure will become the Eighteenth Amendment to the American Constitution. Passage is almost certain. In recent years, 28 states have passed prohibition laws.

In the preceding years, the issue of prohibition has split the United States. Dating back to the 1830s and the birth of the Temperance Movement, sections of the American bourgeoisie, spearheaded by its evangelical Protestant shock troops, have viewed the consumption of alcohol by workers, especially immigrants, as a threat to social control and an intolerable impediment to production. They have been opposed by capitalists with interests linked to agriculture, as well as the Catholic Church and the leaders of European immigrant groups, including the Germans, Irish, Italians, and Poles.

The Great War shifts the balance decisively in favor of the dries. Now the use of grain for alcohol production is presented as a drain on the war effort, while the major German brewing families have been silenced and, in some cases, their wealth sequestered. The war has also given a new impulse to anti-immigrant xenophobia. One of prohibitions major backers is the newly re-founded Ku Klux Klan, which violently opposes all strikes and radicalism in the working class. The KKK presents prohibition as a crusade against alcohol and loose morals.
(RNN) - A suspect is in custody following an attempted terrorist attack in the subway station under the Port Authority Bus Terminal in midtown Manhattan on Monday.

Four people were injured, including the suspect, 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, according to the New York Fire Department. All injuries are non-life-threatening.

NYPD police commissioner James O'Neill called it a "terror-related incident." He said Ullah intentionally detonated a "low-tech improvised explosive device." Ullah was taken into custody and was moved to Bellevue Hospital with non-life-threatening wounds and burns.

The incident was captured on the subway's surveillance system.

When asked about the suspect's connections to any terrorist groups, O'Neill said, "he did make statements, but we're not going to talk about that right now."

Fire commissioner Daniel Nigro said three other people suffered minor injuries consistent with being in the area of the explosion, such as ringing in their ears and headaches. All three took themselves to receive medical treatment.

New York City mayor Bill DeBlasio said the city was fortunate the incident was not worse.

"Our lives revolve around the subway," DeBlasio said. "Thank God the suspect did not achieve his goals."

The device exploded in an underground passageway around 42nd Street and 8th Avenue in Manhattan, near the Port Authority subway station and bus terminal, according to the NYPD. The incident is about a block away from the New York Times building and near Times Square.

John Miller, NYPD deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism said device was based on a pipe bomb and tied to him with Velcro and zip ties

Authorities evacuated the A, C and E subway line, and there is a heavy police and emergency responder presence. Police are searching for possible additional devices, which is standard operating procedure.

President Donald Trump has been briefed on the situation.

Witnesses on the scene said they heard two explosions and said there was an orderly evacuation.

"As I was making my way towards outside I kept getting shoved by cops ... cops at every entrance blocking ... police and swat everywhere," witness Francisco Ramirez told a CNN correspondent. "It was scary. It was just a lot of chaos but I didnt see any injuries."

Copyright 2017 Raycom News Network. All rights reserved.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - A former Tallahassee property manager was arrested after failing to give owners of rental properties more than $140,000 in rent and deposits, according to court documents.

Michelle Renee Fox, 49, was booked into the Leon County Detention Center on Saturday on the first-degree felony of operating an organized scheme to defraud people of more than $50,000. She was released from jail on a $50,000 bond.

Numerous Tallahassee property owners hired Fox to collect security deposits and rent and to oversee minor repairs, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by a Tallahassee Police Department investigator.

Doing business as Fox Properties Management Solution (FPMS), she collected funds in person, by mail or through an online program.

Fox began appropriating funds from the business' bank accounts for her personal use in April or May 2015, the investigator wrote, and the total of missing funds is more than $140,000.

Fox said she kept some of the owners' portion of the collected rent because she had expenses to pay, such as utilities and repairs, the investigator wrote.

Her contracts with clients said she was to receive compensation of half of the first month's rent and ten percent of the rent collected for the apartment, house, condo, duplex or mobile home.

But when Fox's personal and business banking accounts were subpoenaed as of Oct. 26, 2016, according to court documents, the account she used for security deposits had a zero balance as of Oct. 7, 2016. The account for rental fees was negative, and the operational account was zero.

Sometimes when property owners asked Fox about discrepancies in their accounts or about their expected rental proceeds, she delayed addressing the problem and offered excuses. Her excuses included that she herself was sick or had a sick family member.

A TPD investigator said that on Aug. 21, 2017, Fox waived her Miranda Warning in an interview he recorded at her house and told him that she had not been in business for about 18 months.

The investigator told Fox that numerous clients had reported that she had collected rent and not turned the funds over to property owners.

He said complaints were received by the TPD, the Leon County Sheriff's Office and the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

Responding to the investigator's questions, Fox said that when she quit managing properties she gave the owners their money and their files.

But after search warrants were executed, the investigator wrote, files for clients were found at Fox's business and her home.

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MADISON, Fla. (WTXL) - A man accused of stealing a Madison County woman's car after she gave him a ride to her home was charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle.

Daniel Alan Good, 31, of Leesburg, FL, was arrested Saturday by Madison County Sheriff's Office deputies who were led to him by a K-9 that found him hiding under a brush pile.

The victim gave Good a ride to her home Saturday because it was near a destination Good told her he was trying to reach.

Upon arriving at the victims residence, Good asked her to take him to Leesburg.

When the victim refused, Good asked to retrieve his belongings from the vehicle. A short time later the victim realized that Good had stolen her White Nissan Altima.

On Saturday night, relatives of the victim found the stolen car at the Loves Truck Stop on County Road 255 in Lee at the I-10 interchange and phoned deputies.

Two witnesss recognized the car, and when they approached it and confronted Good, Good ran away and was later found by a K-9 in a large brush pile.

Deputies found a small amount of cocaine in Goods pocket. He also faces charges of possession of cocaine and resisting arrest.

The stolen vehicle was returned back to the owner.

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LEON COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - A house fire Saturday night marked the third residential fire response in two days for the Tallahassee Fire Department.

TFD and the Lake Talquin Volunteer Fire Department were called a residence on the 8400 block of Bay Cedar Drive at 10 p.m.

Leon County deputies rescued a disabled resident from the heavy smoke and fire from inside the house. Firefighters also rescued two dogs.

The fire started from a window-mounted A/C-heating unit.

Paramedics treated two residents for smoke inhalation. One was taken to a local hospital.

Crews were able to put to the fire out. The damage is estimated to be $10,000. The Red Cross is assisting the residents.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - The Tallahassee Police Department is asking for help in finding a man who grabbed two iPhone 8's from a Verizon store and left without paying for them.

The man took the phones from the Verizon store at 1800 West Tennessee St. on Dec. 5, 2017, when the clerk went to the back room to get an iPhone 10 the suspect had asked to see, according to a TPD Facebook post.

TPD can be reached at (850) 891 - 4200 and Crime Stoppers at (850) 574 - TIPS.

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FRANKLIN COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - A traffic stop in Franklin County resulted in a man facing driving and drug charges.

David Daubert was stopped Monday by a Franklin County Sheriff's Office deputy.

After a search at the jail, Daubert was charged with both driving with a suspended license and possession of a controlled substance.

A field test returned a presumptive positive for methamphetamine, the FCSO said in a Facebook post.

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Updated : 2017-12-11

(chinadaily.com.cn)

The 2017 Wuxi-Hong Kong Smart Manufacturing and Modern Service Industry Conference was held in Hong Kong on Dec 7. [Photo/We Chat Wuxi Report]

Li Xiaomin, Party secretary of Wuxi, led an economic and commercial delegation to Hong Kong to deepen communication and promote cooperation with the local business community from Dec 7 to 9.

On the afternoon of Dec 7, Li, together with Qiu Hong, vice director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Tang Yingnian, president of the Federation of Hong Kong Jiangsu Community Organizations and other representatives from the business community attended the 2017 Wuxi-Hong Kong Smart Manufacturing and Modern Service Industry Conference.

As an international financial center and also a platform for the mainland to the rest of the world, Hong Kong has deep relations with Wuxi. For example, Rong Zhijian, the chairman of Long Yuan Holdings, is the son of Rong Yiren (1916-2005), a reputed Wuxi merchant.

In order to promote solidarity between associations and organizations in Jiangsu province and Hong Kong, the Federation of Hong Kong Jiangsu Community Organizations was established in 2015.

Li Xiaomin expressed his welcome and gratitude to representations of the Hong Kong business community. He played a video to show the broad prospects for development in Wuxi arising from its superior geographical advantage and investment environment.

Tang Yingnian, president of the federation, introduced Wuxi as a modern city which is rapidly developing under the influence of international industry. Tang hoped to maintain Hong Kong's prosperity and stability as well as enhance cooperation between Wuxi and Hong Kong.

Some 200 Hong Kong representatives attended the conference. The 11 projects signed so far, including a China Traditional Chinese Medicine Industry Park and intelligent manufacturing projects, are expected to bring some $5 billion of investment to Wuxi.

Wuxi officials also met major business groups and leading enterprises in Hong Kong, such as Wharf (Holdings) Limited and the Hang Lung Group, trying to reach further cooperation in the fields of financing, culture, and talent cultivation, among others.

Local media in Hong Kong introduced Wuxi to the public and business community in the special administrative area, noting that the city has achieved great progress in economic development, urban environment and ecological protection.

"Wuxi's advantages in smart manufacturing fit well with Hong Kong's service industry. We will combine our strengths and deepen our cooperation in future. The friendship between Taihu Lake and Victoria Harbor will last forever. Welcome to Wuxi!" said Li Xiaomin.
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Writers are limited to one published letter per calendar month.
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
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality ("ADEQ") announced Michael Wayne Higgins, a former truck driver, was sentenced to 9 months in prison for illegally dumping sewage into a schools storm water drainage system.

In August 2016, Higgins was working as a tanker truck driver for Emergency Pumping & Plumbing when he dumped thousands of gallons of untreated sewage into a storm drainage system at the Austin Center for Exceptional Students Phoenix West Campus. The storm drainage system flowed from the schools parking lot into a grassy area that was used as a playground.

ADEQ followed normal enforcement procedures to remedy the situation. When Emergency Pumping & Plumbing and Michael Wayne Higgins failed to cooperate or address the violation, ADEQ referred the case to the Arizona Attorney Generals Office. ADEQs Emergency Response Unit contracted out the clean up of the drywell and subsequent sampling to ensure no public health or environmental risks remained.

Higgins was also ordered to pay restitution for the cleanup costs totaling $3,993.34.

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality assisted in the investigation of this case.

Assistant Attorney General Adam J. Schwartz prosecuted this case.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Tuesday, the Attorney Generals Office filed a motion to intervene in a federal court case in an attempt to stop a serial litigator from filing frivolous lawsuits against Arizona businesses in federal court.

In the filing, the State is seeking a court order declaring Plaintiffs counsel, Peter Strojnik, a vexatious litigant for repeatedly abusing Arizona courts with baseless lawsuits. The designation would mean Strojnik could not file any additional disability law compliance lawsuits in federal court without first getting permission from a judge.

Todays action marks the States first attempt to seek any sanctions in federal court in these cases. Last year, the Attorney Generals Office (AGO) intervened in over 1,100 copy-and-paste disability access lawsuits filed by the same group in state court. The AGO ultimately prevailed in dismissing all of them and successfully barred AID from filing subsequent claims in state court.

Although the AGO successfully obtained dismissal of all of the state court claims, a few of the copy-and-paste lawsuits were removed to federal court, including the one in which the AGO is seeking to intervene. That suit was filed in state court on May 17, 2016, and was removed to federal court shortly thereafter (docket no. 16-1969).

The complaint alleged violations of both the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Arizonans with Disabilities Act (AzDA) regarding parking signage and spot size. Strojnik demanded $5,000 in attorneys fees even though the defendant company immediately corrected the alleged issues with its parking. The federal court later concluded that no fee is the reasonable fee for an unnecessary lawsuit that a demand letter would have taken care of. It further explained that in a simple form complaint case like this, it is impossible that the fee for preparing and filing the complaint could be $5,000.

The federal court dismissed Plaintiffs case in September. As part of its order dismissing the case, the court explained that Strojniks extortionate practice had become pervasive, and that he had engaged in ethically suspect tactics and unethical extortion of unreasonable attorneys fees.

To date, Strojnik has filed nearly 60 new disability access lawsuits in federal court with a new nominal plaintiff, Fernando Gastelum.

The Attorney Generals Office expects to file vexatious litigant-related filings upon the Court granting this motion to intervene.

The State takes no position at this time as to whether an ADA or AzDA violation exists in any particular case.
Arizona News

Kingman, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced Sarah Diaz pleaded guilty to one count of Fraudulent Schemes and Artifices and one count of Theft after stealing more than $75,000 from the Topock Elementary School District.

Diaz, the daughter of the former business manager of Topock Elementary School District (Kimberly Konnerth  now deceased), misused school credit cards between December 2008 and July 2013. Diaz used district credit cards to make personal purchases at various retailers and pay her personal bills. Her scheme was uncovered when a bank teller who knew Diaz saw her cashing district checks at a local bank branch and was aware that Diaz was not a district employee.

Under the plea agreement, Diaz must repay the $75,455 to the district. Diaz is facing up to 8.75 years in prison.

Sentencing is set for February 5, 2018 at 3 p.m. in the Mohave County Superior Court.

The Arizona Auditor General investigated this case.

Assistant Attorney General Jordyn Raimondo is prosecuting this case.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced Craig Allen Scherf was sentenced to 8 years in prison and 5 years of probation after operating an illegal botox and laser clinic in Tempe. In August, Scherf pleaded guilty to Fraudulent Schemes and Artifices and Illegal Control of an Enterprise.

Between January 2015 and January 2017, Craig Scherf misrepresented to his victims that he was a doctor licensed to perform cosmetic injections and laser treatments out of a clinic in Tempe. Scherf injected his victims with the drugs Juvederm and Botox which he bought from the manufacturer by illegally using the identity of a licensed physician. More than 30 people were victimized by Scherf during this time period.

Scherf is also required to pay restitution to his victims. Restitution will be determined by the court at a later date.

Assistant Attorney General Adam J Schwartz is prosecuting this case.
Border News

Nogales, Arizona - A 25-year-old Mexican man has been charged with assaulting a U.S. federal agent after he attacked a Tucson Sector Border Patrol agent east of Nogales, Arizona Sunday.

In response to an alert of possible illegal activity near the international boundary, the agent attempted to arrest a suspect found scaling the wall. The suspect resisted arrest, kicking the agent multiple times in the head. Despite the assault, the agent was able to get the combative subject off the fence to complete the arrest before being evaluated at a local hospital for his injuries.

The Mexican national will be processed for immigration violations in accordance with Tucson Sector guidelines, and charged for assault.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection welcomes assistance from the community. Citizens can report suspicious activity to the Border Patrol by calling 1-877-872-7435 toll free. All calls will be answered and remain anonymous.
Border News

Ajo, Arizona - Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Ajo Station apprehended a previously deported sex offender Wednesday afternoon for re-entering the United States illegally.

Photo Courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Agents working in a remote area west of Why, Arizona encountered three Mexican nationals illegally present in the U.S. and transported them to the Ajo Station for processing.

While processing a man identified as Alex Luna-Hernandez, age 29, agents learned he was convicted in Santa Barbara, California, in 2015 for Lewd and Lascivious Acts with a Child under 14.

Luna was removed from the U.S. several years earlier after he was found guilty of Assault in the Second Degree with Intent to Cause Serious Physical Injury in Kings County, New York.

Luna is currently in federal custody pending prosecution for criminal immigration violations. The two other individuals are also being processed for immigration violations.

All individuals apprehended by the Border Patrol undergo criminal history checks using biometrics to ensure illegal immigrants with criminal histories are positively identified.
Border News

Tacna, Arizona - U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the Wellton Station apprehended 11 men early Wednesday for entering the United States illegally; one of whom was previously deported on three separate occasions and convicted multiple times for sexual and aggravated assault.

Border Patrol agents patrolling near Tacna, Arizona, encountered the group Wednesday morning and transported them to the Wellton Station for processing. While processing 26-year-old Jose Luis Zuniga-Doblado, a Honduran citizen, agents learned of his previous convictions for sexual assault and aggravated assault.

Zuniga will remain in federal custody for criminal immigration violations while waiting for a final disposition.

All subjects arrested by the Border Patrol undergo criminal history checks during processing, per Yuma Sector guidelines.
Border News

Nogales, Arizona - Customs and Border Protection officers at Arizonas Port of Nogales discovered an un-clothed Mexican man with multiple injuries lying on top of coal during inspection of a rail shipment at the DeConcini crossing Wednesday afternoon.

Prior to a commercial cargo train entering the United States at the DeConcini crossing, Mexican Customs officials notified CBP officers of a possible person inside one of the rail containers.

At approximately 3:30 p.m., CBP officers inspecting incoming shipments confirmed a person was inside one of the coal railcars. Once the train stopped, CBP officers found the subject with obvious injuries. Officers immediately provided the man with a blanket, removed him from the train and took him into custody.

During questioning, the man identified himself as a citizen from Sonora, Mexico. He also told officers he was assaulted three days earlier by two individuals who took his personal belongings, including his clothes.

The man was transported to a local hospital for evaluation and treatment. He has since been medically released and is in immigration proceedings.
Border News

Tombstone, Arizona - A Tucson Sector Border Patrol agent from the Willcox Station conducted a vehicle stop on a sedan traveling north on State Route 80 near Tombstone early Wednesday, resulting in the arrest of a United States citizen and three Mexican nationals.

When the agent stopped a Kia Forte for an immigration inspection north of the immigration checkpoint, he saw three people attempting to conceal themselves on the vehicles floorboard and back seat.

During questioning, the agent identified three males as Mexican nationals illegally present in the U.S. The driver, a 54-year-old Tucson woman, was arrested for human smuggling. The men will be processed for immigration violations, in accordance with Tucson Sector guidelines.
Border News

Tombstone, Arizona - Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents from the Willcox Station arrested a couple for smuggling more than $68,000 worth of marijuana at the Tombstone, Arizona immigration checkpoint on State Route 80 Thursday morning.

Agents referred the 23-year-old male driving a Honda Ridgeline for additional inspection and a Border Patrol canine alerted to an odor it was trained to detect coming from the rear of the vehicle. Agents searched the vehicle and found 65 packages of marijuana.

The U.S. citizen driver and 25-year-old female passenger were arrested for drug smuggling and agents seized both the vehicle and drugs.

Border Patrol canines are a vital law enforcement tool with a heighten sense of smell and can alert agents to various odors such as concealed humans and contraband.
Border News

Douglas, Arizona - A Mexican prison escapee from Sonora, Mexico has been found and arrested in the United States by Border Patrol agents assigned to the Douglas Station Thursday. He was deported and handed over to Mexican authorities Friday.

Agents patrolling east of Douglas encountered a group of six Mexican nationals who illegally entered the U.S. During processing, a records check revealed a 39-year-old man in the group had a criminal history in Mexico  to include kidnapping  and an active warrant for escaping from a Mexican prison in November.

The fugitive, identified as Larry Palomarez-Chavez, was processed for immigration violations and turned over to Mexican authorities in Nogales.

The five Mexican nationals arrested with Palomarez are being processed for immigration violations in accordance with Tucson Sector guidelines. All individuals apprehended by the Border Patrol undergo criminal history checks using biometrics to ensure illegal immigrants with criminal histories are positively identified.

The Border Patrol Foreign Operations Branch works in conjunction with the Government of Mexico as part of a holistic approach to border security and border safety through the exchange of information and intelligence to help bring dangerous criminals to justice.
Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - Border Patrol agents from Yuma Sectors Special Operations Detachment apprehended two groups of illegal aliens Tuesday, and seized more than 350 pounds of marijuana, along with multiple items used by smuggling networks.

Agents tracked and encountered the first six illegal aliens from Mexico near the Southern Arizona border. Once agents arrested the group, they searched the area and found five Motorola 2-way radios, 10 Motorola batteries, one Motorola charger, eight cellphones, one auxiliary cellphone charger, and two Nikon binoculars.

A short time later, agents found approximately 350 pounds of marijuana while tracking another group. Agents later encountered and arrested nine more individuals nearby. The seized marijuana has an estimated value of $175,000.

All 15 individuals were processed in accordance with Yuma Sector guidelines.

Yuma Sectors SOD is comprised of certified special operations agents from the Special Operations Group; the Border Patrol Search Trauma and Rescue Unit (BORSTAR); and the Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC). Agents assigned to this unit undergo a difficult training regimen before being certified as SOD agents.

Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents effectively combat smuggling organizations attempting to transport people and contraband illegally through southwestern Arizona and California. Citizens can help the Border Patrol and U.S. Customs and Border Protection by calling 1-866-999-8727 toll-free to report suspicious activity. Callers may remain anonymous.
Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - The 2018 One Book Yuma selection is Mythical River: Chasing the Mirage of New Water in the American Southwest by Melissa L. Sevigny. Make this a true community-wide reading event! Pick up your copy of Mythical River at your local library or book seller.

In a lyrical mix of natural science, history, and memoir, Melissa L. Sevigny ponders what it means to make a home in the American Southwest at a time when its most essential resource, water, is overexploited and undervalued. Mythical River takes the reader on a historical sojourn into the story of the Buenaventura, an imaginary river that led eighteenth- and nineteenth-century explorers, fur trappers, and emigrants astray for seventy-five years. This mythical river becomes a metaphor for our modern-day attempts to supply water to a growing population in the Colorado River Basin. Readers encounter a landscape literally remapped by the search for new water, where rivers flow uphill, dams and deep wells reshape geography, trees become intolerable competitors for water, and new technologies tap into clouds and oceans.



In contrast to this fantasy of abundance, Sevigny explores acts of restoration. From a dismantled dam in Arizona to an accidental wetland in Mexico, she examines how ecologists, engineers, politicians, and citizens have attempted to secure water for desert ecosystems. In a place scarred by conflict, she shows how recognizing the rights of rivers is a path toward water security. Ultimately, Sevigny writes a new map for the future of the American Southwest, a vision of a society that accepts the deserts limits in exchange for an intimate relationship with the natural world.



Melissa L. Sevigny grew up in Tucson, Arizona where she fell in love with the Sonoran Deserts ecology, geology and dark desert skies. Her lyrical nonfiction and poetry explores the intersections of science, politics, and history, with a focus on the American Southwest.



Sevigny is the author of two nonfiction books, Mythical River: Chasing the Mirage of New Water in the American Southwest (University of Iowa Press, 2016) and Under Desert Skies: How Tucson Mapped the Way to the Moon and Planets (University of Arizona Press, 2016). She earned a B.S. in Environmental Science & Policy from the University of Arizona and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing and Environment from Iowa State University. She has worked as a science communicator in the fields of water policy, sustainable agriculture, and planetary science. She worked for NASAs Phoenix Mars Scout Mission during its ground operations on Mars in 2008. She is currently the Science & Technology Reporter for KNAU (Arizona Public Radio) in Flagstaff, Arizona.



Melissa will visit Yuma Wednesday, March 21st, to lead two community discussions.



One Book Yuma is brought to you by Arizona Western College/Northern Arizona University-Yuma Academic Library, Arizona Western College Office of Campus Life, Friends of the Foothills Library, Friends of Yuma County Libraries, Inc., Yuma County Library District, and the Yuma Sun.
INS: Negative population growth recorded in Romania, in October Romania recorded in October a negative population growth of 3,974 people, down when compared with the same month last year, when the negative growth recorded was of 6,472 people, according to data released on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS).

The number of born alive was higher by 2,503 in October 2017 compared with the same month in 2016, with the number of deceased being 5 times higher compared with October 2016.



On the other hand, the number of marriages was by 70 smaller in October 2017 against October 2016. Moreover, there were by 100 more divorces pronounced Citeste articolul mai departe pe stiripesurse.ro

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- Romania's national electricity consumption over January - September was 5.7 percent down year-over-year, with household consumption dropping 8.1 percent from the year-ago period, shows data released on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri.

- In the first nine months of the year, Romania imported an amount of gas by a 19.2% lower than in the same period last year, according to data published on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook

- Industrial production, in the first nine months of the year, decreased by 1% as unadjusted series and by 1.6% as adjusted series, compared to the same period in 2021, according to data published on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri.

- The natural growth for the Romanian population remained negative in August this year, namely minus 4,996 people, with the number of deceased being by 1.3pct higher than the one of newly born, according to data released on Monday, by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent

- Arrivals in Romania's tourist accommodation establishments in August 2022 totaled 1.706 million, 1.4 percent down year-over-year, the National Institute of Statistics (INS) said on Monday, told Agerpres. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook

- Romania registered, in July of this year, a negative natural growth of the population of 4,973 people, an increase compared to the same period in 2021, when it stood at 4,766 people, according to the data published on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele

- Annual inflation in Romania rose to 15.32% in August 2022, from 14.96% in July, as food prices surged by 18.22%, non-food prices by 15.98%, and services by 8.26%, according to data published on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste

- Romania's GDP increased 5.8 percent in H1 2022 from the year-ago period in both unadjusted and adjusted terms, shows provisional data released on Wednesday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook stiripesurse.ro
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday defended his government's flagship initiatives and said India has made remarkable strides and the world is realising it.

Accusing the Congress of trying to derail Gujarat's development journey, he said the party made huge money in the name of vikas (development).

He attacked the Congress for saying that the Gujarat's development model has failed and the people were fooled to believe it worked.

Modi said Gujarat has two development engines: One in Gandhinagar and the other in Delhi.

The Swachh Bharat Mission and the Pragati Initiative, he said, have helped the ordinary citizens more than the rich in the country.

Who is impacted most by unclean surroundings? Not the rich families but the poor. When we work on Swachh Bharat Mission it helps the poor, Modi said at an election rally in Ahmedabad.

Referring to the Pragati Initiative of the government, the prime minister said that it helped accelerate the pace of development.

We started a Pragati Initiative. Through technology, officers from all over India join and we discuss key policy issues. This has helped, he said.

He also praised his government's work on the Sabarmati riverfront and said: There were circuses held earlier, now see the riverfront. This is development.

The Congress has accused the PM of promoting himself and self-aggrandizing instead of working for the poor and on the pressing issues of the country.

UPA did everything possible to derail Gujarat's development journey. To put gas pipelines in Gujarat's villages, the UPA got worried and did everything to stop that. I had to go to the Supreme Court, Modi.

If India is making a mark on the world stage it is due to the 125 crore people of India, he added.
FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar: Cristiano Ronaldo to Lionel Messi, stars likely to play their last WC
New Delhi: Kidambi Srikanth will kickstart his Dubai Superseries campaign with a match against Denmark's Viktor Axelsen.

Srikanth is currently world number four in the Men's Singles category, meanwhile Axelsen is at pole position in the Men's Singles category.

Both Axelsen and Srikanth are right-handed.

(Also read: Dubai World Superseries Finals 2017: When, Where, TV Listing and Draw)

This year, Srikanth has played 45 matches, out of which he has won 37 of them.

Meanwhile, Axelsen has won 32 matches, out of a total of 41 matches, he has played this year.

The Dane and Indian have played each other six times, with both winning three each.

(Also read: Dubai World Superseries Finals 2017: PV Sindhu and He Bingjiao - A Short Analysis)

The last time, they played each other was at the Denmark Open this year, where Srikanth came on top, winning 14-21, 22-20, 21-7.

They first played each other at the Swiss Open in 2015, where Srikanth won 21-15, 12-21, 21-14.

They will be playing each other on 13th December 2017.
New Delhi: PV Sindhu will kickstart India's campaign in the Dubai World Superseries, She will face China's He Bingjiao.

Sindhu is currently ranked world number three in the Women's category, meanwhile Bingjiao is ranked world number nine.

Sindhu is right-handed, meanwhile Bingjiao is left-handed.

(Also read: Dubai World Superseries Finals 2017: When, Where, TV Listing and Draw)

In 2017, the Indian has won 40 matches, out of a total 52 matches. Her Chinese counterpart has won 23 matches, out of a total 37 matches.

They have faced each other nine times, with Bingjiao winning five times, and Sindhu coming on top four times.

(Also read: Dubai World Superseries Finals 2017: Kidambi Srikanth and Viktor Axelsen - A Short Analysis)

The last time, they faced each other in the Korea Open in September of this year, where Sindhu beat the Chinese, 21-10, 17-21, 21-16.

They first met in the Yonex Sunrise Indonesian Masters 2015, where Binjiao beat her 23-21, 21-13.

They will be playing each other on the 13th of December.
London: The trial to prove a prima facie case of fraud against fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya resumes here on Monday to determine if he can be extradited to India to face charges over his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines.

The 61-year-old will be back in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London for day four of the hearing when his defence led by barrister Clare Montgomery, is set to depose two further witnesses in its attempt to prove that the airline's alleged default of around Rs 9,000 crore worth of bank loans was the result of business failure rather than "dishonest" and "fraudulent" activity by its owner.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the businessman is also facing a parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice brought by a consortium of Indian banks to freeze his global assets.

The State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co Pvt Ltd are listed as applicants of that claim against Mallya and related concerns named as Ladywalk LLP, Rose Capital Ventures Ltd and Orange India Holdings.

Lawyers for Mallya have been granted an extension to respond to that case due to his ongoing extradition trial, expected to conclude on Thursday.

Margaret Sweeney, from the accounts team of Force India - Mallya's Formula 1 racing team, and legal expert Martin Lau are set to be deposed by his defence team at the extradition hearing today.

Judge Emma Arbuthnot will hear the case over some "interruptions" as Uber's appeal against the cancellation of its operating license in London is expected to open in the same court today.

Last week, the?defence claimed that a consortium of Indian banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) had rejected an offer by the liquor baron in early 2016 to pay back nearly 80 per cent of the principle loan amount owed to them.

While deposing a banking expert last week, Mallya's counsel Montgomery questioned whether her client's offer to pay back around Rs 4,400 crores of the principle debt amount on April 6, 2016 should have been "dismissed out of hand" just a day later by the banks.

Paul Rex,?who was described as a banker by profession who served as an independent expert in the field for over 20 years, said that banks tend to partially provision for loans unpaid over a long period and such an offer would have helped avoid "further loss".

"A commercial bank would assess such an offer against other routes of repayment. If that offer is higher than could be expected from other sources, it would be an attractive option for banks to consider," he said, adding that state- owned banks in particular tend to be more susceptible to "political pressure".

However, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) arguing on behalf of the Indian government countered that assertion in its cross-examination, indicating that the reason such a repayment offer would have been rejected was that the banks knew Mallya had the means to pay back the entire amount due.

There are plenty of reasons why even a state bank may take a view to reject such an offer, such as if it comes from a "dishonest" person who is known to have "plenty of money to repay" the entire amount if he wants to, CPS barrister Mark Summers stated during his cross-examination.

He also made a reference to the "debtor" (Mallya) throwing a birthday party costing around 2 million pounds as a factor which could have influenced the banks' decision to reject the offer.?

The cross-examination of Rex was left incomplete at the end of the third day of the trial last Thursday, to be taken up again tomorrow afternoon.

In his cross-examination, Summers had highlighted a particular "washing machine activity" picked up by the government of India that involved sums amounting to around 10 -15?million pounds being funnelled between UB Group companies to wrongly claim obligations of equity infusions into struggling Kingfisher Airlines were being met.

Indian government sources have described its case, being presented by the CPS, as "very strong".

Mallya's legal team had claimed earlier in the trial that the case against him was "politically motivated" and that it was being used as an opportunity to make "political capital" by the ruling BJP as well as Congress and Shiv Sena.

The prosecution's case rests on "three chapters of dishonesty" by Mallya - misrepresentations to various, banks to acquire loans, the misuse of the loans, and his conduct after the banks recalled the loans.

Mallya, who has been based in the UK since March 2016, was arrested by Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant in April this year and has been out on bail on a bond worth 650,000 pounds.

If the judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must order?Mallya's extradition?within two months. However, the case can go through a series of appeals in higher UK courts before arriving at a conclusion.
New Delhi: Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma's rumored wedding in Italy has left us excited as well as happy for the lovely couple. While there is no official confirmation of the news, if indeed Virat and Anushka get married it would be a delight!

Speculations are rife that the couple might get married in Italy in a private ceremony attended only by family and close friends.

With this news, we can't help but wonder about Anushka Sharma's wedding lehenga!

Designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee has reportedly designed Anushka's attire for the big day.

Here are some of the best designs by Sabyasachi Mukherjee that we feel might be close to Anushka Sharma's final wedding look.

1. The official Instagram handle of Sabyasachi has captioned this image as-

'The CoochBehar Lehenga. Perhaps the finest quality of zardosi. Rendered by our most skilled craftsmen. In silver and gold. On deep burgundy velvet. Royal crests, carved wrought iron, brocade patterns and Mogul etchings all come together seamlessly with bullion, pearls, silk floss and baroque pearls holding them together. Best paired with a traditional Polki wedding jewellery set from the House of Sabyasachi. '

A post shared by Sabyasachi Mukherjee (@sabyasachiofficial) on Sep 10, 2017 at 10:47pm PDT

2.The caption says-

" This collection borrows heavily from hedonism and decadence. Drying rose petals, gulkand, kishmish, cardamom, zarda and pomegranate set the mood and the colour palette. Deep brooding burgundy and russet over layered with antiquated zardosi, semi-precious stones and Pearls form the basis of these baroque bridalwear lehengas."

A post shared by Sabyasachi Mukherjee (@sabyasachiofficial) on Jul 30, 2017 at 9:32pm PDT

3. The caption of this picture is-

'Intricate aari, zardosi and applique techniques dexterously applied on Indian pink raw silk. This bridal ensemble is paired with Polki jewellery set in 22k gold from the new Sabyasachi jewellery collection.'

A post shared by Sabyasachi Mukherjee (@sabyasachiofficial) on Jul 27, 2017 at 9:39pm PDT

4. Anushka would indeed look captivating in this gorgeous design by Sabyasachi:

A post shared by Sabyasachi Mukherjee (@sabyasachiofficial) on Oct 22, 2016 at 10:48am PDT

5. Sabyasachi captioned this awe-struck look as-

'Intricate aari, zardosi and applique techniques dextrously applied on kumkum red raw silk. These bridal ensembles are paired with uncut diamond jewellery set in 22k gold from the Sabyasachi Jewelry collection. For all jewellery related queries, kindly contact sabyasachijewelry@sabyasachi.com'

A post shared by Sabyasachi Mukherjee (@sabyasachiofficial) on Nov 22, 2017 at 7:25pm PST

Well, no matter what lehenga Anushka Sharma wears on her wedding (if it is really happening), we are sure she will take our breath away with her gorgeous look.

Which one was your favourite look? Let us know in the comments section!
AHMEDABAD: Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh accused the Congress leaders of suffering from insomnia.

Addressing a public meeting in Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said on Sunday that Congress party has accepted its defeat after the first phase of voting in the Gujarat elections, and may be because of this reason, the opposition party leaders are unable to sleep.

Taking a dig at the Congress leaders over claims of no development during the BJP rule, Singh said, "In Insomnia, people experience hallucinations and vision problems and probably that is why they are unable to see 'Vikas' (development) in the state.

Over 68 percent turnout was recorded on Saturday in the first phase of polling for 89 Assembly seats in Gujarat where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress's soon-to-be chief Rahul Gandhi are locked in a bitter, high-stakes battle after a 22-year BJP reign.

PM Modi and Gandhi sparred in battleground Gujarat on Sunday where the former claimed leaders of the opposition party held a secret meeting with current and former Pakistani officials a day ahead of Mani Shankar Aiyar's "neech" jibe against him.

Modi claimed there was an attempt by Pakistan to interfere in the Gujarat polls.

The next Congress presidnet came down heavily on the Prime Minister, asserting that his words had ceased to carry weight since he was lying through his teeth on the promises made to Gujarat and the country.

Gandhi promised he would not use even one "galat shabd" (wrong word) against him because he respects the post of the prime minister.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Centre and the Election Commission over a plea seeking cancellation of candidates contesting from more than one constituency.

Asking for the opinion of the Attorney General KK Venugopal, the apex court has instructed the petitioner to hand over a copy of the petition to him.

The petition, submitted by BJP leader Ashwani Upadhyay, demanded a revision in the Representation of the People Act.

In 2014, veteran politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi had contested from two seats - Vadodara and Varanasi.

With the end of the first phase of polling in Gujarat Assembly elections 2017, over 68 percent turnout was recorded for 89 Assembly seats on Saturday.

The main contenders in the Gujarat polls are the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is making a bid for a fifth term and the Congress which is attempting an electoral revival.

The second phase of the elections has been scheduled on December 14. The second phase of voting for the high-stakes election will be held for the remaining 93 seats.

On Saturday, a total of 977 candidates were in the fray and around 2.12 crore voters were expected to exercise their franchise in the first phase.

Gujarat has 182 assembly constituencies. The counting of votes will take place on December 18.
AHMEDABAD: Ahead of the second phase of Gujarat Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday will address a public rally here near Sabarmati Riverfront.

The rally is scheduled to be held at 7 pm.

This will be the first time that PM Modi will address a public gathering near the Riverfront, which is developed along the banks of Sabarmati river.

The Prime Minister has been on a spree of addressing rallies in poll-bound Gujarat.

On Sunday, PM Modi addressed as many as four rallies in order throughout the day.

With the end of the first phase of polling on Saturday, over 68 percent turnout was recorded for 89 Assembly seats in the state.

The main contenders in the Gujarat polls are the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is making a bid for a fifth term and the Congress which is attempting an electoral revival.

Both the parties are carrying out a series of campaigns for the second phase, scheduled for December 14. The second phase of voting for the high-stakes election will be held for the remaining 93 seats.

On Saturday, a total of 977 candidates were in the fray and around 2.12 crore voters were expected to exercise their franchise in the first phase.

Gujarat has 182 assembly constituencies. The counting of votes will take place on December 18.
Ahmedabad/Patan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday ridiculed the Congress for criticising his government over problems caused by the Goods and Services Tax and demonetisation and claimed these issues had been resolved.



He also took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.



Modi claimed his government had initiated the unique Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana to encourage start-ups in the country, but the Congress did not have the intellect to figure it out.



He said nine crore beneficiaries were disbursed loans of Rs 4 lakh crore to start businesses. "This is what we have done for employment of India's talented youths and very soon India will be third in the world in the number of start-ups. But the Congress people can't even think of it," he added.



Modi was speaking in Gujarat's commercial capital and BJP bastion Ahmedabad, concluding his campaign 24 hours ahead of the last day of canvassing for the second round of polling to 93 assembly seats on December 14.



"The GST is part of a new taxation regime practiced across the world and as long as we don't implement it, no bureaucrat or economist worth his salt will know about problems faced by trade and industry," the Prime Minister said.



"After all, we were changing an entire system. So, there were problems. But we have resolved all issues now. And if there still are problems, we will handle that too," Modi added.



On demonetisation announced on November 8, 2016, he said: "Those who are still crying hoarse over it more than a year later are those whom it pinched, while others have moved on."



"Those who were hand in glove with terrorists could not find black money to help anti-India activities. Today, all those are behind bars in Tihar jail."



Coming down heavily on Congress President-designate Rahul Gandhi, Modi said: "You say something, may be it is a mistake; you say it again, it may still be excusable; and third time, may be it is a political remark. But you do this again and again for two months. You think everyone is a fool, spreading lies everywhere."



This was the first public meeting of Modi on Monday. It began two hours behind schedule, just as the Ahmedabad event was more than a couple of hours late.



Reacting for the first time to the Congress leader's tirade 24 hours ahead of the end of campaigning for the second phase of polling, the Prime Minister said: "I went with a begging bowl to every nook and corner of Gujarat, asking people to send their girls to school.



"Was I asking about the education of daughters of the Ambanis? Was I asking about daughters of Kilachand? I went from village to village in 45-degree heat to promote the education of the girl child," Modi thundered.



"What do those born with a silver spoon in their mouth know about this.



"I, as the Chief Minister, and my ministers used to take akrishi rath' (agriculture chariot) during sowing and harvesting season to promote modern farming," he said.



"Our footwear got worn out, we have walked barefoot under the sun. They (Gandhi) may not have been pricked even once by a thorn in the foot."



Modi intermittently asked the crowd in Patan in North Gujarat if they remembered that he did all this.



"Tell me, did I or did I not? Not like this -- say it loudly. Raise both your hands in agreement," he exhorted the crowd.



"You keep on repeating lies and think everyone is a fool to believe what all you say. I took out the 'krishi rath' to every village -- was it for the Adanis?" Modi asked.


NEW DELHI: Alarm bells are sure to ring in the Defence Ministry with the presence of 1600-1800 Chinese troops in the Doklam area near the Bhutan tri-junction.

A report published in The Times of India said, with the Chinese constructing two helipads, creating shelter and stocking stores in the winter, it sends a clear signal that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has planned to permanently station a sizeable number of troops in Doklam.

The Chinese military had earlier hinted at maintaining a significant number of soldiers near the area of Doklam standoff during winter, asserting that the region is in Chinese territory.

Doklam was making headlines this year after the two Asian giants were engaged in a stand-off from June 16 to August 28 in the area. New Delhi and Beijing were engaged in the standoff in the Doklam area after a Chinese Army's construction party attempted to build a road. Doka La is the Indian name for the region which Bhutan recognises as Doklam, while the 'Dragon' claims it as part of its Donglang region.

Bhutan also claims the Doklam area to be its part.

New Delhi and Beijing eventually agreed to pull back their troops towards the end of August ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China for the G20 Summit.
The elections for the student body of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) is being held on Monday. The election will seal the fate of students contesting for the post of president, vice president, secretary, cabinet and court members.

The results of the elections are expected to be out by Monday night.

It is a triangular battle for the post of president between BDS student Mashkur Ahmed Usmani, research student Abu Bakr and BALLB student Ajay Singh, who is the grandson of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Thakur Dalveer Singh. Mashkur hails from Bihar while Abu Bakr is from Azamgarh.

The contenders for the vice president posts are M Com student Faisal Nadim, PhD student Vaseel K, M Tech student Rao Faraz Varis, MFC student Vikrant Johari and PhD students Sajjad Subhaan Rather and Ejaz Ahmed.

Of the total electorate of 18,188, as many as 5005 belong to the engineering faculty while 3196 are from the social science department. Hence, the votes from these two streams are considered very important.
NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram has lashed out at PM Narendra Modi, questioning if the extents to which the BJP is willing to go to ensure it wins the Gujarat elections. Chidambaram took aim at the BJP's decision to bring former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former Vice President Hamid Ansari into allegations of conspiracy with Pakistan.

Chidambaram's attack on PM Modi is over his comments at election rallies in Gujarat, where he raised questions over an alleged meeting between senior Congress leader and the Pakistani High Commissioner at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence on December 6.

"The BJP's campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election? Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?" Chidambaram, a former Union Minister, tweeted on Monday afternoon.

The BJP's campaign in Gujarat in the last few days, especially yesterday, has gone beyond bizarre. Should a political party go to any length to win an election?  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) December 11, 2017

Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) December 11, 2017

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and Anil Aggarwal had raised the meeting, and alleged that the Congress could be conspiring with Pakistan to ensure the BJP loses the Gujarat election. This was later pick up by PM Modi.

Did Pak Ambassador meet MS Aiyar and three other Congi leaders at MSA residence five days ago on Gujarat strategy? Palace coup in offing?  Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) December 9, 2017

The allegations linked the meeting with Aiyar's 'neech' remark, which the BJP and PM Modi have accused of being a casteist slur. However, Aiyar had clarified that he may have misspoken as Hindi is not his mother tongue. He has been suspended by the Congress party.

The conspiracy allegations are the latest slugfest between the Congress and the BJP in what is being touted by some analysts as a close election in Gujarat, PM Modi's home state.

To further add to this controversy, the BJP also picked up on a comment by a former Pakistan Army official, who appealed for Congress's Ahmed Patel to be made chief minister of Gujarat.
NEW DELHI: A Mumbai-London British Airways flight declared an emergency over Iranian airspace and was rerouted to land at the nearest major airport in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The apparent reason, by a passenger who seems to be on the flight, was smoke in the first class cabin of the flight.

The flight, BA198, was rerouted to Baku 'squawking 7700'. That's aviation code for when the crew of a flight declares an emergency and requests immediate assistance from all air traffic control centres in the region.

A trace of the flight path on flight-tracking site Flighradar showed BA198, a Boeing 777-300 ER, departing from Mumbai, flying into Pakistani airspace over Balochistan, entering Iranian airspace and issuing the emergency call just as it was about to leave Iranian air.

Flightradar said soon after notifying of the alert that the plane had touched down at Baku with a technical difficulty.

However, as is common in cases like this, there was little clarity on what this technical issue was. Till a tweet emerged from a person who seems to have been on the flight. Sylvia Traganida, a Greek journalist tweeted, "First 3.5-hour delay at #Mumbai due to #snow ? in #London. Now stuck in #Baku due to technical fault (smoke in 1st class). Makes me wish I were still in #Goa! ?? #India (not the best end to my #holiday)."

First 3.5-hour delay at #Mumbai due to #snow ? in #London. Now stuck in #Baku due to technical fault (smoke in 1st class). Makes me wish I were still in #Goa! ?? #India (not the best end to my #holiday) @British_Airways #BA198  Sylvia Traganida (@sylviatra) December 11, 2017

There has been no official word from British Airways on the incident yet, except for advisories that delays can be expected on flights routed through London, thanks to a snow storm.


New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi's long-delayed elevation as party chief is almost over as he was on Monday elected Congress president at a time when the party is facing an "existential crisis". His main challenge remains the revamping of party organisation, apart from electoral battles in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.



Gandhi will formally take over the reins of the grand old party on December 16, two days before the counting of votes for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh assembly elections, the outcome of which could be a trendsetter ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election.



Gandhi, 47, who would take over from his mother Sonia Gandhi who had helmed the country's oldest party for 19 long years, will be the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to take the top position of the 132-year-old party.



The outcome of the Gujarat polls would be interpreted in terms of Rahul Gandhi's ability as a "campaigner and vote-getter".



The next round of assembly polls in 2018 -- first in Karnataka and later in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh -- will be very crucial for Gandhi in order to build the momentum to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha polls.



The state elections, with Bharatiya Janata Party as the key rival, will also be the first major polls directly under Rahul Gandhi's charge as party chief. Assembly polls will also be held early next year in Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.



The challenges for Rahul Gandhi include infusing fresh energy and life in Congress workers and evolving a proper strategy to galvanise the party, following a string of electoral losses since the 2014 Lok Sabha debacle.



Gandhi has to be decisive on forging a larger opposition alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls under a "collective leadership" or even projecting himself as the alternative to Modi with the support of different parties.



Gandhi has always been perceived as a reluctant politician due to some of his longish trips abroad, which delayed his stepping into the role of party chief.



His action not to take up ministerial responsibility in two UPA governments and not properly following through some of the issues he raised drew strong criticism.



He has been able to counter those perceptions to some extent with his sharp and aggressive attacks on Modi and the BJP. His recent trip to the United States, where he held interactions with think tanks, has brought about a sea change to his overall image.



In Gujarat, where success will be a big morale-booster for the Congress, Gandhi has sought to create a broad social coalition and has forced Modi to react.



Reviving the Congress in Uttar Pradesh is going to be another major challenge for Rahul Gandhi -- the state that sends the largest contingent of 80 members to the Lok Sabha.



The results of the local body polls in Amethi and Rae Bareli, the Lok Sabha constituencies of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi respectively, have not given a fillip to Rahul Gandhi's image.



Rahul Gandhi had been projected as a young leader who understands the language and pulse of the youth but Modi has been more successful in weaning away the section that has large electoral presence. The Congress also has to devise ways to woo the large middle class.



He needs to act smartly in his dealings with allies and other opposition parties, including the Communist Party of India-Marxist.



Within the party, Gandhi has to take several decisions, including whether to project chief ministerial candidates in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and who they are going to be.



To bring about unity in faction-ridden state units and striking the right the balance between the "old guard" and the younger aspirants will be his other challenges.



The Congress is ruling now in five states and a union territory only and a loss in Gujarat as well as in Karnataka next year will further put a squeeze on its chances of staging a comeback at the Centre in 2019.



Gandhi, who is into his third term as Lok Sabha MP, was made Congress Vice President in 2013 as a stepping stone to his eventual elevation to the top party post.



Since 2004, Rahul Gandhi has been the Lok Sabha member from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. In 2007, he was named Congress General Secretary in charge of youth and student wings of the party.



He has attended St Stephen's College, Delhi, Harvard College and Rollins College, Florida, from where he graduated with a Bachelor's in Arts.



He received an M. Phil in Development Studies from Trinity College, Cambridge University. Thereafter, he joined the Monitor Group, a strategy consulting group, in London, where he worked for three years.


New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi has been elected unopposed as Congress president, party's central election authority head Mullappally Ramachandran announced on Monday.

He will collect the certificate formally declaring his ascension to the post on December 16, he told reporters in the national capital.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family was the lone candidate in the fray. Rahul succeeds his mother Sonia Gandhi, who remained in the post for 19 years.

Congratulations poured in for Rahul from Congress leaders across the country who expressed happiness on his elevation as party president.

Following are some of the reactions:

The entire Indian National Congress family would like to convey our best wishes to incoming President Rahul Gandhi, and wish him a successful tenure as he continues to lead from the front. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/3md3zzFYux  Congress (@INCIndia) December 11, 2017

#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi



A Momentous Event In The History Of Indian National Congress.



Congratulations @OfficeOfRG & Wishing You All The Best.  INC Telangana (@INCTelangana) December 11, 2017

We from Mumbai Congress congratulate Shri Rahul Gandhi on being elected as the President of Indian National Congress. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/Y02X2j1toJ  MumbaiCongress (@INCMumbai) December 11, 2017

We congratulate Shri Rahul Gandhiji on being elected as the President of @INCIndia. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/IuvXWV2gIW  Gujarat Congress (@INCGujarat) December 11, 2017

Congratulations to Shri. Rahul Gandhi for being announced as the President of the Indian National Congress.#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/JQ8ZhTfeCC  Karnataka Congress (@INCKarnataka) December 11, 2017

Shri Rahul Gandhi is our new President. We wish him a very successful days ahead. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/vlNrHuppNH  Kerala PCC (@INCKerala) December 11, 2017

Heartiest congratulations to @OfficeOfRG on All India Congress Committee's Central Election Authority officially announcing his election as President of @INCIndia #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi. Mahila Congress looks forward to working under his leadership. pic.twitter.com/ywBywUQe9f  Mahila Congress (@MahilaCongress) December 11, 2017

Congratulations to @OfficeOfRG on being elected President of INC! The country is looking forward to ur leadership! Satyamev Jayate!  Jyotiraditya Scindia (@JM_Scindia) December 11, 2017

Many congratulations to @OfficeOfRG on becoming the next president of INC.More strength to u 2fight for the principles that india stands for  Sachin Pilot (@SachinPilot) December 11, 2017

Congratulations @OfficeOfRG for being elected unopposed as @INCIndia president. I am sure the party will see not just revival but massive growth under your able and dynamic leadership.#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi  Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) December 11, 2017

Congratulations to Rahul Gandhiji for becoming the president of @INCIndia ! Congress party will achieve greater heights & continue to reflect the voice & aspiration of people under his able leadership! #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/hCZXipWCqP  Arjun Modhwadia (@arjunmodhwadia) December 11, 2017

I extend my best wishes to Rahul ji for becoming president of @INCIndia, his leadership & guidance will rejuvenate the Party with new zeal and enthusiasm!



#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/ev8k9NXxKQ  Bharat Solanki (@BharatSolankee) December 11, 2017

A Gr8 day for all of us. @OfficeOfRG is declared Congress President today.My congratulations to him & I hv full faith that under his leadership we will take up the cause of common ppl more aggressively & succeed.#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/vJJBCdQnCt  Sanjay Nirupam (@sanjaynirupam) December 11, 2017

As we celebrate RG becoming President, I also want to pay a heartfelt tribute to our outgoing President, Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, for her dignified leadership and dedicated service to the country & to @INCIndia. We look forward to your continued guidance. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi  Salman Anees Soz (@SalmanSoz) December 11, 2017

Proud to share this joyous & historical moment with fellow Congresspersons #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi https://t.co/tCuBsgOibM  Pawan Khera (@Pawankhera) December 11, 2017

Joyous moment for the party as we celebrate the appointment of @OfficeOfRG as the President of @INCIndia . Beginning of a new, energised, positive and progressive era in the party under his leadership. #CongressPresidentRahulGandhi December 11, 2017

#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi : A great human being. A compassionate man. A far-sighted visionary. A relentless fighter for the marginalized. A true-blue believer in liberal values. A secular democrat. A long-distance runner. Welcome @OfficeOfRG ! https://t.co/JS3LK4WUi7  Sanjay Jha (@JhaSanjay) December 11, 2017

#CongressPresidentRahulGandhi is someone who always think about bringing transparency in the system & that's what makes him an acknowledged persona, something which is missing today.

RTI is the perfect example of how much @INCIndia and @OfficeOfRG is concerned about transparency.  NSUI (@nsui) December 11, 2017

- Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said Rahul had shown a lot of mettle over a period of time and will be able to execute his responsibility well. "Entire country has a lot of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. He has shown his mettle over a period of time and particularly in the ongoing election in Gujarat. He knows his responsibility and priorities very well."

- Echoing similar sentiments, former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi said at the time when the situation is `worst under the ruling government`, elevation of Rahul will prove to be good. "In such time Rahul Gandhi has been elected as party president. In Gujarat, he has proved he is the only candidate who can be relied upon and he is even facing PM Narendra Modi confidently," Gogoi told ANI.

- Meanwhile, the Congress worker and leaders across the nation are celebrating with great zeal. Scores of workers even gathered in front of the Congress office raising slogans for Rahul and distributing sweets.

(With Agency inputs)
NEW DELHI: Firing a fresh salvo at the Congress, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Monday that the party has always underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in the country.

His remarks come after Congress leader Manmohan Singh asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologise for questioning him about a dinner-meeting he attended where other party leaders and top Pakistani officials including then Pakistan High Commissioner were also present.

The meeting was hosted by now expelled Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar and was attended by ex-Indian diplomats, which had served in Pakistan, politicians and other top Indian and Pakistani retired military officers.

Congress must come out with detailed facts what transpired in that meeting and what was the necessity of having it in present circumstances.

Yesterday they were in denial about it & today instead of accepting it as a misadventure, they try to blame those raising the issue, Jaitley said.

Modi had trained his gun at Aiyar and the Congress during a poll rally in Gujarat on Sunday which came after the expelled leader described him as 'neech'. Modi said Aiyar and other Congress leaders held secret talks with the Pakistani envoy in Delhi.

The same Mani Shankar Aiyar, who insulted Gujarat, held secret meetings with the Pakistan High Commissioner. What was the reason, the PM had asked at a rally in Gujarat's Palanpur.

Though he did not elaborate on his comment, he may have suggested that Ayer and the Congress maintained a secret relationship with the Pakistanis even if it was against the national interest.

Jaitley said he was surprised by Manmohan Singh issuing a statement asking the prime minister to apologise for what he said at an election rally.

He said, Those like Mani Shankar Aiyar always had an inconsistent position. They maintained a parallel line of dialogue, underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and continued to engage with them (Pakistan).
This Week in Zee Medias show A Dialogue with JC, CEO ZeeHindustan and Zee Regionals Jagdeesh Chandra dwelled upon Gujarat elections very elaborately. In his exclusive analysis after the first phase of polling in the state, Jagdeesh Chandra touched all the aspects. Appreciating the efforts of election commission he lauded the EC for the peaceful first phase. According to Chandra, this is the most difficult election for Modi.

Referring to the general feeling in the country, he said BJP can make the government but it would not be easy to achieve the target the party is boasting of. BJP can become a single largest party. He especially talked about Surat where BJP could face some problem when the results would come out. It could be because of the anger in business class for GST and demonetisation.

Commenting on Hardik, Jignesh and Alpesh, Zee Hindustan and Zee Regionals CEO said that they would not be able to be the reason for BJPs defeat. But he never ruled out any miracle in these elections Jagdeesh Chandra said, Manishankars Neech remarks will go against Congress and Modi has used this term very efficiently in favour of him and the party by connecting it with Gujarati pride.

Jagdeesh Chandra in his exclusive analysis ruled out CM Vijay Rupanis defeat on his Rajkot seat. Chandra said that the youth and Gujarati voters still own Modi as their man although he admitted that the crowd in some of the Modis rally was relatively less.

Referring to Rahuls Somnath temple entry as non-Hindu a below level politics, Chandra said BJP is fighting these elections with Modis face in front and Congress is also engaged in opposing PM. Local

issues are not seen in these elections although the three youth leaders are trying their best to raise those issues. According to Chandra UP local bodies election results and issues like triple talaq will go in favour of BJP. Chandra also said that even if Congress loses the elections, these elections have established Rahul Gandhi as a leader in a better way. Chandra Said that BJP is not taking these

elections for granted because it knows that if the party loses the election it will be Modi's defeat rather than the partys.
NEW DELHI: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reserved sharp words of rebuke against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday. The stingers were part of a statement he released responding to allegations raised by BJP leaders that he was part of a meeting with the Pakistani High Commissioner where a conspiracy was hatched to defeat the BJP in the Gujarat elections.

"I sincerely hope that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously scored brownie points," read Manmohan's statement.

"Sadly & regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a Former Prime Minister and Army Chief," he added.

"I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," Manmohan Singh said in his statement.

He released a full guest list of all those who attended the dinner, including some journalists, and insisted that "none of them could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities".

He also attacked PM Modi head on, for visiting Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. "The Congress Party needs no sermon on 'Nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister whose compromised track record in fighting terrorism is well know," read the statement. Manmohan Singh also demanded an explanation from the Modi government on why an ISI team was invited to Pathankot to investigate the attack on the air base.

Manmohan Singh ended his statement with a demand that PM Modi apologise to the nation for his "ill-thought transgression" .
New York: A 30-year-old Indian national pursuing his masters in Chicago has been seriously injured after he was shot in his right cheek by an unidentified assailant, according to media reports.

Mohammad Akbar was seriously wounded in the shooting on December 6 in the Albany Park neighbourhood in Chicago, according to reports and information provided by his family in India.

Around 8:45 am on Wednesday someone walked up to him and fired shots, Chicago Police was quoted as saying by the Chicago Tribune.

He was shot in the cheek and taken in serious condition to Illinois Masonic Medical Center, police said.

The county police has started investigating the attack and is trying to trace the alleged assailants.

Chicago police said they were not treating the attack as hate crime. Nobody has been arrested yet.

Akbar, who hails from Hyderabad, is studying for his postgraduate degree in computer systems networking and telecommunications at DeVry University in the US city, his family has said.

He has been in Chicago for the past three years and currently staying in a flat on Whipple Street.

The shooting comes amidst growing attacks on Indians and Americans of Indian descent in recent months.

Srinivas Kuchibhotla, a software engineer from India, was fatally shot in Olathe, Kansas, in February by a US navy veteran who had told him and his friend at a bar to go back to their country.

Weeks later, a Sikh man was shot in his arm in his driveway in Kent, Washington state, by a masked man who had told him go back to his "own country".
In a bizarre event, a kissing competition was held in a fair organised for members of tribal community in Jharkhand. And the competition was held in presence of legislator Simon Marandi.

The event was the highlight of the Sido-Kanhu fair held in Littipara block in Pakur district of Jharkhand.

Participants in the kissing competition were married couple from the tribal community, reported Prabhat Khabar.

This fair is organised every year by legislator Simon Marandi. It was attended by several politicians, including Jharkhand Mukti Morchas Shyam Yadav.

Other highlights of the event were folk songs and dance.
New Delhi: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a desperate bid to win the Gujarat elections and asked him to "apologise to the nation".



Singh also denied allegations by PM Modi that he and others invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats discussed the Gujarat elections.

Following is his full statement:

I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Narender Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Shri Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a Former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

The Congress Party needs no sermons on 'nationalism' from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known. Let me remind Sh. Narender Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Shri Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground."

I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Shri Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations. Names of the distinguished Indian public servants and journalists present at the dinner are enclosed to this statement. None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities. I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points. I sincerely hope that he will apologise to the Nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

Here's what PM Modi had said:

On Saturday, PM Modi had suggested that Pakistan was trying to influence the Assembly elections in Gujarat, claiming some Pakistani officials and Singh met a day before Mani Shankar Aiyar made the 'neech' jibe against him.

PM Modi had said the meeting took place at Aiyar's residence. He had also raised questions about the alleged appeal by former director general (DG) of the Pakistan Army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel the CM of Gujarat.

"There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh," PM had Modi further said at an election rally at Palanpur.

The meeting at Aiyar's house continued for almost three hours, he had added, "the next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar said Modi is 'neech' (a vile man). This is a serious matter."

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election, on the other, Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts," PM Modi had asked.

(With Agency inputs)
New Delhi/Bengaluru: Hitting out at Congress for asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "apologise in Jama Masjid" for the 2002 riots, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday said those who commit mistakes only they serve an apology.

"This is a shameful statement by the Congress. They apologised for their deeds in 1984 anti-sikh riots and now they are creating a baseless controversy. The truth is only those people who have committed mistakes apologise, but those who have not done anything wrong why they will serve an apology," BJP leader Bizay Sonkar Shastri told ANI here.

Another BJP leader S Prakash, in Bengaluru, said instead of focusing their attention on development, the Congress was trying to evoke Gujarat riots to win over the Muslim votes.

"The Congress has once again brought the 2002 riots into the campaign. Till now, they were silent on the issue. They are demanding an illogical apology from the Prime Minister. It was a communal riot where both Hindus and Muslims were killed which happened in the aftermath of Godhra incident."

"Several cases have been filed and many have been convicted also, unlike in 1984 riots, where the Congress did not show any interest to convict those who were involved in the Sikh massacre," Prakash added.

Earlier on Sunday, BJP chief Amit Shah tore into Congress` demand, saying the matter was being raised to consolidate votes in the ongoing Gujarat Assembly election.

"Congress` Charan Singh said Prime Minister Modi must go inside Jama Masjid and apologies for 2002 riots. Entire nation knows the allegations levelled on the Prime Minster by the Congress backed NGO were all false. Yet for vote bank consolidation, 2002 is being raised in 2017," Shah told the media in Gandhinagar.

The first phase of polling took place on Saturday and recorded a voter turnout of 66.75 percent in 89 of 182 constituencies. The second-phase voting in remaining 93 constituencies is on December 14, and the votes will be counted on December 18.
Here's a quick look at the top stories of the day:

1. Three Pakistani terrorists killed by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir

Three terrorists were on Sunday late night gunned down in an encounter between the security forces and terrorists in Unisoo of Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara district. Another terrorist has been captured in an injured state, reported ANI on Monday. The gunfight also left a civilian dead. Read full report

2. Group of French tourists attacked, molested in Mirzapur; 8 arrested

A group of French tourists were on Sunday allegedly beaten up and molested in Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh. However, police claimed that a woman from Varanasi, and not foreign nationals, were beaten up and molested by a group of miscreants. Read full report

3. Now, Afzal ka yaar posters target Rahul Gandhi in Gujarat

With the last phase of polling remaining in Gujarat Assembly elections, both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seem to be leaving no stone unturned to ensure their victory. The campaigning for the polls has witnessed several exchanges of jibes and allegations, and an equal share of controversies. Read full report

4. 15-year-old cancer survivor gang-raped in UP; raped again by passerby

A 15-year-old cancer survivor was allegedly gang-raped by two youths in Sarojini Nagar area. She was again raped by one person whom she asked for help. Confirming the incident police said the incident took place Friday night when the girl had gone out to meet an acquaintance. Read full report

5. Dilip Kumar birthday: Legendary actor turns 95

Legendary actor of Hindi cinema  Dilip Kumar  has turned 95 today. The thespian, who has wowed actors across many generations by his acting skills, will have a quiet birthday celebration this year owing to his health. Read full report
New Delhi: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said political parties should sit together and discuss if the minimum number of sittings of Parliament needed to be fixed, and also recommended automatic suspension of members who rush near the presiding officer 's podium in the house.



The Vice President, who will preside over the Rajya Sabha as Chairman for the first time this winter session, suggested that legislatures may put out in public domain the names of members who disrupt house proceedings with an observation that they have violated rules in disregard of the Chair's directions and thereby adversely impacted house functioning.



Naidu also suggested a 10 point charter to ensure the effective functioning of legislatures in the country, so that people's respect for the democratic institution can be sustained. These includes devising methods to calculate productivity of the legislature, ranking legislative bodies in the country, and having a quorum for opposition parties as well.



"There is a serious need to consider a proposal that Parliament should meet for at least 100 days a year. Political parties need to seriously consider the minimum number of days for which Parliament should meet," he said, while delivering a lecture on "Importance of Legislatures" organised by thinktank PRS Legislative Research.



His comments come at a time when opposition parties have accused the government of undermining the importance of Parliament by delaying the winter session. The session was delayed due to the Gujarat assembly elections and will now be conducted from December 15 to January 1.



The Vice President also said that to address the "menace" of members rushing towards the presiding officer's podium, there was a need for specific provisions in the rules of business for "automatic suspension" of those who do so, adding that a consensus in this regard needs to be evolved.



Naidu also voiced concern over the low number of sittings of assemblies in the states.



"State assemblies met for 29 days, on an average. In general, the duration of meetings has been constantly decreasing. Of these, sometimes the opposition boycotts the assembly session. Some states like Kerala met for a longer period," he said.



Naidu also called for passing the bill on reservation to women in Parliament and assemblies, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010.



The Vice President said contrary to perception, Parliament works round the year with its Ministry-related Standing Committees and other panels enhancing its efficacy in legislative, deliberative and overseeing functions.



Giving out figures, Naidu said the First Lok Sabha had 677 sittings and passed 319 bills during 1952-57, as compared with 332 sittings and passage of 247 bills of the 14th Lok Sabha during 2004-09. The 15th Lok Sabha had 357 sittings and approved 181 bills.



He said that from these statistics, it would not be correct to conclude that Parliament is shirking its responsibilities, adding that there was need to pass more legislation after Independence.


NEW DELHI: Former president Pranab Mukherjee, who served India as the 13th president, turns 82 today.

Starting from President Ram Nath Kovind to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, all took to Twitter to wish 'Pranabda' on his birthday.

Being the President was not exactly Poltu-da's (Pranab Mukherjee's nickname) plan of action in his 48-year-long political career.

In 2015, a secret cable sent to the then US secretary defense Donald Rumsfeld by ambassador David Mulford, described Mukherjee, the then Finance Minister, as the "prime minister-in-waiting".

The cable, a part of Wikileaks, described him with "influence over both government policy and public opinion is rivaled only by that of the prime minister himself. He is, in effect, the deputy prime minister, and we believe he aspires to the top job," the cable reads.

Mukherjee narrowly missed the top post twice: In 1984, immediately after Indira Gandhi's assassination, when Rajiv Gandhi was chosen as the next prime ministerial candidate; and once again in 2004, when Congress chose Dr Manmohan Singh.

Fate, it seems, had other plans.

In 2012, Poltu-da was nominated as the presidential candidate of the United Progressive Alliance. He won the election with 713,763 votes, becoming the first Bengali to hold the post of President of India.

As the 13th president of India, Mukherjee served the nation for a span of five years, retiring in July 2017.

A close confidant of former prime minister Indira Gandhi, the Pranab Mukherjee had a reputation - no one could make him divulge information that he did not want to reveal.

Throughout his career, Poltu-da held several offices including that of finance, defence, foreign portfolios.

Mukherjee's tenure has been called the 'copybook president' - fearless, powerful, pragmatic and a strong negotiator.
New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi has been elected unopposed as Congress president, party's central election authority head Mullappally Ramachandran announced on Monday.

He will collect the certificate formally declaring his ascension to the post on December 16, he told reporters in the national capital.

The 47-year-old scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family was the lone candidate in the fray.

Rahul succeeds his mother Sonia Gandhi, who remained in the post for 19 years.

Here's a look at the tenure of Sonia as the Congress chief:

- After her husband, Rajiv Gandhi's assassination in 1991, Sonia refused to become PM and the party settled on the choice of PV Narasimha Rao who became the leader and subsequently PM.

- The Congress lost the 1996 elections and several senior leaders such as Madhavrao Sindhia, Rajesh Pilot, Narayan Dutt Tiwari, Arjun Singh, P Chidambaram and Jayanthi Natarajan revolted openly against incumbent president Sitaram Kesri.

- In an effort to revive the party's sagging fortunes, Sonia joined the Congress as a primary member in the Calcutta Plenary Session in 1997 and became party chief in 1998.

- At that time, a fragmented Congress had just lost the Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Mizoram and Nagaland. It had 141 members in the Lok Sabha.

- In May 1999, three senior leaders of the party, Sharad Pawar, PA Sangma, and Tariq Anwar challenged her right to try to become India's PM citing her foreign origins.

- Following this Sonia offered to resign as party leader. This resulted in an outpouring of support and the expulsion of the three rebels from the party. They went on to form the Nationalist Congress Party.

- She contested Lok Sabha elections from Bellary, Karnataka and Amethi, Uttar Pradesh in 1999 and won both seats. However, Sonia chose to represent Amethi.

- In Bellary, she had defeated BJP leader, Sushma Swaraj.

- Sonia was elected the Leader of the Opposition of the 13th Lok Sabha in 1999 when the BJP-led NDA formed government at Centre under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

- As Leader of Opposition, she had called a no-confidence motion against the Vajpayee government in 2003.

- Taking on the BJP, Sonia launched a nationwide campaign countering the NDA government's 'India Shining' slogan.

- The Congress on its own won 206 seats in the Lok Sabha seats, which was then the highest total by any party since 1991.

- Sonia was re-elected to a third term as MP from Rae Bareli.

- Following the unexpected defeat of the NDA, she was unanimously chosen to lead a 15-party coalition government with the support of the Left, which was named the United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

- The BJP protested at Sonia becoming PM due to her 'foreign origin'. Swaraj threatened to shave her head and "sleep on the ground" should Sonia become PM. The BJP also claimed that there were legal reasons that barred her from becoming India's PM.

- Subsequently, Sonia recommended Manmohan Singh as her choice as PM. Congress leaders and party workers compared it to the Indian tradition of renunciation.

- The Congress-led UPA returned back to power based on strong results in Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

- Manmohan Singh became the first PM since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1962 to be re-elected after completing a full five-year term.

- In 2013, she became the first person to serve as Congress chief for 15 years consecutively.

- However, in the 2014 General Election, facing the 'Modi wave' the Congress-led UPA electoral alliance suffered massive defeat, winning only 44 and 59 seats respectively.
NEW DELHI: Congress offices burst into celebrations in the national capital and the states as news of Rahul Gandhi's elevation poured in on Monday afternoon.

The party offices were decorated with flowers and rangolis even as the Congress members distributed sweets and played loud music.

In Delhi, the party workers took to the streets to celebrate Rahul Gandhi's promotion. The party workers were seen smeared with colours of holi as they took out a procession outside the Congress headquarters here. Sweets were also distributed to people on the streets amid chants of Rahul 'jai ho'.

The Congress workers later performed a havan outside the main party office to pray for his welbeing and success in his new role as party president.

In Uttarakhand, processions and celebratory songs burst out outside the party office in the state capital Dehradun. The Congress workers were seen taking out a procession and chanting for their leader Rahul Gandhi. Some have also applied different colours on their faces to celebrate the occassion.

Rahul Gandhi was on Monday elected unopposed as the Party President. He became the sixth person to hold the post in the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty.

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said, Entire country has lots of expectations from Rahul Gandhi. Much before he was elected he has shown his mettle. He knows his responsibility.

He has shown his mettle in Gujarat. The entire BJP including the PM himself, 80 ministers are sitting there for a month but are still unable to counter him, Azad said.
NEW DELHI: It is now official. Rahul Gandhi is set to take over as Congress president on December 16.

Senior party leader Mullappally Ramachandran made the announcement on Monday afternoon. "Eighty-nine nomination proposals were received. All were valid. Since there was only one candidate, I hereby declare Rahul Gandhi elected as the president of Indian National Congress," he said.

However, his ascent to the Congress leadership has not been without dissent. A party leader from Maharashtra had alleged that the election was rigged. Another partyman had alleged that he was not being allowed to file his nomination against Rahul.

The announcement is the culmination of what began at a Congress Working Committee meeting on November 20, which passed a resolution to make Rahul the party president.

The CWC meeting was attended by Sonia Gandhi, Rahul, Manmohan Singh along with senior party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Ahmed Patel. The meeting was convened at Sonia's residence.

Rahul Gandhi filed his nomination on December 4, in the presence of former PM Manmohan Singh and other senior Congress leaders.

The handover of the party from one generation to yet another of the Nehru-Gandhi family comes as Sonia's Gandhi's has suffered from an extended period of ill health. She is the longest-serving party president, having helmed it since 1997.

Rahul, who became the Congress vice president in January 2013, will succeed his mother Sonia.

Rahul has already been running the party for a few months now, according to party leaders.

Rahul Gandhi will be the 16th president of the storied Indian National Congress since Independence. He will become the sixth member of his family to hold the post, the fifth since Independence. The 47-year-old Gandhi will follow in the footsteps of his great-great-grandfather Motilal Nehru, great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, grandmother Indira Gandhi and father Rajiv Gandhi.

The formal elevation will come just days after Gujarat votes in its second and final phase of the Assembly election.
NEW DELHI: Rain fell on much of northern India on Monday, including the National Capital Territory (NCT). The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted cloudy skies with a possibility of light rain on Tuesday, with the minimum temperature beginning its winter slide.

"The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to hover at 23 and 10 degrees respectively tomorrow," a Met Department representative told news agency PTI.

Trace amounts of dampened Delhi and its surrounding areas, possibly indicating the coming of the winter. The rains across the northern plains follow days of snow across many parts of Himachal Pradesh.

The minimum temperature in Delhi settled around 8.2 degress Celsius, one degree below the normal for December 11. However, the maximum temperature, at 24.2 degrees Celsius, was one degree above normal.

The IMD forecast sees the temperatures holding steady till the weekend, followed by a drop in the minimums. The Met Department's seven-day forecast saw the minimum settling at 7 degrees Celsius on Sunday.

The Met Department has also predicted rainfall in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, northern Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi on Tuesday. Jammu and Kashmir could receive hail or thunder showers.
NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shatrughan Sinha has once again trained his guns at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for claiming Congress leaders held a secret meeting with current and former Pakistani officials.

Disapproving of PM Modi raising questions about the alleged appeal by former director general (DG) of the Pakistan Army Sardar Arshad Rafiq for making senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel the chief minister of Gujarat, the BJP MP said one must come up with new issues.

The actor-turned-politician questioned PM Modi for spinning "unsubstantiated and unbelievable" stories against political opponents.

"Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!" Sinha tweeted.

Modi on Sunday had accused a group of Congress leaders of meeting the Pakistan High Commissioner at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence before the latter called him (Modi) "neech".

"There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh," Modi told an election rally at Palanpur.

The meeting at Aiyar's house continued for almost three hours, Modi said, adding "the next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar said Modi is "neech" (a vile man). This is a serious matter."

"(On one hand) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election, on the other, Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts?" Modi said.

Sinha also advised the Prime Minister to stop communalising the atmosphere and return to the promises that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made in the 2014 general elections.

"Sir! Instead of new twists and turns, stories and cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model".

"Lets stop communalising the atmosphere and go back to healthy politics and healthy elections. Jai Hind!," the BJP MP from Patna Sahib said in another tweet.

Sinha, a former union minister has been vocal against the policies of the Modi government, especially demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax.
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleged that Pakistan was interfering in the Gujarat assembly elections, the neighbouring country has responded saying stop dragging Pakistan into Indias electoral debate.

Taking to Twitter, Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mohammad Faisal targeted PM Modi saying he should win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies. He termed the allegations as utterly baseless and irresponsible.

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

Modi had on Sunday alleged that Pakistan was interfering in Gujarat Assembly polls, and sought an explanation from the Congress over its top partymen who are said to have recently met leaders from the neighbouring country.

Addressing a poll rally, the prime minister had also raised questions over the alleged appeal by former director general of the Pakistan Army, Sardar Arshad Rafiq, that senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel be made chief minister of Gujarat.

Modi said (former Congress minister) Mani Shankar Aiyar had called him "neech" (vile) a day after the alleged meeting of Pakistani leaders with top Congressmen.

"There were media reports yesterday about a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. It was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, Pakistan's former foreign minister, India's former vice president and former prime minister Manmohan Singh," Modi said.

The meeting at Aiyar's house carried on for almost three hours, Modi said.

"The next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar said Modi was 'neech'. This is a serious matter," he said.

Modi added that Rafiq had backed Ahmed Patel as the next chief minister of Gujarat.

"(On one side) Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election, on the other side, Pakistan's people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house," he said.

"And, after that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts," Modi asked.

He said the Congress should inform the people of the country what exactly it was up to.

(With PTI Inputs)
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj ion Monday held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on key bilateral issues.

According to sources, all issues of mutual interest were discussed between the two leaders.

Wang is here to attend the Russia-India-China trilateral meeting.

He will also attend an India-China cultural event in the evening.

The foreign ministers of Russia, India and China (RIC) are here to deliberate on a range of pressing regional and global issues, including ways to tackle the threat of terrorism and extremism, at the key meeting of the grouping.

This is the first high-level visit from China after the Doklam standoff in the Sikkim sector this summer.

The 73-day border standoff ended on August 28 after Chinese troops stopped building a key road close to India's 'chicken's neck' corridor -- that connects India to its north east states.

The road was being built by China in an area also claimed by Bhutan.
New York: Bitcoin surged past $18,000 after it began trading on its first major global exchange Sunday, the latest in a series of highs that have excited some investors while leaving others nervous of a bubble.

Trading of the controversial digital currency on a futures contract began at 6:00 pm (2300 GMT) on the Chicago board options exchange (Cboe) at a price of $15,000.

Heavy traffic made the Cboe website inaccessible in the first 20 minutes, but it said that "trading runs on very separate systems and was totally unaffected by the website issues."

Around 0320 GMT, bitcoin was trading at $17,750 per unit for the futures contract expiring on January 17, thus exceeding the highest value it had reached on alternative non-regulated internet platforms. It even climbed past $18,000.

A futures contract is a financial product that allows investors to bet on whether the currency`s price will rise or fall.

Bob Fitzsimmons, a futures manager at Wedbush Securities, described the opening as "quiet and steady," as Cboe data showed around a thousand trades were made in the first two hours.

The Cboe debut is expected to be followed a week later by a rival listing on Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

It marks the first opportunity for professional traders to invest in bitcoin, even as some steer away because of a lack of regulations surrounding the currency.

"It gives it legitimacy. It recognizes that it`s an asset you can trade," said Nick Colas, of Data Trek research.

Among those cheering the launch are the Winklevoss twins, who have been called the first bitcoin billionaires. Critics include financial commentator Jim Cramer, who warns that prices could tumble once the new trading venues open the door to "short sellers," who bet on downward moves in assets.

The two launches were made possible after a key US regulator, the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), gave the green light to the exchanges on December 1, while warning "of the potentially high level of volatility and risk in trading these contracts."

Anticipation of the first mainstream listings for the digital currency has been a catalyst for a sharp price increase in recent weeks. Bitcoin opened 2017 at around $1,000, surged past $10,000 for the first time last month and soared as high as $16,777 on Thursday before retreating somewhat.The actual opening of the Cboe market, an electronic trading venue, was a low-key affair, lacking the pomp of an initial public offering, which is often marked by the new entrant ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange.

The embrace by mainstream exchanges of bitcoin futures marks a sea change from the days when the digital currency was associated with drug dealing and other illicit activities.

The Cboe said it has taken precautions to address wild fluctuations: trading will be suspended for two minutes if bitcoin prices go up or down 10 percent, for instance.

"We are committed to continue to work closely with the CFTC to monitor trading and foster the growth of a transparent, liquid and fair bitcoin futures market," the Cboe said.

Still, plenty of key figures in and around markets are taking a cautious approach to bitcoin, which has no central bank backing it, and no legal exchange rate.

The Futures Industry Association, which includes some of the world`s biggest derivatives brokerages, criticized the CFTC`s move in a letter to the regulator, saying contracts are being rushed through without properly weighing the risks.

"A more thorough and considered process would have allowed for a robust public discussion among clearing member firms, exchanges and clearing houses," the association said.

Several leading financial heavyweights are still studying bitcoin and not serving as financial intermediaries. This group includes JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Barclays, Morgan Stanley and Societe Generale, said people close to the matter.

Of the larger banks, only Goldman Sachs and ABN Amro are serving as intermediaries for the trades. That means most of the terrain will be dominated by smaller entities that are typically requiring larger than usual margin requirements -- funds set aside as collateral in case of losses.

The Cboe, for its part, sought to reassure investors.

"We are committed to continue to work closely with the CFTC to monitor trading and foster the growth of a transparent, liquid and fair bitcoin futures market," it said in a statement.

Wedbush Securities has lifted its margin requirements and is only permitting trades from clients on a "selected" basis, said Fitzsimmons.

"We are commissioning only the select clients who have experience in bitcoins," he said.

"Our risk systems are ready and we have made sure we have our customers and firm protected by increased margins and increased scrutiny."
SRINAGAR: Two guards of a cash van succumbed to injuries on Monday after terrorists opened fire on their vehicle in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian.

The attack took place in Kralchak area of the Shopian district.

According to ANI, the security guards had fired in the air to repel the attack.

However, it was not immediately clear if the terrorists have managed to decamp with the currency notes.
SRINAGAR: Three terrorists were on Sunday late night gunned down in an encounter between the security forces and terrorists in Unisoo of Jammu and Kashmir's Handwara district.

Another terrorist has been captured in an injured state, reported ANI on Monday. The gunfight also left a civilian dead.

Internet services have been suspended in four districts - Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara.

J&K: 3 terrorists gunned down & one civilian also lost her life during encounter that started late last night in Handwara's Unisoo. Search ops still underway. (visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/JQ3eaWpASH  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

The development comes after the security forces launched a search operation in the area.

Although the firing has stopped, the search operations are still underway.

The state's Director General of Police, SP Vaid took to Twitter saying, "In Unisoo, Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralized by Joint team of J&K Police, RR & CRPF. It has been raining whole night and boys were out there in the cold."

In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold.  Shesh Paul Vaid (@spvaid) December 11, 2017

Following the arrest of an Over Ground Worker (OGW) of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in Handwara, the security forces on Sunday had launched a search operation in the district's Hajin town.

The jawans had also cordoned off the area.
LUCKNOW: A 15-year-old cancer survivor was allegedly gang-raped by two youths in Sarojini Nagar area. She was again raped by one person whom she asked for help.

Confirming the incident police said the incident took place Friday night when the girl had gone out to meet an acquaintance.

The alleged victim had gone to buy groceries when the acquaintance Shubham convinced her to come along with him. However, he took her to a secluded place where he and his friend, Sumit, raped her and fled from the spot.

The girl was raped for the second time in the day when she sought help from a passerby.

The victim somehow reached home and narrated the ordeal to her parents. Subsequently, her father lodged a complaint, the police said.

On the complaint of the victim's family, an FIR was lodged against two persons. While two accused, Sumit and Virendra, have been arrested, the search is on to nab Shubham.

Meanwhile, the third culprit is absconding.

The case has been registered under relevant section of IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).

Last week, another case of gang-rape of a minor surfaced in the state, wherein a 17-year-old girl was allegedly gangraped at gunpoint in Hamirpur's Majhgaon.
Greater Noida: A criminal, carrying a cash reward of Rs 65,000, was killed in an encounter with the police near Roopvas village in Dadri area, police said on Monday.

Two policemen were also injured in the incident which took place last night, they said.

The criminal, identified as Aslam, was involved in several cases of murder and loot, the police said.

The Muzaffarnagar Police had announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest, they said, adding the Uttarakhand police had also announced a cash reward of Rs 15,000.

The encounter occurred on Amka road in Dadri when the police was checking vehicles. The police signalled two motorcycle-borne men to stop but they fled and fired at them, the police said.

The police retaliated where one criminal was killed while another managed to escape, they said.

The injured policemen -- sub-inspector Saurav Kumar and constable Vikas Rana -- have been admitted to a district hospital.
Patna: Cutting across factions, the Bihar Congress on Monday hailed Rahul Gandhi becoming party president and expressed hope that he will "infuse with new energy" the more than 100 years old political organization.

Led by BPCC Acting President Kaukab Qadri, party leaders celebrated the news of Rahul Gandhi elevation as President at Sadaqat Ashram, the state headquarters, distributing sweets, smearing each other's faces with "gulaal" and bursting firecrackers".

Qadri expressed hope "the Congress will attain new heights under Rahul Gandhi's leadership, starting with a resounding victory in the Gujarat assembly polls. He is a descendant of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who gave up their lives in defence of the country's integrity. He will preserve the country's democratic and socialist tradition".

AICC member Prem Chan Mishra, who was also present on the occasion, was asked whether Rahul Gandhi's emphasis on probity in public life could place the party's alliance with the RJD under strain, on account of allegations of corruption against Lalu Prasad and his family.

"It is premature to think of those things. In any case, whenever the Congress has formed an alliance, it has not done so keeping an individual in mind. The stress has always been on ideology", Mishra said.

Former BPCC president Ashok Choudhary, who was conspicuous by his absence at the Sadaqat Ashram, told PTI "it is a welcome development though it should have happened long ago. Even as the vice-president, Rahul Gandhi had been leading from the front and becoming the president was just a formality".

"Nevertheless, his elevation raises the hope that it will infuse the party with new energy", Choudhary said.

Significantly, following the exit of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar from the Grand Alliance, the state unit of the Congress has witnessed a bitter factional feud. One of these factions is headed by Choudhary, who is said to be close to Kumar while the other faction comprises those who are believed to be more comfortable with the RJD.

Other party leaders who congratulated Gandhi over his elevation included CLP leader Sadanand Singh, Amita Bhushan, Vijay Shankar Mishra, and Chandan Bagchi.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi mocked at the jubilations over Rahul Gandhi's elevation saying "the Congress can never have a figure like Narendra Modi who rises through the ranks and reaches the top on sheer merit. All Congress presidents not from the Nehru-Gandhi family have been compelled to make disgraceful exits".
New Delhi: The national capital on Sunday saw a star-studded evening at 'Da-Bangg Tour' with Bollywood superstar Salman Khan winning the hearts, where he was welcomed by the crowd with swaying mobile phone torches in the air.

Actresses Daisy Shah and Sonakshi Sinha performed to the chartbusters of the year, while Kriti Sanon was seen shaking a leg on her hit song, 'Sweety Tera Drama'.

Actor-host Manish Paul anchored the show.

Actor and professional dancer Prabhu Deva was also present there and awestruck the audience with his moves.

But when Salman took to the stage, all hell broke loose.

Salman fans were excited since yesterday when the team landed in the national capital for the show.

After setting the stage on fire in Auckland, Hong Kong and Melbourne, Salman Khan and others reached Delhi to bewitch the crowd with their performance as part of the Da-Bangg Tour yesterday.

Work on 'Dabangg 3' will start in March next year.
New Delhi: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan is a man with varied talents. He not only a great actor and a super performer on big screens, but he is equally enchanting as a talk show host.

The superstar will be seen hosting the popular TED Talks in India, called TED Talks India Nayi Soch which airs tonight. The show will be based on the international format where SRK will turn host and an eminent personality will take the centre stage addressing the audience.

Now, the king of romance recently had a brief chat session on Twitter #AskSRK where fans got a chance to interact with their favourite star.

Interestingly, maximum questions were related to TED Talks. Some were really cool ones. Take a look:

I think so https://t.co/gpRj5NCptx  Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) December 10, 2017

All are not celebrities but their ideas are worth celebrating. https://t.co/4q13iuQEl6 December 10, 2017

Write to TEDTalksIndia please https://t.co/c7CTieztqU  Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) December 10, 2017

In fact, Shah Rukh's great friend and amazing co-star Kajol too backed him for his new initiative.

.@iamsrk none better for something like this . u rock ! #TEDTalksIndiaNayiSoch  Kajol (@KajolAtUN) December 10, 2017

The personalities gracing the show will be seen talking about their life journey and struggles. It can be an inspiring takeaway for the viewers.
Pune: Four persons, including three members of a Mumbai-based family were on Monday killed when their car collided with a truck on the Pune-Satara road here, police said.

The deceased were identified as Yashwant Mane (55), Sharda Mane (46), Hrishikesh Mane (20) and Krushna Surve (65), all residents of Chunabhatti, an official attached to the Bharti Vidyapeeth police station said.

According to him, the mishap occurred when members of the Mane family were returning to Mumbai after dropping their daughter at her college in Satara in western Maharashtra.

Police said a probe was underway.
New Delhi: Unitech on Monday moved Supreme Court challenging an order of NCLT which has authorised the government to appoint its 10 nominees on the board of the realty firm.

On December 8, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) suspended all the eight directors of Unitech over allegations of mismanagement and siphoning of funds, while authorising the government to appoint its 10 nominees on the board.

The tribunal's order came after the government filed a petition arguing that Unitech was a fit case for winding up but considering the interest of thousands of home buyers and small depositors, it wanted to take over company management.

The company has over Rs 6,000 crore debt with more than 16,000 undelivered units from a total of nearly 70 projects.

In a rare move, the government had earlier approached the NCLT to take over the management with a view to protecting the interest of nearly 20,000 home buyers.
Hyderabad: Telugu actor Vijay Sai was found dead in his apartment in the Yusufguda area here, police said today.

Inspector K Purnachander said he allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his residence.

"He was 35 years old. Sai and his wife were living separately following a dispute between them. His wife had recently filed a complaint against him alleging domestic violence," he said.

Sai made his debut in the Telugu film industry in 2001 and acted in hit films such as Bommarillu and Ammayilu Abbayilu.

The police official said a case had been filed and they were examining a video clip purportedly recorded by Sai before his death.

Personalities in the Telugu film industry expressed shock over the untimely demise of the actor.
New Delhi: As the search for alien life becomes more intense and reaches newer dimensions with more mysterious, unexplained evidence surfacing, NASA has decided to make a big announcement over the findings of extraterrestrial life.

The American space agency has scheduled a press conference for Thursday, December 14, which will be addressed by scientists who were involved in the study of thousands of planets discovered by the Kepler space telescope.

The press conference may reportedly be related to any one of those planets. As per a press release by NASA, the team at the Kepler Space Telescope has been searching for extra-terrestrial life since 2009, and now they have found something spell binding.

In the course of time, the telescope has identified many Earth-sized planets on the habitable zone, and researchers believe that some of them can support life. According to NASA officials, this startling discovery was made by researchers using machine learning from Google.

Machine learning is an approach to artificial intelligence, and shows new ways of examining Kepler data, NASA said.

NASA's Kepler space telescope is considered the most successful planet hunter known for its accuracy when it comes to finding alien worlds.

So far, the Kepler space telescope has successfully identified over 2500 planets, and over 2000 more are yet to be studied. Most of these findings were made between 2009  2013 during Keplers first mission. In the initial purpose, the telescope witnessed more than 1,50,000 stars outside our solar system.

The telescope is presently on its second mission called K2, and this time, it is more dedicated to discovering exoplanets on a limited basis. The telescope's most recent biggest revelation was the discovery of seven Earth-like exoplanets orbiting a dwarf star called TRAPPIST-1.
Mumbai: Zaheer Khan and Sagarika Ghatge, who exchanged marital vows in an intimate ceremony on November 23 this year, are enjoying their new relationship status  blissfully married and honeymooning  for sure! The couple flew to Maldives to unwind and relax in one anothers company and make the most of the trip together.

After spending some time at the stunning Ayada resort, the couple moved to Soneva Jani for some breathtaking viewing experience.

Both Zak and Sagarika shared a few images on Instagram and they will make you green with envy.

Check them out here:

Mrs enjoying the setting sun A post shared by Zaheer Khan (@zaheer_khan34) on Dec 8, 2017 at 5:03am PST

All the trainers @prosport_fit heres the most dedicated trainee of yours . A post shared by Zaheer Khan (@zaheer_khan34) on Dec 9, 2017 at 3:44am PST

Perfect paradise @discoversoneva A post shared by Zaheer Khan (@zaheer_khan34) on Dec 10, 2017 at 7:42am PST

What a predicament whether to jump in the pool or the sea ? A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 10, 2017 at 8:17pm PST

Decided to instead @discoversoneva #islandlife #sonevajani A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 10, 2017 at 10:14pm PST

Star gazing and some lovely dinner on the cruise . Thank you for the most lovely surprise @discoversoneva A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 10, 2017 at 7:27am PST

Loving the vibe A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 10, 2017 at 3:37am PST

Say hello to my early morning friend A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 9, 2017 at 9:01pm PST

Thrilled to have completed our first dive . See the happy faces @zaheer_khan34 A post shared by Sagarika (@sagarikaghatge) on Dec 8, 2017 at 2:42am PST

The dashing former India speedster and the Bollywood actress look incredibly beautiful together. After a simple register marriage ceremony in Pune, the couple hosted a gala reception here for friends and colleagues.

It was Zak who had popped the question and the stunning maiden who was bowled over by his charming personality, accepted his proposal gladly. The two got engaged on April 24 and had announced the same via Twitter. Their wedding reception was one of the most glamorous events of this year. Yuvraj Singh and Hazel Keech, Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma, Ajit Agarkar and Fatima Ghadially besides Ashish Nehra and Sumitra were among the guests to attend the wedding celebration bash.

Its time for the wedding season in India right now and we are sure those who are getting hitched this month and in the nearest future will take cue from Zak and Sagarika for their honeymoon.

Maldives is indeed one of the best options for newlyweds and honeymooners. The island country is blessed with natures bounty and has some of the finest beaches to offer to its tourists.
Kolkata: Three persons were arrested by the West Bengal CID on Sunday for their alleged involvement in the killing of Bhadreswar Municipality Chairman and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Manoj Upadhyay (45).

With these arrests, the total number of persons held in connection with the case rose to 10.

According to a senior CID officer, Raju Kumar Shaw (41), Baban Jadav (25) and Prabhu Narayan Chowdhury (25) were arrested from their Labour Colony Bazar hideout in Uttar Pradesh's Ferozabad.

"All three are residents of Hooghly district's Bhadreswar and have close connections with the incident (Upadhyay's killing). We have to confirm their roles," the officer said.

The Chandannagar Police Commissionerate had earlier arrested seven persons from a lodge at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh for their alleged involvement in the killing.

The CID took over the case from the Chandannagar police after the West Bengal government had transferred Chandannagar Police Commissioner Peeyush Pandey.

Upadhyay was shot at from point blank range while he was returning home on his motorcycle on November 21.

The TMC leader was allegedly targeted as he was acting against various illegal activities in the area, West Bengal minister Firhad Hakim had said.
BRUSSELS/CAIRO: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took his case to Europe to ask allies to join the United States in recognising Jerusalem as Israel`s capital, but met a firm rebuff from EU foreign ministers who saw the move as a blow against the peace process.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, meanwhile, took his own case to Egypt on Monday and was expected to fly to Turkey for a meeting of Muslim countries this week, cementing support from leaders who say the US move was a dire error.

President Donald Trump announced last Wednesday the United States would recognise Jerusalem as Israel`s capital, breaking with decades of US policy and international consensus that the city`s status must be left to Israeli-Palestinian talks.

Netanyahu, on his first visit to EU headquarters in Brussels, said Trump`s move helped peace, "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace".

Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in a 1967 war, considers the entire city to be its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.

The Trump administration says it remains committed to the peace process and its decision does not affect Jerusalem`s future borders or status. It says any credible future peace deal will place the Israeli capital in Jerusalem, and ditching old policies is needed to revive a peace process frozen since 2014.

But even Israel`s closest European allies have rejected that logic and say recognising Israel`s capital unilaterally risks inflaming violence and further wrecking the chance for peace.

After a breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Sweden`s top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Trump`s decision, and no country was likely to follow the United States in announcing plans to move its embassy.

"I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I don`t think any other EU country will do it," Margot Wallstrom told reporters.

Israel`s position does appear to have more support from some EU states than others. Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Hungary blocked a planned EU statement condemning the U.S. move.

But Prague later said it accepted Israel`s sovereignty only over West Jerusalem, and Budapest said its long-term position seeking a two-state solution in the Middle East had not changed.

On Monday, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said of Trump`s decision: "I`m afraid it can`t help us."

"I`m convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution," Zaoralek said. "We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state."

The Palestinian president, Abbas, met the head of the Arab League in Cairo on Monday and was due to meet President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi. Egypt is a U.S. ally that has a peace treaty with Israel and has brokered Israeli-Palestinian deals in the past.

Moving the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem would have "dangerous effects on peace and security in the region", Sisi said on Monday at an earlier meeting with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Abbas was also due to fly to Turkey. Trump`s announcement has triggered a war of words between Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Netanyahu, straining ties between the two US allies which were restored only last year after a six-year breach that followed the Israeli storming of a Turkish aid ship.

On Sunday, Erdogan called Israel a "terror state". Netanyahu responded by saying he would accept no moral lectures from Erdogan who he accused of bombing Kurdish villages, jailing opponents and supporting terrorists.

On Monday Erdogan took aim directly at Washington over Trump`s move: "The ones who made Jerusalem a dungeon for Muslims and members of other religions will never be able to clean the blood from their hands," he said in a speech in Ankara. "With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel`s capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed."

Trump`s announcement triggered days of protests across the Muslim world and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in which scores of Palestinians were wounded and several killed. By Monday morning, violence appeared to have subsided.

In Beirut, tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets to protest at a march backed by Hezbollah, the heavily-armed Iran-backed Shi`ite group whose leader called last week for a new Palestinian uprising against Israel. An announcer led the crowd in chants of "Death to America! Death to Israel!"

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah told the crowd by video link the group was turning its focus back towards the fight against Israel: "Today the axis of resistance, including Hezbollah, will return as its most important priority ... Jerusalem and Palestine and the Palestinian people and the Palestinian resistance in all its factions."

Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EU`s search for closer business ties with Iran, said Europeans should emulate Trump`s move and press the Palestinians to do so, too.

"It`s time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital. It`s called Jerusalem," he said. In comments filmed later on his plane, he said he had told the Europeans to "stop pampering the Palestinians", who "need a reality check".

The decision to recognise Jerusalem could also strain Washington`s ties with another of its major Muslim allies, Saudi Arabia, which has sought closer relations with Washington under Trump than under his predecessor, Barack Obama.

Saudi Arabia shares US and Israeli concerns about the increasing regional influence of Iran, and was seen as a potential broker for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal. But Saudis have suggested that unilateral decisions over Jerusalem make any such rapprochement more difficult.

Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi ambassador to the United States and veteran ex-security chief, published a strongly-worded open letter to Trump on Monday.

"Bloodshed and mayhem will definitely follow your opportunistic attempt to make electoral gain," the prince wrote in the letter, published in the Saudi newspaper al-Jazeera.

"Your action has emboldened the most extreme elements in the Israeli society ... because they take your action as a license to evict the Palestinians from their lands and subject them to an apartheid state," he added. "Your action has equally emboldened Iran and its terrorist minions to claim that they are the legitimate defenders of Palestinian rights."
PARIS: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hit back at Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday after he labelled Israel a "state that kills children," calling him a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers and supports terrorists.

"I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran get around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people," Netanyahu said at a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron.

"That is not the man who is going to lecture us."
VENTURA (California): The largest California wildfire advanced on coastal towns near Santa Barbara on Sunday, stoked by the gusty winds and dry conditions that have fueled destructive blazes across the state`s southern region.

Authorities ordered residents in parts of Carpinteria and Montecito to evacuate early on Sunday as the Thomas Fire edged closer to the city of Santa Barbara, about 100 miles (160 km) west of Los Angeles. The blaze has already blackened 155,000 acres (62,726 hectares) and consumed hundreds of structures.

Some half-dozen fires have raged across California since early last week.

At least one home in Carpinteria burned down on Sunday, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department said. The fire was only 15 percent contained as of Sunday morning, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

Top wind speeds were forecast to increase to 55 miles per hour (89 km per hour) on Sunday from 40 mph (64 kph) on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. The gusts, coupled with the rugged mountain terrain above Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, have hampered firefighting efforts, authorities said.

The fires raging across Southern California have forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people and destroyed nearly 800 structures. A 70-year-old woman died Wednesday in a car accident as she attempted to flee the flames in Ventura County.

The Thomas Fire, the largest of the infernos, had left nearly 90,000 customers without power as of early Sunday morning, Southern California Edison said on its website.

The 8,5000 firefighters battling the fires that have burned over the past week gained some ground on Saturday.

Both the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County were 90 percent contained by Sunday morning, officials said, while the Skirball Fire in Los Angeles was 75 percent contained.

North of San Diego, the 4,100-acre (1,659 hectare) Lilac Fire was 60 percent contained by Sunday.

A brush fire broke out Saturday night in the city of Monrovia in Los Angeles County, prompting temporary evacuations, the U.S. Forest Service said on Twitter.

A group of Boy Scouts camping in the area were among those evacuated, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Crews knocked down the 3-acre (1.2 hectare) blaze and no structures were reported damaged, the city of Monrovia said on its web site.

California Governor Jerry Brown issued emergency proclamations last week for Santa Barbara, San Diego, Los Angeles and Ventura counties, freeing up additional resources to fight the infernos.

President Donald Trump issued a federal proclamation that enabled agencies to coordinate relief efforts.
New York: New York Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday called the explosion that rocked New York`s Port Authority Bus Terminal as an attempted terrorist attack.

"Let's be clear, this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals. Our first responders were there quickly and the only injuries we know of right now are minor," he said.

"We are a target because we prove a society of many faiths and many backgrounds can work, we show democracy can work. But we are the most resilient place on earth. We've proved it time and time again," Blasio added.

However, he maintained, "This is New York. Let us get back to work."

The New York City police commissioner James O' Neill too called the subway pipe-bombing a 'terror-related incident'.

He also said, This is NYC, we dont live in fear. But if you see something suspicious you have an obligation to come forward and tell us.

"If you have any information on this individual or incident we ask you call the Terror Hotline at 888-NYC-SAFE, Neill added, addressing the press.

A bomb exploded at the start of Monday morning rush hour at the city`s transportation hub and a man was arrested as a suspect.

The explosion struck the Port Authority bus terminal at 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue near Times Square, injuring four people and filled the passageway with smoke, authorities said.

A man is in custody, the New York Police Department said in a tweet. He is among the four people suffering non-life-threatening injuries after the blast and is in Bellevue Hospital, as per media reports.

Update regarding explosion at 42nd St and 8th Ave, in subway: One male suspect is in custody. No injuries other than suspect at this time. Avoid the area. Subways bypassing #PortAuthority and Times Square Stations. Info is preliminary. pic.twitter.com/bEAdjq8mYc  NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

Update: A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority. All injuries are non-life-threatening December 11, 2017

The bus terminal was temporarily closed, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a Twitter statement.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal (@PABusTerminal) has reopened, following police activity due to an incident this morning.



Bus customers are encouraged to contact their carrier for the most current information regarding their operations.https://t.co/KyTwzC5w6H  Port Authority NY&NJ (@PANYNJ) December 11, 2017

A large swathe of midtown Manhattan was also closed to traffic, between 45th Street to 40th Street and 7th Avenue to 9th Avenue, police said.

The incident has occurred less than two months after an Uzbek immigrant killed eight people by speeding a rental truck down a New York City bike path, in an attack for which Islamic State claimed responsibility.

In September 2016, a man injured more than two dozen people when he set off a homemade bomb in New York`s Chelsea district.

(With AFP and Reuters inputs)
New York: Four people were injured Monday in the blast that rocked a subway station in the heart of Manhattan, firefighters said, but none of those injuries was life-threatening.

Police had said earlier the only injured person was a man detained in connection with the explosion, which took place in the station at the Port Authority bus terminal, not far from New York`s iconic Times Square.
Jerusalem: The United States accused the Palestinian Authority today of "walking away" from a chance to discuss peace in the Middle East by snubbing Vice President Mike Pence on an upcoming visit.

"It's unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region," Jarrod Agen, Pence's deputy chief of staff, said in a statement.

The comments come after the Palestinian Authority said that its president Mahmud Abbas would refuse to meet Pence later this month in protest at the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
Vatican City: Pope Francis is calling for a world without nuclear arms and for effective measures to combat climate change.

Addressing the faithful today in St Peter's Square, he stressed what he called "the strong link between human rights and nuclear disarmament."

Francis said working to protect the dignity of the weakest and most disadvantaged implies "also working with determination to build a world without nuclear arms."

He urged people to put intelligence and technology at the "service of peace and true progress."

A strong crusader for the environment, Francis also expressed hope that people will realise the "need to adopt truly efficient decisions to fight climate change" while also combatting poverty.

Francis then cited the suffering from a cyclone in India that has left fishermen missing and from flooding in Albania.
Seoul: South Korea, Japan and the US have begun joint missile detection exercises amid escalating regional tensions over North Korea`s nuclear weapons program, Seoul`s Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday.



The drill, which will last two days, is taking place off the Korean peninsula, and comes after Pyongyang fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on November 28 that it claimed could strike anywhere in the US.



The three countries are testing their abilities to detect and track North Korean missiles and share information, Efe news reported.



The drills will feature several destroyers equipped with the Aegis radar system.



The trilateral defence exercises are the sixth of their kind since 2016, and come after South Korea and the US held the annual bilateral Vigilant ACE drills, which ended last week.



Pyongyang claims that the latest ICBM, called the Hwasong-15, is the regime`s most powerful to date.



It was the latest in a series of nuclear weapons tests North Korea has conducted in 2017, leading to repeated UN sanctions and threats of destruction from US President Donald Trump.



Trump in August promised to respond to Pyongyang`s nuclear ambitions with "fire and fury like the world has never seen".
A meditation and sharing support group that brings together the practice of meditation, Buddhist teachings and the 12 steps of recovery integrating the basic sanity of the Dharma and the basic goodness of meditation.

The Heart of Recovery is a meditation and sharing support group with the purpose of bringing together the practice of meditation, the Shambhala and Buddhist teachings, and the Twelve Steps of Recovery with the goal of integrating the basic sanity of the Dharma and the basic goodness of meditation with our commitment to abstinence. We welcome all those who wish to share in these common interests.

There are no requirements to attend our meetings.

Suggested donation: $5

The Heart of Recovery is a meditation and sharing support group with the purpose of bringing together the practice of meditation, the Shambhala and Buddhist teachings, and the Twelve Steps of Recovery with the goal of integrating the basic sanity of the Dharma and the basic goodness of meditation with our commitment to abstinence. We welcome all those who wish to share in these common interests.

There are no requirements to attend our meetings.

Suggested donation: $5
Award-winning documentary filmmaker and fine-art photographer Miguel Gandert shows his work highlighting his mestizaje heritage, and the fusion and tension of the relationship between Spanish Colonial and Native Cultures of the Americas. Runs through 12/29.

Querer means to want, to desire, to be in a place, with its people. In folk terminology, querencia is such a place, the center space of desire, the root of belonging and yearning to belong, that vicinity where you first beheld the light. Querencia, in collective terms, is homeland. ~Enrique Lamadrid, Nuevo Mexico Profundo

Miguel Gandert tells stories. He tells stories of his homeland, New Mexico (and beyond), its people and the cultural practices that distinguish communities from each other while simultaneously revealing their kinship. You will have to form your own words, however. Ganderts stories are told through penetrating, black and white photos. A primary focus of his work is his own mestizaje heritage and the fusion and tension of the relationship between Spanish Colonial and Native Cultures of the Americas.

Miguel Gandert, a native of Espanola, NM, is an award-winning documentary and fine-art photographer and filmmaker. His photographs have been shown in galleries and museums throughout the world and are in numerous public collections including the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the National Museum of American History and Art at the Smithsonian.

Querencia: Rituals of the Rio Arriba opens Friday, October 6 at the New Mexico Humanities Council, 4115 Silver Ave SE, Albuquerque. An artists reception will be 6:00 pm  8:00 pm with an artist's discussion at 7:00 pm. The exhibit closes December 29, 2017.
The Art of Christmas: New Mexico Style

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!)
Sherry Robinson and Matthew Reichbach share insights about what the 2018 session of the N.M. legislature looks like.

Sherry Robinson and Matthew Reichbach will share their insights about what the 2018 session of the New Mexico legislature will look like when they speak to Albuquerque Press Women and Friends.

Its a 30 day short session and the last opportunity New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez has to shape her legacy. Will the national fervor for tax cuts find a sympathetic hearing in this state? Will the swirling cultural changes over inappropriate behavior of men in the public eye affect this legislative session? Will New Mexicans still feel the unrelenting pressure of not enough money to fully fund government? These two veteran journalists have plenty to say.

Sherry Robinson has been a New Mexico journalist since 1975 when she began writing for the Gallup Independent. A graduate of the University of New Mexico, she still covers the NM Legislature for the Gallup Independent, but has written for a variety of publications in the intervening years. She has authored a number of books including Apache Voices: Their Stories of Survival as told to Eve Ball, I Fought a Good Fight: A History of the Lipan Apaches and El Malpais, Mt. Taylor and the Zuni Mountains. Robinson is also a long time business writer in Albuquerque and has written about science for the University of New Mexico, editing the universitys research magazine Quantum. Robinson is also a member of APWF and New Mexico Press Women, and has won numerous awards for her writing.

Reichbach is a native New Mexican from Rio Rancho who edits the New Mexico Political Report. In this excerpt from his website, he explains he has covered New Mexico politics since 2006. The founder and former editor of New Mexico Telegram, Matthew was also a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and was one of the original hires at the groundbreaking New Mexico Independent. In his time as a political reporter, Matthew has covered numerous elections, the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation. He formerly published The Morning Word, a daily political news summary for NM Telegram and the Santa Fe Reporter.

Everyone is welcome at meetings of Albuquerque Press Women and Friends. Individuals are responsible for their own meals, and non-members will be charged an additional five dollars.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Shant Khayalyan is one of the numerous Syrian-Armenians who was forced to re-locate to Armenia as the war broke out in Syria. Shant arrived in Yerevan in 2013.

Back in Syria, he was working in commercial design, even had a olive plant and was engaged in other jobs as well. He also had a hobby of making soaps from natural compounds. At that time, he used to give his soaps to friends and family, or display them at exhibitions.

Once his production was displayed in Jordan, receiving widespread approval.

In Armenia, Shant decided to make a living out of his hobby. He applied for a low-rate loan to the national center of SME development.

Naturally there were some difficulties, he says. In addition to soaps, he also began making natural shampoos.

The Syrian-Armenian entrepreneur has already displayed his production in Iran and Kazakhstan, and is planning to exhibit the beauty products in Georgia and Lebanon soon.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The opposition Yelk bloc is accepting that the ruling HHK (Republican) partys authority has been formed with the results of the 2017 parliamentary election  in the 105 seat parliament, with 58 mandates.

Commenting on a question regarding the legitimacy of the HHKs power, Yelk MP Edmon Marukyan stressed to reporters that there is a clear path for forming power  elections.

Now we look at the latest process of power formation. With the 2017 election results, the Republican Party formed 58 mandates in the 105 seat parliament. This power was formed in polling stations. Now, this power is recognized by the international community, by the Armenian community, Marukyan said.

He reminded that after the elections they said for the record that this time the citizens have formed the power in the polling stations.

The MP said they accept this authority, because citizens voted for this power.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenia and Japan will be able to search for close cooperation directions through the European Union, Japanese Ambassador to Armenia Eiji Taguchi told reporters on December 11, reports Armenpress.

Perhaps not everybody knows that last week the Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe made a statement by which welcomed the finalization of the negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the European Union and Japan. I know that Armenia is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, and I want to state that Russia is an important economic partner for Japan, we have good economic relations. Armenia really has a unique position, since, being as an EAEU member, it also signed an agreement with the European Union. And this is some advantage for the Japanese companies, he said.

The Ambassador also highlighted the fact that in Armenia especially the youth knows both Russian and English which is very important for a foreign investor.

This is a great advantage for investors or companies that want to establish a production or a subsidiary in Armenia, the Japanese Ambassador said.

On November 24 Armenia and the EU signed the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement in Brussels.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian and Japanese governments will sign an agreement on investments in near future, Japanese Ambassador to Armenia Eiji Taguchi told reporters on December 11, reports Armenpress.

According to him, the agreement will contribute to increasing the volume of investments between the two countries.

This agreement doesnt clearly define in which fields investments will be made, but its a general procedure for the future so that the Japanese investors will know and be confident that everything is regulated by the legislation. This is mandatory for the cooperation with any country where Japan plans to make investments. This agreement serves as a base for this, the Ambassador said, stating that the innovative technologies, tourism and agriculture can be interesting fields for investments.

According to the Japanese Ambassador, only the development of economic relations is not enough for the mutual relations and partnership of the two countries, there are also fields which should be developed.

Japan imports vehicles, equipment, heavy industrial equipment to Armenia, and it would be better if later there is a chance for Japan to import also medical equipment to Armenia. I think this is possible, and the Armenian market will be interested in this. As for the export from Armenia, I think, Japan will be interested in the Armenian wine, honey and dried fruits, he said, adding that the annual food Expo will be held in 2018 within the frames of which the Armenian wine, brandy and other products will be presented.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Political scientist Alexander Iskandaryan says its naive to expect miracles from the Armenia-EU new agreement in one day, reports Armenpress.

This agreement provides an opportunity to act, but there is no need to expect visible changes for the public, he said.

He noted that Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine also signed similar documents. These documents have already entered into force in these countries, but these states have not become Switzerland or Netherlands, the political scientist said, adding that it is a framework document with a normative base.

On November 24 Armenia and the European Union signed the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership agreement in Brussels.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Hayk Yesayan, the Director General at Ucom, recently visited the students of Armath engineering laboratory, operating in the rural school of Nerkin Karmiraghbyur community in Tavush province. With the support of Ucom, the laboratory was opened 2 years ago in this school, which is immediately under the fire of the enemy. If two years ago the lessons of young engineers and programmers were being held in a psychologically strained environment, now the situation is different, as the school is protected with a 3m high protective wall, which allows children to feel safer and concentrate on the learning process. Nevertheless, the feeling of everyday danger hinders these children from understanding clearly how to apply their school knowledge in future, reports Armenpress.

The village has a population of 400, out of which 79 are schoolchildren, who attend this rural school. The protective wall around the school is the guarantee of the learning process. Its clear that under such conditions a school should be more than a school. It should connect these children with the outside world and expand their worldview. Everything should be done to help these children discover the world without leaving their village, we should bring the world with all its knowledge, difficulties and opportunities to these children. We can achieve this goal by leveraging on our staff and the Internet, said Hayk Yesayan, the Director General at Ucom.

In order to break down the wall between Narkin Karmiraghbyur village and the outside world, Ucom is pursuing the idea of shaping engineering mindset and creative thinking among the young generation. On the one hand, its an easy process, as the program language in all Armath labs is the Armenian and the children are very smart, on the other hand, its hard, as the everyday danger and routine life distract children from shaping their own future.

My dream is to help the Armenian solider. The robotics allows to understand, for example, how to design an unmanned flying vehicle (drone) and thus help the soldiers keeping the borders of our country, Razmik Adamyan, a student at Armath engineering laboratory shared his dreams.

Im going to be a doctor, but Im quite convinced that I can apply my knowledge of robotics in designing such equipment that would help to save human lives, contemplated Nune Avagyan, a student at Armath engineering laboratory in Nerkin Karmiraghbyur.

As a reminder, Ucom is the largest supporter of the program of implementation of Armath engineering laboratories. Thanks to investments of Ucom (around 150 mln. AMD), 39 Armath engineering laboratories are currently operating in several region of Armenia, including border villages.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Parliament Speaker Ara Babloyan on December 11 received UNDP Resident Representative for Armenia Bradley Busetto, the Parliament told Armenpress.

The meeting was also attended by Vice Speaker of the Parliament Arpine Hovhannisyan and the Parliaments chief of staff-general secretary Ara Saghatelyan.

Speaker Babloyan welcomed the guest and attached importance to the existing productive cooperation between the Armenian Parliament and UNDP.

The Speaker touched upon the ongoing reforms in Armenia in the fields of human rights, democracy, fight against domestic violence and etc.

Ara Babloyan highlighted the importance of transition to a parliamentary system of governance as a result of the constitutional changes, the upcoming legislative changes and the expansion of the control functions of the Parliament.

Talking about the transparency of the Parliaments activity, Speaker Babloyan emphasized the importance of the civil society participation in legislative processes, as well as ensuring the public awareness. He highly appreciated the continued cooperation with UNICEF. Ara Babloyan expressed hope that Parliament-UNDP cooperation will be continuous and productive.

Bradley Busetto thanked for the reception and highlighted the cooperation with the Armenian Parliament. He noted that the UNDP aims at raising the effectiveness of the Parliaments activity from legislative and control perspectives.

At the end of the meeting the sides touched upon the UNDP achievements in the region, the initiatives directed for the capacity development of the Parliaments staff.
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Another Universal Rights Award Ceremony was held in Armenia. ARMENPRESS reports the representatives of a number of diplomatic institutions in Armenia handed awards to individuals fighting for human rights, freedom of speech, religious tolerance, the promotion of democracy and equal opportunities.

Chairman of the Aleppo organization Ani Balkhian was awarded in the nomination Courageous woman

The head of the Center for Women with Special Needs "Agat" Karine Grigoryan was awarded in the nomination "The Franco-German Prize for Equal Opportunities".

Marianna Grigoryan, head of the editorial-laboratory "Madialab" was awarded in the nomination "Media Excellency".

Deputy Minister of Justice of Armenia Vigen Kocharyan was awarded in the nomination "Government Reformer".

Coordinator of the programs of the NGO "Association of Informed Citizens" Daniel Ionnisyan was awarded in the nomination "Promotion of Justice and Transparency".

Representative of the - Eurasia Partnership Foundation Isabella Sargsyan was awarded in the nomination "Defender of Freedom".
According a news of December 8, 2017,from the South Korean Yonhap News Agency website, the Defense Department of the South Korean Company Hyundai Rotem has won a contract of US$357 million to deliver latest generation of wheeled armoured vehicles K806 and K808 also called WAV (Wheeled Armoured Vehicle) to the South Korean army.



New Hyundai Rotem K808 8x8 armoured vehicle in live demonstration at Defense Exhibition in South Korea (Picture source Youtube)

In June 2016, the South Korean has announced a plan to acquire 600 new wheeled armoured vehicles K806 and K808 from 2016 until 2020. The new wheeled armoured vehicle project was aimed at improving the mobility, survivability and hitting power of front line and rear echelon infantry troops as their mission areas have expanded the military's reorganization plan, the agency noted.

The K808, an 8x8 wheeled armoured has been designed to offer a rapid deployment combat vehicle for infantry units able to perform reconnaissance missions in front line areas, including mountainous regions, while the K806, a 6x6 wheeled armoured is intended for use in mobile strike and reconnaissance missions in the rear.

The mass production of the K806 and K808 will started in 2018, with a rate of 100 vehicles per year. According the South Korean DAPA (Defense Acquisition Program Administration), the army has requested 100 K806 and 500 K808 armoured vehicles. Although the two vehicle share many technical characteristics, but they will be used for different of missions.

The K806 with a 16,000 kg weight will perform facilities and logistics convoy protection, while the 20, 000 kg K808 will conduct high-intensity combat operations alongside K1A1 and K2 main battle tanks.



New Hyundai Rotem K806 6x6 armoured vehicle in live demonstration at Defense Exhibition in South Korea (Picture source Youtube)

The development of the K806 and K808 was started in 2012 and in 2016 both vehicles successfully passed final trial tests and were approved by the DAPA for procurement.

The hull of the K806 and K806 is made on an all-welded steel armour providing ballistic protection against firing of 12.7mm caliber heavy machine gun. The vehicle can be fitted with additional armour depending of the mission requirements.

The K806 is a family of 6x6 wheeled armoured vehicles which can be configured as Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) with 30mm two-man turret, Medical Evacuation Vehicle (MEV), and Mobile Gun System (MGS)with 90mm cannon.

The K808 is also available in different variants as Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) fitted with a two-man turret with one 30mm cannon as main armament, Anti-Aircraft Gun Vehicle (AAGV) armed with dual gun 30mm caliber, and Mortar Carrier Vehicle (MCV) with 120mm mortar mounted inside at the rear of the hull.
President Trump, in his element with America's greatest patriots - Medal of Honor Recipients - from our many wars since World War II. Secretary of Defense James Mattis is far right, standing: Above. Click image to expand.

Now that the Russia Collusion scandal has most completely boomeranged on core Democrats, the Democrat Media, and the Deep State, who have promoted this scandal for over one year: Should congress and Jeff Sessions's DOJ investigate the DNC, the Clintons, and, notably, the FBI /Obama DOJ with the same fervor that they have hounded all things connected to Candidate, then President Donald Trump? Yes, it is a necessity that we discover all that is corrupt, and stains the government of this land. No, investigate only everything connected to Donald Trump, as a candidate and then president. I generally don't pay attention to most things except what is normally pop culture. 165 total vote(s) What's your Opinion?



Consequently, the Liberals who fully morphed into Socialists, and the nominal Republicans, who have transformed into Never-Trumpers, have one large realty in common, a reality that they hate; Donald J. Trump is the duly elected president, and they should embrace that firm reality. For at least the next three years, this inevitable truth will play out, and no matter the many planned diversions: the multiple Fake News stories from the Democrat Media, the continued Fake Investigations, or consuming Fake Outrage from Leftists will dim that inevitable actuality from reaching its full potential - a robust Trump presidency.That full potential of "Trumpism" is here with us now, and no matter to what extent these Liberals /Socialists, and few remaining Never-Trumpers, diligently work to reverse the fact that Donald J. Trump will serve out his first term, the momentum of this fully working president continues; he will finish his first term with a great platform of many successes, far more than the full eight years of both his predecessors - Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Hussein Obama. The poorly organized, and intellectually inadequate Democrats in congress, their owned bureaucrats in the Department of Justice /FBI, and their pathetic Democrat Media may slow down this President, but they will not stop him, let alone Impeach him.After the inadequate presidency of George W. Bush (by this Conservative's estimation), and the utterly corrupt and completely failed presidency of Barack Hussein Obama, the United States of America must have a successful administration; and, President Donald J. Trump is proving not only more than capable, but totally committed to that estimable proposition. The man knew little of politics, did not live his life to be clear of personal scandal as some politicians do; however, once it was assured to all of just how imperfect his foibles were, and he did speak inarticulately to many issues, the great preponderance of middle-class Americans, mostly from more rural counties devoid of great centers of population elected Donald J. Trump the 45th president of the United States regardless of the consternation of Ruling Class Elitist and Liberals /Socialists congregated mostly along the north/central eastern and western coasts of the United States. In these heavily populated strips of our American experience Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) is more rampant.Intellectually debilitating TDS notwithstanding, the 45th president is learning on the job what must be done as president, while surrounding himself with an incredibly talented staff of public servants at the cabinet level, and now below them (when eventually appointed by the senate), as more inept partisan Democrat bureaucrats are sent packing to work elsewhere, where they can do far less damage to the good Americans that elected this president. Notice how the leaks within the White House and elsewhere are beginning to dry-up.Still, these obstructionists of the Elitist Governing Class are bent on destroying President Trump and the Trump Agenda, chief among other issues of that most important agenda is draining the Washington, DC swamp of those same self-interested creatures that are driving our Republic to degradation . Rather than beating the political neophyte Trump in the midterm elections, and eventually devastating that Trump agenda in the 2020 presidential election, these core Democrats and few nominal Republicans hope to Impeach the President for "High Crimes and Misdemeanors", but to date, about a year later, these pathetic non patriots have not found one high crime or misdemeanor to hang their obstructionist's hat on. Just the hypothesis of innuendo and constant hyperbole delivered by the Democrat Media, now excellently branded the "Fake News" by President Donald J. Trump; wise use of his energy and his words branding their magnificent obsession of destroying all things Trump; the principles of journalistic regimen be damned.While speaking of governing ineptitude, intellectual incompetence, non patriotism, and utter corrupt behavior while governing: How could we leave out the darling of the Leftist Socialists - Barack Hussein Obama?Just a few days ago, December 6, 2107 at the Economic Club of Chicago, Hussein Obama's blood was up to the point that felt competent and called to compare President Trump and his administration to "Germany's Weimar Republic" , the twilight years of the Republic when "sixty million souls were murdered". Regardless of one's political position , where Obama is a non patriotic Socialist to paint him correctly, a former United States president has never done such, or should never such ever again, or thought to be a supreme idiot, a non patriot (am I repeating myself here; oh well). Well, we are talking about Hussein Obama here; the most abysmal Foreign Policy president in modern times, and the least effective Domestic Policy president as well. A president who did nothing to combat Russia's interference in our 2016 election, even though he knew about what was occurring in real time, and never mentioned it, in effective terms, until after it was clear that Hillary Clinton would not break that pronounced glass ceiling to become the first female president. Substantively, Obama and all core Democrats really did not consider Russia as an adversary , even when it was reported that foreign agents, both China and Russia, hacked into the personnel records and emails of nearly all federal employees, and aquired employees' Social Secuirty numbers. For decades, Russia was not considered a danger in any capacity by core Democrats, and when Republicans drew attention to Russia's election interference, or Russia's obvious regional hegemony, or even Russia's state sponsored hacking, core Democrats treated Republicans with complete disdain, and regarded the specter of any Russian aggression with utter ambivalence Ironically, core Democrats, aided by the Deep State (I never really considered the "Deep State" as an entity until the Trump election, and the first year of his administration) are employing the specter of Russia endeavoring to influence the attitudinal knowledge of American voters by accusing the Trump campaign of conspiring with these Russian agents to do what they did, whatever they did, as All Things Trump accusers make up stuff as they go along. This premeditated exercise has been call Russia Campaign Collusion, and after over a year of investigation, there is no proof of such collusion, yet the investigation continues; not to discover how Russia meddled, or with whom, but only if it was with the Donald J. Campaign, and that investigation is getting no traction. So, core Democrats, with their Democrat Media in tow, are making giant hypothetical leaps that this President sought to obstruct the investigation into this crime, a crime that there is no known proof of. Some of the more pathetic among the aforementioned actually point to the James Comey firing, which is the president's constitutional right, regardless of when he does it. With what we are now learning about former Director Comey's extra political activities as FBI Director, his firing will be the least of his problems. I am still waiting for James Comey's promised book.Still, core Democrats believe that the rest of us should take them seriously. Should Special prosecutor Robert Mueller, of this Russia probe (ironically brought about by Comey firing and Attorney General Jeff Sessions wrongly recusing himself), wishes to be taken seriously, as he investigates this so-called crime of Russia interference, his investigatory actions may need to measure up quite a bit more to that point where this overblown, extra-financed investigation, administered by partisan Democrat operatives (we are now discovering) is worthy of such. If the probe is not taken seriously by the thinking American public, and their representatives, but only by these petulant Liberal hacks orbiting Democrat politicians and their unprinciple media, the probe will fail and will be a massive embarrassment to all involved. So far the investigation has well proved to be a huge waste of money and time, and its distraction alone is a cause for possible national peril at a time when the president must remain focused on saving the Republic. To Americans of clarion thought and greater knowledge, this so-called probe is more resembling veritable "witch hunt", but, the President calmly is allowing the probe to play out; however, I do expect there not to be repercussions for all these sorry players if this probe's direction does not veer back to its original intent - to discover the truth about Russia Interference.Consequently, instead of finding Russia Collusion, Cover-up, and now Obstruction, we concerned Americans are learning of the political corruption of conspiracy, influence peddling, and money laundering ( Uranium One / Clinton Global Initiative ) that deeply taints the FBI, the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the State Department, the NSA, and the CIA, which taints leadership now, and in the recent past, including, but not limited to: Eric Holder, James Comey, Loretta Lynch, Barack Hussein Obama, Hillary Clinton their administrative underlings , and possibly Robert Mueller himself.At this point, the President does not seem to be worried about all these investigations' respective outcomes, but, one thing is certain: Others that have been in control of the Deep State, and played fast and loose with our laws may need to be very concerned. Last time I checked, there is only one politician that has the power to pardon anyone or everyone, and it is not any of these aforementioned actors, many who are utterly corrupt.If the end game for all of these corrupt politicians and Deep State bureaucrats, and unprincipled media is to ruin this duly elected president, so that he may be Impeached, they should have adopted a game plan that is not so glaringly apparent. At this point, looking far ahead as is my nature; absent President Trump himself negotiating all wrongs as accused, the Russia Probe investigation is finished in real terms. My wise words to Bob Mueller: Wrap it up quickly (especially if you become part of the problem, rather than part of the solution), so we can discover quickly what really has occurred over these last 8 years of Obama corruption, and just how could it have all been fomented in our nation's capitol. When the D.C. swamp is drained, it will be most informative to discover who has been swimming naked.
The Democrat leadership has made constant, profound and incredible pronouncements that one's supportive vote for Republicans is tantamount to surrendering Democracy forever. Understanding their sincere thinking in their extreme position: How will you still vote on this election day?

Democrat; because the continuance of this Democracy from the existential threat of extreme Republicans is paramount.

Republican; the process of having a choice is the democratic method within what so called "Democracy" does exists.
"Help me, Dad."

Those were the last words spoken by Kate Steinle as she lay dying on a San Francisco pier - a precious young American woman killed in the prime of her life.Kate's death is a tragedy that was entirely preventable. She was shot by an illegal alien and a 7-time convicted felon who had been deported five times - but he was free to harm an innocent American because our leaders refused to protect our border, and because San Francisco is a Sanctuary City. In Sanctuary States and Cities, innocent Americans are at the mercy of criminal aliens because state and local officials defy federal authorities and obstruct the enforcement of our immigration laws.Last week, in a final injustice, Kate's killer was acquitted on all of the most serious charges - yet one more reason Americans are so upset by Sanctuary Cities and open border politicians who shield criminal aliens from federal law enforcement and all of the problems involved with the whole concept of a sanctuary city. They're no good. We mourn for all of the American Families, of all backgrounds, who will have any empty seat at Christmas this year because our immigration laws were not enforced. No American should be separated from their loved ones because of preventable crime committed by those illegally in our country. Our cities should be Sanctuaries for Americans - not for criminal aliens.Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress not only oppose our efforts to stop illegal immigration and crack down on Sanctuary Cities - now they are demanding amnesty as a condition for funding the government, holding troop funding hostage and putting our national security at risk. We cannot allow it.Every Senator and Congressman will have to make a choice: do they want to protect American citizens or do they want to protect criminal aliens? Reasonable people can disagree on many things, but there can be no disagreement that the first duty of government is to serve, protect, and defend American Citizens.People can have different views on the technical details of budget policy or transportation, but no one who serves in elected office should disagree that our highest priority must be the safety and well-being of our nation's citizens.Thank you.White House 
The Department of Interior estimates that there were once 30 to 50 million bison roaming North America, but today it is believed there are only about 13,000 free-roaming bison. Photo by The HSUS

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The National Park Service (NPS), with a shameful record of allowing the killing of bison who migrate outside of Yellowstone National Park and onto adjacent federal lands, is now planning on opening up a second front against these great and lumbering beasts, the biggest mammals in North America. This time, the NPS is impassively pursuing plans to kill hundreds of bison within the boundaries of Grand Canyon National Park. If it happens, the NPS will not only be targeting the very symbol of the agency itself and our national mammal (as designated by Congress in 2016), but spilling their blood in or around yet one more jewel of our nations most beloved network of federal lands.

In a piece in this weekends Arizona Republic, Matthew Scully, onetime senior speechwriter for President George W. Bush, deconstructed the flimsy claims that 400 to 600 bison in the 1.2-million-acre park are too numerous for the land and water resources there. Scully closely examined a little-noticed environmental assessment on the project and found it lacking of any science-based rationale for the plan, yet full of platitudes about prospective bison impacts, with the agency complaining about soil disturbance and erosion potential. The bison graze, drink water, and pass through streams, inviting further charges of causing the potential for increasing impacts on vegetation and potential concerns about changes to local hydrology, reports Scully, himself an Arizona resident and author of the book Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy.

On such vague and conjectural grounds, Scully observes, we are supposed to accept as unavoidable the miserable death of these beautiful creatures  whose presence at the Canyon, it becomes clear, is utterly benign, causing no harm to anyone who leaves them in peace.

Scully calls on Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, often a friend to animal welfare, and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to scrap the kill plan. The HSUS has offered to assist in the creation of an alternative management plan, under the supervision of the federal agency, for a fertility control program that would put the brakes on further population growth, even if there have been no adverse environmental consequences from the behavior of the parks small herd of bison. A similar program is underway on Santa Catalina Island, off the coast of California, and fertility control there has worked with remarkable efficiency.

The Department of Interior estimates that there were once 30 to 50 million bison roaming North America, but today the International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the species as near-threatened, believing there are only about 13,000 free-roaming bison, with the rest existing on private lands. One might expect the NPS, which is supposed to protect rare species from wanton killing, to be among the most ardent defenders of the bison, who are an enormous tourist draw in the northern rim of Grand Canyon. But the NPS has played the opposite role.

A narrow majority of the House Natural Resources Committee wants to take it one step further. These lawmakers, all Republicans, want to turn trophy hunters loose inside the park to kill the animals, even though hunting has been outlawed in the park since its establishment in the early part of the 20th century. In fact, an amendment from Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., to authorize hunting in Grand Canyon has been attached to a truly awful bill, euphemistically called the SHARE Act, which also called for opening National Park Service lands in Alaska to the baiting of grizzlies and the killing of wolves in their dens.

Shooting animals accustomed to a non-threatening human presence  the park attracts nearly six million visitors a year  is a betrayal. The charges against the bison are trumped-up and best characterized as fake ecological news. And the millions of visitors to Grand Canyon National Park  who go to catch a glimpse of this iconic species along with the extraordinary western landscape that the Colorado River has carved with awe-inspiring effect  will be left scratching their heads that the federal agency charged with protecting these animals has turned into their persecutor.

Were willing to step up to the plate to protect our national mammal, an animal so closely associated with our public lands that the bison is the predominant image on the Department of Interiors own logo. We just need the federal governments assent and to stand down on a killing plan with no good reasons behind it.
Risky play is good for kids: it lets them test their boundaries in an exhilarating, vivid way  and it's been all but entirely engineered out of contemporary child-rearing.



That's where Monte Sheppard's University of Technology Sydney Integrated Product Design honors research comes in: it's a log-splitter designed for small children to use.

There's a Gofundme campaign to recoup the cost of creating the prototype in advance of its public exhibition.



To explore this concept, I have created an interactive, spring loaded log splitting machine designed for children. Children work together to rotate a ring, which acts as a lever, to slowly drive down a spring loaded axe into a log. As the axe comes into contact with the log, the spring begins to compress, helping the children visualize the force involved and building up anticipation. Eventually the log reaches a critical point, and as it starts to split, the spring and the axe unload, shooting the axe into the log, helping it to split. It offers an exciting reward for the children's work.



A Log Splitting Device Designed for Children? [Monte Sheppard/Core77]
The kindly North Korean government is doing its part to contribute to quantitative easing by printing US$100 bills that are nearly indistinguishable from the ones printed by the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Let's hope this eases tensions between the two countries!

From The Telegraph:

"It seems that whoever printed these supernotes has the facilities and high level of technology matching that of a government", Lee Ho-jung, a bank spokesman said. "They are made with special ink that changes colour depending on the angle, patterned paper and Intaglio printing that gives texture to the surface of a note".

Another bank source told The Hankyoreh newspaper, "To print supernote-level forgeries, you need a minting corporation-level production line in place, which costs hundreds of billions of won.

"This makes if difficult for ordinary criminal organisations to produce them".

Earlier versions of supernotes have been around for at least 15 years, with US government officials estimating in 2006 that as much as $250 million worth of fake $100 bills could be in circulation worldwide.



In the past, North Korea was believed to distribute the bills overseas through criminal groups and by transporting them abroad through the diplomatic pouch to embassies from where they could be slipped into circulation.
The rise of e-commerce is a trend that?s expected to continue to gain traction over the next few years as more retailers beef up their digital platforms. If you?re a growth investor who?s looking to capitalize on this long-term tailwind, you may want to consider these two underrated Canadian stocks.

Cargojet Inc. (TSX:CJT)

Ever wonder how your packages can be shipped across the country overnight? Cargojet makes this possible with its fleet of 21 aircrafts that are able to handle payloads of up to 125,000 pounds. The company controls over 90% of the dedicated overnight shipping market in Canada, and as e-commerce continues to gain traction like it has in the U.S., Cargojet will likely continue to be a long-term winner.

Cargojet may not seem like it has a moat, but it has one of the largest barriers to entry out there for a small-cap stock. Not many up-and-coming firms can afford to purchase a fleet of massive aircrafts capable of carrying such massive loads. These aircrafts cost up to ~US$190 million each!

To many Canadian firms, the costs of getting into the business are far too high. I suspect the company will continue to increase its market share and width of its moat over the next few years as its fleet size gradually increases to keep up with the demand for expedited shipments as more online shopping options become available to Canadians over the next few years.

The stock has surged ~542% over the last five years. I expect these incredible results to continue next year as the company reaps the rewards from its recent re-fleeting initiaties.

Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust (TSX:AAR.UN)

As e-commerce shipments rise in Canada, logistics and warehousing will surge. Shippers will need a place to store goods ordered online before they arrive at their final destination and that?s where PIRET comes in.

CBRE Group Inc. estimates that 1.25 million square feet in logistics space will be needed for every $1 billion in e-commerce sales. Over the next few years, I believe Canadians will have many more options for online shopping (similar to the e-commerce offerings in the U.S.) That means a huge surge in logistics demand and a lot of warehouse demand. PIRET realizes this and they?ve been increasing its exposure to e-commerce properties.

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The company has surged over 50% over the past two years while paying out a bountiful distribution that currently yields 4.75%.

Bottom line

E-commerce is a rising trend that?s here to stay over the next decade. In terms of digital offerings, I believe Canada has a lot more room to run as we catch up to our neighbours south of the border because nobody wants to pay pesky duty fees.

Cargojet and PIRET are two highly underrated top-notch stocks that could give your portfolio a boost today. If you?re focused on capital gains and explosive growth, go for Cargojet. If you?re an income-focused investor, go with PIRET.

Stay hungry. Stay Foolish.

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Fool contributor Joey Frenette has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.
plane on a field at night

Airlines are incredibly cyclical stocks that get destroyed in the event of a recession, so as this bull market continues to age, why would an investor consider an airline at these levels?

It?s hardly a mystery that airlines are horrible long-term investments; they lose a majority of their value during market crashes and they typically take an eternity to rebound. With many airline bankruptcies and every major correction, many airlines are feeling the pressure as they head closer to the brink.

Airlines are definitely not for the faint of heart or buy-and-hold forever investors. Get too attached to an airline stock for the long-term and you could lose your shirt. But if you?re a medium-term trader looking to ride a cyclical upswing for some gains, then it definitely still makes sense to be a buyer of airlines, especially with the rise of ultra-low-cost-carriers like (ULCC) ? airlines that hold the potential to protect the industry in the event of another recession.

As a long term buy-and-hold investor, Warren Buffett has never been a huge fan of the airlines ? until he recently started loading up on various U.S.-traded airlines over a year ago. He?s made a killing thus far, but I don?t think he?s in it for the long-term. He?ll likely do a ton of selling once the opportunity is over, but for now, he and other investors seeking capital gains should still consider the airlines, as the sector likely hasn?t even begun to hit peak altitude yet.

Air Canada (TSX:AC)(TSX:AC.B) and WestJet Airlines Ltd. (TSX:WJA) are the two commercial airline stocks that airline investors need to decide between. Air Canada has been the clear winner over the past year, up ~74% versus WestJet?s lagging but still impressive ~22% return.

Although Air Canada seems like the better bet for momentum investors, WestJet could make up for lost time next year as its ULCC called Swoop launches. WestJet is going after the low-end of the market aggressively while still maintaining its high-end business. As ULCC takes off, Air Canada will be lagging behind as it sticks to the high-end for the near-term.

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?Our view is that the network that Swoop builds will be incremental to the WestJet network, rather than cannibalizing it,? said Ed Sims, executive vice president of WestJet.

Valuation

Shares of Air Canada currently trade at a 3.6 price-to-earnings multiple, a 2.2 price-to-book multiple, a 0.4 price-to-sales multiple, and a 2.5 price-to-cash flow multiple. WestJet stock trades at a 11.1 price-to-earnings multiple, a 1.4 price-to-book multiple, a 0.7 price-to-sales multiple, and a 3.6 price-to-cash flow multiple.

Bottom line

Both stocks are really cheap and could do very well over the next year, but if I had to choose one stock, it?d be WestJet because I think Swoop will be a huge success with the value-conscious market. With its low debt levels, I believe WestJet can scale up its low-cost fleet faster than any smaller ULCC competitor out there.

Although Air Canada has been the hands-down winner thus far, the race is far from over ? and WestJet certainly has the potential to fly higher in 2018.

Stay hungry. Stay Foolish.

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Its been quite a year to say the least, but at least its nearly over. And so now is the perfect time to reflect on the single most important issue of 2017: the best smartphones of the year.

Our most recent trip around the Sun brought an incredible array of top-notch handsets that will help set the standard for smartphone design and technology for years to come. From Apples hugely anticipated iPhone X to Samsungs comeback tour following the Note 7 debacle, it was a big year for the smartphone industry.

iPhone X  Best phone if money isnt an issue

Apples iPhone X is one of the best, and most expensive, phones you can buy.

Apples (AAPL) most premium of premium devices starts at a cool $1,000, or about $41 to $49 per month depending on your purchase plan  putting it out of the reach of many consumers. Its worth noting that price doesnt include the cost of your monthly wireless plan.

But man is the iPhone X beautiful. Its 5.8-inch nearly edge-to-edge panel gently curves around its four corners and its OLED display technology produces brilliant colors and deep blacks. The Xs spot-on Face ID facial-recognition technology and fantastic dual-lens camera help make this just the kind of iPhone Apple needed at a time when industry analysts were questioning the companys ability to innovate.

Sure, the loss of the Home button, which disappeared so Apple could make a full-screen handset, will turn off some users. But Apple has some slick touch controls to make up for it. And besides, if youre looking for a phone thats both elegant and screams wealth, the iPhone X is the only way to go.

Galaxy Note 8  Best big-screen smartphone

Samsungs Galaxy Note 8 is a powerful handset with a brilliant display, but itll cost you.

Samsung (SSNLF) essentially created the big-screen smartphone category with its original Galaxy Note in 2011. But the company took a major hit to the wallet, and in the press, when it released, and then recalled, its fire-prone Note 7 in 2016. But instead of killing the Note name, Samsung doubled down on it, releasing the Note 8 to rave reviews and going out of its way to explain how it worked to ensure the phone wont, you know, explode into flames.

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The Note 8s vibrant 6.3-inch Super AMOLED display and dual-lens camera are among the best on the market. Throw in staples like the S Pen stylus and the phones note-taking features, and youve got one heck of a big-screen handset.

Like the iPhone X, though, the Note 8 is incredibly pricey. At $950, its second only to the iPhone X in terms of price on our list. However, the Note 8 might still be for you if youre a fan of giant smartphone screens, want a great camera and will get a lot of use out of the stylus. If not, you might want to go for a different Samsung handset. Perhaps the 

Galaxy S8  Best smartphone if you dont want an iPhone

Samsungs Galaxy S8 is an impressive smartphone. Even more so if youre tired of Apple.

Samsungs Galaxy S8 is the go-to smartphone for anyone who wants a high-powered handset and has an intense dislike of Apples iPhone 8. Not that the S8 is second to Apples mainstream smartphone. In fact, Id put the S8 over the iPhone 8 thanks to its superior design, display and camera.

The S8s curved, edge-to-edge display gives the handset a unique look, and its Super AMOLED display technology offers a greater range of colors than the iPhone 8s LCD panel. Whats more, the iPhones display measures just 4.7 inches, while the S8s measures 5.8 inches. And at $725, the S8 is just $25 more than the iPhone 8. Thats a pretty solid deal.

iPhone 8 Plus  Best smartphone for the Apple lover

Apples iPhone 8 Plus is a fantastic smartphone with an impressive camera and huge display.

Okay, so Samsungs got a great phone or two, but that doesnt mean much to Apple fans. And while the S8, and its larger stablemate the S8+, might beat out the iPhone 8, it cant quite top the iPhone 8 Plus. Starting at $799, the iPhone 8 Plus has a large screen that, though not as colorful as Samsungs, offers sharp visuals.

Then theres the iPhone 8 Plus dual-lens camera, which lets you optically zoom in on a subject using the phones telephoto lens. Neither the Galaxy S8 or the S8+ can do that. And, I mean, its an iPhone. If youve got one already, chances are youre going to want to stick with it.

Pixel 2 XL  Best smartphone for the Android purist

Googles Pixel 2 is a phone the way Google believes it should be.

Okay, so you love Googles (GOOG, GOOGL) Android, but youre sick of all of that extra stuff manufacturers and carriers add to the operating system. Im talking about duplicate apps, scams like map apps that charge you money and others. Then youll probably want to opt for Googles Pixel 2 or Pixel 2 XL.

Starting at $649 and $849, respectively, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL give you the purest form of Android available. Theres no bloatware, no unnecessary menus to slog through  its just straight-up Android the way Google intended it to be.

The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are essentially the same phone with the exception of the Pixel 2 XLs larger, curved screen display. Both handsets share the same processor, the same camera and offer the same features including the ability to squeeze their edges to activate Googles Assistant.

The Pixel 2 XL, however, has been met with some controversy over potential screen burn-in, how the display looks cooler when viewed from an angle and crackling noise from its speaker. For what its worth, I only noticed the burn-in issue when I downloaded a grey background and focused on looking at the bottom of the display near the Android buttons. And that cooler color isnt very noticeable unless you view the 2 XL next to the regular Pixel 2. I also never heard a crackling sound from my phone.

But if those issues concern for you, Id go with the Pixel 2. Its every bit as great as the Pixel 2 XL without the baggage.

OnePlus 5t  Best bang for your buck

The OnePlus 5t packs plenty of power for just $499.

The Chinese company OnePlus has made quite a name for itself in the smartphone industry despite little to no mainstream advertising here in the U.S. The company has pulled it all off by not only producing some impressive handsets, but also by selling them for what seems like a pittance next to the cost of other smartphones.

The OnePlus 5t is the follow-up to the OnePlus 5, and offers the same internal specs and camera as the 5. The main difference between the two is that the 5t gets an improved, nearly edgeless 6.1-inch display. The 5, on the other hand, has a 5.5-inch screen along with a classic home button design.

The best part is that the 5t costs just $499 and rocks the kind of on-board power youd expect from any other leading smartphone. There are some drawbacks, though  the biggest being that you cant use the 5t on either Verizons or Sprints networks. (Verizon is the parent company of Yahoo Finance.) Instead, youll have to use AT&T or T-Mobile. Thats because the handset doesnt support the CDMA bands used by Verizon and Sprint, but does use GSM bands, which are used by AT&T and T-Mobile.

LG V30  Best phone for music lovers

The LG V30 is the smartphone to get if youre a complete audio fiend.

LGs smartphones have always been also-rans to the likes of Samsung, and more recently, Google. But the V30, the companys latest offering, helps put LG on a nearly equal footing alongside the categorys best. The handsets 6-inch OLED display nearly reaches the phones edges and its design is among the best around.

But where the V30 really shines is in the audio department. Thanks to its quad-DAC (digital-to-audio converter) the V30 can pump out some incredible-sounding audio from its headphone jack. Oh yeah, its got one of those too.

Loaded with a slew of top-of-the-line specs, the V30 is easily the best phone for music fans looking for a handset that will do their tunes justice.

More from Dan:

Email Daniel at dhowley@yahoo-inc.com; follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.
As 2017 circles the drain, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) negotiations continue to get drawn out. U.S. demands for the negotiation  and threats to end it if they arent met  have proven a hurdle for the talks, and more negotiations are planned for the first quarter of 2018.

(Giphy)

Seemingly in preparation for the deal with the south to go south, the big trend in business deals this year was American companies buying up Canadian ones, or merging to make massive North American conglomerates.

Heres a look at the biggest Canadian business deals of 2017, plus a couple of honourable mentions for good measure.

(The Canadian Press)

Brookfield buys Sheraton Hotel

While relatively low in comparative dollar value, when measured against other deals on this list, the sale of the Sheraton Hotel in Toronto, Ont. is still worth noting. Its acquisition by an arm of Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management is the largest ever transaction for a hotel in Canadian history, ringing in at $335 million. Brookfields hospitality properties are primarily in the U.S., and this marks

(Netflix)

Netflix makes big investment in Canadian media scene

As part of a massive revamp of Canadas cultural policy, it was announced in September that streaming giant Netflix would invest $500 million in Canadian television and film production over the next five years. The company bucked criticism that it had managed to score a tax deal from the government, or that it was circumventing CanCon broadcast rules in the country (its a streaming service, not a broadcaster, so Canadian Content requirements dont apply). Now, the company is waiting to make announcements about what its first made in Canada productions since the deal will be.

(The Canadian Press)

CGI acquires Affecto

Not all of this years deals were limited to Canada and the U.S. One of 2017s major deals came from Montreal-based CGI Group Inc. acquiring Affecto PLC. CGI offered $146 million in cash for the company, which would add about 1,000 employees in Northern Europe to CGIs global staff of 7,000. Affecto specializes in providing business intelligence and enterprise management solutions and services.

Story continues

(Reuters)

Couche-Tard acquires Holiday Stationstores

The Laval, Que.-based Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. expanded its network further in 2017 with its acquisition of Holiday Stationstores, a U.S. chain of gas stations and convenience stores. Couche-Tard was already one of the largest convenience store chains in the world, owning the Circle K brand and operating more than 12,000 stores globally. Holiday Stationstores adds another 522 stores to their roster for an undisclosed sum. While the rest of Couche-Tards convenience stores outside of Quebec operate under the Circle K banner, the company opted to keep the Holiday Stationstores brand due to widespread recognition in the northern U.S. where it operates.

(Reuters)

Enbridge and Spectra Energy merge

This merger in early fall created the largest energy infrastructure company in North America. Now operating under the Enbridge name, the company is valued at about $165 billion. Following the takeover, Enbridge announced in November that it would be selling about $3 billion in assets, and increasing its dividends by 10 per cent, a sign that strong profitability is in the cards as they consolidate post-merger.

(Canadian Press)

CCCI acquisition of Aecon

A unit of China Communications Construction Co., CCCC International Holding Ltd. (CCCI) made a massive bid for Canadian construction firm Aecon Group Inc. in October. So massive, in fact, that it was subject government review before the $1.5 billion bid for Aecon could be approved. Chinas ambassador to Canada said no such review would be necessary because the technology from the Chinese side was much more advanced than Canadas, therefore there was no threat of having technology stolen. The deal between China and Canada could be coming at a great time, argues former Conservative MP Stockwell Day, who suggests its a great step towards Chinese trade in light of NAFTA negotiations going less that optimally.

(Evening Standard)

Vista Equity Partner buys DH Corp

The Toronto-based DH Corp was snapped up by U.S. private equity firm Vista Equity Partners for a cool $4.8 billion. The deal was first announced in March. Since then, the fintech company had been combined with Vistas previously owned U.K. financial-based software acquisition Misys to create Finastra. The U.K.-based Finastra has kept a large employe base in Canada, with about 1,800 people, and about 20 per cent of Finastras overall revenue comes from Canada, too. The now six-month-old Finastra is the third-largest fintech firm in the world.

(The Canadian Press)

Hydro One buys Avista

In a blockbuster Canadian deal, Ontario-based Hydro One acquired Avista to become the largest regulated utility company in North America. Hydro One paid $6.7 billion to purchase Avista shares, creating a company with an enterprise value worth $31.2 billion. While Hydro Ones CEO Mayo Schmidt made a point of telling shareholders that electricity rates wouldnt be going up as a result of the deal in July, it did request a rate increase in November for some customers to offset the cost of keeping the existing power system stable, unrelated to the acquisition.

Honourable mentions:

(Motley Fool Canada)

Aurora makes bid for CanniMed

Vancouver-based Aurora Cannabis Inc. stirred up the medical marijuana industry with its bid for CanniMed Theraputics Inc. What started as a friendly offer for a merger (which was summarily rejected by CanniMed) turned into a hostile takeover attempt for $582 million, taken directly to shareholders. What makes the deal even more controversial was how closely it followed news that Cannimed had acquired Newstrike Resources Ltd. for about $248 million. The aggressive move sat well with investors, though: Auroras stock has seen 250 per cent growth this year, the strongest performing marijuana stock of the year so far.

(Food & Wine)

Restaurant Brands buys Popeyes

Special mention needs to go to the acquisition of Popeyes by Restaurant Brands International. While neither is a Canadian brand, per se, the owner of Tim Hortons has a strong presence in Canada, where it also operates Burger King. The US$1.8 billion deal added yet another quick-serve restaurant to the RBI portfolio, which operates over 23,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries.

Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.
As the closure of the only rail line into Churchill forces food prices to rise in the community, an increasing number of residents are turning to the community's food bank to put food on the table.

A volunteer from the Hungry Bears Food Bank in Churchill has said nearly one in three people in the community is now using the food bank. The situation moved resident Rob Knaggs to action.

The Australian-born cellist and composer made Churchill home after falling in love with the town while working there as a musician a year ago. He held a concert in Winnipeg Saturday night to raise money for the food bank.

"I've seen what damage has been created by the train leaving  the rising costs of food  and trying to survive in a town so isolated from the rest of Manitoba," said Knaggs.

The owner of the rail line into Churchill, Denver-based Omnitrax, suspended its route into the community after severe flooding damaged the line in May.

There was hope the damage would be repaired in time for winter, but after a summer of discussion between Omnitrax and the federal and provincial governments over who would pay for the work, the rail line remains shuttered.

The town of 900 people, about 1,000 kilometres north of Winnipeg, relies on the Hudson Bay Railway for delivery of essentials including food, vehicles and fuel.

Last month, Omnitrax informed officials the price of gas would rise by 30 per cent in Churchill. A banana in the town costs $7 and a carton of milk costs $10.

Music for the whales

The fundraising concert was held in the taproom at Little Brown Jug, filled with the haunting sounds of Knagg's cello, inspired by the sounds made by the beluga whales that swim near Churchill.

They're sounds Knaggs knows well.

"What I was totally taken by was not only the polar bears and the northern lights, but the beluga whales that inhabited the Churchill River," said Knaggs. "As a musician just hearing the sounds these belugas would make, it was absolutely nuts."

Story continues

And those sounds gave him an idea  he wanted to play for the whales.

So he saved up some money, bought a new cello, and pitched his idea to a local company that takes tourists out on the water to see the whales. The company thought it was a cool idea too, and he spent the summer playing music for the whales.

"The reaction was absolutely insane  these whales would come up to the boat and hang on for a good hour or so," he said. "We had a hydrophone in the water where we could listen to these belugas chittering and chattering the whole time."

Knaggs said he gets a regular audience when he heads out on the river these days.

"I'd be going into the water and people would want to see this interaction between music and nature," he said. "I love doing it and people love seeing it."

It's that connection to his new community that drove Knaggs to hold the fundraiser.

"Giving back to a community that's given me so much is the essence of why I wanted to put tonight on," he said.

To make a donation to the Hungry Bears Food bank go to hungrybears.ca.
By Neil Jerome Morales MANILA (Reuters) - State-run China Telecom Corp could become the Philippines' third telecoms player, officials of the Southeast Asian nation said on Sunday, as the government looks to stir up competition in an effort to boost notoriously poor services. Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte last month offered China the "privilege" of challenging a longstanding duopoly that has frustrated consumers because of slow and intermittent internet and mobile phone services. "The Chinese government selected China Telecom to invest in the Philippines upon invitation by President Duterte during the bilateral meeting last Nov. 16," Eliseo Rio, secretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology, told Reuters. Chinese companies cannot operate alone in the Philippines and would need to partner with a local company. The government is now looking at who will partner with China Telecom on a 60-40 basis, Rio said. China Telecom, one of China's top three state-backed telecommunications firms, said on Monday that no deal has been reached yet. "China Telecom is currently having a preliminary study on the investment opportunity in Philippines and no concrete plan has been determined yet," a China Telecom spokesman told Reuters. The Philippine constitution's 40 percent cap on foreign ownership of domestic telecoms companies has kept interest from multinationals at bay in the market of more than 100 million people. Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said the state-owned Chinese company should partner with a reputable Philippines company with an existing telecoms franchise. "The government is fast-tracking this because consumers are getting annoyed with dropped calls and slow internet connections," Andanar said in a radio interview on Sunday. Also seeking to be a major player is Philippine Telegraph & Telephone Corp, which had said it was talking with China Telecom and Datang Telecom about strategic partnerships to challenge the nation's dominant duo of PLDT Inc and Globe Telecom Inc. (Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Additional reporting by Cate Cadell in BEIJING; Editing by David Goodman and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
When Im preparing outfits for a tropical vacation you know I immediately go to maxi dresses. They feel laid back while still glamorous and special for a special trip.

When I was packing, I didnt want to bring anything too summery, but I still wanted to dress for the weather (my #1 tip for anyone traveling anywhere at any time  dress for the forecast!). This black maxi dress was exactly that  beachy and feminine in a seasonally appropriate color palette. Im sharing the details of this look and some of my favorite styles below!

Christian snapped these photos before our welcome dinner with the Coppola Wine team. Combining adventure and wine is basically our dream vacation  combining some of his/her favorite hobbies. We have had the most fabulous time experience the Coppola properties in Belize and have fallen in love with this country!

A lot of you have asked for details on the resorts where weve stayed, and Ill be sharing full posts on both Blancaneaux Lodge and Turtle Inn tomorrow and Wednesday. Stay tuned for all of those details!

AND since today is also Green Monday, Im sharing some of the best deals online at the bottom of this post 

photos by Christian Barnes

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dress, also love this one and this one (how fab is this dress!?) | clutch, similar style for less here | earrings, also have and love these | lip in Russian Red | heels, also love these | bracelet, also available here

Now for some Green Monday deets! You can find all my holiday-related content at the top of this page under the holiday tab, but below are some of the best deals online today.

ChicWish | extra 10% off orders over $70 with code PRS10

Express | up to 50% off

Forever21 | 15% off $75 with code SAVE15, 20% off $100 with code SAVE20, 30% off $150 with code SAVE30

Framebridge | 15% off all frames with code SANTABABY

Frye | up to 50% off select items

Joss & Main | up to 80% off holiday items

Kiehls | $20 off orders over $65 with code JINGLE

LOFT | extra 50% off with code GIFTAWAY

Madewell | 20% off orders over $100 and 30% off orders over $200 with code OHWHATFUN

Ralph Lauren | extra 30% off select items with code JOY

Net-A-Porter | up to 50% off sale items

Sperry | $15 off orders over $75, $20 off orders over $100, $30 off orders over $150 with code STOCKINGUP

Williams Sonoma | tons of markdowns on cutlery, cookware and bar items + free shipping with code FREESHIP

Thanks so much for reading! XO 
MONDAY, Dec. 11, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- When it comes to kicking the smoking habit, if at first you don't succeed, try, try again, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says.

To help encourage adult smokers to quit, the FDA is launching a new public education campaign called "Every Try Counts." It will target smokers aged 25 to 54 who've tried to quit smoking in the past year but haven't been successful.

The campaign will feature messages of support that highlight the health benefits of quitting smoking.

The Every Try Counts campaign begins next month in 35 markets nationwide and will include print, digital, radio and billboard ads. The FDA plans to focus its ads in and around retail locations, such as gas stations and convenience stores -- places that not only sell cigarettes but are favorite targets of cigarette advertising.

As part of the campaign, the FDA has teamed up with the U.S. National Cancer Institute to create a website that will provide resources and tools to help smokers quit.

"Cigarette smoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S.," Dr. Jerome Adams, the U.S. Surgeon General, said in an FDA news release. "Sustained and comprehensive efforts, including the FDA's Every Try Counts campaign, are critical to encouraging more Americans to quit smoking and preventing the harms associated with cigarette use."

FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb said the new campaign "encourages smokers to rethink their next pack of cigarettes at the most critical of places -- the point of sale."

Gottlieb pointed out that "tobacco companies have long used advertisements at convenience stores and gas stations to promote their products, and we plan to use that same space to embolden smokers to quit instead."

Cigarette smoking causes about 480,000 deaths in the United States each year. Despite declining smoking rates among adults, 15 percent of American adults (36.5 million) were cigarette smokers in 2015. Of those, more than 22 million said they'd like to quit, according to the FDA.

However, though more than 55 percent of adult smokers tried to quit in 2015, the agency said that only about 7 percent were successful.

Mitch Zeller directs the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products. "Tobacco advertising in retail environments can generate a strong urge to smoke, prompting a relapse among those attempting to quit," he said in the news release.

"This campaign offers smokers motivational messages in those environments with the intention to build confidence and instill the belief within each smoker that they are ready to try quitting again," Zeller explained.

"We want smokers to feel good about each attempt to quit because it is getting them closer to one day leading a healthier life free from cigarettes, reducing their risk of tobacco-related death and disease," he added.

The FDA's aim "is to render cigarettes minimally or non-addictive, while encouraging the development of potentially less harmful tobacco products for adults who still want or need access to nicotine," Gottlieb said. "At the same time, we're also taking new steps to improve access and use of FDA-approved medicinal nicotine products to help smokers quit."

More information

To learn more about the new anti-smoking campaign, go to the Every Try Counts website.
SATURDAY, Dec. 9, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Babies born with the immune-system ravaging "bubble boy" disease have had to spend their too-often-short lives in germ-free isolation, lest something as simple as a common cold virus fell them with a fatal infection.

But after decades of research, doctors now believe they have created a cure for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID).

Six out of seven infants treated using a newly crafted gene-based therapy already are out of the hospital and leading normal childhoods at home with family, said lead researcher Dr. Ewelina Mamcarz, an assistant member of the faculty in the Bone Marrow Transplant Department at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

"They left the hospital after four to six weeks and we're following these babies on an outpatient basis," Mamcarz said. The last infant is barely six weeks past treatment, and his immune system is still in the process of constructing itself.

The results so far indicate that Mamcarz and her colleagues have cured these infants, said Jonathan Hoggatt, an assistant professor of stem cell research at Harvard Medical School.

"If they get all of their immune cells and the stem cells are lasting long-term, this is for all intents and purposes a cure," said Hoggatt, who was not involved with the study. "This isn't a repeated treatment. You do this once and you're done."

The new therapy focuses on X-linked SCID, the most common type of the disease. It only affects males because it is caused by a genetic defect found on the male X chromosome. It occurs in 1 out of every 54,000 live births in the United States, Mamcarz said.

SCID was first brought to public attention after the release of "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble," a 1976 movie about the true-life story of a child born with the disease.

Boys born with X-SCID cannot produce any of the immune cells that defend the body against infection: T-cells, B-cells and natural killer (NK) cells.

Without treatment, these babies typically die by age 2, researchers said. About one-third of those who receive the best available treatment, a stem cell transplant, wind up dying by age 10.

The new treatment uses an inactivated form of HIV to introduce genetic changes into the patient's bone marrow cells. These changes fix the bone marrow so it starts doing its job, pumping out all three types of immune cells, explained senior researcher Dr. Brian Sorrentino, director of the Experimental Hematology Division at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Researchers chose HIV as their vehicle because the virus naturally evolved to effortlessly infect human immune cells, "so we're co-opting this property for our own purposes," Sorrentino said.

Previous versions of this gene-based cure used a different mouse-derived virus, which tended to activate cancer-causing cells and produce leukemia in patients. The new HIV-based version does not have this effect, Sorrentino said.

But the virus is only part of the solution. Babies given this treatment also underwent "conditioning" using the chemotherapy drug busulfan to prepare their bone marrow to accept the genetic changes, researchers said.

People undergoing bone marrow transplants often receive chemo or whole-body radiation to kill off their damaged immune system, so it won't interfere with the new healthy immune cells being introduced, Hoggatt explained.

Previously, research teams had been reluctant to use chemotherapy in treating SCID because of the potential damage it could do to newborns, Hoggatt said. Doctors also believed the babies probably didn't need it.

"The thought was for SCID patients, they don't really have any immune cells so we don't need to do that," Hoggatt said.

However, X-SCID babies only achieved a partial cure when they received the viral treatment without chemo. Their T-cells came back, but not their B-cells or NK-cells, Sorrentino said.

"The B-cells wouldn't come back, and as a result many if not all these initial gene therapy babies would require a lifelong supplementation with antibody therapy, sometime every month or every six weeks, which is very expensive," Sorrentino said.

Computer-guided infusions allowed the researchers to give babies individual doses of busulfan that were just strong enough to prepare them for gene therapy, Sorrentino said.

The combination of the gene therapy with mild chemo appears to have restored all three types of immune cells in the babies, the researchers said.

The virus also appears to be successfully infiltrating the immune system. In some cases, more than 60 percent of all bone marrow stem cells carried the new corrective gene introduced by the virus, researchers say.

The researchers emphasize that the babies still need to be tracked, to make sure the treatment remains stable with no side effects. They'll also need to see how the babies respond to vaccination.

"Our oldest patient is now at about 15 months, and our youngest one is just several months," Sorrentino said. "We definitely need more follow-up time, to understand more about them. But based on what we're seeing at this early point, we think it's got a good chance of being a permanent fix."

The researchers were to present the findings Saturday at the American Society of Hematology's annual meeting, in Atlanta. Research presented at meetings is considered preliminary until published on a peer-reviewed journal.

More information

For more on SCID, visit the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
MONDAY, Dec. 11, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Women who are exposed to air pollution right before or after they become pregnant may be more likely to have a baby with birth defects, new research suggests.

The increased risk is modest, but scientists say their findings warrant more investigation since all pregnant women are exposed to some level of pollution.

"The most susceptible time of exposure appears to be the one month before and after conception," said study senior author Dr. Emily DeFranco, a physician at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

"Public health efforts should continue to highlight the importance of minimizing population-level exposure to harmful particulate matter in the air," she added in a hospital news release.

For the study, the researchers investigated the effects of fine particulate matter -- tiny particles and droplets of liquid that get into the air. Once inhaled, they can become trapped deep in the lungs and enter the bloodstream.

The scientists examined data on particulate matter collected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at 57 different monitoring stations in Ohio.

The investigators also compiled birth certificate data from the Ohio Department of Health, which included the mothers' addresses. The researchers then analyzed the link between the women's exposure to air pollution and birth defects among their babies.

Although the study found an association between exposure to air pollution and birth defects, DeFranco noted that because it was an observational study, it cannot prove a cause-and-effect link.

Birth defects -- including abnormal hearts and cleft lip or palate -- affect 3 percent of all births in the United States, the study authors noted.

The report was published online Dec. 11 in The Journal of Pediatrics.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences has more about air pollution.
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Protests and violence have broken out in several cities over President Donald Trumps announcement on December 7 that the U.S. will recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, according to reports. As well as unrest in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza, protesters demonstrated in Lebanon, Turkey, Morocco, and Indonesia, reports said. Several journalists covering the unrest were injured, including by rubber bullets and tear gas canisters, according to the local press freedom groups Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms and Center for Defending Freedom of Journalists.

CPJs Emergencies Response Team (ERT) has issued the following safety advisory for journalists covering or planning to cover the protests:

Preparation

Plan the assignment and ensure that you have a full battery on your cell phone. Know the area you are going to. Work out in advance what to do in an emergency.

Always try to work with a colleague and have a regular check-in procedure with your baseparticularly if covering rallies or crowded events.

Wear clothing and footwear that allows you to move swiftly. Avoid loose clothing and lanyards that can be grabbed, as well as flammable material, such as nylon.

Consider your position. Try to find an elevated position that may offer greater safety.

At any location, always plan an evacuation route. If working with others, select an emergency rendezvous point.

Maintain situational awareness at all times and limit valuables in your possession. Do not leave any equipment in vehicles. After dark, the risk of criminal actions increases.

increases. If working in a crowd, plan a strategy. Try to keep to the outside of the crowd and avoid the middle, where it is hard to escape. Identify an escape route.

In situations where teargas may be used

Wear personal protective equipment, including a gas mask, eye protection, body armor, and helmet.

Contact lenses are not advisable.

Individuals with asthma or respiratory issues should avoid areas where teargas is being used. When large amounts of teargas are used, there is the possibility of high concentrations of gas sitting in areas with no movement of air.

Take note of landmarks (i.e. posts, curbs) that can be used to help you navigate out of an area if you are struggling to see.

If you are exposed to teargas, try to find higher ground and stand in fresh air to allow the breeze to carry away the gas. Do not rub your eyes or face. When you are able to, shower in cold water to wash the gas from your skin, but do not bathe. Clothing may need to be washed several times to remove the crystals completely, or discarded.

When dealing with aggression

Read body language and use your own body language to pacify a situation.

Keep eye contact with an aggressor, use open hand gestures and keep talking with a calming manner.

Keep an extended arms length from the threat. Back away and if someone grabs hold of you, break away firmly without aggression. If cornered and in danger, shout.

If cornered and in danger, shout. If the situation escalates, keep a hand free to protect your head and move with short, deliberate steps to avoid falling. If in a team, stick together and link arms.

Be aware of the situation and your own safety. While there are times when documenting aggression can be newsworthy, taking pictures of aggressive individuals can escalate a situation.

If you are attacked, threatened or otherwise intimidated while covering these events, you can contact CPJ by emailing [email protected].

For more information on basic preparedness, assessing and responding to risk, or covering safety measures when covering civil conflict and disturbances, we encourage journalists to review CPJs Journalist Security Guide.
New Zealands Ministry of Health has implemented a new program that would compensate living organ donors for lost earnings. Now anyone who donates a kidney or part of their liver to an eligible person can receive up to twelve weeks of compensation for earnings lost while they recover, and also receive travel and accommodation assistance. With the new policy, New Zealand is leading the way in creating a framework that could reduce long waiting lists for organ donation, and attenuate the hardships created by the limited supply of donations.

The United States a lacks organ donors and could usefully copy New Zealand. More than 96,000 candidates are waiting for a kidney, and another 14,000 waiting for a liver. Every ten minutes another person is added to the national transplant waiting list. More than 19,000 kidney transplants took place in 2016. Living donors accounted for only about 30 percent of these transplants.

These shortages have serious consequences for those on waiting lists. A recent study by Stanford University researcher Philip J. Held and coauthors at the American Journal of Transplantation estimated that between 5,000 and 10,000 kidney patients die prematurely in the United States each year, and another 100,000 suffer from effects of dialysis due to the shortage.

One constraint on organ donation is that donors would be worse off financially, either due to time away from work recovering or cost of travel and accommodation. Another study in the American Journal of Transplantation by Professor Scott Klarenbach of the University of Alberta and coauthors estimated that 96 percent of kidney donors in a Canadian study experienced adverse economic consequences. Almost half of the donors reported lost pay, with an average loss of $2,144, while the average for other associated costs such as travel was $1,780.

Under the system established by the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984, kidneys can be donated but must be given for free. NOTA does allow reasonable payments for associated expenses incurred by the donor, but these are financed by the recipient themselves, which places limitations on the extent to which donors can be compensated.

A 2014 panel of economists issued by the University of Chicago Booth School of Business found that 45 percent of respondents agreed that a market allowing payment for kidneys should be established on a trial basis to help extend the lives of patients with kidney disease, while 29 percent were uncertain and 12 percent disagreed.

But ethicists disagree. Opponents of introducing compensation suggest that such a shift could crowd out voluntary donation, or lead to a situation where the poor donate organs for financial remuneration. A more robust system of compensation for lost wages or related expenses could avoid some of the more strident opposition to a market for organ donation, while still resulting in an increase in the supply of organ donations.

In 2006 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced a program to help living donors reduce financial disincentives to donation, awarding a grant to help fund the National Living Donor Assistance Center. The Center aimed to help defray these costs, but was limited in terms of its scope, receiving about fewer than 4,000 applications from 2007 to 2013. Eligibility was also restricted, which might explain part of the reason only 19 percent of the donors were unrelated to recipients. In order to boost organ donations to the extent that waiting lists decline, donations would have to come from unrelated individuals.

The NALDC is now conducting a randomized controlled trial to assess the effect of wage reimbursement on the provision of kidney donations. The trial is projected to run through 2018 so the results should be available in 2019. The experiment could give a sense of how much donations would increase with a more developed system of reimbursement for donors.

The government spends substantial amounts on dialysis through major health care programs, and some of the government's restrictions are exacerbating the shortages. Federal reimbursement from the government for associated costs, in the same vein as New Zealands new policy, could improve the lives of people on those waiting lists while also reducing the amount of money spent on major public health programs.

The United States is grappling with the costs of long waiting lists and the status quo is not working for those who need life-saving treatment. A more robust system of reimbursing donors for costs related to making that donation could substantially increase supply and reduce suffering. New Zealand could be one model to follow.

Charles Hughes is a policy analyst at the Manhattan Institute. Follow him on Twitter @CharlesHHughes.

Interested in real economic insights? Want to stay ahead of the competition? Each weekday morning, E21 delivers a short email that includes E21 exclusive commentaries and the latest market news and updates from Washington. Sign up for the E21 Morning Ebrief.
The House and Senate are trying to reconcile their versions of the tax bill and send it to President Trump for his signature. Hanging precariously in the balance is a House proposal to pare back a lavish corporate welfare scheme for the wind industry in an effort to provide greater scope for tax cuts.

The House bill seeks to reduce the wind element of the Renewable Electricity Production Tax Credit (PTC), a tax credit that Treasury estimates is on track to deliver companies in the renewable sector in excess of $40 billion over the ten years to 2027. The Joint Committee on Taxation projected the proposal would recoup $12.3 billion for taxpayers over this period.

The PTC provides a tax credit for expensive energy produced from renewable sources that is sold to end-users. Wind generation currently receives the PTC at a rate of 2.4 cents per kilowatt hour for 10 years after commencing operation. It is supposed to be phased out by 2020unless it is renewed again, as has happened in the past. The House bill reduces the generosity of the tax credit to 1.5 cents per kilowatt hour for wind facilities that are commenced after the legislation is passed.

The wind tax credit provides financial support for wind generation and is the major federal-level policy artificially sustaining the industry. There is no convincing case for encouraging the production of costly and unreliable wind generation by giving it a tax credit. The cost of abating carbon using wind energy is high relative to alternatives and distorting investment in generation capacity erodes productivity as well as slowing job creation and growth.

The myth of generous subsidies for fossil fuels is used by the industry as a foil to shift attention from the scale of the tax credit. The Energy Information Administrations most recent examination of direct federal support to the energy sector found that renewable generation received fully $15 billion out of over $29 billion in total taxpayer largesse in 2013, the bulk of which flowed to wind, solar and biofuels. Financial support for coal, by comparison, was just over $1 billion, even though coal contributes twice as much generation capacity.

The EIAs report excludes the myriad state-level schemes that support renewable generation, including the hidden subsidies embedded in the renewable portfolio standard (RPS) mandates that exist across 29 states and in the District of Columbia. The RPS programs dictate that energy retailers must arbitrarily source selected percentages of their electricity from renewable generation by specific dates. Their effect is to force high-cost renewable energy into the grid and raise electricity prices. Entirely retrograde for the purpose of accountability, payments to renewable generators under the RPS schemes are given the seemingly benign nomenclature, certificates, to hide both the corporate welfare they deliver to renewable energy manufacturers and the higher electricity prices paid by consumers.

Examining the profile of the PTCs cost to taxpayers, it is easy to see why lawmakers stepped in to give the program a haircut. The tax credit is expected to cost $1.6 billion in 2017, with the expense ramping up sharply to $4.9 billion by 2025. Because the credit is open-ended, costs could be higher than projected, and remedial action by Congress is prudent.

Lobbyists for the wind industry were busy on the Hill prior to Thanksgiving, working frenetically with their allies in the Senate to protect the scheme. The extent to which the wind industry relies upon its patrons in the Senate is evident in the public lobbying now the tax reform package is headed to conference. The American Wind Industry Association is running attack ads on the House bill that openly laud the actions of their champions in Congress.

With the slim Senate GOP majority, it is likely that the final bill will keep the tax credit. The political economy dynamics are such that it is unlikely that the wind tax credit will be rationalized as promised in the House bill. No well-organized constituency is fighting for the interests of consumers and taxpayers, despite a sound policy case to reduce or abolish the credit ahead of schedule.

Some hope can be taken from the current political mood to push back on lobbying by special interests. Reducing the size of the wind tax credit aligns well with the Trump administrations commitment to energy dominance with its emphasis on ensuring a secure, affordable and reliable national electricity supply. Taking the burden of overly generous corporate welfare programs off the back of taxpayers will strengthen the economy and benefit all Americans.

Burchell Wilson is a contributor to E21.

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Through its Bi-national Commission with Nigeria, the U.S. hopes to find new areas of collaboration with regard to security cooperation; economic growth and development; and democracy and governance.

In the Northwest region of Nigeria, Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa have wrought a great deal of destruction on the Nigerian people  forcing more than two million to flee from their homes. Speaking in Nigeria, Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan said, I want to emphasize. . .that the United States is Nigerias partner in this fight. We are committed to helping the Nigerian people provide their own security.

The U.S. has helped Nigeria modernize its military. But a military response alone in the Northeast cannot lead to sustained peace, said Deputy Secretary Sullivan. Nigerias success requires improvements to the economy and governance off the battlefield, including credible investigations of human rights violations and mechanisms to hold those found guilty accountable for their actions.

To help those affected by Boko Haram rebuild their lives, Deputy Secretary Sullivan announced that the U.S. Agency for International Development will contribute an additional $45.5 million.

The United States will continue to support food security and nutrition programs in Nigeria including development programs focused on the Northeastern states.

Predictable economic policies and a transparent justice system are necessary to create an environment for growth and to attract businesses and investment to Nigeria.

Sufficient energy resources are critical to fueling growth in Nigeria. Through the U.S. governments Power Africa Initiative, the U.S. will help the Nigerian government serve the majority of Nigerians who currently lack access to electricity. In particular, Deputy Secretary Sullivan announced a $1.3 million project to address the shortage of gas available for gas-fired power plants under the Power Africa Initiative.

Finally, in addition to supporting the security and economic growth of Nigeria, the United States recognizes that good governance is necessary to sustain both over the long-term. Fighting corruption and ensuring free and fair elections, will make the government of Nigeria more accountable to its people and better equipped to secure its citizens and keep its economy growing.

The United States looks forward to working with Nigeria to reach their shared security, development and governance goals.
Text in which the author defends ideas and reaches conclusions based on his / her interpretation of facts and data

Jens Stoltenberg and Angelina Jolie. EFE / Cordon Press

All violence against women betrays the fundamental promise in the UN Charter of equal rights and dignity for women. It is one of the prime reasons why women remain in a subordinate position in relation to men in most parts of the world.

When this violence is committed as an act of war it tears apart families, creates mass displacement, and makes peace and reconciliation far harder to achieve. In fact, it is often designed expressly to achieve those goals as part of a military strategy.

Despite being prohibited by international law, sexual violence continues to be employed as a tactic of war in numerous conflicts from Myanmar to Ukraine and Syria to Somalia. It includes mass rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, and rape as a form of torture, ethnic cleansing and terrorism. It accounts in large part for why it is often more dangerous to be a woman in a warzone today than it is to be a soldier.

NATO soldiers will be able to discern patterns and trends so that they will be able to respond more quickly to prevent potential violence

In our different roles we have seen how conflicts in which womens bodies and rights are systematically abused last longer, cause deeper wounds and are much harder to resolve and overcome. Ending gender-based violence is therefore a vital issue of peace and security as well as of social justice.

The NATO Alliance was founded to safeguard not just the security but also the freedom of its peoples: in the words of President Harry Truman, as a shield against aggression and the fear of aggression.

For nearly 70 years NATO has stood for collective defense against military threats. But also for the defence of democracy, individual liberty, the rule of law and the UN Charter.

We believe that NATO has the responsibility and opportunity to be a leading protector of womens rights.

All violence against women betrays the fundamental promise in the UN Charter of equal rights and dignity for women

In particular, we believe NATO can become the global military leader in how to prevent and respond to sexual violence in conflict, drawing on the strengths and capabilities of its member states and working with its many partner countries.

Over the coming months we will be working together and with others to identify ways in which NATO can strengthen its contribution to womens protection and participation in all aspects of conflict-prevention and resolution.

First, by building on NATOs commitment to integrate gender issues into its strategic thinking as part of its values and reinforcing a culture of the integration of women throughout the organization including in leadership positions.

NATOs senior military leaders have a vital role to play in being positive role models, and promoting the role of women in the military.

We have seen how conflicts in which womens bodies and rights are systematically abused last longer, cause deeper wounds and are much harder to resolve and overcome

Second, by helping to raise the standards of other militaries. NATO and Allied countries are involved every day in training partner militaries around the world. We want to explore ways in which existing training on the protection of human rights and civilians, including against sexual violence, can be strengthened.

Third, NATO has developed standard operating practices for soldiers in the field, learned through mandatory pre-deployment training. Standards and training are not the only answer, but they ensure that personnel recognize the different ways in which women and girls are affected by conflict and are trained to prevent, recognize and respond to sexual and gender-based violence. This is a vital part of helping to create lasting cultural changes, including debunking the myths that fuel sexual violence and deepening understanding of the centrality of protection and rights for women in the creation of lasting peace and security.

Fourth, NATO already deploys gender advisers to local communities in Kosovo and Afghanistan, while NATOs female soldiers are able to reach and engage with local communities. Stronger awareness of the role that gender plays in conflict improves military operational effectiveness and leads to improved security. Strengthening this culture can only benefit NATOs contribution to peace and security over the long term.

Fifth, reporting on conflict-related sexual violence is now one of the tasks of NATO commanders. NATO is also creating a reporting system to record instances of gender-based violence compatible with UN Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Arrangements. With this data, which will be shared with the UN, NATO soldiers will be able to discern patterns and trends so that they will be able to respond more quickly to prevent potential violence. By reporting crimes and supporting work to bring perpetrators to justice, NATO can challenge the culture of impunity, including for senior leaders and those most responsible.

NATO Allies have strongly committed to put these issues front and center every day, in how they train soldiers, in how they operate in the field, and in how they interact with civilians who find themselves in combat zones.

We will also be urging more concerted action in the wider world. By working together with business, civil society, governments and political leadership writ large, international organizations such as NATO can help lead the way toward ending impunity for sexual violence in conflict.

It is humanitys shame that violence against women, whether in peaceful societies or during times of war, has been universally regarded as a lesser crime. There is finally hope that we can change this. We owe it to ourselves  men and women alike  and to future generations.

Jens Stoltenberg is NATO Secretary General. Angelina Jolie is co-founder of the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative.
Boxes arrive at the Lleida Museum to transport the works. Albert Garcia

More information One example of how Catalan separatists manipulate history

Officers with Catalonias regional police force on Monday morning clashed with pro-independence demonstrators who were protesting the transfer of 44 artworks from the regions Lleida Museum to neighboring Aragon.

The medieval artworks, originally from Aragons Monastery of Santa Maria de Sijena, are being returned to Aragon after a court recently upheld a 2015 ruling that the original sale of the treasures by nuns at the convent to the Catalan government had been illegal. Today, Monday, is the deadline set by the courts for the removal of the artworks in question.

However, the transfer of the heritage-listed artworks, including three polychromatic mortuary chests, comes amid a charged political atmosphere in Catalonia with pro-independence supporters linking the decision to remove the religious treasures with Madrids application of emergency powers in the region using Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution  a move that included the sacking of the Catalan government and the calling of a regional election on December 21.

With tensions high, removal of the Sijena artworks began under the cover of darkness. Management at Lleida Museum had expected technicians charged with the transfer to arrive at 8am on Monday. However, regional police cordoned off the area around the museum around midnight, obliging journalists and locals who had gathered outside the cultural center to move on. At around 3.30am. By 4.40am all of the removal crates were ready. The work of cataloguing the items and getting them ready to move was expected to take a further seven to eight hours.

In response to the operation, Lleidas head of culture affairs, Josep Borrel, on Monday warned that the operation could harm those Aragonese who lived near the Catalan border and accessed health services in El Segria.

Under the cover of darkness and using militarized police, as always, using a coup detat by Spain to pillage Catalonia with absolute impunity. This is the type of country defended by Ciudadanos, the Catalan Socialists and the Popular Party.

It could end up being the case that people in Aragon ending up losing out because there are services that Catalonia provides to the Aragonese in a generous and disinterested manner, and which they pay for, like health services, which we may end up reconsidering, said Borrel.

Meanwhile the spokesperson for the pro-independence Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) in the Spanish Congress spoke of the humiliation of the transfer of the artworks, noting it served as a warning over the application of Article 155.

Sacked Catalan premier Carles Puigdemont, currently in Belgium after fleeing Catalonia after the regional parliaments unilateral declaration of independence, also weighed in, saying on Twitter that Spain had profited from a coup detat to pillage Catalonia with impunity.

A total of 97 artworks from Sijena arrived in Catalonia when nuns from the convent moved to Valldoreix, Barcelona after leaving their former home. The works were then sold to the Catalan government but the Aragon government denounced some of these sales, arguing it had first right of refusal.

English version by George Mills.
Tehrans representative in the Iranian Parliament, Mahmoud Sadeqi says 27 graduate students have been banned from continuing their education in the current Iranian academic year.

Citing Sadeqi, state-run Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) reported that despite attempts made, 12 PhD and 15 masters students were not allowed to enter the universities this year.

According to Sadeqi, 151 PhD and 398 masters students deemed starred were allowed to register and continue their education after signing a written commitment. The written commitment apparently is meant to insure that students stay away from political activities.

But there are conflicting numbers as to how many students have actually been barred this year. Other sources report much higher numbers.

Starred students is a term coined in 2005 following Mahmud Ahmadinejads first presidential term to refer to students deemed politically unreliable or undesirable by Irans intelligence apparatuses.

An asterisk or star is added next to their name.

However, Sadeqi says the situation has improved since 2013, when Hassan Rouhani got elected president, replacing Ahmadinejad.

Based on a 2013 research by a student group, out of a total of 1,000 starred university students in Iran 768 received their star during Ahmadinejads presidency and 250 were expelled from the universities.

Referring to the students written commitment as a step in the right direction, Sadeqi noted, Such commitments are an inquisition and a type of pressure on students that goes against the Iranian Constitution. This seems to be a contradiction, which can be explained by the MP trying to be politically correct in the context of the Islamic Republic.

Earlier, Sadeqi had insisted that since denying peoples rights is against the law such commitments have no legal value even if signed by the students voluntarily.

Meanwhile, Sadeqi condemned depriving students of further education without trial and solely based on reports compiled by intelligence organs.

Some of the students have been starred merely for electoral and political activities, he said.

This year, at least 150 students eligible to start graduate programs have been barred from carrying on their studies at universities, daily Jameeye Farda (Tomorrows Society) reported on November 30.

Citing an informed source at the Science, Research, and Technology Ministry, the daily said, In the new educational year, between 150 and 200 students, after passing the tests for masters and PhD degrees, have been listed as starred and barred from entering the universities.

Analysts say the number of starred students is much more than what is officially reported.

In an article for the reformist daily Sharq, human rights activist and journalist Emadeddin Baqi wrote last week, Based on our enquiry, the number of students who have successfully passed their exams but are not allowed to continue their education is much more than what is formally said. In fact, many of the deprived students have given up hope, leaving higher education for good.

If Rouhanis administration is really interested in solving the problem, Baqi remarked, it should call the starred students to come forward to determine the exact number of students who have been deprived of higher education.

Another legislator from Tehran, Ali Haidari, also lamented, During the monarchy, there were no starred students in Iran. Even some politically active students who might have experienced life behind bars were never deprived of continuing their education.

At a rally in 2013, Rouhani emphatically promised to address the problem when the human rights commission of an influential students association declared that more than 1,000 starred students had been barred from continuing their education in the eight years of Ahmadinejads presidency.

Last week, in his speech on Students National Day in Iran, Rouhani said, The sky is the place for stars, not universities.

Nevertheless, a year into Rouhanis first term as president, Amnesty International (AI) described the situation as grave.

Hundreds of students are deprived of further education while many of them are behind bars, AI said in a report.
Hundreds of workers at Haft Tapeh sugar cane plantation and mill complex in city of Shush, southwestern Iran, have launched a new round of strikes while holding protest rallies to demand their overdue benefits and wages.

The protesters who have been on strike since December 2, for the second consecutive day assembled in front of Haft Tapeh office on Sunday, December 10.

Haft Tapeh workers have always had to fight for their wages, pensions and rights since the complex was privatized.

In an open letter dated October 8, 2017, thousands of Haft Tapeh workers had complained that since the March 2016 sale of the sugarcane company to the private sector they had more than one year of suffering and anguishwe have been able to receive our wages only through protests and gatherings.

Furthermore, the workers have lamented for being summoned to the courts and arrested.

Insisting that the only way to save the complex is returning its ownership to the public sector, the workers have also maintained, Since the transfer of ownership to the present owners, the companys debts have increased, with the employer only thinking of reducing the permanent workforce.

Accusing the government of supporting the rich, the workers have complained that they have become poorer while the managers of the complex have become richer.

The ruling systems authorities used to boast that they were defenders of the oppressed, the workers have regretfully noted, immediately adding But now that they themselves have become rich, they [have turned into] the defenders of the rich.

Meanwhile, the International Union for Food (IUF) in a statement on December 4, reflected Haft Tape workers grave situation, saying Haft Tapeh workers have always had to fight for their wages and pensions and their rights. In 2008, workers formed an independent union - affiliated to the IUF - following a 42-day strike to demand long-standing wage arrears. In June this year, the workers again held work stoppages and demonstrations to demand payment of wage arrears of up to four months.

Referring to an international campaign for defending the rights of Haft Tapeh sugar cane complex, IUF has also asserted, In response to our international campaign, the wage arrears were partially settled; temporary workers are still owed two months' wages for 2016. But workers have not been paid since July 11.

The Geneva based IUF also believes that privatization of Haft Tapeh industrial complex has been detrimental to the workers rights, Conditions at Haft Tapeh have worsened since the company was privatized in a murky 2015 privatization deal. Pension benefits have been suspended due to the company's failure to pay into the state social security scheme.

According to IUFs statement, The Haft Tapeh workers are demanding full payment of wage and benefit arrears; recognition of the union as the workers' legal representative; reinstatement of all unjustly terminated workers; and the company's return to government ownership.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

The UK House of Lords has hosted the annual Christmas charity meeting of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society (www.anglo-azerbaijani-society.com) and celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Society.

Participants at the event included co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society Lord German on behalf of the UK, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani society on behalf of Azerbaijan, academician Nargiz Pashayeva, members of the Executive Committee of the Society and the British Parliament, employees of the diplomatic corps accredited in London, local and foreign businessmen and Azerbaijani students studying in the UK.

In his opening remarks, Lord German expressed his gratitude to co-chair of the society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva for her outstanding contribution to the activity of the organization.

Addressing the event, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva thanked those who have been actively involved in the activity of the society and who have worked with love and perseverance in its projects over the years.

Nargiz Pashayeva congratulated the participants on the upcoming New Year.

In his remarks, Azerbaijani Ambassador to the UK Tahir Taghizade hailed the 20th anniversary and achievements of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society, and lauded its support to developing cultural ties and bringing the two countries closer to each other. He thanked Nargiz Pashayeva, Lord German and other members of the society for their great contributions to the successful development of the organization and congratulated them on the jubilee.

Following the event, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva highlighted the Society's activities and its humanitarian and charitable work over 20 years of its establishment.
Details added (first version posted on 11:04)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation of the Russian State Duma, led by the head of the committee on Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, Leonid Kalashnikov.

The sides hailed the successful development of bilateral relations in various fields and noted the role of interparliamentary cooperation in strengthening the bilateral ties.

President Ilham Aliyev emphasized the contribution of the Baku-hosted joint meeting of the Committee of the Azerbaijani Parliament on International and Inter-parliamentary Relations and the Russian State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots to this cooperation. The head of state stressed the importance of expanding cooperation at parliamentary level.

Leonid Kalashnikov extended Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodins greetings to the head of state. He said he has been deeply impressed by the developmental processes taking place in Baku since the first days of his arrival to Azerbaijan.

Underlining that December 12 commemorates national leader Heydar Aliyev, Leonid Kalashnikov said that this great personality is revered in Russia too.

President Ilham Aliyev thanked for Vyacheslav Volodins greetings, and asked Leonid Kalashnikov to communicate his greetings to the chairman of the State Duma.
Baku, Azerbaijan, December 12

Trend:

History recognizes Heydar Aliyev as a bright personality, whose light today illuminates the development of modern Azerbaijan.

The role and importance of the national leader, one of the most respected politicians of the entire Turkic world, are so great that his path of life, managerial philosophy, level of competence and influence will be studied for a long time by historians.

Heydar Aliyev played a unique role in the history of the Azerbaijani people and the revival of the country. He made a valuable contribution to the development of his people and his country.

Heydar Aliyev is the pride of the nation. Remarkable achievements of the country, its high international prestige, stable and sustainable development are all connected with the name of this great political leader and his wise strategy.

The phenomenal personality of the national leader played a key role in the historical accomplishments of modern Azerbaijan. His invaluable achievements enabled the young state to stand on feet and to enter into the 21st century as an independent country. Thanks to his great leadership skills, the main constitutional political institutions were formed in the country.

A 35-year history of Azerbaijan, covering the period from the late 1960s to the beginning of the 21st century is associated with the name of Heydar Aliyev.

His charismatic leadership, firm will, political foresight, managerial talent, leadership and global outlook most clearly manifested themselfes in the early 1990s - during the struggle of Azerbaijan for independence and national statehood. During the period when the Azerbaijani people stood face-to-face with serious and fatal problems, Heydar Aliyev undertook a mission to save the nation from the threat of destruction. So, his historical merits in preserving the independent statehood and national unity of Azerbaijan are unprecedented.

He managed to inspire the nation, withdraw it from the crisis, and ultimately turn Azerbaijan into a stable and rapidly developing country.

Heydar Aliyev came to power twice in a very complicated times, and both times convinced people to believe in themselves and unite in the name of solidarity.

Modernization can be the most accurate word to describe his activity. Deep modernization of the republic began namely during Heydar Aliyev's leadership in Azerbaijan in the Soviet period. During the Soviet era, he managed to conserve spiritual and cultural values and was an example of how carefully the people should treat their spiritual wealth.

In 1993 Heydar Aliyev was back to state power in Azerbaijan -- this time at the insistent call of people. The Western press wrote then: Azerbaijan is in such a difficult situation that even such an experienced politician as Heydar Aliyev is unlikely to be able to help the country. But he surprised everyone. Azerbaijan became the center of attention of the leading powers.

A real politician and a true statesman could explain people that no one but the nation itself will answer the question of what the future of Azerbaijan is, and how to boost the economy and culture.

Heydar Aliyevs multi-vector policy became a state strategy, which brought prosperity and stability to the country. Along with achieving a political stability in Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev laid the foundations for the economic independence of the country.

Contract of the Century signed with the Western oil companies in Baku on September 20, 1994 was of vital importance for Azerbaijan and played a crucial role in the establishment of internal stability in the country, and achievement of success in foreign policy.

Moreover, Heydar Aliyev initiated the development of a new Constitution, which was adopted in 1995. "We need to develop and adopt a constitution, so that it would become a historical document, the Basic Law, providing for a long period of stable existence of Azerbaijan on the basis of democratic principles," Aliyev said.

Political activity of the great leader Heydar Aliyev is an honorable page of national history and the way of life he passed represents criterion of love and devotion to his native land.

December 12 sees the 14th death anniversary of Azerbaijans national leader Heydar Aliyev.

On this day the people of Azerbaijan pay tribute to the loving memory of Heydar Aliyev, the national leader of the Azerbaijani people, wise leader and genius personality.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS) hosted a ceremony of admission of a new Stream 18 group of trainees to School of Project Management (SPM), which is a joint initiative of BHOS, BP and company partners, British company TwentyEighty Strategy Execution and  George Washington University (USA).

The event gathered the Higher School Rector Elmar Gasimov, First Deputy Chairman of Azersu Open Joint-Stock Company (OJSC) Teyyub Jabbarov, and BP communications, external affairs, strategy and Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey region Vice president Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli. SOCAR Deputy Vice president for HR, IT and regulations Asif Shafaggatov, Chief of Staff of OJSC Azersu Mohsin Guliyev, and newly admitted students also attended the ceremony.

In his welcoming speech at the opening of the ceremony, Elmar Gasimov told about remarkable achievements attained by SPM. He introduced the guests and expressed his gratitude to them for attention and continuous assistance to the School of Project Management, which operates with organizational support from the Higher School. Speaking at the gathering, Teyyub Jabbarov, Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli and Asif Shafaggatov emphasized the important role played by SPM in training of project managers and wished the new trainees every success in their study. At the end of the ceremony, the students of the Stream 18 group introduced themselves and their organizations including, among others, SOCAR, OJSC Azersu, BP, CBMC, CNFA, Ernst&Young, Neftqaztikinti, Azrkimya, Azneft Production Union and Worley Parsons.

Interest of state organizations and private companies to the School of Project Management has grown considerably last year. They send their best specialists to study at SPM so that they can become project managers in the future. The SPM curriculum, which comprises seven modules of training, is based on Master degree academic program of the George Washington University. Upon successful completion of the study, the trainees will be awarded Master certificates from the university.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

EY participated at Caspian & Central Asia Rail conference, which took place on 6-7 December 2017 at JW Marriott Absheron hotel.

The event was as a professional platform for meeting rail operators from all over the region, gaining insight into regulatory developments delivered by ministers of railway, discussing options and opportunities with investors and banks, learning more about latest technology from service and solution providers and developing new partnerships with businesses initiated, influenced and concluded on site.

Such trends as how rail operators are transforming operations in the age of digitalization, building new high-speed rail lines, or managing cross-border efficiency and security were highlighted during the conference.

Boris Poretskiy, EY Russia Partner was moderating the panel on 6 December where such topics as reconnecting Eurasia, regional cooperation, funding and financing, digital transformation and others were discussed. He shared: A great conference that for the first time brought together all key issues and trends of Azerbaijan as a major Eurasian rail hub. The conference also gave a detailed international perspective, with very relevant state of the industry updates

About EY

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and economies around the world. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In doing so, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients, and for our communities.

EY works together with companies across the CIS and assists them in realizing their business goals. 5,000 professionals work at 20 CIS offices (in Baku, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Kazan, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don, Togliatti, Vladivostok, Almaty, Astana, Bishkek, Kyiv, Tashkent, Tbilisi, Minsk, and other locations).

EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

EY in Azerbaijan

EY made a major commitment to the development of Azerbaijan and the region by opening the office in Baku 23 years ago. Today, in addition to being the leading audit and consulting firm in Azerbaijan, we are the leading professional services firm in the region. As a result of our experience and competence, we have been able to assist both domestic and international companies as well as state-owned entities to develop and manage the challenges of the international economy.

There are currently more than 200 people working in our Baku office that serve our clients in Azerbaijan. EYs strength in the Caspian Region and the firms commitment of resources are important to the entities operating in the region. It means that as we grow, EY will continue to demonstrate a tradition of hiring and training local professionals to be leaders in our practice.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

On December 11, villages in the Zardab and Aghjabadi districts celebrated the completion of medical facility and livestock management projects made possible by the joint efforts of the United States and Azerbaijan.

The United States, via USAID, and the Government of Azerbaijan co-financed the projects, which were managed by the East-West Management Institute. The U.S. Embassy, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Ministry of Economy, local Executive Committees, and municipal government representatives attended the events.

Residents in the Alibayli village of Zardab district and in the Kahrizli and Hindarkh villages of Aghjabadi district built medical facilities able to meet each communitys healthcare needs, with technical support from the East-West management Institute. These new facilities, which include an examination room and a waiting room, will improve the day-to-day access to healthcare for more than 13,600 people in these three villages.

In the Huseynkhanli village of Zardab district, residents built a feed-grinding and seed-cleaning facility that increases the local availability of affordable animal feed. The new facility benefits more than 450 people in Huseynkhanli village whose livelihoods depend on cattle-breeding and agriculture.

The United States and Azerbaijan have completed 112 community projects in 99 Azerbaijani communities. These projects have benefitted nearly 200,000 people. The projects are made possible by USAIDs Socio-Economic Development Activity (SEDA) program. Implemented by the East-West Management Institute, SEDA promotes cooperation between citizens, civil society organizations, and the government to advance socio-economic development and improve the quality of life in rural areas.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 12

By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:

The captain of the Boeing-777 aircraft, which had previously landed in Baku, decided that the passengers should leave the plane.

"Passengers will be accommodated in the transit zone of the airport. They, if desired, will be provided with everything needed, including food and beverages", the Baku airport told Trend.

00:00 (GMT+4)

The Baku airport is ready to receive the passengers of the flight and provide them with appropriate assistance, the airport told Trend.

"However, passengers have not yet left the aircraft by the decision of the captain of the aircraft, who is in charge of the matter", the airport said.

21:45 (GMT+4) An aircraft of British Airways, flying from Mumbai to London, made an emergency landing in the Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku, the airport told Trend Dec. 11.

The emergency landing was made after smoke was detected in the aircraft.

"135 passengers and 17 crew members were on board Boeing-777. The plane made a successful landing and is at the Heydar Aliyev Airport now", the airport said.
A weekend of snowfall has brought an early Christmas for U.K. natural gas bulls.

Same-day prices surged to their highest level in almost four years as demand jumped with a plunge in temperatures after snow covered much of the country over the weekend, Bloomberg reports.

The contract soared as much as 13 percent, the most since June, as forecasters predict more snow and colder-than-usual weather while outages curbed supplies to some terminals.

The average temperature in the U.K. for the rest of Monday will be 1 degree Celsius (34 Fahrenheit), compared with a 10-year average of 5.2 Celsius, according to Bloombergs weather model. Supplies in the system could plunge 11 percent by the end of the day, according to network manager National Grid Plc.

Whilst the weather-related heating demand was expected, the reduction in flows via a number of terminals was not, Nick Campbell, an energy risk manager at Inspired Energy Plc, said by email. Therefore this has left the system tight and battling to pull in more gas from the continent.

The U.K.s Met Office issued a yellow warning, flagging the risk of accidents from ice after dumps of snow over the weekend disrupted travel. Still, the impact was expected to be much less widespread and less significant than across parts of England and Wales on Sunday, according to its website.

Supplies from the Bacton terminal in Norfolk are below the 10-day average after Total SA said exports from the Elgin Franklin field that feed it have been reduced by about 60 percent from normal levels, potentially until Wednesday evening. Flows into the St. Fergus terminal in Scotland also plunged. Storage supply picked up some of the slack, rising to the highest since Dec. 1.

Within-day prices jumped as high as 65 pence a therm ($8.69 per million British thermal units), before trading at 62.25 pence at 10:12 a.m. in London, according to broker data compiled by Bloomberg. The day-ahead contract rose as much as 7.4 percent.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

Azerbaijani banks have offered to exempt insolvent borrowers from taxes, a source in the countrys banking sector told Trend.

Representatives of Azerbaijans Financial Market Supervisory Authority, the countrys Banks Association and heads of local banks discussed this issue at a meeting held Dec. 8.

The source noted that insolvent borrowers may be temporarily or fully exempt from taxes. At the same time, the source didnt specify from which taxes the borrowers may be exempt.

Other proposals made at the meeting included creation of a mechanism for managing troubled assets and the development of the so-called Baku Approach. This approach may be created by analogy with the London Approach or the Istanbul Approach.

It was proposed to restructure troubled loans and reconsider the terms of lending, so that borrowers could repay their debts more easily. At the same time, the Baku Approach envisages banks joint restructure of loans of a borrower if a person has several overdue loans in different banks.

In January-October 2017, the volume of overdue loans in Azerbaijan amounted to 1.889 billion manats, which is 37.4 percent more than in the same period last year, according to the Central Bank of Azerbaijan. The share of overdue loans in the total loan portfolio of banks and non-bank credit organizations was 15.55 percent.

(1.7 manats = 1 USD on Dec. 11)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Anvar Mammadov  Trend:

Belarus is interested in opening a trading house in Azerbaijan, General Director of the Grodno Branch of the Belarus Chamber of Commerce and Industry Mechislav Kostyuk told Trend.

"If the authorities support this intention, Belarus is ready to open a trading house in Baku or in any other district of Azerbaijan," Kostyuk said. "This step will be useful for both countries."

He added that the opening of Azerbaijans trading house in Belarus significantly increased interest in Azerbaijani products in the country.

Touching upon the development of trade relations between the two countries, Kostyuk noted that Belarus is interested in the supply of Azerbaijani products.

"We want to supply citrus and dried fruits from Azerbaijan to Belarus," he added. "Grodno Tobacco Factory Neman OJSC, one of our biggest tobacco factories, is also interested in buying raw material from Azerbaijan. In turn, we are ready to offer Azerbaijan a wide range of quality meat and dairy products, in particular, dried baby food."

Azerbaijans trade turnover with Belarus in January-October 2017 amounted to $113.15 million, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 1.

Trend:

Azerbaijan and seven other countries are ready to increase their contribution to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, the UN website reported on Dec.11.

"36 donors pledged $383 million to the Fund. Furthermore, Azerbaijan and seven other countries announced intention to increase their contribution compared to last year. These donors are Australia, Azerbaijan, Russian Federation, Estonia and Mongolia. However, this amount is far from the requested $1 billion," the report reads.

The Organization's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), established in 2016,is a pool of funding that supports critical relief operations in crises around the world  as humanitarian needs have increased from $5.2 billion in 2005 to over $24 billion today.

This year, CERF, managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has funded life-saving work, allocating nearly $130 million to help prevent famine in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

The fund also supported relief responses in other places, including for Palestine refugees in Gaza, for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, and those affected by hurricanes Irma and Maria in the Caribbean.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Nigar Guliyeva  Trend:

Kazakhstan's JSC "Eurasian Trade System" Commodity Exchange (ETS Commodity Exchange) signed memorandums of mutual cooperation with the largest Kazakh and international transport and logistics companies Astyk Trans and the Transport Service Center to provide a set of specialized services for the transportation of Kazakh agricultural products abroad, the company reported.

Under the agreements, the transportation and logistics companies will provide the Kazakh and foreign clients of the ETS Export Center with support on issues such as advising and providing recommendations on transportation and logistics, calculation of tariffs for freight forwarding services for brokers-members of the Commodity exchange, issue of transportation documents for the route, registration and payment of freight charges; information of customers about the location of the cargo and other services in accordance with the transportation of export goods of Kazakh agricultural producers.

The largest operator of grain wagons Astyk Trans JSC transported 544,000 tons of grain in October this year, or 63 percent of all the shipments. The company manages 55 percent of all the existing grain wagons in Kazakhstan, or 5 ,100 wagons from the total number (9,200 units) of the grain storage fleet actually operating in October, which are used for the transportation of Kazakh grain.

The Center for Transport Services" JSC operates on the railway transportation market of Kazakhstan for twelve years and renders a wide range of freight forwarding services in the territory of Kazakhstan, China, CIS countries, Baltic, East Asia according to the "door-to-door" scheme, operates rolling stock, transit declarations at the butt stations of NC" KTZh" JSC and other services.

"Eurasian Trade System" Commodity Exchange (ETS Commodity Exchange) JSC was established in 2008. The ETS Commodity Exchange is focused on spot trading in exchange commodities. Bidding participants - Kazakhstan and international exchange brokers, dealers. The exchange was established to improve the mechanism of state regulation in the field of domestic and foreign trade, to improve transparency of trade operations, to develop an organized wholesale market in the country by eliminating intermediary links.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Maxim Tsurkov - Trend:

The Russian airline UTair received permission to increase the number of flights on the Moscow-Ganja route from five to seven times a week, says a protocol of the Interdepartmental Commission for the selection of carriers on international routes of Russias Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia).

The protocol also notes that the comission refused the request of "Ural Airlines" for the same route.

UTair obtained permission to fly on the Moscow-Ganja route in March 2016.

Currently, the company operates flights on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

Banks in Azerbaijan call for reducing the reserve rates for loans, a source in the banking sector said Dec.11.

Local bankers met with representatives of the Financial Market Supervisory Authority and the Association of Banks at the office of YapiKredi Azerbaijan last week. During the meeting, the bankers made a proposal to free "problem borrowers" from taxes. This would ease the financial situation for customers who borrowed funds, and simplify debt repayment.

The source said that another proposal voiced during the meeting was associated with reducing reserve rates for loans.

"This issue can be considered both separately and within the so-called "Baku Approach", which the Financial Market Supervisory Authority is currently developing," the source said.

The "Baku Approach" provides for comprehensive measures to deal with problem loans, including restructuring and facilitating credit terms.

The source said that, over the past two years, banks have restructured a large number of loans, but they implemented these measures separately, and it did not give desired result as a whole. Therefore, it was decided to implement comprehensive measures and for this purpose banks can create a consortium, as it was, for example, in Turkey within the "Istanbul Approach" in early 2000s.

There are 31 banks in Azerbaijan, including two state-owned banks.
Baku, Azerbaijan

Anvar Mammadov Trend:

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will start developing a new strategy for operations in Azerbaijan next year, Aziz Haydarov, senior portfolio management specialist at ADBs Azerbaijan Resident Mission, told Trend.

He said the new strategy will cover 2019-2023, adding that ADB is in constant contact with the government of Azerbaijan regarding new projects.

Touching upon the spheres of further cooperation with Azerbaijan, Haydarov noted that along with traditional spheres, new directions could be included in the strategy.

"At the moment, our areas of partnership with Azerbaijan include transport, water supply and sewerage, energy and public administration, I think we will continue and even intensify cooperation in these areas, and we do not exclude the possibility of cooperation in the social sector, given that in this direction there is interest from the relevant structures," said Haydarov.

"In particular, we are interested in working in the field of vocational education.We are also actively discussing the preparation pilot projects on public-private partnerships," he said.

ADB approved previous country strategy for Azerbaijan in 2014.

In September 2017, ADB approved a business plan for operations in Azerbaijan for 2018-2020, according to which Azerbaijan will receive funds from ADB only in the form of ordinary capital resources. The estimated cost of the ADB lending program for three years is $1.6 billion. The total cost of projects, taking into account the share of the Azerbaijani government, is 1.985 billion dollars.

ADB was founded in 1966 and 67 states are its members. The banks headquarters is located in Manila, Philippines.

Azerbaijan became an ADB member in 1999. Since joining ADB, Azerbaijan has received grants and loans amounting to $4.1 billion.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Maxim Tsurkov - Trend:

The US imported 527,000 barrels of oil products from Azerbaijan in January-September 2017, according to the data released by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The United States resumed import of oil products from Azerbaijan starting January 2017, when 237,000 barrels were imported.

Last time, the US imported oil products from Azerbaijan in July 2015. The volume of deliveries in 2015 amounted to 718,000 barrels.

The US also suspended the import of Azerbaijani oil products from 2009 to 2012.

Oil products in Azerbaijan are produced at the Baku Heydar Aliyev Oil Refinery, which is part of the Azerbaijani state-owned SOCAR.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec.11

By Huseyn Valiyev  Trend:

The State Fund for the Development of Information Technologies of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of Azerbaijan is ready to issue grants for the implementation of those startups that will really be interesting and prove to be effective, the ministry told Trend, commenting on increasing the volume of grants allocated for IT -projects that became winners of grant competitions of the State Fund.

According to the ministry, the decision on the issue of financing is taken at the level of the State Fund's supervisory board, and there are no restrictions on the issue of financing, except that the projects should be interesting and have a perspective, and the amount of the grant that is currently allocated by the State Fund for their implementation is quite is optimal and can cover the initial needs of start-ups.

"We believe that the amount within 10,000 manats is quite optimal for the startup realization, but we have repeatedly stated that if there are very interesting projects, we are ready to consider the issue of raising the volume of grants. Everything depends on the projects that we are offered," the ministry said.

The maximum amount of a grant to support IT projects can reach 300,000 manats (for a period of 36 months). Small grants are issued in the amount of 10,000 to 100,000 manats, medium - from 100,000 to 200,000 manats, and large ones - from 200,000 to 300,000 manats.

In general, the ministry reported, the quality of IT projects offered in grant competitions held by the state fund for the development of information technologies is growing year by year.
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Dec. 11

By Diana Aliyeva  Trend:

Today, on Dec. 11, Ashgabat will host a meeting of foreign ministers of the five Central Asian states and Afghanistan, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said in a message.

The meeting is planned to be held within the framework of the events taking place in the capital of Turkmenistan in honor of the 10th anniversary of the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia located in Ashgabat.

Two international conferences titled Neutrality Policy and Preventive Diplomacy in International Relations: Experience of Turkmenistan and Its Importance and The UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia: 10 Years of Cooperation with Central Asia for Peace and Prosperity of the Region became the main events of the anniversary.

The UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia is a special political mission of the United Nations Organization established in 2007 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan upon the initiative of the five Central Asian states.

The role of the Center is to identify and address existing and potential threats to regional stability. In addition, the Center facilitates partnerships between the governments of Central Asia in cooperation with regional and international organizations.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Nigar Guliyeva  Trend:

President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbay Jeenbekov will visit Uzbekistan, the Information Policy Department of the President's Office reported Dec.11.

The president has today received Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldaev, who informed the head of state about the preparation of the president's official visit to Uzbekistan scheduled for Dec. 13-14.

The head of state gave a number of instructions to the Minister for careful preparation for the upcoming foreign policy events.

In addition, the minister reported on the results of participation in the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Vienna on Dec.7-8, as well as an official visit to Serbia.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec.11

By Nigar Guliyeva  Trend:

Uzbekistan supports the peaceful foreign policy of Turkmenistan, Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov said, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Dec.11.

Kamilov made the remarks at the international conference "Neutrality Policy and Preventive Diplomacy in International Relations: Experience and the Role of Turkmenistan" in Ashgabat Dec.11.

Addressing the event, the minister on behalf of the delegation of Uzbekistan congratulated the Turkmen side on the national holiday - the 22nd anniversary of the proclamation of Turkmenistan's neutrality.

"The international recognition of the neutrality status of Turkmenistan was an event that became one of the turning points, largely predetermining the main stages of state construction and the priorities of the country's foreign policy," Kamilov said.

A milestone of in the bilateral relations was the state visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Turkmenistan in March this year, which resulted in the signing of a strategic partnership agreement between the two countries that gave a powerful impetus to revealing new potentials for bilateral cooperation.

Later, the Uzbek delegation took part in the international conference "The UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia: 10 Years of Cooperation with Central Asia for the Peace and Prosperity of the Region", held in the Turkmen capital.
Tehran, Iran, Dec. 8

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Irans strategic National Development Fund is likely to grow in deposit in the coming fiscal year (to start March 21), a survey of the newly-proposed budget bill shows.

According to the bill, which was finalized by the government on December 6, the government would have to allocate 32 percent of its oil revenues to the fund.

However, the factor that would make the fund richer in comparison to previous years is the large margin that the government has considered between its proposed oil price for the year concerned and the current prices in the global market.

The bill puts the oil price for the coming year at $49 per barrel. This is while Irans crude price surpassed $60 per barrel in November.

Nevertheless, a recent OPEC agreement to keep output capped also raised hopes for stable prices. Mohammad Ali Khatibi, former Iranian representative at OPEC, told Trend that preservation of the cap was a sign of common ground among politically diverse powers, adding that the producers would prefer prices remain somewhere between $60 and $70 per barrel.

According to Iranian law, if oil is sold at a higher price than what is stated in the budget bill, the surplus revenue will be deposited at the National Development Fund.

The fund has proven a handy tool for the Iranian administration in recent years, particularly in addressing uneven development at remote areas of the country.

Having recognized poverty as a major factor to the growth of terrorism, over the past two years the Iranian government has allocated once $500 million and once more $1.5 billion to developmental projects in such areas as a basic measure to reduce the threat of terrorism infiltrating the country from underdeveloped border areas.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 8

By Khalid Kazimov  Trend:

Two Iranian ministers have announced the government's intention to turn the countrys Housing Bank into a development bank.

Speaking at an annual ordinary general assembly of Bank Maskan (Housing Bank), Irans Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Masoud Karbasian said that the government attaches importance to the plan on turning Housing Bank into a development bank, Iran's state-run IRINN TV reported.

He added that the officials in the government, Central Bank as well as Money and Credit Council will make efforts to realize the plan.

In the meantime, Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Abbas Akhoundi, said that the plan was on the government agenda since President Hassan Rouhani took office in August 2013 but the efforts in this regard have yielded no results so far.

Akhoundi urged the finance minister to seriously follow up on the issue of turning Housing Bank into a development bank.

As part of its roadmap until the end of the second term of President Hassan Rouhani in the fiscal 2021-22, Bank Maskan, the agent bank of the housing sector, aims to become a regional development force, Financial Tribune said in a late November report.

As envisioned in the roadmap document, Bank Maskan is supposed to lead the way in terms of offering financial services to housing and urban development measures as one of the main features of healthy and sustainable financing of the housing sector and transform into one of the most efficient development-specialized banks in West Asia, the bank said in an announcement.
Tehran, Iran, December 11

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will push for the freedom of Iranian-British Nazanin Zaghari jailed in Iran, according to the ministrys spokesman Bahram Qassemi.

Qassemi who was addressing a press conference, said that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will discuss the issue with the Judiciary, noting however that Zaghari's freedom will be a decision to be made by the Judiciary, Trend correspondent reported from the press conference December 11.

Iran has jailed Zaghari on charges of espionage. She was arrested in March of 2016.

Answering Trend's question, Qassemi also confirmed that during a recent visit by Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to Tehran, the Iranian side had discussed the payment of a sum of money which British news outlets have called ransom for Zagharis freedom.

Tehran and London, however, have rejected the idea of a ransom, saying the sum of money is an outstanding debt the UK owes to Iran over an uncompleted arms deal decades ago.

Insider reports have revealed that while the sum owed by the UK is around 400 million pounds, Tehran is demanding the interest as well, which would amount to about 2 billion pounds.

Qassemi confirmed that talks had been held over the money, but refrained from giving an exact amount. He said Iran welcomes open and friendly ties with the UK, but would not tolerate interference in its internal affairs.

Zaghari hailed the light at the end of the tunnel on Sunday when a fresh trial was postponed after Johnson met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

She had been scheduled to face additional charges of spreading anti-government propaganda in court on Sunday. But a senior court official told Irans Fars news agency that no hearing would be held.

Following the news, Zaghari released a statement of her own, saying: The court, the imprisonment emerged all of a sudden out of the blue, so I hope it can disappear out of the blue also  if there is enough will.

This time, again it feels close, but I am not planning it, not setting a date for myself, she added.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Resolving the Jerusalem issue is in the common interests of Turkey and Russia, which have recently made efforts for settlement of the conflict in Syria, Erdem Eren, Turkish foreign policy expert and chief coordinator of the 'Beyaz Harekat' political movement, told Trend Dec. 11.

The status of Jerusalem is an important and key moment of the peace process in the Middle East, he said, adding that Turkey and Russia focus on this issue.

Previously, US President Donald Trump proclaimed that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital after the end of the War of Independence in 1949. In 1967, after the Six Days War, it seized East Jerusalem and united it with the West Jerusalem, but the UN did not recognize this.

Embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel are located mainly in Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

The rapprochement between Russia and Turkey, as well as the cooperation of the two regional powers, is very important for achieving peace in the region, UNESCO Cultural Diplomacy, Governance and Education Chair Holder, Director of Diplomatic and Strategic Studies Center in Paris, Naciye Selin Senocak told Trend Dec. 11.

Senocak was commenting on Russian President Vladimir Putins expected visit to Turkey.

The expert said that close cooperation between Moscow and Ankara also contributes to confronting the forces that are interested in destabilizing the situation in the region after the declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

"If Ankara and Moscow continue to closely cooperate, this will stop the influence of the forces that are interested in destabilizing the situation in the Middle East," she said.

The expert said that no country and no political leader has the right to use Jerusalem, which is the capital of the three world religions, in own interests as the consequences of this can be deplorable.

Previously, US President Donald Trump proclaimed that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital after the end of the War of Independence in 1949. In 1967, after the Six Days War, it seized East Jerusalem and united it with the West Jerusalem, but the UN did not recognize this. Embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel are located mainly in Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
The most destructive wildfire raging in southern California has expanded significantly, scorching an area larger than New York City, BBC reports.

The Thomas fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties has consumed 230,000 acres in the past week.

Fanned by strong winds, it has become the fifth largest wildfire in recorded state history after it grew by more than 50,000 acres in a day.

Residents in coastal beach communities have been ordered to leave.

Evacuation orders were issued overnight on Sunday for parts of Carpinteria close to Los Padres National Forest, about 100 miles (160km) northwest of Los Angeles.

Forecasters said wind speeds were expected to increase throughout the day, before dying down again overnight.

The local fire department tweeted pictures of a wall of flames advancing on homes on the outskirts of Carpinteria early on Sunday morning.

The authorities issued a purple alert - the highest level warning - amid what it called "extremely critical fire weather", while US President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency.

On Saturday, California Governor Jerry Brown described the situation as "the new normal" and predicted vast fires, fuelled by climate change, "could happen every year or every few years".

Several firefighters have been injured, but only one person has died - a 70-year-old woman who was found dead in her car on an evacuation route.

There are also fears the blaze will seriously hit California's multi-million dollar agricultural industry.
The United States, Japan and South Korea will hold two days of missile tracking drills starting on Monday, Japans Maritime Self-Defence Force said, as tensions rise in the region over North Koreas fast-developing weapons programmes, Reuters reports.

The United States and South Korea conducted large-scale military drills last week, which the North said made the outbreak of war an established fact.

North Korea has fired missiles over Japan as it pursues nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles in defiance of U.N. sanctions and international condemnation. On Nov. 29, it test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile which it said was its most advanced yet, capable of reaching the mainland United States.

This weeks exercises will be the sixth drills sharing information in tracking ballistic missiles among the three nations, the defence force said.

It did not say whether the controversial THAAD system would be involved. The installation of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system in South Korea has angered China, which fears its powerful radar could look deep into China and threaten its own security.

North Koreas missile test last month prompted a U.S. warning that North Koreas leadership would be utterly destroyed if war were to break out. The Pentagon has mounted repeated shows of force after North Korean tests.

The United States has also pressured China and other nations to cut trade and diplomatic ties with North Korea, as part of international efforts to dry up Pyongyangs illegal cash flows that could fund its weapons programmes.

On Sunday, South Korea said it would impose new unilateral sanctions on 20 institutions and a dozen individuals in North Korea, barring any financial transactions between those sanctioned and any South Koreans.

This unilateral sanction will prevent illegal funds flowing to North Korea and contribute to reinforce international communities sanctions against North Korea, South Koreas finance ministry said in a statement.
The United Nations appealed on Monday to countries worldwide to take in 1,300 mainly African refugees stranded in Libya, many of them mistreated while kept in appalling conditions in detention, Reuters reports.

Niger has agreed to temporarily host the most vulnerable being evacuated, including unaccompanied children and single mothers, pending their processing and departure for resettlement, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement.

In order to address the immediate protection needs and extreme vulnerabilities of the persons of concern who will be evacuated to Niger, UNHCR urgently requests 1,300 places for resettlement for this situation, the agency said.

A first group of 25 refugees from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Sudan were evacuated from Libya to Niger last month, it added.

This is a desperate call for solidarity and humanity. We need to get extremely vulnerable refugees out of Libya as soon as possible, said Volker Turk, UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection.

Images broadcast by CNN earlier this month appeared to show migrants being auctioned off as slaves by Libyan traffickers, sparking outrage in Europe and anger in Africa.

Numbers of detainees swelled after boat departures for Italy from the smuggling hub of Sabratha were largely blocked this year.

On Friday, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), called on social media giants to make it harder for people smugglers to use their platforms to lure West African migrants to Libya where they can face detention, torture, slavery or death. Facebook and WhatsApp did not reply to requests by Reuters for comment.
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At least 50,000 passengers were forced to wait for the recovery of international air traffic departures as well as inbound flights, Sputnik reported, citing The Independent. According to media reports, nearly 20,000 other travelers will have to stay in European airports.

The airports press service confirmed that hundreds of flights had been delayed or cancelled at UK's Heathrow Airport due to heavy snowfall.

Some of the stranded passengers, however claimed on Twitter that there was not enough snow to create such a large-scale flight disruption.

Media reports suggested that the problem was due to a fast growing queue of planes waiting to be de-iced. Heavy snowfall foiling flight schedules at one of the busiest air hubs in Europe came after torrential icy precipitation hit the outskirts of Heathrow on Sunday, forcing ground services to deal with planes affected by the rain first. But as weather conditions worsened, anti-freezing procedures had to be repeated, delaying flights that landed after the snowfall.

"Heathrow Airport remains open. However, we regret that weather conditions across the UK are resulting in some passengers experiencing disruption to their travel arrangements. Airlines are responsible for ensuring their flights are fully de-iced before they are operated, and this is resulting in some delays and cancellations," the Sunday statement of Heathrow Airport's press service said.

Heathrow administration suggested that passengers check the status of their flights prior to traveling to the airport.

The deepest snow (12 inches) was registered in the village of Sennybridge, Wales. Media reports say that hundreds of UK schools will be closed on Monday.

According to the BBC, the heavy snowfall also resulted in power cuts as well as a disruption of rail and road travel across the nation.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

It is planned to adopt certain decisions aimed against Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel at an emergency summit of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Jerusalem to be held Dec. 13 in Istanbul, the Turkish media reported Dec. 11.

First of all, the OIC member countries will create a special commission on Jerusalem, according to the report.

In case if other states also decide to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the OIC member countries will reconsider relations with these states, the report said.

The OIC member countries may recall their ambassadors from the US in protest against Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel, according to the report.

The OIC member countries may also impose economic sanctions on Israel, the report noted.

Previously, US President Donald Trump proclaimed that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital after the end of the War of Independence in 1949. In 1967, after the Six Day War, it seized East Jerusalem and united it with the West Jerusalem, but the UN did not recognize this. Embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel are located mainly in Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

The position of Russia, and in particular of President Vladimir Putin, in the Jerusalem issue is very important, Murat Akan, Turkish expert on foreign policy, told Trend Dec. 11.

He was commenting on the Russian presidents expected visit to Turkey.

On Dec. 11, Putin will pay a visit to Ankara, where he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel will be discussed in the meeting, according to the expert.

Jerusalem is of great importance not only for Muslims, but for Christians as well, said Akan.

He noted that if Putins position on the issue coincides with the UN decisions, the position of the US may get complicated.

If China also supports the position of the UN and Russia, Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel will not make any sense, the expert said.

"This will be the seventh meeting of Russian and Turkish presidents during this year, which is no coincidence," Akan added. The expert believes that the meeting of the Russian and Turkish presidents may be considered as a signal about a change in the balance of powers in the world.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump proclaimed that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital after the end of the War of Independence in 1949. In 1967, after the Six Day War, it seized East Jerusalem and united it with the West Jerusalem, but the UN did not recognize this. Embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel are located mainly in Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Against the backdrop of events taking place in the Middle East, and particularly in Jerusalem after the US recognized the city as the capital of Israel, Ankara, Moscow and Tehran should increasingly strengthen relations in the region, and this may help resolve the issue, Ufuk Coskun, editor-in-chief of Turkeys Bolgepostasi newspaper, told Trend.

Coskun, who is also a columnist at the Milat Gazetesi newspaper, was commenting on the expected visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Turkey.

Coskun said the US President Donald Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel was based on his own political views and a political foundation for such a decision was laid during Trumps visit to Saudi Arabia.

He said while some Islamic countries believe that by such a decision Trump actually declared war to the Muslim world, Riyadhs position, in fact, goes against the general opinion of Muslim states.

At the same time, Orthodox Christians throughout the world, including in Russia, have strongly condemned Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel, Coskun said.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

The Turkish Air Force attacked the positions of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) terrorists in northern Iraq, the Turkish General Staff said in a message Dec. 11.

According to the message, air operations were held in Khakurk region in northern Iraq.

During the operations, PKK strongholds were destroyed and 17 terrorists were killed.

The conflict between Turkey and the PKK, which demands the creation of an independent Kurdish state, has continued for more than 30 years and has claimed more than 40,000 lives.

The UN and the European Union list the PKK as a terrorist organization.

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Istanbul police have detained a group of young people who were praying in the Hagia Sophia Museum in protest against Jerusalems recognition as the capital of Israel by the US, the Turkish media reported Dec. 11.

The detainees were supporters of Turkeys Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

Earlier, US President Donald Trump proclaimed that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital after the end of the War of Independence in 1949. In 1967, after the Six Day War, it seized East Jerusalem and united it with the West Jerusalem, but the UN did not recognize this. Embassies of countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel are located mainly in Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday met in the Turkish capital Ankara, Anadolu reported.

The meeting, which is closed to the media, started at 7.45 p.m. local time (1645GMT) at the Presidential Complex.

The leaders will exchange views on bilateral relations as well as regional and international developments, particularly Syria.

After meeting Erdogan one-on-one, Putin and his delegation will be hosted at a banquet which will be followed by a joint news conference with the two leaders.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 11

Trend:

The trade turnover between Turkey and Russia in the first 10 months of this year increased by 30 percent, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey said during a joint press conference with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Ankara.

The representatives of Turkey and Russia will hold a meeting within the current week to hold meetings and specify the purchase of the S-400 missile system.

Erdogan also touched upon the situation in the Middle East. Regarding the events in connection with the US decision on Jerusalem, he noted that the approaches of Russia and Turkey to this issue are similar and the sides will continue joint efforts on this issue.

"Cooperation between Turkey and Russia is getting stronger day by day. Agreed steps are being taken in the political sphere,", Erdogan added.
Single-Dose Vaccine Could Provide Faster Protection in Cholera Epidemics

Each year there are more than three million cases of cholera worldwide, a disease transmitted through contaminated food and water that hits developing countries particularly hard. While the standard regimen for protecting against cholera with existing non-living oral cholera vaccines includes administering two doses over a two-week period, research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) now shows that giving a stronger single-dose of a live oral vaccine could be an effective tool in controlling outbreaks more quickly.

The UMSOM research, published in Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, was conducted in Mali and included 150 participants. Researchers assessed the effectiveness (ability to stimulate vibriocidal antibody, an immune response that correlates with protection) of a single high-dose of live cholera vaccine CVD 103-HgR, which was developed by UMSOM's Center for Vaccine Development (CVD) and licensed and manufactured by PaxVax, versus the standard two-dose killed vaccine approach.

While the two-dose inactivated vaccine approach has been used and made available for protecting against seasonal increases in cholera cases, a stronger single-dose live oral vaccine approach may be a more effective way to rapidly protect individuals in big outbreaks, the research found.

"Immunization with a single-dose cholera vaccine that could rapidly protect people in low-income countries who have not previously been exposed to cholera would be a significant asset in helping control outbreaks and lower mortality rates," said Myron M. Levine, M.D., D.T.P.H., the Simon and Bessie Grollman Distinguished Professor and Associate Dean for Global Health, Vaccinology and Infectious Disease at UMSOM and senior author in the study. "Given the highly encouraging results, we envision that as a matter of priority high-dose CVD 103-HgR will now be evaluated more completely in low income countries menaced by cholera."

Severe Cholera Cases Lead to Death

Cholera transmission is endemic in many areas of Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. In severe cases, patients pass large amounts of diarrhea that causes rapid dehydration and ultimately death if left untreated. This year, the World Health Organization estimated that in Yemen alone there have been a million cases of cholera.

Researchers will now study whether the single high-dose live vaccine is suitable for initiating vaccination campaigns early during outbreaks to nip them in the bud, as well as for preemptive vaccination to diminish the burden of expected seasonal increases of endemic cholera in countries where this disease persists as a public health problem. Finally, since young children less than 5 years of age suffer the highest incidence of cholera but are less well protected than adults by the current two-dose oral killed vaccines, it will also be important to assess the effectiveness of a single high-dose of CVD 103-HgR live vaccine in protecting young children.

"The data published in Clinical and Vaccine Immunology is a first step in demonstrating the potential utility of a new formulation of Vaxchora (CVD 103-HgR) at a higher dose in endemic settings," according to Nima Farzan, Chief Executive Officer and President of PaxVax.

"Vaccine development is a critical part of our research here at the University of Maryland School of Medicine," said UMSOM Dean E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, who is also Executive Vice President, Medical Affairs, University of Maryland and the John and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor. "For two centuries the school of medicine has been at the forefront of treating diseases among the most underserved areas."

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About the Vaccine

The vaccine, named Vaxchora, is a single-dose, live-attenuated oral vaccine. It was approved in 2016 by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in U.S. adults 18-64 years old traveling to regions where cholera is common. PaxVax, a global biotechnology company based in California, received marketing approval from the FDA for the vaccine, and CVD scientists have been working closely with PaxVax since 2009 to develop the vaccine and secure FDA licensure approval.
For months, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has claimed that the Republican tax plan will more than pay for itself by generating faster economic growth, adding that more than 100 people in his department were working around the clock on modeling various estimates of the plans effects. But the promised Treasury analysis supporting that claim had been conspicuously missing from the debate over the tax plan.

Maybe the administration was better off that way.

The Treasury Department on Monday released a one-page analysis of the Senate tax bill  470 words, including footnotes, on a roughly 470-page bill  asserting that the Trump administrations overall economic agenda would generate about $1.8 trillion in additional revenue over 10 years, more than offsetting the roughly $1.5 trillion cost of the tax cuts.

But the assumptions in the Office of Tax Policy (OTP) report make it read less like a rigorous analysis of the tax plans real-world effects and more like an exercise in wish fulfillment. It would appear that OTP was pressed to validate somehow the secretarys position that the tax bill would pay for itself, Bill Hoagland, a former Senate Budget Republican staff director and senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center, told Bloomberg.

And the backlash was swift and brutal.

Problem No. 1: Simply Assuming Faster Growth. To get to its $1.8 trillion revenue figure, the analysis assumes that long-term economic growth would reach an annual rate of 2.9 percent over the next 10 years, a level far higher than the 2.2 percent growth it previously expected over that timeframe  and far rosier than most other economic forecasts. (There is an old joke about economists debating how to get off a desert island. Step one, they agree, is assume a boat. The Treasury Dept just assumed a boat, The New York Timess Jim Tankersley tweeted.) By contrast, the Joint Committee on Taxation projected that the Senate tax plan would increase GDP by a total of 0.8 percent over the next decade. We acknowledge that some economists predict different growth rates, Treasurys report said.

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Where did the new Treasury growth rate come from? The Trump administrations 2018 budget  a budget that assumed that tax reform would not increase the deficit and that also included some different tax code changes than the ones being finalized by Congress, such as a corporate tax rate of 15 percent rather than 20 or 22 percent. Plus, as Voxs Matthew Yglesias points out, the administrations budget was summarily rejected by Congress.

Problem No. 2: Assuming Other Policy Changes That Havent Happened Yet. The new report offers little in the way of detailed explanation for how the economy would accelerate to that faster growth rate. It says about half of the additional output would result from corporate tax changes, while the rest would come from tax changes for pass-throughs and individuals as well as a combination of regulatory reform, infrastructure development, and welfare reform. Reporters and critics were quick to point out that many of those other reforms have yet to be detailed or written, let alone passed.

Problem No. 3: The Numbers Dont Reflect What Republicans Say Will Happen. The $300 billion left over under the Treasurys analysis is likely to disappear quickly if tax cuts set to expire after 2025 in the Senate bill are extended. Keeping those tax cuts in placeas Republicans say a future Congress willwould likely consume much if not all of any incremental revenue, The Wall Street Journals Kate Davidson and Richard Rubin report.

Problem No. 4: The Tax Cuts Dont Pay for Themselves. While the report may nominally give the Trump administration and congressional Republicans more ammunition for their tax-cutting sales pitch, it ultimately reinforces what outside analysts have said  the tax plan alone wont pay for itself, and the assumptions needed to show otherwise are fairly dramatic.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times
Retirement benefits often have complicated rules, and it's easy to trigger fees. However, those who carefully follow the rules will be able to accumulate a bigger retirement account balance and get more money from Social Security. Here are some retirement penalties you can avoid with careful planning.

401(k) and IRA early withdrawal penalties. There's a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty for IRA distributions before age 59 1/2 and 401(k) distributions before age 55. The penalty is applied in addition to the regular income tax due on the withdrawal. However, there are a variety of ways around the penalty, even for people who need access to their money early. For example, a 401(k) loan allows eligible employees to borrow up to 50 percent of their vested account balance up to $50,000 without penalties or tax consequences, but watch out for loan fees and the loan becoming due if you leave your job.

[See: 10 Ways to Avoid the IRA Early Withdrawal Penalty.]

There are several exceptions to the IRA early withdrawal penalty. The penalty doesn't apply if you use the money for specific purposes, such as large medical bills, health insurance after a layoff, college costs or a first home purchase. Those who set up regular annuity payments from the account over their life expectancy will not be charged the 10 percent penalty. "One option would be the 72t distribution, where you can withdraw money from an IRA if you withdraw a consistent amount each year for five years or until you reach 59 1/2, whichever is later," says Ross Menke, a certified financial planner and founder of Lyndale Financial in Nashville, Tennessee. Specific groups of people also have options to avoid the penalty, such as those who are disabled and members of the military reserves on active duty.

Roth accounts allow more flexibility for people who might need access to their money early. Roth IRA owners can take an early withdrawal without being subject to a penalty as long as they don't withdraw more than the amount contributed to the account. Roth 401(k) early withdrawals are prorated between contributions and investment earnings, so the portion of an early Roth 401(k) distribution that comes from investment earnings is likely to be taxable.

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The penalty for skipping a required minimum distribution. Annual withdrawals from traditional retirement accounts are required after age 70 1/2. "For those 70 1/2 and older, RMDs must be taken from traditional 401(k) plans and traditional IRAs by December 31, and income tax is due on each withdrawal. The penalty for missing a required minimum distribution is steep at 50 percent of the amount that should have been withdrawn, and that is on top of the income tax due," says Ajay Kaisth, a certified financial planner for KAI Advisors in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. "There is an exception for Roth IRAs; no RMDs are required. However, a Roth 401(k) account is subject to the RMD requirement." Retirees age 70 1/2 or older who donate an IRA distribution directly to a qualifying charity can satisfy their minimum distribution requirement without owing income tax on the transaction.

[See: How to Pay Less Tax on Retirement Account Withdrawals.]

Social Security early enrollment penalty. You can start your Social Security payments as early as age 62, but your payments are reduced if you sign up before your full retirement age, which is typically age 66 or 67. If you begin collecting benefits at age 62 you will get 25 percent smaller monthly payments if your full retirement age is 66 and 30 percent smaller payments if your full retirement age is 67. Those who signed up for Social Security early and then regret it have a couple of options to get bigger payments. If you change your mind within 12 months of starting your benefit, you can repay all the money you received, withdraw your Social Security application and then apply for higher payments later. If you are between your full retirement age and age 70 you can temporarily suspend your Social Security payments, which allows you to earn delayed retirement credits that will increase your Social Security benefit by 8 percent for each year of suspension before age 70. Continuing to work in retirement can also increase your Social Security payments if you earn more now than you did earlier in your career. "The amount that you are going to receive in Social Security payments in the future is calculated off your highest 35 years of income," Menke says. "If you did have some zero income years, working longer will have an effect on what your actual benefit will be in years to come."

Medicare late enrollment penalties. It's important to sign up for Medicare when you are first eligible to do so, beginning three months before your 65th birthday or within eight months of leaving a job with group health coverage. If you sign up later, Medicare Part B premiums increase by 10 percent for each 12-month period you delayed enrolling in Medicare after becoming eligible for benefits. The Medicare Part D penalty begins if you go just 63 days without prescription drug coverage after becoming eligible for Medicare and increases the longer you go without coverage. The penalty is added to the premium for any Medicare Part D plan you select. And you only have a right to buy a Medigap policy during the six-month period when you are 65 or older and enrolled in Medicare Part B. After that, private insurance companies can charge you significantly higher premiums or even deny you a policy. Failing to sign up for the various parts of Medicare during the months around your 65 th birthday can result in significantly higher premiums for the rest of your life.

[See: 9 Ways to Avoid 401(k) Fees and Penalties.]

Excessive expense ratios. While you can't control how your investments perform, you do have a measure of control over how much you pay in fees and other investment costs. However, a recent Pew Charitable Trusts survey of nearly 3,000 private sector workers found that about a third aren't familiar with the fees they are charged in their retirement account. 401(k) plan sponsors are required to provide fee information about each investment option to plan participants. Take the time to compare the expense ratios of each fund in your 401(k) plan and aim to select the funds with the lowest costs that meet your investment needs. "Saving and investment returns compound over time, but we don't really talk about how fees can compound over time," says John Scott, director of the The Pew Charitable Trust's retirement savings project. "It's always a good idea to compare investment alternatives, including on fees."

Emily Brandon is the author of "Pensionless: The 10-Step Solution for a Stress-Free Retirement."
Cboe may use information gleaned from futures trading to make a case to the Securities and Exchange Commission to allow bitcoin-linked ETF.

A new era kicks off today with the listing of the first bitcoin futures contract on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).

When trading begins at 5 p.m. U.S. central time on the world's largest options and futures exchange, investors will be able to bet on  or against  bitcoin without actually buying or selling it.

A sign of maturity for the cryptocurrency ecosystem at large, the contract listing is just one of several such milestones this year, including the expected launch next week of a bitcoin futures contract from CME Group.

What's more, it could also revive another effort to bring liquidity and mainstream respectability to the cryptocurrency  namely, the development of a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

In an interview, Edward Tilly, CBOE's chief executive officer, said the exchange may use information gleaned from futures trading to make a case to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to allow bitcoin-linked ETFs and exchange-traded notes (ETNs).

"All of that information goes into building the next steps," Tilly told CoinDesk, adding:

"One of those potential next steps would be moving into ETFs and ETNs that would take SEC approval."

Round two

Talk about a bitcoin ETF by the chief executive of CBOE is notable for two reasons.

The first is money. In this year's bull market, global ETF assets have climbed to $5.3 trillion in October from $4.8 trillion at the end of last year.

ETFs are tradable securities tied to an index, commodity or basket of assets, and are available for purchase by retail investors. Bitcoin ETFs could conceivably be an appealing option for individuals enticed by the asset's price gains, but put off by the hassles and risks of storing and safeguarding it.

But secondly, and perhaps more importantly to the nascent crypto asset industry, this would not be the first stab at a bitcoin ETF.

Earlier this year, the SEC rejected a proposed ETF by Gemini, the bitcoin exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (which also has a multi-year license from CBOE to provide bitcoin data in the futures launched today). Among other concerns, the regulator cited the lack of other regulated bitcoin products.

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Now that a number of bitcoin futures  which are regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission  are live and in the works, that could all change.

In the wake of an earlier effort by a CBOE subsidiary to convince the SEC to reconsider its decision, Tilly said his company will be evaluating data about the settlement process, liquidity, and volatility spikes of the bitcoin futures for possible conversations with the SEC.

In any event, the exchange wants to do more with its new data partner.

"This isn't the end, but rather the beginning of the story of our relationship with Gemini," said Tilly. "We hold that relationship very dear." (Gemini did not respond to emails seeking comment.)

Beyond bitcoin

Regardless of whether the SEC proves amenable to re-opening conversations about a bitcoin ETF, there are other business opportunities, according to Tilly.

Following the launch of the bitcoin futures contract, CBOE will take what Tilly called a "measured approach" to initiating other contracts, as it has done after similar launches.

The next step is to study the data from the bitcoin futures contract as part of the build-up to what Tilly says could eventually turn into a derivatives offering on the futures contract itself.

"It's not a month or two" away, he said. "But at some point derivatives on bitcoin will make sense."

Additional business opportunities "down the road," according to Tilly, include the addition of contracts on other cryptocurrencies. As he put it:

"While this is our first foray into bitcoin, it is not to the exclusion of other currency going forward. The relationship with Gemini allows for any of the digital currencies that we think will will meet listing criteria as we learn more from our first launch with bitcoin."

Cboe image via Shutterstock.

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Scott Olson/Getty

Bitcoin futures went live on Cboe Global Markets, the Chicago-exchange group, Sunday night.



Both futures and spot bitcoin were trading up Monday morning.

Liquidity on the market was thin soon after the launch of the new market and Cboe's website crashed.



It doesn't look like too many bears are pouring into the new bitcoin futures market.

The price of new contracts set to expire in January were trading 11% higher Monday morning at $17,830, according to data from Bloomberg.

Cboe's future contracts, which trade under the ticker XBT, started the first trading session Sunday night at arund $16,000, a premium over the price of bitcoin in the underlying spot markt. Bitcoin shot up more than $1,000 with the ten minutes after investors could start purchasing contracts at 6:00 p.m. ET.

Bitcoin continued a tear into Monday morning, traing up against the US dollar at $16,240 a coin.

Trading in the early stages of the new futures was muted. Only 800 contracts traded within the first two hours of the market being live, according to Cboe. At last check, 2,866 contracts for January were purchase. Still, volumes abd the bullishness of the market impressed one trader.

"There was more volume than I was expecting," Garrett See, the CEO of DV Chain, the cryptocurrency trading division of Chicago-based DV Trading, told Business Insider.

"It was difficult for folks to get access to this market on day one since only some brokers were clearing trades for clients," he added.

JPMorgan and Citigroup, which are two of the largest futures brokers, did not participate in the market Sunday. Nor did Societe Generale. Goldman Sachs said it would clear futures for some clients.

"The futures are trading a pretty significant premium to the spot," See said a few hours after the new market went live."That is surprising to me."

"I would have expected it to trade in the middle of the range of where spot bitcoin trades across the different exchanges," he added.

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According to See, this suggest people aren't running in to short the market and long-term holders aren't dumping their exposure.

"It's really encouraging futures are trading at such a big premium," See said.

Interest in the new market appeared to put pressure on Cboe. Its website experienced outages soon after trading of bitcoin futures was underway. Here's Cboe in a tweet:

"Due to heavy traffic on our website, visitors to http://www.cboe.com may find that it is performing slower than usual and may at times be temporarily unavailable. All trading systems are operating normally."

"The launch is going as expected sans [Cboe's website] crashing," John Spallanzani, chief macro strategist of GFI Group, told Business Insider Sunday night. "It speaks to the interest in bitcoin. There hasn't been this much interest in something since the internet boom."

Bitcoin futures are the latest evolution in the market surrounding the cryptocurrency, which has appreciated more than 1,400% this year. Two other exchange operators are also set to launch their own bitcoin futures contracts.

There are a number of reasons why bitcoin futures products are a big deal for Wall Street and the world of crypto. First, the launch of bitcoin futures by establishment firms is likely to to open the door to wider participation in bitcoin trading by other Wall Street firms. It could also pave the wave for an exchange-traded fund, which could bring more investments into the space. Most importantly, it could help dampen bitcoin's spine-tingling volatility.

The first bitcoin futures depend on trading at the Winklevoss twins' tiny exchange  and that's a problem

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NOW WATCH: This is one of the best responses to Jamie Dimon calling bitcoin a fraud that we have heard so far

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Up to a million Australians are thought to have invested in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin (AFP Photo/Justin TALLIS)

New York (AFP) - Bitcoin makes its debut on a major exchange Sunday, a milestone for the digital currency that has some investors excited but others nervous.

The Cboe Futures Exchange in Chicago will open trading in bitcoin futures at 2300 GMT on Sunday, a move that is expected to be followed a week later by a rival listing on Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

"Sunday night is the equivalent of what would be the first person using an Uber or a Lyft or going to a Airbnb," said Bob Fitzsimmons, head of futures contracts at Wedbush Securities.

"It gives it legitimacy. It recognizes that it's an asset you can trade," added Nick Colas, of Data Trek research.

Among those cheering the launch are the Winklevoss twins, who have been called the first bitcoin billionaires. Critics include financial commentator Jim Cramer, who warns that prices could tumble once the new trading venues open the door to "short sellers," who bet on downward moves in assets.

The two launches were made possible after a key US regulator, the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), gave the green light to the exchanges on December 1, while warning "of the potentially high level of volatility and risk in trading these contracts."

Anticipation of the first mainstream listings for the digital currency has been a catalyst for a sharp price increase in recent weeks. Bitcoin opened 2017 at around $1,000, surged past $10,000 for the first time last month and soared as high as $16,777 on Thursday before retreating somewhat.

The actual opening of the Cboe market, an electronic trading venue, was expected to be a low-key affair, lacking the pomp of an initial public offering, which is often marked by the new entrant ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange.

"There won't be any ceremony, no champagne," said a person close to the Cboe process.

"It's going to happen quietly, a switch flipping," the person added. "There are not going to be many people in the office."

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- Going mainstream -

The embrace by mainstream exchanges of bitcoin futures -- a type of derivative contract that allows trading based on bitcoin's movement, without taking ownership of the currency itself -- marks a sea change from the days when the digital currency was associated with drug dealing and other illicit activities.

The Cboe said it has taken precautions to address wild fluctuations: trading will be suspended for two minutes if bitcoin prices go up or down 10 percent, for instance.

"We are committed to continue to work closely with the CFTC to monitor trading and foster the growth of a transparent, liquid and fair bitcoin futures market," the Cboe said.

Still, plenty of key figures in and around markets are taking a cautious approach to bitcoin, which has no central bank backing it, and no legal exchange rate.

The Futures Industry Association, which includes some of the world's biggest derivatives brokerages, criticized the CFTC's move in a letter to the regulator, saying contracts are being rushed through without properly weighing the risks.

"A more thorough and considered process would have allowed for a robust public discussion among clearing member firms, exchanges and clearing houses," the association said.

Several leading financial heavyweights are still studying bitcoin and not serving as financial intermediaries. This group includes JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Barclays, Morgan Stanley and Societe Generale, said people close to the matter.

Of the larger banks, only Goldman Sachs and ABN Amro are serving as intermediaries for the trades. That means most of the terrain will be dominated by smaller entities that are typically requiring larger than usual margin requirements -- funds set aside as collateral in case of losses.

Wedbush Securities has lifted its margin requirements and is only permitting trades from clients on a "selected" basis, said Fitzsimmons.

"We are commissioning only the select clients who have experience in bitcoins," he said.

"Our risk systems are ready and we have made sure we have our customers and firm protected by increased margins and increased scrutiny."
TheStreet.com

Cryptocurrency brokerages Gemini and Genesis are reassuring people that their operations are still solvent after the massive collapse of exchange FTX. The insolvency of FTX could result in more companies in the industry facing severe liquidity issues, including crypto exchanges and lenders. "We are working with the Genesis team to help customers redeem their funds from the Earn program as quickly as possible," Gemini said in a tweet.
DAKAR, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Mining companies in Democratic Republic of Congo said on Monday that proposed changes to the mining code adopted by the lower house of parliament last week would do lasting damage to investment in Africa's top copper producer.

The process of revising the 2002 mining code in Congo has dragged on for over five years but the National Assembly on Friday approved a bill that would increase taxes and royalties and sent it to the upper house Senate for a second vote.

The measure would also increase the state's minimum unpaid share of new mining projects and require that Congolese investors hold at least 10 percent of shares in large-scale mines.

In a statement, several of Congo's largest copper and gold mines, including projects operated by Swiss-based commodities giant Glencore and London-listed Randgold Resources , said investors would look elsewhere if the code were approved by the Senate and signed into law by the president.

"This very heart of the DRC's economy is now seriously threatened while it should be protected, supervised and strengthened," the statement said.

"This would cause the certain death of a young industry, however it contributes to the achievements of the national economy."

The government and some civil society groups in Congo dispute the companies' financial models and argue that the proposed 3.5 percent royalties on precious and base metals are lower than in competitor nations such as neighbouring Zambia.

Congo's mines minister suspended consideration of the revised code in March 2016 because companies had complained that its fiscal terms would make their projects unprofitable, given current low commodity prices.

But the government reintroduced the proposal in May, saying it was essential to boosting public revenues in a country with an annual budget of only around $5 billion.

Congo's mining sector accounts for some 95 percent of the country's export revenues and represents about 20 percent of national gross domestic product. (Reporting By Aaron Ross; Editing by Gareth Jones)
By Aishwarya Venugopal (Reuters) - Activist investor Elliott Management Corp said on Monday NXP Semiconductors NV is worth about 23 percent more than Qualcomm Inc's $38-billion offer to buy the chipmaker. Elliott, which has a stake of about 6 percent in NXP, said NXP was worth $135 per share on an intrinsic standalone basis, compared with Qualcomm's offer of $110 made in October 2016. NXP shares were up 0.6 percent at $116 in morning trading, while Qualcomm's shares were up about 1 percent at $64.87. Elliott, a New York-based hedge fund, said Qualcomm's offer had taken advantage of NXP's depressed stock price last year and has acted as a ceiling on its valuation. "We believe NXP's prospects are bright. Approximately half of NXP's revenue is exposed to exciting growth engines of the semiconductor market  automotive and industrial," Elliott said in a letter to other NXP shareholders. Qualcomm replied saying it believed the agreed-upon price of $110 is full and fair, and that it remained fully committed to closing the acquisition. "Elliott's value assertion for NXP is unsupportable and is clearly nothing more than an attempt to advance its own self-serving agenda," Qualcomm said in a statement. Elliott said it has retained UBS to conduct a financial analysis on NXP and that it would share the report with other shareholders. NXP's shares have been trading above Qualcomm's offer price since Aug. 4 when Elliott indicated it was pushing for a higher price. Besides trying to convince NXP investors of the planned acquisition, Qualcomm has also toiled to win regulatory approval and has offered certain concessions to address concerns the deal would hamper competition in the market. Since it offered to buy NXP, Qualcomm itself has been the target of an acquisition approach from Broadcom Ltd , but it rejected the $103-billion offer last month. Broadcom had indicated it was willing to acquire Qualcomm, for $70 per share, irrespective of whether it closed the NXP deal. Acquiring NXP would make Qualcomm the leading chip supplier to the fast-growing automotive market. (Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
This years hurricane season was one for the record books. In September, Hurricane Maria pummeled parts of the Caribbean, causing widespread damage on the islands of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Turks and Caicos, Haiti, and The Bahamas. Its estimated that the storm caused $103 billion in damage.

As these islands continue to rebuild, many are questioning their ability to accommodate tourists. After all, December through April is considered the high season, when northerners head down south to escape the cold. While parts of each island are still cleaning up and restoring power grids, much of the Caribbean is open for business, and depending on tourist dollars to help their economies bounce back.

Flights

One might assume that flights to storm ravaged islands are cheaper due to lower demand. This is not the case. According to travel site Hopper, the average cost of a round-trip flight to the Caribbean from the U.S. is up 7% compared to last year, costing $668, compared with $625 in 2016. This, however, is not the norm throughout the region. In Puerto Rico, the average round-trip flight is currently $509, about $8 cheaper than last year.

While airfare wont be dramatically cheaper, there are some strategies to finding better fares this winter. The first is timing. The reality is that buying a ticket to travel between Christmas and New Years Eve is going to be more expensive, no matter what. In fact, data from travel site Kayak suggests that flight prices will continue to increase after Dec. 5.

The trick is to book travel during the first three weeks of January, which is widely considered to be a dead zone for the airline industry. Case in point. A round-trip flight from Chicago to San Juan, Puerto Rico costs $582 the week before Christmas. That same ticket will cost about $678 the week of Christmas. However, if you wait until the third week of January, round-trip tickets drop down to $360.

People are seen at the beach in the tourist zone of El Condado in San Juan, Puerto Rico on November 28, 2017

Hotels

When it comes to finding a hotel, it all comes down to location. In Puerto Rico, much of the island is still living without power, but thanks to back-up generators, many of the hotels in San Juan are open and accepting reservations. In some cases, like with the Embassy Suites San Juan Hotel and Casino, hotels are open, but new reservations wont be made until Dec. 31.

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At this time last year, Hotels.com reports that the average nightly hotel rate in Puerto Rico was $171. Statistics havent been released for 2017, but after scanning hotel availability, it appears as though travelers will pay a bit more at the end of 2017. If youre visiting around New Years Eve, guests can expect to pay $329 a night at the Courtyard by Marriott and $434 a night at the InterContinental, both in San Juan.

The Red Cross hands out water on the island of Saint Martin.

Once you leave the capital, accommodations are less predictable. The W Retreat & Spa in Vieques, the Wyndham Rio Mar, and the Ritz-Carlton Reserve on Dorado Beach are all still closed and not accepting reservations.

In Turks and Caicos, the average hotel rate was $480 in 2016, but a quick look at Hotels.com mostly brings back rates between $439 and $1,995.

As for the US Virgin islands, a decent number of St. Croix hotels have opened and are accepting new reservations. However, many hotels on St. John and St. Thomas will remain closed through the high season.

Service opportunities

If youre traveling to Puerto Rico and other islands in the Caribbean it will be important to adjust your expectations. You will still be able to enjoy the beaches and resort experience, but it will also be a great opportunity to give back to local communities.

No matter what island you visit, chatting with the concierge or the front desk at your hotel is the best way to get connected with recovery efforts. If youve already planned a visit to one of the islands, ask your hotel if there are any supplies you can bring to give to locals. You should also ask if they can connect you with ways to pitch in and help the nearby communities. According to Jose Izquierdo, executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company (PRTC), several NGOs are partnering with local hotels in San Juan and surrounding cities to provide volunteer opportunities.

If you havent booked your stay yet, be sure to ask about special packages designed to help with recovery efforts.

For the most part, many charities are still looking for monetary donations to address immediate health and safety concerns in areas hit by Hurricane Maria. New volunteer opportunities will continue to become available in the coming weeks and months, so its important not to self-deploy. Instead, sign up on a database with National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster to get connected to the appropriate agencies and opportunities in your area.

Brittany Jones-Cooper is a reporter at Yahoo Finance.

Brittany talks about Puerto Rico on the Yahoo Finance podcast

Puerto Rico tourism seeks volunteers as clean up continues

Miami and Florida welcome tourists after Hurricane Irma
HSBC said it is preparing for fallout from the possible deterioration of China-US trade talks and Brexit (AFP Photo/MARCO BERTORELLO) (AFP)

London (AFP) - US authorities are lifting the threat of prosecution against the British banking giant HSBC, five years after it admitted to widespread money laundering and sanctions violations, the bank said Monday.

In a landmark case, the bank agreed to pay a $1.9 billion in fines in 2012, after admitting it knowingly moved hundreds of millions for Mexican drug cartels and illegally served clients in Iran, Myanmar, Libya, Sudan and Cuba in violation of US sanctions.

Under the terms of the settlement, federal prosecutors agreed to drop all charges after five years if the bank paid the fine, took remedial action and avoided committing new violations.

The settlement aroused fierce condemnation among lawmakers and members of the public, who said authorities failed to prosecute any senior executives and allowed the bank itself to walk away with no criminal record.

American officials said they took into account possible economic harm that could result from pressing charges against the bank itself.

Over the five-year period of the agreement, HSBC continued to face accusations of wrongdoing. An outside compliance monitor retained as part of the settlement reportedly accused senior managers of bullying and recalcitrance in the face of reform efforts.

But in a statement Monday, the bank said it had "lived up to all its commitments."

"HSBC is able to combat financial crime much more effectively today as the result of the significant reforms we have implemented over the last five years," CEO Stuart Gulliver said in the statement.

However, Washington-based activist organization Public Citizen decried the end of the settlement period as a "manifest injustice."

Since reaching the agreement, HSBC has been penalized by the Federal Reserve for foreign exchange fraud and faced fresh allegations of money laundering, it said.

"This is hardly the profile of a 'reformed' business," the organization said in a statement.

burs-dg/hs
KUWAIT (Reuters) - Kuwait's oil minister Essam al-Marzouq said on Sunday that OPEC and other oil producers will study before June the possibility of an exit strategy from the global oil supply-cut agreement.

"There are still meetings every couple of months for the ministerial monitoring committee, and there will be a study formed for the possibility of an exit strategy... before June," he told reporters.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and non-OPEC producers led by Russia have agreed to extend oil output cuts until the end of 2018 as they try to clear a global oil glut while signalling a possible early exit from the deal if the market overheats.

OPEC meets next in June, while the next meeting for the ministerial monitoring committee, known as the JMMC, is due to be held in January in Oman.

Russia, which this year reduced production significantly with OPEC for the first time, has been pushing for a clear message on how to exit the cuts so the market doesn't flip into a deficit too soon, prices don't rally too fast and rival U.S. shale firms don't boost output further.

Moscow needs much lower oil prices to balance its budget than OPEC's leader Saudi Arabia, which is preparing a stock market listing for national energy champion Aramco next year and would hence benefit from pricier crude.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday that it was too early to talk about a possible exit from the global deal to cut oil production, and the eventual withdrawal from the agreement should be gradual.

Novak said the process of exiting the deal may take between three and six months, depending on how the global oil market has recovered by then, and on the scale of oil demand.

Under the current deal the producers are cutting supply by about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd).

(Reporting by Ahmed Hagagy; writing by Rania El Gamal; Editing by Toby Chopra)
The Chinese government has been facing challenges in addressing property market speculation and high debt. At the Congress meeting in October, Chinese policymakers indicated a shift of agenda to check pollution and financial risks to economic growth, at any cost.

This led to an initial slowdown in growth. However, worries seem to be easing, as the worlds second largest economy posted strong trade data for November.

Economic Data

On a year-over-year basis, exports increased at an impressive pace in November. It grew 12.3% in November compared with 6.9% in October. It also surpassed analyst expectations of 5% increase. Moreover, imports increased 17.7% compared with expectations of 11.3%. This eased concerns about weakening demand.

China's industrial output grew 6.2% year over year in October compared with 6.6% in September, and below Reuters forecast of 6.3%. China's production curbs to lower pollution have affected energy and pollution-intensive companies and compounded cost woes.

Economic Environment

China's National Bureau of Statistics said that the country's GDP grew 6.8% year over year in the third quarter compared with 6.9% in the second quarter. Consumer price index increased 1.9% year over year in October compared with 1.6% in September, and came in above expectations of 1.8%. However, it is still way behind China's target of 3%.

Geopolitical Risks

China is also subject to geopolitical risks as Asian markets suffer from massive volatility due to North Korea's actions. Last month, North Korea launched a Hwasong-15 missile with improved technology that flew over Japan, per Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Per United States Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, this missile flew higher than the missiles fired earlier.

Let us now discuss a few ETFs focused on providing exposure to the Chinese economy (see all Asia-Pacific Emerging ETFs here).

Story continues

iShares China Large-Cap ETF FXI

This fund seeks to provide exposure to Chinese equities, serving as a pure play on the economy.

It has AUM of $3.6 billion and is a relatively expensive bet as it charges a fee of 74 basis points a year. From a sector look, Financials, Energy and Information Technology are the top three allocations of the fund, with 49.1%, 11.0% and 10.6% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 8, 2017). From an individual holding perspective, Tencent Holdings Ltd, China Construction Bank Corp and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China are the top three allocations of the fund, with 10.6%, 8.6% and 7.5% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 8, 2017). The fund has returned 29.6% year to date and 24.4% in a year (as of Dec 8, 2017). FXI currently has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a Medium risk outlook.

iShares MSCI China ETF MCHI

This ETF is another such option to play the BRIC nation.

It has AUM of $2.6 billion and charges a fee of 64 basis points a year. From a sector look, Information Technology, Financials and Consumer Discretionary are the top three allocations of the fund, with 42%, 22.7% and 9.2% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 8, 2017). From an individual holding perspective, Tencent Holdings Ltd, Alibaba Group Holding ADR and China Construction Bank Corp are the top three allocations of the fund, with 18.4%, 13.1% and 4.6% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 8, 2017). The fund has returned 44.6% year to date and 41.2% in a year (as of Dec 8, 2017). MCHI currently has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.

SPDR S&P China ETF GXC

This fund has AUM of $1.1 billion and charges a fee of 59 basis points a year. From a sector look, Information Technology, Financials and Consumer Discretionary are the top three allocations of the fund, with 37%, 22.4% and 10.4% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 7, 2017). From an individual holding perspective, Tencent Holdings Ltd, Alibaba Group Holding ADR and China Construction Bank Corporation are the top three allocations of the fund, with 15%, 11.2%, and 5.1% exposure, respectively (as of Dec 7, 2017). The fund has returned 44.3% year to date and 40.2% in a year (as of Dec 8, 2017). GXC currently has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.

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Germanys domestic security agency has warned that Chinese intelligence has been creating fake social networking profiles, particularly on LinkedIn, to gather information about German politicians and officials.

In an unusual move, the Bundesamt fur Verfassungsschutz (BfV) on Sunday released details of some of the fake social networking profiles that it said had made contact with at least 10,000 Germans, in order to recruit possible information sources.

Read: Why All CEOs Should Visit China

Example of these fake profiles include headhunters called Rachel Li and Allen Liu, a thinktank manager called Laeticia Chen, and a character called Jason Wang who wants to improve communication and cooperation between France, the EU and China.

Hans-Georg Maaen, the BfV head, described the tactic as a new means of attack in the digital space.

The modus operandi is almost always the same, the agency said in a report. Supposed scientists, employment agents and headhunters contact people with a significant personal profile. They are lured in with enticing offers and eventually invited to China, where the intelligence-gathering commences.

Read: China Targets Transparency as Regulators Prepare for a Record Number of IPOs

However, the Chinese foreign ministry strongly denied the agencys accusations.

We hope the relevant German organizations, particularly government departments, can speak and act more responsibly and not do things that are not beneficial to the development of bilateral relations, ministry spokesman Lu Kang said, according to Reuters.
[caption id="attachment_1239" align="alignnone" width="620"]

Tokyo, Japan[/caption] Mayer Brown is opening an office in Japan, hiring Rupert Burrows, former head of the Tokyo office of Ashurst, to lead the newest of the firm's Asian outposts. The Tokyo base will be the U.S. firm's eighth in Asia and will open in the first half of 2018. Over the last few years, we have partnered with our clients in building our relationships with Japanese corporations, banks, and trading houses," said Mayer Brown chairman Paul Theiss. "To continue to develop those relationships and further expand along with them, we now need a presence in Tokyo. The new office is also expected to support the firm's projects practice in Southeast Asia. Burrows, a corporate partner, has been based in Japan for 20 years. He had been at Ashurst since 1998, but stepped down as head of the firm's Tokyo base this June after two years in the role. He was replaced by finance partner Dominic Gregory. His move marks the latest in a spate of departures from Ashurst. In November, three London partners opted to leave the firm: Disputes partner Ben Giaretta is set to move to Mishcon de Reya, while corporate partners James Wood and Dominic Ross have left to join Sidley Austin and White & Case, respectively. A number of partners have also quit Mayer Brown in recent weeks, with Kennedys recruiting insurance and reinsurance head David Chadwick in October, along with partners Andrew McGahey, Ingrid Hobbs and Andrew Westlake. A spokesperson for Ashurst said Burrows is leaving the firm by mutual consent, adding: "The Tokyo office has been a key part of our Asia-Pacific offering for nearly 30 years. Our global Japanese business, including the Japanese law practice, is performing very strongly. We are fully committed to strengthening our business in Japan even further and to pursuing opportunities both internally and externally to achieve that."
Heres a look at some of the companies the Yahoo Finance team will be watching for you today.

Nokia (NOK) is losing its COO after just eight months on the job. The telecom companys chief operating officer Monika Maurer will be replaced by a senior vice president effective immediately. Nokia has had a tough year as it loses market share to competitors.

Apples (AAPL) push to get the iPhone to India is hitting some speed bumps. Apple has been in talks with India to defer a tax on imported cell phones but Indias government isnt budging. Reuters reports India wants Apple to manufacture there as a showpiece investment but doesnt plan to make any special exemptions for the tech giant.

Ford (F) cant seem to gain traction in China. Sales of the car company fell 8% from a year ago. Ford now plans to overhaul its strategy with an increased focus on electric cars. Its also partnering with Alibaba to sell Ford cars directly on its site.

Today is Green Monday. The cyber holiday was coined by eBay (EBAY) back in 2007 because it was one of the sites best sales day. While todays deals wont match Black Friday or Cyber Monday, eBay says holiday shoppers can still find great sales on the site and elsewhere, as other retailers jump on the Green Monday bandwagon.
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 9 (Reuters) - United Nations officials have found that missiles fired at Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthi rebels appear to have a "common origin," but they are still investigating U.S. and Saudi claims that Iran supplied them, according to a confidential report.

The officials traveled to Saudi Arabia to examine the debris of missiles fired on July 22 and Nov. 4, wrote U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the fourth biannual report on the implementation of U.N. sanctions and restrictions on Iran.

They found "that the missiles had similar structural and manufacturing features which suggest a common origin," said Guterres in the Friday report to the U.N. Security Council, seen by Reuters on Saturday.

The report comes amid calls by the United States for Iran to be held accountable for violating U.N. Security Council resolutions on Yemen and Iran by supplying weapons to the Houthis.

Saudi-led forces, which back the Yemeni government, have fought the Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen's more than two-year-long civil war. Saudi Arabia's crown prince has described Iran's supply of rockets to the Houthis as "direct military aggression" that could be an act of war.

Iran has denied supplying the Houthis with weapons, saying the U.S. and Saudi allegations are "baseless and unfounded."

Guterre's report said the U.N. officials saw three components, which Saudi authorities said came from the missile fired on Nov. 4. The components "bore the castings of a logo similar to that of the Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group" - a U.N.-blacklisted company.

The officials are "still analyzing the information collected and will report back to the Security Council," wrote Guterres.

NUCLEAR DEAL

The Saudi-led coalition used the Nov. 4 missile attack to justify a blockade of Yemen for several weeks, saying it was needed to stem the flow of arms to the Houthis from Iran.

Although the blockade later eased, Yemens situation has remained dire. About 8 million people are on the brink of famine, with outbreaks of cholera and diphtheria.

Story continues

A separate report to the Security Council last month by a panel of independent experts monitoring sanctions imposed in Yemen found that four missiles fired this year into Saudi Arabia appear to have been designed and manufactured by Iran.

However, the panel said it "as yet has no evidence as to the identity of the broker or supplier" of the missiles, which were likely shipped to the Houthis in violation of a targeted U.N. arms embargo imposed on Houthi leaders in April 2015.

Most U.N. sanctions on Iran were lifted in January last year when the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirmed that Tehran fulfilled commitments under a nuclear deal with Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia and the United States. But Iran is still subject to a U.N. arms embargo and other restrictions.

U.S. President Donald Trump dealt a blow to the nuclear deal in October by refusing to certify that Tehran was complying with the accord and warning that he might ultimately terminate it. International inspectors have said Iran is in compliance.

"I encourage the United States to maintain its commitments to the plan and to consider the broader implications for the region and beyond before taking any further steps," Guterres wrote.

"Similarly, I encourage the Islamic Republic of Iran to carefully consider the concerns raised by other participants in the plan," he said. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Uber's determination to address its past scandals remains in effect. The ridesharing firm has agreed to settle the second lawsuit from the Indian rape victim who accused the company of improperly obtaining her medical records. While the company isn't commenting on the settlement or its terms, a court filing revealed that the two sides will formally reach a deal in June. The suit represented a particularly dark chapter for Uber, as it underscored the outfit's Kalanick-era tendency to fight legal challenges that few other companies would resist.

The lawsuit argued that Uber obtained the records because it privately doubted the woman's claims. While Uber executives publicly supported the victim, they reportedly theorized in secret that she had conspired with Uber's Indian rival Ola to undermine their business. In other words, they were apparently willing to violate the accuser's privacy in hopes of discrediting her.

This isn't to say that Uber has refused to settle cases in the past. It settled the victim's original lawsuit in 2015, and settled multiple American sexual assault cases in 2016. However, this is still somewhat reflective of the strategy under new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Uber wants to make amends for past abuses and improve its reputation, both to keep customers and to reassure investors who want to know that Uber's unscrupulous days are in the past.
Oil prices edged higher on Friday but dropped on Monday morning as investors react to the latest rise in the U.S. rig count which indicated to a further rise in U.S. production.

Shane Chanel, equities and derivatives adviser at ASR Wealth Advisers said: The largest concern for investors currently remains the rise in the U.S. rig count, which could potentially jeopardize the OPEC and Russian agreement when they meet for a review in June 2018.

According to Baker Hughes, energy services firm said on Friday, The amount of rigs drilling for new oil production in the U.S. rose by two in the week to Dec.8, to 751, the highest level since September.

A higher rig count indicates further increase in production. It has already increased by more than 15 percent since mid-2016 to 9.71 million barrels per day (bpd), the highest level since the early 1970s, and close to levels from top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Technical view

Crude Oil Daily chart has formed a Rising wedge pattern. The trend remains bullish as prices retested the interim support line.

Crude Oil Daily Chart

As per the technical aspects of the pattern, the retest is expected to push the market furthermore and the rally could test $58-$58.50 levels in the upcoming sessions. Resistance holds at $59 and Support holds at $56.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

More From FXEMPIRE:
Pakistan's powerful army chief of staff has waded into the sensitive issue of madrasahs, questioning how well the religious schools are preparing students in the age of technology.

General Qamar Javed Bajwa shared his critique of madrasahs in a seminar about youth development in Quetta, which the United States and Afghanistan consider the home of the Afghan Taliban. The Taliban movement began among students attending Pakistani religious schools.

"So what will they [madrasah students] become? Will they become maulvis [clerics], or will they become terrorists?" Bajwa asked.

Madrasahs focus heavily on Islamic theocracy and religious theology, eschewing more traditional classes in math, science, and social studies. Historically, graduating madrasah students are eligible for one job: imam of a mosque.

Students At Madrasahs

Bajwa said he was told that 2.5 million students were studying in madrasahs in Pakistan and that it's impossible to build enough mosques to employ them. The Board of Madrassas said Pakistan has about 35,337 registered madrasahs.

Madrasahs have resisted calls for reforms, have failed to evolve in line with contemporary educational needs and concepts, and are accused of stifling critical and analytical skills, so their students suffer when trying to compete for jobs in an increasingly knowledge-based economy.

"We need to look [at] and revisit the concept of madrasahs," Bajwa said. "Most of them are just teaching theology. So what are their [students'] chances? What is their future in this country? We need to give them a worldly education."

Qibla Ayaz, head of the Council of Islamic Ideology, Pakistan's watchdog on religious issues, told VOA Deewa that the debate on reforms should also be extended to the country's overall education system.

"If you look at the students from nonreligious schools, the majority are unemployed," Ayaz said. "Our education doesn't provide skills, and as a result, we see that in the recent terrorist incidents, students from Karachi University, Lahore University of Management Sciences, and other prestigious institutes are involved in terrorism."

The debate on madrasah reforms isn't new but has gained urgency amid a record level of violence, most of which is blamed on madrasah students and leaders, whom critics claim promote violence, intolerance, and anti-Western bias.

Educational Reforms Backed

The U.S. sees educational reforms in Pakistan as a matter of national security. The 9/11 Commission's report called for "efforts to expand and improve the secular education system in Pakistan, and to develop and utilize a moderate curriculum for private religious schools in Pakistan."

In 2002, then-President Pervez Musharraf promised to register all madrasahs and undertook a project to regulate the curriculum so all of them would adopt a government-approved, standardized course of study by the end of the year. A government body would be established with the authority to grant madrasah diplomas.

The initiative failed as religious scholars did not trust Musharraf and accused him of pursuing a foreign agenda.

The number of madrasahs in Pakistan has increased more than tenfold since 1947, in apparent correspondence with the deterioration of the public education system.

"In Pakistan, textbooks have been criticized for normalizing militarism and war and including biases and historical errors and distortions," UNESCO said in its latest report on education in Pakistan. "Prominent Pakistanis, other than military heroes and nationalist movement leaders, are often excluded."

The International Crisis Group added: "There appears to be few differences between public school and madrasah syllabi with regard to the levels of intolerance that are assuming dangerous proportions."

Bajwa said poor education, particularly at madrasahs, was holding back the nation of 207 million people.

"I am not against madrasahs, but we have lost the essence of madrasahs," the general said.

-- By Voice Of America
Estonian English

Tallinn, Estonia, 2017-12-07 08:45 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

UAB DELFI, the subsidiary company of AS Ekspress Grupp, is selling its magazine publishing business and aims at concentrating on developing the online media. The magazine publishing business is being sold to company GM Media Invest.

"In Lithuania we are well known as the leaders of the online media, thus have made a strategic decision to concentrate all our efforts on this particular field, on strengthening and expanding it, Vytautas Benokraitis, UAB DELFI managing director, said.
Goldplat plc / Ticker: GDP / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining & Exploration

11 December 2017

Goldplat plc ('Goldplat' or 'the Company')

Corporate & Operational Update

Goldplat, the AIM quoted gold producer with international gold recovery operations located in South Africa and Ghana and a gold mine in Kenya, is pleased to provide a corporate and operational update.

Rand Refinery Dispute

Further to its announcements of 4 April 2017 and 11 September 2017, the Company is pleased to announce that both parties, being Rand Refinery and Goldplat Recovery Limited ('GPL') have formally agreed on an arbitration process for the recovery of the amounts owed to GPL, and have appointed a retired Appeal Court Judge to act as arbitrator. The arbitration proceedings have been scheduled for 25-29 June 2018 and the Company will provide more information to shareholders regarding these proceedings when appropriate.

Operational Update

The Company is pleased to report that good progress is being made on all areas of strategic focus. At GPL, a strategic stockpile of in excess of a year of planned production through the carbon in leach ('CIL') circuits has been procured and metallurgical testwork is currently being undertaken to optimise metal recoveries from and profitability of this material. This has been an important initiative to de-risk the most profitable production stream at GPL and the Board is encouraged to note that this strategic objective has been reached within the first six months of the financial year.

At Gold Recovery Ghana ('GRG'), the elution plant construction is progressing according to plan, and commissioning is expected to begin before the end of December 2017. This progress has recently been acknowledged very positively by the Ghanaian Ministry of Mines. A team is on the ground in Ghana to commission the tailings project pilot plant, with surveys of target material for the pilot testing ongoing.

At Kilimapesa Gold (Pty) Ltd, production remains on target for 5,800 ounces of gold in FY2018 and profitability is being achieved on an operational level. This has been achieved despite a number of days of lost production, caused by the election process which affected diesel supplies.

Gerard Kisbey-Green, CEO of Goldplat commented: "We are pleased to have finally made tangible progress towards settlement of the dispute with Rand Refinery after a protracted period of negotiations. We remain confident that this arbitration process will result in the full recovery of the amounts owed to GPL and Company will keep shareholders informed of progress. From an operational point of view, I am delighted to say that progress is being made across the board which positions us strongly for the remainder of the 2018 financial year, and I look forward to providing further detail on this in the New Year with the release of our quarterly operational updates and Interim Results."

** ENDS **

For further information visit www.goldplat.com, follow on Twitter @GoldPlatPlc or contact:

Gerard Kisbey-Green Goldplat plc

(CEO) Tel: +27 (71) 8915775 Colin Aaronson / Jen Clarke/ Daniel Bush Grant Thornton UK LLP (Nominated Adviser) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7383 5100 Andrew Raca / Justin McKeegan VSA Capital Limited

(Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 20 3005 5000 Charlotte Page / Susie Geliher St Brides Partners Ltd

(Financial PR) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177

About Goldplat

Goldplat plc is an AIM quoted gold producer with two market leading recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana and an operational gold mine in Kenya. The Company produced 42,857 ounces of gold during FY 2017, with 40,285 gold equivalent ounces sold and transferred, resulting in an operating profit from continuing operations of 2.9m for the year. This result does not benefit from the increased processing capacity that was achieved at the Kilimapesa Gold Mine towards the end of FY 2017, with operational profitability achieved during last two months of FY 2017. Accordingly, the Company believes it is well placed to build upon production and profitability during FY 2018.

The Company's strategy is focussed on utilising cash flow generated from its flagship gold recovery and mining operations to self-fund the sustainable growth and expansion of its niche gold recovery business model internationally. The Company is also committed to increasing its primary mining production output through acquisition / gaining interests in producing or near-production assets, preferably in Africa. Goldplat retains exposure to a small exploration project in Ghana, in which Ashanti Gold Corp. is earning an interest via an earn-in option agreement.
TORONTO, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nutritional High International Inc. (the "Company" or "Nutritional High") (CSE:EAT) (OTCQB:SPLIF) (FRANKFURT:2NU) is pleased to announce that Weedmaps, the worlds first marijuana technology and media brand and the most comprehensive marijuana directory on the planet will be featuring the Companys FLI brand as one of the top brands of cannabis oil vapes in the State of Colorado. Currently, FLI-branded products are being manufactured and distributed in Colorado by Palo Verde LLC ("Palo Verde"), the tenant at the Companys Pueblo, Colorado facility. Palo Verde has been manufacturing FLI-branded vape cartridges, syringes and chocolates, and has recently launched "Dab" products, which contain 1,000 mg jars of cannabis oil distillate. FLI "Dab" products are targeted towards the cannabis concentrate "aficionado" who prefers to consume oil by "dabbing."



Jim Frazier, CEO of the Company, commented: "We are very proud that the FLI-branded vape products manufactured by Palo Verde will be featured as one of the top 5 vape products in the vape and edibles categories for the State of Colorado less than 6 months after Palo Verde started utilizing our proprietary processes to extract and refine cannabis oil. And we, along with Palo Verde, are proud to be in collaboration with a premier marijuana company such as Weedmaps. The Weedmaps website and application enable marijuana users to easily find products by pinpointing the user's location and providing the corresponding closest dispensaries carrying FLI-branded products.

Mr. Frazer continued: We intend to progressively introduce our FLI-branded products into California, Oregon, Washington, Canada and other jurisdictions as permitted by state law. We believe that our collaboration with Weedmaps will be a key ingredient to the brands inevitable expansion and success.

Each FLI product line and SKU is featured on Weedmaps so users can easily view the variety of premium products associated with the brand. Being one of the top featured brands in the State of Colorado will help with FLIs algorithm ranking so each branded product has a higher chance of being viewed and ultimately purchased.

Nutritional Highs Packaging Arrangement with Palo Verde

Palo Verde is a Colorado state-licensed marijuana infused products manufacturer. Nutritional High, through its subsidiary, currently provides FLI-branded packaging for use with Palo Verdes products on a royalty-free basis. FLI-branded packaging provided to date, while not yet invoiced, was provided to Palo Verde for the cost of packaging. Nutritional High and Palo Verde are in discussions to finalize a formal packaging agreement for the continued provision of FLI-branded packaging.

About Nutritional High International Inc.

Nutritional High is focused on developing, manufacturing and distributing premium and consistently dosed products in the cannabis-infused products industry, including edibles and oil extracts for nutritional, medical and adult recreational use. The Company works exclusively through licensed facilities in jurisdictions where such activity is permitted and regulated by state law.

For updates on the Company's activities and highlights of the Company's press releases and other media coverage, please follow Nutritional High on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+ or visit www.nutritionalhigh.com.

For further information, please contact:

David Posner, Chairman of the Board

Nutritional High International Inc.

647-985-6727

Email: dposner@nutritionalhigh.com

NEITHER THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR OTC MARKETS GROUP INC., NOR THEIR REGULATIONS SERVICES PROVIDERS HAVE REVIEWED OR ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements and information based on current expectations. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Such statements include submission of the relevant documentation within the required timeframe and to the satisfaction of the relevant regulators, completing the acquisition of the applicable real estate and raising sufficient financing to complete the Company's business strategy. There is no certainty that any of these events will occur. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be correct. We assume no responsibility to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.

Company's securities have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or applicable state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold to, or for the account or benefit of, persons in the United States or "U.S. Persons", as such term is defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act, absent registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in the United States or any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information contained herein. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as required by law.
NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Horizon Media, a global leader in data-driven media and marketing, announced today the official launch of Horizon Media in Canada, which officially opens its doors this month. The new Horizon Media Canada office, located in Torontos Liberty Village, brings Horizon Medias distinct vision and operating model to Canada.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0d7db0f3-97aa-4ff7-b505-8e17ab3f149c

Horizon Media Canada brings to Canada the scale of Horizon Medias North American footprint along with the agencys data-driven marketing expertise, resources and strength in the market. Horizons expansion further into North America also allows the agencys existing clients to make the easy decision to extend their relationship with the agency into the Canadian market.

The new office expands our geographic footprint to better serve and bring greater local market insights to our clients with Canadian operations, said Vinnie OToole, EVP, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer at Horizon Media. Horizon Media Canada also presents a new option for Canadian brands seeking a data-driven new media agency option in the Canadian market.

The agency has appointed Kevin Kivi, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Horizon Media Canada, to lead its Canadian operation, effective immediately.

Kivi has 18 years of industry experience working across clients that include Mars Wrigley Inc, Dairy Queen, Shell, Bayer, Procter & Gamble, Adidas, Kraft, General Mills, and Cadbury Schweppes. He joins Horizon Media Canada from MediaCom Canada where he was Senior Vice President, Business Director, and focused on operationalizing and commercializing client investments and attracting new talent. He has demonstrated leadership in strategic planning, insight development and problem solving and has been an advocate of client advocacy.

In his role, Kivi will partner with senior leadership at Horizon Media to grow the agencys Canadian footprint and lead Canadian client teams to relentlessly improve every aspect of client campaign performance. Additionally, he will drive the creation of a vibrant agency culture as the office grows, and will be a member of Horizon Medias executive board. The position will report directly to Bill Koenigsberg, President, CEO and Founder of Horizon Media.



Horizon is an agile and data-powered organization with a reputation for being entrepreneurial and non-bureaucratic, said Kevin Kivi, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Horizon Media Canada. Im thrilled to bring Horizons unique operating model and capabilities to the Canadian market. Horizon was founded on transparency and trust, and in a world where those virtues are being called into question, I see nothing but opportunity as Horizon expands into new markets. Bill Koenigsberg is an industry visionary and has built an agency known for having successful and long tenured client relationships. I also look forward to delivering on our business is personal promise to Canadian clients and to our people, as we grow.

Additional new hires for Horizon Media Canada will be named in coming months.



About Horizon Media

Horizon Media, Inc. is a global leader in data-driven media and marketing. The company was founded in 1989, is headquartered in New York with offices in Los Angeles and Toronto. Recognized as one of the worlds ten most innovative marketing and advertising companies by Fast Company, Horizon Media has been recognized as U.S. Media Agency of the Year by Adweek and AdAge, and Independent Media Agency of the Year by Mediapost. Renowned for its incredible culture, Horizon is also consistently named to all the prestigious annual Best Places to Work lists published by Fortune, AdAge, Crains New York Business and Los Angeles Business Journal. Bill Koenigsberg served as the Chairman of the 4As Board of Directors from 2014 to 2017, and currently serves as Vice Chair of the 4As Board of Directors. Bill was the first person from a media agency to hold this prestigious position in the 100-year history of the 4As, the marketing industrys leading trade association. Horizon Media has estimated billings of $8 billion and over 2,000 employees.
ssbisht wrote:

(A) If the upward trend in out-shopping continues at a significant level and the amounts paid by the government for Canadian social services are maintained, the Canadian goods-and-services tax will be assessed at a higher rate.

A continued trend in out-shopping means that lesser people will pay Canadian goods-and-services tax which will mean that government has to increase tax rate to be able to pay for the Canadian social services.

This falls within the boundaries of what is given in the premise and hence is the correct answer.

However there is an assumption here that the amount of shopping inside Canada has not increased enough to counter the out-shopping. I am going with this choice considering that the author has mentioned significant level for out-shopping. Also no other choice is even close to being correct.



(B) If Canada imposes a substantial tariff on the goods bought across the border, a reciprocal tariff on cross-border shopping in the other direction will be imposed, thereby harming Canadian businesses.

Nothing is given about taxes on other side so we shouldn't assume anything



(C) The amounts the Canadian government pays out to those who provide social services to Canadians are increasing.

The amounts provided for social services may increase because of increase in population or many other reasons and out shopping has nothing to do with it.



(D) The same brands of goods are available to Canadian shoppers across the border as are available in Canada.

Taking about Brand is out of scope.



(E) Out-shopping purchases are subject to Canadian taxes when the purchaser crosses the border to bring them into Canada.

Again out of scope. Nothing mentioned about the taxes on buying across the border.

A continued trend in out-shopping means that lesser people will pay Canadian goods-and-services tax which will mean that government has to increase tax rate to be able to pay for the Canadian social services.

Any thoughts?

(D) The same brands of goods are available to Canadian shoppers across the border as are available in Canada.

Opinions ?

Hi Experts !I have a doubt in option APrompt says that "goods-and-services tax that pays for Canadian social services". But it doesn't mean that this tax is the only source of income for the Canadian social services. May be revenue from exports and other services are also paying for the social services.so how's A necessarily true ?a decrease in the tax income might be recovered by using a greater share of revenue from other sources of income to pay for Social services or by increasing tax rate.Therefore an increase in tax is not necessary (not a must be true situation).While D says:Argument says :Canadians now increasingly engage in out-shopping, which is shopping across the national border, where prices are lower.Obviously, why they are doing out-shopping because they are getting lower prices for the things they need(just like a discount store).A higher price of say an x-box in the home country is driving them to buy it from outside-Canada where they can get it for a lower price.A brand or commodity that is absent in the Canadian market (and anyhow citizens are buying it from New York) doesn't come under the spectrum of this argument which basically relies on the cost advantage.In the light of this option D is a correct inference for the argument to stand legit.Regards,SR
Re: Armtech, a temporary-employment agency, previously gave its employees [ #permalink

Ans. D

(A) Most current Armtech employees approve of the company's new vacation policy.

Doesn't matter. not assumed

(B) A few Armtech employees leave the company before having worked 700 hours.

Before 700 hours means these employees won't be able to take 2.5 days off also, so it doesn't matter

(C) Most Armtech employees were not aware that the company planned to change its vacation policy until after it had already done so.

It doesn't matter again if they're aware or not

(D) A significant portion of Armtech employees stay with the company long enough to work for 1,200 hours.

yes so the passage concludes that new policy is more generous in giving leaves and it would happen only if employees do work for at least 1200 hours else for 1100 hours they get only 2.5 days off. Hence this is the assumptiom

(E) Armtech's new vacation policy closely matches the vacation policies of competing temporary employment agencies.

not mentioned. irrelevant as we don't talk of competing agencies
One product to protect all your devices, without slowing them down.

Chinese intelligence agents have flooded LinkedIn with fake profiles of young professionals in an attempt to pervade German business and politics, warned Hans-Georg Maassen, head of the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) on Sunday.

According to Maassen, Chinese spies have used LinkedIn to contact some 10,000 German citizens with intent to recruit them as informants. Out of the eight most-active fake profiles, one posed as a human resources manager, another as a representative of a think tank in China, and others as consultants, scholars and policy experts.

This is a broad-based attempt to infiltrate in particular parliaments, ministries and government agencies, Maassen said.

Chinese intelligence services are active on networks like LinkedIn and have been trying for a while to extract information and find intelligence sources in this way. The infections are difficult to detect, since network connections between service providers and their customers arent suspicious. This gives the attacker an even better disguise than before, the BfV said.

China denied the accusations on Monday, as it has in the past when accused of cyberespionage by Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, India and the United States.

We hope the relevant German organizations, particularly government departments, can speak and act more responsibly, and not do things that are not beneficial to the development of bilateral relations, responded Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.

According to the Czech Republics Security Information Service (SIS), there is strong evidence of growing Chinese espionage operations targeting European companies, while the BfV reported last year increasingly aggressive cyber-espionage infiltration with parliamentary elections.
As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ
Kabul, Dec 11 (IBNS): At least 76 militants were killed in a five-day commando operation in Afghanistan's Kunduz province, local Tolo News reported.

The strikes were carried out in Imam Sahib district of the province.

Confirming the report, Jawed Salim, spokesperson of the Afghan National Army Commando Corps, said that dozens of militants were injured along with the deceased.

However, he added that during the operations, an army officer was killed and two commandos wounded.

The militants belonged to the Taliban outfit, who has not yet commented on the report.
This book documents the 1988 massacre of dissident political prisoners by the Iranian regime, and uses those events to discuss general policy themes.

The NCRIs goals are threefold:

 Bring those responsible for the 1988 atrocity to an international tribunal;

 A commission of inquiry set up by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights;

 Alongside the issues of ballistic missiles, export of terrorism, and involvement in Syria, have the Trump administration address the issue of human rights in Iran

Human Rights Day sparked the Commissioner to state that the values enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are under assault and must be defended.

Moderate President Hassan Rouhani was quoted as saying that people should be hanged in public to make examples out of them for other citizens. It is reported that Iran accounted for 66 percent of all recorded executions in the region. Still, per the Amnesty International Report of Facts & Figures for 2016, the overall number of executions carried out in Iran dropped by 42 percent (from at least 977 to at least 567) from the previous year.

Another NCRIUS book, Presidential Elections in Iran: Changing Faces; Status Quo Policies calls Irans election process, selections by the Supreme Leader, instead.

Human Rights Day commemorates the UN General Assemblys adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in 1948. The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) noted how this milestone provides Trump an opportunity to address a longstanding human rights problem with our main allies, based on U.S. national security implications: Irans continuing repression of its own people.

While statistics regarding the number of citizens imprisoned for their political beliefs are unavailable, per the Department of States Human Rights Report for 2016  human rights NGO, United for Iran, estimates there are 905 prisoners of conscience in Iran, including those jailed for religious beliefs. The NCRI makes this information available in its reports on human rights abuses in Iran, which are verified by Amnesty International, as stated above for 2016. Since the 2015 nuclear deal, human rights abuses in Iran have proceeded unabated, according to The Department of State website.

In his article for newmax.com, Professor Raymond Tanter, who served as a senior member on the Middle East Desk of the National Security Council staff in the Reagan-Bush administration, and is currently Professor Emeritus at the University of Michigan, writes The regimes conduct stems from its radical Islamist ideology, which views Iran as the vanguard of Shiite Islam in a Middle East dominated by Sunni states and their U.S. patron. In this sense, Iran regards internal dissent as a form of Western cultural infiltration to undermine the regimes legitimacy from within.

In its book, How Iran Fuels Syria War the NCRIUS shows how the Iranian regime engages its forces in Syria, and displays how, by challenging Irans human rights abuses, Trump can advance U.S. interests.

Tanter attended a briefing in the prestigious Kennedy Caucus Room in the Russell Building of the U.S. Capitol, sponsored by the Organization for Iranian-American Communities (OIACUS) on December 7th, where welcoming remarks were presented in a video message from NCRI President-Elect Madame Maryam Rajavi.

There were presentations by a distinguished group of former U.S. officials, as well as remarks from two present Members of the U.S. Congress  Sen. Ben Cardin Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (D-MD) and a senior member of the Committee on Appropriations, Sen. John Bozeman (R-AR). They both gave strong support to the people of Iran and were critical of the regime, Tanter writes, and adds, Other statements were by former Speaker of the U.S. House, Newt Gingrich.

The growing capabilities of the main opposition group in Iran, the National Council of Resistance of Iran, were highlighted by Gingrich. The NCRIs largest unit is the Peoples Mujahedeen of Iran, (PMOI), commonly known as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq or MEK. Gingrich discussed the need for President Trump increase his pressure on the Iranian regime with new sanctions on Tehran.

General Jim Jones, former Chief of Staff, focused on regime change from within, and the enhanced capabilities of the NCRI family of organizations.

Closing the program was Ambassador (Ret.) Lincoln Bloomfield, Jr., who defended the idea of regime change from within, as well as new sanctions on Iran, and the growing capabilities of the NCRI to effect regime change.
Hezbollah, in Lebanon, is believed to be behind the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri, who held the office Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from 2000 until his resignation on 20 October 2004. Hariri was assassinated on February 14th, 2005 when explosives were detonated within his motorcade. Alleged Hezbollah supporters have been indicted for the assassination. His son, Saad Hariri, who rose to the office of Prime Minister, as well, but he unexpectedly resigned early in November during a trip to Saudi Arabia, saying his life was in danger.

The common denominator in these deaths appears to be the involvement of Iran, who backs both groups. Iran is reportedly sending weapons and military advisers to Yemens rebel Houthi movement, and Hezbollah, or Party of God, was formed at the time of the Iranian Revolution to assist the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and his forces in consolidating power.

Hussein Shobokshi, host of the weekly current affairs program Al Takreer on Al Arabiya, says in his article for the Saudi Gazette, Confrontation or conflict with Iran is not a sectarian conflict nor is it a political conflict as it is always described, but a conflict between the humanitarian and civil project and co-existence in return for the brutal mission that Iran is carrying out to the region.

He goes on to say, History bears witness to the fact that wherever Iran interfered, blood flowed like waterfalls. Iran is on a non-human mission. The project of exporting its revolution calls for the capitulation of its opponents, stirring up sectarian strife, sowing ideological division and the assassination of all leading personalities who enjoy a great deal of goodwill among their people and are quite popular in the political arena. What is happening in Yemen today and in other capitals of the Arab world is neither just interference in the internal affairs of the Arab states, nor an occupation but an aggression, no less dangerous than the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

Still, the conflict in Yemen will not end with the killing of Ali Abdullah Saleh. Because Yemen is a tribal society, revenge and retaliation are expected. Shobokshi believes that in the coming days there will be a movement of teams to rescue their country from the occupation of Houthis.
Other smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S8 may have introduced facial recognition well before Apple, but Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller says all such systems "stink".

When the iPhone X arrived with its Face ID system, there was criticism from friends and foe alike.

But that does not faze Schiller, who told the Dutch website Bright that other facial recognition systems "don't work in the ways we need Face ID to work".

"We're very aware that through the years this simple thing, the Home button, that started as the way you click to get to the Home screen, grew into doing so many things for us.

"We added Touch ID, it took you to the multitasking screen, paged Siri, activated Apple Pay. All through this one mechanical button.

"So for Face ID we needed the best way we know of to enable us to easily unlock our device with our face, in a protected way with the Secure Enclave, and support all these other things. We had to solve all of that."

Schiller said that other things people had tried with face hadn't been anything like that. "Face ID is a very unique implementation."

Asked about the privacy implications of Face ID in view of the fact that data is shared with third-party developers, Schiller denied that any data was shared with third parties.

"First of all, no Face ID data goes to third parties. So what you enrol with Face ID, what you use to unlock your phone, that's an algorithm that is created and encrypted by the Secure Enclave," he said.

"No third party that uses the iPhone camera has your Face ID data. We did create an API so developers can use the cameras to track facial movements, to do things like wrap stickers on your face (like Snapchat, ed.) Thats different than Face ID. They dont have all the access to the data that Face ID has for that."
News about endangered species often worries people. But on December 5, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, or IUCN, had some good news. In publishing its yearly "Red List" of endangered species it noted some success for two kinds of New Zealand birds. The IUCN said the Okarito kiwi and the Northern Brown kiwi are now in less danger of disappearing from existence than in the past.

Key to helping the kiwis

The IUCN reports that New Zealand is reducing the populations of animals that kill and hunt the birds. The animals include stoats and cats.

The number of Okarito kiwi has risen from 160 in 1995 to as many as 450 now, the IUCN said. It reported a rise in Northern Brown kiwi numbers also.

The IUCN is made up of government and non-government experts. Its studies help guide conservation policies. The Red List identifies which local species are at risk of disappearing from Earth.

Two species are new to the IUCN endangered list. The Irrawaddy dolphin and the finless porpoise travel along the coastlines of Southeast Asia. The Red List report says these sea animals get trapped in fishing nets and are harmed by other human activities as well.

The use of gillnets is among the fishing methods harmful to these species. The nets are used on the Mekong River and in other major waterways. They hang across waterways and entrap everything in the path.

Researchers have counted for the Red List about 91,500 of almost 1.9 million described species. Of these, 25,821 are threatened, 866 no longer exist and 69 others no longer exist in the wild. The IUCN describes 11,783 species as vulnerable, 8,455 as endangered and 5,583 as critically endangered.

Australias Western Ringtail possum has moved from vulnerable to critically endangered on the Red List. The IUCN said its population dropped by 80 percent over the past ten years.

Possum now in danger

The Western Ringtail possum was once widespread in peppermint and eucalyptus forests. Now the animal has only a few disconnected places to live. High temperatures, which sicken the species, are becoming increasingly common where it lives.

The IUCN announced its findings in Tokyo. The Toyota automobile company helps pay for IUCN studies. The group warned of habitat loss and other dangers for some newly studied Japanese native species of lizards and snakes.

Im Jill Robbins.

Dr. Jill Robbins adapted this story for Learning English based on an Associated Press story. Catherine Kelly Weaver was the editor.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

endangered - adj. used to describe a type of animal or plant that has become very rare and that could die out completely

species - n. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants

conservation - n. the protection of animals, plants, and natural resource

stoat  n. a small animal that has a long body and brown fur that turns white in winter

gillnet - n. a fishing net that is hung vertically so that fish get trapped in it by their gills.

habitat - n. the place or type of place where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives or grows

vulnerable - adj. open to attack, harm, or damage

What are some endangered species near where you live? Are you doing anything to help them? Write to us in the Comments Section.


Felicia Luna had a really bad headache. She said the painful pressure felt like someone was squeezing my head really tight.

The pain became so bad that the 41-year-old woman could not lie down and rest her head on a pillow.

Her main doctor and a specialist told Luna that she needed to stop worrying.

Then, she went to the Stanford Medical Center in California.

There, she was told doctors needed to operate on an aneurysm in her brain. And they needed to act quickly.

Doctor Gary Steinberg said the aneurysm was in danger of breaking. The operation he proposed would be very complex. Luna worried a lot about the treatment. She also wanted to know more about it.

So Steinberg decided to use virtual reality technology to improve and explain the surgical operation.

A three dimensional roadmap of the brain

To do this, medical experts needed to take three dimensional (3D) images of Lunas brain. A dye, or colored fluid, was injected into her bloodstream. Doctors then used computerized tomography (CT) technology to make detailed pictures of her brain and blood vessels.

Malie Collins is program coordinator of the Stanford Neurological Simulation and Virtual Reality Center. She creates the images Steinberg uses when preparing for surgery.

Collins once worked for an Ohio company called Surgical Theater. It makes software programs with the ability to turn medical images into 3D tools for surgeons. Doctors can see the images using headsets like Oculus Rift or similar devices.

Collins trained Stanfords medical workers to use the equipment. Then she joined the team.

Collins and Steinberg created the neurological simulation and virtual reality center. It is said to be the first virtual reality medical center in the United States.

Part of Collins job is to create a fly through virtual reality video for patients. It lets them see inside their own bodies. This virtual reality trip lets doctors and students see what is wrong and how to treat it.

For Felicia Luna, that means she can put on a headset and travel through her own brain.

Before the operation, Luna admitted that she was a nervous wreck. But with the video, she was able to see the path Steinberg would take to repair her blood vessel.

Now I feel like I know exactly whats going to happen.

A new way to plan and teach complex surgery

Steinberg teaches a class at Stanfords medical school. Before the operation, he invited the class to a room with video monitors, reclining chairs and virtual reality headsets. The students used controls around their hands to move images of areas that the upcoming surgery would treat.

Collins put images of Lunas brain and blood vessels into the software so Steinberg could show the students how he would operate.

By simply moving his hands in the air, Steinberg could move the images around, showing all the areas inside Lunas head and brain.

So we can see the back of the aneurysm, the side, we can see its relationship to the parent vessel. This is something we couldnt ever do before.

The same images were available during surgery to help doctors and medical assistants.

Steinberg was even able to practice just before the five-hour-long operation.

Collins said the virtual reality tool makes the experience better for the patient, helps the doctor and assists in education. That is what makes it unique and powerful, she said.

In the future, Steinberg said he may be able to perform operations at a distance from the patient with the help of robotic arms. Virtual reality software can help make that possibility more likely. But, the delay between the doctors commands and the robots movement make that difficult now.

After using the virtual roadmap, doctors successfully operated on Lunas aneurysm.

Steinberg said he experienced something unexpected during the surgery that he had not planned on using the virtual tool. He saw that he needed to use two clips instead of one to control the aneurysm.

Luna left the hospital two days after the operation to be with her four children and her husband.

Im Mario Ritter.

Carolyn Presutti reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

______________________________________________________________

Quiz

Now, test your understanding by taking this short quiz.

Quiz - Doctors Use Virtual Reality to Prepare for Complex Operations Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

squeeze  v. to put pressure on opposite sides of something

aneurysm  n. when the wall of a blood vessel expands, forming a balloon which can burst

virtual reality  n. technology that recreates a place or experience using images, sound and other things

three-dimensional  adj. giving the appearance of an objects height, width and length

blood vessels  n. tissue that carry blood throughout the body

headset  n. a device that is placed on the head that show images on a screen, play sounds and provide other experiences and controls

monitor  n. screens that show images, such as a computer monitor

practice  v. to perform something repeatedly so as to become skilled

unique  adj. being unlike anything else; being the only one

clips  n. devices that press to things together

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.
France and a French food manufacturer have ordered a major international recall of several food products for babies.

The Lactalis Group is one of the world's largest manufacturers of dairy products. It said French health officials warned the company that 26 babies had been sickened with salmonella since December 1.

The French Ministry of the Economy ordered the suspension of marketing and export of several baby products made at a Lactalis factory in Craon, France. It said all the products were manufactured after February 15, 2017.

The French health ministrys website says the recall affects nine countries in four continents: Britain and Greece in Europe; Morocco and Sudan in Africa; Peru and Colombia in South America; and Pakistan, Bangladesh and China in Asia.

The United States, a major market for Lactalis products, is not affected.

A company spokesman told the Associated Press Monday that the recall is "precautionary" and involves "several million" products.

Lactalis noted in a statement that the 26 cases of infection were linked to products with the brand names Picot SL, Pepti Junior 1, Milumel Bio 1 and Picot Riz.

The statement included an apology and expressed support to the families whose children were sickened. The company said it has taken measures to clean the area of the factory where the bacteria spread.

Infection with salmonella can cause sickness. Signs of infection include abdominal pain, diarrhea and higher than normal body temperature. The sickness is more dangerous among some populations, including the very young.

The Lactalis Group is a privately held company. Its headquarters is in western France. Lactalis has 75,000 employees in 85 countries and earnings of about 17 billion euros a year. Its famous brands include President and Galbani cheeses, as well as Parmalat milk.

A full list of the products in question is available on the website of Frances consumer protection agency.

Im Phil Dierking.

Caty Weaver adapted this story for VOA Learning English. Her story was based on reports from VOA and the Associated Press. George Grow was the editor.

Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

recall  n. a request by a company for people to return a product that has a defect or problem

dairy  n. milk or food made from milk

precautionary  adj. something that is done to prevent possible harm or trouble from happening in the future

abdominal  adj. the part of the body below the chest that contains the stomach and other organs 

brand  n. a category of products that are all made by a particular company and all have a particular name

diarrhea  n. a sickness that causes you to pass waste from your body very frequently and in liquid rather than solid form

consumer  n. a person who buys goods and services
A new report uses words like sweeping and methodical to describe sexual violence against Rohingya Muslims by members of Myanmars security forces.

Reporters with the Associated Press spoke with 29 women and girls who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar. The youngest girl they spoke to was just 13 years old; the oldest woman was 35.

One of the women in the report wanted to be identified as F, the first letter in her name. She told the AP that, one night in June, a group of soldiers entered her home as she and her husband slept.

Just days before, F found out that security forces had killed her parents. This time, she said, the solders had come for her.

First, the men tied her husband up with a rope. They removed her headscarf and tied it around the husbands mouth.

Then, they threw her on the floor and one of the soldiers raped her. She struggled against him, but other soldiers held her down. She watched in fear as another soldier shot her husband in the chest. Another cut his throat.

Sickening sameness

Associated Press reporters found what they called a "sickening sameness" among the descriptions from the women and girls. Each one said she was raped by a group of men. All but one woman said her rapists wore clothes like those worn by Myanmars armed forces.

The woman who said her attackers wore plain clothing said that her neighbors recognized the men as working at a local military base.

Many of the women said the attackers uniforms had either a star or arrows on them. The AP said those markings "represent the different units of Myanmar's army."

The attacks took place between October 2016 and the middle of September in Rakhine state, the AP reported.

The news agency said doctors and aid workers are shocked by the number of rapes, but "suspect only a fraction of women have come forward."

The group Doctors Without Borders told the AP that its medical workers have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August. It said that one-third of the survivors were under 18. The youngest survivor they have treated was nine years old.

Crystal van Leeuwen is an official with Doctors Without Borders. She told the AP, "The stories that they are telling us, and not only the victims themselves, but that other people are telling us about witnessing acts of sexual violence in Myanmar, make us feel that we're only capturing a very small proportion of the victims."

The women's stories support the United Nations belief that armed forces are systematically using rape as a 'calculated tool of terror' against the Rohingya people, the AP said.

It also said Myanmar's security forces refused several requests for comment. The news agency said the military carried out an internal investigation in November and ruled that none of the assaults ever took place.

International reaction to Rohingya crisis

Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar's civil leader, has come under criticism from the international community. Some officials say has her reaction to the Rohingya crisis has been too slow.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner has said there has been a huge iceberg of misinformation about the issue.

The Rohingya Muslim minority have been denied citizenship and other rights in Myanmar, a Buddhist-majority country. It considers them to be immigrants from Bangladesh. However, many Rohingya families have lived in Myanmar for generations.

Myanmar's military has been accused of launching a scorched earth campaign against Rohingya villages. Military officials say the campaign is in response to attacks on police by Rohingya militants in August.

Since then, 600,000 people have fled from Myanmar to Bangladesh. Some of the refugees have told rights groups of shootings, rapes and violent attacks by government security forces. They also accuse the security forces of setting fires to villages.

The U.N. has described the reported actions carried out by Myanmar forces as "a textbook case of ethnic cleansing."

Im Ashley Thompson

I'm Jonathan Evans.

Fern Robinson reported on this Associated Press story for VOANews.com. George Grow adapted her report for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

sweeping  adj. moving over a wide area; extensive

headscarf  n. a cloth worn over the head

unit  n. a thing or group that is part of a larger organization

fraction  n. percentage

iceberg  n. a large piece of ice floating in the ocean

scorched earth  adj. related to a military policy involving widespread destruction of property

response  n. a reaction to something

ethnic cleansing  n. the expulsion, jailing or killing of an ethnic minority by a majority population

persecuted  adj. oppressed or repressed
A small bomb exploded near an underground train station in New Yorks Times Square on Monday. The explosion during rush hour injured the suspected bomber and three other people.

All four were sent to the hospital for treatment. Police described the incident as an attempted terror attack.

The explosion happened in an underground passageway that connects Times Square station on 42nd Street to a station under the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Many people were in the passageway when the explosion caused it to fill with smoke.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said, Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

The suspect was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

New York officials said the Islamic State terrorist group inspired the suspect but that he did not have direct contact with the group. Officials said he lives in Brooklyn and possibly was born in Bangladesh.

A video from a security camera shows the suspect in the tunnel when the bomb exploded in a burst of white smoke. It shows the suspect on the ground and people fleeing the area.

The New York Post newspaper published a photo of the man lying on the ground with his shirt torn off and burn marks on his body. The photograph also shows police officers holding the mans hands behind his back.

The explosion at 7:30 a.m. closed the nations busiest bus station, eight underground train lines and all the streets around Times Square.

Elrana Peralta works close to where the bomb exploded. She did not hear the explosion. She said, All we could hear was the chaos. We could hear people yelling, Get out! Get out! Get out!

John Miles was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts. He also did not hear the explosion, but saw police react.

I didnt know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out, he said. There was an announcement that people should leave the area.

On October 31, another act of terror killed eight people in New York City. The suspect in that attack drove a truck down a crowded bicycle path.

Officials said the area of Mondays explosion would be re-opened by the nighttime rush hour.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.

Im Jonathan Evans.

Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on AP news reports. Caty Weaver was the editor.

Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

rush hour - n. a time of day early in the morning or late in the afternoon when many people are traveling to work or to get home after work

perpetrator - n. a person who plans to do something illegal or wrong

achieve - v. to reach a goal

ultimate - adj. final

inspire - v. make someone want to do something

freaking - adj. informal, use to make a statement more forceful
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Ecolab Inc. provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Global Industrial, Global Institutional & Specialty, and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences segments. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries. The Global Institutional & Specialty segment provides specialized cleaning and sanitizing products to the foodservice, hospitality, lodging, government and education, and retail industries. Its Global Healthcare & Life Sciences segment offers specialized cleaning and sanitizing products to the healthcare, personal care, and pharmaceutical industries, such as infection prevention and surgical solutions, and end-to-end cleaning and contamination control solutions under the Ecolab, Microtek, and Anios brand names. The company's Other segment offers pest elimination services to detect, eliminate, and prevent pests, such as rodents and insects in restaurants, food and beverage processors, educational and healthcare facilities, hotels, quick service restaurant and grocery operations, and other institutional and commercial customers. This segment also provides colloidal silica for binding and polishing applications in semiconductor, catalyst, and aerospace component manufacturing, as well as chemical industries; and products and services that manage wash process through custom designed programs, premium products, dispensing equipment, water and energy management, and reduction, as well as real time data management. It sells its products through field sales and corporate account personnel, distributors, and dealers. The company was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Genesee & Wyoming Inc. owns and leases freight railroads. It operates through three segments: North American Operations, Australian Operations, and U.K./European Operations. The company transports various commodities, including agricultural products, autos and auto parts, chemicals and plastics, coal and coke, food and kindred products, lumber and forest products, metallic ores, metals, minerals and stone, petroleum products, pulp and paper, waste, and other commodities. It owns or leases 122 freight railroads, including 105 short line railroads and 2 regional freight railroads located in the United States, 8 short line railroads located in Canada, 3 railroads located in Australia, 1 railroad located in the United Kingdom, 1 railroad in Poland and Germany, and 2 railroads in the Netherlands with a total of approximately 16,200 miles of track. The company also operates 6,200 additional miles of track that is owned or leased by others. In addition, it operates deep sea maritime containers and provides bulk haulage, including coal, aggregates, cement, and infrastructure services. Further, the company provides rail service at approximately 40 ports; rail-ferry service in North America, Australia, and Europe; and contract coal loading and railcar switching for industrial customers. Genesee & Wyoming Inc. was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Darien, Connecticut.
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Taipei, Dec. 11 (CNA) The first quarter of 2018 will bring little cheer to job seekers in Taiwan, as many employers are more cautious than in the past about hiring workers, due to a dim outlook for economic growth next year, according to the latest quarterly employer survey released Monday by online job bank 1111.
The Chief Executive (CE) said yesterday that he didnt suggest any name for the position of director of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), following last weeks resignation of IC director Leung Hio Ming and deputy director Chan Peng Fai. Chui said that he agreed with the appointment of the former deputy director of Tourism Office, Cecilia Tse, following a suggestion made by the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam.

Speaking during the Walk for a Million event, Chui remarked that Tam and his office made a cautious choice, taking into consideration Tses qualifications, professional experience and ability, noting that by today, all the administrative formalities will be concluded and Tse can take office.

Questioned on the appointment of a person to a position, when that person does not possess a deep knowledge of the field, the CE said, in management, there are two perspectives, one of which is to appoint a person with professional experience and management qualifications [to perform the task], another would pass to appoint someone from the lower management level to support management.

Last week, Tams office explained that the changes in the IC presidency are a direct result of the March report from the Commission Against Corruption highlighting several unlawful hiring practices at the IC. The report was issued just weeks after a leadership change at the IC, in which former president Ung Vai Meng quit unexpectedly and was replaced by Leung Hio Ming

After the Charity Walk, the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Sonia Chan also spoke to the media. Regarding the disciplinary measures to be enforced on the former IC leaders, she noted, the process is still on appeal phase, so the Pension Fund will await the final outcome in order to adopt the necessary measures.
Arab foreign ministers yesterday demanded that the United States rescind President Donald Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, calling it a grave development that puts Washington on the same side as occupation and the violation of international law.

In a resolution long on rhetoric but short on concrete actions, the ministers also called for the U.N. Security Council to adopt a resolution condemning Trumps decision, but acknowledged that Washington would most likely veto it.

If the U.S. vetoes the resolution, the Arabs would seek a similar resolution in the U.N. General Assembly, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki told a pre-dawn news conference in Cairo.

A two-page resolution adopted by the emergency meeting, which began Saturday night, did not include any punitive actions against the United States, like a call for a boycott of American products or suspending or downgrading ties with Washington.

It also appeared to fall short of matching the anger felt by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, which have seen three days of violent protests against Trumps decision.

We have taken a political decision not meant to reflect [what is going on in] the streets. Political work is responsible work, said Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul- Gheit. Jerusalem has been occupied for 50 years. This is an extended battle, a battle that will be escalated, he told the news conference.

The resolution said the ministers would meet again within a month and held out the possibility that an emergency Arab summit would be held in Jordan to discuss Jerusalem.

Trumps Dec. 6 announcement on Jerusalem, and his intention to move the U.S. Embassy there, triggered denunciations from around the world, with even close allies suggesting he had needlessly stirred more conflict in an already volatile region. Jerusalems status lies at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Trumps move was widely perceived as siding with Israel. Even small crises over Jerusalems status and that of the holy sites in its ancient Old City have sparked deadly bloodshed in the past.

Arab diplomats said some Arab League members had wanted a more hard-line resolution, including punitive measures against countries that follow the U.S. example and recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital.

That was considered too radical by moderate Arab nations and eventually dropped, according to the diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

But Al-Maliki, the Palestinian Foreign Minister, sought to play down differences, saying the meeting produced complete unity among Arab nations.

There were differences in assessment when we moved to specifying measures, he said. But in the end we agreed on gradually escalating measures.

Both Aboul-Gheit and Al-Maliki said Arab nations remained committed to a 2002 Arab peace plan that provides for recognition of Israel in exchange for lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.

That plan is a key reference in the Middle East peace process, Al-Maliki told the news conference.

Trumps decision, according to the Arab resolution, was illegal and a dangerous violation of international law. Its a dangerous development that places the United States at a position of bias in favor of the occupation and the violation of international law and resolutions.

Israel occupied and later annexed the eastern part of Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war, declaring the holy city its eternal capital. Palestinians want that part to be the capital of their future state.

Trumps decision, said the resolution, also stripped the U.S. of its role as a sponsor and broker in the Mideast peace process, and undermines efforts to bring about peace, deepens tension and will spark anger that will threaten to push the region to the edge of the abyss of violence, chaos and bloodshed.

The resolution adopted by the ministers reiterated that only the creation of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital would end the Arab- Israeli conflict. It also mandated the Arab League to launch an international media campaign explaining the gravity of the American decision.

During a 2  hour session carried live on regional and local TV networks, the ministers gave speech after speech on the issue of Jerusalem, with comments ranging from blasting Trumps decision to the need for concrete action to musings on whether fiery speeches would change anything.

If we do nothing about this one [Trumps decision], there will be many, many more tragedies, warned Iraqs foreign minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari. No normalization [with Israel] and no compromises.

Al-Jaafari later told reporters he thought the resolution did not match the seriousness of the situation over Jerusalem and that Baghdad would at a later date lodge its reservations with the Arab league.

Addressing the meeting, Lebanons foreign minister, Gibran Bassil, suggested that there might be a silver lining in the latest crisis to hit an Arab world locked in conflict with Israel for nearly 70 years.

Could this calamity bring us together and wake us from our slumber? he told the meeting.Hamza Hendawi, Cairo, AP
China on Friday said Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has undermined mutual trust by accusing foreign powers of seeking to influence the countrys political process.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Turnbulls remarks were prejudiced against China and had poisoned the atmosphere of China- Australia relations.

We are astounded by the relevant remarks of the Australian leader. Such remarks simply cater to the irresponsible reports by some Australian media that are without principle and full of bias against China, Geng said at a regularly scheduled briefing.

It poisons the atmosphere of the China-Australia relationship and undermines the foundation of mutual trust and bilateral cooperation. We express strong dissatisfaction with that and have made a serious complaint with the Australian side, he said.

China is Australias largest trading partner and its biggest source of foreign political funds. Australian law has never distinguished between donors from Australia and overseas.

Turnbull said this week that foreign interference in politics would be outlawed under updated treason and espionage laws. The announcement comes as a U.S. investigation into alleged election meddling by Russia continues and follows concerns about Chinese money and influence in Australian politics.

Foreign powers are making unprecedented and increasingly sophisticated attempts to influence the political process, both here and abroad, Turnbull told reporters on Tuesday.

Under the proposed legislation, it would become a crime for a person to act on behalf of a foreign principal to influence a political or governmental process in a manner that is either covert or involves deception.

The laws would criminalize acts such as opposition Sen. Sam Dastyaris soliciting of a donation from a Chinese businessman, Huang Xiangmo, to cover personal expenses. Dastyari, who was demoted last week, then misrepresented Australias policy on Chinas sweeping territorial claims in the South China at a news conference held exclusively for Chinese reporters and attended by Huang.

The Chinese Embassy in Australia issued a strongly worded statement on Wednesday accusing Australian media of fabricating stories about Chinese government meddling and vilifying Chinese students and the Chinese community in Australia.

China has no intention to interfere in Australias internal affairs or exert influence on its political process through political donations, the statement said. AP
The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Sonia Chan, said on Saturday that the Legal Affairs Bureau (DSAJ) is currently finalizing the legislative procedures of the National Anthem Law. According to Chan, such procedures should be completed before the end of January next year. The Secretary added, the DSAJ has been in communication with other relevant government departments, such as the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture, Government Information Bureau and Protocol, Public Relations and External Affairs Office with the purpose to prepare in advance regarding issues that might arise in the application of such law in the MSAR. She reaffirmed once more that the base principles of the law will be the ones from Chinas National Anthem Law with the necessary adjustments in its application to Macau.

UM co-organizes conference on intl law

Co-organized by the University of Macau (UM) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the UNCITRAL-UM Joint Conference 2017 will be held today and tomorrow at the World Trade Center Macau. Titled Modernization of National Commercial Laws and the Role of Legal Harmonization in International Commerce, the two-day conference will feature 40 experts from Australia, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Japan, Singapore, India, Bangladesh, mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau, according to a statement issued by UM. The scholars will discuss different contemporary and emerging issues in the areas of international trade law and commercial law. The conference will be conducted in English.

Taivex/Malo Day Hospital to be evicted from Venetian Macao

On Saturday, Sands China confirmed that Taivex/Malo Day Hospital will be closed permanently and asked to move out of its Venetian Macao premises, following the suspension of its license by Macaus Health Bureau on the back of suspected illegal medical operations. The decision is likely to mean that Malo Clinic, which shares a license with the hospital, will also be forced to relocate. According to public broadcaster TDM, Sands China said it was taking preemptive measures after learning of the license suspension, in order to show its commitment to the highest standards. The Taivex/Malo Day Hospital is expected to receive an eviction notice from The Venetian Macao shortly, after which it will have 40 days to leave the premises. The founder of the Malo Clinic Group told TDM that he was not aware of any eviction notice as of the weekend.

Queensland Youth Symphony finishes Macau leg of tour

The Queensland Youth Symphony recently performed three concerts in Macau, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The concerts are part of the 95-member orchestras 13th international tour since 1972, and were their first ever performances in Macau and Shenzhen. The orchestra collaborated with local youth orchestras for joint rehearsals and performances during this leg of the tour, including the Macau Youth Symphony Orchestra. The bands performances were led by John Curro, the 85-year old Italian-born Australian conductor who founded the Queensland Youth Symphony. The orchestra performs a series of annual concerts focusing on late 19th- and 20th-century works, as well as pieces by contemporary Australian composers.

Albergue to hold ink, ceramic exhibition

To celebrate the 18th anniversary of Macaus handover to China, Albergue SCM will present Exhibition by Zuo Zheng Yao on December 13. The exhibition will showcase 49 ink and ceramic works, according to a press release by Albergue SCM. Hubei-born Zuo Zheng Yao is currently a professor at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, as well a member of the Ceramic Art Commission of China Artists Association. According to Albergue SCM, the exhibition aims to introduce Zuos art to the public to foster cultural exchange between Macau and mainland China.
The current regulatory regime governing gaming promotion, first enacted in 2002, is facing amendments to tighten the activity of gaming promotors, according to Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau director Paulo Martins Chan on the sidelines of a gaming conference last week.

Back in 2015, the regions 126 junkets faced tighter regulations on gaming promotion. Chan said the regulations will definitely enter the legislation process next year.

Additional reports noted that the government is proposing a higher capital deposit for licensed casino junkets that have just registered in Macau.

With the amendment bill, the government will also examine junkets shareholder structure, suitability and financial strength.

Lawyer Jorge Neto Valente, a guest speaker at the conference, regarded tighter regulations as a positive development, but added that such restrictions would not discourage operators from applying for gaming licenses.

I think it was time for the junkets activity to be controlled, at least at a minimum. It was not good for the development of the activity, nor for the government or society, to [let it run wild] for so many years, but its better now than never, Valente told the press.

No one can say the gaming promoters are out of this race or the current licensed ones are going to keep their license. The truth is, if theres a tender, the gaming promoters can apply for it, he continued.

Valente also questioned the services that junkets can offer, given the limitations of land resources.

He argued that future gaming operators would be challenged to devise different service offerings beyond the standard hotels and gaming tables.
The head of Germanys domestic intelligence agency is warning that China is using social networks to try to cultivate sources of information.

Hans-Georg Maassen said in comments released yesterday that his agency is so far aware of 10,000 German citizens targeted by China, in particular politicians and members of government agencies. Using primarily LinkedIn, Maassen says Chinas spy agency has established multiple fake profiles to pose as headhunting agencies, consulting firms, think-tanks or researchers.

He says China has also been using so-called supply-chain attacks in cyberspace, whereby they target IT workers and others to find a backdoor into the networks of organizations theyre interested in.

He says his organization has increased its focus to defend against these threats and published a list of the most prolific fake profiles and organizations.
Since he became governor, Chris Sununu has rarely clashed with President Donald Trump, supporting the travel ban on citizens from several mostly Muslim nations and quick to play up visits he has made the White House.

But when Trumps immigration crackdown reached the states tiny Indonesian community this year, Sununu wrote a letter to his fellow Republican in October in which he said he was respectfully requesting your administration reconsider its decision to deport these individuals and urging it consider a resolution that would allow them to remain in the United States.

Sununu insisted the case of the Indonesians was different from that of visitors from the Middle East or Syrian refugees hoping to settle in New Hampshire. The Indonesians had been in the state for decades, raising families, working and staying out of trouble, he argues.

This really isnt an issue of illegal immigration in the traditional sense. That is often what we hear from the Trump administration, and that is an issue that has to be dealt on the national scale, Sununu told The Associated Press in an interview. What you have here is a unique situation.

Sununu has been praised by Democrats in New Hampshire who have championed the Indonesians case while Republicans, and even anti-immigrant Trump supporters, have said little about the decision.

Political experts said there are risks for Sununu in embracing the Indonesians ahead of a re- election bid next year. But in a swing state with a Democratic congressional delegation, the move shouldnt hurt him and shows that he is independent to make up his own mind based on the facts, said Wayne Lesperance, a political science professor at New England College.

You could argue this represents a little bit of a risk with the base, Lesperance said. But the flip side of that [] is that most people in New Hampshire, if they reviewed this specific case, would come to the same conclusion that the governor did.

The nearly 70 Indonesians in New Hampshire and Massachusetts are mostly Christians and fled religious persecution before and after the fall of former dictator Suharto in 1998. In the chaos that followed, riots broke out and mobs targeted ethnic Chinese and other minorities in the mostly Muslim country.

Many of the Indonesians came to seacoast communities in New Hampshire, where they found jobs and raised families. In a 2009 deal brokered by Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, they were allowed to stay as long as they regularly reported to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agreement was separate from the special refugee program known as temporary protected status and only applied to those living in New Hampshire.

But in past six months, as part of a wider crackdown on immigration since Trump took office, they have been told they had to prepare to leave the country.

Some said they feared returning at a time of growing intolerance and violence against Christians, noting that the Christian governor of Jakarta was imprisoned for blasphemy this year.

Freddy and Poppy Sombah, who fled Indonesia 14 years ago with one of their three children, said that they had endured harassment from their mostly Muslim neighbors, and that Poppy Sombahs family disowned her after she converted to Christianity from Islam.

The couple, both now in their 60s, settled into an apartment complex with other Indonesian families in Somersworth and found factory jobs.

But in July on a routine immigration check-in, they were told they would have to leave the country and show proof they had bought a plane ticket to Indonesia on their next visit. They were due to leave in September.

We were in shock, said Poppy Sombah, sitting next to her husband in an apartment filled with family photos and a portrait of Jesus. I was very sad, but there was nothing we could do.

Their case and others drew the attention of both Democrats and Republicans.

Lawyers for the Indonesians referenced the support of Sununu, as well as members of the states Democratic congressional delegation, when they persuaded a judge to rule in November that a federal court has the authority to take up their case, allowing the Indonesians to stay  for now.

Its wonderful, and we are thankful, Poppy Sombah said. We didnt expect that to happen, that the governor himself would support us. Hes a Republican.

New Jersey also has a small Indonesian community at risk, but Republican Gov. Chris Christie has not commented.

In Connecticut, a former Fulbright scholar from Indonesia took sanctuary inside a church in October after he was ordered by ICE to board a plane. Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy did not return messages.

Supporting the Indonesians was an easy decision, Sununu said, and had nothing to do with politics or religion.

This is simply a humanitarian issue, said Sununu, who met with several Indonesians facing deportation at his office. Its my job as governor to stand up and fight for constituents when there is a wrong. Michael Casey, AP
Five months after one of the most dramatic stock crashes in Hong Kong history, the citys authorities are stepping up their investigation into a group of companies that one prominent investor has dubbed the Enigma Network.

Hong Kongs anti-corruption and securities regulators searched eight locations and arrested three senior company executives on Thursday, the Independent Commission Against Corruption said in a statement. The actions were related to the Enigma Network, a group of 50 listed businesses highlighted by activist investor David Webb for their complex web of cross- shareholdings, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

Many of those stocks plunged suddenly on June 27, some by as much as 90 percent, in a crash that underscored concerns about wild price swings and concentrated ownership of small-cap companies in Hong Kongs USD5.1 trillion equity market. The citys regulators have vowed to crack down on stock manipulation, with Securities and Futures Commission enforcement head Tom Atkinson saying in October that anyone who has been exploiting investors through this type of scheme should not underestimate our resolve to stop them.

Thursdays actions came two months after the SFCs largest- ever search operation. That raid was also related to the Enigma Network investigation, said the person with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the probes details arent public.

Atkinson said in October that the searches were related to the emergence of nefarious groups of interrelated companies that work in coordination to extract value from unsuspecting investors. The latest raid by the SFC and ICAC was their first-ever joint operation.

While authorities didnt release the names of companies they searched Thursday, Convoy Global Holdings Ltd., one of the businesses Webb included in the Enigma Network, said in a statement that it had suspended two of its executive directors after they were involved in a law enforcement action. The company halted trading in its shares on Thursday morning.

Lerado Financial Group Co., another firm Webb placed in the network, said Friday it had been invited to assist ICAC in an investigation, without giving more details. The company, whose shares have been suspended since June, is providing the agency with documents and records, it said in a statement.

Trading in six of the 50 Enigma stocks has been suspended, Webb said in a phone interview on Friday. He added that, in some instances, the SFC should seek to have the companies liquidated.

In several of the cases they should go to court and ask for winding up orders to liquidate these companies assets and return the proceeds to shareholders, Webb said. Sam Mamudi, Bloomberg
The Philippine government will demand a refund of 3.5 billion pesos (USD69.5 million) from vaccine maker Sanofi Pasteur and look at possible legal action after a study showed the vaccine used in a dengue immunization program could expose some people to severe illness, the health chief said Friday.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the government will also seek compensation for treatment of children who may develop severe dengue. No deaths have been confirmed, but at least one immunized child has developed dengue.

The Department of Health put on hold its dengue immunization drive, which was launched last year and is the worlds first such public program, after France-based Sanofi Pasteur released the study last week.

A small group of protesters called on the government to take action against the health secretaries who supported the vaccination program under the previous and current administrations in a rally at the Department of Health in Manila. The protesters brought a 12-year-old boy who they said received the dengue vaccine.

Former Health Secretary Janette Garin told ABS-CBN TV that there was no warning given by Sanofi in her time that the dengue vaccine Dengvaxia carried a risk for those who have not been infected. She said she was ready to face a Senate investigation next week.

More than 730,000 public school children aged 9 and above in three Philippine regions with high rates of dengue fever have received at least the first dose of Dengvaxia, the first licensed dengue vaccine.

Sanofi Pasteur said its long-term follow-up study of the vaccine showed sustained benefits for up to six years for those who had a previous dengue infection, but that people who never had dengue had an increased risk of a severe case and hospitalization from the third year after immunization.

We will demand the refund of the 3 billion paid for the Dengvaxia and that Sanofi set up an indemnification fund to cover the hospitalization and medical treatment for all children who might have severe dengue, Duque said at a news conference, adding that a government legal team will also look into Sanofis accountability.

The pharmaceutical giant initially claimed that the vaccine was safe and effective for all people aged 9 to 45, but later acknowledged that it is not recommended for people who have had no prior dengue infection due to the risk of a severe case, Duque said.

At least one 12-year-old from northern Tarlac province developed dengue after being immunized but recovered, Duque said, although he did not say if Dengvaxia caused the infection.

Another possible dengue case was being investigated, he said.

Sanofi Pasteur said Friday its working with Philippine authorities to address fears and share new information about the vaccine, and will cooperate in an ongoing review of the public vaccination program.

Duque said the Philippines will wait for a recommendation to be released next week by a group of immunization experts who provide advice to the World Health Organization.

WHO says about half the worlds population is at risk of dengue, with a recent estimate indicating 390 million infections per year.

Dengue is a mosquito- borne viral infection found in tropical and subtropical climates worldwide. It is a flu-like disease that can cause joint pain, nausea, vomiting and a rash and can cause breathing problems, hemorrhaging and organ failure in severe cases. AP
Chinas top leaders said they will effectively control leverage next year and prevent major risks, stepping up their pledges to ensure stability amid rising debt.

Authorities will aim to give more support to the real economy and promote higher-quality and more efficient development, according to the official Xinhua News Agency, citing a statement late Friday after a Communist Party Politburo meeting led by President Xi Jinping.

Policy makers mapped out three major tasks, placing risk reduction as the top priority. Leverage should be effectively controlled, the financial sector should better support the real economy, and progress should be made in reducing risks, the statement said.

Poverty reduction and cutting pollution were listed as the other two missions. The Politburo also stressed social stability, work safety and property reforms, according to the statement.

The meeting of senior leadership is a prelude to the Central Economic Work Conference expected to be held later this month. There, policy makers have historically established priorities and set the tone for monetary and fiscal policies in the coming year, saying at their December 2016 gathering they planned prudent and neutral monetary policy in 2017.

This sets the tone for the upcoming central economic conference, making deleveraging the top priority for 2018, Shen Jianguang, chief Asia economist at Mizuho Securities Asia Ltd. in Hong Kong, said by email Friday. He said policy makers are signaling they may tighten monetary policy.

Bloomberg Economics economists Fielding Chen and Tom Orlik estimate Chinas total debt will reach 327 percent of gross domestic product by 2022, double the level in 2008.

Ding Shuang, chief economist for Greater China & North Asia at Standard Charted Bank Ltd., said by email Friday that the work conference is likely to be held on Dec. 13, basing his expectation on conference dates in previous years.

He pointed out that this years statement omitted the phrase appropriately expanding aggregate demand, an expression used in statements of similar meetings in 2015 and 2016. The omission signals more tolerance of slower growth during the deleveraging process, Ding said.

The government may keep the 2018 growth target at around 6.5 percent, without pledging to beat the target, he said. That could mean that monetary policy will remain neutral with a slight tightening bias.

Policy makers are reiterating their commitment to structural adjustments, which would amount to a de-facto policy tightening, said Yao Wei, chief China economist at Societe Generale SA in Paris. That also means theyre de-emphasizing the numeric growth target.

Xi has reason to be upbeat this year as economists have ratcheted up full-year 2017 economic growth forecasts and now expect a 6.8 percent expansion that would be the first acceleration in seven years. Data earlier Friday showed exports and imports exceeded economist estimates in November, signaling robust demand in the domestic economy.

A separate item carried by Xinhua late Friday cited Xi saying China should implement new concepts and focus on new targets in its economic work next year. It said Xi spoke at a symposium attended by representatives of non-Communist parties and those without party affiliations on Wednesday.

The essential feature of the economy at the present stage is that it is in a transitional period from a phase of rapid growth to a stage of high-quality development, Xi said. The shift is imperative to maintain sustainable and healthy growth of the economy and society, he told the gathering. Bloomberg
Indonesia has planned to hold events to sell tour packages in Macau and Hong Kong on Dec. 12 and Dec. 14 respectively, aimed at further tapping into the two markets, a senior official of the countrys Tourism Ministry said.

Deputy Minister for International Marketing Development at the ministry Gde Pitana said the ministry would send 11 sellers from Bali, Surabaya, Lombok, Jakarta, Sabang, North Sulawesi, Papua and Riau Islands to the two events.

Most of Indonesian sellers would highlight marine and undersea tours with several tour packages in Indonesias prominent diving and snorkeling spots.

Besides Bali, tour packages to be offered for potential tourists in Macau and Hong Kong among others were Bunaken, Raja Amat, Mansuar Island, Mikes Point and Mantas point.

Indonesia has plenty of beautiful undersea spots for diving and snorkeling. Indonesia had just earned The Best Dive Destination award in the recent World Travel Market event in London last month, Pitana said recently.

He said the upcoming sales mission events will be held at Macaus Hotel Royal and Hong Kongs Kimberly Hotel and were highly expected to successfully boost tourism.

Indonesias upcoming tour package sales events were particularly expected to attract more tourists from the Chinese mainland to visit Indonesia via Hong Kong, Pitana added. MDT/Xinhua
Another day and another high-profile buyer has emerged for the record USD450 million purchase of Leonardo Da Vincis Salvator Mundi. In the span of just three days, two princes and an emirate have been named as either buyers, acquirers or proxy purchasers  depending on whom you believe.

Amid the conflicting reports, the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism issued a statement Friday that it acquired the painting for display at the countrys new museum, Louvre Abu Dhabi. Christies, the auction house behind the sale, and the Saudi Embassy in Washington separately confirmed the information.

The confusing saga started on Dec. 6 when the Louvre Abu Dhabi tweeted that it was getting the most expensive painting in the world. The news was quickly followed by a New York Times story identifying Saudi Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al Saud as the buyer, citing documents it reviewed.

The following day, the Wall Street Journal reported that Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was the true buyer, citing a source in the U.S. government intelligence community and a Saudi art-world figure familiar with the purchase.

The crown prince has been silent on the matter. But on Friday, Saudi Arabias embassy weighed in.

In response to media reports about the sale, the embassy said it contacted the office of Prince Bader, which confirmed the artwork was acquired by the Abu Dhabi culture department.

The inquiry revealed that Prince Bader as a friendly supporter of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, attended its opening ceremony on November 8 and was subsequently asked by the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism to act as an intermediary purchaser for the piece, according to the statement.

The kerfuffle comes as Saudi Arabias crown prince is undertaking an anti-corruption campaign. More than 300 people were summoned for questioning and 159 were placed in detention, Saudi Arabias attorney general has said. Bank accounts of 376 individuals, all of whom are either detainees or people linked to them, have been frozen.

The news of the dueling purchasers has been the talk of the art world during Art Basel Miami Beach, where the worlds leading galleries and collectors gathered for the largest contemporary art fair in the U.S.

When Prince Baders identity was initially revealed, collectors mused whether the painting would be a loan or a gift to the Louvre Abu Dhabi  and how he could be allowed to pursue such a purchase during the kingdoms crackdown on graft.

The thing is very odd, said Jean Pigozzi, a collector of African art, about Prince Baders role. All these rich guys are detained in the hotel and this guy pops up and signs a check for $450 million?

Perhaps that explains why the Saudi embassy, in an e-mail to reporters, said: In light of the erroneous reports on the da Vinci painting purchase, the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has issued a statement to set the record straight.

The painting, which depicts Jesus Christ holding a glass ball in one hand, was sold at Christies by Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev on Nov. 15. Since then, the identity of the buyer has been the most sought-after secret.

This is not your standard art-market story, art blogger Lee Rosenbaum said today. You may need to have possession of this crystal ball to be able to predict what happens next.Katya Kazakina, Nafeesa Syeed, Bloomberg
NEPAL

An alliance of two major communist parties, one Maoist and the other Marxist-Leninist, is leading parliamentary election results in Nepal and could be forming the next government in the Himalayan nation.

VIETNAM Police have arrested a senior Communist Party official for alleged wrongdoing while he was head of energy giant PetroVietnam, official media said.

RUSSIA Authorities denied that a radioactivity spike in the air over Europe this fall resulted from a nuclear fuel processing plant leak in the Ural mountains, saying their probe has found no release of radioactivity there.

INDIA-PAKISTAN A Pakistani human rights activist who has campaigned for friendly ties with India has gone missing in the eastern city of Lahore.

IRAN-BRITAIN

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson raised the case yesterday of a dual national detained for allegedly plotting against Irans government, when he met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during a two-day trip to Tehran.

IRAQ After more than three years of combat operations, Iraq has announced that the fight against the Islamic State group is over after the countrys security forces drove the extremists from all of the territory they once held. Iraqi and American officials warned, however, that key challenges remain despite the military victory.

SOUTH SUDAN Over 1.2 million people in war-torn South Sudan are one step away from famine  twice as many as at the same time last year  and in early 2018 half the countrys population will be reliant on emergency food aid, the U.N. humanitarian chief said.

ITALYs

governing Democrats led a rally Saturday to warn about fascism making a comeback in the nation that once suffered under fascist dictator Benito Mussolini and which is now seeing a rash of right-wing protests against migrants.

SPAIN AND PORTUGAL have issued warnings of high winds and heavy rain as a storm reaches the Iberian Peninsula from the Atlantic.

US

A commercial fishing vessel carrying foreign workers that ran aground and later burned and leaked fuel just off the beaches of Waikiki, Hawaii was towed out to sea and sunk by a team of salvage workers.

BRAZIL President Michel Temer lost a key liaison in Congress Friday as he struggles to corral enough votes to push through an ambitious pension reform.
Initial findings from a multi-national open-label phase Ib study of inhibitory drug therapy for relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have demonstrated a complete response in up to 50 percent patients say researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center .

The patients, age 60 years or older, received therapy with venetoclax in combination with cobimetinib or idasanutlin. The clinical trial followed patients who received therapy for a prior blood disease and who were not eligible for cytotoxic therapy.

Preliminary results from the ongoing dose-escalation study, which demonstrated that the combination therapies can be safely administered with minimal side effects, were presented Dec. 11 at the American Society of Hematology's (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition Dec. 8-12 in Atlanta. The trial is headed by Marina Konopleva, M.D., Ph.D. and Michael Andreeff, M.D, Ph.D. , both professors of Leukemia, as well as Naval Daver, M.D., associate professor of Leukemia.

"This is the first clinical study evaluating new oral combinations with venetoclax in AML patients," said Konopleva. "This is significant as effective treatment options for patients with relapsed and/or refractory AML are limited."

Venetoclax, which inhibits the B-cell lymphoma protein (BCL-2) that makes cancer cells resistant to therapy, was previously FDA-approved for treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Idasanutlin is an investigational drug targeting a protein called MDM2 which impacts the tumor suppressor gene p53, while cobimetinib targets a protein known as MEK within the cancer cell and is FDA-approved for treatment of advanced melanoma with BRAF mutation.

Andreeff and Konopleva also led the pre-clinical investigation resulting in the clinical trial. Findings from that research were published in the Dec. 11 online issue of Cancer Cell. The pre-clinical research demonstrated unprecedented in vivo activity, as well as a new molecular mechanism explaining how the inhibitor drugs impact MDM2 which is tied to regulation of p53, and BCL2 - both linked to cell death.

Pre-clinical data also showed that venetoclax plus cobimetinib or idasanutlin may be synergistic. MEK and MDM2 inhibition have been shown to down-regulate a protein in the BCL-2 family, MCL-1, overcoming the major resistance mechanism to BCL-2 inhibition in AML.

"We demonstrated that p53 activation overcomes the resistance to BCL-2 inhibition by promoting MCl-1 degradation and overcoming cell death response by altering cellular response," said Andreeff. "These findings laid the foundation for the development of the current combination clinical trial for AML, bringing together different investigations in my group that extended over 15 years."

Dose escalation is being used in the clinical trial to establish the maximum tolerated dose for each drug combination in elderly patient with relapsed AML, an area of unmet need, according to Daver.

"The best response rates, up to 50 percent in relapsed AML, were seen for the combination of venetoclax and idasanutlin, in line with the preclinical data," he said. "However, these results will require confirmation in larger patient groups."
(HealthDay)For patients with advanced-stage Hodgkin's lymphoma, brentuximab vedotin, doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (A+AVD) have superior efficacy to doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD), according to a study published online Dec. 10 in the New England Journal of Medicine to coincide with the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, held from Dec. 9 to 12 in Atlanta.

Joseph M. Connors, M.D., from the British Columbia Cancer Agency in Vancouver, Canada, and colleagues conducted a phase 3 trial involving patients with previously untreated stage III or IV classic Hodgkin's lymphoma. A total of 664 patients were assigned to receive A+AVD and 670 were assigned to receive ABVD.

The researchers found that the two-year progression-free survival rates were 82.1 and 77.2 percent in the A+AVD and ABVD groups at a median follow-up of 24.9 months (hazard ratio for an event of progression, death, or modified progression, 0.77; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.60 to 0.98; P = 0.03). There were 28 and 39 deaths with A+AVD and ABVD (hazard ratio for interim overall survival, 0.72; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.44 to 1.17; P = 0.19). There was a trend in favor of A+AVD for all secondary efficacy end points.

"A+AVD had superior efficacy to ABVD in the treatment of patients with advanced-stage Hodgkin's lymphoma, with a 4.9 percentage-point lower combined risk of progression, death, or noncomplete response and of subsequent anticancer therapy at two years," the authors write.

The study was funded by Millennium Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and Seattle Genetics.

Copyright  2017 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Credit: Shutterstock

What makes some people more clever than others? One of the central aims of cognitive neuroscience is to understand how the make-up of our brains dictates our intelligence  the general mental capability by which we reason, think abstractly and learn from experiences. Recent research shows the links between brain regions may be the key.

Human intelligence is closely linked to outcomes in education, socioeconomic status and health. Differences in IQ between individuals have so far tended to be attributed to structural variations in specific brain regions. However, a study by researchers based in Frankfurt suggests it may in fact be the functional interactions within and between those regions  the way they are wired  that explain individual differences in cognitive ability.

The impact of modular organisation on how we process information

Previous brain imaging studies have linked general intelligence to the structure and function of the frontal and parietal cortexes. But less attention has been paid to the clustering of functional connections into subnetworks, known as modules or communities, which have dense internal connections but are only weakly connected with the rest of the brain network.

Understanding how differences in this modular organisation affect information processing is important in understanding the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie cognitive ability. While brain networks are characterised by modularity, it is unclear if or how this modular organisation is associated with general intelligence.

The EU grant to L POP has helped the research along. Findings recently published in 'Nature', set out the researchers' hypothesis that the connectivity profile of the frontal and parietal brain regions may shape aspects of information processing, allowing information to be communicated quickly and efficiently.

To explore this, they applied graph analyses to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) resting-state data, and characterised the modular brain network organisation in a large and representative sample of healthy adults. Participants' intelligence was measured using the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence, a test designed to assess specific and overall cognitive capabilities.

Their findings show that general intelligence is associated with connectivity within and between modules in node clusters in frontal, parietal and other cortical and subcortical regions. These regions have previously been suggested as localised neural substrates of intelligence. Topological properties of global modular network organisation, on the other hand, are not linked with intelligence. They propose, therefore, that the embedding of intelligence-related brain regions provides advantages for information processing that benefit cognitive ability.

The team also observed negative associations between regions, suggesting that certain regions may behave in a way that shields cognitive processes from interference. This aligns with previous findings that both higher and lower levels of integration and segregation can be beneficial for cognitive performance.

The L POP (Language-Processing by Overlapping Predictions: A Predictive Coding Approach) grant is helping to establish the connection between fundamental neural computations and language processing.

More information: For more information, please see For more information, please see cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/189855_en.html
When the Food and Drug Administration approved the first drug for people with spinal muscular atrophy a year ago, clinicians finally had hope for improving the lives of patients with the rare debilitating muscular disease. But the extraordinary cost of the drug and complicated logistics of delivering it present barriers for many patients, according to experts in bioethics at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

They teamed up with colleagues at several other institutions to discuss concerns related to the medication in an article that will be published Dec. 11 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Chief among those concerns is that the $125,000-per-dose cost of the drug, nusinersen, could restrict long-term patient access to it and the ability of clinics to provide it.

"I don't think anyone looks at the evidence that we've seen so far and thinks that it's a bad idea to use the medication as an option for patients. But the cost really ends up being a significantly limiting factor," said Alyssa Burgart, MD, MA, medical director of clinical ethics at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford and assistant professor of anesthesiology, perioperative and pain medicine at the School of Medicine.

Other concerns, she said, include the lack of guidelines about fair allocation of the drug, uncertainty about its lasting benefits and the risks of treatment.

Burgart is the article's lead author. Chris Feudtner, MD, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, is the senior author.

'A huge step'

Burgart said it's an exciting time for treating spinal muscular atrophy, or SMA, and that the drug is a "game-changer" for families. "It's not a cure," she said. "But it's a huge step, and you hate for the price tag to be the reason that a family has to be devastated all over again, as if the devastation of a diagnosis isn't enough."

Spinal muscular atrophy is a rare genetic disease that interferes with the body's ability to make the survival motor neuron protein, without which patients lose muscle control and strength, and eventually the ability to move, swallow or breathe. The most common type of the disease is SMA-1, which is diagnosed in babies between birth and 6 months old.

Nusinersen, which is injected into the spine and works by temporarily enabling SMA patients to make more of the survival motor neuron protein, is one of the most expensive drugs on the market. Six injections are required in the first year, for a cost of $750,000, and three are required in subsequent years, at a cost of $375,000 a year. Insurance companies cover some patients, but the criteria aren't uniform. It's also unclear how long insurance companies will cover a particular patient.

Burgart said clinicians have encountered cases in which insurance companies cover the medication only for the younger of two siblings because the older child has more disabilities and so doesn't meet their criteria for covering the progressive disorder. "I don't know what it's like to be that parent and to have the joy at the opportunity to potentially modify one child's life, and not have the opportunity for your slightly older child. It's a very cruel time, I think," she said.

Before the FDA approved nusinersen, which is marketed by Biogen and Ionis Pharmaceuticals as Spinraza, the only care options were palliative care or supportive care, including physical therapy, respiratory help or assistive devices. Most babies diagnosed with SMA-1 die before their second birthday, but patients with SMA types that show up later in life live longer.

Early treatment crucial

Early treatment of SMA is crucial for halting muscle degeneration, especially in infants, Burgart said. A blind national clinical trial of nusinersen involving 121 SMA-1 patients found that babies receiving the drug showed significant motor function improvement when compared with babies in the trial who didn't get the drug. The results were significant enough to prompt the FDA to halt the trial early, in August 2016, and expand access to all SMA-1 patients. But early approval left medical centers scrambling to establish treatment programs, which became more urgent when the FDA approved the drug for all SMA patients in December 2016, Burgart said.

Even before final FDA approval, neuromuscular and biomedical ethics teams at Stanford, including pediatric neurologist and SMA expert John Day, MD, PhD, were already collaborating with colleagues around the country to grapple with the practical and ethical challenges of providing treatment.

"It really was thinking about ethical issues as they were coming up: 'How can we provide frameworks for what the issues areand what are the fair and ethical ways to address them?'" said one of the article's co-authors, Holly Tabor, PhD, associate professor of medicine and assistant director of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics.

For example, what would be required to set up SMA treatment programs with high standards of care? How many patients could each clinic accept? How many programs were needed? How would clinics manage waiting lists? Would they have benchmarks, such as disease progression levels, for deciding who gets treatment? Is patient improvement the only measure of success, or is it also maintaining existing ability levels?

Bodies fail, but minds work

"For some of these patients, if all they have left is, say, the ability to move one finger or to move their assistive device or they still have the ability to raise an eyebrow as a way to communicate, how can I say that maintaining that is not just as worthy as treating a baby to prevent another disability?" Burgart said.

That's especially difficult because SMA patients don't lose cognitive function, she said. Their bodies are failing them, but their minds still work.

Finally, the cost of treatment looms large not only for patients but also for institutions providing care, with institutional mission playing into every decision.

"If you are interested in making money, you can cherry pick your patients and only take patients who have specific types of insurance, where you'll get a great reimbursement back and can make a lot of money," Burgart said. "But if your mission is to provide the best possible care to your patients, then making money is nowhere near the No. 1 goal. However, if you just treat everyone, irrespective of these issues, and don't think ahead, you can bankrupt your hospital, and then you can't provide any care to anyone. And that's certainly not in the mission of a pediatric hospital."

David Magnus, PhD, director of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics and professor of medicine and of biomedical ethics, said those concerns resonate beyond treating SMA patients, who represent a relatively small group of people, because competition is fierce for resources to treat patients with any number of illnesses for which new and more expensive treatments are emerging. That forces hospitals to make difficult priority decisions.

'Resources are finite'

"Those issues play out in the hospital every day because resources are finite. Beds are scarce, staff is scarce, equipment, surgical space and research resources are all scarce," said Magnus, a co-author of the article. "What are you going to decide not to do?"

There is some financial relief for patients through a Biogen program called SMA360, which helps patients navigate the treatment process and covers costs for some patients. Relief could also come as new treatmentsand resulting market competition for nusinersenemerge, Burgart said. Several SMA treatment trials are in progress, but the community is especially tracking a single-dose gene therapy that, if approved, would have its own cost and treatment implications.

In their article, the authors stressed the need for clear communication among stakeholders about all the issues they considered, especially so patients are well-informed about risks that might not be known yet. For now, they wrote, researchers and clinicians will continue to share any new data about nusinersen use in SMA patients to inform future decisions, including how broadly treatment should be pursued.

"If it's too liberal, you treat patients who won't benefit, and all they incur is more risk. And if you make it too narrow, you never figure out that you can actually accomplish more," Burgart said. "I think the only solution is to treat as broadly as you can, continue to gather data and really continue to look at it in a detailed and thoughtful way that helps patients the most."
Women exposed to air pollution just prior to conception or during the first month of pregnancy face an increased risk of their children being born with birth defects, such as cleft lip or palate or abnormal hearts.

Although the increased risk is modest, the potential impact on a population basis is noteworthy because all pregnant women have some amount of exposure.

"The most susceptible time of exposure appears to be the one month before and after conception," says Emily DeFranco, DO, a physician at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and senior author of the study. "Public health efforts should continue to highlight the importance of minimizing population-level exposure to harmful particulate matter in the air."

Dr. DeFranco and her colleagues examined fine particulate matter, which is a significant health hazard because these tiny particles can deposit deep into the lower airways and air sacs within the lungs and enter the circulatory system. Fine particulate matter is a mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets that get into the air and, once inhaled, can negatively affect many aspects of a person's health.

The study is published online in The Journal of Pediatrics.

To conduct the study, the researchers used birth certificate data from the Ohio Department of Health and particulate matter data from the US Environmental Protection Agency's 57 monitoring stations throughout Ohio. They linked the geographic coordinates of the mother's residence for each birth with the nearest monitoring station and calculated average exposures. They then estimated the association between abnormalities at birth and the mother's exposure to increased levels of fine particulate matter in the air during pregnancy.

Dr. DeFranco says there are inherent limitations of observational studies such as this but that it provides a good foundation on which future studies can build. Birth defects affect three percent of all births in the United States.
Alberta promises lawsuit, other 'consequences' on Sask. licence plate banEDMONTON -- The licence plate fight between Alberta and Saskatchewan threatened Thursday to escalate into a much bigger trade conflict.Alberta's economic development minister hinted that the province will invoke retaliatory measures on Saskatchewan's plate ban, and Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall vowed that he's ready to go toe to toe.On Wednesday, Saskatchewan announced it was banning Alberta licence plates on trucks belonging to anyone working on future government road and infrastructure projects.Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said Thursday she had spoken to Wall a day before the ban and Wall did not raise the issue. She said Saskatchewan's reasons for the ban keep shifting, and said none of them hold water."I look forward to what the next explanation will be. I'm sure it will become increasingly entertaining," Notley said following a speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce."In either event, it doesn't align with trade rules, it doesn't align with good public policy, and it's not good for job creation for anybody."
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Offering new mothers financial incentives may significantly increase low breastfeeding rates, new research from the University of Sheffield and the University of Dundee has found.

More than 10,000 new mothers across South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and North Nottinghamshire were involved in the ground breaking study which offered shopping vouchers worth up to 120 if their babies received breastmilk (breastfeeding or expressed milk) at two days, 10 days and six weeks old. A further 80 of vouchers was available if their babies continued to receive breastmilk up to six months.

Breastfeeding levels in the UK are some of the lowest in the world - in some areas just 12 per cent of six to eight week-old babies are breastfed. The trial, funded by the National Prevention Research Initiative and Public Health England, saw an increase of six percentage points in the areas where the scheme was offered, compared with those areas where the scheme was not available.

Principal investigator Dr Clare Relton, from the University of Sheffield's School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), said: "Our scheme offered vouchers to mothers as a way of acknowledging the value of breastfeeding to babies and mothers and the work involved in breastfeeding.

"As the scheme was tested in areas with low breastfeeding rates (just 28 per cent of babies were receiving any breastmilk at six-eight weeks), we were delighted that 46 per cent of all eligible mothers signed up to the scheme and over 40 per cent claimed at least one voucher. The trial found a significant increase in breastfeeding rates in areas where the scheme was offered.

"Eight out of 10 mothers in the UK who start to breastfeed stop before they really want to. It seems that the voucher scheme helped mothers to breastfeed for longer. Mothers reported they felt rewarded for breastfeeding."

The study used the routine method of collecting information on breastfeeding; an assessment by healthcare professionals who already discuss feeding, along with the baby's general health, during routine visits.

Mother Fiona Sutcliffe, 29, from Sheffield who took part in the scheme with her baby girl said: "Breastfeeding is quite difficult in the beginning. The scheme is a really good way of keeping going - keeping motivated to stay on track rather than giving up and going for the bottle. It provides little milestones, little stepping stones and helps you get breastfeeding established."

Breastfeeding has a wide range of benefits for both mothers and babies. It helps to prevent short and long-term illnesses in children and in mothers2 and also reduces health costs to the National Health Service2 (NHS). It is estimated that the NHS would save a minimum of 17 million every year in hospital admissions and GP visits2 if more women could be supported in order to breastfeed for longer.

Anahi Wheeldon, a community midwife from Eckington in Sheffield, said: "The vouchers really lifted mums and gave them recognition and acceptance.

"The scheme has really helped changed the culture and attitude towards breastfeeding. Particularly with young mums you used to be the odd one out if you breastfed, but now they know people who've breastfed, there is a network between mums, so it's become more normal."

Co-author of the study Mary Renfrew, Professor of Mother and Infant Health at the University of Dundee, said: "This is the first large-scale study to show an increase in breastfeeding in communities where rates have been low for generations, and where it can be particularly difficult for women to breastfeed without strong family and community support, because of strong societal barriers.

"In the UK these barriers include the difficulty some women encounter when breastfeeding in public, widespread misleading marketing that formula is equivalent to breastfeeding, a lack of high quality services to prevent and treat any problems if they arise, a lack of community support, a lack of education about breastfeeding for young children, and lack of support for women to breastfeed in the workplace.

"The incentive scheme was designed together with local women and staff to make sure it was feasible and appropriate, and breastfeeding support services were widely available in all the areas where the trial took place. Thanks to all the mothers and staff who supported this study, we now know much more about what might work to help new mothers to breastfeed."

The five year NOurishing Start for Health (NOSH) study was funded by the National Prevention Research Initiative (NPRI). The NPRI was a national initiative made up of government departments, research councils and major medical charities that worked together to encourage and support research into chronic disease prevention.

Its core aim was to develop and implement successful, cost-effective interventions that reduce people's risk of developing major diseases by influencing their health behaviours. A review of the NPRI fed into the recently-launched UK Prevention Research Partnership.

Dr Gavin Malloch, programme manager for public health partnerships at the Medical Research Council which led the NPRI collaboration, said: "There is a wealth of evidence about the importance of breastfeeding for a child's health and also the health of mothers. We also know that being breastfed as a baby has benefits for health later in life, reducing the risk of conditions such as diabetes which place an enormous pressure on the NHS.

"Breastfeeding rates in the UK are some of the lowest in the world. This study shows that vouchers might significantly improve rates in areas where they are below the national average. It will also help inform discussions around this issue at a global level."

The trial findings are published in JAMA Pediatrics.
Disclosing personal history of sexual assault and other forms of abuse to a primary care physician can have a profound impact on the patient's experience in the doctor's office as well as the quality of care, according to a review published in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

The authors analyzed more than 50 studies, including topics like post-traumatic stress and reduced access to medical care in sexual assault victims. The collective analysis provides primary care physicians an understanding of the physiological and psychological reactions to trauma, as well as concrete guidelines for patient care.

The authors hope that recent high-profile sexual assault and harassment allegations encourage more survivors to share their experiences with their primary care physicians.

"This really amounts to practicing trauma-informed patient care," says co-author Jane Balbo, DO, assistant professor of family medicine at The Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. "Giving the patient an option to disclose a trauma within the context of his or her medical history, and without having to immediately discuss it, will help survivors get the best possible care from their physician."

Getting patients to open up

Dr. Jane Balbo osteopathic family physicians, recommends adding specific questions to the patient intake form, such as the following questions they use on their form at OhioHealth Campus Care Ohio University:

Have you ever been sexually abused or raped?

Have you ever felt afraid of your partner?

Has anyone ever hit, injured, threatened, or tried to control you?

Do you wish to discuss issues related to rape, incest, sexual abuse, or coercion?

She also suggests physicians directly ask patients about recent or past negative experiences, and to offer examples like bullying, unhealthy relationships and violent behavior. This conversation opens a dialogue that may uncover sexual abuse and traumas not covered by typical intake screening questions.

Knowing what to say

Responding appropriately to a patient with a history of sexual trauma is difficult for many physicians, according to Dr. Balbo, whose literature review offers some guidance.

If a patient struggles to recall details about the assault, provide assurance that lapses in memory are common after trauma.

It is not the physician's job to investigate the assault. Asking forceful questions can make a patient feel like they are not believed or are to blame for the assault.

If a patient is uncomfortable discussing the assault or reporting it to law enforcement, provide the option to talk with a confidential counselor.

Provide phone numbers for counseling and mental health services in the community and offer to have office staff facilitate scheduling the first appointment.

Informed consent and checking in

Navigating physical contact is also a delicate process for physicians treating sexual assault survivors, especially for DOs who often use osteopathic manipulative treatment to diagnose and treat myriad conditions. Dr. Balbo says explaining the nature and purpose of applying any form of hands-on care, as well as what the patient might experience during the examination, is important.

"The physician's goal should be to validate the patient's experience, advocate for their needs and support their autonomy," says Dr. Balbo. "Particularly for sexual assault survivors, we need to consider the mental and emotional impacts of their experience because it affects how they respond to being examined and, ultimately, it affects their overall health."

More information: Kristen M. Cuevas et al, Neurobiology of Sexual Assault and Osteopathic Considerations for Trauma-Informed Care and Practice, The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association (2017). Kristen M. Cuevas et al, Neurobiology of Sexual Assault and Osteopathic Considerations for Trauma-Informed Care and Practice,(2017). DOI: 10.7556/jaoa.2018.018

Provided by American Osteopathic Association
Immunohistochemistry for alpha-synuclein showing positive staining (brown) of an intraneural Lewy-body in the Substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease. Credit: Wikipedia

High-intensity exercise three times a week is safe for individuals with early-stage Parkinson's disease and decreases worsening of motor symptoms, according to a new phase 2, multi-site trial led by Northwestern Medicine and University of Denver scientists.

This is the first time scientists have tested the effects of high-intensity exercise on patients with Parkinson's disease, the second most common neurodegenerative disorder and the most common movement disorder, affecting more than a million people in the United States.

It previously had been thought high-intensity exercise was too physically stressful for individuals with Parkinson's disease.

The paper will be published in JAMA Neurology Dec. 11, 2017.

Parkinson's symptoms include progressive loss of muscle control, trembling, stiffness, slowness and impaired balance. As the disease progresses, it may become difficult to walk, talk and complete simple tasks. Most people who develop Parkinson's are 60 and older.

"If you have Parkinson's disease and you want to delay the progression of your symptoms, you should exercise three times a week with your heart rate between 80 to 85 percent maximum. It is that simple," said co-lead author Daniel Corcos, professor of physical therapy and human movement sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Because medications for Parkinson's have adverse side effects and reduced effectiveness over time, new treatments are needed.

The randomized clinical trial included 128 participants ages 40 to 80 years old from Northwestern University, Rush University Medical Center, the University of Colorado and the University of Pittsburgh.

Participants enrolled in the Study in Parkinson Disease of Exercise (SPARX) were at an early stage of the disease and not taking Parkinson's medication, ensuring the results of the study were related to the exercise and not affected by medication.

"The earlier in the disease you intervene, the more likely it is you can prevent the progression of the disease," Corcos said. "We delayed worsening of symptoms for six months; whether we can prevent progression any longer than six months will require further study."

Scientists examined the safety and effects of exercise three times weekly for six months at high intensity, 80 to 85 percent of maximum heart rate, and moderate intensity, 60 to 65 percent of maximum heart rate. They compared the results to a control group who did not exercise.

After six months, participants were rated by clinicians on a Parkinson's disease scale ranging from 0 to 108. The higher the number, the more severe the symptoms.

Participants in the study had a score of about 20 before exercise. Those in the high intensity group stayed at 20. The group with moderate exercise got worse by 1.5 points. The group that did not exercise worsened by three points. Three points out of a score of 20 points is a 15 percent change in the primary signs of the disease and considered clinically important to patients. It makes a difference in their quality of life.

"We are stopping people from getting worse, which is significant, particularly if we catch them early in the disease," Corcos said.

What sets this study apart from others is the high number of participants, and that they exercised for a relatively long period of time. Most exercise studies are 12 weeks, Corcos said.

"We gave them a proper workout," Corcos said. "This is not mild stretching. This is high intensity. It's part of the idea that exercise is medicine."

Corcos and colleagues confirmed it was safe for the participants to do high-intensity exercise by giving them a cardiologist-supervised graded exercise test to evaluate the heart's response to exercise.

Previous studies in humans suggest high-intensity exercise improves motor symptoms, but the evidence wasn't sufficient to determine whether exercise intensity modifies symptoms or disease progression. In addition, most studies have not precisely measured or controlled exercise intensity and none have been conducted at 80 to 85 percent maximum heart rate.

"Several lines of evidence point to a beneficial effect of exercise in Parkinson's disease," said Dr. Codrin Lungu, program director at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. "Nevertheless, it's not clear which kind of exercise is most effective. The SPARX trial tries to rigorously address this issue. The results are interesting and warrant further exploration of the optimal exercise regimes for Parkinson's."
One of the most complex accomplishments of our brain is spatial orientation. To accomplish this, the brain uses various cell types including place cells and grid cells. Place cells tell the brain the current position. Scientists have already been able to confirm this in experiments. Grid cells collaborate with the place cells. But their exact function has been a matter of theoretical speculation so far.

"It has been proposed for a long time that grid cells are responsible for measuring distances and for path integration," says Hannah Monyer, neuroscientist at the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) and at the University Hospital Heidelberg. "Now, we have finally provided experimental proof of this."

Path integration is a term referring to the ability to construct a virtual map of one's environment using velocity and direction of movement. In other words, if one has traveled a path from A via B to C, path integration also helps find the direct path from A to C.

A research group led by Mariana Gil from Monyer's team conducted an experiment where mice had to prove their navigation skills in a swimming test. The test was performed in two phases. First, the mice swam to a platform through a straight or L-shaped corridor. In the second round, the corridor was removed and the mice had to find the platform again relying solely on their spatial orientation skills. To prevent the animals from using visual or auditory signals for navigation, the room was darkened and confounding noise was played. "Mice are good swimmers, but they will not stay in water longer than necessary and therefore try to reach the saving platform as quickly as possible," explains Monyer.

Mice with intact grid cells solved this task straight away without problems. Mice with defective grid cells had difficulties. The more grid cells were impaired and disrupted in their activity, the more the route deviated from the optimum path. "Our experiment proves that grid cells in fact accomplish path integration, said Monyer.

The animals performance remained constant throughout the test runs. This shows that the animals do not learn orientation; it is an innate behavior.

In order to rule out that the mice with intact grid cells simply were particularly smart, the same test was subsequently performed in a modified arrangement. This time, the room was lightened and the platform was marked with a little flag. Then all the mice, including those with impaired grid cells, showed similarly good results.

The mice in this experiment only had to cover short distances of about one meter. "Migratory birds flying from Germany to Africa probably use other mechanisms for navigation," Monyer admits. "But we think that in humans, grid cells are also responsible for enabling us to find the most direct way from A to C." Next, Hannah Monyer and her colleagues want to investigate the role of grid cells in spatial learning and memory.

Grid cells are found in the entorhinal cortex; place cells are located within the hippocampus. The two brain regions are closely linked with each other. Cells that resemble place cells and grid cells have also been found in the human brain in these regions. In 2014, the discovery of these cells in rodents was honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine.

More information: Mariana Gil et al, Impaired path integration in mice with disrupted grid cell firing, Nature Neuroscience (2017). Journal information: Nature Neuroscience Mariana Gil et al, Impaired path integration in mice with disrupted grid cell firing,(2017). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-017-0039-3
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is safer than smoking and should be recommended to more pregnant patients who are not able to quit on their own, according to a new review study in the Medical Journal of Australia led by a Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researcher.

NRT is a medically approved way to ingest nicotine to help quit smoking. Types of NRT include the adhesive patch, chewing gum, lozenges, nose spray, or inhaler. Studies show that 12 to 20 percent of pregnant women smoke, putting themselves and their babies at risk, according to the American Pregnancy Association. While nicotine may not be completely safe for the pregnant mother and fetus, NRT is always safer than smoking.

"Smoking during pregnancy is the most significant, preventable risk factor for poor maternal and infant health outcomes," according to Dr. Yael Bar-Zeev, head of the BGU Center for Smoking Cessation and Prevention, a public health physician and tobacco treatment specialist, and a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Newcastle in Australia.

"Clinicians worldwide, including in the United States, report that they prescribe NRT at low levels due to lack of confidence and safety concerns. However, behavioral counselling combined with medication is the most effective smoking cessation strategy."

Twenty-five percent of general practitioners and obstetricians never prescribe NRT during pregnancy, according to a recent Australian study.

Predominant guidelines worldwide recommend NRT for pregnant women who have been unable to quit smoking without medication. However, prescription instructions such as "only if women are motivated", "only dispense a two weeks supply" or "under close supervision" send mixed messages.

Researchers note that while using NRT during pregnancy improves smoking cessation rates, they may not adequately account for higher nicotine metabolism during pregnancy, and therefore may not adequately treat withdrawal symptoms.

"The most important guidance for NRT in pregnancy is to use the lowest possible dose that is effective," says Dr. Bar-Zeev. "However, to be effective, women should use as much as needed to deal with cravings. Physicians should encourage using oral NRT regularly throughout the day to substitute for cigarettes. For example, a woman smoking 10 cigarettes a day should be instructed to use one piece of gum every 1.5 hours regularly, even if she is not experiencing a strong craving."

The authors suggest using the "strength of urges to smoke" and the "frequency of urges to smoke" as an indication to initiate or increase an NRT dose. Physicians should also encourage a pregnant woman to use oral NRT in anticipation of cravings. For example, if she is going to be in a situation where others are smoking, using oral NRT 20 minutes beforehand could help.

According to review sources, while NRT does contain nicotine, it does not have any of the other 7,000 chemicals found in cigarettes, 300 of which are known to be toxic and harmful, and 52 of which are known to cause cancer. Even women who do not quit smoking may improve their baby's health due to less exposure to chemicals.

Additionally, nicotine from NRT is absorbed at a slower rate than nicotine from a cigarette, which means the user receives less nicotine than while smoking. NRT also increases chances of quitting and remaining smoke-free by 40 percent.

The researchers recommend more education and training to improve clinician confidence and skills, and development of better referral pathways, including specialized smoking services, to help more pregnant women quit smoking.

More information: Yael Bar-Zeev et al, Nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation in pregnancy, The Medical Journal of Australia (2017). Journal information: Medical Journal of Australia Yael Bar-Zeev et al, Nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation in pregnancy,(2017). DOI: 10.5694/mja17.00446
Blood glucose monitoring. Credit: Wikipedia

A cost analysis by researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine shows treatment plans that set individualized blood sugar goals for diabetes patients, tailored to their age and health history, can save $13,546 in health care costs over their average lifetime when compared with treatment strategies that stick to a uniform national standard.

The study, published December 12 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, showed the majority of those savings come from lower medication costs. Individualized care also slightly increased quality-adjusted life years, or the amount of time spent living in relative good health without severe complications.

"People don't want to be treated by a standard value or an algorithm, they want to be treated like individuals," said Neda Laiteerapong, MD, assistant professor of medicine at UChicago Medicine and lead author of the study.

"I think this model will give evidence to physicians that individualized glycemic control is something to consider. It can help save our health system money, and it's in line with what many patients want," she said.

Hemoglobin A1C is a common measure of blood sugar control for diabetics, measured as a percentage of blood cells that carry extra glucose molecules. The lower the A1C percentage, the better, and for years the American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommended a standard goal of less than seven percent for most diabetics.

In 2012, the ADA and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes published a statement recommending that physicians individualize blood sugar goals based on several factors, including age, life expectancy, complications and how long a patient has had diabetes. In many cases, say for an elderly patient who has been living with diabetes for decades and has several complications, aggressive blood sugar control may not be appropriate, so they can set a higher A1C target of less than eight percent.

In the new study, Laiteerapong and her colleagues used a statistical model that calculated health care costs over the average expected lifetime of the patients, using data from 569 patients in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) who are representative of the population of U.S. adults over the age of 30 with type 2 diabetes. The model factored in variables such as age, duration of diabetes and history of complications such as heart disease, hypertension, stroke, retinopathy and kidney disease. It assigned costs for typical type 2 diabetes treatment regimens with drugs like metformin, insulin and sulfonylureas, and included standard values from the research literature for the cost of treating major events like a heart attack or stroke.

Using this input data, they ran 2,500 simulations for the expected remaining lifetime of each patient with both treatment strategies: a personalized A1C value which changed over their lifetime, versus a standard, uniform value less than seven. The model showed that the individualized control strategy saved on average $13,564 per person compared to the uniform strategy ($105,307 vs. $118,853 lifetime). The difference was almost entirely due to lower medication costs ($34,521 vs. $48,763). Given that roughly 17.3 million adults in the U.S. over 30 have type 2 diabetes, this could amount to a whopping $234 billion lifetime savings nationwide.

The model did predict a slight decrease in life expectancy (36 days) due to an increase in complications on the personalized strategy. Laiteerapong attributes that to statistical limitations in the model that don't account for long-term, cumulative benefits of treatment.

"The differences in life expectancy and complication rates were very small, but choosing a personalized A1C goal can reduce medications by half per year," Laiteerapong said. "If I told my patients they could take half as many medications but maybe there's a small chance they might live a month less, I'm pretty sure many of them would sign up for it."

More information: "Cost-effectiveness Analysis of Individualized Glycemic Control for U.S. Adults with Type 2 Diabetes," Annals of Internal Medicine (2017). Journal information: Annals of Internal Medicine "Cost-effectiveness Analysis of Individualized Glycemic Control for U.S. Adults with Type 2 Diabetes,"(2017). DOI: 10.7326/M17-0537
Autism is a neurological and developmental diagnosis seen from early childhood marked by difficulty in communicating, forming relationships and using languages. In Sri Lanka, one in 93 children have been found to have autism. Studies have shown that the condition of an autistic child can improve with early diagnosis. Early diagnosis and provision of further information to caregivers is largely linked to the level of physicians' knowledge of autism.

A recent study carried out in Sri Lanka to assess doctors' knowledge of diagnostic features and co-morbidities of childhood autism in a tertiary care hospital has found that around 50 percent of the doctors were unaware of some of the signs and symptoms of it.

"Our study has revealed that the knowledge of diagnostic features and comorbidities of childhood autism among doctors is poor," says Dr Yasodha Maheshi Rohanachandra, lead author of the research article.

"There is a lack of educational psychologists and teachers trained in specialized autism educational strategies. Also, there is a poor awareness about autism in the community and services for children with autism in Sri Lanka are limited and centralized," she adds.

According to the research, the majority (62 percent) of the 176 surveyed doctors believed that they lacked the competence to identify autism.

Awareness of symptoms among doctors was highest regarding impaired social interactions (76 percent). In contrast, only 61 percent of doctors were aware that restricted, repetitive interests/behaviours are also a potential symptom. The knowledge of medical professionals in identification of children with autism had not been assessed previously in Sri Lanka.

"There is a need for regular in-service programmes for medical officers to help improve their knowledge to enable early identification and referral," says Dr Rohanachandra.

She suggests: "Improving awareness about autism among early childhood educators such as pre-school and primary school teachers would also benefit these children by facilitating early referral to services."

According to the authors, providing training to teachers on autism specific teaching methods and setting up resource centres in school is another important step in improving the learning opportunities of children.

The authors recommend decentralizing early intervention services to be beneficial in making services more accessible. It also emphasizes a government initiative to support families of children with autism to access appropriate care including financial support and respite services; having a child with autism can place a significant stress on the family system.

More information: Yasodha Maheshi Rohanachandra et al. Knowledge about diagnostic features and comorbidities of childhood autism among doctors in a tertiary care hospital, Sri Lanka Journal of Child Health (2017). Yasodha Maheshi Rohanachandra et al. Knowledge about diagnostic features and comorbidities of childhood autism among doctors in a tertiary care hospital,(2017). DOI: 10.4038/sljch.v46i1.8093

Provided by INASP
The connection between the portable device and the smartphone is made via Bluetooth, and the childs smartphone is connected to the parents through the mobile network. Credit: University of Granada

Researchers from the University of Granada (UGR) and the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (UPV) have designed a new smart system for monitoring children who suffer from chronic illnesses like asthma. The system consists of a small portable device connected to a smartphone, which allows continuous and accurate measurement of parameters such as heart rate or body temperature, among others. This would help parents, teachers and doctors to be informed about the child's condition at all times.

According to the UGR and UPV researchers, the system is controlled by a smart algorithm that autonomously detects if a parameter has exceeded a certain threshold that could imply an emergency. The portable device is connected to the smartphone via Bluetooth, and then linked to the parents' phone through the mobile network.

The system receives information from all the sensors that comprise the equipment, it merges and combines data, and processes and packetizes all the information. Then the system analyzes the data and determines if there is any situation that needs assistance. "This allows for more accurate responses when emergency situations are detected. If the system detects any anomaly, it sends an alert to parents, teachers and doctors in charge of the child," says Jaime Lloret, director of the IGIC research institute of the Gandia campus (UPV).

Among the advantages of this system, the researchers say that it helps to reduce the number of false positives, improving the accuracy with respect to existing systems. "Besides," Lloret adds, "it is not tied to any manufacturer, that is, it can be used with any smartphone. The only thing necessary is to install the app we have developed on a phone with Bluetooth. Therefore, it is more economical and affordable for all families."

UGR researcher Sandra Sendra adds that using this type of technology "can improve medical care and reduce the number of hospitalizations of children when episodes of these chronic diseases occur, as well as shorten hospital stays thanks to a quick response."

UGR and UPV researchers are currently collaborating with several hospitals in the Valencian Community to implement their system for children's chronic illness monitoring. This paper has been published in the Information Fusion journal.

More information: Sandra Sendra et al. Smart system for children's chronic illness monitoring, Information Fusion (2017). Sandra Sendra et al. Smart system for children's chronic illness monitoring,(2017). DOI: 10.1016/j.inffus.2017.06.002
Sexual orientation was measured by the combination of sexual identity, sexual attraction, and sexual behavior. Credit: Lisa Lindley

Unhappiness about a pregnancy or birth has been associated with negative health outcomes for mothers and babies. Yet, unhappiness about a pregnancy or birth has been understudied, particularly among sexual minority (non-heterosexual) women. George Mason University's Dr. Lisa Lindley and her colleagues at the University of South Carolina published findings of their new study in Perspectives on Reproductive and Sexual Health, "Sexual Orientation Concordance And (Un)Happiness About Births."

As Lindley explains, "To our knowledge, this is the first investigation of birth happiness by sexual orientation discordance across sexual orientation measures using a nationally representative sample of women of reproductive age. Previous research has focused exclusively on heterosexual women, or assumed that the women were heterosexual."

Lindley and colleagues examined birth happiness among women by sexual orientation discordance using data from the 2006-2015 National Survey of Family Growth. Birth intention, male partnership context (marital/relationship status, wanting to have a child with the father, and father's feeling about the pregnancy), and sociodemographic covariates (race/ethnicity, mother's education, household income, etc.) were included to determine whether they mediated the relationship between birth happiness and sexual orientation discordance. Sexual orientation was measured using the combination of sexual identity, sexual attraction, and sexual behavior variables. Sexual orientation "concordance" was defined as consistency across these three dimensions. For example, a woman who identified as lesbian, reported only same sex attractions, and engaged only in same-sex behaviors would be considered "concordant," while a woman who identified as heterosexual but reported same-sex attractions or behaviors would be considered "discordant."

Heterosexual-discordant women were of particular interest in this study as they are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors and have unintended pregnancies than their heterosexual-concordant counterparts. Consistent with their previous research, Lindley and colleagues also found that heterosexual-discordant women were significantly less happy about their births than heterosexual-concordant women. The fact that births were less likely to be intended and that relationships with male partners were less favorable for births among heterosexual-discordant women partially explained this association.

Lindley pointed out that other factors likely contributed to birth unhappiness among heterosexual-discordant women but were not assessed in the National Survey of Family Growth. According to Lindley, "heteronormative expectations for women, including the pressure to be in a relationship with a man and to have children, may have contributed to their birth unhappiness. This would be especially true if heterosexual-discordant women preferred to be in a relationship with a woman and/or did not want to have a child, or if they had a child to conceal their same-sex attractions and behavior."

Additionally, the survey did not ask women about their pregnancy happiness, or their partner's favorability about the pregnancy, but rather assessed their happiness/favorability about the birth. Thus, the researchers were unable to compare happiness levels by sexual orientation discordance for pregnancies that did not end in birth (i.e., ended in miscarriage or abortion).

Despite strong evidence of risky sexual behaviors, unintended pregnancies, and unhappiness about births occurring among sexual minority women, particularly among heterosexual-discordant women, these concerns are simply not being addressed. Lindley and colleagues point to a gaping hole in the research literature about how best to reach and educate sexual minority women and how best to tailor services and programs for them. They strongly suggest additional efforts in these areas to identify best practices.

More information: Caroline Sten Hartnett et al, Sexual Orientation Concordance And (Un)Happiness About Births, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health (2017). Caroline Sten Hartnett et al, Sexual Orientation Concordance And (Un)Happiness About Births,(2017). DOI: 10.1363/psrh.12043
How the new mammography system might look: the breast is guided through an opening and x-rayed while suspended, making it painless for the patient. Credit: GratXray

The ETH spin-off GratXray is working to improve precision in mammography. With the help of an innovative new device, breast cancer detection might not only become more accurate, but also painless. This is a revolutionary step in breast screening.

Every start-up begins with a vision of conquering the market with new ideas, but a number of milestones must first be reached before the successful founding of a company. This was the case for GratXray, a spin-off that grew out of ETH Zurich and the Paul-Scherrer Institute (PSI) this summer.

Grating is the key

"There's a fairly long story behind the founding of GratXray," says Marco Stampanoni, co-founder of the spin-off and professor of X-ray imaging at ETH Zurich. The scientists laid the foundation for their company between 2006 and 2017, during which time they worked consistently on the further development of X-ray phase contrast mammography. By integrating three gratings into conventional X-ray systems, it became possible not only to measure how strongly the tissue absorbs the X-rays, but also how X-rays are refracted and scattered.

The additional information gained in the process produces extremely high-contrast images, making it possible to visualise even the finest tissue structures. This makes it easier to reach conclusions about the state of the tissue examined and detect signs of breast cancer, such as micro-calcifications, at an early stage. "Thanks to this approach, based on grating interferometry, we have taken an important step towards clinical application," says Stampanoni. In addition, GratXray has already made a name for itself. The spin-off recently won the Swiss Technology Award.

Moving towards market viability

With the founding of GratXray, more than ten years of expertise are now being channelled into the development of a new type of mammography device. "In order to attempt this step, I had to be able to rely on the help of my founding partners, whom I fully trust," says Stampanoni. He found such a partner in his long-time colleague Zhentian Wang, who as CTO is now in charge of the technical implementation. Stampanoni was also able to get Martin Stauber, a former doctoral colleague from the Institute for Biomedical Engineering at ETH Zurich, on board for this project.

Stauber, who is now CEO of the spin-off, is convinced of the medical necessity of the new method: "Conventional breast screening methods are unsatisfactory and often lead to false or ambiguous diagnoses." For example, eight out of ten women unnecessarily undergo a biopsy because current mammograms are too inaccurate, putting a great deal of psychological stress on the patient. Even more, state-of-the-art mammograms are painful for woman, as the breast must be strongly compressed to capture a good image.

Rethinking mammography

GratXray's new method makes it possible to scan a patient while they are laying prone on a bed. The breast is guided through an opening in the examination table and x-rayed with a computer tomography device mounted under the table, making this type of mammography painless. The radiation dose will be the same as that of conventional mammography, but grating interferometry will yield high-resolution, high-contrast 3-D images.

The GratXray team is currently working with external engineers to develop a prototype that is expected to be ready for clinical use in two years' time. To keep to this schedule, the spin-off is collaborating closely with clinical partners such as Kantonsspital Baden and University Hospital Zurich. Stauber is convinced: "The step from laboratory to hospital will only be successful if the device is suitable for clinical requirements and routines." For this reason, the procedure will soon be tested in 2-D on patients in vivo and not on tissue samples as in the past. The researchers say that the study will provide valuable insights, which will be incorporated into developing the prototype.
2017 was a challenging year for South Africa, thanks to political instability, downgrades from ratings agencies, poor economic growth, and rising unemployment.

These factors mean citizens are struggling financially, and are changing their spending habits to save money.

South Africas retail sector has come under severe pressure, with Stuttafords closure in August signaling how tough conditions are.

The challenging conditions have also impacted local telecoms companies, which have struggled to significantly increase revenue in 2017.

Telecoms companies also have the added challenge of finding new revenue streams to compensate for the lack of growth in the voice market.

While mobile data is showing strong growth, it is not enough to bring back the glory days when people paid R2.00 per minute for voice calls.

With the local industry questioning where its future growth will come from, investors are looking elsewhere for gains.

The result is that the share price of companies like Vodacom, Telkom, and Blue Label Telecoms (as a Cell C shareholder) have declined over the past 12 months.

MTN, which came from a very low base following its fine in Nigeria, was the only company to show an increase in 2017.

The charts below show the performance of local telecoms share prices from December 2016 to 8 December 2017.

MTN  Up 5%

Vodacom  Down 1.14%

Blue Label Telecoms  Down 26%

Telkom  Down 32%

Now read: Asian tech companies profit from Bitcoin arms race
Turkey to require insurance from oil tankers when passing through its waters

EU to provide Ukraine with generators and kits to repair power grids

Turkey sentences sect founder to 8,658 years in prison

Xi Jinping urges world to abandon any Cold War mentality

Aliyev rules out talks with Artsakh State Minister

FP: Ukraine's appetite for weapons depletes Western stocks

Putin and Aliyev discuss energy cooperation

Armenian financial technologies to enter international market: VISA and Idram sign memorandum in Yerevan

Incident in Poland causes disagreement between Kyiv and West

Mark Milley urges Kyiv and Moscow to find political solution: Chances of military victory are unlikely

New NATO Secretary General to be announced at Vilnius summit in 2023

Finnish Defense Ministry announces largest batch of military aid to Ukraine

Pashinyan receives Ukrainian businessmen of Armenian origin

Armenian soldier wounded in Azerbaijani shooting

Erdogan: Turkey-Israel relations entered a new phase of development

Mishustin: Cooperation between Moscow and Baku has become truly strategic and allied

Igor Khovaev to visit Baku

Mishustin arrives in Baku

Russian Foreign Ministry: South Caucasus is a strategic transport hub for Eurasia

U.S. general lays flowers at eternal flame at Armenian Genocide memorial

Republicans stand for same-sex marriage rights

Pallone says US State Department should not hesitate to speak about Azerbaijani aggression

Aliyev refuses to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh and threatens Armenia with new aggression

Greek minister doesn't get off plane to meet head of Libya's presidential council

Sergey Lavrov to visit Yerevan

Lebanese parliament fails to elect president of country

Kremlin on Zelenskyy's proposal to hold 'public' talks

National Assembly Speaker: Armenia is extremely interested in establishing strategic relations with Georgia

Canada provides additional military aid to Ukraine

Representatives of defense agencies of CSTO countries discuss crisis response issues

Armenian Defense Minister and American General discuss defense cooperation

Tehran accuses Israel and West of trying to organize civil war in Iran

Oppositionist: No guarantees that war with Azerbaijan can be avoided

Issue of biometric passports to Armenian citizens is temporarily suspended

Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement to be signed till end of year? Pashinyan's associate voices conditions

Erdogan says Russia and US agreed to refrain from using nuclear weapons

Azerbaijani oppositionist complains of torture by police

Kyaram Sloyan and Andranik Zohrabyan posthumously bestowed 'Hero of Artsakh' title

UN Secretary General Guterres welcomes parties' agreement on renewal of food deal

Eurasian Development Bank: Armenia is the leader among EEU countries in terms of economic growth

Greece promises to continue military support to Ukraine

Number of appeals from Azerbaijan to ECHR is growing

Pashinyan: The wheel of processes related to confiscation of illegal property is spinning

Fire hits Baghdad airport

North Korea fires ballistic missile towards Sea of Japan

Istanbul agrees to extend 'grain initiative' for another 120 days

'Hayastan' Fund to build 6 residential houses in Nerkin Khndzoresk village

Vocal as Russophobic propaganda: Azerbaijani singer sings about 'disgusting peacekeepers'

Biden congratulates Republicans on winning majority in House of Representatives

14 freight cars derailed in Kazakhstan, train traffic suspended

Newspaper: Ruben Vardanyan does not hurry to make changes in composition of Karabakh government

Russia attacks Ukraine with missiles in morning: Explosions heard in Dnieper, air defense works in Kyiv region

U.S. National Security Council: It is clear that the party ultimately responsible for this tragic incident is Russia

Gold prices decline

Russian Trade Representative to Armenia: Situation at Upper Lars checkpoint is not related to geopolitical issues

Trade Representative of Russia: Trade turnover with Armenia sets new record

Copper falls in price

Gas explodes in Fatih district of Istanbul, 10 people injured

Oil prices go down

Meteorite that fell in Britain contains key information about how oceans and life formed on Earth

Gamer drinks 12 energy drinks in ten minutes and ends up in hospital

Chinese customs officers accidentally find cockroach unknown to science

Man removes cobra's teeth with manicure pliers and gets arrested

Sweden to provide Ukraine with new military aid worth $287 million

Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania meet conditions for joining Schengen zone

Oil prices may reach $120 a barrel and stay at this level for 2 years

Zelenskyy receives 'signals' that Putin wants direct talks

Security Service of Ukraine puts Ramzan Kadyrov on wanted list

Unidentified men open fire at market in Izeh city in southwestern Iran

Karen Donfried tries to explain State Department's decision to exempt Azerbaijan from 907th Amendment

Philip Reeker says U.S. administration representatives have no access to Nagorno-Karabakh

Rimac Nevera sets speed record for production electric cars

Reeker: Pace and depth of current talks between Yerevan and Baku demonstrate potential to resolve conflict

FBI director considers TikTok threat to US National Security

Bob Menendez says Ukraine supplies Azerbaijan with phosphorus bombs it used in Karabakh

Delegation headed by Speaker of Armenian Parliament is in Tbilisi

Austin: U.S. intends to continue supplying weapons and aid to Ukraine during winter

Armenian politician charged with abuse of office, money laundering

Donfried says Armenia and Azerbaijan have historic opportunity to establish lasting peace

Bob Menendez: How on earth can we justify sending any support, security or otherwise, to the regime in Baku?

Azerbaijan fires at residents of Sarushen village of Artsakh

Head of Portugal's Finance Ministry: EU countries must work faster on energy intervention

Kuwait executes 7 prisoners

Czech Republic plans to train up to 4,000 Ukrainian servicemen next year

Ukraine once again asks US for powerful drones

Belarusian border guards shoot down drone intruding into airspace from Ukraine

Armenian Deputy PM: Regional electricity export opportunities significantly increased

Greek authorities temporarily ban export of firewood from country

Azerbaijan protests to France in connection with Senate resolution

Blinken calls on Aliyev to observe ceasefire and limit provocations

Pashinyan: We're advancing rights of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Pashinyan: Armenia invites Azerbaijan to sign framework agreement on peace

Pashinyan: Most of the arable land of 4 villages in Tavush Province is occupied by Azerbaijanis

Armenian Prime Minister: Let the opposition loudly reject Russia's proposals

Pashinyan: 2023 budget growth in social protection compared to 2018 is 56%

Inflation in UK up to 41-year high of 11.1% in October

Pashinyan: We don't want to provoke war between CSTO and Azerbaijan

Pashinyan's explanation: How should we fight inflation?

Pashinyan: Armenia submitted its proposals for peace treaty to Azerbaijan, we are waiting for a response

Pashinyan: Army budget 2023 more than doubled compared to 2018
Get out plenty of soap for hand washing. Avoid doorknobs and communal keyboards. That flu shot might not be as effective as usual.

If the flu season experience in Australia is any example, and it usually is, the 2017 flu vaccine will be just 10 percent effective against one of the dominant and the most virulent forms of influenza, H3N2.

What happens in Australias flu season is often a precursor to what will happen in the United States, said Dr. Tom Safranek, Nebraskas state epidemiologist.

Australia saw a record level of flu during its flu season, and the vaccine was only 10 percent effective against the dominant strain.

We are all preparing for that scenario," Safranek said in a Friday telephone interview.

It also looks like the flu season is beginning early in the United States. According to the states latest weekly data, Nebraska has five times as many flu cases as it did during the same week a year ago, Safranek said.

A year ago, the state had 20 positive tests during the last week of November. This year it had 120. Thats a pretty dramatic difference, he said.

Lancaster County is also seeing a potentially early start to the flu season. By early December last year, there were no confirmed cases of influenza in the county. This year there have been nine. And influenza H3 is the primary virus being identified locally, according to the county flu report released Friday afternoon.

Safranek is worried about having the flu season take flight during the Christmas holiday, when many people are partying and traveling, spreading good cheer and germs.

We could have a lot of compromised people not having a Merry Christmas when it has gotten to this level this early, he said.

Safranek said he wouldnt be surprised to see the flu peak in early-to-mid January, which is quite early.

But he admits his is a somewhat cloudy crystal ball, based mostly on his years of experience as the state epidemiologist.

And predicting a flu season is kind of like predicting the weather. Its an educated guess that isnt always completely accurate.

Last years flu vaccine was 40 percent effective, which meant it reduced your chance of getting the flu by 40 percent, Safranek said. The vaccine is never bulletproof, but it is still the best way of protecting yourself against getting influenza.

In Australia, the vaccine was not very effective against the H3N2 strain, but was effective against other strains. So Safranek still recommends getting a flu shot.

Some protection is better than none, he said.

And he encourages people to pay attention to the other behavior that can help protect yourself and others.

If you're getting the flu, dont expose yourself to other people. Stay home; stay away from the party, he says.

To protect yourself, wash your hands. Watch out for places that people may leave the virus  doorknobs, keyboards.

But you have to balance being a total paranoid, he said. Dont get like Jack Nicholson (Melvin Udall) in As Good As It Gets, who throws away each bar of soap after he uses it, said Safranek.

"You have to use your head. If you see people coughing and sneezing, keep your distance. If you are a politician and have to work a room, shaking hands, dont touch your face."
YEREVAN. -- Director General at Ucom Hayk Yesayan visited the students of Armath engineering laboratory, operating in the rural school of Nerkin Karmiraghbyur community in Tavush region.

With the support of Ucom, the laboratory was opened 2 years ago in this school, which is immediately under the fire of the adversary. If two years ago the lessons of young engineers and programmers were being held in a psychologically strained environment, now the situation is different, as the school is protected with a 3m high protective wall, which allows children to feel safer and concentrate on the learning process. Nevertheless, the feeling of everyday danger hinders these children from understanding clearly how to apply their school knowledge in future.

The village has a population of 400, out of which 79 are schoolchildren, who attend this rural school. The protective wall around the school is the guarantee of the learning process. Its clear that under such conditions a school should be more than a school. It should connect these children with the outside world and expand their worldview. Everything should be done to help these children discover the world without leaving their village, we should bring the world with all its knowledge, difficulties and opportunities to these children. We can achieve this goal by leveraging on our staff and the Internet, said Hayk Yesayan, the Director General at Ucom.

In order to break down the wall between Narkin Karmiraghbyur village and the outside world, Ucom is pursuing the idea of shaping engineering mindset and creative thinking among the young generation. On the one hand, its an easy process, as the program language in all Armath labs is the Armenian and the children are very smart, on the other hand, its hard, as the everyday danger and routine life distract children from shaping their own future.

My dream is to help the Armenian solider. The robotics allows to understand, for example, how to design an unmanned flying vehicle (drone) and thus help the soldiers keeping the borders of our country, Razmik Adamyan, a student at Armath engineering laboratory shared his dreams.

Im going to be a doctor, but Im quite convinced that I can apply my knowledge of robotics in designing such equipment that would help to save human lives, contemplated Nune Avagyan, a student at Armath engineering laboratory in Nerkin Karmiraghbyur.

Ucom is the largest supporter of the program of implementation of Armath engineering laboratories. Thanks to investments of Ucom (around 150 mln. AMD), 39 Armath engineering laboratories are currently operating in several region of Armenia, including border villages.
A regular meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan is likely to take place in January 2018, Russias Permanent Representative to the OSCE Alexander Lukashevich said.

The Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OSCE agreed with the view that the year 2017 was extremely important in terms of avoiding dangerous escalation in the region and restoring negotiations dynamics.

We absolutely welcome the contacts of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan who worked quite hard this year which also allowed us to intensively work at the OSCE Ministerial Council, where a joint statement of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairing states was adopted, Lukashevich said during a press conference on Monday.

Lukashevich said the meeting of the presidents in Geneva is very encouraging. According to him, there are expectations that the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan will meet in the near future, perhaps in January.

We support this trend and believe that the trio of co-chairs and the personal representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office deserve every support, and it is, in fact, in a fairly broad context, despite the persisting disagreements between the parties, the official said.

According to him, these contradictions, unfortunately, prevented a number of ministerial agreements on various aspects of OSCE activities.

Russia regrets that the situation so far does not allow to reach solutions in a wider context, for example on the economic aspect where the sides of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict have their own views , the diplomat said.

At the same time, he stressed that the trend of the year is encouraging, and Austria is passing Italy a good state of affairs. Russia preserves the most important function of influencing and helping friends in Baku and Yerevan to find a solution, Lukashevich concluded.
YEREVAN.- Armenian PM Karen Karapetyan received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Romania to the Republic of Armenia Sorin Vasile who is completing his diplomatic mission in our country.

Karen Karapetyan expressed satisfaction with the Ambassador's work and attached importance to the further development of the Armenian-Romanian relations, especially in the economic sphere. The head of the government attached importance to the role of the bilateral intergovernmental commission.

The Ambassador emphasized that he leaves our country with the best memories and assured that he would try to contribute to the strengthening of the Armenian-Romanian relations in the future.

Mr. Vasile noted that he was watching the government's recent economic successes and expressed confidence that the agreement signed with the EU would enable Armenia to become a good platform for cooperation between the European Union and EAEU. According to the ambassador, Armenian products, especially agricultural products have good quality and can have access to the Romanian market.

At the end of the meeting Karen Karapetyan thanked Sorin Vasile for his work and wished him success in his future activities.
YEREVAN.  The U.S. Embassy, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia, the Embassy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Embassy of the Republic of France, the United Nations, and the Council of Europe honoured individuals working to promote human rights, freedom of expression, diversity, religious acceptance, democracy, transparency, legal reform and equal rights in Armenia at the Universal Rights Awards Ceremony today. Since 2012, the Universal Rights Awards Ceremony was the first initiative of the international community to highlight contributions of Armenias civil and political rights activists, government officials, media and civil society representatives to the promotion of human rights. Armenian officials, foreign diplomats, civil society and press representatives attended the event.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr Bradley Busetto presented the "Woman of Courage" award. In times of crisis and armed conflict human rights are infringed upon the most and only a few have the courage to come up-front and support others while their own lives are endangered. Ms. Ani Balkhian, was among the few to step-up for life-saving mission supporting people to flee the conflict zone during Syria crisis. Ms. Balkhian was courageous enough to continue her vital mission being already in Armenia by speaking-out and supporting the settlement of displaced Syrian families. It is my honour to present the Woman of Courage Award to Ms. Balkhian in recognition of her endurance in pursuing her humanitarian efforts, for her outstanding level of engagement in life-saving and refugee protection mission, and for her lasting courageous advocacy for integration of Syrian families, said Mr Busetto.

H.E. Piotr A. Switalski, Ambassador and the Head of the European Union Delegation to Armenia awarded the Union of Informed Citizens NGO and its Programme Director Daniel Ioannisyan with the "Promoting Justice and Transparency" award. "The European Union commends the Union of Informed Citizens and Daniel Ioannisyan in recognition of their efforts to promote democratic and transparent electoral process in the Republic of Armenia," said Ambassador Switalski.

The Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, Ms Natalia Voutova handed over the "Government Reformer" award. "Mr Vigen Kocharyan has contributed to the implementation of legal reforms in the Republic of Armenia. His efforts to promote all aspects of fundamental rights in Armenia as well as his support to the dialogue between the Government and the civil society organisations cannot go unnoticed. Such an award forms the highest level of recognition and is a showcase of success stories realized by a committed reformer such as Mr Kocharyan. Hence, on behalf of the Council of Europe, it is an honor and pleasure for me to hand over this prize to Mr Kocharyan," said Ms Voutova.

H.E. Richard Mills, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to Armenia presented the "Media Excellence" award to MediaLab Newsroom Laboratory. "Today, more than ever, we must cherish freedom of expression, the foundation of any free and democratic society. It is my great honor to present the Media Excellence Award to MediaLab Newsroom Laboratory for its consequential work shedding light and starting public discussions on some of the most controversial issues that Armenian society faces today. Led by an exceptional reporter, Marianna Grigoryan, MediaLab has constantly found creative ways and shown ingenuity in starting tough conversations to create a more just, free and democratic Armenia. They have often told and shown people what they do not want to hear, and I applaud their courage for doing so with grace, humor and great professionalism," said Ambassador Mills.

The Deputy Head of Mission of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Ms Alison Chick gave the "Freedom Defender" award. Defending the right to freedom of religion or belief is important, not only because it is a principle worth defending for its own sake but because we believe that societies in which people are free to practice their faith or belief are more stable and prosperous. I am delighted to announce that the Freedom Defender award this year goes to Isabella Sargsyan in recognition of her tireless efforts to promote diversity, freedom of thought and religious acceptance, said Ms Chick.

This year, the French and German Embassies in Armenia for the first time presented a joint "Franco-German Prize for Equal Chances." This prize, part of a worldwide Franco-German initiative, is intended to honour an organisation or a person in Armenia that has excelled in the fight against discrimination. H.E. Jonathan Lacote, Ambassador of France said: I am proud that French and German Embassies got united to support the work of civil society towards a more inclusive society with equal chances for all. H.E. Matthias Kiesler, Ambassador of Germany said: I am happy to announce that we have selected Agate - Rights Defense Center for Women with Disabilities NGO based in Gyumri for the first Franco-German Prize. It is very encouraging to see that, over the past 10 years, Agate has implemented more than 50 programmes. These activities had a positive impact on more than 1,000 people with disabilities and their family members.
An organization identified by three state senators as a resource to review free speech policies and practices at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln asked university leaders to reinstate a graduate student fired from her teaching duties last month.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, or FIRE, wrote to UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green on Friday requesting the university immediately reverse its unwise error when it ended the employment of Courtney Lawton on Nov. 17.

Lawton, a lecturer in the English Department, was told her contract would be ending three months after she was filmed protesting a recruiting event held by undergraduate student Kaitlyn Mullen for Turning Point USA, a conservative student group.

Although UNL initially said it removed Lawton from her teaching duties as a safety precaution, Green and Donde Plowman, UNLs executive vice chancellor, later informed Lawton she would no longer teach at the university.

That meeting came a day after university administrators met with state Sens. Steve Erdman of Bayard, Tom Brewer of Gordon and Steve Halloran of Hastings at the Capitol. Brewer told the Journal Star the senators recommended to the administrators they end Lawton's employment at UNL.

Days after the meeting, Erdman told a Lincoln radio show the senators planned to invite FIRE, a nonpartisan, nonprofit group, to conduct a review of political climate at UNL, including its policies surrounding free speech and free expression on campus.

FIRE is an organization that looks at all the policies of the universities that they do business with, Erdman told 1400 KLIN on Nov. 20. Theyre very objective and theyre very thorough in their examination of the policies to make sure everybody is treated fairly and equally."

Brewer told the Journal Star in an interview that FIRE would have been more appropriate to review UNL's political climate than Gallup, the polling firm the university has already been working with.

"We asked them to have an outside organization like FIRE do an impartial review of the procedures and policies to make sure it's not the university doing an assessment of itself," Brewer said. "Gallup is used by universities for a number of things, so to let them be the voice is wrongheaded.

"Hopefully, (UNL) will find an outside source to give a fair approach to it," he added.

Halloran called FIRE "far more objective" in measuring free speech policies of universities than other organizations.

But this week, FIRE admonished Green and NU President Hank Bounds not for fostering a campus climate unwelcoming to students with conservative political views  as the state senators have alleged in editorials and interviews  but for violating Lawtons rights to free speech and expression, as well as her academic freedom in denying her a contract renewal.

Punishing a faculty member for public political expression on the basis that it lacks civility is unconstitutional, wrote Adam B. Steinbaugh, a senior program officer in FIREs Individual Rights Defense Program.

Free speech case law has held that First Amendment protections extend to faculty members who engage in political speech, the letter states, while an 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling  which holds jurisdiction over UNL  has held university officials liable for censoring speech of faculty members.

Steinbaugh also said courts have found that non-renewal of an untenured faculty members contract on the basis of constitutionally protected expression constitutes impermissible retaliation.

Thursday, the American Association of University Professors also said it will investigate whether or not UNL violated Lawtons academic due process after she was informed her contract would not be renewed.

Although universities may set standards for faculty members' professionalism in an educational setting such as a classroom, UNLs power to penalize Lawton did not apply to the Aug. 25 incident at the Nebraska Union Plaza, FIRE said in the letter.

This is particularly so where the lecturer and student do not otherwise have any professional relationship, Steinbaugh wrote. When engaged in political speech on the quad, or off campus, students and faculty engaged in political expression are properly regarded as equals, afforded the same First Amendment rights as one another and all citizens.

Steinbaugh added that punishing a lecturer for making an inappropriate gesture toward a student they might one day have a class together, gave the university nearly limitless power to punish speech administrators or others found objectionable.

Furthermore, he said, courts have ruled the emotive power of speech was equally as important as the message being communicated.

For example, the university could not punish a pro-life student for responding with the middle finger upon encountering pro-choice advocates, Steinbaugh wrote. For the same reasons, it cannot penalize a constituent for responding strongly to advocacy she perceives to be in support of facism.

FIRE acknowledged UNL faces significant pressure from legislators with oversight of the universitys funding, as well as others, but cautioned administrators from allowing that pressure to curtail the rights of its faculty members to free speech and expression.

Steinbaugh implored UNL to reinstate Lawton by Dec. 22 and to clarify to the campus community that constitutionally protected speech would not be punished in the future, nor would it be confined to specific spaces on campus.

While a university may call upon its constituents to be polite and courteous in their political discourse, a public university is prohibited by the First Amendment from punishing protected political expression that administrators, legislators, or media find subjectively offensive, he wrote.
Pro-IS Media Group Portrays NYC Port Authority Blast as Response to Trumps Recognition of Jerusalem as Israels Capital
An Omaha attorney will represent condemned killer Jose Sandoval in his bid to fight the state's attempt to execute him via lethal injection.

Attorney Stu Dornan filed a motion in Madison County District Court this week arguing that Sandoval, 38, should be resentenced to life in prison or have another capital sentencing hearing.

The Legislature repealed the death penalty in May 2015, then nullified the governor's veto of the bill (LB268) with another vote. The repeal, Dornan said, went into effect Aug. 30 before it was suspended again because of an initiative referendum vote.

"Mr. Sandoval is subject to a uniquely cruel and unprecedented form of psychological suffering through alternating periods of relief and terror as he has been told that his life would be spared, and then told again that he would be executed," the motion said.

That raises constitutional issues that must be addressed, Dornan said Friday. It's possibly the first time that something like this has happened.

Among other issues, the motion argues the repeal of the Legislature's bill was unconstitutional because it imposed a new death sentence on condemned inmates without an additional court hearing or trial.

Madison County Attorney Joe Smith, who prosecuted Sandoval, Erick Vela, Jorge Galindo and Gabriel Rodriguez for killing five people at a Norfolk bank in 2002, said it was his view the death penalty repeal never went into effect, and so there was never a lapse in the death sentences. That's what he would argue, he said.

Attorney General Doug Peterson declined to comment Friday on the Sandoval motion. Both he and Solicitor General James Smith have filed with the court as attorneys to represent the state in the case.

No request to the Nebraska Supreme Court for an execution warrant for Sandoval has been made, but Corrections Director Scott Frakes served notice to Sandoval of the lethal injection drugs that would be administered to cause his death if an execution takes place. The combination of drugs chosen has never been used in an execution.

Medical research highlights the psychological and emotional pain felt by those who face impending death, and how that anxiety is aggravated when uncertainty does not allow a person to prepare adequately. The motion compared it to a form of torture.

"The state has ping-ponged Mr. Sandoval from death to life and to death again," the motion said. "His individual fate became hostage to an ongoing political contest between the Legislature, the governor and the voters."

Sandoval has been in prison since 2003, sentenced for 14 crimes, including five death sentences for murders of five men and women in a U.S. Bank branch in Norfolk, and two life sentences for murders of two other men in Madison County.

Dornan took on Sandoval's case after he was asked by ACLU of Nebraska to file the motion in Madison County. He also agreed to a different request to accept an appointment in federal court as the local attorney for any lawsuits or appeals that would be filed there.

As the previous Douglas County Attorney, Dornan has prosecuted cases that sought the death penalty. He has represented people in capital cases, but has not represented a condemned prisoner fighting execution, he said.

The death penalty is important to all Nebraskans, Dornan said.

"I believe there is no higher calling for a lawyer than to represent an indigent person on an important question of constitutional law, especially when the stakes are as high as they are in death penalty cases," he said.

In the motion, Dornan said those who led the execution reinstatement petition drive went beyond campaigning for the state to keep the death penalty, by focusing on the execution of Sandoval, and others on death row.

Television advertisements showed pictures of the men and described their crimes while ominous music played in the background, the motion said. An ad linked to the Nebraskans for the Death Penalty website opened with a photo of Sandoval and talked about how the men on death row terrified communities and devastated families, and how the death penalty protects the public, acts as a strong deterrent and gives justice to families.

Dornan said other lawsuits on behalf of death row inmates are pending, including ACLU litigation regarding the legality of the ballot initiative, a separation of powers issue involving Gov. Pete Ricketts, and the secrecy of lethal injection drug suppliers.

A motion similar to Sandoval's request for post-conviction relief was filed this week on behalf of Vela.
NEW ALBIN | Authorities are investigating a body that was found over the weekend in an area when there had been a search for a missing man in October.

No foul play is suspected, according to authorities.

Two hikers discovered the remains on Sunday morning in the in Fish Farm Mounds Wildlife Area south of New Albin, according to the Allamakee County Sheriffs Office.

Missing Illinois man sought in northeastern Iowa WAUKON -- Authorities are looking for a man missing from Kewanee, Illinois, whose car was fo

The identity of the deceased hasnt been determined, but deputies said the remains were from a male who had been dead for some time. The body has been transported to the State Of Iowa Medical Examiners Office in Ankeny for an autopsy and identification.

The location is the same area that authorities searched in October after finding a vehicle belonging to Juan Ortego Gandarilla, 26, who had disappeared from Kewanee, Illinois.

Ortega was last seen Oct. 1, and his Chevrolet Impala was found at Fish Farm Mounds on Oct. 4.

On Sunday, Allamakee County deputies said they had been in contact with the Kewanee Police Department regarding a missing person case.
LEROY, Minn. (AP)  Some Minnesota residents are concerned about where they will turn for health care as Mayo Clinic closes or trims service at its smaller clinics.

The health system's clinic in LeRoy will close following the departure of important staffers.

Mayo moved into rural areas of southeast Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa 25 years ago. Now the group is downsizing in some of those areas, including Albert Lea. The LeRoy clinic is one of at least four closed or consolidated this year. Mayo Clinic officials said they typically close clinics that don't see many patients or are located near other facilities. Staffing challenges in rural communities are another factor, officials said.

"Those are just natural ebbs and flows of business," said Doug Parks, the top administrator of Mayo Clinic's satellite system in southeast Minnesota.

LeRoy resident Eileen Evans said she's not sure where she'll go to get basic care. The 86-year-old said the nearest alternative is 20 minutes away.

Kiester Mayor Doug Trytten is worried that his town will lose their Mayo outpost, which helped save his life by catching his cancer.

"They're starting to run it more like a large corporation  which they are  but without the feelings and the understanding of how their business decisions are going to affect small-town living." Trytten said.

The organization is investing in other areas in Minnesota to improve local care, Parks said. The system plans to build a new hospital in Cannon Falls, a $4 million expansion in Faribault and a scheduled upgrade in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. Mayo is also investing $1.5 billion in a new electronic medical records system and more than $1 billion in Rochester's Destination Medical Center.

"I think people think DMC is sucking things away from their communities when the strategy is completely opposite," Parks said. "My personal opinion is that DMC will rise all ships."
MASON CITY | A Charles City woman accused of felony sexual abuse while running a day care in Mason City has entered a written Alford plea to a lesser charge of child endangerment.

Tawny Marie Symonds, 31, of Charles City, entered the plea in Cerro Gordo County District Court Monday, asking that the other two charges in the case, assault and felony second-degree sexual abuse, be dropped, according to court documents.

An Alford plea is when a defendant does not admit guilt but acknowledges the state can likely prove the charge.

According to court documents, if Symonds' Alford plea is accepted, she faces up to five years in prison and a $7,500 fine.

The Globe Gazette previously reported that Symonds was arrested last December after Mason City police investigated her home-run daycare at 696 13th St. S.E.

According to court documents, Symonds allegedly victimized one of the children at her day care, and also violated a Iowa Department of Human Services' safety plan by allowing someone in the home, something she previously agreed to not do.

It's unclear who that person was or why they weren't allowed in the day care.

Symonds' trial was scheduled to start Monday morning in the Cerro Gordo County Courthouse.
MASON CITY | Police are seeking information related to a shooting Saturday night in Mason City.

About 4:50 p.m. Sunday, officers located a vehicle that may have been involved in a shooting that occurred in the 200 block of 12th Street Southeast, police said in a press release.

A CodeRED warning, which was later canceled, was issued Sunday for the area surrounding the 600 block of South Carolina Avenue. Officers believed that a suspect from the shooting was located inside of a residence there.

The CodeRED system allows police to send a phone message to targeted areas of the community via phone messages. It is used locally by Mason City police, Clear Lake police and the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff's Office.

The system gets phone numbers from county data and public records.

People also can sign up online or download the app to receive alerts.

Because the investigation involved the use of firearms, officers took appropriate precautions to notify neighbors of the potential public safety risk, the release said. The occupants of a residence in the 600 block of South Carolina Avenue were evacuated from their location.

The North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force Special Operations Group was called to assist Mason City police in securing the residence.

One additional person left the residence after communicating with police, who were outside.

Police said there is no ongoing threat to the public.

The Mason City Police Department executed a search warrant for the vehicle and the residence. The incident remains under investigation.

Saturday shooting

The man shot Saturday evening sought help from neighbors across the street after the victim came to their house, according to a witness.

Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said later Saturday night that there was no threat to the public, but he declined to release information about the suspect.

Mason City Police responded to the call at 6:47 p.m. on the 200 block of 12th Street Southeast.

Jeff Beebe, a neighbor across the street from where the shooting took place, said the victim was shot in a home and then crossed 12th shirtless to another neighbor's home. Those residents then called 911.

Police said the victim suffered a single gunshot wound "to his upper body." He was transported to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa by fire medics. They characterized his injuries as non-life threatening.

Police and detectives were at the scene, searching sidewalks and walking through the second level of a home. They also looked into vehicles with flashlights.

Brinkley said officials believe "the incident is contained to the household." Officials were waiting for a judge to sign a warrant before executing a search of the house.

Beebe works the third shift and was trying to sleep when lights filled the neighborhood.

When asked if he heard any gunfire, he said, "Lights woke me up before anything else."

The 12th Street was also taped off between South Pennsylvania and South Georgia.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Lt. Rich Jensen at the Mason City Police Department at 641-421-3636.
A Mason City woman whose husband was in a car crash this summer is asking the Christmas Cheer Fund for assistance over the holidays.

The woman, 50, said because of the crash that almost took his life, her husband hasnt been able to return to work.

We are in desperate need of assistance, she wrote in her Cheer Fund application.

According to the application, there are nine people residing at the Mason City home, including five full-time and part-time dependent children between 1 and 17 years old.

The applicant said she and her husband take care of their nephew the past three years and their three grandchildren whom I nor their mother has money for gifts for them.

Their grandchildren are unable to receive gifts from Toys for Tots because their mother is attending school and working, the application said.

I need to give for kids and maybe something for husband and daughter who lives with me and son-in-law, she wrote.

The woman, whose family hasnt applied for funding within the past three years, said if awarded Christmas Cheer Fund assistance, it would be used for Christmas presents, dinner and clothing.

Since the Cheer Fund began in 1927, more than $3 million has been raised.

This years goal is $125,000.

The Christmas Cheer Fund was established by Globe Gazette Publisher Lee Loomis in 1927 so every child could have a present on Christmas morning. In the years since it has come to mean a little help at Christmastime to people of all ages.

Donations may be dropped off or mailed to the Globe Gazette office, 300 N. Washington Ave., Mason City, IA 50402-0271.

Any remaining funds not distributed for the holidays will be given to local nonprofits. The Christmas Cheer Fund balance will return to $100 in January to maintain the checking account.

Those in need can apply for help from the Cheer Fund at the Globe Gazette between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays. Applicants must use the 2017 request form. Applications will close at noon Dec. 21.

Cheer Fund donations: Monday, Dec. 11

MONDAY'S TOTAL: $15,320

TO-DATE TOTAL: $52,708.17

TO REACH GOAL: $72,291.83

Roger and Debra Tack, in memory of Kristie Hestness, $20

Roger and Debra Tack, in memory of Jerry Hestness, $20

Sally Harris, in memory of Ray and Alice Harris, Karen Naber Harris and Don and Charleen Sivwright, $150

Craig Remmen, $100

David and Georgia Johnson  Merry Christmas, $20

Merry Christmas  in memory of loved ones, $20

Leon and Irene Caspersen, $50

John and Sue McLaughlin, in loving memory of our parents, $100

Julie Jensen, $50

Mildred Evans, in loving memory of my husband Darrell, my son David and my daughter Terry Renee  miss you. Also to honor my son Mike and daughter Lori. Blessings to all, $50

Leland Hummel, in memory of Beulah, Hugh and Alice Hummel, Paul and Erma Goll and Marie Perkins, $100

Danny and Lynne Lunstrum, $125

Joan Strickler, in loving memory of Bob Strickler, Jerry Hartwell and Ruth and Leland Hartwell, $15

Kim and Susan Pleggenkuhle, in memory of our son Cade, our parents, sister and other loved ones. Merry Christmas, $250

Anonymous, in memory of Walter F. Cooper, $25

Shirley Rasche, in memory of Karl Rasche and Syl and Helen Malek, $25

Donavon and Shirley Baker  thank God for Christmas, $25

De Etta Pearce, in memory of Vernon "Bud" Pearce, $25

Linda Graham, in memory of Leona Graham Currier, $50

Esther Rasmussen, in loving memory of Dave, $50

Lois Reinsmoen, in beloved memory of departed loved ones, $25

Grace Long, in memory of husband Warren, $25

Joseph and Lark Trygstad, $100

Virgil and Ruby Munsell, $100

Carol and Kevin, in memory of Richard Losee, $25

Sherley Katuin, in memory of loved ones, $200

Her family, in memory of LizAnn Hempe, $40

Jack and Mary Jo Fisher, $100

Julie Wiebenga and Lena Peyton, in honor of my friends and customers of the Hair Shanty. In memory of my family in heaven, Clancy Wiebenga, Max, Roger, Michael, Zirbel and grandparents. May God bring peace. My life has brought many wonderful family and friends. Blessings to all, $50

Larry and Ellen Niebur, $50

David and Marion Dunn, in memory of Ray and Pearl Faulk, $50

Robert and Deloris Ruter, $25

Mike and Donna, $50

Maxine Worsley, $50

Mason City Evening Lions Club, $400

Hank and Eileen Steinwandt, in honor of our grandchildren, $25

Jim Polsdofer, in memory of my wife Geraldine and our son Eddie Polsdofer, $25

Kyle and Pierson, in memory of Grandpa Kent, $20

Kenton, Malcolm, Pryor, Odin, Harper, Eve and Knox  we miss you Big Papa, $20

Kelly, Shelly and Mindy  thank you Dad for everything, $10

Elvira Kuhlers, in memory of loved ones, $25

Leota Chase, in memory of Joel, $50

John and Sherry Kinney, $50

Dee, in memory of Ron and parents, $30

Bob and Pat Martin, in memory of son Todd, $100

Matt and Ben, in memory of Grandpa and Grandma Levenhagen and Grandpa and Grandma Braun, $25

Haines Insurance Inc., $250

Gene and Marie, in memory of Kristie and Jerry Hestness, $50

Rock Falls Church 20-30 Club, $10

Carrie and Brian McKigney, in memory of Bill, Lucille, Ron McKigney and Brian Pofahl, $50

Norma Schroeder, in loving memory of my sister Lucile Martin and my cousin Philna Miller. May they rest in peace, $25

Timothy and Betty Cross, $250

Ron and Kathy Muff, $100

Bonita and Dean Weber, in memory of Mindy and Caleb, $50

Florence Beek, in memory of my husband Gary and daughter-in-law Jessica Beek, $100

Ken and Cyndi Chizek, in memory of Arthur Chizek, $50

Ken and Cyndi Chizek, in memory of Richard Dole, $50

Gail Brown, $5,000

Brown, Kinsey, Funkhouser & Lander, PLC (Scott D Brown, Kaitlyn J Ausborn, John P Lander, Kim R Snitker and Travis M Armbrust), $100

Alyce Bailey, $50

Anonymous, $50

John and Mary Murphy, in memory of the Boyd and Murphy families, $25

Rose McCarthy, in memory of my granddaughter Mallory Newton, $200

Robert and Maria Hubbard, $50

Marilyn Holland, in memory of parents William and Esther Gentz and in memory of Kloose family, $25

Anonymous, in memory of Libby Luecht, $25

Florence and Eugene Ferden, in memory of our parents, $100

Lloyd and Carol Tinkey, in memory of our parents, $50

Gene and Kathy Hinrichs, $100

Dale Rasmussen, in memory of Janice, $50

Frank Weiss, in loving memory of my wife Ellen, $100

Gene and Nancy Kuehn, $50

Verna Smeby, in memory of all my loved ones, $50

Michael and Jane Connor, in memory of George Pagel, $20

In memory of Lori Hart dance partner, $20

Gary and Deloris Faught, in memory of daughter Deb Faught and grandson Nathan Quail, $50

God's Blessings to all, $20

Gerald and Karen Schultz, in memory of aunts and uncles, Art and Elsie Bussa, George and Eva Kimble, Buster and Myrtle Lowe and Earl and Irene Miller, $25

Stuart Schultz, in memory of grandparents Bob and Addie Hanley and Carl and Mary Schultz, $25

Bernadine Marzen, in memory of Leo and family, $50

Lowell and Ellamae Butler, in memory of our parents, $100

Mervin and Ann Sletten, in memory of Don Hudson, $20

With love, John, Becky, Ellene, Ronda, Alex and families, in memory of our mom and dad, Ardyce Nodtvedt and Harold Nodtvedt, $25

With love from Colton Ray and Carlie Renae Shoor, in memory of Grandma Ardyce Nodtvedt, $25

Don and Cathy Yadon, $1,000

Deland and Darlene Behr, $50

Jeff and Vicki Hensley, $50

Phyllis Hrubetz, in memory of family and friends, $40

Heartland Asphalt Inc., $1,200

Janet Dockstader, in memory of Darrell and William John Dockstader, $50

The Lyle Hullinger family, in memory of Lyle Hullinger, $30

Laura and William Jinkinson, $150

Roger and Marian Jennings, $50

Brian, Amanda, Haley, Sammie, Zack, Brayton, Anna and Ryleigh, in memory of Grandpa Nort and Tara, $50

Mark, Lori, Bill, Jeff, Laura and wife Marilyn, in memory of Dad, $50

Barbara Johnk, $50

His family, in loving memory of Raymond Nedved, $25

Mabel Welch, $25

Joan Bartel, in remembrance of family and friends, $50

Lloyd and Cynthia Heinselman, $100

Cheryl Zrostlik, in loving memory of my husband Vince and all other deceased family members, $25

Gene Brass, $25

Mary Franzen, for family members deceased, $25

Leon Anderson, $100

Roxann, Jeff, Tyler and Kayla Newell, in memory of Ben Newell, $100

Joseph and Mary Jill Thoreson, $250

Arthur and Kathleen Mahon, $250

Judy Nielsen and all my family, in memory of our loved ones, $400

Pete and JoAnn Merfeld, $50

Roger Obrecht in memory of my wife Leah Obrecht, $50

Anonymous, $20

Joyce Diedrich, $200

William and Debra Robinson, $100

Anonymous, $25

The Athenian Study Club, $15

Anonymous, in memory of Gayle Evans, $25

Anonymous, in memory of Bernice and Chuck Colbey, $25

Skip and Shirley, in memory of our loved ones, $25

First Christian Church, $100

Tom and Jo Wilder, in memory of loved ones, $25

In memory of Bill Nelson, $20

Susan Chapin, in memory of Kermit and other family members who have passed away, $75

W G and Marilyn Davison, $30

Rich and Gail Schurtz, $100
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Press release

Bone Therapeutics and Cellthera Pharm LLC announce intention to collaborate and Bone Therapeutics provides overview of its pipeline

Pharmstandard International S.A., the investment arm of a group of companies which includes Cellthera, has also expressed its intention to participate in a potential future capital increase by Bone Therapeutics

Gosselies, Belgium, 11 December 2017, 7am CEST - BONE THERAPEUTICS (Euronext Brussels and Paris: BOTHE), the bone cell therapy company addressing high unmet medical needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases, and Cellthera Pharm LLC., the cell therapy subsidiary of Pharmstandard, JSC, a leading Russian pharmaceutical group, today announce that they have the intention to collaborate in the field of cell-based therapies for orthopaedics and bone diseases.

The companies will explore the opportunity of a potential licensing of Bone Therapeutics' cell therapy platforms, PREOB in non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the hip and ALLOB for use in delayed union fractures to Cellthera Pharm LLC for the Russian Federation and CIS countries. The project between the companies remains subject to further discussions and due diligence and, at this stage, it cannot be guaranteed the proposed collaboration will occur.

Furthermore, Pharmstandard International S.A., a fully owned subsidiary of Pharmstandard, JSC - Russia's leading pharmaceutical producer, has expressed an intention to participate in a future fundraising of Bone Therapeutics, if and when such a fundraising was to occur.

Pipeline Overview

The Company has recently announced a series of positive clinical data further validating its unique bone cell therapy pipeline and today provides a pipeline overview following a previously announced review and streamlining of its portfolio priorities in the last year.

Ongoing clinical trials

Bone Therapeutics currently has two cell therapy products under clinical development (autologous PREOB and allogeneic ALLOB) for three indications in the field of orthopaedics and bone diseases.

ALLOB is currently being evaluated in two Phase II studies:

Delayed-union fractures: In September, the Company reported positive interim data for its Phase I/IIA study, leading to the early conclusion of the study for strong efficacy. A Phase IIB is currently in preparation.

Lumbar spinal fusion: In September, the Company also reported positive interim data for its Phase IIA study. The recruitment is expected to be finalized in early 2018.

PREOB is currently being evaluated in a Phase III trial in osteonecrosis of the hip. The Company is expecting interim analysis results in the second half of 2018. Moreover, as an important validation of its cell therapy technology, Bone Therapeutics has recently signed an exclusive license agreement with Asahi Kasei Corporation for the development and commercialization of PREOB in Japan.

Discontinued clinical trials

As previously announced, Bone Therapeutics has reprioritized its portfolio to ensure the best use of resources and to maximize value creation, whilst also taking into account indication specific hurdles discovered during the development process. Based on the clinical benefits, scalability, cost-effectiveness and ability to address large markets, Bone Therapeutics is focusing primarily on the further development of its allogeneic platform ALLOB. Several steps have already been taken as part of this strategy, which are reiterated below:

Severe osteoporosis

Despite reporting positive data, the Company opted to discontinue the clinical development of its bone cell therapy approach in severe osteoporosis without a partner, due to the complexity of the disease and the significant R&D investment required to continue clinical evaluation.

Rescue lumbar spinal fusion

Given the positive interim Phase IIA results for lumbar spinal fusion, the Company decided to focus its resources on delivering a body of well controlled data on the application of ALLOB in lumbar spinal fusion, before developing other spine indications. Therefore, and given the investigators' recommendation to optimise the specific procedure used to administer ALLOB in rescue spinal fusion patients, the development of the indication of rescue spinal fusion has been discontinued and the recruitment of its Phase IIA trial halted. ALLOB was well tolerated but the limited number of patients enrolled in this study will not allow the Company to draw any relevant conclusion for this indication.

Non-union fractures:

Following the announcement of strong interim data and the resulting early conclusion for the Phase IIA study for delayed union fractures, the Company decided to focus its efforts on ALLOB in the market of difficult fractures, and prioritize the indication of delayed union fractures (or patients at risk of non-union) with ALLOB, over the indication of non-union with PREOB. Bone Therapeutics therefore decided to discontinue recruitment and stop the Phase IIB/III study for non-union fractures with autologous PREOB once the follow-up of the currently enrolled patients has been completed. PREOB was well tolerated, but the limited number of patients enrolled in the non-union study due to slow recruitment, will not allow the Company to draw any relevant conclusions in the indication. There is currently no development of ALLOB or PREOB in the indication of non-union and if the Company were to revisit the indication, a new study would need to be initiated.

Bone Therapeutics believes that the clinical programmes it has chosen to focus on, supported by the recent positive interim data with ALLOB, offer strong commercial potential, the best value to patients and physicians, as well as short and medium-long term value creation for the Company.

Bone Therapeutics' current pipeline can be viewed on its website: http://www.bonetherapeutics.com/en/pipeline

About Bone Therapeutics

Bone Therapeutics is a leading cell therapy company addressing high unmet needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases. Based in Gosselies, Belgium, the Company has a broad, diversified portfolio of bone cell therapy products in clinical development across a number of disease areas targeting markets with large unmet medical needs and limited innovation.

Our technology is based on a unique, proprietary approach to bone regeneration which turns undifferentiated stem cells into "osteoblastic", or bone-forming cells. These cells can be administered via a minimally invasive procedure, avoiding the need for invasive surgery.

Our primary clinical focus is ALLOB, an allogeneic "off-the-shelf" cell therapy product derived from stem cells of healthy donors, which is in Phase II studies for the treatment of delayed-union fractures and spinal fusion. The Company also has an autologous bone cell therapy product, PREOB, obtained from patient`s own bone marrow and currently in Phase III development for osteonecrosis, and is also partnered with Asahi Kasei Corporation for the development and commercialisation of PREOB in Japan.

Bone Therapeutics` cell therapy products are manufactured to the highest GMP standards and are protected by a rich IP estate covering nine patent families. Further information is available at: www.bonetherapeutics.com.

About Cellthera Pharm LLC

Cellthera Pharm LLC - is an innovative project realized by Pharmstandard, JSC to establish a Research Center and a modern certified manufacturing facility for development and production of advanced medicinal products. Cellthera Pharm LLC develops the products for unmet medical needs with innovative approaches based on scientific excellence to provide the Russian Federation public healthcare system with fully personalized modern advanced medicinal products manufactured locally for treatment of severe and socially significant diseases.

About Pharmstandard

Pharmstandard International S.A. - is a company with the main focus on venture investments in innovative medicines/therapies with strong potential globally. Pharmstandard International S.A. is a fully owned subsidiary of Pharmstandard, JSC - Russia's leading pharmaceutical producer. For more information, please visit: www.pharmstd.lu.

Contacts

Bone Therapeutics SA

Thomas Lienard, Chief Executive Officer

Jean-Luc Vandebroek, Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +32 (0)2 529 59 90

investorrelations@bonetherapeutics.com

For Belgium and International Media Enquiries:

Consilium Strategic Communications

Amber Fennell, Jessica Hodgson and Hendrik Thys

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3709 5701

bonetherapeutics@consilium-comms.com

For French Media and Investor Enquiries:

NewCap Investor Relations & Financial Communications

Pierre Laurent, Louis-Victor Delouvrier and Nicolas Merigeau

Tel: + 33 (0)1 44 71 94 94

bone@newcap.eu

For US Media and Investor Enquiries

Westwicke Partners

John Woolford

Tel: + 1 443 213 0506

john.woolford@westwicke.com

Certain statements, beliefs and opinions in this press release are forward-looking, which reflect the Company or, as appropriate, the Company directors` current expectations and projections about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. A multitude of factors including, but not limited to, changes in demand, competition and technology, can cause actual events, performance or results to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Forward looking statements contained in this press release regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. As a result, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any update or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of any change in expectations or any change in events, conditions, assumptions or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based. Neither the Company nor its advisers or representatives nor any of its subsidiary undertakings or any such person`s officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does either accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.
Elizabeth looks so much older than 27

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It might be her unflattering lipstick.

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Her whole mouth area... like lets not bring attention to that.

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Thats what I thought. She already looks kinda like someones mom.

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David got that Daffy Duck body

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Nikki's brother, Antonio, said it best. He called him The Penguin from Batman.

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LMFAO that shit was so funny.

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I've been calling him that since the start of this show. When he said that i died!

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omg I need to watch this season



Marrying someone for the passport and visa benefit seems appealing sometimes but imagine dealing with this shit

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The men that enter into this mess are rarely normal.

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Makes for fun tv though!

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How did Annie pick this loser? You could've found ANYONE else and they would've been better.

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I feel sorry for Molly sometimes

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I can't stand Luis. He is disingenuous. He doesn't even TRY to like her kids or build a relationship with them. Everything about him is terrible and I want Molly to send him packing.

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Nah. She has a home of her own, seems to do okay for herself. She doesnt need this clown in her life

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Well, she seems terribly insecure and latched onto this man child who has no interest in her life

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My heart broke for her in this episode. This guy is now my least favorite !!! I want to punch him

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Don't yack me y'all, but I'm currently working on some research so I'm not watching this episode. I'll have to catch up later in the week.

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How much time do these people have to "fall in love" before they get engaged?

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They have 90 days once the person comes into the US

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So I'm guessing the time that the American spends abroad is limited?

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im not getting Molly's desperation

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Nicole and Azan are a fucking MESS. I can't believe her parents are supporting this at all. Azan doesn't seem invested and I think he's using Nicole obviously and hiding behind the cheating issue for now so he can act up whenever he feels like it. Nicole is not perfect either. Shes rude about his culture and doesnt seem willing to change for him. This whole thing just screams toxic to me.

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Libby's sisters are clearly throwing this bachlorette more for themselves than Libby.

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Every scene with Evelyn is so cringe-y. Also, David being so ~religious but has no issue moving across the world to fuck an 18 year old girl. The whole thing is awkward and uncomfortable to process.

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Ok, so I think David's lying about his virginity, just based off of how horrible people on this show tend to be.

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I would not be surprised.

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eh, hes using her

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His reaction last week to Evelyn bringing up sex was so crazy. There has to be something else about "his virginity" that caused him to react that way.

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Personally, I think he has a micro penis. Any guy (virgin, religious, or gay) doesn't mind talking about sex. He literally had a melt down the last time it was spoken. He has some serious penis issues.

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LMAOOOO.

Wtf

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oh wow

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How do you watch this in English?



It looks intriguing

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Netflix plays the English dub automatically for a lot of American customers, but like any dub, it's kind of wooden and doesn't quite match up. You can click on the audio and cc options box to the right of the play bar to change the dub and/or captions.

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This comment reminds me of how lazy most Americans are. Subtitles exist for a reason.

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wow. i love subtitles, but everyone has their preferences. but yeah, it's pretty easy to switch languages/subs in nf. on our console, all you have to do is press up on the dpad, click audio & subtitles, and you can switch them around in there. you can also select audio and subtitles before you start an episode from the show's main screen. happy watching!



Edited at 2017-12-11 05:16 am (UTC)

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is this show scary? I might start watching it tonight but not if it will give me nightmares. I couldn't figure out from the summaries I've read if it's more of a mystery or a supernatural/horror show

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I've watched three eps and so far there's nothing scary in it. It's definitely a mystery not a horror show (at least so far lol).

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It's not scary, it's more of a mystery/sci-fi show

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Its not like it pop ups on you, it just has the noises that something can.

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was this good?

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I really liked it. The individual plot elements are far from original, but all meshed together, they create an interesting mystery that has the potential to work over several seasons. *fingers crossed*

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This show is everything :')

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Heard this show was good but like most things on Netflix, I never get around to watching it. Alias Grace is my favorite show of the year. I hope it gets nominated for a lot of awards.

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I finished the show this weekend and was unprepared for a very violent scene with a child in ep. 8. It was extremely hard to watch and I'm not really squeamish over much.



Other than that, I really enjoyed the show as a whole.

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Same, I wasn't expecting for that to happen, it really disturbed me.

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] An adult tries to beat a child to death. Skip minutes 36-38 of episode 8 to avoid it. Physical abuse depicted.

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I want to start watching this show but this might be a deal breaker. Mind if I ask about the approximate age of the child and what happens?

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That was brutal and I wasn't expecting them to not cut away.

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i really like the show, but i was honestly surprised at how graphic it was in some parts, like that scene in ep. 8 and the suicide in the first episode

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yeah i did not expect that part

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This show was great, however it was quite open ended, like there is no conclusion at all, so I think it can only hold up if more seasons will follow to explain all the mysteries. I'm really hoping it gets another season at least! I recommend the original German version, it annoyed me that it automatically played it in English at the beginning.



Edited at 2017-12-11 02:37 am (UTC)

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I added it to my watchlist, and my french ass is used to subtitles, so original version for me

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On ep 8 now and I love it so far. Also, original German/subtitles or gtfo

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I really like that the show did give us some answers and the questions they left us with i think are necessary to move the plot forward for, hopefully, a second or more seasons.



Also i think the casting for 1986 was great like you could really tell who most of the characters were without them saying their names or being called by their name.

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] I've seen people guessing that Bartosz will become Noah, but they've done such a good job matching everyone else that I think it's unlikely. The casting matched really well. I also appreciated that they gave a few characters physical quirks (a mole, a birthmark, heterochromia) to help us keep up.

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[ Link to spoiler ] lol i haven't read any theories so i didn't know people were guessing that, but yeah they did so such good job with everyone else that it seems unlikely. I really think Noah is someone we haven't met

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] I first suspected Bartosz being Noah because I think they look alike :P

But I guess he could be Ulrich's grandfather or someone new.



Edited at 2017-12-11 05:14 am (UTC)

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the casting was really good.

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The casting was impeccable. Not just the young/old, but the families actually looked related.



I stupidly watched with the English dub, but even then I could tell how good the child actors were too. I especially really liked the deaf daughter - I assumed the actor is deaf in real life but I dont think she is?



Edited at 2017-12-11 02:47 am (UTC)

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im on ep 4 i think, but im really into it so far.



i had no idea dubbing was even an option on netflix, but i will literally never use it. it just looks so dumb and distracting.



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1) All of yall need to do ya self a favour turn the English dub off, set it to German, and watch the English subtitles



2) This fucking show. I wanna square up with like 70% of the characters lol. Not to mention, sometimes I legit felt stupid watching...like am I dumb or is this actually confusing? I'll watch a season 2 though



Edited at 2017-12-11 02:38 am (UTC)

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1) Totally agreed. So much better, but I hope having the dub attracts viewers that might not give it a chance otherwise.



2) I had to make family trees as I was watching, lol. It helped a lot.





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Yes! family trees! I found it confusing to follow who everyone was at first but then I got the hang of it

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I agree with the dubs, it doesnt sound authentic.



I also do not like when the mouth does not match what is being said.



Subtitles are fine. ONTD needs to read more.



*edited to correct misspelling, lmao



Edited at 2017-12-11 03:57 am (UTC)

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] i had to pay attention to get the families right at first and my dumb ass forgot about the jonas and martha thing until they reminded me, but the two main twists i saw coming well ahead tbh

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I thought myself the same thing, but I am not regretting it. Plus my SO knows German.

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Lazy people. But also honestly, there were some episodes that really had complex storylines that I feel like the dub was really meant for people who would have a hard time following.

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] i hope they don't fuck it up next season with too much corny ass futuristic action bs because i'm nhft loved it

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I can see that, but I think reading it vs. hearing him say it are two different things. From the first time I read the full quote, which is like a paragraph long, my take was, "Stop calling me black and making that the discussion." Because he was frustrated that race is such an issue for so many, and he feels like, "I'm a human. I'm equal to you, you're equal to me. The more we focus on my being black, the more we focus on how separate we are."

And it's true--I'm not saying it's not an issue, I just mean, I see where he's coming from in the sense of the point he's making. He doesn't feel that there should be a black history month, because there's no white history month. We don't "specifically" celebrate white history in January, so why can't we just celebrate black history 12 months a year?

I think his point is a really great one, when read in a different tone--which is why I hate reading transcript of quotes.
Chicago, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ronald D. Woody, DDS, FACP, was honored with the Major General Bill B. Lefler Federal Services Award at the Annual Awards & Presidents Dinner during the American College of Prosthodontists (ACP) 47th Annual Session held in San Francisco from Nov. 1-4, 2017.

Named for the late Maj. Gen. Bill B. Lefler, who had an active military career of over 34 years and was a dedicated member and Fellow of the ACP, the award recognizes excellence in leadership, patient care, mentorship, and service to community. Dr. Woody was nominated for this honor by John R. Agar, DDS, MA, FACP, a colleague of Maj. Gen. Lefler and a past president of the ACP.

Receiving this award is very significant due to my close relationship with General Lefler over the past 45 years, said Dr. Woody. He was a mentor who stimulated and guided my professional growth and emphasized the importance of service to our profession.

Within the ACP, Dr. Woody has served in many roles, including president from 1992-1993, vice president and treasurer. Dr. Woody is a Fellow of the ACP and is also a past chair of the American College of Prosthodontists Education Foundation (ACPEF). He previously received the Educator of the Year Award and the Distinguished Service Award from the ACP.

Outside of the ACP, Dr. Woody is a member of numerous dental and medical organizations. He is a past president of the American Board of Prosthodontics and the American Academy of Fixed Prosthodontics, is a Fellow of the American College of Dentists and International College of Dentists, and a member of the Academy of Osseointegration.

Dr. Woody served in the Army Dental Corps for 21 years, receiving many awards and honors for his dedication to the military. These include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Air Medal Meritorious Service Medal with First Oak Leaf Cluster, and Army Commendation Medal, among others. He was active in research and also served as program director of prosthodontic programs from 1978-1984. For the past 33 years Dr. Woody has served at Texas A&M College of Dentistry, where he is professor emeritus in restorative sciences. Previously, Dr. Woody developed the prosthodontic residency program at Baylor College of Dentistry and served as program director for 20 years.

About Prosthodontists

A prosthodontist is a specialized dentist who focuses on the restoration and replacement of missing teeth and correcting other oral or facial issues. With their advanced training, prosthodontists are able to help patients with things like implants, dentures and veneers, all the way to a full mouth and jaw reconstruction.

About the ACP

The American College of Prosthodontists (ACP) is the only ADA recognized organization for the specialty of prosthodontics, and is the only prosthodontic organization whose membership is based solely on education credentials. Founded in 1970, ACP is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to enhancing patient care, advancing the art and science of prosthodontics, promoting the specialty of prosthodontics to the public and other dentists and healthcare professionals, ensuring the quality of prosthodontic education and providing professional services to its membership. For more information, consumers can visit GoToAPro.org and dental professionals can visit Prosthodontics.org.

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Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fb0c9685-b8b1-44b8-b118-b5e71a77cd3d
What are the worst films you've seen this year?



lmaooo

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idunno I thought mother was by far my favorite movie of the whole year. no stupid nod to a past film, no nostalgia, no borrowed themes... it was wholly original and funny and fast and heart wrenching and interesting and beautifully shot... idunno what y'all are drinking but if you can't enjoy a movie like that you must have drank some kool aid that put u in a black mirror world where good things are bad. go watch frozen

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wholly original? it was the bible.

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no borrowed themes? it's based on the bible and on the fact that men take everything from women and then dump them for someone younger

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there is nothing new or groundbreaking, much less original about the concept that men will drain a woman of everything and then toss her aside for a new model. middle-aged men grasping at the faded glory of their youth has been a basic tenant of masculinity and pop culture for decades.

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lol whatever, OP. Mother! was good.



Murder on the Orient Express, on the other hand, was not good. I think that's probably the worst film I watched this year, but I haven't watched many.

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The end was so bad

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gosh Murder really was bad. a real shame because it's one of my favourite books by agatha christie. kenneth brannagh sucks

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I howled when Branagh called out willem dafoes character for his phony accent (while speaking in his gutter trash movie accent) I was like NOW SIS ...

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yeah murder was god awful. there wasn't a good performance in the bunch. really reinforced for me that there isn't enough talent to make a lush star power vehicle like the original anymore

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murder was just boring to me lol



I didn't want to see it from the start but my dad wanted to go for thanksgiving so I was like w/e

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I wanted to see it for daisy. Hmm. Maybe ill rethink that

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I didn't hate it. Michelle was fantastic.

It did well enough to get the next film greenlit

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michelle was great in the film, but i felt like it forgot to get its own bearings in terms of establishing an emotional connection between the viewer and characters.

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i thought the trailer was really cool but that was as far as i was willing to go for that movie lol

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[ spoiler ] johnny depp getting killed in the first 30 minutes the only good thing about murder on the orient express was

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It was bad, I'm glad I saw it for free. When dude asked me what I thought about it, I responded with, "it didn't need to be made."

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idc idc I loved this movie because of how "fdlkajfdslfkdjsfdsfhkhsdf" it was if that makes any sense.

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ia. i honestly loved it and i dont even like mayonnaise lawrence.

the last 30 minutes were such a mess.

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Edit: Ops! replied to the wrong comment



Edited at 2017-12-11 11:31 pm (UTC)

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me too

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Wow really just about everyone loved Baby Driver. I thought it was great!

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it was my fave!

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it was shit and typical hollywood trash.

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had baby driver been an indie film with unknowns i would have been like "i like this movie," but yea

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It seemed like a rip off of that gosling movie drive which was also greatly inspired by the 1978 movie the driver, starring ryan o'neal and isabelle adjani. I stayed away. Plus i cant stand that insufferable potato ansel.

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Atomic Blonde soundtrack >>>>>> Baby Driver

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Yeah I didn't care for Baby Driver. I was probably too excited for it, but it just seemed like a bunch of 15 year old boy fantasies mashed into one without a clear story.

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LOL at her downfall. The critics liked the movie and it's not surprising audiences didn't.



But you're right about Baby Driver. The first 20 minutes were fantastic but it fell apart in the third act and became a Wiley Coyote vs the Roadrunner cartoon. And Egsnort had no chemistry with Lily James, so it made their whole arc unbelievable. People who fall for editing/soundtrack glossiness and overlook "stupid plot" and bad acting need a refresher course in what makes a film good.

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Yeah it just felt like an extended music video that didn't really go anywhere.

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Me too. Really disappointed in it. It was ~cool~ and had good editing and all, but it was so... 2D. Such boring and flat characters with boring motivations. ~Ooh I fell in love with this thin pretty white girl because she sings i'm IN LOVE~ like dude why... also her being into him even though he looks like... that... and says like 10 words to her max...? i'm supposed to buy them as an intense love story? Meh.

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baby driver was TRASH



the only thing it had going for it was visuals and soundtrack

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Sorry to repeat the same comment but downfall? She's had no downfall lol.

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Dark Tower was one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

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It was stunningly boring. The fact that Idris was actually pretty good in it just made it more depressing, since like...he's the only one trying amidst a big pile of suck.

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it was just sad

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My bf dragged me to Dark Tower because that's his favourite SK series and he was so let down. I was bored and he hated it so it was kind of a bummer lol.

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that actually came out? i mean i'm not in the loop with many movies, but shit it must have done badly

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I was just confused by the fact that they made it a 1 hour 30 min popcorn flick when it's obvious the plot required at least a 2 hour screentime. It looked like soooo much was cut out

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Not as bad as mother! in my opinion but it was terrible. I actually enjoyed Matthew though.

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Oof The Dark Tower. I honestly went in with an open mind, because I knew that it would have to be a very loose adaptation of the source material and I was pretty hyped for Idris Elba as Roland, but man, it was just BAD as a film in general. They didn't do a good job of establishing the world or the characters, and the changes they made didn't clarify anything and in some cases actually undermined the stakes (Roland gave up on saving the Tower and only wants to kill the man in black, and his revenge mission is supposed to be some big moral quandary that he has to overcome to go back to his Tower-savior gunslinger persona. Except that the man in black is the one directly attacking the Tower soooooo saving the Tower and defeating the man in black are pretty much the same thing and not a choice at all?!?!). And there were times that I was actively cringing at the dialogue. I don't remember the exact lines now but there was one scene in particular between McConaughey and his minions that was like a fanfic-level exposition dump.

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late to this post but yeah, The Dark Tower is probably the worst film I saw this year. I didn't even want to see it but got dragged to it with some friends. A classic example of how NOT to adapt a book.

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Fuck this pretentious pile of shit movie.

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It was the worst I saw all year. Not too much worse than all of the critics who felt they needed to find meaning in it because of its clout. So embarrassing.

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Well, the "meaning" was hardly hidden. It was Baby's First Biblical Allegory.

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idc about that but i'm excited for red sparrow. mostly bc i just really really want mary louise parker to have a career again

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I was excited when I saw the trailer but then sad when I realized it was the director of the hunger games and I am legend but I hope Im surprised!

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What are the worst films you've seen this year?



lol r00d! Definitely not this one, sry. I don't know if I can straight-up say I enjoyed it, but it fascinated me and I think it was an interesting risk. I personally really liked the whole 'know as little as possible going in and just let it wash over you' thing and I'm actually trying to somewhat do that with a lot more movies now, but I guess I get why the average moviegoer who was just like "oh hey, I like that Hunger Games gal" wasn't thrilled with it, lol/oop.



Worst I've seen this year was probably Blind (the Alec Baldwin/Demi Moore vehicle), Inconceivable (Nicolas Cage is still paying off his Redd Foxx-ian debt, apparently), The Circle, The Only Living Boy in New York, The Snowman (and I'm a Fassbender stan, but GOOD LORD), The Mummy, of course 50 Shades Darker...and then there's all the stuff I watched for We Hate Movies, but that was in service of a higher power, so.

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What is going on with Fassbenders career sis? You seem to know a lot about movies lol.

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Well, The Snowman was just plain bad, allegedly because budgeting/scheduling issues on the shoot, but Alien: Covenant was fairly well-received and made decent, if not amazing, money. I'll still defend Light Between Oceans; I thought that got unfairly shit on. And I liked Trespass Against Us, though that didn't actually come out here, oop. Here's hoping Dark Phoenix is gonna be good...? He just needs to look at his life and his choices dot gif a little bit, maybe.



EDIT: well, not life, cuz I  Alicia. But career choices, yes.



Edited at 2017-12-11 09:41 pm (UTC)

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The Snowman was painful and I had high hopes for it.

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I guess I get why the average moviegoer who was just like "oh hey, I like that Hunger Games gal" wasn't thrilled with it



this makes me think of half in the bag joking about tricked grandmas going to see it. "ooh i love that jennifer lawrence!" :P

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The Circle was even worse than the book

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I agree with your statement on mother

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I'm also ambivalent about mother! Like I enjoyed how terrified it made me, but also...beyond heavy handed to the point of being painful

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I didn't hate Mother!, but I don't think it was anything special either. As for JLaw, her acting actually annoyed me in Mother! It seemed like 90% of her performance was wide eyes and gasping.



She was great in Winter's Bone, especially since she was so young.

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tulip fever was SO BAD.

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Omg I wanna see it.

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Tulip Feverrrr, I still don't understand that ending!!

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I still haven't seen this. Is it worth watching, at least for the lols?

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i felt so bad for jlaw's character throughout the whole movie, it was so draining watching her sit through all that abuse. it was almost like torture porn

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Yes. Knowing it was also some weird masturbatory exercise that people so badly wanted to see as "art" made it even worse.

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mte

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I had the same feeling too. I felt awful and I hated everyone for her. All those people just walking all over her, and her husband... I can't.

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IA, the whole thing made me so anxious just watching them treat her like garbage.

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Cause thats what it was, literally nothing more

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when they wouldn't get off the sink :(

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i mean if you wanna go by what the film was meaning we treat mother earth like shit

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it was frustrating af but it was really meaningful so it gets a pass, unlike some movies where women are treated awfully for no reason.

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Alien: Covenant, I guess, as far as movies released this year.



"The House on Willow Street" was unbelievably terrible and I'm mad at Netflix for recommending it to me. "Holidays" was also subpar, but had a few interesting segments to keep it afloat. (this is what I get for watching horror movies)

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I saw alien c in theaters multiple times and convinced myself I liked it but I watched it at home last night and was like this is pretty boring... I still like it tho cause I'm trash!



I've said it before but I wish the movie matched the tone of the first trailer, I felt like the second longer trailer gave away how different the movie was from the first trailer lol but maybe that's just me

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I just don't understand why Ridley is so desperate to explain how Xenomorphs were made. Like... they're aliens, probably from a totally alien planet, where they evolved to be like this. The end.



The part where the first baby alien (not a chestburster, because I guess that doesn't happen anymore?) burst out of Billy Crudup's chest and Evil Fassy tapped on the window and it started to dance was the limit for me. It was so damn silly.

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I HATED it comes at night and the circle. Okja was also flop

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MTE @ Okja

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I loathed okja



I recommend it to a friend in a "I haven't seen it but this netflix movie is supposed to be good!" and then after I saw it I texted her and was like "PLEASE DON'T WATCH IT YOU WILL HATE IT"

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I played Okja in the background while reading fic on my laptop, and when it was over I didn't feel like I'd missed much.



It was SO long, and the action only caught my attention for maybe a total of 20 minutes. The opening sequences were my fave. The meat of the story (lol) was just not that interesting or novel.

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IA about Okja.

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The Circle was such a pointless movie. Like it thought it was so clever and deep, but said nothing in the end.



I wanted to love Okja, but tbh it just made me uncomfortable...? idk. I probably wouldn't watch it again.



I actually liked It Comes At Night, but I really wish they'd explained more about ~the threat~ because it clearly wasn't "just" paranoia and mistrust of strangers when you look at what happened to the fucking dog. What got him???? What is the sickness??? Just explain a little bit more!!!

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omg don't remind me about It come at night lo. awful

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lmfao these oscar campaigns...lord hammercy its gonna be a long few months

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seriously... i'm already tired of ha

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lol I admire her attempts but even the star fuckers at the Golden Globes didn't throw her a nom.

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Kingsman The Golden Circle was (probably) the worst movie of the year for me.



It was everything I had hoped it not to be lmao.

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It's like they listened to our very specific (and fairly minimal!) complaints about the first one and went "uh-huh, interesting. Let's do a lot more of exactly those things. Thanks!"

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I would agree with this.

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It was awful in every was possible. I actually wanted to get up and leave and I cant recall feeling that way often.

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oh yeah that movie was awful



I didn't want to see it but a friend wanted to go and it was free so I went, I hated the first movie too though to be fair

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I saw it last night and turned it off as soon as he fingered a tracker in one of the suspects lmaoooo



That movie was so disappointing, especially with how much i enjoyed the first one



Edited at 2017-12-11 10:23 pm (UTC)

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President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, in his speech during the Anti-Corruption Summit 2017: Breaking Chains of Corruption 2017 at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City on November 28, 2017. RUJI ABAT/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines  The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) submitted last week a recommendation to President Rodrigo Duterte regarding the martial law in Mindanao.

Both agencies favor the extension of martial law in the region instead of lifting it on its scheduled term before the end of the year.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea has confirmed that President Rodrigo Duterte will request the Congress to extend the on-going martial law for one more year.

Based on the text message of Sec. Medialdea, the letter has already been signed by the Chief Executive pending submission to Congress.

The AFP initially stated that there is still a need for martial law in Mindanao because of reports regarding remaining Maute members, Abu Sayyaf and other terrorist groups merging together.

Those who survived that siege still remain at large and are attempting to recover by recruiting other members of the society, said AFP spokesperson Brigadier General Restituto Padilla.

Another reason cited for the extension is the on-going violent attacks by members of the New Peoples Army (NPA).

There was a 2,000% increase in the amount on the effect of the violent incidents on business alone, said Padilla.

The opposition of the administration expressed their disapproval and said that the martial rule extension would only hinder the Marawi residents from returning to their homes.  Rosalie Coz | UNTV News & Rescue

The post Duterte requests Congress to extend on-going martial law for one more year appeared first on UNTV News.
The EU's diplomatic chief Monday bluntly rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's suggestion that Europe would follow the US in recognising Jerusalem as the Jewish state's capital, saying there would be no change to its stance on the holy city. Netanyahu said the controversial announcement by US President Donald Trump -- which prompted diplomatic alarm and street protests across the Islamic world -- had "put facts squarely on the table". As he arrived for talks in Brussels, Netanyahu said he expected "all or most" European countries would follow the US -- but the 28-nation bloc's foreign policy head Federica Mogherini gave him a stern rebuff, telling him to "keep his expectations for others". The EU expressed alarm last week at the US decision, but Netanyahu said Trump had simply stated facts by acknowledging that Jerusalem had been the capital of the Israeli state for 70 years and of the Jewish people for 3,000 years. "It doesn't obviate peace, it makes peace possible, because recognising reality is the substance of peace, it's the foundation of peace," Netanyahu said in a statement alongside Mogherini ahead of a breakfast meeting with EU foreign ministers. "I believe that all or most of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace," Netanyahu said. The Jerusalem decision upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus. Mogherini last week warned it could take the situation "backwards to even darker times". After nearly two hours of talks between Netanyahu and the EU ministers, Mogherini gave a flat rejection of his suggestion they could follow Trump. "He can keep his expectations for others, because from the European Union member states' side this move will not come," she said, adding that the bloc -- the Palestinians' largest donor -- would stick to the "international consensus" on Jerusalem. She reiterated the EU's stance that "the only realistic solution" for peace is two states -- Israel and Palestine -- with Jerusalem as the capital of both and the borders returned to their status before the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. And she pledged to step up efforts with the two sides and regional partners including Jordan and Egypt to relaunch the peace process. - Attacks condemned - Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital and previous peace plans have stumbled over debates on whether and how to divide sovereignty or oversee holy sites. Mogherini also condemned attacks on Israel -- after Netanyahu took aim over the weekend at what he called Europe's "hypocrisy" for criticising Trump's statement, but not "the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it". "Let me condemn in the strongest possible way all attacks on Jews everywhere in the world, including in Europe, and on Israel and on Israeli citizens," Mogherini said. Netanyahu pointed to a new US peace initiative as a possible way forward. "There is now an effort under way to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance this peace," he said. Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but it is not clear what progress he is making. Mogherini indicated that US efforts appeared to be at a very early stage, saying "both horizon and framework" -- the end goal and how to get there -- had still not be clearly defined. And she warned Washington to have no illusions "that a United States initiative alone would be successful", saying regional and international support would be essential to peace talks. - EU not unified - Most EU members, including the bloc's biggest countries, have expressed alarm over the Trump administration's policy shift. But the 28-member bloc is not unified on the issue -- Hungary, Greece, Lithuania and the Czech Republic in particular favour warmer ties with Israel. And last week Hungary broke ranks to block a joint statement from the EU that was critical of Washington's Jerusalem shift. Trump's announcement on Wednesday has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories. Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Gaza Strip. A fifth day of demonstrations was expected on Monday. burs-pdw/dk/je
The skeletal remains and fish hooks. Credit: ANU

An archaeologist from The Australian National University (ANU) has uncovered the world's oldest known fish-hooks placed in a burial ritual, found on Indonesia's Alor Island, northwest of East Timor.

The five fish hooks were among items carefully placed under the chin, and around the jaws of a female from the Pleistocene era, dating back 12,000 years.

Distinguished Professor Sue O'Connor from the School of Culture, History and Language in the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific said the discovery turns on its head the theory that most fishing activities on these islands were carried out by men.

"These are the oldest known fish-hooks associated with mortuary practices from anywhere in the world and perhaps indicate that fishing equipment was viewed as essential for transition to the afterlife in this area," Professor O'Connor said.

"The discovery shows that in both life and death, the Pleistocene inhabitants of the Alor Island region were intrinsically connected to the sea, and the association of the fish-hooks with a burial denotes the cosmological status of fishing in this island environment."

Prior to the find, the earliest fish-hooks associated with a burial site date back only about 9,000 years and were found in a river environment of the Mesolithic era in Siberia, known as the Ershi cemetery.

The fish hooks removed from the Alor burial once cleaned. Credit: ANU

Professor O'Connor said in a maritime context, the earliest burials with fish-hooks are from Oman, where rotating fish-hooks made of pearl shell have been dated to about 6,000 years ago.

Older fish hooks from Japan, Europe and East Timor date back as far as 22,000 years, but they were not related to burial rites.

In the Alor Island find, two different types of fish-hooks were buried - a J-Shaped hook and four circular rotating hooks fashioned from the shell of a species of sea-snail.

Professor O'Connor said the appearance of the Alor rotating fish-hooks so early on a disconnected island suggests that several fishing communities developed the same technology separately, rather than learning from each other through contact.

Map of Alor. Credit: ANU

"The Alor hooks bear an uncanny resemblance to rotating hooks used in Japan, Australia, Arabia, California, Chile, Mexico and Oceania," she said.

"We argue that the same sort of artefact was developed independently because it was the most fitting form to suit the ecology, rather than through cultural diffusion."

Professor O'Connor's findings were published in the Cambridge University Press journal Antiquity.
In this Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, photo, people use the Bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The weekend launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin reflects widespread acceptance of the virtual currency, especially among investors in Asia, though regulators are wary.

Japan and South Korea are among the world's top five markets for bitcoin trading, according to sites that track trading volume by currency. Here's a glance at the digital currency's rise in some of the region's major markets:

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JAPAN:

Japan was home to one of the earliest bitcoin communities, but it was started by expatriate residents and kept a low profile. Until a few years ago, bitcoin and other virtual currencies were left alone by regulators.

Following the failure of a bitcoin exchange called Mt. Gox, new laws were enacted to regulate bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Japan is the only major advanced economy with a licensing regime for digital currency intermediaries such as exchanges and payment providers.

That has helped make Japan the world's biggest market for speculative virtual currency trading, said Thomas Glucksmann, Hong Kong-based head of marketing for Gatecoin, a virtual currency exchange.

"There was very little interest back than at all and now it's a complete 360," said Glucksmann. "It's the biggest market, everybody's talking about it."

In this Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, photo, a man uses a Bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Big Japanese banks have gotten involved, investing in bitcoin exchanges or letting them open bank accounts while developing their own related services. Some retailers accept payment in bitcoin.

Many Japanese are familiar with currency trading since Japan is the world's biggest retail foreign exchange market.

"You have people like hairdressers and housewives, people like that investing in crypto, in addition to the bigger players in Japan," said Glucksmann, who used to work at a bitcoin exchange in Japan. "So the regulations have helped to fuel a lot of the legitimacy in the Japanese market."

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SOUTH KOREA:

About a year and half ago, South Korea emerged as a very large market for speculative trading activities thanks to investors' high risk appetite and fears of missing out.

In this Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, photo, a man stands besides a Bitcoin sign near a Bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Now, just as the government prepares to regulate virtual currencies, big financial institutions are starting to get in on the action. Shinhan Bank is planning to offer virtual currency services like a bitcoin wallet,

Worried over risks of speculative trading, in September South Korea banned initial coin offerings, or raising money through bitcoin or other virtual currencies.

Senior officials at South Korea's financial watchdog have compared speculative trading in bitcoin to a "Ponzi scheme" and say they are mulling a ban.

"We will not let financial institutions handle transactions related to virtual currencies," said Kim Yongbeom, vice chairman at Financial Services Commission, according to a media pool report Monday. "The price of virtual currencies rises because of the expectation that the next person will buy it at the desired price and this is quite like a Ponzi scheme."

Chairman Choi Jong-gu said one option is a total ban on virtual currencies, which would require revising existing legislation or enacting new laws.

Still, bitcoin sells for a 20-30 percent premium in South Korean compared to other places, and this has spurred offshore trading to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities as South Koreans buy bitcoin overseas and sell them back home.

In this Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, photo, coins and sign are displayed next to a Bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

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CHINA:

For a brief time, China dominated bitcoin trading, at one point reportedly accounting for as much as 90 percent of volume. That dried up after Beijing tightened controls.

The lively bitcoin market had been set up by bitcoin miners, who had set up data centers taking advantage of China's cheap electricity and hardware to handle the intensive computing processes needed to "mine" new bitcoin.

China started cracked down on such activities last year just as the price of bitcoin began to surge. In September, regulators ordered all exchanges to shut down, banning initial coin offerings.

China's bitcoin exchanges have since migrated overseas or shifted to over-the-counter trading where exchanges match buyers and sellers who then connect through chat apps like Telegram. Payment is made in cash or through bank transfers and the exchange collects a fee.

In this Dec. 8, 2017, photo, a woman uses a Bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Some mainland China exchanges have refocused their efforts on their Hong Kong operations, said Leo Weese, president of the Bitcoin Association of Hong Kong. He estimates there are about 10,000 bitcoin users in the Asian financial hub, including 1,000-2,000 active investors who have significant holdings or work for bitcoin related companies.

Weese estimates that bitcoin prices are 5-8 percent higher in mainland China than Hong Kong. Speculators who can get around China's strict capital controls to profit from the price difference are driving some trading activity in the city, Weese said.

"For them it's a way to make money," he said. "They can buy the bitcoin in Hong Kong cheaply and they can sell them at a premium in China."

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SOUTHEAST ASIA:

Bitcoin's rising popularity in Indonesia has alarmed the country's central bank, which said last week it would ban it as a payment method next year.

In this Sept. 28, 2016, photo, a man sets up a new bitcoin mining machine to connect to the internet at a bitcoin mine built beside a hydropower station in a remote valley in Aba prefecture in southwestern China's Sichuan province. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors. (Chinatopix via AP)

Bank Indonesia spokesman Agusman Zainal said more a "assertive rule" on virtual currencies is planned.

He said the bank is concerned bitcoin might be used for fraud or other illegal activities like terrorism, money laundering, prostitution, drug trafficking.

"In the context of the payment system, bitcoin is not a valid means of payment," Zainal said. "The reason for prohibiting is in order to implement prudential principles, safeguard business competition, risk control and consumer protection."

In this Sept. 26, 2016, photo, a Tibetan bitcoin miner poses with his shelves of bitcoin mining computers at a bitcoin mine built beside a hydropower station in a remote valley of Aba prefecture in southwestern China's Sichuan province. The launch of a U.S. futures contract for bitcoin on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017, underscores the virtual currency's increasing mainstream acceptance, including in many parts of Asia, where it already has a wide following among speculators and investors .(Chinatopix via AP)

 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Artist's depiction of what exoplanet Kepler 22b might look like. It was discovered by the Kepler satellite telescope. Kepler 22b likely receives a similar amount of light and heat from its star as our Earth does from our sun. Credit: NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech

Somewhere in our galaxy, an exoplanet is probably orbiting a star that's colder than our sun, but instead of freezing solid, the planet might be cozy warm thanks to a greenhouse effect caused by methane in its atmosphere.

NASA astrobiologists from the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a comprehensive new model that shows how planetary chemistry could make that happen. The model, published in a new study in the journal Nature Geoscience, was based on a likely scenario on Earth three billion years ago, and was actually built around its possible geological and biological chemistry.

The sun produced a quarter less light and heat then, but Earth remained temperate, and methane may have saved our planet from an eon-long deep-freeze, scientists hypothesize. Had it not, we and most other complex life probably wouldn't be here today.

The new model combined multiple microbial metabolic processes with volcanic, oceanic and atmospheric activities, which may make it the most comprehensive of its kind to date. But while studying Earth's distant past, the Georgia Tech researchers aimed their model light-years away, wanting it to someday help interpret conditions on recently discovered exoplanets.

The researchers set the model's parameters broadly so that they could apply not only to our own planet but potentially also to its siblings with their varying sizes, geologies, and lifeforms.

Earth and its siblings

"We really had an eye to future use with exoplanets for a reason," said Chris Reinhard, the study's principal investigator and an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. "It's possible that the atmospheric methane models that we are exploring for the early Earth represent conditions common to biospheres throughout our galaxy because they don't require such an advanced stage of evolution like we have here on Earth now."

Reinhard and first author Kazumi Ozaki published their Nature Geoscience paper on December 11, 2017. The research was supported by the NASA Postdoctoral Program, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the NASA Astrobiology Institute and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Previous models have examined the mix of atmospheric gases needed to keep Earth warm in spite of the sun's former faintness, or studied isolated microbial metabolisms that could have made the needed methane. "In isolation, each metabolism hasn't made for productive models that accounted well for that much methane," Reinhard said.

The Georgia Tech researchers synergized those isolated microbial metabolisms, including ancient photosynthesis, with geological chemistry to create a model reflective of the complexity of an entire living planet. And the model's methane production ballooned.

"It's important to think about the mechanisms controlling the atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases in the framework of all biogeochemical cycles in the ocean and atmosphere," said first author Ozaki, a postdoctoral assistant.

Carl Sagan and the faint Sun

The Georgia Tech model strengthens a leading hypothesis that attempts to explain a mystery called the "faint young Sun paradox" pointed out by iconic late astronomer Carl Sagan and his Cornell University colleague George Mullen in 1972.

Astronomers noticed long ago that stars burned brighter as they matured and weaker in their youths. They calculated that about two billion years ago, our sun must have shone about 25 percent fainter than it does today.

Principal investigator Chris Reinhard in his lab at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Reinhard is an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. Credit: Georgia Tech / Ben Brumfield

That would have been too cold for any liquid water to exist on Earth, but paradoxically, strong evidence says that liquid water did exist. "Based on the observation of the geological record, we know that there must have been liquid water," Reinhard said, "and in some cases, we know that temperatures were similar to how they are today, if not a little warmer."

Sagan and Mullen postulated that Earth's atmosphere must have created a greenhouse effect that saved it. Back then, they suspected ammonia was at work, but chemically, that idea proved less feasible.

"Methane has taken a lead role in this hypothesis," Reinhard said. "When oxygen and methane enter the atmosphere, they chemically cancel each other out over time in a complex chain of chemical reactions. Because there was extremely little oxygen in the air back then, it would have allowed for methane to build up much higher levels than today."

Iron, and rust photosynthesis

At the core of the model are two different types of photosynthesis. But three billion years ago, the dominant type of photosynthesis we know today that pumps out oxygen may not have even existed yet.

Instead, two other very primitive bacterial photosynthetic processes likely were essential to Earth's ancient biosphere. One transformed iron in the ocean into rust, and the other photosynthesized hydrogen into formaldehyde.

"The model relied on lots of volcanic activity spewing out hydrogen," Ozaki said. Other bacteria fermented the formaldehyde, and other bacteria, still, turned the fermented product into methane.

The two photosynthetic processes served as the watch spring of the model's clockwork, which pulled in 359 previously established biogeochemical reactions spanning land, sea and air.

Famed late NASA astronomer Carl Sagan first hypothesized that the reason early Earth stayed warm although the sun shone dimly had to do with a greenhouse effect involving a gas mixture different from that in Earth's atmosphere today. Credit: NASA-JPL

3,000,000 runs and raging methane

The model was not the type of simulation that produces a video animation of Earth's ancient biogeochemistry. Instead, the model mathematically analyzed the processes, and the output was numbers and graphs.

Ozaki ran the model more than 3 million times, varying parameters, and found that if the model contained both forms of photosynthesis operating in tandem, that 24 percent of the runs produced enough methane to create the balance needed in the atmosphere to maintain the greenhouse effect and keep ancient Earth, or possibly an exoplanet, temperate.

"That translates into about a 24 percent probability that this model would produce a stable, warm climate on the ancient Earth with a faint sun or on an Earth-like exoplanet around a dimmer star," Reinhard said. "Other models that looked at these photosynthetic metabolisms in isolation have much lower probabilities of producing enough methane to keep the climate warm."

"We're confident that this rather unique statistical approach means that you can take the basic insights of this new model to the bank," he said.

Other explanations for the "faint young Sun paradox" have been more cataclysmic and perhaps less regular in their dynamics. They include ideas about routine asteroid strikes stirring up seismic activity thus resulting in more methane production, or about the sun consistently firing coronal mass ejections at Earth, heating it up.

More information: Kazumi Ozaki et al, Effects of primitive photosynthesis on Earth's early climate system, Nature Geoscience (2017). DOI: 10.1038/s41561-017-0031-2 Journal information: Nature Geoscience
A color composite image of HH 11831186. The four objects appear to be emerging from the edge of a dense cloud. The HH objects can be distinguished by their deep red color. Credit: Rector et al., 2017.

(Phys.org)Astronomers have found a dozen new faint Herbig-Haro objects in the dark nebula LDN 673 by employing a novel color-composite imaging method. The discovery, reported in a paper published December 1 on the arXiv pre-print server, could provide new important information about star formation process.

Located some 650 light years away from the Earth, Lynds' Dark Nebula 673 (or LDN 673 for short) is a very dense, highly fractured dark cloud complex in the Aquila Rift region. Astronomers believe that LDN 673 contains raw material to form a huge number of new stars, and therefore could offer some hints about the process of stellar formation. Although this nebula is relatively close, it has not been extensively studied yet.

Recently, a team of astronomers led by Travis Rector of the University of Alaska Anchorage has observed LDN 673 with the aim of learning more insights into the nature and composition of this nebula. They used a novel color-composite imaging method utilizing the MOSAIC optical camera on the Mayall 4-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), located on Kitt Peak in Arizona.

They found the so-called Herbig-Haro (HH) objects, small patches of nebulosity associated with newly born stars. They are produced by shocks from the collision of an outflow with material in the interstellar medium, or with previously ejected outflows. HH objects are perceived by astronomers as markers for active, ongoing star formation and could improve our knowledge about this process.

"In this paper we report on the discovery of twelve HH objects in the region of LDN 673," the researchers wrote in the paper.

According to the study, four of the newly detected HH objects, designated HH 11831186, are likely associated with a cluster of eight young stellar object (YSO) class I/II red infrared sources that lie between them. Five other HH objects, named HH 11871191, are quite faint and are likely also associated with the young T Tauri star multiple AS 353. The remaining three, known as HH 1192-1194, are bisected by a very red source that coincides with an infrared dark cloud.

Given that HH objects are tracers of the powerful outflows common to the youngest generation of young stars, the researchers emphasized that their discovery delivers evidence of new and ongoing star formation in the Aquila region and suggest the existence of a larger T Tauri population there. They added that the finding gives hope for more promising results in the future when it comes to detecting new young stars.

"Examination of broad survey data in the region, such as 2MASS, UKIDDS, and WISE, and detailed analyses of color data may reveal more extensive young star populations. There is particular appeal to the possibility of a substantial young star population in Aquila as the region is less than 300 pc away, providing a nearby population of young stars available for unprecedentedly sensitive and detailed study in the ALMA/JWST era," the paper reads.

More information: The Discovery of Herbig-Haro Objects in LDN 673, arXiv:1712.00305 [astro-ph.SR] arxiv.org/abs/1712.00305 Abstract

We report the discovery of twelve faint Herbig-Haro (HH) objects in LDN 673 found using a novel color-composite imaging method that reveals faint H{alpha} emission in complex environments. Follow-up observations in [S II] confirmed their classification as HH objects. Potential driving sources are identified from the Spitzer c2d Legacy Program catalog and other infrared observations. The twelve new HH objects can be divided into three groups: Four are likely associated with a cluster of eight YSO class I/II IR sources that lie between them; five are colinear with the T Tauri multiple star system AS 353, and are likely driven by the same source as HH 32 and HH 332; three are bisected by a very red source that coincides with an infrared dark cloud. We also provide updated coordinates for the three components of HH 332. Inaccurate numbers were given for this object in the discovery paper. The discovery of HH objects and associated driving sources in this region provides new evidence for star formation in the Aquila clouds, implying a much larger T Tauri population in a seldom-studied region.

 2017 Phys.org
Composites Part B. Credit: Scott Schrage

Prior research has shown that even thin-walled tubing can effectively absorb energy, which makes it appealing to those who engineer vehicles and other structures that may endure crashes.

Straight tubes generally absorb energy more efficiently than other proposed designs, such as those with a single layer of corrugation  the wave-like ridges and grooves often seen in cardboard. But a single-corrugated design does compress more smoothly and predictably under extreme force, helping to reduce injury risks.

Nebraska engineer Linxia Gu and her colleagues sought to balance the best qualities of both types by designing and modeling the performance of tubing with a second layer of corrugation.

The researchers found that their double-corrugated tube substantially narrowed the disparity in energy absorption while also retaining the consistent crushing behavior of single-corrugated tubing. Their findings could ultimately help inform the design of more crashworthy automobile components.

Gu and her colleagues suggested conducting experiments to verify the results of their computer model. Modifying the geometry or composition of the double-corrugated design might further improve its performance, the researchers said.
The Tri-County wildfire in September 2011 destroyed more than 18,000 acres of forest, including a Rice University-owned tract in Waller County, Texas. (Photo courtesy of C. Masiello/Rice University) Credit: C. Masiello/Rice University

When a forest fire decimated more than 3,000 acres of Rice University-owned timberland in 2011, biogeochemist Carrie Masiello saw a silver lining in the blackened trees.

Masiello is an expert on how carbon behaves in soil, and she noticed a vexing problem in both the scientific literature and findings from her lab: Charcoal is abundant in soil, particularly in fertile regions like Europe's breadbasket and America's Corn Belt, but while it's clear that most soil charcoal came from wildfires, it wasn't at all clear why it stayed there so long or how it got into the soil after a fire.

In a newly published study in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Masiello and colleagues, including current and former graduate students Lacey Pyle and Kate Magee, analyzed soil samples collected after the fire and found that charcoal behaved very differently from other forms of soil carbon as the land rebounded from the fire.

"We looked at all forms of carbon in the soil, both immediately after the fire and over a two-year period, and we found that it became more evenly distributed over time, which is a sign that the land was returning to its baseline state," Masiello said.

"Charcoal behaves exactly the opposite. It's distribution became more patchy over time, and we think that's because it's buoyant and gets moved by water and concentrated in low places on the landscape."

Masiello said it was not a surprise that charcoal was buoyant. In fact, the research team had specifically chosen flat research sites because previous studies had shown that soil carbon tended to migrate downhill over time. The surprise was the extent to which charcoal from the fire had become concentrated, even in the absence of notable topographic relief.

"It was redistributed on the landscape pretty effectively," said Pyle, the lead author of the study. "Rather than staying where it was initially deposited, it had a tendency to move horizontally across the landscape. The total contents of charcoal in our study sites didn't change that drastically over the time period, but where we were finding it changed quite a bit."

Rice University graduate student Lacey Pyle uses a magnifying glass and tweezers to find charcoal in soil samples. Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University

Charcoal's benefits as a soil amendment are fourfold: It reduces atmospheric carbon dioxide and pollution, improves crop productivity, allows agriculture in areas with marginal soils and makes soil more resilient to both drought and flooding.

In 2008, Masiello and study co-author William Hockaday, then at Rice and presently at Baylor University, began seriously studying soil charcoal after winning a $10,000 prize in the city of Houston's "Recycle Ike" contest in the wake of Hurricane Ike. The storm left 5.6 million cubic yards of fallen trees, broken branches and dead greenery in Houston, and Rice's team took first place in the contest with their plan to convert the wood into biomass charcoal, or "biochar," for use as a CO2-trapping soil amendment.

In subsequent studies, Masiello's lab has explored biochar's production, microbial impacts, hydrological characteristics and pollution-reducing effects.

"More carbon in soil is good, and as we think about ways to stabilize and increase soil carbon inventory, charcoal is an obvious option," Masiello said.

To get the most benefit from biochar, Masiello said, scientists and land managers need to better understand the fate and transport of soil charcoal, and studying naturally occurring soil charcoal is a great way to gain that understanding.

"We know that lots of carbon in soil is old," she said, adding that the ages of soil charcoal measured with radiocarbon dating "suggest that it's hard to decompose. But when we bring it into the lab, it turns out it's not that hard to decompose."

The findings from the wildfire study offer a new clue as to how naturally occurring charcoal can remain stable for long periods of time, Masiello said.

"It's possible that the mobility of charcoal on the landscape and it's tendency to become concentrated in low-lying spots could make it more likely the charcoal from wildfires becomes buried and incorporated deep in soils and that these deposits act as a kind of charcoal reservoir that releases charcoal into the soil over long time spans."

More information: Lacey A. Pyle et al, Short-term changes in physical and chemical properties of soil charcoal support enhanced landscape mobility, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences (2017). DOI: 10.1002/2017JG003938 Journal information: Journal of Geophysical Research
Credit: Wikimedia Commons - Public Domain

Researchers from the Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ), Valencia's Polytechnic University (UPV) and the Superior Council of Scientific Investigations (CSIC) have developed ceramic membranes that make it possible to produce compressed hydrogen from methane in a cleaner, cheaper way. Results of the investigation have applications in the field of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as well as the chemical industry, as this new method is capable of generating hydrogen from methane gas and electricity in just one step and with near-zero energy loss.

Hydrogen is an excellent fuel which, due to its high energetic density and zero greenhouse gas emission, is essential in a great number of industrial processes. Its combination with oxygen in the atmosphere produces energy and water as its sole by-product, making it one of the main candidates to substitute fossil fuels as a source of energy for the transport sector.

CSIC research professor and head of the investigation Jose Manuel Serra says, "The development and introduction in the market of hybrid and electric cars will allow us to reduce the impact of transport in CO2 emissions in coming years, and as a result, the greenhouse effect on the planet. The next natural step, as proven by the investment made by large automotive industry brands, is the implementation of hydrogen-fuelled vehicles, which have greater autonomy and charge faster than electric ones."

Researchers at the ITQ have developed a gas separation membrane reactor which is operated electronically and allows for the endothermic production of hydrogen with a near-zero energy loss.

"Our investigations show that it is possible to generate compressed hydrogen in just one step with high efficiency from electricity and methane gas or biogas and, simultaneously, isolate the CO2 and not release it into the atmosphere. Our method allows for the hydrogen to be produced at high pressure in a distributed manner, which means it could be produced in petrol stations, residential areas, garages or farms. By using electricity from renewable sources, our system allows us to generate hydrogen with a very low carbon footprint. We can also store the leftover renewable energy in the form of compressed hydrogen for a later use when the electrical demand is higher, or as fuel for vehicles," Serra adds.

The work of investigators at the ITQ, developed together with the University of Oslo and American multinational company CoorsTek, will make it so that vehicles with a hydrogen fuel cell can be recharged with an energetic efficiency and simplicity similar to that of a battery electric vehicle. Due to methane gas, as a primary energy source, having a noticeably lower cost than electricity, hydrogen could be a cheaper fuel for vehicles than electricity.

More information: Harald Malerd-Fjeld et al. Thermo-electrochemical production of compressed hydrogen from methane with near-zero energy loss, Nature Energy (2017). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-017-0029-4 Journal information: Nature Energy
Akastor ASA announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Karl Erik Kjelstad as its Chief Executive Officer effective from 1 January 2018. Mr. Kjelstad will succeed Kristian Rkke who will assume the position as Chief Investment Officer of Aker ASA on 1 January 2018. Aker ASA will propose to the nomination committee of Akastor ASA that Kristian Rkke is appointed as Chairman of the Board of Akastor ASA at the next Annual General Meeting.

"It has been a pleasure to lead Akastor and I am proud of what the team has accomplished. The company has focused its portfolio, strengthened its balance sheet, and is well positioned to further develop its core assets - MHWirth and AKOFS Offshore - over the coming years," said Kristian Rkke. "Karl Erik Kjelstad has a strong track record and is the right person to develop Akastor going forward."

"I look forward to leading Akastor into its next phase. Important tasks lie ahead of us to continue to deliver value to shareholders and I am excited about these opportunities for Akastor," said Karl Erik Kjelstad.

Karl Erik Kjelstad (born 1966) has been EVP and Investment Director in Akastor since its establishment in 2014. Mr. Kjelstad joined the Aker group in 1998 and has held various executive positions throughout the Aker group, including EVP of Aker Solutions and CEO of Aker Yards ASA in 2003-2007. Mr. Kjelstad holds an MSc in marine engineering from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and an AMP from Harvard Business School. As of December 11, 2017, he held, through a privately-owned company, 123 074 shares in the company and had no stock options. Mr. Kjelstad is a Norwegian citizen.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:



Leif Borge

Chief Financial Officer

Mob: +47 917 86 291

E-mail: leif.borge@akastor.com

Akastor ASA is a Norway-based oil-services investment company with a portfolio of industrial holdings and other investments. The company has a flexible mandate for active ownership and long-term value creation.

This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.
Green bonds, anyone?

It is often said that the colour of money is green, but until recently the finance industry hasn't been well adapted to helping achieve policy objectives for the environment.

New instruments have been developed to help mobilise financing for projects to mitigate climate change, some of which have caught on, but measuring their impact remains difficult.

Green bonds

Also known as climate bonds, these have quickly become the major weapon in the funding arsenal. Green bonds are debt issued to finance projects that have a positive impact on the environment. The amount issued has jumped in 2017, particularly in Europe.

"For 2017 the issuance of green debt has already reached 125 billion euros ($147 billion)" against 90 billion euros in 2016, said Stephane Marciel, who manages sustainable bonds at the commercial and investment banking unit of French lender Societe Generale.

France set an example by placing 7 billion euros in green bonds at the beginning of 2017.

"We're convinced that other countries are going to follow, as that is the way history is going," said Marciel.

"Companies have made real progress as well," said Jerome Pellet, who heads up the issuing of socially responsible bonds at HSBC.

Whether its Deutsche Bahn in Germany, China's ICBC, the world's largest bank by assets, or French energy company Engie, the list of firms issuing green bonds is growing.

For borrowers "it could even be cheaper" given the strong demand for the bonds, said Pellet.

Even if the volume of green bonds remains marginal compared to the volume of total debt issued, the trend is positive for green bonds.

Carbon pricing

At the beginning of September 40 countries plus 25 provinces and cities began charging for carbon emissions in order to encourage firms to reduce their production of carbon dioxide, one of the gases that causes global warming.

It shows positive momentum even if the number of countries remains too small and the prices are too low at between 5 and 15 euros per tonne of CO2.

"Carbon prices need to be increased in order to send a powerful signal right across the economy to ensure investments are better aligned with the Paris goals," said Simon Buckle, head of climate change at the OECD.

A green FTT?

It may be the Loch Ness monster of European policy, with sightings every few years only to later disappear from the scene, but the latest incarnation of the financial transactions tax (FTT) would have the levy go towards development projects.

The financial sector has resisted FTT proposals, which call for a tax on each financial transaction, arguing they harm trading on markets.

NGOs were pleased when French President Emmanuel Macron in a September speech resurrected the idea of a FTT, which currently exists only in Britain and France.

A FTT is not expected to be discussed during the climate summit.

ESG or SRI investment funds

Private investment funds that incorporate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors first are growing fast. Also called Sustainable, Responsible and Impact (SRI) investing, it expanded by a third between 2014 and 2016 in the United States, according to USSIF, the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment.

It estimated SRI investments at $8.7 trillion in 2016 out of a total of $40.3 trillion in assets under professional management.

Under pressure from investors more funds and lenders are shying away from funding fossil fuel projects, in particular coal-fired power plants, as they are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.

Appearances, reality

While the mobilisation of funds for green projects has been conspicuous, measuring its impact has been more difficult.

Pressure groups such as Attac have criticised that there are no rules on what a green bond can or cannot fund.

Regulators in several countries have stepped in with labels that are supposed to help investors identify funds dedicated to green projects.

The Financial Stability Board, created by the Group of 20 nations, for it its part has issued recommendations for firms on how to make climate-related financial disclosures in their annual reports.

For green bonds, which are still relatively new, "there remains lots of fundamental work to do to improve impact reporting methods," said Marciel at Societe Generale CIB.

He said pressure from investors had already pushed funds to carry out considerable work.

 2017 AFP
A bottlenose dolphin mother and calf (Tursiops aduncus) of Western Australia. Credit: Kate Sprogis, Murdoch Cetacean Research Unit

A new article by a UNSW Sydney-led team challenges the validity of current methods for forecasting the persistence of slow-growing species for conservation purposes, and provides a better approach to reducing the threat of extinction.

Previous research on wild dolphins in Australia and wild bears in North America has revealed that reproductive success is the best predictor of the viability of these long-lived populations, rather than their survival rates.

The findings of these and other studies fly in the face of decades of population modelling, which has led to a widespread generalisation that survival is the most important factor for population viability of long-lived species, the researchers say.

"Our analysis suggests that conservation planners are often getting it wrong," says first author and UNSW scientist Dr Oliver Manlik.

"We believe our research will set a new course for wildlife biologists who are trying to minimize extinction. It shows them how to identify whether to focus on alleviating threats to reproduction, or to survival," he says.

The review article, Applicability and limitations of sensitivity analyses for wildlife management, by Dr Manlik and Professor William Sherwin of UNSW, and Dr Robert Lacy of the Chicago Zoological Society, is published in the prestigious Journal of Applied Ecology.

The inspiration for carrying out their review of different population forecasting methods for conservation management was a research project led by Dr Manlik that compared two bottlenose dolphin populations in the wild in Western Australia.

The international team carrying out that study showed that the very different forecasts for the two dolphin populations could only be explained by differences in reproductive rates, not by the much smaller differences in survival rates.

After reviewing many other publications, Dr Manlik, Dr Lacy and Professor Sherwin found a small number, such as a study on bears, that showed similar results. On closer analysis of these studies, they realised the reason for this was not the biology of the animals, but the way the data had been analysed.

In this new study, the researchers evaluate several methods of assessing the effect of changes in reproduction and survival on the persistence of wildlife populations. They outline why some very commonly used methods are flawed when they are used to guide wildlife management.

"These methods often investigate potential changes in reproduction and survival that are quite unrealistic, assessing fluctuations of survival and reproduction that are unlikely or even impossible. This can lead to wildlife management actions that are ineffective," says Dr Manlik.

The study also describes alternative tools, based on realistic parameters, which conservation planners can use to devise management actions to best protect wildlife populations.
Operations staff monitor the network in the ESnet/NERSC control room. Credit: Marilyn Chung, Berkeley Lab

The Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science operates three of the world's leading supercomputing centers, where massive data sets are routinely imported, analyzed, used to create simulations and exported to other sites. Fortunately, DOE also runs a networking facility, ESnet (short for Energy Sciences Network), the world's fastest network for science, which is managed by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Over the past two years, ESnet engineers have been working with staff at DOE labs to fine tune the specially configured systems called data transfer nodes (DTNs) that move data in and out of the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the leadership computing facilities at Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois and Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. All three of the computing centers and ESnet are DOE Office of Science User Facilities used by thousands of researchers across the country.

The collaboration, named the Petascale DTN project, also includes the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, a leading center funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Together, the collaboration aims to achieve regular disk-to-disk, end-to-end transfer rates of one petabyte per week between major facilities, which translates to achievable throughput rates of about 15 Gbps on real world science data sets.

Research projects such as cosmology and climate have very large (multi-petabyte) datasets and scientists typically compute at multiple HPC centers, moving data between facilities in order to take full advantage of the computing and storage allocations available at different sites.

Since data transfers traverse multiple networks, the slowest link determines the overall speed. Tuning the data transfer nodes and the border router where a center's internal network connects to ESnet can smooth out virtual speedbumps. Because transfers over the wide area network have high latency between sender and receiver, getting the highest speed requires careful configuration of all the devices along the data path, not just the core network..

In the past few weeks, the project has shown sustained data transfers at well over the target rate of 1 petabyte per week. The number of sites with this base capability is also expanding, with Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York now testing its transfer capabilities with encouraging results. Future plans including bringing the NSF-funded San Diego Supercomputer Center and other big data sites into the mix.

"This increase in data transfer capability benefits projects across the DOE mission science portfolio" said Eli Dart, an ESnet network engineer and leader of the project. "HPC facilities are central to many collaborations, and they are becoming more important to more scientists as data rates and volumes increase. The ability to move data in and out of HPC facilities at scale is critical to the success of an ever-growing set of projects."

When it comes to moving data, there are many factors to consider, including the number of transfer nodes and their speeds, their utilization, the file systems connected to these transfer nodes on both sides, and the network path between them, according to Daniel Pelfrey, a high performance computing network administrator at the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility.

The actual improvements being made range from updating software on the DTNs to changing the configuration of existing DTNs to adding new nodes at the centers.

"Transfer node operating systems and applications need to be configured to allow for WAN transfer," Pelfrey said. "The connection is only going to be as fast as the slowest point in the path allows. A heavily utilized server, or a misconfigured server, or a heavily utilized network, or heavily utilized file system can degrade the transfer and make it take much longer."

Performance data from March 2016 showing transfer rates between facilities. Credit: Eli Dart, ESnet

At NERSC, the DTN project resulted in adding eight more nodes, tripling the number, in order achieve enough internal bandwidth to meet the project's goals. "It's a fairly complicated thing to do," said Damian Hazen, head of NERSC's Storage Systems Group. "It involves adding infrastructure and tuning as we connected our border routers to internal routers to the switches connected to the DTNs. Then we needed to install the software, get rid of some bugs and tune the entire system for optimal performance."

The work spanned two months and involved NERSC's Storage Systems, Networking, and Data and Analytics Services groups, as well as ESnet, all working together, Hazen said.

At the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility, the DTNs were already in place and with minor tuning, transfer speeds were increased to the 15 Gbps.

"One of our users, Katrin Heitmann, had a ton of cosmology data to move and she saw a tremendous benefit from the project," said Bill Allcock, who was director of operations at the ALCF during the project. "The project improved the overall end-to-end transfer rates, which is especially important for our users who are either moving their data to a community archive outside the center or are using data archived elsewhere and need to pull it in to compute with it at the ALCF."

As a result of the Petascale DTN project, the OLCF now has 28 transfer nodes in production on 40-Gigabit Ethernet. The nodes are deployed under a new modela diskless bootwhich makes it easy for OLCF staff to move resources around, reallocating as needed to respond to users' needs.

"The Petascale DTN project basically helped us increase the 'horsepower under the hood' of network services we provide and make them more resilient," said Jason Anderson, an HPC UNIX/storage systems administrator at OLCF. "For example, we recently moved 12TB of science data from OLCF to NCSA in less than 30 minutes. That's fast!"

Anderson recalled that a user at the May 2017 OLCF user meeting said that she was very pleased with how quickly and easily she was able to move her data to take advantage of the breadth of the Department of Energy's computing resources.

"When the initiative started we were in the process of implementing a Science DMZ and upgrading our network," Pelfrey said. "At the time, we could move a petabyte internally in 6-18 hours, but moving a petabyte externally would have taken just a bit over a week. With our latest upgrades, we have the ability to move a petabyte externally in about 48 hours."

The fourth site in the project is the NSF-funded NCSA in Illinois, where senior network engineer Matt Kollross said it's important for NCSA, the only non DOE participant, to collaborate with other DOE HPC sites to develop common practices and speed up adoption of new technologies.

"The participation in this project helped confirm that the design and investments in network and storage that we made when building Blue Waters five years ago were solid investments and will help in the design of future systems here and at other centers," Kollross said. "It's important that real-world benchmarks which test many aspects of an HPC system, such as storage, file systems and networking, be considered in evaluating overall performance of an HPC compute system and help set reasonable expectations for scientists and researchers."

Performance measurements from November 2017 at the end of the Petascale DTN project. All of the sites met or exceed project goals. Credit: Eli Dart, ESnet

Origins of the project

The project grew out of a Cross-Connects Workshop on "Improving Data Mobility & Management for International Cosmology," held at Berkeley Lab in February 2015 and co-sponsored by ESnet and Internet2.

Salman Habib, who leads the Computational Cosmology Group at Argonne National Laboratory, gave a talk at the workshop, noting that large-scale simulations are critical for understanding observational data and that the size and scale of simulation datasets far exceed those of observational data. "To be able to observe accurately, we need to create accurate simulations," he said.

During the workshop, Habib and other attendees spoke about the need to routinely move these large data sets between computing centers and agreed that it would be important to be able to move at least a terabyte a week. As the Argonne lead for DOE's High Energy Physics Center for Computational Excellence project, Habib had been working with ESnet and other labs on data transfer issues.

To get the project moving, Katrin Heitmann, who works in cosmology at Argonne, created a data package of small and medium files totaling about 4.4 terabytes. The data would then be used to test network links between the leadership computing facilities at Argonne and Oak Ridge national labs, the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, a leading center funded by the National Science Foundation.

"The idea was to use the data as a test, to send it over and over and over between the centers," Habib said. "We wanted to establish a performance baseline, then see if we could improve the performance by eliminating any choke points."

Habib admitted that moving a petabyte in a week would only use a fraction of ESnet's total bandwidth, but the goal was to automate the transfers using Globus Online, a primary tool for researchers accessing high performance networks like ESnet for rapidly sharing data or to use remote computing facilities.

"For our research, it's very important that we have the ability to transfer large amounts of data," Habib said. "For example, we may run a simulation at one of the large DOE computing centers, but often where we run the simulation is not where we want to do the analysis. Each center has different capabilities and we have various accounts at the centers, so the data gets moved around to take advantage of this. It happens all the time."

Although the project's roots are in cosmology, the Petascale DTN project will help all DOE scientists who have a need to transfer data to, from, or between the DOE computing facilities to take advantage of rapidly advancing data analytics techniques. In addition, the increase in data transfer capability at the HPC facilities will improve the performance of data portals, such as the Research Data Archive at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, that use Globus to transfer data from their storage systems.

"As the scientists deal with data deluge and more research disciplines depend on high-performance computing, data movement between computing centers needs to be a no-brainer for scientists so they can take advantage of the compute cycles at all DOE Office of Science user facilities and the extreme heterogeneity of systems in the future" said ESnet Director Inder Monga.
Cars drive slowly along a snow-covered road in Rotterdam during heavy snowfall.

Snow wreaked havoc in the low-lying Netherlands on Monday, closing down Eindhoven airport completely, shutting schools and leading to transport chaos with hundreds of flights and trains cancelled or delayed.

The rare winter show may have delighted children, who once again set off in search of any slope on their sledges, but it proved a headache elsewhere as the National Weather Centre (KNMI) issued its highest code red warning.

Schiphol airport, just outside Amsterdam, was forced to cancel 430 flights already by early afternoonabout a third of all of flights in or out of one of Europe's top five busiest air hubs, and many others faced long delays.

"We are de-icing the planes for their safety and we have snow crews out trying to keep the runways clear and remove the snow, but they can't keep up," Schiphol spokesman Paul Weber told AFP.

"People should keep in touch, look at the website, and find out how to reach us as the trains are having difficulty," he said, warning that even though most of the snow was supposed to melt by Tuesday there would likely still be delays in flights.

Eindhoven airport, the country's second biggest, said just after midday that "due to wintry weather conditions, the runway is currently closed."

Plans for a giant snow ball fight outside the central station in The Hague attracted several hundred likes on Facebook

"Some arriving flights will divert, departing flights are delayed or will be cancelled," it said in a message on Twitter.

The snow arrived in The Netherlands early Sunday, and the weather centre warned that while more was expected across the whole of the country on Monday, a band stretching from the south to the eastern border regions could see as much as between 10 to 15 centimetres (four to five inches).

Spokeswoman Femke Goutbeek said it was "not unusual" for the KNMI to declare a code red warning, but it was more often for the fierce storms which can rip across the country off the North Sea.

For those who struggled into work on Monday, the national railway NS had but one message. "Go home as early as possible to avoid travel problems."

"Travellers should take into account that there will be longer travel times," it warned on its website, adding it was running a reduced service.

But for those out for some fun, plans for a giant snow ball fight outside the central station in The Hague later Monday attracted several hundred likes on Facebook.

 2017 AFP
A new hyperlens crystal is capable of resolving details as small as a virus on the surface of living cells. The atomic structure of the hexagonal boron nitride crystal is shown in the cutout. Credit: Keith Wood, Vanderbilt University

Just imagine: An optical lens so powerful that it lets you view features the size of a small virus on the surface of a living cell in its natural environment.

Construction of instruments with this capability is now possible because of a fundamental advance in the quality of an optical material used in hyperlensing, a method of creating lenses that can resolve objects much smaller than the wavelength of light. The achievement was reported by a team of researchers led by Joshua Caldwell, associate professor of mechanical engineering at Vanderbilt University, in a paper published Dec. 11 in the journal Nature Materials.

The optical material involved is hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), a natural crystal with hyperlensing properties. The best previously reported resolution using hBN was an object about 36 times smaller than the infrared wavelength used: about the size of the smallest bacteria. The new paper describes improvements in the quality of the crystal that enhance its potential imaging capability by about a factor of ten.

The researchers achieved this enhancement by making hBN crystals using isotopically purified boron. Natural boron contains two isotopes that differ in weight by about 10 percent, a combination that significantly degrades the crystal's optical properties in the infrared.

"We have demonstrated that the inherent efficiency limitations of hyperlenses can be overcome through isotopic engineering," said team member Alexander Giles, research physicist at the the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. "Controlling and manipulating light at nanoscale dimensions is notoriously difficult and inefficient. Our work provides a new path forward for the next generation of materials and devices."

Researchers from the University of California, San Diego, Kansas State University, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Columbia University also contributed to the study.

The researchers calculate that a lens made from their purified crystal can in principle capture images of objects as small as 30 nanometers in size. To put this in perspective, there are 25 million nanometers in an inch and human hair ranges from 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers in diameter. A human red blood cell is about 9,000 nanometers and viruses range from 20 to 400 nanometers.

Over the years, scientists have developed many instruments capable of producing images with nanoscale resolution, such as electron-based and atomic-force microscopes. However, they are incompatible with living organisms: either they operate under a high vacuum, expose samples to harmful levels of radiation, require lethal sample preparation techniques like freeze drying or remove samples from their natural, solution-based environment.

The primary reason for developing hyperlenses is the prospect that they can provide such highly detailed images of living cells in their natural environments using low-energy light that does not harm them. In addition, using infrared light to perform the imaging can also provide spectroscopic information about the objects it images, providing a means to 'fingerprint' the material. These capabilities could have a significant impact on biological and medical science. The technology also has potential applications in communications and nanoscale optical components.

The physics of hyperlenses is quite complex. The level of detail that optical microscopes can image is limited by the wavelength of light and the index of refraction of the lens material. When combined with the factors of lens aperture, distance from the object to the lens and the refractive index of the object under observation, this translates to a typical optical limit of about one half the wavelength used for imaging. At the infrared wavelengths used in this experiment, this "diffraction limit" is about 3,250 nanometers. This limit can be surpassed by using hBN due to its ability to support surface phonon polaritons, hybrid particles made up of photons of light coupling with vibrating, charged atoms in a crystal that have wavelengths much shorter than the incident light.

In the past, the problem with using polaritons in this fashion has been the rapidity with which they dissipate. By using hBN crystals made from 99 percent isotopically pure boron, the researchers have measured a dramatic reduction in optical losses compared to natural crystals, increasing the polariton's lifetime three-fold, which allows them to travel triple the distance. This improvement translates into a significant improvement in imaging resolution. The researchers' theoretical analysis suggests that another factor of ten improvement is possible.

"Currently, we have been testing very small flakes of purified hBN," said Caldwell. "We think that we will see even further improvements with larger crystals."

In 1654 Anton van Leeuwenhoek used one of the first handcrafted microscopes to discover the previously unknown world of microscopic life. This latest advance in hyperlens development is a significant step toward taking van Leeuwenhoek's discovery to a whole new level, one which will allow biologists to directly observe cellular processes in action, like viruses invading cells or immune cells attacking foreign invaders.

More information: Alexander J. Giles et al, Ultralow-loss polaritons in isotopically pure boron nitride, Nature Materials (2017). DOI: 10.1038/nmat5047 , www.nature.com/articles/nmat5047 Journal information: Nature Materials
An airplane of British Airways is being de-iced as it stands on the tarmac of the airport in Duesseldorf, western Germany, on December 10, 2017, as flights in Frankfurt also faced snow-related delays

More than 300 flights were cancelled and hundreds more delayed as snow and ice blocked runways at Germany's largest airport in Frankfurt on Sunday, the airport operator said.

Some 330 flights were cancelled by 5:00 pm (1600 GMT) after heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures struck the region around the German financial capital, a spokesman for airport operator Fraport told AFP.

The airportGermany's largest air hub and the home base for airline giant Lufthansahad been scheduled to handle a total of 1,260 flights over the day.

More flights could be cancelled in the evening, the spokesman said, but added that weather was forecast to improve in the coming hours.

In a message on its website, Fraport asked passengers to check with their carrier online whether their flight would go ahead before travelling to the airport.

Much of Germany woke up to snowfall and temperatures around zero Sunday.

Elsewhere in the country, Duesseldorf airport was forced to close for four hours during the afternoon, news agency DPA reported.

Meanwhile, trains were delayed, redirected or cancelled across western North Rhine-Westphalia state.

 2017 AFP
Credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO

Captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on 5 December 2017, this image shows flames and smoke from the fierce blazes devastating northwest Los Angeles in Southern California.

While hundreds of firefighters battle the fires, more than 200 000 people have been forced to flee their homes. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the 2017 California wildfire season is the worst on record.

The image shows the extent of the devastation caused by this latest outcrop of wildfires, which are so large that they have been given names. The worst, known as the Thomas Fire, engulfed almost the whole city of Ojai and an area north of Ventura, seen here in the far left of the image. The image also show two other sets of large fires: the Rye Fire near Santa Clarita (the middle fire) and the Creek Fire near Sylmar (right).
Orientation of integrins at the leading edge of a migrating Jurkat T cell, analyzed using a fluorescence polarized light microscope (instantaneous FluoPolScope) developed at the Marine Biological Laboratory. [Full caption: Representative total fluorescence intensity image of L-T Jurkat T cell migrating on ICAM-1 (10 g/ml) with overlay of ROIs (white = leading edge, magenta = cell body), normal to leading edge tangent (yellow), and average GFP emission dipole orientation with length proportional to polarization factor (red). Scale bars = 1 m. Panel below is enlarged from dashed area.] Credit: From Nordenfelt et al, Nature Communications, 11 Dec 2017, Fig. 5b

How do cells move in a certain direction in the bodygo to a wound site and repair it, for example, or hunt down infectious bacteria and kill it?

Two new studies from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) show how cells respond to internal forces when they orient, gain traction, and migrate in a specific direction. The research, which began as a student project in the MBL Physiology Course and was developed in the MBL Whitman Center, is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) and this week in Nature Communications.

Both papers focus on the activation of integrins, proteins that allow cells to attach to their external environment and respond to signals coming from other cells. Integrins are transmembrane proteins: part lies on the cell surface and part lies inside the cell. Using a microscope invented at the MBL, the authors showed that when integrins unfurl from the cell surface and bind extracellularly, they simultaneously align in the same direction as a force inside the cell (actin retrograde flow).

"If you think of a cell as a car, the actin flow is the engine," says Clare Waterman, a Whitman Center Scientist from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. "The cell can sit there, idling its engine. But when the integrins activate and bind externally, they are like the tires hitting the road, providing friction. The engine goes into gear and the car moves."

Timothy Springer of Harvard University, who co-discovered the integrin family of proteins in the 1980s and has largely defined their mechanism of activation, and Satyajit Mayor of The National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, were principal collaborators with Waterman on the project.

The team used a fluorescence polarized light microscope developed by MBL Associate Scientist Tomomi Tani and former Staff Scientist Shalin Mehta (now at Chan Zuckerberg Biohub) to measurein real time and with high precisionthe orientation of the integrins on the cell surface.

Alignment of integrins (red is more aligned) during migration of a Jurkat T-cell. Video taken at MBL using a microscope developed by Satyajit Mayor [emission anisotropy-total internal reflection fluorescence microscope (EA-TIRFM), or Jitu-scope]. Credit: Nordenfelt et al, Nature Communications, 11 Dec 2017.

"It's quite remarkable that you can do that with a microscope," Springer says. "I don't know of any other examples where people have actually measured the orientation of a cell surface molecule."

There are 24 different types of integrins found on human cells. The PNAS paper studies an integrin on fibroblast cells while the Nature Communications paper analyzes an integrin on white blood cells.

"The two integrins we worked on were about as structurally different as you can get in the integrin family," says Springer, yet both types, when activated, oriented in a direction dictated by intracellular actin flow.

"This is really beautiful basic research," Springer says. "While we knew a lot about highly purified integrins in solution, this research gives us specific information about their activation state in living cells."

Waterman was co-directing the MBL Physiology Course when she initiated this research with a group of students, including Vinay Swaminathan and Pontus Nordenfelt. After the course ended, the team added members, including Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkal and Travis I. Moore, and continued to collaborate in the MBL Whitman Center with support from a Lillie Research Innovation Award from the University of Chicago and the MBL.

"The MBL is known for its ability to convene scientific teams with deep interdisciplinary expertise though the communication that flows between its advanced courses, its resident scientists, and the Whitman Center," says David Mark Welch, MBL Director of Research. "In this case, insightful scientists with very different skillscell biologists, microscope developers, computational scientists, molecular modelers, protein chemistssynergized to reveal a fundamentally important driver of cellular migration."

More information: Vinay Swaminathanan, Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkalal, Shalin B. Mehta, Pontus Nordenfelt, Travis I. Moore, Nobuyasu Koga, David A. Baker, Rudolf Oldenbourg, Tomomi Tani, Satyajit Mayor, Timothy A. Springer, and Clare M. Waterman (2017) Actin retrograde flow actively aligns and orients ligand-engaged integrins in focal adhesions. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1701136114 Pontus Nordenfelt, Travis I. Moore, Shalin B. Mehta, Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkal, Vinay Swaminathan, Nobuyasu Koga, Talley J. Lambert, David Baker, Jennifer C. Waters, Rudolf Oldenbourg, Tomomi Tani, Satyajit Mayor, Clare M. Waterman & Timothy A. Springer. Direction of actin flow dictates integrin LFA-1 orientation during leukocyte migration. Nature Communications, 11 Dec 2017. Journal information: Nature Communications , Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
The world's largest giant clam species and the most threatened mollusc, according to a recent study led by NUS marine scientists. Credit: Neo Mei Lin

An international team of marine researchers led by Dr Neo Mei Lin and Associate Professor Peter Todd from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has recently published a comprehensive study on the status of giant clams worldwide. Between 2014 to 2016, the scientists involved in this massive endeavour re-examined and updated the taxonomy, distribution, abundance, and conservation status of all species of giant clams.

The study, funded by the National Parks Board of Singapore, found that the world's largest giant clam species, Tridacna gigas, is the most threatened mollusc. About half of its wild populations are either severely decimated or no longer exist at sites where they were previously found.

Its smallest cousin, Tridacna crocea, commonly known as the burrowing giant clam or boring giant clam, is the least threatened, as it remains relatively abundant in the Indo-Pacific area despite ongoing fishing activities.

The results of the study were recently reported in the 55th volume of a leading marine publication Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review on 22 November 2017.

Taking stock of giant clams worldwide

Giant clams, the world's largest living shellfish, are multi-tasking marine ecosystem engineers who build and shape reefs, filter water, and provide food for fellow reef creatures. They are predominantly found in the Indo-Pacific region, and the largest clam can grow up to one metre long, and weigh over 300 kilogrammes.

Since the mid-19th century, giant clams have been exploited, particularly for food and the curio trade. In the last century, habitat loss, reef degradation, and overfishing for food and shell craft contributed to their depletion. Concerns over the dwindling populations of giant clams, and their threatened status throughout the Indo-Pacific fuelled scientific interest to examine their global distribution and develop measures to conserve them.

In 2014, marine biologists Dr Neo and Assoc Prof Todd embarked on an in-depth study on the 12 currently recognised species of giant clams. They examined online data and publications that date back to the 1900s on the taxonomy of giant clams and their global distribution. They collated the information available on the exploitation of giant clams and the laws that protect them, reviewed the impacts that harvesting rates may have on wild populations, and summarised the outcomes of past and ongoing conservation programmes. They also recruited fellow marine scientists from around the world to assess and cross-examined the information.

Cultured Tridacna squamosa that were transplanted to reefs at Sisters' Islands in Singapore. This restocking project was led by NUS marine scientists. Credit: Neo Mei Lin

The world's largest giant clam at highest risk of extinction

Results from the three-year study showed that a combination of increased commercial demand, coupled with advances in fishing techniques, as well as climate change, pollution, habitat loss and coastal development have all impacted giant clams.

The highest threat of extinction is faced by the only truly gigantic giant clam species, Tridacna gigas, according to findings by the research team. The large size of Tridacna gigas results in the most substantial meat mass for consumption, and the species is easy to be harvested directly from the reef bed. Out of the 31 sites around the world where natural wild populations of Tridacna gigas were known to be present, the species are either severely depleted or could no longer be found at 26 of them. In Singapore, while old records dating back to 1847 mention Tridacna gigas in local waters, there have not been any sighting of it in recent times.

On the other hand, the smallest giant clam species, Tridacna crocea, that measures up to 15 centimetres, is the least threatened, thanks to its small size and burrowing behaviour, which makes it difficult for fishers to remove it from the reef bed where it lives.

Dr Neo, who is from the Department of Biological Sciences at NUS Faculty of Science, said, "We urgently need to step up on our conservation efforts to prevent the larger giant clam species from going extinct. The trends are worrying, so while there may be more of the smaller clam species now, it is only a matter of time before they become endangered too." Dr Neo is also from the St. John's Island National Marine Laboratory and the Tropical Marine Science Institute.

Conserving giant clams

To assist in the conservation of Tridacna gigas, the Marine Science Institute at the University of the Philippines has been culturing giant clam species for the restoration of depleted populations in the Philippines for the last 20 years. The highlight of this programme is the recent appearance of young Tridacna gigas near the area where the parent clams are placed.

Assoc Prof Todd, who is also from the Department of Biological Sciences at the NUS Faculty of Science, commented, "The success by the Philippines team provides evidence that, given enough time and local protection, restocked clams can produce local juvenile recruitment. We hope to have similar success while restocking the fluted giant clam, Tridacna squamosa, in Singapore. While this species is not as threatened as Tridacna gigas, its numbers in Singapore are very low and the population is probably not currently self-sustaining."

The restocking project, started in 2011 by Assoc Prof Todd and Dr Neo, aims to increase the numbers of Tridacna squamosa on Singapore coral reefs. Over the past seven years, with funding support from the National Parks Board of Singapore, and the establishment of a fully functional hatchery with microalgal culture facilities and settlement tanks, there has been considerable progress in restocking Tridacna squamosa.

In 2014, NUS researchers reported the successful spawning of some 7,000 healthy fluted giant clam juveniles, and they are being grown in rearing tanks until they mature. In 2016, the team transplanted about 250 hand-reared Tridacna squamosa onto various reefs among the Southern Islands. Researchers continue to monitor these giant clams to assess their growth and survivorship.

"I hope that by highlighting the threat that giant clams face, and demonstrating the success of current conservation measures, we can encourage further restocking efforts and provide a greater push for their conservation," Dr Neo added.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Our atmosphere is a better shield from meteoroids than researchers thought, according to a new paper published in Meteoritics & Planetary Science.

When a meteor comes hurtling toward Earth, the high-pressure air in front of it seeps into its pores and cracks, pushing the body of the meteor apart and causing it to explode.

"There's a big gradient between high-pressure air in front of the meteor and the vacuum of air behind it," said Jay Melosh, a professor of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University and co-author of the paper. "If the air can move through the passages in the meteorite, it can easily get inside and blow off pieces."

Researchers knew that meteoroids often blew up before they reach the Earth's surface, but they didn't know why. Melosh's team looked to the 2013 Chelyabinsk event, when a meteoroid exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, to explain the phenomenon.

The explosion came as a surprise and brought in energy comparable to a small nuclear weapon. When it entered Earth's atmosphere, it created a bright fire ball. Minutes later, a shock wave blasted out nearby windows, injuring hundreds of people.

The meteoroid weighed around 10,000 tons, but only about 2,000 tons of debris were recovered, which meant something happened in the upper atmosphere that caused it to disintegrate. To solve the puzzle, the researchers used a unique computer code that allows both solid material from the meteor body and air to exist in any part of the calculation.

"I've been looking for something like this for a while," Melosh said. "Most of the computer codes we use for simulating impacts can tolerate multiple materials in a cell, but they average everything together. Different materials in the cell use their individual identity, which is not appropriate for this kind of calculation."

This new code allowed the researchers to push air into the meteoroid and let it percolate, which lowered the strength of the meteoroid significantly, even if it had been moderately strong to begin with.

While this mechanism may protect Earth's inhabitants from small meteoroids, large ones likely won't be bothered by it, he said. Iron meteoroids are much smaller and denser, and even relatively small ones tend to reach the surface.
NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Greystone, a real estate lending, investment and advisory company, today announced it has provided $13,355,000 in Freddie Mac financing for a 24-unit apartment building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The loan was originated by Anthony Cristi of Greystones New York office.

The refinanced property, located at 310 Graham Avenue, was constructed in 2016. The new conventional Freddie Mac loan on the property represents a permanent exit from construction financing, and carries a 7-year term, 2 years of Interest-only, and a 30-year amortization. The newly-built market-rate rental property includes a roof deck, fitness center, resident lounge, and private parking.

The sponsor, Perl Weisz of CW Realty, commented, Greystones ability to provide attractive financing is a core tenet in our multifamily investment strategy. With their guidance, we have been able to grow and optimize our Brooklyn portfolio.

Its a pleasure to continue working with CW Realty as they grow their Brooklyn portfolio, and we are glad to have a variety of financing options to fit their needs, said Mr. Cristi.

About Greystone

Greystone is a real estate lending, investment and advisory company with an established reputation as a leader in multifamily and healthcare finance, having ranked as a top FHA and Affordable Fannie Mae lender in these sectors. Our range of services includes commercial lending across a variety of platforms such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, CMBS, FHA, USDA, bridge and proprietary loan products. Loans are offered through Greystone Servicing Corporation, Inc., Greystone Funding Corporation and/or other Greystone affiliates. For more information, visit www.greyco.com.

PRESS CONTACT:

Karen Marotta

Greystone

212-896-9149

Karen.Marotta@Greyco.com
Credit: Wiley

Nanorods made of bismuth sulfide kill tumor cells with heat when they are irradiated with near-infrared light (NIR). Chinese scientists are now making these weapons more powerful by remodeling the defect state of the nanorod crystal lattice by adding gold nanodots. As reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, this could be a good basis for more effective photothermal treatment of tumors.

In photothermal therapy, an agent is introduced into a tumor and then the region is irradiated with NIR light, a wavelength that penetrates far into tissue without causing damage. The agent absorbs the NIR light and converts it to heat. The local overheating kills off the tumor cells while healthy tissue is protected. Ideally, the photothermal agent can simultaneously act as a contrast agent for diagnostic imaging, such as computed tomography (CT), which can be used to locate the tumor.

Nanomaterials made from the semiconductor bismuth sulfide (Bi 2 S 3 ) are well suited for this job. Researchers working with Haiyuan Zhang at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Changchun, Jilin, China) have now been able to clarify the mechanisms that underlie the photothermal properties of these materials. Building on this knowledge, they have been able to improve the photothermal performance of bismuth sulfide nanorods by adding gold nanodots to their surface.

In simple terms, it works like this: In semiconductors, light can excite negatively charged electrons to such a degree that they jump to a higher energy level called the conduction band. This leaves behind positively charged "holes". Recombination of the electrons and holes releases energy, which is transferred into the crystal lattice, causing it to vibrate. This vibrational energy is released into the environment as heat. Certain defects, known as deep level defects, in the crystal lattice promote this type of electron-hole recombination.

In Bi 2 S 3 nanomaterials, which are synthesized in an excess of Bi and a shortage of S, the lattice will have locations with missing sulfur atoms or places in which a Bi replaces an S. Both of these can act as deep defects. Increasing the number of deep defects or increased introduction of electrons to these deep defects could increase the photothermal efficacy of Bi 2 S 3 nanomaterials. This is where the gold atoms play a role. Gold atoms bind sulfur atoms and keep them out of their lattice positions. This results in more defects. In addition, the contact points between the Bi 2 S 3 and gold provide the excited electrons with an energy level that allows them to return more easily to the energy level where there are substitution errors, allowing the electrons to fall more easily into the deep defect "trap".

The nanorods are very visible as contrast agents in CT scans of tumors in mice, because they preferentially aggregate in tumor cells. Inhibition of tumor growth with the gold version of the nanorods under irradiation with NIR was significantly increased over gold-free nanorods. After fourteen-day treatment of the mice, some of the tumors had completely disappeared. No toxic side effects or damage were observed in the surrounding tissue.

More information: Yan Cheng et al, Deep-Level Defect Enhanced Photothermal Performance of Bismuth Sulfide-Gold Heterojunction Nanorods for Photothermal Therapy of Cancer Guided by Computed Tomography Imaging, Angewandte Chemie International Edition (2017). DOI: 10.1002/anie.201710399 Journal information: Angewandte Chemie , Angewandte Chemie International Edition

Provided by Wiley
The Ventura coastline is barely visible under a plume of smoke as NASA's ER-2 high-altitude aircraft carrying JPL's AVIRIS spectrometer instrument surveys the Southern California wildfires on Dec. 7, 2017. Credit: NASA/Tim Williams

A team of NASA scientists is using a high-altitude aircraft and a sophisticated imaging spectrometer built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, to study environmental impacts caused by the devastating Southern California wildfires. NASA's ER-2, based at Armstrong Flight Research Center in Palmdale, California, flies as high as 70,000 feet (21,300 meters), almost twice as high as a commercial airliner.

NASA uses the unique perspective of the ER-2 for science research missions over much of the world. This month, the aircraft has been flying locally over California, testing early versions of science instruments that may one day be launched into space aboard a satellite to observe our home planet Earth.

During these engineering test flights, the aircraft carried several science instruments aboard. One of them - a JPL spectrometer called AVIRIS - was in the right place at the right time when fires broke out in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties on Tuesday, December 4.

AVIRIS (Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer), is a modern instrument with an extensive heritage that can peer through smoke and dust to see information about the ground surface below. This includes observations of trees and other foliage that end up being fuel for wildfires.

During a fire, the instrument can see aerosols, or particle matter, produced from the smoke, as well as the combustion process as fuel burns, and can accurately measure fire temperatures.

This image offers landmark references to a photo captured from NASA's ER-2 high-altitude science platform carrying JPL's AVIRIS spectrometer instrument as it flies over the Thomas Fire in Ventura County in California on Dec. 7, 2017. Credit: NASA/Tim Williams

AVIRIS can also observe fine details of vegetation, such as the water content in leaves and what types of species of plants are growing prior to a fire burning in a region. Scientists can use the instrument to fly over regions before a fire to get a base measurement of a certain area, fly over the same area again after a fire, and then compare the before-and-after images to determine the fire's severity.

"The vision is that these types of measurements could be available from space in the next decade. The resulting information would then be used to develop fuel maps in advance that could be used to make better predictions about where you could mitigate risk by clearing brush and trees," said JPL's Rob Green, principal investigator of the AVIRIS instrument.

Green continued, "Additionally, if a fire starts and authorities know exactly how much fuel is present in a region, the data will enable authorities to react quicker and provide a better assessment of how to approach extinguishing the fire and protect surrounding areas."

NASA's Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer, aboard a NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center high-altitude ER-2 aircraft, flew over the Southern California wildfires on Dec. 5, 2017 and acquired this false-color image. Active fires are red, ground surfaces are green and smoke is blue. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA has funded this effort as part of its ongoing research, but is sharing the data with universities and government agencies like the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of California, and the University of Utah. Scientists at these organizations are working together to achieve a better understanding of response to fires, fire behavior, impacts to forest carbon dynamics, total area burned and smoke aerosolsall of which have impacts to disaster preparedness, prevention, human health and safety.

AVIRIS flew over the regions affected by the current fires during summer 2017 and will compare those observations with current measurements of fire temperatures and burn area to explore the relationship between fuel sources and the areas now burning. Flying these areas again in the coming months could help determine how severely the wildfires impacted the region and help quantify how plant life rejuvenates and repopulates in these areas.

More information: For more information on AVIRIS, visit aviris.jpl.nasa.gov/

Provided by NASA
One of the biggest challenges of mitigating the danger of hurricanes is predicting where a storm will make landfall and estimating how powerful it will be when it hits. Researchers Dr. Toshiro Tanimoto and Annie Valovcin at University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) are looking at new methods to monitor the intensity of hurricanes using seismic data.

"Hurricanes have strong winds that cause pressure changes on the surface that generate seismic waves we can clearly see," said Tanimoto, a professor in the UCSB Department of Earth Science. "The EarthScope Transportable Array provided critical data for this project." The Transportable Array, part of EarthScope's USArray, is a set of 400 seismometers that were deployed in swaths across the U.S., each instrument occupying its site for two years before moving to the next swath. Many stations also include other earth science instruments; after 2011, all stations included barometers.

Using both the seismic and barometric capabilities of the instruments, Valovcin and Tanimoto are developing a new way of examining hurricanes. They call it beamforming backprojection, and it involves analyzing seismic waves recorded during a hurricane to locate the amplitude peak in the map, which shows where the seismic waves originated. They then compare the location from the seismic data to weather maps showing the location of the storm, checking if the locations match and if the seismically derived location follows the same path through time as the storm-map location.

For the cases where Valovcin and Tanimoto looked at data from hurricanes over land, seismic instruments detected the pressure change between the calm eye of the storm and the eyewall of the hurricane, where winds change from horizontal to dramatically vertical and there is strong oscillation in pressure.

For example, Hurricane Isaac, which hit Louisiana in 2012 and caused about $2.4 billion in damage, moved right through the Transportable Array. The stations recorded both seismic and barometric pressure, allowing the researchers to work directly with two types of data from the same event. "In Hurricane Isaac, 80 km from center the data showed a circular high-pressure pattern that we can directly see because of the Transportable Array. In hurricane literature, this is discussed, but it was exciting to see it," said Tanimoto.

In the next phase of the research, Tanimoto and Valovcin found when a hurricane is strong enough, it causes seismic waves detectable even when the storm is still out at sea. The method requires a widespread instrument array, since the seismic waves they study have very long wavelengths. Valovcin and Tanimoto used a different instrument arraythe very densely spaced Southern California Seismic Networkto measure hurricanes from the East Coast to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

While a hurricane is out over the ocean, the data are less detailed than landfall data, showing the general location of the whole low-pressure system. It's the high-tech, landscape-size version of putting your ear on a railroad track to feel the vibrations of a train you can't yet see.

"This could add to what we do know, and in the long run, give us a remote way to monitor storms," said Valovcin. "For example, a barometer has to be in the hurricane to measure air pressure, but in the future, we may be able to detect pressure from a long distance through seismic readings."

Although this research is in early stages yet, it could open the door to a new way of tracking hurricanes. "We are now exploring what we can learn from this. It's a new way of looking at hurricanes. It shows the possibilities, once we understand the physical process," said Tanimoto.
The global GRACE drought severity index for October 2010 shows such extreme events as the western Russia drought, the Amazon drought, flooding in China and La Nina-induced flooding in eastern Australia. Credit: Meng Zhao / UCI

Just in time for the holidays, researchers at the University of California, Irvine and other institutions are rolling out a new satellite-based drought severity index for climate watchers worldwide.

Relying on data from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment mission, the index adds terrestrial water storage (groundwater) to drought assessments, augmenting commonly used tools most often based on the amount of precipitation.

"Reliable information on the frequency and intensity of drought conditions is of utmost importance to climate and meteorological scientists and government officials - and to assess drought impacts on vegetation, food production and water resources," said Isabella Velicogna, UCI professor of Earth system science and co-author of a recently published paper describing the drought severity index in the Journal of Hydrometeorology. "This new tool provides for accurate and continuous drought monitoring, which is necessary for effective water management and impact assessment."

Velicogna and her colleagues are presenting their work related to the index at this week's American Geophysical Union fall meeting here.

The data set for the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment drought severity index covers 2002 to 2014 but will be extended with the ongoing current mission and the GRACE follow-on mission scheduled to be launched in early 2018. GRACE has been shown to accurately characterize drought events over the past decade on a par with such other metrics as the Palmer drought severity index and the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index.

The GRACE-DSI is exceptionally reliable, according to Velicogna, because it's based solely on satellite gravity observations, which enables it to provide globally consistent drought monitoring, even in places where ground readings are difficult to obtain.

The twin GRACE satellites capture data from a large footprint of the Earth's surface, permitting both regional and global-scale drought monitoring. The new index tracks groundwater storage changes, which affect soil moisture recharge and drought recovery.

UCI researchers have evaluated the performance of the GRACE-DSI in the continental United States by comparing it to the Palmer index and others that measure alterations in vegetation growth and surface soil moisture. Velicogna said it showed significant agreement with the other indices, demonstrating its usefulness as a drought monitoring and assessment tool.

"This new technique allows the climate community to draw a more thorough picture of the impact of drought in any corner of the world," she said. "In the past, we had a way of assessing meteorological drought by keeping tabs on precipitation and surface water. With GRACE-DSI, we have the ability to better characterize hydrological drought, which factors in all the water in the system."

More information: Meng Zhao et al. Satellite Observations of Regional Drought Severity in the Continental United States Using GRACE-Based Terrestrial Water Storage Changes, Journal of Climate (2017). DOI: 10.1175/JCLI-D-16-0458.1 Journal information: Journal of Climate
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Anthropologists have debated for decades whether humans living in tribal communities thousands of years ago were more or less violent than societies today. Researchers at the University of Notre Dame wonder if the question of more or less violence is the wrong onewhat if it's a matter of scale?

In a new paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Rahul Oka, Ford Family Assistant Professor of Anthropology; Mark Golitko, assistant professor of anthropology; Susan Sheridan, associate professor of anthropology; and Agustin Fuentes, the Rev. Edmund P. Joyce, C.S.C., Endowed Chair in Anthropology, along with co-authors Marc Kissel of Appalachian State University and Nam C. Kim of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, present data showing that the size of a society's population is what drives the size of its "war group," or number of people of fighting age who defend it. They also show that the size of the war group is what determines the number of casualties in a conflict.

Specifically, the researchers show that the larger the population of a society, the smaller its war group size, proportionallywhich means fewer casualties in a conflict.

"Small-scale societies have a high proportion of their people involved in war," Oka said. "Fatalities might actually be 40 to 50 percent of the group, and definitely a higher proportion of those fighting get killed. But as we go from small-scale societies to big states and conflicts between empires or nations, fatalities rarely go above 1 percent of the group populations. So if you have 100 people fighting, you might actually get 50 people dying, combatant and non-combatant. That's 50 percent. But if you have 3 million people fighting you might get 100,000 dying, which is actually much less, proportionally, than the small-scale society. This is seen by many to suggest that contemporary large societies are less violent than past small scale societies, promoting the idea that before the state, life was nasty, brutish and short."

Instead, the researchers found that societies today are not necessarily more or less violent than past societies. The proportions are driven by a deep scaling law guiding social organization, Oka said.

Oka and his co-authors gathered data on population and war group size from 295 societies and on war group size and conflict-related casualties from 430 historical conflicts going back to 2500 B.C. They plotted the available data on population size, war group size and conflict casualties.

"We first derived the scaling laws that would explain these trends. Then we gathered the data," Oka said. "And to our very, very pleasant surprise, for both the population and army size, and army size and conflict casualties, we found the scaling laws beautifully explained the distribution."

The researchers looked at scaling, not percentages or proportions, as a reflection of the realities of warfare. As population size goes up and societies form into states, Oka said, the military becomes proportionally smaller, more nimble and more specialized. A small-scale society can have 40 percent of its population committed to fighting, for example, but "it's just economically impossible for a state-level society with, let's say, 10 million people to have an army that is 4 million strong," Oka said. "It's logistically inconceivable."

The idea of using war group size and conflict casualties as proportions of the overall group population to determine if some societies are more violent than others isn't a new one to anthropologists, Oka said.

However, this study is the first of its kind to offer an expanded data set looking at societies in different places and time periods, during both peacetime and conflict, and examining the scaling relationship between population and number of people in the army or war group, and between the number of people in conflicts and deaths occurring during conflicts.

"These scaling laws provide a means of comparing conflicts across all population scales and social and economic organizations," said Golitko. "Notably, it appears that the relative level of investment and size of conflicts have not changed much once increases in population over time are accounted for. In other words, we may be no more or less violent now than in the past."

"These are deep scaling laws that are describing the size of war groups and in turn the number of people killed in conflicts," Oka said. "Neither variable is affected by type of society or institutions. Both scale, directly and indirectly, with population. These are deeper organizational processes that have to be addressed as we continue trying to reduce conflict investment and build peace."

More information: Rahul C. Oka el al., "Population is the main driver of war group size and conflict casualties," PNAS (2017). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1713972114 Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Credit: University of South Australia

Journalism has emerged as one of the 21st century's most rapidly "disrupted" industries as the rise of social media has undermined the effectiveness of traditional journalism. So how do you teach journalism in this new context so that it is meaningful and relevant to new generations of journalists?

UniSA is pioneering a new virtual reality journalism app that delivers a learning environment where students can develop both their digital production and technological understanding of new media environments, while also honing their traditional journalism skills.

With the only dedicated journalism program in the state, UniSA recognises there is huge need for students to learn about new ways of capturing and reporting news in a digitally enriched environment.

The new app, named Immerse, developed in a collaboration between UniSA's School of Communication, International Studies and Languages, and its School of Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences, allows journalism students to create and distribute virtual reality (VR) news stories.

The pilot study saw 10 Bachelor of Journalism and Media/Arts students in their final year project or internship course, produce VR stories to demonstrate their grasp of the new emerging technologies.

Project leader and lecturer in journalism, Dr Ben Stubbs says the app will ensure UniSA journalism graduates are better equipped to succeed in a changing journalism environment.

"Students who completed this course positively met the related challenges of learning how to use an emerging technology, while developing meaningful social stories." Dr Stubbs says.

"At the same time as learning how to use a new and changing technology, students had to work out how to visually and aurally tell their stories.

"Students shot material on new 360 degree video cameras within 'Immerse' allowing them to construct the VR experience using hotspots and story interactivity, a little like a 'choose your own adventure' story," Dr Stubbs says.

The project is unique because the newly developed app allows students to create their stories without needing complex coding knowledge.

With a wave of new VR hardware and software predicted to be available by 2020, the emergence of VR as an affordable, accessible and popular form of storytelling is something Dr Stubbs says all journalists will need to understand and be able to use.

"After the success of this pilot program, UniSA will now offer the stand alone course - Virtual Reality Storytelling in 2018 as a component of the journalism degree structure," he says.

The technology designers also hope to adapt the Immerse app so that it can be used in other courses such as visual art, design and health sciences, where a VR narrative could be applied.

A powerful example of VR journalism was produced by the United Nations and filmmaker Chris Milk in 2015. The short video, Clouds over Sidra, allows viewers to experience the daily life inside a Syrian refugee camp.

Students in the UniSA pilot program produced stories about South Australia's homeless, an animal welfare shelter and the same sex marriage debate, among others. View an example here.
VW's boss says diesel cars should no longer be helped with taxpayers' money

The head of the world's biggest automaker Volkswagen has issued an unprecedented call to end tax breaks for diesel fuel in Germany, saying the technology must make way for cleaner ways of getting around.

"I'm convinced that we need to question the sense and purpose of these diesel subsidies," Mueller told business daily Handelsblatt Sunday.

"We could more usefully invest the money in environmentally friendly propulsion."

German carmakers like BMW, Mercedes Benz and Volkswagenwith its 12 brands ranging from Audi and Porsche to Skoda and Seatbet big on diesel in the 1990s, hoping to lower carbon dioxide output compared with petrol and meet greenhouse emissions targets.

They were supported by European governments offering tax breaks on the fuel, which last year amounted to some 7.8 billion euros ($9.2 billion) in Germany according to the country's federal environment agency (UBA).

But politics and industry have gradually changed their tune over the past two years, owing in part to VW's 2015 admission that it cheated regulatory tests on 11 million cars worldwide to make them appear to emit fewer harmful nitrogen oxides.

Faced with the prospect of their vehicles being banned from parts of some cities, carmakers have vowed to upgrade older vehicles and offer more battery-electric and hybrid options to consumers.

In recent months, firms like VW, Ford and BMW have offered drivers discounts to trade in older diesels for cars with the latest, less-polluting motors.

Meanwhile, September's biennial International Auto Show (IAA) in Frankfurt brought promises of flotillas of new electric and hybrid models by the mid-2020s from all Germany's biggest names.

Volkswagen alone plans to splash out 34 billion euros by 2022 on developing electric vehicles, saying its entire range will be electric or hybrid by 2030.

 2017 AFP
NEW ORLEANS, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Union Savings and Loan Association (Union) and Hibernia Bancorp, Inc. (OTC HIBE) (Hibernia Bancorp), today announced they have executed a definitive agreement whereby Union will acquire Hibernia Bancorp and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hibernia Bank, in an all-cash transaction valued at $32.00 per share. The transaction has an aggregate deal value of approximately $28.2 million.



The transaction will result in a community bank with five offices and over $200 million in assets.

In announcing the transaction, Union President and Chief Executive Officer, Stephen H. Schonberg, stated, We are extremely excited about our partnership with Hibernia Bank. The combination of our local community institutions will provide all current and future customers with greatly enhanced banking opportunities. Together, we will still be able to provide the same level of excellent personal service our customers expect through an expanded branch network. We will still be a well-capitalized community institution with an enhanced platform for serving the greater New Orleans market.

A. Peyton Bush, III, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hibernia Bancorp and Hibernia Bank, said, As a result of a thorough process, we are pleased to announce a transaction that will benefit our stockholders and customers. Our stockholders will realize a significant premium on their investment. Our customers will gain access to a larger financial institution with the ability to offer larger loans while maintaining its focus on the quality personal service that a strong, independent, local community bank is uniquely qualified to offer. Together Union and Hibernia represent 245 years of dedicated service to the New Orleans community, and the combined organization will continue to build on that legacy.



The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2018, subject to approval by bank regulatory authorities and the shareholders of Hibernia Bancorp, as well as the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. Union expects to change its name to Hibernia Bank at the closing of the transaction.

Union was advised by FIG Partners, LLC and the law firm of Luse Gorman, PC. Hibernia Bancorp was advised by Banks Street Partners, LLC and the law firm of Silver, Freedman, Taff & Tiernan LLP.

About Union

Union has served the New Orleans metropolitan area since 1886. Union operates from its main office and one branch office, and has received regulatory approvals to establish a new branch office in Harahan, Louisiana.

About Hibernia Bancorp

Hibernia Bank, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Hibernia Bancorp, has served the New Orleans metropolitan area since 1903. Hibernia Bank operates from its main office and two branch offices. Additional information about Hibernia Bancorp and Hibernia Bank is available at www.hibernia.bank.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding the financial performance, business prospects, growth and operating strategies of Union and Hibernia Bancorp. For these statements, Union and Hibernia Bancorp each claims the protections of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this press release should be considered in conjunction with the other information available about Union and Hibernia Bancorp. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations or forecasts of future events and are not guarantees of future performance. The forward-looking statements are based on managements expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements can be identified by such words as expect, anticipate, estimate, project, intend, plan, believe, will and similar expressions in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance.

Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks relating to the banking industry and the following: the possibility that the merger does not close when expected or at all because required regulatory, shareholder or other approvals and other conditions to closing are not received or satisfied on a timely basis or at all; and changes in general economic and market conditions, interest and exchange rates, monetary policy, laws and regulations and their enforcement. Undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Neither Union nor Hibernia Bancorp undertakes, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to publicly release the result of any revisions that may be made to update any forward-looking statement to reflect the events or circumstances after the date on which the forward-looking statement is made, or reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except to the extent required by law.

Union Savings and Loan Association

Contact Information:

Stephen H. Schonberg

President and Chief Executive Officer



Anthony S. Sciortino

Executive Vice President

Phone: (504) 522-5581

Hibernia Bancorp, Inc.

Contact Information:

A. Peyton Bush, III

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer



Donna T. Guerra

Chief Operating Officer and

Chief Financial Officer

Phone: (504) 522-3203
Addressing a recent political meeting, Singapores Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that  raising taxes is not a matter of whether, but when. That statement has resulted in a great deal of speculation.

Which taxes will be raised? When will the rate hike be implemented? More importantly, what will be the impact on ordinary Singaporeans and on the countrys economy?

Back in 2015, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam had said that the revenue measures taken by the government were sufficient for the planned spending till the end of the decade. At that time, he was the countrys finance minister.

The government was quick to point out that there was no contradiction between the Prime Ministers speech and the earlier statement of the Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

So, will there be a tax hike or not? The ministry of finance has subsequently issued a statement titled Did the government change its position on raising taxes during this term of government? It says that Any decision to raise taxes will not be taken lightly.

This seems to indicate that a tax hike is in the offing, but not immediately. If the government says that it needs to raise taxes, the first question that Singaporeans will ask is what is the money is needed for.

Why does the government need more money?

Its useful to remember that Singapore has a balanced budget. This implies that revenues must be equal to or exceed expenditure. In fact, by adopting a prudent spending policy, the government has ensured that the country has a surplus budget.





Source: Singapore government budget 2017

The table reproduced above shows that there was a surplus of S$5.18 billion in FY2016 and an estimated surplus of S$1.91 billion in FY17. In fact, Singapores constitution requires that the budget remains balanced over each term of government.

If the budget is balanced, why should taxes be raised?

The government needs money for a host of different projects. It has said that annual spending on pre-schools is set to double to S$1.7 billion by 2022. Additionally, the countrys workers need to be reskilled so that they continue to contribute meaningfully to their employers and to the overall economy.

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The countrys infrastructure also requires vast amounts. A High Speed Rail is being planned to link Singapore to Kuala Lumpur. The recent SMRT train collision that left 25 people injured highlights the need for investments to upgrade the countrys transport network. This was only the second time that an accident of this magnitude has taken place in the train systems 30-year history.

Funds are also required to increase the volumes that the countrys seaport and air services can handle. The projects that need financing include Terminal 5 at Changi, which is regarded as among the worlds busiest and best airports.

Health services for the elderly are another area that will require additional resources. Currently, about 440,000 of the nations population of 5.6 million is over the age of 65. By 2030, this number is expected to increase to 900,000. Consequently, the government will have to allocate more funds towards adding to the existing healthcare facilities in the country.

Which taxes will be raised?

The country has a fairly attractive tax structure. Income tax rates are reasonable with the highest slab being 22%. However, this rate is applicable only for those who earn more than S$320,000 per year. For those who earn less, tax rates are much lower.

A person earning, say, S$120,000 would pay only S$7,950 in income tax. Thats an effective rate of a little less than 7%. That leaves plenty of scope for levying more taxes.

There are no capital gains or inheritance taxes in Singapore. But there is a goods and services tax (GST). This was first introduced in 1994 at a rate of 3%. In 2003, it was increased to 4% and then to 5% in 2004. In July 2007, the GST rate was raised to 7%. It has remained at this level since then.

Analysts say that the GST rate may be raised when the government decides to implement its plan to raise taxes.

Remember that the government has three main sources of tax revenue. In FY2016, GST contributed S$11.1 billion, while corporate income tax provided S$13.6 billion. Another S$10.5 billion was raised through individual income tax. The increase will probably come from one or more of these three when the tax hike is put into effect.

Singapores competitiveness could fall

In 2017, Singapore ranked #13 in the IMD World Talent ranking. Switzerland, Denmark, and Belgium claimed the first three positions. Hong Kong is at #12. This ranking is prepared by the Swiss-based International Institute of Management Development (IMD) and takes into account the competitiveness of nations.

Here is Singapores ranking over the last few years:

Singapores ranking in the IMD World Talent Report 2014 18 2015 14 2016 15 2017 13

The attractiveness of a country is judged on the basis of several factors. These include:

Investment and development of home-grown talent

The ability of a country to tap into overseas talent

The availability of skills in the talent pool

Tax rates and the cost of living play a large part in making a country attractive for overseas talent. Currently, Singapore ranks #59 among countries in the IMDs cost of living comparison. It is at #45 in the effective personal income tax rate ranking. Any increase in taxes could negatively affect these criteria and make Singapore a less attractive destination for skilled workers from overseas.

The timing of the tax increase

The current government is nearly halfway through its term. It is unlikely to raise taxes immediately before the next election. According to UOB economist Francis Tan, the timing of the tax increase could be as soon as in next years budget.

However, there is no indication from the government about when the tax hike will be implemented. The current rates may continue for a year or even more. The final decision will only be taken after considering all the relevant economic and political factors.

This article These are the Real Implications Of The Impending Tax Hike In Singapore first appeared on ZUU Online.

(By Ravinder Kapur)

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Nat Ho is Bobii Frutii Singapores creative director and brand ambassador. (Photo: Bobii Frutii/Facebook)

Are you ready for another bubble tea chain in Singapore?

Actor Nathaniel Ho, better known as Nat Ho, will be bringing in popular Taiwanese bubble tea brand, Bobii Frutii, to Clementi Mall this month, with prices ranging from $4.90 for kiwi green tea to $6.90 for yogurt and milk blends.

According to The Straits Times, the 33-year-old star is opening the store with a few partners, and is the brands ambassador and creative director in Singapore. This is his second venture in the food and beverage industry. Ho previously opened a food stall, Love Bento, at Shaw Towers Wild Market food court, which sells healthy meals.

Bobii Frutii has four outlets in Taiwan and China, and according to media reports, queues for the stores can be up to two hours long.

The chain is known for their colourful, layered, Instagrammable drinks and distinctive blue pearls, which are made with butterfly pea flowers, with a chewy texture described as almost like mua chee by Ho. The drinks also have quirky names such as Dont Want To Go To Work, which is an oolong milk tea with blue pearls.

Related stories:

Follow Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore on Facebook.
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Top United Nations officials warned the Security Council on Monday that its sanctions on North Korea over the country's nuclear and missile programs may be harming the delivery of humanitarian aid to the impoverished, isolated Asian state.

The 15-member Security Council held its fourth annual meeting on human rights abuses in North Korea, despite objections by China, who said it was not the right forum and warned the move could further escalate tensions in the region.

U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said U.N. agencies and aid groups were "literally a life-line" for some 13 million vulnerable North Koreans, "but sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help."

Zeid and deputy U.N. political affairs chief Miroslav Jenca said aid groups were facing difficulties accessing international banking channels, transporting goods into the North Korea, and rising fuel prices hindering delivery of aid.

In an Oct. 27 letter to the council sanctions committee on North Korea, seen by Reuters, the top U.N. official in Pyongyang, Tapan Mishra, also said there were customs problems.

"Crucial relief items, including medical equipment and drugs, have been held up for months despite being equipped with the required paperwork affirming that they are not on the list of sanctioned items," Mishra wrote.

Zeid asked the Security Council on Monday to assess the impact of the sanctions on human rights and take action "to minimize their adverse humanitarian consequences."

In a statement on Friday, the council sanctions committee reiterated that the nine sanctions resolutions adopted since 2006 "are not intended to have adverse humanitarian consequences for the civilian population" of North Korea.

'COUNTERPRODUCTIVE'

North Korea has repeatedly rejected accusations of rights abuses and blames sanctions for the humanitarian situation.

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The North Korean U.N. mission condemned Monday's meeting "as a desperate act of the hostile forces which lose the political and military confrontation with the DPRK (North Korea) that has openly risen to the position of nuclear weapon state."

Japan's U.N. Ambassador Koro Bessho told reporters on Monday: "The humanitarian situation and human rights situation in North Korea is very dire and that's because of the authorities."

For the fourth time, China unsuccessfully tried to stop the public meeting by calling a procedural vote. A minimum of nine votes are needed to win such a vote and China, Russia, the United States, Britain and France cannot wield their vetoes.

Ten members voted in favour of the meeting, China, Russia and Bolivia voted against, and Egypt and Ethiopia abstained.

"Council members and relevant parties should engage themselves with finding ways to ease tensions on the Peninsula. They should avoid mutual provocation and words or actions that might further escalate the situation," China's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Wu Haitao told the council.

He said the discussion of human rights in North Korea was counterproductive.

"The systematic human rights violations and abuses of the North Korean government are more than the cause of its people's suffering. They are a means to a single end: Keeping the Kim Jong Un regime in power," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council.

The Security Council is due to hold a ministerial meeting on North Korea's nuclear and missiles programs on Friday.

(Additional reporting by James Pearson in Seoul; Editing by Susan Thomas and James Dalgleish)
Relations between Israel and Turkey took a bitter turn Sunday as their leaders traded accusations of involvement in terrorism, days after the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would fight against the controversial declaration, describing Israel as a "terrorist state" that kills children, in a speech in Istanbul. Hours later Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hit back, calling his counterpart a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers and supports terrorists, during an official visit to Paris. The two countries had normalised relations in recent years, but Sunday's flare-up came after Turkey was angered by US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Trump's move has sparked protests in Muslim and Arab countries for four days. "Palestine is an innocent victim... As for Israel, it is a terrorist state, yes, terrorist!" Erdogan said in a speech in the central Turkish city of Sivas. "We will not abandon Jerusalem to the mercy of a state that kills children." Erdogan earlier described the status of Jerusalem, whose eastern sector Palestinians see as the capital of their future state, as a "red line" for Muslims. Netanyahu was quick to counter the assault when he spoke later during a press conference alongside French President Emmanuel Macron. "I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran go around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people," he said. "That is not the man who is going to lecture us." The Israeli premier's comments were immediately denounced by Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim Kalin who said: "Instead of taking on our country and our leader, the Israeli authorities would do better to end their occupation of the Palestinian territories." Erdogan has used his position as the current chairman of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to call a summit of the pan-Islamic group on Wednesday. "We will show that applying the measure will not be as easy as that," he added on Sunday, referring to the US recognition of Jerusalem. He said it was "absurd" to deny the Jews' "ancient connection" to Jerusalem. During his speech, Erdogan held a picture of what he said was a 14-year-old Palestinian boy from Hebron, in the Occupied West Bank, being dragged away by Israeli soldiers. Turkey and Israel had improved diplomatic ties in recent years but Erdogan has continued to defend the Palestinian cause and has regularly criticised Israeli policy.
SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (NYSE:CWT) -- California Water Service (Cal Water) and its partner, the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE), announced today the launch of the fourth annual Cal Water H 2 O Challenge. Fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade classrooms in Cal Water service areas are eligible to compete for cash prizes and an overnight field trip by designing solutions for local water conservation issues.



The Cal Water H 2 O Challenge classroom contest is a project-based competition for schools seeking to enhance students understanding of water-based science concepts. Over the course of four to eight weeks, students and their teachers will initiate, develop, and implement a project focused on a community-based water issue. Each portfolio submission will include a description of the project goals, student research, science and/or engineering experimentation, actions to solve a local water issue, public outreach efforts, and student/teacher reflections.

The program offers a unique opportunity for teachers to incorporate English, math, and language arts Common Core State Standards into a hands-on learning project, and complements Next Generation Science Standards. Participating teachers will also receive technical, expert, and monetary support via educational resources and consultants throughout the competition.

The students participating in the Cal Water H 2 O Challenge continually inspire us with their creativity and viable, real-life solutions, said Martin A. Kropelnicki, Cal Water President and CEO. Their innovations benefit our state and encourage their communities to actively address water conservation. Were sure this year will be equally rewarding.

Christiane Maertens, NAAEE Deputy Director, sees no end to the program benefits. The Cal Water H 2 O Challenge shows how involving students in hands-on, water conservation projects leads them to grasp the importance of local and global natural resources, Maertens said. The program is creating next-generation conservationists. Students are walking away with stronger values of social responsibility, environmental stewardship, and community involvement.

The grand prize-winning classroom will receive $3,500 and an all-expenses-paid, tent-camping trip for the classroom students to the Santa Monica Mountains with NatureBridge for a nature and science education experience. Other winning classes will receive grants and additional prizes for students and teachers, while early registrants will be entered into a lottery for a chance to win one of 20 $500 grants.

Last years grand-prize winner, Emily Akimoto and her fifth-grade students from Sierra View Elementary (Chico, Calif.), developed a project inspired by the water quality disaster in Flint, Mich.: They set out to measure the levels of constituents in the water at their school. Ms. Akimoto explains the impact of the project on her class: My students were so excited about this project, and that excitement translated into authentic learning. My students were willing to give their own time, often spending their lunches in my classroom researching and writing. They would work at home. They found ways to use technology to collaborate with each other. In short, their excitement for learning and passion for the project was something that could have never come from a textbook.

For more information, visit challenge.calwater.com.

About Cal Water

California Water Service serves about 2 million people through 482,400 service connections in California. The company has provided water service in the state since 1926. Additional information may be obtained online at www.calwater.com.

About NAAEE

The North American Association for Environmental Education is a membership organization dedicated to accelerating environmental literacy and civic engagement through education. NAAEE supports a network of more than 20,000 members working in environmental education in more than 30 countries through direct membership and 54 regional affiliate organizations. For more information, visit www.naaee.net.

Contact:

Yvonne Kingman

(310) 257-1434
By Tom Allard and Karen Lema

MANILA (Reuters) - As she announced in January 2016 that the Philippines would immunise one million children with a new dengue vaccine, the nation's then health secretary Janette Garin boasted it was a world-first and a tribute to her country's "expertise" in research.

At the time, it seemed the Philippines could be on the cusp of a breakthrough to combat a potentially lethal tropical virus that had been endemic in large parts of the Southeast Asian nation for decades.

Almost two years later, the programme lies in tatters and has been suspended after Sanofi Pasteur, a division of French drug firm Sanofi, said at the end of last month the vaccine itself can cause severe dengue in recipients not previously infected by the virus.

Documents reviewed by Reuters that have not been disclosed until now, as well as interviews with local experts, show that key recommendations made by a Philippines Department of Health (DOH) advisory body of doctors and pharmacologists were not heeded before the programme was rolled out to 830,000 children.

After Garin's announcement, the Formulary Executive Council (FEC) of advisers urged caution over the vaccine because it said its safety and cost-effectiveness had not been established.

After twice meeting in January, the panel approved the state's purchase of the vaccine on Feb 1, 2016 but recommended stringent conditions, minutes of all three meetings show.

"Based on the available scientific evidence presented to the Council, there is still a need to establish long-term safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness," the FEC told Garin in a letter on that day. The letter was reviewed by Reuters.

The FEC said Dengvaxia should be introduced through small-scale pilot tests and phased implementation rather than across three regions in the country at the same time, and only after a detailed "baseline" study of the prevalence and strains of dengue in the targeted area, the FEC letter and minutes of the meetings said.

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The experts also recommended that Dengvaxia be bought in small batches so the price could be negotiated down. An economic evaluation report commissioned by Garin's own department had found the proposed cost of 1,000 pesos ($21.29) per dose was "not cost-effective" from a public payer perspective, the minutes from the meetings reveal.

For reasons that Reuters was unable to determine, these recommendations were ignored.

"VERY ANGRY"

The DOH purchased 3 million doses of Dengvaxia in one lot, enough for the required three vaccinations for each child in the proposed immunisation programme and paid 1,000 pesos per dose, a copy of the purchase order reviewed by Reuters shows.

It did conduct a "limited baseline study" in late February and March 2016, but the survey looked at "common illnesses" rather than the prevalence of dengue, according to guidelines issued by Garin's office at the time and reviewed by Reuters.

Garin, who was part of the government of former president Benigno Aquino and replaced when President Rodrigo Duterte took power in June, 2016, did not respond to requests for comment on why she ignored the local experts' recommendations.

A physician, Garin has defended her conduct and a programme that she said was "implemented in accordance with WHO guidance and recommendations".

"I understand the concern," she told Philippine TV station ABS-CBN on Friday. "Even us, we're also very angry when we learned about Sanofi's announcement about severe dengue. I'm also a mother. My child was also vaccinated. I was also vaccinated."

DOH spokesman Lyndon Lee Suy also did not respond to text messages or questions emailed to him.

Sanofi Philippines declined comment on the Philippines government decision. However, Dr. Su-Peing Ng, Global Medical Head of Sanofi Pasteur, told Reuters: "We communicated all known benefits and risks of the vaccine to the Philippines government."

Rontgene Solante, former president of the Philippines Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, said health officials were motivated to end the debilitating impact of dengue on the Philippines, where there are about 200,000 reported cases each year and many more unreported.

Over 1,000 people died of the disease in the country last year.

Two months after the FEC wrote to the health secretary, the DOH began immunising one million students around the age of 10 in all three target areas in April 2016, in accordance with its original plan but at odds with the FEC's recommendations to conduct a slow roll-out of the vaccine.

"The usual process for the DOH that has protected our children for so many decades was not followed. That's a fact," said Susan Mercado, a former Philippines health department undersecretary and former senior official at the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO said in April 2016 that the Philippines' campaign appeared to meet its criteria for using Dengvaxia because the targeted regions had high levels of dengue exposure; the vaccine would be provided to children 9 years and older; and they would each receive three doses.

Now, after Sanofi's warnings, WHO has said it agrees with the government's decision to suspend the immunisation programme.

SHOULDN'T IGNORE EXPERTISE

The current secretary of health in the Duterte administration, Francisco Duque, said he would carry out a "thorough analysis" of the FEC's recommendations and the programme before passing judgment. He said the Council's recommendations were not legally enforceable.

"At the end of the day, the final decision is made by (the)secretary of health," he told Reuters. "But because of the expertise that the members of the FEC have, it is something that you don't want to ignore."

Underpinning the concerns in 2016 about Dengvaxia, since confirmed by Sanofi, were fears that the vaccine would act like a primary infection for those who had never had dengue.

If they were bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus after the vaccination, it could be akin to getting dengue a second time, which often leads to far more severe symptoms and potentially death if bad cases are not treated quickly.

The concerns were first raised by noted U.S.-based tropical disease expert, Dr. Scott Halstead, who urged both Sanofi and the WHO to proceed with caution.

In the Philippines, Dr. Antonio Gans, an epidemiologist from the University of the Philippines, led a delegation of physicians to the DOH in March 2016 where, citing Halstead's research, they pressed for the campaign to be aborted.

"The data was not definitive but it was clear there were uncertainties and risks. Why not wait for the complete studies to be finished before endangering so many children?" Gans told Reuters.

In a Senate hearing late last year, Garin said she was aware of Halstead's assessment but dismissed it. "This is a theory ... it has not been proven," she said at the time.

FEAR AND CONFUSION

Two sources involved in the programme said no antibody testing was undertaken, as recommended by the FEC.

Antibody testing, while not 100 percent accurate, indicates whether an individual has had dengue before.

Duque, the current health secretary, is demanding the company refund the 3 billion pesos ($60 million) paid for the vaccinations and has threatened legal action against Sanofi if it is proven to have withheld information.

A criminal probe is underway into how a danger to public health came about and two Congressional inquiries have been convened in the Philippines.

Duque told Reuters he was concerned that the programme was paid from an "off-budget" allocation, meaning it bypassed Congressional scrutiny. Reuters was unable to confirm this.

Until now, one child out of the 830,000 vaccinated, a girl who was hospitalised with severe dengue, has been linked definitively by the DOH to the campaign. But the department of health says it still does not have complete data on those who fell ill after taking Dengvaxia.

(Additional reporting by Julie Steenhuysen and Manolo Serapio Jr; Editing by John Chalmers and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
A fresh round of Syrian peace talks is scheduled for next week in Astana, Kazakhstan said Monday, as part of a Moscow-led push to end the six-year conflict. The two-day talks in Astana will begin on December 21 and will focus on freeing prisoners, the delivery of humanitarian aid, the functioning of de-escalation zones and other issues, the foreign ministry said in a statement. The announcement came as Russian leader Vladimir Putin ordered a partial withdrawal of Russian forces in Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country earlier Monday. Nearly all of the seven rounds of Syria negotiations in Astana have involved representatives of the Syrian regime and the armed opposition, as well as the three power-brokers: Russia, Iran and Turkey. Moscow has spearheaded the talks in Astana since the start of the year as it tries to turn its game-changing military intervention into a negotiated settlement. Both Russia and Iran have thrown their support behind the regime of Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey has provided backing to the rebels. The negotiations, which run in parallel to broader UN-backed talks in Geneva, involved armed rebels and government officials and have focused mainly on military issues. The Kremlin also hopes to convene a political congress in the Black Sea resort of Sochi which would bring together regime officials and the opposition to reinvigorate a hobbled peace process. More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 when protests against Assad's rule sparked a brutal crackdown.
President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria during a surprise visit to the war-torn country. Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both the Islamic State group and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops. "I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," Putin said in a televised speech as he visited Russia's Hmeimim airbase in Syria. "I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia." Putin, who was welcomed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the "most battle-ready group of international terrorists," apparently referring to the Islamic State group. "Our homeland thanks you, my friends," Putin said. "Have a safe trip. I thank you for your service." Putin and Assad were pictured smiling and shaking hands. Putin made the stopover at the base in Latakia province, a regime stronghold, on his way to Egypt where he arrived later Monday. Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a "new stage" as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reform. More than 340,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara on Monday for the last leg of a day-long diplomatic dash, during which he ordered the partial withdrawal of Russia's troops from the war-torn country. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Putin at his presidential complex in Ankara for a closed-door meeting. This is the eighth face-to-face meeting between Putin and Erdogan this year, a sign of the intensity of a relationship that had hit rock bottom in November 2015 when Turkey shot down a Russian war plane over Syria. Putin was welcomed earlier in the day at Russia's Hmeimim airbase by Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on a surprise first visit to the country. In a televised speech to Russian troops, Putin said he had ordered his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu to start a partial withdrawal. "I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia," he said at the base in Latakia Province, a government stronghold. Russia first intervened in the conflict in 2015, staging air strikes in support of Assad which targeted both the Islamic State group (IS) and other jihadists as well as rebels fighting government troops. Putin said the troops had helped the Syrian army crush the "most battle-ready group of international terrorists," apparently referring to IS. "On the whole the task has been completed. And completed brilliantly." - 'Our homeland thanks you' - Putin said last month that efforts to end the war were entering a "new stage" as the focus shifted from military intervention to political reforms. He said both Hmeimim and Russia's naval facility in Tartus would continue to function and warned that Russia would repel any new attacks by militants. Putin made the Syria stopover, the first by a Russian head of state since president Dmitry Medvedev visited in 2010, en route to Egypt, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, one of Ankara's prime foes in recent years. Putin thanked the troops for defending Russia from terrorism and helping Syria remain a "sovereign independent state". He said the conflict proved that Russia's armed forces, including intelligence officers, pilots, sailors, special forces, military police, sappers and military advisers, were on top form, and he also praised the country's defence industry. "Our homeland thanks you, my friends," he said. - 'Deep gratitude' - Putin also held talks with Assad, who expressed his "deep gratitude" for Russia's role in the conflict. "The Syrians will never forget what the Russian forces did," official Syria media quoted him as saying. Putin said he would discuss Russia's efforts to convene Syria's political congress with the leaders of Egypt and Turkey, and then brief Assad. While Turkey has backed the anti-regime opposition and Russia along with Iran is the main international supporter of Damascus, Putin and Erdogan have worked closely to resolve the Syrian conflict in recent months. Ankara officially remains opposed to Assad staying in power in any transition but has notably toned down its rhetoric against the Syrian leader in recent months. After talks, Erdogan said the next step to help resolve the Syrian conflict would be to hold a second summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi "as soon as possible". Last month Putin held a summit with Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and Erdogan in the city to discuss Syria. Putin said at the beginning of 2018 that a congress of national dialogue should be held to seek a political solution for Syria, adding that he spoke to Assad about it. - Pentagon scepticism - Last week Putin announced he would be standing in the March presidential election that he is widely expected to win, and his lightning visit to Syria was likely to play well with Russian voters. The commander of Russia's forces in Syria, Sergei Surovikin, said 23 Russian planes, two helicopters and military police would be returning to Russia soon, national television reported. Asked how long the process of bringing back the contingent from Syria would take, Shoigu said: "They have already started coming back, we will see how it goes," Russian news agencies reported. The Pentagon voiced scepticism about Putin's announcement, saying such declarations were not necessarily reflected by action. The size of the Russian deployment in Syria is not known, but Pavel Felgenhauer, an independent Russian military expert, has told AFP that up to 10,000 troops and private contractors may have taken part in the conflict. Putin had ruled out dispatching ground forces in Syria, making the air force the mainstay of Moscow's Syria campaign. Around 40 Russian servicemen have reportedly been killed in Syria since Moscow's intervention. The Kremlin has acknowledged some of those deaths. But the losses may be higher given the number of Russian troops and mercenaries believed to be in the country, observers say. More than 340,000 people have been killed since the Syrian conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against Assad's rule that sparked a brutal crackdown. burs-raz/js
People in love often like to look for signs that they truly belong together  We both love the color blue! My horoscope said so!  and sometimes, those signs are there even when youre not looking. Shortly after getting engaged, Verona Koliqi and Mirand Buzaku discovered a delightful coincidence in a photo from 10 years ago.

My cousin found this photo on her computer, and she sent it over to me on my phone to laugh about how we looked when we were younger, Koliqi tells Yahoo Lifestyle. The photo shows a group of kids posing in the ocean at a beach in Montenegro. She showed it to her fiance, and they poked fun at her tomboy look. But then Buzaku peered closer at the kid in the background of the pic, lying on a float just like the one he used to have.

The picture of the couple as kids. (Photo: Courtesy of Verona Koliqi)

He said, Hold up, I think thats me!  Koliqi recalls. We both looked at each other and said, No way, that cant be true.'

Everything in the photo matched Buzakus memory of how he would hang out in the water  down to the white T-shirt. Because it was still hard to believe, they turned to his family, who confirmed that theyd gone to that same beach at the same time. Whats wild about this is that she was visiting from London at the time, and he was visiting from Kosovo.

I never knew something like this could happen, even though Ive heard a saying: You will have passed your soul mate at least once way before you actually meet up,' she says.

Koliqi still lives in the U.K., but she was visiting Kosovo (also her home country), in the summer of 2016, when her path once again crossed with Buzakus. This time they actually noticed each other.

We exchanged looks every day we saw each other but did nothing, she says. Finally, she made the first move by liking one of his photos on Instagram. A year later, he proposed to her at a resort in Turkey.

The couple getting engaged. (Photo: Courtesy of Verona Koliqi)

I had no clue he was going to propose to me, because in our countrys tradition, engagements are planned and have to be agreed by both beforehand, Koliqi says. He arranged for music and a photographer when he got down on one knee in a restaurant.

Story continues

Koliqi, who usually posts examples of her makeup artistry on her Instagram, shared the photo of her engagement beside the photo of their childhood almost-meeting on her account. The post has more than 30,000 likes now. People clearly love a good romantic coincidence.

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A reference guide to wine and food: look it up, and you'll remember it longer; screw it up, and you'll remember it forever.
The President has no deadline for appointing judges but the parliament could force him to make one through a lawsuit.

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Surprising, contestable, exceeding the powers  that is how lawyers deem the latest ruling of the Constitutional Court (CC) that states President Andrej Kiska must pick and appoint judges from a pool of candidates offered by the parliament. Despite criticism of the reasoning and the ruling itself, made by a panel composed of CC judges Peter Brnak, Milan Lalik and Marianna Mochnacova, the president must abide as he has no more options left to contest it, experts say.

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There is no other remedial tool against this ruling admissible, so there are no more options left, Kamil Baranik of the Law Faculty of Comenius University says.

Thus, Kiska has to pick three out of the seven candidates he originally refused. Those chosen will then be appointed as constitutional judges. Originally, Kiska did not want to appoint the candidates, arguing they have so far not been interested in constitutional law, so he would prefer someone with more expertise. Among the pool of candidates are long-time Smer MP Jana Lassakova and notary Miroslav Duris.

If the CC does not respond to candidates' complaints, they can theoretically still turn to the European Court for Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Kiska, on the other hand, cannot turn to international institutions in the current situation, states Baranik. The President did so one year ago when he asked the Venice Commission for their stance. The commission's answer was unclear, however, and legally not binding.
Foresters plant too many trees in bare areas destroying the natural habitat of western capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus).

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One of the symbols of the Slovak forests, the wood grouse or western capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) has been dying out for more than 30 years. In 1973, around 3,700 of these birds inhabited Slovakia but the most recent data estimates there are less than 900 left. Environmentalists say the population keeps declining.

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Creating protected bird areas has failed to stabilise the population as there is no guarantee that these protected areas will not be logged. In recent weeks, intense logging has occurred in places like the protected bird area on the borders of the Muranska Planina (plane) national park.

Wood grouse cannot survive in the vast clearings left after logging, photographer and environmentalist, Karol Kalisky says. A grouse is relatively clumsy and weighs around three kilograms as an adult so in cleared areas, they cannot defend themselves against predators.

Dense forests are not suitable for them, either. To take flight and defend themselves effectively, grouse need enough space. If the trees are too close to each other, the birds can hit branches and break their wings, ultimately falling prey to their predators once again.

Dense forest

Within the debate on logging in national parks, foresters argue that they plant the same number of trees they log. Environmentalists who fight for the salvation of the wood grouse argue that the man-planted forest is much denser than a natural one and destroys the habitat of the grouse despite the re-planting.
Five embassies in Slovakia call on Slovak government to continue fighting against corruption, promising further support.

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Five foreign embassies in Slovakia  Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States  have released a joint statement to mark the International Anti-Corruption Day (December 9), acknowledging the Slovak governments effort in the fight against corruption. But they are also calling for further measures in support of transparency.

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Our embassies welcome and acknowledge the important efforts the Slovak government has made over the past year to fight corruption and encourage the government to continue to implement concrete measures to promote transparency, combat fraud, and ensure punishment of those who violate those rules, the statement reads.

Achievements and setbacks

The embassies praised Slovakia as a leader in the Open Government Partnership, noting that it continues to promote transparency and public participation in government through the adoption of an ambitious third National Action Plan. They welcomed, too, the cooperation of the government with the OECD on combating corruption and the establishment of the Department for the Prevention of Corruption at the Slovak Government Office. They also appreciate increased communication between the cabinet, business community, and civil society, particularly in the creation of more effective rules that will protect whistleblowers.

Ongoing public and expert discussion on reforms of declaration rules is also a positive step, and could help prevent conflicts of interest, the embassies noted. The introduction of more standardised and transparent selection criteria for judicial candidates is another important measure.

The representation offices of the five countries stated that they stand ready to work in partnership with the cabinet and civil society to continue promoting good governance in Slovakia and are ready to support the cabinets reform efforts.

Important challenges identified by the business sector and civil society include implementing ethical standards, making regulators independent, addressing public procurement challenges, and strengthening investigation and prosecution of corruption-related activities, they stressed. Citizens play a critical role by reporting corruption when they encounter it and holding officials accountable for their actions. The efforts of political leaders and law-enforcement authorities, in partnership with active citizens, civil society, media, and the international community, can create a more fair and transparent society.

The embassies also stress, however, the importance of continuing reforms, the Sme daily wrote.

Poll on corruption shows lack of knowledge, trust

Three out of four Slovak citizens believe police efforts to uncover and handle corruption are unsatisfactory.

22 percent of people evaluated it as partially, or totally, insufficient, while three percent were not able to answer, head of the Zastavme Korupciu (Stop Corruption) foundation, Pavel Sibyla, said about the poll ordered from the Focus agency.

Moreover, only one out five Slovaks know that people who report corruption or any other wrongdoing are entitled to protection by law.

The poll organised on the occasion of the International day of Fight against Corruption showed that more than one quarter of respondents thought they were not entitled to protection, and more than one half could not answer the question.

This is one of the reasons why we created the www.akooznamit.sk website, to explain as understandably as possible how to report corruption, and what are the chances for protection already available due to current legislation, Marianna Leontiev, lawyer cooperating with Zastavme Korupciu, told the TASR newswire.

The respondents were asked, among other things, whether they think most Slovaks would report corruption if they guaranteed adequate protection. 39 percent said they would while 41 were of opposite view.

Sibyla also pointed out answers to the last question of the poll: 72 percent of respondents opined that most inhabitants of Slovakia would behave in a corrupt way if they had a chance, while 20 percent disagreed.

The Focus polling agency collected data between November 7 and 13. There were 1,017 respondents.
Weapons should be guarded by professionals but new security measures are only being implemented gradually.

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The Defence Ministry completed the first ever, fully-comprehensive, six-month long stock-taking of ammunition stored at its warehouses in Slovakia and discovered that some listed items are missing, including grenades, rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and more than 200,000 pieces of ammunition, the TASR newswire wrote on December 8.

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The missing ammunition in army stores is a result of negligence and a bad system of inspections in the stores, the Sme daily wrote. The recent operation also revealed that the partial stock-takings carried out in the past were done only on paper and some boxes were not even opened. Hundreds of people responded to these findings, while several disciplinary and personnel measures were adopted. Others may follow, Chief of the General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces Milan Maxim said.

The situation is being investigated by the police, without any results so far.

The stock-taking results were announced on December 8 at a press conference in which Defence Minister Peter Gajdos (Slovak National Party nominee), Police Corps First Vice-president Jaroslav Malik, National Crime Agency (NAKA) director Peter Hrasko, Chief of the General Staff Milan Maxim and Military Police director Michal Migat took part.

What is missing from army stocks

The audit established that the missing stocks include 80 RG-F1 hand grenades, 11 anti-tank RPG-75s, 40 URG-86 hand grenades, one piece of ammo for an infantry combat vehicle (BVP), more than 200,000 5.6-long bullets and hundreds of other types of ammo.

This was the first ever physical check of ammunition in which we went through 100 percent of the warehouses and 100 percent of the stocks  every item of ammo piece by piece, Gajdos said, as cited by TASR, adding that in the past the military checked 20 percent of ammunition annually. Any of my predecessors could have ordered the drafting of such an inventory.

The minister added that the missing ammo did not disappear in recent months and could have vanished at any point, all the way back to the division of Czechoslovakia in 1993.

Maxim announced that more than 20,000 tonnes of ammunition were physically checked by 7,900 soldiers and employees.

Disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against 28 individuals, but cases are still pending, said Maxim, as quoted by TASR, adding that the proceedings have resulted in discharges, financial penalties and the cancellation of bonuses.

Preventive measures

The Defence Ministry has already boosted patrols at ammunition warehouses, replaced all security locks and revised the systems of entry to warehouses. NAKA director Hrasko informed the media that there are no indications yet that the missing materials have been used for criminal purposes or terrorism.

An extremely likely explanation is that the materials in question werent stolen but were neglected in terms of cataloguing or never supplied in the first place, he stated, as quoted by TASR, adding that the police are investigating the matter.

Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) MP and former defence minister, Lubomir Galko, praised the current leadership of the Defence Ministry for keeping its promise to carry out an unprecedented inventory of ammunition stocks in response to the disappearance of some ammo earlier this year, but he also voiced some criticism. He said that he disagrees with attempts to trivialise the reasons why the ammo went missing.

If we know that there were 44 individual human failures, then such a massive failure isnt human but systemic, said Galko, as quoted by TASR.

Change in guarding the ammunition stores

In a way, Gajdos also agreed with Galko's statement, opining that the whole system is poorly set, and needs to be changed. The minister said that professional soldiers should guard the military stores, and there must be a change in registration and checks on the issuing and registration of the material.

The change will be implemented only gradually, due partially to finances. The ministry is doing its best to prevent such a situation from being repeated and that 99 percent of the issues concern just two storage facilities in Kubra and Sklene, Gajdos added, as quoted by the SITA newswire. He also stressed that no handguns were missing.
At the party congress, vice-chairman of the ruling party, Marek Madaric, has been replaced by Richard Rasi. Otherwise, no major changes have taken place.

L-R: Ex-PM Robert Fico, outgoing Zilina governor and Smer vice-chair, Juraj Blanar, resigned culture minister and party vice-chair, Marek Madaric, and his successor in party position, Kosice Mayor Richard Rasi at December 9 Smer congress. (Source: TASR)

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The Prime Minister and chairman of the ruling Smer party, Robert Fico, announced that he will not run for president in the 2019 presidential election at a press conference in parliament on December 8.

Im swearing this on my sons health, and you know that I keep my word, Fico said, as quoted by the TASR newswire. I wont run for president.

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When a journalist challenged the prime minister about keeping his word, reminding him of his statement that he would no longer be in politics in 2014, Fico said that he would remain in politics as long as there is interest in his service with the public. Regarding the PMs unsuccessful bid in the 2014 presidential election, Fico said that it was a political mistake to run for president as a prime minister.

My voters tell me they didnt vote for me because they wanted me to remain prime minister, Fico said, as quoted by TASR. No matter where I am and whats going on, I wont run for the post of president in 2019.

There is still time to look for a suitable candidate, the prime minister added.

Change in the Smer's leadership

Meanwhile, the ruling Smer party congress heard a critical speech by Marek Madaric during its congress in Martin on December 9, which received long applause from the delegates, the Sme daily wrote. The congress also received threats from Fico that if anybody throws a stone at them [i.e. the party], they will respond by throwing back two.

Culture minister and outgoing party vice-chair, Marek Madaric, said on December 9 that Smer is losing voter support, positions and energy, and therefore, he proposed major personnel reshuffles after the regional race.

Are our ideas convincing enough? Are we trustworthy enough in presenting them? Are we ready to change the party and also ourselves as part of the process? asked Madaric, as quoted by Sme, adding that he is trying to avoid the fate of the once mighty HZDS party of Vladimir Meciar, now extinct.

Madarics criticism hailed

While Fico, has been describing the results of the November regional elections as a success for the party, the culture minister was not shy with his criticisms at the congress.

Weve lost four governors and we werent even able to present a candidate [for governor] in the Bratislava region, he said, as quoted by the TASR newswire. The regional elections have provided an opportunity for deep self-reflection. Self-criticism isnt a display of weakness, but its a measure of inner strength.

The minister stressed that if a party wants to be present on the political scene, it needs to have values and ideas consistent with the interests of its voters and at the same time, have officials acting in a trustworthy manner, in line with these values. Subsequently, the party must replace officials who have lost energy or who harm its trustworthiness.

The former Smer vice-chairman believes that the party must return to its ideals.

I view major changes as necessary. Thats why Ive resigned  I wanted to begin with myself, said Madaric, as quoted by Sme.

After the congress meeting, he told journalists that he has not created a faction within Smer, though he does not feel alone in harbouring some critical views after what he calls the failed regional elections. However, he is also not going to leave the party anytime soon, he added.

He was applauded for his speech but failed with his proposals, which is why he resigned from the post of party deputy chairman. Ficos applause following his speech was lukewarm and brief, according to Sme.

Minor changes in Smer

The delegates elected failed candidate for Kosice regional governor and incumbent Kosice Mayor, Richard Rasi for the vacated position.

The problem for Smer is that it is frequently in government, the new vice-chair said.

In his opinion, the problem of losing support will be resolved if they start meeting more often with people, which is what Fico suggests as well.

In the coming weeks, the party leadership will decide on the post of general manager: the incumbent, Labour Minister Jan Richter, is expected to leave this post and keep his ministerial post.

Madaric has repeatedly said that he would not resign if he was made Interior Minister, (a post currently held by Robert Kalinak) but he did not name anybody specifically in his speech. Kalinak gave the impression that he was relaxed and reiterated that they made a case for shady businessman, Ladislav Basternak, and that he sees no reason to go, Sme wrote.

The party still has high ambitions despite a falling number of voters since the elections in 2012, the Pravda daily wrote. Fico wants to win the 5th parliamentary elections while Smer plans to return the attacks of the opposition. Fico would like to add several work and social rights, including minimum wage as well as the upper limit for retirement age, into the Constitution.

The leadership should replace several regional heads based on the suggestion of Robert Fico, Pravda also wrote, adding that rumour has it this will occur in Trnava, Banska Bystrica and Presov.
Former Slovak PM, Iveta Radicova, receives her second international award.

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Iveta Radicova, who was prime minister for the rightist SDKU party between 2010 and 2012, became one of 15 women from across the world that received the award for influential female politicians from the Women Political Leaders Global Forum. She was the only representative from the central-European region, the Plus Jeden Den daily wrote on December 9.

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Radicova has already received one international acclaim: in 2010, she was declared Woman of the Year by Glamour magazine.

The Women Political Leaders Global Forum (WPL) organised the largest gathering of women who have been elected head of state or government in history.

Radicova was among 15 current and former female presidents and prime ministers who were presented with the WPL Award during the WPL Global Summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, on November 29.

The group included the worlds first female elected President, Vigdis Finnbogadottir of Iceland. Also, the worlds most recently elected female Prime Minister, Icelands Katrin Jakobsdottir, delivered her first public speech since taking office just hours earlier.

The full list of 2017 WPL Award winners includes Dalia Grybauskaite, President of Lithuania, Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, President of Malta, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, President of Croatia, Kersti Kaljulaid, President of Estonia, Katrin Jakobsdottir, Prime Minister of Iceland, Vigdis Finnbogadottir, President of Iceland (1980-1996), Atifete Jahjaga, President of Kosovo (2011-2015), Kim Campbell, Prime Minister of Canada (1993), Helen Clark, Prime Minister of New Zealand (1999-2008), Mari Kiviniemi, Prime Minister of Finland (2010-2011), OECD Deputy Secretary-General, Aminata Toure, Prime Minister of Senegal (2013-2014), Iveta Radicova, Prime Minister of Slovakia (2010-2012), Maria Liberia Peters, Prime Minister of Netherlands Antilles (1984-1986, 1988-1994), Jennifer Smith, Premier of Bermuda (1998-2003) and Paula Cox, Premier of Bermuda (2010-2012).
J&T Real Estate and HB Reavis declare continuation in their projects without the statutes.

New development projects are going to change the skyline of Bratislava. (Source: Courtesy of J&T Real Estate)

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The development companies J&T Real Estate and HB Reavis have withdrawn their applications for a statute for important investments in Bratislava, Deputy Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini informed on Monday, December 11.

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HB Reavis gave the reason for their withdrawal as an effort to further elaborate on the details of its development plans in cooperation with the capital of Bratislava and the government. J&T Real Estate argued against the complexity of the whole process. Both developers declare that they will continue with their projects, in which they plan to invest more than 2 billion in total.

The cabinet was scheduled to discuss the applications on Wednesday, December 13.

To get a statute for an important investment a company needs to invest at least 100 million or create a minimum of 300 new working positions. Another condition is that the project is in the public interest. The investor in turn can get a tax holiday, better access to the acquisition of land, and faster and simplified approval processes.

HB Reavis and J&T Real Estate applied for the important investment statute for their package of development projects on both sides of the Danube in March and August, respectively. The one by HB Reavis included a brand-new bus station and a cable car connecting the bus station with Petrzalka. J&T Real Estate has promised with its project, Connected Bratislava, a new tram line on the Petrzalka embankment of the Danube River. The statute would have simplified and shortened the approval processes and thus shortened the time needed for construction.

Read also:

Read also: Developer unveils its vision of a new Bratislava centre Read more

The projects have drawn criticism from the affected boroughs, city councillors and some ministries.

For example, Agriculture Minister Gabriela Matecna (SNS nominee) argued that the applications do not meet one of the basic preconditions for winning the statute and this is the creation of 300 new permanent work places. The Culture Ministry led by Marek Madaric (Smer) objected to the route of the new tram line close to the new building of the Slovak National Theatre, the Sme daily wrote.

Petrzalka and Ruzinov (excepting the Old Town) on which the new developments are to be built, also criticised the possible granting of the statutes.

Deputies of Bratislava city council have even launched a petition against granting the projects the statutes. Civil activists claimed that the developments are not in the public interest, that the projects are not in line with the Bratislavas master plan and that the discussion was not sufficient.
By: Ravi ZachariasThomas Nelson (August 30, 2004)240 pages

Well, can man live without God? Of course he can  in a physical sense. But what about a moral sense? Or with a sense of purpose beyond himself? Read this book and join renowned Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias as he attacks this timeless question head-on.

Two of my favorite quotes:

Malcolm Muggeridge, that peripatetic journalist who traveled the globe for more than six decades of his life, said that if God is dead somebody body else is going to have to take His place. It will either be megalomania or erotomania, the drive for power or the drive for pleasure, the clenched fist or the phallus, Hitler or Hugh Hefner.

G. K. Chesterton correctly remarked that the problem with Christianity is not that it has been tried and found wanting but that it has been found difficult and left untried.
The following companies are subsidiares of Air Products and Chemicals: 7001 Hamilton Properties LLC, ACP Europe SA, ACP Zolder Invest NV, AJWAA Emirates Gases Company LLC, AJWAA Gases LLC, AP Services South America SpA, APCI (U.K.) Inc., Abdulla Hashim Gases & Equipment Co. Limited, Air Products (Anshan) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (BR) Limited, Air Products (Cangzhou) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Changsha) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Chongqing) Chem-Materials Co. Ltd., Air Products (Dongguan) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Guangzhou) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Hangjin Qi) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Hefei) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Huaibei) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Inner Mongolia) Hydrogen Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Air Products (Jiangxi) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Jincheng) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Jinjiang) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Kunshan) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Linfen) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Middle East) FZE, Air Products (Nanjing) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Ningbo) Hi-Tech Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Qindao) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Rozenburg) B. V., Air Products (Shandong) Engineering Co. Ltd Nanjing Branch, Air Products (Shandong) Engineering Co. Ltd., Air Products (Shanxi) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Shenyang) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Air Products (Xi'an) Gases Co. Ltd, Air Products (Xia'men) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products (Zhongshan) Gases Co. Ltd, Air Products (Zhumadian) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products A/S, Air Products Advanced Materials LLC, Air Products Ammonia Distribution AD GmbH, Air Products Ammonia Distribution LLC, Air Products Ammonia Distribution Ltd., Air Products Ammonia Holdings LLC, Air Products Asia Inc., Air Products Bahrain W.L.L, Air Products Blue Energy, Air Products Brasil Ltda., Air Products Canada Ltd./Prodair Canada Ltee, Air Products Caribbean Holdings Inc., Air Products Central Asia Group LLC, Air Products China Inc., Air Products Debang (Lianyungang) Co. Ltd., Air Products Ecuador S.A., Air Products Emirates Gases LLC, Air Products Equipment Limited, Air Products Gas O.O.O., Air Products Gases Holdings B. V., Air Products Gases S.A.E., Air Products Gesellschaft mbH, Air Products GmbH, Air Products Group Limited, Air Products Gulf Gas LLC, Air Products Helium Inc., Air Products Helium Inc. Qatar Branch, Air Products Holdings B. V., Air Products Holdings GmbH, Air Products Huadong (Longkou) Co. Ltd., Air Products Hydrogen Company Inc., Air Products Hydrogen Energy Technology (Zibo) Co. Ltd., Air Products Iberica S. L., Air Products Industrial Gas LLC, Air Products International LLC, Air Products Investments B. V., Air Products Investments Holdings LLC, Air Products Investments LLC, Air Products Ireland Limited, Air Products Israel Ltd., Air Products Italia S. r. I., Air Products Japan Inc., Air Products Japan K. K., Air Products Korea Inc., Air Products LLC, Air Products Leasing B. V., Air Products Llanwern Limited, Air Products Lu'An (Changzhi) Co. Ltd., Air Products Maghreb S. A.R. L., Air Products Majan LLC, Air Products Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Air Products Management BV/SRL, Air Products Manufacturing Corporation, Air Products Manufacturing LLC, Air Products Middle East Industrial Gases Company Limited, Air Products Nederland B. V., Air Products Netherlands Gases B. V., Air Products O. O.O., Air Products PLC, Air Products PLC Branch, Air Products Peru S. A., Air Products Qudra (GICIS), Air Products Renewable Energy Limited, Air Products S.A., Air Products SAS, Air Products San Fu Co. Ltd., Air Products Saudi Investment Company, Air Products Services Europe S. A., Air Products Shared Services Sdn. Bhd, Air Products Singapore Industrial Gases Pte. Ltd., Air Products SinoHytec (Beijing) Hydrogen Energy Technology, Air Products Slovakia s. r. o., Air Products South Africa (Proprietary) Limited, Air Products Sp. Z o.o., Air Products Specialized Process Equipment SDN, Air Products Switzerland Sarl, Air Products Taiwan Holdings Co. Ltd., Air Products Ukraina LLC, Air Products West Coast Hydrogen LLC, Air Products Yanbu Limited, Air Products and Chemicals (Anhui) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Banan) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Beijing) Distribution Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Binzhou) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Chengdu) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Chongqing) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Guiyang) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Hefei) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Hohhot) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Jiyuan) Onsite Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Lianyungang) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Nanjing) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Nanjing) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Pengzhou) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Putian) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Qingdao) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shaanxi Pucheng) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shaanxi) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Electronics Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Gases Production Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Gasification Technology Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Hydrogen Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) On-Site Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Systems Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shangluo) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Shenzhen) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Tangshan) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Tongxiang) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Weifang) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (WuXi) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (WuXi) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Xi'an) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Xingtai) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Xinxiang) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Xuzhou) Gases Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Yichun) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Yulin) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Zhangjiagang) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Zhejiang) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Zhuhai) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals (Zibo) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals Inc., Air Products and Chemicals Inc. of Utah, Air Products and Chemicals Tech Development (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Air Products and Chemicals de Mexico S. A. de C. V., Air Products spol s.r.o., Asia Industrial Gas Company Ltd., Bangkok Cogeneration Company Limited, Bangkok Industrial Gas Co. Ltd., Beer Gas Cymru Cyf, Beijing AP BAIF Gas Industry Co. Ltd., Beijing Shuimu Tongda Transportation Co. Ltd., Blue Ocean Industrial Gases Co. Ltd., Carbolim B.V., Carburos Via Augusta Logistics S. L., Caribbean Industrial Gases Unlimited, Centro Tecnico Indura Limitada, Chengdu Air & Gas Products Ltd., Chengzhi Air Products Hydrogen Energy Technology Co. Ltd., China Shenhua Coal to Liquid and Chemical Co., Consolidacion Comercial Infra S. A. de C. V., CryoService, CryoService Limited, Dixons of Westerhope Limited, DuPont Air Products NanoMaterials, EPCO Carbon Dioxide Products, EPCO Carbon Dioxide Products Inc., East Coast Nitrogen Company LLC, East Coast Oxygen Co., Far Eastern Industrial Gases Co. Ltd., Gaolu Air Products and Chemicals (Shanghai) Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Gardner Cryogenics, Gas Direct Limited, Gas Supply Services Ltd., Gas Technologies Ltd., Gases Industriales de Colombia S.A.  Cryogas, Gases Integrated Company Limited (GIC), Gasin II Unipessoal LDA, Gastel Limited, Gazsur S. de R. L. de C. V., Goar Allison & Associates, Green BioFuel s.r.o., Harvest Energy Technologies, Harvest Energy Technology, Helap SAS, INOXAir Products Pvt. Ltd., Indura, Indura Argentina S.A., Indura Holding LLC, Indura Holdings Colombia LLC, Indura Inversiones Limitada, Indura S. A., Indura Sociedad Comercial Limitada, Inner Mongolia Jiutai New Materials Technology Co. Ltd., Inversiones Air Products Holdings Limitada, Jazan Gas Projects Company, Jazan Integrated Gasification and Power Company (JIGPC), Jubail Waves for Gases Company, KRIG Holdings B. V., KRYVYI RIH Industrial Gas, Korea Industrial Gases Ltd., Kulim Industrial Gases Sdn Bhd, Lida SAS, M&M Gases Limited, Markaziy Osiyo Sanoat Gaz LLC, Matgas 2000 A.I.E., NEOM Green Hydrogen Company, NMAP Services Unlimited, Napro S.A., Olin DNT Limited Partnership, Oxigeno Medicinal Domiciliario Limitada, Oxygen & Argon Works, Oxygen & Argon Works Ltd., Oxygen Center Ltd., Oxygen Warehouse Trade (1980) Ltd., PQ Ammonia, PT Air Products East Kalimantan, PT Air Products Indonesia, PT Air Products Indonesia Services, Permea China Ltd., Permea Inc., Procal, Prodair Air Products India Private Limited, Prodair Corporation, Prodair Escravos Limited, Prodair S. A. S., Prodair et Cie S.C. S., ROVI Cosmetics International, S.I.Q. Beteiligungs, SAGA SAS, SCWC Corp., STP & DIN Chemicals Sp. Z.o.o., STS Science Technologies and Services Ltd., Sapio Produzione Idrogeno Ossigeno S. r. l., Servicios Indura Limitada, Shanxi Lu'An Air Products (Hydrogen Energy) Co. Ltd., Sociedad Espanola de Carburos Metalicos S. A., Soprogaz SNC, Stravinsky Investments LLC, Tanasio Industrial Gases Cyf, The Former SR Manufacturers Inc., Union Mobiliere Industrielle S. A.R.L., Vitalox Industrial S.L.U., WuXi Hi-Tech Gas Co. Ltd., Yangnon Industrial Gas Trading Company Limited, Yangon Industrial Gas (Thilawa) Company Limited, Zhangjiakou HyPower New Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Zhangjiakou Jiaotou Hydrogen New Energy Technology Co. Ltd., and Zibo Chuangcheng Design.

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Arch Resources, Inc. produces and sells thermal and metallurgical coal from surface and underground mines. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated seven active mines. It also owned or controlled primarily through long-term leases approximately 28,292 acres of coal land in Ohio; 952 acres of coal land in Maryland; 10,095 acres of coal land in Virginia; 306,033 acres of coal land in West Virginia; 81,470 acres of coal land in Wyoming; 234,543 acres of coal land in Illinois; 33,047 acres of coal land in Kentucky; 362 acres of coal land in Montana; 248 acres of coal land in Pennsylvania; and 19,018 acres of coal land in Colorado, as well as smaller parcels of property in Alabama, Indiana, Washington, Arkansas, California, Utah, and Texas. The company sells its products to utility, industrial, and steel producers in the United States, Europe, Asia, Central and South America, and Africa. The company was formerly known as Arch Coal, Inc. and changed its name to Arch Resources, Inc. in May 2020. Arch Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.
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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One of my habitual haunts in Da Nang is a humble little cafe along the Han River that serves nuoc mia (sugarcane juice, so lovely in hot weather), banh mi sandwiches (always in fashion, day or night, summer or winter), and bia lanh (cold beer, lovely in any weather).

The owner (I call her and every other middle-aged and elderly woman in Vietnam Madame) is a charming and personable woman, with a motherly knack for pampering her customers. She must know that I cant catch most of what shes saying, but that doesnt stop her, she chatters away a mile a minute. Then she thinks if she speaks more slowly and deliberately Ill understand more, but sadly thats not the case.

Her mother usually sits in pole position directly in front of the cafe with a miniature boom box playing old broken heart country songs. I dont understand the words but I know exactly what the songs are about: lost loved ones or people forced to abandon family and friends to seek work in the big city, its always the same sad story.

Ive sat there and watched many times, Mother knows every word of every song, hits the right tone every time, almost in a trance. The only time she snaps out of it is when the boom box malfunctions, at which time she barks out grumpily to whomever nearby to fix the box. Trance is broken as if she was startled out of a beautiful dream and shes eager to get back to it.

You can tell shes been missing someone and bygone days for a very long time, I shudder to think how long shes been alone with those memories.

Mother and her boom box

It occurs to me for the first time that there is a large population of elderly women without men in their lives, probably widowed.

Many countries have attempted to take over Vietnam during the last half-century or so, during which time Mother was young and newly married or barely still single and Madame was still a faraway twinkle in her eye.

First came the original Indochina War with the French toward the end of the colonial era during the 1940s and 50s, partly in parallel with the Japanese who occupied Vietnam during WWII, then the Americans right after until the mid-1970s, and finally the Chinese tried to invade Vietnam several times for over 10 years ending in the early 1990s.

It was one conflict after another for half a century, with all intruders ultimately rejected and sent home, but millions of lives were lost to Vietnam  mostly men.

Its ironic that this story is set on the banks of the Han River, precisely the spot where the French landed and stormed the city in 1858, but were rebuffed, only to return later and rename it Tourane, only to be defeated one final time, which marked the end of the colonial era in Vietnam.

Its equally odd that the first U.S. landing during the Second Indochina War (known to Westerners as the Vietnam War and to Vietnamese as the American War) was at Da Nang in March 1965.

And so there sits Mother today with all her memories, right in the midst of it all.

What happened to these ladies husbands and what do they think of all those countries who intruded? If anybody has a solid case to dislike foreigners, especially Westerners, its the Vietnamese, right?

As a lifelong expatriate, traveller, and journalist, Im constantly asked by foreigners abroad about the reception I get from the locals in Vietnam. Do Vietnamese people harbour any negative feelings toward us? Is it OK to visit Vietnam?

I love to answer those questions and Im well-placed to do so because I have roamed Southeast Asia for many years, so its easy to compare one country with another.

For me, a sociable Westerner in a provincial city, spending time in Da Nang is akin to being a rock star. People go out of their way to make contact even though their English skills are limited and my Vietnamese is borderline hopeless. I move in several little circles of locals, most of whom speak little English, some a lot, and some none at all.

With buddy Hoang under Cau Rong (Dragon Bridge) in Da Nang

Im pampered and coddled, constantly watched over so that if anyone thinks Im in need of something, the appropriate instructions are given to whoever is responsible. Its nothing to do with money, for sure much more of the other customers cash hits the table than mine.

Westerners are perceived as the purveyors of all things great and new, hence the warm welcome. The English language, computer games, movies, televisions, air-conditioning, slick cellphones, cars and motorbikes  they all come from us, so while there is occasional trepidation the prevailing feeling is an enthusiastic welcome, or friendly tolerance and curiosity at the very least.

That sentiment has its limits, at least for some. As in every land, some prefer their own peoples company to that of foreigners. Not everyone has an international flare or the patience to deal with strange languages and customs. No harm, no foul.

The fact is the Vietnamese are far too energetic and ambitious to waste time looking in the rear-view mirror. The country is experiencing rapid growth with international tourist arrivals last year up 25 percent, shooting for a 30 percent increase this year, and foreign entities are queuing up to invest. Things are booming in all sectors in most regions of the country.

That success has many foundations including natural beauty, climate, stunning sights, culture, and food, but a critical factor is understanding foreigners, what we want and why, and how to interact with us. Although English isnt as widely spoken here as in some destinations in Southeast Asia, the Vietnamese definitely get it when it comes to foreigners.

I never have to ask for something twice, wait while a service person struggles to count change, or return food that is not properly prepared. Occasional patience is needed because some locals we deal with in the touristy areas are rural migrants, not groomed on the skills necessary to interact with foreigners.

Resentment surfaces often toward the Chinese, the most recent aggressor, who continues to increase presence the East Vietnam Sea. I hear grumblings when the locals are confronted by boisterous and overbearing gaggles of Chinese tourists, but they tough it out and earn valuable tourist dollars.

If the war is mentioned, most Vietnamese will think it refers to the attempts at invasion authored by the Chinese from early 1979 until the 90s.

For me every day is a pleasure, a simple walk down the street includes various chummy encounters unrelated to which businesses I give my patronage, everyones friendly. I roll with the locals, eat what they eat, eat in the grubbiest restaurants, drink in their low-class beer joints, and love every minute.

At least half the time Im offered something when I go out, for no particular reason, thats the way to welcome me. When I need to be alone with my thoughts, I have to seek out an establishment that I dont know, otherwise Ill be invited to a table to share food and drink and talk. The warmth of the people never ceases to amaze me.

That warmth comes from a couple of decades of peace together with some good old-fashioned team spirit and patriotism, with an ever-brighter vision of the future. People in Vietnam are generally pleased with progress, and feel more prosperity on the horizon.

Therefore, to most Vietnamese, we foreigners, our gadgets, innovations, technology, and international languages play a role in ongoing progress, not the evils that transpired decades ago.

Almost nobody in Vietnam cares about those times any more.

Tinh ban mai mai.

.means Friends forever. I hope so.
One month before he defends his bachelors thesis, Vietnamese undergraduate Vu Huy Hoang has already published a research paper which he co-authored with other graduate fellows.

Superparamagnetic nanoparticles as a recyclable catalyst explores new access to phenol esters via cross dehydrogenative coupling reactions, Hoang explained.

It was published on December 8 in the RSC Advances, a journal by the Royal Society of Chemistry that is indexed by International Scientific Indexing (ISI).

Our study results have the potential for application in the development of new materials, especially in the field of pharmaceutical chemistry, Hoang said.

The research paper published on RSC Advances

A senior in chemical engineering at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Hoang was invited to the graduate research group thanks to his outstanding academic achievements.

Prior to joining the study, I had had little practical experience in the lab, Hoang confessed. I have learnt a lot from the six months working alongside my professors and forerunners.

The task that I was in charge of was both an integral part of and independent from the rest of the study, and required a lot of time and financial commitment, he added. Hard work and a bit of luck were what helped me fulfill my duty.

According to his instructor, Hoang is rare case of a HCMUT student who has had a paper published in an ISI-indexed journal before earning his bachelors degree.

Not many chemistry students in Vietnam get to have their study published in an international scientificjournal, let alone one with an impact factor of 3.2 like the RSC Advances, said Dr. Nguyen Lac Ha, a research fellow at the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Saudi Arabia.

Sharing his vision of seeking graduate education abroad, Hoang said that he had been studying German since his sophomore year, and that this journal publication would be another big plus in his academic portfolio.

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Collaboration between teachers and administrators in Helena Public Schools is working to improve student performance and preparedness.

Assistant Superintendent Greg Upham touted collaboration as the district celebrates recent national recognition from three organizations for improving student testing and better preparing them for college or a career. Recognition came from ACT, Advanced Placement courses for college credit, and standardized testing for elementary students called Renaissance Star.

ACT

The district was recognized with a case study by the ACT, a college entrance exam also used to test all high school juniors in Montana.

In two years, the district improved its scores significantly. For example, in 2014, 38 percent of students were ready for a college math course. In 2016, 50 percent of students were ready. College readiness went up on all four sections of the ACT: math, science, English and reading. Upham said the district decided to analyze its own data to understand why some students were testing well and why others werent. The district also instituted Professional Learning Communities where teachers could use that data and other feedback in weekly meetings to discuss how they can improve certain courses or teaching methods.

A couple of years ago, the district started comparing ACT scores to high school courses taken by the students taking the test. Before that, Upham called attempts to improve scores a shot in the dark. When all juniors in Montana took the ACT for the first time in 2013, Joan Meyer, a high school librarian who was trying to improve some of her students reading scores, met with Upham to go over the data.

The ACT provides schools with some feedback on how students are doing based on the course patterns, but the report relies on students to self-report courses theyre planning to take. Instead, Meyer and Upham decided to look at actual courses taken by students in the Helena district to get the most accurate information.

Our document is modeled after ACTs Core or More information, but its far more detailed and its specifically tailored to the courses our students take, Meyer said. The first year I did it for the district I looked at math and science and we were just astounded by what we were seeing.

The data showed students who took advanced courses, like honors and advanced placement classes, were scoring well above the Montana University Systems admission requirements. For example, in 2017, students who took honors math for three years and calculus their senior year had an average ACT score of 26.7. Students are supposed to score at least a 22 to indicate college readiness. But students who took Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II, the minimum math requirement to be admitted to an MUS school, only scored an average of a 19.2.

Upham said he was thrilled when the data showed taking advanced classes paid off for students. And now families receive the Core or More document in the spring of eighth grade with the hopes theyll enroll in more rigorous courses to prepare for college and be eligible for academic scholarships.

But Upham said students who fulfill graduation requirements without taking advanced courses should still be prepared for the next step. He also said its the responsibility of schools to get them there.

Were not putting that pressure on students, Upham said.

Instead, the district established Professional Learning Communities to encourage teacher collaboration. Teachers get together each Monday with colleagues teaching the same subject or with their grade level. They receive data collected by Meyer and go over long term goals. They also check in after a specific unit to see if students are learning and what does or doesnt work. Young teachers also have the chance to be mentored by more experienced colleagues.

Weve always had a talented group of individuals, Upham said. Now were all pulling in the same direction."

Upham said the Professional Learning Communities arent designed to teach to a test or stop teachers from trying something new.

We in no way shape or form want to inhibit creativity, Upham said.

AP

The Helena School District was nationally recognized by Advanced Placement this year, which provides students with rigorous courses and the opportunity to receive college credit. Its the fifth time the district received the recognition, called the AP Honor Roll. To be recognized, the Helena district had to increase participation and performance. Of the more than 2,000 districts that have been on the honor roll the past eight years, only 25 have made it five times.

Upham said the district used to have grade level and other restrictions on who could take AP courses, but removed those barriers in past years. The district has also increased the number of AP courses available. Teachers must make a proposal to the district on the certification or preparation needed and the cost of course materials. Upham said they havent said no to a proposal yet.

Capital High School Principal Brett Zanto said 126 students were in at least one AP class five years ago. Last spring, 190 were enrolled.

There is an increased rigor with AP courses that are just going to improve their skills to be prepared for whatever it is after high school, he said. Those skills also carry over to higher ACT and SAT scores.

Steve Thennis, principal at Helena High School, said students in the district are scoring better than the Montana average. In the five tests taken most often in the state in 2017, Helena had a higher average score in every category.

Renaissance Star

The district is also putting an emphasis on readiness starting in elementary school. In the past few years, the school district realized if a student falls behind in grade school, its difficult for them to catch up even by the time they reach high school.

For example, if a student isnt ready for honors math in middle school, they wont be ready in high school. And students who dont take advanced math courses perform worse on college entrance exams like the ACT.

All too often kids get moved forward, but fall behind, Superintendent Jack Copps said. Every step has to matter.

The school district started using elementary student assessments for math and reading called Renaissance Star. The tests are given three times a year for first grade through eighth grade. Unlike multi-day standardized testing, Renaissance Star takes about 20 minutes and provides immediate feedback to see how students are meeting benchmarks.

In a story outlining the districts success with Renaissance, Jilyn Chandler, a data assessment administrator, said about 55 percent of fifth graders were above the 80th percentile in math.

That ranking qualifies them for advanced math classes in the sixth grade and sets them on a course that we know ... leads to success on ACT college readiness benchmarks, she said.

In 2017, Helenas elementary students exceeded the state average from third through eighth grade.

The data guides all who work with our children to set achievable academic goals that lead to college and career readiness, Chandler said in the article.
A hijack committed by an anti-state propagandist in the early 1990s has remained vividly imprinted on the mind of a former Vietnamese ambassador.

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam  P6: The fate of Vietnams plane hijackers

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam: P5  Hijacking military planes in broad daylight

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam: P4  Downing four hijackers

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam: P3  Tracking down perpetrators of 1978 DC4 hijack

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam: P2  52-minute life-and-death ordeal

>> Skyjacking in Vietnam: P1  First hijackers

At age 90, Vo Anh Tuan, former Vietnamese Ambassador to the United Nations, cannot forget the details of a hijack committed in September 1992 by Ly Tong, a pilot under the former Saigon regime.

As the Vietnamese ambassador to Yugoslavia at the time, I returned to Vietnam while the embassy was closed after the outbreak of the civil war there, he recalled.

I would have flown in the Russian-built TU-154 aircraft, but the airline staff told me to try the Boeing 737 they had just hired. I ended up changing my ticket to the flight which was later hijacked, Tuan recalled.

The Boeing jet, with a crew hired from Bulgaria, took off from Bangkok at 5:00 pm and was scheduled to land at Ho Chi Minh Citys Tan Son Nhat Airport at 6:30 pm.

Hijacker Tong began to put his plan into action around 30 minutes before the jet landed in Vietnam.

At 5:45 pm, he pinched an unoxidized steel knife from the meal he had just been served.

Approximately 20 minutes later, while an air hostess was serving him drinks, Tong suddenly threw a paracord around her neck and held her at gunpoint while pushing her into the flight attendants room.

There, a Bulgarian flight attendant who had also been hand- and foot-tied by Tong was locked in.

He coerced the two women to lie still on the floor by threatening to detonate a bomb.

When another stewardess named Thuy Tien stepped in, the hijacker intimidated her into opening the cockpit door.

Once he was inside the cockpit, Tong claimed he had a bomb in his bag and would not hesitate to blow everyone up if the crew refused to act on his commands.

Vo Anh Tuan, former Vietnamese Ambassador to the United Nations, recalls details about the hijack in September 1992. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The man then shoved Tien out of the compartment, overpowering the pilot and co-pilot and taking over the jet.

Much to everyones relief, lights were then turned on in the passenger compartment, former ambassador Tuan recalled.

Flight attendants informed passengers of the reduction in altitude and that they were preparing for landing.

Fifteen minutes later, we heard nothing from the stewardesses. It was getting dark. I clearly saw the street lights beneath, which meant the plane had dropped to a worryingly low altitude, he added.

The plane then suddenly gained altitude, striking fear amongst the passengers.

An Asian passenger is subduing the crew up there. I think hes a psycho, Tien, the flight attendant, revealed to passengers as she hurried down from the first-class section of the plane.

Hes not a psycho. The plane is being hijacked, the former ambassador immediately told his wife and a provincial official on the same flight.

In the cockpit, Tong coerced the captain into flying around the downtown areas of Ho Chi Minh City and left the window open so that he could scatter propaganda leaflets.

I spotted a man who was sporting something like a parachute suit and a helmet in the first-class compartment. He was scurrying back and forth and scattering stacks of fliers onto the ground, the former diplomat said.

Tuan grabbed a leaflet that read Ly Tong, Commander-in-Chief of the South Vietnam Uprising Army, meaning he was calling on people in the southern region to rebel against the government.

Upon Tongs command, the jet hovered several times and made repeated dives above the citys downtown areas.

The situation lasted for half an hour, sending the passengers into panic, with some putting on their life vests.

One of the hostesses then requested the passengers to fasten their seatbelts, as the crew was about to open the doors.

Tuans heart pounded hard when he heard this.

Everyone held their breath and braced for the worst.

After distributing the leaflets, Tong requested the captain to maneuver the plane to an altitude of 2,300m and open the door for him to make his parachute jump.

We suddenly heard a deafening sound like that of a bomb blast, Tuan said.

A formidable gust flew into the cabin, blowing away objects that had been placed in front of the passengers.

The plane teetered violently but remained airborne.

Following Tongs jump, the captain steered the jet toward an emergency landing at Tan Son Nhat Airport.

The landing was over 30 minutes later than originally scheduled.

The local police, fire trucks and ambulances had been deployed on the ground by then.

Hijacker Ly Tong. Photo: Internet

Uncertain whether Tong had accomplices, the police officers requested all the passengers be interrogated.

As an ambassador, Tuan was spared the investigation procedure.

I was told by the crew later that the hijacker had forced the pilot to steer the plane to District 8 before he made the jump and ended up in a pond, Tuan added.

Tong then made his way to a local neighborhood security guard in plain clothes.

He offered to pay US$200 to the man if he agreed to take him to a designated address.

The watchman then rode him straight to the police station.

Born in 1946, Ly Tong was a pilot and first lieutenant in the former Saigon regime. After 1975, he crossed border to the U.S. Tong pleaded guilty at a court hearing, claiming he had returned to lead the insurgents in southern Vietnam. He was sentenced to 20 years behind bars and was released early in an amnesty in 1998 before returning to the U.S. In November 2000, only one day before then-U.S. President Bill Clintons visit to Vietnam, Tong hijacked a Thai plane and commanded the jet be steered to Ho Chi Minh City for him to distribute leaflets again. The man was apprehended by the Thai government and convicted for hijacking and intruding on the countrys air space.

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Vietnams transport authorities are calculating traffic volume at a controversial tollgate in the Mekong Delta as they try to find a viable solution following repeated outcries from road users.

Nguyen Van Huyen, head of the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam, said that his agency has been counting vehicles at the BOT tollgate in Cai Lay Town, Tien Giang Province.

The developer of a BOT road project to upgrade a section of National Highway 1 and build a detour across Cai Lay Town is currently operating the facility.

Controversially, the toll station has been placed on the existing highway instead of on the new route, which means that a fee is being collected regardless of the road used by drivers.

Commuters have voiced their outrage over being slugged with an additional charge that they say should be covered with a regular road maintenance fee they pay annually.

Since the opening of the station in August, drivers have expressed their displeasure by paying the fee in small denomination banknotes along with several other tactics, causing major traffic delays that have ultimately led to repeated cessations of the tollgate's operation.

The toll was previously lowered, but this still did not prove effective.

On November 4, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc ordered the operator of the tollgate to stop collecting fees from motorists for one month to review the situation.

According to Huyen, the Directorate for Roads will calculate traffic volume on both the detour and the upgraded section of National Highway 1 between December 8 and 16, before an appropriate solution is found.

Following a recent meeting, three possible fixes were highlighted.

The first focuses on maintaining the status quo at the facility and ensuring the collection of service charges, with other measures to be enforced if necessary.

The second solution involves building an additional tollgate on the detour, with fees still collected on both routes.

The third one suggests relocating the station to the detour, with the toll only required for traveling on that specific route. The state would then pay the developer the cost of the highway upgrade.

The Ministry of Transport has asked the road directorate to report on its survey and suggest a solution by December 17.

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A common sight along many Saigon roads is that of a tire hanging from a tree branch, pole, or fire hydrant, along with a rustic air compressor prominently displayed on the sidewalk. These street-side repair 'shops' have been serving local drivers on their daily rides in the city for years.

Huy, a 33-year-old migrant living in Saigon for the last three years, was riding his ramshackle motorbike to work on a cool morning in December, when suddenly he heard a popping sound, like that of an exploded balloon.

The effect was immediate, and his wheel began to malfunction. However, remaining calm, Huy knew he could just ask around for the nearest roadside repairman.

Statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport reveal that in March 2017, there were 7.3 million motorbikes in the city.

Data from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam shows that the citys official population in 2016 was 8.3 million, which translates to 87 motorbikes per 100 city residents.

A rustic compressor by the roadside in Ho Chi Minh City, November 30, 2017. Photo: Tien Bui/Tuoi Tre News

Well aware of the potential market, amateur repairmen have taken it upon themselves to set up shop on busy sidewalks and at crowded crossroads, with their compact toolkits readily at hand.

Making it a career choice attainable to most is the fact that it does not cost an arm and a leg to invest in the basic equipment, as problems along the roads are relatively minor.

The most common services and replacements are of tires, spark plugs, oil and brakes. Bike parts are generally only purchased on request.

Not all repairmen have their own air compressor though. Prices vary by volume, and may range anywhere from US$140 to $250 for 35-liter to 100-liter versions, according to a search by Tuoi Tre News online.

A flat tire gets pumped for about 10 U.S. cents, meaning it takes 1,500-2,000 flat tires to break even on the investment.

How to qualify?

To become a motorbike repairman or woman, there is formal schooling available in vocational colleges, which offer four-month intensive courses for around $200.

A rustic compressor by the roadside in Ho Chi Minh City, November 30, 2017. Photo: Tien Bui/Tuoi Tre News

Such programs immerse learners deeply in the mechanics of motorbikes, issuing certificates recognized in Vietnam upon graduation.

However, as Tuoi Tre News understands, formal training directs those wishing to work in the industry toward registered premises or opening their own business.

Solving basic bike problems on the street does not call for much education.

Very little mechanics is actually required, as most often knowledge of compressors and the ability to fix a flat tire quickly will suffice.

One serviceman on Nguyen Huu Cau Street in District 1 said: While Im busy, its DIY for customers if they need a pump. Its really simple: just take the tip of this hose and press it gently against the valve. A piece of cake!

Wrong-doers

It has been reported that some repairmen overcharge customers, especially on rainy evenings or along empty streets.

A brand-new tire resting on a fire hydrant, with servicemen off duty behind in Ho Chi Minh City, November 30, 2017. Photo: Tien Bui/Tuoi Tre News

Instead of 22 U.S. cents for a puncture, drivers might be forced to cover 10 times that cost. One way to avoid this trick is to agree on the price beforehand.

Worse still, the unscrupulous have reportedly been damaging tires on the job and demanding payments for extra repairs.

Additionally, as it has been frequently covered in local media, some have even spread nails on roads, knowing all too well that a victim will drop by in no time.

Obviously, bike quality and endurance have improved thanks to state-of-the-art technology, which reduces the need for servicing on a regular basis.

But just as the roadside repairmen appeared 50 years ago when the first Honda hit Saigon, these men and women will continue to enjoy the job as long as the motorbike lives on in the city.

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She was an invited special guest in 2015, but Jessica Mauboy will now compete for Australia at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018.

To perform in Lisbon, Portugal, next May, Mauboy follows from previous Sony Music acts representing Australia including Guy Sebastian, Dami Im and Isaiah Firebrace.

The song that carries the hopes of a camp nation is yet to be revealed.

Eurovision is a wonderfully joyous and unique event. It brings together over 40 diverse countries and cultures under one roof to unite us all in music. It shows how much the power of song can transcend differences. I will sing my heart out for Australia, Im so proud to be officially representing my country and a little bit nervous  mainly about the stress of the dress! Mauboy said.

Australian Head of Delegation Paul Clarke said: Jessica Mauboys performance at ESC Copenhagen 2014 opened the door for Australia to compete at Eurovision  before the great moments of Guy, Dami and Isaiah there was Jess, who touched the hearts of the Eurovision directors and proved just how talented our vocalists are. Since then we have always wanted to give Jessica a shot at the competition, and this year the stars aligned. We cant wait to develop a great song and stage production with Jessica and her team, and recreate her Eurovision-style as a galactic soul diva.

Eurovision will be broadcast from May 9th to 13th 2018 with returning presenters Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasey.

Look out Lisbon because we are sending one of the best in the biz to Eurovision 2018. Ive been following Jessicas career from the start and the girls gone from strength to strength  she can sing, dance, act  I hear she can even make a mean Portuguese Tart. Cmon Australia, get behind our Jessica! said Warhurst.

Joel Creasey added, Ever since my failed audition for the Young Divas back in 08, Ive been trying everything I can to work with Jess Mauboy. Her response has mostly been Can I Get a Moment To Myself?!  but finally, the stars have aligned! Jess is a true star with a powerhouse voice and has a great personality to boot. J-Mau, youre going to be amazing. Lets show Europe what were made of!

One of Australias most successful female artists, Jessica is from Darwin with her mother from the Indigenous KuKu Yalanji tribe and her father from Timor. Her musical journey began in 2006 with Australian Idol, and since then shes sold over 3.4 million units globally, achieved five top 10 albums, 15 top twenty singles, four ARIA accredited Platinum selling albums and has won two ARIA Music Awards from 24 nominations. Her songs have been streamed globally 158 million times and her videos have been viewed globally 37 million times.

Jessica has been a strong campaigner for the welfare of Indigenous children, and has opened many doors for Indigenous performers.

The 2018 contest will mark Australias fourth year of competing in the event, following a remarkable record of three top ten finishes, with Guy Sebastians fifth place in 2015, Dami Ims second place in 2016, and Isaiah Firebrace coming ninth in the 2017 contest, which was held earlier this year in Kyiv, Ukraine. Since joining the competition, Australias results of 5th, 2nd and 9th put Australia second only to Sweden over the past three years.

The Eurovision Song Contest is the worlds largest television music competition and in 2017, the Semi Finals and Grand Final attracted 182 million* viewers worldwide and reached more than three million** Australians.

SBS has been the home of the Eurovision Song Contest in Australia for 35 years. Eurovision celebrates diversity and strengthens bonds between different cultures by bringing them together; united in a common passion for music.

In 2018, the Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted for the first time ever by Portugal, in its capital city of Lisbon, after Salvador Sobral won the 2017 competition with his love ballad Amar Pelos Dois.
Louise Momber and Michael Thomson will host Carols by Candlelight for Variety WA at Langley Park on Sunday.

The event includes Damien Leith, Harrison Craig, Suzie Mathers, Chris Murphy, Courtney Murphy, Nine News reporter Jerrie Demasi and Georgia from The Block.

But it wont be broadcast on air.

IGA Carols by Candlelight for Variety is my favourite event of the year. Its so wonderful seeing all the WA families come together to celebrate such a special tradition, Momber said.

Since I started hosting Carols Ive welcomed two daughters into the world. Seeing Christmas through the eyes of little ones is the best. It just gets more magical every year, she said.

Michael Thomson added: This is an incredible event, staged on one of the greatest parks by the Swan River. What a joy it is to see the kids faces light up when they see Santa arriving on stage.

The free event begins at 7pm with gates open from 3pm.
FILE PHOTO: Commuters pass by the front of the Bangladesh central bank building in Dhaka, Bangladesh on March 8, 2016. REUTERS/Ashikur Rahman/File Photo (Reuters)

DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh's finance minister said late on Saturday he wanted to "wipe out" a Philippines bank that was used to channel $81 million stolen from the Bangladeshi central bank's account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last year.

Abul Maal A. Muhith was responding to questions from reporters about a Reuters story on Friday that said Bangladesh Bank had asked the New York Fed to join a lawsuit it was considering filing against Manila-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp (RCBC) seeking damages.

"The Bangladesh Bank has taken a decision (on filing a suit). They will let me know. We haven't so far taken any steps as the Philippines government was taking care of it (investigating the heist)," Muhith said.

"But it seems Rizal bank has been playing delinquent. We want to wipe out Rizal bank from the world."

Muhith did not elaborate. He did not respond to requests seeking comment.

RCBC did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment on a Sunday about Muhith's comments.

Unidentified hackers stole the money using fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system. The money was sent to accounts at RCBC and then disappeared into the casino industry in the Philippines.

Nearly two years later, there is no word on who was responsible and Bangladesh Bank has been able to retrieve only about $15 million (11.2 million pounds), mostly from a Manila junket operator.

(http://reut.rs/2jk1W74)

The Philippine central bank fined RCBC a record one billion pesos ($20 million) last year for its failure to prevent the movement of the stolen money through it.

RCBC has said rogue employees were responsible and Philippine prosecutors have filed money laundering charges against a former RCBC bank manager and four people who owned the bank accounts where the funds were sent, but who are not identifiable since the accounts were in fake names. They are the only people to be formally cited anywhere in the world in association with the crime.

RCBC has said it would not pay any compensation to Bangladesh Bank and that the Dhaka bank bore responsibility for the theft since it was negligent.

(Reporting by Serajul Quadir, Krishna N. Das, Ruma Paul and Karen Lema; Editing by Toby Chopra)
Oh, the stories the Schram/Duggan clan can tell about pack mules, the backcountry and Mother Nature.

Seated around the kitchen table, Julie Schram, her daughter Christy Schram-Duggan and husband Ed Duggan fire off anecdotes about years of packing so quickly its tough to keep them straight. One involves packing in four boxes of dynamite, detonation cords and blasting caps, making sure that the explosives were on different mules.

Pete had the biggest load  we put 220 pounds on him because the rock drill weighed 110 pounds and we needed to keep it even, Schram recalls. We ended up going 22 miles and the last mile and a half they had snowdrifts up to their bellies. What happened was, there was a landslide and we couldnt go where the trail went, so we had to go down to this deep, steep spot with drifts still there. This was around the Fourth of July!

With the easy banter of family, they finish each others sentences while sipping coffee and tea.

We packed a 6-foot ladder in one time, Duggan said.

That was awkward, Schram-Duggan adds, laughing.

And then there was the 8-by-10-foot roll of canvas that we couldnt fold up, Duggan said. We took the pack boxes, loaded them up and put the roll on the pack box. It stuck out past the mules head and past her tail. We packed it on Lady  she looked at us like Really?

Theyve packed mules since they were in their teens, and all are members of the Bitter Root Back Country Horsemen, which works with the U.S. Forest Service to help maintain trails. Theyre also volunteers with the Montana Wilderness Association, packing in tools  and lots of food  for crews as they take care of those places where mechanized equipment isnt allowed.

MWA is a fun group, and have people come in from all over the country to work on the trails, Duggan said.

Remember the guy from New York last year? Schram-Duggan adds. And the guy from Texas who was a vegan? He was hard to wrap your head around. Hes from Texas and doesnt eat meat?

All three agree that the trail crews do amazing work, so they were surprised last week when they were honored by the MWA with the 2017 Continental Divide Trail Crew Volunteer award. Sonny Mazzulo, the MWA stewardship coordinator, noted that Schram and her late husband Dave have been helping out since 2008, and after Dave died in 2016, Schram, Schram-Duggan and Duggan picked up the slack.

Theyre damn good people, Mazzullo said. Much of the Forest Service and BLMs highest priority trail work is deep in the backcountry. Without the support of Backcountry Horsemen like the Schram-Duggan family, MWA would be unable to get crews into these areas to work.

The award also included Schram-Duggans two sons, John Renner, 10, and Beau Duggan, 12.

The award caught us totally off guard, Schram-Duggan said. When he said our name, he had to coax us to go up there for the award. I was like, Crap, we have to stand up.

They modestly counter that without the trail crews and their fellow High Country Horsemen groups, many hikers and horseback riders wouldnt be able to get into backcountry.

They do amazing work. Sometimes we ride in on a rough trail, and come in the next week to pack them out and you cant tell its the same trail, Schram-Duggan said.

Last summer, they packed in four out of the five Continental Divide trail projects; the fifth began at the trailhead. They take in bear-proof metal food boxes, most of the crews personal gear, tools and beverages. If the trail is 8 miles or less, theyll drop off the items, stick around for lunch, then head home. If its one of the longer trips  like 22 miles  they stay overnight.

Packing is a skill and an art rolled together, Duggan notes.

When the trail crews are finished, the family makes the return trip to pack them out.

And we always have cold beer for them when they come out, Duggan said.

And Gatorade, and Power-Ade, Schram-Duggan added.

They typically pack in with anywhere from six to nine mules and a handful of horses. In their pasture on a cold winter morning, where Schram-Duggan is the sixth generation, the livestock nuzzle them for scratches or watch warily.

Duggan says the mules all have distinct personalities. Lady is an old Forest Service mule and a diva who hates getting loaded but who is one of the best on the trail. Joe gets offended if hes not carrying the tool box, and will hit every tree on his way down the trail until he gets it. And dont put Pete and Joe together on the string.

One will go one way around a tree and the other goes the other way, Duggan said. With mules, especially these characters, theyll do things just because its quiet or boring.

And after listening to their stories and laughter, its clear that the Schram-Dugan clan takes after their mules more than theyd like to admit.
Flag of PetroVietnam (R) flutters next to Vietnamese national flag (C) and Communist Party flag in front of the headquarters of PetroVietnam in Hanoi January 11, 2016. REUTERS/Kham

Thomson Reuters

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam's crackdown on high level corruption has led to the arrest of dozens of officials from state oil firm PetroVietnam and the banking sector.

As well as shedding light on graft, mismanagement and nepotism within state firms at a time privatization is accelerating, the arrests show the ascendancy of a more conservative faction within the ruling Communist Party.

How many people are involved?

At least 51 have been arrested across PetroVietnam and the banking sector. Some have been tried and sentenced already. The most senior figure arrested is former PetroVietnam Chairman Dinh La Thang. He is the first former politburo member to face prosecution in decades. Neither he nor his lawyer was available for comment. Germany has accused Vietnam of kidnapping one PetroVietnam suspect, Trinh Xuan Thanh. More than 100 other officials are also under threat of prosecution or have been demoted or fired.

What is PetroVietnam?

PetroVietnam is a tangled enterprise of 15 direct units, 18 subsidiaries and 46 affiliates in which it owns smaller stakes. Hundreds of millions of dollars in losses have been racked up at units ranging from banks to construction firms and power plants to textile mills.

The scandals at PetroVietnam are connected to the banking sector through a deal in which the oil firm lost $35 million in an investment in Ocean Bank. The lender's former chief executive - a previous PetroVietnam chairman - was sentenced to death.

What does the crackdown mean politically?

It shows a concerted effort to rein in large-scale corruption through which some officials had secured massive personal wealth and tarnished the ruling party's image.

But it has also allowed the current Communist Party leadership to strengthen its hand under General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong after winning out in a power struggle with former prime minister Nguyen Tan Dung last year.

Whether or not the arrests go even higher, Trong's supremacy is assured through a term that lasts until 2021 and the faction is better placed to maintain its dominance even beyond.

Story continues

What divides the different groups in the ruling party?

Although the party presents a public image of unity, there are diverse views on everything from the pace and openness of reforms to Vietnam's delicate diplomatic balancing between China, the United States and other powers.

What best characterizes the current leadership is conservatism in preserving the party's absolute authority in close alignment with the security establishment.

It marks a change of style from the leadership under Dung and his allies, some of whom emerged as personalities in their own right and showed signs of readiness for greater political openness.

Alongside the corruption arrests, Vietnam has also arrested more bloggers, activists and other critics this year than in any other since a 2011 crackdown on youth activists.

How popular is the corruption crackdown?

Few tears are shed in Vietnam over the arrests of former officials, but there is also scepticism over the real motives. The day-to-day corruption of low-level officials and police is still a factor of Vietnamese life.

What impact has this had on PetroVietnam?

PetroVietnam's net profit margin in 2016 was its lowest in at least seven years at just over 7 percent from over 15 percent in 2009. The company told Reuters the oil price was the biggest factor, but it has also said failed projects, wrongdoing by officials and the investigations themselves had an impact.

PetroVietnam's shares are not listed on a stock exchange, but some of its units have underperformed its Thai peer PTT since 2009.

What does this mean for reform and privatization?

Although the crackdown points to the political strengthening of the party, the leadership has shown less sign of delaying economic reform than the previous administration.

Facing pressure because of its budget deficit, the government has accelerated plans to sell major stakes in the most attractive assets - brewery Sabeco and Vinamilk.

It is also selling stakes in three units of PetroVietnam.

Some economic and business analysts believe the fear among officials of being branded corrupt could further hold up bureaucratic decision making in state-run firms and ministries.

($1=22,710 dong)

(Reporting by Matthew Tostevin and Mai Nguyen; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

See Also:
FILE PHOTO: A security guard stands guard outside a branch of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) in Paranaque city, Metro Manila, Philippines August 2, 2016. REUTERS/Erik De Castro/File Photo

Thomson Reuters

DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh's finance minister said late on Saturday he wanted to "wipe out" a Philippines bank that was used to channel $81 million stolen from the Bangladeshi central bank's account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last year.

Abul Maal A. Muhith was responding to questions from reporters about a Reuters story on Friday that said Bangladesh Bank had asked the New York Fed to join a lawsuit it was considering filing against Manila-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp (RCBC) seeking damages.

"The Bangladesh Bank has taken a decision (on filing a suit). They will let me know. We haven't so far taken any steps as the Philippines government was taking care of it (investigating the heist)," Muhith said.

"But it seems Rizal bank has been playing delinquent. We want to wipe out Rizal bank from the world."

Muhith did not elaborate. He did not respond to requests seeking comment.

Unidentified hackers stole the money using fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system. The money was sent to accounts at RCBC and then disappeared into the casino industry in the Philippines.

Nearly two years later, there is no word on who was responsible and Bangladesh Bank has been able to retrieve only about $15 million, mostly from a Manila junket operator. (http://reut.rs/2jk1W74)

The Philippine central bank fined RCBC a record one billion pesos ($20 million) last year for its failure to prevent the movement of the stolen money through it.

RCBC has said it would not pay any compensation to Bangladesh Bank and that Dhaka bank bore responsibility for the theft since it was negligent.

RCBC did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment on a Sunday about Muhith's comments.

(Reporting by Serajul Quadir, Krishna N. Das, Ruma Paul and Karen Lema; Editing by Toby Chopra)

See Also:
DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh's finance minister said late on Saturday he wanted to "wipe out" a Philippines bank that was used to channel $81 million stolen from the Bangladeshi central bank's account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last year. Abul Maal A. Muhith was responding to questions from reporters about a Reuters story on Friday that said Bangladesh Bank had asked the New York Fed to join a lawsuit it was considering filing against Manila-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp (RCBC) seeking damages. "The Bangladesh Bank has taken a decision (on filing a suit). They will let me know. We haven't so far taken any steps as the Philippines government was taking care of it (investigating the heist)," Muhith said. "But it seems Rizal bank has been playing delinquent. We want to wipe out Rizal bank from the world." Muhith did not elaborate. He did not respond to requests seeking comment. RCBC did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment on a Sunday about Muhith's comments. Unidentified hackers stole the money using fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system. The money was sent to accounts at RCBC and then disappeared into the casino industry in the Philippines. Nearly two years later, there is no word on who was responsible and Bangladesh Bank has been able to retrieve only about $15 million, mostly from a Manila junket operator. (http://reut.rs/2jk1W74) The Philippine central bank fined RCBC a record one billion pesos ($20 million) last year for its failure to prevent the movement of the stolen money through it. RCBC has said rogue employees were responsible and Philippine prosecutors have filed money laundering charges against a former RCBC bank manager and four people who owned the bank accounts where the funds were sent, but who are not identifiable since the accounts were in fake names. They are the only people to be formally cited anywhere in the world in association with the crime. RCBC has said it would not pay any compensation to Bangladesh Bank and that the Dhaka bank bore responsibility for the theft since it was negligent. (Reporting by Serajul Quadir, Krishna N. Das, Ruma Paul and Karen Lema; Editing by Toby Chopra)
SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgaria has asked Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG to overhaul and maintain its 15 aged MiG-29 fighter jets in a four-year deal worth up to 81.3 million levs ($49 million), the country's defence ministry said on Monday.

NATO and EU member Bulgaria needs to keep its Soviet-era aircraft operational after plans to buy eight new fighter jets hit another snag.

The defence ministry will have to virtually restart the process and is yet to send requests for proposals to aircraft makers.

Main contenders remain Swedish manufacturer Saab's Gripen jets, Portugal and the United States with secondhand F-16s and Italy with secondhand Eurofighter Typhoons. Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov has said Bulgaria may also send a request to Boeing for F-18 aircraft.

(Reporting by Angel Krasimirov and Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
VIENNA (Reuters) - The European Union needs to consider regulating bitcoin, European Central Bank ratesetter Ewald Nowotny said on Monday, citing the risk of money laundering. The cryptocurrency has surged from $1,000 at the start of the year to above $16,000, and its futures jumped more than 20 percent to a high of $18,700 in their U.S. debut on Sunday night. The steep gains have prompted many to question its real value and ask whether a bubble has emerged, and central bankers are worried they will be blamed if the as yet unregulated market crashes. "Simply because of the scale, it is certainly increasingly necessary to discuss whether and in what form regulations are needed here," said Nowotny, who is also Austria's central bank governor. "A particular aspect that needs to be discussed ...is the question of how far the regulations on money laundering ...are relevant here," he told a news conference. While even small lenders were subject to strict controls on money laundering, it made no sense that even large bitcoin transactions could proceed without similar checks, he said, though this was a matter for the European Union rather than the ECB. The still relatively small scale of the market in relation to traditional currencies also meant the problem was not that it threatened the current monetary system, he said. Although there was no solid data, Austria appeared to be attracting companies selling bitcoin because it was perceived to be relatively easy to get a license to operate there, Nowotny told reporters. "We now have indications that we here in Austria have a more lax, a simpler regulation than in Germany... and we therefore also see a trend that such granting (of licenses) is increasingly shifting to Austria. And we have absolutely no interest in that," he said. Austria should at least match German regulations, he said, adding: "Ultimately we must settle this at the European level." (Reporting by Francois Murphy; editing by John Stonestreet)
BANGKOK (Reuters) - The European Union will resume political contact "at all levels" with Thailand, its foreign affairs council said on Monday, after putting relations on hold following a 2014 coup by the Thai military.

The move comes after Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha announced in October that a general election would take place in November 2018 - the most precise date the junta has given after many delays since the 2014 coup.

The government, however, has yet to end a political ban that would allow political parties to campaign ahead of the vote.

The EU is Thailand's third trade partner after China and Japan. Thailand is the EU's third-largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Thailand exported goods worth 19.6 billion ($23.11 billion) to the EU in 2015, according to the European Commission.

"The Council decided to resume political contacts at all levels with Thailand in order to facilitate meaningful dialogue on issues of mutual importance, including on human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the road towards democracy," the EU's Foreign Affairs Council said in a statement.

In June 2014, the EU said it would keep its relations with Thailand under review and put on hold the signing of a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA), which was aimed at closer economic and political ties with Thailand.

It has expressed concerns over freedom of expression in the country and has called for a swift return to democracy.

The signing of PCA and talks on EU-Thailand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) could resume with a democratically elected civilian government under the new Constitution, the statement said.

The United States also downgraded ties with Thailand following the coup, scaling back joint military exercises, among other things.

According to the European Commission, the EU exported goods worth 13.4 billion ($15.80 billion) to Thailand in 2015, including machinery and transport equipment.

(Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
By Andrea Shalal

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital did not justify the use of anti-Semitic slogans at rallies in Germany.

German police reported the burning of Israeli flags and use of anti-Semitic slogans at demonstrations against Trump's move in Berlin and other cities.

Merkel said that her government, which has criticised Trump's declaration, would fight xenophobia with full force.

"We condemn all kinds of anti-Semitism and xenophobia, and no disagreements, not even over the status of Jerusalem, justify such actions," Merkel told journalists after a meeting of the leadership of her Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Anti-Semitism remains a sensitive issue in Germany, one of Israel's closest allies, more than 70 years after the end of the Nazi-era Holocaust, in which 6 million Jews were killed.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Germany had a historic responsibility to stand by Israel and Jews everywhere.

"It's shameful when such open hatred of Jews is on display on the streets of German cities," he told a regular government news conference.

"Our laws on freedom of expression and assembly guarantee everyone a right to peaceful protest, but this right is no free pass for anti-Semitic atrocities, for incitement and violence."

STREET PROTESTS

Trump's decision caused consternation across the Arab world and among Western allies, and ignited street protests in the Palestinian territories and beyond.

On Sunday, about 2,500 people demonstrated in Berlin and one Israeli flag was burned, police said. They said they were investigating 11 people.

On Friday, hundreds of people gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. Police said they had brought criminal charges against 12 people, including for burning Israeli flags.

Seibert said other "isolated" incidents had been reported in Munich and other German cities.

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He also said it was wrong and unacceptable for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to have referred to Israel over the weekend as a "terror state".

Germany's foreign, justice and interior ministers have also condemned anti-Semitic acts and the burning of Israeli flags in interviews and on Twitter.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said Germany's ambassador to Kuwait had met Kuwaiti officials on Nov. 28 to discuss another issue that has raised concerns among Jewish groups.

A German court ruled last month that Kuwait Airways had the right to refuse to carry an Israeli passenger due to his nationality, saying German law forbade discrimination only on the basis of race, ethnic background or religion, not citizenship.

(Editing by Kevin Liffey)
HAMILTON  Larger wildfires and a longer fire season, less water for agriculture uses and an extended growing season are just a few of the changes residents are expected to experience due to the changing climate in Montana, climate experts told a Hamilton audience.

Eight people associated with the 2017 Montana Climate Assessment painted a largely bleak picture of the future of the region. Kevin Hyde with the Montana Climate Office told about 75 people in Hamilton last week that they can expect an increase in winter, spring and fall precipitation, and a decrease in the summer.

The area can expect moderate increases in precipitation, but that might not fall at the times best suited for current agricultural uses, Hyde added, noting that theyre forecasting more rain or snow in the fall, winter and spring, but less in the summer  quite similar to what occurred last year.

The 2017-18 winter forecast by state climatologists is calling for a La Nina, where we anticipate reasonably high precipitation and lower than normal temperatures, Hyde said.

But when and where that snow falls makes a difference. He said its higher in the mountains, with the snowline receding up the slopes over time and melting earlier and faster  two or three weeks earlier than it was 20 to 30 years ago.

The upside of that, according to Alex Leone with the Clark Fork Coalition, is that between a stable aquifer and the Painted Rocks Dam, the Bitterroot Valley is in a better position than most areas in Montana to store and release water when needed.

In the Clark Fork, we dont have a high-elevation dam, Leone said. I know dams are not really a popular thing, but maybe they need to be.

Bruce Maxwell, a professor of earth sciences at Montana State University, said the unfortunate part of the predictions is that while the agricultural growing season will be longer, the lack of water in the future may be an issue.

And that could be particularly problematic in eastern Montana.

Were forecasting well run out of irrigation water, so there are certain crops that will be at risk in eastern Montana: sugar beets, corn and soybeans in the irrigated valleys like the Mussellshell and Yellowstone, Maxwell said. The change in the number of days with temperatures over 90 degrees will have a huge impact in Montana because of how that could impact grasses.

 We had 22 days of over 90 degrees as the state average last summer. That will stretch into June, through August and in some cases into October. That will bring radical changes.

He expects the wetter springs and dry summers will lower yields for wheat, and that the warmer winters will be beneficial for weeds like cheat grass.

Youll need more and more water to produce the same amount of hay. Ive already had a lot of ranchers saying thats consistent with what theyre seeing, Maxwell said. Theyre not getting the same production as they used to with the same amount of irrigation.

He added that with wetter springs, farmers may find they cant get into the fields in a timely fashion to plant spring wheat, and it could flower in the middle of the hottest days. They wont be able to plant earlier, because of the frost in the fields.

Durum wheat seems to do better, Maxwell said.

Those hotter days and nights also will prove stressful for cattle, Maxwell said, noting that they need cool temperatures at night to recover from the hot days, and theyre seeing less of that

Thats become a big issue, Maxwell said.

In the Bitterroot, an increase in carbon emissions also may affect orchards, vineyards and vegetable farms, according to Zach Miller, superintendent of the Western Agricultural Research Center in Corvallis. While these plants show a brief and promising growth spurt upon initial exposure to carbon dioxide, it limits their ability to pick up other needed nutrients.

Greenhouses add CO2 all the time  but it also impacts pests. The weeds grow better and the insect damage often increases, Miller said. We also can get more bugs here that we dont have in the state as the winters warm.

Alisa Wade, a researcher at the University of Montana, said the climate changes also will increase the frequency and severity of wildfires, regardless of the water situation. But she noted that the forests have evolved, adapted and transformed over time, so its not like the trees dont have the capacity to respond.

However, the rate of change is such that theres the potential that some species will not be able to keep up and have serious declines, Wade said.

To read the full 308-page report or the executive summary, go online to http://montanaclimate.org/.
Fotos593 / shutterstock

In early December 2017 the United Nations Environment Programme in Nairobi announced a resolution on marine litter and microplastics. The move was widely welcomed as the emerging plastic oceans crisis has become starkly clear.

It is estimated that 8m tonnes of plastic waste finds its way in to the ocean each year, and it is notoriously difficult to remove. The impacts are increasingly apparent: great rafts of plastic are congregating in ocean gyres, blame games have broken out between neighbouring countries, and marine species face poisoning from the associated toxins.

There may even be direct risks for humans, especially the 400m or so poor people who depend critically on fish for their food. As yet fisheries are more threatened by over-exploitation and climate change, but we are now finding plastics in our marine ecosystems and even in food like mussles and oysters.

Timely  but not binding

Given the urgency of the problem, a more decisive global leadership is needed and so the UNs announcement is certainly timely. Its resolution on marine litter and microplastics is the first genuine global attempt to tackle the problem. It aims to eliminate marine litter in the long term, urging counties to take action by 2025, to prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds and encourages them to prioritise policies that avoid marine litter and micro plastics entering the marine environment. Among other promising points, an international working group will be set up to seek legally binding options to tackle marine litter, and it is encouraging to see that almost 40 countries have signed up to the voluntary #CleanSeas campaign since its launch in February 2017.

The elephant in the room here is the lack of any binding targets. Under pressure from key players like the US, China and India, UNEP has backed off putting in targets or binding commitments, although it was reported that the US was at least engaged in the discussions. It is worth noting that China is the biggest emitter of plastic marine litter and along with the US and India has a very large plastic manufacturing sector.

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Alarming parallels

There are alarming parallels with the past two decades of attempts to tackle climate change. Evidence that greenhouse gases emitted by human activities were causing more energy to be trapped in our atmosphere has been increasingly clear since the mid 1990s, but vested interests combined with the need for equitable treatment of developing countries means that progress has been painfully slow  so slow that it will now be much harder to stay within the 2C limit that scientists view as potentially manageable for future generations. Even now, while the evidence is clear and the impacts are painfully apparent round the world, the US has backed out of the 2015 Paris agreement.

But we are are capable of better. In the 1970s and 80s we faced another major environmental threat. Pollutants used in refrigerants (chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs for short) were damaging the ozone layer, which acts as a protective screen from the worst of the suns ultraviolet rays. Alarm bells were ringing as skin cancers increased, and scientists predicted a catastrophe within decades.

The ozone hole peaked in 2006 and has since been brought under control (gif: NASA)

That time, despite the now-familiar lobbying and stalling by industry, who argued that the science was uncertain and that more evidence was needed, the world got together. The Montreal Protocol was agreed in 1987 and since then the harmful chemicals have been phased out or managed more effectively. We have seen the ozone layer recovering towards pre-1980s levels and, in a positive unintended consequence, the phasing out of chemicals that are also potent greenhouse gases.

We humans have a mixed track record. The recovering ozone layer shows that we can, if we have the will and the leadership, get to grips with even the most wicked of environmental problems and turn things round. But, as our attempts to deal with climate change have shown, progress can be slow and getting everyone working together remains fraught with difficulty.

We should not forget that plastics have revolutionised our lives  I am typing this on a plastic keyboard, for instance, while wearing a plastic fibre fleece, and looking through plastic lenses in my glasses. Any change will be tough and could have economic consequences.

But however important plastic seems to our lives, we depend even more on the health of the oceans for our well-being and for that of the planet. Right now attempts to get the world together to deal with plastic waste and ocean pollution are at a crossroads; at least its good news we have made it this far.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

The Conversation

Malcolm David Hudson receives funding from the Blue Marine Foundation for research into microplastics and marine biodiversity. He is a member of Greenpeace, RSPB and the UK Wildlife Trusts
WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland's media regulator has slapped a 1.5 million zloty (310,805) fine on leading news broadcaster TVN24 over its coverage of protests in parliament last year, prompting accusations that it aims to muzzle free media.

Critics said the KRRiT media watchdog had punished the U.S.-owned broadcaster in an effort to mute its criticism of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party amid speculation the Polish state may take over TVN24.

Earlier this year Polish tax authorities demanded that TVN, TVN24's parent company, pay an allegedly unpaid 110 million zloty tax, claiming irregularities in a transaction when the group took over a rival in 2012. TVN is challenging the order.

"After a proceeding regarding the method of coverage of events in parliament on Dec. 16-18 (last year), KRRiT concluded that TVN SA, broadcaster of the TVN24 programme, infringed ... a law by promoting illegal activities and encouraging behaviour that threatens security," KRRiT said in a statement on Monday.

The media regulator did not spell out precisely how TVN24, the most widely watched independent broadcaster in Poland, had allegedly infringed the law in covering the protests.

TVN24, in a statement issued by its press office, said it strongly disagreed with the regulator's decision and would appeal against it in Polish courts.

"It is very disturbing that for reporting these types of events - the parliamentary crisis and society's response to it - one of the TV (stations) faces negative consequences," said Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights lawyer Dorota Glowacka.

"It may be perceived as a certain warning signal for other media that would like to report independently some events that are uncomfortable from the point of view of the ruling party."

Polish media extensively covered last year's protests in parliament including a blockade of the rostrum by opposition leaders after PiS imposed curbs on media access to the legislature.

Since winning election in late 2015, the PiS has been increasingly at loggerheads with the European Union over immigration quotas for EU member states and its placing of courts and media under increased state control.

(Reporting by Marcin Goclowski; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Iraqs military held a victory parade in Baghdad on December 10, a day after the Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi announced that the Islamic State had been driven from Iraq.

In this footage, soldiers stand in formation at the parade ground in Baghdad, spelling For you, Iraq, and Victory Day.

The Iraqi military offensive in Anbar province against the Islamic State began on October 26. Credit: Facebook/Media Office of the Prime Minister via Storyful
FILE PHOTO: Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen speaks during the New Year's Eve news conference in Taipei, Taiwan December 31, 2016. REUTERS/Fabian Hamacher (Reuters)

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan must boost its information security systems to protect against hackers who target the island's financial services and banking systems, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday, unveiling a three-pronged strategy against attacks.

Concern over Taiwan's information security has grown since a major bank had scores of its ATMs hacked in July last year. And in October, hackers targeted the money transfer system of Taiwan Far Eastern Bank.

Tsai outlined three information security goals, from creating a national system to building a team to ensure digital homeland security and promoting research and development as an aspect of national defence.

"Taiwan certainly has an urgent need to establish a sound information security protection system before it can increase the trust that people and businesses have towards the digital environment," Tsai told an information security event.

"With hacker attacks, Internet extortion and fraud, these will affect people's lives, social order, and even threaten national security."

She did not set a timeline for achievement of the security goals.

The threat of digital heists is rising as hackers adopt increasingly sophisticated tools and techniques, SWIFT, the global messaging system used to move trillions of dollars each day, warned last month.

In February, the island's stock exchange system also was attacked. The financial securities regulator had responded immediately with measures, Tsai said.

After Tsai took office, Taiwan had elevated information security to the level of national security, she added.

The government has since added another member to its national security team, while the executive yuan, or cabinet, has created an information security division.

(Reporting by Jess Macy Yu; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson addresses a news conference during a meeting of OSCE Foreign Ministers in Vienna, Austria, December 7, 2017. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

OTTAWA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to meet Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau next week for talks on how to address the crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons programme, an Ottawa source said on Monday.

Canada and the United States are due to co-host a meeting of foreign ministers in Vancouver in January to discuss North Korea.

North Korea has fired missiles over Japan as it pursues nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles in defiance of U.N. sanctions. Last week it said U.S. and South Korean military drills meant the outbreak of war was "an established fact".

During a day trip to Ottawa on Dec. 19 Tillerson will also meet Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, said the source, who requested anonymity because the meetings have not yet been formally announced.

A Canadian government source confirmed that Tillerson and Trudeau plan to meet but declined to give a precise date, saying scheduling issues still had to be worked out.

The U.S. embassy in Ottawa declined to comment. Freeland said last month that the Vancouver talks would show the unity of the international community in applying pressure on Pyongyang.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Andrew Hay and Jeffrey Benkoe)
HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam's crackdown on high level corruption has led to the arrest of dozens of officials from state oil firm PetroVietnam and the banking sector.

As well as shedding light on graft, mismanagement and nepotism within state firms at a time privatisation is accelerating, the arrests show the ascendancy of a more conservative faction within the ruling Communist Party.

(Graphic - PetroVietnam versus PTT: http://reut.rs/2yeNT7n)

How many people are involved?

At least 51 have been arrested across PetroVietnam and the banking sector. Some have been tried and sentenced already. The most senior figure arrested is former PetroVietnam Chairman Dinh La Thang. He is the first former politburo member to face prosecution in decades. Neither he nor his lawyer was available for comment. Germany has accused Vietnam of kidnapping one PetroVietnam suspect, Trinh Xuan Thanh. More than 100 other officials are also under threat of prosecution or have been demoted or fired.

What is PetroVietnam?

PetroVietnam is a tangled enterprise of 15 direct units, 18 subsidiaries and 46 affiliates in which it owns smaller stakes. Hundreds of millions of dollars in losses have been racked up at units ranging from banks to construction firms and power plants to textile mills.

The scandals at PetroVietnam are connected to the banking sector through a deal in which the oil firm lost $35 million (26.2 million) in an investment in Ocean Bank. The lender's former chief executive - a previous PetroVietnam chairman - was sentenced to death.

What does the crackdown mean politically?

It shows a concerted effort to rein in large-scale corruption through which some officials had secured massive personal wealth and tarnished the ruling party's image.

But it has also allowed the current Communist Party leadership to strengthen its hand under General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong after winning out in a power struggle with former prime minister Nguyen Tan Dung last year.

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Whether or not the arrests go even higher, Trong's supremacy is assured through a term that lasts until 2021 and the faction is better placed to maintain its dominance even beyond.

What divides the different groups in the ruling party?

Although the party presents a public image of unity, there are diverse views on everything from the pace and openness of reforms to Vietnam's delicate diplomatic balancing between China, the United States and other powers.

What best characterises the current leadership is conservatism in preserving the party's absolute authority in close alignment with the security establishment.

It marks a change of style from the leadership under Dung and his allies, some of whom emerged as personalities in their own right and showed signs of readiness for greater political openness.

Alongside the corruption arrests, Vietnam has also arrested more bloggers, activists and other critics this year than in any other since a 2011 crackdown on youth activists.

How popular is the corruption crackdown?

Few tears are shed in Vietnam over the arrests of former officials, but there is also scepticism over the real motives. The day-to-day corruption of low-level officials and police is still a factor of Vietnamese life.

What impact has this had on PetroVietnam?

PetroVietnam's net profit margin in 2016 was its lowest in at least seven years at just over 7 percent from over 15 percent in 2009. The company told Reuters the oil price was the biggest factor, but it has also said failed projects, wrongdoing by officials and the investigations themselves had an impact.

PetroVietnam's shares are not listed on a stock exchange, but some of its units have underperformed its Thai peer PTT since 2009.

What does this mean for reform and privatisation?

Although the crackdown points to the political strengthening of the party, the leadership has shown less sign of delaying economic reform than the previous administration.

Facing pressure because of its budget deficit, the government has accelerated plans to sell major stakes in the most attractive assets - brewery Sabeco and Vinamilk.

It is also selling stakes in three units of PetroVietnam.

Some economic and business analysts believe the fear among officials of being branded corrupt could further hold up bureaucratic decision making in state-run firms and ministries.

(Reporting by Matthew Tostevin and Mai Nguyen; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Shares of Infosys dropped sharply following reports that its chief executive and managing director, Vishal Sikka, has resigned with immediate effect following disagreements between the company and a group of its founders led by its former chairman, NR Narayana Murthy.

In a lengthy public resignation letter published on Friday, Sikka cited prolonged tensions with the founders which had become a major distraction for the top ranks of management at the New York- and Mumbai-listed Indian IT services giant.

He complained of "malicious and increasingly personal attacks [...] amplified by the very people from whom we all expected the most steadfast support," and that the constant "distractions" were frustrating his efforts to grow the company.

The firm's founders, who still owned 12.75% of Infosys, had criticised a pay rise granted to Sikka and the size of severance payouts given to other employees.

Sikka, who took the helm in 2014, was the first Infosys leader selected from beyond the company's seven original founders who over the course of three decades had rotated in the role of chief executive.

The firm announced that Infosys chief operating officer U. B. Pravin Rao would take over as interim chief executive, with Sikka staying as executive vice chairman until a permanent replacement was found, with a target date of March 2018.

In a statement, Infosys said: "The board understands and acknowledges Dr. Sikkas reasons for resignation, and regrets his decision.

"The board denounces the critics who have amplified and sought to further promote demonstrably false allegations which have harmed employee morale and contributed to the loss of the company's valued CEO."

Shares of Infosys were down by 9.39% to 925 rupees as of 1041 BST.
Supergroup , owner of the faux-Japanese fashion brand Superdry , announced full-year results for the 53 weeks to 30 April on Thursday.

On a comparable 52-week basis, revenue was up 21.3% to 590.1m, and underlying gross margin improved 60 basis points to 61.5%.

Underlying operating margin was 12.6%, down from 13.1%, though Supergroup claimed it was 13.6% excluding initial trading losses in key development markets.

The companys underlying profit before income tax was up 16.3% to 73.5m, while underlying basic earnings per share were up 21.8% to 72p, from 59.1p.

Supergroups full-year ordinary dividend was 23.2p, representing a 3.1x cover, with a first special dividend of 20p per share as well.

On a reported 53-week basis, revenue improved 22.8% to 597.5m with an underlying operating margin of 12.2% and profit before tax of 55.4m.

SuperGroup has made significant progress this year, delivering double digit growth in sales and profits, while maintaining momentum against all the elements of our strategy to build a global lifestyle brand, said Supergroup chief executive Euan Sutherland.

We are reaching more customers with a greater breadth of product and were delighted with the positive reaction to our womenswear offer and the innovations through Superdry Sport and the premium Idris Elba range.

Our commitment to deliver long-term sustainable growth is clearly evidenced by the 75% increase in our mainland European store footprint and our continued investment in infrastructure to support our growth plans, Sutherland added.

He said looking forward, and notwithstanding the current economic uncertainty, the company remained well-placed with a healthy committed new store pipeline in multiple geographies.

Sutherland said Supergroup was also making good early progress in the US and China, has a clear e-commerce momentum and looks forward to deliver the full-year impact from its product innovation.

The group is financially strong and readily able to fund our planned investment programme and our progressive dividend.

With high confidence in the brand and our strategy we will pay our first special dividend of 20p per share to all shareholders at the same time as the final ordinary dividend, Sutherland explained.
The FTSE 100 index was scuttling crabwise on Wednesday, as markets held their powder dry as Britain appointed a new Prime Minister later in the day and a day ahead of the Bank of England expected policy tinkering.

Commodities heavyweights Antofagasta, Glencore, BHP Billiton and Fresnillo dominated the upper echelons thanks in part to rebounding metals prices and adjustments of risk appetite.

As a major market for natural resources, China's economic data is always closely monitored by sector watchers. The trade surplus for the People's Republic narrowed to $48.11bn in June from $49.98bn a month earlier as exports fell.

Exports dropped 4.8% in June compared to a year ago following a 4.1% drop in May, according to the General Administration of Customs. Economists had expected a 5% decline. Imports decreased 8.4% year-on-year in June, more than the 6.2% slide expected by analysts, following a 0.4% fall in May.

The inability to boost exports is likely to increase the pressure on the yuan in the short term, which in turn could well see it decline further towards 6.80 against the US dollar, said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.

Burberry was strutting its stuff, with the shares sashaying more than 6% higher as its first-quarter sales were not as bad as feared. Like-for-like retail sales dropped 3% in the first quarter, beating the consensus 5% fall that had been forecast by analysts.

"In what remained a challenging external environment, underlying retail sales were flat in the first quarter," chief executive Christopher Bailey said, pointing to retail revenue being unchanged at the underlying level at 423m, indeed rising 4% at reported exchange rates. "In this context, we continue to focus on managing our business with agility whilst implementing the ambitious evolution of our strategies and ways of working we outlined in May, to position Burberry for long-term growth. These plans are now well underway and on track to deliver our financial goals."

Rolls-Royce was another riser as news emerged from the Farnborough Airshow. Chief executive Warren East said the engine maker could boost its profitability by 1bn if tough targets, in addition to cost cuts already identified by the company, can be hit. East told reporters he was pleased with the progress being made on his transformation plan for the engineering company, adding that it was on track to take between 150m and 200m of costs out of the business by 2017.

Goldman Sachs said their conversation with management had provided reassurance that the company has not yet seen the recent slowdown in widebody orders automatically translating into a need to trim production plans, though it could be needed if orders do not improve in the next 18-24 months. "Overall there is a path to improved cash flow, providing the XWB remains on track, however nearer term headwinds create heightened uncertainty. Improved engine parkings in H2 could alleviate some of this pressure."

House builders were among the fallers as Barratt Developments admitted the Brexit vote could slow the rate of building. The group revealed full year profit before tax was to increase by around 20% to 680m, in line with market expectations, but told reporters it could reduce the rate at which it builds houses due to a possible slowdown from Brexit. Total completions, including joint ventures, increased by 5.3% to 17,319, as a result of strong consumer demand during the financial year, the trading statement revealed.

But chief executive David Thomas told Reuters that contingency plans in place have resulted in management taking "appropriate measures to reduce our risk, such as reassessing land approvals, as we continue to monitor the market. Thomas added that Barratt would be looking at the extent to which we should slow down our build programmes, as well as whether or not to bid for land coming on to the market.

Market Movers

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Energizer Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes household batteries, specialty batteries, and lighting products worldwide. It offers lithium, alkaline, carbon zinc, nickel metal hydride, zinc air, and silver oxide batteries under the Energizer and Eveready brands, as well as primary, rechargeable, specialty, and hearing aid batteries. The company also provides headlights, lanterns, and children's and area lights, as well as flash lights under the Energizer, Eveready, Rayovac, Hard Case, Dolphin, Varta, and WeatherReady brands. In addition, it licenses the Energizer and Eveready brands to companies developing consumer solutions in gaming, automotive batteries, portable power for critical devices, LED light bulbs, generators, power tools, household light bulbs, and other lighting products. Further, the company designs and markets automotive fragrance and appearance products, including protectants, wipes, tire and wheel care products, glass cleaners, leather care products, air fresheners, and washes to clean, shine, refresh, and protect interior and exterior automobile surfaces under the brand names of Armor All, Nu Finish, Refresh Your Car!, LEXOL, Eagle One, California Scents, Driven, and Bahama & Co; STP branded fuel and oil additives, functional fluids, and other performance chemical products; and do-it-yourself automotive air conditioning recharge products under the A/C PRO brand name, as well as other refrigerant and recharge kits, sealants, and accessories. It sells its products through direct sales force, distributors, and wholesalers; and through various retail and business-to-business channels, including mass merchandisers, club, electronics, food, home improvement, dollar store, auto, drug, hardware, e-commerce, convenience, sporting goods, hobby/craft, office, industrial, medical, and catalog. Energizer Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri.
Representative Greg Gianforte  the wealthiest person in the U.S. Congress  voted for the House tax bill. This bill greatly benefits the top 1 percent of Americans with 80 percent of the cuts going to corporations, business owners and wealthy families. It adds $1 trillion to the deficit. Congress' Joint Committee on Taxation, the Congress' bipartisan analysis committee, issued a report saying this tax bill increases taxes for some 13.8 million moderate-income Americans. According to the latest Census report, the median household income in Montana was $49,509, which is lower than the U.S. median. So many in Montana will be among the 13.8 million with higher taxes. It would be very helpful for people in Montana if Rep. Gianforte held Town Hall Meetings  not just phone town halls where few can as questions and there is no discussion  to explain to us how this is good for Montanans and the country as a whole. The people of Montana deserve to know.
DECATUR  A little piece of Macon County has made it all the way to the White House, as ornaments handcrafted by local Girl Scouts are on now on display in Washington, D.C., in the National Christmas Tree Park.

The Girl Scouts of Troop 3200 were asked to create ornaments that are now hanging from the Illinois tree, on exhibit along with 55 other evergreens representing each U.S. state, territory and the District of Columbia in the White House President's Park. They decorate the walkway surrounding the National Christmas Tree, which was first lit in 1923.

I was surprised and everybody was excited, said Morgan Potter, 12, one of 46 Scouts who crafted the 12 ornaments. We researched and glued stuff. It was fun laughing and joking.

The tree-lighting ceremony was held on Nov. 30, in Washington D.C. with celebrity guests Kathie Lee Gifford, Dean Cain, The Beach Boys and Mannheim Steamroller in attendance. Unfortunately, no local Girl Scout or leader was able to attend the ceremony.

The trees and ornaments will be on display until Jan. 1, in the White House park.

Representatives from the National Park Service contact organizations requesting groups create ornaments for the national tree. The park service is responsible for the care of the White House and its grounds as well as more than 400 national parks.

Troop Leader MeLinda Potter, who is Morgan's mother, believes the group was approached because they are an active and large organization with 60 girls on the roster.

Potter was surprised by the troop's selection, and also with what the girls found in their research to create the designs. They began by looking into traditional designs such as the state bird, the cardinal, but Potter encouraged them to look further.

So instead, they found interesting history, she said. We chose to honor towns small and large, famous and infamous Illinoisans.

Each level of the Girl Scouts  from the youngest, Daisies, through Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors  investigated a different aspect of Illinois, including landmarks, symbols, inventions, presidents, foods, local lore, legends and other notorious characters. The themes are represented through collages glued inside the ornaments.

The girls learned about Illinois contributions to history, such as the countrys first skyscraper in Chicago, the giant catsup bottle in Collinsville and the two-story outhouse in Gays, Potter said.

They found a fire-breathing dragon was displayed on a wall in Alton, and it is still there, Potter said.

Morgan does not expect to see the ornaments again, but she is happy with where they are. They'll be in the National Archives afterwards, she said.

The girls as well as the leaders of the troop are honored to have a part of the national display.

We are proud to be from Illinois and we want to share that pride with everyone, Potter said. To be chosen to decorate the Illinois state tree is an amazing honor for our Girl Scout troop.
I am the one who falls. Its not him pushing me into temptation to then see how I have fallen, he said. A father doesnt do that. A father helps you to get up immediately. Its Satan who leads us into temptation. Thats his department.

Already, the pontiff noted, the Catholic Church in France tweaked the prayer this month so that it says do not let us fall into temptation and, according to several media accounts, he suggested Italian Catholics might want to do the same.

The Houston Chronicle reports that the idea has drawn a mixed reaction.

The newspaper quoted a 40-year-old lifelong Catholic named Donald Williams as saying, People dont like change. The religion has been around more than 2,000 years, and to make such a drastic change in the prayer  something people like me have been saying since I was 3 years old  its going to rock the church to the core, I think.

And yet he said he agrees with the motivation behind a wording change.

Maybe some people do need to be a little more accountable for their temptations and sins, he said.

The Lords Prayer appears in the Bible in the book of Matthew, in which Jesus tells his disciples, This, then, is how you should pray, before reciting the famous words. The prayer is a translation from the Latin vulgate, which was translated from ancient Greek, which, in turn, was translated from Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus.

Not all Christians use the exact same version of the Lords Prayer. For example, English-speaking Catholics use trespasses and many Protestants use debts.
Noem tells NYT former President Trump doesn't offer 'best chance' for GOP

In an interview with The New York Times, Gov. Kristi Noem spoke about her reservations about former President Donald Trump announcing his bid for re-election.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

If you want to see the future, look to Valencia County. A majority of voters there have chosen the winning candidate in every presidential election since 1952, according to the U.S. Election Atlas, a longer streak than any other place in the country. They anticipated Trumps surprising win over Clinton. But could they have predicted that their community  known for centuries as a mostly rural expanse with a modest agricultural industry  would become one of the bright spots in New Mexicos economy?

For Lucero Chavez, owner of the Los Lunas-based New York Barber Salon, the recent uptick in activity has been surprising, but welcome.

We are really busy, she said. Its a lot of people who work at Facebook, on the data center there.

Economic development officials describe Facebook as the crown jewel in a triad of recent successes for the county. The social media company announced in September of last year it had chosen Los Lunas as the site of its new data center, an investment now predicted to top $1 billion. A few weeks later, bottled water supplier Niagara Bottling said it, too, was coming to Los Lunas. Then early this year, manufacturer Keter Plastics announced it would move into the long-vacant Solo Cup plant in Belen.

Those projects have impacted other sectors of the local economy: Several chain restaurants and gas stations are moving into the county to accommodate increased traffic, and gross receipts tax revenue in Los Lunas is up by nearly $2 million, largely as a result of Facebooks construction activity (though some of that will be reimbursed to the company; see sidebar).

For a lot of these businesses, its very much a game of follow the leader,  said Ralph L. Mims, Los Lunas economic development manager. This is just the beginning.

Much to offer

Mims said Valencia County has much to offer big businesses, particularly those with operations that require large tracts of land. The land is often cheaper than more densely populated areas in New Mexico, and because much of that property is owned by a few landowners, property purchase negotiations are streamlined, Mims said. Places like Los Lunas also have something many other rural areas cant offer: an abundance of undeveloped land in tandem with sewer access, waterlines, and other infrastructure.

Steven Tomita, Belens planning and economic development manager, said transportation is also a key component of the countys appeal. Albuquerque and the Sunport are a short drive on I-25, and the Rail Runner can be ridden from Belen to Santa Fe. A rail hub is in development in Los Lunas, and Belens railroad infrastructure has long been one of its most important assets.

Keter told us they were originally looking at coastal cities, but started looking at Belen because of our rail network, Tomita said. That type of transportation network is crucial for a big manufacturer.

Valencia County has another attraction, too, one that garners more controversy than its infrastructure or transportation offerings: Its officials have shown that they are willing to offer businesses millions of dollars in incentive packages in conjunction with the state. Executives at Facebook, which received $10 million in Local Economic Development Act funding, a gross receipts tax reimbursement, and a hefty property tax break, have consistently cited the ease of doing business in Los Lunas as the primary reason the company chose New Mexico over the other state they were considering for the data center, Utah. In Utah, incentive negotiations stalled as public officials questioned a potential package they saw as too generous.

Matt Geisel, New Mexicos economic development secretary, said incentives are one of the ways the state is able to close the gap between itself and competitors. As for tax abatements and rebates, they reflect revenue that wouldnt have happened if the development didnt happen, he said.

Momentum, not a cure

While the countys recent success has been a boon for village coffers and local businesses, Valencia still grapples with the problems that have plagued it for decades. Census data from 2015, the most recent year for which statistics are available, show that nearly 11 percent of Valencia County households live far below the poverty line on $10,000 annually; Advocates for the poor say that thousands of households are struggling to survive today.

And crime is still a problem. Valencia, with a population of about 76,000, is the sixth-most populous county in the state, but it is second only to Bernalillo County for violent crimes, according to a 2016 FBI report.

But Mims said economic development is key to addressing the countys other issues.

Its about creating jobs and opportunities for our young people, said Mims. That impacts crime, that impacts services, that impacts everything else.

To create those jobs, the county has had to take careful inventory of its assets and learn how to market them. Geisel said one of the countys greatest achievements has been showcasing those assets to businesses that might not have considered looking outside big cities.

Its a case study, he said.

In other words, the rest of the country may look to Valencia County in 2020 during the next presidential election. But New Mexicans are watching the community now to see what it portends for the rest of the state.
If David Hockmuth invites you to dinner at his Los Lunas home, proceed with caution.

The new top official at Wells Fargo Bank, who doubles as something of a food connoisseur, wields a mean blowtorch.

But its all in the service of the creme brulee, one of Hockmuths favorite desserts.

You can bake it under the broiler, but I think the blowtorch makes it a little bit more interesting, he said. The blowtorch is a little mini one. It caramelizes the sugar.

Hockmuth, who became Wells Fargo regional president in July, has other ways to unwind, as well.

Hockmuth says he is writing a novel, although he wont provide details other than to say its about life. Hes got a working title, but he wont reveal that, either.

Its kind of secret to me, he said. I dont want to jinx it, because if I share too much then I feel like I wont complete it.

Lately, though, the effort has taken a back seat to career and family.

Hockmuth has a 20-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old son whose homework load is fairly hefty.

Trying to find work/life balance between my professional career and home/life balance and then supporting his academic endeavors  is what Im doing on the weekends, Hockmuth said.

On the career side, the 51-year-old banker has been in the business for a long time.

It all started in New York, when Hockmuth was on a pre-law track at New York University, with a double major in history and English. But he needed to pay the bills, so he took a fairly entry-level job at J.P. Morgans American Depository Receipts desk, dealing with investments in foreign markets.

He describes the job as very interesting and kind of bewildering to a 20-year-old who had the courage to get up out of New Mexico and go see the world.

It turns out he was good at being a banker.

You kind of fall into banking and then you realize that maybe you have a talent at it and you start to determine that youve got an opportunity to help a lot of people in various ways, he said.

Hockmuth stayed in New York for about seven years and came back to New Mexico in 1992.

Among his goals for his new position is to restore faith and trust at Wells Fargo.

Hockmuth was the companys area president in New Mexico when controversy broke out over millions of fraudulent accounts opened across the country using fictitious or unauthorized customer information.

The bank has since shelled out more than $300 million in fines as well as settlement costs associated with a class-action suit. Then-CEO John Stumpf retired, and other executives nationwide were ousted.

The bank at the time said about 1,000 account-holders in New Mexico were charged a fee to cover accounts they hadnt signed up for, and those people were refunded a total of $25,825.

This month, New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas announced his office has been investigating Wells Fargo for more than a year and is demanding the company pay restitution to customers in the state.

Hockmuth said when the first disclosures were made last year, I was heartsick. It was bewildering and tough, but I think we are making great progress.

You have been or are on the board of the Red Cross and Pennies for the Homeless, so you are something of a do-gooder on top of your day job.

I try to be.

What motivates you and why those two groups in particular?

Well, Pennies for the Homeless has been an organization that Ive been affiliated with through the years. But helping those in need has been kind of near and dear to my heart, especially given all the blessings Ive received in my profession and career so (I like) to be able to support the underprivileged. 

Red Cross approached me when I was in Valencia County, and thats where we live, obviously. Many years ago, in 2004, I became community bank president in Belen and had oversight of Valencia County and that building happened to house the Red Cross and we started in some conversations about how I could get involved with the Red Cross and again wanting to help and support people in need.

You mentioned your faith. Thats important to you?

Of course. Ive been a devoted Catholic all my life and a parishioner of Immaculate Conception Church.

Tell me about your family.

Well, Im married to my lovely wife, Cassandra, and weve been married now for 11 years. We have two beautiful children, Alleyne and Kevin. Kevin is currently 12 and Alleyne is 20, and Alleyne is kind of getting launched here a little bit and Kevin is a lot of joy and a lot of work, but its so rewarding and I wouldnt trade it for the world.

What was your very first job?

My first work for pay was mowing lawns and cutting down pyracantha bushes in the local neighborhood when I was a kid. The first official job that I held where I was actually on a payroll was for a business owned by my aunt and uncle known as Mueller Aero Service at the Albuquerque International Airport.

What do you cook?

Well, as a bachelor, I loved good food. Its a matter of necessity these days because my wife does not cook. We would be in trouble if we relied on my wifes cooking because she burns water. I love a variety of cuisines. 

I just cant imagine a food lovers life without French cooking. I think its just your baseline, which everything kind of springs from. Interestingly enough, I also have an appreciation for Russian cuisine, but that came from my years in New York when I lived there after high school. The Russian Tea Room, you may have heard of  was frequented by the likes of Yul Brenner, and while I was going to school and working in New York, I frequented the Russian Tea Room and acquired their cookbook and I love making things like beef stroganoff and their borscht, stuff like that.

What do you write?

Ive written nothing published, but I certainly enjoy writing poetry, short stories, and Ive got a novel half-way finished. But thats been a little bit buried.

Whats the last great book youve read?

Im in the short stories right now of Somerset Maugham, and I am thoroughly enjoying those. A lot of those are set in the South Pacific pre-World War II and coming up on World War II. I just took a family trip with the wife and kids to Hawaii, and so it was good reading for the beach. I love a little bit of nostalgia. I think sometimes thats missing in this age of technology. I think its always interesting to look back on history and gain perspective and sometimes being able to bring that forward and put that into your present thinking. Some of those lessons learned.

Whats the best compliment youve ever received?

Thats a bit of a tough one. My father passed away a few years ago. And he was on his way out, and I was really worried about him. I was headed to El Paso on a business trip, and I was talking to him. I didnt know that he was on his way out, and I was trying to convey to him how concerned I was about him, and he said, David, Im stronger with you in the world. That was one of the best compliments Ive every gotten.

Any pet peeves? What makes you crazy?

Laziness.

Do you have any superstitions?

I do. Ill avoid walking under a ladder. I really dont like a hat on the bed.

If you could wave a magic wand and have an extra hour every day what would you do?

To concentrate on family, for sure. I think thats an important reminder to us all to strike that work/life balance.
NEW YORK  Small businesses are getting notices about their premium and coverage changes for 2018, and some are making adjustments because of that.

The changes vary depending on the state where a company is located, how many employees it has and how comprehensive its insurance is. But many owners are facing rate increases of double-digit percentages or dramatically reduced coverage  or both.

Health insurance consultants expect more owners to rethink their strategies beyond 2018 and choose alternatives like paying for claims themselves or adding health services that can lower costs.

Workshop Digitals premiums are soaring 55 percent, and co-founder Brian Forrester says the business will be less profitable as it absorbs that. He may have to ask the Richmond, Va.-based marketing agencys staffers to pay more for coverage in the future.

As small-business owners learn what their 2018 health insurance costs will be, some are considering providing different types of coverage for their employees.

Companies are receiving notices of premium and coverage changes for 2018. The changes vary, depending on factors including the state where a company is located, how many employees it has and how comprehensive its insurance is. But many owners are seeing rate increases of double-digit percentages, finding dramatically reduced coverage, or both. Health insurance consultants expect more owners to rethink their strategies beyond 2018 and choose alternatives like paying for claims themselves or adding health services that can lower costs.

Gail Traucos insurer is eliminating her companys policy known as a preferred provider organization, or PPO, replacing it with a health maintenance organization, or HMO, a change that would limit the choice of doctors for her five employees. Her annual costs were scheduled to rise nearly $10,000 in 2018.

The HMO was a deal-breaker, says Trauco, owner of The PharmaKon, which helps coordinate clinical drug trials.

Its important for a patient to choose a physician they can have a good relationship with, says Trauco, whose business is based in Barnesville, Ga. Trauco hired a health insurance broker who helped her find a PPO with a different carrier, and shes saving enough money to add dental coverage.

Some owners say they may not be able to keep shielding their staffers from rising health costs.

Workshop Digitals premiums are soaring 55 percent, and co-founder Brian Forrester says the business will be less profitable next year as it absorbs the increase. He may have to ask the Richmond, Va.-based marketing agencys 30 staffers to pay more for coverage in the years ahead. The company currently pays 83 percent of medical insurance, 90 percent of vision care and 52 percent of dental coverage.

We never plan on removing our coverage or reducing the type of coverage we offer, but the out-of-pocket costs for our team may have to go up over time, Forrester says.

Under the Affordable Care Act, companies with fewer than 50 employees arent required to offer insurance, but many do because they feel its right or because it helps them compete for and retain top workers. Fifty percent of companies with three to 49 workers have offered health benefits this year, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, which studies health care trends. That compares with 53 percent of all employers, and is little changed from the previous three years.

James Bernstein, an executive at benefits consulting firm Mercer, says many offer employees a choice of plans to serve staffers needs but also keep their own costs in line.

What theyre saying is, a one-plan-fits-all strategy does not work, especially with a multigenerational workforce: millennials, young families, baby boomers, Bernstein says.

A Mercer survey found many small businesses are considering coverage that has a higher deductible and in turn, lower premiums. These plans shift more costs to employees, but many owners contribute money to Health Savings Accounts, or HSAs, to help staffers pay medical expenses. The combination of a high-deductible plan and an HSA is known as a consumer-driven health plan, because it allows people to determine where they spend their health dollars.

Mercer found about a fifth of companies with 50 to 199 employees and 37 percent of companies with 200 to 499 workers plan to offer consumer-driven plans as a choice in the next three years. Those with 10 to 49 workers are less inclined to do so; only 10 percent said they will offer one.

Employers health care costs have been rising for decades, not only since the ACA mandated minimum levels of insurance coverage in 2014. Health care costs at W.H. Christian soared between 150 percent and 180 percent over nine years, says Scott Christian, director of operations for the New York-based company that sells and rents work uniforms.

W.H. Christian ended the spiral last year, switching to whats called self-funded coverage for its 72 staffers. In self-funding, a company sets aside money to pay employees claims rather than have an insurer do so. It buys stop-loss insurance or reinsurance to pay claims in case employees submit more claims than expected.

Money was just one factor in the change, Scott Christian says. The company saw the quality of its coverage declining, with doctor networks shrinking; it kept switching carriers in hopes of better coverage, but each renewal offer was a disappointment.

The main driver was we wanted to give our employees a good plan, Christian says. That seemed more and more impossible to provide given where the health insurance universe was going.

The number of small businesses that self-fund is small  15 percent of workers covered by insurance are in self-funded plans, versus 79 percent in large companies, according to the Kaiser foundation. Self-funding can be particularly beneficial for a company with a young and healthy staff, says Craig Scurato, a vice president with Leslie Saunders, an insurance and benefits broker based in Lutz, Fla.

Scurato also sees a growing interest in nontraditional medical services like direct primary care practices, doctors offices that provide medical services including examinations and laboratory testing. The company pays a flat fee per month; insurance companies are not involved.

Midwest Scrap Management was interested in health services that would help it save money when it switched to self-funding in March  one of the plans appeals was that the metal processor would have more say over what its coverage would include, Chief Financial Officer Craig Ward says.

The Kansas City, Mo.-based company offers its 120 employees 24/7 access to telemedicine, allowing them to consult with clinicians and get advice and prescriptions when they dont feel well. It costs less than office visits. Midwest Scrap Management also offers biometric screening, which among other things measures cholesterol and blood sugar levels, letting staffers know if theres a problem.

The company has saved $20,000 off its projected health care costs since it switched, Ward says. And because an insurer is no longer in charge, theres no mystery about where the companys money is going.

When you get a renewal every year from a traditional carrier, they tell you what your rate increase will be, but you never get a reason why, Ward says.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

Barely an hour after a sheriffs deputy aimed his pistol at a motorcyclist, one among a large group ride doing stunts amid traffic, a department lieutenant broached the idea of hitting motorcycles in similar incidents in the future.

Lt. AJ Rodriguez, along with others in the department, were emailing after the Oct. 7 incident in which deputies reported that the motorcyclists aggressively surrounded them, blocked them in, and made threatening hand gestures. They say a rider in a pink shirt got so close to the deputies unit he could have rammed it, prompting the deputy to point his gun.

But a video taken by a rider in the group  which Rodriguez and others saw before emailing one another  casts the deputies report into question.

Still, Rodriguez writes to his captain that the deputies were in a borderline deadly-force situation and if similar incidents happen again, he would approve hitting the bikes, to create safe space  if the deputies are being actively blocked in by motorcycles.

Deputy Felicia Maggard, spokeswoman for the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office, said the emails obtained by the Journal show the department trying to figure out what happened so we could put out a press release.

But what exactly happened in that incident is still unclear.

Maggard said the incident is being investigated internally and she cant comment in order to avoid influencing it. She said department policies have not changed and policy does not address running over motorcyclists.

No changes to our policy have been made, Maggard said. But upon completion of this (Internal Affairs investigation), if the sheriff decides to make some policy changes, this could be an outcome.

Sheriff Manuel Gonzales III said in a news conference two days after the incident that the deputy was likely justified in pointing his gun at the rider.

Driving a motorcycle on one tire is a traffic violation, and deputies are allowed to use a show of force according to our standard operating policies, he said.

But at that time, he said he had not seen the riders video.

To video or not

Plenty of other people, though, did see the 24-second video taken by one of the riders.

It spread widely online, prompting an overwhelming number of responses and messages from our community, Maggard said in a news release the day after the incident.

While many of those comments shamed the disruptive motorcyclists, even more derided the sheriffs department.

Numerous comments online held hope that video from BCSO dash cameras or body cameras would tell more of the story.

But BCSO does not require its deputies to use body cameras to record contacts with the public, and only three cruisers are outfitted with dash cams.

Gonzales said last month that he opposes cameras, because he believes they dont increase safety and that video can be used against his department.

At the news conference, he urged the public not to jump to conclusions based on a snapshot of what happened that day.

Its just out of hand

On that Saturday afternoon, 911 operators received three calls from drivers who said a large group of motorcyclists, maybe 20, 50 or 100 of them, was disrupting traffic in a large group ride all the way from Paseo and Coors east to Tramway then south.

They were doing wheelies, blocking intersections to allow the group to stay together, weaving between cars, and even slowing down in all lanes of traffic to give riders ahead safe space to do tricks.

Its just out of hand  it pisses me off, thats why Im calling, one of the three 911 callers tells dispatchers.

Deputies Daniel Mauricio and Bradley Maestas, already in the Foothills area, were at the CVS and 7-Eleven on Tramway and San Bernardino when they say in their reports that they saw the motorcyclists passing by.

So they jumped into Maestas patrol unit and pulled into the middle of the pack of motorcyclists, a detail not disputed by motorcycle group riders who spoke with the Journal.

But there are several versions of what happens next.

Traffic infraction or not?

Rodriguez writes in his email that deputies pulled out and hit the siren, just as a warning to stop being reckless.

Maestas writes that he engaged my emergency equipment while behind a rider in pink who at this time was doing a handless wheelie, but he disengaged because I can not pursue a motorcycle for traffic infractions.

But in Deputy Mauricios report, the initial press release and an email from Capt. Broderick Sharp, the deputies are said to have attempted a traffic stop, which the motorcyclists ignored.

Deputies and their superiors would later cite disregard for the traffic stop to justify, in part, Mauricios show of a firearm.

This part of their reports is not captured on the video clip, but some of what they say happened next is.

Surrounded

Mauricio says in his report that it felt like a cage in the water surrounded by sharks on the fear of being assaulted as motorcyclists surrounded their unit.

In the initial department press release, the department says, The motorcycles completely surrounded their patrol unit and began directing what deputies know to be gang related signs in their direction.

But the video clip shows the deputies vehicle traveling in the right lane of Tramway heading south with vehicles and motorcycles almost indiscernible in the far background. No motorcycles are clearly visible on either side of the vehicle, though it is possible one is to the left of the unit as it pulls from behind a rider in a pink shirt, straddles the lanes, and drives up beside the pink rider.

Pink rider

That rider is mid-wheelie as the deputies unit pulls alongside him and Mauricio rolls his window down.

Mauricio points his gun, one-handed, at the rider, who comes down out of the wheelie. He appears to speed ahead as the rider taking the video fumbles the camera and the video ends.

Maestas says in his report that the pink rider became parallel with my unit and was within feet of the passenger side. He says there was no way for him to drive away from the group.

The deputies sergeant, Dave Priemazon, says in his email to his bosses that he had just watched the video with the deputies, and explains the incident like this:

The motorcycle driver got close to the passenger door causing Deputy Mauricio to draw his weapon for his safety, in fear of the suspect attempting to ram (suspect in pink shirt) motorcycle into the patrol unit.

Rodriguez says in his email to his bosses that the riders slowed, surrounding the unit and the rider in pink did a wheelie next to the passenger side of the unit, so close, the deputy could have reached out and touched it. Because of that, he drew his pistol.

The final news release says, A deputy in the passenger side drew out his duty weapon, because he was in fear of an immediate and impending battery.

Blocked in

What Maestas says happens next was not captured by the video clip.

Soon after my unit was surrounded by the very large group of motorcycles and I was unable to speed up or slow down without the fear of possibly hitting one of the riders, he writes.

He reported that motorcyclists also flipped the deputies off and made gun gestures with their hands.

Motorcyclists on the ride told the Journal that indeed they did flip the deputies off after the gun was pointed at them. They said they did not intentionally surround the vehicle.

Rodriguez, in his email, says the riders nearly brought the unit to a stop, which is especially troubling because as you know, many of these guys are armed, which is my biggest concern.

No complaint

The rider in pink has not come forward to talk to the sheriffs department or file a complaint or report, Maggard said.

Sheriff Gonzales said the motorcyclist would have to come forward for them to proceed with an investigation into the deputys use of force, but he said he wouldnt be surprised if riders do not come forward out of fear of being charged criminally because you were out there lawlessly driving in the streets and you might be identified as a criminal network.
Luis Valentino, Albuquerque Public Schools controversial former superintendent, has won a lucrative three-month contract with the Portland school system.

Valentino will earn $45,000, along with about $5,000 for expenses, to help Portland Public Schools Office of Teaching and Learning work on a strategic plan, according to documents provided by the district. His employment term runs from Dec. 4, 2017, to Feb. 28, 2018.

Portland Public Schools spokesman Dave Northfield declined to answer additional questions about Valentinos hiring, but emailed a statement praising his experience.

We are grateful that Dr. Valentino is bringing his 30 years of expertise in educational leadership to help PPS during a critical period of transition as we build our permanent team, Northfield said. He has provided critical leadership in the San Francisco Unified School District, where he built a division of curriculum and instruction.  Dr. Valentino also excelled as a leader in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Valentinos time at APS was less successful.

After a two-month tenure, he resigned in August 2015 with an $80,000 buyout amid revelations that his hand-picked deputy was facing child sex assault charges in Denver.

Jason Martinez, former APS deputy superintendent, repeatedly dodged a mandatory criminal background check that would have flagged his legal issues. He was found not guilty after two trials.

Valentino also tangled with Don Moya, then APS chief financial officer, over proposed departmental audits.

In a notorious errant text, Valentino attempted to tell then-Secretary of Education Hanna Skandera that he planned to go after Moya for running roughshot. The text accidentally went to Moya, who distributed it to the media, and was promptly placed on paid administrative leave.

Moya filed a whistleblower lawsuit in August 2015, contending that he experienced retaliation for speaking out against taxpayer waste and questionable ties between Martinez and a potential vendor.

The lawsuit settled in November. Terms are confidential for six months.

APS and Mr. Moya have reached an agreement to resolve his lawsuit, Kate Ferlic, Moyas attorney, said in a statement. Both parties are happy to put the events of 2015 behind them and are moving forward in a positive direction.

Moya now works as a finance director for Santa Fe County.

Valentino declined a request for comment.

Since leaving APS, Valentino has opened the Valgar Institute, an education knowledge network that includes book publishing, a daily digest of education news and a podcast.
WHEATON (AP)  A man has been sentenced to 100 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 63-year-old suburban Chicago woman in 1999.

Forty-one-year-old Roberto Noyola-Espinal was convicted earlier this year of home invasion and aggravated criminal sexual assault, thanks to a DNA sample he gave years after the crime.

DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin says in February of 1999, Noyola-Espinal forced his way into the woman's Lisle home and attacked her. Berlin says investigators collected DNA evidence and entered it into a federal database. But it didn't match any DNA profile in the system.

Then in 2013, Noyola-Espinal was arrested in Houston when he tried to re-enter the U.S. illegally from Mexico. The DNA sample taken matched the evidence collected in 1999. Noyola-Espinal was extradited to DuPage County to stand trial.
Kristin Dowling enjoys the many challenges in life.

As co-owner of Albuquerque-based Rude Boy Cookies, theres the challenge of having a constant deadline in creating the sweet treats.

Little did she know that it would prepare her for her time on the Food Networks Christmas Cookie Challenge.

It was so scary, she says of being on the show. Being in front of cameras was what scared me. I bake under pressure all the time at work with large orders. But now Im going to be seen by millions of people. Thats what is scary.

Dowlings episode airs at 8 tonight on Food Network.

The premise for the show is simple  four talented cookie makers are given a theme, then some time to make cookies. There are two rounds judged by Damiano Carrara, Ree Drummond and Jamika Pessoa. After the two rounds are over, one baker remains the victor. Oh, not to mention a $10,000 check.

Dowling was cold-called by Food Network producers about appearing on the show a few months ago.

It took about two months of Skype interviews and recipe tests before she was selected for the show.

When it was time to participate in the episode, she was flown to New Orleans for a couple days  one of those was a long day of filming.

It was there she competed against four other bakers with the theme of Spice Up Your Christmas.

It was perfect for this New Mexico girl, she says with a laugh. I couldnt have been on a more perfect episode because I like spices.

Dowling was born in California but grew up in Farmington and Albuquerque.

Before becoming co-owner of Rude Boy Cookies with Mike Silva about three and a half years ago, she was a culinary student.

And her love for making cuisine has been lifelong.

Ive always loved spending time in the kitchen, she says. I went straight from culinary school to owning my own business. Its been a learning experience for sure.

Dowling would participate in another competition if it came around because she had a great experience.

I got an opportunity to be around people who have the same passion as I do, she says. It was amazing to be in a competition with them.

To celebrate Dowlings episode, Rude Boy Cookies will host a viewing party from 7:30-9 tonight at Robs Place at ONeils Pub in Nob Hill, 4310 Central SE, Suite C.

On TV

Albuquerque resident Kristin Dowling will appear on Food Networks Christmas Cookie Challenge, airing at 8 tonight.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

University of New Mexico officials say a planned change to Medicare payments could have a devastating impact on the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center, eliminating more than $9 million in annual revenue  or nearly 10 percent of its total budget.

A federal rule finalized Nov. 1 and scheduled to take effect Jan. 1 would dramatically reduce drug reimbursement rates for hospitals in the 340B Drug Pricing Program. The program allows qualified hospitals like UNM to buy drugs from the manufacturers at significant discount, while still getting Medicare Part B reimbursements at 6 percent above the average sales price. Its a system designed to help certain institutions stretch scarce federal resources as far as possible, reaching more eligible patients and providing more comprehensive services, according to its online description. Only some institutions benefit, including those treating a high volume of low-income patients or those operating in underserved or rural areas.

The change will hit 15 hospitals around the state, according to information compiled by the New Mexico Hospital Association. UNM will sustain the biggest loss according to the estimates, but it will also cost others, including Presbyterian, Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe and Nor-Lea in Lovington.

The new policy would cut the reimbursement rate for drugs bought under 340B to 22.5 percent below the average sales price, erasing the cushion UNM says it uses to cover uncompensated care, fund research and support outreach.

Rough estimates pin the total statewide impact at more than $23 million, according to NMHA figures.

It has stoked alarm around UNM, with Dr. Cheryl Willman, the cancer centers director and CEO, describing it as devastating. It could force programmatic cuts that might put at risk UNMs designation as just one of 49 National Cancer Institute comprehensive cancer centers in the nation, she said.

Our patients will always come first  thats who we are as a center  so were going to do everything to preserve our patient care programs, but that means we might have to make cuts in our research, our education and training, to our community outreach missions, and those are also what make us an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center, she said.

UNM estimates the change will reduce annual revenue by $14 million across its health system, with the bulk  at least $9.2 million  occurring at the cancer center, said Dr. Michael Richards, the systems vice chancellor for clinical affairs. The change would disproportionately hit institutions like the cancer center, because they use some of the most expensive drugs and treat a relatively high concentration of Medicare patients, Richards said during a UNM Regents Health Sciences Center committee meeting last week.

Presbyterian Healthcare officials are also concerned, saying the savings achieved by (340B) allow us to ease access to care for more patients and enable us to provide more comprehensive services, according to a statement from Sandy Podley, Presbyterian Delivery Systems senior vice president of operations. Presbyterian would take an estimated $4 million hit under the change.

Costs outweigh benefits

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid touted the rule change as a way for Medicare beneficiaries to benefit from the discounts hospitals get on drugs, according to a news release. CMS will use the estimated $1.6 billion it saves in drug reimbursements to cover an increase in payments to all hospitals that perform certain covered outpatient services.

But even though UNM will benefit from that boost in clinical care pay, Richards said it would likely amount to less than $1 million  not nearly enough to offset the corresponding losses.

National hospital associations are challenging the rule in court, but if it occurs it would be an overnight, immediate loss of a huge part of the net margin of the Cancer Center, Dr. Paul Roth, chancellor of UNMs Health Sciences Center, said at the meeting.

The losses amount to nearly 10 percent of the cancer centers approximately $100 million annual budget. Willman noted that it will not affect all hospitals equally as some are exempted from Medicare reimbursement changes, which she said further magnifies the disparities for patients based on where they live.

National organizations like the Association of American Cancer Institutes have come out against the change, writing in a letter to Congressional leaders that it threatens to derail access to lifesaving treatments and therapies, especially for uninsured and underserved patients.

Several entities, including the American Hospital Association and Association of American Medical Colleges have filed a federal lawsuit, arguing that the change is unlawful and a decision the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary is not authorized to make.

The New Mexico Hospital Association has shared its impact estimates with the AHA for use in a friend of the court brief to accompany the lawsuit, said NMHA Executive Director Jeff Dye.

A hearing is set in District of Columbia District Court on Dec. 21.
Desert Ridge Middle School in Albuquerque, Las Cruces High School, Bernalillo High School, Mescalero Apache school and Thoreau High School are New Mexicos five state finalists in Samsungs STEAM competition

Selected from a pool of nearly 3,000 entries, the five schools recently were named state finalists in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest, a nationwide competition that challenges students to creatively use science, technology, engineering, arts and math skills to address real-world issues and inspire change in their local communities.

The finalists were chosen based on their creative and strategic proposals to solve complicated issues that affect their communities by using STEAM learning, which emphasizes classroom skills in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.

Teachers from the five state finalist schools will submit an Activity Plan outlining how students will tackle the local issue using STEAM skills to improve the greater community.

Fifty-one state winners across the country will be selected to submit a video of their project in action.
A math teacher at Deming Intermediate School was surprised during a recent school assembly with a $25,000 Milken Educator Award for her work with sixth-grade students.

Melanie Alfaro looked stunned after her name was called as she made her way to the podium where students held a giant cardboard check representing her $25,000 prize.

I do it because of you guys, because I love children. I love having an impact on every single one of your lives, from the kids I taught ten years ago to those of you who are in the room right now, Alfaro said during the assembly.

Alfaro is the only recipient in the state of New Mexico of the 44 honorees for the 2017-18 academic year to receive the national award, dubbed the Oscars of teaching by Teacher magazine.

Todays recognition is one of the highest honors a teacher can earn in the country, said Education Secretary-Designate Christopher Ruszkowski, who attended the ceremony.

Melanie is changing our students lives by assuming full responsibility for her academic outcomes and constantly refining her craft  her teaching is poetry in motion, and finds the right balance of both the art and science of teaching, said Ruszkowski in a news release from the foundation.

Every year, the Milken Family Foundation honors early to mid-career teaching professionals across the country for their achievements and the promise they will continue to inspire students to achieve more in the future.

Deming has jumped two letter grades and 16 percentage points in end-of-year math assessments in the past few years.

Melanie Alfaro gives every student her time, whether its one-on-one or in a group, its her keen sense of a childs understanding level that determines her teaching methods and that directly leads to proficiency, said Jane Foley, Milken Awards Senior Vice President in a statement.

Here is a video of the surprise announcement, courtesy of the Milken Family Foundation:

We welcome suggestions for the daily Bright Spot. Send to newsroom@abqjournal.com.
You may be surprised by this, but Catholic teaching acknowledges the right of a sovereign country to control its borders and enforce its immigration laws. However, that does not mean the human dignity and human rights of immigrants should be violated.

Over the past 30 years, U.S. immigration policy has been characterized by an increase in enforcement measures without corresponding updates to other aspects of the legal immigration system. Immigration enforcement funding has risen dramatically, with immigration enforcement, compared with other U.S. enforcement agencies, now being the largest share of the annual budget. Moreover, enforcement policies and practices have been added to the system during this period, including the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996, which has weakened due process protections for immigrants.

Under the current administration, an executive order has made all immigrants without legal status priorities for deportation, regardless of the length of time in the country, their U.S.-citizen children, and other equities in the country.

While enforcement is an important element of any immigration system, so is fairness and justice.

First, our system unjustly detains immigrants who are seeking asylum and are no threat to our society  even women and children. This prevents them from receiving community support and from accessing legal representation.

Certainly those who are a threat to our communities should be detained, but the vast majority of immigrants are not threats and have not committed a criminal offense. Instead of incarcerating them, our government should place them in community-based alternatives to detention, whereby community groups could provide them with housing and legal support. Such programs have been proven successful in ensuring immigrants show up for their hearings and are able to obtain legal representation, which also makes the court system more efficient.

Second, our immigration justice system should uphold the values upon which our nation was built  fairness and equal justice for all. Sadly, often our immigration court system does not meet this test, as it has been neglected and underfunded by Congress for years.

Additionally, the use and expansion of expedited removal, a part of the 1996 act, deprives individuals of the opportunity to go before an immigration judge to seek relief from deportation. This policy adversely impacts the ability of asylum-seekers to have their claims adequately heard.

Third, state and local law enforcement officials, who are charged to protect the public, should not be required to enforce immigration laws. Changing the nature of their important mission would distract them from their essential task of public safety and undermine trust between them and immigrant communities. However, federal, state and local enforcement officials should cooperate in identifying immigrants who may constitute a threat or have committed violent crimes.

Now more than ever, law-abiding immigrants are scapegoated for our social ills and painted as criminals. Such rhetoric creates fear in immigrant communities, reducing cooperation with law enforcement.

We can do better. Bipartisan efforts to enact immigration reform have fallen short in the past 10 years, but the need for reform exists.

Comprehensive immigration reform would restore the rule of law by increasing the legal avenues available for immigrants seeking to work in important U.S. economic sectors. By bringing 11 million undocumented persons out of the shadows and into the light, we can ensure all are included in a new system governed by the law, not illegal behavior, including by unscrupulous employers. It also would protect law-abiding immigrants and isolate those who are a threat to our communities.

For over three decades, U.S. immigration policy has been marked by increased enforcement, but our nation is still seeking an effective way to manage migration flows. Enforcement policies, fairly applied, are part of the solution  they are not a solution by themselves.

Migration is a global challenge, but also a global opportunity. Our nation has led the world in the integration of immigrants from around the world, to our great benefit. We must not continue to turn our back on this heritage, which has served our nation so well.
WASHINGTON  No one can say we werent warned. For years, scholars of all shapes and sizes  demographers, economists, political scientists  have cautioned that the populations of most advanced countries are gradually getting older, with dramatic consequences for economics and politics. But we havent taken heed by preparing for an unavoidable future.

The we refers not just to the United States but to virtually all advanced societies. In fact, Americas aging, though substantial, is relatively modest compared with many European countries and Japan.

The latest warning comes in a massive report on government pensions  what Americans call Social Security  from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris. The OECD is a group of mostly advanced nations, and the report warns that the pace of pension reforms  has slowed.

The problem is simple. Low birth rates and increasing life expectancies result in aging populations. Since 1970, average life expectancy at age 60 in OECD countries has risen from 18 years to 23.4 years; by 2050, its forecast to increase to 27.9 years  that is, to nearly 90. The costs of Social Security and pensions will explode.

Governments are aware of these pressures and have raised eligibility ages. But changes have been modest and grudging. Only three countries have retirement ages exceeding 68 (Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark). The increases in the official retirement age are slower than the projected increases in life expectancy, meaning theres more time for retirement. For men, the average OECD retirement age is projected to increase 1.5 years to just under 66 years around 2060. For women, the rise in the retirement age is about 2.1 years, also to around 66.

The implication: Unless retirement ages are raised sharply or benefits are cut deeply, more and more of the income of the working-age population will be siphoned off through higher taxes or cuts in other government spending to support retirees.

The prospective pressures will be enormous, as the table, abbreviated from the OECD report, indicates. It shows the dependency ratio for some major countries. The dependency ratio relates the number of elderly  those 65 and older  to the working-age population  those 20 to 64. If the two populations were identical, the ratio would be 100 percent. Although thats not the case for any major country, most face steep gains. Germany, for example, goes from an elderly population thats about a third the size of the working population, 35 percent in 2015, to one thats more than half, 59 percent in 2050.

Few reforms are as contested as raising the retirement age, says the OECD report Pensions at a Glance 2017. Why is it so unpopular to work longer even among people with longer life expectancy and in good health?

Good question. The answer illuminates a dilemma of democracy: Giving people what they want in the present may damage our collective future.
NEW YORK  With his decision to move the American Embassy to Jerusalem, President Trump did something puzzling for a person who claims to be a great dealmaker. He made a massive, pre-emptive concession to one side in a complicated negotiation without getting anything for it in return. If thats how he operates, its no wonder so many of his former colleagues think he isnt a very successful businessman after all.

Jerusalem is Israels capital and will remain so. I dont dispute the facts or its merits. But the reason that all 86 countries that have embassies in Israel have so far located them in Tel Aviv is that Jerusalem is an integral part of the final settlement between Israelis and Palestinians. The Palestinians claim the city as their capital as well. It contains sites sacred to all three of the worlds Abrahamic faiths. It has within it a large Arab population that, even after decades of new Israeli settlements, comprises more than a third of the citys total. So the formal status of Jerusalem has always been seen  by Republicans and Democrats, Europeans and Asians  as a matter to be codified in the context of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

If this move were part of a larger strategic plan, that would be one thing. In that case, Trumps announcement would have been carefully plotted out, coupled with serious policy changes from Israel, or it would have been part of a series of measures to reassure both sides. Instead, it appears to be a one-off decision, designed largely to delight core elements of Trumps base at home  evangelical Christians and pro-Israel donors. The only strategic aspect appears to be that it will help shore up the GOP base on the eve of Roy Moores senatorial contest in Alabama. Thats not diplomacy; thats pandering.

There are ways to solve the Jerusalem problem, such as by carving out some neighborhoods in the eastern part of the city and allowing the Palestinians to claim those as their capital. Trumps announcement did not specifically foreclose this possibility, which makes the choice even more puzzling. It actually achieves little on the ground, all while offending millions of Palestinians, hundreds of millions of Arabs, and public opinion almost everywhere. When China, your European allies, the pope, and the kings of Saudi Arabia and Jordan all voice strong opposition, it is surely worth questioning the wisdom of the policy.

The potential relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem has always been a symbolic gesture, designed more to appeal to Americans than to advance peace and stability in the Middle East. The Israeli scholar Yoav Fromer points out that in 1995, as Bob Dole was planning his campaign to challenge Bill Clinton for the presidency, he wanted to present himself as ardently pro-Israel. His voting record did not demonstrate this, so he decided to latch on to a symbolic issue instead. Thus was born the law that requires the U.S. to move its embassy, though it provided for a six-month waiver that every president has continually renewed, not wanting to give away a chip that could be crucial in the negotiations for a peace settlement.

While many people have predicted violence in the Middle East, its likely that this will be contained. Israel is now the regional superpower, and its neighbors know it. It also has tight control over the Palestinian territories, with a network of barriers, checkpoints and intelligence operations. Terrorism, for most Israelis, is a problem that has gone away.

The danger is really that this decision only adds to the mounting despair of Palestinians, who are already weak, divided and dysfunctional. They have never had good leadership, but they barely have any leadership right now. They live in an unusual, almost unique condition in the modern world: citizens of no state, without a country of their own.

Meanwhile, Israel will continue to prosper economically and maintain its genuinely democratic character, but with this one large caveat: It will rule over lands with millions of people who lack full political rights. That cancer at the heart of Israels democratic system and culture will remain and might intensify as Israeli Arabs grow in numbers. There will be an Israel that looks like Switzerland, surrounded by a Palestine that looks like Bangladesh. Its possible that at some point this inequality of income, status and political rights will lead to some kind of explosion. It will certainly lead to greater polarization and discord. And Americas action this week will have deepened these fissures and exacerbated the tensions.

Email comments@fareedzakaria.com.
EMISSIONS APPLY TO SOME SANDOVAL DRIVERS: Jerry Dusseau and Wayne both live in Corrales. And both recently received notices from the Motor Vehicle Division to renew their Bernalillo County vehicle emissions certificates. Jerry says, 

I am a 20-year resident of Sandoval County and retired. During this entire time I have never had to do a vehicle emissions test for any of my cars. The car in reference was purchased in Santa Fe and is registered in Sandoval County. The link included in the (MVD) email was not helpful and added little clarification to the issue. I do shop in Bernalillo County, and obviously living in Corrales it is hard to avoid this.

He asks, Have the emissions regulations changed? Why would I have suddenly received this notice? None of my friends and neighbors here in Corrales have received a similar notice.

And Wayne adds, My vehicle is registered in Sandoval County, and I do not regularly commute into Bernalillo County; my understanding is that I do not, therefore, have to undergo vehicle emissions testing.

First, vehicle owners only get emissions notices when it is time to renew their vehicle registration and/or their two-year emissions certificate is expiring.

Second, Ben Cloutier, director of communications for the New Mexico Taxation & Revenue Department, which oversees MVD, says the division relies on zip codes to send emission notices. Two Bernalillo County zip codes overlap into Sandoval County. We apologize for the inconvenience that this may cause some Sandoval County residents. However, Sandoval County residents that drive into Bernalillo County at least 60 days in a year are required to pass the Bernalillo County emissions test.

YOU CAN KEEP THAT OLD PLATE: Helen Horwitz recently swapped her license plate for the fun chile version. I already had a vanity plate with a special word on it, and kept it for my Chile plate. So, the plates are identical except for the design/color.

Helens concern is this: Someone told me that I own the old vanity plate and it doesnt need to be returned to MVD. But if I keep it, and it is stolen, wouldnt I be liable if its put on a vehicle thats involved in an accident or such?

First, chances are slim the thieves are driving the same exact vehicle as Helen, so a check of the make, model and VIN against the plate would immediately show it was a stolen plate.

Second, that original plate wont have a valid registration sticker for that much longer, and an expired plate is another red flag to law enforcement.

And third, Cloutier has explained in the past that when owners sell a vehicle, drivers are also required to provide the old plates to the MVD to be destroyed or to apply to have the plate and registration number assigned to another vehicle.

But since Helen simply got a new design, she owns the (original) plate and doesnt need to turn it into the MVD.

Editorial page editor DVal Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays. Reach her at 823-3858; dwestphal@abqjournal.com; or P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

SUNLAND PARK  The number of people caught crossing the southwest border is at its lowest point in more than four decades. But there has been a spike in Central American families with kids arriving on the stretch of border that includes New Mexico.

Year-end figures released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection show that the El Paso Border Patrol sector, which includes all of New Mexico, saw a 52 percent increase in the number of family units from 5,664 in 2016 to 8,609 this past year.

This is a mini-surge said Ruben Garcia, director of Annunciation House, which provides temporary shelter for migrants and refugees in the El Paso and Las Cruces region. The organization often takes in parents with children released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE in the area because they dont have detention space designed for families.

Garcia said there was a drop in the number of migrants arriving right after President Trumps inauguration.

What I think happened is we entered a wait and see period, said Garcia. But in recent months Central Americans have started to cross the border again in the region. There has been a steady climb Garcia said.

An additional 6,889 families with children arrived at border crossings or international bridges in the region seeking asylum, an increase of 23 percent. Most are from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

In recent years, the vast majority of Central American families and children arrived in South Texas in the Rio Grande Valley.

One of the factors that makes people think of crossing further away from the Valley is its further away from the detention centers, said Garcia. The main detention center built to house families is located near San Antonio. Instead of paying to transport parents with children, ICE often releases them and requires adults to wear ankle monitoring devices and check in as their cases move through immigration court.

The uptick in Central American migration to New Mexico and far West Texas is in sharp contrast to the decline in undocumented immigration overall with CBP reporting a total of 303,916 people apprehended this past year on the southwest border. Border Patrol agents picked up 15,562 people in New Mexico, more than half of the total 25,193 people apprehended in the El Paso sector.

We have seen historic low numbers this year  an almost 30 percent decline in apprehensions in fiscal year 2017, but we are very concerned about the later month increases of unaccompanied minors and minors with a family member said Acting Deputy CBP Commissioner Ronald Vitiello at a news conference Wednesday in Washington D.C.

Immigrant advocates who help Central American families and other refugees arriving on the border say enforcement alone wont keep people fleeing violence and poverty from trying to cross the border.

A lot of people are desperate and this is the only way they see as a way out for themselves, said Garcia.


It was a promise born of fever and family when a dying rancher asked the heavens for one more chance.

Let me live, he prayed, and I will honor nuestra senora de Guadalupe for the rest of my days on this earth.

Melquiades Trujillo was a young man with a wife and a family then, raising cattle, corn and pinto beans on their small ranch, named El Cuervo for the crows that wheeled in the skies above the small farming community of Torreon.

In 1918, he had fallen gravely ill, a victim of the deadliest influenza pandemic in modern history. The Spanish flu, as it came to be known, struck about a third of the worlds population, killing an estimated 20 million to 50 million worldwide.

Trujillo seemed certain to become one of those millions. As he writhed on what had been presumed to be his deathbed, Trujillo saw the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, la nuestra senora, each time he closed his eyes. So he prayed to her, and he gave her his word.

His prayers, as the story goes, were answered. That year on Dec. 12, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, he made good on his word, inviting family and friends to El Cuervo to celebrate with food and song and prayer that his life had been spared thanks to the blessing of nuestra senora.

They called this annual gathering a velorio, the Spanish word for wake, only this was not to commemorate death but life.

Trujillos vow lives on, the tradition of the velorio passed on from generation to generation. On Saturday, the 100th velorio was held in the Northeast Heights home of Trujillos granddaughter, Rachel Martinez.

This devotion is so ingrained in us, Martinez said. It is a part of us.

Trujillo held the velorios every Dec. 12 without fail. In the early days, people traveled to El Cuervo in horse-drawn wagons, often braving snow and frigid mountain temperatures, to feast on roast pig slaughtered and prepared matanza-style in a fire pit. They also dined on pots of chile and beans, plates of chile rellenos, cakes and trays of pastelitos and bizcochitos.

At around 8 oclock in the evening, we all prayed the rosary together, and it included many beautiful prayers and songs, Martinez recalled.

Men later gathered outside around a roaring bonfire while the women prepared coffee and goodies for the nights repast.

It was not uncommon for some people to stay the whole night, singing and praying and then leaving after breakfast, she said.

By the second year, Trujillo had acquired a large statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe, though no one is quite sure where it came from. He etched his name at the base of the statute: Melquiades Trujillo y familia  1919.

Each year, the statue was retrieved from storage and displayed in a place of honor.

After Trujillos death in 1968 at age 84, his wife, Leonor, continued the tradition. When she died in 1974, the tradition fell to Maria Rita Garcia, one of the Trujillos five children and Martinezs mother.

Garcia passed away 10 years ago, and the tradition was passed on to Martinez, the oldest of Garcias seven children. Along with the tradition, came the large statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which Martinez calls her most valued possession.

But times had changed. The velorios became smaller, simpler occasions, often just involving a sibling or two, Martinez said.

I wanted to make them bigger like in the old days, but I worked and it just seemed like people were too busy, she said. But we still remember Our Lady every Dec. 12 in some way.

Three years ago, a new generation stepped in. Matthew Martinez McKinley, one of Martinezs grandsons, visited her home and noticed two yellowed newspaper articles framed in a spare bedroom. Both articles  including one that had appeared on the front page of the Journal  were written in 1998 about familys 80th velorio.

I think for me, I was just intrigued that we had this neat tradition in the family for so long thats been unbroken, and how people in my family, all of us, are here because my great-great grandfather did recover, Martinez McKinley, 31, said from his home in Phoenix. Because he recovered, generations of people lived.

Three years ago, Martinez McKinley began having family members come to Phoenix for the velorio to ease the burden on Martinez, who is now 83.

But for the 100th velorio, the event was moved back to Martinezs home in Albuquerque and held during the weekend to accommodate the travel schedule of Martinez McKinley and his family.

Instead of roast pig, Martinez served green chile stew and her sisters famous barbecue beef. They recited the rosary, sang songs and remembered the vow Trujillo made so many years ago. They remembered how prayers are sometimes answered and how family endures.

Times running out Dont forget to nominate that unsung someone who deserves recognition for doing good deeds for the community. Deadline for our ninth annual Angels Among Us is Dec. 13. Two winners will be featured in my column around Christmas and will receive a Nambe angel. Send nominations to jkrueger@abqjournal.com; 505-823-3603; Facebook message to Joline Gutierrez Krueger or write to Joline c/o the Journal, 7777 Jefferson NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109.

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.
Aygepar, is a village of 683 located in Armenias northeastern Tavush Province, straddling the border with Azerbaijan.

After local elections were held on November 5, Aygepar, along with fifteen other smaller settlements, was incorporated into the community of Berd.

This process of administratively incorporating smaller rural hamlets/settlements into larger communities is well underway in Armenia.

Berd Mayor Haroutyun Manoucharyan told Hetq that officials are now discussing the communitys 2018 budget and its five-year development plan.

Abandoned cigarette factory

Entering Aygepar, one immediately sees the abandoned cigarette factory. Resident Vanik Papyan says that its been bombed by the Azerbaijani military firing from a mountain on the opposite side.

500 people worked here at one time. Now, the villages main problem is the lack of jobs, says Papyan.

Andranik Aydinyan, Aygepars administrative representative, says that residents are somewhat annoyed because they live near the border.

Living on the border may aggravate them, but those living far from the border dont understand our esteem. We live under gunshots fired daily. The last shots were two days ago, at night, says Aydinyan.

Andranik Aydinyan

Aydinyan says that the village once boasted a population of 1,300, but that most residents left due to the lack of potable water, natural gas, and a road. Azerbaijani shelling didnt help.

He says the village was founded around the cigarette factory, and that six multi-story apartment buildings were built in 1948.

Aygepars 2017 budget amounted to AMD 14.8 million (US$30,600). AMD 13.3 million was in the form of a national government subsidy. It will be difficult to improve conditions in the village and spur development given such a small figure.

Aydinyan, whos represented Aygepar for the past twelve years, says that funds derived from benefactors and donor organizations allowed the village to rebuild the main water pipe and repair the Ijevan-Navur-Berd-Aygepar highway. Natural gas was also installed in the village.

Today, there are twelve apartment buildings and 91 private houses in Aygepar. In addition to the cigarette factory, jobs were provided by a cognac/wine plant and a canning factory.

Since Aygepar was a workers settlement, we have no agricultural land of significance,says Aydinyan.

Azerbaijani military shells Aygepar from here

The schools enrollment has dropped from 283 to 52 today.

Aydinyan says that residents take refuge in their homes when shelling breaks out. This route was preferable to building a central shelter in the village, directly in the line of Azerbaijani fire.

Vineyards flank the road leading to Aygepar, but theyre not cultivated, says Aygepar. Again, intermittent Azerbaijani shelling is the culprit.

Given the lack of agricultural land, some residents work in the school, kindergarten, or have civil service jobs.

Those willing to work will find work here, says Aydinyan. You can help a lazy person as much as you want. Its all the same. That person will not torment himself to make a living.

Yuri Hovakimyan has lived in Aygepar for 47 years. His two sons have moved to Russia, taking their families.

Theres no work in Aygepar. Even if jobs were created here, they probably wouldnt return. Theyve settled down there, and are registered, says Hovakimyan.

Gavrosh Apresyan, another resident, agrees.

They wander around aimlessly. They have no land to cultivate. They have no money to purchase land. I take care of my family of three on a monthly pension of 47,000 drams ($97). The government should create some light manufacturing enterprises so that people could work and not move away. If I didnt love Aygepar, Id leave.

Misha Adyan

Were in a war zone. The shelling scares us. This shelling must be banned. We cant walk around our homes. We have a small child at home. Every time the shelling erupts, he tells me  Grandpa, keep me safe.

This is how Misha Adyan describes life in Aygepar. None of his family members have moved away.

Armen, Mishas son, died in 1998 while serving in Mataghis, Karabakh. I sent Armen to Karabakh at the age of eighteen. He had served one year in the army and was killed. Misha says he too has defended the Aygepar frontier.

Vanik Papyan was born in the nearby village of Movses. He moved to Aygepar with his family thirty years ago. They live in Building #1 (see photo). When the shells fly, we hid in the cellar, says Papyan.

Building #1

Ashot Melyan and his family used to live in same building, on the fourth floor. The building has been hit so many times, Melyan gave up trying to repair his apartment. The family packed their bags and left Aygepar.

Residents in the neighboring building have walled up their windows. The village kindergarten, with an enrollment of 25, was hit two months ago. The Los Angeles based Hayrenik Union financed its renovation.

Our children know how dangerous the shelling is. They know how to react and hide, says Andranik Aydinyan.

Kindergartens defensive wall

The defensive wall surrounding Aygepars kindergarten was built by the International Red Cross. Similar walls have been built to protect the fountain in the village square, the cultural center, and along the more trafficked streets.

Andranik Aydinyan then tells this reporter about a tragic incident from his childhood. His father Sargis was killed in 1993 during a skirmish to defend Aygepar from an Azerbaijani assault. Sargis was 43.

I was twelve at the time. My mother had a hard time raising five children on her own, says Aydinyan. Over the years, several of his former classmates have also died defending the village.

A memorial fountain honoring those who have died defending Aygepar was erected at the village entrance in 2016.

Aydinyan recounts the dark days of September 1-4, 2015, when Azerbaijani shelling many homes in Aygepar. The Azerbaijani media at the time boasted that smoke could no longer could be seen rising from Aygepars chimneys.

I got on the internet and responded that Aygepar was a developed village, not like that backwards village of yours where they burn wood. We warm our apartments with gas, says Aydinyan.

Reflecting on the lack of jobs, Aygepars primary problem, Aydinyan makes a simple observation  Patriotic investors must start their work at the border

Only time will tell whether investors will heed Aydinyans advice.

What benefits, if any, will Aygepar derive from its incorporation into Berd also remains to be seen.
LONDON  Prime Minister Theresa May said Monday there is a new sense of optimism about negotiations over Britains departure from the European Union, insisting that a preliminary deal has given fresh impetus to the talks.

She told the House of Commons that Britain will be able to leave the European Union in a smooth and orderly way.

May updated lawmakers on the agreement reached Friday with the EU that covers the main divorce issues. Those include the rights of citizens affected by Brexit, Britains financial obligations to the EU and how to keep open the border between Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland, an EU member.

Leaders of the other 27 EU members are expected to ratify the agreement later this week, allowing Brexit talks to move on to trade and security cooperation. May told Parliament the next phase would not be easy but that the atmospherics have improved.

Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, May said in a statement. But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

She said the implementation period she seeks will be discussed in the next phase of the talks, and called for discussions to begin immediately.

But weekend comments by the official in charge of the talks have threatened to spoil Mays triumphant moment. In an interview with the BBC on Sunday, Brexit chief David Davis suggested that last weeks agreement was a statement of intent that wasnt legally binding.

The comments caused unease in Ireland, where leaders demanded provisions in the agreement to ensure Brexit wont restrict travel and trade between the Republic of Ireland and the U.K.s Northern Ireland. Officials in both parts of the island say the border must remain open to protect the Irish peace process.

The Irish government branded Davis comments bizarre and insisted that Britain must live up to the commitments it made last week.

Davis Monday tried to mitigate the fallout, insisting his words had been completely twisted.

What I actually said yesterday  was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable, Davis told LBC Radio.

In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesnt happen then we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, he added. I was making the point that it was much more than just in the treaty, its what we want to do anyway.

The confusion prompted Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn to question the governments competence.

We respect the result of the referendum but due to this governments shambolic negotiations its getting increasingly difficult to believe this is a government capable of negotiating a good deal for Britain, he said.

He pressed May for details about the divorce bill Britain will have to pay to leave the EU.

In Brussels, the Europeans were thinking about form as well as substance.

European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said that while the deal was not legally binding, it was regarded as a pact of honor.

We see the joint report of (EU Brexit negotiator) Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen and it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the U.K. government, he said. He noted that EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker agreed on that with May on Friday. They shook hands.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  Facing voters at last after the years most bitter U.S. campaign, Alabama Republican Roy Moore cast himself Monday as the victim of a national barrage of unjust allegations of sexual misconduct with teenagers. Rival Doug Jones, hoping to become the states first Democratic senator in two decades, declared their race was Alabamas referendum on who we are and what were going to tell our daughters.

Allegations aside, President Donald Trump said in a robocall to Alabama voters that he badly needs Moores own vote in the U.S. Senate. Former President Barack Obama and his vice president, Joe Biden, recorded calls for Jones seeking to break the GOPs lock on statewide office in Alabama.

Whether the calls would sway anyone so late in such a highly publicized campaign was an open question. So was the impact of a rash of false news stories that have appeared on social media spreading misinformation.

One website wrongly claimed that one of the women who have accused Moore of sexual misconduct had recanted. Meanwhile, Moores detractors took to social media to claim he had written in a 2011 textbook that women shouldnt hold elected office. He didnt.

On election eve, Moore called in to a conservative talk radio show in Alabama to lament the tone of the campaign and portray cast himself as the victim of the sexual misconduct allegations.

Weve seen things happen in this campaign that I cant believe to this day, said Moore, who has denied all wrongdoing in contacts with the women who said he behaved inappropriately when they were in their teens and he was a local prosecutor in his 30s. One said he initiated sexual contact when she was 14.

Its just been hard, a hard campaign, said Moore, a former Alabama Supreme Court chief justice who was twice removed from that post for violating judicial ethics.

At an evening rally in the states rural southeast, Moore told voters, If you dont believe in my character, dont vote for me.

Former White House strategist Steve Bannon, who also spoke the Moore rally, argued that the election is greater than Judge Moore and even greater than the people of Alabama, casting it as a referendum on Trumps agenda.

Meanwhile, Moores wife, Kayla, stirred up another ruckus while defending him against claims of being anti-Semitic. Well, one of our attorneys is a Jew, she said. We have very close friends who are Jewish and rabbis.

Alabama has been a solidly Republican state for years, and Moore said he is much more in tune with the issues that matter to voters  and to the president.

Jones acknowledged Monday in Montgomery, Look, Im not going to be the senator that everybody in the state can agree with 100 percent of the time. But he added: Theyll know Im somebody that will sit down with them. I will learn from them.  I will try to be the public servant I think a U.S. senator ought to be.

Former professional basketball star Charles Barkley, speaking at a Jones rally Monday night, urged voters not to embarrass his home state by electing Moore. I love Alabama, but at some point weve got to draw a line in the sand and say, Were not a bunch of damn idiots,' Barkley said.

Following Barkleys remarks, Jones urged Alabama voters to say, Enough is enough.

Voters seemed as divided as ever, including young Alabamians, some going to the polls for the first time.

Lillian Woolf, 18, a University of Alabama freshman, said she was disgusted that some people would vote for Moore despite the allegations by multiple women.

It creeps me out, she said. It shocks me just how much people are willing to ignore a persons past just because of their political stance.

But Joseph Chesnut, 20, a junior, said he will be voting for Moore, who holds more Republican values  just his Christianity standpoint and his Second Amendment standpoint and just, you know, trying to fight the establishment up there.

For Alabama Democrats, the special election is viewed as a chance to renounce a history littered with politicians whose race-baiting, bombast and other baggage have long soiled the states reputation.

Many Republicans see the vote as an opportunity to ratify their conservative views  referred to by Moore as Alabama values  and protect Trumps agenda ahead of the 2018 midterm elections. But the sexual allegations have dented some of that support. Sen. Richard Shelby said I think the Republican Party can do better, and he wrote in another Republicans name.

The two candidates have taken very different approaches to campaigning, with Jones holding events regularly and Moore popping up only occasionally in small churches, rallies or in interviews with friendly media.

In a morning stop at a diner in Birmingham, Jones accused Moore of disappearing during the campaigns closing days and claimed the Republican wasnt even in Alabama over the weekend.

Were making sure our message is getting across while Roy Moore hides behind whoever hes hiding behind, said Jones.

Moore has made only a few public appearances since women came forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct years ago.

Moore, the former judge, has spent two decades advocating conservative Christian positions. Jones is a former federal prosecutor best known for prosecuting two Ku Klux Klansmen responsible for killing four black girls in a 1963 church bombing.

The winner will take the seat held previously by Trumps attorney general, Jeff Sessions. Republicans control the Senate with 52 seats.

Democrats dont hold a single statewide office in Alabama, and both houses of the Legislature are controlled by the GOP.

___

Chandler reported from Midland City, Barrow from Birmingham. Associated Press writer Emily Wagster Pettus in Tuscaloosa contributed to this report.
INDIANAPOLIS  The case arrives with all the routine of a traffic citation: A baby boy, just 4 days old and exposed to heroin in his mothers womb, is shuddering through withdrawal in intensive care, his fate now here in a shabby courthouse that hosts a parade of human misery.

The parents nod off as Judge Marilyn Moores explains the legal process, and tests arrive back showing both continue to use heroin. The judge briefly chastises, a grandmother sobs, and by the time the hearing is over, yet another child is left in the arms of strangers because of his parents addiction.

There is little surprise in any of this, for its become a persistent presence at Indianapolis juvenile court. A Monday with a heroin-dependent newborn spills into a Tuesday in which a trembling mother admits breaking her 70-day clean streak with a four-day bender. A Wednesday with two children found in a car beside a mother passed out on pills fades into a Thursday with a teen who found both his mother and grandmother overdosed on heroin.

Across the U.S., soaring use of opioids has forced tens of thousands of children from their homes, creating a generation of kids abandoned by addicted parents, orphaned because of fatal overdoses or torn from fractured families by authorities fearful of leaving them in drug-addled chaos.

This isnt a trickle. This isnt a wave. Its a tsunami, Moores said of a child welfare system grappling with an unprecedented crush of parental drug cases.

From her first full year on the bench in 2006 through last year, the number of filings for children in need of services more than tripled to 4,649 in Marion County, driven largely by cases involving opioids  a glimpse of a problem that has swept across communities of all sizes.

Behind each of those cases is a child subjected to the realities of life amid addiction  of barren fridges, unwelcome visitors and parents who couldnt be roused awake. Moores is still haunted by the story of a 2-year-old found alone at home with his fathers corpse, a needle still poking from his arm. A neighbor was drawn in by the boys relentless wails.

By Friday, the largest pile of cases on Moores desk has reached a towering two feet, and she has plodded on in bureaucratic fights to get more judges, more court reporters and more mediators to deal with work in which the despair dwarfs the fleeting moments of hope.

It seems like theres a whole generation of people disappearing, Moores said.

___

In Miami, a 10-year-old boy died after stray powder from the painkiller fentanyl found its way to his skin. In Philadelphia, a library once known for its after-school programs is now such a magnet for heroin users that the staff practices overdose drills. From New York to Kentucky, schools stock the overdose antidote naloxone in the nurses office.

As opioids have thrived, children have suffered. And families are being torn apart, again and again.

New foster care cases involving parents who are using drugs have hit the highest point in more than three decades of record-keeping, accounting for 92,000 children entering the system in 2016, according to just-released data by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The crisis is so severe  with a 32 percent spike in drug-related cases from 2012 to 2016  it reversed a trend that had the foster care system shrinking in size over the preceding decade. All told, about 274,000 children entered foster care in the U.S. last year. A total of 437,000 children were in the system as of Sept. 30, 2016.

Though substance abuse has long been an issue for child welfare officials, this is the most prolific wave of children affected by addiction since crack cocaine use surged in the 1980s, and experts said opioid-use is driving the increase.

Among the states with the biggest one-year increases in their foster care population were Georgia, West Virginia and Indiana.

Its been an overburdening of our system, said Cindy Booth, executive director of Child Advocates of Marion County, which represents kids at the center of drug cases.

The Associated Press delved further into the troubling numbers, examining county-level foster care statistics obtained from the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect through the end of 2015. The analysis showed counties with higher levels of opioid prescribing and opioid deaths also had higher shares of foster cases linked to drugs. Last years county-level statistics are not yet available.

The data show that foster children of drug users are on average about three years younger than others in the system. Indeed, a wave of babies born to opioid-using mothers has led hospitals to add detox programs for pregnant women and save umbilical cords in case they need to pinpoint what drug an infant was exposed to. Volunteers are enlisted to cuddle heroin-dependent babies  often born premature and underweight with a distinctive high-pitched cry and tremors in their arms and legs.

In Indiana, drug-related foster cases shot up more than sixfold between 2000 and 2015. Vanderburgh County, with a population of 179,000, had more children of drug users enter foster care than major cities including Seattle, Miami and Las Vegas. And here in Marion County, cases involving drugs went from about 20 percent of foster children in 2010 to 50 percent five years later.

Stephanie Shene, who started in 2003 as a case manager at the state Department of Child Services, recalled how use of heroin and other opioids went from a virtual non-issue to a constant part of her day. She and her colleagues became increasingly vigilant looking for shaking, fidgety parents or needle marks on their arms, behind ears and between fingers.

Her agency has added more than 1,200 workers in four years and its budget has increased from $793 million to more than $1 billion. Keeping up with the caseload remains a challenge, though, and turnover among case managers is high. Especially maddening is the huge number of parents who cant stay clean long enough to get their kids back or keep them.

Shene remembers one of her first cases, a mother whose four children were taken because of her morphine and heroin addiction. Just 10 months after getting clean and regaining custody, the woman not only had returned to drugs but had given birth to a heroin-dependent baby.

Stuff like that is hard to look at, she said.

___

By the time Rachael Stark arrives at her office at 8:45 a.m., she has already been working for hours. At 2:30 a.m., it was a call seeking an emergency placement for a child. Around 4 a.m., a series of texts alerted her that an alarm went off at a foster home and police showed up. Since 8 a.m., shes been furiously tapping away at her phone, juggling 15 foster cases. Now shes splashed with coffee and running late for a 9 oclock appointment when a state DCS worker calls looking for a foster family for three siblings.

Ive got no one, she reports somberly.

For the past 13 years, Stark has managed cases for The Villages, the largest private foster care and adoption agency in Indiana, which contracts with the state to find children homes. All but a few of her cases involve drugs and of those that do, about half are opioid-related.

The Villages is receiving 30 to 40 percent more referrals than it had been accustomed to, creating a crisis state, as the agencys president, Sharon Pierce, puts it. Foster parent training sessions, once held monthly, are now weekly; advertising to attract new families has been ramped up. It takes at least three months to recruit, screen and train foster parents, but as soon as they get their state license, the need for help is so great they often receive an immediate call.

Five or 10 minutes later, that family will have two or three children placed in their home, Pierce said.

The Villages used to see about 60 percent of children return to their birth families. Today its around half that. So the agency turns to successful foster parents to adopt. The problem is that limits the familys ability to take on another foster child, creating the need for even more foster homes.

So then we jump back on the treadmill, Pierce said.

The agency has added a few employees, but its largely up to case managers like Stark to cope with the surging workload. She crisscrosses farm-lined stretches of Grant County, about 90 miles northeast of Indianapolis, driving beside fields of corn and soybeans in the rush to make her next appointment. The countys drug-involved foster caseload grew from nine in 2000 to 48 in 2015.

Stark makes her first stop at the foster home of a 5-year-old girl who answers hot fudge sundae ice cream when asked what happens when she meets her therapist; the childs mother is in jail. The second home is a whirl of sailing plastic cups, bouncing rubber balls and kids jumping on furniture, with six children, two of them foster placements, in perpetual motion. The foster mother, Megan Carender, hopes to adopt the children but is prepared if their stay is temporary: No matter what, this was a place that they were loved and that they were taken care of.

It goes like this all day for Stark, a series of visits and a blur of calls and texts interrupted by sighs and talk of imperfect solutions. We just cant keep up, she said.

Her third stop of the day is emblematic of the cases inundating the system. Two sisters, 9 and 10, landed in foster care because their mother got hooked on painkillers. There was no family to turn to, with their grandmother also addicted. The girls now live on a farm where sheep, cattle and hogs are raised, and they sit in the bed of a pickup, fussing over a carton of fluffy day-old chicks their foster father, Justin Lovell, picked up for them. When he notes, matter-of-factly, it wont be long before the chicks reach a size fit only for a freezer or a frying pan, the girls jaws drop in comical unison.

Youre not going to fry them! one cries.

Their birth mother has already had her parental rights rescinded, and the Lovells hope to adopt. One of the girls had been in four foster homes before arriving here, the other in three. Three siblings were placed elsewhere.

Lovells wife, Kristen, laments the turmoil the sisters have been through  so many stops and starts and bumps along the way  and that their whole worlds changing, and its changed so many times already. Her husband simply cannot fathom how someone could put drugs before family.

They had their choice, he said, and they didnt choose their children.

There is no simple assessment of the impact of all of this on kids. At one extreme, there are infants born healthy who wind up in safe and loving foster homes until their birth parents get clean. At the other are children whose parents addictions have led to their own, who find themselves hopping from foster family to foster family, or living in a group home or a strange town.

Fear and anxiety can amass, academic performance can plunge, feelings of abandonment can run rampant, and the ability to trust can be strained. Said Maria Cancian, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor whose research focuses on foster care and the effects on children: When people ask me, Is foster care good or bad? the first thing I say is, Compared to what?'

Shawnee Wilson has found herself on both sides of the system.

Wilsons parents used, and she was 13 when child welfare officials removed her from her home. Now, at 26, shes trying to beat heroin, having already lost custody of two children and given another up at birth.

Her fourth child, a boy named Kingston, was born just over a year ago, and it took a month for doctors to wean him off the heroin Wilson exposed him to. He is in foster care now in Indianapolis, and Wilson is fighting to get him back.

Despite some relapses, shes been clean several months and is convinced shell be able to keep it up. The clock is ticking. Federal law dictates the loss of parental rights for those whose children have been in foster care for 15 out of the previous 22 months.

Wilson knows how those who dont struggle with addiction view her, and said its hard to explain what compels people to keep using even when it can cost them their children. When shes been high, she said, I cant see the consequences, because all I want is to feel that drug. I want that numbness.

___

Back at juvenile court, the waiting room is brimming with people who may wait hours for their cases to be called. Babies screech. Toddlers whine. Adults emerge from courtrooms wet-eyed.

Moores, the plainspoken 62-year-old who leads this division, sees a familiar expression on the faces that pass through  not just parents, but case managers and attorneys and a parade of others whove seen their work overtaken by pills and powders. She saw the same blank eyes during a National Guard deployment to Afghanistan, as soldiers returned to base.

Theyre war-weary, she said.

She counts herself among the battle-scarred, having presided over a court that took 1,270 children from their parents last year, more than triple a decade earlier. Cases roll in to courtrooms that once were classrooms, converted to accommodate snowballing need.

It is 11 p.m. on Friday now and Moores is home on her farm, clad in pajamas and awake in bed. Her phone goes off, a new crisis arrived. DCS has a boy who previously was removed from the home of his opioid-addicted mother, now needing to be taken out of the house of relatives. There are no foster families available, and the countys emergency shelters are full.

It wont be long before the details of the case recede from a memory crowded by a thousand others. Tonight, though, it weighs on her as she tries to drift to sleep.

___

Data journalist Hoyer reported from Washington.

___

Sedensky can be reached at msedensky//twitter.com/sedensky and Hoyer at mhoyer//twitter.com/MeghanHoyer
ATLANTA  It can sometimes seem as though mass shootings are occurring more frequently. Researchers who have been studying such crimes for decades say they arent, but they have been getting deadlier.

In the five years since a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school, the nation has seen a number of massacres topping the death toll from Newtown and previous mass shootings, many of them involving rifles similar to the one used in Sandy Hook.

But Americans wanting to know why deadlier mass shootings are happening will get few answers. Is it is the wide availability of firearms? Is it the much-maligned assault weapon with its military style? Is it a failing mental health system?

Were kind of grabbing at straws at this point in terms of trying to understand why the severity of these incidents has increased, said Grant Duwe, a criminologist who has been studying mass killings since the 1990s.

The federal government does little research on the matter, because a measure dating to the 1990s had the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention retreat from firearms research. Instead, a handful of academics, like Duwe, have toiled sometimes for decades with limited funding trying to better understand why these shootings happen and how to prevent them.

While mass shootings happen with regularity, they still remain so rare that there isnt enough information to draw conclusions with any certainty.

The profile of mass shooters  loners, depressed individuals, people who rarely smile or those who take to the internet to rant about a perceived insult or gripe  is so broad and common that its impossible to pinpoint who might turn that anger into violence.

There are lots of people who are isolated, dont have lots of friends, who dont smile and write ugly things on the internet and blame others for their misfortunes and dont want to live anymore and talk about mass killers and maybe even admire them, said Northeastern University professor James Alan Fox, who began studying mass shootings in the 1980s and has written six books on the topic.

Five years ago this week, Adam Lanza, a troubled young man in Newtown, Connecticut, shot and killed his mother in their home and then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School with an AR-style long gun and a handgun. He fatally shot 20 children and six educators, then himself.

In the years since, the nation has witnessed even deadlier attacks: the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando in 2016 in which a gunman killed 49 people and this years shooting in Las Vegas, where a man in a casino hotel fired on concertgoers on the ground below, killing more than 55. This years shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas, by an Air Force veteran who shot up a church sanctuary, killing more than two dozen, also is now among the 10 deadliest mass shootings in modern U.S. history.

Mass shootings are widely defined as one in which four or more people are killed in a public place, excluding both domestic violence and gang-related violence. The rate has remained steady at about 20 per year for the past three decades, Fox said. Still, five of the 10 deadliest have occurred since Sandy Hook, he said.

Some years are worse than others, and bad years tend to be followed by not-so-bad years, Fox said. While two of the deadliest took place this year, you cant take the actions of one or two people and call it a new phenomenon. Thats abberational. You cant make any pattern or trend based on that.

Its also unclear whether the higher death tolls are the result of more firearms being available or firearms being more effective. Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas shooter, used bump stocks to allow a number of his guns to mimic fully automatic weapons, but his perch high above the outdoor concert also made the shooting more effective and deadly. Thats the tactic the gunman in the 1966 University of Texas at Austin shooting used when he took to a tower overlooking the campus, shooting down for more than 90 minutes.

In half of the deadliest mass shootings, the perpetrator used at least one AR-style firearm. In one, the massacre at a McDonalds in San Ysidro, California, in 1984, the shooter used an Uzi submachine gun. The others were carried out with handguns, the weapon used in the majority of mass shootings.

Contrary to what some folks may think, the incidence of mass public shootings has not increased since Sandy Hook or even the five years before that, Duwe said. What has changed  and this is certainly true around the time of Sandy Hook and even since then  the severity of mass public shootings has certainly increased. That is one genuine change weve seen.

Jillian Peterson, an assistant professor at Hamline University and a forensic psychologist who previously worked in New York crafting psychological profiles of convicted murderers facing the death penalty, recently helped launch a project designed to catalog and analyze mass shootings dating back to the 1960s. The project is being done jointly with James Densley, an associate professor of criminal justice at Metropolitan State University.

They have no financing and are relying on about a dozen students to gather research based on public documents and media reports.

The reason why someone carries out a mass shooting has been elusive, and its a question she hopes the research will help answer. Are mass shooters of today and future bent on outdoing previous slayings by inflicting higher death tolls? That, too, is unclear. She cautions that such questions and answers continually evolve.

This is ever-changing, Peterson said. Just because we understand it today, we might not understand it tomorrow. That part gets hard. This is changing as society changes.
SANTA FE  Mayor Javier Gonzales has declared an emergency in the city due to serious lapses in cellular networks and telecommunications capabilities in Santa Fe.

Santa Fe residents for several months have been complaining about the poor service from Verizon. The mayor said in a news release Monday morning that the problems have become a public safety concern.

Once it began impacting our police, fire and emergency medical responders, it became more than a frustration, it became a threat of danger to public safety, Gonzales said.

In October, the citys Finance Committee tabled a four-year contract worth $373,000 with Verizon Networkfleet to replace and upgrade GPS devices installed in the citys fleet on of vehicles, with city citing the poor service. Councilor Mike Harris switched his personal cellphone service to a different provider.

City Manager Brian Snyder said at the time that it was his understanding that Verizon couldnt handle the load locally when it expanded its cellphone service to include unlimited data.

Verizon provided a statement Monday that said: The proclamation just issued by Mayor Gonzales communicates an agreement between Verizon and the City to address the much needed increase in capacity for wireless service in Santa Fe. As a result of this agreement, Verizon has permission to add seven temporary sites on city-owned properties over the next several months and to more quickly get permanent sites on air. In addition to first responders, residents will greatly benefit from the additional capacity.

The mayors proclamation, dated Nov. 21 but only announced Monday, said city staff will be working with Verizon to install temporary or mobile wireless telecommunications facilities on city property pending review and approval of fixed wireless facilities.

Cell phone towers or antennae can be controversial in Santa Fe, with opponents including people who say they are sensitive to electromagnetic waves.

The emergency declaration is good for six months, unless the mayor terminates it sooner, according to the proclamation.

Gonzales announced Saturday hes running as a Democrat for lieutenant governor.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

WASHINGTON  The FBI is considering criminal investigations of the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center and the Southwestern Womens Options abortion clinic in Albuquerque over a long-running controversy surrounding the use of aborted fetus tissue in medical research.

In December 2016, the Republican-led House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives asked the U.S. Justice Department and various state and local law enforcement agencies to open criminal inquiries into Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers, including Southwestern Womens Options in Albuquerque.

Steven E. Boyd, assistant attorney general for legislative affairs in Washington, wrote Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., a letter Friday confirming that the FBI is looking into the matter.

We can confirm that the Criminal Investigative Division of the FBI Headquarters has received this information, including the two referrals made to the New Mexico Attorney General regarding practices of the UNM HSC and SWO, and sent the materials to the relevant FBI field offices for review and any action deemed appropriate, Boyd wrote.

Pearce, who has raised questions about Health Sciences Centers protocols for fetal tissue research over the past two years, asked the Justice Department in September and November for updates on the criminal referrals made by the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives.

I applaud todays action by Attorney General Jeff Sessions to take up the criminal referrals in New Mexico regarding violations made by the University of New Mexico and the Southwestern Womens Options, Pearce wrote on his Facebook page after receiving Boyds letter Friday. Even more, DOJ will be investigating all fifteen criminal referrals that were sent out but not acted upon at the conclusion of the Select Panels investigation.

Health Sciences Center spokeswoman Alex Sanchez said the organization learned of Boyds letter on Monday.

The UNM Health Sciences Center has not been contacted by the FBI and only today became aware of the assistant attorney general for legislative affairs letter to Rep. Pearce, Sanchez said. As is our practice, if we are contacted, we will cooperate fully.

Sanchez said that Health Sciences Center research has proved extremely valuable and that its staff is trained to follow regulations.

Boyd also last week asked the Senate Judiciary Committee for unredacted documents underlying a 2016 investigation by the committee into the exchange of human fetal tissue that had been donated for research by women who get abortions, according to a New York Times report.

Under federal law, abortion providers cant sell fetal tissue, but they can donate it for medical research. Abortion providers can recover the cost of processing and transferring the tissue, although those costs are not specified or capped by law.

Southwestern Womens Options  one of the nations few providers of late-term abortions  has in the past provided the UNM Health Sciences Center with tissue from aborted fetuses for medical research. The Albuquerque clinic and Health Sciences Center officials contend the fetal tissue transfer is legal and integral to the study of human diseases.

Sanchez said the Health Sciences Centers critical research has already resulted in dramatic improvements in the health of extremely premature babies.

As we have previously stated, we have trained and instructed staff and faculty to conduct their research in compliance with all applicable state and federal regulations and laws and in accordance with the highest ethical standards, Sanchez said.

Among the complaints forwarded to the Justice Department was that women electing to receive abortions at Southwestern Womens Options did not have enough information to consent to the procedure.

Elisa Martinez, executive director of New Mexico Alliance for Life, said the Select Panel relied in part on documents the alliance obtained through open records requests of both the Health Sciences Center and Southwestern Womens Options.

We are thankful that the findings from our work with the Select Panel on Infant Lives are now being investigated by the Department of Justice before the statute of limitations runs out, Martinez said. The (panel) could not have completed their investigation resulting in two criminal referrals for the University of New Mexico and Southwestern Womens Options without the documents provided by New Mexico Alliance for Life, obtained through open record requests.

Boyd told Pearce in his letter that the FBI could not confirm or deny an actual criminal investigation because of long-standing protocol that prohibits public discussion of ongoing inquiries.

However, please be assured that the Department is committed to bringing enforcement action wherever the facts and evidence demonstrates prosecutable violations of federal law, the letter said. The House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives has also asked New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas to open investigations into the matter. Balderas has said only that his office has the matter under review.

Southwestern Womens Options spokeswoman Heather Brewer said the clinic will cooperate fully  as we have always done  with any public investigation of the high-quality, compassionate care that we have provided New Mexico women for more than 40 years.
HELSINKI  South Koreas arms sales hit record levels last year, pushed by the continuous military threat from North Korea, complicated relations with China and a government decision to increase domestic arms production, a Swedish think tank said Monday.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, or SIPRI, reported that arms sales by South Korean companies included in its latest study of the worlds 100 largest arms producers stood at $8.4 billion in 2016, up 21 percent from the previous year. The figure covers only those South Korean companies ranked in the study, not the countrys entire defense industry.

SIPRI researcher Aude Fleurant said Seoul has been developing its own arms production since the 1970s to reduce dependency on foreign suppliers because of threat perception in the region, and the results are now being seen.

She said South Korean weapons producers have seen a steady sales increase over the past few years, supported also by the Asian countrys economic growth.

The South Korean ministry of defense now procures its weapons from domestic producers, instead of importing them from foreign suppliers, noted Fleurant, director for SIPRIs arms and military expenditure program.

SIPRIs report, published Monday, said the worlds 100 biggest armaments groups sold weapons and weapons systems worth $375 billion in 2016, up 2 percent from 2015.

The vast bulk of these companies derive from the United States, Russia and Western Europe. SIPRI counts China as a top arms manufacturer, too, but its excluded in the statistics as no reliable data is available.
CAIRO  Russian President Vladimir Putin declared victory in Syria during a surprise visit Monday to a military base there, then traveled to Egypt and Turkey, where he celebrated Moscows deepening ties with those key regional powers.

The tour highlighted Russias expanded reach in the Middle East and the global clout of its leader, who announced last week he is seeking re-election for another six-year term in March.

Speaking to Russian troops on the tarmac at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, Putin talked of the triumph over terrorists and announced a partial pullout of Russian troops.

You have shown the best qualities of a Russian soldier  courage, valor, team spirit, decisiveness and excellent skills, he said in televised remarks to the troops. The Motherland is proud of you.

Putin praised Russias effort to help President Bashar Assads forces to gain the upper hand over the Islamic State group and Syrian rebels.

Here in Syria, far away from our borders, you helped the Syrian people to preserve their state and fend off attacks by terrorists, Putin said. You have dealt a devastating blow to those who blatantly threatened our country. We will never forget about the victims who fell in the fight against terror both here and in Russia.

Putin also said that he had ordered the military to withdraw a significant part of the Russian contingent in Syria  although he has announced Russian troop withdrawals before.

Friends, the Motherland is waiting for you, he said. You are coming back home with victory!

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the Russian commander in Syria, said the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers. The remaining forces will be sufficient to successfully fulfill the tasks to stabilize the situation in Syria, he said, but did not specify how many troops and weapons would remain.

The Pentagon expressed skepticism about the statements on the withdrawal of troops and equipment from Syria. Army Col. Rob Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, said Russian statements do not often correspond with actual troop reductions. He said the withdrawal comments will have no impact on the U.S. and coalition fight against Islamic State extremists.

It was Putins first trip to Syria, where Russia began its air campaign in 2015. He has hosted Assad twice in the past six years, including an unannounced Nov. 21 visit by the longtime Russian ally to the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Putins whirlwind trip to Syria, Egypt and Turkey came at a time when leaders in the Middle East and beyond have criticized a decision last week by U.S. President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, upending decades of U.S. policy.

Speaking at a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, Putin said the U.S. move doesnt help the Mideast settlement and, just the other way round, destabilizes the already difficult situation in the region.

The decision might finish prospects for the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, Putin said, standing next to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Putin added that Moscow believes that the status of Jerusalem could only be settled through talks between the Palestinians and Israel in line with U.N. resolutions.

Russias growing footprint in the Middle East extends beyond Syria and Egypt. King Salman of Saudi Arabia visited Putin in October as the two countries shook off decades of enmity and mutual suspicion.

During the Cold War, the Saudis helped arm Afghan rebels fighting the Soviet invasion. More recently, tensions ran high over Russias military help for Assad, whom Riyadh insists must go as part of any settlement in the Syrias civil war. The Saudis have since softened their opposition to Russias role in Syria.

Putin is hoping his trip will stoke national pride among voters in the March 18 presidential election. With his approval ratings topping 80 percent, Putin is certain to win easily, but the Kremlin has been worried about growing voter apathy.

The successful military campaign in Syria and Moscows growing clout in the Middle East would help burnish his image as a man who restored Russias global power and prestige after the Soviet Unions collapse in 1991.

In Egypt, Putin sought to strengthen his relationship with a key regional power that has in the past three years bought billions of dollars in Russian weapons and supported Moscows intervention in Syria when others decried it.

Russia always paid a special attention to expanding friendly and mutually beneficial ties with Egypt, our longtime reliable partner in the Middle East and North Africa, said Putin, on his second visit to Egypt in as many years, meeting with President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

A general-turned-president, el-Sissi said the two countries had a relationship with a long history, characterized by strength and durability.

Neither made any mention of a deal drafted last month to allow Russian warplanes to use Egyptian military bases, perhaps because of the sensitivity in a country that says it had repeatedly rejected offers to base foreign forces on its territory.

That the agreement was not signed during Putins visit could also mean differences remain over the issue.

For now, Russia has an air base and a naval supply facility in Syria, its only permanent military foothold outside Russia.

Egypts ties with Russia date back to the 1950s and 1960s, when Cairo was a close ally at the height of the Cold War. Egypt changed sides in the 1970s under the late President Anwar Sadat, who replaced Moscow with Washington as his countrys chief economic and military backer following the signing of a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty with Israel in 1979.

Under el-Sissi, Egypt has maintained close ties with both Russia and the United States, which remains Egypts main international backer, providing an estimated $1.3 billion in military and economic aid each year. Those ties suffered a blow in 2013, when the Obama administration criticized the military overthrow of Egypts first freely elected leader amid mass protests against his rule. Relations have improved under Trump, who also has sought better relations with Moscow.

With Putin and el-Sissi looking on, officials from both countries signed a deal for the construction of a nuclear reactor on Egypts Mediterranean coast northwest of Cairo. Egypt has reached an agreement in principle to borrow $25 billion, or roughly 80 percent of the reactors cost, from Russia. The signing ended months of wrangling over technical and financial details.

Putin may have disappointed el-Sissi during his visit when he once again delayed a decision on resuming flights to Egypt suspended two years ago when the Islamic State group downed a Russian airliner over Egypts Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board. The suspension has decimated Egypts vital tourism industry. Authorities have since spent millions of dollars to upgrade security at its airports, hoping to get Moscow to change its mind.

Putin praised those efforts, saying the two countries have come close to a deal to resume flights, but he did not give a timeline.

Security agencies reported to me that we are generally ready to restore a direct air link between Moscow and Cairo, Putin said, adding that an agreement could be signed in the nearest time.

Russian Transport Minister Maxi Sokolov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying flights between Moscow and Cairo could be restored in February. There was no immediate mention of restoring an air link to Sharm el-Sheikh, where the doomed Russian airliner took off.

In Turkey, Putin and Erdogan discussed developments in Syria and the Middle East, as well as bilateral relations, according to the Turkish presidents office.

During their news conference, Erdogan said it was their eighth meeting this year and kept calling Putin, My dear friend, in his statement. Putin also addressed Erdogan as a friend, emphasizing his role in helping negotiate peace settlement in Syria.

They regularly talk by telephone about Syria. Relations between the two countries were tense after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane on the border with Syria in November 2015, but they have restored ties and developed a close rapport on Syria, brokering a deal on safe zones that helped reduce fighting.

___

Isachenkov reported from Moscow.
Many of New Mexicos 20,000 Jewish residents will light a candle at sundown Tuesday marking the first of eight days of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.

In Albuquerque, Chabad of New Mexico will sponsor a Chanukah Night Glow on Sunday, from 4:30 p.m. to 5:45 p.m., at Balloon Fiesta Park, 5000 Balloon Fiesta Parkway NE. It will feature what is being billed as the worlds only and largest Menorah formed from hot air balloons. The event and parking are free.

The Hebrew word Chanukah, also spelled Hanukkah and other variations, means dedication. It commemorates the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in the Second Century BCE. Jerusalem and its Holy Temple had been occupied by the Syrian-Greek Seleucids, until a small band of Jews led by Judah Maccabee, drove them from the land.

The Maccabee followers cleared the temple of idols and built a new altar. As part of the re-dedication they lit a Menorah, or candelabra, with the one cruse of pure olive oil they were able to find in the temple and which bore the seal of the high priest. The oil was expected to last only one day but miraculously it lasted eight days, the amount of time required to prepare new oil under conditions of ritual purity.

Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights, is commemorated by lighting the Menorah, or Hanukkiah, a candelabra with nine branches  one for each of the eight days the ancient oil burned, and a ninth branch that holds the shamash, or helper candle that is used to light the others. On the first day of Hanukkah, one candle is lit, on the second day two candles are lit, and so on.

Jews also commemorate the holiday by eating foods cooked in oil, such as latkes (potato pancakes), or sufganiyot (jelly-filled doughnuts).
DALLAS  A recent lapse by the U.S. Army to disclose a Texas veterans criminal record to the FBI is the latest example of the military failing to document criminal convictions, according to a newspapers review.

Former Army 1st Sgt. Gregory McQueen pleaded guilty two years ago to more than a dozen military charges for attempting to run a prostitution ring in Fort Hood. But the conviction didnt show up in a state background check when a foster-care agency hired McQueen in March to care for abused and neglected children, the Dallas Morning News reported .

The Army later acknowledged it failed to submit information about McQueens criminal record to an FBI database widely used for background checks. State officials said McQueens record should have kept him out of the foster-care program.

Dozens of Texas agencies rely on FBI criminal history data when hiring for skilled occupations such as police officers, lawyers, doctors and even foster-care parents.

Background checks are important tools to help screen for potential issues, said Christine Mann, spokeswoman for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. When it comes to vetting potential foster parents, its in everyones best interest to make sure that criminal databases contain the most complete, accurate and up-to-date information.

The militarys reporting failures recently drew attention after former airman Devin Kelley fatally shot more than a dozen people in Sutherland Springs. The Air Force admitted to not disclosing his 2012 domestic violence conviction, which should have prevented him from legally purchasing firearms.

Civilian law enforcement and court agencies upload criminal convictions to two criminal databases kept by the federal government. One database is used by gun sellers. The second database is called the National Crime Information and is widely used for workplace licensing and background checks.

The Army said McQueens conviction showed up in the database used by gun sellers but not the workplace database. The contractor that hired McQueen delisted him three months after discovering his convictions.

McQueen could not be reached for comment.

___

Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com
The U.S. Embassy, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia, the Embassy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Embassy of the Republic of France, the United Nations, and the Council of Europe honoured individuals working to promote human rights, freedom of expression, diversity, religious acceptance, democracy, transparency, legal reform and equal rights in Armenia at the Universal Rights Awards Ceremony today. Since 2012, the Universal Rights Awards Ceremony was the first initiative of the international community to highlight contributions of Armenias civil and political rights activists, government officials, media and civil society representatives to the promotion of human rights. Armenian officials, foreign diplomats, civil society and press representatives attended the event.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr Bradley Busetto presented the "Woman of Courage" award. In times of crisis and armed conflict human rights are infringed upon the most and only a few have the courage to come up-front and support others while their own lives are endangered. Ms. Ani Balkhian, was among the few to step-up for life-saving mission supporting people to flee the conflict zone during Syria crisis. Ms. Balkhian was courageous enough to continue her vital mission being already in Armenia by speaking-out and supporting the settlement of displaced Syrian families. It is my honour to present the Woman of Courage Award to Ms. Balkhian in recognition of her endurance in pursuing her humanitarian efforts, for her outstanding level of engagement in life-saving and refugee protection mission, and for her lasting courageous advocacy for integration of Syrian families, said Mr Busetto.

H.E. Piotr A. Switalski, Ambassador and the Head of the European Union Delegation to Armenia awarded the Union of Informed Citizens NGO and its Programme Director Daniel Ioannisyan with the "Promoting Justice and Transparency" award. "The European Union commends the Union of Informed Citizens and Daniel Ioannisyan in recognition of their efforts to promote democratic and transparent electoral process in the Republic of Armenia," said Ambassador Switalski.

The Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, Ms Natalia Voutova handed over the "Government Reformer" award. Mr Vigen Kocharyan has contributed to the implementation of legal reforms in the Republic of Armenia. His efforts to promote all aspects of fundamental rights in Armenia as well as his support to the dialogue between the Government and the civil society organisations cannot go unnoticed. Such an award forms the highest level of recognition and is a showcase of success stories realized by a committed reformer such as Mr Kocharyan. Hence, on behalf of the Council of Europe, it is an honor and pleasure for me to hand over this prize to Mr Kocharyan," said Ms Voutova.

H.E. Richard Mills, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to Armenia presented the "Media Excellence" award to MediaLab Newsroom Laboratory. "Today, more than ever, we must cherish freedom of expression, the foundation of any free and democratic society. It is my great honor to present the Media Excellence Award to MediaLab Newsroom Laboratory for its consequential work shedding light and starting public discussions on some of the most controversial issues that Armenian society faces today. Led by an exceptional reporter, Marianna Grigoryan, MediaLab has constantly found creative ways and shown ingenuity in starting tough conversations to create a more just, free and democratic Armenia. They have often told and shown people what they do not want to hear, and I applaud their courage for doing so with grace, humor and great professionalism," said Ambassador Mills.

The Deputy Head of Mission of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Ms Alison Chick gave the "Freedom Defender" award. Defending the right to freedom of religion or belief is important, not only because it is a principle worth defending for its own sake but because we believe that societies in which people are free to practice their faith or belief are more stable and prosperous. I am delighted to announce that the Freedom Defender award this year goes to Isabella Sargsyan in recognition of her tireless efforts to promote diversity, freedom of thought and religious acceptance, said Ms Chick.

This year, the French and German Embassies in Armenia for the first time presented a joint "Franco-German Prize for Equal Chances." This prize, part of a worldwide Franco-German initiative, is intended to honour an organisation or a person in Armenia that has excelled in the fight against discrimination. H.E. Jonathan Lacote, Ambassador of France said: I am proud that French and German Embassies got united to support the work of civil society towards a more inclusive society with equal chances for all. H.E. Matthias Kiesler, Ambassador of Germany said: I am happy to announce that we have selected Agate - Rights Defense Center for Women with Disabilities NGO based in Gyumri for the first Franco-German Prize. It is very encouraging to see that, over the past 10 years, Agate has implemented more than 50 programmes. These activities had a positive impact on more than 1,000 people with disabilities and their family members.
FRANKFORT, Ky.  A Republican Kentucky lawmaker known for his inflammatory social media posts comparing President Barack Obama and his wife to monkeys has been accused of sexual assault by a woman who attended his church. Both Republican and Democratic leaders on Monday called for Dan Johnson to resign.

The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting quotes Maranda Richmond as saying that Johnson assaulted her in the basement of his house in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, 2013.

Police records obtained by the news organization show Richmond told them about the assault in 2013. But investigators closed the case and did not file charges. Johnson was elected to the state legislature in 2016. Neither Johnson nor police department officials returned calls from The Associated Press.

Reaction was swift from the leaders of the states two major political parties, who said Johnson should resign immediately. David Osborne, acting speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives, said the report was compelling and deeply troubling.

Republican Gov. Matt Bevin was more cautious, saying he had not read the report and lets wait until we get some facts before commenting.

The allegation surfaced on the eve of a pivotal U.S. Senate election in Alabama, where Republican candidate Roy Moore is facing allegations of sexual misconduct from multiple women. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has urged Moore to drop out of the race, while Republican President Donald Trump has campaigned for Moore.

Johnson is the bishop of Heart of Fire ministries in Louisville. The church is known for its gun choir , which features Johnson and others holding guns while singing Amazing Grace. He ousted a Democratic incumbent during the 2016 elections, part of a wave of Republican victories that handed the GOP control of the state House of Representatives for the first time in nearly 100 years.

Richmond is a former member of Johnsons church and a friend of his daughter. The Associated Press does not generally identify alleged sexual assault victims, but is doing so because Richmond has gone public with her story. Attempts to find a phone number for Richmond were unsuccessful on Monday. She did not respond to a Facebook message.

She told the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting she attended a party at Johnsons home on New Years Eve 2012. That night, Richmond said she was asleep on a couch in the basement when she woke up to find Johnson standing over her. She said he groped her, stuck his tongue in her mouth and slid his hands down her pants and into her vagina.

Richmond said she begged Johnson to stop, but that he kept telling her she would like it. Eventually, she said, Johnson stopped and left.

Richmond went to the police. Records show investigators with the Louisville Metro Police Department recorded a phone call between Johnson and Richmonds father, in which Johnson said he couldnt imagine doing that to Maranda.

A detective closed the case in 2014 because the victim refuses to cooperate, according to police documents posted online by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. Richmond denied this.

I never once did not want to continue on, she said.

Representatives from the police department did not return multiple calls from The Associated Press seeking comment Monday.

The allegation against Johnson is not the only scandal to affect Kentucky House Republicans. Former Kentucky House Speaker Jeff Hoover resigned his leadership position last month after acknowledging he paid to settle a sexual-harassment claim made by a woman in his office. Three other Republican lawmakers were part of the secretive settlement and have been stripped of their committee chairmanships. All four remain in the state legislature.

This is the second time Republican leaders have asked for Johnsons resignation. In 2016, while he was a candidate for office, he was criticized for posting racists photos on his Facebook page comparing former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama to monkeys. He rejected Republican leaders calls for him to drop out of the race, and ended up winning it.

Bevin did not comment on Richmonds allegations against Johnson, telling reporters he has a policy of not speaking specifically about an individual. He did say there should be zero tolerance for sexual harassment.
Xcel Energys plans to build two massive wind farms in New Mexico and West Texas took a huge leap forward Monday thanks to a new settlement agreement with parties in the case.

The company filed the agreement, or stipulation, at the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, where various intervening parties had previously objected to key parts of Xcels project, which calls for building a 522-megawatt facility in eastern New Mexico and a 478-MW farm in Texas. That, combined with the purchase of 230 MW of wind energy from a nearby facility owned by NextEra Energy, would provide enough electricity to power about 440,000 average homes annually.

The company, which expects to invest about $1.6 billion, had said the project would benefit about 385,000 customers by saving them roughly $2.8 billion in electric costs over 30 years. The savings would come from offsetting higher fuel costs from natural gas and other sources.

But some parties in the case, particularly PRC utility staff, said the projected savings werent guaranteed, and they demanded protections for ratepayers.

In the new settlement, Xcel subsidiary Southwest Public Service Co., made some key compromises. That includes: agreement to cap cost recovery for the project at $1,675 per kilowatt, a guarantee the wind farms will produce a minimum annual output of 48 percent of capacity and assurances that customers will be credited 100 percent of the federal production tax credits for wind generation it will receive once the farms come online.

No parties are opposed now, David Hudson, Xcel president for New Mexico and Texas, told the Journal. PRC staff and other parties also filed testimony today in support of the agreement.

The parties compromised with Xcel on a sticking point for the company. Until now, PRC staff had opposed mechanisms for the utility to earn back any investment during the two or more years it would take for it to get new rates approved by the PRC to recover its investment in the project. That meant costs during the interim period during a new rate case would never be recaptured.

In the new agreement, SPS will now be allowed to recover that investment, either through interim rates that will take effect within 30 days after SPS files a new rate case, or through a surcharge on bills after new rates are approved to allow the company to earn back the months of investment it loses during the rate case, Hudson said.

Parties in the case say the agreement is fair.

Im committed to ensuring energy affordability and security, protecting our natural environment, and growing New Mexicos fragile economy, and thats why Im supporting the stipulation filed today with the PRC, Attorney General Hecter Balderas said in a prepared statement.

The project is still not guaranteed. Thats because SPS must finalize an agreement with parties in Texas, and because federal tax reform now winding its way through Congress could disrupt wind production tax credits, undermining the projects economics, Hudson said.
WASHINGTON  Fending off the renewed focus on sexual harassment allegations against him, President Donald Trump lashed out at Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on Tuesday, declaring the New York Democrat and frequent presidential critic had come to his office begging for campaign contributions and would do anything to get them.

A chorus of Democrats accused Trump of insinuations about Gillibrand that were unsavory at best.

Nothing of the kind, retorted White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She said there is no way that this is sexist at all, and she suggested the tweet could be considered sexually charged only if your mind is in the gutter.

Gillibrand, who had called for the presidents resignation a day earlier because of allegations of sexual misconduct, called his attack a sexist smear attempting to silence my voice.

I will not be silenced on this issue, she said. Neither will the women who stood up to the president yesterday, referring to those who have accused the president of sexual harassment.

With nearly each week bringing new headlines about sexual misconduct forcing men from positions of power, the rising #MeToo movement has landed squarely at the front door of Trumps White House. A handful of Democratic senators have called for his resignation, nearly 60 lawmakers are urging a congressional probe into his behavior and some of the 16 women who have accused Trump of harassment have resurfaced their stories.

Gillibrand, one of the leading lawmakers advocating against sexual harassment and a potential 2020 presidential contender, was at a bipartisan Bible study session when a staffer alerted her to Trumps tweet, according to an aide.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., another potential presidential contender, tweeted to the president: Are you really trying to bully, intimidate and slut-shame @SenGillibrand? Do you know who youre picking a fight with? Good luck with that, @realDonaldTrump.

Trumps tweet Tuesday did not directly address sexual harassment, but said of Gillibrand: Lightweight Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a total flunky for Chuck Schumer and someone who would come to my office begging for campaign contributions not so long ago (and would do anything for them), is now in the ring fighting against Trump. Very disloyal to Bill & Crooked-USED!

Sanders insisted that Trump meant to denounce Gillibrands role within the Washington political culture and nothing more.

The president is very obvious. This is the same sentiment that the president has expressed many times before when he has exposed the corruption of the entire political system, Sanders said during the White House press briefing. If you look back at past comments that this president has made, hes used that same terminology many times in reference to men.

Trump frequently derides the swamp of campaign finance and he has previously tweeted about politicians begging for donations. In 2013, he wrote of New Yorks attorney general: Why did lightweight A.G. Eric Schneiderman come to my office on numerous occasions begging for campaign contributions?

Trump donated $4,800 to Gillibrands Senate campaign in 2010, according to federal campaign finance records. Before launching his presidential campaign, he frequently bestowed donations on politicians of both parties.

His broadside against Gillibrand was the latest example of Trump hurling a provocative, if vague, attack that was open to interpretation, allowing him to distance himself from criticism that hes being inflammatory.

His tweet outraged Democrats, who said the president was again debasing a woman. Several Democratic senators have now demanded that Trump step down, including Hawaiis Mazie Hirono.

He is a liar. He is an admitted sexual predator and the only thing that will stop him is his resignation, Hirono said. He not only owes Kirsten an apology, he owes an apology to our entire country, particularly the women in this country.

The Democratic Womens Working Group held a news conference to demand that the House Oversight Committee investigate sexual misconduct allegations against Trump. Republican lawmakers, who control both houses of Congress, have indicated that such a probe is unlikely.

The criticism largely came from one side of the aisle: Republicans mostly remained silent about the tweet, with Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake, a frequent Trump critic, being an exception. He said, he didnt think it was appropriate at all.

More than a dozen women came forward during last years campaign to say that Trump had harassed them or worse, many speaking out in the wake of the Access Hollywood tape in which he is heard bragging about groping women. Several have spoken out again this week, saying that the #MeToo movement is an occasion to ensure he is held accountable.

White House aides have warily watched the movement sweep across Capitol Hill, fearful of another distraction for a president saddled with poor approval numbers and a thin legislative track record.

And the president is said to have fumed when Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said in a weekend interview that the presidents accusers voices should be heard. His reaction was described by two people who are familiar with his views but who spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to speak publicly about private conversations.

Trump has denied the womens claims. In a heated exchange with reporters on Monday, Sanders said anew that the issue had been settled in Trumps favor on Election Day.

Sanders also promised that the White House would provide a list of eyewitnesses and corroborating evidence to exonerate Trump. Nearly 24 hours later, the White House sent along an email that, citing news reports that quoted witnesses, offered rebuttals to two of the accusations.

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Lemire reported from New York. Associated Press writers Nancy Benac, Juliet Linderman, Kevin Freking and Matthew Daly contributed to this report from Washington.

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Follow Lemire on Twitter at http://twitter.com///twitter.com/@rplardner
SANTA FE  New Mexico lawmakers will get their first peek Tuesday at the results of a $400,000 study aimed at helping them analyze how to overhaul the state tax code.

Supporters say it should give the Legislature much more confidence that changing the states complex system of gross receipts taxes wouldnt create unintended consequences that damage state revenue.

Democratic legislative leaders have warned that the coming 30-day session probably wont provide enough time for a broad rewrite of New Mexicos tax code  a priority of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez.

But Rep. Jason Harper, R-Rio Rancho, said Monday that he believes the

Legislature and governor can find common ground on some important components of tax reform. The key is to make sure that, as a whole, the changes revenue-neutral, he said, and a computer model developed by the study could help provide that information.

Harper has repeatedly pushed to address pyramiding  the taxation of business-to-business transactions. Eliminating or reducing those taxes, of course, would cut into state revenue.

Democrats, on the other hand, have pushed to increase tax rates or remove exemptions on commercial trucks, some hospitals and gasoline, which would boost revenue.

Theres been intense debate over how much each change would affect the states bottom line.

The computer model that lawmakers will hear about today may help answer those questions.

Sen. William Sharer, R-Farmington, said hes hopeful that now is the time New Mexico will move toward a much simpler tax system. He favors a flat 2 percent gross receipts tax on a broad base of services and products  the key, of course, being that it must raise enough revenue to pay for government services.

Plain and simple, there is nothing simple about our current system, Sharer said. The new tool gives us hope for fairness.

The Legislatures Revenue Stabilization and Tax Policy Committee, meanwhile, heard a presentation on Monday from Tom Clifford, a former chief economist for the Legislative Finance Committee and a former Cabinet secretary for finance and administration under Martinez.

He said that, broadly speaking, New Mexico relies more heavily on gross receipts and sales taxes to pay for government services than the average state and less on property taxes.

Theres some potential, then, to shift more of the financial burden to property taxes, he said, while reducing gross receipts taxes.

Theres very strong policy arguments for making that switch, he said.

The reliance on gross receipts taxes  which generally cover business-to-business transactions, such as when a small shop hires an accounting firm to do handle its bookkeeping  may discourage private investment.
Somany Ceramics, a leading player in the Indian ceramic industry, recently rolled out their latest 360-degree brand campaign  Apka style, Somany style. The fresh and peppy campaign, conceptualized and created by Ogilvy & Mather, reinforces the brands commitment to meet the diverse consumer personalities and requirements through their vast product portfolio. Through this campaign, the brand seeks to communicate how the homes of consumers are essentially an extension of their own selves and the wide-ranging Somany Ceramics portfolio enables them to personify their quirks and fancies.

The campaign has also unfolded with a power packed all round outreach and engagement plan across media vehicles. The brand will have a significant presence across digital, retail, radio, print, cinema and TV with an estimated 1000+ GRPs.

In a freewheeling conversation with Adgully, Abhishek Somany, MD, Somany Ceramics, speaks about the campaign, the creative thought behind it, marketing strategy, go-to-market plans and much more. Excerpts:

What is the philosophy behind the latest campaign?

We wanted to further emphasise on our brand and put it on top of everyones minds. The idea was to pull it 360 degree, so we rolled it on Television, and very soon one will find us in cinema, radio and various other mediums. Somany is placed second in India in the tiles market. With a view to further strengthen our position, this is a very large campaign in terms of investment.

Marketing for this campaign is not just restricted to television screens. We will soon touch the radio. We are going very well on social media and digital platforms. The campaign has been released on various OOH platforms within a week of its launch on TV.

What was the creative brief shared with the agency?

Since we all know that tiles are not a product that we buy on a daily basis, so keeping that in mind, we wanted to create a campaign which could have a long lasting impact on peoples minds when they think about it, and for that we had three major elements. Firstly, we wanted to target younger audiences, who buy their own or rented house. Secondly, we didnt want to have an emotional advertisement, instead we wanted to take a quirky, young, peppy and colourful route that could strike a chord with the younger audiences. Lastly, one more thing that we had shared with Ogilvy was that whatever route they came up with, it should be more digital and social media friendly, so that we could do a lot more activations around the TVC in different formats. We decided against roping in a brand ambassador for the campaign because sometimes the brand ambassador becomes even larger than the brand. Therefore, we decided to use that money in making the ad more quirky and happening.

With this campaign we intend to strengthen our position as the first choice for Indian consumers for all their tiling needs to make their dream homes come to life.

What are the go-to-market plans for Somany?

Individually, for this campaign we have spent somewhere around 3 per cent of our revenue from the overall spends. Riding on the campaign, it will definitely have a long lasting impact on the audiences. This campaign will run next year as well. We will finish this around February or March and then will take a break and will return on the same track. Consistency is a major factor that plays with peoples minds. Also, going forward we will explore this campaign a lot more in 2018 as compared to this year.

What are your growth plans for 2018?

According to me, 2017-18 is a year of disruption. We had GST, where now the rates have been placed at 18 per cent, which we welcome.

Campaign credits:

Creative Agency: Ogilvy & Mather

Production House: Apostrophe Films

Director (Film): Kaushik Sarkar

Executive Chairman & Creative Director, South Asia, Ogilvy: Piyush Pandey

Deputy CCO: Ajay Gahlaut

President - Ogilvy Group Companies, North: Kapil Arora

Creative: Krishna Mani, Shailendra Mahajan, Neha Bhatia, Srikanta Behera, Vishal Yadav, Vikalp Gupta

Account Management: Chandana Agarwal, Antara Suri, Rahul Ojha, Aurko Mukhopadhyay

Account Planning: Alok Sinha, Abhishek Chaturvedi, Aakriti Goel
India has waned through the lingering impact of currency exchange in November 2016 and passed through effect of unified tax structure in July this year. Transitory costs for introducing bold structural reforms have been paid and upswing in economic activity is strengthening. The bank recapitalisation plan, coupled with insolvency and bankruptcy code 2016, has revived the sector and this will boost private investment. Revival in rural economy and growing middle class will boost economic growth. GDP in real terms is expected to grow +6.7 per cent, a speck slower than the earlier projected +7.17 per cent. In 2018, the IMF report predicts growth of +7.4 per cent.

According to the IPG Mediabrands Magna Adex Prediction 2018, advertising revenue will grow at CAGR of +12.1 per cent in the next five years to touch Rs 1.07 trillion. Growth will be led by digital with +21.6 per cent. Television will still rule the top as the largest media in 2022 with a market share of 41 per cent. Digital and Print will have equal share of 25 per cent. Mobile will displace desktop as the 3rd largest category by 2020.

The United States and China contribute close to 50 per cent of the incremental ad dollars between 2018 and 2022, while India ranks third with a 6 per cent contribution. The traditional categories like Print are so strong and growing YOY in India that over 60 per cent of this incremental dollars is coming from traditional categories.

2017 estimated Adex growth rate of +11.5 per cent earlier in June has been revised marginally downwards to +11.1 per cent. In 2018, IPM expects the ad spends to grow +12.1 per cent. Categories driving up spends next year will be:

Auto enjoys a strong domestic demand due to rising income, rising middle class and a young population. Demand for commercial vehicles due to heightened infrastructure activity and governments focus on electric vehicles to meet emission targets are some of the growth drivers.

FMCG penetration will increase with modern trade growing faster in Tier2 and 3 cities. Raising disposable income among rural consumers, e-commerce strengthening their offering with daily products, evolving consumer lifestyle and government FDI policy is infusing growth.

Banking demand will go up, thanks to increase in working population. Housing and personal finance are key drivers. Governments financial inclusion plan is expanding the reach of banking services and insurance coverage to rural segment.

Consumer durables demand will grow with rural electrification and e-commerce expansion.

E-commerce growth is propelled by increasing smartphone penetration, digital literacy combined with affordable data costs. GST will help e-commerce players to streamline supply chain and eliminate dual taxes. The sector is attracting more users from Tier 2 and 3 cities.
On November 13th 2017, LOUIS XIII Cognac premiered 100 Years- The Song We'll Only Hear If We Care - a unique musical composition created by Pharrell Williams that will not be released until 2117. LOUIS XIII partnered with Pharrell on this innovative project due to a shared dedication to environmental issues. The original song is a creative expression of the delicate relationship between nature and time, and the effect humans have on their environment. Each decanter of LOUIS XIII represents the life achievement of generations of cellar masters, so LOUIS XIII must always think a century ahead.



Pharrells exclusive track was recorded onto a record made of clay from the chalky soil of the Cognac region, and stored in the cellars of LOUIS XIII in a state-of-the-art safe specially designed by Fichet-Bauche that is only destructible when submerged in water. If sea levels continue to rise due to climate change, scientists project that in 100 years, a portion of the worlds land might be underwater. The only way to guarantee this original piece of music will be heard again in 2117, one century from now, is if we address the consequences of global warming - if we do not change our way of living, future generations will never be able to hear this song. 100 Years by Pharrell Williams will be out in 2117, but only #Ifwecare.

I love the fact that LOUIS XIII thinks a century ahead, said Pharrell Williams. We should all do the same for the planet. We have a common interest in preserving nature for the future. Each bottle is the life achievement of generations of men and women. It's all about legacy and transmission." Pharrell has long been passionate about preserving our environment and how important human action is to addressing climate change.100 Years premiered during a private listening party in Shanghai, where Pharrell presented the song one time only. The one hundred lucky guests in attendance were not allowed to record the once-in-a-lifetime experience, so the song remains a secret for the next century. LOUIS XIII and Pharrell aimed to inspire these guests to take action and motivate others to get involved in the international effort to curb global warming.We are incredibly proud of this innovative project, said Ludovic du Plessis, Global Executive Director of LOUIS XIII. Nature and time are at the heart of what we do. If the environment is unstable, even the greatest cellar master would not be able to compose the exceptional blend that is LOUIS XIII. Global Warming is one of the most important issues of the 21st century; with 100 Years - The Song We'll Only Hear If We Care, we hope to inspire people around the world to take action.In 2015, LOUIS XIII partnered with renowned actor and creative visionary John Malkovich to create 100 Years: The Movie You Will Never See, a thought-provoking artistic work that explores the relationship of past, present, and future. 100 Years - The Song We'll Only Hear If We Care  was previewed in Shanghai on November 13th, 2017. For more information, visit the brand website - WWW.LOUISXIII-COGNAC.COMGLOBAL WARMING LOUIS XIII was founded in 1874 by Paul Emile Remy Martin and is the pure result of the genius of its creators: the environment and generations of owners and cellar masters. Mother Nature is at the heart of what we do: without her full balance and wellness, the greatest cellar masters or vineyards would not be able to grow and assemble the exceptional blend of up to 1200 eaux-de-vie that compose each LOUIS XIII decanter. Like Paul Emile Remy Martin, Andre Giraud, Georges Clot and Pierrette Trichet did in the past; todays Cellar Master Baptiste Loiseau is setting aside our finest eaux-de-vie as a legacy to his successors, for the coming century.Following the event in Shanghai, LOUIS XIII Cognac will launch an international tour in major cities all around the world, in order to raise awareness and funds for environmental organizations through charity dinners. Through these events, LOUIS XIII will directly support associations dedicated to curbing climate change on a local level.



Thanks to the gift of our Grande Champagne Terroir where LOUIS XIII soil and vines are nestling, each decanter is the life achievement of generations of cellar masters. From its birth in 1874 to the Universal Exhibition in Paris, or by accompanying the royal dynasties of Europe, LOUIS XIII was a privileged observer of the 20th century. Today, it is only natural that we care deeply about our environment and work to serve as a flag bearer to address this major issue of the 21st century. Where protecting our terroir is a day-by-day necessity, to think a century ahead has been the core tenet of our philosophy since LOUIS XIII was founded, as the cellar master must set aside the finest eaux-de-vie as a legacy to his successors for the coming century. Preparing the legacy we will leave behind for future generations is an integral part of our brand DNA and our involvement in the international effort to combat climate change is not only legitimate, it is imperative.



The Remy Cointreau Group, including LOUIS XIII, has long been dedicated to the international effort to curb global warming. The group joined the United Nations Global Compact environmental organization 14 years ago, and has been a member of the U.N.s elite Global Compact Advanced since 2014. The group is dedicated to contributing to the international effort with its 2020 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, within the U.N. environmental framework. Taking action to help battle climate change is one of the main objectives of the 2020 program, with one of its goals being to reduce the groups greenhouse gases and carbon footprint. Top priorities of this program include sustainable wine-growing practices, energy efficiency, eco-friendly packaging, optimization of product shipments and forest conservation. Given its niche production, LOUIS XIII contributes to a very small CO2 emission.



As a company, we must do the best we can every day to make the world a better place, explained Ludovic du Plessis, Global Executive Director of LOUIS XIII. But no single person or brand can stop global warming on their own  it must come from the unified global actions of all people around the world. Together we are much stronger than any person or brand is on their own. This is not about any one city or country but the future of our planet as a whole. Our concern is not primarily for Cognac, but for every city around the world.
Ola, Indias most popular mobility platform, today announced the appointment of Viraj Chouhan as its Chief Communications Officer (CCO). Viraj, a corporate communications veteran, brings over 20 years of experience across global brands like MTS, Coca-Cola, and Bharti Airtel. He was most recently, Executive Director of Corporate Communications at MTS India.

As Chief Communications Officer, Viraj would be reporting to co-founder & CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal. Viraj will be based in Gurgaon, shuttling between the Millennium City and Bangalore. Anand Subramanian, who was leading the Communications mandate thus far, will be moving into a new role within Ola.

Bhavish Aggarwal, Co-founder and CEO at Ola, said, Im excited to welcome Viraj onboard to lead Olas Corporate Communications efforts. Im looking forward to working with him to share the Ola story and vision across customers, driver partners, employees, and the nation and world at large! Our aim is to build Ola as a brand and organisation that every customer identifies with and takes pride in.

Viraj Chouhan, on his appointment as CCO, Ola said, I am thrilled to join Ola and be part of this growing internet conglomerate. Ola has not only positively elevated Indias mobility experience, but is also a key driver of our countrys digital economy at large. Olas mission of building mobility for a billion people will have a lasting impact on our nations development. And that is what makes the Ola story so inspiring and deserving, to be taken to every stakeholder and citizen. Im eager to join the Ola team in this mission!

Viraj started his career in Communications with Ogilvy Mather Public Relations and went on to become the Executive Director, Corporate Communications at MTS India. Prior to joining MTS, Viraj headed the brand public relations function within the Corporate Communications team of Coca-Cola India & South West Asia across multi-country business units (India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh) for all the beverage brands. This also included an innings with the Global HQ of The Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta. Over the last two decades, Viraj has had extensive exposure across numerous facets of communications and stakeholder engagement right from External and Internal Communications, Brand PR, Crisis communications, Public policy, Investor Relations and Sustainability.
Setting a milestone in its premiere edition, being the first ever awards show to celebrate Indias female cinematic legends, the Second Edition of Lux Golden Rose Awards 2017 is geared up once again to raise the bar further.

Gracing the occasion with his well-known charm and popularity, the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan will reprise his role as the host in the second edition. As a prelude to the awards, SRK hosted a chat show - Lux Golden Divas - Baatein With Baadshah, where he engaged with leading ladies Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Katrina Kaif and had them reveal their unseen sides and beauty through the characters they portray onscreen.

Presented by Indias very first beauty soap, Lux, this years ethos is #IAmMoreThanYouCanSee; a tagline which encapsulates the passion, individuality, sensitivity and strength the remarkable leading ladies put into creating timeless iconic characters that stay etched in the hearts of millions. Fans and connoisseurs of the Indian film industry are abuzz with anticipation for the second edition of the show which honors Bollywood actresses for portraying versatility with zest. Lux Golden Rose Awards has an unparalleled and original concept that celebrates the women of Bollywood, recognizing them for the beautiful, glamorous and gutsy characters they have portrayed on the silver screen.

Commenting on the occasion, Sandeep Kohli, Executive Director and Vice President - Personal Care at Hindustan Unilever Limited said Our brand- LUX has an iconic status in the beauty market, as a forerunner in associating with the most gorgeous faces of Indian Cinema. Instituting Lux Golden Rose Awards, we aimed at building an extravagant and unified platform to celebrate these women and the powerful roles they have essayed on the silver screen. Taking this basic ethos ahead in our next edition of the awards, we will be taking the camera lens closer to these beauties and unveil facets and secrets which make them iconic personas they are today. Following last years spectacular response, we are looking forward to bringing audiences another year of an exceptional extravaganza.

Power-packed performances lined up include acts by the vivacious Alia Bhatt, the unassuming Sushant Singh Rajput, and the energy filled Jacqueline Fernandez and Mouni Roy to name a few. The Lux Golden Rose Awards show will be held at Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai on 10thDecember 2017.

The nominations of the Lux Golden Rose Awards, 2017 are as follows:

Lux Golden Rose Award for Charismatic Beauty of the Year

NOMINEES:  Aishwarya Rai Bachchan  Ileana DCruz  Sonakshi Sinha  Sonam Kapoor  Katrina Kaif  Priyanka Chopra

 Lux Golden Rose Award for Emerging Beauty of the Year

2017s Bollywood debutant, who, very quickly won the hearts of audiences with her impactful performance and who is not only charmingly beautiful on the outside but also, on the inside as well owing to a brighter future in the industry.

NOMINEES:  Disha Patani  MS Dhoni  Sanya Malhotra  Dangal  Zaira Wasim  Secret Superstar  Saiyami Kher  Mirzya  Fatima Sana Sheikh  Dangal

 Lux Golden Rose Award for Power-Packed Beauty of the year

NOMINEES:  Sridevi  Mom  Anushka Sharma  Ae Dil Hai Mushkil  Tapsee Pannu  Pink  Sonakshi Sinha  Akira

 Lux Golden Rose Award for Breakthrough Performer of the Year

This ones for the diva who, has shown that she is a fearless and bold performer who has impacted the audience and received critical acclaim as well.

NOMINEES:  Bhumi Pednekar  Shubh Mangal Saavdhan  Taapsee  Naam Shabana  Yami Gautam  Kaabil  Shraddha Kapoor  Haseena Parkar

 Lux Golden Rose Award for Timeless Beauty

The starlet, who has accomplished a lot and created a legacy through the years with her unforgettable performances in her career that live on even today with her still giving moving, emotional performances.

NOMINEES:  Sushmita Sen  Madhuri Dixit  Juhi Chawla  Aishwarya  Sri Devi

 Lux Golden Rose Award for Versatile Beauty of the Year

NOMINEES:  Alia Bhatt  Dear Zindagi  Yami Gautam  Kaabil  Kriti Sanon  Bareilly Ki Barfi  Bhumi Pednekar  Shubh Mangal Saavdhan

 Lux Golden Rose #IAmMoreThanYouCanSee Award

NOMINEES:  Kareena Kapoor Khan  Deepika Padukone  Priyanka Chopra  Aishwariya Rai Bachchan

 Lux Golden Rose Award For The Unstoppable Beauty of the Year

NOMINEES:  Deepika Padukone  Katrina Kaif  Kangana Ranaut  Anushka Sharma  Alia Bhatt
Mumbai-headquartered Welspun Group has roped in Meraj Hasan as the Global Marketing head for their Fooring vertical. He joins in from L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, where he was Vice President - Planning. He has joined the office starting today.

Commenting on his new role, Hasan told Adgully, I will be handling the marketing responsibilities for Welspun Groups flooring vertical at the global level. The product portfolio consists of carpets, rugs and carpet tiles. Globally, the category is huge with some very prominent players, but in India, its pretty nascent. The idea is to build the brand (and category) in India as well as globally.

On the reason for this move, he said, At this juncture in my career, I was feeling the need for being a part of something tangible and become directly instrumental in its growth, both as the product and the brand. Although advertising is fun and challenging, it seemed rather limiting in this regard. And thats when this opportunity came up. Welspun, a Fortune India 500 conglomerate, is a solid Indian group with footprints across the globe. The group has ambitious plans for the future and I am looking forward to contribute to this journey.

Hasan has over 17 years of experience as a strategy lead in the business of building brands across industry. Prior to L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, he was Communications Strategy Lead at Reliance Industries, working on its 4G business under Jio. He has also worked across agencies like Lowe & Partners Worldwide, Rediffusion Y&R, Ogilvy and McCann in the past.

He is an alumnus of Mudra Institute of Communication, Ahmedabad (MICA).
We can help you make sense of the agribusiness industry, extending from chemicals and fertilizers used as inputs into agriculture, to the commodities, food and by-products that are an output to farming, with policy and regulation applied at every step of the value chain.
December 11, 2017

Arabs and Muslims are responding with both actions and reactions to the decision of the Donald Trump administration to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. While public protests have engulfed countries as close as Jordan and as far away as Morocco and Indonesia, political leaders are searching for actions they can take to respond to the unexpected large public protests and demands for action.

A hurriedly organized summit of the three Arab entities who signed agreements with Israel (Egypt, Palestine and Jordan) was held in Cairo on Dec. 11. Jordan, which holds the chair of the Arab summits, is also calling for an emergency Arab summit. The three leaders might also call on US Vice President Mike Pence not to come to the region. Pence is scheduled to visit the region Dec. 18-20. Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Coptic Church Pope Tawadros II and Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb have all said that they will boycott the visiting US vice president.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said in a press conference Dec. 9 that Jordan will be calling for an extradordinary summit meeting, but did not specify a date.

In Jordan, the lower house of parliament has decided unanimously to carry out a comprehensive review of the various agreements signed with Israel. Khalil Attiyeh, the deputy speaker of the Jordanian parliament, initiated the bill to review Jordans agreements with Israel. He told Al-Monitor that the parliament had to act big. When the issue is as big as Jerusalem, the reaction has to be at the same level.

The Jordanian parliamentary bill introduced by Attiyeh calls on the judiciary committee to review all agreements signed with Israel and to list all violations to the agreements, providing suggestions about them in light of Israeli violations of international agreements.

The parliamentary decision comes at a time when the Israeli Embassy in Jordan has been vacant since July, following the killing of two Jordanians by an Israeli security guard.

Leading Arab commentator Oraib al-Rantawi, writing in Jordans Ad-Dustour paper, said that in light of the popular anger in the entire region, Arab governments have only one choice: To ride the wave and to be as quiet about actions as possible until the ominous month of December is over.

Rantawi hinted in the same article that after the wave passes, Arab leaders will return to the need for realism and will come back to the US mediator. Being quiet means that no major decisions should be made.

Meanwhile, in Egypt, widespread protests have made it impossible for Abdel Fattah al-Sisis administration not to take a strong stand. On Dec. 9, Cairo hosted an emergency meeting of the Arab League, which all foreign ministers of Arab countries, including the feuding Gulf countries, attended.

The Arab League adopted a 16-point resolution rejecting the US decision and calling on all countries to recognize Palestine based on the June 4, 1967, borders. Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari argued that the decision didnt go far enough, and called for even tougher diplomatic measures to be taken, a possible hint to the countries who have peace agreements with Israel.

Anger in the occupied territories in general, and in Jerusalem in particular, has been evidenced by widespread protests and demonstrations throughout the territories. Two Palestinians were killed and over 800 injured in protests, which also included Palestinian citizens of Israel.

In Jerusalem, a Bahraini delegation, which was carrying out an interfaith visit to Israel, was physically barred by Palestinian protesters from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque. Demonstrators consider the Bahrainis trip to Israel, which was not coordinated with the Palestinians, to be a violation of the Arab pledge not to normalize relations with Israel. The 2002 Arab Peace Plan, adopted by the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC), calls on Arabs and Muslims to refrain from any normalization with Israel until it withdraws from Arab areas it occupied in 1967.

The issue of normalization with Israel will be discussed at the summit called for by the OIC in Istanbul. In the face of developments that arouse sensitivity over the status of Jerusalem, Mr. President [Recep Tayyip Erdogan] is calling a leaders summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in order to display joint action among Islamic countries, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told reporters in Ankara on Dec. 7.

It is not clear what Islamic states can do to up the ante on the Jerusalem issue. Jordans King Abdullah made a lightning visit to Ankara on Dec. 6 to coordinate moves between the Arab League and the OIC. On Dec. 7, the Jordan Times headlined the move as Jordan, Turkey to lead Arab-Islamic pro-Jerusalem action.

Other than a move at the UN, it is not clear how the Islamic-Arab cooperation can help with the issue of Jerusalem. While much of the rhetoric is anti-Israeli, the real culprit in the latest action has been Washington, a key ally for Arab and Muslim countries. Turkey, which joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization three years after its founding, seems unlikely to make any diplomatic move against the United States.

But Turkish-Israeli relations took a negative turn Dec. 10 with leaders of both countries trading insults. Erdogan described Israel as a terrorist state, saying in a speech in Istanbul that Israel kills children. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on an official visit to Paris, attacked Turkey for bombing Kurdish villages.

While attacking Israel and even suspending relations with it is possible, no one expects that Arab and Muslim countries will come close to taking any punitive measures against the United States. A more creative response would be that suggested by both the Palestinian and Jordanian foreign ministers at the Cairo Arab League meeting. They called for a high-level delegation of Arab foreign ministers to tour major European capitals to convince them to recognize Palestine as the best response to the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital.
December 8, 2017

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  After eight years of experimenting, Gazan farmer Massoud al-Zane last month succeeded in growing feijoa, an egg-shaped fruit with a cream-colored flesh and a jelly-like center, for the first time in Palestine.

During Al-Monitors visit to the nursery in Ezbet Abed Rabbo neighborhood of Jabaliya town, north of Gaza City, Zane was busy talking to some 60 university students who came from different agriculture faculties to listen to the success story of growing this fruit for the first time in the Gaza Strip. Zane, 52, said the feijoa is the fruit of the Acca sellowiana, a small tree commonly found in Brazil and northern Argentina that produces guava-shaped green fruit. The production cycle of feijoa takes a whole year, Zane said.

Zane said he obtained feijoa seeds from the Ministry of Agriculture in 2009, when they were distributed to some farmers. The farmers were to experiment with the seeds in various Gaza locations in different types of soil and at varying levels of water and soil salinity. Planting also depended on the availability of manure and chloride, which help the plant grow.

Zane, who followed in his father's footsteps as a farmer, said the warm weather in Gaza suits the growth of the tree, as it can endure high temperatures, cold spells and high water salinity. The tree is seldom infected with pests, so farmers do not have to use pesticides and can earn a higher profit as a result.

Mahmoud Barakat, one of the students who visited the nursery and who studies at the Faculty of Agriculture and Environment at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, I tasted feijoa and thought it was delicious. It tastes like a mix of guava and pineapple and smells exactly like strawberry. Indeed, the fruit is also called a pineapple guava or strawberry guava.

He believes the public will love the fruit once it becomes available in the markets next fall. Besides, people love trying something new, he added.

Nizar al-Wahidi, the director of water at the Ministry of Agriculture, told Al-Monitor, In 2009, we brought hundreds of feijoa seeds from Argentina to test them in different farms and nurseries owned by local farmers. Only today can we say that we succeeded in producing the first fruits of this shrub.

Wahidi said that bringing new seeds into the Gaza Strip is part of the Ministry of Agricultures plan to diversify crops and promote the adoption of new ones that are compatible with Gazas water salinity and freshwater scarcity. He said citizens depend mainly on desalination plants to obtain drinking water, as 95% of groundwater in Gaza is unfit for drinking and can only be used for irrigation.

Feijoa depends on saline water, unlike many fruits that drain the available freshwater in Gaza. Therefore, growing feijoa could be a successful project that contributes to reviving the national economy once hundreds of dunams are cultivated to satisfy local market and international demands, Wahidi said.

He said of feijoa, Besides being a delicious fruit, it can be used to make desserts and homemade drinks as an alternative to store-bought drinks that contain artificial flavors and coloring ingredients.

Wahidi said feijoa is rich in iodine, which helps treat thyroid gland disease. Antioxidants, which can help fight cancer, are also found in the fruit.

He said farmers and local agricultural authorities have previous succeeded in growing and producing other plants and fruits that are new to the Gaza Strip. In November, Gaza's Ministry of Agriculture said pineapples, broccoli and beets had been produced for the first time in Gaza. The Ministry of Agriculture is currently planning to increase feijoa production and launch a media campaign to tell citizens about it in order to encourage local consumption, Wahidi said.

Zanes feijoa production is still in its infancy, but he is already planning to use 5 dunams (1.2 acres) in his nursery to plant large quantities of feijoa by the end of the year.

Zane worries about a new war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza, which could mean the destruction of his nursery. During the last war on Gaza in 2014, Israeli tanks destroyed my nursery and crops, Zane said. Due to the high population density in the Gaza Strip, the relatively empty border area is the most suitable place for agriculture, but also the most vulnerable.

Gaza's agricultural losses due to the Israeli war on Gaza in 2014 reached $550 million, including $350 million in direct losses and $200 million in indirect losses, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and the Palestinian NGO Network.
December 11, 2017

There were no loud explosions, and no plumes of black smoke rose along Israel's border with the Gaza Strip. The latest Hamas tunnel was discovered weeks ago using advanced technology developed by Israel. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) kept news of the tunnel secret until completing preparations to neutralize it with innovative methods.

It is worth remembering that the last time the IDF destroyed a tunnel dug by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement it failed to realize that members of the terrorist group were inside it at the time. Despite efforts to extricate survivors, the demolition of the tunnel resulted in the deaths of 12 Islamic Jihad and Hamas fighters and almost led to a major conflagration. This time, the tunnel was neutralized in absolute silence.

Hamas appears to have had no idea that its strategic tunnel had been located or that it had been targeted by the IDF for weeks. Following the operation, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said Dec. 10, "Thanks to the joint efforts of the IDF, the Ministry of Defense and the defense industries, we have reached new technological capacities in the struggle against terrorism and the terror tunnels. I hope that over the next few months, the threat posed by the tunnels to Israelis living in localities surrounding the Gaza Strip will be a thing of the past."

Liberman's comments prompted a series of public statements by top Israeli officials that after investing unlimited resources and the extensive efforts of the country's finest minds, Israel has managed to remove the threat of the tunnels, which have kept the people of the south up at night for the past few years. The truth is much more complicated, though there is no doubt that Israel is getting closer to achieving this capacity.

"It's not like we have some machine that locates tunnels and destroys them," a senior defense official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. "This is a system based on the integration of three parallel approaches: shielding, intelligence and technology."

As of now, this approach is effectively keeping Israel's border with the Gaza Strip sealed. Israel estimates that in the near future it will be able to eradicate the existing tunnels entirely and make it impossible to dig new ones.

The Hamas tunnel destroyed this week was especially long, stretching several hundred meters into Israel. Israeli officials say that it was intended to allow Hamas to strike behind IDF lines in the next round of violence, just as the group attempted to do during Operation Protective Edge. Now Hamas has been denied that ability.

The movement developed its underground strategy to gain an advantage over the IDF, but that advantage is decreasing rapidly. This development is forcing Hamas to confront a strategic dilemma. Should it accept the existing situation and search for new ways to attack Israel, or should it act quickly to take advantage of whatever tunnels it may have left before it is too late to use them?

This danger is one reason the IDF did not make a big deal of the tunnel's neutralization on Dec. 10. Apart from some warnings by the chief of the Southern Command, Eyal Zamir, to Hamas and Islamic Jihad that the tunnels would become a death trap for their fighters, the IDF has remained quiet. "There's no need to celebrate," one senior military official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. "These are sensitive times, especially after President [Donald] Trump's declaration concerning Jerusalem. There is no reason to help anyone who wants to bring about the deterioration [of the security situation]."

Israel's approach to this operation was based on three components. The first, shielding, consists of a vast underground cement barrier being built along the border that should eventually encompass the entire Gaza Strip. The wall extends several dozen meters underground, and experts say that there is no way to dig tunnels beneath it. The wall is outfitted with sensors and other technologies to detect other tunnels and identify new excavation efforts.

The second component, intelligence, involves using all means at the disposal of Israel's defense establishment  HUMINT (human intelligence), SIGINT (electronic signal intelligence) and others  to learn where and when militants are excavating tunnels. The IDF has told Al-Monitor that Israel has put together a very good picture of what is happening on the ground.

The third component, technology, includes the major innovation that enabled Israel to locate the two tunnels in the past two months. It was an integrated effort by all of Israel's defense industries. The Defense Ministry's Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure set up a lab near the Gaza Strip for the country's finest minds to tackle the problem.

"Each meter that we check takes a lot of time and serious investments," a senior Israeli military official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, "but we are getting results."

Despite remarks by a number of Israeli leaders this week, the country's ability to identify and destroy the tunnels and to seal its border with the Gaza Strip has yet to be perfected. "We are making progress. Our capacity will improve, and we will reach a stage in which we can announce that there are zero tunnels and that the threat has been neutralized," one senior Israeli security official said on condition of anonymity. "But we're not there yet."

In the same week that Hamas is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its founding and Israel is marking the 30th anniversary of the start of the first intifada (1987), Hamas finds itself facing a multifaceted crisis. It has ceded government control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority, it continues to be isolated internationally and Israel's missile defense system has successfully neutralized 89% of the threat posed by rockets to the Israeli homefront, based on Defense Ministry figures from Protective Edge. Now the tunnels are slipping out of its hands as well. Hamas will have to reinvent itself if it wants to remain relevant. Given its current conditions and the means at its disposal, it will be especially difficult to do.
December 8, 2017

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  On Nov. 27, the two rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas delayed to Dec. 10 the final transfer of power over the Gaza Strip from Hamas to the Palestinian Authority (PA)  which was set for Dec. 1 under the reconciliation agreement signed in Cairo Oct. 12. This comes as Fatah argued that Hamas is not empowering the national consensus government from taking over its missions in the enclave.

Moreover, the Palestinian reconciliation round of talks held in Cairo Nov. 21 had also failed to resolve important points of disagreement, which include the reform of the PLO.

Palestinian factions have been calling on Fatah to overcome all organizational and political disputes in the Palestinian arena and to reform and rehabilitate the PLO on a common democratic basis, under a comprehensive Palestinian political framework.

Ever since its establishment on May 28, 1964, the PLO has been facing numerous stumbling blocks amid a state of Palestinian disintegration and the lack of national political partnership, in addition to the division between the West Bank and Gaza and the feud among Fatahs ranks that further crippled the PLO. Fatahs popular base seems to be torn between those who support President Mahmoud Abbas and those loyal to dismissed Fatah-leader Mohammed Dahlan.

The PLO is the sole representative of the Palestinian people and is currently headed by Abbas. It was established in 1964 through a resolution issued by the Arab League in Cairo as a paramilitary political organization aimed to represent Palestine in international forums. Its main objectives are to liberate Palestine through armed struggle and reorganize the ranks of the Palestinian people as one population rather than scattered populations of refugees.

However, the PLO needs a national endorsement that serves as a unified political framework to become a strong Palestinian authority capable of countering the crippling challenges facing the Palestinian people at home and abroad. The PLO has been marginalized and subjected to external pressure. This has led to the continuation of Israeli expansion of settlements in the West Bank, the Judaization of villages and their residents, and the repeated incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque. To revive and reorganize the PLO  led unilaterally by Fatah  concerted efforts are required by all of the Palestinian political spectrums.

The PLO with its 120 embassies around the world is the sole representative of all the Palestinian people, and not reserved for a specific Palestinian segment, Mahmoud al-Zaq, Palestinian Popular Struggle Front political bureau member, told Al-Monitor. But now, amid the turbulent events in the region and the attempts to undermine the Palestinian cause, reforming the PLO requires a joint political framework. To face all challenges and risks the PLO should rebolster its role by including all Palestinian factions and forming a national Palestinian council that brings together all political spectrums.

Zaq said, All Palestinian factions are entitled to be united under the PLOs umbrella. This was stipulated in the PLO Charter, which stated that the PLO represents all Palestinian movements and factions. The political disintegration and Fatahs unilateral decisions subjected the PLO to a string of crises. Add to this the PLOs weak capabilities in steering Palestinian national action."

He added, The entry of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad as major political factions into the Palestinian arena will have a significant impact on any decision or step taken, especially as they spearhead the Palestinian resistance and represent one of the most influential Palestinian movements. Meanwhile, Hamas has been promoting its international relations, such as its relations with Iran and Russia and recently with Egypt.

Hamas leader Ismail Radwan said the PLO and its institutions must be reconstructed on new bases away from the Oslo agreement. In an interview with the Dunya al-Watan newspaper Nov. 25, Radwan said all Palestinian factions, including Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, are entitled to be part of the PLO so that the organization represents all Palestinian people.

Walid Awad, a member of the political bureau of the Palestinian People's Party, told Al-Monitor, Our constitution must receive broad international attention  through the formation of a unified political action with a collective vision of the entire Palestinian political presence at home and abroad, under the umbrella of the PLO, the real representative of Palestine.

He added, Factions believe Fatah will reform the PLO again, especially in light of the state of global arrogance undermining the Palestinian cause. They want the PLO to hold elections as soon as possible, to enable all factions to participate in political action and come out with collective decisions in times of war and peace.

Awad talked about the different political orientations of some Palestinian factions. The Palestinian cause and the obvious threats and regional changes in the region require moving forward without looking back, keeping in mind the best interests of the Palestinian people and the need to overcome challenges and obstacles through unity and political partnership. Under the umbrella of the PLO all obstacles hindering the Palestinian cause could be thwarted.

He noted, The regional developments require a single Palestinian presence with a unified decision and under one slogan. This would be achieved by restructuring the PLO, so as to become the protective shield against any plots woven for the Palestinian cause.

However, it seems that the PLO is already feeling strong pressures. On Nov. 25, the US State Department decided to reverse its decision to close the PLO office in Washington. This comes after the Trump administration had said Nov. 18 it would shut down the office to pressure the PA into resuming direct negotiations with Israel and making a breakthrough in the US-sponsored peace process.

Indeed, the United States allowed the PLO office to continue to operate but advised it to restrict its work to matters related to permanent Palestinian-Israeli peace.

The move came as a surprise to the Palestinian leadership. Nabil Abu Rudeina, the spokesman for the Palestinian presidency, said in a statement Nov. 19, This closure decision was an unprecedented step in the history of US-Palestinian relations. This entails serious consequences for the peace process. It is a blow to peacemaking efforts, and a reward for Israel, which is obstructing US efforts by maintaining its settlement policy.

Writer and political analyst Youssef Hijazi told Al-Monitor, The years of division since 2006 and the state of internal dispute in addition to the evident Arab normalization with Israel have jeopardized the PLO. To preserve the PLOs legitimate rights acquired by the Palestinian leadership over the years, Fatah has to reform the PLO, turn the page on the past and look to the future.

In light of the desire to bring in all Palestinian factions into the future PLO, obstacles still impede the PLOs international action. The entry of two factions  Hamas and the Islamic Jihad  classified by the international community as terrorist organizations, could harm the PLO, which could find itself boycotted and shackled.

Joining the PLO could be a risky venture for Hamas as well, since it could entail the group having to recognize Israel  as the PLO did under the Oslo Accord  something it has long opposed.
December 11, 2017

Turkey is the scene of a flurry of high-level diplomatic traffic this week with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ankara today to hold talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The two leaders will have tackled a broad range of bilateral matters, notably the conflict in Syria, energy and defense projects as well as the dispute over Jerusalem. The pair were all smiles as they posed for the media ahead of a banquet held in Putin's honor at Erdogan's sprawling presidential complex. At a news conference held in its wake, Erdogan announced that a highly controversial deal to purchase Russian made S-400 missiles would be finalized this week.

Head of US Central Command Gen. Joseph Votel and head of US European Command Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti were also due in town later this week to discuss Syria and NATO-related business with Turkish Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar in a bid to defuse tensions over American support for Syrian Kurds affiliated with rebels fighting for Kurdish self-rule inside Turkey.

Turkey is planning to host an emergency session of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Wednesday to hammer out a joint strategy in the face of the United States decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Erdogan has led the chorus of Muslim fury against the move, which pro-government media outlets claim was made with Saudi Arabias blessings. If true, its unlikely that the OIC will rally behind Erdogan, as many of its members rely on Saudi patronage.

Its just as unclear whether Russia and Turkey can jointly do anything about Jerusalem. But grandstanding alongside Putin certainly helps cement Erdogans image as a Muslim leader with a real hand in global affairs.

The meat of the Erdogan-Putin meeting will likely be Syria, where UN-led efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the six-year-long civil conflict remain elusive as ever. Western diplomats express skepticism about the success of the current round of UN-sponsored talks in Geneva between the opposition and the Syrian government, which shows little appetite for any compromise.

Another obstacle is the absence of the main Syrian Kurdish opposition group, the Democratic Union Party (PYD). Turkeys continued resistance to the PYDs presence coupled with the fact that one of the main stakeholders, the United States, has no relations with either the regime or another critical actor, Iran, make a solution that much harder to achieve.

Prior to his scheduled visits first to Cairo and then Ankara, Putin made a surprise stop today at the Hymemim air base in Syria, where he told Russian servicemen that he had given orders to bring them home. Over slightly more than two years, the Russian Armed Forces have routed together with the Syrian army the most combat-capable grouping of international terrorists, Putin said. In view of this, I have made a decision: Most of the Russian military contingent staying in the Syrian Arab Republic is returning home to Russia.

Some analysts speculate that the announcement was calculated in part to lean on the goatishly obdurate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Moreover, the routing of combat-capable terrorists in Syria, as Putin put it, is by no means over and least of all in Idlib, where jihadis assembled under the banner of the al-Qaeda linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) continue to prevail.

Turkeys cooperation in extinguishing the continued threat posed by HTS to the Assad regime is a key pillar of a separate peace initiative known as the Astana process, which brings together Turkey, Iran, Russia and representatives of the Syrian government and the armed opposition.

The talks, which kicked off in the Kazakh capital Astana last May, call for the establishment of so-called de-escalation zones allowing for a cessation of hostilities and the delivery of humanitarian relief to beleaguered civilians stuck there. The talks are set to resume in Astana for an eighth time on Dec. 21. A possible exchange of prisoners and of the remains of combatants will also be taken up in this round.

The details of any deal struck between the parties remain opaque. Turkey was expected to deploy peacekeepers along lines of contact between HTS and the regime in northern Hama, eastern Idlib and southern Aleppo, amid scattered hopes that they would loosen the jihadis grip. Instead, Turkish forces escorted by HTS militants took up positions just south of the Kurdish-controlled enclave of Afrin in mid-October, apparently to prevent the Syrian Kurds from moving further west.

Sam Heller is a Beirut-based fellow with the Century Foundation who has written extensively about the Syrian conflict. In a recent paper he contended, Turkeys intervention is  to my best reading, and per the evidence to date  based on a problematic, politically unpalatable compromise. To secure Turkish interests and safeguard at least some of Idlibs residents, Turkey has apparently partnered with [HTS].  By engaging Tahrir al-Shams mostly Syrian leadership, Turkey may be working to flush the northwest of transitional [jihadis] and al-Qaeda hard-liners who refuse to cooperate. Or, less charitably, it may just be looking after Turkish concerns and working with the local partner closest at hand.

As the Syrian Kurds see things, Turkey will not relinquish its leverage over Idlib so as to continue wresting concessions from Russia over the PYD. A commander for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that is backed by the United States predicted in a WhatsApp exchange with Al-Monitor that Erdogan would press Putin further today to allow Turkey to intervene against the Kurds in Afrin. Akar will likewise urge Votel to end the Pentagon's support for them.

Setting aside the Kurds' well-grounded worries, Heller acknowledged in a telephone interview with Al-Monitor that Turkeys strategy may also be the least rotten option when it comes to averting full-scale conflict between the regime forces and HTS. Such an outcome would send millions of more refugees toward Turkeys borders or worse, result in a bloodbath.

In its most ambitious form, Heller noted, Turkeys role would be to insert itself between HTS and regime forces. But doing so would pose a dilemma for the jihadis, for whom surviving under Turkish auspices and fighting jihad against the Assad regime are incompatible.

Untangling such contradictions wont be simple, and ad hoc deals rather than grand compromises will likely continue to be the order of the day.

Correction: Dec. 11, 2017. An earlier version of this article said Gen. Votel was due to arrive in Ankara today. Rather, he is expected to arrive later this week.
December 10, 2017

Mohammed bin Salman, Jordan left exposed by US decision

What to make of the remarks by US Permanent Representative to the United Nations Nikki Haley at a special session of the UN Security Council, where 14 council members criticized the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, that she could assure her Palestinian brothers and sisters  with complete confidence that the United States is deeply committed to achieving a peace agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians, because, she said, the United States has credibility with both sides.

The mismatch of words and deeds is beyond puzzling, unless a deal is in the works that is until now unknown to world and regional leaders, reporters and analysts. The Palestinian permanent representative to the UN responded to Haley that the US decision disqualifies its leadership role to seek peace in the region. Thomas Friedman described the US decision on Jerusalem as the "art of the giveaway."

The Trump administration may have, inadvertently, sparked the catalyst for a long-lost Arab unity on Palestinian issues, placing them back on the front burner of the Arab League. Hard-liners across the region have a tail wind. Irans resistance tack may make sense to the Arab and Islamic street; the Saudi and United Arab Emirates love-in with the Trump administration, in contrast, will face tough scrutiny and questions in cabs and coffee houses across the Muslim world. The White House did its friends no favors on this one. Jordan, in particular, is on the front lines of the fallout, which will build over coming months.

The US decision can be seen as part of a broader trend of an opting out of regional diplomacy. No one expects much from the peace initiative led by Trump son-in-law and special adviser Jared Kushner, particularly now. US diplomatic levers are receding fast, and not just on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The United States has also opted out diplomatically in Syria, leaving the field to Russia, Iran and Turkey. Syrias future is being brokered by the Syria big three in Astana, Kazakhstan and Sochi, Russia, not Geneva. US ties with Russia and Iran go from bad to worse, and US-Turkey ties remain in crisis. Instead of a diplomatic pivot to capitalize on the US-led defeat of the Islamic State, the American plan for Syria is instead to maintain a troop presence in Syria to train, advise and assist "local forces" in support of security and stabilization, while giving mostly lip service to the Geneva process, in effect abdicating a leadership role and leaving US troops exposed in eastern Syria in an open-ended and vague commitment.

In this context, forget about US hopes to exploit alleged divisions between Iran and Russia. Maxim Suchkov explains the limits and extent of Iran-Russia ties, rightly pointing out that trust is minimal. But Moscow and Tehran are meeting and working on the issues. The United States, with its current posture toward both states, is ill-positioned to exploit any such differences, let alone shape post-conflict Syria, except at the margins.

The absence of a US diplomatic initiative and levers is taking Washington out of the regional calculus, and allowing leadership roles for Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron, whose interventions are increasingly central to Middle East diplomacy.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose country is opposed to the US decision on Jerusalem, may be especially exposed by the turn of events. The kingdom also came in for US criticism on other matters. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Dec. 8 that with respect to Saudi Arabias engagement with Qatar, how theyre handling the Yemen war that theyre engaged in, the Lebanon situation, I think we would encourage them to be a bit more measured and a bit more thoughtful in those actions, to I think fully consider the consequences.

Whether these comments are the sign of an emerging distance and more open criticism with one of the administrations closest allies, or a parting shot and warning by Tillerson (whose departure from the administration, according to press reports, may be imminent), the events of the past week signal a possible rethink by Riyadh of its own regional policies, the consequences of which have led to only frustration and failure.

Aoun hedges on Hariri

Saad Hariri is staying on as Lebanons prime minister. The whole bizarre episode in which he was summoned by the Saudi crown prince, held in Riyadh and forced to resign on live TV, requiring the intervention of Macron to secure Hariri's safe passage out of the kingdom, is now to be filed away as history as the prime minister takes his rightful and constitutional place as head of the Lebanese government. Also to be forgotten is the death threat that supposedly factored in his decision to resign, and similarly animated his previous exile from Lebanon until his return last year.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun views his partnership with Hariri as vital to the countrys short-term stability, including holding parliamentary elections as scheduled in May. The question is whether Aouns banking on Hariri proves a house of cards. Aouns standing by Hariri has been the right move for asserting Lebanese sovereignty, but it has also given the prime minister a lease on life after the crown prince-induced debacle. Hariris resurrection until now is due to the good offices of Macron and Tillerson. Aouns gamble may be masking an eventual, and perhaps necessary, reckoning with other competing forces in Lebanon to rebuild the March 14 coalition.

Hariri has benefited from the passionate loyalties to his father, former prime minister Rafik Hariri, who was murdered in 2005 by forces reportedly aligned with the Syrian government and Hezbollah. This, and Saudi largesse, has allowed him to keep his lock on March 14, even as an array of Sunni leaders have emerged to stake a claim for leadership. By sticking with Hariri, Aoun risks alienating a Sunni political class and constituency that may be feeling exploited at a time of weakness.

The better bet for Aoun, and Lebanon, might be to open up the political process, to prevent the perception that the president and his allies are seeking to exploit Hariris weakness. Perhaps Hariri can resurrect his political fortunes and rebuild his party around a new, stronger coalition; if so, he and the other contenders would have to work for it. Whoever emerges the victor, whether Hariri or someone else, comes out stronger. Either way, March 14, the ruling coalition, and the Lebanese people will benefit. This column has documented a new dynamic Lebanese pulse calling for an independent post-sectarian course. After the fiasco of the past month, a more open and transparent political process should be part of the necessary healing.
Some European businesses fear the upcoming repeal of net neutrality protections the Federal Communications Commission is planning on greenlighting this Thursday, the New York Times reported earlier today, citing an official of Dutch search engine Startpage that calls itself the worlds most private solution of its kind. Startpage Chief Executive Officer Robert Beens was cited as suggesting the company would have a hard time maintaining a sustainable business model in the United States should domestic Internet service providers start charging firms for privileged access, or fast lanes. Approximately half of two billion searches performed by Startpage on a yearly basis originate from the U.S. and the platforms ability to be just as responsive and easy to access as Google is of paramount importance to its operations, Mr. Beens said.

Many smaller businesses on the Old Continent offering international products and services may face similar issues should ISPs decide to take full advantage of the FCCs decision to stop requiring them to provide equal Internet access to all websites and customers. U.S. entrepreneurs are also endangered by the proposed alternative which acknowledges the importance of an open Internet but recuses the FCC from regulating any related matters. As per the proposal authored by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, any potential violations of net neutrality principles would be left to the Federal Trade Commission to sanction. While the FTC may soon lose its ability to regulate common carriers, the FCC already refused to delay its vote to wait for the outcome of the agencys trial with AT&T that could strip it of such jurisdiction and even mocked some organizations who proposed that course of action by calling them desperate.

Despite strong net neutrality protections and a significantly higher level of competition compared to the U.S., European regulators still clashed with certain wireless carriers over the matter in recent years. Still, many industry watchers believe the open Internet is adequately protected in Europe largely due to a plethora of alternatives consumers have when choosing their wireless carrier. On the other hand, regional ISP monopolies and duopolies are still an issue in the U.S., especially when not accounting for companies that are only competing with major broadband providers on paper but in reality arent offering contemporary Internet speeds in all covered areas, making consumer choice in certain regions essentially non-existent.
A user manual of the Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018) and the Galaxy A8 Plus (2018) has recently appeared on the website of the South Korean electronics giant. The manual details the software features of the handset and its physical design. Based on the included illustrations, the Galaxy A8 (2018) and the Galaxy A8 Plus (2018) will have a nearly bezel-less design due to the use of the Infinity Display. The display will likely have an aspect ratio of 18.5:9, which is similar to what is found on the companys recent flagship devices. Directly above the screen are the two front-facing cameras, the earpiece, the proximity and light sensor, and an LED indicator. On the bottom of the handset, the customer will find the USB Type-C port, microphone, and the 3.5mm headphone jack, while a SIM card tray and another microphone are located on the top of the device. The fingerprint scanner, on the other hand, is now located on the back and it is placed directly below the single rear camera.

The manual states that the Galaxy A8 (2018) and the Galaxy A8 Plus (2018) will feature Samsung Pay, the South Korean tech giants mobile payment service. Since the two devices will include Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) antennas, customers can use them even in establishments that still have the older, swiping card machines. These two handsets will sport the Always On Display functionality, a feature that allows people to control music playback and view their notifications even if the majority of the display is turned off, as the Always On display does leave some pixels turned on to show you certain functions of the phone, such as notifications and what not. The devices are expected to launch with Android 7.1.1 Nougat pre-installed, which means that users can utilize features like split-screen multitasking. Game Launcher will also come with the Galaxy A8 (2018) and it aims to group games obtained from the Google Play Store and the Galaxy Apps into a single location.

Previous rumors claimed that the Galaxy A8 (2018) will be powered by the Exynos 7785 SoC. The phone is also expected to contain 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal flash storage that can be expanded by a microSD card. The manual further indicates that the handsets will feature fast charging, and it will be compatible with chargers that support either Samsungs Adaptive Fast Charging or Qualcomms Quick Charge 2.0.
The Google Home Max smart speaker is finally available for purchase, having been officially released through B&H, Verizon, and Best Buy. Both the Chalk and Charcoal variants of the Google Assistant-enabled gadget can now be acquired for $399.99, or $399.00 if you opt for B&H. Originally announced in early October alongside the Google Home Mini and the Pixel 2 Android flagship series, the Google Home Max was presented as the companys ultimate offering in the smart speaker segment, being meant to compete with ultra-premium audio devices from Sonos and Apple.

As is the case with other gadgets from the Google Home lineup, one of the main selling points of the Google Home Max is its support for the Google Assistant that allows you to order the speaker around with your voice and have it command compatible smart home devices. While the $50 Google Home Mini does the same thing, this particular offering will also provide you with high-quality audio thats not just backed by premium hardware but also takes advantage of Googles artificial intelligence technologies like Smart Sound, a solution that allows the speaker to determine its relative position in any space, then tweak its performance so as to fill the entire room with sound in a maximally optimal manner. Support for popular streaming apps like YouTube, Spotify, and Pandora is also part of the package, as is the ability to connect the Google Home Max to the companys other speakers for a surround experience over Wi-Fi.

Being the firms most expensive piece of audio equipment to date, the Google Home Max does a good job of illustrating the tech giants rising hardware ambitions, all of which have Google Assistant support as their common point. While the speaker isnt expected to outsell any other Home-branded device from Google, its very existence signals that the companys premium consumer electronics efforts will encompass much more than just smartphones going forward. The Google Home Max is expected to become available in select European countries later this year with a similar price tag. Consumers in Canada should also be able to purchase the speaker before Christmas, as suggested by Googles previous statements on the matter.
Honor is seeking to become one of the five largest smartphone manufacturers in the world in the near future and isnt a fan of comparisons with its parent Huawei, Serbian outlet Mondo reported earlier this month, citing Honor President George Zhao. While speaking at the sidelines of the companys recent London event that saw the introduction of the Honor 7X and Honor View 10, Mr. Zhao revealed that the firms current strategy is focused on simultaneously catering to a younger demographic by providing it with offerings that deliver high value for money while still maintaining a wider global appeal.

On the topic of Huawei, the Honor President said the subsidiary is operating as a B brand thats more focused on online sales but should still be seen as a separate entity. Mr. Zhao compared the Huawei-Honor relation to that of some global automakers who are owned by the same company, saying that every car brand has its own target market and people generally arent asking questions about whether two vehicle manufacturers are using some of the same parts. Ultimately, users shouldnt focus on comparing Honor and Huawei and should instead take a look at their products in a vacuum, Mr. Zhao suggested. In the grand scheme of things, Honor wants to establish itself as a major phone maker with its own unique message and believes its capable of doing so even now, four years after its founding. The company is celebrating its fourth anniversary on December 16th and is already turned toward future models, in addition to updating some of its existing ones.

Mr. Zhao said the Honor 7X doesnt run Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box because the handset was already launched in China two months ago when the mobile operating system wasnt ready for commercialization, but promised that an update will be arriving shortly. Likewise, the Honor 8, Honor 8 Pro, Honor 9, and the Honor V9 will all receive Android 8.0 Oreo in the coming weeks, as will some other models that the company is currently testing with the update, the official revealed. Mr. Zhao also reflected on the omission of water resistance from Honors latest devices and said the decision to circumvent a notable IP rating was largely made in order to minimize manufacturing costs and pass on such savings to consumers, adding that the firm is already offering various accessories that make its handsets waterproof and cater to users who insist on this particular feature.
Samsung is working on dual-SIM variants of the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus, as suggested by some newly uncovered device listings found in the database of the Chine Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Both the SM-G9600 and SM-G9650 were listed as having dual-SIM editions by the agency, though its currently unclear whether single-SIM models are even meant to be sold in the Far Eastern country. Taiwanese consumers will be able to purchase the dual-SIM version of the Galaxy S9 (SM-G9608/DS), as implied by a separate FCC listing.

Samsung traditionally releases dual-SIM variants of both of its Android flagships but usually limits their commercial availability to select Asian and European countries where using two SIM cards in a single device is a popular practice. The Galaxy S9 lineup is unlikely to be an exception to that rule and the dual-SIM models are expected to feature price tags identical to their single-SIM counterparts. According to the same source, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus are also set to support dual-VoLTE, thus allowing users to have HD calls over both SIM cards in their handsets. Whereas the devices set to be sold in China are expected to feature the Snapdragon 845 which Qualcomm already confirmed boasts dual-VoLTE capabilities, it remains to be seen whether the models with Samsungs own Exynos 9810 end up with support for the same functionality.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus will provide incremental upgrades over their direct predecessors, according to numerous reports which surfaced online over the course of this year. The Infinity Display-centered bezel-free design is said to still be a defining feature of Samsungs upcoming flagships, with the smaller Galaxy S9 being expected to retain a base of 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal flash memory. The Galaxy S9 Plus should instead sport 6GB of RAM and possibly up to 512GB of storage space, should Samsung decide to commercialize its latest high-end memory chips. The two devices are alleged to have higher screen-to-body ratios and run Android 8.0 Oreo-based Samsung Experience out of the box. Samsung is expected to officially launch the Galaxy S9 lineup in late winter, around the time MWC 2018 takes place.
XiaoLajiao is a Chinese smartphone manufacturing company, which is better known as Little Pepper, as that is what you get when you translate it to English. This company has been operating in China, mostly, though its iLA brand for the global market has been around since late 2015. The company is currently trying to leave its mark in markets outside of China, and will be arriving to the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona next year. During the tradeshow, the company will quite probably announce some new smartphones for the global market, and do its best to present itself to consumers outside of its homeland.

For those of you who do not know, XiaoLajiao aka Little Pepper has been around since 2012., and it has had successful partnerships with China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom, three main carriers in China, and they also became strategic partners of both Qualcomm and MediaTek, two smartphone SoC manufacturers. XiaoLajiao had launched its first smartphone back in 2012, and it has been limited to the Chinese market, while the companys Little Pepper and Red Pepper series of smartphones have been quite popular in China, says the company. XiaoLajiao has been presenting its iLA smartphone brand in various tradeshows outside of China, the company had a booth at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) this year, while it also attended the Gulf Information Exhibition in Dubai, for example. The companys official website is now up and running as well, though you wont exactly find much content there at the moment. iLA is looking to bring content to its website soon, though, as some rumors are claiming that the iLA X smartphone is coming, though we dont know much about this phone, though some rumors claim that it is inspired by the iPhone X.

That being said, the companys Facebook page is also up and running, in case youd like to check it out, and the company had also released a YouTube video on its official YouTube channel in order to present itself to its future consumers. The aforementioned video is embedded down below, just in case youd like to check it out.
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After looking to the airlines, the recently retired and just about anywhere else it could to fill a growing shortage of pilots, the Air Force is now looking at its own ranks, its enlisted ranks, to fill the void. The Air Force Times reports the Air Force is testing the concept by including five enlisted airmen along with 15 officers in a special six-month trial training course that could lead to the routine inclusion of enlisted ranks to train as combat-ready pilots. As with most air forces, the USAF now requires that all of its pilots be college graduates and the test is specifically designed to test the validity of that requirement in turning out qualified pilots.

Enlisted volunteers will be pioneers in innovating Air Force aviator recruitment, selection, and training processes by demonstrating the potential of non-college graduates to succeed in a rigorous pilot training environment, Maj. Gen. Timothy Leahy, commander of the Second Air Force, wrote in an email to his commanders that was obtained by the Air Force Times. This program will provide data to [Air Education and Training Command Commander Lt. Gen. Steven Kwast] on the potential for enlisted members to train to fly modern combat aircraft. An Air Force spokeswoman told the publication the test is part of a broader study into the ability to train enlisted personnel in a variety of occupations that are now reserved for officers. AETC chose to focus on flying training because of the urgency involved with the enterprise, said Marilyn Holliday, spokeswoman for the Air Education and Training Command. However, our focus is on how airmen learn, not necessarily what they learn, exploring technology and how that technology can produce better and faster learning. A standalone training facility will be set up in Austin, Texas, and the students will fly T-6 trainers, the same aircraft used at the main training facilities.
Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Monday the president has denied all allegations of sexual misconduct in response to Megyn Kelly's Monday interview with three accusers. "This all took place before the election, she said. "We feel like these allegations have been answered."

Trump thinks "it's a good thing for women to feel comfortable in coming forward in general, but he also feels strongly that a mere allegation shouldn't determine the course" of an election, she added.
Ascension and Providence St. Joseph Health are in discussions to merge, which would create the largest hospital system in the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reports citing people familiar with the merger talks. The combined system would have 191 hospitals, numerous clinics and roughly $45 billion in annual revenue.

Why it matters: Although the Ascension-Providence deal is not guaranteed, it shows how health care has turned into the Wild West for mega-mergers. CVS Health is buying Aetna, Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health are merging, and Advocate Health Care and Aurora Health Care are combining, among other deals. Yet, research shows mergers don't lower health care costs or improve care for patients.
After President Trump tweeted that CNN International "is still a major source of (Fake) news," Libyan media published an article questioning the authenticity of a major CNN report on the Libyan slave trade.

"It is reported in international political circles that many of the reports broadcast by the American channel often come as 'collusion' to serve political objectives in certain parts of the world, and here the possibility arises that the channel has published the report of slavery in Libya to raise a political objective that is still hidden," the report said, per a translation.

Why it matters: Trump's rhetoric on "fake news" is having direct and indirect effects around the world, and playing into the hands of those for whom distrust in the media is beneficial. There are many more such examples.

Myanmar

A state security officer, said: "There is no such thing as Rohingya...It is fake news."

Myanmar's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has "unrolled a steady stream of denialism on the systematic evictions, rapes and killings of the Muslim Rohingya" in Myanmar, per Forbes.

Poland

During his first press conference outside the U.S., with Poland's President Andrzej Duda, Trump brought up dishonest coverage by the media, asking Duda if he "[has] that also." Duda later tweeted "Let's FIGHT FAKE NEWS," to which Trump responded "We will fight the #FakeNews with you!"

Freedom House shifted Poland's media freedom rating from "free" to "partly free" under Duda, due to his "intolerance toward critical reporting."

Kuwait

Discussing the situation in Qatar at a joint press conference in September, the emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Ahmed al-Sabah, said "the media campaign...is totally unacceptable to the people because the media coming out of this country is against the people," according to the Washington Post. Trump responded: "I'm very, very honored and happy to know that you have problems with the media also."

Turkey

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is notoriously hostile toward the free press, praised Trump in January for putting a CNN reporter "in his place" during a news conference in which Trump called CNN's Jim Acosta fake news.

Egypt

After a major attack on a mosque in Egypt that killed more than 300 people, Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, Ahmed Abu Zeid, tweeted: "As usual, deplorable @CNN coverage of Sinai tragedy today. Anchor more interested in reporters access to Sinai than in those who lost their lives !!!"

Egypt is among the countries with the most journalists held in prison, and the regime is aggressive in controlling the narrative, particularly after attacks.

Syria

An Amnesty International report said around 13,000 prisoners were killed at a military prison between 2011 and 2015. Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said: "You can forge anything nowadays...We are living in a fake news era."

Spain

Alfonso Dastis, Spain's Foreign Minister, said many photos and stories about police violence against voters during the Catalan referendum were fake: "If there was any use of force, it was a limited one...I am not saying that all are fake pictures, but some of them are and there have been a lot of alternative facts and fake news."

The Philippines

After a meeting with President Trump, President Rodrigo Duterte called reporters "spies," which received a laugh from Trump, according to the Washington Post.

Cambodia

According to Reuters, Prime Minister Hun Sen (who has been accused of human rights violations and corruption) compared himself to Trump in February, saying he too "understands that [journalists] are an anarchic group."

Back in the U.S...
The medical lab industry's lobbying group, the American Clinical Laboratory Association, is suing the Department of Health and Human Services over a new reimbursement system that would drastically slash what Medicare pays for labs. The cuts would total about $670 million in 2018.

Between the lines: Some experts say Medicare has overpaid for lab services for a long time. The new payment system was supposed to rectify that, but the labs say Medicare used flawed data to implement that system. This lawsuit is a microcosm of why altering health care policy is so difficult: Any changes ultimately threaten one industry's bottom line.
Police block a street by Port Authority Bus Terminal near New Yorks Times Square following an explosion on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Photo: Andres Kudacki / AP

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said during a press conference Monday that the explosion at a subway station near Times Square was an attempted terrorist attack."

New York City police commissioner James P. O'Neill also identified the suspect as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah. O'Neill said Ullah "intentionally" set off a "low-tech" pipe bomb, which caused minor injuries to 3 others and serious injuries to himself. Ullah is in custody and has been transported to Bellevue Hospital where he is being treated for his injuries.
Saudi Arabia will allow movie theaters to open in the country next year for the first time since the 1980s, per the AP. The government hopes to open 300 theaters with 2,000 screens by 2030, paving the way for a new industry  though its unclear what movies might play and edited they might be.

Why it matters: Its part of a continuing social modernizing push to attract international investment by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has announced an end to a ban on women driving and allowed rock concerts to be held in Saudi Arabia. Thats happening in conjunction with his controversial corruption crackdown, which is set to seize hundreds of billions from prominent businessmen for ailing Saudi coffers.
An al-Nusra fighter holds his group flag as he stands in front of the governor building in Idlib province, north Syria. Photo: Al-Nusra Front Twitter page via AP

After al-Qaedas Syrian affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, broke off in 2016, the U.S. government and other observers portrayed the split as a public relations move. The assumption was that al-Qaeda would retain an unofficial link to its loyal force in Syria, which would then be free to partner with local groups that must reject al-Qaeda in order to secure aid from the U.S. and its allies.

In fact, the separation may have been more of an acrimonious divorce. Recent revelations, including a statement by a senior Syrian jihadist, a public chastisement from Ayman Zawahiri, and an exchange among various jihadists in Syria, suggest that al-Qaeda wields less influence than previously feared and that U.S. efforts to isolate al-Qaeda in Syria are bearing some fruit.

Why it matters: The al-Qaeda core has not carried out a major terrorist attack in years, and much of the action is undertaken by local groups bearing its name. As the Islamic States caliphate collapses, Al-Qaedas inability to hold on to its most important affiliate raises questions about its ability to regain leadership over the global jihadist movement.
Here's what to watch out for this week:

Monday: President Trump holds a Space Policy Directive signing ceremony.

President Trump holds a Space Policy Directive signing ceremony. Tuesday: Polls are open in Alabama's special election, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. ... Trump signs the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2018.

Polls are open in Alabama's special election, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. ... Trump signs the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2018. Wednesday: Tax conference committee public hearing. This isn't where the actual decisions will be made  look for mostly just statements. But if there are major issues Republicans haven't solved by this point, this is where they could spill out into the open.

Tax conference committee public hearing. This isn't where the actual decisions will be made  look for mostly just statements. But if there are major issues Republicans haven't solved by this point, this is where they could spill out into the open. Thursday: The FCC votes on whether to repeal net neutrality rules. A repeal could allow internet providers to block or slow down content, or charge more for content like streaming video.

The FCC votes on whether to repeal net neutrality rules. A repeal could allow internet providers to block or slow down content, or charge more for content like streaming video. Friday: Last day of open enrollment for Affordable Care Act coverage for 2018. Spoiler alert: It's likely to be way down from last year.
The Pentagon announced today that transgender troops will be allowed to enlist in the United States military beginning on January 1, though with a strict set of medical and mental health guidelines, per the AP. That comes despite President Trump's attempt to ban all transgender individuals from serving in the armed forces, which has been struck down twice by federal courts.

The timeline: While the Obama administration declared that transgender individuals already in the military could serve openly in 2016, it set a deadline of July 1, 2017 to determine enlistment guidelines for new transgender recruits. Defense Secretary James Mattis delayed that decision until for six months for further review. The Trump administration had attempted to further extend that deadline via federal court filings, but today's move indicates that it believes it'll lose that fight.
11 December 2017 10:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 117 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said on December 11.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

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11 December 2017 13:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Guy Verhofstadt

At least since Mary Shelley created Victor Frankenstein and his iconic monster in 1818, humans have had a morbid fascination with man-made beings that could threaten our existence. From the American television adaptation of Westworld, which depicts an amusement park populated by androids, to the Terminator films, in which super-intelligent machines aim to destroy mankind, we often indulge the paranoid fantasy that our own technological creations might turn on us.

In Homo Deus, Hebrew Universitys Yuval Noah Harari argues that existing technological advances have already put mankind on a path toward its own demise. Developments in artificial intelligence (AI), algorithms that make better decisions than humans, and genetic engineering all imply that most human beings will be superfluous in the not-too-distant future.

At the Web Summit conference in Lisbon last month, the renowned physicist Stephen Hawking addressed the threats as well as the opportunities that lie ahead. Success in creating effective AI, Hawking said, could be the biggest event in the history of our civilization. Or the worst. The problem, he added, is that, We just dont know. So we cannot know if we will be infinitely helped by AI, or ignored by it and sidelined, or conceivably destroyed by it.

Despite their stark warnings about the possible implications of existing technologies, however, both Hawking and Harari believe that we still have time to shape the future for ourselves. The changes ahead will raise a number of pertinent questions for policymakers. What will the spread of robotics and AI mean for defense and security or the future of employment? And what rules can ensure that these innovations are collectively beneficial?

So far, mainstream political debate about these questions has been limited. That is not surprising: as we saw with animal cloning, politics tends to lag behind science. In the European Union, single-market regulations are often adopted years after the scientific breakthroughs that made them necessary. But when it comes to robotics and AI, we cannot afford to hesitate.

Fortunately, as Hawking pointed out, some European policymakers have already begun legislative work on this front. In February of this year, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for the establishment of new rules governing AI and robotics. We are asking the European Commission to propose measures that will maximize the economic benefits of these technologies, while also guaranteeing a standard level of safety and security. Although I disagree with some of the proposals currently on offer, the fact that we are at least having a debate on the matter is a positive development.

While other countries are also considering new rules for robots and AI, the EU has a unique opportunity to take the lead. By acting now, we can ensure that the EU will not be forced to follow regulatory frameworks set by other countries. Ultimately, global rules will be required; and Europe has a chance to set the standard for what they should look like.

For starters, we will soon need a specific legal status for robots, so that we can determine who is liable for any damage they may cause. Moreover, as the Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates has warned, robotics and advanced algorithms will likely eliminate many jobs. In fact, the World Economic Forum estimates that five million jobs across 15 developed countries will be lost to automation by 2020.

Given that ongoing changes in the means of production have already kick-started this trend, Gates and some in the European Parliament have suggested that robots be taxed to pay for human services. Whether that is the best solution is now the topic of much debate; but, clearly, some kind of compromise will need to be made.

Robotics and AI will also raise profound ethical issues for liberal politicians, particularly with respect to privacy and safety. Fortunately, there is a broader political consensus on this issue than on taxation. The European Parliament has proposed a voluntary code of conduct for engineers and others working in the field of robotics. Ethical as well as legal standards are needed to ensure that robots and related technologies are designed with respect for human dignity in mind.

Lastly, the European Parliament has called on the European Commission to consider creating a new EU-level agency for robotics and AI, to provide public officials with technical, ethical, and regulatory expertise. To my mind, this would be a sensible step forward, given that an estimated 30% of the worlds leading companies will employ a chief robotics officer by 2019.

We can be almost certain that todays technological advances will have a profound effect on our lives and livelihoods, akin to a new Industrial Revolution. By establishing regulations and standards now, the EU can ensure that all Europeans will benefit from the coming changes, rather than be engulfed by chaos.

Copyright: Project Syndicate: Europes chance to lead on robotics and AI

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11 December 2017 10:18 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Azerbaijan and seven other countries are ready to increase their contribution to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, the UN website reported on December 11.

"36 donors pledged $383 million to the Fund. Furthermore, Azerbaijan and seven other countries announced intention to increase their contribution compared to last year. These donors are Australia, Azerbaijan, Russian Federation, Estonia and Mongolia. However, this amount is far from the requested $1 billion," the report reads.

The Organization's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), established in 2016,is a pool of funding that supports critical relief operations in crises around the world  as humanitarian needs have increased from $5.2 billion in 2005 to over $24 billion today.

This year, CERF, managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has funded life-saving work, allocating nearly $130 million to help prevent famine in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

The fund also supported relief responses in other places, including for Palestine refugees in Gaza, for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, and those affected by hurricanes Irma and Maria in the Caribbean.

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11 December 2017 16:15 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

Kaspersky Lab will organize cybersecurity training for technical personnel of oil and gas industry companies of Azerbaijan, Andrey Suvorov, Head of critical infrastructure protection at Kaspersky Lab.

He said the process of providing industrial cyberdefense is quite complex, since it takes time to get acquainted with the enterprise before the introduction of the system.

There are a number of indicators that play an important role in the introduction of industrial cyberdefense systems. First of all, this is related to the issue, solutions of which vendors for industrial automation are used at the enterprise, Suvorov told Trend. Therefore, before we enter the market, we first of all consider which vendor solutions are used there.

He added that there are two key areas in Azerbaijan  oil and gas chemistry and energy, and this allows narrow down the options and find out which developers installed automation systems in the countrys enterprises. After that, Kaspersky Lab starts working with customers, according to Suvorov.

We have developed three training on industrial cybersecurity. We specially adapted one of them for IT security specialists and engineers, so that both teams could more easily understand what is meant by industrial safety, Suvorov added.

Industrial enterprises in every country are subject to constantly increasing numbers of cyberattacks, which may cause serious economic and societal damage to the enterprise and the country as a whole. Therefore, it is important for every industrial enterprise to apply additional means of security and choose the right industrial cybersecurity vendor.

The three main reasons for industrial computers infection in the second part of 2016 were the Internet, removable storage devices, and malicious email attachments and scripts embedded in the body of emails. The top three countries with attacked industrial computers were Vietnam (more than 66 percent), Algeria (over 65 percent) and Morocco (60 percent), according to Kaspersky Lab ICS research.

Kaspersky Lab is a Russian multinational cyber security and anti-virus provider headquartered in Moscow, Russia and operated by a holding company in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1997 by Eugene Kaspersky, who is currently the CEO. Kaspersky Lab develops and sells antivirus, internet security, password management, endpoint security, and other cybersecurity products and services.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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11 December 2017 15:35 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Uzbekistan watches the projects on creation of a ramified multimodal infrastructure, including rail, road, sea and air links implemented by its foreign partners - Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, with great attention and optimism, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan Sahib Saifnazarov told Trend.

"The launch of mutually beneficial and efficient transport corridors creates all the necessary conditions for the successful integration of our countries into global economic development processes. These projects are also very important for attracting foreign investment, sustainable development of export potential and expanding the geography of supplies of products produced in our countries," the deputy minister said.

He also noted that these corridors will contribute to the increase of attractiveness of transit corridors, running through the territories of our countries, and allow to effectively use the transport infrastructure, as well as to increase the volumes of cargo transportation in various directions.

"In this regard, we cant underestimate the importance of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad both for the countries of Central Asia and the subcontinent in general, since it is called to become a key link in the large-scale transport corridor "East-West," Saifnazarov said.

The BTK will also contribute to creation of a single railway corridor "China - the countries of Central Asia - the Caspian Sea - Azerbaijan - Georgia - Turkey", providing access to the Mediterranean ports, as well as to European markets through the Marmaray tunnel," according to the deputy minister.

"The forecasts show that one million passengers and 6.5 million tons of cargo per year will be transported along the Baku-Tbilisi-Akhalkalaki-Kars route. It is assumed that the level of transportation may be increased to three million passengers and 17 million tons of cargo. In particular, it is expected to attract significant volumes of cargo from China and Kazakhstan," Saifnazarov said.

Uzbekistan is interested in actively using and increasing the volume of its foreign trade cargo transportation along this corridor, according to Saifnazarov.

The deputy minister also added that the construction of the railroad has made it possible to form two alternative transit corridors for Uzbekistan along the following routes: Hodjidavlet / Farab station Turkmenbashi - Baku-Tbilisi port - Akhalkalaki station - Kars-Ankara-Istanbul station (3,414 kilometers); Karakalpakia station - Aktau port - Baku-Tbilisi port - Akhalkalaki station - Kars-Ankara-Istanbul station (2,820 km).

According to Saifnazarov, transport and time costs for the new route will be significantly lower compared to the route passing through Iran: Khojidavlet / Farab station - Serakhs / Mashhad station-Razi / Kapikroy station (Iran-Turkish border ) - 2,375 kilometers.

In this regard, Uzbekistan considers it necessary to work out the issue of concluding appropriate agreements on transit transport of its goods, as well as the application of optimized tariff preferences for transportation along a new route.

"The launch of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will serve to further strengthen our trade and economic relations, significantly enhance the transit and economic potential of our countries and in general contribute to the prosperity of the entire region," the deputy minister said.

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11 December 2017 18:34 (UTC+04:00)

By Aygul Salmanova

Azerbaijani carpets, famous worldwide for their beautiful designs, durability and vivid colors, will be displayed at exhibitions in the U.S. and Germany.

Carpets woven in the Shamkir and Horadiz branches of "Azerkhalcha" OJSC will be presented to buyers at international sales exhibitions in the U.S. and Germany. Vidadi Muradov, Chairman of the Board of Azerkhalca OJSC told local media that the sales exhibitions will be held in January 2018.

Muradov noted that the carpets woven at the Guba branch of the OJSC, opened on December 7 with the participation of President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva can be sold at these exhibitions. The first product of the Guba branch will be ready in January-February of the next year.

Since the establishment of "Azerkhalcha" OJSC, we have been working on introducing and selling our carpets. Our products are exhibited in sales lounges and exhibitions. The Azerbaijani carpets, which have already become brands, are in demand in foreign countries, he said.

Seven more branches of Azerkhalcha OJSC are planned to be opened by the end of this year. Thus, the number of carpet production enterprises will reach ten. In 2018, according to the instruction of President Ilham Aliyev, ten more branches will be created. With the launch of the carpet production enterprises, some 3,000 people will be employed, Muradov said.

By the end of this year, construction of a spinning mill plant will be started at Sumgayit Chemical Industry Park. After the construction of the plant, the wool produced at sheep breeding farms in some regions of the country will be purchased through regional supply points. These stations will be set up in Barda, Shabran, Shamakhi, Sabirabad and Nakhchivan.

"Establishment of such an enterprise will eliminate the dependence of Azerbaijani wool and natural dyes on foreign imports and will ensure its development on the basis of local raw materials. For this, there are favorable conditions in the country. Azerbaijan has rich natural resources for the preparation of both wool and natural dyestuffs, Muradov noted.

The state-run Azerkhalcha Company was established under the presidential decree in May 2016 to achieve these goals and also organize export of valuable Azerbaijani carpets to the world markets. Overall, the company plans to open up 10 plants throughout the country in 2017 and 20 more until 2019. Over 5,000 people will be permanently employed at the plants and absolute majority of them will be women.

Carpet weaving is one of the oldest arts and crafts of the country. The data of archaeological research conducted on the territory of Azerbaijan and the monuments of literature testify that the art of carpet weaving originated in Azerbaijan in ancient times.

A feature of the Azerbaijani carpet ornament is the use of images of plant, zoomorphic, anthropomorphic and abstract geometric forms. Its distinct color palette and design allows to easily recognize Azerbaijani carpet. An unusual scheme of cherry red, yellow-green and sky blue adds color distinction to masterful draftsmanship of the Azerbaijani carpets. Its patterns differ depending on the region in which and the layout and material from which it is woven.

By geographical position, peculiarities of patterns, composition, color solution and technical features, Azerbaijani carpets are conditionally divided into 7 carpet-making schools: Guba, Baku or Absheron, Shirvan, Ganja, Gazakh, Karabakh, and Kabriz.

In 2010, the Azerbaijani carpet was proclaimed a Masterpiece of Intangible Heritage by UNESCO.

Ancient Azerbaijani carpets are stored at the White House, the U.S. State Department, and many other museums across the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and the Museum of Art in Philadelphia, as well as the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and Hermitage in St. Petersburg.
11 December 2017 13:18 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that emerged in the South Caucasus in late 1980s has brought too much suffering to the Azerbaijanis living in their lands now occupied by Armenia. When the OSCE Minsk Group joined the peace diplomacy to find a durable and lasting solution to the conflict, there was a bright flash of hope in the eyes of millions of Azerbaijani IDPs and refugees. However, the conflict still remains unresolved.

For more than twenty years, the OSCE Minsk Group has not actually taken any real action on a real settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,Russian political analyst and expert on international issues Evgeny Mikhailov told Azernews on December 11.

He added that until recently, there was an impression that the main task of the mediators is simply to prevent the hot phase of the clashes and preserve the existing status quo, when Armenia occupied the territories, and Azerbaijan, having the opportunity to return them, cannot do this because of certain considerations of political expediency.

However, in my opinion, 2017 is the year when the situation began to change radically and the opportunity showed up to resolve this problem peacefully, the expert said. The pressure of public organizations increased, and reasonable proposals emerged from the countries-guarantors of the conflicting parties.

Indeed, there was a greater activity in the settlement process this year. Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia accompanied by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs met in mid-October in Geneva, and the countries foreign ministers have several times met this year both before and after the presidents meeting.

The emerging sharp rapprochement of the political interests of Turkey and Russia against the opposition to the U.S. pressure in the region is able to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the near future, said Mikhailov. "The more frequent meetings of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers are the links of a new strategy Turkey and Russia deployed throughout the South Caucasus."

He also noted the efforts of Iran and Kazakhstan, which have recently intensified diplomatic activity in an attempt to help resolve the long-standing conflict situation.

Commenting on the recent meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers in Vienna, Mikhailov made an assumption that intensive negotiations are under way on the last meetings on the return of at least the occupied Azerbaijani regions in the so-called "buffer zone" of the conflict.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Until now, Armenia controls fifth part of Azerbaijans territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding districts.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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11 December 2017 17:14 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

France supports peaceful settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Aurelia Bouchez told journalists on her visit on December 11 to a new settlement built for internally displaced persons in Tartar region of Azerbaijan.

France stands for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. As OSCE Minsk Group co-chair country, France will continue to make efforts to achieve progress in the conflict settlement, she said.

Bouchez added she was visiting Tartar region for the first time.

I am quite impressed with the quality of buildings built here  schools and apartments. I think this is very important, because it is necessary to take care of peoples lives. All this shows how important it is to achieve a peaceful settlement of the conflict, the ambassador noted.

American professor James Quayle has also visited the new settlement in Tartar.

I became in the first hand familiar with conditions created by Azerbaijani government for IDPs and this is incredible. I wish we had such a school in the place where I live in the U.S., he told reporters.

Touching upon the solution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Quayle noted it is necessary to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of countries. He said the conflict should be settled in accordance with the principles and norms of international law.

Azerbaijan and Armenia for over two decades have been locked in a conflict, which emerged over Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since the 1990s war, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

Due to the ethnic cleansing policy carried out by Armenia, the number of refugees and internally displaced persons in Azerbaijan hit more than 1.2 million. With a population of over 9.8 million, Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms.

With the growing economic and political situation of the country, Azerbaijan pays much attention to the most difficult problems once concerning the refugees and IDPs. The state improves the living conditions of refugees and IDPs and it has adopted relevant state programs and legislative acts.

The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan, but they have not been enforced to this day.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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11 December 2017 16:26 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

The UK House of Lords has hosted the annual Christmas charity meeting of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society (www.anglo-azerbaijani-society.com) and celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Society.

Participants at the event included co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society Lord German on behalf of the UK, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani society on behalf of Azerbaijan, academician Nargiz Pashayeva, members of the Executive Committee of the Society and the British Parliament, employees of the diplomatic corps accredited in London, local and foreign businessmen and Azerbaijani students studying in the UK.

In his opening remarks, Lord German expressed his gratitude to co-chair of the society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva for her outstanding contribution to the activity of the organization.

Addressing the event, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva thanked those who have been actively involved in the activity of the society and who have worked with love and perseverance in its projects over the years.

Nargiz Pashayeva congratulated the participants on the upcoming New Year.

In his remarks, Azerbaijani Ambassador to the UK Tahir Taghizade hailed the 20th anniversary and achievements of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society, and lauded its support to developing cultural ties and bringing the two countries closer to each other. He thanked Nargiz Pashayeva, Lord German and other members of the society for their great contributions to the successful development of the organization and congratulated them on the jubilee.

Following the event, co-chair of the Anglo-Azerbaijani Society on behalf of Azerbaijan Nargiz Pashayeva highlighted the Society's activities and its humanitarian and charitable work over 20 years of its establishment.

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11 December 2017 18:47 (UTC+04:00)

By Sara Israfilbayova

Cotton is one of the oldest natural fibers in the World, which has been grown in Egypt, India, Pakistan, America, China.

Cotton-growing has always been a tradition in Azerbaijan, where people have been engaged in cotton growing for centuries.

Today, the state is making every effort to revive the cotton industry, providing huge support to entrepreneurs.

Year 2016 was a turning point from the perspective of cotton-growing in the country. Last year, cotton was planted on an area of 51,000 hectares, while the harvest hit 90,000 tons. That is three times more than in 2015.

The country has big plans for 2017, as the State Investment Program envisaged large funds for the development of cotton-growing. This year, cotton was planted in more than 20 regions of Azerbaijan.

To date, 199,818 tons of products have been delivered to cotton harvesting stations in Azerbaijan.

Up to now, the total volume of products exceeded the indicator of the previous year by 111,000 tons.

Compared with the previous year, this year, it was planted 2.7 times more-136,413 hectares.

Cotton production is most developed in Saatli (25,437 tons), Bilasuvar (24,234 tons), Barda (21,552 tons), Aghjabadi (19,555 tons) and Sabirabad (17,608 tons).

President Ilham Aliyev, who constantly made accent on importance of developing of this sphere, raised this issue once again at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers dedicated to results of socio-economic development in the first half of 2017 and objectives for the future.

The head of state said Azerbaijan restored the glory of cotton growing, increasing crop area of cotton by about three times.

In early 2017, the State Program for 2017-2022 was approved with an aim of strengthening measures directed at developing this sphere. The purpose of the State Program is to develop cotton growing, increase export potential in this sphere, ensure employment of the rural population and increase the production of cotton.

The new goal of the state is to bring the cotton production up to 500,000 tons by 2022 from the current 260,000 tons.

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11 December 2017 11:22 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbay Jeenbekov will visit Uzbekistan, the Information Policy Department of the President's Office reported on December 11.

The president has today received Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldaev, who informed the head of state about the preparation of the president's official visit to Uzbekistan scheduled for December 13-14.

The head of state gave a number of instructions to the Minister for careful preparation for the upcoming foreign policy events.

In addition, the minister reported on the results of participation in the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Vienna on Dec.7-8, as well as an official visit to Serbia.

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11 December 2017 10:37 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Turkey on Sunday congratulated Iraq for its victory over Daesh terrorist group, Anadolu reported.

According to a statement issued late Sunday, Turkish Foreign Ministry extended condolences for the Iraqi citizens, who lost their lives during anti-Daesh fight.

"We are pleased that Iraq has successfully completed the fight against Daesh and we congratulate the Iraqi government," the statement said.

On Saturday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi announced that the war against Daesh was over and that Iraqi forces now in full control of Iraqs border with Syria.

He said the Iraqi victory over the Daesh terrorist group has been realized with unity among Iraqis.

The Turkish Foreign Minister said there is a need to take decisive steps for reconstruction of the rescued areas, strengthening Iraqi institutions and creating national reconciliation between the Iraqi citizens.

The ministry said it was important that the work to be done in this area should be comprehensive for all parts of the Iraqi society.

Turkey would continue to work in solidarity with the Iraqi government in post-Daesh period like in the period of anti-Daesh fight, it added.

Iraqi forces have managed to recapture all territories overran by Daesh in northern and western Iraq in 2014.

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11 December 2017 11:48 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

The European countries should not repeat past mistakes and blindly follow the course of the administration of the U.S. President Donald Trump in matters of a nuclear deal and the settlement of the situation in the Middle East.

This warning was made by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in his article published by The New York Times on December 10, TASS reported.

The unreliability of the United States  from climate change to Palestine has become predictable. Our main concern now is cautioning European countries against wavering on issues beyond the scope of the nuclear agreement and following in lock step behind the White House. As the nuclear deal and the Middle East enter uncharted and potentially combustible territory, it is imperative that Europe helps ensure that we dont soon find ourselves repeating history, the article read.

He recalled that long before the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran held similar negotiations with Britain, France and Germany during which European diplomats, seeking to persuade George W. Bushs administration to give diplomacy a chance, asked Iran for a temporary, voluntary freeze on uranium-enrichment-related activities as a confidence-building measure.

After two years of negotiation  and under pressure from the U.S.  Britain, France and Germany suddenly demanded that we abandon all enrichment activities. The talks fell apart and the Europeans ended up neither stopping our nuclear program nor appeasing Washington, according to the article.

Zarif called the nuclear deal a rare triumph of diplomacy over confrontation and stressed that undermining it would be a mistake.

Europe should not pander to Washingtons determination to shift focus to yet another unnecessary crisis  whether it be Irans defensive missile program or our influence in the Middle East, he added.

The Iran nuclear deal was negotiated in July 2015 between Iran, the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council - the U.S., France, Britain, Russia and China  as well as Germany. By ratifying the plan, Iran agreed to scale down its nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief.

Despite eight reports by the IAEA which confirm Tehrans compliance, On October 13, U.S. President Donald Trump, long been known as the main critic of the landmark deal, declared his view of the JCPOA, which was reached under his predecessor - Barack Obama.

The nuclear deal has become a hot topic for discussion since Trump, who constantly voices anti-Iranian rhetoric, took the office.

Trump announced that he would not certify Irans compliance with the deal. At the same time he did not challenge the compliance of Iran at the international level. The move paves the way for Congress to put new restrictions on Iran. It now has less than 60 days to decide whether to reimpose economic sanctions on Tehran which were lifted under the nuclear accord in 2016.

The other parties to the agreement - Britain, Germany, France, Russia, China and the European Union - have all reaffirmed their commitment to it and called on the U.S. not to step out.

However, it is believed that Trump would not recommend the Congress to re-impose sanctions in order to reach a compromise with many congressional leaders who stand for keeping the deal at least with some changes.

In case sanctions are applied, the U.S. would find itself in breach of its commitments. This means a unilateral withdrawal from the agreement, which will damage the reputation of the U.S. in the eyes of world community.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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11 December 2017 13:13 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

China continues to strengthen business relations with the regions of Kazakhstan.

The delegation of the international business association from Shenzhen City of China visited Kargalinsky district of the Aktobe region.

As a result of the trip, a memorandum on cooperation between the regional akimat and the international association was signed, Kazinform reported.

The main goal of the arrival of Chinese businessmen in Kargalinsky district is to get acquainted with the investment potential and mineral deposits.

Upon arrival, the delegation visited the pond farm Ardaghym and the Velikhov deposit of iron ore of the Kargalinsky district.

Following this, an extended meeting, during which investors were informed about opportunities to develop nickel and iron ore deposits in the district, was held.

Chinese investors have expressed an interest in a long-term partnership with the Kargalinsky district for the development of deposits. Akim of the district Rakhat Sydykov noted that he is interested in attracting investments, which will create additional jobs and an influx of people into the district.

We see how rich your district is, there is everything here - both in terms of agriculture, fish and mining. We specifically invited one of China's leading mining experts, Mr. Sun Yan, who works for the largest steel company in Asia and has his own production fields, and he is interested in developing deposits in Kazakhstan, chairman of the international association Chen Baodong said.

He informed that recently in China, the state has closed the development of many fields that operated on environmental protection zones.

The other day, an enterprise which employed 4,000 people was shut down due to the fact that 300 wild camels, listed in the Red Book, lived nearby. We suffered great losses, he said.

After signing the memorandum, investors noted that a special analytical group of the association on collecting data and analyzing production costs will operate in order to come up to a specific investment decision.

Investors noted that China's market is huge and needs high-quality raw materials. In return, entrepreneurs offered their technology. For example, if the standard spinning of flax oil is 45 percent, then Chinese technology can increase the spin up to 85 percent. The cost of flax oil in the Chinese market, according to Chen Baodong, is $30.

The international association includes 100 largest companies of China, the main activities of which are mining and processing of minerals. In addition to state-owned enterprises, it includes the best public enterprises in China. The total assets of companies amount to 10 billion yuan. The city of Shenzhen with 20 million people was nicknamed the Silicon Valley of Asia, where the most advanced technologies are used.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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11 December 2017 14:08 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

VISA denied reports on suspension of servicing of Turkmen banks by the international payment system.

A representative of VISA on CIS and South-Eastern Europe contacted the Turkmen service of Azatlyk radio and denied this information.

The Corporate Communications Manager of VISA, Anna Serdyuk, said in a telephone interview that all transactions and services to all banks continue in the standard mode.

At the same time, another source close to the State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs of Turkmenistan on December 8 stated that last week, operations on VISA payment cards, emitted by Turkmen banks, were limited. However, this measure was taken not by VISA, but by the State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs.

I have no information on this issue [Turkmenistan's debt to VISA]. Cards are issued by specific banks. Accordingly, if the cardholder has any difficulties, there are some limits set by the bank and he must solve this issue with the bank. We work with banks and we did not suspend the provision of services or the processing of transactions on VISA cards of any bank in Turkmenistan, Serdyuk said.

She also failed to specify how much of the VISA cards issued by Turkmen banks were processed from December 1.

Earlier, it was reported that in connection with Turkmenistan's debt to VISA, operations on Turkmen payment cards were suspended.

The international payment system VISA started the first operations in Turkmenistan in 1994. Another international payment system MasterCard also began to be serviced in 1994, but only for foreigners. For local customers, MasterCard became available only in 2014.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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11 December 2017 16:01 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

The situation on the Korean peninsula remains extremely tense and can only be resolved politically and diplomatically in line with the Russian-Chinese road map.

This was stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following the fifteenth meeting of the Foreign Ministers of RIC (Russia, India and China), RIA Novosti reported.

We exchanged opinions on the situation on the Korean Peninsula, it is extremely tense. We consider it inadmissible to aggravate military tension and military confrontation, which can turn into a hot state from the propaganda, he said.

During the meeting, the ministers stressed the absence of an alternative to solving this problem exclusively by political and diplomatic means in line with the corresponding Russian-Chinese road map, according to Lavrov.

Earlier, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikky Haley told Fox News Sunday that Beijing and the rest of the international community are following through with sanctions against Pyongyang for developing its nuclear weapons programme. She then commended Washington for leading the charge.

But to be clear, China can do more. And we're putting as much pressure on them as we can. The last time they completely cut off the oil, North Korea came to the table. And so we've told China they've got to do more. If they don't do more, we're going to take it into our own hands and then we'll start to deal with secondary sanctions, Haley said.

She also warned that if North Korea attempts to threaten the United States or any one of its allies, it will be utterly destroyed.

You know, diplomacy is great in some respects, but you have to also be honest. North Korea has pushed the envelope to an extreme level, Haley added.

Pyongyang conducted its first ballistic test launch on November 28. The missile was reported to have flown for 50 minutes on a very high trajectory, reaching 4,500 km above the earth before coming down nearly 1,000 km from the launch site off the west coast of Japan, according to the South Korean Chiefs of Staff Committee.

November 28 marked the first missile launch carried out by North Korea since September 15. Since then, for 75 days, Pyongyang has refrained from military provocations.

The active phase of the crisis on the Korean peninsula began in August 2017, when Pyongyang tested ballistic missiles and announced the successful testing of the hydrogen bomb.

The United Nations Security Council has unanimously imposed a set of sanctions against North Korea on September 11 over the countrys hydrogen bomb test which was conducted on September 3.

The sanctions included limits on import of crude oil and oil products, a ban on textile exports and new visas for North Korean oversees workers.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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11 December 2017 17:10 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have started implementing a roadmap for the modernization of border checkpoints, according to the press service of the Uzbek State Customs Committee.

This issue was discussed during a working meeting between representatives of customs, border and other departments of the two countries.

The road map for the reconstruction and modernization of checkpoints, highways and the construction of an adjacent territory on the Kazakh-Uzbek state border was signed during the official visit of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev to Uzbekistan.

The implementation of the road map will, first of all, significantly increase the capacity of key checkpoints located on the border with Kazakhstan, and create the most favorable conditions for accelerated and comfortable movement of individuals traveling on foot or private cars, and cargo carriers, also using transit routes running through the territories of two neighboring countries.

During 2018-2019 it is planned to carry out reconstruction, expansion, improvement and enhancement of the border infrastructure, including by modernizing large-size X-ray scanning equipment, advanced radiation monitoring systems, improving video surveillance systems, recognizing automobile license plates and weighing freight vehicles in the busiest checkpoints with international status located on the Kazakh-Uzbek border.

The working groups of interested parties also visited border checkpoints Gisht-Kuprik, Zangiot and Tashkent, where the primary tasks for further implementation of the approved plan on relevant work were identified and priority steps for joint adoption of effective efforts in this direction were outlined.

The agreements reached between the parties are confirmed in the relevant protocol.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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11 December 2017 17:49 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Uzbekistan supports the peaceful foreign policy of Turkmenistan, Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov said, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said in a statement on December 11.

Kamilov made the remarks at the international conference "Neutrality Policy and Preventive Diplomacy in International Relations: Experience and the Role of Turkmenistan" in Ashgabat on December 11.

Addressing the event, the minister on behalf of the delegation of Uzbekistan congratulated the Turkmen side on the national holiday - the 22nd anniversary of the proclamation of Turkmenistan's neutrality.

"The international recognition of the neutrality status of Turkmenistan was an event that became one of the turning points, largely predetermining the main stages of state construction and the priorities of the country's foreign policy," Kamilov said.

A milestone of in the bilateral relations was the state visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Turkmenistan in March this year, which resulted in the signing of a strategic partnership agreement between the two countries that gave a powerful impetus to revealing new potentials for bilateral cooperation.

Later, the Uzbek delegation took part in the international conference "The UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia: 10 Years of Cooperation with Central Asia for the Peace and Prosperity of the Region", held in the Turkmen capital.

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Late 2017 has been riddled with mega-mergers from corporate giants such as Whole Foods and Amazon or CVS and Aetna, which are concerning some lawmakers, The Hill reports.

These deals are being made in nearly every sector, regardless of geography. Last week, Englewood, Colo.-based Catholic Health Initiatives and San Francisco-based Dignity Health struck a multibillion-dollar deal to combine into a single system of 139 hospitals spanning 28 states.

But, lawmakers aren't just taking issue with the agreements themselves: they're attacking the government regulations that enable them. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and other Democrats argue the Chicago school of economics  the principles that influence how government regulators evaluate mergers  allow and, in some cases, encourage large mergers, which they say threatens competition and hurts the public.

"With the growth of Chicago school economics in the 1970s and 1980s  instead of blocking mergers that posed significant threats to competition, [antitrust enforcers] signed off on settlement agreements that allowed bad mergers if the companies promised to take actions later on that were supposedly designed to protect competition," Ms. Warren said, according to The Hill.

In November, Democratic leaders proposed the "Better Deal" plan, an economic policy reform pushed out by Sen. Chuck Schumer, N.Y., and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Calif., that advocates antitrust policies.

"We propose establishing new merger standards that require a broader, longer-term view and strong presumptions that market concentration can result in anticompetitive conduct," they wrote, according to The Hill.

Republicans are critical of the plan. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, referred to it as "hipster antitrust," meaning the proposal tried to preemptively mitigate risks from mergers before they actually harm the market.

"From what I can tell, it amounts to little more than pseudo-economic demagoguery and anti-corporate paranoia," Mr. Hatch said during an August Senate floor speech, according to The Hill.
Brooke Army Medical Center was one of multiple hospitals that took in victims of a Nov. 5 mass shooting at Sutherland Springs, Texas-based First Baptist Church.

The military hospital in San Antonio treated eight patients injured in the tragedy. As of Thursday, one of those patients was still at the hospital in "fair" condition, and all of the other patients had been discharged.

Col. Michael Ludwig, deputy commander for inpatient services at BAMC, recently answered questions from Becker's Hospital Review about the hospital's response and lessons learned from the experience.

Note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity.

Question: What was it like the day of the shooting?

Col. Michael Ludwig: It was pretty fast-acting from what I saw on the nursing side. We prepared for more [patients than we ultimately received]. We assessed our beds to make sure we had beds in the appropriate spaces [such as] the ICUs. We also made sure we had enough staff on board if we were to get an influx of patients. I also know from the provider side, the trauma surgeons worked to open up some operating rooms just to make sure there was staff in place so we could handle an increased workload, assuming the injuries that were going to happen were going to be from a shooting type of event.

So there was a lot of activity going on, a lot of coordination going on, and reports showed everything happened very smoothly; patients were assessed appropriately.

Q: What has the response been like from patients and staff?

ML: We always have pastoral resources in place 24/7 because of the trauma mission [of BAMC], but we also have the ability to reach out and get that type of emotional support in addition to what the nurses can provide, the staff can provide. So within two or three hours of the event happening, we had many of our pastoral care [staff] come in and provide holistic care. There were a lot of family members here that needed support  not only the information, which was provided to them as much as we could, but also the emotional support.

That also extends to special situations. We had a couple minors [injured in the shooting] here, so that's obviously another population we have to be mindful of. So I think we did a good job of supporting everyone's emotional needs of patients but also staff. There's a risk of forgetting staff, but I don't think we do that. I know that was one of the first questions leadership was asking the day after: "How are the staff doing?" As far as how the shooting has affected them, I've not seen an overall downplaying or degradation in their emotional resiliency. That's not to say some people haven't been affected by that. I think individually, people have been moved by it, but I think the resiliency in the organization is strong and continues to be strong even after an event like this.

Q: What are the lessons learned from this tragedy?

ML: You practice the best you can [for such a situation], but the reality is different. So I think one lesson learned is you have to be flexible in these scenarios. You have to be flexible in how plans are laid out. I think we did a good job at this. One of the main lessons I learned from the nursing side is you need that staff to be able to have a handle on what beds you have available. And then a lesson learned also is there is a key in having the communication between the people [at the hospital] that kind of manage providers. And what I mean by that is having that talk of which patients are stable; what beds do we expect are going to be opening up that we could put patients in? So I think the one lesson learned is that communication is key across fields. I think it was there [at BAMC], but I think the shooting just verified that it was key to have in place.

One other lesson learned is [related to] patient privacy, [which] is something we hold very sacred to our patients. We really made sure that as questions were asked, we implored staff to follow the rules of HIPAA, to disclose to only the people who need to know or have the right to know. We would refer any outside questions, especially from press, to a public information officer, and having that knowledge and having that contact information and a way forward with information requests was a lesson learned.

Q: Any advice for hospitals that may face similar situations?

ML: Provide the appropriate staff to family members, because we had an area we could have people gather in and that was a perfect place for the commander of the hospital to address them and just to be there for them. Sometimes it's getting out as much information as you can without breaking HIPAA rules and then letting them know we're there for them and do feel for them, and somebody as high as the hospital commander was here that day and thought it was important enough to address their questions and concerns. I think that's a big lesson learned that I would pass on, because I think whenever there's a vacuum of knowledge, people like to spread rumors and have a lot of apprehension.

Q: Anything to add?

ML: We were honored and willing to be here to serve the community. We do really think we're part of the community. We really work to engage the community and we were honored to be able to be here and help and get the community through a hard time.
Donald DiFrancesco, former president of the state Senate of New Jersey who also served as governor from 2001 to 2002, allegedly used his clout as chairman of Newark, N.J.-based University Hospital to obtain a low-show job for his friend, according to NJ.com.

Mr. DiFrancesco recommended the hospital hire his friend Jill Cooperman as his personal assistant in 2014 with a starting salary of $94,000. Her title rose to senior staff attorney, assistant general counsel and secretary of the hospital's foundation between January 2014 and April 2016. Along with Ms. Cooperman's title, her salary also rose, eventually hitting $125,000.

A whistleblower complaint argues Ms. Cooperman's job responsibilities were vague, and she was often not expected to show up to the office. An outside report by Porzio Bromberg & Newman in response to the allegations seemed to confirm them, NJ.com reports.

"It is clear that even Ms. Cooperman herself is unclear on to whom she presently reports, her exact title and what her responsibilities are. Often absent from the office, that she often leaves work early or in the middle of the day, and that her whereabouts are often unclear or unknown by her colleagues," the report reads, according to NJ.com.

Soon after the report was completed, Ms. Cooperman left the hospital, and the organization clarified its reporting practices. Mr. DiFrancesco acknowledged Ms. Cooperman was his friend but said their relationship was not romantic.
State Sen. Leah Vukmir, R-Brookfield, was one of 35 Republicans whose personal messages were swept up without her knowledge in an investigation by the now-defunct state Government Accountability Board.
The following healthcare mergers, acquisitions, partnerships and general transactions took place or were announced during the past week.

1. CHI, Dignity Health to merge into $28.4B nonprofit system: 7 takeaways

Englewood, Colo.-based Catholic Health Initiatives and San Francisco-based Dignity Health signed a definitive agreement Dec. 7 to combine into a single Catholic health system comprising 139 hospitals across 28 states.

2. Ascension to sell its stake in Grand Cayman hospital: 4 things to know

St. Louis-based Ascension, the nation's largest nonprofit health system, is ending its joint ownership of Health City Cayman Islands in Grand Cayman.

3. Why this Idaho hospital bought their city's water towers for $1

Blackfoot-based Bingham Memorial Hospital purchased the city of Blackfoot's water towers for $1.

4. Adventist Health drops out of running to operate California hospital

Roseville, Calif.-based Adventist Health withdrew its bid to operate Mark Twain Medical Center, a 25-bed critical access hospital in San Andreas, Calif., the Mark Twain Health Care District said Dec. 6.

5. WVU Hospitals, Garrett Regional Medical Center enter management agreement

Morgantown, W.Va.-based WVU Hospitals entered into a management agreement with Garrett Regional Medical Center, a 55-bed facility in Oakland, Md., Dec. 5.

6. McLaren Health Care pursues 2nd acquisition in 2 weeks

The Caro (Mich.) Community Hospital board of trustees signed a definitive agreement Dec. 5 to join McLaren Health Care, a 12-hospital system in Grand Blanc, Mich.

7. Quest finalizes acquisition of Cleveland Clinic laboratory

Secaucus, N.J.-based Quest Diagnostics completed its acquisition of Cleveland Clinic HeartLab Dec. 1.

8. CHS to sell 120-bed Florida hospital to Adventist Health

Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems signed a definitive agreement Dec. 4 to sell Bayfront Health Dade City (Fla.) and its associated assets to subsidiaries of Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based Adventist Health System.

9. VA, DOD allegedly considering merging health systems

U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary David J. Shulkin, MD, said Nov. 21 the VA department and the U.S. Department of Defense are exploring the idea of merging the agencies' health systems.

10. Bellin Health crosses state lines to acquire Michigan hospital

Green Bay, Wis.-based Bellin Health signed a letter of intent to acquire Iron Mountain, Mich.-based Dickinson County Healthcare System Dec. 4.

11. Ochsner to take over operations at 2 Louisiana hospitals following BRF controversy

New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System is in talks to assume operations at the state's safety net hospitals in Monroe and Shreveport.

12. Erlanger, LHC Group finalize joint venture

Erlanger Health System, a five-hospital system in Chattanooga, Tenn., and Lafayette, La.-based LHC Group finalized a joint venture agreement Dec. 4 to enhance home health services for Chattanooga residents.
Labor contract negotiations between unionized employees and hospitals are not always smooth. When both sides remain at odds over key issues, the result may be a strike.

Here are eight notable strikes reported by Becker's Hospital Review so far in 2017.

1. UPHS-Marquette nurses begin 2-day strike

Nurses at Upper Peninsula Health System-Marquette (Mich.) began to strike Oct. 5 after unsuccessful negotiations between the hospital and the Michigan Nurses Association.

2. Nearly 800 MNA-backed nurses begin strike at Berkshire Medical Center

Nearly 800 nurses at Pittsfield, Mass.-based Berkshire Medical Center began a 24-hour strike Oct. 3.

3. Tufts nurses strike, marking Boston's 1st RN strike in 30 years

Approximately 1,200 nurses at Boston-based Tufts Medical Center began to strike July 12, signalling the beginning of a planned 24-hour walkout.

4. Baystate Franklin nurses plan to return to work after strike

Nurses at Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield, Mass., began to strike June 26 over alleged unfair labor practices.

5. California hospital workers begin 3-day strike

Workers at Watsonville (Calif.) Community Hospital began a three-day strike June 14.

6. New York workers strike at Fresenius-owned dialysis clinics

Approximately 200 protesters, including workers represented by the New York State Nurses Association and 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, went on strike June 12 at Fresenius dialysis clinics in the New York City metro area.

7. Nurse strike begins at Delaware County Memorial Hospital

Hundreds of nurses and technicians at Drexel Hill, Pa.-based Delaware County Memorial Hospital began to strike March 5.

8. Administrative and clerical workers strike near UC San Diego campuses

Administrative and clerical workers represented by Teamsters Local 2010 began to strike January 10 near UC San Diego hospitals in Hillcrest and La Jolla.
Many Americans, including those in healthcare, embrace retirement with open arms after decades in the workforce. But more people are coming out of retirement because they miss doing their work, according to a Kaiser Health News report.

Here are four things to know about this "un-retirement" trend.

1. A 2017 Rand Corp. study shows more than half of Americans age 50 and older who were not working and not looking for work said they would work in the future under the right circumstances. And it showed a large number of Americans already have done this, as 39 percent of workers age 65 and older who were currently working had previously retired.

2. The reasoning behind this "un-retirement" trend is not based on money but rather people working again because they miss the collegiality, challenges and accomplishments, according to the report.

3. In fact, Chris Farrell, author of "Unretirement: How Baby Boomers Are Changing the Way We Think About Work, Community and the Good Life," told KHN retirees cite colleagues as the primary thing they miss most about life before they retired.

4. Various healthcare professionals are part of the "un-retirement" trend. For instance, Tim Franson, 66, former vice president at drugmaker Eli Lilly, tried retirement but now serves as a consultant and on multiple boards, the report states.

Read the full KHN report here.
Dayton, Ohio-based Miami Valley Hospital relocated nine to 10 babies from its women's center after an overheated motor produced smoke, according to WHIO TV.

Following hospital protocol, Miami Valley Hospital staff moved the infants from the Berry Women's Center to another area in the hospital as a precaution.

"Fortunately ... they were infants, they were babies, so they could be relocated rather quickly and easily," Dayton District Fire Chief James Rose told WHIO TV.

The smoke was contained in the area and since been ventilated. No one was injured from the incident.
Hospitals across Southern California have deployed several resources and services to help those affected by multiple wildfires currently raging across the state, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The Los Angeles Daily News estimates roughly 159,000 acres of land have been burned by six main fires. The fires have destroyed approximately 535 homes and other structures, and killed at least one individual. Officials said more than 6,700 firefighters have been deployed to contain the flames.

Here are six things to know about how hospitals are helping people affected by fires.

1. Mission Hills, Calif.-based Providence Holy Cross Medical Center treated 25 patients Dec. 5 for smoke-related health issues, a spokesperson from the hospital told the Los Angeles Times. The hospital also set up a hotline last week to address people's concerns.

2. A spokesperson for Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, Calif., told the Los Angeles Times via email the hospital "closed all of [its] exits except for [the] main entrance and entrance to the emergency department," and "added fans at those entrances to discourage outside air from traveling inside."

3. Adventist Health Simi Valley (Calif.) deployed a command center Dec. 5 and has kept the center open throughout the week in the event the wildfires damage the hospital, a spokesperson for the hospital told the Los Angeles Times.

4. Santa Paula (Calif.) Hospital  which is located "miles" away from the starting point of one of the six main fires  and Ventura (Calif.) County Medical Center were forced to rely on backup generator power after the facilities suffered multiple blackouts Dec. 5, the Los Angeles Times states.

5. Valley Presbyterian is also offering face masks to employees, patients and visitors to limit the amount of pollutants they inhale. Some health officials contend microscopic particles in smoke can penetrate the lungs and cause issues for those with heart or lung conditions such as emphysema or COPD, according to the report.

6. However, some health officials claim not all filtering masks are created equal. The types of masks worn by healthcare professionals to keep out germs are reportedly ineffective at protecting against smoke, USA Today reports. Instead, people should search for the types of filtering masks typically found in the painting or woodworking supplies sections of hardware stores.
As cancer treatments continue to improve and advance, limited patient participation in research remains an inhibitor to progress. While more than 2,000 immunotherapy drugs are currently in development, just 5 percent of cancer patients participate in clinical trials, PBS NewsHour reports.

Here are five key takeaways from the report.

1. In 2016, there were an estimated 1.7 million new diagnoses of cancer in the U.S. Despite advancements in treatment, 600,000 people died of the disease in the same year. Developing new safe and effective cancer treatments is a long and laborious process that can be significantly slowed by limited patient participation.

2. Beyond the willingness of patients to participate in trials, limited access to novel cancer therapies is a major hindrance to patient enrollment. The overwhelming majority of cancer treatment clinical trials occur in the nation's major research hospitals.

"I don't think it's an unwillingness on the patients' part," Scott Delacroix, MD, director of urologic oncology at Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center in New Orleans, told PBS NewsHour. "I don't even think it's an unwillingness on the physician's part. It's really a systems error, with the fact that patients don't have access, unless they are willing to travel."

3. After flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina closed Louisiana's primary cancer research center at Charity Hospital in New Orleans, a team led by Augusto Ochoa, MD, a pediatrician allergist-immunologist at Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center, worked to change the state's clinical trial infrastructure and expand patient access with the help of the National Cancer Institute.

"After Katrina, our only choice was to start working with community oncologists and community sites," Dr. Ochoa told PBS NewsHour. "I think this is a winning approach to bring clinical trials to the patients. They cannot be exclusively provided in specialized cancer centers."

4. The group established the Gulf South NCORP clinical trials network, which currently consists of more than 22 treatment facilities staffed by more than 90 investigators across Louisiana, with one location in Mississippi. The effort tripled the number of patients enrolled in clinical trials in Louisiana.

5. Technology provides another avenue to speed cancer treatment development by facilitating the spread of information. Researchers with Flatiron Health, a healthcare technology company launched in 2012, have developed a database fueled by anonymized patient information provided by 2,500 oncology clinicians who also use the database in their own research.

"I think the electronic health record shift is a similar style infrastructure shift to the cell phone, which is we took all of these folks who essentially were disconnected from the grid, and we gave them a phone, and now they're fully connected," Zach Weinberg, co-founder of Flatiron Health, told PBS NewsHour. "In healthcare what we're doing is something really similar. Whether it's identifying patients for clinical trials, making treatment recommendations or even just helping physicians figure out what other docs are doing for similar types of patients."

To view the whole report, click here.

More articles on quality:

How hospitals in Southern California are helping patients affected by wildfires

3 quotes from Dr. Don Berwick on moral dilemmas facing modern physicians

Leapfrog: Chicago hospital's lawsuit is '11th hour gambit' to change safety grade
New York City-based NewYork-Presbyterian will offer patients telemedicine services in select Walgreens locations in New York as part of a new collaboration with the drugstore chain.

The services will be provided remotely through the Walgreens website and at private, self-service kiosks located at select Duane Reade drugstores in New York as part of NewYork- Presbyterian's NYP OnDemand Suite of digital health services.

"We are delighted to work with Walgreens to bring NewYork-Presbyterian's world-class care right to your neighborhood drugstore with this exciting new platform," said Steven Corwin, MD, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian. "Patients can expect to receive focused, one-on-one care from leading physicians, where and when they need it."

NYP OnDemand connects patients to a video chat with board-certified emergency medicine physicians. The kiosks feature medical devices including forehead thermometers, blood pressure cuffs and pulse oximeters to provide the physician with necessary patient health information during the visit.

"We believe that telemedicine can play a critical role in connecting patients with providers," said Greg Orr, divisional vice president of digital health for Walgreens. "We are pleased that NewYork-Presbyterian will be the first local healthcare provider to collaborate with us on our evolving telehealth and digital strategy."

More articles on telehealth:

Indiana State Department of Health rolls out health app targeted toward pregnant women

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai: Net neutrality repeal will help telemedicine

SSM Health rolls out telepharmacy to expand services in Wisconsin
Spinal cord stimulator expert Jeffrey Meyer, MD, joined Physician Partners of America Pain Relief Group in McKinney, Texas.

Here are five takeaways:

1. With more than 12 years in private practice, Dr. Meyer most recently served at the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute in Dallas as a pain management physician.

2. Dr. Meyer is a member of the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, World Institute of Pain, Oklahoma Pain Society and Texas Pain Society.

3. Dr. Meyer underwent fellowship training in pain management at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center in Lubbock.

4. After earning his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City, Dr. Meyer completed his residency at Dallas-based Parkland Health & Hospital System.

5. Physician Partners of American is a national healthcare organization focused on improving physician and patient relationships as well as patient outcomes.
A delegation from Unite visited Montreal yesterday, where they held meetings with Bombardier chief executive Alain Bellemare, Canadian politicians and other trade unions

Officials from a leading trade union in Northern Ireland are on a whirlwind lobbying tour of the US in a bid to protect Bombardier jobs in Belfast.

A delegation from Unite visited Montreal yesterday, where they held meetings with Bombardier chief executive Alain Bellemare, Canadian politicians and other trade unions.

The second leg of the trip will be in Washington DC, where the delegation are aiming to persuade US politicians to oppose massive punitive tariffs being imposed on Canadian-owned Bombardier's C Series of passenger jets.

A preliminary ruling by the US Department of Commerce could see a 300% tax applied on all C Series jets sold into the US, potentially scuppering a multi-billion pound deal with Delta Air Lines for up to 125 jets.

Bombardier produces the wings and part of the C Series fuselage in Belfast.

The threat of crushing tariffs has put the jobs of the company's 4,000 employees in Northern Ireland at risk.

It followed complaints from aerospace rivals Boeing that the firm was unfairly receiving state subsidies and was selling its C Series planes at a reduced price or below cost.

Bombardier responded by making a deal with Airbus that gave the French aerospace manufacturer a majority stake in the C Series and would see the planes assembled in Alabama in an apparent bid to avoid the import tariffs.

However, Boeing general counsel Michael Luttig has said: "Any duties finally levied against the C Series... will have to be paid on any imported C Series airplane or part, or it will not be permitted into the country."

The US Department of Commerce's determination on the tariffs is due on December 19.

Unite said it "will be bringing pressure to bear in Montreal and Washington, calling for fair play to win the day and get the threat of job destroying tariffs dropped".

The union said it also plans to enlist the support of the European Union, as well as the British and Irish ambassadors to the United States.

Unite assistant general secretary Steve Turner is leading the delegation.

"Unite is leaving no stone unturned in our bid to safeguard Bombardier jobs in Northern Ireland and the wider supply chain," he said.

"It is crucial that the threat of these unjust crushing tariffs are removed.

"Boeing does not produce an aircraft in the same class as Bombardier's C Series and didn't even bid for the Delta contract it is complaining about, which leaves its complaint totally without merit.

"If the US government imposes tariffs and Boeing's bullying wins the day, it will damage Bombardier and destroy UK jobs.

"It will also threaten thousands of jobs in Bombardier and its supply chain in the USA."
Irish actress Saoirse Ronan has been nominated for the Best Performance by an Actress (Musical or Comedy) prize at the 2018 Golden Globes, while Game of Thrones will compete for the Best Television Drama Series award.

The Carlow star received the nod for her role in Lady Bird.

Game of Thrones, which is filmed in Northern Ireland, aired it's seventh and penultimate series earlier this year.

Meanwhile, the Shape Of Water netted the most nominations for the 75th annual awards ceremony, with star Sally Hawkins leading the way for British talent.

The film scored nominations in seven categories including best motion picture drama, where it will face Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, while Hawkins was nominated for best actress in a drama movie.

In that category she will face Meryl Streep in The Post, it was announced in Los Angeles in the early hours of Monday.

Gary Oldman's performance as Winston Churchill was nominated for best actor in a drama movie where he will face Daniel Day-Lewis for Phantom Thread.

Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Daniel Kaluuya, Claire Foy, Jude Law, Ewan McGregor, David Thewlis and Alfred Molina also netted nominations.

The announcements were made by Kristen Bell, Alfre Woodard, Garrett Hedlund and Sharon Stone at the Beverly Hilton hotel where comedian Seth Meyers will host the awards ceremony on January 7.

Nominations for the Golden Globes 2018:

Best Director

Guillermo del Toro - The Shape of Water

Martin McDonagh - Three Billboards"

Christopher Nolan - Dunkirk"

Ridley Scott - All The Money In The World

Steven Spielberg - The Post

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama)

Jessica Chastain - Molly's Game

Sally Hawkins - The Shape of Water

Frances McDormand - Three Billboards

Meryl Streep - The Post

Michelle Williams - All the Money in the World

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy)

Judi Dench - Victoria & Abdul

Margot Robbie - I, Tonya

Saoirse Ronan - Lady Bird

Emma Stone - Battle of the Sexes

Helen Mirren - The Leisure Seeker

Best Picture (Drama)

Call Me by Your Name

Dunkirk

The Post

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama)

Timothee Chalamet - Call Me By Your Name

Daniel Day Lewis - Phantom Thread

Tom Hanks - The Post

Gary Oldman - Darkest Hour

Denzel Washington - Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy)

Disaster Artist

Get Out

The Greatest Showman

I, Tonya

Lady Bird

Best Television Performance by an Actor (Drama)

Sterling K. Brown - This is Us

Freddie Highmore - The Good Doctor

Bob Odenkirk - Better Call Saul

Liev Schreiber - Ray Donovan

Jason Bateman - Ozark

Best Television Performance by an Actor (Musical/Comedy)

Anthony Anderson - Black-ish

Aziz Ansari - Master of None

Kevin Bacon - I Love Dick

William H. Macy - Shameless

Eric McCormack - Will & Grace

Best Supporting Actor (Television)

Alfred Molina - Feud: Bette and Joan

Alexander Skarsgard - Big Little Lies

David Thewlis - Fargo

David Harbour - Stranger Things

Christian Slater - Mr. Robot

Best Supporting Actor (Motion Picture)

Willem Dafoe - The Florida Project

Armie Hammer - Call Me by Your Name

Richard Jenkins - The Shape of Water

Christopher Plummer - All the Money in the World

Sam Rockwell - Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Original Song

Home

Mighty River

Remember Me

The Star

This is Me

Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture

Mary J. Blige - Mudbound

Hong Chau - Downsizing

Allison Janney - I, Tonya

Laurie Metcalf - Lady Bird

Octavia Spencer - The Shape of Water

Best Television Series (Drama)

The Crown

Game of Thrones

Handmaid's Tale

Stranger Things

This Is Us

Best Television Series (Comedy)

Black-ish

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Master of None

SMILF

Will & Grace

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy)

Steve Carell - Battle of the Sexes

Ansel Elgort - Baby Driver

James Franco - The Disaster Artist

Hugh Jackman - The Greatest Showman

Daniel Kaluuya - Get Out

Best Television Performance by an Actress (Drama)

Caitriona Balfe - Outlander

Claire Foy - The Crown

Maggie Gyllenhaal - The Deuce

Katherine Langford - 13 Reasons Why

Elisabeth Moss - The Handmaids Tale

Best Television Performance by an Actress (Musical/Comedy)

Pamela Adlon - Better Things

Alison Brie - Glow

Issa Rae - Insecure

Rachel Brosnahan - The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Frankie Shaw - SMILF

Best Supporting Actress (Television)

Laura Dern - Big Little Lies

Ann Dowd - The Handmaids Tale

Chrissy Metz - This is Us

Michelle Pfeiffer - The Wizard of Lies

Shailene Woodley - Big Little Lies

Best Television Performance by an Actor (Limited Series)

Robert De Niro - The Wizard of Lies

Jude Law - The Young Pope

Kyle MacLachlan - Twin Peaks

Ewan McGregor - Fargo

Geoffrey Rush - Genius

Best Television Performance by an Actress (Limited Series)

Jessica Biel - The Sinner

Nicole Kidman - Big Little Lies

Jessica Lange - Feud: Bette and Joan

Susan Sarandon - Feud: Bette and Joan

Reese Witherspoon - Big Little Lies

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
The hugely successful acrobatic show Cirque du Soleil will return to Belfast in 2018, it has been announced.

The new production, OVO, will have six performances at the SSE Arena from October 17-21.

Tickets will go on sale from Friday, December 15.

The Belfast shows are part of Cirque du Soleil's European tour that began in Switzerland in October 2017.

The new production has thrilled more than five million people worldwide since the show premiered in Montreal in 2009.

Meaning egg in Portuguese, OVO is a headlong rush into a colorful ecosystem teeming with life, where insects work, eat, crawl, flutter, play, fight and look for love in a non-stop riot of energy and movement.

The cast of OVO is comprised of 50 performing artists from 14 countries specializing in many acrobatic acts.

When a mysterious egg appears in their midst, the insects are awestruck and intensely curious about this iconic object that represents the enigma and cycles of their lives.

It is love at first sight when a gawky, quirky insect arrives in this bustling community and a fabulous ladybug catches his eye  and the feeling is mutual.

Cirque du Soleil has performed to more than 160 million spectators in more than 400 cities on six continents.

The company has close to 4,000 employees, including 1,300 performing artists from close to 50 different countries.
David Coburn arriving at George Best Belfast City Airport for the Ukip Northern Ireland conference

Scottish Ukip leader David Coburn told a Belfast audience at the weekend that the European Union was using Northern Ireland to 'blackmail' the British Government over Brexit.

The MEP was speaking at the party's annual general meeting in Northern Ireland.

"It is a disgrace that the European Union is using the tragedy of Northern Ireland to blackmail the British Government into handing over more money as a Brexit divorce settlement. This must stop," Mr Coburn told party members.

He added: "The Irish Republic should not use Brexit to try to achieve its fantasy of a united Ireland."

Mr Coburn also slated Scottish nationalists for their attachment to the EU.

"The Scottish Nationalist Party don't want independence," he said.

"They want to hand Scotland over to Europe. They want our fishing grounds handed over to Europe, our oil handed over to Europe - and they want the European currency."

Mr Coburn said that the PR electoral system in Northern Ireland offered Ukip a chance of representation in the regions that had proved hard to achieve at Westminster.

"This is Ukip's opportunity. We've had a couple of bad years, but I see a future for us, and we must seize it."

The party has just three councillors here. It currently has no MLAs or MPs. Former MLA David McNarry is no longer the party's leader in Northern Ireland.
Ian Paisley has claimed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was "done over" last week by a combination of the EU, the UK and the DUP.

Writing in the Dublin-based Sunday Business Post yesterday, the DUP MP gave a punchy assessment of how last week's roller coaster negotiations unfolded.

"Last Monday morning Leo Varadkar believed he was about to pull off a major coup of having secured Northern Ireland harmonisation with the Republic of Ireland," he wrote.

"Four days later, a new agreement emerged with vast sections rewritten and a different relationship established.

"Frankly, whatever efforts are made to characterise this week, Leo Varadkar was done over by the EU, the UK and the DUP."

The North Antrim MP said that the DUP had been warning Dublin for weeks that they had "overstretched themselves".

"They were warned that the effort to make the border the centrepiece of the negotiations was misguided and that any discussion about the border was irrelevant until after the trade relationship part of the negotiations had been established.

"Friday's agreement effectively conceded that point," the MP wrote.

Mr Paisley praised the calibre of Irish business leaders, saying they would be easily capable of exploiting the opportunities of the new post-Brexit trading arrangements.

"I've never doubted the agility and ability of Irish businessmen to make the best out of that trading relationship," he added.

In his article, Mr Paisley also claimed that while a 'no deal' scenario would pose significant challenges for Northern Ireland, such an outcome would cripple the Republic's economy.

"Frankly, that should put the fear of the Almighty into the Republic to urgently cheer on a trade agreement that - instead of penalising them - actually works for them," he wrote.

"Let's face it: we want the ROI to be successful. It's just a pity that does not always appear to be reciprocated."
Last week I was reminded of something the Northern Irish historian, John Bew, wrote in his authoritative study of Lord Castlereagh.

Bew wrote that the essence of Castlereagh's approach to the Irish question was that it was better to 'remove causes' than to 'punish effects'.

I think that would be Castlereagh's approach today and it should be ours.

There is much more that unites us on this island - and between these islands - than divides us.

One of the architects of the Act of Union, and later a very successful British Foreign Secretary, Castlereagh made a significant contribution to peace and prosperity in Europe.

He believed that in this time of 'strictest scrutiny' we needed to 'govern for the public good'.

I believe that Friday's agreement to proceed to Phase 2, the next stage of the negotiations on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, was a perfect example of governing for the public good at a time when international scrutiny could not have been more intense.

Today I want to recognise the concerns of the Unionist community in Northern Ireland.

To those who are reading this article, I want to assure you that the Irish Government has no hidden agenda.

There is no question of us exploiting Brexit as a means of moving to a United Ireland without consent.

We do not want to see a border in the Irish Sea, any more than we want to see a border between Newry and Dundalk or between Letterkenny and the City of Derry.

We want to build bridges, not borders.

We want free travel and free trade to continue as it does now and has done for 20 years.

We want reconciliation and respect to grow.

Our guiding light - and our constant ambition throughout - has been to ensure that the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement continue to operate in full after Brexit, and that people can go about their normal lives and business as before.

In particular, the agreement we have reached explicitly recognises the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement with regard to the constitutional status of Northern Ireland and the principle of consent.

This principle is the foundation stone of the new relationships we have built on this island since 1998, and will continue to build in the future.

To the Nationalist people in Northern Ireland, I want to assure you that we have protected your interests throughout these negotiations.

Your birth right as Irish citizens, and therefore as EU citizens, will be protected.

There will be no hard border on our island.

You will never again be left behind by an Irish Government.

These rights will, of course, be available to everyone in Northern Ireland who chooses to exercise this right, regardless of political persuasion or religious beliefs.

In the months ahead, I hope to see the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive and the North South Ministerial Council. The institutions will be a vital voice as we move forward together into Phase 2 of the Brexit talks.

Last week I was honoured to launch a new book about John Hume, someone who made a lasting contribution to peace on this island.

John Hume believed that 'When people are divided, the only solution is agreement'.

I believe that with this agreement we have helped prevent division and have provided the foundation for a solution that will benefit all of the people on this island.
The DUP sought more than 30 changes to the proposed status of Northern Ireland when the UK leaves the European Union, it has been claimed.

Senior Whitehall sources were quoted yesterday by Sky News saying Arlene Foster and her team were eventually persuaded to accept eight amendments to the deal after "lots of hand-holding".

Last week the DUP blocked a proposed deal which it said would effectively have shifted the border to the Irish Sea.

But a revised version was agreed between the party and Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday.

The new version ensures no separation "constitutionally, politically, economically or regulatory" between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK while ensuring no hard border with the Republic.

DUP MP Jim Shannon told Sunday Life: "There is obviously small print to be agreed. I know the party sought many amendments to it - there are over 100 clauses and I would say we put a fair bit of input into that."

A rift between the DUP and the Prime Minister opened up after the party scuppered the first draft of the deal.

But Mr Shannon said the party will now be working closely with Mrs May as Brexit talks move on to Phase 2, dealing with the UK's future trading relationship with the EU.

Writing in the Sunday Independent, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that the past week's events over Brexit have "strained" but "not damaged" the Republic's relationship with the UK.

And he warned that Ireland can't allow Brexit to "drive a wedge between north and south".

Outgoing Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams gave a cautious welcome to the EU-UK agreement.

But he added: "It does not address some of the key concerns of citizens, particularly those living in the north and in the border region. The insistence by the British that Britain and the North must leave the customs union and the single market are of particular concern."
A man has been charged with attempted murder after a shooting in the centre of a Co Londonderry village in the early hours of yesterday.

A 46-year-old man was blasted in the lower leg when a gunman opened fire on Main Street in Garvagh, near the Central Bar, at around 3am.

Witnesses said the victim tried to escape his attacker, collapsed, and was chased by the gunman who then assaulted him.

The man was taken to hospital where he required surgery for the gunshot wound and treatment for other injuries to his face and body.

Police say armed response units were tasked to the area to ensure the safety of members of the public.

PSNI Detective Inspector Mullan said: "We received a report in the early hours of this morning that three shots had been fired in the Main Street area of the town. We believe that one of these shots injured a 46-year-old man in his lower leg.

"A 26-year-old man was subsequently arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and a 28-year-old man on suspicion of assisting an offender."

The 26-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder, carrying a firearm in a public place and discharging a firearm in a public place.

The 28-year-old man has been charged with assisting an offender. As is usual procedure, all charges will be reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.

"Several searches were also carried out in the Garvagh area and a number of items taken away for further examination." SDLP MLA John Dallat described the scene as 'like the wild west'.

"This incident happened shortly after 3am when local residents woke to the sound of gunfire on the main street," he said.

"One person, clearly trying to escape, collapsed and was pursued by the gunman who, according to an eyewitness, then kicked him and fled the scene only to be picked up by the police several hours later.

"This clearly was a very frightening incident and I am pleased the police have been quick to make arrests. I would appeal to anyone who knows anything about this wild west scene to bring it forward to the police as soon as possible."

Garvagh UUP Councillor Richard Holmes said the community was in shock and that 'no one had the right to be judge, juror and executioner' in society.

"Guns and shootings should be a thing of the past and the local community in Garvagh stand against such things. The community are shocked and appalled by this incident and only grateful that we are not mourning the death of this man," he said.

"The actions of the few are not reflective of the community in Garvagh, which is a place where the community are law-abiding.

"Whatever the circumstances of this incident, people should respect the law and not become the judge, juror and executioner."

Police are appealing to anyone who was in the Main Street area of Garvagh between 2am and 4am yesterday and who witnessed any suspicious activity to contact them on the non-emergency number 101.

Officers are particularly keen to hear from anyone who saw a man fleeing on foot, carrying a suspicious item in his hand.
Northern Ireland was in second place with an acceptance rate of 34.5%

Northern Ireland has one of the highest university entry rates in the UK, new figures from Ucas have revealed.

The highest regional rate was in London where some 41.8% of 18-year-olds were accepted on to degree courses.

Next was Northern Ireland in second place with an acceptance rate of 34.5% - well ahead of Wales (29.4%) and Scotland (25.9%) - although Ucas does not record all higher education in Scotland.

London was also well ahead of other areas of England.

The figures for the other English regions were: North East, 30.3%; North West, 32.9%; Yorkshire and the Humber, 31.6%; East Midlands, 30.3%; West Midlands, 31.6% and the East of England 32.9%.

The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) is the organisation that operates the application process for British universities.

Many students in Northern Ireland also apply to study at universities in the Republic of Ireland via the Irish Central Applications Office (CAO).

Ucas said the statistics indicate that a school leaver's chances of going to university depend heavily on where they live.

Chief executive Clare Marchant said: "A common theme to emerge from our analysis of data from the 2017 cycle is that the entry rate of 18-year-olds to higher education has increased across all parts of the UK.

"This trend is most pronounced in London. There have been significant and much documented improvements to secondary education in the capital. Understanding how to replicate this high level of attainment could help drive increases in entry rates elsewhere."

In July, Ucas revealed a drop in the number of people who had applied to UK universities for the 2016/17 academic year - to 649,700 compared with 674,890 in the previous year.

In Northern Ireland the number of applicants dropped by 4% from 21,110 to 20,290. The drop was similar in England (5%) and Wales (5%), while in Scotland the number dropped by only 1%.

Applications from EU students also fell from 51,850 in 2016 to 49,250. However, applicants from overseas countries outside of the European Union were up from 69,300 in 2016 to 70,830.
A man wearing a grey tracksuit entered a premise on the Dromore Road and demanded money from staff.

Detectives are investigating an armed robbery at a commercial premises in Omagh on Sunday night.

Police received a report at around 7.15pm that a male, brandishing what is believed to be a hammer, entered a premises on the Dromore Road demanding a staff member hand over money.

Inspector Keith Hicks said:The suspect, who wore a grey tracksuit, grey hoody, black gloves and had a scarf covering his face, then made off with a sum of money.

"No one was injured during the incident.

We are appealing to anyone who was in the Dromore Road area last night, at around 7:15pm, and saw any suspicious activity or who knows anything about this incident to contact Detectives at Omagh Criminal Investigation Branch on the non-emergency number 101, quoting reference number 1249 of 10/12/17.

"Alternatively, information can also be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 which is 100% anonymous and gives people the power to speak up and stop crime."
Bill Berry is a self-employed writer and editor who contributes to state and national publications. His Capital Times columns cover an array of topics, but he specializes in conservation, agriculture and sustainable land use.
Brexit Secretary David Davis said he wants to protect the peace process

Britain's commitment to maintaining a soft Irish border after Brexit is "much more than legally enforceable", David Davis has said.

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would seek to maintain a "frictionless, invisible" border between Northern Ireland and the Republic even if Friday's last-minute agreement to allow trade talks to start collapses in the event of a "no deal" Brexit.

His comment on Sunday that the plans were a "statement of intent" was branded "bizarre" by the Irish government, which insisted an agreement that the UK will have "full alignment" with the EU on issues that impact on Northern Ireland was "binding".

But Mr Davis claimed his words had been "completely twisted".

He told LBC Radio: "What I actually said yesterday in terms was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable.

"Of course it's legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement but even if that didn't happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland."

Mr Davis went on: "What we're saying is this bit of it, the bit about the full alignment argument on the issues which affect the peace process in the Belfast Agreement, we would look to that anyway because one of our absolute underpinning aims is to ensure that Ireland and particularly the Northern Ireland peace process is not harmed.

"And what's most symbolic in that is the absence of a hard border, the absence of border posts and that sort of thing.

"And we are quite certain we can do that by technical and other means even if we end up without a deal with the European Union."

Asked why he said the soft Irish border deal was a statement of intent, Mr Davis replied: "Because it's more than legally enforceable.

"In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesn't happen then we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, that was the point. I was making the point it was much more than just in the treaty, it's what we want to do anyway."

Mr Davis dismissed concerns that a soft border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland could encourage people smuggling.

"That would be a very hard way to get into Britain, you'd have to be a fairly dumb people smuggler to come in that way," he said.

"Something like 50 million people go through the country every year - tourists and so on - you go to Heathrow, look at it, there's huge numbers of people, it's much simpler to come in and pretend you're a tourist than to take a sort of elliptical route like that."

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would have talks with the Irish government about sharing security data to ensure illegal immigrants do not exploit the soft border.

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39 billion exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the full alignment on Irish border issues, the PM is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

In a statement to the House of Commons on Monday, Mrs May is expected to say: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."

Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Mrs May "cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party".

"The agreement last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the Article 50 withdrawal agreement," he told the Guardian.

"Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk."

The remaining EU27 countries will decide at a Brussels summit later this week whether trade talks with the UK can finally begin.

Comments by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39 billion exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.

European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said that the joint report published last week by Mr Davis and EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier was "not legally binding".

But asked if it was therefore possible for either side to back down on it, he stressed that it was regarded in Brussels as "a deal between gentlemen" which was "fully backed and endorsed" by the UK Government.

He noted that Mrs May and Mr Juncker had shaken hands on it.

"Formally speaking, the joint report is not legally binding because it is not yet the Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement.

"But we see the joint report of Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen and it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK Government.

"President Juncker had a meeting with Prime Minister May last Friday morning to ascertain that this is precisely the case. They shook hands.

"It is now for the European Council on December 15 to decide if 'sufficient progress' has been made, allowing the negotiations to proceed to their second phase."

Mr Schinas said that last Friday's agreement had "removed a big barrier" to progress but confirmed that nothing would be finally settled until the Withdrawal Agreement was signed.

At the regular weekly meeting of Cabinet - held, unusually, on Monday - Mrs May thanked Mr Davis and officials for their work in the first phase of Brexit negotiations.

Mrs May told fellow ministers that the general feeling she had picked up from voters in her Maidenhead constituency over the weekend was that "we're on our way", the PM's official spokesman told a Westminster media briefing.

The phrase was used by the Daily Mail in its front-page coverage of the Brexit breakthrough on Saturday, which ran under the headline: "Rejoice! We're on our way".

But the spokesman insisted that the PM had not been quoting the newspaper but repeating a comment made to her by constituents.

Other Cabinet ministers reported having received "positive" responses to the development from both Remain and Leave voters.

Mrs May's spokesman confirmed that last Friday's document represented a political agreement and would not have legal status until the signing of the final Withdrawal Agreement.

He added: "These negotiations have been conducted in good faith throughout and I don't think there should be any doubt about the goodwill with which we approach them."
Arlene Foster (with Nigel Dodds and Sammy Wilson) and her colleagues got the better of the Irish government, insists Ian Paisley

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar today gives a personal guarantee to unionists that his government has no hidden agenda to exploit Brexit and bring about a united Ireland.

But as he moved to reassure unionists in today's Belfast Telegraph, he also sent a strong message to nationalists that he would protect their interests. "You will never again be left behind by an Irish government," he pledges.

In writing his piece, the Taoiseach is recognising the need to allay unionist fears amidst his admission that relations between Dublin and London have been strained by Brexit.

As he was acknowledging the need to ease tensions, Ian Paisley claimed Mr Varadkar had been "done over" by the DUP, the government, and the EU in last week's Brexit deal.

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The Taoiseach had "a ball at this toe and believed he was about to pull off a major coup" with "Northern Ireland harmonised with the Republic", the DUP MP said.

"Frankly, whatever efforts are made to characterise this week, Leo Varadkar was done over by the EU, the UK and the DUP," he added.

His comments came as London and Dublin clashed over whether last week's EU-UK agreement - intended to pave the way to move on to stage two trade talks - was legally binding or not.

Brexit Secretary David Davis insisted it was much more a statement of intent than "legally enforceable".

But the Irish government maintained it was "binding" and vowed to hold London "to account".

In his Belfast Telegraph article, the Taoiseach says: "Today I want to recognise the concerns of the unionist community in Northern Ireland.

"To those who are reading this article, I want to assure you that the Irish Government has no hidden agenda. There is no question of us exploiting Brexit as a means of moving to a united Ireland without consent.

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"We do not want to see a border in the Irish Sea, any more than we want to see a border between Newry and Dundalk or between Letterkenny and the city of Derry.

"We want to build bridges, not borders. We want reconciliation and respect to grow."

Ensuring the Good Friday Agreement continued to operate in full after Brexit and that people could go about their normal lives and business as before had been his government's "guiding light", he says.

Last week's agreement recognised the consent principle which was "the foundation stone" on which the future would be built, Mr Varadkar states.

Turning to nationalists, the Taoiseach pledges: "I want to assure you that we have protected your interests throughout these negotiations. Your birth right as Irish citizens, and therefore as EU citizens, will be protected.

"There will be no hard border on our island. You will never again be left behind by an Irish government."

Mr Varadkar says he hopes to see a restoration of the Stormont Executive and North South Ministerial Council soon as they would be "a vital voice as we move forward together into Phase 2 of the Brexit talks".

Tensions between London and Dublin increased again yesterday as Mr Davis told the BBC that last week's agreement was "much more a statement of intent than a legally enforceable thing".

But Irish government chief whip Joe McHugh challenged that assertion and said Dublin and Brussels would hold the UK to account on its commitments. He told RTE that the agreement was binding in principle and questioned the point in London signing up to a deal it wouldn't uphold.

Mr McHugh said there would be lots of "rhetoric" and noise about the agreement and he didn't want to be drawn into the internal issues in British politics.

"There has been a lot of bruising over the last fortnight," he added.

Meanwhile, Theresa May will today tell the House of Commons that she expects the EU to agree the second phase of talks at a Brussels summit this week.

The Prime Minister is expected to say: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit. "I know some doubted we would reach this stage.

"I have always been clear this was never going to be an easy process. It has required give and take for the UK and the EU to move forward together. And that is what we have done."

But writing in today's Belfast Telegraph, TUV leader Jim Allister accuses the government of falling "hook, line and sinker for Dublin's blarney" when it signed Friday's deal.

"Sadly, they were not the only ones cajoled or manoeuvred," he says.

"The DUP was clearly bounced when Mrs May told them she was proceeding, with or without their blessing.

"Now, they are left to sell a deal they must know either neuters proper Brexit for the whole UK or is threatening to the integrity of the UK and which could yet leave us as a place apart shackled by EU rules and alignment."
Former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman has voiced her concerns that many more men than women are elected representatives in Northern Ireland.

The veteran Camberwell and Peckham MP was speaking ahead of delivering the keynote speech today at the launch of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's annual statement.

"Women in Northern Ireland have, like women all over the UK, struggled for their rights. And I pay tribute to the remarkable progress that they've made in the last decades.

"But there is still a long way to go before women in Northern Ireland are on equal terms with men," she said. "Men outnumber women in local councils by three to one. And in Westminster Northern Irish men outnumber women by four to one. That means men making decisions and women on the sidelines. As we look ahead to the centenary of women getting the vote, it's long overdue for that to change."

Ms Harman will deliver a speech on the role of women in public and political life during the NIHRC launch at Stormont this afternoon.

NIHRC chief commissioner Les Allamby said his organisation's annual statement raises a number of concerns.

"There is not a single green light for the UK government, Northern Ireland Executive or any relevant public authority denoting an effective response to addressing specifically identified human rights issues in Northern Ireland," he said.

"The lack of progress reflects the absence of a working Northern Ireland Assembly throughout this year. Strategies to promote gender equality, improve the circumstances of people with disabilities, and to enhance the lives of LGBTI individuals, as well as to tackle poverty based on objective need, all remain on the drawing board.

"An extremely concerning issue is the matter of children going missing from care and the high levels of these children who are at risk of sexual exploitation.

"Immediate and joined-up action by all agencies with responsibility for the protection of our most vulnerable children is needed. The commission continues to monitor and support the work of the police and health and social care bodies, who are seeking to improve an unacceptable situation."
Brexit Secretary David Davis said he wants to protect the peace process

Brexit Secretary David Davis said the agreement on phase one of talks with the EU was held off until Friday to "allow the DUP to sort themselves out".

Theresa May's hopes of getting the green light for trade talks were torpedoed at the start of last week by the DUP, which props up her Government, over concerns plans for the Irish border could lead to a new border drawn down the Irish Sea.

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The Prime Minister was forced into a week of negotiations with the party, Ireland and the EU before finally getting a dramatic last-minute deal on Friday, paving the way for trade talks.

The DUP's Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said " strong DUP language" was included in the agreement.

Mr Davis said the phone call Mrs May had with DUP leader Arlene Foster last Monday, which appeared to undo the planned deal, was "a lot shorter than people say", and revealed his patience was tested by events.

He said: "We had to pick another day and we looked at Wednesday but Wednesday wasn't long enough for the DUP to sort themselves out so we made it Thursday, Friday morning."

Mr Davis also said he does not believe economic forecasts as he discussed the furore over the Government's failure to formally assess the likely impact of EU withdrawal on different sectors of the UK economy.

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He was accused of misleading Parliament last week after admitting no impact assessments had been made because their usefulness would be "near zero" due to the scale of change which Brexit is likely to cause.

Mr Davis dismissed concerns that a soft border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland could encourage people smuggling.

"That would be a very hard way to get into Britain, you'd have to be a fairly dumb people smuggler to come in that way," he said.

"Something like 50million people go through the country every year - tourists and so on - you go to Heathrow, look at it, there's huge numbers of people, it's much simpler to come in and pretend you're a tourist than to take a sort of elliptical route like that."

Read More

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would have talks with the Irish government about sharing security data to ensure illegal immigrants do not exploit the soft border.

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39 billion exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the full alignment on Irish border issues, the PM is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

Comments by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39 billion exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.

Read More

Also in the interview Mr Davis said he does not have to be very clever to do his job as Brexit Secretary.

Mr Davis insisted "I do just have to be calm", revealing that last Monday's botched attempt at getting an agreement with the European Union to move to Brexit trade negotiations had tested that ability.

"What's the requirement of my job? I don't have to be very clever, I don't have to know that much, I do just have to be calm," he said.

"And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit."
A man found unresponsive with a head injury was taken to St James's Hospital

Gardai have launched an investigation following the discovery of a man's body in Ranelagh, Dublin.

The 22-year-old was found unresponsive with a head injury outside the Luas stop on Ranelagh Road at 4.40am.

He was taken by ambulance to St James's Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

CCTV footage is being examined and a post-mortem examination carried out in a bid to determine the circumstances surrounding the man's death.

The scene has also been preserved for technical examination and the Coroner has been notified.
Father Sean Devereux told mourners at the family's funeral mass in Co Wexford on Monday that Doug and Lily had "lived the American dream"

An American family of four who were killed in a car accident while in Ireland for a funeral, lived their lives full of "goodness, kindness and selflessness", mourners have been told.

Doug and Lily Alexander, both 75, died alongside their adult sons, Stephen and Doug Junior, in a road accident on the N25 near Cushinstown in Co Wexford on December 4.

They lived in Oakland, near Chicago, and had been in the country following the death of Mrs Alexander's sister Winnie Keevey.

Parish priest Father Sean Devereux told mourners at the family's funeral mass in Co Wexford on Monday that Doug and Lily had "lived the American dream".

"They went to the US to build a life for themselves and through hard work they did this.

"But they also enjoyed life moments, and your memories spoken about them over the past week tell of a couple who shared what they had with others. They were generous to the end," Fr Devereux said.

He said that Doug Junior enjoyed life, was hard working and "brought joy to others through music and had a generous spirit".

Fr Devereux added that Stephen served his community as a police officer and also helped to make dreams come true through service he provided to the Special Olympics.

"Four people with individual gifts that they did not box up and use only for themselves but shared with family, friends and with the community.

"They will live on as you remember their goodness, kindness and selflessness," he said.

Bishop Denis Brennan also told mourners that the "tragedy which unfolded here last Monday has touched and saddened the whole country".

He added: "Lily, Doug, Stephen, and Doug Jnr have been taken from your sight, but they will never be taken from your hearts ... all you were to each other in life remains in death."
Only 42 families from the tower have moved in to permanent new homes since the fire on June 14 (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

An army of staff is working around the clock to find new properties for Grenfell Tower survivors, the leader of the local council said, amid criticism that many remained homeless six months on.

Elizabeth Campbell, the leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said 300 homes will have been bought by Christmas to ensure that when families were ready to move on we will be ready for them.

But she acknowledged there was a lack of trust in the council among survivors and it was perfectly understandable that some had refused initial offers of accommodation because they thought it would push them down the list of people trying to find a permanent home.

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Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn demanded action from the Prime Minister after it emerged more than 100 households that escaped the blaze were facing Christmas in hotels.

Only 42 families from the tower have moved in to permanent new homes since the fire on June 14, a pace described by the Labour leader as a disgrace.

This week will see survivors and bereaved families mark the six-month anniversary of the tragedy, while the public inquiry into its causes will hold two hearings.

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Whatsapp Elizabeth Campbell defended the council's actions (Victoria Jones/PA)

Mr Corbyn said in a statement: Six months on from the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Government is failing to learn its lessons and, more importantly, failing the survivors.

It is a disgrace that the majority of Grenfell residents have still not been given homes and that tower blocks across our country have still not been made safe. We need answers from the Government and we need action.

Ms Campbell defended the councils actions to respond to the situation: We have taken on about 300 extra people  housing officers and lawyers and key workers and we have got wraparound care.

We have got an army of people out there working 24 hours a day, seven days a week because we actually really do care, we do want to get people rehoused. We have been buying homes in this part of London at a rate of about two a day.

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She told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: We will have 300 homes very shortly so everyone will have a choice, and then I guess its about relationships.

Its about individual-by-individual, family-by-family, figuring out what they want and trying to get them into a position where they feel ready to accept and ready to move on. And when they are ready to move on, we are ready for them.

She said that every family in a hotel had been offered alternative accommodation but many had refused for perfectly understandable reasons.

Some felt that if we take up an offer, were out of a hotel, we will go down the list of priorities, we will be forgotten about  thats the lack of trust.

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The judge-led probe into the disaster was thrust back into the spotlight over the weekend as Labour backed an overhaul of its format and Britains official human rights watchdog expressed misgivings.

Labour highlighted a petition launched by bereaved families and survivors in recent weeks, calling on Prime Minister Theresa May to install an expert panel from a diverse range of backgrounds to sit alongside inquiry head Sir Martin Moore-Bick, who has been accused of being out of touch.

On Monday the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) announced its own investigation into the blaze, examining whether authorities failed in their legal obligations to residents.

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Its decision to carry out an independent review will be interpreted by some as a vote of no confidence in certain aspects of Sir Martins work.

Despite the watchdogs eagerness to play down a rift, one arm of the project will look at whether the Government adequately investigated the fire, including through the public inquiry.

Sir Martins inquiry is holding procedural hearings on Monday and Tuesday at the Holborn Bars in central London.

The Grenfell Tower National Memorial Service will then be held at St Pauls Cathedral on Thursday, attended by the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Brexit Secretary David Davis said calmness is more important than cleverness in his job (Mark Marlow/PA)

David Davis has said he does not have to be very clever to do his job as Brexit Secretary.

Mr Davis insisted I do just have to be calm, revealing that last Mondays botched attempt at getting an agreement with the European Union to move to Brexit trade negotiations had tested that ability.

Theresa Mays hopes of getting the green light for trade talks were torpedoed at the start of last week by the Democratic Unionist Party, which props up her Government, over concerns that plans for the Irish border could lead to a new frontier being drawn in the Irish Sea.

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The Prime Minister was forced into a week of negotiations with the Northern Irish DUP, Ireland and the EU before finally getting a dramatic last-minute deal on Friday, paving the way for trade talks.

Mr Davis said the phone call Mrs May had with DUP leader Arlene Foster last Monday, which appeared to undo the planned deal, was a lot shorter than people say, and revealed his patience was tested by events.

The Brexit Secretary told LBC radio: Whats the requirement of my job? I dont have to be very clever, I dont have to know that much, I do just have to be calm.

And that did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.

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Mr Davis also said he does not believe economic forecasts as he discussed the furore over the Governments failure to formally assess the likely impact of EU withdrawal on different sectors of the UK economy.

He was accused of misleading Parliament last week after admitting no impact assessments had been made because their usefulness would be near zero due to the scale of change Brexit is likely to cause.

The Brexit Secretary said: In the last 18 months Ive talked about impact here and there, but an impact statement, this is a thing that the Labour Party have been going on about, an impact statement has got a proper meaning in Whitehall, theres a definition of it and so on, including things like forecasts.

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Now I dont actually believe economic forecasts, they have all been proven wrong, I mean look at all the ones about Brexit.

So what we do is we look at what we call a sectoral analysis which is the size of the thing, the size of the industry, employment levels, how much is dependent on Europe, how much is dependent on European regulations, how much opportunity there is in other countries.

When you know those things, you know what you need to know.

Discussing reports that he may retire in 2019, when the UK will exit the EU, Mr Davis dismissed suggestions he may have to stay in post during a post-Brexit transition period if a trade agreement has not been reached.

He said: We want the substantive negotiation concluded before the transition period starts, I mean there might be details to be sorted but the main deal has got to be struck.

Asked if those details would fall to him, Mr Davis replied: Anybody can do details, well let you do the details.
Dozens of flights have been cancelled at the UKs busiest airport as the fallout from the weekends heavy snow continues to cause disruption for passengers.

Heathrow said it was operating three-quarters of its full schedule as airlines dealt with the knock-on effects of Sundays heavy snowfall, which turned to ice overnight as temperatures plummeted.

Passengers shared images on Twitter of long queues and scores of suitcases lined up on Sunday evening, while others complained of a lack of information from the airport and airlines.

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Rim-Sarah Alouane was still waiting to travel, without her luggage, at Heathrow more than 24 hours after her intended flight to Washington DC had been due to take off at 11.25am on Sunday.

The 33-year-old, from Toulouse, said she had then boarded a rebooked flight on Sunday evening but the plane was struck by an electrical fault and the passengers had to disembark.

She said: Its shameful, Im drained, Im exhausted. Ive got a migraine but my meds are in my suitcase.

Both apps, British Airways and Heathrow, were giving conflicting information, then there was an electrical fault with the plane. And the problem was once I got outside the plane, it was absolutely chaotic.

We had old people crying, some people could not speak English and there was luggage everywhere in the terminal.

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Also among them was Beth Kanter, a non-profit and charities consultant from San Francisco, who said the British Airways flight she boarded was cancelled on Sunday after six hours on the tarmac.

She said she was told on the aircraft that the weather was an act of god and that the airline could not pay for a hotel as a result.

She said: (They were) saying they were waiting for de-ice. Then, they cancelled our flight. Then it took me four hours to get through the immigration line. On the plane, the pilot said that we would be able to collect our baggage in baggage reclaim. That was the good news.

Then, after standing in line and finally making it through immigration, the baggage area was total chaos. There was baggage on the baggage claims but none of the signs indicated what the flights were.

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There was a huge long line  it must have several hundred people in it  stretching from baggage claim number three to the last one where customer service was. There was one person there.

Then I noticed a man with a BA sweatshirt come out of a back office with a paper with the list of flights and baggage claim numbers  this was after being in baggage claim for hours, trying to figure out what the hell to do.

The consultant, whose luggage filled with holiday gifts was lost in the chaos, said she asked for information on her flight which was not on his list, but eventually received a rebooking for Monday.

They announced that everyone should go home and come back tomorrow to deal with their bagspeople were really pissed off and it was stressful she added.

A Heathrow spokeswoman said: Some flights at Heathrow are disrupted today.

However, the airport remains open and is operating three-quarters of scheduled flights. Before coming to the airport, passengers must check their flight status with their airline. If the status of your flight is cancelled, please do not travel to the airport, keep updated via the airlines website.

The safety and comfort of our passengers is always our first priority and we are working closely with our airlines to ensure affected passengers are looked after. We apologise to those whose travel has been impacted and regret the inconveniences that have been caused.
Plain Talk: No wise men in the Capitol, but plenty of asses
Boris Johnson has said he had worthwhile meetings in Iran to secure the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and that the Government will leave no stone unturned in our efforts.

The Foreign Secretary added that he did not want to raise false hopes, but said his messages over the British mother had been received and understood by Iranian officials.

It comes as Irans foreign ministry said it would raise the case with the judiciary out of humanitarian concerns following the visit by Mr Johnson.

Updating MPs about his trip to Iran and other countries in the region, Mr Johnson said: On bilateral issues, my first priority was the plight of the dual nationals behind bars.

I urged their release on humanitarian grounds, where there is cause to do so.

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These are complex cases involving individuals considered by Iran to be their own citizens, and I do not wish to raise false hopes.

But my meetings in Tehran were worthwhile, and while I do not believe it will be in the interests of the individuals concerned or their loved ones to provide a running commentary, the House can be assured that the Government will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to secure their release.

Mr Johnson said his gaffe of telling a parliamentary committee that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been in Iran to train journalists, which he later acknowledged was not the case, had not affected judicial proceedings in any UK consular case in Iran.

He was asked by the SNPs international affairs spokesman Stephen Gethins if he made it crystal clear that his remarks at the Foreign Affairs Committee did not quite reflect why Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was there, and did he make that clear to the Iranians when he met them?

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Mr Johnson replied: The Iranians have always been clear, indeed they were clear with me again, that none of my remarks in any context had any bearing on any judicial proceedings in relation to any UK consular case.

The Foreign Secretary did not say whether he requested to see Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, after he was pressed by Labours Nick Thomas-Symonds.

Mr Johnson said: I must just remind (Mr Thomas-Symonds) that the Iranian government does not recognise the dual-national system that we have and therefore do not give consular access, and as for other members of the Zaghari family I think it would be better if I said that I think their privacy should be respected.

He also told MPs the Governments policy to try to settle an outstanding debt to Iran had nothing to do with the difficult consular cases that we face.
Britains commitment to maintaining a soft Irish border after Brexit is much more than legally enforceable, David Davis has said.

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would seek to maintain a frictionless, invisible border between Northern Ireland and the Republic even if Fridays last-minute agreement to allow trade talks to start collapses in the event of a no deal Brexit.

His comment on Sunday that the plans were a statement of intent was branded bizarre by the Irish government, which insisted an agreement that the UK will have full alignment with the EU on issues that impact on Northern Ireland was binding.

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But Mr Davis claimed his words had been completely twisted.

He told LBC Radio: What I actually said yesterday in terms was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable.

Of course its legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement but even if that didnt happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland.

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Mr Davis went on: What were saying is this bit of it, the bit about the full alignment argument on the issues which affect the peace process in the Belfast Agreement, we would look to that anyway because one of our absolute underpinning aims is to ensure that Ireland and particularly the Northern Ireland peace process is not harmed.

And whats most symbolic in that is the absence of a hard border, the absence of border posts and that sort of thing. And we are quite certain we can do that by technical and other means even if we end up without a deal with the European Union.

Asked why he said the soft Irish border deal was a statement of intent, Mr Davis replied: Because its more than legally enforceable.

In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesnt happen then we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, that was the point. I was making the point it was much more than just in the treaty, its what we want to do anyway.

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Mr Davis dismissed concerns that a soft border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland could encourage people smuggling.

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would have talks with the Irish government about sharing security data to ensure illegal immigrants do not exploit the soft border.

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39 billion exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the full alignment on Irish border issues, the PM is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

In a statement to the House of Commons on Monday, Mrs May is expected to say: This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House. I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs Mays agreement was not ideal it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

Labours shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Mrs May cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party.

The agreement last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the Article 50 withdrawal agreement, he told the Guardian.

Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk.

The remaining EU27 countries will decide at a Brussels summit later this week whether trade talks with the UK can finally begin.

Comments by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39 billion exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.
Angela Merkel noted it was an important time for Europe (AP)

Chancellor Angela Merkel has pushed for the quick formation of a new governing alliance with Germany's main centre-left party, saying that only a coalition will bring the "stable government" needed at a challenging time for Europe.

Mrs Merkel's conservative Union bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats will begin discussions on Wednesday on a possible extension of their coalition of the past four years.

The Social Democrats insisted after a disastrous election result in September that they would go into opposition, but reluctantly agreed to reconsider after Mrs Merkel's coalition talks with two smaller parties collapsed.

Mrs Merkel said on Monday: "I favour quick talks, and I think a stable government is the basis on which we can work best with France and for Europe."

She said a minority government "would not be a stable government".

AP
New York City police are investigating report of a bomb in Manhattan

Emergency services outside 42 St-Port Authority Subway Station in New York City, after an explosive device was set off on a New York subway platform

Emergency services outside 42 St-Port Authority Subway Station in New York City, after an explosive device was set off on a New York subway platform

Police respond to a report of an explosion near Times Square on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Charles Zoeller)

Emergency services outside 42 St-Port Authority Subway Station in New York City, after an explosive device was set off on a New York subway platform

The governor of New York City paid tribute to the emergency services after an attempted terrorist attack in the city on Monday.

A pipe bomb strapped to man exploded on a subway platform causing panic in Manhattan at around 7.20am.

The male suspect was arrested and has non-life-threatening injuries, the New York Police Department said.

He has been identified as 27-year-old Akayad Ullah and suffered minor burns. Police have said he had given statements but refused to disclose what he said.

Three others were also injured although their injuries were not thought to be serious.

The explosion at a terminal on 42nd Street and 8th Avenue.

Governor Andrew Cuomo described the device used as "low-tech".

"Thankfully this was an amateur-level explosive device," he said.

"This as case of the reality being much better than what could have been," he told the press.

He said the city was returning to normal at around 9.30am and paid tribute to the reaction of all the emergency services and agencies that responded.

"This is New York," he added, "and the reality is we are a target."

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump was informed.

Mr Trump "has been briefed on the explosion in New York City", she said.

Andre Rodriguez, 62, told the New York Times that he heard an explosion shortly before 7.30am.

He added: "I was going through the turnstile. It sounded like an explosion, and everybody started running."
Russian president Vladimir Putin, making his second visit to Egypt in as many years, has held talks with his Egyptian counterpart on their countries' rapidly expanding ties.

Egypt's general-turned-president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, has visited Russia three times since the ousting of his Islamist predecessor in 2013.

After taking office, Mr el-Sissi has bought billions of dollars' worth of Russian weapons, including fighter jets and assault helicopters.

The two countries are also in the late stages of negotiations over the construction by a Russian company of Egypt's first nuclear energy reactor.

Russia last month approved a draft agreement with Egypt to allow Russian warplanes to use Egyptian military bases, a deal that would mark a significant leap in bilateral ties and evidence of Moscow's expanding military role in a turbulent Middle East.

That deal, if it goes through, will likely irk the United States, until now a top Egypt military ally.

Mr Putin flew to Cairo after a brief and previously unannounced visit to a Russian military air base in Syria.

Mr El-Sissi met Mr Putin at Cairo's international airport on Monday and the two leaders later went straight to the presidential Ittahidyah palace in Cairo's Heliopolis suburb where talks got under way.

Egypt's currently close ties with Russia harken back to the 1950s and 1960s, when Cairo became Moscow's closest Arab ally during the peak years of the Cold War.

Egypt changed allies in the 1970s under the late president Anwar Sadat, who replaced Moscow with Washington as his country's chief economic and military backer following the signing of a US-sponsored peace treaty with Israel.

Egypt has since become a major recipient of US economic and military aid.

In what would have been unthinkable during the Cold War, Egypt has under Mr el-Sissi been able to maintain close ties with both Russia and the United States.

Egypt, however, has not been able thus far to persuade Russia to resume its flights to Egypt, suspended since October 2015 when a suspected bomb brought down a Russian airliner over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board.

Egypt has since spent millions of dollars to upgrade security at its airports and undergone numerous checks by Russian experts to ascertain the level of security at the facilities.

The suspension of Russian flights has dealt a devastating blow to Egypt's vital tourism industry.

"Your Excellency: When will Russian tourism return to Egypt?" read the front-page banner headline in a Cairo daily loyal to the government, in both Arabic and Russian.

There have been speculations that Mr el-Sissi and Mr Putin might during the visit finalise and announce a deal on the construction of the nuclear reactor on Egypt's Mediterranean coast after months of wrangling over technical and financial details.

Egypt and Russia have already initialled an agreement for a 25 billion US dollar Russian loan to finance the construction.

Egypt has quietly supported Russia's military involvement in the Syrian civil war, a policy that had clashed with the position taken by Saudi Arabia, Cairo's chief ally and financial backer.

The Saudis, however, have gradually softened their opposition to Russian involvement there and taken a host of steps to thaw decades of frosty relations with Moscow.

Both the Saudis and Egyptians, according to analysts, are now hoping that Russia's presence in Syria would curtail the growing influence of Shiite, non-Arab Iran, whose expanding leverage in the region has been a source of alarm to both Cairo and Riyadh.

Egypt, meanwhile, has been raising its own profile in Syria, negotiating local ceasefires between government and opposition forces with the blessing of both Damascus and Moscow.

AP
Vladimir Putin has given military support to the Syrian regime

President Vladimir Putin has visited a Russian military air base in Syria, declaring victory and announcing a partial pullout of forces from the country.

Mr Putin's surprise visit marked his first trip to Syria, drawing a symbolic line under the campaign that has shored up President Bashar Assad's government.

It was also the first visit by a foreign head of state to war-ravaged Syria since its bloodletting started nearly seven years ago.

Mr Putin's brief stop at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria's coastal province of Latakia while on route to Egypt came days after the Russian president declared his bid to run for re-election in the March 18 vote, helping encourage the feelings of pride about Russia's revived global clout and prestige.

It also followed the Russian announcement last week that the Syrian army, with the help of Russian airstrikes, routed the Islamic State group in eastern Syria and fully restored control over the country's border with Iraq.

In a televised speech to the Russian troops at the base, the Russian leader hailed their "excellent" performance in Syria.

"You have shown the best qualities of a Russian soldier, courage, valour, team spirit, decisiveness and excellent skills," said.

"The Motherland is proud of you."

Russia launched its air campaign in Syria at the end of September 2015, when Mr Assad's government was teetering on the brink of collapse, and quickly changed the course of the conflict in his favour.

Russian officials say troops in Syria were there mainly to fight "terrorists" including militants of the Islamic State group and al Qaida affiliates, but they also heavily targeted other rebel factions opposed to Mr Assad, allowing his troops to claw back significant territory over the past two years.

Mr Putin has hosted Mr Assad twice in the past six years, including a surprise November 21 visit that Mr Assad undertook to the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Russian television stations showed Mr Putin walking off the plane at the air base, embracing and shaking hands with Mr Assad.

The two then visited a military operations room at the base.

The Hemeimeem base, located in a region that is the heartland of Mr Assad's Alawite minority, has served as the main foothold for the Russian military campaign in Syria.

"Here in Syria, far away from our borders, you helped the Syrian people to preserve their state and fend off attacks by terrorists," Mr Putin said, facing the troops lined up on the tarmac.

"You have dealt a devastating blow to those who blatantly threatened our country.

"We will never forget about the victims who fell in the fight against terror both here and in Russia."

In his speech, Mr Putin also said that he had ordered the military to withdraw a "significant part" of the Russian contingent in Syria.

"Friends, the Motherland is waiting for you," Mr Putin said.

"You are coming back home with victory!"

He added that "if the terrorists again raise their heads, we will deal such blows to them they have never seen".

Mr Putin, however, said the Russian military will maintain its presence at Hemeimeem and the naval facility in Tartus.

General Sergei Surovikin, the Russian military commander in Syria, reported to Mr Putin that the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers.

Syria has allowed Russia to use Hemeimeem air base indefinitely without cost.

After seeing troops march to the tunes of military marches, Mr Putin drove up to the Russian warplanes parked on the runway and talked to the pilots, who said they will flew back home later in the day.

Syrian TV said Mr Assad thanked Mr Putin for his troops' "effective contribution" to the fight against terrorism in Syria, which he said the Syrian people "will never forget".

"Syria has been saved as a sovereign, independent state, refugees are coming home and conditions have been created for a political settlement under the United Nations' auspices," Mr Putin said.

AP
Since entering into a 'confidence and supply' deal to prop up the Tory government in June, the DUP has undergone a transformation. What was once a peripheral party of limited influence holds the balance of power at Westminster. And now they have demonstrated their ability to challenge Theresa May over Brexit.

As last week's desperate thrash to secure a deal on the Irish border showed, the DUP had only to raise its objections to the proposed draft for the whole thing to be temporarily derailed.

Read More

It was only after DUP concerns about Northern Ireland retaining "regulatory alignment" with the EU were at least partially assuaged that the negotiations got back on track and the breakthrough between the UK and the European Union was reached.

The deal was even sweetened by some traditional Ulster-style fudge: a distinct lack of specifics about the way the border will actually be managed. How a soft border can be delivered without the UK remaining in the single market and customs union remains unknown.

There are still numerous other unanswered questions, of course, not least why Theresa May ever thought - if indeed she really did - that the DUP would be willing to tolerate a deal which appeared to treat Northern Ireland differently from the rest of the UK. After all, Sammy Wilson had made the point, using almost exactly these words, just a few days before.

The mystery deepened when Arlene Foster claimed that she had been asking for information on the British Government's plans for the Irish border for five weeks, but had only received news of the proposed arrangement last Monday morning.

So how do leading UK commentators view the DUP's role in the Brexit talks, from the chaos of Monday, to the uneasy resolution achieved by Friday? What do they make of this small, strident band of unionists from Northern Ireland who find themselves at the very centre of Brexit negotiations?

"Hats off to the DUP, they played a blinder," exclaims Daily Mail columnist Quentin Letts. "They said, 'up with this we will not put'. There was no particular grandstanding, and I liked the fact there was no public whinging against the Tories. It's perfectly possible to criticise the DUP for their views, but you can't accuse them of lacking seriousness."

Matthew Parris, the Spectator columnist, gives me a very different view. He found it incredible that the DUP was unaware of the initial proposed deal with the EU. "I suspect the DUP knew more than they say - they just couldn't miss an opportunity for grandstanding," he says.

Helen Lewis, deputy editor of the New Statesman, agrees: "I did wonder if it was a choreographed move, to sell it to their constituents, getting concessions out of the UK."

And Patrick Kidd, the Times' parliamentary sketch writer, also says it seemed strange that May and her advisers hadn't anticipated that the draft deal would be a problem.

"The cynical part of me wonders if it was scripted," he says. As for the agreed deal itself, John Rentoul, the chief political commentator for the Independent, considers that the DUP were uncharacteristically accommodating "given the DUP's capacity for saying no, and continuing to say no when they might compromise - they are normally prepared to bring the whole thing down." He too sees it as "a bit of theatre" intended for their domestic audience.

But Rentoul has no doubt that the DUP is in a very good position.

"They have been given a veto over the trade negotiations, complete control over whatever is agreed. They just have to sit tight and negotiate hard". Meanwhile, John Crace, the Guardian's sketch writer, has no truck with the suggestion that Theresa May was doing a spot of grandstanding of her own.

"For me, the idea that [May] would go through the rigmarole of facing off the DUP just to look tough is a conspiracy too far. She actually looked desperately wounded by the whole thing."

Crace says that the events of the last week "do quite clearly show that the Brexit negotiations are as much about Tory party management as they are about national interest, which is a huge cause for concern. A tough prime minister would have faced off the DUP and their 10 MPs. But the DUP thought she was too weak to do it, and she is".

Letts says that opinions on the DUP, both at Westminster and beyond, have shifted in recent years.

"Twenty years ago a lot of people thought they were a little bit hairy. They're now seen as mainstream as far as unionist opinion goes. On the Conservative side, they are seen as allies but not necessarily as friends. Of course, pro-Brexit Tories were incredibly grateful to them this week."

Letts says that in the Commons tea room in recent days, there was a lot of comradeship towards the DUP from backbench Tories. "They say, 'the DUP says what we can't'".

Having seen them in action at Westminster this week, Kidd says that the DUP seemed in a smug mood.

"Yes, very confident and cocky. Ian Paisley was literally flexing his biceps," he says.

Summarising the public perception of the DUP, Parris says: "Formidable, but entirely focused on their own advantage."

And Lewis tells me: "When the supply and confidence deal was signed, a lot of people said - who?

"They were an unknown quantity. Some of the Westminster commentariat see them as bumbling and provincial, but they are ruthless and skilful. They are also a small caucus which is relatively disciplined, and while they are not ready to use the nuclear option - bringing down the government and ushering in a Corbyn government - they will do everything up to that."

Crace says the DUP was previously seen as "a peripheral, noisy, reactionary group" but since the general election they have been acknowledged as "tough negotiators".

Indeed, last month Nigel Dodds was named top negotiator at the Spectator's Parliamentarian of the Year awards.

"They're not just a sideshow if they can derail a deal by four days," points out Crace.

Rentoul says that the mainstream liberal media see the DUP as "the work of the devil, a dinosaur throwback to the 16th century".

"It does annoy me," he says. "Since Ian Paisley [senior] at his worst, they have come a long way. They have done quite well in presenting themselves as reasonable."

Commentators may vary in their assessment of the DUP, its motivations and its ability to deliver the Brexit deal it wants. But they are agreed on one thing, summed up by Kidd.

"The DUP are part of the story now, when they never were before," he says.
Borders are a contentious issue in Northern Ireland, so it comes as little surprise that the European Union's suggestion of a border down the Irish Sea has raised eyebrows across the unionist community.

The Democratic Unionist Party have been capitalising on this emotive subject to stir anger among unionists and conceal the many practical advantages enclosed in Brussels' proposals.

Having failed to table a credible alternative to remaining in the customs union, the DUP have reverted to a strategy of identity politics, Dublin-blaming tirades and scaremongering with respect to Northern Ireland's constitutional position.

If Northern Ireland leaves the customs union, there will have to be some hardening of the Irish border.

Maintaining an open border would see the island become the smuggling capital of the world, with goods being carried illicitly between north and south in evasion of tariffs and duties, while any regulatory divergence on the UK's part after Brexit could see products in breach of EU standards arriving on the continent via Ireland.

A hard border would carry catastrophic consequences. Many businesses operate on an all-island basis and more than 30,000 people cross the border on their commute to work. Erecting customs posts and policing the 500km boundary, would cause disruption and come at huge cost to the taxpayer.

Our trade with Britain is within the United Kingdom, and will not be subjected to international levies.

The most compelling argument for remaining in the customs union and single market is that the majority of Northern Ireland's electorate endorsed the idea in March. Some 51.2% of voters gave their first-preferences to parties who ran on pro-special status tickets.

It is high time the DUP set aside their narrow political agenda and respected the will of the people here.

EOIN TENNYSON

By email
A sex killer who raped his dying wife is working as a delivery driver for a charity and calling to the homes of unsuspecting females.

Evil predator Anthony Conlon is shacked up in a house on the edge of Portadown close to his place of work - the Helping Hands Community Outreach Project.

The 47-year-old monster drives a van for the charity that donates second-hand furniture to the needy.

What women who welcome him inside their homes do not know is that the seemingly cheery delivery driver is one of Northern Ireland's most notorious sex beasts.

Conlon murdered his wife Fiona in 1997 after she left him because of his violent rages.

He stabbed the mother of his two children and then raped her as she lay dying in a field opposite their former home at Ballysaggart Park in Dungannon.

The monster was jailed for life with a minimum 16-year term for the sex killing before being freed on licence in 2014.

According to sources he has since remarried and now works for Helping Hands, whose other employees include suspected former UVF man Alan Oliver.

The loyalist was named in High Court papers as the gunman who allegedly murdered teenagers Eileen Duffy (19), Katrina Rennie (16) and Brian Frizzell (29) in the 1991 Craigavon mobile shop massacre.

Last night a relative of tragic Fiona told Sunday Life: "He is a very dangerous individual who, in my view, should still be in jail to this day."

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When Sunday Life tried to speak to Conlon at his home yesterday, the pervert failed to respond on multiple occasions.

Well-placed sources who know Conlon from his time in the high-security Maghaberry Prison expressed shock that he could secure a job that sees him go inside the homes of vulnerable women.

One ex-prison officer told us: "Anthony Conlon is a monster in every sense of the word, he's violent, volatile and perverted.

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"I'm baffled as to how Helping Hands thought it would be a good idea to give him a job.

"I know it's a religious charity that believes in giving people second chances, but Conlon isn't someone who deserves one.

"Any woman whose house he has been inside delivering furniture has had their life put at risk."

Sunday Life contacted Helping Hands for a comment on the matter, but they failed to respond.

Conlon's wife Fiona was reported missing on March 4, 1997, with her body being found in a field opposite her Dungannon home later that day.

He was arrested and took police to the spot where his wife's body had been part-hidden in a stream.

The pervert lied that they had met their willingly, had consensual sex, and that afterwards he was knocked unconscious by a masked man carrying a knife.

Detectives noted that Fiona had been placed face down in the water with her head fully submerged and that she was wearing her husband's coat.

Further examination revealed a large stab wound to her back and evidence that she had been raped.

A panicked Conlon, who had a court order banning him from contacting his wife, continued to lie to police.

Throughout five interviews he maintained the pretence that they had met for consensual sex and were attacked by an unknown male armed with a knife.

It was only during the sixth interview that he admitted murdering his wife - claiming his actions were sparked by an argument over his access to their children.

Conlon admitted "losing it", but maintained that he did not mean to kill Fiona and did not realise the knife wound would prove fatal.

He said that after stabbing his wife he gave her his coat as she was cold and they walked to the field where they had sex.

Afterwards Conlon claimed he subsequently realised she was dead and "motionless" so he put her clothes back on and dragged her to the stream in which she was found.

In December 1998 he was found guilty by a jury of murdering Fiona, having argued unsuccessfully that the killing was manslaughter. Sentencing Conlon, the then Lord Chief Justice Sir Brian Kerr said the jury had been unpersuaded by the accused's "rather improbable account offered at interview".

Her death at just 28 years old had a huge impact on her four children, the two youngest of whom were to Conlon.

The kids were split up and had to live between two aunts, who accused the authorities of failing their sister.

In a letter written to the court that sentenced Conlon, a furious Una Sherry, who cared for Fiona's youngest children, pointed out that her sister's murderer was on bail at the time of the killing, and both the police and Social Services "knew what he was capable of".

In a statement to the Crown Court in 2009, the sex killer insisted that he was a changed man having taken part in sex offenders' training programmes.

Conlon expressed remorse, acknowledged that the murder and rape of his wife was a "most horrendous crime" and said he took full responsibility for his actions and the hurt and distress they caused. However, Sir Brian Kerr said: "I entertain grave reservations about the genuineness of this. Certainly his performance at interview and the manner in which he contested the case do not partake of the behaviour of someone who was genuinely repentant."

Setting his minimum jail sentence at 16 years, Sir Brian said Conlon had "sexually degraded" Fiona.

He also said: "There is every reason to believe that it (the murder) was planned. The inference that the prisoner brought the knife to the murder scene is overwhelming."
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By Robin Stanton Gerrow

The evolution of beauty pageant contestant to a world-champion karate kid to a doctoral candidate, might sound like sound like a stretch for some, but not for Howard "Ardy" Gonyer.

Gonyer, graduating from Bowling Green State University with his Ph.D. from the Higher Education Administration (HIED) program, had a childhood full of experiences designed to help him be a success as an adult, whatever path he chose.

"My mother always made sure I had experiences that would teach me something," he said. "She entered me into beauty pageants as a child so I wouldn't be afraid to get up in front of people and talk. When I was 6 or 7, I started taking karate so I could learn discipline and how to set and reach goals. Both of them worked."

Both karate  he was a three-time world champion  and his study abroad experiences at BGSU made a big impact on his choice of career.

"When I was in karate, we had the opportunity to travel to Mexico, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica for competitions, so I was exposed to other cultures, and learned about social justice and poverty," Gonyer said. "It helped me understand inequity and taught me how I can make the world a better place.

"As a student in the HIED program, I was able to go on a study abroad trip to the European Union, which gave me a new perspective on education. That experience really opened my eyes to looking at students and professionals in a different light, and how lucky we are to have the educational system we have in the United States."

A Bowling Green native, Gonyer earned his undergraduate degree from BGSU, living on campus and being involved in everything from the honors program to peer health education and serving as a resident advisor. Although he started out wanting to be a medical doctor, he decided to major in psychology.

"I've always known that I wanted to be in a helping profession, and psychology gave me options in counseling and ministry," he said.

He left Bowling Green to attend Ohio University for his master's degree. After spending several years working in health promotions and student conduct at OU, he knew it was time to take the last step to reach his educational goals.

"BGSU just rose to the top of the list of the programs," Gonyer said. "I really liked the cohort model, and moving back to Bowling Green gave me the opportunity to reconnect with the community."

Working at OU gave Gonyer a lot of experience in student affairs, but he has focused much of his time at BGSU working with the academic side, primarily through his assistantship with the Educators in Context and Community (ECCO) learning community.

"This has really given me a new view of how to work with students," he said. "Working with student mental health issues and being part of their support system has helped me understand why this work is so important, and it has helped me evolve as a professional. It has given me a sense of both where students came from, as well as where they are going. When I was working in student conduct, issues were much more black and white, but this experience has helped me see the gray areas and what students need to succeed. It isn't about coddling them, but helping them through some tough times."
By Julie Carle

Erica Eskins thinks the Giardia parasite is cute and the corkscrew look of the syphilis spirochete is fascinating - all that from a girl who was born and raised in Bellevue, a small Ohio town.

What started as a general interest in science as an elementary student turned into a passion, and now a career path for Eskins, who is a December 2017 graduate from Bowling Green State University's College of Arts and Sciences and Honors College. She revels in the fact she is a science nerd, and claims she always has had that tendency.

"I always associated with academics and reading," she said about her younger years. "To me, learning is fun."

Her science interests intensified in high school when she was named student manager for the school's marine lab, and continued into her freshman year at BGSU when she was involved in the Academic Interest in Mathematics and Science (AIMS) program and soon found her way to microbiology.

Eskins was one of the 2014 Presidential Scholars, receiving a renewable in-state tuition scholarship, as well as one of the top five Forsyth Scholarship winners, for a renewable, full-fee scholarship. Though she chose BGSU for practical reasons - the financial support and the proximity to Bellevue - she admits the experiences have done more for her than she could have ever predicted.

Through courses and undergraduate research, she has pinpointed her career goals and gained valuable experiences.

She found her way to a lab right away her first semester. She landed in the Herpetology Lab caring for the army of Poison Dart Frogs. Under the "amazing guidance" of Dr. Eileen Underwood, Eskins turned her herpetology experience into her own research, studying how to maximize the breeding of Lemur Leaf frogs.

From there, she added work in the scanning electron microscope lab with Dr. Carol Heckman. Eskins was proud for learning to work those monster machines, but she also learned that studying cells at that level did not interest her.

"I think all of the research I did helped me narrow down what aspect of biology I was most interested in," Eskins said. "The cell biology was too small, and the animal biology was interesting, but not what I wanted."

Taking a microbiology class taught by Dr. Hans Wildschutte that looked at antibiotic resistance in a variety of ways, and joining Dr. Ray Larsen's lab doing similar research in antibiotic resistance confirmed for her that microbiology was in her wheelhouse. A few public health classes , one in particular with Dr. Rebecca Fallon who is now retired, helped Eskins focus on combining microbiology and public health for her career.

She also worked with Dr. Dan Pavuk on a grant-funded project to collect mosquitoes in Wood County for West Nile Virus testing. Working with Pavuk was another positive learning experience that gave her the opportunity to try fieldwork, but then cross that off her list as well.

"Even though microbiology looks at a small level, this path will allow me to study how small organisms affect whole populations.

"I am fascinated how single-celled organisms function completely and wholly, but they also interact as a community and communicate with each other," she said, "It is amazing how that happens."

Making a difference in people's lives through science has always been in her plan, but she knew early on that being a doctor wasn't the right fit for her. "When I realized the impact public health could have on just about every aspect of someone's life, I knew I wanted to pursue public health."

She was involved in the Small World Initiative at BGSU, led by Wildschutte, looking for new antibiotics through antibiotic resistance research.

"We were finding bacteria that was similar to bacteria in other countries," she explained. "Seeing how closely related bacteria can be found on entirely different continents helps me understand the importance of international collaboration of the scientific community in solving this issue."

Her final honors project was studying the microbial community of the axolotl, an increasingly common pet. Eskins wanted to look at antibiotic resistance in a unique environment as well as to look at the potential public health implications of more people interacting with these animals in their households.

Eskins stressed how important the work in research labs was for her development. The research also provided that gut-wrenching, but valuable, experience of presenting her research findings at conferences and symposia. "I learned pretty quickly that the more passionate I am about my subject, the easier it is talking in front of an audience."

In addition to having the opportunity to work in various faculty members' labs, Eskins also received substantial support through the Center for Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (CURS).

Following graduation, Eskins will continue her education. In May, she starts at the University of Cincinnati in their epidemiology program, working toward a Masters of Public Health Degree in epidemiology, with her eye on a job with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and eventually a doctoral degree.

She valued her BGSU education, doing additional research on post-consumer composting with the dining halls, serving as a Falcon Internship Guarantee ambassador and studying abroad in Australia and Fiji this past summer with her sister, Elaina, a sophomore Communication Disorders major. Everything Eskins did during her time at BGSU, provided a broader sense of the world, which she plans to use to impact as many lives as possible, hopefully one day taking her career in public health internationally.
She believes in being transparent and stays committed to her work, and tries to evoke similar notions in people who are delivering for the organization.

As President for PerkinElmer India, Jayashree Thacker carries the responsibility for developing and directing strategies to build the PerkinElmer organization, business and brand in India and South Asia, and is accountable for revenue, profitability, growth and market share metrics across 2 business units  Discovery & Analytical Solutions and Diagnostics.

She believes in being transparent and working fairly with everyone in the organization, being committed to her work and trying to evoke similar commitment in people who are delivering for the organization.

Very recently, PerkinElmer India has opened a Centre of Excellence (CoE) at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune, to help educate the regions current and future scientists on high-throughput analyses in life sciences.

This collaboration is another step towards supporting the Skill India campaign, which helps researchers and students develop advanced competencies in life sciences research. The opening of this new facility and our collaboration with IISER supports the expansion of PerkinElmer and our relationships with leading research organizations in India, further positioning us to deliver innovative solutions for our customers, she shared.

Jayashree is a graduate in Pharmacy from the Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), Mumbai, and a post graduate in Marketing from IIM, Ahmedabad. She has gained rich industry, business consulting, practice and organisation building expertise by leading the Healthcare Industry vertical at IBM India Global Delivery, and the Lifesciences & Healthcare Business Consulting practice at IBM and PricewaterhouseCoopers for the India market.

When she joined PerkinElmer India a little under three years back, her mandate was to build an organization that would be ready to capitalize upon the growth opportunities in the market. The initial couple of years really went through in getting fundamentals in place  gaining the right competencies, defining policies, business processes, a governance framework and performance metrics, and initiating culture shaping,  she pointed out. Focus has also been on inorganic growth and she has been part of the team that led the acquisition of Tulip Diagnostics.

With so many things in hand, Thackers day typically begins at 6 am. After finishing her morning chores at home, her day goes by in the office till evening. It is extremely important to have a balanced lifestyle. One should not get distracted while at work. At the same time there are certain things that require your undivided attention in your personal life, said Jayashree.

For her, the biggest achievement has been in making the organization ready for growth. Some of the solutions we offer our customers are showing positive growth. Internal challenges have been managed well; and now most of the challenges are external, Jayashree stated.

She recently accepted the Leadership Award for Contribution to Healthcare at the Healthcare Summit held in Bengaluru. We are very happy to receive this recognition. It motivates us to continue to innovate for our customers throughout India, with advanced solutions that help protect the environment, the safety of our food, and the health of mothers, newborn babies and their families, she mentioned.

She was also recently awarded the UAA-ICT Distinguished Alumnus Award in the Professionals category.

An advice for young women entrepreneurs- There is a phase when women have to contribute a lot to family front and then all the balancing becomes really difficult. You need to have a very good support system. As Indra Nooyi says, the biological and career clock are conflicting when it comes to women. I think that is where we as an organization should be able to support.
Is AMR Modern-day FRANKENSTEINS MONSTER?

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) continues to pose a significant public health problem in terms of mortality and economic loss. The rising AMR is a matter of huge concern that needs to be tactfully handled and health authorities of several countries, including India, have formulated action plans for its containment. Significant efforts by the government, an active involvement of startups and diagnostic players is a good start. The question remains, whether this will be enough.

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Case Of 26 Cockroaches That Were Breeding In A Man's Ear Life oi-Syeda Farah

A human body cannot tolerate any foreign object inside it. Be it a prick or a nail, the body tremors with pain and rejection.

With such sensitivity, can you imagine of having any insect dwelling in any of the body parts? It sounds creepy, but there are several such cases that have been reported of insects found in human bodies.

A recent bizarre case was reported in China, where doctors found 26 live cockroaches alive in a man's ear!

Also Do Read: Strange Extra Body Parts That Were Found In Humans

Check out the bizarre case...

The Man Complained Of Ear Ache The unnamed man had been complaining of ear pain for a while, until he decided to pay a visit to the doctor, as he had a constant wiggling feeling in his ear. The pain had left him with little sensation to hear sounds. pulse Horrifying Things Found In Humans When Examined When the doctors examined, they found something looking back at them. They instantly had to take an action, as they assumed an insect to be resting in his ear. He was examined and the doctors got a shock of their lives when they discovered a cockroach family dwelling in his ear. He Was Immediately Operated The unnamed man was given anesthesia and the doctors started pulling out the cockroaches one by one from his ear. The total number at the end of the surgery was 26 cockroaches! The worst thing about this case was that all the 26 cockroaches were alive and active! It Was A Female Cockroach That Had Done The Damage The doctors revealed that they found 0.3-inch-long cockroach which had got inside the man's ear and had laid the egg. The warm temperature of the ear was perfect for the egg to hatch and hence all the young ones were alive. A Little More About The Cockroaches... According to the studies, a female cockroach is said to carry a capsule that contains around 40 eggs, which develop into adults in a span of three to four months' time. The man was lucky enough that he did not wait for so long! The Doctors Revealed After the surgery, the doctors revealed that if the man had not come to the hospital at the right time, his ear would have probably been "destroyed". What do you think is the most bizarre thing found in humans? Do let us know in the comment section below.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two vehicles at a west end apartment complex in Brandon were broken into over the weekend.

A truck and a car located in the parking lot of 142 Regent Cres. had their driver-side windows smashed in and items taken. The damage was discovered on Sunday afternoon.

Brittany McAdams said a neighbour knocked on her door between 2 to 2:30 p.m. and told her about the damage to her vehicle.

Submitted The inside of Brittany McAdams vehicle on Sunday afternoon after it was broken into over the weekend in the parking lot of her apartment building on Regent Crescent.

McAdams said there was glass all over the place and she could see hand marks on the trunk of her vehicle where she believes the person responsible tried to get in.

Nothing was taken, with the exception of a couple dollars worth of change. I had nothing at all in there, she said.

McAdams said she has lived at the apartment complex for a year and a half and has had no issues before.

She is a full-time student at Assiniboine Community College and is preparing for final exams this week.

This wasnt really my ideal situation, she said.

Sean Irwin was borrowing his parents truck for the week to help him move out and had gotten home at 3 a.m. the night before. He discovered the damage after 3 p.m. the following day.

As far as I can remember, it was fine, he said.

Irwin was still trying to figure out what had been taken, but he said a GPS was stolen and possibly under $1,000 worth of items.

It doesnt seem like it was personal by any means, he said, although he added it wasnt ideal for him.

A spokesperson for the Brandon Police Service confirmed on Sunday it had received two reports related to the break-ins on Regent Crescent.

 mlee@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @mtaylorlee
Saying he was concerned it could lead to more alcohol-fueled violence, Mayor Paul Soglin on Monday vetoed a liquor license for a Taco Bell Cantina on State Street and expressed opposition to fast-food restaurants serving alcohol at all.

I see little public value in issuing a liquor license to Taco Bell and enormous costs to the people of our community and, in turn, to city government, Soglin said at a Monday afternoon news conference. If the license was associated with something of value  a new hotel, a fine restaurant  thatd be another thing.

Soglin has been consistent in his call to end issuing licenses for new taverns in the State Street area, citing the costs of alcohol-related problems and his concern about declining retail along the pedestrian mall. He also said he is emphatically against fast-food chains attempting to serve alcohol anywhere in the city.

I really believe that we can preserve the character of this community and this city in terms of having quality retail, Soglin said. Im not ready to concede that brick-and-mortar retail is dead.

During a Dec. 5 meeting, the City Council on a voice vote overwhelmingly approved a license for a Taco Bell Cantina to sell wine and beer at 534 State St.

Ald. Paul Skidmore, 9th District, voted against the license based on the location and alcohol-fueled problems surrounding it. Soglin was out of town for that meeting, but he had expressed his objections to the license in a memo.

It takes 14 of 20 council votes to override a mayoral veto. Council president Marsha Rummel said the veto is likely to be challenged and she expected there would be enough votes to overturn it.

In a letter Monday explaining his veto, Soglin suggested that perhaps we should take this matter of the issuance of liquor licenses to public referendum. He did not elaborate during the news conference.

Pat Eulberg, a representative for the company franchising the Taco Bell Cantina, said he had just heard about Soglins decision Monday afternoon. While he declined to comment on the veto, Eulberg said he respects the local government process for how restaurants are licensed.

He noted the restaurant still plans on opening around Christmas regardless of whether it has a liquor license by then.

Taco Bell Cantinas typically have a different decor than regular Taco Bells, are located in urban business districts and serve alcohol. In Madison, the restaurant will serve burritos and tacos into the early morning hours, but the license would not allow beer and wine sales after 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays or past 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.

At the Dec. 5 meeting, Eulberg said he believes the company has done enough to address safety concerns by installing 17 security cameras and scanners for identification cards, as well as by training employees. The State Street location would become the ninth Taco Bell Cantina in the United States.

Soglin said the city has spent more than $20 million to beautify and enhance State Street and the Capitol Square, and that such an investment makes sense to attract retail shoppers during the day and on weekends but makes no sense for an area populated by taverns.

The mayor said public safety is the citys first priority, with the recently adopted Police Department budget the largest for the agency on record.

Despite a significant drop in homicides in the past four months, the police department is still stretched and responding to too many violent incidents on Friday and Saturday nights, Soglin said.

The police, he said, have special units operating in the 500 block of State Street, the 400 block of Frances Street and the 600 block of University Avenue. The situation is so dangerous that there were times when officers couldnt apprehend dangerous individuals because of alcohol-fueled crowds, he said.

Soglin said it has been a miracle that we have not had a homicide in that area.

The cost of patrols in the hours around bar time is exorbitant, he said. Adding more liquor outlets to this area, even if that particular outlet like the Taco Bell were to close early, makes no sense.

The Taco Bell Cantina license, Soglin said, is just the beginning. Most U.S. fast-food chains are working on rolling out liquor-based establishments in the next decade, with some doing so in stages with beer and wine followed by full liquor, he said.
The hashtag 'You Irish' is trending on Twitter this morning after a Sky News presenter used the phrase to refer to Irish people in a tweet.

Adam Boulton was responding to criticism after he questioned Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney over Brexit asking him 'if all the kerfuffle was necessary?'
The Irish and British governments have clashed over whether the Brexit agreement intended to trigger trade talks is legally binding or not.

The dispute was sparked when UK Brexit Secretary David Davis insisted it was much more a statement of intent than "legally enforceable".

The Irish Government responded strongly, stating the deal was "binding" and it would hold the UK "to account" on it.

The document on legacy issues like the Irish border was hammered out in order to allow the remaining EU27 states to approve Brexit talks shifting to a phase two trade negotiation at a summit this week where Dublin wields a veto.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar heralded the last-minute deal meant to prevent the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic as "politically bullet-proof" and "cast iron".

The Government's chief whip, Joe McHugh, branded the Brexit Secretary's comments as "bizarre".

He told RTE: "We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union.

"My question to anybody within the British Government would be, why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they weren't going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me.

"This, as far as we're concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

Mr McHugh said the Government would not "back away" from the Brexit principles if it comes under pressure from the rest of the EU during trade talks with the UK.

In the wake of some Brexiteers expressing concern the agreement said the UK would have "full alignment" with the EU on regulations and standards that impacted on Northern Ireland, Mr Davis told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show: "This was a statement of intent more than anything else.

"Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing."

The comments came after reports that some hardline Brexiteers had been assured by the Government that the term full alignment was "meaningless".

Mr Davis said the chances of Britain leaving the EU without a trade deal have "dropped dramatically".

The UK cabinet heavyweight insisted the agreement with Brussels to trigger talks on a post-Brexit relationship made the prospect of the UK being forced back into World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariff arrangements after withdrawal much less likely.

He said: "The odds, as it were, against a WTO, or no deal outcome, have dropped dramatically."

Mr Davis said a trade deal was "not that complicated", and suggested a version of the agreement the EU made with Canada, which he dubbed "Canada plus, plus, plus" because it would include areas such as financial services.

He also insisted Britain will not pay a 39 billion exit bill to Brussels unless there is a trade deal.

The comments appeared to contradict those of Chancellor Philip Hammond who has said it would be "inconceivable" the UK would fail to honour its international obligations.

Pressed on the Chancellor's remarks regarding the exit payment, Mr Davis said: "No. It is conditional on an outcome. I am afraid that wasn't quite right.

"It is conditional. It is conditional on getting an implementation period. Conditional on a trade outcome.

"No deal means that we won't be paying the money."

Mr Davis insisted the UK would keep a "frictionless" border with the Irish Republic even if there was no trade deal.
An Airbus had to make an unscheduled stop in Germany after a business class passenger who was denied more champagne became aggressive.

The 44-year-old Swiss passenger was angered at crew members' refusal to serve her more sparkling wine on the flight from Moscow to Zurich late on Saturday.
Ms Hall, who is chief executive of Liverpool Neighbourhood Connections, said the 500 women she has helped to get jobs have included some from families that have experienced long-term unemployment across three generations. The program helps women, including single mothers, get paid work experience and training in hospitality courses.

Five years on and she has opened five social enterprises including a coffee cart, school canteen contract, a cleaning and mowing business, a catering business, a second-hand clothes shop and a cafe called Peppers Place at Liverpool City Library.

Pat Hall who runs the program didnt know what a social enterprise was when she first helped raise the money to pay a woman to make coffee at a neighbourhood centre.

Hundreds of women have started work for the first time with the help of a jobs program designed to help them break the cycle of inter-generational unemployment.

She said the program had given women the experience and confidence they needed to get jobs "in the outside world".

Some have never had jobs and one woman came to me and said she was so proud that for the first time Ive been able to write that Im employed on my sons paper work at school, she said.

We are breaking that cycle and kids are seeing their mums going to work often for the first time instead of being on Centrelink benefits. It gives them a perspective so they think Im not going to grow up to be on the dole, Im going to grow up and get a job like my mum.

Liverpool mayor Wendy Waller said her city council had provided two sites at a peppercorn rent to support the Liverpool Neighbourhood Connections program. The sites include a temporary shop front on Scott Street in Liverpool and a cafe at the entrance to the Liverpool City Library.

My biggest priority has always been to provide opportunities for the whole community and supporting LNC is one of many ways we are looking to do this, she said.
As Madilyn got older, other people started noticing it too.

Her mother, Kathy, just had a feeling that something was not right with her second-born daughter.

Madilyn Hunt has a genetic disorder so rare, that at the time she was born in 2002, there wasn't even a name for it.

When she was admitted to hospital at 14 months, the nurses were very concerned that she was not making enough sounds.

By the time she was four or five, she could still only string a few words together. To communicate, she used a simple sign language called Makaton.

Kathy said while she noticed that her daughter was able to recognise letter and words, she struggled to verbally communicate what she felt.

"She went to kinder knowing all her colours and taught the other children their colours and how to sign their colours," she said.

It was not until Madilyn was about to start school in 2006 that researchers finally discovered the source of the problem, a deleted segment of chromosome 17.
Since 18-year-old Tom Levien was struck down by a rare genetic disease as a child, monthly plasma infusions have been his lifeblood.

"Before I was diagnosed, I'd get sick all the time and was having epileptic fits," he said.

Plasma recipient Tom Levien meets regular donors Lindy Armstrong and Chris Armstrong. Credit:Dion Georgopoulos

"When I started the plasma infusions I went from being underweight, scrawny with epilepsy and sick all the time, to a healthy young man who's probably eating too much cake but who cares!"

After spending years in and out of hospital wards, he takes any opportunity he can get to urge others to donate blood and plasma.
Canada is likely to purchase ageing F-18 Hornets from Australia cheaply as the Trudeau government tries to maintain its air force despite a dispute with Boeing reported to have killed its earlier plans, defence experts say.

A plan to buy 18 Boeing Super Hornet fighter jets is expected to be scrapped amid Canada's deepening fight with the aerospace company, and the country could announce this week it intends to acquire a used fleet of older Australian F/A-18A/B Hornets.



Australia's Defence Department confirmed Canada had shown interest in buying the jets, which would extend the life of its fleet of F-18s as it pursues a longer-term plan to replace ageing aircraft.

Australia will withdraw its fleet of F-18 Hornets from its air force. Credit:AP

Australian military experts said the planes would meet Canada's defence needs, which are relieved partly by the US' capabilities, but are likely to require maintenance for structural wear and fatigue.

Visiting fellow at Griffith Asia Institute, Griffith University Peter Layton said Canada would pay a low price for the aircraft, which would be cheaper to fly than the Super Hornets it initially planned to buy.
Waste, possibly containing asbestos, has been dumped illegally in a suburban street in Sydney's west overnight, creating a large response from emergency services and council.

Police were called about 1am on Monday after the waste was found on Patricia Street in Chester Hill.

Fire crews were also called, and arrived to find a mixed 10-tonne load of rubbish.

Two hazmat crews made the area safe, taping off a large portion of the street.
Clive Palmer has denied in federal court that the now-collapsed Queensland Nickel was a "cash cow" for his flagship company Mineralogy.

Taking the stand in Brisbane on Monday, Mr Palmer was again grilled by liquidators over QN's demise in early 2016 that put almost 800 refinery workers out of a job.

Clive Palmer arrives at the Federal law courts in Brisbane. Credit:Jono Searle

Lawyers for liquidators FTI Consulting spent the past fortnight trying to wrangle records from Mineralogy, with some eventually handed over last week.

Mr Palmer was quizzed about specific documents missing from the supplied bundle, including general journals believed to contain loan transactions between Mineralogy and QN.
The body of a missing Victorian bushwalker has been found at the Werribee Gorge State Park.

Searchers located David Occhipinti's body at the base of the gorge about 7pm on Monday.

The 35-year-old had failed to return from his intended 10-kilometre hike around the gorge's circuit track on Sunday.

Family members raised the alarm when he failed to return.
On the streets of Bennelong, brutal local politics have collided with international affairs as candidates embarked on the last week of campaigning for the seat that might save or imperil Malcolm Turnbull's slender governing majority.

At an Ultra Tune outlet in the dark bowels of the Macquarie Centre, the Liberal Party's candidate John Alexander was joined by the federal treasurer Scott Morrison and his NSW counterpart, Dominic Perrottet. The three of them peered under the hood of a tired-looking Honda hatchback and muttered to one another awkwardly about the importance of small business tax breaks before a phalanx of cameras.

John Alexander and Scott Morrison at the Ultra Tune at the Macquarie Centre on Monday. Credit:Nick Moir

At the same moment, Labor's Kristina Keneally was standing by a noisy main road in front of Meadowbank TAFE with Senator Doug Cameron where they talked to reporters about the importance of public education and Mr Alexander's alleged cowardice in refusing to debate Ms Keneally.

But the issue that dominated the day was China, and more particularly, whether or not the Liberal Party's allegations that the Chinese government is exercising undue influence over Australian politics might offend enough Chinese-Australians in the electorate to cost Mr Alexander the seat. According to the 2016 census 21 per cent of people in Bennelong have Chinese ancestry compared with 3.9 per cent nationally.
A rousing, drawn-out standing ovation greeted Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk as she walked into the first Labor caucus meeting of her re-elected government.

After securing a two-seat majority with 48 seats, Ms Palaszczuk was due to announce the full line-up of her new cabinet following the Monday meeting at Parliament.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, pictured with Kate Jones and Jackie Trad received a standing ovation from Labor MPs. Credit:Dan Peled/AAP

Ms Palaszczuk said there were a lot of new faces and some familiar faces.

"I'm incredibly humbled by the support the people of Queensland have given to us," she said.
Labor's Tanya Plibersek and Bill Shorten. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Senator Dastyari was unable to reach her directly as she had left her mobile phone at home, a security precaution parliamentarians have been advised to take when travelling to Chinese territory. It is understood his messages were passed on to her. Fairfax Media understands that Senator Dastyari's calls to Ms Plibersek and her office followed a separate representation from then Chinese ambassador to Australia, Ma Zhaoxu. Hundreds of protesters march on a downtown street during an annual pro-democracy protest in Hong Kong in July 2016. Credit:AP Sources said the Chinese ambassador issued a separate warning to Ms Plibersek about her plans to meet activists in the semi-autonomous city.

There is no suggestion Senator Dastyari's approach to Ms Plibersek was connected to the approach by the Chinese ambassador. One suggested explanation is that Senator Dastyari contacted Ms Plibersek's office after receiving an enquiry from a Sydney Chinese-language media outlet that was doing a critical story on her meetings. Asked about this, Senator Dastyari's office declined to provide details of any media enquiry or a resulting story. Several Chinese-language media outlets in Sydney are close to the Chinese consulate and embassy and run columns by Mr Huang and support his work as a community leader. Ms Plibersek ignored the warnings from the ambassador and senator and proceeded with her plans. It is understood she has privately told colleagues she was surprised by her Labor colleague's approaches. One Canberra source said the representations only strengthened Ms Plibersek's resolve to meet with Mr Cheng.

Ms Plibersek declined to speak about the incident. "Ms Plibersek's itinerary in Hong Kong, including a meeting with a prominent pro-democracy activist, went ahead precisely as scheduled  I think that speaks for itself," a spokesman for the Labor frontbencher said. During the trip, Ms Plibersek and Senator Dastyari also bumped into each other in a hotel foyer, although nothing was discussed in that chance encounter. It is understood there were other people present. Variations of the story revealed by Fairfax Media have been circulating in Canberra circles for some time. One incorrect version was promoted by conservative senator Cory Bernardi in a 2016 speech to the Senate, in which he described "one of the stories doing the rounds" about a Labor member who was heading to Hong Kong for a meeting. "They received a phone call from a close associate of the Chinese embassy suggesting that they do not meet with that individual. Quite rightly so, they said, 'No, I'm going ahead with it'," Senator Bernardi said.

"Yet, when they were in Hong Kong about to meet with this individual, one of their colleagues from the ALP rang them up and begged them not to go, because it would upset the Chinese embassy. Who do you think that person was?" Senator Bernardi called on the unnamed Senator Dastyari to "explain why our own members are being warned off, by their own colleagues, from meeting with individuals because it might upset the local embassy". A senior figure in Labor's left faction, Ms Plibersek has publicly called for freedom of expression to be protected in Hong Kong. It is believed she was concerned about how the Chinese ambassador knew who she was meeting with because she had kept her itinerary private and taken counter-surveillance precautions. The revelations about another Senator Dastyari intervention in Australian-Chinese relations come as Attorney-General George Brandis seeks to have the NSW senator scrutinised by a parliamentary committee following a string of damaging missteps with figures linked to the CCP. Two weeks ago, Fairfax Media revealed he had given counter-surveillance advice to Mr Huang in a face-to-face meeting at the Chinese community leader's home, telling Mr Huang his phone was likely bugged by intelligence services and directing him to conduct a conversation outside.

Fairfax Media also uncovered and released audio of a June 2016 press conference Senator Dastyari gave alongside Mr Huang in which the senator backed Beijing's position in the South China Sea. Senator Dastyari's comments contradicted Labor policy on the issue. Senator Dastyari told the Chinese-language-media-only press conference that Australia should know its place and observe "several thousand years" of history in respecting China's claim in the disputed territory. The day before, Labor's then defence spokesman Stephen Conroy had criticised China's "absurd" claims and said a Labor government would conduct freedom of navigation exercises through the area. Until the audio was released, Senator Dastyari had sought to downplay previous reports of his comments on the basis they had been misreported or he had misspoken. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten then stripped Senator Dastyari of various parliamentary responsibilities, criticising his "mischaracterisation" and saying he no longer trusted his judgment.

But the Labor leader has pushed back against calls for his factional ally to leave Parliament entirely. This is the second time Mr Shorten has demoted Senator Dastyari, having taken him off the frontbench in late 2016 following the initial revelations about his dealings with Mr Huang. Labor figures are divided about whether the right faction powerbroker should resign from the Senate, with senior figures from the right faction in Victoria pushing for his demise while he retains backing from NSW Labor leaders. In making the case for new laws to counter foreign interference in Australia, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has targeted Senator Dastyari as a "classic case". "You see with Senator Dastyari a very clear case of somebody who has taken, literally taken money from people closely associated with the Chinese government and in return for that has delivered essentially Chinese policy statements," Mr Turnbull said on Saturday. The Chinese government has strongly criticised some of Mr Turnbull's recent comments, saying he risks "poisoning" the bilateral relationship. The Prime Minister has rejected the complaint, saying he will "stand up" for Australian sovereignty.

Fairfax Media's revelations suggest Senator Dastyari has been willing to agitate inside the party for a more pro-Beijing approach on top of publicly advancing positions out of step with policy. One Labor source told Fairfax Media that Senator Dastyari always had a strong view about Labor's engagement with China and would use any opportunity to push it internally. Hong Kong  officially still semi-autonomous under the "one country, two systems" principle in place since British rule ended in 1997  has become increasingly tense as the mainland regime of Chinese President Xi Jinping asserts greater control. Mr Cheng is a former secretary-general of the Civic Party and convenor of multiple pro-democracy groups. Ms Plibersek's visit came around the same time as thousands of protesters took to the streets to demand democratic reform. Her trip also took in meetings with Australia's consul-general in Hong Kong, Paul Tighe, the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, an international journalist and a gathering of expatriate Labor Party members.
A suspect who allegedly set off a pipe bomb in the New York City subway has been taken into custody after the explosion sent peak-hour commuters into a frenzy on Monday morning, local time.

New York City mayor Bill de Blasio said the incident in Midtown Manhattan, near Times Square, was being treated as a terrorist attack involving one male "who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims".

The man was identified by New York Police Department (NYPD) commissioner James P O'Neill as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, from Brooklyn.

He said Ullah entered an underground walkway connecting two subway stations - Times Square and Port Authority - at about 7.20am and detonated a "improvised, low-tech explosive device" attached to his body using Velcro straps and cable ties. It's understood the device was a crude pipe bomb.
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Its Metro decked!

Old Saint Nick flew in from the North Pole to spread some holiday cheer at Downtowns MetroTech Commons on Thursday, appearing alongside two of his beloved reindeer at the office complexs 28th-annual tree-lighting ceremony. And the sight of Santas sleigh-pullers mesmerized two youngsters who have seen all the movies and read all the books about the horned beasts colleague, Rudolph, according to the tykes mom.

They have definitely never seen a live reindeer before. My daughter was like, I cant wait to see!  said neighborhood resident Jaclyn Carter, who brought daughter Georgia and son Conroy to the bash. They loved it.

And unlike the kids who Santa Claus spooked in Fort Greene, Carter said that her tots smiled even wider watching the jolly old elf wave to the crowd from atop a fire trucks cherry-picker as he helped light the giant 55-foot tree amid falling man-made snow and bubbles spewed by nearby machines.

The kids got a kick out of Santa. They wouldnt stop talking about him, she said. They were like, Oh my god Santa walked by. 

Dancers from the Brooklyn Ballet upped the holiday cheer with a yuletide-themed performance that wowed attendees who snacked on tasty treats doled out by local eateries at the event hosted by the complexs developer, Forest City New York.

And celebrants later bobbed their heads to favorite seasonal tunes including Mariah Careys All I Want for Christmas is You and Run DMCs Christmas in Hollis, which blasted from speakers throughout the plaza-turned-winter-wonderland.
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Polly wants a savior!

Some lowlife snuck into the exotic-bird room at a Williamsburg pet store and swiped a colorful South American parrot on Tuesday, authorities said.

The suspect entered the Petland shop at 92 Graham Avenue at 5 pm and slipped into to its glass-enclosed room full of non-native birds, cops said, before grabbing the hapless blue Quaker parrot from its cage and stuffing the thing in his pocket, surveillance footage shows.

The alleged animal thief then fled the store with the winged creature, which is native to parts of Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.

Police described the suspect as a male between 25 and 35-years-old.

Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 5778477. The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All tips are strictly confidential.

Reach Deputy Editor Anthony Rotunno at arotu nno@c ngloc al.com or by calling (718) 2608303.
Ireland continues to be most effective country in the EU in which to pay business taxes and 4th most effective worldwide. This is according to The PwC/World Bank Group Paying Taxes 2018 report which was published in Ireland today.



The ranking by PwC/The World Bank Group Paying Taxes report is unique as it looks beyond corporate income tax to all of the other business taxes paid and is a measure of effectiveness of tax systems around the world. The Paying Taxes 2018 report measures the ease of paying taxes by assessing the administrative burden for companies to comply with tax regulations, and by calculating companies total tax liability as a percentage of pre-tax profits.



Top 10 rankings for the EU countries on ease of paying taxes are, in order, are:

Ireland

Denmark

Finland

Latvia

Estonia

Lithuania

Switzerland

Netherlands

Luxembourg

UK

The top 10 worldwide economies for ease of paying taxes are, in order:

Qatar and United Arab Emirates

Hong Kong

Ireland

Bahrain

Kuwait

Singapore

Denmark

New Zealand

Mauritius



According to the study, a typical Irish company spends around a quarter of its total commercial profit in taxes, spends just over two weeks dealing with its tax affairs and makes a tax payment nearly every six weeks. Globally this compares to the typical company paying over a third of its commercial profit in taxes, spending nearly seven weeks dealing with its tax affairs and making a tax payment every 2 weeks.



Commenting on the report, Head of Tax at PwC, Joe Tynan said, "When you look at the mix of the tax indicators  cost and compliance - the report highlights that Ireland does very well in terms of tax competitiveness. When you take labour and other taxes into account, Ireland's total tax rate on corporate profits is much lower when compared with many other EU countries such as the UK, Germany, Sweden and France and also the US and China. And ranking as the most effective country in the EU for paying business taxes, Ireland remains a very attractive location in which to do business."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
It was announced today that Huawei, the global ICT company, has embarked on a new research partnership with Trinity College Dublin as part of its growing R&D footprint in Ireland. At an event at Trinity College Dublin, Guo Ping, Huawei Deputy Chairman & Rotating CEO, also announced the expansion of the companys Cork R&D operation, which is growing from a small team to nearly 20 highly-skilled staff.

These developments bring Huaweis R&D investment in Ireland to $21 million (17.7 million) in 2017, a significant increase from 2016. As part of his visit to Dublin, the Huawei Rotating CEO, Guo Ping will also have a meeting with An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar to update him on Huaweis 13-year presence in Ireland. Huawei now employs over 160 people in Dublin, Athlone and Cork across its business and R&D operations, of which 75% are locally recruited.

The company has been operating in the Irish market since May 2004 and its activities in Ireland include research into business innovation, network services, cloud and customer experience, as well as ICT transformation dedicated to service provider operation.

The new research cooperation with Trinity College will focus on Video Intelligence and how the emerging area of artificial intelligence will impact society, and will be supported by the Huawei R&D team in Dublin.

Welcoming the news today, An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar said, "Huawei's continued investment in Ireland illustrates the innovative technology ecosystem we have developed, with more and more major international tech firms basing and growing their operations here. The companys new research partnership with Trinity and its expanding R&D footprint across its Dublin, Cork and Athlone operations are a strong endorsement of Irelands tech credentials and illustrates Huaweis ongoing commitment to its Irish operations. Bilateral trade between Ireland and China is now worth over 12 billion each year, and by strengthening our links with companies like Huawei we can increase this further in the years ahead."

Huawei Deputy Chairman & Rotating CEO, Guo Ping added, "The Trinity partnership, as part of our growing R&D commitment, highlights our long-term dedication to investment and opportunities in Ireland. We are continuing to tap into Irelands growing clusters of video, artificial intelligence, cloud, telecoms and technology businesses, nurturing future talent and providing additional new opportunities for highly-skilled professionals."

The Trinity event, which was attended by Huaweis business partners, members of the Oireachtasacademics and Huawei staff, also marked the return of 10 Irish undergraduate students, studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, from Huaweis Seeds for the Future programme, where students receive a four-week programme of cultural, business and technical training in China. To date 30 Irish STEM students have now participated and benefited from the programme since its inception in 2015.

Source: www.businessworld.ie
British voters will be able to change the terms of the country's relationship with the European Union after leaving the bloc if they don't like the final Brexit deal, senior cabinet minister and pro-Brexit lawmaker Michael Gove said on Saturday.

Britain and the EU achieved "sufficient progress" in Brexit negotiations on Friday to allow them to move on to discussing future trade ties, in a move welcomed by Gove and other Brexit supporters in Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party.

However, while Gove, who is Britain's environment minister, reiterated his support for May, he gave succor to critics of the deal by saying that if Britons were dissatisfied with the terms of Brexit, future governments could change it.

"The British people will be in control. By the time of the next election, EU law and any new treaty with the EU will cease to have primacy or direct effect in UK law," Gove wrote in a column in the Daily Telegraph.

"If the British people dislike the arrangement that we have negotiated with the EU, the agreement will allow a future government to diverge."

Britain is due to exit the EU in March 2019. The next election is not scheduled until 2022, though there has been speculation in British media that it could come earlier, given May's lack of a parliamentary majority and deep divisions within her party about Brexit.

Some eurosceptic voices outside the government have said that May has betrayed British "leave" voters and given in to EU demands with the agreement.

It has been a tough week for May after Northern Ireland's small Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) - whose support she needs in parliament - unexpectedly blocked an initial deal on Monday, leaving Britain and the EU scrambling to find wording acceptable to all sides ahead of next week's summit of EU leaders.

While agreement was eventually reached on Friday, Gove said that all UK proposals were provisional on a final deal being done, and even then, that arrangement could be revisited by future governments.

Matthew Parris, an anti-Brexit columnist and former Conservative lawmaker, told BBC radio that Gove might envisage a situation in which he would be spearheading a new approach to Brexit.

But Gove, who was briefly in the running to lead the party last year, praised May on Saturday, and said the deal was a result of her "tenacity and skill."

Fellow pro-Brexit cabinet colleague Andrea Leadsom defended his comments, saying it did not imply that May would be replaced before the next election.

"It's simply the case that in taking back control (from Brussels)... it will be for the voters to determine what future governments do," Leadsom told BBC radio. "I think it is a statement of the obvious." (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
The order to burn coal comes amid other signs that efforts to reduce pollution by switching to cleaner natural gas are backfiring. In November, Hebei province announced a Grade 2 natural gas supply emergency, meaning that demand for gas exceeds supply by between 10% and 20%. Photo: Visual China

Beijings city government has ordered power companies to immediately fire up backup coal-burning generators in response to a natural gas shortage in North China during the critical winter heating period.

Under instructions from the National Development and Reform Commission, the city sent notices to the State Grid Corp. of Chinas North China division, State Grid Beijing Electric Power Co. and Huaneng Beijing Thermal Power Co. Ltd. to begin emergency coal power generation to reduce the citys use of natural gas, according to a document obtained by Caixin.

The order, issued on Thursday, comes amid other signs that Chinas efforts to reduce pollution by switching from coal to cleaner natural gas energy are backfiring.

In late November, Hebei province announced a Grade 2 natural gas supply emergency, meaning that demand for gas in the province exceeds supply by between 10% and 20%.

On Dec. 4, the Ministry of Environmental Production announced that it would ease restrictions on coal heating in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, in light of natural gas shortages. Meanwhile, thousands in Chinas coal belt have been secretly burning wood and coal at home to keep warm.

At the beginning of 2017, a group of government departments, including the Ministry of Environmental Protection and several northeastern provincial governments, issued a document declaring no coal zones in northern Chinese cities including Beijng, Tianjin, Langfang and Baoding.

As part of the coal-to-gas campaign, arrangements were made to supply 20.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas for heating in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region this winter, 3 billion more than in the previous year. Of this amount, Hebei was allocated 5.2 billion cubic meters, 58% more than in the previous year.

But by the end of November, state-owned oil and gas company China National Petroleum Corp., realized that Hebeis use of natural gas was exceeding expectations, putting pressure on neighboring areas gas supplies.

Beijings use of natural gas has climbed in recent years under its 2013-2017 clean air plan. In 2015, Beijing became the city with the third greatest natural gas consumption in the world, surpassed only by Moscow and New York.

Huaneng Beijing, one of the companies that received the citys emergency coal burning order on Thursday, is the only major power supplier in the region that still has coal-fired generators on standby.

The citys last major coal-fueled generator in regular use, belonging to Huaneng Beijing, was shut down on March 18, making Beijing the first Chinese city to be completely weaned off coal. But Huaneng Beijing has continued to maintain the generator as a backup source of energy for heating the city during harsh northern winters.

Contact reporter Teng Jing Xuan (jingxuanteng@caixin.com)
Villagers across northern China have had to improvise to stay warm this winter after being left without heating. Pictured is a villager in Henan province burning corn cobs. Photo: Chen Liang/Caixin

Poor planning and soaring natural gas prices have left thousands in northern China without heat this winter as the authorities rush to meet targets laid out in a four-year clean air campaign.

Photos of primary school students in Hebei province being forced to have lessons outdoors in freezing weather after the schools coal-fired stoves were dismantled, published by the official Peoples Daily, sparked an outcry last week.

Although the central government unveiled the ambitious plan in 2013 to help 3 million households in 28 northern cities move away from burning low-quality coal, local governments have been dragging their feet in terms of installing gas pipelines and other infrastructure.

A Caixin investigation found that nearly half the 300 households in a village in Zhuozhou, Hebei, were without heating for weeks as temperatures dipped to minus 6 degrees Celsius (21.2 degrees Fahrenheit) last month. Local authorities had ordered farmers to dismantle their coal-fired furnaces, even before the gas pipelines were laid.

The village is among hundreds that have fallen through the cracks as authorities scramble to meet their 2017 clean air targets.

The four-year campaign set to wrap up by the years end, aims to cut the concentration of the cancer-causing particulate matter choking residents of Beijing, Hebei and Tianjin by 25% compared to levels in 2012. Local officials were told to step on the accelerator after previous efforts to reduce pollution in these areas  earmarked to be transformed into a megapolis housing 7% of Chinas population  failed to arrest the trend of worsening air quality.

But the top-down directives formed without a proper understanding of the situation on the ground has led to massive miscalculations. For example, Hebei province in September announced that it would help 1.8 million households complete the switch to gas by the end of October. But that figure was grossly underestimated and authorities failed to take into account about 700,000 families in the province that is home to over half of Chinas 10 most polluted cities, people with knowledge of the plan told Caixin.

This failure to accurately estimate the demand for natural gas has also led to a supply crunch and a spike in gas prices. The onshore price of liquefied natural gas in northern China has nearly doubled in the past three months to between 6,000 yuan ($906) and 8,000 yuan per ton.

As a result, thousands of families were secretly burning tree branches and coal briquettes to keep warm, while their newly installed gas stoves were left to idle.

Hebei is now grappling with its worst-ever natural gas shortage in recent decades, due to thousands of last-minute conversions, officials said.

Demand for natural gas in the province alone is expected to jump 50% this winter to 6.5 billion cubic meters, according to a plan released by the Hebei Development and Reform Commission, the provincial economic planning body, in late October.

But current stockpiles can only meet 80% of daily demand, prompting the provincial commission to issue an orange alert  the second highest warning on natural gas shortages  on November 28. The agency has also ordered industrial users to reduce the use of gas in areas where demand outstrips supply, so that homes and schools have enough.

The mayor of a city in Hebei has even launched a taskforce to lobby gas companies to increase supply, a city official told Caixin on grounds of anonymity.

The central government should guarantee an uninterrupted supply of natural gas if it wants to fight pollution, this official added.

Local governments have no option but to ease the crackdown on coal burning and even revert to building up their coal stockpiles as a backup in case of a natural gas shortage, he said.

On Thursday, Beijings municipal government ordered power companies to immediately fire up backup coal-burning generators in response to a natural gas shortage in the Chinese capital.

Price of clean air

Cheap, lead-heavy coal burned by rural households has been a major factor contributing to the toxic air in major cities in North China for decades.

On average, 3.5 million tons of dirty coal is used by families living in slums and rural homes in Beijing in winter, according to Chai Fahe, a researcher at the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences. That accounted for nearly 30% of the coal burned for winter heating in the Chinese capital.

The 2013 action plan that aimed to reduce or eliminate the use of coal in 28 cities by 2017, proposed a switch to natural gas or electricity, but gas is favored in most regions as it is cheaper and quicker to lay gas pipelines than setting up power grids.

But its implementation has led to chaos, because regional governments have been pushing for subsidies from the central government and looking for ways to get more political mileage out of projects linked to the clean air campaign, said Lei Yu, a research fellow at Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning under the Ministry of Environmental Protection.

The top-down approach adopted for this campaign is also problematic as lower-level authorities had no involvement in the initial planning, and were only told to follow orders to meet targets set by higher-ups, Lei said.

If you want to make the conversion plan smooth, you need to go to these places to find out how many households should be included and have specific plans for each town, he said. In fact, few relevant studies have been carried out as such conversions are impractical in many rural areas where homes are sparsely scattered or people are so poor they cant afford such upgrades.

According to Chai, from the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, the city of London also took similar measures to phase out coal after the Great London Smog in 1952, but it adopted a more gradual approach. The British capital took 13 years to phase out coal use in half of metropolitan London, cutting the concentration of pollutants from 280 micrograms per cubic meter of air to 50 micrograms by 1969, he said.

Crunch time

The rush to build last-minute infrastructure as the year-end deadline looms has overwhelmed utility companies hired for the task.

Work on a 20-kilometer gas pipeline planned for completion by summer didnt get off ground until at the beginning of 2017 due to official delays, said an executive from a gas company in one northern city.

Several companies said they were struggling to find skilled workers.

One gas company in Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital of Hebei that was tasked with converting 50,000 households in one neighborhood said that by the time they began construction in September, they could hardly find any subcontractors. Shortages in qualified welders and plumbers are particularly severe, he said.

The environmental ministry earlier last week backpedaled on its aggressive clean air campaign, saying households can resume using coal until gas supplies are connected amid growing public dissatisfaction.

Contact reporter Li Rongde (rongdeli@caixin.com)
Three teenagers stole a bag of pizzas from a delivery driver early Saturday morning on the North Side, Madison police said.

The 58-year-old victim had the pizzas taken as he was trying to deliver to an address on the 500 block of Moose Trail, said Madison Police Department spokesman Joel DeSpain.

The robbery took place at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, he said.

The victim "was thrown to the ground as young criminals grabbed the bag of pizzas" from him, DeSpain said.

The suspects -- all approximately 13 to 14 years old -- then ran toward Kennedy Heights with their stolen pizzas, he said.
Zurich Insurance Group said it will pay more than $2 billion to acquire the life insurance business from an Asia Pacific-based bank.

Zurichs $2.14 billion deal to buy OnePath Life from ANZ (Australia and New Zealand Banking Group) gives it a business with reported net earned premiums of $1.1 billion for the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2017, and an after-tax net profit of $142 million. Plans call for funding the acquisition through cash and debt. The deal dovetails with Zurichs strategy of reducing volatility, increasing its bank distribution capiabilties and zeroing in on particular types of products, Group Chief Executive Officer Mario Greco said.

ANZs portfolio of non-traditional and profitable retail producdts fits well with Zurichs strategy to focus on capital-light protection and unit-linked business, Greco said in prepared remarks. Further more, it strengthens [Zurichs] position in Asia Pacific, while building on our strong bank distribution capabilities.

Jack Howell, Zurichs CEO for Asia Pacific, said in prepared remarks that the Asia Pacific region will be a big engine of growth for the insurance giants distribution and service capabilities. It also builds on recent acquisitions of Macquaries retail life insurance business and the Cover-More Group, he said.

With this transaction, which is slated to close by the end of 2018 (subject to regulatory approval), Zurich takes on a 19 percent share of the Australian insurance market. Zurich said that share will make it the markets largest retail life insurance. It also gains about 6 percent of the group life market. Whats more, Zurichs acquisition complements its existing independent adviser and bank distribution channels in Australia.

Zurich said the deal will contribute to profitability from the start by generating a strong cash flow, which will help support future dividend growth. It also helps reduce earnings volability by giving Zurichs business a greater focus on life-insurance related iearnings, which are more stable.

The sale includes a 20-year agreement between Zurich and ANZ in Australia, calling for ANZ to distribut life insurance products through its bank channels. With this, Zurich gains access to ANZs 6 million customers served through more than 680 branches and more than 2,300 ATMs. There are also digital distribution channels.

Source: Zurich Insurance Group
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A bill that would ban dismemberment abortions in Pennsylvania has received bipartisan support, but the states governor may put a stop to it.

According to LifeNews.com, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has already vowed to veto the bill should it pass the state legislature.

The bill, known as Pennsylvania Senate Bill 3, already passed in the Senate and now goes on to the House. It would ban dismemberment abortion, which is the brutal abortion process of tearing living unborn babies apart limb by limb.

In addition to banning this form of abortion, the bill aims to ban abortions after 20 weeks--measures that several other states have already adopted and have referred to as heartbeat bills or pain-capable unborn child bills.

Leaders in the state legislature have met with Wolf to urge him to support the bill, but he seems to be remaining firm on his position, and has called the bill the most extreme anti-choice legislation in the country.

Wolf reportedly has close ties to Planned Parenthood and has even appointed one of the organizations board members as his chief of staff.

Despite Wolfs extreme pro-abortion views, most Pennsylvanians support a dismemberment abortion ban, according to a statewide poll.

Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Publication date: December 11, 2017
The Iraqi military says it has fully liberated the territories that had been under the control of ISIS terrorist gangs.

"Our heroic armed forces have now secured the entire length of the Iraq-Syria border," Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi said on his Twitter account. "We defeated Daesh (ISIS) through our unity and sacrifice for the nation. Long live Iraq and its people."

ISIS had taken control of many large territories in Syria and Iraq. According to CNN, the group controlled more than 34,000 square miles of area from the Mediterranean coast to just south of Baghdad.

Over the past few months, Iraqi soldiers have been working to reclaim those territories. In November, the last town under ISIS control was reclaimed.

The campaign took more than three years and included about 25,000 coalition airstrikes.

"Dear Iraqis, your land has been completely liberated, and your towns and villages have been returned to the homeland," the prime minster said in a televised speech this weekend. "The dream of liberation became a reality."

"ISIS dream has come to an end," he added. "We must remove all its effects and should not allow terrorism to return again."

Experts estimate that ISIS has displaced more than 3.2 million people.

"Our people have paid a high price for its security and stability and the blood of its finest youth, men and women," Al-Abadi said. "Millions of families have suffered the hardships of displacement."

Meanwhile, the U.S. special presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, said the U.S. would still be available to held Iraqis. The U.S. has contributed nearly $1.7 billion in assistance dollars to Iraq since 2014. Another $265 million was also spent to help with stabilization in the country.

"We honor the sacrifices of the Iraqi people, its security forces, and the Kurdish Peshmerga, and admire the unity in their ranks that had made this day possible," Brett McGurk wrote on his Twitter. "That spirit must be renewed and continue as Iraq works to consolidate these historic gains over the coming year.

"Our @coalition will continue to stand with #Iraq to support its security forces, economy, and stabilization to help ensure that #ISIS can never again threaten Iraq's people or use its territory as a haven," he wrote. "We mark today's historic victory mindful of the work that remains."

Photo courtesy: Thinkstock/Memodozaslan

Publication date: December 11, 2017
After Trump's Jerusalem Decision, Christians Need to Watch and Pray

Protesters continue to clash with security forces in Israel, the US Secretary of State faces intense criticism and America's allies all over the world denounce the recent announcement to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.

Theresa May, the United Kingdom Prime Minister has said this is at best, unhelpful. The President of the United States of America said this was overdue to advance the peace, given the reality that Israel's Parliament, Supreme Court and Leader's residence are all in Jerusalem.

Two previous US Presidents had openly endorsed Jerusalem as capital but lacked the nerve to implement. Perhaps we will soon discover there was good reason not to go ahead as pressure mounts to ensure this is another proclamation that will also not be effected.

Christians all over the world, particularly in Africa, Asia and developing countries will not understand why this is important and the new obsession over Jerusalem because they assume, from Biblical traditions, that Jerusalem has always been the centre of Jewish life, ignorant that Palestinians have succeeded in progressing a struggle also claiming Jerusalem as their own home. This skirmish has kept the United Nations juggling many delicate balls ... until Trump destabilises the jugglers act, this week  changing the status quo, much to their extreme chagrin.

Conservatives and Liberals are once again divided, noting that many Christians today are being taught to believe that references and special deference to Israel in the Old Testament should be more allegorically interpreted - identifying "the Church" now as "Israel". Others are more traditional and insist Israel and Jerusalem have a special place irrevocably established in holy scriptures.

Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations went further on News Networks to declare that the United States will no more stand for "bullying" Israel because of the powerful lobby of the Palestinian cause.

Christians are puzzled and divided ... the Pope joins the many nations to decry the move. The United Nations cannot declare where a nation's capital should be, nor can it pontificate on where a nation should place its embassy. The United Nations, a tenant of the United States, will after a decent period of agitation go quiet on the issue  even if the United States has to veto any pronouncements it considers distasteful. Those who say the influence of the United States in negotiating a peace deal is reduced, fail to see that the influence enjoyed is derived from its political and economic muscle, and not necessarily from its record for popular decisions.

Christians, in muted tones, are pointing to prophecies concerning Jerusalem, and most will not be discussing this on their pulpits this week as it would not be the "correct" thing to do. The bolder pulpits who vocalise a position will irritate a fair proportion of the congregation  however they position their views.

Matthew 24:9 (KJV) Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.

There is already a trend of hatred against conservative Christian positions ... this time, there is an overwhelming disparagement from all nations on yet another issue. I sense the beginnings of persecutions as Christians in the United States are blamed for inciting troubles in the West bank, Gaza strip and indeed terrorist reactions all over the world, and as alarm escalates further in response to this decision.

These are times to watch and pray.
'Cardcaptor Sakura' season 4 release date news: 'Clear Card' arc premieres January 2018

The iconic Japanese series "Cardcaptor Sakura" is making a strong comeback come January with the new "Clear Card" arc.

The beloved Sakura is returning a little more grown-up in the animated series, as a freshman in Tomoeda Middle School. Fans would be happy to know that she is continuing her loveline with her boyfriend Syaoran, who is coming back to Tomoeda. The series' other main characters are also returning -- Sakura's best friend, Tomoyo Daidouji, and her protectors, Cerebrus and Yue.

The "Clear Card" arc will run for 26 episodes, a huge upgrade from the usual 13 installments from the past seasons. The Japanese-language series will be simulcast on Crunchyroll with English subtitles and on Funimation in English dub.

The original Clamp manga ran for 12 volumes from 1996 to 2000. It follows an elementary student Sakura, who unlocks her magical powers after accidentally releasing a set of magical cards from a mysterious book.

The "Clear Card" manga sequel, launched in June 2016, features a Sakura who is now in junior high school. In a prophetic dream, a mysterious figure turns the cards blank and powerless. Sakura, along with her friends and guardians, then sets out on a quest to capture the transparent cards using a new and much stronger key.

The new season will be directed by Morio Asaka, who also helmed the original 1990s series. The previous seasons' animation director, Kunihiko Hamada, will also come back as character designer, while Clamp's Mokona will be in charge of costume and card designs. Composition will be by Nanase Ohkawa. Masafumi Mima will sound direct, and Takayuki Negishi will compose the music.

It has been earlier reported that Maaya Sakamoto is returning to sing the opening theme song, "Clear." The ending theme, "Jewelry," will be sung by Hayami Saori.

"Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card" premieres Jan. 7, Sunday, at 7:30 a.m. JST. It will be re-broadcasted on Jan. 12.
Donald Trump's evangelical support plunges 17 points in 10 months

Donald Trump's evangelical support has plunged 17 points in the last 10 months despite him delivering on a number of campaign promises aimed at pleasing his core base.

The drop is one of the sharpest decline of any group but despite this, white evangelicals remain the President's strongest supporters. In February 78 per cent of white evangelicals approved of Trump's job performance but now it's just 61 per cent, according to the latest survey by the Washington-based Pew Research Center.

But at 61 per cent white evangelicals remain the voter bloc most likely to approve of the US President, only topped by Republicans themselves.

It comes in the wake of several Trump decisions, such as recognising Jerusalem as capital of Israel and appointing a conservative judge to the Supreme Court, designed to please his evangelical supporters.

The figures were based on interviews of 1,503 adults conducted between November 29 and December 4 and is compared with similar data from February.

It shows that while Trump's support from his own voters has dropped significantly, it remains roughly in line with his predecessors at the same stage. However where Trump's ratings plummet is among his opponents. In Barack Obama's first year in office his support from Republicans dropped from 37 per cent to 18 per cent. But that is more than double Trump's approval among Democrats which stands at 7 per cent.

Another poll earlier this month found nearly a third of white evangelical said there was 'almost nothing President Trump could do to lose my approval'. However the same poll found one in three voters overall disapproved of Trump so strongly they said 'there is almost nothing he can do to win their support'.
Second-graders Donya Hinnawai and Jesus Zuniga made buttons through a Madison Public Library program while their mothers attended an English class down the hall at Mendota Elementary School.

In another part of the school, second-grader Rajon House beamed as he held up two wooden cars he had constructed with help from his dad.

These were just a couple of scenes at last weeks open house at Mendota, one of two community schools in the Madison School District. Elsewhere that night, parents could pick up free car seats through the Safe Kids Madison Area Coalition, parents and their children could do yoga, a pizza dinner was served and there was open gym.

The button-making activity was offered through the librarys Bubbler program and the English class was offered through the Literacy Network, two of the agencies that have partnered with the North Side school at the monthly open houses from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on the first or second Tuesday of each month.

These community events help the parents get to know each other, Renee Moe said. When you have great teachers and engaged parents the kids do better  Its a great use of the space and the kids feel so comfortable here.

Moe was attending the event with her husband, Jason, and children, Nick, a third-grader, and Nora, a first-grader.

Mendota and Leopold elementary schools became Madisons first two community schools last school year.

The district announced in September that CUNA Mutual Group is committing $500,000 over three years to help the community school model expand to two more schools next year. Community schools have also been supported by a $300,000 grant from the Madison Community Foundation, $120,000 from Madison Gas and Electric and $10,000 from the Magic Pebble Foundation.

Nichelle Nichols, executive director of Family, Youth and Community Engagement, said the school district will have further discussion about how many more can be designated as community schools.

Our district is committed to looking at the community schools model as a way of focusing on the whole child, student learning and leveraging on the assets of families and community partners, she said. It is really thinking about how we open the school up during weekend and evening hours so families living in that community are able to access a lot more opportunities.

Sonia Spencer, community schools resource coordinator at Mendota, said the open houses are held once a month and while last weeks was typical, the offerings vary month to month but dinner is always served.

Other activities that are part of the community school concept at Mendota include a block party in August, after school clubs and a food pantry that sometimes stocks toiletries and clothing.

The definition of a community school is we become the hub of the community so we bring the resources to our families instead of them having to go find them elsewhere, Spencer said.

Because staff members volunteer to help at the open houses, parents get to know them in a different way, said Mendota principal Carlettra Stanford.

Rajon was attending the open house last week with his father and mother, Governor House and Whitney Thomas, and his younger brother, Nyale House, who is a kindergartner.

Governor House said the family attends the open houses whenever possible and was particularly interested in this past one because each boy got fitted for a new booster seat. He likes that his children can show their parents around the school, introduce them to their friends and spend time bonding with them. The other night, he pitched in to help with the car-making because the regular instructor was not there and he especially enjoyed watching his children during open gym.

They showed me they could climb rope, do flips and tumble, he said.

Governor House has attended other community school activities at Mendota and likes the after-school offerings that give kids a safe place to be.

Becky Bush, who was at the open house with her kindergarten daughter, Leah, said she likes that her daughter gets exposed to different activities and has the chance to socialize with other children.

This is very working-parent-friendly, Bush said.
Egypt's Coptic Pope to snub Mike Pence meeting over Jerusalem fallout

Mike Pence is facing snubs from church leaders and politicians across the Middle East when he visits later this month in the wake of Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The leader of Egypt's Coptic Church has cancelled a meeting with Pence following last week's announcement and a senior Palestinian official has said Pence is not welcome in the occupied territories.

Pope Tawadros II said Trump's decision 'did not take into account the feelings of millions of Arab people' in a statement on Saturday. The leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt added the Church 'excused itself from hosting' Pence when he visits Cairo on December 20.

The Grand Imam of Cairo's Al-Azhar mosque has also said he would not meet Pence, according to Egyptian media.

'How can I sit with those who granted what they do not own to those who do not deserve it?' Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb said on Friday.

It comes after a Palestinian official said ministers 'will not receive him in the Palestinian territories', according to al-Jazeera.

But a White House official insisted Pence still plans to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, adding it 'would be counterproductive' for the Palestinian leader to cancel.
Kenya Moore on pregnany rumors: 'I will say when I am able to say'

"Real Housewives of Atlanta" (RHOA) star Kenya Moore was spotted at a fertility clinic in Barbados last month, igniting rumors about the reality star's immediate plans to have a family.

When asked if the rumors are true, the Bravo celebrity didn't exactly deny the claims. "I absolutely want children. My husband wants children with me and we are working on it," she recently told E! News. "I'm hopeful that within the year, I'll have a little one running around."

Kenya Moore is also confident in her abilities to be a parent if ever she and her husband Marc Daly are lucky enough to get one soon. She told US Weekly that everyone who knows her tells her that she's going to be amazing.

"Everyone tells me I will be an amazing mom because I'm very nurturing and I'm very patient," she said. "Look how I am with my little puppies. I treat them like they will break. I spoil my little puppy babies. Everyone says I will be a great mom and I'm hoping I will be too."

Apparently, her husband Marc Daly also shares her dreams of becoming a parent soon. Kenya added to US Weekly that Daly is as excited as she is and that he dreams of driving a minivan. She also shared that Daly wants to be the kind of father that is a hundred percent involved with his kids.

Because of her outspoken stance when it comes to raising a family, Kenya Moore was also asked some serious baby questions during her appearance on the Wendy Williams Show Tuesday morning. When Wendy Williams asked her if she was pregnant, Kenya opted to keep mum.

"I will say when I am able to say. We have been very upfront about wanting to have kids together," she answered.

Either way, fans of the star won't have to wait long if all the pregnancy rumors are true since Kenya isn't planning on keeping her pregnancy a secret. Right now, the "RHOA" star is at the peak of her life, having married husband Marc Daly in a secret wedding in Sta. Lucia last summer.

"Real Housewives of Atlanta" airs every Sunday, at 8 p.m. EST on Bravo.
Samsung Galaxy S9, S9 Plus release date, specs rumors: Next flagship may not feature new 21:9 display aspect ratio?

The remaining days of 2017 are numbered, which means that the time has come to talk about the upcoming flagship devices of the industry's leading tech firms. For one, the rumors are rife that Samsung will launch its 2018 high-end smartphones, Galaxy S9 and S9+, a bit earlier than usual. However, past rumors about its display ratio seem to be untrue.

A Dutch online publication called Galaxy Club reported that the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ will stick to the current 18:9 display ratio. However, the front design will be changed to reach up to 90% screen ratio. This will be done by further reducing the top and bottom bezels. By trimming down the bezels, Samsung will no longer have to create much larger display panels for the new S9 handsets just to achieve the target 90% aspect ratio.

Previously, it was believed that the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ would feature an impressively large 21:9 display ratio, making the Galaxy S8, S8+, and Note 8's 18:5:9 appearance look smaller. Aside from the increased screen-to-body ratio, it was posited that the Galaxy S9 smartphone will have a much taller appearance that the previous top-tier handsets.

Meanwhile, it appears that the Galaxy S series followers should not expect too much from the S9 and S9+ variants. According to the latest reports, Samsung could only offer a minor incremental update for its next flagship phones, at best. This is because the South Korean tech giant has already made all the possible upgrades in the current Galaxy S8 smartphones, most especially the groundbreaking Infinite display feature. For the 2018 iteration to top off its predecessor, it should introduce big changes in terms of design and performance.

The Samsung Galaxy S9 is expected to sport a 5.8-inch all-screen display, just like its S8 counterpart, while the S9+ will have a larger 6.2-inch display panel. The 2018 flagships will include 4 gigabytes (GB) and 6 GB of random access memory (RAM), depending on the variant, while the performance will receive a significant boost, thanks to the newly-launched Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip.
'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse' trailer reveals Miles Morales in the lead role; film promises a collection of spider-themed characters

The newest Spider-Man film from Sony Pictures just dropped its first trailer. Titled "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse," the movie will not feature Peter Parker as usual, but fellow costumed superhero Miles Morales.

The 3D animated trailer shows Spider-man visit the grave of Peter Parker, implying that the original wearer of the superhero mask is dead. It then proceeds to show footage of the masked hero swinging and slinging his way through city buildings and highways. On a rooftop scene, the hero takes the mask off and reveals an almost out-of-breath Morales.

Shameik Moore from "The Get Down" will be lending his voice to the film's protagonist.

The idea beyond the film is to touch on the Spider-Verse story thread in the comics. In this story, multiple Spider-Men from different dimensions come together to destroy an evil threat. It also coincides with the movie's tagline being, "Enter a universe where more than one wears the mask."

The final scene also alludes to this, with Morales asking who presumably is a fellow Spider-man. "So how many of us are there?" he asks.

In the original comics, the Spider-verse featured different versions of Spider-themed characters. There was Parker (revealed to be deceased in the upcoming Sony film) and Silk, a female superhero who was bitten by the same radioactive spider that bit Parker.

There was also Spider-Woman, also known as Jessica Drew; Spider-Gwen, who is a superhero version of Gwen Stacy from another dimension; and Spider-UK. May "Mayday" Parker, Parker, daughter of Parker and Mary Jane Watson from an alternate future, makes an appearance as well.

The Spider-verse heroes were not limited to the human versions, though. Spider-Ham, also known as Peter Porker, made an appearance in the comic, too. Spider-Ham was supposed to be a comedic parody of the Spider-man character, appearing as an anthropomorphic pig in the iconic red-and-black spider costume.

It seems that "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" teases a collection of heroes similar to the comics. Sony Pictures will release the spider-filled 3D animated film on Dec. 21, 2018.
St Helen's Bishopgate hints it will leave Church of England unless next Bishop of London is conservative on sex

One of London's largest Anglican churches is hinting it will walk away from the Church of England if the next Bishop of London is not conservative on sexuality.

William Taylor, Rector at St Helen's Bishopgate, said his first question to the new Bishop of London, who is yet to be announced, will be to ask whether they are prepared to 'declare as sin what God calls sin' and to summon them to repentance.

If the new bishop refuses to do so publicly, Taylor said he will have no choice but to distance his parish from the Church of England.

St Helen's Bishopgate is one of the biggest and most influential evangelical churches in the country, attracting nearly 2,000 people to its four Sunday services each week. Its associate rector, Charles Skrine, is on the panel who will nominate the next Bishop of London and he is also a member of the Church's ruling general synod.

Taylor said the previous Bishop of London, Richard Chartres', willingness to describe sexual relationships outside marriage between one man and one woman as sinful meant St Helen's could work with other Anglican churches around London.

Quoting a passage in the Bible which instructs Christians 'to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned' and to 'keep away from them', Taylor said there was a necessary 'avoidance' of Christians who accept 'what the Bible calls sexual immorality'.

He told his congregation there was a group in the CofE 'denying the teaching of the Bible on marriage', an apparent reference to pro gay marriage activists.

'We now wait to see what the new Bishop of London's views are,' he said in a sermon last week.

'My first question to him or her will be: "Are you prepared to openly to declare as sin what God calls sin and to summon all people to repentance and to do so publicly?"

'If the answer is "no" then there is an "unavoidable avoidance" for us all.' This is an apparent reference to the necessity of the church distancing itself from its bishop.

Christian Today has approached St Helen's Bishopgate for comment and clarification but they declined to comment.

The final interviews for the new Bishop of London concluded last week. The panel, whose deliberations are secret, will now hand the suggested name to Downing Street and, if approved, the announcement will be made in January.

Taylor went on to criticise the Archbishop of Canterbury for asking Church of England parishes with different views on sexuality to 'walk together', saying that 'flatly contradicts' the Bible.

'For that reason I have made perfectly plain both in private conversations and in formal meetings with the current acting Bishop in London that from now on as a church in all our relationships in this diocese we can no longer walk together with those who take that position [affirming of gay relationships].'

He added: 'At this stage I don't think it is necessary for us to leave the Church of England  we are not the divisive ones, we are not the ones who have walked away.'

It comes after St Helen's withdrew itself from relations with its immediate Anglican neighbours last week. In a letter to the area dean in the City of London, Rev Oliver Ross, Taylor cited 'the widely publicised views held by certain members of the deanery chapter' as reasons for the split.

'We (the clergy, wardens and PCC of St Helen's) no longer consider these church leaders who have ceased to 'believe and uphold the Christian faith Church of England has received it' to be 'walking together' with us in any meaningful partnership', he said without naming which churches he was particularly concerned about.

However Rev Bertrand Olivier, the openly gay vicar of All Hallows by the Tower which is half a mile from St Helen's, told Christian Today he was 'not surprised' by the decision.

While the decision will likely only have minor local ramifications, Taylor's threat over the new Bishop of London will prompt fears St Helen's could leave the wider Church of England in the near future.

It comes as tensions over sexuality in the Church are escalating with Anglican Mission in England  a rival Anglican movement to the CofE  ordained its own clergy for the first time last week.

Taylor was at the ordination service in east London last Thursday night and AMiE could provide a home for parishes who want to keep to an Anglican model of church but dislike what they see as the CofE's growing tolerance towards gay relationships.
'Victory Day': Iraq military parade celebrates ISIS defeat

An Iraqi military parade in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone celebrated final victory over Islamic State on Sunday, with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi looking on as troops marched in formation, their bodies spelling 'victory day' in Arabic.

Abadi, who is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces, listened solemnly to Quranic verses from a chapter titled al-Nasr, meaning victory.

Iraqi forces recaptured the last areas still under Islamic State control along the border with Syria on Saturday and secured the western desert, marking the end of the war against the militants three years after they had captured about a third of Iraq's territory.

The forces fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria now expect a new phase of guerrilla warfare.

Watching the parade on Sunday, state television showed Abadi sat on a throne-like chair placed between two Iraqi flags with the country's official seal behind him, and with all other officials sat at a distance from him.

Abadi declared December 10 would be an annual national holiday. Fighter jets were seen and heard flying over Baghdad's skies.

An announcer introduced various factions who took on Islamic State as troops marched, tanks rolled by and helicopters hovered, all brandishing Iraqi flags as Abadi stood up and waved.

Those who fought were drawn from the army, air force, federal and local police, elite counter-terrorism forces, as well as Shi'ite and Sunni paramilitaries and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters. They received key air support from a US-led global coalition.

In his victory speech, delivered on Saturday, Abadi did not mention the Peshmerga, who played a big part in the fight against Islamic State.

The central government in Baghdad is in conflict with the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government after the latter unilaterally held an independence referendum in September.

Instead Abadi hailed the Iranian-trained and backed Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), a group of Shi'ite militias, many of whom are loyal to Iran.

He also said that the state should have a legitimate monopoly on arms, however. Disarming the PMF is seen as Abadi's greatest challenge after Islamic State's defeat.

The man who many saw as weak and ineffectual when he took over in 2014 from a predecessor who was blamed for the Islamic State takeover now heads towards an election next year as the commander who freed Iraqi lands.

Or as one Western diplomat described him - 'the most popular man in Iraq.'
Why some Christian leaders warned Trump from declaring Jerusalem as the capital of Israel

In a bold move, President Donald Trump declared on December 6 that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. While many applauded the president's decision, some Christian leaders actually warned him against doing so.

Pope Francis is one of them. Just hours before the president's announcement, the Pope pleaded with Trump not to stir any tension in the region. "I cannot remain silent about my deep concern for the situation that has developed in recent days and, at the same time, I wish to make a heartfelt appeal to ensure that everyone is committed to respecting the status quo of the city, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations," he said.

"Jerusalem is a unique city, sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, where the Holy Places for the respective religions are venerated, and it has a special vocation to peace," the pope continued.

Pope Francis added that he is praying that "wisdom and prudence prevail," and he is hoping no announcement would be made to add "new elements of tension in a world already shaken and scarred by many cruel conflicts."

Several religious leaders from Jerusalem shared the same sentiment. They even sent a letter to Trump on Wednesday and urged him not to make any drastic changes in the status of the city, as it risks rocking the region's shaky peace status.

"We are certain that such steps will yield increased hatred, conflict, violence and suffering in Jerusalem and the Holy Land, moving us farther from the goal of unity and deeper toward destructive division," the group of 13 Christian leaders wrote. "We ask from you Mr. President to help us all walk towards more love and a definitive peace, which cannot be reached without Jerusalem being for all."

Protests have already erupted after Trump's proclamation. The Palestinian cities of Gaza City and Rafah were swarmed with angry protesters who chanted, "Death to America," "Death to Israel" and "Down with Trump." The angry mob also burned down American and Israeli flags, together with photos of Trump.
A man was killed Sunday morning after a speeding driver showing "obvious signs of intoxication" ran a red light near downtown, sparking a wreck that left two people in the hospital and car parts strewn across the road.

Alex Loomis is now facing an intoxication manslaughter charge, according to the Harris County District Attorney's Office.
Kids Company trustees have been given a deadline of next week to agree a voluntary ban on them from acting as company directors, according to national news sources.

Kids Company collapsed in July 2015, shortly after receiving a 3m government bailout. Following a series of investigations, the Insolvency Service wrote to the former trustees and chief executive of Kids Company in July, telling them that the Business Secretary will bring court proceedings to ban them from being company directors.

The proceedings would ban the individuals from running or controlling companies for between two and a half and six years.

In October, Sky News reported that some Kids Company trustees might agree to voluntary bans for shorter periods, rather than testing the issue in court. This was thought to include the charitys chair, Alan Yentob, although this has not been confirmed.

Sky News and The Times have both now reported that negotiations over voluntary reductions have gone on for over two months, and that the Insolvency Service has handed down a deadline of 20 December for any negotiations to conclude. If the trustees do not agree before the deadline, the case will go to court, the reports said.

Camila Batmanghelidjh, the chief executive of Kids Company, was included in the list of those facing bans because the Insolvency Service argued she was a de facto director even though she was not a trustee. Batmanghelidjh is not among those who might agree voluntary bans, it is understood.

Both the Insolvency Service and Bates Wells Braithwaite, the lawyers representing the trustees, have both declined to comment.
Editors note: This piece is co-published with The Guardian, which has invited a team of Dreamers to guest-edit the US edition for the next three days. In October, Guardian editors met with the team of Dreamersundocumented immigrants who first came to the US as childrenfor the first time to discuss commissions for the project. What did our panel of Dreamers want to see more of in the news? What issues could be better covered? Did they have any tips for journalists working on stories about their lives, and their right to stay in the US? The answer was a resounding yesand their recommendations are below.

Were not all Mexican

Though a lot, about 79 percent, of us are. People who were born in Mexico have a much different experience than those from places like Guatemala, South Korea and India. Also, Mexico is big, and were not all from Mexico City.

Dont say we were brought here

We dont like sentences such as: Caitlins mother brought her to the US from Guatemala when she was nine in news stories. The word brought implies we are powerless, even if we have been capable of leaving the US for years and are adults with jobs. Try: Caitlin came to the US from Guatemala when she was nine.

We dont all have 4.2 GPAs

We understand a great student who is involved with their community is a sympathetic character, but everyone who qualifies for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) is worthy of deportation relief. The stories of the best and brightest, the model immigrants, arent more important than those who have to work low-paying jobs because of their immigration status, or who drop out of school to help their families.

Dont blame our parents

They made the best decision they could for us, and have often made much bigger sacrifices than we have. They risked their lives to try to get us a better future. We wouldnt be here without them, and their sacrifices are what makes it possible for us to fight for our future in the US.

DACA is not amnesty

Thanks to anti-immigrant political rhetoric, some people have taken it as fact that DACA grants us amnesty. In reality, the program grants two years of deportation relief that can be revoked. At no point did the program put us on a path to citizenship.

Our future is not an item to cross off a list

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Dont treat it like a budget line item. When writing policy stories, keep in mind that these decisions have a huge impact on our lives.

Our community is not defined by our status

Immigration activists arent just fighting for legal status for themselves; they are fighting for the communities they live in. By seeking fair treatment, Dreamer activists also hope to improve their communities by setting higher standards for issues like education and criminal justice.

This isnt just about immigration

We also want better representation for other underrepresented groupslike the LGBT community and other racial minorities.

Dont present us as a bargaining chip

Were nearly 800,000 people, not just a tool for politicians to get more votes or sneak in other political wins. Our lives cant be used for policies that arent representative of our community.

Dont victimize us

We know more about our situation than anyone and were fighting it. Ask us about it, and give us a voice. We dont need your pity.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Itzel Guillen, Irving Hernandez, and Allyson Duarte are Dreamers who, with Guardian editors, are guest-editing the US edition of The Guardian.
Each year hundreds of coyotes are killed in competitions throughout Wisconsin. Prizes include cash, guns and hunting equipment. Children, now even toddlers in Wisconsin, are encouraged to participate, and social media pages, including Moondog Madness, show kids posing with assault rifles beside the bloodied bodies of the dogs they killed.

These contests send a message that killing is fun, wild animals are disposable, and life is cheap. This puts the public at risk, not to mention other animals who may be mistaken during this blood lust "sport." It is possible that federally protected wolves are using the Wisconsin River corridor to move to Iowa and other states. A person in our community lost dogs that were killed by a coyote hunter.

I hope the citizens of Wisconsin will be outraged to learn that this is coming to our communities. The contests serve no ecological purpose. They are at odds with sound wildlife management. Far from offering any beneficial management purpose, wildlife killing contests simply promote gratuitous violence and the destruction of countless coyotes for no reason. Coyotes help balance nature, and stop chronic wasting disease.

Melissa Smith, Madison
Last week began with analysis of one embarrassing correction by a major news outlet and ended with President Donald Trump on stage in Florida railing about all the corrections the media has been making. Trumps verbal assaults on the press are nothing new, but after three major mistakes in eight days on the Trump-Russia investigation, he had some new ammunition to work with.

First, a brief refresher on what went wrong:

On December 1, ABC Newss Brian Ross rushed to air with a bombshell report: Michael Flynn was prepared to testify that he had been instructed by then-candidate Donald Trump to initiate contact with Russian officials. Later that day, Ross corrected his reporting, stating that it was shortly after the election that the directive was issued. He was suspended by ABC for four weeks and will no longer cover stories involving the president.

ABC Newss Brian Ross rushed to air with a bombshell report: Michael Flynn was prepared to testify that he had been instructed by then-candidate Donald Trump to initiate contact with Russian officials. Later that day, Ross corrected his reporting, stating that it was shortly after the election that the directive was issued. He was suspended by ABC for four weeks and will no longer cover stories involving the president. Last Wednesday, several financial news outlets, including Reuters and Bloomberg, walked back their reports that special counsel Robert Mueller had issued a subpoena for President Trumps personal bank records after The Wall Street Journal reported the subpoenas were for people or entities affiliated with the president.

several financial news outlets, including Reuters and Bloomberg, walked back their reports that special counsel Robert Mueller had issued a subpoena for President Trumps personal bank records after The Wall Street Journal reported the subpoenas were for people or entities affiliated with the president. On Friday, CNN, CBS, and MSNBC all reported on an email that seemed to prove the Trump campaign had advanced notice about emails hacked by Wikileaks. The story soon fell apart, however, because the email in question was sent 10 days after CNN and others reported, meaning it appeared in Trumps inbox after the Wikileaks information was public.

With a president eager to paint the press as his enemy, and at least part of the nation ready to believe him, the stakes for getting the story right are high. Reporters make mistakes, of course, and when they do, they correct, explain, and move on. Three mistakes that all erred in the same directionthat is, the initial, incorrect reporting was worse for Trump than what actually happenedwont help journalists regain the trust among Trumps supporters, many of whom believe that the media is out to get him.

Any way you look at it, last week was a bad one for the media at large. The corrections, reflection, and at times over-the-top hand-wringing are all being adjudicated in the public eye, and it seems more people are paying more attention than ever before. Below, more on the reaction to a rough week for journalists.

Tough criticism: The Intercepts Glenn Greenwald offered a harsh critique of the way the mainstream press has covered the Trump-Russia story.

The Intercepts Glenn Greenwald offered a harsh critique of the way the mainstream press has covered the Trump-Russia story. Analyzing the error: CNNs Oliver Darcy reports on his own outlets handling of their erroneous story. Neither journalist on the story will be disciplined, Darcy reports, because they followed CNNs editorial standards process.

CNNs Oliver Darcy reports on his own outlets handling of their erroneous story. Neither journalist on the story will be disciplined, Darcy reports, because they followed CNNs editorial standards process. More corrections: Fox News corrected a story in which it claimed that one of Roy Moores accusers had forged evidence against him.

Fox News corrected a story in which it claimed that one of Roy Moores accusers had forged evidence against him. Fuel for Trumps attacks: The New York Timess Michael Grynbaum and Sydney Ember summarize a rough week for reporters at a time when news organizations are confronting a skeptical public, and a president who delights in attacking the media as fake news.

The New York Timess Michael Grynbaum and Sydney Ember summarize a rough week for reporters at a time when news organizations are confronting a skeptical public, and a president who delights in attacking the media as fake news. A worthy project: Recognizing a gap between the way reporters and the public understand journalistic methods, The Washington Posts Margaret Sullivan explains how anonymous sourcing works.

ICYMI: MSNBC makes the right call

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Other notable stories

The Boston Herald has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and will be sold to Gatehouse Media, LLC.

MediaFiles Shira Hanau examines The New York Timess Reader Center experiment. The project was pitched as a replacement for the public editor position that the Times cut last spring, but Hanau finds frustration with an operation that, as former Public Editor Dan Okrent tells Hanau, can explain, but never indicts.

Robert McFadden writes the Times obituary for Simeon Booker, a pioneering African American journalist for Ebony and Jet, and The Washington Posts first black reporter.

Sports Illustrateds Richard Deitsch catalogs more than 100 of his favorite stories, both sports and non-sports, published in the past year.

Steve Bannon is headed back to satellite radio, and thats caused a backlash against Sirius XM among left-leaning celebrities, CNNs Jackie Wattles reports.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated how long Brian Rosss suspension lasts. It is four weeks, not four months.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Pete Vernon is a former CJR staff writer. Follow him on Twitter @ByPeteVernon.
A Vermont man denied in court papers Wednesday allegations that he killed his millionaire grandfather in 2013 and claims he doesnt know the whereabouts of his mother who disappeared after a boat they were on sank off Rhode Island.

Nathan Carman has been called a suspect in the shooting death of 87-year-old real estate developer John Chakalos in Connecticut. No ones been arrested.

He has also been questioned about the day his boat sank with his mother, Linda Carman, on it. Shes presumed dead. He said he doesnt know if anyone has seen his mother since their fishing trip in 2016.

In July, the three sisters of Linda Carman filed a lawsuit in New Hampshire accusing Nathan Carman of killing Chakalos and possibly his mother. Theyve asked a judge to block Nathan Carman from collecting money from his grandfathers estate. Chakalos left more than $29 million to his four daughters, including Linda Carman, and $7 million of that money could go to Nathan Carman.

The sisters attorney, Dan Small, has said all the evidence points to Nathan Carman as the killer. If the family wins the lawsuit, Small has said any money that would have gone to Carman would go to investigate the death of John Chakalos and Linda Carman.

Nathan Carman on Wednesday moved to dismiss the lawsuit, saying Chakalos wasnt a resident of New Hampshire at the time of his death.

The family on Wednesday insisted in a statement that Chakalos was a long time resident of Chesterfield, New Hampshire, and a well-known, active member of the community.

The groundless claims and denials contained in Nathan Carmans response filing do not reflect reality, and we are confident the legal process will recognize this, Small said.

In the sisters lawsuit, lawyers for the family said that no has seen Linda Carman since she boarded the boat, the Chicken Pox, with Nathan Carman. In their motion to dismiss, lawyers for Nathan Carman said he lacks sufficient information to either admit or deny that he was the last to see his mother.

Nathan Carman has acknowledged that he patched some holes on the 31-foot-long boat with marine putty before going fishing with his mother but insisted the boat was seaworthy. Insurance companies claimed in court earlier this year that incomplete, improper, and faulty repairs were made the day before the boat sank.

A federal magistrate judge on Friday ordered Nathan Carman to turn over the information about a Sig Sauer .308-caliber semi-automatic rifle he owned. That weapon is now missing, according to documents filed in a different lawsuit in New Hampshire. The documents say the same caliber weapon was used to kill Carmans grandfather in Connecticut in 2013.

The judge rejected requests to get information about other guns Carman may have owned.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Sexual misconduct happens at work not because companies dont publish anti-harassment policies, experts say, but because managers dont enforce them  and because people fail to apply them to themselves.

While the floodgates on reporting abuse and sexual harassment have opened with high-profile cases in Big Tech, Hollywood and Washington, its not yet clear whether the effects of the (hash)metoo movement have trickled down to day-to-day offices, factories and other places regular people work.

I do think it will be a lasting movement, said Roberta Kaplan, an attorney who won the Supreme Court case that legalized gay marriage in the U.S. But while Kaplan  who is defending a woman who is being sued by Hollywood produced Brett Ratner after accusing him of rape  thinks most companies have policies that are pretty good, theres still a problem: Many people dont truly comprehend them.

They understand the English language, and what the words mean in the abstract sense, but I dont think most people understood it in everyday life, she said.

In an unusual move for a large company, Facebook on Friday publicly released its policies against workplace harassment and bullying, including its enforcement procedures and how it investigates complaints. The company says it wants to help other companies create better policies, and ideally prompt them to publish their own procedures too.

We dont think we are perfect, we dont think we have all the answers, said Lori Goler, the companys vice president of people. But she said companies should come together to make sure that we all learn from each other.

Facebook itself has been sued for sex discrimination and harassment, in 2015 by a former employee who said she was wrongfully terminated in 2013 after she complained about being harassed. The woman, Chia Hong, later dropped the suit, and Facebook has maintained no wrongdoing.

Facebook would not disclose how many complaints of sexual harassment it has investigated, or specific details on how well its policy has actually worked. Goler said the goal is not to reduce the number of reports, but to get as many people to raise their hand as possible.

Dan Eaton, an employment attorney and instructor of business ethics at San Diego State University, said sexual harassment policies, like ethics policies, are only as good as the managers who implement them and are responsible for making sure there is broad compliance.

For a policy to be effective, he said, it has to be applied consistently  and if wrongdoing is found, there have to be consequences that are disclosed not only to the person who complained but to the entire workplace.

That sends a message that these policies are not only on paper but in action, he said. It is not clear if Facebooks policy meets that standard.

Goler said that while Facebooks policy itself has been pretty consistent over the years, the training around has evolved to address the gray areas and nuanced situations that people might encounter. For example, she said, how many times do you ask someone out? before backing off, and what if they dont say no outright but that they are busy? Do you ask again?

Facebook, like many other companies, will fire offenders if the company determines that sexual harassment has taken place. More difficult are the unclear cases, where its one persons word against anothers.

Facebook also has a mandatory arbitration agreement for anyone who joins the company. Experts on workplace harassment say these sorts of clauses can deter people who want to report harassment.

Facebooks move on Friday follows Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandbergs post over the weekend warning of a potential backlash against women and urging companies to put clear policies in place on how they handle sexual harassment allegations.

We need systemic, lasting changes that deter bad behavior and protect everyone, from professionals climbing the corporate ladder to workers in low-paid positions who often have little power, she wrote. We need to end the abuse of power imbalances due to gender  and race and ethnicity, too. We must not lose this opportunity.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
It took more than a decade, but California has a new law requiring extensive labeling of ingredients in cleaning products, and it got support from what might seem the unlikeliest of advocates: product manufacturers themselves.

Companies like Procter & Gamble Co. and Easy-Off maker Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc, after years of arguing the need to preserve their proprietary formulas in detergents and oven cleaners, came to the table with lawmakers and health and environmental groups and ultimately signed on.

P&G, which makes Mr. Clean and Comet, and other manufacturers have also faced growing pressure from retailers to disclose  and in some cases, remove  ingredients. Merchants are responding to customers demands for transparency about chemicals like formaldehyde and phthalates.

The timing was right, said Julie Froelicher, P&Gs North American regulatory and technical relations manager. A growing chorus of consumers want to know more about whats in their products, she said.

But pushback is building, too. The Trump administrations deregulation drive and a raft of disclosure measures in other states has prompted about 50 trade groups to lobby for a national labeling standard that would challenge rules like the new California law, Bloomberg reported last month. Opponents say such a move would weaken consumer protections. States have long set the pace for regulating consumer safety, with California leading the way.

Governor Jerry Brown signed Californias Cleaning Product Right to Know Act into law in October. The first phase takes effect in 2020, when manufacturers of detergents, disinfectants and other household products will be required to list online any substances linked to harmful health effects, along with most other ingredients. By January 2021, they will need to do so on product labels as well.

In New York, meantime, Governor Andrew Cuomo used his 2017 state-of-the-state report to announce that manufacturers would be required to list cleaning-product chemicals on easily searchable websites. Though New York has had disclosure regulations on its books for four decades, they havent been enforced. The state is now working to finalize updated rules.

According to the Environmental Working Group, a co-sponsor of the California legislation, only 7 percent of cleaning products adequately list ingredients.

Wal-Mart Move

Yet pressure on manufacturers is growing from leading retailers like Target Corp. and Home Depot Inc. Last year, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. specified eight chemical groups it wants eliminated, including formaldehyde, and this year, expanded the list of substances its encouraging suppliers to remove.

Over the years, I think that a lot of the fundamental attitude of were not doing this eroded, in part because of what Wal-Mart was doing, said Deborah Goldberg, a managing attorney at Earthjustice, a group that brings lawsuits to challenge or enforce environmental policy. Earthjustice sued P&G, Reckitt Benckiser, Church & Dwight Co. and Colgate-Palmolive Co. in 2009 to force them to comply with the New York state rules issued in the 1970s, though not enforced. The case was dismissed.

A lot has happened since then. P&G began posting a list of ingredients in its goods in 2012, along with a list of substances it avoids. But it wasnt product specific, so a consumer couldnt tell which chemicals were in which items. This year, the company said it would begin listing ingredients in fragrances used in products like Febreze and Herbal Essences. Companies frequently exclude specific components in favor of generic terms like fragrance, which can mask dozens of ingredients.

Sick Cleaners

Proponents of the California law say theres plenty to be concerned about in household cleaners, including ingredients that may cause cancer or reproductive harm. One of the sponsors, Womens Voices for the Earth, cites studies showing that workers who clean for a living have higher rates of asthma and are more likely to have children with birth defects.

State Senator Ricardo Lara, who sponsored the law in the legislature, knows those concerns well. His immigrant mother spent years cleaning homes in some of the states wealthiest communities. Shed often come home feeling dizzy or sick. As a result, this issue is very personal on multiple fronts, Lara said.

Disclosing proprietary formulations was a sticking point in the discussions for companies like P&G. The sides finally agreed to list substances linked to harmful effects while letting companies claim trade-secret protections for other ingredients, said Janet Nudelman, director of program and policy for Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, who helped negotiate the legislation.

Social change doesnt happen overnight, said Nudelman, who credited the confluence of consumer activism and the push by retailers for helping drive the bill into law in California. This conversation has really evolved and changed over the past 10 years.

Changed Positions

Like P&G, fragrance maker Givaudan SA was initially opposed to the California measure, but came around to support it. The Swiss-based company backs more disclosure and has been in discussions for years, said Greg Adamson, senior vice president for regulatory affairs, product safety and sustainability.

Previous attempts to establish a rule lacked clarity, and there wasnt a willingness to have a frank and good-faith type of discussion about concerns like proprietary information and technology, Adamson said.

The Consumer Specialty Products Association, a trade group whose members include P&G, Clorox Co. and SC Johnson, according to its 2016 annual report, also supported the law in the end. As negotiations continued, some other powerful opponents  the California Retailers Association, American Cleaning Institute and International Fragrance Associations North America unit  changed their stance from opposed to neutral.

Our members needed assurances that confidential business information would be protected to safeguard our members brands and investments in innovation, said Steve Caldeira, CSPAs president and chief executive officer.

Grocery and chemical trade groups were among those that remained opposed, arguing the rules were unclear, used questionable science and could prompt frivolous, misguided lawsuits, according to an August letter sent to the State Assembly.

Federal cleaning-product disclosure bills introduced by former New York Representative Steve Israel and California Representative Raul Ruiz, both Democrats, havent progressed.

But with two of the largest states creating a de facto national standard, companies now have a much greater incentive to formulate away from some of these chemicals of concern, said Sarah Ervin, director of governmental affairs at Honest Co., a maker of personal-care and baby products. She helped negotiate the California law.

It wont be easy. Though CSPA started a voluntary labeling program in 2010, Caldeira said, the new law means members will all have to make changes and invest a lot of time and resources into meeting the requirements.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.
California courts have adopted the Genuine Dispute Doctrine. Chateau Chamberay Homeowners Assn v. Associated Internat. Ins. Co., (2001) 90 Cal. App. 4th 335, 347, 108 Cal. Rptr. 2d 776 ([A]n insurer denying or delaying the payment of policy benefits due to the existence of a genuine dispute with its insured as to the existence of coverage liability or the amount of the insureds coverage claim is not liable in bad faith even though it may be liable for breach of contract.) The Genuine Dispute Doctrine applies not only to disputes over insurance policy interpretation, but also to factual disputes. See, Wilson v. 21st Century Ins. Co., (2007) 42 Cal. 4th 713, 723, 68 Cal. Rptr. 3d 746, 171 P.3d 1082. However, the Genuine Dispute Doctrine will not relieve insurance companies from their obligation to thoroughly and fairly investigate, process, and evaluate the insureds claim. In determining whether a dispute is genuine and actually exists, the courts do not strive to determine which party is right as to the disputed matter, but only whether a reasonable and legitimate dispute actually exists. Chateau Chamberay, 90 Cal. App. 4th at 348, fn. 7, 108 Cal. Rptr. 2d 776. When a dispute is founded on a basis that is reasonable under all of the circumstances, it is a legitimate, genuine dispute. Wilson, 42 Cal. 4th at 724 fn. 7, 68 Cal. Rptr 3d 746. In determining the reasonableness of the insurance companys decisions and actions, the court looks to the state of the record at the time that the decision was made.

It is against the foregoing backdrop that the California Court of Appeals, Division 3, in Zubillaga v. Allstate Indemnity Co., 12 Cal. App. 5th, 1071, 219 Cal. Rptr. 3d 620 (2017) considered whether a trial courts grant of summary judgment was appropriate where the insurance company relied upon an IME to inform its settlement value decisions. The trial court found that Allstates utilization of an IME which arguably supported its settlement value was sufficient to grant summary judgment. However, the California Court of Appeals disagreed.

Allstate had an IME done by an independent medical doctor. As additional records were discovered, they were provided to the IME doctor. However, late in the case, prior to an arbitration being convened, plaintiffs counsel yet again provided additional medical updates which were not provided to the IME doctor. The additional records were directly relevant to the utilization of epidural injections by plaintiffs treating physicians. Rather than having these additional records reviewed by the IME doctor, Allstate stayed pat on its prior evaluations from the IME doctor. For that reason, the California Court of Appeals in Zubillaga reversed the trial courts grant of summary judgment.

The court found that the undisputed facts demonstrated that the IME doctors opinions were rendered on two prior occasions in October and November 2012 and that Allstate continued to rely upon the IME doctors opinions through the arbitration which occurred in September 2013 without ever consulting the IME doctor again or conducting any further investigation. During that intervening time period, the plaintiff had received one lumbar steroidal epidural injection and the insureds treating doctor had recommended three more. Because Allstate never asked its IME doctor to review these additional records, recommendations and treatment, and Allstate continued to rely upon the IME doctors opinions as the basis for disputing the medical necessity and reasonable value of the treatments, as well as the reasonableness of the recommendations being made, the Court found that a question of fact existed whereby a reasonable jury could conclude that Allstates assertion that it reasonably continued to rely upon its IME doctors opinions, or that it had inadequate time to have him reexamine those opinions or conduct further discovery, had to be decided by a jury. The court made clear, however, that it was not deciding the issue of bad faith, but simply that failure to continue to investigate when presented with additional information in the form of having the additional information reviewed by the IME doctor created a question of fact as to whether Allstate acted unreasonably and in bad faith.
A week of destructive fires in Southern California is ending but danger still looms.

Well into whats considered the wet season, theres been nary a drop of rain. Thats good for sun-seeking tourists, but could spell more disaster for a region that emerged this spring from a yearslong drought and now has firefighters on edge because of parched conditions and no end in sight to the typical fire season.

This is the new normal, Gov. Jerry Brown warned Saturday after surveying damage from the deadly Ventura County fire that has caused the most destruction and continued burning out of control. Were about ready to have firefighting at Christmas. This is very odd and unusual.

Even as firefighters made progress containing six major wildfires from Santa Barbara to San Diego County and most evacuees were allowed to return home, predicted gusts of up to 50 mph (80 kph) through Sunday posed a threat of flaring up existing blazes or spreading new ones. High fire risk is expected to last into January and the governor and experts said climate change is making it a year-round threat.

Overall, the fires have destroyed nearly 800 homes and other buildings, killed dozens of horses and forced more than 200,000 people to flee flames that have burned over 270 square miles (700 square kilometers) since Monday. One death, so far, a 70-year-old woman who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city next to Ventura where the fire began.

The Ventura blaze continued to burn into rugged mountains in the Los Padres National Forest near the little town of Ojai and toward a preserve established for endangered California condors. While many evacuation orders were lifted, new ones were established as the fire grew.

Brown said he had witnessed the vagaries of the wind that had destroyed some houses and left others standing and expressed concern for those who lost everything.

What can you say? he asked. When you lose your house and your belongings and people lose their animals, it is a horror and its a horror we want to minimize.

Firefighters were on high alert for dangerous fire potential even before the first blazes broke out. On Dec. 1, they began planning for extreme winds forecast in the week ahead.

Ken Pimlott, chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said authorities were prepared for destruction on the level of 2003 and 2007 firestorms in Southern California and possibly those in Northern California that killed 44 people and destroyed nearly 9,000 homes and other buildings in October.

By Monday, officials had brought in fire crews from the northern part of the state as reinforcements and marshaled engines, bulldozers and aircraft.

On Tuesday they brought in more helicopters from the National Guard and every last plane we could find in the nation, said Thom Porter, southern chief of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The military provided C-130 planes for firefighting, said Mark Ghilarducci, director of the California Office of Emergency Services. More than 290 fire engines came from Montana, Utah, New Mexico, Idaho, Arizona, Oregon and Nevada.

But when flames met ferocious winds, crews were largely powerless to stop them. Even fire-attacking aircraft were helpless while being grounded at times because of night, high winds or smoke.

As fires burned in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, firefighters from other states were already in place north of San Diego on Thursday when a major fire erupted and rapidly spread in the Fallbrook area, known for its avocado groves and horse stables in the rolling hills.

We had many resources in the area very quickly on this incident, but unfortunately within several minutes the fire had gotten out of control and well-established, and necessitated massive evacuations, said Steve Abbott, chief of the North County Fire Protection District.

The fire swept through the San Luis Rey Training Facility, where it killed more than 40 elite thoroughbreds and destroyed more than 100 homes  most of them in the Rancho Monserate Country Club retirement community. Three people were burned trying to escape the fire that continued to smolder Saturday.

Most of this weeks fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the citys rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.

The fire in Fallbrook was no exception. Ten years ago, during a deadly spate of Santa Ana wind-driven infernos, flames wiped out most of the more than 200 homes in the Valley Oaks Mobile Home Park.

Memories of that blaze were fresh as flames approached Thursday and sheriffs deputies told residents to leave immediately.

By the time he got the order to go, Mateo Gonzalez had already helped his brother move out of his nearby place and packed all of his important belongings.

In the 2007 firestorm, Gonzalez had almost no warning before his house was destroyed, only four months after moving in.

We werent prepared the first time around. This time we were, he said Saturday, the day after he returned to his undamaged home.

(Melley reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writer Robert Jablon in Los Angeles contributed to this report.)

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
. To do so, first type the original number into the text box. Then click on the "Scientific Notation" option located at the top of the floating window. Finally, click on the "Standard" button found beneath the text box to display your result. This program is useful for scientists and engineers working with decimal-based numbers. It provides easy access to those who need to convert those numbers into more compact forms without having to do heavy math calculations first.

Scientific notation is a way to express very large or very small numbers. It is used in physics, chemistry and other fields where large numbers are common. Those numbers are written as a power of 10 followed by a number with an exponent. For example, 1,000,000 (one million) is written as 1  103. The exponent shows how many zeros are after the first digit. For example, 1,000,001 is written as 1  102. Scientific notation is a useful tool for making calculations easier. You can use it to write down very big or very small numbers in one step instead of writing out both the large and small numbers separately. You can also use it to express large or small numbers in terms of other units like centimeters or millimeters.

Scientific notation solver is an online tool that can be used to convert any number into scientific notation. Simply enter any number to the left of the decimal point and it will automatically convert it into a scientific notation equivalent. This web tool can be very helpful when you need to convert a large number into scientific notation. However, please note that this online tool can only convert numbers that are in scientific format. For example, it cannot convert a non-scientific number like "1,085" into a scientific notation equivalent. It is also important to keep in mind that this web tool only works when converting numbers from one particular format to another. For example, if you want to change a non-scientific number like "1,085" into standard format, then you will have to use another online tool like NumberFormatting.com.
Japanese instant noodle maker Nissin Foods is unfazed by the shift in China's consumption patterns towards healthier eating as it eyes a bigger share of one of the world's largest consumer markets.

The company plans to dominate the tough Chinese market by focusing on the premium segment, its chairman, chief executive and executive director, Kiyotaka Ando, told CNBC on Monday.

"Some consumers stopped consuming instant noodles, but most consumers want to increase the quality (of food they consume). We can supply high-quality products so we have more possibility to develop our business (in China)," Ando said.

He noted that there has been double digit growth in demand for premium instant noodle brands in the world's second-largest economy, even though consumption of the standard variation of instant ramen plunged 17 percent in 2016.

The company listed shares of its Hong Kong and China business on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday, after raising $122 million in its initial public offering. The shares fell as much as 12 percent in early trading.
BEIJING, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Thirteen pension funds in regions and administrative units around China only have enough money to pay less than one year's worth of pensions, media reported on Monday, as the country struggles with an aging population and shortfalls in the nation's pension schemes.

Guangxi, Jiangxi, Hainan, Inner Mongolia, Hubei, Shaanxi, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Jilin, Qinghai, Heilongjiang and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps can all pay less than one year's worth of pensions to workers covered under the respective funds, the official Beijing News reported, citing China's 2016 Social Security Development Annual Report.

Guangdong province, which had the largest sum of accumulated pensions, can pay 55.7 months worth of pensions, according to the newspaper.

The pension fund of China's northeastern province of Heilongjiang is 23.2 billion yuan ($3.51 billion) in deficit, with almost 20 percent of the 267.4 billion yuan worth of funds transferred from the central government to Heilongjiang in 2016 spent on social security expenditures.

Total expenditures of China's urban workers' pension funds grew 23.4 percent on year to 3.19 trillion yuan while total incomes only grew 19.5 percent on year to 3.51 trillion yuan, the Beijing News said, citing the annual report.

At the end of 2016, China had more than 230 million people over the age of 60, deputy director of pension insurance at the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security Jia Jiang said, according to the newspaper, adding that by 2050, the ratio of pensioners to workers will be 1:1.3.

China will begin a pilot program this year to transfer shares in state-owned firms to social security funds. The plan is limited to a small number of central and provincial firms in an initial trial to start this year. ($1 = 6.6152 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Sue-Lin Wong; Editing by Kim Coghill)
Malaysia is ready to send troops to Jerusalem, the defense minister said, calling President Donald Trump's decision to recognize the city as Israel's capital "a slap in the face for the entire Muslim world."

"We are ready for any orders from the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces ... should our services be needed," Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said in a speech on Saturday, according to The Malay Mail Online.

Muslim-majority Malaysia has long supported Palestinian's quest for statehood.

"We were shocked earlier this week with the worrisome news that would affect global geopolitical stability," Hussein was quoted as saying.

He said Trump's decision was "a slap in the face for the entire Muslim world," according to Al-Jazeera.

The defense ministry did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment.

Until the 1967 war, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan. The western part housed the seat of Israel's government. During the war, Israel captured the eastern part, which house sites sacred to Jews, Muslims and Christians. Palestinians consider the eastern sector the rightful capital of any future Palestinian state.

In siding with Israel on the matter, Trump has angered several of America's allies in the Middle East and beyond, triggering violent protests in Palestinian territories and Beirut. On Sunday, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard at a Jerusalem bus station, Reuters reported.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has said that while he rejected Trump's decision, bilateral ties would not be affected, local newspaper The Star said Sunday. Trump's action could also complicate progress on a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians, Najib warned.

Malaysia and Israel are more than 4,700 miles (7,588 km) apart.

Read Hussein's full comments in The Malay Mail Online's story.
On a bitcoin bet, it's the exchanges that will come out ahead, according to Alpha One Capital Partners founder Dan Niles.

"You don't go out and mine for gold, you go ahead and you sell the picks and the shovels," Niles told CNBC's "Squawk Alley" on Monday.

"We don't think it's a real currency, but we think it's going to continue to grow especially the underlying blockchain technology."

and have already started using blockchain technology to improve on food safety, Niles said, and bitcoin futures started trading on official exchanges .

Chip companies and saw a bitcoin bump, too, as the powerhouses GPUs behind the mining of digital currency. But Niles said there's already too much hype around those names to buy in.

The coins are fast approaching a bubble, he said, and the thing with bubbles is, "they can always go a lot higher than you anticipated, then you get a shakeout, and then things start to grow."

"We've got a shakeout coming at some point."
watch now

Don't waste your money on bitcoin. That is what financial advisors, many of whom are members of the CNBC Digital Financial Advisor Council, said on Friday in a response to a poll on the digital currency. "You should invest only the amount of money you feel comfortable putting in a garbage basket and setting on fire," said Stacy Francis, president and CEO of Francis Financial in New York City. Bitcoin has staged an unprecedented rally this year. The price of one coin reached almost $20,000 last week after starting the year at below $1,000. Bitcoin futures launched Sunday on the Cboe Futures Exchange. The digital currency has attracted interest from former Fortress hedge fund manager Michael Novogratz, who said bitcoin could reach $40,000 by the end of 2018. It has also drawn critics like JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, who in September called it a "fraud," and said last week, "I remain highly skeptical of it." Financial advisors also see potential trouble ahead.

I would treat bitcoin like a penny stock. If you have money to blow and it doesn't affect your current and future financial goals, then have fun and enjoy the ride. Jeff Rose Alliance Wealth Management

The advisors CNBC surveyed agreed that clients should not invest in bitcoin and that it could be a bubble. Further, most of those advisors said that clients should not invest in the digital currency under any circumstances. Bitcoin's recent ups and downs are particularly concerning, Francis said, after it dropped 25 percent over five days before climbing 18 percent in two days. "We don't like to see these type of whipsaw movements in our portfolios," Francis said. Other worries about investing in bitcoin include a lack of fraud protection or connection to a central bank, said Shannon Eusey, CEO of Beacon Pointe Advisors in Newport Beach, California. Confusion surrounding the digital currency isn't limited to just investors. Eusey recalled how one investment manager said to her, "'I seriously don't know what the difference is between bitcoin and those 'gold coins' you used to jump up and grab in Super Mario Bros.'"

watch now

Cathy Curtis, founder and investment advisor at Curtis Financial Planning in Oakland, California, said curiosity inspired her to make her own investment in bitcoin. She invested $200 through Coinbase.com, a website where investors can buy and sell digital currency including bitcoin, ethereum and litecoin. Her investment had climbed to $472 as of Friday. Curtis said she still wouldn't encourage her clients, many of whom are in their 50s and still working, to invest in bitcoin. "There's no way I would recommend people put money in this," Curtis said. "If you want to do it, go ahead, but don't put a lot in." Peter Mallouk, president and chief investment officer at Creative Planning in Leawood, Kansas, said he has fielded questions from his millionaire clients on bitcoin. "Most of the questions are, 'What's all the fuss about?'" he said.

You should invest only the amount of money you feel comfortable putting in a garbage basket and setting on fire. Stacy Francis Francis Financial

Cryptocurrency will probably eventually emerge as a real form of exchange, Mallouk said. But it's too early to know whether bitcoin itself will be a long-term winner, he said. "If we woke up tomorrow and bitcoin was down 50 percent, no one would be surprised, including the people who are fans of it, and that means it's a speculative space," Mallouk said. Jeff Rose, CEO of Alliance Wealth Management in Carbondale, Illinois, said he typically asks his clients what their goal is with any investment. With bitcoin, the answers have shown they "don't really understand how it works or why they would want to buy any of it," he said. "I would treat bitcoin like a penny stock," Rose said. "If you have money to blow and it doesn't affect your current and future financial goals, then have fun and enjoy the ride." Douglas Boneparth, financial advisor and president of Bone Fide Wealth in New York City, said he is increasingly fielding inquiries on bitcoin from his millennial and young professional clients who tend to have a "higher appetite for risk." "Don't ever violate the risk-to-reward relationship," Boneparth said he tells clients. "Whether it's cryptocurrencies or a risky asset, you need to keep that in mind."
One pharmaceutical company may be heading toward a cure for sickle cell disease.

Bluebird Bio presented promising results for its experimental gene therapy drug at the American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting. Its LentiGlobin treatment is still in the early stages of a clinical study, but the data showed encouraging signs to fix a debilitating disease.

Sickle cell disease is a genetic disorder that slows or stops blood flow. Bluebird's treatment essentially restores a patient's cells and allows the person's body to produce the appropriate protein for life, CEO Nick Leschly explained to CNBC on Monday.

One patient apparently went for a three-mile run after taking the treatment, Leschly said, which people with sickle cell disease normally can't do. Despite the early indications, Bluebird is cautious in calling the drug a cure so it doesn't promise too much "because patients are sitting there really looking for options," he said.

"So we're a little bit careful with that, but that's absolutely within the reach. It is definitely a potential," he said.

Because gene therapy is an emerging treatment option, Leschly says an appropriate payment system hasn't been established. Today, patients typically pay for multiple drug doses over a long period of time, Leschly said. Bluebird's sickle cell disease drug would differ because it's a one-time treatment. That could produce a sense of sticker shock.

To combat that, Leschly suggests moving toward a value-based system where multiple parties share the risk over time. If the treatment works, they pay. If it doesn't, they don't.

"We're talking about doing it one time now, so it's perhaps less about that one-time, up-front payment and more about how we do this over time and sharing that risk over time, then I think you can get out of that sticker shock," he said. "But it is a challenge for the system, and the system's not ready, we'll freely admit that."

Politicians, including President Donald Trump, have assailed the pharmaceutical industry for charging high prices.

Bluebird will consider cost and access when pricing the drug, Leschly said, noting that a large population of sickle cell patients are insured through Medicaid. As for timing, he said part of it depends on regulators, though Bluebird will be as aggressive as possible in getting it cleared.

The company also presented positive results from a clinical study for a multiple myeloma treatment. Celgene has partnered with Bluebird to license the drug.

Shares of Bluebird soared 24 percent on Monday.
Crews battling a massive wind-driven California wildfire that has torched nearly 800 buildings and charred 230,000 acres are bracing on Monday to protect communities menaced by flames along the state's scenic coastline.

The Thomas Fire ignited last week and is burning in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

"Fire will continue to threaten the communities of Carpenteria, Summerland, Montecito and surrounding areas," the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire)said in a Sunday night update.

The Sacramento bureau of the National Weather Service said in a tweet that the Thomas Fire is now the fifth largest fire in California's recorded history.

@NWSSacramento #ThomasFire in SoCal is now the 5th largest fire in CA history according to @CAL_FIRE. Our office continues to support the response at @Cal_OES state operations center #cawx

Santa Ana winds and the rugged mountainous terrain have hindered firefighters as they battle the blaze, which has destroyed 790 houses, outbuildings and other structures and left 90,000 homes and businesses without power.

"A lot of these guys (firefighters) have fought a lot of fires in the past few months and are fatigued," said Fire Captain Steve Concialdi, spokesman for the Thomas Fire.

Concialdi said firefighters from 11 Western states are aiding firefighting efforts.

The fire is 10 percent contained, down from 15 percent on Saturday after it blew up on Sunday, growing by 56,000 acres in one day and making a run of 7 miles, Concialdi said.

Nearly 5,800 firefighting personnel are working on the blaze, Cal Fire said. The cost of fighting as of Sunday was nearly $34 million, the agency added. It is already the fifth-largest wildfire on record in California.
As Republicans rush to jam through a tax bill before year-end, their plan faces two major problems, Sen. Chuck Grassley said on Monday.

The Iowa Republican said House and Senate negotiators still need to compromise on the treatment of the alternative minimum tax and state and local tax deductions. A conference committee aims to resolve differences between separate bills passed in the House and Senate and hash out a joint bill that can pass both chambers before Christmas.

"I think I can tell you some problems have come up very definitely with the corporation AMT and even the individual one," Grassley told CNBC's "Squawk Box."

He added that "some compromise has to be worked out" on popular tax breaks used by people in high-tax states like New York, California and New Jersey.

In a last-minute rush to win votes for its tax bill, the Senate added back the alternative minimum tax, which both chambers initially proposed to scrap. The Senate used the measures to pay for other tax breaks that won over skeptical senators.

The AMT makes corporations or individuals pay a minimum tax if tax breaks make their burden too low. The corporate AMT is currently set at 20 percent, and some corporations pay the higher rate after calculating their tax obligations under both the standard corporate structure and the AMT. Since Republicans want to chop the corporate rate to 20 percent from 35 percent, the corporate AMT could affect numerous companies under the proposal.

Businesses swiftly pushed back against the Senate proposal, arguing that it could stifle research and investment. Top House tax writer Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., have slammed the alternative minimum tax.

On the state and local tax deduction side, both bills would allow only up to $10,000 in property tax deductions. House Republicans in high-tax blue states seek more generous tax breaks because the loss of those deductions could raise taxes for their constituents.

Grassley said Monday the "only" solution he has heard is also allowing up to $10,000 in state and local income tax deductions.

Making changes to those measures would spark another dilemma of how to pay for them. Grassley said cutting the corporate tax rate to only 22 percent rather than 20 percent would offset the alternative minimum tax or state and local deduction tweaks. But he said Republicans should chop the rate to 20 percent to make U.S. businesses more competitive worldwide.
The number of planned lithium-ion battery factories around the world is skyrocketing, according to a report from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.

There are 26 battery "megafactories" that are either in production and due to expand capacity or new operations due to be in production by 2021, Benchmark said in a blog post on Monday. Benchmark coined the term "megafactory" to describe factories that produce more than 1 gigawatt-hour of total capacity in a single year.

Compare that with just three such plants planned or in production in 2014.

It is important to note that not all of these planned factories could end up opening for production. But all of them have a pretty good chance of being built, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence analyst Caspar Rawles told CNBC on Monday.

"Things change, but the reality is everyone on that list is a very serious player," Rawles said.

The growth will be fueled by rising demand for electric vehicles, Rawls said. Sales of electric vehicles are expected to especially take off around 2022 or 2023. Several manufacturers are planning to release electric vehicle lineups between now and then.

Benchmark expects total global lithium-ion demand of 500 gigawatt-hours by 2025, compared with just 85 GWh in 2016.

Much of that will be in China, where air quality concerns have fueled a big push for electric vehicles. China dominates Benchmark's list, with 49 percent of total planned capacity.

The European Union is in second place with 23 percent of total planned capacity, and the United States is in third with about 15 percent.

However, Benchmark noted Tesla has said it plans to expand its Gigafactory, located in Nevada, eventually achieving a capacity of 150 GWh.

Building the plants is only part of the challenge, though. The larger task may be securing access to the raw materials, the report said.

For example, China controls 80 percent of the market in chemical cobalt, a crucial ingredient in lithium-ion batteries, he said.
Unlike other annotated legal publications registered by the Copyright Office, these annotations comprise Georgias only official legal code. This is not a supplementary text authored by a private entity, but the sole publication authorized by the state Legislature for promulgation of its laws.

The agreement between Georgia and LexisNexis explicitly requires the official code to include not only the statutory provisions, but also annotations  and other materials. Furthermore, Georgianot LexisNexismaintains the ultimate right of editorial control over the code, and the entire code becomes state property upon publication.

The state Legislature, in OCGA  1-1-1, describes the code as including annotations, analyses, and other materials. In that same section, it decrees that the full body of the code is published by authority of the state  and may be cited as the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.

The free unannotated code even utilizes a disclaimer , stating that the Official Code of Georgia Annotated is the authoritative version that takes precedence over any discrepancies in the free version. []

Its with good reason that Georgia only recognizes the Official Code of Georgia Annotated as its official law: The unannotated code is an unreliable reference. The unannotated code often provides severely limitedand sometimes blatantly incorrectinformation regarding what is or is not legal.

Only the full annotated code explains that certain statutes (like the crime of sodomy) are unconstitutional and unenforceable, and provides the dates of enforcement for recently enacted or amended statutes.

Only the full code references official interpretations that state courts have treated as authoritative on issues (Moore v. Ray), and that sometimes drastically affect which actions will be deemed illegal for purposes of prosecution.

For example, the unannotated code does not, in contrast to the official annotated code, inform a person that the Attorney Generals Office considers the unauthorized anchoring of boats in a state park to be criminal trespass, or that the prohibition on carrying a firearm at a public gathering does not apply to shopping malls.

Because the entirety of the official code constitutes law both in purpose and in practice, it cannot be copyrighted by the government. Since its 1834 holding in Wheaton v. Peters, the Supreme Court has made clear that allowing governments to copyright laws is absurd. [The Daily Signal]
The Food and Drug Administration has issued just three warning letters to drugmakers for misleading advertisements this year  a record low number, according to a new report.

The sharp drop-off in FDA warning letters for lies and misleading statements in ads in recent years, comes amid a 62 percent increase in direct-to-consumer ad spending by pharmaceutical companies, according to the New York Daily News, which first reported the record low.

Drugmakers now spend more than $6 billion annually on such ads.

In 2013, the FDA issued 24 warning letters to drugmakers, the Daily News reported. That fell to nine in 2014, with that same number again in 2015.

Last year, the drug regulatory agency sent out 11 letters.

But until mid-November of this year, the FDA had sent out just two warning letters.

The first went out in May to Orexigen Therapeutics in connection with a TV ad for its weight-loss drug Contrave.

The FDA warned Orexigen that the ad was misleading because it "fails to include important risk information associated with the drug," such as listing multiple conditions for which Contrave is contraindicated.

The second warning letter was sent in August to Cipher Pharmaceuticals for an ad for its extended-release opioid ConZip. The FDA said the ad had left out "important risk information associated with the use of ConZip and omits other material facts."

On Nov. 14, the FDA sent Amherst Pharmaceuticals a warning related to a webpage promoting the insomnia-treating medication Zolpimist.

"Both the webpage and the exhibit panels ... fail to communicate any risk information," the FDA said in its letter.

The agency went on to say the omission could "create a misleading impression about the drug's safety," which is "especially problematic from a public health perspective given the serious and potentially life-threatening risks associated with the drug."

In its story about the record low number of warning letters, the Daily News quoted a former FDA official who said the agency's Office of Prescription Drug Promotion  which monitors drug ads  is "a very, very small unit" that has "historically been underfunded."

CNBC asked the FDA about the report, and whether agency officials have been told to pull back on issuing warning letters this year.

FDA spokeswoman Stephanie Caccomo, in an emailed statement, said "Staff have not been instructed to avoid or reduce the number of enforcement letters issued to companies."

Caccomo added, "Issuing warning letters is just one component of the FDA's multi-faceted program" for overseeing promotion of medical products.

She said the agency uses "a risk-based approach to carefully allocate its resources among these activities to have the greatest beneficial public health impact."

"Therefore, one cannot get a complete picture of the FDA's program area by looking at a snapshot of time for warning letters," Caccomo said. "Reviewing the number of warning letters that the FDA issues on a particular topic within a year timeframe does not take into account the work that the FDA does on the other priorities to assist companies with compliance, such as policy and guidance development and core launch reviews, to fulfill its public health mission."
A rendering of Lockheed Martin's directed energy laser weapon that counters drone swarms. Source: Lockheed Martin

International sales of arms and military services grew again in 2016 after five years of consecutive decline, according to new data by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The world's 100 largest armaments firms posted total sales of $374.8 billion in 2016, 1.9 percent higher than in 2015, the research institute said Monday. SIPRI said that a noticeable trend was a rise in sales for U.S. arms producers and the number of U.S. military services companies ranked in the SIPRI top 100. "At a combined total of $217.2 billion, arms sales of U.S. companies listed in the SIPRI Top 100 grew by 4.0 percent in 2016," it said, attributing the rise to U.S. military operations overseas as well as acquisitions of large weapon systems by other countries.

Lockheed leads the gains

SIPRI said that the world's largest arms producer, Lockheed Martin, rose by 10.7 percent in 2016, and this was "decisive to the increase in the USA's share of overall SIPRI top 100 sales to 57.9 percent." "With the acquisition of helicopter producer Sikorsky in late 2015 and higher delivery volumes of the F-35 combat aircraft, Lockheed Martin reported significant growth in its arms sales in 2016," Aude Fleurant, director of SIPRI's arms and military expenditure program. Aside from the traditional arms producers, the institute also said there was an "emerging producers" trend including companies based in Brazil, India, Turkey and South Korea. It added that the latter was the stand-out "winner" among emerging arms sellers.

Tension on Korean Peninsula

South Korea, neighbor of an increasingly provocative and unpredictable North Korea, saw a 20.6 percent overall increase in the arms sales of South Korean companies, with total sales amounting to $8.4 billion. "Continuing and rising threat perceptions drive South Korea's acquisitions of military equipment, and it is increasingly turning to its own arms industry to supply its demand for weapons," SIPRI's Siemon Wezeman said. "At the same time, South Korea is aiming to realize its goal of becoming a major arms exporter." There were mixed fortunes for more "established" arms producers, however. Arms companies based in Australia, Israel, Japan, Poland, Singapore and Ukraine saw their combined arms sales fall by 1.2 percent in 2016, largely driven by an overall decrease in the arms sales of Japanese companies (down 6.4 percent).

BAE Systems Tornado jet
Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy is drawing a distinction between sexual assault accusations against conservative Roy Moore and liberal Al Franken.

"I can't get inside Al Franken's mind but he was clearly drummed out. He did not have to quit" the Senate, Cassidy told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Monday. "There was not due process. Whatever you think about it, you have to have due process in our country. You can't have kangaroo courts. You have to allow people to be presented with evidence to refute it."

But that said, Cassidy last month withdrew his support of Moore, 70, the Republican candidate running against Democrat Doug Jones in Tuesday's special election to fill Alabama's open Senate seat.

As of Sunday, the RealClearPolitics average of major polls still gives Moore, a former Alabama Supreme Court judge, a narrow lead. But the latest Fox News poll shows Jones a full 10 points ahead.

Cassidy of Louisiana has said it's up to Alabama voters, but he explained there's a difference between the allegations against Moore and the allegations against Franken because the accusers of Moore claimed he preyed on them while they were underage.

Moore faces allegations of sexual misconduct with teenage girls, including a woman who claims that he sexually assaulted her nearly 40 years ago when she was 14. Moore has vehemently denied all the allegations, calling them a smear campaign by his opponents.

Meanwhile, Franken, 66, announced he would resign "in the coming weeks" from the Senate floor last week, following multiple women accusing him of groping or forcibly trying to kiss them. The Minnesota Democrat and former comedian has expressed remorse and publicly denied most of the allegations.

"If Al Franken has been involved in this kind of activity as a senator that's problematic," Cassidy told Fox radio last week. "On the other hand, there is a difference between a 14-year-old girl and an adult female, I will say that."

However, if Moore wins in Alabama "the Constitution says he has to be seated," Cassidy said, though he did not mention on CNBC whether or not he thought Moore would or should face an ethics investigation.
Activist investor Carl Icahn says he will nominate four people to join the board of Xerox at the annual shareholder meeting next year.

The move on Monday comes after former Icahn Capital managing director Jonathan Christodoro resigned from Xerox's board on Friday, fearing it would make decisions and take the company in a direction in which he "strongly disagrees," Xerox said on Monday.

Christodoro joined Xerox's board in 2016 as part of an agreement with Icahn, and his departure ends that arrangement, clearing the way for new nominations. Icahn Associates is Xerox's biggest outside shareholder, with a 9.4 percent stake, and Icahn first disclosed a stake two years ago.

Xerox split into two companies last year: Conduent , which contains its business services units, and Xerox, the equipment maker. The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that Icahn was aiming to shake up Xerox's top management in this latest fight. A date for the shareholder meeting has not yet been set.

Icahn's new slate of nominees includes Christodoro; Keith Cozza, also associated with Icahn; Jay Firestone, the CEO of Prodigy Pictures, and Randolph Read, the CEO of Nevada Strategic Credit Investments, an investment fund.
"As 3D technology expands from just the iPhone X, to iPads, Android Phones and multiple 3D cameras per phone, we think overall Lumentum revenues could be up even more than current expectations for 29 percent revenue growth in 2018 and 64 percent earnings growth."

3D sensing is going to be huge for Lumentum. It is a reinvention of the company. Lumentum will see their revenues related to Apple go from essentially zero in the first quarter of 2017 to at least $145 million in the last quarter of 2017 based on their guidance. In nine months, Apple will have gone from 0 percent to 40 percent of Lumentum's total revenues. The impact of 3D lasers on Lumentum as a percent of revenues is higher than for any of the other companies mentioned above.

So why has Lumentum's stock dramatically underperformed its 3D sensing peers? Lumentum's historical business of manufacturing optical modules for the telecom industry has been in a horrible decline over the past year. Lumentum's revenue from China has been cut in half from the peak and demand from US telecom carriers has also been weak given all of the merger activity over the past year.

As a result, Lumentum's optical communication revenue was down 22 percent year-over-year in the September quarter helping to drive a nearly 30 percent decline in the stock price from its recent peak. As a result, Lumentum's stock is up only 22 percent this year versus gains of 70 percent to over 300 percent for their 3D sensing peers.

This has created the buying opportunity in Lumentum's stock. We think it is only a matter of time before Lumentum's stock comes roaring back as 3D technology proliferates across the technology landscape in 2018 and the telecom business stabilizes and recovers.

So a company with this type of potential must be expensive, correct? Wrong! Because of the steep declines in their historical optical business, Lumentum trades only at a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 12 times. The stock seems extremely cheap compared to the other companies in the 3D sensing space. Closely related companies, Win Semiconductor which manufactures the lasers for Lumentum trades at 23 times 2018 earnings and IQE which supplies the epitaxial wafers on which these lasers are manufactured trades at 38 times.

We believe in 2018, Apple will also expand this technology to iPads which sell over 40 million units each year. The Chinese smartphone vendors will also introduce their own 3D sensing enabled smartphones in 2018. Lumentum already has orders in hand from one of these vendors.

As 3D technology expands from just the iPhone X, to iPads, Android Phones and multiple 3D cameras per phone, we think overall Lumentum revenues could be up even more than current expectations for 29 percent revenue growth in 2018 and 64 percent earnings growth.

We think there is an even bigger disparity in 2019 between current expectations and reality. Wall Street expects Lumentum's revenue growth to slow to 5 percent in 2019 and earnings growth to slow to 11 percent. But by 2019, the Android smartphone vendors which are over 80 percent of the units in the global market will start to catch up with Apple in adding 3D sensing features to the phone. Also Apple will have added a world facing 3D camera by this point doubling the number of lasers per phone.

In conclusion, as we eagerly await Luke Skywalker powering up his light saber once again, remember that lasers are not just for Jedis anymore and the technology will be coming to a phone near you. May Lumentum be with you.

Commentary by Dan Niles, founding partner of AlphaOne Capital Partners and senior portfolio manager of the AlphaOne Satori Fund. Previously, he was a managing director at Neuberger Berman, a subsidiary of Lehman Brothers.

Disclosures: This material is presented solely for informational purposes and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment or strategy is suitable for a particular investor. Readers should not assume that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. This material has been prepared by AlphaOne Capital Partners, LLC on the basis of publicly available information, internally developed data and other third party sources believed to be reliable. AlphaOne Capital Partners, LLC has not sought to independently verify information taken from public and third party sources and does not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained herein. All information is current as of the date of this material and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Certain products and services may not be available in all jurisdictions or to all client types. Investing entails risks, including possible loss of principal.

The views expressed are those of Mr. Niles and do not represent the views of AlphaOne Capital Partners, LLC, its portfolio managers, employees or affiliates. These views are current as of the time of this presentation and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended to be a formal research report or recommendation and should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security. AlphaOne Capital Partners, LLC and its clients may have long or short positions in some or all of the securities discussed. Before acting on any advice or recommendation in this material, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and, if necessary, seek professional advice. Mr. Niles does not accept any responsibility to update any opinions or other information contained in this document. Before acting on any advice, opinions or recommendation in this material, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and, if necessary, seek professional advice.

For more insight from CNBC contributors, follow @CNBCopinion on Twitter.
Financial website How Much looked at some of America's most popular stocks in 2007 to find out how much a $1,000 investment in each would be worth now. Turns out, coffee was a good bet: An investment of $1,000 in Starbucks in 2007 would be worth $4,687 as of October 31 this year, or more than four times as much.

Of the companies it examined, Starbucks's performance fell short of only , and the big winner, . An initial $1,000 investment in Netflix grew to a whopping $51,966 over that time period, according to How Much.

In the graphic below, the blue dots are equivalent to a $1,000 initial investment, and the pink dots equal the investment's current total value.

"The larger the pink circle, the more your investment is worth," How Much notes. "If the pink fits inside the blue, then you lost money. The [graphic] assumes that you took any dividend paid out in cash and did not reinvest into the company by buying more stock."
David Tepper, Appaloosa Management Peter Foley/Bloomberg | Getty Images

The tax-reform bill and its changes to state and local tax deductions has pundits predicting a mass exodus of rich people from New York, California and other high-tax states. Yet a close look at the data suggests that while some high-earners may move, their numbers may be relatively small.



Both the House and Senate tax bills would eliminate the deductibility of state and local taxes. That would hit high earners the hardest, with many top earners in states like New York, New Jersey, California and Connecticut seeing a tax increase because they could no longer deduct their state and local taxes.



The details are still being negotiated and could change. The House bill, for instance, would allow up to $10,000 in property tax deductions, which could become part of the new law.



Yet many business groups, economists and tax pundits are predicting the changes would cause a mass millionaire migration, as the rich in high-tax states move to lower-tax states to save taxes. The wealthy, they argue, are the most mobile segment of the population and have the most to gain from moving. With state income taxes no longer deductible, the incentives to move have just gotten larger.

watch now

"Tax-Hike Fears Fuel Talk of Exodus From Manhattan and Greenwich," read a recent headline on Bloomberg, which quoted Bruce McGuire of the Connecticut Hedge Fund Association saying: "It would almost be irresponsible if [the wealthy] weren't thinking of moving."



New York Governor Andrew Cuomo predicted the changes would be "devastating" to New York.



Moody's Analytics estimates housing prices in Manhattan could fall 10 percent in the coming years under the new provision.



Goldman Sachs estimates that New York City could lose up to 4 percent of its "top earners" if the bill becomes law. "The increased tax differential between high- and low-tax areas may increase movement from the former to the latter," Goldman said in its note.



High-profile billionaires who move to Florida  including David Tepper and Thomas Peterffy  will probably continue to grab headlines to make the phenomena of wealth flight seem even greater.



Yet the most thorough research on wealth migration suggests that the numbers of rich people moving for lower taxes is relatively small. A study done by Cristobal Young and Charles Varner of Stanford University, and Ithai Lurie and Richard Prisinzano of the U.S. Department of Treasury analyzed 13 years of income data for all Americans earnings $1 million or more  totaling about 3.7 million tax filers over the time period.



Broadly speaking, the study found that only 2.4 percent of million-dollar earners move every year. That rate is lower than the 2.9 percent move rate for the broader population. And by looking at the tax differentials between states, it found that only a small slice of the millionaires who move are driven by taxes. The study found that slightly more than 2 percent of millionaire migrants "appear to have income-tax motivations" when they pick up stakes. In other words, only 0.04 percent of millionaire earners move for tax reasons.



Why isn't the number higher? Rather than being a transient rich, today's wealthy are more like an "embedded elite," with deep economic and social ties to their communities, according to the study.



"In general, high-income earners are more likely to be married, to be in a dual-career household, to have school-age children, to own rather than rent their home, and to own a business  all factors that discourage migration," the report said.



Most importantly, the big jobs that pay those high salaries are at companies that aren't easily moved. Goldman Sachs isn't likely to pick up and move to Miami because its investment bankers want to lower their tax bill.



Business owners are also anchored to their locations, the study says.

watch now

"If you're a McDonald's franchise owner and you have several McDonald's stores in New Jersey, you can't just pick up and move to Florida," said Howard Gleckman of the Tax Policy Center.



Of course, lots of rich people are moving from the Northeast to Florida. But retirement, weather and lifestyle may be as or more important than taxes in luring people to the Sunshine State. In fact, removing Florida from the migration analyses found that "outside of Florida, differences in tax rates between states have no effect on elite migration. Other low-tax states, such as Texas, Tennessee, and New Hampshire, do not draw away millionaires from high-tax states."



Granted, the elimination of state and local taxes would impose a new virtual tax on the rich in blue states. So that could change the dynamics. The study found that "a 10 percent increase in the top tax rate leads to a 1 percent loss of millionaire population."



The elimination of state and local tax deductions in New York and California could mean an effective tax increase of up to 5 percent for some top earners  so based on the study's calculus, up to a half of one percent of millionaire-earners could move because of the changes. That's a lot less than the 4 percent predicted by Goldman.



Young said that while his study found that past claims about wealth migration tended to be exaggerated, the specific impacts of the upcoming tax reform remain unclear.



"At the margins, I'm sure people will move," Young said. "But when the dust settles, I think it could be a half of one percent at most." But he added, "It will be interesting to study."

WATCH: GOP tax bill heads to conference
Special counsel Robert Mueller's investigators are asking White House officials to walk them through 18 days early in the Trump presidency in a sign that they are probing possible obstruction of justice by the president, according to NBC News.

The period began Jan. 26, when White House counsel Don McGahn was told National Security Adviser Michael Flynn could be blackmailed by Moscow for lying about his contacts with Russia, and ended Feb. 13, the day President Donald Trump fired Flynn, NBC reported Monday.

The network cited multiple people familiar with the matter.

Flynn and McGahn are expected to offer insight into the approximately three-week period, NBC said. Flynn pleaded guilty Dec. 1 to lying to the FBI and has been cooperating with the special counsel's office.

Just four days after Flynn was sworn in as national security advisor, then-acting attorney general Sally Yates warned McGahn that Flynn was in danger of becoming the target of Russian blackmail. She said he was susceptible because of false statements he had made about his contacts with the Russian ambassador to Vice President Mike Pence, according to Yates' May congressional testimony.
SPRINGFIELD - Signed into law by GOP Governor Bruce Rauner six months ago, a new unfunded mandate requiring Illinois public schools to train their staffs about racial bias is drawing attention.

Each school board shall require in-service training for school personnel to include training to develop cultural competency, including understanding and reducing implicit racial bias, says the new law.

Wirepoints.com asks the question about the new law approved easily in the Illinois Senate and not-so-easily in the Illinois House earlier this year:
New snowfall is expected to sweep across the Northeast and upper Midwest early this week on the heels of a major winter storm that blanketed parts of the South and Mid-Atlantic.

The National Weather Service on Sunday issued winter weather advisories in connection with the expected snowfall for parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and other states.

Localized snow accumulations of up to a foot are expected from Monday to Wednesday in parts of the Northeast, according to National Weather Service predictions.

More from USA Today:

North Korea's newest claim: Kim Jong Un can control the weather

Firefighters struggle to contain massive blaze with no rain in sight

Neighborhoods with the most outrageous Christmas lights in every state

The new snowfall affecting northern states will follow Winter Storm Benji, which caused at least three deaths, led to hundreds of flight cancellations and left thousands without power as it moved through the South late last week.

The snow led to school closures and delayed openings Friday across Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and other parts of the South. Jackson, Miss., reported its highest snowfall since 1982, the Clarion Ledger reported.

The storm left more than 250,000 people temporarily without power across the South, according to the Associated Press.

Two people were killed in Virginia late Friday when a Honda Civic struck a guardrail and spun into the path of a truck, the Associated Press reported. In Georgia, a man was killed after coming into contact with a downed power line.

Delta Airlines said Friday that it had canceled 625 flights from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport. The airline resumed regular operations on Sunday.
A low tech device exploded during rush hour Monday morning at New York's Port Authority, the world's busiest bus terminal, injuring four people, including the man carrying the device.

The suspect, identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, was taken into custody, city officials said. NYPD confirmed the suspect detonated what is believed to be a crude bomb in Port Authority. He and three others suffered injuries that are not life threatening, the NYPD said.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference at the scene.

Ullah told investigators that he attempted the attack in the name of ISIS, a senior law enforcement official said to NBC News. The official says Ullah was angry over Muslims being killed around the world, adding that the suspect went online to watch ISIS propaganda and learn how to make explosives.

The New York Taxi and Limousine Commission told Reuters the suspect had a limousine's driver license from 2012 to 2015, which then expired. Ullah is from the Bangladeshi city of Chittagong and is a U.S. resident, the country's police chief said. He had no criminal record there and last visited Bangladesh on Sept. 8, according to Reuters.
Selecting the right candidate for a specific role is challenging for any business, and that's especially the case in an industry as volatile as how finance can be. Senior management at one investment company, however, knows exactly what criteria they have in mind when it comes to selecting future hedge fund managers. "We focus on specialist managers in London and New York and we're looking for the younger, hungrier hedge fund managers," Erik Serrano Berntsen, CEO and co-founder at Stable Asset Management, told CNBC last week. "We think the more established names perhaps give you a feeling of safety. But why should you be investing with people who have already been successful, are probably quite rich and are probably wanting to do other more interesting things with their life?" The CEO said investors should consider the longevity of individuals managers. For instance, what is a manager's incentive to perform? Is there a legacy program in place for other managers to take over the reins of a project?

Avosb | iStock / Getty Images Plus | Getty Images

Stable Asset Management is an investment firm that looks at building "world-class asset management firms," while supporting and financing the launch of new funds. Switching its focus to "younger, hungrier" managers results in hedge fund seeding firms, such as Stable, putting a lot of weight on a candidate's background. To do this, the company applies a simple three-step framework called "Past, Present and Future." Speaking on the sidelines of the 2017 Milken Institute London Summit, Berntsen gave examples for each stage as to what key criteria Stable uses to select candidates. PAST : Where do these potential managers came from? Do they hail from a slightly less wealthy background? Are they really hungry for the role?

: Where do these potential managers came from? Do they hail from a slightly less wealthy background? Are they really hungry for the role? PRESENT : The firm asks candidates about their work-life balance. How many hours do they work? How long do they typically sleep for? Are things at home going smoothly?

: The firm asks candidates about their work-life balance. How many hours do they work? How long do they typically sleep for? Are things at home going smoothly? FUTURE: Determining a candidate's prospects, the company asks questions such as "What kind of business do you want to build?" and "What kind of culture do you want to build?" Berntsen said: "We want someone who wants to be proud of their firm and who aren't only in it for the money. Of course, making money is a great side effect of the hedge fund industry, but we want someone who's really passionate about what they do." It's not only these attributes that Stable is on the lookout for when it comes to hedge fund manager selection  successful candidates also tend to be "slightly more volatile managers," the CEO added.

We want someone who wants to be proud of their firm and who aren't only in it for the money. Erik Serrano Berntsen CEO at Stable Asset Management

"Historically, people thought diversification was the way to a less volatile portfolio  and that's true to some extent, but I think the crisis showed that a lot of the things we thought were de-correlated in a portfolio, end up being correlated in periods of stress, which is when you most need diversification." "So there's been a trend in the industry more recently for more concentrated portfolios, people want less positions in their book and that's both applicable at position level but also at manager level. So a firm like ours, who backs managers and builds businesses around them, wants each manager not to be too diversified, so that they can actually bring some volatility to the portfolio."

The importance of staying ahead of the game
China's EHang, which is developing a passenger drone, claims it will become profitable within the next two years, its co-founder told CNBC.

EHang drew worldwide attention last year at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where it showcased a drone that has the capacity to carry a human passenger over short-to-medium distances.

The electricity-powered drone, called EHang 184, can carry up to 220 pounds (100 kilograms) of weight for 25 minutes. It has an average cruising speed of 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) and has a ceiling of 3,000 meters above sea level.

The vehicle is being considered as a mode of transport for the future in places like Dubai.

"This EHang 184 product is so unique that we need to put a lot of money in it, and we need to put a lot of engineers," Derrick Xiong, co-founder at EHang, told CNBC at the sidelines of the Fortune Global Forum in Guangzhou, China. "We do not make a single profit from that product yet, but all the other product lines are making a profit."

But the company's target is to become profitable in the "next two years for sure," Xiong said.
Bitcoin is in the "mania" phase, with some people even borrowing money to get in on the action, securities regulator Joseph Borg told CNBC on Monday.

"We've seen mortgages being taken out to buy bitcoin.  People do credit cards, equity lines," said Borg, president of the North American Securities Administrators Association, a voluntary organization devoted to investor protection. Borg is also director of the Alabama Securities Commission.

"This is not something a guy who's making $100,000 a year, who's got a mortgage and two kids in college ought to be invested in."

Bitcoin has been soaring all year, starting out at $1,000 and rocketing above $19,000 on the Coinbase exchange last week. The price on Coinbase, which accounts for a third of bitcoin trading value, is often at a premium over other exchanges.

The cryptocurrency was trading at just under $16,700 on Coinbase at 2:21 p.m. New York time Monday.

"You're on this mania curve. At some point in time there's got to be a leveling off. Cryptocurrency is here to stay. Blockchain is here to stay. Whether it is bitcoin or not, I don't know," Borg said in an interview with "Power Lunch."

He also doesn't think futures contracts legitimize the digital currency.

Bitcoin futures , trading under the XBT ticker symbol, debuted on the Cboe futures exchange on Sunday night. The CME plans to launch its bitcoin futures Dec. 18.

While futures contracts are regulated, bitcoin itself is not. Borg said that's because innovation and technology always outrun regulation.

"As [technology] continues to accelerate and continues to increase, regulators have got to understand what it is that the innovation's coming up with and we're still trying to get educated," he said.

"We're looking at it from a money transmission point of view but that doesn't cover the entire bitcoin space."

Disclaimer
Among her many achievements, philanthropist Melinda Gates was the first woman to have given away more than $40 billion.

As co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation  alongside her husband, Microsoft co-founder Bill  Gates has been part of a movement that has supported work in more than 100 countries that face challenges in education, poverty, hunger and health.

Consequently, heading such an organization means needing to hit milestones and potentially even exceed targets.

In an interview with CNBC, Gates said she is particularly proud of what the private foundation had achieved in improving world health.

"The work that we've done in vaccines, to really get vaccines out to hundreds of millions of children," Gates told CNBC Meets when asked about what her proudest moment of the foundation had been so far.

"There are 3 million children alive today because of those vaccines and when we started in this work, there was you know a 20 or 25-year lag between when a vaccine would come out in the United States and when it would get to the developing world. Even when it got there, it wasn't all the right strains that they needed."
Holvey, who was formerly Miss North Carolina, told Kelly that it was a "somber" day when President Trump was sworn into office.

The interview came hours before a news conference where the three women plan to demand that Congress investigate their claims.

The White House said in a statement that the "timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes" and reiterated that the American people "voiced their judgement" by electing the president.

In an interview with Megyn Kelly, Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey and Rachel Cooks spoke about their interactions with Donald Trump. The president has denied all of the accusations and during the interview the White House released a statement slamming the "false claims."

Three women who publicly accused President Trump of sexual misconduct shared their stories and spoke of the retaliation they've suffered since coming forward on the Today show Monday.

In October of last year, Holvey, who competed in the 2006 Miss USA contest told CNN that Trump "personally inspected each woman" before the pageant.

She reiterated these claims during the interview with Kelly and said felt like a "piece of meat" who was only "there for his pleasure" prior to the competition.

"[It was] something I had dreamed and worked so hard for, and I had just turned 20 years old, and I just felt so gross," she told Kelly. "That's not what I had signed up for."

Likewise, Crooks who accused Trump of forcibly kissing her when she met him outside a Trump Tower elevator in 2005, said was "devastated" after the now president kissed her.

Crooks said she was a 22-year-old receptionist at a real estate investment firm when the incident happened and she felt trapped and like she would lose her job if she told her boss about the incident.

"I was uncomfortable because he was someone I saw regularly, and I knew he was a partner of the organization I worked for," she said.

Leeds, a Manhattan resident, said last October in a Times article that Trump grabbed her breasts and tried to put his hand up her skirt during a flight to New York more than thirty years ago.

She told Kelly that several years after the incident she saw Trump at a gala and he referred to her as a C***.

She said she came forward because she "wanted people to know who he is."

The appearances come one day after Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said anyone who claims they were victims of sexual misconduct should be heard, even if Trump is the alleged perpetrator.

"Women who accuse anyone should be heard," Haley said Sunday on Face the Nation. "They should be heard and they should be dealt with. And I think we heard from them prior to the election.

"And I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up."

On Sunday, Kelly tweeted that "Tomorrow in a #MegynTODAY exclusive: Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey & Rachel Cooks, three women who have publicly accused President Trump of sexual misconduct, sit down live with Megyn at 9am."

The women all shared their allegations of harassment and abuse last year.

Megyn Kelly TODAY tweet: Tomorrow in a #MegynTODAY exclusive: Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey & Rachel Cooks, three women who have publicly accused President Trump of sexual misconduct, sit down live with Megyn at 9am.

Brave New Films, which released 16 Women and Donald Trump in November, said in a release that it would livestream the news conference.

Brave New Films tweet: Join us tomorrow morning at 7:30 am PST / 10:30 am EST at http://facebook.com/bravenewfilms - we will be streaming a LIVE press conference: Women share firsthand accounts of sexual misconduct by Trump and demand an investigation. #16womenandtrump

Disclosure: The "TODAY" show is broadcast by NBC, which like CNBC is owned by Comcast's NBCUniversal unit.
People protest against tax reform on Capitol hill in Washington D.C., on Dec. 1, 2017. Yin Bogu | Xinhua | Getty Images

Accountants sifting through the Senate version of the GOP tax bill are finding that some of their small business clients may indeed pay more under the proposed legislation. Generally, the Senate bill will permit small business owners to of their income, allowing them to save on their taxes. This rate will be available to so-called pass-through entities, including S corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs). The remainder of the income that isn't deductible will be subject to regular income taxes. Under current law, profits from a small business "pass through" to the owner and are taxed at his or her individual rate, which can be as high as 39.6 percent. But accountants are saying that the bill isn't quite so generous for entrepreneurs who already take deductions that exceed the Senate's proposed 23 percent.

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Service businesses, including lawyers and doctors, will also feel the pain if their taxable income exceeds $500,000 if married ($250,000 if single), as they will begin to phase into higher tax rates. "At different ranges of income, you're paying an obscene tax rate," said Martin M. Shenkman, a certified public accountant and founder of Shenkman Law in Fort Lee, New Jersey. "It forces business owners to take artificial steps to make sure they don't fall into the cliff," he said. Here's why the bill isn't necessarily a giveaway to entrepreneurs  and what they can do about it.

Not so generous

Under the Senate proposal, that 23 percent deduction is fully available, provided income is under $500,000 if married ($250,000 if single). For example, a married entrepreneur reports income of $200,000 from his business. Of that amount, he can take a 23 percent deduction  $46,000  which will bring his taxable income to $154,000. That $154,000 will be subject to regular individual income tax rates. The 23 percent deduction begins to phase out for certain businesses when taxable income is between $500,000 and $600,000. With anything above $600,000, there's no deduction at all. "We are talking about a large tax benefit that phases out over a pretty small range of income," said Scott Greenberg, a senior analyst at the Tax Foundation.

WATCH: GOP tax bill heads to conference

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"People who make good money in that $500,000 to $600,000 range will stop working every year in October and November," said Robert S. Keebler, partner at Keebler & Associates in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "If I'm a surgeon, and my CPA says to stop working because every dollar I make costs more than a dollar, then I'm buying sunscreen and going to Hawaii," he added.

The power of expenses

High earning professionals aren't the only entrepreneurs who might feel the pain. Tiny businesses who are eligible for the full 23 percent income deduction often log expenses that exceed that amount. "Twenty-three percent doesn't begin to cover what the expenses are," said Kathleen Huckabay, a certified public accountant in Sammamish, Washington. "Mileage is the biggest expense that they have."

If I'm a surgeon, and my CPA says to stop working because every dollar I make costs more than a dollar, then I'm buying sunscreen and going to Hawaii. Robert S. Keebler partner at Keebler & Associates in Green Bay, Wisconsin

Expenses related to equipment, travel costs and other payments related to doing business can lead to deductions of more than 30 percent of income, she said.

Planning ahead

Entrepreneurs are in a tight spot as there are less than three weeks until the end of the year, and there still isn't any indication of how the tax bill will look in the end. However, now might be a good time to visit your accountant and get an impression of where your income will stand at the end of the tax year. "Depending on where you fall, some people will try to accelerate income into 2017 because they have a lower rate now versus the Senate bill," said Keebler. "You can accelerate or defer expenses." Here are a few recommendations from Keebler. Turn in your financial records to your CPA: You should already be planning for your end-of-year business deductions anyway. Your CPA can prepare a snapshot of how your business and personal income will look for 2017



Strategize on itemized deductions: Both GOP bills call for cuts to itemized deductions, so take your tax breaks while they're still available.



Identify business income and expenses that can be accelerated or deferred: For instance, you can pay a bill that's due next year now and log the expense in 2017.



Circle back: Revisit your deductions, business income and expenses after the bill is finalized. More from Personal Finance

WATCH: Treasury report says tax cuts pay for themselves
In an interview with The Cut , she explains how she wakes up every day between 6:30 and 7 a.m. to have coffee and eat either eggs or oatmeal for breakfast with her husband. Afterwards, she gets dressed for the gym and travels from her Upper East Side home to the YMCA in Park Slope, Brooklyn to work out for roughly an hour.

When she's not working alongside her husband, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, McCray is focused on her own work with pay equity, domestic violence and mental health. Like many other successful people with a busier-than-normal schedule, McCray sticks to a morning routine to set her up for success.

As a writer, activist, mother and the First Lady of New York City, Chirlane McCray has a schedule that many people couldn't fathom juggling.

"I do the treadmill, the machine with the arms (I don't know what you call it), stretching, and some free weights," she says.

If McCray has meetings for the day at City Hall she will bring a change of clothes to the gym so she can head to those meetings right after. If not, she will head back home to Gracie Mansion in Manhattan and conduct her meetings from there.

While traveling to Brooklyn to workout daily may seem like an unnecessary hike, McCray says the commute serves as the downtime she needs to start her day.

"I take the papers with me or whatever I'm reading to prep for the day," she says. "But the ride also gives [me and my husband] time to talk and be together, and it's nice to go back to the neighborhood."

McCray adds that despite residing in Manhattan, she still goes to the pharmacy and dry cleaners in Brooklyn, which she explains as "very grounding."

"Because people know us and we're not a novelty to them, we don't get interrupted as often as we might if we went elsewhere," she says.

Many other successful leaders are adamant about the importance of exercise in their daily schedule. Oprah Winfrey says she does yoga and tries to get in at least 10,000 steps a day. Mark Cuban says he tries to get in an hour of cardio each day, and billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson wakes up at 5 a.m. every day to exercise.

"I seriously doubt that I would have been as successful in my career (and happy in my personal life) if I hadn't always placed importance on my health and fitness," Branson once wrote in a blog post.

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Don't miss: Richard Branson wakes up at 5 a.m. every morninghere's his daily routine
Demonstrators against the Republican tax reform bill hold a 'Peoples Filibuster to Stop Tax Cuts for Billionaires' protest rally outside the US Capitol on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, November 30, 2017.

The White House promotes its tax-reform push by saying, "President Trump is giving small businesses a boost." But as competing proposals work their way through Congress, opinion among small-business owners is split: Republicans agree with the president, while Democrats could not disagree more. For those small-business owners who identify as Republicans or who lean toward the GOP, tax reform couldn't come soon enough. A huge majority (85 percent) supports the passage of the tax reform. These data come from the newest CNBC/SurveyMonkey Small Business Survey, conducted Nov. 20Dec. 4 among 2,043 small-business owners. When asked to describe their reactions to the proposed tax reform bill, Republican small-business owners are most likely to say: "Finally!" In their own words, tax reform is "overdue," and "it's about time" that politicians in Washington got it done. They are "hopeful" about its effects and largely positive in expressing their reactions.

Out of 886 Republican small-business owners surveyed, just one suggested that tax reform would be "bad for small businesses." Five others expected it to "help small business," with one explaining, "It is about time politicians paid attention to the small-business person. The eight years of Obama were oppressive!" Few Republicans express negative sentiments about the tax reform proposal. Those who do tend to be more measured in their criticism, saying the proposals are "insufficient" or that they "could be better," but that "something is better than nothing!" Democratic-siding small-business owners take a harder line. Eight in 10 (80 percent) oppose the tax reform proposals, and they do not mince words when asked about their thoughts. "Unfair" is the most frequently mentioned single-word response, but "rich" and "wealthy" come up frequently in longer responses, as in, "It's not a reform, it's a tax cut for the wealthy."
The Republican Assembly of Lake County, Illinois, held its Christmas party at J & D's Bar & Grill in Wauconda, IL. on Saturday evening, December 2nd, 2017. The RALC is a grassroots organization made up of Ronald Reagan conservatives who believe in small government, lower taxes, free market capitalism, strong defense, the right to life, and the support of the US. Constitution in the tradition of the Founding Fathers. Attendance at this year's RALC Christmas party was the largest ever, numbering 85 members and guests.

Sunday night, Republican state Representative Jeanne Ives hosted a sizable crowd of supporters in her hometown of Wheaton. She's on the 2018 GOP primary ballot challenging incumbent GOP Governor Bruce Rauner. Illinois Review contributor Nancy Thorner was on hand at one of several events Ives has been appearing at over the past few weeks ...

Bob Bednar, Chairman of the RALC, introduced featured speaker Jeanne Ives, who is running as a conservative Republican challenger to Governor Bruce Rauner. Check out Ives For Illinois.

Meet Jeanne Ives

Jeanne Ives served as a Representative in the Illinois State House (42nd District), which includes all or portions of Wheaton, Warrenville, West Chicago, Winfield, Carol Stream, Lisle and Naperville. Ives was first elected in 2013, until she was drafted in the fall of this year by the states grassroots Republican base to challenge incumbent Governor Bruce Rauner. While serving in the Illinois House Ives demonstrated not only a willingness to lead on difficult issues and question powerful House leaders, but she also gained an insightful understanding of policy.

As a West Point graduate of the Class of 1987 with a Bachelor of Science in Economics, Jeanne Ives went on to serve in the U.S. Army. Her assignments included platoon leader and headquarters detachment commander for transportation units in Germany and ROTC instructor at Wheaton College. Ives resigned from the Army in 1993 to raise her children, while working as a tax advisor and bookkeeper for small businesses and individuals.

It was on October 28, 2017, that State Rep. Jeanne Ives announced she would challenge incumbent Governor Bruce Rauner. Her running mate is former State Rep. Richard Morthland of Cordova, lllinois. Unlike other candidates who have been collecting signatures since early September, Ives and her choice for lieutenant governor had a late start. Despite this late state, State Rep. Jeanne Ives announced officially Sunday night, December 3, 2017, in an invitation-only gathering in her home district that she would be a candidate for governor in the March 2018 Illinois Republican Party primary. She was introduced to the crowd by her running mate, former State Rep. Rich Morthland from the Rock Island area.

If you still have some doubts or misgivings about Jeanne Ives running on the Republican ticket to unseat Republican governor Bruce Rauner, this article, due for publication at National Review on 2017-12-17, titled "Bruce Rauner's Illinois Breakdown," describes Rauner's unacceptable performance as Illinois' governor during his first term in office.

"When Governor Bruce Rauner of Illinois announced in October that he would seek reelection in 2018, he released a two-minute campaign video. It shows the Republican wearing blue jeans and a black leather vest as he rides his Harley-Davidson motorcycle from Chicago to Springfield, the state capital. Four years ago, he says in a voiceover, I crisscrossed our state, looked people in the eye, and promised to fight business as usual.

This boast came about a month after Cardinal Blase Cupich accused him of breaking his word and the Chicago Sun-Times put his picture on its front page, below a headline that shouted: Benedict Rauner. The governors offense was to have signed what may be Americas most radical abortion-funding law after vowing to veto it. The betrayal capped a season of defeats for conservatives, including an income-tax hike, a big bailout of Chicagos public schools, and turning Illinois into what critics of illegal immigration are calling a sanctuary state."

Jeanne Ives comments on state of Illinois

Candidate Ives was received with much enthusiasm by RALC members and friends. As Jeanne stated, the catalyst for her gubernatorial challenge was not only Rauners signing of a bill to expand taxpayer-funded abortion coverage for women on Medicaid, but also the provision to increase funding to Chicago Public Schools.

When serving in the Illinois General Assembly, Ives fought for school choice and Right for Life. She also opted out of both a taxpayer funded pension and healthcare, as both pension and state group health insurance have greatly contributed to budget pressures and both need reform.

In relation to Governor Rauner, He has basically discredited himself as a Republican. Hes signed into law very extreme measures. The man who said he had no social agenda ended up having only a social agenda.

Ives related, when elected to the House in 2013, how both the Illinois House and the Senate had super majorities making it possible for Democrats to pass anything they desired. At the time Ives wondered how things could get any worse than they already were. When Bruce Rauner ran as a reform candidate in 2014, Ives helped to elect Rauner to lead his promised revolt. But instead of Rauner fulfilling his campaign promises, Ives instead experienced betrayal. As Ives said:

Rauner has basically discredited himself as a Republican. Hes signed into law very extreme measures. The man who said he had no social agenda ended up having only a social agenda, having enacted the same economic and social agenda of his buddy Rahn Emmanuel.

Ives questioned what we have at the end of three years and listed the negatives as high taxes, more debt, and many people exiting Illinois for a better economic climate. Noted by Ives was new data in the deterioration of Illinois' tax base. In 2017 Illinois experienced a loss of nearly 42,000 tax returns to other states representing 86,100 individuals at a net loss to Illinois of $4.75 billion in adjusted gross income. Continued Ives: "Because Illinois became a sanctuary state under Governor Rauner, Illinois is less safe." In what was a huge disappointment to Ives and conservatives state-wide was the signing by Rauner of HB-40 which sanctions tax payer funding of abortions. Instead of reforming our Medicaid system, Gov. Rauner expanded it. Ives further revealed that Illinois ranks 48th in the nation on serving those with developmental disabilities.

As to Governor Rauner being elected to a second term, Jeannie Ives was insistent that Rauner can't win in the November 2018 General Election, for no amount of money can win back Republicans who feel betrayed by Rauner.

Jeanne Ives as a candidate

In speaking of herself as a former army officer and graduate of West Point, Ives informed her audience that she lives by the West Point Code and that she can be counted on not to lie, cheat, or steal, nor does she tolerate others who do so. In the House, Ives opposed tax increases, big government bailouts, and stood up for conservative values when other House members were not willing to doing to.

Ives then spoke about the work of grassroots Republicans in turning in 16,000 signatures in only four weeks. This included 520 circulators of petitions in 64 counties. Ives noted that where ever she goes in Illinois she receives a warm reception, an indication that voter motivation is high for Ives, in contrast to the rejection of Rauner by Illinois voters.

Campaign promises made by Jeanne Ives

Property taxes would be cut, not frozen. Property taxes in Illinois are out of control. Home owners end up renting from the government. Spending would be cut. Ives, when serving in the House, did propose and filed bills to cut spending. On day one a task force would be formed to detect and prosecute public corruption in Illinois. Mention was made by Ives of the corruption in the Cook County Assessment System. Governor Rauner was given the vehicle to lead on this issue, but he didn't follow through.

In closing, Ives wants Illinois to be a place which our families can call home for many generations to come.

Republican Secretary of State, Joshua Griffin

Following Jeanne Ives, Joshua Griffin spoke about his credentials as a Republican candidate to unseat Jesse White, Secretary of State.

Joshua Griffin expressed his disgust of Illinois in its status as a failed state. Regarding Jesse White, having served a total of 40+ years in public elected office, Jesse represents "the machine" politics which operates within Illinois. As such, said Griffin, we need fresh voices in Springfield and around the state. Voices that will stand up to the establishment every time they attempt to set the status quo back in place. No longer can we allow our elected officials or political parties to dictate the rules and reap self-dignified personal gain from their highly coveted political perches. Joshua Griffin's impressive bio is noted here.

A native of Chicago, IL, Joshua J.C. Griffin was born on the citys south side and raised in the both the western and southern suburbs of Cook County. is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, and the 4th generation of military serviceman from his family. After a distinguished military service from 2007 - 2012, Griffin achieved the rank of Senior Airman prior to receiving an honorable discharge in 2012. Griffin also holds Impressive business credentials.

RALC Officers

Bob Bednar, Chairman

Glenn Garamoni, Vice-Chair

Mike McKay, Treasurer

Mary Biron, Secretary

Bob Cook, Executive Director

Lake County Legislators and Officials Present at December 2 event:

Adam Solano - Candidate  State House District 62

Jeanne Ives  State Rep. District 42 - Candidate  Governor

John Reinert  McHenry County Board District 2  Candidate State Senate District 32

Doug Bennett -- Candidate US House District 10

Mark Shaw - Lake County Republican Central Committee Chairman

Larry Falbe - Lake County Federation President

Jeri Atleson - Fremont Township Trustee

Tom Weber - Lake County Board  Candidate State Rep. District 64

Marty Zeidman - Moraine Township Republican Chairman

Mark Curran, Lake County Sherriff

Bob Bednar  Candidate for Lake County Board, District 6

Glenn Garamoni - Fremont Township Republican Chairman

Nancy Kubalanza - Grant Township Republican Chairman

Marjorie Kubalanza  Lake County Central Committee Chairwoman

Connie Shanahan  Fremont Township Trustee

The new RALC Meeting location is Fremont Public Library located on 1170 Midlothian Road, Mundelein IL. Meetings are held at 7:00 p.m. on the 3rd Thursday of every month. The next meeting will be on Thursday, January 18th.
President Donald Trump signed Space Policy Directive 1 on Monday, directing NASA to return Americans to the surface of the moon and onward to Mars.

The order declares NASA must lead U.S. astronauts in "an innovative space exploration program." The announcement continues the White House push to end dependence on Russia for manned launches, which began when the space shuttle program retired six years ago.

"It marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972 for long-term exploration and use," Trump said during the signing. "This time we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint. We will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars and, perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond."

It has been 45 years to the day since Apollo 17 landed, the most recent mission to the moon. Former astronaut Buzz Aldrin noted in a tweet that Apollo 17 was the 6th time humans landed on the moon's surface.

@TheRealBuzz The 6th time humans landed on the moon.

Trump's declaration makes him the third president in the last 30 years to announce a return to the moon. On the 20th anniversary of the first moon landing, Apollo 11, President George H.W. Bush announced the National Space Council of the time would "report back" with "concrete recommendations" to reach "the Moon and Mars and beyond." In 2004, President George W. Bush unveiled a three-step vision for space exploration, saying the U.S. must "return to the moon by 2020."

"With the experience and knowledge gained on the moon we will then be ready to take the next steps of space exploration: human missions to Mars and to worlds beyond," Bush said at NASA's headquarters in 2004.

In October the National Space Council met for the first time since it was disbanded in 1993, led by Vice President Mike Pence, several White House officials and space industry executives.

"America seems to have lost our edge in space," Pence said. "Rather than lead in space, too often we've chosen to drift and, as we learned 60 years ago, when we drift we fall behind."

Boeing and SpaceX, both represented at the council meeting, play key roles in NASA's Commercial Crew program. The government organization selected the two companies to transport crew to the International Space Station, launching from the U.S. Both companies will seek major testing milestones in 2018, with both orbital and crewed flight tests.

Pence said America "will win the 21st century in space." He identified the council as a way to build a coherent vision for U.S. policy and strategy in space.
Ride-hailing app Uber's appeal against a license ban in London has been pushed back to as late as June 2018.

In a preliminary hearing in a Westminster court Monday, a judge ruled that Uber's appeal should begin on April 30, but could be delayed until June.

Uber is appealing against a decision by regulator Transport for London (TFL) to not grant it a new private hire license to operate in the U.K. capital. It is also appealing against any decision relating to whether the Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association and a union representing private hire drivers can join TFL in the case.

TFL refused to renew Uber's license on the grounds of "public safety and security implications."

The London ruling is not the only one the taxi-hailing giant is facing.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is to decide over whether it should be regulated as a transport company, as advocated by one of the court's top officials, which would lead to tougher regulations, or a digital platform as Uber claims to be. The ruling is important as it could further constrain the company's operating freedoms and increase costs, although Uber has previously said that it is unlikely to change the way it operates in any markets. The ruling is expected next Wednesday.

The legal battles come after a series of tumultuous months for the ride-hailing company. In July 2017, chief executive and founder Travis Kalanick resigned following a series of scandals. Before that, the company had fired 20 U.S. staff after complaints of sexual harassment and bullying.

Then, in November, it was revealed that hackers stole data from 57 million Uber users and drivers in 2016 and Uber had concealed this for more than a year.
The Association of Flight Attendants, which represents thousands of cabin crew on United, Alaska and a host of other airlines, commended Alaska Airlines for investigating the incident but warned that flight attendants lack the proper training and guidance to deal with such issues.

Sexual harassment in air travel gained more visibility late last month after Randi Zuckerberg, a media executive and sister of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg , reported she was sexually harassed on an Alaska Airlines flight.

In a letter to staff on Monday, Oscar Munoz asked employees to "all join with me in making a commitment to zero tolerance for sexual harassment of any of our colleagues and customers."

Its flight attendants' union calls it a "silent epidemic." As high-profile allegations of sexual harassment become a near-daily occurrence, United Continental Holdings' CEO is trying to get ahead of the problem.

"The industry and regulators need to come together to develop policies and tools to respond to these incidents on board," union president Sara Nelson said in a statement to CNBC. A union survey found the majority of flight attendants "have no knowledge of written guidance and/or training" on this issue," she added.

Munoz's letter comes after the airline faced several public relations black eyes this year. Munoz and United faced a public outcry in the spring after a botched apology for the violent dragging of passenger David Dao off one of its flights to make room for commuting crew.

Flight attendants themselves are often victims of sexual harassment, Nelson wrote in a Dec. 8 op-ed in the Washington Post.

"Even today, we are called pet names, patted on the rear when a passenger wants our attention, cornered in the back galley and asked about our 'hottest' layover, and subjected to incidents not fit for print," she wrote.

Flight attendants are also tasked with handling customers who report sexual harassment on board by fellow passengers. Crew are often encouraged to de-escalate situations during flights and may try to separate passengers in the case of a problem. Flight diversions are costly.

Nelson wrote that flight attendants "never had reason to believe that reports of the sexual harassment we experience on the job would be taken seriously, rather than dismissed or retaliated against" and called on chief executives to speak out.

Munoz, in his letter, said he was adding his voice to Nelson's and those of team members "who adamantly believe that sexual harassment, inappropriate behavior, intimidation or predation have absolutely no place anywhere in our society  including, and especially, in our industry and on our aircraft."
A member of the US forces stands guard during a meeting between US special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter IS and the Tabqa Civil Council in the town of Tabqa, about 55 kilometres (35 miles) west of Raqa city, on June 29, 2017.

Russia is generally unpopular across a broad selection of Middle Eastern countries, but still has an edge in its approval rating over the United States, according to researchers.

The U.S.-based Pew Research Center found in a newly released survey that while only about a third of respondents said they viewed Russia favorably  a median of 35 percent across five countries polled  just 27 percent saw the U.S. as a force for good.

Released Monday, the survey was conducted in spring 2017 across what Pew considered to be five key Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) publics: Jordan, Tunisia, Lebanon, Israel and Turkey.

"Overall, a number of influential powers in the Middle East are not seen in a favorable light. Roughly one-third or fewer view Russia (median of 35 percent) or the U.S. (median of 27 percent) positively," the report said.

However, even lower in the approval ratings than the U.S. is the Islamic Republic of Iran, the survey found: "Within the region, views of Iran are particularly poor (14 percent favorable), though Saudi Arabia fares better (44 percent)." Jordan and Israel held the lowest views on Iran, at 10 and 4 percent respectively, while Lebanon held the highest at 45 percent.

It should be noted that the research group did not survey the Middle East's two most populous states, Egypt and Iran. It also did not include the opinions of people in Iraq or Saudi Arabia, the fourth and fifth-most populous countries in the region. Pew surveyed 6,204 people in total.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (C, front) meets with servicemen as he visits the Hmeymim air base in Latakia Province, Syria December 11, 2017.

President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered Russian forces in Syria to start withdrawing, saying that after a two year military campaign, Moscow and Damascus had achieved their mission of destroying Islamic State.

Putin made the announcement during a surprise visit to Russia's Hmeymim air base in Syria's Latakia Province where he held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and addressed Russian military servicemen.

Russia first launched air strikes in Syria in September 2015 in its biggest Middle East intervention in decades, turning the tide of the conflict in Assad's favour while dramatically increasing Moscow's own influence in the Middle East.

Putin on Monday gave the order for Russian forces to start withdrawing to their permanent bases in Russia, the Kremlin said on its website.

"The task of fighting armed bandits here in Syria, a task that it was essential to solve with the help of extensive use of armed force, has for the most part, been solved and solved spectacularly," Putin said, in remarks broadcast on Russian television.

"I congratulate you!," Putin told Russian servicemen gathered at the base.

He was also quoted as saying that Russia would keep the Hmeymim air base as well as a naval facility at the Syrian port of Tartous.

Putin told Assad on Monday he wanted to work with Iran and Turkey to kick-start the Syrian peace process, Russian news agencies reported.

Putin was also cited as telling Assad he hoped that it would be possible to launch the work of the Syrian Congress on National Dialogue and that he would discuss the matter in forthcoming meetings with the presidents of Egypt and Turkey.
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White House press secretary Sarah Sanders on Monday deflected numerous questions about sexual misconduct allegations against President Donald Trump.

Sanders repeatedly said Trump has denied the misconduct allegations against him and the American people had a chance to judge Trump when they elected him in November 2016.

Three women who have accused Trump of misconduct called for a congressional investigation into the president on Monday.
Zurich Insurance Group has struck an agreement to buy ANZ 's life insurance arm in Australia for AUD 2.85 billion ($2.14 billion).

Zurich said in a press release Monday that the deal will see the Swiss firm become Australia's biggest life insurer with an approximate 19 percent share of the local market.

Both parties expect the transaction to be completed by the end of 2018.

Under the agreement, Zurich will have access to ANZ's estimated 6 million customers who are served through the bank's 680 branches, ATMs, and online services. That distribution deal is to be capped at 20 years.

In the statement, Zurich said the purchase is expected to contribute to the group's profitability "from day one."

Zurich said the deal will be financed through a mix of existing funds and senior debt.
A glittering city of bright lights, where history can be seen on the streets. A place where modern, glitzy hotels mingle with ancient ruins and Chinese temples. This is Macao, where old meets new and East meets West. Opulence and luxury sit side-by-side with tradition and simplicity and a journey into the mystery and wonder of Chinese culture is right at your fingertips.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), much like Macao's fascinating history, can be traced back thousands of years. The third oldest form of medicine, it is rooted in the ancient philosophy of Taoism. Using herbs and mind and body practices, these ancient techniques have sought to treat and prevent health problems of the Chinese for centuries. As TCM gains international recognition, it is not uncommon to find modern day practitioners combining their expertise from university programs with wisdom handed down by past generations.
It has been 10 years since the financial crisis hit worldwide markets.

A recent report by the Credit Suisse Research Institute has revealed that total global wealth has now reached $280 trillion  an increase of 27 percent from the start of the crisis.

It is little surprise that the U.S. topped the tables by producing over half of the total global wealth aggregation of the previous year (2016-2017). But the research also highlighted China's emergence as a particularly significant contributor.

Beijing recorded a total of $29 trillion of private wealth, which reflects an increase of $18 trillion over the past decade. With a contribution of $1.7 trillion to global figures this year, China's results show a considerable and continuing amassment of private wealth.
The progress of the Brexit talks has produced many a contradiction. Those who previously scoffed at Eurosceptic concerns that we were too deeply integrated with the EU have suddenly switched to arguing that were so deeply integrated that its impossible to leave at all. Supposed experts who previously said there was no chance of securing Junckers agreement that there had been sufficient progress in the talks are now wailing about the Government having done so. People who campaigned in the referendum for the UK to pay tens of billions of pounds to the EU every year from here to eternity are now complaining that we might pay a one-off settlement sum in the process of leaving.

But perhaps the greatest contradiction factory is the Oppositions position on Brexit.

Led by a lifelong opponent of the EU who claims to have voted Remain, Labour backed Stronger In while Seumas Milne effectively sabotaged its campaigning capacity.

As his Party reeled in horror at the outcome of the referendum, Corbyn instantly called for the immediate triggering of Article 50, and yet was unable to successfully whip all of his MPs to vote for such a step even months later when it actually came before Parliament.

Having pledged in their manifesto to end free movement, and thereby leave the Single Market, over the summer Labour then allowed Keir Starmer to shimmy their collective position towards staying in the Single Market. Meanwhile, John McDonnell has continued to develop an economic platform which conflicts with basic principles of the Single Market itself.

During the autumn, Starmer has pushed the Oppositions position ever further away from its own stated policies. Nowadays he refuses to rule out a second referendum, despite his Partys leadership explicitly doing so earlier in the year. He wants us to follow Norway in allowing the EU to set our regulations without us having a say on them, despite that position being heavily criticised by his side during the referendum campaign itself. Having promised to end free movement, he now wants easy movement, if not free, whatever that means. And he wants Britain to continue to pay money to the EU permanently, despite Labour complaining bitterly in recent weeks about the prospect of the Chancellor spending any money at all on even preparing for Brexit.

What a peculiar sight: a hard left Labour Party chanting For the Many, Not the Few while it lines up with lobbyists for some of the worlds biggest multinationals to press for power and money to go not to the people but to the unelected, spoiled Brussels elite. The Opposition claims to honour the outcome of the referendum, while opposing the UK taking back control of its laws, its money, and its borders. It cannot do both.
This agreement not only provides certainty about residence, but also healthcare, pensions and other benef its. It will mean that EU citizens who have paid into the UK system  and UK nationals who have paid into the system of an EU Member State  can benefit from what they have put in and continue to benefit from existing coordination rules for future contributions. Reciprocal healthcare rights will be protected, meaning those covered by the agreement will be able to continue to receive healthcare as they do now. And in relation to European Health Insurance Cards (EHICs), we have agreed to protect the rights of individuals who are in a cross  border situation at the point of our withdrawal and entitled to a UK EHIC. This includes, for example, tourists for the duration of their stay, students for the duration of their course and UK nationals resident in another Member State. We will discuss wider use of EHICs in the next phase of the negotiations.
Lord Flight is Chairman of Flight & Partners Recovery Fund, and is a former Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

The country voted for Brexit because a majority was fed up with being told what to do, and with never-ending rules and regulations from an unaccountable EU bureaucracy. We felt we could paddle our own canoe as the fifth or sixth largest economy (depending on what exchange rate you take).

It is, however, time for voters to be more enthused about the post-Brexit opportunities for this country: America, Canada, Australia, India and New Zealand and a host of other countries are keen to gear up and trade much more with the UK, outside EU constraints. For our part, while getting rid of tariffs is the most positive action to boost trade, we also need to be looking at practical measures. Any Chinese businessman will tell you it is still a time-consuming hassle to get a short-term visa to visit the UK for business trading purposes.

China has short-term business visas and visa-free transit, which may be obtained quickly; we should introduce the same for Chinese and businessmen from other countries, who are serious about wanting to do more business with Britain. China and the USA have mutual ten-year visas. For the United Kingdom, the competitive imperative is evident. Interestingly, Hong Kong and Dubai allow short term visits without the requirement of any visa: we should consider permitting such short-term transit entry for citizens of the countries with major increased trade potential. We need to be clear that Brexit is about opening doors and not about xenophobia. I am not suggesting a more liberal immigration policy overall: rather, I am a proponent of easing red tape and making it clear to the world that Britain is open for business in a competitive manner.

We are living in times of powerful new technologies, in which Britain is particularly well placed to benefit. Our industries are world-leading  from financial services to advanced manufacturing and life sciences. We are one of the best places in the world to start and grow a business. New businesses and employment have been at record levels over the last three years.

Over the last 15 years, the proportion of British exports going to the EU has virtually halved to around 30 per cent-35 per cent when, correctly, transhipments via Holland are excluded. The GDP of the Commonwealth has outstripped that of the EU. Britain should be immensely grateful to the Queen for her major part in keeping the former alive in more difficult times. Today we have countries looking to join it. In addition to fostering a major increase in trade, helped by getting rid of tariffs, I see growing scope for the City of London to increase substantially the range of financial services that it provides to Commonwealth economies.

The EU, meanwhile, is likely to face economic and financial crises as a result of adopting the Euro for political purposes, given Germanys refusal to support the less competitive EU economic areas with transfer payments. Italy and much of Southern Europe have seen little or no economic growth since 2000. To share a currency successfully requires the participating economies to be similar, or, if this is not the case, for the less competitive economies need to be sustained by transfer payments from the more successful. Yet Germany refuses to consider transfer payments.

I understand the Governments keenness to achieve a free trade agreement with the EU, but we need to be careful that the price is not too high, and that such an agreement does not limit our scope to increase our trade with the rest of the world, as we see fit. Europe is, already, relatively, a shrinking market for us. We also need to avoid being shackled with over expensive and over demanding EU regulations which will drive business elsewhere  I cite here, as an example, MiFID II.

When our referendum result was declared, I judged that the negotiations with the EU would boil down to being about how much the EU could extract from us for facilitating some form of ongoing free trade deal (also helpful to the EU): and that the EU tactic would be to be difficult and unpleasant until the very end, before offering us an unattractive deal at the last minute in the hope that will be frightened into accepting this.

I hope that the Government realises that, to get a fair and sensible deal, it is implicit that we will need to be prepared to walk out and function under the WTO. This would be far more damaging to the EU than to the UK, given the EUs current account surplus with the UK of circa 100 billion per assum; and thus likely to encourage a more sensible EU offer. We must also avoid overpaying for questionable trading benefits.

My sympathies go to those politicians and civil servants with the task of negotiating with rude and unhelpful EU officials. The Government needs to set out the very positive trade and economic opportunities post Brexit and, particularly, with the huge English speaking parts of the world. My vision is for Britain to become a successful, low tax, global economy, attracting entrepreneurs and traders from all over the world.
One reading of the deal signed last week by UK and EU negotiators is that it guarantees full regulatory alignment between Northern Ireland and Ireland if the land border issue is not resolved during the talks to come. (Such alignment is in effect the same as no regulatory divergence, according to Gisela Stuart of Vote Leave on this site). It follows from this logic that, since the Government and the DUP agree that Northern Ireland must not be treated differently from Great Britain, the whole of the United Kingdom would be signed up to such alignment. And it follows again that, since this is the case, we would effectively be bound to the Single Market and Customs Union  at least in matters that flow from Strand Two of the Belfast Agreement, such as agriculture. This would make it impossible to agree the unrestricted non-EU free trade deals that are an instrinic part of a coherent Brexit. The main part of Liam Foxs job would become redundant. This view is put with particular force by some Irish commentators and Remain campaigners.

Such a take on the deal has the potential to bring down Theresa May and her Government. Roughly half the Conservative Parliamentary Party voted Leave. Much of it would find such an interpretation, duly implemeted, very hard to bear indeed. The pro-Brexit MPs concerned would be torn between, on the one hand, their yearning to break free of the Customs Union and Single Market and, on the other, their fear of anything likely to bring Jeremy Corbyn nearer power. So May and her team have a pressing need to reject this view.

They find refuge in the words of the preamble to the deal, repeated in Article Five, that under the caveat that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed [our italics], the joint commitments set out below in this joint report shall be reflected in the Withdrawal Agreement in full detail. This section of the deal also says that the commitments are without prejudice to discussions on the framework of the future relationship, which would also imply possible departure in the talks to come from the deals text.

(Furthermore, they argue that the words full regulatory alignment do not appear in it. This is correct. The form of words used is full alignment, and the gloss that Ministers are putting on them  such as David Davis yesterday, for example  is that they refer to the mutual recognition of standards, which obviously does not imply capture by Single Markets and Customs Union rules. Such an outcome would leave the Government fully free to strike those trade deals.)

Not so fast, say Irish Ministers, Article 46 of the deal specifically says that commitments made as part of the deal must be upheld in all circumstances, irrespective of the nature of any future agreement between the European Union and United Kingdom. The only sensible conclusion to draw is that Article Five, which says that nothing is yet agreed, contradicts Article 46, which says that agreements made to date must be upheld. Welcome to what has been called Schrodingers Brexit.

May, Leo Varadkar, Jean-Claude Juncker, Donald Tusk  the whole lot of them  are thus struggling in a net of their own devising. And given the disagreement between London and Dublin over the deals meaning, one cannot presume that the European Council will confirm later this week that trade talks can start. Getting to the brink of them was a diplomatic win for the Prime Minister last week. Falling back again would return her to the perils that threatened her between last Monday and Friday.

May is very conscious of the importance of keeping Boris Johnson and Michael Gove in her Cabinet and onside with the deal. This is why Gove was licensed to write his Daily Telegraph article of Saturday which repeated the nothing is agreed until everything is agreed mantra. Davis made the same argument yesterday. And the Prime Minister herself has apparently repeated it in a letter to Conservative MPs, which also says that full alignment means sharing the same policy goals even if we achieve them by different means. The Government seems to be on firm ground here. Those two words would not have been written into the deals text without EU negotiators and Irish civil servants recognising their ambiguity, and letting them pass. The Government is less well placed on the standing of the deal itself. This is less because its text is decisive either way than because common sense suggests it. It cannot agree a text and then query its status without raising questions about whether Britain can be relied upon to honour commitments it has entered into.
CORNWALL, Ontario  An 18-year-old Cornwall man was arrested on Dec. 7, 2017 and charged with distribution of child porn and make intimate images available without consent.

It is alleged the man posted an intimate video of him and his ex-girlfriend on the internet without her knowledge or consent and police were contacted to investigate. On Dec. 7, 2017 the man was taken into custody, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on January 11th, 2018. His name was not released as it would identify the victim in the matter.

BREACH

CORNWALL, Ontario  Aaron Campeau, 35, of Cornwall was arrested on Dec. 8, 2017 and charged with breach of recognizance for failing to reside at a specific address and failing to notify a change of address to police. It is alleged the man was found to be in breach of his conditions when police attended his residence to do a compliance check. On Dec. 8, 2017 the man attended police headquarters to deal with the matter. He was taken into custody, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on Jan. 4, 2018

POSSESSION OF STOLEN PROPERTY, POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, BREACH

CORNWALL, Ontario  Andy Courville, 30, and Ricky Courville, 28, both of Cornwall were arrested on Dec. 8, 2017 and charged with possession of stolen property. Andy was also charged with possession of speed and breach of probation for failing to keep the peace. It is alleged on Dec. 8, 2017 the two men were found to be in possession of a stolen license plate during a traffic stop. They were taken into custody and Andy Courville was found to be in possession of a quantity of speed. Both men were charged accordingly and released to appear in court at a later date.

IMPAIRED OPERATION, OVER 80

CORNWALL, Ontario  Zachary Gaspe, 23, of Alexandria was arrested on Dec. 9, 2017 and charged with impaired operation of a motor vehicle and over 80. It is alleged in the early morning hours of Dec. 9, 2017 the man was driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol in the area of Sydney Street and Seventh Street. He was taken into custody during a traffic stop, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on Dec. 28, 2017.

POSSESSION OF STOLEN PROPERTY, POSSESSION OF BREAK IN TOOLS, BREACH

CORNWALL, Ontario  Bradley Stephenson, 24, and Aldina Pirrone, 40, both of Cornwall were arrested on Dec. 10, 2017 and charged with possession of property obtained by crime. Stephenson was also charged with possession of break in tools and breach of two probation orders for failing to keep the peace. It is alleged in the early morning hours of Dec. 10, 2017 police found them in possession of stolen flood lights while in the area of Lefebvre Avenue. They were taken into custody and Stephenson was found to be in possession of break in tools. Both were charged accordingly and Pirrone was released to appear in court on Jan. 16., 2018 while Stephenson was held for a bail hearing.

REFUSAL

CORNWALL, Ontario  Richard Guillet, 25, of South Lancaster was arrested on Dec. 10, 2017 and charged with refusal. It is alleged on D. 10, 2017 the man failed to provide a proper sample of his breath upon demand during a traffic stop. He was taken into custody, charged accordingly and released to appear in court on Dec. 21, 2017.

WARRANT

CORNWALL, Ontario  Kevin Tait, 63, of Grenville was arrested on Dec. 10, 2017 on the strength of a warrant. It is alleged the man failed to attend court on June 1, 2017 for several charges and a warrant was issued for his arrest. On Dec. 10, 2017 the man was taken into custody during a traffic stop on the strength of the warrant and held for a bail hearing.

CRIMINAL HARASSMENT

Cornwall, ON  Nathanael Hutchinson, 31, was arrested on Dec. 10, 2017 and charged with criminal harassment. It is alleged on Sept. 29, 2017 the man repeatedly communicated with a woman not known to him and police were contacted to investigate. On Dec. 10, 2017 the man attended police headquarters to deal with the matter. He was taken into custody, charged accordingly and held for a bail hearing.

There were 112 calls for service in the City of Cornwall in over the weekend (8 a.m. Friday to 8 a.m. Monday morning). To see whats happening in your neighbourhood visit our Crime Plot Map @ http://www.cornwallpolice.ca/ . CCPS reserves the right to not post all calls for service in order to protect the identity of the victims.
In a rare move, the German Ministry of Interior (Bundesamt fur Verfassungsschutz (BfV) ) made public the results of a nine-month counterintelligence study into the use of social networks, including LinkedIn, by the Chinese intelligence services.

The head of the BfV, Hans-Georg Maaen, noted, Chinese intelligence services are active on networks like LinkedIn and have been trying for a while to extract information and find intelligence sources in this way, including seeking data on users habits, hobbies and political interests, according to Reuters.

Furthermore, the BfV says the intent is to compromise individuals' computers and their corporate or government access to ultimately penetrate organizations of interest. In other words, they want to exploit the trusted insider's access.

This revelation, unique in only providing the identity of the fake profiles, is one of many that governments around the world have warned  social networks are prime hunting grounds for all ilk of social engineers. Indeed the rise of fraud on social networks, specifically LinkedIn, has been growing for years.

The targeting of over 10,000 German citizens has been confirmed by the BfV, Spiegel Online tells us, via the Chinese intelligence service's fake social profiles.

Chinese intelligence services are active on networks like LinkedIn and have been trying for a while to extract information and find intelligence sources in this way, it says.

China denies the accusations.

According to a New York Times article, "Lu Kang, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called the investigation 'complete hearsay and groundless.'"

Fake LinkedIn profiles

The many profiles that the BfV study uncovered show that the Chinese leaned toward young professional men and women. The BfV noted that the Chinese blended in and that the social network (LinkedIn) doesnt find their presence suspicious. The Bfv cautions that these identified profiles may be the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

LinkedIn has removed the profiles of these individuals, but Austrian Kleinezeitung captured at least one prior to the removal, that of Laeticia Chen.

The LinkedIn profiles removed:

Laeticia Chen  Manager at China Center of International Politics and Economy

Jason Wang  Representative of AFEC in Beijing

Allen Liu  Personnel department of a consulting company in Hangzhou

Rachel Li  headhunter for RiseHr

Alex Li  Project Manager at Center for Sino-Europe Development Studies

Eva Han  An HR Specialist

Luo Jana - Manager

Lily Wu  Assistant to the secretary general of the Center for Chinese-European Development Studies.

The BfV also identified three organizations that it claims are involved in the Chinese social engineering efforts.

Global View

DRHR

Move HR

Reuters reviewed some of the individual profiles prior to their removal and confirmed they were connected to senior diplomats and politicians from several European countries.

Catfishing goes Nation State

We are accustomed to hearing of catfishing schemes targeting our elderly and duping the unsuspecting senior citizen into funding medical procedures or an education for their online love interest and then once their bank account is drained, the individual ( located in Malaysia, Nigeria or the next town over) evaporates and disappears.

Therefore, it should come as no surprise that this same methodology has morphed into the use of Chinese intelligence services (and other nations as well) to socially engineer secrets from those who have access to information of interest.

Our advice: Trust but verify every contact with whom you share any information  do your due diligence. Dont accept their presence in a trusted colleagues list of professional contacts as evidence. Ask that colleague straight out: Do you know this individual? How well?
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We all know by now that the Republican tax reform is a political hatchet job on blue states and that many homeowners in Connecticut would suffer worse than just about anyplace else.

But the key words there are just about. Homeowners in many New York and New Jersey suburbs would lose even more value in state and local tax deductions than wed lose in Connecticut under the Trump scheme; their state and local levies are generally higher.

And so, amid the rightful rage, we might see a small but real plus for Fairfield County and the rest of Connecticut.

Its possible that the migration of high-income residents from New York and New Jersey to Connecticut  which is already happening  could increase. Under both versions of the tax bill passed in the U.S. House and Senate, Connecticuts cost advantage over our two fellow tri-state states would widen.

Predicting the effects of tax policy is notoriously dicey and unintended consequences are rampant. Overall, the Republican tax plan could prod people to move to lower-tax regions, where, by the way, the weather is typically warmer.

So Connecticut is likely to be a loser overall. Still, said Kathi Mettler, an accounting professor at Fairfield University, many of the desirable jobs are in the tri-state area, so its possible that taxpayers would choose to live in Connecticut over New York and New Jersey.

Were not going to see a flood by any means. But factors on the margin matter. Just ask one of the high-earning Connecticut residents who left after the top income tax rate inched up to 6.99 percent from 6.7 percent in 2015.

More Information A Connecticut State of Mind Although Connecticut lost an average of more than 17,000 people per year to other states from 2012 to 2016, thousands move in from New York and New Jersey. Figures show the average annual difference between the number of people moving to and from Connecticut and each state shown. NY 8,422 NJ 2,177 MA -2,251 CA -1,554 Total of all states -17,278 See More Collapse

In Rye, just over the state line along I-95, it wasnt hard to find people who thought Greenwich, or perhaps some other lower Fairfield County burg, would entice people to move in part because of the lost property tax deductions.

A lot of people do already, even without the lost deduction, said Diana Cannon.

She was one. Cannon recently sold a house in Rye, where she was paying $48,000 a year in property taxes, and moved to Greenwich, where she is renting.

Thats not a wildly outlandish bill in the Greenhaven section of Rye, where many people pay well over $50,000.

Bonnie Rosenzweig, a longtime resident, isnt about to pick up and move as a result of tax policy changes. Years ago, she and her husband, a Manhattan doctor, looked at Scarsdale, Mamaroneck and Rye.

What about Connecticut? If I were starting out now I would probably consider it, she said.

But she added, It depends on the commute time. Thats going to be an ever-bigger factor as Connecticut competes for a shrinking pool of upscale professionals in the New York area.

Lets look at the numbers. The owners of a house in Greenhaven worth $2.5 million will pay a property tax of about $48,000. A few miles away, the owners of a Greenwich home worth the same anount will pay about $21,000.

In Summit, N.J., the local levy on a house of that value is about $46,000.

Other wealthy Fairfield county towns range up to about $45,000. Of course, in many places it doesnt take $2.5 million to get the same house. In Greenwich, it might take more.

What does that mean under the new tax plan? If Congress and President Donald Trump adopt a measure allowing a write-off of only $10,000 in property taxes  which is in both the House and Senate versions  a homeowner paying that $48,000 will lose a $38,000 deduction  costing her about $13,500.

The Connecticut homeowner paying, say, $25,000 will lose a $15,000 deduction  at a cost of about $5,500.

Thats a savings of $8,000 a year. Add that to a small additional savings because the New York and New Jersey income taxes are somewhat higher, and it starts to be one consideration.

Enough to sway minds?

Theres not a lot of evidence that tax rates cause a lot of migrations, said Christopher Jones, senior vice president and chief of planning at the Regional Plan Association, a nonprofit group in the metro area. But he added, Theres always going to be some households for which that will make the difference.

Even without the added factor, the movement of people from New York and New Jersey to Connecticut is significant.

Connecticut lost an average of 17,278 people to other states in the five years between 2012 and 2016  when we subtract the number leaving from the number coming in. In 2016, the figure was an astounding and scary 37,328.

But in those five years, New York sent an average of 8,422 more people per year to Connecticut than we sent to the Empire State, and New Jersey sent an average of 2,177. And based on reporting by my colleague Alexander Soule, it appears that the movement to Fairfield County from New York and New Jersey suburbs is even higher.

The cost pressure on the whole region will wash out any advantage Connecticut might have, said Edward Deak, a retired Fairfield University economics professor who looked at the movement of people and jobs for more than 30 years. The bright side? Connecticut will benefit from Trumps military buildup, Deak said.

The competition is all the more fierce. Connecticut, like other states under siege, will have to work harder to deliver value for the tax dollar and will have to find new sources of revenue such as tolls, casinos and marijuana. Towns will be under huge pressure to cut costs.

Even with a slight advantage within the region, Mettler said, Its still going to be up to Connecticut to be the more favorable location.
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HARTFORD  Nearly 1,500 students displaced by hurricanes and other recent natural disasters have been admitted into public schools in Connecticut.

While spread among 64 school districts, the bulk of students are located in Hartford, Waterbury, New Britain, New Haven, Bridgeport and Meriden, state officials said Wednesday.

As of Dec. 1, some 136 were in Bridgeport, and 16 in Stamford.

Most of the new students are from Puerto Rico, displaced following Hurricane Maria, but others are from the U.S. Virgin Islands and St. Maarten, Fla., following Hurricane Irma.

A few are from Texas, following Hurricane Harvey, and also from Mexico after earthquakes in that country.

The department is continuing to be responsive to the needs of districts as they work to enroll and stabilize children and youth in a new school experience, Charlene Russell-Tucker, chief operating officer for the state.

In September, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Commissioner of Education Dianna Wentzell issued gudiance to school districts advising districts to treat students as unaccompanied homeless youth, which gives them access to a number of services such as free school meals, health care and other services.

With the students have also come challenges of space, providing adequate language services, and in some cases a lack of academic records.

I dont think we were prepared even before the crisis, Milly Arciniegas, executive director of Hartford Parent University, told the state board. For these kids coming from Puerto Rico right now there are more needs than just compliance.

More Information DISTRICT NUMBER OF DISPLACED STUDENTS AS OF 12/1/2017 Hartford 291 Waterbury 208 New Britain 160 New Haven 146 Bridgeport 136 Meriden 112 Windham 70 East Hartford 48 New London 37 Bristol 32 Manchester 25 Norwich 32 Stamford 16 Groton 12 Middletown 12 Wallingford 11 Hamden 10 See More Collapse

Most districts, she said, dont have the appropriate funding to provide bilingual education and other services needed.

The state is also hoping for a piece of a federal budget request of $1.235 billion for hurricane education recovery efforts which include funding for school districts receiving displaced students.

Bridgeport started admitting students from Puerto Rico shortly after Hurricane Maria struck the island.

The school district has hosted information sessions, with Schools Superintendent Aresta Johnson saying that money problems aside, the district would open its doors to any student from Puerto Rico who moves in with relatives here.

The city also has established a part-time Hurricane Relief Resource Center to assist families find housing, jobs and social services.
The U.S. Senate, by a vote of 51-49, passed its version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that makes sweeping changes to the tax code, including changes to IRAs and other tax-advantaged saving plans. The good news for credit unions and their members is that the credit union tax-exemption would remain in place and changes to IRAs would be minimal.

The Senate vote comes on the heels of the House passing its version of H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, by a vote of 227-205. Following is a summary of provisions in the House-passed bill that would affect tax-advantaged savings plans.

The ability to recharacterize a Roth IRA contribution to a Traditional IRA, or a Traditional IRA contribution to a Roth IRA would be eliminated. This provision would also eliminate the ability to recharacterize a Roth IRA conversion contribution.

The deduction and exclusion for contributions to Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs) would be eliminated. Contributions to MSAs would no longer be permitted and employer contributions to employees MSAs would no longer be excludable from income.

Contributions to Coverdell education savings accounts (ESAs) would no longer be permitted. Existing Coverdell ESAs would remain in place and existing Coverdell ESA balances could continue to be rolled over to another Coverdell ESA or to a state-sponsored 529 savings program. Under the House bill, state-sponsored 529 savings programs would be enhanced so that assets could be used for elementary and secondary school tuition and for costs associated with qualified apprenticeship programs, up to $10,000 per year.

The Senate-passed version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act would also repeal the rule that permits recharacterizations of IRA contributions, consistent with the House bill provision. The Senate bill, however, does not contain the MSA or ESA provisions. The Senate bill does include a provision that changes the formula used for calculating the annual cost-of-living adjustments for IRAs, HSAs, MSAs, and the Savers Credit. The change would mean that cost-of-living adjustments would occur less frequently than under the current formula.

The House and Senate bills both contain a provision to extend the rollover period for certain plan loan offsets and numerous other provisions that would affect employer-sponsored retirement plans.

However, neither the House nor the Senate bill contains the Rothification provision that was rumored prior to release of the tax bills, which would have treated some or all retirement plan contributions as after-tax contributions, similar to how Roth 401(k) and Roth IRA contributions are currently treated.

Many in the industry were worried that tax-advantaged savings plans would be sacrificed to pay for tax reform, given the cost of the plans to the Treasury, which is second only to the cost of employer-provided health insurance. These concerns increased when it was rumored, prior to release of the tax bill, that contribution limits to 401(k) plans and IRAs would be reduced, prompting President Donald Trump to tweet, There will be NO change to your 401(k). This has always been a great and popular middle class tax break that works, and it stays!

In the end, House and Senate Republicans were able to advance their respective tax reform proposals and stay within the budget constraints without using deferrals to 401(k) plans and Traditional IRAs as revenue offsets. Surprisingly, neither bill contains easy revenue raisers that have been proposed in the past and have bipartisan support, such as requiring beneficiaries of an inherited IRA to deplete the account within five years of the IRA owners death.

To pass the tax reform legislation into law, both the House and Senate will work in conference committee to reconcile the differences between the two versions of the bill. Each chamber will then need to vote and pass the compromise bill before sending it to President Trump for his signature.

The tax reform package is being advanced under the budget reconciliation process, which requires only a simple majorityrather than 60 votesfor passage. This means that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) can lose the support of only two Republican Senators, given that no Democrats are likely to vote for the bill.

As House and Senate negotiators work on a compromise bill, they will be constrained by the requirement that the tax reform bill can only increase the deficit by $1.5 trillion in the first 10 years. Any increase in spending will need a corresponding offset, and therein lies the risk that a retirement-related revenue raiser could still be added to the final bill.

Although there is much work yet to be done, passage of a tax reform package is likely, given its importance to the Trump administration, but in a politically-correct adaptation of the old colloquialism, It aint over til the President signs the bill. Stay tuned.
Were honored that Wisconsin Employer Support ofthe Guard and Reserve, a Department of Defense program, awarded the ESGR Seven Seals Award to our director of talent acquisition, Allison Osting, today.

The award recognizes Osting for extraordinary support of our military service member employees and their families who serve in the Wisconsin National Guard and Federal Reserve.

The ESGR Seven Seals Award was created to publicly recognize those outstanding citizens who provide meritorious leadership and initiative in direct support of their employees, who like the citizen warriors before them, have answered their nations call to serve, said Michael Williams, Wisconsin ESGR State Chair. Supportive employers are critical to maintaining the strength and readiness of our Nations Guard and Reserve units.

Osting said she was accepting the award on behalf of our company and everyone involved in supporting active military member employees today: Our employees are what make CUNA Mutual Group both a strong partner to our customers and a great place to work, she said. Those who answer our nations call to serve deserve both our full support and our gratitude.
Russia Is Providing North Korea With Internet Connectivity

Following the diplomatic fallout between North Korea and China, its only major trade partner, Russia is positioning itself to be a stronger North Korean ally, reaching out to provide North Korea with an Internet connection.

Russia may embolden North Korea to launch more destructive cyberattacks. Stronger cooperation between the two raises the possibility that they will even collaborate on cyberattacks themselves, which would be devastating for the international community.

Dyn Research have reported that Russia began providing an Internet connection to North Korea since October. The Russian-provided infrastructure gives Pyongyang 60% more bandwidth and a second connection to the outside world ; Chinas Unicom company had been North Koreas sole Internet provider since 2010.

The construction of the new Internet connection follows a September 27th meeting between Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) envoys and Russian foreign ministry officials in Moscow. Russias extension of an Internet connection to North Korea, as well as its reopening of a ferry route between the two, may indicate that Russia will seek sanction loopholes to strengthen their partnership.

North Koreas turn towards Russia follows Pyongyangs aggressive nuclear testing and vociferous behavior pushing China and its investments out of the country.

After North Koreas sixth nuclear test, the UN Security Council passed the strictest sanctions yet on the isolated country. As a result of these sanctions, China is due to close North Korean businesses operating within China and end joint ventures between the two within 120 days.

Chinas compliance with new sanctions is not the only sign of tension with the DPRK. This year, Pyongyang timed its missile and nuclear tests to correspond with international meetings hosted in China. North Koreas actions seemingly were meant to embarrass China, who it believes is siding with Washington.

Tensions between North Korea and China have been accelerating since Kim Jong-un took power in 2011. The following year, North Korean authorities lashed out against one of Beijings largest mining and steel-producing companies, Xiyang Group, with whom it had signed a $40 billion deal to build an iron ore mine. North Korean officials used violent methods against Xiyang staff, such as depriving them of food and water, and smashing windows. North Korea eventually annulled the contract with Xiyang, after deporting employees in the dead of night.

The warming of North Korean-Russian relations does not just coincide with the souring of North Korean relations with China. It also follows a distributed denial of service (DDoS) campaign by US Cyber Command on North Koreas intelligence agency, the Reconnaissance General Bureau.

According to a US official, North Korean hackers complained that the resulting spotty Internet access was interfering with their work, which as of late involves stealing hundreds of millions of dollars from international banks and companies. As increasingly strict sanctions limit legal economic opportunities for North Korea, cyber heists provide for nearly a third of the value of the isolated nations exports.

Russia, also increasingly isolated due to sanctions and its aggressive activity, sees an opportunity in North Korea. With little investment required on its part, Russia can incorporate North Korea into its geopolitically disruptive agenda.

Russias agenda involves forcing the US and its allies to exhaust more resources on cybersecurity and tend to international conflicts. Given Russias own economic distress from sanctions, which have caused GDP to decline since 2013, there is a strong incentive for international partnership with North Korea.

Supplying North Korean hackers with added bandwidth and capability to attack national banks and companies allows Russia to finance cyber-disruption. Worse, with Russian support, North Korea will feel emboldened to launch more destructive cyberattacks.

Russia and North Korea make natural allies in that they are aligned against the United States and its US allies, and it is highly possible that they have collaborated in cyber-attacks in some capacity. The US government and private security companies have identified the two as principal threats to national security based on their previous cyberattacks.

Russia has continuously used cyber methods to maintain its influence on the former Soviet area as part of hybrid warfare campaigns by combining conventional power with cyber capabilities.

During Putins tenure, Estonia, Georgia, and Ukraine have been victims of Russian cyberattacks. Similarly, North Korea has been accused of numerous cybersecurity incidents, such as the Sony Pictures hack in 2014, stealing $101 million from the Bangladeshi central bank, and the worldwide WannaCry ransomware attack this year.

Thus, Russia is quietly laying the groundwork to establish itself as a stronger North Korean partner while China-North Korea relations are cooling.

This development coincides with the restoration of a Russian-North Korean railroad project, connecting Khasan (near Vladivostok) with Rajin (a port in North Korea). In addition, on October 10th, Russia reopened a ferry route to North Korea, despite the sanctions calls to curtail economic cooperation between UN Security Council member states and North Korea.

While China no longer wants to be accused by the international community of supporting a rogue state, Russia is not swayed by such accusations. Both Russia and North Korea have proved they will use any means feasible to disrupt international affairs.

Whether it is by sending unmarked soldiers across borders, occupying a neighboring country, hacking power grids, or launching ransomware attacks against hospital computers, a strong Russian-North Korea partnership presents a much graver cyber threat than ever before.

If Russia and the North Korea collaborate to unleash more aggressive cyberattacks, and it is looking like that will be the case, the international community needs to better prepare itself.

Forbes:

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Our portfolio of high quality UK commercial property is focused on London Offices and Retail around the UK. We own or manage a portfolio valued at 13.7bn (British Land share: 10.3bn) as at 30 September 2020 making us one of Europe's largest listed real estate investment companies. Our strategy is to provide places which meet the needs of our customers and respond to changing lifestyles - Places People Prefer. We do this by creating great environments both inside and outside our buildings and use our scale and placemaking skills to enhance and enliven them. This expands their appeal to a broader range of occupiers, creating enduring demand and driving sustainable, long term performance. Our Offices portfolio comprises three office-led campuses in central London as well as high quality standalone buildings and accounts for 65% of our portfolio. Our Retail portfolio is focused on retail parks and shopping centres, and accounts for 31% of our portfolio. Increasingly our focus is on providing a mix of uses and this is most evident at Canada Water, our 53 acre redevelopment opportunity where we have plans to create a new neighbourhood for London. Sustainability is embedded throughout our business. Our places, which are designed to meet high sustainability standards, become part of local communities, provide opportunities for skills development and employment and promote wellbeing. In April 2016 British Land received the Queen's Award for Enterprise: Sustainable Development, the UK's highest accolade for business success for economic, social and environmental achievements over a period of five years.
PNM Resources, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides electricity and electric services in the United States. It operates through Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) and Texas-New Mexico Power Company (TNMP) segments. The PNM segment engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The segment generates electricity using coal, natural gas and oil, nuclear fuel, solar, wind, and geothermal energy sources. As of December 31, 2021, this segment had owned or leased facilities with a total net generation capacity of 2,168 megawatts; and owned 3,426 miles of electric transmission lines, 5,751 miles of distribution overhead lines, 5,765 miles of underground distribution lines, and 250 substations. The segment also owns and leases communication, office and other equipment, office space, vehicles, and real estate. The TNMP segment provides regulated transmission and distribution services. As of December 31, 2021, the segment owned 983 miles of overhead electric transmission lines, 7,297 miles of overhead distribution lines, 1,408 miles of underground distribution lines, and 113 substations. The segment also owns and leases vehicles, service facilities, and office locations throughout its service territory. The company serves approximately 806,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers and end-users of electricity in New Mexico and Texas. PNM Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 1882 and is headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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.
Exxon Mobil Corporation is the largest direct descendent of John D. Rockefellers Standard Oil and one of the worlds largest companies. Its earliest roots lie with Vacuum Oil which got its start in the 1860s. Vacuum Oils primary product was kerosene, an important advancement for heating and lighting in rural America. Vacuum Oil was later merged with Standard Oil of New Jersey which was the parent operation of the Standard Oil empire prior to its breakup. Standard Oil of New Jersey would merge with other independent operators over the next few years until settling on the brand Exxon for most of its operations.

Meanwhile, Standard Oil of New York was operating under much the same impetus, merging and growing, until it became known as Mobil. Then, in 1999, the two giants became one with a merger of equals that on paper had Exxon buying Mobil. Now, the combined company operates under the Exxon, Mobil, and Esso brands as an international vertically integrated energy and petrochemical business.

Today, the company explores and produces crude oil and natural gas and their derivative products globally. As of 2022, it was ranked 6th on Forbes Fortune 500 list and 12th on the Global 500 list but it has held positions from #1 to #10 over the years. In terms of its operations, it is the worlds second-largest oil refiner and the largest refiner outside of China. In terms of reserves, ExxonMobil claimed about 18.5 million barrels of oil and oil equivalents at the end of 2021 and was ranked 15th globally.

ExxonMobil operates through three segments that are the Upstream, Downstream, and Chemical segments. The Upstream segment explores for and produces oil and oil equivalents and represents roughly 70% of the income. The Downstream segment gathers, receives, stores, transports and refines oil and equivalents and their derivatives. The Downstream segment also markets and delivers fuel products to consumers and businesses. The Chemicals segment produces the full range of petrochemicals including plastics, resins and synthetic rubber.

ExxonMobil is committed to advancing sustainable and carbon-free energy solutions. The company is targeting 2050 for net-zero emissions and its 2030 interim targets are in alignment with the Paris Accord, the EU's Global Methane Pledge, and US Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan. The companys plans include investing $15 billion into reducing greenhouse emissions by 2028.






The following companies are subsidiares of Pearson: AEL (S) PTE Limited, ATI Professional Development LLC, Addison Wesley Longman Inc., Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc., Aldwych Finance Limited, Americas Choice Inc., Atkey Finance Limited, Author Solutions, Axis Finance Inc., CAMSAWUSA Inc., CTI Education Group (Pty) Limited, Camsaw Inc., Casapsi Livraria e Editora Ltda, Centro Cultural Americano Franquias e Comercio Ltda., Century Consultants Ltd., Certiport, Certiport China Co Ltd, Certiport China Holding LLC, Certiport Inc., Cogmed Systems AB, Connections Academy of Arkansas LLC, Connections Academy of Florida LLC, Connections Academy of Iowa LLC, Connections Academy of Maine LLC, Connections Academy of Maryland LLC, Connections Academy of Minnesota LLC, Connections Academy of Missouri LLC, Connections Academy of Nevada LLC, Connections Academy of New Jersey LLC, Connections Academy of New Mexico LLC, Connections Academy of New York LLC, Connections Academy of Oregon LLC, Connections Academy of Pennsylvania LLC, Connections Academy of Tennessee LLC, Connections Academy of Texas LLC, Connections Education Inc., Connections Education LLC, Connections Education of Florida LLC, Dominie Press Inc., Dorian Finance Limited, Dorling Kindersley Australasia Pty Limited, EBNT Canada Holdings ULC, EBNT Holdings Limited, EBNT USA Holdings Inc., Edexcel Limited, Edexcel South Africa Pty Ltd, Education Development International plc, Education Resources (Cyprus) Limited, Educational Management Group Inc., Educational Publishers LLP, Embanet ULC, Embanet-Compass Knowledge Group Inc., EmbanetCompass, Embankment Finance Limited, English Language Learning and Instruction System Inc., Escape Studios Limited, FBH Inc., Falstaff Holdco Inc., Falstaff Inc., GED Domains LLC, GED Testing Service LLC, George (Shanghai) Commercial Information Consulting Co. Ltd, Global Education, Global George I Limited, Global George II Limited, GlobalEnglish, Globe Fearon Inc., Guangzhou Crescent Software Co. Ltd, Heinemann Education Botswana (Publishers) (Proprietary) Limited, Heinemann Publishers (Pty) Ltd, INTELLIPRO INC., Icodeon Limited, IndiaCan Education Private Limited, Integral 7 Inc., Integrated Analytics LLC, J M Solucoes Exportacao e Importacao Ltda, K12 Learning Services LLC, Kagiso Education Pty Ltd, Knowledge Analysis Technologies LLC, LCCI International Qualifications (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., LCCIEB Training Consultancy. Ltd, Learning Catalytics, LessonLab Inc., Lignum Oil Company, Linx Brasil Distribuidora Ltda., Longman (Malawi) Limited, Longman Australasia Pty Ltd, Longman Group(Overseas Holdings)Limited, Longman Indochina Acquisition L.L.C., Longman Kenya Limited, Longman Mocambique Ltda, Longman Romania S.R.L., Longman Swaziland (Pty) Limited, Longman Tanzania Limited, Longman Zambia Educational Publishers Pty Ltd, Longman Zambia Limited, Longman Zimbabwe (Private) Ltd, Longmaned Ecuador S.A., Major123 Limited, Maskew Miller Longman (Pty) Limited, MeasureUp LLC, Modern Curriculum Inc., Multi Holding, Multi Treinamento e Editora Ltda, NCS Information Technology Services (Beijing) Co Ltd, NCS Pearson Inc., NCS Pearson Pty Ltd, NCS Pearson Puerto Rico Inc., National Computer Systems Japan Co. Ltd, Ordinate Corporation, PN Holdings Inc., PT Efficient English Services, Pearson (Beijing) Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Pearson (Guizhou) Education Technology Co. Ltd., Pearson Affordable Learning Fund Limited, Pearson America LLC, Pearson Amsterdam B.V., Pearson Australia Finance Unlimited, Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd, Pearson Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Pearson Australia Pty Ltd, Pearson Benelux B.V., Pearson Books Limited, Pearson Brazil Finance Limited, Pearson Business Services Inc., Pearson Canada Assessment Inc., Pearson Canada Finance Unlimited, Pearson Canada Holdings Inc, Pearson Canada Inc., Pearson Central Europe Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Pearson College Limited, Pearson DBC Holdings Inc., Pearson Desarrollo y Capacitacion Profesional Chile Limitada, Pearson Deutschland GmbH, Pearson Digital Learning Puerto Rico Inc., Pearson Dollar Finance Two Limited, Pearson Dollar Finance plc, Pearson Educacion SA, Pearson Educacion de Chile Limitada, Pearson Educacion de Colombia S A S, Pearson Educacion de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pearson Educacion de Panama SA, Pearson Educacion de Peru S.A., Pearson Education (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Pearson Education Achievement Solutions (RF) (Pty) Limited, Pearson Education Africa (Pty) Ltd, Pearson Education Asia Limited, Pearson Education Botswana (Proprietary) Limited, Pearson Education Hellas SA, Pearson Education Holdings Limited, Pearson Education Inc., Pearson Education Indochina Limited, Pearson Education Investments Limited, Pearson Education Korea Limited, Pearson Education Limited, Pearson Education Namibia (Pty) Limited, Pearson Education Publishing Limited, Pearson Education S.A., Pearson Education SA, Pearson Education South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Pearson Education South Asia Pte. Ltd., Pearson Education Taiwan Ltd, Pearson Education do Brasil S.A, Pearson Educational Measurement Canada Inc., Pearson Educational Publishers LLC, Pearson Egitim Cozumleri Tikaret Limited Sirketi, Pearson Falstaff (Holdings) Inc., Pearson Falstaff Holdco LLC, Pearson France, Pearson Funding Five plc, Pearson Funding Four plc, Pearson Funding Two Limited, Pearson Holdings Inc., Pearson Holdings Southern Africa (Pty) Limited, Pearson IOKI Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Pearson India Education Services Private Limited, Pearson India Support Services Private Limited, Pearson Institute of Higher Education, Pearson International Finance Limited, Pearson Investment Holdings Inc., Pearson Italia S.p.A, Pearson Japan KK, Pearson Lanka (Private) Limited, Pearson Learning China (HK) Limited, Pearson Lesotho (Pty) Ltd, Pearson Loan Finance No. 3 Limited, Pearson Loan Finance No. 4 Limited, Pearson Loan Finance No.2 Unlimited, Pearson Loan Finance Unlimited, Pearson Longman Uganda Limited, Pearson Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Pearson Management Services Limited, Pearson Management Services Philippines Inc., Pearson Maryland Inc., Pearson Netherlands B.V., Pearson Netherlands Holdings B.V., Pearson Nominees Limited, Pearson Online Tutoring LLC, Pearson Overseas Holdings Limited, Pearson PEM P.R. Inc., Pearson PRH Holdings Limited, Pearson Pension Nominees Limited, Pearson Pension Property Fund Limited, Pearson Pension Trustee Limited, Pearson Pension Trustee Services Limited, Pearson Professional Assessments Limited, Pearson Real Estate Holdings Inc., Pearson Real Estate Holdings Limited, Pearson Schweiz AG, Pearson Services Limited, Pearson Shared Services Limited, Pearson South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Pearson Strand Finance Limited, Pearson Sweden AB, Pearson VUE Philippines Inc., Pearson in Practice Holdings Limited, Pearson in Practice Skills Based Learning Limited, Pearson in Practice Technology Limited, Penguin Capital LLC, Phumelela Publishers (Pty) Ltd, ProctorCam Inc., Reading Property Holdings LLC, Rebus Planning Associates Inc., Reston Publishing Company Inc., Rycade Capital Corporation, Shanghai AWL Education Software Ltd, Silver Burdett Ginn Inc., Skylight Training and Publishing Inc., Smarthinking Inc., Sound Holdings Inc., Spear Insurance Company Limited, Stark Verlag GmbH, Sunnykey International Holdings Limited (BVI), TQ Catalis Limited, TQ Clapham Limited, TQ Education and Training Limited, TQ Global Limited, TQ Group Limited, TQ Holdings Limited, The Financial Times (I) Pvt Ltd, The Learning Edge International pty Ltd, The Waite Group Inc, Trio Parent Holdings LLC, US Learning Services LLC, USLS Holdings LLC, Virtual Nerd, Vue Testing Services Israel Ltd, Vue Testing Services Korea Limited, Wall Street Institute Kft., Williams Education GmbH, eCollege.com, and Editions Du Renouveau Pedagogique Inc..

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The Toronto-Dominion Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, U.S. Retail, Wealth Management and Insurance, and Wholesale Banking segments. The company offers personal deposits, such as checking, savings, and investment products; financing, investment, cash management, international trade, and day-to-day banking services to businesses; and financing options to customers at point of sale for automotive and recreational vehicle purchases. It also provides credit cards and payments; real estate secured lending, auto finance, and consumer lending services; point-of-sale payment solutions for large and small businesses; wealth and asset management products, and advice to retail and institutional clients through direct investing, advice-based, and asset management businesses; and property and casualty insurance, as well as life and health insurance products. The company also provides capital markets, and corporate and investment banking products and services, including underwriting and distribution of new debt and equity issues; advice on strategic acquisitions and divestitures; and trading, funding, and investment services to corporations, governments, and institutions. It offers its products and services under the TD Bank and America's Most Convenient Bank brand names. The company operates through a network of 1,061 branches and 3,381 automated teller machines (ATMs) in Canada, and 1,148 stores and 2,701 ATMs in the United States, as well as offers telephone, digital, and mobile banking services. It has a strategic alliance with Canada Post Corporation. The Toronto-Dominion Bank was founded in 1855 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.
Vulcan Materials Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies construction aggregates primarily in the United States. It operates through four segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The Aggregates segment provides crushed stones, sand and gravel, sand, and other aggregates; and related products and services that are applied in construction and maintenance of highways, streets, and other public works, as well as in the construction of housing and commercial, industrial, and other nonresidential facilities. The Asphalt Mix segment offers asphalt mix in Alabama, Arizona, California, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Texas, as well as engages in the asphalt construction paving activity in Alabama, Tennessee, and Texas. The Concrete segment provides ready-mixed concrete in California, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia, and Washington D.C. The Calcium segment mines, produces, and sells calcium products for the animal feed, plastics, and water treatment industries. The company was formerly known as Virginia Holdco, Inc. and changed its name to Vulcan Materials Company. Vulcan Materials Company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama.
Robert Half International Inc. provides staffing and risk consulting services in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The company operates through three segments: Temporary and Consultant Staffing, Permanent Placement Staffing, and Risk Consulting and Internal Audit Services. It places temporary services for accounting, finance, and bookkeeping; temporary and full-time office and administrative personnel consisting of executive and administrative assistants, receptionists, and customer service representatives; full-time accounting, financial, tax, and accounting operations personnel; and information technology contract professionals and full-time employees in the areas of platform systems integration to end-user technical and desktop support, including specialists in application development, networking and cloud, systems integration and deployment, database design and administration, and security and business continuity. The company also offers temporary and full-time employees in attorney, paralegal, legal administrative, and legal secretarial positions; and senior-level project professionals in the accounting and finance fields for financial systems conversions, expansion into new markets, business process re-engineering, business systems performance improvement, and post-merger financial consolidation. It is involved in serving professionals in the areas of creative, design, marketing, advertising, and public relations; and placing various positions, such as creative directors, graphics designers, web designers, media buyers, front end developers, copywriters, digital marketing managers, marketing analytics specialists, brand managers, and public relations specialists. The company provides internal audit, technology consulting, risk and compliance consulting, and business performance services. It serves clients and employment candidates. Robert Half International Inc. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California.
Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE), an S&P 500<sup></sup> urban office real estate investment trust ("REIT"), is the first, longest-tenured, and pioneering owner, operator, and developer uniquely focused on collaborative life science, technology, and agtech campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, with a total market capitalization of $31.9 billion as of December 31, 2020, and an asset base in North America of 49.7 million square feet ("SF"). The asset base in North America includes 31.9 million RSF of operating properties and 3.3 million RSF of Class A properties undergoing construction, 7.1 million RSF of near-term and intermediate-term development and redevelopment projects, and 7.4 million SF of future development projects. Founded in 1994, Alexandria pioneered this niche and has since established a significant market presence in key locations, including Greater Boston, San Francisco, New York City, San Diego, Seattle, Maryland, and Research Triangle. Alexandria has a longstanding and proven track record of developing Class A properties clustered in urban life science, technology, and agtech campuses that provide our innovative tenants with highly dynamic and collaborative environments that enhance their ability to successfully recruit and retain world-class talent and inspire productivity, efficiency, creativity, and success. Alexandria also provides strategic capital to transformative life science, technology, and agtech companies through our venture capital platform. We believe our unique business model and diligent underwriting ensure a high-quality and diverse tenant base that results in higher occupancy levels, longer lease terms, higher rental income, higher returns, and greater long-term asset value.
RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. provides reinsurance and insurance products around the world. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Bermuda with offices in Ireland, Australia, Switzerland, Singapore, and the US.

The company operates through two segments that include multiple underlying businesses and investment vehicles. The two main segments are Property and Casualty & Specialty. The company operates through intermediaries that include DaVinci Resinsurance Inc, Top Layer Reinsurance LTD, and RennaisanceRe Syndicate 1458 among others.

Top Layer Re is the first major venture and was started in 1999. It is a joint venture with State Farm targeting high layers of the US reinsurance business. DaVinci Re was formed in the wake of 9/11 to assist with capacity and it was given added capacity in the wake of hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Medici was formed in 2009 and is an open-ended fund intended to spur investment in the catastrophe bond market.

The Property segment writes catastrophic insurance policies to insure insurance and reinsurance companies against natural and man-made catastrophes. These include but are not limited to hurricanes, floods, freezes, and terrorism.

The Casualty & Specialty segment provides a wide range of consumer products including business insurance, malpractice insurance, liability insurance, workers' compensation, mortgage insurance, and health insurance among others.

Among RenaissanceRes Specialty businesses is capital management. The firm offers 6 investment vehicles and has more than $11 billion under management making it the #1 ILS or insurance-linked asset manager in the US. In regards to its credit ratings, the firm and all of its vehicles carry an A or better rating from every credit rating agency.
Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. provides investor communications and technology-driven solutions for the financial services industry. The company's Investor Communication Solutions segment processes and distributes proxy materials to investors in equity securities and mutual funds, as well as facilitates related vote processing services; and distributes regulatory reports, class action, and corporate action/reorganization event information, as well as tax reporting solutions. It also offers ProxyEdge, an electronic proxy delivery and voting solution; data-driven solutions and an end-to-end platform for content management, composition, and omni-channel distribution of regulatory, marketing, and transactional information, as well as mutual fund trade processing services; data and analytics solutions; solutions for public corporations and mutual funds; SEC filing and capital markets transaction services; registrar, stock transfer, and record-keeping services; and omni-channel customer communications solutions, as well as operates Broadridge Communications Cloud platform that creates, delivers, and manages communications and customer engagement activities. The company's Global Technology and Operations segment provides solutions that automate the front-to-back transaction lifecycle of equity, mutual fund, fixed income, foreign exchange and exchange-traded derivatives, order capture and execution, trade confirmation, margin, cash management, clearance and settlement, reference data management, reconciliations, securities financing and collateral management, asset servicing, compliance and regulatory reporting, portfolio accounting, and custody-related services. This segment also offers business process outsourcing services; technology solutions, such portfolio management, compliance, fee billing, and operational support solutions; and capital market and wealth management solutions. The company was founded in 1962 and is headquartered in Lake Success, New York.
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.
Conagra Brands, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company in North America. The company operates in four segments: Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels in the United States. The Refrigerated & Frozen segment provides temperature-controlled food products through various retail channels in the United States. The International segment offers food products in various temperature states through retail and foodservice channels outside of the United States. The Foodservice segment offers branded and customized food products, including meals, entrees, sauces, and various custom-manufactured culinary products packaged for restaurants and other foodservice establishments in the United States. The company sells its products under the Birds Eye, Duncan Hines, Healthy Choice, Marie Callender's, Reddi-wip, Slim Jim, Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP, Duke's, Earth Balance, Gardein, and Frontera brands. The company was formerly known as ConAgra Foods, Inc. and changed its name to Conagra Brands, Inc. in November 2016. Conagra Brands, Inc. was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
The following companies are subsidiares of CVS Health: ACS ACQCO CORP., ADMINCO Inc., AE Fourteen Incorporated, AHP Holdings Inc., AMC - Tennessee LLC, APS Acquisition LLC, ASCO HealthCare LLC, ASI Wings LLC, AUSHC Holdings Inc., Accendo Insurance Company, Accordant Health Services L.L.C., Active Health Management Inc., Administrative Enterprises Inc., AdvancePCS SpecialtyRx LLC, AdvanceRx.com L.L.C., Advanced Care Scripts Inc., Aetna, Aetna (Beijing) Enterprise Management Services Co. Ltd., Aetna (Shanghai) Enterprise Services Co. Ltd., Aetna ACO Holdings Inc., Aetna Asset Advisors LLC, Aetna Behavioral Health LLC, Aetna Better Health Inc., Aetna Better Health Inc., Aetna Better Health Premier Plan MMAI Inc., Aetna Better Health of California Inc., Aetna Better Health of Florida Inc., Aetna Better Health of Illinois Inc., Aetna Better Health of Indiana Inc., Aetna Better Health of Kansas Inc., Aetna Better Health of Missouri LLC, Aetna Better Health of Nevada Inc., Aetna Better Health of North Carolina Inc., Aetna Better Health of Oklahoma Inc., Aetna Better Health of Tennessee Inc., Aetna Better Health of Texas Inc., Aetna Better Health of Washington Inc., Aetna Capital Management LLC, Aetna Card Solutions LLC, Aetna Corporate Services LLC, Aetna Dental Inc., Aetna Dental of California Inc., Aetna Financial Holdings LLC, Aetna Florida Inc., Aetna Global Benefits (Asia Pacific) Limited, Aetna Global Benefits (Bermuda) Limited, Aetna Global Benefits (Europe) Limited, Aetna Global Benefits (Middle East) LLC, Aetna Global Benefits (Singapore) PTE. LTD., Aetna Health Holdings LLC, Aetna Health Insurance (Thailand) Public Company Limited, Aetna Health Insurance Company, Aetna Health Insurance Company of Europe DAC, Aetna Health Insurance Company of New York, Aetna Health Management LLC, Aetna Health and Life Insurance Company, Aetna Health of California Inc., Aetna Health of Iowa Inc., Aetna Health of Michigan Inc., Aetna Health of Ohio Inc., Aetna Health of Utah Inc., Aetna HealthAssurance Pennsylvania Inc., Aetna Holdco (UK) Limited, Aetna Holdings (Thailand) Limited, Aetna Inc., Aetna Insurance (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Aetna Insurance Company Limited, Aetna Insurance Company of Connecticut, Aetna Integrated Informatics Inc., Aetna International Ex Pat LLC, Aetna International LLC, Aetna Ireland Inc., Aetna Life & Casualty (Bermuda) Ltd., Aetna Life Assignment Company, Aetna Life Insurance Company, Aetna Medicaid Administrators LLC, Aetna Network Services LLC, Aetna Partners Diversified Fund LLC, Aetna Pharmacy Management Services LLC, Aetna Resources LLC, Aetna Risk Assurance Company of Connecticut Inc., Aetna Rx Home Delivery LLC, Aetna Services (Thailand) Limited, Aetna Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Aetna Student Health Agency Inc., Aetna Ventures LLC, Aetna Workers Comp Access LLC, Alabama CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Alaska CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Allina Health and Aetna Health Plan Inc., Allina Health and Aetna Insurance Company, Allina Health and Aetna Insurance Holding Company LLC, American Drug Stores Delaware L.L.C., Arbor Drugs, Arizona CVS Stores L.L.C., Arkansas CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Badger Acquisition LLC, Badger Acquisition of Kentucky LLC, Badger Acquisition of Minnesota LLC, Badger Acquisition of Ohio LLC, Banner Health and Aetna Health Insurance Company, Banner Health and Aetna Health Insurance Holding Company LLC, Banner Health and Aetna Health Plan Inc., Beauty Holdings L.L.C., Best Care LTC Acquisition Company LLC, Busse CVS L.L.C., CCI Foreign S.a R.L., CCRx Holdings LLC, CCRx of North Carolina LLC, CHP Acquisition LLC, CP Acquisition LLC, CVS 2948 Henderson L.L.C., CVS 3268 Gilbert L.L.C., CVS 3745 Peoria L.L.C., CVS AL Distribution L.L.C., CVS AOC Corporation, CVS AOC Services L.L.C., CVS Albany L.L.C., CVS Bellmore Avenue L.L.C., CVS Cabot Holdings Inc., CVS Cabot Holdings Inc.  Coram Clinical Trials Inc. 99.72%/Aetna Inc. .28%, CVS Care Concierge LLC, CVS Caremark Advanced Technology Pharmacy L.L.C., CVS Caremark Indemnity Ltd., CVS Caremark Part D Services L.L.C., CVS Caremark TN SUTA LLC, CVS Foreign Inc., CVS Gilbert 3272 L.L.C., CVS Health Applications LLC, CVS Health Solutions LLC, CVS Health Ventures Fund GP LLC, CVS Health Ventures Fund LP, CVS Health Ventures Management LLC, CVS Indiana L.L.C., CVS International L.L.C., CVS Kidney Care Advanced Technologies LLC, CVS Kidney Care Health Services LLC, CVS Kidney Care Home Dialysis LLC, CVS Kidney Care LLC, CVS Management Support LLC, CVS Manchester NH L.L.C., CVS Media Exchange LLC, CVS Michigan L.L.C., CVS Orlando FL Distribution L.L.C., CVS PA Distribution L.L.C., CVS PR Center Inc., CVS Pharmacy Inc., CVS Pharmacy Overseas Online LLC, CVS RS Arizona L.L.C., CVS Rx Services Inc., CVS SC Distribution L.L.C., CVS Shaw Holdings Inc., CVS Shaw Holdings Inc.  Coram Clinical Trials Inc. 99.72%/Aetna Inc. .28%, CVS State Capital L.L.C., CVS TN Distribution L.L.C., CVS Transportation L.L.C., CVS Vero FL Distribution L.L.C., CVS-SHC Kidney Care Home Dialysis of Austin LLC, CVS-SHC Kidney Care Home Dialysis of Los Angeles LLC, CVS-SHC Kidney Care Home Dialysis of Philadelphia LLC, CVS-SHC Renal Holdings LLC, Campos Medical Pharmacy LLC, Canal Place LLC, Care Pharmaceutical Services LP, CareCenter Pharmacy L.L.C., Carefree Insurance Services Inc., Caremark Arizona Mail Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Arizona Specialty Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark California Specialty Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Florida Mail Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Florida Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Hawaii Mail Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Hawaii Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark IPA L.L.C., Caremark Illinois Mail Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Illinois Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Irving Resource Center LLC, Caremark Kansas Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark L.L.C., Caremark Logistics LLC, Caremark Louisiana Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Maryland Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Massachusetts Specialty Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Michigan Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Minnesota Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark New Jersey Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark North Carolina Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Ohio Specialty Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Pennsylvania Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark PhC L.L.C., Caremark Puerto Rico L.L.C., Caremark Puerto Rico Specialty Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Redlands Pharmacy L.L.C., Caremark Repack LLC, Caremark Rx L.L.C., Caremark Tennessee Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Texas Mail Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Texas Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Caremark Ulysses Holding Corp., Caremark Washington Specialty Pharmacy LLC, CaremarkPCS Alabama Mail Pharmacy LLC, CaremarkPCS Health L.L.C., CaremarkPCS L.L.C., Central Rx Services LLC, Cofinity Inc., Compscript LLC, Connecticut CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Continental Life Insurance Company of Brentwood Tennessee, Continuing Care Rx LLC, Coram Alternate Site Services Inc., Coram Clinical Trials Inc., Coram Clinical Trials Inc.  CVS Pharmacy Inc. 75%/Aetna Life Insurance Company 25%, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Alabama, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Florida, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Greater D.C., Coram Healthcare Corporation of Greater New York, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Indiana, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Massachusetts, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Mississippi, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Nevada, Coram Healthcare Corporation of North Texas, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Northern California, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Southern California, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Southern Florida, Coram Healthcare Corporation of Utah, Coram LLC, Coram Rx LLC, Coram Specialty Infusion, Coram Specialty Infusion Services L.L.C., Coventry Consumer Advantage Inc., Coventry Health Care National Accounts Inc., Coventry Health Care National Network Inc., Coventry Health Care of Illinois Inc., Coventry Health Care of Kansas Inc., Coventry Health Care of Missouri Inc., Coventry Health Care of Nebraska Inc., Coventry Health Care of Virginia Inc., Coventry Health Care of West Virginia Inc., Coventry Health Plan of Florida Inc., Coventry Health and Life Insurance Company, Coventry HealthCare Management Corporation, Coventry Prescription Management Services Inc., Coventry Transplant Network Inc., Credentials Inc., D & R Pharmaceutical Services LLC, D.A.W. LLC, Delaware CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Delaware Physicians Care Incorporated, District of Columbia CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., E.T.B. INC., Echo Merger Sub Inc., Eckerd Corporation of Florida Inc., Employee Assistance Services LLC, Enloe Drugs LLC, Enterprise Patient Safety Organization LLC, EntrustRX, Evergreen Pharmaceutical LLC, Evergreen Pharmaceutical of California LLC, Express Pharmacy Services of PA L.L.C., First Choice of the Midwest LLC, First Health Group Corp., First Health Life & Health Insurance Company, Florida Health Plan Administrators LLC, Garfield Beach CVS L.L.C., Generation Health L.L.C., Geneva Woods Health Services LLC, Geneva Woods LTC Pharmacy LLC, Geneva Woods Management LLC, Geneva Woods Pharmacy Alaska LLC, Geneva Woods Pharmacy LLC, Geneva Woods Pharmacy Washington LLC, Geneva Woods Pharmacy Wyoming LLC, Geneva Woods Retail Pharmacy LLC, Georgia CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., German Dobson CVS L.L.C., Goodhealth Worldwide (Asia) Limited, Goodhealth Worldwide (Global) Limited, Goodyear CVS L.L.C., Grand St. Paul CVS L.L.C., Grandview Pharmacy LLC, Group Dental Service Inc., Health Care Management Co. Ltd., Health Data & Management Solutions Inc., Health Re Inc., Health and Human Resource Center Inc., HealthAssurance Pennsylvania Inc., Highland Park CVS L.L.C., Holiday CVS L.L.C., Home Care Pharmacy LLC, Home Pharmacy Services LLC, Hook-SupeRx L.L.C., Horizon Behavioral Services LLC, Idaho CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., IlliniCare Health, Indian Health Organisation Private Limited, Innovation Health Holdings LLC, Innovation Health Insurance Company, Innovation Health Plan Inc., Interlock Pharmacy Systems LLC, Iowa CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., JHC Acquisition LLC, Kansas CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Kentucky CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., LCPS Acquisition LLC, Langsam Health Services LLC, Lo-Med Prescription Services LLC, Lobos Acquisition LLC, Longs Drug Stores, Longs Drug Stores California L.L.C., Louisiana CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., MHHP Acquisition Company LLC, MHNet Specialty Services LLC, MHNet of Florida Inc., Main Street Pharmacy L.L.C., Managed Care Coordinators Inc., Managed Healthcare LLC, Martin Health Services LLC, Maryland CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Med World Acquisition Corp., Medical Arts Health Care LLC, Medical Examinations of New York P.C., Melville Realty Company Inc., MemberHealth LLC, Mental Health Associates Inc., Mental Health Network of New York IPA Inc., Meritain Health Inc., Merwin Long Term Care LLC, Minor Health Enterprise Co Ltd., MinuteClinic, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Alabama L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Arizona LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Arkansas LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Colorado LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Florida LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Georgia LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Hawaii L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Illinois LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Kentucky L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Louisiana L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Maine L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Maryland LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Massachusetts LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Nebraska L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of New Hampshire L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of New Mexico L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Ohio LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Oklahoma LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Oregon LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Pennsylvania LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Rhode Island LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of South Carolina L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Texas LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Utah L.L.C., MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Virginia LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Washington LLC, MinuteClinic Diagnostic of Wisconsin L.L.C., MinuteClinic L.L.C., MinuteClinic Online Diagnostic Services LLC, MinuteClinic Physician Practice of Texas, MinuteClinic Telehealth Services LLC, MinuteClinic Telehealth Services of Texas Association, Mississippi CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Missouri CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Montana CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., NCS Healthcare of Illinois LLC, NCS Healthcare of Iowa LLC, NCS Healthcare of Kansas LLC, NCS Healthcare of Kentucky LLC, NCS Healthcare of Montana LLC, NCS Healthcare of New Mexico LLC, NCS Healthcare of Ohio LLC, NCS Healthcare of South Carolina LLC, NCS Healthcare of Tennessee LLC, NCS Healthcare of Wisconsin LLC, NIV Acquisition LLC, Navarro Discount Pharmacy, Nebraska CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., NeighborCare Pharmacy Services LLC, NeighborCare of Indiana LLC, NeighborCare of Virginia LLC, New Jersey CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Niagara Re Inc., North Carolina CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., North Shore Pharmacy Services LLC, NovoLogix LLC, OCR Services LLC, Ocean Acquisition Sub L.L.C., Ohio CVS Stores L.L.C., Oklahoma CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Omnicare, Omnicare Indiana Partnership Holding Company LLC, Omnicare LLC, Omnicare LLC  Aetna Inc 0.28%/CVS Cabot Holdings Inc. 49.86%/CVS Shaw Holdings Inc. 49.86%, Omnicare Pharmacies of Pennsylvania West LLC, Omnicare Pharmacies of the Great Plains Holding LLC, Omnicare Pharmacy and Supply Services LLC, Omnicare Pharmacy of Tennessee LLC, Omnicare Pharmacy of the Midwest LLC, Omnicare Property Management LLC, Omnicare of Nebraska LLC, Omnicare of Nevada LLC, Omnicare of New York LLC, Oregon CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., PE Holdings LLC, PHPSNE Parent Corporation, PP Acquisition Company LLC, PRN Pharmaceutical Services LP, PT Aetna Management Consulting, Pamplona Saude e Beleza LTDA, Part D Holding Company L.L.C., PayFlex Systems USA Inc., Pennsylvania CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Performax Inc., Pharmacy Associates of Glenn Falls LLC, Pharmacy Consultants LLC, Phoenix Data Solutions LLC, Precision Benefit Services Inc., Prime Net Inc., ProCare Pharmacy Direct L.L.C., ProCare Pharmacy L.L.C., Prodigy Health Group Inc., Professional Risk Management Inc., Puerto Rico CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Red Oak Sourcing LLC, Resources for Living LLC, Rhode Island CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Roeschens Healthcare LLC, RxAmerica, Schaller Anderson Medical Administrators Incorporated, Scrip World LLC, Sheffield Avenue CVS L.L.C., Shore Pharmaceutical Providers LLC, Silverscript Insurance Company, Soma Intimates, South Carolina CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., South Wabash CVS L.L.C., Specialized Pharmacy Services LLC, Stadtlander Drug Company, Stadtlander Pharmacy, Sterling Healthcare Services LLC, Superior Care Pharmacy LLC, Sutter Health and Aetna Administrative Services LLC, Sutter Health and Aetna Insurance Company, Sutter Health and Aetna Insurance Holding Company LLC, T2 Medical Inc., TCPI Acquisition LLC, TargetPharmacy, Tennessee CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Texas Health + Aetna Health Insurance Company, Texas Health + Aetna Health Insurance Holding Company LLC, Texas Health + Aetna Health Plan Inc., The Vasquez Group Inc., Thomas Phoenix CVS L.L.C., Three Forks Apothecary LLC, U.S Healthcare Holdings LLC, U.S. Healthcare Properties Inc., UAC Holding Inc., UC Acquisition LLC, UNI-Care Health Services of Maine LLC, Universal American - Medicare Part D Business, Utah CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., VAPS Acquisition Company LLC, Value Health Care Services LLC, Vermont CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Virginia CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Virtual Home Healthcare LLC, Warm Springs Road CVS L.L.C., Washington CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Washington Lamb CVS L.L.C., Weber Medical Systems LLC, Wellpartner LLC, West Virginia CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Westhaven Services Co LLC, Williamson Drug Company LLC, Wisconsin CVS Pharmacy L.L.C., Woodward Detroit CVS L.L.C., Work and Family Benefits Inc., ZS Acquisition Company LLC, Zinc Health Services LLC, Zinc Health Ventures LLC, bSwift LLC, and iTriage LLC.

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Dollar General Corporation, a discount retailer, provides various merchandise products in the southern, southwestern, Midwestern, and eastern United States. It offers consumable products, including paper and cleaning products, such as paper towels, bath tissues, paper dinnerware, trash and storage bags, disinfectants, and laundry products; packaged food comprising cereals, pasta, canned soups, fruits and vegetables, condiments, spices, sugar, and flour; and perishables that include milk, eggs, bread, refrigerated and frozen food, beer, and wine. The company's consumable products also comprise snacks, such as candies, cookies, crackers, salty snacks, and carbonated beverages; health and beauty products, including over-the-counter medicines and personal care products, such as soaps, body washes, shampoos, cosmetics, and dental hygiene and foot care products; pet supplies and pet food; and tobacco products. In addition, it offers seasonal products comprising holiday items, toys, batteries, small electronics, greeting cards, stationery, prepaid phones and accessories, gardening supplies, hardware, and automotive and home office supplies; and home products that include kitchen supplies, cookware, small appliances, light bulbs, storage containers, frames, candles, craft supplies and kitchen, and bed and bath soft goods. Further, the company provides apparel, which comprise casual everyday apparel for infants, toddlers, girls, boys, women, and men, as well as socks, underwear, disposable diapers, shoes, and accessories. As of February 25, 2022, it operated 18,190 stores in 47 states in the United States. The company was formerly known as J.L. Turner & Son, Inc. and changed its name to Dollar General Corporation in 1968. Dollar General Corporation was founded in 1939 and is based in Goodlettsville, Tennessee.
By PTI: Islamabad, Dec 11 (PTI) An angry Pakistani youth has allegedly shot dead his sister and her husband for marrying without the familys consent, in the latest incident of honour killing in the country, police said.

The accused, identified as 19-year-old Saeed Anwar, had been upset at his sister, Mismat Musarrat, 18, for marrying Qaiser, 25.

The incident took place in Nagyal in Rawalpindis Gujjar Khan tehsil and police described it as an honour killing, Dawn newspaper reported.

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The Station House Officer Ishtiaq Masood Cheema said the suspect had been waiting for an opportunity to kill the couple ever since they married a few months ago without the consent of his family.

He said that when Anwar found the couple alone in their house, the accused fired at them with a pistol, killing them both on the spot.

He later tried to flee the scene, but was apprehended by the police along with the murder weapon.

Cheema said police have booked Anwar for a double murder. Police will present him in court tomorrow to seek physical remand. The bodies of the victims have been shifted to a local hospital for a postmortem.

Last month, a newly-wed couple in Sindh province who married without the consent of their elders were killed allegedly on the orders of a jirga (village elders).

In September, police had exhumed bodies of a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy, who had reportedly been electrocuted by their families on the orders of a jirga in Karachi.

Activists say around a thousand Pakistani women fall victims to so-called honour killings every year in which the victims, mostly a woman, are usually killed by a relative or on the orders of village elders for bringing dishonour to the family or the community. PTI AKJ AKJ

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GNC Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty retailer of health, wellness, and performance products. The company operates through three segments: U.S. and Canada, International, and Manufacturing/Wholesale. Its products include proteins, performance supplements, weight management supplements, vitamins, herbs and greens, wellness supplements, health and beauty products, food and drink products, and other general merchandise. The company also provides third-party contract manufacturing services. It sells its products under the GNC proprietary brands, as well as under third-party brands. As of December 31, 2018, the company had approximately 8,400 locations of which approximately 6,200 retail locations in the United States and franchise operations in approximately 50 countries. It sells its products through company-owned retail stores and its Website GNC.com, as well as third-party Websites; wholesale partnerships; and domestic and international franchise activities. GNC Holdings, Inc. has a strategic partnership with Harbin Pharmaceutical Group Holding Co., Ltd. and International Vitamin Corporation. The company was founded in 1935 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; Panorama, a security management solution for the control of firewall appliances and software deployed on a customer's network, as well as their instances in public or private cloud environments, as a virtual or a physical appliance; and virtual system upgrades, which are available as extensions to the virtual system capacity that ships with physical appliances. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, and firewall; and DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention. In addition, the company offers cloud security, secure access, security operations, and threat intelligence and cyber security consulting; professional services, including architecture design and planning, implementation, configuration, and firewall migration; education services, such as certifications, as well as online and in-classroom training; and support services. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. sells its products and services through its channel partners, as well as directly to medium to large enterprises, service providers, and government entities operating in various industries, including education, energy, financial services, government entities, healthcare, Internet and media, manufacturing, public sector, and telecommunications. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.
Installed Building Products, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the installation of insulation, waterproofing, fire-stopping, fireproofing, garage doors, rain gutters, window blinds, shower doors, closet shelving and mirrors, and other products in the continental United States. The company offers a range of insulation materials, such as fiberglass and cellulose, and spray foam insulation materials. It is also involved in the installation of insulation and sealant materials in various areas of a structure, which includes basement and crawl space, building envelope, attic, and acoustical applications. In addition, the company installs a range of caulk and sealant products that control air infiltration in residential and commercial buildings; and waterproofing options, including sheet and hot applied waterproofing membranes, as well as deck coating, bentonite, and air and vapor systems. It serves homebuilders, multi-family and commercial construction firms, individual homeowners, and repair and remodeling contractors through a network of approximately 210 branch locations. The company was formerly known as CCIB Holdco, Inc. Installed Building Products, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is based in Columbus, Ohio.
By PTI: Mirzapur (UP), Dec 11 (PTI) Eight persons were today arrested for allegedly beating up and molesting a woman from Varanasi and leaving a French national injured when he tried to intervene.

UP Police maintained that no attack was made on the French national.

The woman along with a group of French tourists and her relatives was visiting the Lakhania Dari Waterfall here when the incident took place.

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A police spokesperson said, "No attack was made on any French national, but a French national sustained injuries as he tried to intervene in an altercation between two group of Indians."

The French national sustained injuries on his hand, police said.

He said the woman, a resident of Varanasi, was molested by some persons and was also beaten up.

"The vehicle by which she had come here carried about half a dozen French tourists," he said.

The woman later filed a complaint with the police, based on which the eight persons were arrested, the official added.

The spokesperson said that yesterday the woman in her police complaint had alleged that nearly a dozen persons molested her and beat her.

She said her relatives too were beaten up by the men. PTI NAV DV

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Ashland Inc. provides additives and specialty ingredients worldwide. It operates through Life Sciences; Personal Care & Household; Specialty Additives; and Intermediates and Solvents segments. The Life Sciences segment offers pharmaceutical solutions, including controlled release polymers, disintegrants, tablet coatings, thickeners, solubilizers, and tablet binders; nutrition solutions, such as thickeners, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and additives; and nutraceutical solutions comprising products for weight management, joint comfort, stomach and intestinal health, sports nutrition, and general wellness, as well as custom formulation, toll processing, and particle engineering solutions. The Personal Care & Household segment provides a range of nature-based, biodegradable, and performance ingredients; solutions for toothpastes, mouth washes and rinses, denture cleaning, and care for teeth; and household supplies nature-derived rheology ingredients, biodegradable surface wetting agents, performance encapsulates, and specialty polymers. The Specialty Additives segment offers rheology modifiers, foam control agents, surfactants and wetting agents, pH neutralizers, advanced ceramics used in catalytic converters, environmental filters, ingredients for the manufacturing of ceramic capacitors, plasma display panels and solar cells, ingredients for textile printing, thermoplastic metals, and alloys for welding. The Intermediates and Solvents segment produces 1,4 butanediol and related derivatives, including n-methylpyrrolidone. It offers its products to customers in a range of consumer and industrial markets, such as architectural coatings, construction, energy, food and beverage, nutraceuticals, personal care, and pharmaceutical. The company was formerly known as Ashland Global Holdings Inc. Ashland Inc. was founded in 1924 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.
Rajeev Dhawan, who had heated arguments with Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra last week, quit court practice after "humiliating end" to the Delhi vs Centre case.

By India Today Web Desk: Senior Supreme Court lawyer Rajeev Dhawan has quit court practice after a high-profile showdown with Chief Justice of India Dipka Misra that saw the latter rebuking lawyers in an unprecedented manner last week.

In a simple two-sentence letter addressed to CJI Misra, Dhawan said, "After the humiliating end to the Delhi (vs Centre) case, I have decided to give up court practice."

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Dhawan goes on to note that CJI Misra is "entitled" to take away the "Senior Gown" conferred on the lawyer. However, "I would like to keep it for memory and services rendered," Dhawan said in an addendum.

Dhawan's decision to leave court practice comes days after he had two famous run-ins with the Chief Justice. The first was during the Ayodhya case during which Dhawan and fellow lawyers Kapil Sibal and Dushyant Dave animatedly pleaded that the Supreme Court defer hearings in the Babri-Ram Janmabhoomi case until after the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

During the arguments, Dhawan was reported to have shouted at CJI Misra. Then, in the matter of Centre vs Delhi, Dhawan, who was representing the Arvind Kejriwal government, wanted to further a few more arguments even though CJI Misra had said that the Supreme Court had reserved its order in the case.

The case itself relates to the power tussle between the Kejriwal government and the Delhi Lieutenant-General, a Union government appointee. The apex court has been approached to adjudicate who between the two authorities has primacy as far as governing Delhi is concerned.

Following these two instances, CJI Misra, in a rare rebuke to Supreme Court lawyers, bluntly said the trend of lawyers raising their voices showed their "inadequacy, incompetence and the fact that they are not even eligible to become seniors".

"If the Supreme Court Bar Association does not regulate such members, we will be forced to regulate them," CJI Misra also said. "When lawyers argue in a manner not in tune with Constitutional language, we will tolerate it, but for how long? If the Bar does not regulate itself, we will be compelled to regulate."

(With inputs from Anusha Soni in New Delhi)

WATCH | Executive vs Judiciary at Conclave 2017: When government shrinks, judiciary expands, says Harish Salve

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The following companies are subsidiares of Roper Technologies: AC Analytical Controls B.V., AC Analytical Controls Holding B.V., AC Analytical Controls Services B.V., Abel Pump, Acton Research, Acumen PM LLC, Aderant Canada Company, Aderant Company, Aderant Holdings Inc., Aderant International Holdings LLC, Aderant Legal (UK) Limited, Aderant Legal Holdings (AUS) Pty Ltd, Aderant Legal Holdings (NZ) ULC, Aderant Legal Holdings Inc., Aderant North America Inc., Aderant Parent Holdings Inc., Advanced Sensors Limited, Advanced Sensors Ltd., AiCambridge Ltd., Alpha Holdings of Delaware I LLC, Alpha Holdings of Delaware II LLC, Alpha Technologies B.V., Alpha Technologies GmbH, Alpha Technologies Japan LLC, Alpha Technologies Services LLC, Alpha Technologies U.K., Alpha Technologies s.r.o., Alpha Trust Corporation, Alpha UK Holdings LLC, American LegalNet Inc, Amot Controls Corporation, Amot Controls GmbH, Amot/Metrix Investment Company Inc., Amphire Solutions Inc., Amtech Systems (Hong Kong) Limited, Amtech Systems LLC, Amtech World Corporation, Antek Instruments, Archisnapper BV, Ascension Technology Corporation, Assureweb Limited, Atlantic Health Partners Inc., Atlas Database Software Corp., Avitru, Bellefield Systems, BillBlast, C/S Solutions Inc., CBORD Holdings Corp., CBORD Holdings Corporation, CIVCO Holdings Inc., CIVCO Medical Solutions B.V., Centurion Research Solutions LLC, Chalwyn Limited, Civco Holding Inc., Civco Medical Instruments Co. Inc., Clackamas Pump LLC, CliniSys Group, CliniSys Group Limited, Clinisys Scotland Limited, Clinisys Solutions Limited, Cointec Ingenieros y Consultores S.L., Commerce Pump LLC, Compressor Controls (Beijing) Corporation Ltd., Compressor Controls Corporation B.V., Compressor Controls Corporation Middle East, Compressor Controls Corporation S.r.l., Compressor Controls LLC, Compressor Controls Mauritius Ltd., Compressor Controls Pty Ltd., Compressor Controls Saudi Arabia LLC, ComputerEase Software, ConceptShare, ConstructConnect, ConstructConnect Canada Inc., ConstructConnect Inc., Cornell Pump Company, DAT Solutions LLC, DATSolutions Private Limited, DCMH Group Holdings Inc., DCMH Group Holdings LLC, DCMH Holdings Inc., DI Acquisition Subsidiary Inc., DI Dutch Holdings LLC, DI Hong Kong Limited, Data Innovations, Data Innovations Canada Ltd., Data Innovations Cooperatief U.A., Data Innovations Europe S.A., Data Innovations LLC, Data Innovations Latin America Ltda, Dawning Technologies LLC, Deltek, Deltek Ajera Inc., Deltek Asia Pacific (HK) Limited, Deltek Australia Pty Ltd., Deltek Danmark A/S, Deltek France SAS, Deltek GB Limited, Deltek GmbH, Deltek Inc., Deltek Nederland B.V., Deltek Netherlands B.V., Deltek Norge AS, Deltek Sverige AB, Deltek Systems (Canada) Inc., Deltek Systems (Colorado) Inc., Deltek Systems (Philippines) Ltd., Deltek TNSCore Holdings LLC, Deltek WST LLC, Dominion I Inc., Duncan Technologies, Dynamco Inc., Dynamic Instruments Inc., Dynisco Enterprises GmbH, Dynisco Enterprises LLC, Dynisco Europe GmbH, Dynisco Holding GmbH, Dynisco Instruments LLC, Dynisco Instruments S.a.r.l., Dynisco LLC, Dynisco Parent Inc., Dynisco S.r.l., Dynisco Viatran LLC, Dynisco Viatran (M) Sdn Bhd, Dynisco-Viatran Instrument Sdn Bhd, EPSI, FMS Purchasing & Services Inc., FSI Holdings Inc., FTI Flow Technology Inc., Flow Technology, Fluid Metering, Fluid Metering Inc., Foodlink Holdings Inc., Foodlink Holdings Inc., Foodlink IT India Private Limited, Foundry, Foundry Visionmongers (Ireland) Limited, Freight Market Intelligence Consortium, Gatan, GeneInsight Inc., Getloaded Corporation, HRsmart Canada Inc., HRsmart France SAS, HRsmart Germany GmbH, HRsmart Inc., HRsmart International, HRsmart International Holdings LLC, HRsmart Mexico, HRsmart SA (Pty) Ltd., HRsmart Talent Management Solutions Europe Limited, HRsmart Ventures LLC, Handshake Software Inc., Handshake Software Inc., Hansco Automatisering B.V., Hansen Technologies, Hansen Technologies Corporation, Harbour Holding Corp., Hardy Process Solutions, Horizon Lab Systems LLC, Horizon Software International LLC, IDS, INPUT Inc., IPA Acquisition Subsidiary Inc., ISL Finance SAS, ISL Holding SAS, ISL Scientifique de Laboratorie - ISL S.A.S., Impact Financial Systems, Industrial Products Investment Company, Innovative Product Achievements LLC, Innovative Product Achievements LLC, Inovonics Corporation, Instill Corporation, IntelliTrans Limited, Intellitrans LLC, Intellitrans Sweden AB, JLT Mobile Computers Inc., Job Access LTDA, Laser App Inc., Link Logistics Holding LLC, Loadlink Technologies Corporation, Logitech, Logitech Limited, Lumenera Corporation, MASD, MED Professional Services LLC, MEDTEC Inc., MEDTEC LLC, MHA Long Term Care Network Inc., MHA Long Term Care Services Inc., MIPS Austria GesmbH, MIPS Deutschland GmbH, MIPS France Sarl, MIPS Nederland B.V., MIPS Schweiz AG, MIPS Software Iberica SL, MPR Readers Inc., Managed Health Care Associates Inc., Media Cybernetics L.P., Medical Information Professional Systems NV, Medina Acquisition LLC, Metrix Instrument Co. L.P., NDI Europe GmbH, NDI Holding Corp., Navigator Group Purchasing Inc., Neptune Technology Group (Canada) Co., Neptune Technology Group Holdings Inc., Neptune Technology Group Inc., Neptune Technology Group Mexico S.de R.L. de C.V., Neptune Technology Group Services Inc., Nippon Roper K.K., Northern Digital Inc., Omega Legal Systems Inc., On Center Software LLC, Onvia Inc., PAC (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PAC Denmark ApS, PAC GmbH, PAC Instruments (Thailand) Company Limited, PAC Instruments Asia PTE. 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By PTI: Chandigarh, Dec 11 (PTI) Chandigarh got air connectivity with Bangkok today, with Air India launching a direct flight to the famous south-east Asian tourist destination from here.

The flight of the national carrier, which will be operating thrice a week - Monday, Wednesday and Friday - took off from here at about 1350 hrs carrying over 120 passengers.

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The maiden flight from the Thailands capital reached Chandigarh International Airport in the morning before it took off for the return journey in the afternoon.

An A320 Neo aircraft has been deployed on the route and the journey will take less than five hours. The 162-seater aircraft will have 150 seats for economy class and 12 in the business class category, Airlines Executive Director (Sales and Marketing), Pankaj Kumar said.

The Chandigarh-Bangkok flight will be the third international flight from the airport here. Indigo and Air Indias subsidiary, Air India Express are already operating flights to Dubai and Sharjah from here for over a year now.

"After few weeks, we are expecting good passenger load on the route (Chandigarh-Bangkok)," Kumar said.

Replying to a question, the executive director said in future one can expect more international destinations to be covered from this airport.

"It takes some time to develop traffic and connectivity. Slowly, it will get more connectivity," he said.

The flight to Bangkok will take off from the international airport here at 2 pm and will reach the destination at 8.15 pm (Bangkok local time).

From Bangkok, it will depart for Chandigarh at 5.40 am (Bangkok local time) and reach here at 9.20 am (IST).

Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) CEO Suneel Dutt said with the addition of latest flight to Bangkok today, 27 flights are operating from the airport here that includes the three international flights. Speaking on the occasion, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi, Isra Stapanaseth, said his country was a popular destination for the Indian tourists and he hoped with the addition of this flight, more and more people, especially from Punjab region can save on time and be able to travel conveniently.

Meanwhile, Dutt told reporters that the Chandigarh International Airport will remain closed for operations from February 12 to 26 next year due to runway repairs.

"Due to runway resurfacing work by the Indian Air Force (IAF), the airport will shall remain closed from February 12-26 for all kinds of flights," he said.

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He said the existing length of the runway is 9,000 feet and after resurfacing work, it will be increased to 10,400 feet.

"After modification, we will be able to handle wide bodied aircraft and then we have chances of getting more international flights operating from here," Dutt said. PTI SUN DIP

--- ENDS ---
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer that provides clothing, accessories, and personal care products under the American Eagle and Aerie brands. The company provides jeans, and specialty apparel and accessories for women and men; and intimates, apparel, activewear, and swim collections, as well as personal care products for women. It also offers graphic tees and other clothing products under the Tailgate brand name; and menswear products under the Todd Snyder New York brand name. As of January 29, 2022, the company operated 880 American Eagle stores, 244 Aerie brand stand-alone stores, and five Todd Snyder stores in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Hong Kong. It also ships to 81 countries through its Websites; and offers its merchandise at 260 locations operated by licensees in 28 countries, as well as provides products through its Websites ae.com, aerie.com, and toddsnyder.com. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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Ltd., ThermoLase LLC, ThermoSpectra Limited, Trek Diagnostic Systems LLC, Trek Diagnostic Systems Ltd., Trek Holding Company II Ltd., Trek Holding Company Ltd., Trex Medical Corporation, USB Corporation, Union Lab Supplies Limited, United Diagnostics Inc., VG Systems Limited, Westover Scientific Inc., ZAO PE Biosystems, eBioscience GmbH, eBioscience Ltd, eBioscience SAS, and picoSpin LLC.

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Here's the truth behind the fake Sakshi Tanwar interview that's doing the rounds on internet.

By India Today Web Desk: Hina Khan's fans and supporters are leaving no stone unturned to support all her moves on the show--be it right or wrong.

So when Hina Khan recently made an indecent comment on Sakshi Tanwar saying the actress is cross-eyed, her supporters including boyfriend Rocky Jaiswal came out in her support, saying the actress did not mean it and that Arshi too made a distasteful comment on Sakshi.

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Recently, a report caught everyone's attention which said that Sakshi Tanwar had no problem with Hina's unsavoury remark. Now, it has emerged that the said report in fake and Sakshi has not commented on the issue.

A few days back in an unseen video, Hina was seen mocking popular actresses Sakshi Tanwar, Sanjeeda Shaikh, and Gauahar Khan.

In the video, Hina and Arshi Khan were seen discussing Gauahar's popularity and her followers on social media. 'Ms. Always Right' boasted of having double the number of fans than the former Bigg Boss contestant. And during a discussion with Arshi, Hina made the said remark that led to much brouhaha on internet.

TV actor Kavita Kaushik confirmed with Sakshi and tweeted that it's a fake story. And one person who doesn't leave an opportunity to slam Hina for anything and everything, Karan Patel, also joined in and poked fun at Rocky.

Check out the article quoting Sakshi Tanwar:

@Iamkavitak Some of us Sakshi fans are pretty confident this article is fake. I know you wouldn't speak about it coz neither would Sakshi publicly. But thought to tweet to convey that Sakshi's name is being used in an interview she probably didn't give. #SakshiTanwar pic.twitter.com/MCgq3u6P2f- SakshiTanwarFan (@RaYa_AriKa) December 8, 2017

It's a fake article - confirmed by saakshi ???? https://t.co/QdtqWlxUQ6- Kavita Kaushik (@Iamkavitak) December 9, 2017

This is what Karan Patel had to say:

Kya yaar #MissGrace ka pre-paid pyaar apna PR theek se nahi kar paya .... ?????????? https://t.co/qiXHvutMMJ- Karan Patel (@TheKaranPatel) December 10, 2017

Not done guys ... #MissGrace is trying to play well and she is not a temple bell, jo dekho aata hai aur baja ke chala jaata hai ... ?????????? #BigBoss11 #YehSachHyena ? ??????- Karan Patel (@TheKaranPatel) December 10, 2017

Sutro se pata chala hai, kal raat #BigBoss11 dekh kar, kuch logo ka pichwada buri tarah jala hai ... #YehSachHyena ? ????????- Karan Patel (@TheKaranPatel) December 10, 2017

--- ENDS ---
Under Armour, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the developing, marketing, and distributing performance apparel, footwear, and accessories for men, women, and youth. The company offers its apparel in compression, fitted, and loose fit types. It also provides footwear products for running, training, basketball, cleated sports, recovery, and outdoor applications. In addition, the company offers accessories, which include gloves, bags, headwear, and sports masks; and digital subscription and advertising services under the MapMyRun and MapMyRide platforms. It primarily offers its products under the UNDER ARMOUR, UA, HEATGEAR, COLDGEAR, HOVR, PROTECT THIS HOUSE, I WILL, UA Logo, ARMOUR FLEECE, and ARMOUR BRA brands. The company sells its products through wholesale channels, including national and regional sporting goods chains, independent and specialty retailers, department store chains, mono-branded Under Armour retail stores, institutional athletic departments, and leagues and teams, as well as independent distributors; and directly to consumers through a network of 422 brand and factory house stores, as well as through e-commerce websites. It operates in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Under Armour, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.
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.
The following companies are subsidiares of UnitedHealth Group: 1070715 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, 1st Avenue Pharmacy Inc., 310 Canyon Medical LLC, 4C MSO LLC, 4C Medical Group PLC, 5995 Minnetonka LLC, ABCO International Holdings LLC, ACN Group IPA of New York Inc., ACN Group of California Inc., AHN Accountable Care Organization LLC, AHN Central Services LLC, AHN Target Holdings LLC, AMIL International S.a.r.l., APS  Assistencia Personalizada a Saude Ltda., ASC Holdings of New Jersey LLC, ASC Network LLC, ASC Operators-East Bay LLC, ASC Operators-San Francisco LLC, ASC Operators-San Luis Obispo LLC, ASC Operators-Santa Rosa LLC, ASC Operators-South Bay LLC, ASV-HOPCo-SCA Cornerstone LLC, ASV-HOPCo-SCA Florida LLC, AbleTo Behavioral Health Services P.C., AbleTo Inc., Accurate Rx Pharmacy Consulting LLC, Administradora Clinica La Colina S.A.S., Administradora Country S.A.S., Administradora Medica Centromed S.A., Advanced Surgery Center of Clifton LLC, Advanced Surgical Center LLC, Advanced Surgical Hospital LLC, Advocate Condell Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Advocate Southwest Ambulatory Surgery Center L.L.C., Advocate-SCA Partners LLC, Aliansalud Entidad Promotora de Salud S.A., All Savers Insurance Company, All Savers Life Insurance Company of California, Alliance Surgical Center LLC, Allina Health Heart and Vascular Surgery Center LLC, Allina Health Surgery Center-Brooklyn Park LLC, Aloha Surgical Center LLC, Ambient Healthcare Inc., Ambient Holdings Inc., AmeriChoice, AmeriChoice Corporation, AmeriChoice of New Jersey Inc., American Health Network of Indiana Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Indiana II LLC, American Health Network of Indiana LLC, American Health Network of Kentucky LLC, American Health Network of Ohio Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Ohio II LLC, American Health Network of Ohio LLC, American Physicians Inc., Amico Saude Ltda., Amil, Amil Assistencia Medica Internacional S.A., Angiografia e Hemodinamica Madre Theodora Ltda., Anne Arundel-SCA Holdings LLC, Anne Arundel-SCA Surgicenter LLC, Antelope Valley Surgery Center L.P., Analisis Clinicos ML S.A.C., Apothecary Holdings Inc., AppleCare Medical Management LLC, Aquitania Chilean Holding SpA, Arcadia JV Holdings LLC, Arcadia Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., ArchWell Health LLC, ArchWell Health MSO LLC, ArchWell Health Professional Services Holding Co., ArchWell Health Professional Services of Alabama LLC, ArchWell Health Professional Services of North Carolina P.C., ArchWell Health Professional Services of Oklahoma LLC, Archwell Health Professional Services of Arizona LLC, Archwell Health Professional Services of Nebraska LLC, Arise Physician Group, Arizona Physicians IPA Inc., Arlington Surgery Center LLC, Aspectus Inc., Associacao Lusiadas Knowledge Center  Health Education and Research, Audax Health Solutions LLC, Aurora Hospitalist P.C., Austin Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., Avella Specialty Pharmacy, Aventura Medical Tower Surgery Center LLC, Avery Parent Holdings Inc., Aveta Inc., AxelaCare Intermediate Holdings LLC, AxelaCare LLC, B.R.A.S.S. Partnership in Commendam, BOSC Holdings LLC, BSC Holdings LLC, Ball Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Banmedica Colombia S.A.S., Banmedica Internacional SpA, Banmedica S.A., Barranca Surgery Center LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings II LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings III LLC, Beach Surgical Holdings LLC, Beaver Medical Group P.C., Bedford Physicians Risk Retention Group Inc., Behavioral Healthcare Options Inc., Beltway Surgery Centers L.L.C., Benefit Administration for the Self Employed L.L.C., Benefitter Insurance Solutions Inc., Bergan Mercy Surgery Center LLC, Bergen-Passaic Cataract Laser and Surgery Center LLC, Bessler MD PLLC, Bind Benefits Inc., Bind LH Holdings Inc., Bind Re Inc., Birmingham Outpatient Surgery Center Ltd., Birmingham Outpatient Surgical Center LLC, Bloomfield ASC LLC, Blue Ridge Day Surgery Center L.P., Blue Ridge GP LLC, Blue Ridge Properties LLC, Boca Raton Outpatient Surgery & Laser Center LTD., Bordeaux Barbados Holdings I SRL, Bordeaux Barbados Holdings II SRL, Bordeaux Barbados Holdings III S.r.l., Bordeaux Holding SpA, Bordeaux International Holdings Inc., Bordeaux UK Holdings I Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings II Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings III Limited, Bosque Medical Center Ltda., Brandon Ambulatory Surgery Center LC, BriovaRx Infusion Services 102 LLC, BriovaRx of Florida Inc., BriovaRx of Maine Inc., BriovaRx of Massachusetts LLC, CCEC Anesthesia Management LLC, CDC Holdings Colombia S.A.S., CLISA  Clinica de Santo Antonio S.A., CMO  Centro Medico de Oftalmologia S/S Ltda., CMS  Central de Manipulacao e Servicos Farmaceuticos Ltda., COI  Clinicas Oncologicas Integradas S.A., Cabin Enterprises LLC, Cabin Holdings LLC, California Medical Group Insurance Company Risk Retention Group, Camp Hill Ambulatory Centers, Camp Hill-SCA Centers LLC, Capital City Medical Group L.L.C., Cardinal Holding Company LLC, Care Improvement Plus Group Management LLC, Care Improvement Plus South Central Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus Wisconsin Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus of Texas Insurance Company, Care Logistics LLC, CareMount Dental Member LLC, CareMount Health Solutions ACO LLC, CareMount Health Solutions Employer LLC, CareMount Health Solutions LLC, CareMount Holding LLC, CareMount Medical Foundation Inc., CareMount Value Partners IPA LLC, Carr PLLC, Casa de Saude Santa Therezinha Ltda., Castle Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Castle Rock SurgiCenter LLC, Catalyst360 LLC, Catamaran 2 Unlimited Company, Catamaran Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, Catamaran S.a.r.l., Cedar Park JV Partners LLC, Cedar Park Surgery Center LLC, Cemed Care  Empresa de Atendimento Clinico Geral Ltda., Center for Quality Improvement LLC, Center for Restorative Surgery at Maple Grove LLC, Center for Surgery of North Coast L.P., Central Indiana Care Organization LLC, Central Ohio Care Organization LLC, CentriHealth Corporation, CentrifyHealth LLC, Centro Medico Hospitalar Pitangueiras Ltda., Centro Odontologico Americano S.A.C., Centro de Entrenamiento Capacitacion en Reanimacion y Prevencion Limitada, Centro de Servicios Compartidos Banmedica SpA, Centromed Quilpue S.A., Centros Medicos y Dentales Multimed Ltda., Centura-SCA Holdings LLC, Centurion Casualty Company, Channel Islands Surgicenter L.P., Channel Islands Surgicenter Properties LLC, Charleston Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Charleston Surgery Properties LLC, Charlotte Surgery Center LLC, Charlotte Surgery Properties LTD., Charlotte-SC LLC, Chatham Orthopaedic ASC LLC, Childrens Surgery Center LLC, Citrus Regional Surgery Center L.P., Claims Management Systems Inc., Cleburne Surgical Center LLC, Clinical Partners of Colorado Springs LLC, Clinton Partners LLC, Clinica Alameda SpA, Clinica Bio Bio SpA, Clinica Ciudad del Mar S.A., Clinica Davila y Servicios Medicos S.p.A., Clinica Iquique S.A., Clinica Medico Cirurgica de Santa Tecla S.A., Clinica Portoazul S.A., Clinica San Felipe S.A., Clinica Santa Maria S.p.A., Clinica Sanchez Ferrer S.A., Clinica Vespucio S.A., Clinica del Country S.A.S., Coachella Valley Physicians of PrimeCare Inc., Coalition for Advanced Pharmacy Services Inc., Cobranzas Banmedica SpA, Cogent Healthcare IPA of New York Inc., Cogent Healthcare Inc., Cogent Healthcare Management of New York Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Arizona P.C., Cogent Healthcare of California Prof. Corp., Cogent Healthcare of Georgia P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Illinois LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Iowa P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Jackson MS LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Jacksonville LLC, Cogent Healthcare of Mississippi Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Missouri Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Montana P.C., Cogent Healthcare of New Jersey P.C., Cogent Healthcare of North Carolina P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Oregon P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Pensacola L.L.C., Cogent Healthcare of Tennessee P.C., Cogent Healthcare of Virginia Inc., Cogent Healthcare of Washington P.C., Cogent Medical Care P.C., Cogent Patient Safety Organization Inc., Cogent/Endion Medical Care of New York P.C., Collaborative Care Holdings LLC, Collaborative Care Services Inc., Collaborative Realty LLC, Colmedica Medicina Prepagada S.A., Colonial Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Colorado Innovative Physician Solutions Inc., Colorado Springs Surgery Center Ltd., Comfort Care Transportation LLC, Comprehensive Hospital Physicians of Florida Inc., ConnectYourCare Inc., ConnectYourCare LLC, Connecticut Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Connecticut Surgery Properties LLC, Connecticut Surgical Center LLC, Consorcio Regenero S.A., Constructora Inmobiliaria Magapoq S.A., Consumer Wellness Solutions Inc., Continuum Physicians Group Inc., Continuum Physicians Group of Washington PLLC, Cornell Surgicenter LLC, Cornerstone Surgery Center LLC, Cornerstone Surgicare LLC, Corpus Christi Endoscopy Center L.L.P., Country Scan Ltda., Critical Care Physician of New York P.C., Critical Care Physicians of Illinois LLC, Critical Care Physicians of New Jersey PC, Critical Care Physicians of Pennsylvania P.C., Cross Timbers Surgery Center LLC, Cypress Care Inc., DBP Services of New York IPA Inc., DSP Flint Real Estate LLC, DSP-Building C LLC, DTC Surgery Center LLC, DWIC of Tampa Bay Inc., Dallas Inpatient Specialist PLLC, Danbury Surgical Center L.P., Day-Op Surgery Consulting Company LLC, Definity Health, Dental Benefit Providers Inc., Dental Benefit Providers of California Inc., Dental Benefit Providers of Illinois Inc., Denton Endoscopy Surgery Center LLC, Denton Surgery Center LLC, Derry Surgical Center LLC, Diagnostico Ecotomografico Centromed Ltda., Diasnostico por Imagenes Centromed Ltda., Digestive Disease Center L.P., Dilab Medicina Nuclear Ltda., Diplomat Blocker LLC, Diplomat Corporate Properties LLC, Diplomat Pharmacy, Diplomat Pharmacy Inc., Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy Great Lakes Distribution Center LLC, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy of Chicago LLC, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy of Ft. Lauderdale LLC, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy of Los Angeles County LLC, Distance Learning Network Inc., Divisadero Holdings LLC, DocASAP Inc., DocASAP India Technologies Private Limited, DocASAP US LLC, Doctor + S.A.C., Dry Creek Surgery Center LLC, Dublin Surgery Center LLC, Duluth Surgical Suites LLC, Durable Medical Equipment Inc., E Street Endoscopy LLC, EM Orange Tree LLC, EP Campus I LLC, EPIC Health Plan, EPIC Management Services LLC, East Bay Endoscopy Center L.P., East Brunswick Surgery Center LLC, Echo Locum Tenens Inc., Electronic Network Systems Inc., Elual Participacoes S.A., Emerald Coast Surgery Center L.P., Emisar Pharma Services LLC, Emmaus Holdings LLC, Emmaus Surgical Center LLC, Empire Physician Management Company LLC, Empremedica S. A., Endion Hospitalist North P.C., Endion Hospitalist of Western New York P.C., Endion Medical Healthcare P.C., Endion Medical Services P.C., Endoscopy Center Affiliates Inc., Enterprise Life Insurance Company, Equian, Equian LLC, Equian Parent Corp., Esho  Empresa de Servicos Hospitalares S.A., Everett MSO Inc., Excelsior Insurance Brokerage Inc., Executive Health Resources Inc., Executive Surgery Center L.L.C., Eye Clinic Oftalmologia Clinico Cirurgica e Diagnostico Ltda., Eye Specialists Surgery Centers LLC, FMG Holdings LLC, Family Health Care Services, Family Home Hospice Inc., Ferrell Physician Services P.C., Fideicomiso Clinica Barranquilla Portoazul FA-517, First Coast Orthopedic Center LLC, First Family Insurance LLC, Florence Surgery Center L.P., For Health Inc., For Health of Arizona Inc., Fort Sutter Medical Building a California Limited Partnership, Fort Worth Endoscopy Centers LLC, Fortified Provider Network Inc., Foundation Surgery Affiliate General of Huntingdon Valley LLC, Foundation Surgery Affiliate of Huntingdon Valley L.P., Franklin Surgical Center LLC, Freedom Life Insurance Company of America, Freeway Surgicenter of Houston LLC, Frontier Medex Tanzania Limited, FrontierMEDEX Inc., FrontierMEDEX Kenya Limited, FrontierMEDEX US Inc., Fundacion Banmedica, GLBESC LLC, GRANTS PASS SURGERY CENTER LLC, Gadsden Surgery Center LLC, Gainesville Surgery Center L.P., Gainesville Surgery Properties LLC, Genoa, Genoa Healthcare Inc., Genoa QoL Wholesale LLC, Genoa Technology Canada Inc., Genoa Technology Inc., Genoa Telepsychiatry Inc., Genoa of Arkansas LLC, Gladiolus Surgery Center L.L.C., Glenwood Surgical Center L.P., Glenwood-SC Inc., Global One Ventures LLC, Golden Gate Endoscopy Center LLC, Golden Outlook Inc., Golden Rule Financial Corporation, Golden Rule Insurance Company, Golden Triangle Surgicenter L.P., Grandview Surgery Center LTD., Greater New Haven ASC LLC, Greensboro Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Greenville Surgery Center LLC, Greenway Surgical Suites LLC, Grossmont Surgery Center L.P., Grove Place Surgery Center L.L.C., H&W Indemnity SPC Ltd., H.I. Investments Holding Company LLC, HCP ACO California LLC, HCentive Technology India Private Limited, HFHS-SCA Holdings LLC, HMG Holding Corporation, HMG Holdings LLC, HMP of Baltimore  USH P.C., Harken Health Insurance Company, Harrison Endo Surgical Center LLC, Hawthorn Place Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., Hays JV Partners LLC, Hays Surgery Center LLC, Health Care-ONE Insurance Agency Inc., Health Inventures Employment Solutions LLC, Health Inventures LLC, Health Plan of Nevada Inc., HealthCare Partners ASC-LB LLC, HealthCare Partners Affiliates Medical Group, HealthCare Partners Management Services California LLC, HealthCare Partners RE LLC, HealthEast Surgery Center-Maplewood LLC, HealthFirst IPA Inc., HealthMarkets Group Inc., HealthMarkets Inc., HealthMarkets Insurance Agency Inc., HealthMarkets LLC, HealthMarkets Services Inc., HealthSCOPE Holdings Inc., HealthScope Benefits Inc., Healthcare Solutions Inc., Healthplex America LLC, Healthplex Dental Services Inc., Healthplex I.P.A. Inc., Healthplex Inc., Healthplex Insurance Company, Healthplex of CT Inc., Healthplex of DC Inc., Healthplex of MD Inc., Healthplex of ME Inc., Healthplex of NC Inc., Healthplex of NJ Inc., Healthplex of TX Inc., Heartland Heart and Vascular LLC, Help Seguros de Vida S.A., Help Service S.A., Help SpA, Hemonefro  Hemodialise e Nefrologia Ltda, Highlands Ranch Healthcare LLC, Home Medical S.A., Honodav SpA, Hospice Inspiris Holdings Inc., Hospitais Associados de Pernambuco Ltda., Hospital Alvorada Taguatinga Ltda., Hospital Ana Costa S.A., Hospital Santa Helena S.A., Hospital de Clinicas de Jacarepagua Ltda., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of Broome County PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Binghamton P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Buffalo P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Newburgh P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Nyack P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physician of New York - Patchogue P.C., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alabama  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alabama  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alaska  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Alaska  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Goodyear Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Nogales Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Phoenix II Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Phoenix Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Sierra Vista Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Tucson II Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona - Tucson Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arizona  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arkansas  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Arkansas  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Buncombe County PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Apple Valley PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Bakersfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Camarillo PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Crescent City PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Fairfield PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Fremont PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Grass Valley PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Jackson PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Oceanside PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Oxnard PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Salinas PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Bernardino II PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Bernardino PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - San Leandro PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Sonoma PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Stockton II PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Stockton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Thousand Oaks PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California - Vacaville PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of California  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado - Brighton PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado - Denver PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Colorado  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Manchester LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Rockville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut - Wallingford LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Connecticut  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of DC  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Delaware  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Delaware  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Ft. Lauderdale LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Jacksonville II LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Jacksonville LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida - Palm Coast LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Florida  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Fredericksburg LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Atlanta PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - East Point PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Lavonia PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia - Savannah PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Georgia  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii - Kealakekua Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Hawaii  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho - Nampa PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Idaho  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Downers Grove LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Elmhurst LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Rockford LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois - Winfield LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Illinois  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Clinton LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Mishawaka LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana - Terre Haute LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Indiana  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa - Cedar Rapids PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa - Mason City PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Iowa  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas - Topeka LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Kansas - 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Dowagiac PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Escanaba PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Grand Blanc PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Grayling PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Kalamazoo PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Plainwell PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Port Huron PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Saginaw PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan - Tawas City PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Michigan  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Minnesota  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Minnesota  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Mississippi  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri - Bridgeton Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri - Richmond Heights Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri  TCG Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Missouri  TCS Inc., Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Billings PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Butte PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Miles City PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana - Missoula PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana  TCG PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Montana  TCS PC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Multiple Practice Sites LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nebraska  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nebraska  TCS LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Henderson Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Henderson II Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Las Vegas Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada - Las Vegas II Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada  TCG Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Nevada  TCS Bessler PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Hampshire  TCG PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Hampshire  TCS PLLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of New Jersey - 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Casper LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wyoming  TCG LLC, Hospitalist Medicine Physicians of Wyoming  TCS LLC, Hospitalists Management Group LLC, Humedica, Humedica Inc., Hygeia Corporation, Hygeia Corporation Ontario, IEC Holdings LLC, IHD Holdings LLC, INOV8 Surgical at Memorial City LLC, INSPIRIS of Texas Physician Group, Illinois Independent Care Network LLC, Imagen Technologies Inc., Impel Consulting Experts L.L.C., Impel Management Services L.L.C., InTouch Pharmacy LLC, Indiana Care Organization LLC, Indiana Endoscopy Centers LLC, Inland Surgery Center L.P., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3001 S.A., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3600 Ltda., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo S.A., Inmobiliaria Clinica Santa Maria S.A., Inmobiliaria Vinamed Ltda., Inmobiliaria e Inversiones Alameda S.A., Inpatient Services P.C., Inpatient Specialists of California P.C., Inspiris, Inspiris Inc., Instituto Radium de Cammpinas Ltda, Inter-Hospital Physicians Association Inc., International Healthcare Services Inc., Inversiones Clinicas Santa Maria SpA, Ironman Holdco Inc., Ironman Intermediate Holdco LLC, Isapre Banmedica S.A., JPM Healthcare LLC, Johnston Surgicare L.P., Joliet Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Jordan Ridge Family Medicine LLC, Joyable Inc., Kansal Inc. A Professional Corporation, Knox Diagnostic Imaging Center LLC, Kokomo Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, LDI Holding Company LLC, LDI Management Services LLC, LGH-A/Golf ASTC L.L.C., LHC Group, La Esperanza del Peru S.A., Laboratorio ROE S.A., Laboratorios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., Landmark Group Holdings LLC, Landmark Health Holdings LLC, Landmark Health LLC, Landmark Health NY IPA LLC, Landmark Health NY PO LLC, Landmark Health Technologies Private Limited, Landmark Health of California LLC, Landmark Health of Massachusetts LLC, Landmark Health of North Carolina LLC, Landmark Health of Oregon LLC, Landmark Health of Pennsylvania LLC, Landmark Health of Washington LLC, Landmark India LLC, Landmark Intermediate Holdings LLC, Landmark MSO LLC, Landmark Medical of Idaho PC, Landmark Medical of Massachusetts PLLC, Landmark Medical of Tennessee PC, Landmark Primary Care LLC, Laser Acquisition Holdings III LLC, Leehar Distributors LLC, Lemhi Ventures Fund I LP, Lemhi Ventures Fund II LP, Level2 Medical Services P.C. Alaska, Lexington Surgery Center Ltd., Liberty Anesthesia Services LLC, LifePrint Health Inc., LifeWell. Ltd. Co., Lifeprint Accountable Care Organization LLC, Limestone Medical Center LLC, Litomedica S.A., Logan Surgical Suites LLC, Lotten-Eyes Oftalmologia Clinica e Cirurgica Ltda., Louisville S.C. Ltd., Louisville-SC Properties Inc., Loyola Ambulatory Surgery Center at Oakbrook Inc., Loyola Ambulatory Surgery Center at Oakbrook L.P., Lusiadas - Parcerias Cascais S.A., Lusiadas A.C.E., Lusiadas Algarve S.A., Lusiadas S.A., Lusiadas SGPS S.A., Lutheran Campus ASC LLC, MAMSI Life and Health Insurance Company, MCNA Health Care Holdings LLC, MCNA Insurance Company, MCNA Systems Corp., MD Ops Inc., MD-Individual Practice Association Inc., ME AHS UC LLC, MGH/SCA LLC, MHC Real Estate Holdings LLC, MIAMI SURGERY CENTER LLC, MSLA Management LLC, Main Line Spine Surgery Center LLC, Managed Care of North America Inc., Managed Physical Network Inc., Mansfield Endoscopy Center LLC, March Holdings Inc., March Vision Care IPA Inc., March Vision Care Inc., March Vision Care of Texas Inc., Marin Health Ventures LLC, Marin Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Marin Surgery Holdings Inc., Marlin Holding Company LLC, Maryland Ambulatory Centers LLC, Maryland-SCA Centers LLC, Massachusetts Assurance Company Ltd. PIC, Massachusetts Avenue Surgery Center LLC, McKenzie Surgery Center L.P., MedExpress Primary Care West Virginia Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care Alabama LLC, MedExpress Urgent Care Inc. - Ohio, MedExpress Urgent Care Maine Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care New Hampshire Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care of Boynton Beach LLC, MedSynergies, MedSynergies LLC, Medical Clinic of North Texas PLLC, Medical Hilfe S.A., Medical Support Los Angeles Inc., Medical Surgical Centers of America Inc., Medical Transportation Services LLC, Melbourne Surgery Center LLC, Memorial City Holdings LLC, Memorial City Partners LLC, Memorial Houston Surgery Center LLC, MemorialCare Surgical Center at Orange Coast LLC, MemorialCare Surgical Center at Saddleback LLC, Mesquite Liberty LLC, Metro I Stone Management Ltd., Mid Atlantic Medical Services, Mid-West National Life Insurance Company of Tennessee, Midlands Orthopaedics Surgery Center LLC, Midwest Center for Day Surgery LLC, Mile High SurgiCenter LLC, Mississippi Medical Plaza L.C., Mobile Medical Services of New Jersey PC, Mobile-SC LTD., Modality Accountable Care Organisation Limited, Moen M.D. P.C., Mohawk Surgery Center LLC, Monarch Management Services Inc., Montgomery Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Monument Health LLC, Moore Orthopaedic Clinic Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Morris County Surgical Center LLC, Mt. Pleasant Surgery Center L.P., Multiangio Ltda., Murrells Inlet ASC LLC, Muskogee Surgical Investors LLC, Mustang Razorback Holdings Inc., My Wellness Solutions LLC, NAMM Holdings Inc., NPN IPA Washington PLLC, NSC Channel Islands LLC, NSC Greensboro LLC, NSC Greensboro West LLC, NSC Lancaster LLC, NSC Seattle Inc., NSC Upland LLC, Naperville Surgical Centre LLC, National Foundation Life Insurance Company, National Pacific Dental Inc., National Surgery Centers LLC, Navigator Health Inc., Nebraska Spine Hospital LLC, Neighborhood Health Partnership Inc., Netwerkes LLC, Nevada Pacific Dental, New Orleans Regional Physician Hospital Organization L.L.C., New West Physicians Inc., New York Proton Management LLC, Newton Holdings LLC, Niagara Hospitalist P.C., Nomad Buyer Inc., North American Medical Management California Inc., North Coast Surgery Center Ltd. a California Limited Partnership, North Dallas Surgical Center LLC, North Kitsap Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, North Puget Sound Oncology Equipment Leasing Company LLC, Northern Nevada Health Network Inc., Northern Rockies Surgery Center L.P., Northern Rockies Surgicenter Inc., Northern Utah Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Hills JV Partners LLC, Northwest Medical Group Alliance LLC, Northwest Spine and Laser Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Surgicare LLC, Northwest Surgicare Ltd. an Illinois Limited Partnership, OC Cardiology Practice Partners LLC, OCC MSO LLC, OSB  Tecnologia e Servicos de Suporte Lda., Omesa SpA, OmniClaim LLC, Oncocare S.A.C., One World Surgery, Ophthalmology Surgery Center of Dallas LLC, Optimum Choice Inc., Optum Bank Inc., Optum Biometrics Inc., Optum Care Inc., Optum Care Networks Inc., Optum Care Services Company, Optum Care of New York Management Inc., Optum Clinics Holdings Inc., Optum Clinics Intermediate Holdings Inc., Optum Compounding Services LLC, Optum Digital Health Holdings LLC, Optum Direct To Consumer Inc., Optum Financial Inc., Optum Frontier Therapies Holdings LLC, Optum Frontier Therapies II LLC, Optum Frontier Therapies LLC, Optum Genomics Inc., Optum Global Solutions Colombia S.A.S., Optum Global Solutions India Private Limited, Optum Global Solutions International B.V., Optum Global Solutions Philippines Inc., Optum Government Solutions Inc., Optum Growth Partners Holdings Inc., Optum Growth Partners LLC, Optum Health & Technology Holdings US Inc., Optum Health & Technology Hong Kong Limited, Optum Health & Technology India Private Limited, Optum Health & Technology Servicos do Brasil Ltda., Optum Health & Technology Singapore Pte. Ltd., Optum Health & Technology US LLC, Optum Health Plan of California, Optum Health Services Canada Ltd., Optum Health Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Optum Health Solutions UK Limited, Optum Health and Technology FZ-LLC, Optum Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Optum Hospice Pharmacy Services LLC, Optum Inc., Optum Infusion Services 100 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 101 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 103 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 200 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 201 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 202 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 203 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 204 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 205 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 206 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 207 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 208 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 209 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 301 LP, Optum Infusion Services 302 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 305 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 308 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 401 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 402 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 403 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 404 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 500 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 501 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 550 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 551 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 553 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 554 Inc., Optum Insurance of Ohio Inc., Optum Labs Inc., Optum Labs LLC, Optum Life Sciences Canada Inc., Optum Management Consulting Shanghai Co. Ltd., Optum Networks of New Jersey Inc., Optum Operations Ireland Unlimited Company, Optum Oregon MSO LLC, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Pennsylvania Inc., Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Texas Inc., Optum Perks LLC, Optum Pharma Services Holdings Inc., Optum Pharmacy 601 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 700 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 701 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 702 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 704 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 705 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 706 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 707 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 800 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 803 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 805 Inc., Optum Pharmacy 806 Inc., Optum Public Sector Solutions Inc., Optum Rocket LLC, Optum SCA CS JV Holdings LLC, Optum Senior Services LLC, Optum Services Inc., Optum Services Ireland Limited, Optum Services Puerto Rico LLC, Optum Solutions UK Holdings Limited, Optum Technology LLC, Optum UK Solutions Group Limited, Optum Venture Global Partners II LP, Optum Venture Global Partners LP, Optum Venture Partners II LP, Optum Venture Partners III LP, Optum Venture Partners LP, Optum Washington Network LLC, Optum Women's and Children's Health LLC, Optum of New York Inc., Optum360 LLC, Optum360 Services Inc., Optum360 Solutions LLC, OptumCare ACO New Mexico LLC, OptumCare ACO West LLC, OptumCare Clinical Trials LLC, OptumCare Colorado ASC LLC, OptumCare Colorado LLC, OptumCare Colorado Springs LLC, OptumCare Endoscopy Center New Mexico LLC, OptumCare Florida CI LLC, OptumCare Florida LLC, OptumCare Holdings Colorado LLC, OptumCare Holdings LLC, OptumCare Management LLC, OptumCare New Mexico LLC, OptumCare New York IPA Inc., OptumCare Portland LLC, OptumCare South Florida LLC, OptumCare Specialty Practices LLC, OptumHealth Care Solutions LLC, OptumHealth Holdings LLC, OptumHealth International B.V., OptumInsight Holdings LLC, OptumInsight Inc., OptumInsight India Private Limited, OptumInsight Life Sciences Inc., OptumRx Administrative Services LLC, OptumRx Discount Card Services LLC, OptumRx Group Holdings Inc., OptumRx Health Solutions LLC, OptumRx Holdings I LLC, OptumRx Holdings LLC, OptumRx Home Delivery of Ohio LLC, OptumRx IPA III Inc., OptumRx Inc., OptumRx NY IPA Inc., OptumRx PBM of Illinois Inc., OptumRx PBM of Maryland LLC, OptumRx PBM of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx PBM of Wisconsin LLC, OptumRx PD of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx Pharmacy Inc., OptumRx Pharmacy of Nevada Inc., OptumRx of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumServe Technology Services Inc., Oregon Healthcare Resources LLC, Oregon Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Orlando Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., OrthoNet Holdings Inc., OrthoNet LLC, OrthoNet New York IPA Inc., OrthoNet West Inc., OrthoNet of the South Inc., OrthoWest MSO LLC, Orthology Inc., Orthopedic Center of Palm Beach County LLC, Orthopedic Surgery Center of Palm Beach County LLC, Orthopro Management LLC, Ovations Inc., Owensboro Ambulatory Surgical Facility Ltd., Oxford Benefit Management Inc., Oxford Health Insurance Inc., Oxford Health Plans CT Inc., Oxford Health Plans LLC, Oxford Health Plans NJ Inc., Oxford Health Plans NY Inc., P2P Link LLC, PCCCV Inc., PHC Subsidiary Holdings LLC, PHYSICIANS DAY SURGERY CENTER LLC, PMI Acquisition LLC, PMSI Holdings LLC, PMSI Settlement Solutions LLC, POMCO Inc., POMCO Network Inc., PPH Holdings LLC, PPH Management Company L.L.C., PPH-Columbia Inc., PPH-Gardendale Inc., PS Center LLC, PacifiCare Health Systems, PacifiCare Life Assurance Company, PacifiCare Life and Health Insurance Company, PacifiCare of Arizona Inc., PacifiCare of Colorado Inc., Pacific Cardiovascular Associates Medical Group Inc., Pacific Casualty Company Inc., Pacifico S.A. Entidad Prestadora de Salud, Panama City Surgery Center LLC, Park Hill Surgery Center LLC, Parkway Surgery Center LLC, Patient Care Associates L.L.C., PatientsLikeMe, Patrimonio Autonomo Nueva Clinica, Payment Resolution Services LLC, Peninsula Eye Surgery Center LLC, Penzo Enterprises LLC, Peoples Health, Peoples Health Inc., Perham Physical Therapy LTD, Perimeter Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., Pharmaceutical Technologies LLC, Physician Alliance of the Rockies LLC, Physicians Health Choice of Texas LLC, Physicians Health Plan of Maryland Inc., Physicians' Surgery Center of Downey LLC, Pinnacle III LLC, Plano de Saude Ana Costa Ltda., Plus One Health Management Puerto Rico Inc., Plus One Holdings Inc., Pocono Ambulatory Surgery Center Limited, Polar II Fundo de Investimento em Participacoes Multiestrategia, Polo Holdco LLC, Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center Inc., Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Post-Acute Care Center for Research LLC, Practice Partners in Healthcare LLC, Preferred Care Network Inc., Preferred Care Network of Florida Inc., Preferred Care Partners Holding Corp., Preferred Care Partners Inc., Preferred Care Partners Medical Group Inc., PreferredOne, PreferredOne Administrative Services Inc., PreferredOne Insurance Company, Premier Choice ACO Inc., Premier Surgery Center of Louisville L.P., Premiere Medical Resources LLC, Presidio Surgery Center LLC, Prime Health Inc., PrimeCare Medical Network Inc., PrimeCare of Citrus Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Corona Inc., PrimeCare of Hemet Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Inland Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Moreno Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Redlands Inc., PrimeCare of Riverside Inc., PrimeCare of San Bernardino Inc., PrimeCare of Sun City Inc., PrimeCare of Temecula Inc., PrimeDoc St. Francis P.C., PrimeDoc of Richmond P.C., ProHEALTH Care Associates L.L.P., ProHEALTH Care Associates of New Jersey LLP, ProHEALTH Medical Management LLC, ProHealth Physicians ACO LLC, ProHealth Physicians Inc., ProHealth Proton Center Management LLC, ProHealth/CareMount Dental Management LLC, Procura Management Inc., Professional Coverage Services PLLC, Progressive Enterprises Holdings Inc., Progressive Medical LLC, Promotora Country S.A., Pronounced Health Solutions Inc., Prosemedic S.A.C., Prospero Benefits Management LLC, Prospero Care Management LLC, Prospero Management Services LLC, Providence & SCA Development LLC, Providence & SCA Off-Campus Holdings LLC, Providence & SCA On-Campus Holdings LLC, Providence & SCA Outreach Markets Holdings LLC, Pulse Platform LLC, QoL Acquisition Holdings Corp., R Cubed Inc., RABessler M.D. P.C., ROC Surgery LLC, ROCS Holdings LLC, RX Ricardo Campos Ltda., Rally Health Inc., ReMedics LLC, Real Appeal Inc., Redding Surgery Center LLC, Redlands Ambulatory Surgery Center, Redlands-SCA Surgery Centers Inc., Reliant MSO LLC, Reliant Medical Group Inc., Reliant Medical Group The Endoscopy Center LLC, Research Surgical Center LLC, Resonancia Magnetica de Colombia Ltda., Resonancia Magnetica del Country S.A., RightCare Solutions Inc., River Valley ASC LLC, Riverside Corporate Wellness LLC, Riverside Electronic Healthcare Resources Inc., Riverside Medical Management LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Meadowlands LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Newark LLC, Robert A. Bessler MD PLLC, Rockville Eye Surgery Center LLC, Rocky Mountain Health Maintenance Organization Incorporated, Rush Oak Brook Surgery Center LLC, SC Affiliates LLC, SCA AHN JV Holdings LLC, SCA Alaska Surgery Center inc., SCA Athens LLC, SCA Austin Holdings LLC, SCA Austin Medical Center Holdings LLC, SCA Aventura Holdings LLC, SCA BOSC Holdings LLC, SCA Bloomfield Holdings LLC, SCA Cedar Park Holdings LLC, SCA Clifton LLC, SCA Colorado Springs Holdings LLC, SCA Community Service Foundation, SCA Cottonwood Holdings LLC, SCA Danbury Surgical Center LLC, SCA Denver Holdings LLC, SCA Development LLC, SCA Duluth Holdings LLC, SCA Duncanville Holdings LLC, SCA Duncanville MSO LLC, SCA ESSC Holdings LLC, SCA Englewood Holdings LLC, SCA Global One Holdings LLC, SCA Greenway Holdings LLC, SCA Grove Creek Holdings LLC, SCA Guilford Holdings LLC, SCA Hays Holdings LLC, SCA Health Value Enterprise LLC, SCA Heartland Holdings LLC, SCA High Point Holdings LLC, SCA HoldCo Inc., SCA Holding Company Inc., SCA Holdings Inc., SCA IEC Holdings LLC, SCA Indiana Holdings LLC, SCA Lutheran Holdings LLC, SCA Maple Grove Holdings LLC, SCA Mohawk Holdings LLC, SCA Murrells Inlet LLC, SCA Northern Utah Holdings LLC, SCA Northwest Holdings LLC, SCA Outside New Jersey LLC, SCA Pacific Holdings Inc., SCA Pacific Surgery Holdings LLC, SCA Palisades Holdings LLC, SCA Pennsylvania Holdings LLC, SCA Pinnacle Holdings LLC, SCA Premier Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, SCA Providence Holdings LLC, SCA ROCS Holdings LLC, SCA Rockledge JV LLC, SCA Rush Oak Brook Holdings LLC, SCA SSSC Holdings LLC, SCA Sage Medical LLC, SCA Sage Medical MSO LLC, SCA San Diego Holdings LLC, SCA Skyway Holdings LLC, SCA South Ogden Holdings LLC, SCA Southwestern PA LLC, SCA Specialists of Florida LLC, SCA Specialty Holdings of Connecticut LLC, SCA Stonegate Holdings LLC, SCA Surgery Holdings LLC, SCA Surgicare of Laguna Hills LLC, SCA Teammate Support Network, SCA West Health Holdings LLC, SCA Westgreen Holdings LLC, SCA Woodbury Holdings LLC, SCA eCode Solutions Private Limited, SCA of Clarksville Inc., SCA-Albuquerque Surgery Properties Inc., SCA-Alliance LLC, SCA-Anne Arundel LLC, SCA-Applecare Partners LLC, SCA-Bethesda LLC, SCA-Blue Ridge LLC, SCA-Bonita Springs LLC, SCA-Brandon LLC, SCA-Castle Rock LLC, SCA-Central Florida LLC, SCA-Charleston LLC, SCA-Chatham LLC, SCA-Chevy Chase LLC, SCA-Citrus Inc., SCA-Colonial Partners LLC, SCA-Colorado Springs LLC, SCA-Connecticut Partners LLC, SCA-DRY CREEK LLC, SCA-Davenport LLC, SCA-Denver LLC, SCA-Denver Physicians Holdings LLC, SCA-Derry LLC, SCA-Doral LLC, SCA-Downey LLC, SCA-Dublin LLC, SCA-Encinitas Inc., SCA-Eugene Inc., SCA-First Coast LLC, SCA-Florence LLC, SCA-Fort Collins Inc., SCA-Fort Walton Inc., SCA-Franklin LLC, SCA-Frederick LLC, SCA-Freeway Holdings LLC, SCA-Ft. Myers LLC, SCA-GRANTS PASS LLC, SCA-Gainesville LLC, SCA-Gladiolus LLC, SCA-Glenwood Holdings LLC, SCA-Grove Place LLC, SCA-Hagerstown LLC, SCA-Hamden LLC, SCA-Hilton Head LLC, SCA-Honolulu LLC, SCA-Houston Executive LLC, SCA-IT Holdings LLC, SCA-Illinois LLC, SCA-JPM Holdings LLC, SCA-Kissing Camels Holdings LLC, SCA-MC VBP Inc., SCA-Main Street LLC, SCA-Marina del Rey LLC, SCA-Mecklenburg Development Corp., SCA-Memorial City LLC, SCA-Memorial LLC, SCA-Merritt LLC, SCA-Midlands LLC, SCA-Midway Management LLC, SCA-Mobile LLC, SCA-Mokena LLC, SCA-Morris Avenue LLC, SCA-Morris County LLC, SCA-Mt. Pleasant LLC, SCA-Naperville LLC, SCA-Naples LLC, SCA-New Jersey LLC, SCA-Newport Beach LLC, SCA-Northeast Georgia Health LLC, SCA-PORTLAND LLC, SCA-Palm Beach LLC, SCA-Palm Beach MSO Holdings LLC, SCA-Panama City Holdings LLC, SCA-Paoli LLC, SCA-Phoenix LLC, SCA-Pocono LLC, SCA-Practice Partners Holdings LLC, SCA-River Valley LLC, SCA-Riverside LLC, SCA-Riverside Partners LLC, SCA-Rockville LLC, SCA-Sacred Heart Holdings LLC, SCA-San Diego Inc., SCA-San Luis Obispo LLC, SCA-Sand Lake LLC, SCA-Santa Rosa Inc., SCA-Somerset LLC, SCA-South Jersey LLC, SCA-Sparta LLC, SCA-Spartanburg Holdings LLC, SCA-St. Louis Holdings LLC, SCA-St. Louis LLC, SCA-St. Lucie LLC, SCA-SurgiCare LLC, SCA-Swiftpath LLC, SCA-VERTA LLC, SCA-VLR Holdings Company LLC, SCA-Wake Forest LLC, SCA-Western Connecticut LLC, SCA-Westover Hills LLC, SCA-Winchester LLC, SCA-Winter Park Inc., SCA-Woodlands Holdings LLC, SCAI Holdings LLC, SCLHS-SCA Holdings LLC, SCP Specialty Infusion LLC, SHC Atlanta LLC, SHC Austin Inc., SHC Hawthorn Inc., SHC Melbourne Inc., SJ East Campus ASC LLC, SRPS LLC, SSSC Holdings LLC, SVHS-SCA Florida JV LLC, Sacred Heart ASC LLC, Saden S.A., Sage Medical Prof. LLC, Salem JV Holdings LLC, Salem Surgery Center LLC, Salveo Specialty Pharmacy Inc., San Diego Endoscopy Center, San Diego Sports and Minimally Invasive Surgery Center LLC, San Francisco Endoscopy Center LLC, San Luis Obispo Surgery Center a California Limited Partnership, Sand Lake SurgiCenter LLC, Santa Barbara Endoscopy Center LLC, Santa Cruz Endoscopy Center LLC, Santa Helena Assistencia Medica S.A., Santa Rosa Surgery Center L.P., Santos Administracao e Participacoes S.A., Sanvello Health Holdings LLC, Sanvello Health Inc., Sanvello Health Limited, Scanner Centromed S.A., Seashore Surgical Institute L.L.C., Seisa Servicos Integrados de Saude Ltda., Senate Street Surgery Center LLC, Senior Benefits L.L.C., Serquinox Holdings LLC, Servicios Integrados de Salud Ltda., Servicios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., Servicios Medicos Bio Bio Ltda., Servicios Medicos Ciudad del Mar Ltda., Servicios Medicos Santa Maria Ltda., Servicios Medicos Vespucio Ltda., Servicios de Entrenamiento en Competencias Clinicas Ltda., Serviclinica Inmobiliaria S.A., Serviclinica S.A. Ex Los Leones La Calera, Servisalud Inmobiliaria S.A., Servisalud S.A. Ex Los Carrera Quilpue, Shark Holdings P.C., Sierra Dental Plan Inc., Sierra Health Services Inc, Sierra Health Services Inc., Sierra Health and Life Insurance Company Inc., Sierra Health-Care Options Inc., Sierra Home Medical Products Inc., Sierra Nevada Administrators Inc., Sistema de Administracion Hospitalaria S.A.C., Small Business Insurance Advisors Inc., Sobam  Centro Medico Hospitalar S.A., Sociedad de Inversiones Santa Maria SpA, Solstice Administration Services Inc., Solstice Administrators Inc., Solstice Administrators of Alabama Inc., Solstice Administrators of Arizona Inc., Solstice Administrators of Missouri Inc., Solstice Administrators of North Carolina Inc., Solstice Administrators of Texas Inc., Solstice Benefit Services Inc., Solstice Benefits Inc., Solstice Health Insurance Company, Solstice Healthplans Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Arizona Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Colorado Inc., Solstice Healthplans of New Jersey Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Ohio Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Tennessee Inc., Solstice Healthplans of Texas Inc., Solstice of Illinois Inc., Solstice of Minnesota Inc., Solstice of New York Inc., Solutran LLC, Somerset Outpatient Surgery L.L.C., Sound Inpatient Physicians Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians Medical Group Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians of Ohio LLC, Sound Inpatient Physicians of Texas I Inc., Sound Inpatient Physicians  Michigan PLLC, Sound Intensivists of Nevada RBessler M.D. PLLC, Sound Kenwood Hospitalists of Cincinnati Inc., Sound Kenwood Hospitalists of Cincinnati LLC, Sound Physicians Advisory Services Inc., Sound Physicians Alaska Hospitalist Group LLC, Sound Physicians Anesthesiology of Texas PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Arizona Inc., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Georgia P.C., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Kansas LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Kentucky PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Louisiana Inc., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Michigan PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Nevada Bessler PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Southern California P.C., Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Texas PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of Washington PLLC, Sound Physicians Emergency Medicine of West Virginia PLLC, Sound Physicians Holdings LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Arizona Inc., Sound Physicians Intensivists of Georgia PC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Virginia LLC, Sound Physicians Intensivists of Washington PLLC, Sound Physicians Palliative Care of Maryland P.C., Sound Physicians Telemedicine Inc., Sound Physicians of Florida IV LLC, Sound Physicians of Georgia III P.C., Sound Physicians of Hawaii Inc., Sound Physicians of Idaho PLLC, Sound Physicians of Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians of Indiana LLC, Sound Physicians of Iowa PLLC, Sound Physicians of Kankakee Illinois LLC, Sound Physicians of Massachusetts II P.C., Sound Physicians of Massachusetts Inc., Sound Physicians of New Jersey LLC, Sound Physicians of New York PLLC, Sound Physicians of North Carolina PLLC, Sound Physicians of South Carolina LLC, Sound Physicians of Wyoming LLC, South Arlington Surgical Providers LLC, South County Surgical Center LLC, South Sound Inpatient Physicians PLLC, Southern California Medical Practice Concepts LLC, Southland Hospitalists P.C., Southwest Medical Associates Inc., Southwest Michigan Health Network Inc., Southwest Surgery Center LLC, Southwest Surgical Center LLC, Space Coast Surgical Center Ltd., Spartanburg Surgery Center LLC, Specialists in Urology Surgery Center LLC, Specialized Pharmaceuticals Inc., Specialty Benefits LLC, Specialty Billing Solutions LLC, Specialty Surgical Center LLC, Spectera Inc., Spectera of New York IPA Inc., Sports and Spinal Physical Therapy Inc., St. Cloud Outpatient Surgery Ltd. a Minnesota Limited Partnership, St. Cloud Surgical Center LLC, St. Louis Cardiovascular Institute LLC, St. Louis Specialty Surgical Center LLC, Stonegate JV Partners LLC, Stonegate Surgery Center L.P., Summer Street ASC LLC, SunSurgery LLC, Surgery Center Holding LLC, Surgery Center at Cherry Creek LLC, Surgery Center at Cottonwood LLC, Surgery Center at Grove Creek LLC, Surgery Center at Kissing Camels LLC, Surgery Center at South Ogden LLC, Surgery Center at St. Vincent LLC, Surgery Center of Boca Raton Inc., Surgery Center of Colorado Springs LLC, Surgery Center of Des Moines LLC, Surgery Center of Easton LLC, Surgery Center of Ellicott City Inc., Surgery Center of Fairfield County LLC, Surgery Center of Fort Collins LLC, Surgery Center of Lexington LLC, Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, Surgery Center of Maui LLC, Surgery Center of Mt. Scott LLC, Surgery Center of Muskogee LLC, Surgery Center of Rockville L.L.C., Surgery Center of Southern Pines LLC, Surgery Center of The Woodlands LLC, Surgery Centers of Des Moines Ltd. an Iowa Limited Partnership, Surgery Centers-West Holdings LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates, Surgical Care Affiliates LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates Political Action Committee, Surgical Care Partners of Melbourne LLC, Surgical Caregivers of Fort Worth LLC, Surgical Center of Greensboro LLC, Surgical Center of San Diego LLC, Surgical Center of South Jersey Limited Partnership, Surgical Center of Tuscaloosa Holdings LLC, Surgical Eye Experts LLC, Surgical Health LLC, Surgical Health of Orlando LLC, Surgical Hospital Holdings of Oklahoma LLC, Surgical Management Solutions LLC, Surgicare LLC, Surgicare of Central Jersey LLC, Surgicare of Jackson LLC, Surgicare of Jackson Ltd. a Mississippi Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Joliet Inc., Surgicare of La Veta Inc., Surgicare of La Veta Ltd. a California Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Minneapolis LLC, Surgicare of Minneapolis Ltd. a Minnesota Limited Partnership, Surgicare of Mobile LLC, Surgicare of Mobile Ltd., Surgicare of Oceanside Inc., Surgicare of Owensboro LLC, Surgicare of Salem LLC, Surgicenters of Southern California Inc., Symphonix Health Holdings LLC, T.M. Carr M.D. P.C., THE SURGICAL CENTER OF THE TREASURE COAST L.L.C., THR-SCA Holdings LLC, TeamMD Holdings Inc., TeamMD Iowa Inc., TeamMD Physicians of Texas Inc., TeamUP Insurance Services Inc., Tecnologia de Informacion en Salud S.A., Texas Health Craig Ranch Surgery Center LLC, Texas Health Flower Mound Orthopedic Surgery Center LLC, Texas Health Orthopedic Surgery Center Alliance LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Alliance LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Bedford LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Chisholm Trail LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Irving LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Las Colinas LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Preston Plaza LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Rockwall LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Southwest Fort Worth LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Waxahachie LLC, Texas Health Surgery Center Willow Park LLC, The Advisory Board Company, The Alaska Hospitalist Group LLC, The Chesapeake Life Insurance Company, The Eye Surgery Center of the Carolinas L.P., The Intensivist Group of Langhorne LLC, The Lewin Group Inc., The Outpatient Surgery Center of Hilton Head LLC, The Polyclinic MSO LLC, The Surgery Center of Easton L.P., The Surgical Center of Connecticut LLC, Thomas Johnson Surgery Center LLC, Three Rivers Holdings Inc., Three Rivers Surgical Care L.P., Tmesys LLC, Topimagem Diagnostico por Imagem Ltda., Touchpoint Health Plan, Trails Edge Surgery Center LLC, Trauma Surgery Affiliates LLC, Travel Express Incorporated, Treasure Valley Emerald Properties LLC, Treasure Valley Hospital Limited Partnership, Tri-City Medical Center ASC Operators LLC, Tri-County Surgery Center LLC, Trinity Cardiovascular Care PLLC, Tufts Health Freedom Insurance Company, Tufts Health Freedom Plans Inc., Tuscaloosa Surgical Center L.P., U.S. Behavioral Health Plan California, UCSD Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, UCSD Center for Surgery of Encinitas L.P., UCSD Surgical Center of San Diego LLC, UCSD-SCA Holdings I LLC, UCSD-SCA Holdings II LLC, UHC Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, UHC International Services Inc., UHC of California, UHCG Holdings Ireland Limited, UHCG Services Ireland Limited, UHCG  FZE, UHG Brasil Participacoes S.A., UHG Holdings UK IV Limited, UHG Holdings UK V Limited, UHG Holdings UK VI Limited, UHIC Holdings Inc., UMR Inc., UPHT-SCA Holdings LLC, USHEALTH Academy Inc., USHEALTH Administrators LLC, USHEALTH Advisors LLC, USHEALTH Career Agency Inc., USHEALTH Funding Inc., USHEALTH Group Inc., USMD ASC IV1 LLC, USMD ASC IV2 LLC, USMD Administrative Services L.L.C., USMD Affiliated Services, USMD Holdings Inc., USMD Hospital at Arlington L.P., USMD Hospital at Fort Worth L.P., USMD Inc., USMD PPM LLC, Unidad Medica Diagnostico S.A., Unimerica Insurance Company, Unimerica Life Insurance Company of New York, Unison Health Plan of Delaware Inc., United Behavioral Health, United Behavioral Health of New York I.P.A. Inc., United Group Reinsurance Inc., United Health Foundation, United HealthCare Services Inc., United Medical Park ASC LLC, United Resource Networks IPA of New York Inc., United in Advancing Health Equity Foundation, UnitedHealth Advisors LLC, UnitedHealth Group Employee Assistance Fund, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, UnitedHealth Group International Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, UnitedHealth International Inc., UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Services LLC, UnitedHealthcare Benefits Plan of California, UnitedHealthcare Benefits of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of California Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas L.L.C., UnitedHealthcare Consulting & Assistance Service Beijing Co. Ltd., UnitedHealthcare Europe S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Global Medical UK Limited, UnitedHealthcare Inc., UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of America, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of Illinois, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of New York, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of the River Valley, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Designated Activity Company, UnitedHealthcare Integrated Services Inc., UnitedHealthcare International Asia LLC, UnitedHealthcare International I B.V., UnitedHealthcare International II S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International III B.V., UnitedHealthcare International III S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International IV S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VIII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International X S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Parekh Insurance TPA Private Limited, UnitedHealthcare Plan of the River Valley Inc., UnitedHealthcare Service LLC, UnitedHealthcare Specialty Benefits LLC, UnitedHealthcare of Alabama Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arizona Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arkansas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Colorado Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Florida Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Illinois Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Kentucky Ltd., UnitedHealthcare of Louisiana Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Mississippi Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New England Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New Mexico Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New York Inc., UnitedHealthcare of North Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oklahoma Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oregon Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., UnitedHealthcare of South Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Utah Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Washington Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Wisconsin Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midlands Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midwest Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Rockies Inc., Unity Health Network LLC, Upland Holdings LLC, Upland Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Urgent Care Holdings Inc., Urgent Care MSO LLC, Urology Associates of North Texas P.L.L.C., VERTA MANAGEMENT SERVICES LLC, VPay Benefits Corporation, VPay Inc., VPay Intermediate Holdings LLC, Valley Hospital L.L.C., Valley Physicians Network Inc., Vascular Labs of the Rockies ASC LLC, Vascular Labs of the Rockies PLLC, Via Vitae MSO LLC, Vida Integra S.p.A., Vida Tres S.A., Virtua-SCA Holdings II LLC, Virtua-SCA Holdings LLC, Vivify Health Canada Inc., Vivify Health Inc., WESTMED Practice Partners LLC, Wake Forest Ambulatory Ventures LLC, Walnut Creek Endoscopy Center LLC, Walnut Hill Surgery Center LLC, Wauwatosa Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Wauwatosa Surgery Center LLC, Wayland Square Surgicare Acquisition L.P., Wayland Square Surgicare GP Inc., Waypoint Minnesota PC, WellMed Medical Management Inc., WellMed Medical Management of Florida Inc., West Coast Endoscopy Holdings LLC, WestHealth JV Holdings LLC, WestHealth Surgery Center LLC, Western Connecticut Orthopedic Surgical Center LLC, Westgreen Surgical Center LLC, Wilson Creek Surgical Center LLC, Winchester Endoscopy LLC, Winter Park LLC, Winter Park Surgery Center L.P., Woodbury Surgery Center LLC, XAS Infusion Suites Inc., XLHealth Corporation, XLHealth Corporation India Private Limited, divvyDOSE, divvyMED LLC, eCode Solutions LLC, gethealthinsurance.com Agency Inc., hCentive Inc., inPharmative Inc., naviHealth Care at Home LLC, naviHealth Coordinated Care LLC, naviHealth Coordinated Care SC P.C., naviHealth Holdings LLC, naviHealth Inc., naviHealth Michigan HBPC P.C., and naviHealth SM Holdings Inc..

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Vesuvius plc provides engineering services and solutions principally to steel and foundry industries worldwide. It operates in two divisions, Steel and Foundry. The company offers foundry consumables and equipment, including binders, coatings, feeding systems, filtration and gating systems, melt shop refractories, metallurgical and pouring control systems, die dressings and coatings, melt treatment products, crucibles, and ceramics for the iron, steel, and nonferrous foundries. It also provides nonferrous metals, such as primary and secondary aluminum, copper, and other metals and alloys; cement and lime solutions, iron ore pelletizing and calcination products, and grains and powders; and process heaters, FCC units, hydrogen reformers, boilers, coke calciners, and thermal oxidizers, as well as sulphur, ethylene, and ammonia plants. In addition, the company offers solutions for power generation and incineration; glass products comprising artistic, display, float, hollow, and optical glass; glass tempering, and reheat and forming products; and solutions for solar multicrystal silicon ingots, thin film and cell processing, and feedstock. Further, it provides solutions for blast furnace stack repair; taphole clay, iron and slang runner, sampler and temperature, tilting runner, and torpedo ladle solutions; iron ladle solutions; lining, taphole system, bath agitation and tuyere system, electric arc furnace and BOF maintenance, and metallurgical sensor solutions; and ladle, ladle to tundish, and tundish solutions, as well as tundish to mold solutions for conventional slab, thin and slim slab, beam blank, flow control valve bloom or billet, and calibrated nozzle billet casters. Additionally, the company offers ingot casting solutions; and reheat furnace, steel hot forming, galvanized steel, and electrical and stainless-steel solutions. Vesuvius plc was founded in 1916 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.
Both Shilpa and Akash were saved from getting evicted as the voting lines were closed last week.

By India Today Web Desk: Bigg Boss 11 Weekend ka Vaar episodes are always exciting to watch, one, because of host Salman Khan, and the second reason is the whole eviction drama of course.

Here's what happened in last night's episode of the show:

An interesting interaction with the Fukrey 2 team

The main cast of Fukrey 2 made an appearance on the show, and made the housemates participate in a fun task, which involved contestants answering uncomfortable questions posed by each other. But the highlight of that task has to be when Hiten, when asked to choose between Shilpa, Arshi, Hina, picked Arshi as the woman he would marry. Of course this was all a part of a silly game, but Hiten's answer really made Arshi's day.

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When Arshi cut off her ties with Hiten

Yes, it did happen. Not too long after Hiten answered that he would pick Arshi as his bride, as a part of a game, Arshi broke of all ties with the actor. Why, you ask? Well, it happened after it was revealed that during the nomination process, Hiten had saved Shilpa, and not Arshi, as he had led everyone to believe.

Arshi was hurt by this and said that Hiten had betrayed her trust, and even told Vikas that she has decided to cut off all ties with both Hiten and Shilpa. Ouch!

Another 'No eviction' weekend

Yes, you read that right. Both nominated contestants, Shilpa and Akash were saved, as the voting lines were closed last week. And when host Salman broke the news after teasing Akash about his eviction, the latter's face was a sight to behold.

Luv upset with Priyank and Hina

As a part of another task, when asked about the least deserving contestants on the show, both Hina and Priyank took Luv's name. Luv was hurt that his friends saw him in such a poor light. During a conversation, he expressed his unhappiness with their choice.

All in all, a roller-coaster of an episode.

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Boeing CEO is claiming that the first person to set foot on the red planet will be on a Boeing rocket.

By India Today Web Desk: Most of us have been eagerly waiting for the day when the researchers would announce that life on Mars is truly possible.

However, it's still a distant dream for all the space enthusiasts.

But, the latest development in Mission Mars might sound exciting to a few.

The CEO of Boeing has claimed that the first person to set foot on the red planet will be on a Boeing rocket.

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via GIPHY

Dennis Muilenburg said that he is confident of beating SpaceX as Boeing is in the final assembly stages of building a rocket with NASA which will send humans to Mars. The system according to the Boeing CEO is expected be ready for a test flight in 2019.

"Eventually we are going to go to Mars, and I firmly believe that the first person that sets foot on Mars will get there in a Boeing rocket," he said, as reported by CNBC.

NASA's giant Space Launch System, is a rocket especially designed to send astronauts on space missions using agency's new Orion spacecraft. Boeing is said to be the main contractor for the first stage of the rocket to be launched by NASA. The launch test is scheduled for 2019.

Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX on the other hand had said earlier that sending humans to Mars was his primary goal which led to him starting space X.

Big Falcon Rocket is the mega-rocket that SpaceX aims to use in sending astronauts not just to Mars but the moon and other deep space destinations as well.

Dennis Muilenburg used Twitter to make the big announcement of the launch to be scheduled in 2019. Elon Musk who took it as a challenge was seen responding to it. He tweeted 'Do it'.

The team at Boeing accepted the the challenge and replied to Musk's tweet saying 'Game on!'.

During his presentation at the International Astronautical Congress in Australia in late September, Musk had said,"I feel fairly confident we can build the ship and be ready for the launch in five years," Musk said . "Five years seems like a long time for me.

FUN FACT

Mars has two moons which are named after the horses that pulled the chariot of the Greek war god Ares, the counterpart to the Roman war god Mars.

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By PTI: (Eds: Updating with more inputs)

By Aditi Khanna

London, Dec 11 (PTI) A British Airways flight from Mumbai scheduled to land at Heathrow airport here this evening was diverted to Baku in Azerbaijan after declaring a "general emergency".

Reports from passengers on board BA198 indicated that engineers were at work to fix a technical fault on the aircraft before it could resume its journey to London.

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The flight, which was scheduled to depart from Mumbais Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at 1315 hours took off after a delay of 3.40 hours earlier in the day.

One passenger tweeted that they were "stuck in Baku" due to technical fault, which involved smoke in the first class cabin.

BA, along with a number of other airlines, had issued an alert earlier today that many of its flights will be disrupted due to heavy snowfall in the UK on Sunday.

"Some flights will be disrupted today due to crew and aircraft being out of position following yesterdays weather. Please check your flight status ahead of travelling to the airport," a BA statement said.A

Engineers in Baku are checking the aircraft, it said, adding, "we are awaiting more information about the situation".

The airline, however, did not share the number of passengers and crew on board the Boeing 777 aircraft. PTI AK/IAS RAM UZM

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Pursuing two masters degrees at once would be a daunting task for most, but it was the clear choice for Becky Shaw.



Concurrently completing a Master of Library & Information Studies (MLIS) and a Master of Arts (MA) in Musicology has allowed Becky to combine her two passions: information management and music. These interests were developed through teen jobs in a public library and municipal archives, and piano and guitar training from age six.



My family is very musical, says Becky. My father taught us guitar, my sister is now a classical guitarist, luthier and teacher, and I specialized in guitar during my Bachelor of Music studies. Information management and music were always career possibilities, but my original intent was to complete one degree at a time.



Finding the connections



Then in May 2016, when presenting at the Music Encoding Conference in Montreal, Becky fully realized for the first time how interconnected musicology and information management could be.

She also met Jennifer Bain (associate professor, Fountain School of Performing Arts), who invited Becky to be her research assistant on the Cantus Database while studying at Dalhousie. Cantus is a searchable digital archive of Latin chants found in over 140 manuscripts and early printed books. The archive holds primarily inventories of antiphoners (which incorporate responsive choral singing split into two parts) and breviaries (books of prayers, hymns, psalms and readings) from medieval Europe.





Beckys work consists primarily of standardizing a naming system for the differentiae in Cantus, which were previously unique to a single, or small group of manuscripts. Dr. Bain worked with Becky to devise a schedule that would allow her work on Cantus to feed into an MA thesis, to be completed at the same time as her MLIS.



The three-year schedule, with the degrees overlapped in year two, has allowed Becky to study differentiae in a scope that has not been done before because of the lack of a standardized indexing system. Becky considers her work on Cantus to be the highlight of her studies so far, since it crosses the boundary between the two programs.



The practical application of skills I learned in classes such as INFO 6800: Archives [with Acting Provincial Archivist and Director Patti Bannister] and a reading course in Archiving Music [with Dalhousie Digital Archivist Creighton Barrett] have been most useful to me, Becky says.



She also worked on the descriptions for the music collections in the Dalhousie University Archives, travelled to Rochester, New York, to present her work at a symposium titled Machine-Reading and Crowdsourcing Medieval Music Manuscripts, and completed her MLIS practicum in the music department of the National Library of Portugal.



Making time for it all



Completing two graduate degrees at once isnt for everyone. Becky says its all about advanced planning and time management.





Working on two masters degrees sometimes means you are pulled in many directions at the same time, so figure out how and when you will meet the requirements for each program from the outset. You should also be sure that you are passionate about both fields. Most would not do this just for the sake of it!



Beckys story illustrates the breadth of possibilities graduate study at Dalhousie offers, even if you have multiple interests and career goals. She is now considering doctoral work to continue her research in musicology and digital humanities, with the eventual goal of working as a music subject librarian in an academic library or as a postdoctoral fellow.



I would definitely advise anyone to keep an open mind about potential career paths and opportunities. Utilize internships and practicums and have conversations with people already in the field to assess the best path for you. You may not have a clear idea of the type of career you want to pursue, but if you take advantage of the opportunities to explore different options, it will come to you.
New Delhi: India has proposed USD 1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said om Monday.

Apart from this, India has set up a project development fund of USD 77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, he said.

"The ASEAN India maritime transport cooperation agreement is being negotiated...An Asian India civil aviation task force has been established to see optimisation of air connectivity. "India has proposed to commit a line of credit of USD 1 billion to promote projects that support physical and digital connectivity," Gadkari said.

He was addressing the ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit jointly organised by CII and ASEAN India Centre.

The minister said ASEAN and India have also agreed to establish a maritime transport working group among India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to examine the feasibility of shipping networks.

Asserting that connectivity is the pathway to shared prosperity, he said better connectivity is the core factor for strengthening ASEAN-India relations.

"Connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH), extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and at different stages of implementation," he said.

India is already working with Myanmar in the areas of border area development, capacity building, infrastructure development, connectivity projects and institutional development.

Stressing on augmentation of international connectivity, the minister said for Bharat Mala project, around 2,000 km with an outlay of Rs 25,000 crore are earmarked to connect India's major highway corridors to international trade points. This will facilitate export/import trade with Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

About BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) Motor Vehicles Agreement, Gadkari said action has been initiated for implementation of BBIN MVA by Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
With around 4 lakh towers and 8 lakh tenancies, the telecom tower space is a sizeable one in the world, it added.

New Delhi: The telecom sector could pare as much as Rs 90,000 crore debt if stake sale deals of mobile tower assets, currently being discussed, materialise, Icra said on Monday.

It predicted structural and material changes for the telecom tower industry in the medium term.

Icra also anticipated some headwinds in the short term, as consolidation of telecom operators leads to rationalisation of tenancies, but remained confident about the growth prospects in coming years.

This growth would be fuelled by the network expansion of telecom operators, keen to meet the data needs of consumers, it said.

As per Icra estimates, debt to the tune of Rs 80,000- 90,000 crores can be pruned from the telecom industry if the stake sale transactions of tower assets currently under discussions materialise, it said.

With around 4 lakh towers and 8 lakh tenancies, the telecom tower space is a sizeable one in the world, it added.

It said the sector has 10 organised players (besides small owners) wherein nearly three-fourths of the portfolio (74 per cent) is controlled either by tower companies promoted by telecom operators, or by operators themselves.
Cops said that the operation was being conducted to ensure a safe environment in the village and trace any suspects or anti-social elements taking shelter in the village. (Representational Image)

Hyderabad: The Siddipet police conducted a cordon and search operation in Tigul village under Gajwel division in the wee hours of Sunday. During the searches, police seized 22 bikes and two autos plying without valid documents. The searches, conducted under the supervision of Gajwel ACP Balaji, included about 50 police personnel including Mulugu Circle Inspector and Sub-Inspectors of Jagdevpur.

During the operation, the police searched homes, commercial establishments and shops and verified the identities of the occupants. Cops said that the operation was being conducted to ensure a safe environment in the village and trace any suspects or anti-social elements taking shelter in the village. However, no suspects were found in the village during the operation. They said the owners of the vehicles which were seized would be released after valid documents are submitted for verification.
The death of a youth, Paresh Mesta, has only worsened the situation with the BJP and Hindutva leaders alleging the role of 'jihadis' behind the incident.

Honnavar: Tension has gripped the coastal town of Honnavar in Uttar Kannada district over the last few days. Honnavar and nearby villages like Chandavar have witnessed communal incidents over the last 10 days. The death of a youth, Paresh Mesta, has only worsened the situation with the BJP and Hindutva leaders alleging the role of 'jihadis' behind the incident.

But the Komu Sauharda Vedike felt that it is just another incident raked up by communal forces to divide society ahead of the Assembly election in the state next year.

Tension began on December 1 when saffron outfits protested against the installation of a temporary replica of Prophet Mohammed's tomb. When the situation was about to return to normal, a minor accident between a rickshaw and a bike on December 6 evening turned communal.

The rider of the bike and driver of the autorickshaw were from two different communities and their argument took on a communal color with both the communities coming to blows. Though the police intervened, brought the situation under control and arrested 42 people (28 from one community and 14 from another) in connection with the clash, a youth, Paresh Mesta, went missing and on December 8 his body was found in a lake nearby.

Saffron outfits and BJP leaders, including Udupi-Chikkamagalur MP Shobha Karandlaje, alleged that this was the handiwork of jihadis.

It is alleged that Paresh was assaulted and his face burnt before his body was thrown into the lake.

Though Paresh was not an active worker of any saffron organisations, leaders claimed that his involvement in the Shanaishara temple activities on December 2 (on the day of Eid) had annoyed the other community.

Paresh was present when we held a meeting with the police after the clash on December 6. But later when he went to bring back the bike which was damaged during the clash, he was murdered. A complaint has been filed that five people  Imtiaz, Azad, Amir, Salim and Asif were involved in Pareshs murder. An FIR under Section 302 was registered on December 8. Though three of them were arrested (for the riot on December 6) the two are yet to be detained. We want their arrest immediately," Honnavar BJP president Subraya Nayak said.

BJP leaders alleged that the incident involved outsiders. "Anti-social elements are behind this. It is similar to that of ISIS activity and there are outsiders involved in this along with the local people. The administration has completely failed to stop their activity," Uttar Kannada BJP leader Rajesh Nayak alleged.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Komu Sauhardha Vedike leaders felt that the incident is similar to the communal activity that took place in Chikkamagaluru and Mysuru recently.

"Even before the postmortem report, Hindutva organisations claim it to be murder. How can they say it is a murder? How can they allege it to be communal murder? I feel saffron outfits are using it to polarise society when the election is fast approaching. BJP national president Amit Shah, who had visited the state, had asked them to work 'aggressively' to strengthen the party. As the party does not have any other issue they are now trying to encash on communal incidents," Vedike leader Suresh Bhat Bakrabail told Deccan Chronicle. "The BJP and Hindutva outfits are polarising society. We have seen BJP leaders involved in communal activity recently in Chikkamagaluru and Mysuru. In coastal Karnataka, they are trying to give a communal colour to such incidents," he alleged.

Meanwhile, the DC and SP of Uttar Kannada held a meeting with various leaders of Kumta and Honnavar on Sunday to ensure peace as various organisations have called for a bandh on Monday. The DC said the town will be normal on Monday. He also asked the public not to heed to any rumors and warned anti-social elements and rumour-mongers against spreading false news through social media.

He asked the people to send screenshots of such messages to the police or DC's WhatsApp number and said he would take strict action.

NIA should probe Mesta murder: BJP

Bengaluru: The BJP has decided to send a petition to Governor Vajubhai Vala seeking direction to the state government to hand over the murder of Paresh Mesta and 19 other youths belonging to BJP and RSS to National Investigating Agency (NIA). This was decided in the meeting of the Core Committee of the state BJP held on Sunday. "A delegation of BJP legislators of both the houses of state legislature will stage a protest march from Mahatma Gandhi statue in Vidhana Soudha to Raj Bhavan on Tuesday to hand over the memorandum," state BJP General Secretary Aravinda Limbavali, said in a statement. Paresh Mesta murder case will also echo in the Lok Sabha when the parliament session starts on December 15. A delegation of BJP MPs will call on Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and urge him to order NIA probe into the murder
While addressing a rally in Gujarat, PM Modi alleged that former Pak Army Director General Arshad Rafique was helping Cong leader Ahmed Patel to become Gujarat CM. (Representational image)

New Delhi: Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday slammed Pakistan over its interference in India's internal affairs and the unwarranted statement by the country's foreign office.

While attending a press conference, Prasad said, "We completely abhor any outside interference in India's internal affairs. Pakistan's promotion of terrorism in India is well known and Pakistan must stop giving us lessons; we are proud of our democracy. We condemn this unwarranted statement."

"Today a very curious statement was released by the Pakistan foreign office condemning Islamabad being dragged into India's elections and stated that Indians must learn to fight their elections on their own. I would like to say Pakistan that India is capable to contesting its democracy on its own," he added.

On Sunday, while addressing a rally in Gujarat's Banaskantha, Prime Minister Modi alleged that former Pakistan Army Director General Arshad Rafique was helping Congress leader Ahmed Patel to become the chief minister of Gujarat.

Later, Pakistan Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal, in his tweet, had asked India to stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate.

"India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible," read the tweet.

The Prime Minister had also questioned suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari's meeting with the Pakistan High Commissioner.
Lucknow: A Muslim woman in Bareilly district has alleged that her husband gave her triple talaq after she attended a function held to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for banning triple talaq.

The woman, Fayra, said she had gone to attend a rally organised as a mark of support to the Modi governments decision to bring in legislation to ban instant triple talaq.

She claimed after she returned from the rally her husband threatened her and said even the Prime Minister will not be able to save her and gave her triple talaq. She said that she was beaten up and then thrown out of the house along with her child.

Fayra also alleged that her husband had an affair with his aunt and had a son with her.

The husband, Danish, on the other hand, defended himself saying that he divorced his wife over her extramarital affairs.

I did not give her triple talaq. She had an extramarital affair, so I divorced her. She always wore jeans and things like that. I do not want to stay with my wife and the Prime Minister has nothing to do with it, he told reporters on Sunday.
Mumbai: The wife of Vikash Sachdev, the man arrested for allegedly molesting 'Dangal' actor Zaira Wasim onboard a Delhi-Mumbai flight on Saturday night, has claimed that her husband is innocent and that there may have been a misunderstanding.

My husband is innocent, had no intention to molest. There was a young death in family, which is where he went, hadn't slept for 24 hours. He asked crew to not disturb and wanted to sleep. His foot was on arm rest but not with intention to harass, Sachdevs wife told ANI.

There was no immediate reaction by her. I don't know why she levelled these allegations, maybe there was a misunderstanding. He is a family man and can never do such a thing. We want justice, she added.

The 39-year-old businessman was arrested on Sunday, after Wasim uploaded on Instagram a couple of videos about the incident.

Sachdev has been booked under section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of IPC, and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) since the actor is a minor, Senior Police Inspector, Sahar, Lata Shirsat, said.

Sachdev was produced before a court in Mumbai on Monday. He has been sent to the custody of Mumbai police till Wednesday, December 13.

Narrating the ordeal in an Instagram post, Wasim said: "So, I just landed and you know the whole irony of this is that the guy... this is not done at all. This is not the way, this is not a girl should be made to feel because this is terrible. Is this how they are doing to take care of girls? No one will help us if we don't decide to help ourselves. This is the worst thing".

"Managed to get this (shot of the molester's foot). The lights were dimmed so it was even worse. It continued for another 5-10 minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck," she said.

The 'Dangal' actor said she tried to click a photo of the man, but couldn't get a clear shot due to dim lights.

After the matter came to light, a woman police officer was sent to the hotel, where the actor is staying, to record her statement, and a case was registered against an unknown person at Sahar Police station.

After the video posted by Zaira, the National Commission of Women (NCW), the Delhi Commission of Women (DCW), the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have sought details from Air Vistara over the incident.

The airline apologised for the alleged molestation of the actor and also ordered a detailed investigation into the incident.
Enthusiasts indulge themselves in video games, battling it out with each other and experiencing new technology. (Photo: Dc)

In what could be called the biggest gaming event in India in recent times, the fifth version of Gamer Connect, held in Hyderabad over the weekend, saw a huge turnout of more than 5,000 gaming enthusiasts from the country. A platform to bond, interact and explore new avenues in gaming, the event gave aficionados an opportunity to experience the latest in PC gaming technology.

Featuring the most up-to-date and premium devices, the event encouraged people to experience the latest technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) and 4K, and recreate the immersive experience of the gaming world. They even tried their hands at futuristic gaming at the experience zones set up at the venue. The event enabled gamers to widen their horizons and hone their skills and test them against other gamers.

Gamers

Notably, out of the 15 million PC gamers in India, approximately one million are from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. And the number has a potential to go up to 2.5 million in the next three years.

Nehitha, an engineering student from the city says, Its awesome to be here and I am coming for the first time with my friends. I experienced 4K gaming and high-fidelity VR. The event is fantastic! I didnt expect such a big gaming community in Hyderabad.

Not short of a celebration: (top) Anjani, Nehitha and Madhuri (right) Many gaming enthusiasts who took part in the event took home prizes

Saurav Nandi, a B.Com student who came all the way from Kolkata, shares, I have attended events in Kolkata and Lucknow before, but this is the biggest Ive ever seen. I have just realised how big a community this is and I am looking forward to connecting with them. I want to spread awareness about gaming and thats the reason I came all the way.

Bhavya Tayal, a game developer, says that the industry has to be protected from piracy. He says, I am surprised to see the huge turnout, and hopefully gaming will only grow in the future. I usually keep a track of all the gaming news and events that happen. Such events should be organised more often, and with aggressive publicity, itll be even more effective. We have great gamers in India but they need more exposure so that they dont use pirated versions and we dont lose huge revenue.

Harpeet Singh, a first-year M.Tech student from IIIT Hyderabad, who is a passionate gamer, says, I am a fan of futuristic technology in gaming and such events should be conducted twice a year to push the interest levels. Next time, I will promote the event in my college in advance and get more people along.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
The entry of Meghan Markle in the Royal House of Windsor is set to modernize the family like never before.

By India Today Web Desk: There was a moment in the year 1936 when people thought the British Monarchy and the Royal House of Windsor had reached a point of no return. King Edward VII had abdicated from the throne, because his family could not accept his relationship with a twice-divorced American woman, Wallis Simpson.

After his abdication from the British throne, this ex-king married the love of his life, and spent his remaining days in Paris as the Duke of Windsor. The House of Windsor was rocked, and pushed to almost an edge. But it made a comeback with King George VI, the ex-king's younger brother and the present Queen Elizabeth's father.

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Cut to today, and the British Royal Family is getting ready for a wedding: Prince Harry is all set to marry Meghan Markle, an American actress, a commoner without "blue blood" and with mixed-race origins, and a divorcee. The wedding is scheduled for May 2018.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will marry in 2018. Photo: Reuters

The entry of Meghan Markle in the Royal House of Windsor begs one important question. Is the British Royal Family all set to modernize like never before?

Also Read: Elizabeth to Diana: British Royal engagements before Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Perhaps it is. Earlier in 2017, Queen Elizabeth made history by appointing Ghanian-born Major Nana Kofi Twumasi-Ankrah for a highly sought-out position in the household, that of the equerry. Vogue has called Twumasi-Ankrah "the first black equerry for the British royal family in history", and he really is--pointing to the fact that the Queen herself has set the tone with a powerful, progressive appointment.

The members of the British Royal Family, or the House of Windsor. Photo: Reuters The members of the British Royal Family, or the House of Windsor. Photo: Reuters

It's that very tone that Meghan's upcoming nuptials will push a few, giant steps forward in a number of ways.

The Divorcee Question

Meghan is an American divorcee. While this fact is sure to bring up bad memories for the Royals, it was actually Prince Charles, Harry's father, who made history by marrying a divorcee. In 1981, Charles had married Princess Diana, primarily because he could not marry his long-time love interest, Camilla Parker Bowles, because she was a divorcee.

Prince Charles married Princess Diana in 1981. Photo: Reuters

After Charles and Diana's marriage ended in a nearly-disastrous separation and divorce in 1996, there was pressure enough to change this rule. Charles went on to marry Camilla in 2005. It was the second marriage for both, and their children were also present at the occasion. Harry and Meghan's wedding will now be the second time that such a high-profile Royal couple will include a divorcee.

Prince Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles in 2005. Photo: Reuters

Blood matters, not any more

For the longest time, the British Royals, just like every other royal family around the world, had focused on marrying other royals or "blue bloods" from Europe. Queen Victoria married a young German Prince, and her descendants carried the name of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha till the First World War. Even Queen Elizabeth married a prince of Greece, Philip--also a descendant of Queen Victoria's, from his mother's side.

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This pattern of marrying younger members of the Royal Family to the topmost crust of the society was upturned first by Princess Margaret, the present queen's sister, who married a Antony Armstrong-Jones, a commoner. Prince William did the same thing in 2010, when he married Kate Middleton, who is also a commoner.

Clearly, marrying "blue bloods" isn't part of the British Royal agenda any more, which is a great thing for Harry and Meghan.

Princess Margaret and her husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones. Picture courtesy: Pinterest

Mixed-race for the first time

So while the question of marrying divorcees and commoners has been solved by Harry's predecessors, there is something that sets this soon-to-be-wed couple apart. Meghan has mixed-race origins. Her mother, Doria Loyce Ragland's ancestors were African-American slaves living in poverty in the Deep South state of Georgia.

While Meghan, a humanitarian, has voiced her "pride in being a strong, confident, mixed-race woman" during an interview with Elle magazine, this will be the first time a person of mixed-race origins is set to marry into the Royal House of Windsor. Anna Whitelock, a royal expert and director of the London Centre for Public History and Heritage, has explained to Time magazine that this isn't a big deal for the Queen.

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Also Read: Here's how Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip celebrated 70 years of togetherness

However, the British right-wing tabloids made Meghan's origins a talking point in 2016. This was finally censured (and rightly so) by Harry in a statement from Kensington Palace in November 2016. So, while certain sections of the British public and the racists out there might find this a talking point, Meghan's entry into the Royal House will actually give it a breath of fresh air.

Prince William married Kate Middleton in 2010. Photo: Reuters

When British Royals couldn't marry Catholics

Far more historically relevant and revolutionary is the fact that Harry is all set to marry a woman who was raised as a Catholic. Since the time of King Henry VIII, the first monarch who was also anointed the Head of the Church of England, there have rarely been any Catholic Royals in the Family. Queen Elizabeth II is, even now, the Head of the Protestant Church of England.

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Also Read: Princes William and Harry announce the making of a statue of Princess Diana

If the marriage regulations hadn't been modified in 2015--"as part of a broader shift to remove male bias and religious discrimination in the royal order" as Time magazine puts it--Harry wouldn't have been granted permission to marry Meghan at all. While some reports, including one in USNews.com, suggest that Meghan will be baptized into the Church of England before her wedding, the fact still remains that this is quite an impressive change in the Royal Family's regulations.

Add to all of this the fact that Meghan is a world-renowned actress, and you know that the Royal Family is going to add a member who has learnt from experience just how to manage public and press attention. Meghan's entry into the House of Windsor shows the attitude changes the Family has seen in the last century. It looks like the British Royals are finally moving in line with the times, and not with ancient (or at least medieval) rules.

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When Apple announced the 10th anniversary iPhone X, One of the most important changes it brought was the user authentication system. The fast and secure TouchID fingerprint scanner was replaced by futuristic FaceID. However, the feature was not without controversies, with the users still debating whether its worth having a facial recognition system instead of a fingerprint scanning sensor.

Apple critics say the iPhone X isnt the first smartphone with facial recognition, pointing to the likes of Samsung Galaxy S8 with its Iris scanner. Some even point out at the face matching feature prevalent in Android since ICS 4.0 days. But as far as Apples Marketing Chief Phil Schiller is concerned, all the other phones with facial recognition can be described in three simple words.

They all stink, Schiller said succinctly in an interview with Dutch website Bright and touching several key features of the iPhone X.

"They dont work in all the ways we need Face ID to work. Were very aware that through the years the simple thing, this Home button, that started as the way you click to get to the Home screen, grew into doing so many things for us. We added Touch ID, it took you to the multitasking screen, paged Siri, activated Apple Pay. All through this one mechanical button.

So for FaceID, we needed the best way we know of to enable us to easily unlock our device with our face, in a protected way with the Secure Enclave, and support all these other things. We had to solve all of that. Other things that people have tried with face havent been anything like that. Face ID is a unique implementation." Schiller added.

OnePlus has already released their flagship OnePlus 5T with their take on face unlock. Also, Huawei recently unveiled a module capable of scanning no less than 300,000 points in 10 seconds to create a 3D image of the face. Apples iPhone X does the same thing but with only 30,000 points and this is why Huawei says its facial recognition tech will be much more accurate and secure.

Other Android manufacturers will also start offering their versions of FaceID next year as well. At that time, we'll be able to better judge Schiller's quotes. Somehow it feels like he is resting on his laurels too much and undermining the ability of competition.

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The head of Germany's domestic intelligence agency warned Sunday that China allegedly is using social networks to try to cultivate lawmakers and other officials as sources.

Hans-Georg Maassen said his agency, known by its German acronym BfV, believes more than 10,000 Germans have been targeted by Chinese intelligence agents posing as consultants, head-hunters or researchers, primarily on the social networking site LinkedIn.

"This is a broad-based attempt to infiltrate in particular parliaments, ministries and government agencies," Maassen said.

In addition, Chinese hackers increasingly are launching attacks on European companies through trusted suppliers, he alleged.

The BfV established a task force early this year which examined the use of fake profiles on social networks over nine months. The agency provided journalists with what it said were eight of the most prolific fake profiles on LinkedIn used by alleged Chinese spies.

Using names such as Lily Wu, Laeticia Chen or Alex Li, the profiles sport impressive resumes, hundreds of contacts and attractive pictures of young professionals.

The agency also named six organizations it alleged Chinese spies use to cloak their approaches, including one called the Association France Euro-Chine and another named Global View Strategic Consulting.

Messages seeking comment from the organizations weren't immediately returned.

Maassen warned that Chinese cyber groups also were using so-called "supply-chain attacks" to get around companies' online defences.

Such attacks target IT workers and others who work for trusted service providers to send malicious software into the networks of organizations the attackers are interested in.

"The infections are difficult to detect, since network connections between service providers and their customers aren't suspicious," the BfV said. "This gives the attacker an even better disguise than before."

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Protestors protest on Mondat might in Bucharest, a day after the Romanian government repealed an emergency decree that would have turned a blind eye toward political corruption. (Photo: AFP)

Bucharest: More than 10,000 people on Monday braved biting cold to stage protests across Romania to denounce the left-wing government for backtracking on efforts to fight corruption.

The demonstrators want the withdrawal of proposed legislation that would overhaul Romania's justice system and reduce the powers of the respected anti-corruption directorate, the DNA.

Critics say the changes would dent progress in tackling graft, which Brussels has long complained about in the 10 years since Romania joined the European Union.

In Bucharest's central Victory Square, thousands gathered holding European Union and Romanian flags and shouted "Resign", while branding the ruling Social Democrats (PSD) "the red plague".

"They are doing everything so that they can steal legitimately. They are changing the laws in their favour, not for the benefit of the country," said a 36-year-old who refused to give his name.

"Don't force us to leave our country," he said.

This week, Romania's prosecutor general Augustin Lazar denounced moves to "weaken the independence of prosecutors".

The protests saw several thousands take to the streets of Bucharest. More than 2,000 people demonstrated in the central city of Sibiu and in western Timisoara.

The PSD returned to power after a thumping election victory last December but has had a rocky ride.

It backtracked on altering anti-corruption laws in February after they provoked the biggest protests since communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was toppled and executed in 1989.
ISIS has seen the so-called caliphate it declared in 2014 across parts of Syria and Iraq crumble in recent weeks, losing key cities such as Raqa and Mosul. (Representational Image)

Islamic State group jihadists have been driven out of Syrias Idlib province, two days after making an incursion into the region bordering Turkey, a war monitor said on Monday. ISIS fighters captured the Idlib village of Bashkun at the weekend after clashes with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of rebel forces dominated by a former Al-Qaeda affiliate. After fierce fighting, Tahrir al-Sham has once again chased ISIS out of Idlib, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor.

The setback comes more than three years after ISIS was first expelled from the province in northwestern Syria after battles with rival jihadists and rebel groups. ISIS has seen the so-called caliphate it declared in 2014 across parts of Syria and Iraq crumble in recent weeks, losing key cities such as Raqa and Mosul. Jihadist group which at its height held roughly one third of the countrys territory.
Last week, we shared our thoughts on Episode 1 of Black Mirror Season 4 titled Black Museum. Continuing our commentary series for the new season of Netflixs dark anthology series, today, we are going to talk about Episode 2 of the six-part series - Crocodile

Aptly named, Crocodile is a title written by series creator Charlie Brooker and directed by John Hillcoat (The Road, Lawless, Triple 9). The episode is filmed entirely in Iceland and it carries forward one of the main underlying themes of this season - Monitoring and manipulating the human brain using technology.

Its 2017 and humans have already made significant strides when it comes to the brain-computer interface. We can already control music and drones using only our thoughts. In fact, Netflix itself is working on a brain wearable named Mindflix, which aims at making you lose the remote and navigate the platform using just your thoughts. In Japan, scientists have developed mind-reading technology that goes as far as guessing Japanese words and single digit numbers that someone might be thinking of. In fact, weve had our own brush with mind reading headsets such as the NeuroSky Mindwave, which uses Electroencephalography to detect electrical activity in the human brain, decode simple thoughts and perform subsequent actions.

Crocodile takes mind-reading tech to a whole new level and marries it with a complete loss of privacy, which is a natural outcome of any such advanced technology, if and when it comes into existence. For now, we are the generation of social media, of Google and Facebook, of cloud storage and AI, of facial recognition and fingerprint sensors. We are already putting too much of ourselves out there and our data is pricier, more valuable than any precious metal that can be found on this planet. If individual privacy is at stake right now, Black Mirrors Crocodile imagines a society where privacy is next to non-existent, governable, accessible and unconcealed.

Andrea Riseborough, Black Mirror Season 4

The cast of Crocodile includes - Andrea Riseborough (Birdman, Bloodline), Andrew Gower (Outlander) and Kiran Sonia Sawar (Murdered By My Father), with stellar performances from all, especially Riseborough. The story revolves around a device which can access raw memories and what a futuristic society has made of it. As is the aim of the entire series of Black Mirror, the episode reveals the flipside of such a breakthrough invention. The lead character, played by Riseborough faces a disturbing incident in the opening minutes of the episode and the rest of the story is an outcome of that incident, made worse by the invention in question.

There are moments in the episode where writer-creator Brooker shocks you with the shallow depths of human nature, moments which are hard to watch or imagine, if one were to put themselves in the same situation. Brooker does well to create empathy towards characters by displaying their vulnerabilities and then snatches it away instantly by delving into their dark souls.

The fact that the episode was filmed in Iceland adds to its cold and calculative plot, creating a tense and gloomy, backdrop for this story of loss - loss of life, loss of liberty and loss of the ownership of ones own memories.

So, those were our thoughts on Crocodile, Episode 2 of Netflixs Black Mirror season 4 which premieres on December 29. It is indeed a bleak way of stepping into the New Year, but addictive nevertheless.

Stay tuned for our thoughts on the next chapter of Black Mirror season 4 - What happens when your love life is controlled by Artificial Intelligence?

Also Read: Black Mirror Episodic Commentary Chapter 1
In addition to the description, news articles, tweets and links, users will now find images, videos, GIFs, events, and polls posted directly by the person, celebrity, show, movie or organisation being searched for. Google Posts is now available in India.

Google has announced the launch of a new Search feature called Posts. The announcement is part of Googles constant effort to improve Search queries on the platform.

Posts are aimed at giving users of Google Search timely updates directly from the official source of the information, be it organisations, celebrities, shows, movies and more. Posts will be seen in the collection of cards within Googles Search results, also known as the Knowledge Panel.

So when users search for queries like Indian Super League or Tiger Zinda Hai hey will see verified updates directly from the source. Users will also see videos, GIFs, events, and polls posted directly by the person or organisation being searched for, in addition to description, news articles, tweets and links.

So from Tarla Dalal to Bigg Boss, and from Shraddha Kapoor to Chetan Bhagat, your favourite celebrities, shows and movies is simply a Search query away. Just do a search, and find updates from your favorite celebrities, brands and organizations, Google writes in a press release.

Google is also encouraging celebrities and known personalities to get verified for Posts so that their latest updates show up directly in Google Search. Those looking to get verified for Google Posts can head here and do so.

Those interested in getting verified by Google for Posts can do a Google search for the name they want to claim, click on the little sentence under the Knowledge Panel (Search result) asking to manage the online presence, and follow the instructions.

Posting is currently open in some categories and in some countries, which now includes India.

Google recently enhanced Featured Snippets and Knowledge Panels on Google Search to make information easily discoverable. Featured Snippets and the Knowledge Panel on Google Search now show additional images and related search results to improve content discoverability.
By PTI: Beijing, Dec 11 (PTI) China today successfully launched Algerias first communication satellite, the first project in aerospace industry between the North African nation and Beijing.

The Alcomsat-1 was launched into a present orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in the southwestern province of Sichuan, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

It will be used by Algeria for broadcast and television, emergency communication, distance education, e-governance, enterprise communication, broadband access and satellite-based navigation, it said.

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The satellite was launched 40 minutes past midnight by the Chinese Long March-3B carrier rocket, making it the 258th flight mission for the Long March rocket family.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Algerian counterpart Abdelaziz Bouteflika exchanged congratulatory messages on the successful launch of Alcomsat-1, the report said. PTI KJV SMJ AKJ SMJ

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Leaders of both Israel and Palestine reached out for international support after Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

During a visit to Brussels to discuss the issue of the bitterly-contested millennia-old city, Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu said the US Presidents stance had "put facts squarely on the table" and asked for Europes recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of his country too

"I believe that all, or most, European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace," Netanyahu said.

But EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini reminded Netanyahu of the EU's stance.

"We believe that the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both."

The presidents of Turkey and France, Tayyip Erdogan and Emmanuel Macron, also called on the US to change its mind and thus restore calm to the region.

Erdogan was the more vocal of the two by far, labeling Israel an "invader" and "terror" state, although he found a ready response from his opposite number in Israel.

Netanyahu hit back, saying: "I'm not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villages in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, helps Iran go around international sanctions and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people."

Macron was more diplomatic, but also received an angry retort.

"I asked Prime Minister Netanyahu to make some courageous gestures towards the Palestinians to get out of the current impasse," said the French president.

"I hear (from Europe) voices of condemnation over President Trumps historic announcement, but I have not heard any condemnation for the rocket firing against Israel that has come (after the announcement) and the awful incitement against us," Netanyahu said.

Trumps statement from the week before had triggered violent protests across the occupied territories and in Lebanon at the weekend. Palestinians were outraged by the announcement with leading figures from their government also calling for international support against the backdrop of an emergency meeting of the Arab League.

Thus, Arab leaders called on the world to recognize the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.

On a related note, Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas was expected to reject an invitation to meet Donald Trump and was being urged by his people not to meet US Vice-president Mike Pence during his visit to Israel and Palestine in a few weeks' time.
A tax on meat is being considered to reduce the negative impact that its consumption has on climate change, water pollution, deforestation and diseases like obesity, cancer or diabetes.

The increase in meat consumption is causing a negative impact on the climate and its also posing some important health risks.

That is why some countries are considering implementing a 'sin tax' similar to the ones applied on tobacco and sugar.

According to a private report for investors managing over $4trn, it is becoming "increasingly probable" that a levy will be placed on meat.

A study carried out by Farm Animal Investment Risk and Return (Fairr) found that meat consumption had risen by over 500% between 1992 and 2016 and showed no signs of stopping.

That was found to be impacting the climate predominantly in two ways, through the greenhouse gas emissions produced by the animals themselves and via increased soil degradation and deforestation.

It was also heightening the risks for human health, with various studies reporting an increased rate of obesity associated with meat consumption as well as type 2 diabetes and different types of cancer. It was also contributing to resistance against antibiotics.

In countries like Denmark, Sweden and Germany the issue was already being looked into.

In Denmark in 2016, the national Council of Ethics released a report recommending a tax on red meat so that the responsibility for fighting climate change didn't fall only on consumers. The Swedish government was also considering a similar idea to try and reduce the annual carbon footprint of their citizens (20% of it was linked to beef and dairy consumption).

Founder of Fairr, Jeremy Coller, argued that behavioural or sin taxes were increasingly common and we should acknowledge the damage that the meat industry causes to our health and to the environment. "Far-sighted investors should plan ahead for this day," he said.

"If policymakers are to cover the true cost of human epidemics like obesity, diabetes and cancer, and livestock epidemics like avian flu, while also tackling the twin challenges of climate change and antibiotic resistance, then a shift from subsidisation to taxation of the meat industry looks inevitable."

Senior Researcher on Environmental Sustainability and Public Health at the University of Oxford, Marco Springmann also weighed in on the debate, saying: "Current levels of meat consumption are not healthy or sustainable.

"The costs associated with each of those impacts could approach the trillions in the future."
Ireland has lashed out at the British government after Brexit secretary David Davis said the divorce agreement was a "statement of intent".

After an agreement was reached on the Irish border, setting the UK on the path for phase two of the divorce deal, regarding the question of trade, the Irish government werent pleased with Brexit minister David Davis saying that the deal was not something legally enforceable.

Theresa May, who believed "a new sense of optimism" had come into the process, was also on record to the same effect, having said that, "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed".

Irelands deputy prime minister, Simon Coveney, responded to Daviss remarks claiming that the deal will be "upheld in all circumstances, irrespective of the nature of any future agreement between the EU and the UK."

Irelands chief whip, Joe McHugh told RTE that its nonsensical to agree to a deal that will not be legally enforced.

"We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union. My question to anybody within the British government would be: why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they werent going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me. This, as far as were concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

The Labour party also weighed in on the subject, with Labour MP Keir Starmer saying: Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk. He also added: The agreement made last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the article 50 withdrawal agreement."

In an interview with the BBC, Davis was also clear that the divorce bill would not be paid unless a trade deal was reached.

Chancellor Philip Hammond on the other hand said it would be "inconceivable" that the UK would run away from its international responsibilities.

"That is not a credible scenario. That is not the kind of country we are. Frankly, it would not make us a credible partner for future international agreements."
The UK government should fast track legislation to ban pensions sales cold calling to stop scammers taking thousands of pounds from unsuspecting savers, a parliamentary committee demanded on Monday.

In a report, the all-party Work & Pensions select committee said the government's present timetable for regulation of the sector was not urgent enough.

The government relaxed pension rules in 2015, giving people the chance to access their pension pots early.

At least 43.9m has been lost to scams in the three years to May 2017, according to government figures, but the committee warned the actual figure could be much higher.

It said the combination of high financial value and low saver engagement has made pensions a scammer's "perfect storm.

The committee said scam investments were usually high risk, highly illiquid and unregulated. It heard of examples like schemes to invest in "diamonds, overseas property developments, store pods, forestry and film".

The Pensions Regulator said that the extent of scamming was 'considerably under-reported' and referred us to an estimate by Margaret Snowdon, the Chair of the Pensions Liberation Industry Group, the committee said.

She said she was reasonably confident that 1bn has gone to scams, more than 20 times the (government) figure. Indeed, she said it had been estimated that 10bn had been lost.

Committee chairman Frank Field said every day that passed without a ban meant people were being avoidably conned out of their life savings.

There is no need to overcomplicate this: our proposal would see an enforceable ban in place by summer, closing at least one door on rafts of scammers at a stroke, he said.

Low saver engagement and high financial value makes pensions rich pickings for scammers offering fantastical returns or seemingly clever advice. The strongest weapon in the armoury against this is good advice and guidance - people just arent taking it.

Yvonne Braun, Director of Policy, Long-term Savings and Protection, at the Association of British Insurers (ABI), said:

Peoples life-savings must not be left vulnerable to scammers and con artists. With mortgages already protected by a cold-calling ban it is high time pensions were given the same level of protection. Further measures to prevent fraudsters switching to spam emails and texts will also be important."

Savers need to be clear that any unsolicited contact about their pension is not to be trusted  they should instead seek quality guidance from PensionWise and The Pensions Advisory Service, and advice from regulated financial advisers.
Sonia Gandhi (C) along with son and Congress president Rahul Gandhi. Photo: Reuters

By India Today Web Desk: 'Congress' darling', as former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh fondly referred to Rahul Gandhi a week back has been officially declared the party president.

"Rahul Gandhi has been elected president of the Indian National Congress," said M Ramachandran, senior Congress leader, loud and clear addressing the press today.

The party head Sonia Gandhi who van-guarded the party for 19 years will relinquish her position as the chief and pass on the reins to the 47-year-old heir apparent ceremoniously on December 16.

Celebration outside Congress office in #Delhi after official announcement of Rahul Gandhi as the Party President. pic.twitter.com/xRsfHp25xH- ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

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Sonia Gandhi will hand over the mantle of the 132-year-old party to her son around 11 AM after which Rahul Gandhi will meet leaders from across the country at the Congress headquarters, party sources say.

Rahul Gandhi will now become the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to take charge of the Grand Old Party of India.

However, Rahul inherits the Congress mantle at a time when the party is plumbing the depths of political fortunes. It has a miserable 44 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha, its vote share having plummeted to a historic 19.5 per cent low in 2014.

In the past three years, the Congress has faced defeat or failed to make any impact in 15 Assembly elections, and in the process lost several of its strongholds such as Maharashtra, Haryana, Assam and Kerala.

Currently, it is in power in just eight of India's 29 states, retaining a mere 766 seats in the 4,120 Assembly constituencies across the country.

SONIA TO GUIDE THE DESTINY OF PARTY

The outgoing Congress president Sonia Gandhi will continue to play an effective role and guide the destiny of the party, senior party leader M Veerappa Moily has said.

The former Union minister lauded Gandhi's leadership and referred to the "manner in which she brought together coalition arrangement" in 2004 and to a certain extent in 2009 while forming the UPA governments.

"It was her greatest role of putting people together," Moily added.

Watch video: 'Rahul raj' in Congress: Gandhi scion elected president of Grand Old Party

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Rahul Gandhi has won the election to Congress president's post uncontested but decades ago, a Gandhi had lost the electoral battle for the same post even though he did not run for it.

By Prabhash K Dutta: It is official now. Rahul Gandhi has been declared the next Congress president. The Congress today announced that Rahul Gandhi won the election to Congress president's post uncontested.

No other candidate filed nomination to challenge Rahul Gandhi, paving way for smooth transition in the party leadership. But not all the leadership transition has been smooth in the Congress and not all the Gandhis have won the contest either.

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One such occurrence was the Congress president's election in 1939, when the top leadership of the party was divided to the core. Subhas Chandra Bose had declared his intention to contest for the second time in a row for the post of Congress president.

Mahatma Gandhi was utterly unhappy with the working style of Subhash Chandra Bose and detested the idea of him becoming the Congress president again. Mahatma Gandhi made it known that he was against Subhas Chandra Bose heading the Congress party any longer.

But, once Subhas Chandra Bose's name came up, many senior leaders including Jawahar Lal Nehru refused to enter the fray. Bose and Nehru were said to be in close company for few years by then. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, too, withdrew his nomination.

Mahatma Gandhi was becoming increasing uncomfortable with the way things were panning out ahead of the Congress president's election. Finally, he convinced Andhra Pradesh's Dr Pattabhi Sitaramayya to challenge the candidature of Subhas Chandra Bose.

As the two sides started meeting the eligible voters in the Congress party, Mahatma Gandhi said that a win for Subhas Chandra Bose would be his personal defeat. It would not merely be a defeat of Pattabhi Sitaramayya, Mahatma Gandhi said.

Votes were cast and Subhas Chandra Bose won the Congress president's election. Bose secured 1580 votes compared to 1377 polled by Sitaramayya. Mahatma Gandhi reiterated that it was his defeat in the Congress president's election even though he was not in the contest.

Soon things went out of control for Subhas Chandra Bose as 12 of 14 members of the Congress Working Committee resigned. Frustrated with new developments, Subhas Chandra Bose quit the Congress and formed the Forward Bloc.

ALSO READ | Rahul Gandhi elected president of Indian National Congress unopposed

Rahul Gandhi an 'unconstitutional Crown Prince': Shehzad Poonawalla vows to be thorn in side for new Congress president

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Smart luggage is revolutionising the way we travel. Brands like Raden, Bluesmart, and Instagram-favourite Away have re-imagined the suitcase for the modern traveller, equipping their high-tech bags with built-in chargers, scales, proximity sensors, and GPS location tracking for smoother, more seamless transit.

But the airport cool kids may soon be forced to leave their brainy bags at home. Several major US airlines have announced that certain kinds of smart luggage will no longer be welcome aboard their cargo holds.

Starting January 15, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and Alaska Airlines will prohibit luggage with non-removable lithium-ion batteries over concerns they could spark fires. Similar policy updates are expected to be imminent from United and Southwest Airlines.

You may recall the exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7 crisis of 2016, when the US Federal Aviation Administration deemed the devices hazardous and banned passengers from carrying them on their person, in carry-on baggage, in checked baggage, or as cargo. The FAA reports that lithium-ion battery fires occur about once every 10 days, and though it has yet to happen from smart bag batteries, airlines are taking a better-safe-than-sorry approach.

Passengers traveling with smart luggage will be asked to remove their lithium-ion batteries before flying (in same cases only in checked baggage, in other cases in both checked and cabin baggage). Manufacturers have been quick to share their thoughts on the move.

Away CEO Steph Korey provided a more sanguine statement. All Away Carry-Ons have batteries that can be easily removed. Its a feature we thoughtfully designed, in part, because customers were asking for a charger that could be kept with them and used during flight, he said.

Bluesmart CEO Tomi Pierucci did not mince words in a note to TechCrunch . The latest changes are an absolute travesty and is a huge step back not only for travel technology but it also presents an obstacle to streamlining and improving the way we all travel, he said. If they are going to ban smart bags, then they should be banning cameras, laptops, and phones being checked in or carried on. All of these have at some point caused issues with exploding batteries and yet it is smart bags and Bluesmart that is getting punished for this.

If you plan to gift smart luggage this holiday season, be sure to choose a brand with a removable battery pack and try not to be disappointed when its rendered stupid in-flight.

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By PTI: By Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Dec 11 (PTI) An anti-corruption court here today declared embattled Finance Minister Ishaq Dar an "absconder" after he repeatedly failed to appear before it in a graft case linking to the Panama Papers scandal.

The court also ordered Dar, currently seeking medical treatment in London, to submit surety bonds within three days and warned that if he fails to do so, then authorities would freeze his assets.

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Dar, 67, was indicted in October in a graft case in which he is accused of making assets that were "disproportionate to his known sources of income".

The case was filed against him by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the light of the Supreme Court order of July 28 that disqualified Nawaz Sharif as prime minister in the Panama Papers scandal.

The NAB had registered three cases of corruption and money laundering against Sharif, his family members and one against Finance Minister Dar in the Islamabad Accountability Court, weeks after the Supreme Court order ousted the premier.

In its case against Dar, the NAB has alleged that the accused has acquired assets and pecuniary interests/resources in his own name and/or in the name of his dependants of an approximate amount of Rs 831.678 million.

Dar is in London since October and has been seeking treatment of an undefined heart complication at a Harley Street hospital.

The former ministers counsel submitted Dars new medical reports in the court and pleaded not to declare his client a proclaimed absconder.

NAB special prosecutor Imran Shafique opposed the plea saying that the reports presented before the court differ from each other.

Judge Mohammad Bashir, who had reserved the order last week, refused to accept Dars new report and declared him as an "absconder".

The court then adjourned the hearing till December 14.

Dar was relieved of his duties last month after he requested leave for three months. PTI SH SMJ SMJ

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At least 145 million Americans  half the population of the United States  were impacted by the recent data breach at Equifax that netted thieves personal information such as names, addresses, birthdates, Social Security Numbers and drivers license numbers.

That pales in comparison to the earlier Yahoo breaches, which affected more than 1 billion accounts.

However, those incidents may be just the tip of a very large iceberg, as reports of data breaches just keep on coming.

Data Breach Disillusionment

Consumer confidence is at an all-time low, said Paige Schaffer, COO of the identity and digital protection services global unit atGenerali Global Assistance.

We did a survey with ORC International that found 40 percent of consumers believe businesses arent doing all they can to protect their personal information, she told the E-Commerce Times. Further, three in four holiday shoppers say theyre either very concerned or somewhat concerned about their financial or personal information being compromised due to a data breach this season.

Still, 75 percent of holiday shoppers say theyll be doing at least some of their shopping online, Schaffer pointed out.

Consumer spending will be up 3.4 percent year over year this holiday season, to total almost US$680 billion, according to the National Retail Foundation.

Companies that want to nail down their share of the bonanza must not only make sure their systems are secure, but also make sure that shoppers know theyre in good hands.

Here are some ways e-commerce firms can reassure skittish customers and potential customers.

1. Have a Good Cybersecurity Solution

Have multifactor authentication for any user accessing information and anyone in the company handling anything related to money to make life hard for hackers, advised Ebba Blitz, CEO of Alertsec.

Ensure data storage is on a secure server like Amazon Web Services, or if the data is stored in-house, encrypt all entry points and include a personal firewall, she told the E-Commerce Times.

2. Make Security a Core Policy

Demonstrating a serious attitude about security at the policy level is crucial, remarked Jim Hartling, chief architect at Softvision.

Companies must have processes with security at their center, he told the E-Commerce Times. They must adhere to compliance standards including PCI, and establish policies for code revision and penetration testing.

Further, they must pay ongoing attention to exploits in the wild, Hartling said.

E-commerce companies should promote customer data protection like other companies promote their sustainability policies, said Generalis Schaffer.

Make it a part of your companys culture and reflect it outwardly in all aspects of what you do, she advised.

3. Use SSL Security

Companies should use SSL bank-level security by default on all certificates, and invest in Green Bar SSL certifications, advised Christopher Walton, VP of guilds at Softvision.

This is the highest level of SSL, and your customers will be assured that their transactions are secure, he told the E-Commerce Times.

Dont just buy the cheapest SSL certificates, Walton warned. Choose a well-known and trusted vendor instead.

4. Dont Stint on Site Hosting

Even if budgets are tight, invest in a separate e-commerce server.

Dont host your e-commerce site on a computer under your desk, Softvisions Walton said. Ive actually seen this before.

Use a trusted secure hosting provider that delivers solid physical or virtual servers and has the ability to scale up as business grows, he suggested. The last thing you want is for your servers to go down because you have too many orders.

5. Blow Your Own Security Horn

Make sure you display your security certification logos on your website, Schaffer advised. These seals assure customers who are inputting their credit card data that your sites secure.

It might be worthwhile to create a campaign focusing on demonstrating your organizations data security policies, she suggested.

Think about creating a simple Why shopping with us is safe page in plain English, Softvisions Walton said. Provide visibility to all your trust marks and verbiage that explains what youre doing to deliver a safe shopping environment.
The rumor that Amazon has set its sights on disrupting the pharmaceutical industry has gained greater currency recently, just months after the company set the grocery business on fire with its acquisition of Whole Foods, and in the midst of its widely publicized search for a second U.S. headquarters location.

Amazon reportedly has taken major steps toward becoming a drug distributor and seller  actions that have caused concern among potential competitors and may have figured heavily in CVS negotiations to buy health insurance firm Aetna for US$66 billion.

Amazon has obtained licenses to sell drugs as a wholesaler in 12 states, including Nevada, Arizona, Alabama, North Dakota and Louisiana, according to a report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The E-Commerce Times was able to obtain documents showing that Amazon has licenses to sell wholesale drugs in New Jersey and Connecticut, two other states on the papers list.

If Amazon wanted to get into the business of shipping pharmaceuticals directly to consumers, it also would have to obtain pharmacy licenses, the report notes.

The newly obtained licenses are related to the companys growing healthcare supply business, which is part of a growing B2B segment at Amazon, said spokesperson Lori Torgerson.

As part of that business, Amazon sells professional medical supplies to doctors, dentists and other medical professionals.

Wholesale licenses are required for Amazon Business to sell professional-use only products to healthcare companies, Torgerson told the E-Commerce Times.

B2B Boom

Amazon this summer announced that its Amazon Business segment, which launched in 2015, had reached more than one million customers. The procurement business had grown to reach more than 85,000 business sellers, providing professional supplies to a range of healthcare and other business customers.

Amazon has licenses to sell to various healthcare providers, including hospitals, doctors, dentists and healthcare clinics, in most states.

The news that CVS Health was in talks to buy Aetna, the nations No. 3 health insurance firm, surfaced last week in a Wall Street Journal report. The rumored $66 billion deal values the Aetna stock at $200 a share. CVS is not only one of the largest retail pharmacy chains, but also one of the largest pharmacy benefit managers in the U.S.

The negotiations, which have been ongoing for months, directly involved the top executives at both firms  CVS CEO Larry Merlo and Aetna CEO Mark Bertonlini  according to multiple reports.

A major reason cited for the talks was rampant speculation that Amazon has been making moves to enter the prescription drug business, following its blockbuster $13.7 billion acquisition of Whole Foods, a move that shook the U.S. grocery industry to its foundations.

CVS officials did not respond to our request to comment for this story.

We dont comment on rumors or speculation, Aetna spokesperson T.J. Crawford told the E-Commerce Times.

Ripe for Disruption

Amazon may be poised to disrupt the retail pharmacy business because it is a highly competitive market where the majority of profits are taken not on the drugs themselves, but on the household products, supplements, groceries and other purchases that customers make while browsing the aisles.

With Amazons focus on customer convenience and reorders/auto-orders, this is a logical next step for the company, said Cindy Zhou, principal analyst at Constellation Research.

Bulk orders for regular prescriptions have been offered by the insurance carriers for decades, but Amazon can deliver it to the end customer conveniently, she told the E-Commerce Times.

Reordering prescription drugs easily could be accomplished using voice-operated Alexa commands or Amazon Dash buttons, Zhou suggested.

I think the logical reason Amazon would want in is that when consumers go to drug stores they have to walk all the way to the back to pick up their prescriptions, said Paula Rosenblum, managing partner at RSR Research.

Thats how the chain stores get real profit. They have much bigger margins on the products they pick up on the way back there or on the way out, she told the E-Commerce Times. So I suppose its another way for them to increase their share of the wallet.
A popular technique used by website operators to observe the keystrokes, mouse movements and scrolling behavior of visitors on Web pages is fraught with risk, according to researchers at Princetons Center for Information Technology Policy.

The technique offered by a number of service providers uses scripts to capture the activity of a visitor on a Web page, store it on the providers servers, and play it back on demand for a websites operators.

The idea behind the practice is to give operators insights into how users are interacting with their websites and to identify broken and confusing pages.

You use session replay scripts to find out where all the dead zones are on your website, said Tod Beardsley, director of research at Rapid 7.

If you have a space for a click here for 10 percent off and no one clicks there, there may be a problem with that page, he told TechNewsWorld.

The scripts also can be used for support and to troubleshoot user problems, Beardsley added.

Peeping Scripts

However, the extent of data collected by the scripts far exceeds user expectations, according to researchers Steven Englehardt, Gunes Acar and Arvind Narayanan.

Text typed into forms is collected before a user submits the form, and precise mouse movements are saved  all without any visual indication to the user, they noted in an online post.

Whats more, the data cant be reasonably expected to be kept anonymous.

In fact, some companies allow publishers to explicitly link recordings to a users real identity, wrote the team. Unlike typical analytics services that provide aggregate statistics, these scripts are intended for the recording and playback of individual browsing sessions, as if someone is looking over your shoulder.

That means that whether a visitor completes a form and submits it to the website or not, any information keyed in at the website can be seen by the operator.

Even if you deleted the data you entered into a form, it would be exposed and visible to the website owner, said Abine CTO Andrew Sudbury.

Youre being recorded when you think you arent, so you might reveal things you wouldnt reveal if you knew you were being recorded, he told TechNewsWorld.

Flubbing Scrubbing

The researchers studied seven session replay script service providers for 482 of the top 50,000 sites listed on Alexa. The services were Yandex, FullStory, Hotjar, UserReplay, Smartlook, Clicktale and SessionCam.

The services offer a number of ways for website publishers to exclude sensitive information from the replay sessions, the researchers found, but those options were labor-intensive, which discouraged their use.

For leaks to be avoided, publishers would need to diligently check and scrub all pages that display or accept user information, they explained.

For dynamically generated sites, the process would involve inspecting the underlying Web applications server-side code, wrote Englehardt, Acar and Narayanan.

Further, the process would need to be repeated every time a site was updated or the Web application powering it changed.

The scripts just gather everything, so someone would have to go in and spend time and energy telling the service provider what not to gather on any particular Web page, Sudbury said. Generally, the publishers dont do that.

Leaking Passwords

To identify some of the risks replay scripts posed to site visitors, the researchers set up test pages and used scripts from six of the seven companies in the study. One of the companies, Clicktale, was excluded for practical considerations.

Password leakage is one risk the replay services can pose. All the services take pains to redact passwords from their replays, the researchers explained, but those policies can break down on pages with mobile-friendly login boxes that use text inputs to store unmasked passwords.

The services redacted sensitive information in a partial and imperfect way, the researchers also found. In addition to automated blocking of information in the replay sessions, the services let publishers manually specify fields for exclusion.

To effectively deploy these mitigations, a publisher will need to actively audit every input element to determine if it contains personal data, the team wrote. This is complicated, error prone and costly, especially as a site or the underlying web application code changes over time. 

Vulnerable Transmissions

User input isnt the only way privacy can be violated. Information on rendered pages also is captured by the replay services.

Unlike user input recording, none of the companies appear to provide automated redaction of displayed content by default; all displayed content in our tests ended up leaking, the researchers wrote.

Because it forces publishers to address that issue manually, the process is fundamentally insecure, they maintained.

There are also potential risks in the transmission of data between the service provider and the publisher.

Once a session recording is complete, publishers can review it using a dashboard provided by the recording service, the researchers explained.

Some services deliver playbacks in an HTTP page, even if the original page was protected by HTTPS, they continued. That makes the playback page vulnerable to a man-in-middle attack that could suck all the data from the page and into a hackers hands.

Whats more, some services dont use HTTPS to communicate with their clients, which exposes the transmissions to passive network surveillance.

Strict Requirements

At least one session replay provider said it took a number of precautions to protect its clients information.

All of Clicktales policies and practices meet ISO 27001, aligning with the strict requirements of our global customers, said Leor Hurwitz, general counsel at Clicktale.

ISO 27001 is a security standard for information security management systems that mandates requirements for implementing, monitoring, maintaining and continually improving those systems.

By default, Clicktale is set up to not capture keystrokes or any common sensitive data fields contained within a Web page, Hurwitz told TechNewsWorld.

In addition to establishing default blocks, the company works closely with its customers to ensure that when it implements a session replay system, any sensitive information contained within a Web page is not included in the capture process, he explained.

Those measures allow its clients to improve customer experiences without the need to capture sensitive information that is not directly related to the shopping experience, Hurwitz added.

Blocking the Scripts

Consumers concerned about replay scripts can obtain software to block them.

The javascript that performs this action is loaded by your browser when you visit a website. That can be blocked by a tracker blocker, Abines Sudbury said.

The Web provides all sorts of amazing technical capabilities that are designed to let users have rich experiences at websites, he observed, but whats frustrating is that the advertising, profiling and tracking industries have discovered very quickly clever ways to track people against their will.

Replay scripts have become an emerging topic among privacy advocates, noted David Picket, a security analyst at AppRiver.

The current discussion will raise user awareness, he told TechNewsWorld. That typically results in greater demand for oversight, and technologies to combat this problem will most likely be built into existing solutions or emerge to prevent it.
By Joe Sandler Clarke, Unearthed

BPs plans to drill for oil near a huge coral reef in the mouth of Amazon river have been dealt a further blow after a regulator questioned the companys environmental risk assessment.

Ibama, Brazils federal environmental agency, rejected an environmental study from the British oil giant, further delaying the companys plans to drill in the region.

In a technical note [in Portuguese], the agency criticized the study for a lack of detail on oil spill modeling and the impact drilling could have on local wildlife, and said it required more information before allowing the company to proceed with plans to drill in the region.

The news comes just a few weeks after Unearthed revealed that the British oil giant discussed concerns over environmental licensing in Brazil with a UK government minister.

Department of International Trade (DIT) minister Greg Hands then personally lobbied Brazils deputy mines and energy minister Paulo Pedrosa on the issue.

When asked to comment on that story, a spokesperson for DIT said, it is absolutely not true that our ministers lobbied to loosen environmental restrictions in Brazilthe meeting was about improving the environmental licensing process, ensuring a level playing field for both domestic and foreign companies, and in particular helping to speed up the licensing process and make it more transparent, which in turn will protect environmental standards.

Amazon reef

Geologists believe there could be as much as 14 billion barrels of oil in the region, known as the Foz do Amazonas basin.

But a massive coral reef has thrown plans to drill in the area into doubt.

Scientists had long suspected there might be a reef in the region, but its size and depth was not confirmed until five years ago, just as the Brazilian government was putting out drilling licenses to tender.

BP, along with French company Total and Brazils Petrobras, snapped up five exploration blocks in the mouth of the Amazon in 2013.

In order to drill for oil in the region, companies have to submit environmental impact assessments (EIA) to Ibama.

Ibama said the methodology in BPs EIA for the FZA-M-59 block was very limited and the regulator needed more information about what the impact of a oil spill might be in the region. BP holds a 70 percent stake in the block, with the remaining 30 percent owned by Petrobras.

Contacted by Unearthed, BP said that requests for clarifications from the regulator may occur several times before a permit is issued.

As part of the licensing process for drilling a well on the FZA-M-59 block, BP has received the first technical opinion requesting clarifications to the environmental impact study that was presented.

Under Brazilian legislation and the licensing process managed by IBAMA, requests for clarifications related to the environmental study typically can and do occur several times before the issuance of an environmental permit.

30 percent chance of a spill hitting the reef

Previous assessments filed by the oil majors have caused controversy.

Earlier this year, Unearthed reported that documents filed by Total and BP to Ibama showed that there was a 30 percent chance that a prospective spill from the companys shared blocks could reach the reef.

At the time, a BP spokesperson told us, Operations on the blocks will only proceed when fully permitted by the Brazilian regulators.

Just a few weeks later, Unearthed found a document showing that BP intended to use a chemical known as Corexit in the event of an oil spill in the region.

The chemical dispersant was used extensively during the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010 and three years later, scientists found that the chemical had a negative impact on coral larvae in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP still intends to drill in the region in 2018.

British government lobbying

The news comes as BP finds itself embroiled in a political controversy in Brazil.

We previously reported that a diplomatic telegram from the British government, obtained by Unearthed, showed that, at a private breakfast in Rio de Janeiro, BPtogether with Shell and Premier Oilrelayed their concerns around taxation and environmental licensing to Greg Hands, who then raised them directly with Brazilian official Pedrosa.

Now a group of politicians in Brazil are asking prosecutors to investigate whether there may have been any breach of Brazilian law in the award of offshore oil blocks to international companies, including BP.

Reposted with permission from our media associate Unearthed.




Receding ice cover in the Arctic ocean could produce more droughts in California, according to a new study.

Published last week in Nature Communications, the study found that sea ice loss in the Arcticof the proportion expected in coming yearscould set off an atmospheric effect that will steer precipitation away from California. Notably, the study linked Arctic sea ice loss with the development of an atmospheric ridging system that also played a central role in the states 2012-2016 drought.

The recent California drought appears to be a good illustration of what the sea-ice driven precipitation decline could look like, said Ivana Cvijanovic of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the studys lead researcher, in a release.

Sea ice loss in the Arctic will push precipitation that historically headed to California and send it to Canada and Alaska. By altering convection patterns over the tropical Pacific, the loss of sea ice will drive the formation of an atmospheric ridge in the North Pacific.

In coming years, this could magnify the effect of the states recent lack of precipitation. On average, when considering the 20-year mean, we find a 10-15 percent decrease in Californias rainfall. However, some individual years could become much drier, and others wetter, Cvijanovic said.

Arctic sea ice loss is expected to increase over the next century, and even within the next few decades, the Arctic Ocean is projected to become ice-free during the summer.

A number of other studies have posited that Californias recent drought had an anthropogenic component related to rising temperatures and that such occurrences are expected to increase in the future.

Our study identifies one more pathway by which human activities could affect the occurrence of future droughts over Californiathrough human-induced Arctic sea ice decline, Cvijanovic said. While more research should be done, we should be aware that an increasing number of studies, including this one, suggest that the loss of Arctic sea ice cover is not only a problem for remote Arctic communities, but could affect millions of people worldwide. Arctic sea ice loss could affect us, right here in California.
Environmentalists cheered after a Miami district court judge issued an

emergency injunction on Friday to stop bulldozers from razing a stretch of

endangered pine rocklandsone of the worlds rarest forests, and home to species found nowhere else on Earthto make way for a Walmart shopping center near Zoo Miami and Everglades National Park.

Judge Ursula Ungaros decision was made

only hours after the Center for Biological Diversity, Tropical Audubon Society, Miami Pine Rocklands Coalition and South Florida Wildlands Association sued the Trump administration for approving the proposed Coral Reef Commons.

Plaintiffs will suffer immediate and irreparable injury arising from the destruction of the pine rocklands, and the loss of threatened and endangered species that depend on such habitat for their survival absent issuance of this [temporary restraining order], Ungaros ruling stated, adding that the public interest favors the entry of such an order.

The proposed development, which was approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

just last week, would make way for a sprawl of big box stores, chain restaurants and 900 apartment units. Construction started a day after the departments green light and ceased Friday after the judges order.

The

Associated Press reported:

In approving the conservation plan, wildlife managers said the menagerie of plants and animals, some of which can be found only in pine rockland, have a better chance at surviving because the land had become overgrown and choked by invasive plants after the University of Miami, which was given the land by the U.S. government, failed to maintain it before selling it to [Developer Peter Cummings] for $22 million.

In their lawsuit filed Friday morning, environmentalists said the plan failed in a number of ways, starting with surveys of the disappearing species the plan is intended to protect.

The Fish and Wildlife Service also allowed Cummings environmental consultants to develop their own formula for calculating the amount of damage that might occur. The untested method, the lawsuit said, had not been peer-reviewed and could set a precedent for use on other projects. About 3,000 people submitted comments on the plan, most opposing it.

The environmental groups also warned that the project threatens 20 endangered plants and animals, including the eastern indigo snake, gopher tortoise, Florida brickell-bush and two butterflies, the Bartrams scrub-hairstreak and Florida leafwing.

This mega-development will wipe out some of South Floridas last ecological gems and diminish quality of life for nearby residents by worsening traffic and sprawl, said Jaclyn Lopez, Florida director of the Center for Biological Diversity. Losing the Florida bonneted bat, the rare Florida leafwing butterfly or the incredibly striking Miami tiger beetle is a tragedy that cant be undone.

In a

Medium post, Miami-based columnist and radio broadcaster Grant Stern described how the construction workers stopped digging the site soon after Miami Pine Rocklands Coalition President Al Sunshine hand-delivered to them a copy of the judges order.

Residents have watched in horror and documented the carnage for the last two days [as] bulldozers flattened trees in the developer Ram Realtys rush to rip apart the pine rocklands, Stern wrote.

#Miami @Pine_Rocklands Coalition and @CenterForBioDiv won a major court victory today halting an illegally approved Walmart project in the city's most endangered forest. A federal judge granted their Temporary Restraining Order against @USFWS.https://t.co/QzSp3zDy5G  Grant Stern is vaxxed (@grantstern) December 8, 2017

Floridas pine rocklands

once spanned 185,000 acres of Miami-Dade County, but now, not much of the woodland remains due to rampant development.

Outside of Everglades National Park, pine rocklands habitat in our region is down to only one percent of its former extentbut what little remains still provides habitat for many species now federally listed as endangered or threatened with extinction, said Matthew Schwartz, executive director of South Florida Wildlands Association. This project and its impact on extremely rare habitat require far more evaluation than they have received so far from the Service.

Lopez said the environmental groups are elated by the judges decision.

The judges order has given these plants and animals and the residents of this community an opportunity for their day in court, an opportunity to have justice upheld, and a fighting chance at survival, she told the AP.

The developers plan to fight the judges decision. A hearing is set for Dec. 20.

[facebook https://www.facebook.com/southfloridawild/photos/a.241643719197081.75993.240425642652222/1866632393364864/?type=3&permPage=1 expand=1]
Looks like

Monsanto really wants farmers to use XtendiMax. The agribusiness giant is offering a cash incentive to farmers to apply a controversial pesticide linked to 3.1 million acres of crop damage in nearly two dozen heartland states, according to Reuters.

The cash-back offer comes as several states are considering restrictions on the use of the drift-prone and highly volatile chemical. DuPont Co. and BASF SE also sell

dicamba-based formulations.

Monsanto could refund farmers about 50 percent of the price of its product, XtendiMax With VaporGrip Technology, in 2018 if they spray the product on the seed companys Xtend soybeans that are genetically engineered to tolerate dicamba.

Reuters reported:

XtendiMax costs about $11 per acre to buy, and Monsanto is offering $6 per acre in cash back to farmers when they apply it on Xtend soybeans along with other approved herbicides, according to the company.

We believe cash-back incentives for using XtendiMax with VaporGrip Technology better enable growers to use a management system that represents the next level of weed control, said Ryan Rubischko, Monsanto product manager.

The herbicide is designed to beat back weeds on dicamba-resistant soy and cotton fields but is highly damaging if it floats onto neighboring non-target crops. Plants exposed to the chemical are left wrinkled, cupped or stunted in growth.

But Monsanto has vehemently defended the safety of XtendiMax and has casted blame on farmers for improperly using the product.

In October, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reached an agreement with Monsanto, BASF and DuPont to set new requirements for over the top use of dicamba to help minimize drift damage for the 2018 growing season.

Meanwhile, regulators in North Dakota, Missouri and Arkansas are taking steps to set restrictions on dicamba-based herbicides.

In Arkansas, where dicamba damage has been especially bad, state lawmakers are considering a ban on the use of the weedkiller next summer.

Monsanto sued the states agricultural officials to stop the proposed ban.

Monsanto is presently losing sales every day the ban on in-crop use of dicamba herbicides remains in effect, the company said in its filing (via

Associated Press). The losses cannot be recovered in an action against the state.
By Jason Daley

Poison dart frogs are some of the most brilliantly colored and beautiful animals on Earth. About one-third of the 300 species of the tiny frogs in the superfamily Dendrobatoidae are poisonous, including the golden poison frog, which may be the most toxic animal in the world.

While venomous animals, like snakes, sequester their venom in glands or pouches, the frogs poison is found in tissues throughout their bodies. Researchers have wrestled with that fact for a while: Why dont poison dart frogs poison themselves?

Researchers at the University of Texas, Austin, recently tackled that question, finding that a slight genetic tweak gives some species immunity from their own toxins. While its an interesting insight, the research on chemical receptors could help scientists figure out new ways to treat chemical addiction in humans as well.

To investigate, postdoctoral researcher Rebecca Tarvin, lead author of the paper in the journal Science, and her team collected genetic material from 28 poison frog species, including some that were highly toxic and some that produced no toxins at all. They then sequenced a gene known to produce a certain receptor in the frogs. Using that data, they were able to produce an evolutionary family tree, showing that tiny changes in that genejust 3 amino acids out of 2,500gave poisonous frogs immunity from their own toxins.

Even more incredible, that immunity evolved independently among these frogs three separate times. Being toxic can be good for your survivalit gives you an edge over predators, Tarvin said in a statement. So why arent more animals toxic? Our work is showing that a big constraint is whether organisms can evolve resistance to their own toxins. We found evolution has hit upon this same exact change in three different groups of frogs, and that, to me, is quite beautiful.

The mutation basically prevents the frogs receptor from recognizing its own toxin, an alkaloid called epibatidine. Receptors are specific proteins on the outside of cells that help them communicate with the rest of the body. The receptor acts like a lock. When the lock encounters a molecule that acts as a key, the receptor is stimulated, causing a response in the cells. For instance, the release of epinephrine stimulates certain receptors, causing a reaction that produces adrenaline when a person is startled.

In the case of poison frogs that get snacked on by a predator, their body releases epibatidine, which acts like a skeleton key that stimulates receptors throughout a predators nervous system, causing all sorts of reactions, including hypertension, seizures and if the reaction is strong enough, death. But the mutation in the frogs means the epibatidine cant unlock its own receptors, making it inert.

Tarvin also worked with co-author Cecilia Borghese at the Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research across the street from her lab. Borghese researches the way that drugs and chemicals stimulate receptors in the human body. The receptor that epibatidine affects in frogs, it turns out, also exists in humans; its the same receptor that nicotine works on, leading to addiction. Studying the ways the receptor in the frog has evolved to exclude the toxin could lead to new ways to help people quit smoking. It gives us more insight on how these drugs are interacting with the receptors. Its a very clear example how sophisticated the interactions are, said Waggoner. Its not easy to model these interactions in a computer. So everything we learn about what modifies these drug interactions gives us information on how to design better drugs.

This is the second frog toxin that Tarvin and her team have unraveled. In 2016, they found mutations that protect certain frog species from another toxin, batrachotoxin. But theres still a lot of work to do. Tarvin said the frogs contain at least 500 different toxins, many of which have not been extensively studied, and may lead to new drugs and treatments. That is, if they have the time to study them before time runs out.

Poison frogs, like all frogs, are under threat of extinction, she said. These are solutions that evolution has come upon over millions of years. Theres a lot of knowledge to share and its important that we conserve natural wild populations of animals because we dont know what theyll be able to tell us. None of these studies of wild animals are possible unless we preserve our biodiversity.

Reposted with permission from our media associate SIERRA Magazine.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) A Delhi court has allowed further custody of an alleged Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist, arrested recently along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, to the National Investigation Agency till December 18.

The accused, identified as Mohammed Amir Awan, was arrested by the Army on November 24 from Handwara area of North Kashmir during an intensive search launched after an encounter in the area on November 21 that had left three alleged Lashkar militants dead. One soldier was also killed during the encounter.

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District judge Poonam A Bamba allowed his further NIA custody after he was produced before the court on expiry of his earlier custody.

In its application, the probe agency told the court that the accused was needed for further custodial interrogation. The matter was transferred to the NIA which had registered a case on November 26 and took custody of the alleged terrorist.

During initial interrogation, he had identified himself as Mohammed Amir Awan whose code in the Lashkar terror group was Abu Haamaz, the NIA said.

The accused told his interrogators that he hailed from Bardiya town near the port city of Karachi and was recruited and trained by the terror group.

He was allegedly pushed into the Kashmir valley from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to carry out attacks on various important installations in the Valley, the agency said. PTI UK ARC

--- ENDS ---
Health Minister faces MEDS query

The number of people being treated by the Manx Emergency Doctors Service will be discussed in this month's sitting of Tynwald.

Speaker of the House of Keys Juan Watterson wants to know how many patients are referred to the service, and what method of referral is used.

Mr Watterson also wants to know what the capacity of MEDS is, and whether doctors help in A&E during its busiest periods.

MEDS is designed to be used as an out of hours GP service at evenings and weekends.

Health Minister Kate Beecroft will respond when Tynwald sits tomorrow.
BEER-SHEVA, Israel...December 11, 2017 - Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is safer than smoking and should be recommended to more pregnant patients who are not able to quit on their own, according to a new review study in the Medical Journal of Australia led by a Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researcher.

NRT is a medically approved way to ingest nicotine to help quit smoking. Types of NRT include the adhesive patch, chewing gum, lozenges, nose spray, or inhaler. Studies show that 12 to 20 percent of pregnant women smoke, putting themselves and their babies at risk, according to the American Pregnancy Association. While nicotine may not be completely safe for the pregnant mother and fetus, NRT is always safer than smoking.

"Smoking during pregnancy is the most significant, preventable risk factor for poor maternal and infant health outcomes," according to Dr. Yael Bar-Zeev, head of the BGU Center for Smoking Cessation and Prevention, a public health physician and tobacco treatment specialist, and a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Newcastle in Australia.

"Clinicians worldwide, including in the United States, report that they prescribe NRT at low levels due to lack of confidence and safety concerns. However, behavioral counselling combined with medication is the most effective smoking cessation strategy."

Twenty-five percent of general practitioners and obstetricians never prescribe NRT during pregnancy, according to a recent Australian study.

Predominant guidelines worldwide recommend NRT for pregnant women who have been unable to quit smoking without medication. However, prescription instructions such as "only if women are motivated", "only dispense a two weeks supply" or "under close supervision" send mixed messages.

Researchers note that while using NRT during pregnancy improves smoking cessation rates, they may not adequately account for higher nicotine metabolism during pregnancy, and therefore may not adequately treat withdrawal symptoms.

"The most important guidance for NRT in pregnancy is to use the lowest possible dose that is effective," says Dr. Bar-Zeev. "However, to be effective, women should use as much as needed to deal with cravings. Physicians should encourage using oral NRT regularly throughout the day to substitute for cigarettes. For example, a woman smoking 10 cigarettes a day should be instructed to use one piece of gum every 1.5 hours regularly, even if she is not experiencing a strong craving."

The authors suggest using the "strength of urges to smoke" and the "frequency of urges to smoke" as an indication to initiate or increase an NRT dose. Physicians should also encourage a pregnant woman to use oral NRT in anticipation of cravings. For example, if she is going to be in a situation where others are smoking, using oral NRT 20 minutes beforehand could help.

According to review sources, while NRT does contain nicotine, it does not have any of the other 7,000 chemicals found in cigarettes, 300 of which are known to be toxic and harmful, and 52 of which are known to cause cancer. Even women who do not quit smoking may improve their baby's health due to less exposure to chemicals.

Additionally, nicotine from NRT is absorbed at a slower rate than nicotine from a cigarette, which means the user receives less nicotine than while smoking. NRT also increases chances of quitting and remaining smoke-free by 40 percent.

The researchers recommend more education and training to improve clinician confidence and skills, and development of better referral pathways, including specialized smoking services, to help more pregnant women quit smoking.

###

Dr. Bar-Zeev has received fees for lectures in the past (2012-2015) from Novartis NCH, which distributes NRT in Israel.

About American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) plays a vital role in sustaining David Ben-Gurion's vision: creating a world-class institution of education and research in the Israeli desert, nurturing the Negev community and sharing the University's expertise locally and around the globe. As Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) looks ahead to turning 50 in 2020, AABGU imagines a future that goes beyond the walls of academia. It is a future where BGU invents a new world and inspires a vision for a stronger Israel and its next generation of leaders. Together with supporters, AABGU will help the University foster excellence in teaching, research and outreach to the communities of the Negev for the next 50 years and beyond. Visit vision.aabgu.org to learn more.

AABGU, which is headquartered in Manhattan, has nine regional offices throughout the United States. For more information, visit http://www.aabgu.org.
The following release and accompanying images can be found at: http://news.agu.org/press-release/agu-fall-meeting-mistletoe-is-kiss-of-death-to-drought-stressed-trees/

AGU Fall Meeting: Mistletoe is 'kiss of death' to drought-stressed trees

Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

New Orleans, Louisiana

11-15 December 2017

AGU Contacts:

Nanci Bompey

+1 (914) 552-5759

nbompey@agu.org

Lauren Lipuma

+1 (504) 427-6069

llipuma@agu.org

AGU Fall Meeting Press Room:

Morial Convention Center, Room 350-351

+1 (504) 670-5513

news@agu.org

Included in this announcement:

1. Research from the AGU Fall Meeting: Mistletoe is 'kiss of death' to drought-stressed trees

2. Today's press events

3. Additional press conference: The September 2017 Tehuantepec and Puebla earthquakes in Mexico

4. Noteworthy sessions happening today

5. Potentially newsworthy presentations

6. Online media resources

Please visit the 2017 Fall Meeting Media Center to view previous media advisories and press releases that include important information about press registration, badge pickup, press conferences, quiet rooms, searching the scientific program, and AGU On-Demand.

1. Research from the AGU Fall Meeting: Mistletoe is 'kiss of death' to drought-stressed trees

NEW ORLEANS -- Around the holidays, a sprig of mistletoe over a doorway is festive and romantic. But mistletoe has a sinister side: The parasitic plant can sometimes kill the very tree it depends on for food by robbing its host of water during dry spells, according to new research being presented here.

There are about 1,600 known species of mistletoe around the world, all of which sink their roots into trees and shrubs, and extract water, carbon and nutrients from them. Mistletoes are an important part of the ecosystems where they live, but can sometimes create problems for their hosts. Trees with too much mistletoe growing on them can become less healthy and even die when the weather is hot and dry for too long.

"It's not a bad thing to have as part of an ecosystem," said Anne Griebel, a plant researcher at Western Sydney University in Richmond, Australia, who will be presenting new findings about mistletoe on Monday, December 11 at the 2017 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans. "But if you have too much it can cause death to trees."

It's well-known that mistletoe can kill trees, but it's not been clear exactly how the parasite harms its host, said Griebel. She and her colleagues suspected that mistletoe lacks the ability to adjust and conserve water during dry, hot weather, causing its host tree to lose too much water.

To verify this, Griebel and her team equipped two species of Eucalyptus trees with instruments that measure how sap - and therefore water - flows in trees infested and not infested with mistletoe. They also compared the rates of sap flow between branches on the same trees - those branches with only mistletoe leaves and those without mistletoe.

As expected, during the hottest, driest weather, the Eucalyptus trees adjusted to the conditions by closing the small pores on their leaves, called stomata, to minimize transpiration and conserve water. This dramatically slows the sap flowing through the host branches, helping the tree to conserve water.

However, the researchers found that despite the hot weather, the rate of sap flow on mistletoe-infested branches did not slow down to conserve water. The mistletoe lacked the adaptation for hot, dry weather that the Eucalyptus trees had. The mistletoe just kept living the high-life, drawing water and nutrients from the Eucalyptus trees.

This led water to be lost from the mistletoe leaves at a much higher - and sometimes unsustainable - rate compared to the water loss from the Eucalyptus leaves. This higher rate of evaporation could eventually damage the trees' water transport system and cause the Eucalyptus trees to die, Griebel said.

It was as if the trees had sprung a leak, Griebel said.

"The Eucalyptus trees definitely have a very effective way of shutting down," she said. "Stem-to-stem you can see pretty clearly the difference between those with and without mistletoe."

Notes for Journalists

Lead researcher Anne Griebel will give an oral presentation about this research on Monday, 11 December at the 2017 AGU Fall Meeting.

Talk title:

Mistletoe infection alters the transpiration flow path and suppresses water regulation of host trees during extreme events

Session:

B11K: Understanding Plant and Ecosystem Function Across Scales Through the Lens of Plant Hydraulics I

Date: Monday, 11 December 2017

Time: 9:45 - 10:00 a.m. CST

Location: Morial Convention Center, Room 386-387

Abstract number: B11K-08

Contact information for the researcher: Anne Griebel, Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Richmond, NSW, Australia: griebel.anne@gmail.com, +61 468834149 (please email first)

Related paper: http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aa8fff

2. Today's press events

9:00 a.m. - Evolution of a new Pacific island may unlock secrets to Mars

10:30 a.m. - Assessing flood risk in the U.S. and the consequences of sea level rise

11:30 a.m. - Eclipse 2017: Studying the Sun-Earth connection and more from the Moon's shadow

1:45 p.m. - Dan Rather (Media Availability)

2:30 p.m. - The biggest story in the solar system: Science from NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter

4:00 p.m. - Climate change has unexpected consequences for animal populations

5:00 p.m. - American Geophysical Union leaders (Media Availability)

All Fall Meeting press events take place in the Press Conference Room, Room 346-347. They will also be streamed live on the AGU press events webpage and archived on AGU's YouTube channel. Slides and other materials will be available in the Virtual Press Room on the Fall Meeting Media Center.

3. Additional press conference: The September 2017 Tehuantepec and Puebla earthquakes in Mexico

The AGU Public Information Office has scheduled an additional press conference on the September 2017 Tehuantepec and Puebla earthquakes in Mexico. The press conference will take place at 12:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday Dec. 13 in the Press Conference Room, Room 346-347. Details for the newly added press conference are below and in the "Press Conferences" tab in the Fall Meeting Media Center.

The September 2017 Tehuantepec and Puebla earthquakes in Mexico

Wednesday, 13 December

12:30 p.m.

The September 8th and 19th, 2017, Tehuantepec and Puebla earthquakes were some of the largest and most damaging earthquakes ever recorded in Mexico. The Mw 8.1 earthquake (Sept. 8) affected several million people and was widely felt across central and southern Mexico, while the Mw 7.1 event (Sept. 19) produced strong ground motions in big cities in central Mexico leading to numerous building collapses and large numbers of casualties. This panel will discuss the recent events, including new information related to Mexico's early warning systems and linkages between the two earthquakes.

Participants:

Ross Stein, Temblor, Inc., Redwood City, California, U.S.A.;

Xyoli Perez-Campos, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico;

Juan Manuel Espinosa Aranda, CIRES Center of Instrumentation and Seismic Record and SASMEX Mexican Seismic Alert System, Mexico City, Mexico.

Sessions: S32D, S33G

4. Noteworthy sessions happening today

Presidential Forum Lecture

Veteran journalist Dan Rather will deliver the Presidential Forum Lecture from 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. in the New Orleans Theater, located on the second floor of the Morial Convention Center above Hall I-1. Registered journalists who are interested in attending this talk should meet an AGU staff member at the entrance to the lecture hall 30 minutes prior to the start of the talk. Journalists can also stream the lecture live on AGU On-Demand. A media availability will be held immediately following the lecture in the Press Conference Room, Room 346-347.

5. Potentially newsworthy presentations happening today

Sessions

* Creating Inclusive and Diverse Field and Lab Environments Within the Geosciences

Session U12A, 10:20 a.m. - 12:20 p.m., Room E2

* Induced Seismicity in the United States and Canada

Session S13D, 1:40 - 3:40 p.m., Room 217-219

Session S14A, 4:00 - 6:00 p.m., Room 217-219

Abstracts

* The Mysteries and Curiosities of Mars: A Tour of Unusual and Unexplained Terrains

Session P11A, 8:00 a.m. - 12:20 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* Follow the line: Mysterious bright streaks on Dione and Rhea

Session P11A, 8:00 a.m. - 12:20 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* Penguin Proxies: Deciphering Millennial-Scale Antarctic Ecosystem Change using Amino Acid Stable Isotope Analysis.

Session PP11B, 8:00 a.m. - 12:20 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* Is climate change intensifying the drying-trend in the Caribbean?

Session H11O, 9:00 - 9:15 a.m., Room 295-296

* Resiliency of the Nation's Power Grid: Assessing Risks of Premature Failure of Large Power Transformers Under Climate Warming and Increased Heat Waves

Session GC13C, 1:40 - 6:00 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* New insight on the Toba volcano super eruption (Sumatra Island, Indonesia) from BAR-9425 core.

Session V13C, 1:40 - 6:00 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* Examining Hurricane Track Length and Stage Duration Since 1980

Session A13H, 1:40 - 6:00 p.m., Poster Hall D-F

* Greenland's 20th Century retreat illuminated - great spatial variability with strong connections to subglacial topography and fjord bathymetry

Session C14A, 5:00 - 5:15 p.m., Room 271-273

6. Online media resources

For journalists: During the Fall Meeting, journalists can find many resources online in the Virtual Press Room in the Fall Meeting Media Center. These resources include press releases, press conference materials and other information. Videos of press conferences will be added to the Virtual Press Room during the meeting for easy online access.

The AGU press office also offers two online tools to connect reporters with scientific experts at the 2017 Fall Meeting. The Find an Expert tool allows reporters to view a list of scientific experts who are available for interviews at the meeting. The Request an Expert tool allows reporters to send requests for experts directly to PIOs. These tools are now available online in the Fall Meeting Media Center.

For public information officers: PIOs are now able to share press releases and other materials in the Virtual Press Room by directly uploading them via the Press Item Uploader. PIOs can upload press releases, tip sheets and press conference materials to the Virtual Press Room at any time before or during the meeting, including uploading items in advance and scheduling them to post during the meeting.

The AGU press office also offers two online tools to connect reporters with scientific experts at the 2017 Fall Meeting. The Find an Expert tool allows public information officers to list scientific experts who are available to be interviewed by reporters at the meeting. The Request an Expert tool allows reporters to send requests for experts directly to PIOs. PIOs who wish to receive expert request emails from reporters should fill out the Receive Expert Requests form. More information about these tools can be found in the Fall Meeting Media Center.

The American Geophysical Union is dedicated to advancing the Earth and space sciences for the benefit of humanity through its scholarly publications, conferences, and outreach programs. AGU is a not-for-profit, professional, scientific organization representing more than 60,000 members in 139 countries. Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and our other social media channels.

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NEW ORLEANS -- Researchers have identified an explosive new mechanism that breaks down meteors as they hurtle toward Earth.

New simulations of falling meteors suggest air particles penetrate the space rocks' porous interiors as they careen through the atmosphere. These air particles create pockets of high pressure that ultimately lead the rock to explode from the inside, tens of kilometers above the Earth.

By uncovering this new way in which Earth's atmosphere breaks up meteors, the new finding suggests the atmosphere may provide better protection against meteors than previously believed, according to Jay Melosh, a geophysicist at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

"There's more going on than what had been thought before," said Melosh, who will present the new research today at the 2017 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans. "Bottom line is that the atmosphere is a better screen against small impacts than we had thought."

Meteors are small asteroids and other extraterrestrial rocks that have entered Earth's atmosphere from space, reaching speeds up to 40 times faster than a bullet as they race toward the ground. NASA estimates 44,000 kilograms (48.5 tons) of meteoritic matter lands on Earth every day, roughly the same weight as seven African elephants.

The friction generated between a falling meteor and the surrounding air particles can heat up the rock to the point of disintegration, but the new research suggests the air particles can also break up the meteor from the inside.

The new research considers an often-overlooked feature of meteors: their porosity. Meteors are like piles of rubble, riddled with fractures and pores, but researchers had not previously considered how the percolation of air through the meteor could affect their breakup, according to Melosh.

Melosh and his colleagues uncovered the air percolation mechanism while simulating the 2013 Chelyabinsk event, where a 20-meter (60-foot) wide meteor exploded 29.7 kilometers (18.5 miles) above the Russian Ural Mountains. Their objective was to better understand how the meteor had disintegrated and evaporated in the atmosphere. Previous simulations for modeling meteor entry relied on computer codes commonly used to analyze how spacecraft return to the atmosphere, but these codes don't account for the porosity of the meteor.

Instead, the researchers used computer codes first developed by Los Alamos National Laboratory to model nuclear reactor explosions. For the new research, the models were used to account for meteoroids' loose conglomerate composition.

The simulations showed that the atmosphere buffets against the meteor's side facing Earth, forming a dense pocket of air in front of the rock. On the flip side, the meteor's wake creates a vacuum. The pressurized air bubble ahead of the meteor is strongly attracted to the low-pressure environment developing behind the meteor, causing air particles to rapidly flow through the rock's cracks and holes from the front to the back of the rock. The high-pressure air moving through the meteor forces the fragments apart, causing the meteor to disintegrate in the upper atmosphere.

The new findings were published today in Meteoritics & Planetary Science.

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The American Geophysical Union is dedicated to advancing the Earth and space sciences for the benefit of humanity through its scholarly publications, conferences, and outreach programs. AGU is a not-for-profit, professional, scientific organization representing more than 60,000 members in 139 countries. Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and our other social media channels.

Notes for Journalists

Lead researcher Jay Melosh will give a poster presentation about this research on Monday, 11 December at the 2017 AGU Fall Meeting.

Poster title:

Enhanced Breakup of Entering Meteoroids by Internal Air Percolation

Session:

NH13A: Asteroids: Surveys, Characterization, Impact Risk, and Mitigation II Posters

Date: Monday, 11 December 2017

Time: 1:40 - 6:00 p.m. CST

Location: Morial Convention Center, Poster Hall, Halls D-F

Abstract number: NH13A-0108

Contact information for the researcher:

Jay Melosh, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S.A.: jmelosh@purdue.edu, +1 (520) 243-9761.

Related paper:

Air Penetration Enhances Fragmentation of Entering Meteoroids

The following release and accompanying images can be found at: http://news.agu.org/press-release/agu-fall-meeting-new-simulations-suggest-meteors-explode-from-the-inside/

Please visit the 2017 Fall Meeting Media Center to view previous media advisories and press releases that include important information about press registration, badge pickup, press conferences, potentially newsworthy presentations, quiet rooms, online media resources, searching the scientific program and AGU On-Demand.

AGU Contacts:

Nanci Bompey914-552-5759

Lauren Lipuma

504-427-6069

llipuma@agu.org

AGU Fall Meeting Press Room:

Morial Convention Center, Room 350-351

504-670-5513

news@agu.org
Inferring the underlying ecological networks of microbial communities is important to understanding their structure and responses to external stimuli. But it can be very challenging to make accurate network inferences. In a paper published in Nature Communications, researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital detail a method to make the network inference easier by utilizing steady-state data without altering microbial communities.

"Existing methods require assuming a particular population dynamics model, which is not known beforehand," said Yang-Yu Liu, PhD, of the Channing Division of Network Medicine. "Moreover, those methods require fitting temporal abundance data, which are often not informative enough for reliable inference."

To obtain more informative temporal data, researchers have to introduce large perturbations to alter the microbial communities, which are not only difficult in practice but also potentially ethically questionable, especially for human-associated microbial communities. The new method developed by BWH investigators avoids this dilemma.

"The basic idea is very simple. If one steady-state sample differs from another only by addition of one species X, and adding X brings down the absolute abundance of Y, then we can conclude X inhibits the growth of Y," said Liu. The team showed that this simple idea can be extended to more complicated cases where steady-state samples differ from each other by more than one species. They verified that, if enough independent steady state data were collected from the microbial communities, then the microbial interaction types (positive, negative and neutral interactions) and the structure of the network could be inferred without requiring any population dynamics modeling. The method proposed by the team resembles other network reconstruction methods based on steady-state data, but unlike the previous methods, no perturbations are required to be applied to the system. Furthermore, a rigorous criterion was established by the team to check if any given steady-state data was consistent with the Generalized Lotka-Volterra (GLV) model--a classical population dynamics model in ecology that mathematically describes the relationships between species. The team found that if the microbial community followed the GLV model, then the steady-state data could also be used to deduce the model parameters--interspecies interaction strengths and growth rates.

The method was systematically validated using simulated data generated from different classic population dynamics models with various levels of complexity. Then it was applied to real data collected from four different synthetic microbial communities, finding that the inferred ecological networks either agree well with the ground truth or can predict the response of systems to perturbations.

Additional insights into microbial ecosystems will emerge from a better understanding of their underlying ecological networks. Inferring ecological networks of human-associated microbial communities using the method developed here will facilitate the design of personalized microbe-based "cocktails," as the authors write, to treat diseases related to microbial dysbiosis.

"I am quite excited about this method, because it may pave the way to mapping more complex microbial communities such as the human gut microbiota, which in turn will help us design better microbiome-based therapies," said Liu.

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This work is supported in part by the John Templeton Foundation (Award number 51977) and NIH grants (R01 HL091528-05 and UG3 OD023268-01).

Paper Cited: Xiao, Y et al. "Mapping the ecological networks of microbial communities from steady-state data" Nature Communications DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-02090-2
CRISPR-Cas9 and other gene editing systems may need to be customized to the patient

Gene editing has begun to be tested in clinical trials, using CRISPR-Cas9 and other technologies to directly edit DNA inside people's cells, and multiple trials are recruiting or in the planning stages. A new study led by Boston Children's Hospital and the University of Montreal raises a note of caution, finding that person-to-person genetic differences may undercut the efficacy of the gene editing process or, in more rare cases, cause a potentially dangerous "off target" effect.

The study adds to evidence that gene editing may need to be adapted to each patient's genome, to ensure there aren't variants in DNA sequence in or near the gene being targeted that would throw off the technology. Findings appear this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition (December 11-15).

"Humans vary in their DNA sequences, and what is taken as the 'normal' DNA sequence for reference cannot account for all these differences," says Stuart Orkin, MD, of Dana-Farber Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center and co-corresponding author on the study with Matthew Canver, an MD-PhD student at Harvard Medical School. "We recommend that common variation be taken into account in designing targeting systems for therapeutic editing, to maximize efficacy and minimize potential safety concerns."

The study analyzed 7,444 previously published whole-genome sequences. Based on a list of about 30 disease-related DNA targets that researchers are interested in altering through gene editing, the researchers made a second list of nearly 3,000 guide RNAs (gRNAs). These are bits of genetic code that have been developed to direct CRISPR-Cas9 enzymes to the right editing location on or adjacent to the target, like the address on an envelope.

The team, led by Orkin, Canver and Samuel Lessard of the University of Montreal, then looked to see whether any of the 7,444 individuals carried DNA sequence variants ("letter changes" or insertions/deletions) in the areas the gRNAs are looking for.

"If there are genetic differences at the site that CRISPR reagents are targeting for therapy, you are at risk for decreased efficacy or treatment failure," explains Canver, who conceived and led the study in Orkin's Boston Children's Hospital lab. "A difference in just a single base pair can cause a decrease in binding efficiency due to a mismatch with the guide RNA. Overall, this can cause a reduction in treatment efficacy."

The team found that such occurrences in the genome are not uncommon; about 50 percent of the analyzed gRNAs had the potential to be affected by variants at their target sites. In a few cases, the team found genetic variants that cause DNA sequences in the genome to more closely match a gRNA that could potentially draw it to the wrong place -- resulting in an edit of a gene or other DNA region that's not meant to be targeted.

"In rare cases, there was the potential to create very potent 'off-target' sites - where CRISPR reagents could bind and cut where they're not intended to," says Canver. "If an off-target effect happens to be in, say, a tumor suppressor gene, that would be a big concern."

Although the study looked at CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, the researchers believe their findings extend to other gene-editing tools such as zinc-finger nucleases (ZFN) and TAL effector nucleases.

"The unifying theme is that all these technologies rely on identifying stretches of DNA bases very specifically," says Canver. "So, a variant that affects the target sequence could reduce guide RNA binding. Variants can also lead to binding at new sites that could potentially cause harm. As these gene-editing therapies continue to develop and start to approach the clinic, it's important to make sure each therapy is going to be tailored to the patient that's going to be treated."

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Samuel Lessard of the Montreal Heart Institute and Universite de Montreal was the study's first author. Co-authors were Laurent Francioli, Jessica Alfoldi, Patrick T. Ellinor and Daniel G. MacArthur of Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and Jean-Claude Tardif and Guillaume Lettre of the Montreal Heart Institute and Universite de Montreal. In addition to their Boston Children's Hospital/Dana-Farber affiliations, Orkin and Canver are members of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, and Orkin is also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator.

The study was funded by Genome Canada and Genome Quebec, the Canada Research Chair Program, the MHI Foundation, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (P01HL032262) and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (P30DK049216, F30DK103359).

Boston Children's Hospital, the primary pediatric teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School, is home to the world's largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center. Its discoveries have benefited both children and adults since 1869. Today, more than 2,630 scientists, including nine members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine and 11 Howard Hughes Medical Investigators comprise Boston Children's research community. Founded as a 20-bed hospital for children, Boston Children's is now a 415-bed comprehensive center for pediatric and adolescent health care. For more, visit our Vector and Thriving blogs and follow us on social media @BostonChildrens, @BCH_Innovation, Facebook and YouTube.
By PTI: Greater Noida, Dec 10 (PTI) A criminal, carrying a cash reward of Rs 65,000, was killed in an encounter with the police near Roopvas village in Dadri area, police said today.

Two policemen were also injured in the incident which took place last night, they said.

The criminal, identified as Aslam, was involved in several cases of murder and loot, the police said.

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The Muzaffarnagar Police had announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest, they said, adding the Uttarakhand police had also announced a cash reward of Rs 15,000.

The encounter occurred on Amka road in Dadri when the police was checking vehicles. The police signalled two motorcycle-borne men to stop but they fled and fired at them, the police said.

The police retaliated where one criminal was killed while another managed to escape, they said.

The injured policemen -- sub-inspector Saurav Kumar and constable Vikas Rana -- have been admitted to a district hospital. PTI CORR KJ

--- ENDS ---
CINCINNATI -- Women exposed to air pollution just prior to conception or during the first month of pregnancy face an increased risk of their children being born with birth defects, such as cleft lip or palate or abnormal hearts.

Although the increased risk is modest, the potential impact on a population basis is noteworthy because all pregnant women have some amount of exposure.

"The most susceptible time of exposure appears to be the one month before and after conception," says Emily DeFranco, DO, a physician at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and senior author of the study. "Public health efforts should continue to highlight the importance of minimizing population-level exposure to harmful particulate matter in the air."

Dr. DeFranco and her colleagues examined fine particulate matter, which is a significant health hazard because these tiny particles can deposit deep into the lower airways and air sacs within the lungs and enter the circulatory system. Fine particulate matter is a mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets that get into the air and, once inhaled, can negatively affect many aspects of a person's health.

The study is published online in The Journal of Pediatrics.

To conduct the study, the researchers used birth certificate data from the Ohio Department of Health and particulate matter data from the US Environmental Protection Agency's 57 monitoring stations throughout Ohio. They linked the geographic coordinates of the mother's residence for each birth with the nearest monitoring station and calculated average exposures. They then estimated the association between abnormalities at birth and the mother's exposure to increased levels of fine particulate matter in the air during pregnancy.

Dr. DeFranco says there are inherent limitations of observational studies such as this but that it provides a good foundation on which future studies can build. Birth defects affect three percent of all births in the United States.

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The researchers were funded by the National Institutes of Health (R01-HL 111829), (P30ES006096), (RC4ES019755) and (R01ES020349). Additional research support was provided by the Perinatal Institute at Cincinnati Children's and the March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center Ohio Collaborative.
Humans have been altering natural waterways for centuries, but only in the last several decades have dams raised ecological concerns

Humans have been altering natural waterways for centuries, but only in the last several decades have dams raised ecological concerns.

N. LeRoy Poff, professor of biology at Colorado State University, studies the ecological impact to rivers from human-caused changes, such as dam building, and how these modified river systems can be managed for resilience.

In a Dec. 8 Perspective piece in the journal Science, Poff, an expert in hydroecology and determining environmental flow needs for rivers, writes on the state of research in sustainable dam design. He highlights a new tool that researchers at Arizona State University are proposing for engineering river flows in Southeast Asia in order to sustain the economically and culturally important natural floodplain fisheries of the region.

"As a researcher, I am concerned about biodiversity conservation, and about sustaining rivers at a level of functional integrity that enables them to provide both biodiversity support as well as ecosystem goods and services," said Poff, who also holds a partial appointment in riverine science at Australia's University of Canberra. "I'm interested in where those intersect."

Writing with co-author Julian Olden of the University of Washington, Poff cites a new study that could provide innovative solutions to preserving river flow in the Mekong basin of Southeast Asia, where several new dams are being proposed. The ASU researchers report a spectral analysis tool that identifies dominant signals in hydrology time series. These signals predict the fisheries' production from year to year, opening possibilities to new flow management strategies.

Poff and Olden contend that balancing economic, social and ecological needs as dams come online in developing countries requires technological solutions like the ones described by the ASU researchers.

"Ultimately, managing rivers for multiple, sustainable benefits requires integrating scientific, social and policy perspectives into operational decision frameworks," the authors write.

Poff, who has also done extensive river work in the state of Colorado, adds that balancing water for society and ecosystems continues to be one of the state's biggest challenges. Techniques like the one described in Science may help improve health and sustainability for river ecosystems in Colorado, the U.S. and throughout the developing world.

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Read more: http://col.st/asC1N
CLEVELAND--As Apollo 11 slowly descended to the moon's surface, the team of NASA scientists responsible for choosing the first lunar landing site was as anxious and in awe as the rest of the world.

"All our hearts were pounding," recalled geologist Farouk El-Baz, a NASA scientist on the Apollo space program's site-selection committee. "What if the moon was completely different than we thought? We were not 100 percent sure of all aspects, so there was room for error."

The capsule, in fact, touched down July 20, 1969 four miles from the predicted landing point and about a minute-and-a-half sooner than scheduled. But as commander Neil Armstrong proclaimed "the Eagle has landed," made his historic "giant leap for mankind" and returned the spaceship safely to Earth, the mission--and five Apollo lunar landings that followed--was considered a rousing success.

El-Baz was involved in site selection for each of those missions. He also created and still directs a NASA-recognized "Center of Excellence," the Center for Remote Sensing at Boston University. The center uses space technology to study the earth and its environment, including finding critically needed groundwater in arid regions around the globe.

For his life's work, El-Baz will receive the 2018 Inamori Ethics Prize from the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence at Case Western Reserve University during a ceremony and academic symposium Sept. 13-14, during which he will deliver a public lecture about the focus of his research and the challenges ahead.

"Dr. El-Baz has shown tremendous ethical leadership throughout his life," said Inamori Center Director Shannon French, the Inamori Professor in Ethics and a professor in the Department of Philosophy and at the School of Law. "Not only did he serve all of humankind with his essential contributions to NASA's historic Apollo space program, but he has since turned his talents to the task of locating desperately needed scarce resources here on the Earth to save lives and resolve deadly conflicts. As many have stated, he is truly a national--and international--treasure."

As part of its mission to foster ethical leadership worldwide, the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence at Case Western Reserve University annually presents the Inamori Ethics Prize to a recipient who demonstrates exemplary ethical leadership. First awarded in 2008, the prize honors outstanding international ethical leaders whose actions and influence have greatly improved the condition of humankind.

Pioneer in space and groundwater exploration

El-Baz is known for pioneering work in applying space images to groundwater exploration in arid lands. Based on the analysis of space photographs, his recommendations resulted in the discovery of groundwater resources in Egypt, India, China, Sudan, Sultanate of Oman, United Arab Emirates and Chad.

To honor his research on the understanding of arid lands and their groundwater resources, the Geological Society of America Foundation established two annual awards: The Farouk El-Baz Award for Desert Research to reward professional excellence in arid land studies, and The Farouk El-Baz Student Research Award to be awarded to two students--one male and one female--to encourage geological research on arid lands.

A veteran of NASA's Apollo program, El-Baz served as secretary of the lunar landing site-selection committee and chairman of astronaut training in orbital observations and photography.

His outstanding teaching abilities were confirmed by the Apollo astronauts: While circling the moon for the first time during Apollo mission 15, command module pilot Alfred Worden said, "After the King's (El-Baz's nickname) training, I feel like I've been here before."

In his honor, one episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation featured a shuttle spacecraft named "El-Baz." He was also the focus of an episode of the Tom Hanks-produced HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, in a segment titled, "The Brain of Farouk El-Baz."

Shares his vast knowledge and leadership

The Egyptian-born El-Baz received a bachelor's degree in chemistry and geology from Ain Shams University in Cairo, received a master's and PhD from the University of Missouri (after conducting research at MIT), taught mineralogy at Heidelberg University in Germany and worked in Egypt's oil industry. He became a naturalized United States citizen in 1970.

In 1973, he established and directed for a decade the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the National Air and Space Museum of Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. He was vice president for Science and Technology at Itek Optical Systems from 1982 until he joined Boston University in 1986.

El-Baz is a member of the United States National Academy of Engineering, the Committee for Geological Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences and serves on several boards, including the Arab Science and Technology Foundation, the Egyptian Center for Economic Studies, the Egyptian-American Affairs Council, the Moroccan-American Council, the World Affairs Council of Boston, the Library of Alexandria and the British University in Egypt.

He is a member of many national and international professional societies and a Fellow of the Geological Society of America, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Royal Astronomical Society in London and the Explorers Club in New York.

The Inamori Center was endowed by a generous gift from Kazuo Inamori, who established Kyocera Corp. and is a global telecommunications leader and founder of the Inamori Foundation that presents the annual Kyoto Prize in Kyoto, Japan.

Previous Inamori Ethics Prize winners were:

Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children's Defense Fund, 2017;

Peter Eigen, founder of Transparency International and pioneer of the global fight against corruption, 2016;

Martha C. Nussbaum, celebrated philosopher and groundbreaking scholar at the University of Chicago, 2015;

Denis Mukwege, physician and human rights activist from the Democratic Republic of Congo, 2014;

Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, 2013;

David Suzuki, environmentalist and broadcaster, 2012;

Beatrice Mtetwa, a human rights lawyer in Zimbabwe, 2011;

Stan Brock, founder of Remote Area Medical, 2010;

Mary Robinson, former United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights and Ireland's first woman president, 2009; and

Francis S. Collins, leader of the Human Genome Project and director of the National Institutes of Health, 2008.

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One of the biggest challenges of mitigating the danger of hurricanes is predicting where a storm will make landfall and estimating how powerful it will be when it hits. Researchers Dr. Toshiro Tanimoto and Annie Valovcin at University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) are looking at new methods to monitor the intensity of hurricanes using seismic data.

"Hurricanes have strong winds that cause pressure changes on the surface that generate seismic waves we can clearly see," said Tanimoto, a professor in the UCSB Department of Earth Science. "The EarthScope Transportable Array provided critical data for this project." The Transportable Array, part of EarthScope's USArray, is a set of 400 seismometers that were deployed in swaths across the U.S., each instrument occupying its site for two years before moving to the next swath. Many stations also include other earth science instruments; after 2011, all stations included barometers.

Using both the seismic and barometric capabilities of the instruments, Valovcin and Tanimoto are developing a new way of examining hurricanes. They call it beamforming backprojection, and it involves analyzing seismic waves recorded during a hurricane to locate the amplitude peak in the map, which shows where the seismic waves originated. They then compare the location from the seismic data to weather maps showing the location of the storm, checking if the locations match and if the seismically derived location follows the same path through time as the storm-map location.

For the cases where Valovcin and Tanimoto looked at data from hurricanes over land, seismic instruments detected the pressure change between the calm eye of the storm and the eyewall of the hurricane, where winds change from horizontal to dramatically vertical and there is strong oscillation in pressure.

For example, Hurricane Isaac, which hit Louisiana in 2012 and caused about $2.4 billion in damage, moved right through the Transportable Array. The stations recorded both seismic and barometric pressure, allowing the researchers to work directly with two types of data from the same event. "In Hurricane Isaac, 80 km from center the data showed a circular high-pressure pattern that we can directly see because of the Transportable Array. In hurricane literature, this is discussed, but it was exciting to see it," said Tanimoto.

In the next phase of the research, Tanimoto and Valovcin found when a hurricane is strong enough, it causes seismic waves detectable even when the storm is still out at sea. The method requires a widespread instrument array, since the seismic waves they study have very long wavelengths. Valovcin and Tanimoto used a different instrument array--the very densely spaced Southern California Seismic Network--to measure hurricanes from the East Coast to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

While a hurricane is out over the ocean, the data are less detailed than landfall data, showing the general location of the whole low-pressure system. It's the high-tech, landscape-size version of putting your ear on a railroad track to feel the vibrations of a train you can't yet see.

"This could add to what we do know, and in the long run, give us a remote way to monitor storms," said Valovcin. "For example, a barometer has to be in the hurricane to measure air pressure, but in the future, we may be able to detect pressure from a long distance through seismic readings."

Although this research is in early stages yet, it could open the door to a new way of tracking hurricanes. "We are now exploring what we can learn from this. It's a new way of looking at hurricanes. It shows the possibilities, once we understand the physical process," said Tanimoto.

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POSTER INFORMATION

Valovcin will present her poster at the American Geophysical Union Conference Tuesday, December 12, 8:00am-12:20pm in the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, Poster Hall D-F:

Poster number S21C-0733: Backprojection of tropical cyclones in the Atlantic https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm17/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/263071

CONTACTS

Poster Contacts:

Annie Valovcin, PhD student; University of California, Santa Barbara

Toshiro Tanimoto, Professor; University of California, Santa Barbara

EarthScope National Office contact:

Beth Grassi, Science Writer/Public Information Officer; bagrassi@alaska.edu; EarthScope booth #1929
Researchers from the Graphene Flagship have predicted and demonstrated a giant spin anisotropy in graphene, paving the way for new spintronic logic devices.

The strong collaborative ethos of the Graphene Flagship is accelerating developments in new technologies based on graphene - the single-atom-thick allotrope of carbon - and related materials (GRMs) such as transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs).

Graphene's excellent tuneable electronic properties make it an ideal material for spintronics applications. Leading the way in three recent papers, Flagship researchers have shown that GRMs can be combined to produce an unprecedented spin lifetime anisotropy, essential for furthering spintronics - electronic circuits and devices based on the manipulation of electron spins. The papers were published almost simultaneously in Physical Review Letters, Nano Letters and Nature Physics.

"These results represent a first step to achieving direct electric-field tuning of the propagation of spins in graphene," said ICREA Prof. Sergio O. Valenzuela, a researcher at the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2; Spain), and an author of the experimental results in Nature Physics. "A graphene-TMDC structure responds as a spin filter with a transmission determined by the orientation of the spins that reach it, allowing detection of small orientation changes."

The prediction and rapid verification of this previously unknown spin-lifetime anisotropy regime would not have been possible without close cooperation between the research teams, working at Graphene Flagship partner institutes ICN2, the University of Groningen (the Netherlands), and the University of Regensburg (Germany). Engaged as part of the Flagship's dedicated Spintronics work package, the teams maintain close relationships and determine common goals, benefitting from the Flagship's unique approach to collaborative, interdisciplinary research.

"This is a nice example of how the Flagship makes it possible to make progress by a combination of challenging science and technology, collaborations, and a fruitful interaction between theory and experiment," said co-author Prof. Bart van Wees (University of Groningen), leader of the Spintronics Work Package. "After our 'proof of principle' the next challenge will be to demonstrate and apply our findings in spintronic devices based on large scale graphene and related materials."

"The Flagship's Spintronics Work Package demonstrates excellence in covering the innovation value chain in spintronic, from novel theoretical concept to fast experimental prototypes, on the way towards disruptive spin device technologies," added ICREA Prof. Stephan Roche (ICN2), deputy of the Spintronics Work Package and co-author of the article that predicted the spin anisotropy phenomenon. "I think this is the first time that a ground-breaking theoretical prediction is confirmed experimentally so shortly after its publication. In a sense it reflects the acceleration process allowed by the Flagship concept."

Spintronics is particularly interesting for quantum computing and new kinds of fast and efficient memory storage. Like electronics, spintronics relies on the generation and manipulation of currents. However, in the case of spintronics, the currents are formed from the transport of the electrons' spins - the intrinsic electron angular momentum with no equivalent in classical physics. In graphene devices, an electron's spin can be easily injected either parallel or perpendicular to the plan of the graphene layer.

The new research shows that spin transport in graphene can be strongly influenced by proximity effects in heterostructures of graphene and TMDCs, such as molybdenum disulphide and tungsten disulphide. Through inter-layer coupling, the behaviours of the parallel and perpendicular spin orientations in graphene is dramatically altered, leading to an anisotropic spin relaxation from one to several orders of magnitude.

Spin relaxation is the process by which an electron's spin loses its initial polarization and becomes random, leading to the disappearance of spin information signal. This research provides the ability to control the lifetime of different spin orientations in graphene - a key element needed for spintronic logic devices and applications.

Prof. Andrea C. Ferrari, Science and Technology Officer of the Graphene Flagship, and Chair of its Management Panel, added "Besides being a significant step forward towards the possible application of graphene and related materials in spintronics, these papers show the added value of the collaborative environment established by the Graphene Flagship. They also constitute a bridge towards the newly announced Quantum Flagship."

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Strongly anisotropic spin relaxation in graphene-transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructures at room temperature, L. Antonio Benitez, Juan F. Sierra, Williams Savero Torres, Alois Arrighi, Frederic Bonell, Marius V. Costache, Sergio O. Valenzuela, Nature Physics (2017) DOI: 10.1038/s41567-017-0019-2

Large Proximity-Induced Spin Lifetime Anisotropy in Transition-Metal Dichalcogenide/Graphene Heterostructures, T. S. Ghiasi, J. Ingla-Aynes, A. A. Kaverzin, B. J. van Wees, Nano Letters (2017) DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b03460

Giant Spin Lifetime Anisotropy in Graphene Induced by Proximity Effects, A. W. Cummings, J. H. Garcia, J. Fabian, S. Roche, Physical Review Letters, DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.119.206601
Somewhere in our galaxy, an exoplanet is probably orbiting a star that's colder than our sun, but instead of freezing solid, the planet might be cozy warm thanks to a greenhouse effect caused by methane in its atmosphere.

NASA astrobiologists from the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a comprehensive new model that shows how planetary chemistry could make that happen. The model, published in a new study in the journal Nature Geoscience, was based on a likely scenario on Earth three billion years ago, and was actually built around its possible geological and biological chemistry.

The sun produced a quarter less light and heat then, but Earth remained temperate, and methane may have saved our planet from an eon-long deep-freeze, scientists hypothesize. Had it not, we and most other complex life probably wouldn't be here today.

The new model combined multiple microbial metabolic processes with volcanic, oceanic and atmospheric activities, which may make it the most comprehensive of its kind to date. But while studying Earth's distant past, the Georgia Tech researchers aimed their model light-years away, wanting it to someday help interpret conditions on recently discovered exoplanets.

The researchers set the model's parameters broadly so that they could apply not only to our own planet but potentially also to its siblings with their varying sizes, geologies, and lifeforms.

Earth and its siblings

"We really had an eye to future use with exoplanets for a reason," said Chris Reinhard, the study's principal investigator and an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. "It's possible that the atmospheric methane models that we are exploring for the early Earth represent conditions common to biospheres throughout our galaxy because they don't require such an advanced stage of evolution like we have here on Earth now."

Reinhard and first author Kazumi Ozaki published their Nature Geoscience paper on December 11, 2017. The research was supported by the NASA Postdoctoral Program, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the NASA Astrobiology Institute and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Previous models have examined the mix of atmospheric gases needed to keep Earth warm in spite of the sun's former faintness, or studied isolated microbial metabolisms that could have made the needed methane. "In isolation, each metabolism hasn't made for productive models that accounted well for that much methane," Reinhard said.

The Georgia Tech researchers synergized those isolated microbial metabolisms, including ancient photosynthesis, with geological chemistry to create a model reflective of the complexity of an entire living planet. And the model's methane production ballooned.

"It's important to think about the mechanisms controlling the atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases in the framework of all biogeochemical cycles in the ocean and atmosphere," said first author Ozaki, a postdoctoral assistant.

Carl Sagan and the faint Sun

The Georgia Tech model strengthens a leading hypothesis that attempts to explain a mystery called the "faint young Sun paradox" pointed out by iconic late astronomer Carl Sagan and his Cornell University colleague George Mullen in 1972.

Astronomers noticed long ago that stars burned brighter as they matured and weaker in their youths. They calculated that about two billion years ago, our sun must have shone about 25 percent fainter than it does today.

That would have been too cold for any liquid water to exist on Earth, but paradoxically, strong evidence says that liquid water did exist. "Based on the observation of the geological record, we know that there must have been liquid water," Reinhard said, "and in some cases, we know that temperatures were similar to how they are today, if not a little warmer."

Sagan and Mullen postulated that Earth's atmosphere must have created a greenhouse effect that saved it. Back then, they suspected ammonia was at work, but chemically, that idea proved less feasible.

"Methane has taken a lead role in this hypothesis," Reinhard said. "When oxygen and methane enter the atmosphere, they chemically cancel each other out over time in a complex chain of chemical reactions. Because there was extremely little oxygen in the air back then, it would have allowed for methane to build up much higher levels than today."

Iron, and rust photosynthesis

At the core of the model are two different types of photosynthesis. But three billion years ago, the dominant type of photosynthesis we know today that pumps out oxygen may not have even existed yet.

Instead, two other very primitive bacterial photosynthetic processes likely were essential to Earth's ancient biosphere. One transformed iron in the ocean into rust, and the other photosynthesized hydrogen into formaldehyde.

"The model relied on lots of volcanic activity spewing out hydrogen," Ozaki said. Other bacteria fermented the formaldehyde, and other bacteria, still, turned the fermented product into methane.

The two photosynthetic processes served as the watch spring of the model's clockwork, which pulled in 359 previously established biogeochemical reactions spanning land, sea and air.

3,000,000 runs and raging methane

The model was not the type of simulation that produces a video animation of Earth's ancient biogeochemistry. Instead, the model mathematically analyzed the processes, and the output was numbers and graphs.

Ozaki ran the model more than 3 million times, varying parameters, and found that if the model contained both forms of photosynthesis operating in tandem, that 24 percent of the runs produced enough methane to create the balance needed in the atmosphere to maintain the greenhouse effect and keep ancient Earth, or possibly an exoplanet, temperate.

"That translates into about a 24 percent probability that this model would produce a stable, warm climate on the ancient Earth with a faint sun or on an Earth-like exoplanet around a dimmer star," Reinhard said. "Other models that looked at these photosynthetic metabolisms in isolation have much lower probabilities of producing enough methane to keep the climate warm."

"We're confident that this rather unique statistical approach means that you can take the basic insights of this new model to the bank," he said.

Other explanations for the "faint young Sun paradox" have been more cataclysmic and perhaps less regular in their dynamics. They include ideas about routine asteroid strikes stirring up seismic activity thus resulting in more methane production, or about the sun consistently firing coronal mass ejections at Earth, heating it up.

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The research was co-authored by Eiichi Tajika, Peng K. Hong and Yusuke Nakagawa of the University of Tokyo. The research was supported by the NASA Postdoctoral Program, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (grant 25120006), the NASA Astrobiology Institute (grant NNA 15BB03A) and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (grant FR-2015-65744). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of those sponsors.
Unhappiness about a pregnancy or birth has been associated with negative health outcomes for mothers and babies. Yet, unhappiness about a pregnancy or birth has been understudied, particularly among sexual minority (non-heterosexual) women. George Mason University's Dr. Lisa Lindley and her colleagues at the University of South Carolina published findings of their new study in Perspectives on Reproductive and Sexual Health, "Sexual Orientation Concordance And (Un)Happiness About Births."

As Lindley explains, "To our knowledge, this is the first investigation of birth happiness by sexual orientation discordance across sexual orientation measures using a nationally representative sample of women of reproductive age. Previous research has focused exclusively on heterosexual women, or assumed that the women were heterosexual."

Lindley and colleagues examined birth happiness among women by sexual orientation discordance using data from the 2006-2015 National Survey of Family Growth. Birth intention, male partnership context (marital/relationship status, wanting to have a child with the father, and father's feeling about the pregnancy), and sociodemographic covariates (race/ethnicity, mother's education, household income, etc.) were included to determine whether they mediated the relationship between birth happiness and sexual orientation discordance. Sexual orientation was measured using the combination of sexual identity, sexual attraction, and sexual behavior variables. Sexual orientation "concordance" was defined as consistency across these three dimensions. For example, a woman who identified as lesbian, reported only same sex attractions, and engaged only in same-sex behaviors would be considered "concordant," while a woman who identified as heterosexual but reported same-sex attractions or behaviors would be considered "discordant."

Heterosexual-discordant women were of particular interest in this study as they are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors and have unintended pregnancies than their heterosexual-concordant counterparts. Consistent with their previous research, Lindley and colleagues also found that heterosexual-discordant women were significantly less happy about their births than heterosexual-concordant women. The fact that births were less likely to be intended and that relationships with male partners were less favorable for births among heterosexual-discordant women partially explained this association.

Lindley pointed out that other factors likely contributed to birth unhappiness among heterosexual-discordant women but were not assessed in the National Survey of Family Growth. According to Lindley, "heteronormative expectations for women, including the pressure to be in a relationship with a man and to have children, may have contributed to their birth unhappiness. This would be especially true if heterosexual-discordant women preferred to be in a relationship with a woman and/or did not want to have a child, or if they had a child to conceal their same-sex attractions and behavior."

Additionally, the survey did not ask women about their pregnancy happiness, or their partner's favorability about the pregnancy, but rather assessed their happiness/favorability about the birth. Thus, the researchers were unable to compare happiness levels by sexual orientation discordance for pregnancies that did not end in birth (i.e., ended in miscarriage or abortion).

Despite strong evidence of risky sexual behaviors, unintended pregnancies, and unhappiness about births occurring among sexual minority women, particularly among heterosexual-discordant women, these concerns are simply not being addressed. Lindley and colleagues point to a gaping hole in the research literature about how best to reach and educate sexual minority women and how best to tailor services and programs for them. They strongly suggest additional efforts in these areas to identify best practices.

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Boston, MA -- This report is part of a series titled "Discrimination in America." The series is based on a survey conducted for National Public Radio, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. While many surveys have explored Americans' beliefs about discrimination, this survey asks people about their own personal experiences with discrimination.

Of note, this survey was conducted January 26 - April 9, 2017, prior to the country's widespread discussions in the fall of 2017 about sexual assault and harassment. These national conversations may have affected how people viewed or responded to their own experiences, or their willingness to disclose these experiences in a survey.

Younger women significantly more likely to report experiences of harassment, threats, and other forms of individual discrimination

Women were asked about their experiences of individual or interpersonal forms of discrimination, such as slurs, insensitive or offensive comments or negative assumptions, sexual harassment, and threats or non-sexual harassment, among others.

View topline, tables, figures, and charts

Chart 1 shows that younger women (especially ages 18-29) are significantly more likely than older women (especially ages 65 and over) to report experiences of multiple kinds of harassment or discrimination.

For example, at least four in ten women ages 18-29 report that they have personally experienced slurs (41%) or insensitive or offensive comments or negative assumptions (40%) about their gender. Women ages 65 and over are far less likely to report these experiences. Only 6% report gendered slurs and 10% report offensive comments or negative assumptions about their gender. Additionally, 60% of women ages 18-29 report that they or a female family member have been sexually harassed, while 17% of women 65 and over report this experience.

Robert Blendon, Richard L. Menschel Professor of Health Policy and Political Analysis at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who co-directed the survey, says, "Our survey highlights the extraordinary level of personal experiences of harassment facing women today, as reflected in the news. Our findings also call into focus potentially different norms in reporting these experiences among different groups of women."

College-educated women more likely to report individual discrimination

Chart 2 illustrates another such difference: women with a college degree are significantly more likely than women with a high school degree or less to report various forms of individual discrimination. For example, women with a college degree are more than four times as likely as women with a high school degree or less to report that they personally have experienced slurs (31% vs. 7%) or insensitive or offensive comments (38% vs. 8%) about their gender.

Women with a college degree are also more than twice as likely as women with a high school degree or less to report that they or a female family member have been sexually harassed (50% vs. 23%) or threatened or non-sexually harassed (39% vs. 18%) (Chart 2).

Women across racial and ethnic groups most frequently report being personally discriminated against because of their gender in the workplace

Chart 3 shows the overall reporting of women's experiences of discrimination across a range of areas of life. While women of different racial or ethnic backgrounds reported different rates of discrimination, the top two issues for women across racial and ethnic identities are when applying for jobs and when being paid or promoted equally.

Among all women, more than four in ten (41%) report having personally experienced discrimination because they are women when it comes to being paid equally or considered for promotion. Roughly a third (31%) of all women say they have been discriminated against because they are women when applying for jobs (Chart 3).

Women of each racial or ethnic group studied by the survey (Black, Latina, white, Native American, and Asian American) also report equal pay or promotion and applying for jobs as the top two situations in which they personally have been discriminated against because they are women. Results for each racial or ethnic group of women are included in the full report.

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Survey background

All references to gender are based on respondents' self-identified gender. This report presents the experiences of American women. There will be a separate report on men's experiences.

The survey was conducted January 26 - April 9, 2017, among a nationally representative, probability-based telephone (cell and landline) sample of 3,453 adults age 18 or older. The survey included nationally representative samples of African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, as well as white Americans; men and women, and LGBTQ adults. This report presents the results specifically for a nationally representative probability sample of 1596 U.S. adult women. Other reports analyze each other group, and the final report will discuss major highlights from the series.

For more information:

Todd Datz

617-432-8413

tdatz@hsph.harvard.edu

Visit the Harvard Chan School website for the latest news, press releases, and multimedia offerings.

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health brings together dedicated experts from many disciplines to educate new generations of global health leaders and produce powerful ideas that improve the lives and health of people everywhere. As a community of leading scientists, educators, and students, we work together to take innovative ideas from the laboratory to people's lives--not only making scientific breakthroughs, but also working to change individual behaviors, public policies, and health care practices. Each year, more than 400 faculty members at Harvard Chan School teach 1,000-plus full-time students from around the world and train thousands more through online and executive education courses. Founded in 1913 as the Harvard-MIT School of Health Officers, the School is recognized as America's oldest professional training program in public health.
New Orleans, LA - For the first time, researchers led by Frank Lau, MD, Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery at LSU Health New Orleans, have successfully kept white fat tissue alive outside of the body for up to eight weeks. This breakthrough will pave the way for research advances improving treatment or prevention of such diseases as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer and others associated with white adipose tissue. Details are published as an Instant Online Article by the journal Tissue Engineering Part C: Methods, available here.

The paper describes a tissue-engineered microstructure called Sandwiched White Adipose Tissue, or "SWAT" for short. White adipose tissue (WAT) is a type of human fat that is strongly associated with several life-threatening illnesses. An ongoing hurdle for scientists has been developing a technique for the long-term culture of WAT. In SWAT, WAT is cultured in a three-dimensional, multicellular environment, and these conditions faithfully mimic those of the human body. In SWAT, WAT is viable in culture for up to eight weeks, and during this time frame, it maintains crucial cellular qualities and whole-tissue functioning.

"We are the first group in the world to keep human fat alive outside of the body for several weeks," notes Dr. Lau, who is also Surgical Director of Regenerative Medicine at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine. "This isn't just a major breakthrough for our lab, but also for obesity and fat research. SWAT holds great potential for anti-obesity drug screening, new research into cancer-obesity interactions and many basic experiments regarding fat physiology."

The research validates SWAT as the first primary human White Adipose Tissue Microphysiological System against standards established by the National Institutes of Health. Its attributes position SWAT as a powerful tool for the study of WAT physiology, pathophysiology, personalized medicine, and pharmaceutical development.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 36.5% of U.S. adults have obesity. Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer, some of the leading causes of preventable death.

According to the State of Obesity, the estimated annual medical costs of obesity in the U.S. ranges from $147 billion to nearly $210 billion.

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The research team also included Drs. Camille Rogers, Oren Tessler, Charles Dupin, Hugo St. Hilaire, Kazi Islam, as well as Kelly Vogel, John Luckett, Maxwell Hunt, Alicia Meyer and Steven Scahill at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, along with Dr. Jeffrey Gimble at Tulane University and Dr. Trivia Frazier at LaCell, LLC.

The data were presented at the 2017 International Federation for Adipose Therapeutics and Science annual meeting in Miami.

LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's health sciences university leader, LSU Health New Orleans includes a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSUHSC faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSUHSC research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSUHSC faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu, http://www.twitter.com/LSUHealthNO or http://www.facebook.com/LSUHSC.
WOODS HOLE, Mass. -- How do cells move in a certain direction in the body -- go to a wound site and repair it, for example, or hunt down infectious bacteria and kill it?

Two new studies from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) show how cells respond to internal forces when they orient, gain traction, and migrate in a specific direction. The research, which began as a student project in the MBL Physiology Course and was developed in the MBL Whitman Center, is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) and this week in Nature Communications.

Both papers focus on the activation of integrins, proteins that allow cells to attach to their external environment and respond to signals coming from other cells. Integrins are transmembrane proteins: part lies on the cell surface and part lies inside the cell. Using a microscope invented at the MBL, the authors showed that when integrins unfurl from the cell surface and bind extracellularly, they simultaneously align in the same direction as a force inside the cell (actin retrograde flow).

"If you think of a cell as a car, the actin flow is the engine," says Clare Waterman, a Whitman Center Scientist from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. "The cell can sit there, idling its engine. But when the integrins activate and bind externally, they are like the tires hitting the road, providing friction. The engine goes into gear and the car moves."

Timothy Springer of Harvard University, who co-discovered the integrin family of proteins in the 1980s and has largely defined their mechanism of activation, and Satyajit Mayor of The National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, were principal collaborators with Waterman on the project.

The team used a fluorescence polarized light microscope developed by MBL Associate Scientist Tomomi Tani and former Staff Scientist Shalin Mehta (now at Chan Zuckerberg Biohub) to measure -- in real time and with high precision -- the orientation of the integrins on the cell surface.

"It's quite remarkable that you can do that with a microscope," Springer says. "I don't know of any other examples where people have actually measured the orientation of a cell surface molecule."

There are 24 different types of integrins found on human cells. The PNAS paper studies an integrin on fibroblast cells while the Nature Communications paper analyzes an integrin on white blood cells.

"The two integrins we worked on were about as structurally different as you can get in the integrin family," says Springer, yet both types, when activated, oriented in a direction dictated by intracellular actin flow.

"This is really beautiful basic research," Springer says. "While we knew a lot about highly purified integrins in solution, this research gives us specific information about their activation state in living cells."

Waterman was co-directing the MBL Physiology Course when she initiated this research with a group of students, including Vinay Swaminathan and Pontus Nordenfelt. After the course ended, the team added members, including Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkal and Travis I. Moore, and continued to collaborate in the MBL Whitman Center with support from a Lillie Research Innovation Award from the University of Chicago and the MBL.

"The MBL is known for its ability to convene scientific teams with deep interdisciplinary expertise though the communication that flows between its advanced courses, its resident scientists, and the Whitman Center," says David Mark Welch, MBL Director of Research. "In this case, insightful scientists with very different skills -- cell biologists, microscope developers, computational scientists, molecular modelers, protein chemists -- synergized to reveal a fundamentally important driver of cellular migration."

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Citations:

Vinay Swaminathanan, Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkalal, Shalin B. Mehta, Pontus Nordenfelt, Travis I. Moore, Nobuyasu Koga, David A. Baker, Rudolf Oldenbourg, Tomomi Tani, Satyajit Mayor, Timothy A. Springer, and Clare M. Waterman (2017) Actin retrograde flow actively aligns and orients ligand-engaged integrins in focal adhesions. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1701136114

Pontus Nordenfelt, Travis I. Moore, Shalin B. Mehta, Joseph Mathew Kalappurakkal, Vinay Swaminathan, Nobuyasu Koga, Talley J. Lambert, David Baker, Jennifer C. Waters, Rudolf Oldenbourg, Tomomi Tani, Satyajit Mayor, Clare M. Waterman & Timothy A. Springer. Direction of actin flow dictates integrin LFA-1 orientation during leukocyte migration. Nature Communications, 11 Dec 2017.

The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is dedicated to scientific discovery - exploring fundamental biology, understanding marine biodiversity and the environment, and informing the human condition through research and education. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution and an affiliate of the University of Chicago.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) From school students rendering an old Chinese folk song to an ensemble performance by a troupe of Kathak, Odissi and Bharatnatyam dancers, Chinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi spent this evening here feasting on cultural heritage of India.

Wang, who is visiting India, accompanied by his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj, attended a cultural programme at the sprawling Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra in Chanakayapuri, which was organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

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Earlier in the day, both the ministers held talks on key bilateral issues. At the evening gala, Wang greeted the audience with folded hands, the traditional namaste.

The event began with a song recital by a group of students from DPS, Dwarka, who performed the famous Chinese folk song Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower).

This was followed by a performance by a Kathak trio, who danced on Chinese-themed music, thus blending the two cultures, symbolising the cultural exchange and people-to- people ties between the two countries.

The third and the longest performance in the nearly 90-minute long event was the ensemble performance by a troupe of dancers titled Samaagam.

Three lead danseuses from the schools of Kathak, Odissi and Bharatnatyam, accompanied by a group other dancers, left the audience spellbound with a series of performances.

Deng Shuyi, a student who hailing from Guangzhou, who attended the event, was amazed by the cultural heritage of India.

"Im currently studying Hindi in Delhi and it was so nice to see our foreign minister, and him attending this lovely programme. Culture brings people together. I can speak Hindi and those schools students performed brilliantly in my language (Mandarin). Isnt that a lovely feeling," she told PTI.

Incidentally, a couple of students, when approached said, they did not know Mandarin, but "learned the phoenetics" to perform the famous folk song.

"I dont know Chinese (Mandarin). We just got the song transliterated in English and memorised it. But, we practiced a lot to get the phoenetics right. It was a wonderful experience performing in front of the two ministers," said Kanishka, 13, a student of class 9.

Yash of class 8 and Ananya Kumar of class 11 echoed the same sentiments.

Deng, when asked how she felt about the song performance, said, "It was so good. At no point I felt they dont speak Chinese."

Before departing, Wang shook hands with Swaraj with both the hands, at the main entrance of the Kendra. PTI KND AAR

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A team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers has identified a specific genetic change that may be the cause of a rare but severe neurological disorder called X-linked dystonia parkinsonism (XDP). Occurring only among individuals with ancestry from the Philippines island of Panay, XDP combines features of two common movement disorders, dystonia and Parkinson's disease, in an unusual pattern and significantly shortens the life of affected individuals.

This discovery, which is receiving online publication in PNAS Early Edition, represents the work of the Collaborative Center for X-linked Dystonia Parkinsonism in the MGH Department of Neurology, directed by Nutan Sharma, MD, PhD, and Cristopher Bragg, PhD, who with Laurie Ozelius, PhD, is a co-senior author of the report.

"XDP causes certain nerve cells within the brain to progressively die, and its cause has been difficult to understand," explains Bragg. "Before our study it had been reported that all XDP patients share seven changes in their DNA in an identical pattern known as a haplotype, but it was not known which, if any, of these changes might be responsible for the disease. We have now shown that the pattern in patients is actually not identical and that variation in one of these sequence changes strongly determines the age at which symptoms first appear."

These initial symptoms most often involve dystonia - involuntary muscle contractions that can force body parts into abnormal, sometimes twisted positions. Symptoms appear most commonly around the age of 40 and may affect multiple muscle groups - particularly the head and neck, which can interfere with the ability to speak and swallow. Over time patients also develop Parkinson's-like symptoms, such as slowness of movement and a shuffling gait, and become more disabled as the disease progresses. In many cases, patients die from complications, including infections and pneumonia.

The DNA sequence changes associated with XDP are all located on the X chromosome, clustering around a gene called TAF1, which regulates how genes are expressed within cells. One of these sequence changes is an insertion of a large fragment of DNA known as a retrotransposon, a type of DNA element that can move from one site in the genome to another. While the majority of retrotransposons in the human genome are benign, some are inserted at sites that disrupt the normal function of surrounding genes and cause disease. The team led by Ozelius and Bragg analyzed the sequence of the XDP retrotransposon in 140 patients from the Philippines and North America and discovered significant differences between patients in the length of a segment consisting of repetitive DNA sequences. The number of repeats was correlated with the age at which symptoms first appears - patients with longer repeat tracts developed XDP at earlier ages, while those with shorter repeat lengths did not exhibit symptoms until later in life.

"These are the first data directly linking a DNA sequence in XDP to a clinical disease manifestation, which is the strongest evidence to date that this retrotransposon is the likely cause of this disease," says Bragg.

Ozelius adds, "It further reveals that XDP is another example of what are called DNA repeat expansion diseases, many of which affect the brain such as Huntington's disease and some forms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. A major question now is whether therapies being developed for those disorders may have similar benefits for patients with XDP."

Sharma, also a co-author of the PNAS report, explains, "Currently available treatments for XDP are extremely limited, consisting of only a few oral medications, injections of botulinum toxin into affected muscles to relieve painful muscle contractions, and deep brain stimulation, which is a complex neurosurgical procedure. But the vast majority of XDP patients live on Panay, where such treatments are not readily available. Part of the mission of our center, in addition to the research we perform, is to improve delivery of care in those regions, which we are working hard to do in partnership with affiliated organizations in the Philippines."

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Sharma is also medical director of the Partners HealthCare Dystonia Clinic. She and Ozelius are associate professors of Neurology, and Bragg is an assistant professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School

The MGH Collaborative Center for X-linked Dystonia-Parkinsonism was founded in 2014 through an anonymous gift and is dedicated to improving the understanding and treatment of the disorder. Bragg explains that the MGH has been a world leader in dystonia research and clinical care since the mutation associated with the most common genetic form, DYT1 dystonia, was identified in 1997 by Ozelius and Xandra Breakefield, PhD, also a co-author of the PNAS paper. "Funding for very rare diseases can be difficult to obtain," Bragg says. "The support provided by the center has enabled us to recruit collaborators from around the world, and we believe this multi-institutional consortium approach has greatly accelerated progress towards deciphering the cause of XDP."

Massachusetts General Hospital, founded in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The MGH Research Institute conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the nation, with an annual research budget of more than $900 million and major research centers in HIV/AIDS, cardiovascular research, cancer, computational and integrative biology, cutaneous biology, genomic medicine, medical imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, regenerative medicine, reproductive biology, systems biology, photomedicine and transplantation biology. The MGH topped the 2015 Nature Index list of health care organizations publishing in leading scientific journals and earned the prestigious 2015 Foster G. McGaw Prize for Excellence in Community Service. In August 2017 the MGH was once again named to the Honor Roll in the U.S. News & World Report list of "America's Best Hospitals."
Work requirements proposed in some states would likely only apply to a small group of enrollees, and may disrupt care for chronically ill, researchers conclude

ANN ARBOR, MI - Nearly half of the people who enrolled in Medicaid after it expanded in Michigan have jobs, a new study finds. Another 11 percent can't work, likely due to serious physical or mental health conditions.

About 1 in 4 enrollees are out of work but also are much more likely to be in poor health, according to the findings published in JAMA Internal Medicine by a team from the University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.

The findings, from a detailed survey of more than 4,000 people enrolled in Michigan's program for more than a year, may inform discussions of potential work requirements for the poor and near-poor Americans who qualify for expanded Medicaid in the 31 states and the District of Columbia that offer it, and other states that are considering expansion.

Several of those states have submitted proposals to require Medicaid expansion enrollees to work at least part time, actively seek work or volunteer, or risk losing Medicaid coverage.

Several others are considering doing so, and the current federal administration has signaled a willingness to approve the waivers states need to enact such requirements. Some states have started voluntary work-referral programs for enrollees.

"The question raised by these data for states is - is it worth the cost to screen and track enrollees when only a small minority isn't working who are potentially able to work," says Renuka Tipirneni, M.D., M.Sc., lead author of the new study and a clinical lecturer in general internal medicine at U-M.

"Even if they don't meet federal disability criteria, our survey shows many of these individuals face significant health challenges," she adds. "It's also important to consider that dropping them from coverage for failure to fulfill a work requirement could seriously impact their ability to receive care for chronic physical and mental health conditions that can worsen without treatment."

The new study is the first published report about work-related information obtained directly from enrollees in Medicaid expansion states, rather than administrative data or survey estimates.

It's also the first peer-reviewed study from IHPI's formal evaluation of Michigan's expansion, called the Healthy Michigan Plan. The evaluation, funded by IHPI's contract with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, is required under a federal waiver that allowed the state to customize its Medicaid expansion when it launched in April 2014.

Tipirneni and her colleagues, including senior author and IHPI director John Z. Ayanian, M.D., M.P.P, and Susan D. Goold, M.D., M.H.S.A., M.A., compiled the report based on telephone surveys carried out in 2016 in a representative sample of Healthy Michigan Plan participants.

In all:

48.8 percent of respondents said they were employed or self-employed full or part time -- though their incomes were all below 133 percent of the federal poverty level, about $15,800 for an individual and $32,300 for a family of four.

27.6 percent were out of work, in a state that in 2016 was around the national average for unemployment after a decade and a half of above-average unemployment. Of these, one-third said they were in fair or poor health - compared with 19 percent of those who said they were employed. Two thirds of those out of work said they had a chronic physical illness, and 35 percent said they had been diagnosed with a mental illness. One-quarter of those out of work said they had a physical or mental impairment that interfered with their ability to function at least half the days in the last month. 11.3 percent said they were unable to work. Of these, 73.4 percent reported being in fair or poor health.

2.5 percent said they were retired

5.2 percent said they were students

4.5 percent said they were homemakers

Although the U-M team did not ask about respondents' roles as caregivers for other household members and how that may limit their ability to work, they included these questions in the 2017 survey they just completed.

Respondents who had a mental health condition that limited their ability to function were twice as likely to say they were out of work than those without. Other factors that were associated with individuals' being significantly more likely to say they were not working were being in their 50s or early 60s, being male, or being in fair or poor health overall.

Tipirneni notes that survey respondents who said they were employed or self-employed may have enrolled in the Healthy Michigan Plan because many low-wage and part-time jobs do not offer health insurance. Employers are not required to offer health insurance if they have less than 50 workers, nor do they have to offer it to any employees who work 30 hours or less a week, under the Affordable Care Act.

Those with incomes under the federal poverty level also cannot get financial help to purchase their own coverage through a health insurance exchange such as HealthCare.gov, no matter whether their state expanded Medicaid or not.

"Medicaid expansion was designed to cover those who have a gap in their coverage, or jobs that don't offer insurance but don't pay enough to allow someone to afford individual coverage," Tipirneni says. "States considering work requirements should evaluate their potential impact on individuals, and the potential return on expenditures required for enforcement."

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Reference: JAMA Internal Medicine, DOI:10.1001/jamainternmed.2017.7055 http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?doi=10.1001/jamainternmed.2017.7055
On Dec. 11, 2017, six researchers discussed initial findings based on observations of the Sun and on Earth gathered during the solar eclipse that stretched across North America on Aug. 21, 2017. Ranging from new information about the way the Sun's atmosphere generates heat, to how the dip in solar energy affected Earth's atmosphere, and even how to protect against contaminating other planets with bacteria, the researchers shared their results at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union, in New Orleans.

"This eclipse gave us an opportunity to cement the idea of the Sun-Earth connection," said Lika Guhathakurta, who headed up NASA's science efforts for the Aug. 21 eclipse. "A variety of new observations, instruments and observational platforms were enabled by this eclipse. It will be fascinating to watch how these develop into new research plans and new technology for future use."

A moment in the Sun's atmosphere

While total solar eclipses happen about once every 18 months somewhere on Earth, the August eclipse was rare in its long path over land: The total eclipse lasted about 90 minutes total, from the time it first reached the Oregon coast to when it left the North American mainland in South Carolina. This long, uninterrupted path over land provided scientists with a rare change to investigate the Sun and its influence on Earth in ways that aren't usually possible.

During the few moments of a total solar eclipse, the Sun's corona -- otherwise too dim to see next to its bright face -- is visible from Earth. We study the corona from space with instruments called coronagraphs, which create artificial eclipses by using a metal disk to block out the Sun's face.

But the innermost regions of the Sun's corona in white light are only visible during total solar eclipses. Because of a property of light called diffraction, the disk of a coronagraph must block out both the Sun's surface and a large part of the corona in order to get crisp pictures. But because the Moon is so far away from Earth -- about 230,000 miles away during the August eclipse -- diffraction isn't an issue, and scientists are able to measure the lower corona in great detail.

Two scientists spoke at the press briefing about their research on the corona: Amir Caspi, a space scientist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, and Matt Penn, of the National Solar Observatory. Studying our Sun's corona provides an opportunity both to understand what drives its intense heat as well as to improve our ability to forecast when the Sun could erupt with giant explosions of solar material known as coronal mass ejections, which can affect our space environment and -- when intense -- impact satellites.

As Caspi explained: Depending on location on the ground, someone studying the Sun during the Aug. 21 eclipse could collect up to 2 minutes and 42 seconds' worth of data. But Caspi's project, funded by NASA, took inspiration from past eclipse studies to stretch that time even further. Using a pair of NASA WB-57 jets, Caspi and his team had an uninterrupted view of the solar corona for just over seven and a half minutes.

Though they were originally designed to help monitor space shuttle launches, the telescopes -- and the jets on which they were mounted -- were a surprising boon for solar science.

"These instruments were not built for science; they were repurposed for science," said Caspi. "This was the first airborne astronomy project on the WB-57 platform."

This retrofitted science makes data analysis all the more challenging, as the images must be processed and calibrated carefully to reveal key details about the Sun's magnetic waves and their relationship to the extraordinarily high temperatures in the solar corona.

Matt Penn also took advantage of the eclipse's path over land to get a unique set of observations. The Citizen CATE project -- short for Continental-America Telescopic Eclipse -- comprised of 68 identical small telescopes spread across the path of totality and operated by citizen and student scientists.

"As the Moon's shadow left one of our telescopes, it covered the next one in our network," said Penn. "Instead of observing for two and a half minutes, we could observe for 93 minutes."

During the eclipse, 61 of the project's 68 telescopes managed to capture coronal images, amounting to 82 minutes of total observing time out of the 93 minutes that the total solar eclipse was over land. This success means that there's a huge amount of data for the team to analyze -- though Penn says they were able to capture detailed images of the solar features they were most interested in: Fast solar wind flows near the Sun's north and south poles.

Exploring the Sun-Earth connection

Other scientists at the briefing presented results about the eclipse's impact closer to home. High in Earth's upper atmosphere, above the ozone layer, the Sun's intense radiation creates a layer of electrified particles called the ionosphere. This region of the atmosphere reacts to changes from both Earth below and space above. Such changes in the lower atmosphere or space weather can manifest as disruptions in the ionosphere that can interfere with communication and navigation signals.

Greg Earle, from Virginia Tech, used the eclipse as a natural laboratory to test models of the ionosphere's effects on these communications signals. Earle and his team used computer models to estimate how the eclipse would affect radio signals -- primarily, how far they could travel through the atmosphere before petering out. They predicted that the eclipse would extend the range of radio signals because of a drop in the number of energized particles in the ionosphere, similar to what happens at night. And they were right.

"The data were a confirmation that our modeling was on the right track," said Earle. "During the eclipse, radio signals propagated much, much farther than they do on a normal day."

Earle and his team used a litany of radio transmitters and receivers to test the range of radio signals during the eclipse: Two pre-existing radar stations, four custom-constructed antenna sites, and reports from thousands of ham radio operators from around North America, who volunteered their observations as part of a contest organized in conjunction with the American Radio Relay League.

Validating this model of the ionosphere is a step towards understanding less predictable changes in the ionosphere that can impact the reliability of our communications and navigation signals.

Angela Des Jardins of Montana State University spoke at the briefing about the Eclipse Ballooning Project, which flew balloons through Earth's lower atmosphere during the eclipse. If you watched the eclipse online on Aug. 21, some of the live footage you saw may have come from these balloons. The balloons -- flown to more than 100,000 feet by 55 teams of college and high school students -- provided the first-ever live footage of an eclipse from this region of the atmosphere. Beyond providing great views, they also enabled unique science.

The project incorporated weather balloon flights from a dozen locations to form a picture of how Earth's lower atmosphere -- the part we interact with and which directly affects our weather -- reacted to the eclipse. These data revealed that the planetary boundary layer, the lowest part of Earth's atmosphere, dropped down nearly to its nighttime altitude during the eclipse.

Several dozen of the eclipse balloons also flew cards containing harmless bacteria to help us understand potential planetary contamination issues.

"We don't want to contaminate other planets when we send robots -- or even humans -- so we need to understand if microscopic life, like bacteria, could survive on Mars," said Des Jardins.

In many ways, Earth's stratosphere is similar to the environment on the surface of Mars, with one primary exception: the amount of sunlight. But during the eclipse, the level of sunlight dropped to something closer to what you might expect to see on Mars, providing the perfect environment to test the hardiness of these potential Mars invaders. Scientists are looking at data from this experiment, and hope to have results to publish within the next few months.

Jay Herman, EPIC lead scientist at NASA Goddard, presented on how the August 21 event gave scientists the opportunity to study the effects of the eclipse blocking some of the sunlight reaching Earth. This is a step in more accurately measuring the role of clouds in regulating how much solar energy reaches Earth's surface, and how much is reflected back into space. Computer programs can estimate the impact of different types of clouds on Earth's energy budget, and an event like the eclipse -- where the Moon acts as a giant, impenetrable cloud -- can improve those programs.

The Deep Space Climate Observatory -- a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration spacecraft that orbits 1 million miles from Earth and is always positioned between Earth and the Sun -- provided a unique platform to view the eclipse and its impact. It carries an NASA instrument called the Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera, or EPIC, which measures different wavelengths of light reflected off of Earth.

When Herman and his colleagues measured how much light was reflected during the eclipse, they found that it was reduced by 10 percent across the globe. Regular, non-eclipse days typically vary by less than 1 percent, in comparison.

And more...

Many other scientists - with NASA support - took advantage of the eclipse to conduct novel studies of the Sun and Earth on Aug. 21.

Solar Research

A NASA-funded group led by Shadia Habbal at the University of Hawaii found atypically cool material in the corona above an area where a coronal mass ejection had just erupted on the surface, prior to the eclipse. This finding is helping scientists understand the physics of dynamic plasmas in the corona.

In Madras, Oregon, a team of NASA scientists led by Nat Gopalswamy from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, pointed a new, specialized polarization camera at the corona, taking 50 images at four different wavelengths in just over two minutes. The images captured data on the temperature and speed of solar material in the corona.

Typical coronagraphs use a polarizer filter in a mechanism that turns through three angles, one after the other, for each wavelength filter. The new camera was designed to eliminate this time-consuming process, by incorporating thousands of tiny polarization filters to read light polarized in different directions simultaneously.

The team's results were consistent with those of previous eclipses observed by the older, clunkier polarization cameras -- successfully demonstrating that the instrument can be used to obtain accurate measurements without a polarization wheel. With further testing and development, the group's camera will eventually mature into an instrument destined for spaceflight.

Paul Bryans, a scientist at UCAR, led another NASA-funded project to study the Sun during August's eclipse. They were able to capture a spectrum of the Sun's corona at wavelengths stretching from about 1 to 5 microns, much longer wavelengths than those that make up the types of light our eyes can see. This spectrum is a measurement not often made, and Bryans and his team are hopeful that it will reveal interesting features about the Sun's atmosphere.

Bryans' team also focused on capturing images of the chromosphere -- the part of the Sun's atmosphere below the corona -- just before and after totality, when it would be visible beyond the Moon's edge without being overwhelmed by the Sun's bright face.

"One of the interesting things we've done so far is compare results with some other eclipse experiments," said Bryans. In particular, by comparing their data with that gathered by an airborne National Science Foundation experiment, they can pinpoint what parts of the solar spectrum are promising for future ground-based studies. "One of the things we need to know is exactly which wavelengths the air absorbs -- if Earth's atmosphere absorbs the light you're looking for, there's no point."

Philip Judge, also from the High Altitude Observatory, led a team in close concert with Bryans' to study the Sun's corona and chromosphere with spectrographs -- instruments that categorize light by its component wavelengths -- to see the fingerprints left by the Sun's magnetic field. This chromospheric flash spectrum, recorded with unprecedented time resolution, enables the team to study the chromosphere as a function of height at scales down to just a few kilometers. Analysis of these data is underway.

Judge also coordinated with Smithsonian's Airborne Infrared Spectrometer experiment. Preliminary results from this project show two previously unseen emission lines from the corona. These data were also cross-calibrated with ground-based coronagraphs used daily outside the eclipse and are giving researchers a clear understanding of the relationship between the corona's emission and the light that Earth's atmosphere absorbs.

Working alongside the Citizen CATE project at two telescope sites, Padma Yanamandra-Fisher and her team used the August eclipse to measure polarized light from the inner solar corona, which can only be observed from the ground during a total solar eclipse. Studying the Sun's inner corona in polarized light helps scientists track the signatures of solar activity that may help explain the corona's extraordinarily high temperatures.

Initial analysis shows the polarization was greatest along the Sun's equator, showing where free electrons were more abundant, as well as other features in the corona. They also found a structure of ejected material -- a prominence -- was very weakly polarized.

Yanamandra-Fisher's team will also combine their data with that from Citizen CATE to help shed light on the short-period variability in the solar corona, which occurs on the timescale of just a few hours.

"The data set we acquired from one of our two sites is one of the best data sets of visible polarization of the inner corona available right now, because we had a pristine observing site in Tetonia, Idaho, and a great example of professional and amateur observer collaboration," said Yanamandra-Fisher.

Ionospheric Research

As the shadow moved across the country, cutting off the ionosphere's usual source of ionizing radiation, a team led by Phil Erickson of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Haystack Observatory observed circular bow waves -- disturbances in the region's electron density, named for their similarity to the waves a boat makes as it courses through water. These waves sped along the path of totality at 300 miles per second. Traveling ionospheric disturbances are sometimes responsible for space weather patterns in the upper atmosphere, and are often linked to atmospheric gravity waves.

"Our ionospheric measurements during the August 2017 eclipse went extremely well. The high-power ionospheric radar at Millstone Hill in eastern Massachusetts performed perfectly for five days around the eclipse, measuring ionospheric density, temperature, and velocity overhead and also in different directions on the East Coast," said Erickson. "In addition, our GPS-based total electron content software produced wide coverage maps of ionospheric response over the entire North American continent. Both of these data sets have many fascinating features, some of which were unexpected."

Bob Marshall and his team, from the University of Colorado Boulder, probed the response of the ionosphere's D-region to the eclipse with very low frequency, or VLF, radio signals. This is the lowest and least dense part of the ionosphere -- and because of that, the least understood.

Data collection went well, Marshall said, and the group got all the data they were hoping for. The team collected VLF transmitter signals traveling across the path of totality in Boulder; Bear Lake, Utah; and Elginfield, Ontario, Canada. All the observations showed clear signatures of the eclipse, as well as an unexpected solar flare.

"We are continuing to put the model simulations together to validate these VLF observations of the eclipse," Marshall said. "The model is quite involved and complex, but we're making great progress."

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A comprehensive study using genetics and anatomy revealed that what was once considered a single species may be a complex with at least 7 different species

In a recent study published in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, a team of Brazilian researchers discovered six new species of silky anteater, a mammal that lives in tropical rain forests of the Amazon region and Central America.

The new study combines genetic and anatomical data to review the classification of silky anteaters. Led by former Dr. Flavia Miranda, the team of researchers analyzed 33 samples of DNA and examined more than 280 specimens of this rare mammal in museums worldwide. The researchers discovered that what was formerly considered a single species Cyclopes didactylus is actually much more diverse genetically than previously thought. Cyclopes didactylus is in fact comprised of at least seven different species.

Besides Cyclopes didactylus, the common silky anteater, from the northern South America and northeastern Brazil, researchers revalidated three species from previous studies: Ida's silky anteater (Cyclopes ida), from the north of the Amazon River and left margin of the Negro River; Central American silky anteater (Cyclopes dorsalis), from Central America and Pacific coast of northern South America; and the Yungus silky anteater (Cyclopes catellus), from the Yungas of Bolivia.

Additionally, three other species were described as new, including Thomas' silky anteater (Cyclopes thomasi), in honor of Oldfield Thomas, a British naturalist who contributed to the knowledge about silky anteaters in the past. The two other new species are the Xingu silky anteater (Cyclopes xinguensis), from the Xingu River in Brazil, and the red silky anteater (Cyclopes rufus), from Rondonia, also in Brazil, and with a fiery red coloration.

Silky anteaters are small nocturnal animals that live in the canopy of trees in tropical rain forest. They are some of the least studied anteaters.

"We spent many months during 19 expeditions along South America over 10 years, searching for the little anteater," said Miranda. Intensive museum and laboratory efforts were also fundamental for the discovery.

"Four years ago we described a new tapir species from Brazilian Amazon, and now we have six new species of silky anteater. There are probably many more new species waiting for description in museums and in the wild, and they may be extinct before we have the chance to know them," said Fabricio Santos, geneticist and one of the co-authors of the study.

These new species were just discovered, but their conservation status is already uncertain.

"Although silky anteaters in general are still widespread in the Amazon region, many of the new species may be under heavy pressure from deforestation, mining, and agriculture, among other threats", said Miranda, who is also head of the conservation NGO Projeto Tamandua, which is focused on conservation efforts for anteaters, sloths, and armadillos.

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The paper "Taxonomic review of the genus Cyclopes Gray, 1821 (Xenarthra: Pilosa), with the revalidation and description of new species" will be available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlx079

Direct correspondence to:

Flavia Miranda

NGO Projeto Tamandua

Laboratorio de Biodiversidade e Evolucao Molecular, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais

Av. Antonio Carlos, 6627, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, BRAZIL

flavia@tamandua.org

To request a copy of the study, please contact:

Daniel Luzer

daniel.luzer@oup.com

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WASHINGTON (Dec. 11, 2017)--A comprehensive assessment of cheetah populations in southern Africa supported by the National Geographic Society reveals the dire state of one of the planet's most iconic big cats. In a study published today in the open-access journal PeerJ, researchers present evidence that low cheetah population estimates in southern Africa and population decline support a call to list the cheetah as "Endangered" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

With partial support from the National Geographic Society's Big Cats Initiative, an international team of 17 researchers, led by Florian Weise of the Claws Conservancy and Varsha Vijay of Duke University, analyzed more than two million collared cheetah observations from a long-term study by the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research and another 20,000 cheetah observations from the research community and the general public. Their findings show that free-ranging cheetahs were present across approximately 789,700 square kilometers in Namibia, Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe between 2010 and 2016.

"This collaborative, multiyear effort sounds the alarm about the state of cheetah populations in southern Africa, shining a light on the imperative need to protect these majestic predators," said Gary E. Knell, President and CEO, National Geographic Society. "The National Geographic Society is proud to support such a comprehensive assessment and similar efforts aimed at safeguarding our most precious species, their habitats and the planet we call home."

The study estimates only 3,577 adult cheetahs exist in this extensive area, which is larger than France, and a majority (55 percent) of individuals are found within only two habitats. This estimate is 19 percent lower than the IUCN's current assessment, supporting the call for the uplisting of cheetahs from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered."

A novel aspect of the research was the use of observations from the general public. "For a highly photogenic species like the cheetah, using crowd-sourced photographs and videos taken by tourists is an innovative and cost-effective approach, especially in well-visited protected areas," said Weise.

"This is the area with the largest population of free-ranging cheetahs left on Earth. Knowing how many cheetahs there are and where they occur is crucial for developing suitable conservation management plans for the species," added Vijay.

The study not only estimated the number of cheetahs in areas with confirmed sightings, but also identified places where it is possible for cheetahs to live but where they have not been recently observed. The authors used information about cheetah habitat and human and livestock densities to identify an area of possible cheetah presence almost as large as the confirmed cheetah range.

"To better understand this rare and elusive species, we need to complement the monitoring of confirmed populations with the investigation of possible cheetah habitat," said Vijay.

This study also confirmed that the status of cheetahs on privately owned land is a pressing conservation issue. The researchers found that only 18.4 percent of cheetah range is within internationally recognized protected areas. Namibia exemplifies this, with much of cheetah distribution overlapping with areas of livestock and game production.

Interviews with some farmers who share their land with cheetahs showed that nearly half of those surveyed consider cheetahs a source of conflict (49.7 percent), while only a minority of farmers (26.5 percent) actively persecute (e.g., kill or trap) the species. Using population models informed by persecution data, the study found that even a few farmers persecuting animals can cause population declines, especially when reproductive conditions are not optimal.

"The future of the cheetah relies heavily on working with farmers who host these big cats on their lands, bearing the heaviest cost of coexistence," said Weise.

The authors conclude that the results of this study strongly support the recent call, led by the Range Wide Conservation Program for Cheetah and African Wild Dogs' team at the Zoological Society of London, for the IUCN to uplist the cheetah from Vulnerable status to Endangered. This step would create awareness about the cheetah's precarious situation and open more avenues to fund conservation and population monitoring efforts. Besides giving direction to further research, the authors provided an example of effective collaboration and transparent information sharing.

"By working together and reaching out to the public for assistance, conservationists can chart the way forward to help secure the future of the cheetah," said Dr. Stuart L. Pimm, Doris Duke Chair of Conservation Ecology at Duke University and senior author of the study.

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This study is the result of a collaborative, multiyear effort by 13 grantees and researchers from the National Geographic Society's Big Cats Initiative: Florian J. Weise, Varsha Vijay, Andrew P. Jacobson, Rebecca Schoonover, Rosemary Groom, Jane Horgan, Rebecca Klein, Kelly Marnewick, Gus Mills, Esther van der Meer, Vincent van der Merwe, Rudie J. van Vuuren and Stuart L. Pimm. The Big Cats Initiative is a long-term commitment by the National Geographic Society to halt the decline of big cats in the wild through assessment activities, on-the-ground conservation projects and education.

Derek Keeping of the University of Alberta, Glyn Maude of Kalahari Research and Conservation and Jorg Melzheimer and Bettina Wachter of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research are co-authors of the paper.

Images:

For access to additional National Geographic press-approved cheetah imagery, please contact ckingwoo@ngs.org.

01: Photo by Stephanie Periquet

Early morning, a female cheetah (HNP002) uses a high vantage point to look for potential prey.

02: Photo by Stephanie Periquet

Three grown up cheetahs accompanied by their mother (out of the frame) enjoy one of the few open grassland area in Hwange. This photo was taken in 2011 and since then, they have been monitored by the Cheetah Conservation Project Zimbabwe (led by Dr. E. van der Meer) and the young female on the left (HNP013) had had three litters of her own.

03: Photo by Stephanie Periquet

An adult male cheetah (HNP010) walks through the tall grass of Kennedy vlei in Hwange National Park.

04: Photo by Christiaan Winterbach

Adult cheetah scanning the plains of Mababe depression in northern Botswana.

05: Photo by Florian J Weise

Free-ranging male cheetahs checking their surrounds as they cross between farmland properties in central Namibia. Livestock and game farmlands support the majority of wild cheetahs in southern Africa and cheetah home ranges span across multiple properties.

Full Media Pack including image: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1a7ZzSufDS7F0vo3WveWMJfjw5ZDQJAga

EMBARGOED until Monday, Dec. 11: 7 am EST; 12 midday UK local time (i.e. the date of publication)

PDF of this Press Release: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1a7ZzSufDS7F0vo3WveWMJfjw5ZDQJAga

Link to the Published Version of the article (quote this link in your story - the link will ONLY work after the embargo lifts): https://peerj.com/articles/4096/

Citation to the article: Weise et al. (2017), The distribution and numbers of cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) in southern Africa. PeerJ 5:e4096; DOI 10.7717/peerj.4096

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As bees gain foraging experience they continually refine both the order in which they visit flowers and the flight paths they take between flowers to generate better and better routes, according to researchers at Queen Mary University of London.

Despite this, bees can be tricked into taking tempting shortcuts between flowers even at the cost of increasing the overall distance they have to fly.

Animals that travel between multiple destinations and return to a home base - like bees, birds, primates and humans - face a predicament known to mathematicians as the Travelling Salesman Problem.

The challenge is to find a route that visits each destination while travelling the shortest possible distance. Previous research, looking only at the order in which animals arrive at each destination, has shown that animals often find a good, or even optimal, solution but little is known about how they find that solution.

Lead author Joseph Woodgate, from Queen Mary's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, said: "Animals cannot simply inspect a map to find out where the best food sources are or plan how to get between them."

Bumblebees start out knowing nothing about the terrain or where they can find food, so they must explore the landscape, discovering locations one by one and then face the challenge of integrating their spatial memories into an efficient route.

"Only by monitoring every move they make as they explore and try to generate a better route, can we understand how they tackle this challenge", Dr Woodgate added.

The researchers allowed bumblebee foragers to feed on an array of artificial flowers and used harmonic radar technology to follow individuals continuously over every foraging trip they made as they gradually developed solutions to the problem of how to visit them all.

The result was one of the largest and most complete datasets on bee flight ever recorded and provided an in-depth look at route development for the first time ever. They found that focussing simply on sequences of visits to feeder stations, rather than the actual movements between stations or the way that routes develop, is insufficient to understand how animals solve route optimisation problems.

The study, conducted in collaboration with Rothamsted Research, was published in Scientific Reports.

Professor Lars Chittka, coordinator of the study, said: "Imagine a salesman from London who needs to call at Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness before returning home. From Manchester it is tempting to make the short trip across to Leeds, and from Glasgow it is tempting to visit Edinburgh, but a salesman who does that will soon find themselves stranded in Inverness with a very long drive home. The better solution is to travel up one side of the UK and return down the other."

The researchers presented the bees with an equivalent challenge.

Dr Woodgate said: "As predicted, our bees showed a strong preference for taking shortcuts between nearby pairs of feeders even though this meant flying further in the long run. However, they did not exclusively fly only to the closest possible feeders, and tried out different routes in a flexible way."

The tracks recorded by the harmonic radar could be used to visualise the routes taken by the bees as they foraged. The researchers developed animated heatmaps that graphically demonstrated how some segments of route became habitual while other explorations were forgotten as preferred flight paths were discovered.

The flight distance and duration of foraging bouts reduced as bees gained experience and this increased efficiency was attributable mainly to experienced bees flying straighter and exploring less, rather than improvements in the order in which flowers were visited.

However, the bees never became completely set in their ways and the researchers uncovered evidence that suggests that they use random processes to introduce some variation into their routes which may help them to try out different visit orders looking for improvements to their routes.

The results also reveal that efficient routes develop by parallel improvements of both the order feeders were visited and the actual movements of bees flying between them. In other words, experienced bees not only visited their feeders in the same order, but also flew along the same flight lines time after time. These habitual flight paths were straighter than the routes they flew when first discovering the feeders, allowing them to reduce their travel distance even when they were unable to visit them in the best possible order.

Co-author James Makinson said: "Understanding how small-brained animals like bees find efficient rules-of-thumb to accomplish complex and flexible behaviours has great potential to inform the development of artificial intelligence and advanced robots.

"It's also important to understand how bees and other pollinating insects search for food and use the landscape is crucial to managing the risks to pollinator services posed by habitat loss and agricultural intensification."

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The study was funded by the European Research Council and EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
HOUSTON -- (Dec. 11, 2017) -- When a forest fire decimated more than 3,000 acres of Rice University-owned timberland in 2011, biogeochemist Carrie Masiello saw a silver lining in the blackened trees.

Masiello is an expert on how carbon behaves in soil, and she noticed a vexing problem in both the scientific literature and findings from her lab: Charcoal is abundant in soil, particularly in fertile regions like Europe's breadbasket and America's Corn Belt, but while it's clear that most soil charcoal came from wildfires, it wasn't at all clear why it stayed there so long or how it got into the soil after a fire.

In a newly published study in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Masiello and colleagues, including current and former graduate students Lacey Pyle and Kate Magee, analyzed soil samples collected after the fire and found that charcoal behaved very differently from other forms of soil carbon as the land rebounded from the fire.

"We looked at all forms of carbon in the soil, both immediately after the fire and over a two-year period, and we found that it became more evenly distributed over time, which is a sign that the land was returning to its baseline state," Masiello said.

"Charcoal behaves exactly the opposite. It's distribution became more patchy over time, and we think that's because it's buoyant and gets moved by water and concentrated in low places on the landscape."

Masiello said it was not a surprise that charcoal was buoyant. In fact, the research team had specifically chosen flat research sites because previous studies had shown that soil carbon tended to migrate downhill over time. The surprise was the extent to which charcoal from the fire had become concentrated, even in the absence of notable topographic relief.

"It was redistributed on the landscape pretty effectively," said Pyle, the lead author of the study. "Rather than staying where it was initially deposited, it had a tendency to move horizontally across the landscape. The total contents of charcoal in our study sites didn't change that drastically over the time period, but where we were finding it changed quite a bit."

Charcoal's benefits as a soil amendment are fourfold: It reduces atmospheric carbon dioxide and pollution, improves crop productivity, allows agriculture in areas with marginal soils and makes soil more resilient to both drought and flooding.

In 2008, Masiello and study co-author William Hockaday, then at Rice and presently at Baylor University, began seriously studying soil charcoal after winning a $10,000 prize in the city of Houston's "Recycle Ike" contest in the wake of Hurricane Ike. The storm left 5.6 million cubic yards of fallen trees, broken branches and dead greenery in Houston, and Rice's team took first place in the contest with their plan to convert the wood into biomass charcoal, or "biochar," for use as a CO2-trapping soil amendment.

In subsequent studies, Masiello's lab has explored biochar's production, microbial impacts, hydrological characteristics and pollution-reducing effects.

"More carbon in soil is good, and as we think about ways to stabilize and increase soil carbon inventory, charcoal is an obvious option," Masiello said.

To get the most benefit from biochar, Masiello said, scientists and land managers need to better understand the fate and transport of soil charcoal, and studying naturally occurring soil charcoal is a great way to gain that understanding.

"We know that lots of carbon in soil is old," she said, adding that the ages of soil charcoal measured with radiocarbon dating "suggest that it's hard to decompose. But when we bring it into the lab, it turns out it's not that hard to decompose."

The findings from the wildfire study offer a new clue as to how naturally occurring charcoal can remain stable for long periods of time, Masiello said.

"It's possible that the mobility of charcoal on the landscape and it's tendency to become concentrated in low-lying spots could make it more likely the charcoal from wildfires becomes buried and incorporated deep in soils and that these deposits act as a kind of charcoal reservoir that releases charcoal into the soil over long time spans."

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The research was funded by Rice University and Chevron. Additional co-authors include postdoctoral research associate Morgan Gallagher.

High-resolution IMAGES are available for download at:

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_BIOCHAR-cmlp2-lg-1zpvuuw.jpg

CAPTION: Carrie Masiello (left) and Lacey Pyle. (Photo by Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_BIOCHAR-lacey-lg-22t82e8.jpg

CAPTION: Rice University graduate student Lacey Pyle uses a magnifying glass and tweezers to find charcoal in dozens of soil samples. (Photo by Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_BIOCHAR-hand-lg-1dczpem.jpg

CAPTION: When added to soil, charcoal can reduce nutrient pollution, lower atmospheric carbon dioxide, improve crop productivity and make soil more resilient to both drought and flooding. (Image courtesy of Ghasideh Pourhashem)

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_BIOCHAR-forest-lg-1bj5b0q.jpg

CAPTION: The Tri-County wildfire in September 2011 destroyed more than 18,000 acres of forest, including a Rice University-owned tract in Waller County, Texas. (Photo courtesy of C. Masiello/Rice University)

The DOI of the Journal of Geophysical Research paper is: 10.1002/2017JG003938

A copy of the paper is available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2017JG003938/full

Related soil charcoal research from Rice:

Biochar could clear the air in more ways than one -- July 26, 2017 http://news.rice.edu/2017/07/26/biochar-could-clear-the-air-in-more-ways-than-one-2/

Study: Biochar alters water flow to improve sand and clay -- Sept. 24, 2014 http://news.rice.edu/2014/09/24/study-biochar-alters-water-flow-to-improve-sand-and-clay-2/

Biochar quiets microbes, including some plant pathogens -- Sept. 30, 2013 http://news.rice.edu/2013/09/30/biochar-quiets-microbes-including-some-plant-pathogens-2/

Cooking better biochar: Study improves recipe for soil additive -- March 22, 2012 http://news.rice.edu/2012/03/22/cooking-better-biochar-study-improves-recipe-for-soil-additive/

Rice U. helps Houston lock up CO2 in Ike waste -- Dec. 10, 2008 http://news.rice.edu/2008/12/10/rice-u-helps-houston-lock-up-co2-in-ike-waste/

This release can be found online at news.rice.edu.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,879 undergraduates and 2,861 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for quality of life and for lots of race/class interaction and No. 2 for happiest students by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance. To read "What they're saying about Rice," go to http://tinyurl.com/RiceUniversityoverview.
HOUSTON - (Dec. 11, 2017) - Surgery to remove a part of the brain to give relief to patients with epilepsy doesn't always result in complete seizure relief, but statisticians at Rice University have developed a method for integrating neuroimaging scans to identify patients at high risk of continued seizures before the surgery takes place.

Rice statistician Marina Vannucci and lead author Sharon Chiang, an M.D./Ph.D. student at Rice and Baylor College of Medicine, worked with colleagues at Baylor, the University of California at Irvine and UCLA to develop a method for integrating functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans to find visual biomarkers that distinguish patients with the greatest likelihood of benefit.

Their hope is that with recent alternatives to resective surgery, including responsive neurostimulation, vagus nerve stimulation and thalamic stimulation, patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) can avoid anterior temporal lobe resection surgery that may not help them, or can undergo other procedures that are more likely to benefit them.

The study appears this month in Frontiers in Neuroscience.

Vannucci and Chiang built their model on data gathered from PET and resting-state fMRI scans for a total of 51 patients by the UCLA Seizure Disorder Center between 2007 and 2012. The center worked with Rice and Baylor to investigate suspicions that failure to attain seizure freedom after resection of the anterior temporal lobe in some patients with TLE originates in tissue connected through networks to the lobe.

Standard resection of the anterior temporal lobe cures or dramatically reduces seizures for many who undergo the surgery, but approximately 30 to 50 percent of patients continue to experience seizures after surgery.

Vannucci and Chiang previously used statistical techniques to analyze brain activity data from patients with epilepsy and control groups to gain new information about active networks in the brain. "We have been tackling this problem of trying to understand temporal lobe epilepsy from different angles," said Vannucci, a professor and chair of Rice's Department of Statistics.

This time, she said, they used the data to demonstrate that the recurrence of seizures after surgery, despite resection of the seizure-onset zone, may be due to either surgical disruption of fibers connected to previously normal brain tissue or incomplete resection of an epileptogenic network.

Their results identified a subgroup of patients with 5.8 times greater odds of experiencing postoperative seizures due to what the researchers suspect are differences in their underlying brain networks.

They suggested the occurrence of postoperative seizures could be due to remaining epilepsy networks after surgery. "This may lead us to better understand the brain networks that produce epilepsy and allow for the design of better treatments for those patients who do not have seizure freedom from the current operation," said Dr. John Stern, a co-author and professor of clinical neurology, director of the epilepsy clinical program and co-director of the Seizure Disorder Center at UCLA.

"Why some patients do well after epilepsy surgery and others who are similar in other respects do not has been an enduring mystery in epilepsy," said co-author Dr. Zulfi Haneef, an assistant professor of neurology at Baylor. "This study provides tantalizing evidence that the answer may lie in whole brain network interconnectivity."

Like the earlier study, this method was based on Bayesian probability, which does not provide definitive answers but "degrees of belief" based on the strength of the evidence. FMRI scans that produce maps of the brain's resting-state networks were also acquired from each patient in the study; the Rice team used them to help increase the amount of signal extracted from PET scan data.

"We vetted our model using data from all the patients, and then took one out to do a prediction on that patient's data, and then another one, and so on," Vannucci said. "We wanted to know if we could predict outcomes for one patient at a time, and it was pretty successful. Now we want to try the method on a bigger data set to see how robust the results are."

The Rice team is continuing to work with UCLA and Baylor to develop free software that neurologists and neurosurgeons can use to combine resting-state fMRI with presurgical PET scans, which should help further validate their results.

"With recent studies demonstrating the efficacy of less-invasive techniques such as laser ablation and neurostimulation, optimal selection of candidates for resective surgery is an important issue," Chiang said. "Improved statistical methods for integrating the various forms of imaging acquired during the presurgical workup may help in determining appropriate candidates for open resection versus other therapies."

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Co-authors of the paper are Michele Guindani, an associate professor of statistics at the University of California, Irvine, and an adjunct associate professor at Rice; clinical researcher Hsiang Yeh; and clinical nurse specialist Sandra Dewar.

Support for the research was provided by the National Science Foundation; the National Library of Medicine Training Fellowship in Biomedical Informatics, Gulf Coast Consortia for Quantitative Biomedical Sciences; the National Institutes of Health; the Epilepsy Foundation of America; the Baylor Computational and Integrative Biomedical Research Center Seed Grant Awards; the Baylor Junior Faculty Seed Funding Program Grant; and the Leff Family Foundation.

Read the open-access study at http://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2017.00669/full.

This news release can be found online at http://news.rice.edu/2017/12/11/presurgical-imaging-may-predict-whether-epilepsy-surgery-will-work/

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews

Related materials:

Statistic method shows networks differ in epileptic brains: http://news.rice.edu/2017/03/06/statistics-method-shows-networks-differ-in-epileptic-brains/

Marina Vannucci: http://www.stat.rice.edu/~marina/

Rice University Department of Statistics: https://statistics.rice.edu

George R. Brown School of Engineering: https://engineering.rice.edu

Images for download:

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_EPILEPSY-1-WEB-zbjipb.jpg

An illustration by Rice University statisticians based on a temporal lobe epilepsy dataset shows clear presurgical differences in the brains of patients in Cluster 1, who are more likely to be seizure-free one year after anterior temporal lobe resection, and those in Cluster 2, who are less likely to be seizure-free. The brighter blue regions of interest indicate greater interictal (the period between seizures) metabolic activity measured during PET scans. The regions are: (a) ipsilateral inferior parietal lobule, (b) contralateral inferior parietal lobule, (c) ipsilateral parieto-temporal cortex, (d) ipsilateral associative visual cortex, (e) contralateral associative visual cortex, (f) cerebellar vermis, (g) ipsilateral cerebellar hemisphere and (h) contralateral cerebellar hemisphere. (Credit: Vannucci Lab/Rice University)

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_EPILEPSY-2-WEB-wy7rgn.jpg

Marina Vannucci. (Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/12/1211_EPILEPSY-3a-WEB-2ecrovs.jpg

Sharon Chiang (Credit: Rice University)

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,879 undergraduates and 2,861 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for quality of life and for lots of race/class interaction and No. 2 for happiest students by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance. To read "What they're saying about Rice," go to http://tinyurl.com/RiceUniversityoverview.

Editor's note: Links to high-resolution images for download appear at the end of this release.

David Ruth

713-348-6327

david@rice.edu

Mike Williams

713-348-6728

mikewilliams@rice.edu
JUPITER, Fla. - Dec. 11, 2017 - Scientists on the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) who had previously discovered the prostate cancer-killing compound LNM E1 have now brought the family of LNM molecules even closer to clinical testing by "mining" the information stored in bacteria genomes. Their research suggests these hidden genes hold the blueprints for designing new, even more effective cancer-targeting compounds.

"This points the way toward a new therapeutic opportunity," says lead investigator Ben Shen, Ph.D., TSRI professor and co-chair of the Department of Chemistry.

The findings were published today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA.

Unlocking anti-tumor molecules in nature

The leinamycin (LNM) family is a group of compounds called natural products, produced by a bacterium that lives in soil. Until now, Shen and his colleagues were only aware of one member of the LNM family, a compound called LNM. By editing the genome of the bacterium, the Shen lab produced LNM E1, which they showed in 2015 could react with reactive oxygen species in prostate cancer cells, triggering death.

"So we knew the molecule was useful, but then what? We needed to make many variants to optimize efficacy in animal models," says Shen.

Unfortunately, synthesizing LNM E1 to make analogues has proven challenging because of the compound's complicated structure.

The lack of analogues led Shen and his colleagues to look to nature for help. Luckily, researchers have a valuable resource on TSRI's Florida campus, where Shen heads the Natural Products Library Initiative, a library consisting of purified natural products, partially pure fractions, crude extracts and bacterial strains collected from all over the globe that are available for screening.

By combing through this library and public datasets, the team discovered 49 bacteria with genes that appear to code for members of the LNM family. The researchers confirmed this finding through bioinformatics analysis and by isolating several of the newly discovered LNM compounds in the lab.

With this research, Shen and his colleagues now have an idea of the structural diversity in LNMs. They found that while bacteria evolved to have LNMs with many of the same characteristics, small changes, such as atomic differences in the building blocks of their core scaffolds, could make some LNMs more or less effective against cancer cells. The next step will be to study LMN molecule interactions with cancer cells to find out.

This finding represents a big shift in how scientists discover natural product drug candidates. Shen explained that for a long time, scientists had to cast a wide net to discover potential medicinal compounds, more or less by chance, in animals, plants, bacteria and fungi. With the more focused, genome-driven technique employed at TSRI, scientists can close in on suspected sources of a potential drug more efficiently, in this case, mining bacteria genomes to find the instructions for making LNMs.

"The technological advances we've made enable us to quickly identify sources of these types of natural products," says Shen. "This could dramatically impact the drug lead pipeline."

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TSRI Research Associates Guohui Pan and Zhengren Xu served as co-first authors of the study "Discovery of the Leinamycin Family of Natural Products by Mining Actinobacterial Genomes," which also included authors from Ghent University, Belgium; Central South University and Yunnan University, China; and Myongji University, Korea.

The study was supported by the Chinese Ministry of Education 111 Project B08034, National High Technology Joint Research Program of China (grant 2011ZX09401-001), and National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (grant 2012AA02A705); the Cooperative Research Program for Agriculture Science & Technology Development, Rural Development Administration, Korea (Project No. PJ01128901); and the National Institutes of Health (grant CA106150).

About The Scripps Research Institute

The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) is one of the world's largest independent, not-for-profit organizations focusing on research in the biomedical sciences. TSRI is internationally recognized for its contributions to science and health, including its role in laying the foundation for new treatments for cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, hemophilia, and other diseases. An institution that evolved from the Scripps Metabolic Clinic founded by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps in 1924, the institute now employs more than 2,500 people on its campuses in La Jolla, CA, and Jupiter, FL, where its renowned scientists--including two Nobel laureates and 20 members of the National Academies of Science, Engineering or Medicine--work toward their next discoveries. The institute's graduate program, which awards PhD degrees in biology and chemistry, ranks among the top ten of its kind in the nation. In October 2016, TSRI announced a strategic affiliation with the California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr), representing a renewed commitment to the discovery and development of new medicines to address unmet medical needs. For more information, see http://www.scripps.edu.
San Antonio, TX (Dec. 11, 2017) - An alternative animal model that mimics key features of the Zika virus infection, including its lingering presence in bodily fluids, has been developed at Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio. Acute infections in male marmosets, a New World monkey, resemble the human illness the Zika virus creates in people, including the presence of the virus in semen, saliva and urine up to two weeks after the initial infection.

The research is featured in a December 7, 2017 article in the journal Scientific Reports.

The primary mode of transmission of the Zika virus is through mosquito bites. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the disease can be spread through sexual contact.

Like 80% of humans infected with the Zika virus, most of the non-human primates used in this study lacked any apparent clinical symptoms. "Given the key similarities to human infections, a marmoset model of Zika may be useful for testing of new drug and vaccines," said Texas Biomedical Research Institute virologist Jean Patterson, Ph.D. "Having an animal model of Zika infection to study may help us identify places where we might be able to block transmission."

A year ago, Texas saw its first documented cases of the Zika virus transmitted by local mosquitoes. That handful of cases along the Texas-Mexico border likely won't be the state's last encounter with this emerging virus, according to public health reports.

Zika was first identified in Africa in the mid-20th century. It emerged as an infectious threat in the Western hemisphere in Brazil in 2015 where it made news for creating a spate of birth defects, including the devastating brain anomaly microcephaly.

While rhesus and cynomolgus macaque models of the Zika virus are being studied, the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is a good model since they are small (about the size of a rat).

"That size can be an advantage when testing experimental vaccines and therapeutics that are available in limited quantities," explained Suzette Tardif, Ph.D., the Associate Director of Research at the Southwest National Primate Research Center at Texas Biomed.

These monkeys have been shown to have a high susceptibility to infection by a variety of pathogens including Ebola virus and Lassa virus that affect humans, making marmosets useful for drug and vaccine testing.

Recently, Zika virus was discovered in serum and saliva from marmosets living in the wild in Brazil, suggesting that these non-human primates are "a potential reservoir for maintaining Zika virus in endemic countries," according to Patterson's report.

Scientists around the world are working to discover more about how the disease is transmitted from pregnant mother to the fetus, including scientists at Texas Biomed. The Institute works with the Brazilian, Puerto Rican and African strains of the Zika virus in its Biosafety Level 2 Laboratory.

"We don't know where it (the Zika virus) will emerge, but we know more cases will show up in the United States," Patterson emphasized. "It's befuddling the epidemiologists."

Zika research at Texas Biomed has been supported by numerous individual donations.

The marmosets used in this newly-published study are part of a colony of more than 2,500 non-human primates at the Southwest National Primate Research Center. SNPRC has a long-standing commitment to treating its animals humanely and with the highest regard for their well-being for the sake of the animals and the quality of our research programs.

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Texas Biomed is one of the world's leading independent biomedical research institutions dedicated to advancing health worldwide through innovative biomedical research. Texas Biomed partners with hundreds of researchers and institutions around the world to develop diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines against pathogens causing AIDS, hepatitis, tuberculosis, hemorrhagic fevers and parasitic diseases responsible for malaria and schistosomiasis. The Institute also has programs in the genetics of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, psychiatric disorders and other diseases. For more information on Texas Biomed, go to http://www.TxBiomed.org.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 7 (PTI) Danish luxury furniture maker BoConcept, which forayed into India last year by opening its maiden store in Delhi, is now looking at smaller cities as part of expansion plans.

The Denmark-based retailer is also opening a store in Mumbai and has plans to add an outlet in Bengaluru next year, said a top company official.

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The company, which has witnessed traction in tier II towns in the last one year, is also planning to have its points of sale either in shop-in-shop format or small brand stores.

BoConcept entered India through its franchise Zoe Concepts last year.

"We are launching the Mumbai store this week and moving forward, we are looking at another store, which would happen at Bengaluru," Zoe Concepts Director Navin Khanna told PTI.

He further said: "Now we are trying to pick up pace of opening stores..."

The Danish company is eyeing smaller cities like Ludhiana, Surat, Coimbatore and Kochi for its upcoming stores.

"These stores would not be standalone stores but sort of accumulated stores...," Khanna said adding that for big centres, it would have flagship stores, while for smaller centres, the firm may tie up with multi-brand stores.

Flagship stores would spread over 350 to 500 sq metres area depending on the locations while the brand stores will occupy 100 to 250 sq metres.

"Tier 2 cities are growing very fast and there is a hunger for good quality products there," he said adding these stores would come in partnership with multi-brand stores.

On being asked plans to tap e-commerce channels here, Khanna said: "We are available online in many markets across the world and waiting India to mature in terms of infrastructure capability to deliver."

BoConcept operates more than 300 stores across 64 countries.

BoConcept sells products for as low as Rs 600 for an accessory like a tea light holder, while a sofa set can cost up to Rs 16 lakh. PTI KRH MKJ

--- ENDS ---
New Orleans, Dec. 11, 2017 - Just in time for the holidays, researchers at the University of California, Irvine and other institutions are rolling out a new satellite-based drought severity index for climate watchers worldwide.

Relying on data from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment mission, the index adds terrestrial water storage (groundwater) to drought assessments, augmenting commonly used tools most often based on the amount of precipitation.

"Reliable information on the frequency and intensity of drought conditions is of utmost importance to climate and meteorological scientists and government officials - and to assess drought impacts on vegetation, food production and water resources," said Isabella Velicogna, UCI professor of Earth system science and co-author of a recently published paper describing the drought severity index in the Journal of Hydrometeorology. "This new tool provides for accurate and continuous drought monitoring, which is necessary for effective water management and impact assessment."

Velicogna and her colleagues are presenting their work related to the index at this week's American Geophysical Union fall meeting here.

The data set for the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment drought severity index covers 2002 to 2014 but will be extended with the ongoing current mission and the GRACE follow-on mission scheduled to be launched in early 2018. GRACE has been shown to accurately characterize drought events over the past decade on a par with such other metrics as the Palmer drought severity index and the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index.

The GRACE-DSI is exceptionally reliable, according to Velicogna, because it's based solely on satellite gravity observations, which enables it to provide globally consistent drought monitoring, even in places where ground readings are difficult to obtain.

The twin GRACE satellites capture data from a large footprint of the Earth's surface, permitting both regional and global-scale drought monitoring. The new index tracks groundwater storage changes, which affect soil moisture recharge and drought recovery.

UCI researchers have evaluated the performance of the GRACE-DSI in the continental United States by comparing it to the Palmer index and others that measure alterations in vegetation growth and surface soil moisture. Velicogna said it showed significant agreement with the other indices, demonstrating its usefulness as a drought monitoring and assessment tool.

"This new technique allows the climate community to draw a more thorough picture of the impact of drought in any corner of the world," she said. "In the past, we had a way of assessing meteorological drought by keeping tabs on precipitation and surface water. With GRACE-DSI, we have the ability to better characterize hydrological drought, which factors in all the water in the system."

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About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 30,000 students and offers 192 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $5 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www.uci.edu.

Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists.

NOTE TO EDITORS:

IMAGE AVAILABLE AT https://news.uci.edu/2017/12/11/uci-scientists-unveil-new-satellite-based-global-drought-severity-index/

Contact:

Brian Bell

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Isotope research could help steer the conservation of many threatened species

University of Cincinnati professor Brooke Crowley wanted to know the hunting range of the Henst's goshawk, a large forest-dwelling bird of prey that ambushes small animals.

Henst's goshawks are difficult to find because of the rugged, inaccessible forest where they live. Little is known about their population. But because of their limited distribution, they are listed as near-threatened with extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

Locating even a single goshawk nest required weeks of exploration by Crowley's research collaborators.

So Crowley decided to conduct an elemental analysis using strontium, naturally occurring isotopes found everywhere on Earth that travel the food chain from the soil to plants to herbivores and predators.

Specifically, Crowley compared the ratio of strontium 86 and strontium 87 isotopes in rainforest leaves collected across Madagascar's Ranomafana National Park to isotopes found in the remains of 19 partially consumed lemurs collected in or around goshawk nests to learn where the birds of prey were hunting.

Crowley, an associate professor of geology and anthropology at UC's McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, found that goshawks appeared to hunt almost exclusively at lower elevations in forest that is most at risk to agriculture and other human impacts.

The findings could help steer conservation efforts for goshawks and other vulnerable species.

"It's hard to observe goshawk behavior in the wild. This is a good, indirect way of tracking habitat use," Crowley said.

Her findings were published in the Wildlife Society Bulletin.

Crowley has been to Madagascar four times for various research projects. For this study, she partnered with an eclectic team of experts, including wildlife biologist Sarah Karpanty, an associate professor at Virginia Tech, who conducted fieldwork on goshawks for her dissertation. (Her brother, Jeff Karpanty, is a UC graduate.)

Karpanty scoured Madagascar's Ranomafana National Park, which protects 160 square miles of mountainous rainforest. The park is rich in biodiversity with more than a dozen kinds of lemur, primates found only in Madagascar. The park varies in elevation from 1,500 to 5,000 feet above sea level, which provides a variety of habitats for its many plants and animals.

But between the mountainous terrain and frequent drenching rains, finding even a single goshawk was a challenge.

"It's not easy. You have to cover a lot of ground on foot. You're in remote sections of Madagascar. So you try to get to high points where you can watch where birds are flying," Karpanty said.

Used in falconry since the Middle Ages, goshawks have a telltale white stripe over their eyes that gives them an especially fierce countenance. Goshawks inhabit dense forests on six continents, taking advantage of cover to ambush prey from small animals to other birds. Their short wings and long, rudder-like tails make them supremely adapted to maneuvering through the tree canopy.

"They rely on surprise," Karpanty said. "They live in dense, older forest. They sit and wait and then go into a quick dive after prey. They can tuck their wings to get through narrow gaps in the forest."

Goshawks are at the top of the food chain wherever they are found. Having good numbers of apex predators is a sign of a healthy or intact ecosystem.

Karpanty donned rappelling gear to climb 40 feet into abandoned nests after nesting season to see what Henst's goshawks were eating. They used a slingshot to fire a fishing line over a sturdy branch to rig the climbing ropes.

"I practiced climbing a lot at gyms. I was young, childless at the time and fearless!" Karpanty said. "My guides were really good with the slingshot."

Not surprisingly, she found the skeletal remains of several kinds of small lemur.

Conventional tracking methods of tracking wildlife such as using radio-telemetry were impractical in the park's rugged terrain, she said.

"We radio-tagged some birds but were unsuccessful in tracking them," Karpanty said. "You have to do everything by foot so we'd lose the birds all the time. From our radio-transmitter data alone, we couldn't know the extent of their range."

Karpanty sent Crowley bones from 19 lemurs she found at four goshawk nests.

Crowley also enlisted the help of lemur expert Andrea Baden, an assistant professor at Hunter College. Baden studies anthropological biology and has spent years following endangered lemurs in Ranomafana and other parts of Madagascar.

"It's tough. We're working in montane rainforest. A lot of people have a misconception that all tropical rainforests are hot. But this is cold and rainy. You'll have months of nonstop rain. Everything is damp constantly," Baden said.

Crowley has also explored this park on Madagascar's verdant eastern coast.

"The cold and wet got to me quickly," Crowley added. "I deeply respect the people who go into the forest and live there among the lemurs. I couldn't do it."

Baden studied a variety of lemurs, in particular the critically endangered black-and-white ruffed lemur.

"It's cat-sized. They're comical to watch. They'll come down to check you out and cock their heads to one side like a dog," Baden said.

Lemurs navigate the forest from the treetops. But the terrain is harder for their two-legged relatives on the ground.

"You'll be following animals and they can keep going in the trees, but you run into a cliff edge and you're stuck," she said.

"Lemurs are the most endangered mammals in the world," Baden said. "Unfortunately, what's left of the forest in Madagascar are these higher-elevation places because nobody can use them for agriculture."

Philip Slater of the University of Illinois and primatologist Summer Arrigo-Nelson with the California Institute of Pennsylvania also contributed to the study.

Baden and Arrigo-Nelson collected leaf and fruit samples of plants the lemurs were observed eating in different habitats and elevations in Ranomafana, recorded their location and shipped the dried specimens to Crowley for strontium analysis.

Researchers measured the ratio of strontium 86 and strontium 87 isotopes in lemur bones and the leaves collected from different forest habitats. These isotopes are released to varying degrees into streams and soil from the weathering of rocks. Plants absorb the strontium with other nutrients in the soil. Strontium then gets absorbed by animals when they eat the plants. In this way, the widely varying ratios of strontium isotopes creates a unique geographic signature.

By measuring strontium in lemurs and the many diverse habitats of the park, Crowley could infer where goshawks caught their prey.

Crowley used a similar analysis to track the movement of extinct mammoths and mastodons that roamed what is now Ohio.

Crowley said her findings suggest that vulnerable species could be susceptible to development pressures even in large parks such as Ranomafana, which is nearly 40 percent bigger than Ohio's biggest protected area, Shawnee State Forest.

"We make population estimates based on the area of protected land, assuming that animals are equally distributed over that space," Crowley said. "We may be protecting land that animals may not be able to use."

The study concluded that conserving and restoring lowland forest could be critical for the survival of goshawks on the island.

The research was funded in part by grants from the Fulbright Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Leakey Foundation, Primate Conservation, Inc., and the National Geographic Society.

Lemur expert Baden said the study's findings support what she has observed firsthand about lemurs and their predators. Improving or restoring habitat for goshawks will help endangered lemurs, too, she said.

"Lemurs are in trouble. They're in dire straits," Baden said.

Habitat loss is the biggest cause of their decline. And now there is an emerging threat: the bushmeat trade.

"The Malagasy people have a taboo against hunting lemurs. It's related to ancestor worship. They long believed that lemurs resembled their ancestors," Baden said.

Still, a 2016 study published in the journal PLOS One found widespread consumption of bushmeat. And for at least some of the Madagascar families surveyed, lemur was on the household menu, the study found.

Worse, because of its rich deposits of precious metals such as gold and other natural resources, Madagascar has been called "the next El Dorado." Foreign workers employed by mining companies have no cultural prohibitions against eating lemurs or other forest animals they poach, Baden said.

"Those taboos just fall apart. So now we're seeing a bigger bushmeat trade that is completely unsustainable," Baden said.

Karpanty said Madagascar can enlist the help of the goshawk for future conservation efforts. Predators such as bald eagles make good ambassadors for wildlife conservation, Karpanty said.

"It's easier to motivate people to conservation action when you're talking about interesting top predators," Karpanty said. "In this case you have an endangered predator and endangered prey, the lemurs. It highlights the fragility of the ecosystem."

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A concerted effort by Republicans in Congress to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act hit a surprising road block earlier this year: strong pushback against cuts to Medicaid.

How did a program once tied to a "welfare stigma" become so fiercely debated, transcending partisan divides?

According to new findings from researchers at the University of Chicago, Medicaid is now seen as an important part of the middle-class social safety net, thanks to nearly 60 percent of Americans being connected to the program directly or through a family member or close friend.

Researchers Colleen M. Grogan, a professor in UChicago's School of Social Service Administration, and Sunggeun (Ethan) Park, a doctoral student in the school, found that those with a connection to Medicaid were more likely to view the program as important and to support increases in spending than those with no connection. Medicaid provides health care coverage to nearly 68 million low income and elderly Americans.

The findings appear in the December issue of The Milbank Quarterly, a multidisciplinary journal of population health and health policy.

While most means-tested programs in the United States, like food stamps and public housing, are stigmatizing, Medicaid has proven resilient to retrenchment and actually has expanded dramatically over the years, most recently through the Affordable Care Act. The question is: Has it become something closer to a non-partisan, middle-class entitlement program?

"These findings suggest that, although partisanship is important, Medicaid constituents and their allies are primed to be mobilized to not only protect the program against retrenchment but also to proactively fight for expansion," Grogan said. "If Medicaid constituents can be sufficiently mobilized, then Medicaid can begin to mimic the politics of a middle-class entitlement."

The research uses the Kaiser Family Foundation Poll: Medicare and Medicaid at 50, a nationally representative survey of 1,849 participants. Using the data, Grogan and Park examined three questions: Are individuals with a connection to Medicaid more likely to view the program as important? Are they more likely to support an increase in Medicaid spending? Are they more likely to support adoption of the Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act?

They found that more than half of all Americans are connected to the Medicaid program either directly or indirectly, and are significantly more likely to view the program as important and support increases to it. They also found that more than 90 percent of Americans say they would sign up for the program if eligible.

For future research, Grogan and Park recommend probing more deeply whether people with different types of connections to Medicaid view the program differently and, if so, how and why. Further recommendations include whether state-level attempts to destigmatize the program by renaming it also serves to reduce knowledge and support for Medicaid.

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Concerns about biodiversity tend to focus on the loss of species, but a new study suggests that the loss of variation within species can also have important and unexpected consequences on the environment.

Many species play important roles in nature and provide services important to people. For example, many fish species are harvested for food, and many insect species pollinate wild and cultivated plants. The loss of these species may mean the loss of ecosystem services, which is a major motivation for preventing species extinctions.

Yet, a new study published Dec. 4 in Nature Ecology & Evolution found that the ecological effects of variations within species may be far reaching and often rival those of the entire species themselves.

"When we think of how human activities are impacting biodiversity, we are used to the idea that we're causing the extinction of a whole species," said Nash Turley, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Central Florida and a co- author of the study. "But what we haven't thought about so much is the impact of losing biodiversity within a species. We barely know what variations within species are being lost. The times we have studied it, we see there are a lot more variations of species being lost than whole species. Our findings should make us second guess the idea that it's safe to ignore the variation seen within species."

Variation within species affects how organisms interact with each other and their surrounding environment. For example, the size of a fish's mouth, known as its gape, varies and determines the size of prey it can eat. Much of the time, traits like fish gape are adaptive; they help organisms live in a changing world. However, much less is known about how variation within species affects broader ecosystems.

This study, which was led by Simone Des Roches from UC Santa Cruz, examined all available studies that compared the ecological effects of variation within species to the effects of species presence (removing the species or replacing it with another). The 25 studies measured a total of 144 different ecological responses from various types of plants, animals and fungi. Their results show that variation within species, such as the effects of large- and small-gaped fish populations on zooplankton, are often similar to-and can sometimes be stronger than--whole species effects.

On average, species tend to have larger effects on ecosystems. Yet over a third of studies examined showed that swapping different variants of the same species had similar ecological effects as removing that species entirely or replacing it with a completely different species. And nearly half of all the studies evaluated documented at least one ecological response that was more strongly affected by variation within species than by a species' presence.

"Traditionally, ecologists have focused on the ecological importance of biodiversity among species. This paper broadly establishes within-species biodiversity as critical for ecology," said Eric Palkovacs, an associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz and co-author of the paper.

The study suggests that protecting trait variation within species is not only important for the future of evolution, but also potentially critical for the functioning of current and future ecosystems.

"It's troubling because it suggests that human activities that impact diversity within species could cause ecological issues long before species go extinct," Turley said.

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Turley joined UCF in 2017 where he continues his research and teaches ecology classes. He has a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Toronto, Canada. He was previously at Michigan State University and has published 15 academic articles since 2011 in addition to presenting at several national and international conferences.

In addition to Turley, Des Roches and Palkovacs, the co-authors of the paper include David Post at Yale University; Joseph Bailey and Jennifer Schweitzer at the University of Tennessee; Andrew Hendry at McGill University; and Michael Kinnison at the University of Maine. This work was funded by the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity, the UC Institute for the Study of Ecological and Evolutionary Climate Impacts, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the National Science Foundation.
URBANA, Ill. - Farmers are stuck. Western corn rootworm can destroy cornfields - and profits - but populations of the "billion-dollar bug" have stopped responding to insecticides and the genetically modified corn hybrids designed to resist insect attacks. But there may be hope. In a new study, University of Illinois researchers uncover the genetic basis of resistance to western corn rootworm, paving the way for development of non-GM corn hybrids that can withstand the worm.

"Our previous research showed that there is no inherent resistance in the elite hybrids grown by most farmers in the Midwest," says Martin Bohn, corn breeder in the Department of Crop Sciences at U of I. "We want to improve native resistance to western corn rootworm in maize, without using transgenics."

The work was done within the context of a large, longstanding project called Germplasm Enhancement of Maize (GEM), which aims to diversify the tools available to corn breeders by tapping the genetic resources of maize accessions from all over the world.

"Some of my colleagues look into lines that yield more, some look into nutritional characteristics. We were screening for insect resistance. There were not that many, but we found some. We had to look into lines from Argentina, Brazil, and the Caribbean Islands to find it," Bohn says.

The resistant corn lines can't just be released here in the United States. For one thing, the plants are massive, leggy giants compared to the elite hybrids Midwestern farmers are used to growing. They're also adapted to very different environments, and wouldn't flower at the right time to produce reasonable yields.

By crossing exotic and elite lines, GEM created plants with a quarter of the genes of the exotics. Several of these lines remained promising with regard to their level of resistance.

But the team still didn't know why the new lines were resistant. "What is the genetic basis of resistance? If you find that, then you can screen other exotic materials for resistance much more efficiently and effectively, with a more targeted approach," Bohn says.

The researchers haven't found the gene for resistance - Bohn says the trait is likely too complex for it to boil down to a single gene - but the group has identified regions of the genome that appear to contribute to resistance, using a technique known as QTL mapping. There were some common themes among the regions.

"When we look at other genes in these regions, one of the common denominators is ascorbate biosynthesis," Bohn says. In other words, one mechanism explaining western corn rootworm resistance might be the manufacture of ascorbate in the plant. The ascorbate synthesis pathway produces free radicals that injure feeding insects.

The analysis turned up another set of genes that may be involved in resistance, but this one is a little more complex. When western corn rootworm larvae are feeding on roots, some corn plants release a compound into the soil that calls nematodes to attack the larvae. The second set of genes appears to be related to the manufacture of compounds that attract those nematodes.

"This is very important because plants can't uproot themselves and go somewhere else, so they have to use other mechanisms to protect themselves," Bohn says.

The results are a first step in introducing native resistance mechanisms into new elite hybrids, but much more research is needed before that happens. And Bohn cautions that the level of native resistance found in the study is no match for the power of transgenic insect-resistant corn, at least not yet.

"The idea is when you know where the genes with these small effects are located, perhaps it is possible to bring them into one common genetic background. If we can accumulate these genes, over time we might increase the level of resistance so that it makes sense for farmers to grow them."

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The article, "Quantitative trait loci mapping of western corn rootworm (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) host plant resistance in two populations of doubled haploid lines in maize (Zea mays L.)," is published in the Journal of Economic Entomology. Bohn's co-authors include J. Marroquin from U of I, S. Flint-Garcia and B. Hibbard from USDA-ARS, K. Dashiell from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Nigeria, and D. Willmot from AgReliant Genetics.

The work was partially supported by funds from the USDA-ARS "Germplasm Enhancement in 477 Maize" Project by Specific Cooperative Agreements and the Hatch Project ILLU-802-315.
Scientists at the universities of Kent and Bristol have built a miniature scaffold inside bacteria that can be used to bolster cellular productivity, with implications for the next generation of biofuel production.

Scientists at the universities of Kent and Bristol have built a miniature scaffold inside bacteria that can be used to bolster cellular productivity, with implications for the next generation of biofuel production.

Because there is a growing need for agricultural or renewable production of biofuels and other commodity chemicals to move away from fossil fuels, scientists have long sought to enhance the internal organisation of bacteria and improve the efficiency of the cells for making nutrients, pharmaceuticals and chemicals.

The research team, led by Professor Martin Warren at Kent's School of Biosciences, working with professors Dek Woolfson and Paul Verkade at Bristol, found they could make nano-tubes that generated a scaffold inside bacteria.

With as many as a thousand tubes fitting into each cell, the tubular scaffold can be used to increase the bacteria's efficiency to make commodities and provide the foundation for a new era of cellular protein engineering.

The researchers designed protein molecules and developed techniques to allow E. coli to make long tubes that contain a coupling device to which other specific components can be attached. A production line of enzymes could then be arranged along the tubes, generating efficient internal factories for the coordinated production of important chemicals.

Uitilising a form of molecular velcro to hold the components together, the team added one part of the fastener to the tube-forming protein and the other to specific enzymes to show that the enzymes can attach to the tubes.

By applying this new technology to enzymes required for the production of ethanol - an important biofuel - the researchers were able to increase alcohol production by over 200%.

This Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) funded collaborative project between the University of Kent, University College London and the University of Bristol entitled Engineered synthetic scaffolds for organizing proteins within the bacterial cytoplasm is now published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology.

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https://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/

For further information or interview requests contact Sandy Fleming at the University of Kent Press Office.

Tel: 01227 823581/01634 888879

Email: S.Fleming@kent.ac.uk

News releases can also be found at http://www.kent.ac.uk/news

University of Kent on Twitter: http://twitter.com/UniKent Note to editors

Established in 1965, the University of Kent - the UK's European university - now has almost 20,000 students across campuses or study centres at Canterbury, Medway, Tonbridge, Brussels, Paris, Athens and Rome.

It has been ranked 22nd in the Guardian University Guide 2018 and 25th in the Complete University Guide 2018, and in June 2017 was awarded a gold rating, the highest, in the UK Government's Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF).

In the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2015-16, it is in the top 10% of the world's leading universities for international outlook and 66th in its table of the most international universities in the world. The THE also ranked the University as 20th in its 'Table of Tables' 2016.

Kent is ranked 17th in the UK for research intensity (REF 2014). It has world-leading research in all subjects and 97% of its research is deemed by the REF to be of international quality.

In the National Student Survey 2016, Kent achieved the fourth highest score for overall student satisfaction, out of all publicly funded, multi-faculty universities.

Along with the universities of East Anglia and Essex, Kent is a member of the Eastern Arc Research Consortium (http://www.kent.ac.uk/about/partnerships/eastern-arc.html).

The University is worth 0.7 billion to the economy of the south east and supports more than 7,800 jobs in the region. Student off-campus spend contributes 293.3m and 2,532 full-time-equivalent jobs to those totals.

Kent has received two Queen's Anniversary prizes for Higher and Further Education.
An international team of scientists have confirmed the discovery of a major cause of dementia, with important implications for possible treatment and diagnosis.

Professor Garth Cooper from The University of Manchester, who leads the Manchester team, says the build-up of urea in the brain to toxic levels can cause brain damage - and eventually dementia.

The work follows on from Professor Cooper's earlier studies, which identified metabolic linkages between Huntington's, other neurodegenerative diseases and type-2 diabetes.

The team consists of scientists from The University of Manchester, the University of Auckland, AgResearch New Zealand, the South Australian Research and Development Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University.

The latest paper by the scientists, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that Huntington's Disease - one of seven major types of age-related dementia - is directly linked to brain urea levels and metabolic processes.

Their 2016 study revealing that urea is similarly linked to Alzheimer's, shows, according to Professor Cooper, that the discovery could be relevant to all types of age-related dementias.

The Huntington's study also showed that the high urea levels occurred before dementia sets in, which could help doctors to one day diagnose and even treat dementia, well in advance of its onset.

Urea and ammonia in the brain are metabolic breakdown products of protein. Urea is more commonly known as a compound which is excreted from the body in urine. If urea and ammonia build up in the body because the kidneys are unable to eliminate them, for example, serious symptoms can result.

Professor Cooper, who is based at The University of Manchester's Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, said: "This study on Huntington's Disease is the final piece of the jigsaw which leads us to conclude that high brain urea plays a pivotal role in dementia.

"Alzheimer's and Huntington's are at opposite ends of the dementia spectrum - so if this holds true for these types, then I believe it is highly likely it will hold true for all the major age-related dementias.

"More research, however, is needed to discover the source of the elevated urea in HD, particularly concerning the potential involvement of ammonia and a systemic metabolic defect.

"This could have profound implications for our fundamental understanding of the molecular basis of dementia, and its treatability, including the potential use of therapies already in use for disorders with systemic urea phenotypes."

Dementia results in a progressive and irreversible loss of nerve cells and brain functioning, causing loss of memory and cognitive impairments affecting the ability to learn. Currently, there is no cure.

The team used human brains, donated by families for medical research, as well as transgenic sheep in Australia.

Manchester members of the team used cutting-edge gas chromatography mass spectrometry to measure brain urea levels. For levels to be toxic urea must rise 4-fold or higher than in the normal brain says Professor Cooper.

He added: "We already know Huntington's Disease is an illness caused by a faulty gene in our DNA - but until now we didn't understand how that causes brain damage - so we feel this is an important milestone.

"Doctors already use medicines to tackle high levels of ammonia in other parts of the body Lactulose - a commonly used laxative, for example, traps ammonia in the gut. So it is conceivable that one day, a commonly used drug may be able to stop dementia from progressing. It might even be shown that treating this metabolic state in the brain may help in the regeneration of tissue, thus giving a tantalising hint that reversal of dementia may one day be possible."

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Prof Cooper is available for interview

Professor Cooper expresses his thanks to all the families of patients with Huntington's disease in New Zealand who so generously supported this research through the donation of brain tissue to the Neurological Foundation of New Zealand Douglas Human Brain Bank in the Centre for Brain Research.

This work was supported by the CHDI Foundation (A-8247) and Brain Research New Zealand.

The paper 'Brain urea increase is an early Huntington's disease pathogenic event observed in a prodromal transgenic sheep model and HD cases' is available on request

Other Manchester-based scientists who made important contributions are Dr Stefano Patassini and Dr Jingshu Xu.

Relevant papers include:

Graded perturbations of metabolism in multiple regions of human brain in Alzheimer's disease: Snapshot of a pervasive metabolic disorder. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (2016)

Identification of elevated urea as a severe, ubiquitous metabolic defect in the brain of patients with Huntington's disease. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications (2015)

Metabolite mapping reveals severe widespread perturbation of multiple metabolic processes in Huntington's disease human brain. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (2016)

Elevation of brain glucose and polyol-pathway intermediates with accompanying brain-copper deficiency in patients with Alzheimer's disease: metabolic basis for dementia. Scientific Reports (2016)

Evidence for widespread, severe brain copper deficiency in Alzheimer's dementia. Metallomics. (2017)

Proteomic Analysis of the Human Brain in Huntington's Disease Indicates Pathogenesis by Molecular Processes Linked to other Neurodegenerative Diseases and to Type-2 Diabetes. Journal of Huntington's Disease (2013)

Proteomic analysis of the brain in Alzheimer's disease: Molecular Phenotype of a complex disease process. Proteomics (2001)

Anyone with queries about Alzheimers should contact The Alzheimer's Research Society on 0300 111 5555 or visit https://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/

Anyone with queries about Huntington's Disease should contact The Huntington's Disease Association on 0151 331 5444 or visit https://www.hda.org.uk

For media enquires contact:

Mike Addelman

Media Relations Officer

Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health

University of Manchester

0161 275 2111

07717 881567

michael.addelman@manchester.ac.uk
ANN ARBOR--In sports, sometimes a player has to take one for the team. The same appears to be true in the plant world, where reduced individual growth can benefit the broader community.

The findings from the University of Michigan's Paul Glaum and Andre Kessler of Cornell University help explain the persistence of some plant communities when theory predicts they should go extinct. The work is scheduled for publication Dec. 11 in Nature Communications.

"We looked at how chemical defense cues from plants, meant to deter herbivores, can also deter pollinators," said Glaum, a doctoral student in the U-M Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. "The surprising model result is that while this can lead to fitness losses for individuals, the population effects can be positive for pollinators and plants under some circumstances."

Many plants, including the wild tomato species used in this study, produce chemical compounds to repel insect pests and other hungry herbivores. But those same chemical defenses can reduce the number of visits to the plant by pollinators such as bees, resulting in less pollination of individual plants and decreased growth.

"Biologists have puzzled over how such a costly defense mechanism can be maintained in these plant populations," Glaum said. "How would a plant population with such a strategy persist?"

Glaum and Kessler developed a computer model showing that decreased growth of individual plants can benefit overall populations and community resilience by indirectly controlling herbivore population growth. The results introduce mechanisms of persistence into communities previously found to be prone to extinction in theoretical models.

Tomatoes and other plants produce repellent chemicals called volatile organic compounds in response to herbivore attacks. The presence of these so-called herbivore-induced volatile organic compounds can make the plant less attractive to pollinators, which can reduce pollen deposition and negatively affect individual plants, an effect known as herbivore-induced pollinator limitation.

Previous modeling studies have looked at the direct effects of herbivory on a three-species community: flowering plant, pollinator and herbivore. Some of those studies predicted extinctions because growing herbivore populations would reduce the number of plants, limiting resources available to pollinators. In response, the pollinator population would decline, lowering plant reproduction.

A downward spiral.

But Glaum and Kessler reached a different conclusion when they included herbivore-induced pollinator limitation (HIPL) in their model, which allowed them to examine broader, more indirect effects of herbivory on plant population persistence and community dynamics.

"We show that the inclusion of mechanisms like HIPL into models generates the potential for unexpected population and community-level effects that can reduce the tendency for extinction and actually support community persistence," they wrote.

The modeling study suggests that the herbivore-induced release of protective chemical compounds limits population growth of both the pollinator and the flowering plant, thereby temporarily and indirectly restricting the growth of herbivore populations and preventing extinction.

Glaum and Kessler generated the model using data from a series of field experiments on the Pacific slope of the Peruvian Andes conducted by Kessler and his collaborators using the wild tomato species Solanum peruvianum. This plant is subject to attacks by a diverse set of herbivorous insects and is pollinated by wild bees.

The researchers measured both the release of herbivore-induced volatile organic compounds (HI-VOCs) by the wild tomato plants and pollinator visits at different levels of herbivory to determine how bee pollination changes as a function of the amount of herbivory experienced by a plant.

In the field, herbivory of the tomato plants was found to significantly lower pollinator visits due to the release of HI-VOCs. However, the modeling study showed that the mutually beneficial relationship between the flowering tomato plant and its bee pollinators--as well as the overall system--can persist through higher rates of herbivory than researchers had previously believed.

The work was partially supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Multistate Grant under NE-1501, awarded to the Kessler Lab.

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Online social networking has revolutionized the way people communicate and interact with one another, despite idiosyncrasies we all love to hate -- think top-10 lists of the most annoying people and habits on social media.

However, there are specific advantages to using social media, beyond the simple joys -- and occasional annoyances -- of reconnecting and gossiping with old friends about babies, birthdays and baptisms.

New research from the University of Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business examines the impact of major life events, such as getting married or graduating from college, on social network evolution, which, the study shows, has important implications for business practices, such as in marketing.

"Who Cares About Your Big Day? Impact of Life Events on Dynamics of Social Networks," forthcoming in Decision Sciences by Hong Guo, associate professor of business analytics, and Sarv Devaraj, professor of business, (along with Arati Srinivasan of Providence College), shows that major life events not only get more social media attention overall, but also bring long dormant connections back into social interaction.

The researchers specifically focus on two key characteristics of individuals' social networks: indegree of ties and relational embeddedness. Indegree is the number of ties directed to an individual. Those with high indegree centrality are assumed to be the most popular, prestigious and powerful people in a network due to the many connections that they have with others.

"We find that the indegree of ties increases significantly following a major life event, and that this impact is stronger for more active users in the network," Guo says. "Interestingly, we find that the broadcast of major life events helps to revive dormant ties as reflected by a decrease in embeddedness following a life event."

Relational embeddedness is the extent to which a user communicates with only a subset of partners. Social networking sites allow users to manage a larger network of weak ties and at the same time provide a mechanism for the very rapid dissemination of information pertaining to important life events such as engagements, weddings or births.

"We show that major events provide an opportunity for users to revive communication with their dormant ties while simultaneously eliciting responses or communication from a user's passive or weak ties," Guo says. "Increased communication with weak ties thereby reduces the extent of embeddedness. We also find that one-time life events, such as weddings, have a greater impact than recurring life events like birthdays on the evolution of individuals' social networks."

So why does this matter outside of our social media circles?

"Knowing this, advertisers may better target their ads to major life events. For example, a travel agent marketing a honeymoon package can target a user who has shared that they just got married," Guo says. "From the social networking sites' perspective, various design features may be set up to enable and entice users to better share their life events, like how Facebook helps friends promote birthdays."

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PITTSBURGH, Dec. 11, 2017 - Patients receiving long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain sometimes demonstrate challenging and concerning behaviors, such as using more opioid medication than prescribed or concomitant alcohol or drug use. A new study, published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, establishes expert consensus about treatment approaches that should be implemented when these behaviors arise.

Led by Jessica S. Merlin, M.D., visiting associate professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, the study pinpointed the common concerning behaviors, identified management strategies and established areas of consensus on the importance of each strategy.

"Due to increasing concerns about the risks of long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain and limited evidence as to their benefit, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain in 2016," said Merlin, who completed this research while at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. "These guidelines provide recommendations for monitoring patients with chronic pain on long-term opioid therapy, such as frequent visits and urine drug screening, but provide little guidance on how to actually address concerning behaviors."

Clinical experts from across the country who specialize in chronic pain and opioid prescribing completed each of four rounds of the online study. Forty-two experts participated in the first round, and their responses were grouped thematically to identify six common challenging and concerning behaviors:

Missing appointments Taking opioids for symptoms other than pain Using more opioid medication than prescribed Demanding or repeatedly asking for an increase in opioid dose Behaving aggressively toward provider or staff Using alcohol and other substances, including cocaine, methamphetamine, benzodiazepines and heroin

Of the experts who completed round one, 33 participants (79 percent) completed round two, which identified the management strategies they would use for each of the behaviors. Strategies that were consistent across behaviors included assessing risk and safety concerns, identifying pain symptoms, discussing the pros and cons of the behavior with the patient and providing patient education.

In the third round, thirty experts (71 percent of first round participants) were presented with the behaviors and corresponding management strategies. They rated each management strategy in terms of its importance to patient care. Of those who completed round three, 28 (93 percent) completed the final round, which used clinical scenarios to help participants generate consensus around the importance of management strategies where there was disagreement in the prior round.

Participants agreed that reducing or discontinuing the use of opioids should be a secondary step, taken only after the physician and patient had the chance to implement less drastic strategies. Merlin noted that this finding contradicts many of today's clinical practices, which often see providers reducing or stopping opioid therapy as a first step in response to governmental policies and licensure concerns.

Referral to other pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic therapies also were agreed upon as possible management options, but access to these treatments may be limited based on availability. Access to addiction services may be limited as well, and referral to these services was not indicated as a strategy for many of the concerning behaviors outside of additional substance use.

"This study is a step in the right direction toward providing guidance for managing difficult behaviors in patients being treated with opioids for chronic pain," said Merlin. "Additional research is needed to determine how these recommendations might be implemented in clinical practice and to understand the impact on patient outcomes."

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Jane Liebschutz, M.D., M.P.H., division chief, Pitt School of Medicine Department of General Internal Medicine, was this study's senior author. Merlin is funded by a K23 career development award from the National Institutes of Health. A full list of coauthors and their institutional affiliations is available in the online publication.

Contact: Courtney Caprara

Office: 412-647-6190

Mobile: 412-592-8134

E-mail: CapraraCL@upmc.edu

Contact: Wendy Zellner

Office: 412-586-9777

Mobile: 412-973-7266

E-mail: ZellnerWL@upmc.edu

About the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

As one of the nation's leading academic centers for biomedical research, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine integrates advanced technology with basic science across a broad range of disciplines in a continuous quest to harness the power of new knowledge and improve the human condition. Driven mainly by the School of Medicine and its affiliates, Pitt has ranked among the top 10 recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health since 1998. In rankings recently released by the National Science Foundation, Pitt ranked fifth among all American universities in total federal science and engineering research and development support.

Likewise, the School of Medicine is equally committed to advancing the quality and strength of its medical and graduate education programs, for which it is recognized as an innovative leader, and to training highly skilled, compassionate clinicians and creative scientists well-equipped to engage in world-class research. The School of Medicine is the academic partner of UPMC, which has collaborated with the University to raise the standard of medical excellence in Pittsburgh and to position health care as a driving force behind the region's economy. For more information about the School of Medicine, see http://www.medschool.pitt.edu.

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By PTI: Maligaon (Assam), Dec 11 (PTI) A day after a train mowed down five elephants in Sonitpur district, Northeast Frontier Railways today accused the Assam forest department of not sharing the movement of the animals with it.

A group of railway and forest officials was created on a social media platform sometime back for sharing information on movements of wild elephants near railway track, NFR Chief Public Relations Officer Pranav Jyoti Sharma said.

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"However, there was no information on sighting of wild elephants in the group before the accident," he said.

Five elephants, including a pregnant one, were killed around 1.30 AM yesterday at Bamgaon Tea Estate after the Guwahati-Naharlagun Donyi Polo Express hit them.

The drivers of the train were caught unaware by the appearance of the elephant herd at the place.

"The area is not known for elephant movements and is at least four kilometres away from notified elephant corridors," Sharma said in a statement.

While the accident occurred at km 135, the nearest elephant corridors notified by the forest department are at km 131 and km 144 in Rangiya division of NFR, where speed of all trains are routinely controlled and drivers are advised to be on alert, he said.

"Following the unfortunate accident, Rangiya Division has unilaterally imposed a speed restriction of non-stop 30 kmph at the site of accident," the spokesman said.

He said even if there were movements of elephants in non-corridor areas, railways has put in place mechanisms for monitoring the animals jointly with forest department.

"The herd of elephants entered the railway track by breaking barriers at a level crossing, but by such time the train was already in the section and it was impossible to stop the train," he said.

As soon as the loco pilot and the co-loco pilot spotted the elephants, they reduced the speed of the train without compromising safety of the passengers as applying brakes suddenly could have resulted in a derailment, Sharma said.

However, despite all efforts, the train knocked down five elephants, who were killed. PTI AMR/TR NN KIS

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Three renowned physician-scientists will create infrastructure that will enable researchers to accelerate clinical trials and find new treatments for Alzheimer's disease, thanks to a grant from the National Institutes of Health.

Three premier researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC, two Harvard-affiliated hospitals and Mayo Clinic have been awarded up to $70 million to build essential nationwide infrastructure that would remove a bottleneck in the development of techniques to treat Alzheimer's disease.

The new infrastructure will implement more efficient methods to recruit participants for clinical trials. It will provide centralized services, enabling Alzheimer's researchers to run innovative clinical trials, manage and analyze huge amounts of data and recruit participants from diverse backgrounds. The group will also share data, software, instruments and biologic samples such as blood, tissue and cerebrospinal fluid.

Combining brainpower to solve this intractable problem is necessary because everyone will be affected or will know someone affected by this disease in their lifetime, said Paul Aisen, one of the principal investigators of the National Institutes of Health grant and the director of the USC Alzheimer's Therapeutic Research Institute (ATRI) in San Diego.

"A new therapy for Alzheimer's disease has not been approved in the past 14 years, and none of the approved therapies actually change the course of the disease," Aisen said. "Scientists have made great strides in understanding Alzheimer's disease, and technological advances have placed us on the verge of a breakthrough. This collaboration will remove some of the barriers that have hamstrung researchers from timely completion of clinical trials in Alzheimer's disease and other dementias."

Aisen from USC ATRI, Ronald Petersen from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and Reisa Sperling from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital -- both Harvard-affiliated hospitals in Boston -- comprise the leadership team that will collaborate with others to create the Alzheimer's Clinical Trial Consortium (ACTC).

The consortium is expected to receive nearly $70 million over five years, pending the availability of funds, to build an initial network of 35 Alzheimer's disease trial sites at top universities across the nation. More sites may be added later, the NIH said.

"When we announced the funding opportunity for a new publicly supported clinical trials network, we envisioned a next-generation consortium, where shared expertise could enhance the ideas and approaches of individual investigators proposing and conducting trials," said Laurie Ryan, chief of the Dementias of Aging Branch in the National Institute on Aging's Division of Neuroscience, which leads NIH research on Alzheimer's. "I think we will have that now. I am particularly interested in how we can better engage diverse communities into research, so that trials can more effectively include and benefit everyone who is affected by Alzheimer's."

Specific clinical trials would be funded separately. The consortium expects to have the capacity to manage five to seven trials over the five years of the award.

"We must overhaul our current recruitment strategies for clinical trials, particularly to improve the diversity of our study participants and to reach people who do not yet have symptoms of Alzheimer's disease for inclusion in future prevention trials," said Sperling, who leads the Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. "The new ACTC presents a terrific opportunity to innovate in recruitment, cognitive assessments and neuroimaging for the next generation of Alzheimer's trials."

Software, data and networks galore

Alzheimer's disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. About 5.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's in the U.S. this year, according to the Alzheimer's Association. Without successful treatments, that number is projected to rise to about 13.5 million by 2050.

As a research institution devoted to promoting health across the life span, USC researchers across a range of disciplines are examining the health, societal and political effects and implications of the disease.

The NIH allocated $1.3 billion to Alzheimer's disease research in fiscal year 2017 -- $884 million more than in 2013. In fact, federal funds used to find a cure or treatment for this disease which kills 1 in 3 seniors have steadily increased over the years.

The goal of the consortium is to accelerate Alzheimer's clinical trials toward finding effective interventions that will treat or prevent this devastating disease.

The consortium will help scientists intervene early, before memory loss occurs, when treatments are expected to be most effective. Early intervention requires screening thousands of volunteers to identify eligible participants -- a time-consuming task that can result in delayed recruitment or under-enrollment. To speed up the process, the consortium will develop new and more efficient methods for recruiting and retaining participants.

"Some clinical trials fail simply because time runs out before researchers are able to finish signing collaboration agreements or recruit the requisite number of participants," Petersen said. "The ACTC will do the hard work of recruiting potential participants. These 'trial-ready cohorts' allow researchers to spend their time investigating hypotheses and gaining a better understanding of Alzheimer's disease rather than dealing with tedious logistics."

Vanguards in their field

Scientists who lead Alzheimer's clinical trials must assess participants' cognitive state, analyze brain scans and manage data -- areas in which the three principal investigators excel.

Aisen has 25 years of experience designing Alzheimer's disease clinical trials. He and USC ATRI are renowned for developing the gold standard for measuring study outcomes and for creating techniques to catalog massive amounts of data using biostatistics and advanced information systems. In a way, Aisen is like a traffic cop who helps direct vehicles so that drivers can avoid congestion and reach their destination without encountering roadblocks.

Sperling is a world leader in rethinking the Alzheimer's problem. As the project director of global, multi-site prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease, she has helped redefine the stages of Alzheimer's disease, including those before symptoms arise. Her research team has developed cutting-edge cognitive and imaging tools for therapeutic trials at the preclinical stage of Alzheimer's disease, before symptoms arise.

Petersen has made a name for himself in mild cognitive impairment research. He developed the first clinical trial for people suffering from this early dementia condition and has contributed a wealth of information about the stage of the disease when symptoms theoretically could be halted or reversed.

"This nationwide collaboration will move us closer toward techniques to prevent Alzheimer's disease," Aisen said. "Perhaps one day we'll be able to do a blood draw to identify individuals in need of preventive measures to stave dementia and Alzheimer's disease. We're not there yet, but we've had many promising studies that have provided bread crumbs on how to get there."

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The best decisions are made on the basis of the average of various estimates: this has been confirmed by the research of Dennie van Dolder and Martijn van den Assem, scientists at VU Amsterdam. Using data from Holland Casino promotional campaigns, they have researched whether it is true that when people make estimates, the average of their estimates is relatively close to reality. The results of the research are being published today in Nature Human Behaviour.

During the last seven weeks of 2013, 2014 and 2015, Holland Casino visitors could participate in an estimation contest. The participant with the most accurate estimate of the number of pearls in a giant champagne glass won the tidy sum of 100,000. In total, no fewer than 1.2 million people participated over the three years. "For our research, we analysed the three enormous datasets of these promotional campaigns. The data showed that averaging all of the estimates yields significant accuracy gains", says Van den Assem. "We also looked at the estimates of people who participated multiple times."

Wisdom of crowds

More than a century ago, the famous British scientist Sir Francis Galton researched estimation contests that were very similar to the estimation contest at Holland Casino. At a cattle market, visitors could estimate the slaughter weight of an exhibited ox. Galton examined the estimates made by people and found that, surprisingly, the average estimate differed little from reality. The principle that averaging multiple estimates provides a relatively accurate outcome--often better than most underlying estimates and sometimes even better than all--has come to be known as the Wisdom of Crowds principle. It is an important principle because accurate estimates are crucial for making good decisions.

Wisdom of inner crowds

Also interesting and important is the analysis of the estimates from people who participated multiple times. Recently, researchers have suggested that it is also useful to average estimates that come from the same person. Van Dolder and Van den Assem believe that averages from the same person do indeed work, and that therefore 'wisdom of inner crowds' also exists.

This is an attractive idea because it is often easier to make multiple estimates yourself than to involve various other people. For issues that require a high degree of specialised expertise and for private matters, decision-makers, in any case, have to rely on themselves to make the decision. Which holiday will you book? Will you stay with your partner or not? And will you or will you not move to a particular city? The research suggests that, to reach a good decision, it is better to think about it at different times of the day and with a few nights of sleep between each time.

However, in comparison, the accuracy improves more dramatically when you take the average of estimates from different people: the average of a large number of estimates from the same person is hardly ever better than the average of two estimates from different people. Van Dolder: "For the quality of estimates, it is therefore better if two people are both engaged in the same two projects than when each focuses entirely on an individual project."

Two heads really are better than than one, and for good decision making, taking the average of the estimates of various people remains the best approach.

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Washington State University scientists have created an injectable dye that illuminates molecules with near infrared light, making it easier to see what is going on deep inside the body.

The new dye will help medical researchers track the progression of a wide array of diseases, such as cancer.

Ming Xian, the Ralph G. Yount Distinguished Professor of chemistry, calls the new dye Washington Red. He and Wei Chen, an assistant research professor in the WSU Department of Chemistry, published a new study detailing the dye's unique properties and how it is made in Angewandte Chemie, one of the top chemistry journals in the world.

"Near infrared light passes right through the human body, making it almost invisible and making dyes that respond to this color of light perfect for bio-imaging," Xian said. "Washington Red is a unique and inexpensive dye that I see being put into use in many areas."

Fluorescent bio-imaging breakthrough

Fluorescent bio-imaging is the visualization of cells and other biological tissues marked with a dye that glows when activated by light.

It is used to observe disease biomarkers and other biological compounds in real time and helps doctors identify and treat blood clots, heart disease, tumors and other dangerous abnormalities.

Most commercially available dyes for bio-imaging fluoresce in the visible spectrum with wavelengths between 400-600 nanometers. There are several practical issues with these dyes. For one, molecules in amino acids, hemoglobin and other natural tissues and fluids also fluoresce when illuminated with colors of light in this region of the spectrum, such as green and blue.

This natural luminescence makes it hard to tell the difference between what the dye is targeting and surrounding tissues. Shorter wavelength light can even damage cells, making dyes of these colors risky to use in live tissues.

Near infrared light, or light with a wavelength between 650-900 nanometers, is ideal for bio-imaging because it penetrates deep into tissues without damaging natural cells or causing them to fluoresce.

Dyes that show near infrared light have proven extremely hard to make, however, and tend to be limited in application.

Xian's new Washington Red dye differs from these in several ways. The fabrication process is simpler and the dye is easy to quench, meaning that it is not going to shine near infrared until it has located and bonded to its target. Washington Red is also highly tunable. It can be modified to seek out and bond to a wide variety of molecules, gases and other substances in the body.

"Compared to other near infrared dyes, our dye is easy to make and can be modified to target many different biological compounds," Xian said. "It could be used to track the progression of a wide variety of diseases and to study specific biological processes, such as inflammation in the heart or the buildup of tumors cells, which could eventually lead to the design of new drugs and medical therapies."

Xian worked with the WSU Office of Commercialization to file a patent for his Washington Red dye so it can be used by researchers at other institutions across the country and world.

"The ability to light up specific molecules inside living creatures has many potential applications, Xian said. "We look forward to collaborating with other research groups and supplying them with Washington Red so they can pursue their own unique investigations."

Xian's research is in keeping with WSU's Grand Challenges, a suite of research initiatives aimed at large societal issues. It is particularly relevant to the challenge of sustaining health and addressing the onset and progression of disease.

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The Congress' performance in north Gujarat was better than the BJP in the 2012 Assembly election.

By Kritika Banerjee: After Saurashtra-Kutch and south Gujarat voted in the first phase of Gujarat Assembly election, the battleground has now shifted to central and north Gujarat which will vote in the second phase on December 14.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will face a stiff challenge from the Congress in north Gujarat. The Congress' performance in north Gujarat was better than the BJP in the 2012 Assembly election, with the party winning 17 of the 32 seats in the region. The BJP won the remaining 15 seats.

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North Gujarat includes the districts of Gandhinagar, Banaskantha, Aravalli, Mehsana, Patan and Sabarkantha. Farmers, Patidars, OBCs and tribals constitute the majority population in the region.

ALPESH THAKOR AND OBC VOTES

OBC leader Alpesh Thakor, who has now joined the Congress, may help the Rahul Gandhi-led party strengthen its hold in the region. Thakor is contesting from Radhanpur, one of the four constituencies in Patan district. In 2012, the Congress won just one seat in Patan with the rest, including Radhanpur, going to the BJP.

THE JIGNESH MEVANI FACTOR

In north Gujarat's Banaskantha district, Dalit activist Jignesh Mevani is contesting as an Independent candidate from Vadgam constituency.

While Mevani has not joined the Congress, the party has backed him and not fielded a candidate from the seat. The seat, reserved for an SC candidate, was won by the Congress in 2012. In the last Assembly election, the Congress won five of the nine seats in Banaskantha district while the BJP won four.

HARDIK MAY SPLIT PATEL VOTE

Besides the OBC and Dalit votes, the Congress may also hope to split the Patel vote in north Gujarat with Hardik Patel backing the party. For the BJP, Nitin Patel, Gujarat's deputy chief minister, is possibly the strongest Patel face in north Gujarat. The sitting MLA from Mehsana, Nitin Patel will again contest from the constituency.

In 2012, the BJP won five of the seven Assembly seats in Mehsana and the remaining two went to the Congress.

The Congress' strategic alliances with the young leaders--Alpesh Thakor, Hardik Patel and Jignesh Mevani--may make the going tough for the BJP in north Gujarat.

WATCH: Rahul Gandhi, Prime Minister Modi go head to head before 2nd phase polls in Gujarat

--- ENDS ---
From: Robert Skrob -- Subscription Membership Retention Expert For Immediate Release: Dateline: Tallahassee , FL Monday, December 11, 2017

" onclick="javascript: this.select();" onfocus="javascript: this.select();" width: 70%;" readOnly> Attracting new customers is the hardest, most expensive aspect of any business. Getting attention from your prospects, encouraging them to trust you and to take action, to do business with you, takes a tremendous amount of work. For a small business marketing nationally, it can be impossible to break through the clutter and get your message heard. However, a membership program instantly positions you as an expert in your field, making your communication welcomed by your prospective customers. It makes you a celebrity in the eye of your consumer. And, when it comes time to sell your business, you generate the sales price from your core business and you can sell your membership as well. My longtime client, David Lucca, was co-owner of an investment management firm. His firm worked exclusively with airline pilots, and he was looking for a way to attract airline pilots to become clients of his firm, versus all of the financial investment choices out there. David launched a new stand-alone company, the Airline Pilot Financial Association, to become the marketing arm of his financial management firm and provide great custom created financial resources for airline pilots across the country. I recently interviewed David for my Membership and Subscription Growth podcast. He has moved on from the investment management firm and the association he created, but what he has to share about his experience is astounding. He reports that, after starting the association, he grew his firm by over $150 million in just a few years. David shares some advice for how others can do the same. A Membership Establishes Yourself as an Expert Rather than competing like everyone else, you distinguish yourself by being the leader of your membership. David shares, Before we started the association, nobody knew who we were. We had a few clients who were pilots. They flew with American, and they had just come to us by way of referral. I decided that I would like to reach out to that group as a primary niche for our firm. The wonderful thing of course about entering a niche with something like that is you have instant credibility. So, when people say, Who are they? The answer was, Well, theyre the ones that started the US Pilot Financial Association. Theyre the experts on our retirement plans. By creating a membership association, David was able to jump in front of a long line of competitors. The membership association established a relationship of trust, expertise and authority with the members. When youre doing business in an area of heavy competition, where there are tens of thousands of other businesses trying to get in the face of your customers, this can be a game-changer. Its easier to be an expert when you tightly refine your niche. They didnt just narrow their target audience to pilots, but went as far as limiting it to the pilots of just 3 airlines. This narrow niche allowed them to be more specific in their message. As soon as you speak with one voice, that process of creating value that results in a transformation is just so much easier. Its just like instead of your brain going 10 directions, your brain just has one thing to think about. And the process of looking at their specific dangers and the specific opportunities that are in front of them, it all just becomes so much clearer as to what you can do to solve their biggest problems. Every time you go through another round of value creation, what youre offering to your niche is more and more powerful, advises David. Celebrity Power to Generate Referrals and Excitement No one likes salespeople. And, ordinarily, a chance meeting with someone who is looking to sell you something is not an enjoyable experience. However, everyone is excited to meet a popular celebrity. David shares a memory of being in line at an airport. talking to a man sitting next to him. A pilot came up behind me and I could see he was with one of our airlines. So, he started to talk to me and we went back and forth, and finally he said, What do you do? And I said, Actually, I write the newsletter for your pilot group for the 401K plan. And he stopped and looked at me and he said, Are you Dave Lucca? Yep! Oh, wait until I tell my friend, Bill, that I met Dave Lucca! If you try and be everything to everybody, you cant really write a compelling message for your website or your marketing materials, because youre trying to satisfy everybody and many of them have competing interests. But as soon as you speak with one voice to one group and they read it, and they know that you work with them, it changes everything. It makes your job easier. It makes your marketing messages more powerful. It makes their response deeper, David says. Get an Extra Payday When You Sell Your Business Sell your membership together with your core business, and get paid more because you sold your marketing system as well as your core business. David shares, When we went to sell the company, we hired a business brokerage firm that did a nationwide search, and we had a number of firms competing to buy the company. It was set up as the purchase of two companies. Anybody who wanted to buy the investment management firm would have been a fool not to buy the main source of new clients coming in (the association). So not many companies end up being able to sell their marketing platform too, because they dont think of it that way. As entrepreneurs, we tend to focus on income or cashflow, but the truth is value always follows assets. David adds, One of the best things you can do is break out the different value your firm has into separate holdings, even if its not a business. If its just an LLC thats owned separately, whoever buys it, if thats a valuable thing, theyre going to want to have that too. And the way most businesses are valued is, simply, some multiple of EBITDA or net operating income, depending on the type of business. As you break it out, not only will you still get the multiple of that operating income, but now youre selling other valuable assets. For businesses looking for new ways to grow, the marketing platform of a membership model is certainly one to consider. When you create a narrow niche in the market, it allows you to really get to know more specific needs and desires of your audience. When youre seen by your target audience as an expert, a celebrity of sorts, you will gain them and keep them as a client in your business. All that with additional income to look forward to when you choose to sell! To discover more insight into this unique marketing platform, listen to the full interview with David on the Membership and Subscription Growth podcast. About Robert Skrob The problem with subscription membership programs is that members quit, I fix that problem. For more than 20-years I have specialized in direct response marketing for member recruitment, retention and ascension in diverse subscription members environments including non-profit associations, for-profit publishers/coaching, subscriptions and SAAS companies. For an evaluation of your current churn rate and how I can improve it, contact me here . I discover there are often two or three quick wins you can implement within a week to lower churn immediately, lets talk about your quick wins


Sunday, December 10, 2017

Hosted by Michael Levine

Welcome to Episode 5 of the television interview show Without Notes with our guest, Susan Estrich.

Susan Estrich is an American lawyer, professor, author, political operative, political commentator, and feminist advocate. Estrich served as a law clerk for Judge J. Skelly Wright of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia and Justice John Paul Stevens of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1978-1979. In 1988, she was the campaign manager for Michael Dukakis 1988 presidential run, even though she had never before managed a political campaign. She was the first female campaign manager of a major presidential campaign, and the first female campaign manager of the modern era.

Estrich appears frequently on Fox News as a legal and political analyst, and also substituted for Alan Colmes on the debate show Hannity & Colmes. She writes regular articles for the conservative website NewsMax, for which she is a pundit. She has served on the Board of Editorial Contributors for USA Today. She writes a nationally syndicated print column distributed through Creators Syndicate.

She is currently a law professor at the University of Southern California Law School and a political science professor at its affiliated undergraduate school. Before joining the USC faculty in 1989, she was Professor of Law at Harvard University, where she was the youngest woman in the schools history to receive tenure. On January 10, 2008, Estrich joined Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, a law firm based in Los Angeles, where she chairs their Public Strategy in High Profile Litigation: Media Relations practice area.

Estrich and the former American Civil Liberties Union president in Massachusetts, Harvey A. Silverglate, joined attorneys representing two alleged Boston al-Qaeda funders, Emadeddin Z. Muntasser and Muhammed Mubayyid who were indicted on May 11, 2005 for lying about the true nature of their organization and their charitable, tax-exempt activities. In their October 5, 2006, motion for dismissal, attorneys Estrich, Malick Ghachem, Norman Zalkind and Elizabeth Lunt, argued that the defendants lawfully exercised their religious freedom and obligation to give zakat (Islamic charity). Their motion cites Chapter 9, verse 60, of the Koran, which describes those entitled to receive zakat.

In July 2016, Estrich was retained as legal counsel to the former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes  whom she met on the George H. W. Bush campaign trail in 1988 and whom she considers a close friend. Ailes lost his job after a number of women who worked for Fox News accused him of sexual harassment. Her attacks against Gabe Sherman, the New York reporter who broke the scandal, were negatively viewed by some who felt the representation to be inconsistent with Estrichs pro-feminist philosophy.
By Susan Crowell / Editor

COLUMBUS  As it gears up for its 100th anniversary in 2019, the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation has refocused its mission and outlined six priorities in a two-year strategic plan that starts in 2018.

More than 350 voting delegates gathered in Columbus Dec. 7-8 for the farm organizations annual meeting and policy development sessions. Another 300 members and guests also attended the event.

The events theme, Together with farmers, was part of a larger branding effort, complete with website and the new mission statement, to position the state Farm Bureau as a cornerstone for a stronger Ohio.

The mission statement  Working together for Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities.  was approved by the OFBF board earlier this year.

During the meeting, Executive Vice President Adam Sharp outlined the strategic plan and its goals: advocacy, membership, communication, financial strength, strategic partnerships and organizational excellence.

You want us watching your back while youre in the fields, Sharp said of the organizations monitoring of legislation, policies and rulings that impact agriculture.

Ag unity

Sharp emphasized the organizations role in building ag unity, because it crosses commodity boundaries, and said Ohio Farm Bureau has been increasing activities with other ag partners.

Nobody is better situated  nobody can do this, other than Farm Bureau, he told delegates.

We have to be looking out for agriculture as a whole, Sharp said, Were the ones bringing people together. Nobody else can do it. Only Farm Bureau.

Membership

Sharp was blunt that the farm group wants to grow certain segments of its membership, specifically active members. OFBF grew those members 5 percent last year and is on target to increase active members another 5% this year.

Gross dues income for the first 10 months of 2017 was nearly $8.9 million.

Policy discussion

Delegates reviewed more than 100 pages of existing and proposed state policies, which guides the organizations legislative efforts.

Delegates called for uniform state and federal nutrient applications standards that differentiate between agronomic, economic and environmental thresholds. They also support regulatory review that uses sound science to find water quality solutions that are compatible with productive food production.

Also among the proposals, they voted to support beginning farmers and programs that provide incentives for persons who sell land, facilities, machinery, livestock and other assets to beginning farmers.

The organization also strengthened its commitment to limiting the power of eminent domain.

Delegates also reaffirmed their work in local communities to prevent and treat drug addiction and will seek national policy to curtail the over-prescription of opioids.

On national policy issues, OFBF members strongly supported crop insurance and continuation of the harvest price option. They also addressed a vaccine bank for livestock, milk labeling and protection of pollinator habitat.

Elections

Frank Burkett III of Massillon was re-elected OFBF president. This will be his second full term as president.

Burkett has been on the state board since 2007 representing members from Columbiana, Mahoning, Portage and Stark counties. With three uncles, Burkett co-owns and manages Clardale Farms, Inc., a dairy and crop farm near Canal Fulton.

Bill Patterson of Geauga County was re-elected first vice president, and Cy Prettyman of New Bloomington was re-elected treasurer.

Six Ohio Farm Bureau trustees were re-elected at this years annual meeting: Al DiVencenzo, of Grafton, representing Cuyahoga, Erie, Huron and Lorain counties; Roger Baker, of Wooster, representing Ashland, Medina, Summit and Wayne counties; Katherine Harrison, Canal Winchester, representing Delaware, Franklin, Madison and Union counties; Bill Waddle, of Springfield, representing Champaign, Clark, Darke and Miami counties; Al Miller, of Marietta, representing Belmont, Monroe, Noble and Washington counties; and Lane Osswald, of Eldorado, representing Butler, Hamilton, Montgomery and Preble counties.

Jenny Cox, of Dresden, was elected southeast regional trustee, succeeding Patty DeBruin, of Millersport, who chose not to seek re-election.

Cox and her husband, Jared, own Cox Seed Sales, sell crop insurance and raise 1.5 acres of hops which they sell to local breweries in Muskingum County. They also are part of Cox Brothers Farm, where they raise corn, soybeans and wheat in Muskingum and Coshocton counties.

The Ohio Farm Bureaus Young Agricultural Professionals also elected their leaders for 2018. Wes and Brandi Montgomery of Fayette County were elected chair couple, Dustin and Casey Converse of Union County were elected co-chairs, and Liza Musselman of Pickaway County was elected secretary.
The Co-op has re-affirmed its commitment to British farmers at a recent farming conference, saying it is a "cornerstone" of its food strategy.

Earlier in the year, the retailer committed to sourcing 100% fresh British lamb and bacon and doubling the volume of PGI Welsh Lamb and Beef in more than 160 of its stores across Wales.

Its most recent commitment will begin in 2018 where the retailer will only source 100% British meat in its own label frozen products.

Catherine Bennett, Co-op Agriculture Manager for Beef and Lamb, re-affirmed the commitment to British farmers at a recent NFU Cymru County Conference.

Ms Bennett said: A commitment to local sourcing forms a cornerstone of the Co-ops food strategy. Supporting British doesnt just support the farmer but it also supports the whole community  and community is at the heart of our business strategy.

As part of our commitment to British lamb we have also widened our Lamb Farming Group, to include the Cambrian Lamb Group  further strengthening our supplier relations.

'Quality'

Alex Higgs, the newly elected NFU Cymru Montgomeryshire County Chair said British and Welsh food is "renowned for its quality".

Were pleased that the Co-op has recognised this and are sourcing more and more meat from our domestic markets, he said.

We know that consumers want delicious, simple-to-cook meals and its essential the industry continues to promote lamb, in particular, as a nutritious and great value choice. We must ensure younger consumers are aware of its versatility and ease of cooking.

Mr Higgs added: NFU Cymru is engaging with HCC and key stakeholders within the industry to help promote our world-class PGI product in the UK as Welsh farmers we are reliant on the domestic market and could be even more so following our departure from the EU.
Farmers have challenged the credibility of proposals to ban the live export of livestock from the UK following Brexit.

The subject of banning live exports was touched upon following a meeting with Defra Secretary Michael Gove and the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) and Conservative Environment Network (CEN) on Tuesday (5 December).

Mr Gove told the meeting: This Government is committed to the very highest animal welfare and environmental standards.

Once we have left the EU there is even more we could do. We hope to crack down on puppy smuggling and are looking at ways to restrict the live exports of animal for slaughter.

The Live Animal Exports (Prohibition) Bill has passed its first hurdle in Parliament in October. The Bill will set out a case to garner support from MPs, laying the groundwork to persuade the Government to bring about an end to live trade in future legislation.

Currently, EU law prevents any restriction on imports and exports between Member States. But after Brexit, the UK will no longer be constrained by these regulations on the free movement of goods and live animals.

Proponents of the Bill say that animals can suffer from exhaustion and dehydration, temperature extremes and lack of food, water or rest.

'Severely hindered'

But one farm group, the Ulster Farmers Union (UFU), has challenged the credibility of proposals.

UFU deputy president Victor Chestnutt said the economics of livestock production in Northern Ireland would be "severely hindered" if the ban was imposed and this would have "adverse impacts" for the environment and rural areas.

Northern Ireland is one of the most productive livestock regions in Europe. It has a strong cattle and sheep industry which is highly dependent on live exports to maintain the economic viability of the sector.

Five year averages for Northern Ireland show that almost 60,000 cattle and 485,000 sheep are exported live annually to a variety of destinations in Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland and also further afield in continental Europe.

Mr Chestnutt said: At this stage the Live Animal Exports Bill does not provide specific detail on how the supporting MPs foresee restrictions applying to Northern Ireland, but from our perspective we want to make it clear that any proposal to restrict live exports will be opposed by farmers in this region.

'No adverse impact'

To date, peer reviewed research studies have demonstrated that where livestock are transported in accordance with existing EU legal requirements, there is no adverse impact on animal welfare or the performance of the animals.

Mr Chesnutt said the rationale for these legislative proposals is "highly questionable".

He added: We are very much of the opinion that demonstrating high standards of animal welfare is crucial for the facilitation of the live export trade and we believe our exporters are meeting these standards.

In truth, the MPs and animal welfare lobby behind this legislation would be much better focusing their time on making sure third country imports meet our standards rather than creating a new regulatory environment in the UK which puts our businesses at threat.

The National Sheep Association (NSA) said it is "dismayed and disturbed" by the bill.

NSA chief executive Phil Stocker said: To me this suggests an unwillingness to work with the industry on practical solutions that really will improve animal welfare rather than just pander to the noise being made by campaigners.

For sheep, a ban on live exports would put an end to the majority of our live export movements across the Irish border when these animals may only travel short distances.
Most voters would support a fresh in-out referendum on membership of the European Union if Theresa May could not secure a post-Brexit deal, according to a new poll.

According to BMG Research, 54% of those with a view would back a second vote  to 46% against  if the UK were left with no preferential trade or customs arrangement with the EU after Brexit.

74% of 18-24 year olds would back a new referendum in the event of no deal, compared to only 40% of over 55s with a view.

31% of Conservatives would back a second vote, compared 70% of current Labour supporters.

The findings come after comments from Michael Gove suggesting voters will be able to force changes to an EU withdrawal deal at the next election if they do not support it, and comments from Tony Blair this week arguing Brexit should be reversed.

The figure is particularly high for Scotland, with 77% of Scots supporting a fresh in-out vote if talks were unsuccessful. That drops to 42% of people in the East of England.

A surprising one in five (21%) Leave voters would support another referendum if the negotiations failed and the UK was left to trade under World Trade Organisation rules.

'Severe affects'

In the run-up to last year's European referendum, the National Farmers Union (NFU) campaigned for Remain, despite research from the CLA showing that rural areas voted Leave more heavily than the national average.

NFU President Meurig Raymond said a 'no-deal' scenario would have "severe affects" for farmers.

The time has come for both the UK and EU governments to acknowledge that businesses and individuals across Europe will suffer if a deal securing an ongoing and closely-integrated economic relationship is not reached, Mr Raymond said.

A no deal - in terms of a transition period or the long-term future relationship - would have severe affects for UK farmers and growers.

With the vast majority of our exported farmed produce going to the EU any impacts on food production and farming would have severe knock on effects to the entire food supply chain, and ultimately the public.

Indeed, a report concluded that a no-deal outcome would lead to a collapse in trade, with a 90% drop in beef exports and 53% drop in lamb exports from the UK to the EU.

Average farm profitability could also drop from 38,000 to 15,000 a year in the worst case scenario as a result of policy and performance challenges that come from Brexit.
Sakshi Tanwar's Quote On Hina's Statement Goes Viral

Recently, an article on Sakshi Tanwar's quote on Hina's statement went viral. In the article, Sakshi was quoted as saying, "Hina Khan has not intended to demean me. I have seen the entire video too, it was some other contestant who stated that she didn't like my features and Hina just clarified why."

Sakshis Statement

The statement further said, "I don't understand why Hina is being targeted for no reason. I am mature enough to understand the editing tricks of the channel too."

Sakshi's Spokesperson Confirms Its A Fake Article

But Sakshi's spokesperson has denied it. DNA quoted Sakshi's spokesperson as saying, "This is a fake interview. Totally fabricated."

Sakshi Didnt Give An Interview!

"Sakshi has not spoken to any online or other publication regarding this whole controversy and does not intend to respond either. It is shocking that this article got posted without any actual interview and online posts are posting it without verifying the truth."

Kavita Kaushik Confirms That Its A Fake Article

Even Kavita Kaushik took to social media to confirm the article was fake. She wrote, "It's a fake article - confirmed by saakshi ."

Karan Patel

Karan Patel, who has been expressing his views against Hina on the social media, had entered the house as special guest. He lashed out at Arshi and Hina Khan for their behaviour.

Karan Takes A Dig At Hina Again!

Now, again Karan took to social media to take a dig at Hina (and her boyfriend, Rocky) regarding the fake article. He wrote, "Kya yaar #MissGrace ka pre-paid pyaar apna PR theek se nahi kar paya .... ."

Rohan Mehra

Rohan Mehra (Hina's Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai co-actor), who had entered the house as special guest, had suggested Hina Khan not to take names when they are discussing about other actors! Well, we hope Hina takes Rohan's suggestion seriously!
Engineering management services company Downeralong with its joint venture partner Ausenco has been awarded an OZ Minerals contract worth $312 million.The contract is for the engineering, procurement and construction work at the Carrapateena copper gold mine project based in South Australia.The initial works are valued at $100 million.Construction is scheduled to commence at the end of the first quarter of the 2018 financial year.Downer Chief executive Officer Grant Fenn said Downer is proud to be selected with Ausenco to deliver this important project which will play a critical role in boosting the existing and future copper export capacity for OZ Minerals and South Australia.Shares in Downerare trading 0.07 per cent higher to $6.71.
The Opposition is expected to corner the Fadnavis government over the alleged mess created on waiving farm loans.

By Mayuresh Ganapatye: After the Opposition boycotted a party hosted by the Fadnavis government on Sunday, citing its dismal performance on all fronts as the reason- it is set to launch another scathing attack during the Winter Session of Parliament starting today.

The Opposition is expected to corner the Fadnavis government over the alleged mess created on waiving farm loans.

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Congress and NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) had organised rallies in Marathwada and Vidharbha against the state government, which will culimate on December 12 (Tuesday) in Nagpur.

WHAT'S THE FARM LOAN WAIVER MESS?

On June 24, Fadnavis government had announced farm loan waiver of up to Rs 34,000 crore, ensuring that nearly 89 lakh farmers would reap benefits from the scheme.

But, the farmers are yet to avail relief from the promised farm loan waiver.

On this, Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil said, "This govt is not at all serious towards farmers' issues. They have cheated farmers. There are only two beneficiaries of this govt- Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray and BJP itself."

But the Fadnavis government seems unfazed and rather confident about its governance, "Opposition has no issue in their hand to criticise government. They have no clue what is happening in the state. Our govt is competent to solve farmers' problems."

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Farmers are risking fines of up to 10m and lengthy prison sentences because they are unaware of tougher health and safety laws, a risk expert has warned.

Judges could previously only impose custodial sentences in very specific circumstances, with fines in the lower courts limited to 20,000.

But laws introduced in February last year handed authorities the power to fine businesses according to their turnover if they breached the Health and Safety at Work Act.

Richard Wade of Lycetts Risk Management Services warned that farms with a turnover of up to 2m could now be fined as much as 450,000, while larger businesses, making in excess of 50m, could be forced to pay 10m.

And any individuals found guilty of breaching the law can be handed unlimited fines or face a two-year prison sentence, Mr Wade said.

Farmings accident record In 2016-17, 30 people were killed in agriculture

At 7.61 deaths per 100,000 people, it is the worst fatality rate across industries

The rate is 18 times higher than the average industry figure

The financial risks do not stop when self-employed workers or contractors are used.

The farmer will remain responsible, to a full extent, unless they have put in place a demonstrable system of checks and balances that will pass the liability to the third party, Mr Wade explained.

When third parties are engaged to work, whether on a self-employed basis or as a contractor, it will be up to the farmer to demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to ensure the other people are competent and can work safely, he said.

For farm construction projects, Mr Wade said the farmer, as the client, had specific responsibilities under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.

They have to notify the Health and Safety Executive [HSE] for certain works to commence and are responsible for appointing competent designers and contractors. All of which will need to be documented.

They also need to satisfy themselves that third parties are adequately resourced to work in accordance with HSE laws and have provisions in place for emergencies such as fire and first aid.

See also: Opinion: Has health and safety gone mad? Not really

Despite these risks, farmers appear to be unaware of how severe the new penalties can be.

Mr Wade said he had uncovered a worrying lack of knowledge among the farming community about the Health and Safety Sentencing Guidelines  particularly that fines were now based on turnover.

Our feedback from farmers suggests many may not fully comprehend how business-critical a breach can be.

It is no longer a slap on the wrist and a fine amounting to hundreds of pounds. Farmers who are lax with their health and safety procedures can expect to feel the full force of the law, Mr Wade said.

As well as turnover, other factors are also taken into account when deciding punishment, including the level of culpability, the risk of causing harm and the level of potential harm.

These guidelines are meant to act as a deterrent  and farmers should be aware that lapses in judgement, or a failure to take a proactive approach to safety, could cripple their operations.
The FRDI bill entitles distressed banks, staring at the prospect of potential bankruptcy, to restructure their deposits-convert them into equity or time deposits or any other instrument banks in such dire straits may deem fit.

BANKING ON DEPOSITS

The Financial Resolution and Deposit Insurance Bill would possibly have gone through Parliament without a murmur if it weren't for the contentious 'bail-in' clause that has stoked heated debate on whether this constitutes abuse of depositors' rights. It might even prod the government to raise the deposit insurance from the current Rs 1 lakh. In effect, the clause allows distressed banks to be 'bailed in' with depositors' funds rather than being bailed out by the government with taxpayers' money.

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In India, bank deposits upto Rs 1 lakh are insured by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC), a subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India. The FRDI bill entitles distressed banks, staring at the prospect of potential bankruptcy, to restructure their deposits-convert them into equity or time deposits or any other instrument banks in such dire straits may deem fit.

The bill, similar to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, is focused on companies in the financial sector. It seeks to provide a resolution framework to deal with bankruptcies in banks, insurance companies and other companies in the financial services sector. It envisages a 'Resolution Corporation' and a 'Corporation Insurance Fund' for deposit insurance, replacing the DICGC, set up in the early 1960s after two banks collapsed.

In India, norms for capital adequacy and liquidity for banks have also worked as early warning signs for the RBI to step in and avert crises. Instances of commercial banks going bust are few, and at a sign of serious trouble, the RBI has gone ahead and merged a weak bank with a strong bank. In 2014, when the United Bank of India crisis began to unfold, as its tier-1 capital fell below the statutory requirement, the RBI curbed further lending to protect depositors' interests.

However, in recent years there has been a sharp deterioration in the financial health of public sector banks. The RBI's June Financial Stability Report makes sober reading: It warns that the gross bad loan ratio will rise to 10.2 per cent of the total loan book in March 2018 from 9.6 per cent in March 2017. For public sector banks, this ratio could go up to 14.2 per cent by March 2018, up from 11.4 per cent in March 2017.

In his 2016-17 budget speech, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley spoke of a systemic vacuum with regard to bankruptcy situations in financial firms. A committee was set up, under Ajit Tyagi, additional secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, to prepare a draft FRDI bill, on which the finance ministry sought comments till October 31, before the Cabinet approved it for introduction in Parliament.

Among other issues, the bill has raised questions about how the proposed Resolution Corporation, a parallel body to monitor the health of banks, may impinge on the RBI's mandate to be that watchdog. There is no mention of a revised deposit insurance threshold, and the current Rs 1 lakh limit is abysmally low, especially in a scenario where a 'bail-in' has been legitimised.

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Critics of the bill say the government is trying to do too much too soon vis-a-vis distressed banks. "Trying to resolve the NPA problem in six months is taking on too much after years of inaction," says a Mumbai-based economist preferring anonymity. But the government probably has an eye on further improving India's 'ease of doing business' rankings, and will know that a bill empowering creditors' rights will bolster its image with potential investors. It will also prod depositors to consider a bank's risk profile before parking their deposits with it.

In the face of strident criticism, the government has hinted at a review of the bill. Chances are it will be referred to a select committee, officialese for sending it into the freezer.

--- ENDS ---
Samsung continues to lead Vietnams smartphone market: Counterpoint News oi -Priyanka The smartphone shipments grew 12 percent sequentially but remained flat annually in Q3 2017, and the overall handset market (including feature phones) increased by 17 percent year on year.

According to the latest research from Counterpoint's Market Monitor service, Samsung continues to lead Vietnam's smartphone market with a market share of 43 percent, while Nokia and iTel enter top five rankings in Vietnam within a year of launch.

The report said that the smartphone shipments grew 12 percent sequentially but remained flat annually in Q3 2017, and the overall handset market (including feature phones) increased by 17 percent year on year.

Commenting on the findings, Tarun Pathak, Associate Director at Counterpoint Research said, "Vietnam is one of the key markets for handset brands in the South-East Asia region. Over 30 smartphone players are competing in a rapidly changing competitive landscape. The third quarter saw some dramatic shifts and the expansion of new players in the country. Nokia HMD and iTel, which entered Vietnam at the beginning of the year, have quickly escalated to the second and fifth positions in the overall handset rankings and fourth and fifth in the smartphone segment. These brands captured the share from local brands, whose collective share fell to single digits (8 percent) for the first time ever."

Oppo is the second largest smartphone brand in the country, capturing 22 percent of the market. Almost 60 percent of its sales were driven by its bestselling mid-segment model A37 and brands like Vivo are scaling up fast as they increase their portfolio and distribution presence, Counterpoint added.

Shobhit Srivastava, Research Analyst at Counterpoint Research said, "Vietnam's smartphone market is driven by the fast-growing $100-$150 price segment which is contributing to almost third of the shipments. Apart from this the premium smartphone segment ($400) continues to do well in Vietnam, mainly driven by Samsung and Apple. The success of the premium segment is due to a growing trend of paying for flagship devices on installment schemes at zero interest. Samsung led the premium segment in Q3 2017 with 43 percent market share followed closely by Apple with 41 percent market share."

Vietnam is one of the best-performing countries in the SEA region for Apple. It is scaling both its offline and online presence in the country where it currently has 15 Apple authorized stores. However, gray market sales of iPhones continue to be a big challenge for the company to tackle.

Best Mobiles in India

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This is the place for the latest information about our work here at Glaucoma Research Foundation and for current events in the world of eye health. All breakthroughs and insights are made possible through the dedication of researchers, and through the continued financial support and active involvement of the community.
Palestine to ask the UN to issue a resolution on Trump's al-Quds decision: Palestinian FM

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 05:55PM

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki says he will seek the United Nations Security Council's resolution over US President Donald Trump's recent provocative decision on recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as Israel's "capital."

"The United States' decision is illegal and illegitimate. It shows how biased and hostile it is and that it has positioned itself as a party to the conflict rather than as a mediator," the Palestinian top diplomat told a news conference held ahead of the Arab foreign ministers' meeting in the Egyptian capital of Cairo on Saturday.

On Wednesday, Trump announced his contentious decision and ordered that work on the relocation of the American embassy from Tel Aviv to al-Quds begin.

The provocative declaration sent shockwaves throughout the Muslim world, and even prompted stern warnings from Washington's allies in the West that it would bring more chaos to the already tense region.

Maliki further said Washington had decided to isolate itself from the international community and had moved to be part of the rogue minority side by side with the occupation entity of Israel.

"We came today to attend the emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the joint request of Jordan and Palestine to discuss this issue and will issue a set of resolutions on this matter after the meeting of the Arab League," he added.

Tel Aviv lays claim to the entire city as its "capital," while Palestinians want its eastern part as the capital of their future state.

In reaction to the announcement, Palestinians have staged rallies across the West Bank, Jerusalem al-Quds and Gaza during the past few days.

Several people have already lost their lives as Israel security forces attacked Palestinians' protesting gatherings. At least 20 Palestinians sustained injuries during heavy clashes between Israeli forces and protesters rallying in the occupied West Bank on Saturday.

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By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) Keen on promoting cruise tourism on a mega scale, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari today said talks are on with Singapore for cruise connectivity.

India has huge potential for cruise tourism and efforts in this direction could boost it from 80 ship per annum to 900, the shipping minister said.

"The cruises from India could go to Singapore, Philipines and Thailand and the projects will be developed on PPP (public private partnership) mode," the minister said on the sidelines of an event.

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Cruise terminals are being built at major ports and in Mumbai alone Rs 1,000 crore is being spent to build a cruise terminal, Gadkari added.

India, with a 7,500 km of coastline, has taken some steps to promote cruise tourism that includes relaxation of policies and roping in global consultants.

He had earlier said that a policy was in making to put India on the global cruise map -- both for oceans and rivers -- which is seen to create about 2.5 lakh jobs and boost growth.

India saw 1.76 lakh cruise passengers in 2016-17, a merely 0.5 per cent of the global pie. Domestic cruise passengers are estimated to grow to 1.5 million by 2031-32.

Of the 12 major ports, only five -- Mumbai, Goa, Cochin, New Mangalore and Chennai -- have facilities to berth international cruise ships. PTI NAM BAL

--- ENDS ---
Turkish president censures Trump's Jerusalem al-Quds announcement

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 04:37PM

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has slammed US President Donald Trump's announcement on recognizing occupied Jerusalem al-Quds as the capital of the Israeli regime, saying the move was a "provocation."

"This decision is entirely provocation," said Erdogan on Saturday, while urging Muslims who revere eastern Jerusalem al-Quds, as it hosts Islam's third holiest site, to be careful to "not give an excuse to the occupiers by being provoked when they are completely right."

Turkey has called for an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to discuss Washington's move. Ankara had warned before Trump made his declaration on December 6 that any change in the status quo of the city would lead to a new catastrophe in the Middle East.

Erdogan said the OIC summit in Turkey on Wednesday would convey the message that Washington should swiftly reverse its decision.

"I believe that the (OIC) summit and the unity that will be shown in that summit will convey the necessary message to some people. They need to turn back before it's too late," Erdogan said, adding, "We will never give our consent to this decision that tramples Muslim and Christian rights on Jerusalem [al-Quds]."

Sources in the Turkish presidency said Saturday that Erdogan and French President Emmanuel Macron had spoken on the phone over the case. They said the two leaders agreed to work together to persuade the US to reconsider its decision.

Jerusalem al-Quds is under Israel's control. The international community has designated the regime's grip on the eastern part of the city, which came after the Six-Day War of 1967, as illegal while urging talks to decide the fate of the entire city in any future peace deal.

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At least 3 soldiers killed in Taliban attack on checkpoint in eastern Afghanistan

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 02:19PM

At least three soldiers have been killed after Taliban militants launched an attack on a checkpoint in Afghanistan's eastern province of Ghazni.

At least two other soldiers were injured in the gun battles that occurred in the early hours of Saturday, said Arif Noori, a spokesman for the provincial governor, later in the day.

He added that eight Taliban militants had been killed in the clashes and more than 10 others had been wounded.

A few hours after the ambush, the Taliban militant group claimed responsibility for the deadly ambush, claiming that its militants were able to overrun the checkpoint and seize weapons and ammunition.

Back on November 19, the militant outfit launched coordinated attacks on three checkpoints in the western province of Farah, killing six policemen and wounding eight others.

Taliban militants have intensified their attacks on security forces and foreign troops over the past two years. In October, the militants launched a number of deadly assaults on a number of checkpoints and military bases across the war-ravaged country, leaving over 100 soldiers dead and dozens others injured.

The Taliban, mostly based in the south and east of Afghanistan, has been behind many attacks in the north of the country in the recent past.

Afghanistan is engulfed by violence and many parts of the country remain plagued by militancy despite the presence of foreign troops. The United States and its NATO allies invaded the country as part of Washington's so-called war on terror in 2001, which toppled a Taliban regime.

Over the past 16 years, the Taliban have been engaged in militancy across Afghanistan, killing and displacing government officials, security forces, and civilians.

The Takfiri Daesh terrorist group has also more recently gained a foothold in the crisis-hit country.

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Saudi Arabia bombards Yemeni TV station, kills 4

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 10:07AM

The Saudi-led coalition waging war on Yemen has attacked the headquarters of the Yemen al-Youm TV channel in the capital, Sana'a, killing four people and injuring five others.

Yemen's al-Masirah television network reported that in addition to the casualties, the Friday Saudi air raids caused serious damage to the building of the TV station and its equipment.

The building of the Yemen al-Youm TV channel had been targeted twice by Saudi jets over the last week.

The TV station was affiliated with the General People's Congress (GPC) of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was killed on Monday.

Houthi fighters took over the TV station following clashes with the supporters of Saleh, who broke ranks with the Houthis in favor of Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi regime and its allies have been incessantly pounding Yemen since March 2015 in an attempt to crush the Houthi Ansarullah movement and reinstall a former regime that was staunchly allied with Riyadh. But the coalition has achieved neither of its goals.

The Saudi war, which has been accompanied by a land, naval, and aerial blockade of Yemen, has so far killed over 12,000 people and caused one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in recent history.

The Saudi-led coalition has intensified its airstrikes on Yemen after Saleh's death.

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UN chief slams killing of peacekeepers in Congo, calls carnage 'war crime'

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 12:57AM

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has strongly denounced a deadly attack, allegedly carried out by a Ugandan-based rebel group, against the world body's peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which claimed the lives of over a dozen UN troops in the African country.

"These deliberate attacks against UN peacekeepers are unacceptable and constitute a war crime," said Guterres in a statement on Friday, adding, "I condemn this attack unequivocally."

Late on Thursday, suspected members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group attacked the Company Operating Base, run by the MONUSCO (the UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC), at Semuliki in Beni territory, and engaged in a three-hour-long fierce gun battle with the peacekeepers at the base, killing at least 14 blue helmets and wounding more than 50 others, a number of them critically.

Most of the slain peacekeepers were from Tanzania while at least five of them were Congolese.

"These brave women and men are putting their lives on the line every day across the world to serve peace and to protect civilians," Guterres added, extending condolences to the families and loved ones of those killed and wishing the injured a speedy recovery.

He also called on the DRC authorities to launch a probe into the brutal attack, which he described as the "worst attack" on UN peacekeepers in recent history, to swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice. "There must be no impunity for such assaults, here or anywhere else," Guterres added.

The restive North Kivu region, situated in eastern Congo, has experienced a number of attacks on UN peacekeeping troops. Back in October, two UN blue helmets were killed and 18 others sustained injuries when their base was attacked by the ADF armed group.

The DRC had one of the most brutal colonial rules before undergoing decades of corrupt dictatorship and back-to-back civil wars that left the mineral-rich country poor and politically unstable.

In 2006, the UN mission helped carry out Congo's first free and fair elections in 46 years, paving the way for President Joseph Kabila to be elected for a five-year term. Kabila, however, refused to step down after his second elected term officially expired on December 20, 2016, prompting deadly violence across the African state.

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World Powers Warn Iran, Saudi Arabia Not To Meddle In Lebanon

RFE/RL December 09, 2017

World powers are pushing Saudi Arabia and Iran to stop interfering in Lebanon's politics while urging Iranian ally Hizballah to rein in its military activities in neighboring states.

The International Lebanon Support Group, a body that includes the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States -- met in Paris on December 8 with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri in an effort to help him shore up the nation's shaky governing coalition.

Hariri set off a crisis in the nation last month when he announced he was resigning while on a trip to Saudi Arabia, saying he feared assassination and laying the blame on Iran and Hizballah.

Hariri charged that Hizballah, which is member of the country's ruling coalition, has been unwilling to abide by the country's policy of neutrality in regional conflicts. Hizballah and Iran have for years backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his civil war with Sunni rebels.

After international pressure and negotiations between Lebanon's political factions, Hariri withdrew his resignation and on December 5 his coalition government reaffirmed its policy of staying out of conflicts in Arab states.

The world powers at the Paris meeting, which included Germany, Italy, and Egypt, sought to bolster the Lebanese government's renewed resolve with a warning to Saudi Arabia and Iran not to meddle in the small Mediterranean nation's affairs.

While predominantly Shi'ite Iran has backed Hizballah and its Shi'ite militias in Lebanon and Syria, Hariri, who is a Sunni Muslim, has received support from Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Arab nations that fear Iran's growing power in the region.

"It is essential that all of the parties in Lebanon and regional actors respect the cardinal principle of non-interference" in other countries, said French President Emmanuel Macron, who opened the meeting and for weeks has worked to resolve the Lebanon crisis along with other conflicts in the region.

"Lebanon's stability is not only crucial for its inhabitants but for the entire region," Macron said, praising the small multi-faith country as a model of pluralism in the Middle East.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said world powers had endorsed Lebanon's policy of "disassociation" from regional conflicts, and he said that it should "apply to everyone -- inside and outside" the country.

Referring specifically to both Iran and Saudi Arabia, Le Drian urged all sides not to "import regional tensions" into Lebanon.

Hariri said that any breach of the policy of non-interference would drag Lebanon back into the "danger zone."

"The disassociation policy is in the overarching interest of Lebanon," he said.

In a statement directed at Hizballah, the world powers in a communique said they "call upon all Lebanese parties to implement this tangible policy of disassociation from and non-interference in external conflicts, as an important priority."

The Lebanese policy of "dissociation" was declared in 2012 to keep the deeply divided state out of regional conflicts such as the civil war in neighboring Syria. It nevertheless has not deterred Hizballah from getting deeply involved in the Syrian war.

Another threat to the policy came up on December 7, when Hizballah announced it was backing calls for a new Palestinian uprising in neighboring Israel in reaction to U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Hariri said he also opposes Trump's move and said it "creates a new challenge to regional security."

"The stability of Lebanon may seem like a small miracle given the many conflicts that destabilize the region," Hariri said.

With reporting by AFP and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/world-powers-warn-iran-saudi -arabia-not-meddle-lebanon/28906378.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Watching the Watchmen: First Ever Pentagon Audit Begins

Sputnik News

01:13 09.12.2017

For the first time in its 70-year history, the US Department of Defense (DoD) will be undertaking an agency-wide audit. Pentagon officials announced that a massive audit involving thousands of inspectors will be checking every nook and cranny of the gargantuan agency starting later in December.

Pentagon Comptroller David Norquist and spokesperson Dana White announced the audit on Friday. "It is important that the Congress and the American people have confidence in DoD's management of every taxpayer dollar," Norquist said.

"With consistent feedback from auditors, we can focus on improving the processes of our day-to-day work. Annual audits also ensure visibility over the quantity and quality of the equipment and supplies our troops use."

Auditing the DoD is a herculean task. A whopping 2,400 auditors will be inspecting an agency with a 2018 annual budget of $700 billion, assets valued at roughly $2.4 trillion, and 2.9 million employees spread out across hundreds of offices.

The move has been celebrated by transparency groups such as Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW). "Taxpayers should be encouraged that DOD has finally begun the necessary process of auditing its gargantuan bureaucracy. The Pentagon has done an exemplary job of protecting our national security, but a very poor job of keeping track of how defense dollars are spent," said president Tom Schatz.

Many feel the move is long overdue. Every federal agency except the DoD already complies with the 1990 Chief Financial Officers Act, which requires them to release full financial statements annually.

"The Pentagon must conform to the same level of accountability to which other public sector agencies are held when it comes to spending taxpayer dollars," Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX) told The American Conservative. "There is no reason why the Department of Defense should remain the only federal agency to not receive an audit opinion."

In December 2016, the Washington Post claimed to have acquired an internal Pentagon document pointing to a breathtaking $125 billion in administrative waste in the DoD. The document was reportedly buried until The Post uncovered it.

The auditors will be coming from numerous independent public accounting firms. Norquist said that from 2018 onwards, the DoD will be audited annually to cut down on government waste.

Norquist also discussed what the DoD would do in the case of a government shutdown. Military personnel and exempted civilian personnel would continue to return to work, but hundreds of thousands of non-exempted civilian employees would be temporarily unemployed.

"Any time we get close to the end of a CR [continuing resolution], we automatically go through and update our contingency plans," Norquist said. "And so we've had to do that several times this year."

Disagreements over the budget for fiscal year 2018 has created the looming threat of a government shutdown. On Thursday evening, Congress passed a two week extension to the 2017 budget known as a continuing resolution so that debate over a budget that can pass both Congress and the White House can continue.

"I cannot emphasize too much how destructive a shutdown is," said Norquist. "We've talked before about the importance of maintenance on weapons systems and others, but if it's not an excepted activity, there'll be work stoppage on many of those maintenance functions."

"What the CR says is, 'Stop, wait, don't award that contract yet,' which delays when you begin to increase the quantity and the production." As such, Norquist added, he hoped that Congress resolved their budget debate forthwith.

 Sputnik

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Palestinian FM Believes US Can No Longer Be Mediator in Peace Settlement

Sputnik News

21:45 09.12.2017(updated 21:47 09.12.2017)

Palestinian National Authority (PA) Foreign Minister has explained why Washington can no longer play a role in the Middle Eastern "quartet", which includes Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.

"The United States has excluded itself [from the peace process], they can no longer mediate in the Middle Eastern settlement. They have become a party to the conflict, which rules out the possibility of participation in the peace process," Palestinian National Authority (PA) Foreign Minister Riyad Maliki said Saturday, addressing the consultations of the Arab foreign ministers held in Cairo. The participants are expected to decide on further joint actions of the Arab countries in relation to the issue of Jerusalem.

According to the minister, Washington can no longer play a role in the Middle Eastern "quartet", which includes Russia, the European Union and the United Nations alongside with the United States, stressing the necessity to "look for a new basis for settlement".

The statement was made in wake of US President Donald Trump's Wednesday's announcement, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which sparked a negative reaction from many countries around the world, primarily in the Middle East.

The move has ignited fierce protests among Palestinians across the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza, with severe clashes broking out between them and Israeli forces. The "day of rage" has resulted in two deaths and about 760 people injured, health officials in Gaza told Sputnik.

The move also induced the leader of Hamas to insist on a new intifada be launched, what triggered Israel's airstrikes in Gaza Strip, killing two and wounding 15 people in the area.

 Sputnik

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Former Rivals Hamas, Fatah United Against Trump's Move on Jerusalem - PLO Member

Sputnik News

18:40 09.12.2017(updated 19:51 09.12.2017)

A member of the Palestine Liberation Organization has commented on Trump's controversial decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital, as well as Russia's efforts in the settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Palestinian Hamas and Fatah movements have united to stand against the decision of US President Donald Trump to declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Wasel Abu Yousef, told Sputnik Saturday.

"We are now united to stand against the occupation government and the decision of the US on Jerusalem. We confirm as the Palestinian movements [] that Jerusalem is the internal capital of Palestine," the official said.

In late November, the Palestinian movements had held a meeting in Cairo to overcome the split and were aware of the challenges which faced Palestine and required unity, he added.

In response to Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Hamas called for an "intifada" against Israel.

At the same time, Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas has reportedly decided not to hold a planned meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence to protest Trump's move.

On October 10, the rival Palestinian movements Hamas, a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist organization, and Fatah, the dominant Palestinian political party, began a new round of reconciliation talks under the mediation of Egyptian authorities. The next day, the movements signed an agreement with both sides promising it would usher in a new era of Palestinian unity.

Third 'Intifada' Remains Open Due to US Decision on Jerusalem

When asked about the issue of carrying out the third intifada uprising against Israel by Palestinians, Yusuf said, "The issue is open, the Palestinian people will not remain silent, as well as the Arab community, the Islamic community and its peoples, the Christian world too. There are Muslim and Christian shrines in Jerusalem Any action related to this city can be considered playing with fire."

According to him, all the uprisings in the past had been related to Jerusalem, and this city, which the Palestinians consider their eternal capital, remained for them a "red line" that could not be crossed.

The previous intifadas in 1987-1993 and 2000-2005 left hundreds of Israelis and thousands of Palestinians dead.

Russia's Stance in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

"Russian President [Vladimir Putin] expressed his very clear point of view, saying that international resolutions and international law are the basis for the resolution of the conflict in the region. We also believe that Russia and President Putin are friends of the Palestinian people and are always on the side of the legitimate international resolutions and international law," Wasel Abu Yousef said.

The PLO Executive Committee's member has called on all friendly countries to take steps that would help resolve the situation around Jerusalem.

"The United States has found itself isolated in the face of the reaction of all countries that warn about the danger of these actions We are striving for an international peace conference under the auspices of the United Nations with the participation of our friends  the Russian Federation, China and many others to reaffirm that it is necessary to comply with UN Security Council and the General Assembly resolutions on the Palestinian problem," he said.

Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the embassy there from Tel Aviv has caused concern in a number of countries around the world.

Following the announcement made by Donald Trump, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the decision could complicate the situation in the region and might lead to a division within the international community.

Previously, Putin and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas discussed the Middle East peace process, with the Russian president expressing support for the immediate resumption of direct Palestinian-Israeli negotiations on all controversial issues, including the status of Jerusalem.

 Sputnik

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Peaceful conduct of elections 'historic moment' for Nepal, says UN chief

9 December 2017  United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has welcomed the holding of the two-phased State and Federal elections in Nepal and congratulates its people for the peaceful conduct of the polls.

"These elections mark a historic moment for Nepal in implementing its federal structure as enshrined in the 2015 Constitution," said a statement issued Friday by Mr. Guterres' Spokesman Stephane Dujarric, following Thursday's completion of the second phase of voting.

Media reports said elections were intended to complete the Himalayan country's transition to democracy under the 2015 Constitution, which declared Nepal a federal state.

The Secretary-General "hopes that all parties will maintain the same spirit in the next stages of the electoral process," the statement added.

The Secretary-General encouraged the Government, political parties and civil society leaders to continue their efforts towards furthering inclusive and representative governance, the statement said, expressing the UN's readiness to support such efforts.

According to UN Department of Political Affairs (DPA), the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement on 22 November 2006 signaled the end of a conflict which had claimed over 16,000 lives, displaced large numbers of Nepalese and further strained the economy of one of the world's poorest nations.

From 2007 to early 2011, DPA provided oversight and support to the UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), which assisted the Himalayan nation's transition to peace following a decade of armed conflict.

UNMIN played an important support role in the successful holding, in April 2008, of an historic Constituent Assembly election that was a major milestone in the peace process. UNMIN withdrew from Nepal on 15 January 2011.

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Separatists Attack Cameroon Police

By Moki Edwin Kindzeka December 10, 2017

At least 6 armed separatists and a police official have been killed and several people wounded in the southwestern Cameroon English speaking town of Mamfe during an attack on a military post. The attack occurred after a special envoy from Nigeria assured Cameroon that they want to work jointly to reduce terrorism on their frontiers. Cameroon has been complaining that armed separatists were using Nigerian territory as a training ground.

Cameroon communication minister and government spokesman Issa Tchiroma says hundreds of youths armed with guns, machetes and spears attacked Cameroon's police unit in the English speaking south western town of Mamfe Thursday night. Tchiroma says a policeman was killed and another wounded while dozens of the attackers incurred severe injuries.

"Five terrorists were shot dead by the defense forces who retaliated to an attack led by nearly 200 attackers against the Mamfe gendarmes (police) barracks," said Tchiroma.

It was the third such attack in Mamfe and the neighboring town of Eyumojock that the government says have killed at least seven soldiers and policemen and wounded several more. Residents report that at least 16 military men have been killed there.

Eyumojock is the home town of Julius Ayuk Tabe, the man who says he is the first president of Ambazonia, the name given to the state the separatists say they have created.

Julius Ayuk Tabe is based in neighboring Nigeria where Cameroon communication minister Issa Tchiroma says many fighters have been going for training.

"Over ten young people traveling to Nigeria to be enrolled by terrorists gangs were arrested near the border," he said. "Shortly after an individual, recruiting agent for the armed wing of the secessionist was arrested and their weapons, weapons of war seized."

This week, Lawan Abba Gashagar, Nigeria's high commissioner to Cameroon and special envoy of president Muhammadu Buhari visited Cameroon president Paul Biya and said they would collaborate in fighting the terrorists.

"Nigeria is not in any way supportive or encouraging the dissidents or secessionists and we are going to tackle it accordingly," said Gashagar.

The crisis in the English speaking northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon began in November last year when lawyers and teachers called for a strike to stop what they believe is the overuse of the French language. Violence erupted when separatists started asking for complete independence. Schools have been closed in most of the English-speaking regions.

On October first the separatists declared the independence of what they called the Republic of Ambazonia and asked the military to surrender and join them or leave their territory. So far at least 12 military and police have been killed in the two English speaking regions.

Paul Biya has always said he is not open for any negotiation on the form of the state and that Cameroon is one and indivisible.

Separatist groups have, on social media, said they are only ready to dialogue with Biya on the terms of their separation.

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The Centre does not recognise either Mahatma Gandhi or anyone as the 'Father of the Nation'.

By Kumar Shakti Shekhar: It seems to be a typical case of much ado about nothing. The Congress has demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apologise for "insult" to Mahatma Gandhi by BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra.

Patra's crime? Calling Modi "desh ka baap (father of the nation)".

The Congress not just demanded apology from Modi but also Patra's expulsion from the BJP just as it had taken action against Mani Shankar Aiyar for the "neech aadmi" remark against the prime minister.

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However, the Congress may be totally unfair in not only finding faults with Patra but also demanding Modi's apology.

Here is why.

GANDHI NO FATHER OF THE NATION

Patra called PM Modi as "desh ka baap" during a debate on a television news channel.

The Congress took strong exception to it. Party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala alleged the BJP had the audacity to insult 'Father of the Nation' Mahatma Gandhi.

Surjewala said the Congress would not object to the BJP abusing and misbehaving with it. But the principal opposition party and 130 crore Indians would not tolerate any such insult of Mahatma Gandhi.

However, the Congress' protests may be misplaced. The fact is officially Mahatma Gandhi is not the 'Father of the Nation'. In fact, no one is.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Mahatma Gandhi cannot be accorded the 'Father of the Nation' title by government. In an RTI reply, the ministry said Article 18(1) of the Constitution does not permit any titles except educational and military ones.

BR AMBEDKAR FATHER OF THE NATION?

If at all the Congress has to demand apology for insulting Mahatma Gandhi, Patra's number comes behind that of Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

The BSP officially calls freedom fighter BR Ambedkar as the 'Father of Nation of India'.

Photo: BSP's portal

Mayawati's party had accorded this title to the architect of Constitution long time ago.

Hence, before attacking Patra, Modi and the BJP, the Congress should first demand apology from Mayawati and the BSP.Surjewala should also request the law-enforcing agencies to ask the BSP to stop using 'Father of the Nation of India' title for Ambedkar.

Either Surjewala should drop his demand or until and unless he also asks the BSP to apologise, attacking Modi and Patra may not hold water.

--- ENDS ---
Saudi airstrikes on training base kill 26 people in Yemen's Hajjah province

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 06:14PM

At least 26 Yemenis have lost their lives after warplanes belong to the Saudi-led military coalition hit a training camp in the northwestern province of Hajjah.

Security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Sunday that the camp was allegedly run by fighters of the Houthi Ansarullah movement, which is in the forefront of fighting against the invading Saudi war machine during the past nearly three years.

On Wednesday, Saudi fighter jets also killed a woman and a girl and wounded 10 others after they hit the Mabyan district of the province with a number of airstrikes. A few hours earlier in the day, Saudi warplanes also killed 26 people after they targeted at a hotel and an adjoining market in the northern province of Sa'ada.

Moreover, at least 23 Yemenis were killed on Friday in Saudi aerial attacks against Sha'ban district and Bani Ma'adh district in Sa'ada.

The developments came after Yemen's ex-President Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed on Monday while attempting to escape the capital Sana'a to Ma'arab Province. This came shortly after he broke ranks with Houthis in favor of the Saudi-led coalition.

On November 6, Saudi Arabia announced that it was shutting down Yemen's air, sea, and land borders, after Yemeni fighters targeted an international airport near the Saudi capital with a cruise missile in retaliation for Saudi's devastating aerial bombardment campaign against Yemen.

The crippling blockade has exerted further pressure on Yemeni people, who receive desperately needed humanitarian assistance through the western port city of Hudaydah and an international airport in the capital Sana'a, both under the tight siege.

The UN has already made a plea for the so-called coalition to remove its blockade, warning that without aid shipments "untold thousands of innocent victims, among them many children, will die" and that its partial lifting was not enough.

The Saudi-led military campaign, propelled by a constant flow of US and UK arms supplies, has been incessantly pounding Yemen since March 2015 in an attempt to crush the popular Houthi Ansarullah movement and reinstate the former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a staunch ally of the regime in Riyadh.

Latest figures show that the war has so far killed over 12,000 Yemenis and wounded thousands more. The Saudi aggression has also taken a heavy toll on the country's facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories.

According to the World Health Organization figures, around 960,000 suspected cases of cholera and 2,219 deaths have been documented since the deadly epidemic broke out in April in the impoverished country, where 8 million people also face war-triggered famine.

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Qatar finalizes $8bn weapons deal with UK

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 06:47PM

Qatar has signed a major weapons deal to buy 24 Typhoon fighters from the United Kingdom amid a political stand-off with former Arab allies of the Persian Gulf region.

Qatar's Defense Minister Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah and his British counterpart, Gavin Williamson, signed the deal on Sunday in the Qatari capital of Doha.

The agreement, worth USD 8 billion (6.8 billion euros), is the latest to come from Doha amid a diplomatic row with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt. The four cut their diplomatic ties with Qatar six months ago over allegations of its support for terrorism. They have even warned of further action if Doha does not mend its regional policies.

Qatar has showed no sign that it is ready to bow to the pressures while maintaining that it would remain independent in its foreign policy. It has also rejected key conditions put forward by the four countries for normalization, including a downgrade in ties with regional power Iran and expulsion of Turkish troops from the Qatari soil.

The deal signed Sunday is Qatar's second major military agreement this week. An agreement to buy 12 French Dassault Aviation warplanes worth of billions of dollars came on December 7.

Williamson, British defense chief, hailed the Sunday agreement with Qatar and said it was the biggest order for Typhoons in a decade. He said the fighter jets will support "stability in the region and delivering security at home".

Arab countries of the Persian Gulf region are major customers for weapons made in the West. Spearheaded by Saudi Arabia, the countries have signed deals worth of tens of billions of US dollars with major western arm producers over the past years.

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Saudi war hampering ICRC aid delivery in Yemen: Spokesman

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 05:21PM

The Saudi military aggression and blockade of Yemen is "hampering" the ability of humanitarian organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to deliver aid to the impoverished Arab nation.

"Let's not forget that millions and millions of Yemenis need humanitarian assistance and  the blockade that has been imposed on the Yemeni people in the past few weeks has negatively impacted the situation. We were unable to bring humanitarian aid, us and other humanitarian organizations, and this has negatively affected the prices of food and even the imports of food. Yemenis because of the war had limited access to food and fuel and medicine. With the blockade that came, it really intensified the situation in a negative way," Ralph Elhaje, an ICRC spokesman, told Press TV in an interview on Sunday.

He also said the outbreak of cholera in Yemen is due to the Saudi blockade, which is preventing proper supplies to be brought in to contain this "easily treatable disease."

The analyst went on to say that targeting water stations had prevented millions of Yemenis from having access to clean water.

Elhaje said the Saudi blockade had to be totally lifted; otherwise, there would be an unprecedented surge in the number of cholera patients.

According to the analyst, a solution needs to be reached in order to allow humanitarian workers to work freely and safely in Yemen, emphasizing that under humanitarian law civilians should be safeguarded.

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US would likely lose war with Russia, China: RAND

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 03:49PM

The United States will likely lose a military confrontation with either Russia and China, US think tank RAND Corporation says, warning about the US military's insufficient training and readiness.

In its latest report, titled "US Military Capabilities and Forces for a Dangerous World," the California-based think tank warned that the American military was standing little chance to win a possible conflict with Russia in Europe or with China over Taiwan.

Thanks to their major technology advancements over the past years, Russia and China have now reached a level that they can top the US in certain areas of military prowess, the 190-page document's authors said, warning that limited budget and a lack of enough forces to support the "ambitious" US military plan were hindering American forces.

"Put more starkly, assessments in this report will show that US forces could, under plausible assumptions, lose the next war they are called upon to fight, despite the United States outspending China military forces by a ratio of 2.7:1 and Russia by 6:1," the document continued. "The nation needs to do better than this."

Despite spending billions on sending troops and equipment to Russia's borders in the Baltic region, the NATO military alliance could not withstand a "determined, short-warning Russian attack" either.

"In short, we concluded that, as currently postured, NATO cannot defend the Baltic states against a determined, short-warning Russian attack," the document said.

Confronting China over Taiwan

The China war scenarios laid out in the report focused specifically on a conflict over Taiwan and a possible attempt by Beijing to retake the breakaway island republic.

China has taken issue with US President Donald Trump's undermining of the One China policy of recognizing Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan.

The rift grew deeper recently, after the US Congress approved legislation allowing US and Taiwanese naval ships and military officials to visit each other's territories.

Minister Li kexin, a senior diplomat in China's US embassy, said in response that, "The day that a US Navy vessel arrives in Kaohsiung, is the day that our People's Liberation Army unites Taiwan with military force."

Washington also refuses to recognize China's sovereignty over the South China Sea, often sending warships near Chinese islands to protect what it calls "freedom of navigation" in the disputed waters.

RAND warned that the US would have a tough time defending Taiwan, because China has studied previous US military campaigns and developed effective strategies of its own.

Such analyses have prompted the Trump administration to increase the US military budget to more than $600 billion a year, a record high.

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Minister of Foreign Affairs: US declaration on Jerusalem harms peace process, constitutes bias in the American position

Saudi Press Agency

Sunday 1439/3/22 - 2017/12/10

Cairo, Rabi'I 22, 1439, December 10, 2017, SPA -- In his speech during the emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo today, Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had warned that any US declaration on Jerusalem before reaching a final settlement would harm peace negotiations and make them more complicated, stressing that this is a provocation to the feelings of Muslims around the world and a bias in the US position.

The minister said, "I would like to thank the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan for its request to hold this special meeting of the distinguished Council of the League, which comes in the wake of a very serious development in the recognition by the United States of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocate its embassy there.

"My government has already warned that any US declaration on Jerusalem prior to reaching a final settlement will harm the peace negotiations and make them more complicated. This would undermine all efforts in this regard and constitute a provocation to the feelings of Muslims around the world," he said.

Adel Al-Jubeir added, "My government, which deplores this step, believes that it constitutes a bias in the US position. It also violates the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy, which affirm that East Jerusalem is an integral part of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967 and considers Israeli actions and violations targeting the city of East Jerusalem and its sanctities, identity and demographic structure as null and void."

The Foreign Minister pointed out that "in this sense, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia underlines the international consensus rejecting this decision."

"The firm position of my country on the Palestinian issue places it in the priority of its foreign policy since the time of the founder, King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud - may God have mercy on him - until the time of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and gives it special care as the first Arab and Muslim cause. My country presented a peace initiative adopted by the Beirut Summit in 2002. It also won the approval of the Islamic world at its extraordinary summit in 2005 in Makkah. The Arab peace initiative laid out a roadmap for a final solution to all issues of the conflict and in the framework of the two states solution to reach the establishment of the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of legitimacy.

Al-Jubeir added, "Consequently and from this platform, my government calls on the US administration to back down from its decision and support the international will to enable the Palestinian people to regain their legitimate rights, taking into account that this step, although it will not change or prejudice the firm rights of the Palestinian people in Jerusalem and other occupied territories, it represents a significant retreat in efforts to push the peace process forward and a disruption of the US position."

The Foreign Minister said in his speech during the emergency meeting of the Arab foreign ministers in Cairo, "We call upon the international community to intensify its efforts to push forward the peace process in order to put an end to this historic conflict within the framework of a permanent, just and comprehensive solution based on the resolutions of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative to enable the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate rights in an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and to establish peace, security and stability in the region and the world at large."

Adel Al-Jubeir concluded by saying, "I ask God Almighty to preserve our people in the occupied Palestinian territories, to preserve our holy Quds and to perpetuate in our homeland the blessings of security, safety and stability."

--SPA

01:05 LOCAL TIME 22:05 GMT

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Duterte Eager to Prolong Martial Law in Philippines' South for 1 Year - Reports

Sputnik News

17:55 10.12.2017(updated 18:00 10.12.2017)

Militants linked to Daesh had attempted to gain a foothold in Southeast Asia by seizing the city of Marawi on the country's southern island of Mindanao, which was the country's biggest security crisis in years.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is set to ask the congress to prolong martial law in the country's southern island of Mindanao for one year, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea told reporters on Sunday.

The region, with a population of 22 million, has been under martial law since May 23, 2017, when Islamist militants linked to the Daesh terrorist group seized three-fourths of the southern city of Marawi.

The law will expire on December 31 and the president has to obtain the approval of lawmakers if the ruling goes beyond a 60-day period, however, there is no limit for the number of such extensions.

According to Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar, the law should be extended in order to defeat Maoist guerrillas, Islamist militants and separatist groups.

"There were intelligence reports saying they are planning to attack another city," Andanars said in an interview.

The development comes after in October Duterte announced the full liberation of the city of Marawi, with some 824 rebels, 47 civilians and 162 military killed. The armed conflict has been the biggest internal security crisis the Catholic-majority Philippines has witnessed in decades.

 Sputnik

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New Protests Erupt in Muslim, Arab World Against Trump's Jerusalem Decision

By Ken Bredemeier, Fern Robinson December 10, 2017

A new wave of protests against U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital erupted Sunday in parts of the Muslim and Arab world.

Lebanese security forces outside the U.S. Embassy in Beirut fired water cannons and tear gas to beat back Lebanese and Palestinian protesters who hurled projectiles at the embassy and burned Trump in effigy, along with U.S. and Israeli flags.

In Indonesia, home to the world's largest population of Muslims, thousands of protesters mounted a demonstration outside the U.S. Embassy in the capital, Jakarta, while other protests occurred in Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt and the Palestinian territories bordering Israel.

Police in the Swedish city of Gothenburg arrested three people for allegedly throwing firebombs at a synagogue. A police spokesman said Sunday the incident is being investigated as attempted arson. No one was hurt in the incident.

Officials in Stockholm say security has been tightened around a synagogue in the capital.

Israeli police said a security guard was stabbed and seriously wounded near the Jerusalem bus terminal. His attacker was arrested.

Netanyahu in Paris

Before he left late Saturday for meetings with European leaders, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked what he said was their hypocrisy in condemning Trump's decision to eventually move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv, where most foreign governments have their embassies in Israel.

"While I respect Europe, I am not prepared to accept a double standard from it," Netanyahu said. "I hear voices from there condemning President Trump's historic statement, but I have not heard condemnations of the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it. I am not prepared to accept this hypocrisy."

After meeting with Netanyahu, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned attacks on Israel, but said he opposes Trump's decision on Jerusalem. Macron described it as a "breach of international law and at risk for peace. In risk for peace because I believe these statements do not serve security, including the security of Israel and the Israelis."

Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, defended Trump's decision in an interview on CNN. She said Israel already has numerous government agencies in Jerusalem, adding, "Why shouldn't we have the embassy there?" She said Trump "did the will of the [American] people" by making a decision that previous U.S. presidents refused to do.

Arab League meeting

Earlier Sunday, the Arab League called Trump's decision "a dangerous development that places the United States at a position of bias in favor of the occupation and the violation of international law and resolutions."

The statement was issued early Sunday after an emergency meeting of league foreign ministers in Cairo and went on to say that Trump's decision also strips the U.S. of its role as a "sponsor and broker" in the Mideast peace process.

The resolution also said Trump's Jerusalem decision "undermines efforts to bring about peace, deepens tension and will spark anger that will threaten to push the region to the edge of the abyss of violence, chaos and bloodshed."

The head of the Arab League called on the nations of the world to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital, in response to Trump's announcement.

The foreign ministers also called on the U.N. Security Council to adopt a resolution condemning Trump's decision.

The meeting in Cairo took place after days of street protests in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as well as protests at Al-Azhar Mosque in the Egyptian capital.

A report in Foreign Policy magazine says the White House, in a recent meeting with Palestinian diplomats, failed to tell them about Trump's Jerusalem decision even as the delegation asked if Trump would sign the waiver to prevent the U.S. Embassy from moving to Jerusalem.

The heads of the largest Christian church in Cairo and Al-Azhar University have said they will not meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence when he visits Cairo on December 20. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has also announced he will not meet with Pence, saying "the U.S. has crossed red lines" on Jerusalem.

A statement from the Coptic Orthodox Church called the Trump decision "inappropriate and without consideration for the feelings of millions of people."

In Paris, pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched ahead of Netanyahu's visit. Netanyahu met with French President Emmanuel Macron, who has called Trump's decision "regrettable."

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UN: 4,500 Civilians Killed, Wounded in Somalia Since 2016

By Harun Maruf December 10, 2017

The United Nations says more than 4,500 civilians have been killed or wounded in the conflict in Somalia since the start of 2016.

The U.N. Human Rights Office and the U.N. Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) have issued a new report that implicates parties to the conflict in the death and injuries sustained by the civilians.

In the report, covering a period from January 1, 2016 until October 14 2017, UNSOM documented 2,078 civilian deaths and 2,507 injuries. The worst perpetrators of the killings against civilians are the al-Shabab militant group that is responsible for more 60 percent of the casualties according to the report. About a quarter of the death toll comes from the October 14 truck in Mogadishu where a special committee tasked to investigate the incident reported that 512 people were killed and more than 300 others were injured. Al-Shabab has been blamed for the attack.

"They are by far the worst when it comes to activities that kill civilians in conflict," said U.N. Special Envoy to Somalia Michael Keating. "Of the incidents attributable to al-Shabab, 79 percent are as a result of the use of IEDs [improvised explosive devices] whether they are vehicle borne or otherwise.".

The report says clan militias are responsible for 13 percent of the casualties, while state actors, including the army and the police, are responsible for 11 percent. The report says the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) is responsible for four percent. A further 12 percent of the casualties was caused by unidentified or undetermined attackers, the report said.

The U.N.'s Keating said civilians are paying the price for the failure to resolve Somalia's conflicts through political means.

"Parties to the conflict are simply not doing enough to shield civilians from the violence. This is shameful," he said.

The U.N. report coincides with the International Human Rights Day. The United Nations expressed concern over the death of some civilians in the hands of Somali security forces and AMISOM because they "undermine the Somali population's trust in the Government and the international community".

The U.S.-based Human Rights Watch welcomed the report. Senior researcher Laetitia Bader told VOA Somali this report is "very important" given the difficulties in getting data about human rights violations in Somalia.

"Too often the extent and the magnitude of the toll on civilian from the ongoing conflict in Somalia has been been undermined in many ways because of the lack of data, so this report which seeks to offer a baseline to quantify casualties is a very important insight into just how many civilians have been lost," she said.

The report says the conflict disproportionately affected children, exposing them to "grave violations" during military operations.

In the first 10 months of 2017, 3,335 cases of child recruitment were reported with 71.5 per cent attributed to al-Shabab, 14.6 per cent to clan militia, and 7.4 percent to the Somali National Army, the report says.

Bader said some of the report's findings corroborate their own research in Somalia.

"A lot of the grave abuses which are documented in this report and quantified to a certain extent are ones which we ourselves have continued to document, whether it is cases of sexual violence against internally displaced people, whether it's ongoing recruitment of children by al-Shabab in Baidoa," she said. "I was recently in Baidoa looking into the recruitment trend in Bay region, so a lot of the things they document in this report are ones which confirm our own research."

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US Patriot Missile Price 'Unacceptable' For Poland

Sputnik News

03:29 09.12.2017(updated 03:39 09.12.2017)

The Polish Ministry of National Defense is seeking a medium-range missile defense system like the Patriot, but Washington's current asking price of $10.5 billion is "unacceptable," according to a top Polish defense official.

On November 17, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced the potential sale of 208 Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missiles, 16 launchers, four radars, software and other associated products and services to the government of Poland for $10.5 billion, or about 37 billion zloties. Poland has allocated just 30 billion zloties for its missile defense modernization program.

"The high cost came as a surprise for us. The price is unacceptable for us even in view of the significant financial assets that we allocated for the technical modernization of the Polish Armed Forces," Bartosz Kownacki, secretary of state for the Polish national defense ministry, told Defense News December 5.

"We cannot simply afford to spend that much money on the procurement of two batteries and PAC-3 missiles," the official said.

The official said Poland is still waiting for a formal Letter of Agreement about the terms of the sale, at which point US and Polish negotiators plan to find ways to lower the total program cost.

Some analysts are skeptical, though, about Poland's goal to have its cake and eat it too  that is, upgrade its military with the most advanced technology prices while paying for it on its own terms.

According to security analyst Marek Swierczynski of Poland's Polityka Insight, in order to dramatically reduce the cost Poland, "has to say goodbye to the prospect of technological leaps in radar or rockets. And that was the most important thing in the industrial part of the Wisla [modernization] program."

Further complicating the issue is the exchange of technology. Poland is seeking to grow its domestic defense industry and thus would like more access to US and Israeli defense technology.

"Poland will try to convince both states to gain access to restricted and currently un-exported technologies including the most advanced rocket engines, guidance warheads, and semi-conductor [gallium nitrade] radars," Swierczynski wrote in an October report.

"The technologies are being developed in both countries by private companies, but remain state-controlled, providing military advantage over potential enemies. Allies could be acquiring the techs as closed systems, but will not receive the knowledge allowing for their development, modification, and modernisation  elements that Poland requested as part of offset and technology transfer," the analyst said.

 Sputnik

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Chinese military aircraft conduct drill near Taiwan

Central News Agency

2017/12/09 18:36:40

Taipei, Dec. 9 (CNA) A fleet of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft carried out an exercise early Saturday near Taiwan, flying over the Miyako Strait into the Western Pacific, according to a statement from Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense.

There were no special developments or situations related to the drill and no threats to Taiwan, the ministry said.

It said Chinese Xian H-6 bombers, Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets and other PLA aircraft flew over the Miyako Strait and the Western Pacific Ocean before returning to their base in mainland China.

The ministry said it will continue to monitor any related developments as part of its efforts to safeguard Taiwan.

(By Lu Hsin-hui and Kuan-lin Liu)

Enditem/pc

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BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha said "communalising the atmosphere" before the Gujarat election should stop and the focus should be on the promises made under the "Vikas model".

By India Today Web Desk: A day after Narendra Modi, during his Gujarat campaign, referred to a secret meeting at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence which was attended by Pakistani diplomats, BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha attacked the Prime Minister for coming up with "unbelievable stories" to "win elections".

"Hon'ble Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with and endorse new, unsubstantiated and unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner and Generals?! Incredible," the actor-turned-BJP MP said.

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Shatrughan Sinha said "communalising the atmosphere" before the election should stop and the Prime Minister must focus on the promises under the "Vikas model".

"Sir! Instead of new twists and turns, stories and cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Let's stop communalising the atmosphere and go back to healthy politics and healthy elections. Jai Hind!" Shatrughan Sinha tweeted.

Hon'ble Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!.1>2- Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Sir! Instead of new twists & turns, stories & cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Lets stop communalising the atmosphere & go back to healthy politics & healthy elections. Jai Hind!- Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

At an election rally in Gujarat on Sunday, Narendra Modi said, "There was a meeting convened at Aiyar's residence where Pakistan's High Commissioner, Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Ansari and Manmohan Singh were present. The meeting lasted three hours."

The Prime Minister said next day after the meeting at Aiyar's residence, the suspended Congress leader called him "neech".

"I ask you, brothers and sisters, why did they have to have a meeting with Pakistani officials. Pakistan is our enemy. You (Congress) meet them and the next day call me 'neech'," Narendra Modi said at the rally.

Hinting at a Pakistani angle in the Gujarat election, Modi said, "A former Pakistan army director general, Arshad Rafique, had said Ahmed Patel should be the Chief Minister of Gujarat".

In the high-stakes Gujarat election, the second and last phase of voting is scheduled on December 14. The results of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections will be declared on December 18.

WATCH: Prime Minister Modi accuses Congress leaders of top links in Pakistan

--- ENDS ---
China Allegedly Sends Cutting-Edge Jet to Eye US-S Korea Joint Air Drill

Sputnik News

13:22 10.12.2017(updated 13:26 10.12.2017)

Some evidence suggests that a Chinese fifth-generation J-20 fighter fulfilled an undercover operation earlier this week as the US and South Korea carried out the Vigilant Ace 2017 military exercise, Chinese media reported.

The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) earlier said on its Weibo account that its reconnaissance aircraft, during a preplanned training exercise, took off from an air base in northern China and flew "to places they had never been before," Asia Times quoted Chinese agency Sina.

With Seoul still keeping silent, speculations have emerged that the Korean intelligence agencies may have failed to track the Chinese planes allegedly gathering information on the air drills, involving the Pentagon's top-notch F-22 ace warplanes. This raises the question of which plane managed to come and go totally undetected.

"If that's the case, then the only Chinese plane that was so stealthy that [it] could come and go totally undetected must be the J-20," one commentator said, as delivered by Asia Times.

"One or two J-20s may have flown with the group, which first headed to the East China Sea in a freedom-of-navigation patrol, but the fighter then turned northeast and pierced Seoul's airspace, taking advantage of its cutting-edge stealth coating without triggering any alarm on Seoul's radars."

Other sources suggest that there was a whole, though small, batch of J-20s, which just entered service this year, at the key air force base in Cangzhou, in the northern province of Hebei.

 Sputnik

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Kim Jong Un Inspects Samjiyon County

Korean Central News Agency of DPRK

Date: 09/12/2017

Pyongyang, December 9 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK and supreme commander of the Korean People's Army, gave field guidance to various units in Samjiyon County.

The respected Supreme Leader paid tribute to leader Kim Jong Il before his statue in Samjiyon County.

He appreciated the officials, party members and other working people in the county for devoting their loyalty to keeping his statue better.

The first leg of his field guidance was the remodeled Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism Study Hall in Samjiyon County.

After going round several parts of the hall, he said it has been built wonderfully as befitting the base for education in the Party's monolithic ideology.

He underscored the need for Samjiyon County to effectively manage and operate the hall renovated wonderfully as befitting a model of the country so as to more firmly prepare the officials, party members and other working people to be those strongest in ideology who cherish the revolutionary idea of the Party and the leader as their firm faith, and the first death-defying corps in carrying out the Party's policies.

The next leg of his field guidance was the remodeled Samjiyon Town Hotel.

He acquainted himself in detail with its renovation, going round various parts of it including the room visited by President Kim Il Sung in July 1979.

Saying the hotel is like the face of Samjiyon County as the visitors to the sacred place of revolution and other people from across the country use it, he stressed that it is important to make it an iron rule to give top priority to their conveniences in all service work.

The third leg of his guidance was the renovated Samjiyon Town General Store.

Going round different parts of the store visited by Kim Il Sung in July 1979, he learned about its renovation.

Noting that each counter is full of quality homemade goods diverse in variety, he stressed the need to pay deep attention to steadily improving the method of displaying goods.

He went round the newly-built dwelling houses in the town.

He said that the dwelling houses have been built well to be clean and cosy to suite the regional features, adding that their owners would like them.

Then he gave field guidance to Samjiyon Youth Railway Station and Lake Samjiyon Shore Railway Station which are nearing completion.

Pointing out that the stations have been built in a modern style to suite the mountainous area as befitting the gateway to Samjiyon County, a sacred place of revolution, he said that every element should be built more perfectly, the interior and exterior construction done more carefully and good preparations made to operate the stations the moment the study tour of revolutionary battle sites starts next year.

He stressed that the force and means should be concentrated on stepping up the construction of dwelling houses for evacuees and new dwelling houses around the Hyesan-Samjiyon railway section to finish them as early as possible.

Besides, the Supreme Leader made a field survey of the work of various sectors in the county.

Looking at the model board showing the general plan for building Samjiyon County, he gave important instructions that would serve as the guidelines in sprucing up the county.

He stressed that the thorough preparations should be made to build Samjiyon County, mental native place of our people, into a county impeccable in the world, a peculiar one that others can not imitate and the best county in the country.

The Hyesan-Samjiyon railway project is near to completion and miraculous successes are being made in construction projects despite the bitter cold of the Paektu area thanks to the dynamic struggle of the builders of the 216 Division, the Supreme Leader said. He instructed to significantly review the first-stage campaign over the successes, experience and lessons that have been gained till now so as to correctly set the future project orientation and launch the second-stage campaign all at once after making perfect preparations.

While inspecting Samjiyon County, he was very deeply impressed to personally see the builders devoting their burning loyalty to the construction of the county after leaving their dear houses and families, he said, adding that he could not repress his feelings to meet all the builders one by one and hold their hands warmly. He earnestly requested the officials to convey the militant greetings to the builders in the name of the Party Central Committee.

He expressed expectation and belief that all the builders and people of the county involved in the construction of Samjiyon County would fully discharge their honorable mission and duty in a drive to wonderfully turn the county where the revolution started into an icon and model county of the whole country and the best mountainous city in the world, as intended by the Party.

Accompanying him were Choe Ryong Hae, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK, vice-chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK and vice-chairman of the C.C., WPK, Kim Yong Su, department director of the C.C., WPK, Jo Yong Won, vice department director of the C.C., WPK, and Ma Won Chun, department director of the State Affairs Commission. -0-

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N Korea blames US 'nuclear blackmail' for rising tensions

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 11:26AM

North Korea has blamed US "nuclear blackmail" for the surging tensions over its military program during talks with a senior UN official, but agreed to remain in regular contact with the world body.

The United Nations Undersecretary-general for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman on Saturday wrapped up a five-day tour of the country. He held talks with senior officials in a bid to soothe the tensions, which soared over Pyongyang's test-launch of a new ballistic missile capable of striking the US mainland in response to US-South Korea joint war games.

"At these meetings, our side said the US policy of hostility toward the DPRK (North Korea) and its nuclear blackmail are to blame for the current tense situation on the Korean peninsula," said a report by the North's stated news agency, KCNA.

During the first visit to the country by a senior UN official since 2010, Feltman met with North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-kuk, the report noted, adding that Pyongyang had agreed with the UN "to regularize communications through visits at various levels."

The report did not mention any meetings with leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korea also stated earlier in the day that Feltman had expressed willingness to ease tensions in the Korean Peninsula.

"The United Nations expressed concerns over the heightened situation on the Korean Peninsula and expressed willingness to work on easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula in accordance with the UN Charter which is based on international peace and security," KCNA quoted an unnamed foreign ministry spokesman as saying on Saturday.

The visit by the senior UN official also came after the US and South Korea started their latest joint aerial military drills, described as their largest-ever war games in the Korean peninsula.

Pyongyang further reiterated its concerns on Saturday that such military maneuvers were a provocative move, insisting that the drills had revealed their "intention to mount a surprise nuclear pre-emptive strike against the DPRK."

This is while the UN Security Council has slapped the impoverished country with a package of sanctions over its increasingly powerful missile and nuclear tests, which have upset Washington and its regional allies South Korea and Japan.

Feltman departed from Pyongyang and flew earlier on Saturday to the Chinese capital of Beijing -- a key North Korea ally which has repeatedly called for a halt of US-led war games in the area.

N Korea slams Trump's al-Quds move

In another development, the North Korean Foreign Ministry also blasted US President Donald Trump on Saturday for recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as the "capital" of the Israeli regime, renewing its description of him as a "dotard" in a statement released its official media.

"Considering the fact that the mentally deranged dotard openly called for a total destruction of a sovereign state at the UN, this action is not so surprising," the KCNA reported quoting a Foreign Ministry spokesman.

"But this move clearly shows to the whole world who is the destroyer of world peace and security, pariah and rogue in the international community," it added.

Trump's Wednesday decision for the US to recognize al-Quds as Israel's "capital" and relocate Washington's embassy from Tel Aviv triggered widespread anger across the Muslim world, and drew expressions of concern and disapproval from US allies.

According to the latest KCNA statement, the North "strongly condemns" the US move, and expressed "firm support and solidarity for Palestinians and Arab peoples struggling to win their legitimate rights."

"The US will be held accountable for all consequences from this reckless, wicked act," it further added.

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North Korea Slams US 'Nuclear Blackmail' During Talks With UN

Sputnik News

14:18 09.12.2017(updated 14:19 10.12.2017)

UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman has finished his five-day trip to North Korea, which appears to be the first visit of the organization's top representative since 2010.

The North Korean state news agency KCNA has cited DPRK top-level officials, commenting on their talks with the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs during his visit to the country, "At these meetings, our side said the US policy of hostility toward the DPRK (North Korea) and its nuclear blackmail are to blame for the current tense situation on the Korean peninsula."

The UN top diplomat has arrived for a five-day visit to North Korea, during which he has met with the country's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-Ho and Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-Kuk and has attended medical facilities supported by the UN, without any mention, however, of a meeting with the country's leader Kim Jong-un.

During the talks, North Korean officials have repeatedly accused the US' "nuclear blackmail" of escalating tensions over its weapons program following rare meetings with the senior UN official, however, agreeing to have a regular communications with the United Nations "through visits at various levels".

Moreover, Pyongyang has called the US-South Korean drills a provocation "revealing its intention to mount a surprise nuclear pre-emptive strike against the DPRK", using the initials of the country's official name.

North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong-Ho meets with Jeffrey Feltman, UN undersecretary-general for political affairs, in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) December 7, 2016

The UN top official's visit was reportedly aimed at mitigating the ongoing crisis on the Korean peninsula, which has further escalated after the United States and South Korea launched their biggest-ever joint air exercise and after Pyongyang had recently fired a missile capable of hitting the territory of the US.

In their earlier comments over the course of the drills, the North Korean Foreign Ministry warned, "a nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula has become a matter of when, not if."

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has also warned against the war games, saying that that the Korean Peninsula "remains deeply entrenched in a vicious cycle of demonstrations of strength and confrontation", adding that "the outlook is not optimistic".

 Sputnik

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'Black Hole of Confrontation': China Seeks Diplomacy in DPRK, with Moscow's Help

Sputnik News

02:28 10.12.2017(updated 08:25 10.12.2017)

An assessment of the possibility of war - including the use of nuclear weapons - between North Korea and the United States has been described as a "strong and vicious cycle of confrontation," according to remarks made by China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

While diplomatic observers  and Chinese officials  have welcomed an offer by Moscow to host direct negotiations between the US and North Korea, many observe that the move is another example of how Pyongyang continues to drift away from Beijing, increasing the threat of a military confrontation on the peninsula.

"The prospect is not optimistic," Wang asserted, cited by the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

The Chinese top diplomat observed that major military exercises by Washington and Seoul must cease, as Pyongyang continues to develop nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) required to drop atom bombs on the mainland US.

"The situation on the Korean peninsula is still plunged into a strong and vicious cycle of confrontation, and the prospect is not optimistic," Wang pointed out, cited by SCMP.

In comments made on Saturday, the Chinese foreign minister urged calm, while the United Nations scrambled in efforts to diffuse increasingly strident threats made equally by both the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump.

"We should pull the Korean peninsula back from the black hole of confrontation to create the necessary conditions for resuming talks," Wang added.

Wang pointed out that actions taken by Pyongyang or Washington that are outside of the framework of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will damage UN unity, as well as the sovereign rights of nations.

Washington and Pyongyang have continued to threaten each other over the past two weeks, as US nuclear-capable B-1B bombers participate in large-scale war exercises following closely on the heels of another DPRK ICBM test launch.

The UN has in recent days upped attempts to settle the increasingly heated ongoing standoff.

On Saturday, UN undersecretary general Jeffrey Feltman traveled to Beijing after spending five days in Pyongyang, during which time he met with North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho and DPRK vice-foreign minister Pak Myong-kuk, according to the North Korean state news agency KCNA.

It is the first visit to the DPRK by a ranking UN diplomat since 2010, according to SCMP.

During the five day junket Pyongyang asserted that the joint military drills by Washington and Seoul amounted to a provocation and clearly indicated "an intention to mount a surprise nuclear preemptive strike [against DPRK]."

Ties between Beijing and Pyongyang have deteriorated, as DPRK brass are infuriated by Chinese support for the ongoing UN sanctions. A special envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping was not permitted to meet with Kim Jong-un last month as a result of the ongoing tensions.

 Sputnik

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Iran FM, Britain foreign secretary discuss JCPOA, economic ties in Tehran

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 02:47PM

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson have held talks in the Iranian capital about a landmark nuclear agreement reached between Tehran and the P5+1 group of countries more than two years ago.

According to a statement by Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the top Iranian and British diplomats discussed on Saturday the implementation of the nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and commitment of all signatories to the deal, whose future has been thrown into doubt by US President Donald Trump.

Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council  the United States, France, Britain, Russia and China  plus Germany signed the nuclear agreement on July 14, 2015 and started implementing it on January 16, 2016.

Under the JCPOA, Iran undertook to put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions imposed against Tehran.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May on November 30 affirmed her country's support for the nuclear agreement in the face of the US administration's harsh rhetoric and threats to "terminate" it.

The US president delivered an anti-Iran speech on October 13, in which he said he would not continue to certify Iran's compliance with the terms of the JCPOA, reached under his predecessor Barack Obama, and warned that he might ultimately terminate the agreement.

The statement said Zarif and Johnson also exchanged views about other matters, including economic, banking and trade relations as well as regional and international developments.

Johnson said the JCPOA was of high significance to London and emphasized his country's commitment to fully implement the deal, it added.

The statement noted that the top British diplomat also called for the expansion of cooperation and continued consultation with Iran.

Johnson arrived in Tehran on Saturday for an official two-day visit to meet with senior Iranian officials.

Prior to his talks with Zarif, the British foreign secretary sat down with Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani. He is due to meet President Hassan Rouhani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani and the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi.

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Iraqi PM hails popular forces, calls for national unity after Daesh fall

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 07:27PM

Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has commended the role of the country's Popular Mobilization Units in defeating the Daesh terrorist group and called for unity among the Iraqi nation after the collapse of the Takfiri extremists.

In a televised address on Saturday, Abadi declared the full liberation of the country from Daesh terrorists after Iraqi forces recaptured all the areas once seized by the terror group.

"Honorable Iraqis: your land has been completely liberated. The dream of liberation is now a reality," he said.

"We have accomplished a very difficult mission. Our heroes have reached the final strongholds of Daesh and purified it," he added.

Abadi stressed that unity was the main reason behind the victory, a reference to the contribution of different communities of the Arab country in the anti-Dash campaign.

"The joy of victory is complete with Iraq's unity after it was on the verge of division. The unity of Iraq and its people is the most important and greatest accomplishment," he said.

Abadi added that Iraq had entered "the post-victory over Daesh phase" and must be prepared for any future threats.

"Daesh's dream is over and we must erase all its effect and not allow terrorism to return. Despite announcing final victory, we must remain vigilant and prepared against any terrorist attempt on our country, for terrorism is an eternal enemy," he said.

The Iraqi prime minister further praised the country's Popular Mobilization Units, also known as Hashd al-Sha'abi, and Iraq's top Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani for his contribution to the fight against Daesh terrorists.

In June 2014, shortly after Daesh unleashed its terror campaign in Iraq, Ayatollah Sistani issued a fatwa calling on all Iraqi citizens to defend their country.

The fatwa helped Shia fighters, Sunni tribesmen as well as Christian and Izadi volunteers gather under one umbrella of the Popular Mobilization Units, commonly known as Hashd al-Sha'abi, to prevent Daesh's advances.

Abadi also said that "Iraqi flag flies high today over all Iraqi lands."

Following Abadi's remarks, his office declared a public holiday Sunday in celebration of the victory, according to an official statement from the prime minister's office.

Several squadrons of Iraqi helicopters flew over the capital Baghdad carrying Iraqi flags at noon, in an apparent rehearsal for a victory parade that Iraq is planning to hold in coming days.

The Iraqi government said the declaration meant Iraqi forces had secured the western desert and the entire Iraq-Syria border, and marked the end of the war against Daesh.

Daesh began a terror campaign in Iraq more than three years ago, overrunning vast swathes. Iraqi forces then launched operations to eliminate Daesh and retake lost territory, and last month, Iraqi forces liberated Rawah, the last remaining town in the grip of the terror outfit.

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Iraq: Abadi declares end of war on Daesh

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 11:04AM

Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has declared the end of military operations against the Daesh terrorist group in the Arab country.

"Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh," Abadi told a conference in Baghdad on Saturday.

The Iraqi armed forces later said in a statement that the country has been "totally liberated" from Daesh.

The announcement came after the Iraqi army soldiers, backed by allied fighters, managed to clear the western desert bordering Syria of the last pockets of Takfiri militants.

Abadi had reserved announcing an ultimate victory over Daesh until after those last small concentrations were cleansed.

Daesh began a terror campaign in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks. Iraqi forces then launched operations to eliminate Daesh and retake lost territory, and last month, Iraqi forces liberated Rawa, the last remaining town in the grip of the terror outfit.

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Iraqi Government Declares Victory Over Islamic State

December 09, 2017

Iraq has declared victory over Islamic State (IS) militants, saying the last remnants of the extremist group have been driven from the country three years after it captured large swaths of Iraqi territory.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi said on December 9 that that Iraq has "completely liberated" the country.

"Our enemy wanted to kill our civilization, but we have won through our unity and our determination," Abadi said of the three-year effort to dislodge IS.

"All Iraqi lands are liberated from terrorist [IS] gangs and our forces completely control the international Iraqi-Syrian border," General Abdul-Amir Rahid Yar Allah said in a statement.

In 2014, IS seized about one-third of the country. In response, the government, backed by a U.S.-led international coalition, launched a campaign against them.

The United States later on December 9 praised the end of what it called the "vile occupation" of Iraq by IS militants while warning that the group continues to present a threat.

"The Iraqi announcement signals the last remnants of ISIS's self-proclaimed 'caliphate' in Iraq have been erased and the people living in those areas have been freed from ISIS's brutal control," U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, using an alternate acronym for the extremist group.

"The United States joins the government of Iraq in stressing that Iraq's liberation does not mean the fight against terrorism, and even against ISIS, in Iraq is over," Nauert added in her statement.

The U.S.-led coalition fighting IS militants in Iraq and Syria welcomed the news on Twitter, saying it congratulates "the people of Iraq on their significant victory."

"We stand by them as they set the conditions for a secure and prosperous #futureiraq," the tweet said.

Iraqi forces last month recaptured the last town controlled by IS militants -- Rawah, which is located near the Syrian border -- and continued operations to clear areas of Iraq's western deserts in the ensuing weeks.

With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iraqi-government-declares- victory-over-islamic-state/28906806.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Iraqi PM Declares Victory Over Daesh After Control of Border With Syria Restored

Sputnik News

15:00 09.12.2017(updated 14:29 10.12.2017)

Iraqi forces have completed a yearslong operation against Daesh the same week the Syrian Army freed its country from terrorists.

BAGHDAD (Sputnik)  Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi has declared the end of the country's fight against Daesh after Iraqi troops had gained complete control over the border with Syria.

According to the top official, Daesh was defeated by Iraq due to the country's unity and determination.

The statement comes two weeks after the launch of an operation to clear the governorates of Al Anbar, Saladin and Nineveh on the border with Syria of Daesh terrorists.

Daesh invaded Iraq back in 2014, seizing Mosul, the country's second biggest city, and making it the group's capital in Iraq, prompting the country's forces supported by the US-led coalition to launch an operation to free the territories a year later. In summer of 2017, the Iraqi forces regained control over Mosul, while later in November, over the town of Rawa, the last Daesh stronghold in the country.

Separately, this week marked the announcement of the complete defeat of Daesh in Syria, with the Russian Chief of the General Staff announcing the victory after the government forces had cleared an area near the Euphrates River of terrorists.

 Sputnik

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By PTI: (Eds: Updating)

Srinagar, Dec 11 (PTI) Two bank guards were today killed when militants opened fire on their vehicle in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Security forces have launched a search operation to track down the assailants.

A police official said, "Unidentified gunmen opened fire on a vehicle of Jammu and Kashmir Bank in the Keller area of Shopian this afternoon, resulting in injuries to two security guards."

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The two guards, identified as Tariq Ahmad of Pulwama and Mushtaq Ahmad of Anatnag, succumbed to their injuries at a hospital, police said. PTI SKL MIJ DV GVS

--- ENDS ---
Iraq Celebrates Victory Over Islamic State With Parade

By VOA News December 10, 2017

Iraq celebrated its victory over the Islamic State with a military parade Sunday in the capital, a day after Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the successful ouster of the jihadist group from the country.

The parade was not broadcast live and state media were the only ones allowed to attend.

Witnesses say Iraqi army units in the parade marched across the main square in central Baghdad as helicopters and fighter jets flew overhead.

Writing on Twitter, Prime Minster Abadi thanked Iraqi forces "for their service" and remembered "those who gave the ultimate sacrifice."

Abadi had declared Sunday a public holiday.

On Saturday, he announced the three-year war aimed at driving Islamic State out of Iraq was successful and has come to an end.

"Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh [IS]," Abadi said at a conference in Baghdad that was arranged by the Iraqi journalists' union.

The announcement came two days after Russia said it had defeated IS in Syria, where Moscow is supporting the Syrian military.

The Iraqi government said the declaration of victory meant its forces had secured the western desert, in addition to the Iraq-Syria border.

IS fighters seized control of nearly one-third of Iraq in the summer of 2014, threatening the very existence of the Iraqi state. Over the past three-and-one half years, however, Iraqi forces backed by the U.S.-led coalition recaptured all of the territory.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert congratulated the Iraqi people and the country's security forces Saturday, saying, "The Iraqi announcement signals the last remnants of ISIS's self-proclaimed "caliphate" in Iraq have been erased and the people living in those areas have been freed from ISIS's brutal control."

The militant group is still capable of executing insurgent attacks in Iraq, as it did in November when it regained control of Rawah, the last town it held, near the border with Syria before relinquishing it again over the following weeks.

Nauert acknowledged the fight against terrorism in Iraq is not over and said the U.S. would continue to provide the country military support.

"Together, we must be vigilant in countering all extremist ideologies to prevent the return of ISIS or the emergence of threats by other terrorist groups," she said.

Iraq now turns its attention to rebuilding the many areas of the country that were devastated by the fighting and assisting some 3 million Iraqis who are still displaced.

Nauert said the U.S. would continue to provide humanitarian aid to the war-torn country so that displaced Iraqis could return to their homes and "begin to reestablish their lives."

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Iraqi Kurds Criticize Abadi for Not Recognizing them in Fight against IS

By VOA News December 10, 2017

Kurdish forces in Iraq, known as Peshmerga, Sunday criticized Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi for not mentioning the role of Peshmerga in defeating IS in Iraq.

On Saturday, Abadi announced the three-year war aimed at driving Islamic State out of Iraq was successful and has come to an end.

"Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border, and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh [IS]," Abadi said at a conference in Baghdad that was arranged by the Iraqi journalists' union.

IS fighters seized control of nearly one-third of Iraq in the summer of 2014, threatening the very existence of the Iraqi state. Over the past three-and-one half years, however, Iraqi forces backed by the U.S.-led coalition recaptured all of the territory. Peshmerga forces were part of the international coalition that fought against IS.

Peshmerga Ministry claimed in a statement that 1,824 Peshmerga fighters had been "martyred" and more than 10,000 injured in the fight against IS. A statement issued by the U.S. State Department did not mention Peshmerga's role in the defeat of IS in Iraq, either.

However, the United Kingdom acknowledged the role of Peshmerga, along with Iraqi forces, in defeating the IS group.

"The UK, as a Coalition member, has played a leading role in supporting the Iraqi Security Forces, including the Armed Forces and the Peshmerga, in the fight against Daesh," said a statement from British Prime Minister Theresa May.

"The prestige, respect and love of the Peshmerga fighters and their free families inside Kurdistan and in the world is much greater than one day to be in need of the blessing of Abadi and all those who think and act in this way," the Peshmerga statement added. "So the Peshmerga is neither waiting, nor needs this congratulation, nor the holiday announced on this occasion."

Speaking to VOA, a Kurdish member of the Iraqi Parliament also criticized the Iraqi Prime Minister for not mentioning "the sacrifices" of Peshmerga forces.

"Iraqi Prime Minister's speech was sectarian and was directed to certain groups, rather than being for all the Iraqi communities," Dr. Bakhtyar Shaways, a member of Iraq's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan party, said. Shaways also claimed that not mentioning Peshmerga is a violation of the Iraqi constitution, as according to the constitution, Peshmerga are part of the overall Iraqi defense system.

Relations between Iraqi Kurds and the Abadi government deteriorated after the September 25 referendum that resulted in an overwhelming "yes" vote for Kurd independence from Baghdad. The referendum was held in absolute defiance to the Iraqi government.

On November 20, Iraq's Supreme Court declared the vote to be unconstitutional, a decision hailed by Abadi, who said his government "rejected this referendum and refused to have anything to do with it."

VOA's Kurdish Service also contributed to this report.

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Japan to host joint missile drills with US, South Korea

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 05:20PM

Japan's Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera has announced that a joint drill with the United States and South Korea will be held this week amid an escalated stand-off in the region over North Korea's missile and nuclear tests.

Onodera said Sunday during a visit to a garrison in northern Japan that the joint missile drills will be held on Monday and Tuesday in waters near Japan.

A defense official said the military exercises will be aimed at "practicing tracking an object and sharing information on it among the three countries".

"It will translate into a measure against ballistic missiles," said the Japanese official who declined to be named.

The drills come despite warnings by North Korea that joint military exercises in the region would escalate a current conflict over the country's weapons program and prepare the ground for a full nuclear confrontation. Pyongyang has test-fired several ballistic missiles over the past months, including two in July that experts said showed the country's capability to hit potential targets in the mainland US. North Korea also carried out its sixth and largest nuclear test in August, prompting the US to lead international efforts to further pressure the country through economic means.

North Korea has been specifically worried about repeated drills between US and South Korea, saying they are clear provocations. Washington denies Pyongyang's allegations that the actions are meant to simulate an invasion of the North, saying they are normal, pre-planned procedures to test the readiness of thousands of US troops stationed in the Korean Peninsula.

The US State Department said the upcoming drills with Japan and South Korea and intensified US engagement in diplomatic efforts in the region were meant to persuade the North to refrain from further developing its weapons program.

"The United States looks forward to continuing its partnership with both these nations so that the DPRK will return to credible talks on denuclearization," said the department in a Sunday statement, using North Korea's official name.

Pyongyang rejected the claims about the drills, reiterating its view that they were a provocation. It said in a statement that the upcoming exercise between Japan, the US and South Korea revealed "its intention to mount a surprise nuclear pre-emptive strike against the DPRK".

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Japan's Defense Ministry Seeks Extra $6.4Mln for Aegis Ashore Systems Deployment

Sputnik News

21:14 10.12.2017(updated 21:20 10.12.2017)

Japan reportedly seeks to deploy two land-based US missile defense systems amid North Korea's growing ballistic missile capability.

TOKYO (Sputnik)  The Japanese Defense Ministry has requested additional 730 million yen (nearly $6.4 million) of budgetary allocation for the next fiscal year, which begins on April 1, 2018, to elaborate a plan for deploying two land-based US missile defense systems, Aegis Ashore, Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera has announced.

"Besides, we will also elaborate the basic design of the facilities," Onodera said during a press conference, explaining the move as a necessity to "strengthen the ability to constantly protect" the country to due to the repeated missile launches by North Korea.

The statement was made after reports claiming that the Japanese government would decide on the deployment of two land-based Aegis Ashore defense systems on December 19 have started to circulate in media earlier in the day. One of the two complexes is expected to be deployed at the training facility in northern Akita prefecture, while the second one might be deployed in southwestern Yamaguchi prefecture.

In late August, the Japanese Defense Ministry requested a record-high 5.26 trillion yen ($48 billion) for the next fiscal year to enhance the country's defense capability with a similar explanation.

Japan's moves are connected with the conflict on the Korean Peninsula, which has recently further intensified after North Korea tested a new missile in the last days of November, following ten weeks of silence. Pyongyang has claimed that their new Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) might strike anywhere in the US, and almost anywhere in the world.

At the same time, the Japanese Defense Minister has announced joint drills with South Korea and the US on December 11-12 in the waters near Japan despite UN envoy Jeffrey Feltman's previous warning against the drills, which may, according to him, intensify the conflict.

 Sputnik

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Pakistani air force ordered to shoot down intruding US drones

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 07:45AM

Amid frayed Washington-Islamabad ties, Pakistan has ordered its air force to shoot down any drones violating the country's airspace, including those of the US military, which are deemed responsible for a high number of civilian deaths in the Asian state.

"We will not allow anyone to violate our airspace. I have ordered PAF (Pakistan air force) to shoot down drones, including those of the US, if they enter our airspace, violating the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity," Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman said in an address in Islamabad, the Times of India reported.

The order is seen as a turnaround from the Pakistani air force's previous policy, in which it used to publically censure US drone attacks on its soil, but would never threaten to shoot them down.

The announcement came two weeks after a US drone strike targeted a suspected militant compound in Pakistan's tribal region near the Afghan border, killing at least three people.

The US has been using drones to conduct surveillance flights and airstrikes in Pakistan since Washington and its allies invaded neighboring Afghanistan in 2001.

According to data by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, hundreds of civilians, including women and children, have been killed in US drone attacks targeting what are said to be militant targets in Pakistan and Afghanistan since 2004.

Islamabad has condemned US drone raids on Pakistani soil, describing them as a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty.

Washington's drone operations are also highly unpopular among Pakistani people, who have held numerous protest rallies over the past years against the civilian deaths caused by such aerial assaults.

Aman further recalled a historic breach of trust incident over a batch of US-made F-16's which Pakistan paid for, but never received.

The Pakistani air force commander praised Pakistan's air prowess, saying their forces are prepared to defend sovereignty of the country.

The latest order comes amid friction in ties between the two allies over what US President Donald Trump calls Islamabad's support for militant groups.

Officials in Islamabad have strongly rejected the allegations. They say Pakistan has made great effort to fight terrorism.

Trump harshly criticized Pakistan in August as he was announcing his administration's new strategy for Afghanistan. The US president's comments sparked anger among Pakistani officials and public.

The order also came a week after a visit to Pakistan by US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis during which he urged them to "redouble" their efforts to rein in the militants suspected of using the country as a base to carry out attacks in neighboring Afghanistan.

Mattis also met with high-ranking officials from Pakistan's powerful military, including army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Lieutenant-General Naveed Mukhtar, the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence spy agency that US authorities say has links with Haqqani and Taliban militants.

A US defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, was cited in press reports as saying that Mattis' conversations had been "straightforward" and specific.

He added that one of the topics of conversation was getting Pakistan to help bring the Taliban to the negotiating table.

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Over 300 militants surrender in southwestern Pakistan: Officials

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 06:11PM

More than 300 militants across the southwestern Pakistani province of Balochistan have surrendered over the past few months, officials say.

Some 313 militants from three separatist movements handed over weapons during a high-profile ceremony to Nawab Sanaullah Zehri, the chief minister of the province. The ceremony took place on the lawn of the Balochistan provincial assembly in city of Quetta on Saturday.

"I will hug all that who believe in integrity and sovereignty of Pakistan but will not tolerate (those) who will challenge the writ of the State," Zehri said at the ceremony, which marked the downing of guns and the return of militants to civilian life.

According to local Pakistani officials, the latest ceremony saw surrenders by 143 militants from the Baloch Republican Army (BRA), 125 fighters from the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and 17 from Baloch Liberation Front (BLF).

In April, the Pakistani government held a similar ceremony where about 400 militants handed over their guns.

About 2,000 militants have surrendered over the past 18 months.

The surrenders are part of the government's efforts to end a decade-long insurgency in the troubled province by offering amnesties and financial rewards to soldiers and commanders to help them re-integrate into the society.

Under the agreement, foot soldiers are given 500,000 rupees ($4,700) and the top-level commanders receive about 1 million rupees ($9,500) to help them and their families build a life after militancy.

Local administration in Balochistan and the army tout the amnesties as an effective way to reduce the power of separatists operating across the violence-hit region.

Separatist militants in the province have also been engaged in a decades-long campaign against the central government.

Quetta, the largest city of Balochistan, has seen several bombings and shooting attacks over the past years.

Balochistan was rocked by a series of terrorist attacks late last year, raising fears about an increasing presence of armed militants in the area, including terrorists linked to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

Pakistan has been witnessing violent terrorist attacks over the past decade. Militants with the Pakistani Taliban have largely been blamed for the violence, but responsibility for some of the bombings was claimed by the Daesh terrorists.

Pakistan estimates that there have been 70,000 casualties in militant attacks since it joined the US campaign against militants after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

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Russian General Named In Bellingcat MH17 Report Plans To Sue

RFE/RL's Russian Service December 09, 2017

A senior Russian general who was accused in a recent investigation of being a coordinator of separatist forces in eastern Ukraine and of possibly playing a role in the downing of a civilian airliner in July 2014 has said he plans to sue the authors of the report for defamation.

Retired General Nikolai Tkachyov told Novaya Gazeta on December 9 that he will sue the Bellingcat investigative collective and the independent website The Insider over their report, in which they used digital voice analysis to identify Tkachyov as a man codenamed Delfin (dolphin) who appears on intercepted communications with separatist fighters.

Tkachyov denies that he was Delfin or that he was in eastern Ukraine in 2014. He said he has spent the last few years in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg busying himself with the "patriotic education of youths."

Bellingcat and The Insider published their investigation on December 8. In it, they reported that they had enlisted two independent analytical centers -- one in the United States and one in Lithuania -- to compare the intercepted audio from 2014 with recordings of Tkachyov made under the pretext of interviewing him for another story.

The two centers, using various digital analytical methods, independently determined it was "highly probable" that the man on the recordings and Tkachyov were one and the same.

According to the report, Delfin was a Russian general who was based in the Ukrainian town of Krasnodon in the summer of 2014 with the task of coordinating disparate separatist militia units in parts of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

The Dutch-led Joint Investigative Team (JIT) has identified Delfin as a person of interest in the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in July 2014.

The JIT determined in 2016 that it was shot down from separatist-held territory in the Donetsk region by a BUK antiaircraft system provided by the Russian military. The JIT report says the BUK entered Ukraine near Krasnodon and was spirited back into Russia immediately after the airliner was shot down, killing all 298 people aboard.

Russia denies interfering in Ukraine's internal affairs, despite compelling evidence that Moscow has provided military, economic, and political support to separatists fighting against Kyiv. Russia and the separatists deny shooting down MH17 and have offered several other theories to explain the incident, all of which have been rejected by investigators.

Tkachyov, 68, is a decorated veteran of both Russian campaigns in Chechnya. He was released from military service in 2010.

After his retirement, however, he served in 2011-12 as a military adviser to the government of Syria. After his return, he was assigned to the Central Military District and based in Yekaterinburg.

In May 2014, he attended the Victory Day parade in Yekaterinburg. He appeared again in public in August 2014 at an event celebrating Orenburg Cossacks.

With reporting by Novaya Gazeta

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-general-to- sue-bellingcat-over-report/28906834.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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US Allegations of Russia Violating INF Treaty Absolutely Unfounded  Moscow

Sputnik News

19:36 09.12.2017(updated 17:06 10.12.2017)

The INF treaty, which prohibits the development, deployment and testing of ground-launched ballistic or cruise missiles with ranges between 300 and 3,400 miles, celebrated its 30th anniversary on December 8.

"The United States has long been claiming that we are allegedly exceeding the limits of the Treaty prohibiting the deployment of cruise missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. But there is an interesting pattern  just as with the well-known statements about 'Russian meddling in the US elections,' no real evidence is provided  In other words, the accusations are absolutely unsubstantiated, they are not supported either by the technical characteristics of the launcher allegedly not meeting the Treaty, nor by flight telemetry data. And it is understandable why  because it simply does not exist," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Saturday.

The deputy foreign minister has explained that the US growing "anti-Russian campaign" is an indicator of US wish to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), with Washington appearing to be looking for a pretext and trying to create its own ideas for the introduction of new sanctions against Moscow, adding that the dissolution of the document would deal a hard blow to the global nuclear non-proliferation regime.

"So anti-Russian propaganda campaign in the context of the INF treaty looks increasingly like an attempt to project US issues onto another entity. Its increase may be a sign of Washington readying to withdraw from this treaty just as it withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty," Ryabkov said.

The high-ranking has yet again reiterated Moscow's commitment to the deal, "On our side, we are fully committed to the treaty, always have rigorously implemented it and are ready to continue to do so. However, if one side stops to comply with it, we will have, as Russian President Vladimir Putin said previously, to issue a mirror-like response."

INF Treaty and Anti-Russia Sanctions

The statement was made in wake of the reported approval of new sanctions against Russia by US President Donald Trump earlier in the day over the alleged violations of the INF deal. The move followed the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's accusations made in September, regarding the alleged violations of the treaty, a claim which has been repeatedly denied and called groundless by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Moscow has also warned the United States against trying to talk to Russia with the language of ultimatums, or to exert military and political pressure.

The 1987 INF treaty prohibits the development, deployment and testing of ground-launched ballistic or cruise missiles with ranges between 300 and 3,400 miles.

 Sputnik

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Trump Approves New Sanctions Against Russia Over Alleged INF Treaty Violations

Sputnik News

02:58 09.12.2017(updated 02:55 09.12.2017)

The US Commerce Department will impose sanctions on Russian companies that have provided technology to help develop the new weapon outlawed by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, Politico reported on Friday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik)  US media also reported, citing a senior administration official that US President Donald Trump has approved these new restrictions against Moscow.

Earlier in the day, US Department of State spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a release the United States is prepared to stop its intermediate-range missile systems research if Russia complies with all the terms of the INF treaty. Nauert explained that while the United States will continue to seek a diplomatic solution, it is now pursuing economic and military measures to induce Russia to return to the INF treaty compliance.

The State Department spokesperson added the United States remains committed to its INF treaty obligations and seeks Russia's return to compliance with the agreement.

Earlier on Friday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Moscow will comply with all the terms of the INF treaty as long as the United States complies with them, and is ready to conduct professional dialogue with Washington.

The Foreign Ministry stressed that the United States was interpreting its commitments under the INF treaty freely while bringing unfounded accusations against Russia of violating the agreement. Moreover, the Foreign Ministry warned the United States against attempting to talk to Russia with the language of ultimatums, or to exert military and political pressure.

In September, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson accused Russia of violating the INF treaty. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the US accusations were groundless, adding that the United States did not present any evidence to support its claims.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in October that, before the INF treaty, US missile capabilities had already included air- and sea-launched missiles, while the Soviet Union had not developed such weapons. Since the INF treaty banned land-based missile launchers, the disarmament was done unilaterally by the Soviet Union.

The 1987 INF treaty prohibits the development, deployment and testing of ground-launched ballistic or cruise missiles with ranges between 300 and 3,400 miles.

 Sputnik

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Russia Hits Back At U.S. Charges Of INF Treaty Violations

RFE/RL December 10, 2017

Russia has hit back against charges by the United States that Moscow is violating terms of an important Cold War arms treaty.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov on December 9 issued a statement saying, "The accusations are absolutely unfounded."

The statement came a day after the United States said it was taking military and economic measures against Moscow in response to the increasingly tense dispute over a Russian missile that Washington says violates the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

The remarks by the State Department signaled a more deliberate approach by President Donald Trump's administration to the dispute over the 30-year-old treaty.

The treaty is considered a landmark deal between the United States and the Soviet Union, eliminating for the first time an entire class of cruise and ballistic missiles in Europe. It also established a verification framework to ensure

compliance.

The United States first formally accused Russia of developing a missile in violation of the INF back in 2014, though intelligence experts said the system had been under development for several years prior to that.

Earlier this year, Washington said the missile was operational and had been deployed.

On November 29, Christopher Ford, a White House National Security Council official involved in arms control, for the first time identified the missile designation  9M729  which outside arms-control experts have been focusing on for some time now.

That has led to concerns that the new missile could be indistinguishable from an existing system that is not covered by the INF treaty: the highly sophisticated Iskander-M. That would pose a challenge for inspecting and verifying the weapon is in compliance.

The U.S. statement of December 8 did not specify what measures would be taken, but it said it would pursue diplomatic, economic, and military steps to push Moscow back into compliance.

Ryabkov's statement said there was no proof that Moscow had violated the treaty by developing the new missile system. He said the missile in question has a much shorter range than the United States as alleged.

"The attempts to frighten us like that is just ridiculous," said Ryabkov, who added that economic or military pressure would not have an impact on Moscow.

U.S. and Russian technical experts and officials are scheduled to meet next week as part of the Special Verification Commission process related to the INF Treaty. Past meetings have been seen as accomplishing little.

Ryabkov said the new U.S. allegations could "derail" the SVC talks.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Mike Eckel, dpa, and TASS

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-inf-united-states- missile-treaty-cold-war/28907558.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Winning election to Congress president's post was an easy affair for Rahul Gandhi. But, he has a tough road ahead.

Rahul Gandhi will take over as Congress president on December 16. (Photo: PTI)

By India Today Web Desk: Rahul Gandhi was today declared as Congress president-elect uncontested.

He will take charge as Congress president from mother Sonia Gandhi on December 16 - two days after polling gets over in Gujarat and two days before results are declared.

As Rahul Gandhi prepares to get his stamp on Congress's decisions, here is a to-do list for the soon-to-be president of the 132-year-old party:

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TASK 1

Restructure organisation, build a core team.

CHALLENGE

It is easier said than done for Rahul Gandhi. He has more leaders and less cadre - a really that goes in sharp contrast to the BJP, Congress's primarily rival. Rahul Gandhi will also have to manage resistance from the old guard.

TASK 2

Promote strong leaders in states who can motivate grassroot workers for 2019 challenge, and end factional fights in other big states.

CHALLENGE

Rahul Gandhi is pressed for time. He does not have much time on hand but there are huge expectations. Rahul Gandhi has only 18 months to take the Congress organisation to a position where he can think of taking on the well oiled election winning machine of Amit Shah and Narendra Modi.

TASK 3

Prepare for elections next year in four big states - Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.

CHALLENGE

Rahul Gandhi has to contain infighting. The state Congress leaderships in Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan are known to fight ugly political battles in the open.

In Chhattisgarh, the Congress is still to figure out who should lead the party. Rahul Gandhi will have big challenge in projecting strong leadership in all these states.

TASK 4

Come across as a dependable, consistent leader, who can be seen as a credible alternative to Narendra Modi.

CHALLENGE

Though his popularity on social media is on the rise, Rahul Gandhi's decision making is still considered as tardy by many in his own Congress party. Rahul Gandhi will have to be seen taking a series of decisive actions to dispel the notion of a reluctant leader.

TASK 5

Be more specific about what he stands for.

CHALLENGE

Though Rahul Gandhi has consistently espoused the cause of marginalised sections such as farmers, small traders and fishermen he has failed to offer a concrete political or economic vision.

TASK 6

Create a working relationship with other Opposition parties to form an alliance against the BJP.

CHALLENGE

Rahul Gandhi faced severe criticism after he failed to retain Nitish Kumar of the JD-U in the Opposition camp despite the repeated attempts by the Bihar chief minister.

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Later, Nitish Kumar went public saying that he had requested Rahul Gandhi to intervene when relation between the JD-U and RJD of Lalu Prasad reached the breaking point over corruption charges against the then Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav. But, Rahul Gandhi failed to take decision.

On the other hand, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee is said to have her own prime ministerial ambitions. It will be a mammoth challenge for Rahul Gandhi to bring together Mamata Banerjee, the Left Front and the SP and the BSP under one umbrella if he has to take on the Modi phenomenon in 2019.

ALSO READ | Rahul Gandhi an 'unconstitutional Crown Prince': Shehzad Poonawalla vows to be thorn in side for new Congress president

--- ENDS ---
Syrian army forces, allies capture areas in Hama province

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 05:58PM

Syrian army soldiers, supported by allied fighters from popular defense groups, have flushed members of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham Takfiri terrorist group out of their last positions in the western-central province of Hama as they continue to make territorial gains across the war-ravaged Arab country.

An unnamed military source told Syria's official news agency SANA that government forces and their allies had established full control over the villages of Umm Trika, Umm Hezim, Balil, Rajm al-Ahmar, Tal Shateib, al-Zabadi, and Tal Bolus after fierce clashes with the foreign-sponsored terrorists  formerly known as al-Nusra Front.

Scores of the Takfiris were in the heavy fighting and dozens of them fled to nearby villages.

The source added that army bomb disposal units have launched an operation in the liberated villages to clear areas of hidden explosive devices and ordnances left behind by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham militants.

Separately, army units have engaged Jabhat Fateh al-Sham terrorists in the southwestern outskirts of Damascus, inflicting heavy losses upon them.

The government troops mounted an offensive against the extremists in Daher al-Aswad hills, and managed to reclaim Bard'ayia hills after 24 hours of bitter skirmishes.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. The Syrian government says the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies are aiding Takfiri terrorist groups that are wreaking havoc in the country.

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Syrian government delegation returns to UN-brokered Geneva peace talks

Iran Press TV

Sun Dec 10, 2017 02:59PM

The Syrian government's delegation has returned to Geneva in a bid to resume the UN-organized peace talks for Syria with the representatives of the foreign-backed opposition groups, more than a week after Damascus left the negotiations, arguing that the other side had made the road to peace impassable.

The airplane, transporting Bashar al-Ja'afari, Syria's UN ambassador and chief negotiator, along with his team, touched down at the international airport of the Swiss city of Geneva in a snowy weather on Sunday, a few hours after it took off from an airport in the Lebanese capital city of Beirut.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Thursday had announced that Ja'afari and his team would arrive in Geneva to "participate in the eighth round" of the peace negotiations.

On December 1, Ja'afari told reporters in Geneva that his team would fly back home and that "Damascus will decide" whether they would return to the Geneva talks, which resumed later on December 5.

Ja'afari said at the time that there were "big problems in this round of talks" and that the opposition had "mined the road" to the talks, pointing to a statement released last month by the opposition insisting that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should step down before any peace deal could be reached.

That condition seems no longer tenable due to Syria's continued victories against foreign-backed militants in the recent past.

The top Syrian negotiator arrived in the Swiss city on November 29, a day after the UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, officially kicked off the fresh round of separate talks, focusing on constitutional reform as well as elections.

The previous rounds of negotiations under the auspices of the UN over the past five years have failed to achieve tangible results, mainly due to the opposition's insistence that the elected Syrian government cede power.

Meanwhile, Russia, Iran, and Turkey have been organizing a parallel peace process between Syria's warring parties in Astana, Kazakhstan, since January. While they were launched years after the Geneva process, the talks in Astana have comparably resulted in significant achievements, including ceasefires and de-escalation zones that have reduced the actual fighting in Syria.

Moreover, Russia plans to hold an all-Syrian congress, known as the Syrian National Dialog Congress, in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, which would involve drawing up a framework for Syria's future structure, adopting a new constitution and holding elections under the UN supervision.

On November 20, Assad, in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, said that he was "ready for dialog with all those who want to come up with a political settlement."

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Taiwan responds to Chinese diplomat's threat with call for peace

ROC Central News Agency

2017/12/09 20:35:40

Taipei, Dec. 9 (CNA) Taiwan's government wants peaceful development of relations across the Taiwan Strait, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Saturday in the wake of a comment by a Chinese diplomat that threatened military action by China if U.S. Navy ships are allowed to call at Taiwan ports.

MOFA spokesman Andrew Lee () told CNA that the Taiwan government has long been pursuing the stable and peaceful development of cross-strait relations and will not go the route of resistance but neither will it cave under pressure.

The issue arose after the U.S. Congress on Nov. 30 passed the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, which includes clauses that would allow the U.S. to look at the possibility of reestablishing "regular ports of call by the U.S. Navy at Kaohsiung or any other suitable ports in Taiwan" and permits the U.S. Pacific Command to receive ports of call by Taiwan vessels.

The Taiwan-related clauses did not sit well with China and prompted a statement by diplomat Li Kexin () at the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. that the minute a U.S. Navy ship calls at a Taiwan port, China would activate its Anti-Secession Law and unleash its People's Liberation Army.

In response, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) released a statement Saturday, asking China to respect the will of the Taiwan people, maintain the cross-strait status quo, and stick to its views on the development of relations across the Taiwan Strait.

The threat of military action only reflects negatively on China in the eyes of the world, the MAC said.

Both the MAC and the foreign ministry said cross-strait dialogue is important to eliminate discord or animosity.

(By Elaine Hou and Kuan-lin Liu)

Enditem/pc

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Turkey arrests Erdogan's aviation technician over links to US-based opposition leader

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 9, 2017 01:53PM

Turkish officials have arrested an aviation technician, who was on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's helicopter flight crew on the night of the July 2016 coup attempt, on charges of affiliation to a movement led by the US-based opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom the Ankara government accuses of having masterminded the botched putsch.

Turkey's official Anadolu news agency reported on Saturday that a court had found Tayyib Sina Dogan guilty of using the ByLock mobile application, which the Turkish government claims to be the top communication tool among members of the Gulen movement.

Dogan and two other technicians were the helicopter crew members, who flew Erdogan and his family to Dalaman Airport from the resort city of Marmaris, where they were on holiday on the night of the coup attempt.

Dogan joined Erdogan's aircraft team in September 2014. He was dismissed from his post under a state of emergency decree issued on November 22, 2016.

Dogan has strongly denied any links to the Gulen movement.

"I have never downloaded that application. I think it was downloaded on my phone through other software. If it is detected that the ByLock content and username belong to me, I acknowledge any punishment," he said.

He also said he was one of the president's flight technicians that night and had acted against the putschists.

"If I were a member of a terrorist organization, I would not let the helicopter take off. I had the key and I have knowledge of the equipment," Dogan said.

During the botched putsch, a faction of the Turkish military declared that it had seized control of the country and that Erdogan's government was no more in charge. The attempt was, however, suppressed a few hours later.

Ankara has since accused Gulen of having orchestrated the coup. The opposition figure is also accused of being behind a long-running campaign to topple the government via infiltrating the country's institutions, particularly the army, police and the judiciary.

Additionally, the Ankara government has outlawed his movement, and has branded it as the Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

Gulen has denounced the "despicable putsch" and reiterated that he had no role in it.

"Accusations against me related to the coup attempt are baseless and politically-motivated slanders," he said in a statement in July 2016.

The 76-year-old cleric has also called on Ankara to end its "witch hunt" of his followers, a move he says is aimed at "weeding out anyone it deems disloyal to President Erdogan and his regime."

Turkish officials have frequently called on their US counterparts to extradite Gulen, but their demands have not been taken heed of.

Since the start of a massive crackdown following the coup, tens of thousands of people have been arrested in Turkey on suspicion of having links to Gulen and the failed coup. More than 110,000 others, including military staff, civil servants and journalists, have been sacked or suspended from work over the same accusations.

The international community and rights groups have been highly critical of the Turkish president over the massive dismissals and the crackdown.

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Saakashvili Declares Hunger Strike Following Arrest In Kyiv

Christopher Miller December 09, 2017

KYIV -- Ukrainian opposition politician and former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has declared a hunger strike, his lawyer told journalists on December 9.

Attorney Ruslan Chornolutskiy released a letter from Saakashvili calling on supporters to protest in Kyiv on December 10 and to call for the impeachment of President Petro Poroshenko.

Also on December 9, a spokesman for the Prosecutor-General's Office said prosecutors would ask a court to place Saakashvili under house arrest with electronic monitoring pending trial.

Ukrainian officials have accused Saakashvili of abetting an alleged "criminal group" led by former President Viktor Yanukoych -- who was pushed from power in 2014 and fled to Russia -- and have suggested that his protests are part of a Russian plot against Ukraine.

Saakashvili has dismissed the claims.

Saakashvili was arrested in the Ukrainian capital late on December 8, prompting hundreds of his supporters to demonstrate for his release.

The firebrand activist's supporters gathered in a narrow street outside the police station where he was taken late on December 8, not far from the parliament building, shouting "Shame" and "Kyiv, get up!" while a large number of police in riot gear stood guard.

Close ally and fellow Georgian David Sakvarelidze called on Kyiv residents to take to the streets to protest Saakashvili's recapture, which he blamed on President Poroshenko.

"Today Poroshenko broke all records and went down in history as a dictator who does this to political opponents," Sakvarelidze told TV channel NewsOne.

Three associates of Saakashvili told RFE/RL that he was arrested at a friend's apartment where he was visiting earlier on December 8. Sakvarelidze said the agents were from the state security agency SBU.

Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko said in a post to his Facebook page that "everything was done to avoid bloodshed."

"The detainee is placed in a temporary detention facility," he wrote.

Hours earlier, Saakashvili called on Ukrainians to demonstrate in Kyiv on December 10. In a Facebook post, Saakashvili told supporters he had lost his voice and was running a temperature but would "be by your side again" at a midday march to Kyiv's Independence Square, which was the site of the months-long 2013-14 protests that ousted the country's pro-Russia president.

Saakashvili, who became governor of Ukraine's Odesa region in 2015 but quit a year later and is now a vocal opponent of Poroshenko, thanked backers for their support in the tumult of recent days.

Law-enforcement officers searched Saakashvili's apartment in Kyiv on December 5, dragged him off the roof, and bundled him into a car. But supporters blocked the streets and pulled him from the vehicle, and he led a march to parliament.

A day later, police raided a protest tent camp near parliament, but Saakashvili was not detained and a 24-hour deadline for him to turn himself in passed without visible action by the authorities.

The search of Saakashvili's home was conducted two days after his Movement of New Forces party organized a rally in Kyiv calling for Poroshenko's impeachment and for legislation that would allow it to take place.

Poroshenko late on December 8 said international experts may help justice officials investigate the charges against Saakashvili, adding that he was sure Saakashvili would get a fair trial in Ukraine.

"I don't exclude that the inquiry may ask for extra expertise, including from international organizations, to enhance trust," Poroshenko told reporters during a visit to Vilnius to meet with Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite.

Saakashvili "has to answer to investigators and to society regarding the accusations against him," Poroshenko said. "If he doesn't answer, it only means that these accusations are well-founded."

"If he flees from the investigation, this undermines his credibility," Poroshenko said.

With reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-saakashvili-detained- kyiv-sbu-lutsenko/28905845.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Ukrainian Opposition Demands Saakashvili's Release, Poroshenko Be Impeached

RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service December 10, 2017

KYIV  Thousands of people have demonstrated in the center of the Ukrainian capital to demand the release of opposition leader Mikheil Saakashvili from custody and to call for the impeachment or resignation of President Petro Poroshenko.

The demonstrators gathered at Kyiv's Shevchenko Park on December 10 before marching through central Kyiv toward Independence Square -- the site of the monthslong 2013-14 protests that ousted former President Viktor Yanukoych.

The Interior Ministry said that about 2,500 people took part in the rally, in which participants also called for Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko to resign.

Saakashvili supporters also gathered outside the detention center in Kyiv where the leader of the Movement of New Forces party is being held.

The former Georgian president was detained by Ukrainian authorities on December 8 for allegedly abetting an alleged "criminal group" led by Yanukoych, who was pushed from power in 2014 and fled to Russia.

Ukrainian officials also suggested that Saakashvili's protests are part of a Russian plot against Ukraine.

Saakashvili dismisses the claims.

The opposition leader became governor of Ukraine's Odesa region in 2015 but quit a year later and is now a vocal opponent of Poroshenko.

Authorities arrested him in the Ukrainian capital late on December 8, prompting hundreds of his supporters to demonstrate for his release.

Associates of Saakashvili told RFE/RL that he was arrested at a friend's apartment. Close ally and fellow Georgian David Sakvarelidze said the agents were from the state security agency SBU.

Saakashvili's lawyer and supporters said on December 9 that the opposition leader declared a hunger strike to protest his arrest.

Meanwhile, the Prosecutor-General's Office said prosecutors would ask a court to place Saakashvili under house arrest with electronic monitoring pending trial.

Saakashvili "has to answer to investigators and to society regarding the accusations against him," Poroshenko said on December 8 during a visit to Lithuania. "If he doesn't answer, it only means that these accusations are well-founded."

Saakashvili's arrest came three days after law-enforcement officers searched his apartment in Kyiv on December 5, dragged him off the roof, and bundled him into a car. But supporters blocked the streets and pulled him from the vehicle, and he led a march to parliament.

On December 6, police raided a protest tent camp near parliament, but a 24-hour deadline for Saakashvili to turn himself in passed without visible action by the authorities.

A week ago, on December 3, Saakashvili's Movement of New Forces party organized a rally in Kyiv calling for Poroshenko's impeachment and for legislation that would allow it to take place.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-saakashvili-poroshenko-rally- impeachment-hunger-strike/28907908.html

Copyright (c) 2017. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Nobel Peace Prize Winners Urge Nuclear Powers to Sign UN Treaty

By VOA News December 10, 2017

Winners of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize warned that the world was "one impulsive tantrum" away from destruction, urging nuclear nations to adopt a U.N. treaty banning atomic weapons.

"Will it be the end of nuclear weapons, or will it be the end of us?" Beatrice Fihn, who accepted the award on behalf of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), asked in her speech following the group's acceptance of the award.

Fihn warned that in particular, warlike threats exchanged between North Korea and the United States amid nuclear tests by Pyongyang were forcing the world to live "under the conditions where our mutual destruction is only one impulsive tantrum away."

The Geneva-based group, which received the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this year, consists of about 500 organizations in more than 100 countries that are working toward global nuclear disarmament.

The Nobel committee praised ICAN's efforts toward securing the 2017 U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. A total of 122 nations adopted the deal  but none of the nine known nuclear powers signed up.

In a break from tradition, the three western nuclear powers  the U.S., France and Britain  sent second-ranking diplomats rather than their ambassadors to Sunday's ceremony.

Receiving the award with Fihn was 85-year-old Setsuko Thurlow, a survivor of the Hiroshima atomic bombing and now an ICAN campaigner, who described horrible scenes in the aftermath of the atomic bomb in 1945 when she was 13 years old.

"Listen to our testimony. Heed our warning. And know that your actions are consequential," Thurlow said during her speech at the ceremony.

The nine nations that have nuclear weapons boycotted the U.N. treaty negotiations, which began in February. They are Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel.

Nearly three decades after the end of the Cold War, the debate between disarmament versus deterrence is still being fought.

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By PTI: (Eds: Recasting overnight story)

Srinagar, Dec 11 (PTI) The Muslim Conference (MC), a constituent of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, has split into two factions as the rebels expelled veteran separatist leader and MC president Abdul Gani Bhat for meeting the Centres special representative for Kashmir, Dineshwar Sharma.

In a letter to Mirwaiz Umar Farooq,Athe chairman of the moderateAHurriyat Conference, the MC said it had appointed a new chairman, Muhammad Sultan Magray, for six months.

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"As you know, Bhats secret meeting with Sharma has been a cause of concern for the party and the people of Kashmir.

"In this backdrop, a meeting of the MC leaders was held, in which it was decided that Magray would be the new president of the outfit for a period of six months," the letter read.

The expulsion comes amidst reports that Bhat had met Sharma on the latters second visit to the state.

The new MC president, in the letter issued on December 9, said the Hurriyat should contact him for any future correspondence with the outfit.

However, Bhat, on his part, expelled the representative of the MCs Pakistan chapter, Manzoor Ahmad Bhat, at whose behest he was expelled from the Hurriyat.

In a letter addressed to Manzoor and counter-signed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Bhat said he had expelled him as the representative for Pakistan for indiscipline. PTI SSB RC KJ

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) Textile industry body CITI today called for imposing safeguard measures to prevent routing of cheaper fabrics produced in countries like China through Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, that have free trade pacts with India.

In a statement, the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) observed that the countrys garment industry will face stiff competition due to garments imported, especially from Bangladesh where production cost is already less than India.

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CITI stated that according to the latest data released by Bangladesh Export Promotion Bureau, Indias import of garments from Bangladesh has reached USD 87.4 million during July to November 2017, indicating a sharp increase of 56 per cent from USD 55.92 million during the same period last year. CITI Chairman Sanjay Kumar Jain pointed out that there is "an urgent need to impose safeguard measures such as Rules of Origin, Yarn Forward and Fabric Forward Rules on the countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka that have free trade agreements (FTAs) with India to prevent cheaper fabrics produced from countries like China routed through these countries". During July to November 2017, Indias imports of knitted apparel from Bangladesh increased by 69 per cent while the imports of woven apparel increased by 51 per cent corresponding to the same period last year, he said. Jain highlighted that the basic custom duty on import of garments from Bangladesh is exempted. In the Pre-GST scenario, import of garment from Bangladesh was attracting cost of Rs 77 per piece (where MRP Rs 999 per piece) and Rs 116 per piece (where MRP is Rs 1,500 per piece) in the shape of CVD + education cess thereon.

However, post-GST (goods and services tax), there is no cost for import of garments from Bangladesh. Similarly, in the case of import of garment from other countries, the cost has been substantially reduced by Rs 77 per piece and Rs 116 per piece where MRP is Rs 999 per piece and Rs 1,500 per piece respectively, he said.

"Garment manufacturers in India have to pay duty on imported fabrics, while Bangladesh can import fabric from China duty free and convert them into garments and sell to India duty free. "This is putting Indian garment industry at a major disadvantage and it is feared that this figure will go up further in the coming days as more Indian Brands shift sourcing from India to low cost duty free countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka," the textile body said. PTI RSN MKJ

--- ENDS ---
Google has fixed an annoying Android Auto issue that users have been reporting for over a year now. Basically, the issue is related with temperature scales, with users complaining that wrong scale was being shown on head units.

While those in the US were seeing temperature in Celsius, users in several non-US markets - including the UK, Italy, and Canada - were being forced to see temperature figures in Fahrenheit. Basic troubleshooting steps like clearing cache were of no use.

Thankfully, Google recently confirmed that the problem has been resolved. The fix is now available in every Google app version, but it's recommended that you update the app with the latest version.

Source | Via
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Loreto Hall is set to become an 87-room luxury hotel

An Bord Pleanala has given the go-ahead for a 40m luxury hotel on St Stephen's Green - despite concerns from officials at the Department of Foreign Affairs that it poses a security risk.

The appeals board gave the go-ahead for company Brown Table Solutions to convert Loreto Hall into an 87-room hotel.

The department argued its headquarters at Iveagh House, close to Loreto Hall, regularly plays host to heads of state, national and foreign dignitaries and political leaders for sensitive meetings and negotiations.

"The security and privacy of the Iveagh House premises is of paramount importance," it said.

Inadequate

"The proposal to construct a bank of hotel rooms with windows facing directly into the Iveagh House offices and ballroom - its main meeting room - with inadequate separation distances, is of great concern to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade."

The department said it did not object in principle to the redevelopment of Loreto Hall, but asked the board to refuse planning permission for the proposal "in order that a more considered development of appropriate scale and form may take place".

An Bord Pleanala responded to concerns by ordering the omission of a planned penthouse suite level, and of one floor from the planned hotel.

The board also found the proposal would not adversely affect the character or architectural significance of the historic buildings around the site.

It found the plan would not seriously injure the amenities of properties in the vicinity and would be acceptable in terms of traffic safety and convenience.

Threat

The permission came against a background of An Taisce campaigning against the number of hotels now planned for the capital.

In response to plans for a separate eight-storey hotel north of the Liffey, An Taisce said a huge number of new hotels have currently been permitted or are in the planning system.

In an objection, the organisation's Kevin Duff argued "it has reached the point of unsustainability in the context of city centre planning".

In contrast, Failte Ireland has said there is a major threat to additional tourism in Dublin because of "the acute shortage of hotel bedrooms" in the city centre.

Loreto Hall went on the market last year, with a guide price of 5.75m.
India's top secret nuclear submarine project reached another decadal milestone last month with the launch of a second ballistic missile submarine, the Arighat . On November 19, Union defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman cracked the auspicious coconut on the fin of the submarine in the drydock of the Ship Building Centre (SBC) in Visakhapatnam in a low-key ceremony. Following this, the SBC's drydock was flooded and the submarine quietly floated out. It will be at least another three years before the navy commissions the Arighat.

The event skipped the high-profile public ceremony of the Arihant's launch in 2009 even as the four-decade Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project to field a series of ballistic missile firing nuclear submarines is now moving at a furious assembly-line pace.

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Two new units, the S4 and S4 'star', displacing over 1,000 tonnes more than the Arihant class will move into the SBC drydock vacated by the two Arihant class submarines. These submarines, fitted with eight ballistic missiles or twice the Arihant's missile load, will be launched by 2020 and 2022. An official says the Arighat launch has more to do with creating more work space within the cramped SBC for assembling the S4 and S4*. The ATV project is India's costliest defence project. The programme to build four SSBNs (hull classification symbol for a nuclear-powered, ballistic missile-carrying submarine) is India's largest defence programme, estimated at Rs 90,000 crore. Each of these nuclear-powered sharks costs upwards of Rs 4,000 crore, not counting the infrastructure created by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) to build their nuclear powered reactors and the Defence Research and Development Organisation's (DRDO) submarine launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).

The project's pan-India spread-headquartered in New Delhi, hull fabrication facility in Gujarat, missile development in Hyderabad, nuclear reactor in Tamil Nadu and final assembly in Visakhapatnam-is the biggest Make in India industrial ecosystem-nearly 60 per cent of the submarine's components are indigenous. It is also the cornerstone of Indo-Russian strategic cooperation; top officials admit the project would not have been possible without extensive Russian design and technical assistance. Ahead of the submarine arm's golden jubilee on December 8, the ATV programme has nearly doubled in size with a Rs 60,000 crore project to build six indigenous nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs).

"It has kicked off, " navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba told the media about the SSN project on December 1. "It is a classified project? the process has started." Design work for the indigenous SSNs displacing around 6,000 tonnes is under way at a newly constructed submarine design centre in Gurgaon. SSNs are armed with conventional cruise missiles and torpedoes but powered by nuclear reactors which give it excellent underwater speed and endurance.

The navy has opened up talks for the lease of another Akula-class submarine from Russia for over $2 billion, to replace the existing INS Chakra when it is returned in 2022 after the end of its lease. (The Chakra is currently non-operational after an incident last August). Meanwhile, final design work is under way on a new series of 13,500-tonne ballistic missile submarines. Called the 'S-5', it will be twice the weight of the Arihant class SSBNs and armed with 12 nuclear-tipped missiles. Earlier this year, the DRDO flagged off its K-6 SLBM project, a missile with an ICBM-like range of 6,000 km. The first phase of Project Varsha, a nuclear submarine base, will be completed by 2022. The base will house India's SSBN fleet in concrete pens blasted out of the hills at Rambilli 50 km south of Visakhapatnam, reportedly at a cost of Rs 30,000 .

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THE THIRD LEG OF THE TRIAD

A nuclear engine allows a submarine to travel almost indefinitely underwater. They don't have to surface to recharge their batteries like conventional diesel-electric submarines (SSKs) and they move faster underwater because they avoid surface wave resistance.

The Arighat, like the Arihant, is a ballistic missile submarine or a boomer because it carries nuclear-tipped missiles and forms the third leg of a triad of air, land and sea-based nuclear weapon carrying platforms, enunciated in India's draft nuclear doctrine after the May 1998 Pokharan-2 nuclear tests. When India observes the 20th anniversary of the tests five months from now, it will have a modest sea-based deterrent with one SSBN in service and a second soon to join it.

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"The triad becomes effective when you have a submarine operational at all times. In our case, a triad is operational only part of the time-when the Arihant sails out to sea," says strategic analyst Bharat Karnad. When an Indian SSBN sails out of Visakhapatnam and into the Bay of Bengal, it can virtually disappear for months, remaining underwater, its endurance limited only by the endurance of its crew, communicating only through extremely low frequency (ELF) antennae which it trails in the water. While bombers, mobile missile launchers, missile trains and ground-based launchers can be tracked, nuclear submarines are virtually undetectable. This is what makes them the most precious asset of the nuclear triad.

Submarines thus become an important component of India's 'no first use' policy for nuclear weapons because they act as guarantors of 'assured retaliation' or a second-strike, preventing any surprise first-strike by a nuclear-armed adversary. They are vital at a time when China's PLA Rocket Forces can target any point on the Indian mainland with nuclear tipped missiles and India has fewer retaliatory options.

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The Arihant has so far been equipped with 12 B-05 SLBMs which have a range of 750 km-which means a distant transit to an adversary's shores. A 3,500-km range missile, the 'K-4' is still in trials-the DRDO is to conduct a fourth test of the missile sometime in December, from a specially designed submersible pontoon launcher in the Bay of Bengal. Final tests of the K-4 from the Arihant are due in the Bay of Bengal in the near future. These are to be followed by tests of a K-5 missile, a 5,000-km SLBM, a project started in 2015. The 'K series' missiles are all named after former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. The K-4 and K-5, each of which can carry a two-tonne warhead will give the triad a longer, more robust leg.

Information about the ATV project is meagre. It operates directly under the supervision of national security advisor Ajit Doval and is now wrapped in deep levels of secrecy. A navy proposal for a high-profile launch of the Arighat where the PM and cabinet ministers would be present was overruled by the PMO. Security around the project is the heaviest for any publicly known military facility (the navy recently cited security concerns to acquire a public road passing near the SBC in Visakhapatnam).

Naval top brass are chary of even discussing the project either in public or in private. "That (the ATV) is a classified project... I'm not going to take any questions on that," navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba told the media a press conference on December 1, a marked departure from a predecessor who claimed, rather disingenously in 2010, of the INS Arihant undertaking 'a deterrent patrol by 2012'. The Arihant was inducted into service in August last year after weapon trials but continues to undertake extensive trials but without a prolonged sea deployment. An actual deterrent patrol-where a nuclear-missile armed submarine goes into its operational area armed with nuclear warheads-is thought to be further away.

The launch of the Arighat comes amidst fast-changing geopolitical developments. The Chinese navy has deployed and initiated the fastest submarine expansion of any navy since the end of the Cold War with an operational undersea force of 63 vessels-5 SSNs, 4 SSBNs and 54 SSKs.

It recently sold a class of eight conventionally powered diesel-electric submarines to Pakistan, at least some of which are likely to be fitted with nuclear-tipped missiles.

"Sea-based deterrents are going to become more important as time passes, especially for a country with a no-first use policy," says strategic analyst Rear Admiral Raja Menon (retired). "The location of your nuclear weapons becomes known and even a half per cent knowledge of your existing weapon sites each year could add up to something substantial over the years, thus degrading your deterrent."

THE HUNTER-KILLERS

A solitary two-month patrol by a Chinese submarine in late 2013 came as a rude wake-up call for India's security establishment. Chinas most advanced SSN, a Shang class, sailed out from its bastion in Hainan island on December 13, 2013 and returned after a two-month 'anti-piracy' patrol in the Indian Ocean, on February 12, 2014. R&AW assessments termed the deployment 'seriously aggravated India's security concerns'. The ATV headquarters soon dusted out plans for building a series of six indigenous SSNs, shelved by the government over a decade ago due to budgetary constraints. Plans called for a series of submarines capable of speeds of over 25 knots and diving to 500 metres.

SSNs are like multi-role fighter jets, ferocious underwater predators. The navy's INS Chakra, for instance, can run underwater at speeds of close to 30 knots, more than twice the speed of conventional diesel-electric submarines, stalk and hunt warships and attack shore targets.

But like fighter jets, their performance lies in their propulsion plant, in this case a high output nuclear reactor which can cope with the tremendous bursts of sustained speed without degrading reactor output. And this is where the Indian Navy and BARC are said to be staring at a technological abyss. An 83 MW SSBN reactor like that of the Arihant, is essentially meant for slow, steady operation, using it onboard an SSN would call for more frequent refuelling cycles.

One solution believed to be under contemplation is for BARC to design a twin-reactor configuration for the SSN to meet its increased power demands. Another solution currently being explored would be to get foreign design assistance and leapfrog from India's second generation reactor technology to fourth gen.

DREAMS OF A BEHEMOTH

The ATV headquarters building in New Delhi's cantonment area has a rather unusual name: 'Akanksha' or desire. Since its start in the 1970s, the nuclear submarine project has been a dream-never constrained by finance, only by technology.

BARC's prototype 83 MW light water reactor at Kalpakkam, the S-1, used to train nuclear submariners.

There's a reason for the modest size of the Arihant class submarines and why they are called 'baby boomers'. When the Pokharan-2 nuclear tests announced India's entry as a nuclear weapons power, the Arihant class were meant to be SSNs. Post the tests, they were converted into SSBNs-DRDO inserted a plug with four short-ranged ballistic missiles. The design got another tweak a decade ago after an intervention from then finance minister P. Chidambaram who was on the political committee which monitors the classified programme. The minister questioned the billions being spent on a boat launching just four nuclear tipped missiles. The ATV project team came back with an 'Arihant-stretch'-an additional 10-metre-long plug for four K-4 SLBMs to be integrated into the S-4, then on the design board. The plug would increase the weight of the submarine by nearly 1,000 tonnes without significantly altering its performance. An additional unit, the S-4* was sanctioned in 2012 when it became clear that the S-5 would take a longer development cycle and would result in the ATV line being idle.

Plans for building a new series of strategic nuclear submarines had begun over a decade ago when the missile payload and reactor capacity constraints of the Arihant class submarines became evident.

In 2006, a high-level committee under Dr R. Chidambaram, principal scientific advisor to the government of India, assessed India's ability to design and construct a class of three new SSBNs the 'S5', to be fielded beginning in 2021. It budgeted Rs 10,000 crore, to be divided among BARC, DRDO and the ATV project headquarters, to begin the project by 2015. The project continued in the development stage and an indication of a possible long lead construction time began when the government sanctioned a fourth unit around five years ago (squeezed between the two projects as the 4*) to keep the nuclear submarine line employed. (S-1 being the shore-based pressurised water reactor at the DAE facility in Kalpakkam, iterations of which are on the Arihant class.)

The S-5 is the true-blue SSBN on par with those fielded by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Plans drawn up over a decade ago called for an SSBN of 13,500 tonnes, a behemoth displacing nearly the weight of India's first aircraft carrier the INS Vikrant and armed with 12 SLBMs with ranges of 6,000 km and with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle (MIRV) capability.

In February this year, the DRDO's Hyderabad-based Advanced Naval Systems began a fourth separate SLBM project-the K-6 missile. This three-stage solid-fuel missile with a 6,000 km range is said to be completely different from the K-4 and K-5. It will carry MIRVs and will be ready for induction in less than a decade. These new missiles, over 12 metres tall and over 2 metres in diameter, will carry a three-tonne warhead. The K-6 will ensure that the future Indian SSBN's bastion area will be within the Bay of Bengal, from where it can target all its potential adversaries. A former head of India's Strategic Forces Command hinted at this in a 2014 think tank event in Washington when he said that India's sea-based deterrent would eventually "be secured in havens, waters we are pretty sure of, by virtue of the range of the missiles. We will be operating in a pool in our own maritime backyard." From the safety of its depths, Indian SSBNs would be able to target all its potential adversaries with its 6,000-km range ballistic missiles (SLBMs).

The SSBN fleet is based on the east coast for reasons of geography-the Indian continental shelf dips sharply into the abyssal Bengal fan. A submarine can dive and be concealed just 2 nautical miles from harbor (a submarine on the west coast can dive only after sailing out for 80 nautical miles).

The S-5 is on the drawing board but the project team has already started ordering its ancillary equipment. A new dockyard is being created at the SBC and sources say the project will have an indigenous component of over 80 per cent when they are built a decade from now.

Yet, as is the case with the indigenous SSN, the main challenge in building the S-5 lies in its propulsion plant-a 190-MW nuclear plant- says an official familiar with the project. Development work has started on this new plant will have thrice the output of the Arihant's 83 MW reactor which uses Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU). A former BARC official and part of the Reactor Projects Division which built the Arihant's reactor is confident the 83 MW can be scaled up. "One of the biggest challenges in a naval reactor is compacting it to fit a confined space. Since the new platform (S-5) will have a bigger volume and displacement, upscaling the present reactor should be no problem."- Without a breakthrough in propulsion technology, India's sea-based deterrent will continue to be a modest one.

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A 20-year-old woman has been charged in connection with the death of an Irish teenager mown down by a car in Australia.

Jacob Cummins (17), originally from Dublin, was killed and four others seriously injured when a vehicle allegedly driven by Aya Hishmeh mounted Eucalyptus Boulevard, in Canning Vale, Perth, on Thursday afternoon.

Murder

Hishmeh, from Canning Vale, appeared before Perth magistrates at the weekend and was charged with the murder of Jacob and the attempted unlawful killing of four others.

She put her face in her hands as the charges were read. At one point she had to be held up by prison officers.

Hishmeh was remanded in custody to appear in court again on January 31.

Four of Jacob's friends were seriously injured in the incident - after which, one witness said, the teenagers were "scattered" over the road or face down in bushes.

Jacob's death happened around an hour after a fight between boys from two schools broke out in a park.

The brawl, involving up to 60 youths and adults, continued outside a McDonald's restaurant in Livingston, and two people suffered minor stab wounds.

Police have described the brawl that led to the death of the Irish teen as a "school fight gone horribly wrong".

Local online newspaper WAToday reported that around 100 people, including members of Jacob's family and his friends, gathered at Perth's Scarborough Beach on Saturday for a memorial service for the teenager.

State Control Acting Inspector Dean Snashall, who attended the memorial to support the Cummins family, said a decision made by children to fight had ended in Jacob losing his life.

"What we are dealing with here is essentially a school fight that got completely out of hand.

"It's an absolute tragedy that a school fight can get to a situation where we have a person dead and several injured.

Diverse

"There's no evidence to suggest any gang involvement here. The group at the beach was six or seven different nationalities - it was a diverse range of people.

"This is school kids who have had an altercation over a school yard matter and unfortunately a 17-year-old boy has paid the ultimate price," he said.

A woman whose two sons were at the initial fight in the park and at the brawl outside McDonald's said the violence was sparked when a group went to Canning Vale to fight a Canning Vale College student.

"The group randomly hit kids and tormented them, stealing bikes," she said.
A woman was arrested at a ceremony for the switching on of Dublin's Christmas lights, after she began screaming abuse at a man in the crowd.

Anne Marie Byrne (32) had to be dragged away from the man by gardai during the incident on one of the city's main shopping streets, where thousands had gathered to watch the lights being turned on.

Byrne, of Blessington Street, Dublin, pleaded guilty to threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour.

Dublin District Court heard the incident happened at Henry Street on November 19.

Gardai on duty saw the accused was shouting and was in an altercation with a man in the crowd.

She had to be pulled back by the gardai while screaming abuse at the man.

In a previous incident, Byrne was arrested for fighting in public with a woman.

She was staying at an inner-city hostel when she damaged another woman's jacket with a lighter while it was drying on a radiator.

In another incident, Byrne spat at a garda.

Convictions

The accused had previous public order convictions.

In relation to the man the defendant was shouting at, the court heard there had been a previous incident and Byrne "met this particular individual".

She did not approach the situation the right way, her solicitor John Feaheny said.

The accused was on methadone and "like so many people who are homeless" swapped her drug addiction for an alcohol addiction.

"When you are on the streets you take whatever comfort you can wherever you can find it," Mr Feaheny said.

Judge Michael Walsh suspended the two-month sentence for a year.
How good are these two guys, Penn State fans? It may surprise you ...
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) India has proposed USD 1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said today.

Apart from this, India has set up a project development fund of USD 77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, he said.

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"The ASEAN India maritime transport cooperation agreement is being negotiated...An Asian India civil aviation task force has been established to see optimisation of air connectivity.

"India has proposed to commit a line of credit of USD 1 billion to promote projects that support physical and digital connectivity," Gadkari said.

He was addressing the ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit jointly organised by CII and ASEAN India Centre.

The minister said ASEAN and India have also agreed to establish a maritime transport working group among India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to examine the feasibility of shipping networks.

Asserting that connectivity is the pathway to shared prosperity, he said better connectivity is the core factor for strengthening ASEAN-India relations.

"Connectivity projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH), extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and at different stages of implementation," he said.

India is already working with Myanmar in the areas of border area development, capacity building, infrastructure development, connectivity projects and institutional development.

Stressing on augmentation of international connectivity, the minister said for Bharat Mala project, around 2,000 km with an outlay of Rs 25,000 crore are earmarked to connect Indias major highway corridors to international trade points.

This will facilitate export/import trade with Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

About BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) Motor Vehicles Agreement, Gadkari said action has been initiated for implementation of BBIN MVA by Bangladesh, India and Nepal. PTI NAM ANU

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W hen newly married, Charles Dickens lived near the law courts in Holborn. It was an area of large houses, slum dwellings and narrow passages, of the kind that characterises the Victorian novelists classic tales  including the one we all love to revisit at this time of year, A Christmas Carol.

This central London area was badly bombed in the Second World War and fell into decay.

Fine Georgian houses, too big without servants, became flats and bedsits. Now this unique patch is becoming fashionable, with restaurants, bars, boutiques and small independent shops clustered in Red Lion Street, a chic shopping and eating hotspot. Local properties are being restored as family houses.

In 1993, architect James Gorst lived nearby and bought a dilapidated five-storey 1745 terrace house for 200,000 from the Bedford Estate.

Inside the new-look Georgian house in Dickens London 1 /14 Inside the new-look Georgian house in Dickens London Buying in Dicken's land In 1993, architect James Gorst lived near the law courts in Holborn and bought a dilapidated five-storey 1745 terrace house for 200,000 from the Bedford Estate. Charles Hosea Barrister lets Gorst upgraded the flats to appeal to barristers: Victorian Farrow & Ball colours, and sisal. His lawyer tenants stayed for years. Charles Hosea Moving and improving In 2007, Gorst met Charity Crewe. They married and had twins Honor and Frank, now eight. Gorst continued letting out the Holborn house, but did up and sold their family homes several times over when the twins were little. Charles Hosea Setting down roots In 2014, the couple decided they wanted to live in the old house. The family rented in west London and Gorst got cracking. He thinks modern houses should be very modern, but that you shouldnt try to turn an old house into a modern one. The house has benefited from the couples mix of ideas. Charles Hosea Stunning addition Gorst designed the glossy aubergine kitchen with striking marble worktops. I dont like kitchens to be part of other rooms, he says, so he designed a slim, reclaimed-brick extension to hold the kitchen along one side of the courtyard, with double-glazed floor-to-ceiling sash windows and French doors that open out. A reclaimed slate floor runs into the yard. Charles Hosea Strong combination Gorsts taste includes sultry blues, and hand-blocked wallpapers. Charles Hosea Character restored Behind the master bedroom, another former bedroom is now a large bathroom-cum-dressing room, arranged so that the bespoke shower doesnt cut into the cornicing. Charles Hosea Mix of ideas Crewe vetoed the old-lady pink her husband first used for the master bathroom. Her Ghost chair and some Danish mid-century modern pieces, plus big, bright modern artworks, add zest to beautiful rooms that feature panelling and shutters. Charles Hosea Master crafts The new work is so sensitive and high quality, with all the joinery made by master craftspeople, all the paints hand-mixed and the papers hand-blocked, that it feels as if it has been there for decades. Charles Hosea Mod-cons But theres also a first-class wireless sound system, remote-controlled heating, super-reliable wired broadband and sound insulation throughout. Charles Hosea Family time Its a family home where the children are excitedly putting up their Christmas decorations. The Gorsts moved in during late summer 2015 and this time therell be no selling on. Charles Hosea

Its top two floors had been bomb damaged and rebuilt, and it had been converted  badly  into five flats.

It had endured 150 years of deprivation, says Gorst, 67. In 1900 it was a home for male down-and-outs, a sort of Barnardos.

At the back, large, west-facing rooms had been carved up, windows blocked and 10 dreary kitchens and bathrooms cheaply installed.

The building needed a total renovation. Gorst upgraded the flats to appeal to barristers: Victorian Farrow & Ball colours, and sisal.

Happy family room: James Gorst and wife Charity Crewe with twins Frank and Honor in their totally transformed Holborn home / Charles Hosea

His lawyer tenants stayed for years. Busy designing the ultra-modern houses for which he is known, Gorst also lived in each flat at various times.

At Christmas it was like a Fifties novel, with all the tenants gathered round one table, he says.

In 2007, Gorst met Charity Crewe, now 45, contributing editor at The Week news magazine.

They married and had twins Honor and Frank, now eight. Gorst continued letting out the Holborn house, but did up and sold their family homes several times over when the twins were little.

I made Charity move so many times, he says ruefully. In 2014, the couple decided they wanted to live in the old house.

I didnt think Camden would agree to restoring it to a single home, but I asked, and it turned out they wanted to encourage families in this area.

Planning permission granted, the family rented in west London and Gorst got cracking. He thinks modern houses should be very modern, but that you shouldnt try to turn an old house into a modern one. The house has benefited from the couples mix of ideas.

What it cost House in 1993: 200,000

Works done: 1.2 million (excluding architect's fees)

Value now: 4.75 million

Today, its generous proportions are enhanced with a smatter of bold colours, details such as sleek glass pendant lights, striking oversized hanging lights and modern art.

Crewe chose vibrant green for her study, and vetoed the old-lady pink her husband first used for the master bathroom. Her Ghost chair and some Danish mid-century modern pieces, plus big, bright modern artworks, add zest to beautiful rooms that feature panelling and shutters.

Gorsts taste includes sultry blues, hand-blocked wallpapers and striking marble worktops in the glossy aubergine kitchen he designed.

I dont like kitchens to be part of other rooms, he says, so he designed a slim, reclaimed-brick extension to hold the kitchen along one side of the courtyard, with double-glazed floor-to-ceiling sash windows and French doors that open out. A reclaimed slate floor runs into the yard.

Beautifully bold: modern artwork teamed with a zesty sofa and rug are contemporary touches in a lovely old house / Charles Hosea

It was all a huge job and took 13 months at full tilt. Most floorboards went, damaged irreparably. Once all the partitions were down the original layout was visible and brighter.

New oak floors, a new roof, new piping and wiring went in. Original sections of architrave, shutters and panelling were carefully copied and in the back drawing-room, blocked-up windows were reopened.

Behind the master bedroom, another former bedroom is now a large bathroom-cum-dressing room, arranged so that the bespoke shower doesnt cut into the cornicing.

The new work is so sensitive and high quality, with all the joinery made by master craftspeople, all the paints hand-mixed and the papers hand-blocked, that it feels as if it has been there for decades.

But theres also a first-class wireless sound system, remote-controlled heating, super-reliable wired broadband and sound insulation throughout. It is a house to enjoy with children.

The Gorsts moved in during late summer 2015 and this time therell be no selling on. Its a family home where the children are excitedly putting up their Christmas decorations. If Dickens dropped in, hed certainly approve.

GET THE LOOK
All three are believed to be Lashkar terrorists. Apart from the killed, one militant has also been captured alive from Unisoo village.

By India Today Web Desk: Three militants were killed in an encounter late Sunday night in north Kashmir's Handwara city's Unisoo village and one captured alive.

All four are believed to be Lashkar terrorists. A civilian woman too lost her life in the cross-fire last night.

The gunfight in Unisoo village broke out at 3am, when the troops of 92 CRPF Battalion along with 22 Rashtriya Rifle and Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel, acting on intel laid a cordon in the area.

In unisoo Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold.- Shesh Paul Vaid (@spvaid) December 11, 2017

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After a intermittent firing, all three militants in hiding were neutralised and the fourth was apprehended.

Meanwhile, internet services have been suspended in Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara following the encounter.

With inputs from Ashraf Wani

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DoubleTree by Hilton Grand Rapids Airport, welcomes Colin McPhee as executive chef for the hotel restaurant  Ganders. Bringing years of experience, dynamic culinary talent and a creative approach to developing unexpected dishes featuring local fare, McPhee will oversee menu development and culinary creations for the hotel and restaurant as well as catering for on-property events and in-room dining. As the first DoubleTree by Hilton in Grand Rapids, Mich., the 226-room property is just minutes away from popular Grand Rapids attractions and Gerald R. Ford International Airport. Prior to joining DoubleTree by Hilton Grand Rapids, McPhee most recently served as the sous chef of J.W. Marriott in Grand Rapids where he oversaw various aspects of the food and beverage outlets, including the mentoring of young chefs. His resume also includes time at Gracewill Country Club, Bar Divani and Timbers Inn in Grand Rapids. A lifelong resident of southwestern Michigan, McPhee earned his Associate Degree in Culinary Management and Pastry Certification from the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education. Embracing the art of culinary surprises in travel, McPhee and DoubleTree by Hilton Grand Rapids Airport celebrates sustainable dining. The120-seat restaurant Ganders, a nod to Michiganders, presents guests with a casual, fun atmosphere. Guests enjoy modern American menu options dedicated to locally ingredients representing the best farms, markets and food artisans of West Michigan. Ganders restaurant also features a number of local craft beers on tap and by the bottle. For a unique spin on special events and tasting dinners, the restaurant works directly with local breweries to create multi-course beer tasting menus featuring beer incorporated into every course.
Inn at Dos Brisas, a nine-room Relais & Chateaux property in the foothills of the Texas Hill Country, welcomes back Executive Chef Zachary Ladwig to lead the culinary charge at Texas only Forbes Five-Star restaurant. Chef Ladwig previously served as the inns Chef de Cuisine and Executive Chef from 2011-2013, and returns to the property where he will be deeply entrenched in its organic farmland and orchards. Already engrained in the Inn at Dos Brisas culinary capabilities from his previous time on property, Chef Ladwig will be responsible for the food and beverage operations at the signature restaurant, in addition to in-room dining and catering. With over 15 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Chef Ladwig has extensive background in fine dining, having served as Chef De Cuisine at the Broadmoor Penrose Room in Colorado in addition to roles at Gordon Ramsays London restaurant, New York Citys acclaimed Bouley and the former Corton in New York. Recognized with the Relais & Chateaux distinction of fine dining, the award-winning restaurant at Inn at Dos Brisas offers a daily-changing menu that combines a vegetable-centric focus with Texas flair, straight from the propertys forty-two acre USDA-certified organic farm.
By PTI: London, Dec 11 (PTI) Cartographers surveying Antarctica have discovered that Mt Hope is the tallest mountain in the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) at 3,239 metres above sea level.

Until now, maps showed Mt Jackson as the tallest mountain in the territory at 3,184 metres, according to researchers at British Antarctic Survey (BAS).

However, new satellite data reveals this is not the case, with Mt Hope being 55 metres taller than Mt Jackson and 377 metres higher than previously thought, they said.

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The discovery was made to update planning maps for pilots operating in Antarctica.

Previously, measurements from old overland surveys were used for mapping the region and the new high-resolution satellite measurements, accurate to within five metres, show there are several errors in these surveys.

"This is an exciting discovery within the British Antarctic Territory. Modern satellite data highlights how inaccurate previous surveys and maps were for some parts of the region," said Adrian Fox, Head of Mapping and Geographic Information at BAS.

"As well as discovering Mt Hope is the highest mountain in the territory, we have identified several other interesting discoveries.

"These include new mountain heights, ranges in new locations by up to five kilometres and even some new peaks which had not been surveyed before," said Fox.

"Maps with reliable measurements of the highest peaks are an essential safety requirement for flight planning. Accurate elevation data from satellite imagery now allows us to produce these resources for Antarctica, where flying is difficult at the best of times," said Fox.

Mt Hope is the highest mountain in the British Antarctic Territory, however, Mt Vinson remains the highest mountain in Antarctica standing at 4,892 metres, the researchers said. PTI SAR SAR

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Ottawa, Canada and Paris, France  Benbria, the leading provider of omni-channel messaging and customer experience measurement solutions, announced today that it has established a sales and customer support base outside Paris, France with its new WCS Europe partnership.

This arrangement will allow Benbria to sell and support Loop, including the Loop Messenger, Loop Pulse, and Loop OnDemand solutions to enterprise customers within France, Spain, and Portugal. Offering sales and service support in the local languages within these markets, further demonstrates Benbria's commitment to be a truly global leader of omni-channel messaging and measurement software solutions.

"This is a market with immense opportunity for Benbria and we are excited to be working with the team at WCS Europe in establishing more than simply a partnership, but a truly integrated sales, marketing, and customer support hub in the region", commented James Geneau, Head of Marketing at Benbria. "Europe has always been a leader in delivering exceptional service using mobile technology and the response to date with the Loop platform in this region has validated that. This arrangement with WCS Europe will ensure we can meet and deliver the needs of this market better than our competition".

Businesses using Loop can respond to messages received via a multitude of channels including SMS, E-mail, proprietary Web chat, in-App chat, and Facebook; and seamlessly route them to key internal team members. They can have a meaningful 1:1 dialogue with their customers to make the experience more personal, recover at-risk ones, and drive long-term loyalty. In addition, they can measure customer satisfaction in real-time using short and timely feedback surveys which can capture the customer's sentiment and satisfaction at any point in their journey. Both of these solutions are complemented by a rich reporting and analytics suite allowing companies to understand trending topics, operational issues, and other key drivers which may negatively impact the customer experience and revenue.

With WCS Europe, Benbria is leveraging an experienced team of technical and business specialists who can help businesses in the region learn about and integrate Loop into their enterprise customer engagement programs. "Our company is focused on delivering a broad range of technical business solutions to meet the needs of innovative enterprise clients" noted Lionel Hovsepian, Executive Director of WCS Europe. "With Benbria, we are pleased to be representing and supporting their Loop platform in the region and helping companies here connect with their customers in a meaningful way".

Companies in France, Span, and Portugal can request to connect with their dedicated Benbria team member in Europe by visiting www.benbria.com/contact-us.

About Benbria

Benbria is a leader in omni-channel messaging and customer experience measurement software solutions, helping the world's greatest brands to deliver a superior customer experience that goes above and beyond their competitors. Using a variety of mobile, in-store, and on-property technologies  including SMS, email, Web, mobile app and kiosks  Loop enables brands to capture and direct real-time customer requests, concerns, suggestions, and positive input to management and employees for action and closure. Closing the loop through on-the-spot staff action helps brands to quickly enhance the customer experience during visits, save dissatisfied customers, increase revenues, and drive greater loyalty. For more information, visit www.benbria.com.

About WCS Europe

With a team offering combined experience in the telecommunications, convergence, customer relationship, mobile applications and new usages industries, WCS Europe provides integrated technology solutions tailored to the needs of clients. By understanding the various processes impacted by the digital transformation of the company and their transversal approach, they have developed a privileged relationship with many customers, within several verticals. For more information, visit WCS Europe.

Media Contact:

Nicole Jardim

Benbria Corporation

[email protected]

Benbria, Loop, Get in the Loop, and Keep Us in the Loop are registered trademarks of Benbria Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre in Muscat Opens

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) and Oman Tourism Development Company (OMRAN) announced the opening of Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre in Muscat. The newly opened hotel is be the second Crowne Plaza in the capital and the fifth in Oman.

The 296-room hotel is located 10 minutes from the New Muscat International Airport and is a part of the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) project, situated in phase one of Madinat Al Irfan, a urban mixed-use development by OMRAN designed to meet global standards. OCEC is Muscat's state-of-the-art commercial hub for business and international events. This precinct is one of many innovative communities currently being developed that are designed to world-class standards in support of the Sultanate's growing tourism sector. While guests will benefit from the centre's 22,000m of exhibition space, they will also enjoy overlooking a natural waterway and the surrounding parklands, a wadi, and a nature reserve. With elements that allow for both productivity and recreation, Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre is ideal for both business and leisure travelers.

The hotel also offers great facilities for a broad range of visitors including two pools, a children's playground, a large fitness zone, three large meeting rooms and an independent function centre, which includes a glamourous ballroom with a terrace, ideal for weddings and other social functions.

Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre also boasts a selection of five dining options including Mosaic, that offers an all-day menu and Charm Thai that offers an authentic taste of Thailand in an ambient environment. Additionally, guests can enjoy the best of Belgian food and beverage in a traditional Belgian setting at Le Petit Belge or savour delicious cocktails by the poolside. Visitors can also indulge in an extensive collection of drinks which can be enjoyed in the lobby of the hotel.

Pascal Gauvin, Chief Operating Officer, India, Middle East & Africa, IHG said: "We are delighted to celebrate the opening of our second Crowne Plaza in Muscat, especially as it augments the city's latest development, the OCEC in Madinat Al Irfan. This landmark will facilitate Oman's growth as a business hub in the Middle East and boost tourism into the country."

"As part of our growth strategy we are constantly looking for quality growth in new and existing markets, and with this hotel we will be serving guests as we partake in Oman's economic growth. In partnership with OMRAN, we look forward to catering to the growing number of travellers into the nation's capital."

Salah Bin Salim Al-Ghazali, Division Head - Development Partnerships & Investor Relations OMRAN and Chairman of Destination Hotel Management Co. SAOC added: "With the development of the monumental Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) at Madinat Al Irfan in Muscat, OMRAN continues to support the Sultanate of Oman's positioning as a strong MICE hub in the Middle East. In the near to mid-term, the centre will attract a steady stream of business travelers to the city and as OMRAN, together with its Omani pension fund partners continue to develop the centre's retail, recreational and hospitality features, the OCEC will also attract more leisure travelers, creating a new destination and unique experiences that will benefit the social and economic growth of the Sultanate. The new Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre will be perfectly positioned to cater to both sets of travelers and add another dimension of productivity and relaxation to their experience."

He added: "We look forward to placing the Sultanate on the map as a business hub and consequently look forward to demonstrating the hospitality that both Oman and Crowne Plaza are known for."
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a franchise agreement with the JHV group for two new properties in the heritage city of Varanasi. A 300-room Crowne Plaza will be owned by M/s Mall Hotel Ltd, a subsidiary of JHV and will accommodate guests filtering in through the business traffic at Mall Road. The 180-room Holiday Inn will be owned by M/s HLA Hotels Ltd, a subsidiary of JHV and is located well to serve the Buddhist Circuit and will offer excellent connectivity to the airport. Serving a wide range of leisure and business travellers between them, both hotels are expected to be operational by 2021.

Crowne Plaza Varanasi will be situated closer to the commercial hub of Varanasi, catering to business & leisure segments, as well as premium, local social events, such as weddings and seasonal occasions. Furthermore, the hotel will house impressive meeting and banquet facilities, which will add a unique offering for business visitors to the holy city.

Holiday Inn Varanasi, will serve the Buddhist circuit due to its proximity to Sarnath and the airport, once the new bypass road is completed. With 180 rooms, the key demand generators for Holiday Inn will be religious tourism and associated events, along with other social events emanating from the city.

Commenting on the announcement, Sudeep Jain, Vice President, Development, South West Asia, IHG said: "We are thrilled to open our first Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotels in Varanasi, in partnership with a recognised conglomerate like JHV Group. It is great to be bringing our established brands to new markets, with both new and existing partners, as we continue to drive scale and brand preference in India. With these signings in Varanasi, we continue to be on track to having 150 hotels open or in our pipeline within in the next 10-15 years."

Speaking about the partnership, Mr. Jawahar Lal Jaiswal, Chairman, M/s Mall Hotel Ltd, owners of the upcoming Crowne Plaza, Varanasi: "We are delighted to be partnering with a global partner like IHG for our upcoming project in the heritage city of Varanasi. With IHG's strong distribution systems, preferred brands and best in class loyalty program, we are confident of our success with both hotels."

Mr Hira Lal Jaiswal, Chairman, M/s HLA Hotels Ltd, owners of the upcoming Holiday Inn, Varanasi, said: "With increased connectivity, an increasing number of foreign and domestic tourists are choosing to visit Varanasi, therefore, there is a need for more branded accommodation in the city. Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza, with their complementary offerings are a great fit to cater to the increasing number of corporate and leisure visitors. We are excited to be adding these iconic names to our hospitality portfolio."

As per Uttar Pradesh's government data, over 5.5 million domestic and 300,000 foreign tourists visited the city in 2016, most commonly for religious purposes. With double digit growth of air traffic in the city and increasing connectivity, both hotels are well placed to attract all traveller segments.
Cuban Dolls eye-catching mixtape title is an easily explained one. My new mixtape is titled Aaliyah Keef cause, well Aaliyah is my cute side and she a legend, and Keef is my favorite rapper, the 19-year-old Dallas rapper told Noisey earlier this year. Shes now shared that very tape, and on first-listen, its Sosas influence thats more audible, though her songs can range from Bay Area-influenced bounce (Dont Like Me) to catchy sing-rap (Flaw Shit). Most of it keeps the gritty street-wise sense of drill, but hints at many other directions Cuban Doll could go with her career. It features guest appearances from West Coasters Mozzy, OMB Peezy, and SOB x RBE. The tape CBs Cuban Link project released earlier this year.

01 Bankrupt

02 Made It Now

03 Tonight (feat. Mozzy & OMB Peezy)

04 Dont Like Me

05 Unbothered

06 I Heard (feat. SOB x RBE)

07 Trust

08 Racks Up

09 Flaw Shit

10 No Hype

11 Dubs

12 Blue Cheese

13 Walk Thru

14 Realer
Fetty Wap has been killing it these last couple of years, continuing to ride the success of tracks like Trap Queen, My Way and others while touring around the world. However, his latest performance wasnt one of grand scale variety  instead, he turned up for a very special occasion in the lives of two Jewish teens.

As per a report from TMZ, Fetty took to the stage at a BNai Mitzvah celebration over the weekend, which is a dual Bar and Bot Mitzvah that took place for a brother and sister duo. The rapper was hired by MSC Industrial Supply CEO Erik Gershwind and his wife, Jackie, to make an appearance in New York City for this very special occasion in honor of their two children.





In fact, when it comes to making their kids BNai Mitzvah a special occasion, the cash was rolled out in a big way. Sources are saying that the couple spent in the neighborhood of $150,000 for Fetty to do just four songs, which sounds like a pretty sweet gig. As well, lots of great food was on hand, including a sushi bar, sirloin steak with bordelaise sauce, salmon on toast and even a pretzel machine. You can check out some video of the emcees performance below.

As you might imagine, Fetty Wap had to keep things on a PG-13 level for the youngsters who were on hand to see him live. Im sure that, where the parents are concerned, the gesture was much appreciated. Mazel Tov to the Gershwind kids!

Fetty Wap
Ski Mask The Slump God has a mixtape coming in a couple days, according to a new Instagram post. The rapper previously announced a mixtape titled Beware Of The Book Of Eli, which was envisioned as a compilation of freestyles over older beats, as he told XXL in April. He also spoke of a surprise mixtape with a love producer, assumed to be Timbaland, who he has been working with recently. It is unclear if these projects are now one in the same.

One things for sure, Slump God has been regularly teasing new material on Instagram. You can listen to some clips below.

The rapper is expected to release an official debut album as well, so its impossible to know what will land where. If he delivers on his recent promise, fans will be getting new music in a matter of days, which is the important part.

Ski Mask released his You Will Regret mixtape in June. You can listen to that project here. He released Flo Rida, a collaboration with Higher Brothers, last month.
Since the resignation announcement coming from Democratic Senator Al Franken late last week, the heat has been on others who work on Capitol Hill to pressure Donald Trump into making a similar concession. Now, it seems that Congress might not have a choice, should they want to avoid the bad PR that has irrevocably attached itself to many men in the same position.

Three of Trumps sexual harassment accusers, Samantha Holvey, Jessica Leeds, and Rachel Crooks, all appeared on Megyn Kelly Today earlier today ahead of a news conference that was held by Brave New Films. The object here was to state the need for a bipartisan, uncompromising congressional investigation into Trumps past transgressions.

It was heartbreaking last year, said Holvey, who claims that Trump not-so-innocently walked in on her and other Miss America pageant contestants while they were in their dressing rooms back in 2006. Were private citizens and for us to put ourselves out there to try and show America who this man is and how he views women, and for them to say Eh, we dont care, it hurt.

Crooks, who alleges that Trump kissed her on the mouth without consent in 2005, described the President has having a history of serial misconduct and perversion in the news conference that followed the Today appearance. Unfortunately, this behavior isnt rare in our society, and people of all backgrounds can be victims, Crooks added. The only reason I am here today is that this offender is now the president of our country.

Leeds says that she was groped by Trump while they were on a plane in the 1980s and also managed to call her the C word during another encounter that happened later on in her life. The room cleared, she told Kelly. It was like everybody disappeared. Check out the entire news conference below.

Donald Trump
NEW YORK - Net neutrality is a simple concept but a dense and often technical issue normally discussed in tech and telecom circles. Now it's hit the mainstream.

This week, the Federal Communications Commission plans to vote on gutting Obama-era rules meant to stop broadband companies such as Comcast, AT&T and Verizon from exercising more control over what people watch and see on the internet.

Celebrity complaints and street protests aren't likely to stop the agency's vote on Thursday, but activists hope the growing outcry will push Congress to intervene and will show support for stricter regulation down the road.

Net neutrality has been a hot button before, thanks to assists from Silicon Valley and TV host John Oliver speaking out about what they see as threats to the internet. More Hollywood celebrities have been joining the cry against the agency's direction.

"Long live cute dog videos on YouTube! #RIPinternet. Share what you loved about The Internet," actor Mark Ruffalo tweeted as he urged people to push Congress to intervene. Big-time Hollywood producer Shonda Rhimes tweeted a link to a story about saving net-neutrality on her lifestyle website

Net neutrality rules bar cable and phone companies from favoring certain websites and apps - such as their own services - and give the FCC more oversight over privacy and the activities of telecom companies. Supporters worry that repealing them would hurt startups and other companies that couldn't afford to pay a broadband company for faster access to customers.

Critics of the rules say that they hurt investment in internet infrastructure and represent too much government involvement in business. Phone and cable companies say the rules aren't necessary because they already support an open internet, and have lobbied hard for their repeal.

While libertarian and conservative think tanks and telecom trade groups have spoken up against net neutrality, everyday people have been vocal in protesting the rules' repeal.

Action by Congress?

Since the FCC announced just before Thanksgiving that it was planning to gut the rules, there have been about 750,000 calls to Congress made through Battle for the Net, a website run by groups that advocate for net neutrality. By contrast, there were fewer than 30,000 calls in the first two weeks of November. While Congress doesn't need to approve FCC decisions, it can overrule the agency by passing a law.

Net neutrality also has triggered discussions all over social media, even in groups that typically don't discuss tech policy. In one Facebook group about leggings seller LuLaRoe, one woman's lament about the repeal triggered more than 270 responses. They included questions about what net neutrality was, links to explanations and statements of support. The discussion sprawled into the next day.

Meanwhile, net neutrality supporters protested outside 700 Verizon stores one day last week, said Tim Karr, senior director of strategy for Free Press, an advocacy group involved in Battle for the Net. In midtown Manhattan, some 350 people came to chant slogans and wave signs.

"Access to a free and fair internet is necessary for a functioning democracy," said Lauren Gruber, a writer for a branding agency who joined the New York protest. If the net-neutrality rules are repealed, she said, "it's just another showcase of oligarchy upon America."

Most people don't follow what federal agencies like the FCC are doing, even though decisions can have a lot of impact on people's lives, said Beth Leech, political science professor at Rutgers Having celebrities speak out can help spark people's interest, she said.

"Protests that draw average people out into the streets across the country are relatively rare," she said. "It's the rarity that gives them some of their power."

Campaign issue

The liberal organization MoveOn is urging Americans to speak up for net neutrality. Democratic senators have called for a delay in Thursday's vote, while Democratic FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel urged backers to "make a ruckus." Some Democrats are hoping that any rollback of net neutrality rules will become a campaign rallying cry in 2018 and beyond.

"Net neutrality has the potential to motivate young and progressive voters to turn out," said Tyler Law, spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which works to get Democrats elected to the House.

"There will be a political price to pay for those who are on the wrong side of this issue, because net neutrality's time as a campaign issue has arrived," Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., a longtime net neutrality supporter, said on a call with reporters last week.

Republican campaign officials didn't respond to requests for comment.

The FCC's commenting system has logged 23 million comments, compared with roughly 4 million for the last blockbuster issue - when the agency approved the net-neutrality rules in 2015. An August study by a data firm backed by the telecom industry found that 60 percent of the comments made this year supported keeping the 2015 rules.

But the commenting system has been messy. The FCC says millions of comments used temporary email accounts from fakemailgenerator.com, hundreds of thousands of comments came from one address in Russia and many were duplicates.

Some net neutrality supporters have become intensely personal in their advocacy. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and his staff have called out ugly and racist tweets and death threats. Pai also said activists came to his home to post signs that referenced his children. One man was charged in November with threatening to kill U.S. Rep. John Katko and his family if the New York Republican didn't support net neutrality.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Rahul Gandhi on becoming the Congress president.

By India Today Web Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today took to Twitter to congratulate Rahul Gandhi on becoming the Congress president.

Modi posted on the micro-blogging site and said, "I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure."

I congratulate Rahul Ji on his election as Congress President. My best wishes for a fruitful tenure. @OfficeOfRG- Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2017

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Rahul Gandhi was declared Congress president on Monday afternoon.

The Gandhi scion responded to PM Modi's message and thanked him.

Thank you for your good wishes Modi ji. @narendramodi&; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) December 11, 2017

Congress earlier today announced that Rahul Gandhi won the election to Congress president's post uncontested. No other candidate filed nomination to challenge Rahul, paving way for smooth transition in the party leadership.

He will be taking charge as Congress president from mother Sonia Gandhi on December 16, two days after polling gets over in Gujarat and two days before results are declared.

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Manmohan Singh has hit back at PM Narendra Modi over his charge that Congress leaders held secret meeting with Pakistani representatives.

By India Today Web Desk: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress party of holding secret meeting with Pakistani leaders with an eye on Gujarat Assembly election, his predecessor Manmohan Singh has hit back.

Issuing a statement, Manmohan Singh today said that PM Modi's comments show his desperation out fear of "defeat in Gujarat". Launching a scathing attack on PM Modi, Manmohan Singh asked why he went to Pakistan without invitation after terror attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur.

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Reminding PM Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur, the former prime minister said, "Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan."

"Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable," Manmohan Singh said.

He further said that Modi "is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office" including that of a former prime minister and former army chief.

Manmohan Singh's response has come a day after Narendra Modi referred to a "secret meeting" between Congress leaders and Pakistani representatives at suspended party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar.

Manmohan Singh said that the Congress needed "no sermons on "Nationalism" from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known.

He further said, "I reject the innuendos and falsehood as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner."

Manmohan Singh also listed the names of people who attended the dinner party on December 6. Besides hosts Mani Shankar Aiyar and his wife, the names include former Pakistani diplomat Khurshid Kasuri, former Vice-President Hamid Ansari, former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh, former Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, former foreign secretary Salman Haider and senior journalist Prem Shankar Jha.

Manmohan: Modi tarnishing PM's office by spreading falsehood

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This School Dropout Now Owns Four Houses; Know Her Secret Here
Pakistan has denied having a secret meeting with the Congress leaders as alleged by PM Narendra Modi at an election rally in Gujarat. Rahul Gandhi says PM Modi is talking about Pakistan because his Gujarat campaign has flopped.

By India Today Web Desk: Pakistan has rebuffed the allegations of meddling in Gujarat Assembly election leveled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he named a former Pakistan Army DG during a poll rally at Sanand yesterday.

Denying a secret meeting with Congress leaders and Pakistan's High Commissioner in new Delhi, the Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said that India should stop "dragging" Islamabad into its electoral debate.

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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi too rejected the allegations saying that PM Modi's agenda in Gujarat had flopped like a bad movie.

MODI'S PAKISTAN COMMENT: THINGS TO KNOW

Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson Faisal termed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remark as "baseless and irresponsible". "India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible," Faisal wrote on Twitter. The tweet was posted in response to Narendra Modi's remark accusing a group of Congress leaders of meeting Pakistan's High Commissioner at party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence in New Delhi before the latter called him (Modi) "neech". Addressing an election rally at Sanand in Gujarat ahead of second phase of Assembly election on December 14, Modi said that the meeting at Aiyar's residence was also attended by former Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. PM Modi said, "There was a meeting convened at Aiyar's residence where Pakistan's High Commissioner, Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Ansari and Manmohan Singh were present. The meeting lasted three hours." Later, reports suggested that a dinner party was hosted at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's home in New Delhi on December 6. Among others Pakistan's former foreign minister Khurshid Mahmood Kasuri had attended the party. At his Banaskantha rally, PM Modi named a former Pakistan Army official saying that the DG rank officer wanted Congress leader Ahmed Patel as the next Gujarat chief minister. "Pakistan Army's former DG is interfering in Gujarat's election. On the other, Pakistani people are holding a meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's house. After that meeting, people of Gujarat, backward communities, poor people and Modi were insulted. Don't you think such events raise doubts," PM Modi said. Calling it a "serious matter", PM Modi said that the Congress must explain why former Pakistani Army officer Sardar Arshad Rafiq had been allegedly doing social media canvassing for Ahmed Patel. Responding to Modi's charge, Rahul Gandhi today said at Banaskantha that BJP's campaign has flopped in Gujarat and this was the reason why the prime minister was talking about other countries but not Gujarat. Rahul Gandhi said, "Jaise picture flop hoti hai, waise hi BJP ki vikas yatra flop ho gayi. Gujarat ka chunav ho raha hai aur Modiji kabhi Japan, Pakistan, Afghanistan ki baat karte hain. Modiji, Gujarat ka chunaav hai, thodi Gujarat ki baat karlo (Like a movie flops, the BJP's vikas yatra has flopped. The election is happening in Gujarat and Modiji is talking about Japan, Pakistan, Afghanista. Modiji, this is Gujarat election talk something about Gujarat)," Rahul Gandhi said in Banaskantha.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Daft.ie said three bedroom homes along the new Cross City Luas route have seen a dramatic rise in values

The values of houses near the new Luas line in Dublin have soared by about 15%.

Property website Daft.ie said three-bedroom homes along the Cross City route have seen a dramatic rise in values compared to just 6% for similar homes near the other railway lines.

The research also showed that homes along the Dublin coastline average out as the most expensive.

Properties along the Dart line bring with them a premium and account for four of the top five dearest places to live, it found.

Homes close to the Sandymount stop average out at 784,000 euro; L ansdowne Road at 737,000 euro; Sydney Parade at 706,000 euro and Dalkey at 699,000 euro.

The other stop on the top five is Beechwood in the Ranelagh area of Dublin where homes along the Luas line average out at 727,000 euro.

Daft.ie issued the data along with a series of maps showing stop-by-stop differences in average house prices along the 125 stations and stops on the Luas Green, Red and Cross City lines and the Dart.

The most expensive places to buy property on the Luas Cross City are near the Dawson stop at 519,000 euro; Trinity at 519,000 euro; and Westmoreland at 519,000 euro.

Ronan Lyons, economist at Trinity College Dublin, said: "It is well known that transport infrastructure can have a big impact on property values.

"Over the last 20 years, Ireland has added lots of new infrastructure, including motorways and the Dart.

"How these investments pay for themselves is, of course, a different question.

"One option increasingly considered elsewhere is value capture - in other words, where the taxpayer brings about an increase in wealth by paying for new infrastructure, it shares in part of that new wealth."

Martin Clancy, from Daft.ie, said: "Convenience and affordability are two key concerns for pretty much everyone who lives and works in Dublin.

"This map gives a great overview of property prices across the capital and is a fantastic visual reference for anyone who is considering buying or selling close to the Luas or Dart."
Britain's commitment to maintaining a soft Irish border after Brexit is "much more than legally enforceable", David Davis has said.

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would seek to maintain a "frictionless, invisible" border between Northern Ireland and the Republic even if Friday's last-minute agreement to allow trade talks to start collapses in the event of a "no deal" Brexit.

His comment on Sunday that the plans were a "statement of intent" was branded "bizarre" by the Irish government, which insisted an agreement that the UK will have "full alignment" with the EU on issues that impact on Northern Ireland was "binding".

But Mr Davis claimed his words had been "completely twisted".

He told LBC Radio: "What I actually said yesterday in terms was we want to protect the peace process, want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them, and I said this was a statement of intent which was much more than just legally enforceable.

"Of course it's legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement but even if that didn't happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland."

Mr Davis went on: "What we're saying is this bit of it, the bit about the full alignment argument on the issues which affect the peace process in the Belfast Agreement, we would look to that anyway because one of our absolute underpinning aims is to ensure that Ireland and particularly the Northern Ireland peace process is not harmed.

"And what's most symbolic in that is the absence of a hard border, the absence of border posts and that sort of thing.

"And we are quite certain we can do that by technical and other means even if we end up without a deal with the European Union."

Asked why he said the soft Irish border deal was a statement of intent, Mr Davis replied: "Because it's more than legally enforceable.

"In the event that the withdrawal agreement doesn't happen then we would still be seeking to maintain an invisible border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, that was the point. I was making the point it was much more than just in the treaty, it's what we want to do anyway."

Mr Davis dismissed concerns that a soft border between the UK and EU on the island of Ireland could encourage people smuggling.

"That would be a very hard way to get into Britain, you'd have to be a fairly dumb people smuggler to come in that way," he said.

"Something like 50 million people go through the country every year - tourists and so on - you go to Heathrow, look at it, there's huge numbers of people, it's much simpler to come in and pretend you're a tourist than to take a sort of elliptical route like that."

The Brexit Secretary said the UK would have talks with the Irish government about sharing security data to ensure illegal immigrants do not exploit the soft border.

The spat between Dublin and London emerged as Mrs May was chairing the first Cabinet meeting on Monday since her pre-dawn dash to Brussels to agree a way forward with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker last week.

With some Tory Brexiteers expressing concern that the UK has agreed to pay a 39 billion exit bill, let the European Court of Justice have a legal role for a further eight years, and pledged the full alignment on Irish border issues, the PM is saying she has been consistent in her approach.

In a statement to the House of Commons on Monday, Mrs May is expected to say: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."

Labour's shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Mrs May "cannot now be spooked by the extreme Brexiteers in her party".

"The agreement last week should be treated as binding and was expressly intended to be part of the Article 50 withdrawal agreement," he told the Guardian.

"Labour will not allow any rowing back on promises made that would put the union or the peace process at risk."

The remaining EU27 countries will decide at a Brussels summit later this week whether trade talks with the UK can finally begin.

Comments by Mr Davis that the UK would not pay its 39 billion exit bill unless it gets a trade deal are likely to have caused disquiet on the Continent.

European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said that the joint report published last week by Mr Davis and EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier was "not legally binding".

But asked if it was therefore possible for either side to back down on it, he stressed that it was regarded in Brussels as "a deal between gentlemen" which was "fully backed and endorsed" by the UK Government.

He noted that Mrs May and Mr Juncker had shaken hands on it.

"Formally speaking, the joint report is not legally binding because it is not yet the Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement.

"But we see the joint report of Michel Barnier and David Davis as a deal between gentlemen and it is the clear understanding that it is fully backed and endorsed by the UK Government.

"President Juncker had a meeting with Prime Minister May last Friday morning to ascertain that this is precisely the case. They shook hands.

"It is now for the European Council on December 15 to decide if 'sufficient progress' has been made, allowing the negotiations to proceed to their second phase."

Mr Schinas said that last Friday's agreement had "removed a big barrier" to progress but confirmed that nothing would be finally settled until the Withdrawal Agreement was signed.

At the regular weekly meeting of Cabinet - held, unusually, on Monday - Mrs May thanked Mr Davis and officials for their work in the first phase of Brexit negotiations.

Mrs May told fellow ministers that the general feeling she had picked up from voters in her Maidenhead constituency over the weekend was that "we're on our way", the PM's official spokesman told a Westminster media briefing.

The phrase was used by the Daily Mail in its front-page coverage of the Brexit breakthrough on Saturday, which ran under the headline: "Rejoice! We're on our way".

But the spokesman insisted that the PM had not been quoting the newspaper but repeating a comment made to her by constituents.

Other Cabinet ministers reported having received "positive" responses to the development from both Remain and Leave voters.

Mrs May's spokesman confirmed that last Friday's document represented a political agreement and would not have legal status until the signing of the final Withdrawal Agreement.

He added: "These negotiations have been conducted in good faith throughout and I don't think there should be any doubt about the goodwill with which we approach them."
The alliance of Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) and Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) is leading in 81 constituencies and has won 19 sears in National Assembly so far.

A man casts his vote during the parliamentary and provincial elections in Bhaktapur, Nepal.

By AP: An alliance of two major communist parties is leading parliamentary election results in Nepal and could be forming the next government in the Himalayan nation.

According to preliminary results released by Nepal's Election Commission on Saturday, the alliance of Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) and Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) has won 19 seats in the National Assembly and is leading in 81 other constituencies.

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In the assembly, 165 seats are directly elected and 110 are allocated to parties based on proportional representation.

The Nepal Congress, which was the largest party in the last election, has so far won only three seats.

"This is a clear indication that the Left alliance will get more than majority votes needed to form a government," said Sudheer Sharma, editor of the popular Kantipur newspaper.

Sharma said the reason for the alliance doing so well was because their votes were not divided as was the case in past elections. They also promised a stable government for the next five years, Sharma said.

Nepal has had 10 prime ministers in the past 11 years. The political instability has been blamed for slow progress in Nepal, one of the world's poorest countries. Many voters said they were eager for help in pressing the government to reconstruct hundreds of thousands of homes toppled in a devastating 2015 earthquake that killed 9,000 people. So far, less than 4 percent have been rebuilt.

"Now that there is likely to be a strong government, I am hopeful there will be development of the country," said Susil Sah, a businessman who was standing outside the City Hall in Kathmandu, where votes were still being counted.

The former rebels of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center) fought government troops between 1996 and 2006, when they entered a UN-monitored peace deal and joined mainstream politics. They and their coalition partners also promised to work for good relations with both of Nepal's giant neighbors India and China.

Officials said final results could take days. The mostly peaceful elections were held in two phases - the northern half of the country voted on Nov. 26 and the rest on Thursday.

It was the first election for seven provincial assemblies established under the constitution adopted in 2015. Election officials estimated turnout at 67 percent among the 15 million eligible voters.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the elections marked "a historic moment for Nepal in implementing its federal structure as enshrined in the 2015 Constitution."

Nepal's slow path to democracy began in 2006, when protesters forced the king to give up his rule. Two years later, Nepal officially abolished the centuries-old monarchy and decided that a federal system would best deliver services to all corners of the nation.

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But bickering among political parties delayed until 2015 the implementation of the new constitution, which declared Nepal a republic.

Protests by ethnic groups in southern Nepal who complained they did not get enough territory in the province assigned to them had turned violent and left some 50 people dead. Protesters had blocked the border with India for months, cutting off fuel and other supplies.

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After a meeting between farming organisations and State agencies, the ICMSA has said that the Government must accept the emerging fodder crisis and act.

Chairperson of ICMSAs Farm Business Committee said that the key state agencies  specifically, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine and Teagasc - are going to have to wake-up to the reality of the rapidly developing fodder crisis.

He said they must formally acknowledge and then act to address the situation now pressing many farms, particularly in the northern half of the country where the fodder situation is critical.

Lorcan McCabe said that if the States farming and wider agri-food sector is to avoid a very serious problem then actions need to be taken now and delaying such actions until early 2018 will only make worse what is already obviously a major challenge.

Speaking after today's meeting, Mr McCabe said that he was concerned that there seemed to be at official attitude of keeping the head down and hoping the problem will go away regarding the fodder crisis now in plain sight. Mr McCabe said such an attitude could not do.

As a farmer from the Cavan area, it is my firm belief, based on real first-hand knowledge, that this issue will not just go away, and it will have to be dealt with at Government level at some stage in the next four months. Thats the reality and pretending anything else is futile and a waste of valuable time.

"The sooner we face up to this, the more manageable the problem will be. Thats why ICMSA is calling on the Minister for Agriculture, Food & Marine to put in a place a package of actions immediately to alleviate the fodder situation on farms immediately."
Norway's largest dairy co-op, TINE, is expanding the production of Jarlsberg cheese in Cork with a 77m investment.

Last year the Norwegian co-op said it planned to move the production of its Jarlsberg cheese to Cork and it has now announced that the move to Mogeely will be undertaken through a 77m investment.

The project will be a partnership with Dairygold, which has been producing Jarlsberg under licence from TINE for the past number of years.

The Minister for Agriculture and Food Michael Creed welcomed the announcement of TINE's planned 77m in a new production facility with capacity to produce up to 20,000t of the famous Norwegian cheese brand Jarlsberg annually.

I'm delighted to hear of the plans for production of a world-class Norwegian cheese brand using Irish milk, and at a facility in the heart of rural Ireland the Minister said. Irish dairy farming sits alongside the best in the world.

"It is about our plentiful supply of grass and water, our natural grass-based production, and our sustainable farming methods. This investment will represent another endorsement of the Irish dairy sector and our ambitious plans to meet the demands of a growing world market for safe and sustainably produced dairy."

Dairygold has been manufacturing Jarlsberg cheese, on behalf of TINE, at its own cheese production facility at Mogeely since 2013. The new facility will manufacture Jarlsberg, Norways best known cheese brand, for export to Europe, the US and Australia.

The planned investment is subject to planning approval and planning for the development is currently with An Bord Pleanala with a decision expected within weeks.
A jointly-funded collaboration between Government and industry to promote and encourage sustainable farming while meeting stringent water quality requirements was launched by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Housing recently.

The 'Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme' is a four-year trial initiative aimed at achieving improvement in water quality. It will involve the establishment of 30 agricultural sustainability advisors.
Former Irish Nationwide Building Society CEO Michael Fingleton will today appear before an inquiry established to examine the actions of senior management prior to the organisations collapse.

Last year Mr Fingleton, who will turn 80 in January, objected to the process on the grounds of ill health as well as ongoing litigation in relation to debts owed to the IRBC.

He ran INBS for 38 years, was due to appear before the inquiry in September but maintained he was "unavailable" until after October 5.

He arrived at the inquirys first day of hearing this morning and is entitled to make an opening statement to the three-member panel, led by solicitor, Marian Shanley.

The high-profile banker, who is representing himself, is among five directors of the collapsed organisation facing seven allegations of alleged breaches of the Central Bank Act spanning the four years from August 1 2004 to September 2008.

The building society, which grew rapidly in the 1990s and 2000s and lent extensively to a number of property developers, was scuppered in the financial crisis. Its demise cost taxpayers 5.4bn.

The inquiry, which will continue well in to next year, is focusing on the role of the building societys credit committee. Brian OMoore, of the Central Banks legal team, stated the examination will centre on whether the committee failed to comply with its own internal procedures, breaching legal regulations as well as the Building Society Act.

Mr O'Moore also revealed that INBS had extended 226m to one borrower as of December 2005, shortly before the property boom reached its peak, making it the largest building society's largest single exposure.

Ms Shanley stated the investigation into INBS has resulted in the accumulation of 110,000 documents and has held a string of public management meetings to address procedural issues.

Aside from Mr Fingleton, the remaining directors at the centre of the inquiry are: INBSs former chairman, Michael Walsh, the organisations former finance director and secretary, John Purcell, Tom McMenamin, the building societys commercial lending manager and William McCollum, the Belfast-based head of UK commercial lending.

So far two of the directors have refused to engage with the inquiry. The panel was told again this morning that Mr McMenamin, who did not appear this morning, and Gary McCollum, have not responded to emails from the Central Banks Regulatory Decisions Unit, which facilitates the regulators legal team.

However Mr McCollums presence was not required today as he was not a member of the credit committee.

The Central Bank first established an inquiry in 2015 after probing the building society's actions and that of its directors in the run up to the crash.

INBS settled with the Central Bank for 5m but as the organisation no longer existed no money was recovered.
German landline operator Yourtel has been fined 66,000 for ripping off hundreds of elderly Irish customers.

Following an investigation by industry watchdog Comreg, Yourtel pleaded guilty to 88 counts under the Communications Act for charging 560 customers for a service that was requested but not supplied. The prosecution was described as "unprecedented".

The customers had been poached from Eircom and although Yourtel did not transfer the service they billed for it, Dublin District Court heard.

They ended up getting double-billed and Yourtel threatened them with debt collectors, legal action and having their details sent to credit rating agencies.

The offence carries fines of up to 5,000 per offence.

After hearing a litany of examples where elderly customers had been pursed and threatened by Yourtel, Judge Flann OBrien described the offences as "nothing more than deceit" and he imposed fines of 750 on each charge, totalling 66,000.

Speaking to reporters after the case ended, Comreg director Barbara Delaney said: "Comreg welcomes the District Court decision to impose 88 criminal convictions on Yourtel.

"Todays District Court fine of 66,000 (750 per conviction) is the largest fine imposed by the District Court following any prosecution case taken by Comreg.

"We expect that todays District Court judgement will finally bring consumers issues relating to Yourtel, which first came to Comreg's attention in 2013, to an end."

The company, which has claimed to operate the lowest-priced landline calls in the country, entered the Irish market in 2013 and had pleaded guilty to 88 sample counts, out of more than 880 charges originally brought by the phone industry regulator

Prosecuting barrister Michael OHiggins SC (with Ronan Kennedy BL) told Judge Flann Brennan at Dublin District Court that Yourtel effectively cold-called Eircom customers to offer them a "flat bill" telephone services. The 24-month contracts were for calls only and they would still pay Eircom separately for the landline.

Mr OHiggins told the court that mostly 78-year-old customers were affected, the average age of the customers involved in the investigation was 65 to 66 and the oldest customer to sign up was in their nineties and another customer had special education needs.

Yourtel had about 5,000 customers but Comreg had received complaints from 17pc of customers over a certain time period compared to less than 1pc for other major phone telephone service providers.

The company took "a very hard-line view" of customers who complained, Mr OHiggins said. They were threatened with late payment fees, legal action, debt collectors and having their details sent to a credit ratings agency.

In evidence, Comreg compliance manager Miriam Kilraine said the case was "unprecedented". She gave a summary of the experience eight customers had with Yourtel when they signed up their 11, 13 or 23 a month packages with two-year contracts.

Stated on the back of Yourtels bills was: "Double billing is not possible you cannot be billed by two operators for your calls".

However, the customers' services had not been transferred from Eircom and Yourtel also billed them for a service it had not provided. Complaints to Yourtel led to technical explanations and were not resolved.

Forty per cent of Yourtels customers have contacted Comreg about the company, Ms Kilraine said, adding that this was also unprecedented while the average amount of customer complaints in relation other companies was 0.3pc.

Case One

In 2014, a couple in Co. Cavan, aged in their eighties, received unsolicited calls from Yourtel to encourage them to switch from Eircom for cheaper calls. They signed up but did not pay their bills for September and October that year after noticing they were still paying Eircom. In January 2015 Yourtel demanded they pay the outstanding amount as a well as a 50 late fee payment. They were told they could face legal action.

It transpired that Yourtel never sent the transfer request to Eircom. As a "gesture of good will" Yourtel agreed to terminate the contract but said the money owed would still have to be paid.

The couple were "extremely worried and wanted to pay" however their son contacted Comreg. By June 2015 a debt collection agency sought 122 and in November a demand was made for 440 but ultimately they stopped receiving letters.

Case Two

A widower in Kerry signed up to Yourtel in November 2014 but found the payments through his post office account was inconvenient and he fell behind. He asked to start direct debit payments but was told this could not be done until the amount owed had been paid.

He was told he could only cancel his account if he paid for the 24 months.

However, his calls had not been transferred to Yourtel who had billed him for a service they had not provided. "The customer stated he had been at his wits end and believed he had been conned," the court heard.

Case Three

A Co. Carlow man in his seventies signed up while his wife was in hospital but he then tried to cancel the account without penalty within Yourtels "14 days cooling off period". He was billed from January to March 2015 for the service. He later faced demands for up to 404 as well as letters from debt collectors even though his phone service had not been transferred to Yourtel at all.

Case Four

A Sligo man with special education needs signed up to a Yourtel phone call package.

He faced threats of legal action and demands for 450 even though the Yourtel had not provided a service.

He received "threatening calls" from a debt collection agency in relation to the money sought by Yourtel.

It caused him anxiety and his brother reported it to Comreg, the court heard.

Case Five

A widow in her eighties in Carlow signed up to Yourtel in August 2014 but stopped paying in December that year. She told Comreg that Yourtels customer service agents were "aggressive" and she felt "intimidated" with threats of being reported to a credit ratings agency. They had pursued her for payments for a service it never provided.

Case Six

A Co. Wicklow couple in their seventies and eighties who were in poor health had signed up but cancelled within the 14-day cooling off period. That did not work and they got billed by Yourtel but later realised their calls had not been transferred from Eircom, however, Yourtel had billed them. Their son wrote to Yourtels HQ in Germany while further demands for payments of 480 continued.

Case Seven

A Limerick woman in her seventies signed up for the 11 a month package in September 2014 but by March the following year despite getting billed they realised that the service had not been transferred to Yourtel.

Case Eight

A Cavan man in his fifties signed up but stopped paying when he realised he was getting double billed and he received letters from a debt collection agency which caused him and his wife distress.

One customer also hired a solicitor to deal with Yourtels demands, the court was told.

The court heard that Yourtel had been successfully prosecuted earlier this year on one count of billing for a service which they did not provide which resulted in a 2,500 fine and an order to pay 10,000 in legal costs. In 2015 it was given the Probation Act and ordered to pay 2,500 to charity for failing to comply with a request from Comreg.

It had also been fined 2,500 in 2016 for unsolicited marketing calls.

The court heard that the company has offered all the customers affected refunds which came to 125,000. So far 116,000 worth of their refund cheques had been cashed and fresh payments were being issued to customers who have yet to take the refund.

The court heard that the company registered in Ireland but does not have offices here and uses a mail direct service, at Kill Avenue, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.

Their base was in Germany and company director Marijan Vukusic provided an affidavit to the court apologising. He said the company had been over-zealous but since June 2015 they have not sought new Irish customers and the company did not intend to recruit new business in Ireland.

Pleading for leniency, defence counsel Oisin Clarke said that the court had heard a damning account of his clients business procedures. He asked the judge to take into account the guilty plea which the prosecution accepted was useful.

Mr Clarke also said that Yourtel had paid 10,000 toward the prosecution costs.
By PTI: seats

By Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, Dec 11 (PTI) An alliance of Nepals main Communist party and former Maoist rebels is heading for a landslide victory and is expected to form the next government in Nepal, ousting the ruling Nepali Congress, after winning 106 seats in the historic provincial and parliamentary polls.

The CPN-UML led by former prime minister K P Oli and the CPN-Maoist led by former premier Prachanda have forged an electoral alliance for both the landmark polls, which is seen as a turning point after two decades of conflict and political instability in Nepal.

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The poll outcome is expected to mark the end of Nepals transition to federal democracy 11 years after the end of a brutal civil war in 2006. Since then, the Himalayan nation has seen 10 prime ministers.

According to results released by the Election Commission today, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist?Leninist (CPN-UML) has won highest number of 74 seats, followed by its alliance partner CPN-Maoist Centre, which won 32 seats, out of the total 165 seats under the first-past-the-post election system.

As the Left alliance headed for a clear majority in the 275-member Parliament, Oli was being projected to succeed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Oli won from the Jhapa-5 constituency by more than 28,000 votes as he defeated Nepali Congress candidate Khagendra Adhikari. He polled 57,139 votes, the highest number of votes so far secured by any candidate in the election.

The CPN-Maoist Centre leader Prachanda was declared elected from Chitawan-3 constituency. He defeated Bikram Pandey of Rastriya Prajatantra Party by more than 10,000 votes. Prachanda got 41,574 votes.

The ruling Nepali Congress (NC), which was the largest party in the last elections and considered close to India, was trailing at third position with 20 seats.

It was followed by two Madhesi parties - Rastriya Janta Party Nepal, which won 10 seats and Federal Socialist Forum Nepal, with nine seats. The combined strength of the two Madhesi parties has reached 19.

Following the adoption of the new Constitution in 2015, the ethnic Madhesi group, mostly of Indian-origin, protested for months, saying they were not getting enough territory in one of the provinces and were also facing discrimination.

According to the Election Commissions tallies, the Naya Shakti Nepal-led by former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party and the Rastriya Janamorcha have secured one seat each.

Three Independents have also been elected to the Parliament.

The Himalayan Times, in a report, said that the strong mandate to the Left alliance means that Nepal "could experience political stability" which it has been lacking for the 11 years of transition.

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It also said that the NC should play the role of a constructive opposition as it was also crucial in the young democracy.

The House of Representatives consists of 275 members, of which 165 would be elected directly under the first-past-the- post system while the remaining 110 will come through the proportional representation system.

Voting in two-phased parliamentary and provincial assembly elections were held on November 26 and December 7.

In the first phase, polling was held in 32 districts, mostly situated in the hilly and mountainous region, in which 65 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise. In the second phase, 67 per cent voter turnout was registered.

A total of 1,663 candidates contested polls for parliamentary seats.

Meanwhile, the counting of votes in the proportionate voting system was under progress, following which the final results would be declared. PTI SBP SMJ SMJ

--- ENDS ---
'According to Maura Roe, partner with legal and tax specialists William Fry: "A maximum limit of 50pc of pay will make it impossible to grant options of any meaningful value to a skilled employee who joins a start-up and agrees to accept a below-market salary. ' File photo: PA

The Government's new share options tax incentive scheme to help Irish start-ups and SMEs attract and retain talent has fallen at the first hurdle. It needs swift intervention if the companies it is intended to help are to see any benefits.

The main issue is the decision to exclude all companies involved in "financial activities" from the Key Employee Engagement Programme (Keep). This means all so-called fintech companies are out of the running - and fintech is big business. Over the past 20 years, Ireland has become synonymous with a growing financial services sector, particularly in establishing and scaling technology companies focused on foreign markets and supporting financial services.

So far this year, 20,120 new company start-ups have been formed - 3,061 are fintech companies. That's more than 15pc of all start-ups immediately excluded from Keep. Then there are the technology start-ups which, if they provide anything relating to "financial activities", are also excluded.

This could be another 11pc of new companies. That means Keep has written out more than 25pc of all new start-ups in 2017 - never mind those from any other year.

There are other hurdles facing the companies still eligible for Keep - such as the relatively low financial limits. A company may not have unexercised qualifying options with an aggregate market value in excess of 3m, and the total market value of all shares options granted to an individual may not exceed 100,000 in any tax year or 250,000 in three consecutive years, or 50pc of the individual's annual pay in the tax year in which it is granted.

According to Maura Roe, partner with legal and tax specialists William Fry: "A maximum limit of 50pc of pay will make it impossible to grant options of any meaningful value to a skilled employee who joins a start-up and agrees to accept a below-market salary. These are the very employees that SMEs want to benefit from favourable tax treatment."

So far, most of the fallers in the Keep sweepstakes are the young fillies and colts - the indigenous start-ups that Keep was introduced to help. However, the SMEs are also on heavy ground and the next hurdle could be insurmountable: determining the market value of the shares. Many of the conditions of Keep pivot on the market value of the shares underlying the options. Currently, there is no guidance on how an SME can determine the market value of its shares on a basis that Revenue will accept.

Finance Minister Paschal Donohue stated in the Budget that Keep is designed to help smaller companies "attract and retain key employees in a competitive international labour market, by providing for an advantageous tax treatment on share options".

But the scheme is too complicated, restrictive and uncertain - it fails to provide the easy-to-implement, productivity-enhancing incentives that start-ups and SMEs require.

But the race is not yet run. The Irish ProShare Association is in discussions with the Department of Finance in relation to Keep, and we are optimistic that officials are open to hearing real-world evidence on the shortcomings of the scheme.

It's crucial that start-up and SME fallers make sure their voices are heard in order to build a better Keep - one that is fit for those it is intended to support.

Gill Brennan is CEO of the Irish ProShare Association
The prospect of disruption at Ryanairs Irish operations is looming after disgruntled pilots voted to endorse possible industrial action at the carrier.

The ballots  held in recent days by staff Ryanair pilots in Dublin who are members of the Irish Airline Pilots Association (IALPA)  saw cockpit crew vote overwhelmingly for possible action as they fight to secure collective bargaining rights in Ireland across Europe.

Ryanair does not recognise unions, and is legally entitled not to do so. It will also be entitled not to recognise the outcome of the ballot.

But the vote will heap pressure on Ryanair as it battles still to contain the fallout from a rostering debacle in September that saw it cancel thousands of flights and ground aircraft.

Ryanair pilots have been intensifying their efforts across Europe for collective representation and union recognition.

The airline, headed by chief executive Michael OLeary, has steadfastly refused to engage with unions, or to recognise a new European Employee Representative Council (EERC) that was established to represent Ryanair bases across the continent.

Last week, the airline warned pilots in Ireland that it would meet any attempt at industrial action head on. It also said it would freeze promotions, axe recent pilot pay increases and may even move aircraft out of Dublin if any industrial action was staged.

Shares in Ryanair plunged 3.5pc in Dublin this afternoon.

Ryanair pilots and cabin crew in Italy who are members of the Anpac trade union there have already informed Ryanair that they intend to strike for four hours on December 15.

The Danish Airline Pilots Association has donated 30,000 to a fund designed to provide financial assistance to pilots, including those working with Ryanair, who could find themselves in difficulty by fronting demands for collective bargaining rights at airlines.

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The donation, acknowledged today on the crowdfunding platform being used to raise money for the so-called Pilot Unity Fund, was made just as Ryanair executives including newly-appointed chief operations officer Peter Bellew prepared to meet pilots at the airlines headquarters near Dublin Airport this evening.

The Pilot Unity Fund was established by the Brussels-based European Cockpit Association (ECA) in October just weeks after the rostering debacle at Ryanair.

The donation to the fund brought the total raised to date to more than 160,000. The amount provide by the Danish Airline Pilots Association is the single biggest donation made to the fund to date.

When it launched the fund, the ECA said it had been established on behalf of the entire pilot community and that its sole purpose is to provide a financial safety net to pilot leaders who have distinguished themselves in the struggle for collective representation.

The ECA confirmed the 30,000 donation had been received from the Danish Airline Pilots Association.

ECA is very pleased to see such an overwhelming support for this cause, a spokeswoman told Independent.ie this afternoon.

It comes as a recognition of the importance of empowering pilots to organise and stand up for their rights.

She added: It comes just in time for pilot leaders who are  right now  putting themselves on the frontline to achieve transnational collective bargaining in Europe, sometimes against hostile employers.

In 2015, Ryanair closed its bases in Copenhagen and Billund in Denmark after unions demanded that the carrier adopt local workers rights. Ryanair relies on Irish labour laws.

Ryanair said it doesn't comment on "rumour and speculation".
One of the founders of Apple, Steve Jobs, was often asked about his formula for success. His advice was to always keep things simple. In answer to one query, Jobs remarked: "I think if you do something that turns out to be pretty good, then you should go and do something else that is wonderful; just figure out what's next."

That is exactly what has made the technology giant into the most valuable brand in the world, one of the most profitable on the globe and has also helped to send its shares into 'outer space'.

If this wasn't impressive enough, Apple currently has enough spare cash sloshing around in international banks (not in America) to enable it to buy, if it thought wise, the entire Irish Stock Exchange and still be able to afford a big shindig afterwards.

The company has not only responded to demand, it has invented it. It didn't have to refer to the marketing manuals, it rewrote them.

Unsurprisingly, Apple's iconic products have attained a loyalty that is unmatched in consumer electronics.

Today, Apple is the world's largest IT company.

It is also the most valuable, with a staggering $900bn (760bn) market cap - almost three times that of JP Morgan, Samsung, even Exxon. Shareholders who invested a year ago at $103 are well pleased, as they now stand at $169 - just below the record high of $176.

The group employs 160,000 people, has 500 retail stores in 22 countries and its Europe, Middle East and Africa and international sales HQ (all sales outside the US) is in Cork.

In the expectation of a decent Christmas selling season, Apple revenues for this year are expected to be $227bn and $292bn for 2018 (almost $6bn each week).

Its secret is that it can successfully develop and market blockbusters from scratch. The iPad, which was introduced in 2010, now accounts for 11pc of total sales. Only two years ago, Apple launched it music streaming service which has grown to 30 million subscribers from scratch.

Last year, revenue for its services - which includes Apple Pay, iTunes, Apple Store and Apple Music - were $7.6bn, revenues that would do justice to any decent multinational on their own.

Fabulous it may be, but even for Apple concerns wait around the corner. It built up a great loyalty in China, and the world's most populous country was proving to be a vastly lucrative presence.

But the arrival of intense competition there has upset some 'apple carts' and commentators worry that the price of the latest Apple devices could test the limits of consumer loyalty.

We mentioned Apple's $250bn cash hoard (one-fifth of total overseas holdings of US companies), which can pose its own dilemmas.

However, Trump's recent tax reforms could see a $47bn windfall to the group, making it one of the biggest beneficiaries of the tax reform programme.

Recently, Apple found itself in conflict with the US government when the FBI asked for help in breaking the encryption that locked the iPhone of 'a person of interest' and Apple refused. It is also in semi-permanent conflict with other technology companies, like its battles with Samsung and Qualcomm, the chipmaker.

Unfortunately, this row has involved several Apple suppliers in Asia. And there is our own rather unique tax row in Ireland over what the EU commission claims was 13bn in illegal state aid.

Steve Jobs, as mentioned earlier, thought the company should try to "figure out what's next". Since the launch of the iPhone 10 years ago, Apple has disrupted industries for mobile phones, computers and music. It appears the company intends continuing its reputation for disrupting technology.

There have been persistent rumours that it is looking at the electric car market or developing software for self-driving cars. If that was to ensure continuous growth and profits, it would justify the very elevated share price.

Is it worth buying? If you strip away its cash and short-term investments, the company's price earnings multiple is only 13, lower than its peers.

In my book, this makes it a buy. But remember, nothing lasts forever. Look at GE.

Nothing in this section should be taken as a recommendation, either explicit or implicit to buy any of the shares mentioned.
At 9pm on Sunday night, around 300 passengers waiting at Heathrow for British Airways flight 245 to Buenos Aires discovered they would be not be waking up in an Argentinian midsummer. Instead, they faced the prospect of having to sort out their own hotel rooms many miles away, or sleeping on the floor of Terminal 5.

Like 50,000 other BA passengers, they will start Monday far from where they planned to be, after the airline's operation juddered almost to a halt at Heathrow. More than 140 outbound short-haul flights, and 26 long-haul departures, were cancelled on Sunday.

BA has cancelled a further 70 short-haul round trips on Monday, plus nine long-haul flights including departures to Rio, Tokyo and Los Angeles. An additional 15,000 people will be affected by these latest cancellations.

Departures from Europes busiest airport began to go wrong before dawn on Sunday. Torrential overnight rain meant that de-icing could not begin until the first wave of planes were ready to go. Delays quickly built up: the 7am to Geneva left four hours late. And as queues developed while sleet and snow fell, aircraft that had already been de-iced needed to be treated again as ice began to build up on their wings while they waited for clearance to depart.

BA operate an ambitious schedule, which most of the time works remarkably well. But not on Sunday. At 10am, a sweep of around 20 proactive cancellations was made by British Airways operations staff, to create "firebreaks" in the schedule in a bid to avoid further cancellations. Within an hour, that number had doubled. And quickly the first seriously wintry day at Heathrow became a bonfire of the schedules.

Other airlines were mildly affected, with Austrian Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa and Swiss cancelling flights to and from their hubs, but for BA  which has a majority of the slots at Heathrow  the unravelling was of an entirely different order of magnitude.

Initially passengers on long-haul flights waiting to leave Terminal 5, or at European airports heading for Heathrow, faced irritating delays exacerbated by hunger. From Athens, Frank Durrell tweeted: Come on @British_Airways. 1 hour delayed boarding. 1.5 hours stuck in this plane waiting to leave. And now told we will be 4 hours late landing. Would have just gone back to hotel if Id known at the start.

"And now no snacks available at all. No complimentary food, must buy M&S food and it cant be given away. Pilot tried to get more snacks locally and couldnt. Pilot wants to get us vouchers on arrival but doesnt think he can. Terrible service."

Gradually, the scale of the problem became clear. With aircraft blocking stands, British Airways planes that did make it to Heathrow had to wait sometimes for hours to be unloaded. When space on the ground ran out, the diversions began.

Passengers from Newcastle got no further than Leeds-Bradford, where they were joined by confused travellers from Kiev and Warsaw. Back on Tyneside, Newcastle airport welcomed divertees from Paris, Reykjavik, Helsinki, Frankfurt and Athens; Frank Durrell tweeted once more: You suck. Diverted us to Newcastle. Why didnt you just let us stay in Athens and fly us back tomorrow?

Passengers from Zurich, Zagreb, Vienna, Gibraltar, Nice and Madrid are mingling in Cardiff. Milan, Prague and Berlin passengers had an unexpected visit to Bournemouth, while along the road BA travellers from Geneva and Krakow congregated in Southampton. The late-night passengers from Istanbul flew around in circles over the Home Counties for a while, hopeful of landing, before diverting to Liverpool.

Long-haul inbound flights from Dubai, Mumbai and New York landed at Paris, Frankfurt and Dublin respectively. At times of disruption British Airways does everything it can to protect the long-haul schedule. Slots for smaller planes flying shorter distances are sacrificed to enable big aircraft to take large numbers of people across oceans. But at Heathrow on Sunday, even that principle had to be abandoned.

One by one, crews went "out of hours," when it became no longer possible for them to fly the mission within legal limits. Three New York services were cancelled as well as two each to Dubai and Toronto, with many Asian flights also grounded including the key departures to Hong Kong and Singapore.

For each cancelled outbound departure, there is an equal number of inbound flights that have been grounded. While the passengers in Buenos Aires and other far-flung locations have plenty of warning of the cancellation, those closer to home do not enjoy the luxury of time or, often, information.

Sarah Griffiths tweeted: "Parents stuck in Pisa airport for 6hrs and British_Airways has made 1 announcement & ignored all consumer rights. Reps done a runner?! Theyre tired & freezing. Rubbish."

The Independent UK has calculated 27,000 BA passengers are stranded in London, a further 20,000 stuck in European airports, and another 3,000 at airports elsewhere in the UK and neighbouring countries after their flights to Heathrow were diverted.

With so many planes and crews out of position, even if Mondays conditions at Heathrow were perfect, it would take several days to get everyone where they needed to be. But sub-zero temperatures are forecast for the airport, and the flow rate is to be reduced  hampering BAs efforts to get back on schedule and possibly leaving even more passengers out of position.

The airline is offering passengers booked to fly on Monday the option to re-book on alternative flights up to Monday December 18, free of charge.

British Airways is telling passengers: "Heathrow has experienced unpredicted severe adverse weather conditions and that is expected to continue into Monday.

"Temperatures have remained low, and safety is our number one priority, there is a requirement to de-ice every individual aircraft before it departs. We are sorry for the difficulties caused by the poor weather and will do all we can to minimise the effect it has on our operations.

"We apologise for the inconvenience, and we would like to assure customers that we are doing everything we can to get as many people away on their flights as possible.

"As a result of the forecast we have agreed with Heathrow Airport, National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and other airlines to reduce our flight schedule from Heathrow on Monday December 11.

"Please do not travel to the airport if your flight has been cancelled."

A Heathrow spokesperson said: "Heathrow airport remains open however we regret that weather across the UK is resulting in some passengers experiencing disruption to their travel arrangements. Airlines are responsible for ensuring their flights are fully de-iced before they are operated and this is resulting in some delays and cancellations."

Why do planes need to be de-iced?

A build-up of ice on an aircraft wings adds weight, increases drag and, crucially, changes their shape in a way that significantly reduces lift. It is thought to have been a factor in the 2009 crash of a Colgan Air flight from New York to Buffalo in which 49 people died; shortly before they lost control, the crew discussed a build-up of ice. In flight, it is dealt with by heating the critical surfaces, notably the leading edge of the wings. But before take-off any build up of ice must be removed from the outside, by spraying on a hot mix of propylene glycol and water. The procedure is time-limited, and in extreme conditions while de-icers work on one side of a plane the ice builds up on the other, just cleaned side.

At some airports prone to frosty conditions, a de-icing truck waits near the holding point for aircraft, close to the runway, so that the aircraft can be de-iced just before departure. But at Heathrow, BA  along with other airlines  de-ices at the stand. That practice may change after this latest extremely expensive and frustrating episode.
Sir Richard Branson has fanned the flames of a long-running feud with the boss of British Airways, calling on Willie Walsh to settle a "very public and painful" 1m bet.

The billionaire founder of Virgin Group is claiming victory after pitching the wager to Mr Walsh in 2012 that Virgin Atlantic would still exist in five years' time.

However, the chief executive of BA-owner IAG refused to cede defeat, claiming the serial entrepreneur is the loser because he "no longer owns or controls the business" after giving up majority ownership earlier this year.

The initial terms of the bet were for the loser to pay 1m bonus to the rival airline's staff, but Mr Walsh wanted to shift them to a "knee in the groin".

Writing on his Virgin blog, Sir Richard said it was time for the pair "to settle this matter once and for all".

He said: "Five years ago today, BA chief Willie Walsh wagered me a very public and painful bet. He bet that the Virgin Atlantic brand would disappear within five years. I disagreed.

"He said that the loser should accept a 'knee in the groin'.

"Although people might be amused to see me give Willie a low blow, I ideally have no wish to do so.

"So to settle this matter once and for all, and in the spirit of Christmas, I suggest he donates 1m to Virgin Atlantic's team.

"If he doesn't agree then we'll just have to agree a time, date and place for the knee in the groin.

"Once this is over (one way or the other), lunch or dinner is on me, Willie, and perhaps we can draw a line under the past."

Sir Richard claims the public spat harks back to 1993 when BA was forced to apologise and stump up 500,000 to the billionaire - and a further 110,000 to his airline - following a libel battle.

However, the Virgin founder devised the bet 19 years later after Mr Walsh told reporters he thought Virgin Atlantic could disappear after Delta snapped up a 49pc stake in the airline.

Since then, Air France-KLM bought a 31pc stake in the airline in July, leaving Virgin Group with a 20pc share of the business.

Responding to Sir Richard's latest blog post, Mr Walsh said: "When Richard Branson sold out to Delta five years ago, he said he would never give up control.

"As everyone knows, he no longer owns or controls the business, a reality confirmed by the decision to sell more of his shares to Air France. He's lost the bet."
Sarah Parishs new crime drama Bancroft has come under fire from viewers who claimed the first episode was plagued by mumbling and poor sound quality.

Many said they could not fully enjoy the action in the ITV thriller because they could not hear the dialogue well enough.

Is it me or is the sound really quiet and muffled? asked one person on Twitter.

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I was excited to get stuck into #Bancroft tonight but the sound quality is appalling making it difficult viewing! said another disgruntled viewer.

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#Bancroft Another promising drama marred by dodgy sound balance  Det Andy is especially mumbletastic. And that scene with loud background music, shower sound, TV news griped another.

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One moaned: Lasted half an hour of #Bancroft nah too much mumbling too boring.

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Some people said they got around any sound issues by switching on the subtitles.

Why cant people talk CLEARLY in programmes?! #Bancroft Its bad enough I have hearing loss but I shouldnt have to ask people I visit to put their subtitles on so I can understand their mumblings, said one viewer.

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Another said: Finding the sound awful on #Bancroft! Pitying my neighbours so had to put the subtitles on! Not good enough @ITV.

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Several British television dramas have been hit by complaints over mumbling, with Happy Valley, SS-GB and Jamaica Inn all being criticised.

The four-part ITV drama, written and created by Kate Brooke, sees detective Elizabeth Bancroft (Parish) try to bring down the pernicious and vicious Kamara gang.

The drama really unfolds though when her colleague  ambitious recruit DS Katherine Stevens  starts working on the case of a woman called Laura, who was killed 27 years ago.

There was a positive response to Bancroft from many who did appear to hear it clearly.

And many people praised Parishs acting skills.

One pleased viewer said: @DrSarahParish you were utterly compelling and brilliant as always hon ! Love lily am hooked.

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Another wrote: @drsarahparish is just amazing in #bancroft, really enjoyed the first episode cant wait for the second.

Bancroft continues on ITV on Tuesday.
Gary Oldman has told of his pride after Winston Churchills great-grandson addressed him as great-grandpapa following his portrayal of the former prime minister.

The actor, 59, spoke as he walked the red carpet in London at the premiere of historical drama Darkest Hour.

Oldman  who has just been nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance in the historical drama  said: I guess the slight fear I had going in was not only had he been played by so many wonderful actors before, but he is truly an iconic figure, mythologised, and you wonder whether you can find the man behind the marble and the bronze as it were.

We got the nod from the family  we had a set visit and 17 of the Churchills came to visit, and about a week-and-a-half ago we were on the Queen Mary, as they have a Churchill exhibit and part of our set is on display there.

Randolph Churchill, the great-grandson, addressed me as great-grandpapa and had wonderful things to say about the film and the portrayal, so its a nice feeling.

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He said of his Golden Globe nomination in the best actor category: No, I never expected it!

Oldman was joined at the premiere in Leicester Square by his co-stars, including Kristin Scott Thomas and Lily James.

James said working with Oldman was a great experience.

She added: I think its fascinating right now with everything that is going on in the world to do a film about a leader that was so sort of, at least in this instance, so strong and powerful and stood up to oppression and hatred.

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We could do with some more of that probably. But in this instance yes, how a great leader really can lead and unite a country for the better. We dont really have that at the moment.
Maya Hawke said she gets lots of advice from her parents Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke (Ian West/PA)

Debut actress Maya Hawke has paid tribute to parents Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke for their support following her first major TV role in Little Women.

Hawke plays bold and awkward feminist Jo March in the latest adaptation of Louisa May Alcotts classic novel, due to air on BBC One over Christmas.

The 19-year-old, who has previously told how her parents encouraged her to hold back from the limelight at a young age, told the Press Association: I have a wonderful, supportive relationship with my family. I get lots of advice from them about all kinds of things.

She spoke as she reunited with her co-stars in London for a screening of the three-part series.

Describing her first serious acting experience, Hawke said: Its really exciting. It was one of the best few months of my life.

But I definitely feel more pressure now than when I was taking it on.

I was so in love with the novel and the character that I thought, of course I should play her, and that I could go in and be myself  it felt like whatever I had in me, Jo could handle.

It was only after when I realised that everybody else thinks they are Jo too, that I felt I had the weight of the world on my shoulders.

But she is so brave and wilful and that allows her to overcome both her own and societal obstacles  that was a real inspiration to me.

The hotly anticipated series comes more than 20 years after the hit 1994 big screen adaptation of Little Women starring Winona Ryder as Jo, with Christian Bale as Laurie Laurence, Susan Sarandon as mother Marmee and a young Kirsten Dunst as the youngest March sister Amy.

Jonah Hauer-King, who plays Laurie in the new show, admitted that following in Bales footsteps was a tough act to follow, but also an honour.

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Praising his co-stars debut performance, he said of Hawke: Its funny because you would just never know. She was one of the most assured and wise and seemingly experienced there. I learnt so much from her.

We were quite a gang out there  they were all my sisters for those three months.

The series, commissioned less than a year ago by the BBC, is directed by Vanessa Caswill, with the adapted script by Call The Midwife writer Heidi Thomas.

I do really feel like we found our own vision with this version and it steers away from the more saccharine chocolate box version, said Caswill.

Even though the 1994 film was incredible and is loved, I think there is a grittier version.

Its absolutely the same story, but its about finding the truth in the heart of this story and the philosophy. We have captured that and told it honestly.

It is about loss and grief and hardship and we havent skirted over that; weve sat in that and its a difficult place to sit in.

Little Women also stars Apple Tree Yard star Emily Watson as Marmee, with Dame Angela Lansbury as Aunt March and Sir Michael Gambon as Mr Laurence.

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It will air on BBC One on December 26, 27 and 28.
According to data, Operation All Out has been successful in Kashmir, with most number of terrorists killed in North Kashmir while most number of militant commanders have been killed in South Kashmir.

By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Security forces on Monday gunned down three Lashkar terrorist suspected to be from Pakistan in an overnight encounter in North Kashmir taking the total number of terrorists killed in North Kashmir to 111.

The security forces even tried to capture third militant alive but he succumbed to injuries. With this maximum kills took place in North Kashmir. Most number of terrorists killed has been reported from Kupwara with 49 terrorist killed, followed by 40 in Handwara and 22 in Bandipora.

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However South Kashmir remained the hub for local terrorists. The total figure of number of terrorists killed stands at 210.

Through Operation All Out, the security forces also strategised to go for top commanders in South Kashmir.

RR Bhatnagar, DG, CRPF, told India Today, "Though there are few days to go before 2017 ends, but I must say Operation All Out has been successful due to the joint operations of JKP, Army and CRPF. We definitely have an upper hand in the Valley now."

The list of top commanders killed in South Kashmir goes as follows:

Sabzar Ahmed Bhat - HM Commander killed by security forces in Tral on 27 May 2017

Junaid Mattoo - Lashkar-e-Taiba commander killed in Arwani village in Anantnag on June 16

Bashir Lashkari - He was the mastermind behind the gruesome killing of six Jammu and Kashmir policemen including SHO Firoz Ahmed Dar in June. There was a bounty of Rs 10 lakh on his head and he was killed on 1 July

Abu Dujana - A former Lashkar terrorist who exited to join hands with Zakir Musa led Gazwat Ul Hind was killed in Anantnag on 1 August

Yasin Yattu - alias Mehmood Gaznavi was killed with two other associates in Awneera village in Shopian district

Yawar Bashir Wani - District commander Anantnag and Kulgam was killed in Kulgam district on 4 December

Fukran - Pakistani Lashkar terrorist, replacement of Abu Ismail in South Kashmir was killed along side Yawar in Quazigund

Top Terror operatives killed in North Kashmir:

Abu Haris - the Lashkar-e-Toiba militant was killed in north Kashmir's Hajin area of Bandipora that resulted in heavy casualty in which three soldiers were also killed. Chetan Cheetah brave CRPF Commadant also received 9 bullet injuries in the encounter

Khalid - On 9 October, this top Jaish terrorist was gunned down by security forces in Baramulla

Mahmood Bhai Lashkar - He was killed on 18 November in Bandipora

Muzamil - Top LET divisional commander who was killed on 30 November in Baramulla.

At least three of the most crucial terrorists were killed in North Kashmir in the last quarter of the year.

Central Kashmir:

Sajad Ahmed Gilkar - He played a key role in the murder of DSP Muhammad Ayub Pandith and was killed in July this year

Abu Ismail - The top Laskhar Commander and mastermind of Amarnath Yatra attack was killed on 14 September in Srinagar in Central Kashmir

The least number of encounters took place in Central Kashmir with over 20 terrorists reported dead. Jammu however largely remained peaceful with a total 5 terrorist killed in operations.

Data also suggests that North Kashmir is the infiltration route for Pakistani terrorist, with over 70 per cent of the operations taking place near the Line Of Control (LoC). The maximum infiltration attempts take place in the months of May and June.

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According to data accessed by India Today, South Kashmir remained the stronghold of local militants. However, the security forces successfully turned the situation around. By December, the security forces have already killed 210 militants.

In South Kashmir, Pulwama remained the hotbed of encounters with 36 terrorists reported dead. This followed by Anantnag where 15 terrorist were killed.

The last encounter was reported from Quazigund where three laskhar terrorist, 2 foreigners and one local commander was killed. The security forces changed status quo in Kulgam and Shopian which earlier reported least encounters. Areas were identified and operations successfully carried by elimination of 14 terrorist in Kulgam and 8 in Shopian.

--- ENDS ---
Former Miss Ireland Aoife Walsh has revealed she has not been able to rehearse for Dancing with the Stars due to a broken toe.

The 27-year-old Tipperary woman is currently wearing a cast on her foot which will not come off until just before Christmas, leaving her a month behind the other celebs on the hit RTE show in terms of rehearsals.

"I'm stalled on my rehearsals for now," she told the Nicky Byrne Show with Jenny Green on 2fm.

"Basically the advice is to rest it and give it time to heal so my plan of action is I'm going to have zero Christmas and hopefully catch up with the other guys.

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" It's a bit stressful - they've all started rehearsals two weeks now and I'm kind of standing back being like, oh my God. I don't even know how I can move yet. I haven't even got on the dancefloor yet."

Aoife revealed that she did not sustain the injury while dancing, but rather getting out of bed.

"I was just getting out of my bed and stubbed my toe off my bed frame and broke it, right before I have to do a dance competition!"

The delay is frustrating, she says, because she wants to do her best and see what her true dance ability is.

However, Aoife does have some previous dance experience to build on once she starts rehearsals. She admitted that she did a "lot of dancing" when she was a child as a member of the Clonmel Majorettes.

She also danced on stage top an audience of millions at Miss World after teaching herself the steps.

"I did about two lessons for Irish dancing and I did Riverdance at Mis World and I came top ten so that's not bad," she told Nicky and Jenny.

"[I had] never Irish danced. I took a video of myself dancing and then I just taught myself going up and down the hallways of the hotel when I was over in Bali at Miss World, teaching myself how to do it."

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Although her DWTS partner has not been revealed, Aoife said he has been "super supportive".

When she was approached to take part in the show, which was a massive hit for RTE last year, she said she "jumped at the opportunity", even though she is now based in New York where she works as a model.

"There are so many programmes on TV now and this one, for me, felt completely different and it was always something I wanted to do," she enthused. "You're actually learning a skill on the show. Who doesn't want to learn how to dance and have a professional dancer teach you how to do it properly?"

Although she has been unable to rehearse herself she has been keeping an eye on the other contestants' progress.

"Marty [Morrissey] has the moves," she said. "He can shake it. He's getting into it. He's taking it really seriously and he's going for it. Marty is one to watch."

She also described Conor McGregor's sister Erin as a "really good mover" although when questioned about Breakfast Republic's Bernard O'Shea she said, "he's hanging in there".

As well as Marty, Erin, and Bernard, Aoife will also be up against Maia Dunphy, Olympian Rob Heffernan, Munster rugby star Thomas O'Leary, Norah Casey, and actress and comedian Deirdre O'Kane.
Commuters through Dublin city centre have blasted the new Luas Cross City line for causing major delays to traffic this morning.

The new line connecting Broombridge to St Stephen's Green opened on Saturday after over four years of works but today was always likely to be the biggest test for how it would integrate with the city's other modes of transport.

And many commuters took to social media this morning to blame the new trams for causing major delays.

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A spokesperson for AA Roadwatch said that there were some heavier than normal traffic delays on some routes shared by the Luas and other road users, most notably at Parnell Sqaure southbound onto O'Connell Street and over O'Connell Bridge.

However, Barry Aldworth told Independent.ie that he believed the extra delays were just down to people adjusting to the new road layout and junctions.

"We saw something similar on Bachelor's Quay earlier this year when the new road markings were introduced there. It was an issue for a couple of days but road users adapted very quickly.

"We believe any issues today were down to road users adapting to the new layouts.

"Overall we believe the new cross city Luas will be very beneficial to commuters in Dublin."

However, an issue with traffic lights on College Green may have been behind the problems this morning.

Noel Rock, TD for Dublin North West said while teething problems could be expected, the delays of up to 40 minutes to cross the city as commuters made their way to work cannot become the norm.

The long awaited Luas Cross City is a fantastic development for commuters in Dublin. However those travelling to work from outer suburbs cannot be forsaken due to this welcome public transport progress.

This mornings experience shows us that traffic signalling needs to be very actively monitored and refined over coming days. The delay experienced by commuters this morning was a fiasco and while we can all accept teething problems, this cannot become the norm.

I would ask that Dublin City Council, Dublin Bus and Transdev Ireland meet to discuss the issues arising from this morning and discuss a long term plan on how to tackle these issues. Once these issues are ironed out I hope we will witness an ease in traffic backlogging in the city, continued Deputy Rock.

Finally, I would call on Dublin Bus to address the issue of the lack of services linking the people of Finglas to the new Broombridge Luas stop. We are still a long time away from the LUAS extending into Finglas and in the meantime, I would like to see the residents of this area provided with a service to this stop, concluded Deputy Rock.

Luas have been contacted for a comment but have not yet responded to our request.
A "martial arts expert" who punched his pregnant wife unconscious and fractured her jaw, has been jailed for three years.

Muhammed Tajik (28) pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to assault causing harm to Susan Walmsley at a flat on Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin on December 8, 2015.

Speaking outside court today Ms Walmsley urged other victims of domestic physical and psychological abuse to seek help.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said Ms Walmsley was an innocent victim in the fullest sense and had fallen into the hands of a man of a very violent disposition.

He described the case as a particularly serious example of domestic violence, perpetrated by the victims husband, someone from whom she was entitled to expect a high degree of respect.

The court heard that on the day of the assault, Ms Walmsley, who met her estranged husband online, had started a new job, and this led to a dispute between the couple.

At a previous hearing Garda John Freeney told Sean Gillane SC, prosecuting, that the defendant grabbed Ms Walmsleys neck from behind, punching her in the head and face until she passed out.

The court heard when the victim regained consciousness, Tajik, an Afghani national, told her they had had an argument and she needed to go to hospital.

He drove her to A&E where she was treated for a fractured jaw, an injured eye socket, a wound over her left eye and a swollen neck.

Mr Gillane read out a text sent by the defendant to Ms Walmsley on the night of the assault in which he expressed his remorse.

Go baby, go far from me where you're safe, Tajik wrote. He sent lilies to his wife in hospital with a handwritten note the day after the assault the court heard.

Patrick Gageby SC, defending, said Tajik is in a new relationship and is expecting a baby with his current partner.

He said the defendant, who is of no fixed address, has no previous convictions and should be given credit for pleading guilty, for his apologies and his remorse.

Mr Gageby said Tajik applied for asylum in Ireland in September 2015, and has been unable to work since then.

In a victim impact statement Ms Walmsley, a mother-of-two, told the court she only feels safe when alone and finds it impossible to trust others.

He was so calm when he was punching me, I truly believed I would die that night.

As he is a martial arts expert he knew what techniques to use to do the most damage to me. I received the injuries because I wanted to leave, I had enough, she said.

Ms Walmsley said the pain she experienced was worse than childbirth, and rendered her unable to wash her teeth or lie on a pillow for weeks afterwards.

She said she has felt suicidal since the assault and has suffered flashbacks, high levels of anxiety and post traumatic stress disorder.

I find it hard to leave my house, I have to check all entry points. I rarely feel safe at home and have an alarm on my bedroom door, she said.

She told the court that her nine-year-old daughter is petrified, and needs to know where her mother is every hour of the day.

Ms Walmsley said that as a result of the assault she cannot return to her job, as she suffers regular panic attacks and cannot concentrate.

Sentencing Tajik, Mr Justice McCarthy referred to the the extent of brutality used in the course of the assault.

He said the fact the couple had argued about the victims new job and a burnt pizza demonstrated the offence was in no sense explicable in terms of provocation.

He said he would not be taking into account the fact that the defendant is expecting a child with his new partner, as he must meet responsibility for what occurred even if this amounts to disrupting others in his life.

Mr Justice McCarthy referred to testimonials provided to the court by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, and said he was satisfied that Tajik had shown a degree of contrition.

However he noted that Tajik did not admit his guilt until his third interview with gardai.

He sentenced him to three years in jail and said that the crime merited a heavy custodial sentence.

Speaking outside court Ms Walmsley (38) said she was very surprised at the length of the sentence imposed on Tajik as it was a lot more than she was expecting.

She said she found the trial extremely difficult.

Everywhere I go theres a memory of what happened, a smell that brings it all back to me, she said.

Ms Walmsley urged other victims of domestic physical and psychological abuse to seek help.

When someone is controlling and manipulating you they cut you off from everybody. Its so difficult to get away but you dont have to put up with it.

It never gets better, they promise theyll be good but two weeks later its ten times worse. The pattern will continue until it comes to the point that you think theyre going to kill you, she said.

Ms Walmsley said it was validating to hear Mr Justice McCarthy describe the assault as unprovoked.

My ex posted vile things online about me after he attacked me. He said I deserved it and that I had ruined his life, she said.
An Irishman wanted abroad for a charge related to drug trafficking has lost an appeal against an order for his extradition to Spain.

Patrick Joseph Mangan, (51) with an address at Valeview Drive in Finglas, is wanted for prosecution on a single drugs charge allegedly committed in Spain on November 29, 2010.

A European Arrest Warrant issued in respect of Mr Mangan states that his surrender is sought for alleged participation in an organisation dealing with drugs trafficking.

The warrant states that a British organisation purchased large amounts of drug[s] from the city of Melilla, obtained by paying a group composed of Spanish individuals. The narcotic drugs were controlled in Melilla on November 29, 2010 and that only 148 kilograms of hashish or cannabis resin was recovered.

Mr Mangan's extradition to Spain was ordered by the High Court in March. He lost an appeal against that order today and, pending an appeal, faces surrender.

The High Court heard that Spanish authorities monitored by judicial order or tapped the telephone of another named individual with whom a telephone registered to Mr Mangan had contact.

In the High Court, Ms Justice Donnelly said the crux of Mr Mangan's objection to being surrendered was the claim that, because he was in Ireland using his Irish registered telephone at the time these calls were intercepted, there had been an unlawful interference with his right to privacy.

Mr Mangan's barrister, Dr Michael Forde SC, submitted that the Spanish authorities had not shown that they had authority to intercept a call in this jurisdiction and that the Minister had not given any authority to intercept a call in this jurisdiction.

Dr Forde submitted that his client's constitutional right to privacy would be breached if the Spanish authorities used the fruits of a telephone tap of an Irish citizen speaking on a phone in Ireland.

Dr Forde accepted that the other person's phone was tapped under appropriate authority. However, given that Mr Mangan was an Irish citizen speaking in Ireland, he submitted that foreign authorities are prohibited from using the fruits of the tap.

Dismissing his appeal in the three-judge Court of Appeal today, Mr Justice Alan Mahon said Mr Mangan's constitutional right to privacy had not been engaged, given the particular circumstances of the case.

Mr Justice Mahon said the three-judge Court of Appeal was satisfied that Mr Mangan's surrender does not breach his rights under either the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights.

A stay was put on Mr Mangan's surrender pending a Supreme Court appeal. He was remanded on continuing bail.

In the High Court, Ms Justice Donnelly said the reference to telephone tapping was further explained by the Spanish authorities in a letter dated September 2016.

It alleged that: During the process of investigation that took place on different organizations involved in drug trafficking, it was found out through the telephone intervention works that took place by a judicial order that a group of people related to a lieutenant of the Spanish Military Police (Guardia Civil) were trying to perform a drug trafficking operation (hashish).

The criminal organization got the drug that came from Morocco and, for a price, it was delivered to another organization in Spain comprised of British and Irish people, being there chief Patrick Joseph Mangan, the person that paid for the drug.

The representative of the group in Costa del Sol was identified as another named individual, according to the letter received from Spanish authorities, who received orders from PatrickJoseph Mangan, as well as the money to buy the drug.

When they both spoke by telephone and spoke about Big Fella they might be referring to a second named individual, who was another defendant in the proceeding that belongs to another organized group in charge of getting the drug from Morocco, according to the letter received from Spanish authorities.

Since that person also had his telephone intervened it has been possible to find out about the conversations he used to have with the first named individual and, therefore, the connection of Patrick Joseph Mangan with the facts under investigation.

In order to clarify the kind of participation that Patrick Joseph Mangan, alias the general and alias the old, has in the facts, a file is attached with the original conversations that have been monitored by a judicial order, the letter from the Spanish authorities alleged.
The scene in Lucan, Co Dublin where Jack Clancy (inset) was found dead.

Gardai are attempting to establish if a young man who was found dead at his west Dublin home died from a gunshot wound to the chest.

The body of Jack Clancy (22) was discovered at the property in Woodville Avenue, Lucan, shortly before 3pm yesterday.

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It is understood that his body was located by a male relative, who immediately contacted emergency services.

Paramedics and gardai responded, including units from the Armed Support Unit (ASU) due to the serious nature of the report.

Mr Clancy was pronounced dead at the scene and the family home was sealed-off by gardai.

Detectives are treating the death as suspicious and are probing the involvement of a third party.

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Mr Clancy has been described as a "very decent" young man who had lived in the area for a number of years.

It is believed Mr Clancy may have died at least five hours before his remains were discovered, and investigators last night appealed for anyone with information to contact them.

Gardai are attempting to establish if the young man died from a single gunshot wound to his chest.

A formal murder investigation has not yet been launched as gardai have not established the exact cause of death.

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Detectives are awaiting a pathologist's report which will then determine which course the investigation takes.

A senior source told the Irish Independent: "It appears that this young man died from a single gunshot wound, but gardai are in the early stages of the investigation and this won't be confirmed until today."

Mr Clancy was last night described as a "very decent young man" by people in the locality, who have been left devastated by his death. He is believed to have worked as a mechanic at a used-car showroom in the south-inner city.

"It's just a shock, we can't believe it. He was well known in the area, his family would have been very well regarded," one friend told the Irish Independent. "It's just hard to get my head around it. It doesn't make sense, he was a very decent young man."

Investigators carried out door-to-door inquiries throughout yesterday afternoon, while CCTV from nearby homes will also be reviewed to assist the investigation.

A number of locals and friends of Mr Clancy gathered at the scene last night.

"I didn't hear a thing, the guards aren't saying what's happened yet," one local man said.

"I heard it was Jack - if it is, it's absolutely shocking."

It is understood that members of Mr Clancy's family are abroad and officials were yesterday attempting to contact them to inform them of the tragedy.

A Garda spokesman last night said they were investigating "all of the circumstances" surrounding Mr Clancy's death.

"Gardai and emergency services were called to a house on Woodville Avenue when the alarm was raised shortly before 3pm.

"The body of the man, who is understood to be in his early 20s, remains at the scene which is preserved for forensic and technical examination.

"The office of the State pathologist has been notified," he added.

The scene was still being preserved last night and local officers were appealing for anyone who was in the area between 12am and 3pm to contact them.
The number of international students in third-level colleges in Ireland is growing. (stock photo)

The number of international students in third-level colleges in Ireland is growing.

The figure is expected to rise even more rapidly post-Brexit, when, apart from Malta, Ireland will be the only English-speaking country in the EU.

There were 23,127 foreign students in publicly-funded colleges in the last academic year, up from 19,679 two years earlier, according to data from the Higher Education Authority.

They now account for 10.6pc of all enrolments in these institutions, including universities, institutes of technology and teacher training colleges, while there are many more in private colleges.

In 2016-17, the USA accounted for most international students in Ireland (4,696), followed by China (2,153), Saudi Arabia (1,396), Malaysia (1,380) and Canada 1,356.

The Government and individual colleges are involved in a concerted drive to attract more foreign students, who are valuable both in terms of the fees they pay and the wider economic contribution they make, and the cultural bridges built.

Health

Some 91pc of enrolments were on full-time courses, predominantly at undergraduate level, with 58pc aged 23 or under, and 54pc female.

Hea1th and welfare courses accounted for the biggest area of study, so it is no surprise that the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland accounted for 2,401 of all enrolments.

Many students - 38pc of honours bachelor degree holders and 63pc of postgraduates - were working in Ireland nine months after graduation.
The mother of a baby boy who was unlawfully killed at the hands of his father said her former partner had been jealous of their son.

Karol Rozycki (11 months) was found dead at the apartment where he lived at Park Place Apartments, Monsignor Road, Killarney on March 6, 2016.

In her deposition that was read out at an inquest into their deaths, his mother Anna Rozycka said the boy's father, Andrzej Piolunowicz (32), "was jealous of my relationship with Karol".

I had told him that Karol was my world and the most important person in my life and it would always be like that," she said.

He said it should not be like that.

The cause of the infant's death was undetermined at autopsy but the jury at the inquest returned a verdict of unlawful killing.

His father, a hotel worker, of the same address, died from self-inflicted wounds. He died at Cork University Hospital on March 10, 2016.

Coroner Aisling O'Sullivan-Quilter recorded a verdict of death by suicide in his case.

In her deposition that was read by Supt Flor Murphy at South Kerry Coroners Court, Ms Rozycka, who is Polish, said she had returned from work at the Aghadoe Heights Hotel, where she worked as a chef de parite, to find no sign of her partner or her baby.

She thought they must have fallen asleep because the place was quiet.

When she checked, Karol was not in his cot and the door to the bedroom she shared with Mr Piolunowicz was locked.

She said she knew something was amiss because the baby should have woken up with the noise she was making banging on door and shouting.

She rang Mr Piolunowiczs sister, Iwona, and her partner, Robert Herbaczewski, who eventually succeeded in kicking in the bedroom door.

Mr Herbaczewski held a hysterical Ms Rozycka back and would not allow her enter the room. His wife called the emergency services.

Mr Herbaczewski performed CPR on the infant, instructed over the phone by the emergency services.

Assistant State Pathologist, Dr Margot Bolster, said the post-mortem examination did not determine any cause of death but she noted a baby could be smothered without leaving any signs.

Dr Bolster said the investigation of the scene and items found there were of considerable importance.

The couple was originally from Poland but had met in Killarney, while working in the same hotel.

A couple of months into their relationship, Ms Rozycka discovered she was pregnant. They broke up soon after moving in together and Ms Rozycka returned to her native Cieszyn, where Karol was born in April 2015. They had no contact during this time.

On returning to Killarney that summer, she met her former partner again at work. She said she wanted her son to have contact with his father and they began to meet. After some time they decided to resume their relationship.

They moved in together in February 2016 but after a 12-day trip to Poland, the relationship was tense and there was no intimacy and they only spoke about Karol.

I told Andrzej I could not see a future for us, her deposition read.

Ms Rozycka last saw her son on the morning of March 6, 2016  Mothers Day  sitting on his highchair finishing his breakfast with his father.

She said Mr Piolonowicz had told her he would move out but she told him she was not throwing him out.
A global network of newspaper publishers is demanding the Irish government expedite changes to its defamation laws to protect freedom of the press.

The board of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) endorsed a resolution at its meeting in New York on Saturday that calls upon the Irish government to  implement without delay, changes to reduce or eliminate the threat posed to freedom of expression by its current defamation regime.

The association, representing the worlds press in 120 countries, said it notes with dismay that damages awarded by the Irish courts in defamation cases are often ten times higher than in neighbouring jurisdictions.

It cited the case in the Supreme Court in which an award of 1.25m was made to communications consultant Monica Leech in 2014 following a series of articles in The Herald published in 2004 that were found to be libellous.

The award was reduced from 1.87m originally awarded to Ms Leech in 2009 following a jury trial at the High Court.

In its appeal of the original award, lawyers for Independent News and Media, publisher of Independent.ie, The Herald and Irish Independent, argued the award was so disproportionately high that it should be set aside. They also argued that the massive payout had a chilling effect on freedom of the press.

The WAN-IFRA resolution, meanwhile, said it reiterates the importance of a free, independent and vibrant press holding governments and the powerful to account, unhindered by repressive defamation laws.

The board acknowledges the need for laws to protect, from unjust attack, the reputation of individuals. However, it endorses the oft-stated view of the European Court of Human Rights that unpredictable and excessive awards of damages and legal costs have a chilling effect upon the media and upon the right of the public to be informed of issues of significance.

Former Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald announced the Justice Department would begin a review of the Defamation Act 2009 in November 2016. The date for commencement of the review had been deferred from July 2014.

NewsBrands, the representative body for both print and online national newspapers, has repeatedly warned that the level of awards in defamation cases threaten press freedom and that the massive awards under existing laws are threatening the very existence of media organisations.
By PTI: By Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Dec 11 (PTI) Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will attend the extraordinary Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit on the issue of Jerusalem in the Turkish capital this week, the Foreign Office said today.

The summit to be held on December 13 in Istanbul will be preceded by the council of Foreign Ministers meeting which will be attended by Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, it added.

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"The Extraordinary Summit has been called by the President of Turkey in his capacity as the Chair of the OIC Summit. Most OIC Member States are expected to attend," the Foreign Office said.

It said the summit will discuss President Donald Trumps recent decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and shift the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The OIC (formerly Organisation of the Islamic Conference) is the second largest inter-governmental organisation after the UN which has membership of 57 Muslim countries.

The OIC leaders will also explore ways to deal with the situation, the FO added.

Prime Minister Abbasi will convey the sentiments of the people and Government of Pakistan of the unequivocal support to the people of Palestine.

He will seek a united stance on the issue of Jerusalem also known as Al-Quds Al-Sharif and call upon the US Administration to review its decision. PTI SH ZH

--- ENDS ---
Members of Dublin Fire Brigade (DFB ) have rescued a person from an apartment in the capital following a domestic fire.

The blaze occurred at the building on the North Circular Road, near the Mater Hospital.

Three DFB units from Tara Street and Phibsborough attended the scene and were required to use breathing apparatuses during the rescue operation.

An ambulance and senior officer were also called to the scene, and one person was hospitalised with smoke inhalation.

DFB members were also called out to three separate river rescues, including one incident in which a 74-year-old man was hospitalised with a broken ankle and hypothermia.

The rescues, which occurred at 6pm and 8pm on Saturday evening and one on Sunday at 1am, were carried out along the River Liffey.

A DFB boat was used to recover the 74-year-old male who got into difficulty, while a HIAB crane was also required in a river rescue on Wolfe Tone Quay.

Separately, fire fighters in Dundalk also rescued male from a house fire in the Drive One area.

The domestic fire broke out at around 1.53am on Sunday morning and resulted in firefighters rescuing a person from a second story room.
Ian Paisley has claimed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was "done over" last week by a combination of the EU, the UK and the DUP.

Writing in the Sunday Business Post yesterday, the DUP MP gave a punchy assessment of how last week's roller coaster negotiations unfolded.

"Last Monday morning Leo Varadkar believed he was about to pull off a major coup of having secured Northern Ireland harmonisation with the Republic of Ireland," he wrote.

"Four days later, a new agreement emerged with vast sections rewritten and a different relationship established.

"Frankly, whatever efforts are made to characterise this week, Leo Varadkar was done over by the EU, the UK and the DUP."

The North Antrim MP said that the DUP had been warning Dublin for weeks that they had "overstretched themselves".

"They were warned that the effort to make the border the centrepiece of the negotiations was misguided and that any discussion about the border was irrelevant until after the trade relationship part of the negotiations had been established.

"Friday's agreement effectively conceded that point," the MP wrote.

Mr Paisley praised the calibre of Irish business leaders, saying they would be easily capable of exploiting the opportunities of the new post-Brexit trading arrangements.

"I've never doubted the agility and ability of Irish businessmen to make the best out of that trading relationship," he added.

In his article, Mr Paisley also claimed that while a 'no deal' scenario would pose significant challenges for Northern Ireland, such an outcome would cripple the Republic's economy.

"Frankly, that should put the fear of the Almighty into the Republic to urgently cheer on a trade agreement that - instead of penalising them - actually works for them," he wrote.

"Let's face it: we want the ROI to be successful. It's just a pity that does not always appear to be reciprocated."
David Davis, Secretary of State for Exiting the EU while appearing on the BBC One current affairs programme, The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday

Government Chief Whip Joe McHugh has called 'bizarre' comments from the UK's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis that last week's Brexit border deal was only a 'statement of intent' and not 'legally enforceable'.

Davis caused concern for the Irish government with his comments on the BBC's Andrew Marr's Show yesterday, when he said of Friday's deal: "This was a statement of intent more than anything else. Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing."

Further fears have been raised as it has been widely reported today the UK Prime Minister Theresa May is set to tell the House of Commons later that "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed".

The Irish government responded strongly to Davis' comments yesterday, stating the deal was "binding" and it would hold the UK "to account" on it.

The document on issues like the border was hammered out in order to allow the remaining EU27 states to approve Brexit talks shifting to a phase two trade negotiation at a summit this week.

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Taoiseach Leo Varadkar heralded Friday's deal meant to prevent the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic as "politically bullet-proof" and "cast iron".

The Irish government's chief whip, Joe McHugh, branded Davis' comments as "bizarre".

He told RTE yesterday: "We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union.

"My question to anybody within the British Government would be, why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they weren't going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me.

"This, as far as we're concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

Mr McHugh said the Irish government would not "back away" from the Brexit principles if it comes under pressure from the rest of the EU during trade talks with the UK.

Meanwhile, it is expected that UK Prime Minister Theresa May is set to use an address to the House of Commons today to stress that while a new air of optimism on a final settlement has emerged, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

May is expected to tell the Commons: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."
MOURNERS from both sides of the Atlantic gathered in Wexford today for the funeral mass of four family members from the US who were tragically killed in a car accident earlier this month.

Doug and Lily Alexander, both 75, died alongside their adult sons, Stephen and Doug Junior, in a road accident on the N25 near Cushinstown in Co Wexford on December 4.

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The family of four lived in Oakland, near Chicago, and had been in the country following the death of Mrs Alexander's sister Winnie Keevey.

In their funeral mass in Cushinstown, New Ross today Bishop Denis Brennan told mourners that the families were united across the Atlantic in love.

"The tragedy which unfolded here last Monday has touched and saddened the whole country.

"The three families have suffered an unbearable loss. Four people who loved you deeply have been taken from you in an instant.

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"You also mourn for Winnie and we remember her today as well."

Father Sean Devereux said the family have been left "wondering if this darkness will ever pass".

"A journey to grieve a sister, sister in law, and aunt ended abruptly.

"Doug and Lily lived the American dream. They went to the US to build a life for themselves and through hard work they did this. But they also enjoyed life moments and your memories spoken about them over the past week tell of a couple who shared what they had with others. They were generous to the end.

"Doug Jnr had traits of both his parents. He enjoyed life and was hard working. He brought joy to others through music and had a generous spirit.

"Steve served his community as a police officer and helped to make dreams come through with his workforce through service provided to the Special Olympics. He gave hope to so many young athletes as he encouraged them to achieved their dream.

"Four people with individual gifts that they did not box up and use only for themselves but shared with family, friends and with the community. They will live on as you remember their goodness, kindness and selflessness."
James and Emily are the most popular baby names in Ireland in 2016

New statistics released from the Central Statistics office show how adventurous Irish parents have become since 1966, a year when John and Mary were the most popular monikers.

The latest figures released from the CSO differ greatly from those published more than 50 years ago, with many traditional names toppling off the list.

In 1966, John was the most popular baby boys name of the year, with 3,152 children christened with the name, followed closely by Patrick, Michael and James.

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It seems James has stood the test of time having taken the top spot in Ireland's list of most popular baby names in 2016. Jack, Daniel, Conor and Sean completed the list of the five most popular boys' names in 2016, released last week.

There were many baby Marys in 1966 and 2,857 children were bestowed the name that year. In 2016, Mary claims the 84th spot on the list, having dropped a further ten places in the popularity stakes since 2015.

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The recent figures revealed that Emily was the most popular girls' name in Ireland in 2016, with 490 children bestowed the name last year.

In 1966, Catherine, Margaret, Ann and Anne also featured in the top five most popular baby names but none of these feature in 2016s list of most popular names.

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Instead, Grace, Ava, Lucy and Amelia complete 2016's top five most popular baby girls' names.

For boys, Muhammad, Louis, Lucas, Josh, Jason and Ollie have grown most in popularity amongst Irish parents, with Muhammad jumping 36 places since 2015.

Girls' names Willow, Harper, Matilda, Aria, Heidi, Ailbhe and Zoey also entered the top 100 list in 2016.

Some of the more unusual names that featured in 2016's figures include boys' names Anton, Brodie, Cruz, Harris and Feilim. Less popular girls names included Blake, Indigo, Lucia, Reidin, Romy and Peyton.

Murphy, Kelly, OBrien, Ryan and Walsh were the five most popular surnames of newborns registered in 2016.

Most popular boys' names in 1966

1) John

2) Michael

3) Patrick

4) James

5) Paul

6) Thomas

7) David

8) William

9) Martin

10) Gerard

Most popular boys' names in 2016

1) James

2) Jack

3) Daniel

4) Conor

5) Sean

6) Noah

7) Adam

8) Oisin

9) Michael

10) Luke

Most popular girls names in 1966

1) Mary

2) Catherine

3) Margaret

4) Ann

5) Anne

6) Elizabeth

7) Deirdre

8) Bridget

9) Patricia

10) Geraldine

Most popular girls names in 2016

1) Emily

2) Grace

3) Ava

4) Lucy

5) Amelia

6) Sophie

7) Emma

8) Mia

9) Hannah

10) Lily
At a time when so many new restaurants are based on concepts rather than food, with more time and attention devoted to interior design, fit-out and making sure that the PR gets the 'right' people to attend the opening than to staff training, it's refreshing to find a new place to eat that manages to be pretty cool without any of that palaver.

Shouk opened at the end of the summer on the stretch of the Lower Drumcondra Road just beside the junction with Clonliffe Road. It's a little tricky to find, in that it doesn't have any street frontage, and you enter via a courtyard next door to the Chipmonger chipper (which also looks as if it might be worth a visit). In this and other respects it reminds me of Assassination Custard, a tiny restaurant on Kevin Street, which is similarly difficult to locate on a first visit, serves great-tasting food without making a fuss, and is one of the most effortlessly hip restaurants in the capital.

We've called ahead to book a table and we're glad that we have, because every seat in the place is taken at 7pm on a Wednesday evening. There's a welcome diversity to our fellow customers - two women sitting on stools at the bar catching up after work, a family tucking in at the corner table, two young wans in beanies next to us, one with a bottle of Prosecco, the other preferring a screwtop Australian cab sauv. (Shouk is BYOB.)

The decor is shoestring unpretentious - bare wooden tables, benches with colourful cushions, cutlery in tin cans, nothing fancy - and turns out to have been built by the owner, Alon Salman, using largely salvaged materials. There are two rooms, and also a yard out the back which provides extra space when it's warm enough to eat out of doors.

Alon tells me later that he is half-Israeli, half-Wexford but it's safe to say that there is little of the Irish part of his heritage in evidence on the menu at Shouk.

If you've read the narrative of Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi's book, Jerusalem (rather than just cooking the recipes), hankered for the food of Israel, and felt that you too could become obsessed with hummus, then Shouk is the place to head to satisfy those cravings. It is I think as authentic - there's that word again, the one that we restaurant reviewers are guilty of over-using - an iteration of Middle Eastern/Mediterranean food as I have eaten in Ireland.

Our waiter (of whom more later) tells us that Shouk has had a busy lunch service, and that the restaurant is sold out of a few of the dishes on the menu. We are disappointed that there is no whole roasted cauliflower left in particular. (Cauliflower is having a bit of a moment these days, which just goes to show that there's hope for swede yet, apropos of which it popped up on the Ottolenghi Instagram feed the other day.)

So we order just about everything else. Five of us share a mezze feast of falafel, hummus that's in another league entirely to the stuff you buy in a tub (even the posh versions), tahini, a Moroccan aubergine salad, a vibrant Moroccan carrot salad, a salad of pickled beets and a 'Jaffa' salad of tomatoes that taste of something, cucumber, scallions and herbs. The puffy pitas are made to order in the steam oven and are exceptional.

A whole blackened aubergine smells insanely good, its flesh combined with tahini, harissa and cherry tomatoes in a melting, delicious ooze of flavour, and a grilled vegetable salad, all the elements -broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, cherry tomatoes and scallions nicely charred and then dressed with oil, lemon zest and garlic - are far tastier than that modest description indicates.

We share a couple of filled pitas -one burger, one rib-eye minute steak -crammed with all manner of deliciousness in the form of tahini, pickles, shredded vegetables and much more besides.

For dessert, there's a caramelised banana and chocolate spread pita that is so rich that one is quite enough for five of us to share.

The food at Shouk is so good that I'd happily go back and eat it all again tonight, and the BYOB policy makes it highly affordable for a gang.

But what really set the place apart was the service. Our waiter had the right personality for working in hospitality, in that he seemed as if he genuinely wanted to be there and was enjoying his job.

He trod the fine line between the right amount of attentiveness - moving us to a bigger table "because you've ordered so much food!" - and too much, with aplomb.

He was so invested in what he was doing that, until just before we were leaving, we thought that he was the owner.

Our bill for six (we brought home a doggy bag of leftovers and an extra rib-eye minute steak pita for one family member stuck at home) came to 122 before service, including corkage of 4 for a bottle of wine that we brought with us.

Shouk is a complete delight and, come January, when you are all broke and in need of a little cheap sunshine, you will very much want to remember its name and location, so make a note of it now.

THE RATING

8/10 food

9/10 ambience

9/10 value for money

26/30

ON A BUDGET

A falafel pita costs 6.

ON A BLOW-OUT

Share a mezze for two, followed by a rib-eye pita and dessert each, and your bill will come to 60 including corkage for a BYO bottle of wine.

THE HIGH POINT

A cheerful and inclusive restaurant that appears effortlessly cool, thanks to a winning combination of great food and excellent service.

THE LOW POINT

That Shouk had sold out of the whole roasted cauliflower in extra virgin olive oil and sea salt flakes with tahini, cherry tomato and scallion dressing mmm will have to go back for that.
Teachers in the UK are calling for a ban on the sale of energy drinks to under-16s because they contain huge amounts of sugar and caffeine and can cause headaches and palpitations.

One of Britain's largest teaching unions, the NASUWT, described the drinks as "readily available legal highs", which can trigger bad behaviour in the classroom and schoolyard.

This comes after researchers at Fuse, the Centre for Translational Research in Public Health, based at Teeside University, found that energy drinks were being sold to children for less money than either water or fizzy drinks.

Fuse found that one in three young people said that they regularly consumed energy drinks, which are often sold in promotion packs, meaning that young people often pool money and buy the cans at a discount.

A single 500ml can of popular brands on the market can contain around 160mg of caffeine, while the European Food Safety Authority recommends an intake of no more than 105mg caffeine per day for an average 11-year-old.

The British Soft Drinks Association says the drinks have been deemed safe for youngsters.

But Fuse Associate Director Dr Amelia Lake said: "What's interesting is that the young people are essentially asking why these drinks are being sold and marketed to them when we know they are not good for them.

"They are asking, 'Why aren't energy drinks age-restricted, like cigarettes?' Why can they get them so easily?

"Schools have tried restricting these drinks - now it's time to try and do something more central.

"These drinks are a problem and a government solution is needed."
A 'Star Wars' superfan who was 'mobbed' as he posed in front of a Tourism Ireland stand has now been hired by tourism chiefs.

Craig Spivey dressed up as Luke Skywalker and posed in front of the Skellig Michael tourism stand at a fan convention in London in 2016 and was inundated by requests for photos.

The selfie-fest led tourism chiefs to hire the 46-year-old to wield a lightsaber as part of their bid to promote the locations featured in the massive sci-fi franchise.

Kerry, Cork, Clare and Donegal will all be in the new film, 'The Last Jedi', which is released on Thursday. They double as the planet Ahch-To where Skywalker, played by Mark Hamill, trains aspiring Jedi Rey (Daisy Ridley).

Mr Spivey, from Leamington Spa in England, has been a 'Star Wars' fan since he saw the first film in the cinema aged seven.

He said he was "over the moon" to be asked by Tourism Ireland to don his Jedi robes at travel industry events in London after it discovered him at the convention.

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He has now appeared as Skywalker for Tourism Ireland at the World Travel Market event in London two years in a row.

Paid around 540 a day, he quipped, "I can call myself a professional Luke Skywalker" and said he had reinvested the earnings in his costume.

Mr Spivey, who works in advertising, said of the campaign: "These things are all about what's shareable. If you have a picture of Skellig Michael, people will walk past it. If you've got somebody there dressed as Luke Skywalker you can pose with, they will take that photo and they'll share it online."

He met Hamill at 'The Force Awakens' premiere in 2015. The actor spotted him - and a familiar looking beard - and came over for a photo. Mr Spivey hopes to visit Skellig next year, costume in tow.

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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.
This is what a starving bear looks like, says wildlife photographer who captured climate change in 60 seconds.

By India Today Web Desk: Many of us believe in climate change but, not everyone can do something about it. Especially, the voiceless wildlife.

Humans have been recklessly cutting trees, invading their land, eating them and what not.

But, who speak for them?

The nature.

Wildlife photographer Paul Nicklen, during an expedition at Baffin Island, Canada, shot something that holds the power to shame the entire human civilisation.

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Nicklen came across a starving polar bear who was struggling to survive on an iceless land and shot a video of him. The heart-wrenching video went viral and shows how Earth is deteriorating at a fast pace.

"We stood there crying-filming with tears rolling down our cheeks," he told National Geographic News.

The polar bear was seen struggling to walk and looked weak and slow as a sloth in the video. The bear was trying to find any food in metal scrap cans and was almost on the verge of dying.

"When scientists say bears are going extinct, I want people to realize what it looks like. Bears are going to starve to death," said Nicklen. "This is what a starving bear looks like."

Many people also questioned why Nicklen did not help the bear. But, to be honest, he was helpless. He said that he did not have tranquilisers or pounds of meat to save the dying animal and would have become his prey himself, if he had intervened.

With his video, he aims to spread awareness about how severe climate change is and how we as humans, should worry about it more.

Here's the video:

Video Courtesy: Nat Geo News

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SPEAKING OUT: Author Cathy Kelly has sold more than two million books and at one stage outsold both JK Rowling and Dan Brown. It is incredibly sexist to write off every female writer who does not fit in to what is characterised as literature, she says. Photo: David Conachy

Last Wednesday afternoon, Time magazine announced ''The Silence Breakers'' as its ''Person of the Year 2017''.

The magazine cover leaves one woman's face out of shot; a symbol of those who remain anonymous and the others yet to come forward.

I'm in the Radisson Blu hotel in Stillorgan in Dublin discussing this with best-selling author Cathy Kelly, unaware that a few minutes later, she will become the latest high-profile woman to step from the shadows.

The man involved is now dead. But what he did has stayed with her to this day: "This is really the first time I have spoken about it because it was an absolutely devastating time in my life. For about six months I was taking tranquillisers to try and deal with it."

Now 51, you can almost see a chill ripple through her as she closes her eyes to recall the encounter. It happened more than 30 years ago.

"I am loath to go in to the details. I want to protect my children in this too. But I think it's important to talk about these things and to share our stories.

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"I can't even begin to explain how devastating it was. When something like that happens, it is an attack on the very nature of your being, of who you are and that has a horrendous effect. It stayed with me for years and years. Even now, it's there. I have moved on - but it's there."

In the aftermath, a relationship she was in at the time fell apart under the weight of trauma and for a long time, she was very cynical of men. "It absolutely affected relationships after that... it changed my view of men and it gave me a fear and anxiety that wasn't there before," she said.

Like many women, she blamed herself: "It was like a shame on you. You asked yourself what you had done that somehow invited this."

Years later, Cathy went to a therapist to talk through her feelings about the incident. A Unicef ambassador herself, she says: "I was lucky I was in the position to do be able to do that but I know there are many who can't. That's why I would love to set up a charity some day that would help women and children in war zones who have had similar experiences so that they can get access to these kind of services."

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The assault was also the catalyst to her career as a writer: "It was a very powerful motivator for me. I always wanted to write and it was very cathartic to get rid of the feelings of shame, humiliation and secrecy, I went through all of those things and I have written about it in my books."

She recommends another female author for anyone who has gone through similar pain.

Marta Hiller's A Woman in Berlin details the story of a female journalist who is raped by a member of the Red Army during World War II: "It is one of the most powerful books I have ever read," she says, "[The author] knew she had to survive and she was able to."

Cathy's personal experience is just one of the many reasons she detests the so-called ''erotica'' that runs through much of the classical and contemporary literature aimed at women:

She writes off Heathcliff "as a man with a lot of mental issues". And Christian Grey as "someone who needs about 15 years of therapy and a lot of medication".

But, given that Fifty Shades of Grey is the biggest-selling book ever in Britain, why does she think women have been lapping it up?

"I think it has worked so far because there is so little erotica for women. That, along with the fact that women have been brought up to believe sex is bad, therefore if you have a man overpowering you, to have sex it's somehow more acceptable.

"It makes me despair because it is terrible for feminism. There are so many areas that feminism has to work on, this is just something else that needs to change."

Today she lives in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, with her husband John Sheehan (the former MD of record company Sony Music), twin boys and three dogs, and her books continue to strike a chord with readers. She made the list of the bestselling authors of the decade 2000-2009, with 2.3m books sold, bringing in sales valued at more than 14m.

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It is odd then that you won't hear her name said with the reverence reserved for other well-known Irish authors. This is, perhaps, due to the literary world's tendency to give more weight to white male literary types.

As author Jodi Picoult once pointed out: "I think it's a very old and deep-seated double standard that holds that when a man writes about family and feelings, it's literature with a capital L, but when a woman considers the same topics, it's romance, or a beach book - in short, it's something unworthy of a serious critic's attention.

Despite this lack of respect, Cathy once outsold both JK Rowling and Dan Brown.

"Ah that was only for a week," she says, brushing it off.

I tell her that is almost akin to Neil Armstrong saying he had visited the moon only for a day. She laughs and acknowledges the industry's double standards:

"It is incredibly sexist to write off every female writer who does not fit in to what is characterised as 'Literature'. You are instantly denigrating the people who read my books, you are denigrating me and you are denigrating women's lives."

It is noteworthy then she is part of a strong circle of women who encourage each other in their craft. When Marian Keyes went to the top of the UK bestseller chart, Cathy sent her flowers. This was no one-off act of superficial female solidarity either. She re-enacts crying down the phone to the Rachel's Holiday author on the days she is suffering from a dry spell.

As Cathy explains: "Marian is great. She will say send it on to me and then she will look at it and say 'it's fine, keep going' and give me the encouragement I need."

According to Cathy, even after 20 years, best-selling writers don't ever manage to shake off their self doubt: "It tells you that any spark of brilliance you ever had is all gone. It claws at you and drags you down."

When she does power through, the result is gold. In recent weeks, her work has earned the author yet another 1m book deal.

I ask if money matters - or if she is driven purely by passion?

"Anyone who says money isn't important has absolutely loads of it and has never gone through any pain in their life. I've both been in a place where I have had none and then I have had some and although it doesn't make you happy, it can certainly makes things easier."

I think about asking if the eye-watering deals take the sting out of the reverence paid to her more lauded but less widely read male colleagues but no doubt she is too much of a lady to say.

The Year That Changed Everything is out in February.
In a running series on Independent.ie Style, we speak to Irish women who inspire us and find out how they got the job they're in today, what trials and tribulations they faced on their career path and what advice they have to give to working women in today's world.

This week, we speak to best-selling author and renowned writer Cathy Kelly.

What is your job title?

I dont have one! I am CEO of Whatever The Heck I Need To Do Today, which might be writing 1,000 words; looking at yesterdays 1,000 words and thinking they are hopeless; doing interviews; catching up on endless international emails; schlepping round the grocery store trying to work out what to cook for dinner; discussing homework with my sons. Most of the time, I am doing all of these things on the same day. Sometimes, I even get eyeliner on too.

Did you always want to work as a writer?

Yes but to be honest, I didnt think someone like me could be a writer. Writing was what I did for solace and fun but other people, they were writers. Ive always read all the time and written but it took me time to build up any confidence to think that I could be a writer. I like to think this is a good path because it keeps you anxious about your work and not ever taking anything for granted and not thinking you are fabulous are prime requirements for writing. That said, Sylvia Plath was right when she said the worst enemy of creativity is self-doubt.

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Growing up, what did you want to be?

When I was four, I apparently wanted to be a jockey. I am certainly short enough. I wanted to be an artist for a long time too - I still love to paint and draw. I dallied with the law, science and physiotherapy but as careers rather than the wild love that writing is. (BTW - that wild-love feeling may go when you are racing to finish a book!)

How did you find yourself on this career path?

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I went into journalism after completing the two-year DIT journalism course in the 80s - yeah, the 80s! - and worked as a reporter for a long time, while secretly harbouring a desire to write novels and reading all sorts of great novels. Great fun used to be to be knocked out of me in the newsroom by people saying: "So you like French novels, do you?" Eventually, I stopped talking about writing a book and did it, which is the way to go when it comes to this job. The bum-on-seat approach works better than the "Ill write a book one day" approach. I wrote my first book, it was published, was successful, and I ended up - via an Irish publisher who sold the rights to my books - with a three-book deal with a UK publisher. After working in journalism for the first three books, I gave the day job up to be a full-time writer.

Did you face any challenges along your way to this career?

Does the Pope wear a funny hat? You have to break into the industry which takes time. You have to learn to talk about yourself and your books,which is so hard when you are used to being the person asking the questions. Journalism taught me how to be professional at all times. The main challenge is how to always improve your writing and how to stop your crazy head telling you that you are an idiot as you stare at the computer. I am still working on that one.

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If so, what are some notable obstacles you faced and how did you overcome them?

The self-doubt, which I think is a part of writing, is an obstacle and you have to remind yourself that at a certain point in every book/every day, you think you are a moron. Also, not all books do as well as other books. You have to take it on the chin and keep going. You also have to be spectacularly self-disciplined. I write a book a year and that takes discipline. Plus a lot of coffee and a dark sense of humour.

Are you a believer in having a five year plan?

No! I should, probably. Ive never written a five-year-plan in my life, even in my head. My plans involve making sure my family are safe and happy: its that simple. With work, well, what will be will be. I will keep writing.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to work as a writer?

Read. Read. And read some more. Learn from everyone. Talk to everyone  I talk to cashiers, guys collecting for charity, random people. I think writers have to observe and engage and I love engaging. I engage so long, I go down to the village here to get milk and come back an hour later because I have had two intense conversations. And write. Dont talk about writing, but do it. Finally, if you get advice, take it on board. Ive given people advice over the years and sometimes, people dont like what youre telling them. I suck up advice like a mosquito sucks up blood. I think every day has something to teach you.

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What women inspire you?

Women like the women I meet with my work in UNICEF who are trying to raise families in the hardest conditions in the world, in places in Africa where drinking the water can kill you, where lack of medical care can kill you. People who help those in our communities who need help. Anyone who works with the homeless or rape victims or domestic abuse victims. They inspire me. Kindness inspires me. Women who take care of other women. That is so important in my life. One of my favourite quotes comes from the great Madeleine Albright: "There is a special place in hell for women who dont help other women."

Whats a typical day like?

Whey my sons are in school, I wake early, read, then get up, let the dogs out, listen to the news, rouse the sleeping hordes, and, after breakfast, drive my sons to school. I try to start the day with us laughing. Once home, I make coffee and go into my study and do emails. Yes this is fatal. I try not to do emails first (as per all the secrets of successful people) but cannot. I make lists. I love lists. I then write and when I write, I get really into it and dont hear anything or anyone until my fingers hurt. Arthritis.

I have lunch  I used to have lunch standing up but now, and this is a big move for me, I sit down! I write some more but I am now thinking of what to make for dinner, does it require the supermarket, and then I pick up my sons from school and unless I am finishing a book or have a lot more emails to do, I am out of the study cooking. I like cooking but sometimes, I wish I had a magic wand to cook with. After dinner and homework, if there is time, we chill watching things like Modern Family or anything David Attenborough is narrating. Then bed and more reading.

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What has been the highlight of your career so far?

I have no sensible answer for this! I think, staying published for twenty years  my first book was published twenty years ago - is my highlight. I am so grateful that I can still make my living this way.

What skills/traits do you think are necessary for your job?

A love of reading and writing. You dont always love it when its going badly but you do have to love creating those new lives with words. And you have to love reading, which I adore.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I hope I have a healthy, happy family. Thats all I want.

Secrets of a Happy Marriage paperback is out now.
Snow on Djouce mountain in Co Wicklow today Photo John O'Hehir

Daniel Taylor aka Inn Keeper, escaping through the snow after his Nursery Nativity show at Enniskillen Integrated Nursery School. Photo: Dawn McCosker

Cnoc Ban, Spink, Co. Laois living up to its name this morning Photo: John Fitzpatrick

Brothers Ger Laverty, 10, and Finn Lavertty, 6, play in the snow on the Mourne Mountains near the village of Hilltown, Northern Ireland, December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne

Curtis Culliton (8) from Killiney enjoying the snow in Glencullen Co.Wicklow Photo: Justin Farrelly

Tadhg Hunter (6) from Killiney enjoying the snow in Glencullen Co.Wicklow Photo: Justin Farrelly.

Rian Butler & his dad David skiing this morning near Lough Dan, Wicklow

Motorists and pedestrians are being urged to exercise extreme caution on roads and footpaths today as bitterly cold temperatures overnight will leave much of the country covered in ice.

A Status Orange low temperature warning for all of Ireland was issued yesterday and went into effect from 8pm last night, lasting until 10am today.

The alert warns of extremely low temperatures tonight with severe frost, ice and lying snow as temperatures were expected to plummet to between 2C and 8C in some areas.

Severe frost will linger in many parts of the country today with temperatures only reaching 3 or 4 C in cold northerly winds. Otherwise a cold, bright day with mixed wintry showers across Connacht, Ulster and west Munster but mainly dry elsewhere.  Met Eireann (@MetEireann) December 11, 2017

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Tadhg Hunter (6) from Killiney enjoying the snow in Glencullen Co.Wicklow Photo: Justin Farrelly. PISTE PROJECT: Jack (5), sister Mia (10) and friend Rachel (11) sledging at Stormont in Belfast. Photo: Matt Mackey/Presseye.com Glencullen Co.Wicklow.Photo: Justin Farrelly. Rian Butler & his dad David skiing this morning near Lough Dan, Wicklow Curtis Culliton (8) from Killiney enjoying the snow in Glencullen Co.Wicklow Photo: Justin Farrelly Snow in Glencullen Co.Wicklow. Photo: Justin Farrelly. Billy, Paul and Niall having snow much fun in Carlow Snow in Roscommon on Sunday morning There are warnings about snow and ice as Ireland is in the grip of wintry weather Snow in Bohola, Co Mayo Photo: Avril Byrne Wexford covered in snow on Sunday morning Photo: Michael Jordan A dog walks in the snow on the Mourne Mountains near the village of Hilltown, Northern Ireland, December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Snow in Roscommon on Sunday morning / Facebook

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The worst-affected regions are counties in the eastern half of Connacht as well as Leinster and Ulster.

#GALWAY The Toll Plaza on the M6 Galway/Dublin Rd near J15 Ballinasloe is still down to one lane in both directions due to poor road conditions. https://t.co/ipFDM8K6Fw  AA Roadwatch (@aaroadwatch) December 11, 2017

Met Eireann also warned that footpaths as well as roads will be treacherous due to ice and the accumulation of snow in many areas yesterday.

All places are at risk of severe ice, forecaster Liz Gavin told the Irish Independent. Theres nowhere that wont get ice.

The morning rush hour is expected to be challenging, especially in Leinster.

Although the ice will start to melt by late morning or early afternoon, freezing conditions will set in again around 9pm tonight, with frosty conditions overnight.

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The cold snap will continue for the rest of the week, although it wont be nearly as cold and wintry as it has been over the past 24 hours, Ms Gavin said yesterday.

Wintry showers were also forecast to return to the west, north and midlands by the end of the week.

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The cold snap will continue for the rest of the week but nothing as severe as weve had, she said.

While children in many parts of the country enjoyed the wintry weather, for drivers it was a different story.

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In Sligo, around 6cm of snow fell across the county over Saturday night and yesterday.

The county council said that main roads would be covered by salt, but that commuters travelling this morning must take caution when using roads that are untreated.

Some instances of flooding took place in areas of Limerick, although it is understood they were minor and kept under control.

Meanwhile, snow and ice  especially in the west and midlands  led to some delays on Bus Eireann routes yesterday although a spokesman said the majority of services were unaffected by the weather. However, snow led to delays on some intercity routes, including Expressway services.

Schools

Most schools are open across the country this morning as primary roads are passable.

However, according to RTE, up to 50 schools in Longford, Roscommon and Galway are closed because of ice and snow.

In Co Longford, eight of the nine secondary schools and 25 primary schools are closed.

In Co Galway, several schools in Ballinasloe and Portumna are closed and schools in Swinford in Co Mayo are also closed because of the poor weather conditions.

Secondary schools in Ballinrobe and Claremorris are planning to open after 11am this morning to allow temperatures to rise.

Flight disruptions

A number of flights have been cancelled due to wintry conditions in the UK and in continental Europe.

While operations at Dublin and Cork airports were not affected by the weather, there was a knock-on effect from some UK airports.

Four morning flights from Dublin to Heathrow have been cancelled, while two Cork to Heathrow flights have also been cancelled.

According to Ryanair's website, all UK flights are as scheduled.

LIVE: Traffic chaos

An AA spokesman said the issue for motorists today is ice, especially lethal black ice that can form once a layer of ice thaws and re-freezes, leaving a sleek surface that is difficult to see.

At the moment, the worst affected counties appear to be Roscommon, Sligo, Donegal, Cavan and the eastern half of Galway, with many routes across these areas affected by snow, ice or slush.

In Monaghan, there are slippery road conditions around Carrickmacross, especially on the Ballybay Rd (R180) between there and Laragh.

In Donegal, road conditions are icy around Letterkenny Town, and on secondary routes from between Letterkenny and Inishowen and Rathmullan. It's still icy on some routes in Buncrana, especially around Clonblosk.

In Cork, conditions remain icy on secondary routes in the Mallow area. They have improved however on the New Twopothouse/Doneraile Rd (R581) near Hazelwood. Secondary routes remain very icy too around Midleton and elsewhere around Beal na Blath.

In Kerry, Gardai advise that roads around the Barraduff area are icy this morning.

Gardai in Clare say ice may linger in shaded areas on the Ennis/Quinville Rd (R469) and on the Shanaway Rd, just off the N85.

In Laois, road conditions in the Abbeyleix area still icy in parts with snow on the ground say Gardai.

In Wicklow, gardai advise motorists to avoid the Sally Gap due to poor road conditions. Conditions are also snowy around Glendalough, with extreme caution advised.

In Westmeath, the Main Street through Athlone (R446) is slippery due to icy conditions. Its improving slowly around Mullingar but it's still icy. Icy conditions reported too on the road from Mullingar/Ballymahon (R392).

In Offaly, road conditions remain slippery around Tullamore, Birr and Banagher village. Gardai are advising extra caution on secondary routes.

In Meath, areas affected by icy road conditions include Kells, Oldcastle, Crossakiel and Navan.

In Kilkenny, particularly icy on the Old Dublin Rd (R448) between Thomastown and Gowran.
Aya Hishmeh from Perth put her head in her hands as she was read the charges facing her

A 20-year-old woman has been charged in connection with the death of an Irish teenager who was hit by a car in Australia.

Jacob Cummins (17), originally from Dublin, was killed and four others were seriously injured when a vehicle allegedly driven by Aya Hishmeh struck them on Eucalyptus Boulevard, in Canning Vale, Perth, last Thursday afternoon.

Ms Hishmeh, from Canning Vale, appeared before Perth Magistrates Court at the weekend where she was charged with the murder of Jacob and the attempted unlawful killing of four others.

She put her face in her hands as she was read the charges and, at one point, had to be held up by prison officers.

She was remanded in custody to appear in court again on January 31.

Four of Jacob's friends were seriously injured in the incident, with one witness saying the teenagers were "scattered" over the road and face down in bushes following the crash.

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His death happened around an hour after a fight between boys from two schools broke out in a park. The brawl then continued outside a McDonald's restaurant in Livingston where two people suffered minor stab wounds.

Police have described the brawl that led to the death of the Irish teen as a "school fight gone horribly wrong".

Local online newspaper 'WAToday' reported that around 100 people, including members of Jacob's family and his friends, gathered at Perth's Scarborough Beach for a memorial service for the teenager.

State Control Acting Inspector Dean Snashall, who attended the memorial to support the Cummins family, said a decision made by children to fight had ended in Jacob losing his life.

"What we are dealing with here is essentially a school fight that's got completely out of hand," he said.

"It's an absolute tragedy that a school fight can get to a situation where we have a person deceased and several people injured.

"There's no evidence to suggest any gang involvement here, the group is six or seven different nationalities, it's a diverse range of people.

"This is school kids who have had an altercation over a school yard matter and unfortunately a young 17-year-old has paid the ultimate price."

A woman whose two sons were at the initial fight in the park and at the brawl outside McDonald's said the violence was sparked when a group came to Canning Vale to fight a Canning Vale College student.

"[The group] randomly hit kids and tormented them, stealing bikes," she said.
Loudspeakers are being installed at more than 90 sites across central Melbourne

Melbourne will test a terrorism alarm system this month after police thwarted two alleged plots targeting Christmas and New Year crowds and a lone driver killed six pedestrians in the last year in Australia's second-largest city.

Victoria state Acting Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said on Monday that loudspeakers were being installed at more than 90 sites across central Melbourne as part of an alarm system to be tested on December 28.

Police last month charged a man with preparing to commit a terrorist attack in Melbourne.

Four men are awaiting trial on terrorism charges after being arrested in December last year over a similar alleged plot.

A man has been charged with six counts of murder and 28 of attempted murder after allegedly driving a stolen car along a Melbourne pedestrian street in January.

AP
Corsican nationalists won elections on Sunday on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica for a new regional assembly, crushing President Emmanuel Macron's young centrist movement and traditional parties.

The nationalists on the once-restive island of 320,000 people want more autonomy from Paris but unlike those in the nearby Spanish region of Catalonia, they are not yet seeking full independence.

In what French media called an unprecedented result, a coalition of moderate and harder-line nationalists won 56.5% of the vote in Sunday's second-round election, according to figures from the Interior Ministry.

Local media showed nationalists singing Corsican songs and celebrating in the streets after the results were announced.

The nationalist coalition, which also won the most votes in the first round a week ago, will have 41 of the 63 seats in the new assembly, which takes office on January 1 after a territorial reform replacing previous assemblies.

Candidates from Mr Macron's Republic on the Move! party won just six seats.

On the ballot were nationalist issues such as amnesty for political prisoners, the recognition of Corsican as the official language alongside French, and protections for locals who want to buy property on the island the French refer to as the Island of Beauty, which is also rich in history and famed as the birthplace of Napoleon.

The nationalists formed an alliance between the more popular, moderate group led by Gilles Simeoni, who wants devolved power, and a fiery movement led by Jean-Guy Talamoni, who aims to eventually get full autonomy for Corsica, though not immediately.

The vote came a day after French Basques marched through Paris demanding the release of fellow Basques held in prisons around the country for separatist activity.

Far away in the South Pacific, the French territory of New Caledonia is preparing for a referendum on self-rule next year.

AP
Stonehenge was built as part of a fertility cult, with the stones positioned to cast phallic shadows inside the monument during midsummer, a new study suggests.

Archaeologist Terence Meaden, examined nearly 20 stone circles throughout Britain, filming their changing silhouettes during sunrise on ritually significant dates.

Experts already knew that the 6,000-year-old neolithic monuments were aligned on the solstices, but it is the first time it has been suggested that the stones were oriented in order to create a 'moving spectacle'.

Prof Meaden said the builders of Stonehenge, and other megalithic circles had created a "play without words", in which one special stone cast a growing phallic shadow, which penetrated the egg-shaped monument before hitting a central 'female' stone symbolising fertility and abundance.

Prof Meaden also discovered that a similar light show happens at Drombeg Stone Circle in Co Cork, where he spent 120 days photographing sunrise at the site over five years.

The circular shape of the Stonehenge monuments allowed the same 'play' to recur at important dates in the neolithic farming calendar throughout the year, he believes.

Auspicious

"Stones were positioned such that at sunrise on auspicious dates of the year, phallic shadows would be cast from a male-symbolic stone to a waiting female-symbolic stone," said Prof Meaden.

"At Stonehenge, on days of clear sunrise, the shadow of the externally-sited phallic Heel Stone penetrates the great monument in the week of the summer solstice and finally arrives at the recumbent Altar Stone, which is symbolically female.

"This could be a dramatic visual representation of the consummation of the gods between a Sky Father and the Earth Mother Goddess."

He found that the 'fertility play' occurs on eight ritually significant dates, starting on the winter solstice. Further studies of six other stone circles in Co Cork and Scotland found that they also aligned to the calendar.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections, and seemed to suggest that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party.

Prasad said Indians were capable of contesting the countrys democracy on their own.

This came after Pakistans Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal tweeted:"India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible".

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The tweet came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public rally in Palanpur in Gujarat talked about a purported secret meeting held at suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyars home and attended by the Pakistani High Commissioner, an ex-Pakistani foreign minister, a former Vice President of India and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

This meeting, Modi claimed, happened a day before Aiyar called him "neech".

"Today a very curious statement has been released by Pakistan foreign office condemning Pakistan being dragged into Indias election and stated that Indians must learn to fight the elections on their own.

"Yes, I wish to tell Pakistan that Indians are capable of contesting Indias democracy on their own as they do... Indias Prime Minister is a popularly elected PM and so is the BJP," Prasad told reporters here.

India, he said, "completely abhors any outside interference in Indias electoral affairs."

The role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India is too well known in the entire world and Pakistan. "Please stop giving us lessons. We are proud of Indias democracy," he said.

"We are very productive of Indias democracy and totally condemn this unwarranted statement from Pakistan," he said.

Prasad said it was "curious" that Congress leader Anand Sharma had denied any meeting taking place at the residence of Aiyar.

"And in todays newspapers...It is very evident as to who attended the meeting including from Pakistan and even Manmohan Singh went there in the get together," he said. "Why a wrong statement was made by Anand Sharma completely denying that no such meeting took place."

"Now it is whose turn to apologise? But what is curious is that this happens and Pakistan comes out with an official statement. In many ways seeking to bail out Congress party. Is it too suspicious? Surely, the country will draw its own conclusion," he added. PTI SR ANZ ANU

--- ENDS ---
David Davis, Secretary of State for Exiting the EU appearing on the BBC One current affairs programme, The Andrew Marr Show

TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar has said he is delighted that British Minister David Davis has moved to clarify his remarks casting doubt on last weeks Brexit deal on the border

Im delighted to hear he has clarified his remarks this morning.

Im very happy with the clarification, Mr Varadkar told reporters this morning.

Britain intends to prevent a hard border in Ireland after leaving the European Union whatever the outcome of talks with the bloc, UK's Brexit minister said on Monday, saying comments that this was not legally enforceable were taken out of context.

Davis on Sunday said that a pledge on the Irish border agreed as part of a divorce settlement was "a statement of intent" rather than a legally binding move, but said the media had twisted his words.

"Of course it's legally enforceable, under the withdrawal agreement, but even if that didn't for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless, invisible border," Davis told LBC radio.

Davis caused concern for the Irish government with his comments on the BBC's Andrew Marr's Show yesterday, when he said of Friday's deal: "This was a statement of intent more than anything else. Much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing."

Further fears have been raised as it has been widely reported today the UK Prime Minister Theresa May is set to tell the House of Commons later that "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed".

The Irish government responded strongly to Davis' comments yesterday, stating the deal was "binding" and it would hold the UK "to account" on it.

The document on issues like the border was hammered out in order to allow the remaining EU27 states to approve Brexit talks shifting to a phase two trade negotiation at a summit this week.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar heralded Friday's deal meant to prevent the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic as "politically bullet-proof" and "cast iron".

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The Irish government's chief whip, Joe McHugh, branded Davis' comments as "bizarre".

He told RTE yesterday: "We will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union.

"My question to anybody within the British Government would be, why would there be an agreement, a set of principled agreements, in order to get to phase two, if they weren't going to be held up? That just sounds bizarre to me.

"This, as far as we're concerned, is a binding agreement, an agreement in principle."

Mr McHugh said the Irish government would not "back away" from the Brexit principles if it comes under pressure from the rest of the EU during trade talks with the UK.

Meanwhile, it is expected that UK Prime Minister Theresa May is set to use an address to the House of Commons today to stress that while a new air of optimism on a final settlement has emerged, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

May is expected to tell the Commons: "This is not about a hard or a soft Brexit.

"The arrangements we have agreed to reach the second phase of the talks are entirely consistent with the principles and objectives that I set out in my speeches in Florence and at Lancaster House.

"I know that some doubted we would reach this stage.

"Of course, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

"But there is, I believe, a new sense of optimism now in the talks and I fully hope and expect that we will confirm the arrangements I have set out today in the European Council later this week.

"In doing so we can move on to building the bold new economic and security relationships that can underpin the new deep and special partnership we all want to see.

"A partnership between the European Union and a sovereign United Kingdom that has taken control of its borders, money and laws once again."

Former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith said that while Mrs May's agreement was "not ideal" it was an improvement in the state of the negotiations.

However he said the deal was a draft that "simply gets us through the first round".

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the leading Brexiteer said: "Most importantly, though, all this can be torn up tomorrow, because 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed'.

"This is in effect an indicative text, whose purpose is to get us to the next phase of discussions."
Forensic officers at the scene of a house fire on Jackson Street in Worsley, Greater Manchester, as a murder inquiry has been launched after three children died following the fire Photo: Peter Byrne/PA Wire

Detectives have urged a murder suspect to hand himself in following the deaths of three children from a house fire.

Police did not name the individual they want to trace in connection with the blaze in Worsley, Greater Manchester, but said: "He knows who he is and he should give himself up."

Emergency services were called to the mid-terraced house in Jackson Street just before 5am on Monday.

A 14-year-old girl, named locally as Demi Pearson, was pronounced dead at the scene while an eight-year-old boy and seven-year-old girl later died in hospital.

The children's 35-year-old mother, also named locally as Michelle Pearson, is in a serious condition in hospital while a fourth sibling, a three-year-old girl, is critically ill.

Two 16-year-old boys, who were also in the house, managed to free themselves before fire crews arrived.

Chief Superintendent Wayne Miller, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "The deaths of these three children is heart-breaking. Our thoughts are with their loved ones and the little girl and her mum who are in hospital fighting for their lives.

"We currently have specially trained officers with the family to help them through this devastating time.

"We have launched a murder investigation and have a suspect in mind who we are urgently seeking in relation to this attack. All I will say is - he knows who he is and he should give himself up.

"This is a fast-moving live investigation and we have a major investigation team with scores of dedicated detectives working tirelessly.

"I want to describe what this incident is. It's the murder, using fire, of three children and we have a three-year-old girl fighting for her life who is seriously ill.

"This will devastate this family forever and words cannot describe what they are going through. We need the public's help to find the answers the family deserve.

"We want to make arrests as soon as possible and we appeal to local people to help us in this."

Police confirmed there were "earlier incidents" at the address and said it had made a self-referral to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

A large police presence remained at the scene throughout the day as both ends of Jackson Street were cordoned off, with one end blocked by large steel barriers.

Tearful locals stood at the end of the cordons as they consoled each other with hugs and embraces.

One woman, who did not wish to be named, said she knew the mother of the family, naming her as Michelle Pearson.

She said: "I have known Michelle for years. The family have lived here for a long time. We are all just in shock.

"There has been trouble round here before but it's more wannabe gangsters, teenage stuff."
Four people were injured in an explosion in New York

Emergency services outside 42 St-Port Authority Subway Station in New York City (AP)

A crude pipe bomb strapped to a man inspired by the Islamic State group went off on Monday in a crowded subway corridor near Times Square, injuring the man, slightly wounding three others and disrupting the rush-hour commute for hundreds of thousands of New York workers.

Surveillance cameras captured the man walking casually through the crowded passageway when the bomb suddenly went off at 7:20 a.m. amid plume of white smoke, which cleared to show the man sprawled on the ground and commuters fleeing in terror.

Investigators said it was not clear if the bomb was set off intentionally or went off prematurely.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack," New York's mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters.

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."

The suspect, who was identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, was being treated at a hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen.

The others who were injured suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.

Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by the Islamic State group but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group.

The explosion, which happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, affecting subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.

Everything around Times Square was shut down, halting what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour.

Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and cable ties.

They were investigating how it was made.

A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff.

A police officer was holding the man's hands behind his back.

Another photo shown on cable channel NY1 showed the bearded suspect, wide-eyed, on a stretcher being loaded into an ambulance.

Elrana Peralta, a customer-service worker for Greyhound, said she works in the Port Authority terminal complex near where the blast happened but did not hear the explosion.

"All we could hear was the chaos," she said.

"We could hear people yelling, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!'"

John Miles, 28, from Vermont, was waiting for a bus to Massachusetts.

He did not hear the blast either, but saw police react.

"I didn't know what was going on. Officers were running around. I was freaking out," he said.

There was an announcement that people should take their bags and leave.

"They didn't incite panic. It was fairly orderly."

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.

Instead of commenting on the suspected terror attack, Mr Trump later sent a tweet at 9:17am criticising a Sunday story in The New York Times that said he watched cable news television for at least four hours a day.

The blast came just weeks after eight people died in New York when another man, also said to be inspired by the Islamic State, drove a rented vehicle onto a bike path near the World Trade Centre.

Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference following the attack that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.

"Let's go back to work," he said.

"We're not going to allow them to disrupt us."

AP
Donald Trump's policy change on the status of Jerusalem sparked the protests

The German government has condemned anti-Semitic incidents that took place during protests in recent days.

The demonstrations were called in response to President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and the announced move of the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city.

Mr Trump's decision has been widely condemned as undermining efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said on Monday that the burning of Israeli flags and anti-Semitic insults directed at Israel and Jews were "shameful".

Mr Seibert said Germany feels a close affinity to Israel and Jews around the world, and will therefore counter anti-Semitic incitement whenever it occurs.

Anti-Semitism was a core part of Nazi ideology that led to the killing of over six million Jews in the Holocaust.

AP
Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, a one-time US ally who was ousted by an American invasion in 1989, died late on Monday at the age of 83.

Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela wrote in his Twitter account that "the death of Manuel A Noriega closes a chapter in our history".

Mr Varela added: "His daughters and his relatives deserve to mourn in peace."

Noriega ruled with an iron fist, ordering the deaths of those who opposed him and maintaining a murky, close and conflictive relationship with the United States.

After his downfall, Noriega served a 17-year drug sentence in the US, then was sent to face charges in France. He spent all but the last few months of his final years in a Panamanian prison for murder of political opponents during his 1983-89 regime.

He accused Washington of a conspiracy to keep him behind bars and tied his legal troubles to his refusal to co-operate with a US plan aimed at toppling Nicaragua's leftist Sandinista government in the 1980s.

Ezra Angel, a lawyer for Noriega, said yesterday there was no official word on what caused his death.

In recent years Noriega suffered various ailments including high blood pressure and bronchitis. In 2016, doctors detected the rapid growth of a benign brain tumour that had first been spotted four years earlier, and in January a court granted him house arrest to prepare for surgery on the tumour. He is survived by his wife Felicidad and daughters Lorena, Thays and Sandra.

Following Noriega's ousting Panama underwent huge changes, taking over the Panama Canal from US control in 1999, vastly expanding the waterway and enjoying a boom in tourism and real estate.

Today the Central American nation has little in common with the destroyed neighbourhoods where Noriega hid during the 1989 invasion, before being famously smoked out of his refuge at the Vatican Embassy by incessant, loud rock music blared by US troops.

Known as "Pineapple Face" for his pockmarked complexion, Noriega was born to a poor family in Panama City on February 11, 1934, and was raised by foster parents. He joined Panama's defence forces in 1962 and steadily rose through the ranks, mainly through loyalty to General Omar Torrijos, who became Panama's de facto leader after a 1968 coup.

As Torrijos's intelligence chief, Noriega monitored political opponents and developed close ties with US intelligence agencies guarding against possible threats to the canal. Two years after Torrijos died in a mysterious plane crash in 1981, Noriega became the head of the armed forces and Panama's de facto ruler. Noriega was considered a valued CIA asset and was paid millions of dollars for assistance to the US throughout Latin America, including acting as a liaison to Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Washington ultimately soured on him, especially after a top political opponent was killed in 1985 and Noriega appeared to join forces with Latin American drug traffickers. Foes in the Panamanian military attempted several coups but failed, and their leaders were executed.

The beginning of his downfall came in 1988 when federal grand juries in the Florida cities of Miami and Tampa indicted Noriega on drug-trafficking charges.

US president George Bush ordered the invasion in December 1989, and Noriega was captured and taken to Miami. During the operation, 23 US military personnel died and 320 were wounded, and the Pentagon estimated 200 Panamanian civilians and 314 soldiers were killed.
Stock picture of a B52, the plane involved in the incident

A US federal appeals court has been asked to allow a class-action lawsuit against the Veterans Affairs Department by veterans who say they became ill from radiation exposure after responding to a 1966 accident involving US hydrogen bombs in Spain.

Yale Law School students in Connecticut filed the request on Monday with the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims on behalf of veterans who sought disability benefits from the VA but were denied.

The students represent Air Force veteran Victor Skaar, of Nixa, Missouri, and want to expand the lawsuit to include other veterans.

Radioactive plutonium was released near Palomares, Spain, in January 1966, after a US B-52 bomber and refuelling plane crashed.

Four hydrogen bombs crashed, but there were no nuclear explosions.

AP
By India Today Web Desk: Shehzad Poonawalla, the former Maharashtra Congress secretary who got into a ugly spat with his own brother over Rahul Gandhi's elevation as president, today sharpened his knives and polished his spears as he looked to continue being a hurdle in the Gandhi scion's rise within the Grand Old Party.

Vowing to approach the courts to block Rahul's "election" as Congress president, Shehzad said it was a "black day" for Congress today as "Rahul Gandhi is [being] officially announced as [the] Unelected, Illegal, Unconstitutional Crown Prince of my party!"

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Shehzad was talking about the Congress formally announcing that that 47-year-old Rahul Gandhi will take over as party president from his mother Sonia since his was the only valid application for the Grand Old Party's presidential poll.

The last date for withdrawing nominations for the poll ends today. With Rahul the only name in the fray, the party did not need to hold any election to the top post. And so, the party has declared that Rahul was elected the president of the Indian National Congress, though the exact moment of his taking over still remains unclear.

However, Shehzad, who had earlier claimed that he wanted to contest the Congress presidential poll, could prove to be a major headache for the party just days before the second and final phase of voting for the Gujarat Assembly election.

"We will unseat Aurangzeb from Akbar Road and from [Rahul's Lok Sabha constituency] Amethi-through court & people's court- Inshallah Inshallah," Shehzad tweeted, referring to a recent potshot PM Narendra Modi took at Rahul's elevation as president.

#BlackDayForCong will be declared as soon as Rahul Gandhi is officially announced as Unelected, Illegal, Unconstitutional Crown Prince of my party! We will unseat Aurangzeb from Akbar Road & from Amethi-through court & people's court- Inshallah Inshallah https://t.co/MjhTnUL0dw pic.twitter.com/2iZFyK2Fez- Shehzad Jai Hind (@Shehzad_Ind) December 11, 2017

The Prime Minister's comments were an extension of now-suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, talking about the Congress presidential poll process, asking if an election was held Jahangir succeeded Shah Jahan or when the latter gave way to Aurangzeb as the emperor.

This is not the first time Shehzad has spoken out against Rahul. He had a famous public spat with brother Tehseen, a known Congress sympathiser and the brother-in-law of Priyanka Gandhi's husband Robert Vadra, who "ended all relationship" with Shehzad in a sensational manner on Twitter.

The brother's fight erupted after Shehzad alleged that the Congress presidential poll was "rigged".

WATCH | Have proof that delegates were fixed, says Shehzad Poonawalla on Congress president election

--- ENDS ---

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Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu briefs the media next to European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini (unseen) at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visiting the European Union, praised U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as his country's capital on Monday and said he expected Europeans to follow suit.

Ahead of a meeting with EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Netanyahu said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by European governments, would contribute to peace in the Middle East.
A firefighter is dwarfed by the massive Thomas wildfire north of Los Angeles, near Ojai. Photo: Reuters

California's largest wildfire pushed toward wealthy coastal cities last night, prompting a new wave of evacuations amid gusty winds that have fuelled the fires for nearly a week.

Authorities ordered residents in parts of Carpinteria and Montecito to evacuate as the Thomas Fire edged closer to the city of Santa Barbara 160km northwest of LA.

The blaze, the worst of six major fires in southern California in the last week, has already blackened 60,000 hectares, consumed hundreds of structures and left nearly 90,000 homes and businesses in the area without power.

The combination of Santa Ana winds and rugged terrain in the mountains that run through Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have hampered firefighting efforts and officials said the Thomas Fire was only 15pc-contained yesterday.

The National Weather Service said winds of up to 90km per hour were expected last night.
The company behind OnTheMarket.com has announced plans to float the property portal on Londons AIM market in a bid to raise 50 million, but analysts have questioned its ability to challenge online rivals.

Funds raised for the estate agent-backed site  which was originally launched by Agents Mutual in 2015  will be used to lift its profile through broad marketing campaigns, as well as to expand group sales, customer relations, and tech development.

It underpins a company strategy aimed at attracting more estate agents and property advertisers as well as to grow traffic and engagement with property hunters.

The initial public offering (IPO) follows plans to abandon its mutual status, confirmed earlier this year, as well as the successful signing of long-term listing agreements with property service firms and estate agencies including Arun Estates, Chancellors Group and Hunters Property Group.

Those listing agreements will come into effect after OnTheMarkets IPO  though a date for the flotation has not been set.

Agents Mutual chief executive Ian Springett said: Our demutualisation received overwhelming support from members, and more recently we have signed new long-term listing agreements with a number of leading estate agencies and property services providers.

We are now well placed to list and raise new funds to challenge the two leading incumbent portals.

But George Salmon, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the task would not necessarily be easy.

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Backed by estate agents themselves, the launch of OnTheMarket in 2015 was meant to disrupt the duopoly of Rightmove and Zoopla. The group is now the UKs third biggest portal, but all this really means is that its first among the also-rans, he said.

The listing and resulting cash injection are expected to help the portal find another gear, he added, noting plans to ramp up advertising and raise brand awareness.

In a business thats all about generating the necessary scale, this seems a sensible strategy. However, theres a difference between doing the right thing and doing the right thing successfully.

The challenge of toppling Rightmove remains a significant one.

The UKs wider rental market is keeping a close on legislation that could ban letting fees for tenants, which could impact agency prospects across the country.

Plans for a letting fee ban were first announced by Chancellor Philip Hammond in his November 2016 Autumn Statement, and the Conservative manifesto for this years snap election promised to press ahead with the scheme.

However, the housing market  which has been softening in recent months  could be buoyed by a Government decision to abolish stamp duty for first-time buyers purchasing a property up to 300,000, with relief for those purchasing a property up to 500,000.

Commenting on OnTheMarkets IPO, Mr Springett added: We are excited about this new chapter in OnTheMarkets development, which will strengthen our market position, and benefit our agents, investors and consumers using our services.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has asked Congress to extend the martial law he declared in the country's south by one year to ensure the "total eradication" of pro-Islamic State group extremists.

He warned they plan more uprisings after an unsuccessful but disastrous siege of Marawi city.

Mr Duterte said the remaining militants still hope to establish a caliphate in the Philippines and Southeast Asia after government forces killed more than 900 fighters and quelled the five-month Marawi siege in October.

Left-wing and pro-democracy groups have protested Mr Duterte's imposition of martial law because of human rights concerns, but the Supreme Court has upheld its legality.

In a letter to the Senate and the House of Representatives, Mr Duterte said extending martial law in the southern Mindanao region through the end of 2018 would allow government forces to press offensives against other armed groups, including the Abu Sayyaf and communist guerrillas, who have intensified attacks.

Despite the killing of Isnilon Hapilon, long wanted by the United States and the Philippines, and other leaders of the Marawi attack, "the remnants of their groups have continued to rebuild their organization through the recruitment and training of new members and fighters to carry on the rebellion", Mr Duterte said in his letter, which was provided to reporters.

The Marawi violence displaced about half a million people and turned mosque-studded Marawi's central business and residential districts into a smouldering war zone.

The uprising that began on May 23 prompted Mr Duterte to declare martial law and reinforced fears that the Islamic State group was taking steps to gain a foothold in Asia and elsewhere as it faced battle setbacks in Syria and Iraq.

Some gunmen and commanders managed to escape during the fighting, the military said.

One of the militants who might replace Mr Hapilon, Esmail Abdulmalik, who uses the nom de guerre Abu Turaife, is thought to be planning bombings in the south, Mr Duterte said.

An IS-linked faction in another militant band, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Group, has intensified roadside bombings and attacks on troops.

Communist New People's Army guerrillas, meanwhile, have taken advantage of the military's preoccupation with Muslim extremists and increased their attacks on troops and businesses in the south, killing 41 government security personnel and destroying at least 2.2 billion pesos (43 million dollars) in property, Mr Duterte said.

The threats continue to make the south a "hotbed of rebellion," he said.

Mr Duterte has called off peace talks with the Maoist rebels to protest against their attacks and moved to designate them as terrorists under the law.

He has indicated, however, that he is still open to a resumption of talks if the communist insurgents stop their assaults.

"Let's give time for a cooling off with the Communist Party of the Philippines," Mr Duterte said in a speech last week.

AP
Messages sent in a WhatsApp group have surfaced lauding Shambulal Raigar, the accused in the horrific killing case, and warned that those who attempt 'love jihad' will be met with same fate.

By Dev Ankur Wadhawan: Several people had expressed disgust and horror at the brutal Rajsamand killing in which a man hacked another person and later burnt his body allegedly as revenge for 'love jihad'.

However, there are some who are reveling in the act and attempting to glorify the heinous crime.

Messages sent in a WhatsApp group have surfaced which attempt to laud Shambulal Raigar, the accused in the horrific killing case, and warned that those who attempt 'love jihad' will be met with same fate.

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Several BJP leaders are a part of the group in which such messages were sent.

The group admin, Prem Mali, is a local BJP worker. The group also has Kiran Maheshwai, senior BJP leader and minister in the Vasundhara Raje Government and BJP MP Hariom Singh Rathore as members.

One of the group members, Rakesh Ladda, demanding release of Shambulal, sought assistance of minimum Rs 500 from those who support Shambulal.

One of the messages reads, "Love Jihadiyon saavdhan jaag utha hai Shambu Laal Jai Shri Ram".

Another message reads that Sukhdev Singh will fight Shambulal's case.

"Swachh Rajsamand Swacch Bharat Group made by us has been made to take Government of India's cleanliness campaign to the people. We had included officials, alert journalists in it. The administration had shut down internet after the incident that had happened here. But some anti-social elements in this group went onto the internet (enabled) area and forwarded wrong message in this group. When I saw it, I felt that it was not right. I removed those members. None of the people's representatives commented in it", Prem Mali, WhatsApp group admin mentioned.

The group admin later removed those who had sent messages supporting Shambulal.

In the video of Shambulal Raigar that surfaced, it can be seen that initially the perpetrator hits the man killed with an agricultural equipment, then pours some inflammable liquid on his body and burns it. In the video, Raigar can be seen mentioning that those who indulge in 'love jihad' will be met with same fate.

--- ENDS ---
Slobodan Praljak (centre) at the Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands (AP)

Hundreds of people, including two government ministers, attended a commemoration ceremony to honour a Croatian general who died after apparently taking poison at a United Nations tribunal that confirmed his war crimes conviction.

Bused in from other Croatian towns and from Bosnia, admirers of Slobodan Praljak filled the main concert hall in Zagreb, the capital.

The gathering, organised by a Croatian generals' association, displayed the resurging nationalism in the European Union's newest member state.

Miroslav Tudjman, the son of Croatia's late president Franjo Tudjman, denounced the tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands.

Mr Tudjman described Praljak as a "big man no one can match".

"Slobodan Praljak wouldn't live as a war criminal for a minute because he wasn't one," Mr Tudjman told a clapping crowd.

"His conviction is an insult for justice."

Praljak gulped what he said was poison after judges at the Yugoslav war crimes court confirmed his 20-year sentence in an appeals hearing last month.

Despite medical attention, he died soon after.

Many in Croatia consider Praljak a hero despite his conviction for war crimes, including murder, persecution and inhumane treatment, against Muslims in Bosnia during the 1992-95 war.

For days, Praljak's photo was on display at Zagreb's main square where people lit candles.

Dutch authorities and the court have opened investigations into how Praljak, who had been in custody, obtained the substance.

Croatian officials have criticised the ruling against Praljak and five other former Bosnian Croat officials because it linked Croatia's wartime leadership with Bosnian Croat efforts to carve out a mini-state in Bosnia.

Mr Tudjman, whose late father was named in the verdict as having been involved in the plot, described the ruling as "unjust" and "staged" as a result of anti-Croat bias by the Hague court.

Croatia has faced criticism internationally and from liberals at home for its heated reaction to The Hague ruling and Praljak's death, amid the surge in right-wing sentiments, including death threats against some liberal politicians.

Praljak was reportedly cremated last week in a private ceremony.

AP
The Republican Palace that was damaged by Saudi-led airstrikes lies in ruins, in Sanaa, Yemen (AP)

Yemen's Shiite rebels have killed at least 20 people and detained dozens across the country's north since killing their top ally, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, according to reports.

The rebels, known as Houthis, appear to be escalating their crackdown on any possible sign of rebellion among their one-time allies from Mr Saleh's party, the General People's Congress.

They are also shutting down the internet and tightening an already existing media blackout.

According to Saba, the official news agency now under control of the internationally-recognised government, the Houthis also blew up 20 houses in the northern province of Hajja and replaced the province's governor who was a onetime Saleh associate.

The agency reported on Monday that the Houthis also arrested 49 people in Mahwet, another northern province in Yemen.

AP
New Delhi, Dec 11 (IBNS): Tata Motors on Monday announced that the Company would be increasing prices of its entire passenger vehicles range by up to INR. 25,000, starting January 2018.

This increase in price is due to rising input costs, said the company in a statement.

According to Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicle Business, Tata Motors, The changing market conditions, rising input costs and various external economic factors have compelled us to consider the price increase. We are optimistic on maintaining our growth trajectory in the coming year on the back of our robust product portfolio like TIAGO, HEXA, TIGOR and the recently launched NEXON.

The introductory prices of the recently launched lifestyle compact SUV, NEXON, which comes with Level NEX Design, Performance and Technology features, will be ending by 31st December and this entire range will also witness a price hike from January 2018 by upto INR. 25,000.
While the year- to- year agriculture GVA (Gross Value Addition) growth for the July-September quarter of 2017-18 dropped to 1.7 per cent from 4.1 per cent , measured on basic prices, the fall looks quite sharp at current prices from 10 per cent to 3.7 per cent . It is attributed to a decline in foodgrains production by 2.8 per cent in second quarter of the current fiscal from a handsome growth of 10.7 per cent in the similar period of 2016-17.



Surely, shortfall in the second leg of the Monsoon seems to have its impact on the Khariff production. Besides, distress in prices of several agri commodities would have also played a role in lower realizations as seen in the growth deceleration on the current prices, the ASSOCHAM said.



The chamber Secretary General D S Rawat said since more than half of the GVA in the farm sector is contributed by livestock, fishery and forestry, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should particularly focus on these segments of the economy along with a major thrust on agriculture infrastructure like irrigation.



With bulk of our population employed in the rural landscape, Indias consumption led growth and investment cannot be realised unless the entire farm sector is pulled out of stress. Major part of India Inc is heavily dependent on rural demand which would remain subdued if immediate steps are not taken in the short term and medium term. In the near term, the farmers must be extended all help in the ongoing Rabi season and it must be ensured that adequate protection is given to them if market distortions creep in to their disadvantage. Timing is very important in agriculture and steps like import duty or export measures must be initiated well in time so that the benefits reach the farmers and are not pocketed by the intermediaries.



The rural oriented companies in fertilizer, seeds, farm equipment, two-wheelers, FMCG, food processing would be vulnerable if the agriculture sector does not perform as well as other sectors.



The argument that the lower growth in agriculture has come about on a high base of the previous year should not be a matter of consolation. If that situation is allowed, this show how there are serious issues with our farm productivity, the chamber said.
Kolkata, Dec 11 (IBNS): Looking for some ethnic products for Christmas gifting? Want to accessorise your year-end party dress? Or want to make a style statement as you travel abroad?

Then rush to the Christmas Bazaar at Kamala, the Kolkata-based retail outlet of Crafts Council of India.

The Bazaar, on till December 16.

Kamala this year has showcased traditional handcrafted items not just for women but for men too.

Men can choose from a wide range of mufflers (woollen scarves) and jackets.



For shawl lovers, there is an attractive range of shawls from Kullu, Kashmir, and Kumaon (the Kilmora brand).

There are also light stoles and wraps.



For the discerning buyers, there are cushion covers, bolsters, durries, bed linens, copper jewelleries, stationery items, cloth bags and sling bags, sourced from all over the country.



This year we have an entire range of fun toys for children like crossword puzzles, interesting wooden and bell chimes, wrought iron cycles, cars, motor bikes. We also have very pretty wooden hand mirrors from Pilkhuwa. Also our Gond tribal art mugs and papier mache masks from Odisha of mythological characters, Kalamkari trays, brass candle holders, wooden lorry piggy banks that make for quick picks as Christmas gifts , said Kasturi Gupta Menon, Honorary President of Crafts Council of India.



The exhibition is open from 10:00 a.m.  7 p.m., Sunday open.
New York, Dec 11 (IBNS): Popular search engine Google on Monday decorated its homepage with a doodle to mark German physicist and mathematician Max Born's 135th birth anniversary.

"Today's Doodle celebrates the 135th birthday of Max Born, German physicist and mathematician who was awarded the Nobel Prize for his contribution to the field of quantum mechanics," read the Google website as it spoke on the doodle.

An outstanding student, Born earned his Ph.D. at Gottingen University where he later became a professor of theoretical physics, collaborating with and mentoring some of the most famous scientists of the time.

In 1933 he was forced to flee Germany for England, where he served as the Tait Professor of Natural Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh for nearly two decades until his retirement in 1954 when he returned home to Gottingen.

Born was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1954 for the Born Rule  a quantum theory that uses mathematical probability to predict the location of wave particles in a quantum system.
Mumbai, Dec 11 (IBNS): A 39-year old Mumbai businessman was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting 17-year old Bollywood actor Zaira Wasim aboard an Air Vistara flight, media reports said.

The businessman has been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and other sections, reports said.

Zaira has alleged that she was molested on the flight by a middle-aged man sitting right behind her while travelling from Delhi to Mumbai.

The actress shared this in an Instagram live chat.

She alleged that she got no help from the flight crew even on complaining.

I just landed, the whole irony of this that I yelled and this is not done this is not how you should be treated or made to feel this is terrible. This is how they will take care of girls? No one will help us if we dont decide to help ourselves and that is the worst thing, she said during the live chat.

Zaira also shared an image of the mans foot, which was placed on her arm-rest.

In a series of texts, Zaira wrote: It was all chill till I felt somebody brushing against my back while I was half asleep. I ignored it the first time. Blamed the turbulence for it. Until I woke me up to this PLEASANT SIGHT of his Beautiful foot rubbing my back and neck. Guess he couldnt sit like a civilised human being and placed his foot on my armrest while hes fully PHELAOED his body on his seat.

"So, I was in a flight travelling from Delhi to Mumbai today and right behind me one middle-aged man who made my 2-hour journey miserable. I tried to record it on phone to understand it better because the cabin lights were dimmed, I failed to get it," she continued.

"The lights were dimmed, so it was even worse. It continued for another 5-10 minutes and then I was sure of it. He kept nudging my shoulder and continued to move his foot up and down my back and neck, she wrote.

Air Vistara issued a series of statements later stating that they are looking into the incident.

We @airvistara have seen the reports regarding @ZairaWasimmm experience with another customer on board our flight last night. We are carrying out detailed investigation and will support Zaira in every way required. We have zero tolerance for such behaviour, the airlines tweeted.
Mirzapur, Dec 11 (IBNS): Eight people have been arrested for harassing a group of French tourists who were on their visit to a waterfall in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday evening, media reports said.

A group of six French tourists were travelling along with their Indian friends when a few men passed lewd comments, which resulted in a fight.

The men left only to return in a large group and both the groups got engaged in another round of fight.

One tourist was injured, according to reports.

Senior police officer Ashish Tiwari told NDTV: "A boy called Vivek gathered some more boys and they assaulted the group. One of the men sustained head injuries. In the FIR, there is no mention that the foreign tourists were assaulted."

"We have a video of one of the foreign tourists who says they were not hit but got scratches when they tried to stop the attackers," he added.

In a similar incident in late October, a Swiss couple, Quentin Jeremy Clerc and Marie Droz, were attacked when a group of young men wanted to take selfies with the woman forcibly in Fatehpur Sikri of Agra, Uttar Pradesh.

The victims were chased away by a few men and later were attacked with stones.
Srinagar, Dec 11 (IBNS): Award winning French television journalist has been arrested in Srinagar by police for allegedly violating visa norms.

According to a senior police officer, Comiti Paul Edward was arrested from Kothi Bagh area of Srinagar on Sunday evening for violation of visa norms.

"He was having passport number 17 CH 69445 and Indian visa type business number 900 WdC 614 valid up to 22 December 2018," the officer said.

The officer said according to a complaint, the French journalist "had violated visa norms and was found preparing documentary on pellet victims and interviewing separatists."

"In this regard, a case under FIR number 87 / 2017 under section 14 B of Passport Act was registered in Police Station Khotibagh.

The Act, police said, envisages seizure of passport or travel documents from any person against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed any offense punishable under section 12.

Comiti won an award in 2009 in Bayeux for reporting on French soldiers being ambushed in Afghanistan.

Police officials said that Comiti arrived in Kashmir on a business visa around 10 days ago.

The accused has been arrested and the French Embassy informed about it, the police officer added.



(Reporting by Saleem Qadri)
New Delhi, Dec 11 (IBNS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation during his Gujarat poll campaign on Sunday -- that Pakistan was trying to meddle in Gujarat elections -- has given rise to a lot of debate, according to media reports on Monday.

PM Modi raised the issue of the dinner thrown by Mani Shankar Aiyar and suggested that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in Gujarat, where the party has been in power for 22 years, media reported.

Mani Shankar Aiyar, now suspended by his party for his 'neech aadmi' remark, hosted a dinner last week for former Pakistan Foreign Affairs Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri's visit, where former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Vice President Hamid Ansari, Pakistan High Commissioner, former foreign minister K Natwar Singh, former Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, former diplomats Salman Haider, Satinder Lambah, TCA Raghavan, Sharat Sabharwal, Chinmaya Gharekhan and senior journalists including Prem Shankar Jha and Rahul Khushwant Singh were among the invitees present.

Chinmaya Gharekhan told NDTV, "It was entirely devoted to talking about relations between India and Pakistan. Inevitably, cross-border terrorism came up and Kashmir came up but no one, I am 100 per cent sure, not a single person talked about either Gujarat elections or the domestic situation in India or for that matter, the domestic situation in Pakistan."

Meanwhile in a tweet on Monday, Pakistan's spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohammad Faisal, said, "India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible."

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

The Congress has demanded an apology for the charge, media reported.

Rahul Gandhi, commenting on the PM's allegations, said that Prime Minister Modi needs to talk about Gujarat and not Pakistan. He also said that the PM talks about the Congress in half of his speeches, media reports said.

Veteran Congress leader P Chidambaram tweeted, "Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?"

Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) December 11, 2017

However, India's Law Minister, on Monday not only condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections but also said that that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party, according to media reports.
The team of Dholpur police recovered 2,500 cartons of liquor from two trucks which were on their way to Gujarat via national highway 3.

The liquor mafia was trying to sneak the liquor into Gujarat through Dholpur.

By Dev Ankur Wadhawan: Rajasthan's Dholpur Police, during a raid late on Sunday night, confiscated liquor worth Rs 2 crore from national highway 3. The confiscated liquor was being smuggled to Gujarat through Dholpur and was meant to be distributed in the poll-bound state.

Gujarat is set to witness the second phase of Assembly election on December 14.

The team of Dholpur police recovered 2,500 cartons of liquor from two trucks which were on their way to Gujarat via national highway 3.

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According to the labels, the liquor is made in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab. The cartons were filled with liquor of different brands.

According to reports, the liquor mafia was trying to sneak the liquor into Gujarat through Dholpur as strict check has been put in place on the other routes leading to the state including Udaipur and Dungarpur.

The seizure is considered one of the biggest by Dholpur police till date.

"Late in the night, we received a tip-off about these liquor-laden trucks arriving from Uttar Pradesh," said Dholpur superintendent of police Rajesh Singh.

"We conducted checks at NH 3 around 3-3.30 today morning. Both the trucks with huge quantity of liquor were seized within a span of 15-20 minutes. One of the drivers has been taken into custody, while the other driver managed to flee leaving the truck behind. We are on the lookout for him," Singh added.

During interrogation, the arrested driver revealed that due to strict checking in Udaipur and Sirohi, the liquor mafia wanted used the Dholpur route to transport liquor to Gujarat.

ALSO WATCH | India Today Expose: How parties are luring voters with alcohol coupons in Punjab

--- ENDS ---
Palanpur, Dec 11 (IBNS): Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his recent comment on Pakistan and said he should speak more about Gujarat elections and the state's development than about other nations.

Addressing an election rally, Gandhi said: "He keeps speaking about China, Pakistan and Japan. I feel that this is the election of Gujarat state and he should speak about this state and its development too."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation during his Gujarat poll campaign on Sunday -- that Pakistan was trying to meddle in Gujarat elections -- has given rise to a lot of debate, according to media reports on Monday.

PM Modi raised the issue of the dinner thrown by Mani Shankar Aiyar and suggested that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in Gujarat, where the party has been in power for 22 years, media reported.

Mani Shankar Aiyar, now suspended by his party for his 'neech aadmi' remark, hosted a dinner last week for former Pakistan Foreign Affairs Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri's visit, where former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Vice President Hamid Ansari, Pakistan High Commissioner, former foreign minister K Natwar Singh, former Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, former diplomats Salman Haider, Satinder Lambah, TCA Raghavan, Sharat Sabharwal, Chinmaya Gharekhan and senior journalists including Prem Shankar Jha and Rahul Khushwant Singh were among the invitees present.

Chinmaya Gharekhan told NDTV, "It was entirely devoted to talking about relations between India and Pakistan. Inevitably, cross-border terrorism came up and Kashmir came up but no one, I am 100 per cent sure, not a single person talked about either Gujarat elections or the domestic situation in India or for that matter, the domestic situation in Pakistan."

Meanwhile in a tweet on Monday, Pakistan's spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohammad Faisal, said, "India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible."

The Congress has demanded an apology for the charge, media reported.

Rahul Gandhi, commenting on the PM's allegations, said that Prime Minister Modi needs to talk about Gujarat and not Pakistan. He also said that the PM talks about the Congress in half of his speeches, media reports said.

Veteran Congress leader P Chidambaram tweeted, "Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?"

However, India's Law Minister, on Monday not only condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections but also said that that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party, according to media reports.

Image: Congress Twitter page
New Delhi, Dec 11 (IBNS): Economic development, regional issues and ways to fight terrorism were discussed with the foreign ministers of China and Russia, said External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj after the conclusion of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meeting, on Monday, in New Delhi, according to media reports.

Talking to the media at the conclusion of the meeting, Swaraj said, "I have invited Russia and China to be part of India's economic growth."

"Terrorism is affecting growth across the globe; India favours a policy to deal with growing terrorism," said Sushma Swaraj.

The Minister said, "I with Foreign Minister of China agreed that there is need to increase trust between the two countries."

Media quoted China's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Wang Yi, as saying, "China committed to work with other countries for an inclusive world,"

Image: MEAIndia


New Delhi, Dec 11 (IBNS): Ex-Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday attacked current PM Narendra Modi and accused him of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a bid to win the Gujarat Assembly polls.

He asked Modi to 'apologise' to the nation.

In a statement released by the ex-PM, he has denied all allegations made by Modi that he and others were invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats and discussed the Gujarat election.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi," Singh said in his statement.

Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Singh said.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his recent comment on Pakistan and said he should speak more about Gujarat elections and the state's development than about other nations.

Addressing an election rally, Gandhi said: "He keeps speaking about China, Pakistan and Japan. I feel that this is the election of Gujarat state and he should speak about this state and its development too."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation during his Gujarat poll campaign on Sunday -- that Pakistan was trying to meddle in Gujarat elections -- has given rise to a lot of debate, according to media reports on Monday.

PM Modi raised the issue of the dinner thrown by Mani Shankar Aiyar and suggested that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in Gujarat, where the party has been in power for 22 years, media reported.

Mani Shankar Aiyar, now suspended by his party for his 'neech aadmi' remark, hosted a dinner last week for former Pakistan Foreign Affairs Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri's visit, where former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Vice President Hamid Ansari, Pakistan High Commissioner, former foreign minister K Natwar Singh, former Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, former diplomats Salman Haider, Satinder Lambah, TCA Raghavan, Sharat Sabharwal, Chinmaya Gharekhan and senior journalists including Prem Shankar Jha and Rahul Khushwant Singh were among the invitees present.

Chinmaya Gharekhan told NDTV, "It was entirely devoted to talking about relations between India and Pakistan. Inevitably, cross-border terrorism came up and Kashmir came up but no one, I am 100 per cent sure, not a single person talked about either Gujarat elections or the domestic situation in India or for that matter, the domestic situation in Pakistan."

Meanwhile in a tweet on Monday, Pakistan's spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohammad Faisal, said, "India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible."

The Congress has demanded an apology for the charge, media reported.

Rahul Gandhi, commenting on the PM's allegations, said that Prime Minister Modi needs to talk about Gujarat and not Pakistan. He also said that the PM talks about the Congress in half of his speeches, media reports said.

Veteran Congress leader P Chidambaram tweeted, "Is winning an election so important that such allegations can be made against a former Prime Minister and a former Vice President?"

However, India's Law Minister, on Monday not only condemned the "unwarranted" statement by Pakistan on Gujarat elections but also said that that it was aimed at bailing out Congress party, according to media reports.
New Delhi, Dec 11 (IBNS): Actor-turned Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Shatrughan Sinha took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing the latter for communalising the atmosphere by bringing Pakistan in the campaign for the Gujarat poll.

Sinha's comment came days after Modi accused the Congress for conspiring with Pakistan to stop BJP from coming to power in Gujarat.

Lashing out at Modi, Sinha tweeted: "Hon'ble Sir! Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!."

Hon'ble Sir!

Just to win elections anyhow, and that too at the fag end of the process, is it a must to come up with & endorse new, unsubstantiated & unbelievable stories everyday against political opponents? Now linking them to Pak High Commissioner & Generals?! Incredible!.1>2  Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

In a follow up tweet, Sinha said: "Sir! Instead of new twists & turns, stories & cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Lets stop communalising the atmosphere & go back to healthy politics & healthy elections. Jai Hind!"

Sir! Instead of new twists & turns, stories & cover ups, let's go straight to the promises that we made, regarding housing, development, employment of youth, health, "Vikas model". Lets stop communalising the atmosphere & go back to healthy politics & healthy elections. Jai Hind!  Shatrughan Sinha (@ShatruganSinha) December 11, 2017

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's allegation during his Gujarat poll campaign on Sunday -- that Pakistan was trying to meddle in Gujarat elections -- has given rise to a lot of debate.

Modi raised the issue of the dinner thrown by Mani Shankar Aiyar and suggested that the Congress was conspiring with Pakistani leaders to prevent the BJP from winning the election in Gujarat, where the party has been in power for 22 years.

Ex-Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday attacked current PM Narendra Modi and accused him of spreading "falsehood and canards" in a bid to win the Gujarat Assembly polls.

He asked Modi to 'apologise' to the nation.

In a statement released by the ex-PM, he has denied all allegations made by Modi that he and others were invited to a dinner at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence with Pakistani diplomats and discussed the Gujarat election.

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi," Singh said in his statement.

Sadly and regrettably, Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every Constitutional office including that of a former Prime Minister and Army Chief," Singh said.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his recent comment on Pakistan and said he should speak more about Gujarat elections and the state's development than about other nations.

Addressing an election rally, Gandhi said: "He keeps speaking about China, Pakistan and Japan. I feel that this is the election of Gujarat state and he should speak about this state and its development too."
Srinagar, Dec 11 (IBNS): In a deadly attack, unknown gunmen resorted to indiscriminate firing on a Jammu Kashmir Bank cash van killing two security guards and injuring one in South Kashmirs Shopian district.

Reports said that the bank van had gone to Kral Chek from Shopian to lift cash from the bank branch there and when it left the place, unidentified gunmen appeared on the spot and fired indiscriminately on the vehicle.

The impact of firing was such that driver lost its control on the van and it turned turtle. Three security guards were wounded in the attack who were immediately taken to District Hospital Shopian, said an official.

He said doctors referred all the wounded to Pulwama hospital where two among the three guards succumbed to their injuries.

Medical Superintendent of Pulwama hospital Dr Abdul Rasheed Parra identified the slain guards as Bilal Ahmed of Tamhalhal Pulwama and Tariq Ahmed from Khanabal Anantnag.

Shortly, after the attack, government forces cordoned off the area and a manhunt was launched to nab the assailants.

Meanwhile, J&K Bank Chairman and CEO Parvez Ahmed expressed shock over these killings.

He said, It is very painful news and we at J&K Bank are shocked over the killings of security personnel namely Mushtaq Ahmad and Tariq Ahmad by the unidentified gunmen while guarding the banks cash delivery vehicle. I express my heartfelt condolences and all our sympathies are with the bereaved families. I also wish speedy recovery to the three injured officials of the bank including security guard.

Let me add here that these innocent guards were there only to protect the peoples money and such gruesome incidents create hardships for the general public and hinder us from serving the people of these areas well," he said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman assured the bereaved families of appropriate support from the bank.

Human life is invaluable and its loss can in no way be compensated. However, the affected families need to be sufficiently supported financially and emotionally as they have lost

bread earners, said he.



(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri)
Caracas, Dec 11 (IBNS): Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has barred opposition parties from taking part in Presidential polls, scheduled for 2018.

The President took the decision on Sunday, after three opposition parties, Popular Will, Democratic Action and Justice First, boycotted the mayoral elections.

The parties cited bias and foul play while quitting the polls.

However, Maduro, who has been accused of keeping a dictator-like approach, took the opportunity to announce, "A party that has not participated today and has called for the boycott of the elections can't participate anymore."

According to experts, Maduro's Socialist Party is expected to win the mayoral polls.

Maduro, who began as a popular leader, has seen a decline in popularity with Venezuela facing an economic crisis.

Commentators have blamed Maduro's ambitions and his government's mismanagement for the erosion of country's wealth.

Venezuelans too have been polarised in the recent past, with one half supporting him and the other wanting the Socialist Party to end their 18-year-long rule.

Image: Website grab from BBC
Berlin, Dec 11 (IBNS): Sounding alert, German spy agency BfV has stated that China is snooping on the former's internal matters using social networking site LinkedIn, reports said.

BfV chief Hans-Georg Maassen said that fake accounts created by Chinese officials are trying to subvert top-level German politics.



"This is a broad-based attempt to infiltrate in particular parliaments, ministries and government agencies," he was quoted in the media as saying.

According to him, these fake accounts are trapping high-ranking German politicians into unwittingly selling them information about the country.

China, however hasn't responded to the allegations.

In the past, Beijing had denied any such foul play.


Late Thursday, a MONUSCO (the UN Stabilization Mission in the DRC) Company Operating Base at Semuliki in Beni territory, North Kivu, was attacked by suspected Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) elements, resulting in a protracted fighting between the suspected armed group elements and MONUSCO and Armed Forces of the DRC, known by the French acronym, FARDC.



According to the UN Operations and Crisis Centre (UNOCC), MONUSCO advised on Sunday that 14 Tanzanian peacekeepers were killed, 44 others were wounded and one peacekeeper remains missing. Earlier reports of 15 peacekeepers killed reflected uncertainty in accounting for personnel. Similarly, of three soldiers who were initially reported missing, two have since returned and only one peacekeeper remains missing.



These deliberate attacks against UN peacekeepers are unacceptable and constitute a war crime said Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, adding: I condemn this attack unequivocally.



Further, calling on the DRC authorities to investigate the incident and swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice, the UN chief stressed: There must be no impunity for such assaults, here or anywhere else.



In his remarks, he also said that the attack is another indication of the challenges faced by UN peacekeeping operations around the world and acknowledged the sacrifices made by troop contributing countries in the service of global peace.



These brave women and men are putting their lives on the line every day across the world to serve peace and to protect civilians, he noted, offering condolences to the families and loved ones of those killed and a speedy recovery to those injured.



All of the peacekeeping troops killed in the brutal attack which reportedly lasted some three hours were from Tanzania. In addition, three members of the contingent are reported to be missing in action.



According to UNOCC Director Ian Sinclair, initial figures indicate that 53 peacekeepers been injured, of whom three critically, but the numbers could rise.



Members of the FARDC have also been killed and injured in the attack but numbers are yet to be confirmed, Sinclair told reporters at a news briefing at the UN Headquarters, in New York.



Our reinforcements have arrived on the scene and a search is ongoing for the missing soldiers, he said, noted that the wounded have been evacuated from the area, among whom some have been further evacuated to more advanced medical facilities in Goma, DRC.



Further medical evacuation is possible for seriously injured, he added.



Also Friday, in a strongly worded statement, the UN Security Council condemned the attack.



There can be no impunity for such acts, stressed the 15-member Council, calling upon the Government of the DRC to ensure that the perpetrators of such attacks are swiftly brought to justice.



In the statement, the Security Council also reiterated their full support to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the DRC and to MONUSCO to fully implement their mandate.



The volatile North Kivu region, located in eastern DRC, has witnessed a number of attacks on UN peacekeeping forces. In October, two UN 'blue helmets' were killed and another 18 were injured their base was attacked by the ADF armed group.



Photo MONUSCO/Anne Herrmann







Source: www.justearthnews.com
















New York, Dec 11 (IBNS): At least four people were hurt as explosion rocked New York's Port Authority on Monday, police said.

The venue is one of the busiest commuter hubs in midtown Manhattan area of the city.

New York City Fire Department tweeted: "Update: A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority. All injuries are non-life-threatening."

One person has been taken into custody so far.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted to inform that US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the incident.

New York Police Department tweeted: "Update regarding explosion at 42nd St and 8th Ave, in subway: One male suspect is in custody. No injuries other than suspect at this time. Avoid the area. Subways bypassing #PortAuthority and Times Square Stations. Info is preliminary."



Image: FDNY Twitter page


St. John's, Dec 11 (IBNS): A St. John's woman, Aden Savoie, accused the court for caring her boyfriend, who had abused her, than caring the woman's future, media reports said.

The 20-year old accused pleaded not guilty for an incident which occurred with Savoie in April.

Illustrating the incident, Savoie told CBC News: "My boyfriend at the time was abusing prescription drugs."

"I called him upstairs to just hang out with me. He was in a really bad mood 'cause he was agitated from taking the Percocets, so he just started going off about how I never leave him alone," she added.

Not revealing much, Savoie said she was left with bruises on different parts of her body.

Savoie stated that on the trail day, she was informed that she no longer would have to testify since her ex had decided to change the plea.

She said her boyfriend had agreed to a deal that stated that if he had pleaded guilty, a separate charge of breaching the order of not contacting his girl friend will be withdrawn.

However, she was stunned to receive a court update, which stated that her ex will not be convicted as a criminal record would hamper his future plans.

Savoie shared the mail on her Facebook profile.

Savoie said on Facebook: "After much consideration I've decided to post this email, as many of you already know due to the rumours and whispers that have been circulating the goulds for the past 8 months I was abused by my ex boyfriend and that I was pressing charges against him."

"Yesterday it was decided that yes he was guilty but is not going to be punished for anything because it would "hamper his plans" for the future; this being after the fact that the crown attorney had told me that he had took the plea deal to be on probation . 24 hours later and I still can't believe this is how our justice system works or how this even happened. It's 2017 this shouldn't still be happening" she added.



(Reporting by Suman Das)
The Chairman of Human Rights Commission, Justice Prakash Tatia, said that the video is an extremely serious attempt to not just shake entire human rights but to finish them.

By Dev Ankur Wadhawan: The State Human Rights Commission in Rajasthan has taken cognizance of the case of barbaric killing in state's Rajsamand district.

The incident came to light after video of the criminal act, propagated allegedly by accused Shambulal Raigar himself, surfaced.

Justice Prakash Tatia, the Chairman of the State Commission, has directed Rajsamand Superintendent of Police to submit a report in the matter on December 19.

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The Commission Chairman termed the incident as "extremely cruel and inhuman criminal incident" and mentioned that the video of the act along with the speech was spread to scare and terrorise the common people.

Justice Tatia went on to mention, "Whosoever mentioned "Human is the best creation of nature", its logic has finished.

Justice Tatia, in a hard-hitting statement, went on to mention that, "Animals will not be happy with most cruel incident of human rights violation by human beings but definitely do have the right to say that animals are fortunate that they are not human beings."

Taking serious note of the incident, Justice Tatia mentioned,

"To so barbarically kill a person pleading and begging for life and to get its video made and to be proud of it and to propagate the video is an extremely serious attempt to not just shake entire human rights but to finish them."

Shambulal Raigar was, on Sunday, sent to ten days' police remand.

In the video that surfaced, it can be seen that initially the perpetrator hits the man killed with an agricultural equipment, then pours some inflammable liquid on his body and burns it. Raigar can be seen mentioning that those who indulge in 'love jihad' will be met with same fate.

On Saturday, Rajasthan's top cop, Director General of Police (DGP) OP Gahlotra, applauded the district police's efforts in nabbing the accused, Shambulal Raigar, promptly. He also mentioned that a campaign will be undertaken to ensure that there is no encore.

Also watch: Viral Video: Man burnt to death to 'save girl from love jihad' in Rajasthan

--- ENDS ---
New York, Dec 11 (IBNS): At least four people were injured as an explosion hit New York's Port Authority Bus Terminal on Monday as city Mayor Bill de Blasio calling the incident as an 'attempted terrorist attack'.

One person has been detained so far, the police said.

Blasio tweeted: "Let's be clear  this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals. Our first responders were there quickly and the only injuries we know of right now are minor."

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo visited the scene of the incident and tweeted: "I am at the scene of the incident at the Port Authority Bus Terminal and have been briefed by law enforcement."

New York City Fire Department tweeted: "Update: A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority. All injuries are non-life-threatening."

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted to inform that US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the incident.

New York Police Department tweeted: "Update regarding explosion at 42nd St and 8th Ave, in subway: One male suspect is in custody. No injuries other than suspect at this time. Avoid the area. Subways bypassing #PortAuthority and Times Square Stations. Info is preliminary."

New York Police Department said the attacker was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body.

NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill was quoted as saying by WABC channel: "Preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that this male was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device."

As per WABC report, the suspect has been identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah, who is from Bangladesh and has been in the country for seven years.

Image: FDNY Twitter page
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Teenage Bollywood actress getting molested on a flight is one of the most disturbing and talked about incidents this weekend. The actress opened up about how she was being harassed by a middle-aged man in the flight and how the cabin crew didnt even help her out. In a self-shot video for an Instagram live chat, she broke down saying, I just landed, the whole irony of this that I yelled.

Image For Representational Purpose Only

And this is not done. This is not how you should be treated or made to feel. This is terrible. This is how they will take care of girls? No one will help us if we dont decide to help ourselves and that is the worst thing.

Late on Sunday night, the Mumbai Police arrested the accused, identified as Vikas Sachdeva, 39. According to police, Sachedeva, a resident of Andheri, was earlier detained this afternoon and questioned before being arrested for molestation and on other charges.

Image For Representational Purpose Only





The incident drew wide condemnation. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said she was appalled. Any harassment or crime against women should be dealt with swiftly and effectively. As a mother of two daughters, I am appalled at what happened with Zaira, Mufti tweeted and urged the authorities to take strict action.

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the passenger should be identified by Air Vistara and a case should be filed. The Civil Aviation Ministry has sought a report on the incident while the National Commission for Women (NCW), as well as the Delhi and Maharashtra commisions for women, urged the actress to approach the police.

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma, Swati Maliwal of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) and Maharashtra State Commission for Women (MSCW) Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar, issued notices to authorities concerned to take due action.

DCW has already sought answers from Vistara Airlines seeking details of the action taken by airlines. Vistara Airlines apologized to the victim and said it was carrying out a detailed investigation. We will support Wasim in every way required and also if she decides to report this matter to the police We apologize for what Wasim experienced and we have zero tolerance for such behaviour, read a post on the Airlines official Twitter page.

From the film industry, director Onir and actress Swara Bhaskar came out in support of the actor. Shame Vistara that your staff did nothing. Shame on all the passengers, they are equally guilty as this moron. It should not be difficult for airlines to locate him from seat no. He should be arrested and punished, Onir tweeted.

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Swara slammed it an intolerable incident and said, We are now at that point where a 17-year-old child has to remind us what is right and what is wrong. Im so sorry that adults around you let you down, Zaira Wasim. But you keep up the good fight. Stay strong.

Wrestler Babita Phogat tweeted a video in support of the actor If someone is misbehaving with you, give a tight slap on their face. They will never dare to repeat their actions again. Zaira, you dont need to be afraid of anyone and just be dhaakad (bold) in real life as well.
Mr. and Mrs. Kohli have taken over the internet, thanks to their dreamy and absolutely gorgeous wedding pictures. While neither of the two dropped any major hints about their grand Tuscany wedding, the couple took to their social media accounts to share this happy news with the world at 9 PM.

Today we have promised each other to be bound in love for ever. We are truly blessed to share the news with you.This beautiful day will be made more special with the love and support of our family of fans & well wishers. Thank you for being such an important part of our journey. pic.twitter.com/aobTUwMNAK  Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) December 11, 2017

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Instagram/Virat and Anushka

Here's a proof that Virat and Anushka's Tuscany wedding has left internet in splits.

Virat Kohli's first tweet after marriage is same as Anushka Sharma.

You can be an aggressive champion on the field, but off it, you follow what the missus says.  Abhishek Baxi (@baxiabhishek) December 11, 2017

*Virat Anushka wedding*

Relatives : wah shaadi mei mor bhi hain for decoration

Hardik Pandya : this is my new hairstyle  Pakchikpak Raja Babu (@HaramiParindey) December 11, 2017

Not sure if legit pictures or Manyavar ad campaign  Tanmay Bhat (@thetanmay) December 11, 2017

Kids: Gets Married, plans a honeymoon.

Adults: Plans a honeymoon, gets married.

Legend: Gets Married at honeymoon location.#VirushkaWedding  Godman Chikna (@Madan_Chikna) December 11, 2017

They must hide Virat Kohli's bat instead of his shoes for a better negotiation.#VirushkaWEDDING  Sand-d Singh (@Sand_In_Deed) December 11, 2017

Congratulations to Virat and Anushka for getting married on a Vatican funded trip managed by ISI to defeat BJP in Gujarat elections. : @narendramodi  Rofl Gandhi (@RoflGandhi_) December 11, 2017

Virat Kohli is married now.

We always knew he was good at converting 1s into 2s.  Nikhil  (@CricCrazyNIKS) December 11, 2017

Will Virat continue to play after marriage like Sania does?  Moon (@moonsez) December 11, 2017

Anushka Sharma is married. Ranbir Kapoor has been found watching Ae Dil Hai Mushkil on repeat since morning  Debarati Majumder (@debarati_m) December 11, 2017

Anushka Sharma is married. Ranbir Kapoor has been found watching Ae Dil Hai Mushkil on repeat since morning  Debarati Majumder (@debarati_m) December 11, 2017

Will Anushka move to Delhi or will Virat move Mumbai?   (@Upooorv) December 11, 2017

Anushka Sharma: I can't live without you

Virat Kohli: Same here

Indian Team: Ditto  Sand-d Singh (@Sand_In_Deed) December 10, 2017

Anushka and Virat tie the knot!

Fans: Yay!

Celebs: Congratulations to the couple <3

Cricket commentators: At the end of the day cricket is the real winner.  Shilpa Rathnam (@shilparathnam) December 11, 2017
Kirill Tereshin, a 21-year-old Russian bodybuilder and an ex-soldier has drawn a lot of criticism from both critics as well as doctors after he recently took to social media to flaunt his abnormally-sized 24-inch Popeye-like arms.

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Thats because Tereshin achieved this feat by injecting his biceps with dangerous chemicals that after leaving the army this summer!

His arms grew to 10-inches in just 10-days when he initially began to inject it with his homemade Synthol muscle-enhancement oil, to give his arms an appearance enhancement that earned him the title of the Russian Popeye.

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Synthol is 85 per cent oil, 7.5 per cent lidocaine, and 7.5 per cent alcohol. Tereshin says he makes his from olive oil, lidocaine and benzyl alcohol.

Tereshin claims that you need to inject liters of this oil to reach such a size, as he got there by injecting 250ml into his arms. He even got apparently got fever of up to 40 degrees, feeling like he was going to die. But he eventually ended up continuing because he was fine thereafter!

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He says that bazooka arms are about to fall off in a recent post on Instagram.

He couldnt be far from the truth, as doctors have warned his previously that he risks paralysis and amputation.

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A top Russian medic, Professor Evgeny Lilin, states, Not immediately but he very likely faces amputation in the future. His 23-inch biceps have already received six litres of this dangerous liquid.

One day abscesses will develop, then inflammation and he (will be at risk of) a stroke. The bad thing is that already-injected Synthol or its equivalent will remain in his muscles for the next five to seven years, even if he stops adding more now.

Yet, Tereshin doesn't plan to stop injecting himself with his homemade Synthol muscle-enhancer till his arms reach 27 inches in size, states the Daily Mail UK.

He even has plans to enhance his back, chest and shoulders thereafter. I would like to get more than one million subscribers on Instagram and to stop working,' he said, adding that he was considering an offer to become a porn star.

He goes on to say, For about a month I was making up to ten injections into each arm every day, using a 20 ml syringe. If I had used real Synthol, it would have cost me about 400,000 roubles (5,000), but as I made it myself, I spent only about 4,000 roubles (50 pounds).

I did not feel any discomfort in my arms when I was doing it.... my body got used to it. Within a month I got 106,000 subscribers in my Instagram. I love to be recognisable.
Adriana Lima, one of the most popular and iconic Victoria's Secret Angels has been making news for posting a letter on Instagram. "I had received a call for the possibility of filming a sexy video of me to be posted and shared on social media. Even though I have done many of this type, something had changed in me" she wrote and announced that she won't take her clothes off for an empty cause anymore.

A post shared by Adriana Lima (@adrianalima) on Dec 9, 2017 at 10:14am PST

In her post, Lima expressed her insecurities about her career as a model, and that when a friend approached her to share that she was unhappy with her body, that's when it struck her how much importance we're giving to how we look. "Everyday in my life, I wake up thinking, how do I look? Was I going to be accepted in my job? And in that moment I realized that majority of woman probably wake up every morning trying to fit in a stereotype that society imposed. I thought thats not a way of living and beyond that, thats not physically and mentally healthy, so I decided to make that change. I will not take off my clothes anymore for an empty cause."

A post shared by Adriana Lima (@adrianalima) on Aug 17, 2017 at 11:28am PDT

Social media nazis went crazy about this post and even noticed that she had unfollowed Victoria's Secret's Instagram handle. It's speculated that she may not work for Victoria's Secret anymore, making the brand's 2017 show in Shanghai her last one.

Body-positivity is now gaining some momentum. While being healthier should always be a goal, no one should really be made to feel bad about their body. Every person should be able to decide what they want or don't want to do with their body'without being judged for it. Having said that, we do support Adriana Lima's beliefs. More power to you, woman!
In another inhuman incident, a 15-year-old blood cancer patient was gang-raped by two men in Uttar Pradesh's Sarojininagar on Saturday. The most shocking part was that the person she sought help from, also forced himself upon her on the pretext of offering help.

This is not enough. On Sunday, a minor was brutally raped and a 16-cm wooden stick was inserted inside her private part. The 5-year-old was abducted from her house at night, raped and left to die. Everyday we get to hear about a similiar case. It shocks us and makes us wonder if humanity is still alive or not.

However, police have arrested the culprit behind the rape of the cancer survivor but is that enough?

The accused has been identified as Banthara resident Virendra Yadav who works at a construction site. Police have also arrested the second accused.

Also Read: Uttar Pradesh Records 400% Rise In Child Rape Cases, Across India The Cases Are Up By 82%

What actually happened?

On Saturday night, around 8.30 pm, the victims friend called her up and invited her to go out and eat noodles. She left home around 9 pm and after chatting for over 20 minutes, her friend introduced her to Sumit, the other accused and insisted that they should go and eat noodles.

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After reaching a secluded place, the two youths gang-raped her and fled the scene. "I was unable to walk or speak properly and was trembling with fear," the victim tells the police.

Also Read: Govt Data Shows Women In India Are Not Safe At All, 106 Rapes Reported Every Day In 2016

She asked a passerby for help and to her shock, he also raped her.

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"Despite being betrayed by an acquaintance, I trusted Virendra and sought his help as he appeared to be a good samaritan. He, too, took me to an isolated area and raped me before fleeing the spot," the survivor stated in her complaint.

Also Read: UP And Delhi Saw Highest Number Of Crimes In 2016 And We Are Not Surprised At All

Well, can we trust anyone in today's time? How can a girl suspect a friend of doing such a heinous crime? We are left with so many questions but no one knows the answers.
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress of taking Pakistan's help to defeat the BJP in the Gujarat polls, Islamabad hit back and asked not to be dragged into domestic electoral battles.

Islamabad further said that Modi's allegations - of a recent "secret three-hour meeting" attended by Congress and Pakistani officials - are "fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible".

Without furnishing proof, Modi yesterday claimed a meeting took place recently+ in (now suspended) Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house that was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, its former foreign minister, former PM Manmohan Singh, and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari.

Last week, Modi accused Aiyar of putting out a hit on him while on a visit to Pakistan+ to ensure peace between India and the neighbouring country.India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible, he said in a tweet.

India should stop dragging Pakistan into its electoral debate and win victories on own strength rather than fabricated conspiracies, which are utterly baseless and irresponsible.  Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 11, 2017

The Congress hit back at Modi, saying the real colluder with Pakistan is the BJP, whose government gave Pakistani intelligence officials access to the country's top air force base in Pathankot after a terror attack there. "If he wants to fight the Gujarat elections in Pakistan, I want to ask who who invited people from the (Pakistani intelligence agency) ISI to come to one of India's most important defence bases in Pathankot," asked Congress spokesman RS Surjewala.

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He was referring to Pakistan's joint investigation team - including an official from ISI - being given access to the Pathankot airbase in March 2016. The access was purportedly to help Pakistan complete its investigation into the Pathankot terror attack which took place in January last year.

This access was allowed even though Islamabad hadn't at the time responded to India's formal request for judicial assistance.

The Congress yesterday also wondered "who really has Pakistan love" considering the PM dashed off to that country on an unplanned visit, on an event in then PM Nawaz Sharif's family.

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"After terror attacks in Udhampur (August 2015) and Gurdaspur (July 2015), who went like the proverbial uninvited guest to Pakistan to attend the wedding of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's granddaughter," asked Surjewala, referring the PM's shock Christmas 2015 trip to Lahore.

The Congress said that such blatantly false allegations didn't behoove the office of the Prime Minister. "I'm very disappointed in the way the PM thinks, someone of his standing, of his position is getting into such patently false conspiracy theories...I want to say something to him on behalf of India and the Congress, that these allegations don't behoove his status (as PM) and his age and experience," said Surjewala.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday lashed out at PM Narendra Modi for allegedly spreading "falsehood and canards" to "score political points in a lost cause."

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than PM Shri Narendra Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable," read a statement by the former PM.

Singh was responding to PM Modi's accusation that Congress leaders had secretly met the former foreign minister of Pakistan and its envoy at suspended party leader's Mani Shankar Aiyar's house.

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Continuing the scathing attack, Singh added that the Congress "needs no sermons on "Nationalism" from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known."

"My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Sh. Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground," he wrote.

He rejected the allegations, saying that he had not discussed the Gujarat elections with anyone else present at the dinner. Instead, "the discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations," he said.

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The former PM demanded that Modi apologise for "his ill thought transgression."

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issues a statement after reports of him attending a meeting where a Pakistan envoy was also present. pic.twitter.com/ngAyC7MW08  ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2017

At a rally on Sunday, PM Modi had alleged that the "three-hour secret meeting" was attended by Pakistan's high commissioner, its former foreign minister, former PM Manmohan Singh, and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari.

He had further charged that the Congress and certain entities in Pakistan may be working together to prevent the BJP from winning Gujarat.

Earlier today, the Congress responded by calling the BJP the real colluder, as it was the latter's government that gave Pakistani intelligence officials access to India's top air force base in Pathankot after the terror attack there.

ap

It also hit out at PM Modi for his "highly irresponsible comments," clarifying that the meeting was actually a social event attended by top dignitaries, diplomats and even the former Army chief.

Later in the day, the party also tweeted a guest list from the "discussion on India-Pakistan relations" held on December 6, which included Aiyar, his wife, the former PM, the former VP, former Army chief General Deepak Kapoor, and the Pakistani high commissioner.

toi

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, too, chimed in, asking PM Modi to take requisite action if he believes Pakistan is interfering in India's internal affairs.

"If PM honestly believes then he must immediately take action. He must direct NIA to arrest them because if he believes that Pakistan is interfering, then tell NIA. Why doesn't he use Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or NSA," ANI quoted him as saying.
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) Drug firm Alembic Pharmaceuticals today said the US health regulator has granted fast track designation to its associate company Rhizen Pharmaceuticals SAs RP6530 (tenalisib), used in treatment of cancer.

"The US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has granted Fast Track Designation for RP6530 (tenalisib)...for the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory peripheral T- cell lymphoma (PTCL)," Alembic Pharmaceuticals said in a BSE filing.

advertisement

Fast track designation is awarded to drugs that treat a serious condition and fill an unmet medical need, it added.

Shares of Alembic Pharmaceuticals were trading at Rs 522.40 on BSE, up 1.50 per cent from the previous close. PTI SVK ABM

--- ENDS ---
Bravery they say is how well you hide your fears. Clearly, they haven't met Param Vir Chakra awardee Subedar Yogendra Singh Yadav.

Even when death is certain while facing enemy, personal safety is the last on a soldier's mind and security of the nation and its citizens remains paramount, Kargil war hero and Param Vir Chakra awardee Y S Yadav said.

Subedar Yogendra Singh Yadav was recruited to 18 Grenadiers nearly two decades back and was just 19-year-old when he fought the Kargil war in 1999.

Yadav, who was here to attend country's first Military Literature Festival, said he was part of the commando platoon 'Ghatak', tasked to capture strategic bunkers on Tiger Hill.

BCCL

"We were group of seven to climb Tiger hill on July 4 (1999). It was a 90 degree climb. We were surrounded by death from all sides, we knew we were going to die, but we were determined to inflict maximum casualties and we kept moving forward with this spirit," he said.

Despite having taken 12 bullet shots from the enemy fire, Yadav said he bluffed them and killing their five soldiers despite being seriously wounded.

"I had sustained 12 bullet wounds on my arm, legs. An enemy soldier also took an aim at my chest and fired a bullet, but it ricocheted off the Rs 5 coins I had kept in my pocket," Yadav told PTI here.

"The God kept me alive so that I could share the tales of valour of six of my fellow colleagues who martyred," he said.

Sharing details of the fierce battle, Yadav said, "When I lay wounded, the enemy took me as dead, they also fired couple of bullets to check whether I was alive or not. But I made them realise that I was no more."

"When their another team came, I took out a grenade and lobbed it on their jawan and killed him. Then I took his rifle and opened fire killing five more.

"I rolled over and opened fire from 3-4 sides to make the enemy think that reinforcements (of the Indian troops) had come. Had they known I was alone, they would have killed me," Yadav said.

BCCL

"The enemy thought reinforcement had come after presuming that they had killed us all. But Pakistan Army has such a low morale that they gave up at that point," he said, adding his team had killed 25-30 enemy soldiers in all.

Asked at a time when death is almost certain, what is the motivation for the soldiers to march on, Yadav said, "It is your nation, your colleagues who are fighting alongside you that keep you going. Our concern at that time remains that our country and its citizens should be safe and secure irrespective of whether we survive or not."

Another Param Vir Chakra (PVC) awardee, the country's highest gallantry award, Naib Subedar Sanjay Kumar also shared his experiences of the Kargil war.

Param Vir Chakra awardee Captain Bana Singh, known for his acts of gallantry in the Siachen sector in 1987, was also present at the military literature festival.
For the first time in five years, the global arms sales has increased. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), in 2016, the rising geopolitical tensions added fuelled the defence spending.

According to a report, the sales have increased to 1.9 per cent from previous year to reach $374.8 billion.

"The growth in arms sales was expected and was driven by the implementation of new national major weapon programmes, ongoing military operations in several countries and persistent regional tensions that are leading to an increased demand for weapons," the report said.

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Arms producers in South Korea, which increasingly supply the country's military, saw the largest percentage increase among developed countries.

The spending splurge reflects fears of a potential conflict with North Korea. Sales by South Korean firms increased by over 20 per cent in 2016, to $8.4 billion.

While consumer purchases are included in the sales figures, national governments are by far the largest purchasers of arms and weapons systems, according to the report.

American firms remained at the top of the industry in 2016, with sales increasing by 4 per cent to more than $217 billion which was 58 per cent of the global total.

reuters/representational image

American defence firm Lockheed Martin, the world's largest producer, saw sales surge 11 per cent in 2016, thanks to increased deliveries of its F-35 fighter and its acquisition of helicopter producer Sikorsky.

Aude Fleurant, director of the Arms and Military Expenditure Programme at SIPRI, said that US growth was likely to continue.

Sales by Russian firms increased 3.8 per cent to $26.6 billion, a slower expansion than in recent years, CNN quoted the report as saying.

Moscow has boosted spending in order to overhaul its military capabilities, but procurement has slowed recently because of the country's strained finances.

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"It's a money issue... They have been hit very severely by the drop in oil and gas prices," said Mr Fleurant.

She pointed to regional disputes, such as the standoff over islands in the South China Sea, as a major source of increased arms sales.

The area is home to crucial shipping lanes, and it's rich in oil and gas reserves. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have all made territorial claims to islands in the area.

"Countries like Vietnam order submarines and maritime patrol aircraft, because of what they consider China's assertiveness in these territorial disputes," Mr Fleurant added.
Dollar dreams of some IITians who had bagged US offers from leading software giants in December 2016 are yet to materialise.

Thanks to President Donald Trump's visa policy, some of the best minds in the country who had bagged crore-plus offers are now settling for lesser paying placements, no thanks to the US visa policy is currently under review.

AFP

While firms are trying their best to get IIT graduates on board as promised, many on campus are wary of US offers in the upcoming placement season. The number of US offers had, in any case, dropped to single digits at leading IITs last December after the change in the country's political regime. Placement cells at IITs are now looking beyond the US for international profiles.

Japan, Taiwan, Canada, Singapore and some European countries have begun to rise in students' preference list. Very few IIT graduates who were offered jobs last year have started work in the US. The remaining have joined the organizations' India offices or are being offered alternatives abroad.

Reuters/Representational Image

Microsoft, for instance, has offered Canadian positions to students. "The students are looking forward to joining the Canadian office soon. Though the packages are not the same, most organizations have a good reputation. And they promise to move students to US locations after they complete a year or two, when they manage the visas," said an IIT-Bombay graduate. Some three to four students of IIT-Bombay have been affected.

BCCL/Representational Image

A computer science and engineering student from the Powai campus said, "Students are always keen on US jobs, but many prefer to work for a year or two and then pursue higher studies. If it takes more than a year just to get US visas, the job location is of little consequence. Such students would rather choose better domestic opportunities. Getting student visas is easier than getting H-1B visas now."

ALSO READ: Trump's H1-B Visa Reforms Make A Huge Impact, Infosys To Hire 10,000 American Workers In Next Two Years

Older IITs, though open to inviting US firms, are also treading cautiously to ensure students do not get a raw deal. At one of the older IITs, a student who had bagged a US job quit to join another company after his visa application was rejected.

Reuters/Representational Image

"He was asked to work in the Bangalore office. He was one of our batch toppers," said a student from that institute. "Everyone, including the companies, are a little cautious about the visa policy in the US.

ALSO READ: US's Own Figures Refute Claims That H-1B Visas Applicants Are Not Highly Qualified
Hogs Pushing Higher Barchart - 1 hour ago Lean hog futures are up by another 12 to 70 cents through the Thursday midday session. The USDA National Average Base Hog Price was down by $2.40 to $83.12 in the Thursday AM report. The 11/15 CME Lean... HEZ22 : 84.975s (-0.70%) HEJ23 : 96.000s (+0.39%) KMZ22 : 95.525 (-0.39%)

Triple Digit Losses for Midday Cotton Barchart - 1 hour ago Cotton is trading 134 to 172 points weaker through midday. The dollar is firmer, but export sales numbers were disappointing. Yesterday the The Dec to Dec spread was 9.02 cents/lb at the close, compared... CTZ22 : 87.04s (-1.58%) CTH23 : 85.28s (-1.71%) CTK23 : 84.39s (-1.72%)

Cattle Futures Gaining at Midday Barchart - 1 hour ago Cattle Futures Gaining at Midday Live cattle prices on the board are 35 to 72 cents in the black. The Thursday auction hosted by Central Stockyards saw $150 bids for the 1,090 head listed, but they went... LEZ22 : 152.750s (+0.63%) LEG23 : 155.400s (+0.75%) LEJ23 : 158.900s (+0.74%) GFX22 : 175.800 (+0.06%) GFF23 : 179.975s (+1.41%)

Thursday Losses in Wheat Market Barchart - 1 hour ago Thursday wheat trading has the board in the red so far. KC HRW is down by 1.7% to 2.2% through midday. SRW on the CBT is showing 1.8% to 2% losses. Spring wheat in Minneapolis is down by 1.3% to 1.6% for... ZWZ22 : 806-6s (-1.31%) ZWH23 : 825-0s (-1.46%) ZWPAES.CM : 7.4107 (-1.43%) KEZ22 : 938-0s (-1.83%) KEPAWS.CM : 8.9627 (-1.92%) MWZ22 : 953-4 (-1.24%)

Front Month Soy Futures Weaker into Midday Barchart - 1 hour ago Soybeans are working another 1.2% to 1.4% red so far for midday. Meal futures are down by 0.6% to 0.8% for the Thursday trade. BO continues to lead the way lower with 2.8% to 3.2% drops so far. USDAs... ZSF23 : 1417-0s (-0.86%) ZSPAUS.CM : 13.9217 (-0.84%) ZSH23 : 1422-2s (-0.87%) ZSK23 : 1428-4s (-0.85%)
In October we told you about a massive insurance deal between broking giant Aon and one of the biggest independent insurance brokers in the UK . Now that deal has been sealed. Aon has completed the acquisition of Henderson Insurance Broking Group, with the latter becoming part of Aon Risk Solutions UK (ARS UK). The purchase was described as being in line with Aons ambitions of growing its UK retail business. The plan? Increase Aons footprint in the mid-market and specialist sectors.Were delighted to be joining Aon, which brings a wealth of opportunities for our colleagues and enhanced solutions and services for our clients, commented Joe Henderson, founder and chief executive of Henderson Insurance Broking Group.The acquired broker focuses on general cover, health and benefits, as well as trade credit insurance.I am excited to be working with Joe and the leadership team at Henderson to bring the best of both of our organisations to our clients, said ARS UK chief executive Julie Page.When it announced the completion of the purchase, Aon noted: This acquisition is the latest example of Aons ongoing commitment to allocate capital to high-value solutions that address emerging client needs, sharpen the firms focus on delivering advice and solutions, and strengthen its global footprint.Aon  which provides a broad range of risk, retirement, and health solutions  employs 50,000 people across 120 countries.
The insurance industry still has a way to go on improving its digital experience for customers, a new SAP report has found.The annual Digital Experience Report ranked the industry in the bottom three when it came to digital experience with a score of -5  with only telecommunications (-11) and utilities (-15) ranked lower.Stuart ONeill, head of SAP Hybris Australia and New Zealand, told Insurance Business that more work needs to be done to improve digital experiences in insurance.If I was looking at the insurance sector, we have seen them improve from where they were last year where they were -7, to -5, but they are still not anywhere near the average which is about -4, ONeill said. There is still a lot of room for improvement within the industry and within the sector.ONeill said that the industry has done well in getting the basics of digital experience right for their customers  it is seen as secure and has digital capabilities that make a customers life easier. In addition, it also offers information online that is simple and easy to find.The industry fails though, on more emotion-based metrics, ONeill said.A lot of the emotional areas are still lacking, ONeill continued. If you look at where insurance companies failed, it was making you love the company, making you feel individual and special, being able to excite me.In a bid to strengthen customer experience, the industry should look to understand its clients better, personalise information whenever possible and contextualise customer details to offer more targeted and specific products and services to clients.That means, I might be looking at a home loan and if I have a home loan, could it be time to talk to me about insurance, ONeill continued. There is the ability to move in this direction and the ability for the more traditional players to improve their digital ranking as long as they concentrate on their customer and understand that digital is part of their core business.ONeill noted that digital experience could be more important for brokers than insurers as direct players look to boil comparison down to price.Security and relevancy is almost as important as price, ONeill said. Price, at the end of the day, is the lowest differentiator; it gives me a boundary of who I might want to talk to.But if I can deal with someone who can combine all my insurance products, provide me with something that is simple and easy to use, and then comes and tells me that I can benefit from something I didnt know I could benefit from, or I could use differently, that becomes valuable to me.
Congress has extended the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) by two weeks to buy more time for lawmakers to agree upon a long-term reauthorization of the federal program.The NFIP will continue to run as it stands until December 22, when its hoped the House and the Senate will come to terms over what they want the reauthorized program to look like.There has been heated debate over NFIP reforms for many months, which became even more emotive in light of this years catastrophic hurricane season and considerable losses. Those in flood-prone areas have asked for provisions to keep NFIP coverage affordable, while others have pressed for reforms that would result in potential rate hikes for many homeowners.Ahead of the reauthorization, Insurance Business spoke to Alan Rubin, principal with law firm Blank Rome LLP, who has more than 30 years of experience handling matters related to extreme weather events. He said the bill being debated in Congress takes a common-sense approach to reauthorization and includes some very good ideas.As it stands, the NFIP bill in debate would require flooding disclosures during real estate transactions, help educate buyers about flooding history before closing on a property, and provide specific definitions around repetitive loss structure  all of which Rubin described as really important.Under the proposed bill, prospective homeowners have to be told if theyre looking at an area that floods and they have to be given the flood history of the property theyre looking at, so they can take that information into consideration before buying, said Rubin.The bill will also make property developers think more closely about flooding. Developers will have to disclose flood history and abide by a new identification structure (repetitive, severe, extreme risk, etc.). Acknowledging extreme flood risk could dampen their ability to sell homes and therefore dissuade them from developing certain areas.This is one of the major problems weve had in the US for a very long time, Rubin commented. There are some places where we just shouldnt build, because we know that either through storm surge, hurricanes or water level rise, theres a considerable flood risk . The proposed reforms are good, but I think more needs to be done. I think they have to dedicate certain areas as wetlands and stop people from building on them.Another thing FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) is starting to do is take risk mitigation into consideration  and they are doing that through regulation. With this proposed bill, people buying a property have to go with their eyes open and learn its flood history. As time goes on, I think we will see more amendments to address preparedness and stricter enforcement and timeframes around flood plans.
Feuding parties over the Dakota Access pipeline have been ordered by a federal judge to coordinate with each other and create a response plan for the event of an oil spill.In court documents published last week, Judge James Boasberg of the D.C. district court instructed the Staning Rock Sioux Tribe, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, the Army Corps of Engineers, and Dakota Access to formulate a plan by April next year.Part of the pipeline sits under Lake Oahe in North Dakota. The lake is a federally regulated body of water that borders the Tribes reservations, and it is considered sacred within their spiritual practices. The Tribes and other environmental groups have been very vocal against the project, but Boasberg ruled last October that oil can continue to flow through the pipeline.In their most recent challenge, the Tribes asked the court for a series of interim measures to monitor the ongoing operation of the pipeline, which Dakota Access and the Army opposed.In his ruling, Boasberg cited recent events that called for a pressing need for such monitoring. Last November, the Keystone Pipeline leaked 210,000 gallons of oil in Marshall County, South Dakota.The spill occurred near the boundaries of the Lake Traverse Reservation, home of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Tribe, thus highlighting the potential impact of pipeline incidents on tribal lands, he said.
Over the past decade, technology has made its way into all areas of our lives  from revolutionizing the way we use phones to making its entrance into our homes through smart technologies, so it was only a matter of time before technology also began to spread across the healthcare sector.Today, technology such as wearable data collectors and systemic applications like blockchain can be found in all areas of health. In the home and hospital field, with nurse retirements expected to surge in the next five- to 10 years, companies are looking for alternative ways to efficiently and effectively perform basic nursing care.Whats interesting is that we have seen robotic companies attempting to develop intelligent technology to assist in the day-to-day care of peoples required home healthcare, says Debra Goldberg, chief underwriting officer at Sapphire Blue, an MGU of RSG Underwriting Managers. Some of what weve seen is as complex as a robot that can assist with the activities of daily living, such as assisting patients in getting out of bed, contacting providers or recording data. Some of the new technology coming up is also using existing technology like Amazons Alexa to assist in the ability to contact caregivers when needed.With the advent of new technologies influencing healthcare, a question arises: how will technology change the standard of care?When you look at something like wearables that are advancing all the time, we may get to the point where its not going to be a pendant or bracelet but it will be a patch applied to the skin that not only collects data but transmits that to healthcare providers, says Goldberg. When providers have that massive amount of data available to them about patients conditions, what does the standard of care require that providers do to actively treat the patient? These questions remain to be answered.What is certain is that advances in technology, especially Bluetooth technology, which creates an internet of things in the healthcare setting, greatly increases the risk of cyber liability. When considering past global attacks, including the WannaCry ransomware attack that took down the UKs national health system earlier this year, US healthcare companies are definitely among the prime targets for a ransomware attack.As more information is transmitted electronically and more advances in technology change the administration of healthcare, providers liability will continue to increase, leaving insurance brokers and carriers to determine how to best cover these new risks.You have to wonder whether 2018 is going to be the tipping point for risk managers in healthcare settings to really look at what their cyber exposures are across their technology platforms, Goldberg says. From electronic medical records and their devices, all the way through to their medical equipment, risk managers should perform systemic analysis on how to best address these risks moving forward.
A Vermont man whose mother and grandfather died in mysterious circumstances must turn over information related to a missing gun, as well as phone and other records, in a Rhode Island lawsuit over insurance on his sunken boat.

Nathan Carman must turn over the information about a Sig Sauer .308-caliber semi-automatic rifle he owned, U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia Sullivan said Friday. That weapon is now missing, according to documents filed in a different lawsuit in New Hampshire. The documents say the same caliber weapon was used to kill Carmans millionaire grandfather in Connecticut in 2013.

But Sullivan rejected a request by the boats insurer to get information about other guns Carman may have owned, saying it was sheer speculation for them to ask for records about every firearm Carman might have ever owned or possessed.

Carman and his mother, Linda, embarked on a fishing trip out of Rhode Island on Sept. 17, 2016. The boat sank and she is presumed dead. He was rescued a week later after being found floating on a life raft in the Atlantic Ocean.

The judge said Carman must turn over phone records from Sept. 1 through Sept. 25, 2016, the day he was rescued.

Carman and the insurer for his boat, the Chicken Pox, are fighting over his insurance claim.

Carman has acknowledged patching some holes on the 31-foot-long boat with marine putty before going fishing with his mother but insisted the boat was seaworthy. In a filing on Thursday, the insurers lawyers alleged that Carman must have enlarged the holes in his boats hull.

No wonder the boat sank and Carmans mother died, the filing said.

Carmans lawyer said he would not address unsupported allegations or engage in litigation in the press when asked about the assertions about the holes after Fridays hearing.

The New Hampshire lawsuit was brought by Linda Carmans three sisters, who accuse her son of killing his grandfather, real estate developer John Chakalos, and possibly his mother. Police have previously described Carman as a person of interest in Chakalos slaying.

Nathan Carman has denied allegations that he killed Chakalos and said he doesnt know the whereabouts of his mother.

Chakalos left more than $29 million to his four daughters, and $7 million of that money could go to Nathan Carman. The sisters have asked the New Hampshire judge to block him from collecting any money.

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Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Gun Liability New Hampshire Vermont
By PTI: New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) The Supreme Court today dismissed a plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to three trustees of the Ryan International Group in connection with the killing of a student in the school premises.

A bench of Justices R K Agrawal and A M Sapre said the "petition is dismissed."

The court had earlier reserved the order on the plea of the father of 7-year-old boy, who was found dead in Ryan International School in Gurgaon, challenging the anticipatory bail granted to the trustees of the group.

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Pradhuman, a Class II student, was found with his throat slit in the school washroom in Gurgaon on September 8. School bus conductor Ashok Kumar was earlier arrested by Haryana Police in connection with the crime. He was recently granted bail by a lower court.

The case was transferred to the CBI and the agency had apprehended a Class 11 student in connection with the killing.

The high court had on November 21 granted anticipatory bail to Ryan International Group CEO Ryan Pinto and his parents -- founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, in connection with the killing of Pradhuman.

The boys father had approached the apex court seeking cancellation of the bail to the trustees. PTI MNL RRT DV

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French President Emmanuel Macron this week will seek to breathe new life into the fight against global warming and sway debate away from skeptics of the process led by U.S. President Donald Trump.

At a series of events in Paris starting Monday, Macron along with leaders from the U.K., Norway, Mexico and Netherlands will draw attention to a dozen major projects aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. Theyll also give a push for increasing climate-related aid to developing nations, in step with a United Nations goal of channeling at least $100 billion a year by 2020. Trump is not scheduled to attend.

The meetings are designed to preserve the the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change sealed two years ago. That deal brought together some 200 nations including the U.S. and China in calling for limits on fossil fuel emissions everywhere for the first time. Trumps move to pull back from the accord, along with efforts to preserve coal jobs in Germany and Poland, have undercut momentum toward cleaner forms of energy.

The Trump decision was a blow, but it hasnt killed the process, said Herve Le Treut, a senior climate scientist at Frances National Center for Scientific Research in Paris. If the Paris climate accord accomplished one thing, it was a change of consciousness around the world. Weve seen many more initiatives since then.

For Macron, who has sought to put France at the center of issues ranging from Middle East peace to European economic rival since his surprise electoral victory last May, the meetings are part of his effort to building the standing of France in shaping world affairs. The 39-year old French president is stepping into a leadership vacuum left as Trump focuses on an America first foreign policy German Chancellor Angela Merkel is mired in talks to form a new government.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Monday called for the carbon price to triple to 30 euros a ton to provide industry a signal that it must invest in cleaning up emissions. He was speaking an in interview at the start of a day on how to boost climate-related funding and reach UNs $100 billion goal for 2020.

We have to explain to people that some activities are not the right ones, Le Maire said on Bloomberg Television. Coal fired plants have to close down.

Since the UN goal was agreed in 2009, money has started to flow from richer nations to less developed ones, with the annual total reaching $62 billion in 2014, according to the latest data available from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Finance will be a key topic of the event, said Simone Tagliapietra, analyst at the Bruegel research group in Brussels. We know that we will need more renewables and energy efficiency, but at the end of the day it will happen only if somebody puts their money in it.

Companies from the software developer Microsoft Corp. to insurer AXA SA also plan to announce initiatives at the event, underscoring Macrons assertion that efforts to fix the climate are picking up steam.

The Paris deal called on all nations to make voluntary emissions cuts. The ambition was to keep the temperature increases well below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). A degree of warming over the past century already has been blamed for stronger storms, more frequent floods and droughts and rising seas. The World Meteorological Agency has warned that without swifter action, the planet is on course for a much sharper warming by the end of the century.

There is an urgency to do more, said Wendel Trio, director of CAN Europe, which represents 140 environmental groups in 30 nations. We are not on track to implement the Paris Agreement.

Even so, doubts are rising about commitments to the Paris agenda, and Trump isnt alone in his reluctance to follow the deal.

In Germany, business leaders are concerned about rising electricity prices and the cost of renewables. Politicians there have become sensitive about the impact the upheaval in the energy industry is having on the jobs of people employed at coal mines and generation plants. In Poland, which hosts next years UN climate talks in the heart of lignite-mining country, the government is working to preserve mining jobs as a matter of national security. In India, government officials have extended tax advantages to some of the most polluting fuels and questioned whether smog in New Delhi has anything to do with noxious fumes from autos and industry.

On Tuesday Macron will host leaders including British Prime Minister Theresa May, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Mexican President Enrique Nieto, as well as mayors of Quito, Seoul and Buenos Aires and California Governor Jerry Brown. Also attending is former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, a UN envoy on climate and founder of Bloomberg LP, which owns this news organization. Theyll gather at the Ile Seguin, south west of Paris on the site of a former Renault SA car factory.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is due to speak about efforts to get companies to make better disclosures of climate-related risks. AXA, which two years ago vowed to divest some coal-related holdings, is due to announce further measures its taking.

Two years from the Paris Agreement, were not closer to meeting its objectives, Breugels Tagliapietra said. Macrons effort, he said, will help keep the momentum alive.

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Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.

Topics Leadership AXA XL France
Thirteen pension funds in regions and administrative units around China only have enough money to pay less than one years worth of pensions, media reported on Monday, as the country struggles with an aging population and shortfalls in the nations pension schemes.

Guangxi, Jiangxi, Hainan, Inner Mongolia, Hubei, Shaanxi, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Jilin, Qinghai, Heilongjiang and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps can all pay less than one years worth of pensions to workers covered under the respective funds, the official Beijing News reported, citing Chinas 2016 Social Security Development Annual Report.

Guangdong province, which had the largest sum of accumulated pensions, can pay 55.7 months worth of pensions, according to the newspaper.

The pension fund of Chinas northeastern province of Heilongjiang is 23.2 billion yuan ($3.51 billion) in deficit, with almost 20 percent of the 267.4 billion yuan worth of funds transferred from the central government to Heilongjiang in 2016 spent on social security expenditures.

Total expenditures of Chinas urban workers pension funds grew 23.4 percent on year to 3.19 trillion yuan while total incomes only grew 19.5 percent on year to 3.51 trillion yuan, the Beijing News said, citing the annual report.

At the end of 2016, China had more than 230 million people over the age of 60, deputy director of pension insurance at the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security Jia Jiang said, according to the newspaper, adding that by 2050, the ratio of pensioners to workers will be 1:1.3.

China will begin a pilot program this year to transfer shares in state-owned firms to social security funds. The plan is limited to a small number of central and provincial firms in an initial trial to start this year.

($1 = 6.6152 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Sue-Lin Wong; editing by Kim Coghill)

Topics China
Zurich Insurance Group announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 100 percent of ANZs life insurance businesses, OnePath Life, in Australia, for A$2.85 billion (US$2.14 billion).

Both parties expect the transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, to be completed by the end of 2018.

As a result of the transaction, Zurich said, it will become the leading retail life insurer in Australia, with about a 19 percent share of the retail sector and about 6 percent of the group life market.

Zurich also plans to enter into a 20-year distribution agreement with ANZ in Australia to distribute life insurance products through bank channels. Under this agreement, Zurich will have access to ANZs 6 million customers who are served through the banks more than 680 branches and over 2,300 ATMs, as well as digital distribution channels.

ANZs portfolio of non-traditional and profitable retail products fits well with Zurichs strategy to focus on capital-light protection and unit-linked business, said Group Chief Executive Officer Mario Greco. Furthermore, it strengthens the groups position in Asia Pacific, while building on our strong bank distribution capabilities.

The acquisition is expected to contribute to the groups profitability from day one, generating strong cash flows that will increase return on equity, cash remittance targets and shareholder returns, said the company in a statement.

Zurich has earmarked the Asia Pacific region to be a major engine of growth in distribution and service capabilities, building on our recent acquisitions of Macquaries retail life insurance business and the Cover-More Group, said Jack Howell, Zurichs chief executive officer for Asia Pacific. Importantly, we are acquiring a profitable business with loyal customers and a track record of strong, stable cash flows.

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Topics Mergers & Acquisitions USA Australia
A suburban Chicago chiropractor has been sentenced to 20 months in prison for billing an insurance company more than $4 million for treatment that was unnecessary or never provided.

Federal prosecutors said Thursday 46-year-old Steven Paul of Northbrook pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Rondald Guzman said during a sentencing hearing in Chicago he was imposing the shortest prison term possible because of Pauls extraordinary cooperation in the investigation.

Paul and co-defendant Bradley Mattson of Lake Forest jointly owned six chiropractic clinics north of Chicago. Both admitted in plea agreements they required patients to receive x-rays and a pre-set schedule of visits even if they werent medically necessary.

Mattson was sentenced in 2012 to six and a half years in prison.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Fraud Illinois
Digital insurer Lemonade says companies that integrate its insurance sales platform, or API, into their own apps and web sites generally speaking do not have to be licensed as insurance agents or brokers.

At the same time, the insurer said it recognizes that rules may vary by state and it knows it may have to vary its program in some cases as it expands around the country.

We have a carefully developed a thorough program of compliance that is designed to ensure that we do not pay commissions to unlicensed persons and to forbid those who integrate with our APIs from selling, soliciting or negotiating insurance, the company said in response to questioning by Insurance Journal. A few key state regulators have raised these issues with us but after we reveal the factual details of our program, they have been satisfied,

The question of whether firms that use the insurers API need to be licensed arose after Lemonade reported it had launched a public API (application programming interface), allowing other businesses and organizations to offer its renters and home insurance policies through their apps or web sites.

A few weeks later, Lemonade reported that more than 400 businesses had applied within the first 24 hours of it offering to make its sales platform widely available. More than 40 percent were firms related to real estate and another 28 percent were in financial services.

The company told Insurance Journal that it is rolling out the API program slowly, using an automated system to distinguish among applicants. It is using various criteria to determine which businesses to work with including the target markets of the businesses applying, whether they are in the seven states where Lemonade currently sells insurance and whether offering renters and home insurance is compatible with their focus.

Questions Raised

Insurance Journal editors received several inquiries and several readers posted online comments on the issue of licensing. A number of responders maintained that if the API adopters are selling or being paid, they must be licensed. Lemonade says it is taking measures to assure the adopters are not selling insurance and that they are not receiving commissions if they are unlicensed.

Insurance departments in New York, Texas and California told Insurance Journal they are aware of Lemonades plan and are looking into the details.

State agent association leaders are in a similar position of awaiting more details. One executive said he thought that if there is no payment for the referrals or clicks, no license is needed. Another likened it to simply advertising on the site. One said it would even be alright for Lemonade to pay a referral fee for every lead but that it cant offer a fee only for referrals that result in a purchase.

Lemonade said the documentation on its developer web site provides rules and guidance in keeping with its approach of not paying commissions.

New York-based Lemonade is a licensed carrier that is currently offering renters, condo and homeowners insurance in New York, California, New Jersey, and Nevada; renters and condo insurance in Texas and Rhode Island; and renters insurance in Illinois and Ohio.

Under the API program, real estate brokers and landlords can deploy the Lemonade API to offer renters insurance to their customers after they select the apartment they want to rent.

Lemonade also sells coverage for what it calls stuffcameras, bikes and other items. In these cases, if someone buys a bike, the Lemonade message to buy insurance for the new wheels would pop up on the buyers screen at the time of purchase.

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Topics Carriers New York
Uber Technologies Inc. and a woman who accused top executives of improperly obtaining her medical records after a company driver raped her in India have agreed to settle a civil lawsuit the woman filed against Uber in June, according to a U.S. federal court filing on Friday.

The Uber driver was convicted of the rape, which occurred in Delhi in 2014, in a criminal case in India. He was sentenced in 2015 to life in prison.

The Indian woman had previously settled a civil U.S. lawsuit against Uber in 2015, but sued the company again in a San Francisco federal court saying that shortly after the incident, a U.S. Uber executive met with Delhi police and intentionally obtained plaintiffs confidential medical records. Uber kept a copy of those records, the lawsuit said.

The woman was living in the United States when she filed the lawsuit.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed in the court document. A spokesman for San Francisco-based Uber declined to comment. An attorney for the woman could not immediately be reached for comment.

The settlement comes as new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, who took the top job in August, is seeking to put several scandals behind the company following eight years of CEO Travis Kalanicks pugnacious leadership, which led to rule-breaking around the world.

The lawsuit cited several media reports that said Kalanick and others doubted the victims account of her ordeal.

Uber executives duplicitously and publicly decried the rape, expressing sympathy for plaintiff, and shock and regret at the violent attack, while privately speculating, as outlandish as it is, that she had colluded with a rival company to harm Ubers business, the lawsuit said.

A source with knowledge of the matter previously told Reuters that Kalanick had told other Uber executives he believed the incident had been staged by Indian ride-services rival Ola.

In a prior statement, while Kalanick was CEO, Uber said: No one should have to go through a horrific experience like this, and were truly sorry that shes had to relive it.

A spokesman for Kalanick was not immediately available for comment on Friday.

Ubers actions have led to a criminal probe by the U.S. Department of Justice of whether managers violated U.S. bribery laws, specifically the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the company said in June.

The Justice Department did not say on what country or countries the investigation centered on. Bloomberg said it focused on activity in at least five Asian countries. Uber has also notified U.S. authorities about payments made by Uber staff to police officers in Indonesia, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Uber previously hired law firm OMelveny & Myers LLP to investigate how it obtained the medical records of the rape victim, Reuters reported in June.

(Reporting by Dan Levine and Heather Somerville in San Francisco; Editing by Richard Chang and Sandra Maler)

Topics Lawsuits USA Personal Auto
McKesson Corp.s board failed to audit the companys system to spot suspicious shipments of opioid-based painkillers even after agreeing to do so as part of a settlement, according to a summary of board minutes unsealed Friday in a shareholder lawsuit.

The suit, filed in October, alleges that McKesson directors paid scant attention to oversight of opioid sales after a 2008 settlement centering on the companys insufficient monitoring of such shipments. The directors also disclaimed any responsibility for the growing opioid epidemic, seeing it as a matter of public policy to be addressed by the federal and state governments, the investor said in another unsealed portion of the complaint.

Delaware Chancery Judge Sam Glasscock III ordered the entire complaint to be made public, including excerpts of minutes from board and audit committee meetings, after large sections were filed confidentially.

The lawsuit takes aim at 10 current and former executives and directors who were at the nations biggest drug distributor as the opioid epidemic intensified. Painkillers claim a life every 19 minutes, according to the U.S surgeon general, and McKesson faces dozens of suits from cities, counties and states over shipments of such drugs.

With this new disclosure, pressure is now squarely on the special independent committee to clean house, otherwise shareholders are going to take matters into their own hands, Ken Hall, general secretary-treasurer for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a McKesson investor, said in a statement. It is patently clear this board has failed its shareholders, its employees and the American public.

Overseeing Compliance

The defendants include Andy Bryant, Wayne Budd, Alton Irby, Marie Knowles and Jane Shaw, who have all served on the boards audit committee, which is responsible for overseeing compliance with regulators and efforts to control and mitigate risk. Former director David Lawrence, Chief Executive Officer John Hammergren, former General Counsel Lauren Seeger, lead independent director Edward Mueller and M. Christine Jacobs, the boards longest-serving member, are also defendants. Last month, the group filed a motion to dismiss the case.

The claims are unproven allegations, not judicial determinations of fact, McKesson spokeswoman Kristin Hunter Chasen said in an emailed statement. The complaint contains numerous defects, which we will address through the legal process.

The lawsuit, filed by lawyers for McKesson shareholder Chalie Steinberg, says otherwise. The complaint notes federal prosecutors started investigating the drug distributor in 2005 over its filling of suspicious opioid orders from illegal internet pharmacies.

Suspicious Orders

Prosecutors alleged McKesson filled orders for online pharmacies even though the firms didnt require patients to have valid prescriptions and also sent suspiciously large shipments to regular pharmacies and clinics. Federal law requires drug distributors to report orders of unusual size or frequency, or that deviate from a buyers usual pattern, to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

As a result, millions of dosage units of controlled substances were diverted from legitimate channels of distribution, the plaintiff alleged in the complaint.

On May 2, 2008, McKesson agreed to pay $13.3 million to settle the allegations and to strengthen its controls by implementing a three-tiered system that would flag buyers who exceeded monthly thresholds for opioids, without admitting or denying wrongdoing.

Those promises werent kept, the plaintiff said. Five months after the 2008 settlement, the boards audit committee was notified of serious deficiencies in its system to spot suspicious opioid shipments, according to the newly unsealed passages. Some customers hadnt yet been assigned thresholds for large orders that would trigger a review, and there was insufficient documentation to back up decisions to alter such limits for existing customers, according to a summary of findings by McKessons internal auditors.

Foot Traffic

Still, the board didnt discuss the compliance system or request another review until 2013, the summary of meeting minutes shows. By then, inspections of some of McKessons distribution facilities in 2013 found the company did not fully implement or adhere to its own compliance program, the plaintiff has claimed.

Employees repeatedly ignored suspicious orders, even those from pharmacies that had triggered the 2008 probe, according to the complaint. McKesson would honor pharmacies requests for increased shipments of opioid painkillers based on rationales such as more foot traffic or more business on holidays.

In 2013, the DEA subpoenaed records of shipments from McKesson warehouses, regulatory filings show. By 2014, U.S. attorneys from across the country were investigating the companys distribution of painkillers.

The findings forced McKesson to admit that it failed to report certain opioid shipments to the DEA and sign another settlement with the government this year that included tougher and verifiable compliance responsibilities, as well as a $150 million fine.

Large Quantities

The companys $198.5 billion in annual revenue last fiscal year was fourth-highest among U.S. businesses and more than Exxon Mobil Corp.s, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Its profit topped $5 billion. Drug distributors purchase large quantities of drugs from manufacturers and sell them to dispensers such as pharmacies and hospitals. McKesson and rivals AmerisourceBergen Corp. and Cardinal Health Inc. ship the vast majority of all drugs in the U.S.

McKesson shares climbed 1.8 percent to $152.66 at 12:10 p.m. in New York. The stock has gained 8.8 percent this year, trailing the 20 percent advance for the 62-company S&P 500 Health Care Index.

Earlier this year, McKesson said it will appoint an independent chairman whenever Hammergren steps down as CEO, after a Teamsters proposal to split the roles received 40 percent support in a shareholder vote.

The case is Steinberg v. Bryant, 2017-0736, Delaware Court of Chancery.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.

Topics Lawsuits Drugs
A Texas pilot who survived a 2012 Gulf of Mexico plane crash and used an iPad to record his time in the water acknowledges it was insurance-related fraud.

Theodore Robert Wright III pleaded guilty on Dec. 7 in Tyler to conspiring to commit wire fraud and conspiring to commit arson. He faces up to 40 years in federal prison.

Prosecutors say Wright and three others  whove also pleaded guilty  bought planes, boats and cars, over-insured them and destroyed the vehicles to collect cash.

Wright in October 2012 appeared on NBCs Today show to describe a crash a month earlier on a flight from Baytown, Texas, to Sarasota, Florida. The plane crashed off Louisiana.

Wright, whos a native of Port Kent, New York, used his iPad to record the ordeal before rescued.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Texas Fraud Mexico
Atlas Insurance Management, a captive insurance management firm, has hired Gail Olsen as senior vice president  Finance & Compliance. Based in the firms Charlotte, N.C., office, Olsen brings to Atlas over 25 years of experience as a finance executive in a variety of industries.

Before joining Atlas, Olsen worked for NorthGate, a family-owned packaging, warehousing and reverse logistics company, where she was responsible for improved cash flow, process improvements, risk management, best practices and cross-training. In this role, Olsen also helped NorthGate achieve ISO certification. Prior to that, she worked for Teramu Cardiovascular Systems, Inc., a cardiovascular implant development company, and integrated the newly acquired Scottish manufacturing division into the existing operations.

At Atlas, Olsen will be in charge of finance, human resources, information technology and compliance. Reporting to Executive Vice President Elaine Tapp, Olsens responsibilities include streamlining processes and reporting to improve efficiency, financial performance and profitability; creating an effective employee development program; and developing the risk management and compliance program.

Atlas Insurance Management is an independent insurance management firm, providing captive insurance consulting, formation and management services in the major U.S. and offshore domiciles. Atlas operates offices in Charlotte, N.C. and the Cayman Islands.

Topics North Carolina
Officials say 41 students in Kentucky have been injured in a crash involving three school buses.

Jefferson County Public Schools spokesman Daniel Kemp told news outlets the crash happened Thursday morning on a highway in Louisville as the students were being transported to three different schools. He said student injuries appear to be minor.

Louisville Metro Police spokesman Dwight Mitchell said two buses were stopped in traffic when a third bus hit one and caused it to hit the other.

The school districts transportation director, Randy Frantz, said another bus was sent to take uninjured students on to school.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Kentucky
By Lakshana N Palat: Sonam Kapoor recently revealed that she rejected a film, as the makers were offering her a measly fee. Without naming the film, Sonam shared that the producers did not have enough money as their last film with a big star had failed. She said she did not deserve this, as she had been a successful name in the industry for the past 10 years.

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"I WAS BEING PAID SH*IT"

"Recently I was offered a project, which I was excited for, but the money being paid was shit. I made a call and said, this is very disrespectful. There was shock on the other side. I told them, you put me in a position after being ten years in the industry, after giving the most profitable film Neerja a year ago, so please tell me why is it that this is what you decided to give me," she said in an interview to Indian Express.

She added, "They were like 'Our last film with so-and-so star didn't do well so we don't have that much money.' I was like, because of this xyz star whose film didn't do well, the one person whose film actually did very well you want to underpay me to pay this 'star' more? I told them to move on and get someone else as frankly it was very disheartening."

STIFF COMPETITION

The Neerja actress also explained that due to stiff competition in the industry, there were times when she took a stand and rejected a film owing to a meager fee, some other actresses offered to work on an even lesser fee. This creates hurdles in her fight to achieve equal space for actresses."There's too much competition. If I am saying 'I am not going to do this' and take a stand, there'll be another woman who will say 'it's okay I'll do it for this much.' The point is, we need to stick together, be together. That is not going to happen if you're constantly trying to pull each other down. It's a very difficult upward climb," she said.

Sonam is not the first to speak out against the pay disparity in Bollywood, and definitely not the last.

A GLOBAL ISSUE

Pay gap is a universal problem. Last year, Patricia Arquette said in her acceptance speech at the Oscars, "It's time to wage equality, for once and for all."

Following this, Hollywood actresses like Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence echoed this sentiment, and discussed the issue at length. Ever after three Oscar wins, Meryl Streep said that she gets paid less than her male co-stars.

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Though Jennifer Lawrence has proved her worth as an actress with films like the Hunger Games franchise, and Silver Linings Playbook, it was revealed that she received 7 percent, two points less than the lead actors, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, and Jeremy Runner.

Jennifer said, "When I found out how much less I was being paid than the lucky people with dicks, I didn't get mad. I got mad at myself. I failed as a negotiator because I gave up early."

Diane Keaton did not receive back-end pay for her role in Something's Gotta Give, while Jack Nicholson did.

WHAT THE BOLLYWOOD ACTRESSES SAY

Anushka Sharma called out the ever-widening disparities in an interview last year. She said, "If there's an actor at the same stature as me, who'd be able to bring in only that much money to a film, he'll still get paid more than me, because he's a guy. Nobody's even thinking about it, it's just ingrained."

Vidya Balan has been one of the strongest voices, with regard to pay gap. She had said clearly that she wishes to eliminate the male-female disparity in Bollywood, with special reference to the pay gap. She has asserted more than once, that women deserve to be paid better in commercial films. "We were always part of a male-dominated society. But now with films and TV, there seems to be a prominent shift now and perhaps it is going to be a female-dominated society," she said, in an interview last year.

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Sonakshi Sinha has worked hard to keep away from male-dominated films, by doing Akira and Noor. "The only thing I can think of changing in Bollywood right now is the pay disparity because we're working in this day and age where films revolving around women are being made," she said earlier this year.

The 29-year-old actress asserted that if an actress can carry an entire film on her own, she should be given the remuneration she rightfully deserves. "If a filmmaker shows that kind of trust in a woman, and if she brings the returns, you can and should give her the pay that you give to the men."

PUTTING IT DOWN TO NUMBERS

If you compare the fees of male stars to the females, there is a staggering difference. While Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan earn above Rs 40 crore, leading actresses like Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor Khan earn a shockingly low amount, compared to them.

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Let's put it down to cold numbers. Deepika earns around Rs 14-16 crore, and that's only after Bajirao Mastani 's phenomenal success. Despite all her Hollywood glory, Priyanka earns Rs 9-10 crores, and Kareena gets Rs 8-9 crores per film. Vidya Balan earns 7-8 crore, and Alia Bhatt earns Rs 4-5 crore. Till 2015, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan got around Rs 7 crores.

Despite Kangana Ranaut's Queen crossing Rs 100 crore at the box-office, she still got only Rs 11 crore for Simran .

Let's remind ourselves, that these are leading ladies, who have established themselves in the industry and are stars, just like the actors. For crying out loud, Varun Dhawan has hiked his fee to Rs 25 crore now, and he and Alia joined at the same time.

ALSO WATCH: Exclusive: Sonam Kapoor says Neerja helped conquer her own fears

--- ENDS ---
New Mexicos congressional delegation is asking the federal government for help as a Native American community in the state is recovering from the effects of severe weather and flooding.

The delegation says a storm in early October damaged roads, bridges and sewer lines at Acoma Pueblo.

They also say debris and wreckage piled up after the storm created treacherous driving conditions along a 10-mile stretch, isolating part of the pueblos lands.

In a letter sent last week to President Donald Trump, the lawmakers said the conditions affected members throughout the rural community, including those looking to gather firewood to heat their homes and ranchers who wanted to ensure their cattle had feed.

The pueblos request for a disaster declaration states that damages have been assessed at $2 million.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Flood Mexico New Mexico
By Ann OLoughlin

A senior officer with the Defence Forces has launched a High Court challenge over what he says is the States refusal to provide him with a report following an independent review into his claims of alleged corruption and misconduct.

The action has been brought by Lieutenant Col. Jerry Lane who claims he raised genuine concerns that preferential treatment was being afforded to another member of the Defence Forces to the detriment of others.

Lt Col Lane, from Bandon in Cork made a protected disclosure to members of Seanad Eireann regarding his concerns. The issues were raised in the Seanad in 2011.

Arising out of the disclosure Lt Col. Lane claims he was subjected to a range of penalties including the alleged threat of dismissal and involuntary retirement from the Defence Forces, but these were subsequently set aside.

The Minister for Defence in 2016 appointed a senior counsel to conduct an independent review into Lt Col. Lanes allegations.

At the High Court today Thomas Creed SC, for Lt Col Lane, told Mr Justice Seamus Noonan the officer co-operated with the investigation and furnished a 137 page submission.

He did raise some issues with the Minister for Defence but at no stage did he ask for the review to be terminated.

He sought a copy of the report, and when it was not forthcoming Lt Col. Lane wrote to the former Taoiseach Enda Kenny seeking his intervention.

Counsel said his client was informed last June the report would not be published and would be kept in a sealed file.

A fresh review into the allegations is to be conducted by Mr Frank Callanan SC.

Counsel said Lt Col. Lane wants to have sight of the first report and any findings or conclusions.

The decision to refuse to give it to Lt Col. Lane breaches his constitutional rights and was in breach of fair procedures, counsel added.

The decision to refuse him access and proceed with a fresh review was also irrational and , unfair, it was further submitted.

In his action against the Minister for Defence, Ireland and the Attorney General, Lt Col Lane seeks an order quashing the refusal to provide him with a copy of the first report, and says he wants to be given the report.

He also seeks damages and a declaration the respondents have have acted unlawfully and in excess of jurisdiction by failing to provide him with a copy of the report of the first independent review.

Permission to bring the application was granted on an ex-parte basis by Mr Justice Noonan.

The case will come back before the court in February.
Irish Examiner Editorial

WHEN most of us think of todays Germany, we picture a united and unified country that enjoys widespread prosperity as a result of being the economic powerhouse of Europe.

We might imagine that, unlike countries in southern Europe, there is little by way of widespread disparity in wealth and that it is a very equal society.

In fact, as a recent extraordinary auction reveals, there are huge economic inequalities in the country. The whole village of Alwine has just been sold for 140,000. It is only 120km from Berlin but it has no local industry and few jobs.

Alwine is not the only poor community in eastern Germany, which still lags behind the west in prosperity, wages, and jobs, with a per capita GDP that is less than 70% of that in western states.

Little wonder that Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was born in East Germany, shows little sympathy for other European states that suffered harshly during the recession and who blame Germany for the EUs austerity policy.

Germans also endured austerity but it was self-imposed and before the recession. In 2002, the government brought in measures to boost competitiveness. These consisted of sharp cuts to unemployment benefits, making labour more flexible by weakening the trade unions, reducing social security and pensions, and raising the age of retirement from 65 to 67.

Inequality abides  even in Germany.
In Person Rohingya Refugee Crisis: Its Not Muslims vs. Buddhists, Says Writer Bertil Lintner

Bertil Lintner in Yangon during his visit to The Irrawaddy office in 2013. / The Irrawaddy

Bertil Lintner, former Myanmar correspondent of the now-defunct newsmagazine Far Eastern Review, first visited the country at the age of 24 in 1977. He spent most of the next three decades reporting on the excesses of military rule, which stretched from 1962 to 2010.

Linters work got him banned by the Myanmar military in 1985. Defying the ban, he snuck into the country from the Naga Hills in Indian territory along with his wife, Hseng Noung, an ethnic Shan from Myanmar, who had just given birth to their daughter. They spent the next 18 months travelling in Shan and Kachin states to finally reach China, braving not only inhospitable territory but also various armed ethnic groups.

The result was the book Land of Jade: A Journey from India through Northern Burma to China, considered one of the most insightful works on Myanmars many ethnic groups and conflicts. The Swedish journalist is the author of several books on Southeast Asia and its politics. He spoke to Scroll.in on the Rohingya refugee crisis and what it means for India and the region.

Excerpts from the interview:

As a long-time observer of Myanmar, what do you make of the current crisis?

Well, it is not a new issue. Basically, there are two questions here. One is of illegal immigration  whether it is real or imagined. And the other is the question of Islamic militancy. On Aug. 25, this group that calls itself the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army in English attacked police posts in Rakhine state. That provoked a massive response from Myanmars security forces. More than 600,000 Rohingyas have since fled to Bangladesh.

Of course, the humanitarian aspect is very important here. People have been subjected to enormous brutality by the Myanmar Army. But it does not really stop there. Following the military crackdown, a spokesperson for the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army actually said in an interview that the attacks were aimed to invoke a response.

What do they gain form it? One, international attention. Two, more money from funders in West Asia, mainly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. And three, they can expect many more angry young men to join them. Maybe they got a little more than they had bargained for.

They may not have anticipated such a vicious response from the army, but they have achieved all those three aims, I would say. And, of course, the people who are suffering are these ordinary people, poor Muslim peasants from the northwestern corner of Rakhine State. And they have now become pawns in a much larger game.

But there seems to be enough evidence to suggest the Rohingyas in Myanmar have been subjected to systematic oppression for years. Myanmar does not even recognize the Rohingyas as an ethnic community. Doesnt that point to a deliberate attempt to undermine the legitimacy of a community that has lived in the country for a long time?

Yes and no. There have been Muslims living there for a long time. That is for certain. If you look at the nature of that area, that is where the Indian subcontinent ends and Southeast Asia begins. There is the Naf River, which is now the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar. For centuries, there have been Muslims and Buddhists living on both sides of the river. There was nothing wrong at all. And there have been Muslims living in the northwestern corner of Rakhine State for a long time. There is no question about that at all.

Then during the British era, a Muslim population of laborers were brought into that area from the other side of the river. But they were not called Rohingya. They were called Chittagonians. Yes, there is a document by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton from 1799 that uses the word, but there is only one.

Hamilton was sent by the East India committee on a mission to Burma. But he never went to Rakhine State. He went to Awa and Amarapura, cities near what is now Mandalay. There he met people from Arakan [as Rakhine was called earlier] who called themselves Rohingyas. After that there is no reference to the word for almost 150 years.

But that does not make it wrong for anyone to use it, of course. However, the question of having a separate identity for Muslims in the northwestern part of Rakhine who speak a Chittagonian dialect of Bengali is a new concept. You must remember that not all Muslims, even in Rakhine state, identify themselves as Rohingya. The people who do have also obviously been there for a long time. The identity, though, has been used for political benefit by radical groups. And it seems only recently that a lot of these people have started identifying as Rohingya.

How recently?

A couple of years ago, for some of them. Actually, it was in the 1990s that it really became popular.

But back in the 1950s, the Burmese government used the term Rohingya.

Yes, they did, but you must also remember that not all of them were happy about that term. After independence in 1948, there was a Muslim rebellion in the northwestern corner of Rakhine State. But even at the time, the rebels did not call themselves Rohingyas, they called themselves mujaheeds [fighters]. They wanted to join East Pakistan. That rebellion sort of fizzled out.

Then, during the 1950s, some of these people started calling themselves Rohingyas, but not everyone. It was believed to have a separatist tinge to it. If you look at pro-Rohingya literature, they say there were several Rohingya ministers in the government in the 1950s. That is not true. There was actually one from that part of the country  Sultan Mahmud. He was a Muslim. But he did not call himself a Rohingya. He called himself an Arakanese Muslim. Also, U Nu, who was the prime minister then, wanted Muslim votes. That was one reason why he promoted that term.

Irrespective of what the situation was in the 1950s, a large section of the Muslim population in Rakhine identifies itself as Rohingya now, and have been persecuted. How would you explain that?

First of all, you have to realize that Burma has a big Muslim population. Most Muslims live in urban areas. They own businesses, have Burmese names and speak Burmese, and they are Burmese citizens. Muslims have a long history and have played an important role in the country. U Razak, a Muslim leader in the 1940s, was assassinated with Aung San [premier of the British colony of Burma] and is considered a martyr. Another leading Burmese Muslim was U Raschid, who was born in Allahabad. He was a highly respected student leader in the 1930s. Then there was Upi U Pe Khin, the leading architect of the Panglong Agreement [a 1947 treaty that established autonomy in the internal administration of the Shan, Chin and Kachin people in what was then called the Frontier Areas].

So, it is not Muslims versus Buddhists. The Rohingyas are different, though. They do not speak Burmese. They speak a Chittagonian dialect of Bengali spoken on the other side of the border in Bangladesh. So, a majority of Burmese people see them as illegal. That is unfair, though, because most of them have been living in Rakhine for a really long time.

You had written earlier that the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army leaders and extremist group links point towards a wider regional agenda. Why do you say so?

The name itself. In their dialect, they call themselves Harakah al-Yaqin, which translates into the faith movement. If you are an ethno-nationalistic group you do not call yourself a faith movement. Also, the leader of this group, whose name is Ataullah Abu Ammar Junjuni, is not from Rakhine. He was born in Karachi [Pakistan]. He later lived in Saudi Arabia where he was an imam. Sometime around 2012, he started to get interested in the issue. His parents are most probably from Rakhine State; he is not.

So, he does trace his ancestry to the region then.

Yes, sure. I have been listening to some of his tapes. He cannot pronounce the name of a single place in Rakhine State correctly. He speaks a Chittagonian dialect of Bengali peppered with Urdu words. Most of his close associates in the organization are also from either Karachi or Bangladesh.

Apart from that, are the groups methods any different from other ethno-nationalist insurgent groups in Myanmar?

Well, all the other ethno-nationalist insurgent groups in the country operate more or less like the traditional army. All of them are dressed in uniforms, they have ranks, they are organized in platoons and companies and brigades. They carry automatic rifles or machine guns.

The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Armys methods are very different, the August attack demonstrated, as did their earlier attack in October 2016. They basically mobilize hundreds of villagers, surround their targets and give an impression that they are many more than they actually are. They have very few firearms. They mostly have daggers, spears, knives. Their ways are much more similar to the Maoist groups in Nepal and central India than any other ethnic group in Myanmar.

What would the strength of the group be in your estimate?

We do not really know. Before Aug. 25, the strength was in the hundreds. Maybe 500-600 organized cadre who had received some training in camps in Bangladesh. The trainers were all Afghan war veterans. A lot of them, around 150, are regarded as foreigners, including Bangladeshis. In addition, some of their fighters are from Pakistan, Indonesia, two from Uzbekistan, and a few who identify themselves as Malays, but we do not know if they are from Malaysia or southern Thailand.

If they are a motley group of people who are probably not even from Rakhine, what brought them together to fight for an independent Rakhine State?

Well, the rank and file of the group does include several local recruits. There are angry young men who are fed up of being treated the way they have been treated for years. But why would Pakistani and Uzbeks and Malays come there? Those guys are actually talking about a jihad.

Do they enjoy popular support among people in the region who identify themselves as Rohingya?

Not much. I think it is very divided. They are blaming the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army for the Aug. 25 attack. They are saying, Why did you do it, why did you provoke them?

One must note that the timing of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army was well thought out. The Kofi Annan committee report on the crisis, which actually criticized the Myanmarese state, had just come out a few hours ago. The attacks completely killed the report. It was by no means a coincidence. They want a more militarized space. So, on one hand, while people are blaming them for provoking the army, on the other, a lot of angry young men have turned to them as they had hoped.

The Western media has been particularly critical of Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyis handling of the crisis. What would you say?

Although Myanmar had fair elections in 2015, the military is still in the driving seat with three important ministries in its hands. What is happening is completely out of her hands. So, she really cannot do much in terms of ordering anyone. The military takes orders from its commander-in-chief, not from any elected leader.

She has to tread a really delicate balance. Lets say she came out for the Rohingyas. It would be political suicide. It is clear where most of her electorate stands on the matter. If she came out in support of the hardline Arakan National Party, she would get flak from the Western press. If she does not do anything, she would get flak too, as she has. It is an extremely delicate situation for her.

The only thing she could have done but has not is that she could have gone to Sittwe [the capital of Rakhine state] and met some elected politicians. She does not like the leaders of the Arakan National Party, so she will not do that. But she had to just show that there is a civilian space in Rakhine too. She did not have to say anything, she could have gone to a hospital, met people from all communities. In the process, she could have widened a very limited civilian space.

Unlike many Western democracies, Indias response to the crisis in Rakhine has not been of outright condemnation. Is that right on the Indian governments part?

Right or not is not for me to say, but Myanmars two most important neighbors, China and India, have not joined in the Western condemnation. That is obviously for strategic reasons. For China, Myanmar is important for its access to the Indian Ocean. For India, the country is the gateway to Southeast Asia.

The Indian government has taken a very hardline stance on Rohingya refugees of late. It has even suggested that the Rohingyas could be a security threat. What do you make of that?

It is probably motivated by security concerns. Are they a security risk currently? There is so far no evidence to say that. So, not really. But with almost 800,000 refugees in Bangladesh, where are they going to go? Bangladesh is already overpopulated. There is only one slightly less populated area, and that is the Chittagong Hill Tracts. And if my information is correct, the Chakmas and Marmas, both Buddhist communities, are very worried.

What does the crisis mean for South Asia?

It is probably a little early to say. Suddenly you have a huge refugee community in the area. It is no secret that a large number of extremist Islamic groups are looking to take advantage. Groups in Indonesia, Bangladesh and Pakistan have been fishing around for recruitment opportunities. If there is a militant response, it could have a very adverse impact on the region.

Also, it is important to remember that there are elections in Bangladesh very soon. Remember that Bangladesh once offered to do joint operations with the Myanmar Army against Rohingya rebels and had initially even refused to take in Rohingya refugees. But when the trickle became a tsunami, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League government changed their stance. This was to prevent the fundamentalist Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami party from exploiting the situation.

If the Bangladesh Nationalist Party comes to power with support from the Jamaat, which is known to be close to Rohingya insurgents, there could be a serious security concern. That is why Sheikh Hasina is so eager to show that she is on the side of the refugees.

What do you make of the recent repatriation agreement between Myanmar and Bangladesh?

Oh, that is play for the galleries. It is not going to happen. First of all, there has to be verification. And most of these people have no such papers. The other reason is: Do they want to come back? I think the brutality the army unleashed was meant to ensure that these people never come back. And what will they come back to? Their houses are all burnt down.

Do you see a solution to the crisis in the near future?

That is the big question. I do not know, to be honest. Can they stay in Bangladesh? Yes, they can, but that may mean trouble in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. A third country? Who will accept them?

This interview first appeared on Scroll.in.
Burma AA Chief Urges Arakanese Not to Fall into Army Trap in Rakhine

AA chief Tun Myat Naing. / The Irrawaddy

The head of the Arakan Army (AA) has called on the Arakanese people not to let their emotions lead them to become involved in the conflict in Rahkine State.

AA chief Tun Myat Naing spoke for 20 minutes in a video posted on the AAs Facebook page in which he described the conflict between Muslims and the Myanmar Army in Rakhine as a political trap. The video has attracted more than 200,000 views.

The enemy has surrounded our Arakan land, Tun Myat Naing said, referring to the Myanmar Army in Rakhine.There are many conflicts in Arakan. For example, the problem of the Kalar (a derogatory term used against those of South Asian descent, and as an anti-Muslim slur) is a political trap for us. It has divided our people. We give warning to our people. This is a sensitive issue, and we should not become involved emotionally, he said.

Whenever there has been a conflict with the Kalar, they [the Myanmar Army] have wanted to create a split between the AA and the world. They have tried to lead us into an international trap,he said.

Tun Myat Naing said he had warned the leaders of the AA as well not to become entangled in the Kalar conflict. The Myanmar Army is the only party mixed up in this fight. They are the ones who took our land and our natural resources. They are the ones who are involved in this current conflict. But, they have tried to trap us and drag us into it as well, he said.

The AA intends to protect the land of Arakan and the Arakanese people, but the rebel group will stay on the sidelines whenever conflict breaks out between Muslims and the Myanmar Army in Rakhine State, he said. This has prompted some people to criticize the AA. But we need to be careful with our political stand. They [the Myanmar army] attacked those Kalar with the intention of protecting the land for themselves and to keep it for themselves. It was not to defend our people. Our people must understand this, Tun Myat Naing, said.

The AA chief said that some people have come to question the AA, asking why it had not returned to protect our land.

For our side, we have enough armed forces to protect Buthidaung and Maungdaw even though we do not have enough to protect the whole of Arakan, Tun Myat Naing said.

When our AA did not get involved in the Kalar conflict, to avoid this trap, some of our people may have misunderstood our viewpoint.

He said that some Myanmar military leaders who were also members of the government had repeatedly claimed the AA had an alliance with the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), the Islamist group whose attacks against government outposts in August triggered the latest crisis in Rakhine.

They do not have it in their minds to solve this conflict, which needs a political solution. They stir up trouble all the time as they do not want to solve this political conflict through political means. For our Arakanese people, we need to solve this conflict by staying united. We need to overcome this problem by working together as a unified force.

The AA is an armed ethnic group has its origins in Rahkine State, but is based in Laiza in Kachin State. The AA established an armed force in 2009, and has said it planned to return to its homeland since 2014.

The AA has widespread support among the Arakanese despite a crackdown by the Myanmar Army that has seen dozens of people arrested and imprisoned on charges of unlawful association.

Since they were formed as an armed group the AAs stated intention has been to return the motherland to the Arakan people. It has used the Paletwa region as a staging area for its operations.

Tun Myat Naing asked his Arakanese people to treat ethnic Chin people who live on Arakan land better despite the Chins dislike for his armys base in Paletwa.

Paletwa is an important territory for the AA as we have our political base there, and we can get food for out troops to survive there. It is important to avoid having conflict or arguments in the area. We should not attack ethnic Chin people who stay in Arakan. We should all stay united and stay together with them. We need to treat them like brothers. There are bad and good people in every ethnic group. The Chin who stay in Arakan do not have to be worried about their security, he said.

Fighting between the AA and Myanmar Army broke out in Paletwa and Myeik Wa near the Indian border in the first week of November, and has continued for 40 days, according to the AA.

Our Arakan dream is that we will take back Arakan in 2020. This message is for our people. Everyone needs to have this dream. It is important for our people to follow your duty to fight to take back your land. It will not be easy to win back our land and to build a new home. We need to do it systematically, thus we will collectively commence our national movement in pursuit of our national objectives Tun Myat Naing said.
Burma Police Hunt for Triple-murder Suspect in Irrawaddys Myaungmya

The house where the triple murder took place. / Irrawaddy Region Police Force

PATHEIN  Police are hunting for a man suspected of killing his wife and two other relatives in a village in Irrawaddy Regions Myaungmya Township on Sunday.

The suspect, identified as Than Zaw, allegedly knifed to death his wife, nephew and mother-in-law and injured his sister-law at his house in Taungkalay village on Sunday evening, police said.

Than Zaw fled after the murders. The deputy regional police chief is overseeing the search operation in Myaungmya, Irrawaddy Region Police spokesperson Police Lt-Col Khin Maung Latt told The Irrawaddy.

Police said Than Zaw went on a killing spree after a quarrel with his 33-year-old wife, who died at the scene along with the mans 10-year-old nephew, who happened to be playing at the house, and his 60-year-old mother-in-law.

The mans sister-in-law, who reportedly tried to stop the attack, sustained two knife wounds to the head and was in stable condition at Myaungmya Peoples Hospital.

He is just hiding out of fear. He wont be able to hide long without food. We are tracking him down and have blocked all possible escape routes. Well get him soon, Police Lt-Col Khin Maung Latt said.

Police have opened proceedings to charge Than Zaw with murder and causing serious injury.

The crime was similar to an incident in Bogale Townships Khaing Shwe War village in October, in which an angry husband killed his wife and three stepchildren with a knife.
Burma Stakeholders Call for Economy to be Top Priority

U Myint, March 2017. / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  U Myint, the former chief economic advisor to the previous administration, urged State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to set economic development as a top priority together with peace building.

During his keynote address to the second Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) Convention in Yangon on Dec. 9, he requested that the State Counselor pay greater attention to Myanmars economic issues.

He said the expectations of business people and potential investors are uncertain, as they have difficulty deciphering the governments economic policies or growth strategy.

He offered his recommendations based on feedback he had received from stakeholders. He currently serves as an economic adviser to the UMFCCI.

He stated that the real world in which people are living and the statistical world that exists in reports need to be reconciled and that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi could restore growth and vitality to the country and take it from pause mode to fast forward.

Also referring to the gross domestic products of various Asean countries, the economist said that Myanmar must try harder to increase GDP relative to its neighbors, as it currently was second from the bottom only above Cambodia.

Laos ranks one position above Myanmar in GDP, but he said that the prospect of catching up during the remainder of this NLD term seems rather slim.

He encouraged the state counselor to hold frequent meetings with NLD economic advisers, as well as other stakeholders.

Please encourage and allow more opportunities for them to speak freely and frankly. Their views should be given consideration in making decisions, he said.

He also urged for the drafting of a strategy to promote economic growth called the Myanmar Economic Vision. He called for it to be a formal legal document that would be submitted to Parliament.

In his draft strategy, he outlined that the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Army) would play a critical role, as its cooperation and support are essential to achieving the goals set in the MEV. He also encouraged the sharing of views between other key players, including political parties and all Myanmar nationals.

More than 100 representatives from the private business sector across Myanmar participated in the UMFCCI convention, where they decided on a list of recommendations to strengthen the economy and further connectivity between stakeholders.

A statement posted on the UMFCCI Facebook page said it would deliver these recommendations, as well as U Myints, to the government as soon as possible.

For economic development, it is not only the governments responsibility. At our conference, we discussed and agreed to do the tasks that we in the private sector can do, said U Zaw Min Win, UMFCCI chairman.
Burma USDP Tries to Regain Public Trust Through Constructive Criticism of NLD

USDP spokesperson Dr. Nandar Hla Myint. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYITAW  The opposition Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) will constructively criticize the National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government rather than view it as a rival, said Dr. Nandar Hla Myint, a USDP spokesperson.

The NLD government today of course has shortcomings. Citizens and political parties should point out, criticize and help as necessary by putting the interests of the country and the people at the fore. This is the policy our party is pursuing, the spokesperson told reporters in Naypyitaw on Friday.

The USDP, which was formerly a so-called public association known as the Union Solidarity and Development Association, was established by ex-military leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe in 1993 while the country was under military rule.

It transformed itself into a political party in 2010 to contest the general elections held according to the military-drafted 2008 Constitution. The USDP won the majority of seats in Parliament, as the NLD boycotted the election.

However, the NLD contested and won the majority of seats in the 2012 by-election, which finally led to its overwhelming victory over the USDP in the 2015 general elections.

We wont oppose the NLD government on every front. We wont confront it in every field. We wont try to overthrow it, said Dr. Nandar Hla Myint.

U Nay Myo Tun, an NLD Lower House lawmaker from Yangons Htantabin Township, questioned the USDPs actual capacity as the opposition party.

They served as the previous administration and if they make constructive criticism about our government, we should accept it. But the problem is that we have hardly seen such constructive criticism so far, U Nay Myo Tun told The Irrawaddy.

Vice-chairman of the NLDs Yangon chapter Dr. Soe Win Oo said that there is no direct communication between Myanmars two biggest political parties.

The USDP is no gentleman in its criticism of the NLD, and has repeatedly called the NLD inexperienced, lamented Dr. Soe Win Oo.

He accused the USDP of being formed by ex-generals to retain their power even after Myanmars hard-won democratic transition.

The USDP is still led by ex-generals at the top. It is not a party led by civilian intellectuals. And talking of their assets, they were once state-owned and public property, which the party has unlawfully seized. They will never be welcomed by democratic forces, said the vice-chairman.

Dr. Nandar Hla Myint said the USDP would provide suggestions to the NLD through seminars in the case of tough challenges to the sovereignty of the country, the rights of ethnic people and economic hardship among citizens.

The USDP will try to win the public trust through its actions, he said, adding that no institution in Myanmar was as good as the USDP.
By India Today Web Desk: Sonam Kapoor is known for giving as good as she gets. The actress recently revealed that she rejected a film, as the makers were offering her a measly fee.

Without naming the film, Sonam shared that the producers did not have enough money as their last film with a big star had failed. She said she did not deserve this, as she had been a successful name in the industry for the past 10 years.

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"Recently I was offered a project, which I was excited for, but the money being paid was shit. I made a call and said, this is very disrespectful. There was shock on the other side. I told them, you put me in a position after being ten years in the industry, after giving the most profitable film Neerja a year ago, so please tell me why is it that this is what you decided to give me," she said in an interview to Indian Express.

She added, "They were like 'Our last film with so-and-so star didn't do well so we don't have that much money.' I was like, because of this xyz star whose film didn't do well, the one person whose film actually did very well you want to underpay me to pay this 'star' more? I told them to move on and get someone else as frankly it was very disheartening."

The Neerja actress also explained that due to stiff competition in the industry, there were times when she took a stand and rejected a film owing to a meager fee, some other actresses offered to work on an even lesser fee. This creates hurdles in her fight to achieve equal space for actresses.

"There's too much competition. If I am saying 'I am not going to do this' and take a stand, there'll be another woman who will say 'it's okay I'll do it for this much.' The point is, we need to stick together, be together. That is not going to happen if you're constantly trying to pull each other down. It's a very difficult upward climb," she said.

On the work front, Sonam will next be seen in Padman, starring Akshay Kumar. The film will release on January 26.

ALSO WATCH| Exclusive: Sonam Kapoor says Neerja helped conquer her own fears

--- ENDS ---
Guest Column Myanmar Launches Diplomatic Offensive

Rohingya refugees wait for blankets to be distributed at Kutupalong camp, near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh December 10, 2017. / Reuters

Myanmar has launched a diplomatic offensive as international criticism mounts over their treatment of the Muslim Rohingya. It is a three-pronged assault, aimed at the UN, combatting calls for renewed sanctions and an effort to engage the international community in plans for the reconstruction and reconciliation of Rakhine.

This charm offensive is largely aimed at the countries in the Middle East and Muslim nations in Asia, which it sees as the main movers behind attempts to get the UN Security Council to renew sanctions. In the past week diplomats have been instructed to reach out to members of the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC) to clarify the governments position.

They have been instructed to explain that the Myanmar government plans to accept back all the refugees in a phased return, according to diplomats in Yangon.

But at the same time the countrys civilian leader, State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has announced the formation of an international advisory body to help implement the governments plans for Rakhine, to be chaired by the former Thai foreign minister, Surakiart Sathirathai.

Violence in Myanmars western region of Rakhine has spiraled out of control since late August, causing an exodus of some three-quarters of a million Muslim Rohingya refugees across the border to Bangladesh, in the wake of the militarys counter-insurgency operations.

The UN and the US have both labeled it as ethnic cleansing, while the UN human rights chief, Zeid Raad al-Hussein has been more forthright, hinting he believed there was evidence of genocide and calling for those responsible  the countrys top military commanders  to be referred to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.

Last week international concern was again raised, when the UNs human rights council adopted a motion  at a special session of the body in Geneva to consider the situation of the Muslim Rohingyas and other minorities in Myanmar  which strongly condemned the alleged systematic and gross violations of human rights and abuses committed in Myanmar, in particular in Rakhine State.

The Myanmar ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Htin Lynn, rejected these allegations during the session. He said the international community had failed to recognize the complexity of the situation in Rakhine.

The Myanmar government has continuously rebuffed allegations of the use of excessive force and human rights abuses forced relocation, razing of homes, rape and killing villagers  committed by the military. But this has not deterred most of the Muslim countries, the US and European nations from demanding the Myanmar government take immediate action against the perpetrators. But the countrys civilian leader has steadfastly refused to condemn the military.

At the center of this new strategy is a clear response to the mounting international pressure on the government to be more transparent and to allow human rights investigators access to Rakhine State. The government believes it is now on top of the problems: the violence in Rakhine has subsided and the enormous task of repatriating the refugees, resettling them in Rakhine and reconstructing their homes, hospitals and schools, needs to be urgently carried out. This is the main task of the Union Enterprise for Humanitarian Assistance, Resettlement and Development in Rakhine established two months ago, under the leadership of Aung San Suu Kyi herself.

This body is to implement the recommendations of the Kofi Annan advisory commission on Rakhine. These were readily accepted by the Myanmar government and actively endorsed by most of the international community.

During her discussions with Kofi Annan, when he submitted the commissions report and recommendations in August  before they were made public  he suggested a ministerial appointment to oversee their implementation and an international advisory group to monitor the progress and help coordinate international participation in the whole process.

Mr. Surakiart met Suu Kyi two weeks ago in Naypyitaw on an unpublicized, fleeting visit. They discussed the scope and details of the mission, according to diplomatic sources.

The terms of reference are very broad, from research and analysis to aid delivery, Kobsak Chutikul  a veteran Thai diplomat, former adviser to the UN and currently secretary-general of the Asian Peace and Reconciliation Council, told the Bangkok Post. The international advisory board for the implementation of the Kofi Annan recommendations will consist of five international representatives and five Myanmar members.

Among the international members of the group are: Bill Richardson, a leading member of the Democrat Party, who was involved in numerous diplomatic initiatives. He has been a US senator, governor of New Mexico, US secretary for energy, and was also US ambassador to the UN.

In February 1994, he was one of the few people to be allowed to visit Aung San Suu Kyi while she was under house arrest. Mr. Richardson has also been involved in negotiating the release of hostages, American servicemen, and political prisoners in North Korea, Iraq, and Cuba.

The other international members include Urban Ahlin, currently the speaker of the Rigsdag  the Swedish parliament  and a long-time Social Democrat politician, active in foreign affairs and was at one time being the partys spokesman on foreign policy.

In the past, he has been involved in many international negotiations and mediation efforts  including the release of Swedish construction workers from Iran and the imprisoned Belarus presidential candidate Alexander Kozulin.

Another member is Roelf Meyer, a South African politician and businessman, who played a prominent role in the negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa, and Lord Ara Darzi, a labor politician and doctor, who is also one of the worlds leading surgeons and internationally recognized as an advocate for applying innovative reforms to health systems globally.

Their main task is overseeing the implementation of the Kofi Annan recommendations through the governments initiative and coordinating these efforts with international community, one of Aung San Suu Kyis closest advisers told the Bangkok Post.

The aim is to build a democratic framework and secure the widest possible engagement of the international stakeholders, the adviser said. What is needed is a wide range of new voices. They may, with their international experience, also provide a sounding board for more radical ideas, including how to combat hate speech. The key is infrastructure for all communities, he added.

The State Counselor specifically asked the board to focus on an effective response to address the challenges: of rights and protection of communities; poverty; insecurity and fear within communities; and the need to strengthen communal bonds, which would engender lasting peace, stability and development in Rakhine State, Kobsak Chutikul, who expects to act as secretary to the group, told the Bangkok Post.

Sources in Naypyitaw say the value of the group is already paying dividends, as Mr. Surakiart suggested the current diplomatic charm offensive during his recent meetings with Myanmars leaders.

He advised them to target some of the more receptive members of the 58-member OIC  moderates like Bahrain, Jordan and Brunei  as the OIC needs a consensus before it can act.

That was Thailands strategy in relation to the problems in southern Thailand.

Republished from the Bangkok Post with permission of the author.
The kryptonite to cyber crime isn't cyanide, but CyAN, the Cybersecurity Advisers Network, with the APAC region now headed up by Aussie Internet legend Peter Coroneos.

A senior cyber policy expert and industry leader, Coroneos has been appointed by the Paris-based international NGO, Cybersecurity Advisers Network, to lead its efforts in the Asia Pacific region.

CyAN President Jean-Christophe le Toquin welcomed Coroneoss appointment as "a significant step for the organisation whose mission it is to bring effective and timely professional cyber security advice to business and governments".

The organisation explains that it "comprises world leading multi-disciplinary experts in cyber policy, cyber law and technology, including blockchain technologies, cryptocurrencies and malware mitigation and recovery."

Le Toquin said: I have personally known Peter for nearly 20 years. I met him when he was leading the Internet Industry Association in Australia and I was running EuroISPA, the pan-European association of European Internet Services Providers Associations.

"I have always been inspired by his passion for Internet issues, his commitment to building a trusted environment for Internet users and his obvious subject-matter expertise across a wide range of areas/issues.

The CyAN board reports unanimously approving this appointment, and "was impressed by Peter's leadership role including the development of the 'icode', a malware detection and mitigation initiative which saw him invited twice to the White House to advise the Obama Administration".

Indeed, we are told that "the US subsequently introduced a similar scheme which today protects tens of millions of users, with the icode covering most users in Australia".

Le Toquin added: The list of Peters achievements is long and we are delighted to have him join our leadership team to help spread best cyber practice and capacity throughout the Asia Pacific region.

In accepting his appointment, Coroneos thanked CyAN saying: The times we live in call for international cooperation and information sharing and CyAN is a perfect vehicle for that.

As we saw with WannaCry and NotPetya, the threats are global and spread almost instantaneously with no regard for borders. So, we cannot move too quickly to empower vulnerable businesses and users to become more prepared with what are likely to be escalated attacks in 2018.

I will do my best to engage the strong cyber talent that exists locally, so we can target our regional efforts more effectively.
Popular software packages like Skype and VLC media player (32-bit) for Windows are being used to spread surveillance software which has been christened StrongPity2 by researchers from Slovakian security firm ESET.

ESET's Filip Kafka wrote that the name was chosen because the software bore a strong resemblance to a package distributed by a malicious group known as StrongPity.

Back in September, ESET found a variant of the FinFisher sypware being spread in seven countries through legitimate applications like WhatsApp, Skype, Avast, WinRAR and VLC Player.

That campaign stopped a day after ESET reported about it, Kafka said. As in the earlier case, users trying to download a software installation package were being redirected to a fake website serving a trojanised version. The malware uses a man-in-the-middle attack to redirect users to the fake website.

FinFisher is surveillance software marketed by Lench IT Solutions, which sells it through law enforcement channels. It is "weaponised German surveillance malware used by intelligence agencies around the world to spy on journalists, political dissidents and others", according to WikiLeaks which revealed details of the spyware in 2014.

The new surveillance software, StrongPity2, had been visible in two unnamed countries since 8 October.

It was "using the same (and very uncommon) structure of HTTP redirects to achieve 'on-the-fly' browser redirection, only this time distributing StrongPity2 instead of FinFisher," Kafka said.

"We analysed the new spyware and immediately noticed several similarities to malware allegedly operated by the StrongPity group in the past."

Other common software packages which are being trojanised by StrongPity2 are CCleaner, Driver Booster, Opera, and WinRAR 5.50.
The competition watchdog, the ACCC, has warned that scammers could prey on the unsuspecting with pre-Xmas scams, which it says could involve con tricks perpetrated on online shoppers.

According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, scammers often try to take advantage of people during the busy Christmas period and prey on their vulnerabilities.

For example, they may take advantage of you looking for a good deal on a family holiday, searching for a loved ones present at an online store, or even that youre expecting a present from someone through the post, ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard warns.

The ACCC warns Aussies to watch out for three common holiday scams:

Travel scams: scammers trick their victims into believing theyve won a travel prize or scored a really good deal on a travel package, like a cruise. Unfortunately, these seemingly too-good-to-be-true holidays are nothing more than a scammers con. In the past 12 months, nearly $86,000 has been lost to this scam, with about 1750 reports.

Online shopping scams: scammers will set up believable looking online stores to trick people into goods that dont really exist. They might also set up fake online classified or auction site listings. They entice people with legitimate looking discounts and may even advertise items as the perfect Christmas present for a loved one. This scam has cost Australians more than $1.3 million in the past 12 months, with more than 6440 reports.

Parcel delivery scams: with millions of packages moving across the country to get under a Christmas tree in time, scammers will send fake "missed delivery" notices to potential victims. These scams are aimed at getting people to download malware or ransomware onto their PCs, which can be costly to remove; or steal their personal information. Scamwatch has received about 1700 reports of this scam in the past 12 months.

Your personal information is often just as valuable to a scammer as your money so always be careful about the information you give out online, Rickard says.

There are some simple tips you can follow to stay ahead of scammers these holidays.

If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Do your research on any online stores youre using, especially if its for the first time. Never do a deal or make a payment outside the online auction site you are using.

If you are buying from a classified website, only hand over the money when you have physically inspected the goods. Finally, never open attachments or download files you receive out of the blue  no matter who the email comes from or how legitimate it looks.
Global security vendor Centrify has warned that the major data breach revelations that have marked the past year would continue in 2018 as organisations struggle to recognise that unmanaged trust is at the core of their cyber security vulnerability.

According to Centrify senior director APAC Sales, Niall King, while during 2017 Uber and Equifax opted to hold off reporting their respective data breaches, this is not an option in Australia where mandatory data breach reporting legislation takes effect from February 2018".

And despite ransomware and blockchain disruptions holding cyber crime risks, Centrify predicts that developments such as machine learning and Zero Trust models promise greater identity protection in 2018.

King described the immediate cyber security outlook for 2018 as ominous.

While the risk is that things will get worse before they get better, Centrify is confident that emerging security models such as Zero Trust will enable organisations to rethink their cyber security," he said.

Embedding security bulwarks such as least privilege access, multi-factor authentication and machine learning-based risk assessment into standard corporate workflows will increasingly focus organisations on securing identities to follow a proven path that can turn the cyber security tide.

Based on its industry research and discussions with customers, Centrify says it has identified seven trends that will affect cyber security during 2018:

1. The dark trend in ransomware will continue to explode in the coming year

According to the FBI, 2016 ransom payments totalled about US$1 billion, up from US$24 million in 2015. Centrify expects this trend to continue.

2. Blockchain will emerge as a potential disruptor across many areas of technology

While Centrify expects blockchain to emerge as a potential disruptor across many areas of technology in 2018, it will take several years to address blockchain vulnerabilities before the technology is sufficiently mature to act as a basis for enterprise security. That means blockchain technology may add to security risk before it starts to reduce it.

3. Automation frameworks will make it easier for DevOps to adopt AWS securely

Security vendors will continue to embrace Amazons shared responsibility model for AWS during 2018, resulting in the rise of DevOps, a fast-growing segment required for successful automation. Centrify says baking security into the process will allow for further adoption of cloud-based services.

4. Increasing identity-related breaches and vendor fatigue will force organisations to re-evaluate their security postures  architecture, budget and project priorities

Despite Verizons 2017 Data Breach Investigations Report reporting that compromised identities were responsible for 81% of all data breaches, companies spend just 4.7% of their total security budgets on identity and access management (IAM)  the very technology that could help prevent four out of five breaches. Centrify expects that a combination of increasing identity-related breaches and security vendor fatigue during 2018 will force companies to re-evaluate their entire security posture from the ground up, to put protecting identities at the centre of their security.

5. Organisations will respond to the current threat landscape with a Zero Trust Model

After the huge corporate impact of data breaches such as Equifax and Uber, Centrify expects companies to respond to increasing cyber security threats by implementing Zero Trust security models, which shift access controls from the perimeter to users and individual devices and grant access to services based on what is known about a user and their device.

6. The security market will incorporate machine learning to address identity-related breaches

Last year, companies integrated machine learning to ascertain the risk level of individual transactions and decide in real time whether to allow them. Centrify expects to see wider adoption of this approach, which pivots identity security away from detect-and-respond alerts and towards more automated preventative controls.

7. The rapid move to the cloud will increase the adoption of Zero Trust network models and modern microservices architectures that mandate the use of least privilege

During 2017, companies moved large segments of their infrastructure into the cloud, which still requires authentication and privilege management. Centrify anticipates widespread adoption of technologies that manage privileged identities with fine granularity. Least privilege will become an increasingly common term around the data centre.
New Zealands largest telco Spark has hit out at a major competitor over suggestions that 5G mobile services in the country should be rolled out by a monopoly network rather than competing companies.

The telco was responding to recent suggestions from competitor Chorus that 5G mobile services should be rolled out by a monopoly network similar to fixed-broadband. Both Spark and Chorus are offshoots of the former Telecom New Zealand.

According to Spark managing director Simon Moutter consumers have benefited hugely from competition between three mobile network providers (Spark, Vodafone and 2 Degrees) in respect of 3G and 4G services, and there is no reason why the same should not apply to the next generation of 5G.

Recent suggestions from Chorus that 5G mobile services should be rolled out in New Zealand by a monopoly network similar to fixed-broadband are entirely self-serving and not in the interests of consumers, Moutter said.

A monopoly is and always should be the last resort option for a market, not the first as Chorus is proposing. Infrastructure-based mobile competition has resulted in faster network rollouts, much lower pricing and a steady stream of product innovations, almost all funded by the industry players involved.

Its compelling evidence that competition is the best way to deliver great consumer outcomes. And any suggestion that taxpayers should be asked to pay for a 5G monopoly in our country is ludicrous.

And, he says, creating a monopoly mobile network is not in the interest of open competition or customers.

We're confident the majority of New Zealand can sustain multiple 5G networks and that's the path we are committed to. No industry amalgamation was required for the transition from 3G to 4G, and none is required from 4G to 5G. Based on our current analysis, we think the investment for 5G will be manageable, as we will be able to leverage our existing 4G and 4.5G physical infrastructure.

Thats not to rule out sensible infrastructure sharing where that can speed up deployment or address visual pollution issues that might come from deployment of more network sites  we are supportive of those models. But to jump straight to a conclusion that we need a monopoly network would be crazy.

Additionally, it would be outrageous to suggest that Chorus would be allowed to create a monopoly in the 5G mobile market alongside its existing monopolies in fixed fibre and copper broadband  especially when mobile broadband is increasingly creating healthy competition with fixed broadband. Any attempt to further entrench monopoly networks would be a bad outcome for New Zealand consumers and businesses.

According to Moutter, over the last five years the three mobile networks have invested a combined NZ$2 billion (including spectrum) representing the vast majority of mobile infrastructure investment, in the same period the government has only had to contribute around NZ$49 million to improve coverage in uneconomic fringe areas of the country via the Rural Broadband Initiative (RBI).

There may well be remote parts of the country where a similar subsidisation may be necessary for 5G but this should only be considered once commercial funding models had been definitively ruled out, Moutter suggested.

And, Moutter says, Sparks plans for 5G are already progressing.

He cited the companys successful 5G trial late last year in conjunction with Victoria University, achieving mean speeds of up to 3 Gigabits per second  approximately 100 times faster than typical 4G services, and the launch of 4.5G, which can be a bridge between 4G and 5G technology  in October 2016.

According to Moutter, although Spark is not yet in a position to provide definite time frames, it expects to start rolling out 5G within the next few years.

He noted that while the UFB network rollout was delivering many benefits for consumers, the structure of the fixed broadband market was contributing to poor customer service outcomes.

This is a direct consequence of the fact that broadband retailers are not in control of the full end-to-end service experience which can be extremely frustrating for both customers and retailers.
Singtel is the latest company to achieve better than gigabit speeds in an LAA trial with Ericsson, paving the way for a super fast 5G future.

Singtel and Ericsson say the have achieved an "Asia-Pacific first in wireless technology by delivering a peak speed of 1.1 Gbps in a joint trial of a new configuration of Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) technology".

Conducted in a Singtel laboratory, the trial "delivered speeds that breached the 1 Gbps barrier by combining several key LTE technologies including 256 QAM, 4x4 MIMO, and aggregating two licensed and three unlicensed spectrum bands on a TM500 Test System device".

Mark Chong, Singtels Group chief technology officer, said: We are very encouraged by this breakthrough in peak speeds. In Singapore, a large percentage of mobile traffic is generated indoors with more mobile customers browsing the web, streaming video and accessing cloud applications on the go.

"We are now in a position to deploy LAA technology to boost our LTE mobile capacity to meet increasing traffic demand. This will allow us to deliver a faster and more reliable mobile connectivity experience even during peak periods.

We're told that the unique 12-layered LAA configuration used in the trial "will provide (speeds) two to three times faster than prevailing peak LTE speeds, resulting in enhanced user experience, especially in high traffic indoor environments such as shopping malls".

Meanwhile, following this successful trial, "Singtel will explore the feasibility to deploy the technology on Singtels network".

Martin Wiktorin, head for Ericsson Singapore, Brunei & the Philippines, said: Licensed Assisted Access took wireless technology to a whole new level, delivering the increased capacity and faster speeds that operators demand as they evolve their networks.

"This trial is a significant milestone in the use of LAA, pushing the limits of gigabit LTE in a unique configuration of advanced technologies.

Both companies said this latest breakthrough "extends the partnership of Singtel and Ericsson in 4.5G LTE and trialling 5G in Singapore".

Earlier this year, "high download speeds of up to 800Mbps were achieved on Singtels high-performance LTE network by deploying 256 QAM downlink, 4x4 MIMO and triple carrier aggregation techniques. In October 2017, the partners jointly established a 5G Centre of Excellence to facilitate 5G development in Singapore".

Singtel concludes by noting its 4.5G LTE network "offers Singapores fastest and widest mobile data speeds at 500Mbps nationwide".
Moscow's recent demand to inspect the source code of American software vendors supplying the Russian government does not pose the severe security threat some are making it out to be, experts say, emphasizing that while sharing source code with a nation-state adversary does make it easier for an attacker to find security flaws, source code is far from the "keys to the kingdom" for bug hunters.

At a time of heightened cyberespionage between the US and Russia, Moscow's worries about possible backdoors in American software seem like legitimate concerns that justify a request for source code review, experts suggested.

[ How much does a cyber attack really cost? Take a look at the numbers. | Get the latest from CSO by signing up for our newsletters. ]

The controversy began in October, when the news broke that Hewlett Packard Enterprise let a Russian defense agency review the source code for the company's ArcSight SIEM offering (since sold to UK firm Micro Focus International Plc), widely used in industry and also by the Pentagon, according to an October report by Reuters. The revelation sparked an outcry against sharing source code with foreign governments, and prompted Symantecs CEO Greg Clark to tell Reuters These are secrets, or things necessary to defend (software). Its best kept that way.

Well-known cybersecurity experts questioned this tempest in a teapot, however. "As someone who has hunted bugs for 15 years, having source code is barely advantageous," former NSA hacker Charlie Miller, best known for stunt hacking a Jeep a few years ago, tweeted. "Counterintuitive but true," former head of cybersecurity research at DARPA Peiter "Mudge" Zatko, agreed, "You find fewer bugs analyzing source code. You find more bugs evaluating binaries and augmenting with fuzzing."
By PTI: 2019-20: NCC

Hyderabad, Dec 11 (PTI) Infra major NCC Ltd expects to start development and operation of Talaipalli coal block from 2019-20 onwards and contribute about Rs 190 crore to topline during the first year of its commercial operation.

The company is also betting big on infrastructure and housing projects from Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh which is under development stage.

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The Talaipalli coal block is located in Chhattisgarh.

"The work (on the project) will start in FY18. Commercial production may start from 2019-20. In the first year of commercial operations, we are aiming at 4 million tonnes of coal extraction and supply," Y D Murthy, Executive President (Finance), NCC Ltd, told PTI.

"We are looking at a topline of Rs 380 crore (from the block), in which our share will be Rs 190 crore," he said.

A consortium of NCC-BGR has been awarded the project relating to mine development and operation (MDO) of the block allotted to NTPC Ltd.

The project will be executed by a special purpose vehicle, to be formed between NCC Ltd and BGR Mining and Infra Ltd, with a sharing ratio of 51:49, Murthy said.

"The peak rated capacity of the mine is 18 million tonnes per annum to be achieved by the 5th year of commencement of operation.

"The value of the project is in the order of Rs 25,071 crores and the annual revenue at rated capacity is about Rs 1,000 crore at current prices," a statement from the company had earlier said, adding the contract provides for escalation of mining fees.

On the order book, Murthy said during the last seven months of the current fiscal, NCC got nearly Rs 15,000 crore worth of orders and expects that the total order value to reach around Rs 28,000 crore by the end of FY18.

"Our core areas, like buildings, are doing very well, particularly in Andhra Pradesh, the core capital city formation (in Amaravati) and all. Orders are being awarded and some more orders will come.

"The core capital city like assembly building, secretariat, the High Court...they are going to call the tenders now. They have divided the packages. Those packages also, we are in a nice position to participate in. Each order will be around Rs 500 crore and above. Very few companies were pre-qualified to bid for these projects," he explained.

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Murthy said the companys building and construction, water pipelines and roads verticals, put together, will constitute 75 to 80 per cent of the total order book as well as topline of NCC.

NCC Urban, a subsidiary of the company, has got a land bank of 210 acres spread in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochin, Ranchi, Chennai and Visakhapatnam. PTI GDK RSY

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Hyderabad, Dec 11 (PTI) Telugu actor Vijay Sai was found dead in his apartment in the Yusufguda area here, police said today.

Inspector K Purnachander said he allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his residence.

"He was 35 years old. Sai and his wife were living separately following a dispute between them. His wife had recently filed a complaint against him alleging domestic violence," he said.

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Sai made his debut in the Telugu film industry in 2001 and acted in hit films such as Bommarillu and Ammayilu Abbayilu.

The police official said a case had been filed and they were examining a video clip purportedly recorded by Sai before his death.

Personalities in the Telugu film industry expressed shock over the untimely demise of the actor. PTI GDK BNM GVS

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Chandigarh, Dec 11 (PTI) Over 1.2 million Indian tourists visited Thailand during January-September this year, registering a steep 16 per cent increase over the same period of 2016, a senior official of Tourism Authority of Thailand said here today.

The South Asian country, which is mainly known for its tropical beaches and cuisines, is expecting this figure to further go up by the close of this year.

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"...from January-September 2017, we have already received 1.2 million tourists from India, which is 16 per cent increase. And by the end of this year, the figure will further increase," Isra Stapanaseth, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi, told reporters at the Chandigarh international airport here.

A little over one million Indian tourists had visited Thailand in 2016.

He was interacting on the sidelines after Chandigarh today got air connectivity with Bangkok, with Air India launching a direct flight to the famous south-east Asian tourist destination. Stapanaseth said his country was a popular destination for the Indian tourists and he hoped with the addition of this flight, more and more people, especially from Punjab region, can save on time and be able to travel conveniently.

"This flight will help people travelling (to Thailand) from cities like Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Manali, Shimla, Dehradun. It will make travelling more convenient for people from these cities to catch a flight from here," he said.

"We are hoping that with the addition of this direct flight from here, it will facilitate people who travel for pleasure, for wedding celebrations, corporates and other travellers, who can reach Bangkok in less than five hours," he said. He said Thailand has much to offer for the Indian tourists and packages can be worked for budget tourists to high-end tourists.

"You get value for money for quality destination. Thailand also has much to offer to people who are planning grand wedding celebrations and it is also popular among the honeymooners as well.

For budget tourists, a weeks stay can cost him anywhere between Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000, he said.

"Besides Bangkok and Phuket, tourists can explore Pattaya, then there is Chiang Mai, famous destination in north of Thailand and on the east coast you have Elephant Island," he said. PTI SUN MKJ

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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

First, Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan gave a speech in the Central Anatolian province of Sivas on Dec. 10, in which he said,

Israel is a state of occupation and a terror state . . . [Turkey] will not leave Jerusalem to the consciousness of a child-killer state . . . Jerusalem is the light of our eyes. We wont leave it to the conscience of a state that only values occupation and looting. We will continue our struggle decisively within the law and democracy.

Erdogan continued, Palestine is oppressed and a victim. Israel is absolutely a state of occupation. Israel has never recognized any decision adopted concerning it, especially United Nations decisions, and it will never do so . . .

He projected maps demonstrating that Israel has steadily expanded its territory at the expense of the Palestinians. He said, Look at this scene, do you see this treachery?

He then projected a photo of a Palestinian boy blindfolded and encompassed by Israeli soldiers.

Look at how these terrorists are dragging a 14-year-old blindfolded child.

He concluded,

We will continue to stand with the oppressed. We will use every opportunity we have for our first qibla, Jerusalem. Weve been carrying out intense phone diplomacy since the dire decision of the U.S. Ive held phone calls with the heads of many governments and states, including the Pope. Weve told them that this issue is not one that only concerns Muslims; it is also the seizure of the rights of Christians. But I must say clearly that this step of the U.S. is completely an [Evangelical] understanding,

Despite Erdogans vehemence, Israel and Turkey have extensive economic and security relations.

Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu was in Paris meeting French president Emmanuel Macron, who pressured him to take a less harsh line toward the poor militarily Occupied Palestinians, from whom Israel is daily stealing rights and territory.

Netanyahu embarrassed Macron by using their joint press conference as an opportunity to shoot back at Erdogan.

I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran get around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people . . . That is not the man who is going to lecture us.

So who has the better case? Both Israel and Turkey are major abusers of human rights. Israel has reduced 4 million Palestinians to colonial subjects virtually without human or property rights, denying them citizenship in a state and all the legal standing that comes from such citizenship.

Given what Netanyahu did to Gaza, he has a lot of nerve complaining about the bombing of villages.

Erdogans Turkey has fired 150,000 people from their jobs and jailed tens of thousands, including journalists and professors, on charges of being sympathetic to the failed July 15, 2016 attempted coup, while others are being tried for being sympathetic to Kurdish human rights. Since 2015 Erdogan has been waging a concerted battle against the Kurdistan Workers Party, which in the past has had secessionist and far left tendencies, and which launched a series of attacks on Turkish police and army.

Turkey is on firmer legal ground on the Kurdistan issue than Israel is on the Palestine issue, however.

Turkey as a member state of the United Nations is within its rights to resist violent attempts at secession. Most Turkish Kurds in any case dont want to secede, according to decades of opinion polling, and Kurds are by now spread all around the country as laborers. They all have been schooled in Turkish and enjoy Turkish citizenship. Erdogans repression of dissident Kurdish villages has been barbarous and has violated the basic rights of these Turkish citizens, but Ankara wants them as citizens and they can vote in elections and be represented in the republic. The minority that wants a different citizenship is unhappy, but they are not stateless.

As for press freedom, Israel has far more of it than Turkey. But even the relatively conservative Freedom House has slammed Netanyahu for eroding press freedoms in the country. Israel practices military censorship of reporters and bloggers and has gone after Palestinians for Facebook posts. Netanyahu has allowed his billionaire backer, allegedly corrupt casino owner Sheldon Adelson, to engage in what economists call dumping putting out a free newspaper aimed at undermining the other, paid-for newspapers in the country.

But the biggest difference in the human rights is the Israeli Apartheid system in the West Bank and its ongoing siege of little Gaza. Israel destroyed Gazas airport and harbor and radically interferes in its commerce, even limiting the importation of building materials, and for some years mean-spiritedly proclaimed that its children would have no chocolate and that Palestinians there would get no more calories than were necessary to keep them from malnutrition. They overshot the mark, since substantial numbers of Palestinian children in Gaza do suffer forms of malnutrition. Unemployment is massive. People are denied exit permits for advanced medical care and die as a result. All that isnt just a human rights violation, it is Dr. Strangelove-level CREEPY.

As for the Occupied West Bank, Israeli soldiers patrol it in hobnail boots. The government steals land and gives it away to Israeli colonists. Water is diverted to those colonists. Palestinians are made to carry passes, just as Black South Africans had to carry passes in the days of White supremacist rule. A set of checkpoints and highways have carved up the West Bank and isolated Palestinian towns from one another. Palestinians have no rights of citizenship, just as White Afrikaners took away citizenship from Black South Africans and assigned them to fictive Bantustans.

Apartheid is a serious crime against humanity according to the Rome Statute of 2002.

Israel treats fully 1/3 of the people living under its rule in this way.

The international law on occupied territories does not permit Israel to flood hundreds of thousands of its citizens into the West Bank. It prohibits the annexation of the substantial territories around Jerusalem. It forbids making alterations in the lifeways of the occupied. I would argue that the law envisages a relatively short occupation during active warfare and that this is no longer such an occupation. It is just old-fashioned settler colonialism of a sort forbidden by the UN Charter.

So for all the very serious human rights abuses in which Erdogans government is engaged, if we look at the problem proportionally there isnt any doubt that Israels abuses are far more systemic and grave. After all, in 2014 Erdogan wasnt even involved in a struggle with the PKK, with which he had a dialogue. And, Turkey does not keep 1/3 of its population as stateless.

Few states allow secession, and successful secessions have always resulted from negotiations. I personally doubt that most Turkish Kurds would even vote to secede if given the opportunity. Most of their economic prospects lie in the west of Turkey. Turkey is not in principle more guilty of oppressing the Kurds than Spain is of oppressing the Basque and Catalan. It is guilty of sending in the army and behaving much more brutally than Spain.

In contrast, Israel is unique worldwide in keeping millions of people as chattel, refusing them the rights of citizenship. That is legally a very different matter than insisting they have the citizenship theyve already been given.

So on this one, Netanyahu loses. That is not to say that Erdogan has many redeeming features, or that he isnt responsible for ruining Turkeys fledgling democracy and withdrawing many basic rights from his citizens.

Both of them are actually engaging in this grandstanding to take attention of the serious corruption cases being pursued against them.



Related video:

WION: Israel and Turkeys Jerusalem standoff
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By Don Van Atta | (Informed Comment) |  

A little-noticed Russian diplomatic approach to the US on 17 July amounted to an official admission by the Russian Federation that it interfered in the 2016 US election through cyberwar techniques including hacking and spreading fake news. Those facts are now widely known, but some commentators, and President Trump, continue to deny that the Russian government was responsible.

On 8 December, Buzzfeed News reported that the Russian Federation proposed, at deputy minister level, to negotiate an agreement with the US on mutual non-interference in each others elections. The trade would have been no more RF cyberwar on elections for an end to US democracy promotion programs, apparently including an end to uncensored US news reporting in Russia and broadcasting in and to the country.

Radio Liberty broadcasting into the Soviet Union had a substantial, if difficult to measure, effect on public opinion and eventually the collapse of the Soviet regime. RL and related international broadcasters now are the major available alternative to state-controlled disinformation, which, seems much more brazen and fact-free than it was in Soviet times.

The Russian government blames US Agency for International Development-supported democracy promotion programs, including training in election observation, investigative reporting and voluntary group organization, for the several color revolutions around the countrys periphery since 2004. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes these activities created the wave of demonstrations that followed his most recent election as president in 2011. They are at the root of his well-known antipathy for Hillary Clinton.

According to the official State Department press release, the US-Russian conversation was tough, forthright, and deliberate, reflecting both parties commitment to a resolution. The United States and Russia seek a long-term solution that would address areas of bilateral concern that have strained the relationship. The talks reflected a spirit of goodwill, (https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2017/07/272652.htm> but it is clear that more work needs to be done. ) There do not seem to have been any follow-up communications on the proposal.

In December 2016, a senior official of the Russian Federal Security Service, FSB, a senior FSB staff member, and two other computer hackers were arrested and charged with treason. Recent reporting in the Russian press indicates that these people have been charged with treason for having confirmed the Russian cyberattack to US intelligence ().

The Russians have admitted that they hacked the 2016 American election. Their efforts to exacerbate existing tensions in the US have been wildly successful at a small cost to them.

The hacking is an existential question for the American political system. The US must find ways to protect against and defeat such meddling in the future. If Americans cannot believe in the honesty of their elections the legitimacy of the political system is dangerously undermined.

Don Van Atta is a Fellow at the Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He first visited the USSR in 1977, and has lived for long periods of time in the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Georgia, Tajikistan and Latvia since 1988. obtained his Ph.D. and Certificate in Slavic and East European Studies in 1984 from the University of California, Berkeley. The Georgian Agricultural University in Tbilisi awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2005. He has taught Soviet politics, foreign policy and military policy at San Francisco and San Jose State Universities and at Hamilton College (Clinton, NY).



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Rachel Maddow: Russian Report Confirms Attack On US Election | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC
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By David Gerald Fincham

They say that the two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict is dead. Good. Partition was never the right way out of the conflict. The two peoples need to be reconciled: keeping them apart, each limited to only a part of the land they consider to be their homeland, would increase hostility, not reduce it.

Israel-Palestine is a small place, with limited natural resources. During the Mandatory period it was developed as a single state with an integrated infrastructure of roads, railways, water supplies, power, etc. Management of this infrastructure jointly by two sovereign governments, with a history of conflict, and with a sovereign border between them, would present many practical difficulties and inefficiencies.

Israel-Palestine is also the Holy Land of the three monotheistic faiths, of importance to millions of the worlds citizens. It would be a tragedy to permanently divide it, and especially to divide Jerusalem.

What they sometimes forget, or ignore, is the fact that the two States of Israel and Palestine already exist. The State of Palestine was created in 1988 by the same process of declaration, and recognition by other states, that created Israel in 1948. It is also recognized as a state by the UN. True, the government of Palestine controls only a part of its territory, but that is not its fault. Palestine has as much right to live in peace and security as does Israel.

It is inconceivable that either State would go to the United Nations and declare itself out of existence. The only possible route to a one-state solution is for the two existing states to agree to unite to form a single sovereign state: let us call it the United State of Israel and Palestine.

This does not mean that Israel and Palestine would disappear. They could continue to exist as largely self-governing nations within the United State. This idea is inspired by the example of England and Scotland within the United Kingdom: two formerly independent nations, with a history of conflict, united into a single sovereign state, but retaining their national legal systems, educational systems, cultural institutions, and established churches; in short, their national lives and identities.

Following are some ideas as to how this could work in practice.

The United State would have a parliament elected by all citizens. The State parliament and government would be responsible for such matters as external affairs and defense, control of the currency and economic policy, citizenship and immigration, infrastructure and resource management; and would have taxation powers to support these activities. Jerusalem would be the State capital territory housing the State parliament and government offices.

The territory of the State would be divided into two national areas, Israel and Palestine, with a defined but open border between them: the line of the border to be determined by a Boundary Commission under independent chairmanship.

The two nations of Israel and Palestine would have a large degree of autonomy, with residents of each electing their own parliament, and with a government responsible for matters such as education, health, welfare, housing, local economic development; and with taxation powers to support these activities. The character of each nation would automatically reflect the character of its majority population, but all residents would be treated as equals without any discrimination.

The State parliament, being sovereign, would act as an upper revising chamber to the two national parliaments, in particular to ensure that the national parliaments or governments do not discriminate against their minority communities.

All Jews and Palestinians living outside the United State would have a right to migrate into Israel and Palestine respectively, and establish citizenship and residence, subject only to a proviso that the rate of immigration may be limited to that which can be economically absorbed, with stateless refugees having priority.

All citizens would have a right to change residence from one nation to the other, subject to two provisos: first, that this applies to single families, not to organized nationalistic groups; and second, that each nation would be able to petition the State parliament to allow it to limit inward migration if it felt this was necessary to preserve its national character.

The root of the Israel-Palestine conflict is the fact that both nations have claims to the same territory: all of former Palestine. The governance scheme described above is the only proposed solution to the conflict that gives sovereignty over all of former Palestine to both Jewish and Arab nations, on a shared basis, and is therefore the most likely to lead to a just and lasting peace. More details about the proposal can be found by an internet search for The One-State-Two-Nations Proposal.

Authors Bio:

Dr. David Gerald Fincham is a British retired academic scientist, now researching and writing about the relationships between religion, science and the achievement of peace. He is a contributing writer to Mondoweiss.net. His website is religion-science-peace.org



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Al Jazeera English: Palestinian Christians: Jerusalem is for the three religions'
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sabina Gold & Silver Corp (TSX:SBB.T), (Sabina or the Company) is pleased to announce that the Nunavut Water Board (NWB) has commenced public review of the Type A and Type B water license applications related to initial development, mine construction and operation of the Back River Project (the Project or Back River).

As announced on December 6, 2017, the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, on behalf of the five responsible federal Ministers, accepted Nunavut Impact Review Boards recommendation for the Project to proceed to the regulatory and licensing phase. The NIRB has advised that the final Project Certificate will be issued on or before January 4, 2018.

The Type B water license would enable Sabina to commence certain initial pre-development activities in 2018 including onsite construction of service roads and laydown pads, and the mobilization of fuel, supplies and equipment at the Goose property and marine laydown area. Sabina anticipates approval of the Type B water license in late Q1, 2018.

The Type A water license would allow for full construction and operation of the Back River project. Sabina anticipates approval of the Type A water license in Q4, 2018.

With a positive Ministers decision now in hand we are pleased to see that the licensing process has commenced which will enable full development of the Back River Project said Bruce McLeod, President & CEO. We look forward to receiving the Project Certificate, various final licenses as well as finalizing the definitive agreements with the Kitikmeot Inuit Association for land tenure and Inuit benefits.

Sabina Gold & Silver Corp

Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. is a well-financed, emerging precious metals company with district scale, world class undeveloped assets in one of the worlds newest, politically stable mining jurisdictions: Nunavut, Canada.

In September 2015, Sabina released a Feasibility Study on its 100% owned Back River Gold Project which presents a project that has been designed on a fit-for purpose basis, with the potential to produce ~200,000 ounces a year for ~11 years with a rapid payback of 2.9 years. At a US$1,150 gold price and a 0.80 exchange rate, the Study delivers a potential after tax internal rate of return of approximately 24.2% with an initial CAPEX of $415 million.

The Project has advanced through the environmental assessment process with a positive decision from the federal government received December 5, 2017. The Project is now in the final regulatory and licensing phase.

In addition to Back River, Sabina also owns a significant silver royalty on Glencores Hackett River Project. The silver royalty on Hackett Rivers silver production is comprised of 22.5% of the first 190 million ounces produced and 12.5% of all the silver produced thereafter.

The Company had cash and equivalents of C$38.5m at September 30, 2017.
By PTI: By Lalit K Jha

Washington, Dec 11 (PTI) US President Donald Trump today disputed a news report that he watches hours of cable news programming as part of his daily routine, calling it a fake news.

The New York Times on Saturday reported that the president consumes "long spells of cable news," including the big three cable news networks ? CNN, MSNBC and Fox News - to catch up on news.

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Trump, the NYT reported, often "flips to CNN for news, moves to Fox & Friends for comfort and messaging ideas, and sometimes watches MSNBC?s Morning Joe because, friends suspect, it fires him up for the day." The president "spends at least four hours a day, and sometimes as much as twice that, in front of a television," according to the report.

"Another false story, this time in the Failing The New York Times that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong!" Trump said this in a tweet.

During his Asia trip, Trump had told reporters that he rarely watched television as he spend most of his time reading documents.

The president, who has been sharply critical of CNN and other news outlets throughout his political career, also disputed that he "hate-watches" CNN anchor Don Lemons show to "get worked up," as the Times reported, taking a shot at the late-night newscaster.

"I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting," he tweeted.

However, the Democratic party criticised him for tweeting on this issue in the aftermath of an explosion in New York City.

"This is Trumps first tweet after an explosion in NY...," tweeted Sabrina Singh, the deputy communications director of the Democratic National Committee. PTI LKJ UZM

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VANCOUVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Trilogy Metals Inc. (TSX, NYSE American: TMQ) ("Trilogy Metals" or "the Company") announces the appointment of Mr. William ("Willie") Iggiagruk Hensley to the Company's Board of Directors.

Willie Hensley was born in Kotzebue, Alaska, attended the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and graduated with a degree in Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, DC. Mr. Hensley significantly contributed to the settlement of Alaska's Native claims with the United States federal government. While attending graduate school in Fairbanks, Willie wrote a seminal research paper for Judge Jay Rabinowitz titled "Alaska Native Land Claims: The Primary Issue", which outlined the historical land rights of Alaska Natives, arguing for a just settlement of the issue. His research paper led to Native self-organization and the establishment of the Northwest Alaska Native Association in 1966  a precursor to Maniilaq Association, a non-profit organization which advocates for all Native issues, including health, housing, and political rights. President Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act ("ANCSA") in December 1971 providing for the creation of 12 Alaska Native Regional Corporations which were capitalized with close to $1 billion and peacefully transferred about 44 million acres of land to Alaska Natives through their corporate entities. NANA Regional Corporation, Inc. ("NANA") was created as a result of ANCSA and received title to 2.28 million acres of lands in the Northwest Alaska region  now organized into the Northwest Arctic Borough. NANA is a for-profit US corporation with a mission to provide economic opportunities for its more than 14,000 Inupiat shareholders as well as to protect and enhance NANA lands.

Mr. Hensley was elected to the House of Representatives after graduation and then served four full terms as Senator and two further terms through an appointment by Governor Steve Cowper. Willie Hensley was a founder of NANA, served for 20 years as a director, became the head of NANA Development Corporation and finally President of NANA Regional Corporation. He was a founder of the Alaska Federation of Natives and served as director, executive director, president and co-chair.

Mr. Hensley is currently serving as chair of the First Alaskans Institute and is the Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Business and Public Policy at the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

"We are honored and privileged to have Mr. Hensley serve on the Company's Board of Directors. His experience and insights will be invaluable to the Company as we advance our projects in the Ambler mining district," said Gerry McConnell, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

"Willie Hensley was a founding member of NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., and has been a pivotal figure in Alaska," said Wayne Westlake, NANA President and CEO. "He led the movement that solidified Indigenous inclusion in projects on Alaska-Native owned lands, which has defined NANA's model for responsible resource development. Willie will be an invaluable addition to the Trilogy board."

About Trilogy Metals

Trilogy Metals Inc. is a metals exploration company focused on exploring and developing the Ambler mining district located in northwestern Alaska. It is one of the richest and most-prospective known copper-dominant districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. It hosts world-class polymetallic VMS deposits that contain copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, and carbonate replacement deposits which have been found to host high grade copper mineralization. Exploration efforts have been focused on two deposits in the Ambler mining district - the Arctic VMS deposit and the Bornite carbonate replacement deposit. Both deposits are located within the Company's land package that spans approximately 143,000 hectares. The Company has an agreement with NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., a Regional Alaska Native Corporation that provides a framework for the exploration and potential development of the Ambler mining district in cooperation with local communities. Our vision is to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.
SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GFG Resources Inc. (TSX-V:GFG) (OTCQB:GFGSF) (GFG or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has entered into agreements (the Agreements) to consolidate a large, highly prospective land package west of Timmins, Ontario (See Figure 1) with each of Rapier Gold Inc. (TSX-V:RPR) (Rapier), Probe Metals Inc. (TSX-V:PRB) (Probe), and Osisko Mining Inc. (TSX:OSK) (Osisko). Under the respective Agreements, GFG will acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Rapier pursuant to a plan of arrangement (the Rapier Acquisition) and the West Porcupine Property from Probe (the West Porcupine Property Acquisition) and the Swayze Project from Osisko (the Swayze Property Acquisition) via property purchase agreements. In addition to the Agreements, the Company announces a non-brokered private placement to raise gross proceeds of up to $7 million (the Concurrent Financing). Upon completion of these transactions, GFG will hold nearly 700 square kilometres (km2) of highly prospective district scale gold assets in tier one mining jurisdictions.

Transaction Highlights:

Creation of a prominent North American precious metals explorer: Combination of ~700 km2 gold properties in tier one jurisdictions, Wyoming and Ontario;

Significant exploration potential: Highly prospective district scale assets with brownfield and greenfield opportunities;

Leading management and board of directors: Highly experienced leadership team with a proven track record and focused on aggressively advancing projects;

Near term catalysts: GFG will plan to aggressively drill both Rattlesnake Hills and the Timmins portfolio in 2018. A maiden resource is expected at Rattlesnake Hills in H1 2018;

Well capitalized company: Strong financial position and capital structure to aggressively advance projects; and

Strong strategic investor support: GFG is pleased to welcome Probe Metals and Osisko Mining as significant stakeholders in the pro forma company.

For further information and a detailed presentation on the transaction and related assets, please visit the Companys website Click Here.

Brian Skanderbeg, President and CEO, commented, We are very excited to announce these transactions, which will involve the acquisition of over 550 km2 in one of the best mining camps in the world. This area of the West Timmins gold belt has all the geological hallmarks that have contributed to over 70 million ounces of historic gold production in the Timmins mining camp along with several large deposits in the southern Swayze district. These transactions perfectly complement our technical skill set and our strategy to aggressively explore district scale gold projects in tier one mining jurisdictions in North America. Our focus and commitment to our Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project will not be impacted by these transactions and we are excited to aggressively explore at both projects in 2018.

Transaction Details

Rapier Acquisition

Under the terms of the arrangement agreement dated December 11, 2017 between GFG and Rapier (the Arrangement Agreement), all of Rapiers issued and outstanding common shares will be exchanged on the basis of 0.15 of a common share in the capital of GFG (each whole share, a GFG Share) for each one Rapier common share, representing total consideration of approximately C$0.08 per Rapier share based on GFGs 20-day volume weighted average share price (VWAP) ending December 7, 2017 on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV). The consideration represents a premium of approximately 47.5% based on the respective 20-day VWAPs of GFG and Rapier common shares.

Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement, the Rapier Acquisition will be carried out by way of a court approved plan of arrangement and will require the approval of at least 66 2/3% of the votes cast by the securityholders of Rapier present in person or by proxy at a special meeting expected to be held in February of 2018 (the Rapier Meeting) and, if required by Multilateral Instrument 61-101  Protection of Minority Securityholders in Special Transactions (MI 61-101), minority approval in accordance with section 8.1 of MI 61-101. The Rapier Acquisition includes customary deal-protection provisions, including non-solicitation provisions, a right to match in the event of a superior proposal and a termination fee payable under certain circumstances. Full details of the Rapier Acquisition will be included in the management information circular of Rapier to be mailed in respect of the Rapier Meeting.

The board of directors of each of GFG and Rapier have unanimously approved the Agreement. The directors, senior officers, and certain significant shareholders (the Supporting Shareholders) have entered into voting support agreements pursuant to which each has agreed to vote all of their Rapier securities in favor of the Rapier Acquisition. Collectively, the Supporting Shareholders own approximately 35%, 63%, 48% and 100% of the outstanding common shares, options, warrants and deferred share units, respectively, of Rapier.

West Porcupine Property Acquisition

GFG and Probe have entered into a binding property purchase agreement dated December 11, 2017 pursuant to which GFG will purchase 100% of Probes interest in the West Porcupine property, a land package consisting of 198 claims and covering approximately 245 km2 located 50 kilometres southwest of Timmins, Ontario, in exchange for the issuance of 6,477,883 GFG Shares, representing an implied purchase price of approximately $3.5 million based on GFGs 20-day VWAP. Completion of the West Porcupine Property Acquisition is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including approval of the TSXV to issue the 6,477,883 GFG Shares and completion of the Concurrent Financing.

Swayze Property Acquisition

GFG and Osisko have entered into a binding property purchase agreement dated December 11, 2017 pursuant to which Osisko will sell 100% of its interest in the Swayze property, a land package consisting of 56 claims and covering approximately 120 km2 located 40 kilometres from Borden, Ontario, to GFG in exchange 1,110,494 GFG Shares, representing an implied purchase price of approximately $600,000 based on GFGs 20-day VWAP. Completion of the Swayze Property Acquisition is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including approval of the TSXV to issue the 1,110,494 GFG Shares and certain consents to transfer the Swayze Property.

Concurrent Private Placement

The Company will proceed, subject to TSXV approval, with the Concurrent Financing by way of a private placement of up to 3,636,364 flow-through common shares at a price of C$0.55 per share for gross proceeds of up to C$2 million (the FT Private Placement) and up to 10,000,000 units at a price of C$0.50 per unit for gross proceeds of up to C$5 million (the Non-FT Private Placement), each unit consisting of one GFG Share and one-half of a common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional GFG Share at an exercise price of C$0.75 for a period of 24 months. Gross proceeds raised under the FT Private Placement will be used for exploration activities in Ontario that will qualify as Canadian Exploration Expenses. Net proceeds raised under the Non-FT Private Placement will be used for exploration activities on the Companys projects in Wyoming and Ontario as well as for general working capital purposes.

Closing and Capitalization

Subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, the Company expects to close the West Porcupine Property Acquisition, the Swayze Property Acquisition, and the Concurrent Financing on or about December 21, 2017. Completion of the Rapier Acquisition is expected to occur mid-February 2018 following receipt of all requisite regulatory, security holder and court approvals and the completion of the Concurrent Financing with minimum gross proceeds of C$5 million.

Assuming completion of all of the transactions, including issuance of the Advisory Fee Shares (as defined below), GFG will have approximately 87,068,294 common shares outstanding, of which 58% will be held by current GFG shareholders; 17% will be held by the former Rapier shareholders; 7% will be held by Probe; 1% will be held by Osisko and 16% will be held by the purchasers under the Concurrent Financing, all on a non-diluted basis.

Advisors and Counsel

Macquarie Capital Markets Canada Ltd. (Macquarie Capital) is acting as financial advisor and DuMoulin Black LLP is acting as legal counsel to GFG and its Board of Directors. In consideration for Macquarie Capitals services GFG has agreed to pay an advisory fee of which a portion will be paid, subject to TSXV approval, through the issuance of 500,000 GFG Shares (the Advisory Fee Shares).

Figure 1: Regional Land Map of West Timmins and Locations of Acquired Properties





Qualified Persons

Brian Skanderbeg, P.Geo. and M.Sc., serves as President and CEO of GFG, and is a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Skanderbeg has reviewed and approved the information contained in this news release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities, in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold within the United States unless an exemption from such registration is available.

About GFG Resources Inc.

GFG Resources is a publicly traded precious metals exploration company headquartered in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, whose shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange (GFG) and on the OTCQB (GFGSF). The Company controls 100% of the Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project, a district scale gold exploration project located approximately 100 kilometres southwest of Casper, Wyoming, U.S. The geologic setting, alteration and mineralization seen in the Rattlesnake Hills are similar to other gold deposits of the Rocky Mountain alkaline province which, collectively, have produced over 50 million ounces of gold.
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Technology makes this an exciting time for health care. Not only are technological advances making health care better, theyre also making it more affordable. To get a taste of the potential of where health and technology are going, you only need to look as far the recent Fortune article titled, Prepare for a Digital Health Revolution, or to search through the more than 300,000 health apps available today.

But is all this excitement just hype? Opinions differ. Last year the CEO of the American Medical Association (AMA), the nations largest association of physicians, described many of the current digital tools as the digital snake oil of the early 21st century. That bold statement is certainly founded in some amount of reality, since many of the tools currently available have not been validated by clinical studies. And for risky medical products, such as implantable devices, testing is critical. But there are other health tech products, such as mobile-based education programs, that carry far less riskand may not need the same rigorous clinical study standards before hitting the market. Yet, in all things, the lines between risky and safe products are blurry. And even in products that pose low levels of risk, the medical community should look for proof of efficacy and cost-effectiveness before adopting and recommending a digital tool.

On the surface, the answer seems simple: every medical tool should be required demonstrate efficacy through large, robust clinical studies. Unfortunately, however, that might not always be a viable option. For many small startups, every dollar has to be spent wisely. Time is literally money. For a young company, having a study delayed for weeks or months could be the difference between success and failureregardless of how the product actually performs. That may be why many companies dont perform outcome studiesthey are under pressure to move fast and generate sales, so teams determine that there isnt enough time to show outcomes. Starting a business is tough. Many fail. In fact, recent statistics show only 3 percent of startups make it to year five. And in the tough technology startup field, even well-intentioned companies may have to make tough tradeoffs to stay afloat.

Much like traditional health care, the digital health industry has a responsibility to substantiate outcomes. That shouldnt be up for debate. But on the flipside, the medical community also has a responsibility to work alongside digital health companies to make clinical studies work within startup timelines and budgets. Together, these communicates can reduce the friction for startups running clinical studiesmaking sure the best tools are validated quickly, and the ineffective tools are flagged before hitting the market. And that can get the best possible digital health tools to the patients who need them.

One way to keep study costs relatively low is to conduct online clinical studies. These studies dont require specific clinical sites for recruiting or visits, which decreases costs to digital health companies, while still getting them the clinical proof to be medically relevant. This helps reduce the overall burden to startups, making it more attractive to provide evidence-based digital health tools into the market. And that, of course, means less snake oil.

Even when studies are conducted online, which eliminates geographical restrictions, recruiting patients for clinical trials is still a huge challenge for startups. Luckily, the medical community is in the perfect position to step in with support. With online studies, screening and consent take place online, which means a physician only needs to spread the word about these studies to patients and within their areas of influence. Once the word is spread, recruitment can be handled online, and individual institution IRB approval isnt necessary.

Digital health is a new and evolving sector. Already, it has created new, valuable tools for improving patient outcomes while decreasing overall costs. But to fully support this emerging field, we need to work together to help lower the barrier for clinical studies  allowing us to get the evidence needed to demonstrate efficacy and safety for all patients. If we, as physicians, are willing to support emerging opportunities in digital health and share clinical study opportunities with our patients, we can help digital health companies generate evidence of efficacy. We can help validate the best tools out there and influence the evolution of health care in the digital age. We cant afford not to.

Bronwyn Harris is a pediatric cardiologist and CEO, Tueo Health. They are currently enrolling children for an online randomized clinical study.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Rep. Choo Mi-ae



By Choi Ha-young



Rep. Choo Mi-ae, chairwoman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), left for Russia, Monday, to discuss issues related to North Korea and the Winter Olympics, the party said.



For eight days, the five-term lawmaker will meet high-ranking officials to talk about Russia's role in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the expansion of trade between the two countries.



A meeting with Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament, is scheduled, according to DPK spokeswoman Rep. Back Hye-ryun, Sunday. "In the meeting with President Vladimir Putin's associate, Choo will seek to deepen collaboration between President Moon Jae-in's New Northern Policy and Russia's New Eastern Policy," said Back.



The chairwoman will ask for the Russian parliament's support of President Moon's "nine-bridge strategy." In his visit to Vladivostok in September, Moon called for bilateral cooperation in gas, railroads, ports, electricity, sea lanes, shipbuilding, job creation, and agriculture and fisheries projects.



The government is seeking better relations with Eurasian countries to find new growth engines and secure peace on the peninsula. As a part of this vision, Moon launched the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation (PCNEC), Dec. 7. Seoul is also preparing to start negotiations for a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union, comprised of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia.



Choo is planning to reiterate the goal in upcoming meetings with Yury Trutnev, deputy prime minister and presidential envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District, and Alexander Galuska, minister for the development of the Russian Far East.



"Through the meetings, Choo will point to the need to sign a memorandum of understanding between the PCNEC and the Russian vice prime minister's office, and the establishment of a council of businessmen from the two countries," Back added.



The chairwoman will have talks with Boris Gryzlov, chairman of the Supreme Council of the ruling United Russia Party (URP), and sign an agreement between the DPK and the URP. The envisioned agreement aims to facilitate communication between two parties.



During her visit to Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Choo will encourage South Korean businessmen who are based in Russia. "In Saint Petersburg, where there is a core group of Korean firms, Choo will seek active administrative help from officials for the South Korean companies," Back said.



Choo will also take discuss the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics, which is facing problems after the International Olympic Committee banned Russia for state-sponsored doping by athletes.



"Choo will actively make a request to Russian decision makers to encourage their athletes to compete in the Winter Games individually," Back said. "She will outline the government's plan to support Russian participants and the idea of forming a cheering party for them."



The DPK head has made a flurry of diplomatic moves recently. She ended a six-day trip to the United States last month and met Chinese President Xi Jinping during a visit to China from Nov. 30 to Dec. 3.




By Rachel Lee



The ASEAN-Korea Center sent an investment and market research mission to Hanoi, Vietnam, from Dec. 6 to 9, in cooperation with the Vietnam Automation Association (VAA) and the Korea Institute for Robot Industry Advancement (KIRIA).



The mission included representatives from the robotics and automation sectors.



As the leaders of Korea and Vietnam agreed to increase their trade to $100 billion by 2020 during a summit last month, this program aims to further accelerate trade ties in the sectors in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the organization said.



"With an aim to achieve industrialization and modernization by 2020, the Vietnamese government is very active in upgrading their science and technology sectors as well as in attracting foreign investments in relevant industries," ASEAN-Korea Center Secretary General Kim Young-sun said.



Robotics is among the most promising industries _ selected as a priority direction in the strategy for science and technology development for 2011-20 _ to allow Vietnam to participate in global supply chains, the secretary general said.



As part of the program, the mission attended the Korea-Vietnam Investment Forum on Dec. 8 in Hanoi.



Kim, VAA Chairman Nguyen Quan and Korean Ambassador to Vietnam Lee Hyuk attended the opening ceremony.



In the following sessions, senior officials from the Ministry of Science and Technology of Vietnam and the Vietnam Robotics Association gave briefings on Vietnam's investment promotion policies, incentives for high-tech and robotic industries and the current investment projects in the industries.



Experts from KIRIA gave an overview of the robotics industry in Korea. Later, business networking sessions allowed mission members to introduce their company profiles to their Vietnamese counterparts and a build network for future cooperation.



During his tour of the ASEAN area last month, Korean President Moon Jae-in unveiled the ASEAN-ROK Future Community Vision, vowing to boost cooperation in a vast range of areas, including information and communications technology (ICT). In line with the growing needs of ASEAN countries to foster high-tech industries, the organization has introduced trade and investment programs in the sectors of ICT, smart city, smart manufacturing, robotics and e-commerce.



The organization also hosted a workshop titled Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) Tourism for Sustainable Regional Development in ASEAN at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Jeju International Training Center (JITC), Dec. 5-9



The UNITAR Centre International de Formation des Autorites et Leaders (CIFAL)/JITC, the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, the United Cities and Local Governments Asia-Pacific (UCLG ASPAC) and the Jeju Tourism Organization co-hosted the event attended by policymakers and professionals from the 10 ASEAN member states.



Jeju Island is both home to UNESCO Natural Heritage Sites and a popular MICE destination that is ranked seventh in Asia and 27th globally, the secretary general said.



"At the ASEAN-Korea Tourism Capacity-Building Workshop, organized by the ASEAN-Korea Center in Davao, Philippines, this January, local tourism professionals benchmarked Jeju's MICE strategies," Kim said. "As this year marks the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, we are at the most appropriate venue at the most opportune time, dealing with the most timely topic."



During the four-day training program, experts gave presentations and lectures on topics including an "Overview of Sustainable Tourism Development in the Asia-Pacific Region," "Understanding MICE Tourism," "Global Trends of Tourism and MICE Industry," "Adopting Sustainability in Convention and Hotel Management," "ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan 2016-2025," "Marketing for MICE Destinations: Challenges and Opportunities," and "Sustainable Consumption and Production for MICE Tourism." To enable in-depth learning, participants took part in the simulation of policy implementation, a self-assessment exercise, group work and discussion, as well as action plan presentations.



In line with the key element of the ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan 2016-2025, the organization has focused on sustainable tourism for development. The programs include the Community-based Tourism Program under the theme of "Youth Fostering Sustainable Tourism Development" in Chiang Mai, Thailand (January 2018), as well as the Capacity Building Workshops in Vang Vieng, Lao PDR, and Bagan, Myanmar (February 2018).








More than a dozen people died and several more were injured in Uttar Pradesh in separate road accidents in Mirzapur and Mathura.

By Indo-Asian News Service: Fifteen persons in Uttar Pradesh have been killed in two road accidents. Ten were killed in Mirzapur district on Monday, while five from a wedding party died late last night in a bus-car collision in Mathura.

Besides the 10 killed in Mirzapur, over a dozen were seriously injured when a truck and a tractor collided head on near the Agriculture Science Centre, a police officer said.

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The condition of at least five of the injured is critical. They have been rushed to Varanasi, Station House Officer (SHO) of Madihaan, K.K. Singh said.

The tractor was returning from a family function after a head tonsuring ritual from Sheetla Dhaam, Chunar. All the deceased belong to Gadhwa village. The police fear that the death toll might rise.

In other accident in Mathura late on Sunday night, five persons have been killed when the car headed to a wedding ceremony was hit by the speeding bus carrying a marriage party in the Naujheel area, the police said.

A motor cycle with two riders then rammed into the bus from behind.

Four persons died on the spot. Another died at a primary health centre. Two others in critical condition were rushed to the Mathura district hospital.

The collision was so huge it took a lot of effort to extricate the mangled car from the bus, a police officer said.

--- ENDS ---
Choi Jung-wha, second from left, president of the Corea Image Communication Institute, stands with Korea CQ awardees at Grand Hyatt Seoul Hotel on Dec. 7. From left, Bang Eu-gene, country head director of DBS Bank Korea; Latvian Ambassador to Seoul Peteris Vaivars and Erwan Vilfeu, CEO of Nestle Korea. / Courtesy of CICI



By Park Si-soo

Two foreign envoys here and two business executives won Korea CQ awards for their contribution to promoting South Korea overseas, said the Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI), a Seoul-based NGO.

Korea CQ is the name of a forum CICI launched in 2006 to promote Korean culture and business to foreign opinion leaders here. CICI hosts 10 forums a year.

Indian Ambassador to Seoul Vikram Doraiswami won the CQ Communication Award, while the CQ Cooperation Award went to Latvian Ambassador to Seoul Peteris Vaivars.

Erwan Vilfeu, CEO of Nestle Korea, received the CQ Hand-in-Hand Award. The CQ Friendship Award went to Bang Eu-gene, country head director of DBS Bank Korea

The award ceremony was held at Grand Hyatt Seoul Hotel in the evening of Dec. 7, featuring quiz and other recreational events. Sixty people were invited to the event, including New Zealand Ambassador to Korea Clare Fearnley, Singapore Ambassador to Seoul Yip Wei Kiat, Turkey's Ambassador to Seoul Arslan Hakan Okcal and Chevron Korea Country Chairman Bill Miner.

The CICI was founded in 2003 by Prof. Choi Jung-wha at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. It has hosted various cultural events, bringing together opinion leaders living here to share their cultural experiences in Korea. It has recognized individuals, groups and others that have contributed to enhancing the image of Korea around the world since 2005.
In their first trip to South India, they were taught how to use weapons like grenades and AK-47s.

For many of the officers, travelling to Chennai was definitely a culture shock. (Photo courtesy: Pramod Madhav)

By Pramod Madhav: Twenty officers from various sections of Afghan National Army have been the Officers Training Academy at Chennai since December 4 to train in various fields.

Though it is routine for soldiers from various friendly nations to take part in such exercise, this batch of women officers from Afghanistan was definitely special.

"Women in Afghanistan were not given freedom to even ride a bicycle. They found it very odd and thrilling to ride a bicycle here as it was a means of transport inside OTA," said Captain Samriti.

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For many of the officers, it was their first trip to South India and it definitely give them a culture shock.

Yet the officers felt more than welcome in Chennai. "We feel that the training here is a bit difficult especially the physical training. There are three education officers here, two from the medical team, three from Special Forces and one from the Afghan Airforce too," said lieutenant Aziri who was one of the two Hindi speaking officers in the batch.

"I learnt Hindi by watching Bollywood movies and listening to Bollywood songs which are everywhere in Afghanistan," she smiled.

Aziri is 25-years-old and lost her father to the war when she was a year old.

"Women being a part of the army or the police force is not appreciated in our society. In fact, my family and my new in-laws are the only people who knew about my participation in the defence force. To others, I'm just a teacher. Yet I want to be part of this force as we wish for a better future for our country," she said.

Currently 700 to 1,000 women soldiers are present in the country's army and efforts are being made to increase it to 5,000.

"We are being taught many things here, handling human resource, computer education, using weapons like AK-47s and hand grenades, which is definitely a skill we need to master in the army. We will then apply these skills in defeating the enemy," Said Lieutenant Azodollah.

For the first time, a batch of 20 Lady officers from the Afghan Army and Afghan Air Force departed for a training module at Officers Training Academy, Chennai. Ambassador of India H.E Manpreet Vohra addressed the officers prior to their departure. pic.twitter.com/FISFF0vNz9- India in Afghanistan (@IndianEmbKabul) December 5, 2017

The officers underwent a day's training in the shooting range with AK-47s. They were trained in how to shoot a target from a distance of 25 metres as well as a special training in a target simulation room.

"The officers will undergo training till December 24. Our aim is to make them compatible with field operations and surprisingly they are very warm with our method of teaching," said Major Sunitha.

Afghan National Army for now uses its women resource for office work and predominantly with search parties during night raids.

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The officers undergoing training are expected to break this 'glass ceiling'.

--- ENDS ---
For the first time since 2010, the global arms industry has registered rise in sales of weapons. The SIPRI has analysed the sale records of 100 top arms manufacturing companies.

By India Today Web Desk: The global arms industry is rising again. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the sales of arms registered increase in 2016 for the first time since 2010.

The world's largest arms-producing and military services companies - called the SIPRI Top 100 - registered sales of arms and military services at USD 374.8 billion in 2016. This is almost 2 per cent (1.9) higher compared to 2015 data.

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The arms sale figure for 2016 is shows an increase of about 38 per cent since 2002. This is also the first year of growth in arms sales reported by SIPRI Top 100 after five consecutive years of decline.

US LEADS THE RACE

The American companies are the main beneficiary of spike in arms sale across the world. With a combined total of USD 217.2 billion, arms sales of US companies grew by 4.0 per cent in 2016. The Lockheed Martin, the world's largest arms producer, registered a sharp increase in sales by 10.7 per cent in 2016.

The sharp growth in arms sales reported by the American companies is attributed to US military operations overseas and acquisitions of large weapon systems by other countries have driven this rise. The USA's share in over arms sale last year stood at around 58 per cent (57.9).

MIXED TRENDS IN EUROPE

Relatively rich western European companies reported stable arms sales while Russia showed declining growth.

Britain's decision to withdraw from the European Union seems to have had no impact on arms sale in the region. The British companies reported 2 per cent increase in sales of arms while more variations were seen in other major exporters of weapons including France, Italy and Germany.

Germany registered an increase of 6.6 per cent in sale of weapons primarily on the account of sales of armoured vehicle producer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and land systems producer Rheinmetall.

Russian firms rose by 3.8 per cent with USD 26.6 billion arms sale in 2016. Russia accounts for over seven per cent of total arms sale on the planet, according to the SIPRI analysis.

SOUTH KOREA EMERGES, JAPAN FALLS IN ASIA

The SIPRI has placed South Korea among the emerging producers, which also covers Indian and Brazilian companies. But, the SIPRI says that South Korea has dominated the emerging producers block with 20.6 per cent increase in sales of arms last year.

On the other hand, Japan reported negative increase of -6.4 per cent. Japan is clubbed with Australia, Israel, Poland, Singapore and Ukraine under other established producers' category by the SIPRI.

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Decline in Japan's arms sale volume is chiefly attributed to sharp falls in sales of Mitsubishi Heavy, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. Interestingly, there is no specific mention of China in the SIPRI report. China has a sizeable market in Asia and Africa.

--- ENDS ---
Swathi Reddy and her lover Rajesh plotted to kill her husband Sudhakar after taking inspiration from the Telugu film Yevadu that starred Allu Arjun and Ram Charan Teja.

By Janani K: Swathi Reddy, a married woman from Nagarkurnool district of Telangana killed her husband Sudhakar Reddy and poured acid on her lover's (Rajesh) face to help him get a plastic surgery. So that Rajesh could look like her dead husband, and she could live happily ever after with her lover.

But Aadhar and the lover's fingerprints got in the way, even after a plastic surgery. Swathi's husband's parents suspected differences in their 'son's' behaviour after they got a plastic surgery for Rajesh. And the police figured out the rest of this sensational murder mystery.

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Doesn't this remind you of a famous Telugu film?

Swathi herself confessed that she was inspired by Ram Charan Teja and Allu Arjun-starrer Yevadu, and wanted to execute a murder in a similar fashion.

RAM CHARAN TEJA AND ALLU ARJUN'S YEVADU

Yevadu, which is helmed by Vamsi Paidipally, graced the screens three years ago, on January 12, 2014. While the box-office collection seemed overwhelming, the movie received lukewarm response from critics. Many pointed out that the plot of the flick is similar to Nicholas Cage's Face Off. Like every adaptation, Yevadu's screenplay lacked detailing, which was one of the major reasons for its mixed reviews.

STORY OF YEVADU

The movie is basically a commercial revenge story. Sathya (played by Allu Arjun) is fatally wounded by don Dheeru Bhai (played by Rahul Dev) and his gang, for eloping with his girlfriend Deepthi (Kajal Aggarwal), who Dheeru lusts over. While Sathya is left fighting for life, a surgeon named Dr Shailaja performs a face transplant surgery to get him back on his feet.

He gets back on his feet and takes his revenge on Dheeru Bhai and his gang. However, he faces more hassles because of his new persona. The face which helped save Sathya, belongs to a college graduate guy called Charan (played by Ram Charan Teja) who also happened to be Dr Shailaja's deceased son. Charan's past catches up with Sathya because of the face swap and how Sathya takes revenge for Charan's deeds form the rest of the story.

WHAT SWATHI REDDY DID

Horrifically, Swathi seems to have taken inspiration from Yevadu and has gone ahead in executing the plan with such brutality. As the first step, Swathi, along with her lover Rajesh, murdered husband Sudhakar and burnt his body in a forest.

According to their plan, she also disfigured her boyfriend's face by pouring acid on him. She informed Sudhakar's parents that their son had met with an accident and also rushed Rajesh to the hospital for the plastic surgery to take place.

THE DIFFERENCE

Unlike the movie, Rajesh's face wasn't swapped to that of Sudhakar's, but the surgery was performed to save his life. After the surgery, Sudhakar's family noticed the change in their 'son's' behaviour and complained to the police.

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Comparing the imposter's fingerprints with Sudhakar's Aadhar details, the police exposed Swathi and Rajesh's plan. The two are in judicial custody now.

ALSO WATCH: Wife kills husband, pours acid on her lover's face to pass him off as hubby

--- ENDS ---
Sinn Fein intends to field two candidates in the next general election in the Sligo-Leitrim constituency, where Deputy Martin Kenny presently holds the Sinn Fein seat.

Two selection conventions are being held this coming weekend, with one in the Bush Hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon on Friday night next, to select a candidate for the Leitrim and North Roscommon part of the constituency and another in Sligo on Sunday to select a candidate for the Sligo and South Donegal part of the constituency.

The two candidate approach worked for Sinn Fein in the last general election, when Leitrim Councillor Martin Kenny and Chris MacManus from Sligo town, were both on the ballot paper. Martin Kenny got a strong first preference vote and he attracted transfers from across the board and went on to take a seat after the elimination of Chris MacManus. Of the four members of the Dail elected in 2016 for Sligo-Leitrim, three of them are from Sligo, making Martin Kenny the only Leitrim TD. Martin Kenny will be seeking the endorsement of the convention on Friday night, as he is in a strong position to hold the Sinn Fein seat in Leitrim.

It is expected that the proposed changes by the Constituency Boundary Commission, to Dail constituencies will pass through the Houses of the Oireachtas this week. This means that the boundaries will be changing for Sligo-Leitrim, as West Cavan will be leaving the constituency and being replaced by North Roscommon. The area of North Roscommon coming into Sligo-Leitrim broadly includes all north of a line from Cortober to Boyle.

The Sinn Fein convention in Carrick-on-Shannon on Friday night, will see party members from across Leitrim and North Roscommon, come together at a time when the party is preparing to select a new president, as Gerry Adams will be standing down in the New Year.

Sinn Fein has a new generation coming to the fore and the party is also developing structures and mechanisms to deal with its greatly increased membership across the country, which is now in excess of 13,000, and the management of over 240 Councillors.

"The prospect of Sinn Fein taking two seats in the constituency would be appear unlikely right now, however the positive impact that a new party president, probably Mary Lou McDonald, has yet to be seen. The ability of the Sinn Fein team in the Dail is quite impressive, with Pearse Doherty displaying great competence in the finance brief. This coupled with the possibility new young candidates being elected in several constituencies points to the emergence of a fresh new Sinn Fein leadership, which may change the partys electoral prospects dramatically," a spokesperson stated.
Sean Kyne TD, Minister with responsibility for the Inland Fisheries Sector, today welcomed the award of funding, to the value of 2.2m, by Inland Fisheries Ireland to 115 angling development and conservation initiatives as part of its National Strategy for Angling Development, Salmon Conservation Fund and Midlands Fisheries Fund.

The projects, which focus on improving Irelands inland fisheries and sea angling resource, will begin delivery in 2018. In total, applications for over 140 projects were received bringing the overall value of projects applying for funding to above 2.9million.

Minister Kyne said: I would like to congratulate the applicants who have been awarded this funding. The projects receiving funding are located in 24 counties across the country. They include fisheries habitat conservation projects as well as the provision of infrastructure and equipment to allow for improved access to angling. Education/youth initiatives and projects aimed at attracting increased numbers of tourist anglers also attracted funding. I recently announced the forthcoming addition, in early 2018, of Fisheries Projects Animators for Inland Fisheries Ireland and that initiative will support the implementation of these projects in assisting community organisations nationwide in realising these ambitious angling projects and conservation initiatives over the coming year, he added

The 2017 Funding Call was first announced in August 2017 with local groups and individuals including local development associations, tidy towns, angling clubs, local authorities and others invited to apply for funding, with 115 angling development projects being awarded funding to the value of 2.2m.

The scheme is part of Inland Fisheries Irelands National Strategy for Angling Development. The Strategy aims to ensure that Irelands fish stocks and angling infrastructure are protected and enhanced with a view to ensuring a sustainable habitat and delivering the economic, health and recreational benefits they offer to communities across Ireland.

Inland Fisheries Ireland is aiming to grow the angling sectors socio-economic contribution of 836 million per year by an additional 60 million annually through the Strategy. This will be achieved by driving angling participation among domestic and overseas visitors, which in turn is supported by improving access to fishing and developing angling infrastructure.

Suzanne Campion, Head of Business Development at Inland Fisheries Ireland said: The 2017 Funding Call has been inundated with strong project applications and we are delighted to announce the 115 projects which have secured support, following a detailed review process. The first Funding Call was in 2016, but the demand for improvements in angling access and development continues apace. The latest funding call was oversubscribed confirming that rural communities across Ireland are engaged with angling and recognise the value of the fisheries resource to their local area.

Inland Fisheries Ireland has worked closely with angling clubs, individuals, community groups and chambers of commerce to inform them about the Fund and the overall National Strategy for Angling Development. We hope to empower these stakeholders to improve access to angling in their areas and as a result deliver long term recreational and economic benefit to their communities.

A key element of the National Strategy for Angling Development is to build capability and improve governance across the sector, appointing the aforementioned project animators is a significant step in realising this goal and also addresses the issues and challenges raised by stakeholders at the nationwide funding roadshows earlier this year.

For more information on Inland Fisheries Irelands Funding Call 2017 and the projects receiving funding in this funding call, visit www.fisheriesireland.ie/fundin g.

The projects in Leitrim and neighbouring counties to receive funding under the 2017 Funding Call are:

Cavan:

Brackley Lake, Co. Cavan - Footway to improve access to angling along Prospect Shore at Brackley Lake - Cavan County Council (31,444)

Killnahard, Ballyheelan, Killnaleck Co. Cavan - Improve boat slip and car park for angling access at Killnahard Bay - Lough Sheelin Trout Protection Association (24,850)

Templeport Lake, Kildoagh, Templeport, Bawnboy, Co. Cavan - Templeport Lake Fishing Stand - Templeport Development Association (2,000)





Leitrim:

Co Leitrim - Angling Marketing Guide: Discover Angling in Leitrim - Leitrim Integrated Development Company CLG (1,197)



Longford:

Lough Leebeen, Rathmore, Aughnacliffe, Co Longford - Provision of a public toilet for the use of anglers in Leebeen Park, Aughnacliffe - Leebeen Park Development Ltd (9,072)

Lanesborough, Co. Longford - Equipment for youth angling initiative - St. Mel's College Angling Club (800)

Lakes in and surrounding areas of Longford - Small easy to manage boat for less able persons to access angling - Melview Lodge (3,143)



Roscommon:

Grange Lake, Strokestown, Co Roscommon - Angling equipment to develop tourism & access to Strokestown lakes - Grange Lodge (4,467)



Shannon River, Lackan Td., Kilteevan, Co Roscommon - Portrunny Slipway, Lough Ree - Roscommon County Council (50,000)



Frances River, (Suck catchment), Castlerea, Co Roscommon - Fisheries enhancement on the Frances River, Castlrea - Castlerea Town Trust (24,601)



Bealnamullia, Cuilleen & Ardgawna townlands, Monksland, Athlone, Co Roscommon - Cross River Walkway - Roscommon County Council (50,000)



River Shannon - Quayside wall, Ballyleague, Co Roscommon , Co Longford & various locations at Lough Ree - Feasibility study for a new angling centre, boat and tourism facility - Lough Ree Angling Hub (935)



Cavetown Croghan, Boyle, Co. Roscommon - Cavetown Angling Renewal/Development: Reinstate fishing stands, erection of foot stileriparian zone improvement, fish passage improvement, spawning enhancement and provision of in stream structures - Cavetown Residents Developments Company (98,144)



Portrunny, Fearragh, Ballymurray, Co Roscommon - Portrunny Aquatic Biodiversity Sign - Portrun Development Association CLG (1,728)



Sligo:

Bellanascarrow Lake, Lavally, Ballymote, Co. Sligo - Upgrade of access for mobility impaired anglers and enhancement to existing angling facilities - Ballymote & District Angling Club (17,374)



Western end Lough Gill at Aughamore Far Co.Sligo - Replacement jetty structure Aghamore Far- Lough.Gill - Sligo Anglers Association (15,456)



The falls and ladders Ballisodare fishery, Ballisodare, Co Sligo - Part funding of fisheries angling access development project - ballisodare fishing club ltd (20,000)



River Easkey, Dromore West, Co Sligo - Habitat enhancement and angler access improvement - River Easkey Angling Club (13,500)



Duff River, Bunduff, Co. Sligo - Duff River Angling Access Path - Sligo County Council (40,312)

Lough Gill, Hazelwood Demesne Td, Calry, Co Sligo - Restoration of breakwater, silt removal of semi enclosed area and boat slip clearance. - Inland Fisheries Ireland (6,089)



Garavogue River, Cleveragh Demesne, Sligo - Assessment of the potential environmental impact for the installation of four accessible angling stands on Garavogue River - Sligo County Council (2,000)


May 2, 2021, 10 PM

After 99 years out of the public eye, this 1918 Jenny Invert airmail error sold for $299,000 in February 2017.

Philatelic Foreword  By Jay Bigalke

The year 2017 will soon come to a close  a year that included a number of important stories involving stamps and the collector groups supporting the stamp hobby.

It was an interesting year again for the 1918 24 Jenny Invert error stamp (Scott C3a). Stories about the famous stamp continue to turn up, but the most surprising one this year was the reappearance after 99 years of the position 79 stamp from the original discovery sheet of 100. Absent from public view for nearly a century, the stamp sold for $299,000 in February through Leslie Hindman Auctioneers of Illinois.

The American Philatelic Research Library benefited greatly, with the assistance of Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, from the sale of the position 76 Jenny Invert stamp from the McCoy block of four stolen in 1955. The single stamp was recovered in 2016. The Siegel sale realized $295,000 for the stamp, with the proceeds going to the APRL.

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Fast forward in the Jenny Invert saga to the 2013 $2 version. As a promotional scheme, the United States Postal Service intentionally created 100 panes of six of an upright variety of the $2 stamp (Scott 4806a).

Like the millions of normal $2 Jenny Invert stamps that show the plane flying upside down, these rare panes showing the plane flying upright (Scott 4806d) are hidden inside sealed blind packaging. From the outside of the packaging the variety pane cannot be distinguished from the regular issue. The packages of upright Jenny Invert panes were then mixed in with the normal stamps.

In 2017 the Postal Service confirmed that 32 upright Jenny Invert panes had been reported to them. Note that the key word here is reported. It is likely that there are finds out there that have not been revealed to the Postal Service or to Linns.

Also, in late 2017, more light was cast on the distribution plan for the upright Jenny Invert via documents obtained by Linns that explained how the Postal Service seeded the variety into stock distributed by mail order and at post offices.

While on the subject of the U.S. Postal Service, I would be remiss not to mention collectors surprise that at the time of this writing the Postal Service hasnt yet revealed any stamps for 2018. (I hope this sends a message that this information should be shared soon.)

In September 2016 the USPS revealed much of its 2017 stamp program. This early unveiling was welcomed as a positive sign by collectors.

Giving collectors and the philatelic industry only weeks, sometimes days, to prepare for a new issue puts an avoidable strain on the U.S. stamp hobby.

When collectors learn about new stamps too close to the issue date, they might miss opportunities. Cachetmakers cant prepare designs quickly enough for their covers (late announcements contributed to the demise of a few prominent cachet lines in that field).

More importantly, the USPS has little time to prepare for a first-day event, and collectors have difficulty shifting plans around to travel to first-day ceremonies.

The lead time for a new stamp announcement should be a minimum of 90 days. For a number of stamps, the Postal Service potentially could have avoided a few headaches if it had released the designs earlier.

That brings me to another top stamp story for 2017: the stamp trial and testimony over the 2010 Statue of Liberty forever stamp dispute. Collectors may recall that sculptor Robert S. Davidson sued the Postal Service over the stamp in 2013, claiming the Postal Service had improperly used an image of his copyrighted Lady Liberty replica, which stands outside the New York, New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

The stamp design was revealed to collectors and the public only days before the stamp was issued. Had the design been unveiled earlier, perhaps the mistake of showing the Vegas version of the Statue of Liberty would have been caught and saved the Postal Service a few headaches.

A final determination on the case has not been made.

On a much more positive note, the Postal Service started its discretionary program to produce semipostal stamps that raise funds in the national public interest.

The first stamp in this program is the 2017 Alzheimers semipostal stamp. With a large print run of 500 million stamps, it appears the Postal Service is optimistic about the program. Another semipostal is set to be issued in 2019 for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

In July the Smithsonians National Postal Museum named a new director, Elliot Gruber, the third director in the museums 24 years of existence. I have had the pleasure of meeting him on a couple of occasions, and I am confident that the museum will continue to move in a positive direction and further strengthen its interaction with the philatelic world.

The American Philatelic Societys board of directors sent a letter in mid-2017 to the president of the International Federation of Philately to express serious concerns about the operations and governance of the federation, which is commonly identified by the initials FIP (for its name in French, Federation Internationale de Philatelie).

The FIP involvement in international exhibitions has drawn much criticism in the United States, Great Britain and other nations. Rather than recount the issues that have been brought up in those earlier articles and in the letter, I want to express my wish that a solution can be reached. Perhaps the election of a new FIP president in 2018 will prompt positive change for the future.

Also on the APS front was the news that APS president Mitchell Mick Zais is expected to take on the role of deputy secretary of education in the administration of President Donald J. Trump. The confirmation process continues, and a Senate vote had not yet taken place when this issue of Linns went to press.

From all of us at Linns, we wish you the best for a prosperous and philatelically inspired 2018. The collecting adventure continues!
Far from the blaring cacophony of cities, towns and suburbs, there are far quieter soundtracks to be found  the murmurs of wind rustling grasses, rushing waves tumbling onto beaches, the creaking of tree branches and trunks.

But underneath all that is yet another soundscape, a permanent, low-frequency drone produced by Earth itself, from the vibrations of ongoing, subtle seismic movements that are not earthquakes and are too small to be detected without special equipment.

Earth is "humming." You can't hear it, but it's ongoing. And now scientists have measured that persistent hum from the ocean floor, for the first time. [What's That Noise? 11 Strange and Mysterious Sounds on Earth & Beyond

Most of the movements in the ground under our feet aren't dramatic enough for people to feel them. Earthquakes, of course, are the big exception, but Earth undergoes far more earthquakes globally than you might suspect  an estimated 500,000 per year, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Of those, 100,000 are strong enough to be felt, and about 100 of those are powerful enough to cause damage.

But even in the quiet periods between earthquakes, there's a whole lot of shaking going on.

Since the 1990s, researchers have known that Earth is constantly vibrating with microseismic activity, known as "free oscillation," scientists reported in a new study describing new recordings of the phenomenon. Free oscillation creates a hum that can be detected anywhere on land by seismometers  equipment used to detect and record vibrations.

For years, the source of this perpetual humming stymied researchers, with some suggesting that the rhythmic ebb and flow of ocean waves that reached all the way down to the seafloor were responsible, while others attributed the vibration to collisions between ocean waves. Then, in 2015, scientists determined that both types of ocean movement played a part in keeping Earth vibrating, Live Science previously reported.

While seismologists have recorded and measured Earth's hum on land, they had yet to capture evidence of the planet's sonic stylings from the ocean depths  until now.

Recently, scientists traveled to the seafloor in the Indian Ocean to capture the humming sound, using special spherical ocean seismometers. Between September 2012 and November 2013, the researchers deployed 57 free-fall seismometers around La Reunion Island to the east of Madagascar, over an area measuring about 772 square miles (2,000 square kilometers), they wrote in the study.

Using filters, noise reduction and calculations, they isolated the hum from normal ocean noise levels generated by ocean wave motion and seafloor currents, and found "very clear peaks" that appeared consistently over the 11-month study period, and which appeared in the same amplitude range as measurements of the humming taken on land in Algeria, the scientists reported. They noted that the peaks occurred at several frequencies between 2.9 and 4.5 millihertz  about 10,000 times lower than the human hearing threshold, which is 20 hertz.

Capturing ocean recordings of Earth's hum will provide scientists with far more data than is currently available from readings taken on land, contributing to efforts to map the planet's interior, the researchers wrote in the study.

The findings were published online Nov. 27 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Original article on Live Science.
A Kentucky woman's brutally honest selfie and Facebook post while undergoing treatment for skin cancer drew the type of social media attention and news coverage usually reserved for celebrity health disclosures, a new study suggests.

The riveting photo  which showed then 27-year-old Tawny Willoughby's raw, scab-ridden face along with her message that "this is what skin-cancer treatment can look like"  not only drew eyeballs and ten of thousands of shares of her post, but also triggered near record-setting levels of online searches about skin cancer and its prevention, according to the study.

Willoughby, who works as a nurse, began the April 25, 2015, post by saying, "If anyone needs a little motivation to not lay in the tanning bed and sun here ya go!" [5 Things You Must Know About Skin Cancer]

By May 11, Willoughby's post had reached 50,000 shares, according to the findings. That same day, her selfie caught the eye of one news outlet that covered her story.

From there, the media attention started to snowball: Between May 12 and May 14, there were 161 news reports of the story, including TV, magazines and online media coverage, according to the study.

The findings were published today (Dec. 11) in the journal Preventive Medicine.

Tawny's message was likely impactful because it was authentic, said senior study author John Ayers, a public health researcher at San Diego State University.

The public may get tired of hearing the same old health messages coming from experts, Ayers told Live Science. But in the age of social media, people don't have to guess what skin cancer can do to your face, they can see it in a selfie, he said.

Seeing the effects can also stimulate curiosity, the findings showed: In the study, the researchers evaluated various metrics, such as the number of comments and shares of Willoughby's original post, along with news coverage and Google searches related to skin cancer for one month after her selfie and story appeared on Facebook (the post initially received 50 comments).

Impacting public health

The news reports that stemmed from Willoughby's post provided more details about how the Kentucky nurse had regularly used tanning beds as a teenager, and was first diagnosed with skin cancer at 21, the study said. By age 27, Willoughby had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma five times and squamous cell carcinoma once, according to news reports.(Since the time she first posted her selfie, Willoughby changed her last name and now posts on Facebook as Tawny Dzierzek.)

When the researchers looked at how interest in skin cancer was affected by the news coverage of the selfie, they found that Google searches of the terms "skin" and "cancer" were up to 162 percent higher than expected search volumes on May 13 and 14, the two days when news coverage of the story had reached its peak. (Search volume was compared to expected search volumes based on historical trends of this time period.)

The analysis also revealed that Google searches for "skin-cancer prevention," as well as for "tan" and "tanning" showed even higher increases around this same period, compared to expected volumes. In fact, the study estimated that from May 13 to 18, there were as many as 229,000 searches for the term "skin cancer," with several days nearing record high levels. [7 Beauty Trends That Are Bad for Your Health]

The study authors noted that one of the limitations of the study is that it only looked at Google searches, which capture most online queries, but not all of them, Another drawback is that researchers were not able to investigate who conducted searches or which sites they visited as a result.

Despite these limitations, before this study, no one had ever considered that a single ordinary person could impact population health, Ayers said.

Events like Tawny's selfie are undoubtedly happening now, both inside and outside of health topics like cancer, Ayers said. If public-health leaders could spend more time listening to and engaging in social-media or news media conversations, their educational messages may become more impactful, he said.

Over time, this may yield important public-health benefits, the study authors wrote. These messages could have such positive effects as raising awareness of health issues, helping to prevent them and even saving lives.

Big media data surveillance is one way to listen to what health topics and stories are engaging people and generating queries online, Ayers said. "It gets the public back into public health," he said.

Originally published on Live Science.
Mangawhai Beach was alive with the rousing sights and sounds of mass kapa haka recently, when the village primary school played host to the annual Kaipara Festival on Saturday, November 11.

The school welcomed 19 different groups from primary schools and colleges throughout the region, from Aucklands North Shore to the far reaches of Northland and

everywhere in between.

After a traditional Maori welcome and blessing through Mangawhai Beach Schools new waharoa, or entrance-way, there was a constant display of performance and song from students throughout the day until late afternoon. Performers wore stunning costumes and impressive moko face stencils.

School principal Aaron Kemp says it was a fabulous day.

It was a fantastic event, everything went really well, he says. This is our third year of taking part, and out first year of hosting. Because of our new waharoa, which was installed this year, we thought it would be a great way to promote Maori culture.

Its something weve always wanted to do, so we put our hand up.
Lawyer of the accused has said that, this is nothing but a publicity stunt by victim. Vikas did it unintentionally. Vikas does not have any criminal background and is happily married for 12 years and has 9 year old son.

By Saurabh Vaktania: The man accused of molesting a Bollywood teen actor during a Vistara Delhi-Mumbai flight has told police his leg touched the star unintentionally and that he even apologised to her after she raised an alarm.

39-year-old Vikas Sachdev, who stays in Mumbai's Andheri suburb, also said he was returning from Delhi after attending a funeral and was really tired while on the flight as he hadn't slept in a long time.

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And so, Vikas said, he asked the cabin crew not to disturb him during the flight and chose not to eat his meal as he wanted to sleep throughout the flight. Vikas's claims match a portion of the official statement given by Vistara to the Mumbai Police, which is investigating the alleged molestation.

Arguments by HS Anand, advocate of defence (accused Vikas Sachdev):

Victim in the case is almost 18 years old and therefore the case should not be heard in POCSO act

The section applied in the case i.e. 8 of POCSO act, is wrong in this particular case

Victim and Vikas were travelling in business class. The chair of business class has good height and therefore nobody can keep legs on the chair and touch the person sitting in the front row

If the victim was being molested continuously in two hours flight why she did not complaint at first or even later during the flight

If victim had problem than why she did not inform the airport officials or her mother

This is nothing but a publicity stunt by victim. Vikas did it unintentionally. Vikas does not have any criminal background and is happily married for 12 years and has 9 year old son.

According to Vikas, he apologised to the actor after finding out that his leg had touched her shoulder, an act he said was unintentional. Vikas' wife Divya, supported her husband's claim.

"My husband was coming home from Delhi. His mamaji (maternal uncle) had passed away and he was not in the right frame of mind. He was feeling very low and asked for a blanket. He wanted to sleep. I am shocked at (the actor's) allegation. The police have taken my husband into custody," Divya said.

The actor, who appeared in the sports-drama Dangal, had earlier alleged that she was molested while on a flight from Delhi to Mumbai. Vikas was detained by the Mumbai police after the actor gave her statement to the police.

A case under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act and Indian Penal Code Section 354 (assault with intention to outrage a woman's modesty) was registered against Vikas Sachdev. The POSCO act was invoked since the actor is a minor.

According to sources, after the incident, came to light a team of three Vistara officials flew to Mumbai from Delhi to take note of the incident. A meeting between the teen actor and the officials was organised at a hotel in Mumbai. The meeting went on for over an hour where the star narrated the incident in front of the Vistara officials.

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The star's mother was present during the meeting.

--- ENDS ---
Sarah C

Mangawhai Artists Gallery (MAI) will host two exhibitions by well-known local artists next month on the theme of place expressed through art work.

This is My Rock by Sarah C and Form and Flow by Elena Nikolaeva opens on Thursday, December 28 at 6pm, and will show how each artist expresses their connection with Mangawhai.

On Thursday, January 11 at 6pm, the theme continues with a new exhibition, East West, featuring artists from Kaiparas east and west coasts.

They are Wendy Clifford, from Mangawhai, and John Ecuyer, from Matakohe.

This is My Rock is Sarah Cs first exhibition at the MAI Gallery.

As the Mangawhai area grows and develops, it is a comfort that Head Rock remains unchanged, Sarah says. The rock is a metaphor for stability.

Known worldwide for her illustrative artworks, Sarahs mixed media pieces are abstract in style.

Form and Flow comprises both sculptures and paintings.

Elena Nikolaeva

Wendy Clifford

John Ecuyer All photos, JM Vickers.

Elena Nikolaeva says as far back as she can remember she was always playing with the different materials and objects that her environment provided.

I saw various images emerging from these ordinary shapes and forms, she says.

In East West, Wendy Clifford will show large and colourful oil and acrylic paintings that reflect Mangawhais eastern landscape; along with portraits, figure studies and woodcuts.

East West is also an opportunity to see John Ecuyers wood-turned objects. The work is largely based around the use of a wood lathe. He says even after making handmade objects for 30 years he is still driven by the need to make the next piece. Johns works of art have found their way into many private and public collections around New Zealand and worldwide.
Minniesdale Chapel, the tiny church built by English settlers known as Albertlanders at Wharehine in the 1860s, is celebrating its 150th anniversary this month.

To mark the occasion, the chapel and cemetery in Shegadeen Road are receiving a major upgrade, with a new concrete path, new water tank and plumbing, general renovations and an overall spruce up.

Much of the work has been done by Wellsford Lions Club, which chose to help Minniesdale as its centennial project  a specific local cause to mark Lions global 100th anniversary this year.

Member Roger Farr says it has been great to be able to help Minniesdale, especially putting in the new grey concrete and white shell path from the roadside down to the chapel entrance, since the previous grass path was steep and very slippery when wet.

Meanwhile, chapel trustees and supporters have been painting fences and gates, tidying up the cemetery and grounds, and making sure the original dark wood panelled walls, ceiling, polished floors and pews are at their best.

The 150th anniversary will be celebrated with a special service on Sunday, December 31  the nearest

Sunday to the chapels original opening date of December 29. The service will be led by descendants of the Brookes family, the settlers who donated the land and brought wood and stained glass windows from England to build Minniesdale in 1867.

After the service, afternoon tea will be served at Wharehine Hall in Pah Hill Road.

Chapel trustees say the anniversary is a time to reflect, and they hope visitors will spend time to tour the cemetery to see historic pioneer family graves, or sit and view the Oruawharo River flowing into the Kaipara Harbour.

Info: minniesdale.com or at Minniesdale on Facebook.
A recent Off the Record in Hibiscus Matters March 1 paper about the need for weekend ferries from Gulf Harbour to the city caused a lot of comment on social media.

As a result, the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board requested the developers of Fairway Bay, Top Harbour, to conduct a survey, focused on weekend sailings.

Local board chair Julia Parfitt has an upcoming meeting with Auckland Transport (AT), and wants to use the opportunity to present the survey as evidence of the potential demand.

Whilst it may seem obvious to us, AT needs to see some evidence of demand before they can build a business case around weekend sailings. It is really important for the local community to get engaged in these processes, Mrs Parfitt says.

Until last year, Top Harbour subsidised the weekday ferry sailings and development consultant Michael Webb-Speight says the company is open to having a conversation with Auckland Transport about supporting weekend sailings in future.

However he says it is impossible to make a commitment until the company has those discussions and knows what any such financial contribution may look like.



To participate fill out the Fairway Bay survey

The survey went live on Monday, March 27 and closes on Wednesday, April 12.
Local News, Politics

By Long Island News & PR Published: December 11 2017

OneJet to Offer Direct Flights Starting in 2018; Rejuvenation of Buffalo Economy Increased Demand for Air Travel Options.

Albany, NY - December 11, 2017 - Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that OneJet will be offering non-stop flights between Buffalo and Albany beginning on February 1, 2018. The new flight will offer a direct link between the Capital Region and New York State's largest upstate city, and will operate two times per day at convenient times for business travelers.

"The return of Buffalo to Albany air service is a testament to our efforts to revitalize the Western New York economy that will only add to the momentum of this region's renaissance," Governor Cuomo said. "OneJet is a brand new airline to the Queen City, one that caters to people who want to get their business done quickly and go back home to their families. We welcome the expanded service this company will provide and look forward to building upon it even further as we continue to move Western New York forward."

Flights between Buffalo Niagara International Airport and Albany International Airport will be as follows:

BUF to ALB: departing 7:00 a.m. ET; arriving 7:55 a.m. ET

ALB to BUF: departing 8:20 a.m. ET; arriving 9:20 a.m. ET

BUF to ALB: departing 4:50 p.m. ET; arriving 5:45 p.m. ET

ALB to BUF: departing 6:10 p.m. ET; arriving 7:10 p.m. ET

OneJet will also offer new service between Buffalo and Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina. This summer, the company began offering direct flights from Albany to Pittsburgh.

"OneJet's arrival at Buffalo Niagara International Airport is another sign of this region's economic revival and emergence as a growing commercial aviation hub," said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, who took part in today's announcement. "The historic investments made by Governor Cuomo over the past six years have made this a more attractive market for air carriers at a time when the airport is preparing for a major expansion in anticipation of increased traffic. I thank the governor for his commitment to Western New York, and the team at Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority for making this milestone possible."

"Air service between Buffalo and Albany was presented as a mission-critical route for the Upstate New York business community, and we're pleased to offer this new nonstop service to meet that demand," said Matthew Maguire, OneJet CEO. "Our expansion in Western New York also marks a significant milestone for us as we introduce the OneJet Plus product to the market, providing an expanded platform to serve highly demanded routes throughout our network. We look forward to working with our airport partners in Buffalo and Albany to serve travelers based in both cities."

OneJet provides increased access to non-stop travel in mid-sized markets at a relatively competitive price. The service will be operated by the company's Hawker 400XP jet aircraft. Passengers on the routes will enjoy a variety of travel-enhancing benefits, including TSA Pre-access for eligible travelers, expedited boarding, complimentary high speed WiFi, and a selection of healthy snacks.
Local News, Business & Finance

By Long Island News & PR Published: December 11 2017

Family-owned New York fashion retailer debuts new retail concept with the opening of The Mix Warehouse on Friday, December 15th, selling items all under $50.

Lynbrook, NY - December 11, 2017 - , the contemporary fast fashion retailer, announces the debut of its new retail concept in North America this Holiday season with the opening of the official Mix Warehouse in Mixology Clothing Company , the contemporary fast fashion retailer, announces the debut of its new retail concept in North America this Holiday season with the opening of the official Mix Warehouse in Lynbrook, NY



Photo Credit: Mixology Clothing Company



Located at 42 Broadway, in the very heart of the downtown Lynbrook shopping district, the store will feature off-price and discounted products from Mixologys portfolio of brands. This new concept will serve its clientele as a gateway into the world of Mixology Clothing Company.



Photo Credit: Mixology Clothing Company



The Mix Warehouse will celebrate its official Grand Opening on Friday, December 15th, at which time Mixology Clothing Company will be providing light refreshments and giveaways to customers. The Mixology Clothing Company Mix Warehouse will be open 5 days a week, from 11am-7pm Wednesday through Sunday, and will provide customers with the opportunity to schedule private appointments.



Photo Credit: Mixology Clothing Company



A unique destination, the Mix Warehouse will provide customers the opportunity to discover familiar and up and coming brands, all of which are priced at under $50. Keeping in line with Mixology Clothing Companys commitment to increasing the enjoyment of shopping for one and all, the Mix Warehouse will feature women's apparel, gifts and accessories; in addition, sales stylists will be on-hand to assist customers in creating their perfect wardrobes.



Photo Credit: Mixology Clothing Company



At present, Mixology Clothing Company has locations in Hewlett Woodbury , Rye Brook, Manhattan, and West Hampton , and will be soon be officially announcing the opening of its next location in Closter, New Jersey, slated to open in 2018. Mixology Clothing Company has a huge online shopping presence, ShopMixology.com , which is available to customers nation-wide.



Photo Credit: Mixology Clothing Company



For further information, visit www.shopmixology.com , or phone: 516-341-7454.

About Mixology Clothing Company
Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com

Columnists Press Releases
Boliver accepted deposits for the purchase of vehicles that he never delivered. The incident took place at an auction in Medford, New York with a customer from Stamford, Connecticut. Boliver is believed to have taken more than $9,000 from his victim. Boliver is a black male with a Haitian Accent. Anyone with information about Bolivers whereabouts is asked to call. Anyone who has been a victim of Boliver should contact
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, December 11, 2017

The Federal Communications Commission won't cooperate with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's investigation into fake comments, including comments apparently generated by bots, regarding net neutrality.

FCC general counsel Thomas Johnson said in a letter sent to Schneiderman last week that he has not presented any evidence that the alleged fake comments had any impact on the agency.

New York's top law enforcement official is probing problems with comments submitted to the FCC regarding its plan to repeal the net neutrality rules. Among other well-publicized allegations, up to 1 million comments may have come from bots that impersonated people, and around 400,000 may have come from Russia.

The FCC plans to vote Thursday on whether to repeal repeal rules that prohibit broadband providers from blocking or throttling service and from charging higher fees for prioritized delivery. Last week, Schneiderman -- along with 28 U.S. senators and FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel -- publicly urged the FCC to hold off on a vote because of questions about the public commenting process.

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Johnson suggests that the issues Schneiderman is investigating will not affect the FCC's vote. "The Commission does not make policy decisions merely by tallying the comments on either side of a proposal to determine what position has greater support, not does it attribute greater weight to comments based on the submitter's identity," he writes.

He also says that a request by Schneiderman for commenters' IP addresses could compromise people's privacy. "If members of the public feared that their personal IP addresses could be provided to a state's chief legal officer in connection with an ongoing investigation, they could be deterred from participating in the robust public dialogue surrounding important rulemakings," he writes.

FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, who supports the net neutrality rules, criticized the agency's decision.

"There is evidence in the FCCs files that fraud has occurred and the FCC is telling law enforcement and victims of identity theft that it is not going to help," she stated. "Failure to investigate this corrupted record undermines our process for seeking public input in the digital age. This is unacceptable."
As mobile phones carry a significant amount of private data including message history and details, photos, and other confidential information, losing a phone can be damaging in terms of a financial loss and intellectual property. There are plenty of third-party apps and security systems that can help you protect that data  but sometimes, you simply must wipe the phone clean of anything that could bring about a disaster.

Thankfully, you're well covered on both Android and iOS.

For Android:

 Google

Earlier called Android Device Manager, Find My Device is a simple service that allows you to check where exactly your device is located, remotely lock it, erase its content, and more. You can also see the battery life remaining on your phone and the Wi-Fi network it is connected to. Any device running Android KitKat 4.4 and above can run Find My Device, which means almost every Android phone can. Simply download the Find My Device app from Google Play Store and sign in with your Google Account. Most of you won't even have to manually download it as it comes pre-installed on a majority of devices out there.

For most devices to work with Find My Device, it will need to be logged into your Google account, online and have its Location feature turned on. Some phones have security features that can prevent the erase feature of the app from working, though. Just to make sure, if you have a newer Android device, go to the Settings > Google > Security. Under the Android Device Manager section, the locator feature should be enabled by default. To enable remote data wipe, tap the slider next to "Allow remote lock and erase."

 Google

If you've lost your phone, you can remotely locate it through the Find My Device website. You'll need to sign in to the Google account that was used to set up Find My Device, select your device and you're good to go. Just pick what you want to do, ring the device at full volume, lock it with a PIN or a password or permanently delete all data on your device (SD Card may not get formatted). After you erase, Find My Device won't work on the device.

This is by far the simplest way to prevent your data being misused.

Go to Find My Device Website

For iOS:

 MensXP

Find My iPhone lets you remotely track your lost, stolen, or misplaced Apple device  be it an iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac. Not only can Find My iPhone help you locate a stolen or lost device, it can also assist in remotely wiping your private information. To do this, you need to go to Find My iPhone, a free service that's part of iCloud, that uses your phone's GPS and Internet connection to help you locate it on a map and take certain actions.

Download and install the app from App Store and sign-in with your Apple ID. Once you have set-up the account on your device, you're good to go. In those bad time when you lose your device, log in to iCloud via browser using the account you used when setting up Find My iPhone.

Click on Find iPhone under the web-based tools offered by iCloud. Find My iPhone immediately begins trying to locate all the devices you have it enabled on. You'll see onscreen messages as it works. Once you locate your iPhone or iOS device, use one of Find my iPhone's built-in functions to help recover the device. Tap the grey Play Sound button featuring the speaker to force your phone to play a high-pitched ping continuously for two minutes, or tap the grey Erase iPhone button followed by the Erase iPhone confirmation to completely wipe your device of all content and settings.

Go to Find my iPhone Website
Were excited to announce that metalbulletin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com.

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Discover more than 2000 prices, news and analysis in primary and secondary metals markets. We cover base metals, industrial minerals, ores and alloys, steel, scrap and steel raw materials.

If you already have a Fastmarkets account, youll still have uninterrupted access to your markets by logging in with your current details.
Officials say the device was known as an "unexploded ordnance," or an explosive weapon that did not explode and still posed a...
A federal judge cleared the way Monday for the Defense Department to begin taking in transgender recruits Jan. 1.

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia rejected the Justice Department's motion for a delay in her October ruling that President Donald Trump's proposed ban on transgender individuals in the military was discriminatory and unconstitutional.

It was not immediately clear whether the Trump administration would appeal, but Maj. David Eastburn, a Pentagon spokesman, said the enlistment of transgender recruits will start Jan. 1 and continue until such time as the courts rule otherwise.

At the White House later, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders indicated Trump has not given up on imposing a transgender ban for the military, saying the Justice Department is "currently reviewing legal options" to find a way to have the directive implemented.

"The Court is not persuaded that Defendants [the Trump administration] will be irreparably injured" by meeting the New Year's Day deadline, Kollar-Kotelly wrote in her ruling.

"Especially in light of the record evidence showing, with specifics, that considerable work has already been done, the Court is not convinced by the vague claims in [the administration's] declaration that a stay is needed," she said.

In October, Kollar-Kotelly granted a preliminary injunction sought by plaintiffs for advocacy groups in the case of Doe v. Trump against the president's August directive to ban transgender individuals from serving in the military.

Kollar-Kotelly's action had the effect of ordering the Defense Department to resume accepting qualified transgender individuals Jan. 1. The DoD initially said that the military was ready to comply with the court's ruling.

"While reviewing legal options with the Department of Justice, the Department of Defense is taking steps to be prepared to initiate accessions of transgender applicants for military service on January 1," Eastburn said in a statement.

However, last week, Lernes Hebert, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense for personnel policy, filed papers supporting the administration's request for a delay. He said accepting transgender recruits by Jan. 1 would "impose extraordinary burdens" on the military.

In granting the preliminary injunction in October, Kollar-Kotelly sided with plaintiffs in the case who argued that Trump's move to bar transgender recruits and to discharge transgender individuals already in the ranks was illegal.

"There is absolutely no support for the claim that the ongoing service of transgender people would have any negative effect on the military at all," Kollar-Kotelly wrote.

"In fact, there is considerable evidence that it is the discharge and banning of such individuals that would have such effects," she said.

On July 26, Trump in a series of Tweets announced his intention to ban transgender individuals from serving in the military.

Trump said that the government would no longer "accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military." His announcement caught the DoD by surprise.

On July 27, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford issued a statement indicating that the military would not make changes on transgender personnel until Trump made clear his intentions.

"There will be no modifications to the current policy until the President's direction has been received by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary has issued implementation guidance," Dunford said in a memo to the service chiefs and senior enlisted advisers.

Trump followed up the Tweets with a memo to the DoD ordering a ban and directing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to conduct a study on the effects and costs of transgenders in the ranks.

In remarks to reporters at his Bedminster, New Jersey, estate, Trump said, "As you know, it's been a very complicated issue for the military, it's been a very confusing issue for the military, and I think I'm doing the military a great favor."

A Rand Corp. study estimated there are between 2,500 and 7,000 transgender service members on active duty and an additional 1,500 to 4,000 in the Reserves and National Guard.

The case against the administration was brought by GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders [GLAD] and the National Center for Lesbian Rights [NCLR].

The advocacy groups sued in August on behalf of six active-duty transgender service members who had come out to their superiors and had roughly 60 years combined in the military.

In a statement in response to Kollar-Kotelly's issuance of a preliminary injunction against the administration, NCLR legal director Shannon Minter said:

"This is a complete victory for our plaintiffs and all transgender service members, who are now once again able to serve on equal terms and without the threat of being discharged."

Last year, then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter ended the ban on transgender service members, allowing them to serve openly in the military. He said that within 12 months -- or by July 2017 -- transgender people also would be able to enlist.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Miitary.com.
U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Raymond Brown had just returned from a tour of duty in Iraq when he first noticed the message: he had been issued a coast-to-coast PCS and the clock was tickingfast. Thats when he reached out to Sharon Baker, a REALTOR with her Military Relocation Professional (MRP) certification and retired military officer, to help him purchase a home near his new base.

My new assignment will keep me in Virginia for at least four years, so I knew I wanted to buy instead of rent. But I also knew it was going to be incredibly difficult and expensive to add a cross-country home shopping trip to my schedule, explains Ray.

Instead, with Sharons help, Im buying a home Ive never set foot in.

Ray admits it feels like the craziest thing hes ever done, but hes also confident about his decision. Sharon has been incredibly attentive to every detail, in terms of helping me select the right property and representing my interests every step of the way, including negotiating a better price, and handling the inspections and related repairs, says Ray. Im even closing remotely!

One reason Ray lucked out is that he started his search by selecting an agent who was uniquely qualified to provide the type of real estate services he needed mostsomeone who understands the ins and outs of military moves.

Whats an MRP?

MRP stands for Military Relocation Professional. Its a certification awarded to real estate agents (by the National Association of REALTORS) who have successfully completed special training to work with current and former military service members.

Jim Lawrence, a REALTOR and former Army officer, also teaches real estate classes, including the MRP certification course.

MRPs understand that military buyers are looking for many of the same things that non-military buyers want, but MRPs also understand the unique challenges military buyers and sellers face when their housing needs change, says Jim.

If you reach out to an MRP, you can expect someone who:

Talks your language - From PCS to RAP to BAH and more, active duty service members speak in military acronyms and follow a unique set of moving protocols. An MRP understands these terms and, more importantly, how they can affect your relocation decisions.

Supports tight decisions and deadlines - An MRP knows that a PCSing active duty shopper is a power shopper who might look for a house, write a sales contract, and have it negotiated all in a long weekend. Time is of the essence, and an MRP does the legwork that helps everything fall into place.

Assists with VA financing - A mortgage backed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs can be an important way to improve your purchasing power and achieve the best financing rates. An MRP can help you evaluate these benefits and put you in touch with knowledgeable VA lenders.

Plans ahead - You may be focused on your latest move, but an MRP is also thinking about your next transfer. How easy will it be to sell your home? Does it make sense to convert it into a rental property at the end of your current assignment? These are questions an MRP can help you answer.

May recommend renting instead of buying - Depending on current local market dynamics and the particulars of your situation, renting may be your best choice. An MRP will help you crunch the numbers and support your decision.

Bottom line: an MRP is trained to protect your interests first. They understand the importance of taking a long-term perspective and preserving trust, which ultimately helps them earn more referral business down the road, both within and beyond the military community.

Not Just Active Duty

MRPs are trained to understand and serve all aspects of the military market, including the Reserves, National Guard, and veterans. As a result, youll find them located across the U.S., not exclusively near major bases.

On the Same Page

In my experience, a REALTOR who has gone out of their way to receive the MRP training tends to exhibit patriotic qualities that are closely aligned with military values, says Jim Lawrence. He or she usually has strong national pride, which translates into a positive experience for current and former military members who seek to purchase and enjoy the American Dream.

Ready to Get Started?

If you're ready to get started, or just want to get more information on the process, the first step is to get multiple rate quotes with no obligation. You can then discuss qualifications, debt to income ratios, and any other concerns you have about the process with the lenders.
Sources close to Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News tell her that the Mets have talked to at least two teams about trading former All-Star Matt Harvey this winter. This seems to be part of a larger strategy that Ackert describes as dipping into their strength of starting pitchers to address their needs heading into the 2018 season.

One of Ackerts sources says that the Mets want to flip Harvey for a reliever, and are more interested in moving him than fellow Amazin starters Robert Gsellman or Seth Lugo. The report aligns with quotes from GM Sandy Alderson, who told reporters that no player on the roster is untouchable (though in contradiction, the organization has seemingly made it clear that starters Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard are not on the table).

The thought of trading the right-handed Harvey for a relief pitcher would have seemed ludicrous as recently as 2015. After missing the 2014 season due to Tommy John surgery, Harvey seemingly made a full recovery; he pitched to a sparkling 2.71 ERA across 189 1/3 innings, including a fantastic month of August during which he allowed just one earned run spanning four starts. His performance helped the Mets to a 90-72 record en route to their first NL East pennant since 2006.

Unfortunately, Harveys numbers plummeted steeply in 2016. The one-time ace experienced a slight drop in velocity (along with some terrible batted ball fortune), which led to a 4-10 record and a 4.86 ERA prior to season-ending surgery for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. His velocity and strikeout rate dropped off even further in 2017, leading to horrific peripherals: 6.51 K/9, 4.56 BB/9, and a 6.39 FIP that ranked third-worst among pitchers who started at least 15 games.

The Dark Knights fall from grace has been widely publicized. His trade value, of course, is at an all-time low; Harvey performed at nearly a full win below replacement level last season, carries significant injury risk, and projects to earn a $5.9MM salary in his final year of arbitration. Though he carries significant upside, its fair to wonder how likely Harvey is to revert back to his 2015 form. After failing to reach 100 innings in each of the past two seasons, teams are likely to be skeptical over Harveys bounce-back potential.

Still, its not difficult to imagine an MLB club taking a flyer on Harvey at the price of an impact reliever. The Yankees and Brewers, for example, seem to have reasonable bullpen depth and a need in the rotation; either of them could feasibly flip a relief arm for the chance to play roulette with the former six-WAR player. Its also important to note that the Mets wish list isnt limited to bullpen help. The club is also looking to add a second baseman, along with a part-time first baseman or outfielder (link).

While Harvey has performed poorly in recent years, its worth noting that hell enter the 2018 season at just under 29 years of age. Regardless of whether hes traded or not, his storyline headed into 2018 will be captivating and suspenseful.
TUESDAY, 7:42am: Santana and his representatives are weighing offers from several teams, Hoynes reports, though it isnt certain if he is close to accepting a deal.

MONDAY, 5:04pm: The Padres have indeed discussed Santana, but it seems theyre still focused on Hosmer, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link).



1:51pm: The Rockies are also showing some interest in Santana, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post tweets. Colorado has a clear opening at first base, though the team has indicated its top priorities lie elsewhere.

10:27am: Clevelands top extension offer to Santana was three years and $36MM, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets, and the organization would likely go higher now that hes on the open market.

SUNDAY, 9:00pm: The Indians made Santana a contract offer, the Cleveland Plain Dealers Paul Hoynes reports. While the offer wasnt taken, the Tribe have been informed that they will get a chance to counter any offer Santana receives from another team that he considered acceptable.

6:32pm: Carlos Santana is already drawing quite a bit of interest this offseason, and Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer adds the Rangers and Padres to the list of other teams (including the Phillies, Red Sox, and Mariners) already linked to Santana on the rumor mill.

Texas is known to be focusing on adding pitching this winter, though the teams offense also lacked some of the well-rounded attack of past years. Santana would clearly be a big upgrade in the first base/DH hole left behind by free agent Mike Napoli, who struggled last year in a sub-replacement level season. Santanas arrival would bolster the Rangers lineup against the possible departure of Adrian Beltre after the 2018 season.

Installing Santana at first base would have a ripple effect throughout the Rangers lineup. Joey Gallo would have to return to left field, with Nomar Mazara shifting to right and Shin-Soo Choo being limited to DH duties. Top prospect Willie Calhoun had been mentioned as a possible candidate for regular DH or corner outfield duty, though Texas might want to give him a bit more seasoning rather than expect Calhoun to immediately contribute to a team that hopes to contend.

Previous reports seemed to downplay San Diegos possible interest in Santana, though it could be that the Padres have since considered Santana for what seems to be an increasing desire to sign a first baseman. The Padres have also had interest in Eric Hosmer, with the logic being that the 28-year-old Hosmer is young enough to still be productive in a few years when San Diego is theoretically finished with its rebuild. Santana, by contrast, turns 32 in April, and while the slugger hasnt shown many signs of slowing down, he wouldnt have the luxury of the occasional DH rest day while playing for a National League team.

Adding a first baseman would necessitate shifting Wil Myers into a corner outfield role, though the Padres may see that as an acceptable tradeoff for adding offense. The Padres finished at or near the bottom of most major offensive categories last year, so a proven above-average hitter like Santana (who hit .259/.363/.455 with 23 homers over 667 PA last year and has posted a 123 wRC+ over his career) would add some much-needed pop to the lineup.

Santana rejected the Indians qualifying offer, and thus the Rangers and Padres would each need to surrender some compensation to sign the first baseman. Texas would give up their second-highest draft pick and $500K of international signing bonus money, while San Diego would only have to surrender its third-highest draft pick.
This years Bhim Concert, dubbed the EOM (Epistles Of Mama) Album Release Edition, is set to take place on December 22.

Last year, Stonebwoy/Bhim Nation held a similar and successful show at the Accra International Conference (AICC) in collaboration with Charterhouse.

This years event, according to reports, promises to be even more exciting as Zylofon Media takes charge with the organisation of the second edition of the Bhim Concert.

After putting together the Ashaiman to the World concert in September where the night recorded over 50,000 people with lots of surprise acts passing through, Zylofon Media is set to pull more strings to surprise Ghanaians once again.

Some of the artists on the bill for the second edition of the concert include Rocky Dawuni, Becca, Kumi Guitar, Obibini, Joyce Blessing, Samini, VVIP, Joey B, Kojo Funds, Kofi Kinaata, Kelvyn Boy, Eden, Mugeez, Yaa Pono, and King Promise.

Organisers have promised a surprise performance by a yet-to-be-named Jamaican artiste.

Stonebwoy is currently in London promoting his EOM Double album. The double album; one Afrobeats and the other pure Raggae will be released on December 12.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Jumia Ghana Limited, has launched its local food Friday campaign with a call on the people to have faith and patronize and consume local dishes.

The Campaign is an innovative way mooted by Jumia to boost and encourage consumption of local dishes and to also promote local restaurants in the country.

Launching the Campaign in Accra on Friday, Jumia Foods Country Director, Mr. Terry Afram, proposed for Fridays to be set aside as days for the people both locals and expatriates to patronize and consume only local dishes

 With this campaign, Mr. Afram added, we aim to influence consumer behavior such that the ordering of local food on our platform become just common as ordering for example pizza.

In line with the overall strategy of Jumia to promote local businesses and bridge the wide gap between them and the customers, the Campaign will get locals and expatriates ordering local food at very affordable prices.

The Jumia Foods Country Director mentioned that customers will now enjoy their regular fufu and soup, banku and tilapia, yam and kontomire stew and other local meals every Friday from their favourite local restaurants at much reduced prices.

The Campaign which runs from Friday 8th December to Friday 15th December will see Jumia given its cherished customers up to 50% discount on selected meals for a week, after which there will be discounts every Friday.

He also disclosed that they will work together to ensure massive packaging of the foods for the customers and that their service is available everyday between the hours of 9am to 9pm.

Jumia food service which is currently in nine different African countries is available only in Accra and Tema but plans are far advanced to expand to Kumasi and Takoradi next year.

He however pointed out that the introduction of the local food campaign should not discourage consumers from patronizing non-local foods on the Jumia platform.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

The word of God is unstoppable, irrevocable, impregnable, immutable and infallible. Stop fidgeting. Stop complaining about it. Our God is able and faithful. Yes! Jesus said that everything is possible to them that believe.

Paul was being taken to Rome to stand before Caesar. God pre-arranged it, but did not inform the apostle that it was going to be a tempestuous journey.

The beginning of the voyage was calm and prosperous, but towards Italy (the destination), the weather, the sea and the wind became unfriendly. They revolted. They stood against the journey. Some bible translations called it "Contrary wind." They got into real trouble. I know somebody would say, "But God sent him." Yes, you're correct. But, God sending or being with you will in no way make the enemy not to challenge the project. He will but you will also have your victory. Guaranteed!

Look at the kind of opposition Jesus had. It was something else. From conception, the enemy did everything to abort the plan of God for man's redemption. His father (Joseph) wanted to throw the mother away. His mother could not find a decent place to give birth to him. Herod tried to get rid of Him, and in the process killed thousands of innocent Jewish babies. His own brothers and the Jews mocked Him. He was persecuted. A member of His inner team sold Him out. He was severely tempted and promised by Satan to exchange his divine mission. He was deserted and killed in the process. All these happened just to stampede him into abandoning that mission. But Jesus stood his ground and believed God. He held unto the eternal agreement and the ability of God to fulfill His own part of the deal. That was why He told the Jews, "Even if you kill me, I will rise up at the third day, because my mission is unstoppable!"

This must be your attitude always; if you must remain a winner in all circumstances of life. Let the wind blow, let the sea billow or the storm rage, yet continue to stand on what God has told you. The word of God cannot fail. Stop fidgeting. Stop complaining about. Our God is able and faithful. At the appointed time (which could be sooner than you think) He will bring His word to pass in your life. He cannot lie. Please, let's see what Apostle Paul and his co-travelers went through. "We had several days of rough sailing, and after great difficulty we finally neared Cnidus. But the wind was against us, so we sailed down to the leeward side of Crete, past the cape of salmone. We struggled along the coast with great difficulty and finally arrived at Fair Havens, near the city of Lasea. We had lost a lot of time. The weather was becoming dangerous for long voyages by then because it was so late in the fall and Paul spoke to the ships officers about it. 'Sirs, he said, ' I believe there is trouble ahead if we go on - shipwreck, loss of cargo, injuries, and danger to our lives.' They couldn't turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale. The terrible storm raged unabated for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone" (Acts 27:7-10, 15, 20).

Did you follow that bible text? Their trouble started with a contrary wind, then loss of time and properties, and eventually all hope that they would remain alive was lost. You know it is very easy to teach or preach from this part of the bible, but I want you to imagine yourself in a drifting boat or aircraft. Maybe in the middle of the Pacific or Atlantic, and you're fully aware that the Captain has lost control of the boat or the plane. What will be your next move? From where will you start helping yourself; even if you have life Jacket? I have heard somebody telling a similar story. Theirs was in an aircraft. As the aircraft lost control, the passengers went into an instantaneous prayer revival and alter call without a preacher. But I ask, why must people wait to get into this kind of situation before they acknowledge God. And also, always go back to their evil ways after such a harrowing experience?

Now, from this uncertain and tempestuous journey to Rome, Paul brought the unexpected and incredible good news to the 276 passengers on board. He told them to cheer up. "Cheer up for what?" I'm sure the other passengers would ask. Paul had received a word from the Lord and knew immediately that heaven had come to rescue them. That was not the first time he had heard and believed the word of God. Like others before, he was very sure that this particular one would not fail. He told the fasting and death-rattled co-travelers; who were waiting to be buried in the deep sea, "But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down. For last night an angel of God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me, and he said, 'Don't be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What's more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you'. So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as he said"(27:22-24). Praise God! Paul heard and believed the word of God, and consequently became an encouragement to others in trouble. I want you to start believing God's word in your situation. He can't disappoint. Yes, He can't afford to.

There were others who also believed God and saw His mighty deliverance. What do you say about Noah? God told him to make a boat and prepare, for He was going to flood the whole earth. Noah believed God even when he didn't see any sign of rain. Remember he had not seen anything like that before. And later the rain came as God said. Look at Abraham. He believed God and at the appointed time Sarah his wife gave birth to Isaac; even when her womb was considered already dead. Then when asked to sacrifice the same son, he went ahead believing that God would bring him back to life. Radical faith! Yes, Jesus said that everything is possible to them that believe.

The bible is full of people who believed God, and as a result were delivered and honored. You can join the long list today. Start believing God's word concerning you today. Do that and you will not be disappointed. Believe Him in that your project. Believe Him in your marriage. Believe Him in your job. Believe Him over your health, children, career, relationship, admission, future, protection, etc. He will surely deliver on His promises.

Rev Gabriel Agbo is the author of the books Power of Midnight Prayer, Power of Sacrifice, Breaking Generational Curses: Claiming Your Freedom and others. Website: www.authorsden.com/pastorgabrielnagboTel: 08037113283 E-mail: [email protected]
10.12.2017 LISTEN

This write-up is the result of Archbishop Duncan Williamss endorsement of US-President Donald Trumps move to recognize Jerusalem as Israels Capital over Tel-Aviv, a part of which I recently happened to read from ghanaweb [online] general news of Friday, 8 December 2017.

Although carefully presented it was highly misleading, so much so that I thought of sharing my thoughts with you. I do not have any issue with its political motivation; my outrage is the way it belittled Ghanaian Christians and Muslims relationship.

The Archbishop claims that, the announcement by Donald Trump marks the beginning of the end time signs and attributes it to God divine prophecy. I doubt if he knows what it means, it will triggered more than just tensions and lit a fire and left key allies in the Arab world and in the west to deal with the blaze.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth,--John 14:27. If God according to this biblical story is promoting peace and love in this material world then the prophecy serves no purpose. Recognition of our spiritual and religious identity doesnt translate into indifference towards others Even though we may try to hide the truth, it cannot be concealed On the campaign trail, Mr. Trump took a strong pro-Israel stance and promised to relocate the U.S Embassy from Tel Aviv, Where most countries keep their embassies to Jerusalem. Since taking office, he has learned that such a move is easier to talk about than to carry out.

Under American law, the President must sign a waiver every six months and Mr. Trump renewed the waiver to begin the multi-year process of moving the U.S Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Recognizing Jerusalem as Israels capital could allow Mr. Trump to say that he kept a campaign promise. It also will thrill Israel, whose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is one of Trumps biggest supporters on the global stage.

Trumps decision could have deep repercussions and can never be the wish of God. It absolute defective evangelical theology, it is about American superiority in this age of kali. Only one corner filled Christians will be happy. What problem does this solve other than create more deaths and gift to the regions twin adversaries---Iran and the jihadists of al-Qaeda and so-called Islamic State [IS].

O Radiant One Archbishop Nicholas Duncan Williams As Representative of God, I Kindly appeal to you to be liberal and kind to everyone AND bring blessings from the spiritual realms to the entire world because you are empowered to elevate consciousness and to convey mercy to all regardless of their religious paths.

Thank you!!!

Writer

Koku Toseafa

Socialist Activist

0242 988932 / 0507279384

[email protected]

May the truth protect me in all ways!!!
With rifles raised, South African police speed through the streets of Manenberg, responding to yet another call to quell violence in one of the country's most murderous ganglands.

Arriving in this drab suburb of the tourist city of Cape Town, a dead body is found lying in the road -- the aftermath of a battle between rival gangs.

On the chaotic street, small children peek at the corpse as police shout at onlookers, ordering them to move on.

Sporadic gun battles in gang hotspots around the Cape Flats area have increased and prompted authorities to call for an army intervention as the overwhelmed police fight for control.

"There is nothing we can do, except to keep away from the streets," said 71-year-old Manenberg resident Keenan Willemse from the doorstep of his house.

"When the shooting starts, we stay indoors. We have almost become prisoners in our own homes. The streets are bad."

Recent official crime statistics revealed that nearly 20 percent of murders reported in the Western Cape province were caused by gang violence, although the figure is believed to be higher.

According to media reports, more than 50 people, mostly residents caught in the crossfire, have been killed in the Cape Flats over the past five months.

The low-lying Cape Flats, set between Cape Town and the picturesque winelands region, is home to a mostly mixed-race population -- known as Coloureds -- where gangsterism is concentrated.

Local residents bear the brunt of gang-related crime as gang members wage turf wars and retaliatory attacks on rivals.

'Outsmarted the police'

According to media reports, more than 50 people, mostly residents caught in the crossfire, have been killed in the Cape Flats over the past five months

One elderly man was shot and killed in October on his way to collect his monthly social grant payout, and a mother was fatally wounded by a stray bullet while chatting to a friend outside her house in September.

Arrests are few, and police action is often too late.

The lucrative drug trade business, goods smuggling and protection rackets are the main source of income for gangs.

"I think they have outsmarted the police, they are more organised," said Faldiela de Vries, a co-founder of the Manenberg People's Centre, a community action group.

Criminologists say as long as there is poverty, gangsterism will be hard to eradicate.

"What is more frightening is that the age of the perpetrators has become younger," she told AFP.

"In the 1980s they were in their 30s and 40s," she said, adding that now children as young as 12 years old are recruited into gangs.

Gang membership in Western Cape is estimated at over 100,000 -- creating a culture of violence that echoes international crime syndicates in the United States and South America.

Manenberg, the stronghold of the notorious Hard Livings gang, has the reputation of being South Africa's "gang capital".

Western Cape Premier Helen Zille has asked for military assistance to support the police.

"By bringing in the army, the soldiers will be given the same powers as police, not act as soldiers in a war," she said.

"What worries me the most about this culture of gangsterism and violence is the seemingly endless flow of firearms and illicit substances."

Rival gang warfare

South African President Jacob Zuma is expected to decide soon whether to deploy the army to back up the police in the Cape Flats.

South African President Jacob Zuma is expected to make a decision on the army deployment soon. Soldiers were last sent into the Cape Flats in May 2015, following a surge in violent crimes.

In several neighbourhoods in the Cape Flats like Bishop Lavis, Hannover Park, Mitchells Plain and Elsies River mostly under-age boys are used as drug runners and to hide weapons.

The Hard Livings gang, one of the oldest organised crime groups, use the British Union Jack as their flag and have rivals spread across the Cape Flats, especially a gang that calls themselves the Americans.

Dozens of other gangs have sprung up like the Sexy Boys, Dixie Boys and Clever Kids who battle with the numbers gangs -- the 26s and 28s -- which originate from prison.

"Many young people are lured into gangs, as a result people get into trouble for hanging out with their school friends without knowing that they are gang members," 17-year-old Linden Brown from Manenberg said.

In October, an alleged gang leader was shot four times outside the Cape Town International Airport terminal, in full view of travellers and no one has been arrested for the shooting.

Back in 1996, notorious leader of the Hard Livings, Rashaad Staggie, was shot and set alight by a community mob in the streets of Salt River, in what was seen as one of the toughest stands against gangsterism.

According to criminologist Don Pinnock, the gangs in Cape Town's previously marginalised areas were bred by the inequality of the apartheid system.

"For as long as there is a problem of poverty, guns and drugs, gangsterism will be hard to eradicate," said Pinnock, based at the University of Cape Town.

"Gangs are admired by youngsters who lack social stability and have little prospects in life. That is one of the things that makes it so hard to eradicate."
At least four people were killed after armed men on motorbikes opened fire in an open market last Sunday in a village at Bunkurugu/Younyoo district of the Northern region.

At least five more were critically injured including a 11-year old boy and a 14-year old girl in the attack at Najong Number 1.

A resident, Bagbin Yobat, told Joy News, panic broke out after loud gun shots was heard in the village while people were going about their business at after 5pm on the Sunday market day.

"They didn't know what was happening. Other people thought it was a knock-out that children play with".

"We dont know where the people came from. We don't know who they were targeting. They just came and started shooting" he said.

The assailants immediately left while the injured were taken to Bindi and Nalerigu Baptist hospitals.

The police and military are patrolling the area following the attack.

The attack comes three days after t he Police in Gambaga, in the East Mamprusi District of the Northern Region intercepted the transportation of ammunition.

The police during the Friday morning arrest found in a Nissan patrol vehicle, six pump action guns and 130 cartridges.

The vehicle was coming from the Tamale direction towards Namong village in the Bunkprugu-Yunyon District where the market square tragedy has occured.

Joy News' Hashmin Mohammed has observed that there is a discernable increase in violence in the region between November and March when the lands are dry.

He said some people use the lean farming season to settle scores.

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com
The National Union of Ghana Students on Friday held it's 51st handing over at the Auditorium of the Association of African Universities.

The Union, which is a mother body for all students across the country saw players from the industry, government and the diplomatic community attending this event.

At the event

Leader Amoakohene Frank was inducted President,

Kabu Nartey - General Secretary,

Derrick Abotsi -Treasurer,

Sylvester Kobby Marfo - Coordinating Secretary,

Emmanuel Dogbatsey - Financial Controller,

Victor Elias Seshie - International Relations Secretary,

Eric Nana Agyemang - Press and Information Secretary,

Solomon Ananpansah- Programmes and Projects Secretary,

Kofi David, Education and Democratization Secretary, and

Pearl Ossai as Women's Commissioner.

The outgoing President Mr Julian Cobbinah at the event cautioned the overly involvement of political actors in the activities of the Union and charged the new leaders to bring to books all individuals who do not mean well for the union.

The New President, Leader Amoakohene Frank indicated his commitment to working with all sector players in chartting a new path for the future of the youth and students in the country.
WESTRAFO Ghana Limited, manufacturers and suppliers of various transformers that meet European standards, has introduced fire resistant transformers onto the Ghanaian market.

David Darkwa, Managing Director of Westrafo Ghana, disclosed this at the company's 3rd global engagement with 50 electrical engineers held at the Engineer House at Roman Ridge, Accra lately.

The participants included representatives from the Energy Ministry, Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), GriDco and Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCO).

The MD explained that the high quality transformers have special fluid to prevent fire outbreak.

According to him, the company, which is an electro-mechanical engineering firm, is in collaboration with its parent company to manufacture products which meet the needs of customers.

Our products are compliant with the highest European quality levels and we are not going to compromise this value, as our engineering and testing department is directly controlled by the headquarters in Italy, he remarked.

He indicated that his company is the only institution established in Ghana in 2014 to manufacture and distribute high-performing transformers and accessories in the West Africa sub-region.

A participant, who represented the ECG, said that the engagement would give them in-depth understanding of best practices in maintaining transformers.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Since the hunter have learned to shoot without missing, the bird have also learned to fly without perching. So says the adage. The world does not move by people who give their best and go to sleep but rather, the world is shaken and awaken by people who persevere and never compromise.

The Concerned Citizens of Volta Region have resiliently bounce back with power packed energy filled beyond capacity in our quest to continually speak for Volta Region against the injustice that the corridor of powers are plugging the lives within the land into. Our commitment in giving our very best relentlessly in defense of the Volta Region, the land that harbor the Guans, the Lolobis, the santrokofes the Likpes, the Anlos, the Penyis, the Buems the Asorglis, the Tongus, the Somes, the Krachis, the Woraworas, the Akpafus the Katangas, the Kujes, Tokuranus, Dormabis, the Kpelesus, the Kpelimbas, Tutukpenes, the Kparekpares, the Asukwakwas, the Aporsorkubis, the Kponfris, the Danyi-Amanfros, the Papases, among others are no mere reason but rather a destiny call.

We know no retreat, neither would we surrender until the bright future of every child, every young person, every old person regardless of their geographical location in the Volta Region is assured by the collectors and the managers of the taxes from the Volta Region.

The people of the Volta Region are hardworking and law abiding citizens. We work hard and generously give our best to the Country through taxation and other fields of commitment and important. Instead of the Government of Ghana to reciprocate our LOVE and give back to us what is due to the land, just as they do to the other Regions, they abandoned us and live us under the mercy of loneliness as we crave and fight for survival value in vain.

Underdevelopment is clapping everywhere in the land, Poverty reign as the supreme king, sickness as the supreme soldier, illiteracy, the greatest teacher, hunger, the absolute Doctor of the land.

Our Chiefs, the traditional soul of our people and the custodians of the greatest human inheritance on earth are not even spared. They are disrespected and treated with scorn and greatest disdain ever in the history of Ghana since independence. What a pity? Yet we stand strong and united. And to think that the very little (only God knows how little) that the government intends to do for the land, is the basis of dividing the land in the name of creating a new Region is strongly regretted and rejected in the highest order. This is Evil and we say shame to the perpetrators and orchestrators of this shameful ordeal. The decision is only a ploy of divide and rule tactics. At the end nothing good will come out of it.

Is this the reward politicians want to recognize the land with? After several years of commitment, loyal and patriotism to the course of nationhood?

Well, from the high Mountain of Afadjato, through the plain land of Ho, on the rich blue sea of Keta, we stand proclaiming to the world that Ghana politicians have beaten the drum and Volta Region has refused to dance to the tune. Hence, the comeback demonstration.

The general public is hereby informed and invited to join the passionate rank and file of the Concerned Citizens of Volta Region (CCVR) in our peaceful comeback demonstration scheduled for 15th December 2017 against the creation of a new region in the Volta region.

Participants are expected to gather at Ho market by 8:30 am, of which we will take off at exactly 9:00 am. We will follow the rout through K.K House to service center, continue to Goil Filling Station to the last top of VRCC where we will present our grievances to the government ( Regional Minister) and hold press briefing.

Dress code for the comeback demonstration is RED.

The Police have been contacted and they have assured us of maximum security.

All should endeavor to give this demonstration the needed support and attention if not for any of the reasons stated above, for the sake of the Guan child who dont want to be separated from his family in Klikor, the Lolobi girl Child who is scared of crossing a border before going to her neighbors, the Anlo man who dont want to be divided on a tribal line, the Buem little boy who dont want to see his Krachi neighbors as enemy, the Worawora woman who want to maintain her relationship with her Anlo neighbors. Let us remember this and stop politicians from turning us against one another.

The functional executives of the Concerned Citizens of Volta Region has learnt with excessive disappointment, that a section of the public is unjustifiably linking our Comeback demonstration to Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF).

We therefore wish to unequivocally set the record straight, that Homeland Study Group Foundation has no involvement whatsoever in our comeback demonstration. The entire exercise was planned and organized by the leadership of Concerned Citizens of Volta Region.

We however advise those people making such groundless claim to refrain from it and stop misleading the public. Such things does not speak well of us as a Country, it betrays our democracy. They should learn to be Citizens and not spectators.

For any further information and clarifications, contact the executives of the Concerned Citizens of Volta Region.

Thank you.

Dully Signed:

Alornyo Bidahor

(Chairman)

Raymond Nukpor

(Secretary)

02444339571

Yevugah Daniel

(PRO)

0200308542
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Personnel from the Ghana Police Service, the Prisons Service, the Immigration Service and the Fire Service have joined civil society organizations in Sunyani to participate in a float through some principal streets of Sunyani to mark this years International Anti-Corruption Day.

The float was organized by the Sunyani Chapter of the Ghana Anti-Corruption Campaign Coalition in collaboration with the various security agencies to create more awareness on the adverse effects of corruption on national development and the need for everyone to join in the crusade against the canker.

The security men and all others who joined in the float later converged at the Regional Co-ordinating Council in Sunyani where they were addressed by various speakers. They carried placard; some of which read Do not bribe the Police, Do not pay money for bail, Corruption robs the future of your children and Be an anti-corruption citizen among several others.

The Brong Ahafo Regional Police Commander, DCOP Kwame Tachie-Poku, in a speech read for him, noted that corruption comes in different forms and it delays growth, development and denies the masses the opportunity to enjoying the nations resources that are meant to be enjoyed by all.

Money that is meant for development goes into individual pockets to the detriment of the masses. There is therefore the need for us to fight it with all the seriousness it deserves, the Regional Police Commander said.

He said the Police, as the leading law enforcement agency had the greatest responsibility in fighting the canker.

That is why it is prudent that we start fighting it within ourselves. Recently, a research conducted by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition once again put the Police Service on top of the corruption index for the third consecutive times.

According to DCOP Tachie-Poku, Police corruption also comes in different forms, i.e., falsifying evidence, selective enforcement of the law, i.e. refusal to take action on criminal activities of people they have ever garnered previous favors from.

Extortion/bribery that is, demanding or receiving payment for criminal offence in order to envelop a crime or possible future crime, protection of illegal activities, altering of testimonies, destroying evidence are the most common corrupt practices amongst police officers, the Regional Police Commander confirmed.

He added, however, that the Police Service was making frantic efforts to clean its image and minimize the menace, if not to do away with it amongst its personnel.

The CEO of Global Media Foundation and a member of the Ghana Anti-Corruption Campaign Coalition, Raphael Ahenu, called for a collective approach in effectively dealing with corruption in society.

He said over One trillion dollars were lost annually worldwide through various acts of corruption as monies meant for development programmes find their way in the pockets of some individuals while the rest of the society suffers.

The Government of Ghana needs money to fund free SHS, provide health facilities, construct roads and execute all the much-needed programmes and projects. But we cannot always depend on donors all the time for help. If we are able to stop all the corrupt practices, we would be able to fund most of these projects ourselves, Mr. Ahenu said.

Richard Kofi Boahen, Sunyani,
The rate at which persons put in charge of foodstuffs in schools are getting embroiled in acts of impropriety is becoming embarrassing and for that matter disturbing.

Imagine students discussing matrons and even headmasters exposed for stealing foodstuffs meant for them. It sends a bad moral signal about adults and denies the students role models they need at this time of their development.

If their schools fail to provide them with the appropriate role models they must look elsewhere. One of the stories in this edition is about how the matron of the Begoro Senior High School in the Eastern Region was busted for stealing foodstuffs meant for the feeding of students. Put alternatively, she was diverting the foodstuffs to her home to feed her family. Corruption takes many forms and this one is no exception.

It is interesting though that even after admitting the offence, the headmaster is said to have showed a proclivity towards an internal management of the issue as he has referred it to the Ghana Education Service (GES). If that is a norm then we beg to condemn it more so since she has admitted to committing the offence.

The case can easily be killed by the authorities especially if the matron is not alone in stealing the students' foodstuffs.

The GES must beam the searchlight on the public schools because the spate of stealing from the kitchens of these learning centres has gone on for long. It was because it appeared to have been normalized over time, nobody really cared about it. More so since some headmasters partook in the sharing of the spoils as it were.

Enter the free SHS. Some headmasters and their accomplices within the various public school system showed open opprobrium for the new deal because it had shut their channels of fleecing monies from parents. These personalities therefore decided to sabotage the agenda with all manner of trickeries- the ransacking of the school pantries and kitchen not being an exception.

The need therefore to dig beyond the few schools whose matrons and other officials have been exposed cannot be overlooked.

We recall headmasters who were sanctioned because of their overt and covert sabotage of the free SHS. Anything that seeks to pull the clock of the free SHS backwards should not be countenanced under any circumstance.

Connections between culprits and GES officials should not stop the probing of those suspected of stealing from the schools they have been appointed to manage. These thieves would be the first to go to the media in their bid to embarrass the government about shortage of foodstuffs. What they do not tell the media is that they share the foodstuffs covertly with the students.

Unless action is taken against those found guilty of stealing foodstuffs meant for students, the criminality would continue.

We should not normalize such acts because as part of the overall corruption menace which has engulfed the country, it must be eliminated by all means irrespective of those involved.

Those put in charge of students must exhibit exemplary qualities worthy of emulation by the young ones in their care.

Naming and shaming those who use students' foodstuffs to feed their family members would be another means of making such actions unattractive.
Dear Ijara,

Accept my commiserations for the death of Mumuni, the young man who was scheduled to marry you in the next five days. I know it really hurts and no amount of words can make you go beyond this pain, at least for now. At this point, all you need is a shoulder to lay your head on and someone to give you hopes.

Your father, Alhaji Bamaata has tried to convince you that this ill-fated incident is the plan of God but you squawked out of pain and queried him, Which kind of God will plan that I lose the love of life just five days to our marriage ceremony? This question was left unanswered by your father because he assumed you said it out of pain or possibly, he did not even have an answer to it.

Hajia Ijooya, your mother who joined you in the weeping spree has come over it now and is trying to get you out of the pain too. She told you how she lost her first husband just two months after getting married. She also told you how she lost your elder brother, Muataya, through a motor accident just four hours after he graduated from the Medical School.

Even your friend, Ilemto, has tried all her best to make you fathom that life must still move on. She has tried to get you to understand that you cannot cling on to the past when the future is pregnant with a lot of opportunities.

Despite all these attempts to give you hope, you seem not to have still come to terms with the painful death of Mumuni. I know how agonizing it is to be told the love of your life, whom you spoke to just yesterday, slept and never woke up. It looked like a joke till you saw his lifeless body raised shoulder high to the burial grounds. I understand your pain that is why I have also taken the pain to write to you. I hate to write because I do not care about the pains anyone goes through but at this point when you are contemplating suicide, coupled with the fact that all attempts to get you back to your normal state has failed, I am left with no option than to write to you. Perhaps my letter to you will find the soft spot in your ear drum that will resuscitate your mind to see the realities ahead of you.

I know you are still wondering who I am to think of writing a letter to a soul that cannot even see any positive thing in this world again. The English call me LIFE and I am sure you have a name for me in your language. You have never seen me just as no one else has, but I know you hold a perception about me depending on how I have treated you so far. I cannot describe myself very well to you because who I am is dependent on how you want to see me. Some say I am wicked while some say I am unfair. Others even curse the very day they experienced me. At this point in your life, I know all your mind can think of is, LIFE IS UNFAIR.

Well, for your information, you are not the only one who is tagging me as unfair. When your mother lost her first husband, she called me unfair but when she found her current husband, your father, she believed life was all rosy. Ebenezer, the boy who lives behind your school, was once blind and during his days of blindness, he also screamed, LIFE IS UNFAIR but just two years ago when he regained his sight after a surgical operation, he smiled and said, LIFE IS GOOD. Just last year, Hajia Mainasara lost a whooping two million dollar to fraudsters and she also said, LIFE IS UNFAIR but recently she joined the bandwagon who believe life is good because she opened a new branch of her business in Lagos. I am sure by this time you understand that people do not know how to describe me. Who I am, depends on their mood and the particular situation they find themselves in.

As a result of my past experience, I wish to tell you the fact you are avoiding, LIFE IS UNFAIR. Yes I am unfair. If I am not unfair, why are some people born disabled while others are born with no disabilities? Why are some parent poor and others rich? Why does Inusah, the poor man at Kawokudi, keep giving birth like he is parading an army to fight in Jerusalem while Hon. Fusseini, the richest man in the country, cannot even impregnate his wife talk less of having a baby? Why do Christians believe people of other faith will not make it to Heaven? Why do Muslims also believe Heaven was created for only them? Why do some people struggle to pay their fees despite being knowledgeable yet a lot of people who do not value school have money to pay their fees? Why are some people orphaned even before they are born and others live to bury their parent? How come Papa Kwesi Nduom has still not been president after several attempts but a nation like America that prides itself as home intellectuals is able to elect someone like Donald Trump to be President at his first attempt? Why must we come to this world to suffer before we go to the Heaven promised by God? WHY? WHY? WHY?

You see, the questions are too many to even be asked but please do not focus on the so many questions life pose to you rather, try to solve those you have control over and do not worry yourself over things you have no control over?

Yes you have lost your father. You have lost the love of your life. You have failed an examination you put in your all. Your business is not growing as you want it to notwithstanding the many innovative ways you have brought in. Just remember I, life, owe you nothing. Do away with that perception that makes you feel it is a must for life to give you the best you think you deserve. When you stop expecting too much from me, you will learn to appreciate the little I give you.

Ijara, you cannot do anything to return Mumuni to life so why worry so much over something you cannot control? I know at this stage of your life you will also say, LIFE IS UNFAIR. I hold no qualms against you but please just accept the fact that life is unfair and move on. That is why R. Brault said, Life becomes easier when you learn to accept the apology you never get.

Life will not provide you the luxury you yearn for. You must fight hard to get to that point you dream of. You must give your best. You must cut ties with some people to get to your dreams. You must be with people who believe in you. In all this, remember the challenges will hit you hard but its up to you to decide whether to be hit out.

So from today, safe yourself the excuse of LIFE IS UNFAIR. Accept it and move on in order to overcome it.

Till I write to you again, let me leave you with the words of Dennis P. Kimbro, Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.

I hope you will react well to the challenges.

Yours ever,

Alhaji Life.

Written by Abdul-Rahim Naa Ninche. Contact him on his Email [email protected] or his number (+233)201962393
The President of the National Union of Ghana Students, NUGS Elisha Oheneba Essumang and the Leadership of the Union together with the Ashanti Regional Students Representative Council yesterday, December 10, 2017 expressed their sympathies and solidarity with Management and students of Konongo Odumasi SHS for the unfortunate fire incidence.

It will be recalled that fire gutted the Boys Dormitories of the school on Saturday night, destroying assets and belongings of the students.

The leadership of NUGS led by the President Elisha Oheneba Essumang visited the school to have a first hand information of the situation and to assess how they can ease the pain of the affected students. The student leadership conferred with the authorities of the school and had a briefing about how the incidence happened and the best avenue to remedy the situation,he noted.

He used the opportunity to thank the Ghana National Fire Service and NADMO for their swift response in bringing the situation under control.

The Headmaster of the school, Benjamin Kweku Baah (ESQ) thanked the leadership of NUGS for their kind gesture and words of dncouragement. Elisha Oheneba Essumang encouraged NUGS to continue to advocate for students interest and deliver on its set objectives and mandate.

On their part, the Member of Parliament for the Asante Akyem Central constituency, Hon. Kwame Anyemadu Antwi and the Municipal Chief Executive, MCE Susan Akomeah expressed their joy for the timely response of NUGS during this challenging moments. Also present was Lawyer Andy Appiah Kubi, Deputy Railway Minister, and MP for Ashanti Akyem North.

It is unclear what started the fire but preliminary investigations has it that it could be an electrical fault.

Meanwhile the Essumangs-led NUGS leadership has promised to support the affected students with some relief items. "Let me on behalf of these students plead with Corporate Ghana, Philanthropists, and Donors to come to the aid of the affected students" he stressed.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Ghana Federation Disability Organization [GFD], Obuasi district, on 6th December 2017 celebrated the United Nations Day for person with disability in Obuasi under the theme; TRANSFORMATION TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT SOCIETY FOR ALL.

Hon. Elijah Adansi Bonah, Obuasi MCE, traditional leaders, officials from social welfare department, media personnel were all present.

Nana Owusu Achiaw Brempong, the Odikro of Bogobiri, a suburb of Obuasi speaking as the Chairman of the day advised and motivated members of the organization to appreciate themselves and be thankful to the Almighty God for their lives adding that, life is what is needed. Again, he said, since they have been recognized in the country and the whole world, it means they have something good and important to add to the countrys development. They should therefore trust themselves and ceased to lose hope and help the nation because disability is not inability. He also commended Hon. Karim Iddrisu who doubles as the Secretary and Chairman for G.F.D, Ghana and Obuasi respectively, for his massive contribution to the Association in Obuasi.

Hon. Karim Iddrisu in his praised the chairperson, MCE and other invited guest for coming. He also reechoed the advice of the Chairman Nana Owusu Brempong to his fellow people. He then forwarded their concerns to the M.C.E Hon Elijah Adansi Bonah and appealed to him to assist the Association in Obuasi. He emphasized that government support comes in handy and asked the MCE to intervene.

Hon. Elijah Adansi Bonnah on his part lauded Hon Karim Iddrisu and the organizers of the event. Saying, he will put all their concerns into action to ensure the development of the Association and also better the living conditions of the group. He assured them he will make sure the Assembly becomes  physically challenged friendly by providing them the necessary needs, stressing the Medium Term Developmental projects will cover the Association by the provision of office for the Association.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

It barely registered a murmur across the Australian press, though it caused the traditional ripples over the protester fraternity. Christian activists, collectively known as the Pine Gap Pilgrims, had received sentences pursuant to the Defence (Special Undertakings) Act 1952 (Cth), a cold war relic used by the Australian government to conceal the nature of Canberras association with the joint US-Australian signals facility.

The prosecution of Margaret Pestorius, Paul Christie, Jim Dowling, Franz Dowling, Andy Paine and Tim Webb centred on their entering of the clandestine base in September 2016 had been obstinate and typical.

The grounds advanced by Michael McHugh SC for the government made weak reference to the history of peaceful protest that had marked the practice of Australian democracy. He even drew a curious precedent from the archives of history about how the Suffragettes had, in their day, shown the way on civil disobedience. They, it should be noted, were deemed to have acted illegally, though ultimately successfully, in their cause.

The Crown certainly got what it wanted in terms of verdicts, but Justice John Reeves was not proving totally cooperative to the holy shrine of US power in Australia. The judge had initially given an inkling that the charade around Pine Gap and its secrecy might continue. For one, he found little to accept the defence made under the Commonwealth Criminal Code that the conduct of the six in trespassing had been in response to a sudden or extraordinary emergency .

The nature of that emergency was drawn from the targeting information for drone strikes supplied by the facility, disruption of which would purportedly save lives. The ruling effectively took a good deal of the carpet from under the protestors, given that the jury was disallowed form considering that evidence in reaching their verdict.

On December 4, the court refused to impose prison sentences, despite the guilty jury verdict. I do not accept the Crowns submission, said the judge dismissively, that your offences potentially struck at the heart of national security . All six were fined for unlawful entry to the tune of $1,250 to $5,000, and Paine was found guilty of the additional charge of carrying a photographic defence on the base.

The judge felt that the actions of the younger Pilgrims did not warrant custodial sentences. Jim Dowling was a considered a more complex matter, him of the serial non-violent direct action type with a mischief making record dating back to 1986.

Justice Reeves preference was not to flatter Dowlings notoriety (he had been committed for 27 similar trespass offences), but to make him pay the highest fine of the six. If I imprison you, I think that would likely to make you a martyr to your cause, rather than to underscore the law breaking to which you were involved in.

The role of these committed protestors can, in a broader sense, be seen as a fact-finding one. Tipped with the express purpose of making sure Australia desists in its folly of being the unwitting janissaries of US-led war efforts, they seek to puncture the veil of secrecy that has made more than a mild mockery of Australian democracy and parliamentary credibility.

During the course of trial, testimony was elicited by various figures which formed the public record. Former Greens Senator Scott Ludlam spoke with conviction from the stand. There are moral and ethical questions, he charged; there are also deep legal questions about the authorities relied upon by the United States Government to undertake drone assassinations in at least six countries that I am aware.

Ludlams point has been made before: complicity expands rather than contracts, and Australian funding and hosting of the base invariably places risks to Australian citizens from the perspective of drone strikes, and, in another sense, the vantage point of future prosecutions for crimes against humanity.

With each provocation, with each daring exposure of the ludicrousness of secrecy, crumbs are filling the gaps, data filling the files. Since our action, claims Paine, more evidence has emerged detailing the role of Pine Gap in extrajudicial assassinations, in nuclear weapons targeting and in illegal mass surveillance.

During the course of the trial, Paine insisted that the prosecutions purpose was always going to be founded in the realms of dull and constipated procedure. While the prosecution has been concerned with facts about land titles and fences, we hope to ask deeper questions in the court about what is the moral and ethical responsibility of a person who is aware of extreme and unjustifiable violence happening within their own country.

One of the most moving displays of the proceedings came from Pestorious herself, whose faith in moving minds remained powerful through the case. In the final hearings, she appeared in her wedding dress, a tribute to her late husband who had been one of the Pine Gap Four found guilty for entering the prohibited surrounds, then acquitted on appeal in 2005.

She urged the jury to consider the silence and denial behind the making of war, its sowing of grief, its sheer relentlessness. In everything, even the most depressing, and the most clandestine, was a crack, and that crack would, in time, let light in.

These prosecutions have only yielded some success for bureaucrats in Canberra. The applecart on Australian-US relations has certainly not been upset, but the public is being supplied bigger, and juicier morsels about the risks posed by running the base. To hide behind the petticoats of power  but at what cost?

Dr. Binoy Kampmark was a Commonwealth Scholar at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He lectures at RMIT University, Melbourne. Email: [email protected]
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Should US drone operators and the officers responsible for them be concerned by the latest sentiments from the Pakistani Ministry of Defence? The head of the Pakistan Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman, made the most pointed remarks yet that the defence forces are not pleased.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Air Tech Conference and Techno Show in Islamabad on Thursday, Aman seemed spiky and unequivocal. We will protect the sovereignty of the country at any cost.

That protection entailed a prohibition against the drones from any state operating in Pakistani airspace. We will not allow anyone to violate our airspace. I have ordered the PAF to shoot down drones, including those of the US, if they enter our airspace, violating the countrys sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The upshot of his comment was one of competition rather than any new found moral fancy: the US, having monopolised drone warfare in the region, needed to be encouraged to pull out of it. Pakistani authorities, long lagging and ambivalent in the subject and the application of such force, has decide to pitch in with its own variant of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

Outsourcing killing, notably when it involves almost three thousand civilian deaths since 2004 from 429 drone strikes (the figures come from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism), doesnt look good for the image, as tarnished as the one Islamabads is.

The other context of this supposedly new approach lies in the trumpeted successes of the Pakistani security forces. This reclaiming of sovereignty is largely based on an assertion of competence: that Pakistan can fend for itself when it comes to dealing with Islamic militancy.

Sen. Nuzhat Sadiq , chairman of the Senates Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, has been bold enough to suggest that removing and eliminating militants and terrorists within its borders has been, for the most part, successful. The need for controversial drone strikes initiated under the aegis of US imperial power has abated. It is the policy now of the government not to allow any more US drone strikes on our soil, and the air chief has effectively conveyed it to the Americans.

The history of US drones and their bloody harvest in the Pakistani context stretch back to June 2004. Under the Obama administration, drone warfare became a matter of elevated priority, a form of sanitised killing from afar that moved beyond the initial confines of Iraq and Afghanistan. The sweetness of his 2009 Cairo speech , full of conciliatory promise, and the heavily weighted olive branch to the Middle East, were soon forgotten.

The poll readings back in the US were good: slaughtering those with appropriate labels (militants, terrorists, primitive, freedom-hating darkies) was perfectly permissible even if it is did involve wholesale annihilation of families.

Pakistan was then both the host and undermining force of its own sovereignty, internally torn and compromised between ties with the very militants it was hoping to expunge. The ties to the Taliban remained strong within a certain factions, a nostalgic reminder of successes in previous conflicts of the mujahedeen.

US forces were effectively given a green light to wage robotic inflicted mayhem from the skies, a process that had the obvious appeal of perceived success. From 2011, the butchering in such areas as the tribal zones of Waziristan had become unsustainable for relations between Islamabad and Washington, at least from the perspective of public relations. The US duly relocated its drone bases to Afghanistan, another state with a troubled concept of sovereignty.

In April 2012, the Pakistani Parliament demanded an end to the CIA-directed drone strikes within Islamabads territory, reiterating the same point made in 2008. The only reason drones made their appearance in the outline of Parliaments demands stemmed from pressure made by the Pakistan Muslim League-N party.

Then spokesman of the US State Department, Victoria Nuland , sounded a touch patronising in her reaction to the jitters from Pakistans politicians. We seek a relationship with Pakistan that is enduring, strategic and more clearly defined. We look forward to discussing these policy recommendations.

The Foreign Minister in June that year went further, describing the attacks as illegal, a crisis compounded by an incident in November 2011 when 24 Pakistani soldiers had been killed by NATO aircraft.

The not so attractive head that keeps rearing its head in these announcements is that of reliability. Such statements of defiance and indignation have been made before, not to mention the odd remark about shooting down US drones. Behind the scenes, strategists plot, shake hands and reach tacit understanding. Pakistani intelligence has played a role rather different from the public voices in Parliament, supplying the US with material on select militants. Complicity accompanies condemnation, the true voice of impotence.

On this occasion, the chatterers on the grape vine are claiming that something new is afoot. Aziz Ahmad Khan , a former diplomat, suggests that the matter has already been settled with the Americans in some recent high-level meetings.

A common form of unconvincing reasoning is frequently found in these musings: the drone strikes, deemed illegal, could now stop, because the militant threat has been minimised; but the drone strikes had, in any case, been reduced, enabling the Pakistan air force to work on its own unmanned aerial vehicles. The contradictions are bound to persist, with Islamabad continuing its troubled association with, and against, the predations of US foreign policy.

Dr. Binoy Kampmark was a Commonwealth Scholar at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He lectures at RMIT University, Melbourne. Email: [email protected]
11.12.2017 LISTEN

What are Mergers & Acquisitions?

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are defined as the consolidation of companies. Differentiating the two terms, Mergers is the combination of two companies to form one, while Acquisitions is one company taken over by the other. The reasoning behind M&A generally given is that two separate companies together create more value compared to one standing alone. The key principle behind M& A is that 2+2=5 and that there is always synergistic value created by the joining or merger of two companies. The synergy value can be seen through the revenues (higher revenues), expenses (lowering of expenses) or the cost of capital (lowering of overall cost of capital).

M&A allows for financial synergy through the lower cost of capital, improving the companys performance and accelerating growth, economies of scale, diversification for higher growth products or markets and as well as increasing market share and positioning giving broader market access. It allows for strategic realignment and technological change, tax considerations and diversification of risk.

Ghana has seen the emergence of merger and acquisitions (M&A) activities happen in a host of principal sectors of the economy, ranging from pharmaceuticals and telecoms to oil and gas and manufacturing, finance and the mining industries. Mobil Oil was acquired by Total Petroleum Ghana Limited. Kumasi Brewery Limited and Ghana Brewery Limited merged into a new company called Ghana Breweries Limited, which later merged with Guinness Ghana Limited to form Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited. Ghana Telecom was acquired by Vodafone whilst Scancom Areeba was taken over by MTN. The telecom regulator recently approved the merger between Tigo and Airtel.

M&A transactions in the financial sector include the acquisition of Merchant Bank by Fortis to create Universal Merchant Bank and the Republic Bank takeover of HFC Bank, as well as the GCB take-over of UTB and Capital Bank under a Purchase and Assumption transaction. Just last week, it was announced that ADB and National Investment Bank (NIB) would merge to become National Development Bank (NDB).

In a move to strengthen the financial sector, the Bank of Ghanas new capital requirement, which is to increase to GHC 400 million, will result in some banks merging with others to be able to meet the new requirement while others will be able to raise capital from the stock market.

Competition (Antitrust) Law

Competition is a fundamental tenet of well-functioning markets and encourages companies to provide consumers with the products and services they want. It results in lower prices for goods and services, better service quality, wider choice for consumers, stimulation of innovation and, more importantly, efficiency in the allocation of resources.

The objective of a functional competition regime is to promote competition, contribute towards increased efficiency and curb anti-competitive practices in the market. Anti-competitive practices including cartels, abusive monopolies, predatory pricing, collusive tendering, exclusive market sharing agreements, bid rigging etc. which have negative effects on both consumers and producers. Certainly, a well-enforced competition regime reduces uncertainty for businesses and is an important element of promoting private sector development.

Competition law is designed to stop anti-competitive business practices by firms and unnecessary government intervention in the market. Competition law looks at 1. Anti-competitive agreement meant to lessen competition in the market, 2. Abuse of dominance position, 3. Regulation of mergers and acquisitions to prevent tactics to gain excessive dominance in a market, 4. promotion of competition culture through advocacy.

Ghana is yet to have a functional competition policy and law. The closest we have is the Protection Against Unfair Competition Act, 2000 (Act 589). Under Act 589, commercial behaviour, such as causing confusion with respect to another persons enterprise or its activities, damaging another persons goodwill or reputation and misleading the public, were outlawed. Act 589 does not address the full dimension of competition law.

Mergers and Acquisition without Competition Law

Ghana has legislation and regulatory requirements that govern M&A activity. These are the Companies Act 1963 (Act 179); the Securities Industry Act 1993 (PNDCL 333) as amended by the Securities Industry (Amendment) Act 2000 (Act 590); the Securities and Exchange Commission Regulations 2003 (LI 1728); the Takeovers and Mergers Code (Code); and, the Central Securities Depository Act 2007 (Act 733).

Competition/Antitrust law prohibits mergers and acquisitions when the effect may be to substantially lessen competition, or to tend to create a monopoly. The key question the Competition Commission asks is whether the proposed merger is likely to create or enhance market power or facilitate its exercise. The greatest antitrust concern arises with proposed mergers between direct competitors (horizontal mergers). The Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice on many occasions has gone to court to block mergers, which can impact or lessen competition in the marketplace. Some of the merger deals that have been blocked included AT&T and T Mobile, United Airlines and US Airways, Staples and Office Depot, General Electric and Honeywell, Pfizer and Allergan, and Halliburton and Baker Hughes. The Obama administration alone blocked 17 merger transactions worth $404 billion.

In conclusion, Competition Policy and Law are required to regulate the conducts of mergers and acquisitions in the country. Without this, consumers and producers risk the possibilities of some mergers that would create oligopolies and abuse of dominant position. With the support of the BUSAC Fund, CUTS Ghana hopes create the necessary awareness about the relevance of Competition Law to creating an enabling business environment for the private sector.

Appiah Kusi Adomako is the Country Coordinator for CUTS International Ghana. CUTS Ghana is a research and advocacy public policy think tank which works in the areas of consumer protection and education, economic regulation, trade and development, regional integration, competition policy and law, etc. CUTS can be contacted through | Office: +233-30-224-5652 | Email: [email protected] , Website: http://www.cuts-international.org/ARC/accra
The widely recognised and dominant political traditions in Ghana have been the Nkrumaists and the Danquah-Dombo-Busia.

The phraseology, political tradition, is used as a descriptive label for a set of ideas and values about political parties in a democratic dispensation. Political tradition, therefore, comprises the body of ideas that undergird the conduct of political parties.

In a historical perspective, the story was told, that the first political party formed in Ghana on 4th August 1947 was the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC).

It has been well-documented that the organisers of the UGCC generously extended an invitation to the equally intrepid and patriotic Dr Nkrumah in London to take an important position as the secretary of the organisation.

To his credit, and as expected of a true patriot, Dr Nkrumah graciously obliged and took the position. But as it is with any other working team, unexpected dissonance ensued and the members unfortunately parted ways thereafter.

Subsequently, Dr Nkrumah, together with a few unhappy UGCC apologists broke away and formed the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) on 12th June 1949.

The other remaining members of the defunct UGCC then decided to form a new party which was called the United Party (UP).

Based on the obvious rich history of the Nkrumaists and the Danquah-Dombo-Busia traditions, the party faithful have the bragging rights about the authenticity of their respective ideologies.

Bizarrely, however, the supporters of the New Democratic Congress (NDC), a party that sprung out of a series of truculent coup detats, have been parasitically holding on to the Nkrumaists tradition.

Take my word, dearest reader, that could never be right, because as far as Ghanaians are concerned, the NDC Party was founded on the ideals of coup makers, who had no spelled out ideology back then.

Perhaps, the brassbound NDC Party supporters are not content with their violent and weird tradition, and hence seeking refuge in the Nkrumaists tradition.

The NDC Party apparatchiks, so to speak, have over the years been hoodwinking and proselytising unsuspecting Ghanaians to believing that the NDC Party is a subsidiary of the Nkrumaists tradition. How possible?

The fact however is, the NDC Party was founded on the ideals of coup making enthusiasts, who without doubt were novices in the political terrain.

Given the bizarre circumstances in which the NDC Party was formed, one would have expected a true probity, transparency and accountability within the elected NDC government, but that has never been the case.

Since the attainment of the independence from the British in 1957, the NDC tradition (PNDC and NDC) had governed the country more than any other government I can think of. In fact, that tradition had governed Ghana for approximately 27 years out of Ghanas 60 years.

It is for this reason that some of us cannot get my head around how and why some people would choose to bypass the worst culprit, the NDC Party for Ghanas poor macroeconomic indicators, and would gleefully upbraid the likes of CPP, PNP, NLC, SMC, and NPP.

If we stroll down memory lane, the CPP tradition (CPP and PNP) governed the country for approximately 12 years.

Disappointingly, though, the last Nkrumaists government formed by the PNP, and led by Dr Hilla Limann, was deposed by the founders of the NDC Party which was spearheaded by Ex-President J. J. Rawlings on 31st December 1981.

The military regimes of the NLC, SMC 1 and 2 ruled Ghana for approximately 10 years before the founders of the NDC revoltingly usurped power on 4th June 1979.

The UP tradition (PP and NPP) total share of the day-to-day management of the country is about 11 years to date.

In my humble opinion, in terms of useful infrastructural projects which put the country at a substantial and auspicious position, Dr Nkrumahs CPP government did exceedingly better than any of the administrations that followed.

Even though Prime Minister Kofi Abrefa Busias government lasted for less than three years, he did his utmost best in terms of meaningful development.

The achievements of Busia's government include inter alia, the building of roads, housing, provision of healthcare facilities and water.

Besides, Dr Busia was the first Ghanaian leader to create a ministry responsible for rural development, a decision which was in consonance with his consuming desire to improving the socio-economic living standards of the rural dwellers (Daily Guide, 11/07/2013).

Normally, I abhor the shenanigans of coup makers, but General I. K. Acheampong (The Head of State from 1972-78) was an exception to my arousing disgust. Indeed, I had a great deal of respect for the man, primarily due to his great sense of foresight.

In my view, General I. K. Acheampong was a visionary leader who initiated pragmatic policies such as operation feed yourself and affordable housing units.

If we go down memory lane, General I. K. Acheampong led a group of disgruntled soldiers and in a truculent fashion usurped Prime Minister Dr Kofi Abrefa Busias government in 1972.

The mutinous coup makers adopted a taxonomic nomenclature for their regime, called The Supreme Military Council (SMC).

In 1978, General Acheampong was accused of economic mismanagement, and was consequently forced to resign by a group of army officers led by General Akufo.

General Akufo and his other rabble rousers renamed the government as the Supreme Military Council 2 (SMC2).

A sequential account was given, though anecdotally, that the harsh living conditions at the time prompted a group of patriotic citizens to stand up against the injustices and demanded a democratic rule.

But before the country could reach a consensus on the question of civilian rule, a group of disgruntled junior army officers led by Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings revolted against General Fred Akuffos SMC2 regime on 15th May 1979.

However, the cabals failed in their insurrection, which culminated in the arrest and trial of Rawlings and his cohorts.

All the same, the judicial process was halted prematurely by a group of soldiers sympathetic to Rawlings, who revolted on 4th June 1979.

The rebellious soldiers (mobsters) broke jail and released Rawlings and his cohorts from a lawful custody.

After successfully deposing General Akuffo and his Supreme Military Council2 (SMC2) government, the stubbornly impenitent jailbreakers went ahead and formed their own government, which they called as the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and appointed Flt. Rawlings as their chairman.

Rawlings and his friends vowed to purge off the rampant sleazes, corruption and social injustices which instigated their coup detat.

So in their desperate attempt to lustrate the country of the perceived injustices, they carried out what they termed house cleaning exercise,--they dealt with perceived offenders arbitrarily (instant justice was the order of the day).

The mutinous coup makers proceeded with their intentions and callously exterminated eight prominent officers, whom they accused of committing sleazes and corruption without trial.

The Officers included General Fred Akuffo, General Kutu Acheampong, General Akwasi Afrifa amongst others.

The coup makers transferred power to Dr Hilla Limann and his PNP Party following the successful election in 1979.

The story was narrated, in a historical standpoint, that the Limann government assumed office at a time when the economy was stagnant; all credit lines to the country had diminished and were finally blocked due to brutalities and confiscations at the harbours and other points of entry into Ghana.

However, through well-executed negotiations, policies and programmes, PNP government back then initiated a prudent approach with the view to resolving the socio-economic problems.

It was reported that the PNP government put in dint of effort to repay the short-term debts and showed commitment to meet the debt obligations.

More importantly, Dr Limanns government was able, within 18 months, to restore virtually all traditional credit lines (Source: PNC).

Disappointingly, however, Rawlings and his cohorts did not give Dr Limann and his PNP government the breathing space to govern the country, as they relentlessly breathed down the neck of President Liman.

Rawlings and his conspiratorial plotters, as a matter of fact, unfairly kept criticising Dr Limanns administration for what the coup makers perceived as economic mismanagement, until Rawlings and his jailbreaking geezers decided to depose Dr Limann.

Subsequently, J. J. Rawlings and the other obstreperous jailbreakers took arms and succeeded in deposing the democratically elected government of Dr Hilla Limann on 31st December 1981.

And, Rawlings and his friends formed a government which they called the Provisional national Defence Council (PNDC) and appointed Rawlings as the chairman.

Although the PNDC and NDC administrations back then paraded some seasoned politicians, the vast majority of the military personnel who headed important Ministries were novices in the political scene.

Unsurprisingly, therefore, Rawlingss administration adopted a seemingly disastrous Economic Recovery Programme (ERP), which was introduced under the auspices of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Regrettably, the vast majority of tangible national assets, including the state owned enterprises were allegedly sold to friends and families for pittance.

In practice, the apparent unfavourable Economic Recovery Programme culminated in a catalogue of hardships. And, on top of the harsh programmes and policies which threatened the economic fundamentals, the population had to clutch itself for food shortages, a situation which the world press somehow ignored in favour of the concurrent Ethiopian famine that resulted in millions of deaths.

Indeed, their desperate attempt to initiate the Programme of Action to Mitigate the Social Costs of Adjustment (PAMSCAD) did nothing to improve the unfortunate situation as untold hardships permeated many households.

Starvation, so to speak, visited the vast majority of Ghanaians, and hence developing revoltingly ugly collar bones which the humorous Ghanaians renamed as Rawlings Chain. That was indeed the pernicious extent of the hunger.

After imposing himself and despotically ruling the country for over 11 years, J. J. Rawlings retired from the military, formed the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and bizarrely metamorphosed into civilian president in 1992.

It is worth stressing that Ex-President Rawlings 96 months democratic rule came to an end in January

Disappointingly, though, former President Rawlings memorable achievement was to send us to the membership of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC).

K. Badu, UK.
A former Deputy National Women Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic over the weekend decided to throw a party for street children at the Catholic Action For Street Children (CAS) at Korlebu Junction, Accra.

In all about 300 street children who normally seek refuge from the CAS house were given a special treat to a buffet of different kinds of food and drinks after which some items were donated to them by the team.

The feast with the street children was part of the activities organized by the NPP stalwart and her team to mark the birthday celebration of her personal aide and president of Beckys Babes  a pro NPP women group  Miss Miriam Duah popularly referred to as Mimi whose Birthday fell on Ghanas election day, the 7th December.

Kate Gyamfua who is also seeking to become the partys next womens organizer admonished Ghanaians to show compassion to the needy and the poor. She stated that God bless people for them to be blessings to others and pleaded with Ghanaians to factor the orphans and the street children into their planning this year as they plan for the yuletide.

On her part, Mimi expressed thanks to God for adding another year to her age. She expressed appreciation to her boss and the Kate Gyamfua campaign team for agreeing to fete the street children. She also reiterated her boss stance pleading with Ghanaians to show compassion to the poor and especially the street children.

The Catholic Action for Street Children (CAS) is a day care center which picks up street children and prepares them for skills training. It was established in October 1992 and has so far given back life to many street children with some of the kids picked from the street now attending various universities both here in Ghana and abroad.

The center also occasionally goes to the street to educate many other people in the street who have not been to the center before.

The Director of the house, Bro. Jos Van Dinther when asked how they pick up the people said they only take care of people who come to the house. He added that they have no accommodation space for the people and so they only feed them and put them into schools and other skills training apprenticeship but do not house them adding that if they had enough resources they would have housed them to prevent them from going back onto the street and would have picked more others from the street.

Bro. Dinther added that the house is laced with several challenges and pleaded with philanthropists, NGOs and the government to come to their aid.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Accra, Dec. 11, CDA Consult  The Ghana Energy Award has decorated Goenergy Company Limited (Goenergy) subsidiary of Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL) as the Best Bulk Distribution Company of the Year 2017.

The Ghana Energy Awards which recognizes outstanding contributions and achievements of industry players also adjudged GOIL as Oil Marketing Company (OMCs) Brand of the Year whilst Mr Patrick Akpe Kwame Akorli, Group Chief Executive Officer of GOIL was also declared as the Petroleum CEO of the Year.

GO ENERGY is credited by industry players for deflating cartels in the downstream petroleum sector saving the country from artificial fuel shortages. Ghana has not experienced any fuel shortage since Goenergy took control of the Bulk Distribution sector in September 2014 serving major OMCs in the country.

The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) statistics based on the total number of products distributed across the entire industry indicated that within the top seven Bulk Distribution Companies (BDCs) Goenergy controls 22.14 per cent of the market shares in 2016 up from 19.60 per cent in 2015.

Mr Gymafi Amanquah, Chief Operating Officer of Goenergy told the Communication for Development and Advocacy Consult (CDA Consult) in an interview at the GOIL 2017 Long Service Awards and End of Year Party that the companys objective is to continue to maintain dominance and increase its market share in order to save Ghanaians from unnecessary and artificial fuel shortages which was the order of the day in the past.

Mr Amanquah explained that the Board of Directors and Management of GOIL took a pragmatic action by setting up Goenergy Company Limited in February 2014 as Bulk Distribution Company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of GOIL.

Mr Amentor Aziakor, Goenergy Operations and Marketing Manager noted that the companys business operations had grown substantially and currently it is the major supplier of Gasoline, Gasoil, Marine Gasoil and LPG to GOIL and other OMCs and BDCs in the country.

Mr Akorli, described the annual GOIL awards and dinner night as a unique opportunity to reconnect, unwinds and de-stress with co-workers, former staffs and stakeholders.

He noted that although significant progress has been made in the economic outlook of the country, this has not reflected in the fortunes of the downstream petroleum industry. The downstream sector experiences a 10 per cent drop in volumes due to mainly to illegal activities Petroleum Black Market dealers who smuggles the products in a bid to evade tax.

This notwithstanding, GOIL has experienced a marginal growth and remains the biggest OMC in the country. Although it is difficult to rise to the top, it is more difficult to remain up therethe Competition is still stiff in the downstream petroleum sector, therefore GOIL cannot afford to rest.

The GOIL Group CEO therefore encouraged management and staff to continue to give off their very best in the coming years as the company continues to compete aggressively with multinationals; but we will continue to rely on ourselves for the necessary innovations as a home-grown brand to remain at the top.

Mr Akorli, said GOIL is scaling up its health and safety measures; as recent events in the industry demands that; we must show strength and character that we are market leaders and can indeed retain our position as market leaders.

GOIL was incorporated as a private limited liability company on June 14, 1960 as AGIP Ghana Company Limited with the objective of marketing petroleum products and related products particularly fuels, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), lubricants, bitumen, and Specialty products in Ghana.

The Government of Ghana in 1974 acquired the shares of AGIP SPA and Hydrocarbons International Holdings in AGIP Ghana Company Limited and by a special resolution in 1976 changed the name of the company to Ghana Oil Company Limited.

By a shareholders resolution passed on 1st August, 2007 the Company adopted new regulations and was converted into a public company.

Between the year 2010 and 2012 the Company underwent a transformation process aimed at changing its logo, station outlook, and most importantly the corporate culture which was dubbed Good Energy comes with a Smile. The launching of the New GOIL took place on the 18th May 2012.

Meanwhile Mr Freddy Blay, Acting National Chairman of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has tagged GOIL which is the nations foremost indigenous OMC as Ghanas Industry Gem and challenged Board and management to venture into upstream petroleum sector to propel it to higher heights.

He explained that the nation depends largely on the OMC industry giant for maintaining stability in the downstream sector.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has confirmed that the student who died at the Koforidua Secondary Technical School, (SECTEC) died of Bacterial Meningitis.

Dennis Yaw Acheampong, a form two student died Friday morning after complaining of fever, body weakness, and stiff neck.

Addressing a section of the media Monday, the Eastern Regional Health Director, Dr. Charity Sarpong said fluid collected through a lumbar puncture procedure from the deceased before his death and sent to the laboratory has confirmed that the deceased died of meningitis.

Dr. Sarpong also disclosed that 22 students who were close to the deceased have been put under monitoring by the GHS for swift action in case they show signs and symptoms of the meningitis disease.

Meanwhile, GHS has recommended for resuscitation of all infirmaries in Second Cycle Institutions in the region for early detection of the disease.

Students of the School on Saturday embarked on a massive clean-up exercise of the dormitories upon advice from health officials who were in the school.

The health officials who were in school met the students at the assembly hall and took them through some preventive measures against the disease.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Common sense dictates that cultural expectations and acceptable and unacceptable modes of human values change with time, sometimes even radically so. Which is why the decision by Britains Prince Harry to conjugally engage and settle down permanently with Ms. Meghan Markle, the mixed race, and partly slave-descended American actress, is being globally celebrated as marking a salutary epoch in the cultural enlightenment of the most significant and, perhaps, also the most celebrated royal family in the contemporary era. Less than a half-century ago, Ms. Markle would have been roundly disqualified from any conjugal affiliation with the Windsor Clan, at least on two counts, namely, the fact that Prince Harrys bride-to-be is a divorced woman and thus conjugally blighted or morally contaminated and two, the genetic fact of her Diaspora African heritage.

But, of course, as hinted at the beginning of this column, we are living in more enlightened times. Had the General-Secretary of Ghanas main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) paid critical attention to the wisely measured response given the Al-Jazeera television journalist, on the controversial question of legalizing homosexuality, Mr. Johnson Asiedu-Nketia would have unmistakably noticed that President Addo DankwaAkufo-Addos emphasis was on the Diachronic Factor of historical change in the affairs of humanity, and not the strategic plan that ought to be adopted by the LGBTQI community in order to gain acceptance into the mainstream of Ghanaian culture (See Akufo-Addo Teaching Homosexuals How to Fight for Legalization  Asiedu-Nketia Ghanaweb.com 12/1/17).

At any rate, Mr. Asiedu-Nketias argument that the countrys criminal laws are not being abrogated because stark distinctions need to be made between acceptable and unacceptable, or objectionable, behavior, in order to ensure social stability and cultural sanity does not hold water. It does not hold water precisely because the mere existence of our criminal code or laws did not prevent the man popularly known as General Mosquito from colluding with Mr. JabeshAmissah-Arthur to exorbitantly overprice cement blocks that a company owned by Mr. Asiedu-Nketia illegally supplied the management of the Bui Dam Power Project. We must quickly point out the fact that Mr. JabeshAmissah-Arthur, the younger brother of then-Vice President Kwesi BekoeAmissah-Arthur, was also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Kufuor-initiated Bui Dam Power Project and Head of the Bui Dam Authority (BDA).

The decision to allow the Asiedu-Nketia brick-making company to supply the BDA with the most expensive concrete blocks  there were already in existence other non-politically connected brick-supply firms  was a criminal violation of the law because there is absolutely no evidence that the Asiedu-Nketia firm offered value-for-money in any way shape or form that the other contractual rivals or competitors did not. In other words, Mr. Asiedu-Nketia had willfully and criminally used his political influence as a mover-and-shaker of the Mahama-led government of the National Democratic Congress to unconscionably defraud and extort undeserved and unearned money from the Ghanaian taxpayer. Now, I dont see the superiority of the scamming of the Ghanaian taxpayer to the assertion and the safeguarding of the inalienable human and constitutional rights of Ghanas LGBTQI community.

The homosexuality of decent, respectable and law-abiding Ghanaians must, per force, be protected and preferred over and above the abject criminality and pathological scam-artistry of the likes of Messrs. Asiedu-Nketia and JabeshAmissah-Arthur any day and at any time. You see, what well-meaning and progressive Ghanaian citizens ought to be discussing with all the seriousness that the subject requires, is the quality-of-life improvement of the proverbial average Ghanaian, and not the purely personal and subjective decision of whom one decides to love or consensually mate with. Even as I write, President Akufo-Addo has just announced that food agriculture has experienced a precipitous decline since 2010. Now, we all know whose government or regime owes Ghanaians the lions share of accountability.

*Visit my blog at: kwameokoampaahoofe.wordpress.com Ghanaffairs
11.12.2017 LISTEN

The Director of Public Affairs of the University of Ghana, Stella Amoa, says not only have students been affected by the weekends stabbing to death of a past student at the Commonwealth Hall but lecturers and parents have also suffered some panic.

Ms. Amoa told 3FMs Kwakye Afreh Nuamah that the incident has sent some shocks across the student body, whose members are preparing to go home for vacation.

Speaking on Midday News on Monday, Ms Amoa said the authorities of the Hall, where the fatal incident happened, have been charged to present a report. On Saturday, two past students were said to have engaged in an argument, which result in the stabbing to death of one. They had returned from the funeral of another former student.

The scene of the incident was full of blood Meanwhile, a statement issued by the University of Ghana on Monday said the Careers and Counseling Centre is on standby to counsel any student who may have been traumatized by this incident.

It assured members of the university community, alumni, parents and the general public that the incident is an isolated case and no threat has been identified which could cause any danger to our students in this respect. The police have since begun investigations into the incident.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

The Founder and President of Elim Evangelical Church, Ghana has taken a swap on false prophets who extort monies from their congregation in the name of performing miraculous healing from the 'Holy Ghost saying real miracle ordained by the Almighty were not for sale.

" It's pity that most of the later prophets who claimed have been ordered by God through the Holy Ghost collect huge sums of money from their members in the name of healing them from spiritual attacks.

I can't imagine the creator of Heaven and Earth collecting money from us before giving us air to breath or rainfall for instance, so why on earth should so-call 'Men of God' collect monies before performing healing?

I wonder the kind of powers they used in healing the people. It's equally an eye sore to see these self acclaimed prophets ordering their Church members to bring their used clothing to be used as a ponit of contact to drive away all satanic attacks on them.

I wonder again the kind of training they got and the Bible they are using. This attitude is gradually tanish the image of Christiandom "

Rev. Dr. J. R. K Mensah stated these at induction service held to ordained Rev. Paul Kwaku Addei as an Apostle and General Overseer of the Great Word of God Church at Awutu Ofaakor in the Awutu- Senya East Municipality of the Central Region.

He cautioned Ministers of God against deluting the gosple adding only false prophets do that to deceive the people.

Rev. Dr. Mensah charged Apostle Paul Kwaku Addei to be truthful in propagating the word of God without human doctrine. That's the task every Man of God is ordained to do.

We serve God in spirit so whatever we do ought to be in line with the spirit of God but not from acquire spirits which does not conform with the teachings of the Holy Bible"

Apostle Paul Kwaku Addei who was the General Secretary of The Word of God Church was first ordained into the Ministry as pastor in 2011. He succeeded his late father and was inducted in 2015 to steer the affairs of the church.

A journalist by profession, Apostle Kwaku Addei has been instrumental in the expansion of the Church through crusade and evangelism..

In an interview with newsmen, Apostle Kwaku Addei expressed his gratitude to the Church and numerous people who had prayed for him unto his present level.

" Knowing the responsibility that go along with this highest calling if the church, I will not rest on my oars but strive hard to ensure its growth and development.

I consider it as a heavy burden that has been placed on my shoulders to carry for the over 5,000 Members of the Church in all the six Districts namely Swedru, Bawjiase, Ofaakor, Kasoa, Adeiso and Senya.

I want to plead that all of us will overcome our individual differences so that we can expand the Kingdom of our dear God. We must all put our resources together to ensure that The Great Word of God Church is well-resourced to undertake many projects.

I accordingly with the auction of God shall continue to lead this Church as a Shepherd and a father for all"

The Member of Parliament for Awutu-Senya East, Hon. Hawa Koomson who attended the Induction Service commended Apostle Paul Kwaku Addei for his service and commitment towards the growth of the church and the country as a whole.
Good morning ladies and gentlemen of the media who are with us this morning.

We wish to thank you for your urgent response to our invitation despite the short notice. We want to brief you on points in our presentation today.

Today is our first encounter with you (the media) and thank you for coming.

We note with disappointment, the unlawful dismissal of about 85 Zoomlion staff.

We are therefore reacting on the reign of the lawlessness which is likely to jeopardize the unity and peace in our district.

Politics of deception and over-politicization of our public institutions like YEA and private sector (ZOOMLION) and the lawlessness being exhibited by some well known NPP members and appointees is very worrying.

These people without any shame have turned the YEA office into party office and have chosen to open the office to the public at their own free will.

Ladies and gentlemen of the media,

Let me take this opportunity to give a brief background from the time of recruitment of the affected staff under YEA/ZOOMLION module.

Some of them were recruited by former President Kufuor, while others by former President Atta Mills and final batch by former President Mahama.

We have therefore worked peacefully in the hands of all these leaders and irrespective of the appointee (DCEs) like Sq. Leader Ben Anane Asamoah, Hon IK Kyeremeh and Hon Frank Kumi without any problem.

Why is Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his appointees including Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman and co. unlawfully dismissing us? Are we not Ghanaians?

Ladies and gentlemen of the media,

A few months ago, we were asked to go home by one Mr. Siaka and Hon Anthony Kwabena Oppong (NPP Constituency Youth Organizers).

The intercepted list bore our names and it read the list of Zoomlion workers who have vacated post-Dormaa East District YEA.

It took the intervention of some opinion leaders and the dismissal was declared illegal.

Thanks to those persons who always fight for the poor in society.

Ladies and gentlemen, if they failed the first attempt, why now again? We, therefore, demand the following questions and answers from the government/YEA Dormaa East, regional YEA and also call on the President H.E Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo to intervene and call the office of YEA Dormaa East to order.

Ladies and gentlemen of the media,

Here are our questions to the government:

1. What happened to the first list?

2. Is it lawful to sack a staff who took part in the headcount exercise conducted by the ZOOMLION a few months ago?

3. Is it lawful to sack a staff who were at post and and took part in the headcount conducted by the same YEA Dormaa east district last month?

4.How can a staff who was at post and marked present become a vacant post?

5. How can YEA describe existing staff as vacated staff but met the same person on duty and tell them you have vacated post?

6. How do you ask a staff to go home when a clear evidence showed he/she was at post with the other staff who is still at post?

7. Have all these(85)staff absented themselves from duty for 10-days as required by public service to warrant their dismissal?

8.Have they been queried as required?

9.Have they been suspended as required?

10.Have the affected staff given opportunity to answer the alleged charges of vacation of the post as the laws of our land demand?

11.Has the ZOOMLION which has daily supervisory role communicated to and declared their post vacant?

12.Why not dismiss the entire ZOOMLION workers nationwide, the whole region and the whole staff of the district but few others?

13.What happened to their six months salary arrears own them by the YEA/ZOOMLION?

Ladies and gentleman of the media, the above questions point to the fact that all the officers at YEA Dormaa east district are too discriminatory and not serving the nation but their personal interest.

In conclusion, we call on the president, the local government minister, the sanitation minister, the YEA National CEO, ZOOMLION CEO, the DCE and the Nanamom to condemn this act of discrimination in the Dormaa East district by these known NPP appointees.

We demand that you call them to order since we all voted for the president and should not suffer this way in the hand hands of few bloody selfish individuals in the Dormaa east district.

Long live Ghana

Long live ZOOMLION.

Thank you all for coming.

Signed:

Hon Afi Isaac

Assemblyman And Secretary Concerned Citizens.
The UN force in Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday paid tribute to troops who were killed last week, in the peacekeepers' biggest single loss in nearly a quarter of a century.

Tanzanian and Nepalese troops formed a guard for 14 coffins, draped with the Tanzanian flag, in a ceremony near Beni, in North Kivu province.

The UN on Sunday revised down the death toll from 15 to 14. While the Tanzanian press has said two other soldiers are missing.

"The death of our Tanzanian friends shall be written in the history of the Congolese nation, in tribute to their sacrifice," said Congolese General Leon Mushale. "They will remain in the hearts of the Congolese people."

The soldiers were killed on Thursday in the conflict-torn east of the country after clashes with suspected Ugandan Muslim rebels, the so-called Allied Democratic Forces.

David Gressly, the UN's deputy special representative for the DRC, said the peacekeepers would not step back from their work.

"The Blue Helmets will continue to protect the people of Beni," he pledged.

The attack is the bloodiest against MONUSCO, a force that was deployed in DRC in 1999, and the worst against a UN force since the death of 24 Pakistani peacekeepers in Somalia in June 1993.

The European Union on Monday said the "unacceptable attack... underscores the fragility of the security situation in eastern DRC, amplified by the current uncertainty over the country's political situation."

It called on the DRC authorities to carry out an inquiry "so that those responsible can be swiftly brought to justice," according to an EU statement issued in Kinshasa.

The bodies of the Tanzanian troops are to be repatriated on Tuesday or Wednesday, the Tanzanian army said on Sunday.
Past students of the Sunyani Technical University will converge on the schools main campus in Sunyani for their maiden Home-coming Summit scheduled to take place from 15th to 17th of December.

Over 1,500 members of the Sunyani Technical University Alumni Association from around the world shall participate in the historic programme, which is being held under the theme, Technical Universities: Solution to Ghanas Industrialization and Unemployment - the way forward.

The Keynote address shall be delivered by the CEO of Gratis Foundation, Mr. Emmanuel Kwaku Asiedu, who is also an alumnus of STU.

The Alumni Association since its inception has donated a variety of items to the University, instituted an awards package for outstanding students at every graduation ceremony and established an endowment fund for the school.

The Association is currently putting up a Creche for the university to serve staff, students and the general public. The project is at its furnishing stage and is expected to be completed in 2018.

The Secretary of the STU Alumni Association, Frank Owusu, told the media in Sunyani that the event will draw members together and foster unity for sustainable development of the Sunyani Technical University.

Since 1957, when the Sunyani Technical Institute was established through to 1997 when it was converted to a Polytechnic by Government, the Alumni have never had the opportunity to come home as a gathering of Alumni.

It is hoped that the programme will open doors for a new beginning for the University and past students who will participate in the programme. It would be a platform for generation and sharing of ideas to enhance the technological advancement of the University.

Again, he noted, the Home-coming will serve as a platform where all technical talents/skills within the past students would be discovered adding that members who are occupying key positions in the country would link up unemployed Alumni members within the Association.

Mr. Owusu, who is also the Senior Assistant Registrar in charge of General Administration, of STU mentioned some of the activities lined-up as part of the summit as a float through some streets of Sunyani, games, live-band concert, video shows, grand durbar and a thanks-giving service.

The most exciting part is that the event will bring together all past students from the Technical institute through to Polytechnic to Technical University level  a meeting of son and father affair.

Mr. Owusu said the Alumni Association intended to partner the university to improve technical know-how of students through skilled practical attachments.

We envisage that the partnership will create a new face for the University where students will have hands-on training and skills before completing school, he added.

The Alumni association has plans to partner with the University to build plants and machines that will enhance TVET direction and intended purpose of the Technical Universities.

The Sunyani Technical University began as a Technical Institute in November 1967 under the Ghana Education Service to train middle school leavers in technical courses.

In January 1997, government upgraded the Technical Institute to a Polytechnic with statutory objectives and functions to provide career  focused training at the tertiary level.

Last year, the Polytechnic was converted into a Technical University through an ACT of Parliament to offer various degree programmes that would enhance accelerated growth of the country.

Currently, the University offers various Bachelor of Technology Degree programmes, Higher National Diploma (HND) and Non  Tertiary programmers in Technical and Vocational courses.

Richard Kofi Boahen, Sunyani ([email protected]ail.com)

END
Mrs Rose Amoah, Senior Manager - Finance Donating the best female farmer award to Madam Amina Agyimah

11.12.2017 LISTEN

Tarkwa-December 11, 2017- AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Gold Mine has sponsored the first runner-up Municipal Best Farmer and Best Female Farmer awards at the 33rd national farmers day celebration held at Wassa Simpa in the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality and Dumase in the Prestea-Huni Valley District. The total sponsorship package was valued at approximately GH12,000.

The sponsorship forms part of the AngloGold Ashantis support to farmers and to help promote women empowerment in its catchment area. Since inception, more women in the area have ventured into agriculture making the vocation attractive.

Ms. Awo Wugah, a sixty-five (65) year old farmer from Esuaso won first runner-up for contributing towards food security in the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality. She also won a variety of gifts including a plasma television set, an orthopedic mattress, sewing machine etc. This is Ms Wugahs second win as best female farmer. She has been farming for over thirty years and cultivates cocoa, maize, spices, pineapples, cassava, plantain etc.

Hard work and perseverance are the two pillars that has kept me going, she said, expressing appreciation to the Mine for the honour done her. Madam Awo Wugah encouraged more women especially the youth to venture into commercial farming as a business since its benefits are rewarding.

Mr. Gabriel Yeboah, a former beneficiary of Iduapriems local economic development programme also received an award for the municipal vegetable farmer.

At Dumase-Bogoso, Madam Amina Agyimah from Damang, a gold mining community in the Prestea Huni-Valley District won the best female farmer award. She received a plasma television set, wellington boots, bags of NPK fertilizers, wax print, one packet of roofing sheets among others.

We are thankful to AngloGold Ashanti for sponsoring the best female award category every year. I am proud of the items I have received and in fact, AngloGold Ashanti stood tall among its peers, Madam Amina Agyimah said.

Commenting on the sponsorship, the Managing Director of AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Gold Mine, Jasper Musadaidzwa said the sponsorship forms part of the AngloGold Ashantis support to farmers and to help promote women empowerment in its catchment area.

Since AngloGold Ashantis participation in supporting female farmers in its host communities to , more women in the area have taken inventured into agriculture making the vocation attractive and as a mine that believes in empowering women, we will continue to support this noble cause he added.

National Farmers' Day is commemorated each year to honour Ghanaian farmers and fishermen. The occasion is also used to acknowledge the vital role farmers and fishermen play in the nation's socio-economic development. This years celebration was under the theme, Farming for food and Jobs.
Managing Director of ECG, Ing Samuel Boakey-Appiah

11.12.2017 LISTEN

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has increased its service desks from 40 to 60 at the project office to deal with the backlog of deposited faulty vending cards which requires reactivation.

Speaking at a news conference in Accra, the Managing Director of ECG, Ing Samuel Boakey-Appiah said they have virtually resolved the challenges they faced with the Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) payment system which affected about 30,000 customers in Korle bu, Dansoman, Kaneshie and Achimota districts.

He indicated that experts were able to reengineer the system to reduce the human intervention by operating a higher automated system that runs faster than the previous system.

The MD added that they have also been able to setup a customer service desk at the Kaneshie District office within the Avenor Office of the Accra West Region and also at the Achimota District where customers under these districts can contact for the reactivation of their cards.

With respect to the two other Districts, namely Dansoman and Korle-Bu, we wish to appeal to customers to deposit their faulty cards after it has been proven to be dysfunctional with their names and phone numbers. These will be reactivated and they will be called to come and pick their cards or will be given a time for collection, he stated.

Mr. Boakye-Appiah apologized for the inconvenience caused thanking their numerous customers and stakeholders for their patience and understanding as they work assiduously to completely resolve the challenge.

The BOT Vending challenge caused a stir in four districts of the Accra West operational area namely Korle-bu, Dansoman, Kaneshie and Achimota on December 3rd 2017 when customers realized they were unable to vend at their various districts and vending points for several days as a result of an initial fault that occurred with the server.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Reverend Dr Kojo Osei-Wusu, former President of the Ghana Baptist Convention (GBC) has called on all Christians to help fight against corrupt practices in the society.

'We will like to appeal to the Christian community in all churches in the Country to rise up and join in the fight as part of their Christian duty to the Lord,' he explained.

He said this during a press conference held at the Grace Baptist Church, Kumasi to mark the International Anti-Corruption Day, which also coincided with the one year anniversary of FoFCAC.

Forum for Christians Against Corruption (FoCAC) is a group of Christians devoted to fight all forms of corruption in Ghana for National Development.

The Group, which was formed in 2016, fight corruption through the personal lifestyles of members, forums, public lectures, press conferences and others to expose by questioning and resisting all forms of corruption towards its elimination.

Also the Founder of FoCAC, Rev Dr Osei-Wusu said, Christians must be motivated to fight corruption by the disgust they have for it, in the same way they were more to resist the legalization of homosexuality.

The effects of corruption were greater than homosexuality and it's a fight that Christians do not have to be asked to partake, he said.

He called on the government to launch a comprehensive national anti-corruption mass campaign to mobilise and educate the citizenry to be part of the fight against the canker.

There should be a paradigm shift in the approach to fight it that will bring the masses to the frontline for maximum effect whereby educational institutions, traditional authorities and religious bodies would be involved to help shape, especially, the minds of the young people against the fight.

Rev Dr Osei-Wusu said the areas are the Right to Information (RTI) bill, appointment of independent state prosecutor, election of district and metropolitan chief executives and tackling corruption in the basic school systems by inference through the new free Senior High School policy.

Nonetheless, its performance on the fight after almost a year in office was still quite disappointing.

The Founder of FoCAC suggested that the country did not need any new committee (s) to carry out the fight but can be done through the Ministry of Education and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE).

The media could also selflessly support the campaign with attractive and educative songs, jingles and sketches to make it memorable in the minds of the public.

GNA

By Gifty Amofa, GNA
MTN-Ghana, the leading telecommunication network in the country on Friday commissioned an ultra-modern Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Centre for Aggrey Memmorial A.M.E Zion School in Cape Coast.

The GH254,000.00 facility with 30 sitting capacity, comes with an office, store room, cabinets, ceiling fans, projector and other networking gadgets to enhance teaching and learning.

Mr. Ethan Liu, Head of MTN Ghana Account and Huawei Technologies Ghana, said the gesture was in fulfilment of the organization's drive to support efforts to bridge the digital divide between the served and underserved schools to encourage the study of ICT in schools across the country.

He said it was their prime vision to enrich people's lives through communication for positive lasting impact on the entire population.

It was also in adherence to their Corporate Social Responsibility target of contributing to the development of the socio-economic, health and safety of their operating environment.

He said they were poised to facilitate more ICT solutions in the educational sector in Ghana through the provision of a comprehensive network infrastructure in the educational sector especially in an era where distance education had become increasingly important.

He called on the school authorities to protect the equipment and the facility to serve it's useful purpose.

Reverend Dr Franklin Koranteng Boadu, Headmaster of the School, thanked MTN Ghana Foundation and partners for supporting the 2,500 students of the school with the modern facility to enhance academic work.

He also commended the Old Students Association for engineering the initiative.

GNA

By Isaac Arkoh, GNA
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Takoradi, Dec. 10, GNA- Ms Joyce Cudjoe, the Western Regional Focal Person for Ghana Anti -Corruption Coalition, has called on Ghanaians to desist from all forms of corrupt acts.

She said for corruption to be eradicated, Ghanaians needed to be aware of the extent of corruption in the country and it's effects on the economy and called on the public to report any corrupt official to the CHRAJ, NCCE or the police.

Ms Cudjoe said this on Saturday after a walk was held to mark the International Anti-Corruption Day in Takoradi.

The walk which begun at about 0840 hrs at the Takoradi Presbyterian Trinity Church proceeded through the principal streets of Takoradi - Amanful, Paa Grant Roundabout, PWD Street and ended at the Takoradi Central Market.

Enthusiastic participants made up of the Ghana Police Service, Ghana National Fire Service, Drivers and officials of the Vehicle License Authority, National Commission for Civil Education, civil servants, market women and youth organizations, carried placards some of which read, ''Ghana, Say No To Corruption; Know Your Rights; Don't Be A Spectator, Report Corruption; Refuse to Take Bribe; Corruption Robs The Future of Your Children; Corruption Threatens Our Future; Corruption Creates Poverty''.

International Anti-Corruption Day is marked every year on December 9 to raise national awareness by sensitizing the public on the cost of corruption as well as mobilize citizens to support the fight against corruption.

This year's celebration was held under the theme: ''NACAP: Strengthening Public, Private, and Civil Society, Partnership in the fight against corruption''.

Mr Allen Osei Akoto, a representative from GACC-Accra, said the public have the right to demand for accountability from their district assemblies.

''As people we must know that our daily contributions can generate better education, social amenities and for that matter there is the need to know how the money we contribute is being used."

"The little money you pay to the assembly, you have the right to go to them and demand for accountability but if they refuse, report the case to GACC centres'' he said.

Mr Akoto said there is the need for individuals to tender in evidence for verification before reporting any case of corruption.

Mr Bernard Oduro Akoto, a Legal Practitioner, said corruption was a sin and the Constitution also frowns on it and that it is important for all hands to be on deck in the fight against it.

He also called on all to support the effort to ensure the complete elimination of corruption from public institutions.

Mr Bernard Barker, Berea Social Foundation, said the need for citizens to halt the practice of offering bribes to officials when their mandated services are required.

GNA

By Francisca S. Atta-Eyison, GNA
Mr. Emmanuel Addai, Communication Consultant for UNICEF Ghana has appealed with the media to stop promoting the construction of communal toilets as it is not an effective way of contributing to the achievement of the Open Defecation Free (ODF) Campaign.

He said such communal toilets in most cases rather contributed to the practice of open defecation as most of them were often not neat for people to be motivated to use.

Mr Addai who was speaking during a media orientation programme in Wa ahead of the regional launch of the ODF Ghana campaign rather urged the media to channel its efforts into the promotion of the construction and usage of household toilets in Ghana.

He said the promotion of household toilets by the media would tremendously help in the achievement of the ODF Ghana campaign which would lead to a reduction in its related health problems.

Mr Addai explained that the media orientation was necessary because at the regional launch itself, the media may not have time to understand everything about the ODF Ghana campaign.

'So we met to pre-orientate the media about what the campaign is all about and also brainstorm on the role the media can also play in targeting various institutions and individuals and getting them to also play their roles effectively to help in the achievement of the campaign goal', he said.

The UNICEF Communication Consultant noted that since the campaign started in 2014, there had been about 50 per cent reduction in open defecation in the Upper West Region which contributed to the region placing first in the District League Table (DLT) this year in the open defecation category.

Mr. Addai noted that the Nandom District in the region stood the best chance of being declared district-wide open defecation free in the whole of the country, adding that in 2011 - 2014, open defecation had dropped from 72 per cent to 49 per cent in the whole of the region.

He said since then, should there be another survey currently, he was optimistic that there would be a further reduction in the 49 percent, noting however that despite all these significant gains over the years, the region still remained one of the three highest open defecation offenders and needed to do more to pull itself out of that category.

UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources (MSWR) to organise half-day media orientation workshops ahead of the impending regional launches of the ODF Ghana campaign.

The objectives are to thoroughly brief the media about the nature, essence and style of the ODF Ghana campaign; trigger pre-launch media discussion on the regional launch event and draw public and stakeholder attention to the event and the role the media could play to help the campaign.
The Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Ing Samuel Boakey-Appiah has stated that they have virtually resolved the challenges they faced with the Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) payment system which affected about 30,000 customers in Korle bu, Dansoman, Kaneshie and Achimota districts.

After a series of press briefings, the Managing Director on Monday 11th December told the press that they have substantially resolved the BOT challenge to allow customers to vend.

We wish to state that we have substantially resolved the BOT challenge. Customers should therefore visit their District Offices (Kaneshie, Korle-bu, Dansoman, Achimota), to do normal business with ECG. BOT customers should please note that the faulty cards are reactivated only once, and after the reactivation, you can purchase electricity at all vending points, he stated.

ModernGhanas check on the grounds reveals the exact situation as customers were busily purchasing electricity at the vending points after days of living without electricity.

Mr. Boakye-Appiah further assured that after an evaluation and review of the situation and processes, his team will put in place contingency measures to mitigate any future occurrence.

According to him, they worked throughout the weekend, Saturday and Sunday, from morning and closing after midnight on both days.

He added that by Saturday and Sunday, all the four affected Districts were working to reactivate faulty cards which will enable customers to purchase electricity.

By Sunday evening, when I went round, there were virtually no queues. The few customers who were waiting under tents were waiting for their cards to be replaced, as we had started replacing some of the cards, or waiting to be called for collection, the MD intimated.

Mr. Boakye-Appiah stressed that his outfit is currently mopping up some faulty cards that needed outright replacement and those ones that are due for collection at their offices.
Sicily on Monday welcomed nearly 900 migrants rescued in Mediterranean waters off the coast of Libya in the past few days, with many expressing relief at having escaped the "Libyan hell".

More than 330 migrants rescued by Italian coast guard and other European vessels have already disembarked at Sicilian ports, Italian media reported.

Another hundred were en route to the western city of Trapani on Monday while 450, including a woman about to give birth, are due to arrive in Augusta by evening aboard the Aquarius, a boat operated by charity group SOS Mediterranee along with Doctors Without Borders.

"Testimonies gathered Sunday aboard the Aquarius reflect the extreme gravity of the situation in Libya for migrants and refugees, who lacking a safer alternative, risk their lives at sea to escape what they call the Libyan hell," said Francis Vallat, the SOS Mediterranee president in France.

"Today, the absolute priority is to rescue at sea those who continue to flee and to accompany them to a safe place where they will be protected and where their basic human rights will be respected".

Libya has long been a major transit hub for migrants trying to reach Europe.

More than 3,000 have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean in rickety boats, according to the International Organization for Migration. Others have fallen prey to serious abuse at the hands of traffickers and others.

Recent shocking footage by US news channel CNN appeared to show migrants being sold as slaves near Tripoli, sparking global outrage and promises from the African Union it would repatriate 20,000 distressed migrants in the next six weeks.

"I would rather die than return to prison," a 25-year-old from Cameroon said, according to SOS Mediterranean.

"In the cell they hit us, they tied our feet and hands, feet up, head down. Europeans would come visit, and the guards would tell us not to talk."

Nicola Stalla, relief coordinator for SOS Mediterranee, said weather conditions are also a concern for migrants, but what "they fear more than anything is be intercepted and sent back to the hell they came from in Libya".

The number of migrants and refugees who have arrived in Europe this year -- nearly 164,000 -- is less than half of last year's total of 348,000.

The flow has been stemmed by controversial deals between the EU, Turkey and Libya.
A 78-year-old hunter is in the grips of the Awutu Bawjiase police for allegedly possessing human parts.

The man, Kojo Asare, who claims he hunts for snails approached a fetish priest in the area with the idea of selling to him human parts.

The fetish priest then feigned interest in the trade asking the man to bring the parts on a given date which was December 6.

The fetish priest then informed the police of the action of the 78-year-old with the police laying ambush at the shrine of the fetish priest where the hunter was arrested with the bag containing human parts.

Upon interrogation, Asare revealed to the police that he found the parts in a forest where he was hunting for snails and decided to sell them.

He then led the police to the site where he claims he saw the sack containing the human parts.

The police only found the attire and a faded identification Card believed to be that of the person who was murdered.

The suspect has since been arraigned before court and remanded into police custody for investigation to continue as the parts are to be sent for forensic laboratory audit.
At least six soldiers died in two separate Boko Haram ambushes in northeast Nigeria, military and civilian militia sources said on Monday.

Four troops were killed and 12 injured on Sunday when their convoy was attacked near Damboa, 90 kilometres (56 miles) from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

Two soldiers were killed in the same area on Saturday, the sources told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to talk to the media.

A military officer in Maiduguri said Sunday's ambush happened when troops were on patrol between the villages of Nyeneri and Falawani.

"The terrorists came in huge numbers and attacked the convoy using IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and gun trucks," he added.

A member of the civilian self-defence force gave a similar account and death toll, and said the jihadists made off with weapons before reinforcements arrived.

He added: "Two soldiers died on Saturday when the six vehicles they travelling in came under heavy attack from Boko Haram near Bulaburin (village)," said the militia source.

The attacks came days after the military replaced the officer leading troops fighting Boko Haram following a surge in attacks, including against military outposts.

The army maintains the redeployment of Major-General Ibrahim Attahiru was routine, and the officer himself said suggestions he was sacked are "far from the truth".

He said in his farewell speech to troops on Monday that his move was "a normal exercise" and his redeployment to army headquarters in Abuja was a "call to higher responsibility".

Meanwhile, hundreds of people displaced by the violence deserted a makeshift camp in Birimari village, in the Nganzai district of Borno, some 80 km north of Maiduguri.

Troops had been sent to the village, which is the birthplace of Borno state governor Kashim Shettima, two years ago but soldiers were withdrawn last week, locals said.

One of the displaced, Idrissa Karim, fled with others to Gajiram, the district headquarters, as fears spread of a possible attack.

A bus driver who plies the route from the garrison town of Monguno to Maiduguri, which passes through Birimari and Gajiram, confirmed the displaced people had moved on.

"The IDPs (internally displaced persons) were packing their tents and few belongings from the camp at Birimari and heading to Gajiram for fear of Boko Haram attack after soldiers left the village," the driver said.

As well as leaving at least 20,000 dead, the eight-year conflict has forced millions from their homes. IDPs remain vulnerable because of a lack of security in camps and elsewhere.
The bodies of 14 Tanzanian peacekeepers killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo by suspected Ugandan rebels were repatriated Monday, where the defence minister welcomed them as "heroes".

The arrival of the plane carrying 14 white coffins covered with the UN's blue flag was marked by a military ceremony at the international airport in Dar es Salaam.

"We are here to welcome our heroes," Tanzanian defence minister Hussein Mwinyi said of the soldiers, all members of the Tanzania People's Defence Forces.

They were killed on Thursday in the conflict-torn east of the country after clashes with suspected Ugandan Muslim rebels of the so-called Allied Democratic Forces.

The attack was the biggest single loss of peacekeepers in nearly a quarter of a century.

Tanzanian and Nepalese troops formed a guard for the 14 coffins, draped with the Tanzanian flag, in a ceremony near Beni in the North Kivu province before the bodies were flown home.

The UN had lowered the death toll to 14 from 15, with a further 53 injured. The Tanzanian press has said two other soldiers are missing.

"The death of our Tanzanian friends shall be written in the history of the Congolese nation, in tribute to their sacrifice," said Congolese General Leon Mushale. "They will remain in the hearts of the Congolese people."

David Gressly, the UN's deputy special representative for the DR Congo, said the peacekeepers would not step back from their work.

"The Blue Helmets will continue to protect the people of Beni," he said.

The attack is the bloodiest against MONUSCO, the UN force that was deployed in DRC in 1999, and the worst against a UN force since the death of 24 Pakistani peacekeepers in Somalia in June 1993.

The European Union on Monday said the "unacceptable attack... underscores the fragility of the security situation in eastern DRC, amplified by the current uncertainty over the country's political situation."

It called on the DR Congo authorities to carry out an inquiry "so that those responsible can be swiftly brought to justice," according to an EU statement issued in Kinshasa.
Plans by Central African Republic's beleaguered government to reassert control in the north of the country were in difficulties on Monday after clashes marred the return of the state's top representative to a key city.

Colonel Augustin Tombou was formally installed on Saturday as prefect in the town of Kaga-Bandoro -- a politically important step in the strategy to restore state authority in strife-torn provinces.

But sources reported a surge of violence, including mortar rounds fired against UN peacekeepers, gunfire targeting a camp for displaced people and a grenade that was thrown during Tombou's induction ceremony.

Tombou's residence was "partially destroyed" and the prefecture itself was burned down, Jean-Serge Bokassa, minister of territorial decentralisation and administration, told AFP by phone on Monday.

The prefect has been taken to a secure location but does not have the means to exercise his duties, he said.

"We are looking at urgent steps for enabling the prefect's proper deployment," he said.

A vehicle owned by an aid organisation was carjacked by armed men, and another was looted, a source with an NGO in the capital Bangui said.

"What worries us is that if this situation continues, aid workers will have to pull out once more," the source said, referring to a wave of attacks on NGOs.

Meanwhile, a clash between two armed groups killed seven people in the predominantly Muslim PK5 quarter of Bangui on Monday, security officials said.

A member of one group was killed in the early morning, triggering a cycle of reprisals.

The United Nations peacekeeping force MINUSCA and CAR security forces intervened to restore order, UN spokesman Vladimir Monteiro told AFP.

The PK5 neighbouhood has often been at the heart of tensions in the relatively calm Central African capital.

One of the poorest countries in the world, CAR has been riven by conflict between nominally Muslim and Christian militias, which started after the 2013 overthrow of leader Francois Bozize.

Outside of Bangui, most of the rest of the country is in the hands of militia groups, who fight over resources such as diamonds and cattle.

More than three quarters of the country's 4.7 million inhabitants live in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank.

The country is classed last -- in 188th place -- on the Human Development Index of the UN Development Programme.

The latest clashes took place in an area dominated by two armed groups -- the Popular Front for the Rebirth of Central Africa (FPRC) and the Movement for Peace in Central Africa (MPC).

Both are offshoots of the pro-Muslim Seleka rebel alliance, which overthrew Bozize and was forced out in turn by international military intervention.

"We do not accept prefects who are military," said Fadoul Bachar of the FPRC via the messaging application Whatsapp. "If they are civilians, no problem, if they are military, we will oppose them fiercely."

Tombou, who was appointed in August, is one of eight military figures among the 16 named by the government.
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Hon Simon Osei Mensah, has called for support for Konongo Odumasi Senior High School fire victims in the Region.

Government alone cannot alleviate the plight of the victims. I am therefore appealing to all, particularly corporate bodies, philanthropists and development partners to come to the aid of these victims, he said.

Students of Konongo Odumasi Senior High School in the Ashanti Region were forced to sleep in their computer laboratory and libraries as fire razed down portions their dormitories on Sunday, 10th, December 2017.

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Regional NADMO Director, and Regional Education Director donated mattresses, blankets, buckets and other consumables to the school.

Items destroyed by the fire included books, mattresses, trunks, chop boxes, dresses and other personal belongings of the students.

Making the presentation to the school Authorities, Mr. Osei Mensah gave assurance that his outfit will act swiftly intervene to alleviate their plights.
The Minority in Parliament has heavily descended on the Speaker of Parliament for backing the decision by the US to relocate its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Clement Apaak, who is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said since Professor Mike Ocquayes motivation for the comments is not known, it is prudent he explains that to Parliament.

To say the least, it is to some extent even embarrassing to say that the Speaker has made a statement which has been contradicted by government. It does not augur well for our international image and reputation.

Prof. Mike Ocquaye is reported to have said that Ghana will back Israel and the US if the former decides to move its capital to Jerusalem.

This statement then triggered a response from government because it had not made any official declaration since the discussion to move the capital started.

Government distanced itself from statement explaining that it was the Speakers personal position.

The controversy is thickening as it appears the Speaker did not speak to any of the leadership in Parliament before declaring his stance on the matter.

Although the minority caucus has not met to take a decision on the issue, he said they will stand by the countrys foreign policy to remain positively neutral.

On that grounds, we can positively associate ourselves with the rest of the world, which has certainly disagreed with the position which Donald Trump has taken, he said.

He said given that government has come out to distance itself from the Speakers comment, Prof Mike Ocquaye owes Parliament an explanation.

This is because he puts us in a rather unpleasant political situation which seeks to suggest that there is no consultation between the executive and the legislative arms of government, he added.

According to Mr Apaak, considering that at some point the Speaker can assume the office of the President, such a sensitive Foreign Policy gaffe should not allowed to go without explannation.

Frank Annor Dompreh

Commenting on the issue, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Frank Annor Dompreh suggested the Speaker was only making a personal comment.

I mean there are people who occupy top positions who share the same view as that of the Speaker, but for the fact that he occupies that important position, it is difficult for anybody to distinguish the individual position.

And in this context, I can deduce he was making an individual commentbe that it may I will look at it in a positive angle, he said.

According to the Nsawam Adoagri MP, considering that government has come out with its position, the Speaker's "unfortunate comments" must be dealt with in a matured way.

Vladimir Antwi Danso

International Relations expert Vladimir Antwi Danso also insisted the Speaker was only making a personal comment.

I wont fault him because he is an intellectual and I strongly suspect that most intellectuals dont care where they say what and personally that is what he believes in.

What is important is that he was not speaking as the chair of the House and calling on the House to deliberate on that and come out with an act or a bill, he said.

Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com |Abubakar Ibrahim |[email protected]
11.12.2017 LISTEN

School authorities at St. Martins Senior High School in Nsawam in the Eastern region have revealed that students who collapsed on Sunday and Monday were as a result of Malaria and Anaemia.

Assistant Headmaster in charge of Academics, J.A.K Okpantey told Starr News that the doctors report suggest that three of the students were suffering from anaemia while the others had malaria.

According to him, 14 out of the 17 students rushed to the hospital have been treated and discharged but three are still on admission at the Nsawam Government Hospital and a Private Clinic.

The Doctor told us it is a mere malaria, those three cases they talk of anaemia. Three of them are still at the hospital two of them at the government hospital then another case in a private hospital.

He explained further that, It started yesterday in the evening around Prep time, three of our girls were not feeling fine so their dormitory members informed us so we sent them to the hospital by 8pm. We had another 4 cases making 7, one was admitted yesterday but the rest were treated and discharged.

This morning too we had another case, about 10 of them and they were also treated and discharged but three of them diagnosed of anaemia are at the hospital as we speak.

The Assistant Headmaster has assured parents who were panicking and rushing to the School to remain calm because the situation is under control.

The victims mostly form one female students collapsed Sunday evening and Monday morning creating fear and panic in the school.

St Martins Senior High School is faced with infrastructural challenges leading to congestion at the dormitories.

The School does not have convenient toilet facilities but a 10 -seater toilet facilitty under construction has stalled.
11.12.2017 LISTEN

Nollywood actor, Emeka Duru, is currently elated as he was over the weekend honoured by the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Lagos state Chapter.

It would be recalled that the Guild for a while has not had things rosy but to the glory of God, hope and sanity has been restored and members have been doing fine.

Emeka who could not hide his joy shared the good story with his fans, Yesterday I was honoured with an excellence award by Actors Guild of Nigeria Lagos State chapter, I want to say a very big thank u to the Chairman, and members of AGN Lagos State for this honour given to me. May God bless you all and I pledge my undying commitment to the growth of AGN in Lagos State and Nigeria at large thank you.
Mount Pleasant, SC (29464)

Today

Sun and clouds mixed. High 52F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 36F. Winds light and variable.
Mount Pleasant, SC (29464)

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 53F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low around 35F. Winds light and variable.
I stuck to what the coaches ...
President Donald Trump View Photos

President Trump was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words:

Help me, Dad.

Those were the last words spoken by Kate Steinle as she lay dying on a San Francisco pier  a precious young American woman killed in the prime of her life.

Kates death is a tragedy that was entirely preventable. She was shot by an illegal alien and a 7-time convicted felon who had been deported five times  but he was free to harm an innocent American because our leaders refused to protect our border, and because San Francisco is a Sanctuary City. In Sanctuary States and Cities, innocent Americans are at the mercy of criminal aliens because state and local officials defy federal authorities and obstruct the enforcement of our immigration laws.

Last week, in a final injustice, Kates killer was acquitted on all of the most serious charges  yet one more reason Americans are so upset by Sanctuary Cities and open border politicians who shield criminal aliens from federal law enforcement and all of the problems involved with the whole concept of a sanctuary city. Theyre no good. We mourn for all of the American Families, of all backgrounds, who will have any empty seat at Christmas this year because our immigration laws were not enforced. No American should be separated from their loved ones because of preventable crime committed by those illegally in our country. Our cities should be Sanctuaries for Americans  not for criminal aliens.

Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress not only oppose our efforts to stop illegal immigration and crack down on Sanctuary Cities  now they are demanding amnesty as a condition for funding the government, holding troop funding hostage and putting our national security at risk. We cannot allow it.

Every Senator and Congressman will have to make a choice: do they want to protect American citizens or do they want to protect criminal aliens? Reasonable people can disagree on many things, but there can be no disagreement that the first duty of government is to serve, protect, and defend American Citizens.

People can have different views on the technical details of budget policy or transportation, but no one who serves in elected office should disagree that our highest priority must be the safety and well-being of our nations citizens.

Thank you.

The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML.
CAL Fire TCU Bulldozer Working At Thomas Fire View Photos

Los Angeles, CA  Multiple fires burning in Southern California have now scorched nearly 257,000 acres and destroyed over 9,000 structures.

By comparison, the 2013 Rim Fire in Tuolumne and Mariposa counties burned 257,314 acres. The largest incident currently burning is the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, which has covered 230,500 acres. It is 15-percent contained and 95,000 residents remain evacuated. A Red Flag Fire Warning remains in effect for Los Angeles and Ventura counties today. Santa Ana wind gusts of 35-45 mph are expected to continue with the above normal temperatures. The second largest, the Creek Fire, near Kagel Canyon in Los Angeles County, is 15,619 acres and 95-percent contained. The Lilac Fire in San Diego County is 4,100 acres and 80-percent contained.

A large contingency of firefighters from the Mother Lode are assisting down south. From the CAL Fire Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit, it includes 29 overhead personnel assigned to leadership positions, three strike teams with 15 engines, four strike teams with eight hand crews, one Calaveras County local government strike team, a dozer and three strike team leaders. The Stanislaus National Forest has sent seven engines, one water tender and two dozers.

A total of 9,000 firefighters are assigned to the various incidents.

The lone air resource stationed at Columbia Air Attack base is Copter 404. All of the other aircraft had been moved weeks ago to other locations for the off-season, or sent in for winter maintenance.
Seal of the Calirfornia Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation View Photos

Sonora, CA  A La Grange man who killed his girlfriend, and then fled to Illinois, was denied parole following a five-hour hearing.

It was the first parole suitability hearing for 60-year-old Michael Allen Cook who killed Mary Bisbing in August of 2003. He stabbed Bisbing in their kitchen, and then chased her into the living room, where she was stabbed three additional times. Cook moved Bisbing to their bedroom and covered her with clothing, carpet and an ironing board. He then stole her credit cards and vehicle and drove to Fresno. From there he hitchhiked across country to Illinois, where his ex-wife resided. Based on a tip from her, authorities later located him in Mentropolis, Illinois, and transported him back to California. The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney James Newkirk and investigated by then Tuolumne County Sheriffs Investigator Neil Lillie. Cook eventually pleaded guilty to second degree murder. Just 12 days before the murder he had pleaded guilty to a felony violation related to cutting a telephone line during a domestic violence incident between he and Bisbing. Cook had also been convicted for domestic violence against two other women in 1995 and 1998.

The Tuolumne County District Attorneys Office reports that during the parole hearing it was noted that a state psychologist had assessed Cook and felt he had a low risk of violent recidivism. However, the hearing revealed that Cook lacked understanding as to why he killed Bisbing in such a vicious way, and he stated multiple times, I have no idea why it happened. The District Attorneys Office was also concerned by the revelation that Cook had become engaged to a woman he met while she was teaching his alternatives to violence program at Ironwood State Prison.

It will be at least three years until Cooks next parole hearing.
By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

When youve got your health, youve got just about everything Popular saying

Patient readers, this should be the best post ever, because the embodiment concept  I stumbled across it on this Twitter thread from Brian Rahmer  deserves it, but instead its going to be me staggering along a conceptual tight-rope until I arrive (I hope) at the other end, because new thoughts are hard. For the same reason, this post will have less rigor and many fewer links than I would normally like to see. Im going to start by refreshing our memories on the Case-Deaton study  because what says embodiment more than excess mortality?  and then ask why our political class isnt all over Case-Deaton as an issue. After reviewing my priors and defining embodiment, I will argue that it is superior to identity politics in every way, including politically (by which I mean electorally). Ill close with the concept of the neoliberal epidemic, which certainly ought to resonate in the flyover states, including the Rust Belt.

Case-Deaton

So, lurching into motion: Naked Capitalism (NC) readers are familiar with the Case-Deaton study (original; and see here, here, here, here, and here[1]). Summarizing it:

This paper documents a marked increase in the all-cause mortality of middle-aged white non-Hispanic men and women in the United States between 1999 and 2013. This change reversed decades of progress in mortality and was unique to the United States; no other rich country saw a similar turnaround. The midlife mortality reversal was confined to white non-Hispanics; black non-Hispanics and Hispanics at midlife, and those aged 65 and above in every racial and ethnic group, continued to see mortality rates fall. This increase for whites was largely accounted for by increasing death rates from drug and alcohol poisonings, suicide, and chronic liver diseases and cirrhosis. Although all education groups saw increases in mortality from suicide and poisonings, and an overall increase in external cause mortality, those with less education saw the most marked increases. Rising midlife mortality rates of white non-Hispanics were paralleled by increases in midlife morbidity. Self-reported declines in health, mental health, and ability to conduct activities of daily living, and increases in chronic pain and inability to work, as well as clinically measured deteriorations in liver function, all point to growing distress in this population. We comment on potential economic causes and consequences of this deterioration.

In an interview with the Guardian, Anne Case expands on their findings:

Could you briefly describe your original research and what this new follow-up paper adds to it? Our 2015 paper documented a set of facts: that after a century of almost uninterrupted progress on mortality, US white non-Hispanics (WNH) in midlife were experiencing a sustained period in which mortality rates stopped falling and rose instead. This stands in contrast to the continued declines in midlife mortality in other rich countries, and to progress being made in the US by black non-Hispanics, and Hispanics, who are on average poorer than whites. .We found the mortality increases are in sync with the distress midlife WNHs face in many dimensions: poorer health and mental health, social isolation, obesity, marriage (or lack of marriage), poorer labor market opportunities, and weaker attachment to the labor market. You use the term deaths of despair. Im wondering how you would define despair in this context? We think of drug, alcohol and suicide deaths. In a sense, they are all suicide  either carried out quickly (for example, with a gun) or slowly, with drugs and alcohol.

In the greatest country in the world!

Theory of Change

First of all, its madness to think that the country can have an increase in mortality with no political effects; organic damage  AIDS, the trenches of World War I, lynching (ultimately), and even, if you want to think of it that way, abortion  always brings about a political reaction from those damaged, or speaking on behalf of the damaged, often massive. So why dont we have either major political party directly capitalizing on deaths of despair? I mean, arent political parties supposed to be about making voters lives better? At best, weve got Trump putting Kelly Anne Conway in charge of something or other; and the Democrats are silent.[2]

To answer that, let me flounder through my priors. This is not laughably oversimplified, but cliche, so dont @ me, but I picture our society as having a pyramid-like structure with a 1% (more like a 0.01%) at the tippy top, who own capital, with a cadre of professionals below them, the 10%, who make sure the 1%s capital stays buffed and tidy, with the remaining 90% below them, who dont own capital, and therefore sell their labor power by working to make a living. (Figures may not add due to rounding.) Part of buffing capital is managing all that labor power for profit; another part is keeping the 90% divided, punching sideways and not, heaven forfend, up.)

So where does electoral politics fit into all that? Teetering onwards and continuing to oversimplify, this is my theory of change: I believe that change  and Ive had it, as Gaius Publius says, I want change  comes only when a supermajority of the electorate has the power to demand it collectively; in other words, a big chunk of the 90% has to think and act the same way (and some class traitors in the 10% and 1%, too). I posit that constantly hammering on a platform of universal concrete material benefits, especially for the working class, is the way to bring about that realignment (Peace, land, bread!). Both party establishments disagree, as they would. Since the focus of the donor class is on keeping the 90% divided, the parties actively avoid seeking a supermajority, instead deploying a strategy of 50% + 1, that is, about half the electorate plus a few marginal voters. Trump did this by flipping Obama voters in 2016; the Democrats are trying to do this by flipping wealthy suburbanites, especially women, in 2018 and 2020. And this is what the whole swing state/bellwether county model of campaigning is about, and has been for years.

So, floundering along, tactically, how to win a supermajority in a deliberately divided electorate? And an electorate in our enormous country that is legitimately different, in that the life experiences  and class and cultural markers  of a first generation Hispanic immigrant woman in Miami will be very different from those of a male black descendant of slaves in Detroit will be very different from a sixth-generation WASP gay male in Brooklyn. Yes, they are all most likely to be selling their labor power at work as members of the 90%, but what about all the differences? The answer ought to be intersectionality, so that we could all see society as a sort of ginormous Venn diagram of overlapping identities. People ought to be able to communicate at the overlaps; to communicate with each other as both working people and black (or white (or)) and female (or male (or)). Unfortunately, intersectionality has been vulgarized into identity politics, whose logic is not both/and but either/or; thats why you never hear about a black working class from liberal Democrats, for example; the category cannot exist for them. Worse, both intersectionality and identity politics focus the gaze of the citizen inward at the task of self-categorization, no matter whether the logic be the inclusive both/and or the exclusive either/or, and so you end up with absurd politics like this: The most radical thing we can do is to be ourselves, no matter what that means or who tells us were wrong. Most radical? Really?

Now my priors are out of the way, so onward. If intersectionality has failed  except for the 1%  because the parties have irretrievably polluted it with identity politics (yes), what to do to win that supermajority? Im glad you asked. Here is a handy chart of Maslows famous hierarchy of needs:

You see that I have classified identity politics as a form of Self-actualization (The most radical thing we can do is to be ourselves) and of course self-actualization is something that the 10%, who form the base of the Democrat Party (see Thomas Frank, Listen, Liberal!) have the money and the time and the energy to do; 10% women can worry about the glass ceiling because they dont have to worry about the floor collapsing under them. (The 10% may also entertain themselves by encouraging self-actualization in the rest of us, and possibly charge or bill for it.) You will also see that I have classified embodiment under Safety and Physiology (concrete material benefits). So, Identity Politics at the pyramids tippy top; Embodiment at the base.

Embodiment

But what do you mean by embodiment? Im glad you asked that, too. Rahmer links to a wonderful 2005 paper by Nancy Krieger, which I highly recommend you read in full, since its only four pages long, plus a smidge: Embodiment: a conceptual glossary for epidemiology (J Epidemiol Community Health 2005;59:350355), available for download at the US National Library of Medicine as a PDF. From the abstract:

Embodiment. This construct and process are central to ecosocial theory and epidemiological inquiry. Recognising that we, as humans, are simultaneously social beings and biological organisms, the notion of embodiment advances three critical claims: (1) bodies tell stories aboutand cannot be studied divorced fromthe conditions of our existence; (2) bodies tell stories that oftenbut not alwaysmatch peoples stated accounts; and (3) bodies tell stories that people cannot or will not tell, either because they are unable, forbidden, or choose not to tell. Just as the proverbial dead mans bones do in fact tell tales, via forensic pathology and historical anthropometry, so too do our living bodies tell stories about our lives, whether or not these are ever consciously expressed.

(My spidey sense tingled at tell stories, because  and this simplification is super-crude  theres a recurring focus on black bodies in the Black Lives Matter Twitter accounts I follow; which makes sense, given that in not-quite-historical times, black bodies were bought and sold. Now, all 90% bodies are rented, today, as opposed to being sold, and for some reason stories arent told about that.)

And from the introduction:

Consider only: food insecurity and fast food profiteering; inadequate sanitation and lack of potable water; economic and social deprivation and discrimination; physical and sexual abuse; ergonomic strain and toxic exposures; and inadequate health careall leave their marks on the body. As do their converse: the security of a living wage, pensions for old age, and societal support for childcare; universal sanitation and sustainable development; safe workplaces and healthy cities; universal health care and immunisations; and the protection and promotion of human rightseconomic, social, political, civil, and cultural. As has long been argued, although not always widely appreciated, it is no accident that from population patterns of health, disease, and wellbeing it is possible to discern the contours and distribution of power, property, and technology within and across nations, over time. Or, more pointedly, from the conditions of our bodiesand those of the animals and plants whose environs we now shapeyou can gain deep insight into the workings of the body politic . Embodiment, in other words, is literal.

And:

In the case of epidemiology, at the most general level, embodiment, as an idea, refers to how we, like any living organism, literally incorporate, biologically, the world in which we live, including our societal and ecological circumstances.

Literally incorporate, for example, opiods. And:

Finally, while perhaps obvious, embodiment is contingent upon having a body. Understanding probable pathways of embodiment thus requires clarity about what it is that bodies do, as jointly biological organisms and social beings. Minimally, this includes, as elaborated in table 2: (a) for biological organism: reproduce; develop; grow; interact; exist in time and space; and evolve; (b) for social being: societal context; social position; social production; social consumption; and social reproduction. Consideration of these integral aspects of bodily existence is key for understanding both population health and social inequalities in health.

(The hashtag for discussion of such matters seems to be #SDoH (Social Determinants of Health). Imagine! And entire discipline!)

Now, why would I prefer pathways of embodiment to intersectionality/identity politics as a conceptual tool to support my theory of change? For several reasons:

Better benefits. Embodiment is material, and I like concrete material benefits. Health and a better, longer life  not just for you, but for the hostages to fortune that you care for  are, and ought to be, far more important to most people than self-actualization. Thats a real reason to ask for peoples vote when seeking a supermajority.

Better morality. Embodiment means that we are simultaneously social beings and biological organisms. The focus on social beings brings altruism to the forefront, as the individualism of intersectionality/identity politics, and the tribalism of the latter, cannot do.

Better systems thinking. Embodiment allows us to think of the health results of lead pipes in Flint, MI and the health results of deindustrializing the Rust Belt and the health results of abandoning Puerto Rico as problems of the same order.

Better metrics. Unlike identity politics/intersectionality, epidemiology has a solid methodology. We know how to detect, measure, and end epidemics; if we have measurable health outcomes from political choices, thats a very good thing (and allows the supermajority to be kept, once gained.)

Better wedge issue. I am optimistic that Medicare for All is going to happen. When it does, embodiment provides us with the tools to think through how a truly universal health care system ought to be designed. This too allows a supermajority to be kept.

Neoliberal Epidemics

Neoliberal epidemics are particular pathways of embodiment. From Ted Schrecker and Clare Bambra in The Conversation:

In our new book, we draw on an extensive body of scientific literature to assess the health effects of three decades of neoliberal policies. Focusing on the social determinants of health  the conditions of life and work that make it relatively easy for some people to lead long and healthy lives, while it is all but impossible for others  we show that there are four interconnected neoliberal epidemics: austerity, obesity, stress, and inequality. They are neoliberal because they are associated with or worsened by neoliberal policies. They are epidemics because they are observable on such an international scale and have been transmitted so quickly across time and space that if they were biological contagions they would be seen as of epidemic proportions.

(The Case-Deaton study provides an obvious fifth: Deaths of despair. There are doubtless others.) Case in point for one of the unluckier members of the 90%:

On the morning of 25 August 2014 a young New Jersey woman, Maria Fernandes, died from inhaling gasoline fumes as she slept in her 13-year-old car. She often slept in the car while shuttling between her three, low-wage jobs in food service; she kept a can of gasoline in the car because she often slept with the engine running, and was worried about running out of gasoline. Apparently, the can accidentally tipped over and the vapours from spilled gasoline cost her life. Ms Fernandes was one of the more obvious casualties of the zero-hours culture of stress and insecurity that pervades the contemporary labour market under neoliberalism.

And Schrecker and Bambra conclude:

Neoliberalism operates through labour markets to undermine health not only by way of the financial consequences of unemployment, inadequate employment, or low wages, as important as these are, but also through chronic exposure to stress that gets under your skin by way of multiple mechanisms. Quite simply, the effects of chronic insecurity wear people out over the life course in biologically measurable ways .

Barbaric.

Conclusion

So, here I am, collapsed at the end of the tightrope. Once again, I apologize for the scattered nature of this post, which I wrote very fast, but the concept of embodiment hit me like a sledgehammer when I encountered it, and I felt it was vital to get it out there immediately, and to start refining it. And maybe some bright person who actually does politics can take this ball and run with it.

Oh, and beyond class because for social beings embodiment involves social production; social consumption; and social reproduction. In the most reductive definition of class  the one I used in my crude 1% + 10% + 90% formulation  class is determined by wage work (or not), hence is a part of production (of capital), not social consumption (eating, etc.) or social reproduction (children, families, household work). So, even if class in our political economy is the driver, its not everything.

NOTES

[1] Case-Deaton have published additional papers on the same topic since the 2015 original; Noahpinion has a round-up of critiques and responses here.

[2] Oddly, a Google search for Thomas Frank + opioids brings up nothing. Frank should get on this, if the liberals havent managed to gag him and stuff him in a box.
Even as the UK press has gone into triumphalism over Theresa May having gotten the European Commission to recommend to the European Council that the UK be allowed to progress to the next phase of negotiations, bits of reality are already intruding on this phase of Brexit delusion.

Well limit ourselves to three topics: Foreign Minister being quickly forced into a this isnt binding defense when asked too many tough questions on the BBC; some bad news for the UK in the terse draft European Council statement; and a debate over what the joint report really says about Ireland.

David Davis Rapid BBC Backpedal on the Joint Report

As we indicated in our short note when the Brexit breakthrough was announced last Friday, the significance of the agreement on Friday was political. Arlene Foster of the DUP had temporarily withdrawn her coalitions objections to the draft pact, allowing Jean-Claude Juncker and Michel Barnier to give it a seal of approval and tell the European Council that they thought the UK had made sufficient progress so as to be allowed to proceed to Phase 2 of the negotiations. In other words, what mattered was being (presumably) waived past a big procedural hurdle. As we wrote:

This is not a deal. Nothing is final. This is the UK having presented what is at best a letter of intent on the three issues that the EU had deemed necessary for the UK to have demonstrated sufficient progress to be allowed to talk trade.

In fact, even that reading turned out to be generous, since as we will see shortly, the UK and the EU will not discuss a trade pact in the second phase, but merely a transition deal.

The opening section of the so-called Joint Report From the Negotiators of the European Union and the United Kingdom Government on Progress During Phase 1 Negotiations Under Article 50 TEU of the United Kingdoms Orderly Withdrawal From the European Union has lots of phrases that make clear the document is not binding. For instance:

This report.records the progress made agreement in principle nothing is agreed until everything is agreed does not prejudge any adaptations that might be made.. is without prejudice to discussions on the framework of the future relationship..

When you combine that with the elephant-the-room internal contractions on Ireland (no hard border anywhere, yet the UK is supposedly still leaving the Single Market and the Customs Union), its not hard to agree with Richard North when he wrote:

Mrs May has not so much kicked the can down the road as the whole cannery. But it is still there, looming on the horizon, ready to dominate phase two. In so doing, the parties have set themselves up for a fall  apparent commitments that arent actually commitments and which cannot be implemented.

Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis let the this is not really a deal cat out of the bag on the Andrew Marr show on BBC yesterday. From the transcript:

DD: No, it is conditional on an outcome. No, Im afraid that wasnt quite right. I mean it is conditional. Its conditional on getting an implementation period, and conditional on a trade outcome. AM: Let me put this very bluntly  DD: Before I finish that, Ive left something out. I said the trade outcome, but also the other elements of the treaty well strike with them which will be security, foreign affairs, and other things. AM: Okay. So in the unhappy possibility, but its a possibility that we get onto the trade side of the negotiations, phase 2 and the EU really, really take us to pieces on that, they dont give us what we want, theyre not at all helpful when it comes to the City or commerce generally and they really have us over a barrel and we hate it and we say were not having any of that. In those circumstances are we committed to the regulatory convergence? Are you committed to paying the money? DD: Well, no deal is no deal. Now  let me finish, you want the answer, otherwise youll be coming back to me later saying you only said this, didnt say the second half. So number one. No deal means that we wont be paying the money. Some of these areas  AM: Okay, so the Chancellor is wrong about that? DD: Thats  its been made clear by Number 10 already, so thats not actually new. The second element about this is the other areas. Now look, one of the things we have had as a major objective, a major negotiating objective for the British government and we dont normally lay our red lines out in public, thats one of the things Ive always said, is we want to protect the peace process and we also want to protect Ireland from the impact of Brexit for them. So we  you know  this was a statement of intent more than anything else. It was much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing.

The government of the Republic of Ireland was not pleased to hear that. From RTE (hat tip Carolyn F):

A spokesman for Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said both Ireland and the EU will be holding the UK to the Phase 1 agreement reached this week. It comes as Britains Brexit minister David Davis described the UK governments pledge to prevent any return to a hard border with Ireland after Britain leaves the EU as a statement of intent rather than a legally binding move Speaking on RTEs This Week programme, the Government Chief Whip Joe McHugh said while the UK and the EU explored possible trade deals in the next phase of Brexit talks, the Irish position would be protected by Fridays agreement which was binding in principle. Asked how that could be reconciled with Mr Davis remarks, Mr McHugh questioned what was the point of the UK signing up to an agreement if it was not going to uphold it.

I assume the Irish officials are being obtuse out of political necessity. Agreements in principle are typically not legally binding yet parties agree to them all the time. They are a forcing device to make sure both sides are on the same page before they invest the considerable time and energy it takes to try to reach a definitive agreement.

Bad News for the UK in Draft European Council Statement

Ive embedded the draft European Council statement at the end of this post. Unlike the flabby Joint Report, this document has the feel of a well made car, where the doors close with a satisfying clunk.or a steel trap snapping shut.

The document has a remarkable number of statements with major implications in a mere two pages. Starting with Item 1:

The European Councilcalls on the Union negotiator and the United Kingdom to complete the work on the issues pertaining to the first phase, to consolidate the results obtained thus farthe second phase can only progress as long as all commitments undertaken during the first phase are respected in full and translated faithfully in legal terms as quickly as possible.

Translation: Dont think we dont recognize that youve still got a ton to do to complete the first phase.

the European Council notes the proposal put forward by the United Kingdom for a transition period of around two years, and agrees to negotiate a transition period covering the whole of the EU acquis, while the United Kingdom, as a third country, will no longer participate in or nominate or elect members of the EU institutionsAll existing Union regulatory, budgetary, supervisory, judiciary and enforcement instruments and structures will also apply.

Translation: As long as you are in our house, you follow our rules. We shouldnt have to say this but since your ultras like to put their fingers in their ears, this means the ECJ too.

While an agreement on a future relationship can only be finalised and concluded once the United Kingdom has become a third country

Translation: We wont negotiate a trade deal in any meaningful detail until you are out of the EU.

Note that this humble blog had identified this as a big stumbling block as soon as the Brexit vote was in. The EU made its position clear then, but as so often happens, no one in an official position in the UK appeared to be listening. From July 1, 2016 post, Brexit: Huge Spanner in the Works  Negotiation of New UK Trade Deals Verboten Till Exit Complete:

But the BBC interview with the EUs most senior trade official reveals its even worse than that. The negotiations of the UKs departure from the EU and new EU trade arrangements cannot take place in parallel. They must be sequential. No new deal talks with the EU until the exit is completed. And the EU Trade Commissioner, Cecilia Malmstrom, also said the closest analogue was the negotiations with Canada (and recall that Canada is held out as one of the models for a post-Brexit relationship), took seven years to negotiate and will take an additional one or two years to ratify. From the BBC (emphasis ours): The European Unions top trade official says the UK cannot begin negotiating terms for doing business with the bloc until after it has left. First you exit then you negotiate, Cecilia Malmstrom told BBC Newsnight. After Brexit, the UK would become a third country in EU terms, she said  meaning trade would be carried out based on World Trade Organisation rules until a new deal was complete WTO rules restrict the circumstances in which countries discriminate in favour of each other in trade. Otherwise, they must apply to each other the tariffs they apply against the rest of the world. There is concern in the City that having to do business for years under WTO rules could be disastrous for the UKs service industries.

As an aside, there is no default to WTO rules. The WTO Director-General made that point several times prior to the Brexit vote. However, I have yet to see anyone explain what needs to happen. If any reader can fill in the blanks, I would be grateful. For instance, from a May 25, 2016 article in the Financial Times:

Britain would face tortuous negotiations to fix the terms of its membership of the World Trade Organisation if it votes to leave the EU, its director-general has warned Britain joined the WTO under the auspices of the EU and its terms of membership have been shaped by two decades of negotiations led by Brussels. If Britain voted to leave the EU it would not be allowed to simply cut and paste those terms, Mr [Robert] Azevedo said. Britain would have to strike a deal on everything from the thousands of tariff lines covering its entire trade portfolio to quotas on agricultural exports, subsidies to British farmers and the access to other markets that banks and other UK services companies now enjoy. Pretty much all of the UKs trade [with the world] would somehow have to be negotiated, he said.

And from a June 26 2016 post, quoting the Financial Times:

no [World Trade Organisation] member can unilaterally decide what its rights and obligations are, said Robert Azevedo, the WTOs director-general. In other words, unilaterally falling back on WTO rules is not as quick and simple as some have suggested and would still require agreement from the other 161 member countries.

From the comment section of Richard Norths blog:
Yves here. this interview makes a point in passing that has been a pet issue of mine. Central planning has gotten a worse rap than it deserves. It apparently worked well when first implemented in the USSR. In fact, its rapid industrialization was a shock to the West and got thinkers worried that a command and control economy could mobilize resources better than a free enterprise one. But recent studies contend that the reason central planning went off the rail was that lower-level bureaucrats were feeding inaccurate information to the central planners for their own selfish reasons (to get more resources, to be assigned less demanding production targets). Yet the mini-planned economies of companies face precisely the same problem.

Im also disappointed that this article takes up the idea of market prices containing valuable information which is true only up to a point. Monopolies and oligopolies distort prices. Information asymmetries also make prices a less reliable signal.

By Samuel Bowles, at the Santa Fe Institute, who recently published The Moral Economy: Why good incentives are no substitute for good citizens and is one of the authors of The Economy, a free online introduction to economics by the CORE Project and David S. Wilson is SUNY Distinguished Professor of Biology and Anthropology at Binghamton University and Arne Nss Chair in Global Justice and the Environment at the University of Oslo. Twitter: @David_S_Wilson. Originally published at Evonomics

By David Sloan Wilson, interviewing Sam Bowles

As an evolutionist critiquing the field of economics, I felt like a disciplinary outsider until I encountered the work of Friedrich Hayek. The Austrian economist was himself critical of Walrasian general equilibrium theory and proposed a radical alternative: Economic systems are a form of distributed intelligence that evolved by cultural group selection. They work without having been designed by anyone.

That was my area of expertise. I had to admire Hayek as a pioneer, especially since group selection was a heresy and the study of human cultural evolution was in its infancy when he wrote. Nevertheless, both topics have advanced by leaps and bounds since then and do not support his view that economic systems work best in the absence of regulations. Instead, cultural group selection theory points to a middle road between laissez faire and centralized planning that is rich with possibilities.

More recently, three distinguished economistsSamuel Bowles, Alan Kirman, and Rajiv Sethihave made their own assessment in a retrospective titled Friedrich Hayek and the Market Algorithm published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives. (And their Vox post The Market Algorithm and the Scope of Government: Reflections on Hayek) All three are well read in my discipline of evolutionary science in addition to their economic credentials. Sam recently published The Moral Economy: Why good incentives are no substitute for good citizens, and wrote a piece based on, it for Evonomics. As part of the CORE (Curriculum Open-Access Resources for Economics) he is also co-author of a new free online introduction to economics at www.core-econ.org.

I count Sam as one of my mentors and was proud to work with Alan to edit a MIT Press volume titled Complexity and Evolution: Toward a New Synthesis for Economics, based on a conference that we helped to organize under the auspices of Germanys Ernst Strungmann Forum, which included Rajiv as a participant. I interviewed Alan on the concept of laissez-faire in 2014, which included a discussion of Hayek. Their jointly authored work, along with a recent op ed by Sam provided a golden opportunity to have a conversation with him.

DSW: Welcome, Sam! I look forward to this conversation. What would you say are the most positive contributions that Hayek made to the field of economics?

SB: Wait! David, before we even start: how can I be your mentor? I learned from you that group selection should be liberated from the dog house, when you were a lone voice against biological orthodoxy at the time.

But to get to your question, I would single out Hayeks representation of the market as an information processing mechanism that plays an essential role in any economy because information is scarce and local, his critique of perfectly competitive equilibrium thinking in economics, and his dynamic view of the economy.

DSW: Why was his focus on information important for economics?

SB: His 1945 paper  The use of knowledge in society  is in my top ten all time contributions to economics. It came in the late innings of the planning versus the market debate instigated by Great Depression and the apparent success of the Soviet Unions first five-year plans. By the end of the thirties the anti-planning side was down by 5 runs at least; even the arch opponent of socialism Joseph Schumpeter had conceded: Can socialism work? Of course it can. Theres nothing wrong with the pure theory of socialism. Just in the nick of time: Hayek saved the day, coming up with a clinching argument: central planners could not possibly know enough to plan an economy well.

DSW: But the problem of inadequate information facing the central planner must have been commonplace at the time.

SB: Curiously it was not. The advocates and (still more curiously) the critics of central planning alike had chosen as their terrain the conventional neoclassical (or Walrasian) model  with its assumption of complete information. Not surprisingly, things had not gone well for the anti-planning side. Some a little closer to the real economics of central planning, however, had seen things differently. Here is an example:

If a universal mind existed, such a mind, of course, could a priori draw up a faultless and exhaustive economic plan, beginning with the number of acres of wheat down to the last button for a vest. The bureaucracy often imagines that just such a mind is at its disposal; that is why it so easily frees itself from the control of the market 

This is straight Hayek  it could easily have been lifted from his 1945 paper but the author is the Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky writing in 1932 in light of what had been learned from the First Five Year Plan.

DSW: How did Hayek connect his theory to economic policy, which you call The Road to Laissez Faire in your article?

SB: Well thats just it, David, he did not. Despite his insistence that the two were part of an organic whole, he didnt connect his economics to his political position. In fact Hayeks economics gives you good reason to doubt his politics. I hope we can come back to that.

DSW: Definitely. But first, was his argument against central planning, then, his main contribution to economics?

SB: Not at all. The planning versus the market debate was the instigation, but his work both before and after the 1945 paper inaugurated a new way of seeing market economies and has made information economics a major theme in contemporary economic research.

DSW: What was Hayeks main idea about markets and information?

SB: It was simple and profound at the same time. Prices are messages. The devil is in the details of course, but ideally they tell you how much it cost to produce a good, and how valuable that good is to others. These are the facts that the planner could not readily know. So, if there is a drought in the mid-west, and the price of wheat soars, the message is: think of putting potatoes or pasta on the table this evening. And as the example shows, prices are more than messages, they are motivation too. The higher price of wheat not only suggests a different menu, it makes the alternative a lower cost option.

DSW: And Hayek used this reasoning to demonstrate that markets should not be regulated by the government because they can on their own produce optimal results?

SB: Not exactly. Hayek advocated the market not on grounds of optimality, but by default. The alternative, central planning, could not work, and moreover any substantial degree of government intervention in the economy, he feared, was bound to be a threat to liberal values. Remember, when he wrote Road to Serfdom, he was not thinking about Nordic social democracy, he was writing under the shadow of Hitler and Stalin.

DSW: It always struck me as curious that Hayek developed a radical alternative to general equilibrium theory, but both were used to justify the same laissez faire economic policies and that Hayek and Friedman were both central figures in the Mont Pelerin Society. This makes me think that the impulse to justify laissez faire policies came first and steered the theorizing in both cases. Is that an unfair thing to say?

SB: Yes, that would be unfair, both to Hayek and to the pioneers of general equilibrium theory. Kenneth Arrow  among those who first proved what is sometimes called the invisible hand theorem of general equilibrium theory  was quick to point out its limitations in describing any real economy, and 30 years later advanced what he termed a cautious case for socialism.

Hayeks opposition to most forms of government regulation was not based, as I just said, on claims that the market was in any sense optimal He was a severe critic of the concept of perfectly competitive equilibrium on which the invisible hand theorem is based. His central economic ideas  the importance of scarce and local information, his alternative notion of equilibrium, his insistence that economics had to be about change, not stasis  these all long predated his use of some of this apparatus to attack central planning.

DSW: But his ideas, nonetheless, became central to the cause of laissez faire?

SB: They did, David, though he didnt much like the term, but only by a highly selective reading of his work. In the paper you mentioned Alan, Rajiv and I advance the view that Hayeks economics per se provides good reasons to doubt the superiority of the unregulated market.

DSW: Well, in the volumes written on Hayek pro and con, thats a new one. How does it go?

SB: Ill give you two examples. First, prices are indeed messages, and precisely because of that we may have house price bubbles when people correctly infer that when house prices go up they may continue to do so, and hence this may be a good time to buy a house. This is the opposite of the lets put potatoes rather than bread on the table reaction to the price of wheat rising.

Second, the market, as Hayek says, processes information and on that basis, determines, for example, the best way to organize production. But applying this logic shows that hierarchical economic planning may not be such a bad thing at least when combined with markets. The boundary of the firm  how big it will be  is determined by the answer to the question, should this component be produced inhouse or purchased? But this is also the boundary between organizing things according to the market or according to the hierarchical structure of command that has led capitalist firms to be termed (ironically) as mini-planned economies. The verdict of the market in this case is that both markets and hierarchies have a place in the economy!

DSW: Thats a great point, but it can be elaborated along very interesting lines! Ive been delving into the business literature a lot lately, and command and control often doesnt work at the firm level either. A single firm requires the same protections against disruptive self-serving behaviors that Ostrom demonstrated for common-pool resource groups with her core design principles. Also, for a single firm to adapt to change, it needs carefully orchestrated variation-and-selection processes rather than a centralized plan. However, your larger point is well taken: a firm remains a mini-planned economy even if not organized as command and control.

Moving on, these examples of Hayek versus Hayek are not what most economists understand as his take home messages about their discipline, right?

SB: I guess, your economist in the street would draw a blank if asked what Hayeks contributions to economic theory were. But I think you can draw a line from Hayek to contemporary economists concern about information problems in labor and credit markets and other exchanges where there is some important pieces of information not known to one of both of the parties.

DSW: Lets turn to Hayek the evolutionary thinker who saw economic systems as products of cultural group selection. How new was this against the background of the economic profession at the time?

SB: The language was new, but the fundamental concept really were not. The idea of spontaneous order is at least as old as Adam Smiths invisible hand. Economists routinely model selection processes by which some firms succeed and others fail with the practices of the winners becoming the norm. What distinguished Hayek was his claim that evolutionary reasoning demonstrated the superiority of substantially unregulated markets.

But this exercise in social Darwinism at the system level need not run along the lines that Hayek chose. Another great conservative thinker, Talcott Parsons, in 1964, had advanced the idea that among ways of organizing society there are evolutionary universals, that is, systems that emerge frequently in a variety of environments and persist over long periods once hit upon by a population. These are societal analogues to complex biological characteristics such as vision, which are such good ideas that they evolve independently in many species, and are in is seldom abandoned as a result of evolutionary processes.

Parsons list of the evolutionary universals includes markets and money but it also includes authority of officebacked by coercive force as the most effective large scale administrative organization that man has invented, and there is no direct substitute for it. For Parsons, states as well as markets, pass the test of evolutionary success.

DSW: Can you sum up your critique of Hayek, which I am interested to compare with my own.

SB: I imagine you would focus on shortcomings of his conception of cultural evolution. But to me, he was a great economist whose political agenda did not follow from  even is contradicted by  his contributions to economics. Even more. I think that the liberal values that Hayek espoused would be safer in the world today had he stuck to economics.

DSW: Another remarkable claim, Hayek as a danger to liberal values! How is that?

SB: The union of political liberalism with Hayeks economic liberalism  laissez faire has proven to be an unhappy marriage. It is no surprise that some of those who have fared worse during the last quarter century of right wing resurgence are attracted to xenophobic nationalism and intolerance. In the early 21st century it is not big government that is the threat to liberal values. Ask yourself: where are they key liberal ideas of tolerance, the rule of law, and defense of the weak against the strong more secure today: the Nordic countries (where governments comprise half of the economy) or the U.S, where Hayeks political vision has been widely embraced?

Hayek rightly insisted that the question of how best to organize society could not be answered in abstract terms but required instead historical and empirical comparison. I wonder if he might today  on empirical grounds  reconsider his view that a larger government role in the economy is a threat to liberal values?

DSW: As you know, Im a big fan of Elinor Ostrom and was privileged to work with her to generalize her core design principle approach and polycentric governance from an evolutionary perspective. I think that she points the way toward a middle road between laissez faire and centralized planning more than Hayek. What is your opinion and how do the ideas of Hayek and Ostrom relate to each other?

SB: In opposition to social engineering, Ostrom, like Hayek stressed our human capacity for what might be called bottom up problem solving. She demonstrated that small communities often address problems of environmental degradation such as the tragedy of the commons through a combination of social norms and local rule making. I would place the work of Ronald Coase in the same bottom up tradition: he showed how bargaining can often take account of environmental or other external effects even where markets fail and governments are either insufficiently informed or motivated to do the job. But Ostrom and Coase differ from Hayek, too. Both gave careful attention to empirical cases  in Ostroms case, the result of painstaking fieldwork  and for them the key to solving social problems  communities for Ostrom and bargaining for Coase  was not an unregulated market.

DSW: When we retain Hayeks positive contribution and add the advances in economics and evolutionary science, what road does it take us on, if not the road to laissez-faire?

SB: The key to my reply is a fact that Hayek stressed: information is scarce, and what one person knows another does not. A result of this situation  called asymmetric information  is that it is impossible to write an enforceable contract to cover all of the aspects of the exchange that matter to someone affected. Perhaps surprisingly, what seems a detail  the contract is incomplete  turns the standard economic model on its head. Developments in microeconomic theory over the past 3 decades  I wont do the heavy lifting here (it is in my Microeconomics: Behavior, Institutions and Evolution)  have shown three paradigm shattering results. First, even competitive markets need not clear in equilibrium; so, for example unemployment, and people without wealth excluded from the credit market are predictions, not anomalies to be explained by ad hoc frictions or other deviations from the standard model. Second, market failures are ubiquitous  they occur in credit and labor markets, for example, not just environmental spillovers  not exceptional. And third, employers, lenders and other principals in principal-agent relationships wield power over employees and borrowers.

The irony is, David, that the information revolution in economics that Hayek kicked off well over a half century ago, ended up pointing to a larger public role both in rectifying market failures and in addressing the problem of unaccountable power exercised by employers over employees.

But a new paradigm along these lines is not simply a refurbished Nordic social democracy, or even less centralized planning. It points to an active role for a democratic civil society, and not simply government regulation.

DSW: There are a number of scholars who share your high opinion of Hayek-the-economist, at GMUs Mercatus center, for example, and around the world. But it is probably fair to say that Hayek is not part of the canon that economists consider essential to their field. Why is this?

SB: True, and economics has been impoverished as a result. Two reasons come to mind. First, Hayeks vision of the economy as a complex evolving system was less readily rendered in mathematical form than the Walrasian paradigm that dominated economics in the late 20th century. This limited its take-up among economists because we  rightly in my opinion  place a high value on the precise formulation of models using mathematics where this is possible. Second, in the aftermath of the Great Depression, Hayeks bitter opposition to Keynesian stabilization policies and other forms of highly beneficial government regulation of the economy led many economists  few of whom bothered to read Hayek  to reject his other, more fundamental insights. His reputation has also been tarnished by extreme claims on behalf of laissez faire made by those claiming his mantle. In this he has suffered a fate similar to Marx: his economic insights have been overlooked in part because those who most famously took up his name advocated systems that were rightly opposed by most scholars.
NATO continues to build Iraqi security forces capabilities. NATO partners are joining this important endeavour.

A three-week training course of medical experts from Iraqs security forces started in early December in the Serbian Military Logistics Training Centre in Nis, Serbia. This effort is a follow-on to a previous initiative conducted in Germany in November. The course has been developed within the framework of the NATO Defence Capacity Building Initiative for Iraq. It is focused on developing a skills-set on trauma stabilization and ground-based casualty evacuation for a group of specialists from the Iraqi Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, and the Counter-Terrorism Service. Serbian military medical officers are providing this training.

In addition to the military medical training, NATO is training instructors from Iraqs security forces in the maintenance of Soviet-era armoured vehicles and in countering improvised explosive devices and the disposal of explosive ordnance. It is also providing support and advice in other areas, including civil-military cooperation, development of national security institutions, and civil emergency planning to deal with natural emergencies.
(Natural News) In a recent podcast, Natural News founder/editor Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, sat down to explain why it will be inherently dangerous to be living in a large city should there be a stuff hits the fan scenario, mostly because getting out of those cities will become an impossibility.

And yet, we are falsely told by the government and state-run media that FEMA will come to the rescue of anyone in need. In reality, YOU are expendable and there is no real plan in place to save you if things go wrong, Adams says in his podcast.

As noted in the recently published book Raven Rock, which describes how the U.S. government at the dawn of the nuclear age initially planned to save as many Americans as possible but over the years began to realize it was more important to preserve the national government, Adams says Washingtons first and only priority in an emergency is to save itself, not save the people.

As such, Maybe its time to rethink the wisdom of living in a high population density DEATH TRAP known as a city, he said.

Raven Rock author Garrett Graff noted that when he began researching his book, one of the most interesting  and shocking  things he learned early on is how President Eisenhower plainly understood that there was no winning a nuclear war and that making plans to save the bulk of the American people was a fools errand  something that just was not logistically possible.

Part of what makes these plans so interesting is thinking throughthis idea of what youre going to save for America, Graff told NPR after his book was published in June. If youre trying to preserve and restart the government after an attack, [it] becomes this very existential question about what is America? Are you trying to preserve the presidency? Are you preserving the three branches of government? Or are you preserving even the historical totems that have bound us together across generations as Americans?

Adams notes that question has long been answered. The plans just dont exist for anyone to escape a large city, he said, so thats why the government has no plans to even warn the public of impending catastrophes.

The Health Ranger went on to reference a book he recently completed by former mainstream media journalist Ted Koppel called Lights Out, which talks about the risks to U.S. power infrastructure from cyber warfare. He noted that Koppel did not fill his book with interesting theories or his own thoughts on the situation, but rather he actually interviewed a number of current and former government officials.

The one thing that emerged from the book, Adams said, is that the government really has no plans to evacuate the cities.

Later in his podcast, Adams said that during his interviewing process, Koppel also found out from local officials in New York City, which he chose for its sheer size, that there was only enough food for a few hundred thousand people following a major grid-down scenario (there are currently about 8.5 million people living in New York City proper).

So clearly, there isnt enough food to feed everyone. And whats more, trying to get out of the city via traditional highway routes will also be impossible, Adams noted, because they will become clogged almost immediately.

There also wont be enough fresh water, and with no electricity, the water treatment plants wont be functioning either, having run out of diesel fuel within a few days powering emergency generators.

The fact is, as Adams notes, the cities are simply going to be death traps  nothing will get in and few will be able to get out. And whats more, the Health Ranger concludes, the government isnt even planning on the worst of the worst nightmares because they dont think in those terms.

Its an interesting and well-reasoned podcast, which you can listen to in its entirety by clicking here or clicking below. Find more news on bugging out from urban areas at Bugout.news.
(Natural News) If a fleet of alien spaceships were to visit earth and start destroying our entire planet, the liberals would no doubt blame Donald Trump. Why? Because the President gets blamed for everything and anything, even when the things that he gets blamed for have absolutely nothing to do with his policies or his agenda.

Earlier this week, political commentator and left-wing zealot Chelsea Handler took to Twitter to blame President Trump for the wildfires that are currently sweeping through Los Angeles. Just evacuated my house, she wrote. Its like Donald Trump is setting the world on fire. Literally and figuratively. Stay safe everyone. Dark times. (Related: Experts say that the California wildfires were caused by irresponsible development more than weather.)

Lets address this on multiple levels. First and foremost, Donald Trump is not literally setting the world on fire. Its not as if Trump grabbed a match and a gallon of gasoline, traveled to Los Angeles and then set the blaze himself  thats ridiculous, and the fact that Chelsea Handler would even make such a stupid comment in the first place is a testament to her lack of intelligence. Second, President Trump isnt setting the world on fire figuratively either. The economy is growing with each passing week, investor confidence is on the rise, and on top of all that, we are finally demonstrating to the rest of the world that Americas military is a force to be reckoned with.

Perhaps Chelsea Handler was confusing President Trump with Barack Obama, who really did set the world on fire with his weak foreign policy and his inability to understand even the most basic of economic principles.

But Donald Trump is the enemy of the left, not Barack Obama, and that means that the liberals have to use every single argument and talking point at their disposal to take him down, even if it means breaking away from reality.

When Hurricane Harvey hit the gulf coast, for example, some leftists didnt hesitate to blame the natural disaster on Donald Trump, apparently forgetting or ignoring the fact that human beings cant possibly have that much control over the weather. One of these leftists was Times reporter Yamiche Alcindor, who wrote back in August that the unleashing of the fossil energy sector that Mr. Trump has championed could have repercussions more immediate than the global climate. In Houston, predominantly African-American neighborhoods like Sunnyside and Pleasantville have been dealing with pollution from the energy sector for years. (Related: The liberals have absolutely lost their minds over Trumps decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord.)

So in other words, not only did Donald Trump contribute to Hurricane Harvey because of his environmental policies, but hes also a racist. Got it.

Sadly, Alcindor wasnt finished. In an appearance on MSNBC, she went on to elaborate on the piece that she wrote for the Times, arguing that middle class and poor people would be some of the first people hurt by climate change and that scientists say that these hurricanes are getting worse and worse. Then she said something about poor people voting for Donald Trump, and how these are the same people who are not equipped to handle the natural disasters caused by climate change. It really was a poor and nonsensical argument, to be honest, but it goes to show that once again, the liberals are prepared to point the finger at Trump every chance they get.

The fact of the matter is that President Trump is a significant threat to the lefts agenda, and so they have no problem with linking him to everything bad and negative in nature, even if the argument as a whole doesnt make any sense whatsoever. It really is pathetic when you think about it, but liberals will be liberals. Find more examples of utter stupidity on parade at STUPID.news.

Sources include:

TheGatewayPundit.com

WashingtonExaminer.com
(Natural News) Global warming has been a subject of intense debate for years; theres no doubt about that. But, it seems that much for the fanfare surrounding climate change may be nothing more than simple fear-mongering. Recent research from the University of California at Riverside has pointed to a substantial global warming event  one that occurred some 56 million years ago.

Combined with the cohort of climate scientists who say that the fear of global warming has been greatly exaggerated, it seems that many of the concerns about climate change spread by the mainstream media and other alarmists are more myth than they are fact. Who would have thought?

Scientists at the University of California at Riverside (UCR) say that a string of volcanic eruptions occurred when Greenland separated from Europe during the development of the Atlantic Ocean. The team says that these eruptions were the catalyst for a rapid global warming event, which took place 56 million years ago  long before humans came along, and certainly before modern innovations like the combustion engine. Known as the Palaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, or PETM, the cause of this rapid warming event has been hotly debated. But the UCR team has shown that volcanic activity was the driving force behind the global rise in temperatures nearly 60 million years ago.

Andy Ridgewell, a professor of earth sciences at UCR, explains, The amount of carbon released during this time was vast  more than 30 times larger than all the fossil fuels burned to date and equivalent to all the current conventional and unconventional fossil fuel reserves we could feasibly ever extract.

In other words, the amount of carbon released by the massive volcanic events exceeds any and all emissions caused by the human race by many, many times. While the rising temperatures may have taken place over a longer period of time, the fact remains that human pollution equals just a fraction of what was released by the massive volcanic eruptions that took place millions of years ago.

Further, while there was a disruption in the environment, scientists say most species survived the event either by migrating or adapting to the new climate.

Scientists have been trying their best to push their inane theories about global warming, but research continues to point to climate change as a natural event that has little to do with human activity.

Back in August, Australian scientist Jennifer Marohasy contended that global temperatures would have risen even without the industrial revolution. As Marohasy explained, current global warming models as based on a theory put together by Swedish scientists over 100 years ago. Dr. Marohasy and her cohorts used neural network technology to predict what the last 2,000 years of temperatures would have been like, were there no carbon emissions. Much to the dismay of climate alarmists, her research showed that the Earths temperature patterns would be nearly identical to what they are today, even without carbon.

Dr. Marohasy commented, To be clear, while mainstream climate science is replete with published proxy temperature studies showing that temperatures have cycled up and down over the last 2,000 years  spiking during the Medieval Warm Period and then again recently to about 1980  the official IPCC reconstructions (which underpin the Paris Accord) deny such cycles.

Through this denial, leaders from within this much-revered community can claim that there is something unusual about current temperatures: that we have catastrophic global warming from industrialisation, she continued.

Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, has also pointed out the many flaws within the commonly reported myth that carbon dioxide is inherently toxic to our environment. As Adams notes, carbon dioxide is essential for plant life to flourish and keeping our planet green  rendering the argument against carbon dioxide totally invalid. [Related: Learn more at ClimateScience.com.]

Sources for this article include:

ScienceDaily.com

DailyMail.co.uk

Express.co.uk
What to Know The fire has scorched 422 acres.

Containment lines improved to 75 percent on Saturday,

All LAUSD schools in the San Fernando Valley and some on the west side of LA are expected to be open Monday.

This article is no longer being updated. For the latest information on the Skirball Fire, click here.

The five-day-old Skirball Fire in the Sepulveda Pass is now 85 percent contained and all evacuation orders have been lifted, fire officials said Sunday.

Containment lines around the 422-acre blaze had improved to 75 percent on Saturday, according to Margaret Stewart, spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Containment grew by 10 percent as of 4:30 p.m., Stewart said.

The fire started at 4:50 a.m. Wednesday on the east side of the San Diego (405) Freeway near Mulholland Drive.

It destroyed six homes and damaged 12 others, and at one time prompted the evacuation of about 700 homes and an apartment building. One firefighter suffered neck burns and was treated at a hospital, authorities said. Another firefighter suffered minor injuries.

The amount of acreage was adjusted downward from 475 acres due to more accurate mapping, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. The fire has been kept on the east side of the 405 Freeway.

Some evacuees were allowed to return home Friday. Mandatory evacuation orders were lifted Sunday afternoon for all areas affected by the Skirball fire, according to Stewart.

A stretch of Moraga Drive north of the security gate entrance is only open to residents. Stretches of Bellagio and Casino roads from Moraga Drive were also opened Friday.

Evacuation orders covered a 3.2-square-mile area bounded by Mulholland Drive to the north, Sunset Boulevard to the south, the San Diego Freeway to the west and Roscomare Road on the east.

The exception to the evacuation order was the Bel-Air Crest housing development, which was not threatened, according to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

The Getty Center and the nearby Skirball Center, both on the west side of the freeway, reopened Friday.

Classes at UCLA, Cal State Northridge, Los Angeles Valley College and Santa Monica College resumed Friday after being canceled Thursday.

All Los Angeles Unified School District schools in the San Fernando Valley and some on the west side of Los Angeles -- a total of 265 district schools and charter schools -- were closed Thursday and Friday. They are expected to be open Monday.

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District closed all of its schools Wednesday and Thursday. Schools in Santa Monica reopened Friday, but Malibu schools remained closed.

Malibu schools will be back in session Monday.

What sparked the Skirball Fire has not been determined.

The fire burned in the same general area as the devastating Bel-Air Fire of 1961. That blaze destroyed about 500 homes and led to various policy changes, including a prohibition on wood-shingle roofs and the strict requirement to clear brush around properties.
A Spare the Air alert is in effect for Monday, the fourth day in a row when wood-burning activities are banned, Bay Area Air Quality Management District officials said.

Air quality is expected to be unhealthy in the Bay Area Monday because of a high-pressure ridge clamping down on the area, trapping wood smoke pollution close to the ground, air district officials said.

"One burning fireplace can impact an entire neighborhood as well as pollute air inside the home," said Jack Broadbent, executive officer of the air district, in a statement.

Broadbent added, "During the recent Northern California wildfires, Bay Area residents experienced firsthand how quickly smoke can saturate the region."

However, air quality officials said in a news release that smoke from the wildfires raging in Southern California will remain aloft and will not impact air quality in the region Monday.

The Winter Spare the Air season's first three alerts were announced on Thursday. At that time, the air district issued alerts for Friday through Sunday.

During Spare the Air alerts, it is illegal for residents to use their fireplaces, wood stoves, outdoor fire pits or other wood-burning devices.
A member of the jury in the Kate Steinle murder trial said the prosecution failed to prove that Jose Ines Garcia Zarate intentionally killed the 32-year-old woman and believes the evidence showed that shooting was a "freak accident."

In an exclusive interview with NBC Bay Area, the juror, who did not wish to be identified, talked about the panel's decision to acquit the undocumented Mexican national.

He said the backlash from critics  including President Donald Trump  who have pointed to the case as evidence of the need for tougher immigration policies, propelled him to speak out.

"If I was not a juror on this trial, I would probably think the same way: 'Why did you let him go free?'" said the juror. "But again, the reason is, they could not prove to us that he intentionally killed her. And through all the evidence, I really think that it was a freak accident."

San Francisco Deputy District Attorney Diana Garcia argued the July 2015 shooting on Pier 14 was murder. The jury sided with the defense, which argued that the shooting was an accident, and found him guilty only of being a felon in possession of a firearm.



When the jury went into deliberations, the juror recalled early on deciding against a first degree or second degree murder conviction.

He said his biggest concern with the manslaughter charge was regarding the word "brandishing," and whether Garcia Zarate was waving the gun in a threatening manner or in anger. He said the prosecution did not present any proof that Garcia Zarate was threatening anyone with the gun.

During the trial they could not prove that," he said. "All the videos we saw never, not even one video showed that he was pointing the gun at her. So I think it was very weak."



Hadar Aviram, a professor at UC Hastings College of the Law, said brandishing a weapon, or taking it out in a menacing manner, would help the prosecution fit its script.

"I think you would have to prove that there had been some form of carelessness with the weapon, that the defendant had to have done something with the weapon that was more careless than what a reasonable person would do," Aviram said. "And apparently the jury did not find that that was the case."

The juror said the panel simply made a decision based on the evidence they saw.

"I am comfortable with my decision," the juror said. "I can put my head on a pillow and sleep well thinking that I made the right decision."

During his weekly address Sunday, Trump spoke about the trial and Garcia Zarate.

"He was free to harm an innocent American because our leaders refuse to protect our border and because San Francisco is a sanctuary city," the president said.

The juror said they were not allowed to consider the defendants prior record or politics, including sanctuary cities.

Garcia Zarate, who had been deported five times and was awaiting deportation for a sixth time, was released by the San Francisco Sheriffs Department weeks before Steinle was shot and killed, despite a request from federal authorities to detain him. At the time, the sheriff cited the citys "sanctuary" policy as a reason for his discharge.

The juror said he has no regrets but also didnt realize the toll the trial took on him until it was over.

"It was very hard on me," he said. "When we finished the trial, I left the court, walking to my car, I was in tears. Because I felt the pressure coming off my back. Because I could talk to people then, I was in tears."
A San Francisco Superior Court jury Monday found Binh Thai Luc guilty of murder for the grisly slayings of five people in a home in the city's Ingleside neighborhood in 2012.

The six-woman, six-man jury announced its verdict late Monday morning after seven days of deliberation. Luc was convicted of five counts each of first-degree murder and attempted robbery, and two counts of burglary. He was acquitted of robbery charges.

Prosecutors accused Luc, 41, of fatally beating, stabbing and choking three women and two men, all family members, at a home at 16 Howth St. near City College of San Francisco on March 12, 2012.[[144130135, C]]



Those killed were identified as Vincent Lei, 32, Lei's father and mother, Hua Shun Lei, 65 and Wan Yi Xu, 62, his wife, Chia Huei Chu, 30, and his sister, Ying Xue Lei, 37.

The victims' bodies were discovered at about 7:45 a.m. on March 13, when Nicole Lei, another sister of Vincent Lei, stopped by the house to enable her 12-year-old daughter to pick up an item she needed for school.

Prosecutor Eric Fleming said Luc's DNA, blood and fingerprints were found in the house, and Vincent Lei's blood was found on his blue jeans and on the driver's seatbelt in Luc's car.

Luc, a Vietnamese citizen who works as a plumber and went by the nickname "Ping," was a longtime friend of Vincent Lei. He was identified as a suspect by friends of Lei's, who told police Lei had received a phone call the night of the murders from his wife telling him "Ping" wanted to talk to him.

District Attorney George Gascon today said he was pleased with the verdict, which came after an intense seven-week trial that required jurors to review a large amount of forensic evidence.

"This was a very gruesome, brutal murder and we're pleased that we're getting some accountability for the family and the community," Gascon said.

Defense attorney Mark Goldrosen said Luc was disappointed by the verdict but understood that there would be further appeals and efforts to seek a new trial.

In the trial, he argued that the DNA and blood evidence showed Luc was present in the house and may have helped clean up, but that prosecutors had not proven that he did anything else.[[144002916, C]]



He argued that police had failed to follow up on possible leads pointing to other suspects, including possible Chinatown gang members, and had not properly tested all the evidence.

Goldrosen maintained today that there were likely to be other guilty parties still at large in the case.

"There were four fingerprints that were found in the house that were found to not match Mr. Luc or any of the decedents," Goldrosen said.

He said the jurors' decision not to convict on the robbery charges appeared to be due to the fact that the approximately $6,500 in cash found on

Luc when he was arrested at a San Mateo hotel two days after the murders could not be clearly traced to a household member.

However, there was evidence the house had been ransacked, which supported the attempted robbery charge.

Goldrosen presented evidence during the case demonstrating that Luc could have obtained the money by other means, including the return of an expensive women's handbag.

Fleming, on the other hand, showed Luc's bank balance was $1.01 the day of the murders and he had recently lost money gambling at Artichoke

Joe's casino in San Bruno. Luc and his mother received a 14-day eviction notice for nonpayment of rent one week before the murders, and on the night theyoccurred, Luc was able to give his mother $1,000 in rent, Fleming said.

Luc's arrest led to some controversy after it was learned that he had been set to be deported in 2006 but stayed in the country because Vietnamese officials failed to provide travel documents for him.

He had previously been sentenced in 1998 to more than 11 years in state prison after pleading no contest to assault, firearm and robbery charges in Santa Clara County, according to court records.

Immigration officials took him into custody and a judge ordered his removal in 2006, but Vietnamese authorities declined to provide the necessary documents.

He was ultimately released after 180 days because of a 2001 U.S. Supreme Court ruling preventing extended detention.

Immigration officials at the time said he had continued to report to them as required after his release and was not arrested again between 2006 and 2012.

Luc will return to court Tuesday morning to set a sentencing date.
A 61-year-old Felton resident on Friday was booked into jail on multiple charges after Santa Cruz police found him to be in possession of methamphetamine, about $1,000 in cash, two replica guns and other items, according to police.

Leo Beus was booked into the county jail for possession of methamphetamine for fales, a probation violation and other misdemeanor charges, according to Santa Cruz police.

Before the arrest, citizens had reported drug activity occurring in the eastern portion of Santa Cruz, according to police.

Dispatched officers eventually found a suspicious vehicle stationed along the 800 block of Water Street, and Beus was found inside, police said.

Police realized that Beus was on probation from another case tied to Santa Cruz County before searching his vehicle. They found more than one ounce of methamphetamine, a police scanner, cash, digital scales and the two replica firearms.

Santa Cruz police took to Facebook to thank the public for reporting the suspicious activity.
Police in Oakland were investigating a fatal shooting that occurred Sunday afternoon near the Foothill Square Shopping Center, a police lieutenant said.

The Alameda County Coroner identified the victim as 41-year-old George Vargas of Oakland. No arrests were made, and no suspects were identified.

The shooting was reported to police at 2:44 p.m. at 107th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard, Lt. Alan Yu said.

Officers were still investigating the shooting late Sunday.

No further details were available.

Bay City News contributed to this report.
Republican Gov. Charlie Baker is pushing back against an audit that claimed the state's child welfare agency failed to detect or report hundreds of injuries to children in its care.

In a letter Monday to employees of the Department of Children and Families, Baker says it was "irresponsible" for Democratic Auditor Suzanne Bump to rely on data that was 2 to 3 years old and discuss the findings as if they reflected current circumstances.

Baker says the report ignored great strides made by the agency in recent years, including the hiring of 350 new social workers.

The governor was also skeptical of the auditor's recommendation that DCF monitor Medicaid claims data to identify potential abuse of children, though he said the administration would look into using it as a "secondary information tool."

Bump responded to Baker's comments Monday, calling his statement "political." She said the public should not consider Baker's statement, but DCF's own acknowledgement that the circumstances that gave rise to the audit's findings have not changed.

"The Governor is denying a reality that DCF itself does not dispute," she added.

The report released by Bump last week focused on 19 serious incidents that were not reported where children in foster care and other state-supervised settings were harmed.

The audit said from 2014 to 2015, DCF was unaware of 260 incidents of what appeared to be serious bodily injury to children in its care.

The incidents included a 15-year-old with brain damage from a firearm injury, a 1-year-old with first-and second-degree burns, and a 12-year-old with multiple head contusions that a doctor determined were the result of an assault.

The audit also found that the DCF was not categorizing incidents involving sexual abuse as critical incidents. Therefore, these incidents were not reported to the Office of the Child Advocate, which is charged with ensuring that children in state care receive safe and effective services.

Bump's office found 118 incidents of sexual abuse of a child in DCF care that were not reported.

These incidents included two male employees at different DCF-contracted residential facilities who sexually abused three girls each; a 10-year-old who was raped by his father; a 4-year-old who was sexually abused by her mother; and a 17-year-old who was gang-raped by five assailants.

In one case, a male who had sexually abused one child abused the childs sibling less than one year later.


A Minnesota couple facing felony charges for making up a story about being robbed at knifepoint in the Loop was ordered released from jail Sunday by a Cook County judge.

Katie Mager and Ryan Reiersgaard, both 27 and charged with a felony count of disorderly conduct for making the false report, apologized for their actions but diverged in how much they shared with police about their misdeed, prosecutors said.

Reiersgaard told detectives the whole thing was Magers idea and he didnt know what her motives were, Cook County Assistant States Attorney Joseph Carlson said in court Sunday.

Mager didnt speak to detectives, other than to say she was sorry for her actions, Carlson said.

Mager lives in Apple Valley, Minnesota, while Reiersgaard lives in Burnsville, Minnesota, both suburbs of Minneapolis.

Judge Sophia Atcherson released the duo on $10,000 personal recognizance bonds, meaning each promised to appear at their next court date or be on the hook for the money.

They were charged after they voluntarily admitted to fabricating a robbery and falsifying a police report, police said.

The couple initially told investigators that they were using their GPS about 1:50 a.m. Thursday in the 300 block of North Columbus when it routed them to Lower Wacker Drive, where three people approached and robbed them, police said. Police later determined that the incident never occurred, and the two were taken into custody.

The pair claimed that their supposedly stolen property included a wedding ring valued at $12,000, a suitcase purse worth $3,000, a MacBook Air laptop valued at $2,000, a $300 suitcase and an iPad mini worth $150, police said.
Connecticut State Police are searching for two men accused of leaving halfway houses in Waterbury earlier this year.

Police have an arrest warrant for 22-year-old Zachary Foster, who faces a first-degree escape charge after leaving a halfway house in September 2017. He is described as 5-foot-5, 130 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair.

Troopers are also searching for 47-year-old James Shea, who is wanted on larceny, failure to appear and escape charges after leaving a Waterbury halfway house in April 2017. Shea is described as around 5-foot-9, 250 pounds with blue eyes and brown hair.

Anyone with information on either suspect is asked to contact Troop A in Southbury at 203-267-2200 or text TIP 711 with information to 274637. Any tips will remain confidential.
Officers shot and killed a 24-year-old Connecticut man Sunday after the man broke into a Sunset Cliffs home and armed himself with a knife.

Residents on Trieste Drive called San Diego Police Department officers at about 6:07 a.m. to report a man banging on their doors and windows in the Point Loma neighborhood, "demanding a knife so he could kill himself," said Lt. Mike Holden, of the San Diego Police Department.

When SDPD officers arrived they found the suspect, Kyle Zahacefski of Colchester, Connecticut, in the front yard of an elevated home in the 1200 block of the street. POlice said Zahacefski picked up bricks and threw them towards officers from above.

Zahacefski then ran towards the home. Police officers heard the sound of glass breaking and discovered that Zahacefski had broken a door to the house.

There were two residents who were upstairs sleeping at the time. Officers followed the Zahacefski, who did not live there, into the home.

That is when they saw the suspect in the kitchen with a fixed-blade knife pointed at his throat, Holden said. Zahacefski refused several orders to drop the knife and instead, turned it towards officers.

"The suspect pointed the knife at officers and quickly walked toward them," Holden said.

At that moment, two officers  one armed with a less-lethal bean bag shotgun and the other armed with an AR-15 rifle  fired their weapons at Zahacefski, SDPD said.

Zahacefski was struck by at least one bullet. Despite efforts to resuscitate him, he died at the scene, police said.

Police said Zahacefski arrived in San Diego by bus on December 9, but investigators have not determined why he traveled to California.

The two residents and the two officers were not injured.

The officer who fired his weapon is a 15-year-veteran of the San Diego Police Department, Holden said.

The investigation into the incident is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

A previous version of this story erroneously reported the incident occurred in the 1600 block of Trieste Drive.
Charges have been dropped against a conservative commentator who grabbed a woman after she took a copy of his speech at the University of Connecticut titled "It's OK To Be White." The woman who took the papers has now been charged instead.

Lucian Wintrich was arrested after grabbing the woman and charged with misdemeanor breach of peace. Wintrich is the White House correspondent for the right-wing blog Gateway Pundit. He was at UConn on Nov. 28 to give the speech, which drew protesters.

Cellphone videos show the woman taking paperwork off the lectern Wintrich was using and walking away. Wintrich then goes after her and grabs her before being led away by police.

Wintrich's attorney Norman Pattis said the prosecution agreed to drop the charges when Wintrich appeared for arraignment at Rockville Superior Court Monday.

Pattis maintains that his client was the victim of the incident and that the case is an issue of freedom of speech.

"Free speech matters. Its OK to be white, black, brown or anything in between. My client came to Connecticut and was treated like a criminal for no reason," Pattis said.

Wintrich said that he felt that justice was served and that he was pleased that "the system corrected itself."

"We dont want to set a precedent where people can walk up to speeches they find disagreeable and, ah, steal them. I mean thats really not what Americas about," Wintrich said.

The woman who took the papers, who has been identified as 33-year-old Catherine Gregory, was charged Monday with criminal attempt to commit larceny and disorderly conduct.

Wintrich and Pattis have threatened legal action against her and criticized UConn for the incident.

"What happened at UConn the other night what shameful and they will be hearing more from us in the not too distant future," Pattis said.

Gregorys attorney, Jon Schoenhorn, has defended his clients actions.

Schoenhorn previously told NBC Connecticut his client was motivated by the desire to stop what he described as hateful, racist statements that Wintrich was making during the speech.

"He's going to suggest that picking up a piece of paper deserves a lawsuit whereas his violent reaction and threats  nevermind the fact that he physically assaulted Ms. Gregory  would be what, understandable under the circumstances? But his provocations would not," Schoenhorn said.

Gregory is due in court on Wednesday. She works as a college adviser at Quinebaug Valley Community. QVCC released a statement after the incident saying that Gregory attended the event as a private citizen and that it does not condone the behavior and encourages peaceful discourse and compassionate debate.

UConn issued new guidelines for speakers and campus events in response to the incident.
The trial of a former Farmers Branch police officer, charged with murder and aggravated assault for shooting two teenagers last March, is underway in Dallas.

"He killed somebody, shot every bullet he could, because he might have a gun," Dallas County Assistant District Attorney Jason Hermus told jurors Monday.

Prosecutors said Ken Johnson was off-duty March 13, 2016 when he spotted two 16-year-olds stealing car seats from his SUV. He confronted the teens, identified later as Jose Cruz and Edgar Rodriguez, who then drove off.

Johnson got into his SUV and chased the teens, eventually crashing into their vehicle.



With the teens stopped, Johnson then ran toward their car. As he approached, prosecutors said, he fired 16 shots from a fully-loaded handgun, killing Cruz and severely injuring Rodriguez.

Johnson, who has pleaded not guilty in Cruz's death, resigned from the Farmers Branch police force shortly after the shooting.



"I wasn't expecting him to shoot," Edgar Rodriguez told jurors.

"He shot for no reason. He just started shooting without saying anything before. He didn't tell us to get out of the car or nothing," Rodriguez testified.

Prosecutors showed jurors surveillance video from an Addison business which shows Johnson's SUV slam into Cruz's car and then the officer running toward the vehicle.

"The only audible sound that a few witnesses who were close by heard come out of this man's mouth when he jumped out of that SUV was, 'Woo-hoo,'" Hermus told jurors. "He literally said, 'Woo-hoo!'"

Johnson's defense attorney told jurors the off-duty officer feared for his life after seeing Cruz, inside the car, reach for something that he thought may have been a weapon.

But neither teenager had a weapon.

"This is a tragedy. It is not a crime," attorney Robert Rogers told jurors Monday. "Ken Johnson has spent his entire adult life serving people, and on that day it was a reaction  a reaction as a police officer and as a citizen."



Members of Cruz's family were in the courtroom for the first day of testimony.

"The wishes for the family is that there will be justice for Jose Cruz," family spokesman Carlos Quintanilla said outside the courtroom. "The only justice for Jose Cruz is that Ken Johnson gets convicted for murder of this 16-year-old boy."

Eyewitnesses Recall Crash, Shooting

Several eyewitnesses to the shooting testified Tuesday.

"That incident has caused me a lot of struggle and pain," Michelle Liles Alexander told jurors. "[I] blacked out on the highway from having a panic attack, nightmares, and just fear, I fear of going anywhere."

Alexander was inside the gas station next to where Johnson shot Cruz and Rodriguez.

"I saw a man go toward that car and he started shooting, and in my head I counted nine shots before I went to the floor," Alexander told jurors. "I looked up, he still had the gun in his hand. I know he had walked back to the car and I just went back to the ground. I was very scared."

Alexander called 911 while she was still on the floor inside the gas station.

"I was just frantic. I was yelling, 'Please get here, please get here, the guy still has a gun," Alexander said.

Later she watched police investigate the scene, where Cruz was killed.

"I just kept looking at the red car hoping that the driver would get out and he just never did," Alexander told jurors.

Another eyewitness told jurors Johnson fired directly at the driver's side window, where Cruz sat behind the wheel.

"He opened the door, and made a direct beeline toward that red car, and as he cleared the door I saw him with a gun in his hand," Randy Cuevas told jurors. "He raised his gun and he started firing at the vehicle. And what I saw was that the bullets were hitting the window area of the vehicle," Cuevas said.

Police investigators testified Johnson did not follow proper procedure for an off-duty officer when he approached the vehicle.

Prosecutors intend to call 20 witnesses to the stand in a trial that is expected to last two weeks.
Two people were killed after a small plane crashed into the backyard of a Clairemont Mesa home Saturday.

A single-engine Beech BE36 Bonanza aircraft went into the backyard of a home on Chandler Drive, near Interstate-805 and Balboa Avenue, four minutes after takeoff, according to FAA spokesperson Allen Kenitzer.

The aircraft with four people on board reported engine failure shortly after departing Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in San Diego at approximately 4:30 p.m., San Diego Fire Department said.

William Bussey was driving when he spotted the plane.

It sounded like it was sputtering a little. It just kind of made a little drop and dogleg left, he told NBC 7. I was pretty familiar with flight paths around here and knew that wasn't normal.

The pilots were attempting to land in an open area of a nearby schoolyard, however, the plane tore through the school's fence and skidded into the yard of a nearby home.

The home and the plane quickly became engulfed in flames.

Two of the plane's occupants were found dead at the scene, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Chief Brian Fennessy said.

NBC 7 has confirmed one of the people killed in the crash was Robert Stelling, 50, of South Hampton, New York.

The two other occupants  a man and a woman  were found walking away from the aircraft.

Neighbor Marc Bejjana said he was speechless when he saw one of the survivors standing on the other side of the flames.

To be able to walk off after something like that is pretty incredible, he said.

Bejjana Heard her yelling "he's in there, he's in there!"

"It ended up being one of the survivors in the plane, referring to her husband in the plane so that was really scary," he said.



They were taken to University of California San Diego to be treated for burn injuries sustained in the crash.

Kenitzer said local authorities reported no bystanders were injured.

No one was in the home at the time of the crash but the homeowner's dog. When the plane crashed, the dog ran out of the home and was hit by an oncoming vehicle.

The dog did not survive.

San Diego Gas & Electric reported that a foreign object came into contact with a power line at about the same time as the crash. The utility warned some areas of Clairemont and Kearny Mesa may experience power outages.

The plane crash occurred less than a mile from Montgomery-Gibbs Field.

The National Transportation Safety Board is responding to investigate the crash.

No other information was available.

Please refresh this page for updates on this story. Details may change as more information becomes available.
A legal challenge involving the costs of shutting down the San Onofre nuclear power plant has us been dealt a setback.

Ratepayers in San Diego and Los Angeles could wind up stuck with the lion's share.

A statement released by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) says it has prevailed on motions in key lawsuits.

The energy regulators, who have been accused of improper wheeling and dealing, say only 1 percent of millions of documents processed in response to search warrant have been withheld on privileged grounds.

"The attorney general did not object to any of the privileged documents withheld," said CPUC communications director Terrie Prosper in the agencys statement.

The plant was taken out of service six years ago because of flawed steam generators and worn tubes.

Shutdown expenses are pegged at about $10 billion.

For ratepayers, that works out to about $1,600 per meter.

Watchdog attorneys cite private meetings in Poland between the CPUC's president and an executive for Southern California Edison, the operator of the plant.

The shutdown deal, which customers argue unfairly favors utility shareholders, reportedly was jotted down on a cocktail napkin.

It saddles customers with most of the decommissioning, cleanup and replacement-energy costs.

"Their internal records show 'Let's put them as 'deal points'. So it was more than just conceptual," said Maria Severson, an attorney whos active in the post-shutdown legal action.

"It was line-item -- one, two, three, four -- how the ratepayers were going to pay for the failed San Onofre plant -- and not the shareholders."

Severson said a state appeals court in San Francisco is now reviewing more than 130 documents that ratepayers believe will help shift more of the shutdown costs to utility shareholders.
A powerful flare-up on the western edge of Southern California's largest and most destructive wildfire sent residents fleeing Sunday, as wind-fanned flames churned through old-growth brush in canyons and along hillsides toward coastal towns.

Firefighters continued to battle the wildfires Sunday as they raged across more than 180,000 acres and burned some 800 structures in California.



"The winds are kind of squirrely right now," said county fire spokesman Mike Eliason. "Some places the smoke is going straight up in the air, and others it's blowing sideways. Depends on what canyon we're in."

The department posted a photo of one residence engulfed in flames. It's unclear whether other structures burned. Thousands of homes and businesses in the county were without power.

The air thick with acrid smoke, even residents of areas not under evacuation orders took the opportunity to leave, fearing another shutdown of U.S. 101, a key coastal highway that was closed intermittently last week. Officials handed out masks to residents who stayed behind in Montecito, the wealthy hillside enclave that's home to celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bridges and Rob Lowe.

"Our house is under threat of being burned," Ellen DeGeneres tweeted at midday Sunday. "We just had to evacuate our pets. I'm praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters."

California Gov. Jerry Brown said deadly and destructive wildfires in winter are "the new normal," a day before new evacuations were ordered in Santa Barbara County.

Brown on Saturday toured Ventura County neighborhoods ravaged by a weeklong wildfire that killed at least one person and destroyed hundreds of homes and other buildings.

At a news conference, Brown said drought and climate change mean California faces a "new reality" where lives and property are continually threatened by fire, at a cost of billions of dollars.

He added that gusty winds and low humidity are continuing to create conditions for the fires to continue to burn.

"We're about ready to have firefighting at Christmas," Brown said. "This is very odd and unusual."

The Thomas fire, the largest of the wildfires, had burned 173,000 acres by Sunday, with just 15 percent contained. Authorities estimate 600 homes have been destroyed.

New evacuations were ordered in Santa Barbara County, affecting those who lived in areas north of Highway 192, east of Buena Vista Drive  including the 900 block of Park Lane  and all the way to the Santa Barbara County line. Evacuations were also in effect from Buena Vista Drive to Toro Canyon Road from Highway 192 north to Camino Cielo Road.

All mandatory evacuations in the city of Ventura and the county portion of Ventura Avenue have been lifted, except for neighborhoods north of Poli Street and Foothill Road.

San Diego's Lilac fire was 60 percent contained by Sunday, after scorching through 4,100 acres.

Brown said it will take "heroic" efforts in the U.S. and abroad to stem climate change and urged U.S. lawmakers to pay more attention to dealing with natural disasters such as fires, floods and earthquakes.

The dry, hot, windy conditions across the region that have fueled what would be extreme for any season, but are especially stunning just two weeks from winter.

One death has been connected to the wildfires so far. Virginia Pesola, 70, was killed in a car crash along an evacuation route Wednesday night. The cause of death announced Friday was blunt force trauma with terminal smoke inhalation and burns.
Some Southern California wildfires that ravaged the region the previous week are reaching containment, allowing residents to return to their neighborhoods and begin the lengthy process of rebuilding.

While several blazes are at or near containment, the catastrophic Thomas Fire is still proving to be a force, burning hundreds of thousands of acres and forcing evacuations.

Here are the statuses of each fire:

Thomas Fire

Acres Burned: 231,700

Containment: 20 percent

Location: Santa Barbara County, Ventura County

Date Began Burning: Monday, Dec. 4, 6:28 p.m.

Structures destroyed: 868

Lilac Fire

Acres Burned: 4,100

Containment: 80 percent

Location: San Diego County

Date Began Burning: Thursday, Dec. 7, at 11:15 a.m.

Structures destroyed: 182

Creek Fire

Acres Burned: 15,619

Containment: 98 percent

Location: San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles County

Date Began Burning: Tuesday, Dec. 5 at 3:44 a.m.

Structures destroyed: 63 homes, 60 outbuildings

Rye Fire

Acres Burned: 6,049

Containment: 93 percent

Location: West Valencia in Los Angeles County

Date Began Burning: Tuesday, Dec. 5 at 11:31 a.m.

Structures destroyed: 6

Liberty Fire

Acres Burned: 300

Containment: 100 percent

Location: Riverside County

Date Began Burning: Thursday, Dec. 7, 1:15 p.m.

Structures destroyed: 7

Skirball Fire

Acres Burned: 422

Containment: 98 percent

Location: Brentwood area of Los Angeles County

Date Began Burning: Wednesday Dec. 6 at 4:52 a.m.

Structures destroyed: 6

See detailed information about Southern California wildfires here.
What to Know 231,700 acres burned

20 percent containment

Cost associated with suppressing the fire estimated at $48 million

This article was last updated at 6:25 p.m. PT Monday, Dec. 11.

Firefighters kept a wall of flames from descending mountains into coastal neighborhoods after a huge and destructive Southern California wildfire exploded in size, becoming the fifth largest in state history.



Click here to see an interactive map of the evacuation zones.

Thousands remained under evacuation orders Monday as the fire churned west through foothill areas of Carpinteria and Montecito, seaside Santa Barbara County towns about 75 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Much of the fire's rapid new growth occurred on the eastern and northern fronts into unoccupied areas of Los Padres National Forest, where the state's fourth largest fire burned a decade ago.

[NATL-LA GALLERY UPDATED 12/20] 2017 California Wildfires in Photos

The blaze had already destroyed 868 buildings and damaged another 187 in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, as well as unincorporated Ventura County, officials said. It's just 20 percent contained after charring 231,700 acres of dry brush and timber.

Officials warned that the number of buildings destroyed or damaged could rise, as could the current cost associated wit the fire, which as of Monday night stood at a little over $48 million.

Forecasters predicted that dry winds that fanned several fires across the region for a week would begin to lose their power Monday. But the possibility of "unpredictable" gusts would keep firefighters on edge for days, Santa Barbara County Fire spokesman Mike Eliason said.

Santa Ana winds have long contributed to some of the region's most disastrous wildfires. They blow from the inland toward the Pacific Ocean, speeding up as they squeeze through mountain passes and canyons.

The Thomas Fire continued into Carpinteria, forcing mandatory evacuations. Jane Yamamoto reports for the NBC4 News at 11 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017.

Containment increased on other major blazes in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties. Resources from those fires were diverted to the Santa Barbara foothills to combat the stubborn and enormous fire that started Dec. 4.

Fires are not typical in Southern California this time of year but can break out when dry vegetation and too little rain combine with the Santa Ana winds. Though the state emerged this spring from a yearslong drought, hardly any measurable rain has fallen in the region over the past six months.

"This is the new normal," Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown warned Saturday after surveying damage from the deadly Ventura fire. Brown and experts said climate change is making wildfires a year-round threat.

High fire risk is expected to last into January.

Even during this difficult time, evacuees in Ventura are thinking of their neighbors. Christine Kim reports for the NBC4 News at 11 on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017.

The air thick with acrid smoke, even residents of areas not under evacuation orders took the opportunity to leave, fearing another shutdown of U.S. 101, a key coastal highway that was closed intermittently last week. Officials handed out masks to residents who stayed behind in Montecito, the wealthy hillside enclave that's home to celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bridges and Rob Lowe.

"Our house is under threat of being burned," Ellen DeGeneres tweeted at midday Sunday. "We just had to evacuate our pets. I'm praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters."

Ojai experienced hazardous levels of smoke at times, and officials warned of unhealthy air for large swaths of the region. The South Coast Air Quality Management District urged residents to stay indoors if possible and avoid vigorous outdoor activities.

[LA - STRINGER UPDATED 12/25] Photos: Thomas Fire Burns in Ventura, Santa Barbara Counties

Despite the size and number of wildfires burning in the region, there has only been one confirmed death: The death of a 70-year-old woman, who crashed her car on an evacuation route, is attributed to the fire in Santa Paula, a small city where the Thomas Fire began.

Most of last week's fires were in places that burned in the past, including one in the ritzy Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air that burned six homes and another in the city's rugged foothills above the community of Sylmar and in Santa Paula.

Mandatory evacuations are in effect for the following areas:

City of Ventura

North of Foothill Road from Day Road west to Kimball Road



Entire Community of Casitas Springs

Evacuate to Ventura County Fairgrounds - 10 West Harbor Blvd., Ventura.

Lake Casitas

North of Hwy 150 heading to Hwy 33 and south of Los Padres National Forest

City of Ojai and East Ojai Valley

SR 150 East of Dennison Park to Koenigstein Road, south of Reeves Road

Ojai

Unincorporated areas west of Rice Road

Los Encinos Road to Burnham Road, South of SR 150

Upper Ojai Valley

Hwy 150 east of Reeves Road, and unincorporated areas west of Rice Road

Upper Ojai Valley (West)

Hwy 33 north of Fairview Drive- Matilija Canyon

Unincorporated Ventura County Area

Residents and day visitors of Rose Valley

Ventura County North Coast Area

Boundary of Hwy 33 on the north to Casitas Vista Road, northwest to Hwy 150, Hwy 150 (Casitas Pass Road) west to US 101 and south on US 101 (including Pacific Coast Highway) to Emma Wood State Beach.

Unincorporated area of Fillmore

The area of Hall Road to the west, Sespe Creek to the east, Fillmore City limits to the south, and Los Padres National Forest boundary to the north

Voluntary Evacuations

Ojai

Casitas Pass Road east to Highway 33, Spring Street to Loma Drive. (Includes Rice Road east to Loma Drive. Baldwin Road north to Besant Road)

Unincorporated area of Fillmore

Sespe Creek to the west, Burson Ranch to the east, Fillmore City limits to the south, and Los Padres National Forest boundary to the north.

Animal Evacuations

Please call 866-EVRT911 (866-387-8911) for requests for assistance in animal evacuations.

Large animal evacuations at the Ventura County Fairgrounds at 10 W Harbor Blvd, Ventura.

Evacuation Shelters

City of Ventura

Ventura County Fairgrounds (Red Cross - Includes an Animal Shelter for all types of animals)  10 W Harbor Blvd., Ventura.

City of Oxnard

Oxnard College Gymnasium - 4000 S. Rose Ave., Oxnard.

UCSB

Recreational Center (Includes an Animal Shelter for small animals - preferably in crates) 516 Ocean Road, Santa Barbara.

City of Ojai

The Red Cross has transitioned residents of the Nordhoff High School shelter in Ojai (1401 Maricopa Hwy, Ojai) to alternative shelters on Saturday, 12/9.

City of Santa Paula

The Red Cross Shelter is no longer set up in Santa Paula. A Community Distribution Center will open at the Santa Paula Community Center Tuesday Dec. 12 through Saturday Dec. 16 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. to serve Santa Paula Residents impacted by the Thomas Fire. The City of Santa Paula partnered with the Salvation Army to provide food, water and other items to local residents in need of assistance.

Santa Paula Community Center, 530 W Main St. Santa Paula.

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What to Know 230,000 acres burned

10 percent containment

Cost associated with suppressing the fire estimated at $34 million

This article was updated with the latest information at 8:55 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 10. The latest update can be found here.

Scorching through Ventura County for a sixth day, the Thomas Fire reached Santa Barbara County on Sunday as officials ordered new mandatory evacuations.

Click here to see an interactive map of the evacuation zones.

Mandatory evacuations are in effect for the following areas:

City of Ventura

North of Foothill Road from Kimball Road west to Poli Street

North of Poli Street from Hall Canyon west to Cedar Street

Entire Community of Casitas Springs

North of Hwy 150 heading to Hwy 33 and south of Los Padres National Forest

City of Ojai and East Ojai Valley

SR 150 east of Dennison Park to Koenigstein Road, south of Reeves Road

Ojai

Unincorporated areas west of Rice Road

Los Encinos Road to Burnham Road south of SR 150 Upper Ojai Valley

Hwy 150 east of Reeves Road and unincorporated areas west of Rice Road

Upper Ojai Valley (West)

Hwy 33 north of Fairview Drive

Matilija Canyon

Unincorporated Ventura County Area

Residents and day visitors of Rose Valley

Ventura County North Coast Area

Boundary of Hwy 33 on the north to Casitas Vista Road, northwest to Hwy 150

Hwy 150 (Casitas Pass Road) west to US 101 and south on US 101 (including Pacific Coast Highway) to Emma Wood State Beach

Unincorporated area of Fillmore The area of Hall Road to the west, Sespe Creek to the east, Fillmore City limits to the south, and Los Padres National Forest boundary to the north Santa Barbara County For the communities of Carpinteria, Montecito and Santa Barbara County from east at Mission Canyon Road to west from SR-150, and north of SR-192 to East Camino Cielo

Voluntary evacuation warnings are in effect for the following areas:

Santa Barbara County

The entire community of Carpinteria and Summerland is under voluntary evacuations from south of SR-192 to the Pacific Ocean.

The community of Montecito is under voluntary evacuations from between Highway 101 and SR-192.

Ventura County

Ojai

Casitas Pass Road east to Highway 33

Spring Street to Loma Drive. Includes Rice Road east to Loma Drive. Baldwin Road north to Besant Road Unincorporated area of Fillmore Sespe Creek to the west, Burson Ranch to the east, Fillmore City limits to the south, and Los Padres National Forest boundary to the north.



The destructive blaze has burned 230,000 acres along its path since it first started on Monday, Dec. 4.

The blaze was contained by 10 percent Sunday evening. It's destroyed 644 homes, damaged 165 homes, destroyed 15 commercial structures, destroyed 127 minor structures and damaged 19 other minor structures. The cost associated with the damage of the fire is an estimated $34 million, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.

Officials warned residents of active fire areas that strong Santa Ana winds, which have been fueling the Southern California wildfires, will remain through Sunday. Gusts are expected to blow from 30 to 50 mph, according to the VCFD.

Mandatory evacuations in the city of Santa Paula were lifted on Saturday, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

If you would like to donate to a GoFundMe account set up for the Forehands, you may do so here. Note that GoFundMe deducts 2.9 percent of all funds raised, plus 30 cents per donation, in the form of payment processing charges.



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What to Know The plane crashed in Southwest Miami-Dade just before 3 p.m.

The pilot was killed in the crash and was the only person on board the aircraft.

The FAA and the NTSB are now investigating what caused the crash.

A pilot was killed after a small plane crashed near Miami Executive Airport Sunday.

Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed to NBC 6 that the pilot took off Sunday afternoon at about 3 p.m. but we now know that the flight quickly turned deadly.

The aircraft took a nose dive into a remote crop field near SW 121st Street and 157th Ave. One local business owner saw the entire incident happen right before his eyes.

I was setting up my food truck when I saw the small plane fly by to that side. After five or six minutes, I heard a loud explosion. When I turned around, I saw the plane on the ground, said Carlos Diaz.

Diaz owns a food truck within eyesight of the deadly crash. He remembers the plane flying over. But says five to six minutes later, there was a loud explosion. When he looked over, it was too late. The pilot was the only person on board, and died at the scene.

Officials with the FAA released a statement explaining how the pilot behind the wheel of the Piper PA 60 departed from the airport, but had to return after declaring an emergency. The plane plummeted about a mile and a half west of the airport, just before 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon.

The statement from the FAA read, in part,:

"A Piper PA 60 aircraft crashed approximately one and a half miles west of the Miami Executive Airport today at 2:50 p.m. The pilot departed from Miami Executive and was returning to the airport after declaring an emergency."

Crews were seen investigating the incident late Sunday evening, trying to get to the bottom of what went wrong.

Investigators have not released any information on the pilot.

The FAA and the NTSB are now conducting an investigation.
A member of the jury in the Kate Steinle murder trial said the prosecution failed to prove that Jose Ines Garcia Zarate intentionally killed the 32-year-old woman and believes the evidence showed that shooting was a "freak accident."

In an exclusive interview with NBC Bay Area, the juror, who did not wish to be identified, talked about the panel's decision to acquit the undocumented Mexican national.

He said the backlash from critics  including President Donald Trump  who have pointed to the case as evidence of the need for tougher immigration policies, propelled him to speak out.

"If I was not a juror on this trial, I would probably think the same way: 'Why did you let him go free?'" said the juror. "But again, the reason is, they could not prove to us that he intentionally killed her. And through all the evidence, I really think that it was a freak accident."
The California Highway Patrol is investigating why a charter bus carrying 29 people flipped on its side Friday on a San Francisco freeway, injuring everyone on board.

San Francisco Fire Department Lt. Jonathan Baxter said the injuries from the crash on southbound U.S. Highway 101 near Cesar Chavez Street ranged from broken bones to cuts and scrapes.

Those wounded around 8 p.m. were immediately transported to the hospital. According to Baxter, four people suffered serious injuries and 25 had moderate to minor injuries. All 29 passengers and the driver were hospitalized.

"They had a variety of injuries, but they were what we declare as 'walking wounded,'" Baxter said. It's unclear what condition the people were in Saturday and if they were still in the hospital.

The bus, which was from a private charter company called Charter Bros based in Oakland, was reportedly heading from San Francisco to a holiday party at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Palo Alto.

According to CHP, the driver lost control of the vehicle, sending the bus careening across traffic and sliding down the highway on its side.

"For some unknown reason that bus started to lose control, struck the center divider and then came back across the lanes and ended up on its side blocking the far right lane," said officer Vu Williams.

Authorities say the driver is cooperating, and Baxter commended him for being the last person from the bus at the scene.

The manager of Charter Bros spoke with NBC Bay Area and explained that their driver was not speeding.

"We have GPS on our vehicles, so from what we can tell, the bus going at legal speeds," said Avi Josen, the manager at Charter Bros. "Our bus driver tried to make sure everyone was safe after the crash and waited till everyone was out. He is one of our more experienced drivers."

Officials said he passed a field sobriety test and has not been charged or cited for anything regarding the rollover.

The bus was towed to a lot in San Francisco where investigators will examine the vehicle for any mechanical issues that may have contributed to the crash.

The crash prompted lane closures, which caused a miles-long backup. The roadway has since been reopened. CHP says they still don't know how fast the bus was going but will continue to investigate.
A Texas law firm had a novel approach to the Bay Areas oppressive living costs: It shelled out $3 million on a private plane to ferry patent lawyers to clients based here.

Instead of hiring local lawyers, who would then have to live in a region marred by soaring rent and home prices, Houston-based Patterson and Sheridan bought a nine-seat Gulfstream G200 jet to bring their employees to Silicon Valley once a month, the Business Insider reported.

Though expensive, their approach is also cheaper than relocating Texas lawyers to this part of Northern California, according to the Houston Chronicle.

The median rent in San Francisco is $4,450, while the median home value comes in at a whopping $1.2 million, according to Zillow. Prices in San Jose are lower, but not less daunting. Zillow found that the median rent is $3,300 and median home value is $934,000.

Prices in both cities are forecast to rise in the coming year.

By contrast, the median price of Houston homes is $324,900 and median rent is $1,500, Zillow reports.

"The young people that we want to hire out there have high expectations that are hard to meet," Bruce Patterson, a partner at the firm, said to The New York Times. "Rent is so high they can't even afford a car."



Each flight costs the intellectual property law firm $1,900 per passenger and totals to $2,500 per hour in operating costs, the Houston Chronicle reported. Lawyers work while traveling so their hours are billable and help the company protect lawyer-client privilege, which is harder to do when arriving early at an airport, checking in bags and waiting in a security line.

The firm doesnt view the plane as a luxury, and only flies it when it is full, partners said to the Chronicle. It also helps them recruit young lawyers who are eager to work with the worlds leading tech brands, but are put off by the Bay Areas living costs.

Patterson and Sheridan is "still able to offer companies and inventors lower costs because most of the patent work is done in Houston, where commercial real estate is 43 percent cheaper, salaries 52 percent lower, and competition for technical talent far less fierce," according to the Chronicle.

In fact, the frequent flights to California helped the firm bring Intuit, Western Digital and Cavendish Kinetics on board as new clients.
Parfumerie Akzente GmbH, C-230/16.

on



Here is a short summary of the dispute, decision and some commentary! A few days ago the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued the much-awaited decision Coty Germany GmbH v on

Facts





Coty Germany (Coty), the German supplier of luxury cosmetics powerhouse Coty Prestige, had a distribution agreement with Parfumerie Akzente GmbH (Akzente).



In the agreement several provisions provided for standards that Akzente had to comply with in order to preserve the high-end luxury status of the brands covering the products of Coty: the decor, furnishing of the sales location, the selection and presentation of goods, had to highlight the luxury character of the brand.



In 2012, Coty decided to change the terms of the agreement inter alia by providing that the sales on the internet should henceforth be done in order to preserve the luxurious character of the brand and through an electronic shop window of the authorized store. Furthermore, the amended agreement prevented the distributor from using, on the online marketplace, a different business name or a third-party website discernible to the public.



At Akzentes attempt to sell goods through amazon.de, Coty sought relief in the court of first instance of Frankfurt am Main to prevent it from distributing the goods on the online platform.



The Landsgericht found this clause to the agreement to be in contrast with Article 101(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The Oberlandsgericht Frankfurt am Main, in evaluating Cotys appeal, referred the case to the CJEU, essentially asking whether a selective distribution system primarily established in order to ensure a luxury image preventing from selling the products freely in the online marketplace is compatible with Article 101(1) TFEU.





The Court's findings





On 6 December last t he CJEU handed down its



The CJEU, in its reasoning, essentially followed the Opinion issued by Advocate General Wahl (Kat Eleonora's report



he CJEU handed down its judgement , and held that a clause which, in order to preserve the luxury image of an undertaking, prevents an authorized distributor from using a third-party website discernible to the public is not in violation of competition law, if the clause complies with certain conditions.The CJEU, in its reasoning, essentially followed the Opinion issued by Advocate General Wahl (Kat Eleonora's report here ). The practical implications of this case are substantial, affecting luxury brands and e-commerce as well as those online players that are discernible to the public. Furthermore, this has also an impact for trade mark owners of luxury goods.





The three main focus points of this case are luxury goods, selective distribution agreements and platform bans. The Court, together with the violation of Article 101 TFEU, had to analyze whether the agreement in question fell within the restrictions that remove the benefit of the Block Exemption Regulation, namely territorial restrictions and a restriction on passive sales. AG Wahl, in his Opinion, had held that the jurisprudence of the Court to date indicates that the clause of the agreement at hand would not be a restriction of competition on the perspective of Article 101(1) and it is covered by the exceptions of the Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER).

Metro I criteria

The Court held that the agreement would not be contrary to Art 101(1) TFEU if the three criteria listed in the Metro I judgment are applied, namely a selective distribution agreement for which (i) the resellers are chosen on the basis of objective criteria of a qualitative nature which are determined uniformly for all and applied in a non-discriminatory manner for all potential resellers, (ii) the nature of the product in question, including the prestige image, requires selective distribution in order to preserve the quality of the product and to ensure that it is correctly used, and (iii) the criteria established do not go beyond what is necessary;

The scope of Pierre Fabre

vexata quaestio of the scope of the Pierre Fabre judgement: in that case the issue at stake was a blanket ban on internet sales and here it was merely a decision to selectively distribute Cotys products online (exactly the same result achieved through selective distribution done in brick-and-mortar shops). The Court further noted that with its decision in Pierre Fabre it did not intend to set out a statement of principle for which the preservation of luxury image cannot justify a restriction of competition. Interestingly the court found that another difference between the two cases is that there the products at stake were cosmetic and personal hygiene goods and not luxury products. It could be argued that cosmetic products can be luxury goods (as was also established by previous Court jurisprudence for example The Court finally clarified theof the scope of thejudgement: in that case the issue at stake was a blanket ban on internet sales and here it was merely a decision to selectively distribute Cotys products online (exactly the same result achieved through selective distribution done in brick-and-mortar shops). The Court further noted that with its decision init did not intend to set out a statement of principle for which the preservation of luxury image cannot justify a restriction of competition. Interestingly the court found that another difference between the two cases is that there the products at stake were cosmetic and personal hygiene goods and not luxury products. It could be argued that cosmetic products can be luxury goods (as was also established by previous Court jurisprudence for example here and here and also by the desolation of Merpel's wallet when buying Kat make-up and fur shampoo).

Trade mark case-law precedent

Copad. That case (covered by this blog . A similar approach can be found in another trade mark case, Coty Prestige Lancaster Group (Coty must just like the attention - says Merpel -) , where it was held that using a trade mark contrary to the proprietors consent amounts to breach of trade marks rights.



Certainly in Coty the trade mark aspect does not arise per se, but the reasons at the basis for the decision stand regardless. This is because what is really at stake here is the image that certain companies want to portray in the business world and this intangible property; their aura of luxury, needs to be protected by trade mark and competition law.



As AG Wahl stated in his Opinion, the object of competition law is not only to protect price competition but also economic efficiency and the welfare of consumers of which the optimization of the quality of goods is a sound basis for. This is why allowances are made for selective distribution systems, in light of maintaining a high specialist trade capable of providing specific services as regards high-quality and high-technology products, which may justify a reduction of price competition in favour of competition relating to factors other than price. In short: trade mark law to rule them all, trade mark law to bring them all to justice and bind them (for the Lord of the Rings fans out there). In its judgment, the Court also relied on the principles established inThat case (covered by this blog here ) the Court held that the licensee would be liable for trade mark infringement - and not only contractually liable - because the contravention to the terms of the contract damaged the aura of luxury and the allure of the brandA similar approach can be found in another trade mark case,, where it was held that using a trade mark contrary to the proprietors consent amounts to breach of trade marks rights.Certainly in Coty the trade mark aspect does not arise, but the reasons at the basis for the decision stand regardless. This is because what is really at stake here is the image that certain companies want to portray in the business world and this intangible property; their aura of luxury, needs to be protected by trade mark and competition law.As AG Wahl stated in his Opinion, the object of competition law is not only to protect price competition but also economic efficiency and the welfare of consumers of which the optimization of the quality of goods is a sound basis for. This is why allowances are made for selective distribution systems, in light of maintaining a high specialist trade capable of providing specific services as regards high-quality and high-technology products, which may justify a reduction of price competition in favour of competition relating to factors other than price. In short: trade mark law to rule them all, trade mark law to bring them all to justice and bind them (for the Lord of the Rings fans out there).

Lack of contractual relationship





The Court underlined how a binding clause found in the authorized distributors agreement could not be as effective as a direct relationship between the supplier and the online platform. Obviously this type of determination is best conducted on a case-by-case basis, but it is not new to the Court: in

Luxury Kat Another aspect that the Court focused its attention on is the fact that the lack of a contractual relationship between the supplier of the luxury goods and the third-party platform could be problematic in case of enforcement.The Court underlined how a binding clause found in the authorized distributors agreement could not be as effective as a direct relationship between the supplier and the online platform. Obviously this type of determination is best conducted on a case-by-case basis, but it is not new to the Court: in LOreal and others v eBay International , LOreals distributor sold unpackaged perfumes through eBay, which LOreal successfully argued being damaging to its luxury image, amongst other considerations. From this follows the importance, underlined by the Court in its judgement, for luxury brands to be able to check and control the sale environment of their products.

Lack of definition of luxury goods

The definition of luxury goods is not found in the judgement. This is not at all surprising since it was not a question asked to the Court.



It could be argued that not defining what luxury products are could prompt companies to use the exception granted with this decision to establish a selective distribution system and a platform ban. This is perfectly possible at the companies' risk but first of all selective distribution is not something all undertakings strive for or something they can all afford.



In addition, judgements based on the luxury image and the high quality of goods have been around for many years, in the field of competition law as well as that of trade marks. It will nevertheless be interesting to see how the Court will develop its jurisprudence in this sense.

E-commerce sector inquiry final report

de facto prohibition on selling online or restrict the effective use of the internet as a sales channel irrespective of the markets concerned.



With its decision the Court implicitly affirms that the market ban, with all the trimmings illustrated above, does not amount to a restriction by object. This type of clause: (1) does not limit the passive sales of the distributors because they can still advertise the products online and it is not possible to circumscribe third-party platform customers; and (2) only restricts a specific type of sale. In case the same situation will be dealt with but by a non-luxury brand, then the analysis will have to be done on a case by case basis (even though this Kat thinks that an argument by a non-luxury brand could not hold).. The Coty judgment also confirms the findings of the European Commission in its final report on the e-commerce sector inquiry which indicates that marketplace bans do not generally amount to aprohibition on selling online or restrict the effective use of the internet as a sales channel irrespective of the markets concerned.With its decision the Court implicitly affirms that the market ban, with all the trimmings illustrated above, does not amount to a restriction by object. This type of clause: (1) does not limit the passive sales of the distributors because they can still advertise the products online and it is not possible to circumscribe third-party platform customers; and (2) only restricts a specific type of sale. In case the same situation will be dealt with but by a non-luxury brand, then the analysis will have to be done on a case by case basis (even though this Kat thinks that an argument by a non-luxury brand could not hold)..




Russian President Vladimir Putin declared "victory" in Syria during a surprise visit Monday to a military base there, then traveled to Egypt and Turkey, where he celebrated Moscow's deepening ties with those key regional powers.

The tour highlighted Russia's expanded reach in the Middle East and the global clout of its leader, who announced last week he is seeking re-election for another six-year term in March.

Speaking to Russian troops on the tarmac at the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, Putin talked of the triumph over "terrorists" and announced a partial pullout of Russian troops.

"You have shown the best qualities of a Russian soldier  courage, valor, team spirit, decisiveness and excellent skills," he said in televised remarks to the troops. "The Motherland is proud of you."

Putin praised Russia's effort to help President Bashar Assad's forces to gain the upper hand over the Islamic State group and Syrian rebels.

"Here in Syria, far away from our borders, you helped the Syrian people to preserve their state and fend off attacks by terrorists," Putin said. "You have dealt a devastating blow to those who blatantly threatened our country. We will never forget about the victims who fell in the fight against terror both here and in Russia."

Putin also said that he had ordered the military to withdraw a "significant part" of the Russian contingent in Syria  although he has announced Russian troop withdrawals before.

"Friends, the Motherland is waiting for you," he said. "You are coming back home with victory!"

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the Russian commander in Syria, said the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers. The remaining forces will be sufficient to "successfully fulfill the tasks" to stabilize the situation in Syria, he said, but did not specify how many troops and weapons would remain.

The Pentagon expressed skepticism about the statements on the withdrawal of troops and equipment from Syria. Army Col. Rob Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, said Russian statements "do not often correspond" with actual troop reductions. He said the withdrawal comments will have no impact on the U.S. and coalition fight against Islamic State extremists.

It was Putin's first trip to Syria, where Russia began its air campaign in 2015. He has hosted Assad twice in the past six years, including an unannounced Nov. 21 visit by the longtime Russian ally to the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Putin's whirlwind trip to Syria, Egypt and Turkey came at a time when leaders in the Middle East and beyond have criticized a decision last week by U.S. President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, upending decades of U.S. policy.

Speaking at a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, Putin said the U.S. move "doesn't help the Mideast settlement and, just the other way round, destabilizes the already difficult situation in the region."

The decision might "finish prospects for the Palestinian-Israeli peace process," Putin said, standing next to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Putin added that Moscow believes that the status of Jerusalem could only be settled through talks between the Palestinians and Israel in line with U.N. resolutions.

Russia's growing footprint in the Middle East extends beyond Syria and Egypt. King Salman of Saudi Arabia visited Putin in October as the two countries shook off decades of enmity and mutual suspicion.

During the Cold War, the Saudis helped arm Afghan rebels fighting the Soviet invasion. More recently, tensions ran high over Russia's military help for Assad, whom Riyadh insists must go as part of any settlement in the Syria's civil war. The Saudis have since softened their opposition to Russia's role in Syria.

Putin is hoping his trip will stoke national pride among voters in the March 18 presidential election. With his approval ratings topping 80 percent, Putin is certain to win easily, but the Kremlin has been worried about growing voter apathy.

The successful military campaign in Syria and Moscow's growing clout in the Middle East would help burnish his image as a man who restored Russia's global power and prestige after the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991.

In Egypt, Putin sought to strengthen his relationship with a key regional power that has in the past three years bought billions of dollars in Russian weapons and supported Moscow's intervention in Syria when others decried it.

"Russia always paid a special attention to expanding friendly and mutually beneficial ties with Egypt, our longtime reliable partner in the Middle East and North Africa," said Putin, on his second visit to Egypt in as many years, meeting with President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

A general-turned-president, el-Sissi said the two countries had "a relationship with a long history," characterized by "strength and durability."

Neither made any mention of a deal drafted last month to allow Russian warplanes to use Egyptian military bases, perhaps because of the sensitivity in a country that says it had repeatedly rejected offers to base foreign forces on its territory.

That the agreement was not signed during Putin's visit could also mean differences remain over the issue.

For now, Russia has an air base and a naval supply facility in Syria, its only permanent military foothold outside Russia.

Egypt's ties with Russia date back to the 1950s and 1960s, when Cairo was a close ally at the height of the Cold War. Egypt changed sides in the 1970s under the late President Anwar Sadat, who replaced Moscow with Washington as his country's chief economic and military backer following the signing of a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty with Israel in 1979.

Under el-Sissi, Egypt has maintained close ties with both Russia and the United States, which remains Egypt's main international backer, providing an estimated $1.3 billion in military and economic aid each year. Those ties suffered a blow in 2013, when the Obama administration criticized the military overthrow of Egypt's first freely elected leader amid mass protests against his rule. Relations have improved under Trump, who also has sought better relations with Moscow.

With Putin and el-Sissi looking on, officials from both countries signed a deal for the construction of a nuclear reactor on Egypt's Mediterranean coast northwest of Cairo. Egypt has reached an agreement in principle to borrow $25 billion, or roughly 80 percent of the reactor's cost, from Russia. The signing ended months of wrangling over technical and financial details.

Putin may have disappointed el-Sissi during his visit when he once again delayed a decision on resuming flights to Egypt suspended two years ago when the Islamic State group downed a Russian airliner over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board. The suspension has decimated Egypt's vital tourism industry. Authorities have since spent millions of dollars to upgrade security at its airports, hoping to get Moscow to change its mind.

Putin praised those efforts, saying the two countries have come close to a deal to resume flights, but he did not give a timeline.

"Security agencies reported to me that we are generally ready to restore a direct air link between Moscow and Cairo," Putin said, adding that an agreement could be signed "in the nearest time."

Russian Transport Minister Maxi Sokolov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying flights between Moscow and Cairo could be restored in February. There was no immediate mention of restoring an air link to Sharm el-Sheikh, where the doomed Russian airliner took off.

In Turkey, Putin and Erdogan discussed developments in Syria and the Middle East, as well as bilateral relations, according to the Turkish president's office.

During their news conference, Erdogan said it was their eighth meeting this year and kept calling Putin, "My dear friend," in his statement. Putin also addressed Erdogan as a friend, emphasizing his role in helping negotiate peace settlement in Syria.

They regularly talk by telephone about Syria. Relations between the two countries were tense after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane on the border with Syria in November 2015, but they have restored ties and developed a close rapport on Syria, brokering a deal on safe zones that helped reduce fighting.
A FBI agent and a state fire marshal who were killed on Friday while standing on the shoulder of a highway at the scene of a traffic crash are being remembered by family, friends and co-workers.

FBI Supervisory Special Agent Carlos Wolff, 36, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and Deputy Chief State Fire Marshal Sander Cohen, 33, died when they were struck by a car as they waited for help after Wolff's car crashed on Interstate 270 in Rockville.

"Our Carlos was an amazing father, husband, uncle and brother who made us all very proud," according to a statement from the Wolff family. "He loved serving his country as a part of the FBI. He was always so helpful and giving, not just to his friends but strangers too. Our hearts are broken. We appreciate your prayers during this difficult time."

Wolff leaves behind a wife and two children. He was a graduate of American University.

Gordon Johnson, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Field Office, said Wolff had worked for 11 years in the investigative division at the FBI's headquarters in Washington, D.C.

"The loss will be felt by the entire FBI family, and our thoughts and prayers are with the Wolff family and friends,'' Johnson said.

In addition to his duties with the state fire marshal's office, Cohen was also a lieutenant with the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department. The call for the crash came in at Cohen's own fire station, and a fellow firefighter was the first one on the scene.

"[The firefighter] found him in the road and started CPR and started breathing for him and, unfortunately, she discovered, looked and recognized him," said Eric Bernard, president of the Rockville Fire Department. "And it was very traumatic for her and the shifts."



Firefighters and police escorted Cohen's body during a procession from downtown Baltimore to the Danzansky-Goldberg Funeral Home in Rockville on Saturday.

"I don't think there was a dry eye in this house or anywhere in Rockville. People stopped on the corner, people saluted, cars pulled over, people came out of restaurants. It was very touching," Bernard said.

Cohen had been volunteering since he was just 16.

"It's hard to believe he's not here. We saw him yesterday," Bernard said. "We'll miss him tremendously. The shock and the reality haven't abated yet."

"Were gonna miss Lt. Cohen. We will miss him dearly here and were saddened by it," Rockville Fire Department Chief Jim Vagonis said.
A federal court denied a request Friday by the Archdiocese of Washington to allow it to put Christmas ads on Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority buses.

The archdiocese had filed a federal lawsuit against Metro after the transit agency refused to sell space on buses for Christmas fundraising ads, citing its ban on "issue-oriented advertising."

The suit argued that Metro is "hostile to religion" and violated the Archdiocese's right to freedom of speech and free exercise of religion by rejecting the ad. However, a federal judge rejected that argument and said the transit agency could ban ads featuring a religious theme.

"We are disappointed that the federal court denied our emergency request for an injunction to run our 'Find the Perfect Gift' Advent ad campaign," said Ed McFadden, secretary of communications for the Archdiocese of Washington. "While this preliminary ruling that there should be no room made for us on WMATA buses is disappointing, we will continue in the coming days to pursue and defend our right to share the important message of Christmas in the public square."



The ad design showed shepherds and sheep, as in a classic Nativity scene, with the words "Find the Perfect Gift."

Metro spokeswoman Sherri Ly said rejecting the ad was in line with the agency's policies.

"In 2015, WMATA changed its advertising policy to prohibit issue-oriented advertising, including political, religious and advocacy advertising," she said in a statement. "The ad in question was declined, because it is prohibited by WMATA's current advertising guidelines."

Metro decided to bar all political and religious advertising after an activist group submitted a cartoon depiction of the Prophet Muhammad to run as an ad at Metrorail stations and on buses.
A Maryland high school student who went missing late Saturday was found dead in a wooded area Sunday, devastating his community.

Navid Nicholas Sepehri's body was found in Bethesda after he never got home Saturday night. He was 17 and a senior at Walt Whitman High School.

Sepehri was found dead after he left a party alone despite friends' concerns about his welfare, Montgomery County police and sources told News4.

It's not immediately clear how Sepehri died, but there was no evidence of foul play, Montgomery County police said.

"The circumstances of his death are still under investigation at this time," Cmdr. Paul Liquorie said late Sunday.

In an email to the Whitman High community, Principal Alan Goodwin said "initial information suggests Navids death may have been accidental." Police did not comment on that assessment.

On Monday, Sepehri's friends and classmates took flowers to the area where his body was found and spelled out "NAV" in white votive candles.

Sepehri was last seen about 11:30 Saturday, police said. He went to a party on Elgin Lane that was broken up by police because of noise and suspected underage drinking.

"The caller is anonymous, says there's an underage drinking party at this address," a police dispatcher said. "Loud, there's a bonfire in the backyard."

Police then broke up the party and attendees dispersed.

"The house is controlled. Couple kids ran off," a second person said on police radios.

"If you see any vehicles, stop them. They may possibly be drunk," the dispatcher said.

When the partygoers dispersed, Sepehri's friends offered to call him an Uber. But he said he was OK and disappeared on foot, sources said.

He never arrived home.

He was reported missing after noon Sunday.

Police searched for him, and his body was found near nightfall on the 6500 block of Laverock Lane, in a wooded area near the Bannockburn Swim Club. Sepehri lived less than three miles away.

Whitman High's principal sent an email Sunday informing the school community of the student's death.

"For those of you who knew Navid, we ask that you remember and celebrate his love of art and commitment to others. For those of you who did not know Navid, we ask that you support Navids friends and family during this time of loss," the email said.

Grief counselors were available at the school Monday. Friday was declared Whitman Strong Day. Students will write "hopeful comments on a Whitman Strong paperchain."

"During the day, we hope everyone will express kindness to each other," the principal said in an email.

A medical examiner will determine the manner and cause of Sepehri's death, Sgt. Rebecca Innocenti said Monday.

Anyone with information for police is asked to call 240-773-5070.

Here's the full letter from Whitman High:

Dear Whitman Community,

It is with sadness that I inform you of the death of Navid Sepehri, one of our 12th grade students. Initial information suggests Navids death may have been accidental, but we do not have details at this time. Navids sister, Nika, is a freshman at Whitman, as well.

For those of you who knew Navid, we ask that you remember and celebrate his love of art and commitment to others. For those of you who did not know Navid, we ask that you support Navids friends and family during this time of loss.

It is very difficult for all of us to face the death of a young person. Monday, a support team of psychologists, counselors, and pupil personnel workers from Montgomery County Public Schools will work with our staff members to provide counseling and support to students. Students who need additional support should contact their school counselor. Counselors will be available in the media center all day.

Your child may be coming home with questions and worries. Our community has experienced a tremendous loss in the last weeks. I am confident in our ability to support one another as we grieve the loss of Navid. Please be attentive to each other and keep our staff informed of any way we can support our students.

I know you join me in extending our heartfelt sympathy to Navids family. When we receive word regarding funeral arrangements, I will share the information with you. Again, please do not hesitate to contact the school at 301-320-6600 if you have any concerns or questions.
One person was killed after being shot in East Boston late Sunday afternoon.

According to the Boston Police Department, the shooting happened in the Jeffries Point neighborhood, near the intersection of Orleans and Marginal streets.

The victim, described as an adult male, was transported to an area hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.

The identity of the victim is not known at this time.

According to Boston Police Commissioner William Evans, police received a radio call of a person shot just before 5 p.m. on Sunday.

First responders found the victim suffering from gun shot wounds.

"We don't believe this to be random," said Commissioner Evans to the press, "we believe the parties involved here know each other."

Police are searching for a dark-colored Toyota Rav4 in connection to the shooting.

Investigators believe that the victim was shot inside of the car and then pushed out into the street, according to Evans.

"Something happened in that car," said Evans, "We're looking for the car and the occupants of that car."

The shooting happened down the road from a restaurant, which employees told NBC Boston was packed at the time of the shooting. Police told customers in the restaurant to get away from the windows during the investigation, employees said.

Police asked the restaurant's owners for security camera footage of the street during the time of the shooting.

The last two weeks have seen an uptick in Boston shootings, said Evans. "It seems like everybody has a gun out there," he said, "We've got to work hard to get those guns off the street."

The shooting was the first in East Boston in 2017, and with just three weeks left in the year, Evans expressed regrets that the borough wouldn't be able to claim that record into 2018. "I was hoping we wouldn't have one here this year," he said.

Police are asking for the public's help in identifying suspects and lending information which could lead to an arrest. Anyone with information relevant to the shooting is asked to call (617) 343-4470 or to make an anonymous tip by texting the word 'TIP' to CRIME (27463).



This is a developing story.
A 77-year-old man was arrested Sunday for reports of sexual abuse that allegedly occurred in a daycare facility he helped run in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.

Thomas Claffey faces charges of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child.

State police initially received a report on Thursday of sexual abuse that allegedly occurred at a home daycare facility in 2014. After an investigation conducted in conjunction with the Vermont Department of Children and Families, Claffey was arrested in connection with the charges.

Claffey assisted with running the daycare and at times would aid in supervising the children, said police.

Claffey was released on bail and is due to appear in Caledonia Superior Court on Monday. It's unclear if he has an attorney.

Police are continuing the investigation by interviewing present and former families of the daycare.
A man and woman in Massachusetts are defending their free-standing pole-mounted solar array from neighbors who cant stand the sight of it.

Beverly residents Lola and Richard Eanes say the solar array, which sits near the center of their long driveway, has cut hundreds of dollars off their electric bills.

"For instance, in the first six months of last year we had no bill no electric bill," said Lola Eanes.



Some of their neighbors hired an attorney to prevent a building permit for the array from being awarded about a year ago, but were unsuccessful.

Now that it's up, not everyone is happy with it.

"It's definitely affecting property values," said Beverly resident Mary Downing. "No one wants to look at that."

There are no laws on the books in Beverly about ground-mounted solar panels, but the city is currently working on a proposal that would limit where solar arrays can be built in residential neighborhoods.

Lola Eanes says it's completely within her power to keep the solar array exactly where it is.

"I could see if it's blocking someone ocean or lake view but it's not blocking anybody's view," she said.

Neighbors who have complained say they are looking into other ways to fight it.
State and local leaders celebrated progress made in piping clean water to some residents of Vermont's Bennington County, after their private wells were discovered to have been tainted with a potentially dangerous chemical.

Monday, Gov. Phil Scott, R-Vermont, Attorney General T.J. Donovan, D-Vermont, Deputy Secretary Peter Walke of the Vermont Natural Resources Agency, and members of the legislative delegation from Bennington County gathered in Bennington to witness the start of municipal water service to the first address to receive an upgrade after the contaminated water was discovered.

"I'm really proud to be a Vermonter, and having such high standards for our water," said homeowner Ellen Laplante, whose home is now served by municipal water lines paid for by a settlement with the company blamed for the contamination.

In early 2016, the groundwater supplying Laplante's house and many other private wells in the southwest corner of Vermont was found to be tainted with the chemical PFOA, which has been linked to thyroid disease and certain types of cancer.

The contamination was blamed on an old industrial plant that used that chemical to make non-stick fabrics.

Its owner, Saint-Gobain, agreed this year to a settlement with the state that saw the company pay roughly $20 million to fund the construction of pipes to bring safe municipal water to affected homeowners who previously drank from their own wells.

"We will hold everybody accountable until everybody in this county has access to clean drinking water," Attorney General Donovan said.

Donovan and Gov. Scott acknowledged the job is far from done.

Several hundred families are relying on temporary in-home filters or bottled water as they wait for permanent fixes.

Work on extending municipal water pipes to those homes should all be wrapped up by next fall, Gov. Scott said.

"They've been struggling now for two years," the governor told necn. "I mean, it's a short period of time from a construction standpoint and a design standpoint, but from their standpoint, its probably an eternity. So it couldn't come soon enough, but we're very happy to at least take this first step."

There is a second contaminated site still to deal with on the other side of town, separate from this round of water pipe construction.

Right now, Saint-Gobain and the Vermont Natural Resources Agency are working to address that area, Deputy Secretary Walke said.
An elderly man was airlifted Monday after police say his lit cigarette caused a car fire in Salem, Massachusetts.

Fire officials confirmed around 4 p.m. that crews had responded to a car fire at Salem High School on Wilson Street.

Police say the man, who uses oxygen, suffered burns after lighting a cigarette.

The victim was taken to a Boston-area hospital by medical helicopter, according to police.

No further information was immediately available.
IR 763 699

Figs. from DE 27 52 733

Shapes at issue in the Swiss case

According to a press release from Friday, 8 December 2017 , the German Federal Patent Court found Nestle's German shape mark in the form of a "Nespresso" capsule invalid for coffee based on Article 3(2)(2) German Trade Mark Act , which corresponds to Article 4(1)(2)(ii) Trade Mark Directive ("signs which consist exclusively of the shape, or another characteristic, of goods which is necessary to obtain a technical result". The German act lacks the "another characteristic", which was added by Directive (EU) 2015/2436). The German court found that the essential characteristics of the mark conformed to (the drawings of...) German patent DE 27 52 733 (with a priority of 1976) and were all essential to obtain a technical result.The written grounds for the decision are not yet available. One remark comes to mind: it is too simplistic to look at the drawings of a patent to conclude that a form has a technical effect. The drawings only show an embodiment of an invention, which is defined by the claims. There may be other shapes that achieve the same purpose - which is irrelevant under the ECJ's test ( EU:C:2002:377 - Philips/Remington) - but there may also be elements of the specific embodiment that are not strictly necessary to obtain a technical result. In the case at hand the claims of DE 27 52 733 describe a specific shape of the capsule ("a body having an acute-angled conical shape, the larger diameter defining at its end a flange"), but the domed top part ("hat") of the capsule is not defined by claim 1 (it is claimed in a dependent claim). This led a Swiss court - where the alternative form test is applied also in trade mark law - to find that the overall shape of the Nespresso capsule was not necessary to obtain a technical result. The Swiss court, however, found that in the specific case, there was no legally relevant likelihood of confusion, because the only element of the shape that was not determined by technical necessity (the top or "hat") of the competitor's capsule was sufficiently distinct from the trade marked shape.Since the "alternative form" test is irrelevant under the ECJ's case law, the outcome of the case is hardly surprising, although the decision is likely to be appealed to the Federal Court of Justice given the stakes.If the alternative form test was still alive in trade mark law, the case would raise the interesting question whether the interest to be compatible with the system of a market leader can justify a finding of technical necessity. There are other coffee-capsule-machines which use capsules that look different enough from the Nespresso-capsule as not to cause a likelihood of confusion (e.g., Lavazza's Aroma Point espresso capsules). Under the current interpretation of the law, this is irrelevant.
A moving tribute to American veterans is traveling from Maine to Arlington National Cemetery.

For the 26th year, Wreaths Across America is bringing Maine-made Christmas wreaths to Washington D.C. Volunteers will place the gifts of gratitude at soldiers' graves.

"They are the heroes, they're the protectors and the freedom fighters," said Wreaths Across America Executive Director Karen Worcester. "We need to be the freedom caretakers."

The wreaths are made in Harrington, Maine, by the Worcester Wreath Company. In 1992, the company had a surplus of wreaths, and founder Morrill Worcester decided to bring them to Arlington National Cemetery.

Since then, the Wreaths Across America convoy has become a national tradition. Several tractor trailers carrying hundreds of thousands of wreaths receive police escorts from state to state, stopping in communities to honor veterans.

On Monday, the caravan stopped in Scarborough, Kennebunk, and Kittery, Maine. On their way to honor the fallen, they paid tribute to living veterans like 100-year-old Sgt. Malcolm Foss.

The Kittery native received recognition at two ceremonies, then got to ride in the lead car of the caravan.

"I never expected this," Sgt. Foss said.

He served in WWII in a secret radio intelligence company intercepting Japanese communication while hiding in a hole in a volcano in Hawaii.

"I think it means a lot that people remember our veterans," he said.

The caravan stopped in New Hampshire and Massachusetts Monday. There are stops planned in Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, before laying the wreaths at Arlington Saturday.
Police in Goffstown, New Hampshire are investigating a suspicious item that was dropped off in the police station lobby Sunday afternoon.

According to Goffstown police, security cameras captured a young man approaching the police station carrying a 12-ounce soda bottle around 1:15 p.m. Once in the lobby of the station, footaged showed the man place the bottle on the table with a note suggesting the bottle contained hazardous material.

The suspect then left the building without making contact with police, authorities said.

Officers found a brown-colored liquid inside the bottle. The Goffstown Police Department was placed on a temporary lock down until the New Hampshire State Explosives Disposal Unit arrived and rendered the area safe.

Officers remained able to answer calls for service as the suspicious liquid was safely secured.

The contents of the bottle remain unknown at this time. Further testing will be done on the liquid, said police.

The suspect can be seen in security footage driving a dark grey Honda Accord with New Hampshire license plates. Goffstown police are requesting the public's assistance identifying the suspect captured on camera planting the water bottle. Anyone with information can contact Lt. Hammond at (603) 497-4858.


Students turn to Christ at UEA Christian Union Carols Students turn to Christ at UEA Christian Union Carols

On Thursday, December 7 over 500 students attended Norwich Cathedral for the University of East Anglias Christian Union Christmas Carol Service, with many responding by giving their lives to Christ.
A case report titled, Acute Solar Retinopathy Imaged With Adaptive Optics, Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography, and En Face Optical Coherence Tomography, appeared in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology, where the authors describe the damage caused by the suns rays to the eyes of a woman who viewed the recent solar eclipse without adequate eye protection. This type of eye damage is termed acute solar retinopathy.

According to the doctors in New York, the woman in question came in within three days after the solar eclipse on 21st of August. She had viewed the eclipse without using the protective eye glasses. She said she had seen the sun partially covered with the moon (70 percent coverage) several times briefly for around 6 seconds without the glasses. She also viewed the eclipse with protective glasses for 15-20 seconds. In a few hours after the eclipse, she developed blurred and distorted vision and impaired color vision. She saw a black spot in the central part of her vision in her left eye as well.

Her eyes were viewed with the help of optics scanning light ophthalmoscopy and en face optical coherence tomography. An Amsler grid tests showed a yellow white spot in the centre of her left retina. Optical coherence tomography angiography was normal in both eyes. Images showed photoreceptor mosaic disturbances in the foveal cone region. Microperimetry of the retina showed the central region of the affected eye was completely damaged.

Dr. Avnish Deobhakta, a retina surgeon at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai in New York explained that there was a crescent shaped damage over the retina of the left eye that was the exact image of the sun at the time of the eclipse. He added that this was one of the most severe cases of eye damage after the eclipse that they had seen. A total of 22 patients had come in with eye damage he said. They all complained of blurred vision and of these only 3 had some amount of retina damage. The other two patients had mild damage to their retina that healed, Deobhakta said. It was this young woman who has shown persistent damage.

According to eye experts, the few number of people who experienced eye damage after the eclipse shows that the public education campaign that explained people not to look at the eclipse without protection, was mostly successful. A whopping 215 million people has witnessed the eclipse. They add that minor injuries should have recovered by now. Any residual damage still would mean a permanent damage to vision. In this case, the central spot on the womans left retina persisted even after six weeks of the eclipse.

Authors conclude that acute solar retinopathy is a rare form of eye damage that is a result of toxicity caused by light waves including the excess short-wavelength visible light along with heat damage that comes from near-infrared radiation. They add that young people are particularly vulnerable and they should be warned about the dangers of sungazing directly without specific eye gear and protection.
Choice of anesthetic gas is a significant contributor to emissions, particularly in North American hospitals using desflurane, instead of cheaper, low-carbon alternatives.

The first analysis of the carbon footprint of surgical suites at three hospitals in the UK, Canada and the USA highlights that the choice of anesthetic gases used in surgery can be a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions from operating theaters.

The study, published in The Lancet Planetary Health journal, highlights the potential for reducing emissions in health care settings and at the same time potentially reducing costs.

The health sector is one of the largest service industries, with a considerable carbon footprint. In the USA, the health care system generates 8-10% of all greenhouse gas emissions. In the UK, the National Health Service is responsible for 25% of public sector emissions.

The new study measured the carbon footprint of three surgical suites in Canada (Vancouver General Hospital), the USA (University of Minnesota Medical Centre) and the UK (John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford). The researchers measured direct emissions (eg, volatile gases), indirect emissions (eg, electricity consumption), and other emissions (eg surgical waste), according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Data were collected for each source and evaluated during 2011.

The annual carbon footprint of surgical suites ranged from approximately 3218 tonnes of CO 2 equivalents (CO 2 e) to 5187 tonnes of CO 2 e. While there were differences in the size and case load among all three surgical suites, there was also wide differences in the major contributors to greenhouse emissions. For instance, at Vancouver and Minnesota, anesthetic gases were responsible for 63% and 51% of the total surgical emissions, compared to only 4% at Oxford.

Emissions due to anesthetic gases accounted for approximately 2000 tonnes of CO 2 e at each North American site  ten-fold higher than the anesthetic gas emissions from the UK hospital. The authors say this is largely the result of a higher usage of desflurane in the two North American hospitals. Desflurane has a high global warming potential (GWP), approximately 5 to 18 times higher than other anesthetic gases, such as isoflurane and sevoflurane. It is also expensive, accounting for 83-86% of the cost of volatile agents at the two North American hospitals.

Dr Andrea MacNeill, Vancouver General Hospital, BC, Canada, and lead author of the study says:

Not only is desflurane a primary contributor to global anesthetic gas emissions, it is also one of the most expensive anesthetic gases. One of the greatest barriers to widespread implementation of low-carbon practices is the lack of awareness regarding the environmental impacts of anesthetic choices. The climate impacts of surgery are generally accepted as necessary for the provision of quality care, but our study shows that its possible to reduce the carbon footprint of surgery, which also reduce costs, without compromising patient care.

Due to the building standards of operating theaters, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning made use up 90-99% of overall theater energy (compared to 52% in general inpatient health-care facilities).

In Oxford, energy consumption was responsible for 84% of site emissions, compared to 17% in Vancouver and 36% in Minnesota. The authors say that reducing heating, ventilation and air conditioning in theaters overnight and at weekends, while leaving a minimum number of theaters online for emergencies, could significantly reduce emissions.

The average emissions per operating theater, based on this study, were 188 tonnes of CO 2 e per theater per year. Assuming the hospitals studied were representative of their respective regions, extrapolating these results to the number of operating theaters in the UK, USA and Canada would yield a total carbon footprint estimated at 9.7 million tonnes of CO 2 e per year, equivalent to 2 million passenger vehicles.

The study did not include emissions involved in the manufacture, sterilization or transport of surgical items (including pharmaceuticals) so the study likely underestimates the emissions.

Writing in a linked Comment, Dr Tim Taylor, University of Exeter Medical School (UK) and Phil Mackie, Scottish Public Health Network (UK) say:
Intensive surveillance including a dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) exam every six months was far more effective in detecting breast cancer in younger women with a high-risk genetic profile than an annual mammogram, according to a research team based at the University of Chicago Medicine and the University of Washington, Seattle.

The results, presented Dec. 8, 2017 at the annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, suggest that for this population, intensive efforts to "downstage" aggressive breast cancer by finding small early lesions in women with high-risk mutations are crucial to improving outcomes.

"This study demonstrates, for the first time, that aggressive breast cancers can be caught early, without excessive recalls or biopsies," said Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD, a distinguished service professor of medicine and human genetics and director of the University of Chicago's Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics. "Because of intensive surveillance and high quality care the majority of high-risk women in this study--most of whom had highly penetrant genetic mutations--have not developed breast cancer."

The study was designed to evaluate psychosocial distress levels and quality of life in women undergoing intensive surveillance.

Between 2004 and December 2016, the researchers recruited 305 women into a clinical trial. Volunteers had to have a lifetime breast cancer risk greater than 20 percent. More than half of the women enrolled (53%) had mutations in breast cancer related genes, such as BRCA1, BRCA2 or CDH1. Ten volunteers dropped out before the first round of screening.

The women who enrolled had to have mutations in one of 11 known breast cancer-related genes, or a diagnosis of breast cancer or carcinoma in situ before age 35, or a mother or sister diagnosed with breast cancer before age 50 (before age 40 for those of African ancestry). The mean age at entry was 43.3 years.

After evaluation by a physician and a genetic counselor, participants were scheduled to undergo a clinical breast examination and a DCE-MRI scan every six months, and a digital mammogram every 12 months. Study subjects also had BROCA panel genetic tests looking for 12 genes associated with a predisposition to breast cancer. Those with high genetic risk mutations who completed five years of the study protocol were offered continued screening. (Enrollment closed in December 2016.)

Over the course of the study, the researchers performed 2,111 DCE-MRIs (on average, about seven per participant) and 1,223 mammograms (four per participant). All cancers detected during the study were smaller than a centimeter.

The researchers found 17 cancers: four ductal carcinoma in situ and 13 early stage breast cancers. Fifteen of those cancers occurred in participants with pathogenic mutations. Eleven involved BRCA1, three involved BRCA2, and one involved CDH1. None of the cancers had spread to the lymph nodes. The mean tumor size was 0.61 centimeter.

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The 17 patients who developed a cancer were followed continuously for a median of 5.3 years (range 0.5 to 11 years). All remain alive and free of systemic disease. Anxiety levels decreased over time and quality of life for the participants improved.

The study authors recommend "further interventional studies evaluating this novel screening approach to personalize breast cancer risk assessment and prevention."

In this study, DCE-MRI every 6 months "performed well for early detection of invasive breast cancer in high-risk women, accomplishing the ultimate goal of breast cancer screening--detecting node-negative, invasive tumors less than 1 centimeter," said Olopade, an American Cancer Society Clinical Research professor. "These scans performed especially well in BRCA1 mutation carriers, who are at risk for aggressive subtypes of breast cancer."

"Mammograms remain important for most women," Olopade said. "But for women at high risk who are getting a DCE-MRI every six months, annual mammograms could probably be eliminated." For this group of younger women at significantly elevated risk, especially those with a BRCA1 mutation, we strongly support getting a DCE-MRI every six months."

"The central goal of our study was to understand the needs of the highest risk women," said study co-author Mary Claire King, PhD, professor of genome sciences and of medicine at the University of Washington and the Walt Disney-American Cancer Society Research Professor for Breast Cancer. King has advocated for all women to be offered testing for BRCA1 and BRCA2 at about age 30, regardless of personal or family history of cancer, so that women with mutations can take action to prevent cancer in their futures.

"My concern is that mammography and MRI be used in ways that make sense given a woman's personal genetics," she said. "Women with mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 have very different needs for surveillance for breast disease than do women with no mutations in these genes. This is particularly true for healthy young women with mutations. It's truly critical to offer intensive surveillance to still-healthy women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations."

The American Cancer Society (ACS) currently recommends an annual DCE-MRI as well as an annual mammogram for women who are at high risk, typically starting at age 30.
In a pair of clinical trials stretching from Philadelphia to Tokyo, the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy Kymriah (formerly known as CTL019) demonstrated long-lasting remissions in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients. Results from a global, multisite trial will be presented today at the 59th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition in Atlanta (Abstract #577). Results from the single-site study, with follow-up extending past two years, will be published today in the New England Journal of Medicine. Both studies were led by Stephen J. Schuster, MD, from the Abramson Cancer Center and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

In the global, multi-center, Novartis-sponsored trial known as JULIET, 38 percent of patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common form of NHL, who received the investigational treatment had a partial or complete response at three months. About 73 percent of patients who responded remained cancer-free at six months. The trial included 27 sites in 10 countries across North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. In total, 81 patients were infused with CAR T cells and evaluated for a response. At three months, 26 patients (32 percent) achieved a complete response, while five (6 percent) achieved a partial response. The results will be presented today as part of the ASH meeting press program.

The research team says the updated results from an earlier study, of patients treated at Penn's Abramson Cancer Center, provides additional evidence that the responses to the new therapy can be highly durable - an important milestone in the fight against a type of cancer which is diagnosed in 56,000 patients per year in the United States. The New England Journal of Medicine published these data today. Among 28 patients who received the therapy in the single-site pilot trial after their cancers had come back following standard treatments, 43 percent of DLBCL patients achieved complete remission, as did 71 percent of patients with follicular lymphoma, the second most common form of the disease. All patients who were in remission at six months are still in remission, after a median follow-up of 28.6 months.

"Taken together, our data from both trials show that most patients who are in remission at three months stay in remission," said Schuster, who is the Robert and Margarita Louis-Dreyfus Professor in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Lymphoma Clinical Care and Research in the Perelman School of Medicine and director of the Lymphoma Program at the Abramson Cancer Center.

Carl June, MD, the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy, director of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, and director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at Penn, is the senior author on the single-site study.

Two-thirds of DLBCL cases are successfully treated with frontline chemotherapy. When that fails, a high-dose chemotherapy combined with an autologous stem cell transplant can potentially lead to long-term disease-free survival. But only half of these relapsed/refractory patients are candidates for this approach, and for those who are, the expected three-year event-free survival rate is just 20 percent in the current era of frontline immunochemotherapy. Follicular lymphoma can usually be treated with frontline chemotherapy, although 20 percent of patients relapse within two years. These patients have a five-year overall survival rate of just 50 percent using currently available therapies.

"About a third of patients who fail all current therapies, even transplant, could now have a form of therapy that may offer them durable remissions," Schuster said. "This therapy has the potential to save lives if approved by the FDA for this indication."

Kymriah was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in August 2017 for the treatment of patients up to 25 years of age with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) that is refractory or in second or later relapse. Penn and Novartis formed a global research and development collaboration in 2012, the result of which was the first therapy based on gene transfer approved by the FDA. Results from JULIET served as the basis for a recent application submitted by Novartis to the FDA for approval of CTL019 for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who are ineligible for or relapse after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). Novartis is also seeking approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for CTL019 in pediatric and young adult patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell ALL and adult patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL who are ineligible for ASCT.

The treatment modifies patients' own immune T cells, which are collected and reprogrammed to potentially seek and destroy the patients' cancer cells. After being infused back into patients' bodies, these newly built "hunter" cells both multiply and attack, targeting cells that express a protein called CD19. Tests reveal that the army of hunter cells can grow to more than 10,000 new cells for each single engineered cell patients receive, producing high remission rates. They can also survive in the body for years. CTL019 uses the 4-1BB costimulatory domain in its chimeric antigen receptor to enhance cellular expansion and persistence.

Cytokine-release syndrome (CRS), a toxicity associated with CAR T therapy which includes varying degrees of flu-like symptoms, with high fevers, nausea, and muscle pain, and can require ICU-level care, was reported in 58 percent of the patients in multi-site study. Fifteen of those patients (26 percent) required treatment with tocilizumab, which is the standard therapy for the toxicity. All of those patients recovered from their CRS. Other toxicities included infections (34 percent of patients), cytopenias or low blood count (36 percent), neurologic events (21 percent), febrile neutropenia (13 percent), and a metabolic abnormality called tumor lysis syndrome (one percent). All of the toxicities resolved on their own or with treatment, and there were no treatment-related deaths.

In the single-site trial, CRS was reported in five patients. Only one of those patients required treatment with tocilizumab. That patient recovered and achieved a complete response. Eleven patients reported temporary neurologic symptoms, including delirium. Ten of the 11 cases were self-limited and resolved without ICU care. The 11th case resolved after treatment.

Both studies were supported by Novartis. The single-site trial was also supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (1R01CA165206), as well as through philanthropic support for the Lymphoma Program at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania from James and Frances Maguire and the Frances Maguire Lymphoma Research Fund, Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, and Sharyn Berman and the Richard Berman Family Funds for CLL and Lymphomas.

The Abramson Cancer Center is presenting multiple other CAR T studies at the ASH Meeting that look beyond CTL019, including:
A group of investigators from Mayo Clinic and multiple academic research centers in Italy have identified a genetic model for predicting outcomes in patients with primary myelofibrosis who are 70 years or younger and candidates for stem cell transplant to treat their disease. The group's findings were presented today at the 59th American Society of Hematology annual meeting in Atlanta by lead authors Alessandro Vannucchi, M.D. from the University of Florence and Ayalew Tefferi, M.D., a hematologist at Mayo Clinic.

"Myelofibrosis is a rare type of chronic leukemia that disrupts the body's normal production of blood cells," says Dr. Tefferi. "Prior to this study, the most comprehensive predictive model for outcomes in myelofibrosis, utilized mostly clinical variables, such as age, hemoglobin level, symptoms, white blood cell count and the percentage of immature cells in the peripheral blood."

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Dr. Tefferi says he and his colleagues incorporated new genetic tests in the model for gene mutations including JAK2, CALR, and MPL, which are known to drive myelofibrosis. He says the new model also tests for the presence or absence of high-risk mutations such as ASXL1 and SRSF2. "Our model is also unique in that we developed it for patients who are age 70 years or younger who may still be candidates for a stem cell transplant to treat their disease," Dr. Tefferi says.

Researchers studied 805 patients with primary myelofibrosis who were 70 years of age or younger. Patients were recruited from multiple centers in Italy and from Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. The Italian and Minnesota groups formed two independent learning and validation cohorts. "We were surprised by how similar the predictive models performed in two completely separate patient databases," Dr. Tefferi says.

Dr. Tefferi says that genetic information is increasingly being used as a prognostic biomarker in patients with primary myelofibrosis and he anticipates the potential use of such an approach along with relevant clinical, cytogenetic and mutational data for other hematologic and non-hematologic cancers.
Phasefocus continues to increase its global international profile with the appointment of Nuohai Life Sciences as the companys exclusive distributor for mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.

Nuohai Life Sciences will provide sales, service and technical support for the Livecyte Cell Imaging System throughout the region, building on their reputation for introducing innovative new technologies for the Life Science Industry into the Chinese market.

The Nuohai Life Science Team

Livecyte is a unique quantitative label free cell analysis system which delivers continuous tracking and analysis of individual cells within large populations. The versatile imaging system requires only low level illumination, creating a more natural experimental environment enabling users to gain a realistic and comprehensive understanding of cell behaviour.

With headquarters in Shanghai, in addition to 8 local offices, Nuohai Life Sciences employs a team of highly trained scientific staff enabling them to provide both technical and commercial support in their home market.

The addition of Livecyte to the Nuohai portfolio supplements our existing range of Live Cell imaging systems allowing us to provide a comprehensive selection of experimental and research equipment to meet the growing needs of the research community. We are delighted to have been appointed as the Phasefocus distributor and the opportunities this brings to provide our customers with the best possible solution to address their imaging needs. Wei Zhu, director of Tianyi Consulting

Dr Martin Humphry, Phasefocus CEO added, China is an important strategic market for any company and the fact that Nuohai Life Sciences is a well-established supplier of cell imaging products into the Life Science Industry here made them a natural choice as the Livecyte distributor. Their extensive network of contacts in the Chinese academic world will introduce Livecyte to a whole new audience, driving product awareness and translating into unit sales and revenue growth.
An international research team headed by the University of Bern and the Netherlands Cancer Institute has developed 3D cell cultures in which genes can be specifically modified. They allow the study of genes that may cause therapy resistance in breast cancer. This knowledge may further improve the use of targeted anti-cancer drugs.

Drug resistance remains the major cause of death of patients suffering from metastasized cancer. Unfortunately, there is no ideal therapy that suits all patients. Moreover, the most efficient therapy should be used right from the start to increase the chance of cure and to minimize the risk of drug resistance. Therefore, an important goal in modern cancer research is the development of individualized therapies for cancer patients, the so-called precision medicine. In close collaboration with the Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) in Amsterdam and the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht, a research team at the University of Bern has generated 3D cell cultures (so-called organoids) to investigate mechanisms of drug resistance in breast cancer and to improve current therapy. The corresponding article was just published in "Nature Methods".

Targeted analyses using molecular scissors

How to identify the best therapy for an individual patient? "We are studying whether so-called organoids are useful to elucidate mechanisms of therapy resistance and to predict therapy response," says Sven Rottenberg from the Vetsuisse faculty of the University of Bern. For this purpose, the scientists are culturing the tumor cells in a three-dimensional matrix and complement the culture medium with special growth factors. Using the molecular scissors CRISPR/Cas9, specific genes in these 3D cell cultures can be modified to investigate the effect on therapy response. This approach may be useful to mimic therapy response of patients and to find the optimal therapy in vitro.

A possible alternative to animal experiments

In contrast to classical cell cultures, organoids have major advantages, explains Sven Rottenberg: "This method opens new possibilities, since 3D organoids grow much more efficiently in the Petri dish - and they keep special features as well, including the typical cellular heterogeneity of cancer." This is unlike the few selected tumor cells that grow under conventional cell culture conditions and often do not represent the original tumor anymore. The hope is that this approach replaces the cumbersome transplantation of human tumor fragments into mice. "This would reduce the number of complex animal experiments," adds Rottenberg. Nevertheless, he also sees work ahead: "Regarding therapy response we see in our model that not all organoids tested in vitro predict the real in vivo response correctly. For some tumors, we are still missing factors that influence drug response and that cannot be modeled sufficiently with the current organoid approach." The research group of Sven Rottenberg is working on further optimizing the cell culture conditions to put the puzzle of drug resistance mechanisms together.

Support from the European Framework Program Horizon 2020

Sven Rottenberg has been working at the University of Bern since August 2014, closely together with the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam. His research is supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) and the Dutch Cancer League (KWF). In the past year, Rottenberg received support from the European Research Council (ERC) for researching cancer therapy resistance. The ERC supports excellent research in the framework of the Horizon 2020 program.
* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati received the 2022 Adepi Award

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the World Intellectual Property Review's "Influential Women in IP" of 2020.

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the Managing Intellectual Property magazine's "Fifty Most Influential People" of 2018.

* IPKat founder and Blogmeister Emeritus Jeremy Phillips listed as one of the Managing Intellectual Property magazine's "Fifty Most Influential People" of 2005, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

* Recommended by the European Patent Office as reading material for candidates for the European Qualifying Examinations, 2013.

* Listed as "Top Legal Blog" in The Times Online, March 2011.

2010 ABA Journal 100. * One of the only two non-US blogs listed in the Blawg100.

* Court Reporter Top Copyright Blog award winner, November 2010.

* Number 1 in the 2010 Top Copyright Blog list compiled by the Copyright Litigation Blog, July 2010.

* Selected by the United States Library of Congress for inclusion in its historic collections of Internet materials related to Legal Blawgs as of 2010.

* Top Patent Blog poll 2009: 3rd out of 50 in the "Favourite Patent Blog" poll and 2nd out of 50 in the "Most-read" poll.

Blog of the Year, 20 August 2008. * ComputerWeekly IT Law and Governance, 20 August 2008.
A study of nearly 3,000 women with early stage breast cancer indicates a recent, significant decline in the use of chemotherapy despite the lack of any change in national treatment recommendations or guidelines, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of Michigan.

The findings reflect a growing acknowledgement by oncologists and patients that for some women, the harms of chemotherapy may outweigh its potential benefits. The study also revealed that physicians are more likely to turn to tumor genomic testing when a patient expresses a treatment preference that doesn't match her physician's recommendations.

"For patients with early stage breast cancer, we've seen a significant decline in chemotherapy use over the last few years without a real change in evidence," said Allison Kurian, MD, associate professor of medicine and of health research and policy at Stanford. "This likely reflects a change in the culture of how physicians are practicing, and a move toward using tumor biology to guide treatment choices rather than solely relying on clinical measures."

Kurian is the lead author of the study, which will be published online Dec. 11 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Steven Katz, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and of health management and policy at the University of Michigan, is the senior author.

"Our study shows how breast cancer is a model for how doctors have driven advances in personalized medicine into the exam room to reduce overtreatment," said Katz.

Surveying women, oncologists

The researchers surveyed 5,080 women treated for early stage breast cancer between 2013 and 2015 in Georgia and Los Angeles. Among them, 2,926 had stage-1 or -2 breast cancers that were positive for estrogen receptor expression and negative for human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 expression. (Receptor expression status is often used to guide treatment recommendations for women with breast cancer.)

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After categorizing the women based on the involvement of neighboring lymph nodes, the researchers asked them whether their oncologists had recommended chemotherapy and whether they had received it. The researchers also surveyed 504 of the oncologists treating these early stage breast cancer patients about how they decided whether to recommend chemotherapy for the patients.

Kurian and her colleagues found that from 2013 to 2015, there was a decrease from 34.5 percent to 21.3 percent in chemotherapy use in study participants. During the same period, the participants reported a decline in chemotherapy recommendations by their oncologists from 44.9 percent to 31.6 percent.

Chemotherapy use in patients with no lymph node involvement declined from 26.6 percent to 14.1 percent; in patients with lymph node involvement, it declined from 81.1 percent to 64.2 percent.

Finally, 67.4 percent of oncologists surveyed indicated they would order tumor genomic testing to estimate a lymph node-positive woman's risk of cancer recurrence if the woman disagreed with her doctor's recommendation to receive chemotherapy. In contrast, only 17.5 percent would order the test if the patient and doctor were in agreement about her course of treatment.

"We believe this study indicates that physicians are attempting to be more selective in their recommendations and to spare patients toxicity when possible," said Kurian. "As personalized medicine becomes more widely available, doctors are using test results as part of their dialogue with patients about their preferences and overall treatment goals. But the long-term outcomes of these recent changes in chemotherapy use are uncertain."
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First look - Han Solo's first "wife" Sana Starros in her first solo series

The Marvel Comics' original character Sana Starros gets her own series
Explosion in New York at Manhattan bus terminal, Bangladeshi-origin man reportedly arrested

New Delhi : A bomb exploded at the start of Monday morning rush hour at the city's transportation hub and a man, said to be of Bangladeshi-origin, was arrested as a suspect, according to media reports.

Retired New York detective, Wally Zeins, told WNYW Fox TV that according to his contacts in the police department, the suspect was from Bangladesh and lived in Brooklyn.

WPIX TV also reported that according to police, the suspect was of Bangladeshi origin and he was injured when the explosive device went off and is hospitalised.

He came to the US seven years ago from Bangladesh, WABC TV reported. Officials did not name the suspect, but said that he was in his 20s.

The bomb, which was likely a pipe bomb, did not cause much damage. Initial reports said that only four people were injured.

SEE IT: Photos personnel on scene near the suspects house in Brooklyn that injured at least 2 in Manhattan, pic.twitter.com/JhY0t3Sbvz  NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) December 11, 2017

This is the second terrorist attack on New York in less than two months. A terrorist drove a truck into pedestrians near the World Trade Center on October 31, killing eight people.

The explosion took place in a passageway connecting trains in the Times Square underground metro system adjoining the interstate bus terminal disrupting the modern commute for thousands of New Yorkers.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal was evacuated and shut down as scores buses headed to the city from suburbs and other states. The Times Square subway station, the city's busiest was closed.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.

Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.

A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.
CHARLESTON -- Students from Charleston High School visited Booth Library on the campus of Eastern Illinois University on Nov. 13-14.

The students were conducting research for expository research papers on current events. The students took a tour of the library and were given a demonstration on finding resources both on the bookshelves and through the librarys online databases.

During the spring semester, Booth Librarys regular hours are 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 1 a.m. Sunday. For more information on the library, visit the website, www.library.eiu.edu; call 581-6072; or find the library on Facebook or Twitter.
If Alabama voters on Tuesday elect Roy Moore to the Senate, the Donald Trump-diseased party once known as the Republicans may as well call themselves Roypublicans.

There will be no way to shake the stench of this homophobic, Islamophobic, sexist, racist apologist and accused pedophile. He is them, and they are him. Any pretense of tolerance and egalitarianism, already damaged by a Republican history of words and deeds, will be completely obliterated.

There will be no way to simply say that Moore is the abominable outgrowth of Alabama voters anger.

Moore has been fully endorsed by the Republican president of the United States, the leader of his party, and is now fully supported by the Republican National Committee. Last week, R.N.C. Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told CNN: The president has said we want to keep this seat Republican. The R.N.C. is the political arm of the White House, and we want to support the presidents agenda.

The pre-Trump Republican Party is dead; The zombie Trump party now lives in its stead, devoid of principle, feasting on fear and rage, foreign to moral framing.
MATTOON -- The Mattoon Police Department's chief, Jason Taylor, is new to this position but has 20 years of experience serving with this police force.

The Mattoon native, who joined the department in 1997, worked his way up the ranks of the patrol and investigation divisions before being promoted to deputy chief in 2010. Taylor was recently promoted to the department's top post to replace the retiring chief, Jeff Branson.

"Police officers are public servants, and that includes me. This police department cares about the lives of each and every citizen. We're here to protect and serve them," Taylor said as part of a recent interview.

Taylor's service has included working in investigations from 1998 to 2005, during which time he was an inspector with the East Central Illinois Task Force from 1999 to 2000. He also has worked with the patrol division, including serving as a patrol lieutenant from 2005 to 2010.

"We have a tremendous group of people here," Taylor said. "I'm very proud of them and honored to be associated with them. I wish I could honor each one of them individually. Each one deserves it."

In 2003, the Mattoon police force honored Taylor as its officer of the year regarding the successful three-year investigation of property damage to farm equipment in Coles and Cumberland counties. He also received this honor in 2009 regarding an officer-involved shooting at Sunrise Apartments. His education as a law enforcement administrator has included being part of an FBI National Academy session.

As chief, Taylor said one of his priorities will be to maintain a quality service through judicious use of taxpayer dollars. Taylor said he learned the value of keeping a tight budget while growing up on a farm. Taylor noted that he still farms 700 acres of corn and soybeans with Gary Kuhns, and he has a small heard of Angus cattle.

Taylor said he will keep a tight budget while striving to meet his goals, which include getting more officers trained to do forensic investigations on computers, smartphones and tablets. He said the training takes a few weeks, but it takes about a year for an officer to develop proficiency.

As chief, Taylor said his No. 1 priority will be to maintain the sense of peace and security found in small-town America that Mattoon residents expect and deserve.

"Our biggest challenges come from society itself. I read an opinions piece (recently) that stated, basically, our society has suffered a gradual decline in a sense of what is sacred and what is shameful," Taylor said. "That statement resonated with me. I've observed it."

For example, Taylor said the department recently arrested a Mattoon resident on a charge of conducting an online fundraising scam. He said this suspect is alleged to have falsely claimed to have cancer.

"Police officers see the best and worst in people. Often in the same shift. Look at the school shooting," Taylor said, referencing the Sept. 20 shooting at Mattoon High School in which a student was wounded.

The alleged shooter, a student, was subdued by a teacher and the police department's on-site school resource officer. Taylor said one of his priorities will be to get the department's second school resource officer in place next semester and to fill the vacancy in the police force that will be created by this promotion.

Reflecting on his background, Taylor said the people who have been important to him in his career were "first and foremost" his parents and his wife, Myra. He and his wife have three children. Taylor said former Mattoon police Chief Dave O'Dell also played a large role in shaping him as a young officer.

"Dave used to say, 'This isn't a job; it's a career.' I've never seen a harder-working public servant than Dave O'Dell," Taylor said. "He was very influential on this department, and on my career. Lessons I learned from him about how to conduct police work and treat people are still employed at this department today. And if I do my job correctly, they will remain in effect tomorrow."

Taylor said another important lesson that he learned came when he had about three months under his belt as a patrol officer. Taylor said he was more than willing to lock up what he viewed to be the "bad guys."

"Lt. Alan Price explained to me that, 'The job of a policeman isn't to punish; that right is reserved by the court.' That simple lesson made a large impact in how I viewed police work and on my career," Taylor said.
An explosion Monday morning at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan is, in the words of Police Commissioner James O'Neill, a "terror-related incident."

The explosion happened on a walkway below ground near 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue. The suspect, Akayed Ullah, and three other people were injured.

Information on what is known about the suspect is emerging.

Who is he?

-- Police identified the suspect as Akayed Ullah, a 27-year-old man.

-- He lives in Brooklyn and is of Bangladeshi descent, two law enforcement sources said.

-- Police are asking anyone who may have any information about him or the incident to call a terror hotline at 888-NYC-SAFE.

Driver-for-hire license

-- Ullah held a New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission for-hire vehicle driver's license from March 2012 through March 2015, NYC TLC Deputy Commissioner for Public Affairs Allan J. Fromberg said in a statement to CNN.

-- That license lapsed and was not renewed in March of 2015, Fromberg said.

-- Ullah was not licensed to drive a NYC yellow taxi, he said.

-- "As taxi and for-hire vehicle drivers are independent contractors and not employees, I have no way of knowing whether he drove for any particular base, or whether he simply got the license but didn't drive at all," Fromberg said. "That said, since he held an FHV license, if in fact he did drive, we do know that it could not have been a yellow taxi."

The device

-- The suspect wore an "improvised low-tech explosive device attached to his body. He intentionally detonated that device," O'Neill said.

-- Ullah told police he made the device at his workplace, according to a senior New York law enforcement official and a city official being briefed on the investigation.

-- The device was a pipe bomb affixed to his person with a combination of Velcro and zip ties, John Miller, Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counter Terrorism, said.

Possible motive

-- Recent Israeli actions in Gaza compelled Ullah to carry out the attack, a law enforcement source said. The suspect was upset, in his words, with the "incursion into Gaza," the source said, but did not elaborate on what incursion he may have been alluding to. Israel launched airstrikes this weekend against what it said were Hamas targets in Gaza after several rockets were fired out of Gaza towards Israel. This came amid widespread protests over President Trump's move to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

-- Asked if the suspect claimed connection to ISIS, O'Neill told reporters that "he did make statements" but refrained from disclosing what he said.

-- Authorities are conducting background checks on Ullah.

Neighbors

-- Alan Butrico owns a residential building next door to the building where he says Ullah and his family live.

-- Butrico said Ullah lives in the basement, his sister on the first floor and his brother on the top floor.

-- Neighbors told Butrico they had heard fighting and yelling at Ullah's home during the past two nights.

His injuries

-- Ullah is in custody and is now at Bellevue Hospital. He is being treated for lacerations and burns to his hands and abdomen.

This story has been updated with more information about Ullah's past employment as a for-hire driver.

CNN's Kristina Sgueglia, Brynn Gingras, Shimon Prokupecz, Sonia Moghe and Lawrence Crook III contributed to this report
Monday, December 11, 2017 Look But Don't Touch: Sensational Sex Charges Rock Roundhouse And The Fallout Begins, Plus: Gonzales Goes For Light Guv And Remembering Les Houston Lobbyist Vanessa Alarid says she hopes her male friends don't "treat me with kid gloves" now that she has publicly accused former legislator Thomas Garcia of sexually harassing her in 2009 and demanding sex to vote in favor of a bill she was supporting. Never mind kid gloves. . .



When the legislative session kicks off next month one veteran lobbyist says he will be careful even shaking hands--with members of either sex. It's that bad.



Alarid's charges were first revealed in



In the Alarid case there was no question about a line being crossed, but it seems even what was once viewed as innocuous behavior---a warm embrace, a peck on the cheek, a compliment on appearance---may be going the way of the transistor radio at the hallways of the testosterone-laced Roundhouse. It's just too risky to touch. Everyone is going to have to wear their kid gloves until this is figured out.



The social whirl of Santa Fe in recent years isn't anything like it was when state government was swimming in cash. The parties are fewer and more subdued, reflecting the times, say longtime lobbyists but there are still fun times to be had.



GOP State Rep. Kelly Fajardo, who has taken on



THE LIGHT GUV RACE



Mayor Gonzales When we were last with you we wondered of Dem Silver City state Senator Howie Morales and if he would remain the front-runner for the '18 lieutenant governor nomination if Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales launched a bid. Well,



Gonzales is ending a somewhat troubled tenure as mayor of Santa Fe and recently said he was retiring from political life to spend more time with his family. So much for that.



Gonzales would be the first openly gay man to win the statewide nomination for lt. governor. His bid comes on the heels of ABQ Senator Michel Padilla withdrawing from the contest because of decade-old sex harassment charges.



There will be problems for Gonzales in the conservative rural areas of the state party. And with two of their own--Padilla and former state Rep. Garcia being taken down by sex harassment charges--the Dems are going to want to move the issue of sex--in all its variations--to the back burner. That points to Morales, unless he has something shocking hiding in his past.



Morales has been around a while--he ran for the Guv nomination in 2014--and can't exactly be called a fresh face, but he seems more fresh than the shopworn Gonzales who suffered a devastating loss when in Santa Fe this year he backed a losing tax proposal on soda.



Former ABQ state Rep. Rick Miera may be the perfect light guv candidate on paper, but he has not made a deep impression and now faces a struggle against Morales and Gonzales. The rest of the field trails far behind.



On the GOP side the light guv race is, well, light. Michelle Garcia Holmes, who recently ran as an independent for ABQ mayor, has now announced she will seek the GOP nod for lieutenant governor. She is the only announced candidate. ABQ GOP State Senator Mark Moores has been mentioned as a possible but he told the ABQ Journall's Dan Boyd he is not going to run.



LES HOUSTON



Aragon and Houston Speaking of lieutenant governor, it was in 1974 as a student reporter that I first met former ABQ state Senator Les Houston. He was campaigning for the Dem nomination for lieutenant governor. He lost that one and lost again when he sought the 1982 Dem Guv nomination. He later switched parties and ran for the GOP Guv nomination in 1990. He never made it to the top of the heap but he made an impact at the Roundhouse.



After politics he became a prominent Santa Fe lobbyist. Houston, 81,



In 1987 Republican Houston joined with Dem Senator Manny Aragon and caused a major stir. They tried to share the Senate President Pro Tem position, but the deal was struck down by the state Supreme Court. They were some political odd couple.



We take credit for coining the phrase "Manny Houston" but we ran it by Manny one day back then and he didn't laugh.



The picture posted today of Manny and Les comes from Manny's "going away" party when many of his longtime friends gathered to wish him well as he was about to enter federal prison on corruption charges. The photo was first shown



Here's our blog from



Former Bernalillo County Commissioner Les Houston, hanging out at the Barelas Coffee House on 4th street, comes up with this one:



"The big question in California is: "What does Arnold Schwarzenegger know. . .and when's he going to know it?"



Houston stopped by our burrito laden table and laid a couple of other ribald ones on us that we're sure the Kentucky native will pass on to you when you run into him. Houston is one of the more colorful political personalities in recent NM history.



To say his political career was volatile is an understatement. He was a Democrat for the longest time, seeking the Lt. Governor nomination back in the 70's and then the Dem gubernatorial nod



In the late 1980's, as a GOP'er, he joined forces with Democratic Senator Manny Aragon in a bizarre coalition that had them sharing the title of Senate President Pro Tem. The State Supreme Court threw out the arrangement and retired what I had dubbed: "Manny Houston."



History has repeated itself with Richard Romero winning the pro tem title with the help of Republicans. And, like Les Houston, Romero at one time was a member of the opposite party; in Richard's case the Republicans. And, again, like Les, Romero has had to contend with Senator Manny.



Who said: "The more things change, the more they stay the same?"



Such were the times of a native Kentuckian who chased a New Mexican political dream.



This is the home of New Mexico politics.







Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



( c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2017 Lobbyist Vanessa Alarid says she hopes her male friends don't "treat me with kid gloves" now that she has publicly accused former legislator Thomas Garcia of sexually harassing her in 2009 and demanding sex to vote in favor of a bill she was supporting. Never mind kid gloves. . .When the legislative session kicks off next month one veteran lobbyist says he will be careful even shaking hands--with members of either sex. It's that bad.Alarid's charges were first revealed in the NYT and then explored in-depth locally . She is adamant in her accusations and ex-Rep. Garcia is vehement in his denials . Whatever the case, the sensational charges are sure to have lawmakers and lobbyists walking on egg shells and reassessing just what constitutes good behavior.In the Alarid case there was no question about a line being crossed, but it seems even what was once viewed as innocuous behavior---a warm embrace, a peck on the cheek, a compliment on appearance---may be going the way of the transistor radio at the hallways of the testosterone-laced Roundhouse. It's just too risky to touch. Everyone is going to have to wear their kid gloves until this is figured out.The social whirl of Santa Fe in recent years isn't anything like it was when state government was swimming in cash. The parties are fewer and more subdued, reflecting the times, say longtime lobbyists but there are still fun times to be had.GOP State Rep. Kelly Fajardo, who has taken on the role of watchdog of sex harassment at the capitol, is one of the leaders of "The Karaoke Caucus." It gathers regularly during legislative sessions at a downtown Santa Fe restaurant where food, libations and singing and dancing are enjoyed by lawmakers mixing with younger lobbyists and others involved in the governmental process. You wonder in this new environment whether those type of parties will be called into question--or a rule book issued before you enter.When we were last with you we wondered of Dem Silver City state Senator Howie Morales and if he would remain the front-runner for the '18 lieutenant governor nomination if Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales launched a bid. Well, Javier did on Friday (video here ) but we still see Morales holding the pole position.Gonzales is ending a somewhat troubled tenure as mayor of Santa Fe and recently said he was retiring from political life to spend more time with his family. So much for that.Gonzales would be the first openly gay man to win the statewide nomination for lt. governor. His bid comes on the heels of ABQ Senator Michel Padilla withdrawing from the contest because of decade-old sex harassment charges.There will be problems for Gonzales in the conservative rural areas of the state party. And with two of their own--Padilla and former state Rep. Garcia being taken down by sex harassment charges--the Dems are going to want to move the issue of sex--in all its variations--to the back burner. That points to Morales, unless he has something shocking hiding in his past.Morales has been around a while--he ran for the Guv nomination in 2014--and can't exactly be called a fresh face, but he seems more fresh than the shopworn Gonzales who suffered a devastating loss when in Santa Fe this year he backed a losing tax proposal on soda.Former ABQ state Rep. Rick Miera may be the perfect light guv candidate on paper, but he has not made a deep impression and now faces a struggle against Morales and Gonzales. The rest of the field trails far behind.On the GOP side the light guv race is, well, light. Michelle Garcia Holmes, who recently ran as an independent for ABQ mayor, has now announced she will seek the GOP nod for lieutenant governor. She is the only announced candidate. ABQ GOP State Senator Mark Moores has been mentioned as a possible but he told the ABQ Journall's Dan Boyd he is not going to run.Speaking of lieutenant governor, it was in 1974 as a student reporter that I first met former ABQ state Senator Les Houston. He was campaigning for the Dem nomination for lieutenant governor. He lost that one and lost again when he sought the 1982 Dem Guv nomination. He later switched parties and ran for the GOP Guv nomination in 1990. He never made it to the top of the heap but he made an impact at the Roundhouse.After politics he became a prominent Santa Fe lobbyist. Houston, 81, died Friday . He has been cremated and there will be no services.In 1987 Republican Houston joined with Dem Senator Manny Aragon and caused a major stir. They tried to share the Senate President Pro Tem position, but the deal was struck down by the state Supreme Court. They were some political odd couple.We take credit for coining the phrase "Manny Houston" but we ran it by Manny one day back then and he didn't laugh.The picture posted today of Manny and Les comes from Manny's "going away" party when many of his longtime friends gathered to wish him well as he was about to enter federal prison on corruption charges. The photo was first shown on our June 4, 2009 blog and caused yet another stir. But that's how those guys were.Here's our blog from October 10, 2003 about running into Houston at the Barelas Coffee Shop:Former Bernalillo County Commissioner Les Houston, hanging out at the Barelas Coffee House on 4th street, comes up with this one:"The big question in California is: "What does Arnold Schwarzenegger know. . .and when's he going to know it?"Houston stopped by our burrito laden table and laid a couple of other ribald ones on us that we're sure the Kentucky native will pass on to you when you run into him. Houston is one of the more colorful political personalities in recent NM history.To say his political career was volatile is an understatement. He was a Democrat for the longest time, seeking the Lt. Governor nomination back in the 70's and then the Dem gubernatorial nod in '82 . He went to the State Senate from Bernalillo County and ran for the GOP nomination for governor in 1990.In the late 1980's, as a GOP'er, he joined forces with Democratic Senator Manny Aragon in a bizarre coalition that had them sharing the title of Senate President Pro Tem. The State Supreme Court threw out the arrangement and retired what I had dubbed: "Manny Houston."History has repeated itself with Richard Romero winning the pro tem title with the help of Republicans. And, like Les Houston, Romero at one time was a member of the opposite party; in Richard's case the Republicans. And, again, like Les, Romero has had to contend with Senator Manny.Who said: "The more things change, the more they stay the same?"Such were the times of a native Kentuckian who chased a New Mexican political dream.This is the home of New Mexico politics. E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com)
City officials on Monday announced Lincoln has been designated as a Smart Gigabit Community.

The designation, which comes from U.S. Ignite Inc., a nonprofit organization that works to advance technology, makes Lincoln one of only about 30 communities nationwide.

Lincoln joins cities such as Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Austin, Texas, in the program, which is funded by the National Science Foundation.

To be designated a Smart Gigabit Community, cities must partner with universities, nonprofits, telecommunications providers and others.

In Lincoln, the city is collaborating with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Allo Communications and Fuse Co-working.

As part of the program, cities must commit to developing two gigabit applications each year, and Lincoln's first one is developing software to take advantage of unused wireless spectrum to create a citywide gigabit wireless network to allow radios to both broadcast on and listen to multiple frequencies, said David Young, the city's fiber, infrastructure and right-of-way manager.

Other applications could potentially come from the private sector, as entrepreneurs, companies, students or others could submit an idea or work off of other ideas already moving forward in other communities in the program.

The goal is for Lincoln to create a digital town square available to students, entrepreneurs and businesses, Mayor Chris Beutler said. The digital town square will help them develop applications to better compete in the digital economy.

Beutler said the city's 2012 investment in a downtown fiber conduit helped lay the groundwork to get to where it is today, now with almost 500 miles of conduit leased to eight broadband companies.

One of those companies, Allo, is more than halfway done with its project to bring fiber to all of Lincoln, which includes more than 105,000 residences and more than 20,000 businesses.

"We look forward to being involved with the Smart Gigabit Community teams to develop next-generation gigabit applications," said Jeff Kuenne, Allo's chief technologist and one of the company's co-founders. "Gigabit networks can, and will, provide so much more than merely faster internet and the elimination of buffering," he said.

To learn more about Ignite U.S. and the Smart Gigabit Communities program, go to: www.us-ignite.org/.
Rush hour was disrupted on Monday with an explosion in Manhattan in the passageway linking the Times Square and Port Authority subway stations, temporarily shutting down one of New York Citys busiest transit hubs, according to the police.

W. 45 ST TIMES SQUARE A C E Station footprint Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST Passageway N Q R W Port Authority Station 7 Area of explosion Seventh Ave. W. 39 ST Broadway Eighth Ave. Station footprint W. 44 ST. TIMES SQUARE A C E W. 43 ST. Port Authority Station Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST. N Q R W Seventh Ave. Eighth Ave. Broadway Passageway PORT AUTHORITY 7 Area of explosion W. 39 ST. Station footprint W. 44 ST. TIMES SQUARE A C E W. 43 ST. Port Authority Station Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST. N Q R W Seventh Ave. Eighth Ave. Broadway Passageway PORT AUTHORITY 7 Area of explosion W. 39 ST. Station footprint W. 44 ST. TIMES SQUARE A C E W. 43 ST. Port Authority Station Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST. N Q R W Seventh Ave. Eighth Ave. Broadway Ninth Ave. Sixth Ave. Passageway BRYANT PARK PORT AUTHORITY 7 Area of explosion W. 39 ST. Station footprint W. 44 ST. TIMES SQUARE A C E W. 43 ST. Port Authority Station Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST. N Q R W Seventh Ave. Eighth Ave. Broadway Ninth Ave. Sixth Ave. Passageway BRYANT PARK PORT AUTHORITY W. 41 ST. 7 Area of explosion W. 40 ST. W. 39 ST. Station footprint W. 44 ST. TIMES SQUARE A C E W. 43 ST. Port Authority Station Times Square Station 1 2 3 W. 42 ST. N Q R W Seventh Ave. Eighth Ave. Tenth Ave. Broadway Ninth Ave. Sixth Ave. Passageway BRYANT PARK PORT AUTHORITY W. 41 ST. 7 Area of explosion W. 40 ST. W. 39 ST. The New York Times

The suspect in the explosion, Akayed Ullah, 27, was wearing an improvised low-tech explosive device, said James P. ONeill, the New York City police commissioner. Mr. Ullah had the device attached to his body with velcro and zip ties, and he was walking east in the passageway when it detonated, the police said.

Station N Q R W 42nd St. entrance BROADWAY UPTOWN Platform SEVENTH AVE. Station EIGHTH AVE. Times Square station 1 2 3 40th St. entrance 7 42nd St. entrance A C E 41ST ST. Passageway Area of explosion Station The suspect was walking through the passageway toward Times Square station. Port Authority station Platform 40th St. entrance 42nd St. entrance Station BROADWAY SEVENTH AVE. Platform Station UPTOWN 1 2 3 Times Square station 42nd St. entrance 7 41ST ST. A C E Passageway Area of explosion Station The suspect was walking through the passageway toward Times Square station. Port Authority station Platform EIGHTH AVE. 40th St. entrance Times Square station SEVENTH AVE. UPTOWN 1 2 3 41ST ST. 7 Passageway Area of explosion A C E The suspect was walking through the passageway toward Times Square station. Port Authority station EIGHTH AVE. Source: Candy Chan, Project Subway NYC (3D model) | The New York Times

Three people sustained minor injuries because of the blast. Mr. Ullah had burns and was transported to the hospital.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal was shut down, and the subway station beneath it, which serves the A, C and E trains, was evacuated immediately. The 42nd Street shuttle, which connects Times Square and Grand Central station, was suspended in both directions.
40 down and counting: Forces on the verge of wiping out Pakistani terrorists in Valley

Mubin did it in Coimbatore: Why do Islamist terrorists shave their body before a suicide mission

J&K: 5 Lashkar terrorists killed in 2 separate encounters

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

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Indian armed forces gun down 5 terrorists of Lashkar-e-Tayiba in J

Five terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba have been killed by the Armed forces in two separate incidents.The encounters took place late last night at Handwara and Baramulla.

All five terrorists killed are part of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba. One terrorist was captured alive from the Baramulla encounter site. The gunfight in Baramulla village broke out at 3 am, when the troops of 92 CRPF Battalion along with 22 Rashtriya Rifle and Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel.

The encounter lasted for over two hours and the security forces finally managed to get the better of the terrorists.

In the Unsoo-Handwara all the three terrorists apparently Pakistanis have been neutralised by a Joint team of J&K Police, RR &CRPF. It has been raining whole night & boys were out there in the cold, J&K police chief, Shesh Paul Vaid said.

OneIndia News
Another plot to wreck havoc in the Valley busted

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The National Investigation Agency made some substantial progress when it arrested a suspected Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative who was in touch with Abdul Naeem alias Headley 2.

NIA sources say that they have found some incriminating material following the arrest of Ahmed Malik, a 25 year old from Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir. Crucial evidence in the form of two mobile phones and data have been found on Malik, NIA officials also confirmed.

The role of Malik about his association with the terror outfit had surfaced during the interrogation of LeT terrorist Sheikh Abdul Nayeem, who was arrested by the NIA from Aurangabad in November.

Malik came in Nayeems contact in March 2017 when the latter had visited Pulwama and stayed with LeT operatives for three months.

Malik was later produced in Pulwama Chief Judicial Magistrates court which granted his transit remand for four days.

The accused will be brought to Delhi and produced before the NIA Special Court at Patiala House soon. NIA sources say that they are trying to find out what plans Malik had in the Valley. During the questioning of Naeem, it was found that he had surveyed a couple of targets in the Valley as well. Top on his radar was Army installations in Kashmir, NIA officials also said.

OneIndia News
Doklam: One motorable road complete, second to be constructed by March 2021

Don't allow next Doklam in Arunachal, says BJP MP; claims China has encroached upon 60 km of state

Chinese troops not leaving Doklam this winter, around 1,800 PLA soldiers likely to stay

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

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Sikkim Standoff : Chinese army increase troops along the Doklam border | Oneindia News

During every winter both India and China reduce the number of troops posted along the border because of the extreme climate in the Himalayan region. But this year, around 1,600-1,800 Chinese troops have established a permanent presence in the Doklam area near Sikkim where borders of India, Bhutan and China meet, said a TOI report.

Doklam is a disputed territory which both Bhutan and China claim to be theirs. India has reason to be concerned since China has been gradually increasing its troop level at Doklam.

There have been territorial disputes between China and Bhutan over Doklam and India has been staunchly supporting Thimphu over the issue.

The report says that China has now constructed two helipads, upgraded roads, scores of pre-fabricated huts, shelters and stores to withstand the freezing winter in the high-altitude region.

Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doklam since June 16 after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army.

Bhutan and India were in touch with each other during the course of the face-off that ended on August 28.

Days after the face-off ended, Army Chief Bipin Rawat had said China has started "flexing its muscles" and warned that the situation in India's northern border could snowball into a larger conflict. There are also reports that People's Liberation Army (PLA) has increased more troops on its forward post in Yatung.

OneIndia News
Cong for Muslims, BJP for Hindus: Did Rahuls temple visits in Guj help to bust the myth?

Gujarat elections: For Congress, vikaas is only where they can make money, says PM Modi

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday targeted the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance for attempting to derail Gujarat's development journey.

"India is making remarkable strides and the world is realising it. If India is making a mark on the world stage it is due to the 125 crore people of India," said the prime minister.

"UPA did everything possible to derail Gujarat's development journey. To put gas pipelines in Gujarat's villages, the UPA got worried and did everything to stop that. I had to go to the Supreme Court," Modi added.

"Do you see this Sabarmati River? There were circuses held earlier, now see the riverfront. This is development. But for Congress, Vikas is only where they can make money" Modi added.

We started a Pragati Initiative. Through technology, officers from all over India join and we discuss key policy issues. This has helped accelerate the pace of development, he further said.

Who is impacted most by unclean surroundings? Not the rich families but the poor. When we work on Swachh Bharat Mission it helps the poor: PM Narendra Modi said in Ahmedabad.

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Story first published: Monday, December 11, 2017, 23:01 [IST]
Gujarat elections: Police denies permission to PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi rallies in Ahmedabad

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

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Gujarat Assembly polls : PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi's road show canceled | Oneindia News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's roadshows in Ahmedabad have been denied permission by police citing law and order and public inconvenience.

Anup Kumar Singh, Police Commissioner Ahmedabad, said, "Request by BJP & Congress for conducting PM Modi & Rahul Gandhi's roadshow tomorrow, turned down by Police due to security, law & order reasons & to avoid public inconvenience."

As per NDTV, there was a possibility of some overlap between PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi's roadshows.

PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi were supposed to hold roadshows in Ahmedabad on Monday and Tuesday respectively. PM Narendra Modi was scheduled to address a rally in Ahmedabad at 7.30PM today. Prior to Ahmedabad, PM Modi will go to Patan and Nadiad to address rallies.

Rahul Gandhi will be visiting Tharad, Viramgam, Savli and Gandhinagar on the Navsarjan Yatra today. He will address a rally in Gandhinagar after addressing one in Viramgam, which falls in the Ahmedabad district. He will also take out a roadshow in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

According to reports, the highlight of the rally is dissident BJP Maharashtra leader Nana Patole, who resigned from the Lok Sabha and quit the party on Friday, will be sharing the stage with Rahul Gandhi during a rally in Ahmedabad.

The Congress confirmed that it had sought permission for Rahul Gandhi's roadshow and corner meetings. However, the BJP did not spell out as to which party leader was to take out its roadshow in the city tomorrow.

Tomorrow is the last day of campaigning for the second round of voting in Gujarat.

There are total 26 seats at stake in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar -Ahmedabad City has 16, capital Gandhinagar has two. Other eight seats are spread across rural pockets of the two districts.

The first phase of voting was over on December 9. Election Commission of India said that 68 percent voter turnout was recorded in the first phase of Gujarat Election 2017.

OneIndia News
40 down and counting: Forces on the verge of wiping out Pakistani terrorists in Valley

Mubin did it in Coimbatore: Why do Islamist terrorists shave their body before a suicide mission

Lashkars Rohingya outreach: Making terrorists in the name of humanity

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The Lashkar-e-Tayiba which has kept a close watch on the Rohingya Muslim crisis has once again reached out to them. This time around the outfit has asked members of its financial wing, Falah-e-Insaniyat to get in touch with the Rohingyas.

Intelligence Bureau reports state that the outreach is yet another attempt to rope in the Rohingya Muslims. This time around the outfit is trying to dole out funds for the refugees and rope them in for terror activities, the IB report also stated.

The latest intelligence report states that a group of Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorists who have infiltrated into the Valley are trying to get in touch with these people in an attempt to radicalise them.

In addition to this Bangladesh has shared fresh information with India about the radicalisation plans by the Lashkar-e-Tayiba. There have been repeated attempts by groups such as the Lashkar to instigate the Rohingya Muslims in India.

While rights groups have been arguing that deporting them would not be the right decision, the Indian government wants to take no chances.

"It is a highly sensitive issue. One of the camps in Jammu and Kashmir to is very vulnerable to radicalisation", the IB says. They are easy prey for terror groups and repeated attempts are being made to take them into their fold, IB officials also say.

The IB also signaled the respective state police to keep a close watch on the Rohingya Muslims. States such as Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana among others also have a considerable presence of Rohingya Muslims, the IB says.

During a recent high-level meeting, Union Home Minister, Rajnath Singh said that all bordering states with Bangladesh must take action to ensure that there is no infiltration of Rohingyas. Singh also cited an IB report which said that there were touts who were helping the Rohingyas enter into India.

OneIndia News
Manmohan Singh's statement over PM Modi's remarks

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Former prime minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Monday issued a statement on the falsehoods being spread to score political points, in a lost cause by PM Modi.

Read text:

"I am deeply pained and anguished by the falsehood and canards being spread to score political points in a lost cause by none less than Prime Minister, Sh. Narender Modi. Fearing imminent defeat in Gujarat, desperation of Prime Minister to hurl every abuse and latch on to every straw is palpable. Sadly and regrettably, Sh. Modi is setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of a Former Prime Minister and Army Chief.

The Congress Party needs no sermons on "Nationalism" from a party and Prime Minister, whose compromised track record on fighting terrorism is well known. Let me remind Sh. Narender Modi that he had gone to Pakistan uninvited after the terrorist attacks in Udhampur and Gurdaspur. Let him also tell the country the reason for inviting the infamous ISI of Pakistan to our strategic Air Base in Pathankot to investigate a terror attack that emanated from Pakistan.

My track record of public service to the country over last five decades is known to everyone. No one, including Sh. Modi, can lamely question it to gain lost political ground.

I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Shri Modi. Nor was the Gujarat issue raised by anyone else present at the dinner. The discussion was confined to India-Pakistan relations. Names of the distinguished Indian public servants and journalists present at the dinner are enclosed to this statement. None of them could be accused of indulging in any anti-national activities.

I sincerely hope that Prime Minister will show the maturity and gravitas expected of the high office he holds instead of concentrating his energy solely on erroneously conceived brownie points.

I sincerely hope that he will apologize to the Nation for his ill-thought transgression to restore the dignity of the office he occupies."

Statement from Former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on the falsehoods being spread to score political points, in a lost cause by PM Modi. pic.twitter.com/X20X3oeeYw  Congress (@INCIndia) December 11, 2017

OneIndia News
At least I believe my ancestors were not apes: Satypal Singh

Now, Union Minister says Lord Hanuman was not Dalit, but Arya

No boy will marry a girl wearing jeans in wedding mandap: Union minister

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Union Minister of State for human resource development Satyapal Singh on Monday stirred up a controversy by saying "No boy will be ready to marry a girl who comes to the mandap (wedding stage) in jeans."

The minister was addressing a gathering of students in Gorkahpur, where he shared the stage with chief minister Yogi Adityanath.

Addressing the students at the concluding ceremony of the foundation day of Maharana Pratap Siksha Parishad (MPSP), the academic venture of Gorakhnath temple, he said that "Koi aadmi agar kehne lage ki main jeans pehenke kisi mandir ka mahant ban jaaunga to log pasand karenge kya? Koi pasand nahi karega. Ya koi ladki jeans pehenkar ke shaadi ke bedi pe jaayegi to kitne ladke usse shaadi karna chahenge?" (No saint will be accepted if he gives up his traditional attire and instead starts wearing jeans.)

The ministers remark was in the context of appropriateness of attire in Indian culture, especially when and where to go in which dress.

Further Satyapal Singh added that education should be linked with employment. In addition to helping spread education, institutions should incorporate human values in the new generation, he said.

Mutts and temples had always been centres of education and culture, he said, adding that the Gorakshpeeth had been instrumental in taking this tradition forward, he added.

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Story first published: Monday, December 11, 2017, 18:08 [IST]
Man booked for tweets against Maha CM; has a history of such posts against leaders

Opposition shedding crocodile tears over farmers' woes: Fadnavis

India

pti-PTI

Nagpur, Dec 11: Asserting that the Congress and the NCP did not do enough for the farmers when in power, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday accused the opposition of shedding "crocodile tears" over issues related to farmers.

Fadnavis' comments came on the first day of the state Legislature's two-week-long winter session in Nagpur, the second capital of Maharashtra, in response to the opposition parties' criticism that his government has failed to alleviate the woes of cultivators.

As the Assembly session began, Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil alleged that the BJP-Shiv Sena government in the state was a huge failure and that it faulted in the implementation of loan waiver scheme.

Responding to it, Fadnavis said, "The so called concerns of Congress and NCP are nothing but 'magarmach ke aansoo'. It is a false concern, infact, the Congress and NCP government had largely disappointed farmers in the state."

He said the package for Vidarbha announced during the previous Congress-NCP government had hardly benefited the farmers. The Congress and the NCP did not help farmers when they were in power, he said. Fadnavis said he would compare the performance of the earlier Congress-NCP rule with that of his government.

Vikhe Patil alleged that state government has made several mistakes in the farm loan waiver implementation.

"The figures have gone wrong, the company appointed for the processing of data has also made several mistakes," he said.

"The loan waiver announcement was made in June and till date there is no sufficient data to prove how many farmers have actually received benefits of the scheme," the Congress leader said.

Later, BJP minister Ram Shinde told reporters outside the Assembly that on the first day of the session, the House members always pay tributes to the departed leaders. "The opposition leaders sidelined it and came up with farmers' issues. This is an unfair practice," he said.

PTI
RBI to soon launch e-rupee on pilot basis for specific use cases

RBI rate hikes to contain price rise; inflation to fall below 6 pc next year

RBI cuts debit card transaction charges

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has rationalized the framework for Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) applicable on debit card transactions based on the category of merchants. The RBI stated that the revised MDR aims at achieving the twin objectives of increased usage of debit cards and ensuring sustainability of the business for the entities involved.

Based on consultations with stakeholders on the "Draft Circular - Rationalisation of Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) for Debit Card Transactions", it has been decided to rationalise the MDR for debit cards based on the following criteria.

A. Categorisation of merchants on the basis of turnover.

B. Adoption of a differentiated MDR for QR-code based transactions.

C. Specifying a ceiling on the maximum permissible MDR for both 'card present' and 'card not present' transactions.

As per the latest notification, MDR charges for small merchants with an annual turnover of up to Rs 20 lakh has been fixed at 0.40 percent with a cap of Rs 200 per transaction by debit cards through Point of Sale (PoS) machines or online transactions. The new rates will come into effect from January 1.

( https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=11183&Mode=0)

RBI wants to achieve twin objectives of promoting debit card acceptance by a wider set of merchants, especially small merchants, and ensuring sustainability of the business for the entities involved.

OneIndia News
Surprising Congress expects PM to apologise for 'Pakistan remark': Jaitley

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Ruling out an apology by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday termed the meeting of former PM Manmohan Singh and other Congress leaders with Pakistani diplomats as "misadventure".

"Former PM Manmohan Singh has issued a statement asking PM Modi to apologise for what he said in an election rally with regard to a meeting involving Pakistani delegations. It is surprising that Congress party expect the Prime Minister of India to apologise for it," Jaitley said in a press conference.

Hitting out at the Congress, he demanded to know why it had felt the need to engage with Pakistan's former foreign minister and its envoy a few days ago, when the national position on talks with the neighbouring country is well known.

"Congress and its leadership should come out with detailed facts of the meeting and the necessity of the meeting in present circumstances," Jaitley said.

"Those like Mani Shankar Aiyar always had an inconsistent position. They maintained a parallel line of dialogue, underplayed Pakistan's role in instigating terrorism in India and continued to engage with them (Pak)," he said.

Earlier in the day, former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh has accused Narendra Modi of setting a "dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office, including that of the former Prime Minister and Army Chief".

In a written statement, the mild spoken Congress leader sought to clarify his position regarding a speech made by Prime Minister Modi accusing senior Congress leaders of holding a secret meeting at Mani Shankar Aiyar's residence, which was attended by a former Pakistani envoy and foreign minister.

OneIndia News
Tourists assaulted in Mirzapur: Sushma Swaraj seeks report from UP government

India

pti-PTI

Minister of External Affairs (MEA) Sushma Swaraj on Monday sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh government on thethrashing of French tourists in state's Mirzapur district."I have asked for a report from Government of Uttar Pradesh," Swaraj tweeted.

Earlier on Sunday, eight people were arrested in connection with the thrashing of French tourists. A group of foreign tourists from France were allegedly beaten up and molested in Ahraura area of Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh by a group of local boys. About a dozen French tourists had come to visit Varanasi.

On Saturday, they visited a natural waterfall in Lekhania Dari under Ahraura police station in Mirzapur along with an Indian friend. While they were enjoying their visit, three local guys passed lewd remarks on girls and abused them.

When French nationals objected, it led to an argument and soon tuned into a fight. Since the locals were less in numbers they left and again returned with 10 more local guys who thrashed French tourists. In the fight a French tourist sustained injuries on his hands, face and neck.

The French nationals' Indian friend told mediapersons that she was also abused, molested and beaten when she tried to stop them from attacking foreign tourists. She alleged that the attackers used sticks to beat them. They were taken to the hospital and given first aid.

The SHO Ahraura Police Station Praveen Singh said that an FIR has been registered against 13 people and they have already arrested eight He, however, denied that anyone was seriously injured in the attack. "Only one of them sustained minor bruises and scratches and was given first aid at the Mirzapur Hospital," clarified the SHO.

The DGP Sulkhan Singh has directed the Mirzapur police to arrest remaining accused and take strict action against them. A few months ago, the DGP had suggested CCTV cameras at tourist spots to check such incidents but no headway has been made so far.

A German national was thrashed by a railway contractor at Sonebhadra Railway station on November 6 when he ignored greetings of the contractor. The accused was immediately arrested by the police.

A Swiss couple was attacked in Fatehpur Sikri in Agra about two months ago by a group of local touts pressing for photographs. The Swiss man had suffered fractures in the attack and couple was treated at Delhi's Apollo Hospital. Police rounded up about 50 touts and arrested a couple of them involved in the attack after public outrage over the incident. A Russian woman was allegedly raped by a bank manager in Vrindavan in Mathura in October. The bank manager was arrested after she lodged an FIR with the Mathura Police.
Violence mars coastal Karnataka, IG western range's car set ablaze

India

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Karnataka : Violent protesters torch Inspector General of Police's car | Oneindia News

Violent protests were witnessed in Karnataka's Kumta on Monday over the death of a teenage boy. Miscreants set Inspector General of Police Western Range's car ablaze and pelted stones at police personnel injuring many.

IG Western range Hemanth Nimbalkar was not inside the car and escaped unhurt while his driver and other police officials sustained injuries when miscreants pelted stones at them. Speaking to OneIndia, Hemanth Nimbalkar, IG western range said that the violence was the handiwork of criminal elements. "This is the handiwork of some criminal elements who want to divide the society on communal lines for personal gains," he said. He maintained that the situation currently was peaceful and under control. Nimbalkar's car driver sustained serious injuries in the stone pelting that ensued. The police are currently in the process of identifying miscreants who created violence using video footages from the protest.

Violence marred Kumta area of Honnavar taluk of Uttar Kannada district over the death of a 19-year-old Hindu boy. The BJP has alleged that the PFI had a role in the boy's death. BJP leaders including Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha have been sharing the news of Paresh's Mesta's death on social media.

While the BJP has accused PFI of having a role to play in the boy's death the local police are waiting for post-mortem and forensic reports. No arrests have been made so far while a case has been taken up. Paresh who went missing on December 6 was found dead in a lake on December 8.

On Monday, protests were witnessed in Honnavar with protestors demanding immediate arrest of Paresh's "killers". Violence broke out during the protest when miscreants started pelting stones and set Nimbalkar's vehicle ablaze.

OneIndia News
Why Mayawati is regularly challenging BJP to conduct elections with ballot papers

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

Mumbai, Dec 11: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati was the first one to allege that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) used during the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections earlier this year were "faculty and tampered" which resulted in helping the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to win the polls in a massive way.

Since then the issue of "faculty and tampered" EVMs used in various elections has been hogging the limelight. While the Election Commission (EC) has denied such "wild allegations" by the opposition parties, the BJP accused rivals of complaining about the EVMs as they have failed to defeat the saffron party.

During the first phase of polling for the Gujarat Assembly elections on Saturday, several instances of non-functioning and faculty EVMs were reported from various polling booths.

The Congress has also accused "rigging" of EVMs by the BJP during the Gujarat elections, which the EC has once again denied. The second and final phase of polling for the Gujarat Assembly elections is scheduled on December 14. The results of the elections will be declared on December 18.

A day after the first phase of polling for the Gujarat elections, the BSP chief has once again raked up the issue of EVMs by challenging the ruling BJP to conduct all polls--both Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha--with ballot papers on Sunday.

Addressing a rally in Nagpur, Maharashtra, Mayawati said, "If the BJP thinks that they are honest and transparent then they should conduct all the upcoming elections in the country with the ballot paper instead of the EVM."

She added that the BJP's silence on the issue showed that EVMs had irregularities in elections that were conducted in various parts of India since 2014.

Mayawati claimed that the BSP had to suffer heavy losses in elections to the Lok Sabha in 2014 as well as the Assembly elections in UP in 2017 due to these irregularities.

Further attacking the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the former UP chief minister said that Dalits, tribals, OBCs and minorities were facing castiest, religious and communal attitude from the so-called thekedars (custodians) of the Hindu religion across the country.

"It was due to this attitude that Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar along with lakhs of his followers had to embrace Buddhism. He was not against Hinduism but he was against the inequality meted out," Mayawati said.

She warned the BJP and the RSS that if this attitude towards the backward sections of society didn't change, she along with crores of others would embrace Buddhism.

Asking her party cadres to be ready for polls, Mayawati said that the BJP would start constructing the Ram Mandir in UP just before the Lok Sabha elections to hide their administrative failure in various states and at the Centre.

She added that the BJP would play the "nationalism" card as well to garner votes.

Now, it needs to be seen if the EC would once again look into all the allegations levelled against EVMs by Mayawati to allay such fears to make the whole process of elections transparent and trustworthy.

OneIndia News
Actress molestation case: Accused sent to police custody till Dec 13

India

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By Chennabasaveshwar

Man accused of molesting teenage Bollywood actress has been sent to police custody untill 13th December. Mumbai Police on Sunday arrested the man accused of molesting the actress on a Vistara Delhi-Mumbai flight after she shared her ordeal on social media.

The case was registered under section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), after recording the 17-year-old's statement.

The National award winner had on Saturday night took to Instagram, alleging that a male co-passenger, who was sitting behind her on the flight, had rubbed his foot on her back and neck. The teenager, who has starred in a Bollywood blockbuster, was visibly shaken in her video post.

OneIndia News
Nebraska's Republican national committeewoman resigned Monday from her party leadership post in protest of the party's financial support for GOP Senate nominee Roy Moore in Alabama.

Moore has been accused of sexual misconduct with underage girls when he was in his 30s.

Alabama voters go to the polls on Tuesday.

"I strongly disagree with the recent RNC financial support directed to the Alabama Republican Party for use in the Roy Moore race," Joyce Simmons of Valentine wrote in an email to her party colleagues.

"There is much I could say about this situation, but I will defer to this weekend's comments by Senator Shelby."

Richard Shelby, Alabama's senior Republican senator, told CNN during a weekend interview that his state deserves better than Moore and he refused to vote for him in his race against Democratic nominee Doug Jones.

Instead, Shelby said, he wrote in another name when he cast his ballot.

Simmons submitted her resignation to Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel on Friday.

"I will miss so many of you that I knew well," Simmons wrote to her colleagues.

"And I wish I could have continued my service to the national Republican Party that I used to know well."

After withdrawing its financial support from Moore when allegations against him began to pile up, the party became financially engaged in the race once again following President Donald Trump's endorsement of Moore.

Simmons became Nebraska's GOP national committeewoman in 2012.

Sen. Bob Krist of Omaha praised Simmons for "standing up to the GOP party bosses."

"Government should represent 'we, the people,' not the party bosses or those who can buy access to power," Krist said. "Principle over partisanship."

Krist, a former Republican who is a member of the nonpartisan Legislature, will challenge Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts in next year's gubernatorial election.

Krist has changed his voter registration to nonpartisan and will form a new political party to offer voters an independent choice in next year's November general election ballot.
After North Korea's longest-range missile test, trilateral missile-tracking drill starts

International

pti-PTI

Seoul, December 11: Following the nuclear-armed Pyongyang's longest-range test launch to date, The US, South Korea and Japan started joint exercises to track missiles from North Korea on Monday, Seoul's military said.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push. The two-day exercise -- the sixth since June last year -- kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seoul's defence ministry said.

"During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information," it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries. Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against Pyongyang, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a "super-large heavy warhead" anywhere on the US mainland.

Many analysts suggest that the rocket is capable of reaching the US mainland but voiced scepticism that Pyongyang has mastered the advanced technology needed to allow the rocket to survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.

Last month's launch was the first test of any kind since September 15, and quashed hopes that the North may have held back in order to open the door to a negotiated solution to the nuclear standoff.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has traded threats of war and personal insults with US President Donald Trump, heightening fears of another war on the peninsula once devastated by the 1950-53 Korean War. The South condemned the launch and today imposed new unilateral sanctions on its neighbour.

PTI
Google Doodle honours German physicist Max Born

International

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

The Google Doodle today is honouring German physicist Max Born on his 135th birth anniversary for his contribution to the area of Quantum mechanics.

The doodle, created by guest artist Kati Szilagyi, shows the Nobel laureate writing using a pen that resembles the symbol psi, which is the symbol for wave function in physics.

Max Born won the 1954 Nobel Prize in Physics for his research in Quantum Mechanics, especially in the statistical interpretation of the wavefunction. He's best known for the Born Rule, a theory that uses probability to predict the location of a particle in a quantum system.

Born, along with fellow German scientist Fritz Haber, formulated the Born-Haber cycle, that calculates lattice energy or the energy needed to form a crystal from infinitely-separated ions.

Born on December 11, 1882, in Breslau, then in Germany, now in Poland, Max Born also made contributions to solid-state physics and optics and supervised the work of a number of notable physicists in the 1920s and 1930s.

During the Nazi uprising, in 1933, Born was forced to emigrate to England where he taught for three years as Stokes Lecturer at Cambridge University. He had also served as a lecturer at Edinburgh University for nearly two decades until his retirement in 1954.

He died at age 87 in hospital in Gottingen on 5 January 1970,[6] and is buried in the Stadtfriedhof there, in the same cemetery as Walther Nernst, Wilhelm Weber, Max von Laue, Otto Hahn, Max Planck, and David Hilbert.

OneIndia News
North Korea fires two more missiles towards Japan

South Korea imposes new sanctions on 20 North Korean groups

International

pti-PTI

Seoul, December 11: As part of efforts to cut off funding for the North weapons programs, South Korea has added several North Korean groups and individuals to its sanctions list.

South Korea's government says the sanctions on 20 North Korean groups and 12 individuals took effect from Monday.

Seoul is among the first to respond to North Korea's November 29 missile launch with fresh sanctions.

The government says it hopes its move will prompt the international community to do likewise.

US President Donald Trump's UN ambassador has been urging the world to cut trade and diplomatic ties with Pyongyang. Separately, South Korea, the United States and Japan started their two-day missile tracking drills today.

PTI
What is NATO and why was it created ?

US defence firms seek security of classified information in India

International

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

US defence firms are pushing for a specific framework in India to ensure safety and security of critical technology and classified defence information when they are shared with the private sector for joint ventures in the country.

A top official of the US-India Business Council (USIBC) said they also want a government-to-government agreement to facilitate the transfer of classified defence technology and information to the Indian private sector besides clarity on issues relating to liability, intellectual property rights and industrial safety.

Benjamin Schwartz, senior director for Defense and Aerospace at the Washington-based USIBC, said there was no provision for sharing classified defence information by American companies with the Indian private sector at present and a government-to-government agreement was necessary to facilitate it.

"US companies are willing to ensure transfer of critical technology to India but the Indian government has to ensure protection of critical and classified technology," he told PTI in an interview.

Schwartz, who held extensive talks with the defence establishment here on several sticky issues during a visit to India, said under the existing framework, American companies can share classified information and technology with India's defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) and not with the private sector.

"Right now, there is no mechanism in place to allow the US companies to extend classified information to private Indian industries," he said, adding it was for New Delhi to initiate the process for a government-to-government agreement to remove the hurdle.

The USIBC has been playing a pro-active role in forging greater collaboration between Indian and American defence industries.

Holding that the American industry was very supportive of India's strategic partnership model, he said the Indian government needed to come out with a timeline for various acquisition programmes, besides establishing a framework for the safety of classified information and technology.

"They need to establish procedures to ensure the security of defence technology here. What I mean by it is that the reality in India and also in the US and around the world is that information is being stolen ... We have to set up procedures to make sure that our defence technology is secure (in India)," he said.

Schwartz said Washington "definitely" wanted to go for an agreement to facilitate the transfer of classified information and technology by American companies to India and that "it is about getting things done in New Delhi."

He said the American private defence industry was in touch with the Trump administration on the issue of technology transfer to India and the US government has been very supportive of such collaborations.

"We held extensive conversations with the US government on technology transfer. We are very pleased that there has been a lot of continuity in US policy. The Trump administration wants to continue to prioritise technology release to India. It is also going to be re-articulated in US law this year," he said.

Schwartz said the USIBC supports Modi government's policy initiative to ensure a level playing field for the DPSUs and India's private sector defence industry.

"We can help support this through an agreement that will allow us to share classified information with the private sector industry," he said.

A number of American defence giants including Boeing and Lockheed Martin are eyeing billions of dollars of contracts in India and have already offered to manufacture some of their key military platforms in India while forging joint ventures with Indian companies.

Schwartz said liability issues, intellectual property rights issues and industrial security procedures are some of the key areas the US firms want clarity on.

"I think we are quite hopeful that with communication and goodwill we can reach out solutions."

Indo-US defence ties are on an upswing and both New Delhi and Washington have said they are committed to expanding it further.

In June 2016, the US had designated India a "Major Defence Partner" intending to elevate defence trade and technology sharing with India to a level commensurate with that of its closest allies and partners.

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Democratic Senate candidate Jane Raybould zeroed in on Sen. Deb Fischer on Monday, suggesting the Republican senator has lost touch with the best interests of "everyday Nebraskans" and become "a Washington Republican" who votes along party lines.

Fischer's failure to speak out in opposition to Republican senatorial nominee Roy Moore in Alabama, who has been accused of multiple acts of sexual misconduct with teenage girls when he was in his 30s, reflects "a deficiency of moral leadership (in) Washington," Raybould said shortly after officially filing her candidacy with the secretary of state.

"We need to send a clear message to Senator Fischer that says that does not represent Nebraska values," Raybould said.

Fischer's support for a tax reform bill that benefits the wealthy and would increase the federal debt by more than $1 trillion would place a burden "on the backs of hard-working Nebraskans," she said.

"We need tax reform that actually works for working people," Raybould said.

Fischer's support for legislation that would repeal the Affordable Care Act without any replacement places the health care of Nebraskans in jeopardy, Raybould said.

And the Republican leadership in Congress already has its eyes set now on reduced support for Medicare and Medicaid along with structural changes in Social Security, she said.

Raybould said she would work to protect all three programs.

If elected, Raybould said, she would "work with President (Donald) Trump" whenever she agrees with him, "but I will call him out for things that are not in the best interest of the state or the nation."

"We need an independent-minded senator," she said.

Raybould, a member of the Lincoln City Council and former Lancaster County Board member, is mounting what she acknowledges will be an uphill battle to unseat an incumbent Republican senator and gain the first Democratic Senate victory in Nebraska since 2006.

"We know we have our work cut out for us," she said.

After completing her filing, Raybould headed west on a weeklong campaign tour that will take her all the way to Scottsbluff and Chadron.

As a U.S. senator, she said, "I would listen to my constituents in Nebraska first and foremost, not special interests and lobbying interests."

And, if elected, Raybould said, she would seek a seat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, providing Nebraska with a voice on farm legislation while it is being formulated.

Neither Fischer nor Sen. Ben Sasse sits on the committee now.

Raybould said she "condemn(s) the vandalism" of Fischer's Senate office in Lincoln a week ago, declaring "that is unacceptable."

(Vandals also defaced Republican state headquarters in Lincoln over the weekend, writing "Resist" on the office building windows.)

Fischer was elected in 2012 and is seeking her second term next year.

Responding to Raybould's remarks, Fischer's campaign manager, Allison Bedell, said "negative attacks and zero vision are not the Nebraska way."

"Nebraskans know Deb's record and her love for the state where she chose to raise her kids and spend her entire life.

"Sadly, it seems the Democrat candidate simply wants a job that will take her back to Washington, where she chose to raise her family and spent the majority of her adult life."

Raybould earned a master's degree at Georgetown University in Washington and later worked for the District of Columbia Building Industry Association. She returned to Lincoln in 2003 and helps manage B&R Stores, a family business that includes Super Saver stores and Russ's Markets.
by  Graham Pierrepoint



We love our travels back in time  it goes without saying that theres always something interesting to look back on, no matter which day of the year we use as reference. History has a habit of littering interesting stories no matter where you look  and as the adage always says, history is there to be learned from  so lets take time out for a quick lesson in the decades and centuries gone by.

December 11th, 1946  UNICEF Formed

Having done sterling work protecting children the world over, UNICEF this week celebrates its 71st birthday  and it is still going strong in its endeavours today as one of the most important and influential charities worldwide.

December 12th, 1800  Washington DC Takes Center Stage

Established as the centerpiece for the entirety of the USA, Washington DC this week celebrates its 217th anniversary as the official capital of the States.

December 13th, 2003  Saddam Hussein Captured

Iraqi dictator Hussein was of course the main focus of both conflicts in the Gulf  and 14 years ago this week, the ultimately doomed leader was discovered in a hole and captured to face trial. He would ultimately be sentenced to death.

December 14th, 2016  Amazon Trials Drone Delivery

A relatively recent trip but one which will be seen as hugely important in years to come, Jeff Bezos firm trialled and carried out its first drone delivery just 2km away from their UK shipping center  enabling buyers to receive items within a few hours of ordering.

December 15th, 1939  Gone With The Wind Premieres

Frankly my dear, I dont give a damn  One of cinemas most famous parting lines, and a movie that has been recalled as the greatest of all time by several industry experts and movie fans  celebrates its 78th anniversary this week.

December 16th, 1913  Charlie Chaplin Debuts

One of the most iconic actors of all time  and certainly of the silent era  started out at Keystone 104 years ago this week  working for just $150 per week. Would todays stars agree to operate for the same money?

December 17th, 1989  The Simpsons Debuts

30 seasons and 28 years on and its still running as perhaps the best-known TV series of the past three decades  having kick-started a pop culture revolution and changed the way the world saw animation forever. How long will it continue? Only Fox knows!
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic state and the 14th-largest country by area, at 1,904,569 square kilometres. With over 275 million people, Indonesia is the world's fourth-most populous country and the most populous Muslim-majority country. Java, the world's most populous island, is home to more than half of the country's population.
NELIGH  This town's love for Sydney Loofe could be seen Monday on telephone poles, street lights, stop signs, mailboxes and tree trunks.

Neligh residents over the last month wrapped green ribbons -- signifying awareness of missing children -- from end to end in her hometown on the Elkhorn River.

Posters bearing her picture held window space in a few storefronts on Main Street alongside wreaths marking the holiday season.

A week ago Monday, the 24-year-old Lincoln woman's body was found more than 120 miles from here, southeast of Clay Center. Law enforcement had been searching for her in and around Wilber, where she was last seen on Nov. 15.

The parking lot outside Grace Lutheran Church, in the community of 1,500, filled up an hour before Loofe's memorial service Monday morning.

Cars lined the blocks around the church just off the main thoroughfare in Neligh and stretched past Neligh-Oakdale High School, where Loofe's father, George, is the principal. Some cars had the words "Find Sydney" still written in window paint.

Overcast skies hung over the church that squeezed in a crowd that at one point stretched from the doors to the street.

Among those in attendance was Paige Folkers, Sydney Loofe's cousin from Osmond, who traveled from Washington state to remember the woman she called genuine, dry-witted, hard-working and strong.

I feel like if you knew her, you knew all of her, Folkers said Friday in a phone interview.

Loofe was the cousin who kept the room light with her thick sarcasm, Folkers said.

Growing up, Folkers spent many summers with Loofe and her siblings at vacation Bible school, playing at the creek and getting into trouble, she said.

One time Folkers rode a scooter being pulled by a jump rope affixed to Sydney Loofe's bike.

Inevitably, Folkers crashed during the downhill excursion and scraped her stomach on the street.

That's when Sydney came to her aid, she recalls.

I was in so much pain and she just scooped me up and took me up the hill to my aunt, Folkers said.

Folkers won't forget the other time when Sydney Loofe successfully dislodged a candy MacKenzie Loofe, her sister, was choking on, she said.

Sydney Loofe amazed her family with her successful Heimlich manuveur, her cousin said.

The two kept up as much as they could living apart as adults in different parts of the country, Folkers said.

They commented on each other's posts and photo stories on social media, she said.

Two weeks before Loofe was reported missing, they talked on the phone, and Folkers tried to convince her cousin to come visit her and her husband in Washington.

An outdoors enthusiast, Loofe would have loved exploring the Mount Rainier area where Folkers made her home, she said.

Folkers thought maybe a trip there could persuade the dedicated Menards worker to look to the Pacific Northwest as she pondered her next career opportunity, she said.

One of Loofe's best qualities, her cousin said, was her loyalty.

Loofe valued living a responsible life and was committed to working hard like her parents taught her, Folkers said.

Loofe's north Lincoln Menards coworkers who wanted to attend the service in Neligh were allowed the day off.

When Folkers was last home for Thanksgiving, her cousin had been missing for more than a week.

Folkers and her brother passed out dozens of posters at tailgates around Memorial Stadium Nov. 24 and found a community ready to spread the word.

"I feel really blessed to be part of a family that cares so much, Folkers said.

Loofe is survived by her parents, George and Susie, her brother, Levi Loofe, and her sister, MacKenzie Loofe, along with her grandmother, Betty Johnson, and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins, according to her obituary.

Authorities on Monday had not released the cause of Loofe's death or further details about her disappearance, but two people of interest in the case remained in custody in the Saline County jail pending unrelated federal charges.

Back in Neligh, a northerly wind whipped the green ribbons hanging from placards in the front yards of homes on the south side of town.

Along with her physical description and directions to contact authorities, the placard said "Believe" and included a phrase Loofe had tattooed on her right arm.

Everything will be wonderful someday.
Manhattan, known regionally as The City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state of New York. Located near the southern tip of New York State, Manhattan is based in the Eastern Time Zone and constitutes both the geographical and demographic center of the Northeast megalopolis and the urban core of the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban landmass. Over 58 million people live within 250 miles of Manhattan, which serves as New York Citys economic and administrative center, cultural identifier, and the citys historical birthplace. Manhattan has been described as the cultural, financial, media, and entertainment capital of the world, is considered a safe haven for global real estate investors, and hosts the United Nations headquarters. New York City is the headquarters of the global art market, centered in Manhattan.
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From AlJazeera

Trump's recognition this week of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, overturning seven decades of US policy in the region and effectively ending hopes of a two-state solution, has provoked dire warnings.

But the focus by commentators on Palestinian reactions, rather than the effect on the Israeli public and leadership, might have underestimated the longer-term fallout from Trump's move, analysts say.

Predictions have included the threat of renewed violence -- even an uprising - from Palestinians; the possible collapse of the Palestinian Authority, the Palestinians' government-in-waiting, and its diplomatic strategy for two states; and the demise of Washington's claim to be serving as a credible peacemaker.

But according to analysts, more far-reaching -- and disruptive -- undercurrents will likely be set in motion by Trump's decision.

Few have factored in the likely effect of Trump's new Jerusalem policy on the Israeli public, which has been shifting steadily to the right for most of the past two decades. The city and its contested holy sites have gained an increasingly powerful religious and national symbolism for many Israeli Jews.

The fear is that Trump's effective rubber-stamping of the right's political goals in Jerusalem will further radicalize both sides of the divide -- and accelerate processes that have been turning a long-standing national conflict into a more openly religious one.

"We may remember this date as the tipping point, as the moment when a new consensus emerged in Israel behind the idea of total Jewish supremacy," journalist David Sheen, an expert on Israel's far-right movements, told Al Jazeera.

Similar concerns were expressed by Yousef Jabareen, a Palestinian member of Israel's parliament.

"We can expect to see a move rightwards across Israeli society," he told Al Jazeera. "The centre-left parties were already tacking much closer to the right. They will now want to align themselves with Trump's position. Meanwhile, the right will be encouraged to move to the extreme right."

Both noted that Avi Gabbay -- the recently elected leader of the Zionist Union, the official opposition and the party that was once the backbone of the Israeli peace camp -- had begun espousing positions little different from those of right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Last week, Gabbay backed Trump's announcement, saying that recognition of Jerusalem was more important than a peace deal with the Palestinians.

Sheen said that traditionally, the centre-left had been restrained in its political positions by concerns about alienating the United States: "Netanyahu has shown that he can bring the US round to his way of thinking by staying the course. In many Israelis' eyes, he has now been proved right. The centrists may decide it is time to come onboard. Allying with the Republican right and the Christian evangelicals in the US may now look like a much safer bet."

The possible effects of Trump's announcement on Israelis have been largely overlooked, even though previous turning points in the conflict have consistently resulted in dramatic lurches rightwards by the Israeli public.

Given Israel's power over the Palestinians, these changes have played a decisive role in leading to the current impasse between Israel and the Palestinians, analysts note.

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In 2008, John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt published "The Lobby and U.S. foreign policy" in which they reminded the reader that no two countries share the same vital interests. This obvious truth was ignored. On December 6 th , Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The decision was celebrated in Washington DC and Jerusalem with enthusiasm. Yet, together with Syria's Western debacle, it concludes the United States' dominant role in the Middle East. It is a Pyrrhus victory for Netanyahu, and it puts an end to the honest-broker and two-state pretenses for the Palestinians.

It is no secret, Netanyahu and other Israeli officials said it repeatedly: Palestine is Israel's homeland. But, Palestinians are in the way. So are the Saudis. The Kingdom, as the keeper of the Faith, is bound to side with the Palestinians. To break Saudi Arabia away from the Palestinians, Israel convinced the Saudis that Iran is their mortal enemy. In this vision, the Iranian threat erases any duty Saudi Arabia may feel vis--vis their Palestinian brothers for the safety of the Kingdom comes first. Israel and Saudi Arabia are now bound by a common enemy. If the plan succeeds, Israelis will have killed two birds with one stone. Iran will be crushed and Palestine will be theirs. Donald Trump's decision has no immediate impact on the plan. The Saudi Royal family, led by Mohammed bin Salman , will stick to it. However, not their subjects and the Arabs at large. The chasm between the rulers and the people in the Middle East will rise overtime.

On February 14, 1945, Franklin Roosevelt signed with Ibn Saud the Quincy Pact whereby the king traded oil for the protection of the United States. The creation of Israel on May 14, 1948 was followed the next day by the first Arab-Israeli war. Harry Truman who recognized the new state on the day of its creation was caught in a dilemma. He resolved it by posing as the "honest-broker" between the two parties. The posture worked reasonably well until the Yom Kippur War in 1973 when the United States sided with Israel. It no longer was an honest-broker. But the charade lived on with Jimmy Carter's Oslo Accord and other initiatives with the same end result.

Saying the American foreign policy in the Middle East is essentially defined by Israel is stating the obvious. In "A Clean Break, a new strategy for the Realm", Richard Perle, Douglas Feith, David Wurmser and few others partially lift the veil on Israel's strategy. The goal is to eliminate any potential competitor in the Middle East. General Wesley Clark confirms it in his October 3, 2007 speech at the Commonwealth Club of California. A friend of his at the Pentagon tells him ten days after 9/11 that "we're going to attack and destroy the governments of seven countries in five years" Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Soudan and Iran." Not mincing his words, Clark adds: "This country [the United States] was taken over by a group of people with a policy coup: Wolfowitz and Cheney and Rumsfeld and you can name a half dozen other collaborators from the Project for a New American Century." In effect, Washington DC was planning to do Israel's job for none of the seven countries poses any threat to the security of the United States. The Iraqi war is a colossal failure (militarily, financially and humanly), and so is the "uprising" in Syria.

A Department of Defense memorandum released in May 2015 states: "Western countries, the Gulf States and Turkey are supporting [the Islamists'] efforts [to control Hasaka and Der Zor in Syria]" while at the same time admitting that "there is a possibility of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist principally in Syria." So, while officially declaring war on terrorism, the United States is helping the terrorists establish an Islamic state! The duplicity of these wars is sickening. Their stupidity is maddening. Besides reading Mearsheimer and Walt, Washington DC's officials should have read Isaac Newton. His third law states: "When one body exerts a force on a second body, the second body simultaneously exerts a force equal in magnitude and opposite in direction on the first body." Russia was bound to come in at some point. It did at the invitation of Bashar al-Assad. It was joined by Iran and later by Turkey -- a NATO member.

Conclusion: The United States' policy in the Middle East is discredited. Israel has become an apartheid state -- something Ehud Barak warned against. As for the Palestinians, the two-state solution is dead and buried, they have no more illusion regarding their future. "Never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee."
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"We are in the midst of a profound change of paradigms: from seeing the world as a machine to understanding it as a network. Rob Kall has interviewed many of the leaders, both thinkers and activists, of this global cultural transformation. In this eminently readable book, he weaves their statements, values, and ideas into a coherent and inspiring whole. Bottom-Up is a joy to read!"



Fritjof Capra, author of The Web of Life and The Hidden Connections, coauthor of The Systems View of Life
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Well, we tried a petition, and I tried a TED talk (in fact two of em), and the Daily Progress daily newspaper, and Channel 19 four times: one, two, three, four, and Channel 29 too. No opposition whatsoever has been voiced to the idea of putting up a peace monument in Charlottesville, a town famously full of war monuments, including several for a war that has fallen out of favor.

Finally, the Charlottesville City Council has listened. A peace monument is not only in the works but is already visible right on the Downtown Mall pedestrian street in good ol' Cville.



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Ha! Just kidding!

Thus far we do still lack any public governmental body that has indicated any inclination whatsoever to give a flying fig.

But the popularity of peace *is* being used temporarily to sell stuff at this store. If you have to buy stuff, I encourage you to buy it there.



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Sadly, "Peace on Earth" in December is camouflaged language, invisible to the human brain, like people singing "Imagine" by John Lennon in church. If "Peace on Earth" stays up in January, and people start to read it as a collection of three words with meaning to them, that will be more significant. I'm still willing to bet that it could stay up all year round and never be protested. Yet I'm sure it won't last. We didn't vote for this marketing gimick or elect anyone who did. We have no ability to keep it there.



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But this peace monument does raise possibilities for motivating the creation of a public one. It was store windows in Charlottesville putting up $8 stickers back in the day that created living wage policies. Store windows have displayed hearts in opposition to fascist rallies, and rainbows in opposition to homophobia. What if stores were to display peace signs with the message "We want a peace monument in Cville"?



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That wouldn't win over elected officials who dream of bigger careers in a Democratic Party funded by weapons dealers. But it could win over elected officials not suffering under such burdens -- and we do have some of those. It could be worth a try.
Dear Doug Jones,

I wish I were in Alabama, working with your righteous campaign. After seeing "Selma" Friday night, for the second time, I fervently wish you had reels of the film to show all over Alabama now, including on Tuesday.

I read last week about your sending to prison two of the four KKK men who in 1963 had bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, killing four African American girls - Addie Mae Collins, Carol Denise McNair, Carole Robertson and Cynthia Wesley. It is hard, if not impossible, for me to believe that a good man such as you is perhaps going to lose a very tight election to a man who was banned from a shopping mall for bothering teenage girls there and has sexual misconduct allegations against him by nine women who say he pursued them when he was in his 30's. Who asked when he thought America was last 'great'-- Moore acknowledged the nation's history of racial division, but said: "'I think it was great at the time when families were united -- even though we had slavery-- they cared for one another". Our families were strong, our country had a direction."

But your election bid may be in danger because of the potential for tampering with votes via the electronic voting machines and not leaving a trace.



Voting Machine Hacking Village

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The Defcon convention in Vegas this year demonstrated how easy it is to hack electronic voting machines. "But opportunities to test how secure our voting machines are from hackers have been rare. Manufacturers like to keep the details of voting machines secret. And they don't often provide machines for people to test. That's why hackers swarmed to the Voter Hacking Village at Defcon in Las Vegas"."He [Carsten Schurmann] used a Windows XP exploit from 2003, which the voting machine never patched, and got remote access. That meant he could change the votes from anywhere." "In three hours all the machines had been hacked."

Since all the ballots in Alabama are paper , both the optical scan ones and the AutoMARK - used by people with disabilities - at all the polling places and the absentee ballot tabulation (with no early voting) there can be a recount, if warranted, by hand-counting the paper ballots from all precincts. It is useless to pass all the ballots through the same electronic voting machines that counted the ballots in the first place. There will be plenty of people from all parties on the ballot to count and observe the hand-counting. It does not take a long time. The time to hand-count would be reasonable. What can be more important than honest elections? Our right to vote and have our vote counted as cast is the right all our other rights rest upon. I have observed hand-counting in a number of elections. You can read more about my work against all electronic voting machines and for hand-counted paper ballots.

Alabama law says all ballots must be held for six months. Federal law says that in a federal election all records must be held for 22 months and here. Why not make this public now so that everyone knows and has no excuse for destroying ballots and memory cards.

Here are some quotes and details from a paper regarding Wisconsin recalls that I published in 2011 about Republican candidate Jane Corwin . "An injunction to preserve the evidence is what Corwin did in New York (NY-26) to bar certification of any results and impound all voting equipment and ballots immediately after the election".I am looking at this from the perspective of a reasonable judge".These are [this is a] highly contested election. There could be misconduct on the part of election officials. There is potential for some kind of [election] fraud that election officials can't detect. It would be very powerful for a candidate to seek an injunction."

It would be prudent for your campaign to file an injunction now, at this 11th hour, to impound all voting equipment, ballots, memory cards, etc. when the polls close Tuesday night. "The election materials must be protected in the event of a potential recount or other challenges that could be made about the integrity of the election results".Your injunction is the senate district's best chance for a fair election."

Filing an injunction to protect the election materials on election night is essential to ensuring the integrity of the election results. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures, especially in such a hotly contested and close election. This election has the potential to change the course of history.

Another important injunction is being called for i n Alabama to preserve the images of the ballots . I am asking you to call for an injunction for the paper ballots themselves, the memory cards and all the machines, including the AutoMARK. Because it is such a tight election and such a highly contested one, as in NY-26, this might be possible.

At least your Secretary of State has recently said he will not prosecute cross-over voters .

i hope you/we win by a landslide. I try very hard not to do worst case scenarios. So I will mention this briefly. If it comes to your losing in such a close election, do not concede, please. It could be a chapter in this story. Kerry did not learn from Gore. Did we get anything good with both of their concessions? Demand a recount. A hand-counted paper ballot recount, publicly observed and with security of the chain of custody of the ballots and memory cards. Democracy's solution. Democracy in our hands.

(Article changed on December 11, 2017 at 16:15)
There are two great dangers in the Alabama Senate race. The first is obvious. An alleged pedophile, pro-slavery sentiment voicing, anti-Constitutional protections, voting rights, and avowed anti-gay rights baiter, will win the race. Polls with an occasional swing here and there have been consistent in predicting that former Judge Roy Moore will win the Alabama Senate race.

The second great danger is that if he wins, Black voters will get the blame for it. There have been strong hints of that finger-point in the final run-up days to the election. A spate of articles reported how Moore's Democratic opponent Doug Jones has made frantic, impassioned appeals to Black voters to storm the polls and vote for him. He's burnished his limited civil rights credentials to prove that he's a civil rights fighter, has made the obligatory stops at a few Black churches, and corralled a few Black political notables to make brief stops in the state pitching his candidacy among Black voters.

This sudden spotlight on Black voters has not-so-subtly planted the notion that if Blacks don't vote in big numbers for him he'll lose. Now Black voters make up about thirty percent of the states eligible voters. So, at first glance there's some plausibility to the demand that Blacks pull Jones's candidacy out of the fire. But that overlooks too many things.

One is what most experts who have looked at the race have repeatedly said. And that's that Alabama is one of the reddest of red states. No Democrat has won a statewide office in a decade. And white voters make up nearly seventy percent of the state's voters. The GOP has a dominant edge over the Democrats among the white voters, and that includes white women voters. Polls show that a significant number of them wave off Moore's alleged serial pedophilia and sexual harassment history and back him. They are rock solid, conservative pro family, pro Bible spouting, fundamentalist, stick by your man no matter what traditionalists. Their backing of him then is no real surprise and few will damn them for doing what they have always done and that's vote for one of their own, no matter how outrageous, and outlandish his anti-woman misdeeds.

This almost pales in comparison to the other big problem. The state has erected a formidable array of blatantly racist vote suppression ploys aimed at damping down the Black vote to embarrassingly low numbers. They include the standard voter ID laws, closure of scores of DMV offices that just coincidentally happen to be in mostly Black areas, and the jewel in the crown of race tinged voter suppression, the strict prohibition against early voting. There's still more in the state's voter suppression arsenal. There's no provision for no-fault absentee voting, teen pre-registration, and same day registration. Finally, there's the always popular ban on felon voting ploy. Though, the state isn't supposed to enforce a felon vote ban, court rulings have held that state officials are under no obligation to tell prospective voters with a felony conviction that they can register and vote.

Yet another problem is the Jones candidacy. He waited until way late in the political game to try and sell his candidacy to Black voters. He is no different than many other Democrats. They make the fatal assumption that a guy such as Moore as with Trump is so politically GOP hideous to Blacks that they will gallop to the polls with to vote for their Democratic opponent. It doesn't work that way. And legions of would be Black voters, civil rights leaders, and political activists have screamed at the Democratic party to pile loads of money, resources, and troops in Black communities to rev up the vote. They also loudly warn that Democrats must put forth a fighting program for jobs, health care, criminal justice reform, and to strengthen civil rights protections to get Black voters to stampede to the polls to tip the scales in a close race such as maybe the Alabama race t a Democrat. A stop at a Black church and parading around with a handful of high profile out of the district Black politicians hardly fits the bill.

The operative word when Blacks don't respond with a big voter turnout for a Democratic candidate in a head to head contest with a Republican candidate is "apathy." This supposedly explains why the GOP candidate won, and won precisely because of that apathy. This inevitably ignites the all-too-familiar blame game of Blacks for somehow letting the party down and opening the door wide for yet another GOP political enemy. The big loser so the thinking goes is Blacks. That part is true. What isn't true is that the fault lay solely with Black voters. That will be the case in Alabama too if Moore wins.

Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. His latest book is, The Trump Challenge to Black America (Middle Passage Press). He is a weekly co-host of the Al Sharpton Show on Radio One. He is the host of the weekly Hutchinson Report on KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles and the Pacifica Network.
From Truthdig

Note: Chris Hedges' column, normally posted on Sundays, appeared last Wednesday. In that article, "Zero Hour in Palestine," he wrote about President Trump's Dec. 6 announcement that the U.S. Embassy will be moved to Jerusalem. Here is an earlier column by Hedges on Israel and Palestine, published in Truthdig on June 4, 2007.

Israel captured and occupied the Gaza Strip and the West Bank 40 years ago this week. The victory was celebrated as a great triumph, at once tripling the size of the land under Israeli control, including East Jerusalem. It was, however, a Pyrrhic victory. As the occupation stretched over the decades, it transformed and deformed Israeli society. It led Israel to abandon the norms and practices of a democratic society until, in the name of national security, it began to routinely accept the brutal violence of occupation and open discrimination and abuse of Palestinians, including the torture of prisoners and collective reprisals for Palestinian attacks. Palestinian neighborhoods, olive groves and villages were, in the name of national security, bulldozed into the ground.

Israel's image has shifted from that of a heroic, open society set amid a sea of despotic regimes to that of an international pariah. Israel's West Bank separation barrier, built ostensibly to keep out Palestinian bombers, has also been used to swallow huge tracts of the West Bank into Israel. Palestinian towns are ringed by Israeli checkpoints. Major roads in the West Bank are reserved for Israeli settlers. The U.N. estimates that about half the West Bank is now off-limits to Palestinians. And every week there are new reports of Palestinian produce that is held up until it rots, pregnant women giving birth in cars because they cannot get to hospitals, and even senseless and avoidable deaths, such as one young woman who died recently when she couldn't get through a checkpoint to her kidney dialysis treatment.

"We are raising commanders who are policemen," former Israeli Gen. Amiram Levine told the newspaper Maariv. "We ask them to excel at the checkpoint. What does it means to excel at the checkpoint? It means being enough of a bastard to delay a pregnant woman from getting to the hospital."

The occupation was benign at the beginning. Israelis crossed into Palestinian territory to buy cheap vegetables, eat at local restaurants, spend the weekend in the desert oasis of Jericho and get their cars fixed. The Palestinians were a pool of cheap labor, and by the mid-1980s 40 percent of the Palestinian workforce was employed in Israel. The Palestinians flowed over the border to the shops and beaches of Tel Aviv. But the second-class status of Palestinians, growing repression by Israeli authorities in the West Bank and Gaza and festering poverty saw Palestinians, most of them too young to remember the moment of occupation, rise up in December 1987 to launch six years of street protests. The uprising eventually led to a peace accord between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, led by Yasir Arafat. Arafat, who had spent most of his life in exile, returned in triumph to Gaza.

The Oslo Accords that followed momentarily heralded a new era, a moment of hope. I was in Gaza when they were signed. The Gaza Strip was awash in a giddy optimism. Palestinian businessmen who had made their fortunes abroad returned to help build the new Palestinian state. The radical Islamists seemed to shrink away. Palestinian women threw off their head scarves, and beauty salons sprouted on city streets. There was a brief and shining sense that life could be normal, free from strife and violence, that finally Palestinians had a future. But it all swiftly turned sour. The 1995 assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, coupled with mounting draconian restrictions on Palestinians to prevent them from entering Israel and keep them in submission, led to another uprising in 2000. This one, which I also covered for The New York Times, was far more violent. This latest uprising has led to the deaths of more than 4,300 Palestinians and 1,100 Israelis. It ushered in an Israeli policy that saw Jewish settlers relocated from Gaza. Gaza was then sealed off like a vast prison. Israel also began to build a security barrier -- at a cost of about $1 million per mile -- in the West Bank. When it is done, the barrier is expected to incorporate 40 percent of Palestinian land into the Israeli state.

Israeli airstrikes have, over the past year, decimated the infrastructure in Gaza, destroying bridges, power stations and civilian administration buildings. The breakdown in law and order, coupled with the growing desperation in Gaza, has triggered an internecine conflict between Hamas and Fatah. There are some 200 Palestinians who have died in clashes and street fighting between the two factions during the past year--more than one-third of those killed by Israel during the same period.

The Israeli abuses have been well documented, not only by international human rights organizations but Israeli human rights groups such as B'Tselem. On June 4, 2007, Amnesty International released a 45-page report called "Enduring Occupation: Palestinians Under Siege in the West Bank," which again illustrates the devastating impact of four decades of Israeli military occupation. The report documents the relentless expansion of unlawful settlements on occupied land. It details the ways Israel has seized or denied crucial resources, such as water, to Palestinians under occupation. It documents a plethora of measures that confine Palestinians to fragmented enclaves and hinder their access to work, health and education facilities. These measures include the 700-kilometer barrier or wall, more than 500 checkpoints and blockades, and a complicated system of permits to heavily restrict movement.

"Palestinians living in the West Bank are blocked at every turn. This is not simply an inconvenience -- it can be a matter of life or death. It is unacceptable that women in labor, sick children, or victims of accidents on their way to hospital should be forced to take long detours and face delays which can cost them their lives," said Malcolm Smart, director of Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Program.

"International action is urgently needed to address the widespread human rights abuses being committed under the occupation, and which are fueling resentment and despair among a predominantly young and increasingly radicalized Palestinian population," said Smart. "For 40 years, the international community has failed to adequately address the Israeli-Palestinian problem; it cannot, must not, wait another 40 years to do so."

Of Gaza's 1.4 million residents, a staggering 1.1 million now depend on outside food assistance. The World Food Program has identified Gaza as one of the world's hunger global hot spots. The WFP is a principal food aid provider to Palestinians, providing assistance to 640,000 Palestinians, more than a third of them in Gaza.

The desperation -- with young men unable to find work, travel outside the Gaza Strip or West Bank and forced to sleep 10 to a room in concrete hovels without running water -- has empowered the Islamic radicals. The desperation has led the Palestinian population, once one of the most secular in the Middle East, to turn to radical fundamentalism. The more pressure and violence Israel employs, the more these radicals are empowered.

The Israel lobby in the United States is captive to the far right of Israeli politics. It exerts influence not on behalf of the Jewish state but an ideological strain within Israel that believes it can crush Palestinian aspirations through force. The self-defeating policies of the [George W.] Bush administration are mirrored in the self-defeating policies championed by the hard-right administration of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem. Israel flouts international law and dismisses Security Council resolutions to respect the integrity of Palestinian territory. It has instead trapped Palestinians in squalid, barricaded ghettos where they barely survive.

It is not in Israel's interest -- or our own -- to continue to fuel increased Palestinian strife and rising militancy. Economic sanctions and an arms ban against Israel are our last hope. These were the tools that toppled the apartheid regime in South Africa. And it was, after all, the sanctions imposed by the first President Bush -- he suspended $10 billion of loan guarantees for resettling Russian immigrants in Israel -- that prodded right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir to attend peace talks in Madrid.

A trade embargo -- even if imposed only by European states -- would be a start. It is outside pressure that can alone halt the inexorable slide into a conflict that could become regional. And a new regional conflict with Israel could spell the end of the Zionist experiment in the Middle East. It may be quixotic, perhaps even impossible, but it is the last measure left to save Israel from itself.
by Raymond Lotta

Setting the Record Straight on Communism and Socialist Revolution



The theory of "totalitarianism" equates communism with fascism"...the dictatorship of the proletariat with fascist rule"...and Stalin with Hitler. This is a grotesque misrepresentation of reality. The Soviet Union when it was socialist (from 1917 until the mid-1950s) and Nazi Germany (1932-45) were polar opposites in all key aspects: in their economic foundations; political and social structures; aims and outlook of leadership; guiding ideologies; in the actual ways these societies functioned"and in the lived experience of the individuals making up these societies.

The theory of totalitarianism traffics in gross lies and distortions of the methods and goals, and the real history and experience, of communist revolution. It detaches Nazi Germany from its capitalist underpinnings. And it pathetically worships at the feet of liberal-democratic imperialism as the highest and furthest human society can and should go--prettifying its monstrous crimes and inhumanity, and the savage exploitation of hundreds of millions at the base of this system.

The most influential "scholarly" work proposing the theory of "totalitarianism" is Hannah Arendt's The Origins of Totalitarianism. The powerful critique of Arendt by Bob Avakian in Democracy: Can't We Do Better Than That? provides essential understanding for why this theory is unscientific and the agenda it serves.

The main target of "totalitarian" theory is in fact communism. And this theory's main ideological function is to distort and demonize communist revolution and reconcile people to this world of horrors.

*The socialist Soviet Union was the outcome of a mass revolution bound up with the horrific death and destruction of World War 1 and a highly oppressive and repressive society that millions were in revolt against. The October Revolution of 1917, led by the Bolshevik (communist) Party, overthrew the old capitalist-imperialist ruling class/elites; and the ensuing civil war of 1918-20 shattered their remaining political-military power. The revolution created new governing structures--the dictatorship of the proletariat--that empowered the formerly oppressed and exploited, in alliance with the great majority of society, to take ever greater responsibility for the running of society. And the new socialist system spurred radical social-cultural transformation and ferment.

*Hitler and the Nazi vision of a resurgent, revengeful, and "racially pure" imperial Germany emerged out of German defeat in World War 1 in 1918. Hitler built up a mass racist and reactionary social base through the 1920s. His program ultimately gained the backing of sections of the traditional German capitalist-imperialist ruling class. Nazi rule was erected on the foundations of developed German industrial-finance capitalism. And Hitler united the reigning economic-military elites behind a project to make Germany the great and dominant imperial power of the world. Fascist rule deprived people of minimal rights, creating categories of undesirables, and carrying out savage persecution and control--moving first against communists!

*The revolution in the Soviet Union led to history's first planned socialist economy. Unlike capitalism, it operated according to the principle of production for social need, not profit in command--providing for the material and cultural needs of the people and bringing workers and peasants into positions of responsibility. Resources were allocated in a conscious and planned way to develop an all-around economy. The Soviet economic system was not driven, nor did it seek, to expand and exploit globally, or to colonize peoples and regions. The new Soviet Union recognized the right of self-determination and aided and supported the struggles of peoples colonized and dominated by imperialism.

*The German economy under Hitler maintained and enforced the system of capitalist ownership and control and exploitation of wage labor--and was transformed into a predatory militarized economy. The German imperialist state sought to gain control of the resources and labor of vast stretches of Europe and beyond: through annexation, war, and plunder.

*The Nazi program for women was one of total subordination. The Nazis pushed women out of the workforce and sought to turn them into compliant breeders and mothers for the fatherland. "Kitchen, children, church" was the slogan. The Nazi "role model" projected in state propaganda, in the educational system, and culture was the "Aryan" male: the patriarch and racial warrior.

*The Soviet revolution stood for the liberation of women. In the 1920s and early 1930s, Soviet society was challenging traditional gender roles and customs enslaving women, including Sharia law. Abortion was legalized and made widely available--as was the right to divorce. Never before had a society made the uprooting of women's oppression such a focus. Women joined the labor force in the greatest numbers in history--with childcare and nursery facilities provided. Great efforts were put into improving post-natal care for minority nationalities.

In the mid-1930s, however, the government saw the need to stabilize society as the threat of war grew. Certain radical social measures were reversed and abortion banned. This was a grievous retreat, though women continued to play a major role in political, economic, and cultural life.

*The Nazis aimed to establish the rule of the so-called German "master race" over Europe and the East. Only "racially fit" Germans were deemed suitable to reproduce. Nazi social policy aimed to eliminate "inferior" Germans (the mentally ill and developmentally disabled, homosexuals, and "a-socials") through sterilization and denial of medical treatment. And the Nazi racial state ultimately embarked on a program of genocidal extermination of the Jewish people in Germany and Europe, along with other ethnic and national groups. Hitler propagated the imaginary conspiracy of Bolshevism/communism and the Jewish people, and sought the elimination of both.

*The socialist Soviet Union was the world's first multinational state based on equality. It valued and promoted ethnic diversity. It waged campaigns against "great-Russian chauvinism." It created autonomous regions where minority nationalities previously forbidden from using their own languages in schools and official political life could now do so--and local, indigenous leadership was fostered. Minority cultures flourished. Soviet scientists and educators worked to explode the myth of "backward" and "superior" races. Nowhere else in the world was this going on--least of all the U.S., where segregation and white supremacy were the law of the land and lynching against Blacks rampant; and Jews were subjected to discrimination.

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RACINE  A Milwaukee company that trains caregivers, Standard of Excellence Education & Training Center, has opened a satellite location in Downtown.

The for-profit company trains caregivers for the developmentally and physically disabled and the elderly. Standard of Excellence opened the new center Nov. 1 at 245 Main St., suite 402.

Co-owner Rosland Anderson, who co-owns the business with her husband, Henry, has been training for 15 years. She also is an eight-year veteran of the Army Reserve.

Anderson has three employees in Milwaukee and about four consultants who just perform the training. The first local classes were held Wednesday and Thursday.

On the company website, Anderson writes about her philosophy toward training caregivers, (O)ur goal is to challenge caregivers to think before acting, listen before reacting, and care before practicing. Our relaxed, comfortable atmosphere will put you and your employees at ease, and help to make our training courses seem like fun, rather than a burden.

Anderson also states on her company website that she teaches the importance of why a caregiver should be healthy, strong in body, patient, compassionate and kind, organized, and able to maintain inner strength.  Dependability is crucial since clients or patients may utterly depend on their caregiver. Caring for someone can easily lead to exhaustion, so the caregiver really needs to be able to take care of themselves and know their own limitations.

The entire series of five courses is spread over five six-hour days and costs $595. The series includes five state-mandated classes and one additional class. The company also offers continuing education for caregivers. Anderson said the employer usually pays for the training, and state funding is also available.

For more information call 414-447-8332.
From Paul Craig Roberts Website

Is the US really a superpower or just the biggest collection of stupidity on the planet?

Washington has already lost the Syrian war once. Now it is about to lose it a second time.

A few days ago the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, declared a "complete victory" in Syria: "Two hours ago, the (Russian) defense minister reported to me that the operations on the eastern and western banks of the Euphrates have been completed with the total rout of the terrorists."

The Iranian commander of the forces that support the Syrian and Iraqi governments sent a note to the U.S. to let Washington know that any remaining U.S. forces in Syria will be fought down:

"The commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corp Brigadier General Haj Qassem Soleimani sent a verbal letter, via Russia, to the head of the US forces commander in Syria, advising him to pull out all US forces to the last soldier 'or the doors of hell will open up.'

"My message to the US military command: when the battle against ISIS (the Islamic State group) will end, no American soldier will be tolerated in Syria. I advise you to leave by your own will or you will be forced to it."

According to reports, Russia has confirmed that Iran will stay in Syria as long as Syrian President Assad, who insists on liberating all of Syria without exception for the Americans, decides. Washington's plan to occupy a corner of Syria and revive ISIS is dead in the water, as will be all US troops sacrificed to this purpose.

According to reports, CIA director Mike Pompeo sent a letter to Soleimani expressing his concern about Iran's intention to attack American interests, declaring Washington "will hold Soleimani and Iran accountable for any attack."

According to reports the CIA's letter had no effect and was treated with total contempt:

"Mohammad Mohammadi Golpayegani, a senior aid to the Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, confirmed Pompeo's attempt to send a letter but said 'Soleimani refused to read it or to take it because he has nothing further to add.' Sources in the area believe it is not unlikely that Kurdish troops -- operating in al-Hasakah and who are faithful to the government of Damascus -- are willing to be spearheaded against the US forces. Many of these troops remained loyal to Syria: they reject any occupation forces on its land or the partition of the country."

There are references to 1983 events where hundreds of US Marines and French paratroopers were killed following double suicide attacks by Islamists in Beirut. As a consequence of these attacks, the American forces left in a rush. The future could well mirror this past event.

Possibly this is fake news. If not, we must accept that the humiliation that the United States, its government and its peoples have suffered is the work of the Neoconservatives and their doctrine of American World Hegemony. It is the Neoconservatives who caused the US to be at war with Muslims for 16 years. It is the Neoconservatives acting through Obama and Hillary who brought America to humiliating defeat in Syria.

There are only a handful of these Neoconservatives. Why do Americans tolerate them?

Why doesn't Trump have them arrested? They are anti-American, pro-Israel to the core. The Neoconservatives are the worst enemy of Americans and of all mankind.

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Let's play one of my favorite games -- what in the world is wrong with President Trump?

No, I don't mean his policies, his opinions or his tasteless tweeting habits. I mean medically -- what in the world is wrong with him? You can almost play bingo with his many mentally unhealthy behaviors. There are so many theories about his instability that they range from the sad -- dementia -- to the conspiratorial -- he's being poisoned by his hair loss medication.

Considering he has control of our nuclear power and seems to enjoy provoking North Korea -- which can now hit mainland US with missiles -- it seems like a good time to bring up the topic (or stockpile bottled water and buy a Geiger counter).





Dementia

In the '80s and '90s, Trump appeared on TV interviews and made late night appearances. He used to be a better public speaker. He used to use bigger words, complete sentences, and make logically sound points. In short, he used to talk like an adult instead of a petulant child. Now when he speaks, his sentences are fragmented. He repeats or interrupts himself. He displays no impulse control, belligerence and a lack of empathy. These are all signs of dementia. If you take it a step further, he could have Alzheimer's disease -- like his father did. Mental decline is one of the more difficult potential challenges people face as they age. After all, he is the oldest person to be elected to the presidential office.

Living with dementiaor Alzheimer's is not easy, and those who are on the path often surround themselves with their loved ones, who they rely on for support. They can become aggravated, hostile and difficult to handle.

Syphilis

Syphilis goes through a handful of phases, from the initial sores to rashes, fever, and swollen glands. But the really spectacularly insane part of syphilis is the final phase, in which it does bad things to your brain. Specifically, it causes irritability, delusional thinking and grandiosity while it impairs concentration. Memory and judgement can be problematic, too. Sound familiar? Perhaps a little something like a president who now says the famous recording of him threatening to grab women by a spot he shouldn't go anywhere near is fake.

So does Trump have the third phase of syphilis, called neurosyphilis? At least one doctor thinks so, and chalks it up to his wild oat-sowing times in the '80s. Syphilis is particularly insidiousas it is often asymptomatic and can lie dormant for years. He could have had it for a long time and not known.



Narcissistic/Psychopathy

Among the psychology/psychiatry community, there is growing concern that Trump is an antisocial personality -- more specifically, he is somewhere on the narcissistic/psychopath spectrum. Among the behaviors that serve as indicators for these two personality disorders is an inflated sense of their own importance, combined with fragile self-esteem -- e.g., Trump's claims that he is the best at everything and his barely controlled rage at press criticism. There's also a lack of empathy and paranoia. Psychopaths have the ability to be charming but are ultimately utterly lacking in human kindness.

While mental health professionals don't frequently diagnose public figures without actually treating them (especially politicians -- thanks Barry Goldwater!), more and more are speculating on his potential mental illness -- some with a timetable of his mental decline coinciding with his rise to fame.





Side Effects of Hair Loss Medication

If you read the medical report from Trump's doctor, you'd see a prescription for a hair loss medication called Finasteride. While certainly giggle-worthy, as his hair is one of the easiest things to mock in a highly mockable persona, Finasteride has a whole host of potential side effects, including impotence, impaired memory and poor decision making.

The scariest thing about this drug is that the side effects don't always go away with discontinued use. So even if his hair medication is the cause, he might not be able to recover any potentially lost faculties.





Between the late night Twitter frenzies, the broken speech patterns and the inability to follow legal advice, Trump's behavior could be written off as odd and curious - if he didn't have the ability to destroy national landmarks, the healthcare system and a free internet. If he is suffering from a disorder, what does that mean for the US?
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By The Wilderness Society

The U.S. Senate has passed a Republican tax-reform package that contains a provision to authorize oil drilling on the coastal plain of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, placing the biological heart of one of our last pristine, untouched places in severe peril.

"This vote to deface and pollute one of the nation's last pristine and untouched wild landscapes is outrageous," said Jamie Williams, president of The Wilderness Society, in a statement after the Senate passed the tax package. "The Arctic Refuge drilling provision has no legitimate place in a tax bill, and this backdoor political deal now threatens to destroy the crown jewel of our National Wildlife Refuge System."

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska, attached her drilling bill to the tax legislation under the budget reconciliation process as a way of getting the unpopular measure passed with a mere 51 votes, with no chance of a filibuster by Democratic senators who want to defend the refuge. The bill now needs to be reconciled with the House version, which does not include an Arctic Refuge drilling provision.

Unless the drilling provision is stripped from the legislation during negotiations with the House, it will be part of the final tax bill that goes to President Trump for his signature, allowing the fragile coastal plain to be auctioned off to the oil industry and undoing nearly 40 years of bipartisan support for protecting the Arctic Refuge.

At 19.3 million acres, the Arctic Refuge is America's largest wildlife refuge and provides habitat and birthing grounds for native caribou, polar bears and migrating birds from across the globe, and a diverse range of wilderness lands. Its 1.5 million-acre coastal plain -- stretching north from the Brooks Range to the Arctic Ocean -- provides vital denning habitat for endangered polar bears and is the calving ground of the Porcupine Caribou Herd, which contains nearly 200,000 animals.

Oil and gas drilling would have devastating impacts on this pristine and fragile ecosystem, caused by the massive infrastructure needed to extract and transport oil. Drilling the Arctic is risky, would fragment vital habitat and chronic spills of oil and other toxic substances onto the fragile tundra would forever scar this now pristine landscape and disrupt its wildlife.

"This fight is not over," Williams said in his statement after Senate Republicans passed their bill in the middle of the night. "The oil industry and its allies in Congress may think they can sneak this past the American people, but communities across the country are speaking out every day. They are calling on principled leaders in Congress to reject this poison pill and oppose a tax bill that would drill the refuge."
I first understood the power of the documentary during the editing of my first film, The Quiet Mutiny.

In the commentary, I make reference to a chicken, which my crew and I encountered while on patrol with American soldiers in Vietnam.

"It must be a Vietcong chicken -- a communist chicken," said the sergeant. He wrote in his report: "enemy sighted.".

The chicken moment seemed to underline the farce of the war -- so I included it in the film.

That may have been unwise.

The regulator of commercial television in Britain -- then the Independent Television Authority or ITA -- had demanded to see my script.

What was my source for the political affiliation of the chicken? I was asked. Was it really a communist chicken, or could it have been a pro-American chicken?

Of course, this nonsense had a serious purpose; when The Quiet Mutiny was broadcast by ITV in 1970, the US ambassador to Britain, Walter Annenberg, a personal friend of President Richard Nixon, complained to the ITA.

He complained not about the chicken but about the whole film. "I intend to inform the White House," the ambassador wrote. Gosh.

The Quiet Mutiny had revealed that the US army in Vietnam was tearing itself apart. There was open rebellion: drafted men were refusing orders and shooting their officers in the back or "fragging" them with grenades as they slept.

None of this had been news. What it meant was that the war was lost; and the messenger was not appreciated.

The Director-General of the ITA was Sir Robert Fraser. He summoned Denis Foreman, then Director of Programmes at Granada TV, and went into a state of apoplexy. Spraying expletives, Sir Robert described me as a "dangerous subversive."

What concerned the regulator and the ambassador was the power of a single documentary film: the power of its facts and witnesses: especially young soldiers speaking the truth and treated sympathetically by the film-maker.

I was a newspaper journalist. I had never made a film before and I was indebted to Charles Denton, a renegade producer from the BBC, who taught me that facts and evidence told straight to the camera and to the audience could indeed be subversive.

This subversion of official lies is the power of documentary. I have now made 60 films and I believe there is nothing like this power in any other medium.

In the 1960s, a brilliant young film-maker, Peter Watkins, made The War Game for the BBC. Watkins reconstructed the aftermath of a nuclear attack on London.

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Finding Headspace has never been so Simple

https://be42.co.uk

Browse by Department, Filter by Headspace!Be42 launched its online shop on the 3rd December 2017. Selling homewares, beauty and cultural products to the UK, ethically sourced from around the World. All with the aim of helping you find optimum headspace.The inspiration came to Be42s founder Sandra Anderson through personal exploration and the frustration of shopping for items to help her to find headspace. She found no simple way to filter through candles, incense and aromatherapy to make informed choices, unless you know what you are looking for. This inspired her to share her personal experiences via this online shop and make it simple for everyone to find the headspace they are seeking.I embarked on a personal journey of self discovery to see how I could ensure I performed at my best at all times. Whilst other products are available in store and online I found no simple way to filter results to find products that matched the headspace I was seeking, so I blindly bought products based on the fragrances I liked, and wondered why I wasnt getting the best results. And so the idea for Be42 was born, making it easier to explore products by filtering by desired headspace. Sandra Anderson, Founder.What is headspace?Creating a state of mind, zone, mindset or flow state - engaging your mind fully to the task at hand.Why filter by headspace?If you had a hectic day at work and you really need to wind down in the evening, we would recommend using a different product to one we would recommend if you were studying and needed to keep a sharp and focused mind.Supporting the Minds of OthersEveryones journey is different, for some an achievement is climbing to the highest mountain for others it could simply be getting up and dressed, with this in mind we felt that supporting a charity that helps the minds of those who struggle with daily life would be a good balance. 5% of the sale price of each basket will be donated to Mind (Registered Charity Number 219830).Visitto get any last minute Christmas shopping until 20th December with next day service with DPD for only 5.95 for any sized orders  happy shopping!About Sandra Anderson, Be42s FounderSandra has been working in digital since 1997, her career has allowed her to work with thousands of small businesses and helped them to achieve success online and offline, as well as working with a large telecom company as a Conversion Design Specialist  but her heart is always with small business. She is a keen UXer and loves Bitcoin and the future possibilities it holds. Previous businesses include an industry fashion magazine that was launched front row at London Fashion Week and sold via Selfridges (among other outlets), a Victorian inspired delicatessen and her first business was creating internet, intranet and extranet solutions for business back in 1997 before the dotcom boom with clients such as Debenhams, NHS Pasa and Universal Studios.Be42 sells homewares, beauty and cultural products to the UK, ethically sourced from around the World. All with the aim of helping you find optimum headspace.Be42312a Station RoadWestcliff-on-SeaEssexSS0 8DZ
And Not to Count the Cost by Gillian Thornhill is published

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Not-Count-Cost-Gillian-Thornhill/dp/1787196135

ISBN #978-1787196131And Not to Count the Cost by Gillian Thornhill is publishedA moving story based on real events about how we cope when hope and joy turn to failure and heartbreakAbout the Book:This is a novel about aspects of the human condition in which the characters are fictitious, but much of the story is based on real events, and doubtless these problems are replicated all over the world to silent sufferers. When hope and joyful aspirations turn to failure and heartbreak, how can we cope best with the deal we've been handed, without resorting to bitterness?Excerpt from And Not to Count the Cost:Holiday time proved even more difficult to control. Isabel insisted that homework and GCSE revision should be completed, but that still left plenty of time for Laura to disappear with her friends. Isabel worried because she had no reason to trust her daughter who lied to obtain what she wanted, and when she was found out. Parenting proved to be very tough indeed.On several occasions, Laura would slip out of the front or back door to an unspecified address, and Isabel would spend the evenings driving or walking round the estate looking for her, not knowing whether to call the police. Sometimes she was out all night, and Isabel was almost beside herself with worry. She realised, too late, that buying a house on an estate had been a mistake. Church attendance was no longer of any interest to Laura, whether her St Faith's friends were there or not.One day in the holidays when Laura was out of the house, and Isabel was attempting to retrieve some of Laura's underwear for the washing machine, she spotted an unmistakeable packet of birth control pills. She was only fifteen. What was the GP thinking of? Isabel challenged him about it, and was told that when teenagers asked for the pill, it was prescribed without their parents' permission.She will not have an unwanted pregnancy, he added.Of course, Laura had cleverly tried to dupe Isabel once again, and when the truth was out, she became violent and abusive, accusing Isabel of invading her privacy. The fact that she was only fifteen was of no consequence to her. On one occasion, when Isabel locked both the doors to prevent Laura from disappearing into the night, another row ensued with damage to furniture, following physical and verbal abuse.About the Author:Gillian Thornhill is the author of various books including Elisaveta: A Life (2015) and Escape to Manchuria! (2016), both of which were published by New Generation Publishing.And Not to Count the Cost by Gillian Thornhill is currently available in paperback from Amazon UK at:Press/Media Contact Details:New Generation PublishingTel. 01234 712 064E-mail: info@newgeneration-publishing.comNew Generation Publishing is a professional publishing company in the UK.Legend Times107-111 Fleet StreetLondon EC4A 2AB
Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017

Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017

http://www.qyresearchglobal.com/goods-1228564.html

http://www.qyresearcheurope.com/

The Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017 is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK industry.Firstly, the report provides a basic overview of the industry including definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure. The Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Industry analysis is provided for the international market including development history, competitive landscape analysis, and major regions development status.Secondly, development policies and plans are discussed as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures. This report also states import/export, supply and consumption figures as well as cost, price, revenue and gross margin by regions (United States, EU, China and Japan), and other regions can be added.Then, the report focuses on global major leading industry players with information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials, equipment and downstream consumers analysis is also carried out. Whats more, the Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed.Finally, the feasibility of new investment projects is assessed, and overall research conclusions are offered.In a word, the report provides major statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market.Geographically, this report split Asia-Pacific into several key Regions, with sales (K Pcs), revenue (Million USD), market share and growth rate of Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK for these regions, from 2012 to 2022 (forecast), includingChinaJapanSouth KoreaTaiwanIndiaSoutheast AsiaAustraliaAsia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK market competition by top manufacturers/players, with Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK sales volume, price, revenue (Million USD) and market share for each manufacturer/player; the top players includingAdvenchen Laboratories, LLCAthenex, Inc.Basilea Pharmaceutica AGPfizer Inc....On the basis of product, this report displays the sales volum, revenue, product price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoApatinibBosutinibCCT-196969CCT-241161OthersOn the basis on the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, sales volume, market share and growth rate for each application, includingColon CancerFallopian Tube CancerMetastatic Breast CancerOthersAsk a complete & professional report sample or make an order, please click here:Table of contents:1 Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Overview2 Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Competition by Players/Suppliers, Region, Type and Application3 China Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)4 Japan Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)5 South Korea Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)6 Taiwan Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)7 India Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)8 Southeast Asia Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)9 Australia Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK (Volume, Value and Sales Price)10 Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Players/Suppliers Profiles and Sales Data11 Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Manufacturing Cost Analysis12 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers13 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders14 Market Effect Factors Analysis15 Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Forecast (2017-2022)16 Research Findings and Conclusion17 AppendixRelated Reports:Europe Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017China Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017India Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017Korea Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017USA Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017Japan Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Market Report 2017List of Tables and Figures:Figure Product Picture of Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSKFigure Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Sales Volume (K MT) by Type (2012-2022)Figure Asia-Pacific Tyrosine Protein Kinase CSK Sales Volume Market Share by Type (Product Category) in 2016Figure Polypropylene Product PictureFigure Polyester Product PictureFigure Polyamide Fiber Product PictureFigure Polyethylene Product PictureContact Details:Company Name: QYResearch CO.,LIMITED | focus on Market Survey and ResearchTina| Sales ManagersTel: 0086-20-22093278(CN)Email: sales@qyresearcheurope.com or tinaning@qyresearch.comWeb:QYResearch established in 2007, focus on custom research, management consulting, IPO consulting, industry chain research, data base cand seminar services. The company owned a large basic data base (such as National Bureau of statistics database, Customs import and export database, Industry Association Database etc), experts resources (included energy automotive chemical medical ICT consumer goods etc industries experts who own more than 10 years experiences on marketing or R&D), professional survey team (the team member with more than 3 years market survey experience and more than 2 years depth expert interview experience),Excellent data analysis team (SPSS statistics and PPT graphics process team); QYResearch has always pursuit product quality, adhere to the quality is the soul of business.Room 2901 VILI International Building No.167 Linhe West Road
Packaging & Paper Industry Accounted For the Largest Market Share in the Bioadhesives Market

MarketsandMarkets

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/bioadhesive-market-16386893.html

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownload.asp?id=16386893

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=16386893

The report Bioadhesive Market by Type (Plant Based, and Animal Based), by Application (Packaging & Paper, Construction, Wood, Personal Care, Medical, and Others) - Global Forecast to 2019, report analyzes the global bioadhesive market with respect to market drivers, opportunities, and trends in different regions.Browse 70 market data tables and 63 figures spread through 117 pages and in-depth TOC on Bioadhesive Market by Type (Plant Based, and Animal Based), by Application (Packaging & Paper, Construction, Wood, Personal Care, Medical, and Others) - Global Forecast to 2019"Early buyers will receive 10% customization on reports.The bioadhesive applications are significantly penetrating the end-user industry markets. They have different characteristics as per their manufacturing and application requirements in the end products. The North American region is expected to dominate the global market with its growing demand for bioadhesive in different application segments, especially the packaging & paper, and construction. The Asia-Pacific is a potential market and is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR in the next five years, with the allied industries expected to boost the overall business need in the respective regions.R&D is expected to be a key part of the bioadhesive market as newer products with better reactive properties which are eco-friendly in nature, can be the vital drivers of the market. Manufacturing companies, research associations, and end-product manufacturers need to infuse high investments for future advancements and technology modifications of bioadhesive to match the new demands coming from various end-user industries.Download PDF Brochure:Europe is the largest region, both in terms of volume and value, followed by North America and Asia-Pacific. Germany, U.S., U.K., Netherlands, and Japan are expected to continue as successful markets for bio-based products. The key players in the global bioadhesive market are Henkel Corporation (Germany), Dow Chemical Company (U.S.), DaniMer Scientific, LLC (U.S.), Paramelt B.V. (Netherlands), Ashland Inc. (U.S.), Adhesives Research (U.S.), EcoSynthetix Inc. (Canada), 3M Company (U.S.), Yparex B.V. (Netherlands), Adhbio (Spain), and others.The developed European nations that host the global events related to bio-based industry would supplement the growth of bioadhesive market. Increased environmental and regulatory concern, an improved growth in industrial manufacturing, local end-user production, and increasing population in the emerging economies are expected to drive the consumption of bioadhesives. Also, the key exporters besides the players in Europe to these countries, mainly, the important global manufacturers, such as Henkel Corporation have started production of hot melt adhesives from bio-based products in the recent past. It depicts the rising demand from U.S. as well as in Germany and U.K. in the North American and European region.The bioadhesive demand, in terms of value and volume, depicts the current and future projections, according to the parallel economic and industry outlook. This analysis covers important developments, expansions, agreements, and partnerships of the leading global companies.Speak To Analyst:The global bioadhesive market was estimated to be is $3 billion in 2013, and is projected to reach $6 billion by 2019, expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.0% between 2014 and 2019. The high demand across the industries, such as packaging & paper, construction, wood, personal care, medical, and others, are expected to increase the overall bioadhesives consumption.About MarketsandMarketsMarketsandMarkets is worlds No. 2 firm in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model  GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors.M&Ms flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers.We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository.UNIT no 802, Tower no. 7,SEZ, Magarpatta city, Hadapsar
RACINE  At age 21, the owner-operator of Nicks Minimart and Nicks Deli has already accomplished a bunch. But Alaa Louie Alsaher wants to do so much more.

The minimart and deli that Alsaher runs are housed at 1407 Superior St. on Racines near north side, just two buildings from Douglas Avenue. Thats where Alsahers uncle, Nizar Nick Fattah, ran the business for 32 years before turning it completely over to his nephew in September 2016.

In honor of his uncle, Alsaher has kept Nicks in the name of both businesses  but hes making them his own.

Alsaher was born and raised in Puerto Rico, where the family had a business until they moved to Milwaukee in 2004, then moved to Racine last year. Despite his Puerto Rican beginnings, Alsaher clarifies, Im fully Arab.

Hes also fully ambitious. When Alsaher took over Nicks last year at age 20, hed already been working weekends at Nicks since he was about 16, had attended Milwaukee Area Technical College in Oak Creek for three years and earned an associate business degree, and was planning to go into nursing.

But then Fattah turned his store over to Alsaher last September. The young man soon set about reopening the deli in the back of the store that Fattah had closed in 2005. It took him seven months, and its been open for eight.

The first three months were really hard, Alsaher said. The food management license test was really hard.

He sank $30,000 to $40,000 into remaking the deli kitchen including $5,000 for the overhead TV monitors that serve as easily changeable menu boards.

Alsaher has brought other technology into the operation. His cash register can tell him  for the customers who use credit cards  how many times each customer has come in each week, and how many new ones.

The deli menu includes some of almost everything from burgers and gyros to fajitas. The favorites based on sales, Alsaher said, include the Cali Dream Chicken with Provolone cheese and ranch sauce for $6; and the chicken wings, which come in quantities ranging from four to 100.

Other plans

Alsaher said he doesnt plan to run Nicks forever; in several years hell be exploring other options. But in the meantime, hes got his foot on the gas pedal.

His deli is currently open 9 to 9 six days a week, Tuesday-Sunday. But Alsaher plans to extend those hours next spring by opening at 7 a.m. to offer breakfasts, and staying open until midnight to tap into the patronage of the tavern next door at 1403 Superior St., the Winners Circle.

The 21-year-old has also ordered a coffee machine and a Frappuccino machine, an orange-juice machine and has just signed a contract to begin selling O&H Danish Bakery products.

And Alsaher says hell remodel the buildings facade.

About his business plans, he remarked, Im only halfway there.
Slippery Floors Can Cost Your Organization Millions If Not Cleaned Properly

www.allenmaintenancejanitorial.com

www.allenmaintenancejanitorial.blogspot.com

Winter weather has arrived; isnt it time to join forces with a professional commercial cleaning service provider to help clean up those wet floors throughout your organization?Allen Maintenance, Inc. has been rendering quality, commercial cleaning services for more than 27 years, through-out the Metro Detroit and surrounding areas, i.e., Farmington Hills, Birmingham, Wixom, Novi, Royal Oak, Ferndale, Westland, Taylor, Downriver, and more.With winter weather slamming at our front doors, its time to begin considering joining forces with a professional commercial cleaning service provider, who possesses the years of experience and quality concern, your organization deserves to have, to remain its best.We provide removal of trash, germs and dirt from carpeted areas; we wipe down door handles where viruses gather. We also sweep, vacuum, and mop floors. We remove dirt and cob webs from high to reach places, and dust behind computer monitors.Services are provided 24/7; and all cleaning staff under-go back ground checks. After all, we stand firm on our policy of integrity and trust, and adhere to a privacy compliance.Learn more about the services, we provide by logging on to our Web siteOr, log on to our Blog to learn more about our expertise in commercial cleaningAllen Maintenance, Inc. holds a A+ Better Business Bureau accreditation, and is an active member of the Worldwide Cleaning Association-ISSA.Therefore, when giving serious thought to who, you can turn to for commercial cleaning support, Allen Maintenance, Inc. should be the commercial cleaning and building maintenance service provider, you turn to. We look forward to hearing from you.Office hours are Monday-Friday, 9AM-3PM; 313.383.4840.Allen Maintenance, Inc. has been providing professional commercial cleaning services throughout the Metro Detroit area for more than 26 years.4224 Dix Toledo HwyLincoln Park, MI 48146
Global Rubber Conveyor Belt Market 2017 - Continental AG, Bridgestone, Fenner, Yokohama, Zhejiang Double Arrow, Sempertrans

https://www.fiormarkets.com/report-detail/144306/request-sample

https://goo.gl/3mHEhU

www.fiormarkets.com

www.albaniantimes.com

A conveyor belt is the carrying medium of a belt conveyor system (often shortened to belt conveyor). This report mainly focuses on the Rubber Conveyor Belt. The covering material of Rubber Conveyor Belt mainly used rubber and the skeleton material is nylon, Polyester, cotton and steel wire etc. Rubber Conveyor Belt are widely used in steel, coal, cement, electricity, ports, mining, building materials and other industries.Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Rubber Conveyor Belt in Global market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application.Download free sample report @Market Segment by Manufacturers, this report coversContinental AGBridgestoneFennerYokohamaZhejiang Double ArrowSempertransBandoBaoding HuayueZhejiang SanweiShandong PhoebusWuxi BotonZhangjiagang HuashenHSIN YUNGFuxin ShuangxiangAnhui ZhongyiQingDao Rubber SixHebei YichuanSmiley MonroeMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis coversNorth America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, coversMultiply Fabric Reinforced Rubber Conveyer BeltSteel Cord Reinforced Rubber Conveyor BeltsPVG Solid Woven Rubber Conveyor BeltsMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided intoMiningIndustrialConstructionTransportationOil & GasOthersAccess Full Report With TOC @There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Rubber Conveyor Belt market.Chapter 1, to describe Rubber Conveyor Belt Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Rubber Conveyor Belt, with sales, revenue, and price of Rubber Conveyor Belt, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Rubber Conveyor Belt, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the market by countries, by type, by application and by manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions;Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 12, Rubber Conveyor Belt market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2017 to 2022;Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Rubber Conveyor Belt sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data source.About Fior MarketsFior Markets is a leading market intelligence company that sells reports of top publishers in the technology industry. Our extensive research reports cover detailed market assessments that include major technological improvements in the industry. Fior Markets also specializes in analyzing hi-tech systems and current processing systems in its expertise. We have a team of experts that compile precise research reports and actively advise top companies to improve their existing processes. Our experts have extensive experience in the topics that they cover.Fior Markets provides you the full spectrum of services related to market research, and corroborate with the clients to increase the revenue stream, and address process gaps.Contact UsMark StoneSales ManagerOffice-102, Sanskriti AspirationsBaner Road, Pune,MH 411045IndiaPhone: (201) 465-4211Email: sales@fiormarkets.comWeb:Blog:
Microdisplays Market - Industry Analysis,Trends and Forecast 2017 - 2025

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Global Microdisplays Market: SnapshotLow entry barrier and escalating number of revenue avenues are two of the most prominent attributes of the global microdisplays market, and the future seems prosperous. Currently, there are a few large and small vendors operating in the microdisplays market, focusing on new product launches, partnerships, and acquisitions to increment their customer base. For example, for head mounted wearable devices, eMagin Company recently introduced their ultra-high brightness direct patterned (DPD) full color microdisplay.In the near future, the market for microdisplays will continue to grain traction from a number of factors, such as emerging demand for HUDs, increasing use of microdisplays for military purposes, and shifting focus on reducing global aircraft accident rate. The automotive sector in particular, is paving way for compact and less expensive microdislays. On the other hand, high cost of production, technical issues, lack of a standard regulatory framework, design limitations, bulky nature of HUDs, and the need for high-quality sensors are some of the factors hindering the market from achieving its full potential.Request Sample Copy of the Report @Nevertheless, the vendors of this market will continue to gain new opportunities due to several reasons. Some of the emerging trends of the global microdisplays market are growing popularity of microdisplays for different applications, introduction of next-generation microdisplay technologies, emerging demand from automotive industry, increasing safety concerns, introduction of innovative HUDs, and escalating demand for multipurpose helicopters. The report presents comprehensive analysis all of these factors and estimates their eventual impact over the market during the forecast period.Global Microdisplays Market: OverviewThe advent of various microdisplays is ascribable to the latest technological advancements. The transition of the display industry from cathode ray tube (CRT) to organic light emitting diodes (OLED) has been crucial in boosting the demand for microdisplay technology. The report therefore forecasts strong growth for the global microdisplays market.In order to provide a holistic market overview, the report covers aspects such as investment feasibility for the new entrants, competitive landscape, results obtained from supply chain and manufacturing cost analysis, and segmentation based on various parameters. Compiled to provide readers a better perspective of the global microdisplays market it also provides insights into the growth drivers and restraints impacting the markets trajectory.Request TOC of the Report @Global Microdisplays Market: Trends and OpportunitiesThe market is expected to significantly gain from the diverse applications of microdisplays across consumer electronics and defense and military industries. In these industries microdisplays are used in video phones camcorders, digital camera viewfinders, and others. Furthermore, with the increasing uptake of augmented reality, the use of microdisplays in devices such as HUDs and HMDs is projected to rise.On the flip side the high cost and delayed launch of microdisplay devices could lead to their lack of acceptance. Nevertheless with technological advancements, manufacturers must be able to address these concerns and cater to the dynamic consumer demand.Global Microdisplays Market: Regional Outlook and Key SegmentsThe report predicts double-digit growth for the global microdisplays market. Among the key regional segments, the market is likely to witness the most lucrative prospects in Europe and North America. The growth of the consumer applications sector will bolster growth of the microdisplays market across these regions. Besides this, the demand for microdisplays will be seemingly high in China, South Korea, and Japan, giving thrust to the market in Asia Pacific.Get Discount @Based on application, the automotive industry is exhibiting high demand for microdisplays with head mounted displays. The technology is extensively used for prototyping a vehicle design in the automotive industry. This helps engineers with information such as the exact position of different vehicle parts. In addition, microdisplays are often integrated in the latest vehicle models to provide additional information with night visions to drivers. Other application of microdisplays are holograms, flight trainings, and data storage.Global Microdisplays Market: Vendor LandscapeTo gauge the prevalent competitive trends the report also profiles some of the leading companies operating in the global microdisplays market. It therefore includes a detailed assessment of business strategies adopted by companies such as WiseChip Semiconductors, Universal Display Corp., AU Optronics, Kopin Corp., eMagin Corp., MicroOLED, Sony Mobile Display Corp., Microvision Inc., and Hana Microdisplay Technologies Inc.An analysis into their strengths and weaknesses could provide major insights into the outcome of the latest business strategies. The information can prove indispensable for other market players. The report therefore conducts SWOT analysis on the companies profiled in the report. This analysis also presents insights into the threats and opportunities that these enterprises may witness over the course of the forecast period.About TMR ResearchTMR Research is a premier provider of customized market research and consulting services to business entities keen on succeeding in todays supercharged economic climate. Armed with an experienced, dedicated, and dynamic team of analysts, we are redefining the way our clients conduct business by providing them with authoritative and trusted research studies in tune with the latest methodologies and market trends.Our savvy custom-built reports span a gamut of industries such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals and metals, food and beverages, and technology and media, among others. With actionable insights uncovered through in-depth research of the market, we try to bring about game-changing success for our clients.Contact:TMR Research,3739 Balboa St # 1097,San Francisco, CA 94121United StatesTel: +1-415-520-1050Email: sales@tmrresearch.com
E-Paper Market Analysis- Size, Share, Growth, Industry Demand, Forecast, Application Analysis To 2017

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ReportBazzar has released its latest research-based report entitled E-Paper Market. This report studies the E-Paper market status and outlook of global and United States, from angles of players, regions, product types and end industries; this report analyzes the top players in global and United States market, and splits the E-Paper market by product type and applications/end industries.This report studies E-Paper in Global market, especially in North America, China, Europe, Southeast Asia, Japan and India, with production, revenue, consumption, import and export in these regions, from 2012 to 2016, and forecast to 2022.For Free Sample Copy, click here:Information & Communication Technology industryThe information and communication technology market nowadays is growing in double digit. We deliver both syndicated and consulting reports for ICT market according to client needs and industry needs. We mainly focus on different new technologies, smart markets, mobile applications, telecommunications, software, middleware, audio-visual systems and storage.A holistic report covers exhaustive information obtained from reliable industrial sources and through proven research methodologies. The report goes through both secondary and primary survey. The base year taken for the report is 2015 and 2016, and a forecast is done from 2017 to 2022.The data thus obtained is then combined with relevant tables and graphs to support the information revealed.The following points are covered in the report: Market segmentation Penetration & Growth Mapping Market Trends Market Driver Analysis Market Restraint Analysis Growth opportunities Porters Analysis SWOT AnalysisApplication Insights:Various competent analytical tools have been used to offer a comprehensive assessment of the market. The report comprises of each aspect of the global market for E-Paper. It starts with the basic information and then advances to the market segmentation based on different criteria such as technology, industry areas and regions in general. A detailed analysis is given on the areas of industries it is used and basically how the technology is helping the particular industry or driving the market growth of that particular industry.Regional Insights:Major regions, countries, and sub-segments have been analyzed for providing the better understanding of the market scope worldwide. The regions taken into consideration are North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and Central & South America. The regional markets for the E-Paper market are analyzed by evaluating the demand, and supply, the assembly of the products, how it is getting connected with the human interface as well as the historical performance of the market in the given region.Competitive Insights:The report also provides insights on the competitive landscape of the global E-Paper industry with the leading players profiled in the report. Company profiles are purely tentative in nature and we can profile companies according to your interest at free cost. The company overview, trends, tactics, merger & acquisitions, business strategies, financial metrics of the major participants operating in the global E-Paper market have been reviewed in this study.To view the table of contents and know more details please visit:Some Points Of Table Of Content:1 Industry Overview of e-Paper1.1 Definition and Specifications of e-Paper1.1.1 Definition of e-Paper1.1.2 Specifications of e-Paper1.2 Classification of e-Paper1.2.1 Electrophoretic Display (EPD)1.2.2 Electrowetting(EWD)1.2.3 Electrofluidic(EFD)1.2.4 Ohters1.3 Applications of e-Paper1.3.1 Consumer electronics1.3.2 Medical1.3.3 Transportation1.3.4 Others1.4 Market Segment by Regions1.4.1 North America1.4.2 China1.4.3 Europe1.4.4 Southeast Asia1.4.5 Japan1.4.6 India2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of e-Paper2.1 Raw Material and Suppliers2.2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of e-Paper2.3 Manufacturing Process Analysis of e-Paper2.4 Industry Chain Structure of e-Paper3 Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis of e-Paper3.1 Capacity and Commercial Production Date of Global e-Paper Major Manufacturers in 20163.2 Manufacturing Plants Distribution of Global e-Paper Major Manufacturers in 20163.3 R&D Status and Technology Source of Global e-Paper Major Manufacturers in 20163.4 Raw Materials Sources Analysis of Global e-Paper Major Manufacturers in 20164 Global e-Paper Overall Market Overview4.1 2012-2017E Overall Market Analysis4.2 Capacity Analysis4.2.1 2012-2017E Global e-Paper Capacity and Growth Rate Analysis4.2.2 2016 e-Paper Capacity Analysis (Company Segment)4.3 Sales Analysis4.3.1 2012-2017E Global e-Paper Sales and Growth Rate Analysis4.3.2 2016 e-Paper Sales Analysis (Company Segment)4.4 Sales Price Analysis4.4.1 2012-2017E Global e-Paper Sales Price4.4.2 2016 e-Paper Sales Price Analysis (Company Segment)5 e-Paper Regional Market Analysis5.1 North America e-Paper Market Analysis5.1.1 North America e-Paper Market Overview5.1.2 North America 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.1.3 North America 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.1.4 North America 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis5.2 China e-Paper Market Analysis5.2.1 China e-Paper Market Overview5.2.2 China 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.2.3 China 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.2.4 China 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis5.3 Europe e-Paper Market Analysis5.3.1 Europe e-Paper Market Overview5.3.2 Europe 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.3.3 Europe 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.3.4 Europe 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis5.4 Southeast Asia e-Paper Market Analysis5.4.1 Southeast Asia e-Paper Market Overview5.4.2 Southeast Asia 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.4.3 Southeast Asia 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.4.4 Southeast Asia 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis5.5 Japan e-Paper Market Analysis5.5.1 Japan e-Paper Market Overview5.5.2 Japan 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.5.3 Japan 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.5.4 Japan 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis5.6 India e-Paper Market Analysis5.6.1 India e-Paper Market Overview5.6.2 India 2012-2017E e-Paper Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.6.3 India 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales Price Analysis5.6.4 India 2016 e-Paper Market Share Analysis6 Global 2012-2017E e-Paper Segment Market Analysis (by Type)6.1 Global 2012-2017E e-Paper Sales by Type6.2 Different Types of e-Paper Product Interview Price Analysis6.3 Different Types of e-Paper Product Driving Factors Analysis6.3.1 Electrophoretic Display (EPD) of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis6.3.2 Electrowetting(EWD) of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis6.3.3 Electrofluidic(EFD) of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis6.3.4 Ohters of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis7 Global 2012-2017E e-Paper Segment Market Analysis (by Application)7.1 Global 2012-2017E e-Paper Consumption by Application7.2 Different Application of e-Paper Product Interview Price Analysis7.3 Different Application of e-Paper Product Driving Factors Analysis7.3.1 Consumer electronics of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis7.3.2 Medical of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis7.3.3 Transportation of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor Analysis7.3.4 Others of e-Paper Growth Driving Factor AnalysisCheck Discount:About Us:Reportbazzar.com is your trusted source for the most inclusive and informative assortment of market research reports designed to empower you with the latest in industry information that translates to time and cost savings for your business. We not only help you give wing to your latent business ideas but also facilitate you in taking the best informed and strategic decisions that guarantee success in your most promising business endeavors. Our intelligence database comprises of vast arrays of strategically analyzed and high-level market research reports that encompass all major industries worldwide. All the specialized research reports available at Reportbazzar.com are tailor-made to suit your every business need, no matter how diverse or demanding it is.Contact Us:ReportBazzar30 Wall Street, 8th floor,New York, NY 10005.United States.US: +1 (212) 389-6363India: +91 20 66528525
Global Moissanite Market Worth US$ 48.84 Mn with CAGR of 6.2% during Forecast 2015-2025

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According to the latest market report published by Persistence Market Research, titled Global Market Study on Moissanite: North America to Be the Most Lucrative Region and Also To Witness Highest Growth By 2025, the global moissanite market is estimated to be valued at US$ 26.80 Mn by the end of 2015 and is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 6.2% from 2015 to 2025, to account for US$ 48.84 Mn by 2025.Moissanite is a lab-created gemstone that is generally perceived as a diamond substitute by consumers. Moissanite is composed of silicon carbide and is created through a thermal process that is patented by Charles & Colvard Ltd., the only manufacturer of moissanite across the globe. Moissanite, a synthetic diamond, has been estimated to account for around 1.6% share of the overall gemstone market by 2015 end.Request for Report Sample @Currently, the global moissanite market across the world is mainly driven by factors, such as resemblance of the product as diamond, rising consumer awareness about the product, and increasing consumer inclination towards luxurious jewelry products. However, factors such as the emergence of new technologies for creating other similar gemstones may restrain the market growth over the forecast period. The global moissanite market is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 6.2 % from 2015 to 2025, to account for US$ 48.84 Mn by 2025.On the basis of application, the moissanite market has been segmented into rings, earrings, bracelets, and pendants. The rings segment is expected to account for 80.4% share of the global moissanite market by 2015 end, and is expected to register a moderate CAGR of 6.5% in terms of value over the forecast period (20152025). There has been a stupendous rise in adoption of moissanite in rings, which are the most preferred products among consumers, who buy them as gifts for their partners or mothers, in turn driving the segment growth in the near future. Earrings segment has been estimated to account for 9.8% value share of the overall market by 2015 end and is expected to register a CAGR of 6.0% in terms of value over the forecast period.Request for Report TOC @On the basis of region, the moissanite market is segmented into North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East & Africa. Among these, North America is expected to account for 88.2% value share of the global moissanite market by 2015 end. The market in the region is expected to expand at CAGR of 6.3% in terms of value during the forecast period. Increasing consumer preference for pocket-friendly luxurious jewelry products is expected to fuel the growth of the market in the North America region over the forecast period.Obtain Report Details @The report provides detailed information about the various trends driving each market segment and offers analysis and insights into the potential of the global moissanite market in specific regions.Currently, Charles & Colvard, Ltd is the only player operating in the market. Meanwhile, Cree Inc. and Norstel AB are the key raw material suppliers in the global moissanite market.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.Our client success stories feature a range of clients from Fortune 500 companies to fast-growing startups. PMRs collaborative environment is committed to building industry-specific solutions by transforming data from multiple streams into a strategic asset.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway,7th FloorNew York City, NY 10007United StatesTel: +1-646-568-7751Tollfree: +1 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWebsite:
Smart Grid Sensors Market Globally Expected to Drive Growth through 2025

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The global energy sector is transitioning into intelligent, efficient network of power supply, and smart grids are actively replacing conventional power grids across the world. The demand for smart grid sensors grows in parallel with surging adoption of smart grid technology. In todays day and age, detection and monitoring operations have helped save potential losses worth millions of dollars. Therefore, smart grid sensors are also expected to gain surplus demand in tomorrows energy industry. Persistence Market Researchs latest report on the global market for smart grid sensors projects that the market, which is presently valued at a little over US$ 128 Mn, will soar at a stellar CAGR of 30.3% to bring in US$ 1,447.3 Mn in revenues by the end of 2025.Request Sample:Key findings in the report exhibit that the global smart grid sensors market will have a steadfast growth during the assessment period, 2017-2025. In this period, the dynamic growth of the global smart grid sensor market will be impacted by several factors, among which following have an enduring influence:Extreme Weather Conditions: Severe climate and harsh environment is disrupting the operational efficiency of smart grids, compelling the deployment of thermal sensors that can detect temperature differences and adapt to drastic weather changes, particularly in the US.Electricity Thefts: Rising incidence of electricity thefts in developing & underdeveloped regions is driving the adoption of smart grids. In Latin American countries, power authorities are monitoring such malpractices with help of sensors that identify faux power glitches.Proliferation of IoT: Internet of Things (IoT) is influencing the sales of smart grid sensors but remuneratively. Presently, utilities companies in Europe are looking to leverage IoT to improve development and operation of smart grids by connecting unique devices, which will end up creating an intelligent & self-sustained energy ecosystem.Download TOC:Ineffectiveness of older power grids, increasing energy demands, and implementation of smart metering systems has also propelled the global demand for smart grid sensors. According to the report, titled Smart Grid Sensors Market: Global Industry Trend Analysis 2012 to 2016 and Forecast 20172025, rising concern regarding safety & security of smart grids, and high implementation costs of smart grid sensors is likely to impede the global markets growth, but to a certain extent.Based on the region, Latin Americas smart grid sensors market is projected to exhibit a relatively high growth, registering a robust CAGR of 36.1%. The demand for voltage/temperature sensors, in particular, is projected to remain high throughout the forecast period. The report estimates that in 2016, more than 40% of global smart grid sensor revenues were accounted by sales of voltage/temperature sensors. In terms of application, smart energy metering is expected to dominate with more than 40% share, while revenues amassed from other applications such as lead management, energy storage and renewable energy will be registering a speedy growth at 38.1% CAGR. The report also profiles key participants in the global smart grid sensors market, which include ABB Ltd., Aclara Technologies LLC, General Electric Company, Honeywell International Inc., Eaton, Toshiba Corporation, Networked Energy Services Corporation, QinetiQ Group PLC, Torino Power Solutions Inc., Sentient Energy, Inc., ARTECHE, Siemens AG, Ingenu Inc., GIPRO GmbH, GRID20/20 Inc.Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance. To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway,7th FloorNew York City, NY 10007United States+1-646-568-7751+1 800-961-0353 (USA-Canada Toll free)Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global CSP Market Poised to touch US$8.67 bn by 2020

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A new report added to the repository of Market Research Reports Search Engine Concentrated Solar Power Market  is a comprehensive repository of information, providing market share, size, and forecast.Get Free Sample Report@The global concentrated solar power (CSP) market holds a huge opportunity to rise owing to the increasing implementation of heat storage systems as well as hybridization of concentrated solar power plants with traditional thermal plants. CSP technology is said to be immensely capital intensive in nature and it can be deployed at commercial scale without the requirement of support from financial and governmental institutions. The prominent players operating in the global CSP market are continuously flourishing due to the constantly rising energy demand and the growing concerns about clean energy within developing nations.The global CSP market stood at US$2.51 bn in 2013 and is poised to touch US$8.67 bn by 2020. The market is predicted to rise at a whopping 20.30% CAGR between 2014 and 2020. Factors such as the increasing awareness regarding global warming and the growing greenhouse gas emissions are driving the overall market for CSP. In addition, the increasing prices of traditional energy sources and the growing concerns on future supply of energy will further augment the development of the market for concentrated solar power. Furthermore, the incentives and support provided by government globally will further provide impetus to the development of the market in the coming years. Contrariwise, the soaring cost of electricity generation may come up as a roadblock in the growth of the global concentrated solar power market.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Parabolic Trough to Lead Concentrated Solar Power Market till 2020In terms of product, the report segments the global CSP market into dish stirling, linear freshnel, solar tower, and parabolic trough. Of these, parabolic trough is the most matured technology in the market and is extensively utilized at commercial level for the generation of power. This technology held a leading position in the market in 2013 and is poised to rise at the swiftest growth rate between 2014 and 2020. The segment of tower and fresnel trailed parabolic trough, respectively. Of these, the tower technology is expanding at an exponential rate owing to the integration of technology with traditional thermal power plants, while the technology of dish sterling is employed for pilot projects and demonstration.Europe Emerged as the Most Dominant Region in Global Concentrated Solar Power MarketOn the basis of geography, the market is categorized into Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World (RoW). Of these, on the basis of CSP installed capacity, Europe came up as the top producer of power globally within the CSP technology and the production in this region is predicted to expand in the coming years. Although, due to the economic slowdown within Europe, this growth of the market in Europe has experienced a gradual degradation within the installation process, still the growth of the market in this region will rise from 2014 to 2020. North America and Asia Pacific trail Europe in terms of production. On the other hand, the concentrated solar power (CSP) market is also predicted to grow in Asia Pacific in the coming years. The prime players within the market are focusing on investing within Asia Pacific and North America concentrated solar power markets.The chief players dominant in the market are Concentrated Solar Power market include Abengoa Solar S.A., Ibereolica Group, GDF SUEZ, NextEra Energy Resources, LLC., and BrightSource Energy, Inc.Send an Enquiry @About MRRSEMarket Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE) is an industry-leading database of Market Research Reports. MRRSE is driven by a stellar team of research experts and advisors trained to offer objective advice. Our sophisticated search algorithm returns results based on the report title, geographical region, publisher, or other keywords.MRRSE partners exclusively with leading global publishers to provide clients single-point access to top-of-the-line market research. MRRSEs repository is updated every day to keep its clients ahead of the next new trend in market research, be it competitive intelligence, product or service trends or strategic consulting.Contact UsState Tower90, State StreetSuite 700Albany, NY - 12207United States Telephone: +1-518-730-0559Email: sales@mrrse.comWebsite:Read More Industry News At:
IT Robotic Automation Market is predicted to reach a valuation of US$16,884.0 mn by the end of 2024

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Market Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE) has been serving as an active source to cater intelligent research report to enlighten both readers and investors. This research study titled IT Robotic Automation Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2017 - 2024 Get Free Sample Report @The IT Robotic Automation market report provides analysis for the period 20142024, wherein the period from 2016 to 2024 is the forecast and 2015 is the base year. The report covers all the major trends and technologies playing a key role in the IT robotic automation markets growth over the forecast period. It also highlights the drivers, restraints, and opportunities expected to influence the markets growth during the said period in terms of revenue (in US$ Mn). The report provides brief analysis for the geographies which include North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA), and South America. The IT robotic automation market has been segmented by solutions type into tools and services. These are further segmented into model-based application tools and process-based application tools. The services are further studied based on professional and training services. Professional services are further segmented into consulting, integration and development, and BPO services.The market overview section of the report outlines the drivers, restraints, and opportunities that influence the current nature and future standing of this market. The report represents the market attractiveness for segments that include solution, tools and services, and their sub-segments influencing the adoption of IT robotic automation. Report also includes ecosystem analysis to recognize key participants in the IT robotic automation along with their role in the ecosystem. Moreover, the report provides an overview of the various strategies of key players in the market.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Global IT Robotic Automation Market: OverviewMajor factors driving the global IT robotic automation market include cost benefits and improved efficiency in process handling, ability to leverage other application software without integration, increased adoption in finance and accounting (F&A) sector and alternative to offshore outsourcing. The robotic process automation decreases the human intervention in routine repetitive tasks and thus creates a virtual workforce for handling large number of tasks. Additionally, automation takes place at the GUI layer which eliminates need of integration with other systems. Moreover, robots can work for long duration terminating the constraints of limited hours of human labor work. Thus, significant reductions in cost, time and labor can be achieved by implementing robotic process automation.Global IT Robotic Automation Market: Competitive DynamicsThe report also highlights the competitive landscape of the IT robotic automation market, positioning all the major players according to their geographic presence, solutions/services offered, focus on research and development, and recent developments. The comprehensive IT robotic automation market estimates are the result of our in-depth secondary research, primary interviews, and in-house expert panel reviews. These market estimates have been analyzed by taking into account the impact of different political, social, economic, technological, and legal factors along with the current market dynamics affecting the IT robotic automation markets growth.Send an Enquiry @The IT robotic automation market involves robotic automation technology providers and robotic automation service providers. The major providers of IT robotic automation includes Blue Prism, Be Informed B.V., Appian, IPSoft, Inc. , Tata Consultancy Services Limited., Infosys Limited, Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Atos SE, Capgemini, Genfour, Genpact Ltd., Automation Anywhere, Inc., Sutherland Global Services, Inc., and UiPath Srl. Details such as financials, business strategies, recent developments, and other such strategic information pertaining to these players have been duly provided as part of company profiling.The IT Robotic Automation market is segmented as below:IT Robotic Automation MarketBy SolutionToolsServicesBy ToolsModel BasedProcess BasedBy ServicesProfessionalConsultingIntegration and DevelopmentBPOTrainingBy GeographyNorth AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle East and AfricaSouth AmericaCheck Discount @About Market Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE)Market Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE) is an industry-leading database of Market Research Reports. MRRSE is driven by a stellar team of research experts and advisors trained to offer objective advice. Our sophisticated search algorithm returns results based on the report title, geographical region, publisher, or other keywords.MRRSE partners exclusively with leading global publishers to provide clients single-point access to top-of-the-line market research. MRRSEs repository is updated every day to keep its clients ahead of the next new trend in market research, be it competitive intelligence, product or service trends or strategic consulting.Contact UsState Tower90, State StreetSuite 700Albany, NY - 12207United States Telephone: +1-518-730-0559Email: sales@mrrse.comWebsite:Read More Industry News At:
Global IoT Sensor Market Research and Forecast 2017-2022

IoT Sensor Market, Size, Share, Market Intelligence, Company Profiles, Market Trends, Strategy, industry, Analysis, Forecast 2017-2022GLOBAL IOT SENSOR MARKET INSIGHTS:Internet of Things (IoT) is the interconnection of embedded computing like devices within the internet infrastructure. IoT is an emerging technology that is increasingly adopted across the globe. IoT related technologies like sensors, wearable, cloud and other related platform are much in demand. The IoT sensor Market is anticipated to grow at a significant CAGR of 30.4% during 2017-2022. The major factors that are augmenting the growth of the market are growing demand for smart devices and wearable and development of smarter and low prized sensor. Furthermore, rising demand for IoT sensors in various applications and miniaturization of devices are also estimated to be major factors that are fuelling the growth of the market.IoT devices are computing devices that connects wirelessly to a network and has the ability to transmit data. These devices include thermostat, door locks, fridges, cars, pacemakers, smartphones, tablets, wearable watches and so forth. Growing demand for consumer electronics product such as smart phones, smart TV; smart home appliances are fueling the Iot sensor market. Fitbit Aria WI-Fi smart scale, Withings Smart Body analyzer, Nest Thermostat, Philip hue light bulbs, Lockitron are some IoT innovations developed in recent years to improve everyday life. All these IoT applications require IoT sensor for monitoring processes, taking measurements and collecting data. Pressure sensor, temperature sensor, humidity sensor, gyroscope, magnetometer, accelerometer and light sensors are used extensively in various applications. The market of Micro-Electro-Mechanical (MEMS) based sensors such as accelerometers, magnetometers, gyroscopes is witnessing high growth due to rising demand for smart applications such as smart city, wearables, smart grids, industrial internet and connected health in automotive, healthcare and other industrial sectors. Security and privacy issues as well as lack of technological skills required to expertise in IoT technology are estimated to be the major constraints in the growth of the market.GEOGRAPHY INSIGHTS:Global IoT sensor market is analyzed on the basis of the geographical regions that are contributing significantly towards the growth of the market. On the basis of the geography, market is bifurcated into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World. North America held the largest share followed by Europe in the Global IoT sensor market owing to high penetration of smart devices and rapid adoption of new technology. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing region in the IoT sensors owing to increasing demand of IoT sensors for use in smart consumer products and medical sector. The emergence of new players in the developing market such as Japan, India and China are expected to create significant opportunity for the IoT sensor market.COMPETITIVE INSIGHTS:Global IoT sensor market leaders include Arm holding PLC, Analog device Inc., Broadcom limited, Digi International Inc., Ericsson, Honeywell International Inc., IBM, Infineon, InvenSense Inc. and so forth. Other notable players that account for IoT sensor market and are contributing considerably in its growth include Libelium, NXP Semiconductor N.V., Omron Corporation, Robert Bosch GMBH, Sensirion, SmartThings Inc., STMicroelectronics, TE Connectivity Ltd., Texas Instruments Incorporated, Konux Inc., Fujitsu among others. In order to survive in the market these players adopt different marketing strategies such as merger, acquisitions, product launch, and geographical expansion so on. For example, in 2015 NYCE Sensors, Zigbee sensor partnered with Smart things for expanding user community and rapidly growing market for IoT. Moreover, in 2017, Bosch and IBM collaborated to bring industrial IoT capabilities to millions of devices across the globe.MARKET SEGMENTATION:Global IoT sensor Market is segmented on the basis of type, network technology and by application. Based on application, the global IoT sensor market is segmented into healthcare, automotive, industrial, retail and consumer electronics. Out of all these, the consumer electronics segment is dominating the market owing to rising demand for consumer electronics such as smart TV, smart Phones and Smart home. Major segments of the global IoT sensor market include:IoT sensor market by typeIoT sensor market by network technologyIoT sensor market by applicationTHE REPORT COVERS:Comprehensive research methodology of global IoT sensor marketIn-depth analysis of macro and micro factors influencing the market guided by key recommendations.Analysis of regional regulations and other government policies impacting the global IoT sensor marketInsights about market determinants which are stimulating the global IoT sensor marketDetailed and extensive market segments with regional distribution of researched revenuesExtensive profiles and recent developments of market playersAt OMR we strive to deliver quality reports that are based on a 360 degree analysis of the market factors. We provide qualitative and quantitative analysis of the market. We serve clients from 16 different domains which includes healthcare, biotechnology, chemical, agriculture and information technology. We work to add more to our array of clients, services and products. At the moment OMR provides 4 services:Industry ReportsConsultingCustom ReportsCompany ProfilingOrion Market Research (OMR) is an Indian research company known for its crisp and concise reports.CORPORATE OFFICEOrion Market Research Pvt Ltd116, Shagun ArcadeIndore, Madhya PradeshIndia- 452010Email: info@omrglobal.comPhone No. +91-731-4958007
IQ4I Research & Consultancy published a new report on Fetal and Neonatal Care Device Global Market  Forecast To 2023

Fetal and Neonatal Care Device Global Market estimated to be worth $10,790.7 million by 2023

Fetal and neonatal products help in early diagnosis, monitoring, prevention and evaluation of disease of fetus and neonates. Fetus care is an important aspect during pregnancy as the fetus is prone to many disease and conditions, hence early diagnosis and monitoring the fetus on a regular basis and analyzing the results is crucial in fetal care. The devices used for fetal diagnosis are ultrasounds and fetal MRI and the devices used for monitoring fetus are fetal pulse oximeters, fetal Dopplers and other devices like amnioscopes and fetoscopes. Neonates are prone to various diseases like respiratory diseases, jaundice, etc as they will be unable to adapt to the environment as their immune system is weak and neonates especially who are preterm are preterm i.e. babies born alive before 37 weeks of pregnancy needs a lot of care as they are related to many complications like breathing problems, jaundice, apnea, bronchopulmonary dysplasia and other conditions which can lead to newborn death. The monitoring devices used for neonate care are incubators, warmers, convertible warmer & incubator, respiratory devices, phototherapy devices, neonatal monitoring devices like blood pressure monitors, cardiac monitors, etc. The devices like CT scan, X-Ray are used for diagnosis of neonates. Every year, an estimated 15 million babies are born preterm (before 37 completed weeks of gestation), and this number is rising.According to IQ4I analysis, the Fetal and Neonatal Care Device global market is expected to grow at a single digit CAGR to reach $10,790.7 million by 2023. The global rise in preterm & low weight birth babies, increasing prevalence of hospital-acquired infections in newborn babies which resulted in growing number of neonate admissions, rising awareness among the population in developing nations about neonatal and increasing R & D investments for neonate care are driving the market. Increasing product recalls, lack of awareness and economic constraints in developing countries, decreasing birth rate in certain developed countries are restraining the growth of the market. The limited reimbursement facilities and alternative treatments that include exchange transfusion may be recommended if the baby has particularly high levels of bilirubin in the blood or if phototherapy hasn't been effective and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) may be used in treating newborn with Jaundice are threats for the market growth.The Fetal and Neonatal Care Device global market is mainly segmented by products, end-users and geography. The Fetal and Neonatal Care Device global products market is segmented into Fetal and Neonatal Care Device. Among this neonatal care device segment accounted for the largest share in 2016 and is expected to grow at a single digit CAGR from 2016-2023.End-Users are segmented into hospitals, private clinics and other end-users which include home care and ambulatory settings. Among the end users of the Fetal and Neonatal Care Device market, hospitals generated the largest revenue 2016 and are expected to grow at a high single-digit CAGR from 2016-2023, due to the availability of sophisticated equipment at one place.Technological advancements in fetal and neonatal cared device market include wireless fetal monitor, integrated fetal monitors, electronic fetal monitoring, etc. Biotricity, Inc. received ethics approval in 2017 to conduct a study that will investigate and validate a mobile wireless fetal heart rate variability (HRV) monitor. Microcap handheld capnographs by Medtronic is a handheld capnographs that delivers an easy-to-use assessment of respiratory status. The pocket fetal Doppler by Contec is a hand-held obstetrical unit, which proves efficient for the hospital, clinic, and home use.Wireless camera monitoring system, a new technology to monitor neonates vital signs like heart rate and respiration is developed by EPFL Polytechnical University and Swiss Centre for Electronics and Microtechnology. This technology will replace the highly sensitive traditional sensors which are placed on skin that can generate false alarms up to 90% mainly caused by neonates normal movements. The wireless camera system is expected to be tested on premature babies at University Hospital Zurich (USZ). With the approval of this technology, the premature babies in incubators can be monitored using wireless cameras instead of sensors attached to the skin.Geographically, North America commanded the largest market share in 2016 due to high investments in healthcare infrastructures in this region. However, Asia-pacific region is expected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2016-2023 due to increasing healthcare awareness, higher economic growth, and large target population.The Fetal and Neonatal Care Device market is consolidated and the top players in Fetal and Neonatal Care Device such as GE Healthcare, Philips, Dragerwerk AG & Co. KGaA, Medtronic PLC and Siemens AG control approximately 70% of the market as these companies have strong distribution networks, acquiring small companies and have multiple channels to reach the hospitals. For instance, GE healthcare is expanding its Maternal-Infant Care business with the acquisition of Monica Healthcare, a monitoring technology company based in the United Kingdom in 2017.Some of the other companies operating in Fetal and Neonatal Care Device global market include Utah Medical Products, Inc. (U.S.), Galemed Corporation (Taiwan), David Medical (China), GINEVRI Srl (Italy), Natus (U.S.), Plasti-Med Medikal Urunler San. Tic. Ltd. Sti (Turkey), nice Neotech Medical Systems Pvt. Ltd., (India), Sunray medical apparatus Co.,Ltd (China), Dixion Vertrieb medizinischer Gerate GmbH (Germany), Shenzhen luckcome technology Co.,Ltd (China), etc.Major players in Fetal and Neonatal Care Device market include GE Healthcare (U.S.), Philips N.V. (Netherlands), Dragerwerk AG & Co. KGaA (Germany), Siemens AG (Germany), Analogic Corporation (U.S.), Atom medical corporation (Japan), Becton Dickinson and Company (U.S.), Cooper Companies, Inc (Cooper Surgical, Inc) (U.S.), Fisher & Paykel (New Zealand), Gettinge Group (Sweden), Masimo Corporation (U.S.), Medtronic PLC (Ireland) and Natus Medical Incorporated (U.S.).IQ4I (Intelligence Quotient for Innovation) Research and Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. is a global strategy, consulting and a leading market research company. Our clients include leading businesses, investment banks, researchers and government agencies.We are a team of highly qualified consultants and market researchers, committed to help clients make strategic decisions by providing relevant and firmly reliable market intelligence support. We enable our clients to identify the market opportunities with best-in-class market intelligence reports.With world-class research capabilities, we deliver high-level strategically analyzed consulting and custom research assignments to our clients at a reasonable cost and time frame. With fact-based insights and accurate market forecasts, we enable our clients to understand and respond to the market dynamics with an edge over their competitors.IQ4I Research & Consultancy Pvt. Ltd.,No.11, Industrial Suburb,Rajajinagar, Bangalore-560010Karnataka, India
For many sexual assault survivors, the crimes committed against them can be the worst experiences of their lives. However, the events that follow, as they choose whether or not to report the assault and they deal with the aftermath, can be nearly as traumatizing for survivors who lack adequate support and information.

Volunteer and staff advocates from Sexual Assault Services of Lutheran Social Services dedicate significant time and effort to mitigating and minimizing the harm caused to sexual assault survivors in Racine County by being present and offering needed support and information.

Since 2000, SAS has been offering advocates at Racine County hospitals when survivors of sexual assault present for medical exams and/or forensic evidence collection. SAS advocates currently respond to both Ascension All Saints in Racine and Aurora Memorial Hospital of Burlington, and thus far in 2017, have been called to the two hospitals a total of 86 times, providing guidance to 158 individuals, including survivors, their families, and friends.

Back in 2011, Paula Morrone received this type of supportive service from SAS. She has since kept in touch with the program and recently offered some insight into what it meant to her to have an advocate present during her time at the hospital.

Paula found it very helpful to have an advocate and stated that her advocate kept me grounded, calmed me down, and he did all that I asked of him. He was very nice, put me at ease. He had a calming personality. Paula also said that her advocate, a trained SAS volunteer, explained resources and services available and discussed her options with her.

Paula also feels that having an advocate present at the hospital is necessary, because it is such a terrifying experience. You are in pain, hurting, and need the support and someone to explain things to you. I cant imagine not having an advocate there with me.

Because of her initial contact with a SAS volunteer advocate, Paula learned of the other services offered by SAS. Although she is fortunate to have a very supportive network of family and friends, Paula feels that SAS services were still a very important part of her healing. I feel that it is important to get services from SAS, because the advocates are not emotionally charged with the case and are so supportive. They also helped to validate and normalize my feelings and experiences.

Paula also participated in an SAS support group and said that it was so helpful to be with other individuals who had been through a similar experience. She feels that she and the other group members were able to help each other through our challenges.

SAS is always looking to add to our fantastic team of volunteer advocates, and we are planning our next training for January. SAS volunteer advocates are trained to answer our 24-hour crisis line 262-637-7233 and respond to the emergency room as previously described.

Volunteers must be 18 years of age and have access to a motor vehicle. No other experience is necessary, as SAS provides a comprehensive 18-hour training in sexual assault, crisis response, listening and communication skills, and community resources. Both males and females can volunteer, and bilingual (Spanish-English) volunteers are also needed.

If you are a compassionate individual with a passion for helping others, and you think you can spare one day a month, please consider joining us to help make a difference for courageous survivors like Paula. To sign up for the January training or for more information, contact the SAS office at 262-619-1634 or Program Supervisor Samantha Sustachek at ssustachek@lsswis.org.
E-iceblue launched Fantastic Discounts for the coming Christmas and New Year!

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The maximum discounts for Christmas and New Year are offered to all worldwide developers.Christmas and New Year are coming soon! For welcoming the arrival of the New Years Day of 2018, E-iceblue launched the sales promotion from Dec 10 2017 to Jan 10 2018. The maximum discounts of this year are worth being anticipated.Discounts details1. 25% OFF for Spire.Office for .NETCustomers can get a 25% discount to purchase any type of license subscription of Spire.Office for .NET.2. 15% OFF for single product15% discount is available for the customers who purchase the Developer OEM subscription or above.3. About extra 5% discountExtra 5% discount is promised to give to the customers who renew the subscriptions based on the previous offer. That is to say, you can get a 45% discount during the promotion period if you have a 40% discount before.No discount after sale.Please contact sales@e-iceblue.com for the coupon code. Buy now.New Component we released in 2017Spire.Barcode for .NET is a professional barcode component specially designed for .NET developer (C#, VB.NET, ASP.NET) to generate, read and scan 1D&2D barcodes.Spire.Email for .NET is a professional barcode component specially designed for .NET developer to create, read and manipulate emails from any .NET platform with fast and high quality performance.Newly added functions to Spire.Office1. Spire.Doc supports the WordXML document and alsosupports to add shapes to the Word document2. Spire.PDF supports to convert PDF to .docx and save PDF as HTML.3. Spire.XLS supports to add shapes to worksheet and save Excel file to Excel2016.4. Spire.Presentation supports to get or set the layout of presentation slides and convert PPT to HTML and TIFF.Download ListAbout E-iceblue:E-icebule Co,.Ltd is a vendor of .NET, Silverlight and WPF development components. The goal of e-E-icebule is always to offer high-quality components for reading and writing different formats of office files.Contact information:Contactsupport@e-iceblue.com for free and professional technical support.Contact sales@e-iceblue.com for complimentary product or Christmas discount.E-iceblue Co., Ltd. is a vendor of .NET, Silverlight and WPF development components. The goal of e-iceblue is always to offer high-quality components for reading and writing different formats of office files.Company :E-iceblue,.CoLtd.Tel: 86-028-81705109Email: Sales@e-iceblue.comcomments@e-iceblue.comURL:ZIP:610041Address: Room 601 Unit 5th Building in Kaile international No.14, Jiuxing Road, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Breast Pumps Market : Segmental Highlights and Table of Content (2017-2025)

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Global Breast Pumps Market: Awareness Initiatives by Government and Private Sector Aid Expansion, says TMRWith a few larger companies holding the largest stake, the global breast pumps market exhibits an oligopolistic vendor landscape. Among the most prominent players, companies such as Philips, Medela, and Ameda Breastfeeding Solutions are currently enjoying a stronghold, finds Transparency Market Research (TMR) in a new study. Because of its medical importance, a majority of consumers prefer investing in products by prominent brands. However, there is a considerable number of local players supplying breast pumps via indigenous network of distributors. Hence, they are able to make very little contribution toward the global breast pumps market. According to TMR, Medela LLC emerged dominant in the overall market in 2016. Besides this, some of the other notable market players include Pigeon Group (Pigeon Corporation), Evenflo Feeding, Inc., Spectra Baby USA, Mayborn Group Limited, and Hygeia Health.According to TMR, the global breast pumps market is expected to reach US$4,164.6 mn by the end of 2025, from US$1,971.8 mn in 2016. Considering these market figures hold true, the global breast pumps market will report a positive 8.9% CAGR between 2017 and 2025. Regionally, North America held the leading market share in 2016. However, over the course of the reports forecast period, the Asia Pacific market is likely to exhibit a higher CAGR of 9.4%.Report overview @The global Breast Pumps Market is segmented on the basis of product type, application, end user and region.Various factors are supporting the expansion of the global breast pumps market. For instance, the rising rate of women employment, coupled with supportive government initiatives, has proved a boon for the market. These initiatives not only helped improving the overall healthcare infrastructure but also got robust schemes for spreading awareness on track. The cumulative effect of these factors are reflected positively on the global breast pumps market, augmenting overall sales witnessed over the last few years.Besides these, factors such as the escalating birth rate, especially among emerging nations provide lucrative opportunities to the market. The United Nations has estimated by the end of 2050 the likelihood of the global population to reach 9.7 billion. Having said that, the growth in population is also indicative of attractive prospects awaiting the market players in the near future. Alongside rising women employment worldwide, the rising disposable income of consumers will have a positive impact on the market as well. To capitalize on prevailing opportunities across emerging nations, several companies are looking to invest therein. This will definitely give the breast pumps market in emerging nations a significant impetus.Request to sample report @In the last few years, both public and private sector players have conducted various campaigns to spread awareness regarding the benefits of breastfeeding, in turn creating a sizeable consumer base for breast pumps in developing nations. In addition, the recent technological advancements have further helped the market gain pace. On the downside, side effects related to using breast pumps and the high price at which hospital grade breast pumps are available are restraining the market to an extent. Nonetheless, the increasing demand from emerging nations such as China will enable the market sustain its positive growth trend through the forecast period.Summary of Table of Content1. Preface2. Assumptions and Research Methodology3. Executive Summary : Global Breast Pumps Market4. Market Overview5. Global Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecasts, By Product6. Global Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecasts, By Application7. Global Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecasts, By Region8. North America Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecast9. Europe Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecast10. Asia Pacific Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecast11. Latin America Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecast12. Middle East and Africa Breast Pumps Market Analysis and Forecast13. Competition LandscapeGet full report now @About TMRTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:TMR Blog:
2 in 1 Laptops Market 2017 Emerging Technologies and Key Players: Dell, Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, Sony, HP, Lenovo, Acer, Toshiba

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Market Research Future published a research report on 2 in 1 Laptops Market Research Report- Global Forecast 2023  Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2023.2 in 1 Laptops Global Market - OverviewThe Global 2 in 1 Laptops Market is growing swiftly; mainly due to the rising incidents of safety issues. According to a recent study report published by the Market Research Future, The global market of 2 in 1 Laptops is growing rapidly and expected to gain prominence over the forecast period. The market is projected to demonstrate a spectacular growth by 2022, surpassing its previous growth records in terms of value with a striking CAGR during the anticipated period (2016  2022).The consumer's needs and preferences are evolving rapidly which in result are increasing demand for different form factors. Apart from it, the changing work style and increasing need for real-time access to information is fuelling the growth of 2 in 1 laptop market, whereas customer-centric innovation is playing a pivotal role in performance. Recently, it is observed that there has been a shift to slimmer and more portable designs: hybrid designs, premium laptops, and the need for higher processing speeds that are gaining popularity.The Global 2 in 1 Laptops Market is driven by the decrease in the demand of tablets and advancements in detachable note books. The consumer adoption of tablets is decreasing, however, business adoption of 2 in 1 laptops is increasing. The major factor that affect the decline of tablets is the growing consumer demand of large screen mobile phones that work similar to the tablet, holds more battery life and is compact and mobile. The business front on the other hand, intend to use 2 in 1 laptops, which can be used like traditional laptops, while working from a desk or can be used separately (folded or detached) while giving presentations or product demo. The top 5 tablet manufacturers are facing a decline in annual growth rate of the tablet market largely due to the decline in the consumer tablet segment. Typical tablets without a dedicated keyboard, are continuing to lose relevancy across all regions and, as a result, there is a global declineWith the decline in the traditional tablet segment in the consumer market, the corporate market is showing a tremendous growth in adoption of detachable notebooks or 2 - in  1 laptops. The major benefit that detachable notebooks provide is the mobility and the ability to perform dual functions of a laptop and a tablet. It is a portable computer that shares the similar characteristics of a laptop and a tablet. These notebooks generally come in two types; either convertible or hybrid. Therefore, the advancements in the detachable laptops is driving the growth of 2 in 1 laptops.Despite the advancement in 2 in 1 laptop and tablet market, in terms of screen, display technology, compactness and mobility, the device has to compromise with storage and battery capacity. The growing consumer demand for large capacity batteries and high storage is somehow restraining the growth of the 2 in 1 laptop market.Get Sample of Report @Industry NewsJune 2017 - Samsung Notebook 9 Pro, a laptop line the company announced this week at Computex that includes S pen stylus.Dec. 2017 - Dell launched 'world's first' 17in 2-in-1 with Intel 8th-gen CPUKey PlayersThe prominent players in 2 in 1 laptops market are  Dell, Inc. (U.S.), Apple Inc. (U.S.), Microsoft Corporation (U.S.), Samsung Group (South Korea), Sony Corporation (Japan), HP (U.S.), Lenovo Group Ltd. (U.S.), Acer Inc. (Taiwan), AsusTek Computer Inc. (Taiwan), Toshiba Corporation (Japan) and Razer, Inc. (U.S.), among others.2 in 1 Laptops Global Market - SegmentationThe 2 in 1 Laptops Market can be segmented in to 3 key dynamics for the convenience of the report and enhanced understanding; Segmentation By Type: 2 in 1 Convertible, 2 in 1 Detachable Segmentation By End User: Corporate Consumers, Individual Consumers Segmentation By Regions: Comprises Geographical regions - North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of World2 in 1 Laptops Global Market - Regional AnalysisNorth-America is dominating the Global 2 in 1 Laptops Market with the largest market share. The growth of detachable laptops in North America includes the factors such as; growing adoption of cloud technology and connected space, making it easy for the consumers to detach the laptop at one application and use it for another application. Another factor that lead the growth of detachable laptops is growing demand of rugged detachable laptops for security, manufacturing, police, fire, and many enterprise professionals.2 in 1 Laptops Market in Asia-Pacific market is expected to grow at a substantial CAGR during 2016 to 2022 due to the increase in the demand from consumer electronics. Countries like China, Japan and also the south East Asian countries are contributing to the growth of 2 in 1 laptop market. China is the most advanced country in terms of hardware and equipment manufacturing. China is the hub of semiconductors and mobile and personal computers manufacturers. Approximately, more than 30% of the top companies in the laptop market hail from China. Furthermore, Japan houses many of the key players in the detachable laptop segment. Japan is one of the most advanced countries in the Asia pacific and also houses many of the semiconductor and electronic component manufacturing companies.Europe is one of the mature markets for detachable laptops. The major factor that drive the growth of the market in Europe is higher shipments of ultra slim convertibles and detachable laptops. Additionally, the advancement in digital ink applications, and the ability to write, digital handwriting adds to the growth of the detachable laptops.The European market for 2 in 1 Laptops Market is expected to grow at a significant CAGR (2016-2022).Get Complete Report @Intended Audience Technology investors Integrated device manufacturers (IDMs) Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) Research/Consultancy firms Cloud solution provider System Integrators External Service Providers (ESPs) ConsumersAbout Us:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Media Contact:Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Exhaust Systems Market to Reach US$ 57,500 Mn by 2022-end, Fact.MR Report

Exhaust Systems

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Exhaust system is an important automotive component found in almost all modern vehicles. However, growing need for auto technologies that can address the issues of carbon emission and environmental degradation is likely to reflect on the automotive application of exhaust systems in the future. Fact.MR in its latest report reveals that the global market for exhaust systems will reach a valuation of US$ 57,504.6 Mn by 2022-end, registering steady CAGR during the forecast period (2017-2022). Factors such as growing consumer awareness and introduction of new regulatory guidelines are expected to impact the growth of the global exhaust system market over the next couple of years.Request Free Sample Report-OEM - Top Sales Channel for Exhaust SystemsBased on sales channel, the OEM segment currently accounts for over 60% share of the market and this trend is likely to continue throughout the forecast period. In addition, the segment is expected to stand at US$ 37,722.8 Mn towards the end of 2022, expanding at 5% CAGR. As the overall auto industry undergoes massive transformation, OEMs will also need to adapt accordingly to leverage the available opportunities and avoid obsoleteness. Meanwhile, the aftermarket segment is expected to witness a relatively lower growth. By 2022-end, nearly US$ 19,781.8 Mn worth exhaust systems are estimated to be sold in the aftermarket.By vehicle type, passenger car is projected to remain the most lucrative segment of the global exhaust systems market. Increased global demand for passenger cars is expected to support the growth of the market in 2017 and beyond. The LCV segment is expected to emerge as the second segment over 2022.On the basis of fuel type, the diesel segment is projected to witness a relatively higher growth as compared to gasoline segment. By 2022-end, the diesel segment is expected to reach a market valuation of US$ 36,449.3 Mn. This is attribute to growing consumer preference for vehicles that run on diesel.Browse Full Report with TOC-Additional Highlights of the Report Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) to remain the largest market for exhaust system during the forecast period. The market in China remains highly fragmented with thousands of small players vying for a share in the pie. Moreover, some Chinese companies are aiming big and are now foraying into overseas markets. Harbin Airui Automotive Exhaust System Co., Ltd., Eberspacher, Benteler International AG, Yutaka Giken Co., Ltd., Faurecia, Tenneco Inc., Sango Co., Ltd, Futaba Industrial Co., Ltd, Friedrich Boysen GmbH & Co. KG, and Sejong Industrial Co., Ltd. are some of the key players operating in the global market for exhaust system. Many of the key market players are strongly emphasizing on development of innovating products that are technologically advanced and meet the regulatory and clients needs. The growing trend of collaboration and strategic partnerships between carmakers and auto component suppliers is likely to govern the market during the forecast period.Check Discount-About Fact.MRFact.MR is a fast-growing market research firm that offers the most comprehensive suite of syndicated and customized market research reports. We believe transformative intelligence can educate and inspire businesses to make smarter decisions. We know the limitations of the one-size-fits-all approach; that's why we publish multi-industry global, regional, and country-specific research reports.Contact UsFact.MRSuite 988427 Upper Pembroke Street,Dublin 2, IrelandTelephone: +353-1-6111-593Email: sales@factmr.com/Web:
Wound Debridement Market : Segmental Highlights and Table of Content (2017-2025)

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Global Wound Debridement Market: Improving Healthcare Facilities Worldwide Aids in Expansion, says TMRAs competition soars, companies such as Smith & Nephew plc, Zimmer Biomet, Lohmann & Rauscher International DeRoyal Industries, Inc., BSN Medical, Misonix, Soring GmbH, Arobella Medical, LLC, and Derma Sciences Inc., among others are toying with various idea to buoy growth. Strategic collaborations for instance have proven a popular tactic among companies to gain competitive edge. With mergers and acquisitions, the market players can expect foraying in unexplored regions, in turn expanding their footprint as well as product portfolio. Some of the leading companies are also investing in research and development for robust product launches. Such strategies adopted by the market players are likely to influence the global wound debridement market significantly, finds Transparency Market Research (TMR) in a new study.According to TMR, the global wound debridement market was valued at US$1,750 mn in 2016. Exhibiting a CAGR of 6.4% between 2017 and 2025, the market is expected to reach US$3,044.8 mn by the end of 2025. Based on type of wound, the chronic wounds segment exhibited high demand in the global market in 2025. By the end of 2017, the market is likely to witness North America emerge dominant. However, during the course of the forecast period, Asia Pacific is expected to showcase strong growth.Report overview @The global Wound Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market is segmented on the basis of Methods, application, end user and region.The global wound debridement market is expected to grow at a steady pace on account of the increasing prevalence of infectious diseases. Besides this, growing investment by the prominent market players and improving healthcare infrastructure worldwide, especially in developed nations will pave the way for the markets steady growth in the coming years. This holds true in case of growth scenario offered by nations across the Middle East and Africa and Latin America. Conversely, stringent norms of approval implemented by Ministry of Public Health, besides numerous registration regulations to get commercialization objectives a nod are key challenges witnessed by the market at present.In response to the rising geriatric population and the increasing incidence of chronic ailments, which may affect skin integrity leading to peripheral vascular diseases, the demand for preventive therapeutics is sure to rise. In addition, the rising incidence of diabetes is also factored in by experts analyzing the markets future. As skin breakdown is a frequent consequence of these diseases leading to chronic wound or formation of ulcers, the usability of wound debridement is expected to rise even further in the coming years. Against this backdrop, experts foresee a considerable rise in the demand for wound debridement, said a lead TMR analyst.Request to sample report @The expanding demographics and developing economies of India and China and several other emerging nations have created an environment conducive to the markets growth. In addition, the surging demand for apt wound bed preparation, advancements in debridement products, rising awareness, and the increasing popularity of wound care at home have enabled growth in the global wound debridement market. Also the increasing demand for preventing long stays at hospitals will have a positive influence in the overall wound debridement market.Summary of Table of Content1. Preface2. Assumptions and Research Methodology3. Executive Summary4. Market Overview5. Market Dynamics6. Global Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis, By Method7. Global Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis, By Type of Wound8. Global Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis, By Region9. North America Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis10. Europe Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis11. Asia-Pacific Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis12. Latin America Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis13. Middle East & Africa (MEA) Debridement (Wound Cleaning) Market Analysis14. Competition Landscape15. Company ProfilesGet full report now @About TMRTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:TMR Blog:
Medical Sensors Market: Segmental Highlights and Table of Content (2015 - 2023)

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Medical Sensors Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2015 - 2023Transparency Market Research estimates that the market for medical sensors will tread along a smooth growth path in the next few years. The market is expected to exhibit a healthy 7.0% CAGR from 2015 to 2024, owing to which, the opportunity of the market is expected to rise from US$1,452.8 mn in 2015 to US$18,741.3 mn in 2023.Read Report Overview @The global protein expression technology market is segmented on the basis of , product type, application, end user and region,GeographyOn the geographical front, the worldwide market for medical sensors has been bifurcated into Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, and the Rest of the World, including the Middle East and North Africa, South Africa, and Russia. While North America dominates the global market and is anticipated to continue being on the top, Asia Pacific will offer the most promising growth opportunities to market players over the forecast period, reports the research study.Request Sample Report @Application-wise, the report segments the global medical sensors market into surgical, therapeutic, diagnostic, and monitoring. Product-wise, the report bifurcates the market into temperature sensors, pressure sensors, accelerometers, image sensors, flow sensors, biosensors, SQUID sensors, and others. End-users of medical sensors studied by this report are hospitals, physician offices, and nursing home and home healthcare facilities. Geographically, the report takes stock of all the important regions such as North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the World (WoW), including MENA, South Africa, and Russia.Summary of Table of Content1 Introduction2 Executive Summary3 Global Medical Sensors Market Market Overview4 Market Segmentation - By Product Type5 Market Segmentation: By Application6 Market Segmentation: By End Users7 Market Segmentation -By Geography8 Company ProfilesRequest to Browse Full Table of Content, figure and Tables @Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market ResearchState Tower90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453
2012-2022 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Market Trends And Key Players

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report "2012-2022 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Market Report" to its huge collection of research reports.The report here talks about unmistakable parts of the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market which clarifies the future and present estimations of the market concerning the examples in play. The standard purpose behind the examination is to legitimize the events in the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market by giving peruser accommodating and appropriate bits of information on the particulars of the market for the future degree of improvement and available prospects at the present circumstance with the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market. The factual studying creation furthermore oversees highlights, for instance, drivers, confinements, and prospects to gauge the aftereffect of the market in the midst of the guess time span determined in the report.Get Report Sample and Customization:This report moreover dives significant into the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market by critically measuring the age and mechanical chain of the adapting market. This will besides help in duplicating exact proof and bits of knowledge on a few segments of the specific market, for example, information identifying with game plans of the organization in the nearby and overall level, create and course structure, delivering limit, mass sold, and benefits earned among others.The examination other than gives an exhaustive examination of the key areas communicated in the report for the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market. For every region, the report verbalizes the assortment of extension as of not long ago and clearing on what providers can do to ensure accomplishment in the coming years. The exploration report will in like manner be deficient without an escalated examination of the shipper scene of the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market, which incorporates the measurable information focuses, activities and originations of the pioneers in the Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) market.Table of Contents1 Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Calcium Chloride (CaCl2)1.2 Classification of Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) by Product Category1.2.1 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) Comparison by Types (2012-2022)1.2.2 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) Market Share by Types in 20161.3 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Market by Applications/End Users2 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Competition by Players/Manufacturers, Type and Application2.1 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Market Competition by Players/Manufacturers2.1.1 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) and Market Share (%) by Players/Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.1.2 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Market Share (%) by Players/Manufacturers (2012-2017)2.2 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales and Revenue by Type2.2.1 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) and Market Share (%) by Type (2012-2017)2.2.2 Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Market Share (%) Type (2012-2017)To Browse a Complete Report with TOC Visit @List of Tables and FiguresFigure Product Picture of Calcium Chloride (CaCl2)Table Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) and Growth Rate (%) Comparison by Types (2012-2022)Figure Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) Market Share by Types in 2016Table Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) Comparison by Applications (2012-2022)Figure Middle East Sales Market Share of Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) by Applications in 2016Figure Turkey Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure UAE Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Iran Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Table Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales (K MT) by Players/Manufacturers (2012-2017)Table Middle East Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) Sales Share (%) by Players/Manufacturers (2012-2017)About Us:QYResearchReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYResearchReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.Contact Us:1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
Global Operating Room Equipment Market: Segment Snapshot and Table of Content (2015 - 2023)

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Global Operating Room Equipment Market: Advanced Systems Gaining Prominence in Ambulatory Surgical Centers for Outpatients, notes TMRThe top players are making substantial investments in research and development of innovative equipment to consolidate their shares across regions, notes TMR. Several players are focusing on developing advanced equipment for hybrid operating room in order to gain a competitive edge over others. The global market for operating room equipment is projected to expand at a CAGR of 6.68% from 2015 to 2023. The market was valued at US$24 bn in 2014 and is expected to reach over US$42 bn by the end of the forecast period.Read Report Overview @The global protein expression technology market is segmented on the ,product , GeographyBased on product type, the operating room equipment market has been segmented into movable imaging systems, biomedical systems, endoscopes, anesthesia systems, operating tables, operating room lights, surgical imaging displays, operating room integration systems, surgical booms, and microscopes. The market segments have been extensively analyzed based on usefulness, efficacy, revenue, and geographical coverage. The market size and forecast in terms of US$ Mn for each segment has been provided for the period from 2013 to 2023. The report also provides the compound annual growth rate (CAGR %) for each market segment for the forecast period from 2015 to 2023.Request Sample Report @Based on geography, the operating room equipment market is segmented into Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World. North America and Europe are two of the largest markets for operating room equipment, considering the greater affordability of countries in these regions to purchase and install advanced medical devices. The scope of revenue generation has been consistently expanding in Europe and North America, with companies focusing on product innovation and improvement. There is also a strong demand for constant upgradation of operating room equipment, giving these two regional markets a significant boost.Summary of Table of Content1. Preface2. Executive Summary3. Global Operating Room Equipment Market - Industry Analysis4 Market Segmentation - By Product Type5 Market Segmentation - By Geography6 Recommendations7 Company ProfilesRequest to Browse Full Table of Content, figure and Tables @Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market ResearchState Tower90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453
Industrial Control and Factory Automation Market Analysis Report, Trends and Forecast, 2017-2024

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The global Industrial Control and Factory Automation Market share report provides numbers for applications and regional segments of the industry covering historical as well as forecast data for decision makers.The computerization systems help in restructuring the methods, eradicating errors, growing productivity, and increasing the overall functional efficacy. Growing focus toward cost lessening and the increasing need for precision in several processes have directed to the rigorous demand of these systems.Request Detailed Table of Contents of this Report @The necessity for smart engineering processes and linked supply chains has directed to the determined demand for computerization systems for industries. Substantial capital investment essential for mounting business machineries and the deficiency of proficiency in handling this equipment are expected to impede the development of the global industrial control and factory automation market to a recognizable extent.Factors including limited fund generation for re-investment and lack of awareness owing to compact narrow geographical diversity, working capital cycle and absence of standardization are restraints for the market. Dispersed Control System (DCS) holds the complete control assembly of a plant as the single automatic system.Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) facilitating advantages including proactive and predictive maintenance, asset and resource optimization, remote diagnosis, and real-time monitoring will support the market through providing a real-time connectivity benefiting the production progression. Use of automated robots in production line diminishes the time, waste, and cost as well as aids in fabricating superior products with accuracy will play vital role in driving the growth of the market.North America, led by U.S. and Europe are the foremost markets for industrial and factory autonetics. The development of the industry in these geographies is being driven by the demand for increasing operational efficacy and streamlining the manufacturing schedule across various industry verticals including pharmaceuticals, materials and chemicals, mining, pulp and paper, petrochemicals, power generation, and oil and gas.Make an inquiry for purchasing this report @Key Players of industrial control and factory automation market includes Schneider Electric, ABB, Rockwell, Siemens, Yokogawa, Omron, Honeywell, Aspen Technology Inc, Ametek Inc, and Emerson Process Management. The market players are aggressively intricate in the standardization for volume of the products for reduction of adoption cost.Pre-book This Upcoming Report @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.4 North Main StreetSelbyville
Research By Markets New Report: Global Hardware Security Module Market Forecast to 2022

Global Hardware Security Module Market by Manufacturers, Countries, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022

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Global Hardware Security Module Market by Manufacturers, Countries, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022View Table of Contents:A hardware security module (HSM) is a physical computing device that safeguards and manages digital keys for strong authentication and provides crypto processing. These modules traditionally come in the form of a plug-in card or an external device that attaches directly to a computer or network server.Get Free Sample Pages for this Report:Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Hardware Security Module in Global market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application.Purchase this Report:Market Segment by Manufacturers, this report coversThalesGemaltoHewlett Packard EnterpriseSwiftUtimacoIBMATOS SEUltra ElectronicsFuturexYubicoMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis coversNorth America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, coversLAN BasedPCle BasedUSB BasedMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided intoBFSIGovernmentGeneral EnterpriseManufacturingOthersThere are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Hardware Security Module market.Chapter 1, to describe Hardware Security Module Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Hardware Security Module, with sales, revenue, and price of Hardware Security Module, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Hardware Security Module, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the key regions, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions;Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 12, Hardware Security Module market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2017 to 2022;Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Hardware Security Module sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data sourceResearch By Markets is an Online Reports Repository.We have a huge database of Research Reports that are segmented Country Wise and Industry Wise.Research By Markets3, Nagar Road,Pune 411 014, Maharashtra, Indiaenquiry@researchbymarkets.com+1-800-416-3124
RACINE COUNTY  Racine County will be joining a lawsuit filed by dozens of Wisconsin counties against pharmaceutical companies, pending County Board approval.

Back in early November, 28 counties announced they would join a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson and Endo Health Solutions for possible deceptive and fraudulent marketing relating to the addictive nature of the prescription drugs they manufacture.

Racine County Corporation Counsel Michael Lanzdorf said the county has been contemplating joining the lawsuit since early October but administration wanted to talk to the Racine County Sheriffs Office, the medical examiner, Human Services Department, emergency management director and the District Attorneys Office.

These are all departments that have something to do with opioids, Lanzdorf said. Through this lawsuit they would be trying to identify any sort of costs or expenses incurred by Racine County in addressing the opioid epidemic.

Lanzdorf said officials have discussed with those departments the potential implications of county involvement in such a lawsuit.

The primary thing we wanted to explain to them is if we were to join this lawsuit, it could very easily settle early on; it could also result in a lengthy discovery process where the pharmaceutical drug-makers may send discovery requests to the county, asking us to produce information or to document where these costs come from, Lanzdorf said. It could result in significant staff time. But weve addressed that with various departments and almost uniformly have been met with support.

Holding manufacturers accountable

Lanzdorf said: The common refrain that we heard is that its really not about recovery, its about holding these manufacturers responsible for their role in creating the opioid epidemic.

The firms in charge of litigating this suit are von Briesen and Roper SC, Crueger Dickinson LLC and Simmons Hanly Conroy LLC.

The county has put forth a resolution that had its first reading at the County Board meeting on Tuesday and its possible that the board could pass the resolution as early as Dec. 19.

If the County Board were to authorize Racine County to pursue these claims, the next step would be engagement of these law firms, Lanzdorf said.

If the county does join the lawsuit, it could be several years of litigation before a settlement is reached.

Its not unheard of for a court to request that the parties come to the table for mediation for settlement discussion, the parties could do that on their own, Lanzdorf said. These are companies with deep pockets, surely, so its entirely possible that they would deny these allegations and defend against them all the way through trial.

With continued efforts by the Sheriffs Office to investigate opioid-related crimes, the District Attorneys Office prosecuting those crimes and aggressive education by county officials about the potential harms of opioids, Lanzdorf said this lawsuit is just one among many measures that have been taken or that are under consideration by the county to confront this opioid epidemic.
POP display Market Growth, Demand and Key Players to 2025

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Transparency Market Research (TMR) points out that the global POP display market is on the verge of consolidation as several leading players are looking at mergers and acquisitions. International players will also focus on vertical integration and building strong distribution network around the world to expand their reach. The leading players in the global market are International Paper Company, DS Smith Plc., Smurfit Kappa Group Plc, Sonoco Products Company, and Georgia Pacific LLC. In May 2016, International Paper Company acquired Weyerhaeuser's pulp business, which has allowed the company to add five different pulp mills. Such efforts and initiatives to add value to the production capacities are anticipated to be the key strategies of several players.Download exclusive Sample of this report:The global POP display market was valued at US$9.87 bn in 2016. The report states that the global will register a steady CAGR of 5.6% during forecast period 2017-2025 to be worth US$16 bn by the end of 2025. Amongst the various types of products available in the global market, the floor display product segment is projected to lead the global market at a CAGR of 6.3% during the forecast period. In terms of regions, Asia Pacific is poised to assume lead as the region surges at a CAGR of 6.5%.Customizations in POP Displays to be Product Differentiating Strategies of VendorsThe global POP display market has been witness a robust growth rate over the past few years as manufacturers are realizing the need for improved ways of visual merchandising. Thus, better brand visibility, effective space utilization, and better eyeing shelf space have become the key elements driving the growth of the global market. In the coming years, manufacturers are also set to invest in innovation to deliver creative product design that may offer rotating die-cut POP displays with better graphics. Such initiatives are expected to favor market growth over the forecast period. Additionally, players are also emphasizing on offer customizations to several end users to suit their branding and promoting strategies. This product differentiating strategy is anticipated to become an important driving factor for the global POP display market.Obtain Report Details @Changing lifestyles of the urban class is also identified as a leading cause supporting the growth of the global POP display market. Rising disposable incomes that have enabled the urban population to indulge in the luxury and convenience of packaged food and beverages significantly upped the demand for POP displays in the retail sector. Today, POP displays have become synonymous with branding and packaging of food and beverages. Various FMCG brands are focusing on improving their brand presence and visibility through POP displays at retail stores. Thus, the steady growth of the FMCG industry, the food and beverages market, and retail industry are collectively slated to make a fair contribution to the earnings of the global market.Emergence of e-Commerce likely to Take a Toll on Sales of POP DisplaysDespite the bright future of several industries creating a positive outlook for the global market, it faces some tough challenges. The emerging trend of online shopping, even for FMCG goods, has become a huge threat to the global market. As the e-commerce penetrates to every household it is likely to eat into the share of the global POP display market. Benefits of e-commerce such as convenience, good discounts, various modes of payment, and reduced shopping time have threatened the overall retail industry, thereby negatively impacting the uptake of POP display market.Despite the challenges, the global market could benefit from mushrooming retailers in emerging economies such as India and China. The growing expansion of retailers in areas of consumer goods is expected to offer the global market tremendous scope to recover from the challenges it currently faces.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Growth of Global Excavators Market 2017-2022, Key Players- Caterpillar Inc, Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd., Volvo Construction Equipment, Terex Corporation, JCB Ltd

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Market Scenario:Excavators are self-powered hydraulic machines which are used for discharge and excavation with the help of a digging bucket at end of two-part articulated arm. Excavators are heavy construction machines, which are used in applications such as well sinking, trench digging and land levelling.The growth of the excavators market is majorly driven by huge investments in infrastructure projects and commercial activities such as mining which have led to an increased use of excavators. Stringent regulations relating to emission control have led to the development of environment friendly equipment, which is expected to drive the demand of excavators market during the forecast period. Rising collaboration between rental fleet owners and excavator manufacturers are also expected to drive the growth of the market as they provide excavators al very low cost. The emphasis of excavator manufacturers on development of efficient and technologically advanced products with better control systems is making the use of excavators easier, thereby driving the growth of the market. The growth of the market will be restrained by factors such as high maintenance costs, need for technical support and increased emission norms.Regional Analysis:Asia Pacific is dominating the global excavator market, led by the growth in infrastructure development and rise in urbanization in developing nations such as china. The booming construction market in the region is further expected to drive the growth of the market. In Europe region, the excavator market is observing a decline due to decrease in construction expenditure and low-investment in non-residential construction and infrastructure market.Request a sample @Key Players:The key players of Excavators market are Caterpillar Inc. (U.S.), Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd. (Japan), Komatsu Ltd. (Japan), Volvo Construction Equipment (Belgium), Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group (XCMG) (China), Terex Corporation (U.S.), JCB Ltd. (U.K.), Sandvik AB (Sweden), Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (South Korea) and others.Intended Audience: Excavators manufacturers Distributer & Supplier companies End Users consultants and Investment bankers Government as well as Independent Regulatory AuthoritiesProduct Analysis Product matrix which gives a detailed comparison of the market for different recycled product typesAdditional Information: Regulatory Landscape Pricing Analysis Macroeconomic IndicatorsGeographic Analysis Geographical analysis across 15 countriesCompany Information Profiling of 10 key market players In-depth analysis including SWOT analysis, and strategy information of related to report title Competitive landscape including emerging trends adopted by major companiesThe report for Global Excavators market of Market Research Future comprises of extensive primary research along with the detailed analysis of qualitative as well as quantitative aspects by various industry experts, key opinion leaders to gain the deeper insight of the market and industry performance. The report gives the clear picture of current market scenario which includes historical and projected market size in terms of value, technological advancement, macro economical and governing factors in the market. The report provides details information and strategies of the top key players in the industry. The report also gives a broad study of the different market segments and regions.Browse report @About Market Research Future:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact:Market Research FutureOffice No. 524/528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, HadapsarPune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Wireless Broadband Industry Forecast and Revenue by Regions (2017-2022) - Published by MarketResearchNest.com

Wireless Broadband Trends

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MarketResearchNest.com adds China Wireless Broadband Market by Manufacturers, Regions (Province), Type and Application, Forecast To 2022 new report to its research database. The report spread across in a 118 pages with table and figures in it."Wireless broadband connects a home or business to the Internet using a radio link between the customer's location and the service provider's facility. Wireless broadband can be mobile or fixed.Wireless technologies using longer-range directional equipment provide broadband service in remote or sparsely populated areas where DSL or cable modem service would be costly to provide. Speeds are generally comparable to DSL and cable modem. An external antenna is usually required."Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Wireless Broadband in China market, to split the market based on manufacturers, Regions (Province), type and application.Browse full table of contents and data tables atMarket Segment by Manufacturers, this report coversCambium Networks, Intracom Telecom, RADWIN, Redline communications, Proxim Wireless, LigoWave (Deliberant),Netronics Technologies, SuperCom (Alvarion Technologies)Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers South China Southwest China East China Northeast China North ChinaMarket Segment by Type, coversType 1, Type 2Market Segment by Applications, can be divided intoPublic Safety, Transportation, Energy, Other ApplicationGet Request sample copy atReasons for Buying this Report: This report provides pin-point analysis for changing competitive dynamics It provides a forward looking perspective on different factors driving or restraining market growth It provides a technological growth map over time to understand the industry growth rate It provides a seven-year forecast assessed on the basis of how the market is predicted to grow It helps in understanding the key product segments and their future It provides pin point analysis of changing competition dynamics and keeps you ahead of competitors It helps in making informed business decisions by having complete insights of market and by making in-depth analysis of market segments It provides distinctive graphics and exemplified SWOT analysis of major market segments.Get Order a Purchase Report Copy atAbout Us:MarketResearchNest.com is the most comprehensive collection of market research products and services on the Web. We offer reports from almost all top publishers and update our collection on daily basis to provide you with instant online access to the worlds most complete and recent database of expert insights on Wireless Broadband industries, organizations, products, and trends.Contact UsMr. Jeet JainSales Managersales@marketresearchnest.com+1-240-284-8070(U.S)+44-20-3290-4151(U.K)Connect with us: Google+ | LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook
Croatia Oil and Gas Industry Market 2017 - Current and Future Plans 2022

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SUMMARYWiseGuyReports published new report, titled Croatia Midstream Oil and Gas Industry Outlook"Croatia Midstream Oil and Gas Industry Outlook to 2022 - Market Forecasts for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), Oil Storage, Pipelines, Underground Gas Storage and Gas Processing", is a comprehensive report on midstream oil and gas industry in Croatia. The report provides natural gas production, consumption, exports and imports from 2010 to 2022. It also provides historic gas reserves for the period 2010 to 2016. The report also provides details such as name, type, operational status and operator for all active and planned (new build) LNG terminals, oil storage terminals, major trunk pipelines, underground gas storage sites and gas processing plants in Croatia till 2022. Further, the report also offers recent developments, financial deals as well as latest contracts awarded in the countrys midstream sector.GET SAMPLE REPORT @Scope- Historic and forecast of natural gas data related to production, consumption, exports and imports for the period 2010-2022, and reserves for the period 2010-2016- Updated information related to all active and planned LNG terminals, oil storage terminals, major trunk pipelines, underground gas storage sites and gas processing plants in the country, including operator and equity details- Key mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, private equity and initial public offerings in the countrys midstream oil and gas industry, where available- Latest developments, financial deals and awarded contracts related to midstream oil and gas industry in the countryKey points to buy- Gain a strong understanding of the countrys energy sector and midstream oil and gas industry- Facilitate decision making on the basis of strong historic and forecast of production, reserves and capacity data- Assess your competitors major LNG terminals, oil storage terminals, major trunk pipelines, underground gas storage sites and gas processing plants in the country- Analyze the latest developments, financial deals and awarded contracts related to the countrys midstream oil and gas industry- Understand the countrys financial deals landscape by analyzing how competitors are financed, and the mergers and partnerships that have shaped the marketTable of Contents1 Table of Contents2. Introduction3. Croatia Energy Sector4. Croatia LNG Industry5. Croatia Oil Storage Industry6. Croatia Oil and Gas Pipelines Industry7. Croatia Underground Gas Storage Industry8. Croatia Gas Processing Industry9. Recent Contracts10. Financial Deals Landscape11. Recent Developments12. AppendixContinuedFor accessing accurate and deep understanding and to gain latest insights and key developments in the area of your interest, we also have a list of conferences in which you will be interested in, for more information, cordially checkFor updating knowledge or for thoroughly understanding varioUS terminologies, we also have vast list of seminars for your reference, for more information cordially checkhttps://www.wiseguyreports.com/seminarWise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for indUStries and governments around the globe.WISEGUY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS PVT LTDOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersPune - 411028Maharashtra, India
Global MRI - Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market : Segmental Highlights and Table of Content (2017-2027)

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The global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market is expected to witness robust growth during the forecast period. This growth is expected to be primarily driven by increasing demand for MRI-compatible IV infusion pump systems by hospitals and diagnostics and imaging centres. The global market for MRI-compatible IV infusion pump systems is estimated to represent an absolute $ opportunity of close to US$ 15 Mn in 2018 over 2017 and incremental opportunity of more than US$ 250 Mn between 2017 and 2027.The global protein expression technology market is segmented on the basis of product type,end user and region.The Devices Type segment dominated the global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market in revenue terms in 2016, and the trend is projected to continue throughout the forecast period. Among the Devices Type segments, the Magnetic Pump System with Shielding sub-segment is the largest and is expected to reach a value share of about US$ 93 Mn in 2017. The Tubing and Disposables product type segment is expected to be the second largest product type in the MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market, increasing at a value CAGR of 7.1% over the forecast period.Based on product type, devices for MRI-compatible IV infusion pump system will remain dominant in the global market, expanding at 11.6% CAGR through 2027. Magnetic pump system with shielding will remain preferred device in the market, with sales poised to surpass US$ 200 Mn by 2027-end. Sales of tubing & disposables required for MRI-compatible IV infusion pump system are anticipated to register a comparatively low CAGR in the market.Hospitals will remain the largest end-users of MRI-compatible IV infusion pump system globally. Sales of MRI-compatible IV infusion pump system in hospitals are expected to reach nearly US$ 300 Mn by 2027-end. In addition, diagnostics & imaging centres and ambulatory surgical centres are expected to exhibit 8.2% and 7.7% CAGRs respectively in the market through 2027.Market in North America is projected to expand at 13.6% CAGR, to reach nearly US$ 200 Mn in revenues by 2027-end.Western Europe is expected to be second-most lucrative region in the global MRI-compatible IV infusion pump system market by 2027-end.Request A Sample of Report:Summary of Table of Content:1.Executive Summary2.Market Introduction3. Key Report Inclusions4.MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Opportunity Analysis5.North America MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 201720276. Latin America MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 201720277. Western Europe MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 201720278. Eastern Europe MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 201720279. Asia Pacific excluding Japan MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 2017202710. Japan MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 2017202711. Middle East & Africa MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 2017202712. Forecast Factors: Relevance and Impact13. Forecast Assumptions14. Competition Landscape15. Global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 20172027, By Region16. Global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 20172027, By Product Type17. Global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 20172027, By End User18. Global MRI-Compatible IV Infusion Pump Systems Market Analysis 20122016 and Forecast 2017202719. Research MethodologyRequest to Browse Full Table of Content, figure and Tables @About UsFuture Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights and an aerial view of the competitive framework and future market trends.Contact Us616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705T (UK): +44(0)20-7692-8790Sales: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Sensors for Cell phones & Tablets Market Trends and Key Developments 2024

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There has been an increasing application of sensors for cell phones and tablets across the globe as a result of the ease it provides in the technological advancement of cell phone and tablets. MEMS and sensors are extremely popular and very important component that enable many of the new features on smart phone and tablets. Based on communication features and designs, all sensors smart phones are segmented into three main groups: external sensors, sensors and built-in (embedded, internal). External sensors are further segregated into wire sensors and wireless sensors. Wire sensors include dock connector or physically connected to a USB port, detachable units etc. Wireless sensors are connected by Bluetooth with a wearable sensing module.Read Report Overview @The sensors for cell phones and tablets market has been categorized on the basis of two segments; product category and geography. The product segments of the sensors for cell phones & tablets include MEMS (microelectromechanical system) inertial sensors, pressure sensors, microphones, environmental sensors, fingerprint, ALS (ambient light sensing), CMOS among others. Others emerging sensors include iris scan, 3D cameras, biosensors and laser ranger among others. The growth of microelectromechanical system (MEMS) motions sensors in wireless devices is primarily driven by the robust sales of smart phones and tablets; the fast adoption rate of pressure sensors among consumers; the boom of Chinese smart phone makers and the addition in some cases of a second gyroscope in the camera modules for optical image stabilization. 3D cameras are expected to be a game-changer in the smart phone industry in the upcoming years. 3D cameras are low-priced sensors that would facilitate the growth of a long list of applications of smart phone and tablets. Apart from this, there are market opportunities for leading companies through new products development like infra-red (IR) or multispectral imaging and gas sensors. This would help the companies to enter into the market, stand out from competition and offer a better value proposition in the competitive market. Enhanced security, better sound quality, accurate positioning, simplified interfaces and environment monitoring are some major factors for the growing demand for cell phones and tablets with technologically advanced sensors.Geographically, the market has been categorized into five regions; North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa and Latin America.As per recent trends it has been observed that various sensors for cell phones & tablets companies are constantly engaged in research and development activities and have invested heavily on developing and designing their own sensors for cell phones and tablets. The market for sensors for cell phones and tablets in Europe and North America has witnessed rapid growth in the last few years and this trend is likely to be implemented across various industries in the Asia Pacific and Middle East and Africa and Latin America regions as well.The top four players in the sensors for cell phones & tablets market own more than 50% market share in different MEMS markets. At present, leading companies are trying to enlarge their products portfolio in order to supply a bundle of products to their customers and to survive in the competitive market. STMicroelectronics provides inertial sensors, pressure sensors and microphones. Bosch Sensortec is also focusing on these products. In 2013, InvenSense entered into the sensors for cell phone and tablets market by acquiring the business of Analog Devices MEMS microphone and signed a partnership agreement with Sonion. In addition to this, InvenSense launched a 7-axis combo that integrates pressure sensors inside of a 6-axis IMU (inertial measurement unit).Request Report Brochure @Some of the key players operating in the sensors for cell phones & tablets market are STMicroelectronics, Bosch Sensortec and InvenSense, Knowles Electronics, AAC Technologies, Aichi MI, BodyMedia, Alps Electric, AMS, Cavendish Kinetics, Apple, EPCOS, Aptina Imaging, Fingerprint Cards, Asus, Atmel, Goertek, Audiopixels, Analog Devices, Canon, AuthenTec, Avago, BlackBerry, Boeing, DelfMEMS, Broadcom, Excelitas, Capella, CSR, Discera, Fairchild, Freescale and Fujitsu among others.The report offers a comprehensive evaluation of the market. It does so via in-depth qualitative insights, historical data, and verifiable projections about market size. The projections featured in the report have been derived using proven research methodologies and assumptions. By doing so, the research report serves as a repository of analysis and information for every facet of the market, including but not limited to: Regional markets, technology, types, and applications.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global Small Cell Power Amplifier Market to become worth US$8.53 bn during 2017-2025

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This report covers the analysis and forecast of the small cell power amplifier market on a global and regional level. The study provides historic data of 2016 along with forecast for the period between 2017 and 2025 based on revenue (US$ Mn).The study provides a decisive view of the small cell power amplifier market by segmenting it based on end users industry, gain in amplifier and regional demand. End users industry segments have been analyzed based on current trends and future potential. The market has been estimated from 2017 to 2025 in terms of revenue (US$ Mn). Regional segmentation includes the current and forecast demand for North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East and Africa. These have been further sub-segmented into countries and regions with relevance to the market. The segmentation also includes demand for individual applications in all regions.Global Small Cell Power Amplifier Market: Drivers and RestraintsThe study covers the drivers and restraints governing the dynamics of the market along with their impact on demand during the forecast period. Additionally, the report includes potential opportunities in the small cell power amplifier market on the global and regional level.Click to get Sample PDF:The study encompasses market attractiveness analysis, wherein applications have been benchmarked based on their market size, growth rate, and general attractiveness for future growth.The market has been forecasted based on constant currency rates. Different driving factor and restraining factor have been incorporated to assess the correct market size in terms of revenue. Opportunity factors have been incorporated to analyze the impact on this market during the forecast period.The report provides the size of the small cell power amplifier market in 2016 and the forecast for the next nine years up to 2025. The size of the global small cell power amplifier market is provided in terms of revenue. Market revenue for regions is in US$ Mn. The market size and forecast for each end use industry segment is provided in the context of global and regional markets. Numbers provided in this report are derived based on demand generated from different applications.View Complete TOC with Tables and Figures at:Demand for small cell power amplifier has been derived by analyzing the global and regional demand for small cell power amplifier in each end user sector. The global small cell power amplifier market has been analyzed based on expected demand. Market data for each segment is based corresponding revenues. Forecasts have been based on the expected demand from small cell power amplifier. We have used the top-down approach to estimate the global small cell power amplifier market, split into regions.The end use industry split of the market has been derived using a top-down approach for each regional market separately, with the global end use industry segment split being an integration of regional estimates. Companies were considered for the market share analysis based on their product portfolio, revenue, and manufacturing capacity. In the absence of specific data related to the sales of small cell power amplifier of several privately held companies, calculated assumptions have been made in view of the companys product portfolio and regional presence along with the demand for products in its portfolio.Some of the leading players in the market are NXP Semiconductors (Netherlands), Broadcom Corporation (U.S.), Texas Instruments (U.S.), Qorvo Inc. (U.S.) among others. The report provides detailed analysis of small cell power amplifier market and also provides its revenue outlook (in US$ million) during the forecast period from 2017 to 2025. These companies have been profiled in this report and revenue, company description, SWOT analysis have been used to assess the presence of these companies in this market.ResearchMoz is the worlds fastest growing collection of market research reports worldwide. Our database is composed of current market studies from over 100 featured publishers worldwide. Our market research databases integrate statistics with analysis from global, regional, country and company perspectives. ResearchMozs service portfolio also includes value-added services such as market research customization, competitive landscaping, and in-depth surveys, delivered by a team of experienced Research Coordinators.Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-621-2074Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Email: sales@researchmoz.usFollow us on LinkedIn at:
Baby Food Market-Global Industry Analysis, Trends, Market Size & Forecasts to 2014-2024 By Acumen Research and Consulting

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Introduction:The demand for baby food is witnessing a major surge due to increase in parental concerns for nutrition. Baby food is soft in nature and specifically targeted towards infants between six months to two years of age. These are available in multiple varieties, forms and tastes. Baby food is inclusive of food that has been mashed or made easily available and can be purchased from retail shops. Rising number of working women is the major factor driving the demand for baby food, thus creating an opportunitiy for manufacturers. Further, professionally made baby food is a perfect solution for breast feeding problems. Owing to the need of fulfilling the nutrition requirements of babies, such baby food helps to prevent the under-nutrition problem in babies. Adoption of modern lifestyle in developing nations is resulting in increasing the population of working women, thus fueling the demand for baby food market. This is mainly influenced by the western culture in terms of lifestyle and feeding habits among others. This factor is also backed by the increasing disposable income of consumers that has led them to provide a healthy lifestyle for their babies. High birth rate in North African and Middle Eastern countries is also driving the growth of this industry. Asia-Pacific is also a lucrative region for the growth of baby food market and owing to its highly lucrative nature, major manufacturers are looking to penetrate this region for expansion opportunities.Download Table of Content:Market Dynamics:However, the market is held back by the declining birth rates in the developed countries. This factor is greatly barring the growth of baby food market at present. Further, lactose intolerant babies are another restraining factor for the global baby food market. However, product development through extensive research and development activities is a suitable growth opportunity for this market. Further, aggressive marketing and promotional activities adopted by these players would also ensure the proper growth of this industry in the future.Market Classification:The Global Baby Food Market is bifurcated on the basis of product types into baby snacks, frozen baby foods, soups, bottled baby foods and cereals. Bottled baby foods dominated the baby food market in 2015 and is likely to continue market dominance throughout the forecast period. Cereals are likely to follow bottled baby foods in terms of revenue. Owing to the easy availability and ease of handling of bottled baby food products, it has gained acceptance from the consumers as a suitable choice for their babies. However, frozen baby food products are expected to witness a rapid growth during the forecast period.Request Customization:Regional Overview:The global baby food market is also segmented on the basis of regions into Europe, Asia-Pacific, North America, Latin America and Middle East and Africa (MEA). The global baby food market is dominated by North America followed by Europe. Although, due to declining birth rates in these countries, the possibilities of new opportunities are declining in these regions. However, the growth of market would be sustained by rapidly developing countries such as India, China and Vietnam among others owing to the high population in these countries. Asia-Pacific is expected to witness fastest growth during the forecast period. Rapid urbanization is another major factor behind the rapid growth of baby food market in Asia-Pacific. North Africa and Middle East are also anticipated to push the demand forward for baby foods in near future.Inquiry Before Buying:Market Participants:The global baby food market is marked by some strong competition from major players operating in this market. Frequent acquisitions and mergers, partnerships, joint ventures and product innovations are some of the strategies used by players operating in this industry. Abbott Laboratories, Bledina S.A., Groupe Danone, Nestle S.A., and Hain Celestial Group among others are some of the key industry particiapnts operating in this market.Buy Now This Report From Here:About UsAcumen Research and Consulting (ARC) is a global provider of market intelligence and consulting services to information technology, investment, telecommunication, manufacturing, and consumer technology markets. ARC helps investment communities, IT professionals, and business executives to make fact based decisions on technology purchases and develop firm growth strategies to sustain market competition. With the team size of 100+ Analysts and collective industry experience of more than 200 years, Acumen Research and Consulting assures to deliver a combination of industry knowledge along with global and country level expertise.Contact -Frank WilsonSales Manager | Acumen Research and ConsultingEmail: frank@acumenresearchandconsulting.comPh - USA +1 716-2400-831Asia-Pacific +912065600384Website:
System Basis Chip Market Key Players and Production Information analysis 2024

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System Basis Chip is a device which implements and combines features like transceivers, voltage regulators, Fail safe Input Outputs, power saving modes and scalability. It also supports features like low-dropout regulator (regulates output voltage even when the supply and output voltages are close to each other), SMPS (switched-mode power supply converters which transmits energy periodically from input to output and stores it in capacitors for a fraction of period and uses it in the remaining fraction) among others. System Basis Chips are found in all automotive Electronic Control Units (ECUs). They are mainly used in Body Control Modules, Door Control Units, Climate Control Modules and Light Control Units among others. One of the key uses of a System Basis Chip is the reduction of current consumption through Controller Area Network Partial Networking (CAN PN). The CAN partial networking feature reduces current consumption in automobiles and other machines, thereby reducing the emission of carbon dioxide.Read Report Overview @Increase in production of automobiles is the driver of the system basis chip market. Many safety features there were previously applied only to high end cars are now being increasingly used in low end cars. This has led to increase in current consumption which in turn has led to increased pressure in reducing carbon dioxide emissions. All these factors form the driving force behind the growth of the system basis chip market. Owing to continuous industrialization and modernization, and high standard of living, the demand for technologically advanced cars with improved safety measures has increased. Features like Climate Control Unit, Door Control Unit found in system basis chips are being implemented in passenger cars which helps in improved functioning of the cars. Improved lifestyles along with increase in safety concerns will keep a stable demand for system basis chips to be used in automobiles, especially passenger cars.One of the key pull factor of this market is that, the process of up integrating CAN transceiver technology in a system basis chip involves high cost. The circuit design of system basis chips are complicated and often leads to unsuspected operation which in turn leads to short circuit.The system basis chip can be segmented on the basis of its functions, Voltage Regulation, Diagnostic and Supervision, Drivers and Switches, Watch Dog functions (fault detecting mechanism), Wake Up Logic ( low energy consumption mechanism) and Power Switches (used in industrial applications), among others. System Basis Chips are applied in automobiles which can be further segmented into passenger cars and heavy vehicles. These above mentioned factors are expected to drive the growth market during the forecast period.Request Report Brochure @On the basis of geography the market can be segmented into North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World (RoW). North America being highly technologically advanced captures a large market share. North American market comprises majorly a high income population. Therefore the use of technologically advanced cars with improved and high end safety features is also highly prevalent in this market. Europe also acquires a large market share since Germany is also leading manufacture of high end technologically advanced automobiles. The Asia Pacific market is expanding at a large pace owing to its implementation of improved technologies and rising income and improved standard of living of its population. Japan, China and even India in recent years are turning out to be improving and improvising their automobiles manufacturing techniques and are trying to outperform the Western countries.Some of the key players operating in this market are, Infineon Technologies (Germany), Texas Instruments (Unites States), Robert Bosch GmbH (Germany), ST Microelectronics (Switzerland), Atmel Corporation (United States), Melexis (Belgium), Microchip Technologies (United States),and Elmos Semiconductors AG (Germany), among others.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Variable Resistor Industry Insights, Outlook and Forecast up to 2024

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Resistors are components of electronic circuits which provide resistance to the electrical power or voltage, passing through the circuit or a specific part of the circuit. Variable resistors are such resistors whose value of electrical resistance provided can be varied. The variation in resistance is caused by a wiper. The resistance value of the variable resistor can be increased or decreased by moving the wiper across the resistor wire. The resistance providing part of variable resistors are generally made of carbon, tungsten alloys and of nickel-chromium among various other materials.Read Report Overview @The market for variable resistors is growing at a very fast pace, primarily owing to the growing demand for electronic devices. Variable resistors are integral components of all types of electronic devices. These resistors provide protection to the electronic devices by resisting flow of excess power or voltage. In recent years, the market for electronic devices, such as mobile phones, computing devices and automation devices among others, have been growing by a very high rate. This in turn has been positively impacting the application of variable resistors in such devices, leading to growing demand globally. Additionally, growth of industrial verticals such as wastewater management and food & beverage manufacturing has also been boosting the integration of variable resistors in various automation components of such industries. However, the integration of economies of scale by manufacturing companies has led to decrease in price of these resistors, and hence can be deemed as a restraint for the revenue generated by variable resistors. Presence of large number of small players has led to intense competitive rivalry in the variable resistors market, and the trend can be expected to continue during the forecast period.By type, the global variable resistor market can be segmented into potentiometers, rheostats, thermistors and others. Potentiometers are variable resistors consisting of three terminals and have a range from 0 Ohm to 10k Ohm. Most common application of potentiometers is for controlling volume in audio devices. Rheostats consist of two terminals and functions similarly to potentiometers. Thermistors are variable resistors whose active resistance increases or decreases based on their immediate environmental temperature. Thermistors can have a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) or a negative temperature coefficient (NTC).A PTC thermistors resistance increases with temperature increase, and vice-versa, whereas a NTC thermistors active resistance decreases with temperature increase and vice-versa. Others segments includes digital resistors and photoresistors among others. Potentiometer was the largest segment in 2015 and can be expected to retain the top position in 2024. By end-use, the variable resistors market is segmented into aerospace & defense, automotives, industrial, consumer electronics and others. Consumer electronics was the largest segment in 2015, owing to the high growth of demand for such devices globally which in turn led to higher application of variable resistors in those electronic devices. The global variable resistors market has been further segmented into five regions: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), Middle-East & Africa (MEA) and Latin America. By revenue, Asia Pacific had the largest market share in 2015, followed by North America and Europe. The higher market share of Asia-Pacific can be attributed to the presence of large number of local manufacturers of variable resistors, coupled with higher growth in manufacturing sectors and faster growth of consumer electronics market.Request Report Brochure @The major companies of the variable resistors market globally are BEI Sensors (U.S.), Dart Controls, Inc. (U.S.), State Electronics, Inc. (U.S.), TE Connectivity, Ltd. (U.S.), Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (U.S.), Novotechnik U.S. Inc. (U.S.), Hokuriku Electric Industry Co. Ltd. (Japan), SRT Resistor Technology (Germany), Eisenmann Thermal Solutions GmbH & Co. KG (Germany), and Bourns, Inc. (U.S.) among various others.The report offers a comprehensive evaluation of the market. It does so via in-depth qualitative insights, historical data, and verifiable projections about market size. The projections featured in the report have been derived using proven research methodologies and assumptions. By doing so, the research report serves as a repository of analysis and information for every facet of the market, including but not limited to: Regional markets, technology, types, and applications.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
WIND LAKE  After a Nov. 7 meeting in which local business owners voiced complaints about the Town of Norways Knox Box ordinance, the Town Board is expected to relax those regulations.

Were not interested in continuing with this kind of discord between the towns and businesses, said Norway Town Chair Jean Jacobson.

An amendment to the Knox Box ordinance is one of the items on the agenda for Mondays Town Board meeting scheduled for 7 tonight at the Town Hall, 6419 Heg Park Road.

Alternatively, Wind Lake Volunteer Fire Company Chief Rob Robins plans to begin enforcing the placement of the boxes, using his authority under the state fire code.

The lock boxes  often with the brand name Knox Box  are meant to allow swift entry into buildings that are on fire or experiencing other emergencies. The boxes are affixed to the outside of a building and contain keys to that building. These boxes are only accessible to certain members of the fire department.

The towns ordinance, adopted in April 2014, requires that all commercial, retail and industrial businesses, multifamily structures with a locked common door, government buildings and nursing care facilities install lock boxes.

At tonights meeting, Jacobson expects the board to vote to step back those requirements. If the proposed amendment to the Knox Box ordinance passes, only new construction and businesses that remodel will be required to install the boxes.

The proposed change is due to push back from town residents and business owners during last months meeting on the issue. Many business owners expressed fear that criminals would break into the boxes, gaining access to their buildings.

Chiefs enforcement plans

The towns proposed ordinance change wont matter much to local business owners if Robins begins to enforce the National Fire Protection Association code. This code, adopted by the state, allows him to require the boxes be installed on any building that is difficult to gain access to due to security infrastructure. He plans to begin sending out letters to businesses not in compliance with the code.

Jacobson said she received an email from Robins a few weeks ago, informing the town of his plans moving forward. The fire company is a nonprofit entity that contracts with Norway to provide the towns fire protection and ambulance services.

Thats up to him, Jacobson said.

She said that fire officials have more expertise in this area than the town.

I think we all respect their knowledge, Jacobson said.

Once business owners receive a violation letter, they will have 45 days to comply, Robins said. After that, fines will be $150 a day.

Those wishing to dispute the violation will have to do so in Racine County Circuit Court, Robins said.

A matter of safety

In Robins eyes, installation of the boxes, which cost about $325, is a matter of safety. A member of his crew could be hurt breaking down a door if the business owner or key holder isnt on site during an emergency. He also said that the rush of oxygen that happens after the department breaks down a door can cause a fire to spread more rapidly.

My job is to make sure my people come home, Robins said.

He said he had not heard any common-sense argument as to why some business owners didnt want to install the boxes. Robins claims they are nearly impossible to break into. The business owners at last months meeting disagreed.

Ive never dealt with anything like this in the past, Robins said of the push-back he has experienced about the boxes.

Robins said none of the other fire departments he has consulted with on the issue have faced this sort of problem either.

Its not been fun for me, he said.

But Robins said he has to think of the safety of himself and his department first.

And even though the town is looking to relax its ordinance, town officials will still strongly encourage business owners to install the boxes, Jacobson said.
Global Vapour Recovery Units Market expected to increase at a moderate CAGR of 3.2% during the forecast period 2016-2026

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Environment pollution legislation will continue to drive the adoption of vapour recovery units, especially in developing regions. Rising awareness on reducing the impact of pollutants, combined with regulatory pressures on providing workers with safer working environments will continue to influence installation decisions. Potential economic benefits of installing vapour recovery units are expected to drive adoption; however, high initial costs can impede growth.Request A Sample Copy Of This Report at:The prevailing oil crisis in the Middle East is expected to have a ripple effect on the global vapour recovery market, with global revenues declining to US$ 471 Mn in 2016, down from US$ 481 Mn in 2015. The long-term outlook on the market remains positive, with the global market expected to increase at a moderate CAGR of 3.2% during the forecast period 2016-2026.North America, the largest market for vapour recovery units, will witness further proliferation of compressor-based VRU; however, the market will continue to have a low presence of players engaged in distribution of VRU at downstream process. John Zink, AEREON and ZEECO are key players in the production and distribution of VRU at downstream process.VRU installations will continue to increase at a steady rate in Europe. While the current oil crisis will negatively impact the market in Middle East, the market will grow moderately in the long run. Asia Pacific and Latin America will witness moderate growth, and like North America, compressor-based VRUs will witness steady demand.VRU installations will continue to remain higher in upstream process vis-a-vis downstream process. Increasing preference for VRUs over flare gas recovery technologies will continue to impact VRU installations for upstream processes. The upstream process will continue to account for leading revenue share of the global vapour recovery unit market. By application, storage tank vents will continue to account for leading market share at upstream, whereas marine loading will remain a key application segment at downstream process. By end-use, oil & gas will remain the most attractive sector for VRU manufacturers and distributors, followed by brewery & food processing.Request Report TOC (Table of Contents) @Key market participants covered in the report include Hy Bon/EDI, PSG Dover, AEREON, Petrogas Systems, John Zink Company, LLC, Cimarron Energy Inc.,Wintek Corporation, Accel Compression Inc., Whirlwind Methane Recovery Systems, LLC.About UsFuture Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.U.S. Office616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, ,
White Box Server Market Trends, outlook and Opportunity Analysis 2024

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A computer structure in large data centers is called white box server. It is assembled by ODMs (original design manufacturers). It is typically build by assembling the COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) components in different ways to provide customization to the customers. It is also possible for a company to construct an in-house white box server using retail computer parts which are commercially available. However ODM delivers it faster. Major operating systems like Windows Server and Red Hat Enterprise Linux along with visualization softwares can be run on a white box server. To prevent unexpected down time clustering techinques are used by a white box server. One of the initiatives in custom built servers is the Open Compute Project by Facebook for its data centers. It gives specifications for design for its servers, racks etc.Read Report Overview @The market can be segmented based on form factor: Blade, Density Optimized, and Rack & Tower. It can also be segmented based on business type: Data Centers, and Enterprise customers. Other segmentation basis includes: Operating System (Linux, Windows, Unix), Processor (X86, non-X86), and geography.There is no standard white box server design. White box designs do not have redundant components as branded enterprise servers. White box servers are simple and have modest functionality with lesser costs than branded servers. These are some of the major drivers of the white box server market as giant cloud service providers like AWS, Google, and Microsoft Azure are looking for optimal and cost effective off-the-shelf hardware. Another reason for growing market is low pricing bid for manufacturing by ODMs from China and Taiwan allowing for large volume sales. Another driver for the market is enterprises designing their own server keeping in mind their operational needs. This is leading to increase in vendors who provide flexibility of configuring own severs using available components. Increasing micro-mobile and containerized (portable) data centers is also one of the market drivers for white box servers. Also ODMs are have come up with switching products and white box storage that are energy efficient and cost effective hence growing market. Growing trend in software-defined data center is also a factor for growing market. Ease of deployment and speed are also the factors that are expected to propel the growth of white box server market in coming years. The major challenge faced by the market are brand recognition and sales experience. Another challenge is the unreliable server life span.The largest market for white box server is in America followed by European Union and Asia-Pacific. In American market, U.S. has the primary market for white box server as it has the maximum data center facilities. Colarado is one of the data center hub. Owing to increasing use of big data analytics and cloud services in Americas and European Union, market for white box servers will increase. America has most of the worlds largest data centers which also drives the market for white box servers in America. In Asia-Pacific region, key driver of the white box sever market is increasing use of mobile devices which require computational power of these servers. In Asia-Pacific, market is driven by China as it is shifting to white box alternatives.Request Report Brochure @Key players in the white box server market are Wistron Corporation (Taiwan), MiTAC Holdings Corp. (Taiwan), Quanta Computer (Taiwan), Inventec Corporation (Taiwan), Compal Electronics (Taiwan), Hon Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd. (Taiwan), Celestica Inc. (Canada), Hyve Solutions (U.S.), Servers Direct (U.S.), Penguin Computing (U.S.), Stack Velocity Group (U.S.), ZT Systems (U.S.), Silicon Mechanics (U.S.), Super Micro Computer Inc. (U.S.). Chip manufacturers like Intel, Aspeed, and ARM have increased revenues after using white box servers.The report offers a comprehensive evaluation of the market. It does so via in-depth qualitative insights, historical data, and verifiable projections about market size. The projections featured in the report have been derived using proven research methodologies and assumptions. By doing so, the research report serves as a repository of analysis and information for every facet of the market, including but not limited to: Regional markets, technology, types, and applications.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Hydropower in Russian Federation Market 2017- Revenue, Price and Gross Margin Research Report 2030

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SUMMARYWiseGuyReports published new report, titled Hydropower (Large, Small and Pumped Storage) in Russian Federation, Market Outlook"Hydropower (Large, Small and Pumped Storage) in Russian Federation, Market Outlook to 2030, Update 2017 - Capacity, Generation, Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), Investment Trends, Regulations and Company Profiles", is the latest report from GlobalData, the industry analysis specialists that offer comprehensive information and understanding of the hydropower market in Russian Federation.The report provides in depth analysis on global renewable power market and global hydropower market with forecasts up to 2030. The report analyzes the power market scenario in Russian Federation (includes conventional thermal, nuclear, large hydro and renewable energy sources) and provides future outlook with forecasts up to 2030. The research details renewable power market outlook in the country (includes hydro, small hydro, biopower and solar PV) and provides forecasts up to 2030. The report highlights installed capacity and power generation trends from 2006 to 2030 in Russian Federation hydropower market. A detailed coverage of renewable energy policy framework governing the market with specific policies pertaining to hydropower is provided in the report. The research also provides company snapshots of some of the major market participants.The report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, secondary research and in-house analysis by team of industry experts.GET SAMPLE REPORT @ScopeThe report analyses global renewable power market, global hydropower market, Russian Federation power market, Russian Federation renewable power market and Russian Federation hydropower market. The scope of the research includes -- A brief introduction on global carbon emissions and global primary energy consumption.- An overview on global renewable power market, highlighting installed capacity trends, generation trends and installed capacity split by various renewable power sources. The information is covered for the historical period 2006-2016 (unless specified) and forecast period 2017-2030.- Renewable power sources include wind (both onshore and offshore), solar photovoltaic (PV), concentrated solar power (CSP), small hydropower (SHP), biomass, biogas and geothermal.- Detailed overview of the global hydropower market with installed capacity and generation trends, installed capacity split by major hydropower countries in 2016 and key owners information of various regions.- Power market scenario in Russian Federation and provides detailed market overview, installed capacity and power generation trends by various fuel types (includes thermal conventional, nuclear, large hydro and renewable energy sources) with forecasts up to 2030.- An overview on Russian Federation renewable power market, highlighting installed capacity trends (2006-2030), generation trends(2006-2030) and installed capacity split by various renewable power sources in 2016.- Detailed overview of Russian Federation hydropower market with installed capacity and generation trends and major active and upcoming hydro projects.- Deal analysis of Russian Federation hydropower market. Deals are analyzed on the basis of mergers, acquisitions, partnership, asset finance, debt offering, equity offering, private equity (PE) and venture capitalists (VC).- Key policies and regulatory framework supporting the development of renewable power sources in general and hydropower in particular.- Company snapshots of some of the major market participants in the country.Key points to buy- The report will enhance your decision making capability in a more rapid and time sensitive manner.- Identify key growth and investment opportunities in Russian Federation hydropower market.- Facilitate decision-making based on strong historic and forecast data for hydropower market.- Position yourself to gain the maximum advantage of the industrys growth potential.- Develop strategies based on the latest regulatory events.- Identify key partners and business development avenues.- Understand and respond to your competitors business structure, strategy and prospects.Table of Contents1 Table of Contents2 Executive Summary3 Introduction4 Renewable Power Market, Global5 Hydropower Market, Global6 Power Market, Russian Federation7 Renewable Power Market, Russian Federation8 Hydropower Market, Russian Federation9 Power Market, Regulatory Scenario, Russian Federation10 Hydropower Market, Russian Federation, Company Profiles11 AppendixContinuedWise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe.WISEGUY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS PVT LTDOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersPune - 411028Maharashtra, India
Fingerprint Sensor Global Market Analysis & Outlook (2017-2021) | Synaptics Incorporated, Fingerprint Cards AB, IDEX ASA, Next Biometrics ASA

Fingerprint Sensor Market

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Global Fingerprint Sensor Market by Application (Smartphone, Smartcard, PC & Tablet): Industry Analysis & Outlook (2017-2021)" to its huge collection of research reports.Fingerprint sensor is an electronic device which scans and records a digital print of a persons finger. The recorded image, called Live Scan, is digitally processed to create a biometric template. Later on, the biometric template is stored for identification of the person whose fingerprint had been taken. Fingerprint scanners are used as security systems of biometrics. Fingerprint scanners were formerly limited to companies, forensic labs and security forces, but with the changing world of technologies, these scanners have covered a vast application area such as smart phones, smart cards, computers, etc. Today, these scanners are widely used in smartphones. A fingerprint sensor has various advantages over the traditional methods of identification. These sensors provide a higher level of security to the devices, offices or wherever these are being used.In terms of applications, the global fingerprint sensor market experienced a high growth in smartphone market in the recent years. And it is expected that in the coming years, fingerprint sensors would experience a high penetration rate in smart card and IoT markets as well.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @Regionally, North America is the largest shareholder of global fingerprint sensor market, supported by increasing technological innovations and rising terrorist activities. However, Europe is likely to experience a strong growth due to increasing penetration of smart phones in this region.The global fingerprint sensor market is expected to grow in future due to increasing shipments of smartphones, increasing disposable income, growing market of smart homes, rapid urbanization, rising IoT market, growing demand in mobile payment transactions and mounting shipments of smart cards. Key trends of this market include decreasing ASP of fingerprint sensors and smartphones and emerging fingerprint sensing technologies. However, there are some factors which can hinder the market growth including threat from iris recognition market.The report Global Fingerprint Sensor Market: Industry Analysis & Outlook (2017-2021) by Koncept Analytics provides an extensive research and detailed analysis of the present market along with future outlook. The report discusses the major growth drivers and challenges of the market, covering the North America and Europe region along with the global market. The report profiles the key players of the market including Synaptics Incorporated, Fingerprint Cards AB, IDEX ASA and Next Biometrics ASA.Table of Content1. Market Overview1.1 Fingerprint Sensor1.2 Types of Fingerprint Sensor1.3 Applications of Fingerprint Sensor1.4 Advantages of Fingerprint Sensor2. Global Fingerprint Sensor Market2.1 Fingerprint Sensor Market Forecast by Value2.2 Fingerprint Sensor Market Forecast by Shipments2.3 Fingerprint Sensor Market by Application2.3.1 Global Smartphone Fingerprint Sensor Market Value Forecast2.3.2 Global Smart Card Fingerprint Sensor Market Value Forecast2.3.3 Global PC and Tablet Fingerprint Sensor Market Value Forecast2.3.4 Global IoT Fingerprint Sensor Market Value Forecast2.4 Fingerprint Sensor Shipments by Application2.4.1 Global Smartphone Fingerprint Sensor Market Shipment Forecast2.4.2 Global Smart Card Fingerprint Sensor Market Shipment Forecast2.4.3 Global PC and Tablet Fingerprint Sensor Market Shipment Forecast2.4.4 Global IoT Fingerprint Sensor Market Shipment Forecast2.5 Fingerprint Sensor Market by Region3. Regional Market3.1 North America Fingerprint Sensor Market Forecast by Value3.2 Europe Fingerprint Sensor Market Forecast by Value4. Market Dynamics4.1 Growth Drivers4.1.1 Increasing Shipments of Smartphones4.1.2 Growing Market of Smart Homes4.1.3 Increasing Disposable Income4.1.4 Growing Urbanization4.1.5 Rising IoT Market4.1.6 Rising Demand of Mobile Payment Transactions4.1.7 Mounting Shipments of Smart Cards4.2 Key Trends & Developments4.2.1 Decreasing ASP of Fingerprint Sensors4.2.2 Decreasing ASP of Smartphones4.2.3 Emerging Fingerprint Sensing Technologies4.3 Challenge4.3.1 Threat from Iris Recognition Market5. Competitive Landscape5.1 Global Market5.1.1 Revenue Comparison of Key Players5.1.2 Market Cap Comparison of Key Players5.1.3 Global Smartphone Fingerprint Sensor Market Share by Company5.1.4 Global Smartphone Fingerprint Sensor Market- Key Companies (Ex. Apple)Continue...Get Complete TOC With Tables and Figures @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.ResearchMozState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @
Global Smart Education and Learning Market Drivers is Responsible for Increasing Market Share and Boost in the Connectivity of Handheld Devices Forecast to 2017-2024

Global Smart Education and Learning Market  Industry Trends and Forecast to 2024

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New Report Global Smart Education and Learning Market added by Data Bridge Market Research. Accounted for USD 200.12 billion in 2016 growing at a CAGR of 25.3% during the forecast period of 2017 to 2024. The upcoming market report contains data for historic year 2014, 2015, the base year of calculation is 2016 and the forecast period is 2017 to 2024.To request a sample copy or view summary of this report, click the link below:Market Definition:Smart education and learning is an education system in order to strengthen the capabilities of learners by providing an intelligent, enhanced and customized learning solution. The institutions have introduced digital text books with enhanced, improved and also innovated from of content, method and environment and also providing training to teachers on smart education, and developing a smart education model. It is widely applicable in Higher Education, Small and Medium Businesses, Large Enterprises, and others. Increasing significance of eLearning in the corporate and academic setups may act as the major driver in the growth of smart education and learning market. On the other side, lack of knowledge and expertise among end users may hamper the market.Market Drivers & Restraints:1. Boost in the connectivity of handheld devices2. Increased collaboration between hardware vendors and educational content providers3. Increasing significance of eLearning in the corporate and academic setups4. Technological advancements5. Widespread government initiatives in growing markets6. Lack of knowledge and expertise among end users7. Lack of resources and infrastructure in developing marketsRequest for Table of Content @Market Segmentation: Global Smart Education and Learning MarketThe global smart education and learning market is segmented on the basis of product into hardware, software, services, and educational content. The hardware segment is further sub-segmented into interactive white boards (IWB), interactive displays, interactive tables, and student response systems. The software segment is further sub-segmented into learning management systems, learning content management systems, adaptive learning platform, assessment systems, and others. The service segment is further sub-segmented into managed services, and professional services. The educational content segment is further sub-segmented into audio-based content, text content, and video-based content.On the basis of learning mode, the global smart education and learning market is segmented into collaborative learning, virtual instructor-led training, simulation-based learning, adaptive learning, social learning, and blended learning.On the basis of user type, the global smart education and learning market is segmented into academic, and corporate. The academic segment is further sub-segmented into K-12, and higher education. The corporate segment is further sub-segmented into small and medium businesses, and large enterprises.On the basis of geography, the global smart education and learning market report covers data points for 28 countries across multiple geographies such as North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. Some of the major countries covered in this report are U.S., Canada, Germany, France, U.K., Netherlands, Switzerland, Turkey, Russia, China, India, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Brazil among others. In 2017, North America is expected to dominate the market.Market Competitors:Some of the major players of the global smart education and learning market are Adobe Systems Software Ireland Ltd, Blackboard, Inc., Educomp Solutions Ltd, Cisco Systems, Inc., McGraw-Hill Education, NIIT Limited, Pearson, D2L Corporation, SAMSUNG, SumTotal Systems, LLC, SMART Technologies, Ellucian Company L.P., Tata Interactive Systems, PROMETHEAN LIMITED, Saba Software, Inc., Sungard Availability Services, Jenzabar, Inc., Cengage Learning India Private Limited, Skillsoft Ireland Limited, Scholastic Inc., and others.Purchase Full Report @Related ReportGlobal Network Security Firewall Market Industry Trends and Forecast to 2024Global Network Security Firewall Market, By Geography; Component (Solutions, Services); Deployment (Cloud, On-premises); Solution (SMS Firewall{A2P Messaging, P2A Messaging Signaling}, Signaling Firewall{SS7, Diameter}); Service (Professional Services{Deployment & Integration, Consulting Services, Support & Maintenance}, Managed Services)  Industry Trends and Forecast to 2024About Data Bridge Market Research:Data Bridge Market Research set forth itself as an unconventional and neoteric Market research and consulting firm with unparalleled level of resilience and integrated approaches. We are determined to unearth the best market opportunities and foster efficient information for your business to thrive in the market. Data Bridge endeavors to provide appropriate solutions to the complex business challenges and initiates an effortless decision-making process.Contact:Vishal DixitData Bridge Market ResearchTel: +1-888-387-2818Email: Sales@databridgemarketresearch.comInvestor: investors@databridgemarketresearch.comVisit Blog
Global and United States Smartphone Security Industry Analysis 2017-2022 | Latest Market Research Report

Smartphone Security

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Global and United States Smartphone Security In-Depth Research Report 2017-2022" to its huge collection of research reports.The report is based on the market historical data from 2012 to 2016 and forecast the market trend from 2017 to 2022.This report focuses on the U.S. market and presents volume and value of market share by players, by regions, by product type, by consumers and also changes in prices. As an in-depth report, it covers all details inside analysis and opinions in Smartphone Security industry.Major CompaniesAVAST Software s.r.o (Czech Republic)Bitdefender (USA)AhnLab, Inc. (South Korean)F-Secure Corporation (Finland)Panda Security (Spain)Kaspersky Lab (Russia)Quick Heal Technologies Limited (India)Saison Information Systems Co., Ltd. (Japan)Sybase Inc. (USA)To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @Key RegionsNorth AmericaUnited StatesCaliforniaTexasNew YorkOthersCanadaLatin AmericaMexicoBrazilArgentinaOthersEuropeGermanyUnited KingdomFranceItalySpainRussiaNetherlandOthersAsia & PacificChinaJapanIndiaKoreaAustraliaSoutheast AsiaIndonesiaThailandPhilippinesVietnamSingaporeMalaysiaOthersAfrica & Middle EastSouth AfricaEgyptTurkeySaudi ArabiaIranOthersMain types of productsSmartphone Security Market, by Operating SystemAndroidWindowsIOSOtherSmartphone Security Market, by Sercurity FeaturesAnti-VirusAnti-theftData EncryptionOthersSmartphone Security Market, by Key ConsumersIndividualsBusinessTable of ContentsGlobal and United States Smartphone Security In-Depth Research Report 2017-2022Chapter One Global Smartphone Security Market Overview1.1 Global Smartphone Security Market Sales Volume Revenue and Price 2012-20171.2 Smartphone Security, by Operating System 2012-20171.2.1 Global Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Operating System 2012-20171.2.2 Global Smartphone Security Revenue Market Share by Operating System 2012-20171.2.3 Global Smartphone Security Price by Operating System 2012-20171.2.4 Android1.2.5 Windows1.2.6 IOS1.2.7 Other1.3 Smartphone Security, by Sercurity Features 2012-20171.3.1 Global Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Sercurity Features 2012-20171.3.2 Global Smartphone Security Revenue Market Share by Sercurity Features 2012-20171.3.3 Global Smartphone Security Price by Sercurity Features 2012-20171.3.4 Anti-Virus1.3.5 Anti-theft1.3.6 Data Encryption1.3.7 OthersChapter Two United States Smartphone Security Market Overview2.1 United States Smartphone Security Market Sales Volume Revenue and Price 2012-20172.2 Smartphone Security, by Operating System 2012-20172.2.1 United States Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Operating System 2012-20172.2.2 United States Smartphone Security Revenue Market Share by Operating System 2012-20172.2.3 United States Smartphone Security Price by Operating System 2012-20172.2.4 Android2.2.5 Windows2.2.6 IOS2.2.7 Other2.3 Smartphone Security, by Sercurity Features 2012-20172.3.1 United States Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Sercurity Features 2012-20172.3.2 United States Smartphone Security Revenue Market Share by Sercurity Features 2012-20172.3.3 United States Smartphone Security Price by Sercurity Features 2012-20172.3.4 Anti-Virus2.3.5 Anti-theft2.3.6 Data Encryption2.3.7 OthersChapter Three Smartphone Security by Regions 2012-20173.1 Global Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Regions 2012-20173.2 Global Smartphone Security Revenue Market Share by Regions 2012-20173.3 Global Smartphone Security Price by Regions 2012-20173.4 North America3.4.1 United States3.4.1.1 California3.4.1.2 Texas3.4.1.3 New York3.4.1.4 Others in United States3.4.2 Canada3.5 Latin America3.5.1 Mexico3.5.2 Brazil3.5.3 Argentina3.5.4 Others in Latin America3.6 Europe3.6.1 Germany3.6.2 United Kingdom3.6.3 France3.6.4 Italy3.6.5 Spain3.6.6 Russia3.6.7 Netherland3.6.8 Others in Europe3.7 Asia & Pacific3.7.1 China3.7.2 Japan3.7.3 India3.7.4 Korea3.7.5 Australia3.7.6 Southeast Asia3.7.6.1 Indonesia3.7.6.2 Thailand3.7.6.3 Philippines3.7.6.4 Vietnam3.7.6.5 Singapore3.7.6.6 Malaysia3.7.6.7 Others in Southeast Asia3.8 Africa & Middle East3.8.1 South Africa3.8.2 Egypt3.8.3 Turkey3.8.4 Saudi Arabia3.8.5 Iran3.8.6 Others in Africa & Middle EastChapter Four Global Smartphone Security by Companies 2012-20174.1 Global Smartphone Security Sales Volume Market Share by Companies 2012-20174.2 Global Smartphone Security Revenue Share by Companies 2012-20174.3 Global Top Companies Smartphone Security Key Product Model and Market Performance4.4 Global Top Companies Smartphone Security Key Target Consumers and Market PerformanceChapter Five United States Smartphone Security by Companies 2012-20175.1 United States Smartphone Security Sales Volume Market Share by Companies 2012-20175.2 United States Smartphone Security Revenue Share by Companies 2012-20175.3 United States Top Companies Smartphone Security Key Product Model and Market Performance5.4 United States Top Companies Smartphone Security Key Target Consumers and Market PerformanceChapter Six Global Smartphone Security by Consumer 2012-20176.1 Global Smartphone Security Sales Market Share by Consumer 2012-20176.2 Individuals6.3 Business6.4 Consuming Habit and PreferenceContinue...Get Complete TOC With Tables and Figures @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.ResearchMozState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @
Pregnancy Pillow Global Market Surging With A Striking 9.7%CAGR; Asserts MRFR

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Pregnancy Pillows or Maternity Pillows are basically highly specialized pillows designed to offer comfort to pregnant women accommodating their changing body in the later stages of pregnancy where expecting mothers have to face difficulty while sleeping and sitting coupled with the discomforts of sleeping or sitting position. Maternal sleep position and stillbirth risk. Various studies verifying the benefits of Pregnancy Pillows have proved that the risk of stillbirth is incurred due to discomforts in sleeping/ sitting positions. Pregnancy Pillows are helping a great deal to minimize the stillbirth risk. The outcome of these researches also defined the association sleeping on the back instead on either of the sides and increased risk of late stillbirth by double fold., suggesting that over 3% of stillbirths occur in later stage i.e. after 28 weeks of pregnancy. Sleeping on the back during pregnancy leads to putting more pressure on the blood vessels that supply oxygen to the baby residing in the womb and causing inadequate oxygen supply along with the general breathing problems to the would be mothers.Get a sample report atPregnancy Pillow allows expecting mothers, to sleep/sit comfortably during pregnancy also restricts sleeping on the back. Attributing to its benefits offered during one of the critical periods of womens life, Pregnancy Pillows are gaining huge popularity that further supports Pregnancy Pillow Market growth with exponential market traction. Accrediting momentous market accruals of Pregnancy Pillow Market, innovations that took place in the field and potential growth prospects the market will witness in the years to come, the Market Research Future recently published a brilliant study report giving out the complete market insights up to 2023. According to the eminent MRFR, the Global Pregnancy Pillow Market is rapidly growing owing to the prevailing, still birth risk worldwide coupled with the burgeoning Healthcare Sector. The market is forecasted to perceive phenomenal accruals posting a striking CAGR during 2017  2023.Other factors that primarily support the Pregnancy Pillow Market include technological advancements, increased sale of Pregnancy Pillow owing to the rising popularity of these pillows coupled with the increasing higher standards of living attributing to the rising disposable income especially in the developing regions that fuels the increasing the affordability and purchasing power of consumers.Additionally, augmented use by the hospitals, clinical settings and research centers that offer pillow support system kits to the pregnant women enrolled themselves in the various research programs, for those who have to get admitted in the hospitals/ clinics due to the complication arisen during pregnancy or even for those who visit for the scheduled check up during pregnancy. Since Pregnancy Pillows kept in the hospital/ clinic or research centres are used by multiple women, it dictates the growing concerns over infectious disease and fluid contamination which has further prompted the need to develop coatings and fabrics that can resist repeated cleaning using hospital grade disinfectants.On the other hand high price of the Pregnancy Pillow is one of the major factors restricting the market growth. Besides, factors such as the unawareness about the advantages of Pregnancy Pillows coupled with the adverse effects associated with the use of these pillows are expected to negatively impact the Pregnancy Pillow market growth during the estimated period. However, technological advancements to eradicate the adverse effects or infection concerns are projected to provide impetus to the growth of Pregnancy Pillow market.Pregnancy Pillow Market  Competitive AnalysisAlthough the Pregnancy Pillow market is still in its embryonic stage, it is already moderately competitive. The market demonstrates a pretty growth prospect which is expected to attract new entrant to the market which in turn will introduce the market with fierce competition.Browse Complete Report atIndustry/ Innovations/ Related NewsNovember 2017  MedCline, a pillow was launched in the US, the device is designed to reduce bedtime acid reflux without medications, for pregnant women wanting to avoid medications for acid reflux condition especially important for pregnant women. Its a much more sophisticated version of the foam wedge often suggested by reflux sufferers.December 2017  The American Pregnancy Association recommended sleeping on either side, and warns that sleeping on your back can cause backaches, hemorrhoids, breathing issues, and low blood pressure, and that sleeping on the back is one of the "worst positions" one can sleep in during pregnancy. Similarly, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommended sleeping on your side with two pillows between your knees or under your stomach as a way to alleviate back pain, but doesn't give a specific recommendation regarding sleep position and the health of your baby.December 2017  Michael Cackovic, M.D.(USA), a maternal-fetal medicine physician at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, told that he usually advises his patients to try sleeping on their side at around 20 weeks of pregnancy, suggesting that pregnant women should sleep on their sides to improve blood flow to the foetus.Ask Question to Expert atPregnancy Pillow Market  Regional AnalysisUS accounts for the maximum market share of the global pregnancy pillow market and the market is expected to increase continuously in coming years. This can be attributed to increasing pool of aware females along with need for proper sleep during pregnancy. Advancing technologies within the pregnancy pillow or pregnancy solutions available is also driving the market and will see strategic growth over the next five years. Asia pacific with the upcoming developments in healthcare, increasing awareness and rising per capita income is expected to be the fastest growing region of the global pregnancy pillow market.About Market Research Future:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.ContactMarket Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Future Grow of Laser Therapy Market : Global Key Players - Angiodynamics, , Biolase, Valeant, IRIDEX Corp, Cutera, Coherent, Alma Lasers

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Market Research Future published a cooked research report on global laser therapy market. The Global Laser Therapy Market at a CAGR of 9.2% by 2023Therapeutic laser therapy is the most preferred technology for the treatment of various diseases like cataract and arthritis. Moreover, other applications of lasers in therapeutics includes the branches of dentistry, dermatology, aesthetics, and others. The global market for laser therapy is expected to grow at an exponential rate owing to an increase in the demand for advanced technology for minimally invasive therapeutics, rising geriatric population, and increasing prevalence of cataract, arthritis, periodontal diseases, and others. As per the Arthritis Foundation, as the worlds population continues to age, it is estimated that disorders such as osteoarthritis will impact at least 130 million individuals around the globe by the year 2050. Moreover, in 2016, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 586,662 minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures were performed for laser skin resurfacing.Get a sample report atThe Americas dominate the global laser therapy market owing to a large patient population, strong government support for research & development, high healthcare spending, and growing geriatric population. In 2015, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, in the U.S. the total healthcare expenditure accounted for 17.8% of the total gross domestic product (GDP), which accounted for USD 3.2 trillion.Europe is the second leading region in the global laser therapy market, which is followed by Asia Pacific. Asia Pacific is the fastest growing market for laser therapy. According to the Royal National Institute of Blind People in 2016, the number of people living with sight loss are expected to reach 2.7 million by 2030 due to possible cases of refractive error, cataract, glaucoma, and others.The presence of a huge patient population and continuously developing economies like India and China boosts the market growth within the region. Moreover, growing geriatric population within the region fuels the market growth. According to a study conducted by International Journal of Advanced Medical and Health Research in 2015, in India, the prevalence of blindness was 1.1%, the principal cause being cataract, affecting over 9 million people accounting for 62.6%.The Middle East and Africa contribute the least to the growth of the global laser therapy market. The Middle East dominates the market in this region due to the presence of developed economies like Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and others within the region. Whereas, Africa holds the least share of the global market due to the limited availability of medical facilities, poor economic condition and stringent government policies.Key PlayersThe key players for the global laser therapy market are Angiodynamics, Inc. (U.S.), Biolase Inc. (U.S.), Valeant (Canada), IRIDEX Corp. (U.S.), Cutera (U.S.), Coherent, Inc. (U.S.), Alma Lasers (Israel), and others.Browse Complete Report atThe global laser therapy market is segmented on the basis of type and application.On the basis of type, the market is segmented into diode lasers, solid state lasers, gas lasers, dye lasers, and others.On the basis of application, the market is segmented into dermatology and aesthetics, surgery, dental, and others. The surgery segment is further segmented into urology, ophthalmology, and others.Europe is the second largest laser therapy market, which is followed by Asia Pacific. Availability of funds for research, huge patient population, increasing healthcare expenditures, a well-developed healthcare sector and government support for research & development are projected to drive the market growth during the forecasted period. According to the Royal National Institute of Blind People (2016), the number of people living with sight loss are expected to reach 2.7 million by 2030 due to possible cases of refractive error, cataract, glaucoma, and others.Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region in the global market due to the presence of a huge patient population, continuously developing economies like India and China which are presenting great opportunities to the market. Moreover, growing geriatric population within the region boosts the market growth. According to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, in 2016 about 12.4% of the population within the region aged 60 or more and this geriatric population is expected to reach 1.3 billion by 2050.Ask Question to Expert atList of FigureFIGURE 1 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET BY APPLICATION, 2016 (%) 12FIGURE 2 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET BY APPLICATION, 2016 (%) 12FIGURE 3 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY: MARKET STRUCTURE 14FIGURE 4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 15FIGURE 5 PORTERS FIVE FORCES MODEL: GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET 25FIGURE 6 VALUE CHAIN: GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET 27FIGURE 7 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET, BY TYPE, 2016 & 2023 (USD MILLION) 33FIGURE 8 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET, BY APPLICATION, 2016 & 2023 (USD MILLION) 38FIGURE 9 GLOBAL LASER THERAPY MARKET, BY REGION, 2016 & 2023 (USD MILLION) 43FIGURE 10 AMERICAS LASER THERAPY MARKET, BY REGION, 2016 (%) 46FIGURE 11 EUROPE LASER THERAPY MARKET BY REGION, 2016 (%) 54FIGURE 12 ASIA PACIFIC LASER THERAPY MARKET BY COUNTRY, 2016 (%) 69FIGURE 13 MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA LASER THERAPY MARKET BY COUNTRY, 2016 (%About Market Research Future:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.ContactMarket Research ReportP: +1 646 845 9312W:sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Alzheimers Disease Diagnostic Market | Global Key Players are - Eli Lilly and Company, TauRx, Accera, Inc., Treventis Corporation, Neuro-Bio Ltd, CogRx

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Market Research Future published a half cooked research report on Global Alzheimers disease diagnostic research report - Forecast to 2022  Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2022.The global Alzheimers disease diagnostic market is growing at a sound pace; mainly due to the increasing prevalence of the disease making it one of the major drivers for the market. According to a recent study report published by the Market Research Future, the global Alzheimers disease diagnostic market is booming and expected to gain prominence over the forecast period. The market will demonstrate a spectacular growth by 2022, surpassing its previous growth records in terms of value with a sound CAGR during the anticipated period (2017  2022).The major drivers will be the increasing per capita healthcare expenditure and growing geriatric population. With it the market for diagnostic test, including diagnostic molecules and assays will contribute significantly to the health and wellbeing of the patients.In 2017, according to the Alzheimer's Association, 5.5 million Americans lives with Alzheimer's dementia, and estimated 5.3 million are at 65 years old or above. Moreover, according to the National Institute of Health, the global geriatric population is expected to reach 1.6 billion by 2050 from 617 million in 2016. From the illustrated facts it is clear that the market will grow significantly in the presence of the need of diagnostics.Get a sample report atGlobal Alzheimers Disease Diagnostic Market - Competitive AnalysisCharacterized by the presence of several well-established and small players, the global market of Alzheimers disease diagnostic appears to be highly competitive and fragmented. International players are increasingly expanding their footprint in the developing economy, making it difficult for regional vendors to compete with them, especially in terms of features such as product differentiation, product portfolios, quality, and pricing. The market is witnessing intensified competition which is expected to get more intensified further during the forecast period. The intense competition prevalent in the market dictates the consolidation among players.Well established players followed acquisition, collaboration, partnership, expansion, and product launch in order to gain competitive advantage in this market and to maintain their market position.Eli Lilly and Company is one of the major players in the global Alzheimers disease diagnostic market. The total revenue generated by the company in 2016 was reported to be approximately around 21.2 billion. Followed by such huge revenue the company invested 24.7% of its revenue on the research and development. Following such a trends from the past few years, Eli Lilly and Company became a global leader in the fight against Alzheimers disease and it is leading the market since last 30 years. Today, Eli Lilly and Company has molecules to treat and diagnose Alzheimers disease in various stages of clinical development, including seven investigational compounds to treat Alzheimers disease and two diagnostics to help better diagnose the disease condition. To enhance the product development and commercialization the company in Jan. 27, 2016 announced an arrangement to partner with Roche Diagnostics on its ongoing development of a commercially scalable cerebrospinal fluid assay for amyloid-beta 1-42.Eli Lilly and Company. (U.S.), TauRx (Asia Pacific), Accera, Inc. (U.S.), Treventis Corporation. (U.S.), Neuro-Bio Ltd (Europe), CogRx (U.S.) are some of the prominent players at the forefront of competition in the Global Alzheimers disease diagnostic Market and are profiled in MRFR Analysis.Browse Complete Report atThe global market is led by the Americas. Rising per capita healthcare expenditures, presence of global players like CogRx and Accera, Inc. along with a huge patient population drives the market growth within the region. In 2015, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, in the U.S. the total healthcare expenditure accounted for 17.8% of the total gross domestic product (GDP), which accounted for USD 3.2 trillion. Europe is the second largest market. Huge patient population, increasing government support the R&D fuels the market growth within the region. According to the Alzheimer's Society, the number of the patients suffering from dementia in the U.K is expected to reach over one million by 2025. Asia Pacific region consists of the developing economies like India & China making it to be the fastest growing region. The Middle East & Africa region holds the least share, especially due to the African region. The Middle East region holds the market of this region due to huge healthcare expenditures.Study Objectives Global Alzheimers Disease Diagnostics Market: To provide detail analysis of the market structure along with forecast for the next 7 years regarding various segments and sub-segments of the global Alzheimers disease diagnostic market To provide insights about factors affecting the market growth To analyze the market based on various factors- price analysis, supply chain analysis, Porters Five Force analysis etc. To provide past and estimated future revenue of the market segments and sub-segments with respect to four main geographies and their countries- Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. To provide country level analysis of the market with respect to the current market size and future prospect. To provide country level analysis of the market for segments by type, by diagnostic tests, by end users and other sub segments. To provide overview of key players and their strategic profiling in the market, comprehensively analyzing their core competencies and drawing a competitive landscape of the market To track and analyze global competitive developments such as joint ventures, strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions, new product developments along with research and developments.Ask Question to Expert atThe report for Global Alzheimers Disease Diagnostic Market by Market Research Future comprises of extensive primary research along with the detail analysis of qualitative as well as quantitative aspects by various industry experts, key opinion leaders to gain a deeper insight of the market and industry performance. The report gives a clear picture of current market scenario which includes past and estimated future market size in terms of value and volume, technological advancement, macro economical and governing factors of the market. The report provides detailinformation and strategies of top key players in the industry. Along with these it also gives a broad study about different markets segments and regions.About usAt Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact:Market Research FutureMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@Marketresearchfuture.Com
Protein Engineering Market by 2024 Huge Involved Companies like Bruker Corp, GE Healthcare, Perkin Elmer, Agilent Technologies, AB-Sciex

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Protein Engineering Market Research Report, By Type (Instruments, Reagent) By End users (Pharmaceutical, Bio-technology) By Applications (Environment, Medical) By Methods (Rational Protein Design, Directed Evolution)- Global Forecast to 2024. Protein Engineering Market Is Booming Worldwide. Protein engineering is the way toward creating helpful or important proteins. It is a youthful discipline, with much research occurring into the understanding of protein folding and recognition for protein design principles.Get a Sample Report @Protein engineering is the designing and construction of new proteins by modifying amino acid sequences to produce enzymes & desired properties or the synthesis of protein with particular structure. It is an important technology that increases our basic understanding of how enzymes function and have evolved, and it is the key method of improving enzyme properties for applications in pharmaceuticals, green chemistry and biofuels.The objectives of Protein engineering is to create an enzyme which is superior in its properties to produce high value chemicals in large quantities, and to produce biological compounds which includes synthetic peptide, storage protein and synthetic drugs which will be superior to normal one. Protein engineering applications cover a broad range which also includes biocatalysts for food industry, and nanotechnology industry. High cost of tools & instruments used and untrained personnel is the main restraints of this market.Protein Engineering Application:To improve the properties such as thermo stability, specificity and catalytic efficiency in food and detergent market engineering is been used. Food industry makes use of a variety of food-processing enzymes, such as amylases and lipases, the properties of which are improved using recombinant DNA technology and protein engineering. Also it is beneficial to reduce the toxic compound and to improve the environmental applications, such as the use of enzymes in waste management and pollution control. The study of cancer treatment is one of the major interest areas in medical under protein engineering. Recently, the term modular protein engineering has been introduced for emerging cancer therapies. It is also giving useful inputs for antibiotics.Protein Engineering Market Segmentation:Protein engineering market by End users includes: Academic research institutes, pharmaceuticals and bio-technology companies and contract engineering organizations.Protein engineering market by methods includes: Rational protein design and directed evolution.Protein engineering market by applications includes: Food and detergent industries, environment applications, medical applications, biopolymer production, and Nano biotechnology.Protein Engineering Key Players Are Interested:Bruker Corp. (U.S.), GE Healthcare (U.K.), Perkin Elmer (U.S.), Sigma-Aldrich Corp. (U.S.), Agilent Technologies (U.S.), AB-Sciex (U.S.), Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (U.S.), Thermo Fisher Scientific (U.S.), and Waters Corp. (U.S).Browse Report @Protein Engineering Market Regional Analysis:The regional analysis consists of North America, Europe, and Asian market. The Protein engineering market is been growing with an approximate rate of 50% worldwide.North AmericaThe market segments of North America include tissue engineering, cell culture, protein engineering, biomaterials and micro-reactor. North America is leading in Protein engineering market followed by Europe and Asia because of the rising prevalence of lifestyle associated diseases and increasing adoption of protein based drugs in the region. Governments of the U.S., Canada, and Brazil have been highly supportive of advancements in protein engineering, creating a favorable regulatory environment for companies in the North American market.AsiaAsian Countries such as India, china, Japan are showing good growth in this market in upcoming years. The growth factors for the protein engineering market in these countries are the large pool of patients, increasing health care awareness, increasing health care expenditure, rising government initiatives, and rising funding for drug discovery in the region.Geographical Region includes:AmericasNorth America, US, Canada,Europe,Western EuropeGermany, France, Italy, Spain, U.K, Rest of Western EuropeEastern Europe, Poland, RussiaAsia PacificAsia, China, India, Japan, Rest of AsiaPacific CountriesAustralia, New ZealandThe Middle East& AfricaTable of Contents:Report PrologueMarket IntroductionResearch MethodologyMarket DynamicsMarket Factor AnalysisGlobal Protein Engineering Market, By TypeGlobal Protein Engineering Market By ApplicationGlobal Protein Engineering Market By MethodsCompetitive LandscapeCompany ProfileGet Discount @At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
The political climate in our state over the last several years has left me feeling hopeless and helpless. Investments in our future (education and the environment) traded in for short-sighted, short-term economic gains. The vulnerable forgotten. An uneasy feeling of everyone for themselves rather than a shared sense of responsibility to each other. Maybe that's why, when Greta Neubauer shared with me that she was planning to run for Wisconsin State Assembly, I got goose bumps. I felt hopeful.

I've known Greta for over 10 years, first as a high school student at Holy Communion Lutheran Church, where I served as a director of youth ministry and volunteer coordinator for 8 years. I witnessed her values and convictions take shape from the seeds of faith that were planted by members of our congregation and community. I saw her wrestle with the question, "What does it mean to follow Jesus in a world full of injustice, oppression, and self-concern?" I often recall a sermon that Greta delivered as a high school student, in which she highlighted one of the less familiar, less comforting passages of the beatitudes from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Greta understands that standing by one's convictions carries it's risks. Just as she challenged our congregation to live out our faith, she will put hers into action by fighting for our community in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Vote Neubauer on Dec. 19.

Andrea Godson

Racine
Diabetes Drug Market | Global Key Players are - AstraZeneca, Biocon, Sunpharma, Sanofi, Novartis, Merck & Co., Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Boehringer Ingelheim | Forecast to 2023

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The global diabetes drugs market is growing with a swift phase; mainly due to increase in patient population and research and development done by market players to fill the gap of market. The WHO estimated that diabetes leads to 1.6 million deaths in 2015 and it is the major causes of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke, and lower limb amputation. Increase in incidence of chronic disease owing to diabetes will drag the interest of biopharmaceutical researchers for developing effective drugs for the treatment. More than 170 diabetes drugs are in the development stage to cure diabetes or diabetes related conditions. In 2014, the cost of diabetes diagnosis was around USD 245 billion in the United States, and biopharmaceutical researchers are focusing to find new lifesaving and life-changing treatments.Companies are continuously engaged in merger and acquisition activities for the development of best medicine to cure affected diabetes population. In this regard, Merck & Co. and Pfizer are continuously working together from last four years to introduce best product and finally four year old alliance has reached fruition with the filling of three new products in year 2017. These companies was working together since 2013, and announced that studies of ertugliflozin, an investigational oral SGLT-2 inhibitor in evolution to help control glucose level in adults with type 2 diabetes, met their primary endpoints. The reviewing is now ongoing at the FDA and EMA, and the two market players will get the approval by the end of this year, saying that the trio of ertugliflozin products will provide add on option for treatment of type 2 diabetics. Merck and Pfizer hope to fill the gap of market along with leaders such as Novo Nordisk, Abbott, AstraZeneca, Biocon, Sanofi, and Novartis.Get a sample report atDiabetes occurs when the pancreas are not able to produce enough insulin to get body glucose into the cells. This shortage of insulin roots sugar to build up in the blood. According to the report published by International Diabetes Federation, in 2016, it was evaluated that 420 million adult population were suffering with diabetes. If the patients population will grow with the same phase it was projected that around 625 million people will suffer with the disease by 2040, at a rate of 8.4%. Increase in the prevalence of diabetes around the globe is creating the huge scope for the market players to earn profit. These are the top five drugs that create significant revenue in 2016. Lantus is the drug introduce by Sanofi, and capture the highest market share with total sales of USD 3.9 billion followed by Januvia introduce by Merck & Co. with the sales of USD 2.29 billion. Victoza and Levemir hold the third and fourth position in global sales with USD 2.10 billion and USD 1.82 billion respectively. Humalog hold the fifth position with USD 1.69 billion. Introduce by Eli Lilly and Company.The market of diabetes drugs is much higher in Asia Pacific region, owing to obesity population, stress, and unhealthy life balance. These are the factor which leads the diabetes to the growing base of patient population in this region. Most of the countries of this region have common lifestyle and economic conditions. Government of developing countries within this region are more focusing towards new technology and advance treatment option, thus more research and development programs are initiated for the development of new drugs. These are the factors which are fuelling the growth of the market of diabetes drugs with the significant rates. These advance drugs will overcome the saturation that occurs during last few years. Countries like India and china are more focused market for global market players owing to huge patient population and growing purchasing power as compare to other countries in this region. Japan is well developed country and have well established healthcare system and technology, whereas developing countries are still focusing on new drugs and technology for the treatment of diabetes patients, this gap between the developed and developing countries will present significant growth opportunity for the diabetes drugs market players in the next few years.Browse Complete Report atEurope accounts for the second largest diabetes drug market, which is followed by Asia Pacific. Huge smoking population, availability of funds for research, and government support for research & development will drive the market in Europe.Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region for the market due to the presence of a huge patient population, continuously developing economies, and increasing need for the better treatment.The global diabetes drug market is segmented on the basis of types, route of administration, drug class, and end users.On the basis of types, the market is segmented into type-1 diabetes and type-2 diabetes.On the basis of route of administration, the market is segmented into oral, intravenous and other.On the basis of drug class they are insulin, sensitizers, SGLT-2 inhibitors, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, secretagogues, peptide analogs and others. Sensitizers are sub segmented into thiazolidinediones and biguanides. Secretagogues are further segmented into sulfonylureas and non-sulfonylureasOn the basis of end users, the market is segmented into hospital & clinics, ambulatory clinics and other.Global Key Players: Eli Lilly (US), Novo Nordisk (Denmark), Abbott (US), AstraZeneca (UK), Biocon (US), Sunpharma (India), Sanofi (France), Novartis (Switzerland), Merck & Co. (US), Pfizer (US), Daiichi Sankyo (Japan), Boehringer Ingelheim (Germany), Akros Pharma (US), Amgen (US), Adocia (France), Peptron (South Korea), and Takeda (Japan)Ask Question to Expert atLIST OF FIGURESFigure 1 Research ProcessFigure 2 Segmentation For Global Diabetes Drug MarketFigure 3 Segmentation Market Dynamics For Global Diabetes Drug MarketFigure 4 Global Diabetes Drug Market Share, By Type 2016Figure 5 Global Diabetes Drug Market Share, By Administration 2016Figure 6 Global Diabetes Drug Market By Drug Class, 2017  2023, (USD Million)Figure 7 Global Diabetes Drug Market Share, By End Users, 2016Figure 8 Global Diabetes Drug Market Share, By Region, 2016About usAt Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact:Market Research FutureMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@Marketresearchfuture.Com
Shiitake Mushroom 2017 Global Market Expected to Grow at CAGR of 15.31% percent and Forecast to 2023

Shiitake Mushroom Industry

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Shiitake Mushroom Market Research Report- Forecast till 2023Report Description:The global shiitake mushroom market has witnessed constant demand during the last few years and is projected to reach USD 35.4 billion at a CAGR of 15.31% by 2023. Shiitake mushroom is an edible specialty mushroom which was originated in East Asia. It is commonly used in preparation of various cuisines of East Asia. High nutritional value as well as medicinal value associated with the shiitake mushroom is increasing its application in pharmaceutical industry as well. High demand of shiitake mushroom in processed foods owing to its rich and robust flavoring attribute is further boosting the growth of shiitake mushroom. Moreover, increasing popularity of shiitake mushroom in cosmetics is adding fuel to the growth of shiitake mushroom. High consumption of shiitake mushroom in Asia Pacific, mainly in China is influencing the market growth since last few years.Asia Pacific will dominate the shiitake mushroom market and is estimated to reach the market share of USD 1.7 billion in the year 2017. Consumption of shiitake mushroom from RoW is projected to witness a high growth rate of 15.01% during the given period owing to the increasing awareness and rise in application of shiitake mushroom in various industries.On the basis of the category, fresh shiitake mushroom will dominate the market and is projected to hold a major share of approx. 50% in the global market. Fresh shiitake mushroom is widely used in preparation of different cuisines for its rich and robust flavoring attribute which is driving the market of fresh shiitake mushroom. Asia Pacific is dominating the market in use of fresh shiitake mushroom followed by Europe. However, North America is witnessed to be the second largest growing country in fresh shiitake mushroom at a CAGR of 14.36% over the forecast period.Request Sample report@Based on the application, food industry is dominating the market holding a leading share of 54.4%. However, increasing awareness of high nutritional and medical benefits of shiitake mushroom including improved cardiovascular health, bone-building, improved digestion, healing chromosome damage caused by anti-cancer treatments and others is boosting the application of shiitake mushroom in pharmaceuticals at a CAGR of 16.56% over the forecast period.On the basis of sales channel, store based sales channel dominates the market mainly through wholesaler/distributor followed by retail stores. However, specialty stores are projected to grow at the highest rate with a CAGR of 15.54% over the estimated period.Key Players:Some of the leading players in the global shiitake mushroom market are: Bonduelle SA (France), Mitoku Company, Ltd. (Japan), Agro Dutch Industries Ltd. (India), The Mushroom Company (U.S.), Modern Mushroom Farms (U.S.), Hirano Mushroom LLC (Kosovo), Banken Champignons (the Netherlands).Target Audience:Shiitake mushroom manufacturersFood industryPharmaceutical IndustryPersonal care products manufacturersRetailers, wholesalers and distributorsTraders, importers and exportersKey Findings:Global shiitake mushroom market is projected to reach USD 35.4 billion by 2023 at a growth rate of 15.31%Dried shiitake mushroom is witnessed to have a highest growth rate with CAGR of 14% over the forecast period 2017-2023Fresh shiitake mushroom is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.59% in Asia Pacific followed by North America over the forecast period.Application of shiitake mushroom is projected to witness highest growth rate in pharmaceutical industry followed by cosmetic industry over the estimated period.Regional and Country Analysis of Shiitake mushroom market Development and the Demand Forecast till 2023 MarketAs per the MRFR analysis, the global market for shiitake mushroom has been witnessing continuous growth during the forecast period owing to its high nutritional and medicinal benefits leading to increasing application of shiitake mushroom in various industries. In terms of value and volume, Asia Pacific is estimated to dominate the shiitake mushroom market holding the lions share of 82.54%. Also, North America is projected to grow at a rate of 11.05%.Browse Full Report Details @TABLE OF CONTENTSTop of Form1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2 INTRODUCTION3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY4 PREMIUM INSIGHTS5 MARKET DYNAMICS6 MEGA TRENDS7 MARKET FACTOR ANALYSIS8 GLOBAL ORGANIC SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET OVERVIEW9 GLOBAL SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET OVERVIEW10 GLOBAL SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET BY CATEGORY11 GLOBAL SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET, BY APPLICATION12 GLOBAL SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET, BY SALES CHANNEL13 NORTH AMERICA SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET14 EUROPE SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET15 ASIA PACIFIC SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET16 REST OF WORLD SHIITAKE MUSHROOM MARKET17 EXOTIC MUSHROOM MARKET OVERVIEW18 COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE19 COMPANY PROFILES20 LIST OF TABLES21 LIST OF FIGURESIn Market Research Future we enable our customers to unravel complexity of various industry through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half Cooked Research Report (HCRR), Raw Research Report (3R), Continuous-Feed-Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.MRFR team has a supreme objective of providing optimum quality of market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by product, services, technology, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, do more which help to answer all their most important questions.Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersPune - 411028Maharashtra, India
Lancets Market | Global Key Players are - F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Greiner Bio One International GmbH, Improve Medical Technology Co. Ltd

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Globally, lancets are being utilized by patients who are affected by endocrine related complications, cardiovascular issues, and many others. Lancets are being used for diabetes/glucose test, tests in infants, heel-stick screening tests, as well as for scarred emergency patients or severely burned patients. The global lancet market is growing at an exponential rate and it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.3% during 2016 to 2022.The increasing prevalence of diabetes and growing incidence number of contagious and non-contagious diseases has been the major factor for influencing the growth of the market. Incidence of contagious diseases is increasing rapidly on a global level. According to the WHO, it has been calculated that, infectious diseases like plaque which is also known as black death has an estimated 50 million deaths in the 14th century, this infectious disease can be a serious disease if not treated, this disease has a case fatality ratio of around 30%-60%, as of 2013 there were 783 cases worldwide which includes 126 deaths.The global lancet market appears to be oligopolistic owing to the presence of large players active in the regional market. The market is also characterized by a reasonable degree of brand loyalty where establishing a brand name is difficult for newcomers. However, the cost involved in manufacturing setup is low to medium which discreetly comfort the new entrants to enter in the market easily. Developments in the medical device industry are made to simplify the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of various diseases. One of such device is lancet, which is capturing a huge market share due to its application. Safety lancets and personal lancets being the two major types of the lancets are dominating the global lancet market.Get a sample report atIndustry UpdatesJune, 2016: F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG received European approval of Avastin Drug in combination with Tarceva for cancer patients with a specific type advance lung cancer.January, 2016: Catalent Inc., a company involved in biologics announced its research collaboration with Roche on Smartag(TM) technology. Catalent claims Roche will pay Catalent an up-front fee of $1 million. Roche to provide additional research funding during the initial phase of the collaboration between these two companies.October, 2015: BD announced the acquisition of GenCellBio systems, an Irish biotech company that has developed proprietary technologies that address key biological analysis protocols, for an undisclosed consideration. The acquisition is expected to improve the BDs Next Generation Sequencing line of products.August, 2015: Roche Holding AG acquired GeneWEAVE to strengthen offerings in microbiology diagnostics. Roche will pay GeneWEAVE shareholdsers $190 million upfront and up to $235 million in contingent product related milestones.March, 2015: BD completed the acquisition of CareFusion Corporation (CareFusion) for $12.2 billion. CareFusion will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of BD. The acquisition is intended to enhance the medication management and patient safety solutions provided by BD.March, 2015: BD announced the acquisition of CRISI Medical Systems, a medical technology company focused on providing safety and delivery of IV injectable medications. The acquisition will strengthen BDs position in addressing preventable medication errors and improve care delivery efficiencies.Global Lancets Market  Regional AnalysisThe oligopolistic nature of the market with North America at its prime holding the largest regional share. The factors contributing to this major share include the well-established healthcare infrastructure and the high income generating end users. As of now the medical device industry is majorly established in the U.S. and Europe. But trends are showing enormous growth opportunity in Asia, wherein China will play a prominent role in both usage and development of medical devices.Moreover, in terms of volume; manufacturers from China are anticipated to capture a large portion of the market, companies such as Guangzhou IMPROVE MEDICAL Technology Co. Ltd, SteriLance Medical (Suzhou) Inc., and others are contributing to this major portion. These companies have established their manufacturing unit worldwide.Browse Complete Report atMany key players involved in this market are keen in introducing new advanced safety lancets for the treatment of various contagious diseases. HTL-STREFA S.A. accounted for major market share of global lancet market, with more than 35% of market share. The large share of the company is attributed to the high demand for safety lancet globally. Moreover, this company has a strong sales and distribution network and this company also provides after sales services and help which play a major role in the satisfaction of the customers. F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG accounts for approximately 22% which can be attributed to their product the ACCU-CHEK which is one of the safety lancets having high demand in the market.The major players in the market which have global operations of the Lancet market, and are consistently working for the development of the following technology are F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Greiner Bio One International GmbH, Improve Medical Technology Co. Ltd, Terumo Medical Corporation, Bayer Cropscience Limited, HTL-STREFA S.A, Sarstedt AG & Co and others.About usAt Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact:Market Research FutureMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@Marketresearchfuture.Com
Roast and Ground Coffee Global Market Key Players  Eight O'Clock Coffee, Starbucks, Bewley's, Coffee Beanery, Costa Coffee, Analysis and Forecast to 2022

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SummaryThis report studies Roast and Ground Coffee in Global market, especially in North America, Europe, China, Japan, Southeast Asia and India, with production, revenue, consumption, import and export in these regions, from 2011 to 2015, and forecast to 2021.Request a Sample Report @This report focuses on top manufacturers in global market, with production, price, revenue and market share for each manufacturer, coveringEight O'Clock CoffeeJ.M. SmuckerJacob Douwe EgbertsKeurig Green MountainKraft FoodStarbucksAjinomoto General FoodsAMT coffeeBewley'sCaffe NeroCoffee BeaneryCoffee RepublicCosta CoffeeDunkin' DonutsGraffeo Coffee RoastingHACOIndustria Colombiana de CafeLuigi LavazzaMassimo Zanetti Beverage?USAMauro DemetrioMeiraMelitta USABy types, the market can be split intoType IType IIType IIIBy Application, the market can be split intoApplication 1Application 2Application 3By Regions, this report covers (we can add the regions/countries as you want)North AmericaChinaEuropeSoutheast AsiaJapanIndiaAt any Query @Table of ContentsGlobal Roast and Ground Coffee Market Professional Survey Report 20161 Industry Overview of Roast and Ground Coffee1.1 Definition and Specifications of Roast and Ground Coffee1.1.1 Definition of Roast and Ground Coffee1.1.2 Specifications of Roast and Ground Coffee1.2 Classification of Roast and Ground Coffee1.2.1 Type I1.2.2 Type II1.2.3 Type III1.3 Applications of Roast and Ground Coffee1.3.1 Application 11.3.2 Application 21.3.3 Application 31.4 Market Segment by Regions1.4.1 North America1.4.2 China1.4.3 Europe1.4.4 Southeast Asia1.4.5 Japan1.4.6 India8 Major Manufacturers Analysis of Roast and Ground Coffee8.1 Eight O'Clock Coffee8.1.1 Company Profile8.1.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.1.2.1 Type I8.1.2.2 Type II8.1.2.3 Type III8.1.3 Eight O'Clock Coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.1.4 Eight O'Clock Coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.2 J.M. Smucker8.2.1 Company Profile8.2.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.2.2.1 Type I8.2.2.2 Type II8.2.2.3 Type III8.2.3 J.M. Smucker 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.2.4 J.M. Smucker 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.3 Jacob Douwe Egberts8.3.1 Company Profile8.3.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.3.2.1 Type I8.3.2.2 Type II8.3.2.3 Type III8.3.3 Jacob Douwe Egberts 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.3.4 Jacob Douwe Egberts 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.4 Keurig Green Mountain8.4.1 Company Profile8.4.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.4.2.1 Type I8.4.2.2 Type II8.4.2.3 Type III8.4.3 Keurig Green Mountain 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.4.4 Keurig Green Mountain 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.5 Kraft Food8.5.1 Company Profile8.5.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.5.2.1 Type I8.5.2.2 Type II8.5.2.3 Type III8.5.3 Kraft Food 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.5.4 Kraft Food 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.6 Starbucks8.6.1 Company Profile8.6.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.6.2.1 Type I8.6.2.2 Type II8.6.2.3 Type III8.6.3 Starbucks 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.6.4 Starbucks 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.7 Ajinomoto General Foods8.7.1 Company Profile8.7.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.7.2.1 Type I8.7.2.2 Type II8.7.2.3 Type III8.7.3 Ajinomoto General Foods 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.7.4 Ajinomoto General Foods 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.8 AMT coffee8.8.1 Company Profile8.8.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.8.2.1 Type I8.8.2.2 Type II8.8.2.3 Type III8.8.3 AMT coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.8.4 AMT coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.9 Bewley's8.9.1 Company Profile8.9.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.9.2.1 Type I8.9.2.2 Type II8.9.2.3 Type III8.9.3 Bewley's 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.9.4 Bewley's 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.10 Caffe Nero8.10.1 Company Profile8.10.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.10.2.1 Type I8.10.2.2 Type II8.10.2.3 Type III8.10.3 Caffe Nero 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.10.4 Caffe Nero 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.11 Coffee Beanery8.11.1 Company Profile8.11.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.11.2.1 Type I8.11.2.2 Type II8.11.2.3 Type III8.11.3 Coffee Beanery 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.11.4 Coffee Beanery 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.12 Coffee Republic8.12.1 Company Profile8.12.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.12.2.1 Type I8.12.2.2 Type II8.12.2.3 Type III8.12.3 Coffee Republic 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.12.4 Coffee Republic 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.13 Costa Coffee8.13.1 Company Profile8.13.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.13.2.1 Type I8.13.2.2 Type II8.13.2.3 Type III8.13.3 Costa Coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.13.4 Costa Coffee 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.14 Dunkin' Donuts8.14.1 Company Profile8.14.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.14.2.1 Type I8.14.2.2 Type II8.14.2.3 Type III8.14.3 Dunkin' Donuts 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.14.4 Dunkin' Donuts 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.15 Graffeo Coffee Roasting8.15.1 Company Profile8.15.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.15.2.1 Type I8.15.2.2 Type II8.15.2.3 Type III8.15.3 Graffeo Coffee Roasting 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.15.4 Graffeo Coffee Roasting 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.16 HACO8.16.1 Company Profile8.16.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.16.2.1 Type I8.16.2.2 Type II8.16.2.3 Type III8.16.3 HACO 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.16.4 HACO 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.17 Industria Colombiana de Cafe8.17.1 Company Profile8.17.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.17.2.1 Type I8.17.2.2 Type II8.17.2.3 Type III8.17.3 Industria Colombiana de Cafe 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.17.4 Industria Colombiana de Cafe 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.18 Luigi Lavazza8.18.1 Company Profile8.18.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.18.2.1 Type I8.18.2.2 Type II8.18.2.3 Type III8.18.3 Luigi Lavazza 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.18.4 Luigi Lavazza 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.19 Massimo Zanetti Beverage?USA8.19.1 Company Profile8.19.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.19.2.1 Type I8.19.2.2 Type II8.19.2.3 Type III8.19.3 Massimo Zanetti Beverage?USA 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.19.4 Massimo Zanetti Beverage?USA 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.20 Mauro Demetrio8.20.1 Company Profile8.20.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.20.2.1 Type I8.20.2.2 Type II8.20.2.3 Type III8.20.3 Mauro Demetrio 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.20.4 Mauro Demetrio 2015 Roast and Ground Coffee Business Region Distribution Analysis8.21 Meira8.22 Melitta USABuy Now @Continued.Contact Us:Sales@Wiseguyreports.ComPh: +1-646-845-9349 (US)Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (UK)ABOUT US:Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe. Wise Guy Reports features an exhaustive list of market research reports from hundreds of publishers worldwide. We boast a database spanning virtually every market category and an even more comprehensive collection of market research reports under these categories and sub-categories.ADDRESS:WISE GUY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS PVT LTDOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, HadapsarPune - 411028Maharashtra, India
Offshore Support Vessels Global Market 2017: Key Players  Keppel Corporation, Qingdao Euchuan, IHC Offshore, Marine B.V, CSSC

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Offshore Support Vessels IndustryDescriptionWiseguyreports.Com Adds Offshore Support Vessels -Market Demand, Growth, Opportunities and Analysis Of Top Key Player Forecast To 2022 To Its Research DatabaseThis report studies Offshore Support Vessels in Global market, especially in North America, China, Europe, Southeast Asia, Japan and India, with production, revenue, consumption, import and export in these regions, from 2012 to 2016, and forecast to 2022.This report focuses on top manufacturers in global market, with production, price, revenue and market share for each manufacturer, coveringKeppel CorporationQingdao EuchuanIHC OffshoreMarine B.VCSSCSINOPACIFIC Shipbuilding Group...Request for Sample Report @On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoPlatform Supply VesselsMulti-purpose Supply vesselsAnchor Handling VesselsOthersBy Application, the market can be split intoOil & GasSubmarine CommunicationsPowerOthersBy Regions, this report covers (we can add the regions/countries as you want)North AmericaChinaEuropeSoutheast AsiaJapanIndiaLeave a Query @Table of ContentsGlobal Offshore Support Vessels Market Professional Survey Report 20171 Industry Overview of Offshore Support Vessels1.1 Definition and Specifications of Offshore Support Vessels1.1.1 Definition of Offshore Support Vessels1.1.2 Specifications of Offshore Support Vessels1.2 Classification of Offshore Support Vessels1.2.1 Platform Supply Vessels1.2.2 Multi-purpose Supply vessels1.2.3 Anchor Handling Vessels1.2.4 Others1.3 Applications of Offshore Support Vessels1.3.1 Oil & Gas1.3.2 Submarine Communications1.3.3 Power1.3.4 Others1.4 Market Segment by Regions1.4.1 North America1.4.2 China1.4.3 Europe1.4.4 Southeast Asia1.4.5 Japan1.4.6 India2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Offshore Support Vessels2.1 Raw Material and Suppliers2.2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Offshore Support Vessels2.3 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Offshore Support Vessels2.4 Industry Chain Structure of Offshore Support Vessels.....8 Major Manufacturers Analysis of Offshore Support Vessels8.1 Keppel Corporation8.1.1 Company Profile8.1.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.1.2.1 Product A8.1.2.2 Product B8.1.3 Keppel Corporation 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.1.4 Keppel Corporation 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution Analysis8.2 Qingdao Euchuan8.2.1 Company Profile8.2.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.2.2.1 Product A8.2.2.2 Product B8.2.3 Qingdao Euchuan 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.2.4 Qingdao Euchuan 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution Analysis8.3 IHC Offshore8.3.1 Company Profile8.3.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.3.2.1 Product A8.3.2.2 Product B8.3.3 IHC Offshore 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.3.4 IHC Offshore 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution Analysis8.4 Marine B.V8.4.1 Company Profile8.4.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.4.2.1 Product A8.4.2.2 Product B8.4.3 Marine B.V 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.4.4 Marine B.V 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution Analysis8.5 CSSC8.5.1 Company Profile8.5.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.5.2.1 Product A8.5.2.2 Product B8.5.3 CSSC 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.5.4 CSSC 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution Analysis8.6 SINOPACIFIC Shipbuilding Group8.6.1 Company Profile8.6.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.6.2.1 Product A8.6.2.2 Product B8.6.3 SINOPACIFIC Shipbuilding Group 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.6.4 SINOPACIFIC Shipbuilding Group 2016 Offshore Support Vessels Business Region Distribution AnalysisBuy Now @Continued...Contact Us: Sales@Wiseguyreports.Com Ph: +1-646-845-9349 (Us) Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (Uk)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Addres:Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt LtdPune  411028Maharashtra, GlobalPh: +91 841 198 5042
Milking Parlour Global Market 2017: Key Players  Afimilk, ATL-Agricultural Technology, BECO Dairy Automation, BouMatic, Bratslav

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Milking Parlour IndustryDescriptionWiseguyreports.Com Adds Milking Parlour -Market Demand, Growth, Opportunities and Analysis Of Top Key Player Forecast To 2022 To Its Research DatabaseThis report studies Milking Parlour in Global market, especially in North America, China, Europe, Southeast Asia, Japan and India, with production, revenue, consumption, import and export in these regions, from 2012 to 2016, and forecast to 2022.This report focuses on top manufacturers in global market, with production, price, revenue and market share for each manufacturer, coveringAfimilkATL-Agricultural TechnologyBECO Dairy AutomationBouMaticBratslavDairymasterDairyPower Equipment O'Donovan Dairy ServicesDaritechFullwoodILGUN TarimIMPULSAJ. DelgadoJSC MototechaKamphuis KonstruktieKurtsan TarimLAKTO Dairy TechnologiesMILKPLANPOLANES Serwis-CentrumSAC ChristensenSYLCO HELLASSystem HappelTulsanWaikato Milking SystemsZibo Lujin MachineryRequest for Sample Report @On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoMobileFixedBy Application, the market can be split intoCowsGoatsOtherBy Regions, this report covers (we can add the regions/countries as you want)North AmericaChinaEuropeSoutheast AsiaJapanIndiaLeave a Query @Table of ContentsGlobal Milking Parlour Market Professional Survey Report 20171 Industry Overview of Milking Parlour1.1 Definition and Specifications of Milking Parlour1.1.1 Definition of Milking Parlour1.1.2 Specifications of Milking Parlour1.2 Classification of Milking Parlour1.2.1 Mobile1.2.2 Fixed1.3 Applications of Milking Parlour1.3.1 Cows1.3.2 Goats1.3.3 Other1.4 Market Segment by Regions1.4.1 North America1.4.2 China1.4.3 Europe1.4.4 Southeast Asia1.4.5 Japan1.4.6 India2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Milking Parlour2.1 Raw Material and Suppliers2.2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Milking Parlour2.3 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Milking Parlour2.4 Industry Chain Structure of Milking Parlour....8 Major Manufacturers Analysis of Milking Parlour8.1 Afimilk8.1.1 Company Profile8.1.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.1.2.1 Product A8.1.2.2 Product B8.1.3 Afimilk 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.1.4 Afimilk 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.2 ATL-Agricultural Technology8.2.1 Company Profile8.2.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.2.2.1 Product A8.2.2.2 Product B8.2.3 ATL-Agricultural Technology 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.2.4 ATL-Agricultural Technology 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.3 BECO Dairy Automation8.3.1 Company Profile8.3.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.3.2.1 Product A8.3.2.2 Product B8.3.3 BECO Dairy Automation 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.3.4 BECO Dairy Automation 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.4 BouMatic8.4.1 Company Profile8.4.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.4.2.1 Product A8.4.2.2 Product B8.4.3 BouMatic 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.4.4 BouMatic 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.5 Bratslav8.5.1 Company Profile8.5.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.5.2.1 Product A8.5.2.2 Product B8.5.3 Bratslav 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.5.4 Bratslav 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.6 Dairymaster8.6.1 Company Profile8.6.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.6.2.1 Product A8.6.2.2 Product B8.6.3 Dairymaster 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.6.4 Dairymaster 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.7 DairyPower Equipment O'Donovan Dairy Services8.7.1 Company Profile8.7.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.7.2.1 Product A8.7.2.2 Product B8.7.3 DairyPower Equipment O'Donovan Dairy Services 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.7.4 DairyPower Equipment O'Donovan Dairy Services 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.8 Daritech8.8.1 Company Profile8.8.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.8.2.1 Product A8.8.2.2 Product B8.8.3 Daritech 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.8.4 Daritech 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.9 Fullwood8.9.1 Company Profile8.9.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.9.2.1 Product A8.9.2.2 Product B8.9.3 Fullwood 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.9.4 Fullwood 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.10 ILGUN Tarim8.10.1 Company Profile8.10.2 Product Picture and Specifications8.10.2.1 Product A8.10.2.2 Product B8.10.3 ILGUN Tarim 2016 Milking Parlour Sales, Ex-factory Price, Revenue, Gross Margin Analysis8.10.4 ILGUN Tarim 2016 Milking Parlour Business Region Distribution Analysis8.11 IMPULSA8.12 J. Delgado8.13 JSC Mototecha8.14 Kamphuis Konstruktie8.15 Kurtsan Tarim8.16 LAKTO Dairy Technologies8.17 MILKPLAN8.18 POLANES Serwis-Centrum8.19 SAC Christensen8.20 SYLCO HELLAS8.21 System Happel8.22 Tulsan8.23 Waikato Milking Systems8.24 Zibo Lujin MachineryBuy Now @Continued...Contact Us: Sales@Wiseguyreports.Com Ph: +1-646-845-9349 (Us) Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (Uk)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Addres:Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt LtdPune  411028Maharashtra, GlobalPh: +91 841 198 5042
Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Global Market 2017: Key Players  23andMe, Myriad Genetics, LabCorp, Quest Diagnostics, African Ancestry

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Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing IndustryDescriptionWiseguyreports.Com Adds Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing -Market Demand, Growth, Opportunities and Analysis Of Top Key Player Forecast To 2022 To Its Research DatabaseThis report studies the global Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing market, analyzes and researches the Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing development status and forecast in United States, EU, Japan, China, India and Southeast Asia. This report focuses on the top players in global market, like23andMeMyriad GeneticsLabCorpQuest DiagnosticsAfrican AncestryCounsylDNA Services of AmericaAmbry GeneticsAncestrybyDNAGene By GeneMyHeritageInvitaeSonora Quest LaboratoriesMapmygenomePathway GenomicsPositive BioscienceShuwen Health SciencesRequest for Sample Report @Market segment by Regions/Countries, this report coversUnited StatesEUJapanChinaIndiaSoutheast AsiaMarket segment by Type, the product can be split intoPre-Implantation DiagnosisNewborn ScreeningRelationship TestingOtherMarket segment by Application, Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing can be split intoDirect SalesRetail SalesLaboratory SalesLeave a Query @Table of ContentsGlobal Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Market Size, Status and Forecast 20221 Industry Overview of Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing1.1 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Market Overview1.1.1 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Product Scope1.1.2 Market Status and Outlook1.2 Global Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Market Size and Analysis by Regions1.2.1 United States1.2.2 EU1.2.3 Japan1.2.4 China1.2.5 India1.2.6 Southeast Asia1.3 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Market by Type1.3.1 Pre-Implantation Diagnosis1.3.2 Newborn Screening1.3.3 Relationship Testing1.3.4 Other1.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Market by End Users/Application1.4.1 Direct Sales1.4.2 Retail Sales1.4.3 Laboratory Sales....3 Company (Top Players) Profiles3.1 23andMe3.1.1 Company Profile3.1.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.1.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.1.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.1.5 Recent Developments3.2 Myriad Genetics3.2.1 Company Profile3.2.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.2.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.2.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.2.5 Recent Developments3.3 LabCorp3.3.1 Company Profile3.3.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.3.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.3.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.3.5 Recent Developments3.4 Quest Diagnostics3.4.1 Company Profile3.4.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.4.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.4.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.4.5 Recent Developments3.5 African Ancestry3.5.1 Company Profile3.5.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.5.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.5.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.5.5 Recent Developments3.6 Counsyl3.6.1 Company Profile3.6.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.6.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.6.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.6.5 Recent Developments3.7 DNA Services of America3.7.1 Company Profile3.7.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.7.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.7.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.7.5 Recent Developments3.8 Ambry Genetics3.8.1 Company Profile3.8.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.8.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.8.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.8.5 Recent Developments3.9 AncestrybyDNA3.9.1 Company Profile3.9.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.9.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.9.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.9.5 Recent Developments3.10 Gene By Gene3.10.1 Company Profile3.10.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.10.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.10.4 Direct-to-consumer Genetic Testing Revenue (Value) (2012-2017)3.10.5 Recent Developments3.11 MyHeritage3.12 Invitae3.13 Sonora Quest Laboratories3.14 Mapmygenome3.15 Pathway Genomics3.16 Positive Bioscience3.17 Shuwen Health SciencesBuy Now @Continued...Contact Us: Sales@Wiseguyreports.Com Ph: +1-646-845-9349 (Us) Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (Uk)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Addres:Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt LtdPune  411028Maharashtra, GlobalPh: +91 841 198 5042
Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Market Research Report 2017 With Key Manufacturers : Dow Corning, Gelest

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report "Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Market Research Report 2017" to its huge collection of research reports.The global Dimethyldichlorosilane market is influenced by a variety of regional and global factors and trends, a critical and elaborate assessment of which is covered in the report. The research presents a granular analysis of industry chain developments, notable trends and emerging prospects, and recent research and development activities shaping the growth trajectory. It further offers insights into the revenue share and size of various segments the global Dimethyldichlorosilane market and the regulatory landscape prevailing in various regions affecting their growth. In addition, the analysis tracks recent investment trends and governmental policy changes affecting their growth. Furthermore, the study the global Dimethyldichlorosilane market evaluates the impact of key drivers and restraints on shaping the dynamics.Recent industry developments likely to offer more room to technological innovations are offered in the analysis. Furthermore, the report offers insights into emerging strategic paradigms and disruptive technologies expected to significantly alter the course of the market in yet unexplored regions.Get Free Report Sample and Customization:This report studies Dimethyldichlorosilane in Global market, especially in North America, Europe, China, Japan, Southeast Asia and India, focuses on top manufacturers in global market, with capacity, production, price, revenue and market share for each manufacturer, coveringDow CorningGelestEvonik IndustriesWacker Chemie AGThe study takes a closer look at prominent business models adopted by players and their attractiveness in the overall regime is highlighted in the study. Recent industry collaborations and government initiatives expected to offer impetus to the global Dimethyldichlorosilane market are adequately covered in the analysis. To make reliable estimations and forecast about the market sizing of various segments, the report gleans through vast volumes of industry data gathered through primary as well as secondary sources. Business executives, budding entrepreneurs, industry leaders, policy makers seeking clear analysis and concise insights on the global Dimethyldichlorosilane market can peruse through the report. Emerging players looking to get cues of emerging opportunities in various segments and in untapped regions will find the research helpful. Using SWOT analysis and Porters five forces analysis, the study estimates the level of competition prevailing in the market and identifies imminent investment pockets in major regions.Table of Contents1 Dimethyldichlorosilane Market Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Dimethyldichlorosilane1.2 Dimethyldichlorosilane Segment by Type1.3 Dimethyldichlorosilane Segment by Application1.4 Dimethyldichlorosilane Market by Region1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Dimethyldichlorosilane (2012-2022)To Browse a Complete Report with TOC Visit @2 Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Market Competition by Manufacturers2.1 Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Capacity, Production and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.2 Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.3 Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Average Price by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.4 Manufacturers Dimethyldichlorosilane Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type2.5 Dimethyldichlorosilane Market Competitive Situation and Trends7 Global Dimethyldichlorosilane Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis7.1 Dow Corning7.1.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Its Competitors7.1.2 Dimethyldichlorosilane Product Type, Application and Specification7.1.3 Dow Corning Dimethyldichlorosilane Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2015 and 2016)7.1.4 Main Business/Business Overview7.2 Gelest7.2.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base and Its Competitors7.2.2 Dimethyldichlorosilane Product Type, Application and Specification7.2.3 Gelest Dimethyldichlorosilane Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2015 and 2016)7.2.4 Main Business/Business OverviewList of Tables and FiguresFigure Picture of DimethyldichlorosilaneFigure Global Production Market Share of Dimethyldichlorosilane by Type in 2015Table Dimethyldichlorosilane Consumption Market Share by Application in 2015Figure North America Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Europe Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure China Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Japan Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)Figure Southeast Asia Dimethyldichlorosilane Revenue (Million USD) and Growth Rate (2012-2022)About Us:QYResearchReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYResearchReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.Contact Us:1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
Sexual Enhancement Supplements Industry Sales,Supply and Consumption 2017 Global Analysis and Forecast to 2022

Sexual Enhancement Supplements 2017

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WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On - Sexual Enhancement Supplements Industry Sales,Supply and Consumption 2017 Global Analysis and Forecast to 2022."This report studies the Sexual Enhancement Supplements market,Sexual Enhancement Supplements work by increasing the amount of blood flow the genital region receives and the volume of blood that it can retain."Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Sexual Enhancement Supplements in Global market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application.Get a Sample Report @For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comMarket Segment by Manufacturers, this report coversLeading Edge HealthInnovus PharmaceuticalsDirect DigitalSizeGenixVimaxXanogenVydoxTEK NaturalsMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis coversNorth America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, coversMale Sexual Enhancement SupplementsFemale Sexual Enhancement SupplementsMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided intoPhysical StoresOnline StoresAsk Query @There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Sexual Enhancement Supplements market.Chapter 1, to describe Sexual Enhancement Supplements Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Sexual Enhancement Supplements, with sales, revenue, and price of Sexual Enhancement Supplements, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Sexual Enhancement Supplements, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Continue..Table Of Contents  Major Key Points1 Market Overview1.1 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Introduction1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Male Sexual Enhancement Supplements1.2.2 Female Sexual Enhancement Supplements1.3 Market Analysis by Applications1.3.1 Physical Stores1.3.2 Online Stores1.4 Market Analysis by Regions1.4.1 North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)1.4.1.1 USA Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.2 Canada Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.3 Mexico Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2 Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)1.4.2.1 Germany Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.2 France Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.3 UK Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.4 Russia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.5 Italy Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)1.4.3.1 China Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.2 Japan Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.3 Korea Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.4 India Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.5 Southeast Asia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4 South America, Middle East and Africa1.4.4.1 Brazil Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.2 Egypt Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.3 Saudi Arabia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.4 South Africa Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.5 Nigeria Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Market Opportunities1.5.2 Market Risk1.5.3 Market Driving Force2 Manufacturers Profiles2.1 Leading Edge Health2.1.1 Business Overview2.1.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.1.2.1 Type 12.1.2.2 Type 22.1.3 Leading Edge Health Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.2 Innovus Pharmaceuticals2.2.1 Business Overview2.2.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.2.2.1 Type 12.2.2.2 Type 22.2.3 Innovus Pharmaceuticals Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.3 Direct Digital2.3.1 Business Overview2.3.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.3.2.1 Type 12.3.2.2 Type 22.3.3 Direct Digital Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.4 SizeGenix2.4.1 Business Overview2.4.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.4.2.1 Type 12.4.2.2 Type 22.4.3 SizeGenix Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.5 Vimax2.5.1 Business Overview2.5.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.5.2.1 Type 12.5.2.2 Type 22.5.3 Vimax Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.6 Xanogen2.6.1 Business Overview2.6.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.6.2.1 Type 12.6.2.2 Type 22.6.3 Xanogen Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.7 Vydox2.7.1 Business Overview2.7.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.7.2.1 Type 12.7.2.2 Type 22.7.3 Vydox Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.8 TEK Naturals2.8.1 Business Overview2.8.2 Sexual Enhancement Supplements Type and Applications2.8.2.1 Type 12.8.2.2 Type 22.8.3 TEK Naturals Sexual Enhancement Supplements Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)Continue.Buy 1-User PDF @For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comABOUT US:Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. 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This year has been a successful one for Chinas leading smartphone e-brand, Honor. Not only did they become the number one e-brand in Finland and the number three e-brand in Russia, but this week they also launched two new smartphones, the Honor 7X and the Honor View 10. The Honor View 10 is sure to be their flagship phone as it delivers state-of-the-art artificial intelligence and superior performance. At a price of 449 its competitively priced for such a sophisticated smartphone.

The Honor View 10 is sure to be the phone that introduces many consumers to the new AI era. It features impressive Kirin 970 chipsets which include a Neural-Network Processing Unit, which is central to the Honor View 10s performance. There is an octa-core ARM Cortex CPU and a new to the market Mali-G72 12-core GPU. It also features 6GB + 128GB of memory and EMUI 8.0 to provide additional power for gaming and multi-tasking. The phone has a dedicated Gaming Suite to increase performance of mobile gaming.

The AI applications will recognise various scenes and backgrounds when taking pictures and can translate a range of languages in real-time, even without a working Internet connection. Whats even more impressive is that it will interpret the users behaviours and will optimise the Honor View 10s performance.

The battery life in this smartphone is going to be good for gamers and those who watch movies on their device. It features a 3,750 mAh battery and the Honor SuperCharge will charge the battery to 50 percent in around 30 minutes and can operate a low temperatures and voltage.

Budding photographers are sure to love the Honor View 10s high-definition 16MP + 20MP dual-lens camera. It has a F/1.8 wide aperture and 2-in-1 PDAF automatic focusing.
Terrific optics here from The America First Project, a Trump-supporting group started by a former Breitbart staffer. After wracking their brains for the best way to promote the Senate candidate just days ahead of the Alabama election, they opted to send 12-year-old Millie Marcha girl who became semi-famous last year because she publicly supported Trump during the electionto interview the judge.

Moore, of course, has been accused of sexually assaulting girls as young as 14, and was reportedly banned from at least one shopping mall because he couldnt be trusted around young girls.

Moore talked about how much he wants to get rid of illegal immigrants and end income tax, or whatever, but the larger point here is that someone sent a 12-year-old girl to talk to this guy. Its a weird stunt, and if it was designed to rehabilitate Moores image around young women, it looks to me like a giant failureall it does is draw attention to the scandal in a really uncomfortable way.

Watch here:
I sat down to write this in the wake of CNNs gigantic screw-upone thats far larger than what ABC got wrong about the Michael Flynn indictmentand as if the universe were trying to confirm my hypothesis, just as I began to type, The New York Times reported that the FBI met with Hope Hicks to warn her about repeated attempts by Russian operatives to make contact with her during the presidential transition. The Times immediately makes clear that there is no evidence that Ms. Hicks did anything improper and that the contents of the emails to Ms. Hicks are unclear, as are the identities of the Russians who sent them. So basically, the FBI met with a high-level administration official about a foreign influence operation and we dont really know anything else about that meeting. Sounds like a normal day at the White House to me, but not in the BREAKING BOMBSHELL world.

I get that these Russians we dont know about could wind up being more important down the road, and thats why this story may be more significant than at first glancebut other than that, reporting that Hope Hicks met with Mueller is really the only meaty part of the report. Most of this new story is simply just summarizing the Trump-Russia reporting up to this point. This is how a big chunk of the news reads on Trump-Russiatake it from someone who considers it their job to read every single one of these reports. They all get repetitive. Not just the Times, everyone (quick note: the Times didnt promote the above story as some big bombshell, I brought it up because of its timing and how its reflective of how other outlets downstream of the Times interpret this barrage of reports as more significant than they areas you will see at the end of this column).

So back to CNN, the real target of my ire here. They reported an absolute bombshell which redefined the narrative in the Trump-Wikileaks portion of this saga. But before we get to the bombshell, lets begin with CNNs correction:

Correction: This story has been corrected to say the date of the email was September 14, 2016, not September 4, 2016. The story also changed the headline and removed a tweet from Donald Trump Jr., who posted a message about WikiLeaks on September 4, 2016.

A date seems like a relatively insignificant miss, but the date was the most damning part of the story. The Washington Post forced this correction by obtaining the e-mail in question, which proved the date to be the 14th. The story that is wholly dependent on this date? Per CNN:

Candidate Donald Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr. and others in the Trump Organization received an email in September 2016 offering a decryption key and website address for hacked WikiLeaks documents, according to an email provided to congressional investigators.

The September 14 email was sent during the final stretch of the 2016 presidential race.

CNN originally reported the email was released September 4  10 days earlier  based on accounts from two sources who had seen the email. The new details appear to show that the sender was relying on publicly available information. The new information indicates that the communication is less significant than CNN initially reported.

Less significant is one hell of an understatement. If the Trump camp received these decryption keys prior to it being released publicly (which is what CNN initially reported), then if they used them (which CNN did not report), that would literally be a smoking gun. By changing the date to after it was publicly released, the story basically turned into someone sent them an e-mail. Frankly, Im not really sure why this report is still even on CNNs website, given that it includes this sentence: congressional investigators were trying to ascertain whether the individual who sent the September email is legitimate.

Well, I know why its still up, but thats because Im playing the same game.

We cover the Trump-Russia story a lot here at Paste. Roger Sollenberger and I have become fascinated by what we believe to be a clear pattern of intent to collude with Russia by the Trump camp (collusion does not have a certain legal definition by the way, thats another bad habit us media types have formed). We could not write our summaries/theories without compiling the information that other people at outlets like the NYT and CNN are reporting. We maintain a healthy skepticism of how deep the rot goes in this saga, but given that Donald Trump Jr. published his I love crime with the Crown Prosecutor of Russia! e-mails, were convinced that something nefarious happened. These are craven, stupid, ambitious people, and the United States has the most powerful spying apparatus in the history of mankind. If something craven, stupid, ambitious and criminal took place between a bunch of doofuses and a country that has been messing with our democracy for the better part of a century, we likely caught it.

Which is why Robert Mueller was brought in. We caught a lot of stuff off these idiots from 2016 to now, and we need to figure out if any of it leads to something larger than just extreme idiocy. The Department of Justice would not have felt compelled to appoint an independent counsel that so very clearly runs contrary to what their boss wants unless there was something worth drilling down into. The problem were running in to is threefold:

1. There is a lot of information flying around about an investigation that we dont know much about.

2. Which means that: odds are most of these stories are not important to the overall narrative.

3. This Trump-Russia stuff feels like how the media covers the drumbeats of war.

Its difficult for outlets like us to analyze the Trump-Russia news as the screw-ups pile up, as we can only ascertain after the fact whether some of these stories are bunk, which has began to reduce our certainty as we summarize these new bombshells. For example, see my hedged summary from last week on the now-corrected story about Muller subpoenaing the finances of people or entities around Trump. I guarantee you that if I had written that column earlier this year, my tone would be far more certain. Ive been burned enough where Im forced to be more cautious becausesave for a handful of folksno one in this country really knows whats going on with this investigation.

I get the mindset of the reporters tasked to dig in to what really happened here. What has convinced me about the validity of this story from the start has nothing to do with what has been reported by the media or our government. What assures me of the Trump camps guilt of some kind of crime has been the Trump camps reaction to that reporting. Jeff Sessions was a sitting Senator and a ranking member on a presidential campaign. He can meet with whomever he damn well pleases and cop to it, so why would he keep lying about stuff that he doesnt need to lie about? Same goes for Michael Flynn. And Jared Kushner. And Donald Trump Jr. And Donald Trump. Theyve all been caught lying about contacts that they do not need to lie about with Russian spheres of influence, so the question naturally becomes: why?

And thats an intriguing story to chase. Hell, I did that with my 22,000 word deep dive back in March. But thats the story that Robert Mueller is digging in to. The story that journalists should be digging in to, per the rules of journalism based on what we know as of right now, is the very clear fact that the President of the United States is at serious risk of being charged with obstruction of justice. He basically confessed to it on NBC News after firing James Comeyproving that he had the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General draw up a phony legal recommendation to serve as cover for firing the former FBI Director. Senators have gone on the record to tell the Times that Trump asked them to squash their Russia investigation. The former FBI Director wrote in a note that Trump asked if he could see to letting [his National Security Adviser] go. This is some serious stuff. I get the impulse to dig into the why of the obstruction of justice equation, but there is a lot of meat on the bones of who, what, where and how.

The major why scoops will largely be unearthed by Robert Mueller or Congress, and theyll happen when they happen. The problem seems to be that the media is forcing this breaking news down our throats, when all the new information within it can be conveyed in a tweet. As someone who understands the need to generate clicks, I can see where the financial people at places like the NYT and CNN are coming from, especially since they know that (at least) the entire nightly MSNBC block will devote a significant portion of their coverage to anything with the words Trump and Russia in itno matter how mundane the detailslike the Hope Hicks story at the top of this column that got a spot in ABC World News Tonights Friday intro as breaking news involving President Trump and one of his closest advisors, Hope Hicks. What the FBI warned her about the Russians (that story only involves President Trump insofar as it involves Hope Hickswell, that or it involves him because youre presuming his guilt in the larger Russian narrative).

This is a problem that I have alluded to before, but the intersection of capitalism and journalism is as compatible as oil and water. At a certain point, chasing clicks for capitalism hurts your journalistic credibility, which takes far longer to repair than a balance sheet.

Jacob Weindling is a staff writer for Paste politics. Follow him on Twitter at @Jakeweindling.
Hitfilm Express takes aim at indie filmmakers with great tutorials and powerful features. Its unconventional interface could turn off true amateurs who just want to make a home movie, and it has an unappealing download procedure, but its a great video editing program to use if you want to start making fun videos that mirror the sorts of effects and techniques you see in professional films and web series.

Hitfilm Express takes aim at indie filmmakers with great tutorials and powerful features. Its unconventional interface could turn off true amateurs who just want to make a home movie, and it has an unappealing download procedure, but its still a great choice if you want to start making fun videos that mirror the sorts of effects and techniques you see in professional films and web series.

For more choices, check out our full listing of free video editing software reviews and buying advice, or move up to paid video editing packages, which tend to be easier to use. .

The user interface is stylish and pleasant to use, but it does diverge from the standard consumer video editing software workflow in a couple of areas. If youre not already accustomed to other software, this wont bother you a bit, but it could be an adjustment for some.

There are some features, like a zoomable preview window, a separate trimmer, and needlessly complicated and finicky exporting steps that seem more likely to trip up amateurs in entry-level consumer software.

Rather, with a fun library of video tutorials oriented around various Hollywood movie tropes and genres, its clear Hitfilm Express is intended for upstart filmmakers. But it will do just fine for for YouTube gaming videos and other projects that are more advanced than just capturing and remembering your baby shower.

YouTube exporting is supported, but only up to 30 fps, which will bother gaming YouTubers. Thats surprising, given that some of the tutorials are oriented toward gaming content.

Here are two big caveats: To download the application, you must visit the Hitfilm website, scroll and click through some promotional materials. Then it looks as if you have to agree to connect your social media account and share a link to Hitfilm with your friends or followers. Hitfilm says theres a way to skip this part, but in our experience the opt-out wasnt easy to find. Finally, you provide your email address and have a download code mailed to you. Privacy hawks or people who carefully protect their social image will likely be annoyed by these features.

The program also monetizes by selling you add-on packs that include looks, effects, and more; for example, the Sci-fi adventure add-on pack includes Star Wars-like lightsaber effects for $25.

Hitfilm Express is laser focused on a specific audience; if youre part of that audience, its nice to have something tailor made for you. But if web series, gaming videos, and amateur short films arent your objective, other free products will meet your needs better.
Bystanders rescue man from truck driven into Charlevoix's Round Lake

Several bystanders helped save the life of the driver who ended up in Round Lake in a Nov. 11 incident.
Imagine you were tasked with designing the ideal trail bike, a bike that was able to handle everything from long XC laps to the occasional enduro race. What would it look like? What size wheels would it have? How much travel?



Canyon's engineers found themselves facing those very same questions when it came time to revamp the Spectral, and the result is a bike with 27.5 wheels, 140mm of rear travel paired with a 150mm fork up front, and a very clean, modern look that was inspired by the Sender, Canyon's DH rig.

Canyon Spectral Details



 Intended use: trail / all-mountain

 Wheel size: 27.5"

 Rear wheel travel: 140mm

 66 head angle

 Aluminum and carbon frame options

 Boost hub spacing

 Size: XS (alloy only) - XL

 Price: $2499 - $6999 USD

 www.canyon.com  Intended use: trail / all-mountain Wheel size: 27.5" Rear wheel travel: 140mm 66 head angle Aluminum and carbon frame options Boost hub spacing Size: XS (alloy only) - XL Price: $2499 - $6999 USD

The Spectral CF 9.0 SL is priced at $5,999 USD.

A plastic cover snugs the housing up against the underside of the frame. Canyon took measures to prevent water from getting into the frame bearings, adding a cover and another seal to keep moisture out.

Frame Details

Semi-internal cable routing:

Integrated seat post clamp:

The seatmast has a similar shape to what was first seen on the Sender. The thru-axle tucks out of the way when it's not in use, which keeps it from getting hung up on rocks and other bike-grabbing obstacles.

Impact Protection Unit: In order to keep brake levers from smashing into the top tube during a crash the carbon-framed Spectral's are equipped with Canyon's Impact Protection Unit (IPU), which uses a custom headset spacer and a bump stop that's attached to the top tube. That bump stop is attached by hollow screws that are designed to break away, sacrificing themselves in order to save the top tube.



Lunch box: Canyon even came up with a frame case that can be attached inside the front triangle, with enough room for tools, a CO2, and some snacks.



Double bottle holder: Small riders get thirsty too, but it's often difficult to fit a full size bottle on smaller frame sizes. The Eject System is Canyon's solution to that problem, a bottle holder that holds two 400ml bottles side-by-side.







The carbon frames have a bump stop to keep the brake levers from contacting the top tube.

The aluminum framed Spectral AL 6.0 will retail for $2,499 USD... ...And the carbon / aluminum Spectral CF 9.0 Pro will go for $4,499 USD.

Frame Options / Build Kits

Geometry



Creating a playful, fun bike was the overarching goal behind the Spectral's redesign, and the geometry numbers reflect those intentions. This isn't a super-slack, stretched out limousine, but with a reach of 460mm on a size large, 430mm chainstays and a 66-degree head angle, the numbers are right in line with what you'd expect to see on a modern trail bike.



The geometry is slightly different on the small and extra-small sizes - Canyon equips those with a shorter shock, which results in a lower bottom bracket and lower standover height. The travel amount remains the same, but changing the shock size is said to alter the suspension curve so that it's even more supple in the first part of the travel, a benefit for lighter riders.



However, Mother Nature had other plans, and by the time it was time to ride the weather had taken a turn for the worse  heavy fog had rolled in, accompanied by a steady, soaking rain. What followed were some of the wettest rides I've ever been on, and I'm no stranger to soggy pedaling. At times it was a struggle to see more than a few feet ahead, and the wet rocks and slimy turns made staying upright and in control a challenge. In other words, tricky conditions for riding unknown trails on an unfamiliar bike.

I'm having a good time in this photo, I swear.

Riders who were familiar with the previous Spectral will immediately notice the new shock position  it's now oriented horizontally, running directly from the seatstays to the downtube. According to Canyon, this change was inspired by the lessons they'd learned during the development of the Sender. The goal of the revision was to improve the feel of the suspension at the beginning of its stroke, while still maintaining the ideal level of anti-squat to create an efficient pedaling bike. The Spectral has a progressive suspension curve that's designed to work well with air shocks, but the amount of ramp up at the end of the stroke isn't overly drastic, which allows rides to add or subtract volume spacers as they see fit.The rearmost pivots are still located on the chainstay, but they're positioned above, rather than below the rear axle, a layout that's reminiscent of Rocky Mountain's Smoothlink design. Altering the shock position also allowed for a lower top-tube height, and makes it possible to run 150mm dropper posts.At first glance it looks like the Spectral's housing is routed inside the frame, but it's actually sandwiched between the downtube and plastic cable channel. Found on both the carbon and aluminum frames, the plastic cover can easily be removed for maintenance, and also adds an element of frame protection.Most seatpost clamps only concentrate their clamping force onto a centimeter or so of post, which is why in some cases it's possible to tighten them down enough to affect the performance of a dropper post. Canyon's integrated clamp uses a plastic sleeve that's designed to help spread out that force.There are three different frame options for the Spectral; riders will be able to choose from an all-aluminum frame, a frame with a carbon front triangle and aluminum swingarm, or a full carbon option. It's worth mentioning that Canyon now designates the Spectral as a Category 4 on their rating system, the same designation given to the longer travel Strive. In other words, the frame should be stronger than before, and able to handle even more aggressive riding. Prices range from 2199 EUR all the way up to the 6999 EUR for the full-carbon, XX1 and ENVE wheel equipped model.All of the bikes are spec'd with wide tires, typically a 2.6" Minion DHF up front and a 2.6" Rekon in the back.Winter is in full swing where I live in the Pacific Northwest, so when the opportunity arose to head over to Madeira, Portugal, to check out the new Spectral I jumped at the chance. A cursory Google search made it looked like a rugged island with plenty of sunshine  not a bad place to spend a few days. After nearly 24-hours of travel I stepped off the plane into spring-like temperatures and clear skies  things were off to a promising start.Luckily I'm not made of sugar, and neither is the Spectral, and I was able to get in two full days of riding aboard the bike. Much of the riding on Madeira is done with the help of a shuttle vehicle, but there were a few extended sections of climbing that allowed me to get an initial feel for the bike's ascending capabilities. It's a snappy climber, even with the shock in the fully open position, and unless you try to pedal squares instead of circles there's minimal pedaling-induced suspension movement. Most of the climbs were fairly straightforward, free of any really tight, technical sections  sussing out the Spectral's performance in those situations will have to wait for a long term review.On the descents, I'd say that Canyon have achieved their goal of creating a fun, playful bike  the Spectral lives for cornering, and felt right at home on Madeira's twistier trails. Rather than being a ultra-plush, plow-through-everything type of bike, the Spectral is on the sportier side, ideal for popping from feature to feature, even when shod with 2.6 rubber. It's a quick and precise handling machine, but there's still plenty of stability to take on rougher, higher speed trails, with just enough travel to take the edge off of those sneaky rocks that seem to jump out from nowhere.As for the not-quite-plus-sized tires, the 2.6 Minion DHF / 2.6 Rekon combo worked well, despite the challenging conditions, although if it were my bike I'd probably swap out the Rekon for something slightly narrower with a more aggressive tread pattern. The same goes for the Fox 34  I can envision some riders swapping that out for something like a 36 in order to gain a little extra front end stiffness, and to push the bike even further into the all-mountain realm.Overall, Spectral hits the mark, slotting comfortably into the do-it-all category, a bike that should be able to handle just about everything short of super-technical DH trails. I did find myself wondering what a 29 wheeled version of the Spectral would be like, but we'll just have to wait and see if Canyon decide to go down that route in the future.
Funds Laundered by Former Full Tilt Poker CEO Ray Bitar Returned to U.S.

December 11, 2017 Jason Glatzer Editor

Six years after Black Friday shook the online poker world, Full Tilt Poker continues to make news headlines here in 2017. Late last week, BBC reported that former Full Tilt CEO Raymond Bitar laundered funds through the Channel Island of Guernsey. This resulted in a total of 9.5 million ($12.6 million) remitted to the United States government.

The money was discovered after Guernsey and the United States Department of Treasury inked an agreement in 2015 whereby both countries would share half of any seized laundered money and other criminal activities in offshore bank accounts in the country. In total, 10.6 million ($14.3 million), which included the money relating to Full Tilt and another case, was remitted to the United States. Based on the agreement between the two countries, it can be assumed that the Guernsey's government padded its coffers by an equal amount.

Bitar's assets were seized following an investigation which included Guernsey authorities restraining bank accounts and sharing financial records from 2012 to 2015.

Government representatives from both countries expressed their gratitude to the cooperation that led to the sharing of funds in this case including Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General at United States Department of Justice John Cronan and Guernsey Attorney General Megan Pullum, QC.

"Guernsey has an ongoing and exemplary commitment to international co-operation and mutual legal assistance and we are therefore extremely pleased to announce this asset share," Pullum said according to the BBC.

Bitar at Full Tilt Poker and Beyond

Bitar was responsible for the operations at Full Tilt Poker. While he was CEO, the online poker room into grew into a huge billion-dollar gambling company and it signed some of the many of the biggest names in poker to represent the Full Tilt brand.

After Full Tilt Poker was shut down on Black Friday, it quickly became apparent that the company did not have player funds in segregated accounts, thus leading to players without access to their money until the Rational Group, the former parent company of PokerStars, stepped in and agreed to a deal with the U.S. Department of Justice in August 2012 to acquire the company and return funds to players.

On April 15, 2013, the second anniversary of Black Friday, Bitar pled guilty to unlawful internet gambling and conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud.

U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York spared Bitar jail time citing his heart condition. Instead, Bitar was sentenced to time served and ordered to forfeit his assets, which were believed at the time to include his various homes and $40 million in cash.

Little was heard about Bitar for two years until he got married to Jacquelyn Lucas in a multi-million dollar ceremony in October 2015. Not only were interested parties wondering how Bitar had the funds for an extravagant wedding, but he also appeared to be healthy and not someone who looked to be knocking on death's door.




60. White Hills  Stop Mute Defeat (Thrill Jockey)

White Hills epic 80s callback

Stop Mute Defeat is a determined march against encroaching imperial darkness; their eyes boring into the shadows for danger but theyre aware that blinding lights can kill and distort truth. From Overlords dark stomp casting nets for totalitarian warnings to Attack Mode, which roars in with the tribal certainty that we can survive the madness if we keep our wits, the record is a true and timely win for Dave W. and Ego Sensation. Martin Bisi and the poster bands mysterious but relevant cool make a great team and deliver one of their least psych yet most mind destroying records to date. Much like the first time you heard Joy Division or early Pigface, for example, youll experience being startled at first before becoming addicted to the bands unique microcosm of dystopia that is simultaneously corrupting and seducing your ears.  Morgan Y. Evans

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59. Everything Everything  A Fever Dream (RCA)

Everything Everything is a band of impossible ambition, apparent from even the name. Merely everything is not enough for this prog-pop quartet and frankly, the world may not be ready to oblige. I want this planet, and I want it now / to beat like an anvil til the poisons out begins Desire, one of the albums early gut-punches. If these were times of hope and prosperity, maybe egos this size would be celebrated. But weve made that mistake before. Hovering in our minds is the expectation that we must repent for generations of excess with modesty, conservation, quiet introspection.

A Fever Dream embodies none of this. It reeks of English imperialism and mulish masculinity. Its bombastic beyond belief, and its exactly what we need.

Everything Everythings fourth record is its most personal and urgent yet. The lyrics seem to be a document for primary songwriter Jonathan Higgs psychological condition, and its a troubling one, to say the least. He wears his insecurities like armor, and his pride gleams like Excalibur. Enshrouding his big plans for this world gone mad are doubt and defeatism and a predisposition for hedonism. Its the battle of Jonathan vs. the world, but also of the world vs. the world, and of Jonathan vs. Jonathan. For us sons and daughters of the microprocessor, a mere trip to the grocers forces us to contend with the unruly exponential growth of this absurdist empireour neighborhoods and international networks, ids and egos are in constant need of rewiring

That concluding track of

A Fever Dream rides out with the mantra: Never tell me that we cant go further. The title of this track is White Whalethat impossible desire perpetually just out of reach. Whether for peace on earth or a little peace of mind, the struggle to satisfy it can lead only to insanity or death. But Everything Everything would never strive for anything less.  A. Noah Harrison

58. Do Make Say Think  Stubborn Persistent Illusions (Constellation)

Sometimes you dont know what youve got until its gone and other times you dont realize it until it returns. Following an eight-year hiatus since

Other Truths, Do Make Say Thinks previous album, Stubborn Persistent Illusions is the boldest, most arresting progression of songs that the Toronto unit have crafted since Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn in 2003. Among the swells and cries of their heavier-hearted Constellation label mates such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and the Silver Mt. Zion permutations, Do Make Say Think always set themselves apart by keeping spry and limber. The band was, and remains, a kind of compact jazz orchestra in rock bands clothing. Not a moment is wasted even in the records tranquil stretches. This is fitting for an album whose concept comes from something as deep yet fleeting as an image in a Buddhist poem about working with a wild mind.  Ian King

57. The Dream Syndicate 

How Did I Find Myself Here? (Anti-)

Thirty years on from their last studio album, 1988s

Ghost Stories, Steve Wynn has reconvened the Dream Syndicate to release what is arguably the bands best record ever. Yes, Days of Wine & Roses will always remain a touchstone for longtime fans, its surprises still fresh after decades, but How Did I Find Myself Here? distills every lesson Wynn had learned over a long and adventurous career into a coherent eight-song set that finds his band confident and playful in equal measure, amped up and in sync. Here, Wynn is joined by longtime drummer Dennis Duck and bassist Mark Walton and, as he has since the Dream Syndicates 2012 reformation as a touring unit, Jason Victor (Wynns longtime partner in Miracle 3) has replaced Paul Cutler on guitar. Further, Kendra Smiths surprising and welcome return on album closer Kendras Dream evaporates time to connect past and future in a perfect psychedelic drift. It all adds up to a triumphant and fitting capstone for the legendary band.







Lee Ann Womack recorded

The Lonely, the Lonesome & the Gone in Houston, not far from the small town where she grew up. The album is rich with a mythical Texas in the best possible ways. Womack sings with a twang and gets sentimentally soppy or wickedly mean as the songs suggest. She goes to the extremes one would expect of a Lone Star musician. It may not be the biggest state geographically, but Texans have always done things bigger. Like her fellow state-mate George Jones, whose gospel Take the Devil Out of Me she covers, shes pure country, meaning she probably wont be played on country radio these days. Womack wrote half of the songs here, and redoes classic material associated with Patsy Cline, Lefty Frizzell, and Johnny Cash. She covers them with a style that shows her respect for past masters and still manages to make their songs her own.  Steve Horowitz

55. Charly Bliss  Guppy (Barsuk)

On the first track of

Charly Bliss debut album Guppy, the pop-rock band, led by potent vocalist Eva Hendricks, makes a bold declaration of self. On Percolator, Hendricks defines her artistic self and if that definition includes some uncertainty and some conflict, so much the better as Hendrickss confidence bursts forth in accepting all those elements. The rest of the album, a joyous bash of guitars and energy, pounds through related but non-repetitive territory. Hendricks takes on relationships, abuse, and harassment (and more), vocalizing complex feelings and ideas that need to be heard. She shifts quickly from anger to humor to questioning without breaking stride. The band and its sound of eating candy in the garage delivers catchy melodies and bright sounds that matches the sense of seeking and realization throughout the album. Guppy looks for sense in a demanding world while retaining a strong center, keeping a strong self-assurance in the face of various challenges.  Justin Cober-Lake

54. Tyler, the Creator  Flower Boy (Columbia)

After baiting the media with controversial, derogatory statements for years, the fact that

Flower Boy was hyped as the album where Tyler, the Creator came out of the closet was, for some, reason enough to dig into it, to give him a second chance, to reassess his past statements or, you know, dismiss him all over again. Yet despite lines about kissing white boys since 2004, the crux of Flower Boy isnt Tyler revealing his sexuality so much as hes revealing his loneliness. This is a profoundly sad album, where the immaculate production hits all of your brains pleasure centers at once while distracting you from how isolated he feels. Happiness is always elusive, which is why he pulls out every trick he can to prevent us from seeing the real human beneath, from stacking the tracks with guest spots to releasing the worst song as the lead single. Yet the more time you spend with it, the more you wan to keep coming back to the emotional world hes constructed for himself. Youll share in his loneliness, too.  Evan Sawdey

53. Lana Del Rey  Lust for Life (Interscope)

The image of physically scaling the Hollywood signs H encapsulates Lana Del Reys ethos in that celebrity is not some abstract pinnacle one reaches but one that needs to be experienced in person. Chasing the rush of fame drove the impeccable

Born to Die and, five years later, the feeling of having achieved it is evoked by the smoldering warmth of Lust for Life. Still, the disarray of the world broke through even to pops foremost escapist, but she addresses it and her well-earned status with cryptic optimism; Is it the end of an era? /  / No, its only the beginning. What Lust for Life teaches is that one can  and, possibly, should  stay as vigilant towards the affairs that affect us all while also indulging in the selfish, beautiful act of seeking love.  Brian Duricy

52. Paramore  After Laughter (Fueled by Ramen)

Many bands know what a Herculean undertaking reinventing their sound is. This year, nobody did it better than former pop-punkers Paramore. Four years since their last release, Hayley Williams and co. released

After Laughter, which fuses sleek elements of 80s new wave, funk, and synthpop while keeping their emotional foundations intact. The most important ingredient to Paramores success is the return of founding member Zac Farro, whose musical direction in side project HalfNoise point to the influence he had on crafting the new Paramore. Although ten years removed from their breakout, Riot!, theyre still in the business of misery with songs like Fake Happy and hit single Hard Times. But if the misery business means more of these grooving bass lines and tropical marimbas and guitar riffs, sign me up.  Chris Thiessen

51. (Sandy) Alex G  Rocket (Domino)

Alex Giannascoli refines his paradoxical impulses on

Rocket. On his eighth full-length overall, and second for Domino, he crafts a beautifully strange brew of haunting folk with a narrative thats oddly indistinct. Hes learned to work within the constraints of an album, a format that he treated with some flippancy during his Bandcamp years, though he still finds any excuse to circumvent the format as he draws upon a patchwork of ideas. Giannascoli finds his muse in longtime collaborator, and partner, Molly Germer, an accomplished violinist who adds whim and character to his otherwise sparse arrangements. From yearning country ballad Bobby  their voices entwined and harmonized to their lush, string-led compositions  to the gliding melancholy of Powerful Man, they provide a touching ode to traditional folk that comes across as some alien take on a Smithsonian Folkways recording. And yet Rocket is so much more, taking on a surfeit of modern and antiquated music styles set against a backdrop of bucolic terrain. But even at its most eccentric, Giannascoli has accomplished a winsome collection of handcrafted songs that leave a lasting impression.  Juan Edgardo Rodriguez

For her second album as Japanese Breakfast, Michelle Zauner turned away from the inner pain and turmoil that characterized her 2016s

Psychopomp and looked to the stars.

Soft Sounds from Another Planet looks ever upward, both as a sign of hope and as a means of keeping ones self going. Zauners all-encompassing take on pop has grown to an even greater degree, to the point where a girl-group tribute like Boyish can stand alongside the day-glo electronica of Machinist, and it never feels incongruous. All the while, Zauners lyrics are still very much bound to Earth, covering everything from awkward sexual encounters to anxiety and dysmorphia. In that sense, Soft Sounds is more of a continuation in their work than a sharp turn in a different direction, but everything about it is so grand and expansive that one cant help but look at it as something different entirely. Rarely has promise been so fully and brilliantly fulfilled.  Kevin Korber

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49. Sarah Shook & the Disarmers  Sidelong (Bloodshot)

Sarah Shook & The Disarmers hard living, pro-LGBTQ brand of authentic outlaw country is about as pure as it gets these days. Its far and away my favorite album of the year of any genre. A punk and whiskey-informed but non-hipster diminished real country effort, the collection is jam packed with warm sounds for cold nights and yarns that will pull you in and make you sing, cry, and relate even if you have a cynics heart of stone. Youd likely expect a lot of unflinching storytelling from a group that cites Hank Williams Sr. and Sex Pistols as their main influences on their Facebook page, but when Sarah warbles that she cant decide which one of us will be the nail in this here coffin, you will be right there in the bar with her reliving every regretful choice or leap of three drinks in faith you ever took. Dwight Yoakum has all the ache required and then some, while Fuck Up and Make It Up to Mama act as angels and devils on the shoulder of potential greatness. Dont beat yourself up, Sarah Shook. You already are friggin amazing. 

Morgan Y. Evans

48. Ibibio Sound Machine  Uyai (Merge)

Uyai bursts out of the speakers with exuberance. The rare musical talent that is Ibibio Sound Machine is all about the infectious dancehall grooves. Witness standouts like opener Give Me a Reason and The Pot Is on the Fire, harmonious fusions of Afrobeat and classic 80s synths, while downtempo tracks like One That Lights Up and Sunray contain irresistibly funky beats. Joy brims with an understated chanting beneath shuffling breakbeats. Guide You takes us back to discos primordial days, yet the inclusion of call-and-response (both in the vocals and the synths versus horns) brings a fresh sound to the genre. Lead singer Eno Williams, drawing heavily from her African heritage, keeps things in check with a voice that sometimes rouses us to dance and other times uses repetition to help us sink in deeper. Uyai translates to beauty in the Ibibio language, and in under an hour, the Sound Machine has given us a great example worthy of the word.  Tristan Kneschke

47. Queens of the Stone Age  Villains (Matador)

On the cerebral yet accessible

Villains, the band doesnt indulge in gratuitous solos or extended jams. Instead, consistent variation keeps the songs dynamic; no copy-and-paste songwriting here. The unlikely addition of producer Mark Ronson further stirs the pot, lending a funkier sensibility to the hard rock outfit on their seventh outing. Arrangements are built upon swaggering opening vamps or morphed into entirely new segments as on The Evil Has Landed. Frontman Josh Hommes songwriting abilities are poured into the propulsive seven-minute Un-Reborn Again and atmospheric closer Villains of Circumstance, among the most enjoyable journeys on the release. Villains also contains raucous rockers like Head Like a Haunted House and the aggressive Domesticated Animals that provide a link to the bands earlier material. If iPod commercials still existed, single The Way You Used to Do would be an obvious contender. On Villains, the boys make it look easy.  Tristan Kneschke

46. Moses Sumney  Aromanticism (Jagjaguwar)



For the introverts out there, Moses Sumney has heard your plea. We have more than enough

Sea Change and Blood on the Tracks records for breakups and almost as many albums documenting someones new-found love  but wheres my album? After two EPs, the Los Angeles-residing singer/songwriter released Aromanticism, a debut album that virtually guarantees it will not be confused with any other artist in your collection. Sumneys lyrics skillfully juxtapose symbols of strength with things that are anything but, especially in songs like Plastic, where he repeatedly confesses My wings are made of plastic. In the straightforward Make Out in My Car, Sumney states that hes not trying to bed someone, instead, hes fine just sticking to making out in his car. With Aromanticism, aloneness can be both a crutch and something sacred. In Sumneys case, like the genre-less album itself, solitude can be a reason for celebration.  Sean McCarthy

45. Foxygen  Hang (Jagjaguwar)

Its easy to find comfort and familiarity in popular music and thats particularly true of rock bands. Most evoke a small handful of artists or temperaments familiar to anyone versed in a canon that begins with the Beatles and ends with Nirvana and thats usually the way we engage with them. (See: any review of a War on Drugs album.)

Its not difficult to spot Foxygens influences  Van Morrison, the Rolling Stones, Stephen Sondheim  but theyre beside the point on

Hang, because its one of a few rock albums whose ambition isnt a matter of duration or narrative coherence, but rather, idea density. It produces sensations similar to watching a sly but well-trained acrobat, the feeling that the act could collapse with one, small misstep and the thrilling uncertainty that comes with not knowing whether the performer is heightening the perceived danger of his act or is simply impervious to it. In Foxygen, you sense a little bit of both  a desire to stack tones, traditions, and tempos so high they might topple and a willingness to bear that risk. The risk pays off on Hang, which transcends comfort, familiarity, and influence, and makes me wish more rock bands would try to do what Foxygen has achieved.  Mark Matousek

44. Alvvays  Antisocialites (Polyvinyl)



Indie pop is full of discontented dreamers but Alvvays are almost certainly among the least content and the most wistful. Lyrically, second album

Antisocialites embodies the modern mantra/meme (is there a difference?) disappointed but not surprised: its full of exasperated judgment, hard frustration, and solemn resignation, and its tipped with phrases like Theres no turning back. Musically, the album is a stoic monument to hope and yearning, flecked with soft synthesizers and chiming guitars, sitting at the precipice between dreamlike apathy and temperate energy without any clear separation between the two. Its a winning combination in any year, but its particularly resonant in 2017, a year in which weve repeatedly been asked to suffer some fresh indignity every time we crawl back into the world. Were all tired; Antisocialites is a fitting lullaby.  Colin Fitzgerald

43. Big Thief  Capacity (Saddle Creek)

Stories are in plentiful supply on

Capacity. Singer-songwriter Adrianne Lenker is a committed lyricist, a nuanced narrator who enhances the listening experience as she conjures scenes of devastating pathos. But Capacity, the Brooklyn bands second effort, wouldnt be as affecting if not for their skilled musicianship. Big Thiefs bewitching folk rock is equal parts forceful and vulnerable, where supple guitar flourishes waver over rootsy arrangements with intricate sophistication. Lenker anchors the album with careful articulation, never letting their compositions stray too far from their folky, acoustic constitution. She alludes to these places she writes about as if inhabiting them, word for word and with keen detail, as each song requires a deeper level of engagement. Its a wholly rewarding listen that seeks truth in its character sketches through tales that are direct and merciless.  Juan Edgardo Rodriguez

42. Open Mike Eagle  Brick Body Kids Still Daydream (Mello Music Group)

Open Mike Eagle grew up in Chicago, spending his days with his aunt and cousins who lived in the Robert Taylor public housing projects. The last building in the projects was demolished in 2011 after a years-long, contentious battle;

it failed and fell, just like Americas failure to deal with low-income and impoverished people. With

Brick Body Kids Still Daydream, Open Mike Eagle weaves his signature dark comedy lyricism with sincere moments of nostalgia, frustration, and pain. He paints a nuanced picture of life in Americas semi-forgotten corners in a way that acknowledges the dark and the light. Mike and his producers successfully infuse the album with whimsical instrumentals, comic book vibes, and vibrant imagery that shows another side to the story of Americas rapid gentrification. This is the story of the people whose lives, whose identities, and whose bodies are so deeply connected to their destroyed homes.  Dan Kok

41. Syd  Fin (Columbia)

Born from Odd Future, the space/streets-bound R&B group the Internet has crafted their own compelling past+future vision over the last five or so years. In 2017 the Internet spawned three great solo records  one by Matt Martians, one by Steve Lacy (who also produced a track on Kendrick Lamars

DAMN) and Fin, the sly, abundant debut full-length from the groups vocalist Syd. The title has a finality to it but more likely references Syds fin-like mohawk haircut. The aquatic allusion suits the music, sleek and subterranean, and the lyrics dwell on undercover pleasure. With whispery bravado, Syd sings about independence in all things, especially between the sheets. Embodying and redefining the construct of the strutting frontperson, she describes seducing the hearts and bodies of women  stealing them away from their lovers, be they men or women  while blazing her own trail musically and building a foundation for success on her own terms.  Dave Heaton

40. Chicano Batman  Freedom Is Free (ATO)

The immediate impression you get upon hearing

Freedom Is Free, the latest album from L.A.s Chicano Batman, is that of an old, battered, obscure album from 1972 that you found in your cool uncles vinyl collection. Or maybe its something you discover while aimlessly browsing a flea market. The music here has that kind of authenticity. The thing is, its brand new music. But it sounds like it wasnt recorded within 100 miles of a laptop. Chicano Batman  a quartet consisting of Bardo Martinez (vocals, guitar, organ), Carlos Arevalo (guitar), Eduardo Arenas (bass, vocals) and Gabriel Villa (drums, percussion)  make music that seems hermetically sealed from another time, yet their politics and social commentary are as vital as ever in this day and age.  Chris Ingalls

39. Jens Lekman  Life Will See You Now (Secretly Canadian)

French-kissing 15-year-olds. Mormon missionaries in Scandinavia. A Cambrian conga line. The cast of characters that makes up

Life Will See You Now, Jens Lekmans finest album, are as eclectic as those cavorting around on Lekmans breakthrough LP, Life Falls Over Kortadela. A stark contrast to 2012s relatively muted I Know What Love Isnt, Life Will See You Now opens with the bug-eyed optimism of To Know Your Mission, Lekmans quirky take on a Broadway-style set piece that imbues the whole album with an infectious jubilation. The bouncy melody of album highlight Wedding in Finistere, the shimmering steel drums on Whats that Perfume You Wear?, and the string-accented disco of How We Met (The Long Version) culminate in an album that embraces life in all its unpredictability. Lekman hasnt lost his ear for clever sampling: Postcard #17 borrows a stunning chord progression from a Charles Mingus solo piano piece to an unforgettable effect.  Brice Ezell

38. Mount Kimbie  Love That Survives (Warp)

British electronic duo Mount Kimbie are a shining of example of what happens when the boundaries of a genre are torn down. Coming in at the tail end of the UK dubstep and rave explosion of the late 00s, Mount Kimbie positioned themselves on the fringes of that scene  never quite fitting within its restrictive parameters and never willing to sacrifice musical vision for a fast buck.

They were not alone out there on the edge. Friend and collaborator James Blake was right there with them, showing the world that dubstep could mean more than murky synths and 140 beats per minute. Both acts would eventually step from the shadows and shake off the chains of dubstep, going on to create some of the UK scenes most challenging and interesting records. Blake features again on this  Mount Kimbies third, and arguably best, album  his distinctive vocals providing a haunting exeunt on the piano-driven How We Got By.

Its one of the albums many highlights, admittedly  as is the urgent and raucous Blue Train Lines featuring London sensation King Krule, whos had a great year himself  but

Love What Survives is far more than a showcase of friends in high places. It feels like a document of optimism and beauty amid the the awkward and the dissolute. In many ways, its a letter from the heart of Britain in 2017  fractured, divided, but still able surprise and delight when necessary.

Ultimately,

Love What Survives is a work that owes more to the collision of styles and ideas that is Broken Social Scene than it does to Benga and to grimy London dubstep clubs. Its just the latest piece in an ever expanding body of evidence that suggests that Mount Kimbie are among the best in the biz right now. Whats still to come, we must wait and see.  John Burns

37. Thundercat  Drunk (Brainfeeder)

Stephen Bruner (aka Thundercat) released possibly the best sounding album of the year with

Drunk, mixing extraordinary clarity, musical dexterity and imagination. As a bassist, Bruner shines, as expected, but he also delights in paint-spattering the canvas with sonic surprises that richly rewards repeated listens (especially on a good pair of headphones). Drunk is whimsical and trippy, Bruners voice is sweet and soulful over an ever-shifting color palette thats bolstered by a number of idiosyncratic guest appearances. We might have A-listers like Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, Pharrell Williams, Kamasi Washington and Wiz Khalifa, but Bruner brings in the likes of Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins as well. Drunk is exactly that  drunk on sounds and infused with an irreverent humor. Constantly moving and always engaging, Drunk is like a spacey mixtape, a stoners odyssey through colorful dimensions that takes place solely in the listeners head.  Chris Gerard

36. Mark Lanegan Band  Gargoyle (Heavenly)

On the surface, theres not much in

Gargoyle that Mark Lanegan hasnt done with his other nine albums. It still has his unmistakable grizzled growl that permeated works like Scraps at Midnight and Blues Funeral. It has the same flirtations of industrial and electronica like Bubblegum. On Gargoyle, all of these elements just found a way of coming together in a special way. The songwriting is just a smidge more menacing. The hooks are just a tad meatier. The choruses are just a bit more memorable. Gargoyle has the usual roster of Lanegan contributors, mainly Greg Dulli and Joshua Homme, but guest drummer Jack Irons also makes a huge impact with his percussion on tracks like Beehive and Drunk on Destruction. Sin, lust, and redemption remain the staples of Lanegans favorite topics. Still, theres plenty of euphoria to be had. On Beehive, Lanegan sums up his latest triumph: Lighting coming out of the speakers / Wanna hear that sound some more.  Sean McCarthy

35. SZA  Ctrl (Top Dawg Entertainment)

The first couple of times you listen to

Ctrl, it feels like a little too much. Its too personal, too raw, too sexual, too aggressive. It sits in a confessional space with Beyonces last couple albums, but its less carefully curated, less constantly aware of its own image. The true test of whether you have the stomach for it comes early, however, when SZA grabs Kendrick Lamar for an ode to anatomy that repeats the word pussy until it loses all shock value. Once youre past that  and to be sure, Doves in the Wind is a smart and well-constructed song  youre in the door. Songs like Drew Barrymore and The Weekend allow for a pop slant, while the more difficult listening of tracks like Garden (Say it Like Dat) and Broken Clocks is never too far beneath the surface. Ctrl is a surprisingly catchy collection of songs that never backs down from confrontation, an album whose beats spend all their time in service to SZAs words. Its the sound of a fascinating new voice in R&B.  Mike Schiller

34. Rhiannon Giddens  Freedom Highway (Nonesuch)

William Faulkners well-known observation that The past is never dead. Its not even past haunts

Freedom Highway, the second solo outing by Carolina Chocolate Drops frontwoman Rhiannon Giddens. The albums 12 tracks, a mix of original compositions and covers, merge diverse African American styles (folk, blues, gospel, New Orleans jazz, R&B, hip-hop) and historical eras (from slavery to the Civil Rights movement to Black Lives Matter) into a continuum of oppression, struggle, resilience and resistance. In At the Purchasers Option (the title comes from an 18th-century slave advertisement), an enslaved mother ponders the fate of her baby, born into bondage. Julie, a Civil War-era folk ballad featuring Giddens clawhammer banjo, recounts a plantation slaves bitter showdown with her mistress as Union troops approach. Freedom Sunday, folksinger Richard Farinas devastating account of the murder of four black children in the 1963 bombing of an Alabama church, is rendered as a stately hymn, with organ, piano and gospel choir. Better Get It Right the First Time, R&B with a mid-song rap, tells of a young man who was a good man but they shot you anyway. The album concludes with a stirring remake of Freedom Highway, the Staple Singers Civil Rights anthem. The songs most pointed line  The whole wide world is wondering whats wrong with the United States  remains, sad to say, as pertinent today as in 1965.  George De Stefano

33. Run the Jewels  Run the Jewels 3 (Run the Jewels, Inc.)

Its stupid. Its unconscionable. In fact, its downright unfair that you arent finding this album on a lot of other year-end wrap-up lists. The reason? cos following the emotional trauma of a nation following the 2016 Presidential election, El-P and Killer Mike basically said fuck it and put out their third and most accessible album on 24 December, long after your favorite publications had tallied their totals. Becoming Pazz & Jop frontrunners, shockingly, appears to not be on the guys minds. In some universes, such a hasty release might make it seem like their latest effort is some sort of tossed-off affair, but

Run the Jewels 3 isnt any ordinary damn album and the reason that were still talking about it even now is because throughout the course of the year, people have kept discovering, discussing, debating, and overanalyzing the punchlines, the confessions, and crowds being whipped up into a chant-along frenzy.

While their last album was a classic the second it dropped, the fearsome twosome may have one-upped even themselves here, dropping an album that blends social commentary with the highest joke-by-stanza ratio theyve ever encountered, El-P  a true producing machine  finally feeling like hes fully in sync with Killer Mike on a rhyme-for-rhyme basis. The result is a razor-sharp classic thats at turns witty, emotional, confrontational, and gut-busting hilarious. The songs have grown on us, turned into hits, been featured in trailers for Marvel movies, and yet they dont scream like sellouts: Run the Jewels are just as unflinching as they were when they first started. So whether you call this the best rap album of 2016 or 2017 is almost beside the point: its just one of the best rap albums of recent memory. Period. 

Evan Sawdey

32. Curtis Harding  Face Your Fear (Anti-)

Curtis Harding may draw on the classics, but that doesnt mean weve heard it all before. On

Face Your Fear, Harding takes cues from old-school soul and funk while keeping both feet marching ever forward with slick production and an electric touch. While centerpiece Need Your Love is one of the grooviest tracks of the fall, its the songs before and after it that show off Hardings artistic depth and versatility. The album opens with the sweeping cinematic drama of Wednesday Morning Atonement before Harding reaches Mayfield-esque high notes of the ghostly title track. Fuzzy guitars paint Go As You Are with heavy psychedelia, and the vibraphone-heavy hook to Till the End lightens the mood, setting the scene for a tongue-in-cheek take on vintage Motown sounds. Several tracks later, ballad As I Am ends the album on a strong note that lets Hardings clear voice stretch out over a memorable melody. Face Your Fear is proof positive that Curtis Harding not only has style, but knows how to use it to make a record that feels timeless even as a new release.  Adriane Pontecorvo

31. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith  The Kid (Western Vinyl)

In recent years, there has been an uptick in musicians (Arca, Amnesia Scanner, 0PN, et al.) who attempt to alienate the voice from the body and reabsorb it into technology, articulating the estrangement of the post-internet self from its corporeal contract. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith does the opposite, welcoming technology in to an organic host. Its tempting to see

The Kid, which has a song called A Kid, as an inverse optimistic telling of Kid A, but to do so would be to divorce the latter from its distinct setting.

Though genre-defying,

The Kid is ambient in that its fully absorbed in analogue Buchla fauna, a mostly placid and lucidly rendered soundscape of harmonious alien neon hues occasionally broken up by orchestral intrusions by the Stargaze Ensemble or moment of Holly Herndon-esque digital fracturing. A professor of mine once described new age music as a genre of music with no tension, but this new-age-rooted recording with a weird pop heart is full of it. What it lacks is friction, the cynical, matured kind that makes the world of Kid A that we live in such an anxious distant shiver of the formative one we get to gaze into on The Kid.

Thats not to say that

The Kid is puerile and naive; take the ecumenical transcendentalism within the albums breaking point, its final track To Feel Your Best. Im gonna wake up one day and you wont exactly be there / Even though I know its all perspective, Smith says in dour and hesitant acceptance of finality of consciousness. Its rare to hear such reverence for the universal expressed in such a bold and experimental yet accessible form. This is lightning in a bottle.  Timothy Gabriele

30. Hurray for the Riff Raff  The Navigator (ATO)

The Navigator marks an assured, impressive leap forward for singer-songwriter Alyndra Segarra as she both stretches out stylistically and refines her gifts for traditional songwriting. The new album is sonically a long way from the sweet-sounding fiddle, Hammond organ, and Leslie cabinet vibe that helped Segarra get both rustic and surfy on Hurrays debut. The Navigator maintains plenty of modern folk elements but achieves a whole new fragranceits urban, rhythmic, world-textured, and spiritual, adding dark swirls of vocal treatments and instrumentation that keep the record aurally freighted in a sort of gothic-gospel garden. The songs are uniformly stellarmelodically rich, politically urgent, deeply personala retelling of the Latin experience amid a widening gulf between the American dream and its harsher realities, prompting us at once to both reach for the bongos and to throw a defiant fist in the air.  Steve Leftridge

29. Spoon  Hot Thoughts (Matador)

Spoon has been one of the most consistent and dependable bands since their inception. That said, while their last few records have all been good, there was a degree of creation-by-numbers setting in. Acknowledging that, no one had any right to expect the bands  or any groups  ninth album to be this stellar.

Hot Thoughts is the sound of a band reenergized and daring to push its own boundaries, rather than being content to settle in. All ten songs surge with the liberation, vivacity, and ground-staking swagger of a debut. While the Britt Daniel-led group has always dallied with experimentation, they fully embrace it here. Off-kilter time signatures, soundscapes, skittering bleeps and loops, synth lines, and digital textures abound. At the same time, the band retains its signature guitar tones and stomp-strutting percussion, with Daniels inimitable raspy howl reaching a peak. Enveloping it all is an intimate, otherworldly production.

Theres not a misstep in the set, each number driven by an immediacy that bleeds from one cut to the next. From the bone-rattling titular opener to the seductive and infectious WhisperIlllistentohearit, from the clamorous hypnotism of Pink Up to the eerie I Aint the One and the frayed and desperate testament of Tear It Down,

Hot Thoughts is arguably Spoons strongest collection. And to end on a five-minute sound collage thats evocative as it is mysterious? What better epitome of Spoons unique ability to be confident without being cocky. If it were ever in doubt, Hot Thoughts reasserts Spoons role as an indie rock pillar.  Cole Waterman

28. Valerie June  The Order of Time (Concord Music)

The Order of Time documents the relevance of contact with others in our lives, including solitude, loss, and rekindled confidence despite those emotionally-charged occurrences. Valerie June is a dynamic songwriter and phenomenal performer, and this is a tightly knit album full of carefully woven songs of reflection and rumination that explores time succinctly. In a culture marked by increasing solitude and dissolution, Junes lyrics take inspiration from family and loss, including everyday activities that push time forward, and easily impart the mystical qualities of time back on to individual experience. Junes craft and lyrical prose fuse those complicated realities into a record cognizant of its own relevance and its not shy about confronting how it affects its listeners. There are moments of upbeat hopefulness and downright sadness throughout The Order of Time, emphatically delivered beautifully by June alongside a musical arrangement highlighted by the organ as a moody representation of the order of time.  Richard Driver

27. King Krule  The OOZ (True Panther Sounds)

Archy Marshalls (who uses the stage name King Krule, among others)

The OOZ is an album deeply characterized by polarity. Its jazzy, atmospheric tracks risk sending you into another world, only to be snapped back to reality by Marshalls abrasive vocals and grimy lyrics on the following tracks. The effect is a push and pull between the otherworldly and the dreary world we occupy (as Marshall portrays it, at least), one haunted by drugs, desire, and desperation. The latter world tends to win out, but by the end of the album, the two atmospheres start to collide. Penultimate song, Midnight 01 (Deep Sea Diver) concludes with a melody so full of grandeur that you might actually think things are looking up for Marshall. The lyrics, however, convey nothing more than mere acceptance of reality, rather than hope for a better future. Were lulled into thinking thats good enough.  Chad Miller

26. Blanck Mass  World Eater (Sacred Bones)



With his second album, Blanck Massor, John Benjamin Power of Fuck Buttonsdrags us deeper into the terrestrial fissure created by 2015s

Dumb Flesh. The threshold of this World, titled John Does Carnival of Error, well forecasts what lies ahead: a funhouse, yes, but fearsome one. As we enter his subterranean lair, our eyes adjust and we scan our surroundings: industrial systems with functions unknown, shifting holographic formsa stark contrast to the damp, rocky enclosure. We never glimpse the man directlyhes already vanishedand were left to his devices. Things hum and chug along, then rumble and screech violently, then settle once more. At points, are those? They must be. Human voices, groaning and pleading in a language not too distant from our own. Souls trapped in the machinery, cast as friends and lovers, saints and sinners in this eternal production.

We sneer as their cries echo louder and clearer than before. Sheets of dirt and metallic dust rain down from above. We clench our fangs in a grimace, dig our claws into the floor and grip tight. It feels good to withstand this cascade. It only makes us stronger. At once, a sweet vaporous warmth overtakes us and we become drowsy, eyelids aflutter as if slipping into the strangest dream. But before this consciousness escapes us, a powerful chemical surges through our bodies and in formation, we gaze upward at a single point. Where there was once sheer blackness, a tiny crack now bares a spot of light: the full moon. It must be feasting time. The Hive Mind will carry us back to the surface to join our leader. We let out a droning, holy howl and ascend as a pack, aware now that we too are on the prowl. 

A. Noah Harrison

25. Idles  Brutalism (Balley)

Idles debut album

Brutalism encapsulated everything that punk should be. A catchment for the misfits, the angry and the hurt. The lyrics veer from tragi-comedy to profound social commentary in the space of a single line as frontman Joe Talbot takes a cleaver to British society and toys with the entrails. In a society confused and divided like never before, it asks the pertinent questions whether it be about the current Tory government, austerity and health care cuts or the more personal issues of mental health or the pressures of masculinity. Its that rare album that makes you want to stand up and fight but also open up and talk  all with a healthy dose of typical British cynicism. Each urgent tirade drips with Talbots mordant wit coupled with a bracing revolutionary zeal, while behind the expected cavalcade of drums and the shellacking of bass and guitar are tightly written songs with hummable hooks. This is a punk album for the age we live in and few have articulated it better than Idles.  Paul Carr

24. Mount Eerie  A Crow Looked at Me (P.W. Elverum & Sun)

Phil Elverum has asked the public, please dont come to a practice show at which he would debut new songs at a small record store near his home. The original announcement for the show generated interest because it would be his first live performance since 2014 and also because Elverums wife Genevieve was diagnosed with cancer in 2015 and died in 2016. Elverum had announced that these songs would detail her illness, death and the aftermath. Fans were curious and wanted to show support. The singer said, please dont come, but that soon a larger audience could experience an album of these songs.



A Crow Looked at Me is that album. Gone is the general focus on natures raw impermanence that defined much of his earlier work. No longer were these songs an expression that he briefly lived.

A Crow Looked at Me chronicles the days of his wifes illness, her death, and their shared grief, and of Elverum and their baby daughters awareness of their lives forever changed by loss. The spare sound and direct lyrics share some qualities with earlier Mount Eerie songs, but Elverums mission has never been so substantial and specific. He revives his wifes presence in song in order to document her experiences, and this is something he alone can do. These are songs that he would have every right to keep private but chose to share with the public. In doing so he memorializes her and contributes to the tradition of works of art that prepare us for the realities of what we become to ourselves after gazing upon death.  Thomas Britt

23. Margo Price  All American Made (Third Man)



The haunting title track to Margo Prices second album

All American Made originated with her previous band Buffalo Clover before emerging after the election of 2016 with impassioned relevance. Price searches for renewal, optimism, and rejects those who question individual strengths or pushes for equality, ideas intensified by her own hard fought career as one of a handful of country musicians bucking trends in Nashville. All American Made articulates her importance outside country music, and the songs on the album are critical of the outlook of American life based on her own experiences (much like her strong debut). Songs like Pay Gap and Cocaine Cowboys document gender dynamics and identity politics, while Loner, A Little Pain, and Learning to Lose (a duet with Willie Nelson) harshly critique expectations and self-doubt in modern America. The albums closing question, directed at Tom Petty, signifies Prices own strength with All American Made: its up to her (and us) to answer So tell me, Mr. Petty, what do you think will happen next? / Thats all American made.  Richard Driver

22. Arca  Arca (XL)



A case can be made for Arca having the best album in 2017 of any musician. The production and co-writing work on Kelelas

Take Me Apart and having a hand in virtually all of Bjorks Utopia  two albums highlighting indefinable and undeniable talents  would be enough for elite producers, but the addition of his unparalleled self-titled third album reveals the crown jewel. Arca took the audial seasickness of last years Entranas and ran with the idea that it could be a pop album, too. The most obvious example is Desafio, a futuristic look at 80s synthpop, but the orchestral Saunter and chillingly euphoric instrumental Urchin imagine a surrealist world in which this is what wedding playlists are made of. As a collaborator hes indispensable, and when hes front and center hes vital, an artist not mining the depths of emotions so much as creating entirely new territory to be explored.  Brian Duricy

21. Vince Staples  Big Fish Theory (Def Jam)



Hip-hop, like any genre, has a tendency toward groupthink. New ideas emerge on the fringes and a few of those ideas grab hold and shape everyone who comes into contact with them. Ten years ago, the idea of a rapper singing his hooks and verses was heretical. Now, everyone does it. Part of the reason genre labels are still useful in a post-streaming world is that most artists think in terms of genre.

But there are always a few who dont, who seem to think in terms of sound. Kanye West is a good example of this and Vince Staples is another. But while the beauty of Kanyes music is in the breadth of ideas it absorbs, Staples is remarkable for his concision. He always seems to know just what to say and how much of it needs to be said. On

Big Fish Theory, Staples doesnt waste time and neither do his producers, whose beats are full of heavy bass and spare, abrasive tones that take inspiration from experimental electronic music as much as hip-hop. Most of the songs clock in at under three minutes and have an intense, almost monastic sense of intention, the kind that makes you sit up and listen.  Mark Matousek

20. The War on Drugs  A Deeper Understanding (Atlantic)

With searing guitars, retro synths and big-time hooks, the War on Drugs

A Deeper Understanding is a power record, a Major Statement in that mid-80s, MTV-apex sort of way. Adam Granduciel, the ever-tinkering studio wunderkind, eclipses his previous career peak  2014s Lost in the Dream  by recalling a time when Dire Straits and Bruce Hornsby could splash into the monoculture. Put it this way: if it was 1986, A Deeper Understanding would produce six radio singles and at least three or four hits. From the jittery Up All Night to the understated You Dont Have to Go, the record is a satisfying auditory experience with Granduciel agonizing over every sound. The knockout moments come in the albums dense, pensive middle: Strangest Thing commands through sprawl and In Chains crackles like anxious fireworks. Meanwhile, Thinking of a Place has a simple, beautiful bridge that connects its lolling 11 minutes. As culture junkies in 2020 contemplate the previous ten years, one hopes A Deeper Understanding will earn a title coveted by any rock outfit in any era: decade-defining.  Michael Davis

19. Perfume Genius  No Shape (Matador)

Theres so much conflicted beauty within Perfume Genius

No Shape. The music at times crackles with electricity, sometimes explodes into a firework of sound, sometimes evokes a classical concert hall or a massive cathedral. Indeed, the overall sound of the album in itself is a triumph, but its in Mike Hadreas lyrics and vocal delivery that the album truly shines. Hadreas approaches happiness, but its tinged with discomfort, an unsettled quality, the feeling that the box holding everything isnt big enough. Hadreas sings beautifully about both the joy and the struggle that comes with self-acceptance; both the fear of the beyond and the surety that there is none; both the saving force of love and the inadequacy of it. Its a passionate, poetic album that sticks with you long after the final, dissonant chords.  Dan Kok

18. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit  The Nashville Sound (Southeastern)

After a pair of mostly quiet, brilliant albums credited to Isbell alone,

The Nashville Sound found him officially working with his backing band in the studio for the first time since 2011s Here We Rest. Isbells songwriting is as rock solid as ever but with the full band on board this record is more stylistically and dynamically diverse. The quiet and pretty acoustic opener Last of My Kind is followed by the chugging hard rocker Cumberland Gap with its roaring guitars and soaring chorus. Along the way Isbell makes time for both the quietly seething White Mans World, where Isbell comes to grips with his privilege and his past, and for Hope the High Road, where he vents his frustration with America in 2017 while ultimately offering a positive message. The soft enjoy the time we have together sentiment of If We Were Vampires gives way to the blistering anger of Anxiety, where Isbell rages about the titular condition making it difficult for him to enjoy anything. The ten songs on the album are universally exceptional, regardless of style or mood, but these contrasts make each track hit even harder.  Chris Conaton

17. Father John Misty  Pure Comedy (Sub Pop)

While its perhaps a cliche to claim that an artist has created an album for our times, the singer/songwriter born Joshua Tillman did just that on his third album. Not only is

Pure Comedy a quantum leap in stylistic sophistication, its also perhaps the best and most lyrically direct social commentary album since the heady days of the Clash. In addition to songs targeting everything from the ubiquity of technology (Total Entertainment Forever) to human kindness and planetary conservation (When the God of Love Returns Therell Be Hell to Pay), Tillman wraps the compositions into an intoxicating blend of major-seventh chords, sumptuous strings and elegant piano. Its as if someone combined Elton Johns Madman Across the Water with Randy Newmans Good Old Boys and gift-wrapped it for the 21st century. In short, Father John Misty created possibly the most lyrically vital and sonically rich album of his generation.  Chris Ingalls

16. Fleet Foxes  Crack-Up (Nonesuch)

Its been six years since the previous Fleet Foxes album (

Helplessness Blues) and the long-awaited follow-up is hardly the sound of a band going through the motions. In fact, the dense indie folk created by Robin Pecknold and company is back with an even knottier, more inscrutable collection of songs. Crack-Up takes some minor cues from classic progressive rock in terms of long-form song structure, but the thick layers of acoustic guitar, primitive percussive rolls and gorgeous, cavernous production ensure that nobody will mistake this for Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Pecknolds voice absolutely soars over a variety of musical stylings ranging from quasi-Radiohead (Cassius) to soothing acoustic folk (If You Need to, Keep Time on Me). Crack-Up joins the ranks of albums like Homogenic, OK Computer and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot  works by eclectic, established artists who decided to push boundaries even further and subsequently produced masterpieces.  Chris Ingalls

15. Iglooghost  Neo Wax Bloom (Brainfeeder)

Iglooghosts first full-length album sounds like an ode to the joy of making music, even as it reportedly mentally exhausted its creator.

Neo Wax Bloom is a beat-heavy electronic production that owes much to classic releases from artists like Aphex Twin and Autechre but also sounds utterly of its time. Its construction is meticulous even as its execution is wild and rambunctious. That its an exhausting listen is to its credit, as producer Seamus Mallagh never gives the listener a second to breathe, shifting beats, adding and removing elements, and even pushing sampled vocals into the mix. First single Bug Thief is as characteristic as anything on the album, though perhaps the biggest surprise the album had in store once it released was that Bug Thief was positively conservative in its construction compared to songs like the skewered hip-hop of White Gum or the broken necks of God Grid. It may not be the most important album to be released this year, but theres a good chance its the most exciting.  Mike Schiller

14. The National  Sleep Well Beast (4AD)

An indie rock song about a turtleneck? Sounds like a ClickHole headline moments away from being published. Yet not only does the National make that concept work on its seventh studio outing,

Sleep Well Beast, but it also makes it sound like such a song was meant to be written. Turtleneck is just one of many bursts of energy on Sleep Well Beast, which more than cements the Nationals status as indies resident, baritoned sad-sacks. Sure, tracks like Guilty Party and Walk it Back indulge the bands mumbly side, but The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness and Day I Die feature some of the Nationals strongest rock songwriting, due in considerable part to Aaron Dessners guitar solo on the former and Bryan Devendorfs drums on the latter. In many ways, Sleep Well Beast is the album that should have followed what remains the Nationals triumph to this day, 2007s Boxer, but late isnt just better than never in this case: with music this good, the waiting hardly feels like it never happened at all.  Brice Ezell

13. St Vincent  Masseduction (Loma Vista)

Theres a way in which everything is now absorbed into the pop matrix these days, our vernacular and prosaic observations filtered through the algorithims of whats thrown at us. Annie Clark, always an awkward outlier layabout on the pop and indie fringes, thrust into minor paparazzi concern through a couple famous beaus, declares on the title track of

Masseduction Oh what a bore to be so adored. On her stunning LP, shes aware and disturbed enough by power dynamics to recognize their toxicity yet cant turn off what turns me on. What follows then is a superstar breakthrough that fills the freak royalty gaps left after the supernova implosion of the Bowie vessel, a pop album infectious enough to be anthemic and rich enough to leave you breathless and melancholy upon closer inspection of its meditations on addiction, overdose, loss, obsessive fetishization, et al. Its a record that hides clues in Charles Mingus and Nick Cave album titles or Jenny Holzer slogans, framing singles around Love and Rockets riffs, and featuring callbacks to previous songs, but its never beholden to its referents and emerges from the speakers as a true original. It also rocks, without the baggage of irony or Y chromosome purity to make that a less enjoyable aspect of a bright and wide-eyed, synth-heavy, angular confection from the year 2017.  Timothy Gabriele

12. Slowdive  Slowdive (Dead Oceans)

Slowdives first album in 22 years accomplished a rare feat among reunion records: It moved out of the shadow of the bands legacy without tarnishing it.

Slowdive was full of the soaring washes of sound and gorgeous arrangements the quintet were known for. But it was also the culmination of the members wealth of experiences in other projects over the intervening years. Bandleader Neil Halsteads well-honed knack for songcraft and melody, along with a newly-robust rhythm section, made Slowdive the bands most confident-sounding album to date. This was revisionist history done right, reversing the undeserved critical drubbing Slowdive got in the 90s and taking a bold new step toward a bright, shimmering future.  John Bergstrom

11. Algiers  The Underside of Power (Matador)

The fire and fury of Algiers was initially a welcome respite from the aggressively apolitical nature of American punk and indie rock, genres which seem intent on becoming more insular and self-absorbed even as the world burns down around them. Now, after a year in which political and social chaos is sadly becoming normalized, an album like

The Underside of Power feels necessary for ones sanity. Algiers mix of noise, punk and soul is as sharp as always, but the message feels more pointed and urgent here. Whereas they previously railed against why the status quo was what is was, Algiers now wonder aloud about what has to happen before we do something about it. They confront the horrors of 2017 America head-on with an intensity that can be uncomfortable at times. The Underside of Power is necessary listening, if you want to keep your sanity.  Kevin Korber

10. Jlin  Black Origami (Planet Mu)

On just her second album, Jlin has proven that shes a master of time. In her sonic structures the rhythmic backbone never ceases to amaze, taking on a multidimensional quality as the beats surround you. Tribal-esque notions, synth percussion, upbeat tempos and repetitive loops all contribute to an ever-expanding maximalist perspective.

Black Origami is a record that manages to encompass the essence of rhythm as it is understood through centuries of musical tradition to todays reality, and re-configures it via a unifying process. Reflecting on the word origami in the title of this piece, its impossible not to find the common treats that the paper artform has to Jlins music, as she folds these concepts into a complex offering and moves them about. The result is a record that works at multiple dense layers that combine to appear as a futuristic treatise on the fascinating realm of rhythm and its capabilities.  Spyros Stasis

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9. Four Tet  New Energy (Text)



Kieran Hebdens, AKA Four Tet, musical approach seems to work increasingly outside of the mainstream, with new releases being dropped on a whim rather than according to any release strategy. As with previous release

Morning/Evening, New Energy took even his most ardent follower by surprise. Arriving with little fanfare, the album is easily one of his best and most enjoyable releases since 2010s There Is Love in You. Four Tet has will lay his fingers upon your soul with the simplest of melodies, as on superb first single Two Thousand and Seventeen. Elsewhere, there are the recognisable Four Tet traits like the stretched female vocals on Daughter, the expansive synth washes of You Are Loved, and the fidgety keyboards of Scientists, but New Energy also finds him stretching his musical muscles. Theres the trancey SW9 9SL, the more ambient Melodies and the gorgeous Lush, with each layer precisely and cleanly arranged. Four Tet continues to march to the beat of his own drum and New Energy proves that it would be wise to keep up.  Paul Carr







8. Kelela  Take Me Apart (Warp)



To say that Kelela burst onto the scene in 2017 is inaccurate. The D.C. native launched

Cut 4 Me in 2013, a mixtape which earned her deserved accolades from critics and peers alike, followed by the similarly well-received EP Hallucinogen in 2015. Hers is a career forged from years of experience,and influenced by dalliances with a variety of different musical styles and genres along the way

Perhaps her debut LP,

Take Me Apart, is the confluence of all of these styles and influences, or perhaps its something new entirely. This is as close as Kelela has come to a true masterpiece in her career thus far; a work of restrained genius, a record of robotic, space-age slickness, but one which retains heart and soul, at all times.

Take a song like LMK  one of the standouts from Kelelas debut  a piece of music within which irresistibly soulful hooks swim and wriggle their way through pools of futuristic sounds. This is less a collision of styles, and more of an evolution  the next step, if you will. R&B is moving forward, and Kelela is leading the way. 

John Burns

7. The XX  I See You (Young Turks)

And for the XXs third trick, watch as they dazzle you with florescent lights, singalong melodies and undeniable hooks! But seriously,

I See You, Album No. 3 from the London trio, is easily the groups most accessible thus far, continuing the upward trend of their releases with a fuller, more complete sound. Sure, they made their bones by living in the World of Minimalism, but as the band grows so does the excess and these ten songs spotlight a group thats not afraid to expand beyond the skeletons for which theyre so brilliantly known.

Opener Dangerous cements that reality with its bright electronic horns and Ibiza-loving, rave-inducing percussion to which sitting still is an impossibility. Shoot. Even their signature spareness evolves from rainy English afternoons to sweaty Brazilian nights on songs like A Violent Noise, which adheres to the strobe-light-

ification of todays pop music, and Lips, which is quite possibly the sexiest song the XX has produced, tropical groove and all. Plus, where else can you find such an infectious use of Hall & Oates I Cant Go for That (No Can Do) than the way this trio inventively weaves the 1981 hit into their On Hold? Its a victory in vision.

Its also a microcosm of why

I See You is so addictive. The XX have always known how to keep you hooked, yet here, they make it easier for your electro-pop-hating, jaded-music-fan uncle to grab onto it as well. Ill put on a show, singer Romy Madley-Croft croons on the heartbreakingly beautiful Performance. With I See You, the lights have never been this intense, the future never brighter. That says something for a group thats lived almost exclusively withing the glare of a spotlight.  Colin McGuire





6. Sampha  Process (Young Turks)

Somehow, Sampha is only 29-years-old. His album,

Process, is the work of someone with more knowledge, more experience, more pain than anyone his age should have to have lived. Every note he sings, he sings with purpose, which he must, because his songs arent afraid to take on race, mortality, and insecurity. Its an album written in the wake of his mothers death, which is dealt with in both metaphorical and literal fashion. Tracks like Blood on Me and Under showcase that he knows his way around a beat, and Kora Sings has the sort of energy that albums from artists in mourning can sometimes lack. That said, the albums centerpiece is the quietly brilliant piano ballad (Nobody Knows Me) Like the Piano, an ode to his mother that has a tendency to linger in your head for days. With Process, Sampha has arrived.  Mike Schiller

5. LCD Soundsystem  American Dream (DFA/Columbia)

It was hard to know what to expect when James Murphy announced the return of LCD Soundsystem and a new studio album for the first time in six years. The anticipation was a mix of hype and cynicism, as LCD Soundsystem had ostensibly been retired. Happily,

American Dream is a spectacular comeback that shatters even the most optimistic expectations. American Dream sounds like 2017 has felt: woozy and anxious but spaced-out and funky. The long, hypnotic rhythms are very Remain in Light but they also owe much to early 90s club, and the work also borrows liberally from new wave and disco influences. Tight as hell throughout, American Dream is catchy and accessible but also bewildered and perplexed about life circa 2017 (which is understandable). Murphy rides that line many of us are trying to balance: giving a fuck about the craziness that surrounds us while trying to keep detached enough to retain sanity.  Chris Gerard

4. Zola Jesus  Okovi (Sacred Bones)



Nika Rosa Danilova has been flirting with greatness for the past decade, her unique blend of darkwave and Kate Bush-derived art pop established her as a burgeoning talent over the course of five albums. Her soaring, powerful alto voice lends great strength to her dark-toned arrangements and that combination of voice, instrumentation, and songwriting reaches a new peak on

Okovi, Danilovas strongest work to date. Songs like Soak, Witness, and Siphon touch on dark themes, but a sense of empathy lurks beneath the seeming bleakness. Detecting a sense of humanity can be challenging with music that is this stark, but aided by sterling production and gorgeous string arrangements, not to mention a sensational vocal performance, Okovis visceral power is undeniable. Its ironic that on a record whose Latvian title translates as shackles, Zola Jesus sounds liberated.  Adrien Begrand

3. Fever Ray  The Plunge (Mute/Rabid)

Fever Rays first album in eight years boasts the same wealth of texture and melody that made her 2009 debut so enthralling, cementing her status as one of electronic musics most consistently innovative and thrilling artists. Unlike its more stoic and esoteric predecessor,

Plunge is immediately physical, at once both amorous and confrontational. For perhaps the first time in her career, Karin Dreijer relies little on the demonic, pitch-shifted vocal effects that were her calling card, opting instead for subtler forms of distortion and noise. Amidst the shrieking synths and twisted sonic machinery, her unmistakable howl propels the music from within and she uses her vast expressive range to evoke lustful unrest. The album doubles as political music of the best sort, weaponizing queer sexuality and gender nonconformity against global authoritarianism and hegemony. When Plunge abruptly surfaced near the tail-end of 2017, it became abundantly clear that it was the record many of us had been needing all year.  Andrew Dorsett

2. Lorde  Melodrama (Republic)



Lordes 2013 debut

Pure Heroine occupied a unique spot in popular music at the time, a minimalist pop effort emerging like a vaccine against EDMs waning rampage. Melodrama, however, represents the full realization of Pure Heroines promise. In strokes as vibrant and lush as the albums Van Gogh-esque cover, Lorde dissects and elevates the experiences of young people living in an increasingly bleak and uncertain era. Indeed, as a recently circulating meme astutely points out, rates of teen depression are higher than ever, yet their very real anxieties are routinely dismissed by those in power.

Opulent and ambitious though it may be, Lordes antidote to such societal ills avoids self-indulgence. These tracks pepper their wisdom with plenty of revelry and catharsis, treating the listener to everything from house-inspired anthems (Green Light) to vampiric seductions (Homemade Dynamite) and introspective reveries (The Louvre).

Melodrama is an aspirational statement on what pop music can be, among the finest contributions to the genre weve gotten this decade.  Andrew Dorsett

1. Kendrick Lamar  DAMN. (Top Dawg Entertainment)

Viewed from a certain angle, Kendrick Lamar clearly dominates hip-hop in 2017. Which means he dominates popular music. Its partly due to his ubiquity  commercial success, a massive tour, key guest appearances for other hot artists (SZA, Thundercat, Future). But its also due to his artistic supremacy  DAMN takes all of Lamars strengths and encapsulaes them within a carefully composed exploration of the good/evil dynamic within us, individually and collectively. Continually merging autobiography, prophecy and social commentary  not to mention performing no-holds-barred rap skills showcases  DAMN tells its story in complex ways. Its a multi-faceted tale at every step  the story of humankinds inner turmoil, of Americas brutal history (and present), of crises both spiritual and physical. Track by track it explores our notions of FEAR, PRIDE, LUST, LOVE, GOD, etc. in a way that feels like an outgrowth of our collective crises and anxieties and lends clarity to them while highlighting the inescapable conundrums. Lamar leans into every feeling, finding gratifying sounds and styles to enunciate them precisely. The depth that lies in the story of hip-hop itself is also fully present, from DJ Kid Capri serving as a one-man Greek chorus of sorts to the current-day talent of Mike WiLL Made-It, Rihanna, Sounwave, DJ Dahi and many others. Lamars work is an unstoppable force of tenderness and fire.  Dave Heaton
Frances most celebrated home-grown detective character is Georges Simenons Inspector Jules Maigret, an aging Paris homicide detective who, phlegmatically and unflappably, tracks down murderers to their lairs at the center of the human heart. Hes invariably icon-ified as a shadowy figure smoking an eternal pipe, less fancy than Sherlock Holmes curvy calabash but getting the job done in its laconic, unpretentious, middle-class manner.

This iconic figure is played by another icon, the equally phlegmatic and dogged Jean Gabin, in two late-50s films directed by Jean Delannoy, Maigret Sets a Trap (1958) and Maigret and the St. Fiacre Case (1959) (both available from Kino Lorber). The shadowy pipe features prominently in the opening credits of both, and both give us Maigret from the back before we see him full on.

The first film, based on a 1955 novel, concerns a serial killer who draws comparisons with Jack the Ripper by stabbing random brunettes in the dark on the streets of Paris. Realizing that hes dealing with an arrogant killer who sends messages directly to Maigret, the Inspector sets a trap by arresting a false actor and staging a highly public re-enactment while dozens of women decoys, trained in self-defense, wander the streets under watchful eyes.

It almost works for highly coincidental reasons that quickly narrow the investigation to a woman (Annie Girardot) cheating on her husband (Jean Desailly). Disappointingly if unsurprisingly, it turns out to be womens fault when a man goes off the rails.



Michel Auclair, Paul Frankeur, and Jean Gabin in Maigret tend un piege (1958) ( Photo12/Marcel Dole / IMDB)

The second film finds Maigret returning to the home village he left as a child. Hes been summoned for help by the local aristocratic widow (Valentine Tessier), whos received a letter stating that shell be dead before Ash Wednesday mass is over. Far from an urban police procedural, this setting provides more of an Agatha Christie-type mansion murder as a hothouse of suspects give each other the eye.

These conventional mysteries dont feel like anyones masterpieces yet, like Maigret, they get the job done in professional fashion. Gabins Maigret lets everyone else emote, sometimes hysterically, until he vents his own anger in the final revelations. Louis Page shoots the proceedings in clean black and white, the camera sometimes swerving and gliding as if on cat feet. Paul Misraki scores the first with some attention to Paris accordeons, while Jean Prodromides scores the second with unobtrusive tradition.

One particular felicity that will be lost on most English-language viewers is that Michel Audiards dialogue loves vernacular phrases delivered rapidly by everyone in a crossfire. For example, one character describes his influence over the countess and Maigret suggests he has beaucoup de cendre, which literally means a lot of ashes  a grim pun on Ash Wednesday. On this and other idioms, the subtitles can do nothing but flatten them to the simplest meaning.

With their moments of profanity and a glimpse of bare breasts in the first film, the movies show that French popular cinema was looser than Hollywood in terms of censorship at this time. The first film even has a man pretending to use a urinal, something unknown in 50s-era Hollywood, which didnt even like to admit that bathrooms might have toilets.

One curiosity for the modern viewer is that both films have characters strongly coded as effeminate gay stereotypes. One such character is a mamas boy and interior decorator who hasnt consummated his marriage and the other is a fussy art freak who hangs out in an underground dive (the Hula Hoop) hosted by a woman in a tux. Apparently some things could still only be suggested without going all the way.

Both Kino Lorber Blu-rays deliver excellent prints with trailers as the only extras.
Artist biographies written for a popular audience necessarily involve compromise. On the one hand, we are only interested in the lives of artists because we are intrigued, engaged, and moved by their work. The confrontation with a work of art is an uncanny experience. We are drawn to, enraptured and entranced by, absorbed in the contemplation of an object. Even the performative arts (music, theater, dance) have an objective quality to them. In watching a play, we are not simply watching people do things; we are attending to the play as a thing that is more than the collection of actions performed. The play seems to have an existence beyond the human endeavor that instantiates it. It is simultaneously more and less than human: more because its superordinate to human action and less because its a mere object, lacking the evident subjectivity we prize in the human being.

When we are struck by the power of a work of art, we are enveloped by the strange power that objects can hold over usan emergent and seemingly impossible subjectivity arising from its objecthood. Often, we ignore objects and treat them as mere equipment, tools that we employ in the execution of our daily tasks. Heidegger points out that it is when these tools break down that they become objects (German: Gegenstandliterally, that which stands against one). Objects, in the strong sense, are obstacles; they oppose us, hinder our progress through the world. When the hammer (Heideggers favorite example) breaks down, we fix it (thus returning it to the status of equipment) or we toss it away (thus removing it as an obstacle). For the most part, in this line of thinking, we dont deal with objects in the world but rather with equipment.

Artworks, however, are rather special entities. As Kant recognized in the Third Critique, we approach artworks with a particular kind of disinterest; that is, we dont expect anything practical from the artwork  we dont expect it to behave as though it were equipment. The artwork retains its objecthood and part of our engagement with the artwork involves our acknowledging the hidden reserve, the uncanny presence, the disturbing intrusion of objects. At its most intense, the experience of the object can be unsettling; often, we just find it somewhat puzzling. Why, we ask, does this poem move us to tears? It cant be just the subject matter insofar as that is generally familiar and treated in other situations that move us not at all. Why, we wonder, does this particular sculpture seem to make a claim upon us, seem to demand that we not only observe it but somehow accommodate ourselves to it?

One typical recourse for our concern here is to turn toward the artist herself. If the power of the object frightens us, or even if it merely confuses us in its ability to move our emotions and titillate our senses, then perhaps it is better to attribute that power not to the object as such but to the person ostensibly behind the object. Most of us realize this is something of a dodge and yet it remains an enticing temptation to explain (away) the power of the artwork by grappling with the artist, seeing her as a personperhaps noble, perhaps debased, but a person all the same. This is often the source of the allure of the artist biography.

On the other hand, most readers are uninterested or unprepared for a technical discussion of the work. Besides, that often merely leads us back to the discomfiting intrusion of the object. Moreover, generally people have trouble resisting the prurient details of the lives of others. And artists tend to have more opportunities for compromising personal situations insofar as their bad behavior is dismissed as the price of genius. Hence, the compromise. We want to come to grips with the mysterious pull of the art but in doing so we turn to the person of the artist, which often leads us away from the art. Striking the right balance is difficult and sometimes impossible.

In her 2016 book, You Must Change Your Life: The Story of Rainer Maria Rilke and Auguste Rodin, Rachel Corbett compounds the difficulty by examining the intertwined lives of two artists of two different generations and nationalities who worked in two starkly different media. The book, now being released in paperback, has received glowing accolades from numerous sources and won the 2016 Marfield Prize. Obviously, theres a substantial audience for this kind of book and this kind of writing. Ones opinion of it, however, hinges upon what one seeks in an artist biography. If youre looking for a narrative that outlines the various entwinements of two great artists, this should be an appealing read. If youre looking to explore the nature of the art they produced, to come to grips with the strange power it exerts, you would do best to look elsewhere.

Corbett divides the book into three parts. The first, Poet and Sculptor, traces the development of both artists from childhood to maturity (or, for Rilke, early maturity) prior to their first encounter. Here we learn about Rodins struggle for recognition, his alienation from the establishment, his artistic awakening conditioned by his work as a laborer, and his penchant for becoming romantically involved with his models and students. Meanwhile, we follow Rilkes transition out of an adolescence overshadowed by a controlling mother who longed to be considered a member of the social elite, his struggles with military school, his marriage, and the contract into which he entered to produce a monograph on Rodin.

Part Two, Master and Disciple, comprising the bulk of the books pages, gets to the central concern of the book: the relationship between these two artists of very differing temperaments that nonetheless for a time found an artistic kinship. There are several intriguing anecdotes in this section, including the first encounter between Rilke and the woman who took care of Rodin and had his child, Rose Beuret; she apparently didnt take kindly to Rodins disinterest in her at dinner (he failed to even introduce her to his new acolyte). The lesson that Rilke seems to take most to heart from Rodin (both from his impromptu lectures and from the manner in which he lived his life) is the axiom that ones work must take precedence over ones very life: travailler, toujours travailler.

Corbett reveals how this mantra of Rodins served both to invigorate Rilkes creative life and impede his personal relationships. Perhaps the most compelling aspect of Corbetts book is her refusal to allow either Rilke or Rodin off the hook. Neither figure comes across as particularly sympathetic; indeed, both seem rather boorish, self-involved, careless of the feelings and needs of others. Perhaps this is not surprisingmost biographies of this sort seem to emphasize the trope of the difficult artistbut Corbetts reluctance to justify or condone their behavior and neglect forces the reader to consider the role of others in the lives of artists (the other as supporter, patron, lover, defender). Eventually, Rilke becomes Rodins secretary but this leads to their falling out over a silly misunderstanding. Corbett suggests that this was a necessary separationa Romantic glorification of the departure of the Prodigal Sonand integral to Rilkes artistic independence.

The third section, the brief Art and Empathy, serves as a denouement, documenting Rodins death and touches lightly upon Rilkes extended affair with the Polish painter Baladine Klossowska. Judging from the title, Corbett probably intended this section to round off the book through a final discussion of a thread that she attempted to weave throughout her narrative: the development of the concept of empathy and its relation to artistic reception and creation. This, however, is one of the starkest weaknesses of the book. Corbett provides only the scantiest space to a rather unilluminating discussion of empathy. As such, it serves as another in a string of attempts to provide a contextualizing atmosphere to her narrative by detailing the state of art in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This does surprisingly little to clarify the relationship between Rodin and Rilke or to provide any real insight into the creative works of either.

Thus, even as an exploration of the lives of Rilke and Rodin, the book has several flaws. The writing is uneven, shifting between an objective (and rather dry) accounting of the details of their relationship and a rather saccharine adulatory mode that shades into the realm of historical fiction writing at times in its attempts to create a kind of emotional intensity. These melodramatic moments often involve Paula Becker, a painter-friend of Rilkes wife, the sculptor Clara Westoff. She seems to be a fascinating figure in her own right but she has little to do with the relationship between Rilke and Rodin (they both knew her) and Corbett seems to reserve Becker for injections of pathos. It all feels a little exploitative. Westoff, certainly the more pertinent figure, provides a more interesting angle for consideration insofar as her artistic work was often sacrificed on the altar of Rilkes career.

I suppose what I found most disappointing about You Must Change Your Life is that it tries to do so many things at once and, in that endeavor, does rather little beyond presenting a not-altogether-compelling narrative of a series of encounters between two great artists. There are many enticing possibilities here: a cultural and philosophical consideration of empathy as a way of connecting with artworks as objects with an uncanny, emergent simulacrum of subjectivity (one that may preclude, at least for Rilke, actual human connection); an investigation into the costs (mostly to women) of the successful creative careers of established artists (mostly men); an exploration of the manner in which one art form inflects another. That last possibility is sorely missed in this book.

Rodin once claimed that Edward Steichens photographs of the Balzac sculpture would make the world understand it. This is a stunning claim. A viable path to the comprehension of one artwork is through the contemplation of another. Certainly, Rilkes poetry, inflected as it was by Rodins influence, exemplifies this kind of trans-medial essence but the reader will only get the merest hint of the consequences of this connection in Corbetts book and hardly any discussion of what that means for our understanding of Rilke or Rodin. And so the artwork as object, obdurate in its refusal to reveal the mystery of its intimations of an affective subjectivity, remains beyond our grasp; anecdote is forced to stand in for comprehension.
Watchdog and Public Service reporter

Thad Moore is a reporter on The Post and Couriers Watchdog and Public Service team and a graduate of the University of South Carolina. To share tips securely, reach Moore via ProtonMail at thadmoore@protonmail.com or on Signal at 843-214-6576.
The Carnival Sunshine, shown here moored in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, underwent a $155 million renovation in 2013 that added an additional 182 staterooms. Carnival Cruise Line said Thursday the Sunshine will call Charleston its home port beginning in 2019. File/Provided
For the second time, the Court of Appeals decided to reverse the murder conviction of Devin Jamel Johnson. Both times, the decision to reverse Johnson's murder convictions has come down to the trial courts' usage of a single legal theory: "the hand of one is the hand of all." Read moreS.C. Court of Appeals overturns murder conviction in Charleston case  again
The voters have spoken, and the Beaufort County Council has a lot of work to do. On Nov. 8, four new members were voted onto the council and four were reelected. We welcome David Bartholomew, Tab Tabernik, Paula Brown and Tom Reitz to the council and look forward to working together to solve Read moreCommentary: Stability brings higher expectations in Beaufort County
There was a combination of superlative hysteria and political opportunism behind the warnings about the end of democracy leading up to last weeks elections, but it wasnt inconceivable that wed have flare-ups of violence and intimidation, that people who embrace the fantasy that the 2020 e Read moreEditorial: Election 2022 gave everybody something to celebrate
Pelosi announced in a spirited speech on the House floor that she will step aside after leading Democrats for nearly 20 years and in the aftermath of the brutal attack on her husband, Paul, last month in their San Francisco home. Read moreNancy Pelosi won't seek leadership role, plans to stay in Congress
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Perhaps its because of a recent visit there, but Palau has been on my mind quite a bit lately. So please let me introduce you to the island g Read moreMeet Palau
The possibility of settlement again hovers over the foreign labor case between the Guam Contractors Association and the U.S. government.

Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood of the District Court of Guam ordered the parties to determine by tomorrow whether they are able to reconcile out of court.

The possibility of a settlement has been a factor from the very beginning of this case, but settlement attempts have failed at least twice. The plan in the next few days is to develop an offer amenable to both the government on one side and the various contractors on the other side, according to attorney Jeff Joseph, counsel for the contractors.

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At the same time, Joseph is confident his party will triumph in litigation, should settlement again fall by the wayside.

Tydingco-Gatewood offered to select a federal judge to oversee mediation at the eve of yesterday's hearing.

There are two motions under the court's consideration: one from the plaintiffs seeking a preliminary injunction and the other from the federal government seeking dismissal of the case.

The sheer number of H-2B visa denials beginning in 2015 has reduced the foreign labor force on Guam to just a few dozen from more than 1,000 in years past. GCA, along with several contractors, filed suit against federal officials in October 2016 in response to the denials.

Feds: No changes in the process

A lengthy portion of yesterday's hearing was dedicated to discussions between the chief judge and attorney Glenn Girdharry, who is representing the U.S. government, over the federal position that there have been no changes to the adjudication process for H-2B petitions.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency that oversees H-2B petitions, maintains there is no change in how applicants are gauged on their need for temporary foreign labor.

Industry insiders and local government officials have argued that Guam is in a unique position compared to the mainland United States. The island's proximity from other U.S. states and territories, and increasing military construction projects produce a landscape in need of skilled labor, primarily in construction.

This has led to repeated requests for H-2B workers to fill the void in the local work force, and for decades Guam had enjoyed a more than 95 percent approval rate. The reported "change" manifesting a few years ago is nothing more than USCIS exercising its scrutiny as it sees that the petitions do not qualify under the definitions of temporary labor, according to Girdharry.

But the sudden shift is nonetheless concerning, according to Tydingco-Gatewood, who repeatedly pressed Girdharry about changes in processing procedures for H-2B petitions only to be met by insistence that no changes in the process have taken place, only in the results.

Feeling the sting

Contractors have been feeling the sting of the H-2B crisis through increased competition for local workers and higher labor costs. Bernie Maranan, the general manager of BME & Sons, stated that his contingency plan should the situation continue was simply to close shop.

Greg Massey, the administrator of the local labor department's Alien Labor Processing and Certification Division, said foreign workers are needed now more than ever as about $5.7 billion in construction projects over the next five years is estimated to require about 4,600 workers per year on top of the 5,000 or so local labor force.

Joseph is an immigration attorney based in Denver, Colorado, and said the case in Guam is the first of its kind he'd seen. Tydingo-Gatewood called court proceedings akin to first impressions, and the relative newness of the case appeared to lead to some uncertainty.

For preliminary injunction, the plaintiffs are seeking to have the court order their petitions back to USCIS for reconsideration under the condition that the agency conduct its review independent of temporary need.

"They may deny on other grounds but temporary need would not be a basis for denial until this lawsuit is resolved," Joseph said.

Plaintiffs also want the court to honor temporary labor certifications already approved by the governor in 2015 and 2016, which serve as recommendations that temporary labor is needed.

But as Girdharry argued, what is considered a "meaningful" remedy to the plaintiff is not "the same as legal" and that the action requested is not permitted because the certifications are for a specific time frame  the year approved  and do not apply to 2017.

But if this is the issue, then the plaintiffs are willing to redo the labor certifications, Joseph said.

Also pending in court is a class-action certification, which would open the lawsuit to all contractors.
Asia-Pacific Precision Agriculture Market by Technology (Guidance System, Remote Sensing, Variable Rate Technology), by Offering (Hardware, Software, Services), by Application (Yield Monitoring, Field Mapping, Crop Scouting, Weather Tracking & Forecasting, Irrigation Management, Inventory Management, Farm Labor Management and Financial Management) and by Region - Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecasts (20162021)

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Asia-Pacific Precision Agriculture Market was worth USD 0.66 billion in 2016 and is estimated to be growing at a rate of 18.9%, to reach USD 1.57 billion by 2021. The practice of precision agriculture allows farmers to improve production and get better yields with decreased human effort and decreased wastage of resources. Decisions regarding agricultural inputs such as applying nutrients, soil humidity and weather pattern research and diversity in rotating crops are made easy for farmers with the use of precision farming.View Full Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/asia-pacific-precision-agriculture-market-3651/ Farming can be automated with very less amount of human effort with the use of precision farming. The major component in this approach is the use of sensors and drones with GPS guidance monitor the fields and relay the information to the farmers using information technology. Tractors and harvesting machines can automated and driven with GPS guidance with increased precision and reduction of wastage of resources.Download Free Sample Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/asia-pacific-precision-agriculture-market-3651/request-sample Increased emphasis of efficient farming and to increase the productivity with optimized resources is expected to drive the precision agriculture market. Increasing adoption of smartphones and the cost and yield benefits of using precision farming in extensive farming are also driving the market growth. However, technical glitches occurring in the use of drones and sensors and high costs of equipment are restricting the market for precision farming.Market SegmentationOffering Hardware Sensing and Monitoring Devices Software ServicesTechnology Remote Sensing Guidance System Variable Rate TechnologyApplication Yield Monitoring Field MappingCrop Scouting Weather Tracking & Forecasting Irrigation Management Inventory Management Farm Labor Management Financial ManagementThe Asia-Pacific market for precision agriculture is divided into China, India, Japan, Australia and South Korea. Asia-pacific is the fastest growing market for precision farming because of developing countries such as India and China which are rapidly adopting new technology based farming practices. Moreover, India and China has vast agricultural land providing many opportunities for the expansion of precision agriculture market.Some of the major companies which manufacture the equipment required in the precision agriculture market are Trimble, Inc. (U.S.), Deere & Company (U.S.), AJ Junction, Inc. (U.S.), Leica Geosystems (Switzerland), AgSmarts Inc., Monsanto Company, CropMetrics LLC and Dickey-John Corporation.About Us:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, we cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. Our analyst team comprises expert professionals in market research, who with their collective knowledge and skillset dedicatedly serve clients from various industries and regions.Contact:Abhishek ShuklaSales Manager (International Business Development)Market Data ForecastDirect Line: +1-888-702-9626Mobile: +91 998 555 0206Mail: abhishek@ marketdataforecast.com
Asia Pacific Soil Moisture Monitoring System Market by Type (Granular Matrix Sensors System, FullStop System, Tensiometers System), by Application (Environmental protection, Agriculture, Sandstorm Warning and Others) and by Region - Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecasts (20162021)

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The Asia Pacific Soil Moisture Monitoring System Market was worth USD xx million in 2016, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of xx%, to reach USD xx million by 2021. Soil Moisture Monitoring System uses several types of sensors to measure water content of the soil or the amount of water available for the plant roots. By monitoring the moisture, water requirements for the soil can be predicted and can apply water only when required.View Full Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/asia-pacific-soil-moisture-monitoring-system-market-4144/ Buy Now @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/cart/buy-now/asia-pacific-soil-moisture-monitoring-system-market-4144/ Excessive use of water for irrigation result in increased costs for pumping and also soil lose its nutrients in the form of leaching. This in turn results in reduced crop yields. Also, monsoons became unpredictable due to global warming. Farmers have to rely on ground water for irrigation purposes. There is a need to produce better yields with less use of water for irrigation.Download Free Sample Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/asia-pacific-soil-moisture-monitoring-system-market-4144/request-sample Scarcity of water across the globe has resulted in high costs of irrigation. The need for optimal use of water resources in irrigation has increased the demand for soil moisture monitoring systems. Increasing research and development activities, availability of advanced technologies for agricultural use and government initiatives are expected to drive the market. However, lack of awareness among the farmers and high cost of equipment are restraining the market growth.Soil Moisture Monitoring System Market Segmentation:1) By Typea) Granular Matrix Sensors Systemb) FullStop Systemc) Tensiometers System2) By Applicationa) Environmental Protectionb) Agriculturec) Sandstorm Warningd) OthersBased on geography, the Asia Pacific market is categorized into China, India, Japan, Australia and South Korea. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing segment due to the growing awareness among farmers regarding the use of various technologies in agriculture. It is also due to the largest agricultural land available in India and China.Some of the major players in this region are Stevens Water Monitoring Systems, Hebei Fei Meng electric Technology, Campbell Scientific, China Huayun Group, McCrometer, Isaacs & Associates, Eco-Drip, and Lindsay.About Market Data Forecast:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, they cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. From all-encompassing umbrella markets to extremely specific niche markets covering all the major regions across the globe as part of the research scope, their research services offer one of a kind specialities with competitive pricing options. For more information, kindly visit, www.marketdataforecast.com Contact:Abhishek ShuklaSales Manager (International Business Development)Market Data ForecastDirect Line: +1-888-702-9626Mobile: +91 998 555 0206Mail: abhishek@ marketdataforecast.com
PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 14:00:14

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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Aston Bay Holdings Ltd.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Toronto, ON (FSCWire) - Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. (TSX Venture:BAY). has issued a press release with the following headline:Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. Announces Appointment of Alan King to Advisory Board and Granting of Stock OptionsTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Aston Bay Holdings Ltd., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Aston Bay Holdings Ltd.Source: Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. (TSX Venture: BAY)Date: December 11, 2017Time: 8:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for CIBT Education Group Inc.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCWire) - CIBT Education Group Inc. (TSX:MBA). has issued a press release with the following headline:CIBT Named One of Top 100 Most Profitable Companies in B.C by Business in Vancouver NewspaperTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on CIBT Education Group Inc., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/CIBT Education Group Inc.Source: CIBT Education Group Inc. (TSX: MBA, OTCQX: MBAIF, ISIN: CA17163Y1025)Date: December 11, 2017Time: 7:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of CIBT Education Group Inc. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
Global Medical Robots Market

PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 13:10:23

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Kemp House,152  160 City Road,London EC1V 2NXLead Marketing+1-866-598-1553

Medical Robots will enable the surgeons to perform surgeries with high precision. Medical robotics is a new and an emerging field of science. There are different medical applications that emerged such as laboratory robots, teleconsultation, telesurgery, rehabilitation robots, remote surgery, surgical robots, to assist deaf and the blind. Medical robots will be used in surgeries to reduce infection risk. Due to the usage of medical robots risks of patients is reduced and accuracy of surgeons will be increased.Medical robots market driven by mainly their acceptance in diversified fields such as an interventional cardiology, neurology, and orthopaedic surgery, among others provides gainful opportunities for the manufacturers in the market. Physicians were assisted by the medical robots to attain precise results in the complex surgeries. Rise in innovative technologies in medical field drive the growth of medical robots market. Need of technical professionals to perform surgeries and being more expensive are the major constraints in the medical robots market.A sample of this report is available upon request @The medical robots market is segmented on the basis of product type, application, enabling technologies, end user, and geography.Based on product type, the global medical robots market is segmented into Robotic Systemso Surgical Robotso Rehabilitation Robotso Non-invasive Radiosurgery Robotso Hospital and Pharmacy automation robotso Pharmacy automation robotso IV RobotsBased on application area, the global medical robots market is segmented into Neurology Orthopaedic Cardiology Laparoscopic OthersBased on enabling technologies, the global medical robots market is segmented into Gesture Control Machine Vision Speech/Voice Recognition Tactile SensorsBased on end-user, the global medical robots market is segmented into Hospitals Rehabilitation Centres Diagnostic Centres Radiological Centres Research LabsTo view TOC of this report is available upon request @Currently, robotic surgeries are performed for gynecological, urological, orthopedic, neurological, and gastrointestinal diseases .The scope and application of surgical robots usage is expected to increase over the years owing to their accuracy. Many leading medical device manufacturers enter into the medical robots market by acquiring small-scale surgical robotic system manufacturers. For instance, in 2013, Stryker Corporation has acquired Mako Surgical Corp. and in 2016, Smith & Nephew has acquired Blue Belt Technology that are popular surgical robotic system manufacturers for orthopedic surgeries. Rehabilitation robotics is yet another emerging concept in medical robotics and computer-assisted surgery industry. The involvement of robotic technology in the treatment and rehabilitation of paralyzed and amputees taken the healthcare sector to another level. Several companies now focus on developing advanced robotic prosthetics, orthotics, and exoskeleton. Increase in demand for advanced treatment methods for various severe diseases, increase in prevalence of cardiac and neurological disorders and cancer provides robust market growth. Technological advancements and applications of these technologies in critical surgeries propels medical robots market over the forecast period. Favourable government regulations boost healthcare assistive robots market growth. For instance, Technology-related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act (1988) stimulated the development of assistive technology devices by providing funds to the states. Growing awareness coupled with increase in efforts to promote robotic research will fuel growth of the medical robots market.Need more information about this report @Based on geographical regions medical robots market is segmented as 5 regions: Latin America, The Middle East and Africa, North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.North America dominates the global medical robots market over the forecast period owing to increase in awareness in the physicians towards use of innovative technologies creates lucrative opportunities for medical robots manufacturers. Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow with high CAGR due to evolving healthcare infrastructure in the region driving the medical robots market. In Japan, favourable government initiatives such as robot revolution realization council provides regulatory reform and support to develop highest level of artificial intelligence technologies in healthcare are expected to contribute growth for the medical robots market in Asia-Pacific region.Some of the players in medical robots market are Stryker Corporation (U.S.), Vecna Robotics (U.S.), Varian Medical Systems (U.S.), Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (U.S.), Kirbey lester (U.S.), Hocoma AG (Switzerland), Houston Medical Robotics, Inc. (U.S.), Kinova Robotics (Canada), IRobot Corporation (U.S.)and Otto Bock Healthcare (Germany).Get access to full summary @About Precision Business InsightsPrecision Business Insights is one of the leading market research and business consulting firm, which follow a holistic approach to solve needs of the clients. We adopt and implement proven research methodologies to achieve better results. We help our clients by providing actionable insights and strategies to make better decisions. We provide consulting, syndicated and customised market research services based on our client needs.Precision Business Insights mission is to provide high-quality market research reports and generate key insights to our clients. PBIs approachable strategies are to help clients to make key decisions for business growth.Precision Business Insights vision is to become most valued partner to fortune 500 companies by providing agile, accurate, and actionable market insightsContact to Precision Business Insights,Email: sales@ precisionbusinessinsights.com Website @ https://www.precisionbusinessinsights.com
PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 19:36:43

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HONG KONG, Dec 11, 2017 - The inaugural Yidan Prize laureates, Professor Carol S. Dweck of Stanford University and Ms Vicky Colbert, founder and director of Fundacion Escuela Nueva, Colombia, were presented with awards on Sunday ( Dec.10) at the Yidan Prize 2017 Award Presentation Ceremony in Hong Kong. Each of the Yidan laureates will receive HK$30 million in recognition of their distinguished contributions to global education, and to help fund their future work.Professor Dweck, Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, received the Yidan Prize for Education Research. Her groundbreaking research on the power of the "growth mindset", based upon the belief that intelligence is not fixed and can be developed over time, has become an influential concept in the field of education."It is a great honor to receive the Yidan Prize for Education Research and I accept it on behalf of my extraordinary students and colleagues. It is their work as much as mine. It is critical for educators to know that we cannot nourish the mind without the heart. We cannot expect good learning - joyful and effective learning - to happen in a mind that is disconnected from the heart. And we cannot expect our students to create the world of tomorrow, the world that we hope for, without a heart-mind that connects them to each other, to the larger society, and to the planet as a whole," said DweckMs Colbert, founder and director of Fundacion Escuela Nueva, Colombia, was awarded the Yidan Prize for Education Development. Her project Escuela Nueva ("New School" in Spanish) has improved the quality of education at rural public schools in Colombia since the mid-1970s. The pedagogical model has also been adopted by 14 countries, reaching over 5 million children."I am honored and deeply moved to receive this prestigious education Yidan Prize for Education Development. The recognition that we receive through this prestigious award is a further motivation to continue our commitment to the cause of basic education of high quality for all children. At Escuela Nueva Foundation, in Colombia and many other countries of the world we work to establish affordable schools of excellent quality where children, teachers and parents are empowered to learn and contribute to a culture of peace and citizenship in their environment," Colbert said.Presenting the awards, The Honorable Mrs Carrie Lam, GBM, GBS, Chief Executive of HKSAR, said: "The Yidan Prize gives us much to look forward to in education excellence. And for this, I am grateful to Dr Chen, the Yidan Prize Foundation and the international judging committee for their commitment to global education and educators, and for their contribution to the sustainable development of the world we live in. My congratulations again to this year's laureates, Professor Dweck and Ms Colbert, for their distinguished achievements. Working together, I know we can create a better world through education." Dr Charles Chen Yidan, founder of the Yidan Prize, said: "The Yidan Prize aims to empower educators to transcend religion, race and nationality, to exert far-reaching, positive influence over humanity, and ultimately, to help create a better world. I hope that their practical experience and research findings can be applied more extensively, expanding their impact, and benefiting more people." The laureates are selected by a judging committee chaired by Dr Koichiro Matsuura, former director-general of UNESCO, comprising of two independent judging panels. Professor Paul Chu Ching-wu, Professor of Physics, T.L.L Temple Chair of Science, University of Houston, heads the Yidan Prize for Education Research panel. Dorothy K. Gordon, former director-general of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, leads the Yidan Prize for Education Development panel.About Yidan PrizeThe Yidan Prize recognizes and supports change makers with forward looking innovations that create a sustainable impact on education systems, for a better future. The Prize, financed and governed by a HK$2.5 billion (US$320 million) independent trust, comprises two categories - the Yidan Prize for Education Research and the Yidan Prize for Education Development.Each prize carries an award of HK$30 million (US$3.87 million) - a cash award of HK$15 million (US$1.9 million) with HK$15 million (US$1.9 million) in project funds - and a gold medal. Through a series of initiatives, the Prize serves to provide a platform for the global community to engage in conversation around education and play a role in education philanthropy.The Yidan Prize, the world's largest education prize, was founded by Dr Charles Chen Yidan, a core founder of Tencent Holdings Limited. For more information, please visit www.yidanprize.org
Lipase Market By Source (Microbial Lipases, Plant Lipases, Animal Lipases), By Application (Animal Feed, Dairy, Bakery, Confectionery, Others), By Functions (Frozen Food And Beverage Additives And Food And Beverage Texturants) And By Region - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, And Forecasts (20162021)

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PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 11:43:13

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The Global Lipase Market was worth USD 457.2 million in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.6%, to reach USD 629.3 million by 2021.View report: http://marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/lipase-market-3596/ Lipase is an enzyme produced by pancreas which catalyzes biochemical reactions in which hydrolysis of fats take place. It also hydrolyzes ester bonds in triglycerides to form mono glycerides and free fatty acids and also helps in formation of fatty acids. Lipases are also involved in inflammation and cell signaling.Absence or inadequacy of lipase in body results in high cholesterol, high risk towards diabetes, decreased cell permeability, muscle spasms and high levels of triglycerides in the body. Lipases are used in industries for yogurt and cheese fermentation. Recombinant lipase enzymes are being used in applications such as laundry detergents, baking and as biocatalysts in converting vegetable oil into fuel.Download free sample report: http://marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/lipase-market-3596/request-sample Increase in pancreatic disorders and number of patients undergoing pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy, use of lipases in cosmetics industry, changing food habits and increase in consumption of dairy products are driving the lipase market. Use of lipase in food and beverages industry as flavoring agent and to increase shelf life of food products is also expected to drive the market. Uncertainties in patent protection laws are restraining the market growth.The global lipase market is segmented on the basis of source, application, functions and region. Based on source of lipase, the market is segmented into microbial lipases, animal lipases and plant lipases. Microbial lipases produced from bacteria and yeast account for the largest market share as they are most preferred in enzymes industry due to the low cost and high effectiveness compared to that of plants and animals. Based on applications, the market is segmented into Animal Feed, Dairy, Bakery, Confectionery and Others. Animal feed application leads the market in this segment due to increase in livestock production and increasing meat consumption. Dairy products applications are the fastest growing segment due to the changing eating habits and rise in disposable incomes of people. Based on functions the market is segmented into Frozen Food and Beverage Additives and Food and Beverage Texturants.Inquire before buying: http://marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/lipase-market-3596/inquire On the basis of geography, the global market is analyzed under various regions namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa. Asia Pacific region is the largest market segment due to the increase in demand for bakery and processed dairy products in this region. Latin America region is projected to be the fastest growing segment due to the increase in food and beverage industries.Major players in the lipase market are E. I. Du Pont De Nemours and Company, Associated British Foods PLC, Amano Enzymes Inc., Novozymes A/S, Advanced Enzymes, Enzyme Development Corporation, Renco New Zealand, Koninklijke DSM N.V., Chr. Hansen Holdings A/S, and Clerici-Sacco Group.Market SegmentationSource Introduction Microbial Lipases Plant Lipases Animal Lipases Y-o-Y Growth Analysis, By Source Market Attractiveness Analysis, By Source Market Share Analysis, By SourceApplication Introduction Animal Feed Dairy Bakery Confectionery Others Y-o-Y Growth Analysis, By Application Market Attractiveness Analysis, By Application Market Share Analysis, By ApplicationFunctions Introduction Frozen Food and Beverage Additives Food and Beverage Texturants Other Functions Y-o-Y Growth Analysis, By Functions Market Attractiveness Analysis, By Functions Market Share Analysis, By FunctionsThe scope of the report: Global, regional and country-level analysis and forecasts of the study market; providing Insights on the major countries/regions in which this industry is blooming and to also identify the regions that are still untapped Segment-level analysis in terms of technology, component, and type along with market size forecasts and estimations to detect key areas of industry growth in detail Identification of key drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges (DROC) in the market and their impact on shifting market dynamics Study of the effect of exogenous and endogenous factors that affect the global market; which includes broadly demographic, economics, and political, among other macro-environmental factors presented in an extensive PESTLE Analysis Study the micro environment factors that determine the overall profitability of an Industry, using Porters five forces analysis for analysing the level of competition and business strategy development A comprehensive list of key market players along with their product portfolio, current strategic interests, key financial information, legal issues, SWOT analysis and analyst overview to study and sustain the market environment Competitive landscape analysis listing out the mergers, acquisitions, collaborations in the field along with new product launches, comparative financial studies and recent developments in the market by the major companies An executive summary, abridging the entire report in such a way that decision-making personnel can rapidly become acquainted with background information, concise analysis, and main conclusions Expertly devised analyst overview along with Investment opportunities to provide both individuals and organizations a strong financial foothold in the marketAbout Us:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, we cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. Our analyst team comprises expert professionals in market research, who with their collective knowledge and skillset dedicatedly serve clients from various industries and regions.
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Protein expression is a vital element of proteomics that plays an important role in research by allowing the expression of genetically engineered recombinant proteins in various host cells.

Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market

PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 10:12:12

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According to the report Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market, published by Market Data Forecast, the Middle-East and Africa market is projected to reach USD 0.13 billion by 2021, at a CAGR of 8.40% from 2016 to 2021.Protein expression is a vital element of proteomics that plays an important role in research by allowing the expression of genetically engineered recombinant proteins in various host cells. Proteins are regulated and manufactured depending upon the functional need in the host cell. Biotechnology based companies are developing novel therapeutics with minimal side effects and thereby creating a huge market for Protein expression.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market. Request a sample to stay up-to-date on the main trends affecting this market http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/middle-east-and-africa-protein-expression-market-797/request-sample Protein expression is an important part of proteomics allows the expression recombinant proteins in various host systems. Proteins are regulated and synthesized depending upon the functional need in the host cell. Generally, protein expression includes three process, namely, translation, transcription and post-translational modification. Moreover, there are three types of recombinant protein expression methods such as in-vitro protein expression, in-vivo protein expression and chemical protein synthesis.Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: Drivers & RestraintsThe growth of the Middle East and Africa Protein Expression market is mainly driven by factors such as growth in the R&D movement in the pharma sector, and improved prospects in the field of proteomics. However, issues such as high product expansion costs and strict Regulatory Environment are restraining the growth of the market in this part of the world.Get a comprehensive overview of the Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/middle-east-and-africa-protein-expression-market-797/ Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: SegmentationBy Expression System Yeast Expression Insect Expression Cell-Free Expression Bacterial Expression Algal Expression Mammalian ExpressionBy Product Reagents Services Instruments OthersBy Application Industrial Proteins Cell Culture Research Therapeutic Proteins Transfection technologies OthersBy End User Biotechnology Pharmaceutics AcademiaFrom simple data collation through secondary and primary research to ad-hoc research requests relating to specific information, we provide our services via customization. Get customization at http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/middle-east-and-africa-protein-expression-market-797/customize-report Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: OverviewThe Bacterial Expression system segment holds the largest share of the market, while mammalian expression system segment is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, due to the increasing demand of therapeutic proteins essential for human treatment. By systems type, the prokaryotic expression systems segment is expected to dominate the market in 2017. By product, the reagents segment is expected to hold the largest share of the market in 2017. The therapeutic applications segment is expected to dominate the market in 2017. By end user, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies segment is expected to hold the largest share of the market in 2017Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: Region-wise OutlookThe Middle East and Africa market is one of the fastest growing markets for Protein Expression. Some of the major countries that hold significant place in this market include Egypt, KSA, UAE, Nigeria and Algeria.Key Questions Answered What will be the market growth till 2021 and what will be the resultant market forecast in the year? What was the market size from 2016 to 2021? What is the current and future Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market outlook worldwide? What trends are affecting the Middle East and Africa market? What is the competitive landscape and market share of major players in the Protein Expression space in Middle East and Africa? What are the key, high growth markets that Protein Expression manufacturers should expand into? Which market segments are growing the fastest? What are the unmet needs with the Protein Expression currently on the market? How will emerging technologies fulfil these unmet needs? What is physician perception and market outlook of Protein Expression? What are the challenges and barriers that have hindered widespread adoption of Protein Expression? What are the key sustainability strategies adopted by market players?Middle East and Africa Protein Expression Market: Key PlayersThe major companies dominating Protein Expression market are Agilent Technologies, Life Technologies Corporation, Bio-Rad Laboratories, New England BioLabs, Merck Millipore, Takara Bio, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and Promega Corporation.Checkout other related studies in the Biotechnology Segment:Middle East and Africa Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) market: http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/middle-east-and-africa-next-generation-sequencing-market-122/ Middle East and Africa Antivenom Market: http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/middle-east-and-africa-antivenom-market-1585/ About Market Data Forecast:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, they cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. From all-encompassing umbrella markets to extremely specific niche markets covering all the major regions across the globe as part of the research scope, their research services offer one of a kind specialities with competitive pricing options.For more information, kindly visit, www.marketdataforecast.com Contact:Abhishek ShuklaSales Manager (International Business Development)Market Data ForecastDirect Line: +1-888-702-9626Mobile: +91 998 555 0206Mail: abhishek@ marketdataforecast.com Visit Market Data Forecast Blog @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/blog/ View latest Press Releases of MDF @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/press-releases
PR-Inside.com: 2017-12-11 12:00:49

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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Stans Energy Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Toronto, Ontario (FSCWire) - Stans Energy Corp. (TSX Venture:HRE). has issued a press release with the following headline:Stans and Atomredmetzoloto JSC Evaluate Partnership for Zavitinskoye Lithium Mine RedevelopmentTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Stans Energy Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Stans Energy Corp.Source: Stans Energy Corp. (TSX Venture: HRE, OTCQB: HREEF, FWB: S82, WKN: A0RD0N, ISIN: CA8547221058)Date: December 11, 2017Time: 6:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Stans Energy Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
Nigerian Breweries Plc has announced the appointment of Jordi Borrut Bel as the companys Managing Director/CEO.

The appointment takes effect on January 22, 2018. Mr. Borrut Bel will succeed Johan Doyer who has served as Managing Director/CEO on an interim basis since June 16.

The company said its Board of Directors has informed the Nigerian Stock Exchange of the appointment.

Mr. Borrut Bel is currently the Managing Director of HEINEKENs subsidiary in Burundi, Brarudi S.A. and a Board member of Bralirwa Limited, Rwanda, also a HEINEKEN subsidiary in Rwanda.

He joined HEINEKEN Spain in 1997 as sales representative and subsequently held senior management positions in different countries, first as Distribution Project Manager in Slovakia, Brand Manager in France and Trade Marketing Manager at the Head Office in The Netherlands.

In 2006, he returned to HEINEKEN Spain where he evolved in the organisation and eventually became the On-Premise and Distribution Director and a member of the Management Team.

Mr. Borrut Bel was appointed the Managing Director of Brarudi S.A. in 2015 and has led the company through a very turbulent period, strengthening the companys route-to-market and launching successful innovations.

The Board is confident that Mr. Borrut Bels track record and broad experience stand him in a very good position to drive Nigerian Breweries Plc strategy and consolidate its leadership position in the Nigerian market, the company said in a statement Monday.

In a related development, the company has also announced the resignations of Victor Famuyibo (Human Resource Director) and Hubert Eze (Sales Director) from the Board with effect from January 27, 2018 and January 31, 2018 respectively.

While Mr. Famuyibos resignation follows from his attaining the companys mandatory retirement age of 60 years, Mr. Ezes resignation is preparatory to his taking up a higher role in the HEINEKEN organisation.

The Exchange was further notified that Grace Omo-Lamai and Uche Unigwe have been appointed as part of the Management Team of the Company in the positions of Human Resource Director and Sales Director respectively.

Mrs. Omo-Lamai joined the Company on October 23, 2017 from Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd, where she was the Director of Human Resnews, ources. Mr. Unigwe, on the other hand, joined the Company in 1989 as a Trainee Brewer.

He is currently the General Manager, HEINEKEN East Africa, based in Nairobi. He resumes in his role as Sales Director on January 15, 2018.
Limited knowledge about trade opportunities in African countries constitutes the greatest impediment to the growth of intra-African trade, the Executive Vice President for Business Development and Corporate Banking, African Export-Import Bank, AFREXIMBANK, Amr Kamel, has said.

Mr. Kamel, who was contributing to a panel of discussion at the Africa 2017 Forum in Egypt, said this was contrary to popular opinion that lack of infrastructure posed the biggest challenge to intra-African trade.

Mr. Kamel, whose view was contained in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES by the spokesperson of the bank, Obi Emekekwue, said the main drawback to growth in trade in Africa was actually lack of information about trade opportunities in other African countries.

He said a recent study co-sponsored by AFREXIMBANK showed that some African countries were importing certain products at high costs from outside Africa than the same products being imported from nearby African countries.

Mr. Kamel noted that the fact that Africa was able to attain the current level of overall trade with existing infrastructure meant the challenge to intra-African trade was more than lack of adequate information.

African countries, he stated, were gradually beginning to realise that intra-African trade held the key to Africas development than many other issues.

He highlighted the efforts by AFREXIMBANK towards overall trade growth in Africa, including building certification centres to help address the issue of poor quality of goods produced in African countries.

Having the goods certified to international standards would make them acceptable exports into the international markets, Mr. Kamel said.

The Minister of Finance of Jamaica, Timothy McPherson Jr., said Africans in the Diaspora were key to the continents economic integration, since its members see investment in Africa in terms of the entire continent, rather than segmentation into countries and regions.

Meanwhile, AFREXIMBANK and Egyptian bank, Attijariwafa Bank, signed a memorandum of understanding, MoU, to enable them collaborate in developing an enlarged framework for cooperation in trade across Africa.

The president of AFREXIMBANK, Benedict Oramah, signed the agreement with the Chairman/CEO of Attijariwafa bank Group, Mohamed El Kettani, to ensure active participation of Attijariwafa bank in AFREXIMBANKs equity and treasury base.

The agreement would also allow both bank to cooperate through the use of excess liquidity for placements under AFREXIMBANKs deposit schemes aimed at financing trade across Africa.

They will also cooperate in facilitating the identification, preparation and co-financing of projects related to their respective areas of activities and in co-financing trade through the provision of line of credit confirmations.

In line with the agreement, Attijariwafa bank would act as a local administrative agent for AFREXIMBANK through its network in 15 African countries. The two parties also agreed to collaborate in building capacity and sharing information and staff.

This MoU opens up the potential for our two institutions, working together, to make significant contributions toward unlocking the full potentials for delivering the much-needed developmental impact on our continent, said Mr. Oramah, said.

The MoU sets up a long-term strategic partnership between AFREXIMBANK and Attijariwafa bank as an integral part of our Intra-African Trade Initiative and will enable us to cooperate in providing innovative trade finance solutions, he added.
EU foreign ministers on Monday in Brussels rejected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus request to join the U.S. in recognising Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Earlier, Mr. Netanyahu had asked the EU to ask allies to join the U.S. in Jerusalem move, but was met by a firm rebuff from EU foreign ministers who saw the move as a blow against the peace process.

Making his first ever visit to EU headquarters in Brussels, Mr. Netanyahu said President Donald Trumps move made peace in the Middle East possible because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace.

Mr. Trump announced on December 6 that the U.S. would recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, breaking with decades of U.S. policy and international consensus that the ancient citys status must be decided in Israeli-Palestinian talks.

Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in a 1967 war, considers the entire city to be its capital while Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.

The Trump administration says it remains committed to the peace process and its decision does not affect Jerusalems future borders or status.

It says any credible future peace deal will place the Israeli capital in Jerusalem, and ditching old policies is needed to revive a peace process frozen since 2014.

Israels closest European allies have rejected that logic and say recognising Israels capital unilaterally risks inflaming violence and further wrecking the chance for peace.

After a breakfast meeting between Mr. Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Swedens top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Mr. Trumps decision, and no country was likely to follow the U.S. in announcing plans to move its embassy.

I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I dont think any other EU country will do it, Margot Wallstrom said.

Several EU foreign ministers arriving at the meeting reiterated the blocs position that lands Israel has occupied since the 1967 war, including East Jerusalem as well as the West Bank and Golan Heights, are not within Israels borders.

Israels position does appear to have more support from some EU states than others.

On Friday, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, while Hungary blocked a planned EU statement condemning the U.S. move.

Prague later said it accepted Israels sovereignty only over West Jerusalem, and Budapest said its long-term position seeking a two-state solution in the Middle East had not changed.

On Monday, Czech Foreign Minister, Lubomir Zaoralek, said of Mr. Trumps decision: Im afraid it cant help us.

Im convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution, Mr. Zaoralek said.

We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state.

Mr. Trumps announcement triggered days of protests across the Muslim world and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in which scores of Palestinians were wounded and several killed.

By Monday morning, violence appeared to have subsided.

Mr. Netanyahu, who has been angered by the EUs search for closer business ties with Iran, said Europeans should emulate Trumps move and press the Palestinians to do so too.

Its time that the Palestinians recognise the Jewish state and also recognise the fact that it has a capital.

Its called Jerusalem, he said.

The decision to recognise Jerusalem could also strain Washingtons ties with its other main Muslim ally in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, which has sought closer relations with Washington under Mr. Trump than under his predecessor Barack Obama.

Saudi Arabia shares U.S. and Israeli concerns about the increasing regional influence of Iran, and was seen as a potential broker for a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace deal.

Saudis have suggested that unilateral decisions over Jerusalem make any such rapprochement more difficult.

Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi ambassador to the U.S. and veteran ex-security chief, published a strongly-worded open letter to Mr. Trump on Monday denouncing the Jerusalem move. (dpa/NAN)
Kenyan opposition has postponed plans to swear in its leader, Raila Odinga, as an alternative president, easing political tensions and opening a window for possible talks with the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Opposition coalition National Super Alliance Coalition (NASA) had planned to publicly inaugurate Odinga at a rally on Tuesday, Kenyan independence day, in what the attorney general said this week would be an act of treason.

Mr. Kenyatta was re-elected as Kenyas president with 98 per cent of the vote in a repeat election held on October 26 which Mr. Odinga boycotted.

He had beaten Mr. Odinga in the original poll, held in August, which was nullified by the Supreme Court on procedural grounds following opposition allegations of vote-rigging and other malpractices.

NASA said in a statement it would postpone the swearing-in after consultations and engagement with a wide range of national and international interlocutors.

It did not specifically name any mediators involved in the talks.

The coalition said it would be announcing a new date for the swearing in ceremony and the launch of its Peoples Assembly as well as a more vigorous and prolonged resistance.

The plan to install Mr.Odinga as an alternative president had threatened to exacerbate rifts opened by an acrimonious election season that left more than 70 people dead in political violence.

The U.S. had also urged opposition leaders to work within the law and avoid actions like the proposed inauguration ceremony.

NAN reports that on December 7, Kenyas Attorney-General, Githu Muigai, warned that any attempt to hold a parallel swearing in of a president would amount to treason.

Such an inauguration, he said, would worsen the rifts opened by an acrimonious election season, when more than 70 people died in political violence.

Mr. Muigai said unless a candidate was declared the victor in an election by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission and the swearing-in was conducted by the Kenyan chief justice.

The criminal law of the Republic of Kenya stipulates that sort of process is high treason.

It is high treason of the persons involved, and any other person facilitating that process.

Under Kenyan law, treason is punishable by death.

Mr. Muigai said peoples assemblies proposed by the NASA, Odingas opposition coalition, were illegal as well.

These institutions are unconstitutional they are illegal, they are null and void.

The persons involved in their creation are involved in extra-constitutional activity and may be visited by the full force of the law, he said.

The Supreme Court nullified the result, and a repeat election was held on October 26. Mr. Odinga boycotted that vote, saying reforms needed to avoid illegalities and irregularities had not been made.

(Reuters/NAN)
Cote dIvoire will pay thousands of soldiers 15 million CFA francs (25,782 dollars) each as part of buy-outs aimed at reducing the size of its unruly and mutiny-prone military, documents showed on Monday.

Africas fastest growing economy in 2016, Cote dIvoire was hit earlier this year by successive uprisings by low-ranking troops.

The costly bonuses paid to end the unrest helped balloon the budget deficit this year, and the episode tarnished its image as one of the continents rising economic stars.

The government said on Friday that it would retire around 1,000 soldiers by the end of the year as part of efforts to bring the force, estimated at about 25,000 troops, in line with accepted standards.

A spokesman did not say how much the soldiers would receive under the voluntary scheme.

However, a document obtained by Reuters outlining the plan stated that each retired soldier would receive a payment of 15 million CFA francs.

Neither the spokesman nor Cote dIvoires defence minister were available to comment on Monday.

Diplomats said the move signalled that the government was beginning to implement a military reform law.

According to a copy of the law seen by Reuters, 4,400 troops are to leave the army over four years.

It was not immediately clear if that figure includes soldiers already scheduled to retire during the period.

Cote dIvoires army was thrown together from rival loyalist and rebel factions at the end of a 2011 civil war that brought President Alassane Ouattara to power after his predecessor Laurent Gbagbo rejected his defeat in a 2010 run-off election.

It remains plagued by internal divisions.

Diplomats and analysts say the force is bloated with unqualified personnel and vulnerable to political manipulation.

An adviser to Parliament Speaker Guillaume Soro, considered a leading candidate to replace term-limited President Ouattara in 2020, was arrested in October after a secret arms cache at his home helped mutinying soldiers halt a loyalist advance.

Soro and his supporters say the charges were politically motivated.(Reuters/NAN)
Residents in a small town in the north-eastern Australian state of Queensland said they have been held hostage, by 200,000 bats.

No fewer than 200,000 flying foxes, the worlds largest bats, have overrun the Charters Towerss residents since Friday, the mayor of the town told dpa on Monday.

A resident Elizabeth Schmidt said: Its an absolute disaster  what we have is a nightmare.

We have had flying fox problems but never in such huge numbers.

The local council has already shut down two public parks, a swimming pool run by the council and other public spaces.

Frustrated residents took to the streets over the weekend in a march against the towns council, saying the problem had reached a tipping point and calling for action over the plague of terror.

The former gold mining town has housed a massive bat colony because of the regions abundance of native flowering eucalypts, but residents said they are now being held hostage.

Snow Hearne, a local resident for the past seven years, said bats have been a nuisance, but things have escalated to an extent where nobody can go outside their houses.

The stench is horrific and the screeching sound, especially in the evening, because it is mating season, is unbearable, she told dpa.

We cant even go out to our backyards. We are held hostage.

Everything in the park is covered in flying fox faeces and you worry about getting urinated on, Kim Gott, another resident, said.

Its affected the town pool  we cant take kids swimming anywhere. People just dont go outside because the bats fly everywhere.

Flying foxes are crucial for the keeping native forests healthy and play an important role in pollinating plants and flowers as well as dispersing seeds over distances.

The animals also can host the Hendra and Lyssa viruses, which can be fatal to humans.

Mayor Schmidt said many people have complained about health-related issues, but not any serious health risk as of yet.

No one has said why there is a sudden influx and we also do not have the resources or technical know-how to deal with this huge problem.

We need a long-term solution, Schmidt added. We will send a delegation to Brisbane to find a solution as soon as possible.

Schmidt said the council is not allowed to disturb the bats natural habitat as one of the two parks in the town is a registered roost for the flying foxes and so it is a protected area protected by the Department of Environment and Heritage.

A spokeswoman for the department said Charters Towers is not the only place to have experienced high numbers of little red flying foxes in Queensland in the last few weeks.

Little reds move around in search of their favourite food, the flowers and nectar of native trees, she told dpa.

The current flowering of paperbark trees and bloodwoods near Charters Towers may have attracted the animals, which can travel hundreds of kilometres when attracted by flowering events.

At the moment it is also mating season for little reds, a time in which males show increased territorial behaviour, and roosts may spread out into neighbouring areas, the spokesperson said.

Unfortunately Charters Towers appears to be experiencing a combination of these events.

She said the flying foxes, which are vagrants by nature, will move on after the flowering event.

Killing flying foxes is not a viable option. Besides the dangers of firearms in town, the animals are likely to be replaced by other flying foxes arriving from elsewhere, she warned.
A former acting chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Uche Secondus, has been elected the new chairman of the party.

Mr. Secondus beat three other contestants to emerge victorious in a keenly contested election held at the Eagles Square Abuja on Saturday.

The chairman of the electoral committee of the convention, and former Governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam, who announced the results, said Mr. Secondus scored a total of 2,000 votes out of the total number of 2,296 votes cast.

Mr. Secondus was followed by a former Minister of Education, Tunde Adeniran, who scored a total vote of 231 votes, while the duo of Raymond Dokpesi and Taoheed Adedoja scored 66 and 0 votes respectively.

The Rivers State politician was declared winner shortly after two out of the chaiirmanship candidates accused officials in charge of the convention of allowing systematic rigging of the election.

Raymond Dokpesi and Tunde Adeniran said the processes were skewed against them, but in favour of Mr. Secondus.

Mr. Dokpesi told journalists covering the convention that he complained about the circulation of a document referred to as Unity List to delegates asking them to vote for the people on the list.

He said the chairman of the electoral sub-committee of the convention, former Governor Suswam, told him that there was nothing he could do about his complaint.

On his part, Mr. Adeniran, through his spokesperson who spoke with members of the press at Eagles Square, venue of the convention, called for the cancellation of the entire exercise because it was compromised.

The convention committee had earlier announced the ban on all form of campaign at the venue of the convention.

The chairman of the National Convention Planning Committee, and governor of Delta state, Ifeanyi Okowa, while reacting to the issue, said his committee had not officially received any complaints about the conduct of the election.

Also, the governor of Akwa Ibom state, Udom Emmanuel, who spoke with AIT, said the Unity List in circulation could not affect the outcome of the election.

I have not seen any delegate looking at a list before casting their vote and it is practically impossible for delegates to memorise all the 21 names on the list and remember them as they vote, he said.

Mr. Emmanuel also said the list in contention could have emanated from any source.

However, despite the protets and complaints, Mr. Secondus and all the other elected officials who will form the new National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP were sworn into office immediately after the announcement.

They were sworn in by a lawyer and a former candidate for the Ondo state governorship, Tayo Jegede.

Below is the full list of new members of PDP NWC.

Deputy National Chairman ( South); Yemi Akinwonmi- Ogun

Deputy National Chairman ( North); Garba Gamawa- Bauchi

National Secretary; Ibrahim Tsauri- Katsina

Deputy National Secretary; Abubakar Mustapha

National Treasurer; Aribisala Adewale- Ekiti

Deputy National Treasurer; Wada Masu-Kano

Financial Secretary; Abdullahi Maibasira- Niger

Deputy Fin. Sec.; Irona Gerald-Imo

National Organizing Secretary; Austin Akobundu- Abia

Dep. Nat. Org. Sec.; Hassan Yakubu- Nasarawa

Publicity Secretary; Kola Ologbondiyan- Kogi

Dep. Nat. Pub. Sec.; Diran Odeyemi- Osun

National Legal Adviser; Emmanuel Enoidem- Akwa Ibom

Dep. Nat. Leg. Ads.; Ahmed Liman- Sokoto

National Auditor; Adamu Mustapha-Yobe

Dep. Nat. Auditor; Divine Arong

National Woman Leader; Mariya Waziri-Kebbi

Dep. Nat. Woman Leader; Hadizat Umoru- Edo

National Youth Leader; Udeh Okoye-Enugu

Dep. Nat. Youth Leader; Umar Maina- Adamu
Chieftains of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State are standing with the embattled police anti-robbery department.

The politicians told PREMIUM TIMES they demonstrated to seek public support for the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Port Harcourt, and neutralise the voices of those who want the squad shut down.

Tonye Princewill, a governorship aspirant and a big name in Rivers APC politics, was seen in a solidarity match for SARS Monday morning.

Chris Fineborn, APC spokesperson in the state, told PREMIUM TIMES that he and Mr. Princewill joined other pro-SARS protesters because the squad had done a lot to stabilise security in the state.

We believe that there are bad eggs in SARS, just like you have bad eggs in politics, but that is not enough to throw them away, Mr. Fineborn said.

Mr. Princewill did not respond to requests for comments Monday afternoon.

The department recently came under a relentless backlash amidst claims that many of its personnel exert a longstanding culture of gruesome rights abuses.

Since December 2, campaign has intensified for the Nigerian government to shut down SARS, a special unit launched in the 80s to combat armed robbery.

Thousands have taken their years of brutal experience with SARS operatives since last week under the hash tag #EndSARS.

The allegations include extra-judicial killings, torture, wanton arrests for bribes and other menacing conducts.

The police have responded to the campaign with a promise to restructure SARS and probe all allegations of wrongdoings against its officers.

But campaigners against the squad insist that it must be scrapped and replaced by a more citizens-friendly department.

A coalition of civic groups commenced nationwide protests on Monday. The police were notified last week that the protests will hold today in Ibadan, Abuja, Warri, Lagos, Owerri, Port-Harcourt, amongst other major towns and cities.

As soon as the protests commenced, reports of counter-protests surfaced on social media.

Campaigners pushing to #EndSARS accused the police of conniving with the APC to polarise and politicise their cause.

But Mr. Fineborn rejected the allegations, saying APC chieftains only joined the pro-SARS rally because they do not want armed robbery and other serious crimes to rise unchecked in the country.
Airline fuel surcharges to go up from Tuesday

The Airlines Operators Association of Nepal (AOAN) said on Sunday that it would raise the fuel surcharge from Tuesday in line with an increase in aviation fuel prices.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission does not have statutory powers to investigate or prosecute serving judicial officers except where such individuals have first been dismissed or retired by the National Judicial Council, the body saddled with disciplining erring judges, the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal ruled on Monday.

According to the appellate court, serving judicial officers can only be prosecuted for offences like murder, stealing and others if such offences were committed outside the discharge of their official duties. But once the offence was allegedly committed in the discharge of their duties, they must first be tried by the judicial council, NJC, and dismissed or retired before the EFCC can investigate or prosecute them, the court said.

A judge, Obaseki Adejumo, who delivered the lead judgment for the Court of Appeal, held that the condition precedent to filing for Charge No: LD/4769/2017 had not been fulfilled, adding that the NJC must first strip or remove the appellant (judicial Officer) of his judicial standing before he could be charged with such alleged offence allegedly committed in the course of discharge of his duties.

The Court of Appeals decision was in respect of a suit brought by the EFCC against Hyeladzira Nganjiwa, a judge of the Bayelsa Division of the Federal High Court, who was accused of unlawfully receiving $260,000 and N8.6 million through his bank account between 2013 and 2015.

The accused had challenged the jurisdiction of the Lagos Division of the Lagos State High Court to entertain the suit but was dismissed by the judge.

The Court of Appeal held that the High Court of Lagos State lacked the jurisdiction to hear and determine the charge against the serving judicial officer and accordingly set aside the ruling of the lower court. It also upheld the preliminary objection filed by the appellant in the high court and dismissed the charge against him.

Ridiculous ruling

Responding to the appellate courts Monday ruling, the EFCC said it would appeal the judgment.

The Commission considers the ruling a dangerous precedent that has no basis in law and, is confident that the Supreme Court will upturn the judgment, the anti-graft agency said in a statement by its spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren.

Criminal trial takes precedence over administrative procedures and it is strange that the Court of Appeal wants to put the cart before the horse. This is ridiculous. The appellate court simply wants to confer immunity on public officers from prosecution for corruption, it will not stand.

Mr. Nganjiwa was among the six judges recalled by the NJC last June after they had been earlier suspended following corruption allegations against them.

The decision to recall the judges was criticized by civil society groups who accused the NJC of attempting to paper over the cracks in the Nigerian judiciary.

But barely one week after he was recalled by the NJC, Mr. Nganjiwa was arraigned by the EFCC on a 14-count charge of corrupt enrichment and giving false information to an EFCC officer.
The anti-graft agency, EFCC, has described a ruling by the Court of Appeal in Lagos as a dangerous precedent.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the appeal court ruled on Monday that the EFCC lacked the powers to prosecute serving judges until they are dismissed by the National Judicial Council, NJC.

In a statement by its spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, the EFCC vowed to appeal the ruling at the Supreme Court.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is to appeal against the ruling of the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal, which today held that the agency lacked powers to investigate or prosecute serving judicial officials except where such officers have been dismissed by the National Judicial Council.

The Commission considers the ruling a dangerous precedent that has no basis in law and, is confident that the Supreme Court will upturn the judgment.

Criminal trial takes precedence over administrative procedures and it is strange that the Court of Appeal wants to put the cart before the horse. This is ridiculous! The appellate court simply wants to confer immunity on public officers from prosecution for corruption, it will not stand, Mr. Uwujaren said.

Details later
Despite last Wednesdays directive by the Federal Executive Council, FEC mandating the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, to bring an end to the fuel crisis across the country before last weekend, latest PREMIUM TIMES update shows the situation is far from abating.

The Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, who briefed State House correspondents at the end of the meeting in Abuja said Mr. Kachikwu was given marching orders to ensure that the fuel scarcity did not last beyond last weekend.

The minister said efforts were being made to resolve the supply hiccup latest by the weekend.

Also, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, through its spokesperson, Ndu Ughamadu, expressed confidence that the long queues that resurfaced in most filling station in Abuja, like most other cities nationwide, would fizzle out in a matter of hours last Thursday

Mr. Ughamadu, who blamed the crisis on panic buying by consumers in the wake of the strike threat issued by the Independent Petroleum Marketers of Nigeria, IPMAN, said the corporation had sufficient stock of the commodity at its depots across the country

Besides, he said, further directives were given by the Group Managing Director of the Corporation, Maikanti Baru, for the number of tankers to be supplied to Abuja, Port Harcourt and Lagos to be increased, to help resolve the crisis as soon as possible.

But, monitoring reports from PREMIUM TIMES correspondents across the country revealed varying situations that showed no respite.

In Abuja and environs, long queues of motorists were still visible outside most filling stations visited on Monday, including the Conoil station directly opposite the NNPC headquarters.

Black market fuel hawkers in jerry cans, who reappeared in the streets of the Federal Capital City, after long spell out of business, had a field day serving anxious motorists outside filling stations at about N200 and above per litre.

The queue around the NNPC mega station in the Central Area District resulted in a serious traffic gridlock in the area.

All the filling stations visited in Karu site and along Nyanya-Jikwoyi-Karshi Express way were not selling petrol.

The NNPC station in Karu site, two Forte Oil stations, Total and Mobil filling stations along the Nyanya-Jikwoyi-Karshi Expressway were out of stock of the commodity.

Two other stations belonging to independent marketers at the CBN Junction and another at Phase 2 Junction on the Expressway were not selling.

Anxious motorists were compelled to patronise the black market, where 10 litres of fuel now sell for N2,500.

In Bauchi, most filling stations were closed for official business, as black market operation now thrives at night, with most independent marketers and road side vendors selling petrol at about N200 per litre.

Major marketers, like Mobil Oil and other big independent marketers only open their stations for few hours daily, mostly in the evenings, with a gallon of petrol selling for N1,000 per five litres.

One of the black market vendors, Ali Missau, told PREMIUM TIMES, We buy at N175 per litre from the filling stations at night and sell later to motorists between N200 and N220 per litre. We are having good business.

In Damaturu, Yobe State, the situation has deteriorated, with independent marketers selling petrol at N195 per litre.

The situation in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, worsened at the weekend, with retail fuel price, which rose to about N150 per litre at the onset of the crisis, further rising to N170.

Some of the major marketers, including Mobil and Oando along Oron Road, Uyo, were not opened for business, Monday afternoon.

In Lagos, the fuel queues had reduced compared to last week. While some petrol stations were not selling fuel, others which did in Surulere and along Apapa-Oshodi expressway had few cars on the queue.

Normal sales were ongoing at the NNPC and Total filling stations at Oregun, Ikeja.

In Osun and Ondo states. PREMIUM TIMES reports that the scarcity of petroleum products is biting harder.

In Akure, the Ondo State capital, few stations were observed to have opened for business in the early hours of Monday.

On Sunday, officials of the Ondo State Government went round some of the stations to force them to attend to customers at the approved price of N145, following reports that some stations had already hiked the price.

Despite governments threat to sanction stations hoarding products, most of them still locked up their gates on Monday apparently in protest, thereby worsening the current crisis in the state.

In Osogbo, the Osun State capital, getting fuel has remained difficult, with long queues seen outside Mobil and NNPC mega stations along Ibadan expressway and by Ring Road in the town.

No fewer than eight filling stations located along Okini-Abunbelewo road were closed to customers.

Those opened earlier in the day in different places had stopped by Monday evening.

The fuel crisis appeared to have subsided in Ekiti as PREMIUM TIMES noted that some of the filling stations opened for normal business.

In Ogun State, the fuel situation remained relatively normal on Monday as motorists did not have any difficulties buying fuel at filling stations in the area.

Normalcy appears to have returned in Kaduna, as most filling stations were having normal business operations as at Monday afternoon.

At Total filling station along Command Junction, Kaduna, motorists were seen being attended to without queues, although pockets of black market hawkers were still hanging around some filling stations without products.

In reaction to the fuel scarcity, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Tony Anenih, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take immediate steps to bring the situation to an end.

In a statement on Monday, Mr. Anenih expressed concern that motorists and other groups of Nigerians would be hit the hardest in the run up to Christmas.

The former chairman of the PDP board of trustees said Mr. Buhari had the capacity to halt the recurrent fuel crisis, to avoid the ugly experiences in the past during Christmas and other major festivities.

Nigerians desire hitch-free Christmas and New Year celebrations. The current fuel scarcity would make that impossible if nothing is done to resolve it quickly, Mr. Anenih said.
The Director General of Voice of Nigeria and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Osita Okechukwu, has responded to a statement credited to Nigerias deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, where he decried Nigerias rising debt profile.

Mr. Ekweremadu at the Peoples Democratic Party convention which held on Saturday scored the All Progressives Congress-led administration low on security, economy, job creation, and national unity.

He described the 16 years leadership of the PDP as glorious years for the country, noting that good men and women who left PDP for the APC are eager to return to join and build a better Nigeria.

But in a swift reaction, Mr. Okechukwu said he was particularly surprised that Mr. Ekweremadu had the effrontery to query President Muhammadu Buhari for borrowing interest free interest Suku N100 billion loan to fix the Enugu-Onitsha highway and similar projects across the federation,

Our debt profile is rising because of the profligacy of my brother, Senator Ike Ekweremadu and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) co-travellers, who squandered our patrimony raked during the oil boom era, Mr. Okechukwu said.

What I am saying is that Buhari is borrowing to construct standard gauge railways, and other critical social and physical infrastructure while the PDP government borrowed $8.3 billion for old gauge of about 1,400km Kano-Lagos. At the same time when the PDP borrowed  2002-2005, the Chinese did Golmud-Lhasa standard gauge of higher altitude of 1,142km at $4.2 billion. This is PDP in action.

Please, kindly tell Ekweremadu that had they constructed the $23 billion, 3 Greenfield Refineries which they awarded to the Chinese on May 13, 2010. Buhari wont be borrowing to import refined petroleum products today. They should refund us siphoned public finance (funds).
The fight against corruption is a do or die affair which Nigerians must win or die trying, the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, has said.

Mr. Magu, who spoke at the headquarters of the commission in Abuja after leading a rally to commemorate the International Anti-corruption Day, said corruption is Nigerias number one enemy.

For us as a country, the fight against corruption is a do or die affair; we have to win the battle or die trying. Corruption, as agreed by every consensus, is our number one enemy and as President Muhammadu Buhari correctly prescribed, if we do not kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria, he said.

The EFCC boss said Nigerians cannot afford to be on the fence on the corruption issue, as he called for a consensus against the malady.

The fight against corruption is now a war in which there is clear line between forces of evil and those of good; between agents of progress and reactionary elements who mean no good.

For those of us on this side; in the anticorruption agencies of government, in the media, and civil society, the dagger is drawn and I believe I am speaking the mind of everyone on this side that we intend neither retreat nor surrender in our noble intention to cure our country of the evils of corruption, he said.

Mr. Magu said the Commission was relentless in its duties but added EFCC alone could not win the fight.

As I often say, our bit is not enough. Winning the war against corruption is the aggregate of our collective bits and pieces. No Nigerian can afford to be on the fence in this effort to rid our country of its Enemy Number One. It is time for all hands to be on deck to march on corruption and the corrupt.

He said the EFCC has broken new grounds in investigating and prosecuting important cases, and recovery of stolen money. Our asset recovery derive has raked in billions of naira to the federal government in form of forfeitures. We have also secured 171 convictions within the last one year.

In his remarks, the accountant general of the federation, Anthony Mkpe, who took part in the walk, said his presence was to show solidarity to the work of the EFCC and underscore the importance of the fight against corruption.

He commended the effort of the EFCC as he urged all Nigerians to lend their support to the federal governments anti-corruption drive and initiatives.
The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Ayuba Wabba, has called for an upward review of pensions to help minimise economic hardship facing pensioners.

Mr. Wabba said this at the 16th edition of Pensioners Day Celebration in Abuja.

He said that the review of pension was long overdue, saying federal and state governments had been adhering to the constitutional provision.

Section 173(3) and 210(3) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria constitution 1999 (as amended) stipulates that pension be reviewed every five years or together with any increase in workers wages.

According to him, it is criminal that federal government pays N4000 as pension to some pensioners. If we want a better Nigeria, then we must be willing to take care of our pensioners and workers, he said.

Our country is so blessed with various resources but it is a pity that we cannot account how it is being spent, he added.

He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for releasing the bailout fund to states to pay pensioners and workers. He asked the federal government to monitor and make states accountable on how money released was spent.

He said government needs to take care of the security and welfare of its people in other to avert some of the security challenges in the country.

He appealed to pensioners to support one another, adding that the NLC will continue to show its support and solidarity.

The Executive Secretary of Pension Transitional Administration Directorate, Sharon Ikeazor, said the payroll for pensioners for December was ready and pensioners would get their pension before Christmas.

We got releases to pay six months out of 12 months being owed civil service pensioners. Out of the 36 months, we have paid six months out of it.

For police pensioners, we paid them one year out of the 33 months and we just have a balance for 12 months for police pensions.

Government is making the money available, we will pay up, she said.

She said the essence of the verification was to make sure pensioners were fully captured so that there would not be need for them to come back again.

Mrs. Ikeazor promised that by the first quarter of 2018, the directorate would pay the arrears of the 33 per cent increase.

(NAN)
A former Director-General of the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, Chidi Odinkalu, on Monday expressed worry over what he said was the federal governments silence on killing of Nigerians abroad.

Mr. Odinkalu, Senior Team Manager for Africa Program of the Open Society Justice Initiative, told the News Agency of Nigeria on the side-line of Human Rights Fiesta in Abuja, that the government was not caring for citizens.

He said that six Nigerian females were killed abroad recently, but that there was no serious action was taken by the government.

He said the federal government needed to do more to ensure that every Nigerian life mattered.

If one white person gets killed in France, our president sends a condolence message.

It is disappointing that our president does not take it seriously when Nigerians are killed. Rather, we get condolence messages being sent out to the rest of the world when their own people are killed.

If all the Nigerians being killed dont matter, and one white person killed matters to our president, that tells that you we have a lot of work to do.

I know that there is no perfect human rights situation anywhere because everywhere it is work-in-progress and Nigeria is the same but we dont have a choice; we have to make progress. Nigerian lives must matter.

Mr. Odinkalu said though he was not against condoling with the rest of the world, he insisted that Nigerians also deserved condolence and protection.

He said that this was because Nigerian lives were just as important as European and American lives, adding that that was the point that everyone needed to understand on human rights day.

The former director-general said that there were many things Nigeria needed to get right, especially the rule of law.

He noted that the government was still having problems obeying the court orders on Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and Sambo Dasuki.

He said that there were also issues with law enforcement abuses by police and other security agents, like the young women who escaped from Boko Haram and got raped by security personnel.

Mr. Odinkalu said that part of the reasons for failure to achieve human rights was the impunities of corruption and the absence of effective remedy to bring to book people who stole or plundered the countrys money.

According to him, there are people who have pocketed the budgetary appropriations for hospitals, schools, roads and we have not been able to find those people and bring them to book.

As a result of that, we cannot provide adequately for our people. So essentially, my first advice is, let us get the rule of law right because if we get it right, everything will work, he said.

He urged Nigerians to stand for each other and that the government should back the people to ensure human rights for all.

My prayer for Nigerians is may somebody be there for them at the point of their needs, that point of need is the point at which a human rights need is addressed.

Similarly, popular Reggae artiste, Ras Kimono, told NAN that Nigerians were being killed across the globe but the government was not addressing the killings.

Kimono said that there was need to put in place mechanisms that would address such situations and call for sanctions where necessary.

He said that he had been singing about human rights for over 20 years in Nigeria, yet little had been done by the government in that aspect.

He urged Nigerians to support themselves and work out plans to assist each other in cases of dehumanisation.

Frank Tietie, Executive Director, Citizens Advocacy for Social and Economic Rights, also told NAN that Nigerians needed to wake up and master what their rights were.

Mr. Tietie urged Nigerians to demand such rights from the government and also know the available places to seek redress.

On the occasion of the human rights day, I thought it wise to organise a fiesta to bring to the knowledge of Nigerians the 30 human rights tenets to enlightenment.

I made the longest human rights banner with all the 30 universal declaration of human rights.

He said that this would help the common man to know the rights he had and how to use them to seek redress.

(NAN)
The Ministry of Science and Technology says the mechanism being instituted by the ministry to stop importation of raw materials, if successful, will save Nigeria N43 trillion in five years.

Ogbonnaya Onu, the Minister of Science and Technology made this known in a statement issued by AbdulGaniyu Aminu, the Deputy Director, Press in Abuja.

Mr. Onu was speaking during an interactive session on the National Science, Technology and Innovation Roadmap (2017 to 2030) at the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi, Lagos recently.

He said that the ministry was embarking on a silent revolution that would enable Nigeria to create more jobs and fight poverty, adding that some industrialised countries did not have natural resources but were endowed with knowledge-economy.

He said that such a revolution would also ensure that Nigeria utilised its resources and intellectual capacity to add value to nations Gross Domestic Products (GDP).

The ministry has already identified those raw materials and products that Nigeria can produce and is providing guidelines on programmes and designs to ensure that Nigerian professionals are given preference in execution of contracts.

In the next 20 years, we want Nigerian firms to compete with American firms for jobs as the interest of Nigeria will first be considered above that of any expatriate, he said.

Mr. Onu appealed to members of Academic Union of Research Institutes, ASURI, to call off their ongoing strike, while stressing the need for the union to educate their members about the roadmap.

The minister expressed renewed commitment to the welfare of workers as a matter of priority.

He said that efforts were being made to formulate a policy framework that would move the country from resource-based to knowledge-based and innovation-driven economy where professionals could help to create jobs.

Onu said that more than 200 organised private and manufacturing companies were fully involved in the preparation and final drafting of the National Strategy for Competitiveness in Raw Materials making it all-inclusive.

Ekanem Udo, the Director of Science and Technology Promotion in the Ministry said the roadmap would stimulate research activities to ensure commercialisation of research results for economic development.

According to him, the roadmap is also intended to provide a long term science and technology framework and facilitate the creation of knowledge.

It will also create the platform to change the mindset of Nigerians to appreciate technology, Mr. Udo said.

(NAN)
The National Universities Commission, NUC, has indicated its plans to initiate the training of junior and middle career university lecturers in the northern part of the country as a means of building the capacity of staff.

The NUC is partnering with ENAGO, a U.S.-based organisation specialising in providing scientific, academic editing and publishing services, on the project.

The executive secretary of NUC, Abubakar Rasheed, said this in his welcome address at the NUC\Enago Academy Authors Workshop titled Academic Publishing For Junior And Mid-Career Academics in the Northern zone of Nigeria.

Mr. Rasheed said the workshop aims at training academic staff within the Nigerian University System on the required knowledge, skills and nuances of academic publishing, required to write good scholarly academic articles for publication to enhance their career development.

The executive secretary who was represented by Chinedu Mafiana said the workshop will be extended to the South-west, South-south and South-east regions subsequently.

While encouraging the participants to take avantage of the workshop to improve on the quality of their academic publication, the official said the move is part of efforts to ensure quality and relevance of Nigerian universities in all ramifications.

Similarly, the Business Head of Strategic Alliances, ENAGO, Steve Ghosh, said the company which has been operating since 2005 has helped many researchers in many countries to improve the quality of their written and academic publications.

He said the firm decided to come to Nigeria because, there is always a challenge with most of the countries where English is not the first language.

According to him, the main purpose of the company is to essentially assist junior and mid-level researchers in publishing.
The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Monday urged Nigerian youth and the people in general to quit blaming government or its programmes for the high level of unemployment in the country.

Speaking at a one-day public hearing on youth development and empowerment at the National Assembly in Abuja, he acknowledged that there is a crisis surrounding the subject in Nigeria and called on the federal government, National Assembly, private sector and civil society to focus attention on addressing it.

However, Mr. Saraki said it will do the country no good to continue to cast blame on any individual or administration for the high unemployment rate in Nigeria.

It is futile to point fingers or cast blame on any one administration and/or government programme. Nigerias youth deserve our immediate interest, best thinking and above all, our best efforts to create workable solutions to include their concerns in our national investment framework, he said.

Highlighting the factors responsible for youth unemployment in the country, Mr. Saraki mentioned population growth outpacing economic growth, inability of school curricula to adequately equip students with skills for employment, and inadequate industries to absorb competent graduates.

He called for the participation of civil society organisations (CSOs) in the search for solution to the crisis, adding that it is important because their grassroots networks strengthen the legitimacy of the policy making and democratic process.

Mr. Saraki further pledged the support of the National Assembly to any policy of the government or programme of the private sector or civil society organisations aimed at finding solutions to youth unemployment and developmental crisis.

The public hearing is a continuation of the Youth Development Roundtable discussion sponsored by the Nigerian Senate on October 9.

Participants at the public hearing include the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Social Protection Plan, Mariam Uwais; President, High Tech Centre for Women and Youths, Omowunmi Hassan; Celestine Okeke from Sustainable Entrepreneurship Economic Development (SEED), representatives of government agencies in job creations, empowerment and youth development, as well as civil society groups.

The National Bureau of Statistics reveals that Nigeria has a youth labour force of 38.2 million of which 15.2 million are out of work or seeking for jobs. Statistics also show that majority of the unemployed youth are female.
Congress should do some soul-searching, say leaders

Following an electoral debacle, voices are growing within the Nepali Congress to hold a special general convention for revamping the party organisation. As resentment builds up in the party rank and file, questions are being raised at the party leadership for its utter failure to attract voters.
The Senior Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment and Protection Plan, Mariam Uwais, has revealed that the the federal government will use the Global Positioning System, GPS, to track beneficiaries of the N-Power program, a project aimed at empowering graduates.

She said this while speaking at a one-day public hearing on youth development and empowerment at the National Assembly where she explained various measures put in place by the Federal Government to create jobs.

Mrs. Uwais stressed that the federal government is focused on empowering the unemployed youth as well as training residents in rural areas on special skill acquisitions.

It is essentially a program for youth between the ages of 18 and 35 and applicants are meant to indicate interests, be it health, education, agriculture and so on.

A device that has modules developed by the ministry of agriculture and health is given to each of them. That device also has GPS which monitors where they are meant to be going to, be it a school, an agricultural development unit, a primary health care centre, it monitors every movement, she said.

She explained further on the modalities of the project.

We go in and meet with the families themselves and take down their biometrics, the demographics of each family. We put it on a device which automatically ranks them into or out of the poorest in the community. We have done so in 21 states already.

We train residents of the surburbs on live skills and pay them N5, 000 per month.

She explained that the school feeding program which is aimed at encouraging menial workers at primary schools already operates in19 states.

We target primary school children, organise the ministries of agriculture, and education as well as SUBEB and get the names of the cooks in those communities and pay them directly. We train them on hygiene and sanitation.

Mrs. Uwais added that the idea is not to give the youth the impression that the government will absorb them but to make them get their hands dirty.

Speaking on the selection process, she said, they are selected for a period of two years and within that period, they should be able to ascertain which area they can build themselves. So, they can build their own businesses. So far, applicants who are not between the ages of 18 and 35 have been dropped out and those already employed have been rejected.

An N-Power beneficiary, Segun Abioye, while reacting to claims that N-Power trianees do not go to work everyday, said it was false.

Presenting the tablet that was given to him upon acceptance, he said, I use it to mark my attendance everyday I go to work. I go to work from Monday to Friday and close by 2 p.m. each day. And attendance is checked by the Head of Department everyday.

The N-Power Volunteer Corps is part of the federal governments Social Investment Programmes, SIP under which it plans to hire 350,000 unemployed graduates.

The portal, which first went live on June 11, 2016 recorded over 400,000 successful registrations with over 35 million hits in just 36 hours.

The N-Power Teach category seeks to ensure the adequate capacity of teachers in schools all over the country while N-Power Knowledge focuses on technology.

President Muhammadu Buhari had in February requested appropriation of N157.75 billion in the 2017 budget for the scheme.
The Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Ali Ahmad, has said the Not Too Young To Run bill will be passed by the various state Houses of Assembly before December 25 this year.

Mr. Ahmad gave the assurance in an address at the Not Too Young To Run town hall meeting on constitution review in Abuja on Monday.

He said Not Too Young To Run is a global affair and not just for Nigeria, as international human rights organisations are interested in the way it is operated.

If there is one bill that is going to pass at the state level, definitely it is the Not Too Young To Run bill. The bill was able to survive at the national level. If you have an objective, pursue it passionately and whatever roadblocks you might have, just believe you will succeed, he said.

Mr. Ahmad said age should not disqualify a candidate who is interested in governing his people.

Kwara State will be among the first states that will turn their own constitution to the National Assembly. In 2019,young mind should set the motion, start from the beginning, start from the grassroots level, he said. .

The proposed age for contesting for presidential election is 35 and it used to be 40. For House of Representatives is 25, while it used to be 30. So the minimum age to contest for an election apart from the president is 25, dont let 2019 go without having a space in the political sphere, he said.

Samson Itodo, the convener of the Not Too Young To Run constitutional review meeting, said the bill is among the 15 bills sent to state Houses of Assembly by the National Assembly, noting that the bill enjoys wide support from Nigerian youth as it seeks to promote inclusion by reducing the age for running for political offices in Nigeria.

We cannot say a country will develop without including the youth in the political affairs. It is important to engage youth in the political business of the country. So we call on state Houses of Assembly to vote yes to Not Too Young To Run that will give young people the opportunity to contribute to national development, Mr. Itodo said.

According to him, for young people, it is a question of whether our political parties will uphold the principles of democracy, transparency and accountability by ensuring that delegates are not substituted 24 hours before primaries and that young people are given opportunities to buy party nomination forms.

He said the impact of money in Nigerian elections is strong, noting that Nigerians need to enforce the campaign spending law.

The Electoral Act is very clear on the amount of money you can spend on election but our leaders dont comply, even President Buhari broke the law in 2015 by spending above the stipulated amount. INEC needs to be empowered and capacitated to hold our political parties accountable, he said.

The Not Too Young To Run bill needs endorsement by 24 state Houses of Assembly before it goes to the president for his assent to become law.

Hillary Bisong, the Speaker of Cross River State House of Assembly, however, said Nigerians need to change their mentality from entitlement and inheritance to investment.

He said Nigerian youth need to run for an office because of their capacity and not age.

There is no Too Old To Run bill, they know the youth are well educated and that is why they are using age as a barrier. Experience and quality matter a lot too, he concluded.

The House of Representatives passed the Not Too Young To Run bill on July 27, a day after it was passed by the Senate. The bill seeks to reduce the minimum age for elective offices in Nigeria.

If passed and signed into law, it would mean that an individual can contest for the office of President at the age of 35 and governor and the Senate at the age of 30.
Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) showed on Saturday that, despite the several miracles God has used him to perform and the huge success of the just-concluded Holy Ghost Congress of the church, he is human after all.

On the last day of the Congress, Professor Aboaba, one of the elders of the church, who introduced Pastor Adeboyes session, had wished the week-long Congress continued for another week. Mr. Aboaba, a professor, is about 85 years old.

As he made his wish open, Pastor Adeboye was seen whispering to his wife, Pastor Folu, popularly called Mummy G.O.

And later when he mounted the pulpit to minister, he shared what he had whispered to his wife. I told my wife jocularly, I have no objection to his (Aboabas) wish provided he would be the one preaching (during the additional week of the Holy Ghost Congress). I will just sit down and enjoy it.

A source close to Pastor Adeboye explained later, that was a joke but of course it shows it takes the grace and empowerment of God for him to do all what he is noted for doing. You must have heard him say often that without Jesus he is nothing.

The over 75-year-old pastor noted for his disarming humility and stamina dreads taking Gods credit, a reason he dislikes to be praised. He would rather want Jesus. who empowers him, to be praised, according to what he said during a book launch for him last year at the Redemption Camp which he reluctantly attended.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who was at the book launch, had commented on Pastor Adeboyes humility in the foreword of the book, Stories of Pastor E. A. Adeboye.

He stated: The life of Daddy (Pastor Adeboye) in itself is one big miracle! For a man born to financially-challenged parents in the remote village of Ifewara, Osun State, who had no shoes at 18 years old; who was not a born again Christian until the time he was a mathematics teacher at the University of Lagos, becoming the leader of a church with a strong presence in over 192 countries (now 198), and with over 32,000 parishes in Nigeria alone, is indeed, a miracle worth knowing.

For this same man to remain infectiously humble, in spite of his enormous power, influence and popularity is also a miracle in itself.

Pastor Adeboye himself had heard some people say that he is a spiritual being who does not eat. He has taken time to debunk that claim a couple of times to show he is human.

Someone once said that the reason God is using Pastor Adeboye is because of his name Enoch, referring to how God related with Enoch in the Bible. He doesnt eat. Have you ever seen him eat the pounded yam he talks so much about? the person argued.

When I heard that, I laughed. You think I dont eat? Well, invite me to your house, prepare some good pounded yam; get a very good combination of okro, make sure there is plenty of bush meat and chicken and fish and turkey. Right there in your dining room, a mountain will become a valley.

His whisper to his wife about Professor Aboabas wish, reminded some people in the congregation of his encounter with God, after the first major RCCG Convention at Lekki, which was so massive that it nearly shut Lagos down. According to the account, he was warned not to take Gods credit if he doesnt want to be wiped out.

He had said in a testimony: Something happened after Lekki 98; one of the biggest programmes that we ever had. The whole of Lagos was paralysed because of the programme.

People walked kilometres to the venue and back. Fortunately, the programme was also transmitted by radio, so those who those who couldnt get there listened to it on their radio. It was a fantastic programme!

After the programme, I returned to the Redemption Camp and soon proceeded on a prayer walk to thank God: God I bless Your Holy name, what a wonderful thing, etc.

It was between 2a.m. and 3a.m. when He spoke. I heard him say clearly, Son, bend down.I did that quickly because, you know, I was in the jungle. You never can tell; a witch could have been flying past.

And then he said, Draw the figure of a man in the sand.

I drew the figure of a man: zero for head, one line for the body and two lines for the leg and so on. You know that kind of drawing.

God said, Stand up.

I did, but by then I was afraid because I knew something serious was happening.

He said, Wipe out the figure you have drawn with your leg.

I wiped it out.

And He said, Son, if you ever forget who your boss is, I will wipe you out and nobody will even remember you came to the world.

That was what He told me. So, I smile when I hear people say, Hes a very humble man. How can a man be so successful and be so humble? You think I want to be wiped out? As they say in Nigeria, You think say I dey craze? Me I no dey craze at all o.

When you allow pride to creep into your life, you know what you are asking for? To be wiped out.'

On Saturday, as he lowered the curtains on the Congress, he thanked God for starting with us and ending with us, and preached on the topic Anointing for Victory.

He highlighted the three types of external enemies portrayed in a Bible passage on King Davids experience; and the need to overcome them with the anointing of God.

He likened the enemies to the lion, the bear and Goliath.

The lion, he explained, kills by choking its prey, and that in the case of humans it could be someone in superior position or influence who wants to suppress you, frustrate to death or kill opportunities or people who are to enhance your emergence or growth. He cited the example of Pharaoh, who ordered all male Israeli babies killed because a leader was to emerge among them.

But he had a solution for that. There is anointing from God to take care of lions.

The bear hugs to kill, (from which we got the term bear hug,) and that he said makes it very dangerous enemy because it comes pretending to be a friend.

According to him, the bear therefore represents people who get close to you, smile at you, pretending to love so as to get close enough to destroy you.

For those people too, he said there is an anointing to take care of them.

He gave a chilling testimony of how one of his three close friends earlier in his ministry hated him so bitterly he didnt want him to be the General Overseer after the death of the founder of the church.

It was way back in 1980, when one of the three was getting married. When I got there, the other friend welcomed me warmly and was doing everything to please me with drinks, food and other offers.

But God spoke and I heard Him clearly. He is your enemy!

I was shocked because I had exposed myself too much to that man.

When we met later, I told my friends Gods message but the man denied being an enemy. That was in June, 1980.

In December, we met again to discuss the church after the demise of the founder, and there the man bared his teeth: From the day you came to this church I hated you, he confessed.

The Goliath is the enemy who has insight into your destiny but vows that you will not get there. He could be a boss, a colleague or even an opponent, Pastor Adeboye said, explaining that what was at stake in the David and Goliath fight was the kingdom of Israel, which David had be anointed rule.

He assured that with the right relationship with God and His anointing Goliaths too have no chance to destroy people. Anyone who says you will not reach your goal will fail, in the name of Jesus, he said, singing the song I know my Redeemer liveth, to buttress his point.

An altar call was made before the church administered the Holy Communion  surprisingly done seamlessly for a congregation of that size.

The anointing session of the programme was done with oil Pastor Adeboye had personally blessed.

The General Overseer anointed his wife, who anointed the special guests. He also anointed deputy general overseers, and assistant general overseers, who in turn anointed pastors for them to anoint the congregation that was usually eager for such moments.

That done, he prayed for the congregation and blessed them to close the congress.

As at that Saturday, the churchs medical facility had recorded the birth of 51 babies  25 boys and 26 girls.

Earlier in the day there had been prayers and talk sessions on: The sacrifice of praise; Victory over lack; Victorious hope; All will be well; Divine champions; and More than conquerors.

There had also been goodwill messages from a delegation from Northern Ireland and Cote d Ivoire. Pastor Paul Keith from the Simple Faith Ministry in Belfast said, This is my first time in Nigeria, and in all my ministry work around countries, I have not seen so much joy and hope.

He continued, This has taught me so much; I am totally transformed by the experience.

Lionel Mitchell, who led a delegation of 11 pastors from six different churches in Cote d Ivoire, described Pastor Adeboye as the Abraham of our age, whose work and person continue to inspire us. What God is doing through him gives us faith and hope, he added.

As usual, there were also testimonies. A South-Africa-based Nigerian lady had been healed from arthritis during the Congress; and another lady who had heart problems, which doctors said could lead to heart failure, was also healed at the Congress.

From Oyo State, a lady whose sister had been kidnapped as she left her shop, leaving her baby in her car, got her released unconditionally when she prayed about it at the Congress.

And an elderly woman from Ijebu Ode, Ogun State had an encounter with someone in a dream and woke up blind, but after divine intervention, she can now see clearly.

A thanksgiving service was held on Sunday for the success of the Congress, which held in absolute peace and brought joy to many hearts, without recording any ugly incident.
These are some of the reports published on developments in the health sector last week.

Nigeria loses N175 billion annually to medical tourism  former Health Minister

A former minister of health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, said Nigeria loses N175 billion annually to medical tourism.

Mr. Chukwu at opening ceremony of the 2017 Faculty of Clinical Sciences 10th Faculty Week & Scientific Conference, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, with the theme: Medical Tourism in Nigeria said the wasted fund was more than 50 per cent of the proposed total budget for 2018 for the federal health sector.

According to him, the lack of funding of the health sector is affecting the development of the trainers and trainees as they are not exposed to enough cases and quality of care, therefore making the local sector lose the confidence of the populace resulting in low esteem and loss of morale among the health personnel.

Senate Hears Petition Against MDCN Registrar

The Senate Committee on Health commenced an investigative hearing regarding allegations levelled against the acting Registrar of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, MDCN, Tajudeen Sanusi.

The chairman of the committee, Lanre Tejuoso, APC-Ogun Central, explained that Mr. Sanusi was invited because of petitions from students and parents accusing him of incompetence as well as conducting exams for students under a non-conducive environment.

The allegations against Mr. Sanusi ranged from extortion to massively failing Nigerian students who schooled abroad and recently sat for the MDCN examination. 423 out of the 696 students that sat for the examination failed.

Medical directors sue Abuja area council over illegal charges

The Guild of Medical Directors, GMD, has asked an High Court in Abuja to look into the illegal and unnecessary taxes collected from them by officials of Abuja Municipal Area Council, AMAC.

The counsel to the guild, Akinwale Aderele, who made the plea via an application brought before the judge, Charles Angbaza, said the group was seeking, a judicial review of taxes and levies paid to AMAC so as to reduce the burden on owners of private hospitals.

The chairman of the Guild , Chito Nwana, explained that different agencies of government within the FCT have descended on private hospitals with duplicitous multitude of crippling taxes such as radio and television fees, environmental fees, trade and operating licence fees thereby killing many hospitals and adding that these must ust be reviewed urgently.

270,000 Nigerian children living with HIV  UNICEF

No fewer than 270,000 children ages ranging from 0 to 14 years were living with HIV in Nigeria in 2016, says the UN Childrens Fund, UNICEF.

The figure represented the lion share of half of the 540,000 total infected children in West and Central Africa over the same year.

Nigeria also recorded 37,000 new HIV infections among children out of the total of 60,000 new infections in West and Central Africa over the same period, representing 62 per cent of the new infections.

UNICEF warned that the West and Central Africa were lagging too far behind the rest of the world in access to HIV treatment and care as four in five children living with HIV in the regions were still not receiving life-saving antiretroviral therapy. Also AIDS-related deaths among adolescents aged 15 to 19 years were on the rise.

Myanmar: 586,000 kids vaccinated to shield their brains

About 586,744 children between nine months and five years in Myanmars Rakhine state are to be vaccinated against Japanese Encephalitis (JE) from December 11 to 21, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported.

Japanese Encephalitis virus is maintained in a cycle involving mosquitoes and vertebrate hosts, mainly pigs and wading birds. Humans can be infected when bitten by an infected mosquito.

Some infected patients will develop neurological symptoms including tremors, seizures (especially among children), as well as mental status changes and movement disorders and can be fatal in 20 to 30 per cent of cases. Most of survivors continue to have neurologic, cognitive or psychiatric symptoms.

Two Indian doctors sacked for declaring living baby dead

The services of two doctors working at private hospital in Indian capital city New Delhi were terminated for incorrectly declaring newly born twins dead, while one of them was alive.

The hospital has set up a inquiry panel into the matter with two senior doctors from the Indian Medical Association to investigate the matter. It said the 22-week-old premature baby was declared dead, while he was alive.

Institute wants more tuberculosis treatment centres</strong

The Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria, has appealed to federal, state and local governments to provide more treatment centres for the management of drug resistant tuberculosis.

Vivian Ibeziako, the Programme Manager, Drug Resistant Tuberculosis of the Institute, said Nigeria currently has 22 tuberculosis treatment centres and the centres are funded with global funds.

She said in order to tackle cases of tuberculosis among the people, there is a need to promote more centres that can manage drug resistant tuberculosis is necessary in all health centres.

Sokoto targets 1 million children for measles immunisation

Sokoto State says the government has targeted one million children for 2017 measles vaccination campaign in 12 local government areas across the state during the first phase of the programme.

The governor of the state, Aminu Tambuwal at the inauguration of the programme in Gwadabawa Local Government Area of the state, urged parents and healthcare givers to sustain the efforts to eradicate the disease. He assured people that the vaccines were safe for use.

Twelve local government areas are expected to be covered in first phase while 11 local government areas will be covered in the second phase.
The Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, has urged Nigerians in his political circle to rededicate themselves and restore their commitment to God ahead of the 2019 general elections.

Mr. Amaechi spoke while testifying of his miraculous emergence as Governor of Rivers State in 2007 during a special thanksgiving service to mark the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court judgement that declared him Governor of Rivers State, held at the Abundant Life Evangelical Mission (ALEM) in Port Harcourt, Sunday.

The former Rivers governor is a key member of the ruling All Progressives Congress.

With former Vice President Atiku Abubakars recent defection from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party, some members of the opposition PDP have urged Mr. Amaechi to also return to their fold.

Mr. Amaechi re-lived his ordeal in 2007 and how God showed up for him when all odds were against him.

The truth is that we believed God. Some who didnt believe left us just as they are leaving now. God told me that what he will do in Rivers State will tingle the ears, and I believed. We were so broke, we could not pay legal fees or childrens school fees. My wife prayed every day and night. I was fasting and praying for 3 months. I told God I have a friend who has money, please make him remember me. I called my friend and he told me he has been looking for me. I told him I was in Ghana and he asked for my account He sent me Two hundred million naira. This is just to tell you that I believed God and he answered me, Mr. Amaechi said.

He wondered why many of his friends and political associates whom he helped one way or the other have turned on him. But he said that it is Gods way of creating a vacuum for the youths to take charge.

He also advised the youth to be of help to people around them when they are in positions of power.

We must all go back to God in faith and prayers. Those who want to leave can go. I have come to understand that God passes us through these challenges to prove himself. Now that they have left, for me, this is an opportunity for the youths. It is your turn. You must ensure that we get to power for you to fill the vacuum left.

I have sometimes asked God, why do you use me to bless people and after blessing them, they run away. Count how many people in Rivers State politics today that I did not help somehow. I dont want to take the glory away from God. So for those who left, may God bless them.

When you get your own appointment, also put somebody. Allow God to use you and leave the rest all up to him, Mr. Amaechi advised.

On the 2019 elections, he continued, if we dont pray, 2019 will be very far from us. If we dont win 2019, it would be your fault, not anybody else. We go to God because he answers. We pray, then go home and work. Back then, even in my fathers house in the village there was a prayer team

During his sermon, General Overseer of ALEM, Eugene Ogu, recalled the travails of Mr. Amaechi in 2007, how he cried at the altar and how God used him to make a statement in Rivers State.

He said, Making a man who did not participate in elections governor is one act of God that can not be erased in the history of Rivers State. God is in charge of this state, that is why the conspiracy of evil ones cannot stand.

Apostle Ogu admonished the congregation to do good and avoid evil communications, because what you sow, you shall reap. If you are paid to kill people, somebody will kill you without collecting money. If you use your pen to lie against people, if you blackmail people, one day somebody will blackpaint you.
A former United States ambassador to Nigeria, Walter Carrington, on Monday said Nigeria needs to address the marginalisation of women and the poor to attain sustainable development.

Mr. Carrington made this known in Victoria Island, Lagos, while delivering a lecture at the launch of Defend the Defenseless, a book written by his wife, Arese Carrington.

The lecture, titled Nigeria and Africa in a changing world, was put together by the Lagos State Government.

The former diplomat served as U.S. ambassador to Nigeria between 1993 and 1997 under the regime of the late dictator, Sani Abacha.

He is reputed to be a fearless diplomat who spoke against the governments tyranny, even in the face of threats and intimidation, including assassination attempts.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Carrington said while autocracy in every aspect of the nations public system must be replaced with democracy, the issues of poverty and patriarchy must be effectively tackled to facilitate growth and development.

He lamented the poor representation of women in the nations governance system, saying a nation that ignores the productive capacity of half its population cannot thrive.

He also spoke on youth empowerment.

We must also give more hope to the youth population, the former diplomat said, adding that the youth should have a say in the formulation of policies that affect them.

Mr. Carrington lamented the fact that foreign media often cover Africa to report its calamities, saying the continent is still seen as a continent of the poor while parts of the world still regard 54 African nations as one country.

He, however, added that Nigeria must get it right because of its potential, adding that the nations prosperity will go a long way in correcting the stereotypical representation of Africa in foreign media.

Making reference to the United Nations (2017) Economic Report and PriceWatersCoopers report on the growth potential of the nation, the former diplomat said he was optimistic about the success of Nigeria.

He, also, added that the nation must also focus on inclusive development that address and capture the concerns of every strata of the Nigerian society, saying growth may not ordinarily translate to development, especially at the grassroots.

The book launch/public lecture was attended by Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Tunji Bello; Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka; business magnate, Fola Adeola; Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akinolu, among others.

In her address, author of the book, Mrs. (Arese) Carrington, called on all humans to defend the defenceless, adding that the advocacy for gender equality must also be sustained.
The National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus, has promised to decentralise power of the partys national leaders to state executive committees.

Mr. Secondus said this on Monday in Abuja at the handover of the party leadership by the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee to the new national leadership of the party elected at Saturdays national convention.

He said that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party would empower the states executive committees so that attention could be focused on regaining power in 2019.

Let me assure the state chapters and our state chairmen that from today, you will have full powers to operate to make sure that our party progresses in the right direction.

I will empower you on behalf of the EXCO.

We will decentralise power from the centre so that we will be less busy here to focus on same mission to reclaim our lost grounds in 2019, Mr. Secondus said.

He assured that with the taking over of party leadership by a new executive committee led by him, there would be no more impunity in PDP.

The old order is gone. We will operate in the new order. There will be transparency in primaries, he said.

The chairman said the first assignment for NWC would be reconciliation among party members, especially candidates at the just-concluded convention.

He said the work of reconciliation had started and expressed optimism that it would be productive.

He added that the gate of PDP was open to all party members, especially those who left, irrespective of their religious beliefs and class.

This is the only platform that does not belong to any group or big man. This is a party that provides for the big, the small and the less-privileged.

Mr. Secondus said the All Progressives Congress (APC) was running a broken government, and pledged that PDP would rescue and rebuild the country.

He said his leadership would not be distracted by the false propaganda of the ruling party.

Mr. Secondus said the new executive would come up with its policies and plan for a retreat, which would hold in next couple of days

He commended Mr. Makarfi for accomplishing the mission the party bestowed on him even in the trying moments of the party.

He added that Mr. Makarfi also organised the best convention in the history of any political party in the nation at a time people were so sacred and afraid that there would be nothing like PDP again.

You are our hero. History will remember you.

We need you to stand by because your advice and input will be very useful, if we must move forward, he said.

Earlier, Mr. Makarfi had advised the new executive to ensure that the party won the 2019 general elections.

He also urged it to focus on reconciliation, and appealed to party members to work together with the new leadership.

(NAN)
Following his visit to Adamawa State on December 5 in the wake of the communal clashes in the area, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday commenced a series of national consultations with relevant groups designed to find a lasting solution to the farmers-herders conflict in parts of the country.

Mondays meeting, the first in the series, held at the Presidential Villa and had in attendance the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi; the Lamido of Adamawa, Muhammadu Barkindo; elder statesman, Ahmed Joda; and other leaders of the Fulani communities.

A statement by Mr. Osinbajos spokesperson, Laolu Akande, said subsequent meetings would focus on other interest groups.

Mr. Akande said at the meeting, previous reports on the conflict were presented by the delegation and causes of the conflict were analysed.

The meeting unequivocally condemned the acts of violence that has occured, especially the killing of children and women and highlighted the need for Law Enforcement and other Government Agencies to dutifully and objectively perform their Constitutional roles, he said.

He also said the Vice President assured the delegation of the federal governments resolve and commitment to the entrenchment of lasting peace in all communities across the country and the resolution of all legitimate grievances.

There is nothing much more important now in showing our leadership beyond preventing tragedy and destruction of everything we have built as a nation. The entire Nigeria enterprise is bigger than other interests. The overall objective is ensuring that our nation is not enveloped by another crisis.

According to the vice president, We now have an opportunity to do something. We have the opportunity to resolve the issues and to build a nation, where we and our children can live in peace.

Already, following the vice presidents visit to Adamawa State last week, several food items and relief materials have been distributed to all the affected communities in the state including Shafaron, Kodomti, Tullum, Mzoruwe and Mararraban Bare in Numan Local Government Area. Others communities that have received relief materials are Dong, Lawaru and Kukumso in Demsa Local Government Area of the State.

In the next series of meetings, Mr. Osinbajo will meet with the Batta, Bachama and other groups from Adamawa State; while meetings with other important personalities and groups from other conflict-affected states would follow.
Rogers Nicholas, the newly-posted Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, has called on the Boko Haram insurgents to lay down their arms and embrace peace.

Mr. Nicholas, a major general, made the call at his maiden media interactive session on Monday in Maiduguri.

He said that the call was imperative to encourage remnants of the Boko Haram insurgents to surrender in order to end insurgency and guarantee lasting peace in the region.

We have determined and courageous soldiers to crush the terrorists and bring peace to the North-east.

I call on the insurgents in the bush to surrender to the Nigerian Government and embrace peace, he said.

Mr. Nicholas also tasked the media to work toward awareness creation on de-radicalisation of the sects ideology, promote peace building and social cohesion.

He reiterated the readiness of the military to work with media to ensure successful campaign against insurgency in the country.

The command will provide enabling environment for the media to access information on our operations.

You should ensure accurate, factual and balance reportage on the military operation, he said.

The commander warned that the authorities would not condone misrepresentation of facts and bias reportage.

Mr. Nicholas disclosed that the command would come out with new strategies to intensify campaign to end suicide bombings and attacks by the insurgents.

He also called on the people in the region to cooperate with military to enable them to win the war against the terror group, adding that the war against insurgency was a collective responsibility.

Also, the outgoing commander, Ibrahim Attahiru, said the military had implemented various operations to get rid of the insurgents and sustained the feat recorded in the counter-insurgency campaign.

Mr. Attahiru, a major general, said that Boko Haram insurgents were tactically defeated, while the military liberated all the territories from the insurgents.

He explained that the military had launched various operations designed to clear the remnant of the insurgents.

In view of the successes recorded by the military, the Boko Haram insurgents resorted to suicide bombing of soft targets, he said.

Mr. Attahiru said that about 100 Boko Haram insurgents including five high profiled commanders were killed and 72 others surrendered to the military in the past six months.

According to him, the military had reinforced its Mobile Strike Force to block the sects supply routes and enhance clearance operations.

Mr. Attahiru listed other achievements of the command to include conduct of polio immunisation exercise in non-accessible rural communities and lifting of ban on fishery activities at Lake Chad Basin.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Mr. Nicholas was the Chief of Logistics, Army Headquarters, before his new appointment as the Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole.

(NAN)
The management of an orphanage home situated in Piwoyi village, a suburb of Abuja, has expressed concern over a dumpsite within its entrance.

A PREMIUM TIMES reporter who visited the orphanage found the dumpsite just a few feet from the gate of the orphanage with its litters spread across the entrance route, putting both visitors and the orphans at a health risk.

Piwoyi, a small village a few meters from the express way leading to the Abuja airport, shelters about 1500 people; mostly low-income earners and people in the informal sector.

The standard of living there is low with most of the houses being either batchers or short bungalows.

Benedicta Dzreke, the proprietor of the private orphanage, Bema Homes for the less privileged, said residents of the area and market sellers use the spot as a dumpsite.

When they put fire to burn the refuse at the dumpsite, the whole smoke will cloud up the whole orphanage and this is dangerous to the health of the children. When it is raining, the flood will flush down the refuse inside the compound exposing the children to dirt and diseases, Mrs. Dzreke said.

She said the orphanage has cleared the dumpsite twice with the help of its donors, but the residents keep filling it up.

We wrote to the Abuja Environmental Protection Board, AEPB about this issue, they came and accessed the place but since then nothing has been done, she said.

When contacted, the spokesperson of AEPB, Muktar Ibrahim, said though he is not particularly aware of the dumpsite, the board will swing into action as soon he gets full confirmation of the development.

I will get that confirmation shortly from the office in charge of complaints then something will be done, we will find out the situation of things over there, Mr. Ibrahim said.

Meanwhile a refrigerator repairer that works directly opposite the orphanage who simply identified himself as Friday told this paper that it has been long the residents have been using the spot as a dumpsite.

He said the best option is for the authorities to clear the dumpsite and provide a means of waste disposal for the community, else they resort to the same spot again.
Europes crisis starts at home

The divisions that threaten EU integration are even wider within member states than between them
The kidnapped Plateau State chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Damishi Sango, a former minister of sports, has regained his freedom.

The spokesman of the Plateau State police command, Terna Tyopev, confirmed the release of the official in the early hours of Monday, via a mobile telephone text message to PREMIUM TIMES.

Yes, he (Sango) has been released, I (Terna Tyopev) have just confirmed that from the Police Public Relations Officer PPRO Kaduna State Command, Mr. Tyopev wrote.

On Sunday night, a family source who pleaded not to be named disclosed the release.

The source said Mr. Sango was released alongside four others, who were abducted on Wednesday. He said all had reunited with their families.

Similarly, the publicity secretary of the PDP, Plateau state chapter, John Akans, confirmed the development.

However, no one could ascertain if any ransom was paid for the release of the victims.

Mr. Sango was abducted last Wednesday evening on his way to Abuja to attend the just concluded national convention of the PDP.

His abductors had demanded a ransom of N100 million naira to release him.

It was learnt that the victims were all released unhurt.
The management of the Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida University, Lapai, has increased fees for students of the institution who are not indigenes of Niger State.

The increase is for the 2017/2018 session.

The Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Mohammad Maiturare, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Monday.

He said the management of the institution reviewed the fee from N52, 000 to N93, 000, saying that the increase was inevitable.

The fee for Niger indigenes, however remains at N52, 000, according to him.

He said that returning students were expected to pay N27, 000 and N55, 000 for indigenes and non-indigenes.

The vice-chancellor explained that the increase in fee was necessitated by the high operational costs affecting the smooth running of the institution.

He further explained that the management was mindful of the fact that some students might not be able to meet the new obligation.

He said to that effect, the varsity had thought out the possibility of loan facility for students, which would be paid on instalment basis.

Mr. Maiturare also said that the state government had agreed to avail indigent students the opportunity of an incentive to meet their fees obligation.

He said the management had in a meeting with the Student Union Government agreed to extend the resumption date to give parents and guardians apple time to prepare for the new session.

The vice-chancellor said the old fees been maintained for the last five years, adding the university could no longer operate on that fee. (NAN)
The Niger Police Command on Monday announced the kidnapping of two persons each from Zazzaga and Masuku villages.

The acting Public Relations Officer of the Command, ASP Peter Sunday, disclosed this in a statement in Minna.

He said that the act occurred in Munya and Shiroro Local Government Areas of the state.

Mr. Sunday said the abductors also shot dead one Sale Danjuma who tried to prevent the gunmen from kidnapping the two victims in Zazzaga village.

The spokesperson named the kidnapped girls in Masuku village as Shekto Ali and Maiaba Shehu,

Mr. Sunday said that the command has deployed law enforcement agents to the areas to fish out the victims and arrest the perpetrators.

We have deployed plain-clothes operatives and uniformed policemen to work round the clock to enable us rescue those in the custody of the abductors as well as arrest the hoodlums and bring them to justice.

He appealed to residents of the state to assist the command with necessary information that would lead to the arrest of undesirable elements.

(NAN)
Over 2.6 million children have been immunised against measles in Kano State in 2017. Officials said the success of the exercise was remarkable but not unexpected, as it was preceded by a thorough preparation and awareness campaign across the 44 local government areas of the state.

I had been waiting for the commencement of vaccination and I am so excited the day has finally come, Aishatu Isah, a mother of three said from a queue with her kids at a primary healthcare centre in Tarauni Local Government Area.

The government prepared us for this day. For the past one month, all you hear is measles vaccination campaign so what is happening here today is not a surprise as we had been expecting this day to come. Mobilizers had been going from one house to another to tell us the importance of bringing our children out to receive the vaccine, she said

On Sunday November 12, which was the first of the six-day exercise, hundreds of parents trooped into PHCs and temporary immunisation stands with their children for the vaccine.

With some holding their babies or strapping them to their backs, it was a sight to behold at Ugwu akwu PHC in Tarauni LGA as parents, caregivers and health workers engaged in the exercise.

Anybody who is not aware of what is happening today and for the rest of the week has not been in Kano State, a caregiver, Nafisat Bala, said. If you go round the state, you will see posters and billboards all informing people and educating them on the importance of the vaccine. Mobilisers have also been going from house to house to ensure that every child between ages nine and 59 months receives the vaccine.

The story was not different in other parts of the states, as screaming children could be seen taking the vaccine. Ordinarily, one would have assumed that the recent outbreak of monkey pox disease which caused panic in various parts of Nigeria, would interrupt the measles vaccination exercise, but the reverse was the case as residents eagerly presented their kids to be immunised.

In Gwale LGA, Aisha Ismail, a caregiver, said they were told several weeks ahead to enable them prepare for the exercise.

I brought my nephew to receive the vaccine. Officials had been moving from house to house in the past weeks to educate us on the importance of taking the vaccine. Before this period, I only saw measles as rashes on the body that can heal at any time, but they told us that it is a killer disease. But once a child receives the vaccine, he will not be infected with the disease, she said.

Measles is an infectious disease that causes fever and a red rash on the skin. Although it can affect any age, the viral infection of the respiratory system mainly affects children. The disease is contagious and can spread through contact with infected mucus and saliva. Some of the symptoms are cough, fever, muscle aches and sore throat.

A surveillance data also shows that measles incidence among under five children increased in the northern part of Nigeria from 190 million in 2014 to 527 million in 2016.

Jamila Sulaiman, a coordinator of the Voluntary Community Mobilisers, VCM, in Tarauni LGA of Kano State, said mobilisers had been helpful in mobilising caregivers, who in return, she said, had been cooperating.

The VCMs were recruited from the same communities where they serve, so they are known and familiar to the people, she said. As a result of the familiarity, caregivers trust the mobilisers with their kids and allow them take them to vaccination posts. We have however warned that no child should be taken without the parents approval, Ms. Sulaiman said.

Apart from the house to house mobilisers, town criers were deployed with megaphones to go from door to door and appeal to parents to release their children and wards.

Nura Mohammed, the PHC coordinator for Tarauni LGA, said there was a large turnout for the vaccine. He said the response was not unexpected as government had done a lot to create awareness of it.

We started the house to house mobilisation at least one week before the implementation. Ward heads, churches and mosques were used to pass the message ahead of the vaccination, which started on November 12 and will end on November 17, Mr. Mohammed said.

On the first day of the measles vaccination in Kano, we immunised 10,509 children in Tarauni Local Government Area. Although, we had a target of 10,289, we surpassed the target. This shows that the parents, health workers, mobilisers and all other officials involved in the vaccination process were prepared.

Mohammed Sani, the Local Immunisation Officer for Kano Municipal LGA, said that the exercise in the LGA was smoother compared to that of 2015.

Caregivers were aware of this vaccination programme and they have accepted it. Almost all of them were waiting for the first day of the programme. There is a queue in every corner of Kano Municipal. That shows that the people are interested in the programme.

For day one of the campaign, 11,400 children were immunised in Kano Municipal Council and we have a total population of 62,732 children to immunise within the six days of the campaign.

After the first day of the exercise, the State Immunisation Officer, Sherrif Musa, also remarked that it had begun smoothly.

We are trying to immunise about 2.5 million children in the state, so we will ensure that all necessary things are put in place in each local government area. All equipment, vaccines, the data tools, health workers and all other logistics are present in all LGAs within the state, Mr. Musa said.

We have ensured that mobilisation is adequate in all the 44 LGAs. During the October round of polio, we addressed the issue of monkey pox. Though, there were still some fears, we did a very good mobilisation. We used house to house mobilisers and town announcers to ensure we have adequate mobilisation in all areas of the state.

On the challenges faced in the exercise, Mr. Musa said, Though women knew the importance of taking measles vaccine, they still required mobilisation to ensure they release their kids for the vaccine. Some of them dont know the age group or where the vaccination will take place and the time it will commence in their communities. But we are working on it, and it will be fixed. I am hopeful that the state will meet its target of 2.5 million children, he said.

At the official takeoff of the exercise in Faragai town in Albasu LGA, the governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje, who was represented by his commissioner for health, Kabiru Ibrahim, said N75 million was earmarked for the exercise across the state.

At the end of the six days of the exercise, over 2.6 million children were immunized, with Kumbusu LGA recording the highest number with 177,603. Tofa LGA recorded the lowest with 25,000 children.
Flights to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, have been disrupted due to bad weather, PREMIUM TIMES have learnt.

Officials at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and the Akwa Ibom International Airport, Uyo, confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES, on Monday, that flights to Uyo have been canceled for at least two days now because of poor visibility.

A Dana flight managed to leave Uyo to Abuja on Saturday and couldnt return, said an official at the Abuja airport, who did not want his name mentioned because he was not authorised to speak on the matter.

Right now, several passengers are stranded in both Abuja and Uyo, he said, adding that the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar, was affected too by the bad weather.

A staff of Dana Air in Uyo and some officials working at the two airports confirmed that no flight landed or took off from Uyo on Sunday.

There seems to be an improvement in the weather around Uyo, and passengers traveling from Abuja to here are preparing to check-in, the Dana Air staff in Uyo said, around 2 pm.

When PREMIUM TIMES contacted David Igberaese, a representative of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, at the Uyo airport, he declined comment.

Ime Akpan, a representative of Nigerian Meteorological Agency, NIMET, in Uyo, told this newspaper that the city and its environs have been experiencing thick dust because of the easterly winds.

The visibility now is very poor. It is below minimal, and it makes it difficult for airlines to fly, he said.
The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has appointed 18 women in the state as his special assistants on gender matters.

Mr. Obaseki also appointed one woman, Efosa Uyigue, as a special adviser, also on gender matter.

The 19 women were sworn in on Monday at the Government House, Benin City, making it the largest number of women appointed into political office in a single day by any governor in the state.

The special assistants are to report to the special adviser who in turn reports to Mr. Obaseki.

I need 19 sets of eyes to help me see and identify what is happening with women across the state, the governor said during the swearing-in.

I want to know what is happening to our women in the market, hospitals, their childrens education and issues that relate to human trafficking in your local government areas, he said.

The governor described women as powerful economic units and social mobilisers who can change our society.

We should create the avenue to reach out to them, know what they are going through and not only to use them for political gains. We need to support them to do more for themselves, he said.

Crusoe Osagie, the governors media aide, defended the appointment, saying that the numbers werent too much.

Special assistant is the lowest in the ranking of political appointees, Mr. Osagie told PREMIUM TIMES. Their salary is around N80, 000 each and they are not entitled to official vehicles.

They dont work from the government house; they work from their different wards where they stay in touch with the grassroots to know exactly what their problems are and ensuring that they feed the Government House back with respect to the challenges the people are going through in their locality, the governors aide said.

Governor Obaseki made a similar appointment six months ago when he picked 192 people from each of the wards in the state and made them his special assistants.

The Edo State government appointees are comparatively the lowest in number in all the states of the federation, Mr. Osagie said.

You have 18 commissioners, eight special advisers and 210 special assistants and 58 senior special assistants. In all, we have less than 400 political appointees. In other states, you have up to 1,000 appointees.

The value these people bring to the government far outweighs the money spent on them, he said.
The Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha has said that 89 per cent of Nigerians are unhappy in the real sense of the word happiness .

Mr. Okorocha said this during a visit by air force personnel, led by the Air Officer Commanding Ground Training Command, Sampson Akpasa, in Owerri.

He, therefore, advised the air force to create a department for happiness and purpose fulfilment, similar to such ministry he recently created in Imo which drew lots of condemnation from Nigerians.

According to Mr. Okorocha, only four per cent of Nigerians could really be happy to some extent, while seven per cent might claim to be happy.

He added that the vital aspect of human existence, which is happiness, must be addressed.

According to a report published by the Nation newspaper, the governor said that agitations, insurgence, hate-speeches and the likes, come up when people are unhappy.

I thank you for your efforts in bringing Regiment 211 to Imo State. In appreciation, we have donated a 200-bed hospital to the force. This morning I spoke to the Chief of Air Force, about our intention to also donate the school to train electricians and artisans; you are doing a wonderful job.

Mr. Okorocha urged the air force officials to find the root cause of agitation in the country while fighting insurgency.

Agitation comes up when people are not happy, and the whole essence of life is to be happy. For this reason, I will advise that the Air Force too, just like I did recently, which most people didnt understand, should create a department for Happiness and Purpose Fulfilment.

This will help to address the need of even junior officers, who may have some forms of dissatisfaction in the discharge of their duties. Sometimes, you may think they are happy when they are not, and this sabotages the efforts of the Federal Government, Mr. Okorocha said

He said mentorship is another aspect which can help people achieve their purpose in life.

If people are happy, there will be less agitation. The amount of money we spend on aircraft and in the purchase of arms would have reduced by 50 per cent. This could also end issues of restructuring, Niger Delta and all other forms of agitations, he said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Sampson said they came on a familiarisation tour of the constituent security outfits established on July 3. He added that Enugu was carved out of other commands due to clumsy administration, and that their new training ground has helped handle insurgency in the North-east.

Mr Sampson identified collaboration and synergy as key in all security challenges. He craved for more cooperation in Imo and other South-east states, saying the command needs every form of support to blossom into maturity and global excellence.
Dozens of youth on Monday gathered at the Freedom Park in Lagos to protest against the incessant brutality of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, of the Nigeria Police Force on citizens.

Armed police officers watched from a distance as the youth, one of them clutching a public address system, moved into a nearby motor park to sensitise people about the atrocities of the SARS officers.

SARS is a specialized arm of the police established to combat armed robbery and other violent crimes.

But in recent years, the officers have engaged in widespread extortion of citizens and extra-judicial killing leading to an online campaign to scrap the squad.

The campaign, with the #EndSARS hashtag, trended on social media for several days last week, with the organisers calling for a movement of the protest offline to engage with ordinary Nigerians.

Ini Abasi, a businessman, said he was at the protest to lend his voice to the struggle.

Regardless of what happens, whether we are battered today or tomorrow, this struggle must succeed, the Nigerian Police must be reformed to reflect our collective aspiration, Mr. Abasi said.

The police, SARS cannot continue to hold young people, grown ups and matured people to ransom in the Nigerian state. If justice is not seen to be done, then justice is not done.

Another protester, Temitayo Tella, said he had been harassed thrice by the SARS operatives despite showing evidence of running a thriving business in Lagos.

I have a staff of not less than ten people working under me, yet they will harass us without any sort of pity, extort us, said Mr. Tella.

The last one, I was on an emergency call from my family house, I got there, after solving the issue, I was stopped at the bus stop.

I had a laptop and my car keys with me. The question that was being asked was that they needed a receipt for the laptop I was holding, I was at the extreme of Lagos where I couldnt get it.

Mr. Tella said had to call his mother to come and settle the police officers.

Eventually, on her way back, she fell down and broke her wrist. This must have been happening to several Nigerians all across the country.

We need a total reform of the police force not just scrapping of SARS.

The Monday protest in Lagos, which was scheduled to hold simultaneously in major cities across Nigeria including Abuja, Ibadan, Warri, and Owerri, was billed to begin at 9 a.m.

But two hours after the scheduled time, a handful of people had trickled into the protest ground. At a time, the number of reporters and cameramen outnumbered the protesters.

The police officers, who arrived at about 10 a.m., kept a safe distance but approached at some point to take photographs of the protesters.

Majeed Oluwadurotimi, a protester, attributed the low turnout of the protest to fear of police brutality.

I think people in Lagos most especially are afraid, we cant shy away from that fact, Mr. Oluwadurotimi said.

When I came here as early as 8 a.m., I could see some people moving around, people were like lets see if people will turnout.'

But Olorunfemi Adeyeye, one of the coordinators of the Lagos protest, said a crowd doesnt need to turn out for the protest to be deemed successful.

Every movement that will be serious starts small everywhere in the world, you dont need a mass to really cause change, said Mr. Adeyeye, the National Secretary of Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neo-Liberal Attacks.

But Im very sure that as the advocacy continues, well have more people joining.

This protest is giving it a non-virtual look, it has always been online, on Twitter, on Facebook, to make the people understand that Nigerians, especially the youth, are angry at the human rights abuses going on by the SARS officers.
The Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu, on Monday said he never said that the Benin people owned Lagos.

The monarch spoke in Victoria Island, Lagos, at the launch of Defend the Defenseless, a book written by Arese Carrington, wife of a former U.S. ambassador to Nigeria, Walter Carrington.

Mr. Akiolu was reacting to controversies generated by his earlier remarks that the developmental strides being witnessed in Lagos State was because of the blessings given to it by a past Oba of Benin.

The comment generated debates in the media with many contesting the monarchs position.

In a recent interview with PUNCH, Sammy Adebiyi, a prince of the Akinsemoyin Ruling House of Lagos, who is contesting rights to the throne of Oba of Lagos, said that the Awori are the original owners of Lagos.

Mr. Adebiyi added that neither the Benin (then called Bini) nor the Yoruba owned Lagos.

Apparently making reference to reactions generated by his earlier comments, Mr. Akiolu on Monday took shots at those who criticised him, saying many of them are not bonafide sons of Lagos.

The monarch promised to reply his critics by next year when he begins celebration of his 15th year on the throne as king.

I never said Bini owned Lagos but the influence of the Oba of Benin, nobody can wash it away in Lagos, he said.

You must have been reading many things in the newspapers. By the grace of God Almighty Allah, next year when I begin to celebrate my 15th anniversary, they will know the kind of person Oba Akiolu is.

The monarch also commended the Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, saying nobody can stop him in his political aspirations.
Full speed ahead

The 10th South Asia Economic Summit held in Kathmandu last month aroused hopes and aspirations as it discussed regional cooperation on many fronts, from promoting trade and investment to mitigating the risks of climate change.
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.




PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Fund, Inc. (NYSE American: FAX) (the "Fund"), a closed-end fund, today announced that it will pay on January 8, 2018, a distribution of US $0.035 per share to all shareholders of record as of December 29, 2017.

Your Fund's distribution policy is to provide investors with a stable monthly distribution out of current income, supplemented by realized capital gains and, to the extent necessary, paid-in capital.

Under U.S. tax rules applicable to the Fund, the amount and character of distributable income for each fiscal year can be finally determined only as of the end of the Fund's fiscal year. However, under Section 19 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act") and related Rules, the Fund may be required to indicate to shareholders the source of certain distributions to shareholders.

The following table sets forth the estimated amounts of the sources of the distribution for purposes of Section 19 of the 1940 Act and the Rules adopted thereunder. The table has been computed based on generally accepted accounting principles. The table includes estimated amounts and percentages for the distribution to be paid on January 8, 2018 as well as the estimated cumulative distributions declared fiscal year to date (11/01/2017 - 11/30/2017), from the following sources: net investment income; net realized short-term capital gains; net realized long-term capital gains; and return of capital. The estimated composition of the distributions may vary from month to month because the estimated composition may be impacted by future income, expenses and realized gains and losses on securities and currencies.



Estimated Amounts of Current Monthly Distribution per share ($) Estimated Amounts of Current Monthly Distribution per share (%) Estimated Amounts of Fiscal Year to Date Cumulative Distributions per share ($) Estimated Amounts of Fiscal Year to Date Cumulative Distributions per share (%) Net Investment Income $0.0151 43% $0.0301 43% Net Realized Short-

Term Capital Gains* - - - - Net Realized Long-

Term Capital Gains - - - - Return of Capital $0.0199 57% $0.0399 57% Total (per common share) $0.0350 100% $0.0700 100%

*includes currency gains

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its income and capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital distribution does not necessarily reflect the Fund's investment performance and should not be confused with "yield" or "income."

Shareholders should not draw any conclusions about the Fund's investment performance from the amount of the Fund's current distributions or from the terms of the distribution policy (the "Distribution Policy").

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The final determination of the source of all distributions in 2017 will be made after year-end. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund's investment experience during the remainder of the fiscal year and may be subject to change based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

The following table provides the Fund's total return performance based on net asset value (NAV) over various time periods compared to the Fund's annualized and cumulative distribution rates.

Average Annual Total Return on NAV for the 5 Year Period Ending 11/30/20171 0.39% Current Fiscal Period's Annualized Distribution Rate on NAV2 7.76% Fiscal Year to Date (11/01/2017 to 11/30/2017) Cumulative Total Return on NAV1 0.34% Cumulative Distribution Rate on NAV2 0.65%

1Return data is net of all fund expenses and fees and assumes the reinvestment of all distributions reinvested at prices obtained under the Fund's dividend reinvestment plan.

2 Based on the Fund's NAV as of November 30, 2017.

While NAV performance may be indicative of the Fund's investment performance, it does not measure the value of a shareholder's investment in the Fund. The value of a shareholder's investment in the Fund is determined by the Fund's market price, which is based on the supply and demand for the Fund's shares in the open market.

Pursuant to an exemptive order granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 30, 2010, the Fund may distribute any long-term capital gains more frequently than the limits provided in Section 19(b) under the 1940 Act and Rule 19b-1 thereunder. Therefore, distributions paid by the Fund during the year may include net income, short-term capital gains, long-term capital gains and/or a return of capital. Net income dividends and short-term capital gain dividends, while generally taxable at ordinary income rates, may be eligible, to the extent of qualified dividend income earned by the Fund, to be taxed at a lower rate not to exceed the maximum rate applicable to your long-term capital gains. Distributions made in any calendar year in excess of investment company taxable income and net capital gain are treated as taxable ordinary dividends to the extent of undistributed earnings and profits, and then as a return of capital that reduces the adjusted basis in the shares held. To the extent return of capital distributions exceed the adjusted basis in the shares held, capital gain is recognized with a holding period based on the period the shares have been held at the date such amount is received. Shareholders should not draw any conclusions about the Fund's investment performance from the terms of the distribution policy. The final determination of the source of all distributions will be made after year-end. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund's investment experience during the fiscal year and may be subject to change based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report distributions for federal income tax purposes.

The payment of distributions in accordance with the Distribution Policy may result in a decrease in the Fund's net assets. A decrease in the Fund's net assets may cause an increase in the Fund's annual operating expense ratio and a decrease in the Fund's market price per share to the extent the market price correlates closely to the Fund's net asset value per share. The Distribution Policy may also negatively affect the Fund's investment activities to the extent that the Fund is required to hold larger cash positions than it typically would hold or to the extent that the Fund must liquidate securities that it would not have sold, for the purpose of paying the distribution. The Fund's Board of Directors has the right to amend, suspend or terminate the Distribution Policy at any time. The amendment, suspension or termination of the Distribution Policy may affect the Fund's market price per share. Investors should consult their tax advisor regarding federal, state and local tax considerations that may be applicable in their particular circumstances.

Circular 230 disclosure : To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the U.S. Treasury, we inform you that any U.S. tax advice contained in this communication (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein.

Closed-end funds are traded on the secondary market through one of the stock exchanges. The Fund's investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares may be worth more or less than the original cost. Shares of closed-end funds may trade above (a premium) or below (a discount) the net asset value (NAV) of the fund's portfolio. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

If you wish to receive this information electronically, please contact [email protected]

aberdeenfax.com

SOURCE Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Fund, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.aberdeenfax.com


"eLPA is an example of how we continue to drive digital advancement by taking manual paper-based solutions and providing mobile-based solutions with improved analytics," said Sheryl Haislet, vice president and chief information officer for Adient.

The Digital Edge 50 Awards recognize digital innovations that have been developed through technologies such as mobile, analytics, AI, the Internet of Things and cloud. Entries were judged by a panel of IT and business executives on a number of criteria, including complexity and innovation.

"This year we have many winners employing AI and machine learning, or a combination of the two, demonstrating how quickly those technologies are taking hold," said Anne McCrory, Digital Edge program chair and Group VP, Customer Experience and Operations, IDG Events and CIO Executive Council.

Adient's Digital Edge 50 Award will be presented at the AGENDA18 Conference held March 19-21 in Miami.

About Adient:

Adient is a global leader in automotive seating. With 86,000 employees operating 250 manufacturing/assembly plants in 33 countries worldwide, we produce and deliver automotive seating for all vehicle classes and all major OEMs. From complete seating systems to individual components, our expertise spans every step of the automotive seat-making process. Our integrated, in-house skills allow us to take our products from research and design all the way to engineering and manufacturing  and into more than 25 million vehicles every year. For more information on Adient, please visit adient.com.

About CIO:

CIO is the premier content and community resource for information technology executives and leaders. The CIO portfolio  CIO.com, CIO Forum on LinkedIn, events, strategic marketing services and research  provides business technology leaders with analysis, insight and an understanding of IT's role in achieving business goals. CIO is published by IDG Communications, Inc., a subsidiary of IDG. Company information is available at idg.com.

SOURCE Adient

Related Links

http://www.adient.com


PARIS, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On Monday, Microsoft Corp. President Brad Smith announced a $50 million commitment, over the next five years, to put artificial intelligence in the hands of individuals and organizations around the world who are working to protect our planet through a major expansion of the company's AI for Earth program. The news was disclosed on Microsoft's On the Issues blog; full text below:

On the two-year anniversary of the Paris climate accord, the world's government, civic and business leaders are coming together in Paris to discuss one of the most important issues and opportunities of our time, climate change. I'm excited to lead the Microsoft delegation at these meetings. While the experts' warnings are dire, at Microsoft we believe technology advances can help us better understand and address the environmental issues facing our planet. That's why we're announcing in Paris that we are broadening our AI for Earth program with an expanded strategic plan and committing $50 million over the next five years to put artificial intelligence technology in the hands of individuals and organizations around the world who are working to protect our planet.

At Microsoft, we believe artificial intelligence is a game changer. Our approach as a company is focused on democratizing AI so its features and capabilities can be put to use by individuals and organizations around the world to improve real-world outcomes. There are few societal areas where AI can be more impactful than in helping address the urgent work needed to monitor, model and manage the earth's natural systems.

Data can help tell us about the health of our planet, including the conditions of our air, water, land and the well-being of our wildlife. But we need technology's help to capture this vast amount of data and convert it into actionable intelligence. AI can be trained to classify raw data from sensors on the ground, in the sky or in space into categories that both humans and computers understand. Fundamentally, AI can accelerate our ability to observe environmental systems and how they are changing at a global scale, convert the data into useful information and apply that information to take concrete steps to better manage our natural resources.

Already, we are seeing the transformative potential of AI. In the energy sector, companies like Agder Energi, a utility in Norway that produces renewable energy, are using Microsoft's cloud and AI to better capture, analyze and act on the intelligence gathered across its electrical grid. Through these technologies, Agder is now able to predict and prepare for vacillating energy needs in response to changes in demand as electric vehicles increasingly tax Norway's grid; data and AI have enhanced the performance of existing infrastructure, reducing the need for expensive new projects. AI is helping create a more effective, reliable and autonomous grid, while enabling customers and the country to consume more renewable energy as it transitions to a more electricity-based future.

In a similar way, we're seeing new AI and cloud technologies being used to improve the electrical efficiency of buildings. In Singapore, JTC, responsible for the development of the nation's industrial infrastructure, has centralized its operations on the Microsoft Cloud to monitor, analyze and optimize 39 of its buildings. Using sensor data and analytics, JTC can now identity and rectify faults before breakdowns occur, resulting in a 15 percent drop in energy cost avoidance in the first three buildings.

It's worth imagining what these types of steps can mean if we can help bring them to scale globally. Estimates suggest that in the United States, buildings are responsible for about 40 percent of total energy consumption. That means an efficiency improvement of even 15 percent in buildings globally would translate into a 6 percent reduction in global energy consumption. And as AI continues to advance, we have the opportunity to learn more and aim even higher.

We're seeing a similar cause for optimism when we see how AI is being used in agriculture. In Australia, high labor and import costs, dry weather and the highest variability in climate of any country in the world make farming increasingly challenging. The Yield, a Tasmanian ag-tech company, has created a solution that uses sensors, analytics and apps to produce real-time weather data, right down to field level, helping growers make smarter decisions that can reduce their use of water and other inputs while also increasing their yield. In the sea, the Yield is working with local oyster farmers to create the first product to increase aquaculture production using machine learning. The solution already has reduced harvest closures caused by rain by 30 percent, giving growers back four weeks a year of harvest time.

It's these kind of results that motivated us to step up our ambition when it comes to AI for Earth. As we look to the future, we're committed to working with farmers around the world. We envision a future with broadband connectivity for every farm and internet sensors for every acre of land. Building on cutting edge-work in Microsoft Research, we'll help farmers put AI to work not only to better analyze soil and rainfall conditions, but also to use predictive analytics to improve agricultural yields and reduce adverse environmental impacts. With the world's population continuing to grow, these changes cannot come fast enough.

At Microsoft, we believe AI for Earth will be a force multiplier for groups and individuals like these who are creating sustainable solutions. That's why we're not just putting more resources into this effort, but also coupling this with a long-term commitment to applying AI to grow and scale in four key areas  climate, water, agriculture and biodiversity.

We'll do this in three ways. First, we'll expand seed grants around the world to create and test new AI applications. Since our launch of AI for Earth six months ago, Microsoft has awarded over 35 grants in more than 10 countries for access to Microsoft Azure and AI technology. We will also provide universities, nongovernmental organizations and others with advanced training to put AI to its best use. Already, we're seeing success around the world in projects that are putting AI to work on climate, water, agriculture and biodiversity.

Next, as these projects and our work in this area matures, we will identify the projects that show the most promise and make larger investments to help bring them to scale. We'll do this not only by providing greater resources for these projects, but also by partnering closely and working in depth with a new multi-disciplinary team at Microsoft that will bring together AI and sustainability subject matter experts. As we help groups scale promising AI technology solutions, we'll help them commercialize these services, so they can have a global impact as quickly and broadly as possible. These will be in addition to our existing efforts: enabling real-time precision conservation and improving land cover mapping, precision agriculture to increase yield with fewer resources with FarmBeats and more efficient, effective biodiversity tracking and protection approaches through Project Premonition.

Finally, as these projects advance, we'll identify and pursue opportunities to incorporate new AI advances into platform-level services so that others can use them for their own sustainability initiatives. Some of this will involve platform services that will be offered by others. In other instances, these may be incorporated into Microsoft's own platform services.

We face a collective need for urgent action to address global climate issues. When we think about the environmental issues we face today, science tells us that many are the product of previous Industrial Revolutions. As we enter the world's Fourth Industrial Revolution, a technology-fueled transformation, we must not only move technology forward, but also use this era's technology to clean up the past and create a better future.

SOURCE Microsoft Corp.

Related Links

www.microsoft.com


BALTIMORE, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Baltimore Business Journal directed attention to closing the digital divide in a recent story. The story specifically highlights AiNET's efforts to build a free, public access high performance Wi-Fi network available to all city goers.

Nearly one in three Baltimore City homes cannot access the internet, affecting the ability to register for crucial social benefits, and putting a strain on job searching and skill enhancement. Enormous sums are spent on expensive, limited, data plans and weigh heavily on educational performance and resources.

The digital divide has been generating interest, and more importantly, action. "This is going to be transformational for the way people live, learn and work in Baltimore," said AiNET CEO Deepak Jain. "The network will provide a streamlined, high-quality experience for everyone in the city; helping many of those people who have been left behind."

AiNET soft-launched the first leg of the network on October 9th, 2017 in the city blocks surrounding the company's Baltimore data center, One Market Center at 300 West Lexington Street.

Richard Barth, dean of the University Of Maryland, School Of Social Work, spoke on the issue of the digital divide as well.

"Having access to online resources is, in this day and age, the equivalent of a civil right," said Barth. "I've spoken to the school boards who include many parental figures, and the idea that their public housing unit could be 'lit up,' as they describe it, with Wi-Fi would be huge for them."

"We crunched the numbers," said Jain. "Bringing free Wi-Fi to the city works out to be a $2/hr. raise to the minimum wage, and if you take into account the economic and educational advancements, the benefits become even that much higher."

The company plans to expand the network in concentric circles outwards from the downtown data center.

"We have met with the city council as well as the new CIO from the Mayor's Office," said Jain. "We're optimistic that very soon we'll be counting the users on the network in the tens of thousands."

To help AiNET bring this free Wi-Fi network to Baltimore city, add your voice and sign the petition.

Contact: Jonathan Eaton, AiNET, [email protected], (301) 931-6574 ext. 246

SOURCE AiNET

Related Links

http://ai.net


CHICAGO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Allant Group, a nationally recognized, data-driven analytics and marketing firm, announced a partnership with RedPoint Global, a provider of data management and customer engagement technology, to deliver solutions for retailers that enable optimized customer engagement and accelerated revenue generation. Allant Group's omnichannel solution produces highly-relevant, personalized messaging that can be in production within weeks instead of the traditional platforms that take quarters to develop.

Allant Group's Cloud-based solution contains a set of pre-configured components including:

Marketing campaign templates

Data analytics

KPIs/dashboards

Data transformations

Retail industry data model

"Allant has an impressive track record of delivering high-value solutions to their clients," said RedPoint Global CEO Dale Renner, "Through the powerful combination of Allant's rich expertise and RedPoint's market leading software products, retailers can now more effectively enable their customer growth and retention strategies."

"Combining Allant's data analytics and campaign execution expertise with RedPoint Global's industry leading customer interaction and data management platform, we are able to deliver a fully functional marketing campaign to retailers with a shortened time to value," said Gaurav Issar, CEO of Allant Group. "Together, we will produce measurable results related to key customer engagement metrics that deliver a strong marketing ROI."

To learn more about the Allant Group and RedPoint solution read "Mind the Gap: Bridging the gap between strategy & execution with data-driven marketing."

About Allant Group

Allant is a marketing technology services provider that delivers end-to-end omni-channel marketing services. Allant's expertise and market knowledge enables the delivery through faster customer and 3rd party data integration, improved analytical insights, easy to understand data visualizations, and effective campaign management execution to enable personalized communication by marketers to acquire, retain and win back customers. Allant is a privately held company headquartered in the Chicago area. For more information, call 800.367.7311 or visit allantgroup.com.

CONTACT:

Tim Finnigan

1-630-778-2758

[email protected]

SOURCE Allant Group

Related Links

http://www.allantgroup.com


RICHMOND, Va., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Allianz Global Assistance, a leading provider of travel insurance and travel assistance, has launched an impressive update to its innovative TravelSmart mobile app. The newest version of the TravelSmart app features a simpler and more intuitive user interface that enables travelers to access their travel insurance details, claims status, flight status, and local emergency numbers, all from the app's home screen. Improvements to the app have been designed to create a user experience that rivals the most popular apps in the travel industry.

The redesigned TravelSmart app lets users quickly and easily access their Allianz Travel Insurance policy and get help in case of a travel emergency. Other features include an expanded global directory of medical facilities, police stations, and US Embassies, as well as expanded options to quickly get in touch with Allianz Global Assistance's award-winning service team. While the TravelSmart app is available to all travelers, Allianz Travel Insurance policyholders can log in with their account credentials to get access to a full suite of policy management and claims filing capabilities.

An expanded list of improved features in the latest version of the TravelSmart* app include:

Access to Allianz Travel Insurance policies including the ability to store policies in the app and access a policy from the app's home screen so travelers can quickly access their travel insurance benefits.

File and Track Claims using the app to initiate a claim, update or add documents, select your preferred claim payment method or check the status of an existing claim. Customers can start their claims process on the go and select direct deposit or debit card payment to receive their payment faster than check by mail.

Real Time Flight Status Tracking allows app users to track their upcoming flight by adding a flight using the "My Trips" feature. Users can search upcoming flights from any itinerary on any airline, and add them to their trip with just a few taps. The app provides on-time status and gate information for flights departing within 3 days to help travelers prepare for the next leg of their trip.

An Assistance Button on the home screen takes users to the "Assistance Around Me" database, which uses geolocation to direct travelers to local hospitals, doctor's offices, pharmacies, police stations and U.S. Embassy locations and includes turn-by-turn directions. Allianz Global Assistance flags recommended hospitals within the app so travelers can identify vetted facilities quickly.

Global Emergency Numbers from the Home Screen means travelers with enabled geolocation can dial the appropriate number for police, fire, rescue, and the US Embassy for over 200 countries in seconds.

The TravelSmart Contact Us button on the home screen allows travelers to reach Allianz Global Assistance medical assistance or customer service from anywhere in the world with just the touch of a button.

A Medication Dictionary allows users to store a photo of their prescription label and find international names for more than 750 common drugs. These features make refilling prescriptions faster and easier while traveling.

A First Aid Terms Translation feature provides translations for 60+ illnesses, injuries and first aid needs into 18 common languages so that nothing gets lost in translation, especially in an emergency.

"Using our newly-updated TravelSmart app is a great way for travelers to feel safe, secure, and protected abroad and get the most out of their Allianz Travel Insurance policy," said Joe Mason, Chief Marketing Officer, Americas at Allianz Partners USA. "We've completely redesigned our award-winning app with new features that enable everyone to travel confidently and quickly and easily get access to the information and services they may need. TravelSmart is just one of many innovations we're bringing to the market to serve the digital traveler now and in the future."

The TravelSmart app is free and available in the App Store or on Google Play. More information is available at www.allianztravelinsurance.com/travelsmart.

Allianz Global Assistance USA

Allianz Global Assistance USA is a leading consumer specialty insurance and assistance provider** with operation centers in 34 countries. In the United States, Allianz Global Assistance USA (AGA Service Company) provides insurance to 25 million customers and is best known for its Allianz Travel Insurance plans. In addition to travel insurance, Allianz Global Assistance USA offers tuition insurance, race registration protection, event ticket protection and unique assistance services such as international medical assistance and concierge services. The company also serves as an outsource provider for in-bound call center services and claims administration for property and casualty insurers and credit card companies.

To learn more about Allianz Travel Insurance plans, please visit allianztravelinsurance.com or Like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/AllianzTravelInsuranceUS.

*Use of the TravelSmart application is subject to your acceptance of the Terms of Use. Some application features may require the use of phone service, text messaging, data access, carrier or data network connectivity, and/or location data (GPS) to function as intended. Standard charges, rates, fees, and taxes for phone, data and text messaging use apply. Features subject to availability and location. Flight tracking may not be available on all flights. Application content is not a substitute for the medical advice or treatment by a doctor and must not be used as such.

**Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply to all plans. Plans are available only to U.S. residents. Not all plans are available in all jurisdictions. For a complete description of the coverage and benefit limits offered under your plan, carefully review your plan's Letter of Confirmation/Declarations and Certificate of Insurance/Policy. Insurance coverage is underwritten by BCS Insurance Company (OH, Administrative Office: Oakbrook Terrace, IL), rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best Co., under BCS Form No. 52.201 series or 52.401 series, or Jefferson Insurance Company (NY, Administrative Office: Richmond, VA), rated "A+" (Superior) by A.M. Best Co., under Jefferson Form No. 101C series or 101P series, or Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Affiliated Companies (One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, OH 432152200), under Form Nos. SRTC 2000 and NSHTC 2500, each rated "A+" (Superior) by A.M. Best Co., depending on state of residence. Allianz Travel Insurance products are distributed by Allianz Global Assistance, a brand of AGA Service Company. AGA Service Company is the licensed producer and administrator of these plans and an affiliate of Jefferson Insurance Company. The insured shall not receive any special benefit or advantage due to the affiliation between AGA Service Company and Jefferson Insurance Company. Noninsurance benefits/products are provided and serviced by AGA Service Company.

SOURCE Allianz Global Assistance USA

Related Links

http://www.allianztravelinsurance.com


NEW YORK, Dec. 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Appsolutely, the leading blockchain loyalty system and creator of LoyalCoin, today announced the launch of the Token Generation Event (TGE) for its LoyalCoin (LYL) digital token. LoyalCoin is the token that powers the blockchain-backed LoyalPlatform, which allows users to redeem points from any participating brand, anytime, anywhere.

"We're excited to be taking a huge step forward in executing our vision of a reshaped loyalty economy," said Patrick Palacios, CEO and founder of Appsolutely, Inc. "With the introduction of LYL, we formally start our work to build the stronger relationships between consumers and brands promised by the LoyalPlatform."

Since launching its presale on November 11, Appsolutely has made 4.75 billion LYL available to the public for purchase. An initial supply of 500 million tokens sold out three days before the scheduled completion of the presale. A total of 997 backers worldwide raised the equivalent of US$3 million through their participation in the LYL presale.

The tokens will enable consumers to redeem or purchase goods and services from LoyalPlatform merchants and retailers, and exchange LYL with one another. Through their TGE fundraising, Appsolutely is investing in the resources necessary to scale LoyalPlatform, research and development efforts to increase functionalities of LoyalCoin and other related services, integrate more retail and merchant partners into the LoyalCoalition, and move forward with rollout of the LoyalWallet app in both North America and Southeast Asia in early 2018.

Appsolutely's Loyalty Economy

Drawing on its extensive experience in digital loyalty, e-commerce services and an impressive portfolio of major retail clients, Appsolutely envisions blockchain-enabled services as the next-generation solution to customer loyalty. Inspired by the growing trend of omnichannel loyalty economies among businesses, Appsolutely used their expertise to develop a robust system that enables companies to better engage customers and elevate their experience.

LoyalPlatform enables companies to effectively adopt an omnichannel loyalty program and turn a deficient loyalty system into a more secure and value-based rewards program. LoyalPlatform is composed of a digital wallet, a series of white label apps, and a coalition of supporting merchants and vendors.

With this new loyalty ecosystem, consumers are able to earn and spend LoyalCoin whenever and wherever they prefer, creating an open platform where the consumer decides exactly how they'd like to use the rewards they've earned. LYL also helps retailers by opening new revenue streams from surplus economic activity, where points earned can be used to trade products and services with other merchant partners.

The LoyalPlatform is powered by the NEM Blockchain Technology network, a powerful blockchain system that can process approximately 4000 transactions per second, enabling LYL to be exchanged at the high speed that international e-commerce demands.

For more information on how to participate in the LYL token sale, visit https://loyalcoin.io/.

For further information on LoyalPlatform the white paper can be downloaded at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eLVtfqfrWMsK2xeBfrm348ddqOlOWLF7/view.

A video overview of LoyalPlatform can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh4xrozFSL4

About Appsolutely

Appsolutely is the creator of the blockchain-backed Loyalty Economy under the LoyalCoin solutions suite, enabling brands and consumers to connect and transact more effectively via customer loyalty programs. Appsolutely has been a leader in loyalty apps since 2013. It provides an award-winning suite of offerings that enable brands to increase their impact with customers and empower them with rewards that are easy to own, manage and redeem in a scalable environment. Appsolutely is a global company that partners with brands in every region of the world to achieve maximum return from their loyalty programs. Follow @LoyalCoin on Twitter, visit loyalcoin.io and read the the whitepaper on how the LoyalCoin (LYL) will change loyalty programs as we know them.

Press Contact

Miko Ilas

Digital Content Manager

Appsolutely Inc.

[email protected]

+63 926 085 1218

Eric Doyle

Spark PR for Appsolutely

appsolutely [at] sparkpr [dot] com

SOURCE Appsolutely

Related Links

https://loyalcoin.io


Left in order

With left alliance looking to have absolute control, Nepal urgently needs strong opposition
BOSTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Arup, the global design and consulting firm for the built environment, is acting as the owner's design professional for the Green Line Extension Project (GLX), an expansion of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) regional transit system. The MBTA selected a joint venture, GLX Constructors, to serve as the GLX's design-build firm on November 20, 2017.

Arup is providing critical oversight and guidance throughout the project's planning and construction process. The 4.3 mile extension will bring much-needed transit service to the Somerville, Cambridge, and Medford communities, and serve a daily ridership of 45,000.

In addition to track infrastructure and seven station stops, the selected bid includes platform canopies, additional elevators at select stations, public art, additional community connection to the community path located on Chester Street in Somerville, extension of the community path between East Somerville and Lechmere Stations, and an enhanced vehicle maintenance facility in Somerville.

"This strategic milestone for the Green Line Extension was achieved through significant collaboration between Arup, the MBTA GLX leadership, MassDOT and the overall GLX project team. We are excited to help make the Green Line Extension a reality," said project director Jeffrey Tubbs, Arup Principal.

Initially, Arup was brought in as a consultant at a critical juncture of the project: the budget had escalated to the point where federal funding was suspended. Arup reevaluated the scope of the work, and generated a revised project scope, budget, and schedule, allowing the long-delayed project to move forward again.

Hemal Patel, Arup project manager for the GLX, said, "We are thrilled that the redefinition of the GLX has been validated through the design-build selection process. Arup's team is committed to helping GLX Constructors deliver the project by 2021."

"Having steered the GLX through the project redefinition stage, our multi-disciplinary technical team is looking forward to continued involvement through the procurement, design, and construction stages. Knowing that our work will make a difference to the people of Boston and its surrounding areas makes this a great project of which to be a part," said Mike Hall, Arup Associate Principal.

Arup has over 50 years of experience in the design of rail and transit systems. An integrated approach to master and strategic planning and total infrastructure improvement programs is a hallmark of the firm's rail work. Arup has had a leading role in the planning and design of some of the industry's most challenging projects across the globe. Projects include Second Avenue Subway, No. 7 Line Extension, and East Side Access in New York City; new rail connectivity in San Francisco: Core Capacity Study, Transbay Transit Center, and Central Subway Phase 2; London's Crossrail and Thameslink; Sydney Metro, Melbourne Metro, and Brisbane Cross River Rail in Australia; and Copenhagen Cityringen. Arup is currently completing a feasibility reassessment study on a potential North-South Rail link for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation in Boston.

Arup has been a strong local presence in the Boston area for 20 years. In that time, the Boston office has worked with a broad range of clients including many of the best regarded firms, institutions, and agencies in the region. Current and recent projects include Northeastern University Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building at Dudley Square, MIT Site 4 Graduate Student Tower, Boston Properties Back Bay Station mixed use development, and Partners Healthcare Resiliency Masterplan.

About Arup

Arup provides planning, engineering, design, and consulting services for the most prominent projects and sites in the built environment. Since its founding in 1946, the firm has consistently delivered technical excellence, innovation, and value to its clients, while maintaining its core mission of shaping a better world. Arup opened its first US office more than 30 years ago and now employs 1,400 people in the Americas. The firm's employee-ownership structure promotes ongoing investment in joint research to yield better outcomes that benefit its clients and partners. Visit Arup's website, www.arup.com, and the online magazine of Arup in the Americas, doggerel.arup.com, for more information.

Contact: Rebecca Maloney

e [email protected]

d +1 617 349 9226

m +1 617 412 6632

www.arup.com

doggerel.arup.com

SOURCE Arup

Related Links

http://www.arup.com


HONG KONG, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Birch Century International, a global alternative asset manager, has announced the opening of a new Tokyo based office, commissioned and authorized under the approval of the Financial Services Agency of Japan. Birch Century International Japan will provide accredited investors with access to the company's alternative investment and asset management platforms.

Birch Century International expands international capabilities as the alternative asset manager opens Tokyo office in early 2018

Building upon Birch Century International's alternative investment capabilities, the Tokyo office scheduled to open in March 2018, will expand the firm's global platform whilst enhancing its ability provide investors with access to specialized market opportunities.

With offices based in New York and Hong Kong, the announcement of the new Tokyo office further cements Birch Century International's Asian presence at a time when many Western markets present investors with limited options to capture reasonable equity and fixed income value.

Responsible for the development of the new Tokyo office, Birch Century International has appointed Mr. Kosuke Maeda as Chief Executive Officer and Karl Schwimmer as Director of Investments. Both representatives have performed executive duties at the company's Hong Kong office since 2009 and 2006 respectively.

"The opening of our office in Tokyo is another step forward as Birch Century continues to build on its position as a leading provider of institutional alternatives and asset management services. Our presence in Asia continues to grow as we provide investors with access to opportunities supported by our deep knowledge and understanding of regional and global markets," commented Mr. Maeda.

"We appreciate that our retail clients and institutional investors demand an investment service that is truly diversified and driven by value. As U.S. equity and fixed income assets currently offer limited value, our focus in Japan is to uncover opportunities that we believe adheres to our value investment philosophy."

Despite the announcement to open its Tokyo regional office, Birch Century International has been active in Japan for several years, and has established a client portfolio of public companies and institutions.

By increasing its presence within Japan, the company expects to strengthen its regional networking whilst anticipating the formation and management of a Japanese focused alternative investment fund.

About Birch Century International

Since 2005, Birch Century International has emerged as a leading independent provider of alternative investment solutions and asset management services. The company's investment capabilities encompass the essential components required for investors to succeed under the current economic climate.

The company serves a dynamic client base comprised of private clients, family offices and institutions located in over 45 countries.

Media Contact:

Cindy Chen

Phone: +1 646 568 9754

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Birch Century International
TORONTO, Dec. 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Blessed Herbs Cafe and Mount Zion Rastafarian Church founder and practicing Rasta George Metropoulos today announced the launch of the organization's first holiday season food and cash drive.

Blessed Herbs Cafe

Directly benefiting the neighborhood's less fortunate and homeless people, and local churches that actively support needy individuals and families, Blessed Herbs donated $1,000 in cash and 25 sleeping bags to kick off their charitable campaign, and has also pledged to match donations from any local business or individual donors up to another $1,000 until Dec. 31, 2017.

After an intimate, sacramental launch ceremony held in the chapel to pray for the success of Blessed Herbs 2017 charitable drive, Mr. Metropoulos said that 100 percent of the food and money raised would be flowing directly through to those less fortunate.

"We're not just another profiteering pop-up marijuana dispensary, or a hypocritical public company that's well-funded by the wealthy elites and promoted by ex-RCMP officers to cash in on the proven benefits, and inevitable legalization of our sacred ganja," said Mr. Metropoulos, who is a practicing Rastafarian. "We are a community-based local church with a registered charity, also a cafe with local and fair trade treats, also a source of the best herb and highest quality medicinals. But most of all we are good, honest and open-minded people doing the right thing according to our faith in Jah."

Visit Sacred Herbs at 534 Annette Street, in Toronto, anytime from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., 7 days a week. To reach our store, please call us at 416-551-8926.

For media or spiritual enlightenment, please call George Metropoulous:

Founder and Chief Rastafarian

Direct Line: 226-260-9536

Blessed Herbs offers comfort and support with spiritual, nutritional and medicinal marijuana -- as well as a place of inner peace in the Rastafarian tradition -- and is passionate about the use of herb by all, for the benefit of all. Producing the highest quality herbs for decades, we are proud or our past and strive for respect and recognition in the hearts and minds of all good people.

Related Images

image1.png

Blessed Herbs Cafe - Toronto - Canada

image2.jpg

Founder & Practicing Rasta George Metropoulos

image3.jpg

Founder & Practicing Rasta George Metropoulos

image4.jpg

The city says we're good to go!

Related Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3_gZKks1F4

SOURCE Blessed Herbs Cafe
BOSTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Imagine getting paid to shop. It sounds like a dream for some people. But for some members of the state's largest health plan, that dream is becoming reality.

Starting January 1, members and their covered dependents in Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' (Blue Cross) self-funded employer plans who select the benefit will be able to participate in the new SmartShopper Program. This means they can earn up to $250 in cash rewards per procedure when they shop for and get care from lower cost, quality providers for eligible procedures like MRIs, mammograms, and colonoscopies. There is no limit to the amount of rewards members can earn in a year.

Compared to other health care shopping programs, SmartShopper was the first to be fully integrated with a health plan's provider search tool. Using Blue Cross' Find a Doctor & Estimate Costs tool members can view what their out-of-pocket costs for a procedure will be while they shop, sort providers by quality rating and distance, and read and write reviews.

Blue Cross is partnering with Vitals on SmartShopper and recently launched a pilot with six cities and towns from the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association (MIIA).

"We've had a long and successful relationship with Blue Cross and are always looking for new ways to partner with them to help Blue Cross members in MIIA make smart health and financial decisions for themselves and their families. That's why we jumped at the chance to test out this new program," said Chris Bailey, MIIA Health Trust Manager. So far, over 200 members have shopped for services, and Bailey expects that number to grow. "Once people hear how easy it was for their colleagues to shop and earn cash rewards, we think more will want to shop, too."

Karen Mastrianni, Blue Cross' Senior Director of Product Development and Management, said, "We're excited to offer SmartShopper to our self-insured accounts and members beginning 1/1/18. We've bundled SmartShopper together with our Find a Doctor & Estimate Costs tools to enable a comprehensive shopping and consumer engagement experience."

Joel Coffin, Blue Cross' Director of Consumer Transparency Solutions, added, "By leveraging our partnership with Vitals and the extensive work we have done with them over the past few years, we believe 2018 offers exciting new opportunities for our members to continue to take control of their health care costs. New programs like SmartShopper are a natural evolution that provide an opportunity to change the way people shop for care. Members can lower the cost of care while earning cash incentives."

How do members earn cash rewards through SmartShopper? All they need to do is:

Log into their MyBlue account at www.bluecrossma.com/myblue. Access SmartShopper through our Find a Doctor & Estimate Costs tool and search for an eligible procedure.

OR

Shop by calling a Personal Assistant at 1-877-281-3722 Monday through Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. or Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

AND

Receive a service included in the program from a reward-eligible provider.

About Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (bluecrossma.com) is a community-focused, tax-paying, notforprofit health plan headquartered in Boston. We're the trusted health plan for more than 25,000 Massachusetts employers and are committed to working with others in a spirit of shared responsibility to make quality health care affordable. Consistent with our corporate promise to always put our 2.8 million members first, we're rated among the nation's best health plans for member satisfaction and quality. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

About Vitals

Vitals empowers everyone to shop for their health care like an expert. We bring together cost and quality transparency along with innovative consumer engagement programs to help people select high-quality, lower-cost care. Vitals leads the market with incentive and engagement programs that pay people to shop. Our solutions achieve measurable and sustainable savings for consumers, employers and health plans. Vitals helps more than 120 million people each year access better, more affordable care.

SOURCE Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts

Related Links

http://www.bluecrossma.com


The new services are part of C Spire's massive broadband technology deployment announced in late September and a key element of its Tech Movement initiative, an outgrowth of its 2013 groundbreaking Fiber-to-the-Home program, one of the first of its type in the U.S. and the fastest to connect thousands of Mississippi consumers in nine communities around the state to ultra-fast Gigabit speed Internet access, digital television and home phone services.

Starting today, over 57,000 households in 22 central and north Mississippi markets can order the super-fast internet access for $60 a month ($50 a month for C Spire wireless customers) by going online at cspire.com/homeinternet or calling toll-free at 855.CSPIRE6 (277.4736). Another 200,000 homes will have access to the faster broadband in the coming months. No contract is required.

C Spire TV, the company's new streaming TV service, is available for an additional $65 a month with a standard channel package. The service eliminates the need for users to outfit every TV with a set top box, freeing them from several hundred dollars a year in rental fees. Because it's app-based, C Spire TV allows users to watch their favorite content on virtually any screen in the home.

Meanwhile, more than 35,000 businesses in 40 markets across the state can likewise order the super-fast internet access starting today for $70 a month. To learn if your business qualifies, visit cspire.com/business or call toll-free at 855.CSPIRE2 (277.4732). In addition, the company is offering "fiber fast" Gigabit speed services to local business in 24 markets for as low as $200 a month.

"This new fixed wireless technology, or wireless fiber as we call it at C Spire, allows us to deploy services more quickly and efficiently to a much broader footprint with the faster, high quality internet connections and related services that customers have come to expect from us," said C Spire President Stephen Bye. "We are ushering in a new era of speed and availability for broadband internet access."

C Spire is uniquely positioned to bring consumers and businesses the benefits of the wireless fiber technology revolution, according to Bye. The company has installed over 8,000 route miles of fiber optic infrastructure and has deployed more wireless spectrum in Mississippi that any other mobile communications carrier. The firm also was the first in the state to conduct several successful pre-5G tests during the last 18 months with technology partners where it achieved Gigabit speeds in transmitting data over wireless connections.

Fixed wireless avoids last-mile fiber construction, which can be slow and expensive, while accelerating Internet access availability in more places. The technology also leverages the company's mobile broadband infrastructure, cell sites and spectrum to speed delivery of services to more consumers and businesses.

The new technology is the latest phase of the company's massive broadband deployment efforts. In late September, C Spire launched its home internet service offering speeds of up to 25 Mbps in 8 markets and is continuing to expand availability to another 40 markets where choices are limited or service from existing providers is slow or inadequate.

Last month, C Spire launched the first U.S. effort aimed at offering sole proprietors ranging from coffee houses and restaurants to law offices, accounting and tax services widespread access to Gigabit internet speeds in over two dozen Mississippi markets. The company is targeting one out of every five of the state's 250,000 businesses for the service.

"As a Mississippi-based technology company, we are uniquely positioned to ensure that our state is not left behind in the technology revolution and the new digital economy," Bye said. "The mass expansion of broadband Internet is a key part of the C Spire Tech Movement."

The C Spire Tech Movement initiative is designed to leverage the company's technology leadership and investments to help transform its service areas. Other elements of the program include leading the development of a tech workforce in Mississippi through education initiatives, expanding tech innovation and development of a state-of-the-art digital customer care platform for customers and team members.

In recent years, C Spire's continuing technology investment has played a central role in recent state gains for average mobile and fixed broadband speeds in Mississippi. The company became the state's fastest Internet service provider in 2014 and more than quadrupled speeds in the state following its successful FTTH initiative.

C Spire will share more details as they become available for each phase of the Tech Movement, including specific markets, pricing, speeds and other program details. In the meantime, consumers and businesses can get the latest updates, details and answers to frequently asked questions at www.cspire.com/internetlaunch.

About C Spire

C Spire is a leading technology company committed to transforming Mississippi through the C Spire Tech Movement, which includes the massive deployment of broadband internet to homes and small businesses, a state-of-the-art digital experience for its customers and team members, technology innovation leadership and the creation and retention of a 21st century technology workforce in its region. The company provides world-class, customer-inspired wireless communications, 1 Gigabit consumer Internet access as well as a full suite of dedicated Internet, wireless, IP Voice, data and cloud services for businesses. This news release and other announcements are available at www.cspire.com/news. For more information about C Spire, visit www.cspire.com or follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cspire or Twitter at www.twitter.com/cspire.

SOURCE C Spire

Related Links

http://www.cspire.com


WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The winter holidays are filled with family traditions, often with chocolate and candy as the centerpiece of the fun. This December, the National Confectioners Association is sharing four festive facts about the most wonderful season of all.

"The winter holidays are a special time in the candy industry," said NCA President and CEO John Downs. "From hanging candy canes on the Christmas tree to sharing chocolate snowmen with family and friends, there are dozens of ways Americans celebrate with confectionery this time of year. And behind those special treats are 55,000 confectionery employees in communities across the country working hard to make the treats that Americans will enjoy as part of a happy, balanced lifestyle  at the holidays and throughout the year."

Fun Facts: How Americans Enjoy Holiday Treats

#1 90% of Parents Teach Their Children about Balance During the Holiday Season

Americans know that candy is a treat. Throughout the year, Americans eat candy just two or three times per week  averaging about 40 calories per day. A full 90 percent of parents use the holidays to prioritize setting guidelines and talking to their children about balance. While most report having these conversations year-round, many use the holiday as a conversation starter.

#2  Good Things Come with More Information, Options and Support

Earlier this year, America's leading chocolate and candy companies announced that they are coming together for a five-year commitment with the Partnership for a Healthier America to provide consumers with more information, options and support as they enjoy their favorite treats. The companies participating include Mars Wrigley Confectionery, Nestle USA, Ferrero, Lindt, Ghirardelli, Russell Stover and Ferrara Candy Company.

#3 - Americans of All Ages Share Holiday Treats

More than 3/4 of Americans say they will likely include chocolate and candy in stockings or give confections as gifts to friends and family this holiday season. Foil-wrapped chocolates (36 percent) and candy canes (22 percent) top the list of the best candy for stocking stuffers, while peppermints, gumdrop-adorned ginger bread houses and chocolate coins all play a special role in important holiday traditions.

#4 - Americans will spend $1.9 Billion This Year on Winter Holiday Treats

NCA estimates that Americans will support U.S. confectionery workers this holiday season by spending $1.93 billion on sweet treats. Beyond the industry's 55,000 jobs, this economic boost helps an additional 410,000 Americans employed in candy-supported industries like retail, transportation and agriculture.

For more information about candy and the winter holiday season, including tips and recipes, please visit CandyUSA.com/life-candy/winterholidays/.

Survey Methodology

The data cited above was collected by 210 Analytics, LLC using a database comprised of several million respondents who have agreed to participate in survey research. Interviews took place using a self-administered, online questionnaire. To maintain the reliability and integrity in the sample, each invitation contained a password that is uniquely assigned to that email address and must be entered at the beginning of the survey. Web-assisted interviewing software is used to control quotas in order to mirror the census profile in terms of key demographics such as age, income, region and other factors. The survey was completed by 1,391 individuals in 2015. The margin of error is +/-2.7%.

The National Confectioners Association is the trade organization that advances, protects and promotes chocolate, candy, gum and mints, and the companies that make these special treats. As the leading association for the $35 billion U.S. confectionery industry, NCA educates the public to help ensure that it understands and appreciates the unique role that chocolate and candy can play in a happy, balanced lifestyle. Confections are produced in all 50 states, creating jobs for approximately 55,000 workers in more than 1,000 manufacturing facilities across the country. More than 400,000 jobs in agriculture, retail, transportation and other industries rely in part on the sale of confections for their livelihood. For every one job that is created by confectionery companies, another seven are supported in related industries. Learn more about the "Power of Sweet" at CandyUSA.com, or follow NCA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Contact: Christopher Gindlesperger

202-534-1440, [email protected]

SOURCE National Confectioners Association

Related Links

http://www.candyusa.org


"Seeing our CapTechers rally with such generous spirit to fight hunger was both inspiring and humbling," said CapTech Principal Errol Restelli. "The creativity and enthusiasm our team brought to the challenge was exciting and it is amazing to reflect on the impact to the community."

CapTech's National Food Fight raised over $40,000 for local food banks across the nation this year. The Charlotte office competed head-to-head against other CapTech offices to raise the most funds per capita for local food banks. The Food Fight started as a local competition in 2013 at the company's headquarters in Richmond, VA and was expanded company-wide this year.

"With more than 188,000 children still living at or below the poverty line in our region, we are grateful for CapTech's support this year," said Lisa Nisely, Community Development Coordinator with Second Harvest. "The Charlotte office's creative fundraising efforts raised $4,535, and will help Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina provide another 38,045 pounds of food to neighbors in need. Its partnerships like this that make a real difference to people struggling to make ends meet in our community. We're lucky to have CapTech on our team fighting hunger!"

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina strives to eliminate hunger through advocacy, education and partnerships by the solicitation and distribution of food. They serve 19 counties in North Carolina and 5 counties in South Carolina. For more information on donating or volunteering, visit www.secondharvestmetrolina.org.

About Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina: As part of Feeding America, Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina serves 19 counties in North and South Carolina. In FY2016-2017, Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina distributed over 54 million pounds of food and household items to over 700 hunger feeding agencies including emergency pantries, soup kitchens, senior programs, shelters and low-income daycares.

SHFBM on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SHFBM

SHFBM on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/FoodBankOnTheGo

SHFBM on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/SHFBM

About CapTech: CapTech (www.captechconsulting.com) is a national IT management consulting firm that bridges the gap between business and technology. We partner with some of the world's most successful companies to design, develop, and manage technical and digital solutions that delight customers, drive insights, and meet strategic objectives. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, CapTech has locations in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Columbus (Ohio), Denver, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington DC.

Contact: Emily Krause | CapTech

[email protected] | 804-615-3712

SOURCE CapTech

Related Links

http://www.captechconsulting.com


XIAMEN, China, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- China Xiniya Fashion Limited ("Xiniya" or the "Company"; NYSE: XNY), a provider of men's business casual apparel in China, today announced that it will hold its annual general meeting ("AGM") of shareholders on Tuesday December 20, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. Beijing time. The meeting will be held at the Company's office at 2nd Floor, 90 An Ling Er Road, Xiamen City, Fujian Province, People's Republic of China, 361010.

The notice of the annual general meeting of shareholders is available on the Company's website at http://www.corpasia.net/us/XNY/irwebsite/index.php.

No proposal will be submitted for shareholder approval at the AGM. Instead, the AGM will serve as an open forum for shareholders and beneficial owners of the Company's American Depositary Shares ("ADSs") to discuss Company affairs with management.

Shareholders and ADS holders may obtain a copy of the Company's annual report on Form 20-F, free of charge, from our website at http://www.corpasia.net/us/XNY/irwebsite/index.php, or by e-mailing to the Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Chee Jiong Ng, at [email protected].

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "target," "going forward," "outlook" and similar statements. Such statements are based upon management's current expectations and current market and operating conditions, and relate to events that involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control, which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under law.

About China Xiniya Fashion Limited

Xiniya is a provider of men's business casual apparel in China. The Company designs men's business casual and business formal apparel and accessories, which are marketed under the Xiniya brand, and sells through its distributors and retail network. Its products are sold to consumers at authorized retail outlets owned and managed by third parties located in 20 provinces, four autonomous regions, and four municipalities in China. This retail network focuses on second and lower-tier cities, where increasing affluence has led to an improvement in living standards and where most international men's apparel brands do not have a significant presence. The Company's target consumers are male working professionals in China between the ages of 25 and 45 who seek fashionable clothing to suit their working and lifestyle needs. For more information, please visit the Company's website at http://www.xiniya.com.

For additional information, please contact:

China Xiniya Fashion Limited

Mr. Chee Jiong Ng

Chief Financial Officer

Telephone: +86 1365 5939 932

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE China Xiniya Fashion Limited
SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Levi, Ray & Shoup announces that Cirrato One, its solution for server consolidation and centralized print management, has been selected for a 2018 Pick Award by Keypoint Intelligence - Buyers Lab (BLI), the world's leading independent evaluator of document imaging software, hardware, and services. Besides print server elimination, centrally managing an enterprise print environment, bandwidth reduction and secure printing, they also specify that they have not seen redundancy and failover capabilities in other solutions.

The following was provided by Keypoint Intelligence - Buyers Lab:

Maintaining a traditional print infrastructure with its various print servers, drivers, and queues is a time and bandwidth-consuming exercise in most enterprises. Moreover, the cost of printed output is a major drain that often goes unaccounted. Cirrato One from Levi, Ray & Shoup, Inc. (LRS), has been named Outstanding Enterprise Print Environment Management Solution thanks to its ability to effectively address these pain points and many others related to an enterprise's print output. The platform replaces traditional print servers that typically reside at various locations across the enterprise with a central server that handles management of print output, drivers, and queues. And instead of print jobs being sent here and there across the network, the platform enables Direct IP printing from the client PC to the target printer/MFP, which minimizes WAN traffic.

"Designed as an enterprise-grade solution, Cirrato One features redundancy and fail-over capabilities we have not seen in other print-infrastructure management platforms," noted Jamie Bsales, Director of Software Analysis at Keypoint Intelligence. "And the platform's security features, such as support for secure pull printing and unique identifiers for each user, job, and output device, help ensure that information in an organization's print stream is always safe."

"We were very enthusiastic about the opportunity to have Cirrato One tested by the analysts at BLI. We could not be more pleased to receive this award from an organization that has such a strong reputation in our industry. We are also proud to hear that the team of analysts has not seen some of our features at our competitors. With new single server software solutions entering the market each year, it becomes increasingly difficult to identify which is the best fit for a certain environment. This award will offer a valuable independent review to those looking for serverless printing solutions. It also confirms our statement that printing simply works with Cirrato," says Gorm Halberg-Lange, Managing Director Cirrato Team at LRS.

About Keypoint Intelligence - Buyers Lab

Keypoint Intelligence is a one-stop shop for the digital imaging industry. With our unparalleled tools and unmatched depth of knowledge, we cut through the noise of data to offer clients the unbiased insights and responsive tools they need in those mission-critical moments that define their products and empower their sales. For over 50 years, Buyers Lab has been the global document imaging industry's resource for unbiased and reliable information, test data, and competitive selling tools. What started out as a consumer-based publication about office equipment has become an all-encompassing industry resource. Buyers Lab evolves in tandem with the ever-changing landscape of document imaging solutions, constantly updating our methods, expanding our offerings, and tracking cutting-edge developments.

About Buyers Lab Software Pick Awards

Buyers Lab Document Imaging Software Picks stand alone in the industry and are hard-earned awards as they are based on rigorous testing, including evaluation of key attributes such as features, usability, and value. Each product that passes our lab test earns Buyers Lab's Platinum, Gold, Silver, or Bronze rating, with the best performers qualifying as Pick contenders.

About LRS

LRS is a privately-held U.S. company with corporate headquarters located in Springfield, Illinois, USA. Remote offices are located throughout the United States and in key geographic regions around the world. More than half of the Fortune 1000 companies rely on industry-leading LRS solutions, with products in use in over 30 countries. Industry analyst groups recognize LRS as a global IT leader and Software Magazine consistently ranks LRS as one of the top software companies in the world. For more information about LRS, visit www.LRSOutputManagement.com.

LRS, LRS in the diamond device, and VPSX are registered trademarks and Cirrato One is a trademark of Levi, Ray & Shoup, Inc. All other brand and product names are trademarks or service marks of their respective holders.

Contact:

Kevin Evans

217-793-3800 x1725

SOURCE Levi, Ray & Shoup, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.lrs.com


NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading provider of commercial lending and leasing services, and real estate broker Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. (HFF), today announced $35 million in financing for Plaza 360, a 115,186-square-foot, creative office building in Oakland, California.

HFF, who worked on behalf of the borrower, Brickman, secured the five-year, nonrecourse floating-rate loan through CIT. Loan proceeds were used to acquire the property with a portion of the undisbursed funds allocated for common area upgrades and tenant improvements. The property is an eight-story creative office building with ground level retail space.

Matt Galligan, president of CIT's Real Estate Finance business, said: "Plaza 360 is located in Oakland's Uptown District, a prime spot close to restaurants, shops and several transportation options. This transaction is the first with Brickman and demonstrates our effort to provide secure financing that maximizes value for developers."

"Plaza 360 is perfectly situated to allow Brickman to execute on its highly successful Bay Area, value-add office repositioning strategy," said Peter Smyslowski, senior managing director of HFF.

About Brickman

Brickman is a New York-based real estate private equity firm with more than 20 years of experience investing in real estate debt and equity. The firm has invested over $1.5 billion of equity, primarily through seven comingled private funds, on behalf of institutional and high net worth investors. Brickman has managed funds investing in an array of strategies including opportunistic, value-add, and core-plus through a mix of both equity and debt products. The company's vertically-integrated platform, with in-house property management, project management and leasing teams, has owned, operated, leased and asset-managed over 8.6 million square feet of office property, with a current office portfolio of 2.3 million square feet in eight markets across the United States.

About HFF

HFF and its affiliates operate out of 25 offices and are a leading provider of commercial real estate and capital markets services to the global commercial real estate industry. HFF, together with its affiliates, offers clients a fully integrated capital markets platform, including debt placement, investment advisory, equity placement, funds marketing, M&A and corporate advisory, loan sales and loan servicing. HFF, HFF Real Estate Limited, HFF Securities L.P. and HFF Securities Limited are owned by HFF, Inc. (NYSE: HF). For more information, please visit hfflp.com or follow HFF on Twitter @HFF.

About CIT

Founded in 1908, CIT (NYSE: CIT) is a financial holding company with approximately $50 billion in assets as of Sept. 30, 2017. Its principal bank subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A., (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender) has more than $30 billion of deposits and more than $40 billion of assets. CIT provides financing, leasing, and advisory services principally to middle-market companies and small businesses across a wide variety of industries. It also offers products and services to consumers through its Internet bank franchise and a network of retail branches in Southern California, operating as OneWest Bank, a division of CIT Bank, N.A. For more information visit cit.com.

For more information visit cit.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Facebook. Register to receive press releases at cit.mediaroom.com/email-alerts.

KRISTEN MURPHY

HFF Director, Public Relations

(617) 338-0990

[email protected]

OLIVIA WEISS

CIT Media Relations

(212) 771-9657

[email protected]

SOURCE CIT Group Inc.

Related Links

http://www.cit.com


Madhesi parties hold little sway outside Province 2

Even as the alliance of the Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum Nepal and the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal looks to win over 20 seats of the House of Representatives, results show the Madhes-based parties influence is limited to Province 2.
NORTH BILLERICA, Mass., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Curriculum Associates' technical support team was recently honored with a 2017 Tech & Learning Stellar Service Award in The Number You Have on Autodial (Best Tech Support) category. Determined by educator votes, the Stellar Service Awards celebrate key factors that influence edtech purchasing and renewal decisions by honoring outstanding achievements in customer care and satisfaction in the industry.

"Providing educators with world-class training and support at every step of our journey together is our top priority," said Rob Waldron, CEO of Curriculum Associates. "Our dedicated tech support team is driven by an educator-first orientation and goes above and beyond to serve and delight customers in support of over 5 million i-Ready students nationwide."

To ensure an ongoing, quality customer experience, Curriculum Associates' technical support team provides in-person and remote support to schools and districts using its award-winning i-Ready program. The team provides detailed technical training during implementation to guarantee a smooth rollout and to minimize workload for school staff. The team also monitors daily reports to diagnose user network issues, often notifying accounts about potential issues before the school is even aware. The team responds to customer calls within 32 seconds even during its busiest periods, resolving 85% of all cases within the day and over 95% of cases within two days.

Curriculum Associates devotes extensive resources toward ensuring customer satisfaction. The company's commitment to service is evident in its employee makeup, with over 40% of team members working in dedicated service roles to support educators using its products. Its stellar service and technical support drive tremendous customer loyalty and contribute to a renewal rate well over 90%.

"Our district is new to i-Ready this year, and the Curriculum Associates support professionals are the most dedicated and helpful team I have ever worked with regarding assessment," said Tenicia Helmberger, Director of Special Education and Assessment at Kokomo School Corporation in Indiana. "Their response time to questions is instant, and when I ask for resources, they send a link or suggestion right away. They are friendly and thorough, and our principals and teachers are raving about the support they receive. We are grateful to Curriculum Associates for being an outstanding team that delivers an amazing product."

Curriculum Associates' i-Ready program was also recently recognized by Tech & Learning with a 2017 Award of Excellence in the Upgraded Products category.

About Tech & Learning

For over 37 years, Tech & Learning has beenand continues to bethe leading resource for K12 leaders. Its publications, Web sites, and events provide factual and evaluative information on trends, products, and strategies to educators who purchase technology products in their districts and schools. Tech & Learning, published by NewBay Media LLC, delivers the highest quality content and essential resources to manage, train, and teach with technology. For more information, visit www.TechLearning.com.

About Curriculum Associates

Founded in 1969, Curriculum Associates, LLC designs research-based print and online instructional materials, screens and assessments, and data management tools. The company's products and outstanding customer service provide teachers and administrators with the resources necessary for teaching diverse student populations and fostering learning for all students.

SOURCE Curriculum Associates
NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The pending $69 billion acquisition of Aetna by CVS could yield valuable lessons for others in the healthcare and drugstore sectors as they seek to forge stronger ties to consumers, according to veteran branding experts from CBX.

"What interests me here is the potential for CVS-Aetna to create new, meaningfully differentiated brand experiences for consumers," said Brian McDonagh, a Minneapolis-based strategy director who has worked with the likes of Kimberly-Clark, Merck, Medtronic and PepsiCo, to name a few. "CVS has nearly 10,000 stores; Aetna covers 22 million people. If they can combine to better meet the clinical and patient needs of such a large swath of the U.S. population, it will be a game-changer."

CVS, the second-largest U.S. drugstore chain, is buying Aetna, the country's third-largest health insurer, in what observers say is a bid to ramp up the level of care CVS offers to its customers. The deal could ultimately translate into more in-store clinics for CVSit already operates about 1,100with expanded menus of available medical services, including those for patients with chronic conditions.

As a result, it could help CVS further sharpen its focus on its core business and purposenamely, to be a healthcare company, McDonagh said. "For far too long, U.S. chain drugstores have suffered from a bit of an identity crisis," he said. "Despite the coolers and front-of-the-store merchandise, CVS, for one, has realized that it isn't primarily a food seller, nor is it a discount retailer or c-store. Increasingly, CVS has been trying to act like a healthcare company."

The move will create some intriguing possibilities with respect to integrated store design, signage, packaging, naming, logos and other forms of creative marketing, McDonagh said. However, the actual experience of receiving healthcare in these locations will arguably be the biggest factor in bolstering the brand, he said.

"Potentially, this union is a step away from a disjointed, broken system toward greater coherence," McDonagh said. "The question is, what philosophy and mission are driving this? Is it pure profit or a true commitment to consumer care? Given that CVS has already demonstrated a commitment to consumer care at a loss to its revenuesnamely, by taking tobacco out of its storesI am glad CVS is doing the acquiring here."

More broadly, other U.S. pharmacy chains and healthcare-related companies could benefit from thinking creatively about how to better connect with their customers, McDonagh noted, and they will no doubt be paying close attention to how the CVS-Aetna deal evolves. "Connecting is second nature to manufacturers of soda, breakfast cereal or laundry detergent, but the calculus for healthcare companies is quite a bit more complex," he said. "If CVS and Aetna can put consumer care first and offer greater usability, transparency and value, there will be lessons as other companies seek to follow suit."

For his part, CBX Managing Partner Gregg S. Lipman sounded a cautionary note about the trend in the U.S economy toward vertical integration. While the list of resulting pros includes lower prices, easier access and more convenience, he said, there are also significant costs as more consumers live within closed, vertically integrated ecosystems.

"Consumers will soon be forced to pick their 'team': 'I'm a Walmarter' or 'I'm an Amazoner,' " Lipman said. "All of their info is in the vertical, and so all of the value they can reapfrom loyalty rewards, to custom and leveraged pricingis in that vertical. The thing is, the goods and services on offer are just about the same. The danger is a growing sense that Big Brother is truly here. Is that a good thing for consumers? Could it eventually spark a backlash?"

About CBX

CBX specializes in creative marketing services including: strategy, naming, branding, retail design, and packaging design. The company, with its current staff of more than 130 employees, was founded in 2003 and has a client base that includes: Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor, Shinsegae, Walgreens, Wawa, Hain Celestial, McCormick, General Mills, Kimberly-Clark, Big Heart Pet Brands and AT&T. In addition to its New York City Headquarters, CBX has offices in Minneapolis and San Francisco. www.cbx.com

NOTE TO MEDIA: CBX Strategy Director Brian McDonagh is available for interviews on the role of consumer care in building brands in the healthcare, chain drug and life sciences sectors.

Media contacts: At Parness & Associates, Bill Parness, (732) 290-0121 or mobile, (732) 673-6852, [email protected] or Lisa Kreda, [email protected]. At CBX, Krisana Jaritsat, Director, Brand & Content Strategy, (212) 542-5451, [email protected].

SOURCE CBX

Related Links

http://www.cbx.com


WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Dannon, as a part of DanoneWave Public Benefit Corporation, is proud to announce the 6th Annual Yogurt, Probiotics and the Gut Microbiome Fellowship Grant. In addition to the ambition to produce healthful foods that create economic and social value and nurture natural ecosystems through sustainable agriculture, Dannon, along with DanoneWave and Danone, is dedicated to support the discovery of how nutrition can improve human health. With $200,000 of grant money gifted to-date, the 2017-2018 Dannon grant will award TWO exemplary graduate students $25,000 each to explore how the gut microbiome, probiotics and yogurt enhances well-being.

"Fostering scientific advancements to benefit public health is a core value of Dannon and DanoneWave," explains Miguel Freitas, PhD, Vice President of Scientific Affairs at DanoneWave. "Exploration into the gut microbiome, probiotics and yogurt represents an exciting and rapidly developing area of study  one that appears to have a remarkable impact on human health."

The Dannon Fellowship Grant was established to help further study in the vastly diverse areas of the yogurt, probiotics and the gut microbiome. The study of the gut microbiome, and the benefit of probiotics and fermented foods, like yogurt, has taken off as scientists uncover the powerful relationship between the microorganisms in the gut and human health. Not surprisingly, the gut microbiome plays an important role in the digestion and absorption of nutrients, and it goes far beyond that into critical areas of health. The health of the gut microbiome has been linked with brain, digestive and immune function, among other benefits.

Last year's grant winners were Erin Davis of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for her study of the impact of probiotic yogurt consumption during breastfeeding on the immune and microbial composition of the milk, as well as on maternal and infant gut microbiota. For the fifth anniversary of the grant, an additional award was offered and awarded to Haley Chatelaine of The Ohio State University. Ms. Chatelaine advanced the field by using cutting-edge analyses to identify the chemical signature of probiotic yogurt. Previous fellows include students from Texas Christian University, University of Florida, North Carolina State University and University of California, Davis.

"Supporting future scientific leaders aligns with our aim to change the way the world eats to benefit both people's and our planet's health," says Dr. Freitas. "We recognize that the next generation of scientists are integral to reaching this goal."

About the 2017-2018 Dannon Fellowship Grant

The program is currently accepting applications until February 15, 2018. To qualify, individuals must be incoming or current graduate students who have demonstrated an interest in exploring the gut microbiome, probiotics and/or yogurt. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age, show proof of U.S. residence, and be able to utilize the scholarship funds during 2018 at an accredited US institution. All applicants will be required to submit an application that includes answers to essay questions, recommendations from two faculty members, and proof of good academic standing. The application and full scholarship details are available here.

About DanoneWave

Headquartered in White Plains, New York, and Broomfield, Colorado, the mission of DanoneWave is to bring health through food to as many people as possible via its diverse offering of dairy and plant-based foods in high growth and evolving categories. The ambition of DanoneWave is to produce healthful foods that create economic and social value and nurture natural ecosystems through sustainable agriculture. Every time we eat and drink, we vote for the world we want. And as the largest public benefit corporation in the US, DanoneWave is taking bold steps for social good in North America. DanoneWave is a subsidiary of Danone and more information is available at www.DanoneWave.com.

Media Contact: Stephanie Baber, (212) 941-1414, [email protected]

SOURCE DanoneWave

Related Links

http://danonewave.com


The partnership will allow Dealer.com to send all programmatic advertising requests through White Ops' MediaGuard technology and, within milliseconds, be informed as to whether an impression is being served to a human. This will assist Dealer.com with blocking programmatic advertising opportunities that originate from non-humans (i.e. bots), prior to serving the advertising impression.

"Advertising fraud is expected to cost advertisers $6.5 billion in 2017. This partnership is a great opportunity for us to continue to deliver value to advertisers and stay one step ahead of bots and fraudsters that get in the way of the connections we try to make between shoppers and dealers," said Scott Blodgett, Product Manager, Advertising at Dealer.com. "We are excited to extend this new technology to all of our valued partners at no additional cost".

White Ops' fraud protection provides technical bot blocking abilities for Dealer.coms buy-side platform for display advertising and further establishes Dealer.com as a leader in the automotive digital marketing space. This will help advertisers with peace of mind on how their advertising dollars are being spent.

"We are proud that Dealer.com has joined us in the fight against ad fraud. Their decision to prevent bots will make meaningful progress in ensuring that the automotive industry advertising ecosystem is less corrupted by bots and ad fraud," said Sandeep Swadia, chief executive officer of White Ops.

For more information on the partnership between Dealer.com and White Ops, please visit both companies' websites at www.dealer.com and www.whiteops.com.

About White Ops

White Ops is a cybersecurity company that protects businesses from automated threats: actions like ad fraud, account takeovers and fake engagement conducted by malicious bots. Even if a bot perfectly impersonates human behaviors, White Ops' Human Verification technology is able to detect it with precision and confidence. This ability, combined with a unique "white hat" perspective on the cybercriminal mindset, has led White Ops to become a trusted partner to some of the most iconic brands on the web like Adobe, The Trade Desk, Oath and more. Learn more at https://www.whiteops.com/.

About Dealer.com

Dealer.com provides an integrated platform of Advertising, Website and Managed Services products which allow OEMs, dealer groups, retailers and agencies to leverage advanced digital technology and data to better engage and connect with their customers. The company practices a deep commitment to its culture of innovation, with a focus on health and wellness, making it one of the most desirable places to work, and a valuable partner for automotive retailers. Based in Burlington, Vermont, Dealer.com is a Cox Automotive brand. For more information, visit www.dealer.com.

About Cox Automotive

Cox Automotive Inc. is transforming the way the world buys, sells and owns cars with industry-leading digital marketing, financial, retail and wholesale solutions for consumers, dealers, manufacturers and the overall automotive ecosystem worldwide. Committed to open choice and dedicated to strong partnerships, the Cox Automotive family includes Autotrader, Dealer.com, Dealertrack, Kelley Blue Book, Manheim, NextGear Capital, vAuto, Xtime and a host of other brands. The global company has 34,000-plus team members in more than 200 locations and is partner to more than 40,000 auto dealers, as well as most major automobile manufacturers, while engaging U.S. consumer car buyers with the most recognized media brands in the industry. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., an Atlanta-based company with revenues exceeding $20 billion and approximately 60,000 employees. Cox Enterprises' other major operating subsidiaries include Cox Communications and Cox Media Group. For more information about Cox Automotive, visit www.coxautoinc.com.

SOURCE Dealer.com

Related Links

https://www.dealer.com


SAO PAULO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Created in the online universe in 2000 and expanding to brick-and-mortar retail where customers participate in a single program whenever they make purchases at various establishments, earning the same type of points. Founded by Brazilian businessman Roberto Chade, Dotz formed an international partnership with Loyalty One, the manager of the world's largest coalition loyalty program, Air Miles. As a result of this partnership, since 2009 Loyalty One has held a 37% stake in Dotz, with the Chade family owning the remaining 63%.

Seeking to boost earnings and expand the profitability to partnering retailers, at the same time that it allows consumers to use their daily purchases to get more out of life, increasing the purchasing power of Brazilians, Dotz is the fastest growing coalition loyalty program in the country. Dotz currently has more than 23 million clients, more than 300 partners, 8,200 brick-and-mortar partner establishments, physical presence in 690 cities across 12 states, and more than 160 online partners that allow people from all over Brazil to take part in the loyalty program. With this array of partners, customers earn Dotz in their daily purchases and then redeem them for products, plane tickets, supermarket vouchers, or pay their water, electric, or phone bills, and much more. Dotz can be redeemed for more than 50,000 products and experiences. The company registers an average of 900 Dotz distributed every second, and close to 10,000 redemptions every day.

Among Dotz's main partners are major brands familiar to every Brazilian, such as Banco do Brasil, Banco Santander, Vivo, Polishop, Ri Happy, the Super Nosso, Big Box, Angeloni, Paulistao, and Prezunic supermarkets, Posto Ale, Atlantica Hotels, Walmart.com, Americanas.com, and Submarino.com. If Dotz were classified as a retailer, considering the unified revenue at the company's 17 partner food retailers, Dotz could be said to be the 4th-largest supermarket group in Brazil.

The new Dotz challenge

In spite of Brazil's currently tumultuous economic situation, Dotz has set itself the challenge of doubling in size in three years, reaching revenue of R$1 billion. To do this, the company is relying on the following pillars of growth:

- Entering new locations: with a physical presence in major Brazilian cities, Dotz now plans to set up shop in strategic cities such as Sao Paulo, Salvador, and Porto Alegre.

- New businesses: the company's new fronts of action will be along the markets of Coalition Incentive Campaigns, Utilities  with the distribution of Dotz to clients of electric companies such as Elektro , and entry into the Insurance business, where the company will distribute Dotz to holders of insurance plans.

- Growing its client base: with more than 23 million clients, Dotz continues to report constant growth in the markets where it has already consolidated its presence, and has forecasts to capture new clients as part of its expansion plan.

- Expansion in consolidated markets: in states where Dotz has a strong presence in the capital cities, the company now plans to expand its activities into cities in the interior of those states.

- New partners: both in e-commerce and at brick-and-mortar retailers, Dotz is constantly working to capture new partners, and its results have attracted the interest of major Brazilian retailers, who see in the coalition program an opportunity to create even more customer loyalty.

- Partnerships with industry: the food and beverage industry has increasingly relied on the program by providing Dotz Extras to customers, making it so that products sold in partner supermarkets offer more benefits to consumers, who end up earning more Dotz in their daily purchases.

Contact:

55 11 3736-9585 or 55 11 3736-9581- Natalia

SOURCE Dotz
ATLANTA, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Teens from Atlanta and throughout the state of Georgia are being invited to create a TV message about the dangers of distracted driving in the second Drive Safe Atlanta PSA Contest, sponsored by The National Road Safety Foundation in partnership with the Atlanta International Auto Show.

Drive Safe Atlanta invites teens ages 13 through 19 to submit ideas for a 30-second public service announcement about distracted driving. The winner will receive $2,000 and an Emmy Award-winning director will come to his or her school to film a TV public service spot that will debut at the Atlanta International Auto Show before airing on more than 150 TV stations nationwide. One runner-up will receive $1,000.

Teens who live in Georgia can enter by sending a script, descriptive paragraph or storyboards for a TV ad that reminds people not to drive distracted. Entries will open on Dec. 11 and the deadline is Feb. 20, 2018. All contest entrants will receive two free tickets to the Atlanta International Auto Show.

"Even though today's cars are safer than ever, with many innovations that help avoid crashes and protect occupants, distracted driving continues to be a factor in crashes resulting in some 3,500 fatalities and tens of thousands of injuries every year," said Shayne Wilson, President of the Metro Atlanta Automobile Dealers Association and Show Manager for the Atlanta International Auto Show. "We encourage young people from throughout Georgia to participate in Drive Safe Atlanta to be messengers to their peers and to all drivers that distracted driving is dangerous driving."

"We are constantly spreading the message to drivers of all ages about the dangers of distracted driving and the best way to get teen drivers to listen and more importantly pay attention to the road is through messages that come from other teens," Harris Blackwood, Director of the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety said. "This video contest not only will allow students to be making a difference in the lives of their friends and classmates, it will also give them a better understanding of why we all need to make safe driving a priority when we are behind the wheel."

Last year's winner was Gabriel Howland, a student at the Atlanta Neighborhood Charter School. His winning entry shows a large group of people in either blue or orange shirts. Some people in blue shirts step forward one at a time and say, "It wasn't my fault. The other guy was drunk," and then "It wasn't my fault. The other guy ran a red light." Someone in an orange shirt steps forward and says, "It was my fault. I was on my phone. Those people I hit, the mom and the girl, they could die." The lights come on to dozens of people  some in orange shirts and the rest in blue, as all those in orange say together, "It was my fault. I was on the phone." The spot ends with words on the screen, saying "One in ten crashes is caused by a cell phone. Turn it off!"

The PSA has aired more than 500 times to date on more than 150 TV stations throughout the country.

The National Road Safety Foundation says that although texting and cell phones get the most attention, drivers can be distracted by many other things including use of other mobile devices like GPS, adjusting sound system controls, eating and even talking with passengers.

Information about distracted driving and the Drive Safe Atlanta PSA Contest, including contest rules and entry form, can be seen at www.nrsf.org/teenlane/contests/drivesafeatlanta.

The National Road Safety Foundation, Inc. (NRSF) is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that for more than 55 years has been dedicated to reducing crashes, deaths and injuries on our nation's highways by promoting safe driving habits through greater public awareness.

NRSF produces documentaries, educational programs and public service campaigns for broadcast and for use in safety, educational and enforcement programs by police, teachers, traffic safety agencies, healthcare professionals, youth advocacy groups and other grass-roots related agencies, as well as federal, state and local government agencies. NRSF programs, which are free, deal with distracted driving, speed and aggression, impaired driving, drowsy driving, driver proficiency and pedestrian safety. The Foundation also works with youth advocacy groups and sponsors contests to engage teens in promoting safe driving to their peers and in their communities. For information or to download free programs, visit www.nrsf.org or www.teenlane.org.

About the Atlanta International Auto Show. The 36th Annual Atlanta International Auto Show will return to the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) on March 21-25, 2018. It is produced by the Metro Atlanta Automobile Dealers Association (MAADA).



Not only is the Atlanta International Auto Show the largest consumer event held annually at the GWCC, it is also one of the nation's great auto shows, attracting many of the world's major automotive manufacturers during its five-day run. There will be more than 500 new and pre-production vehicles on display on the 400,000 square foot show floor.

Media Contact: David Reich 212 573-6000

[email protected]

SOURCE The National Road Safety Foundation
BOSTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Eaton Vance announced a distribution today on one of its closed-end funds (the "Fund") as detailed below.

Declaration  12/11/2017 Ex-Date  12/20/2017 Record  12/21/2017 Payable  12/27/17

Fund Ticker Short-Term Capital Gain Distribution Per Share Long-Term Capital Gain Distribution Per Share







Eaton Vance National Municipal Opportunities Trust EOT $0.0012 $0.1206

The Fund's distributions may be affected by numerous factors, including changes in Fund performance, the Fund's cost of financing to employ leverage, portfolio holdings, realized and projected returns, and other factors. There can be no assurance that an unanticipated change in market conditions or other unforeseen factors will not result in a change in the Fund's distributions at a future time.

The Fund is managed by Eaton Vance Management, a subsidiary of Eaton Vance Corp. (NYSE: EV) which is a leading global asset manager whose history dates to 1924. With offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, Eaton Vance and its affiliates managed $422.3 billion in assets as of October 31, 2017, offering individuals and institutions a broad array of investment strategies and wealth management solutions. For more information, visit eatonvance.com.

Shares of closed-end funds often trade at a discount from their net asset value. The market price of Fund shares may vary from net asset value based on factors affecting the supply and demand for shares, such as Fund distribution rates relative to similar investments, investors' expectations for future distribution changes, the clarity of the Fund's investment strategy and future return expectations, and investors' confidence in the underlying markets in which the Fund invests. Fund shares are subject to investment risk, including possible loss of principal invested. No Fund is a complete investment program and you may lose money investing in a Fund. An investment in a Fund may not be appropriate for all investors. Before investing, prospective investors should consider carefully the Fund's investment objective, risks, charges and expenses.

SOURCE Eaton Vance Management

Related Links

http://www.eatonvance.com


OTTAWA, Ontario, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Edgewater Wireless Systems Inc. (TSX-V: YFI) (the "Company") announces a fully committed, non-brokered Private Placement. The private placement consists of 1,666,666 units of the Company (each a "Unit") at a price of $0.60 per Unit for gross proceeds of $1,000,000 (the "Offering ").

Each Unit will consist of one common share of the Company and one common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.75 per share for a period of 2 years following the closing date of the Offering. The Offering is not subject to any minimum aggregate subscription.

The Company will make the Offering available to subscribers in all provinces of Canada by way of private placement to selected accredited investors and/or to qualified institutional investors and outside of Canada and the United States on a private placement or equivalent basis.

"This is a landmark financing for the company at the highest level ever and we would like to thank all our shareholders for their continued support of the company since its inception," said Andrew Skafel, President and CEO of Edgewater Wireless. "This financing helps us expedite our aggressive path forward".

The closing of the Offering is subject to receipt of all necessary approvals including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issuable in connection with the Offering are subject to a four-month hold period from the date of issuance, in accordance with applicable securities laws, unless otherwise exempted.

The Offering will be available to existing shareholders of the Company, who, as of the close of business on December 10, 2017, held securities of the Company (and who continue to hold such securities as of the closing date), pursuant to the prospectus exemption set out in Section 2.9 of OSC Rule 45-501 - Distributions to Existing Security Holders and in similar instruments in other jurisdictions in Canada (the "Existing Shareholder Exemption"). The Existing Shareholder Exemption limits a shareholder to a maximum investment of CAD$15,000 in a 12-month period unless the shareholder has obtained advice regarding the suitability of the investment and, if the shareholder is resident in a jurisdiction of Canada, that advice has been obtained from a person that is registered as an investment dealer in the jurisdiction. If the Company receives subscriptions from investors relying on the Existing Shareholder Exemption exceeding the maximum Offering, the Company may adjust the subscriptions received on a pro-rata basis. The Company will also make the Offering available to subscribers under other available prospectus exemptions. Finder's fees of 6% in units may be payable in accordance with the policies of the TSXV.

It is intended that the proceeds from the Offering will be used for Sales and Marketing Expenses (20%) Engineering and Product Development (20%), Working Capital (40%) and Operating Expenses (20%). The Company may reallocate the proceeds from the Offering as may be required depending upon the development of the Company's business.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

The securities offered have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of any offer to buy nor will there be any sale of these securities in any province, state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such province, state or jurisdiction.

This document contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation (collectively "forward-looking statements"). The use of the word "will", "intended" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements should not be unduly relied upon. This document contains forward-looking statements and assumptions pertaining to the following: the Offering; the completion of the Offering; and the use of proceeds from the Offering. Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors. The Company believes the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct.

Edgewater Wireless Contact:

For additional information, please contact:

Matt Massey

VP, Marketing

T: +1(613)797-9628

E: [email protected]

W: http://www.edgewaterwireless.com



SOURCE Edgewater Wireless Systems Inc.
JUNO BEACH, Fla., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) today announced that a 10-person team of restoration experts traveled to Puerto Rico this past weekend to support ongoing restoration efforts across the Commonwealth. FPL's team joined a contingent of seven Incident Management Teams (IMTs), each comprised of professionals representing electric companies from across the U.S. The teams were deployed in response to a formal request for mutual assistance by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) and supported by Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello.

"We're pleased that the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and PREPA have accepted this additional help to return normalcy to our fellow American citizens of Puerto Rico who have been without electricity for so long," said Eric Silagy, president and CEO of FPL. "We recognize just how difficult it is to be without power after a major hurricane. That's why even before we had completed restoring power to our more than 4.4 affected million customers in the wake of Hurricane Irma, we quickly identified a team of restoration professionals who were prepared to deploy to Puerto Rico to offer whatever help we could provide. With so many of our own customers and employees having strong ties to Puerto Rico, we feel it is our responsibility to help get the lights back on for the hundreds of thousands who are still in the dark. We're eager to have these teams in the field and look forward to making a difference."

Nearly all of the island's 3.5 million residents lost power due to Hurricane Maria in late September, with the majority remaining without electricity throughout the island. The teams have been assigned to seven regions across the island in coordination with PREPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and electric company contractors who already are restoring power. FPL's team will support power restoration in the region of Bayamon, just west of San Juan.

FPL's support of power restoration in Puerto Rico began immediately after the energy company completed its own restoration in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. Additionally, in the days immediately following Hurricane Maria, NextEra Energy, FPL's parent company, donated $100,000 dollars and matched the same amount from employee donations to help those affected by the storm. Many employees also held fundraisers and supply drives to assist those impacted across the island.

Operationally, FPL coordinated the delivery of thousands of poles and other equipment to Puerto Rico and accompanied Florida Governor Rick Scott to the Commonwealth in November. Since that time, FPL leadership has remained in Puerto Rico where it has been providing technical expertise and guidance to support the restoration effort. Gov. Scott has made the support of Puerto Rico's citizens a top priority in the wake of Hurricane Maria, communicating regularly with Governor Rossello, traveling to the island to offer the state's assistance, and regularly meeting with and being briefed by FPL.

"Aside from the fact that so many of our customers have family and other connections to Puerto Rico, so too is the case with the FPL family," said Manny Miranda, senior vice president of Power Delivery for FPL. "The FPL team, alongside other industry colleagues, is ready to get about the work of helping to get the lights back on across the island. We have assembled a group that represents some of the most experienced power restoration professionals in our industry. Just as we did during Hurricanes Matthew and Irma, we will lend our knowledge and expertise to help get the lights back on safely and as quickly as possible."

FPL team members will remain on the island to support the restoration as long as their assistance is needed. It is anticipated that additional FPL field crews and equipment, upon request, will travel to Puerto Rico in the weeks ahead to assist with the ongoing restoration effort.

Mutual assistance throughout the energy industry plays a critical role in the restoration of power following severe weather events, such as hurricanes, ice storms and tornadoes. In September, crews from 30 states and Canada came to Florida to support the unprecedented restoration of more than 4.4 million FPL customers following Hurricane Irma. In fact, those workers, coupled with FPL's more than $3 billion worth of investments over the past decade to build a stronger and smarter energy grid, helped shave days off the restoration.

In turn, FPL crews have traveled across the nation to help restore power following major weather events many times in the past, including the deployment of approximately 1,000 FPL personnel to the Northeast in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in 2012. And just recently, more than 300 men and women deployed to Maine and Connecticut to assist with restoration activity following an October Nor'easter.

Florida Power & Light Company

Florida Power & Light Company is the third-largest electric utility in the United States, serving nearly 5 million customer accounts or an estimated 10 million people across nearly half of the state of Florida. FPL's typical 1,000-kWh residential customer bill is approximately 25 percent lower than the latest national average and, in 2016, was the lowest in Florida among reporting utilities for the seventh year in a row. FPL's service reliability is better than 99.98 percent, and its highly fuel-efficient power plant fleet is one of the cleanest among all utilities nationwide. The company received the top ranking in the southern U.S. among large electric providers, according to the J.D. Power 2016 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction StudySM, and was recognized in 2017 as one of the most trusted U.S. electric utilities by Market Strategies International. A leading Florida employer with approximately 8,900 employees, FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), a clean energy company widely recognized for its efforts in sustainability, ethics and diversity, and has been ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry in Fortune's 2017 list of "World's Most Admired Companies." NextEra Energy is also the parent company of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world's largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.

SOURCE Florida Power & Light Company

Related Links

http://www.FPL.com


BURNSVILLE, Minn., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Silver has never looked so refreshing.

GovMint.com and ModernCoinMart, in cooperation with S&A Partners  The Official Coca-Cola Licensee for Collectible Coins  has teamed up with Coca-Cola to bring collectors something they've never seen: legal-tender silver dollars that look like Coca-Cola bottle caps.

GovMint.com and ModernCoinMart

Struck in six grams of 99.9% pure silver, the coins are officially licensed by Coca-Cola and are legal-tender dollars making them both a meaningful and long-lasting collectible item.

Since 1892, Coca-Cola has been encouraging the world to open happiness by enjoying an ice-cold Coca-Cola beverage with friends and family. Their relatable branding and timeless appeal has made Coca-Cola an internationally recognized icon  all of these ideals are wonderfully showcased on these bottle cap-shaped $1 silver coins.

At first glance, the coins look like large Coca-Cola bottle caps: the white logo shining on a field of red. But flip them over, and collectors will find the coin's weight, purity, 2018 date and $1 Fiji legal-tender value. State-of-the-art minting technology and colorization techniques were used to replicate the shape and appearance of Coca-Cola bottle caps.

Each raw coin comes in a collectible Coca-Cola branded tin adding to the appeal of each silver release.

Coca-Cola is the #1-selling sparkling beverage in the world, and has been enjoyed for more than 130 years. With this being a brand-new way for collectors to admire the beloved Coca-Cola brand, demand for this release is sure to be high.

Available for a limited time at https://www.govmint.com/2018-fiji-1-dollar-silver-coca-cola-bottlecap-proof and http://www.moderncoinmart.com/cocacola.

About GovMint.com

Since 1984, GovMint.com has been one of the world's leading sources of collectible coins. Headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, GovMint.com is an official distributor for seven major world Mints and offers collectible coins from over 120 countries.

About ModernCoinMart

ModernCoinMart sets the standards for online sales of bullion, U.S. coins and world coins with free shipping, competitive pricing, a large selection, and incredible customer service. Confidence. Trust. Reliability. That's the MCM way. More information at www.ModernCoinMart.com or call 1-800-362.-9004.

CONTACT:

Steve Wolff, VP of Product Development

952-707-7120

[email protected]

14101 Southcross Drive, Burnsville, MN 55337

www.GovMint.com

http://www.moderncoinmart.com/

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SOURCE GovMint.com and ModernCoinMart

Related Links

https://www.govmint.com


Ministries fail to submit project proposals for BRI

Five different ministries have submitted names of 22 projects that could be built under Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), but they have failed to present detailed proposals as directed by the Ministry of Finance (MoF),
VANCOUVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - Grande West Transportation Group Inc. (TSXV: BUS; OTC PINK: GWTNF)  December 11, 2017: ("Grande West" or the "Company"), a Canadian manufacturer of mid-sized multi-purpose transit vehicles for sale in Canada and the United States, is pleased to announce a new Vicinity order for approximately $6 million.

Through a competitive bid process, Grande West received its first public transit order in the province of Quebec for a total of fifteen (15) Vicinity buses to be delivered in 2018.

8 for Societe de transport du Saguenay (STS)

4 for Societe de transport de Levis (STL)

3 for Societe de transport de Trois-Rivieres (STTR)

Jean-Marc Landry, VP Business Development of Grande West stated, "We are very excited to welcome STS, STL and STTR to our growing list of customers. We believe there is huge potential for "right sizing" of public transit fleets in the province of Quebec after many decades of buying mostly larger 40' buses. Grande West and its exclusive dealer Autobus de la Cite in Eastern Canada are ideally suited to meet the needs of the Quebec transit market."

Backlog: Current total firm orders for Q4 2017 through 2018 delivery are for over two hundred ninety four (294) buses valued at over $112 million CAD.

About Grande West Transportation Group

Grande West is a Canadian company that designs, engineers and manufactures mid-size multi-purpose transit vehicles for public and commercial enterprises. Grande West's Best-in-Class heavy-duty Vicinity bus is available in 27.5, 30 and 35 foot models powered by clean diesel, EV or CNG designed with affordability, accessibility and global responsibility in mind. It costs significantly less than a regular 40 foot transit bus, is more maneuverable, burns less fuel and emits less harmful emissions.

The Company has been successful in supplying Canadian municipal transportation agencies and private operators with new buses and is receiving follow-on orders in many Canadian transit agencies. Grande West is Buy America compliant, and along with ABG, its exclusive US distributor, is actively supplying and pursuing opportunities in public and private transit fleet operations that will benefit from Grande West's vehicles.

For further information please contact:

Grande West Transportation

John LaGourgue

VP Corporate Development

Ph: 1-604-607-4000

[email protected]

www.grandewest.com



Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, including without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the Private Placement, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or "should" occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Grande West's expectations include uncertainties relating to the receipt of final approval from the TSX-V; and other risk and uncertainties disclosed in Grande West's reports and documents filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time. Grande West's forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made. Grande West assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.

SOURCE Grande West Transportation Group Inc.

Related Links

http://www.grandewest.com/


BAYTOWN, Texas, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Honey Holding I dba Honey Solutions, a leading processor of industrial honey, announced today that the company has been named "Supplier of the Year" for the United States by Grupo Bimbo for its role in generating cost savings for the world's largest bakery company and for its comprehensive corporate sustainability program.

Supplier of the Year 2017 Bimbo Bakeries USA - - Honey Holding dba Honey Solutions

The 2017 Grupo Bimbo USA Supplier of the Year Award was presented to Honey Holding at its Global Suppliers' Meeting November 14, 2017 in Mexico City. Douglas Murphy, Managing Director and CEO of Honey Holding, received the Award on behalf of Honey Holding. Mr. Murphy addressing the audience of nearly 400 attendees acknowledged the collaborative strategic partnership between Grupo Bimbo and Honey Holding as an underlying basis for the cost savings generated in 2017. At this event, Daniel Servitje, President and CEO of Grupo Bimbo shared the company's recent acquisitions, challenges and global strategy for as well as participated in the award presentation to Honey Holding.

http://www.grupobimbo.com/es/sala-de-prensa/comunicados-de-prensa/2017/diciembre/junta-global-de-proveedores.html

Mr. Murphy on behalf of Honey Holding presented its extensive corporate sustainability programs to the audience. The presentation promoted discussion and reaffirmation by the participants to facilitate an ongoing path of corporate sustainability for the benefit of current and future society.

About Grupo Bimbo

Grupo Bimbo, selling under such recognized brands as Sara Lee, Thomas', Mrs. Bairds, Entenmann's and Orowheat, is the world's largest baking company based on brand positioning, production volume, and sales with more than 13,000 products in 195 plants across 32 countries with employment totaling 137,000.

About Honey Holding I, Ltd (dba Honey Solutions)

Honey Solutions is a vertically integrated processor and marketer of 100% pure honey to the industrial market in the United States. From its facility in Baytown, Texas, Honey Solutions supplies most of America's premier bakers and food processors like Grupo Bimbo USA.

Media Contact:

Douglas Murphy

[email protected]

2815761700

SOURCE Honey Holding
GTCOM was joined by Chen Xu, President & CEO of Bank of China - U.S.A./Chairman of China General Chamber of Commerce - U.S.A.; Yuqiang Xiao, President of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China - U.S.A.; Michael McDonough, Global Director of Economic Research, Chief Economist, Bloomberg LP; Karen Lu, General Manager, Alibaba Cloud North America; Sundeep Kumar, Executive Director, Global Technology at J.P. Morgan Chase; Lily Xu, Senior Vice President of China Unicom Americas; and Hsi-Ping Wang, VP, Senior Business Analyst, PIMCO to provide their perspectives on the trends of the FinTech industry and give their impressions on JoveBird's big data investment solutions.

GTCOM's Chief Executive Officer Eric Yu delivered a keynote speech titled, 'Big Data, AI: New Inspirations for Financial Industry'.

"With data transforming the world around us, there is a need for tools and services able to sort through the noise. Today, fund managers need to be informed about sensitive events long before they impact investments," said Eric Yu. "JoveBird helps financial service firms and investment banks by providing them with a tool that fully leverages alternative data to maximize alpha at current risk margins."

JoveBird offers financial investment solutions powered by big data and artificial intelligence. Based on a set of financial analysis models and powerful cross-language big data processing capabilities, it provides investors with the most up-to-date analysis of investment opportunities and facilitates the development of better strategies from a global perspective.

JoveBird gathers and analyzes data from over 65 languages in over 200 countries, and covers global top 10 stock exchanges and 30,000+ listed companies. The JoveBird index integrates 20+ factors comprised of traditional financial parameters and alternative indicators to help investors to understand what is really happening in the market. With JoveBird, investors gain the ability to easily gather alternative data as a set of input data at existing evaluation models, eliminate information asymmetry risk, and effectively achieve premium returns.

For more information about JoveBird or to sign up for a limited trial account, please visit www.jovebird.com.

GTCOM provides global cross-language big data solutions for Alibaba, UnionPay, and PIMCO, among many others. The JoveBird expansion into the highly competitive United States market is an important step towards eliminating language barriers, driving innovation, and providing solutions to financial experts across the world through local partnerships.

Early on December 5th, GTCOM made solid progress with their global strategy - several local partners were signed on at their channel conference in Atlanta, at the FinTech center of Georgia, which marked their official entry into the U.S. and shows their ambition in the global market.

About GTCOM:

Established in 2013, Global Tone Communication Technology Co., Ltd. (GTCOM) is the world's leading company in big data and artificial intelligence. With "Language Connects the World, Data Inspires the Future" as the objective, GTCOM has developed machine translation, speech recognition, image recognition, semantic search, knowledge graph, as well as big data analysis and visualization, and has, on this basis, built the state-of-the-art "YeeCloud" language ecosystem and "YeeSight" big data ecosystem. For more information, visit http://www.gtcom.com.cn/en.

SOURCE GTCOM

Related Links

http://www.gtcom.com.cn/en


SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Harry Kotlar's life story has all the elements of a classic movie. The conflict, the heartbreak, the eventual triumph  it's all here. It's a story that begins with the Kotlars leaving a war-torn Poland and ends with them settling down in Los Angeles and founding the now world-renowned fine jewelry design house. But the truth is, this story hasn't really ended. By turning adversity into triumph, Harry Kotlar inspired every facet of the company to uphold his legacy of excellence and his exceptional persona.

Harry Kotlar | Made by Hand, Shaped By History film Photo: Drew Altizer Photography

Words have been written about Harry Kotlar's philosophy, and now it was time to present it in a medium that best suits it: a short film, entitled Made by Hand. Shaped by History. The film was unveiled in an exclusive premiere held at Shreve & Co. in San Francisco on Dec. 5.

Not just about the Craft

The film highlights the design house's devotion to old-world artistry and the intense dedication of the company's Italian master artisans. "We chose to focus on the craftsmanship element of the Kotlar story," says Czarah Cabrera, brand director for Harry Kotlar and the film's creative director. "Because that's what sets us apart. We utilize old-world techniques that have been long forgotten. Most of the jewelry world right now prefers mass production but we choose to continue and preserve the lost art of hand making jewelry."

The film turns back time by showing the closely guarded techniques of Harry Kotlar's master artisans. Their work is an homage to their roots and Harry Kotlar's legacy. Only four artisans touch a piece during its creation: a forger, a carver/setter, a polisher and a quality control expert. The combined expertise of these masters elevates jewelry to wearable pieces of art.

"I think the world has become too mechanized," says Czarah. "People have forgotten to stop, breathe and take in life's essential experiences. This film reveals the four pillars that our founder instilled in us, namely love, passion, tenacity and hard work. These pillars are not the most profitable qualities, but our company is committed to a higher ideal than just profit and the pursuit of a faster and lucrative process."

A Production Like No Other

A film about master craftsmen requires remarkable filmmakers. The eight-minute film is the result of almost three years of intense research and collaboration with a highly talented production team. Director Ace Salvador's travels in Italy gave him a first-hand glimpse into the crafting methods shown in the film. "Fortunately, I just came back from Italy in January and I was very inspired, knowing I had seen all these craftsmen and blacksmith shops in person," he says. "That reflected the tone we wanted to create, an atmosphere that was timeless, built on heritage and ancient history but still authentic to the Kotlar story."

The result of all this work and immersion is a film that Czarah described as: "Every scene looks like a painting; reminiscent of a Rembrandt." With its dreamy and amber-kissed palette, Made by Hand, Shaped by History is unlike any other jewelry film or commercial.

Shreve & Co. as the Stage

Shreve & Co. in San Francisco hosted the film's premiere on Dec. 5. Shreve & Co.'s event space was transformed into a screening/exhibit space where guests watched the film, as well as viewed photos that revealed the intricacies of crafting a Harry Kotlar piece while indulging themselves with caviar and champagne.

"Shreve & Co. was the perfect venue for the premiere," says Czarah. "Harry Kotlar has a boutique at Shreve and both our companies are dedicated to elevating luxury and creating unique experiences."

As an added surprise, the guests were also able to sit down and create their personalized Harry Kotlar pieces with Kotlar's illustrator onsite.

The event was an engaging and intimate affair that gathered Kotlar collectors, fine jewelry enthusiasts, global and local influencers, notable writers, editors and industry personalities. They were guided through the splendor of ultimate artisanal luxury.

About Harry Kotlar

Harry Kotlar is recognized as the premier source for the highest-quality diamonds, its hallmark design  Artisan Pave  and "the world's most brilliant Cushion Cut diamond"  Kotlar Cushion. Spanning seven decades of beauty, art and perfection, Harry Kotlar's designs evoke old-world artistry with modern sophistication, creating stunning diamond rings, bands, earrings, bracelets and necklaces that celebrate individuals' story eternally.

For more information on the craftsmanship and heritage of Harry Kotlar visit: harrykotlar.com

Media Contact:

Harry Kotlar PR

Phone: 800-675-0479

Email: [email protected]

Related Files

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Related Images

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Related Links

Harry Kotlar Website

Made By Hand, Shaped by History Film

Related Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVQrZ2mVaNY

SOURCE Harry Kotlar

Related Links

http://harrykotlar.com


MILAN, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Kardia announced expansion plan of the NobleStitch EL at a recent meeting organized by Professor Francesco Romeo at Policlinico Tor Vergata in Rome where Prof. Achille Gaspardone performed a successful NobleStitch EL live case that was transmitted to the attendees in Ayla Magna, Rome, Italy.

PFO (PRNewsfoto/HeartStitch)

Prof. Gaspardone, who recently presented 2 studies (The Italian/ Swedish Registry of NobleStitch EL and his Single Center Study of PFO Closure with NobleStitch EL) and has the largest experience in Italy, more than 80 cases, performed the live case on a 37 year old female patient who suffered from migraines with aura and had a previous cerebral infarct due to PFO. The attendees, many who had not seen a NobleStitch EL procedure, provided very positive feedback and significant interest in using the NobleStitch EL.

Roberto Riva, manager of Kardia, stated, "over the last 18 months we have seen strong growth in the market for PFO closure. Initially we rolled out the product to a few of our key centers to develop the market for the NobleStitch and to accumulate Italian data. We have been astonished at the willingness by physicians to start with the product and even more their desire to adopt the NobleStitch as their first choice for PFO closure. The product is so intuitive to both physicians and patients that we see the patients specifically asking for the product over the traditional umbrella devices. In my 20 years in the medical instrument sales I have not had a product like this. Our initial forecasts were conservative and we quickly requested more product from HeartStitch. We are already in 17 centers in Italy, trained more than 24 cardiologists and performed more than 220 procedures. Our new market plan for 2018 with HeartStitch will drive the "Sutures the Future" as we look to cover the remaining PFO centers throughout Italy with the NobleStitch EL and look forward to the release of the HeartStitch Transapical and Mitral devices that our customers are awaiting."

Prof. Gaspardone also commented, "We have worked with the device for 18 months and developed a very simple technique that can be trained and adopted quickly. Personally I have really been impressed by the simplicity of the system and the clinical data, which has demonstrated to me that it is the first choice and the future of PFO closure. This live case demonstrates how simple the procedure has become and the efficacy of the technique. It has and continues to be my first choice and my patients also ask for it. I have an ever-growing waiting list of patients that we will continue to treat with this revolutionary technology."

Dirk Segers, VP of European Sales and Marketing noted, "Italy was our first nationwide expansion in the European Union and is a critical part of our business model. Physicians and patients in Italy have been very responsive to the NobleStitch EL as their first choice for PFO closure. It's intuitive to both physicians and patients who suffer from issues associated with PFO. We did not expect the rapid uptake and adoption of the NobleStitch EL to be so quick. In my career I have not seen such a response to a medical device."

Professor Anthony Nobles, Inventor of the NobleStitch EL and Chairman, CEO and Chief Clinical Officer of HeartStitch which manufactures and distributes the devices, commented, "We are very excited about the performance of Kardia and their sub-distributors throughout Italy as well as the physicians and patients that request our NobleStitch device for PFO closure. We are pleased with the increase demand worldwide since the publication of recent positive trials including the presentation of the NobleStitch data from Italy and Sweden. We look to replicate the success of our Italian experience throughout Europe and then the US."

About PFO Closure

A PFO is a relatively common heart defect characterized by an unsealed tunnel between the right and left atria of the heart. This defect has been known to be present in anywhere between 27%-38% of people. However, in a number of cases, it is benign.

The PFO is formed as a trace of the fetal circulation. When the chambers of a human heart begin to develop, a communication is made between the right and left atria, allowing blood to flow directly from the venous circulation to the arterial circulation, circumventing the non-functioning fetal lungs. Following birth, the pressure differential between the right and left atria changes with newly operational blood flow to the fully functioning lungs. Because of this, the communication eventually closes completely within the first few months.

However, in some patients, the foramen ovale fails to seal and remains "patent". In patients with a Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO), the communication can reopen under elevated atrial pressure, such as coughing, or straining.

A key issue with PFO is that it gives a pathway for blood clots to pass directly to the arterial circulation without being filtered out by the capillary bed of the lungs. A PFO can also let deoxygenated blood and certain chemicals cross over to the arterial side. The presence of a PFO has been linked to a number of clinical issues, mainly strokes, migraines and chronic fatigue. Developments are being made to solidify the link between PFO and strokes or migraines, and to identify patients that would benefit from PFO closure.

About HeartStitch

HeartStitch Inc. was founded by Prof. Anthony Nobles with the intent of leveraging its technologies in the structural heart marketplace. HeartStitch is focused on innovative suture-based systems for remotely providing suture repair of structural heart defects and other vascular structures.

The HeartStitch TA and HeartStitch MR are FDA cleared for vascular suturing in the United States. HeartStitch manufactures and markets the NobleStitch EL under exclusive license from Nobles Medical technologies II, Inc. NobleStitch EL is FDA cleared for vascular suturing in the United States and CE Marked for cardio-vascular suturing and PFO closure in the European Union and the Republic of Kazakhstan, respectively.

HeartStitch is a registered trademark of HeartStitch Inc.

HeartStitch TA

Covered by or for use under U.S. and international patents including one or more of U.S. Patent Nos. 5860990, 6117144, 6245079, 6551331, 6562052, 6733509, 7004952, 7090686, 7803167, 8197497, 8348962, 8469975, 8496676, and 8709020.

HeartStitch MR

Covered by or for use under U.S. and international patents including one or more of U.S. Patent Nos. 5860990, 6117144, 6245079, 6551331, 6562052, 6733509, 7004952, 7090686, 7803167, 8197497, 8348962, 8469975, 8496676, 8709020, and 8771296.

For more on HeartStitch visit http://www.heartstitch.com

For more information, please contact shareholder representatives:

USA

Dru Dobbs

P. +1 714 427 6348

F. +1 714 427 6343

[email protected]

In Kazakhstan

Kazbek Aubakirov

P. +7 777 5009005

[email protected]

About Nobles Medical Technology II

Nobles Medical Technology II, Inc. was founded by Prof. Anthony Nobles with the intent of leveraging its technologies in the PFO, ASD-closure, and cardiovascular-suturing marketplace. The company does business under the name of Nobles Medical II (NMT II). Initial efforts of the company have been focused in Europe on the innovative suture-based PFO closure system for closing the Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO), a tunnel between the right and left atria of the heart.

The NobleStitch is approved for PFO Closure and Cardiovascular suturing in the European Union.

The NobleStitch EL is FDA cleared for Vascular and Cardiovascular suturing in the United States. Further information including warnings and precautions can be found in the instructions for use.

NobleStitch EL is distributed worldwide by HeartStitch, Inc. (HeartStitch is a registered trademark of HeartStitch, Inc.).

NobleStitch EL for PFO closure

Covered by or for use under U.S. and international patents including one or more of U.S. Patent Nos. 5860990, 6117144, 6245079, 6551331, 6562052, 6733509, 7004952, 7090686, 7803167, 8197497, 8197510, 8246636, 8348962, 8372089, 8469975, 8496676, 8709020, and 9131938.

For more on Nobles Medical Technologies II visit

http://www.noblesmed2.com.

Dru Dobbs

P. +1 714 427 6348

F. +1 714 427 6343

[email protected]

SOURCE HeartStitch Inc.

Related Links

http://www.heartstitch.com


DUBLIN, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

The "Helicopters Market - Global Forecast to 2022" report has been added to Research and Markets' offering.

The helicopters market is estimated to be USD 26.93 Billion in 2017 and is projected to reach USD 30.69 Billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 2.65% from 2017 to 2022. Increasing demand for EMS (emergency medical services) in regions, such as North America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa and the growing demand for military helicopters due to replacement as well as capability expansion programs worldwide are factors expected to drive the helicopters market during the forecast period.

The global helicopters market is expected to witness positive growth, especially in emerging economies, such as China, Brazil, and India. These countries are spending a huge amount on the development of their civil and military helicopter fleet. The economy of these countries has also been witnessing significant growth over the past few years. The increasing demand for helicopters in emerging economies will, in turn, drive the helicopters market during the forecast period. Territorial disputes in Asia have also compelled governments of the region to increase their defense spending. This increased defense spending is expected to positively reflect on the procurement of military helicopters, especially in China and India.

By application, the military segment dominates the helicopters market. In addition to missions in the defense sector, military helicopters are used for medevac and emergency rescue services.

Companies operating in the helicopters market are focusing on acquiring business contracts. This strategy was adopted by key players to enhance their market penetration and increase their service offerings in the helicopters market globally.

Defense budget cuts in developed nations, high cost associated with new technology, and stringent regulatory norms for helicopter manufacturing and development are some of the factors restraining the growth of the helicopters market.

Key Topics Covered:



1 Introduction



2 Research Methodology



3 Executive Summary



4 Premium Insights



5 Market Overview



6 Industry Trends



7 Helicopters Market, By Point of Sale



8 Helicopters Oem Market, By Type



9 Helicopters Oem Market, By Application



10 Helicopters Oem Market, By Component & System



11 Helicopters Aftermarket, By Component & System



12 Helicopters Oem Market, Regional Analysis



13 Helicopters Aftermarket, Regional Analysis



14 Competitive Landscape



15 Company Profiles



Airbus Helicopters Sas

Bell Helicopter Textron Inc.

Boeing

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (Hal)

Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Korea Aerospace Industries, Ltd.

Leonardo S.P.A.

Lockheed Martin Corporation

MD Helicopters, Inc.

Robinson Helicopter Company

Russian Helicopters, Jsc

Turkish Aerospace Industries, Inc.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/d9gkdq/helicopters

Media Contact:

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

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SOURCE Research and Markets

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TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Honduran government thanked the European Union and the Organization of American States for overseeing a special recount of 4,753 contested ballot boxes from the country's November 26 presidential election.

The government appreciates the efforts of the international observers from the EU and OAS to ensure a transparent, free, and fair election -- and to bolster Honduras's democratic institutions.

The Honduran Supreme Electoral Tribunal, or TSE, recounted the ballots under the supervision of electoral observers from the OAS and the EU. The recount concluded at 3 a.m. local time on Sunday, December 10.

At a press conference, TSE head David Matamoros said, "The results of the recount are extremely consistent with what we had originally." President Juan Orlando Hernandez received 50.1 percent of the recounted ballots. Opposition Alliance candidate Salvador Nasralla tallied 31.5 percent.

Mr. Nasralla and the Opposition Alliance claimed that the 4,753 ballot boxes recounted by the TSE were subject to "irregularities" after the polls closed on November 26. Mr. Nasralla said last week that he would not accept TSE's results unless thousands of contested ballots went through a special recount in front of third-party international observers.

Both the OAS and the EU supported Mr. Nasralla's calls for a recount. In a December 6 statement, OAS called for TSE to conduct an "exhaustive and meticulous process of verification" for the presidential ballots.

The EU issued a similar statement on December 5, supporting the right of any party to appeal the election results via Honduran law. Together, the Organization of American States and the European Union represent more than 63 sovereign governments across the Western Hemisphere and Europe.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Bolivian President Evo Morales and FARC, have publically supported the Opposition Alliance. President Morales has also blamed an OAS official for election fraud.

Following TSE's recount, Mr. Nasralla refused to accept the results. In a speech Sunday, December 10, he alleged that the EU, OAS, and the U.S. Embassy in Honduras have "deceived us and are complicit in [electoral] fraud."

This was the second recount the TSE has conducted since it announced preliminary results in the presidential election on December 1. From December 2-3, TSE recounted an additional 1,006 ballot boxes that the Opposition Alliance claimed were irregular.

Media Contact:

Andrew Grafton

[email protected]

(202)-471-4228 ext. 119

www.keybridgecommunications.com

SOURCE Republic of Honduras
The "One Belt, One Road" City Tour is a regularly scheduled program hosted by huanqiu.com with the goal of allowing more people to familiarize themselves with the cities along the One Belt, One Road route through huanqiu.com's media communication platforms and understand what each of the cities has to offer by hearing about the personal experiences of program guests as they filed their report directly from each of cities. The program has already made stops in Beijing, Guizhou, Xi'an and Changchun and has now moved on to Jiangmen, where a summit was also held in collaboration with wheel manufacturer Guangdong Dcenti Auto-Parts Stock Limited Company. With a focus on the development of Chinese companies in overseas markets, program guests shared their models of successful cooperation between companies in and outside of China and discussed how to avoid the risks Chinese companies face when investing abroad. They also engaged in a dialog on how the new economic globalization can pave the way for Chinese companies who want to expand beyond the home market.

Manufacturing, which is the foundation of every sector of the national economy, serves as both a pillar and an economic growth engine. China's industrialization during the past more than 30 years has, every step of the way, been closely watched by the world. The Chinese equipment manufacturing sector has obvious advantages and contributes to one third of the world's total, while power equipment manufacturing accounts for 61 percent of its sector and shipbuilding occupies 41 percent. The One Belt, One Road initiative has created new opportunities for collaboration in terms of developing a manufacturing economy in the countries and regions along the initiative's route. Accelerating technological and industrial development as well as transformation of the value chain, redefining what innovation means at a national level as well as expectations in terms of capabilities, while reconstructing competitive edges have all become the common goal of countries targeted by the initiative.

Guangdong Dcenti Auto-Parts Stock Limited Company is one of the largest exporters of wheel hubs in China and has positioned itself as a global high-end aluminum alloy wheel hub producer. Wang Guosheng, deputy general manager and secretary of the board of directors at Dcenti, said in his speech that the wheel hub producer is one of the representative companies that brought the concept of "China Manufacturing" to the world stage and that international production capacity cooperation as part of the One Belt, One Road initiative will likely become an effective approach to further enhancing the concept. These efforts can be expected to deliver new and ever more meaningful opportunities to Chinese companies who choose to expand beyond the home market.

SOURCE huanqiu.com
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting today, IVI-RMA Global, the largest group dedicated to assisted reproduction in the world, welcomes patients to its newest U.S. office, Reproductive Medicine Associates of Florida (RMA-FL). Located at 400 Colonial Center Parkway in Lake Mary, the practice specializes in providing well-validated and effective fertility solutions for hopeful parents trying to have a baby.

RMA-FL patients will benefit from the cutting-edge infertility treatment and research conducted by IVI-RMA's worldwide network of fertility clinics, including its U.S. flagship practice, Reproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey (RMANJ).

RMANJ is one of the largest and most successful in vitro fertilization (IVF) programs in the U.S., with delivery rates about 20 percent higher than national average*, according to annual data released recently by the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) for the year ending December 2014.

George Patounakis, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.O.G, serves as Medical Director and Lead Physician for RMA-FL. He is also an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology with the University of Central Florida, College of Medicine.

A research scientist and a former fellow of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, Dr. Patounakis complements the IVI-RMA Global community's strong focus on research, which has served to advance the field of reproductive endocrinology in the United States and around the world. Dr. Patounakis earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Columbia University before pursuing a medical degree from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School at Rutgers University.

"As a reproductive endocrinologist, I understand it's not just about getting pregnant  the true measure of success is delivery rates," said Dr. Patounakis. "With a focus on single embryo transfer (SET), our practice leverages treatment paradigms that have healthier outcomes for mothers and babies by removing the risks and costs associated with multiple births."

"Patients have traveled from more than 40 countries and 30 states, including Florida, to our New Jersey-based practice, so we knew that expanding our internationally-recognized, award-winning evidence-based fertility treatment protocols to Central Florida would be well-received," said IVI-RMA Global CEO, Richard T. Scott, Jr., M.D., F.A.C.O.G., H.C.L.D./A.L.D. "RMA-FL patients will now have access to technologies pioneered at RMANJ, such as comprehensive chromosome screening, which more accurately detects healthy embryos that will lead to successful pregnancies and healthy deliveries."

Patients can make appointments by calling 407-804-9670.

About IVI-RMA Global

IVI-RMA Global was founded in 2017 when the Valencian Infertility Institute (IVI) merged with Reproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey (RMANJ). Together, the companies comprise the largest group dedicated to assisted reproduction in the world. IVI-RMA Global currently has more than 70 centers in 12 countries with practices in the United States, Spain, Portugal, Italy, United Kingdom, Mexico, Panama, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, UAE and India. For more information visit: IVI-Fertility.com. RMANJ is the organization's US flagship practice and currently has 25 physicians and 10 locations in New Jersey: Basking Ridge, Eatontown, Englewood, Freehold, Hamilton, Morristown, Somerset, Springfield, West Orange, and its newest location in Marlton, New Jersey. For more information visit RMANJ.com.

*SART 2014 Final Live Birth Per Egg Retrieval Cycle of 72.4% under 35 years. This is your chance of achieving a live birth for each cycle started for an egg retrieval. This includes all transfers performed with fresh and frozen embryos derived from this cycle. Please note a comparison of clinic success rates may not be meaningful because a patient's medical characteristics, treatment approaches and entrance criteria for assisted reproductive technology (ART) may vary from clinic to clinic. Visit www.sart.org to learn more.

SOURCE IVI-RMA Global
Mudes potato output doubles to 2k tonnes

The production of Mudes famed organic potatoes has doubled this year due to timely rainfall and an increase in the number of growers. The carbohydrate-rich vegetable is sold under the brand name Mudes Quality Potato.
BROOK PARK, Ohio, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Greenkote, the Ohio-based developer of advanced anti-corrosion metal coatings has announced the sale of a new Greenkote coating system to Jim Lawrence Traditional Ironworks, Ltd., long-respected British creator of hand-crafted home lighting, hardware and furnishings. The Greenkote system is installed at Jim Lawrence facilities in Hadleigh, Suffolk, UK. The announcement was made jointly by Mark Gore, CEO of Greenkote, and Jim Lawrence, Founder/CEO of Jim Lawrence Traditional Ironworks.

Greenkote anti-corrosion coatings to protect Jim Lawrence outdoor products

"Quality is the foundation of our brand," said Lawrence. "Previously, an outside vendor had been applying a different anti-corrosion coating on our outdoor products, but the quality and customer service did not meet our standards. Now that we've switched to Greenkote and also have our own in-house coating line we're getting superior anti-corrosion protection along with more consistent, even coverage of our products. Plus, we're able to expedite our delivery schedules."

"Greenkote coating is particularly well suited to Jim Lawrence applications because it creates a visually smooth surface," said Gore. "Yet it also has a unique microscopic roughness that enables optimal adhesion for all the special paints and finishes that are subsequently applied to the products. That's an important advantage compared with other thermal diffusion coatings."

Jim Lawrence offers a large collection of hand-crafted home furnishings, both classic and modern, that include lighting, lampshades, door and window hardware, accessories and more. These are provided in a broad range of styles, colors and metallic finishes which are individually applied by the company's own skilled artisans.

Advanced Greenkote coatings are currently being used to replace older anti-corrosion processes such as galvanizing, hot-dip, metal flake and sherardizing to protect metal products that are exposed to weather or harsh environments. In addition to enhanced corrosion protection Greenkote provides longer wear and superior top-coat adhesion, and its highly conformal coverage allows it to be used even on complex geometries such as threaded parts. In addition, Greenkote is completely eco-friendly. Applied by a patented zinc-based dry thermal diffusion process, it requires no acids or hazardous chemicals and produces no toxic byproducts.

Greenkote supplies both coating systems and coating services. Each new licensed coating system it sells is configured for the specific customer's application, and Greenkote directly oversees the sourcing, installation and setup of all equipment as well as the training of new operators. In addition, Greenkote provides coating services through the company's own coating centers and licensee-partners around the globe for a broad range of users in construction, automotive, utilities, consumer products and many other industries.

About Greenkote

Headquartered in Brook Park, Ohio, Greenkote (www.greenkote.com) has become one of the industry's foremost anti-corrosion metal coating technology companies, with significant patents in corrosion protection. The unique Greenkote coatings block corrosion, eliminate hydrogen embrittlement, enable superior topcoat adhesion, wear longer, reduce costs and are eco-friendly. In addition to selling turnkey coating systems to end users, the company also provides Greenkote coating services globally through its strategically located coating centers and licensee-partners.

About Jim Lawrence

Jim Lawrence Traditional Ironworks (Jim-Lawrence.co.uk) is a family business that's dedicated to designing and handcrafting beautiful products for the home. What started in a farm forge in 1993, with Jim making candlesticks for friends, quickly turned into a thriving business driven by market demand for stylish, designer-quality products made with natural materials. In 2008, the business moved from the farm to the nearby market town of Hadleigh in Suffolk, where there is now a large showroom displaying the full range of products. Today the company employs a team of over 130 skilled engineers, welders, painters, seamstresses, electrical technicians and more, and it sells its products worldwide.

Contact:

Al Shultz Advertising

[email protected]

+1 (408) 289-9555

http://alshultz.com/

Greenkote

6435 Eastland Rd.

Brook Park, OH 44142

+1 (440) 243-2865

[email protected]

http://greenkote.com/

*Greenkote is a registered trademark of Greenkote PLC

SOURCE Greenkote

Related Links

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LOS GATOS, Calif., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Kyvos Insights, a big data analytics company, today announced that it will host a webinar "Implementing BI on Big Data Best Practices" on Wednesday, December 13, 2017 at 1 p.m. Eastern time/10 a.m. Pacific time. Drawing on examples from the many enterprises that rely on Kyvos, the webinar will show how new technologies and practices enable organizations to provide self-service, interactive business intelligence (BI) on big data for thousands of concurrent users, including business users with little or no data science skills.

"The problem with self-service BI has always been two-fold: business users lack the technical acumen to parse data as they wish and SQL on Hadoop solutions typically slow to a crawl as concurrent access increases," said Ajay Anand, vice president of products at Kyvos. "We've solved these issues and radically changed how our customers use their big data. Now thousands of business users can simultaneously, and quickly and easily, analyze massive data sets with hundreds of billions of rows and hundreds of dimensions - all with the nearly instantaneous responses times needed to drive business decisions that make an impact."

Many Fortune 100 firms rely on Kyvos. Its breakthrough technology makes it possible to create data cubes with near limitless scalability and performance, and a BI Consumption Layer that enables them to be stored and managed with ease for unmatched levels of scalability, performance and support. Kyvos also provides row-and-column level access control to ensure the security of enterprises' big data, and works with a wide range of BI tools, including Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, Microsoft Excel, Qlik, MicroStrategy, IBM Cognos and SAP Business Objects.

Presented by Anand, the webinar will be of interest to developers, data scientists, information technology (IT) professionals and any business users that need to interactively explore and analyze big data to develop real-time business insights. Some of the topics Anand will cover include:

The BI components of a big data solution, including data ingestion, ETL, governance, security, and visualization;

Key performance metrics and service level agreements (SLAs) for a successful deployment; and

Real world examples of how enterprises have implemented a BI Consumption Layer to drive enterprise wide adoption of big data.

To register for "Implementing BI on Big Data Best Practices" visit: http://www.kyvosinsights.com/webinar-implementing-bi-on-big-data-best-practices/. For more information on Kyvos Insights visit: http://www.kyvosinsights.com/

About Kyvos Insights

Kyvos Insights is committed to unlocking the power of big data analytics with its unique "OLAP on Hadoop" technology. Backed by years of analytics expertise and a passion for big data, the company aims to revolutionize big data analytics by providing business users with the ability to visualize, explore and analyze big data interactively, working directly on Hadoop. Headquartered in Los Gatos, California, Kyvos Insights was formed by a team of veterans from Yahoo!, Impetus and Intellicus Technologies. The company has partnered with companies including Cloudera, Hortonworks, MapR, Qlik and Tableau. For more information, visit www.kyvosinsights.com or connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Media Contact:

Ken Phillips

LEWIS

781-418-2437

[email protected]

SOURCE Kyvos Insights

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VERONA, N.J., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Legal-Bay LLC, The Lawsuit Pre Settlement Funding Company, reports today that the New York Archdiocese has paid out over 40 million dollars in compensation to 189 victims of clergy sexual abuse this year alone. The average claim comes to just over $211,000 per plaintiff. The payouts are a result of the Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program, which was put into place earlier this year to address the multiple accusations against the New York Diocese. While the deadline for filing suit through the IRCP ended on November 30, some additional claims are still being processed.

Legal-Bay is an advocate for victims of sexual abuse across the country, and is well-versed in abuse litigation, especially in situations where some of the Catholic churches have filed for bankruptcy to limit their payouts. Even in those cases, the pre settlement cash company was able to assist with providing lawsuit money to victims. Legal-Bay has funded these types of cases in New York, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida, California, Ohio, and Hawaii. As the pre-settlement funding leader, they can offer financial assistance for people with active lawsuits as they wait for their cases to settle.

Chris Janish, CEO, commented on the company's focus of assisting plaintiffs in similar situations, "We are happy to see that once the deadline for filing new claims had passed that the Archdiocese quickly settled these horrific sex abuse claims. Unfortunately, these settlements are all too common nowadays, and with the current environment for sexual harassment cases increasing every day, Legal-Bay has been one of the best lawsuit funding companies for sexual assault victims. That commitment will not change moving forward."

Legal-Bay is committed to aiding victims involved in such cases so that they can pay bills and live their lives in dignity while they wait for their settlement. Any funds received are obtained risk-free, since the funds only need to be repaid if the plaintiff is ultimately successful in collecting their money. For more information on the lawsuit funding programs and a complete list of cases Legal-Bay funds, including clergy or Catholic Church sexual abuse cases, sexual harassment in the workplace, prison rape cases, police brutality, video or text sex harassment, rape in group homes and other sex crime and commercial litigation cases, wrongful termination, discrimination or whistle blower cases, please visit the company's website at: http://lawsuitssettlementfunding.com

If you or a loved one require immediate cash advance settlement funding, feel free to call Legal-Bay on its toll-free hotline at: 877.571.0405, where live agents are available to take a funding application.

Although many clients refer to cash advances as lawsuit loans or loans for lawsuit, Legal-Bay is not a lawsuit loan company or considered to be a one of the settlement loan companies. Legal-Bay's programs are non-recourse lawsuit cash advances, also known as case funding, which means you only repay the settlement advance if you win your case. None of the programs should be considered to be a lawsuit loan, lawsuit loans, settlement loans, settlement loan, pre-settlement loans, or a pre-settlement loan.

Source: Legal-Bay LLC

SOURCE Legal-Bay LLC

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DETROIT, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Little Caesars Pizza, the world's third-largest pizza chain*, today announced expansion plans in Central and South America. Only a few months after Little Caesars opened its first restaurant in Chile, the pizza chain will open two restaurants in Nicaragua and one in Peru. The restaurants will begin operations during the first week of December in both countries, with a second Nicaraguan restaurant scheduled to open in January 2018.

"Little Caesars commitment to quality and value are propelling our brand's growth throughout the world," said Paula Vissing, senior vice president, International, for Little Caesars Pizza. The brand, voted Best Value in America of all U.S. fast food and pizza restaurant chains for the past ten years**, now operates on five continents including North America, Asia, Australia, Europe and South America.

Corporacion de Alimentos Coralsa de Nicaragua, will head up both restaurants in Nicaragua, and will be under the management of a long-time Little Caesars franchisee that also operates Little Caesars restaurants in Guatemala and El Salvador. The new restaurant in the metropolitan area of Lima, Peru will be controlled by Operadora LCPM S.A.C.

"We're excited to bring outstanding products like fresh, never frozen pizza to customers in Nicaragua and Peru," added Vissing. "Our brand delivers superior taste, incredible value and convenience to customers in these markets."

Known throughout the world for its innovative HOT-N-READY model that offers pizza hot out of the oven, without calling ahead or waiting in line, Little Caesars will be bringing best-in-class quality, value and convenience to pizza lovers in Nicaragua and Peru.

The Latin American pizza industry is projected to grow by as much as 45.15% between 2015 and 2017, according to the 2017 Pizza Power Report by PMQ Pizza Magazine, outpacing Europe, North America and Asia Pacific combined. Little Caesars continued success and growth in the region reflects a strategic global expansion strategy for the established brand and its franchisees.

*Third largest pizza chain in the world  based on net number of stores in 2016.

**Highest-Rated Chain, Value for the Money based on a nationwide survey in the United States of America of national quick-service restaurant consumers conducted by Sandelman & Associates 2007 - 2016.

About Little Caesars Pizza

Headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, Little Caesars is the largest carryout-only pizza chain in the United States1. Founded in 1959 as a single, family-owned restaurant, Little Caesars has become the third largest pizza chain in the world2 with stores in 22 countries and territories worldwide, including each of the 50 U.S. states.

Known for its HOT-N-READY pizza and famed Crazy Bread, Little Caesars has been named "Best Value in America" for ten years in a row3. Little Caesars products are made with quality ingredients, like dough made fresh daily in the stores and sauce made from fresh-packed, vine-ripened California crushed tomatoes.

An exceptionally high growth company with more than 58 years of experience in the nearly $135 billion worldwide pizza industry, Little Caesars is continually looking for franchisee candidates to join our team in markets around the world. In addition to providing the opportunity for entrepreneurial independence in a franchise system, Little Caesars offers strong brand awareness with one of the most recognized and appealing characters in the country, Little Caesar.

1Largest carry-out only pizza chain in the US  based on net number of stores in 2016.

2Third largest pizza chain in the world  based on net number of stores in 2016.

3Highest-Rated Chain, Value for the Money based on a nationwide survey in the United States of America of national quick-service restaurant consumers conducted by Sandelman & Associates 2007  2016.

Contact: Diego Perez

866.571.3449

[email protected]

SOURCE Little Caesars Pizza
CHICAGO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Loeb is pleased to announce the addition of Vince Andrews to the team as the Vice President of Loeb's Equipment Division. Vince joins the organization to lead the day-to-day efforts of Loeb's Account Management and Inventory teams.

Vince Andrews

"My father, Jim, has known Vince since he first started in the contact packaging industry in 1995 and I have been watching him grow to run one of the largest contact packaging operations in the country. We are thrilled to have him join our team to take our Inventory division to the next level," stated Howard Newman, President of Loeb. "I look forward to working with Vince and watching him continue to grow our sales and inventory operations."

Vince brings over 20 years of experience in both brand and private label food processing and contract packaging, in addition to having hands on equipment knowledge spanning from sourcing to modification for specific applications. He holds over 8 certifications across sanitary design, process design, and environmental impact that he will use to focus on transforming the production and automation needs of Loeb's customer base. Prior to joining Loeb, Vince most recently was the Director of Operations for a large contract packaging firm where he was responsible for complete process and production system design and installation.

Vince will be based out of Loeb's corporate headquarters in Chicago, Illinois and will be working with his teams to increase efficiencies in Loeb's equipment division and increase sales, purchases, rentals and leases.

About Loeb

For five generations since 1880, Loeb has been a trusted provider of reliable equipment and related services that help manufacturers and financial institutions leverage their industrial assets by managing the equipment lifecycle. Headquartered in Chicago with a 150,000 square foot facility, Loeb provides: equipment sales, purchases, rentals, leasing & liquidations, certified market appraisals from Loeb Appraisal, auction services & asset disposition from Loeb Winternitz Industrial Auctioneers, and equipment term loan financing from Loeb Term Solutions. Loeb and all of its divisions are experts in providing equipment solutions to the: food, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, chemical, metalworking, woodworking, plastics, and printing industries. For more information on Loeb or any of its business units, please visit: www.loebequipment.com.

For all media inquiries, please contact:

Sara Bogin, Marketing Director

[email protected]

(773) 496-5707

SOURCE Loeb

Related Links

http://www.loebequipment.com


TOMBALL, Texas, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Memorial Hermann Tomball Hospital welcomed more than 500 residents and families at the ribbon-cutting ceremony of its grand opening and winter festival this past weekend.

"We are excited to expand Memorial Hermann Health System's footprint into the Tomball community," said Teal Holden, vice president of operations for ambulatory services at Memorial Hermann. "This allows us to continue to improve the community's access to care by offering convenient locations that are easy to get to, no matter where you live."

The event celebrated the hospital's seamless transition into the broader Memorial Hermann network, following a joint venture partnership between Emerus Holdings Inc., the nation's first and largest operator of micro-hospitals, and Memorial Hermann, one of the largest not-for-profit health systems in Southeast Texas.

Memorial Hermann Tomball offers 24-hours, seven-days-a-week emergency care in its state-of-the-art Emergency Center; inpatient care available to ER patients that require overnight observation and additional testing; and onsite lab and imaging services.

"By partnering with Memorial Hermann, our patients know they will continue receiving premier medical care," said Craig Goguen, CEO of Emerus.

Those who attended the event enjoyed free food trucks, live music and family activities that included photos with Santa.

ABOUT EMERUS

Emerus is the nation's first and largest operator of micro-hospitals. Emerus partners with leading health systems to provide excellence, empathy and innovation in health care delivery through a network of efficient, value-based micro-hospitals. The Emerus network brings high-quality, patient-centric acute episodic and ambulatory clinical services to communities across a given market. This helps patients by positioning best-in-class provider services in the communities where they work, live and play. Emerus' distinctive level of care earned the Guardian of Excellence Award for Superior Patient Experience in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. More information is available at www.emerus.com.

ABOUT MEMORIAL HERMANN

A fully integrated health system with more than 250 care delivery sites throughout the Greater Houston area, including a nationally acclaimed Accountable Care Organization, Memorial Hermann is committed to delivering safe, high-quality, patient-centered care and offers world-class clinical expertise, innovation and cutting-edge technology to all patients, including its Health Plan members. The system, with its exceptional affiliated medical staff and more than 25,000 employees, provides compassionate, superior service while advancing health in Southeast Texas. Learn more about Memorial Hermann Health System.

Emerus Media Contact: Memorial Hermann Media Contact: Richard Bonnin Kathryn Williams 713.637.1261 713.829.2361 [email protected] [email protected]

SOURCE Emerus

Related Links

http://www.emerus.com


MENLO PARK, California, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Menlo Security, a leader in malware isolation, has closed a $40 million round in Series C funding, bringing total investment to $85 million. New investors in the round include American Express Ventures, Ericsson Ventures and HSBC. They join Menlo's existing investors: JPMorgan Chase, General Catalyst, Sutter Hill Ventures, Osage University Partners and Engineering Capital. The investment will allow Menlo to expand sales and marketing of its Security Isolation Platform, which has been enabling companies of all sizes to take a more powerful approach to security.

As the impact of security breaches continues to dominate headlines all over the world, attackers have become more sophisticated and conventional malware detection products are not enough. Rather than try to distinguish between safe and risky content, the Menlo Security Isolation Platform acts like a digital partition, isolating and executing all web content, email links and documents in the cloud, then streaming a malware-free version of the content to employees' computers via Menlo's patented Adaptive Clientless Rendering (ACR) technology, with a completely native experience. Given the challenge of staying ahead of new, more sophisticated types of attacks, adoption of Menlo's platform is accelerating across geographies and sectors, including finance, technology, manufacturing, hospitality, healthcare and the government.

"More than a million users at hundreds of companies are protected by Menlo, with zero infections to date," said Amir Ben Efraim, CEO of Menlo Security. "This has given the market tremendous confidence in our solution. Customers are demanding more durable approaches to malware prevention versus a long legacy of solutions that remain perennially vulnerable to the latest attacks. This funding allows us to respond to this opportunity by continuing to expand our deployments globally to meet this growing demand, while delivering on our vision of eliminating the phishing, ransomware and malware risks from email, web and document downloads."

The level of protection provided by Menlo Security's isolation technology raises the bar for the industry and sets new standards for security, gaining attention from customers and investors alike.

"Phishing has grown to be one of the most common threats to businesses across industries and geographies," said Rick Smith, Head of Private Investments, JPMorgan Chase. "JPMorgan Chase is pleased to continue to collaborate with Menlo Security on their pioneering approach to web and email security through isolation, helping to eliminate phishing attacks without disruption to our business."

"As cyber threats become more sophisticated, there is a growing need for proactive security solutions that can identify and isolate malicious web content before it enters a business' systems," said Harshul Sanghi, Managing Partner of Amex Ventures. "Menlo's isolation technology offers a robust solution, and we are excited to support its next phase of growth as the company looks to expand its client base and continue enhancing its capabilities."

"An environment free from malware is absolutely essential in fostering innovation, collaboration, and discovery," said Albert Kim, Head of Ericsson Ventures. "At Ericsson, we seek to continuously improve our networking solutions, and state-of-the-art security is a key feature of global communication networks. We view Menlo's isolation technology as a way to make all networks more secure."

Tim Dawson, Head of Cyber Technology at HSBC, said: "Cyber security is a top priority for us. This investment is an example of how-as threats constantly evolve-we will continue to dedicate time and resources to the challenge, exploring innovative ways to protect our clients and staff."

Isolating Internet Web Browsing

The industry is also taking note of isolation technology. In a report entitled Cool Vendors in Security for Midsize Enterprises, 2017, published on 31 May 2017, Gartner analysts Neil Wynne, Adam Hils, Saniye Burcu Alaybeyi, and Tricia Phillips wrote, "Gartner estimates that organizations isolating internet web browsing will experience a 70% reduction in attacks that compromise end-user systems." The report continued, "By isolating the user's browsing activity on the public internet from the end user's device and from the rest of the enterprise's networks and systems, the ability of an attacker to establish a foothold, move laterally, breach other enterprise systems and exfiltrate data can be greatly reduced. Notably, browser isolation can thwart ransomware attacks, blocking the malware's ability to encrypt the user's files on their devices or in file shares, neither of which are directly accessible from the remote browser session." Menlo Security has been recognized as a Cool Vendor in this report.

More Resources

Meet Menlo Security customers

Tweet this: [email protected] closes $40M Series C round, for a total raise of $85M to date, w/ American Express Ventures, @ericsson, @HSBC, @jpmorgan, as well as existing investors @shv, @OUP_VC, @gcvp & Engineering Capital

Series C round, for a total raise of to date, w/ American Express Ventures, @ericsson, @HSBC, @jpmorgan, as well as existing investors @shv, @OUP_VC, @gcvp & Engineering Capital LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/3882576/

Visit our website: https://www.menlosecurity.com/

Subscribe to our blog for the latest security news and best practices

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Menlo Security

Menlo Security protects organizations from cyberattacks by seeking to eliminate the threat of malware from the web, documents and email. Menlo Security's cloud-based Isolation platform scales to provide comprehensive protection across enterprises of any size without requiring endpoint software or impacting the end user experience. Menlo Security is trusted by major global businesses, including Fortune 500 companies and financial services institutions, and backed by General Catalyst, Sutter Hill Ventures, Engineering Capital, Osage University Partners, American Express Ventures, Ericsson Ventures, HSBC, and JP Morgan Chase. Menlo Security is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. For more information, visit https://www.menlosecurity.com or @menlosecurity.

SOURCE Menlo Security
EXTON, Pa., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Morphotek, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Inc., announced today that it has entered into a Sponsored Research Agreement (SRA) with The Rockefeller University to expand its research efforts around the mechanisms by which the CA125 tumor shed antigen suppresses immune-based therapies. CA125 is a tumor-produced protein that has been recently found to elicit suppressive effects on humoral-based immune functions by direct binding to subsets of tumor-targeting antibodies, as well as direct binding to immune cells involved in mediating tumor cell killing.

The collaboration will incorporate proprietary cell-based and engineered animal models that can monitor the immunosuppressive effects of CA125 on the cellular and direct antibody-binding mechanisms using optimized assays developed by ongoing research in the laboratory of Dr. Jeffery Ravetch, the Theresa and Eugene M. Lang Professor and Head of the Leonard Wagner Laboratory of Molecular Genetics and Immunology at The Rockefeller University. The research will focus on expanding the knowledge of how CA125 suppresses humoral immune responses to antibody-mediated therapies via these two mechanisms.

"We are excited to collaborate with Dr. Ravetch's group in this emerging field of tumor-mediated, humoral immune suppression," stated Nicholas Nicolaides, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Morphotek. "His pioneering efforts of how antibodies engage with Fc receptors on immune cells to elicit immune responses, along with our growing knowledge of the immunosuppressive effects by CA125 may enable us to develop novel therapeutic agents and innovative clinical designs to overcome these mechanisms and aid patients with various cancer types."

About Morphotek

Morphotek, Inc., a subsidiary of Eisai Inc., is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing novel classes of biological-based products to treat cancer, inflammatory and infectious diseases. Our mission is to develop novel targeted therapies that attack underlying disease pathways, and in oncology indications, that can overcome the immunosuppressive effects by tumors on immune-mediated experimental therapies. Our diverse pipeline includes clinical-stage monoclonal antibodies to lead targets folate receptor alpha, mesothelin and endosialin, as well as antibody-drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies to undisclosed targets in preclinical development. Our mission is supported by proprietary cutting-edge technologies in antibody engineering, manufacturing and screening optimization platforms, along with our expertise in developing diagnostics to support patient selection and therapeutic strategy. For more information, please visit www.morphotek.com.

About Eisai Inc.

At Eisai Inc., human health care (hhc) is our goal. We give our first thought to patients and their families, and helping to increase the benefits health care provides. As the U.S. pharmaceutical subsidiary of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd., we have a passionate commitment to patient care that is the driving force behind our efforts to discover and develop innovative therapies to help address unmet medical needs.

Eisai is a fully integrated pharmaceutical business that operates in two global business groups: oncology and neurology (dementia-related diseases and neurodegenerative diseases). Each group functions as an end-to-end global business with discovery, development, and marketing capabilities. Our U.S. headquarters, commercial and clinical development organizations are located in New Jersey; our discovery labs are in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania; and our global demand chain organization resides in Maryland and North Carolina. To learn more about Eisai Inc., please visit us at www.eisai.com/US and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Morphotek, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.morphotek.com


The Myaamia (Miami in the Tribe's language) Heritage Collection will support Miami Tribe students at the University. All royalties from sales will support scholarships for Tribe students through the Myaamia Heritage Award Program, as stated in an agreement signed in October 2017 by Miami Tribe Chief Douglas Lankford and Miami University President Gregory Crawford.

The agreement updates a partnership of respect that began in 1972. This collaboration has evolved into a multifaceted partnership. The relationship is best summed up with the Myaamia word neepwaantiinki, which means "learning from each other."

While enrolled at Miami, tribe students take classes together and learn their own history, language and culture. They also can participate in various activities and research. The decades-long learning partnership has fostered a 77% graduation rate for Myaamia students who have gone through the Myaamia Heritage Award Program since 2003, far surpassing the national average of 22.5%.

"It's amazing what the University has done," said junior Megan Mooney, a Miami Tribe member. "It allows us space to come together as tribespeople. As young people that are discovering their roots, it allows us not only to learn important things, it allows us to learn more about ourselves."

New symbols tell a shared story

Using designs created and approved by both the Tribe and the University, the Myaamia Heritage Collection features symbols with shared meaning. The Myaamia Heritage Logo represents the relationship between the Tribe and the University and features bold colors, geometric patterns and elongated diamonds found in traditional ribbonwork. Teaching the art of ribbonwork, which dates to the 1700s when the Myaamia acquired silk ribbons from European traders, has been recently revitalized.

This image and a secondary one, the Myaamia Heritage Turtle, will be available on merchandise starting Dec. 8. Each item in the Myaamia Heritage Collection will have a hangtag or sticker with information and a website address regarding the Miami University-Tribe relationship. Learfield Licensing Partners, the University's licensing agency, assisted in the initial concept and will continue to help guide the marketing and license management of the special line.

The Myaamia Heritage Turtle features elements that unite culture and tradition for the Tribe and the University.

The turtle appears on the Miami Tribe's official seal. It also has traditional significance for Miami University students who seek good luck by rubbing the heads of copper turtles at the base of a sundial statue on the Oxford campus.

In the Heritage Collection, both the sundial design and the Myaamia Heritage Logo appear on the turtle's back, evoking the history of the sundial and the ongoing relationship between the Tribe and University.

Heritage Collection clothing and other items will be available at the Miami University Bookstore, Shop.MiamiRedHawks.com, Follett Bookstore and DuBois Book Store.

About Miami University: Founded in 1809, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, is a nationally ranked university focused on student success through undergraduate teaching and mentoring with opportunities for research, leadership, study abroad and internships. An original Public Ivy, Miami University ranks #1 among public universities in the U.S. for commitment to teaching undergraduates. More than 96 percent of 2015-2016 Miami graduates (per surveys and data) were employed or re-enrolled by fall 2016.

Contact: Claire Wagner

[email protected]

513-529-7592

SOURCE Learfield Licensing Partners; Miami University
WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Donald Trump is sending astronauts back to the Moon.

The president Monday signed at the White House Space Policy Directive 1, a change in national space policy that provides for a U.S.-led, integrated program with private sector partners for a human return to the Moon, followed by missions to Mars and beyond.

The policy calls for the NASA administrator to "lead an innovative and sustainable program of exploration with commercial and international partners to enable human expansion across the solar system and to bring back to Earth new knowledge and opportunities." The effort will more effectively organize government, private industry, and international efforts toward returning humans on the Moon, and will lay the foundation that will eventually enable human exploration of Mars.

"The directive I am signing today will refocus America's space program on human exploration and discovery," said President Trump. "It marks a first step in returning American astronauts to the Moon for the first time since 1972, for long-term exploration and use. This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprints -- we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars, and perhaps someday, to many worlds beyond."

The policy grew from a unanimous recommendation by the new National Space Council, chaired by Vice President Mike Pence, after its first meeting Oct. 5. In addition to the direction to plan for human return to the Moon, the policy also ends NASA's existing effort to send humans to an asteroid. The president revived the National Space Council in July to advise and help implement his space policy with exploration as a national priority.

"Under President Trump's leadership, America will lead in space once again on all fronts," said Vice President Pence. "As the President has said, space is the 'next great American frontier'  and it is our duty  and our destiny  to settle that frontier with American leadership, courage, and values. The signing of this new directive is yet another promise kept by President Trump."

Among other dignitaries on hand for the signing, were NASA astronauts Sen. Harrison "Jack" Schmitt, Buzz Aldrin, Peggy Whitson and Christina Koch. Schmitt landed on the moon 45 years to the minute that the policy directive was signed as part of NASA's Apollo 17 mission, and is the most recent living person to have set foot on our lunar neighbor. Aldrin was the second person to walk on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission. Whitson spoke to the president from space in April aboard the International Space Station and while flying back home after breaking the record for most time in space by a U.S. astronaut in September. Koch is a member of NASA's astronaut class of 2013.

Work toward the new directive will be reflected in NASA's Fiscal Year 2019 budget request next year.

"NASA looks forward to supporting the president's directive strategically aligning our work to return humans to the Moon, travel to Mars and opening the deeper solar system beyond," said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot. "This work represents a national effort on many fronts, with America leading the way. We will engage the best and brightest across government and private industry and our partners across the world to reach new milestones in human achievement. Our workforce is committed to this effort, and even now we are developing a flexible deep space infrastructure to support a steady cadence of increasingly complex missions that strengthens American leadership in the boundless frontier of space. The next generation will dream even bigger and reach higher as we launch challenging new missions, and make new discoveries and technological breakthroughs on this dynamic path."

A piece of Moon rock was brought to the White House as a reminder of the exploration history and American successes at the Moon on which the new policy will build. Lunar Sample 70215 was retrieved from the Moon's surface and returned by Schmitt's Apollo 17 crew. Apollo 17 was the last Apollo mission to land astronauts on the Moon and returned with the greatest amount of rock and soil samples for investigation.

The sample is a basaltic lava rock similar to lava found in Hawaii. It crystallized 3.84 billion years ago when lava flowed from the Camelot Crater. Sliced off a parent rock that originally weighed 8,110 grams, the sample weighs 14 grams, and is very fine grained, dense and tough. During the six Apollo surface excursions from 1969 to 1972, astronauts collected 2,196 rock and soil samples weighting 842 pounds. Scientific studies help us learn about the geologic history of the Moon, as well as Earth. They help us understand the mineral and chemical resources available to support future lunar exploration.

For information about NASA's missions, programs and activities, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov

SOURCE NASA

Related Links

http://www.nasa.gov


Nepal Mediciti welcomes Oli

Nepal Mediciti Hospital in Bhaisipati, Lalitpur, welcomed CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli for a tour of the facility on Sunday.
STAMFORD, Conn., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Stamford, Connecticut-based Olympus Partners is pleased to announce that its portfolio company, G.E.T. Enterprises, a supplier of alternative tableware, has merged with Winco, a manufacturer of kitchenware and tableware to create a leading supplier to the foodservice industry.

"Winco is a dynamic, fast-growing business that is an extremely complimentary business to G.E.T., "said Mike Horgan, Partner at Olympus. "David Li and his management team have created a differentiated, customer centric business that, working alongside G.E.T., will enable both businesses to grow even faster. I am also excited to welcome David Li to the Board and look forward to working with him and his entire team."

Heidi Modaro, CEO of G.E.T. said "G.E.T. continues its expansion to provide our foodservice customers and chefs with more options. We are thrilled to create one G.E.T. and Winco family. By adding the Winco product lines, we are blending our alternative material products with a broad line of the highest quality small-wares. This merger will bring clear benefits to our customers."

David Li, Winco's CEO, stated, "For Winco to have been able to grow to our current standing in the industry today makes me incredibly grateful for and proud of all our employees, and appreciative of our customer and supplier partners for the opportunities they provided and their support. We look forward to being a part of a stronger combined family with G.E.T. and flourishing together in the future."

Founded in 1988, Olympus Partners is a private equity firm focused on providing equity capital for middle market management buyouts and for companies needing capital for expansion. Olympus is an active, long-term investor across a broad range of industries, including restaurants, consumer products, healthcare services, financial services, packaging and business services.

Olympus manages in excess of $5.5 billion on behalf of corporate pension funds, endowment funds and state-sponsored retirement programs.

The Olympus team included Mike Horgan, Manu Bettegowda, Chase Ormond, and Sam Greenberg. Olympus was represented by Matthew Goulding and Benjamin Clinger from Kirkland & Ellis.

SOURCE Olympus Partners
BAODING, China, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Orient Paper, Inc. (NYSE MKT: ONP) ("Orient Paper" or the "Company"), a leading manufacturer and distributor of diversified paper products in North China, today announced the results of the Company's 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the "Annual Meeting"). The meeting, which was originally scheduled for September 25, 2017 and was postponed in order to meet quorum requirements, took place at the Company's Wei County Production Base in Wei County, Hebei Province, China. at 10:00 a.m., Beijing Time, on Friday, December 8, 2017.

At the Annual Meeting, Orient Paper's stockholders:

1. Elected two Class I directors, Mr. Marco Ku Hon Wai and Mr. Wenbing Christopher Wang, to serve on the Board of Directors of the Company until the 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and until their respective successors have been duly elected and qualified or until their earlier resignation, removal or death;

2. Conducted an advisory vote on the compensation of the Company's executive officers who are named in the Summary Compensation Table of the Company's 2017 Proxy Statement, and approved such compensation;

3. Conducted an advisory vote on the frequency of future advisory votes on the compensation of the Company's executive officers, and approved that option that executive compensation votes be conducted every three (3) years;

4. Ratified the appointment of BDO China Shu Lun Pan CPAs LLP as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2017.

About Orient Paper, Inc.

Orient Paper, Inc. ("Orient Paper") is a leading paper manufacturer in North China. Using recycled paper as its primary raw material (with the exception of its tissue paper products), Orient Paper produces and distributes three categories of paper products: corrugating medium paper, offset printing paper and tissue paper products.

With production based in Baoding and Xingtai in North China's Hebei Province, Orient Paper is located strategically close to the Beijing and Tianjin region, home to a growing base of industrial and manufacturing activities and one of the largest markets for paper products consumption in the country.

Orient Paper's production facilities are controlled and operated by its wholly owned subsidiary Shengde Holdings Inc, which in turn controls and operates Baoding Shengde Paper Co., Ltd., and Hebei Baoding Orient Paper Milling Co., Ltd.

Founded in 1996, Orient Paper has been listed on the NYSE MKT under the ticker symbol "ONP" since December 2009. For more information about the Company, please visit http://www.orientpaperinc.com.

Safe Harbor Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated, including risks outlined in the Company's public filings with the SEC, including the Company's latest annual report on Form 10-K. All information provided in this press release speaks as of the date hereof. Except as otherwise required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements.

For more information, please contact:

Company Contact:

Orient Paper, Inc.

Email: [email protected]

Investor Relations:

Tony Tian, CFA

Weitian Group LLC

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1-732-910-9692

SOURCE Orient Paper, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.orientpaperinc.com


WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- A fully curated selection of superior-quality modern art and design rang the register at $1.6 million at Palm Beach Modern's (PBMA) Nov. 25 Thanksgiving weekend auction. Furniture knocked it out of the park, especially the distinctive 1960s designs of Paul Evans. Art continued its hot streak with a Michael Goldberg painting commanding an above-estimate $38,400.

Monumental Paul Evans/Directional cabinet, bronzed resin, slate, wood, lacquered steel; $23,040. Palm Beach Modern Auctions image Michael Goldberg (American, 1924-2007), signed original painting on paper, Poindexter Gallery N.Y. label on verso, 13.25 x 10.5in., $38,400. Palm Beach Modern Auctions image

"Mid-century furniture was stronger than it has ever been in any of our sales," said auctioneer and PBMA co-owner Rico Baca. "Looking at the initial numbers, I can say quite confidently that there was a 90 to 95 percent sell-through rate on furniture."

The category was led by a set of eight Paul Evans leather and metal dining chairs that sold for $48,640 against a pre-sale estimate of $20,000-$30,000  a record for the form. Comprising two armchairs and six side chairs, the desirable seating suite is referenced in two respected books about Evans' body of work.

"There were staff members on all eight phone lines for the Evans chairs, and there were even more competitors online," said Baca. "They sold to a phone bidder from France who was very excited to win them."

In total, 12 Paul Evans lots were offered, including a monumental bronzed resin, slate, wood and lacquered steel cabinet designed by Evans for Directional, which realized $23,040 (est. $15,000-$20,000); and a wonderful bronzed resin-over-steel and glass Stalagmite dining table that rose to $10,880 (est. $5,000-$7,000).

"We were so pleased for the consignors of the Stalagmite table," said Baca. "They're a group of brothers who were young boys when we started our gallery. Their father did upholstery work for us. In time, they went to work for their dad and also started buying furniture. The Evans table, which they purchased for only $150, was their first consignment with us. They came to the auction as a family  including their father  to watch as their early investment paid them back many times over."

Two little girls, ages 6 and 9, clapped excitedly as their parents' consignment  a Michael Goldberg oil painting originally purchased for $7  soared to $38,400. "I think after the hammer fell there was some talk of a trip to Walt Disney World," Baca said with a smile. "It was quite a lesson to them about the power of both art and investment."

Another premier art lot was a signed Sam Francis (American, 1923-1994) original acrylic-on-paper work with a stamp from the artist's estate and backed by scholarship from the Sam Francis Foundation. One of three Francis originals entered in the sale, it achieved $30,720 against a $15,000-$25,000 estimate.

Palm Beach Modern Auctions has enjoyed a 100% sell-through rate on all Picasso pottery offered in its sales. The top example in the November 25 session was an owl-form vessel that made $19,200. "There's such a strong following for Picasso pottery," Baca said. "There are far more buyers than there are sellers, and now we're receiving Picasso consignments from outside the United States  there were some pieces from France in this sale. This tells us we're reaching the high end of the market with our prices."

Five beautiful chandeliers in the manner of Stilnovo were consigned and shipped from Italy and offered in consecutive lots. Four were won by a noted British designer, with one of them reaching $12,800 against expectations of $2,000-$3,000.

Contact Palm Beach Modern Auctions about consigning modern/contemporary art, furniture, decorative art or pop culture memorabilia to a future auction by calling 561-586-5500 or emailing [email protected]. Online: www.modernauctions.com.

Media Contact: Wade Terwilliger

[email protected]

561-586-5500

SOURCE Palm Beach Modern Auctions

Related Links

http://www.modernauctions.com


NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- PM360, a leading health-marketing industry trade magazine, will once again honor the PM360 ELITE: Exceptional  Leaders  Innovators  Transformers  Entrepreneurs.

The PM360 ELITE recognizes the most influential people in the healthcare/life sciences industries. Nominees are judged based on their career achievements and the impact their work has had on the industry, or the potential they have demonstrated to impact the industry. To help bring these industry leaders to the forefront, the magazine is seeking submissions in 18 categories:

Transformational Leaders

Leaders of the Future

Data Miners

Creative Directors

Tech-know Geeks

Entrepreneurs

Sales MVPs

Strategists

Disrupters

Mentors

Master Educators

Launch Experts

Patient Advocates

Drug Researchers and Developers

Digital Crusaders

Marketing Teams

PR Gurus

Talent Acquisition Leaders

To learn more about each of the above categories or to start making submissions, visit www.pm360online.com/elite. All submissions must be received by March 9, 2018.

Anyone from a manufacturer (pharma, medical device, biotech or specialty), advertising agency, or any company serving the life sciences industry is eligible to enter in any of the categories. Nominees can be submitted in multiple categories. Entries will be judged by the PM360 editorial staff.

The PM360 ELITE winners will be featured in the publication's May 2018 issue. Profiles of these award winners will present and examine their extraordinary accomplishments and contributions to the industry. The winners will also be honored at a celebratory cocktail party in July.

For more information about the PM360 ELITE, contact Andrew Matthius, Senior Editor, PM360, at [email protected].

About PM360

PM360 is the premier, must-read magazine for marketing decision makers in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industries. Published monthly, PM360 is the only journal that focuses on delivering the full spectrum of practical information necessary for product managers and pharmaceutical marketing professionals to succeed in the complex and highly regulated healthcare environment.

The journal's targeted and insightful editorial focuses on issues that directly impact critical decision making, including: Planning and implementation of cutting-edge strategies, trends, the latest technological advances, branding/marketing, advertising/promotion, patient/professional education, sales, market research, PR, and leadership. Additionally, the "360" in the title signifies the span of this critical, how-to info with personal and career insights for an enjoyable and thought-provoking read.

By providing the full circle of enriching content, PM360 is truly an indispensable tool for busy and productive marketing professionals to stay at the top of their game.

Contact:

Andrew Matthius

Senior Editor

[email protected]

SOURCE PM360

Related Links

http://www.pm360online.com


NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network who are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area.

You can also submit a query to the hundreds of thousands of experts in our network  it's easy and free! Just fill out the query form to get started: http://prn.to/queryform

EXPERT ALERTS

Feeling Good About Your Finances? Keep the Momentum Going With a Financial Resolution

New Year's Financial Resolutions

Ensuring Benefit Plans are Documented, Compliant, and Forward Thinking

CVS-Aetna Deal Would Differentiate CVS from Amazon via Customer Loyalty-Building

Economic Impact of California Wildfires

Airline Scheduling and Holiday Travel

Family-Run Businesses and Holiday Stress

MEDIA JOBS

Deputy Planning Editor  The Wall Street Journal (NY)

Agriculture Reporter  POLITICO Pro (VA)

Investing Reporter  U.S. News & World Report (DC)

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

Six Writing Habits to Stick to in 2018

Blogger Conferences: Top Events to Attend in 2018

Service Journalism: Newsrooms Dust Off Age-Old Practice

-------------------------------------------------------------------

EXPERT ALERTS:

Feeling Good About Your Finances? Keep the Momentum Going With a Financial Resolution

Ken Hevert

Senior Vice President of Retirement

Fidelity Investments

"Good financial times represent the best opportunities to achieve your goals and establish habits that can get you through good times and bad. Making financial resolutions can help you keep the momentum going and stay on track for financial prosperity in 2018 and beyond. If sticking to resolutions isn't for you, find ways to automate savings and make it easier to save all year round."

Hevert can speak to the findings from Fidelity's 9th annual New Year Financial Resolutions study, released today, Dec. 11, which reveals that the number of people feeling good about their financial situation is at an all-time high -- while those making financial resolutions for the year ahead has sunk to an all-time low. Hevert can also speak to the top sources of financial stress; some of the key financial moves people should consider in 2018; and the top financial resolutions, advantages of setting them, and how to make them stick all year round.

Contact: Mary Barrett, [email protected]



New Year's Financial Resolutions

Dave Ramsey

CEO

Ramsey Solutions

The list of top New Year's resolutions always include finances -- getting out of debt, getting control of spending, saving more, etc. Ramsey is the go-to expert for personal finance. His "Seven Baby Steps" provide a proven plan for getting control of your money, getting on a budget and building wealth. He can also address small-business and leadership topics in the new year: "The biggest thing about getting out of debt is that you really have to get angry about it. You work too hard to be this broke. You have to get into attack mode. This is your fresh start. Go from where you are."

Based in Brentwood, Tenn., Ramsey has authored five New York Times best-sellers, including "The Total Money Makeover," the go-to book for getting control of money. He's also the host of "The Dave Ramsey Show" (radio and podcast), the third largest talk radio show, with more than 13 million listeners on more than 575 radio stations and a variety of digital outlets. He is also CEO of Ramsey Solutions, his 25-year-old company that he grew from a card table in his living room to more than 600 team members.

Website: www.daveramsey.com

Contact: Beth Tallent, [email protected]



Ensuring Self-Funded Benefit Plans Are Documented, Compliant, and Forward-Thinking

Jen McCormick

Vice President, Consulting

The Phia Group, LLC, Braintree, Mass.

"Being self-funded puts the plan in a unique position to adjust their benefit design to align with the specific needs of an employee population. For example, the employer can modify their benefit design to include benefits that matter the most to employees -- making the plan, and employer, very attractive. Failure to update your plan design or benefit document could be detrimental as it may lead to issues of non-compliance. In addition, failing to stay on top of trends and cost saving techniques could add unnecessary costs to the plan. This review and update of plan materials would be necessary for any employer adopting a self-funded plan."

McCormick, a health care attorney and ERISA lawyer, is available to discuss self-funded health plans and a variety of health benefit compliance and regulatory issues. She holds a J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law, with certificates in estate planning and family law.

ProfNet Profile: http://www.profnetconnect.com/jenmccormick

Website: https://www.phiagroup.com

Contact: Matthew Painten, [email protected]



CVS-Aetna Deal Would Differentiate CVS from Amazon via Customer Loyalty-Building

Jie Zhang

Professor of Marketing and Harvey Sanders Fellow of Retail Management

University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The proposed $69 billion plan by drugstore chain CVS to buy health insurer Aetna comes as CVS and its peers face heightened competition from Amazon.com, which recently announced it obtained licenses to operate pharmacies in at least 12 states. Says Zhang: "With the move, CVS is looking not to take on Amazon directly, but to differentiate. CVS has long been looking for ways to strengthen relationships with customers, such as through its loyalty program. The push of CVS Clinics and now the acquisition of Aetna further enhance the company's ability to build long-term customer relationships and alleviate the pressure of price competitions with discount retailers."

Zhang serves on the Editorial Review Board of the Journal of Marketing and the International Journal of Research in Marketing.

Bio: https://www.rhsmith.umd.edu/directory/jie-zhang

Contact: Greg Muraski, [email protected]



Economic Impact of California Wildfires

Nicholas Reksten

Economist, Professor of Economics

University of Redlands

Dr. Reksten is available to discuss how environmental issues and events, such as the current California wildfires, impact the economy: "In addition to the terrible loss of human and other animal lives, the fires impose a number of other costs -- short- and long-term -- on society. More resources must be set aside for firefighting and rebuilding structures after the fires. Output can be lost or diminished when farms or other places of business are located near the fires and are either damaged or evacuated because of it. If the fires close major roads, people lose time in traffic that they could otherwise be spending in a more productive or fulfilling way, and, of course, their cars emit more pollution from running longer. The ash and smoke blown into the air by the fires drifts into nearby communities severely worsening air quality, which can exacerbate asthma and other respiratory problems, especially in vulnerable populations."

Website: http://www.redlands.edu

Contact: Jennifer Dobbs, [email protected]



Airline Scheduling and Holiday Travel

Tamas Terlaky

Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering

Lehigh University

Terlaky is available to share expert commentary regarding software scheduling modules related to the American Airlines pilot scheduling snafu, which may cause frustrating flight cancellations and delays for holiday travelers this year. Dr. Terlaky shares these thoughts on the pilot scheduling situation: "I was stunned to hear that such a problem can happen today. The airline crew scheduling problem is a classic problem, similar to the model and methodology we developed and used for the inmate assignment problem. It was pioneered in the 1980s and today all airlines are using, and relying on, such sophisticated scheduling optimization systems. Looking at the news, it seems to be quite clear that this major disruption is caused by some quite simple software bug. Based on how the problem is described in news reports, this is the picture: A software module, unchecked, allowed the pilots to schedule days off for the holiday season, and drop scheduled flights without putting a replacement pilot in the system. As Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines captain and a spokesman for the pilot's union, said, the software 'became Santa Claus for everyone,' allowing all pilots to take holiday as they wanted and drop assigned flights without checking the availability of a substitute pilot. Just to illustrate: Your banking software allows you to move the pay day of your mortgage or credit card shifted within a short time window (like from the 15th day of the month to the 3rd). This error is like your banking system without any penalty would allow you (and everyone) to take a half year pay holiday unchecked. In a sophisticated software system, this looks like a simple bug, and most probably the error was detected by the crew 'plane-pilot-route' scheduling module (the mathematical optimization module), which could not find any feasible pilot assignment schedule; simply there were not enough pilots (as most booked on to go on holiday)."

Terlaky is an expert in optimization methods and software, particularly for complex scheduling challenges. He and his research team recently won the international Wagner Prize for their work creating a scheduling optimization model for assigning inmates to correctional institutions that was recently adopted by the state of Pennsylvania.

Bio: https://ise.lehigh.edu/content/tam%C3%A1s-terlaky-0

Contact: Amy White, [email protected]



Family-Run Businesses and Holiday Stress

Michael Klein, PsyD

Psychologist

MK Insights LLC

During the holiday season, gathering with family brings joy  and, often, stress -- and that is typically compounded when working in a family-run/owned business. Says Dr. Klein: "When you work in, or own, a family business, holiday gatherings can be filled with stress not only based on family dynamics, but from various business-related issues. To have a joyous and successful family gathering, it is critical for individuals in family-owned businesses to keep work topics at work."

Based in Massachusetts, Dr. Klein is the author of "Trapped in the Family Business."

Expert Contact: [email protected]

****************

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Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/community/jobs/

Deputy Planning Editor  The Wall Street Journal (NY)

Agriculture Reporter  POLITICO Pro (VA)

Investing Reporter  U.S. News & World Report (DC)

*****************

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line.

MAKE HABITS, NOT RESOLUTIONS: 6 PRACTICES TO WEAVE INTO YOUR WRITING PROCESS FOR 2018. With 2017 coming to a close, we came up with six habits to weave into your writing process to help set you up for success in the new year: http://prn.to/writinghabits

BLOGGER CONFERENCES: TOP EVENTS TO ATTEND IN 2018. This a monthly column of what's happening in the blog world. Here are top events to attend in the 2018: http://prn.to/2018events

SERVICE JOURNALISM: NEWSROOMS DUST OFF AGE-OLD PRACTICE. It's a newish term used by news agencies to describe what's been the backbone for many news operations  the feature and evergreen material that typically fill editorial calendars. It's the stuff that can be planned in advance. And it seems more and more news organizations are beefing up this content: http://prn.to/servicejourno

****************

PROFNET is an exclusive service of PR Newswire.

To contact ProfNet: [email protected] or 800-776-3638, ext. 1

SOURCE ProfNet

Related Links

http://www.profnet.com


GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ranir, a global leader in private label and branded consumer oral care products, has hired Kimberly Babusik as vice president of global research & development. In this role, Babusik will oversee and direct all development and innovation efforts for Ranir.

Babusik brings more than 20 years of senior product development skills, technical strategy and complex project management experience, having held leadership positions at several billion dollar plus companies in the consumer and healthcare products industries. Most recently, she served as vice president of customer technical support at Nice-Pak Products, Inc., a global leader in the manufacturing of pre-moistened wipes. In this position, she led technical sales and support efforts for private label and branded wipes.

"It's an exciting time to be joining the Ranir team as the company continues to advance and rapidly grow across all categories," said Babusik. "I'm grateful for this opportunity and I look forward to supporting the company's mission to deliver millions of affordable, healthy smiles every day."

Babusik also spent time at Energizer Holdings, Inc. (formerly Playtex Products), where she served as director of feminine care R&D and was focused on managing all activities related to product development and brand maintenance.

"Kimberly's knowledge, skills and experience will be invaluable assets to Ranir as we continue to seek opportunities for innovation and growth," said Greg McCormick, SVP of Global Innovation and Technology at Ranir. "I'm confident our team and customers alike will benefit from her ability to develop strategy, lead process and deliver world-class results."

Babusik obtained her bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia.

About Ranir

Ranir is a leading global manufacturer of store brand private label consumer oral care products, including power and manual toothbrushes, teeth whiteners, dental floss and flossers. Founded in 1979, Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Ranir serves retail customers globally and is committed to delivering affordable, healthy smiles in millions of households every day. Its products, which include some of the world's largest oral care store brands, can be found at major retailers in more than 40 countries. The consumer and customer insight driven research and development-focused company also owns, manufactures and markets the Plackers and REMBRANDT brands and proudly employs more than 750 associates worldwide. For more information, visit www.ranir.com.

SOURCE Ranir

Related Links

https://www.ranir.com


NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ricoh USA, Inc. today announced its latest investment in enhanced customer experiences, its Customer Experience Center (CEC) in New York City. Recently honored as a 2017 Experience Design & Technology Award recipient by Event Marketer, the CEC features Ricoh's broad portfolio, collaborative technologies and deep expertise. The CEC, designed to help customers and dealers experience Ricoh's most innovative offerings first-hand, grants visitors access to technologies that empower digital workplaces: workflow automation, production printing, audiovisual communication, camera imaging, and collaboration  which will include the IBM Watson-powered RICOH Intelligent Workplace Solution. The CEC also makes available Ricoh's services offerings, demonstrating how workflows and solutions are expertly implemented and integrated by Ricoh team members.

"The CEC itself is a service offering in a way. We want it to be the physical avatar of our commitment to customer-centric, services-led business, enabling our customers and dealers to capitalize on our people, processes and technology," said Glenn Laverty, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Ricoh Americas and President & CEO, Ricoh Canada. "We want clients who may not instinctively associate certain technologies with the Ricoh brand to experience them first-hand and to gain actionable insights that can help them uncover new ways to help improve their business with our help. We believe putting the customer at the center of it all is the best way to design and implement solutions and services, so we have invested heavily in making that happen."

The CEC has been created for Ricoh direct customers as well as customers of its Ricoh Family Group of dealers  Ricoh, Savin and Lanier. Each experience can be unique and customized based on their interest or industry. Ricoh dealers are able to customize with their logos, videos and other content to communicate key differentiators to their customers. Industry-leading Event Marketer Magazine recently announced the New York CEC as a winner of the Gold Award as part of its 2017 Experience Design & Technology Awards. The world's largest program of its type, these awards celebrate the best-designed live experiences and the most powerful "wired" engagements delivered by brands and partners worldwide.

"Ricoh is committed to being the number one dealer provider in the industry, and the new CEC is the most recent example of that commitment," said Jim Coriddi, Vice President, Dealer Division, Ricoh USA, Inc. "It's one thing to explain your value proposition to a potential customer. Ricoh has taken it to the next level, investing in a facility that enables dealers to show customers their value within a real-world setting  as if it is their own branded showroom  and it's a game changer."

The CEC is the latest in a long series of investments and big shifts in the enterprise services realm from Ricoh. It is home to a diverse set of rooms that reflect a variety of potential enterprise environments, from a boardroom to a huddle room to a production print space, for both customers and dealers to help them to grow their businesses. As part of Ricoh's commitment to serve a wide variety of customers, the space also includes a lecture hall/learning space and a "tunnel" that leverages networked projectors that allow users to interact with images projected on the walls, collaborating in real time. Visitors can see and interact with each of these realistic enterprise environments and others, all of which experts can personally design to reflect potential or planned implementations.

The NYC CEC is one of five facilities across the country that will be created or updated, enabling customers to experience Ricoh's innovative technologies for various industries as well as in the production environment. The new CEC adds to Ricoh's existing Customer Experience Center and Executive Briefing Center in Boulder, Colorado and others around the world specifically designed for experts within Ricoh's Commercial & Industrial Printing (CIP) Group to collaborate alongside our production customers  commercial printers, book publishers, print service providers and enterprises of all sizes  to help solve their printing and workflow challenges.

For more information on Ricoh's offerings, visit https://www.ricoh-usa.com or follow the company's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

| About Ricoh |

Ricoh is empowering digital workplaces using innovative technologies and services enabling individuals to work smarter. For more than 80 years, Ricoh has been driving innovation and is a leading provider of document management solutions, IT services, commercial and industrial printing, digital cameras, and industrial systems.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in approximately 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ended March 2017, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 2,028 billion yen (approx. 18.2 billion USD).

For further information, please visit http://www.ricoh.com

 2017 Ricoh USA, Inc. All rights reserved. All referenced product names are

the trademarks of their respective companies.

Contact:

John Greco

Ricoh USA, Inc.

(973) 882-2023

[email protected]

Tracey Sheehy

Breakaway Communications for Ricoh

(908) 705-4596

[email protected]

SOURCE Ricoh USA, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.ricoh-usa.com


"Our diversified fuels portfolio allows us to be a game changer in the industry," said Paula-Gold Williams, CPS Energy's President & CEO. "It has given us the flexibility to add more than 1,500 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy, expand our Demand Response programs and pilot new technologies such as microgrids and battery storage. It also allows us to optimize wind and solar by integrating it with our power generation fleet."

CPS Energy is currently working with UTSA to research new technologies that ultimately help the utility reduce its carbon footprint. As part of a $500,000 agreement with the University, UTSA has been tasked with finding innovative and practical energy solutions to apply locally and improve the quality of life for San Antonio residents.

"We are proud to have the ability to utilize a local resource to help us achieve our goals. UTSA has been a great partner," said Gold-Williams. "For us, the answers to the global issue of Green House Gas Emissions need to come locally with a thoughtful approach. We believe partnering with UTSA aligns us with those goals."

CPS Energy's current renewable portfolio includes 497 MW of solar and 1,059 MW of wind generation. Together, they help avoid about 3.2M tons of CO 2 per year. A key success is the utility's reliability of service during intermittency. By maintaining a well-balanced blended portfolio they hope to maintain a level of affordable energy while moving forward with cleaner, more reliable environmentally friendly solutions.

"We have to become more flexible, thoughtful and innovative in our approach to integrating solutions that lessens our impact on the environment," Gold-Williams added. "We are eager to hear what our community has to say and anxious to find viable solutions that will help us tackle the issue at hand."

Going forward, the utility will collaborate with the City of San Antonio and UTSA as more public meetings are scheduled. The effort allows for grass-roots discussions with residents who are interested in addressing the issue of global warming. CPS Energy says residents have a unique opportunity to help shape the future of San Antonio.

CPS Energy is celebrating its 75th year of City of San Antonio ownership. Established in 1860, we are the nation's largest municipally owned natural gas and electric company, providing safe and affordable service to 804,000 electric and 343,000 natural gas customers in Greater San Antonio. With our AA+ credit rating, one of the best in the industry, we offer best in class reliability and some of the lowest rates among the top 10 largest U.S. cities. We recognize our role as a community partner and are continuously focused on job creation, economic development and educational investment. Powered by our people, our investment in the community is demonstrated through our employees' generosity in giving $1.1 million to United Way. We are also committed to investing in clean energy. CPS Energy is among the top public power wind energy buyers in the nation and number one in Texas for solar generation. For more information, visit newsroom.cpsenergy.com

SOURCE CPS Energy

Related Links

http://www.cpsenergy.com


The text of the letter follows:

Dear Fellow SandRidge Shareholders:

On November 15, 2017, the SandRidge Board of Directors and management team announced the acquisition of Bonanza Creek Energy. This strategic opportunity is immediately accretive and positions us to deliver additional long-term shareholder value by adding high-return and development-ready projects to our Niobrara position. After a detailed and thorough assessment of Bonanza Creek, we determined this acquisition to be in the best long-term interests of our shareholders.

BONANZA CREEK IS A HIGHLY STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY

The acquisition of Bonanza Creek provides immediate cash flow and high-return development opportunities that allow us to continue generating strong risk-adjusted returns while we delineate our emerging assets.

Our existing assets in the Mid-Continent and Niobrara are in different stages of the development cycle:

Our mature Mississippi Lime assets in the Mid-continent generate significant production and material free cash flow, which help fund investment and value creation in our emerging assets. However, they are declining assets that do not offer meaningful opportunities for additional development and oil and cash flow growth.

Our North Park Basin Niobrara assets are in the delineation phase of the development cycle and require significant investment over the next several years, including the construction of midstream and pipeline takeaway infrastructure, before full field development can be realized.

Our NW STACK assets in the Mid-continent are also in the early phases of the development cycle and are being efficiently delineated under a development agreement that provides an initial $100 million of capital from our financial partner.

This current combination of mature Mississippi Lime assets and emerging North Park and NW STACK assets, in the absence of significant development-ready inventory, results in a higher risk profile. The expansion of our Niobrara position to include Bonanza Creek's DJ Basin assets considerably improves our risk profile by:

Adding 30-50% rate of return, development-ready inventory within a well-known, highly delineated area

Adding an estimated 970 total drilling locations close to existing infrastructure in a well-delineated play

Adding an estimated 230 proved locations, a 92% increase over SandRidge's preliminary year end 2017 PUD inventory

Increasing Niobrara production to 25% of total production, from 4%

Reducing Mississippi Lime production to less than 60% of the Company's total production, from 80%

These assets will allow us to accelerate returns and grow cash flow while our emerging assets progress to the development phase.

Significantly Strengthens Our Financial Profile

The acquisition results in meaningful benefits compared to the Company's standalone plans:

15% accretion to cash flow per share in 2018

4% accretion to net asset value per share in 2018 while significantly reducing the Company's risk profile

21% improvement in 2018 EBITDA margin per BOE

At least $20 million in annual G&A savings

in annual G&A savings An increase to 41% oil production in 2018, from 35%

A strong balance sheet, which remains at or below 1.9x leverage over the next three years

Proved reserves support a new $700 million borrowing base on more favorable terms

borrowing base on more favorable terms Greater than $300 million of liquidity at closing

Strong Balance Sheet with Enhanced Liquidity from New $700 Million Credit Facility

To effect the transaction, we chose to use a measured balance of cash and equity and weighed increasing accretion from funding with cash against pro forma leverage and liquidity. The balance we chose of approximately 53% cash and 47% equity results in significant accretion while maintaining a prudent level of leverage which remains at or below 1.9x over the next three years.

Following the transaction, we expect greater than $300 million of liquidity at closing through a new reserve based loan with an initial borrowing base of $700 million on more favorable terms. To support the new credit facility, our current agent bank has delivered a highly confident letter to the Company supporting these terms. The increased borrowing base of $700 million versus the expected borrowing base of $618 million provides enhanced liquidity at closing and indicates the strength of the combined company's proved reserves.

Operational, Technical and Financial Synergies

The acquisition is expected to generate meaningful operational, technical and financial synergies. Upon closing, we will immediately take the steps necessary to achieve at least $20 million in annual G&A savings and continue to focus on reducing our cost structure. We also expect to capture additional cost savings through operational efficiencies such as:

Sharing drilling rig and stimulation crews

Utilizing dedicated vendor services

Achieving flexibility in scheduling drilling and completion activities

Remotely monitoring and operating our assets using our centralized operations center

Realizing efficiencies of scale in the procurement of materials

We also expect to benefit by leveraging the expertise of our combined operational teams to drive improvement in drill-site selection, drilling and completion techniques, well bore design and regulatory and stakeholder relationships across the Niobrara play.

Compelling Acquisition Value

In addition to delivering immediate accretion to cash flow per share and net asset value per share, the transaction is attractively valued. As highlighted in the table below, the $36.00 per share acquisition price is well within the per share valuation ranges implied by Bonanza Creek's net asset value, historical trading range since emerging from bankruptcy and comparable company EBITDA and production multiples. These multiples compare favorably to recently announced acquisitions in the DJ Basin.



Bonanza Creek

Valuation Ranges Implied Value per Share Range

for Bonanza Creek Historical Trading Range Since Emergence from Bankruptcy $497 million - $812 million $24.00 - $39.20 Aggregate Value to 2018 Consensus EBITDA Estimates 4.7x - 6.0x $31.10 - $39.70 Aggregate Value to Current Production ($/Boepd) $45,000 - $60,000 $34.34 - $45.78 Net Asset Value $682 million - $804 million $32.91 - $38.79

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

A vocal minority of shareholders have attempted to criticize the acquisition by distorting the facts and misleading the investing public. Their assertions are false and reckless and we believe it is imperative to set the record straight for our investors.

Strategy  Myth: The Bonanza Creek acquisition is not consistent with SandRidge's stated strategy.  Fact: The Bonanza Creek acquisition is highly strategic and fits within our stated strategy, which clearly includes opportunistic acquisitions. We articulated our key strategies, including "pursuing opportunistic acquisitions"in Item 1 of our 2017 Annual Report. Transaction Premium  Myth: SandRidge is paying a 75% premium.  Fact: The 75% premium calculation is misleading and based on a $421 million deeply discounted valuation in connection with a rights offering, which in no way reflects the public market valuation immediately prior to the transaction.  Fact: The transaction actually represents a 17.4% premium to Bonanza Creek's closing price as of November 14, which is easily warranted given the strategic fit of the assets and the $20 million of annual G&A savings and operational synergies we have identified.  Fact: The transaction represents only an 8% premium to the equity valuation prepared in connection with Bonanza Creek's restructuring in early 2017, which had a mid-point of $690 million and relied on lower commodity price and total production assumptions than used in our valuation of Bonanza Creek. Rights Plan  Myth: This rights plan is designed to prevent large shareholders from campaigning against the Bonanza Creek transaction.  Fact: The rights plan provides no such restriction. It is designed to protect the rights of all SandRidge shareholders, enabling them to fully review the merits of the proposed acquisition of Bonanza Creek and vote on the transaction. It also protects all of our shareholders from anyone gaining control of SandRidge without payment of a control premium. Importantly, the rights plan expires after one year unless terminated earlier by our shareholders at next year's annual meeting. Board of Directors  Myth: The Board is entrenched.  Fact: Our independent directors have been in office for just over one year and were vetted and approved by the Company's creditors in connection with its restructuring in 2016.  Fact: These same independent directors were reelected at our most recent annual meeting by SandRidge shareholdersmost of whom were prior creditorswith greater than 97% of the shares voting in favor. All Board members are subject to election by the shareholders annually.  Fact: SandRidge Board members have a strong track record in the energy and private equity space, with professional experience ranging from 20-40 years per Board member. All directors have public company experience.

COMMITTED TO SHAREHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

As shareholders, you have an important decision to make regarding the Bonanza Creek acquisition. We urge you to make this decision only after careful analysis of all of the facts. The preliminary proxy statement, investor presentation and other materials detailing the acquisition are being made available at www.sandridgeandbonanza.com, and we urge you to review these materials. After fully considering the rationale for the Bonanza Creek transaction and the detailed analysis that supports the Board's decision to recommend it to shareholders, we are confident that you will agree that this transaction is immediately accretive and in the best long-term interests of SandRidge and all of its shareholders.

In closing, we look forward to continuing to engage in constructive dialogue with shareholders and to answering your questions, which you can submit to our Investor Relations team at [email protected] or by calling 405-429-5515.

Thank you, and have a wonderful holiday season,

John V. Genova James D. Bennett Chairman of the Board President and Chief Executive Officer

About SandRidge Energy, Inc.

SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) is an oil and natural gas exploration and production company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with its principal focus on developing high-return, growth-oriented projects in the U.S. Mid-Continent and Niobrara Shale.

Important Information for Investors and Shareholders

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval. In connection with the proposed merger, SandRidge Energy, Inc. ("SandRidge") will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") a registration statement on Form S-4, which will include a preliminary prospectus of SandRidge and a preliminary joint proxy statement of Bonanza Creek Energy, Inc. ("Bonanza Creek") and SandRidge. SandRidge and Bonanza Creek also plan to file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed merger. After the registration statement has been declared effective by the SEC, a definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to the shareholders of Bonanza Creek and the shareholders of SandRidge. SHAREHOLDERS OF BONANZA CREEK AND SANDRIDGE ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED MERGER THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED MERGER. Investors will be able to obtain free copies of the joint proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about SandRidge and Bonanza Creek, once such documents are filed with the SEC, through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by SandRidge will be available free of charge on SandRidge's internet website at www.sandridgeenergy.com under the tab "Investor Relations" and then under the tab "SEC Filings" or by contacting SandRidge's Investor Relations Department at (405) 429-5515. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Bonanza Creek will be available free of charge on Bonanza Creek's internet website at www.bonanzacrk.com under the tab "For Investors" and then under the tab "SEC Filings" or by contacting Bonanza Creek's Investor Relations Department at (720) 440-6136.

Details regarding valuation estimates and projections of future results can be found in the Company's registration statement filed today with the SEC on Form S-4. The calculations presented in this letter give effect to the full $20 million in additional annual G&A cost savings, which the Company believes are reasonably achievable.

Participants in the Solicitation

Bonanza Creek, SandRidge, their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies in respect of the proposed transaction. Information about the directors and executive officers of Bonanza Creek is set forth in Bonanza Creek's public filings with the SEC, including its Current Reports on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 28, 2017, June 12, 2017 and August 4, 2017 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ending September 30, 2017, filed with the SEC on November 9, 2017. Information about the directors and executive officers of SandRidge is set forth in SandRidge's public filings with the SEC, including its definitive proxy statement on Form DEF 14A filed with the SEC on April 28, 2017 and its Current Reports on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on June 28, 2017 and August 1, 2017. Other information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitation and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in the joint proxy statement/prospectus of SandRidge and Bonanza Creek, white proxy cards and other relevant materials filed with the SEC. Free copies of these documents can be obtained as described in the preceding paragraph.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This communication may contain certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as "may," "will," "could," "should," "predict," "potential," "pursue," "outlook," "continue," "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," "target," "forecast," and other words and terms of similar meaning. For example, statements regarding future results regarding the benefits of the transaction, closing of the proposed merger, and future financial results and operational plans are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the companies' control, which could cause actual benefits, results, effects and timing to differ materially from the results predicted or implied by the statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the failure to receive requisite shareholder approval, satisfy closing conditions or obtain regulatory approvals; uncertainties as to the timing of the closing; changes to business relationships, competitive responses, the inability to achieve anticipated synergies, unexpected costs, charges, expenses or difficulties, the outcome of any litigation and the inability to retain key personnel, each related to the proposed merger; the uncertainty of financial performance following completion of the proposed merger; and any changes in general economic or industry specific conditions. SandRidge cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. Additional information concerning these and other risk factors is contained in SandRidge's and Bonanza Creek's public filings with the SEC, which are available at the SEC's website, http://www.sec.gov. Each forward looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement, and SandRidge undertakes no obligation to publicly update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof.

CONTACT:

Justin M. Lewellen

Director of Investor Relations

SandRidge Energy, Inc.

123 Robert S. Kerr Avenue

Oklahoma City, OK 73102

+1 (405) 429-5515



David A Kimmel

Director of Communications

SandRidge Energy, Inc.

123 Robert S. Kerr Ave.

Oklahoma City, OK 73102

+1 (405) 429-5599



MacKenzie Partners, Inc.

Toll-free: 800-322-2885.

Collect: +1 (212) 929-5500

Attn: Dan Burch / Paul Schulman

Media Contact:

SVC

Bryan Locke, +1 (312) 895-4700, [email protected]

Kelly Kimberly, +1 (832) 680-5120, [email protected]

SOURCE SandRidge Energy, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.sandridgeenergy.com


"Tomorrow's News," a new PSA created with BBDO New York, follows the success of last year's video "Evan," which has received over 150 million views and helped reframe the conversation on gun violence prevention. As with "Evan", the "Tomorrow's News" PSA builds on signs exhibited by individuals who may hurt themselves or others that are often missed or not acted upon. The film shows a newscast covering a school shooting the day before it actually takes place to illustrate that. We can learn to "Know the Signs" and take action today to prevent gun violence tomorrow. BBDO, who received over 60 esteemed awards for "Evan"  including one of the top ads of 2016, donated all services and creative teams to make "Tomorrow's News" for SHP. View the PSA here .

"It's easy to know the right thing to do after it's too late to do anything. In this PSA, we illustrate that when it comes to gun violence prevention, the stakes are too high to let that continue to be the case. We hope this moves people to support Sandy Hook Promise in expanding its Know the Signs programs," said Greg Hahn, Chief Creative Officer of BBDO New York.

"Tomorrow's News" continues the conversation about the importance of knowing the signs of someone at risk and taking action. In this video, viewers' perspective of a mass shooting will be upended as they see how easy it is to miss the signs or grapple with what to do when the signs are there," said Mark Barden, Managing Director and co-founder of Sandy Hook Promise, and father of Daniel, who was 7-years old when killed in the Sandy Hook Tragedy. "The work of Sandy Hook Promise focuses on preventing gun violence before it starts. "Tomorrow's News" is a powerful reminder that everyone can prevent a tragedy when they know the signs."



"The Dreaming Kind", written and sung by nine-time Grammy award winner Sheryl Crow for Sandy Hook Promise, is a song about tragedy turned to transformation and hope. It speaks to the pain our country has endured as tragedies are "getting hard to watch," yet represents the voice of the families who founded and lead Sandy Hook Promise as well as supporters nationwide by saying:

"I'm giving it all I got; there'll be no more wasting precious time; giving it all I got; and nothing's ever going to change my mind."

"The Dreaming Kind" is available as a name-your-price download on SherylCrow.bandcamp.com with a minimum contribution of .99 cents, with download proceeds going to Sandy Hook Promise. Contributions greater than .99 cents are of course accepted and appreciated.

The video for "The Dreaming Kind" was filmed on location in Nashville and directed by Gus Black. The elegant and understated black and white film features Crow and her niece. The elegiac yet hopeful message reminds the viewer to "Never Forget  December 14, 2012." Watch the video here.

"The tragedy in Newtown 5 years ago and the countless lives lost in mass shootings since have weighed heavily on my heart. I felt compelled to write "The Dreaming Kind" for the incredible people at Sandy Hook Promise (SHP) who work so hard every day to combat gun violence. The extraordinary work this organization does to educate and protect our nation from further bloodshed gives me hope for a better tomorrow. I hope this song will inspire the same feeling in those who hear it," said Sheryl Crow.

"We are grateful to Sheryl for her extraordinary generosity. Every time I listen to the song, it immediately brings me to tears. Not only does it perfectly capture the emotion of our loss and everyday losses in our country, but I believe it epitomizes everything we do at Sandy Hook Promise to move forward and create real change. We know it will resonate with people everywhere and drive people to learn more about Sandy Hook Promise's gun violence prevention programs and the positive impact they are having," said Nicole Hockley, Managing Director and co-founder of Sandy Hook Promise, and mother of Dylan, who was 6-years old when he was killed in the Sandy Hook tragedy. "The funding from the song's downloads will help us accelerate training, which we deliver at no cost, to millions of youth and adults nationwide."

On Thursday, December 14th, Sandy Hook Promise also invites everyone to participate in a "moment of silence" via Facebook Live to commemorate the 5-year remembrance and those lost in the Sandy Hook Shooting.

In three years, SHP has trained over 2,500,000 million youth and adults across all 50 states with its evidenced-based, no cost Know The Signs violence prevention programs. The programs focus on how to recognize the signs of at-risk behaviors and take action to intervene BEFORE individuals turn violent and hurt themselves or others.

SHP's four Know The Signs violence prevention programs  which include Start With Hello, Say Something, Signs of Suicide and Safety Assessment & Intervention - are offered free to schools and youth organizations across the country. SHP's programs have helped stop multiple school shootings, suicides and other acts of violence, as well as reduced incidences of bullying and helped many young people get the mental health services they need.

About Sheryl Crow: A nine-time GRAMMY AWARD recipient, Sheryl Crow is an American music icon. Her eight studio albums have sold 35 million copies worldwide; seven of them charted in the Top 10 and five were certified for Multi-Platinum sales. In addition to such No. 1 hits as "All I Wanna Do," "Soak Up the Sun" and "The First Cut Is the Deepest," Crow has lofted 40 singles into the Billboard Hot 100, Adult Top 40, Adult Contemporary, Mainstream Top 40 and Hot Country Songs charts, with more No. 1 singles in the Triple A listings than any other female artist. Many artists have collaborated with her on special projects, including the Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Smokey Robinson and Tony Bennett. She is known as well for her passionate support of multiple charities, including City Of Hope, Stand Up To Cancer, The World Food Program, Feeding America, ADOPT A CLASSROOM, the TJ Martell Foundation, the Elton John AIDS Foundation, MusiCares, the Special Olympics, STOMP Out Bullying and many other worthy causes. For more information, visit SherylCrow.com.

About BBDO: BBDO's mantra is "The Work. The Work. The Work." Every day, BBDO people in 289 offices in 81 countries work day by day, job by job and client by client to create and deliver the world's most compelling commercial content. For ten years in a row, BBDO has been the most creative agency network in the world in The Gunn Report. More recently, BBDO was ranked the most awarded agency

network across all marketing communications in The Directory Big Won for the 12th time in the 13 years since this ranking was first published. In addition, BBDO has been named Network of the Year at Cannes six times and has been chosen Agency of the Year multiple times by every leading industry trade publication.

BBDO is part of Omnicom Group Inc. (www.omnicomgroup.com), a leading global marketing and corporate communications company.

About Sandy Hook Promise: Sandy Hook Promise (SHP) is a national, nonprofit organization based in Newtown, Connecticut. SHP is led by several family members whose loved ones were killed in the tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012. SHP's mission is to prevent gun violence (and other forms of violence and victimization) BEFORE it happens by educating and mobilizing youth and adults to identify, intervene and get help for at-risk individuals. SHP is a moderate, above-the-politics organization that supports sensible program and policy solutions that address the "human-side" of gun violence by preventing individuals from ever getting to the point of picking up a firearm to hurt themselves or others. Our words, actions and impact nationwide are intended to honor all victims of gun violence by turning our tragedy into a moment of transformation.

SOURCE Sandy Hook Promise

Related Links

http://www.sandyhookpromise.org


New govt likely in first week of January

Vote counting of the House of Representatives (HoR) and Provincial Assembly (PA) elections may be nearing conclusion, but it will take another month to form a new government, according to officials.
BOSTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Santander Holdings USA, Inc. (the "Company") announced today that it is commencing a private offering of senior unsecured notes (the "Notes") in a transaction exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), subject to market and other conditions. If the offering is consummated, the Company expects to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes. There can be no assurance that the issuance and sale of the Notes will be consummated.

The Notes will be offered and sold only to qualified institutional buyers in the United States pursuant to Rule 144A and outside the United States pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act. The Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act or any state securities law and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state laws.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase the Notes or any other securities and does not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements about our expectations, beliefs, plans, or future events are not historical facts and may be forward-looking. Such statements include, but are not limited to, the Company's statements regarding the Notes offering. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as "anticipates," "believes," "can," "could," "may," "predicts," "potential," "should," "will," "looking forward," "would," 'hopes," "assumes," "estimates," "plans," "projects," "continuing," "ongoing," "expects," "intends," and similar words or phrases. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date on which the statements are made, these statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are subject to change based on various important factors and assumptions, some of which are beyond our control. For additional discussion of these risks, refer to the section entitled "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our Annual Report on Form 10-K we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ from those reflected in forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the risks and uncertainties described in the Company's filings with the SEC. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company to predict all risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements contained in this communication. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking information included herein, the inclusion of such information should not be regarded as a representation by the Company or any other person that the Company's expectations, objectives or plans will be achieved in the timeframe anticipated or at all. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Any forward-looking statements only speak as of the date of this document, and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking information or statements, whether written or oral, to reflect any change, except as required by law. All forward-looking statements attributable to us are expressly qualified by these cautionary statements.

Santander Holdings USA, Inc. (SHUSA) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Madrid-based Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE: SAN) (Santander), one of the most respected banking groups in the world with more than 125 million customers in the U.S., Europe and Latin America. As the intermediate holding company for Santander's U.S. businesses, SHUSA includes six financial companies with more than 17,500 employees, 5.2 million customers and assets of over $131.9 billion. These include Santander Bank, N.A., one of the country's largest retail and commercial banks by deposits; Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SC), an auto finance and consumer lending company; Banco Santander International of Miami; Banco Santander Puerto Rico; Santander Securities LLC of Boston; and Santander Investment Securities Inc. of New York.

FINANCIAL CONTACT:

Andrew Withers

617.757.3524

[email protected]

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Ann Davis

617.757.5891

[email protected]

Nancy Orlando

617.757.5765

[email protected]

SOURCE Santander Holdings USA, Inc.
RUEIL-MALMAISON, France, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Schneider Electric, the leader in digital transformation of energy management and automation, will join other sustainability leaders to support and accelerate the common fight against climate change at the One Planet Summit. Two years to the day after the adoption of the Paris Agreement, and following COP23, President of France Emmanuel Macron is organizing the milestone summit to convene those involved in public and private finance to deliver ambitious and achievable actions that will contribute to limiting global warming and its impact.

Jean-Pascal Tricoire, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Schneider Electric said: "Prosperity and energy are intertwined. For Schneider Electric, contributing to the process of achieving carbon neutrality is an ambitious and productive challenge that deserves the joint commitment of the public and private sectors. Schneider Electric is aligning its strategy and its activity with this essential outlook of the 21st century."

To mark the occasion of the One Planet Summit, Schneider Electric is accelerating its ambition and commitments for climate that supports the company's objectives to reduce its plants and sites carbon emission and to become carbon neutral by 2030 in a coherent industry ecosystem encompassing both suppliers and clients. The pledge is based around three complementary initiatives:

Before 2020, outline a specific trajectory based on the assumption that Earth will breach the 2C warming limit by 2050 and validate it through the Science-Based Targets initiative, in which Schneider Electric has been involved for one year, and increase the impact of Schneider Electric's internal carbon price. Schneider Electric has already set a goal of cutting CO2 emissions by more than 50% in absolute value by 2050 compared to 2015. Achieve for 2030, and add to, the 10 commitments presented at COP21 in 2015 in order to build carbon neutrality within Schneider Electric's ecosystem and specifically quantify the carbon impact of 100% of its major customer projects (see above). Starting today take action and, to ensure full transparency, monitor whether Schneider Electric has achieved its targets through the quarterly publication of its Planet & Society barometer and in connection with major open coalitions. These commitments are accelerating the results already obtained and disseminated through Schneider Electric's four barometers since 2008; for example, its energy intensity was cut by 42% between 2005 and 2017, and the carbon intensity of its logistics was reduced by 35% between 2012 and 2017.

The One Planet Summit will also see Tricoire and other Schneider Electric executives collaborate with other sustainability leaders on how to deliver tangible actions on the most pressing global sustainability challenges across a series of events and roundtables (see above). Schneider Electric will also announce several new commitments that will maintain the company's leading position at the forefront of sustainability efforts including:

RE100: Schneider Electric has joined RE100, the global collaborative initiative, led by The Climate Group, announcing its commitment to 100% renewable electricity use by 2030;

Schneider Electric has joined RE100, the global collaborative initiative, led by The Climate Group, announcing its commitment to 100% renewable electricity use by 2030; EP100 : By joining the EP100 initiative, also led by The Climate Group, Schneider Electric has committed to double its energy productivity against a 2005 baseline, setting an ambitious target to doubling the economic output from every unit of energy consumed;

: By joining the EP100 initiative, also led by The Climate Group, Schneider Electric has committed to double its energy productivity against a 2005 baseline, setting an ambitious target to doubling the economic output from every unit of energy consumed; Livelihoods Carbon Fund: Together with Credit Agricole, Danone, Firmenich, Hermes, Michelin, SAP, and Voyageurs du Monde, Schneider Electric has launched a new impact investment fund, with a target of 100 million euros . The fund aims to improve the lives of 2 million people and avoid the emission of up to 25 million tons of CO2 over a 20-year span.

As a global leader at the crossroads of the energy transition and the digital transition, Schneider Electric is focusing on intelligent control, active distribution management and energy consumption. Schneider Electric is committed to bringing solutions to market that will increase the flexibility of both industrial production and all energy fields and applications.

Schneider Electric's aim is to improve usage comfort and safety while sharply cutting  at the lowest cost  energy consumption and carbon emissions in keeping with the new landscape of decentralized, carbon-free and digitalized energy production. Because access to energy is a fundamental human right, Schneider Electric also intends to innovate to help the one billion people on the planet who do not have access to energy and the 10% of inhabitants facing energy insecurity, by developing affordable and reliable low-carbon solutions.

Schneider Electric agenda at the One Planet Summit and its side-events

Day Time What Where Dec. 10 01:00pm  05:00pm Conference  Access to climate finance: the priority proposals of non-state actors w/ Gilles Vermot-Desroches, SVP Sustainability Climate Chance 10 rue des Prairies 75020 Paris France Dec. 11 08:00am  09:00am Media Conference  French Business Climate Pledge w/ Jean Pascal Tricoire, Chairman & CEO MEDEF 55 avenue Bosquet 75007 Paris France 09:30am  10:45am Roundtable  Solving the Urban Equation w/ Jean Pascal Tricoire, Chairman & CEO MEDEF 55 avenue Bosquet 75007 Paris France 10.45am  12:00pm Roundtable  Create a dynamic solutions w/ Gilles Vermot-Desroches, SVP Sustainability MEDEF 55 avenue Bosquet 75007 Paris France 02.30pm  07.00pm Conference #TechForPlanet (by NUMA)  Scale Solutions for Climate w/ Emmanuel Lagarrigue, Chief Strategy Officer Station F 5 parvis Alan Turing 75013 Paris France 04.50pm  05.30pm Roundtable  Renewable solutions connected to the electricity grid: what evolutions, what financing, what obstacles, how to change scale to stay below the 2  C threshold? w/ Gilles Vermot-Desroches, SVP Sustainability Maison de l'UNESCO 125 Avenue de Suffren 75007 Paris France 07.00pm  08.30pm Launch Party  Launch of a new Livelihoods Carbon Investment Fund w/ Gilles Vermot-Desroches, SVP Sustainability Hermes 11 Rue Montgolfier, 93500 Pantin France

Updates announced to 2015 commitments and progress achieved to date



2015 - 2030 commitments Completion 20152017

(expected projection) 1 Quantify the carbon impact of 100% of its major customer projects (20152017) 100% 2 Design 100% of new products and services in line with Schneider Electric ecoDesign Way and generate 75% of product revenue with Green Premium (20152017) ecoDesign Way: 100% Green Premium: 75% 3 Avoid 120,000 tones of CO 2 emissions by implementing "end-of-life" product services in compliance with the principles of the circular economy (20152017) + 150,000t of CO 2 4 Facilitate access to lighting and communications for 50 million people at the bottom of the pyramid within 10 years through low-carbon solutions (20152025) 5 million households 5 Build micro-grids to improve flexible usage and reduce impacts In progress 6 Offer SF6 gas alternatives within 5 years (20152020) and no longer use SF6 gas in Schneider Electric products within 10 years (20152025) In progress and ahead of schedule 7 Reduce Schneider Electric's energy intensity by 3.5% annually (2015 and beyond) 10% 8 Cut CO 2 emissions from transportation by 3.5% annually (2015 and beyond) 12% 9 Invest 10 billion in innovation and R&D for sustainable development over the next 10 years (20152025) + 3.5 billion 10 Issue a "climate" obligation to finance low-carbon R&D Issued in October 2015

About Schneider Electric

Schneider Electric is leading the Digital Transformation of Energy Management and Automation in Homes, Buildings, Data Centers, Infrastructure and Industries.

With global presence in over 100 countries, Schneider is the undisputable leader in Power Management  Medium Voltage, Low Voltage and Secure Power, and in Automation Systems. We provide integrated efficiency solutions, combining energy, automation and software.

In our global Ecosystem, we collaborate with the largest Partner, Integrator and Developer Community on our Open Platform to deliver real-time control and operational efficiency.

We believe that great people and partners make Schneider a great company and that our commitment to Innovation, Diversity and Sustainability ensures that Life Is On everywhere, for everyone and at every moment.

www.schneider-electric.com

Discover Life is On

Follow us on:

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Schneider Electric Blog

Hashtags: #Sustainability #LifeIsOn #OnePlanetSummit #MakeOurPlanetGreatAgain

SOURCE Schneider Electric

Related Links

http://www.schneider-electric.com


MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- SecureCircle, a leader in unstructured data security for cloud-first enterprises, today announced the launch of its flagship security product, SecureCircle, which is the first security product designed to meet the challenges of securing and managing unstructured data in a "zero-trust" world. Differing from other Data Security and Access Control solutions, SecureCircle automatically detects and transparently protects data no matter the form it takes throughout its lifecycle.

The company takes a completely different approach to data security than other solutions on the market. Instead of deciding which files or content to protect, SecureCircle protects them all, allowing administrators to select which items to remove. This zero trust approach doesn't require user involvement to keep the data safe and it takes into account the way data is realistically used and shared within organizations. It protects enterprises from both internal and external threats without altering the way users collaborate, share and use files.

"Securing unstructured data has become a major problem for enterprises today," said Jeff Capone, SecureCircle co-founder and CEO. "It accounts for about 80 percent of an enterprise's data and is growing at a fast clip  yet, it's extremely difficult to control. While there are many solutions that can make a few important files "self-destruct," they are only applicable as a second line of defense. Without a perimeter, enterprises need a new solution to protect their vast amount of unstructured data without requiring user adherence and with low IT overhead."

The solution secures files by protecting the content within them, which are only accessible by approved devices. It protects the content within unstructured data files of any format and for use by any application, no matter where it resides -- in the cloud, at home or office, desktop or mobile. Unlike existing technologies such as file encryption, disk encryption, Information Rights Management, Data Loss Prevention, and Cloud Access Security Brokers, SecureCircle provides complete security, reporting, and control for the massive number of unstructured data files within enterprises  ensuring that they are always encrypted, trackable and retractable.

At the center of SecureCircle is a patent-pending Transparent File Encryption solution designed to transparently protect unstructured data in any form. Files stay encrypted  at rest, in transit, or in use  regardless of where the data is stored. Additionally, SecureCircle can automatically protect derivative work, isolate data access to authorized applications, and adaptively protect data based on the source of the file, helping companies meet their data security and compliance requirements.

About SecureCircle

SecureCircle was founded in 2015 to help solve pressing industry challenges in cybersecurity. Its patent-pending Transparent File Encryption solution helps organizations ensure the security, visibility and control of unstructured data from internal and external threats, regardless of format or storage location. Unlike existing technologies, SecureCircle provides a completely transparent solution which is always encrypted, trackable, and retractable, helping organizations to effectively secure data in today's cloud-first environment. SecureCircle helps companies within healthcare, finance, manufacturing, pharma, media, and government organizations meet data security and compliance requirements. Learn more at SecureCircle.com or follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Press Contact:

Brooks Wallace, Hollywood Agency

[email protected]

SOURCE SecureCircle

Related Links

https://www.securecircle.com


WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Sen. Marco Rubio emphasized Wednesday that with the increasing persecution of Christians in the Middle East, complacency with the current situation is not an option for the United States. (Full address: https://youtu.be/j4V-DU5YvOw)

Address of Senator Marco Rubio at the 3rd Archon International Conference on Religious Freedom on the persecution of Christians in the Holy Lands and Middle East. Archbishop Demetrios of America, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in the United States, and Dr. Anthony Limberakis, National Commander for the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle, recognize Senator Marco Rubio for his dedication to religious freedom and his defense of Christians persecuted in the Holy Lands and Middle East at the 3rd Archon International Conference on Religious Freedom. Senator Marco Rubio addresses the 3rd Archon International Conference on Religious Freedom in Washington D.C. focusing on the persecution of Christians in the Holy Lands and Middle East.

"We must move on with a sense of urgency," the Republican senator from Florida, who serves as Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's Human Rights Subcommittee and as Helsinki Commission Commissioner, said in a speech before the Third International Conference on Religious Freedom in Washington. The three-day conference was sponsored by the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

"Will we stand with our persecuted brothers and sisters in the hour of their suffering? I pray the answer is yes," said the senator who received a standing ovation at the conclusion of his speech.

"The issue of international religious freedom is deeply personal to me, and something that I have dedicated much of my time advancing since first joining the Senate," he said, adding that religious freedom is at the center of America's own experiment in self-governance.

Rubio noted that violations of religious freedom occur daily around the globe at the hands of state and non-state actors alike. "No faith and no region are untouched, but it is the persecution of Christians which has reached staggering levels."

He pointed out that in 2015 alone it is estimated that more than 7,000 Christians died for their faith with this figure not including the millions more who were attacked, imprisoned, forcibly displaced or otherwise harmed. While noting that numerically there has been a precipitous decline in the Christian population throughout the Middle East that predates ISIS, Rubio emphasized that this decline will not end with the eventual military defeat of ISIS.

"The full measure of human suffering exacted against these innocent people of faith remains truly incalculable. As it relates to ISIS atrocities, they have rightly been called genocide by the Obama administration and also the Trump administration," Rubio said. "But words alone are hollow unless action follows and we must be moved to action to preserve the very cradle of our faith."

"If the United States fails to take meaningful steps to support these communities, including ensuring their access to humanitarian assistance and resources they need to rebuild, even more of them will be forced to abandon their ancient homeland."

Rubio said he appreciated Vice President Mike Pence's "personal commitment to this issue," noting that the vice president will travel to the region later this month "in part to draw attention to the plight of persecuted Christians and religious minorities across the Middle East."

"As we in the West encounter the bold and unapologetic faith of believers dwelling in lands where their identity as Christians makes them susceptible to displacement, attack, persecution and even death, we can't help but wonder at their courage and steadfastness," Rubio added.

For more information about the conference, visit: http://conference.archons.org.

Contact: Harry Moskos

[email protected]

(865) 223-4543

SOURCE Order of St. Andrew, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
Organizations struggling with the challenges of meeting the European Union's (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2016/679 Article 28 "Processor" directives should utilize this Tool Kit. Data processors (service provides) can also use the Tool Kit proactively to prepare for requests from data controllers (outsourcers), as well as to guide their own information requests to sub-processors.

With the May 25, 2018 deadline for GDPR compliance, stringent new requirements will be imposed on how controllers may appoint and monitor processors. GDPR changes to privacy rules over processors include:

Compliance liability for data protection will now extend to data processors.

Prescriptions for certain matters must be stipulated in contracts or other legal engagements.

Both controller and processor third party vendor management programs may require additional due diligence to meet the new requirements.

This GDPR Privacy Tool Kit was designed by the Shared Assessments Program's Privacy Committee  a leading group of cross-industry third party risk management privacy professionals  as a flexible set of tools and templates that any organization can incorporate into their third party risk management structures and processes.

The Tool Kit:

Provides preliminary guidance for both controllers and processors to effectively evaluate and manage third party data processor risk under the GDPR.

Contains tools, contract provision and examination artifact checklists and templates that can be utilized to evaluate the readiness and maturity of the existing controls against a broad range of GDPR privacy-relevant requirements.

Components can be leveraged by organizations as a standalone privacy assessment of the third party relationship, or be incorporated into the organizations' entire Vendor Risk Management program.

The Shared Assessments' GDPR: Data Processor Privacy Tool Kit is available for free download here.

About the Shared Assessments Program

As the trusted leader in third party risk management, the member-driven Shared Assessments Program has been setting the standard in third party risk assessments since 2005. Shared Assessments Program members work together to build and disseminate best practices resources that give all risk management stakeholders a faster, more rigorous and efficient means of conducting security, privacy and business resiliency control assessments. For more information, please visit http://www.sharedassessments.org.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Jenny Burke, Senior Vice President of Communications & Marketing

O: 505-466-6434

C: 512-576-9356

[email protected]

SOURCE The Santa Fe Group, Shared Assessments Program

Related Links

http://www.sharedassessments.org


NEW YORK, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP, a class action law firm dedicated to representing shareholders nationwide, is investigating a potential breach of fiduciary duty claim involving the board of directors of Helius Medical Technologies, Inc. (OTC: HSDT).

If you are a shareholder of Helius Medical Technologies, Inc. and are interested in obtaining additional information regarding this investigation, free of charge, please visit us at:

http://pjlfirm.com/helius-medical-technologies-inc/

You may also contact Robert H. Lefkowitz, Esq. either via email at [email protected] or by telephone at 212-725-1000. One of our attorneys will personally speak with you about the case at no cost or obligation.

Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP is a law firm exclusively committed to representing shareholders nationwide who are victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty and other types of corporate misconduct. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit http://pjlfirm.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

SOURCE Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP

Related Links

http://www.pjlfirm.com


"This ad campaign is one of the ways we intend to use our significant cash on hand advantage to tell as wide an audience as possible about Shri's inspiring life story and his progressive ideas to make education and healthcare accessible to all," said Thanedar campaign manager Brian Spangle. "We've seen a great response to Shri's message everywhere we've traveled, and we're excited to bring that same progressive message directly to a much wider audience."

The ad will be the first in a series of television ads the campaign plans to release into the New Year.

"The conversations I have every day with people on the campaign trail are really what compelled us to decide that the time was right to make this type of early investment in our message," said Thanedar. "Michiganders want change. They are sick of establishment candidates and establishment politics. They want a Governor who is a strong leader, committed to ending corporate welfare, focused on investing in Michigan's infrastructure and people, and one who will fight to keep the Great Lakes clean and pure."

Thanedar immigrated to the United States in 1979 and became a proud United States citizen in 1988. For the past twenty-five years, Thanedar has run several small service businesses and created hundreds of jobs across the country.

Since announcing his candidacy on June 8, 2017, Thanedar has visited dozens of communities across Michigan including two trips to the Upper Peninsula. His science-based, pragmatic, commonsense approach is well received by voters who are looking for a problem-solver to make Michigan work for people once again.

For a transcript of the ad, click here. To see the full ad, please visit http://www.shri2018.com .

MEDIA CONTACT

Brian Spangle

+1-734-276-0333

[email protected]

SOURCE Shri Thanedar for Governor

Related Links

http://www.shri2018.com


SAN FRANCISCO, December 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Digital economy training company, Simplilearn announced today that it has been named one of the top 2017 IT Training Companies by Training Industry. Simplilearn has received its second award from Training Industry this year.

(Logo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/535442/Simplilearn_Logo.jpg )



As the most trusted source of information within the business of learning, Training Industry provides expert resources and insights that cover only the top tech fields within the training marketplace. Its mission is to continually monitor the marketplace for the best providers and most innovative approaches for training services and technologies. Training Industry chooses companies based on criteria including breadth and quality of IT training content and courses, leadership and innovation in IT training, company size and growth potential, quality and number of clients, awards, recognition and competitive differentiation.

"We are thrilled to be recognized by Training Industry for the second time this year," says Krishna Kumar, Founder and CEO of Simplilearn. "Being acknowledged as one of the Top IT Training Companies further strengthens Simplilearn's position as a leading education provider that has consistently built and delivered the most advanced IT training programs in the industry."

"The companies on this year's Top 20 IT Training Companies List lead the way in providing IT infrastructure, programming and database training," says Ken Taylor, President of Training Industry, Inc. "The companies selected for the 2017 IT Training Companies Top 20 List have adapted their content and courses over time to accommodate learner preferences and desired delivery modalities."

For more information, visit Training Industry's 2017 IT Training Companies.

About Training Industry, Inc.

Training Industry spotlights the latest news, articles, case studies and best practices within the training industry and publishes annual Top 20 and Watch List reports covering many sectors of interest to the corporate training function. Our focus is on helping dedicated businesses and training professionals get the information, insight and tools needed to more effectively manage the business of learning.

About Simplilearn

Simplilearn's mission is to help professionals around the world acquire the skills they need to succeed in today's digital economy. The company provides online training in disciplines such as cyber security, cloud computing, project management, digital marketing, data science and other emerging technologies. Based in San Francisco, California and Bangalore, India, Simplilearn has helped more than 500,000 professionals and companies across 150+ countries get trained, acquire certifications and upskill their employees. Its training courses are designed and updated by renowned industry experts. Simplilearn's blended learning approach combines online classes, instructor-led live virtual classrooms, relevant, applied projects and 24/7 teaching assistance. Leading global training organizations have recognized Simplilearn as an official provider of certification training. The company has been named the 8th most influential education brand in the world by LinkedIn. For more information, visit https://www.simplilearn.com.

SOURCE Simplilearn
DETROIT, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Since 2016, health departments across Southeast Michigan have mounted a strong effort to combat the Hepatitis A outbreak in the region. The outbreak is predominantly impacting Southeast Michigan, which includes Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw and Wayne Counties, and the City of Detroit. This joint release highlights key information and expanded opportunities for hepatitis A vaccination.

Each of the impacted health departments is offering greatly expanded opportunities for hepatitis A vaccination, including evening hours and multiple community locations.

People who prepare food or beverages for others, such as those who work in food service or restaurants are strongly encouraged to get vaccinated. This is a priority because of the potential for spreading illness to large numbers of people rapidly, not necessarily increased risk of becoming ill.

State and local officials are also working to vaccinate healthcare workers, first responders and police departments, to protect the public and prevent illness from impacting critical municipal functions

As communities, families, and friends come together for the holidays, there is an increased risk of exposure to hepatitis A. The best protection for you and your family is the hepatitis A vaccination.

Over 82% of people infected are becoming sick enough to require hospitalization. For this reason, the health officers are urging residents to contact their local health departments if they believe they have been infected.

Hepatitis A Vaccination

The hepatitis A vaccine is very effective at preventing infection. Many people can get the vaccine from their health care provider. While anyone who wants to obtain the vaccine should be vaccinated, state and local health officials are recommending the following high-risk individuals obtain the vaccine:

Persons who are homeless.

Persons who are incarcerated.

Persons who use injection and non-injection illegal drugs.

Persons who work with the high risk populations listed above.

Persons who have close contact, care for, or live with someone who has HAV.

Persons who have sexual activities with someone who has HAV.

Men who have sex with men.

Travelers to countries with high or medium rates of HAV.

Persons with chronic liver disease, such as cirrhosis, hepatitis B, or hepatitis C.

Persons with clotting factor disorders.

People without insurance or who cannot get it elsewhere can get vaccinated through their local health department.

Detroit Health Department

313-876-4000

http://www.detroitmi.gov/health or @DetHealth

Media contact: Tamekia Ashford, 313-400-7107 or [email protected]

Livingston County Health Department

517-546-9850

www.lchd.org or www.facebook.com/LCDPH

Media contact: Chelsea Moxlow, 517-546-9850 or [email protected]

Macomb County Health Department

586-469-5372 (Mount Clemens)

586-465-8537 (Warren)

http://health.macombgov.org/Health-Programs-FamilyHealthServices-ImmunizationClinic or @PublicHealthMacomb

Media contact: William Ridella, 586-469-5510 or [email protected]

Monroe County Health Department

734-240-7800

http://www.co.monroe.mi.us/publichealth or @Monroe-County-Health-Department

Media contact: Kim Comerzan, 734-240-7804 or [email protected]

Oakland County Health Division

248-848-5533 (Nurse on Call)

www.oakgov.com/health or @publichealthOC

Media contact: Leigh-Anne Stafford, 248-858-1410 or [email protected]

St. Clair County Health Department

810-987-5300

www.scchealth.co or @scchdmi

Media contact: Jennifer Michaluk, (810) 987-5300 or [email protected]

Washtenaw County Health Department

734-544-6700

http://publichealth.ewashtenaw.org or @wcpublichealth

Media contact: Susan Cerniglia, 734-544-6759 or [email protected]

Wayne County Health Department

734-727-7101

https://www.waynecounty.com/departments/hvcw/wellness/protect-yourself-from-hepatitis-a.aspx

Media contact: Lisa Croff, 313-657-8630 or [email protected]

The Southeast Michigan Hepatitis A Outbreak

The Southeast Michigan hepatitis A outbreak appears to be spreading from person-to-person and through illicit drug use. Among the eight Southeast Michigan health departments, 551 cases have been confirmed since August 2016, which represents 95% of the total outbreak cases statewide. It can be spread through close contact, such as living with or having sex with someone who has hepatitis A. Hepatitis A is also easily transmitted by consuming food or beverages handled by someone infected with the virus. Infected persons can be contagious for up to two weeks before showing any symptoms. Vaccination and handwashing can prevent the spread of illness.

Hepatitis A is an infection of the liver caused by a virus. Symptoms of infection may include sudden abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, headache, dark urine, and/or vomiting often followed by yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice). Symptoms may appear from 14-50 days after exposure, but average about one month.

To reduce your risk of hepatitis A:

Get the hepatitis A vaccine.

Know the signs and symptoms of the disease.

Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

Do not prepare food if you are sick.

Stay home from work and report illness to your employer.

Learn more about the Southeast Michigan hepatitis A outbreak, including the current number of cases and information for at-risk groups and food service workers, at www.mi.gov/hepatitisaoutbreak.

SOURCE Southeastern Michigan Health Association (SEMHA)

Related Links

http://www.semha.org/semha/index.php


SSL PODS will help enable NASA Explorers Program to study the Sun

PALO ALTO, CA, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - SSL, a business unit of Maxar Technologies (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.) (NYSE: MAXR; TSX: MAXR) and a leading provider of innovative satellites and spacecraft systems, announced today that it has partnered with a team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Michigan (UM) selected by the agency to conduct a Phase A mission study under NASA's Explorers Program. SSL's role in the mission, called the Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment (SunRISE), is to provide a ride beyond geosynchronous orbit (GEO) for a constellation of science-gathering small satellites. SSL will use its Payload Orbital Delivery System (PODS) technology to dispense the small satellites on-orbit as free-flyers.

SSL will provide a ride to space for a proposed SmallSat constellation that will study the Sun. (CNW Group/Maxar Technologies Ltd.)

Mission Principal Investigator Justin Kasper, Associate Professor in the University of Michigan's Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering Department, will lead the SunRISE team that will use the small satellite constellation, operating as a synthetic aperture radio telescope, to address the critical heliophysics problems of how solar energetic particles are accelerated and released into interplanetary space. Heliophysics is the study of how the Sun affects the environment of the Solar System.

"Using the PODS system for our launch gives us the ability to deploy our constellation of small satellites beyond GEO for a fraction of the cost of a dedicated launch, enabling mission implementations that would not have been possible just years ago," said Justin Kasper, mission principal investigator and associate professor, University of Michigan. "We are pleased that SSL is part of our mission study team, bringing the benefits of the commercial satellite industry to scientific research."

"The Payload Orbital Delivery System was developed as an innovative solution for small satellites that need to reach GEO and beyond," said Richard White, president of SSL Government Systems. "It's a privilege to team with JPL and the University of Michigan on a mission that will benefit from our regular cadence of large communications satellite launches that often have room for hosted payloads and small rideshare payloads. The PODS system helps to provide flight opportunities for cost-capped missions that wouldn't otherwise be feasible."

By sharing a ride to space on an SSL-built satellite with PODS, the SunRISE mission benefits from the frequency of commercial launch schedules and a significantly reduced launch cost compared to a dedicated mission. SSL developed PODS in conjunction with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, with the expectation that it will play a key role in enabling cost-effective, high tempo access to space for small payloads on a wide variety of important commercial, government, and scientific missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO).

NASA is also leveraging SSL's commercial capabilities and experience to help reduce cost on a variety of next-generation missions that enable groundbreaking robotics and automation technologies. These include a NASA Discovery Mission to explore the asteroid Psyche, the Restore-L mission to service satellites in LEO, and the Dragonfly program, which will demonstrate robotic satellite assembly on-orbit.

For more information on PODS and access to space, click here.

About SSL

SSL, based in Palo Alto, California, is a leading provider of advanced spacecraft systems, with broad expertise to support commercial and government satellite operators and innovative space missions. The company designs and manufactures spacecraft for services such as direct-to-home television, video content distribution, broadband internet, mobile communications, in-orbit servicing, space exploration, and Earth observation. As a Silicon Valley innovator for 60 years, SSL's advanced product line includes state-of-the-art small satellites, and sophisticated robotics and autonomous solutions for remote operations. SSL is a business unit of Maxar Technologies, a U.S. operating company (NYSE: MAXR; TSX: MAXR). For more information, visit www.sslmda.com.

About Maxar Technologies

Maxar Technologies (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd.) is a leading global provider of advanced space technology solutions for commercial and government markets including satellites, Earth imagery, geospatial data and analytics. As a trusted partner, Maxar Technologies provides unmatched end-to-end advanced systems capabilities and integrated solutions expertise to help our customers anticipate and address their most complex mission critical challenges with confidence. With more than 6,500 employees in 21 locations, the Maxar Technologies portfolio of commercial space brands includes: SSL, MDA, DigitalGlobe, and Radiant Solutions. Every day millions of people rely on Maxar Technologies to communicate, share information and data, and deliver insights that empower a better world. Maxar trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange as MAXR. For more information visit maxar.com.

Contact

Wendy Lewis | SSL Media Contact | 1-650-852-5188 | [email protected]a.com

Marissa Poratto | Maxar Investor Relations | 1-604-331-2044 | [email protected]

Nancy Coleman | Maxar Media Contact | 1-303-684-1674 | [email protected]

SOURCE Maxar Technologies Ltd.

Related Links

www.maxar.com


Newly elected reps reach out to Tingla folk with pledges

The newly-elected representatives of federal parliament and provincial assembly in Solukhumbu district have reached out to the local people of Tingla who boycotted all three levels of electionslocal, federal parliamentary and provincial assembly polls.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Valpak, a leader in local print and digital coupons, is excited to announce that starting later this month consumers across the country could find a $100 check in their Valpak envelope. Consumers can now MAKE easy money looking through their Valpak, in addition to SAVING money with the coupons.

Valpak $100 Instant Win

The $100 checks will be randomly placed in specially marked Valpak envelopes EVERY month in 2018 in all 150 Valpak markets in the United States. No strings attached, just $100 for consumers to use as they wish. The checks are made out to "Cash." No purchase is necessary. In Canada, winners will receive a voucher to exchange for $100.

It's all designed to reward Valpak consumers for opening their Blue Envelope of savings and looking through the offers. Check out these testimonials from past lucky winners of $100 checks. "I treated my family to dinner using the $100 and a Valpak coupon!" said Sharon S. of Houston, Texas.

Valpak celebrates its 50th year in business in 2018. Its $100 Instant Win program isn't new. The company has actually been doing it since 1988, but mostly in select markets. Never has the program been offered in all Valpak markets  all at the same time.

Valpak will not be capturing any personal info from the winners. Also, winners will not be solicited or contacted by Valpak or its advertisers.

About Valpak

Based in St. Petersburg, Florida, Valpak is one of the leading direct marketing companies in the U.S. and Canada. We provide print and digital advertising through a network of 150 local franchises. From mailbox to mobile phone, Valpak brings exciting local business offers and opportunities to millions of consumers. Each month, our well-known Blue Envelope of savings is mailed to nearly 37 million demographically targeted households in 47 states and in three Canadian provinces. Our digital suite of products, including valpak.com, reaches more than 110 million users.

SOURCE Valpak

Related Links

https://www.valpak.com


New for the 2017 Holiday season, Boston Market is serving up a Prime Rib Heat & Serve Meal for 12 that can be picked up in-restaurant between December 15 and January 1. The Prime Rib meal includes a 1/2-pound prime rib, spinach artichoke dip and crackers, green beans, mashed potatoes, gravy, horseradish cream sauce, dinner rolls and two apple pies for $139.99.

"We're always seeking new ways to elevate and expand our menu, especially during the holiday season, in order to provide the perfect meal solutions that our guests need," stated Boston Market Vice President of Marketing, Tim Hartmann. "From Prime Rib Heat & Serve to Holiday Home Delivery, Boston Market is here to make this time of year as simple, special and stress-free as possible. Dinner is always ready at Boston Market."

The full menu of Boston Market holiday dinner options include:

Holiday Heat & Serve : Bring home your favorite fully cooked and chilled complete meals, including Prime Rib, SpiralSliced Ham, Honey-Glazed Ham, Whole Roasted Turkey or Boneless Turkey Breast for four to twelve people starting at $84.99 . Entrees, sides, appetizers and whole pies can also be pre-ordered ahead of time and picked up in-restaurant between December 15 and January 1 (excludes Christmas Day).

Bring home your favorite fully cooked and chilled complete meals, including Prime Rib, SpiralSliced Ham, Honey-Glazed Ham, Whole Roasted Turkey or Boneless Turkey Breast for four to twelve people starting at . Entrees, sides, appetizers and whole pies can also be pre-ordered ahead of time and picked up in-restaurant (excludes Christmas Day). Home Delivery: Choose from five pre-cooked, complete holiday meals on BostonMarket.com and order by December 19 to have it shipped directly to your doorstep by December 20 or December 21 .

Choose from five pre-cooked, complete holiday meals on BostonMarket.com and order by to have it shipped directly to your doorstep by or . A La Carte : Tasked with bringing a side to a celebration, or rounding out a meal? Preorder chilled, fully cooked main dishes, sides or pies and pick up in restaurant between December 15 and January 1 (excludes Christmas Day).

Tasked with bringing a side to a celebration, or rounding out a meal? Preorder chilled, fully cooked main dishes, sides or pies and pick up in restaurant (excludes Christmas Day). Holiday Catering: Company party coming up? In-laws flying in from out of town? Get hot buffet-style dinner starting at $10.49 per person delivered for the whole group, or pick it up for parties big and small.

Company party coming up? In-laws flying in from out of town? Get hot buffet-style dinner starting at per person delivered for the whole group, or pick it up for parties big and small. Christmas Day Menu: Join Boston Market at select locations on Christmas Day for a traditional plated meal including a choice of hand-carved ham topped with a honey glaze, sliced roasted turkey breast or half signature rotisserie chicken served with two sides, a dinner roll and a slice of apple pie for $12.99 . Guests can also pick up select sides on Christmas Day, or a Market Feast for 3 including a hand-carved ham, sliced roasted turkey breast or signature rotisserie chicken with three large sides, dinner rolls and a whole pumpkin pie or apple pie for $34.99 while supplies last.

Boston Market will also be celebrating its 32nd anniversary by surprising and delighting fans all December long as part of its "32 Days of Giving" online sweepstakes. In partnership with Coca-Cola, fans can enter for a chance to win a prize a day through January 1, 2018, including Boston Market gift cards, Coca-Cola swag, movie tickets and even a $2,500 customizable travel certificate with two roundtrip airline tickets. Guests are encouraged to enter daily throughout the month of December at www.bostonmarket.com/32-days-of-giving and all prizes will be fulfilled 8-10 weeks after the promotion's conclusion.

For additional information on Boston Market Holiday dinner meal options, to view Christmas hours for specific locations or place orders for heat & serve, home delivery, hot & ready catering and a la carte varieties, visit BostonMarket.com. Follow us @BostonMarket (#holidayexperts).

*No purchase or payment is required to enter or win. Purchase does not improve odds of winning. Open to legal residents of the 48 contiguous US states and WDC. Void in AK, HI and where restricted or prohibited. Find complete rules at https://cocacola.promo.eprize.com/32daysofgiving/public/en/fulfillment/rules.pdf.

About Boston Market

At Boston Market, dinner is always ready. Headquartered in Golden, Colorado, Boston Market Corporation has given time back to busy families and individuals for 30 years with quality, home style meals at a convenient value in more than 450 U.S. locations. Known as the experts in rotisserie cooking, the company prepares fresh chicken and all natural turkey in signature rotisserie ovens and features an extensive selection of home style sides and made-from-scratch cornbread. As one of the country's largest providers of catering services, Boston Market offers convenient, same-day orders and delivery for corporate and personal events of all sizes. In January 2017, Boston Market officially launched its "Quality Guarantee," which acts as a continued commitment to all guests that Boston Market will serve all-natural and fresh, never frozen, gluten-free, whole chicken with no added hormones, steroids, antibiotics or MSG. For more information, visit the company's website at www.bostonmarket.com. For the latest news and deals, follow @bostonmarket on Twitter or join us on Facebook.

Media Contact

Seth Grugle, ICR

646-277-1200

[email protected]

SOURCE Boston Market

Related Links

https://www.bostonmarket.com


SAN DIEGO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Telephus Biosciences ("Telephus"), a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing innovative immunotherapy products to treat life-threatening antibiotic-resistant infections, announced today the appointment of three key opinion leaders to its advisory board as the company prepares for clinical development of its lead program, TPH 101. TPH 101 is in development as an adjuvant immunotherapy for MRSA osteomyelitis, which occurs as a complication of orthopedic surgery, open fractures, diabetic foot ulcers, and bacteremia.

"For our advisory board, we have brought together the leading scientists, physicians, and business executives with deep expertise in developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics for the treatment of bacterial infections and osteodegenerative disease," said Mark Benedyk, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Telephus. "We are thrilled to welcome Patrick, Bill and Richard to Telephus. Their collective strategic, scientific, and clinical experience, together with that of our existing advisors, will help transform Telephus into a high-growth clinical-stage therapeutics company."

Patrick Vink, M.D., MBA

Currently, Dr. Vink is an advisor to the pharmaceutical industry and non-executive board member of several public and private companies with an extensive operating tenure in several multinational biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Previously, Dr. Vink was employed at Cubist Pharmaceuticals where he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing all worldwide commercial and technical operations as well as global alliance management and P&L responsibility for the company. He originally joined Cubist in 2012 as Senior Vice President and Head, International Business Operations. Prior to joining Cubist, Dr. Vink served as Senior Vice President, Global Head of Hospital Business, and Global Head of Biologics for Mylan Inc. Before joining Mylan, Dr. Vink held several leadership positions across the industry, including Head of Global Business Franchise Biopharmaceuticals for Novartis Sandoz; Vice President International Business for Biogen; and Head of Worldwide Marketing, Cardiovascular and Thrombosis for Sanofi-Synthelabo. Dr. Vink earned his M.D. at the University of Leiden, Netherlands and earned his MBA at the University of Rochester.

"Telephus has taken an innovative treatment approach to addressing severe orthopedic infections," said Dr. Vink. "Patients who suffer from MRSA osteomyelitis, a severe, crippling bone infection that can occur after joint replacement or open fracture, with accompanying significant mortality and morbidity. TPH 101 adjunctive immunotherapy is poised to significantly improve patient outcomes by enhancing antibiotic activity, clearing infection, and reducing the often irreversible joint damage that results from these infections. I am thrilled to advise Telephus as it seeks to become a leading clinical-stage therapeutics company."

William Boyle, Ph.D.

Currently, Dr. Boyle is Vice President of Translational Medicine of BioAtla, LLC, and is an Associate Professor of Medicine at UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. Previously, Dr. Boyle founded AnaptysBio, Inc, in 2005 as an antibody therapeutics company based on harnessing the use of somatic hypermutation for antibody discovery and optimization and served as its Chief Scientific Officer and President. Prior to AnaptysBio, Dr. Boyle was at Amgen for over eleven years, where as Director of Discovery Research, he led the preclinical and clinical development of osteoprotegerin, a natural endogenous factor protecting bone from resorption. His research in this area helped to define the RANK-RANKL signaling pathway and led to the isolation and characterization of Prolia and Exgeva (denosumab), the first antibody treatment for osteoporosis and the treatment of skeletal related events in cancer, for which Dr. Boyle is an inventor. Dr. Boyle earned his B.S. and M.S. in biology, as well as his Ph.D. in experimental pathology at UCLA. Dr. Boyle was a Howard Hughes Medical Institute postdoctoral fellow of the Life Sciences Research Foundation at the Salk Institute of Biological studies.

"Telephus is poised to help catalyze the increasing application of immunotherapy to treating patients with infectious disease," said Dr. Boyle. "I look forward to helping the team advance TPH 101 and its therapeutic pipeline into the clinic."

Richard Proctor, M.D.

Currently, Dr. Proctor is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Medicine and Microbiology at UW-Madison. Previously, he was the Global Director for Infectious Diseases for Antibiotics and Antifungals at Merck. Dr. Proctor is a leading expert on mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis in infectious disease. He serves as a member of the scientific advisory board at AmebaGon, Inc. He serves on a number of panels addressing emerging antibiotic resistance and served as President of the Wisconsin Chapter of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He was a founding member of the International Endotoxin Society and the cofounder of the Staphylococcal Diseases Gordon Conference. Prior to his appointment at the University of Wisconsin, Dr. Proctor earned his B.S. and M.D. at the University of Michigan.

"Telephus' proprietary targeted immunotherapy platform attacks bacterial virulence via inactivation of autolysin A without damaging patients' microbiomes or contributing to antibiotic resistance, thus avoiding potential use restrictions often seen with newly approved antibiotics," said Dr. Proctor. "I am excited to be a part of this opportunity to have a significant impact on the lives of patients suffering from MRSA osteomyelitis and other life-threatening MRSA infections, which continue to be serious complications of surgical procedures worldwide.

About Telephus Biosciences

Telephus is dedicated to improving patients' lives by developing next-generation products that harness the power of the immune system to fight infection. Telephus is focused on the discovery and development of innovative immunotherapy products to fight m ethicillin- r esistant S . a ureus (MRSA) infections. The Company's lead program, TPH 101, is a monoclonal antibody for the treatment of MRSA osteomyelitis, a life-threatening bone infection that can occur as a complication of joint replacement surgery or orthopedic trauma. Seven million people in the United States are living with hip or knee replacements performed at the rate of one million procedures a year, and infection is a leading cause of implant failure. Telephus is located in San Diego. For more information, please visit www.telephusbio.com.

SOURCE Telephus Medical

Related Links

http://www.telephusmedical.com


SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Neighborly, the San Francisco-based fintech company focused on modernizing public finance by empowering investors to fund positive change in communities, today announced that The Bond Buyer has recognized the firm's 2017 partnership with the City of Cambridge, Massachusetts, as its 'Non-Traditional Deal of the Year.' The accolade was announced at The Bond Buyer's recent Deal of the Year Awards ceremony, held in New York City.

Now in their 16th year, the Deal of the Year Awards reward innovation in municipal finance. Winners, which are determined by a panel of Bond Buyer editors, are deemed to have exhibited noteworthy innovation, successful execution of complex transactions under oftentimes challenging conditions, an ability to serve as an exemplary model for future financing, and proven impact factor  i.e., the public purpose for which a deal's proceeds were used.

The City of Cambridge was lauded for its February 2017 issuance of General Obligation Series 2017 A Minibonds, which leveraged Neighborly's accessible online platform to sell bonds directly to Cambridge residents. The bonds, offered in affordable denominations of $1,000 to encourage participation, presented a unique opportunity for individual investors to earn tax-exempt interest while advancing positive projects in their own community. The funds raised, totaling $2 million, have since been utilized to renovate school buildings, upgrade municipal facilities, and advance implementation of Cambridge's "Complete Streets" plan.

"Neighborly heartily congratulates the City of Cambridge on this accolade, which reflects its leadership's commitment to residents," said Pitichoke Chulapamornsri, who led the deal as director of business development at Neighborly. "Our work with Cambridge is a prime example of how technology can reduce the cost and complexity associated with public finance to produce powerful results. As a result of our engagement, the City Manager's office was able to raise capital and shape Cambridge's future by connecting with a previously untapped audience of engaged, impact-driven residents."

Cambridge's initial bond offering generated a significant amount of interest, selling out within six days. Thirty-seven percent of buyers were first-time bond investors; more than 30 percent were under the age of 40.

Issuers who are interested in learning more can contact the team via neighborly.com/issuers, while potential investors can learn more about the Cambridge offering at https://neighborly.com/cambridge.

About Neighborly

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in San Francisco, CA, fintech company Neighborly is on a mission to modernize public finance. This civic-minded team of technologists and finance professionals is united by the belief that the humble municipal bond can once again be a singularly important force in solving economic, educational, healthcare and environmental issues  one community at a time. Positioned at the intersection of technology, government, and finance, Neighborly reduces the cost and complexity associated with municipal bonds by directly connecting fiscally responsible issuers with investors who want to earn returns while effecting positive change in the world.

Neighborly Corporation has built bank-grade technology, and its wholly-owned broker-dealer subsidiary, Neighborly Securities, is a member of FINRA, SIPC, and the MSRB. Neighborly Investments is an SEC-registered investment adviser; registration as an investment adviser does not imply any level of skill or training. This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice or recommendation to invest. The information on this page does not constitute a solicitation to buy or sell securities.

SOURCE Neighborly Corporation

Related Links

http://neighborly.com/issuers


DENVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Integer Group, one of Omnicom Group's leading global commerce agencies, announced the expansion of its Digitail practice to Australia. Digitail is a suite of commerce marketing and findability solutions rooted in a deep understanding of the retailer environment, how shoppers shop online, and the role eRetailers play along the shopper journey.

Launched in 2008, Integer's Digitail helps clients establish strategies and go-to-market plans to win in a complex ecosystem and to scale to meet the needs of the full channel. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado with significant regional hubs in Hamburg, Germany, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and now Sydney, Australia to service clients worldwide, Digitail represents over 110 brands in 27 languages and produces more than 18,000 ecommerce assets per year for eRetailers globally. The practice's core capabilities help clients win search, the "Buy Box" and share of mind and wallet by being operationally ready, developing pages for the digital shelf, and using media and merchandising techniques that drive conversion and sales both online and in-store. As a result, Integer has been recognized as one of very few Amazon "Trusted Creative Partners."

"Amazon's launch in Australia brings change for both commerce and culture," said Morgan McAlenney, Digitail Executive Vice President and Global Operation Lead for The Integer Group. "Integer's Digitail offering helps clients turn Shoppers into Buyers on Amazon and beyond. We are set up to help brands and retailers globally find success on platforms including Amazon as well as Walmart.com, Tesco, GPA, Carrefour and many more; so we've launched an ecommerce consultancy in Australia under the branded header of Digitail, leveraging our global skills, expertise and deep understanding of the Amazon ecosystem."

With Amazon entering the Australian market, The Integer Group recognized the well-timed opportunity to expand its Digitail offering in the region. Wylie Fowler, General Manager of Integer Sydney (part of the TBWA Group Australia), appointed to lead Australia's Digitail launch, outlines the opportunity for brands: "The disruption Amazon represents could be seen as either a threat or an opportunity for local brands and retailers. We see it very much as an opportunity. By tapping into Digitail's global experience and decade of learnings, we are excited to help Australian brands and retailers thrive in what will be a new retail paradigm in our market."

"Ecommerce is a sophisticated, data-rich discipline, laser-focused on the customer experience," noted Mike Sweeney, CEO of The Integer Group. "It's more than online shopping, so we continuously innovate and re-think content, media spend, digital and programmatic, customer service, as well as our relationships with retailers. There is a difference between selling on an eRetailer and being successful when it comes to eRetailers such as Amazon  Integer's Digitail offers the solutions and expertise to deliver both."

For more information, visit www.integer.com. To contact Integer's Digitail ecommerce consultancy in Australia, contact Wylie Fowler at [email protected]. For global inquiries, contact Morgan McAlenney at [email protected].

About The Integer Group

We live at the Intersection of Branding and Selling. A key member of Omnicom Group Inc., The Integer Group (www.integer.com) is a global, creative-fueled commerce agency that delivers innovative ways for brands and retailers to connect and engage with shoppers, turning moments of receptivity into moments of conversion. We use cultural insights to inspire creative ideas that build brands and accelerate purchase both in and out of store, moving people from living to looking to buying. The Integer Group has more than 1,100 associates in 26 offices across the globe, including locations in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and North and South America.

About Omnicom Group Inc.

Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com) is a leading global marketing and corporate communications company. Omnicom's branded networks and numerous specialty firms provide advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations and other specialty communications services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries.

SOURCE The Integer Group

Related Links

http://www.integer.com


IRVINE, Calif., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the first quarter of 2018, the Ayn Rand Institute (ARI) will give away its four-millionth free book as part of its Free Books to Teachers program. The program, which was launched in 2002, distributes free copies of Ayn Rand's novels to teachers in the United States and Canada.

"ARI offers free classroom sets of Ayn Rand's novels Anthem, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged to any high school teacher who wants to teach them in their classroom," says Jim Brown, president and CEO of ARI. "Before the program, Rand's books were underrepresented in the classroom when compared to other well-known literary works. This milestone is significant because it shows we're systematically changing that trend. With donor support, ARI is introducing more and more young people to Rand's works and thought-provoking ideas." https://www.aynrand.org/educators/free-books-high-school

Early next year, an ARI donor and sponsor of the Free Books to Teachers program will present one lucky teacher with the four millionth book and a ceremonial plaque honoring the landmark achievement.

"After reading the books, many students enter our annual essay contests for Anthem, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged," adds Brown.

'We've held worldwide essay contests for students for more than thirty years with roughly 20,000 submissions each year. The Institute will award $130,000 in prize money across three contests in 2018." https://www.aynrand.org/students/essay-contests."

"And 2018 is also the 75th anniversary of Rand's The Fountainhead," says Brown. "A variety of activities and events celebrating the best-selling novel and its continued impact on the culture are already in the works."

For information contact:

Sara Leopold

[email protected]

917-860-9014

SOURCE Ayn Rand Institute

Related Links

http://aynrand.org


Owned and operated by Santiago Rojas, an experienced master auto technician, the store will offer a variety of auto customization services to the community including window film, mobile electronic and stereo upgrades, and even marine styling. Rojas has been in the automotive upgrade and customization business since his teens, and he brings a hands-on management and ownership style to the franchise. He has held various roles from master technician to owning his own auto shop in Miami, Florida.

"Santiago is a great example of the kind of franchise owner we look for," said Charles J. Bonfiglio, CEO of Tint World. "He's been in the auto customization business for a long time, and we welcome his leadership and management experience as well as his expertise in direct, hands-on technical work. He loves to do his customers' installs and work alongside his employees. We know that he will be a benefit to our brand."

While working as a commercial jet pilot, Rojas and his wife, an NYPD officer, were looking to take the next step in their lives by becoming business owners. While Rojas had heard of Tint World, they realized the opportunity to open their own Tint World franchise after seeing a Facebook post detailing the opportunities. They decided it was time to diversify and purchase a store, and given Rojas' experience, the company was a perfect fit.

"I used to live in Miami, and Tint World is just a powerhouse in Florida," Rojas said. "The brand is immediately recognizable, and I know that people trust the name. I worked at a car shop, managed another car shop, and eventually owned one while I was in Miami, so when the opportunity presented itself, my wife and I knew right away this would be a great way to diversify our careers and move into business ownership. Mostly I look forward to becoming a staple in Long Island for anyone looking for automotive styling or any of the other number of products and services we have to offer."

Tint World Massapequa Park will be making the grand opening Saturday a festive one, with numerous specials and valuable giveaways, a visit from Santa and a balloon artist for the young attendees, and free food and drink.

The all-new Tint World Massapequa Park store is located at 4722 Sunrise Highway, Suite B and is open Monday through Saturday. To find out more, call 516-307-0880.

Tint World Automotive Styling Centers offer sales and installation of auto accessories, mobile electronics, audio video equipment, security systems, custom wheels and tire packages, window tinting, vehicle wraps, paint protection films, detailing services, nano ceramic coatings, maintenance and repair services, and more. Tint World is also the leading provider of residential, commercial and marine computerized window tinting and security film services with locations throughout the U.S. and abroad, with franchise opportunities available worldwide.

About Tint World

Founded in 1982, Tint World has grown to become an award-winning franchised provider of automotive, residential, commercial and marine window tinting and security film services. With Automotive Styling Centers in the U.S. and abroad, each franchise location houses approximately 20 profit centers, ranging from in-store accessory installations to off-site sales and installation of residential, commercial and marine window tinting and security films. To find out more, please visit www.tintworld.com and tintworldfranchise.com.

Tint World Contact:

Charles J. Bonfiglio, CEO

(800) 767-8468

[email protected]

MEDIA CONTACT:

Heather Ripley

Ripley PR

865-977-1973

[email protected]

SOURCE Tint World

Related Links

http://www.tintworld.com/


QUINCY, Ill., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) ("Titan" or the "Company") today announced that Paul G. Reitz, Titan's President and Chief Executive Officer, was appointed to the Company's Board of Directors ("Board") effective December 5, 2017. This appointment brings the number of directors to eight in accordance with the Company's By-laws. Mr. Reitz's term expires at Titan's 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

Maurice Taylor, Chairman, commented, "Paul's leadership and vision have been well demonstrated since he joined Titan. These strengths along with his background and knowledge of our business will make him an excellent board member."

Mr. Reitz, who is 45 years old, joined the Company in July 2010 as Chief Financial Officer. He was promoted to President in February 2014 and to Chief Executive Officer in January 2017. Prior to joining Titan, he was the Chief Accounting Officer for Carmike Cinemas based in Columbus, GA. Mr. Reitz has also held leadership positions with McLeodUSA Publishing, Yellow Book USA Inc., and Deloitte and Touche LLP. He has a Master's of Business Administration Degree from the University of Iowa and a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree from Northwood University.

In addition to the appointment of Mr. Reitz, the Board also approved the Company's 2018 strategic and operational plan.

"Last week, we held our annual year-end Board of Directors meeting where management presented our 2018 strategic and operational plan," commented Mr. Reitz, Titan's President and Chief Executive Officer. "After working hard to manage our way through three years of a cyclical downturn and then post three consecutive quarters of revenue growth this year, it was great to be able to present to our Board a 2018 plan that continues to reflect growth across all of our business units. The revenue growth in our 2018 plan is consistent with the outlook we announced in November 2017 of net sales growing in the range of 7 percent to 12 percent. Along with our plans for continuing sales growth, we discussed with the Board how we're planning to make improvements to our margins in 2018. We continue to expect gross profit improvement between 25 percent and 40 percent and to increase EBITDA in the 50 percent to 100 percent range during 2018. Our 2018 plan also focuses on reducing SG&A/R&D to the 10.0 percent to 10.5 percent range while we also closely monitor our cash management and working capital. During 2017, we have invested in working capital to support our sales growth; however, we don't expect the need to invest at these same levels to support our 2018 growth plan. Our diligent focus on capital expenditure return on investment should continue to enable us to keep 2018 capital expenditure investment in the range of $35 million to $45 million, a level less than annual depreciation. As we round the corner into 2018, we believe that Titan is well positioned to continue on a positive trend and our 2018 plan as approved by our Board supports that belief."

Safe harbor statement:

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are covered by the "Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements" provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "would," "could," "potential," "may," "will," and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are generally not historical in nature. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effect on us. Although we believe the assumptions upon which these forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, these assumptions are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and are subject to change based on various factors, some of which are beyond Titan International, Inc.'s control. As a result, any of these assumptions could prove to be inaccurate and the forward-looking statements based on these assumptions could be incorrect. The matters discussed in these forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results and trends to differ materially from those made, projected, or implied in or by the forward-looking statements depending on a variety of uncertainties or other factors including, but not limited to, the effect of a recession on the Company and its customers and suppliers; changes in the Company's end-user markets into which the Company sells its products as a result of world economic or regulatory influences or otherwise; changes in the marketplace, including new products and pricing changes by the Company's competitors; unfavorable outcomes of legal proceedings; availability and price of raw materials; levels of operating efficiencies; the effects of the Company's indebtedness and its compliance with the terms thereof; actions of domestic and foreign governments; geopolitical and economic uncertainties relating to the countries in which the Company operates or does business; risks associated with acquisitions, including difficulty in integrating operations and personnel, disruption of ongoing business, and increased expenses; fluctuations in currency translations; risks associated with environmental laws and regulations; risks relating to financial reporting, internal controls, tax accounting, and information systems; and the other risks and factors detailed in the Company's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the disclosures under "Risk Factors" in those reports. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof. The Company cautions that any forward-looking statements included in this press release are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, changed circumstances or future events, or for any other reason.

About Titan

Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) is a leading global manufacturer of off-highway wheels, tires, assemblies, and undercarriage products. Headquartered in Quincy, Illinois, the Company globally produces a broad range of products to meet the specifications of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and aftermarket customers in the agricultural, earthmoving/construction, and consumer markets. For more information, visit www.titan-intl.com.

SOURCE Titan International, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.titan-intl.com


WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Press Club will hold a press conference Monday, Dec. 11 at 1:00 p.m. regarding the recent detainment of Mexican journalist Emilio Gutierrez by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. The press conference will take place in the club's First Amendment Lounge.

Just two months after appearing at the National Press Club to accept the John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award on behalf of Mexico's besieged journalists, Gutierrez on Thursday found himself on the verge of deportation and, later, removed to a detention facility in the remote west Texas town of Sierra Blanca.

Eduardo Beckett, an attorney representing Gutierrez, said immigration officials in El Paso handcuffed the reporter when he arrived for a scheduled appointment and refused to wait for a response from the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals. The BIA's phone call granting the stay, 10 minutes later, prevented the deportation. Afterwards, however, Beckett was unable to see his client. He said ICE informed him that Gutierrez would be detained  in a facility 90 miles from his attorney's El Paso office.

"I believe it's retaliation," Beckett told the National Press Club.

Officials at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement have told the club they are "researching" the case.

Gutierrez has been living in the United States since 2008, when he and his son fled after reporting he did about alleged abuses of civilians by the Mexican military resulted in threats to his life. He is seeking asylum and has appealed a July decision by immigration Judge Robert Hough denying his request.

International freedom of the press and freedom of speech organizations, including Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists, have concluded that Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists. Earlier this week, the United Nations issued a report decrying a "crisis" of safety for the press in Mexico.

Nearly two dozen journalism and immigration rights organizations have signed a National Press Club letter supporting Gutierrez's asylum request.

The National Press Club is one of the world's leading journalism organizations; through its non-profit Journalism Institute, it supports the First Amendment in the United States and freedom of the press worldwide.

Press Contacts:

Lindsay Underwood, National Press Club, [email protected], (202) 662-7561

SOURCE National Press Club
VANCOUVER, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - Trilogy Metals Inc. (TSX, NYSE American: TMQ) ("Trilogy Metals" or "the Company") announces the appointment of Mr. William ("Willie") Iggiagruk Hensley to the Company's Board of Directors.

Willie Hensley was born in Kotzebue, Alaska, attended the University of Alaska in Fairbanks and graduated with a degree in Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, DC. Mr. Hensley significantly contributed to the settlement of Alaska's Native claims with the United States federal government. While attending graduate school in Fairbanks, Willie wrote a seminal research paper for Judge Jay Rabinowitz titled "Alaska Native Land Claims: The Primary Issue", which outlined the historical land rights of Alaska Natives, arguing for a just settlement of the issue. His research paper led to Native self-organization and the establishment of the Northwest Alaska Native Association in 1966  a precursor to Maniilaq Association, a non-profit organization which advocates for all Native issues, including health, housing, and political rights. President Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act ("ANCSA") in December 1971 providing for the creation of 12 Alaska Native Regional Corporations which were capitalized with close to $1 billion and peacefully transferred about 44 million acres of land to Alaska Natives through their corporate entities. NANA Regional Corporation, Inc. ("NANA") was created as a result of ANCSA and received title to 2.28 million acres of lands in the Northwest Alaska region  now organized into the Northwest Arctic Borough. NANA is a for-profit US corporation with a mission to provide economic opportunities for its more than 14,000 Inupiat shareholders as well as to protect and enhance NANA lands.

Mr. Hensley was elected to the House of Representatives after graduation and then served four full terms as Senator and two further terms through an appointment by Governor Steve Cowper. Willie Hensley was a founder of NANA, served for 20 years as a director, became the head of NANA Development Corporation and finally President of NANA Regional Corporation. He was a founder of the Alaska Federation of Natives and served as director, executive director, president and co-chair.

Mr. Hensley is currently serving as chair of the First Alaskans Institute and is the Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Business and Public Policy at the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

"We are honored and privileged to have Mr. Hensley serve on the Company's Board of Directors. His experience and insights will be invaluable to the Company as we advance our projects in the Ambler mining district," said Gerry McConnell, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

"Willie Hensley was a founding member of NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., and has been a pivotal figure in Alaska," said Wayne Westlake, NANA President and CEO. "He led the movement that solidified Indigenous inclusion in projects on Alaska-Native owned lands, which has defined NANA's model for responsible resource development. Willie will be an invaluable addition to the Trilogy board."

About Trilogy Metals

Trilogy Metals Inc. is a metals exploration company focused on exploring and developing the Ambler mining district located in northwestern Alaska. It is one of the richest and most-prospective known copper-dominant districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. It hosts world-class polymetallic VMS deposits that contain copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, and carbonate replacement deposits which have been found to host high grade copper mineralization. Exploration efforts have been focused on two deposits in the Ambler mining district - the Arctic VMS deposit and the Bornite carbonate replacement deposit. Both deposits are located within the Company's land package that spans approximately 143,000 hectares. The Company has an agreement with NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., a Regional Alaska Native Corporation that provides a framework for the exploration and potential development of the Ambler mining district in cooperation with local communities. Our vision is to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.

SOURCE Trilogy Metals Inc.

Related Links

www.trilogymetals.com


Interview with Shyam Shrestha: This leftist electoral alliance will move towards unification

Shyam Shrestha is a highly respected left-leaning thinker who earlier was the editor of Mulyankan Monthy, a magazine that provides a widely followed forum for leftist and democratic debate.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- For the fifth year in a row, White Castle, America's first fast food restaurant, is partnering with the American Red Cross to expand its love for its communities and support the work done by American Red Cross volunteers throughout the nation.

"The team members at White Castle are dedicated to supporting our communities and great organizations, like the American Red Cross, that do so much to help so many," said Jamie Richardson, Vice President of White Castle. "It's amazing the positive difference even one person can make and it brings us great pride to see the impact our loyal Cravers make when they work together to support a worthy cause."

From December 10 to December 30, 2017, White Castle will accept donations at all of its restaurants in increments of $1, $3 and $5 to support the Red Cross' disaster relief efforts to help families recover from home fires. Customers who donate can show their support by placing paper Red Crosses on the wall at their local White Castle. All proceeds raised will go to support the Red Cross disaster relief efforts across the nation.

The mission of the American Red Cross is to prevent and alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. Donations to the Red Cross help the organization provide safe shelter, food, emergency relief supplies, emotional support and health services to those in the wake of disasters.

"We hope all of our Cravers will spread the holiday cheer this season and consider making a donation to the American Red Cross to help them continue their important work done throughout many communities across the nation," Richardson said.

About White Castle

White Castle, America's first fast-food hamburger chain based in Columbus, Ohio, has been making Bold Moves as a family-owned business for more than 96 years. Cravers on-the-go can access sweet deals and place a pick-up order any time in the official White Castle app (iTunes App Store or Google Play) or in the frozen aisle at a grocery store near you. www.whitecastle.com

About Castle Shares

By feeding hunger, hope and dreams, the White Castle family helps build strong, thriving, Craver communities through the Castle Shares program. Founder Billy Ingram believed in taking care of people and giving back to the community. His philosophy still remains a focus of the family-owned business today. White Castle donates $2.1 million every year to a variety of charities across the nation, including over $850,000 to Autism Speaks in 2016. The White Castle family supports more than 50 charities each year with volunteers, money and food donations.

About the American Red Cross

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

SOURCE White Castle

Related Links

http://www.whitecastle.com


ATLANTA, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Veristor Systems, Inc., a leading provider of transformative business technology solutions, today announced that it has been ranked among the world's Top 100 cloud services providers (CSPs), according to Channel Futures' seventh-annual Talkin' Cloud (TC) 100 report.

Based on data from Channel Futures' online survey, conducted between August and October 2017, the TC 100 list recognizes top cloud services providers (CSPs), including MSPs, hosting companies, cloud consultants and more. Rankings are based on annual cloud services revenue growth, and input from Channel Futures editors.

"On behalf of Channel Futures, I would like to congratulate Veristor for its recognition as a Talkin' Cloud 100 honoree," said Nicole Henderson, a contributing editor at Channel Futures who oversees the TC 100 project. "The organizations on this year's list demonstrate everything from technological prowess to thought leadership to business excellence across a number of functional disciplines. If you want to understand where the market is heading, watch these companies in 2018."

"When it comes to delivering world class cloud services, it's about more than driving cost efficiency and scale. The cloud should be an extension of your overall infrastructure strategy for the greater resiliency, continuity and agility that supports the changing dynamics of business," said Michael Stolarczyk, Vice President, Sales and Business Development, Cloud Services, Veristor. "At Veristor, we've become experts in securely migrating our customers' workloads to the cloud, building elasticity through a measured approach to cloud enablement. It's an honor to be recognized for this successful approach by Channel Futures in their 2017 Talkin' Cloud 100 report."

The full 2017 Talkin' Cloud 100 report is available now by visiting ChannelFutures.com.

To see the complete list of the awards Veristor has won, visit: www.veristor.com/about-veristor/awards-recognition.

About Informa

The Channel Futures brand is part of Informa which operates at the heart of the Knowledge and Information Economy. It is a leading business intelligence, academic publishing, knowledge and events business. With more than 7,500 employees globally, it has a presence in all major geographies, including North America, South America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. For additional information on Informa, visit www.Informa.com and for information on Channel Futures, visit www.ChannelFutures.com.

About Veristor Systems, Inc.

A leading provider of transformative business technology solutions, Veristor helps its customers accelerate the time-to-value for the software, infrastructure and systems they deploy. We do this by harnessing deep expertise in today's most advanced data center, security, networking, hybrid cloud, and big data technologies and guiding businesses to the right solutions for their most pressing challenges. And with a full suite of design, deployment, support, and managed service offerings, we work shoulder-to-shoulder with our customers at every step of their technology journey to make technology truly work for them. IT's just who we are. Learn more at veristor.com.

SOURCE Veristor Systems, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.veristor.com


HOUSTON, Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Windrock, a Dover Energy Automation (DEA) company specializing in monitoring and optimizing reciprocating assets, is pleased to announce the launch of its new Spotlight Monitoring System, an automated, real-time solution that leverages IIoT principles to deliver insights into the health and performance of critical assets.

Windrock New Spotlight Monitoring System

"We are very excited to be launching Spotlight, a new solution that continuously monitors, diagnoses and optimizes equipment health," said Steve McNair, Director of Product Management at Windrock. "The ultimate benefit of the Spotlight Monitoring System is that it cost-effectively collects and analyzes performance data from assets in the field and transfers it to the palm of your hand in real time. Simply put, no other product available today can provide the measurable advantages that are personified by Windrock's new Spotlight Monitoring System."

The new Spotlight Monitoring System is a plug-and-play solution that utilizes edge hardware, called Spotlight PUC, to acquire high-speed rotating data. The Spotlight Controller then sends this data over to a Microsoft Azure hosted cloud via gateway, where Windrock Enterprise, an intuitive data visualization software proprietary to Windrock, provides actionable insights and uncovers trends concerning the health of the entire fleet of assets.

In addition, Windrock's Spotlight Monitoring System allows for tiered services to enable digital transformation. Customers can use the powerful monitoring tier to get complete visibility and then augment it with algorithmic analyses from Windrock Enterprise. The premium "Optimize" tier also offers full service optimization advisories from Windrock Subject Matter Experts.

DEA chose the Microsoft Azure platform to build the software stack, from the edge to the cloud very specifically. Rohit Robinson, VP Product Management and Strategic Marketing at DEA, said, "We were looking to partner with the best in the world when building our Cloud offerings. After factoring in various parameters like time to market, technological superiority, proven track record, and our oil and gas customer base, Azure stood out as the clear choice."

"Microsoft is pleased that DEA is utilizing Azure IoT cloud services, Power BI and Windows IoT powered gateways to build repeatable end to end prescriptive monitoring and predictive maintenance solutions for oil and gas customers," said Rodney Clark, Vice President, Partner Devices and Solutions, Microsoft. "Intelligent solutions like these will help oil and gas companies digitally transform, so they can empower their employees, optimize operations and reimagine their products, services or even business models. We look forward to working with DEA on additional solutions in the future."

And as Nari Kikkeri, Director of Advanced Technology & IIOT Development at DEA, describes, "Azure allowed us to ingest data from multiple sources, whether from equipment or people, and apply meaningful context for further processing in the cloud."

To learn more about the new Spotlight Monitoring System, please visit iot.windrock.com/spotlight. If you are interested in speaking with a product champion at DEA about Windrock Enterprise, you can request information at [email protected].

About Windrock Inc.

Windrock Inc. (www.windrock.com) transforms the way companies monitor, manage & optimize their industrial equipment. Through our customer-centric expertise, we provide online remote monitoring systems and IIoT enabled intelligence advisories. Our deepest focus is on providing outcome-based solutions and services that increase the visibility of performance, speed, and safety of the entire enterprise.

About Dover Energy Automation

Dover Energy Automation (www.doverautomation.com), an operating company within the Dover Energy Segment of Dover Corporation, is a provider of products, intelligent productivity tools and related automation software for the energy sector. DEA enables oil and gas operators to monitor, predict and optimize performance to improve their productivity and return on investment. Headquartered in The Woodlands, TX, DEA includes various operating companies. These include Windrock monitoring and analytical solutions for rotating and reciprocating equipment, Quartzdyne downhole pressure transducers, and Production Optimization for onshore well performance optimization solutions.

About Dover Corporation

Dover Corporation (www.dovercorporation.com) is a diversified global manufacturer with annual revenues of $7 billion. We deliver innovative equipment and components, specialty systems and support services through four major operating segments: Energy, Engineered Systems, Fluids, and Refrigeration & Food Equipment. Dover combines global scale with operational agility to lead the markets we serve. Recognized for our entrepreneurial approach for 60 years, our team of 26,000 employees takes an ownership mindset, collaborating with customers to redefine what's possible. Headquartered in Downers Grove, IL, Dover trades on the New York Stock Exchange under "DOV."

Sales Contact: Media Contact: Steven McNair, Product Director Eric Hirth, Manager of Content & Media Dover Energy Automation DeanHouston (agency for Windrock) +1 865-330-1100 +1 513-421-6622 [email protected] [email protected]

SOURCE Windrock Inc.

Related Links

http://www.windrock.com


After Barings Real Estate Advisers has already bought a logistics property from Deka Immobilien for 17.6 million at the end of November, the investment manager invested a further 17.6 million in a fully-let retail warehouse and petrol station from Lopez-Real. The two acquisitions follows Barings' debut into the Spanish logistics

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Developers are repurposing Parramatta residential sites to meet an increasing demand for high quality commercial developments, according to new analysis from Deloitte of the Parramatta development market.

Their inaugural Parramatta Crane Survey revealed an unprecedented level of construction in Parramatta, identifying 39 developments.

The report concluded that the "most exciting prospect is that the long term prosperity of Parramatta as a more liveable city is being enabled through higher urban amenity."

Across these developments, the survey discovered:

* 92,000sqm of office floor space currently under construction

* Zero vacancy rate for A-Grade office space with total vacancy rate at 4.3% compared to 5.9% in the Sydney CBD

* Apartment construction is slowing with only 1,100 DA approved apartments in the pipeline - 63% less volume than currently under construction

* By 2020, 857 new hotel rooms will have been built across four projects.





The survey author and Deloitte Western Sydneys Real Estate Leader, David Hagger, noted that the shift of momentum towards commercial development will continue to attract higher paid jobs to Parramatta.

The Parramatta Square development alone could house over 20,000 workers, with around 10,000 more expected across the rest of the city.

"Many of these will be public servants, with the NSW Government being the anchor tenant after making the largest pre-lease commitment we have ever seen.

"Importantly, we are also seeing an influx of private sector companies, including the high profile move by NAB to make Parramatta its second home, with a number of other businesses now circling for space in the remaining repurposed commercial building on Parramatta Square, said Hagger.

Ongoing investment and rising job numbers should in turn continue to underpin growth in the residential market, he suggests.

The survey reveals that there are currently 2,707 apartments under construction in the Parramatta CBD, due for completion between 2018 and 2019.

With a further 4,865 apartments proposed across 12 projects, a potential flood of the market has been predicted by some commentators, but according to Hagger, however, the survey indicates a different outcome.

We see the market entering a cooling phase.

"There are only 1,110 apartments with DA approval in the pipeline, providing a short-term supply of approximately 2-3 years, indicating lower risk of oversupply."

He suggested developers are adjusting to changing market conditions - including limits on lending by banks, increases in stamp duty and land taxes and restrictions by Chinese regulators on outbound investments in real estate - and also note a clear shift towards commercial development.

"The pool of proposed apartments does represent a significant potential supply.

"However, these are not yet committed.

The Deloitte Real Estate team undertook research on the number of developments underway in the Parramatta Central Business District and is accurate to the best of their knowledge as at 30 September 2017.

It has been recently revealed that Lang Walker has scrapped his high rise residential project instead building offices.

"From where I sit, I won't be comfortable tackling a tall residential tower in Parramatta ... maybe in two years' time," the AFR quoted Walker Corporation executive chairman Lang Walker saying. "Banks are very reluctant to lend to this area ... it will cool for a couple of years and it will come back up. But it's not a doomsday scenario at the moment."

Walker attributes his decision to the huge supply in both Parramatta and Camelia, an industrial suburb near Parramatta, now a brownfields precinct for high density living.

This week Singapore-listed property developer CWG has sold The Peak, its 45 storey Parramatta residential project site at 14-20 Parkes Street for $40 million.
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The exclusive 24/7 pay-TV channel, which is part of the Disney-Movistar alliance in Spain , will kick off with a line-up of classic and recent hit films.Movistar Disney will premiere with the House of Mouses first feature film, from 1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, followed by The Lion King, Finding Nemo, Frozen, Tarzan, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Fantasia 2000.Targeting children and families over Christmas, the channel will air Monsters, Inc, The Jungle Book, the Toy Story saga, Hercules, 101 Dalmatians, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland and A Bugs life. On Christmas Eve, Movistar Disney will broadcast Brave, Frozen and Beauty and the Beast.With a potential reach of 3.7 million homes across Spain, the network is the spearhead of Disneys pay-TV strategy in Spain, which has found a solid partner in Movistar+.This is the first time a single platform, both in the linear and on-demand markets, is going to gather so much Disney content, said Simon Amselem, country manager, The Walt Disney Company , Spain and Portugal, when the network was unveiled two weeks ago. Movistar is becoming one of the few operators in the world with its own Disney channel.
Current affairs producer Choi Seung-ho has become president of Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), declaring his 2012 dismissal from South Koreas public broadcaster null and void  along with those of former colleagues.





Journalists Kang Ji-woong, Park Seong-je, Park Seong-ho, Lee Yong-ma and Jeong Yeong-ha are among those also reinstated to the organisation, and confirmed in a joint statement from MBC and its labour union on 8 December.Newspaper producer Choi Seung-ho (pictured) was selected as the new president of MBC by the board of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture (FBC), MBCs leading shareholder. His return to MBC comes 1,997 days after he was fired from the network.Going forward, I will take into account your dreams and most heartfelt wishes and ensure they can be realised. I will bring about a day when MBC quickly rises again and returns to the public, he told MBC employees, on his first day as president of the broadcast network.About 2,000 MBC union members had been on strike since 4 September 2017, demanding the resignation of former president Kim Jang-kyom and the networks independence from political interference.Kim was dismissed in mid-November by a majority of directors on the FBC board, after being accused of overseeing political bias in Koreas second largest public broadcasters current affairs coverage, in favour of the former Conservative Government, headed by president Park Geun-hye.Four FBC board members who felt Kims dismissal was improper have since taken legal action to challenge the decision. However, their request to overturn the decision was rejected last week by a Seoul court . The same four directors, all nominated by the previous ruling party, abstained from the vote to appoint a new president, which was carried by the remaining five directors.Seung-ho first worked for the public broadcaster in 1986 and joined the PD Notebook in 1995, earning the Song Geon-ho Press Award and Ahn Jong-pil Free Press Award honours for investigative reporting. In 2003, he became president of the MBC labour union. He was dismissed from the broadcast network during a 170-day strike in 2012.He has since worked as a producer for the online investigative site Newstapa and directed the documentaries Spy Nation and Criminal Conspiracy.It is of exceptional significance that the new president is a network member who was illegally fired five years ago during a labour union general strike to demand fairness in broadcasting, the MBC chapter of the National Union of Mediaworkers (NUMW) said in a statement. We look forward to a greater sense of responsibility in achieving fair broadcasting.As we face the historic task of restoring press freedom and democracy, we hope the union and network will both appreciate the seriousness of the final opportunity granted to MBC and do their utmost to cooperate, it added.
CPN-UML leads in popular vote too

The CPN-UML, which looks likely to win a majority of the first-past-the-post seats in elections to both the House of Representatives and provincial assemblies, also leads the tally in early proportional representation vote count. The Nepali Congress, which faced a crushing electoral defeat in direct polls, closely follows the UML in the PR race.
Cloud-based TV and over-the-top (OTT) technology provider Amagi has announced its official launch in the US, where its customers include Vice Media and Turner Broadcasting.





The launch makes CLOUDPORT, the companys cloud-based channel playout platform, available to US linear TV and digital OTT broadcasters. As its name suggests, it uses a cloud-based broadcast infrastructure, which, rather than relying on satellite or locally-operated hardware, can set up multiple feeds, monitor them and localise content, and all playout can be controlled and monitored remotely through a dashboard in CLOUDPORT.As TV networks expand across geographies and platforms to reach new audiences, they are challenged with escalating costs and overall resource management. TV content delivery has historically used satellite and physical data centres, which can provide a large geographic reach, but which remain capital-intensive. These models also struggle to address the evolving needs of localising channel content, owing to business requirements, regulatory standards or viewer preferences.Broadcasting is an ever-expanding, global business, said KA Srinivasan, co-founder of Amagi . As a result, it has become an increasingly complex and expensive operation. Today, CAPEX and OPEX costs associated with traditional satellite playout is unsustainable. This model also prices out mid-sized broadcasters and content owners who want to launch their own channels. To navigate the environment, broadcasters and content owners need to leverage cloud technology to stay competitive. The cloud enables global scale of operations, brings tremendous cost-savings and enables the worldwide distribution of content.
HBO is bringing Big Little Lies back for a second series, once again starring Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon.





In the first season, the apparently perfect lives of three mothers of first graders unravel to the point of murder. The second outing, which doesnt yet have a release date, will feature seven episodes, to be written once again by David E Kelley.Witherspoon and Kidman are also the executive producers of the show, which picked up eight Emmys this year after making its debut in February, including Best Limited Series. The decision by HBO to make a second season has caused some rankle in the industry, as it will remove Big Little Lies from the limited series category. In and of itself, this is not an issue, but TV nominations for the Emmys was already underway. Now, the Producers Guild of America will need to reset the ballots."At the time of the release of the ballots, HBO's series Big Little Lies qualified for the Guild's Long-Form Programmes category," the PGA said. "However, with today's announcement that HBO has ordered a second season of the series with the main characters continuing into the second season, the series no longer qualifies within that category. In accordance with our rules, we have determined that the most equitable course of action is to adjust the ballots  placing Big Little Lies in the Episodic Drama category for which it now is qualified  and re-start the voting afresh."
Algerias first communications satellite Alcomsat 1 has been successfully launched from Chinas Xichang Space Centre aboard a Long March 3B rocket.





The Chinese-built satellite will provide broadcasting, broadband, remote education and emergency communications services across the North African country.The satellite, which launched on 11 December at 12.40am Beijing time, is bound for geostationary orbit over the equator at 24.8 degrees west.Chinas commercial satellite launch operator China Great Wall Industry Corp (CGWIC) said the Alcomsat 1 spacecraft is based on the DFH-4 satellite design manufactured by the China Academy of Space Technology. Expected to be in operation for 15 years, Alcomsat 1 carries 33 transponders: 19 in Ku-band, 12 in Ka-band and two in L-band. The Alcomsat 1 satellite programme is the first communications satellite programme of Algeria, and also (marks) the bilateral cooperation between Algeria and China in space technology for the first time, CGWIC said in a statement.The successful launch of Alcomsat 1 is the good beginning of space cooperation between (the) two countries. More cooperation (and) more space programmes are expected to be initiated soon, CGWIC added.China has provided manufacturing, launching and orbital testing capabilities. The Algeria Space Agency will take command of the satellite once it is ready to commence operation, in an agreement sealed between the two nations in December 2013.
Just when we all thought Ed Sheerans Perfect couldnt get any more perfect, a duet version with Beyonce was released on Nov.30th. Yet, the purpose of adding Beyonce wasnt necessarily to make the song more perfect, but was rather intended to make a version of the song with a different meaning and a different feel.
Monrovia set for semistate battle with Lawrenceburg. Here's what to know.

Here's all the information you need to know before Friday's IHSAA semi-state football showdown between Monrovia and Lawrenceburg.
Weak link with common people blamed for Nidhis unexpected loss

Bimalendra Nidhi, an influential Nepali Congress (NC) leader and former deputy prime minister, became another casualty for the grand old party suffering a shocking defeat in the election for federal parliament from Dhanusha-3.
Several thousand people have attended a ceremony in Zagreb to honor convicted Bosnian Croat war criminal Slobodan Praljak, who died of cyanide poisoning last month.

The 72-year-old Praljak drank from a vial moments after a UN appeals judge upheld his 20-year sentence on war crimes charges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on November 29. He died shortly afterward.

About 2,000 people, including two government ministers, filled the main concert hall in Zagreb on December 11 to attend the ceremony, while hundreds more crowded together into the building's entry and hallways to watch on giant TV screens.

Praljak had a private funeral in Zagreb last week, according to Croatian media reports.

A former commander of Bosnian Croat forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina's 1992-95 war, Praljak was convicted in 2013 of crimes including murder, persecution, and deportation for his role in a plan to carve out a Bosnian Croat ministate in Bosnia in the early 1990s.

Many in Croatia consider Praljak a hero despite his conviction for war crimes. For days after his death, Praljak's photo was on display at Zagreb's main square, where people lit candles.

Also on December 11, members of the Youth Initiative for Human Rights group lit candles in downtown Zagreb for the victims of the Bosnian war, urging condemnation of the era's belligerent policies, and stating they do not sympathize with war criminals.

Croatian officials have criticized the ruling against Praljak and five other former Bosnian Croat officials.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic initially slammed the "deep moral injustice" of the court's verdict for the six men. But Plenkovic later recanted his criticism, saying that Croatia, which is a member of the European Union and NATO, respected the decisions of the UN court.

"The position is very clear: the verdict is respected," he said on December 5, during a news conference in Bosnia.

Plenkovic also said he wanted "to express regrets and condolences very clearly for all the victims of the crimes mentioned in this verdict."

With reporting by AFP and AP
WASHINGTON -- An American stockbroker who made a fortune in the Russian market in the 1990s and 2000s and later co-founded a posh Moscow nightclub before leaving the country died of blunt force injuries suffered as a result of a fall from a Washington, D.C. building.

The findings, released on November 16 by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), confirm that Dan Rapoport died on August 14 after falling from a height, but do not conclusively explain the circumstances leading up to his death.



Washington police told RFE/RL that an investigation into his death had ended and declined further comment. Earlier this year, a police spokeswoman told RFE/RL that foul play was not suspected, but that final conclusions were pending the autopsy.

Rapoport's untimely death triggered much speculation because he had voiced support for ardent Kremlin foe Aleksei Navalny before leaving Russia and, while living in Kyiv in recent years, had been a vocal supporter of Ukraine and an outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin.



Washington metropolitan police found Rapoport's body on August 14 on the sidewalk outside 2400 M Street, a nine-story apartment building in the northwest part of the city.



The medical examiner's report said Rapoport, 52, died of multiple blunt force injuries due to fall from height and described the death as sudden/unexplained. The report also said the manner of his death was undetermined.



The OCME said no other information would be immediately released.



A preliminary police report said officers responded to a report of a jumper on the evening of August 14, and the man, later identified as Rapoport, was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead.



The apartment building has an open rooftop with a pool, running track, and seating area for residents.

The police report said officers found $2,620 in cash on Rapoport when they discovered his body on the sidewalk, along with headphones, a cracked cell phone, a Florida drivers license, and other items.



He was wearing flip-flops, perhaps indicating he had been at the pool on the roof prior to falling.



Brianna Burch, a police spokesperson, told RFE/RL in August that there did not appear to be anyone with Rapoport at the time and there were no listed witnesses. In follow-up correspondences with RFE/RL through early November, the police continued to say they did not suspect foul play.



Rapoport had recently moved back to Washington after spending several years working in finance in Ukraine. He told RFE/RL in an interview in Washington in June that business had been tough due to the countrys high political risk and war with Russia.



While some friends said they did not believe he would have committed suicide, others said he had appeared depressed.



Go-To Location



A native of Latvia and a fluent Russian speaker, Rapoport emigrated with his family to the United States in 1980. After graduating from a U.S. university, he moved to Russia in the early 1990s as a wave of privatizations swept across the country.



The sale of former state-owned companies created a booming stock market, minting a new generation of millionaires, Russian and foreign.



Rapoport was respected within Russian financial circles, where he worked for more than a decade at a local brokerage called CenterInvest, making his way up to managing partner. He claimed his clients included some of the nation's wealthiest tycoons.

In 2007, he opened a swanky nightclub in downtown Moscow called Soho Rooms, which became the go-to location for Moscows elite.



In 2012, he left Russia and returned to the United States, saying the stock brokerage industry that had made him a fortune "had died" as commission fees shrunk with improvements in technology.

But in a media interview prior to his departure, he also criticized the direction Russia had taken under Putin and expressed support for Navalny, who was jailed last year on what Western governments say were trumped-up charges.

It has really become unbearable to live in Russia, Rapoport told media outlet FinParty in June of that year. We are all now dependent on one ruler. If this person decides that you will give birth to his child, then you will give birth, and if he decide to put you in prison, then you will serve time.

He told FinParty that he would give up his American citizenship and return to Russia if Navalny became president, saying the opposition leader was sincere in his desire to fight corruption.

He is a real hero of our time and deserves respect, Rapoport said of Navalny.

Rapoports frustration with Russia and his decision to leave may have been triggered by pressure on his businesses, friends and family have said.

Under Putin, the raiding of profitable businesses by -- or with the help of -- the nations security services has flourished. Rapoport allegedly lost his stake in Soho Rooms when his partners teamed up with security officials.

"Our flight to Washington is in 12 hours. It's sad to leave Russia, but for thoughtful people, living here has become unbearable and disgusting," Rapoport wrote on his Facebook page on June 13, 2012.

When Rapoport moved to Washington, where he said his parents lived, he set up a company called Rapoport Capital to advise and assist technology startups as well as venture capital funds on fundraising options.

In 2016, four years after leaving Russia, Rapoport set up an office in Kyiv and opened a private equity fund. It was tough going. Ukraines economy struggled amid an ongoing war with Russia-backed separatists in two eastern regions and the slow implementation of Western-backed reforms.

In social-media posts over the ensuing years, he was a vocal supporter of Ukraine and an outspoken critic of Putin.

Rapoport gained a degree of publicity in January 2017 after The New York Times reported that the daughter and son-in-law of newly elected President Donald Trump had purchased a mansion owned by him and his first wife. The mansion was located in an exclusive neighborhood of the U.S. capital.

In 2018, the open-source investigative organization Bellingcat reported that Rapoport, who was Jewish, had been the creator of a fictional persona named David Jewberg, who was frequently quoted in Ukrainian media as a senior Pentagon analyst.

With reporting by Todd Prince in Washington, D.C. and Mike Eckel in Prague
Russia and Turkey agree that U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is destabilizing the situation in the Middle East, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

Putin who was speaking at a news conference alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after bilateral talks in Ankara on December 11, also said Russia hoped to sign credit agreements for the defense industry with Turkey soon.

Erdogan said that Ankara and Moscow were on the same page regarding the U.S. move on Jerusalem and added that the two leaders would keep in contact on the issue.

He said Turkish and Russian officials will meet to finalize Turkey's acquisition of Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems in the coming week.

"Our officials will come together in the coming week to finalize the S-400 issue," Erdogan said.

NATO member Turkey has been negotiating with Moscow to buy the system for more than a year. The United States and some of its NATO allies see the move as a snub because the weapons cannot be integrated into the alliance's defenses.

Turkey has been working to develop its own defense systems and equipment and has lined up several projects for the coming years including combat helicopters, tanks, drones, and more.

Ankara expects to receive its first S-400 system in 2019, Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli said last month.

Putin and Erdogan also discussed developments in Syria and the Middle East, as well as bilateral relations, according to the Turkish president's office.

Relations between the two countries were tense after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet for violating its airspace in 2015.

But Putin and Erdogan have since restored bilateral relations, and the two met several times this year. They regularly hold telephone conversations as they and Iran are involved in talks to find a solution to the conflict in Syria.

Putin arrived in Turkey from Egypt, where he met with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo for talks on the two countries' expanding ties and regional issues.

Nuclear Power, Renewed Air Links

Following his meeting with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on December 11, Putin said that Russia was ready in principle to resume direct passenger flights to Egypt and an agreement is expected to be signed in the near future

Russia suspended commercial flights to Egypt after a passenger plane carrying Russian vacationers back home from a Red Sea beach resort blew up over the Sinai Peninsula in October 2015, killing all 224 people on board. An affiliate of the extremist group Islamic State (IS) based in Sinai claimed responsibility.

Russian and Egyptian officials have held talks on boosting airport security and resuming air travel, but no deal has been reached so far.

During Putin's visit, Egypt and Russia signed an agreement to start work on Egypt's first nuclear power plant, state television showed.

Russian state nuclear company Rosatom said the Dabaa nuclear station on the Mediterranean coast will have four reactors and cost up to $21 billion with construction expected to finish in 2028-29.

Putin flew to Egypt after a previously unannounced visit to Syria, where he ordered the Russian military to start withdrawing its forces from the war-ravaged Middle Eastern country.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced last week his decision to recognize the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, sparking criticism from U.S. allies in Europe, the Middle East, and beyond which said it was not helpful for peace.

Egypt, Turkey, and Russia have all denounced Trump's decision. Putin and Erdogan voiced "serious concern" about it in a phone conversation on December 7, the Kremlin said.

Russia's major role in the war in Syria, where it has given President Bashar al-Assad's government crucial military backing, has increased its influence in the Middle East.

Putin has courted closer ties with Egypt and NATO-member Turkey as well as other countries in the region in recent years.

With reporting by AP, Interfax, Bloomberg, Reuters, dpa, and TASS
Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a surprise visit to Syria, declaring victory and ordering the Russian military to start withdrawing a "significant portion" of its forces from the war-ravaged Middle Eastern country.

"I order the defense minister and the head of the General Staff to begin the withdrawal of the Russian group of forces to their permanent places of deployment," Putin said in comments to servicemen at Russia's air base in Syria on December 11.

Putin, who met at the Hmeimim base with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said that Russian and Syrian forces had "crushed the most combat-capable international terrorist group."

"In light of this, I have made a decision: a significant portion of the Russian military contingent in [Syria] is returning home, to Russia," Putin said.

WATCH: Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to start withdrawing a "significant portion" of its forces from Syria. (Reuters)

Putin's first known visit to Syria during the war there came five days after the Russian president, who has sought to bolster his support at home by reviving Moscow's global clout, announced he will seek reelection in a Marh 18 vote.

He gave no specific time frame for the pullout and said the Hmeimim base and a Russian naval facility at Tartus, on Syria's Mediterranean coast, will continue to operate, Russian news agencies reported.

Russia has given Assad's government crucial military backing throughout the war, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions since it began with a state crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in March 2011.

Russia began a campaign of air strikes in September 2015 and has stepped up its military involvement on the ground since then, protecting Assad from rebels -- some Western-backed -- and helping turn the tide of the conflict in his favor.

A brief Kremlin statement said Putin met with Assad as well as Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the commander of Russian forces in Syria, Sergei Surovikin.

It said he ordered the start of the withdrawal and thanked Russian servicemen for taking part in what Moscow calls a "counterterrorism operation."

Surovikin later said the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police, and field engineers.

The remaining forces will be sufficient to "successfully fulfill the tasks" to stabilize the situation in Syria, he said, but did not specify how many troops and weapons would remain.

The Pentagon expressed skepticism about the announced withdrawal of troops and equipment from Syria. Army Colonel Rob Manning, a Pentagon spokesman, said Russian statements "do not often correspond" with actual troop reductions.

Putin has issued similar orders before. In March 2016, Putin ordered the start of "the withdrawal of the main part of our military contingent from Syria, but there were few signs of a pullout after that announcement.

The new order comes after major setbacks for the extremist group Islamic State (IS), which seized large parts of northern Syria and Iraq in 2014 but has been driven from key strongholds, including the Syrian city of Raqqa.

Amid severe tension between Moscow and Washington, Russia and the United States have conducted separate campaigns of air strikes against IS militants.

Assad and Moscow refer to nearly all the Syrian government's opponents as terrorists, and Western officials say that Russia used much of its firepower in Syria against rebels seeking Assad's ouster rather than against IS.

Putin praised the Russian forces in a televised address at Hmeimim, which is in the heartland of the Alawite minority in the coastal province of Latakia and has been the main foothold for Moscow's military campaign.

"Friends, the motherland is waiting for you," Putin said, adding that "if the terrorists again raise their heads, we will deal such blows to them they have never seen."

Putin's new pullout order comes after gains in the conflict have strengthened Assad's position in intermittent UN-sponsored negotiations aimed at ending the war and launching a political transition.

The same developments have undermined the leverage of opponents of Assad and Western countries, including the United States and Turkey, that want him out of power.

Putin's visit to Syria came amid a flurry of Middle East diplomacy following U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which angered many governments in the region and worldwide.

Putin flew from Syria to Egypt for talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and then flew to NATO-member Turkey later on December 11 to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"After those negotiations, we will contact you and will inform you in detail of what we will do together" to resolve the conflict, the Russian news agency Interfax quoted Putin as telling Assad.

Western governments including the United States say that there is no place for Assad in Syria's future, but have softened their stances in recent years over the timing of his departure.

Russia has repeatedly said that Assad's exit from power must not be a precondition for a political settlement.

Russia has faced strong criticism from Western governments and human rights groups over its military and diplomatic backing for Assad, and the conflict in Syria has contributed to severe tension between the United States and Russia.

Citing unidentified U.S. officials, The New York Times reported on December 11 that Russian fighter jets have flown dangerously close to U.S. warplanes over eastern Syria in the past month.

In one case, the report said, two U.S. Air Force A-10s nearly collided head-on with a Russian Su-24 but swerved to avoid the aircraft.

With reporting by RIA Novosti, AP, Interfax, TASS, Reuters, and The New York Times
No HIV test? No wedding. That simple rule will apply in Russia's North Caucasus region of Ingushetia starting next year.

In what they say is a bid to cut AIDS rates, local officials are instituting mandatory HIV testing for all couples hoping to marry.

Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, the head of Ingushetia, said that HIV testing was needed, but admitted it was not likely to be popular.

"I know that many potential grooms will not be thrilled with tightening the rules to marry, but these are timely and necessary measures that will significantly reduce the percentage of families falling apart and will minimize the threat of spreading dangerous diseases and preserve the health of the nation," Yevkurov said.

Such testing was instituted in neighboring Chechnya in 2011, and is mandatory in other parts of the world, including parts of Central Asia.

While acknowledging the benefits of HIV testing, human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have long opposed any moves to make it compulsory.

Russia indeed has experienced record-high HIV infection rates. Two-thirds of all new HIV cases in Europe in 2015 -- infecting just over 98,000 people -- were recorded in Russia alone, according to data from the World Health Organization.

In 2016, the HIV infection rate in Russia rose again, this time 5.3 percent in comparison to 2015. That translated into some 103,500 new HIV infection cases.

However, data suggest HIV infection rates in mostly Muslim Ingushetia are among the lowest in the Russian Federation.

In announcing that the mandatory testing will take effect in 2018, Ingushetian Health Minister Marem Arpakhanova framed the issue as a way to empower couples.

"Any person can ask his or her partner before marrying whether they've been tested for HIV. There is nothing bad in this. Everyone is treated with understanding. No one has anything to fear, especially if they are not infected," Arpakhanova was quoted as saying by TASS on December 10.

Muslim spiritual leaders have already suggested that Muslim clerics not conduct wedding ceremonies unless HIV-testing documentation is provided, but with one proviso. Only men, according to Ingushetia's Muslim spiritual leaders, should be required to have testing done.

Chechnya instituted such prenuptial, mandatory HIV testing in 2011. Similar requirements exist in Central Asia, including Tajikistan. China, Nigeria, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia are among other countries with such a requirement.

No such law has been instituted across the entire Russian Federation. In 2015 Russian State Duma Deputy Magomed Selimkhanov, from the ruling United Russia party, introduced such legislation, but it has yet to be enacted into law.

Human Rights Watch has said international research "suggests that mandatory testing undermines human rights and is potentially detrimental for public health."

Written by Tony Wesolowsky based on material from Current Time TV
A Russian court has convicted an Estonian businessman of espionage and sentenced him to 12 years in prison.

The case against Raivo Susi was classified as "top secret" and the trial, which ended on December 11, was held behind closed doors.

Susi was arrested in February 2016 at a Moscow airport while on his way to a Central Asian country.

Susi's lawyer, Aleksei Toplygin, told reporters that his client's case stemmed from his activities in 2004-07.

Susi is a co-owner of two companies involved in the sale and repair of aircraft.

Susi's sentence was pronounced a month after Estonia's Prosecutor-General's Office said it detained a man suspected of being a Russian national on suspicion of espionage.

In 2015 and 2016, three men in Estonia were convicted of cooperating with Russian intelligence services and sentenced to prison.

In May, Estonia expelled two Russian diplomats posted at Moscow's consulate in Narva over contacts with local officials that were considered inappropriate for diplomats.

Occupied by the Soviet Union during World War II, Estonia gained independence in the Soviet collapse of 1991 and is now a member of NATO and the European Union.

Based on reporting by Rapsinews and Interfax
A Ukrainian court has released from detention opposition figure Mikheil Saakashvili, who is accused by prosecutors of assisting a criminal organization.

Ukrainian prosecutors had sought to place Saakashvili under house arrest, but a judge on December 11 turned down the request.

Saakashvili told journalists after the hearing that he planned to continue his political activities with the aim of "constitutional, calm, but very necessary transfer of power in the country," accusing the Ukrainian authorities of corruption and "usurping power."

But he said he "has no presidential ambitions" himself.

Judge Larysa Tsokol told Kyiv's Pechera district court that the prosecutors' request to put Saakashvili under house arrest pending trial was "dismissed," prompting applause by Saakashvili's supporters in the courtroom.

Saakashvili praised the judge's ruling as "courageous," and said, "It means not everything is lost in Ukraine."

WATCH: Mikheil Saakashvili is released by the court and greeted by supporters. (RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, in Ukrainian)



Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko later said on ICTV that he will appeal the judge's ruling.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Ukraine's Justice Ministry is also still weighing an extradition request from Georgia for the former Georgian president to face criminal charges related to his years in power there.

Saakashvili has dismissed the charges against him in both countries as trumped up.

"I don't consider myself a detainee, I consider myself a prisoner of war," he told journalists before the December 11 hearing.

The court was packed with journalists and lawmakers as the custody hearing for Saakashvili, who is also an ex-governor of Ukraine's Odesa region, which dragged on late into the evening of December 11.

A crowd of about 200 Saakashvili supporters earlier scuffled with police outside.

Saakashvili was detained late on December 8, after an initial attempt to place him in custody failed on December 5 when supporters crowded around a police vehicle where he was being held after a raid on his apartment and freed him. On December 9, prosecutors said they would ask a court to place him under house arrest with electronic monitoring pending trial.

WATCH: Saakashvili makes comments to journalists at his court appearance (in English)

On December 10, thousands of people demonstrated in central Kyiv to demand Saakashvilis release and to call for the impeachment or resignation of President Petro Poroshenko.

Ukrainian authorities say Saakashvili is suspected of abetting an alleged "criminal group" led by former President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia after his ouster in February 2014. They also have suggested that Saakashvilis protests are part of a Russian plot against Ukraine.

Calling himself Russian President Vladimir Putin's "biggest enemy in the post-Soviet space," Saakashvili said that his accusers "must be nuts."

He said he was "the person who took Russia's first strike" -- a reference to the five-day war in which Russian forces drove deep into Georgia in 2008, during his 2004-13 presidency in the South Caucasus country.

"I consider myself a prisoner of Ukrainian oligarchs," Saakashvili said in an apparent reference to Poroshenko, a chocolate-and-candy tycoon who critics say has not sufficiently divested himself of his business interests.

Saakashvili called for calm when police scuffled with supporters in the street outside and a smoke bomb was apparently thrown, saying that "we don't want confrontation."

Saakashvili's lawyer asked the judge to cancel the hearing, saying that his client had not been served papers about his case in person and in the presence of an attorney and contending that was illegal.

Former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who is also an opposition leader, was in the courthouse and likened Poroshenko to Yanukovych.

"You are jailing your opponents -- the way Yanukovych did. Keep in mind how it all ended," she said.

Saakashvili became governor of Ukraine's Odesa region in 2015 but quit a year later, accusing the authorities of sabotaging reform efforts in the region and nationwide. He is now a vocal opponent of Poroshenko, an acquaintance from the time when both attended university in Kyiv in the Soviet era.

Saakashvilis lawyer and supporters said on December 9 that the opposition leader had declared a hunger strike to protest his arrest.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, AP, Reuters, UNIAN, Interfax, TASS, and AFP
Will respect and work together with opposition parties: Oli

CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli has said that the left alliance, which is on the verge of winning a majority of the seats in the federal parliament and provincial assembly, will respect and work together with opposition parties.
Original Story  30th Nov

In the last 24 hours, a video has gone viral on the internet showing a few members of the staff at a Jeep India dealership beating up an aggrieved owner of a Jeep Compass.

The incident occurred in New Delhi when the owner, noted manufacturing defects in his new Jeep Compass vehicle. He approached the showroom where he was informed that the repairs would take around 15 days. Though the Jeep Compass was sent to Gurgaon for repairs, the issue could not be rectified and the SUV was sent back to the dealership at Moti Nagar, where it lay parked and unattended to.

The owner, on noting the neglected condition in which his Jeep Compass was lying in, got angry. He questioned the staff and vented his anger on them. Angry words and abuses followed and the video shows how the staff retaliated by getting violent with the owner. What happened next, was recorded on video by one of the friends of the owner. Watch the video below.

UPDATE 1  Jeep India dealership, Landmark Delhis statement  30th Nov

It is unfortunate that a video is being circulated on social media relating to an incident that took place in our Delhi branch of Jeep showroom. The video neither portrays nor provides the complete picture of the happenings. The incident had resulted as a consequence of unacceptable behaviour of the customer with some of the female staff in our organisation. This incident took place two months back i.e. on September 29, 2017 where the customer, during his discussion with our officials at Landmark showroom in Delhi, used extremely abusive language and also threatened the staff including the female front-desk manager.

Our officials tried to calm down the customer but the customer became even more aggressive and further continued using foul language in front of our ladies staff. As a prudent measure in such a scenario, our staff had immediately dialled 100 number and informed the situation to the Police Department. Thereafter, the police had come to our showroom to address the matter. Along with the customer, four Landmark officials visited the police station, where the matter was amicably settled and closed post apology from the customer. Having said this, We have already taken measures to address the non-acceptable behaviour displayed by Landmark officials and we do not tolerate such incidence being against our customers and the brands we represent. We strongly condemn any acts of such nature.

UPDATE 2  Jeep India dealership, Landmark Delhis statement  11th Dec

We refer to our statement that we had put up on our web-site on the 30th day of November, 2017 with regards to the video that displayed unacceptable behavior by the Landmark staff inside the Showroom. We completed our investigation and have terminated the services of the individuals who were seen breaching the Code of Conduct with our esteemed Customer. Our customers are of paramount importance to us and we strongly condemn any act of such nature, whatever be the cause of provocation.

Such behaviour is not acceptable to our organization. We stand for quality of customer service and its our endeavor to continue being committed to our customers in any situation. The unfortunate incident that took place due to members of our staff was unacceptable and against the policies and principles we stand for.

FCA Jeep India Statement  11th Dec

The unfortunate incident at our Delhi dealership has been thoroughly investigated with our Dealer Partner, Landmark Group and they have already taken disciplinary action against the offenders. We value our customers and are committed to treating every customer with utmost respect and courtesy, without exception. FCAs ethos has not and will never subscribe to, encourage or tolerate such offensive treatment to customers.
Following complaints from citizens, citing specifically modified silencers on board Royal Enfield Bullet motorcycles, traffic police in Pune, Mysore, Bengaluru and in some regions of Kerala, have started fining owners. Traffic police are stopping Royal Enfield riders and checking their vehicles for modifications. If these motorcycles are found with loud exhaust notes, offenders are being charged under Section 190 (2) of MVA.

Photo below was shared by Bangalore Police on Facebook. They had to say this  Special squad of @AcpSe traffic police has seized 11 bikes & fined them after removing their modified defective silencers.

Changes to the silencer, which causes a public nuisance, attracts a fine upto INR 1,000. In addition to this, traffic cops in Bangalore have started breaking the illegal exhausts on the spot. Below are the photos where a modified exhaust is being removed and being hammered on the spot.

While Bullet owners think owning an Enfield Bullet and modifying its sound as a status symbol, they are oblivious to the sound disturbance it causes. Deputy Commissioner of Pune Traffic Police, Sarang Awad initiated a noise pollution reduction drive last year.

Last month he started this drive for three days. On the first day, of the fine being introduced saw 43 cases being registered, while INR 11,200 was collected while on second day 88 cases were registered and INR 17,700 was collected. 3rd day saw 49 cases being registered with INR 7,300 collected as fines, bringing total fines to INR 36,200.

In Adugodi police station.. Posted by Sanil Kt on Sunday, 10 December 2017

Police crushing Royal Enfield silencers RE Owner  Can I know the status of my seized defective silencer ?BENGALURU CITY POLICE  Yes sure, status updated. Thank you! Posted by RushLane on Tuesday, 12 December 2017

Exhausts being crushed by special equipment!#rebc Posted by Royal Enfield Bullet CLUB on Monday, 11 December 2017

In a matter of three days, a total of INR 36,200 was collected in fines by the traffic police in Pune. This suggests that there are a large number of Royal Enfield users with illegal exhausts. Bangalore Police too is on a drive to remove such illegal exhausts from the Royal Enfield bikes. Traffic police are also on the lookout for garages where these bikes are being modified promising stern action and severe fines against them as well.
Man facing murder charge given 10 years for unrelated fatal crash

Travis Logan was given 10 years in prison this week for his role in a fatal Mishawaka crash from 2020. He still faces a murder charge from 2021.
Georgetown, SC (29440)

Today

Cloudy early with partial sunshine expected late. High 53F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds early will give way to generally clear conditions overnight. Low 31F. Winds light and variable.
Success!

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

On Nov. 11, 2017, the Sierra Nevada Corporation performed the successful free-flight test of the Dream Chaser space plane. Click the arrows at left to see photos from the successful test here. See video of the glide test here.

Free-Flying

NASA

The glide test success indicates the program is one step closer to orbital exercises.

Ready for Testing

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

The spacecraft was moved from inside the facility by a transport to prepare for the test.

Gear in Place

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

Apparatus attached atop the Dream Chaser enabled a helicopter to raise the craft for the release and flight.

Up and Away

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

The full scale Dream Chaser craft, shown here lifted by a Columbia Helicopters Model 234-UT Chinook helicopter, flew a pre-planned flight path after its release.

Safe and Secure

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

The successful test flight ended at Edwards Air Force Base on Runway 22L.

Big Plans

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

The first trip to the International Space Station for the Dream Chaser is planned for 2020.

Practicing for the Big Journey

Ken Ulbrich/NASA

The Dream Chaser is scheduled for at least six missions under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services 2 contract, beginning as early as 2020.

Proof

NASA

This atmosphere Free-Flight test verified the craft has the design and capabilities to return and land safely.

Free-Flight

NASA

Sierra Nevada Corporation's Dream Chaser has displayed the ability to provide safe and reliable orbital flight, according to corporate vice president, Mark Sirangelo.

Approaching the Runway

NASA

With NASA on board, Sierra Nevada Corporation will analyze the test data.
The $100 million Breakthrough Listen search for alien civilizations will use the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to track 'Oumuamua, the first-ever interstellar object found passing through the solar system.

Alien-hunting scientists are lending a (telescopic) ear to 'Oumuamua, a mysterious object recently spotted speeding through the solar system.

'Oumuamua, first detected in October with the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawaii, is the first likely visitor from interstellar space to ever be spotted in Earth's solar system. The object reached a peak speed of 196,000 mph (87.3 km/s). During its closest approach to Earth, also in October, the reddish, potentially cigar-shaped object passed by about 85 times the distance from Earth to the moon. It's up to a quarter-mile long (400 meters).

The global SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) program Breakthrough Listen, funded by Yuri Milner, a Silicon Valley technology investor, announced today (Dec. 11) it will turn the 100-meter (330 feet) Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to listen for potential alien signals from the object. ['Oumuamua: Our 1st Interstellar Visitor Explained in Photos]

Scientists have been intrigued by the reddish, elongated object because of its long and thin shape, which is unlike the asteroids and comets researchers have seen that are native to the solar system.

"Researchers working on long-distance space transportation have previously suggested that a cigar or needle shape [like 'Oumuamua exhibits] is the most likely architecture for an interstellar spacecraft, since this would minimize friction and damage from interstellar gas and dust," Breakthrough Listen representatives said in the statement. "While a natural origin is more likely, there is currently no consensus on what that origin might have been, and Breakthrough Listen is well positioned to explore the possibility that 'Oumuamua could be an artifact."

The telescope will begin observing the object tomorrow (Dec. 13) at 3 p.m. EST (2000 GMT) across four radio bands, from 1 to 12 GHz, and will observe over a total of 10 hours for its first phase, broken up into four segments based on the object's rotation.

At the object's current distance from Earth, it would take less than a minute for the telescope to detect a transmission with the power of a cellphone's, Breakthrough Listen representatives said.

Even without a signal, the telescope's radio inspection could reveal additional information about water or ice on the object, or a coma of gas surrounding it, neither of which have yet been spotted, they added.

"'Oumuamua's presence within our solar system affords Breakthrough Listen an opportunity to reach unprecedented sensitivities to possible artificial transmitters and demonstrate our ability to track nearby, fast-moving objects," Andrew Siemion, director of Berkeley SETI Research Center, said in the statement. "Whether this object turns out to be artificial or natural, it's a great target for Listen."

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
With Greys Anatomy coming back in just a few weeks I couldnt help but think of what Id love and not love to see in the second half of season 14. The first half was great and did deliver the lighter tone that the writers promised. However, with Jos major cliff-hanger in the winter finale I cant help but think it might turn slightly dark again and that brings me to my first wish:

1. For Jos abusive husbands storyline to wrap up quickly. With Matthew Morrisons return I cant help but worry about Jo. Right now, Paul is very unpredictable because we dont know the nature of his appearance; he could have found her to deal with the situation or unleash hell. I hope the storyline will wrap up quickly so that Jo faces the least amount of pain and drama.

2. A Jolex wedding. As a Jolex shipper for a while Ive been waiting for them to finally get married. Recently, there has been a lot of obstacles for them and a new one has just popped up but I really just want to see them finally happy without anything getting in the way.

3. More of Alex. Maybe its just been me but recently Ive noticed we dont seem to see as much of Alex as we used to. I absolutely love seeing him with patients, throughout the seasons we've seen how great he is with kids and I just want to see more of that.

4. Arizona to finally be in a serious relationship. Arizona recently really has been a character which has had no luck in the dating department; she got divorced, her girlfriend disappeared and the next one slept with Owen. With Sofia coming back to live with Arizona I think itd be great if we could see her finally get into a serious relationship with someone.

5. Amelia to finally be happy. If you havent noticed yet Im a sucker for happy endings and I know what youre thinking (happy endings are rare in Greys Anatomy) but at least for a short while I want Amelia to be happy. She has been through so much in her life and really has had bad luck. With her splitting up with Owen after they finally came to terms with how unhappy their marriage was I think its about time for her to live a drama free life for at least a few episodes.

6. April in charge. We have seen April in charge a few times and every single time she has done an amazing job. I think it is about time for her to take control even more because she really deserves too.

7. Learn more about the new interns. Throughout the first half of the season we got to meet the interns at work however we havent actually learned that much about them apart from a few things like they can be quite clumsy. Id love to find out a bit more about them and see them around more.

8. More standalone eps. Ive always loved the episodes that focus around a few characters like for example the episode where Arizona, Bailey and Jo went to a prison to treat a teenage inmate or when Jackson and April went to find Jacksons father in Montana. The episodes are always fun to watch and are also really interesting as a lot of the time we find out new things about the characters.

Now for the thing I am not hoping to see happen:

9. Jackson and Maggie. They have always been characters which have gotten along really well when they interacted, but Ive never been able to see them as anything more than just friends. For me, they lack a certain chemistry that they would need to make that work. And lets not forget that Jackson is Maggies step brother and Maggie is Jacksons step sister!

So, there's my list. Let me know if there is anything you would add or take away in the comments and don't forget to vote in the poll for your favourite wish!








Auserd (Refugee Camps), December 10, 2017 (SPS) - Participants in the 9th Congress of the Youth Union (UJSARIO) called for a speedy resolution of the decades-old Sahrawi issue and to put an end to the suffering of the Sahrawi people.

The participants called on Morocco to respect the founding declaration of the African Union, stressing that SADR is one of the founding members of the Union.

The participants condemned Morocco's failure to comply with international legitimacy, which recognizes the Sahrawi peoples right to exercise their right to self-determination and independence, while reaffirming their absolute and principled solidarity with their struggle and spreading the word about their just cause.

They also condemned the Moroccan regime's disregard for the human rights in occupied Western Sahara and the illegal exploitation of the territorys natural resources.

The works of the Congress continues for the third day and the electoral process is launched this evening for applications for the posts of Secretary-General and Executive Office of the Organization. (SPS)

062/SPS/TRA




D ishing up grass-fed steak baguettes to Dizzee Rascal, Pixie Lott and Sir Richard Branson was an auspicious curtain-raiser for premium online meat business Field & Flower when it launched in 2010.

The carnivorous venture  co-founded by two entrepreneurs called James, James Mansfield and James Flower  had only been going a few weeks when organisers at V Festival contacted them out of the blue to see whether they could cater the celebrity VIP area of the summer shindig.

It all happened very quickly, says Mansfield, sitting alongside Flower in their airy Wandsworth office.

They said we like your brand, do you want to do it? We got a few mates together and served pulled pork buns, steak baguettes and lamb wraps.

It was a flying start for the young company, founded a few months earlier when London-born Mansfield and Flower, a fifth-generation farmer from Somerset, decided to tap into the burgeoning e-commerce sector and offer premium meat from Flowers family farm in the Gordano Valley direct to the customers door.

The duo had been students together at Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester, outsiders in that largely tweed-jacketed world, and had decided early on to go into business after graduation.

I thought it would help the farm have a sustainable future, says Flower, who still lives in Somerset and commutes to London by train. I wanted to make it a sustainable business.

Buying one Hereford cow from Flowers dad, John, the duo tested out the idea by turning the bovine into about 40 meat boxes, which were sold on to friends and family.

They did more catering  Glastonbury and Real Food festivals across London followed  but knocked it on the head to focus solely on the online side of the business after the success of the trial run.

Seven years on and that move has paid off handsomely.

The company has just completed a landmark 880,000 fundraising round, the biggest thing weve ever done, they say, valuing Field & Flower at 9.75 million.

The group has a loyal fanbase  it has delivered to 19,000 homes across the UK since 2010, including orders to Buckingham Palace  and fans who keep coming back for the companys vast online emporium of meat, which stocks beef, chicken, pork, bacon, lamb, wild game, veal, mutton (and fish), all sent out in ice-packed boxes.

Now with Christmas approaching, Field & Flower is gearing up for a hectic period shipping out boxes to meat-hungry customers.

Christmas is the biggest time of the year. Our revenues quadruple, says Mansfield. Its a crazy time.

Theyve already chalked up orders for 600 turkeys and 10,000 pigs in blankets, and have been forced to add an extra delivery day to cope with demand, including a surge in popularity for goose.

The success has come from unlikely origins. After a seed-funding round in 2011, the duo built a tiny butchery near the farm fitted with old pharmaceutical fridges and recruited three more farms giving them access to chicken, lamb and pork.

They spent the next three years building the business with their bare hands  preparing the meat, wrapping it, packing the boxes and even delivering them sometimes.

At the start all you think about is delivering that set of boxes in that week and making sure youre not letting anyone down. Thats our philosophy, says Mansfield.

The duo are from different backgrounds but share a love of the countryside and farming.

Mansfield, 34, is the son of a radio executive.

Flower, 31, worked on the farm before going to agricultural college.

Mansfield worked at the Ivy as a waiter for a while before swerving into the agricultural sector, doing his final thesis on how to hang beef properly to make it more tender.

He spent the firms formative years as master meatballs roller, spending hours in the butchery getting meatball-making down to a fine art, while Flower focussed on the steaks and worked with the main butcher to dice up juicy cuts.

The big turning point came in 2014, when the company decided to outsource the butchery. They now work with about 15 farms, but still get some of their steak from Flower's family farm.

It helped us concentrate on growing the business and look at the product quality. It made it more viable, says Flower.

With the duo preparing to embark on an online marketing blitz, a new app and more hires next year with the new funding, perhaps it wont be long before those meat-loving celebs are on the phone again, tapping up some more of that delicious steak.
A recent High Court ruling put supermarket group Morrisons at the forefront of technological debate.

It is not a position the grocer is accustomed to: it only started to take online grocery orders four years ago.

But a case in which it was found liable for a former employee leaking the personal details of its staff shows that data  its collection, storage and use  is an issue that is soaring up the boardroom agenda everywhere.

Morrisons was unlucky. A disaffected IT worker posted payroll information of almost 100,000 of his colleagues online. He was jailed in 2015 for his actions but 5500 present and former staff banded together in the UKs first data protection class action in pursuit of compensation.

The judge found that Morrisons had adequate internal controls in place but should still take secondary liability for what happened. It is appealing, but whether it is successful or not, the judgment highlights that the responsibility for data protection lies squarely with the organisations that hold it.

It is a timely reminder because smart data use will lie at the heart of many businesses in the future. The essential workforce co-ordinates  salary, National Insurance number, date of birth and bank account details  have merely moved from filing cabinet to hard drive and maybe now into the cloud over recent decades.

But the opportunities that exist from the clever mining of reams of figures to drive profits have multiplied many times over.

From May, the UK must comply with the European Unions General Data Protection Regulation. That means an overdue upgrade of the Data Protection Act which mostly dates back to 1998  the year Google was set up.

New rules will make life harder for any company looking after consumer data, which in practice is almost any company. Rather than blaming sophisticated criminals, firms will have to prove they have done enough to protect against cyberattacks such as WannaCry and Petya, or face higher fines.

At the moment, the financial penalty for data security failings is about as severe as the punishment meted out for a dodgy audit by the Financial Reporting Council.

It will go up, to the higher of 17 million or 4% of a companys global turnover, but the idea that multi-million pound fines will become a common occurrence is far-fetched.

However, broadband provider TalkTalk would surely have to pay much more than the 400,000 it was hit with after suffering a major hack two years ago.

There are likely to be similar moves in the US, where politicians are probing the consumer credit checking firms after the blockbuster Equifax data breach.

If the value of data is being inflated in the eyes of the law, it should be in the eyes of the consumer who too often gives too much away without thinking. The Morrisons workers had the right idea, equating the chance of identity theft to demands for a payout.

Businesses have long recognised the value of data: one of this years buzz phrases, Data is the new oil, has investors almost as excited as they are about bitcoin. Can data really become a valuable resource to power the economy long after fossil fuels have run out? For a country whose North Sea riches are behind it, we had better hope so.

Perhaps data can be even more valuable because it can be used over and over, whereas oil burns once. There is plenty to drill into because global internet traffic is growing by a quarter every year.

There is a land grab for personal information going on. A good example is Experian, the FTSE 100 credit checker, which has signed up three million UK consumers to a free credit score tracker.

But Experian is a data amateur compared with Facebook. The social media giants $10 billion (7.5 billion) revenues last quarter works out at 5.50 for each of its 1.37 billion users who check for updates at least once a day.

The human race has proved to be an extremely cheap resource in building a business set up only 13 years ago that now has a market value of $525 billion.

Of course, Facebook users may regard surrendering reams of personal data as a fair price for keeping in touch with friends and the world at large at the touch of a smartphone. They claim to know what they are consenting to, although very few will have read the websites extensive terms and conditions.

Such a commercial trade-off is not new, whether it is the advertising break that interrupts a TV programme or the free bank account that pays no interest on deposits.

What is different with data is we are still in the foothills of how a new industry will develop. Privacy, security and ownership are all areas to be fought over if the digital economy is to work for everyone.
H eathrow and Gatwick airports took a break from battling snow and ice on Monday to boast record-breaking passenger numbers for November.

Scores of Brits have faced flight cancellations and delays after the capital was covered in snow yesterday. But airports in the South-East spoke of warmer climates as they revealed that latest figures were boosted by travellers heading to Latin America and Asia.

The number of passengers passing through Heathrow last month hit 5.9 million  up 3.5% from a year earlier, strengthening its case for a third runway.

Europes busiest airport said Latin America was its fastest-growing market, helped by new British Airways flights to Santiago in Chile.

Trips to Asia also increased, thanks to the start of a daily 787 Dreamliner service by Japan Airlines, and additional flights by Jet Airways to Mumbai and China Southern to Guangzhou.

Cargo volumes increased 12% to 154,000 metric tonnes.

At Gatwick, passenger numbers rose 2.1% to almost 2.9 million in November.

It said St Lucia, Liberia and Costa Rica were the winter sun destinations experiencing the fastest customer growth in the month. Travellers heading to Hong Kong also surged.
A t a time when the position of the City is profoundly affected by the outcome of the Brexit deal, what does Labour do? It lets it be known that it is considering, if the party gains power, relocating most of the Bank of Englands functions  and possibly the Governor too  to ... Birmingham. The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, has engaged consultants to consider this non-urgent question and their new report says keeping the Bank in Threadneedle Street is unsatisfactory and leads to the regions being underweighted in policy decisions. So it is proposing to relocate some functions to Birmingham, next to Labours proposed new National Investment Bank and Strategic Investment Board. This would, it says, provide a clear, visible example of a new governments determination to promote growth...

What it actually would signal is a blithe indifference to reality. It would be a pointless gesture with a long-term cost: the bank would become detached from the financial system. This was precisely one of the problems in 2008.

What matters about the Bank is less its location than its policies. And the Bank, independent of government, has made employment and investment across Britain a priority. It has excellent representatives in the regions; its decisions are not skewed by being based in London.

What its location does provide  besides the invaluable attribute of historic continuity over 300 years  is proximity to the financial institutions that it supervises. Even nowadays physical closeness to those institutions, and the people who run them, matters. It simply would not be possible from Birmingham. It is, moreover, questionable whether the best financial talent would be prepared to relocate there. The Bank is a powerfully symbolic institution. If it were forced to leave Threadneedle Street it would lose practical influence and symbolic gravitas. Labour once sought to make its policies more friendly to the City; how it has changed.

Security for EU citizens

I want you to stay. The millions of EU citizens living in the UK will welcome the positive and personal message in the Prime Ministers open letter to them on these pages today. This paper argued that exactly this offer of settled status for EU citizens here could have been offered more than a year ago as an act of both generosity and national self-interest. It was right for Theresa May to acknowledge today that the delay has caused real anxiety.

Still, the recognition now that these Europeans have enriched our country in every sense, that their future is assured, that their families can join them and they can have full access to our social protection, is encouraging. To remove any remaining anxiety, two further things would help: first, the Government must fulfil the PMs promise that the registration system will indeed be transparent, smooth and streamlined; and second, the PM should confirm that this offer is in no way contingent on a final agreement with the EU, and stands even if (unlikely as it is) the overall deal collapses.

Guarding the royals

Scotland Yard has reorganised the way the royal family is guarded. It now provides armed protection officers from a pool on a rota system, which means the royal family and the police who guard them are unable to develop a relationship of trust. As we report today, the Queen has expressed concern about the change. Of course the police will keep the royal family safe but it helps for both parties if there is continuity in the people involved. The Met should think again.
N azanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe spent yesterday making a birthday card with her three-year-old daughter Gabriella. There was glitter and lots of hearts. It was for Nazanins mother, whose birthday is today, and Gabriella said she would hide it so it would be a surprise. There was just one problem with that: it was made in front of Granny.

The family were in Evin prison in Tehran, where Nazanin is incarcerated. Yesterday, though, she wasnt supposed to be playing with Gabriella; she was supposed to be in an Iranian court for another sham trial. Shed have had to face the interrogators who had held her in solitary confinement. Her lawyer, whom she hasnt been allowed to meet, would have been prevented from entering court. Nazanin would have had her sentence extended.

The hearing is deferred rather than cancelled but its a reprieve that has left Nazanins family more optimistic. It came after Foreign Secretary

Boris Johnson visited Iran this weekend to raise her case with officials. This wasnt a perfect visit  Johnson didnt meet anyone in the judiciary and the Iranian press have painted it as a failure  but the ultra-cautious Foreign Office staff imply that it went better than expected.

Richard Ratcliffe, Nazanins husband, told me last night that he feels theres a chance shell be home for Christmas. I first met him in May 2016, six weeks after his wife was arrested in Iran on spurious charges that she was trying to overthrow the regime. This is not a story where it has been possible to maintain journalistic detachment: I have seen Richard blink back tears too many times. His love for his wife has kept him campaigning but this is a man who is exhausted and who has had his life ripped apart.

His lowest moment came last month when Johnson said erroneously that Nazanin had been training journalists, a remark which was seized on by the Iranian regime. Johnson has since apologised and demonstrated that he wants to rectify his mistake. He couldnt meet Nazanin, but he discussed her case with President Hassan Rouhani.

The problem is that the Iranian state has a dual power structure, and it is the Revolutionary Guard (whom Johnson could not meet) who will determine whether Nazanin is freed.

The Iranians will have used this opportunity to raise their own concerns: about the 2015 nuclear deal; about President Trump recognising Jerusalem as the Israeli capital; about a decades-old debt the UK owes Iran. Addressing this is part of a relationship-building exercise that could be the key to unlock Nazanins cell.

It has taken 19 months for her case to become a priority for our government. But as Tulip Siddiq, the familys MP, told me yesterday, this isnt a time for complacency or pre-emptive celebrations: Johnson will only get to be the hero when Nazanin touches down at Heathrow.

Richard hasnt allowed himself to make Christmas plans, but he promised Nazanin yesterday that they would buy a tree together.

I can only pray that he gets to fulfil that promise.

The battle between Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan was really a class war

Tonya Harding was a villainess of my childhood. The media portrayal of the former American figure skater left me with an image of her bashing her rival Nancy Kerrigan, despite the fact that she never wielded that baton. So the film I, Tonya, in which Margot Robbie gives an Oscar nod-worthy performance as Harding, passes the test of a great biopic: it changed my view of its protagonist.

It is only superficially a film about ice-skating; its really about class, abuse and truth. Harding, a self-professed redneck with a series of diabolical perms, isnt accepted into the snobby world of ice-skating where the girls own furs and act like beauty pageant contestants. Harding may be the queen of the triple axel but shes still judged for not belonging to a wholesome American family.

This is a prism through which violence against her is seen. Harding is beaten by her mother and husband yet no one considers her a victim. As Robbies Harding puts it: Nancy gets hit one time, and the whole world shits. For me, its an all-the-time occurrence!

But the film goes further, suggesting everyone who obsessed over this story became complicit in cruelty against Harding. A sensationalist media wanted a simple narrative: a beautiful young woman (Kerrigan) has her dream ripped apart by trailer-park trash (Harding). Public opinion was moulded by this coverage.

Despite being mostly set in the Nineties this makes I, Tonya feel apt for our post-truth present. Every character is an unreliable narrator. Or as Harding breaks the fourth wall to tell us: Theres no such thing as truth  everyone has their own truth.


D ear EU citizens,

As Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, I am proud that more than three million of you, EU citizens, have chosen to make your homes and livelihoods here in our country. I greatly value the depth of the contributions you make  enriching every part of our economy, our society, our culture and our national life. I know our country would be poorer if you left and I want you to stay.

So from the very beginning of the UKs negotiations to leave the European Union I have consistently said that protecting your rights  together with the rights of UK nationals living in EU countries  has been my first priority.

You made your decision to live here without any expectation that the UK would leave the EU. So I have said that I want you to be able to carry on living your lives as before. But I know that on an issue of such significance for you and your families there has been an underlying anxiety that could be only addressed when the fine details of some very complex and technical issues had been worked through and the foundations for a formal agreement secured.

So I am delighted that in concluding the first phase of the negotiations that is exactly what we have achieved.

The details are set out in the Joint Report on progress published on Friday by the UK government and the European Commission.

When we leave the European Union, you will have your rights written into UK law. This will be done through the Withdrawal Agreement and Implementation Bill, which we will bring forward after we have completed negotiations on the Withdrawal Agreement itself.

Theresa May: Brexit agreement guarantees 'no hard border' in Ireland

Your rights will then be enforced by UK courts. Where appropriate, our courts will pay due regard to relevant European Court of Justice case law, and we have also agreed that for a period of eight years  where existing case law is not clear  our courts will be able to choose to ask the ECJ for an interpretation prior to reaching their own decision. So as we take back control of our laws, you can be confident not only that your rights will be protected in our courts but that there will be a consistent interpretation of these rights in the UK and in the European Union.

We have agreed with the European Commission that we will introduce a new settled status scheme under UK law for EU citizens and their family members covered by the Withdrawal Agreement.

If you already have five years of continuous residence in the UK at the point we leave the EU  on March 29, 2019  you will be eligible for settled status. And if you have been here for less than five years you will be able to stay until you have reached the five-year threshold.

As a result of the agreement we have reached in the negotiations, with settled status, your close family members will be free to join you here in the UK after we have left the EU. This includes existing spouses, unmarried partners, children, dependent parents and grandparents as well as children born or adopted outside the UK after March 29, 2019.

Your healthcare rights, pension and other benefit provisions will remain the same as they are today. This means that those of you who have paid into the UK system  and, indeed, UK nationals who have paid into the system of an EU member state  can benefit from what you have put in and continue to benefit from existing co-ordination rules for future contributions.

We have also agreed to protect the rights of those who are in a cross-border situation at the point of our withdrawal and entitled to a UK European Health Insurance Card. This includes, for example, tourists for the duration of their stay, students for the duration of their course and UK nationals resident in another EU member state.

The agreement we have reached includes reciprocal rules to protect existing decisions to recognise professional qualifications  for example, for doctors and architects. And it also enables you to be absent from the UK for up to five years without losing your settled status  more than double the period allowed under current EU law.

There will be a transparent, smooth and streamlined process to enable you to apply for settled status from the second half of next year. It will cost no more than applying for a passport. And if you already have a valid permanent resident document you will be able to have your status converted to settled status free of charge.

We are also working closely with Switzerland and European Economic Area (EEA) member states to ensure their citizens in the UK also benefit from these arrangements.

I have spent many hours discussing these issues with all of the other 27 EU leaders over the past 18 months as well as with Mr Juncker, President of the European Commission, European Council President Tusk and the EUs chief negotiator, Michel Barnier. I am confident that when the European Council meets later this week it will proceed on this basis. And I will do everything I can to ensure that we do.

So right now, you do not have to do anything at all. You can look forward, safe in the knowledge that there is now a detailed agreement on the table in which the UK and the EU have set out how we intend to preserve your rights  as well as the rights of UK nationals living in EU countries. For we have ensured that these negotiations put people first. That is what I promised to do and that is what I will continue to do at every stage of this process.

I wish you and all your families a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Yours, Theresa May
Since news broke of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement two weeks ago, the world's insatiable appetite for replicating the royal look found a new direction.

Unlike the Duchess of Cambridge's famous blue sapphire, Markle's engagement ring has struck the fine balance between sentimentality and modernity with the trilogy design welcoming a modest touch of bling.

Comprised of one centre stone from Botswana - a place of special significance to the couple - and two diamonds from Harry's mother Princess Diana's personal collection, the ring sparkles atop a classic yellow gold band.

Of course, the 'Meghan effect' - which saw demand for the white coat she wore to announce her engagement crash websites - is in full swing, rendering fans in the market for such a ring longing for a similar design.

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And while many similar designs are available, the jewellery designer who worked with Prince Harry on the official ring will not be taking orders for anything similar.

Stephen Connelly, director of Cleave and Company, told The Associated Press: "Were not going to be making replicas of it. If you want a ring, then well design you a different one."

David Thomas, a former Crown Jeweller who looked after the royal familys jewels and now works with Cleave and Company, said working on the ring was the biggest and hardest secret hes had to keep in his life.

Admitting that he has been bombarded by press with queries as to the ring's price, Thomas said: "Jewellers are like doctors: we never discuss our patients."
D eutsche Bank today became the latest company to step up and support the Evening Standard by pledging to back our appeal partner StreetSmart.

The global banking and financial services company has committed to covering all StreetSmarts administration costs so every penny the charity raises will go directly to its work supporting deprived people in London and in projects across Britain throughout 2018.

It is the 11th year in a row that the bank has supported StreetSmart.

We are hugely grateful to Deutsche Bank  but not just for the money, said Glenn Pougnet, StreetSmarts director. Their partnership has helped raise awareness of the charity and guided our focus towards tackling the underlying causes of homelessness.

Among the projects that Deutsche Banks support will help is the New Horizon youth centre in Euston.

It has provided counselling and support, medical care, housing advice, training and education to 350 homeless and vulnerable young people this year. StreetSmart funds its Weekend Project, which provides literacy training and vocational guidance.

Deutsche Bank chief executive John Cryan said: At a time when many of us are at home with family and friends, it is only right that we do what we can to help others who are less fortunate.

He also called on Londoners to back its fundraising restaurant scheme. Until the end of this month, 390 of the capitals finest restaurants  including Coq DArgent, Gymkhana and MEATliquor  will add an optional 1 to diners bills to help fund StreetSmart and The Felix Project, the subject of this years Evening Standard Christmas appeal.

The Felix Project is working with this newspaper to ensure disadvantaged primary school children in London have access to nutritious food at the end of the day.

Help a Hungry Child: The Evening Standard campaign with The Felix Project

StreetSmarts supporters include chef Monica Galetti, who runs Mere restaurant. She said: Anything we can do to alleviate the pain of homelessness is worthwhile. With StreetSmart it is so easy and 100 per cent of the money goes direct to people most in need.

Here are the ways you can donate to our Christmas appeal:

Call  08000 639281 (freephone)

Text  FELIX 5 to 70700

Visit  The JustGiving page

Post  Freepost HELP A HUNGRY CHILD
T here is nothing quite like taking some time to yourself and enjoying a decadent spa day, where you can hunker down in a fluffy robe and let your only concern be whether to sauna or steam next.

But with London so saturated with sanctuaries  how to decipher the good from the great? Well, weve taken one for the team and done the hard work for you, with a round-up of Londons most luxurious spas below.

Whether youre looking for a deep tissue massage to iron out WFH-induced aches and pains, want to revive an exhausted complexion (who can blame you) or are just after some much needed me time in a serene subterranean bubble, the perfect destination awaits.

The Peak Fitness Club and Spa at The Carlton Tower Jumeirah

Jumeirah

It takes some doing to stand out from Londons already exceptional hotel spa offerings, but The Peak at the rebranded and expensively renovated The Carlton Tower in Knightsbridge (its undergone a 100 million refurb) is a triumph. Float in the 20-metre pool overlooking Londons skyline, lounge in one of the supremely comfy cabanas or take centre stage in the raised Jacuzzi. That would be enough to rid you of any lingering city tension. Need more? Facials and massages are done using 111SKIN, Omorovicza and Aromatherapy Associates and wellness therapies on offer include osteopathy, acupuncture and craniosacral therapy. But its the Signature Collection of massage treatments that will truly make you melt away. Special mention goes to The Metropolitan Escape, a two-hour top-to-toe treatment involving a full body massage and a tightening facial using ice-cool derma globes to boost skin elasticity and firmness. Its an almost spiritual experience.

Cost: Metropolitan Escape, two hours, 260

Location: 1 Cadogan Pl, London SW1X 9PY, jumeirah.com

Four Seasons Spa, Park Lane

The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel London Park Lane

Perched high up on the 10th floor, the fabulous Four Seasons Spa on Park Lane boasts unbeatable views across Hyde Park, which can be enjoyed from one of the nine luxury treatment rooms that feature floor-to-ceiling windows. Feeling regal? Indulge your inner queen with Penhaligons Royal Relaxation Massage, which involves an all-over application of the brands new deeply luxurious body oils, followed by the Four Seasons signature massage. Choose from the Bed of Roses massage inspired by the fragrance housess iconic Halfeti scent, or Enchanting Voyage massage inspired by Empressa. Youll leave smelling (and feeling) divine.

Cost: from 155 per person for the Penhaligons Royal Relaxation Massage (60 minutes).

Location: Park Lane, Central London; fourseasons.com

Aire Ancient Baths

Aire Ancient Baths

Set beneath an 18th-century neoclassical building steps away from Covent Garden, Aire Ancient Bath is a roman-style spa complete with a maze of turquoise pools framed by exposed brick arches . Aire opened its first thermal bath house in Seville 20 years ago and has since opened seven more, in places like New York, Barcelona and Copenhagen. This is the first in the UK. The wellness ritual is designed to soothe body and mind by exposure to different water temperatures. There are seven thermal baths, including a tepidarium (36C), caldarium or hot water bath (40C), chilly frigidarium (14C and 10C), vaporium (steam room), balneum (jet pool) and flotarium (salt bath). Upstairs massages are on offer, and, if youre feeling flush, you can even unwind in a bath of rioja here.

Cost: From 90 for the 90 minute experience (massages are charged as extra).

Location: 2-3 Robert Street, London, WC2N 6BH, beaire.com

The Spa at the Mandarin Oriental

The spa at the Mandarin Oriental

The spa at the Mandarin Oriental in Hyde Park underwent a multi-million pound refurb before reopening in 2018, and is now arguably Londons most luxurious. Fancy features include an amethyst crystal steam room, 17-metre twin lane swimming pool, vitality pool and samarium, alongside 13 treatment rooms and the Oriental Suite, complete with an impressive Rasul water temple - a tiled steam room used for heat and mud therapies - thats perfect for indulgent couples therapies. Be sure to arrive 45 minutes ahead of your appointment to enjoy full use of the facilities.

Cost: 410 pp for the Water Wellness luxurious Oriental bathing and massage experience (2 hours 30 minutes).

Location: Hyde Park, mandarinoriental.com

The Retreat at The Londoner

The Retreat at The Londoner

Tucked away four floors beneath the hustle and bustle of Leicester Square, The Retreat is a serene subterranean spa at newly opened The Londoner hotel where guests, day spa guests and spa members can escape the city and unwind in the tranquil pool, have a snooze in the poolside cabanas and indulge in well-earned pampering. Grab your best pal and book in for one of the spa packages. The Fix includes full access to the spa facilities  including gym, sauna and steam room  for two people, plus a 30-minute back massage with organic ila products and 30-minute Omorovicza signature facial each. Just what the doctor ordered.

Cost: 210 for two people receiving 60-minute treatments each

Location: 38 Leicester Square, London WC2H 7DX, thelondoner.com

Pan Pacific London

Pan Pacific London / Jack Hardy

Pan Pacific London is a sprawling new Singaporean-inspired hotel that has just opened off Bishopsgate, with an entire 1,083m floor dedicated to wellness, featuring a gym, mindfulness studio, sauna and steam room, as well as an 18.5m-infinity pool with panoramic views of the bustling city below, where auqa bike and barre classes are all on offer. Treatments on the menu fuse South East Asian traditions and cater to all kinds of concerns. Weary travellers can book in for flight mode recovery, for example, while the Holistic Oil Massage involves an oil mixing experience to create a bespoke blend, combined with Thai and Balinese acupressure techniques and deep tissue kneading to promote blood circulation and reinvigorate the senses.

Cost: 145 for the Pan Pacific Holistic Oil Massage (60 minutes).

Location: 80 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AB, panpacific.com

The Spa at the Bulgari Hotel

Press

One of the largest in London, a visit to the Bulgari spa in Knightsbridge is a rather glamorous affair. Spread across two storeys, it boasts fitness rooms, steam rooms, saunas, ice showers (for the bravest of souls) and a serene 25m swimming pool surrounded by wooden cabanas. There are 11 treatment rooms, a private spa suite and decadent relaxation room with a dramatic vertical fireplace to nestle down next to after treatments.

Cost: 160 for Dramatic Healing Massage (60 mins).

Location: Knightsbridge; bulgarihotels.com

The Ned SPA Cowshed

Following all Soho House group traditions, The Neds spa offers a range of deeply relaxing Cowshed treatments, mani-pedis and the chance to get your back and sides done at Neds Barber. Built around a 20m pool, surrounded by marble columns, and featuring a traditional Moroccan hammam, the space is a welcome - and rather grand - retreat in the centre of The City. While non-members are welcome for treatments, spa facilities are currently restricted to Ned Club members and hotel guests only.

Cost: 160 for Deep Tissue Massage (60 minutes).

Location: City of London; thened.com

The Bamford Wellness Spa at The Berkeley

The Bamford Wellness Spa at The Berkeley

Wellness brand Moss of the Isles is hosting a pop-up at The Bamford Wellness Spa at The Berkeley in Belgravia, offering 60 and 90 minute full-body treatments with its nourishing vegan products that harness healing ingredients from across Ireland and the British Isles, such as moss, peat, rosemary, horse chestnut, poppy seed, Scottish dulce seaweed and heather. Choose from cleansing massages to lymphatic drainage treatments with all-over body-brush, or treat youreself and opt for the full-blown signature face and body wellness experience.

Cost: from 150 for a 60-minute treatment.

Location: Knightsbridge, ishga.com; the-berkeley.co.uk

Taj Hotel Jiva Spa

Jiva Spa

Taj opened its first Jiva spa in Europe last year in the heart of Londons Westminster - so it still feels brand-spanking new. The spa takes inspiration from ancient Indian wellness philosophies, offering a menu of body rituals and facials which blend traditional healing techniques and use luxurious Temple Spa products. Unwind in between treatments in the atmospheric vitality pool or break a sweat in the fitness suite.

Cost: 180 for the Vishrama deep muscular experience (120 minutes).

Location: St. James Court, A TAJ Hotel, stjamescourthotel.co.uk

Sofitel London St James

Sofitel London St James hotel

Sofitel London St James has teamed up with PI Studio to launch a wellbeing package with a difference: Styling In The City. The treat for two combines a two-hour confidence-boosting colour analysis with the visual branding consultancy to help you discover the shades that most complement your natural colouring and complexion; followed by a 50-minute facial or massage; all finished off with a night to remember in a luxurious room or suite with views across the city.

Cost: from 750 including an overnight stay for two in a superior room.

Location: St James; sofitelstjames.com

The Lanesborough Club & Spa

The Lanesborough Hotels swanky spa in Knightsbridge offers fantastic facilities (and some of the most grammable changing rooms weve seen), but its open to members only (aside from hotel guests). Membership costs from 3,500/year or 300/month, plus a joining fee from 1,000. Inside, theres a vast gym with every machine you can think of; a cold mist, mint-infused shower, to cool you down post-workout; thermal suites and hydrotherapy pools to unwind in; as well as a dedicated parlour offering top notch manis.

Cost: 205 for the Deep Tissue Potali (90 minutes).

Location: Knightsbridge; lanesboroughclubandspa.com

Akasha at Hotel Cafe Royal

A couple of floors below the hustle and bustle of Piccadilly Circus sits Hotel Cafe Royals opulent spa. Making your way down the stairs, youll enter what feels like a spacious marble vault - this is total escapism territory. In addition to a menu of body treatments and facials, the spa offers holistic therapies such as reflexology and reiki, and boasts a serene low-lit pool and jacuzzi. Feeling decadent? The Opulent Seclusion Experience begins in your very own marble whirlpool bath with a glass of champagne and is followed by a deeply relaxing 60-minute Ultimate Aromatherapy Associates massage or facial.

Cost: 225 for the Opulent Seclusion Experience (90 minutes).

Location: Piccadilly Circus; hotelcaferoyal.com

House of Elemis

Tucked away in the backstreets of Mayfair, the House of Elemis, a beautiful day spa offering top-notch facials and body treatments, reopens on April 14. The brand has launched a new No Touch Facial that combines tech and safe-touch tools like cooling wands, spatulas and a face mitt, with BIOTEC products to bring your skin back to life. Choose from the Hydra-firm or Resurfacer.

Cost: 125 for the No Touch Facial (60 minutes).

Location: Mayfair; elemis.com

ESPA Life at Corinthia hotel

Press

Spread over four floors in the heart of London, ESPA Life has a futuristic feel, with wave-style corridors and sleep pods which replace traditional daybeds in the relaxation room. Treat yourself to the Resilience Ritual which includes a hot stone massage, manual lymphatic drainage, an algae body wrap and scalp massage - just what the doctor ordered.

Cost: 320 for the Resilience Ritual (120 minutes).

Location: Embankment; espalifeatcorinthia.com

Cloud Twelve

Cloud Twelves Dolomite quartz beds

Over in Notting Hill, Cloud Twelve is a wellness and lifestyle club set across three floors. Theres a salon, spa and holistic wellness clinic, plus a healthy brasserie and creche. Treatments include drawl-worthy massages, facials, pre and post-natal rituals and treatments specifically designed for men. Book into the couples suite to chill out on the Dolomites quartz beds and enjoy the sauna, steam and Himalayan salt rooms.

Cost: 180 for the Cloud Twelve Signature Deep Relief CBD massage (60 minutes).

Location: Notting Hill, cloudtwelve.co.uk

The Spa At The Dorchester

Press

With Art Deco-inspired interiors, The Dorchesters spa oozes 1930s glamour with a modern edge. From manicures to full-body scrubs their treatment list is extensive and all are highly tailored to clients needs. Facilities include a mani-pedi suite, relaxation room, and male and female aromatic steam rooms and experience showers. The spa will also reopen on May 17.

Cost: 130 for the Aromatherapy Associates Deep Cleanse Facial (60 minutes).

Location: Park Lane; dorchestercollection.com

Agua Spa at Sea Containers

Press

Sat on Londons South Bank, Agua oozes Hollywood glamour and offers a menu of highly personalised holistic treatments. There are six private treatment rooms, including a couples suite, a nail and grooming lounge, as well as separate male and female steam rooms with rain showers. Book in for the Advanced Bodywork treatment, which combines deep tissue and sports massage with myofascial and Thai stretching, to banish WFH-induced aches and pains fast.

Cost: from 110 for the Advanced Bodywork Massage (60 minutes).

Location: South Bank; seacontainerslondon.com

Sense Spa at Rosewood London

Press

Sense Spas cosy, candlelit space featuring bamboo walls and soothing water sounds, offers a real retreat from the city. In need of a detox? Book in for the Epsom salt-rich full-body treatment which includes a magnesium sulphate salt scrub to exfoliate and help draw out toxins, followed by a deep massage with detox oils containing juniper, grapefruit and geranium. Pure bliss.

Cost: 170 for the Detoxifying Body Ritual (90 minutes); The Sleep Transformation retreat (two-night retreat) costs from 4,259 for one person per night and from 5,679 for two people per night.

Location: Holborn; rosewoodhotels.com

The Spa at Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square

Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square

For anyone based East or working in The City, Four Seasons Ten Trinity is conveniently located next to the Tower of London and has an excellent five star spa complete with eight treatment rooms, a couples suite and hammam. The Spa has partnered with eco beauty brand Voya on a range of restorative treatments inspired by Roman bathing rituals, which would have taken place just outside nearby Ten Trinity Square at the main Londinium bathhouse. We recommend the warm spiced mud wrap, which is infused with sweet smelling ginger and orange. A serious detoxifier and metabolism stimulator, youll emerge toned and glowing. Follow your treatment with afternoon tea or an early evening drink in the Thames Penthouse restaurant, which has stunning views overlooking the river and Tower Bridge.

Cost: A four-hour spa pass costs 100, while 60-minute massages start from 130.

Location: Tower Hill, fourseasons.com/tentrinity
H anukkah is one of the most joyous occasions in the Jewish calendar, during which time Jews all over the world celebrate the eight-day festival of lights.

Also known as Chanukkah, it's a time to enjoy food and time with family.

But what is the story behind the Jewish holiday and why is it celebrated and observed? Here's everything you need to know:

When is Hanukkah?

The date for Hanukkah changes every year, with the Jewish calendar being lunisolar. It does however always fall between late November and December, four days before the new moon. The Hebrew calendar date is 25 Kislev.

This year it will begin on the evening of Sunday December 2 and conclude on Monday December 10.

What is the story behind Hanukkah?

Hanukkah commemorates the victory of a Jewish rebel army, the Maccabees, over the Seleucids (an ancient Hellenistic empire that ruled much of the Middle East) in 165 BCE and the subsequent re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem that had been desecrated.

Dr Maria Diemling, Reader in Jewish-Christian Relations, based at Canterbury Christ Church University told the Standard: The historical context is the struggle between tradition and assimilation, a recurrent theme in Jewish history.

According to Jewish tradition, it celebrates a miracle: inside the Temple, the Maccabees found enough consecrated oil to light the eternal flame in the Temple for a single day but miraculously the oil lasted for eight days, long enough to produce new oil.

This is the reason why Hanukkah is celebrated over eight days.

How is Hanukkah observed?

Mainly observed at home with the family, it involves lighting candles on the Hanukkiah' (or 'Hanukkah menorah') which is a special nine-branched candleholder. The ninth candle is the servant who is used to light the other eight candles.

Celebrations also include eating food fried in oil  referring to the oil of the miracle  playing games and giving little gifts to children.

Dr Diemling added: Children often make candleholders in Jewish settings (nursery, schools) and take them home. The lit Hanukkiah is often placed close to a window to announce the miracle of Hanukkah to the outside world.

A driedel / AFP/Getty Images

How do families celebrate Hanukkah?

The candles on the menorah will be lit each day in order (one candle on the first day, two on the second and so on), and the family will sing traditional songs, eat and spin the dreidel.

A driedel, Dr Diemling explained, is a four-sided spinning top that has different Hebrew letters on each side, forming the first letters of the Hebrew sentence for A great miracle happened there. Players play for money or sweets and lose or gain depending on which letter turns up when they spin the dreidel. Inviting others for the candle-lighting and food is also common.

What food is traditionally eaten over Hanukkah?

Dr Diemling explained: Food is always an important part of Jewish holidays and celebrations! Traditionally, food fried in oil (referencing the oil miracle) is eaten. These depend on the ethnic origin of the family but common are latkes' (potato pancakes) served with applesauce and sour cream and doughnuts (sufganyot) filled with jam, dulce de leche etc.

Sufganyot / Getty Images

The tradition is to eat food fried in oil but in different Jewish cultures different foods are being eaten: Italian Jewish families, for example, prepare dishes like fried chicken (marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, nutmeg and garlic, then covered in flour and egg before frying), mashed potato pancakes (unlike the latkes mentioned before covered in breadcrumbs), olive oil fried aubergines and honey-soaked dough fritters.

Sufganiyot Ricotta Doughnuts by Ali Alt

Does Hanukkah involve gifting presents?

Children were traditionally gifted money (gelt in Yiddish) and now chocolate coins are traditionally given.

It has become quite common to give presents on each of the eight days. Some Jewish parents feel that they dont want to their children to miss out compared to children who celebrate Christmas, particularly in countries like the UK or US where there is such a long general build-up towards Christmas and where presents play such an important role, Dr Diemling said.

Many Jewish families give to charity on Hanukkah and also encourage their children to give some of their Hanukkah money to charity.

How widely celebrated is Hanukkah in the UK?

Hanukkah is a post-biblical holiday, Dr Diemling explained. It was therefore traditionally for centuries a relatively minor Jewish holiday but I would say that it is now commonly observed by Jewish families in the UK, including many secular Jewish families.
A jealous shop assistant who stabbed to death her ex-boyfriend after finding out he was dating another woman has been jailed for life.

Hasna Begum, 25, flew into a rage and stabbed Pietro Sanna 36 times before leaving him for dead on his bedroom floor.

She waited three days before alerting anyone to his plight, in an anonymous tip-off to his brother to say that Mr Sanna was "in trouble".

Inner London crown court heard Begum had an "on-off" relationship with the Italian DJ after they met in Canary Wharf, where she was a Clintons cards shop assistant and he worked in a sandwich shop.

Pietro Sanna was stabbed 36 times / ES

By the end of 2016 they had split up, but Begum retained an "unhealthy obsession" with her ex, monitoring his social media accounts and spotting he was dating another woman.

She first tried to warn off the other woman, telling her to "get out of my country" and dubbing her an "ugly b*tch".

When that did not work, Begum went to Mr Sanna's Canning Town home to confront him, just after 6am on June 23.

Wearing all black clothes, gloves, and a blonde wig to disguise her appearance, Begum was caught on CCTV climbing out of the kitchen window of her family home, running through her estate, and then meeting the taxi which took her to Mr Sanna's home.

She was seen angrily banging on doors to try to find Mr Sanna's home, and around 80 minutes later, having carried out the murder, she fled again.

It was revealed Begum murdered Pietro Sanna in a jealous rage / ES

Begum, who denied murder, told the jury she had stabbed Mr Sanna in self-defence after he had kicked her in the chest and come at her with a kitchen knife.

She claimed to only remember stabbing him three times, but jurors heard Mr Sanna had suffered 36 separate wounds including several to his back.

As he lay dying on the floor, Begum put on some of his clothes and then fled the scene, going to a medical centre for treatment to a minor cut on her finger.

She had stolen Mr Sanna's phone and wiped his Instagram account before the body was discovered.

Sentencing her to at least 20 years behind bars, Judge Jeremy Donne said Begum had an "unhealthy obsession" with Mr Sanna.

"What you did was a terrible wicked thing, it has had a damaging effect of depriving a family of a son, it has also had the damaging effect of depriving your family of you.

"All murders are completely senseless, this is both tragic and senseless."

Begum, from the Isle of Dogs, denied murder but was convicted at the end of a trial.

Ruth Bowskill, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor at CPS London North, said: This was a vicious attack on a young man inside his own home.

Begum claimed she had acted in self-defence but the jury having heard the evidence rejected that defence.

I hope this conviction provides some comfort to Mr Sannas family and friends.
M en with the deadliest form of prostate cancer are being offered surgery on the NHS for the first time in a trial aiming to save lives, the Standard can reveal.

London surgeons are leading the UKs participation in an international project that is investigating whether removing the prostate can slow or even stop the spread of cancer in the bones.

Under NHS rules, men whose cancer is found to have spread, or metastasised, are not offered surgery as the disease is deemed too advanced. Instead they receive hormone treatment followed by chemotherapy and possibly immunotherapy. Survival does not usually extend beyond five years.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and is the second most deadly after lung cancer  causing 11,300 male deaths a year in Britain.

The trial is being led by Prasanna Sooriakumaran, a consultant urological surgeon at UCLH at Westmoreland Street. He believes it has the potential to benefit a huge number.

A total of 21 men have taken part in the trial to date  17 at UCLH in Westmoreland Street, three in the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford and one in Oxford. The trial is separate to the 500 robot-assisted prostate removal operations this year at UCLH.

The trial, which will also make use of UCLHs two 1 million robots, uses scans to differentiate between men whose cancer has spread in up to three areas  those most likely to benefit  and those who are more widely affected.

Mr Sooriakumaran, known as PS, said: Its like the prostate being the mothership and the secondary areas in the bones being the satellites.

The theory is that if you remove the mothership it stops the satellites from progressing. In some cases it will not only prolong survival, we are hoping it will cure the man. This is giving hope to men who didnt have hope.

Early indications are positive, with PSA tests on the first patients indicating the extent of their cancer has fallen after surgery. The aim is to prove that removing the prostate can improve survival rates by 30 per cent.

The Royal Marsden and Guys have just joined the trial, with other hospitals in England, Germany, Sweden and Austria also taking part. A total of 418 volunteers are being sought.
C ity grandees greeted Labour plans to uproot the Bank of England from the Square Mile and relocate it in Birmingham with bemusement today.

The proposal to turn the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street into the Old Lady of New Street after more than 300 years in the Square Mile was recommended in a report commissioned by shadow chancellor John McDonnell.

It suggested moving some functions of the Bank to Englands second city to create an economic policy hub alongside a National Infrastructure Bank and a Strategic Investment Board.

But Andrew Sentance, senior economics adviser to PwC and a former member of the Banks rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee, said that there would not be any real logic to moving policymaking outside the capital.

Brexit talk: Bank of England governor Mark Carney / Rex Features

City commentator David Buik, of broker Panmure Gordon, said: If you told me all the international banks and the foreign exchange markets were moving to Birmingham too then fine, but the fact remains that London is the financial hub.

Another ex-MPC member, David Miles, said: You can see some pretty clear advantages that the Bank should be near the headquarters of the people it regulates  and that is not Birmingham.

The interim report, by GFC Economics and Clearpoint Corporation Management, does not specify which functions should be moved out of London. Labour declined to comment.

Mr Sentance said the Bank already had an extremely useful network of regional agents across the UK, although the report suggested this was unsatisfactory.

However, Lord Adonis, who now chairs the National Infrastructure Commission, supported the move.

He said: Few things more important to power than where it is located. Get the Bank of England to Birmingham on the same day HS2 opens in 2026!
A rare species of bat has been discovered in London for the first time in over 50 years.

The Barbastelle bat, which has already disappeared from some countries, was discovered in Hainault Forest Country Park.

Static bat detectors set-up in the Old Farm Buildings detected the creature which is entirely absent from Scotland and Northern Ireland.

A sonagraph sound spectrum recorded evidence of the bats return to the capital. No verified records of the Barbastelle bat have been noted from the Greater London area since the late 1950s.

The bat is protected under the European Habitats Directive. Their rarity means that woodlands containing the bat species may be considered as a site of special scientific interest in Greater London.

Currently Natural England provide funding to monitor the presence of Barbastelles.

Claire Howe, mammal specialist at Natural England, said: Its fabulous to see barbastelles recorded in London again. This demonstrates that with positive habitat management, our protected sites can give a home to species we had thought previously lost from the capital.

Ecologist Huma Pearce added: With a focus on the built environment, natural habitats within cities are too often over-looked.

Records like this give merit to the value of Londons woodlands as important wildlife refuges that must be preserved.

Redbridge is one of Londons greenest Boroughs with nine parks retaining their Green Flag Awards, recognising the very best parks in the country.

Barbastelles have dark brown or black, long, silky fur with white tips. They mate in autumn, with one sexually active male attended by up to six females some accompanied by their young.

The species tends to make its home in the crevices of old trees in mature forests. Its breeding roosts are only found in a handful of locations.

They hibernate over the winter usually underground, and give birth to a single young bat in late spring.

Hainault Forest Country Parks Ancient Forest project was recently awarded 4.5 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund, with an extra 1.25 million from the council and 250,000 from Vision Redbridge Culture and Leisure.

Redbridge Council cabinet Member for civic Sheila Bain said: Hainault Forest is such an important site for the residents of Redbridge.

Our project to ensure the sustainability of the Forest, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, has already helped us to identify this unusual species of bat, and shows the importance of preserving this ancient forest and its wildlife for the future generations of London.
L ondoners were delighted as snow fell in the capital for a second day as temperatures looked set to plunge to -5C overnight.

A yellow warning for snow and ice remained in place across most of the UK on Monday including London and the South East as forecasters warned temperatures could fall well below zero.

The freezing weather left passengers at London Heathrow stranded for hours on Monday as bosses scrambled to combat flight disruption and cancellations after the largest snowfall in nearly five years on Sunday.

But Transport for London said it was not expecting the weather to affect Tube and Overground services but added that it has "plans in place to mitigate the weather".

UK Snowfall: December 2017 - In pictures 1 /54 UK Snowfall: December 2017 - In pictures Snow in Regents Street Jeremy Selwyn Snow in Regents Street Jeremy Selwyn Snow in Regents Street Jeremy Selwyn Snow in Regents Street Jeremy Selwyn Snow in Regents Street London Jeremy Selwyn Commuters wait in the snow at Stanmore Station Jeremy Selwyn Snow on the coast at Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A boy slides on an inflatable tube in Bradgate Park after snow fall in Newtown Linford Darren Staples/Reuters Visitors sledge in Bradgate Park after snow fall in Newtown Linford Reuters A closed sign hangs on the gate of Cobden Primary School after snow fall in Loughborough REUTERS Snowbomb: A train leaves Stanmore station this morning Jeremy Selwyn Commuters struggle in the snow in Stanmore North London this morning Jeremy Selwyn Commuters struggle in the snow in Stanmore North London this morning Jeremy Selwyn Snow in Tring JEREMY SELWYN Snow in Tring JEREMY SELWYN Londoners woke up to snow on Sunday morning Rex People take a selfie in the snow on Primrose Hill in London PA Pedestrians walk over the Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral pictured in the background as snow falls o AFP/Getty Images Londoners at Greenwich park in London enjoy a snowy start to the day as snow hit's large parts of the country today Rex A tourist walks past a member of the Household Cavalry on guard at Horse Guard's Parade as snow falls Getty Images Heavy snow falls in Temple Fortune, north west London Nigel Howard Getty Images for Harlequins Snow at Southend Airport on Sunday morning @SouthendAirport A snow man on The Long Walk at Windsor, Berkshire PA East Finchley on Sunday Snow falls in north London on Sunday morning Rex Snow falls in North London. The Met Office issued a yellow warning for the capital Rex East Finchley on Sunday People play in the snow in Aberfan, South Wales PA An abandoned car on the roadside on the Snake Pass in the Peak District PA Power repair workers in Ironbridge, Shropshire PA Children off from school due to the weather make their way past a large snowman on Black mountain Getty Images The scene near Ribblehead in Yorkshire, as parts of Britain woke up to a blanket of snow caused by an Arctic airflow in the wake of Storm Caroline PA Snow falls in Chester PA Ribblehead Viaduct bathed morning sunlight in Yorkshire, as parts of Britain woke up to a blanket of snow PA A young schoolboy runs through the snow near Crumlin Getty Images A person drives a quad bike through fields in Cloughoge, Newry PA Snow falls in Ironbridge, Shropshire PA Ribblehead Viaduct in Yorkshire PA Chester PA Ribblehead Viaduct in Yorkshire PA

A track fire near London's Waterloo station has led to cancellations and delays which are expected to cause significant disruption during the evening rush hour.

People across the capital shared their joy on social media as "crazy" snow was said to be "falling in every direction" at around 12pm.

One user said: "Oh joy snow here in London city, Now it feels like Christmas. I do hope we can have a white one this year."

Another shared a picture of their manager jumping for joy in the snow.

Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said: "It was chilly in Chillingham Barns, but it wasn't the coldest night of 2017 - that was Saturday night when temperatures went down to minus 12.4C.

"We could well beat that tonight and could go as low as minus 12C and even minus 15C."

While Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge told the Standard a weather warning for snow was in place for London due to a weather front coming in from France, which could bring more snow and sleet later on Monday.

He said precipitation from the front will "largely fall as rain but some areas in the south east will get some snow and sleet".

He added: "Throughout the afternoon London may see some snow."

The weather system will clear later into the evening but Mr Madge warned that temperatures in London could fall to -5C overnight, which "could lead to travel disruption" if slush and snow turns to ice.

Elsewhere in the UK settled snow has turned to treacherous ice, causing travel chaos and school closures.

Passengers at Heathrow complained of waiting hours for travel to be rescheduled while dozens of flights were showing as cancelled at the airport this morning.

Snow delays: Queues at Heathrow / @micheleweiland/Twitter

Many travellers were stuck on the runway for hours yesterday while departing flights were cancelled at short notice as the cold snap brought the airports operations to a shuddering halt.

The airport has warned of disruption to flights due to "crew and aircraft being out of position following yesterday's weather".

Passengers have been told to check their flight status with their airline before travelling to the airport.

Up to 50,000 BA passengers were reportedly stranded worldwide due to delays in de-icing planes on Sunday.

A Heathrow spokesman apologised for the continued disruption and said: "Flights at Heathrow are disrupted today due to crew and aircraft being out of position following yesterday's weather.

"Before coming to the airport, passengers must check their flight status with their airline. If the status of your flight is cancelled, please do not travel to the airport, keep updated via the airline's website.

"The safety and comfort of our passengers is always our first priority and we are working closely with our airlines to ensure affected passengers are looked after.

"We apologise to those whose travel has been impacted and regret the inconveniences that have been caused.

West Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway and London Northwestern Railway services to Milton Keynes from London were all disrupted by heavy snow on the ground on Monday, while emergency services told motorists to drive with caution.

Meanwhile homes remained without power in the Midlands, South Wales, South West, Oxfordshire and parts of Wiltshire after widespread power outages on Sunday.
B rexit Secretary David Davis today sought to end confusion over Britains position on the EU divorce settlement, as MEPs threatened to block the deal if there is any backtracking.

Mr Davis pledged that Britain is committed to maintaining an invisible border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland even if the EU separation and trade deal talks collapse in bitter acrimony. Amid doubts over the Governments position sparked by weekend interviews, he stressed that the divorce blueprint was much more than legally enforceable.

Mr Davis also raised eyebrows by saying that as Brexit Secretary he did not need to know that much. He told LBC radio: Whats the requirement of my job? I dont have to be very clever, I dont have to know that much, I do just have to be calm. On the fraught negotiations last week, he said: That did test the calmness a bit, a little bit.

Today MEPs fired off warning shots that they are ready to block the deal if it unravels. A spokesman for Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliaments Brexit co-ordinator, told the Standard: Transition and trade negotiations will only be able to progress if all commitments undertaken during the first phase are honoured and translated faithfully into legal terms in the coming days and weeks.

Given the difficult talks ahead of us next year, it is very odd for senior British ministers to now be suggesting their own Government is an untrustworthy negotiating partner.

Manfred Weber MEP, an ally of German chancellor Angela Merkel and head of the European Peoples Party in the parliament, said: A Brexit transitional period is not automatic. It will only be available if there is a withdrawal agreement by the end of next year that meets our conditions.

Mr Davis spoke today after a weekend interview in which he described the deal  over a divorce bill expected to be up to 39 billion, future rights for EU citizens in Britain, and plans for the Northern Ireland border  as a statement of intent.

The Irish government, which thought it had a deal on full alignment on single market rules in key areas if there was no deal, branded the comment bizarre. DUP MP Ian Paisley claimed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was done over by the EU, the UK and the DUP.

David Davis insists Theresa May's Brexit deal is 'not binding'

But Mr Davis told LBC: Of course its legally enforceable under the withdrawal agreement, but even if that didnt happen for some reason, if something went wrong, we would still be seeking to provide a frictionless invisible border with Ireland.

He added: I was making the point it was much more than just in the treaty, its what we want to do anyway.

A Government source said: There is no question of our commitment to the text of the joint report."
T he Geminids meteor shower is set to light up the night sky with hundreds of shooting stars tonight.

The annual meteor shower is known around the world as one of the most spectacular celestial events with stargazers spotting up to 120 stars every hour.

Out of the three major meteor showers throughout the year - the Quadrantids in January, the Perseids in August, and the Geminids in December, experts say the best comes last.

In the UK, the celestial spectacle will peak at around 6.30am on Thursday, December 14 after a night spent flashing across the atmosphere.

A meteor (right) from the Geminids meteor shower enters the Earth's atmosphere (CABEZAS/AFP/Getty Images)

Where is the best place to watch the Geminids meteor shower?

Experts advise the best places to watch are open areas away from street lights.

For Londoners, the best chance of seeing the meteor shower will be by taking a trip to one of the capital's large parks, such as Richmond Park or Hampstead Heath.

When is the best time to look for the meteor shower in the UK?

Although experts say the shower will peak at 6.30am on Thursday in the UK, keen stargazers should keep an eye out from 6pm tonight.

Those hoping to catch the best view should allow at least 20 minutes for their eyes to adjust to the dark of the night's sky.

Expert tips

Dr Morgan Hollis, of the Royal Astronomical Society, told The Independent: "People in the countryside will have the best view.

The brightest meteor showers can have up to 100 meteors an hour, or possibly more.

You dont need any special equipment to view them. You can see them with the naked eye. You should be able to see something as its one of the major ones.

If youre observing for a while its best to take something warm like a cushion and blanket.

Its very weather-dependent. If its cloudy you wont see anything.

What causes it?

The Geminids meteor shower is one of the few displays that comes around every year.

It is caused by '3200 Phaethon', a Palladium asteroid which spits shooting stars from its surface.

As Phaethon orbits around the Earth each year, its debris falls into our atmosphere, appearing as colourful meteors across the sky.
A huge object passing by Earth could be an alien spacecraft, scientists have said.

The bizarre cigar-shaped entity was previously thought to be an interstellar asteroid which had come from another part of the galaxy.

But evidence has been mounting which has led experts to suggest it could actually be a sign of intelligent life.

The object is hundreds of metres in length but only one tenth as wide which is highly unusual for a typical space rock, scientists have said.

It is also speeding through space at 196,000 mph, suggesting it is not gravitationally bound to the sun.

The Green Bank radio telescope in West Virginia, US, which is going to track the object. / PA

The mysterious body, which has been dubbed Oumuamua, was spotted by astronomers from the University of Hawaii in October as it passed the Earth at around 85 times further than the moon.

It is the first object discovered in the solar system that appears to have originated from another part of the galaxy.

Researchers involved in Seti - the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence  are preparing to turn a powerful dish telescope towards the object.

A statement from the $100 million (75 million) Seti project Breakthrough Listen, launched by Russian digital tech mogul Yuri Milner in 2015, said: "Researchers working on long-distance space transportation have previously suggested that a cigar or needle shape is the most likely architecture for an interstellar spacecraft, since this would minimise friction and damage from interstellar gas and dust.

"While a natural origin is more likely, there is currently no consensus on what that origin might have been, and Breakthrough Listen is well positioned to explore the possibility that Oumuamua could be an artifact."

The team is using the Green Bank radio telescope in West Virginia, US, to study Oumuamua, which is named after the Hawaiian term for "scout" or "messenger".

From 8pm UK time on Wednesday, December 13, the giant dish - the largest fully steerable radio telescope in the world - will "listen" to the object across four radio frequency bands spanning one to 12 gigahertz.

The object is currently about two astronomical units (AU) from Earth, or twice the distance between the Earth and sun.

Breakthrough Listen aims to survey a million nearby stars and 100 nearby galaxies looking for alien signals.

Since the 1960s there have been more than 98 Seti projects around the world, none of which have turned up any convincing evidence of extra-terrestrial civilisations.

Additional reporting by Press Association.
T he leader of the council linked to the Grenfell Tower disaster has broken her leg.

Elizabeth Campbell was travelling between two meetings in central London when she lost her balance in a doorway on Monday morning.

It is understood she suffered a spiral fracture, breaking her leg in two places.

A spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea Council said: "Ms Campbell is determined to get back into the office as soon as possible.

"She will continue to work on issues remotely for now, and is likely to be in hospital overnight."

Ms Campbell has faced calls to step down over her handling of the Grenfell tragedy / PA Wire/PA Images

The Tory councillor had made various media appearances at the start of a busy week for those concerned with the tragedy, which left 71 dead in June.

She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the council had an "army of people out there working 24 hours a day" to get survivors rehoused.

More than 100 households from the west London block are still in hotels, two weeks away from Christmas, prompting widespread criticism of the council.

Second vigil in Notting Hill for Grenfell Tower tragedy 1 /10 Second vigil in Notting Hill for Grenfell Tower tragedy 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 People light candles as they observe a vigil outside Notting hill Methodist Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower, a residential tower block in west London AFP/Getty Images People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images Friends hug each other at a vigil to those killed, dead and missing and also to the emergency services and volunteers after the Grenfell Tower block fire Nigel Howard A woman lays flowers at a vigil to those killed, dead and missing and also to the emergency services and volunteers after the Grenfell Tower block fire Nigel Howard People arrive for a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Towe Getty Images A small child tapes flowers to railings at a vigil to those killed, dead and missing and also to the emergency services and volunteers after the Grenfell Tower block fire Nigel Howard A woman leaves flowers as people arrive for a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images Reverend Mike Long leads a vigil to those killed, dead and missing and also to the emergency services and volunteers after the Grenfell Tower block fire Nigel Howard

Ms Campbell also revealed on Sunday that she would not attend a memorial to mark six months since the fire, due to be held on Thursday.

Her decision came after bereaved families requested the council did not go to the ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral in any official capacity.

She said: "The service isn't about me, it's for the people who lost everything on that terrible night six months ago, and it is in memory of those who tragically lost their lives."

Additional reporting by Press Association
T he Queen has privately expressed her concern about changes to her security, the Standard can reveal.

Scotland Yard has drastically reorganised the way the royal family is guarded and now provides armed protection officers from a pool on a rota system. This means officers are regularly changing, sometimes assigned to government ministers and sometimes to royalty.

The number of personal protection officers (PPOs) on the Queens security detail has not changed. However, due to the enforced rota system the officers can now come from a pool of back-up officers too.

A senior source said: Her Majesty is not the only one who has expressed concerns. A number of senior officers are not happy either. Personal protection is all about building a relationship with the principal. How on earth is that supposed to happen if the officers are rotated every five minutes with new faces?

Harry's fiancee Meghan Markle will soon be assigned officers from the pool / Getty Images

The change is due to restructuring of pay and the formation of a merged Scotland Yard team that guards both royals and ministers called Royalty and Specialist Protection (RaSP), under Protection Command.

Before the restructuring, which began in April 2015, royals were guarded by the SO14 Royalty and Diplomatic Protection department. Each royal would be assigned a PPO, in charge of round-the-clock security, who would head up a team. The PPO would forge a close working relationship with the royal.

That department was merged with Specialist Protection (SO1) to create RaSP, which now provides personal protection for the royal family, the Prime Minister, ministers, ambassadors, visiting heads of state and other VIPs. It also protects royal residences in London, Windsor and Scotland and operates the Special Escort Group.

Theresa May is protected by the same pool of officers / Carl Court/Getty Images

Before the merger, royalty officers were paid an allowance to compensate them for long and anti-social hours. But officers who guarded ministers were only paid overtime. The system had to be made uniform so the allowance was scrapped, with all royalty officers now paid overtime. The royal protection bill has since soared, with some officers clocking up overtime that takes their pay to more than 100,000 a year.

To reduce the bill Scotland Yard has had to bring in more officers from mainstream policing and train them, then rotate existing officers to meet demand. Today the Met said: We are not prepared to discuss matters of security.

Under the old system, the Queen could build up a rapport with her lead police officer. She has in the past had an armed officer of the rank of superintendent leading her team, who had a detailed understanding of the system and the royal household.

Ken Wharfe, ex-PPO to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, said: The security will be less effective. Understanding the behaviours of the person you are charged with protecting is crucial. Understanding the machinations of the royal household is very important too.

If you are from a pool, one minute looking after a Cabinet minister and the next a member of the royal family, how are you able to build up that rapport with the principal? It doesnt make sense. No wonder Her Majesty has privately expressed her disquiet.

Buckingham Palace told the Standard: We never comment on anonymously sourced reports claiming to represent the Queens private views. Security is a matter for the police.

The changes are causing uneasiness among royalty officers, many of whom had been with SO14 for years. After some were informed by email that they were no longer in post, many threatened to operate under 40-hour week EU guidelines. However, the changes were brought in and many of the old guard have opted for retirement rather than extending their service.

A figure has not been published about the cost of royal security. Royal and VIP protection together is estimated to cost 128 million a year. The Met, which has struggled to reduce a fifth of its budget, has insisted that any restructuring is not about cost-cutting and that changes would never compromise safety.

A source said: No matter what anyone says, money is the issue here. Once the allowances were scrapped in the merger and everyone put on overtime this was bound to happen. The bill has gone through the roof and now to stop officers putting in large overtime bills they are rotated far more often. For the first time it seems Scotland Yard is putting a price on protecting the royal family. In the past this was not even a consideration  security came first.

The changes will affect the security details of Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke of York, the Princess Royal, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, whose fiancee Meghan Markle will also be assigned officers from the pool. There have been high-profile security incidents in recent months. In September undercover police officers arrested a woman for allegedly breaking into Prince Georges school, Thomass Battersea. She was given a police caution. In October Theresa Mays speech to the Conservative Party conference in Manchester was interrupted by a prankster who handed her a fake P45 before being led away. Last week Westminster magistrates court heard that a terror suspect, Husnain Rashid, 31, encouraged attacks on Prince George at his school. Rashid, who will appear at the Old Bailey on December 20, allegedly warned: The royal family wont be left alone.
T he UK has slipped in the global ranks of the Good Country Index for the second year in a row.

Britain dropped from seventh to eighth place in the index, which measures how much countries contribute to the common good of humanity.

It has now fallen below Ireland, which came seventh and was rated first for its contribution to international prosperity and equality, and second for its contribution to international health and wellbeing.

Using 35 separate indicators - sourced from the United Nations, World Bank and other international organisations - the survey examined the good each country does for humanity as well as what it takes away.

Britain was ranked fourth in 2016 but has dropped twice since then and lost its previous top place in the science and technology category.

The Netherlands was ranked first overall, followed by Switzerland and Denmark, while Afghanistan came last out of 163 countries.

Simon Anholt, the creator of the Good Country Index, said a successful country is one that "contributes to the good of humanity".

"Of course it must serve the interests of its own people, but never at the expense of other populations or our shared resources: this is the new law of human survival, and it's a balance which is far more easily maintained than many people imagine," he added.
T he husband of jailed London mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe believes she is closer to coming home for Christmas after Boris Johnsons visit to Iran.

Richard Ratcliffe said his wife, who is in prison in Tehran, was relieved that a court hearing which could have increased her jail sentence was postponed yesterday.

Mr Ratcliffe believes the postponement was due in part to the timing of the visit by the Foreign Secretary, who met Irans president Hassan Rouhani and foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif over the weekend.

He said: We are hoping beyond hope she will be back for Christmas. It felt more possible to her yesterday than previously. It felt more like it can happen now. Obviously it might not happen but I think for our emotional sanity believing it can is really important.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson meets with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani / REUTERS

Mr Ratcliffe was due to meet Mr Johnson at the Foreign Office today to discuss his visit to Iran.

Charity worker Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 38, of Hampstead, was arrested in April last year as she tried to board a flight to London with her then 18-month-old daughter Gabriella after visiting her parents in Tehran. She was later sentenced to five years on spying charges.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who is a dual British-Iranian national, was due to be charged yesterday with spreading propaganda. This could have increased her jail term but the case was postponed without explanation. She denies all charges against her.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her husband Richard Ratcliffe and their daughter Gabriella

Mr Ratcliffe said: Nazanin was relieved. She was much more positive. She was much more upbeat generally. Most of the conversations recently have either been quite tearful and needing quite a lot of reassurance and she didnt say that at all yesterday. Theres been a sea change.

We are still in the hands of the Iranians, but it felt like a good week for us. Theres now 10 days of hope  its a different kind of Advent if you like.

Boris Johnson incorrectly states that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was teaching journalists in Iran

Mr Ratcliffe is now making small preparations for Christmas.

Ive bought an Advent calendar for Gabriella so she can catch up on those chocolates, I also went out and bought a Christmas decoration, a little angel.

I promised Nazanin that I wouldnt put a Christmas tree up until she came back, he added.
N ASA is set to reveal a major breakthrough in its search for planets that can support alien life.

Few details of the event have been released but NASA said the news will focus on a discovery made using artificial intelligence from Google.

The Kepler space telescope is used by NASA in the search for planets outside of our solar system, known as exoplanets.

The mission has so far discovered 21 Earth-sized planets known to orbit within the habitable zones of their stars, and the latest announcement is likely to reveal NASA's best study of alien planets.

NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Posters 1 /9 NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Posters NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Posters: Planets to explore beyond our solar system NASA Where the Nightlife Never Ends Discovered in October 2013 using direct imaging, PSO J318.5-22 belongs to a special class of planets called rogue, or free-floating, planets. Wandering alone in the galaxy, they do not orbit a parent star. Not much is known about how these planets come to exist, but scientists theorize that they may be either failed stars or planets ejected from very young systems after an encounter with another planet. These rogue planets glow faintly from the heat of their formation. Once they cool down, they will be dancing in the dark NASA Where your shadow always has company Like Luke Skywalker's planet "Tatooine" in Star Wars, Kepler-16b orbits a pair of stars. Depicted here as a terrestrial planet, Kepler-16b might also be a gas giant like Saturn. Prospects for life on this unusual world aren't good, as it has a temperature similar to that of dry ice. But the discovery indicates that the movie's iconic double-sunset is anything but science fiction NASA Experience the Gravity of a Super Earth Twice as big in volume as the Earth, HD 40307g straddles the line between "Super-Earth" and "mini-Neptune" and scientists aren't sure if it has a rocky surface or one that's buried beneath thick layers of gas and ice. One thing is certain though: at eight time the Earth's mass, its gravitational pull is much, much stronger NASA Greetings from your First Exoplanet While there is much debate over which exoplanet discovery is considered the "first," one stands out from the rest. In 1995, scientists discovered 51 Pegasi b, forever changing the way we see the universe and our place in it. The exoplanet is about half the mass of Jupiter, with a seemingly impossible, star-hugging orbit of only 4.2 Earth days. Not only was it the first planet confirmed to orbit a sun-like star, it also ushered in a whole new class of planets called Hot Jupiters: hot, massive planets orbiting closer to their stars than Mercury. Today, powerful observatories like NASA's Kepler space telescope will continue the hunt of distant planets NASA Planet Hop from TRAPPIST-1 Some 40 light-years from Earth, a planet called TRAPPIST-1e offers a heart-stopping view: brilliant objects in a red sky, looming like larger and smaller versions of our own moon. But these are no moons. They are other Earth-sized planets in a spectacular planetary system outside our own. These seven rocky worlds huddle around their small, dim, red star, like a family around a campfire. Any of them could harbor liquid water, but the planet shown here, fourth from the TRAPPIST-1 star, is in the habitable zone, the area around the star where liquid water is most likely to be detected. This system was revealed by the TRansiting Planets and PlanetIsmals Small Telescope (TRAPPIST) and NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The planets are also excellent targets for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. Take a planet-hopping excursion through the TRAPPIST-1 system NASA Where the Grass is Always Redder Kepler-186f is the first Earth-size planet discovered in the potentially 'habitable zone' around another star, where liquid water could exist on the planet's surface. Its star is much cooler and redder than our Sun. If plant life does exist on a planet like Kepler-186f, its photosynthesis could have been influenced by the star's red-wavelength photons, making for a color palette that's very different than the greens on Earth. This discovery was made by Kepler, NASA's planet hunting telescope NASA

The teleconference will stream on Thursday, December 14 at 1pm.

Participants at the briefing will be Paul Hertz, NASA astrophysicist, Christopher Shallue, Google AI senior software engineer, Andrew Vanderburg, astronomer and NASA Sagan Fellow, and Jessie Dotson, Kepler project scientist.

NASA said in a release it will announce "the latest discovery made by its planet-hunting Kepler space telescope".

The Kepler mission, which began in 2009, was launched to explore how common planets are beyond our solar system.

An artist's impression of one possible appearance of the first near-Earth-size planet to be found in the habitable zone of a star, known as Kepler-452b / NASA Ames/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle

Researchers made the latest breakthrough with the help of artificial intelligence technology, which was used to analyse the data sent down from the telescope.

NASA added: "The discovery was made by researchers using machine learning from Google.

"Machine learning is an approach to artificial intelligence, and demonstrates new ways of analysing Kepler data."

Nasa astronaut captures earth in spectacular timelapse

The Kepler telescope surveys our region of the Milky Way galaxy to discover hundreds of Earth-size and smaller planets in or near the habitable zone of their stars.

The habitable zone is the region in a planetary system where liquid water might pool on the surface of an orbiting planet.

Scientists now believe there may be at least one planet orbiting every star in the sky.

Kepler completed its main mission in 2012, but continued to collect data in an extended mission.

In 2014, the spacecraft began a new mission called K2, which continues the search for exoplanets while studying other cosmic phenomena.
D onald Trump has announced he is launching a new US space mission to send humans to the moon and Mars.

The US President signed a new space policy directive directing NASA "to lead an innovative space exploration program to send American astronauts back to the moon, and eventually Mars."

He will sign the new order on Monday, White House spokesman Hogan Gidley

The new mission will be a bid for the US to reclaim Americas proud destiny in space, Mr Trump said.

"The directive I'm signing today will refocus America's space programme on human exploration and discovery.

"It marks an important step in returning American astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972 for long term exploration and use.

"This time we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars and perhaps someday to many worlds beyond."

He said: Imagine the possibility waiting in those big beautiful stars if we dare to dream big. That's what our country is doing again, we're dreaming big.

The US had only just put humans into space when President John F. Kennedy announced he wanted Americans to be the first to land on the moon.

The famous Apollo 11 mission in 1969 saw Neil Armstrong and Edwin Buzz Aldrin become the first people to land on the moon. Their fellow astronaut, Michael Collins, stayed in orbit and did experiments.

A US flag was positioned on the moon alongside a sign which read: "Here men from the planet earth first set foot upon the moon July 1969 AD. We came in peace for all mankind."

On Monday, it was also reported NASA is set to reveal a major breakthrough in its search for planets that can support alien life.

The Kepler space telescope is used by NASA in the search for planets outside of our solar system, known as exoplanets.

The mission has so far discovered 21 Earth-sized planets known to orbit within the habitable zones of their stars, and the latest announcement is likely to reveal NASA's best study of alien planets.
Y outube star Angry Grandpa has died at the age of 67.

Angry Grandpa, whose real name was Charles Marvin Green Jr became an Internet sensation with his YouTube channel TheAngryGrandpaShow.

The channel shared clips of Mr Green reacting to pranks carried out by his son Michael.

Since beginning the channel, Angry Grandpa has racked up 3.5 million YouTube subscribers.

The news of his death was announced by his son Michael in a tribute video posted on Youtube on Monday which showed him breaking down in tears.

He said: Today Ive got to make a very unfortunate video. Ive never wanted to make this video. Today we lost Angry Grandpa.

He continued: Maybe I should not be filming this right now because it just happened but I respect him too much to hide how I feel from the internet. People are going to make fun of me for crying and thats okay. Ill take it because if hes out there somewhere I hope he can hear me.

He went on to explain that his father had been diagnosed for with cancer in 2016 and gone into remission, however in July this year he was diagnosed with final stage cirrhosis of the liver.

Michael went on to say that his fathers health had continued to deteriorate after his diagnosis.

He said that his father had died at home.

Mr Green had also announced his fathers death on Twitter in a statement.

He wrote: Heaven just got a whole lot angrier. Dad, Im going to miss you more than I even understand as I write this.

TheAngryGrandpaShow which posted its first video seven years ago had a total of nine million views and a loyal fan base who described themselves as Grandpas Army.

The YouTube vlogger who was born in Charleston, South Carolina, also had a personal YouTube channel called Grandpas Corner, where he made cooking videos and spoke about his life.

Tributes to Angry Grandpa appeared on social media from fans and fellow celebrities.

Wrestling commentator Paul Heyman described Mr Green as a YouTube pioneer and wrote: It is with profound sadness that I inform you of the passing of Charles Green, better known around the world as "The Angry Grandpa."

A fan called Cameron wrote: Today YouTube lost a legend, the world lost a great man, us youngins lost our hero, and the Green family lost there Angry Grandpa!

Another fan who created a painting for Angry Grandpa wrote: R.I.P @TheAngryGrandpa ...Had a blast creating this massive painting of you!! Thank you for your support and what you did for the YouTube community. You will be missed by millions.

Vine star Big Nik wrote: Angry grandpa was my childhood, he made such an impact on millions of people. Praying for you and your family, dealing with loss is hard".
B ig Little Lies looks set to win big at the 75th annual Golden Globes with the hit TV show scooping six nominations.

The series is in contention for Best Television Limited Series and Best Supporting Actor for Alexander Skarsgard, while Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman will go head to head for Best Actress for their roles as Madeline Mackenzie and Celeste Wright respectively.

Netflixs The Crown is up for Best Television Series, Drama with Claire Foy, who plays Queen Elizabeth II nominated for Best Actress. But Foy will face tough competition from Outlanders Caitriona Balfe, The Deuces Maggie Gyllenhaal, Katherine Langford for 13 Reasons Why and Elisabeth Moss for The Handmaids Tale.

The coveted Best Picture gong will be fought over by Call Me by Your Name, Dunkirk, The Post, The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Posh parents: from left, Shailene Woodley, Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman in Big Little Lies / HBO

Timothee Chalamet, Daniel Day-Lewis, Tom Hanks, Gary Oldman and Denzel Washington will battle it out for Best Actor while Jessica Chastain, Sally Hawkins, Frances McDormand, Meryl Streep and Michelle Williams are in contention for the female equivalent.

A slew of British stars will be hoping to bring back awards with Dame Helen Mirren and Dame Judi Dench nominated for their roles in The Leisure Seeker and Victoria & Abdul respectively, while Freddie Highmore is up for his role in The Good Doctor.

Royal nod: Claire Foy plays the Queen in The Crown / Getty Images

Christopher Plummer has been nominated for the role in which he replaced Kevin Spacey. Plummer jumped on to All the Money in the World after Spacey was accused of several sexual harassment allegations.

The recipient of the prestigious Cecil B. DeMille life achievement award is yet to be announced, but names including Julie Andrews and Tom Hanks are among the favourites to follow in the footsteps of last years winner Meryl Streep.

Presenters Alfre Woodard, Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Bell, and Sharon Stone were on hand to announce this years nominations on Monday.

US comedian Seth Meyers will play host at the ceremony on January 7.

Full list of nominees:

Best Picture  Drama

Call Me by Your Name

Dunkirk

The Post

The Shape of Water

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture  Drama

Timothee Chalamet  Call Me by Your Name

Daniel Day-Lewis  Phantom Thread

Tom Hanks  The Post

Gary Oldman  Darkest Hour

Denzel Washington  Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Drama

Jessica Chastain  Mollys Game

Sally Hawkins  The Shape of Water

Frances McDormand  Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Meryl Streep  The Post

Michelle Williams  All the Money in the World

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Willem Dafoe  The Florida Project

Armie Hammer  Call Me by Your Name

Richard Jenkins  The Shape of Water

Christopher Plummer  All the Money in the World

Sam Rockwell  Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Mary J. Blige  Mudbound

Hong Chau  Downsizing

Allison Janney  I, Tonya

Laurie Metcalf  Lady Bird

Octavia Spencer  The Shape of Water

Best Director , Motion Picture - Drama

Guillermo del Toro  The Shape of Water

Martin McDonagh  Three Billboards

Christopher Nolan  Dunkirk

Ridley Scott  All the Money In the World

Steven Spielberg  The Post

Best Original Song  Motion Picture

Home  Ferdinand

Mighty River  Mudbound

Remember Me  Coco

The Star  The Star

This Is Me  The Greatest Showman

Best Picture  Comedy or Musical

The Disaster Artist

Get Out

The Greatest Showman

I, Tonya

Lady Bird

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy

Steve Carell  Battle of the Sexes

Ansel Elgort  Baby Driver

James Franco  The Disaster Artist

Hugh Jackman  The Greatest Showman

Daniel Kaluuya  Get Out

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture  Musical or Comedy

Judi Dench  Victoria & Abdul

Helen Mirren  The Leisure Seeker

Margot Robbie  I, Tonya

Saoirse Ronan  Lady Bird

Emma Stone  Battle of the Sexes

Best Television Series  Drama

The Crown

Game of Thrones

The Handmaids Tale

Stranger Things

This is Us

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series  Drama

Sterling K. Brown  This is Us

Freddie Highmore  The Good Doctor

Bob Odenkirk  Better Call Saul

Liev Schreiber  Ray Donovan

Jason Bateman  Ozark

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series  Drama

Caitriona Balfe  Outlander

Claire Foy  The Crown

Maggie Gyllenhaal  The Deuce

Katherine Langford  13 Reasons Why

Elisabeth Moss  The Handmaids Tale

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Big Little Lies

Fargo

Feud: Bette and Joan

The Sinner

Top of the Lake: China Girl

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Robert De Niro  The Wizard of Lies

Jude Law  The Young Pope

Kyle MacLachlan  Twin Peaks

Ewan McGregor  Fargo

Geoffrey Rush  Genius

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Jessica Biel  The Sinner

Nicole Kidman  Big Little Lies

Jessica Lange  Feud: Bette and Joan

Susan Sarandon  Feud: Bette and Joan

Reese Witherspoon  Big Little Lies

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Alfred Molina  Feud

Alexander Skarsgard  Big Little Lies

David Thewlis  Fargo

David Harbour  Stranger Things

Christian Slater  Mr. Robot

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Laura Dern  Big Little Lies

Ann Dowd  The Handmaids Tale

Chrissy Metz  This is Us

Michelle Pfeiffer  The Wizard of Lies

Shailene Woodley  Big Little Lies

Best Animated Film

The Boss Baby

The Breadwinner

Ferdinand

Coco

Loving Vincent

Best Television Series  Comedy

Black-ish

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Master of None

SMILF

Will & Grace

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Anthony Anderson  Black-ish

Aziz Ansari  Master of None

Kevin Bacon  I Love Dick

William H. Macy  Shameless

Eric McCormack  Will and Grace

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series  Musical or Comedy

Pamela Adlon  Better Things

Alison Brie  Glow

Issa Rae  Insecure

Rachel Brosnahan  The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Frankie Shaw  SMILF
J oe Alwyn proved his love for Taylor Swift as he filmed her set from the audience at Capitals Jingle Bell Ball.

The young actor, 26, was in the crowd to watch the US pop superstar, 27, as she made her return to the UK for the annual event.

Keen to capture the moment, Alwyn was seen holding his phone up as he filmed the performance while dancing along to hits including Shake It Off.

Fans were quick to praise the super supportive star as they gushed over him on Twitter.

Loved up: Taylor Swift at Capital's Jingle Bell Ball / Isabel Infantes/PA

One user tweeted: Joe Alwyn really filmed Taylor Swifts entire set what a man these other boys cant even text a reply back Im shaken.

Another wrote: JOE ALWYN FILMING TAYLORS SHAKE IT OFF PERFORMANCE HUHUHU SUPEEEER SUPPORTIVE.

Swift opened night two of the star-studded concert at Londons O2 arena which also played host to acts including Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith, Rita Ora, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, James Arthur and The Chainsmokers.

Spotted: Joe Alwyn and Taylor Swift enjoyed a night out together in New York / Splash News

Alwyn and Swift have reportedly been dating for a year, but news of the relationship only broke in May.

Swift is said to have rented a house in north London to be able to spend time with the actor.

A source told People: Her decision to keep her relationship with Joe quiet is making her happy. They have been getting to know each other slowly without any pressure.

The notoriously private pair were recently spotted hand-in-hand as they headed back to Swift's New York apartment.
B lue Planet II viewers have been left horrified after David Attenborough issued a stark warning over the future of marine life and their habitats in the final episode of the series.

The naturalist warned viewers that ocean landmarks including The Great Barrier Reef will be dead by 2100 due to carbon dioxide levels causing rising acidity.

He also predicted a similar grim future for other reefs, including the Great Southern Reef, which is dying at a similar rate.

One concerned viewer wrote: Horrifying. In many ways human beings are a plague on this beautiful blue planet.

Another commented: Watching Blue Planet 2 and seeing how quick the ocean is changing, and how quick the Great Barrier Reef is dying is so sad."

A third wrote: "Blue Planet tonight is so heartbreaking just look at how much the Great Barrier Reef has changed why are we as humans so s*** to our planet [sic]"

Attenborough called upon viewers to help safeguard the environment, telling the camera: Never before have we had such an awareness of what were doing to the planet and never before have we had the power to do something about that.

Surely we have a responsibility to care for our blue planet. The future of humanity and indeed all life on earth now depends on us.

The final episode was dedicated to looking at the damaging impact human activity has on ocean inhabitants.

It featured footage of albatrosses unwittingly feeding their young plastic and a plastic bucket getting attached to a sperm whale.

Blue Planet II: How plastic is killing our sea creatures - In pictures 1 /6 Blue Planet II: How plastic is killing our sea creatures - In pictures A turtle trapped in plastic BBC A baby whale was killed by poisonous plastic BBC Plastic is destroying the ocean BBC Millions of plastic bags are thrown ocean each year BBC Animals become tangled in the rubbish BBC

Blue Planet II is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
M ollie Kings Strictly Come Dancing journey came to an end after she was given the boot by the judging panel a week before the grand final.

The former Saturdays singer, 30, failed to impress after she was pitted against Gemma Atkinson in the dance-off after they both received the fewest public votes.

But the judges decided to give Atkinson a second chance after she performed the Tango with Aljaz Skorjanec.

King was left in tears on Saturday nights show after her Samba with AJ Pritchard was heavily criticised by the judges who awarded her a measly 24 points.

Tense: Mollie King, AJ Pritchard, Gemma Atkinson and Aljaz Skorjanec await their fate / BBC/Guy Levy

Craig Revel Horwood said: The rolls looked really awkward you were having difficulty going from one move to the next and you werent actually dancing on time to the music. That wasnt great darling, Im sorry.

Bruno Tonioli added: Tonight you missed the flight to Brazil. He was in Rio and you were stuck at the airport.

Safe: Gemma Atkinson and Aljaz Skorjanec dance the Tango / BBC/Guy Levy

She fared better with her Waltz, but it wasnt enough to win over the judges when she performed it for a second time in Sunday nights dance-off.

Alexandra Burke managed to avoid a third week in the bottom two after bagging a perfect score of 40 for her Salsa with partner Gorka Marquez.

The former X Factor winner received a standing ovation for the routine which was deemed absolutely fab-u-lous by Revel Horwood.

Perfect score: Alexandra Burke and Gorka Marquez / BBC / Guy Levy

Holby City actor Joe McFadden finished with a combined score of 70 for his American Smooth and Argentine Tango which was hailed as perfect by Darcey Bussell.

Debbie McGee also finished on 70, but faced criticism from the judges, including Revel Horwood who compared her facial expressions to former contestant Judge Rinder.

Burke, Atkinson, McGee and McFadden will dance for the coveted Strictly glitterball trophy in next weekends final.

Strictly Come Dancing 2017 - In pictures 1 /18 Strictly Come Dancing 2017 - In pictures Mollie King and her dance partner AJ Pritchard Guy Levy/PA Chizzy Akudolu and her dance partner Pasha Kovalev Guy Levy/PA Aston Merrygold and his dance partner Janette Manrara Guy Levy/PA Gemma Atkinson and her dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec Guy Levy/PA Debbie McGee and her dance partner Giovanni Pernice Guy Levy/PA Joe McFadden and his dance partner Katya Jones Guy Levy/PA Alexandra Burke and her dance partner Gorka Marquez Guy Levy/PA Charlotte Hawkins and her dance partner Brendan Cole Guy Levy/PA Rev Richard Coles and his dance partner Dianne Buswell Guy Levy/PA Davood Ghadami and his dance partner Nadiya Bychkova Guy Levy/PA Susan Calman and her dance partner Kevin Clifton Guy Levy/PA Simon Rimmer and his dance partner Karen Clifton Guy Levy/PA Brian Conley and his dance partner Amy Dowden Guy Levy/PA Jonnie Peacock and his dance partner Oti Mabuse Guy Levy/PA

Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One, Saturday at 6:30pm.
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As expected in Egypt sought to buy another twelve Dassault Rafele jet fighters from France after receiving the last of the 24 it had ordered in 2015. But the French Finance Ministry looked at the Egyptian economy and eight billion dollars worth of French weapons Egypt had ordered since 2014 and expressed concern about the Egyptian ability to handle any more debt and pay for another billion dollars worth of Rafale fighters. But French politicians, eager to get the sale, pointed out that Egypt had new natural gas deposits and their economy was growing at 6 percent a year. Moreover Egypt had better relations with Israel and Saudi Arabia (which had helped financed some of the French weapons debt). The first 24 Rafales had cost nearly $6 billion, but that included establishing training and maintenance infrastructure for Rafales so more sales would increase the chances that Rafale would eventually replace many of older Mirages and F-16s Egypt has been using. By selling more Rafales Egypt the Egyptians would be able to provide maintenance and upgrade facilities in the region, lowering costs for other Arab Rafale users. By November the Finance Ministry agreed to withdraw its objections. The prospect of selling more Rafales to Middle Eastern nations, including Qatar, which is at odds with its fellow Arab oil states over how to deal with the growing Iranian threat, becomes easier with Egypt as a major Rafale user.

Egypt received its first 24 Rafales a few at a time, providing opportunity to train pilots and support personnel. The first three arrived in July 2015, four months after Egyptian pilots and maintainers arrived in France for training. The Egyptian Rafales required a few modifications, mainly the removal of the hardware and software required for the aircraft to deliver nuclear weapons as well as the NATO communications equipment. This was replaced with what communications gear is currently standard in Egyptian warplanes (largely F-16s). Egypt wanted to receive all 24 Rafales before it considering order more so France completed delivery by 2017. The manufacturer said it could be done and it was. As expected this helped obtain more export sales from nations eager to upgrade their air forces.

This began in early 2015 when Egypt, looking to strengthen its military muscle, placed an order for 24 Rafale fighters. Egypt has a long history of buying from the French and in 2015 had about a hundred Mirage Vs and Mirage 2000 fighters in service. These two predecessors to the Rafale had served the Egyptian air force well, seeing action most recently in the 2014 bombing of Libya. But these Mirages were getting old and would have to be retired by the mid-2020s. Egypt has a large force of American F-16s, but the U.S. has lots of rules that prevent some countries from buying more and the rules change all the time. France is less judgmental when it comes to selling warplanes.

The Rafale costs between $100 and $130 million each. Its design was based heavily off the Mirage 2000 and like most other Dassault fighters it has the Delta Wing configuration. The Rafale has a maximum speed of 2,130 kilometers an hour and a range of over 3,700 kilometers. It is equipped with a 30mm cannon and can carry nine tons worth of weapons. It is a battle tested aircraft that has already seen service with French Forces in Afghanistan, Mali, Libya and Iraq.

The first sale to Egypt was a big deal for France. Until 2015 export buyers for the Rafale had been scarce. The Rafale was up against stiff competition for sales from aircraft such as the Eurofighter Typhoon, Swedish Gripen NG, American F-18E and Russian Su-30. Thus in 2013 Brazil passed on buying the Rafale and instead went with the cheaper Swedish Gripen NG.

The UAE (United Arab Emirates) is still considering a purchase. The first sale to Egypt was needed to encourage others to buy an aircraft that has not been selling well. What helped make this sale happen was Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE providing half the financing and the French government guaranteeing most of the rest. Egypt was not a good credit risk and had been kept afloat since 2011 by massive charity from Gulf Arab oil states (like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE).

France has had nothing but hard times trying to find export customers for Rafale and that had consequences. In 2009 the production rate was reduced from 14 a year to 11 and that was further reduced later. This was to slow down the delivery of Rafales, mainly because the Defense Ministry has decided that other things were more important. The new emphasis (and spending) was on peacekeeping and anti-missile defenses. Another reason for slowing down Rafale production was the lack of export orders. Since 2015 production has increased and the manufacturer points out that it has the capability to increase production quickly. By late 2017 over 170 Rafales had been built and over a hundred more were on order.

In 2016 India finally agreed to buy 36 Rafale fighters with an option to buy another 18. India has been seeking to modernize its military and has most recently turned to the United States for assistance. France wants to build up its relationship with India, as well, and was eager to sell India some Rafale. The Indian air force was already using the Mirage 2000 and has historically liked Dassualt aircraft. The two main sticking points, standing in the way of a deal were the Rafales rising price tag and whether India will be able to produce the fighter domestically. India insisted on coproduction (some Rafale manufacturing done in India) and the French believed India overestimated its capabilities in handling some of the advanced technologies that go into Rafale. Of course India wants local manufacturers to handle that advanced tech and this is how you learn. But India also wants the French held responsible for the quality of items produced in India and this is still being negotiated. The French finally got around that with the $20 billion deal for the Indian Rafales if they could be delivered quickly (between 2019 and 2025) and in 2017 India began negotiating for the purchase of another 36 in order to improve their chances against an increasingly aggressive China. This new Rafale deal depended on how quickly France can deliver and the French say they can do it and in the case of Egypt demonstrated that ability
Because the leftist (communist) NPA rebels continue fighting and refuses to comply with ceasefire agreements they have been declared a terrorist organization. As a result of this police were ordered to arrest any NPA members out on bail. This comes after the government officially ended the stalled NPA peace talks on November 23 rd . In part thats because intelligence analysts found some links between NPA factions and some of the Islamic terrorist groups that took heavy losses in the recent five month long Marawi City battle. In the aftermath of that ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) defeat there was a lot of new information available on Islamic terrorist and criminal gang activity in the south. This was the result of so many Islamic terrorists dying in the fighting or captured/surrendering and providing even more information. The Americans provided months of aerial electronic surveillance over and around Marawi City and several other areas (Sulu, Basilan) where Islamic terror groups were still active. Intelligence analysts expect to find more links between NPA, drug gangs and the many diminished and disillusioned Islamic terror groups in the south. Another after effect of the Marawi City defeat, and the continuing nationwide campaign against drug gangs, is a lot less crime. Some major clan based outlaw groups in the south took heavy losses and, worst of all, a lot of their secrets became headline news. This has encouraged a lot more southerners to provide tips about illegal activity. This often happens in real time and the security forces show up quickly.

A lot of the political corruption in the south thrived under the protection of clan based militias. The clans were local political dynasties that were traditionally left (by the national government) to do as they pleased on their home territory. That control has been weakened by over a decade of nationwide efforts to reduce corruption, Islamic terrorism and drug use.

Cold War era political rebels like the NPA were found to have more links with the other outlaw groups than expected, given the fact that NPA was always anti-religious and Moslem political and religious groups were militantly anti-communist. By documenting NPA connections to Islamic terror groups NPA loses more of what little political credibility it still has. This is being seen in Europe where several senior NPA leaders have obtained political asylum and openly continue working for the NPA. Some of these leaders are already facing efforts to cancel their asylum.

NPA has suffered heavy losses since 2016 and that led to internal disagreements over strategy. Because of that NPA has split into several factions. There is no one who can accurately represent all of NPA and resume negotiations and continue to work out a peace deal. The government has responded by ordering the security forces to concentrate on NPA and shut them down. That was delayed a bit in mid-2017 to concentrate forces to handle the Marawi City situation. But since October many troops and police assigned to Marawi City have been ordered to remain in the south and help with the effort to hunt down and eliminate the remaining Islamic and communist rebel factions.

One result of the NPA problems is that more NPA members surrendering or deserting the organization. Since mid-2017 many NPA members who surrendered provided information indicating that losses from desertion were more than twice what the government was reporting. In addition there were medical losses (because so many camps had been destroyed) as well as fewer new recruits. Those losses increased since September and judging from the reduced presence of NPA in areas they have long terrorized it is having quite an impact. There are still a few factions willing to fight on but they are facing more armed resistance (especially from local defense groups) and much less popular support. So far this year, and especially since peace talks collapsed on February 4th over 850 NPA rebels have surrendered, been captured, killed or known to have deserted (and are sometimes being sought to major crimes). Less than a third of these losses were killed in combat. Most were surrenders or deserters. Also important is the capture or surrender of nearly 700 firearms and much stockpiled ammo and bomb making materials. In many arears where the NPA has long operated the locals have come to view the NPA as bandits and turned against them.

December 9, 2017: In the south (Sulu) three Abu Sayyaf gunmen were killed by an army patrol. This patrol was part of a much larger operation in which eleven army battalions, plus some marines, are searching for the few remaining Abu Sayyaf camps in the south, especially Sulu and Basilan. Abu Sayyaf suffered major losses in 2017 but still holds some hostages (for ransom) in remote camps.

Elsewhere in the south (Maguindanao province) BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters) Islamic terrorists took credit for two attacks today that wounded seven soldiers and a policeman. There were two explosions, one caused by a rifle grenade fired from a distance while the other attack was a small roadside bomb.

December 8, 2017: In the south (Zamboanga del Sur province) troops caught up with a group of fleeing NPA rebels and after a three hour gun battle one leftist rebel was dead and three soldiers wounded. The remaining NPA gunmen escaped and the dead rebel and his weapon were seized. Identifying the dead rebel helps identify who he was working with. This pursuit is part of a larger campaign to shut down NPA operations in this area, which is just north of Sulu and Basilan, where Abu Sayyaf is under similar pressure.

December 7, 2017: Taiwanese and Filipino officials signed a new trade and financial investment agreement. This was not unusual as the two neighbors have long traded and worked out differences with negotiations. The next day China reminded the Philippines that anyone receiving aid from China was expected to consult China in certain key matters, like economic relationships with Taiwan (which China considers a renegade province, not an independent nation). In 1975 the Philippines went along with this, as did a lot of countries (including the U.S.) and established diplomatic relations with China while shutting down its embassy in Taiwan. But like many other nations the Philippines was going through the motions and still doing business as usual with Taiwan. But now that the Philippines is buying Chinese weapons (often at a big discount) and accepting gifts (cash, weapons and whatever) from China so the Chinese expect more compliance with the one China policy. This is going to cause problems for all concerned because Taiwan has always been considered a friendly neighbor and China more of a threat. For example in 2015 Taiwan and the Philippines established a joint patrol system, especially in some disputed areas and for greater cooperation during emergencies at sea. What really triggered that agreement was a mid-2015 announcement by the Chinese Navy that it would now be carrying out training exercises in the waters (Bashi Channel) between Taiwan and Philippines. This brought Chinese warships close to Taiwanese coastal waters on a regular basis, something that makes many Taiwanese and Filipinos uneasy.

China believed it had succeeded in buying cooperation (or blind obedience in an emergency) from the Philippines but there are still some disagreements over how that will work. The Filipino government is willing to accept all the legal gifts (aid, investments, loans) China offers in return for the Philippines not resisting Chinese claims in the South China Sea. Meanwhile the Chinese are openly moving more weapons to bases in the South China Sea as well as their main naval base in southern China (Hainan Island). Chinese officials admit that they are determined to get their way in the South China Sea but it is also the case that China prefers to buy what it wants rather than start a war over it. That is an ancient Chinese tradition that is currently giving a lot of popular and official support inside China. The Chinese are finding that bought support is often only rented and the expiration date of that lease is vague.

December 6, 2017: The army confirmed that all seven Maute brothers are dead. These men were the core leadership of the Maute Group. This is a radical MILF faction that opposes the peace treaty MILF negotiated and considers itself part of ISIL. The largest ISIL faction in Marawi City was from the Maute Group who unexpectedly brought in hundreds of their own gunmen who were willing to fight to the death and triggered an existing plan to gather in Marawi City to inspire local Moslems to rise up and drive out Christians.

The Maute family is one of the larger and wealthier clans in the south and the Maute brothers got mixed up with clan politics, MILF and eventually ISIL. The Marawi City battle began on May 23rd when a raid to capture or kill Isnilon Hapilon (the head of Abu Sayyaf since 2016) escalated unexpectedly. As the fighting went on there were efforts to end what quickly turned into dead (literally) end for the ISIL men who showed up. MILF refused to help negotiate a withdrawal of the remaining Islamic terrorists (many of them former MILF members) from the city. By October the battle was over and many of the troops concentrated in and around Marawi City were being sent to other areas in the south where there was still Islamic terrorist activity. The Maute Group was nearly wiped out in Marawi City and although all seven of the Maute brothers are now dead one other key Maute Group leader, Abu Dar, is still free. Abu Dar belongs to the same tribe (the Maranao) as the Manute clan and could take command of the Maute Group and rebuild it.

November 28, 2017: Some 60 kilometers outside the capital police clashed with a large group of armed NPA rebels and killed fifteen of them. Five soldiers were wounded. These NPA were planning large attacks in the capital as a response to the government ending the peace talks on the 23rd.

November 21, 2017: In the south (Sulu) the navy, acting on a tip, caught and arrested six Abu Sayyaf pirates. Several of the arrested already had arrest warrants issued for them. The sailors also captured two of the speed boats these pirates used as well as an M16 and ammo. The navy turned the six over to the police.
Source: The Critical Investor for Streetwise Reports (12/10/17)

Drill results from a Nevada lithium project caught the attention of The Critical Investor.





Dean claystone project; Clayton Valley, Nevada

Things seem to go as planned for Cypress Development Corp. (CYP:TSX.V), as the first three holes drilled on the Dean project returned very solid intercepts as part of the Stage 2 fall program. Results ranged from 102.7m @1029ppm lithium for hole DCH-11 to 62.8m @677ppm Li for DCH-12. This last hole generated dark green to black ash-rich mudstone at a depth of 53.4m. Management hasn't seen this before, and assumes that this type of claystone doesn't differ a lot recovery-wise, and just has a different color, but has to sample and test this first, of course, to be sure. This is a table of the last results:

These results are in line with the results of the earlier completed holes, and confirm the continuity of the mineralization at the Dean Project. It is still early days, but it seems that a mineralized zone of about 4km x 2km has already been outlined here, as stated by management in the news release. Because of this size, Cypress seems to be firmly on track to prove up a large bulk tonnage deposit in my view, as I guesstimated in my first article on the company, which was also based on a 4km x 2km target zone. Below is a map of the drill collar locations:



Clayton Valley, Nevada; drill hole locations

As can be seen, there is still a lot of the Dean property to be explored. The holes that got lost at depth were lost because of wet clay, and will demand different equipment. The company is looking into this, and might return to these holes during the next drill program, possibly with larger diameter core. The average target depth is at least 300 feet or about 100m. Most holes are ending in claystone and mineralization so far, but there is no real need to go much deeper. The fall 2017 program was planned for 12 to 14 drill holes, up to 1500 meters of core, and is divided between Dean and Glory. Results from the remaining holes on Dean are expected in December, and in the meantime the drill rig was already moved south onto the adjoining Glory property where drilling is continuing and seven holes are planned.

The company is already making preparations to continue infill drilling on Dean and Glory during the first quarter (aiming at mid-February), and will apply for a drill permit to the BLM in January 2018.

Laboratory work continues to test the solubility of the lithium-enriched claystone under varying conditions and reagents.

Besides the drilling news, and faster than I had anticipated, Cypress managed to cut a deal with another interested party for the majority of its Gunman Zinc/Silver Project in Nevada. This party was Pasinex, which acquired the option held by Silcom, which entitled it to buy 80% of Gunman. Pasinex is considered a stronger partner by Cypress management as it is a zinc producer. Here are the terms of this option agreement:

The treasury of Cypress contains about C$1.5 million at the moment, which will take the company well into 2018. Drilling in Nevada claystone is cheap, the target depth just 100m and goes fast, so the drill programs go a long way with the current cash position. For example, 10 holes can be done of 100m each at say $200/m all-in costs, which results in total costs of just C$200,000. Management estimates the costs for the current drilling and met work coming in less than C$300,000.

Cypress Development is proceeding with building the resource at Dean according to plan, and there is no doubt in my mind the company will prove up a significant deposit, hopefully to the tune of 6-7Mt LCE. More drill results will be coming in during the next few weeks before year-end, also for Glory, and I estimate another batch of 9001000ppm Li average grade assays. Awaiting the round of drilling, a bit more focus will shift toward important met test work in order to advance earlier and successful testing toward obtaining a fully commercial recovery method for lithium. If management succeeds in this department as well, Cypress could easily be a multi-bagger as the project is relatively large.



Glory claystone project; Clayton Valley, Nevada

I hope you will find this article interesting and useful, and will have further interest in my upcoming articles on mining. To never miss a thing, please subscribe to my free newsletter at http://www.criticalinvestor.eu/, in order to get an email notice of my new articles soon after they are published.

The Critical Investor is a newsletter and comprehensive junior mining platform, providing analysis, blog and newsfeed and all sorts of information about junior mining. The editor is an avid and critical junior mining stock investor from The Netherlands, with an MSc background in construction/project management. Number cruncher at project economics, looking for high quality companies, mostly growth/turnaround/catalyst-driven to avoid too much dependence/influence of long-term commodity pricing/market sentiments, and often looking for long-term deep value. Getting burned in the past himself at junior mining investments by following overly positive sources that more often than not avoided to mention (hidden) risks or critical flaws, The Critical Investor learned his lesson well, and goes a few steps further ever since, providing a fresh, more in-depth, and critical vision on things, hence the name.

Disclaimer:

The author is not a registered investment advisor, and has a long position in this stock. Cypress Development is a sponsoring company. All facts are to be checked by the reader. For more information go to Cypress Development Corp. and read the company's profile and official documents on Sedar, also for important risk disclosures. This article is provided for information purposes only, and is not intended to be investment advice of any kind, and all readers are encouraged to do their own due diligence, and talk to their own licensed investment advisors prior to making any investment decisions.

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A three-pronged banking malware campaign has been infecting Android phones since the beginning of this year, according to security researchers.

Attackers have been stealing credentials, planting the Marcher banking Trojan on phones, and nicking credit card information. So far, they have targeted customers of BankAustria, Raiffeisen Meine Bank and Sparkasse, but the campaign could spread beyond Vienna.

The attack begins with a phishing message delivered by email to a phone, security researchers at Proofpoint explained in a Friday post. The message pretends to be from the targets bank and contains a link that often is obscured by a Web address shortener like bit.ly.

The link takes the victim to a bogus bank page where the bandits request the targets bank account or PIN information.

Once the hackers have that information, they instruct victims to log into their accounts using their email address and password. All the information entered at the fake banking site is harvested by the hackers.

Permission to Hijack

Instead of getting access to an account, banking customers get a popup message instructing them to install the banks security app. About 7 percent of targets have downloaded the security app, which is really the Marcher malware, Proofpoint estimated.

Once installed, the malware asks for extensive permissions  everything from receiving, sending, reading and writing SMS messages to opening network sockets, reading address books, changing system settings and even locking the phone.

In addition, when applications like the Google Play store are opened, the malware will ask for the users credit card information.

While banking Trojans and phishing are common fare for cybercriminals, combining the two in a focused campaign isnt, noted Patrick Wheeler, director of threat intelligence at Proofpoint.

In general, we dont see a lot of crossover between phishing actors and those who distribute malware, he told TechNewsWorld. The combination of the socially engineered banking Trojan download and multistep phishing attack that gathers credentials or financial information at each step, is fairly unusual.

Not Your Typical Email Attack

The Marcher campaign in Austria is significantly more coordinated than the standard email attack, noted Matt Vernhout, director of privacy at 250ok.

However, it may have limited impact, as the number of steps required to complete the attack may be more than most individuals are willing to complete, he told TechNewsWorld.

Marcher has been around for a long time, which is why its perpetrators may find it necessary to modify the way they create landing pages to ensnare victims.

This is likely because security vendors and domain hosts are hot on their heels shutting them down, said Armando Orozco, a senior malware intelligence analyst with Malwarebytes.

They need other avenues to keep their business model going, he told TechNewsWorld.

Future Expansion

The likelihood of the Marcher campaign spreading is very high, said Proofpoints Wheeler.

Marcher has been observed worldwide, and we have already seen a variety of schemes to distribute the malware, primarily via SMS, and increasingly sophisticated social engineering from actors associated with Marcher, he said.

Any attack such as this one is usually a canary in the coal mine, noted Rajiv Dholakia, vice president of products at Nok Nok Labs.

One should expect variations of this to continue to evolve and spread around the world, he told TechNewsWorld.

Its not unusual for malware to be released in a single country or region and then, depending on its success, expand to other countries, said Damien Hugoo, director of product marketing at Easy Solutions.

We have seen many banking Trojans start out in Europe in the past year and expand globally, he told TechNewsWorld.

Protect Yourself

What can consumers do to protect themselves from this kind of attack?

One defense is to use Android phones that are easy to keep current with the latest version of the operating system, like Googles Pixel and Nexus phones, suggested Daniel Miessler, director of advisory services at IOActive.

Pixel and Nexus stay updated constantly, he told TechNewsWorld.

Also, never use app stores other than the official Google Play store, Miessler advised, and for the highest security, refrain from installing apps that are not extremely well known and well-tested.

Consumers need to be vigilant.

As with phishing attacks on any platform, the onus is on consumers to beware of scams and look for red flags. Unsolicited emails or texts asking for information or giving extensive reasoning for why they should download an app are clear warning signs, advised Proofpoints Wheeler.

Apps that ask for extensive permissions or that do not come from legitimate app stores should also be avoided, he said, unless consumers are absolutely sure of the origin and necessity of the app.
We are coming up to the end of the year, and its a good time to look forward. Next week, Ill look back and call out my product of the year.

Stepping outside of politics and the obvious war between the Democrats, Republicans and common sense, there is the war between Amazon and Google, which likely will redefine the growth of digital assistants.

Theres also the war between Intel and Qualcomm in the personal computing arena. With both Google and Intel behaving foolishly, Im going to call the battles for Amazon and Qualcomm  but for very different reasons.

Ill close with my last product of the week, in this case a product class: the recently announced joint Qualcomm Microsoft effort called the Always-Connected PC which will result from the Intel/Qualcomm battle. Lets get to it.

Google Is Now Synonymous With Idiot

The latest Amazon vs. Google battle just flared last week. Apparently, because Amazon doesnt want to sell Googles Chromecast TV device or Home voice-activated speaker, Google has cut off access to YouTube for users of Amazons Fire TV and Echo Show. So, basically, Google is punishing Amazons customers  many of whom also are Googles customers  to force Amazon to do something it doesnt want to do.

I expect that Jeff Bezos got training similar to what I got coming up as an executive, and the rule is that when someone attempts to blackmail you, you always take the or else. In this case, the or else likely is not as bad for Amazon as it is for Google. (By the way, the reason for this, is that if you ever give in to blackmail you are owned by the person who is blackmailing you.)

There is an enormous difference between a retailer not carrying a product and an open Web service provider who lives off ad revenue cutting off huge groups of users. Google makes ad revenue from YouTube regardless of how users access the service. YouTube is a recurring revenue stream, and when it comes to uploaded videos, YouTube basically has a monopoly right now.

Yes, you can go to Bing, but Bing largely pulls off YouTube (which does suggest that Amazon may have an interesting workaround with Microsoft). Amazon, while not as powerful as Google, does have a massive customer base  and alienating this base could be problematic for Google.

On the other hand, Google, which basically owns search on the Web, has many avenues to go around Amazon or Apple. (Apple Stores dont carry Google products either, for obvious reasons.)

Amazons likely response is to find an alternative to YouTube. Whether that is blessing Bing, coming up with its own AWS-based video streaming service funded to steal market share from Google, or finding another partner to close the gap, it likely would be bad for YouTube.

Googles action is not only an example of classic abuse of power, it is incredibly stupid. The industry rule is that while you certainly can attack a competitor, you never go after common customers to force an outcome. Doing so puts too much focus on the excessive market power you have, raises up competitors, and hurts revenue both in the short and long terms.

So, in this, I expect Amazon will prevail for no other reason that it hasnt, at least in this instance, behave stupidly and turned customers into cannon fodder. If Google expands this and cuts joint Amazon/Google customers form search, I expect that Google even more quickly will discover that misusing monopoly power ends badly.

Now We Know What the I in Intel Stands For

Over the years, many firms have tried to unseat Intel  from IBM to AMD. The companys close focus on technology and massive dominance always has allowed it to prevail. However, when Intel went after the smartphone market and failed, it opened a very different opportunity for failure.

My own view was that Qualcomm owned the smartphone market and Intel owned PCs. The battleground would have been tablets, and the company that prevailed with tablets likely would use that success to challenge the respective competitor in either PCs or smartphones.

Rather than focusing on tablets, Intel prematurely went after smartphones  but without the tablet foundation, it was routed. Smartphones grew up to make tablets largely redundant, and that allowed Qualcomm to move on to PCs.

Im at Qualcomms massive Hawaiian event with press and analysts, where the company is showcasing why its better than Intel in a broad sense, as it rolls out its Always-Connected PC platform.

During this same window, Intel has made massive cuts to its own media outreach and analyst support. What this means is that Qualcomm has moved in on Intels protected space, with Microsofts support, almost unchallenged.

Granted, its attack is focused on lifting the modem over the processor as the most important part of the PC, but with the massive expansion of cloud services, that really isnt much of a stretch.

AMD, which has been performing very well strategically of late, showed up in support of this. Its future products will be higher-performing alternatives to the pure Qualcomm offerings, allowing the companies to bifurcate the most lucrative PC segment.

In addition, the Always-Connected PC is an ideal mobile accessory to those of us with gaming or workstation machines at home, and AMDs Threadripper is fast becoming the favorite of these groups. This suggests, with AMDs help, that Intel could be trivialized in its own market.

Im again reminded of the Ballad of the Noob, in which a new player, just by being persistent, wins against a very advanced player because the advanced players eye strays off the ball.

Now there is a wild card in the Apple vs. Qualcomm litigation. However, given that Apple has signaled it eventually wants to take its PCs to ARM and simplify its hardware offerings, that means that even if Apple should prevail, the outcome for Intel will, be dire unless something changes.

One final thought: During the event Im at, Qualcomm launched its 845 part, driving home the point that should Intel ever fall behind Qualcomm, it wont be able to catch up. We could be seeing the beginning of the end for that company.

Wrapping Up

Google has a very young executive team, and if there is any lesson that we should learn from 2017 it is that we need to train executives better to avoid abuse of power and encourage thinking strategically. Google rarely does either, and this fight it is slated to lose with Amazon is likely to be yet one more case in point.

For Intel and Qualcomm, it really comes down to Intel behaving tactically and not building up a strategic base before going after Qualcomm. Further, Qualcomm and AMD have been far more strategic and moved against Intel in a far more methodical fashion.

Intel must keep it fabs populated, and it is unlikely its automotive or drone efforts (which arent operating together like Nvidias are) will get to volume much before 2020, if at all, to make up for the likely sales losses in 2018.

In both cases, I expect these battles will become textbook examples of reasons not to abuse power, and why it is so important to think and operate strategically and methodically.

In the end, I expect 2018 to be a good year for Amazon, AMD and Qualcomm  but Google and especially Intel, not so much.

OK this Always-Connected PC is a 2-in-1 laptop offering due out next year from Asus, HP and Lenovo.

It promises 20-plus hours of battery life and 30 or so days of standby time, and it is both lighter and more secure than whatever else you might have chosen.

A laptop that would make a smartphone jealous is something I didnt expect to see in my lifetime, and this has full Windows 10 support. What makes it more secure is that WAN (cellphone) connections generally are more secure than WiFi connections, thanks to the number of rogue or compromised WiFi access points.

Upcoming Always Connected PC

So, unlike a typical laptop  which requires you to wait until it comes out of sleep or hibernation, then search for a wireless connection and sweat over whether it is a real one rather than a hostile one  this one starts and connects instantly.

This device is likely best for folks who work like I do, who have a desktop machine at home or in the office for heavy work but want something you dont have to plug in to use for writing, communicating, and watching movies and TV.

If you want more mobile performance, you likely would prefer the AMD Ryzen/Radeon always-connected option. Youll drop battery life and instant on functionality, but youll get the performance you and instant connections.

Be aware that the device uses emulation, so applications that write to hardware (like most high-end games) wont work  but then this doesnt have enough performance for high-end games anyway. Personally, if Im playing a title like that, I want a big monitor and a desktop system.

In the end, this is the first iteration of a laptop with battery life that will make a smartphone jealous; is light, really light; costs between US$600 and $900 (like an iPad Pro); and is one of the sexiest classes of products weve yet seen. They had me at 20 hours of battery life  and as a result, the Always-Connected PC, due out next year, is my product of the week.
People are calling their strike the "Red Cup Rebellion" and handing out red Starbucks Workers United cups to customers. | Read More
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

On Monday morning, three women appeared on Megyn Kelly Today to accuse Donald Trump of sexual misconduct, and request a Congressional investigation into the ongoing harassment and assault allegations against the president. Later that day, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand told CNNs Christiane Amanpour that she believes the allegations against Trump are credible  and that he should immediately resign.

Exclusive: @SenGillibrand says that President Trump should resign over sexual assault allegations, calling them credible and numerous. https://t.co/quJhZ09vJi  Christiane Amanpour (@camanpour) December 11, 2017

These allegations are credible. They are numerous. Ive heard these womens testimony, and many of them are heartbreaking, and President Trump should resign his position, Gillibrand said. Whether he will ever hold himself accountable is something you really cant hold your breath for.

Gillibrand isnt the only senator to call for Trumps resignation; Senators Cory Booker and Jeff Merkley have called on Trump to step down. Senator Bernie Sanders has also suggested the president should resign. During a recent interview with Meet The Press, Sanders said, Here you have a president who has been accused by many women of assault, who says on a tape that he assaulted women. He might want to think about doing the same.
Photo: LACEY TERRELL/SHOWTIME

The year 2017 was a tough one for Rosie ODonnell: The man who publicly targeted her for years  and did so repeatedly during the lead-up to the election  had unexpectedly ascended to the presidency, where he was free to unleash his familiar bullying tactics on the rest of the world. I seriously worry whether I personally will be able to live through [his presidency], ODonnell told W magazine earlier this year.

Yet 2017 also brought ODonnells first dramatic TV role. On the feminist dramedy SMILF  which was nominated this morning for a Golden Globe  about a young Irish-Catholic working-class single mother named Brigitte (creator Frankie Shaw) in Bostons Southie, ODonnell wears an unfamiliar mane of long gray hair and plays Brigittes mother Tutu, who tries to do right by her daughter and grandson while grappling with her own mental-health struggles. For ODonnell, the show arrived like a life raft.

We talked to Rosie about the curative properties of tackling feminism onscreen and the challenges of shooting her first dramatic sex scene (which aired last night), as well as Al Franken and her ambivalence about the #MeToo moment.

On how she joined SMILF:

I had had a meeting with my agents and I said: Im really not interested in being me, I want an acting role I can disappear into. I was just very fed up, and so depressed because of this election.

They sent me the two shorts Frankie did and both of them are genius  like Too Legit, which is a parable about the absurdity of sexist rape culture. When I talked to her on FaceTime that night after watching them I was like, Ill do whatever you want. I too was from a lowermiddle class Irish-Catholic, generationally dysfunctional [family with] unspoken abuse patterns and addiction patterns. Everything she and I we talked about was everything I care about and everything I want to do my art about. It always comes back to these core issues of justice around women.

We actually were shooting the pilot on the night of the election, and I said to my shrink, Do you think its wrong that I go there alone? and she said Rosie, theres no way he can win, youre a smart person, this is America. Cut to  Im devastated, falling through the ice, and when we shot the pilot everyone was totally underwater. It was crazy.

I really did think all I had to do was get through that day and then I was done. To find out that not only am I not done, that it could possibly be a four year thing, I didnt know if I had it in me. And this show, I think, provided me with every single droplet of truth that one needs to rehydrate.

On feminist generation gaps on set:

Sex is a big thing. [Frankie] would always tease me when I would act the way I do as a 55-year-old gay woman survivor of child abuse; I kind of am very comfortable in my zone of what that means to me and my world. And here comes this fully actualized feminist, sexualized, healthy woman whos forcing me to face a lot of the issues I have about my body, about my sexuality and how I represent it, and about my ability to give myself fully.

Theres a scene where Raven, whos this amazing actress and wonderful young woman, is doing feeder-eater porn. And when [Frankie] showed me the scene I was horrified. I said, Oh my god was she embarrassed? That must have been so hard for her  I almost got tears in my eyes. And she said, Embarrassed? She fucking loved it, you kidding me? Everyone that Ive spoken to about that episode, you can tell what age they are by how they reacted to it. Im dating a woman now whos 33 years old, whos a police officer, and shes like, Oh my god, I fucking loved it, it was so great and empowering, you get it girl, you are beautiful. And I was like Whaaat!? It challenged all my self-abuse, loathing, body-shaming  it challenged it all.

On the current sexual reckoning:

I do have this real problem with society now saying well were all ready to talk about it, therefore all of you men who behaved by this previous paradigm  the one that was prevalent in the culture and that we could not fight, from Anita Hill up onto Ashley Judd, all that space in between  all of you men are now going to be decimated for what you did in the time where the culture had not caught up to the reality of all of the wrongs we have used in order to make it. I was so heartbroken over the Al Franken thing, completely heartbroken. I felt dejected and I felt like, Are you kidding me?

I may come out to be really wrong and everyone can say how dare you, but I dont think Al Franken is a predator. I know Al Franken and I know men who are also predators, including my own father, so I am always on the lookout for men who are predators. Al Frankens not a predator.

Nuance is required. Its a bigger conversation. Its like that David Foster-Wallace thing that everyone loves, where an old fish says to two young fish, Hows the water? and the fish say, Whats the water? This is the water. This is the soup we have all marinated in, and youre picking up a carrot and saying, God damn you, youve got sexist and racist undertones. Well, so does the water we swim in.

On preparing to shoot this weeks sex scene:

I think I really was able to do it because it was [directed by Frankie]. I did have two sex scenes in my career, which were both mostly played for comedy. But this one was not. And Frankie kept saying to me, Ro, weve gotta get your waiver, your agents want you to write what you will and wont do. And I go: Im not going to write that. Im going to come in here and Im going to to do something real with you, and Im going to talk with you about what I want to do, and the parts of my body that show Im okay with in the moment of the doing it. Lets just see what works. And Im trusting that youll know.

The harder part was the scene where Im getting ready, and all it says in the script is Tutu prepares for her date. In Frankies mind, that was me almost naked, walking around the bedroom getting ready and I was like, well I dont want to do that, I dont want to be naked. That scene was even more vulnerable to me when I was in my underwear and pulling hairs out of my nipple and kind of dancing and trying to feel sexy and desirable and all of those challenging feelings that women my age have. In the sex scene, the actor who was playing Edmund was more nervous than anyone I had ever seen. So, of course being a woman, all of my emotions about doing a sex scene were cut off because I could co-dependently care for someone else. Thats such a female thing to do. He was shaking when we first started to shoot it and I just wanted it to be okay for him. Because he was my age and hed never done one before. He was a very handsome Asian man, and he was like, They dont usually look to 60-year-old Asians for sex scenes, and Im like, Well, they dont usually cast 200-pound 55-year-olds either, so were in this together, my friend.

On how SMILF gave her a new lease on life:

When youre famous, you walk around in a bubble that isolates you from others and lets them observe you quote-unquote living, but youre not really living. I learned to react and relate to people with that glass between us. Thanks to SMILF and my age, Im getting to interact again as a human being. And its going to take some learning. I lived in the world for so long where everyone knew who I was, and Im just trying to figure out how to live back in the world where not everyone does.

The freedom the show has given me having gray hair, not trying to hold back any of my fat or my imperfections or my age has been liberating. I thank Frankie for it, and I do love her like I love my children. Every week I cry because I never see the show until its on. Not what I do  cause I can pick apart myself like no-one else, I can do Donald Trump times a billion in my head every day  but when I see what she has done, Im amazed. Im brought to tears at the brilliance. She has restored my faith in the virtue of parenting no matter what state youre in and how its a never-ending journey that requires forgiveness

On weathering Trumps attacks:

He went crazy in a way that stunned me. He was allowed access on hundreds of television shows where they, along with the hosts, would talk about how horrible I was. And Larry King joined in and David Letterman joined in and man after man after man. It was like a very long gang rape.

People think Im tough  its almost like an avatar Ive made in order to get through, but its not who I am. When I was on my television show every day people saw that and remembered that, but having been removed from that  of my own volition, in order to raise my kids  it left a space for people to fill with whatever untruths they needed in order to fill their own agenda.

Now look, you can say Im fat, ugly, disgusting, and gross; thats an opinion. But you cant say that my show was canceled, because I left my show with a 100 million dollar offer on the table. There are people who believe the narrative that Donald Trump wanted people to believe about me. So it was painful, make no mistake, and it kind of remains painful in some ways. I dont move in his circles so I dont really have to come face-to-face with his people who feel that, but I will say it did change the pop-culture narrative. When Trump wants to say the FBI is in tatters, he states it as fact when it is pure fiction  but say it enough, and people will believe it. And thats sort of what he did to me.

This interview has been condensed and edited.
Photo: Mike Grandmaison/Getty Images/All Canada Photos

As wildfires raged throughout Southern California last week, one particular feel-good video went viral: it shows an unidentified man pulling over on the side of the highway to rescue a small, frightened bunny.

If you need your faith in humanity restored just watch this video of a man saving a wild bunny from the #LAFires pic.twitter.com/Ke4hr59Lwk  Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) December 7, 2017

Who even was this intrepid rabbit rescuer? On Friday, we thought we were one step closer to knowing the truth when a man named Oscar Gonzalez told NBC Los Angeles it was him. In an interview, he called himself an animal lover and said he actually rescued multiple rabbits that day.

But over the weekend, another man came forward to say that he was in fact the real rescuer. Twenty-one-year-old Caleb Waldman told HuffPost that he was driving when he saw a rabbit in significant distress. He says he ran out of his car to try to save it, but it started to run back to the fire. At this point, Waldman says he told her, No, baby bunny, Im here. Im going to take care of you.

Conejo Valley Veterinary Hospital, where Waldman initially brought the rabbit, confirmed his identity as well. (As for the bunny, shes a female cottontail rabbit and currently recovering at the California Wildlife Center.)

As HuffPost points out, this doesnt necessarily mean that Gonzalez is lying about rescuing a bunch of bunnies  hes just not the man featured in the viral video.

If only rabbits could talk.
2 Off-Duty Officers Killed in Maryland Highway Crash Are Identified

On the night of Friday, Dec. 8, two off-duty officers were killed in a crash involving multiple vehicles on the I-270 in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Peter Piringer, chief spokesman for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services confirmed the identities in a tweet on Saturday morning, Dec. 9.

The first victim was identified as Deputy Chief State Fire Marshall Sander Cohen, 33, of the Office of the State Fire Marshall. The second victim has been identified as Supervisory Special Agent Carlos Wolff, 36, of the FBI by state police.

Sadly, @mcfrs learned this morning of the untimely passing of Sander Cohen, a Lieutenant w/ the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department & a Deputy Chief w/ MD State Fire Marshals Office, Maryland State Police.  he was involved in a collision on I270 near Falls Rd 12/8 ~10p pic.twitter.com/8t7lIYgzc5  Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) December 9, 2017

According to <a href=http://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/2-off-duty-law-enforcement-officers-struck-killed-on-i-270-in-montgomery-county>Fox Baltimore</a>, the off-duty officer was called in by a report of a single-vehicle crash on I-270 highway. Officials said the officer requested for more assistance as he blocked off the damaged vehicle with his own car, turning on the emergency lights in the process.

Both the driver and the off-duty officer then moved to the emergency stopping lane where they stoodbefore another vehicle approached the scene.

Police said that the approaching vehicle swerved so he could avoid the stopped cars before striking both men on the shoulder.

The collision sent both men flying over the jersey wall into the northbound side of I-270, where at least one of them was struck by another passing vehicle, Fox Baltimore reported.

According to CBS affiliate <a href=http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/maryland/2-off-duty-law-enforcement-officers-killed-in-i-270-crash-/498196215>WUSA</a>, the driver of the vehicle did not suffer any injuries and has been identified as 32-year-old, Brittany A. Waters.

~10p I270 South of Falls Rd, collision, A703C, A753, AT723, BC703, EMS703, EMS704, M723, PE732, RS703 on call, EMS evaluated 6 or 7 patients, incl 2 Pri1 traumas (1 of which was transported) 3 others transported NLT & 2 others evaluated pic.twitter.com/aXlfoK4T67  Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) December 9, 2017

Officials said Cohen died at the scene and Wolff was transported to Suburban Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Police also said that there was no alcohol involved in the crashes. The cause of the first, initial crash still remains under investigation.

As of writing on Sunday, Dec. 10, no other charges have been filed in the investigation.

The governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan issued a statement on Saturday offering his condolences to the two fallen officers.

We thank these officers for their selfless dedication to our state and our nation, and the first lady and I send our heartfelt prayers to their families, loved ones, and friends during this tragic time, Hogan wrote, in part.

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5-Year-Old Survivor of Church Shooting Wants Cards for Christmas

A 5-year-old boy who survived a church massacre in Sutherland Springs, Texas, last month has asked for cards while he recovers.

Ryland Ward lost his stepmother and two sisters in the shooting, and hell be spending Christmas Day in the hospital. He was shot several times in the shooting, which left 26 people dead. The gunman was later found dead in his vehicle.

They still havent told him yet that his mom and sisters are dead, but Im sure hes kind of getting some kind of idea because hes 5, his grandmother, Sandy, told KSAT.

Its really been hitting me this week, she added. It seems like all I do is cry lots of days because I still miss JoAnn and the girls (Emily and Brooke) and Im sure it will be a long time before I get over that.

Hes expected to remain in the hospital for another six to eight weeks. According to KWTX, he was shot twice in the leg, twice in the stomach, and once in the elbow.

You got so many nice people that are sending a card and a dollar to Ryland, Sandy Ward said. He does really enjoy that a lot.

Those who are interested in sending the boy a card can send it to this address:

Ryland Ward

P.O. Box 174

Sutherland Springs, Texas, 78161

Ward said they would like people to include $1 in the car, so the family can save money for a Go-Kart.

On Tuesday, the family posted an update on the boys condition in the hospital.

Rylands surgery today to put a stint in his kidney was a success. If it holds, it will remain in place 6 weeks. Please pray it holds and that he will not lose a kidney. This young warrior has many battles to overcome, the statement on GoFundMe read.

Rylands femur bone is still separated and he will be in a wheel chair or wagon for months for mobility, read an earlier statement. Tummy has not healed  His hip and leg will still need additional surgeries and require screws, pins, plates and rods. He will remain in ICU until some of the tubes are removed.

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8-Year-Old Boy Struck and Killed by Garbage Truck in Missouri

A family mourns the death an 8-year-old boy who was struck by a garbage truck in front of his grandparents home on Friday, Dec. 8.

The incident took place in Kansas City, Missouri, when DraViontay Baker and a friend were playing with a toy wagon on the street around 3:30 p.m, ABC6 reports.

According to NBC affiliate KSHB, the impact sent the boy flying underneath the truck outside E. 100th Street and Drury Ave,.

The boy was rushed to the hospital where he later died from his injuries.

According to ABC6, his friendwho was not namedsuffered minor injuries and is expected to survive.

When I first moved here two years ago, he was the first one to run up to me with a big smile and welcome me into the neighborhood, neighbor Monica Thomas said to FOX4KC of DraViontay. He would play with my grandkids, my son, and I loved to give him candy.

The neighbor said the boy loved to play outside with his red wagon.

He loved those wheels, Thomas told FOX4KC. He and another little friend of his were always together.

At the time, DraViontays nine-year-old friend had been yelling to alert the driver to the impact.

Neighbors and family are mourning the death of Draviontay Baker who was hit by a garbage truck this afternoon in South #KCMO.

According to his father, Baker is the oldest of six children. He is also his mothers only child. @41actionnews pic.twitter.com/TcrC7dJ9do  Andres Gutierrez (@AFGutierrez) December 9, 2017

He started yelling and alerted the driver to let him know something was wrong, KC Police Sgt. Bill Mahoney told FOX4KC. The driver stopped, and only then he actually noticed [sic] the child was underneath his truck.

He was a great son and my oldest of six, DraViontays father told FOX4KC.

Their neighbor said her heart goes out to the family.

I am so sorry for their loss, and I cant even imagine losing a child, she said. We will be there for the family, and Im really gonna miss Tay.

After questioning the driver, who remains unnamed as of writing, investigators determined that he was not under the influence when he struck the boy.

Authorities did not reveal if the driver will be facing any charges as of writing on Dec. 10.

Another resident on the same street, 41-year-old Clarence Hickman told ABC6 that he has never seen such an incident before.

We have some very safe drivers that come around and pick up our trash, Hickman said, and Im sure hes devastated about what happened.

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The wreckage of a boat is pictured along a sea wall in the city of Yurihonjo, Akita prefecture on Nov. 24, 2017. A group of eight fishermen claiming to be from North Korea washed up in northern Japan after drifting there when their wooden vessel developed problems, authorities said on Nov. 24. (AFP/Getty Images)

Boats Carrying Dead Bodies Mysteriously Wash up on Japan Shores

A number of battered wooden boats carrying dead bodies have mysteriously washed up on the shores of Japanand experts say they could be from North Korea.

Three empty boats were found along the west coast of Japan on Dec. 7. Two skeletons were found near one of the boats, which was upturned on the shore near the city of Oga, reported Washington Post. One of the other boats that was caught in fishing nets near Sado Island bore a sign in Korean writing.

Since November this year at least 40 corpses from around 15 boats have washed up along Japans west coast, according to Business Insider.

Japanese authorities have not been able to definitively establish the nationalities of the bodies, however, evidence points to the reclusive communist state.

Last month, one body was found in a small wooden ship on the island of Sado. In the ship, authorities found what appeared to be North Korean cigarette packets and jackets with Korean lettering on them.

More recently, two bodies were recovered from another boat in Yamagata prefecture on Dec. 7. They were wearing badges showing the face of Kim Il Sung, the grandfather of Kim Jong Un, according to the Associated Press.

Japan is no stranger to these ghost shipsships with no living crew. These vessels have been arriving in Japan from North Korea in previous years. According to a political science and economics professor at Japans Seigakuin University, Satoru Miyamoto, 80 similar ships have drifted into Japanese shores in 2013, 65 in 2014, 45 in 2015, and 66 in 2016, reported Business Insider.

However, in November alone 28 boats were founda sudden spike in the number of discoveries compared to four boats same time last year.

This phenomenon has people thinking about what is going on.

Reflection of Food Shortages

With so much going on in North Korea, it is difficult to pinpoint what is driving the rise in the number of boats. However, some experts have said that food shortages play in a big part in the increased appearance of these ghosts ships.

Director of Asian Studies at Temple University in Japan, Professor Jeffrey Kingston, said the arrival of these ghost ships is a barometer for the state of living conditions in North Korea  grim and desperate.

The communist regime has been responsible for several famines resulting in millions of deaths.

Analysts believe that the toughening of sanctions on North Korea for its nuclear defiance is having an impact on their food supply.

North Korean fishermen have to work harder than ever before, and they have to go farther out into the sea, but they dont have new boats, Atsuhito Isozaki, associate professor of North Korean studies at Keio University, told the Washington Post.

Plus, North Korea doesnt have enough gasoline anymore, so theyre running out of fuel, Isozaki added.

According to the newspaper, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un started to actively promote fishing as a growth industry which started this year by ordering a dynamic drive for catching fish with modern fishing vessels.

Fishermen usually have a set quota, and they used to sell the seafood to China, Toshimitsu Shigemura, emeritus professor at Waseda University told the Washington Post.

Now with the new sanctions, they cant sell the seafood overseas, but the quota still exists, so fishermen need to go fishing. They probably stay out too long to catch more fish, he added.

In addition to the sanctions, the communist regime had also suffered a severe drought in July this year which significantly reduced the countrys food supply and will likely lead to further food shortages, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

According to FAO, the assessment of crop damage is not yet available but early estimates suggest about 50,000 hectares of cropland have been severely affected by the prolonged dry spell.

Kingston said the appearance of these ships is a sign of desperation as North Koreans try to make up for the food shortages.

These rickety vessels are unsuitable for the rough seas of the Sea of Japan in autumn, and one imagines that far more are capsizing that we will never know about, Kingston told Business Insider.

Japanese reactions

Not all boats that have arrived on Japanese shores contain dead bodies. According to the Washington Post, a total of 42 men have been found alive, with one boat carrying eight North Koreans fishermen who were looking for squid when their engine failed.

Kazuhiro Asai, head of the Oga branch office of the Akita Fisheries Cooperative Association, said that they feel unsettled about the North Korean recent appearances.

In the past, there was a case where North Koreans came to kidnap someone nearby, and that was scary. I guess these guys arent out to kidnap, but we dont know what theyre here for, and that makes me worried, Asai told the newspaper.

Other people living on the Japanese coast said that along with missiles in the water, these ghost ships are another thing they have to watch out for from their hostile neighbor.

We have an uneasy feeling, Sakari Nishimura of Yamagata Prefectural Fisheries Cooperative Association, told the newspaper.

These days, we not only need to watch out for missiles falling from the sky; now we have to watch out on the sea, too, he added.

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Then-Canadian defence minister Peter MacKay talks to his Belgian counterpart Pieter De Crem during a North Atlantic Council meeting of Ministers of Defence and ISAF partners at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Feb. 22, 2013. (Thierry Charlier/AFP/Getty Images)

Chinas Record on Cyberhacking a Key Concern for Canada, Says Former Defence Minister Peter MacKay

As Ottawa pursues closer relations with Beijing, MacKay warns about security, economy

When it comes to Canadas relationship with Beijing, national security should be of the utmost concern, warns former defence minister Peter MacKay.

Im not comfortable in many ways in having the Chinese more and more integrated into our technology system, said MacKay, who served as minister of justice, minister of defence, and minister of foreign affairs during Stephen Harpers Conservative government.

In particular, the way in which we have ample evidence of their activities around cyberhackingincluding critical infrastructures, government banks, government departmentswe have to be very frank and upfront about protecting our interests, he said.

Its not to say we cant do business with them, but we expect them to play by the rules, and play fairly.

MacKays words of warning come just after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau concluded a five-day trade mission to China in what has become an annual trip to ramp up bilateral ties between the two countries.

According to a recent report by Public Safety Canada, there were more than 2,500 foreign state-sponsored cyberattacks between 2013 and 2015 against the Canadian governments computer networks. The report doesnt name any specific countries; however, China is among the most active countries launching cyberattacks around the world, including the well-publicized Chinese state-sponsored cyberattack on Canadas National Research Council computer systems in 2014.

Free Trade

MacKay warns of a recklessness in pursuit of free trade with China, particularly given that the regime doesnt play by the same rules as Canada.

[And] particularly given whats at stake in losing control over things like our natural resources, the major economic drivers of our country, he said.

Ottawa and Beijing have been pursuing a free trade deal since the Liberal government came into power. However, the two sides did not reach an agreement to launch formal free trade negotiations during Trudeaus China trip, and said they will continue exploratory talks.

MacKay said there are many concerns in pursuing a free trade deal between a democratic country like Canada and a communist state like China.

[China] is not a democratic country, its not a country that necessarily shares our values, certainly not a country that has any semblance of human rights, of rule of law, or free market economy, he said.

They dont want to concern themselves with labour standards, or sharing the profitsthere is a completely different view of the economy in a communist country than there is in a democratic one like Canada, and so you have to proceed with a great deal of caution.

At the same time, he said, such a deal could jeopardize Canadas efforts in NAFTA renegotiations with the United States.

We cant take our eyes off the ball as far as ensuring that NAFTA is going to survive and stay intact, he said.

MacKays former cabinet colleagues in the previous Conservative government, James Moore and Rona Ambrose, who are both on Trudeaus NAFTA advisory panel, have expressed similar concerns.

Takeovers

Chinas ambassador to Canada, Lu Shaye, has made it clear that Beijing doesnt want human rights to be part of trade talks with Canada. Additionally, he has said that Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) should have unfettered access to the Canadian economy, stating that China would regard as protectionism any attempt to block its SOEs from taking over Canadian firms on national security grounds.

Earlier this year when the federal government approved a China-based companys takeover of Vancouver-based satellite communications firm Norsat International Inc. without requiring a comprehensive security review, it drew heavy criticism from intelligence and security circles. This included the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a congressional commission. Norsat makes radio transceivers and systems used by the American military and Canadas other NATO partners.

Before that, government approval of a Hong Kong companys takeover of Montreal-based ITF Technologies, a laser technology company, drew similar criticism, especially because the previous Conservative government had blocked the sale citing security concerns.

I find that very troubling, MacKay said.

The backdrop to all of this is that the Chinese are serial cyberhackers within the Canadian economy, and so turning over control of an important tech companyI find worrisome when there wasnt an in-depth security check done, when they didnt go through this rigorous analysis that is in place for a reason and that is to protect Canadas interest, he noted.

The Politburo [of the Chinese Communist Party] doesnt have the same interest in protecting Canadian values and Canadian prosperity that the Canadian government does.

MacKay said he is also concerned about the proposed takeover of Canadian construction giant Aecon by Chinas state-owned CCC International Holding Ltd.

Late last week, following Trudeaus trip to China, Aecon announced that the proposed sale has obtained regulatory approval under the Canadian Competition Act. However, it still needs to undergo a review under the Investment Canada Act, invoked when large foreign investments in Canada are involved.

MacKay said if the Chinese SOE takes over a major Canadian construction company, the Chinese government could effectively be taking on huge construction projects that are taxpayer-funded, especially now that the government is launching a substantial infrastructure upgrade program.

They would be bidding on potential contracts for this massive infrastructure build that has been proposed by the government. Does that mean that Canadian companies now will be losing contracts to a large Chinese state-owned construction company?

Furthermore, a Chinese SOE is more likely to use steel and other material that are imported from other Chinese SOEs into Canada. This would be a real threat to Canadas steel industry, as China is notorious for dumping steel in Canada, by selling the product at a lower-than-normal price to drive out local competition.

In a controversial decision, the previous Conservative government approved the sale of oil and gas giant Nexen to the Chinese state-owned CNOOC back in 2012.

MacKay said the Conservative caucus was always very uneasy about the sale, adding that there was more competition in that sector, which made it a little different from the Aecon case.

I can tell you it did go through a very rigorous analysis, but it wasnt without controversy or dissent within our own government, he says.

In announcing the approval of the Nexen takeover as well as the takeover of Progress Energy by Malaysias Petronas in 2012, then-prime minister Harper said that going forward, any similar takeovers would only be allowed under exceptional circumstances.

When we say that Canada is open for business, we do not mean that Canada is for sale to foreign governments, Harper said.

Rule of Law, Human Rights

MacKay cites concerns about respect for the rule of law and human rights as an important aspect when considering deals with China.

The rule of law is very important in not only contractual disputes, but also very important when it comes to giving a person a full answer in defence, he said.

Im very leery of the way China treats not only its own citizens, but those who are visiting their country.

There are currently several Canadians detained in China. They include Vancouver resident Sun Qian, the founder of a billion-dollar company who was detained for her faith in Falun Dafa, a spiritual meditation practice persecuted by the Chinese regime; Huseyin Celil, an Uyghur dissident; and British Columbia winery owner John Chang, who was arrested along with his wife, Allison Lu, over a customs dispute issue. Lu was later released but remains unable to leave China.

While in China, Trudeau said he raised human rights and specific consular cases involving detained Canadian citizens with the Chinese leadership. So far, none of the Canadians have been released.

You have to also have honesty in the relationship. You have to be able to talk about sensitive issues like human rights, being able to settle these consular cases, MacKay said.

Canada should be very cautious in its relationship with Beijing, MacKay added.

Move at the pace that ensures that Canadian rights and Canadians interests are going to be protected.
Comedian Hannibal Buress Arrested in Miami on Disorderly Conduct Charges

Comedian Hannibal Buress was arrested in Wynwood and charged with disorderly intoxication after an encounter with a police officer on Dec. 9.

Buress was booked into a Miami-Dade jail early Sunday and posted bail just before 6 a.m., reported Miami Herald citing an arrest report.

His arrest was filmed by a social media user who posted the video online. The footage shows the 34-year-old comedian asking the police officers why he was arrested.

Am I under arrest? For what? Buress yells in the video. Explain what Im detained for. What I am detained for?

One of the police officers replied: For trespassing.

However, Buress was not arrested for trespassing. According to the arrest report, Miami police arrested him around 10:30 p.m. at Northwest Second Avenue and 20th Streetin the heart of Wynwoodfor his disorderly conduct earlier in the night, reported the newspaper.

The report said Buress, who had bloodshot eyes and a strong scent of alcohol, asked a police officer to call an Uber for him. When the officer refused, the star became angry and belligerent.

The police offer then told Buress to leave, but instead, he went inside a venue at 2000 NW Second Ave. The officer followed him into the venue to get him out because he felt that the comedian was too drunk to stay, reported Miami Herald.

Once outside, the defendant stood by the front gate and continued yelling profanities, the officers report says. I, then again, asked him to leave the area about five times. A crowd began to gather and vehicular traffic slowed as they watched the defendant yelling and being disorderly. Defendant arrested.

Some social media users felt the arrest was unfair and a # FreeHannibalBuress hashtag started trending on Twitter after the arrest.

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Family Home Burned Down After Attempt to Kill Bed Bugs Goes Wrong

A woman has burned down a house after her attempt at exterminating bed bugs went badly wrong.

Rubbing alcohol, an undrinkable alchohol product, is said to repel bed begs and dissolve their eggs.

It is also highly flammable, as a Cincinnati woman discovered after dousing bed bug infestations with the liquid near an open flame.

A woman trying to kill bed bugs accidentally set a multi-family home ablaze in Avondale overnight, Cincinnati fire officials said.

https://t.co/PUxiomqvGb pic.twitter.com/Ma60o6fLFw  KLTV 7 (@KLTV7) December 10, 2017

Officials said that the rubbing alcohol started a fire which caused $250,000 of damage and displaced 10 people, according to WXIX.

It is the second major fire in Cincinnati in the last two weeks caused by someone trying to kill bed bugs.

The woman is not named in any of the reports of the blaze, which happened at a multi-family home in Hutchins Avenue, Avondale late Friday Dec. 9.

One resident, Kamaron Lyshe, posted a video of the fire on Facebook, writing: My House caught fire n got burned down  all my stuff is gone maaaaaan.

Seven adults and three teenagers were displaced from the five-unit multi-family home, and the American Red Cross is helping them with temporary lodging, clothing and meals, according to WXIX.

District 3 Fire Chief Randy Freel emphasized the fire departments previous advice not to try to tackle infestations. Get a professional, Freel said, according to WXIX.

Last month, a 13-year-old boy set fire to a building in Cincinnati in an attempt to kill bed bugs, causing $300,000 in damage, and displacing eight people, according to authorities.

According to officials, the teenager had been trying to kill the bedbug with alcohol and a match.

This was accidental. He wasnt in there just playing with matches. It wasnt the smartest thing, obviously, but he was trying to get rid of a bed bug, District 3 Chief Marc Monahan told WAFB 9 at the time.

Officials: Boy trying to kill bed bug sparks house fire https://t.co/gHAaySmT5e pic.twitter.com/u6HqDFw63T  KOAT.com (@koat7news) November 30, 2017

in November 2015, a woman from Detroit accidentally started a massive fire when she tried to get rid of bedbugs in her home.

That fire ripped through the 48-unit apartment complex and the roof caved in according to the Detroit Free Press. Nine fire engines were involved in fighting the blaze.

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A Florida woman gave birth at a gas station and, luckily, a medical doctor was on hand to perform a safe delivery. (Stock photo, CC0)

Florida Doctor Delivers Baby at Gas Station

It was a tense moment when a woman went into labor at a gas station in Merritt Island, Florida. on Friday, Dec. 8, but thankfully, a man who had stopped for gas turned out to be just what the doctor ordered.

Dr. Javier Soto, a practicing obstetrician-gynecologist on his way to the hospital to perform a scheduled baby delivery at a nearby clinic, noticed his fuel light had come on and pulled into the Speedway in Merritt Island to fill up, according to People.

It is reported that as Soto was preparing to pump gas, a man who saw Sotos blue hospital attire pulled into the gas station and approached him seeking emergency medical assistance for his wifeshe was about to give birth in their vehicle. An emergency crew was on its way, according to News6, but Soto decided it would be in the best interest of mother and child to intervene on the spot.

I could wait for the ambulance or deliver the baby, Soto told People. I dont know how the babys doing at this point. I thought it was better to deliver the baby.

Surprise Arrival! Florida Doctor Javier Soto Was Getting Gas But Then Delivers Baby at Station. My story: https://t.co/BmiXyvA7dJ  Hilary Shenfeld (@HilaryShen) December 10, 2017

Soto instructed the father-to-be to round up some crucial supplies: scissors, gloves, and shoelaces.

The baby came surprisingly quickly.

Normally patients in the hospital push for an hour or two, Soto said, but this baby was born after just one push by the mother, according to People.

They say timing is everything and that was the case for a mother going into labor last night. Rockledge Regional Medical Center's very own Dr. Javier Soto, OB/GYN delivered a baby at a Merritt Island gas station! https://t.co/zRKgcvWc8z  RockledgeRegMC (@RockledgeRegMC) December 9, 2017

In another twist of fate, the new mother turned out to already know Soto, having been a former patient of his.

Thank God everything came out fine, Soto told People.

An ambulance arrived not long after that and whisked mother and child away to the hospital.

She has an angel watching over her, thats for sure, said Soto.

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Four Women Accuse Celebrity Chef Mario Batali of Sexual Misconduct

Celebrity chef Mario Batali announced that he will step away from his restaurant empire after four women accused him of sexual misconduct in an Eater NY article published on Monday, Dec. 11, which detailed a pattern of inappropriate behavior spanning at least two decades.

The ABC television network also confirmed that it asked Batali to leave The Chew while the company reviews the allegations, according to Fox News.

The four woman who accused Batali, 57, were not identified in the original Eater NY report. Three of the women claimed that Batali groped them. One of the three said that she was a fellow chef and that Batali grabbed her at a New Orleans wine auction.

Batali is married and has released a statement to apologize to his family, employees, fans and customers.

I apologize to the people I have mistreated and hurt, said Batali in a statement obtained by Eater. Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted. That behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility and am deeply sorry for any pain, humiliation or discomfort I have caused to my peers, employees, customers, friends and family.

I have work to do to try to regain the trust of those I have hurt and disappointed. For this reason, I am going to step away from day-to-day operations of my businesses. We built these restaurants so that our guests could have fun and indulge, but I took that too far in my own behavior. I wont make that mistake again. I want any place I am associated with to feel comfortable and safe for the people who work or dine there.

I know my actions have disappointed many people. The successes I have enjoyed are owned by everyone on my team. The failures are mine alone. To the people who have been at my side during this time  my family, my partners, my employees, my friends, my fans  I am grateful for your support and hopeful that I can regain your respect and trust. I will spend the next period of time trying to do that.

ABC, which airs the daytime cooking series The Chew also issued a statement.

We have asked Mario Batali to step away from The Chew while we review the allegations that have just recently come to our attention, writes an ABC spokesperson in a statement. ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment. While we are unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with the show, we will swiftly address any alleged violations of our standards of conduct.

The allegation against Batali surfaced after several other celebrity chefs were accused of sexual misconduct. Pastry chef Johnny Iuzzini, a judge on ABCs Great American Cooking Show, was accused by four women in November. In October, more than two dozen women accused New Orleans chef John Besh of sexual misconduct. Besh later stepped down from his restaurant group.

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Chinese students use handmade red ribbons to form 'AIDS' one day ahead of the the World AIDS Day, at a school in Hanshan, east China's Anhui province on Nov. 30, 2009. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)

In China, A Successful AIDS Lawsuit Stands in Contrast to the States Treatment of AIDS Patients

When a topic is taboo in society, behavior may be irrational. Consider how AIDS is handled in China. A man who does not have AIDS but was mistakenly diagnosed as HIV+ has been able recently to successfully file a lawsuit for damages. Those who do have AIDS and seek help from the state are harassed and surveilled, with their lawyers denied to them and minimal aid offered.

But while there is certainly ignorance and prejudice surrounding AIDS in China, the suppression of AIDS activism may also be linked to an ongoing scandal.

Ouyang Jiu, a resident from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province in southwestern China, recounted how he led a miserable life ever since he was diagnosed with the HIV virus at the Chengdu disease control center in December 2008, just a few months before his planned wedding, reported the Chinese state-run news website The Paper on Dec. 6, a few days after World AIDS Day, which falls on Dec. 1. In fact, the Chengdu center did not test his blood sample, but had only sent it for testing at the provincial disease control center.

After waiting for years for the virus to claim his life, Ouyang was surprised that he still felt healthy in December 2015, and decided to have his blooded tested for the second timethis time at the West China Medical Center of Sichuan University. He was shocked to learn that he tested HIV negative.

He decided to get tested for the third time to confirm. The test was done at the disease control center at Jinniu District, one of nine districts in Chengdu, also showed he did not have HIV. A disgruntled Ouyang then reached out to both the Chengdu and the provincial disease control center. They still had Ouyangs blood sample from 2008, and it still tested HIV positive. It turned out that the Chengdu disease control center had mixed up an HIV-positive blood sample with Ouyangs blood sample.

On Dec. 5, Ouyanag filed a lawsuit at Wuhou Peoples Court in Chengdu against the Chengdu and Sichuan disease control centers. Ouyang claimed that as a result of the fake diagnosis, he was still not married and even spent his mothers retirement money to live the rest of his life, thinking he did not have many years left. He demanded that the defendants publish an apology letter in the provincial newspaper and on the internet, in addition to paying an unknown sum for monetary loss and psychological trauma he had suffered since 2008.

The court has since issued a mediation notice, asking Ouyang and the centers to settle within 30 days, before litigation proceedings formally start.

Many netizens have shown sympathy on Chinese social media to Ouyangs plight. But the Chinese media coverage of Ouyangs misfortune is a stark contrast to the experiences of real HIV/AIDS victims in Chinathey do not get favorable news write-ups and Chinese authorities ignore them, or worse.

Pressure

On World AIDS Day, Sun Ya, an HIV/AIDS activist affiliated with the Beijing-based Aizhixing health rights group, said that he did not dare to take part in public events supporting the rights of HIV/AIDS victims because he and other victims had been pressured by Chinese authorities. Their communications were also being listened to, he told Radio Free Asia.

People are routinely getting detained, and all of the lawyers who used to stand up for us are being taken off [such cases] for a variety of reasons, Sun told RFA.

The suppression of activism on World AIDS Day is part of an ongoing suppression of rights activists attempts to help AIDS sufferers.

According to the RFA article, employers discriminate against AIDS sufferers, and many people with HIV/AIDS are given a monthly handout of just 200 yuan (about $30). The amount is hardly enough to help victims survive.

In China, there are two AIDS epidemics. One is spread by sexual contact or through drug use, the other is spread through contaminated needles at blood donation centers, where poor farmers go to make a few extra dollars. The farmers known to contract AIDS in this way have been clustered in Henan and Anhui provinces.

In the regions where there is a high incidence of HIV/AIDS, such as Henan and Anhui, but mostly Henan, in all the years of advocacy work since 2001, I have yet to hear of a single victorious lawsuit in the area of HIV/AIDS and government compensation, Hu Jia, a Beijing-based rights activist, told RFA.

Chen Bingzhong, former head of the national health education institute, wrote in an open letter to then-Party leader Hu Jintao in 2010, that there were at least 100,000 people suffering from HIV due to contamination from selling blood plasma in the 1990s.

According to the Chinese regimes mouthpiece Xinhua, recently the number of HIV infections through blood transfusion has been reduced to nearly zero.

The Xinhua report, citing statistics by Chinas Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said 747,000 people currently live with HIV/AIDS in China, as of the end of September 2017, an increase of 93,000 from the same time a year prior.

Sexual transmission accounted for 94 percent of infections, while intravenous drugs infection and mother-to-child transmission rate were relatively low, according to Xinhua.

In China, official numbers are often not reliable, and Xinhuas AIDS numbers are disputed.

U.S.-based dissident doctors told RFA that a network of blood-selling clinics are still operating in poorer parts of the country and account for the majority of the new AIDS infections. If so, then perhaps the states heavy-handed tactics are meant to keep this scandal under wraps.
This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 5, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un (C) inspecting the defense detachment on Jangjae Islet and the Hero Defense Detachment on Mu Islet located in the southernmost part of the waters off the southwest front. (AFP/Getty Images)

North Koreas Submarine Program More Dangerous Than Most Would Belive

Submarines carrying nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles are apocalyptical leviathansstealthily moving missile launchersand North Korea has them.

Of the three legs of the U.S. nuclear triadland-launched ICBMs, bombers with nuclear bombs or missiles, and submarines with nuclear missilessubmarines are arguably the most deadly. They are all but undetectable, can get close to the enemy, and are very difficult to counteract.

All of which explains why the United States, South Korea, and Japan are currently drilling on how to detect airborne missiles.

A U.S. defense official could not confirm if the current exercise is geared specifically for submarine-launched ballistic missiles, only that the U.S. Navy was participating and that the exercise would allow participants to share information and develop a common operational picture.

The official also confirmed the USS Stethem, an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyer, was part of the drills.

While little is known about North Koreas submarine program, it is widely seen to be a key focus of Kims nuclear program.

North Koreas submarine program has been evident even from commercial satellite images obtained by 38 North, a website focused on information and analysis about North Korea.

North Korea is on an aggressive schedule to build and deploy its first operational ballistic missile submarine, 38 North reported on Nov. 16, based on commercial satellite photos of North Koreas Sinpo South Shipyard.

Parts and components were seen flowing into the shipyards construction halls, as well as sections of what appeared to be a submarine pressure hull, indicating North Korea is building a second submarine.

The new sub would be an evolution of the regimes Sinpo-class experimental ballistic missile submarine.

The website said a launch canister appeared visible within the service tower at the missile test stand.

Using satellite imagery, U.S. and South Korean intelligence agencies have suspected that the new submarine-launched ballistic missile(SLBM) North Korea is developing for this submarine is three meters longer than the previous Pukguksong-1 SLBM.

North Koreas communist regime successfully tested that SLBM in August 2016, though few details are known about the missile.

That larger size of the new missile indicates it likely has much more fuel than its predecessor.

If the missile is three meters longer, the overall weight is likely to be 28 tons. If the Pukkuksong-1s projected range is 1,600 kilometers, the new one could have a range of up to 4,000 kilometers. That would put Guam within its range, said Prof Chang Yung-keun, a Korea Aerospace University professor.

North Korea leaked photos of the new weapon last July and the regime is believed to be building a 3,000 ton submarine capable of launching them.

Submarine-launched ballistic missiles post a difficult set of challenges, even for the United States.

Land-launched intercontinental ballistic missiles are easier to spot. In the case of missile silos, their location is already known. That is why they are sometimes considered the use-them or lose them leg of the nuclear triad because enemies will target them in any attack.

U.S. satellite sensors and radar are also able to detect a land-launched ICBM almost instantly, giving ballistic missile defense 30 to 40 minutes to take the missile out before it reached the U.S. mainland.

Submarines, however, remain incredibly stealthy. While little is known about North Koreas submarine program, a comparatively small diesel-powered Swedish submarine proved the danger of these weapons.

This new generation of diesel subs is even quieter than the already stealthy U.S. nuclear subs, which need coolant pumps in their reactions. In 2005, a Swedish submarine of this new type, the HSMS Gotland, was undetectable to the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier during exercises.

The Reagan, coincidentally, is the closest aircraft carrier to North Korea.

In exercises over two years, the Gotland destroyed a humiliating list of U.S. ships and submarines, leaving U.S. anti-submarine specialists demoralized, Naval analyst Norman Polmar told the National Interest.

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Hundreds of Falun Gong practitioners meditate to mark the 10th anniversary of start of the persecution in China at the National Mall in Washington, DC, on July 17, 2009. (Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images)

Over 2.6 Million Sign Petition Supporting Legal Action Against Former Chinese Leader Jiang Zemin

One of the largest civil rights movements is currently taking place around the world, with the goal of putting former Chinese regime head Jiang Zemin on trial for his brutal crimes against humanity. As of Dec. 8, over 2.6 million people from 31 countries have signed a petition calling on Chinas judicial bodies to prosecute Jiang.

According to Minghui.org, a website dedicated to the reporting of first-hand information about the persecution of Falun Gong, over 200,000 Falun Gong practitioners, mostly living in China, have since mid-2015 filed criminal complaints with the regimes highest court, the Supreme Peoples Court, and highest prosecuting body, the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate. They accuse Jiang of crimes against humanity and genocide.

On Dec. 10, International Human Rights Day, Theresa Chu, a Taiwanese human rights lawyer and coordinator of the petition drive in the Asia-Pacific region, announced the total tally of people around the world who supported bringing Jiang to justice.

According to Chu, the petition drive started in July 2015. Signatures have been collected from 31 countries and regions, including France, Germany, Spain, Russia, Belgium, Israel, Ireland, Latvia, Bulgaria, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Macau, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

The overwhelming majority of the signatures were collected in Asia, with 926,286 from Taiwan, 671,422 from South Korea and 483,360 from Japan. Of the 24 countries in Europe where signatures were collected, Ukraine, Israel, Spain, Germany, Netherlands, and Russia had the most signatures, with at least 10,000 collected in each.

The genocide-like persecution of Falun Gong in China is still ongoing. The persecution continues to be severe and has not ended, said Chu in an interview with the Asia-Pacific branch of New York-based Chinese-language broadcaster New Tang Dynasty Television (NTD).

I believe this is the most ironic, most painful, and most brutal chapter in the history of human rights, added Chu.

Chu also put the entire CCP apparatus on notice. In the last 18 years, during which three different Chinese leaders have ruled China, countless people have been involved in planning, implementing, and executing the persecution policy. Their hands are tainted with blood, Chu said. They will never be able to avoid their responsibility in committing crimes against humanity, torture, and genocide under international criminal law.

The World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG), a New York-based nonprofit, has compiled a long list of CCP officials for their involvement in the persecution, including former security czar Zhou Yongkang; former Party secretary of Chongqing Bo Xilai; and Li Changchun, the former party secretary of Guangdong Province and the regimes propaganda chief from 2002-2012.

Hu Ping, chief editor of Beijing Spring, a pro-democracy publication run from New York, said he supported the petition drive because it would awaken peoples awareness of the crimes committed by the Chinese regime and put pressure on them, in an interview with The Epoch Times.

Background

Jiang, who ruled as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002 and pulled the levers of power behind the scenes from 2002 to 2012, started persecuting Falun Gong practitioners on July 20, 1999.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual discipline that was introduced to the public in China in 1992. The discipline consists of slow meditative exercises and moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. Jiang believed that the popularity of Falun Gonga state survey in 1999 estimated that there were more than 70 million adherents, and Falun Gong practitioners say that number topped 100 millionwas a threat to the Partys atheist ideology.

Jiang launched a bloody repression, establishing a Gestapo-like office created for the sole purpose of eradicating Falun Gong. The official press office for Falun Gong estimates that millions of practitioners have become victims of harassment, imprisonment, torture, brainwashing, forced labor, and other abuses. In addition, independent researchers report that Falun Gong practitioners are the principal source of organs for Chinas extensive organ transplantation industry, killing the practitioners in the process.
A Coast Guard ship makes its way past the Statue of Liberty on the opening day of Fleet Week on May 24, 2017 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Over 3,800 Pounds of Cocaine Intercepted Off Texas Coast

A U.S. Coast Guard cutter ship intercepted a self-propelled, semi-submersible vessel that was smuggling more than 3,800 pounds of cocaine off the coast of Texas last month.

On Nov. 12, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Marine Operations (AMO) tracked the vessel through international waters before arresting the drug smuggling crew, according to a CBP statement.

All three were arrested and the cocaine was seized. The suspects will face charges in the United States.

An AMO air crew and @USCG interdict a self-propelled semi-submersible vessel loaded with 3800 lbs of cocaine. #KeepingAmericaSafehttps://t.co/2OsYDrxjRZ pic.twitter.com/aCygHUu6iU  CBP (@CustomsBorder) December 8, 2017

The vessel is designed to navigate lower in the water in order to avoid detection from the surface.

The drug cartels are relentless and extremely innovative, said National Air Security Operations CenterCorpus Christi Director Allen Durham in the statement, noting the difficulty of detecting the vessels.

During operations, a P-3 Long Range Tracker aircraft was used to track the vessel.

Interdicting self-propelled semi-submersible vessels requires expertise and the right aircraft. Air and Marine Operations will continue to beat the cartels at their own game to protect our borders, he added.

According to the CBP, the operation took multiple days and involved several interagency partners including the U.S. Navy.

In 2016, Marine operations seized a total of 200,000 lbs of cocaine, 650,000 lbs of marijuana, and 3,800 lbs of meth.

In FY16 #AMO actions resutled in seizures of more than 200K lbs of cocaine, 650K lbs of marijuana, and 3800 lbs of meth. #BorderSecurity pic.twitter.com/I6ELIjKSJg  CBP (@CustomsBorder) November 1, 2017

As of writing on Dec. 11, there were no further details on the identities of the three suspects or where they were from.

Marine operations have aircraft that monitor areas in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, according to the CBP statement. They patrol the borders in drug transit Zones in Central and South America. The P-3 aircrews can detect, monitor, and disrupt smuggling activities before they reach the shore.

A similar drug smuggling bust took place in 2012 when the U.S Coast Guard seized around 3,800 pounds of cocaine, according to CBS Miami.

At the time, Coast Gaurd Commander John Detleff, said the wholesale value of the drugs was worth approximately $48 million.

The department had to open fire at the smuggling vessel from a helicopter because it failed to obey orders.

They didnt stop, Dwetleff told CBS. They started jettisoning contraband overboard and then we proceeded to disabling fire where we actually had the marksman fire 50 caliber rounds into the engine of the outboard. That stopped the vessel.

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My dad was in excruciating pain during a recent weekend, so my mom rushed him to the emergency room of a renowned university hospital.

Doctors determined that he needed surgery that night, and luckily I was able to fly in and see him before he was wheeled away. Take care of your mom if anything happens to me, he said as my mom and I wept.

Thankfully, my dad made it through. But he had to spend 11 days recovering in the hospital, a place he now equates with prison.

One night, he suffered for five hours, desperately calling for help after his pain meds had run out. A nurses aide stationed in his room had fallen asleep.

I called on the intercom so many times, and nobody showed up, he recounts.

That was just one of the many failures in care that we encountered during my dads stay. Others included inconsistent nursing quality, waiting all day for doctors to respond to pages, insensitive communication of bad news, trying in vain to reduce noise levels so my dad could sleep, and so much more.

My job is to give advice on health care and insurance issues. My mom is a registered nurse. Yet we both felt frustrated that we couldnt make things better for my dad.

Unfortunately, this happens to a lot of people. Everything you hear these days is about patient-centered care, says Terry Bay, who owns a Casper, Wyoming-based business that provides advocacy services to older patients. But we dont live in a patient-centered health care environment.

How to Improve Your Care

Today Im going to offer advice for you in case you or a loved one lands in a hospital.

There are state and federal laws that cover, among other things, your rights to privacy, non-discrimination, language interpretation and visitation. But beyond legal protections, there are people you can talk to and steps you can take to improve your situation if you feel youre not getting the care you deserve. And patients opinions do count.

All hospitals increasingly are being scored and paid based on patient and family satisfaction scores, says Rebecca Kirch, an executive vice president with the National Patient Advocate Foundation. There is power in the people.

That power starts with a few simple things.

First, make sure a spouse, child, family member or friendanyone concerned for your well-beingcan spend time with you in the hospital and be your advocate. You cannot do it by yourself while youre in pain, medicated and not thinking clearly.

Its having someone else in your court, someone who can check in and make sure your questions are being answered, says Dr. Rebecca Sudore, a geriatrician and palliative care physician at the University of California-San Francisco.

Before you or your advocate speaks to your nurse or doctor, write down your questions. Keep track of your glasses, hearing aids and denturesthe personal belongings that most often go missing in hospitals, Sudore says.

How can someone speak up for themselves if they cant see someone? Or cant hear? she asks.

When the time comes to ask questionsor express frustrationdont be afraid to speak up. You have every right, even though it can feel intimidating to question your doctors or complain about your nurses.

You can say, No, I dont want to go for that test. I want to speak to my daughter first, Bay says.

If youre getting jostled out of sleep for a blood draw or blood pressure check in the middle of the night, ask your doctor the next day if its really necessary. Often, it can wait till early morning, says Julianne Morath, president and CEO of the Hospital Quality Institute.

Its up to us to put our own humanity back into decisions, Sudore says.

But heres where speaking up can get thorny.

Lets say you dont feel youre getting adequate care or youre unhappy with how youre being treated. You can start with your nurse, but if thats uncomfortableperhaps because that nurse is the source of the probleminstead, approach the charge nurse, who manages the staff in your unit.

You can also ask to talk to a hospital-based social worker, who can intercede or help you figure out who to talk to, Kirch says.

If that doesnt help, take your complaints to the next level.

Every hospital that participates in the Medicare programwhich is mostmust have an ombudsman or patient rights advocate, Richardson says.

My mom and I eventually complained to the patient rights advocate. It helped, and we wish we had done it sooner. If you cant go to the patient rights advocate yourself, you can call them or ask your nurse to call them and have them come up to your room, Richardson says. Hospitals must acknowledge patient complaints immediately, she says, and must respond in writing once they are resolved.

As part of this process, no matter who you talk to, there are some phrases that can spur quick action, Kirch explains. For example, This doesnt feel like quality care to me or I see my loved one suffering.

If you have a serious illness and youre suffering from symptoms that arent being managed correctly, you can also request a consultation with a palliative care team. Palliative care isnt only about end-of-life issues, its about quality of life, Kirch says.

Most large hospitals have a multidisciplinary team of doctors, nurses, social workers, chaplains and others who can provide added support on top of the medical treatment youre receiving, especially if youre getting shuffled among medical specialties.

They can help tremendously to fill in the blanks.  It can be pain management. It can be spiritual or psychological distress, Kirch says. The palliative care team treats the person beyond the disease.

If you have done all that and still have concerns, Kirchs organization has case managers who provide free, one-on-one support for patients. Call 800-532-5274 for more information or visit www.patientadvocate.org/help.php.

To be clear, Im not suggesting you complain about every little thing. Be realistic. For instance, a hospital doctor may see up to 30 patients a day. So you might have to wait for your page to be answered unless you have a serious, potentially life-threatening problem, Sudore says.

It may not be that youre being ignored. It might be that someone has to figure out the competing priorities, she says.

And dont forget that your caregivers are human too, Morath advises. They get tired, they get stressed, she says. Very often, just letting them know youre not getting what you need and asking for their help is a very powerful act.

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a nonprofit news service covering health issues. It is an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Putin Orders Significant Part of Russian Forces in Syria to Withdraw

MOSCOWPresident Vladimir Putin ordered a significant part of Russias military contingent in Syria to start withdrawing on Monday, saying Moscow and Damascus had achieved their mission of destroying Islamic State in just over two years.

Putin, who polls show will be re-elected comfortably in March, made the announcement during a surprise visit to Russias Hmeymim air base in Syria, where he held talks with President Bashar al-Assad and addressed Russian forces.

The Kremlin first launched air strikes in Syria in September 2015 in its biggest Middle East intervention in decades, turning the tide of the conflict in Assads favor, while dramatically increasing Moscows own influence in the region.

Syrian state television quoted Assad as thanking Putin for Russias help, saying the blood of Moscows martyrs had been mixed with the blood of the Syrian army.

Russias campaign, which has been extensively covered on state TV, has not caught the imagination of most Russians. But nor has it stirred unease of the kind the Soviet Union faced with its calamitous 1980s intervention in Afghanistan.

The use of private military contractors, something which has been documented by Reuters but denied by the defense ministry, has allowed Moscow to keep the public casualty toll fairly low.

Russias mission completed moment in Syria may help Putin increase the turnout at the March presidential election by appealing to the patriotism of voters.

Though polls show he will easily win, they also show that some Russians are increasingly apathetic about politics, and Putins supporters are keen to get him re-elected on a big turnout, which in their eyes confers legitimacy.

The Motherland Awaits

Putin, who has dominated Russias political landscape for the last 17 years with the help of state television, told Russian servicemen they would return home as victors.

The task of fighting armed bandits here in Syria, a task that it was essential to solve with the help of extensive use of armed force, has for the most part been solved, and solved spectacularly, said Putin.

Wearing a dark suit and speaking in front of a row of servicemen holding Russian flags, Putin said his military had proved its might, that Moscow had succeeded in keeping Syria intact as a sovereign independent state and that the conditions had been created for a political solution.

Putin is keen to organize a special event in Russiathe Syrian Congress on National Dialoguethat Moscow hopes will bring together the Syrian government and opposition and try to hammer out a new constitution.

I congratulate you! Putin told the servicemen.

A significant part of the Russian military contingent in the Syrian Arab Republic is returning home, to Russia. The Motherland is waiting for you.

Putin made clear however that while Russia might be drawing down much of its forces, its military presence in Syria was a permanent one and that it would retain enough firepower to destroy any Islamic State comeback.

Russia will keep its Hmeymim air base in Syrias Latakia Province and its naval facility in the Syrian Mediterranean port of Tartous on a permanent basis, said Putin.

Both bases are protected by sophisticated air defense missile systems.

Separately, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin and Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan would discuss a possible political resolution to Syrias more than six-year-old war when they met later on Monday in Ankara, as well as preparations for the work of the Syrian Congress on National Dialogue.
String of Low-Flying Lights Seen Across US May Be Explained

Flashing lights seen across the country this weekend prompted people to send videos and messages to local media asking if there were UFOs in the sky may be explained.

Joint Base Charleston told Charleston-based WLTX that those lights were a group of C-17 cargo jets that were flying in formation from Charleston to Nevada on Saturday and Sunday.

A spokesman for the base told WLTX that a group of 17 jets from the 437th Airlift Wing took off from their base around 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, and were joined on the way by other air military installations and groups, including the 82nd Airborne.

In all, there were more than 40 C-17s from 10 bases and more than 20 C-130s from three bases that partook in a training exercise involving HALO drops, or high-altitude military parachuting.

The exercise was a final training exercise for the U.S. Air Force Weapons School located at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, a representative said, to allow mobility Air Force students to apply what theyve learned over the last five months.

Witnesses called and wrote into Denver TV station KUSA to say they saw a string of slow-moving lights that appeared to be flying at a low altitude.

They asked if they were UFOs, orone of the more creative explanations if they were Santas scout elves on their way back to the North Pole.Much more creative solutions for what the answer turned out to be, KUSA reporter Jacob Rodriguez wrote.

A video of the lights, uploaded to YouTube by Denvers South Metro fires representative, has since been removed. The video was taken from his home in Littleton, Colorado, KUSA reported.

From NTD.tv

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President Donald Trump leaves the White House to board Marine One en route to Pensacola, Fla., on Dec. 8, 2017. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Trump Warns of Sickness Inside Americas Institutions

President Donald Trump said that Americas institutions have been made sick from the inside, and warned against powerful forces and bad and evil people in Washington who have benefited from the situation for years.

Theres a lot of Washington lobbyists, bureaucrats, politicians, who dont want to see things change. They made a fortune, said Trump in a speech in Pensacola, Florida, on Dec. 8.

While not giving names, Trumps said that the people in question like things the way they used to be. They dont like it so much now.

Since coming to office in January, Trump has made an effort to restore the rule of law, protect Americas sovereignty, align government with the powers given in the Constitution, and give power back to the citizens. Trump said the lobbyists, bureaucrats, and politicians undermining these rights are part of a group called the resistance.

Theyre resisting the will of the American people. That is what they are resisting, Trump said.

Trump described it as a rigged system that is sick from the inside.

President Donald Trump walks on stage as he holds a rally at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Florida, on Dec. 8, 2017. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

You know, there is no country like our country. But we have a lot of sickness in some of our institutions. And were working very hard. Weve got a lot of them straightened out, Trump said.

The only thing they really care about is protecting what theyve been able to do, which is really control the country. And its not to your benefit.

In his speech, Trump also made reference to the deep seeds inside.

The so-called deep state refers to the bureaucracy of permanent and unelected officials in branches across the U.S. government.

Diana West, journalist and author of the book American Betrayal: The Secret Assault on Our Nations Character, said during a panel discussion on Sept. 15 that deep state officials have been irked by Trumps positions on immigration, radical Islam, national trade and tariffs, and the restoration of American sovereignty, as well as his bid to end wars not fought over American core interests.

[The deep state] is interventionist. It favors mass immigration and even open borders. It supports free trade, she said, adding that it also appears to support radical and political Islam.

Its policies, she said, are building blocks of a socialist paradise. Members of this permanent structure appear to exist not just among Democrats but also Republicans, she said.

There are powerful forces in Washington, trying to sabotage our movement. These are bad people. These are very, very bad and evil people.  President Donald Trump

During my own campaign coverage, I was able to find striking similarities between the beliefs of mainstream, anti-Trump Republicans and the programs set forth in a 1932 book called Toward Soviet America, she said, referring to the book by William Foster, who was chairman of the Communist Party USA. The party was believed to have operated under the auspices of the Soviet Union.

Trump said that those opposing his agenda are the same people who had sacrificed Americas sovereignty, wealth, and borders, and were responsible for wars in the Middle East that cost the United States $7 trillion.

Theyve had their chance at running this country, and they failed, he said.

Trump went as far as using the word evil to describe some of the people in question.

There are powerful forces in Washington, trying to sabotage our movement. These are bad people. These are very, very bad and evil people, Trump said.

These are the people who made their money, their names, their careers, their power, off the corrupt and broken system. And they liked it the other way. So they will do anything at any time, and theyll never stop.

Trump said that these people are now being stopped by his administration.

As long as we have the courage of our convictions and the strength to see them through, then there is no goal beyond our reach. As long as we stay true to our values, loyal to our citizens, and faithful to our God, then we will not fail, he said.

Additional reporting by Joshua Philipp

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A prisoner prays in front of Kerobokan prison in Denpasar, on the Indonesian island of Bali, Indonesia March 1, 2015. (Reuters/Beawiharta/File Photo)

U.S. Citizen on the Run After Busting out of Bali Prison

DENPASARIndonesian police are hunting for a U.S. citizen who escaped on Monday from an overcrowded prison on the holiday island of Bali by cutting through steel bars in a ceiling, the jails second breakout of foreign inmates this year.

The Kerobokan prison, about 10 km (six miles) from the main tourist beaches in the Kuta area, often holds foreigners facing drug-related charges.

Cristian Beasley, who was a suspect in crimes related to narcotics but had not been sentenced, escaped at 4.10 a.m. (2010 GMT Sunday), said Badung Police chief Yudith Satria Hananta.

It is thought that the prisoner escaped  by cutting through the steel bars above the ceiling, he said in a statement, without giving details of how Beasley escaped without being detected.

Beasley, 32, from California, is believed to have then used a rope to climb down a wall before getting over a perimeter wall in an area being refurbished.

Police had questioned witnesses and guards and were hunting for Beasley, Hananta said.

Another American, Paul Anthony Hoffman, 57, was captured while also trying to escape, Hananta said.

Representatives of Beasley and Hoffman could not immediately be reached for comment.

In June, an Australian, a Bulgarian, an Indian and a Malaysian tunneled to freedom about 12 meters (13 yards) under the prisons walls.

The Indian and the Bulgarian were caught soon after in neighboring East Timor, but Australian Shaun Edward Davidson and Malaysian Tee Kok King remain at large.

Davidson has taunted authorities by saying he was enjoying life in various parts of the world, in purported posts on Facebook.

Kerobokan has housed a number of well-known foreign drug convicts, including Australian Schappelle Corby, whose twelve and a half year sentence for marijuana smuggling got huge media attention.

Indonesia has executed several foreign drug convicts in recent years.

Indonesian prisons are often overcrowded, partly because a war on drugs led by the government of President Joko Widodo has led to a surge in the number of people locked up.

As of June, Kerobokan housed 1,378 inmates, more than four times its planned capacity of 323, government data show.

Prison escapes are fairly common in Indonesia, which launched an investigation this year after about 350 inmates broke out of a prison on the island of Sumatra.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 16, 2017. (KCNA via Reuters/File Photo)

USGS Says Weekend Aftershocks Likely From North Koreas Nuclear Test in September

Two minor tremors were detected on Saturday, Dec. 9, from near North Koreas nuclear test site and were probably aftershocks from the countrys massive nuclear test in early September, a U.S. Geological Survey official said.

The aftershocks, of magnitude 2.9 and 2.4, were detected at 0613 and 0640 GMT (1:13 a.m. and 1:40 a.m. EST) respectively, said the USGS and Lassina Zerbo, executive secretary of the Vienna-based Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization.

A tweet from Zerbo said analysts had confirmed that the activity was tectonic in origin.

#CTBT #IMS #Alert: Two Events Vicinity of #DPRK test site this morning (MI 2.9 /6:13 UTC & MI 2.4 / 6:40 UTC). Analysts confirm tectonic origin.

 Red dot/ 3 Sept 2017 #DPRK #nucleartest

 Green dots/ subsequent aftershocks

 Yellow dots/ today events

Unprecedented for region pic.twitter.com/8NUHCW01xL  Lassina Zerbo (@SinaZerbo) December 9, 2017

The USGS official said the tremors had been in the vicinity of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where North Korea conducted its sixth and largest underground nuclear test on Sept. 3.

Theyre probably relaxation events from the sixth nuclear test, the official said. When you have a large nuclear test, it moves the earths crust around the area, and it takes a while for it to fully subside. Weve had a few of them since the sixth nuclear test.

Pyongyang said the September test was of an H-bomb, and experts have estimated it was 10 times more powerful than the U.S. atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.

The Hwasong-12 missile in this undated combination photo released by North Koreas Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 16, 2017. (KCNA via Reuters)

A series of quakes since then has prompted experts and observers to suspect the test might have damaged the mountainous location of its site in the northwest tip of North Korea, where all of the countrys nuclear tests have been conducted.

South Koreas spy agency told South Korean lawmakers in October that North Korea might be readying two more tunnels at the site.

North Korea hinted its next nuclear test could be above ground after U.S. President Donald Trump warned in September that the United States would totally destroy North Korea if it threatened America.

In what military experts say appears to be a North Korean KN-08 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICMB) is paraded across Kim Il Sung Square during a military parade on Saturday, April 15, 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

Another possible obstacle to North Koreas use of Punggye-ri for tests is the nearby active volcano of Mount Paektu, which North Koreans consider a sacred site. Its last eruption was in 1903, and experts have debated whether nuclear testing could trigger another.

North Koreas official media reported on Saturday that national leader Kim Jong Un had scaled Mount Paektu with senior military officials to emphasize his military vision after completion of the countrys nuclear force.

Kim declared the nuclear force complete after the test of North Koreas largest-ever intercontinental ballistic missile last month, which experts said puts all of America within range.

North Korea said the new missile reached an altitude of about 4,475 km (2,780 miles)  more than 10 times the height of the International Space Station  and flew 950 km (590 miles) during its 53-minute flight. (Reuters/KCNA)

By David Brunnstrom

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A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 passenger jet taxis on the tarmac after arriving at Los Angeles International Airport on April 5, 2011, in Los Angeles. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

Woman Arrested on Southwest Plane for What She Told Fellow Passengers

A woman was arrested after she threatened to kill fellow passengers aboard a Southwest Airlines flight from Portland, Oregon, to Sacramento, California.

A video of the arrest was captured by a passenger on the flight before it was sent to CBS Sacramento. The video can be viewed at the bottom of this article.

SNAP: Woman Restrained By Passengers On SOUTHWEST Flight After Threatening To Kill Everyone https://t.co/43By9rxmCS  DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) December 11, 2017

The woman apparently first tried to smoke in the planes bathroom and tampered with the smoke detector, Southwest officials told the CBS affiliate.

And when she was told to go back to her seat she began yellingthreatening to kill everyone on the plane while demanding that the plane make a landing.

The woman then shoved a flight attendant before she was physically restrained by other passengers and crew members for the remaining 30 minutes of the flight.

#BREAKING: Woman smoking on plane threatens to kill everybody  A Southwest Airlines flight declared an emergency after a passenger loudly told a flight attendant she would kill everybody on the plane on Saturday. The in-flight outburst started af https://t.co/z5vQ73glQ7  Breaking411 News (@breaking411) December 11, 2017

I swear, if you dont [expletive] land, I will [expletive] kill everybody on this [expletive] plane! she yelled, according to the Sacramento Bee.

When the plane landed, law enforcement officers were waiting to arrest her.

The woman was identified later as 24-year-old Valerie Curbelo.

A CBS Sacramento reporter went to the jail to ask Cuebelo questions about why she smoked on the plane. The anxiety, yeah the anxiety, Curbelo responded.

I dont know, Curbelo said of the incident where she threatened to kill passengers on the plane. It was not me. It was not me.

Our reports from flight attendants indicate a customer violated federal laws by both smoking onboard an aircraft and by tampering with a smoke detector in an aircraft restroom. Our crew enforced the regulation and that was followed by the passenger outburst, Southwest said in a statement to the Bee. The safety of our crew and passengers is our top priority and we take all threats seriously.

The flight had 136 passengers and five crew members.

Curbelo was arrested on three felony counts of threats to commit a crime resulting in death or bodily injury. Shes currently in the Sacramento County Jail on $75,000 bond.

The video of her outburst on the plane can be viewed below.

Warning: contains profanity



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Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. provides natural gas compression services and equipment to the energy industry in the United States. It fabricates, manufactures, rents, and sells natural gas compressors and related equipment. The company primarily engages in the rental of compression units that provide small, medium, and large horsepower applications for unconventional oil and natural gas production. As of December 31, 2021, the company had 2,023 natural gas compression units in its rental fleet with 418,041 horsepower. The company also engages in the design, fabrication, and assembly of compressor components into compressor units for rental or sale; engineers and fabricates natural gas compressors; and designs and manufactures a line of reciprocating compressor frames, cylinders, and parts. In addition, it is involved in the design, fabrication, sale, installation, and service of flare stacks and related ignition and control devices for the onshore and offshore incineration of gas compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, natural gas, and liquefied petroleum gases. Further, the company offers customer support services for its compressor and flare sales business; and exchange and rebuild program for small horsepower screw compressors. Its primary customers are exploration and production(E&P) companies that utilize compressor units for artificial lift applications; E&P companies that focuses on natural gas-weighted production; and midstream companies. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Midland, Texas.
1. Yes. The ordinance goes against state law and is not in the best interest of the cities.

2. Yes. At the very least, it should be amended to give police officers some discretion.

3. No. Voters approved the ordinance by large majorities; the councils cant ignore that fact.

4. No. The petition process has to be given a chance to work. Leave the ordinance alone.

5. Unsure. Its hard to say how the cities should move forward regarding the ordinance.

Vote

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OTTAWACanadas national pension fund manager is among a group of Canadian companies that are undermining the federal governments international anti-coal alliance by investing in new coal power plants overseas, an environmental organization says.

Friends of the Earth Canada joined with Germanys Urgewald to release a report looking at the top 100 private investors putting money down to expand coal-fired electricity  sometimes in places where there isnt any coal-generated power at the moment.

The report lists six Canadian financial companies among the top 100 investors in new coal plants in the world. Together, Sun Life, Power Corporation, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, Royal Bank of Canada, Manulife Financial and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board have pledged $2.9 billion towards building new coal plants overseas.

Urgewald tracks coal plants around the world and reports there are 1,600 new plants in development in 62 nations, more than a dozen of which dont have any coal-fired plants now.

Read more:

Canada-U.K. alliance hopes to combat climate change by phasing out coal

From Amazon to Etsy, tech giants fight Trumps plan to save coal

While Environment Minister Catherine McKenna is claiming to be a global leader on phasing out the dirtiest of electricity sources, private investors are undermining that commitment, says Friends of the Earth senior policy adviser John Bennett.

Canada and the United Kingdom last month teamed up to launch the Powering Past Coal Alliance, trying to bring the rest of the world on side with a campaign pledge to phase out coal as a power source entirely by 2030 for the developed world and 2050 for everyone else.

Twenty national governments and at least seven subnational governments  five of them from Canada  signed onto the alliance last month. The hope is to grow the number to 50 by the time the United Nations 24th climate change conference takes place in November 2018.

McKenna will meet with leaders and officials from the alliance this week in Paris, where French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting a climate change meeting to mark the two year anniversary of the Paris climate change accord. This meeting is largely focused on international climate finance as the world tries to meet the goal to have $100 billion a year to invest in climate change mitigation and adaptation projects in the developing world by 2020.

The accord commits the world to keeping the average global temperature from rising more than 2 C over pre-industrial levels by the end of the century. To do that, scientists suggest global carbon emissions have to start dropping in less than three years, and the only way that is going to happen is by shutting down coal plants.

Coal is responsible for almost half of global carbon dioxide emissions.

McKennas office did not respond to a request for comment.

Last week, McKenna was in China where she said she was talking about phasing out coal. While China is trying to cut its own coal use, it uses more coal to make power than the rest of the world combined. Hence, McKenna said its currently impossible to expect China to commit to eliminating it.

McKenna said she wasnt planning to raise the issue of China investing in new plants outside its borders. Urgewalds data show Chinese-owned companies are behind about 140 new coal plants in development outside China.

Turns out Canadian money is also financing international coal plants, through private investors.

Dale Marshall, national program manager for Environmental Defence, said the Paris meeting this week has a lot of work to do trying to figure out how national governments can increase their commitments but also leverage more from the private sector.

Erin Flanagan, director of federal policy for the Pembina Institute, said Canada can do more to discourage Canadians from investing in coal and encourage investments in clean energy. That could include a national requirement for investment companies to include climate change risks when publishing decisions about investment opportunities.

follow @mrabson on Twitter.

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Out in Western Canada, the airline world is about to watch a unique business experiment. If it goes as planned, in a few years there will be a new favourite carrier battling for your airfare dollars, regardless of whether youre a penny pincher or a rich banker.

WestJet Airlines Ltd., which flies Boeing Co. 737s in Canada much the same way Southwest Airlines Co. does in the U.S., is embarking on a radical shift to become a global-network airline, replete with fancy foods, plush beds up front, nine new, spiffier airport lounges and many more top-dollar business customers.

Read more:

WestJet, Delta reach preliminary deal on expanding their partnership

WestJet says its low-cost carrier Swoop will reap double the traveller fees

Transport Canada to cut pilot evaluators, leaving responsibility to airlines

Simultaneously, its launching an ultra-low-cost airline called Swoop to pursue those with the smallest budgets.

This high-end, low-end strategy comes as airlines the world over struggle to combat the grand ambitions of lower-cost rivals. The response has largely been defensive, with new fare classes or new airlines that have lower cost structures.

WestJet had a different idea. Next June, the carrier will debut no-frills Swoop, which is modelled on ultra-low-cost carrier Ryanair Holdings Plc. Swoop is squeezing 189 seats onto its 10 Boeing 737-800s, which is 21 more seats than WestJet flies on the same airplane. Its simultaneously preparing for the first of 10 new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, which arrive in January 2019, to fly to Europe and Asia, with options for 10 more of the large planes.

WestJets attempt to strengthen its position comes amid a collective bargaining push by employees. In May, its pilots voted to unionize, as did pilots at its regional carrier, Encore, five months later. Multiple unions are looking to organize other groups at WestJet, including flight attendants and mechanics. These efforts are likely to mean higher labour costs. With that threat hanging over its bottom line, not to mention the cost of long-haul flights, the planned expansion with Swoop and long-haul jets could endanger what is currently a profitable franchise.

WestJet executives, who are quick to boast of 50 consecutive quarters of profit, said theyre not worried.

We just got to the point where the single brand can no longer fulfil all of the missions, chief executive officer Gregg Saretsky said Wednesday, during an investor presentation. He acknowledged the skeptical feedback his airline has received over Swoop: Many people are scratching their heads and wondering if that will work.

Weve heard concerns about execution and our ability to successfully move upmarket and down-market at the same time, he said.

The Big Three have tried this high-low strategy without creating a new airline

Calgary-based WestJet knows the dismal history of U.S. airlines that battled low-cost upstarts by establishing new carriers such as Swoop. In the early 2000s, Delta Air Lines Inc. formed Song to battle JetBlue Airways Corp., while United Airlines established a low-cost airline called Ted. Neither brand had operating costs that were sufficiently below its parent, and both were dissolved within five years.

WestJet executives, however, point to a different model: the experience of Melbourne-based Jetstar Airways, which Qantas Airways Ltd. launched 13 years ago to combat low-cost rival Virgin Blue (now called Virgin Australia Pty). Jetstar is a completely separate operation that flies in Australia and New Zealand and has helped Qantas cater to the thriftier end of the travel market.

Jetstar is the one major exception in the world to the rule about low-cost airlines-within-an-airline never working, said Seth Kaplan, managing partner of trade journal Airline Weekly. He also noted that Australia and Canada share some critical similarities in terms of population, the size of economies, major industries focused on natural resources and currencies that are heavily influenced by commodity markets.

WestJet said Swoop will fly primarily domestically, with a cost base thats 40 per cent below the mainline carrier  and only 0.1 cent above the average 5.9-cent cost per seat mile of the three U.S. ultra-low-cost airlines.

Our view is that the network that Swoop builds will be incremental to the WestJet network, rather than cannibalizing it, Ed Sims, executive vice-president of commercial at the airline, said Wednesday in an interview.

In America, the Big Three legacy carriers have tried this high-low strategy without creating new carriers. They shoehorn every demographic into the same aircraft, from the price-sensitive Basic Economy traveller to the corporate big spenders in first class. Some airlines now segment customers into five distinct fare families, with multiple cabins on their aircraft.

The goal is to cede as little traffic as possible to no-frills rivals such as Spirit Airlines Inc. and Frontier, a shift from past years when the big airlines largely considered their customer bases to be radically different.

In Europe, the global behemoths have begun new, lower-cost offshoots: Last week, Air France-KLM Group made a play for younger customers with an airline called Joon; IAG SA, British Airways parent, is starting a cheaper brand, Level, for trips across the Atlantic, starting in June; and Deutsche Lufthansa AG is busy expanding Eurowings with new, longer flights, mainly into the U.S. This trio is chasing budget-minded travellers with new subsidiaries, rather than trying to integrate them into their flagship brands.

We believe these are risks worth assuming

Despite these attempts, many industry analysts see ample risk in chasing all segments, the proverbial all things to all people strategy that has a checkered track record. After all, many airlines that stick to their patch have done well.

Spirit and Ryanair, for the most part, dont lure business traffic away from Delta or Lufthansa. And premium carriers such as Singapore Airlines Ltd. and Qatar Airways Ltd. rarely expend effort to chase cash-strapped travellers. Investors have criticized United Continental Holdings Inc., for example, for aggressive fare skirmishing with ultra-low-cost rivals, a battle thats dented its revenue performance.

Of course, WestJets big changes werent born in an aviation vacuum. The airline is responding to a variety of threats, from new ultra-low-cost Canadian rivals plotting new service to its bigger rival, Air Canada, which has made international growth from the Great White North an article of faith. Air Canada also operates a budget unit called Rouge, which battles for price-sensitive customers, as do Canadian leisure airlines Air Transat and Sunwing Airlines Inc. Air Canada estimated that a Rouge aircraft costs up to 30 per cent less to operate than similar jets in its mainline fleet  the result of additional seats and lower-cost labour agreements.

Analysts have been cautiously optimistic about WestJets plans, noting that Swoop is likely to be profitable from the start, but said there will have to be significant follow-through. The rewards associated with success are two to three years away, BMO Capital Markets analyst Fadi Chamoun wrote in a client note this week. Given WestJets scale, low debt and ample cash flow, Raymond James analyst Ben Cherniavsky wrote in a report, we believe these are risks worth assuming.

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A film rapper Drake said was the best movie of the year at the Toronto International Film Festival garnered top honours from the Toronto Film Critics Association (TFCA) on Sunday.

The Florida Project starring Willem Dafoe was named Best Picture by the TFCA. Dafoe also was named Best Supporting Actor for his role as a hotel manager in director Sean Bakers drama. The film is about kids growing up in a welfare motel beside Disney World.

Get Out and Lady Bird were among other films awarded by the organization on Sunday.

Films of empathy and urgency led this years winning pictures, reflective of the need for compassion and awareness in a time of social and political upheaval, said TFCA President and Toronto Star film critic Peter Howell. The Florida Project, Lady Bird and Get Out are radically different in form and content, yet they all address the desire to find inner truth behind situations that only appear to be obvious.

Best Director was awarded to Greta Gerwig for her coming-of-age drama Lady Bird, which is Gerwigs directing debut. The films co-star Laurie Metcalf was chosen by TFCA as Best Supporting Actress.

Best Screenplay, Adapted or Original, and Best First Feature was given to Get Out, writer and director Jordan Peeles satiric thriller.

TFCA members have also picked three finalists for the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award, which is a $100,000 cash prize  the richest film award in Canada, according to a TFCA press release. Other contenders will each receive $5,000. The finalists are Hello Destroyer, Werewolf and Wexford Plaza. The winner will be announced at the TFCAs awards gala on Jan. 9, which will be hosted by Cameron Bailey, artistic director of the Toronto International Film Festival.

A $5,000 cheque will also be presented to the winner of the Stella Artois Jay Scott Prize for an emerging artist at the gala. Finalists for the award have yet to be announced.

Read more:

Review: Florida Project shows the joy and beauty in childs motel wonderland

Lady Bird still soaring with New York Film Critics Circle win

Peter Howell: Willem Dafoe on the quest to lose my agenda

On Sunday, TFCA members also named Daniel Day-Lewis the Best Actor in Paul Andersons film Phantom Thread. Frances McDormand was awarded Best Actress for her role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Films that also received awards included The Square for Best Foreign-Language Film and The Breadwinner for Best Animated Feature. Faces Places won the Allan King Documentary Award.

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Spoiler alert: This story contains spoilers for Season 8, Episode 8 of The Walking Dead.

In a chaotic mid-season finale that pulled some of its punches, The Walking Dead landed a sucker punch on viewers at the very end.

It wasnt the major character slaughter we might have expected with Negan and his Saviors regaining the upper hand on Rick and his allies; it was the promise of a death to come.

Turns out Ricks son, Carl, was bitten by a zombie while recruiting new character Siddiq two episodes ago. And no, they cant just chop off his leg a la Hershel. The bite is on his side, as he revealed to Rick and Michonne at the end of the episode.

So Carl, whos been played by 18-year-old Chandler Riggs since the show began in 2010, has one more episode to live. Best pack some tissues for the mid-season premiere on Feb. 25.

In the meantime, heres a look at what went on in Episode 8, How Its Gotta Be.

Back at the Sanctuary: We picked up where we left off last week with the look of utter dismay on Ricks face as he realizes the Sanctuary is a walker-free zone and none of his lookouts are answering their walkie talkies. Still, he and the Scavengers approach the deserted-looking compound and are promptly shot at. The Scavengers run away, leaving Rick pinned down behind a car until Carol and Jerry drive up in the nick of time to collect Rick.

This raises a couple of questions. What are Carol and Jerry doing driving past the Sanctuary at that particular moment? And after all the hassle Rick went through bargaining to get the Scavengers back in the war  being imprisoned in a storage container in his underwear and nearly being sliced and diced by a spiked-helmet-wearing walker  it was all for this? The Scavengers bailing at the first sign of trouble? So what was the point of that whole side plot?

Scenes of Rick at the Sanctuary are intercut with flashbacks of Carl trying to convince his dad that the end result of this all-out war has to be more than just killing all the Saviors. Finding some way forward, thats harder. Thats something more. Thats how its gotta be, says Carl. This back and forth was majorly distracting and seemed pointless until we got to the end of the episode and realized that Carl was dying, although that didnt make the exchange any less heavy-handed.

Destination Oceanside: We last saw Aaron and Enid driving off on some vague mission to ensure the Alexandrians win the war, which turns out to be a new bid to recruit the all-female Oceanside community. There are some flaws in this plan; namely that the Oceansiders usually kill first and ask questions later; and the Alexandrians arent their favourite folks, having stolen all of their guns. But Enid tries to counter that last disadvantage by detouring to a distillery to hijack a truck full of goodies for the Oceansiders. Then Enid shoots and kills their leader, Natania, as the latter is about to dispatch Aaron with a spear. Distraught Oceansiders take Aaron and Enid prisoner. I cant imagine what twisted logic the showrunners will employ to get the Oceansiders into the war, but Im sure theyll come up with something; otherwise, whats the point of reintroducing these characters?

Back at Alexandria: Daryl and Tara are congratulating themselves on their decision to diverge from Ricks plan and ram a truck into the wall of the Sanctuary, allowing it to be overrun with walkers. It worked. Theyre gonna give up, Daryl tells Michonne.

Except it didnt. As night falls, Negan and the Saviors come banging on Alexandrias gate. Lets just cut the cow shit, says Negan. You lose, its over. Hes giving them three minutes to open the gate and then line up outside their houses and apologize, and the person with the lamest apology will be killed.

Carl  who we saw earlier looking sad and writing a note to Rick  has a plan. He goes to the gate to stall Negan, offering himself up to be killed as punishment, while the others load into trucks that they bust through Alexandrias back walls and through a ring of Saviors cars. Negan orders every house in Alexandria blown up except Ricks. He also wants Carl found, but Carl gets away with the help of smoke bombs and disappears into a sewer.

Back at the Kingdom: King Ezekiels domain has been overrun by Saviors and the king himself is hiding out after hearing the ruckus outside the theatre where hes been holed up having a pity party. The Kingdomites are told the Saviours are taking over their homes and theyll be sent to the Sanctuary to clean up zombie guts and such. But first, they have five minutes to hand over Ezekiel or things will get traumatic. Ezekiel takes matter into his own hands by blowing up some fuel then roaring up in a school bus as a diversion so his people can run away. But he refuses to let Carol rescue him, telling her to save them like you saved me, closing the gates in her face and surrendering to the Saviors. I doubt that Ezekiel is going to be killed and strung up at the Sanctuary, as threatened, since we saw Morgan eavesdropping on the Saviors just outside the Kingdoms gate, which likely means a rescue mission is at hand.

The Hilltop defies: For some unfathomable reason, Maggie and Jesus and a bunch of Hilltoppers are out driving around in the dark when they see a tree blocking their way. Maggie realizes right away its a trap, but theyre surrounded by Saviors before they can turn around. Simon is holding Jerry prisoner in the back of a cube van and threatens to shoot him, put Maggie in a coffin, execute her and put her on a spike in front of the Sanctuary unless she takes her people back to Hilltop and continues growing food for the Saviors. Just to emphasize his point, Simon kills some guy in the back seat of Maggies car named Neil whom weve never seen before.

Maggie asks Simon a question wed all like the answer to. How did the Saviors escape the Sanctuary after it was overrun by walkers? Simon doesnt really say although it has to do with Eugene, who obviously repaired the loudspeakers since we hear music thats being used to lead the rest of the zombie herd away.

Maggie agrees to Simons demands and asks to take the coffin with her to bury Neil. But instead, she executes one of the Saviors being held prisoner at Hilltop, puts him in the coffin and orders it left where the Saviors will find it, with the words We have 38 more. Stand down scrawled on the lid.

Eugenes crisis of conscience: Eugene is crying and cant sleep, not even after he guzzles some wine. Next thing you know hes waking up a still ailing Father Gabriel and the Hilltops kidnapped doctor, and giving them keys to a car parked outside the north gate, the same gate from which the guard is absent having been given a dose of laxatives by Eugene. But he refuses Gabriels plea to come to Hilltop with them, with good reason. Its hard to picture Eugene rejoining his former travelling companions, as he called them, after so wholeheartedly betraying them in the service of Negan.

Alexandria Part 2: Savior turncoat Dwight helps Daryl and Michonne and the rest of the Alexandria refugees kill a bunch of Saviors by leading his erstwhile colleagues into an ambush and shooting some of them himself. But one of the Saviors shoots Dwight in the arm for his treachery before escaping. Unable to return to the Sanctuary, Dwight convinces the Alexandrians to take him to their underground hiding place.

Rick finally returns to whats left of Alexandria and goes straight to his house in search of Carl and Judith where he instead finds Negan and Lucille (would the fact its the only one standing not be a tip-off?). Rick and Negan fight and, at one point, Rick gets hold of Lucille, but it ends with Rick being thrown through a window, having handily managed to grab his gun before his equally handy exit. He wanders off and finds Michonne, whos turning a Savior who accosted her into sushi with her sword. Together they head to the sewer, where they find Carl looking pale and sweaty.

I brought him here, says Carl when Rick notices new guy Siddiq in a corner. Thats how it happened, he adds before lifting his shirt and displaying the teeth marks in his flesh. (This will hardly make Rick more accepting of this stranger now that he knows he played a role in his sons imminent death. And Im still trying to figure out how someone as experienced at fending off the dead as Carl let himself get bitten, all in aid of releasing the walkers souls.)

So The Walking Dead is finally killing off a major character, albeit one whose demise doesnt bode well for the postapocalyptic future given his youth and relative optimism. Showrunner Scott M. Gimple says Carl still has some business to attend to in Februarys mid-season premiere, but there will be no miracles. Carl is definitely going to die.

You can email me at dyeo@thestar.ca, tweet me @realityeo or visit my Facebook page.

Also, FYI, I tweaked a couple of things since I first filed this recap early Monday morning.

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Within 24 hours of sharing a personal story of sexual assault that happened to me at 15, I received more than 40 #MeToo stories from readers. And more since.

They come from everyday people, not involved with celebrities, high-powered politicians, media moguls, etc., currently getting outed as abusers.

No, these are stories that happened to children, innocent teens and young working people, some violated in their own homes, others accosted by strangers. The writers of these stories remember the details, even into their 60s and 70s.

Here are the voices that need finally to be heard.

If, at last, we are truly experiencing a social revolution ending the shame and silent acceptance of sexual assault, rape and sexual harassment; And if we are also ending the ages-old hypocritical culture of protecting perpetrators, these people youll now read are on the front lines of historic change.

#MeToo: She said, Please dont tell your dad or hell kill him. 

I was almost 7. My parents, sister and I went to a rented beach cottage with our next-door neighbours and their two sons.

My parents returned to work in our hometown and left my sister and me with this family. The following day, the older son became ill and his mother took him home for treatment.

This left my sister and me in the company of the father and younger son.

That night, we three children slept in the living room on cots. During the night I awakened slightly while being carried to the fathers bed.

I still recall that he reeked of alcohol although I had no experience with that smell then.

He put me into bed beside him and made me touch his erect penis for what seemed like hours. I thought I must be having a nightmare.

He later carried me back to my cot.

We were taken home the next morning. I told my mother what had happened. She said, Please dont tell your dad or hell kill him. I didnt understand why nothing was done.

Years later, my mother said that she didnt recall me telling her this. She thought I probably imagined it.

Many years later, my mother asked why we didnt invite this couple to a party for my parents 40th anniversary. I said I wasnt comfortable being near him. She said that she thought I wouldve forgotten the incident by then.

#MeToo: I walked out bewildered

Im a man, 67. I was a teenage boy who went to a mens store to buy pants.

The male clerk kept entering the changing room while I tried them on. I dont know how many times he took my inseam measurement, making sure he touched my privates each time.

Like you (Ellie note: my Dec. 4 column) when you were groped in a coat store, I walked out bewildered. I instinctively knew that what happened didnt seem right but of course told no one.

#MeToo: He turned down a quiet rural road  and started pleasuring himself

I was 16 and had just started dating a new boy I met in school. Hed introduced me to a friend of his who was 24, the pastors son and a youth group leader.

My boyfriend made plans for the three of us to hang out after he finished work. His friend had a car so he would pick each of us up, me first.

On the way, he turned down a quiet rural road, took off his seatbelt, opened his pants and started pleasuring himself.

I was in shock, silent, was intimidated by him because he was much older. I turned my head to look out the window and he kept asking me to watch. I said I didnt want to and he said I could touch it, too.

When I asked him to stop he replied that he wanted to finish first so I asked to get out of the car. He said he didnt realize I wasnt cool with that sort of thing.

It was a long walk back home. I told my boyfriend about it that night. He ended their friendship.

#MeToo: I changed my work habits to avoid walking home alone

I was 21. On my way back from work late one fall evening (11:30 p.m.) Id just gotten off the street car. I walked two blocks and was almost in front of my door when I saw a young man was walking on the sidewalk towards me.

He stopped in front of me and I thought he lived in the basement of the house so stupidly asked if he did.

He grabbed me by the collar of my winter coat and proceeded to jerk off. It happened so fast that before I could react he fled.

Shocked, I went into the house and told my roommate. I didnt report it to the police because I didnt want the hassle.

But it made me feel watched and I changed my work habits to avoid walking home alone. I was afraid, but also thankful that it wasnt a rape. How messed up is that?

#MeToo: The nurses told me to be quiet

Ive been groped on the subway, leered at, had men expose themselves to me and make obscene gestures. The last one happened in an emergency room hospital setting and when I yelled at the man (who was a patient in the same room with just a curtain separating us) the nurses told me to be quiet!

#MeToo: My mom said I needed to get over it

I was 6 or 7. He was my dads cousin. He lived with us for a short time period. I didnt know why.

Many years later he came back to visit us again for a few days. I remember not letting my 3-year-old sister out of my sight. One day he was in her room, I grabbed her and took her away.

I kept it to myself for years  ashamed, guilt-ridden but happy that I saved her from the same traumatic experience.

(Ellie note: Despite this womans desire to speak out, she couldnt bring herself to detail exactly what the man did that so traumatized her.)

I told my parents when I was in my second year of university because a friends experience triggered my memories.

They asked if I wasnt imagining things. My dad walked out of the room and never spoke to me about it again. My mom sent me to visit a friend in California.

Our relationship was never normal after that. Id wanted some form of apology for their not protecting me.

I learned many years later that he came to live with us because his wife had left him on allegations that he was cheating and preying on younger women. It fuelled the anger against my parents. My mom said I needed to get over it.

Therapy helped me but part of me is still hoping for an apology.

My purpose for telling my story is this: If youre a parent or a guardian of a child who confides in you, dont ever doubt them. Even if you had zero responsibility, apologize.

Your one role as a parent is to protect your children and sometimes circumstances make it challenging. However, offering an apology can be such a small gesture on your part but have such a tremendous impact on their lives.

#MeToo: My perpetrator was such a nice guy, it had to be my fault

Although it started more than 60 years ago, Im still haunted by my abuse. It began when I was a child and continued until I was 16.

My abuser was my mothers boyfriend.

The saddest part for me is that she knew about it.

At 16, I told my abuser I was done, so he tried to strangle me, then raped me.

The result was the police pressed charges and my mother married her boyfriend so she didnt have to testify in court.

I had to move out once he was released. My mother threatened my life if I told anyone what happened.

I never knew my sister was also sexually abused until we were in our 30s. We were planning to confront our mother about why shed allowed this, but unfortunately my sister became very ill and died.

I lost the only person who understood the depth of our past, which has affected my life every day.

Even some extended family never believed me once I gained courage to share some details.

My perpetrator was such a nice guy, it had to be my fault.

I understand why some women take years to talk about their experiences, and although a movement is in the making, it still amazes me how women (and some men, too) are still fighting to be heard and believed.

#MeToo: I eventually reported him to his dental college

It was with a dentist and it occurred over several years. Hed touch my breasts in a very subtle and fleeting way. As a young teenager, I assumed the contact was accidental.

I remember thinking several times that he was just wiping his hands on the towel that was placed around my neck and draped across my chest.

But I recall one contact that was more like a caress when I was then a young woman. I reacted as though startled and he quietly removed his hand.

Many years later, I understood my experience to be one of sexual assault.

I eventually reported him to his dental college. My complaint was dismissed following a single meeting with the investigator.

His lawyer had made much of the fact that I myself had initially considered the contact to be accidental.

We never forget these things.

I told my parents about my experience when I was in my early 40s. They didnt believe me, which was probably the most traumatizing aspect of the whole situation.

#MeToo: This man entered the small bathroom with me inside

I was 24. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was at a New Years Eve party at my sisters house with her boyfriend and our friends whom wed all known for years

One male, best friend of my sisters boyfriend, had a past history of inappropriate behaviour toward women.

But he now had a fiancee who was also present.

Many had enough drinks to throw them off balance, including myself. I remember not feeling well and going to the bathroom alone in case I got sick.

Almost immediately, this man entered the small bathroom with me inside, closed the door behind him and locked it.

He asked, Are you OK?

I said I was fine and leaving to go back to the party. He placed his hands under my shirt onto my back and quickly brought them forward to hold them over my bra.

Despite feeling the alcohol, I was still able to pull his arms from under my shirt and say, stop.

He then spun me around and began unbuckling my belt buckle and unzipped my jeans.

I uttered Stop now. A knock came. It was his fiancee asking if everything was OK.

I quickly turned away and put my pants and belt back into order as he opened the door and said he was just making sure she wasnt too sick.

He walked away. She said and did nothing, as if her fiance having locked himself in the bathroom with another woman was normal.

I felt shocked when she did nothing.

I learned the next morning that hed also sexually assaulted my best friend and my sister during the same night.

We were all furious, but rather than reporting it we agreed to let it go.

#MeToo: I was ashamed, sick, scared, upset

I was 15, having my hair done after school. There were several people working in the salon, but the man, probably early 50s, spent ages fiddling with my hair.

Staff left, I was then the only customer. I was scared, but somehow couldnt get up and leave. Under the guise of brushing off cut hair, he touched my breasts several times.

I was ashamed, sick, scared, upset.

My mother asked me when I got home why Id been so long. I fault her for not questioning me more. A hug and some gentle questions wouldve drawn the story from me. I never told any of my friends.

I also had several experiences where a man would sit next to me and then a hand would drift over to my leg. This occurred at movie houses, out with my mother or a friend.

Why couldnt I find the courage to stand up and yell, Take your hand off me, you jerk? Instead, Id make an excuse to move and do so  upset, feeling sick and hurt.

#MeToo: Id slide closer to the window, hed slide closer again

These are the ones that have stuck with me over the years:

I was 14 or 15, sitting on a bus. A man sat beside me, sliding closer, his hand at his side to brush my leg.

Id slide closer to the window, hed slide closer again. I was practically crushed against the window when I finally got up and fled.

At 16, my cousins fiance was driving me home from a family wedding. He abruptly pulled off the road into a bus loop and tried to convince me to give him a kiss.

I tried laughing it off (he was family after all) but he was persistent. I gave him a quick peck on the cheek but he persisted.

I finally asked, in a tiny voice, if I had to walk home from there. He relented and drove me home.

At 17, standing on a crowded bus, a guy behind me began to hump me from behind. I was trapped and near tears for what seemed an eternity.

I was 20 when a mid-level executive at a large accounting firm regularly spoke to me with sexual innuendos. I laughed it off, but shouldve taken a clue from the other women around me who were aghast.

Age 23  the new vice-president kept putting his arm around my shoulders such that his arm hung down to graze my breasts. I know he did this to at least one other woman in the office.

Im in my 50s now, yet the incident with my cousins fiance when I was 16, is the one that haunts me most, maybe because of the personal betrayal.

I still constantly struggle with the desire to tell my cousin, or her brother, or my aunt. But I keep telling myself that no good would come of dredging that up for them.

Incidentally, though these events happened in my youth, I was never physically attractive, I was just a young shy female who was too ingrained to not talk back to stand up for myself. The perfect victim.

I hope that Ive impressed my teenage daughter enough to speak up and loudly call out any inappropriate behaviours.

Ellie Note: More personal stories on this topic will appear from time to time in my regular Monday-through-Saturday columns.

Email ellie@thestar.ca. Follow @ellieadvice

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CANSO, N.S.Residents of a sleepy fishing village on Nova Scotias eastern coast are looking to the stars to breathe new life into their economy as a proposal to install Canadas only commercial spaceport inches closer to becoming a reality.

Developers, municipal officials, construction workers and other stakeholders are set to meet in the Halifax area on Monday to discuss plans to establish a launch complex near Canso.

Cory Bell, president of Lindsay Construction, the Dartmouth-based company hosting the meeting, said as the environmental assessment phase of the project wraps up, the team is looking to delve into the details of building a facility that could be used to shoot Ukrainian-built Cyclone 4M rockets into space.

Read more: Small Nova Scotia fishing community picked as launch site for rockets

To some residents of Canso, part of Guysborough County, the prospect of becoming an aeronautical hub can seem far-fetched. Even though the project is galactic in its ambitions, Bell said, locals stand to benefit.

The technology is coming from away, but ... that doesnt it mean it wont be creating great spin offs in the economy, he said. These (launch sites) get built. Why not Guysborough County?

Bell said he plans to hire locals for the roughly two-year construction project, which he said could break ground as soon as spring 2018.

Maritime Launch Services Ltd., a Halifax-based company which is a joint venture of three American based firms, has set a goal to launch satellites into space by 2020.

Business owners in the Canso area said they hope the project will spur new opportunities in the community, which was hard hit by the downturn of the groundfishing industry about two decades ago.

Were still hanging on. Were definitely ready for a boost, said restaurant owner AJ Taylor. I think everybody is waiting to see if its actually going to happen. When youre down and out for so long, you dont want to get your hopes up too much.

Tammy Ehler, who owns the Last Port Motel just outside of Canso, said she is cautiously optimistic that the project will attract young families to help restore the areas declining population.

It would be nice if it does happen, Ehler said. Theres no big employers around or anything, so it would be nice to have something because theres supposed to be a lot of jobs, but I dont know how many are going to be just everyday people.

Vernon Pitts, warden of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough that includes Canso, said despite some residents doubts, the project is on track to create new jobs and revitalize the tourist industry.

We have to go down (that road) to see if the tree is going to bear fruit. All we can do is keep fertilizing it and keep watering it, Pitts said in a phone interview on Sunday.

Pitts said project managers have worked to keep the community in the loop as development progresses, and are consulting with fishermen to make sure their plans do not disrupt local industry.

He said when he first heard about the proposal to build a spaceport, he was so taken aback he nearly fell off his chair, but the more he learned about the project, the more he felt that Canso might be a perfect fit.

The now-defunct town has an abundance of land but could use more people, Pitts said, and an influx of rocket scientists could be the boost the community needs.

People come in from ... outside the province or even outside Canada, theyre going to have to live somewhere, he said. Were more than happy to open our doors to anyone that wants to become a resident in the municipality.

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HALIFAXThe developers of Canadas only commercial spaceport are hoping Nova Scotias eastern shore will eventually be the site of as many as a dozen rocket launches annually.

Proponents of the project gathered in a Halifax boardroom this morning to plan the next steps, which will rely first on the province approving an environmental assessment plan.

Read more: Nova Scotia fishing village hopes rocket launch site will boost economy

Stephen Matier, president of Maritime Launch Services Ltd., said the goal is to break ground by mid-May, and to begin launching satellites from the $200-million project near Canso in 2020.

The consortium of three American firms is working with the Ukrainian-based Yuzhnoye Design to create the launch complex at the site in Guysborough County.

Maksym Degtiarov, a rocket designer with Yuzhnoye, said in an interview that the firm is capable of producing up to a dozen rockets annually to blast off from the site.

However, Matier says it will be fewer than that in the early years, with the initial goal of putting one to three satellites into orbit in the first year of operations.

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MONTREALQuebecs bonjour/hi flare-up has more to do with panicky pre-electoral jitters than with the dynamics of the language debate in Montreal.

In the dying days of its fall session late last month, the national assembly took time out from a jam-packed legislative agenda to vote on a motion inviting store clerks to stick to a French-only bonjour when greeting customers.

The motion is non-binding. Based on a few weekend shopping trips in downtown Montreal, it is having little effect on the citys commercial life. Over the past few years, Montrealers have learned to take the noise from the national assembly in stride.

Read more:

Quebec lawmakers pass motion calling on store clerks to use bonjour greeting

Anatomy of Quebecs Bonjour-Hi language debate

After all, the same MNAs just spent part of the fall fretting over otherwise elusive face-covered Muslim women riding the citys transit system.

What the political mechanics of the unanimous vote reveal about the mindset of Quebec parties 10 months before a fall election is more instructive.

The Parti Quebecois authored the motion. Its leader, Jean-Francois Lisee, subsequently bragged he had set a bear trap for the ruling Liberals.

One hesitates to rain on Lisees parade. The opportunities for self-congratulations have been few and far between since he became party leader.

The latest Leger Marketing poll, published this month, pegged PQ support at barely 19 per cent. At this rate, Lisee will lead his sovereigntist party to a rout next fall. Under that worst-case scenario, the leader himself might not make it back to the national assembly, not that he would be terribly missed. In the Leger poll, only nine per cent picked him as their preferred premier. Only one in two PQ supporters believes he is better suited for the top job than his rivals.

The bonjour/hi ploy has served to remind voters of Lisees existence but only at a price, for it also fed the widespread perception that for this PQ leader scoring points comes first and Quebecs social fabric only second.

On paper, Philippe Couillards Liberals have assembled the ingredients for a successful re-election recipe. They have balanced the books and handed themselves a budget surplus to spread around in the last year of their mandate. Quebecs unemployment rate is at record low. But they have alienated a significant part of the middle class on the way to that surplus.

If an election had been held this month, Couillard would have been demoted to leader of the opposition.

The Leger poll puts the Liberals only four points behind the Coalition Avenir Quebec provincewide. But among francophone voters, Francois Legaults party enjoys a massive 23-point lead. It is the overwhelming support of anglophone and allophone voters that has been keeping the Liberals afloat in the polls. That could change over the next few public opinion soundings.

It is hard to think of what more the premier could have done to send Quebecs English-speaking community the message that his government takes its support for granted than to vote for the bonjour/hi motion.

The backlash among anglophone voters that has attended the adoption of the motion is as understandable as it was predictable. The fact Couillard did not see it coming is just one of many signs that his Liberals are, if not in full panic mode, then very nearly there.

This month, Quebecers were treated to the unusual sight of the premier participating in a demonstration designed to pressure the federal government into giving more contracts to the Quebec City Davie shipyard. It was as if Couillard had lost Justin Trudeaus phone number or, alternatively, as if the prime minister was not taking his calls.

Couillard spent much of his year-end news conference last week attacking the CAQ. But he has just spent three years shoring up his cabinet with former CAQ star candidates and stealing pages off that partys policy platform.

At years end, the next Quebec election looks like it is Legaults to lose. But he has been there before only to finish third on election night. Even as the centre-right CAQ is riding high provincially, Trudeaus anything-but-conservative government is riding higher federally.

For the first time in decades, the debate over Quebecs political future will not frame the ballot question in the next provincial election. As the main protagonists in the battle between federalism and sovereignty, both the Liberals and the PQ had come to surf on the issue. Based on the intellectual bankruptcy that seems to plague those two once formidable parties, it has been a soul-sucking experience.

Chantal Hebert is a national affairs writer. Her column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

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The Toronto library board unanimously approved restrictions that will prevent groups from renting library space to promote discrimination or hate.

Library staff can now deny or cancel bookings they believe are likely to promote, or would have the effect of promoting discrimination, contempt or hatred of any group, hatred for any person based on race, ethnicity, colour, language, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, among other factors, according to a staff report.

Be bold, be courageous. Reject hate, embrace diversity, Bernie Farber, a former CEO of the Canadian Jewish Congress, told the board during a meeting at the reference library on Monday night. Your policy sends a very strong statement that the library will not be a comfortable living room for white supremacists.

Representatives from the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and the Toronto and York Region Labour Council echoed Farbers comments of support, while self-proclaimed white nationalist Paul Fromm was visibly upset when the board voted in favour of the restrictions.

Im very disappointed the board has signed up for censorship and shut down views, said Fromm, who is director of the Canadian Association for Free Expression.

Police were alerted ahead of what turned out to be a peaceful meeting as a precaution, as we always do when theres a potentially controversial situation, said Ana-Maria Critchley, a library spokesperson.

The policy changes follow a memorial service last July for a lawyer whose clients included neo-Nazis and white nationalists, like Fromm, who organized the event, the report said. When staff found out about the third-party Richview branch booking, they immediately sought legal advice from the city.

In the end, the library was told it did not have legal grounds to deny the booking for the memorial service. About 20 people attended the service for Barbara Kulaszka without incident, said the report.

The event sparked public outrage, with library staff receiving and responding to 1,600 predominately negative emails and voice messages, the report said.

Afterward, the library sought legal advice, reviewed its community space rental protocol, considered feedback from the public and stakeholders and examined city policies, according to the report. The resulting changes aim to limit hate speech and put the library in sync with Torontos hate legislation.

They also make clear that violating the Criminal Code of Canada and Ontario Human Rights Code is unacceptable.

Support for free speech does not translate into tolerance for hate speech, the report said. The public library is a welcoming, inclusive public space that supports the social justice principles of equity and inclusion and will always stand up against hate speech.

Fromm argued that the library is a public space and should be accessible to everyone.

Farber disagreed. He said he considers room bookings different from hosting rallies or protests in public spaces such as Nathan Phillips Square where theres very often a clash of racists and anti-racists, and thats the passion of free speech.

If groups that are clearly hate-mongers  rent a private room, theres no balance whatsoever.

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There are wedding photos placed in quiet corners of the living room  a beaming young woman with black curls in a white dress hangs off the arm of a happy, clean shaven, suited man.

A Christmas tree, just touching the ceiling, adorned with multicoloured orbs, sits on the edge of a giant window overlooking a lightly snow-dusted, grassless front yard in suburban Etobicoke.

Tucked away, somewhere in the tidy room, are two laptops.

This is the office of Canadas first Syrian and Arab community newspaper, The Migrant.

The monthly publications editor in chief is Kameel Nasrawi, a refugee from Syria, who came to Canada with his wife of more than 10 years and two young children in January 2016. The family was inspired to make the move after a pledge by the Liberal government to accept 25,000 Syrian refugees through sponsorships.

With the help of Nasrawis younger brother, already settled in Toronto, and St. Benedicts Parish, the family came here with four bags, weighing 20 kilograms each. Their house (and newsroom) is their first home in Canada, a short walk away from the parish that helped to find it for them.

Nasrawi, 46, was a journalist in Damascus, and an award-winning screenplay writer. As a refugee, the language barrier and culture shock prevented him from continuing his work.

As he took English language lessons, he quickly noted how every ethnic community in Canada had its own newspaper, in its own language. It made me wonder why we didnt have our own Syrian newspaper, he said.

After doing much research and making some small capital investments, the monthly publication began last August. It has put out three editions to date, the first entirely in Arabic; the second and third in both English and Arabic.

Nasrawis editorial policy is simple: I try to focus on the success stories of Arabs in Canada to inspire others to achieve their own successes, he said. Every community has its own problems  its own problems, its own dreams. Nobody was writing about ours.

In the pages of The Migrant, readers will find interviews with some familiar faces in the Syrian community, such as father-and-son chocolatiers Assam and Tareq Hadhad, whose factory in Nova Scotia was touted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a September 2016 United Nations speech. Or Jim Estill, the CEO of an appliance factory, who sponsored 58 Syrian families in 2015.

Others may be less familiar, such as the owners of Canadas first Syrian soap factory  Aleppo Savon  in Montreal; or the organizers of the play Thanks Canada, about the experience of being a Syrian newcomer, put on last month in Montreal.

The newspaper is distributed across Mississauga, Toronto, Etobicoke and Scarborough, in Arab community centres and restaurants. It has a growing following on Facebook, with the interview with the Hadhad family reaching more than 114,000 people.

The reaction shocked me, said Nasrawi. People told me to keep going.

Two pages of each newspaper are devoted to information about citizenship and newcomer-specific programs to assist the communitys integration and success, said Nasrawi. Because of the language barrier, newcomers dont have the chance to know about these programs, he said. And the programs dont have the tools to reach them.

Absent from the newspaper are any coverage about the politics of the region, or news from home. Only Canadian community news, said Nasrawi. We just want to share our skills and stories with the society in Canada. To show we can start from scratch and succeed, and support ourselves.

Nasrawi, with the aid of his wife, Arij, and some volunteer writers from different Arab countries, creates community-specific content. Articles include an interview with a divorced woman about her personal experiences navigating the Canadian system alone (An issue in our community here, Nasrawi said), an article about sex education, and another about entrepreneurship.

Like his newspaper, Nasrawi wont talk about the politics of the country he was forced to leave behind. He wont talk about the critical illness that his 9-year-old daughter faced before coming to Canada and being treated at Sick Kids hospital the day after their arrival. He wont talk about the list of survivor jobs hes undertaken in the time that hes settled here.

I just want to spread hope, he said. With two sisters still in Syria, along with his wifes parents, he hopes the newspaper will add value to the meaning of my life here. In the new year, The Migrant will be published twice a month.

Fittingly, the logo of his newspaper is a bird  an animal beloved by the Arab community, one that travels from country to country, a symbol of hope and home.

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Hundreds of Palestinians and their supporters spent two days in Toronto loudly protesting a decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The president set off a global firestorm last week after announcing plans to move the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The city, holy to Muslims, Jews and Christians alike, is at the religious and political heart of the Israeli-Arab conflict and violent clashes have erupted across the Middle East, with Palestinian leaders reportedly calling for three days of rage in protest.

In Toronto, people of all ages gathered Saturday and Sunday on the sidewalk outside a courthouse on University Ave., across from the U.S. consulate.

Jerusalem is the heart of Palestine, the heart of the Palestinian people, said Rashad Saleh, with The Canadian Palestinian Council. Saleh spoke with the Star on Sunday, at the edge of a crowd of about 150 people, after a speech where he decried Trump and called on world leaders to condemn his actions.

Without Jerusalem there is no Palestine, there is no Palestinians, he said.

The crowd carried Palestinian and Canadian flags, held signs bearing the words End the occupation, and Trump Embassy in Jerusalem . . . stupid idea and chanted Free, free, Palestine, and The people united will never be defeated.

Organizers also declared solidarity with Canadas Indigenous peoples, chanting From Turtle Island to Palestine, occupation is a crime.

Clutching a Palestinian flag and bundled up against the cold, Dana Shanti said she wanted to spread a message of peace.

We are here to stand in unity, so we can spread the right message, not what the media is saying about us, said Shanti, 15, standing with family and friends from Mississauga.

We are just like everybody else. We are just here to spread peace to be honest, said Shanti, who hopes the protest will motivate people to learn about the conflict.

Some of them dont even know what Palestine is. Nobody really mentions us in the news much, unless Donald Trump has something to do with us.

Her neighbour, Abdalla Hammouda, 27, said they planned to stay all day, to make sure their voices are heard.

Jerusalem will always be a part of Palestine. We are always going to be here yelling, screaming telling people that Jerusalem is our home. Thats it.

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Christopher Chelios Blacks sentence after pleading guilty to impaired driving charges was 60 days, to be served on weekends.

But where to serve it?

The 30-year-old Indigenous man lives in Pikangikum, a remote fly-in First Nations community in northern Ontario with no jail. The nearest correctional facility is in Kenora, 225 kilometres away, which would make what is known as an intermittent sentence impossible.

So Ontario Court Justice Gethin Edward, who typically presides in the southern part of the province, had an idea. He ordered in October that Black attend the OPP detachment in Pikangikum on weekends until he had served his sentence.

But in a case that has highlighted the disparities in the justice system between northern and southern Ontario, the OPP is now looking to quash Edwards decision, arguing that their detachment is not what would be considered a correctional facility, and that Black could not possibly do his time there.

If successful, the provincial police forces application in Superior Court could have serious ramifications for Indigenous offenders in remote communities, signalling that there is indeed a difference in terms of access to justice depending on where in Ontario a person lives.

The judge said as much about the access issue in his October ruling.

What I cannot appreciate is the court being invited to say, You know what, even though an intermittent sentence might have been available if this individual had been charged 600 miles to the south, because we are in northern Ontario, we cannot, Edward said, according to a court transcript obtained by the Star.

We cannot does not make sense or compute to me. We cannot means that we have not tried hard enough to allow individuals in communities such as Pikangikum to be able to access services that are available in southern communities.

It was Edward who suggested the intermittent sentence, noting that such a penalty is possible under the Criminal Code because the sentence fell below 90 days. He pointed out that having to go to jail far away from his community would likely mean Black would lose his job and it would damage the progress he had made in Pikangikum post-arrest.

He also ruled that if the detachment could not accommodate Black or have the means to get him to a place where he could serve the intermittent sentence when he arrived at the detachment each Friday evening, the police were free to release him and he should return the following Friday.

In written submissions filed with Superior Court, the OPP argues that its detachment is not a correctional facility, and that the judge had no power to direct where Black should serve his sentence. The matter is scheduled to be heard in court Monday.

In a separate proceeding, the Crown is appealing the sentence, arguing that according to the Criminal Code and provincial acts, Black can only serve an intermittent sentence in a correctional facility.

The law is clear. The Ministry of Correctional Services Act requires terms of imprisonment to be served only at a correctional institution as defined and designated by Ontario, the OPP argues in its submissions. The OPP detachment in Pikangikum is not a correctional institution.

An OPP spokesperson declined to comment to the Star while the case is still before the courts.

Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services Corporation, a legal-aid funded organization whose mandate includes addressing access to justice issues for Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (NAN) territory in northern Ontario, is seeking to intervene in both the Crown appeal and OPP application.

Many of NANs 49 First Nations communities, including Pikangikum, are accessible only by air, winter road and/or boat, and are a significant distance away from jails in Kenora, Thunder Bay and Iroquois Falls, the legal services corporation argues in written submissions filed in court.

A judgment granting the appeal would have the practical effect of barring an intermittent sentence to almost every single on-reserve citizen of NAN, the corporation argues. The travel distance, travel time, and cost would be too prohibitive for the majority of NAN citizens.

The OPP says in its submissions that the Pikangikum detachment is used by both the OPP and the Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service  the primary provider of police services in the community  and doubles as an employee residence.

There are nine cells in the detachment, used for short-term custody, but there are no showers for the prisoners, and the detachment does not stock up on hygiene products. Microwaveable meals are typically what are served to the prisoners in terms of food.

The majority of the cells are used daily with double and triple occupation as the norm, the OPP says. At any given time, some of the prisoners may be in crisis and require significant staff attention and resources.

Blacks lawyer, John Bilton, described the detachment to the Star as state of the art and the most advanced police detachment that Ive seen in all of the remote north.

In written submissions responding to the OPPs application, Bilton argues, among other things, that the law allows for imprisonment in places other than those deemed to be a correctional institution. He also argues that courts have acknowledged the reality of different places for imprisonment, including a police station.

The thrust of the OPPs application, as well as the Crowns notice of appeal, is that the imposition and implementation of an intermittent sentence is unavailable to Indigenous accused who are residents of, and sentenced in, remote First Nation communities, Bilton told the Star in a statement.

This view is not only legally repugnant, in light of the decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Gladue and R. v. Ipeelee, which aim to remedy the long-standing unfairness experienced by Canadas Indigenous peoples in relation to the justice system, it is also morally repugnant to the reasonable mind given the obvious discrimination.

Blacks sentencing hearing heard that he is volunteering with the police in a project designed to build relationships between officers and the community, and employed at Pikangikum Health Authority as a solvent abuse worker as well as with a youth forestry initiative.

If southern accused get to serve intermittent sentences to keep jobs, then isnt it high time that northern accused should be entitled to intermittent sentences to preserve jobs? Justice Edward asked in court.

And if there arent facilities available, then shouldnt it be the time that there were facilities available to allow individuals to serve it on an intermittent sentence basis? I just dont think that were treating people from the north fairly.

Edward, appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice in 1996, was temporarily presiding in Pikangikum. He typically works in Brantford, where he was instrumental in establishing a special court, known as a Gladue court, which handles cases involving Indigenous offenders.

He gained some notoriety in 2014 in the case of an 11-year-old Indigenous girl with cancer seeking to be taken off chemotherapy and treated with Indigenous medicine. Edward denied the hospitals application for the girl to be apprehended by the childrens aid society and put back on chemo. (He later amended his ruling and the girl went back on chemo while still receiving traditional Indigenous medicine.)

Lawyers who appear before him regularly describe Edward as a straight-talking judge who takes a keen interest in the history and lives of accused people and can be scathing if he feels the proper preparation hasnt been done, according to a Star profile at the time.

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The Durham police officers said they would take the mentally unstable man to the hospital. He was suicidal and needed to see a doctor.

Instead, the officers interrogated him in an attempt to find some dirt on a female sergeant who had lodged complaints about a senior officers abusive and misogynistic behaviour, according to allegations filed in an internal police complaint.

The group of officers then told the suicidal man  the female officers ex-husband  that he better be solid and not tell anyone about what had happened, the complaint alleges.

The horrific and corrupt set of circumstances, as Sgt. Nicole Whiteway describes the incident in her July 2017 complaint, are part of what she calls a campaign of harassment against her by a Durham police inspector and other officers.

Whiteway, a 22-year veteran with 16 years at the Durham force, first complained to Durham police about Insp. Nick Lisi in 2016, alleging that the high-ranking officer had harassed her and colleagues, publicly ridiculing his subordinates personal lives and physical attributes.

She alleges that Lisi made derogatory comments about her ex-husbands mental health and derided her for seeking an accommodated schedule to care for her young son, who has a life-threatening health condition.

Lisi told the Star the allegations against him are untrue. The information you have is erroneous and incorrect, he said.

According to a memo signed by a Durham deputy chief, an external investigator had substantiated some of the allegations contained in Whiteways first complaint while dismissing others as embellished, false or malicious. The memo said the investigators specific findings are confidential, and they have not been publicly released.

Durham police said it would dock Lisi 160 hours pay, according to the memo. Durham police sources say Lisi has refused to accept the penalty, and the matter is expected to go to a public disciplinary hearing.

The alleged incident with the suicidal man happened this past spring, while Whiteways original workplace harassment complaint was still being reviewed.

Her July complaint to Durham police is now being investigated by the forces professional standards unit. The allegations have not been proven.

On April 21, Whiteway called Durham police in a panic. Her ex-husband was taking care of their daughter for the weekend, and he was threatening to commit suicide, her complaint says. (The Star is not naming the ex-husband because of his mental health. His lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.)

Durham officers eventually found the man and his daughter in his truck on a rural highway. The daughter returned home with Whiteway. Meanwhile, the officers told Whiteway that they had arrested her ex-husband under the Mental Health Act and would take him to a hospital in Oshawa to be evaluated, her complaint alleges.

When she spoke with the officers later, her complaint says, she was told she couldnt speak with her ex because he was seeing a doctor.

But the officers only took the man to the hospital parking lot, she alleges.

It was explained to him that this was just being done because the police cars have GPS and the police officers dealing with him needed a record to show that they were at the hospital if ever questioned about the incident, her complaint says.

The man was grilled about his ex-wifes personal life, Whiteways complaint alleges.

(He) was mistreated and threatened in order to manufacture evidence to discredit me as an officer which I believe is related to my complaint against Inspector Nick Lisi, her complaint says.

The complaint does not indicate that Lisi was among the officers that allegedly interrogated her ex-husband.

She alleges that after as many as 2 hours, the officers took the man back to his truck and told him he better be solid and not tell anyone about what had happened.

Whiteways complaint says that the hospital could not find any admission records for her ex from the night of the incident.

Whiteway is now on stress leave. She would not speak to the Star out of fear she would be disciplined by the police force, said her lawyer, Peter Brauti.

We want to see accountability of people who werent doing their job. We want to see accountability of people who may have behaved in a corrupt manner, Brauti said.

We want to see transparency. We want to be told what Durham police are doing about this.

Whiteways ex-husband has also filed a complaint about the incident with the Office of the Independent Police Review Director, a civilian police oversight agency, Brauti said.

Brauti said he has asked Durham police to let the agency investigate Whiteways complaint.

The complete lack of trust demands that an outside agency look at this, he said. We have a problem with the police policing themselves.

An ongoing Star investigation found that Lisi is one of two senior Durham police officials who have been accused of harassing behaviour, including mocking officers personal lives and making vulgar public comments. The other is Rob Wallington, a civilian in charge of the police forces strategic planning unit.

A Durham police spokesperson said the force would not answer specific questions about internal, personnel matters.

Inappropriate behaviour from any employee will not be tolerated and we are committed to an open, professional and equitable workplace, the spokesperson, Dave Selby, said in a statement.

Durhams police union said the force has a cultural problem, and accuses management of not doing enough to investigate rank-and-file officers complaints or protect employees from harassment.

In October, Durham police Chief Paul Martin sent out a force-wide email after an investigation clearly identified misconduct by one senior officer. Martins email does not name the officer, though multiple Durham police sources say it is in reference to Wallington.

The chief hired a retired deputy chief to probe the matter, which is expected to be finished this month.

Martin told Durham officers in the email that he will give them a full account of its findings while respecting the limits imposed by respect for privacy and law.

It is by being open and confident about our values and our conduct that we maintain the trust of our community  especially at times when questions have been raised, Martins email said.

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Two high-ranking Durham police officials have been accused of harassment for allegedly mocking officers appearances, ridiculing their personal lives and, in one case, gloating about penis size at staff meetings.

The police force has refused to comment on what a spokesperson called internal personnel matters.

A Star investigation has identified the two senior officials as Rob Wallington, a civilian who managed the Durham polices strategic planning unit, and Insp. Nick Lisi, who runs a division of 150 officers that patrols Pickering and Ajax.

Wallington, currently on leave, said he could not comment as the allegations are the focus of a labour grievance thats before arbitration. Lisi said the allegations against him are untrue.

Durham police has substantiated parts of the harassment complaints against both men, according to documents reviewed by the Star, but the exact findings from the internal investigations remain under wraps. Some of the allegations against Lisi were deemed to be embellished and false, according to a memo to a complainant written by one of Durhams deputy chiefs.

The alleged incidents of harassment  and their fallout  are the latest controversy for a police service riven by dysfunction.

Durham police came under fire this fall over its handling of an alleged assault of a Black teenager by an off-duty Toronto cop in Whitby, prompting Durhams chief to announce a new policy to make sure Ontarios police watchdog is called in to investigate serious injuries caused by an officer in his region, regardless of whether the cop was from Durham or off-duty.

Two Durham officers were arrested in September for their alleged involvement in a drug ring working out of an Ajax bar. Another Durham constable co-owned an unlicensed medical marijuana dispensary that offered illegal products on its website.

Durhams police chief has now hired a retired deputy chief to probe respect in the workplace problems within the service. Meanwhile, the force is investigating two police union executives for allegedly making false statements as part of a union grievance against the force for its handling of harassment complaints, according to a Durham police association email to its members.

The union email said the allegations stem from more than 30 pages it gave to the police service detailing harassment and wrongdoing at the hands of a senior officer.

There is a cultural problem within the Durham Regional Police Service that has resulted in the harassment of association members by senior officers, Durham police association president Randy Henning, one of the union leaders under investigation, said in a statement to the Star.

The union has accused the police service of failing to adequately investigate rank-and-file officers complaints and not taking the necessary steps to protect employees from harassment.

A Durham police spokesperson said the service investigates every allegation of improper conduct in the workplace.

Inappropriate behaviour from any employee will not be tolerated and we are committed to an open, professional and equitable workplace, spokesman Dave Selby said.

In a force-wide email, Durham police Chief Paul Martin said a recent investigation clearly identified misconduct on the part of a senior officer.

Martins email does not name the officer, but three Durham police sources say it is in reference to Wallington.

I am the guardian of our reputation as a police service. I cannot and will not allow a shadow to remain over it, Martin said in the Oct. 24 email.

Martins email said he expects the retired deputy chiefs review to be completed later this month. The police chief told his officers that he will give them a full account of its findings while respecting the limits imposed by respect for privacy and law.

It is by being open and confident about our values and our conduct that we maintain the trust of our community  especially at times when questions have been raised, Martin said in his email.

Martin would not be interviewed for this article. In a statement, a Durham police spokesperson said the chiefs email was not a public document.

The complaints of harassment against Wallington date back to early 2013. Two civilian employees complained that they had been subjected to a campaign of bullying by Wallington, who allegedly would publicly mock his subordinates sexuality, disabilities and personal lives.

Wallington allegedly made unfair and inappropriate demands of staff to complete tasks while colleagues were forced to watch, according to an arbitration document related to the grievance the police association filed against the services handling of the harassment complaints.

A lawyer, hired by Durham police in April 2013 to investigate, substantiated the complaints against Wallington. He received a written warning and was required to participate in an educational program on respect in the workplace.

In an email to its members, the police association said Durhams police services board failed to implement discipline it had itself determined appropriate.

We are unaware of the board having initiated any discipline against the senior officer.

In a brief interview outside his home, Wallington said he could not talk about the allegations against him.

There are things that are before an arbitrator so I cant comment on them. I dont think its appropriate the service does or anyone else, he said.

In Nick Lisis case, a formal workplace complaint was filed against him in November 2016.

A female sergeant working under Lisi in the General Occurrence Audit unit accused him of orchestrating a campaign of discrimination and bullying over a seven-month period.

Durham Sgt. Nicole Whiteway alleges Lisi would publicly mock subordinates and any workplace accommodations they had. He takes pride at making people cry, she alleges in her complaint.

She alleges Lisi ridiculed her personal life, including her ex-husbands mental health problems, and accused her of taking advantage of the force by seeking an accommodated schedule to care for her infant son, who has a life-threatening health condition.

During one shift, she alleges he berated her and said she should feel ashamed and because of my accommodation the others in the unit did all the work.

Lisi was mouth-breathing, angry and aggressive, and I actually feared for my safety.

The complaint said Lisi also made sexually inappropriate comments in the office, an allegation corroborated by another officer in the unit.

The Star obtained a testimonial by Const. Rick Paul written as part of a personal submission he made to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.

In it, Const. Paul alleges Lisi boasted about his penis size at staff meetings, describing himself as well hung, and called an officers gay son a homosexual prostitute.

Whiteway and Paul both alleged Lisi would allow certain officers to drink alcohol in his office during work hours.

Paul would not comment on the allegations made in his testimonial, and Whiteways lawyer said she could not speak to the Star about her allegations for fear of reprisal from the police force.

In a brief telephone interview, Lisi said the allegations against him were untrue.

The information you have is erroneous and incorrect, he said. Why would you report on something that could possibly be erroneous, incorrect and deceitful?

Lisi, who earned nearly $167,000 last year according to Ontario salary disclosure, has acted as the hearing officer  another word for judge  in disciplinary cases involving Durham officers.

In late September, Durham police stated in an internal memo to Whiteway that a number of her allegations against Lisi were substantiated by an external consultant hired to review the complaint.

The memo, signed by Deputy Chief Uday Jaswal and stamped confidential, says the veteran officer will be docked 160 hours pay and forced to take behaviour modification training.

Durham police sources say Lisi has refused to accept the punishment. Now, instead of being resolved behind closed doors, the matter is expected to go to a public hearing.

It is unclear which allegations the investigation substantiated, as the specific findings are confidential.

When informing Whiteway of Lisis punishment, the internal memo said much of her complaint was inconsistent and only those portions that could be corroborated by other sources were given serious consideration.

The memo said several of her allegations, including sexual comments attributed to Lisi, were embellished, false or vexatious.

Whiteways lawyer said the criticisms of her credibility is an inappropriate attempt to discredit a complaint thats damaging to the police forces reputation.

Ive never seen a guy get 160 hours docked pay but they also say the complainant was lying or being vexatious, particularly when its corroborated by another sworn officer, lawyer Peter Brauti said.

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Premier Kathleen Wynne is suing Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown for libel and seeking $100,000 in damages from her main political rival.

Wynnes legal team filed a statement of claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on Monday  less than six months before the June 7 election.

The premier is seeking $50,000 in damages for defamation and $50,000 in aggravated, exemplary and punitive damages.

She also wants a retraction and for the Tory leader to cover her legal costs.

The lawsuit was sparked by a Sept. 12 media scrum at Queens Park, where Brown told reporters Ontario had a sitting premier sitting in trial and that Wynne stands trial in Sudbury.

Wynnes lawyers say that was false and defamatory and because the premier was not on trial for bribery and has not been investigated by the police.

The Tory leaders comment came the day before the premier testified as a Crown witness in the trial of Patricia Sorbara, her former deputy chief of staff, and Sudbury Liberal activist Gerry Lougheed.

Sorbara and Lougheed were acquitted in October after Judge Howard Borenstein dismissed the Election Act case against them for lack of evidence.

It was a rare directed verdict, delivered before any defence witnesses were called.

While Brown was not available for comment, his office said it was disappointing Wynne alerted the media before telling the Tories about the lawsuit.

Mr. Brown has not been served with or seen the statement of claim. This is yet another effort to distract attention from her governments record, said Browns press secretary, Nick Bergamini.

Its no coincidence that this baseless suit comes the same day the PCs called for an OPP investigation into ineligible expenses claimed by insider energy executives, Bergamini said.

The action comes as the Tories are themselves under police investigation for allegations of criminal fraud and forgery at a Hamilton candidate election.

Two Star reporters and a columnist were in Browns Sept. 12 press scrum along with journalists from CBC, Radio-Canada, The Canadian Press, the Globe and Mail, QP Briefing, Global, CP24, CTV, TFO, Queens Park Today, Fairchild, CHCH, and Newstalk 1010.

Prior to the 2014 election, Wynne launched a $2-million libel action against the Tories then-leader, Tim Hudak, and MPP Lisa MacLeod (Nepean-Carleton) over their comments about her alleged role in former premier Dalton McGuintys cancellation of gas-fired power plants in Oakville and Mississauga. That matter was settled out of court in 2015.

The legal bills for both Wynne and Brown are being covered by their respective political parties.

Deputy premier Deb Matthews has accused the Tory leader of behaving like U.S. President Donald Trump, whose penchant for prevarication is well known.

There is a principle in Canada that you do not make defamatory, misleading comments about another political leader, Matthews said in October.

In Canada, we actually expect people to be honest. There is, south of the border, a change in that culture. I do not want to see that change coming to Canada.

Wynne herself was tightlipped about the suit Monday.

You know what, its in the hands of the lawyers and as the process unfolds it will be made public but the lawyers are engaged, she told reporters at Torontos Santa Maria Catholic School.

Her director of media relations Jennifer Beaudry said the ball is in Browns court.

We continue to remain hopeful that this issue can be resolved with an apology from Patrick Brown for his defamatory remarks, said Beaudry.

It should be that simple. However, if he continues to refuse to apologize we will have the ability to continue legal action.

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UKHIA, BANGLADESHThe use of rape by Burmas armed forces has been sweeping and methodical, The Associated Press found in interviews with more than two dozen Rohingya Muslim women and girls now in Bangladesh.

They were interviewed separately, come from a variety of villages in Burma and now live spread across several refugee camps in Bangladesh. Yet their stories were hauntingly similar. The military has denied its soldiers raped any Rohingya women.

Here are the accounts as told by 21 women and girls. They agreed to be identified in this story by their first initial only, out of fear the military will kill them or their families.

The Associated Press reported this story with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

Read more: Investigation: Rape of Rohingya women by Burmas armed forces has been sweeping and methodical

She is only 13

She is only 13, but R had already learned to fear the military men. Last year, she says, soldiers stabbed her father to death.

One day in late August, 10 soldiers barged into Rs house. They snatched her two little brothers, tied them to a tree and beat them.

R tried to run out the front door, but the men caught her. They tethered her arms to two trees. They ripped off her earrings and bracelets, and stripped off her clothes.

R screamed at them to stop. They spit at her.

Then the first man began to rape her. The pain was excruciating. All ten men forced themselves on her before she passed out.

Rs older brothers carried her toward the border. Once in Bangladesh, a doctor gave her emergency contraceptives.

R desperately misses her little brothers, and her sleep is plagued by nightmares. She struggles to eat.

Before the rape, she says softly, she was pretty.

Raped twice

F and her husband were asleep at home in June when seven soldiers charged into their bedroom. The men bound her husband with rope and gagged him with a scarf they ripped from Fs head.

They yanked off Fs jewelry and stripped off her clothes. They threw her to the floor, where the first soldier began to rape her.

Her husband wriggled the gag from his mouth and screamed. One soldier shot him, and another slit his throat.

After the assault, the men dumped Fs naked body outside her home and set it on fire. The neighbours rescued her. Two months later, she realized she was pregnant.

In September, her nightmare began again. F was asleep at a neighbours house when five soldiers broke down the door.

The soldiers slashed the throat of the 5-year-old boy who lived there and killed his father. They stripped off the womens clothes. Two men raped F, and three men raped her friend.

After the men left, the women lay on the floor for days before fleeing for Bangladesh.

Despite everything, F is determined to love the child.

Her husband blamed her

K and her family were settling down to breakfast one morning in late August when they heard the screams of other villagers outside. Her husband and three oldest children bolted out the door.

But K was nearly 9 months pregnant and had two toddlers to watch. She couldnt run anywhere.

The men barged in, threw her on the bed, yanked off her jewelry and stole the money she had hidden in her blouse. They ripped off her clothes and tied down her hands and legs with rope. When she resisted, they choked her.

And then they began to rape her.

She was too terrified to move. One man held a knife to her eyeball, one a gun to her chest. Another forced himself inside her. Then they switched places. All three men raped her.

She began to bleed and was certain her baby was dying.

She blacked out.

When she awoke, the men had gone. Her husband blamed her for the assault, admonishing her for not running away.

The family fled to Bangladesh. Two weeks later, K gave birth to her son.

I was in immense pain

R was at home in late August with her husband and five of her six children when she heard a commotion outside. She saw houses going up in flames in her village.

Her husband ran out, but she had the children to take care of.

Five soldiers barged into the house. Her children screamed and ran outside.

The men stripped off her clothes, took her necklace and kicked her in her back with their knees. Then one of the men began to rape her, while the other four held her down and hit her with their guns. When it was over, they took money and her husbands clothes from the wardrobe.

She fled to Bangladesh with her family the next day. She struggled to move with her injuries, and had to use a walking stick.

I was in immense pain, she says, pausing to take a long breath at the memory. It hurt so much to walk through the hills.

Four days later, she arrived in Bangladesh.

Allah saved us

A was at home praying with her four children in late August when about 50 soldiers surrounded her village and opened fire on the men.

A began to shake; she had heard of soldiers raping women in other villages.

Three men burst into her house and told her to get out. She refused. They beat her.

Her children screamed. The soldiers slapped them, then threw them out of the house.

Two of the soldiers hit her until she fell. One pressed his boot against her chest, pinning her down. They took off her jewelry and stripped off her clothes.

Then all three raped her, punching and kicking her when she screamed. One pressed a knife to the back of her neck, making her bleed. She still bears a faint scar.

After the attack, she bled so heavily she thought she was dying. A farmer told her that her husband had been shot to death, so her brother, mother and daughter helped her make the painful trek to Bangladesh.

They wanted to wipe us out from the world, she says of the military. They tried very hard, but Allah saved us.

In the first few days after the attack, she cried all the time. Now she cries silently in her mind.

The baby girl was dead

M was at home feeding her son rice in late August when a bullet from the military blasted through the bamboo wall of her house and struck her teenage brother.

Her husband and children ran out of the house. But M was 8 months pregnant, and did not want to leave her brother behind. For two days, she stayed by his side, until he died.

Soon after, four soldiers charged into her house.

They began slapping and punching her. Three soldiers dragged her outside the house, stripped her and beat her. When she screamed, they put a gun in her mouth.

The first man began to rape her, while the other two held her down and punched and kicked her pregnant belly.

After the second rape, she kicked them so ferociously, they finally left.

M felt intense cramping in her belly. She gave birth that night at home. The baby girl was dead. M buried the infant in an unmarked grave by her house.

Her husband returned, and they made the three-day walk through the hills to Bangladesh.

They humiliated us, they destroyed our land and farm, they took our cows, they took our produce, she says. How would I go back? They destroyed our livelihood.

When will I have peace?

H was reciting the sunrise prayer at home in late August with her husband and six children when she heard a commotion outside.

A dozen soldiers burst through her door and started beating her husband. They grabbed three of her children by their feet, carried them outside and bashed them against trees, killing them.

Her husband screamed, and H ran out of the house. As she fled, she heard gunshots behind her. She never saw her husband again.

She made it with her three other children to the nearby hills, where other women from her village were hiding. But soldiers descended upon the women and dragged them away to rape them.

They ripped off Hs clothes, took her jewelry and tied her hands behind her back with her head scarf.

One man held her head and hands back, while another held her legs. The third raped her. Then they switched. All three men raped her.

Her crying children refused to leave her side during the assault. The soldiers slapped them, kicked them, tried to shove them away. They refused to budge.

When the soldiers finished, her 8-year-old daughter tried to cover her naked body with her torn clothing.

It took her and her children four days to reach Bangladesh.

Ive lost my husband, Ive lost my children, Ive lost my country. When will God take me back to my country? H says. When will I have peace?

I burn inside for my children

When seven soldiers stormed into the house in October, 2016, Ss husband fled. The soldiers began beating her parents.

A soldier beat S with his gun, ripped two of her babies from her arms and dropped them on the floor. They tore the clothes off S, her mother and several other young women in the house, and took Ss earrings and money she had hidden in her clothes.

Two soldiers took S to a field. They covered her mouth with their hands to stop her screams. They held her down and raped her.

When it was over, she hid in the hills but eventually returned home.

In August, S was at home with her family when the military began firing rocket launchers at houses, setting them ablaze. Her husband and two eldest children fled, but she stayed behind to pack up her baby girls and a few belongings. One baby was in a swing, the other sleeping on the floor.

A rocket launcher hit the house. The babies went up in flames before her eyes.

There was nothing she could do. So she ran. She hid with the rest of her family in the hills for several days before making the 3-day trek to Bangladesh.

I burn inside for my children, but what can I do? she asks. They burned to death. I guess that was my destiny.

She told no one

The military surrounded Ns village one early morning in late August. Around 18 soldiers stormed her house, and dragged N outside with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law.

The women were taken to the centre of the village, where soldiers robbed them of their jewelry.

Three men then took her to the hills and stripped her naked. Two men held down her hands while a third raped her. Then they switched positions. All three raped her.

During the attack, they showed her their knives and beat her. She was too frightened to fight back.

When it was over, they left her there. She returned home and told no one about the rape.

She was in agony after the assault and bled for eight days.

She saw her village burning

There was no warning before five soldiers suddenly stormed into 16-year-old Ss house one morning in early August.

They searched the home for money and valuables. Then they slashed her husbands neck, killing him. The men briefly left to ransack other neighbouring houses, before returning.

Two soldiers pulled her into a room, snatched her 3-month-old son from her arms and put him on the floor. They searched her clothes for valuables and took her earrings. Another three men came in and began to beat her with guns while the others stripped off her clothes.

One soldier held down her hands, and another put his gun in her mouth. All five men raped her.

When she struggled, they beat her. She could hear her baby crying and was terrified the men would kill him.

When they were finished, they let her get dressed and then dragged her bleeding body outside to the centre of the village. Soldiers were dragging other women they had assaulted out of surrounding houses. The men beat S and the other women again, then left them.

S ran back to her house, grabbed her baby and ran. As she fled, she saw soldiers lining men and boys up and shooting them. When she made it to the hills, she looked down and saw her village burning.

She never saw her son again

The soldiers had been harassing Ts family for days: Showing up and stealing their food, urinating in their rice, hitting T and, once, stripping off her clothes.

And then one morning in mid-August, five men dragged her husband out of the house, where they slashed his neck. They grabbed her 10-year-old son and dragged him outside; she never saw him again. Her 12-year-old daughter managed to flee.

The soldiers took off Ts earrings and nose ring, then stripped off her clothes. When she screamed, they kicked her.

Then they pinned her to the floor. Two men held her while the first man raped her. Then they switched. One man put a gun in her mouth to silence her screams.

Afterward, she bled for two days. Months later, her back still hurts from the attack.

When they finished, they ate the food in her kitchen and stole her chicken and duck. They also dragged away the body of her husband.

She ran into the hills and found her daughter and father. They tried to find safety in neighbouring villages, but the military kept showing up. With nowhere to go, they headed toward Bangladesh.

All I have left are my words

Ns husband was walking down a road in late August when several villagers saw soldiers grab him and drag him into the hills. Later that day, children in the hills came upon his head, along with several other corpses. Soldiers were milling around near the bodies.

N stayed in her house with her 8-year-old daughter for the next few days, unable to stop crying. Then suddenly, around 80 soldiers descended on the village. Five soldiers came to her door and shouted: Whos inside?

N was terrified. The men barged in.

One man held her as she screamed and fought. They covered her eyes with tape, and hit her head with a gun. Two held her in place while three others began rifling through her clothing. There was nothing for them to steal; shed already hidden her valuables.

They ripped her clothes off and beat her in the head with a gun until she blacked out. When she awoke, her vagina was swollen, bleeding and covered in sores. She had clearly been raped; by how many men, she does not know.

She was in too much pain that day to leave the house. She and her daughter fled the next day for Bangladesh. She bled for eight days, and three months later still has trouble urinating.

I have nothing left, she says, blinking back tears. All I have left are my words.

She bled for six days

N, 17, was at home with her parents and siblings in late August when she heard the crackle of gunfire. Suddenly, 10 men burst into the house. They began slashing open sacks of rice looking for valuables.

Then the soldiers tied her hands with rope behind her back and put tape over her mouth.

Five of the men held her frantic family back, hitting them with their guns. They ripped off her clothes, snatched her earrings and took the money she had hidden in her new blouse.

When she tried to protest, they hit her with their guns.

They threw her to the floor. Five men then took turns raping her, while the others helped hold her down.

Her parents were forced to watch. When they screamed, the soldiers beat them. Eventually, they stood in silence as their daughter was assaulted.

After the men left, Ns parents untied her and washed her. She bled for six days.

The family left for Bangladesh the next day. N was in too much pain to walk, so her father carried her over the border.

It was just all pain

Around 100 soldiers surrounded As village one afternoon in late August. As husband fled, leaving her alone in the house with their 2-year-old son.

Two soldiers came into her house. One soldier threw her baby on the floor, then grabbed A by the neck. Both men slapped her and pointed their guns at her.

They tore off her clothes. She wept and begged them to stop. One of the men took off her earrings. Then they shoved her to the ground, laughing at her.

One soldier pressed his knife to her right hip and cut into her flesh. Both of them punched her in the face.

The men then took turns raping her. She could hear her son crying. She prayed to Allah, terrified the men would kill her and her boy.

It was just all pain, she says now.

As the soldiers walked out, they fired their guns toward the sky.

After the rape, she couldnt eat for days and struggled to walk. She hid in the nearby hills with her son until she found her husband. Together, the family walked for 14 days until they finally crossed the border into Bangladesh.

Tearing her flesh with their teeth

M was at home with her husband, her sister-in-law and her sister-in-laws brother in late August when security forces stormed their village. The husbands fled, leaving M alone in the house with her sister-in-law, who was in the shower.

Three men kicked the door open. They tied Ms arms behind her back.

They dragged her sister-in-law out of the shower. They bit her face and body, tearing her flesh with their teeth. All three men raped her, then stabbed her torso and her breasts with their knives, killing her.

One of the men came over to M, stripped her clothes off and took her earrings.

He unzipped his pants, pushed her down onto her back and then raped her. He choked her and punched her in the face and chest, and bit her eyebrow.

She was terrified she would be killed like her sister-in-law. She screamed so loudly that her neighbours came running. The men then fled.

She has no plans to return to Burma.

How can I go where there is all this pain and suffering? she says.

She does not know how they died

D was at home one evening in late August when she heard noise outside. Her two older sons and husband rushed out of the house, leaving her alone with her 3-year-old boy.

Three men entered her home. She screamed and her son began to cry.

They took her nose ring and earrings, then ripped off her clothes.

One man restrained her arms and held a knife to her hip while the other two men raped her. She feared the men would kill her, so she stifled her screams.

After two hours, the men finally left. When her husband returned, he found her naked. But she was too ashamed to tell him what had happened to her.

She was so swollen and bled so much that she found it difficult to walk for nearly three weeks after the rape.

They fled to another village. While there, people from her village told her that her home had been burned, and that they had seen the dead bodies of her eldest sons. She does not know how they died.

D and her family arrived in Bangladesh in October.

It was never-ending

It was late August and K was around four months pregnant when soldiers swarmed her village.

Four men smashed the door open, tied up her husband and began beating and kicking the couples children. They kicked Ks 3-year-old daughter in the head so hard that she died of her injuries three days later.

They dragged Ks husband out of the house and took him to a police station.

They snatched the money she had hidden in her blouse and took her earrings. Then they ripped off her clothes.

They hit her face and kicked her back. They tied her up and began to rape her, one after the other. The men kicked her so viciously, she feared the baby inside her would die.

It was never-ending, she says now.

Just before the men left, they shoved a gun inside her vagina. The pain was excruciating.

The next day, a village leader helped raise the money the soldiers demanded to release Ks husband from the police station.

In November, K gave birth to a baby boy. He was two months premature, and his skinny arms are barely wider than an adults thumb. K is too malnourished to produce much milk for him, so he is subsisting on sugar water.

She feared her baby was dying

S was pregnant and at home with her family in late August when 20 soldiers surrounded her village. All the men in the area fled, including her husband.

Four soldiers burst into the house, grabbed her two crying toddlers and beat them. She tried to run, but they caught her and dragged her deeper inside the home to a bathing area.

One man threatened her with a gun, another with a knife. They ripped her clothes off, and took her gold earrings and gold chain. They threw her to the floor.

One man held her left arm, one held her right arm and one held down her legs, while the fourth man raped her. Then they switched. All four men raped her. When she screamed, they threatened to shoot and stab her.

They kicked and punched her so hard, she feared the baby inside her was dying. Finally, they left.

After the attack, she felt sharp pains in her belly and bled for a month. For two weeks, she thought the baby had died. Finally, she felt something moving inside her.

Her husband never returned home. She does not know whether he is dead or alive.

If we can live peacefully

It was mid-afternoon one day in late August when about 10 men in camouflage uniforms entered Ms house. Her three children began to scream and cry. Five men took her husband away, and four forced her out of the house and into the nearby hills.

One of the men held a gun to her. They tore her clothes off and took her earrings. They bit her face and her body and hit her.

They tied her mouth with her own head scarf. And then three of the men held her down while the other man raped her. The attack lasted for hours; all four of the men raped her.

The men eventually released her and she stumbled back to her house. Her husband was not there.

After resting for five days, she took her children and began the three-day journey to Bangladesh. She had to use a walking stick to move her battered body.

Despite the horror she endured, she would consider returning to her homeland  if she is assured of her familys safety.

If we can live peacefully side by side like we do here in Bangladesh, then I will go back, she says.

Weve had enough torture

F was at home in late August when she heard screaming outside. Her husband went to investigate and saw that about 300 soldiers and Buddhist villagers had surrounded the area. The men began burning houses and arresting people. Soldiers separated the men from the women.

About eight soldiers and villagers grabbed Fs husband and tied his hands behind his back. They tore off her and her mothers jewelry. Then they took the women outside and set fire to Fs house.

Around 100 men took F, her mother and about 20 other women to another village. The soldiers beat them with guns, kicking and slapping them.

Once they reached the next village, the women were forced to lie down on the ground next to each other. The men tied their wrists together with rope and began to rape them.

Ten men raped F, beat her with their guns, kicked her and slapped her. She could hear her mother crying and calling Allah as she, too, was raped.

It was dark when the men finally left. F managed to wriggle her wrists free of the rope and ran into a field. In the morning, she returned to search for her mother, but she had vanished. She saw at least five women lying dead on the ground, their throats cut.

She has no idea what has become of her husband. And she cannot imagine returning to her homeland.

Weve had enough torture, she says.

She does not know if her husband is alive

S was lying in bed with her husband and son after dinner in late August when around 10 soldiers burst into the house. A few took her husband outside. Five stayed behind, and one pointed his gun at her.

She tried to run, but they grabbed her and kicked her back, stomach and chest. They stripped off her clothes and took her necklace and earrings. Three men raped her.

Her young son began to cry. A soldier pointed his gun at the child and he screamed louder.

S was in agony. After the men were finished, they took her outside, naked. Her son followed them. About two dozen other women, also naked, had been dragged outside as well.

The soldiers forced the women to march toward a rice paddy, beating and kicking them as they walked. S felt blood running down her legs. Once they arrived, the men ordered them to lie down. S fought back and soldiers kicked her. She fell to the ground.

Three more soldiers began to rape her.

When at last the assault was over, S fled back toward her house with her son, only to find her home had been burned along with many others. She does not know if her husband is alive.

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LOS ANGELESAs part of the crew digging a subway extension under the streets of Los Angeles, Ashley Leger always keeps her safety gear close by.

When her phone buzzes, she quickly dons a neon vest, hard hat and goggles before climbing deep down into a massive construction site beneath a boulevard east of downtown.

Earth-movers are diverted, and Leger gets on her hands and knees and gently brushes the dirt from a spot pointed out by a member of her team. Her heart beats faster because theres a chance shell uncover what she calls the big find.

Leger is a paleontologist who digs for fossils in the middle of a city rather than an open plain or desert. She works for a company contracted by Los Angeles transportation officials to keep paleontologists on hand as workers extend a subway line to the citys west side.

Theyre making sure that theyre recovering every single fossil that could possibly show up, Leger says of her team of monitors. They call me anytime things are large and we need to lead an excavation.

Since work on the extension began in 2014, fossilized remains have routinely turned up from creatures that roamed the grasslands and forests that covered the region during the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago.

Paleontologist Ashley Leger shows the skull of a young Columbian mammoth found at the construction site of the Metro Purple Line extension in Los Angeles on Aug. 15.





They include a partial rabbit jaw, mastodon tooth, camel foreleg, bison vertebrae, and a tooth and ankle bone from a horse.

But the discovery that still makes Leger shake her head in disbelief came about a year ago, shortly after construction began on the projects second phase. She was at home getting ready for bed when a call came in from one of her monitors.

It looks big, he told her.

The next morning, Leger knelt at the site and recognized what appeared to be a partial elephant skull.

It turned out to be much more. After 15 hours of painstaking excavation, the team uncovered an intact skull of a juvenile mammoth.

Its an absolute dream come true for me, said Leger, who spent the previous decade at a South Dakota mammoth site with no discoveries even close to the size of the one in Los Angeles. Its the one fossil you always want to find in your career.

Californias stringent environmental laws require scientists to be on hand at certain construction sites.

Paleontologists have staffed all L.A. subway digs beginning in the 1990s, when work started on the citys inaugural line, said Dave Sotero, spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Paying for the paleontologist staff from Cogstone Resource Management is factored into the projects cost, he said. When scientists are brought in to see what crews might have unearthed, work on the project continues, albeit in a different location.

Our crews try to be as mindful as possible to help them do their jobs. We get out of their way, Sotero said, adding that when the mammoth skull was uncovered, construction workers helped deliver it to the mouth of the site.

From there, the skull was hauled a kilometre or so to Los Angeles La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, home to one of Americas most fossil-rich sites.

Assistant curator Dr. Emily Lindsey called it a pretty remarkable find, noting that while thousands of dire wolf and saber-toothed cat remains have been uncovered in L.A., there have been only about 30 mammoths.

A few hundred pounds and the size of an easy chair, the skull is especially rare because both tusks were attached. Its being studied and is available for public viewing inside the museums glass-walled Fossil Lab.

With a nod to Hollywood, the 8- to 12-year-old Colombian mammoth was named Hayden, for the actress Hayden Panettiere, featured in the TV series Nashville and Heroes.

The Cogstone monitor at the construction site had been watching her on television before spotting the speck of bone that turned out to be the intact skull.

Similar endeavours have turned up subterranean treasures during digs in other cities.

Workers at a San Diego construction site found fossils including parts of a mammoth and a grey whale and multiple layers of ancient seashells.

Last year, crews working on a development near Bostons seaport uncovered a 50-foot wooden boat possibly dating as far back as the late 18th century.

Lindsey praised Californias efforts to ensure science and urban development overlap, while bemoaning what bygone treasures may have been lost before the regulations went into place in the early 1970s.

Most of the past is below the ground, so youre only going to find it when you dig, she said. As the city grows, Im sure well find more exciting fossil material.

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MOSCOWDeclaring a victory in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday visited a Russian military airbase in the country and announced a partial pullout of Russian forces from the Mideast nation.

Putins surprise visit marked his first trip to Syria, drawing a symbolic line under the campaign that has shored up President Bashar Assads government. It was also the first visit by a foreign head of state to war-ravaged Syria since its bloodletting started nearly seven years ago.

Putins brief stop at the Hemeimeem airbase in Syrias coastal province of Latakia while on route to Egypt came days after the Russian president declared his bid to run for re-election in the March 18 vote, helping encourage the feelings of pride about Russias revived global clout and prestige.

It also followed the Russian announcement last week that the Syrian army, with the help of Russian airstrikes, routed Daesh, also known as ISIS or ISIL, in eastern Syria and fully restored control over the countrys border with Iraq.

In a televised speech to the Russian troops at the base, the Russian leader hailed their excellent performance in Syria.

You have shown the best qualities of a Russian soldier  courage, valour, team spirit, decisiveness and excellent skills, he said. The Motherland is proud of you.

Russia launched its air campaign in Syria at the end of September 2015, when Assads government was teetering on the brink of collapse, and quickly changed the course of the conflict in his favour. Russian officials say troops in Syria were there mainly to fight terrorists including militants of Daesh and Al Qaeda affiliates, but they also heavily targeted other rebel factions opposed to Assad, allowing his troops to claw back significant territory over the past two years.

Putin has hosted Assad twice in the past six years, including a surprise Nov. 21 visit that Assad undertook to the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Russian television stations showed Putin walking off the plane at the airbase, embracing and shaking hands with Assad. The two then visited a military operations room at the base.

The Hemeimeem base, located in a region that is the heartland of Assads Alawite minority, has served as the main foothold for the Russian military campaign in Syria.

Here in Syria, far away from our borders, you helped the Syrian people to preserve their state and fend off attacks by terrorists, Putin said, facing the troops lined up on the tarmac. You have dealt a devastating blow to those who blatantly threatened our country. We will never forget about the victims who fell in the fight against terror both here and in Russia.

In his speech, Putin also said that he had ordered the military to withdraw a significant part of the Russian contingent in Syria.

Friends, the Motherland is waiting for you, Putin said. You are coming back home with victory!

He added that if the terrorists again raise their heads, we will deal such blows to them they have never seen.

Putin, however, said the Russian military will maintain its presence at Hemeimeem and the naval facility in Tartus.

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the Russian military commander in Syria, reported to Putin that the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers.

Surovikin said that the remaining forces will be sufficient to successfully fulfil the tasks to stabilize the situation in Syria. He wouldnt say how many troops and weapons would stay behind.

Syria has allowed Russia to use Hemeimeem airbase indefinitely without cost. Moscow also has signed a deal with Syria to use the Tartus base for 49 years, which could be extended if both parties agree.

The Russian military plans to modernize the airbase and expand its runways to allow it to host more warplanes. It also intends to expand the Tartus facility significantly to make it a full-scale naval base capable of hosting warships, including cruiser-sized vessels.

After seeing troops march to the tunes of military marches, Putin drove up to the Russian warplanes parked on the runway and talked to the pilots, who said they will flew back home later in the day.

Syrian TV said Assad thanked Putin for his troops effective contribution to the fight against terrorism in Syria, which he said the Syrian people will never forget.

Syria has been saved as a sovereign, independent state, refugees are coming home and conditions have been created for a political settlement under the United Nations auspices, Putin said.

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UKHIA, BANGLADESHThe soldiers arrived, as they often did, long after sunset.

It was June, and the newlyweds were asleep in their home, surrounded by the fields of wheat they farmed in western Burma. Without warning, seven soldiers burst into the house and charged into their bedroom.

The woman, a Rohingya Muslim who agreed to be identified by her first initial, F, knew enough to be terrified. She knew the military had been attacking Rohingya villages, as part of what the United Nations has called ethnic cleansing in the mostly Buddhist nation. She heard just days before that soldiers had killed her parents, and that her brother was missing.

This time, F says, the soldiers had come for her.

The men bound her husband with rope. They ripped the scarf from her head and tied it around his mouth.

They yanked off her jewelry and tore off her clothes. They threw her to the floor.

And then the first soldier began to rape her.

She struggled against him, but four men held her down and beat her with sticks. She stared in panic at her husband, who stared back helplessly. He finally wriggled the gag out of his mouth and screamed.

Read more:

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And then she watched as a soldier fired a bullet into the chest of the man she had married only one month before. Another soldier slit his throat.

Her mind grew fuzzy. When the soldiers were finished, they dragged her naked body outside and set her bamboo house ablaze.

It would be two months before she realized her misery was far from over: She was pregnant.

The rape of Rohingya women by Burmas security forces has been sweeping and methodical, the Associated Press found in interviews with 29 women and girls who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh. These sexual assault survivors from several refugee camps were interviewed separately and extensively. They ranged in age from 13 to 35, came from a wide swath of villages in Burmas Rakhine state and described assaults between October 2016 and mid-September.

Foreign journalists are banned from the Rohingya region of Rakhine, making it nearly impossible to independently verify each womans report. Yet there was a sickening sameness to their stories, with distinct patterns in their accounts, their assailants uniforms and the details of the rapes themselves.

The testimonies bolster the UNs contention that Burmas armed forces are systematically employing rape as a calculated tool of terror aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people. The Burma armed forces did not respond to multiple requests from the AP for comment, but an internal military investigation last month concluded that none of the assaults ever took place. And when journalists asked about rape allegations during a government-organized trip to Rakhine in September, Rakhines minister for border affairs, Phone Tint, replied: These women were claiming they were raped, but look at their appearances  do you think they are that attractive to be raped?

Doctors and aid workers, however, say that they are stunned at the sheer volume of rapes, and suspect only a fraction of women have come forward. Medecins Sans Frontieres doctors have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, a third of them under 18. The youngest was 9.

The Associated Press reported this story with a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

The UN has called the Rohingya the most persecuted minority on earth, with Burma denying them citizenship and basic rights. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees now live in sweltering tents in Bangladesh, where the stifling air smells of excrement from a lack of latrines and of smoke from wood fires to cook what little food there is. The women and girls in this story gave the AP their names but agreed to be publicly identified only by their first initial, citing fears they or their families would be killed by Burmas military.

Each described attacks that involved groups of men from Burmas security forces, often coupled with other forms of extreme violence. Every woman except one said the assailants wore military-style uniforms, generally dark green or camouflage. The lone woman who described her attackers as wearing plain clothes said her neighbours recognized them from the local military outpost.

Many women said the uniforms bore various patches featuring stars or, in a couple cases, arrows. Such patches represent the different units of Burmas army.

The most common attack described went much like Fs. In several other cases, women said, security forces surrounded a village, separated men from women, then took the women to a second location to gang rape them.

The women spoke of seeing their children slaughtered in front of them, their husbands beaten and shot. They spoke of burying their loved ones in the darkness and leaving the bodies of their babies behind. They spoke of the searing pain of rapes that felt as if they would never end, and of dayslong journeys on foot to Bangladesh while still bleeding and hobbled.

They spoke and they spoke, the words erupting from many of them in frantic, tortured bursts.

N, who says she survived a rape but lost her husband, her country and her peace, speaks because there is little else she can do  and because she hopes that somebody will listen.

I have nothing left, she says. All I have left are my words.

Two months after the men came quietly in the night for F, they came boldly in the daytime for K.

It was late August, she says, just days after Rohingya insurgents had attacked several Burma police posts in northern Rakhine. Security forces responded with swift ferocity that human rights groups say left hundreds dead and scores of Rohingya villages burned to the ground.

Inside their house, K and her family were settling down to breakfast. They had only just swallowed their first mouthfuls of rice when the screams of other villagers rang out: The military was coming.

Her husband and three oldest children bolted out the door, fleeing for the nearby hills.

But K was nearly 9 months pregnant, with swollen feet and two terrified toddlers whose tiny legs could never outpace the soldiers strides. She had no place to hide, no time to think.

The door banged open. And the men charged in.

There were four of them, she thinks, maybe five, all in camouflage uniforms. Her young son and daughter began to wail and then, mercifully, scampered out the front door.

There was no mercy for her. The men grabbed her and threw her on the bed. They yanked off her earrings, nose ring and necklace. They found the money she had hidden in her blouse from the recent sale of her familys cow. They ripped off her clothes, and tied down her hands and legs with rope. When she resisted, they choked her.

And then, she says, they began to rape her.

She was too terrified to move. One man held a knife to her eyeball, one more a gun to her chest. Another forced himself inside her.

When the first man finished, they switched places and the torture began again. And when the second man finished, a third man raped her.

In the midst of her agony, she thought of nothing but the baby inside her womb, just weeks away from emerging into a world that would not want him, because he was a Rohingya.

She began to bleed.

She blacked out.

As she awoke, her great aunt was there, tearfully untying her. The elder woman bathed her, clothed her and gave her a hot compress for her aching thighs.

When Ks husband returned home, he was furious: not just at the men who had raped her, but at her. Why, he demanded, had she not run away?

She was pregnant and in no condition to run, she shot back. Still, he blamed her for the assault and threatened to abandon her, because, he told her, a non-Muslim had raped her.

Fearful the men would return, she and her family fled to her fathers house in the hills above the village. When they saw soldiers setting fire to the houses below, they knew they had to leave for Bangladesh.

K was too crippled by pain to walk. Her husband and brother placed her inside a sling they fashioned out of a blanket and a stick, and carried her for days.

Inside her cocoon, she wept for the baby she feared was dead.

A few days after the men burst into Ks house, 10 soldiers arrived at Rs.

She was just 13 years old, but R had already learned to fear the military men.

Her parents had warned her to steer clear of them, yet it was her father who first fell prey to their wrath. One day last year, R says, soldiers stabbed him in the head with a knife, killing him.

Yet Rs family had nowhere else to go. And so they stayed in the village. R busied herself by learning Arabic, doting on her chicken and its hatchlings and caring for her two younger brothers.

And then one day in late August, R says, the soldiers barged into her house. They snatched up her little brothers, tied them to a tree outside and began to beat them. R tried to run out the front door, but the men caught her.

Her body is barely pubescent, her limbs still gangly like a childs. But her youth could not protect her.

R fought back against the men, but they dragged her out of the house. The skin tore away from her knees as her legs scraped along the ground.

The men tethered her arms to two trees. They ripped off her earrings and bracelets, stripped off her clothes.

R screamed at them to stop. They spit at her.

And then the first man began to rape her.

She froze. She was a virgin. The pain was excruciating.

The attack lasted for hours. She remembers all ten men forcing themselves on her before she passed out.

One of her older brothers later found her on the ground, bleeding.

Rs two little brothers were missing, but their mother had no time to search for them. She knew she had to get her daughter over the border and to a doctor quickly to get medicine in time to prevent a pregnancy.

R was barely conscious. So her two older brothers carried her across the hills and fields toward Bangladesh. Rs mother hurried alongside them, terrified for her daughter, terrified that time was running out.

That Rs family sought treatment for her at all is an anomaly. Despite still suffering pain, bleeding and infections months after the attacks, only a handful of the women interviewed by the AP had seen a doctor. The others had no idea free services were available, or were too ashamed to tell a doctor they were raped.

In a health centre overflowing with women and wailing babies, Dr. Misbah Uddin Ahmed, a government health officer, sits at his desk looking weary. He pulls out a stack of patient histories for those treated at his clinics and begins to flick through them, reading the case summaries out loud:

Sept. 5, a patient 7 months pregnant says three soldiers burst into her home 11 days ago and raped her. Also Sept. 5, a patient says she was asleep at home when the military broke in 20 days ago and three soldiers raped her. Sept. 10, a patient says the military came to her house one month ago and beat her husband before two soldiers raped her.

Ahmed says the women who manage to overcome their fear and make it to his clinics are usually the ones in the deepest trouble. So many others, he adds, are suffering in silence.

Though the scale of these attacks is new, the use of sexual violence by Burmas security forces is not. Before she became Burmas civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi herself condemned the militarys abuses. Rape is rife. It is used as a weapon by armed forces to intimidate the ethnic nationalities and to divide our country, she said in a 2011 videotaped statement to the Nobel Womens Initiative.

And yet Suu Kyis government has not only failed to condemn the recent accounts of rape, it has dismissed the accounts as lies. In Dec. 2016, the government issued a press release disputing Rohingya womens reports of sexual assaults, accompanied by an image that said Fake Rape.

Ahmed seems bewildered that anyone would ever doubt these women. Look at what I have just shown you, he says, gesturing toward his stack of files chronicling one atrocity after another.

Gynecologist Arjina Akhter has witnessed the results of those atrocities. Since August, so many women began showing up at her two clinics, she stopped asking them to fill out patient history forms so she could treat them faster. Among other women, she estimates between 20 to 30 rape survivors visited her clinics in September and October.

She ticks off the injuries: Two women with lacerations to their cervixes they said were caused by guns shoved inside their bodies. One woman with horrific tearing she said was caused by a nail driven into her vagina. Several women with severe vaginal bleeding.

More recently, she says, women who were raped months ago have been coming to her in a panic, asking for abortions. She has to explain to them that they are too far along, but reassures them that officials will take the babies if they cannot care for them.

Still, for some Rohingya women, giving up the babies they never asked for was not an option.

Which is how it was for F.

More than three months had passed since the men burst into Fs home, and her despair had only deepened.

Neighbours had taken her in and cared for her. But her house was gone, her husband was dead. And the timing of the attack left little doubt that the baby growing inside her belonged to one of the men who had caused all her grief.

She could only pray that things would not get worse. And then, one night in mid-September, they did.

F was asleep along with the neighbours  a couple and their 5-year-old son  when the men broke down the door, jolting everyone awake.

There were five of them this time, she remembers. They quickly grabbed the boy and slashed his throat, and killed the man.

Then they turned to the mans wife, and to F. And her nightmare began again.

They stripped off the womens clothes. Two of the men noticed the swell of Fs stomach and grabbed it, squeezing hard.

They threw the women to the floor. Fs friend fought back, and the men beat her with their guns so viciously the skin on her thighs began to peel away.

But the fight had gone out of F. She felt her body go soft, felt the blood run between her legs as the first man forced himself on her, and then the second. Next to her, three men were savaging her friend.

When it was finally over and the men had gone, the two women lay immobile on the floor.

They lay there for days, so crippled by pain and catatonic from the trauma that they could not even lift themselves to use the toilet. F could smell the blood around them. As the house baked under the punishing sun, the stench from the decaying bodies of her friends husband and son finally overwhelmed her.

She would not die here. And neither would her baby.

She reached out for her friends hand and clasped it. Then F hauled herself to her feet, pulling her friend up with her. Hand in hand, the women stumbled to the next village. They spent five days recovering there and then, alongside a group of other villagers, began the 10-day journey to Bangladesh.

The monsoon season had begun, but there was nowhere to shelter. So F kept walking through the downpours. She was starving, and her battered body ached with each step. Generous strangers offered her sips of their water, and one man gave her a few sweet rolls.

One day, she came across a 9-year-old boy lying along the side of a road, wounded and alone. He had lost his parents, he told her, and the soldiers had tortured him. She took him with her.

Together, the two made it to the shores of the Naf River and boarded a boat to Bangladesh.

Which is where they live now, in a tiny bamboo shelter between two filthy latrines. And it is here that F prays her baby will be a boy  because this world is no place for a girl.

For now, the women are left to wonder how long they will live in the bleak limbo of Bangladesh, and if they will ever return to their homeland.

R, the teen, is not pregnant. Her mother sold all her jewelry and got her to the hospital in time. But R cant stop thinking about her little brothers, and her sleep is plagued by nightmares.

Since the rape, she has struggled to eat, and her once-curvy frame has shrunk. Before the rape, she says softly, she was pretty.

K, who feared the baby inside her had died, gave birth to a boy on the floor of her tent in a dizzying rush of relief. She had kept her son alive through it all.

But her trauma persists. The thrum of a helicopter hovering over the camp sends her into a panic and she recites the Muslim prayer for the moments before death. She is convinced the aircraft is Burmas military, coming to kill them all.

When told she is strong, she looks up with tears in her eyes.

How can you say that? she asks. My husband says he is ashamed of me. How am I strong?

F, whose body is starting to ache under the strain of her pregnancy, finds her mind often drifts toward how she will care for the child in the future. She believes God has kept them both alive for a reason.

Her parents, her brother, her husband are gone now. This baby will be the only family she has left. For her, the most haunting reminder of the agony she endured also, somehow, represents her last chance at happiness.

Everybody has died, she says. I dont have anyone to care for me. If I give this baby away, what will I have left? There will be nothing to live for.

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To many baby boomers, aged now into grandparenthood and the grave, the 1950s and 60s were seen as the golden age of childhood. Endless summers. Long, aimless bike rides. Double-dutch, British bulldog, hopscotch. A blissful absence of parental involvement in the care-free world of kids.

Not everyone was so lucky.

As the Stars Kenyon Wallace has reported, young boys and girls deemed unmanageable or incorrigible and sent by Ontario court judges and the province to training schools between 1960 and 1984 knew another life entirely.

What Wallace has uncovered is both the tragedy of how children often coming from poor or broken families were abused  sexually, physically, emotionally, spiritually  and the cynicism of a government that since then has cut secret settlements with survivors in hopes of keeping this shameful part of our history under wraps.

As the bromide goes, sunlight is the best disinfectant. And as they are finding in the United States, where millions have been secretly paid to victims of sexual harassment by politicians, misbehaviour unexposed and undiscussed too often remains uncorrected.

The Star investigation uncovered 220 legal settlements in which the province made payments to training-school survivors ranging from several thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a condition of settlement, victims had to sign confidentiality agreements  or gag orders.

The training schools were residential institutions to which children deemed unmanageable were sent until the legislation was repealed in 1984.

At those institutions, according to statements of claim viewed by the Star, staff and teachers sodomized students, forced them to perform oral sex, pitted them against each other in brutal fights, beat them, forced them to eat cigarettes, and told them they were no good and unwanted.

In 1972, a probation officer who heard of such abuse told both the Ontario Corrections Ministry and later a judge. He received no response. Worse, the whistleblower was later fired for his trouble.

When Ontario cabinet minister Allan Grossman introduced what became the Training Schools Act, he said it was written in accordance with modern concepts of child welfare and is based on detailed research in the juvenile field. . .

The purpose of training schools, as outlined in the act, was to provide the boys or girls therein with a mental, moral, physical and vocation education, training and employment.

It is difficult to match those words with the record. For starters, it didnt take much for a young person to get sent to a training school. Petty crime. Begging. Truancy. Vagrancy. Growing up in circumstances exposing him (sic) to lead an idle and dissolute life.

In one application to commit a nine-year-old boy, according to a 1965 report in the Osgoode Hall Law Journal, the reason given was running away from home, petty thieving, protective lying, truancy from school.

Upon arriving at the training school doors, children found something other than was suggested by the ministers fine words.

As one survivor told Wallace, it was my introduction to hell. And that seems not to have been hyperbole. The origins of such institutions are to be found in Dickensian times as ways of dealing with the destitute and neglected.

In a University of Toronto Law Journal study published as early as 1966, the author said: No one could confuse a training school with a residential treatment centre; any momentary confusion would be rapidly dispelled by contemplating young girls in cells without cots, sitting in gym suits with a Bible in hand.

The training schools were arguably dumping grounds for children who were already disadvantaged or victims of neglect. Moreover, they were, according to one review, an inevitable consequence of societys unwillingness to expend sufficient resources on child-caring services.

This is an appalling part of Ontarios history.

All should know of these outrages perpetrated in the provinces name upon societys most vulnerable.

Just as all settlements that have been reached should be revealed, the better that others deserving compensation might come forward and all survivors might benefit from the catharsis of telling their stories.

And, as in all cases of humanitys ghastly errors, atrocities and malfeasance, that we may learn from it in order to build a saner world.

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Donald Trump has thrown the Middle East into a tizzy. The U. S. presidents decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital has been denounced by some of Americas closest allies.

Chances for a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, always slim at best, now seem even more remote.

But for Canadians, Trumps Jerusalem decision signals something else as well. It shows that he is willing to deliver on his election promises, no matter how unwise the experts think they are.

Those who fear that he might keep his pledge to abrogate the North American Free Trade Agreement should be worried.

Most experts like NAFTA, which links the economies of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. It lowers costs, promotes efficiencies and integrates production. With the exception of labour leader Jerry Dias, the head of Unifor, voices critical of NAFTA are rarely heard from.

In the U.S. too, the experts are solidly behind the pact. They point out, correctly, that NAFTA allows American business to take advantage of cheap Mexican labour. This may put Americans out of work. But ultimately it lowers the prices paid by U.S. consumers for things like automobiles.

The experts also point out, again correctly, that NAFTA has been a boon for Americas government-subsidized agribusinesses looking to flood the Mexican market with cheap corn.

From time to time, mainstream politicians  including then presidential candidate Barack Obama  denounced NAFTA. But the experts were confident that these seemingly rogue politicians would change their tune after being elected.

Until Trump came along, the experts were always proved right.

In the same way, Middle East experts didnt worry too much when presidential candidates promised to move Americas embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Bill Clinton made that promise when running for the presidency as did George W. Bush.

But once in office, both were quickly convinced to back away from their pledges.

The experts were able to point out  correctly in my opinion  that taking sides on the fraught issue of Jerusalems status would make it near impossible for the U.S. to act as a neutral arbitrator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

But Trump is different. He doesnt care what the experts say. He thinks he knows better.

In the Jerusalem case, he may be influenced by that fact that Sheldon Adelson, a wealthy donor to his presidential campaign, favours moving the embassy. But I suspect the real reason is Trumps vanity: He made this promise; he intends to keep it.

By Friday, he was already boasting on Twitter that he, unlike Clinton and Bush, is a man of his word.

On NAFTA too, Trump has been consistent. He routinely denounces it as the worst deal ever, saying it gives too much to Mexico and Canada. He says that if it isnt completely rewritten in Americas favour he will cancel it.

The Canadian government, which is desperate to keep NAFTA largely as is, has tried everything to change Trumps mind.

It has tried candying up to him. It has tried going around him to Congressional legislators and state governors.

It has cited facts and made rational arguments  all to little effect.

For a while, NAFTA proponents were cheered by the sheer chaos of the Trump White House. How could a president so mired in controversy hope to fundamentally rewrite Americas trade relations?

More to the point, how could he hope to sell protectionism to free-trade Republican majorities in both houses of Congress?

But the White House is less chaotic these days and Trump is fully in command of his party.

Much to its embarrassment, the Republican establishment even had to reverse itself and embrace Alabama senatorial candidate Roy Moore after Trump announced his support for the alleged sex abuser.

This is the context in which an emboldened Trump made his Jerusalem decision. If this supremely self-confidant man is willing to risk peace in the Middle East just to keep a campaign promise, why would he balk at killing NAFTA?

Thomas Walkom appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

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There was a staged Conservative attack on Thursday on whether Canadas study guide for citizenship exams should retain a warning against female genital mutilation.

When I say staged, I meant a high school play level of acting, the equivalent of a Christmas pantomime with facial expressions stretched to snapping point. It was the political version of the panto guy in the lime green clown suit putting his hands on his hips and terrifying the minion who scurries away with a little bucket.

It all took place in a House of Commons committee meeting. As the Globe and Mail reported, the Conservative immigration critic (in every sense of the word) Michelle Rempel said The Canadian Press had seen a draft guide back in July that no longer contained the advice that FGM is a crime.

Now the governments Discover Canada guide is a drab dated thing ripe for renovation. In its pages, no Canadian woman has ever invented anything, though they enjoy tobogganing, cuddling and walking on streets and bridges.

Overwhelmingly male, it ignores Margaret Atwood and Alice Munro in favour of writers like Sir Charles G.D. Roberts, and is so outdoorsy that youd be forgiven for thinking Canada has no cities.

True, removing the old warning against barbaric cultural practices that tolerate spousal abuse, honour killings, female genital mutilation, forced marriage or other gender-based violence would seem odd and wrong for a Liberal government devoted to womens rights. But Ahmed Hussen, Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, responded that nothing had been removed, they were working on a new draft guide and would consult to the nines, there was no deadline and no story, no cunning plan.

And the story faded to grey, which is precisely when it lit up for me.

We want new immigrants to fit in. But do we really? Shouldnt they be encouraged to be a good influence on the rest of us? Do I want more Canadians who drop their cigarette butts on the sidewalk? Who leave buses by the front door despite the sign saying Please leave by the rear doors? The bus driver gave up long ago but I will never yield.

What is the most important thing a Canadian can do in the winter? Thats right, layer. I dont mean wearing one collared shirt over another collared shirt like the white-rightist American Steve Bannon, the one with the hygiene problem. I guess Nazis layered up like this in the siege of Stalingrad but possibly not thickly enough, and Bannon has a plan.

No, I mean wearing a T-shirt under a waffle-weave under a sweater under a parka. I do not understand why they dont have coat checks in malls  who shops hot?  and new Canadians might want to lobby for that. Tell us its uncivilized.

Canadians form little gangs. Its not by race or house price, its more of a liquid problem. There is an anxious group of us with a habit of decrying the fluid intake of fancy-pants city people. All Canadians drink water, coffee, beer, or mixed drinks but this group sees a malign message, an insult in the choice.

They deplore people sipping wine, cocktails and skinny lattes. Opposition leader Andrew Scheer, schlumping along in a TV ad, actually defined his kind of people by their unwillingness to drink cocktails. What? Hes never had a Bacardi and coke? I sure have.

To avoid these subterranean rifts, the new Discover Canada guide should warn immigrants, Best not to drink at all but if you do, gulp your wine, chug your cocktails and as for coffee, buy it at a Tim Hortons where it will taste just plain terrible but you will be among the volk, so to speak.

Or you could to go Starbucks and have some fun with Scheer. Ill have a Grande, Quad, Nonfat, One-Pump, No-Whip, Mocha. No, Ive changed my mind. Ill have a Venti Iced Skinny Hazelnut Macchiato, Sugar-Free Syrup, Extra Shot, Light Ice, No Whip.

There are so many reparable things in Canada but so many splendours too: sex education in schools, Niagara Falls, ice melter, sheepskin slippers, not being American.

Our catchphrases are good too: Keep your stick on the ice. My surgery is free? I hate Rogers Cable. Really? I hate Bell. You can really bond over stuff like this and then you become a real Canadian. We like you, here on Turtle Island.

hmallick@thestar.ca

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There's no question that small cap companies have their fair share of challenges.

But make no mistake about it: They're aimed at growth and are very determined.

As TheStreet reporter on the ground at the LD Micro conference in Los Angeles earlier this week, I was privy to the triumphs, trials and tribulations of operating as a small cap company in this age. The experience shined a brighter light on the firms that might not always make headlines, but are nonetheless important pieces of the market puzzle.

With over 250 companies slated to pitch their business to investors over the three-day conference, LD Micro was a hive of excited business owners and investors.

Unfortunately it didn't end as planned thanks to the devastating L.A. wildfires that roared too close to the conference. Out of concern for the safety of those in attendance, LD Micro cut the conference short, scrapping two days of the event.

TheStreet's representatives at the conference jumped on a plane out of Los Angeles as soon as seats were available. The terminal with flights back to New York was teeming with disappointed business people whose plan to gain exposure and funding were tossed, at the fault of no one.

It just goes to show how dearly micro cap companies rely on meet-ups such as LD Micro to find funding and make important connections. Bereft of the brand recognition many medium- and large-cap companies bear, small-cap operations have to make the most of all opportunities that come their way.

On LD Micro's Index of 943 micro cap stocks, the total market cap for all constituents is $137.46 billion. All 943 stocks have just 18% the market cap of Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) - Get Free Report . The average LD Micro Index company market cap is $147 million.

Companies that small appeared to be intently focused on a narrow set of issues.

Perhaps it was the invite list, but it seemed that most had a laser focus on hot topics including cannabis, blockchain technology and healthcare. Those three themes dominated conversation.

Honing in on the hot topics in the broader market is good in that it ties small cap names to the trends driving larger plays. But for small cap stocks that can't always afford to go all-in on the topic du jour, focusing too hard on a trend that could be gone tomorrow prevents that company from seeing broader themes.

I got a sense of a large portion of the companies looking so hard at the trees that they run the risk of missing the forest. I applaud authenticity and dedication, but can the companies not recognize that the market isn't looking for more messaging apps, even if they do leverage blockchain?

A great deal of the firms attending relied heavily -- and in some cases, entirely -- on investors believing in their message.

Think about a biotech company whose landmark product is still going through clinical trials. The CEO has no revenue and no timeline on when that revenue might start streaming. Lacking a source of income, the CEO has to stoke investor optimism through the message or mission his brand conveys. Either that or restructure the balance sheet.

When I asked the company executives I interviewed what they did to combat that very problem, nearly all answered that they have to become a company an investor can believe in. To many small cap leaders, believing in a company is more important at the outset than cashing in on one.

But it's a dangerous pillar to lean on. What if there's a scandal, or the message changes? It's a legitimate challenge for small caps.

Regardless of the challenges of small cap business, there was a tangible sense of opportunistic capitalism and unfiltered ambition at the conference. Everyone presenting was enamored with their own idea, strong of conviction and heavy on enthusiasm.

It was a refreshing break from Wall Street for this reporter. While the hum of the finance capital of the world is exciting, there's just something about a small company, a leader with a dream and the sunny west coast.

Alphabet is a holding in Jim Cramer'sAction Alerts PLUS Charitable Trust Portfolio. Want to be alerted before Cramer buys or sells GOOGL? Learn more now.

More of What's Trending on TheStreet:
Here comes more big moments for bitcoin.

Bitcoin is finally becoming a "professional" investment as the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group (CME) launch bitcoin futures contracts on Dec. 10 and Dec. 17, respectively.

The CBOE will be the first to begin trading in bitcoin futures on Sunday evening at 6:00 p.m. EST under the ticker symbol XBT. This is the first major U.S. exchange offering a product pegged to the wildly fluctuating cryptocurrency. In the early going Sunday, bitcoin prices spiked. CBOE's website also went down.

XBT futures are cash-settled contracts based on Gemini's auction price for bitcoin, denominated in U.S. dollars. Gemini is the virtual currency exchange founded by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who are known as the iconic Bitcoin Billionaires.

According to Gemini, the XBT futures will cash-settle on the third Wednesday of the month. The final settlement value (XBTS) will reflect the Gemini 4:00 p.m. EST daily bitcoin auction price.

Back in November, CME Group announced its plans to launch bitcoin futures on Dec. 18. The bitcoin futures contract will be cash-settled and based on the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRR). The reason the exchange is launching this product is due to increased client interest in the evolving cryptocurrency markets. Crypto Facilities will be working on this product with CME Group, and they will both also publish the CME CF Bitcoin Real Time Index (BRTI) to provide price transparency to the spot bitcoin market.

CME Group chairman and CEO Terry Duffy at the time commented: "As the world's largest regulated FX marketplace, CME Group is the natural home for this new vehicle that will provide investors with transparency, price discovery and risk transfer capabilities."

Duffy added in an interview with TheStreet's Brian Sozzi, "I don't think I have ever seen so much media attention around something like bitcoin in my 37 years in this industry -- then the price action has been really amazing."

Where Will Bitcoin Prices End 2017?

Bitcoin is currently trading at $15,478, according to CoinDesk. But, bitcoin fans remain bullish believing the crypto will end the year over $20,000.

What do you think?

More of What's Trending on TheStreet:
Uber Technologies started its long legal campaign to hold onto its London licence Monday with an initial court hearing that will ultimately lead to a decision on the ride-sharing app's fate in Europe's biggest and most lucrative market sometime next year.

Uber had its first hearing in Westminster Magistrates' Court against the city's regulator, Transport for London, which revoked the start-up's operating licence in September amid accusations it wasn't properly screen drivers and following broader rules for the taxi sector. The Court set a likely date for oral arguments in either April or June of 2018 with decisions on licensing in other British cities -- including Sheffield and Brighton -- likely to hinge on the ultimate ruling from London.

The group's new CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, who has said he would like to float the company in 2019, will have his hands full next year as the London case winds its way through the U.K. legal system and he continues to fend-off negative headlines related to the group's aggressive expansion and at-times cavalier attitude towards data protection and city-by-city regulations.

Uber Investor Details Why He Intends to Sell His Stake in the Ride-Hailing Firm

Last month, a major security breach was unveiled at Uber that led to the theft of 7 million customers, emails and telephone numbers of around 50 million and licence plate information on some 600,000 drivers. The breach led to suggestions that one of its major investors, Japan's SoftBank (SFTBY) and its partners were prepare to offer $33 a share, plus 1 billion in direct cash, for a 14% stake in Uber that is essentially a 30% discount to the assumed valuation of Uber, based on its last round of funding, and would peg its worth now at $48 billion.

The San Francisco-based group is also facing increased competition from ride-sharing companies in some of its fastest-growing markets.

Last week, Uber agreed to sell 51% of its operations in Singapore to the city's ubiquitous "yellow taxi" company ComfortDelGro Corp. for around $220 million, in an effort by both group's to challenge the surging market share dominance of Grab, which secured an undisclosed injection from Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) - Get Free Report earlier this fall that followed a $2 billion investment from Japan's SoftBank (SFTBY) and China's Didi Chuxing in July that valued GrabTaxi Holdings Pte Ltd. at just over $6 billion.

Uber is also still picking up the pieces related to the fallout from a blogpost earlier this year from former engineer Susan Fowler that lifted the lid on a culture of harassment and intimidation at the world's most-valuable start-up and is struggling to hold onto early-mover advantages in key markets such as London.

Uber lost a crucial battle in its attempt to hold onto its London licence last month after a U.K. tribunal denied its appeal in case involving workers' rights. The company was told last year that it had to treat its drivers as paid employees who would be entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay benefits as opposed to individually contracted partners. The company appealed the ruling to the central London Employment Appeal Tribunal but was denied its plea.
Brookdale Senior Living Inc. owns, manages, and operates senior living communities in the United States. It operates in three segments: Independent Living, Assisted Living and Memory Care, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs). The Independent Living segment owns or leases communities comprising independent and assisted living units in a single community that are primarily designed for middle to upper income seniors. The Assisted Living and Memory Care segment owns or leases communities consisting of freestanding multi-story communities and freestanding single-story communities, which offer housing and 24-hour assistance with activities of daily living for the Company's residents. This segment also operates memory care communities for residents with Alzheimer's and other dementias. The CCRCs segment owns or leases communities that provides various living arrangements, such as independent and assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing; and services to accommodate various levels of physical ability and healthcare needs. It also manages communities on behalf of others. As of December 31, 2021, the company owned 347 communities, leased 299 communities, and managed 33 communities on behalf of others. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.
Oshkosh Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets specialty vehicles and vehicle bodies worldwide. The company's Access Equipment segment provides aerial work platforms and telehandlers for use in various construction, industrial, institutional, and general maintenance applications. This segment also offers rental fleet loans and leases, and floor plan and retail financing through third-party funding arrangements; towing and recovery equipment; carriers and wreckers; equipment installation services; and chassis and service parts sales. Its Defense segment provides heavy, medium, and light tactical wheeled vehicles and related services for the department of defense. The company's Fire & Emergency segment offers custom and commercial firefighting vehicles and equipment; and commercial fire apparatus and emergency vehicles, such as pumpers, aerial platform, ladder and tiller trucks, tankers, rescue vehicles, wild land rough terrain response vehicles, mobile command and control centers, bomb squad vehicles, hazardous materials control vehicles, and other emergency response vehicles. This segment also provides aircraft rescue and firefighting, snow removal, and broadcast vehicles, as well as command trucks, and military simulator shelters and trailers. Its Commercial segment offers front-and rear-discharge concrete mixers for the concrete ready-mix industry; refuse collection vehicles and related components to commercial and municipal waste haulers; and field service vehicles and truck-mounted cranes for the construction, equipment dealer, building supply, utility, tire service, railroad, and mining industries. Oshkosh Corporation provides its products through direct sales representatives, dealers, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Oshkosh Truck Corporation and changed its name to Oshkosh Corporation in February 2008. Oshkosh Corporation was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
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.
Albany

The laws of both intended and unintended consequences are on display in a massive federal tax bill that has both corporation researchers and alternative energy developers in New York facing the potential loss of a lot of money.

At issue for both groups are federal tax credits  one credit that helps support business spending on research and development, and other credits that support solar, wind and alternative energy projects.

Those changes are just part of a Republican-sponsored bill in Congress to cut about $1.4 trillion in taxes in the first major revision of the federal tax code since the administration of President Ronald Reagan.

First begun in the early 1980s, the R&D tax credits appear to have been snagged unintentionally by the Senate GOP tax bill's proposal to extend the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), a tax meant to ensure that corporations pay at least a minimum tax.

The AMT measure would substantially reduce the value and applicability of the R&D credits for businesses, something that caused an immediate firestorm from corporations, with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce this month calling it "a bombshell."

In New York, businesses that rely on the credit are expecting Republican leaders in the Senate and House to "iron out" the problem during negotiations to reach a final bill that lawmakers in both houses can agree on, said Zack Hutchins, a spokesman for The Business Council.

"We believe that both sides recognize that this is something that needs to be taken care of," he said.

General Electric Co. officials are also expressing confidence that the R&D credits will remain unchanged by the time a final tax bill is approved. GE employs hundreds of people conducting research at its Global Research Center in Niskayuna in Schenectady County.

"GE supports the Senate tax reform plan because it would upgrade the U.S. to a territorial tax system, bring rates in line with other countries, and allow U.S. businesses and workers to compete fairly around the world, so it's the quality of our products that determine whether we win global deals, and not tax differences. We are following this legislation closely as Congress continues to work to address provisions in the bill," according to a statement issued by a GE spokesman in response to questions on the R&D credits.

While the R&D tax credit pitfall seems to have been caused by the breakneck speed at which Republicans wrote the tax bills, the slashing of credits for alternative energy apparently was done with deliberate purpose by Republicans who favor fossil fuels over renewables, said Anne Reynolds, executive director of The Alliance for Clean Energy New York.

"I would say here the mood among our members is frantic and alarmed," she said. "This is an existential moment."

Not only does the GOP tax bill call for cutting the future value of the Production Tax Credit (or PTC, which supports wind farm projects), it also would raise taxes on some existing alternative energy projects where developers already factored in tax credits in their long-term financing plans.

She said wind developers feel whipsawed by Congress, given that the PTC was renegotiated with lawmakers just two years ago, when an agreement was reached for a five-year extension and provision to gradually reduce the value of the credits year-by-year.

Reynolds said the GOP measure to further cut the value of renewable credits hurts states like New York that have set renewable energy goals and are spending taxpayer funds to encourage developers.

"(T)he wind industry estimates that nationally over half of American wind farms now under development could be killed by this bill. This would total 90,000 jobs, including tens of thousands of existing jobs and projected growth, and $95 billion in private investment at risk," said Reynolds.

Last month, a coalition of alternative energy advocacy groups warned that the proposed changes could cause an immediate collapse of the value of the tax credits, as the owners of such credits would immediately rush to sell, flooding the market. And New York officials also warn the federal budget could cripple new alternative energy projects.

"The Republican tax bill, if passed, could severely undermine the private sector's ability to build renewable energy projects," said Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has set a goal for the state to get half its electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

"This would not only hinder our fight against climate change, but would also destroy thousands of good-paying jobs in this fast-growing sector of the economy. New York congressional Republicans must reject this proposal and fight for clean energy investment here in the Empire State," said Azzopardi.

A spokesman for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority estimated that between a third and a half of solar and wind projects that have filed intentions to build with the authority could withdraw, if the tax credits are weakened. Those project represent about 6.5 gigawatts of electric power, or the equivalent of about a dozen fossil fuel-fired power plants.
Youth forum

Guilderland High School senior Layla Yousef attended the World Youth Forum, a conference designed to extend a "message of peace, prosperity, harmony and progress" to citizens of the globe on Nov. 4 to 10 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

Leaders from almost every nation gathered to discuss and recommend initiatives to influential leaders and top policymakers. Yousef was the representative for the delegation of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. "I specifically emphasized that we must direct our endeavours to establishing preventive measures to ultimately eradicate terrorism, and that such a process will best be accomplished by creating research centers, and reinforcing capacity building to generate a system of transparent information sharing," Yousef said.

Mini terms

Union College students traveling during the holiday break for mini terms include:

Emma Sprotbery of Burnt Hills, Anna Mahony of Niskayuna, Mallory Epstein of Niskayuna, and Alaina Thaxter of Cobleskill, completing the New Zealand mini term; Emily Coello of Albany, civil rights mini term; Sean Glennon of Pattersonville, Mexican-American Border mini term; Erendira Garcia Pallares of Schenectady community service mini term.

Research travel

Sydney Hurley of Averill Park, majoring in biomedical engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts was a member of a student team that completed a research project in Santa Fe titled "Plaza Revitalization Plan with The Jemez Pueblo." The college also announced:

Carl Turnquist of Sloansville, majoring in mechanical engineering, was a member of a completed project in Boston, "Assessment of MA Waste-Sites for Photovoltaic Development."

Austen Crawford of Delmar, majoring in civil engineering, completed a project in Boston, "Evaluating the Vulnerability of Boston's Inner Harbor."

Jacob Kaplan of Schenectady, majoring in computer science, completed a project in Santa Fe, "Protecting Art and Increasing Awareness of Transportation."

Visual arts exhibition

SUNY New Paltz student Gwendolyn van den Heever of Malta is exhibiting visual arts thesis at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art on campus. Student exhibitions will be on view until Dec. 12.
While Gov. Andrew Cuomo must stand for re-election next year, many believe his eyes are on the White House two years later.

Despite criticism from the left, Cuomo can point to his successes on same-sex marriage, gun control and fracking to help him in the Democratic primary. And while it was a challenge a few years ago to get him to say that extreme weather was caused by burning fossil fuels, he now boasts that New York is a national leader on climate change.

But the sobering reality is that 15 years after Gov. George Pataki announced bold goals to increase renewable energy  and seven years into the Cuomo era  New York gets a mere 3 percent of its electricity from wind, solar and geothermal energy. California recently announced that it expects to get 50 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2020.

In 2018, Cuomo has an ideal opportunity for climate action. A state blueprint for offshore wind is about to be released, as well as a study on how fast New York can transition to 100 percent clean energy.

The Democratic National Party platform calls for a WWII-level mobilization to solve climate change. We need that commitment from Cuomo. His goals have been modest, focusing on "reorganizing the market" to promote renewables rather than bold action.

Cuomo has been penny-wise and pound foolish. This has especially been true in offshore wind, which has massive potential off Long Island. New York needs to invest in offshore wind like in Europe, where the last project came in at 5 cents per kilowatt-hour, a third of the cost of a project Cuomo approved for LIPA. We saw a similar problem when Cuomo recently changed the net metering rules for community solar farms, making them costlier to operate and harder to finance.

New York needs to halt any more fossil fuel projects while investing in clean renewable energy. Instead, Cuomo has embraced natural gas as a "cheap bridge fuel" even though methane is 80 times more potent in the short term as a greenhouse gas compared to carbon. The governor wants to build two new plants to power the Empire State Plaza with fracked gas from Pennsylvania. He instead should make the Capitol a model for a clean energy future, pursuing renewable alternatives such as geothermal, as other states have done.

State leadership is critical with President Donald Trump denying climate change. As Pope Francis has noted, solving climate change means also solving economic and environmental injustice, since the causes are the same.

Climate scientists increasingly see a bleak future for humanity as the rate of climate change continues to accelerate. Some have even raised the possibility of human extinction  a fate that already awaits many other species.

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The technology already exists to rapidly transition to 100 percent clean energy, providing a healthier environment, cheaper electricity and millions of living wage jobs. What we lack is the political will to make it happen.

Cuomo should adopt a climate action plan to quickly transition to 100 percent clean energy, with clear timelines and benchmarks. The U.S. Conference of Mayors recently endorsed 100 percent clean energy by 2035. Dozens of state legislators are sponsoring a bill for 100 percent clean energy by 2030.

The governor should promote energy democracy, with community control/ownership of the energy system, ensuring that low and moderate income New Yorkers participate in our energy future. We need a just transition to ensure that workers and vulnerable communities are assisted. We need to enact a state carbon tax, and divest our pension funds from fossil fuels.

Being a leader means convincing others to make difficult choices. We need Cuomo to lead the way on climate action.
How many steps will it take to walk off Thanksgiving dinner?

Study: You'd need to walk nearly 80,000 steps to walk off the calories associated with the 10 most popular Thanksgiving Day dishes.
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) and Oman Tourism Development Company (Omran) have announced the opening of Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre in Muscat.



The newly opened hotel is the second Crowne Plaza in the capital and the fifth in Oman, demonstrating the increasing popularity of the brand in the sultanate.



The 296-room hotel is conveniently located 10 minutes from the New Muscat International Airport and is a part of the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) project, situated in Phase One of Madinat Al Irfan, a world-class, urban mixed-use development by Omran designed to meet global standards.

OCEC is Muscats state-of-the-art commercial hub for business and international events. This precinct is one of many innovative communities currently being developed that are designed to world-class standards in support of the sultanates growing tourism sector.



While guests will benefit from the centres 22,000 sq m of exhibition space, they will also enjoy overlooking a natural waterway and the surrounding parklands, a wadi, and a nature reserve. With elements that allow for both productivity and recreation, Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre is ideal for both business and leisure travellers.



The hotel also offers great facilities for a broad range of visitors including two pools, a childrens playground, a large fitness zone, three large meeting rooms and an independent function centre, which includes a glamourous ballroom with a terrace, ideal for weddings and other social functions.



Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre also boasts a selection of five dining options including Mosaic, that offers an all-day menu and Charm Thai that offers an authentic taste of Thailand in an ambient environment. Additionally, guests can enjoy the best of Belgian food and beverage in a traditional Belgian setting at Le Petit Belge or savour delicious cocktails by the poolside. Visitors can also indulge in an extensive collection of drinks which can be enjoyed in the lobby of the hotel.



Pascal Gauvin, chief operating officer, India, Middle East & Africa, IHG said: We are delighted to celebrate the opening of our second Crowne Plaza in Muscat, especially as it augments the citys latest development, the OCEC in Madinat Al Irfan. This landmark will facilitate Omans growth as a business hub in the Middle East and boost tourism into the country.



As part of our growth strategy we are constantly looking for quality growth in new and existing markets, and with this hotel we will be serving guests as we partake in Omans economic growth. In partnership with Omran, we look forward to catering to the growing number of travellers into the nations capital.



Salah Bin Salim Al Ghazali, division head - Development Partnerships & Investor Relations Omran and chairman of Destination Hotel Management Company, added: With the development of the monumental Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre (OCEC) at Madinat Al Irfan in Muscat, Omran continues to support Omans positioning as a strong Mice hub in the Middle East. In the near to mid term, the centre will attract a steady stream of business travellers to the city and as Omran, together with its Omani pension fund partners continue to develop the centres retail, recreational and hospitality features, the OCEC will also attract more leisure travellers, creating a new destination and unique experiences that will benefit the social and economic growth of the sultanate. The new Crowne Plaza Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre will be perfectly positioned to cater to both sets of travellers and add another dimension of productivity and relaxation to their experience.



He added: We look forward to placing the sultanate on the map as a business hub and consequently look forward to demonstrating the hospitality that both Oman and Crowne Plaza are known for. - TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Airports welcomed the inaugural flight of Nigerian airline Med-View coming from Murtala Muhammed International Airport, via capital city Abuja, with a traditional water salute on December 8.



A cake cutting ceremony was held at the Dubai International Airport and was attended by Med-View CEO Muneer A. Bankole; Khalil Lamrabet, Dubai Airports director aviation Business Development and Saood Kankazar, executive director DCAA.



With this launch, Med-View will bring more convenience and choice for the thousands of passengers travelling between Lagos and Dubai with three weekly flights on a Boeing B777 and B767 aircraft. - TradeArabia News Service
The World Trade Organizations 11th Ministerial Conference opened in Buenos Aires on 10 December with a forceful declaration by four Latin American presidents pledging support for the WTO and its guardianship of the multilateral trading system.

The unprecedented show of support by the leaders  President Mauricio Macri of Argentina, President Michel Temer of Brazil, President Horacio Cartes of Paraguay and President Tabare Vazquez of Uruguay  comes as hundreds of trade diplomats, journalists and representatives of civil society gather in the Argentine capital for the latest biennial meeting of the WTOs highest decision-making body.

In their joint declaration, the four presidents reaffirmed the importance of the multilateral trading system as the best way to take advantage of the opportunities and to face the challenges of international trade.

They also underlined the importance of preserving and strengthening the multilateral trading system, including its dispute settlement system, in order to promote rules based, open, transparent, inclusive, non discriminatory and equitable trade embodied in the WTO, providing it with the tools it needs to face the challenges of the 21st century.

The joint statement of the four presidents was supported by representatives of Colombia, Guyana, Mexico, Peru and Suriname, who also signed the declaration at the conferences opening ceremony.

Trade has been a key source of growth and development, Argentinas President Macri declared. However, we know that the benefits havent been shared by everybody, and that has given rise to challenges and a questioning of economic globalization.

It is our joint responsibility to rise to the challenges of the 21st century and ensure that they become opportunities for a more inclusive future, he continued. As the host country, we want to set the basis for the discussion on how to make the multilateral trading system more efficient, to help it become an engine for development.

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo welcomed the joint declaration of support. This is a huge display of commitment to the idea of free trade as a force for good, and to the multilateral trading system itself.

By any objective measure, the multilateral trading system has delivered, DG Azevedo said, noting the 26-fold increase in global trade since the signing of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade  the WTOs cornerstone agreement  70 years ago. It is a rare example of effective, functioning, vibrant multilateralism  with all the hard work, difficulty, and effort that this can sometimes entail.

The system has helped to build prosperity around the world, he continued. It has helped to lift a billion people out of poverty in a generation. It has been tested  and it has held firm.

DG Azevedo noted that during and after the financial and economic crisis in 2008, the world did not erect trade barriers as in the past. Less than 5% of world imports have been affected by restrictive measures since the crisis. In comparison, global trade shrank by two thirds during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when protectionism was rampant.

Trading nations held each other to the commitments agreed multilaterally, he said. As a result we avoided unilateral actions, potential trade wars and economic catastrophe.

In the heat of crisis, the WTO did what it was created to do. And it will continue to provide stability and certainty  especially in challenging times. Thats why Im so relentless in beating the drum for the system. Not because its perfect, but because its essential, it works, and its the best we have. His full speech is available here.

The 11th Ministerial Conference (MC11), which will run until 13 December, is being chaired by Minister Susana Malcorra of Argentina. Trade officials will discuss a range of issues over the next three days, including agriculture, development, fisheries subsidies, domestic regulation of services, and electronic commerce.

Presidential Declaration

Opening Ceremony of the Eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference

The Governments of Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Guyana, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname and Uruguay, meeting in Buenos Aires on 10 December 2017 on the occasion of the Eleventh Ministerial Conference (MC11) of the World Trade Organization (WTO),

Agree that on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1947, the objectives of improving peoples standard of living, achieving full employment and increasing the production of and trade in goods and services remain every bit as relevant while at the same time contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals;

Reaffirm that multilateralism is the best way to take advantage of the opportunities and to face the challenges of international trade. Consequently, they confirm the importance of preserving and strengthening the multilateral trading system, including its dispute settlement mechanism, in order to promote rulesbased, open, transparent, inclusive, nondiscriminatory and equitable trade embodied in the WTO, providing it with the tools it needs to face the challenges of the 21st century;

Stress the importance of holding MC11 in the Argentine Republic, and thank the Argentine Government and people for hosting this international trade summit, while reaffirming their commitment to obtaining positive and substantive outcomes capable of bringing tangible benefits to the peoples of the region and of contributing to ensuring that the WTO continues to be at the heart of world trade governance;

Undertake to coordinate actions in the WTO in order to pursue the process of reforming the rules of international trade in agricultural products, to work towards the prohibition of certain forms of fisheries subsidies, to make progress in domestic regulation in services, and to discuss topics of increasing relevance to the trade agenda of the 21st century, including electronic commerce, micro, small and mediumsized enterprises (MSMEs), and investment facilitation;

Welcome the entry into force, on 22 February 2017, of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, which will facilitate trade flows globally and, in particular, at regional level, while helping to promote and enhance customs cooperation and the integration of our countries into regional and global value chains;

Undertake to strengthen dialogue between the countries in the region, with a view to harmonizing the various initiatives that exist in Latin America, orienting them towards achieving results in terms of regional integration and increased participation in world trade;

Draw particular attention to the work carried out jointly by the Pacific Alliance and MERCOSUR in relation to the Roadmap agreed at the Ministerial meeting in April 2017;

Underscore that, in the current international context of slow economic growth and tentative global trade recovery, a joint effort is needed to consolidate the growth of the respective economies, to reduce inequality and to enhance public policies that promote gender equality and help to create decent and quality employment, coupled with efforts to improve education, to build capacity to innovate and to benefit from new technology, and to work together to eradicate poverty and hunger, in accordance with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

In light of the abovementioned commitments, they invite other WTO Members wishing to join this Declaration to do so.
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Hi, me and my husband are planning a trip to the Great Barrier Reef in June 2018 - we intend to dive (we have1 prior dive experience, my husband knows swimming but I don't). We want to use our June holidays next year, so need to know if June (specifically June) a good time to visit? We really want to have a good experience at the GBR, friends have been saying it is stormy that time of the year and we may end up sea-sick and not really enjoy diving. Is this true? Is there any other better time to visit? We also plan to see Melbourne (Great Ocean Road, penguin island) and Sydney. But honestly, GBR is the main inspiration... please advise.
Yeah in winter you should be warned it might rain quite a bit, more on the coast from Melbourne to the NSW border than in NSW itself usually (Sydney is known to be much sunnier than Melbourne in winter for example).

Also, some of your stops may be improved. Traralgon is really one of the worst places in Victoria, mainly due to the coal power plant nearby. Lakes Entrance is also not the best. To me you're missing on the 2 best spots in Victoria along the coast. The first one is Wilsons Promontory. A haven for wild life, with accessible beaches, you don't have to hike seriously to appreciate the scenic roads and the beaches, as well as the wildlife. It's a must, and you should definitely spend the night here.

The other spot is the coast from Marlo to Mallacoota. You should definitely stop at Marlo and check out the Snowy River estuary it's gorgeous, or at Mallacoota for the great inlet and beaches. I love Croajingolong national park, but you need to take dirt roads to inlet, or hike to secretive beaches to appreciate it, which might not be adivsable with kids. So stick to Mallacoota. It's a detour from highway 1 I know but it's worth it in my opinion.

In New South Wales, it's not as wild, it's small parks with cute beach towns. The highlights for me would be Ben Boyd National parks (plenty of great spots accessible by car or without too much hiking), Haycock Point, Cunjurong Point, Booderee National Park (amazing beaches, stay near there instead of Wollongong) and Fitzroy Falls (near Kangaroo Valley). Next to this Lakes Entrance or Traralgon look a bit like eyesores. Lakes Entrace is the biggest fishing port in Victoria. There are nice things to see nearby sure, but it's worth it if you have a boat. As a stop, Wilsons Prom or Mallacoota are much better in my opinion.

Edited: 4 years ago
>>We are thinking about the Kangaroo Island tour during our time in Adelaide.<<

Kangaroo Island sounds a wonderful destination and is on my wish list, I'm sad that despite numerous visits to Adelaide I have not yet gotten to Kangaroo Island.

From everything I have read, Kangaroo Island is a destination in itself and doing a short tour from Adelaide is a compromise. So I think what you need to figure out is whether it is worthwhile for you to make that detour for such a short visit or whether you can extend the time or whether you could use the time more efficiently for something else?
Unless you can fly into Liberia rather than San Jose. I think this plan is a mistake. Rincon is way out of your way, 45 minutes NE of Liberias airport. Rincon is hardly the only active volcano if you want an alternative to Arenal. It is however, a fine place to visit if it werent so far away.

Id suggest you consider a few days near Irazu and Turrialba volcanos, SE of San Jose. You can drive to the top of Irazu volcano & look in the crater lake. Turrialba is currently active so you cant hike there but steam vents from the top often & can be seen from a distance. There are hot springs in the area, rafting on multiple rivers, hiking at Tapanti National Park and more. It would also save hours driving to Rincon.
Car Rental for 3-5 days in Vegas

We are a family of 3 pax including 18 years daughter (however we will have 4 big suitcases) and planning to rent a 5-7 seater SUV during our stay in Vegas. This is our first trip to US and in our country the driving and system is quite opposite to that of US. We use right had drive here in Nepal. I have some confusion on below points :

1) I have local ( Nepal ) driving license which has English transcripts. Do we require an international driving license to rent a car in US or my local license is valid too.

2) Which company is more reliable to rent a car, Hertz, Thrifty, Sixt (any another if am missing for luxury SUV)

My Vegas Itinerary will be like this :

7th August : arrive at 2:10pm from LA, checkin hotel Wynn, after some rest spend evening at stripe + choose a show

8th August : will book an outdoor skydiving for 11:30 pickup at Grand MGM, evening some rest at pool side @ hotel . Evening at stripe

9th August : looking for Valley of Fire + Hoover dam (optional) , evening at Stripe

10th August : Drive early morning for GC South Rim, Over night at NP

11th August : Drive straight to LV airport, return vehicle and take 5pm flight to SF

Now the question is should I book car from 7th - 11th August, however am not be driving much on 7th and 8th. What I have learnt is these companies are located little away from the airport and we need to take a shuttle/ cab to reach them. So we need to take a cab anyway, why not rent a car on 9th morning 8-9am, pick up family from the hotel and leave for day tours. This way we can save two days rent amount. SUGGESTIONS PLEASE !!!
From Manhattan the http://www.libertylandingferry.com/ will leave you within walking distance of the NJ SOL departure point.

After your SOL/Ellis visit you can take the Statue Cruises ferry back to Battery Park. You do not have to return to NJ.
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- Ex-presidential aspirant Nazlin Umar mocked NASA supporters and called their leader Raila Odinga a fraud and conman after his swearing-in ceremony was postponed

- The Aden Duale's ex-lover accused Raila of gambling with the lives of his supporters for political mileage

- Umar said Raila was a coward and could not dare swear himself in as had been planned

Former presidential aspirant and estranged lover of majority leader Aden Duale, Nazlin Umar savagely tore apart NASA leader Raila Odinga terming the opposition chief a fraud.

Umar called Raila a conman and a liar after the much awaited swearing-in of the opposition chief scheduled for Tuesday, December 12 was cancelled.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

READ ALSO: Uhuru abadilisha mkondo kuhusu kukutana na Raila

In a long Facebook post rant, Umar termed Raila as a coward giving an example when the doyen of Kenyan politics escaped bullets and tear gas canisters fired at his vehicle during police clashes and opposition supporters at Jacaranda grounds.

Duale's ex Nazlin Umar who branded Raila a fraudster after leaving supporters high and dry. Photo: Nazlin Umar/Facebook

READ ALSO: It's either democracy or self-determination - NASA Principals

She further accused the NASA leader of sacrificing his supporters as he seeks for political mileage.

"He has proven himself a fraud. Gambling with the lives of his supporters, sacrificing their lives for his political mileage. Gambling with the well being of the whole Nation, sabotage, for political mileage and self aggrandizement to feed his over bloated ego.

"Raila Odinga lacks testosterone to swear himself in. I told you this man is fake, he is only misusing you" she ranted.

READ ALSO: Raila Odinga never withdrew formally from the repeat presidential election - Supreme Court

The opposition announced postponement of the swearing-in ceremony for Raila and his deputy Kalonzo Musyoka due to technical hitches.

She went further to mock NASA supporters and said she would get a fat goat to offer as a sacrifice for those killed during the confrontations.

NASA leader Raila Odinga addressing supporters during a past rally. Photo: NASA

"My condolences to all Nasarites, or is it rebels? Poleni sana. I am ready to have a huge goat... in sacrifice to Allah and hold a Khitmah prayers for lost dreams and aspirations. We bury them in peace and move on with our eyes open and weary of wolves in sheep's clothing crying foul every second of their lives. Al Fateha!

"Truth as only said by Nazlin Umar," she penned in the long Facebook rant seen by TUKO.co.ke.

READ ALSO: Had popular Kalenjin artist Nicco En Embassy predicted his death before perishing?

And to add salt to an open wound, she sarcastically welcomed NASA supporters to share a plate of goat stew with lots of pepper in solidarity to their suffering.

"Now stop fighting and lets share a plate of Matumbo, in solidarity with your suffering, shall we? Karibuni! Someone bring some fresh pilipili!" Umar said.

Kenyans react to Raila Odinga's swearing-in postponement - on TUKO TV

Source: TUKO.co.ke
In this episode of Morning Edition, many have expressed concern over the path of some of our
Russian-backed militants launched 35 attacks on positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in ATO area in Donbas in last day.

This is reported by the ATO Headquarters press center.

The enemy violated ceasefire in ATO area 35 times over the past day. As a result of the enemy shelling, four Ukrainian soldiers were injured, one soldier was wounded, the statement reads.

In Luhansk direction, illegal armed formations used infantry weapons and mortars of various types to fire at Ukrainian positions near Travneve, Novooleksandrivka (65km west of Luhansk), Novotoshkivske (53km north-west of Luhansk), Krymske (42.5km north-west of Luhansk) and Zaitseve (67km north-north-east of Donetsk).

In Donetsk direction, Russian-backed militants launched attacks on Ukrainian strongholds outside Avdiivka (18km north of Donetsk), using mortars and infantry weapons. The enemy used grenade launchers and heavy machine guns to fire at Ukrainian troops near Kamyanka (62km south of Donetsk) and Krasnohorivka (29 km west of Donetsk). The defenders of Butovka coal mine (11.4km north-west of Donetsk) came under mortar, grenade launcher and small arms fire.

In Mariupol direction, the enemy used small arms to shell Starohnativka.

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The Ukrainian diaspora in Canada purchased and handed over ten kits of communication equipment to the soldiers in the ATO zone.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson for ATO issues Oleksandr Motuzianyk said this at a briefing, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"The Ukrainian diaspora in Canada has supported our soldiers, who carry out combat missions in the east, and purchased and handed over ten kits of communication equipment," the spokesman said.

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On Thursday, December 14, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Volodymyr Omelian will present plans to launch a national airline.

This is reported on the website of the Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry.

"On December 14, a press conference will be held with the participation of Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Volodymyr Omelian regarding the establishment of a national airline," the report reads.

The official said earlier that the national low-cost air carrier would be launched in December 2017. The airline will have foreign capital, but 51% of shares will belong to Ukraine.

ish
The British Embassy in Ukraine has urged Russia to release Ukrainian political prisoners and reminded that Crimea is the Ukrainian territory.

The embassy reported this on the Human Rights Day on Twitter.

"On #HumanRightsDay, the UK continues to call on #Russia to release all Ukrainian political prisoners immediately #CrimeaIsUkraine," the report reads.

As reported, the public association of the relatives of political prisoners of the Kremlin is currently monitoring the situation on illegal imprisonment of 46 Ukrainians in Russia and in the occupied Crimea.

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The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on the Human Rights Day marked on December 10 urged the Russian Federation to stop repression in the occupied Crimea and to release all illegally detained persons.

Spokesperson for of the Foreign Ministry Mariana Betsa reported this on Twitter.

"December 10 is the Human Rights Day. We demand from Russian Federation to stop repressions in occupied Crimea, release all political prisoners and illegally detained persons," she wrote.

Earlier, the British Embassy in Ukraine urged the Russian Federation to immediately release Ukrainian political prisoners.

ish
Polish President Andrzej Duda is going to visit Kharkiv on December 13.

Deputy Chief of the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland Pawel Mucha confirmed this information on Radio Trojka early on Monday.

"According to my information, he is going to Ukraine. If something changes, we will inform the public about this," he said.

When asked whether Duda will travel to Ukraine with Secretary of State Krzysztof Szczerski, Mucha said after a brief hesitation that Duda seems to travel with Szczerski.

According to the Chancellery of the President of Poland, the main subject of Duda's speeches in Ukraine is security policy in the context of the situation in eastern Ukraine. The head of the Polish state will meet with President Petro Poroshenko, observers from the OSCE mission and representatives of the United Nations Development Program. In addition, Duda will commemorate Polish soldiers who were killed by the NKVD and buried in the cemetery of the victims of totalitarianism in Kharkiv.

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Polish Ambassador to Ukraine Jan Pieklo has said he hopes that a new concept of Polish-Ukrainian relations will be developed during Polish President Andrzej Duda's visit to Ukraine so as to help eliminate tension in relations between the two countries.

He stated this in an interview with the Delovaya Stolitsa (Business Capital) newspaper.

"I think that the current situation needs to be corrected at the highest political level. I hope very much that the December meeting of the Polish and Ukrainian presidents in Kharkiv, which was chosen as a neutral location, will help us here. The arrival of Andrzej Duda in Ukraine is an important signal that Poland is ready for dialogue. We, as neighbors, have to think about our future and common security, rather than give the cart blanche to a common enemy - Russia, which is trying to make a 'Donbas' near the Polish border with Ukraine," Pieklo said.

He suggested that after the presidential meeting it would be possible to talk of a new concept of Polish-Ukrainian relations. "It is possible that if Ukraine abolishes the prohibition for Polish historians to conduct searches and exhumation in Volyn region and if there is a certain signal from the Polish side, our relations will get back to normal soon," the diplomat said.

As Ukrinform reported, the Polish president's office confirmed that Duda will visit Ukraine on Wednesday, December 13. The main topic of the talks will be security policy in the context of the situation in eastern Ukraine. The head of the Polish state will also meet with President Petro Poroshenko, observers from the OSCE mission and representatives of the United Nations Development Program.

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Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych signed 50 agreements in favor of Russia from 2010 to 2014, former Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has said.

He stated during his interrogation in Kyiv's Obolonsky District Court in the Yanukovych treason case, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Between 2010 and 2014, more than 50 bilateral documents were signed between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. As a rule, these documents were aimed at ensuring that Russia could have the greatest possible economic and security impact on the Ukrainian state," he said.

Yatseniuk added that the agreements mainly concerned cooperation between Ukraine and Russia in the field of gas, nuclear energy and security.

According to the former prime minister, the adoption of Kharkiv agreements between Ukraine and Russia on the extension of the period of stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet on Ukrainian territory until 2042 became a kind of legitimization of the presence of Russian troops and created preconditions for Russian aggression in early 2014.

Yatsenyuk said during his speech in the court that the period of Yanukovych's presidency was characterized by "the incredible penetration of Russian special services into Ukrainian special services." In particular, the leaders of the SBU and the Defense Ministry were Russian citizens under Yanukovych, he said.

When asked by a state prosecutor whether there were any threats to the life and health of Yanukovych in February-March 2014, Yatseniuk said that there was no information of this kind.

"At that time, Yanukovych's state security reached several hundred people, so there was no information on the threat to President Yanukovych's life and health. This is further confirmed by the fact that Yanukovych personally rejected state security. If there was a threat, he would not have rejected security," Yatseniuk said.

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The priority issues in the sphere of human rights protection in Ukraine are poverty reduction, the fight against domestic violence, establishment of gender equality, and the fight against various forms of discrimination.

Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman stated this in his address on the occasion of Human Rights Day, which was posted on the government's official website on December 10.

It's time for new challenges and great actions. We are implementing structural reforms to promote the welfare of citizens and increase the social status of each individual. The priority issues in the sphere of human rights protection in Ukraine are poverty reduction, the fight against domestic violence, the establishment of gender equality, and the fight against various forms of discrimination, said Groysman.

He also said that the authorities will overcome all obstacles so that citizens can be proud of their state and believe in the triumph of law and justice, and added that a solid legal and political basis should be created for this an important task.

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Polish Ambassador to Ukraine Jan Pieklo has said that the so-called "black lists" of Ukrainians appeared in the Polish Foreign Ministry after Ukraine resorted to such measures.

He said this in an interview with the Delovaya Stolitsa (Business Capital) newspaper.

"As for personae non gratae, the beginning of this story was laid by the Ukrainian side. A year ago, the mayor of the Polish city of Przemysl, Robert Choma, was not allowed to enter Ukraine. Then the same story happened with a Polish professor from Lublin. Then there was a reaction from the Polish side, and [Secretary of the State Interagency Commission for the Commemoration of ATO Participants, Victims of War and Political Repressions] Sviatoslav Sheremeta was refused entry to Poland," Pieklo said.

In his opinion, it would be better for the two states to create a transparent system through which they would directly communicate and discuss the desirability of a certain citizen staying in a country.

"Such cases, as with the Przemysl mayor, the Polish professor, Sheremeta, benefit only those marginal elements who want to spoil relations between Poland and Ukraine," the ambassador said.

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The opening of criminal proceedings against former head of Odesa Regional State Administration Mikheil Saakashvili is an internal affair of Ukraine.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said this before a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on Monday, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

He said that the current situation in Ukraine is "very painful," and the fight against corruption is a difficult challenge for the state.

"As for Saakashvili, this is an internal affair of Ukraine," Linkevicius said.

He expressed hope that this case would be resolved in the legal plane.

As reported, law enforcement officers detained Saakashvili in Kyiv on December 8. He was charged with assisting members of criminal organizations and concealing their criminal activity (Part 2, Article 256 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

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First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv met with the Ukrainian community of the city of Buenos Aires.

According to the website of the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine, Kubiv thanked the Ukrainian people in Argentina for their help and solidarity with Ukraine in extremely hard times for our state.

He also expresses hope that the Ukrainian community in Argentina will continue to be a united front in support of the foreign policy course of the state and the implementation of domestic political reforms in Ukraine aimed at overcoming the consequences of the Russian aggression against Ukraine and ensuring the sustainable development of the country.

The Ukrainian government delegation headed by First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv is paying a visit to Argentina to participate in the 11th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which will last till December 13.

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More than a million college-educated immigrants in the U.S. are in low skilled jobs, according to estimates. But they have trouble finding work in their professions, including in the U.S. tech industry, which desperately needs skilled workers. A special technology industry job fair this week in San Francisco brought together refugees and new immigrants with potential employers. VOA's Michelle Quinn reports.
Al-Qaida is seeking to to exploit Muslim anger over President Donald Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to present itself as the true defender of Islam and the Palestinians.

The jihadist group posted Saturday a 17-minute audio message from Osama bin Laden sons, Hamza, in which he lambasts Saudi Arabias royal family, accusing the House of Saud of betraying the cause of Palestine.

Analysts suspect the audio message was recorded by Hamza, whos been dubbed by the media the Crown Prince of Terror, before Trumps midweek announcement, in which the U.S. leader said his administration would start the process of moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

His message  the third in a series of three inciting violence against the Saudi establishment  makes no mention of Trumps decision, but the timing of its release appears to be a bid to capitalize on it, according to the Middle East Media Research Institute, a U.S. research group that monitors jihadist online activity.

Hamza bin Laden, who analysts say is likely being groomed eventually to lead al-Qaida, claims in the audio message that the Saudi royal family has betrayed the Palestinians since the Ottoman era.

In 2014, Hamza was reportedly directing al-Qaida's Syria-based Khorasan Group. He lived in Iran for many years along with other family members after fleeing Afghanistan in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks on New York and Washington.

The timing of the release of his message may have been prompted by criticism of al-Qaida by its rival the Islamic State.

While condemning Trumps decision to reverse long-standing U.S. policy on Jerusalem, IS also took aim at its jihadist competitor and other militants as well as Arab leaders, sneering at them for having done little to back the Palestinians and for using Palestine to suit their own purposes.

In an editorial in the Islamic States weekly online newspaper, the group complained of the hypocrisy of rivals, charging, Sixty years [have passed] and Al-Quds has been in the Jews' hands, and then people are crying the moment the Crusaders declared it today a capital for them [i.e. for the Jews].

IS claimed to be the true guardian of Jerusalem and the citys Al Aqsa Mosque.

Palestine and Israels occupation of the West Bank and Gaza have been key themes of jihadist narratives going back to Hamzas father, Osama bin Laden. Al-Qaidas central leadership invoked the groups founder in its initial statement condemning Trump, quoting him as saying once, I swear by Allah, America and those who live in America shall never even dream of peace until we experience it as a reality in Palestine.



In response to Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, al-Qaida leaders declared: The surest and shortest way to confront the aggression and arrogance of America, the Pharaoh of this age, is through Jihad.

Previous U.S. administrations have declined to honor a 1995 vote in Congress to move the embassy to Jerusalem for fear both of undermining Mideast peace negotiations and of playing into the hands of militants.

Last week, when urging the Trump administration against reversing U.S. policy, Jordans King Abdullah warned that moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would provoke extremists and cause anguish across the already volatile Middle East.

During a meeting with U.S. congressmen, the Jordanian monarch warned the decision would be exploited by terrorists and used to stoke anger, frustration and despair to spread their ideologies. Jordanian intelligence officials say they warned their American counterparts that by recognizing Jerusalem, hostility against the U.S. would increase, making it harder for Jordan and other moderate Arab governments to cooperate openly with America.

In the wake of Trumps decision, Palestinian militants have threatened to target U.S. interests and installations throughout our occupied land.Al-Qaida affiliates have been quick to fan the flames of Muslim anger.

The spokesman of Somalia-based Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen urged Muslims to take up weapons and conquer Jerusalem by force. Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula said Jerusalem was not Trumps property to sell to "the Jews, and it vowed to provide Palestinians with any support they require.

Bin Ladens outfit has long sought to tie the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to its mission, even though the group has had little to do with it, argues Thomas Joscelyn, an analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington-based think tank. Writing in the "Long War Journal," he cautioned, That could change in the future.
Candidates in a special election to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate have a final chance Monday to convince voters that they are the best choice to represent the state of Alabama.

"We know who we are, Alabama," Democratic candidate Doug Jones told supporters at a get out the vote rally late Sunday. "This is an election to tell the world who we are, and what we stand for."

Republican candidate Roy Moore is getting help from President Donald Trump, who recorded a message being sent to Alabama residents through automated telephone calls.

Trump says if Jones wins, he will act as a "puppet" of Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, while Moore would allow the president to pass his agenda.

"His vote is our Republican Senate, and it's needed," Trump says.

Republicans hold a narrow majority in the 100-seat Senate. Tuesday's election will decide who fills the remaining three years left on the term of Jeff Sessions, who resigned in order to take his post as attorney general. If Jones wins, the Republican advantage would shrink to a 51-49 margin.

Alabama's senior senator, Republican Richard Shelby, said Sunday the state "deserves better" than electing Moore, who is accused of sexual improprieties with teenage girls four decades ago when he was in his 30s.

Shelby told CNN he has already cast an absentee ballot, writing in the name of "a distinguished Republican" he declined to name.

"I'd rather see the Republican win, but I would hope that Republican would be a write-in," Shelby said.

"I couldn't vote for Roy Moore. I didn't vote for Roy Moore. Id rather see another Republican in there, and Im going to stay with that story," Shelby said. "I'm not going to vote for the Democrat, I didn't vote for the Democrat or advocate for the Democrat. But I couldn't vote for Roy Moore."

Moore, accused of sexual misconduct by two women, one of whom was 14 during the time he was a local prosecutor, is locked in a tight contest with Jones, a former federal prosecutor.

Other women say that Moore pursued them for dates when they were teenagers, but Shelby said the "tipping point" for him were allegations made by the then-14-year-old, now in her 50s. "That was enough for me," he said.

Trump in recent days has mounted a full-bore campaign for Moore, ignoring the allegations of sexual improprieties against him and the fact that he was twice deposed as an Alabama state Supreme Court judge for refusing to adhere to federal court rulings.

To no avail, numerous key Republican leaders in Washington called for Moore to end his candidacy and said they will try to expel him from the Senate if he wins Tuesday's vote.

But Dean Young, Moore's chief strategist, predicted Sunday, "Judge Moore's going to go to Washington. Judge Moore's going to win, and I highly doubt there's going to be a Senate investigation."
Fire officials in the western U.S. state of California are focusing efforts on battling a wildfire northwest of Los Angeles that is already one of the largest and most destructive in the state's history.

The Thomas Fire has burned 930 square kilometers and destroyed 800 buildings in Santa Barbara County since it started a week ago. Authorities say the blaze is only 10 percent contained, and while firefighters have had some success attacking it from the air, it remains a dangerous fire that can be spread quickly by strong winds.



Cal Fire official Tim Chavez said at a briefing late Monday the area 160 kilometers northwest of Los Angeles is a "very difficult place to fight fire." He said the last time the same area burned in a wildfire was 1964, so the fuel there is more than 50 years old.

More than 5,700 personnel are involved in fighting the Thomas Fire, one of several burning in Southern California.

But crews have made significant progress in bringing the other fires, which are much smaller, under control.

The fires have forced more than 200,000 people to evacuate their homes. The number grew Sunday with more evacuations in Santa Barbara as the biggest fire in the region spread west. Authorities have been handing out face masks to help protect people from smoke inhalation, and a number of schools have been closed.

President Donald Trump responded to the fires Friday by issuing a federal declaration of a state of emergency for California, paving the way for federal agencies to help coordinate relief efforts.

Fires are not uncommon in Southern California this time of year, before the winter rains set in, when the vegetation is tinder dry and winds blast the region. This year, however, has been particularly bad for California fires because of dry, hot and windy conditions that would be extreme for any season, including the winter season that is just two weeks away.

Just weeks ago, wildfires that broke out in Northern California killed 44 people and destroyed 8,900 homes and other buildings.

Trump declared the fires an emergency, and ordered federal assistance.

"The White House extends its thoughts and prayers with everyone affected by the wildfires, and appreciation to the first responders who put their lives on the line every day, the White House said in a statement.
Protesters clashed with police trying to reclaim disputed religious artifacts from a museum in Catalonia on Monday, in the latest display of tension between Catalan separatists and Spain's central government ahead of a Dec. 21 election.

A monastery in neighboring Aragon region says over 44 of its artifacts were sold illegally to Catalonia in the 1980s and the issue has become a symbol of broader disagreement between opponents and supporters of Catalan independence.

Culture Minister Inigo Mendez de Vigo angered Catalan nationalists in November by using special temporary powers to accept a petition by a judge from Aragon calling for the artifacts to be returned to their previous home, the Monastery of Siena.

The previous month, Madrid took control of Catalonia to quell the crisis over secession and called a snap regional election.

Hundreds of demonstrators on Monday massed at the museum of Lleida in western Catalonia where the artifacts were kept and pro-independence groups called supporters to stop the police from removing them.

There were minor scuffles, though no injuries were reported and the artifacts were eventually taken away at around noon.

Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, currently in self-imposed exile in Brussels, criticized the move on Twitter and blamed the three principal unionist parties running in upcoming elections, the ruling People's party (PP), the socialist party and Ciudadanos.

"Carried out at night and using a militarized police force, as always, and taking advantage of a coup detat to plunder Catalonia with complete impunity: This is the model that Ciudadanos, PSC and PP defend," Puigdemont said.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said his government could not oppose court rulings because it would mean stepping outside the rule of law.
Yixuan Hao swirls the sparkling red in her glass and dips nearer to sniff. Throughout this frigid afternoon, she has been smelling and tasting wines from sunnier climates: Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, California. Perhaps soon, sooner than many people think, students like herself learning the wine trade here in Burgundy, will be sipping vintages from another New World upstart: China.

Its like a learning curve, says Hao, 23, who comes from Xinjiang province, Chinas biggest producer of wine grapes. You need to learn from others who know better. But were trying to develop our own style, rather than copy the Bordeaux and the Burgundies.

Welcome to the School of Wine and Spirits Business in Dijon, part of the Burgundy School of Business, where nearly one-third of the student body is from China. The nation that now dominates manufacturing of products ranging from wind turbines to smart phones is now turning its sights on oenology, and grooming a new generation to master it.

That includes here in Frances storied Burgundy winemaking region, where a patchwork of tiny vineyards, ancient villages and rolling hills have for centuries cultivated a particularly fierce love of terroir. The elusive term, capturing a particular land, climate and soil that helps define the identity of every wine, earned Burgundy a 2015 listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

They want to go back home with the best practices so they can produce the best wines they can, says Director Jerome Gallo of students like Hao. Probably not in one century, but in a decade or two, Chinese, some of them alumna, will be able to produce quality wines on a large scale.

The schools one-year masters program teaches the fundamentals of the wine trade, from finance and management, to marketing, sales and negotiation. Many students are encouraged to take internships in France or overseas, including in their native countries. And despite tuition that can reach more than $15,000, there is no lack of Chinese applicants.

Most of them go back to China after the program, Gallo says. Because its their home country and because there are a lot of things to develop there.

Learning the trade



During an afternoon class on New World wines, students assessed the flavors and intensity of a parade of vintages, swirling and rising glasses, and puckering their cheeks as they tasted.

You can smell blackberry, apple, orange, says 21-year-old Lei Shi from northern China. Its magic.

Shi hopes to land a job as an international wine buyer for a Chinese company after he graduates. But he is keenly aware that the other part of the equation, developing wine knowledge among consumers back home, remains a challenge.

The wine culture in China is not very good, he says. Most people dont know how to taste and enjoy wine. So we still have a long way to go.

Yet the raw ingredients are there. China has the worlds second largest acreage in planted vineyards, behind Spain but ahead of France. While most of the cultivation is for table grapes, the domestic wine industry is growing rapidly.

Indeed, by 2020, China is expected to become the worlds second-biggest wine market, after the United States, according to International Wine and Spirit Research.

While the vast majority of wine consumed is domestically produced, faux Italian- and French-style chateaux are sprouting across the country, and a vast wine theme park opened this year in southeastern China, China is turning into a major wine importer.

The new generation is more open to French culture and French wines than the old generation, said student Hao. Middle and upper classes want to consume wines from different regions, like Italy. For them, its a symbol of wealth and luxury.

At La Route des Vins wine store, tucked in the ancient, cobblestoned streets of central Dijon, Adrien Tirelli describes Chinese visitors, like the Americans before them, arriving with guide books on what to buy.

They tell me I want this, this and this one, only the grand cru, only the best, only the most expensive, he recounts. My job is to share my passion, and maybe suggest a lesser wine so they can develop their palates first.

Buying French chateaux



Chinese are also snapping up French chateaux, mostly less expensive and prestigious ones, as promising investments. The favored target is the southwestern French region of Bordeaux, where more than 100 have been purchased in recent years, fueling fears among some of a Chinese invasion, even though the sales account for a tiny percentage of Bordeaux's vineyards.

Burgundy, in east-central France, is also associated with luxury wines, but the regions myriad vineyards and labels are a more difficult sell.

So far, only two Burgundy properties are in Chinese hands, according to Liu Yan, a local wine expert and Chinese tour guide based in the nearby wine city of Beaune.

One is Gevrey-Chambertin, a village in Burgundys celebrated Cote de Nuits wine region. When Hong Kong businessman Louis Ng bought a dilapidated chateau with two hectares of vines for a reported eight million euros (about $10 million) in 2012, he sparked local uproar. A group of locals banded together with an unsuccessful counteroffer, fearing a dilution of their patrimony.

But others applauded the sale, including Gevrey-Chambertins mayor, who noted no public funds were available to restore the ruin. The local tourist office took advantage of the media attention around the controversy to begin selling T-shirts proclaiming In Pinot Noir We Trust, Le Monde newspaper reported.

But tour guide Yan understands the local fears. She arrived in Burgundy more than a decade ago, studying wine in nearby Beaune. Unlike other Chinese students, she stayed.

I love Burgundy, the simplicity of the people who are passionate about their work, she says. And especially this love of the land, people dont want to lose it.

Yan is confident her native China will someday be another major wine heavyweight. But it cannot compete with Burgundy.

Every wine represents a terroir, she says. The land isnt the same. The environment, the earth, all that doesnt produce the same kind of wine.
China has stressed the need for Pakistan to guard against external interferences and prevent domestic disturbances for promoting the construction of massive infrastructure and energy projects under a multi-billion dollar bilateral economic corridor.



Visiting Chinese Assistant Minister of International Department Wang Yajun made the remarks Monday while briefing a large audience in Islamabad.



Under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), more than $62 billion in Chinese investment during the next 15 years will lead to building of a network of roads, rails, communications, special economic zones, and power plants in Pakistan.



The corridor aims to provide landlocked western China access to international markets through the southwestern Pakistani Arabian Sea port of Gwadar, while addressing Islamabads energy needs and economic development. Beijing considers CPEC as the flagship project of its global Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).



I want to express our strong conviction and determination to press ahead the CPEC to deliver more benefits to the people of Pakistan, vowed Yaun. He noted that completion of several power plants under the project has already effectively addressed Pakistans energy crisis.



Questions of transparency



Critics in Pakistan, however, complain about an unfair implementation of CPEC projects and a lack of transparency, saying the most populous province of Punjab is taking away a majority of power plants being installed along the corridor.



There are also concerns Chinese nationals and products will flood Pakistani markets, and undermine local industry and opportunities for laborers.



We want to build a CPEC that is a clean corridor, a corridor of integrity, emphasized Yaun, while responding to the criticism.



We should also guard against the interference from external forces and also prevent the domestic disturbances ... to promote the CPEC construction, so that we can make CPEC a pathway of common development, a pathway of shared fruits and the shared future, noted the Chinese minister.



He touted Chinas national anti-corruption campaign for making political life in the country more clean and transparent. Yaun noted that during the past five years, more than 75,000 Chinese officials have been punished for corruption, including 440 high-ranking officers at or above the vice minister levels.



Security threats



Pakistani officials allege recent rise in deadly militant attacks, particularly in sparsely populated largest province of Baluchistan, where Gwadar is situated, is being sponsored by rival India to subvert CPEC.



India denies the allegations, though it has openly raised objections to the corridor, saying it passes through the disputed Kashmir territory. Both Pakistan and China dismiss those objections.



Last week, China warned its citizens and organizations in Pakistan to keep a low profile, saying it has received intelligence reports of plans for imminent terror attacks targeting them.



Pakistan has also lately been under renewed pressure from the United States for allegedly harboring terrorist groups involved in attacks against neighboring countries.



Chinese Minister Yaun tried to ally fears security concerns might force Beijing to pull out from CPEC commitments. He insisted the collaboration has instead further cemented traditionally "all weather" strong and deep bilateral ties.



In China, we have a saying that we would rather give up the gold than giving up the friendship between China and Pakistan.



Pakistani Senator Mushahid Hussain, who heads a parliamentary committee on CPEC, told the seminar that all the infrastructure projects are being closely monitored and so far no evidence of corruption has been brought up.



There are 9,581 Chinese engineers, technicians and experts working on CPEC projects, and another 10,000 working on non-CPEC projects. There is no Chinese labor involved in these projects, Hussain said, noting labor prices in China are more than double those in Pakistan.



Since launching CPEC in 2013, China has invested $19 billion and 19 early harvest infrastructure projects plus the energy projects have either been completed or are in the process of completion.



They include expansion of Gwadar port that officials anticipate will become South Asias largest transit and transshipment facility within next five years, with an annual capacity of handling 13 million tons of cargo. It will be among the worlds top deep-water sea ports by by 2030 and will be capable of yearly handling up to 400-million tons of cargo.
Corsican nationalists said on Monday it was time for talks with Paris on greater autonomy for the French Mediterranean island, after they won nearly two-thirds of seats in local elections.

Support for their cause in Sunday's vote was boosted by dissatisfaction with France's mainstream parties, a trend that has fueled secessionist ambitions in other parts of Europe.

Nationalist leader Gilles Simeoni hailed the start of a new era after the two-party Pe a Corsica (For Corsica) alliance that he heads took over 56 percent of Sunday's vote and 41 of 63 seats.

Unlike in Catalonia, nationalists in Corsica have downplayed any ambitions for secession, saying the island  where Napoleon was born in 1769  lacked the Spanish region's demographic and economic clout.

But Simeoni said he was seeking a greater say for local authorities on fiscal issues, official status for the Corsican language, and limiting the right to buy property in some areas to people who had lived on the island for at least five years.

"This is a time many of us thought we would never witness," he told applauding supporters after the win, referring to the fact that nationalists only started to make headway in Corsican elections two years ago. "Our dream is becoming reality."

Calling for discussions to find a "political solution," Simeoni told Reuters: "It's the start of a new era, the ball is in the government's court."

The nationalist vote also benefited from the island's most active clandestine group, the National Front for the Liberation of Corsica (FLNC), having laid down its weapons in 2014 after a near four-decade-long rebellion.

Turnout for the runoff election, in which the top parties from an initial Dec. 3 ballot participated, was barely above 50 percent.

But in a sign that the government may be heeding the call for dialogue, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe on Sunday called Simeoni to congratulate him on his win and told him he was willing to see him soon in Paris, Philippe's office said.

Corsica has a population of just 320,000 people and a tiny 8.6 billion euro ($10.13 billion) economy.
Egypt has detained eight protesters and accused them of "association with a terrorist organization" after they took part in a small demonstration against President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a rights lawyer said Monday.

Khaled Ali said in a Facebook post that the protesters were arrested on Friday in front of the Egyptian Press Syndicate in downtown Cairo.

Ali said those detained, including a female activist, are accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood group, which was officially branded a terrorist organization after the military overthrew an elected Islamist president in 2013.

The detainees also face charges of inciting protests and violence, and will be held for 15 days pending investigation, the prosecutor's office said in a statement, without elaborating.

Trump's decision upended decades of U.S. foreign policy and went against an international consensus that Jerusalem's status should be decided in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

The move ignited protests in several Arab and Muslim nations, including Egypt, where the country's leading Muslim and Christian clerics have refused to meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence on his upcoming visit to the region.

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, a close ally of Trump, has presided over an unprecedented crackdown on dissent over the past four years. The government outlaws all unauthorized protests, and has jailed tens of thousands of dissidents, mainly Islamists but also a number of prominent secular activists.
Angry supporters of Honduran opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla blockaded some capital city streets with burning tires Monday, protesting what they contend is election fraud.



Nasralla called for a nationwide strike after a partial recount of votes cast two weeks ago in Honduras' presidential election ended Sunday with conservative incumbent Juan Orlando Hernandez holding a narrow lead. The winner has not yet been declared.



"The truth is that we have two people with a lot of support. It's a very competitive, tight election," said David Matamoros, who, as president of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, is overseeing the hand count of votes in almost 5,000 ballot boxes from the November 26 election. They're being checked for irregularities.



Matamoros said the results Sunday were "extremely consistent" with earlier findings, with 43 percent for Hernandez, of the National Party, and 41.4 percent for Nasralla of the opposition Alliance Party.



Nasralla, a TV sportscaster who had an unexpected five-point lead for a time on election night, alleged misconduct in the review.



"They are implying that they are reviewing the votes," Nasralla told VOA. "... What they are reviewing are papers that Juan Orlando Hernandez [had] put into the ballot box, but not on the actual day of the vote."

Recount demanded and recommended

Nasralla said he would not recognize the results, demanding a full recount.



The next step is for the elections tribunal to weigh an estimated 150 electoral challenges, according to the Associated Press. The tribunal has 30 days from the election to announce the result, giving it a December 26 deadline.



Matamoros told VOA that national and international observers' issues with verification "will be carried out so that there is no doubt whatsoever about who won."



Observers from the Organization of American States (OAS) last week issued a series of recommendations, including a recount of disputed ballots.



The United States' charge d'affaires for Honduras, Heidi Fulton, put out a statement repeating "our call for all involved in the electoral process to support a transparent, impartial, timely and peaceful determination of the election result, consistent with Honduran law, in a manner that maximizes citizen participation and represents the will of the Honduran people."

Fraud denial

The National Party's deputy, David Chavez, disputed accusations of fraud.



"We firmly believe that the process has been transparent.These organizations have been guarantors," Chavez said. He added that "the loser does not like to lose. And they do not have that democratic spirit. ...They have to be men when accepting defeat, and unfortunately this is not going to happen."



Thousands of protesters took to the streets Sunday in numerous cities to show support for Nasralla. Among them was Elsa Marina Lopez de Rivas, a 61-year-old homemaker marching in Tegucigalpa, the capital city.



"All of us who walk here are fighting for our votes, because we voted for President Salvador Nasaralla, we did not vote for Mr. Juan Orlando," Lopez said. "We no longer want [Hernandez] because he has done a lot of damage. We don't have security, we don't have employment, so we have to defend our votes here. "



Roughly two-thirds of the country's 9 million people live in poverty, according to the World Bank.

The Central American country is rife with violence and has one of the world's highest murder rates, Human Rights Watch observes.

At least 14 people have died in protests following the election.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday he believes most or all European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem and recognize the city as Israel's capital, following last week's declaration by U.S. President Donald Trump to do the same.

Speaking in Brussels alongside European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, Netanyahu said Trump's recognition of Jerusalem "put facts squarely on the table" and that "peace is based on reality."

"Jerusalem is Israel's capital. No one can deny. It doesn't obviate peace; it makes peace possible because recognizing reality is the substance of peace. It's the foundation of peace," Netanyahu said.

Mogherini, however, rebuffed Netanyahu, saying the EU will not join Trump in recognizing Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

"We believe the only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is based on two states with Jerusalem as the capital of both the state of Israel and the state of Palestine," Mogherini said.

She pledged to increase work with partners in the region, including Egypt and Jordan, as well as the Israelis and Palestinians themselves to relaunch the peace process, "even if it seems like difficult times."

Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a speech while visiting Egypt, also stressed the need for "the immediate resumption of Palestinian-Israeli talks over all disputed issues, including the status of Jerusalem."

Mogherini said the worst that can happen at this time is an escalation of violence and tension, and she condemned "in the strongest way" all attacks against Jews and Israel.

Protests against Trump's decision continued Monday, with tens of thousands of people turning out for a Hezbollah rally in Beirut, Lebanon, and chanting, "Death to America!" and "Death to Israel!" Protesters carried banners saying, "Jerusalem, Eternal Capital of Palestine."

In Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, demonstrators burned U.S. and Israeli flags in front of the American embassy in another day of protests against Trump's decision.

Ahead of the visit to Brussels to meet with EU foreign ministers, Netanyahu had criticized European leaders for what he called their "hypocrisy" in standing against Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and set in motion the process of moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to the city.

"I hear voices from there condemning President Trump's historic statement, but I have not heard condemnations of the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it," the Israeli leader said Saturday.

He added Sunday after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron that Jerusalem has always been Israel's capital, adding, "The sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move toward peace."

Macron condemned attacks on Israel, but said he opposes Trump's decision on Jerusalem. Macron described it as a "breach of international law and a risk for peace...because I believe these statements do not serve security, including the security of Israel and the Israelis."

On Sunday, the Arab League called Trumps decision "a dangerous development that places the United States at a position of bias in favor of the occupation and the violation of international law and resolutions."

Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, defended Trump's decision in an interview on CNN. She said Israel already has numerous government agencies in Jerusalem, adding, "Why shouldn't we have the embassy there?" She said Trump "did the will of the (American) people" with a decision that previous U.S. presidents refused to make.

The heads of the largest Christian church in Cairo and Al-Azhar University have said they will not meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence when he visits Cairo on December 20. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has also announced he will not meet with Pence, saying, "The U.S. has crossed red lines" on Jerusalem.

A spokeswoman for Pence said Sunday it was "unfortunate that the Palestinian Authority is walking away again from an opportunity to discuss the future of the region.''
The new head of Indonesias armed forces, Air Force chief Hadi Tjahjanto, is seen as a close ally of President Joko Jokowi Widodo, who had a tense relationship with the retiring General Gatot Nurmantyo, an outspoken figure who is thought to have political ambitions of his own.

Tjahjanto was sworn in last Friday and has spent several stints in Solo, the Central Java city that is also the hometown of current President Jokowi, who was the citys popular mayor before he ascended to the nations highest office.

Tjahjantos and Jokowis families are said to be close and the appointment will likely be a relief for the latter, who is the first Indonesian president without military ties.

Tjahjanto also served as Jokowis military secretary from 2014 to 2016.

He grew up in an Air Force family in East Java and was reportedly known as otak setan, or demon brain, as a promising high school student in Malang. Tjahjanto is now 54 years old, so he could theoretically serve his full four-year-term unlike Gatot, who resigned shortly before he turned the mandatory retirement age of 58.

For the first time in three years, we can say that Jokowi has finally found his man as the [Indonesian military] commander, said Evan Laksmana, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta. Hopefully this will give Jokowi the impetus to invest a little more in military leadership, not just with Hadi but all around.

A more subdued leader

Were probably going to see less political maneuvering from Tjahjanto, said Laksmana, compared to Gatot. Gatot was known for holding off-the-cuff press conferences and maintaining a generally high public profile through entanglements like being barred from entering the United States just last month.

I dont think he will be assertive as Gatot, who has very clear ambitions for higher office, said Yohanes Sulaiman, a defense lecturer at General Achmad Yani University. Hadi knows he is lucky to become the head of the military despite some discussion about problems with his leadership in the Air Force, said Sulaiman, like the controversial purchase of helicopters by the military last year.

New priorities

Tjahjanto has outlined five priorities for his term, ranging from cyber war to terrorism to the South China Sea.

The emergence of non-state actors with varying motives has increased instability in a number of areas like the Middle East, Iraq, Syria and Asia and North Korea, said Tjahjanto. He stated the need for the military to deal with contemporary threats and transnational crimes, not just conventional warfare.

Every military commander brings his own plans and goals, said Laksmana. Rebuilding the air force command will be more prominent under Tjahjanto there are existing plans, for example, to expand air force bases, especially on the outer islands of the country, which havent been a major priority under the last commander.

With regards to his overall agenda, Laksmana suggested that Tjahjantos outlook skews external, and possibly more maritime, in outlook to that of his predecessor, whose agenda included influencing the domestic discourse.

But I doubt you will see super drastic changes when it comes to actual policies, he said, in part because Tjahjanto is somewhat junior compared to his peers, so there will be a bargaining and accommodation period while he establishes relationships to carry out his agenda.

Gatots Legacy

It is safe to say that Gatot will not simply be retiring into a quiet life next year. Just before his term ended, he shuffled 85 high-ranking officers from across the military into new roles, seemingly to leave his imprint on the internal command.

Several actors who might challenge Jokowi in his 2019 reelection bid come from the armed forces, from Gatot to retired General Prabowo Subianto, who narrowly lost to Jokowi in 2014. That being said, a recent poll indicated Jokowi is far and away the most popular candidate for the next presidential election, and the appointment of Tjahjanto may further help manage his relations with the military.
A would-be terrorist set off a pipe bomb strapped to his chest in a pedestrian tunnel between two of New York City's busiest transportation hubs Monday.

Akayed Ullah, 27, who came to the U.S. from Bangladesh, wounded himself and three bystanders in what Mayor Bill de Blasio calls an attempted terrorist attack.

Thank God the perpetrator dId not achieve his goals, the mayor said.



Police released pictures of the alleged bomber, lying on the ground in a fetal position. Some of his clothes were blown off and his stomach was blackened.

Doctors say the injured bystanders suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.

Federal and New York City investigators questioned Ullah from his hospital bed and searched his Brooklyn apartment.

Ullah allegedly exploded the bomb in a tunnel connecting the Port Authority Bus Terminal with the Times Square subway stop. The tunnel and stops were packed with tourists and commuters hustling to their jobs in Manhattan.

Television pictures show the tunnel filling with smoke while people streamed out of the walkway to safety, not knowing what kind of calamity would greet them outside.

WATCH: First responders at scene



Port Authority was shut down for several hours as well as major intersections right in the heart of New York.

The fear is always present with us, those of us that live in New York, Laura Gonzalez, a New York resident who was in Port Authority Monday told VOA. But Gonzalez said that in New York, people learn to go to work, to go shopping, to live the life we need to live.

Crazy people are everywhere, every time, and New York is a big place, and a public place so it is normal I think, Ruben Schwartz, a tourist from Germany, told VOA.

Ullah came to the United States from Bangladesh about seven years ago and was a legal permanent U.S. resident.

The government of Bangladesh is committed to its declared policy of zero tolerance against terrorism and condemns terrorism and violent extremism in all forms or manifestations anywhere in the world, an embassy statement said Monday.

Ullah came to the U.S. to join family members  something called family chain migration and something President Donald Trump says is "incompatible with national security."

"Congress must end chain migration," a Trump statement said Monday. "The terrible harm that this flawed system inflicts on America's security and economy has long been clear. I'm determined to improve our immigration system to put our country and our people first."

Ullahs alleged motives are unclear. Officials say he may have been inspired by Islamic State. They believe he acted alone.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Mondays blast is a sign that Congress must pass tighter restrictions for people who want to immigrate to the United States.

We must protect our borders, we must ensure that individuals entering our country are not coming to do harm to our people, and we must move to a merit-based system of immigration, she said.

WATCH: De Blasio on NYC explosion

This was the second apparent terror attack in New York in the past two months.

An ISIS sympathizer drove a rented truck along a bicycle path in Manhattan in late October, killing eight.

IN PHOTOS: NYC explosion

Ramon Taylor, Asli Pelit, Jeff Seldin contributed to this report.
Poland's new prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, was officially sworn into office Monday along with the Cabinet members who served under his predecessor.



The country's prime minister of the last two years, Beata Szydlo, was sworn in as deputy prime minister during the ceremony at the Presidential Palace.



There had been speculation in Poland Monday that the Cabinet might undergo immediate changes. That proved not to be the case as the other ministers took their oaths one-by-one and signed declarations pledging to observe the Constitution.



Morawiecki, who previously held the posts of deputy prime minister and minister of finance and development, was picked last week to head the government by Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the powerful leader of the ruling Law and Justice party. Kaczynski attended the swearing-in ceremony.



The new prime minister said his task will also be to preserve Poland's national identity and culture.



"This will be a government of continuation,'' and of "hope and optimism," Morawiecki said, adding that prosperity for families, well-paid jobs and affordable housing would be priorities.



Szydlo was popular among Poles, but the country's image abroad has suffered as a result of the conservative government's refusal to accept migrants, pursuit of logging in a virgin forest and more assertive stance toward Germany.



Perhaps the most critical point of controversy has been the way Law and Justice has consolidated the government's control over the judiciary, something the European Union sees as a violation of the rule of law.



Explaining the switch in leadership, party officials said the government needs to focus on the economy, which has grown in recent years but is seen as in need of a push for innovation  and to improve Poland's standing in the European Union and with other foreign nations.



Morawiecki, a former banker who speaks English and German, is seen as better prepared to represent Poland internationally.



These goals can be met with a "flourishing economy, when all pillars of the economy are developing," he said.



He is set to make his first policy speech Tuesday to Poland's parliament and will face a confidence vote from lawmakers on Wednesday. The ruling party has a majority in parliament, so his approval as prime minister is all but certain.



Morawiecki suggested earlier there would be some changes to the Cabinet in January.
Two-thirds of Mexicans reject offering an amnesty to members of criminal gangs as a way of reducing violence in the country, a poll showed on Monday, days after a top leftist presidential candidate floated the idea of exploring the step.



At the start of December, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told supporters in the violence-wracked state of Guerrero he was prepared to analyze all the options, including an amnesty, to bring peace to Mexico after years of violence between gangs.



"You can't fight fire with fire," he said.



Asked by a reporter whether his amnesty could include drug cartel bosses, Lopez Obrador his campaign would "consider it" in a recording published by newspaper El Universal.



A telephone survey by polling firm Buendia & Laredo for El Universal showed only 23 percent of the respondents agreed somewhat or strongly with the idea of brokering an amnesty with the gangs in exchange for pledges to reduce violence.



Some 66 percent took the opposite view, while eight percent said they had no opinion either way. The rest gave no answer.



Violence between drug cartels and security forces has been blamed for well over 100,000 deaths in the past decade, and Mexico is on track to register its highest murder total this year since it began keeping regular monthly tallies in 1997.



Lopez Obrador, who has led most of the early polls for the July 2018 election, did not provide details about the potential scope of the amnesty, and aides to the 64-year-old consulted by Reuters have so far declined to flesh out how one might work.



A former mayor of Mexico City, Lopez Obrador was runner-up in the last two elections, and his adversaries seized on the amnesty to paint the proposal as a threat to security and an affront to the victims of organized crime.



A gang truce in El Salvador in 2012 initially cut violence, but when it broke down, murders soared to new heights.



The Buendia & Laredo survey, which polled 600 people December 7-8, said that only 16 percent of those polled felt the amnesty would improve the security situation in Mexico, while 62 percent took the opposite view. Some 18 percent believed it would make no difference and the rest gave no answer.



The poll was conducted had a margin of error of 4.0 percentage points, El Universal said.



Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by Cynthia Osterman.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, making his second visit to Egypt in as many years, held talks Monday with his Egyptian counterpart on their countries' rapidly expanding ties.



Egypt's general-turned-president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, has visited Russia three times since the ouster of his Islamist predecessor in 2013. After taking office, el-Sissi has bought billions of dollars' worth of Russian weapons, including fighter jets and assault helicopters.



The two countries are also in the late stages of negotiations over the construction by a Russian company of Egypt's first nuclear energy reactor.



Also, Russia last month approved a draft agreement with Egypt to allow Russian warplanes to use Egyptian military bases, a deal that would mark a significant leap in bilateral ties and evidence of Moscow's expanding military role in a turbulent Middle East. That deal, if it goes through, will likely irk the United States, until now a top Egypt military ally.



Putin flew to Cairo after a brief and previously unannounced visit to a Russian military air base in Syria. The air base has served as the main foothold for the air campaign Russia has waged since September 2015 in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad against armed groups opposed to his rule.



El-Sissi met Putin at Cairo's international airport and the two leaders later went straight to the presidential Ittahidyah palace in Cairo's upscale Heliopolis suburb where talks got underway.



Egypt's currently close ties with Russia harken back to the 1950s and 1960s, when Cairo became Moscow's closest Arab ally during the peak years of the Cold War.



Egypt changed allies in the 1970s under the late President Anwar Sadat, who replaced Moscow with Washington as his country's chief economic and military backer following the signing of a U.S.-sponsored peace treaty with Israel. Egypt has since become a major recipient of U.S. economic and military aid.



In what would have been unthinkable during the Cold War, Egypt has under el-Sissi been able to maintain close ties with both Russia and the United States.



Egypt, however, has not been able thus far to persuade Russia to resume its flights to Egypt, suspended since October 2015 when a suspected bomb brought down a Russian airliner over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board. Egypt has since spent millions of dollars to upgrade security at its airports and undergone numerous checks by Russian experts to ascertain the level of security at the facilities.



The suspension of Russian flights has dealt a devastating blow to Egypt's vital tourism industry. Britain, another major source of visitors, has since the Russian airliner's crash also suspended flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, a Red Sea resort in Sinai from which the Russian airliner took off shortly before it crashed.



"Your Excellency: When will Russian tourism return to Egypt?'' read the front-page banner headline in a Cairo daily loyal to the government, in both Arabic and Russian.



There have been speculations that el-Sissi and Putin might during the visit finalize and announce a deal on the construction of the nuclear reactor on Egypt's Mediterranean coast after months of wrangling over technical and financial details.



Egypt and Russia have already initialed an agreement for a $25 billion Russian loan to finance the construction.



Egypt has quietly supported Russia's military involvement in the Syrian civil war, a policy that had clashed with the position taken by Saudi Arabia, Cairo's chief ally and financial backer. The Saudis, however, have gradually softened their opposition to Russian involvement there and taken a host of steps to thaw decades of frosty relations with Moscow.



Both the Saudis and Egyptians, according to analysts, are now hoping that Russia's presence in Syria would curtail the growing influence there of Shiite, non-Arab Iran, whose expanding leverage in the region has been a source of alarm to both Cairo and Riyadh.



Egypt, meanwhile, has been raising its own profile in Syria, negotiating local cease-fires between government and opposition forces with the blessing of both Damascus and Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated he has ordered his military to withdraw a "significant part" of Russia's forces from Syria, after regaining control of most of the country. Russia would now focus on talks between the Syrian opposition and the government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin made stops Monday in Turkey, Syria and Egypt to cover a broad range of political, economic and military topics during meetings with the leaders of all three countries.

During a Cairo news conference, Putin announced what he called Russia's withdrawal of a "significant" portion of its military forces operating in Syria.

Putin said the Russian military, with the backing of Russian airpower, is close to regaining control of all of Syria and the goals of the Russian military had been met for the most part.

The Russian president noted Moscow would now concentrate on the ongoing Syrian "national dialogue," and requested Egypt's support in helping to bring the various parties together.

Putin's visit to Cairo followed an unexpected stop at Russia's Hemeimeem airbase in Latakia, Syria, where he met with Syrian President Bashar al Assad. Syrian media reported Assad thanked Putin for Russia's "role in fighting terrorism in Syria."

The Russian president also vowed to help Egypt fight terrorism, referring to a draft military agreement that had been signed by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, during a late November visit to Cairo.

He said Egypt and Russia have agreed to increase the scope of their military cooperation and above all to strengthen the capabilities of the Egyptian military in fighting terrorism.

Egypt has been battling Islamic militants along its long and porous border with Libya and in the northern Sinai. Terrorist attacks against civilian and military targets have caused a large number of casualties and major economic damage during the past year.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sissi and Putin both criticized the decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Sissi spoke of "dangerous consequences" of the decision, while Putin called for a "prompt resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians," saying they must be "based on prior international agreements and resolutions."

Both presidents also expressed support for mediation efforts in Libya by U.N. envoy Ghassan Salameh, including plans to hold new elections next year.
The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar's security forces has been "sweeping" and "methodical," according to a report by the Associated Press.

The news agency says a "sickening sameness" has emerged in 29 interviews with women and girls, ranging in age from 13 to 35, who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar.

Each woman said she was raped by a group of men.

Every woman, except one, said her rapists wore military-style uniforms. The one woman who said her assailants wore plain clothes also said that her neighbors recognized the men as being stationed at the local military outpost.

Many of the women said their assailants' uniforms had either star or arrows on them. AP says the patches "represent the different units of Myanmar's army."

The women's assaults took place between October 2016 and mid-September in "a wide swathe of villages in Myanmar's Rakhine state," the news agency says.

AP says doctors and aid workers are "stunned" at the volume of rapes, but "suspect only a fraction of women have come forward."

Doctors Without Borders told AP that they have treated 113 sexual violence survivors since August, with a third of them under 18 and the youngest was nine.

Crystal van Leeuwen, a Doctors Without Borders official, said "The stories that they are telling us, and not only the victims themselves, but that other people are telling us about witnessing acts of sexual violence in Myanmar, make us feel that we're only capturing a very small proportion of the victims."

AP says the women's accounts "bolster the U.N.'s contention that Myanmar's armed forces are systematically employing rape as a 'calculated tool of terror' aimed at exterminating the Rohingya people."

AP says Myanmar's security forces refused "multiple requests" for comment. The agency said the military conducted an internal investigation in November and "concluded that none of the assaults ever took place."

Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar's civil leader and a Nobel Peace laureate, has come under strong criticism from the international community over what some officials say has been her slow response to the crisis. She has said there has been "a huge iceberg of misinformation" about the plight of the Rohingyas.

The Rohingya minority have been denied citizenship and other rights in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which views them as immigrants from Bangladesh despite the fact that many families have lived in Myanmar for generations.

Myanmar's military has been accused of launching a scorched earth campaign against Rohingya villages in response to attacks on Myanmar police outposts in northwestern Rakhine by Rohingya militants in August. The campaign led to a mass exodus of 600,000 Rohingyas into neighboring Bangladesh, who told human rights groups of serious atrocities committed by government security forces, including random shootings, rapes and setting fires to villages.

The U.N. has described the reported actions carried out by Myanmar forces as "a textbook case of ethnic cleansing."
Khaled Turkmani fled Syria and traveled through five countries before he ended up in San Francisco. He immediately began to look for work in the technology industry.

Despite his degree in computer science, Turkmani spent nine months working at survival jobs - selling shoes and assembling furniture. He also worked as a web site developer earning $10 an hour, a job he says typically pays U.S. workers $50 an hour.



It was super painful, he said. But for me, work is work.



Turkmani, who has asylum, is lucky. He found a training program called Upwardly Global, a non-profit that teaches skilled immigrants and refugees how to search for their first professional jobs in the United States.



At the organization, Turkmani learned about networking, America-style, and is now an IT manager.



The job wont come to you and say, Take me, he said. You have to search for it.



For new immigrants to the United States, the first few years are often a struggle, even for those who have university degrees and years of experience in professional careers. According to one report, more than a million college-educated immigrants in the United States work in low-skilled jobs.



These immigrants are often overlooked in the political debate about immigrants in the United States who lack the proper work authorization, as well as tech companies seeking temporary work visas so that skilled workers can be brought to the United States. These immigrants, who have work authorization, often comprise an untapped talent pool within the community, says Upwardly Global.

Language barriers



The need to learn English is part of the problem for many new arrivals, but also, the way people get jobs in the United States is often different than in other countries, a gap that Upwardly Global works to bridge. Founded in 2000, with offices in San Francisco, New York, Chicago and Washington, the organization serves immigrants, with college degrees or higher, who have authorization to work in the United States.

The organization says it has placed 4,700 people into their careers. In the San Francisco Bay Area, participants salaries jump $52,000 on average after completing the training and finding a professional position.



At a recent job fair focused on people with technical skills, immigrants and refugees from countries including Russia, Iran and Eritrea, met with 10 potential employers such as Yelp and TaskRabbit.



Ivan Vislov, a Russian immigrant attending the event with his wife, expected tech jobs would be easy to find when they arrived in California's technology corridor known as Silicon Valley. They were IT professionals coming to a region eager for qualified, talented workers, after all.



The reality is he has had to brush up on his English, and he has a mentor, who can give him quick advice on his resumes and how to network.



In fact, there are many small things newcomers to the United States have to learn about searching for jobs, said Emmanuel Imah, a graduate of Upwardly Global and now the head of the organizations alumni network. He came from Nigeria.



For one thing, curriculum vitae in other countries tend to have a long list of duties, he said. In the United States a resume is typically no more than two pages long and is a document of a persons accomplishments.



Also, a strong handshake and looking a potential employer in the eye, which in some other cultures may be seen as disrespectful, are key in the United States.



Here in the United States, you are expected to look directly into someones eyes, he said. And when you meet someone, you have to give them a firm handshake. All those show confidence.



At the end of the job fair, having handed out his resume and shaken many hands, Vislov said he planned to follow up with employers. And in the weeks ahead, he would attend hackathons and job fairs, doing what it takes to find that first U.S. professional job.
China calmed Asia's biggest maritime sovereignty dispute in 2017 by offering aid, investment and the pledge of negotiations with weaker Southeast Asian countries as Beijing's chief nemesis, the United States, kept quiet.

These shifts in the South China Sea sovereignty dispute involving six governments allow Beijing to minimize public criticism of its claim to about 90 percent of the waters stretching from its southern coast to the island of Borneo. That calm in turn lowers risk of conflict.

The U.S. State Department, the Pentagon, when they look at Asia they are inclined to think that its a peaceful place, because weve found a way to communicate despite disagreements and to accept disagreements as they are, said Alan Chong, associate professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam assert sovereignty over all or parts of the 3.5 million-square-kilometer sea. Claimants prize the tropical body of water around some 500 tiny islands for its fisheries, marine shipping lanes and undersea fossil fuel reserves.

China cites historical fishing records to back its claims. Since 2010 the technologically superior country has angered its neighbors by using landfill to build up islets for military installations. In 2016, a world arbitration court ruled, at the Philippines request, against the legal basis for Chinese maritime claims.

Aid and investment for other maritime claimants

China rejected the arbitration but spent much of 2017 shoring up relations with individual Southeast Asian claimants.

Backed in part by its $11.2 trillion-plus economy and $900 billion One Belt, One Road initiative to connect much of Asia for trade growth, the country offered investment and other aid to rival Southeast Asian maritime claimants.

China agreed to sell naval ships to Malaysia, which already counts China as its top trade and investment source. After befriending the Philippines last year, the Chinese government pledged $24 billion in aid and investment for Manila. This year the pair discussed funding two Philippine railway projects for a combined $8.3 billion.

In Vietnam, more than 3.59 million Chinese tourists visited from January through November for a 45 percent increase over the same period of 2016. China was Vietnams top source of arrivals that are expected to total 13 million for full 2017.

Peeps but no squawks

In July, China apparently pressured Vietnam to quit an oil and gas exploration project in their disputed waters. Also that month, the Philippines went on alert over reports of Chinese activity near its nine Spratly Island holdings.

But overall this year, the Southeast Asian countries played down Chinas control of the sea, including fortification of disputed islets and passage of ships through their maritime exclusive economic zones.

Negotiations with Southeast Asian states

Last month China agreed to start talks in 2018 with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on a code to prevent accidents at sea. Four of those countries believe China is infringing on their maritime claims.

The code will spell out ways to prevent accidents in the sea and avoid the likes of deadly Sino-Vietnamese clashes in 1974 and 1988. China had stalled progress for six years on that code, which was born out of a declaration in 2002.

Code signatories are not expected to touch on issues of maritime sovereignty.

I think at this point in time the whole idea is to ride on the momentum of goodwill, said Collin Koh, maritime security research fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Once the negotiations for the code of conduct begin early next year, I still see China putting up this goodwill posture for ASEAN for now.

Change of U.S. president

China regards the militarily stronger United States as its key concern at sea as Washington backs freedom of navigation rather than Chinas goal of outright control, analysts believe.

Since taking office in January, U.S. President Donald Trump has not clarified whether he will pursue a freedom-of-navigation policy. The U.S. navy still occasionally sends vessels, but experts say those moves fall short of a consistent policy that Chinas Asian maritime rivals want.

What China sees as the biggest threat to its security is the American military reconnaissance and the surveillance in the South China Sea, said Yun Sun, East Asia Program senior associate at the Stimson Center think tank in the United States.

The ability to fend off or push away the American military presence is more important to China than the territorial sovereignty or the territorial integrity, she said.

Former U.S. president Barack Obamas government irked China by shifting military attention to East Asia, including joint naval patrols with the Philippines and lifting a U.S. ban on selling lethal weapons to Vietnam.

Now Beijings official responses to U.S. operations in the sea have settled into a comfortable groove to assure the Chinese public it is fending off U.S. ships, wrote Andrew Chubb, a postdoctoral fellow at Princeton-Harvard China in the World Program.

Slow consecration of control

China used the calm of 2017 to bulk up its claims without massive projects that would fan outrage, scholars say.

One means was technology. In 2017 Chinese researchers christened a bathyscaphe deep ocean probe and a drone equipped for maritime transport and surveillance.

State-run Chinese media confirmed this month China had sent jet fighters to Woody Island in the Paracel archipelago off its South Coast.

China often starts deployments or construction at sea sneakily, then brings in more after paving the ground psychologically, Sun said.

U.S. maneuvers sometimes spark a tightening of Chinas positions in the name of defensive purposes, Koh said.
The southern state of Alabama is the center of the U.S. political universe this week as voters on Tuesday choose a senator to replace Jeff Sessions, who left the Senate to become attorney general. The race pits controversial Republican Roy Moore, who is battling sexual harassment allegations, against Democrat Doug Jones, a former prosecutor. The outcome of the race could have national implications for both political parties and for President Donald Trump.

Moore has denied several allegations of sexual misconduct when he was in his 30s involving women who were teenagers at the time, including one who was 14.

"I do not know them. I had no encounter with them. I never molested anyone," Moore said in a televised interview Sunday with the Voice of Alabama Politics.

Jones says the accusations make Moore unfit to serve in the Senate.

"It is crystal clear that these women are telling the truth and Roy Moore is not!" Jones said.

Trump behind Moore

Trump recorded a get-out-the-vote phone message for Moore and spoke on his behalf at a rally in neighboring Florida on Friday.

"And we want jobs, jobs, jobs. So get out and vote for Roy Moore. Do it. Do it," he said.

Trump held off on endorsing Moore for several weeks in the wake of the sexual misconduct allegations, but now says electing Moore is a priority for him.

"We certainly don't want to have a liberal Democrat who is controlled by Nancy Pelosi and controlled by Chuck Schumer. We don't want to have that for Alabama," Trump said.

In the final days of the campaign, Moore is highlighting his support for the president's agenda.

"We are going to see if the people of Alabama will support the president and support his agenda in Washington by electing somebody that is not part of the establishment there," Moore said.

Democrat Jones told supporters that Moore's character is the issue. "We know who we are, Alabama, we know who we are. This is an election to tell the world who we are and what we stand for."

Republican critics

Several Senate Republicans, including majority leader Mitch McConnell, have called on Moore to quit the race.

"If he were to be elected, he would immediately have an Ethics Committee case, and the committee would take a look at the situation and give us advice," McConnell said.

McConnell now says he will leave it to Alabama voters to render a judgment on Moore.

Alabama's senior Senator Richard Shelby said on Sunday that he did not support Moore and wrote in another name on his ballot instead. Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine told CBS's Face the Nation that the Senate will "have a very tough decision to make" if Moore wins the race Tuesday. Moore could face a move to expel him depending on whether there is an Ethics Committee probe.

Several Senate Democrats said they will push for Moore's ouster if he is elected. Democrats last week prevailed upon Democratic Senator Al Franken of Minnesota to announce that he would be resigning soon in the wake of sexual allegations made against him.

Political fallout

Some Republicans worry that if Moore is victorious, he could become a rallying cry for Democrats looking to spur voter turnout in next year's congressional midterm elections.

"Roy Moore, if he does win, is the gift that keeps on giving in terms of Democratic politics," said South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

Given the recent ouster of Franken and veteran Michigan House Democrat John Conyers, some analysts believe a Moore victory could be damaging for Republicans in next year's elections.

"Their outrage has been squared or cubed by recent events. And if Roy Moore is elected to the Senate, you could expect that level of outrage to go even higher," said Brookings Institution scholar Bill Galston.

The Alabama race could also impact the balance of power in the Senate. Republicans currently hold a narrow 52-to-48 seat edge, but a victory by Jones would cut the margin to 51 to 49, possibly making it even more challenging for Trump to get some of his agenda through Congress.
Four U.S. senators have called for President Donald Trump to resign over allegations of sexual misconduct on Monday.

President Trump should resign, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, said during an interview Monday on CNN. These allegations are credible; they are numerous. Ive heard these womens testimony, and many of them are heartbreaking.

She added that if Trump does not immediately resign, Congress should have appropriate investigations of his behavior and hold him accountable.

The remarks follow similar calls by Sens. Bernie Sanders, and Independent from Vermont, Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon and Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey. All of them urged the president to step down following the announced resignation of Sen. Al Franken from Minnesota over sexual harassment allegations.

Three women, who last year accused Donald Trump of making unwanted sexual advances, renewed their allegations Monday, saying it was time Congress investigate claims against the president in the wake of dozens of other powerful American men being held accountable for their treatment of women.

Rachel Crooks, who accused Trump of forcibly kissing her 12 years ago when she worked as a receptionist at his Trump Tower business headquarters in New York, said lawmakers should "put aside their party affiliations and investigate Mr. Trump's history of sexual misconduct."



She appeared alongside the two other Trump accusers at a New York news conference: Samantha Holvey, who alleged that Trump walked uninvited into a backstage dressing area where she and others were in various states of undress at a 2012 beauty pageant Trump owned, and Jessica Leeds, who accused Trump of groping her when she sat next to him on a commercial airline flight in the late 1970s.



During last year's presidential campaign, more than a dozen women accused Trump of sexual misconduct extending over several decades, but he denied all the accusations, and said that an explicit 2005 taped comment of him boasting of groping women was merely "locker room talk."



On Monday, as the three women appeared on NBC's Today show before their news conference, the White House again rejected the allegations.



"These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last year's campaign, and the American people voiced their judgment by delivering a decisive victory," the White House said. "The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them."



Later, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, "We feel these allegations have been answered" by the results of the 2016 election. "The American people knew this and voted for the president."



The women's renewed claims against Trump come as powerful men from film making, politics, the media and business have been fired or forced to resign in the last two months after women came forward with graphic details of unwanted sexual advances.

Crooks said of the alleged Trump Tower encounter with the future president, he "repeatedly kissed my cheeks and ultimately my lips in an encounter that has since impacted my life well beyond the initial occurrence and feelings of self-doubt and insignificance I had. Unfortunately, given Mr. Trump's notoriety and the fact that he was a partner of my employer's, not to mention the owner of the building, I felt there was nothing I could do. Given this hostile work environment, my only solution at the time was to simply avoid additional encounters with him."



Holvey said, "As a little girl, I would watch the Miss USA pageant every year and dream of being one of those beautiful, successful, incredibly confident women. These dreams never included a man lining us all up to look us over like we were pieces of meat.



"These dreams never included a man coming into the backstage hair and makeup area while I sat naked under a robe, as he walked around looking at us like we were his property before he moved into the dressing room," she said.

"And these dreams certainly never included this same man becoming president of the United States," she added. "I have a new dream now: that this man will be held accountable for his actions and that future generations of women can fulfill their dreams without worry of anyone treating them like they are less than because they're a woman."

While Trump has said the women's allegations are false, one of his key government appointees, Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday, "Women who accuse anyone should be heard. They should be heard and they should be dealt with."



Asked whether Trump's election meant that voters had decided the issue in his case, Haley said, "That's for the people to decide. I know that he was elected, but women should always feel comfortable coming forward, and we should all be willing to listen to them."
U.S. President Donald Trump is sending automated telephone calls to Alabama voters in support of Republican Roy Moore in Tuesday's Senate election, saying, "All of our progress will be stopped cold" if Democrat Doug Jones wins.

"Roy Moore is the guy we need to pass our Make America Great Again agenda," Trump said in the robocalls. "I need Alabama to go vote for Roy Moore."

Trump ignored the key issue in the special election, allegations by two women, now in their 50s, that Moore sexually abused them when they were teenagers and he was a local prosecutor in his early 30s.

Trump said Jones, a former federal prosecutor, would turn out to be "a puppet" of the top two congressional Democrats, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Trump said Jones "will vote with the Washington liberals every single time."

"We need Roy voting for us," Trump said.

Meantime, former President Barack Obama recorded an automated call for Jones, saying, "This one's serious." He urged Democrats to "get out and vote," telling them, "You can't sit it out."

Obama praised Jones as "a fighter for equality, for progress" and a "champion for justice."

Jones told supporters at a get-out-the-vote rally Sunday, "We know who we are, Alabama. This is an election to tell the world who we are, and what we stand for."

The 70-year-old Moore said in a local interview published Sunday, "I never molested anyone. I don't know why they're saying it, but it's not true."

Moore is planning an election-eve rally with former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon, an alt-right political operative supporting Trump who is at odds with Democratic lawmakers in Washington as well as establishment Republicans opposed to Moore's candidacy.

Republicans hold a 52-48 majority in the Senate. Tuesday's election will decide who fills the remaining three years left on the term of Jeff Sessions, who resigned to join Trump's Cabinet as attorney general, the country's top law enforcement position. If Jones wins, the Republican advantage would be cut to a 51-49 margin.

Surveys of voters in the state have at various times shown both Moore and Jones leading in the contest, but a Fox News poll conducted in the last few days said Jones has pulled ahead by a 50-to-40 percent margin.

Alabama's senior senator, Republican Richard Shelby, said Sunday the state "deserves better" than electing Moore.

Shelby told CNN he has already cast an absentee ballot, writing in the name of "a distinguished Republican" he declined to name.

"I'd rather see the Republican win, but I would hope that Republican would be a write-in," Shelby said.

"I couldn't vote for Roy Moore. I didn't vote for Roy Moore. Id rather see another Republican in there, and Im going to stay with that story," Shelby said. "I'm not going to vote for the Democrat. I didn't vote for the Democrat or advocate for the Democrat. But I couldn't vote for Roy Moore."

One of Moore's accusers was 14 at the time she said Moore sexually abused her. Other women say Moore pursued them for dates when they were teenagers, but Shelby said the "tipping point" for him was the allegation made by the then-14-year-old. "That was enough for me," he said.

Trump in recent days has fully embraced Moore, ignoring the allegations of sexual improprieties against Moore and the fact that Moore was twice deposed as an Alabama state supreme court judge for refusing to adhere to federal court rulings.



To no avail, numerous key Republican leaders in Washington have called for Moore to end his candidacy and said they will try to expel him from the Senate if he wins Tuesday's vote.

Dean Young, Moore's chief strategist, predicted Sunday, "Judge Moore's going to go to Washington. Judge Moore's going to win, and I highly doubt there's going to be a Senate investigation."
An explosion in the Somali capital killed a television journalist late on Monday, witnesses and security sources say.

Mohamed Ibrahim Gabow was killed in an explosion from a device fitted to his car, a security official told VOA's Somali service. Gabow was a news anchor for Kalsan TV, a satellite television channel watched in many parts of Somalia.

Osman Abdullahi Gure, a television manager at Kalsan TV, said Gabow was traveling in his car in Mogadishu's Wadajir district when the explosion occurred.

He was badly injured, he died soon after. He was one of our best journalists, Gure said.

His friend at Kalsan TV, Ismail Haji Abdalla, told VOA that he spoke to Gabow last night and was expecting to meet him Monday night at a coffee shop in the Wadajir district for a chat.

He was friendly, a quiet person who did not say much to people, says Abdalla, a producer at Kalsan TV.

Mohamed Ibrahim Gabow is the the fifth journalist killed in Somalia this year. Among those previously killed was freelance cameraman Ali Nur Siad, 31, who died in the massive truck bomb explosion that hit Mogadishu in October while on assignment for VOA.

Siad was working with VOA Somali reporter Abdulkadir Mohamed Abdulle, who was among those wounded in the attack.

Somalia is one of the most dangerous places in the world for reporters. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 28 journalists have been murdered in Somalia since 2005.

Abdulkadir Mohamed Abdulle contributed to this report
The United Nations human rights commissioner has called on the Security Council to assess the impact of economic sanctions on North Korea to minimize their impact on millions of already struggling North Koreans.

The humanitarian assistance provided by U.N. agencies and others are literally a lifeline for some 13 million acutely vulnerable individuals, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein told council members via a video link from Paris on Monday. Sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help.

He cited as one example international banking restrictions, which have slowed the U.N.s ability to deliver food rations, health kits and other humanitarian aid to citizens.

Al-Hussein briefed a special session of the council that was focused on the human rights situation in North Korea. Despite objections from China, Russia and Bolivia, the meeting went ahead due to the support of a majority of council members.

Human rights a consistent subject

This is the fourth consecutive year the council has discussed the human rights situation there, a subject usually taken up in other U.N. forums, such as the Geneva-based Human Rights Council or the General Assembly.

The international security crisis regarding military actions taken by the government of the DPRK is inseparable from concerns about the human rights situation of ordinary people in the country, the human rights high commissioner said Monday. DPRK is the abbreviation for North Koreas formal name.

Al-Hussein said it is difficult to get a complete picture of the situation since his staff lacks access to the country, but escapees have provided accounts of the horrific conditions in the country's prisons and labor camps, and of the risk of repatriation if they are caught in China. He said over the past year, his office has received more than 70 reports of North Koreans who escaped to China and were returned home after the authorities ruled they were economic migrants.

Repatriated escapees are routinely subjected to multiple forms of torture and ill-treatment at detention centers located on the border with China, including beatings, forced labor, deprivation of food and healthcare and sexual violence, the high commissioner said.

He said some escapees carry poison to take in the event they are forcibly returned home.

In July, a family of five reportedly committed collective suicide as they were about to be taken to the DPRK for repatriation, he noted.

Gross violations

The majority of North Korean asylum-seekers are women and they are often exploited as sex workers, forced into marriages with Chinese men or used as cheap, bonded labor. Women who are repatriated to North Korea and are pregnant are often subjected to forced abortions.

In 2014, an independent commission of inquiry commissioned by the U.N. Human Rights Council interviewed scores of defectors and concluded that widespread, systematic and gross violations of human rights were taking place in North Korea and that many amounted to crimes against humanity.

Terrifying Prison

At a separate event co-sponsored by the United States and six other countries following the council meeting, North Korean defector Ji Hyeon-A spoke emotionally about her three attempts to escape her homeland, beginning in 1998 when she was a teenager.

I spent eight months in a re-education center and some time in China, a foreign place to me, before finally reaching South Korea in 2007, she said. Today she is an activist and author. Some 30,000 North Koreans have made it to safety in South Korea since the mid-1990s.

Dire living conditions

Ji described dire living conditions at the re-education center, noting that few residents were left alive.

Everyone was subjected to harsh labor, and meals were so lacking that we ate raw locusts, discarded cabbage leaves and skinned frogs and rats," Ji said. "People died, withered and dehydrated from continuous diarrhea."

Ji escaped a third time from North Korea. When she was repatriated she was three months pregnant and the authorities forced her to undergo an abortion that was carried out without any anesthesia. After this, she made the perilous journey across the river to China one final time, finally succeeding and later making it to South Korea where she was reunited with some of her family members.

North Korea is a terrifying prison, Ji said. The Kims are underway with a vast massacre; it takes a miracle to survive there, she said of the family that runs the regime.
The United Nations children's agency has called for an emergency evacuation of 137 sick children stranded in a rebel-held suburb outside the Syrian capital.

The Eastern Ghouta suburb, home to 400,000 residents, has been cut off from food and medical aid since 2013.

The U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) says five children have reportedly died there from a lack of medical care.



In its statement Sunday, UNICEF said its aid workers described seeing one of the worst health situations since the conflict began in 2011 during a rare international aid convoy to a neighborhood in the Eastern Ghouta district at the end of November.

UNICEF said 137 children, aged between seven months to 17 years, require immediate evacuation for conditions that include kidney failure, severe malnutrition and conflict wounds.



"Children are still living through so much horror,'' said UNICEF Representative in Syria Fran Equiza. "The situation is getting worse day by day. "

UNICEF called on "all parties" in the Syrian conflict to allow "unconditional" humanitarian access to the country's children. Airstrikes have destroyed hospitals and neighborhoods, which has contributed to the spread of malnutrition and disease.

UNICEF said nearly 12 percent of children under 5 years old in Eastern Ghouta suffer from acute malnutrition  the highest rate ever recorded since the start of the Syrian civil war.

"Children are still living through so much horror,'' Equiza said. "Now is the time for all sides to do the right thing and to stop the violence."
The U.S government has provided more than $55,000 to Cambodia for the preserving of personal items belonging to prisoners at a Khmer Rouge prison and torture center in the 1970s.

The project agreement was signed Monday by U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia William Heidt and Cambodian Secretary of State for Ministry of Culture and Fine Art Chuch Phoeurn. The funding aims to preserve and maintain 3,000 to 5,000 items of clothing, shoes, hats and belts belonging to prisoners who were detained at the Khmer Rouge's main Tuol Sleng prison facility.

Under the 1975-79 Khmer Rouge regime, an estimated 17,000 Cambodians were tortured at the center, known as S-21 prison, and then killed. An estimated 1.7 million Cambodians died from execution, starvation and inadequate medical care under the rule of the ultra-communist group.

Heidt said the timing of the project is critical since the items are slowly deteriorating. The prisoners' belongings tell the extremely personal and heartbreaking stories of the victims of the Khmer Rouge and include clothing, hats and other items from both adults and children.

"If you look closely, you even can see that some items still show blood and sweat stains,'' Heidt said. "The conservation work will carefully preserve the textiles without removing this historical evidence. Each piece carries its own history and we recognize how important it is to preserve this story for future generations.''

Chuch Phoeurn welcomed the U.S. funding and said the preservation of the belongings is important because they can help educate young Cambodians. He said some of the items will be displayed at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.
Indian officials say they are questioning several people in connection with the brutal rape and murder of a six-year-old girl in the northern state of Haryana.

Her body was found Sunday.

The French News Agency, AFP, reports amid mounting public pressure a special investigative team has been set up to investigate the child's death and to arrest the people responsible.

The report says the girl's family wants the federal police to investigate their daughter's death because the parents say they do not trust the local police.

Residents of the area have staged a protest march against the local police.

AFP reports the girl's parents have given the police until 11 a.m. Wednesday to make an arrest in the case or the parents threaten to escalate the protest.
Political power grabber, or just another match to a burning fire? Those are just some of the opinions Zimbabweans have about former first lady Grace Mugabe.

Tinashe Mawere is a researcher in the Department of Historical and Heritage Studies and Center for Sexualities, AIDS and Gender at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. He blames Grace Mugabe for widening the factional fights in Zanu PF.

Mawere says Mrs. Mugabe had usurped the powers of the president although she was just a wife, and that was a major contributor to the fall of Robert Mugabe.

Political activist and aspiring Independent Member of Parliament for 2018, Linda Masarira, also blames Mrs. Mugabe for her husbands ouster.

Masarira thinks the president fell because his wife had encroached onto political territory that was not hers.

Masarira suggests that Mrs. Mugabe should be brought before the courts, to answer charges that she displaced other citizens and was involved in corruption.

Killian Sibanda, who is a Zanu PF member of Parliament for Nkulumane, says President Mugabe was a good man who married an ambitious woman.

However, there are others who believe that the former president caused his own downfall. Acting Director for the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, Bekezela Gumbo, says Mrs. Mugabe merely added onto a sinking boat.

Gumbo says Robert Mugabe had already developed strained relationships with the security sector, which he adds, is the backbone of Zanu PF.

This was supported by Harare resident, Sibonokuhle Buhlungu, who thinks the fire had already started burning around the president before Mrs. Mugabe started making political waves.

Buhlungu thinks it is not necessary for Mrs. Mugabe to be punished. She asserts that no form of punishment would compensate those hurt by the former first lady.

Women rights activist, Lucy Makhaza Mazingi, says Mrs. Mugabe was a victim of men around her who used her.

Grace Mugabe was known for her rantings at every ruling party gathering. She has also been accused of pushing former Vice President Joice Mujuru out of Zanu PF. She also belittled government officials, including former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is now the president through the help of the army.
A would-be terrorist set off a pipe bomb strapped to his chest in a pedestrian tunnel between two of New York City's busiest transportation hubs Monday.

Twenty-seven year-old Ayayed Ullah, who came to the U.S. from Bangladesh, wounded himself and three bystanders in what Mayor Bill de Blasio calls an attempted terrorist attack.

Thank God the perpetrator dId not achieve his goals, the mayor said.



Police released pictures of the alleged bomber, lying on the ground in a fetal position. Some of his clothes were blown off and his stomach was blackened.

Doctors say the injured bystanders suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.

Federal and New York City investigators questioned Ullah from his hospital bed and searched his Brooklyn apartment.

Ullah allegedly exploded the bomb in a tunnel connecting the Port Authority Bus Terminal with the Times Square subway stop. The tunnel and stops were packed with tourists and commuters hustling to their jobs in Manhattan.

Television pictures show the tunnel filling with smoke while people streamed out of the walkway to safety, not knowing what kind of calamity would greet them outside.

WATCH: First responders at scene



Port Authority was shut down for several hours as well as major intersections right in the heart of New York.

The fear is always present with us, those of us that live in New York, Laura Gonzalez, a New York resident who was in Port Authority Monday told VOA. But Gonzalez said that in New York, people learn to go to work, to go shopping, to live the life we need to live.

Crazy people are everywhere, every time, and New York is a big place, and a public place so it is normal I think, Ruben Schwartz, a tourist from Germany, told VOA.

Ullah came to the United States from Bangladesh about seven years ago and was a legal permanent U.S. resident.

The government of Bangladesh is committed to its declared policy of zero tolerance against terrorism and condemns terrorism and violent extremism in all forms or manifestations anywhere in the world, an embassy statement said Monday.

Ullah came to the U.S. to join family members  something called family chain migration and something President Donald Trump says is "incompatible with national security."

"Congress must end chain migration," a Trump statement said Monday. "The terrible harm that this flawed system inflicts on America's security and economy has long been clear. I'm determined to improve our immigration system to put our country and our people first."

Ullahs alleged motives are unclear. Officials say he may have been inspired by Islamic State. They believe he acted alone.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Mondays blast is a sign that Congress must pass tighter restrictions for people who want to immigrate to the United States.

We must protect our borders, we must ensure that individuals entering our country are not coming to do harm to our people, and we must move to a merit-based system of immigration, she said.

WATCH: De Blasio on NYC explosion

This was the second apparent terror attack in New York in the past two months.

An ISIS sympathizer drove a rented truck along a bicycle path in Manhattan in late October, killing eight.

IN PHOTOS: NYC explosion

Ramon Taylor, Asli Pelit, Jeff Seldin contributed to this report.
The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says the women who accused President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have the right to be heard.

"Women who accuse anyone should be heard," Nikki Haley said on CBS's Face the Nation Sunday. "They should be heard, and they should be dealt with."

Whether Trumps election settled the matter was for the people to decide, Haley said.

I know that he was elected but women should always feel comfortable coming forward and we should all be willing to listen to them.

Haley's comment is a break from the administrations assertions that the allegations have no merit and should be dismissed. The White House has said the women who have accused Trump were lying and that the voters rejected their accusations when they elected Trump.

Washington has been roiled by sexual misconduct scandals, with accusations leading to the resignations last week of three members of Congress.

More than 10 women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct before he was elected. During his presidential campaign, a 2005 video of Access Hollywood was released, in which he described grabbing women's genitals.

Trump has denied the misconduct allegations, although he apologized for his comments, which he called "locker room" talk.

Haley said she was proud of all the women who have come forward to share their stories of sexual misconduct in numerous industries across the country.

"I think it will start to bring conscience to the situation," the former governor of South Carolina said. "And I think the time has come."
Kudzanayi Zvinavashe

The defense attorney for Zimbabwes former finance minister and a top youth leader alleges they were tortured under military detention, and held illegally.

A court granted both men bail last week.

The military detained Zimbabwes former finance minister, Ignatius Chombo, and a former youth leader of the ruling Zanu PF party, Kudzanai Chipanga during last months military intervention in this southern African country.

Chombo is charged with fraud, corruption and abuse of office during former President Robert Mugabes administration. Chipanga is accused of causing disaffection among the countrys defense forces. Their arrest was carried out during an army blitz that targeted what it calls criminals who allegedly surrounded the countrys now deposed leader.

High Court judge Edith Mushore ordered the duo to be released on bail. Chombo was ordered to post $5,000 in bail money, to report to the police three times a day, and to surrender title deeds of his house as well as travel documents. He also is barred from the central bank and government offices where the offenses were allegedly committed.

Chipanga was ordered to post $500 as bail and to report to the police twice daily.

Their defense attorney, Lovemore Madhuku, says his clients should not have been arraigned in the first place because their detention was unconstitutional.

The High Court criticized the magistrates court and said they were wrong to have denied these persons bail because they were very fit candidates for bail but the High Court did not just end there, it went further to say that those persons that had arrested them before they were taken by the police, that is the military, they had acted in an unlawful manner because they had gone beyond the 48 hour rule.

Madhuku claims the army tortured his clients while they were in detention. Very clearly so; they were actually tortured, torture is any form of pain that you inflict on a person with a view to want them to either do something in an unlawful manner so even blindfolding, keeping a person blindfolded for a minute, two minutes, three minutes when you are doing that against their will thats torture, assaulting them when in custody thats torture and as they were doing that they were trying to extract certain information from them.

Madhuku says his clients will seek compensation from the new government of Mugabes former deputy, President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

What next lawfully is that we first expect that the government will come and tell us that, look, we were sorry we did this and here we are offering compensation. They must apologize to our clients and then offer to pay them compensation for the period of unlawful detention. But if they do not do that we will take them up on that issue at the same time we will take it into account when this matter is going to be taken up 

Chombo and Chipanga are among the highest-profile former officials detained by the military since it acted last month. Both are linked to the Generation 40 faction of the ruling ZANU-PF party, which was close to both President Mugabe and his wife, Grace Mugabe.

Since he resigned on November 21st, Mugabe has not been seen in public. Some of his allies reportedly have sought refuge in neighboring countries.
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Sherwan Haji, far left, is a Syrian refugee seeking asylum in Finland in The Other Side of Hope. (Photo: Janus Films) )

Freelance writer

As The Other Side of Hope opens, two men are leaving home. One is hiding in a coal compartment on a freighter. The other has just placed his house keys and wedding band on a table in front of an unhappy woman. Both, in a sense, have left everything behind.

Although much of Finnish director Aki Kaurismakis film takes place in the same city  Helsinki  it sometimes seems as if each of these characters occupies a wildly different planet from the other. Khaled (Sherwan Haji), the man from the freighter, is a Syrian refugee seeking asylum in Finland; Wikstrom (Sakari Kuosmanen), a Finnish native, has made a midlife career change by buying a spectacularly failing restaurant.

Upon arriving in the new city, Khaled marches directly to the police station. There, he begins the slog toward freedom, involving a sterile refugee center, lots of interviews and reams of paperwork. Khaleds story plays out like a coolly objective look at the current refugee crisis in Western Europe. Who gets to stay and who must go depends, apparently, on a capricious system: You cant send them all home, but they cant all stay here, either.

Wikstroms story, for the most part, seems to take place not just in a different movie, but in an entirely different time period, with sets and costumes  and Kaurismakis directorial choices  all suggesting the 1960s, not today. Wikstroms life and his restaurant represent Old Finland, where the only choice at lunch is meatballs or sardines. For Khaled, on the other hand, Helsinki is a city of imports: One of the first sounds he hears upon arriving is a street musician singing the blues. Khaleds new life includes encounters with Iraqis, Iranians and Somalis. Wikstroms world is Finnish to the core.

After the two characters meet  as surely they must  Kaurismaki presents the ensuing clash-and-blend of cultures as representative of Finlands struggle to adapt to a changing world, a struggle that is taking place around the globe. That doesnt mean that every foray into internationalism is a wise one. At one point, Wikstrom briefly changes his restaurant to a sushi spot, with unhappy results.



Sherwan Haji (Photo: Janus Films) )

For many, Kaurismakis style might be the equivalent of Finnish sushi: an acquired taste. His camera, for the most part, is static, as are his actors, who often deliver their lines in a flat affect akin to characters from Yorgos Lanthimoss The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Even at a little over 1  hours, The Other Side of Hope is not a film for the impatient, featuring long stretches of silence and lingering takes of peoples largely-still faces.

Still, the audiences sense of waiting for something to happen makes sense in context, paralleling Khaleds and Wikstroms hopeful anticipation that something  anything  will fall into place and move things along more quickly.

Its refreshing to see a film about the refugee crisis that doesnt rely on cliche, but the fact remains: The mundane is mundane. After all, how many people go to the movies to re-create the experience of negotiating a bureaucracy?

Unrated. At Landmarks E Street Cinema. Contains mild violence. In Finnish, English and Arabic with subtitles. 98 minutes.
Dear Miss Manners: A work colleague has posed that we give an impromptu holiday gift to a cleaning staff member in our building. The minimum donation is far above what any of us at work feels comfortable giving.

One of us politely let him know that his request borders on extortion, especially given the aggressive nature in which he posed his request (e.g., threats that non-participants will be labeled anti-immigrant and anti-Christmas).

I dont disagree with my colleagues impulse to be generous in the holiday season, but Im deeply disturbed that hes perhaps using this act as a way to demonstrate his leadership skills and power in the office.

Im wondering if theres an alternate way to express our gratitude to the cleaning staff, rather than through large sums of money.

Gratitude to employees is best expressed with money, although the amount must be determined by each contributor.

But Miss Manners assures you that you neednt worry about your colleagues leadership skills  he doesnt have any. Issuing bills and adding threats is no way to lead people. And to remove any sense of power, you need only ignore this and contribute what you see fit.

Dear Miss Manners: I am frequently invited to one-on-one lunches by representatives of various alumni and charitable organizations that I donate money to.

While I do try to accommodate these requests, which are essentially fundraising overtures for the organizations, I find myself at a loss as to who should pay the bill.

Ive always thought that the person extending the invitation should pick up the check, and most of the time they do, but there have been a couple of awkward occasions when my lunch partner left it to me to pay. Whats the correct thing to do here?

You can hardly avoid paying if you are left with a silent luncheon partner. But you can resolve not to be caught again.

Miss Manners imagines that the representative justifies this as not adding to the organizations expenses. But you may equally well justify it by subtracting the amount from your donation.

Dear Miss Manners: Every year, my husband and I host a potluck Christmas party in our home. We spend considerable time sending out written invitational fliers and decorating our house.

We ask that everyone R.S.V.P., and many do. However, there are some who do not acknowledge the invitation and do not attend. Others do not acknowledge it, but then they do attend.

With all the various avenues for communication these days (phone, text, email, Facebook message, etc.), do you find it unacceptable that people ignore the R. S. V. P.? Should I remove them from the party list?

Sure. With those who ignored both the invitation and the party, you'll achieve the same effect as if you had invited them.

As this is an annual party, Miss Manners assures you that the errant guests will complain that they have not received invitations. Then you can say, Oh, would you like to attend? My list says you didnt respond last year, so I didnt think so.

New Miss Manners columns are posted Monday through Saturday on washingtonpost.com/advice. You can send questions to Miss Manners at her website, missmanners.com.
A woman sat in a wheelchair intently reading a story in a Korean-language newspaper about an earthquake that had ravaged a part of her native land.

Other gray-haired residents at the Lorien Columbia skilled nursing center clapped their hands as they sang a traditional Korean song about feeling sentimental for ones home town. Some watched a Korean-language news channel on a flat-screen television.

The elderly men and women live on a wing of the nursing facility that caters to Koreans  a unique but growing concept that helped Lorien Health Services tap into an underserved population.

Lorien opened the specialized unit, which has 53 beds, four years ago to better reflect the local community.

In Howard County, 16.2 percent of the population is Asian, including 4.2 percent who are Korean, according to 2015 Census estimates. That is up 33 percent since 2010, when Asians made up 13.3 percent of the population. Dispersed throughout the county are Korean enclaves, including in Columbia and Ellicott City. The states Department of Transportation this year named a five-mile stretch of U.S. 40 Korean Way because of the heavy concentration of Korean businesses along the corridor.

I think the wing is a good reflection of the community and it serves a need, said Eric Grimmel, the nursing homes administrator.

Those who live on the wing are immersed in Korean culture. A Korean chef cooks staples unique to the country, such as kimchi, a spicy fermented cabbage dish, or bulgogi, a marinated beef or pork dish prepared on a grill. Korean pastors come in to host religious ceremonies. Residents play traditional Korean games such as Yoot, a board game played around the Korean New Year, where wooden sticks are used like dice. Little English is heard on the floor.

Although there are religion-based retirement communities  think Catholic or Lutheran homes  nursing care is often less culturally focused. But more facilities are adapting to the nations growing ethnic diversity, hiring multilingual staff, serving multiethnic foods and in some cases devoting whole floors to one culture.

The focus on culture and ethnicity is an example of how nursing homes are looking at innovative ways to better serve the communities where they are located, those in the nursing home industry said.

It is very important for nursing homes to innovate with regards to diversity and inclusion, not just because it is what is expected by patients and family, but also because it is what is necessary in regards to a demographically changing America, said Joseph DeMattos Jr., president and chief executive of the Health Facilities Association of Maryland, which represents the states nursing homes.

New federal guidelines that take effect next week require nursing homes to pay more attention to the ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds of their clientele. Being culturally inclusive helps improve the quality of life of seniors who may feel vulnerable and socially isolated after moving out of their homes, said Janine Finck-Boyle, director of health regulations and policy for LeadingAge, which represents nonprofit nursing homes and providers that serve seniors.

You are going to take care of their medical care, Finck-Boyle said. You are going to make sure you take care of their disease process and that they have a shower or bath. But you need those other things that contribute to their quality of life.

Many of the nursing homes doing this are located in areas, often big cities, where there are pockets of ethnic communities, said David Gifford, senior vice president of quality and regulatory affairs for the American Health Care Association. Gifford recently visited a nursing home in Brooklyn with a floor that catered to Chinese patients. All the signage was in Mandarin and the staff also spoke the language. A chef cooked traditional food from the region.

In Baltimore, Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital has catered to the Jewish population for 125 years, even though 50 percent of its population is not Jewish. The medical facility has a kosher kitchen and a synagogue where a weekly Sabbath service is held. All the major Jewish holidays are celebrated.

You want to meet the needs of the population you care for, Gifford said. If you are in an area that has a large ethnic group, you better figure out how to care for them.

Yon Song moved her 81-year-husband, Jai Song, onto the Korean wing at Lorien eight months ago after he had back surgery. She said she thought he would be more comfortable around other Koreans and in a place that served Korean food. Jai Song agreed.

I very much like living here, he said.

Sue Song gave Lorien the idea for the Korean wing while she was president of the Korean American Community Association in Howard County. When she came to the United States in the 1980s, she noticed that many Koreans werent assimilating into American culture. Over the years, she helped some of them navigate their new world and, as they aged, she saw a new need for nursing home services.

She first helped establish a phone service with Lorien that connected elderly Korean Americans and their families with culturally sensitive long-term care resources in the area.

Yet Grimmel and the rest of the management at Lorien Health Services, an Ellicott City-based firm that owns the Columbia nursing facility and nine others across the region, werent completely sold at first on the idea of a Korean wing.

Everybody wants to talk about diversity, but they dont want to think outside of the box, Song said.

And indeed, the management at Lorien thought Songs idea was innovative, but risky.

We knew how to take care of the clinical needs, but not the cultural component that helps make a person healthy, said Lorien Health chief executive Lou Grimmel Sr. When we started talking about a unit, it was a little scary.

Instead, Lorien started with five beds in 2013 and encountered some stumbling blocks. For one, Song didnt know the Korean menu needed to meet certain nutritional guidelines to be approved by state health officials. At first, she brought her rice cooker from home, when state rules required a commercial cooker.

The staff also had to learn to contend with cultural differences. A couple of years after the wing was opened, they noticed the rate of falls was high. It turned out that many of the residents with dementia were getting out of bed and sleeping on the floor, because they slept that way in Korea.

Michele Haile, a Lorien social worker, said she has to think about cultural differences when working with Korean residents and families. For instance, it is the spouse or children who under Maryland law are typically the lead surrogate making decisions on behalf of a patient. In Korean culture, it is the oldest male child who makes the decisions and Haile has made sure advance directives reflect that.

I have to make sure I am getting documents that are compliant with Maryland law but respectful of Korean culture, she said.

Other obstacles also can arise when catering to a particular ethnic group. Nursing homes have to make sure they have enough patients to justify the investment, Gifford said. And finding staff that understands the culture and is trusted by the community can be hard.

The Korean unit has a waiting list, and Lou Grimmel said Lorien is looking to expand it. Lorien officials said they also have been approached about creating a wing aimed at people from India, which they are considering.

Lou Grimmel credits staff, including Song, who know the Korean culture well and speak the language.

That is key, he said. You have to have someone who is in touch with the culture and the families.

Kim Hyeas face lights up when she is asked about living on the Korean wing while reading the newspaper one afternoon.

Dressed in a pink sweater with a blanket across her lap, she said she most likes the food. But she also likes living among so many other Koreans and that the staff is attentive to her medical needs. The 82-year-old, retired from government work, said she never wants to leave.

This is heaven, Hyea said through a translator. This is paradise. I want to die here.
This is a moment that has arrived on so many college campuses already. There is Georgetown University, which has worked to confront its ties to slavery. And the University of Virginia, where officials are planning a memorial to commemorate the contributions of enslaved people who helped build the school.

These conversations are now playing out at another institution: George Washington University, where students will have the chance to dig deep into their school's history, with a spring class on slavery, segregation and the university.

This is a movement weve seen on campuses, I would say, over the past decade, said Terry Murphy, deputy provost for academic affairs. We have a lot of faculty on this campus, and students, who are interested in some of the broader issues that surround this question  questions about race and social justice. So I dont think its surprising that either faculty or students or staff are interested in the topic.

When that interest took hold on other campuses, it led, for example, to the Princeton and Slavery Project at that university.

[Her ancestors were Georgetowns slaves. Now, at age 63, shes enrolled there.]

Martha Sandweiss, the professor who heads up the project, came to Princeton in 2009, and was curious about the university where she was going to work. Sandweiss decided to teach an undergraduate history course on Princeton and slavery, to begin to see what could be uncovered. In time, her work evolved into the Slavery Project, which has launched a website to share its findings. The research was rough going at first, said Sandweiss. It wasn't really clear where to look or what to ask.

Do you look for slaveholders? Do you follow the money? Do you try to understand the political culture on campus? Do you follow the students? Sandweiss said. In the end, we were able to do all of those things, and I would say in a nutshell that some of what we found makes us deeply typical.

[For a family whose ancestors were slaves at the Sweet Briar plantation, a loss]

Soon enough, Princetons stories may serve as fodder for the GW students, said Richard Stott, the professor who will teach the course.

Their first assignment will have them look for another university that has undertaken similar work, and report to the class. Stott said he also expects students to tackle a research paper, with an assist from the university archives.

Were just more interested in the issues of race and slavery now  its certainly not a new issue in American history, he said. But its really moved, certainly . . . in our kind of national story, to fairly, a central place. Arguably, the central place.

A proposal  written in 2016 by Jennifer James, director of the Africana Studies Program at GW  asks that this type of work be extended and funded at the university and makes note of some what is already known about the schools history. It was founded as Columbian College in 1821. At least two of the colleges presidents owned slaves, according to the proposal. In 1847, a student was expelled for trying to help an enslaved man.

While revelations such as these might seem unwelcome, universities at their finest are institutions committed [to] pursuing, producing and disseminating knowledge, the proposal states. They lead the conversations vital to maintaining an enlightened citizenry and fostering a healthy democracy.

[As U-Va. marks its bicentennial, a collection tells its complicated history]

Amid these conversations about slavery, segregation and the school's legacy, students are also looking at buildings on campus and scrutinizing the names they carry.

There are many, many sides to history, said Imani Ross, a 21-year-old junior who is involved in that effort. If were ever going to be good citizens and move forward in our country, we have to address every aspect of history. So this isnt about erasing history or changing it. Its about honoring and commemorating parts of history that are often overlooked.

There is value to college students learning about what happened at their schools, said Murphy. Students can identify deeply with the institutions where they live and study, but sometimes students have presumptions about their universities, based on their own experiences.

So if there are aspects of the history that surprised them, I think its important to complicate their understanding, she said. Because studying whats going on at their own college is so personal, I think its a way for them to feel like history is something that matters to them.

Murphy said she hoped that students and faculty who look into the schools relationship with slavery and segregation develop an understanding of some of the injustices in history and society.

But I also hope that they come away wi0th an appreciation for the activities of students and staff at this school, who often confronted those injustices and worked for change, she said. Thats an inspiring message for our students.
In this elementary school, there are things a visitor might notice, little touches that become obvious walking through the door. Childrens artwork is hung carefully, showing that it is valued.

And there is this: It often is not super quiet around here.

We keep our instrumental and vocal music classrooms on the first floor, Principal Akela Stanfield-Dogbe said. So youre always hearing sounds. So it sounds and feels like an art space.

This is Moten Elementary, a public school in Southeast Washington. Moten is part of the national Turnaround Arts school program, which means it emphasizes the arts, integrating them throughout the school.

Every child deserves to have good, solid arts programming, said Stanfield-Dogbe, calling it a driver for creating excellent schools.

On Thursday, Moten did have a visitor: Amanda Lucidon, a former White House photographer. Lucidon, author of "Chasing Light: Michelle Obama Through the Lens of a White House Photographer," was met that day by student ambassadors carrying bright greeting cards and by a line of kindergartners, all holding tiny French flags.

Bonjour! said the kids, who are enrolled in a French immersion class. It was pretty charming, and that was before they started to sing.

[Students in Turnaround Arts program hold a talent show in the White House]

That morning Lucidon stopped by a classroom, where posters with questions hung low around the room. Why? read one poster. What are the reasons? said another. The teacher, Meredith Camille Titus, displayed an image on a projector, a picture of Obama, first lady at the time, discussing girls education in Liberia.

The students examined the photo and jotted down questions on sticky notes, which were then placed on the posters. The activity kept going, with another photo on the projector and more sticky notes filling the posters.

Through the work, students have the chance to ask a lot of different questions about the same image, Stanfield-Dogbe later said in an email. They also get to read the questions their peers come up with, which helps broaden their perspective.

It also provides a safe space for students to question each others thinking without consequence or conflict, she wrote. We hope that it teaches students to use good questioning to peel back layers when they are studying an image, text, or even current event.

In another classroom, Lucidon worked with a small group of budding photographers. The students were given white frames that they used like a viewfinder on an imaginary camera.

During the activity, one student sat sketching out a picture. His classmates held up their frames around him as they figured out the perfect shot. The miniature paparazzi worked diligently as they pretended to capture the action.

Lucidon, who had been in Turnaround schools previously, said that she enjoyed working with the kids and their frames  and that she gets a lot out of these visual training strategies, too.

I like that it can draw out even the shiest person, she said. It teaches other students to know that there are other perspectives, and to have to listen and to look.

Lucidon, in particular, remembered one boy who had positioned his frame up close. He was pretending to take a shot of his fellow student. It was the kind of picture that could be taken with a camera phone, and Lucidon had asked the student what he would do with a camera that was bigger, the kind a professional photographer might use.

And he just moved around the other side of the table, and he went really low, and he did that, she said. You can see that its working in his mind. . . . I thought it was really good that he was so into it and was using creative thinking.

[Watch Yo-Yo Ma play cello for star-struck D.C. elementary school kids]

Turnaround Arts works in more than 70 schools around the country, including a handful in the District. The national program, run by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, brings arts education and supplies into struggling schools, aiming to boost student engagement and achievement.

Educators are looking to be reinvited to be creative in their work, said Winston Cox, who coordinates a team that helps establish Turnaround Arts programs in schools. Weve done a number on educators that sort of made them think that that was not safe or accepted or welcome, and were trying to flip that and remind them that this is a powerful way of engaging students and transforming learning.

Stanfield-Dogbe said Moten teachers use visual images to start lessons, with the displays serving as a hook to get students interested. Kids examine the images, discuss them and then connect what they see to a related text, she said.

Youre going to see kids talking about art and about text in a different way than other schools. They are being critical about it, she said. Theyre asking the obvious but also the unobvious questions.

Corrin Harris, a Moten fourth-grader, said she's a big fan of musicals at the school. She played Sebastian the crab in a production of "The Little Mermaid," and she can recite a line from the show when asked.

It was fun to be in something and you can engage with somebody else, Corrin said. They have something in common.

[Photographer shares behind-the-scenes moments of Michelle Obama]

Incorporating the arts in the school also has kept parents engaged, said Stanfield-Dogbe. Moms and dads come to arts nights and play with instruments. They work on projects with their children, and they sing songs with them.

After spending some time in Moten, Lucidon recalled a teacher from her own life, who told her she was pretty good at photography. Those words meant something. The teacher encouraged Lucidon to pursue photography classes in high school and go to college.

Hearing that in the schools, seeing that arts is encouraged and that students are given these exercises to imagine and to dream and to see that anything is possible, Lucidon said, I think thats so important.
Matt Lauer on the set of NBCs "Today" show in New York before he was fired because of sexual misconduct charges. (Nathan Congleton/AP)

Columnist

Who will it be today?

Every morning we brace ourselves before looking at our news feeds. Which beloved or respected public figure will be accused of harassing or assaulting women?

On Twitter and Facebook, the outraged, depressed and weary are pleading: Please, please dont let it be _____, inserting the name of a favorite movie star, admired politician, holy man or even the boss we adore. Because its starting to feel as if it could be just about anybody, right?

This week's Advent Calendar of Horrors opened to show chef Mario Batali, who is admired for his cooking but adored for his jolly demeanor and ridiculous footwear. He apologized for behavior that included grabbing women's breasts and buttocks.

Although the identities of most of the individuals mentioned in these stories have not been revealed to me, much of the behavior described does, in fact, match up with ways I have acted, Batali wrote in a statement to The Washington Post. He has taken a leave of absence from his restaurants and been removed from his role on ABCs The Chew.

And last week it was the respected U.S. Appeals Court Judge Alex Kozinski, who has now been accused by six former clerks or junior staffers of inappropriate sexual conduct, including showing two of them porn in his chambers.

Before that, it was "Today" show star and everydad Matt Lauer, who was promptly fired, and high-minded television host Charlie Rose, also shamed and exiled.

Three men have resigned from Congress amid allegations of sexual misconduct: Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), who asked two former female staffers to bear his child as a surrogate.

Meanwhile, an accused groper who once bragged on an Access Hollywood tape about grabbing women by their crotches occupies the Oval Office. In between calling all his accusers liars, President Trump has been urging the voters of Alabama to elect to the Senate a man who allegedly preyed on teenage girls when he was a prosecutor in his 30s.

[This woman was a silence breaker on harassment. And she was fired for it, she says.]

Whos next?

Lets call this the #NotYouToo part of the movement.

Theres a whole list of men were hoping and praying arent creeps, right? And a deeply disturbing question about what percentage of men in this country are harassers and predators? Is it 10 percent? 20 percent? Higher?

While the national reckoning on sexual harassment and assault is shocking to some, its hardly a surprise to the huge population of women who have been betrayed by a mentor, a caregiver, a family member or a friend.

The numbers, after all, show that most women  6 out of 10  who report being sexually assaulted knew their attacker, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. And sexual assault is hugely underreported in the United States. According to the 2015 Crime Victimization Survey conducted by the Justice Department, the number of violent sexual assaults that werent reported that year were more than double the ones that were reported.

When we talk about sexual harassment in the workplace, we confront the same phenomenon of underreporting. As the #MeToo outpouring demonstrates, its way bigger than anyone thinks.

"Common workplace-based responses by those who experience sex-based harassment are to avoid the harasser, deny or downplay the gravity of the situation, or attempt to ignore, forget, or endure the behavior," an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission task force on workplace harassment reported last year.

The folks who handled nearly 7,000 sexual harassment complaints last year estimate that 3 out of 4 harassment victims never report it.

Does this all mean everyones a harasser? At times, it sure feels like it.

Some men are responding to the onslaught of allegations by avoiding interacting with women in the workplace. Vice President Pence, for instance, doesnt dine alone with a woman who isnt his wife or attend any event where alcohol is served without her. Hes been ridiculed for it  the Onion reported that Pence asked for the removal of Mrs. Butterworth from his breakfast table  and justifiably so.

This rule immediately limits womens access to power-brokering, networking or any other interactions men are allowed to have with one another, and it turns women into little more than tempting sex objects.

But lets be real about this. Take a good look around you  your workplace, your house of worship, your neighborhood, your home. For every crotch-grabber, flasher and creep to make headlines, there are good men who dont harass. And who dont need Pences rule to remain respectful of the women around them.

Theyve been following  perhaps unbeknown to them  the Dwayne The Rock Johnson rule.

Its not complex, tricky or confusing, this issue of sexual harassment.

Simply treat every woman you come across the way you would treat Johnson.

Would you put your hand on The Rocks knee, massage his shoulders while talking about a work issue, ask him up to your hotel room, fondle his behind, lock the door from your desk or drop your pants and show him your junk? No?

Congratulations, its #NotYouToo.

Twitter: @petulad
MARYLAND

Officials investigating

crash that killed two

Officials are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding a car crash late Friday on Interstate 270 that took the lives of two law enforcement officials.

Sander B. Cohen, 33, a deputy chief state fire marshal and a lieutenant with the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department, and Carlos Wolff, 36, a supervisory special agent in the D.C. office of the FBI, were killed.

Both were struck by a Honda Accord as they stood on the shoulder of southbound I-270 just north of Gude Drive. The impact threw them over the median of the roadway to the northbound side, where Cohen was struck by another car.

On Sunday, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) ordered that the state flag be flown at half-staff in honor of Cohen.

No charges have been filed in the incident, and investigators do not think that the weather or alcohol were factors. When the crash investigation ends, it will be up to the Montgomery County states attorneys office to determine whether charges will be filed.

The driver of the southbound Honda that struck the two men remained at the scene until he was taken to a hospital with injuries that were not thought to be life-threatening. The driver in the northbound lane who struck Cohen also remained at the scene.

 Lori Aratani

A defective chimney probably worsened fire

A fire in Fort Washington early Sunday that was probably worsened by a defective chimney displaced one person, Prince Georges County fire officials said.

No one was injured in the fire in the 12200 block of Braemer Circle, which was reported about 2:45 a.m.

Officials said a missing brick in the chimney  a defect that could have been detected by a qualified chimney sweep  probably allowed the fire to extend into the walls and up into the attic.

In a tweet, Prince Georges County Fire Department spokesman Mark Brady reminded residents that they should have their chimneys and vents inspected by a qualified professional at least once a year.

Damage was estimated at $200,000.

 Lori Aratani

Some prosecutors get

tougher with dealers

As the number of deaths from opioid overdoses climbs, some prosecutors in Maryland are bringing charges of manslaughter and even murder against drug dealers who are supplying users with fatal doses.

The Baltimore Sun reported that prosecutors in seven Maryland counties have brought serious charges in overdose cases. The newspaper found that at least 21 people have been charged with manslaughter in overdose cases since 2014.

Maryland health officials say more than 2,000 residents died of overdoses last year, a 66 percent jump from the previous year and the largest increase in a single year. Most involved opioids.

Michael Beach, a public defender in Southern Maryland, said he is troubled by the prosecutions. He said they are a reprise of the failed war on drugs of the 1980s and 90s.


Mirza Monterroso, DNA program manager, collects a sample from a Guatemalan woman whose son is missing. (Katherine Frey/The Washington Post)

The relatives carried photographs, identification cards, anything that might help find the missing. Inside a red-brick church in the nations capital, in a small room near a sparkling Christmas tree, they opened their mouths so workers could scrape a sample of their DNA.

Three brothers, in black jackets and matching jeans, sought the fate of a sister who vanished in the Arizona desert two years ago. Maryland housecleaner Olga Gonzalez was searching for her daughter Mirna, who was 31 when she disappeared in 2013.

Their hopes rest with the Colibri Center for Human Rights, a Tucson-based nonprofit organization that is traveling across the country to collect genetic material from family members of the missing.

Thousands of migrants have died in drownings and of heat exposure and other causes over the past two decades after slipping into the United States from Mexico illegally. More than 1,600 bodies were found by the Border Patrol alone in the past five years. Many are unidentified.

Law enforcement officials who normally investigate cases involving missing people  and ensure that relatives DNA samples are sent to an FBI database in case human remains are found  often refuse to take reports on migrants, partly because it is unclear which agencies along the nearly 2,000-mile border have jurisdiction. In other cases, family members of the missing reside outside the United States, or are also undocumented and afraid to come forward.



Working out of a suitcase they call their mobile office, from left, Robin Reineke, Mirza Monterroso, Arturo Magana and Ben Clark wrap up the day after collecting 19 DNA samples in Washington. They take samples from relatives of missing migrants to try to identify human remains found along the U.S.-Mexico border. (Katherine Frey/The Washington Post)

Until a year ago, Colibri's main focus was to take reports of missing people, create their own database, and help families search. But late last year the organization received a three-year, $865,000 grant from the Howard G. Buffett Foundation to start collecting DNA in spaces loaned by churches and other nonprofit groups nationwide.

Its ridiculous that its taken them so long to get sampled for DNA, said Robin Reineke, the executive director of the Colibri Center, sitting in the lobby of the church in the Districts Takoma neighborhood. Its very painful to lose a family member, but at least they would know.

Colibri calls relatives from its database and schedule appointments to take DNA at locations the group does not disclose publicly, to protect peoples privacy. The group has held clinics in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Tucson and Phoenix, and Washington. More are planned for Chicago, Seattle, and the Carolinas.

They have collected more than 370 samples that led to the identification of 32 people this year, with 21 findings still pending final approval.

When they visited the District in early December, they got 19 more DNA swabs. Tests are free and confidential, and the names of those tested are not shared with police.

Buffett, the son of Warren Buffett, one of the worlds wealthiest men, said he is funding the effort because families deserve to know what happened to their missing relatives  regardless of how they crossed the border.

Its past the point whether they entered our country illegally or not, said Buffett, who, in addition to directing the foundation, is also sheriff of Macon County, Ill. If you lost a son or a daughter, or a mother, cousin, and you have no idea if theyre alive or not. . . . People need to know that.



A poster titled The Things They Carried shows items found with those who died trying to cross the border. (Katherine Frey/The Washington Post)

Among those searching for answers at the D.C. church were the three brothers from Central America, who said they last heard from their sister in a phone call that lasted less than 30 seconds. She was lost, and her cellphone battery was running out.

Arturo Magana, a Colibri worker, asked a series of questions in hopes of narrowing their search.

Did she wear sneakers? Converse?

Did she have tattoos? Earrings?

You never ask that, the oldest brother said with a sad smile. You never think theyre going to get lost.

In a gentle voice, Magana told the brothers that they may never recover their sisters complete remains. Many bodies have been buried in paupers graves in Texas; in Arizona, many bodies have been cremated.

Finally, Magana asked them to open their mouths. He scraped the inside of their cheeks with a plastic stick resembling a nail file.

The samples would be sent to a private laboratory in Lorton, Va., to be compared with samples provided by the Pima County medical examiners office in Arizona, the main government agency working with Colibri to identify remains. The lab also has a few cases from Texas  a state that accounts for more than half the deaths discovered in recent years  and they hope to include more in the future. Bruce Anderson, a forensic anthropologist at the Pima County office, said Colibri and other nonprofits are doing something that in a perfect world should be done by the government.

Gonzalez, the housecleaner who came to the D.C. church, said she paid $2,000 about three months after her daughter disappeared to a caller who claimed to have her. After she made the payment, she never heard from the man again. And so she came to the church to have her cheek scraped.

I feel I am going to have an answer, said Gonzalez, who is also from Central America.



Those seeking loved ones can write down their thoughts and feelings in a binder provided by the Colibri Center for Human Rights, which collects DNA samples from the relatives of missing migrants. (Katherine Frey/The Washington Post)

Karen Flores, a young immigrant who lives in New Jersey, told a panel at the United Nations in October that she could not get law enforcement to help her when her mother, Nancy, a Peruvian citizen, disappeared in 2009 in Arizona after crossing the border.

She hired a private investigator, posted fliers, and interviewed witnesses herself.

When Colibri came to New York this year, Flores gave a DNA sample. Last week, the Flores family learned that the DNA matched a cranium found in Arizona. They wept, Reineke said, when she delivered the news.

But they kept saying Thank you,  Reineke said.  Finally, we have answers. 
D.C. police made several arrests over the weekend, including of teenagers suspected of robbing pizza delivery men in various parts of the city.

Several youths robbed a Papa Johns pizza delivery man around 10:15 p.m. Nov. 20 near Edson Place and 47th Street in Northeast, police said. According to a police report, one of them pulled a handgun on the driver and said, Turn the car off and get out  you dont want to die for no pizza.

The delivery man tried to drive off as one of the youths held on to the inside of the car through the passenger-side window while still pointing the gun at the victim, according to the police report. He lost his grip and fell after about a block.

Tyrone Hawkins, 16, of Southeast Washington was arrested and charged as an adult with armed robbery in the case, according to police. It was not clear whether Hawkins was the one who held on to the car door, police said. The pizza delivery man was not injured.

Another delivery man who worked for Pizza Bolis was robbed around 7:10 p.m. Nov. 20 in the Woodmont Crossing apartment complex on Good Hope Court in Southeast Washington, police said.

Two teens  a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old  were arrested and charged in that case. Their names were not released because they are juveniles.

The teenagers are also thought to be connected to another robbery, which occurred around noon on Nov. 24, according to police.

In that incident, a man had arranged to sell a Samsung phone on a website called OfferUp. When the man arrived at the agreed-upon spot  the 2300 block of Wagner Street SE  two people met him. One of them stole the phone while the other pulled a knife, according to a police report.

In another robbery, a man was attacked while walking his dog at about 9:30 p.m. Oct. 24 in the 5000 block of Ames Street NE.

According to a police report, two men approached the dog owner, and one of them said, You look like the dude who kicked my dog. They then started to punch and kick the man.

They stole the keys to his Toyota Camry and drove off, according to police. On Friday, police said they arrested a 16-year-old in that case. His name was not released because he is a juvenile, police said. The case is under investigation.

Police also arrested and charged three people in a burglary in Southeast Washington.

Police said the burglars got into a home around 5:20 p.m. in the 3100 block of Buena Vista Terrace SE near Southern Avenue SE and stole a TV and a cellphone before they fled. Police arrested and charged Tiffany Foye, 40, of Southeast Washington; Shaquille Simmons, 22, of no fixed address; and a 17-year-old girl of Southeast Washington, whose name was not released because she is a juvenile.

In another incident, police arrested and charged a 51-year-old man from Southeast Washington in an assault.

The incident occurred about 8:40 p.m. Saturday in the 5100 block of Ayers Place SE. Police said the victim and the suspect  who was later identified as Lawrence Leon Ellis  got into a fight inside a home.

Police said Ellis grabbed a knife and cut the victim. The victim suffered injuries that were not life threatening and was treated at the scene, police said. Ellis was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon.
A federal judge on Monday denied the Trump administrations request to delay an order requiring the military to begin accepting transgender recruits starting Jan. 1, saying the argument for more time seemed based on vague claims.

The Court is not persuaded that Defendants will be irreparably injured by meeting the New Years Day deadline, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly wrote.

The ruling from Kollar-Kotelly of the District of Columbia follows her earlier opinion blocking the president's ban on military recruitment of transgender men and women that possibly would have forced the dismissal of current service members starting in March.

"With only a brief hiatus, Defendants have had the opportunity to prepare for the accession of transgender individuals into the military for nearly one and a half years," since the policy was initially issued in June 2016, she wrote. "Especially in light of the record evidence showing, with specifics, that considerable work has already been done, the Court is not convinced by the vague claims in [the government's] declaration that a stay is needed."

A second federal judge in Baltimore also issued a preliminary injunction in November that goes further, preventing the administration from denying funding for sex-reassignment surgeries once the order takes effect.



Protesters advocate transgender rights at the White House in July. (Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images)

[Federal judge says Trump administration cant stop funding sex-reassignment surgery for service members]

Justice Department spokeswoman Lauren Ehrsam said in a statement that we disagree with the Courts ruling and are seeking to stay the Defense Departments obligations under that ruling as we evaluate next steps.

In July, President Trump surprised military leaders and members of Congress when he announced the proposal in a series of tweets. Trump's order reversed an Obama-era policy allowing transgender people to serve openly and receive funding for sex-reassignment surgery.

[Trumps wants to ban transgender military troops. His top general feels differently.]

In October, Kollar-Kotelly found challengers likely to prevail in asserting that the presidents order violates equal-protection guarantees in the Constitution. The administration has appealed the ruling and in the meantime had asked the judge to temporarily postpone the recruitment requirement.

On Monday, Kollar-Kotelly noted that the government waited three weeks to appeal her Oct. 30 order barring the military from implementing a transgender ban, did not file its motion to stay the Jan. 1 deadline until Wednesday and has not sought any sort of expedited review of her initial decision.

The Court notes that Defendants portrayal of their situation as an emergency is belied by their litigation tactics, the judge wrote, adding, If complying with the militarys previously established January 1, 2018 deadline to begin accession was as unmanageable as Defendants now suggest, one would have expected Defendants to act with more alacrity.

[Mattis asked these two men to help determine the future of transgender military service]

In a statement, the Pentagon said it will comply with the courts order, while pursuing its appeal, writing that DoD and the Department of Justice are actively pursuing relief from those court orders in order to allow an ongoing policy review scheduled to be completed before the end of March.

After the Jan. 1 start was cleared Monday, former Navy secretary Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. said in a statement that allowing transgender candidates to enlist is not a complicated process and that nearly all the necessary preparation had been completed by the time he left office more than a year ago. It is inconsistent with my understanding of the status of those efforts and the working of military personnel to conclude that the military would not be prepared almost a year later  and six months after the date on which the policy was originally scheduled to take effect, Mabus wrote.

Forcing the military to accept transgender applicants and implement such a significant change in policy may negatively impact military readiness, government lawyers had said in asking for the delay.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs said in court filings that the military had already been preparing to accept transgender recruits. Before the change in administration, the Defense Department was gearing up to accept transgender applicants starting in July 2017 and had started training and other preparations.

The government cannot credibly claim that it will be irreparably harmed by implementing a policy that it was on track to implement almost six months ago, according to the filing from the plaintiffs.

This administration needs to stop creating fake problems and get on with it, GLAD transgender rights project director Jennifer Levi said after Kollar-Kotellys decision Monday.
A dispute last week between two shuttle bus drivers at the former Walter Reed site in Northwest Washington left one man dead. (Peter Hermann/The Washington Post)

A shuttle bus driver who police said fatally shot a colleague Friday at the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center told authorities that the victim had moments earlier punched him so hard that several of his teeth fell out, according to newly filed court documents.

The suspect, Wright Koonce, 59, who has addresses in Silver Spring, Md., and Falls Church, Va., said that after he was struck, he grabbed a .38-caliber revolver and shot the victim as he ran "with his back to him," the arrest affidavit says.

Police said Koonce then stood over Brian Andre Gibson, 45, and fired another shot. He reloaded his revolver but did not fire again because the victim was not moving, the affidavit says.

Koonce told police that he feared for his life and fired at the fleeing Gibson because he did not know what the decedent was going to do, according to the affidavit.

Koonce was charged Saturday with second-degree murder while armed. A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered him detained until a preliminary hearing Jan. 4.

In a statement Friday, police had reversed the order of the suspects name, erroneously identifying him as Koonce Wright.

The shooting occurred about 8 a.m. Friday just inside the gated entrance to the old Army complex on Georgia Avenue between Brightwood and Shepherd Park in Northwest Washington.

[Police investigate fatal shooting at old Walter Reed complex]

Police said in the affidavit that Koonce and Gibson worked for G&M Limo Service, which shuttles workers from a parking lot near the Georgia Avenue entrance to a construction site. Walter Reed is being redeveloped into a residential and retail complex. Representatives for the limo company could not immediately be reached for comment.

Relatives of Koonce and Gibson could not be reached for comment Monday. Koonces attorney did not respond to messages. Gibson lived in an apartment across the street from the Walter Reed complex.

Police said without elaborating that the men had argued about transporting the construction workers.

Koonce told detectives, according to the affidavit, that he retreated to his vehicle in the lot but that Gibson followed, opened the drivers side door and beat him. Koonce said he grabbed his gun, got out of the vehicle and shot Gibson as he fled.

The two were about seven feet apart when the first shot was fired, according to police.

A witness told police that he saw Koonce walk to a guard shack and just stood by and waited for the police to arrive, without uttering any words, the affidavit says.

Police said Koonce was bleeding from the mouth and missing teeth.
Syrian Democratic Forces soldiers rush through debris while a drone is heard above them in June. (Alice Martins/For The Washington Post)

A federal judge said Monday that she will rule shortly in a case in which she suggested the U.S. government is asking courts for a blank check to indefinitely detain American citizens held as enemy combatants in active war zones.

U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the District of Columbia stepped up concerns about an unidentified citizen and suspected member of the Islamic State detained as an enemy combatant for nearly three months without a charge after being captured in Syria and transferred to the U.S. military. The ACLU has petitioned to represent the man to assert his constitutional right to go to court to challenge being held in custody.

The U.S. government is seeking to throw out the ACLUs case, arguing the government can secretly hold the man without court review for a to-be-determined reasonable period because no lawyer can establish legal standing to sue on behalf of the unnamed American.

[Case of suspected American ISIS fighter captured in Syria vexes U.S.]

How on earth is the man to exercise his habeas rights, and contest being held, Chutkan at one point asked attorneys for the government at an hour-long hearing. The judge said their position suggested an end-run around the Constitution by saying in effect You dont get to exercise your habeas rights until we decide what to do with you.

ACLU attorney Jonathan Hafetz called the governments position Kafkaesque and a direct assault on the authority established by the U.S. Supreme Court during George W. Bushs presidency for U.S. citizens suspected of belonging to al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to challenge detentions after being captured on the battlefield.

The governments claim that a federal judge does not even have the authority to determine if a U.S. citizen who has been imprisoned for nearly three months wants to challenge his detention is unprecedented, and completely unsupportable, Hafetz said. It not only strips citizens of a basic constitutional right, but it eliminates the important role of the federal courts as a check on actions by the president.

Justice Department civil division attorney Kathryn L. Wyer said the decision of what to do with the detainee is temporary, still underway, and the government is diligently attempting to reach that determination but did not know how long it would take.

The Pentagon disclosed Nov. 30  at Chutkans order  that the American had asserted his constitutional rights to a lawyer, halting law enforcement questioning. But the Pentagon stated in filings that it was not currently aware whether he wanted to challenge his detention in court.

Justice Department lawyers asked Chutkan to toss the ACLUs habeas corpus petition on legal grounds, saying the group could show no relation to the man that would give it standing to sue on his behalf. As a result, the Justice Department argued, the court had no authority to weigh in on wartime detentions by the U.S. military in an overseas conflict zone.

Chutkan at an earlier hearing last month expressed incredulity at the circularity of that claim, saying it was the government that is withholding the mans identity, preventing legal counsel from establishing contact with him or his family.

[Pentagon, prodded by judge, confirms American ISIS suspect wants lawyer]

Wyer said there was no evidence the man wanted to challenge his detention, calling that speculation.

Chutkan appeared to reject that argument. I dont see it as at all speculative he wants to assert his rights, the judge said Monday. Are you saying an ordinary citizen and nonlawyer knows the difference between his Miranda rights and his habeas rights? He says he wants a lawyer, Isnt that enough?

Wyer replied, He did not say he wanted to go to court . . . All he said was he didnt want to answer questions without a lawyer present.

The government has said the man surrendered in Syria to rebel Syrian Democratic Forces, and was turned over to the U.S. military on Sept. 14 and held since in military custody in Iraq. Wyer said the detainee has been visited by the International Committee of the Red Cross and could ask that group to contact his family to seek legal help. The government has said it is complying with the Geneva Conventions in not releasing his name.

Some national security law experts have said that there is agreement the executive branch does not have unreviewable discretion to indefinitely detain U.S. citizens captured on a battlefield, but that the military has some leeway to make a decision.

The key question is how long is too long, and who decides.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2004 ruled U.S. citizens held as enemy combatants under war legislation are entitled to counsel and the right to challenge the evidence against them before a neutral arbiter.

But then-Justice Sandra Day OConnor wrote in a controlling opinion that right does not attach at the initial capture but instead only when the determination is made to continue to hold [him].

[After Raqqa, the U.S. sees Russia, Assad looming over remaining Syrian battlefield]

U.S. officials told The Post that the man once had ties to the Pacific Northwest but that most of his family and roots are in the Middle East.
On a radio show, E.W. Jackson claimed his chief Republican rival Corey Stewart has had some dealings with the Muslim Brotherhood. In response, Stewart, who is campaigning for Roy Moore, said Jackson must be off his meds. (Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post)

In announcing he will seek the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate from Virginia, outspoken preacher E.W. Jackson said Monday that his chief Republican rival, Corey Stewart, is a tax-and-spend politician who doesnt understand the threat the country faces from Sharia law and radical Islam.

Jackson joins Stewart and a state lawmaker, Del. Nicholas J. Nick Freitas (Culpeper), in the Republican contest for the chance to challenge Sen. Tim Kaine (D), who is seeking reelection to a second term in 2018.

Out of the gate, Jackson attempted to out-insult the provocative Stewart, saying he "has had some dealings" with the Muslim Brotherhood, a transnational Islamic group, and "has never seen a tax increase . . . he didn't like."

Jackson did not elaborate but may have been referring to decisions earlier this year by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, which Stewart chairs, to issue a permit for the construction of a mosque in Nokesville and to raise property taxes.

He made the comments on the syndicated John Fredericks radio show before holding a news conference in Chesapeake.

Reached in Alabama, where he was campaigning for U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore, Stewart offered a terse response to Jacksons claims. E.W. knows Im a Catholic, Stewart said through a spokesman. Its over the top. He must be off his meds.

[Stewart promises vicious campaign against Kaine]

Stewart, who fashions himself after President Trump, recorded a Facebook live segment from Eufaula, Ala., where he admired the towns Confederate statue. He will be competing with Jackson for support from conservative evangelical voters. Last week, Stewart got the endorsement of Jerry Falwell Jr., the influential president of Liberty University.

Asked about that endorsement during the radio interview, Jackson said Falwell told him that he regretted not supporting Stewart in the Republican gubernatorial primary that he lost to Ed Gillespie earlier this year.

Falwell wanted to make it up to Stewart in the Senate race, Jackson said.

[He sold himself as Trumps Mini-Me and lost in Virginias gubernatorial race]

Its not to say that he does not like or would not support E.W. Jackson, its just that Corey got there first, Jackson said, adding he plans to speak at Liberty.

My friend Corey is a perennial candidate, Jackson said. He just runs for everything that moves.

The barbs come after state Republicans spent the weekend at their annual retreat discussing ways to rebound from the disastrous election results last month. Jackson had planned to attend but tweeted that bad weather prevented his travel.

Jackson dismissed Kaine  a popular former governor and mayor who helped deliver Virginia for Democrat Hillary Clinton last year as her running mate  as little Timmy Kaine and not a person of gravity.

Jackson, the GOP's 2013 nominee for lieutenant governor, has a history of making discriminatory comments, such as when he suggested people who want to be referred to with gender-neutral pronouns are possessed by demons and said gay people "are very sick people psychologically and mentally and emotionally."

Democrats said the campaigns of Freitas, Jackson and Stewart show that an extreme ideology has taken over the state GOP.

Jackson is notorious for his offensive, disgusting views, Virginia Democratic Party Chairwoman Susan Swecker said in a statement. Simply put, we cant trust someone with this twisted worldview to fight for all Virginians in the Senate.

[After bruising losses, Virginia Republicans gather to find path out of wilderness ahead of 2018]

In the radio interview, Jackson said the winner of the GOP primary will need to turn out an unprecedented number of evangelical voters and promised to visit churches throughout the state.

Jackson, who is African American, also said he will court the black vote.

Jackson ran unsuccessfully in the GOP primary for Senate in 2012 but the following year, he won the GOP nomination for lieutenant governor in a convention. He lost that race in the general election by 10 points to Democrat Ralph Northam, who was elected governor last month.

On policy differences, Jackson called himself a fiscal hawk, while "Corey has never seen a tax or an increase in spending in Prince William County that he hasn't liked." He said they also differ over the threat of "radical Islam and sharia law."

My understanding is that Corey has had some dealings with some of the members of the Muslim Brotherhood, Jackson said. If that proves to be the case, then were going to clearly draw that distinction.

Fredericks, the radio host, noted Stewart has said blocking the mosque would have opened the county to litigation.

Jackson also took a jab at Freitas, suggesting he is the establishment candidate and had met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.)  something Freitas denies. Freitas said the only senators advising him are conservative favorites Rand Paul (Ky.) and Mike Lee (Utah).

Ivan Raiklin, an Army veteran, has also filed the paperwork to run in the GOP primary for Senate, which is scheduled for June 2018.


Street artist Mark Panzarino, 41, prepares a memorial at Union Square in New York in June 2013, six months after the massacre in Newtown, Conn. He writes the names of the Sandy Hook Elementary School victims. One of the enduring legacies of the school shooting is a widespread effort to improve school safety. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

Coy Ferreira stood inside a rural California classroom, more than a dozen 5- and 6-year-olds huddled in the corner as a gunman sprayed bullets at the school and tried to break his way in. Ferreira was terrified that people would die.

But the doors were locked and all of the children were inside, part of a school plan the staff and students had practiced in drills and knew by heart. They barricaded the school in just 47 seconds that morning last month, probably saving the lives of countless people at Rancho Tehama Elementary School.

They all knew what to do, said Ferreira, who was dropping his daughter off at school when they heard a gunshot nearby. No one stumbled. No one was hiding. They just ran to their classroom, like they had been told to do.

The near-flawless response to what could have been a bloodbath during a deadly shooting rampage on Nov. 14 came almost exactly five years after 20 children and six teachers were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. That attack, which involved a mentally unstable man using an assault-style rifle, shattered the sense of security felt in the nations elementary schools.

The massacre on Dec. 14, 2012, led to calls for gun control, as families mourned the loss of their innocent children. Five years later, little about the nations federal gun laws has changed. But the Newtown shooting forever altered the way American schools approach safety and assess risk, ushering in an era in which schools feel particularly vulnerable to the threat of shootings and students must know what to do in case one happens.

[Perspective: My son survived Sandy Hook. I want to tell him it wont happen again, but I cant.]

The result is that for Americas students, lockdowns like the one that helped save lives at Rancho Tehama Elementary and active-shooter training are now as commonplace as fire drills. Buzzers and locks have fortified school doors that were once left wide open. The sight of police officers, even in elementary schools, is now common. And some districts allow staff members to carry weapons at school for what they believe is an added layer of security.

There was something about Sandy Hook, said Telena Wright, superintendent of schools in Argyle, Tex., whose district has stepped up security measures since that shooting. It was such a massacre that I think it captured the attention of school employees and school administrators and police officers that work in schools across the nation.

One of those places was the Corning Union Elementary School District, which includes Rancho Tehama Elementary, an hour northwest of Chico in northern California.

I have no doubt that the experience of Sandy Hook informed our response as a district, to any emergency event and to this one in particular, said Superintendent Rick Fitzpatrick.



FBI agents are seen behind crime scene tape outside Rancho Tehama Elementary School after a shooting on Nov. 14, in Rancho Tehama, Calif. Several people were killed in a shooting rampage that day, but the elementary school  which had practiced active-shooter drills  successfully locked down as the shooter approached. Just one student was injured, and he is recovering. (Elijah Nouvelage/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images)

Era of lockdowns

The era of the school lockdowns started in 1999, after two students killed 13 people and themselves at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo. High schools started drills where doors are locked and windows are secured  actions meant to be replicated should there be an emergency.

View Graphic A gunman opens fire in your building. What do you do?

After the Newtown shooting, lockdowns became a regular part of school for younger children. So, in some places, did armed officers in elementary schools.

There was a broader awareness that elementary and middle schools were at risk as well, said Heidi Wysocki, a co-founder of Texas-based First Defense Solutions, which helps schools protect themselves and plan for shootings and other emergencies. Nobody thinks somebody is going to murder 26 children and teachers, because its appalling. Its just an unthinkable horror, and that wasnt part of the conversation that was being had.

Sandy Hook also created a new, controversial approach to school safety: the armed-assailant drill, when schools run a scenario involving a mass shooter, sometimes including police in the exercise. The practice has drawn scrutiny, some criticizing it as being potentially traumatizing for students, especially those in younger grades.

[In tiny Townville, S.C., first-graders are haunted by what they survived  and lost  on a school playground ]

In Akron, Ohio, schools started active-shooter training around the time of the Sandy Hook attack. The shooting also spurred the district to retrofit some schools with secondary doors, buzzers and thick glass.

The district now runs active-shooter drills four times a year, drills that are tailored to each age group, said Dan Rambler, the districts director of student support services and security. Parents are invited to watch training videos and give input.

In younger grades, the issue is addressed as one of stranger danger. But children, he said, often know what is happening: Ramblers son was in kindergarten during one of the first training sessions and told his father that while it focused on bad people, there are people who go to schools and shoot people, Rambler remembers the boy saying.

Jeff Fritz, superintendent of schools in Clay County, Ind., said that when he started his career as an educator 35 years ago, the doors were wide open at the school where he worked. No more.

The countys 4,000 students now drill for an active shooter. Fritz said students are taught to run, hide or fight  with fighting being the very last option.

Its no different than we do with tornado drills or fire drills, he said. This has been in the forefront. I tell our staff and our students our number one priority, above test scores or building projects . . . is school safety.

Some states and districts are allowing staff members to carry weapons at schools. At least eight states allow concealed-carry permit holders to have a firearm at a K-12 school, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

In Argyle, Tex., signs outside schools say staffers are armed and "may use whatever force is necessary to protect our students." It was a decision, Wright said, that stemmed directly from Sandy Hook.

When officials in the Briggsdale School District in rural Colorado heard about the shooting at Sandy Hook, they kept thinking about the time it would take police to respond to their schools. In their remote area of northern Colorado, emergency response was likely to take a minimum of 25 minutes.

Now there are staff members who carry concealed guns and have been trained to act as security guards if needed. Their identities are secret. Superintendent Rick Mondt said response from parents has been positive: They feel better with the school not being a soft target.

Weve had parents who brought their kids here because of this, he said.



Flowers and candles are left as a memorial in front of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 15, 2012, days after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School left 20 children and six school employees dead. (Andrew Lichtenstein/For The Washington Post)

Channeling grief

Some of the parents of the children killed in Newtown have channeled their grief into making schools safer.

Michele Gay and Alissa Parker co-founded Safe and Sound Schools, which looks to improve school safety through training, discussion and partnerships. They both lost daughters at Sandy Hook; Gay's 7-year-old, Josephine, and Parker's 6-year-old, Emilie. Gay said there has been a profound shift in the way schools think about safety and plan for the worst, with parents and students now heavily involved, and much greater collaboration between different agencies and groups.

[After Newtown shooting, mourning parents enter into the lonely quiet]

Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son Daniel was killed, co-founded Sandy Hook Promise with Nicole Hockley, who lost her son, Dylan. The organization is working in all 50 states with schools and other organizations to teach the warning signs often exhibited by potentially violent people both in person and on social media.

Barden said the past five years have been indescribably difficult and challenging. He said he is honoring Daniels memory by making schools safer and saving lives.

Hopefully, if we have this conversation in five or 10 years, were not going to need to be training our kids with how to deal with an active shooter, he said.



In May 2013, Mark Barden looks out the window and weeps while talking about his 7-year-old son, Daniel, who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in 2012. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)

But school shootings continue unabated. Beginning with Columbine 18 years ago, more than 135,000 students attending at least 164 primary or secondary schools have experienced a shooting on campus as of April 2017, according to a Washington Post analysis of online archives, state enrollment figures and news stories. That doesnt count dozens of suicides, accidents and after-school assaults that have also exposed children to gunfire.

There have been at least three shootings at K-12 schools this school year. In September, a 15-year-old student in Rockford, Wash., killed one student and injured three others; that same month, a 14-year-old student shot and wounded a classmate in Mattoon, Ill. Two students were killed Thursday in a high school shooting in Aztec, N.M., after a 21-year-old local resident entered the school pretending to be a student and carried out what authorities said was a planned attack with a legally purchased Glock handgun; the gunman also died.

We obviously do drills and hope that nothing ever happens, said Aztec Municipal School Superintendent Kirk M. Carpenter. Our staff and even our substitutes reacted in a way that saved a lot of lives.



Students are led out of Aztec High School after a shooting there left two students dead on Dec. 7, in Aztec, N.M. (Jon Austria/AP)

Drills and good fortune

At Rancho Tehama Elementary, officials credit their drills, quick action by staff and parents and a measure of good fortune for ensuring that no one was killed in the November attack.

Ferreira and his 5-year-old daughter were standing outside before school, when they heard a pop. He thought it was a firecracker. But it was loud enough that some children dropped to the ground.

When the school secretary heard two more bangs, she announced a lockdown.

[A gunman randomly picking targets goes on rampage in Calif., tries to enter school]

A teacher called for everyone to get inside. Ferreira heard a crash, as the gunmans truck smashed into the elementary schools gates. He told his daughter to run and urged other children to get inside.



Alejandro Hernandez, a student at Rancho Tehama Elementary School, who was shot twice when a man tried to attack the school in November. (Courtesy of Angelica Monroy)

Everyone quickly made it into classrooms, except for one little girl who was across the playground, too scared to move. Ferreira ran to her, scooped her up and ran her inside. He looked out the window, and the teacher told him to move away.

The blinds fell back into place as he stepped back, and bullets began smashing through them.

The children didnt move or make a sound. Just as they had practiced.

Ferreira thought about Sandy Hook and the teachers who died to protect children. He thought maybe he could use the fire extinguisher as a weapon if the shooter got through the door.

But the door was locked. The children had gotten inside. Two little boys were hiding under desks. One of them, Alejandro Hernandez, was bleeding; he was hit once in the foot and once in the lung by bullets that went through the wall.

Alejandro didnt cry. Only later did he tell Ferreira, I want to be with my mommy.

The gunman left the school, unable to get in. Law enforcement officers took over, and Alejandro was taken to the hospital. He is back home now, too scared to go back to his classroom, unwilling to talk about the shooting, but recovering well enough to no longer need painkillers for his wounds. His mother, Angelica Monroy, is grateful the school locked down so quickly.

I really . . .  she said, struggling to compose herself. I thank them so much for everything.

In those few seconds that day, the children followed the drill they had practiced. The adults knew what to do.

If not for the lessons of Sandy Hook, if not for their plan, if it had all been like any other Tuesday morning, parents and school officials shudder to think what might have befallen Rancho Tehama.

He would have caught us all outside, Ferreira said. He would have had free range.



One of the bullet holes seen in an exterior wall at the Rancho Tehama Elementary School. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

Moriah Balingit, Jennifer Jenkins and John Woodrow Cox contributed to this report.
New York police say one person is in custody after the explosion near the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Dec. 11, 2017 Commuters exit a train as a police officer stands in a closed-off underground walkway near the site of a pipe-bomb explosion in the tunnel that connects the Times Square subway station to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Conservative women, shaped by a mixture of party loyalty and a rejection of gender-driven politics, have shown little evidence that they will follow the example of their Democratic sisters and publicly cut ties with men in their political camps who have been accused of sexual misconduct.

After female Senate Democrats prompted the resignation of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) last week, saying they could no longer ignore the growing number of women who alleged he had kissed or groped them against their will, Republican women mostly have responded with shrugs or silence to accusations against men in their party.

President Trump, the highest profile Republican who has been accused of sexual misconduct, faced new attention Monday when three women held a news conference calling for Congress to investigate the allegations. U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, in a marked break from the White House, said Sunday that Trumps accusers should be heard.

But few Republican women have spoken out against Trump since he became president or have called for the party to abandon the candidacy of Roy Moore, the Alabama Republican running for the state's open U.S. Senate seat in Tuesday's special election, despite accusations that he pursued or sexually touched teenage girls as young as 14 when he was an assistant district attorney in his 30s.

Party loyalty plays a big role in why more Republican women have not demanded that GOP men accused of sexual harassment be held accountable. But a fundamental disagreement about the relevance of sexual harassment as a symptom of gender inequality is also a factor.



Moore greets supporters after delivering remarks on Nov. 11. Of the five Republican women in the Senate, only one has emphatically said Moore should drop out of the Alabama Senate race. (Cameron Carnes for The Washington Post )

Ronnee Schreiber, chair of the political science department at San Diego State University, said many conservative women think the current conversation about sexual harassment has been overblown by feminists on the left. To them, womens daily lives are less affected by sexual harassment and assault than by the economy and national security.

[Why Democrats decided Franken had to go]

Democratic women, on the other hand, could call for Frankens resignation without appearing to betray their partys fundamental values, Schreiber said. Its consistent with the ideology of Democrats to be opposed to sexual harassment, Schreiber said.

Franken resisted giving up his seat until Wednesday, when Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) publicly called for his resignation. She was quickly joined by several other female senators, followed by several male Democrats. Eventually, more than 30 Democrats urged Franken to step down, which he did in a combative speech, noting that Moore was still on the ballot and President Trump was still in the Oval Office.

Americans show a large political divide when asked whether sexual harassment is a serious problem. In a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 92 percent of Democratic women and 86 percent of Democratic men said sexual harassment in the workplace is a problem for women. Among Republican women, 61 percent said sexual harassment of women in the workplace is a problem, as did 56 percent of Republican men.

The issue of sexual harassment in the workplace exploded two months ago when several actresses publicly reported that movie mogul Harvey Weinstein had sexually assaulted them. It also has made its way back to the political arena, with three members of Congress, including Franken, announcing their resignations last week. Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), who had been the longest-serving member of Congress, stepped down after former staffers said he had sexually harassed them. Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) resigned Friday amid allegations that he asked female employees to bear children as surrogates, including one woman who said he offered her $5 million.

Moore, however, has dismissed calls to end his campaign. Initially, more than a dozen Republican Senators, including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), said Moore should step aside. McConnell now says the decision is up to the voters of Alabama.

Alabamas senior senator, Richard C. Shelby, has not changed his position; he has said he wrote in the name of another Republican on his absentee ballot. I think the Republican Party can do better, he said on CNNs State of the Union Sunday morning.

But most Republican members of Congress have said Moore should step aside only if the allegations are true. Of the five Republican women in the Senate, only one has emphatically said Moore should drop out of the race.

Because we have this crazy two-party system, to make sure there is Republican dominance in the Senate theyre going to overlook it, Schreiber said. Thats why they overlooked Trump.

[How Washington Post journalists broke the story of allegations against Roy Moore]

When the Access Hollywood tape of Trump bragging about grabbing womens crotches became public in the 2016 presidential race, and several women came forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct, conservative womens organizations basically said, We dont want him, but we want party dominance,  Schreiber said, referring to groups like the Independent Womens Forum and Concerned Women for America.

Two of Alabamas most prominent Republican women  Gov. Kay Ivey and Terry Lathan, the chair of the state GOP  have consistently supported Moore.

Ronna McDaniel, the female chairman of the Republican National Committee, which withdrew its support from Moore shortly after the allegations arose, cited the presidents desire to keep the U.S. Senate seat in the GOP as the partys reasons for reversing itself and resuming to help the embattled candidate.

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington are the only female GOP members of Congress who have unequivocally said Moore should drop out of the election.

I believe for the sake of this country that Roy Moore should step aside. There are others that can fill that seat, Rodgers said in a local TV interview Thursday.

"Members of Congress, House and Senate are held to a higher standard. . . . We've got to walk the talk," she said after Franken announced his resignation.

Rodgers, who is chair of the House Republican Caucus, criticized Trumps comments on the Access Hollywood tape but did not withdraw her support. Asked about her response to the women who spoke out about Trump on Monday, Olivia Hnat, a spokeswoman, said Rodgers believes that no one should be afraid to speak up and share their story. Every accusation of harassment deserves its due attention and should be taken seriously, whether it is in Hollywood, in the media, in government or in the congressional workplace.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway has wavered in her response to the allegations against Moore. In an interview with ABC News soon after The Post published the first accusations, she said that the behavior Moores accusers described offends me greatly as a woman, as a mother of three young girls, and that it should be disqualifying, if true. But more recently, she defended Republicans continued support for Moore, saying Trump needs his vote to pass tax legislation.

She has taken to Twitter to jab Democratic women who vacillated in their response to the accusations against Franken, noting that Gillibrand had seemed ambivalent on the question just a day before she called for him to resign.

After the release of the Access tape last year, she accused some of Trumps detractors of being on a high horse, suggesting they had in the past engaged in behavior similar to what Trump described. I would talk to some of the members of Congress out there, she said in an October 2016 MSNBC interview. When I was younger and prettier, them rubbing up against girls, sticking their tongues down womens throats uninvited who didnt like it.

[In debate over national anthem, black wealth becomes a target]

In an interview with The Post, Conway said no one listened to her at the time because she was Trump's campaign manager. She argued that the issue of sexual harassment has become too politicized. "We cannot have an honest conversation or full and fair resolution of sexual misconduct in this country unless and until we stop discriminating against those coming forward based on their politics or any other factor," she said.

The Independent Womens Forum honored Conway at a gala last month with its Woman of Valor award. During her remarks, Conway boasted about how she responded when Anita Hill accused then-Supreme Court justice nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment. I proudly brought this button in that said, I believe him,  she said, describing a pin she wore to classes at George Washington Universitys law school during the 1991 hearings.

The IWF sprang from those hearings, founded by women who thought Thomas was being unfairly maligned because of his conservative beliefs. They chafed at the news medias tendency to go to groups like the National Organization for Women for commentary on womens issues.

Carrie Lukas, president of the IWF, said women on both sides of the political divide agree sexual harassment is a problem.

But there is also a sense that we know that the accusation is also a political weapon, she said. These allegations can be incredibly damaging if you wanted to derail a candidate.

Lukas stopped short of saying Moore should drop out of the race.

Patrice Onwuka, a senior policy analyst with the IWF, said she saw no cause for women on the right to take a stand against Moore.

Judge Roy Moore has not been elected to the Senate, so his situation is not the same as Senator Al Franken or Rep. John Conyers, she wrote in an email. If the allegations are proven true then he is not fit to serve as a U.S. senator, but that is for the voters of his state to decide. Victims deserve to have their allegations investigated, but we should not rush to judgment on every allegation without more information.

Michelle Bernard, a former president of the IWF, said she is disappointed to see so many conservative women waffling over Moore in the name of preserving a governing majority in the Senate. She was similarly disappointed that women like Conway provided political cover for Trump.

If these people were not so powerful, they would have restraining orders against them and be on some sex [offenders] list, ordered to keep 100 feet away from children, Bernard said.

I have a very difficult time believing that people, deep in their hearts, believe this crap, she continued. They say it because they also fear they have something to lose  a powerful donor or they will lose the Senate or the White House  so they toe the party line in public, but they go home and shut the door and say, My God, that man is sick. 
SYRIA

U.N.: 137 children need immediate evacuation

The United Nations children's agency said Sunday that 137 children stranded in a rebel-held suburb near the Syrian capital require immediate evacuation amid a crippling siege during which five have reportedly died of a lack of medical care.

The Eastern Ghouta suburb, home to 400,000 people, has been besieged since 2013, and conditions there have deteriorated sharply amid violence that has intensified since Nov. 14. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that at least 202 people, including 47 children, have been killed since that escalation.

The area, the last rebel-held pocket near Damascus, is technically part of a de-escalation zone brokered by Russia this year. Cease-fires brokered by Russia have largely held elsewhere in Syria, but there has been little progress toward a political solution to the conflict.

In its statement Sunday, UNICEF said its aid workers who made an international aid delivery to a neighborhood in Eastern Ghouta in late November saw one of the worst health situations since the conflict began.

UNICEF says 137 children require immediate evacuation for conditions that include kidney failure, severe malnutrition and conflict wounds. The agency says that nearly 12 percent of children younger than 5 in Eastern Ghouta suffer from acute malnutrition.

 Associated Press

UKRAINE

Saakashvili allies rally, seek presidents ouster

Several thousand supporters of opposition leader Mikheil Saakashvili rallied in Ukraine's capital Sunday, demanding his release from jail and calling for the impeachment of the president.

Saakashvili, a former president of Georgia, was arrested Friday over allegations that he colluded with Ukrainian business executives tied to Russia to topple President Petro Poroshenko.

Saakashvili has rejected the allegations, and his attorney said he was refusing food to protest his detention.

Saakashvilis supporters marched across downtown Kiev on Sunday, chanting Down with the gang! and Impeachment!

They rallied on Independence Square, or the Maidan, which was the focus of protests that drove pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych from power in February 2014, and then walked toward where Saakashvili is being held.

Saakashvili faces the prospect of being sent back to his native Georgia, where he is sought on charges of abusing his former office.

He was a key figure in the 2003 protests that drove Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze from office. Saakashvili served two terms as Georgias president, winning acclaim for anti-corruption efforts but drawing criticism over a disastrous war with Russia and what his opponents saw as an authoritarian streak.

Poroshenko named him governor of Ukraines Odessa region in 2015, but Saakashvili resigned the following year.

 Associated Press

Israel destroys Hamas tunnel: The Israeli military said it destroyed a tunnel built by the Hamas militant group that stretched from the Gaza Strip several hundred yards into Israeli territory. A military spokesman said Israeli forces had detected the tunnel months ago and continued to monitor construction efforts by militants before demolishing it. Israel has made neutralizing the tunnel threat a top priority since a 2014 war with Hamas, when militants made their way into Israel on several occasions using tunnels.

Honduras's electoral court finds results "consistent": Honduras's electoral court finished a hand recount of votes in nearly 5,000 ballot boxes and said the results are "extremely consistent" with the original data in the Nov. 26 presidential election. The head of the tribunal said the recount of fewer than one-third of the total number of boxes showed that the original count was well executed. That tally put incumbent Juan Orlando Hernandez ahead by more than 52,000 votes. But the electoral process was plagued by problems, and opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla challenged the results.

Kenyan opposition group postpones protest: Kenya's main opposition group postponed a mock ceremony to inaugurate its leader as president. Opposition leader Raila Odinga and his colleagues said that the decision was reached after consultations but that they "remain fully on course in pursuit of electoral justice." Odinga brought a successful legal challenge against President Uhuru Kenyatta's August reelection but boycotted the repeat vote in October. The high court unanimously upheld Kenyatta's victory in the rerun.

 From news services
An earlier version of this op-ed incorrectly identified Glenn Tiffert. He is a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution. This version has been corrected.

China's President Xi Jinping waits for the start of a signing ceremony with Maldives' President Abdulla Yameen at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Dec. 7. (Fred Dufour/Associated Press)

Columnist

Washington is waking up to the huge scope and scale of Chinese Communist Party influence operations inside the United States, which permeate American institutions of all kinds. Chinas overriding goal is, at the least, to defend its authoritarian system from attack and at most to export it to the world at Americas expense.

The foreign influence campaign is part and parcel of Chinas larger campaign for global power, which includes military expansion, foreign direct investment, resource hoarding, and influencing international rules and norms. But this part of Chinas game plan is the most opaque and least understood. Beijings strategy is first to cut off critical discussion of Chinas government, then to co-opt American influencers in order to promote Chinas narrative.

Countries such as Australia, New Zealand and even Canada have been rocked by recent revelations of Chinese-sponsored efforts to corrupt their politicians, universities, think tanks and businesses. U.S. political and thought leaders are just beginning to understand the problem and come together to devise responses.

"We have a lot of discussion of Russian interference in our elections, but the Chinese efforts to influence our public policy and our basic freedoms are much more widespread than most people realize," said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), co-chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC). "This is an all-out effort to not simply promote themselves in a better light but to target Americans within the United States."

On Wednesday, the CECC will hold a hearing on the "Long Arm of China" to expose Chinese efforts to gain political influence, control discussion of sensitive topics, interfere in multilateral institutions, threaten and intimidate human rights defenders, impose censorship on foreign publishers and influence academic institutions.

Rubio pointed to Chinese government-sponsored Confucius Institutes on U.S. university campuses that operate under opaque contracts and often stand accused of interfering in China-related education activities. China's sponsorship of think tank research, academic chairs and intellectual partnerships also demand scrutiny, he said.

A recent report by Foreign Policy detailed how former Hong Kong chief executive Tung Chee-hwa has spent money through his China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF), funding research at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, the Brookings Institution and elsewhere.

CUSEF denies pushing Chinese government ideology, but its connections are clear. Tung is vice chairman of a body called the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, which is connected to the United Front Work Department, the Communist Party agency designed to advance party objectives with outside actors.

Recipients of these funds routinely insist their academic independence is intact. But as China exploits these institutions' need for cash, examples of self-censorship mount. Researchers understand that their access to China depends on not ruffling feathers. Publishers agree to erase critical articles from journals to gain access to the Chinese market.

By influencing the influencers, China gets Americans to carry its message to other Americans. Thats much more effective than having Chinese officials deliver those messages, said Glenn Tiffert, visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution.

There needs to be a recognition in Washington to the extent U.S. institutions are turning to the Chinese for money, he said. People are starting to ask, to what extent does the person who pays the piper get to call the tune?

There are other budding efforts to increase awareness of Chinese foreign influence activities. The National Endowment for Democracy issued a report last week called "Sharp Power," which tracked authoritarian influence from China and Russia in several developing countries.

The general push is for U.S. institutions to join together to set standards and best practices for dealing with Chinese government-linked entities and when taking Chinese money. By pooling information and resources, universities may be able to resist Chinese pressures and advocate for academic integrity.

Still, a huge gap remains between Chinas efforts and Americas response. Beijing is emboldened by perceived weaknesses in the democratic world and the Trump administrations retreat from promotion of U.S. values.

While the Chinese Communist Party historically dedicated itself to defending its domestic repression and strict social controls, Beijing under Xi Jinping is increasingly promoting that system as a model for development abroad while working to define global governance to cement Chinese practices.

We need to recognize there really is an struggle over both ideology and values going on, said Andrew Nathan of Columbia University. We won the Cold War, but history didnt end.

All countries seek influence abroad, pursue soft power and spread propaganda. But the Chinese combination of technology, coercion, pressure, exclusion and economic incentives is beyond anything this country has faced before. The sooner the United States acknowledges that reality, the better chance we have of responding.

Read more from Josh Rogin's archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Deputy Editorial Page Editor

President Trump inherited a Middle East convulsed by crisis and civil war with two fragile exceptions: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Irans nuclear program, both of which were quiescent. With two impulsive, egotistical decisions, taken against the strong recommendations of his national security team, he has endangered the status quo on both fronts. Now the question is whether Congress or European allies will save him from a potentially disastrous third strike.

The similarities between Trump's refusal to recertify the Iranian nuclear deal in October and his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital last week are striking  and revealing. In each case, he was presented with a congressionally mandated requirement to renew a policy of previous presidents. His secretaries of defense and state urged him to preserve it, lest he disrupt U.S. policies and endanger U.S. interests across the Middle East and beyond.

Each time, Trump bridled  essentially flipping over the table and insisting he would not do what Barack Obama or George W. Bush or Bill Clinton would have done. He made no secret of the fact that his primary  maybe his sole  motivation was to prove that he was a different and somehow better president. "Previous presidents . . . failed to deliver," he boasted in announcing the Jerusalem move. "I am delivering."

Trumps advisers have scrambled to embed these impetuous decisions into something resembling a strategy: a bid to enlist Congress and European allies in a campaign to fill the loopholes in the nuclear deal; a Mideast peace plan that draws Palestinians and Arabs back into diplomacy. But this is window dressing. In fact, neither Trump nor anyone else in the administration planned beyond his decisions or is prepared for their fallout  whether it is renewed violence in the Palestinian territories or a deepening rift with vital allies.

Some of that reckoning is already occurring. Rex Tillerson, Trump's beleaguered secretary of state, got an icy reception when he arrived in Brussels last week for a European tour. Descriptions of Trump's Jerusalem decision by European ministers included terms such as "very dangerous" and "catastrophic." Predictably, rioting broke out in the West Bank; Americans can only hope that Arab extremists elsewhere are too preoccupied with other conflicts to lead Benghazi-style assaults on U.S. targets.



President Trump in the East Room of the White House on Dec. 7. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran stands to be the biggest beneficiary of Trump's recklessness. The Jerusalem recognition will make it harder for the United States to counter Iranian aggression across the region through an alliance including the Persian Gulf states, Jordan and, tacitly, Israel, because that alliance is now split by the Jerusalem question. Iran's proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah, is calling for another Palestinian uprising. If it occurs, the Palestinian Authority's secular Sunni leader, Mahmoud Abbas, probably will be swept away  and Iran's ally Hamas empowered.

Tehran's biggest gain will come if Trump makes a third china-breaking choice that is looming on the horizon. His decertification of the nuclear deal gave Congress 60 days  until this week  to decide on the reimposition of sanctions on Iran. It will not do so, which means that in January, Trump will be presented with yet another legally mandated decision on whether to preserve the sanctions' suspension or blow up the nuclear deal once and for all.

His staff, congressional leaders from both parties and European leaders worry about another senseless but attention-grabbing rupture. Because U.N. inspectors have repeatedly certified Iran's compliance, neither Europeans nor Russia and China  the other parties to the pact  would accept Trump's voiding of the accord. The regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would have a delicious choice: either stick with the deal and isolate the United States, or use the reimposition of U.S. sanctions as an excuse to resume the stockpiling of highly enriched uranium. Trump would have no recourse but a war for which the United States is entirely unprepared.

There is a quiet scurry among congressional and European leaders to head off this disaster. Republican and Democratic leaders on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week discussed possible legislation with national security adviser H.R. McMaster, sources told me. The idea is to provide for some additional constraint on Iran that does not violate the existing deal and is acceptable to the Europeans  a tricky, and perhaps impossible, needle to thread. This would be balanced by a new curb on Trump, such as a provision impeding him from voiding the nuclear agreement without congressional consent.

The Europeans would consent to work with the administration on steps to stop Iran's development of long-range missiles, which are not covered by the accord  again, on condition that Trump not break the existing pact.

This bipartisan, transatlantic effort to simultaneously appease and hem in the U.S. president has few precedents. It may well fail. But Trumps demonstrated willingness, in his ignorance and opportunism, to endanger vital American and Western interests has made it urgent.

Read more from Jackson Diehl's archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Regarding Ted Gup's Dec. 6 op-ed, "Not my Alabama":

I don't sneer at Alabama, but I do worry about what the coming vote on the Senate seat may portend, even as I recognize that every state and region has its share of racism and other ills, and that hypocrisy is still the tribute that vice pays to virtue. But apart from the fact that credible allegations of pedophilia do not appear to have been lodged against any other Senate candidate in modern times (if ever), we have in Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore a man who has twice been removed from office for flouting the law, who has revealed his ignorance of or contempt for the Constitution by stating that a Muslim should not be seated in the House, who is homophobic, who was a leading voice of the patently racist "birther" movement and who only last week displayed anti-Semitism. That is quite a foul combination.

If the voters of Alabama elect Mr. Moore to the Senate, we will have reached a new and frightening level of venality. Beyond Alabama, the question will then be whether Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will swiftly examine Mr. Moores various statements as well as the allegations that he is a sexual predator. Country before party? I hope we shall not have to see.

Michael M. Landa, Kensington
Columnist

Our democratic republic is in far more danger than it was even a few weeks ago.

Until this point, there was an underlying faith in much of the political world that if Robert S. Mueller IIIs investigation of Russian collusion in the election turned up unmistakably damning material about Donald Trump, Republicans in Congress would feel obligated by their commitment to the countrys well-being to accept Muellers findings and challenge the president.

We would often hear recollections of how Republicans during Watergate  Sen. Barry Goldwater would inevitably come up  decided that the smoking guns were too smoky and that Richard Nixon had to go. They made clear to him that he no longer had the support of his party.

Surely, said the optimists, we have not drifted so far from decency that this sort of patriotism is beyond us.



House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Jim Jordan R-Ohio) questions FBI Director Christopher A. Wray during a House Judiciary hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 7. (Carolyn Kaster/Associated Press)

[The mounting attacks on Mueller are misguided and dangerous]

Well, it sure seems to be. Its not surprising that Trump and those on his payroll want to protect him at all costs. But we learned last week that Republicans are deepening their complicity in derailing Muellers investigation and burying the facts. The more Mueller imperils Trump, the more McCarthyite the GOP becomes.

The apotheosis of Republican congressional collusion with Trumps efforts to hang on at all costs came at a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee. One Republican after another attacked Mueller and the Federal Bureau of Investigation as if the latter should be placed on a new compendium of subversive organizations.

The occasion was testimony before the committee by Christopher A. Wray, the Trump-appointed FBI director. It was heartening to see Wray stand up for his colleagues, which made you wonder if Wray may soon go the way of his predecessor, James B. Comey.

Deserving an Academy Award for the most striking imitation of a member of the old House Un-American Activities Committee was Rep. Louie Gohmert. The hard-right Texas Republican went through a roll call of investigators, name by name, asking Wray if each had shown political bias. Wray defended every one of them he knew and wryly smiled when he was unfamiliar with one of the five names on Gohmerts hit list.

Gohmert might as well have echoed the favored question of the congressional inquisitors of the early 40s and 50s: Are they now or have they ever been . . . supporters of Hillary Clinton? When Republicans are FBI haters who are sidetracking probes into Russian subversion, the world truly is turned upside down.

Note also the statement of Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) that if every member of Mueller's team who was "anti-Trump" were kicked off, "I don't know if there'd be anyone left." The implication is that even if Mueller's investigation produced unassailable evidence of wrongdoing by Trump, we should ignore the truth, because Mueller's team should have been vetted to exclude anyone who had a smidgen of doubt about the president.

The rationale for this GOP assault is that Peter Strzok, an FBI agent involved in the investigation, exchanged texts critical of Trump and favorable to Clinton with an FBI lawyer. Somehow, Mueller got no props for removing Strzok from the investigation this summer.

But even if Strzok played some role in developing material that ultimately hurts Trump or proves Russian collusion, are Americans supposed to brainwash themselves? Trumps allies want us to say: Too bad the president lied or broke the law, or that Russia tried to tilt our election. This FBI guy sending anti-Trump texts is far more important, so lets just forget the whole thing.

Really?

Because we are inured to extreme partisanship and to the political rights habit of rejecting inconvenient facts, we risk overlooking the profound political crisis that a Trumpified Republican Party could create. And the conflagration may come sooner rather than later, as Mueller zeroes in on Trump and his inner circle.

[This big development in the Mueller probe could put Trump in danger]

Only recently, it was widely assumed that if Trump fired Mueller, many Republicans would rise up to defend our institutions. Now, many in the party are laying the groundwork for justifying a coverup. This is a recipe for lawlessness.

We also assumed that Mueller's findings would be respected because of his deserved reputation for fairness and independence. Just last May, Newt Gingrich called him a "superb choice to be special counsel" and praised his "honesty and integrity." Now, pro-Trump politicians feel free to contradict anything they said in the past and to dismiss what they once saw as legitimate authority if those who hold it threaten their power. This is a recipe for autocracy.

Trump himself told us plainly on Friday night in Pensacola, Fla., that he will do whatever it takes to hold power, and he should be taken seriously. "There are powerful forces in Washington trying to sabotage our movement," he declared. "These are bad people, these are very, very bad and evil people. . . . But you know what, we're stopping them. You're seeing that right now."

We are far closer to the edge than we want to think.

Read more from E.J. Dionne's archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Contributing columnist

When I worked in the U.S. Attorneys Office in Washington in the 1990s, I was part of the team pursuing the corruption prosecution of Illinois Rep. Dan Rostenkowski. Rostenkowski was chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, one of the most powerful Democrats on Capitol Hill and a key political ally in advancing President Bill Clintons legislative agenda.

I'm pretty sure most of us on that team were Democrats or at least leaned Democrat. I know that Rostenkowski was indicted, convicted and sent to jail under the leadership of U.S. Attorney Eric H. Holder Jr. and Attorney General Janet Reno  both Democrats.

I cant be certain about the political views of my former fellow prosecutors because the topic simply never came up. It was completely irrelevant to our work. The Rostenkowski investigation began under a Republican administration, and when a Democratic administration was elected in 1992, we soldiered on as though nothing important had changed  because it hadnt.

I'm reminded of this experience when I hear the current attacks on special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's team of prosecutors and FBI agents. Critics on the right charge that Mueller's investigation is politically biased or worse. Some of the attacks are particularly vitriolic. Sean Hannity has called Mueller a "disgrace to the American justice system" and said his investigation is "corrupt" and abusive. Newt Gingrich, who effusively praised Mueller when he was appointed, now says Mueller's probe is corrupt, dishonest and a "partisan hit."

[This big development in the Mueller probe could put Trump in danger]

These types of attacks are not entirely new. Every public-corruption investigation has some political overtones, and the targets often accuse prosecutors of being engaged in a partisan "witch hunt." Democrats were critical of independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr during the Whitewater investigation. But the intensity of the growing attacks on Mueller  last known to be a registered Republican  seems unprecedented.

One way they are unprecedented  for the most part, the attacks are not based on anything Mueller has actually done. His investigation and the criminal charges he has brought so far appear solid and do not suggest any partisan bias. Rather, critics have seized on issues such as an FBI official who sent anti-Trump text messages, even though the official was booted off the Mueller team this past summer once the texts were revealed. These critics also point to prosecutors who have donated to Democrats in the past or who praised former acting attorney general Sally Q. Yates when she refused to enforce Trump's first travel ban because she believed it was unconstitutional  a view later shared by federal courts.

Such criticisms betray a profound misunderstanding of the way professional prosecutors and FBI agents do their jobs. Prosecutors and agents are human. They are allowed to have political views, belong to political parties and support political candidates. It is not a conflict of interest if a prosecutor who belongs to one political party is involved in an investigation of a politician from another party. Weve never had a system where Republicans could be investigated only by partisan Republicans or vice versa.

We live in a hypercharged environment, where almost every move is seen through a partisan political lens. Many people dont believe that a prosecutor such as Mueller could simply follow the facts and the law. But thats exactly what happens. Prosecutors and agents set aside their personal politics when they work on investigations, and its essential that they do so. In this country, we dont use criminal prosecutions to attack political enemies. Thats the stuff of despots and dictators, not the American justice system. For good prosecutors and agents, this principle is part of their DNA.

No human system is without bad actors, and law enforcement is no exception. But its ridiculous to suggest that an FBI agent who holds strong political views or a prosecutor who has supported Democrats in the past somehow taint Muellers entire investigation. Prosecutors deserve to have their actions scrutinized, but they should be judged on what they do as prosecutors, not on wild speculations based on their personal beliefs.

[The GOPs all-out assault on justice]

The mounting attacks on Mueller are misguided and dangerous. Those who would seek to undermine this cornerstone of our justice system based on such flimsy evidence should think twice about what they are doing. Norms and institutions are fragile things not easily restored once the public loses confidence in them. Destroying the fundamental norm under which we have operated for more than two centuries  that criminal law is not used for political purposes  will send this country to a dark place where we dont want to be.

If attacks like those being levied at Mueller's team become routine, we are effectively saying we are no better than a third-world dictatorship where people are jailed over political differences. (Of course, it doesn't help when President Trump, who is ultimately responsible for enforcing the nation's laws, routinely labels Mueller's inquiry a "witch hunt" while encouraging criminal investigations of his own political foes.) Politics may infect more and more of our daily lives, but it absolutely cannot be allowed to infect the criminal-justice system. Absent actual proof, we should not assume that it has.

Its easy to predict the responses this column will receive. Many will accuse me of being hopelessly naive to believe that criminal investigators can act without political motives. I can only respond that Ive done it, Ive seen many others do it, and it has always been the expected standard within the Justice Department. There is absolutely no sound reason to believe that Mueller and his team are doing anything less.
By Ruth Anderah:

Buganda road court has adjourned to January 16th 2018 the fraud case against Social commentator Frank Gashumba and two others, due to an extra ordinary meeting all judicial officers in Uganda are attending at the High court in Kampala.

The communication was made by Senior Principal Magistrate Charles Yeteise as he was adjourning the case on behalf of the trial Chief Magistrate James Eremye Mawanda.

Gashumba and his brother Innocent Kasumba are facing charges of personation, forgery and being in possession of narcotics.

They are also jointly charged with a Tour and travel guide officer from MJ Safaris company Ismail Kiyingi.

The 2 brothers are said to have conspired with Kiyinji to falsely represent themselves as officials from the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs in order to obtain money from 2 Dutch nationals under the guise of offering them contracts to supply trucks , troop carriers, water tanks , and heavy machines among other items to Ministry of Defence.

They also face charges of being in possession of suspected marijuana, a drug under international control.

In other counts both Gashumba and Kasumba are said to have forged Identification cards of Ministry of Defence officials in the names of; Col. Francis Okello, the Director Logistics and Dr John Mwine, the Director Procurement respectively; which forged IDs they allegedly showed to the 2 Dutch nationals.

Apart from the forgery of IDs, the brothers are also charged with the forgery of several stamps of the Republic of South Sudanese ministries including, Agriculture, health, Education, Finance and Transport.
Robert L. Walker, an attorney with the D.C. firm Wiley Rein, is a former chief counsel and staff director of the Senate and House ethics committees.

If Roy Moore wins Tuesday's special election for U.S. Senate in Alabama, after he takes the oath of office the Senate will have the authority to begin an ethics investigation into allegations that Moore engaged in nonconsensual or assaultive sexual conduct going back to the 1960s. No rule or precedent would stand in the way of the Senate investigating and adjudicating the allegations against Moore through its bipartisan Select Committee on Ethics. No rule or precedent would prevent the full Senate from imposing a sanction commensurate with any proven offense. If he is elected and seated, the Senate will have the power  if it chooses to exercise it and if the evidence established through the ethics process supports the outcome  even to expel Moore.

The Senate may not "exclude" Moore  that is, refuse to swear him in and seat him  if he is elected. The Supreme Court stated in Powell v. McCormack in 1969 that, "in judging the qualifications of its members" to be sworn and seated "Congress is limited to the standing qualifications prescribed in the Constitution."

Whether Moore would keep his seat once sworn in would be subject to the Senate's application of a much more open-ended standard of conduct. Any ethics inquiry concerning Moore would examine whether he engaged in "improper conduct which may reflect upon the Senate." This is a flexible, expansive standard applied, as the Senate Ethics Manual states, to improper conduct "so notorious or reprehensible that it could discredit the institution as a whole, not just the individual, thereby invoking the Senate's inherent and constitutional right to protect its own integrity and reputation."

But before senators reach that step, they would have to confront two fundamental questions. First, does the Senate have jurisdiction over pre-Senate conduct? Yes, it does. In the expulsion case of Sen. John Smith in 1808, Sen. John Quincy Adams described the Senate's power to expel as "discretionary" and as being "without any limitation other than that which requires a concurrence of two-thirds of the votes to give it effect." More recently, in 2008, the Senate Ethics Committee addressed a complaint alleging misconduct by Sen. David Vitter prior to his Senate service. The timing of the alleged misconduct was one of several factors in the "totality of the specific circumstances" cited by the Ethics Committee in its public letter dismissing the complaint; but, by also explicitly reserving its right to reopen the case should new evidence arise, the committee was careful not to foreclose its jurisdiction over pre-Senate allegations.

The second, and harder, question is whether the Senate should exercise its ethics authority in a matter where the allegations were known to the voters before they cast their votes. This is where an understanding of regular order in a Senate ethics case becomes essential.

No matter how thoroughly the allegations about Moore have been reported in the media, the factual record put before the public through the press is not as extensive, reliable, credible or tested  from all sides  as the record developed by the Senate Ethics Committee in a preliminary inquiry and, possibly, in a public adjudicatory hearing would be. The Ethics Committee would subpoena all relevant witnesses and materials, and the Senate could compel compliance with these subpoenas through contempt proceedings. Witnesses before the committee  in the non-public preliminary inquiry phase and in any later, trial-like, adjudicatory phase  would be deposed or would testify under oath. Although not foolproof, the power of a potential perjury prosecution to elicit truthful, reliable and complete testimony should not be minimized. At any adjudicatory hearing, witnesses would be subject to exhaustive questioning by committee members and committee counsel; counsel for Moore would have a full opportunity to cross examine each witness.

Finally, the finders of fact in a Senate ethics inquiry  the six members of the Ethics Committee  would have the same exhaustive record before them before deciding whether to charge Moore with any violation and, if the matter gets to the adjudicatory phase, whether any charge is proven by clear and convincing evidence. Among the electorate on Tuesday, the extent and sources of knowledge about the allegations against Moore will vary widely from voter to voter.

If Moore is elected, his fellow senators will have the discretionary authority and power to commence ethics proceedings against him as soon as he takes his seat among them.
DESPITE PRESIDENT TRUMPS tough talk about deporting millions of bad hombres, the overwhelming majority of illegal immigrants in the United States have no criminal record. That poses a quandary for deportation agents who, prodded by the administration to get tough, have intensified the pace at which they round up not just criminal undocumented immigrants, but law-abiding ones as well.

Of roughly 143,000 unauthorized immigrants living in the United States who were arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30  a 30 percent increase over the previous year  more than a quarter had no criminal convictions. As for those who had been convicted, most were guilty of non-violent charges including drug, traffic and immigration offenses such as re-entering the country after deportation.

Many Americans may feel little compunction about ferreting out illegal immigrants with criminal records, but what of the tens of thousands convicted of no crime or never even arrested for one? Remember: Most unauthorized immigrants (excepting those arrested at the border) have been living in the United States for at least 15 years, and large numbers have spouses, children and other relatives who are citizens.

The presidents hard-line posture is likely to play well with his base; its not going to fundamentally change the scale of illegal immigrants living in this country. Excluding illegal border-crossers picked up at the Southwest frontier and quickly removed, about 82,000 illegal immigrants were deported in the past year, a 25 percent increase from 2016 but not enough to make a big dent in the 11 million who remain in the United States.

What's more significant is the apparent decline in attempted illegal border crossings, as measured by Border Patrol apprehensions, which, at 310,000 in fiscal 2017, hit a 46-year low. Fewer apprehensions mean fewer illegal crossing attempts. That's a good thing, reflecting, most recently, Mr. Trump's campaign rhetoric, as well as the continuation of a long-term decline since 2000, when apprehensions exceeded 1.6 million. During that period, economic conditions have improved inside Mexico and the Border Patrol has doubled its number of agents.

The broader dysfunction in America's immigration system remains largely unchanged. Federal immigration courts are grappling with a backlog of some 600,000 cases, an epic logjam. The administration wants to more than double the number of the 300 or so immigration judges, but that will take time. And its recent moves to evaluate judges based on the speed with which they handle dockets that typically exceed 2,000 cases, rather than on fair adjudication, is a recipe for assembly-line injustice.

Mr. Trump's campaign bluster on deportation was detached from reality. He said he'd quickly deport 2 million or 3 million criminal illegal immigrants, but unless he's counting parking scofflaws and jaywalkers, he won't find that many "bad hombres" on the loose. In fact, legal and illegal immigrants are much less likely to end up in jail than U.S. citizens, according to a study by the Cato Institute.

The presidents sound and fury on deportation signify little. He has intensified arrests, disrupting settled and productive lives, families and communities  but to what end? Only an overhaul of Americas broken immigration system offers the prospect of a more lasting fix.
The Supreme Court passed up a chance Monday to decide whether federal workplace protections on sex discrimination extend to sexual orientation.

The question has divided lower courts and presidential administrations, as well. When Barack Obama was president, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said gay workers were covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. But the Trump administration has said the language of the law is more restricted, covering gender but not sexual orientation.

It seems clear that the Supreme Court at some point will have to settle the issue. But the case at hand, involving a lesbian who worked as a hospital security officer in Georgia, had procedural problems that some argued made it a troublesome test case for the issue.

The justices did not explain their reasoning, which is common.

By declining to hear this case, the Supreme Court is delaying the inevitable and leaving a split in the [circuit courts] that will cause confusion across the country, said Greg Nevins, employment fairness project director for Lambda Legal, which represented Jameka Evans. Its unfortunate that the Supreme Court has refused to join us today, but we will continue to invite them to do the right thing and end this hurtful balkanization of the right of LGBT people to be out at work.

[Sexual-harassment debate advances an issue  and confuses it]

Evans sued officials at Georgia Regional Hospital at Savannah, a psychiatric facility, in 2015. Among other allegations, she said her superior tried to force her to quit because she wore a male uniform.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit sided with the hospital, noting that the Supreme Court has never ruled on whether the law protected sexual orientation.

But the case had proceeded in an unusual fashion. The hospital said it was never properly served in the case and would not participate. Evans filed the initial complaint herself, without benefit of counsel. The Georgia attorney generals office has opposed Evanss complaint.

The 11th Circuit ruling against Evans was at odds with that of another of the regional appeals courts. The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Chicago ruled that Title VII does cover LGBT workers. The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York is also hearing a case that raises the question.

The case the Supreme Court turned down is Evans v. Georgia Regional Hospital.
Greece's defence minister Panos Kammenos (3rd from left) and Russia's president Vladimir Putin review an honor guard during an arrival ceremony at the Athens Airport. (Alexei Druzhinin/TASS)

A brass band played, fighter jets streaked the clear blue sky and a red carpet adorned the airport tarmac on the day in May 2016 when Vladimir Putin came to Athens for a visit.

"Mr. President, welcome to Greece," the Greek defense minister, Panos Kammenos, said in Russian as he smiled broadly and greeted a stone-faced Putin at the base of the stairs from the plane.

Kammenos, a pro-Russian Greek nationalist who bragged often of his insider Moscow connections, would receive a second key visitor that day, but with considerably less fanfare.

Not yet 30 years old, George Papadopoulos had been unknown in Greece  and everywhere else  only two months before.

But suddenly, just as Putin arrived, he was in Athens, quietly holding meetings across town and confiding in hushed tones that he was there on a sensitive mission on behalf of his boss, Donald Trump.

This October, Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his extensive efforts to connect Trump's presidential campaign with senior Russian officials. Trump has since dismissed Papadopoulos as a "low level volunteer."

But in his ancestral homeland, the man whom Trump had named in March 2016 as one of five top foreign policy advisers and an "excellent guy" was regarded as a critical interlocutor, first to the Trump campaign and later to the incoming Trump White House.

He may have carried on like a second-rate actor in a political thriller, as one acquaintance described his manner. But when he bragged that he had helped Trump win the presidency, many here believed it.

Before his spectacular fall, he was lavishly wined and dined by local business kingpins, celebrated in official tweets and rewarded with the perks  judge in an island beauty contest  of a favorite Greek son.

He also received access to officials at the highest levels of the Greek government, many of whom shared links to Russia and sympathies that would be unusual in other Western capitals. Kammenos, in particular, stood out both for his pro-Russian views and his determination to forge a bond with the young Trump adviser.

Although Papadopoulos's plea deal focused on his contacts with an obscure and mysterious Maltese professor who claimed Russian ties, Greek politicians and analysts say his best and most obvious path to Moscow would have run through Athens.

If I were in his shoes, I would have thought, Can my Greek friends help me make the Moscow connection?  said Thanos Dokos, director general of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy. It would make sense.



George Papadopoulos's booking photograph taken after his arrest at the Alexandria Detention Center in Virginia on July 28. (Alexandria Sheriffs Office)

Whether thats how it happened may be a subject for special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who continues to investigate possible collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government to influence last years presidential election. Former national security adviser Michael Flynns Dec. 1 guilty plea  also for lying to the FBI, about Russia  suggests that Mueller is looking at an array of possibilities.

But in Greece, the connection between the officials Papadopoulos cultivated and his vigorously pursued campaign objective  to build up relations with the Kremlin, and ideally broker a meeting between Putin and Trump  is hard to miss.

The son of Greek immigrants who was raised in Chicago, Papadopoulos had a thin resume that was full of exaggerations, including a nonexistent stint at Model United Nations. But during a meeting with The Washington Posts editorial board in March 2016, Trump named him as one of five foreign policy advisers.

At the time, the Republican front-runner had been largely abandoned by the partys foreign policy establishment and was under pressure to produce his team, having previously said his top foreign policy adviser was myself.

Even in the relatively intimate world of Greek and Greek American international relations experts, Papadopoulos was a mystery. The few who had met him said he was earnest  he showed up to casual get-togethers in suit and tie  and ambitious. His aim, he told associates, was to get a job on a U.S. presidential campaign and to work in the White House.

But he was also very green.

Dokos, who heads one of the most prominent Greek foreign policy think tanks, said he met Papadopoulos because he was the assistant to a researcher with the Washington-based Hudson Institute who was conducting interviews in Athens.

He was basically serving as the note taker, Dokos said.

Less than two years later, after a short stint with the Ben Carson campaign, Papadopoulos was in Washington to meet Trump and join the team of the man who would become Americas 45th president.

As it happened, Kammenos was in Washington the same day, for a meeting of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

The Greek defense minister had largely been shunned by the Obama White House for his bombastic rhetoric  he once threatened to unleash a wave of jihadists on Berlin if the European Union did not back off its austerity demands  and for his Moscow links.

Throughout the worst of Greeces economic crisis, Kammenos had been outspoken in arguing that the country could pivot to Russia for help if negotiations with Europe turned sour.

He also pushed for an end to sanctions imposed on Russia, championed a plan for Russia and Greece to jointly manufacture Kalashnikov assault rifles and befriended a number of influential Moscow players, including the wealthy Greek Russian businessman and politician Ivan Savvidis.

Hes been one of the strongest Putin supporters in Greece, said Adonis Georgiadis, vice president of Greeces center-right New Democracy party.

Greece, an E.U. and NATO member, has a long-standing strain of its geopolitics that looks east to Russia rather than to the West.

But Kammenos, leader of the right-wing Independent Greeks, was also eager to improve his ties to Washington. Perhaps sensing that would be unlikely under a President Hillary Clinton, he became one of the few senior government ministers in Europe to enthusiastically back Trump.

And that support extended to Papadopoulos, whom Kammenos publicly embraced on social media and introduced around town during late spring 2016.

Papadopoulos was totally unknown. But then Kammenos took him by the hand and promoted him everywhere, Georgiadis said.

In short order, Papadopoulos had soon had meetings not only with the defense minister, but also with Greeces foreign minister, its president and a former prime minister  a remarkable level of access for such a young aide.

All are considered relatively pro-Russian. At the time of the meetings, internal Trump campaign documents show that Papadopoulos was working aggressively to connect with senior Russian officials and was hoping to broker a meeting between Putin and Trump.

It is not known whether Papadopoulos met any members of Putins entourage in May 2016, when both were in Athens and the president was accompanied by his foreign minister, plus state oil and gas executives. But Georgiadis said he believed that Kammenos would have been able to put the two sides in touch  and had good reason to do so.

He would have wanted to show Papadopoulos that he had good ties with the Russians and he would have wanted to show the Russians that he had good contacts with the Americans, Georgiadis said.

Kammenos did not respond to requests to be interviewed for this article. Attorneys for Papadopoulos said they would not comment on his meetings with Greek officials.

Others who met with Papadopoulos around that time described him as acting as though he were on a secret mission, refusing to confirm the location of meetings until half an hour before they began.

"Every so often, he would lower his voice so as not to be overheard or drop hints of major contacts," Alexis Papachelas, editor of the well-regarded Greek daily Kathimerini, later wrote of his meeting with Papadopoulos.

Kammenos was not Papadopouloss only important link to Greek power circles. Soon after Papadopoulos was named to Trumps campaign, he reached out to the Rev. Alex Karloutsos, a senior official with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and an influential player in the Greek American community.

Karloutsos, who said he has visited the Oval Office under every president since Jimmy Carter, helped Papadopoulos make some early contacts in Greece.

But he soon noticed that the young adviser was prone to exaggerating his own importance as a conduit to Trump. He was also troubled by Papadopouloss reaction to his swift transformation from an outsider hungering for insider connections to a player the insiders all wanted to know.

Papadopoulos, Karloutsos said, lapped up the perks of being romanced by the Greek business and political elite.

He was caught up in the euphoria. No one knew me, then everybody knew me,  Karloutsos said. He loved being in the limelight.

The glare grew many times brighter after Trumps surprise victory. Within hours, Kammenos tweeted his congratulations to the president-elect  along with a picture of Papadopoulos and a note saying the young Greek American was now important for Greece.

When Papadopoulos returned to Greece the next month, he told Marianna Kakaounaki, an investigative reporter for Kathimerini, that he had a blank check for any job he wanted in the Trump administration because of his services to the campaign.

Everyone knows I helped him [get] elected, now I want to help him with the presidency, Papadopoulos boasted in a text message.

When prominent Greeks and Greek Americans gathered at Washingtons Metropolitan Club for a party the night before Trumps inauguration, Kammenos and Papadopoulos were both there to celebrate.

Eight days later, Papadopoulos was interviewed by the FBI  and lied, according to his plea agreement, about the timing and nature of his interaction with the Maltese professor. There would be no White House job. In both Athens and Washington, Papadopoulos virtually disappeared from view.

But he became a frequent guest on Mykonos, the Greek island thats a paradise for the well-heeled.

During the late spring and into the summer, locals said he was a regular if discreet visitor at the islands poshest clubs. He judged a beauty contest  watching impassively as bikini-clad contestants marched by  and onlookers at the clubs described him as partying hard and spending freely.

He didnt say where he got the money, said one witness to an expensive night of revelry. He just told us he worked for the Trump administration.

Papadopouloss lawyers, Thomas Breen and Robert Stanley, disputed the descriptions of their clients behavior on Mykonos. Like many of the unflattering statements made by those who have an agenda to discredit George, those statements are flat-out lies, they said.

By midsummer, Papadopoulos was telling people on Mykonos that he had grown disenchanted with the United States and planned to settle permanently in Greece.

But on July 27, he flew to Dulles International Airport and was arrested by federal agents upon arrival.

He soon began cooperating with Muellers investigation in return for a sentence sharply reduced from the five years in prison that he could have faced for lying to the FBI.

His whereabouts afterward are not known. In mid-October, Kammenos visited Chicago, Papadopouloss home town, as the defense minister traveled the United States with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. At the White House, Kammenos beamed as he extended a hand to greet Trump.

On Oct. 30, Papadopoulos's plea was made public. Since then, Greek officials have largely avoided talking about him.

Karloutsos, the priest, said he called and emailed Papadopoulos to express concern but never heard back. He now lights a candle each Sunday for the 30-year-old.

Papadopouloss story, he said, is an old one.

The Greeks create their gods, then they destroy them, Karloutsos said. Its called hubris. Its called an Icarus complex.

He flew too close to the sun.

Elinda Labropoulou in Athens and Tom Hamburger in Washington contributed to this report.

Read more

Trump calls Papadopoulos a young, low level volunteer

Trump questions need for NATO, outlines noninterventionist foreign policy

Is there more than meets the eye with the professor at the center of the Trump-Russia probe? Or less?

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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By Benjamin Jumbe:

The government chief whip Ruth Nankabirwa has scoffed at the oppositions plans to frustrate amendment of article 102b of the constitution.

This comes as the opposition starts the Togikwatako week in which various activities have been lined up all aimed at failing the lifting of the age limit.

Now Nankabirwa says all actions by the opposition are merely for accountability to those funding their campaigns

She argues that laws are made within and not outside parliament challenging opposition legislators to be ready to battle it out on the floor.
Thousands of Hezbollah supporters joined a fiery rally in Beirut on Monday as the movement's leader urged Palestinians to rise up after President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

Demonstrators packed the streets of Beiruts southern suburbs in a carefully managed march. Crowds chanted Death to America, death to Israel! and waved Palestinian and Hezbollah flags.

Israels military, meanwhile, reported that two rockets were fired at its territory from the Gaza Strip on Monday, the third volley since Trump said last week that he would break with decades of U.S. foreign policy to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital. That announcement has sparked protests across the Arab world.

[Trump recognizes Jerusalem as Israeli capital in reversal of U.S. policy]

Hundreds of protesters clashed with Lebanese security forces near the U.S. Embassy in Beirut on Sunday, hurling rocks and bottles toward the compound as the army beat back the crowd using tear gas and water cannons.



AFP/Getty Images (-)

But so far, more-serious violence has not materialized, and Palestinian concerns about Jerusalem have failed to energize most Arab governments. Many leaders here seem more focused on conflicts in Syria, Yemen and elsewhere that are roiling the region.

Addressing the crowd Monday via video link, Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah described Trumps policy change as a foolish decision that would mark the beginning of the end of the Jewish state.

The most important response will be to announce a third Palestinian intifada on all occupied Palestinian territories, he said, using an Arabic term that evokes earlier uprisings.

[The many casualties of Trumps Jerusalem move]

Lebanon harbors more than 500,000 Palestinian refugees, many of whom fled their homes in what is now Israel and the West Bank during the wars of 1948 and 1967. The Lebanese state has never formally recognized their status as refugees, and Palestinians are barred from dozens of professions.

Sitting on the sidewalk during Nasrallahs speech Thursday was Alia Shahata, born in 1948 to parents who she said left Palestinian territories after being expelled from their home.

Trump is humiliating all Arabs with his decision, she said. My family has no rights here in Lebanon. Our boys all work on coffee stalls inside the refugee camp. Know that we would all go back to Palestinian territories tomorrow if we could.

As she spoke, a group of boys no older than 10 posed for photographs in the street, dressed in military fatigues and raising their hands in Hezbollah salutes. Founded in response to Israels 1982 invasion of Lebanon, Hezbollah, a Shiite militia backed by Iran, has also played a key role in turning the tide of Syrias civil war in favor of President Bashar al-Assad.

[For Trump, Jerusalem is extension of global culture war]

Trumps decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital has drawn widespread condemnation from allies around the world, many of whom had seen the citys eventual status as a matter to be settled in a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Monday that the 28-member bloc delivered a clear and united message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a visit to Brussels, and that the only realistic solution is for two states, with Jerusalem as their shared capital.

She rejected Netanyahus public statement that he expects European nations to follow the U.S. lead and move their embassies as well. He can keep his expectations for others, she said.

In his speech, Netanyahu said Trump had put facts on the table with the recognition of Jerusalem, which he said makes peace possible by recognizing reality.

[Who supports Trump on Jerusalem? Europes anti-Islam politicians.]

But at home in Israel, the fallout continued with the rocket attacks from Gaza.

The Israeli military said it was not sure whether the first rocket reached its territory but responded by bombing two Hamas military posts. No casualties were reported in the exchange.

Hours later a second rocket was fired, the roar of the launch audible from Gaza City, indicating that it may have had a larger payload. The rocket was intercepted by Israels Iron Dome defense system in the region of Ashkelon. Shortly afterward, bombing could be heard in Gaza. The Israeli military said it had targeted Hamas military posts in northern Gaza.

The rocket fire came just hours after Iranian media reported that Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Irans elite Quds Force, had reaffirmed support for the Gaza militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas during phone calls with their military leaders.

He urged all resistance movements in the region to boost their readiness to defend the al-Aqsa Mosque, Press TV reported, referring to the Jerusalem mosque.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also spoke with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Monday, it said.

No one immediately asserted responsibility for the rocket fire, but Israeli officials say they hold Hamas responsible for all such firings from Gaza.

Hamas has called for an uprising against Israel in the wake of the Jerusalem announcement. Two of its militants were killed after Israel responded to rocket fire last week, while two protesters who Israel said were rolling burning tires and throwing rocks were also fatally shot near the border.

Loveday Morris in Jerusalem and Hazem Balousha in Gaza City contributed to this report.

Read more:

Lebanese security forces clash with protesters near U.S. Embassy in Beirut

In Jerusalem, Trumps speech sparks scenes of joy, outrage

Its catastrophic: U.S. allies reject Trumps Jerusalem pronouncement

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
Five months before North Koreas first nuclear test in 2006, U.S. intelligence officials sent a report to Congress warning that secret work also was underway on a biological weapon. The communist regime, which had long ago acquired the pathogens that cause smallpox and anthrax, had assembled teams of scientists but seemed to be lacking in certain technical skills, the report said.

"Pyongyang's resources presently include a rudimentary biotechnology infrastructure," the report by the director of national intelligence explained.

A decade later, the technical hurdles appear to be falling away. North Korea is moving steadily to acquire the essential machinery that could potentially be used for an advanced bioweapons program, from factories that can produce microbes by the ton, to laboratories specializing in genetic modification, according to U.S. and Asian intelligence officials and weapons experts.

Meanwhile, leader Kim Jong Uns government also is dispatching its scientists abroad to seek advanced degrees in microbiology, while offering to sell biotechnology services to the developing world.

The gains have alarmed U.S. analysts, who say North Korea  which has doggedly pursued weapons of mass destruction of every other variety  could quickly surge into industrial-scale production of biological pathogens if it chooses to do so. Such a move could give the regime yet another fearsome weapon with which to threaten neighbors or U.S. troops in a future conflict, officials and analysts say.

Current and former U.S. officials with access to classified files say they have seen no hard evidence so far that Kim has ordered production of actual weapons, beyond samples and prototypes. And they can only speculate about the reasons.

That the North Koreans have [biological] agents is known, by various means, said one senior U.S. official familiar with military preparations for a biological attack. The official, like several others interviewed, spoke on the condition of anonymity regarding sensitive military assessments. The lingering question is, why have they acquired the materials and developed the science, but not yet produced weapons?

[This North Korea ship was carrying illegal weapons  and a surprise]

But the official, like others interviewed, also acknowledged that spy agencies might not detect a change in North Koreas program, since the new capabilities are embedded within civilian factories ostensibly engaged in making agricultural and pharmaceutical products.

If it started tomorrow we might not know it, the official said, unless were lucky enough to have an informant who happens to be in just the right place.

Germ factory

In a country that is famously secretive, it is perhaps the most carefully guarded secret of all. North Korea consistently denies having a biological warfare program of any kind, and it has worked diligently to keep all evidence of weapons research hidden from sight.

Yet, in 2015, the countrys leader took it upon himself to partially pull back the curtain. On June 6 of that year, Kim commandeered a crew of North Korean cameramen for a visit to the newly named Pyongyang Biotechnical Institute, a sprawling, two-story facility on the grounds of what used to be a vitamin factory.

State-run news media described the institute as a factory for making biological pesticides  mainly, live bacteria that can kill the worms and caterpillars that threaten North Koreas cabbage crop. But to U.S. analysts studying the video, the images provided an unexpected jolt: On display inside the military-run facility were rooms jammed with expensive equipment, including industrial-scale fermenters used for growing bulk quantities of live microbes, and large dryers designed to turn billions of bacterial spores into a fine powder for easy dispersal.

Many of the machines were banned from sale to North Korea under international sanctions because of their possible use in a bioweapons program. But Kim, wearing a white lab coat and trailed by a phalanx of scientists and military officers, appeared almost gleeful in showing them off, striking the same rapt pose as when he visits the countrys installations for nuclear weapons and long-range missiles.

[Assassination sheds light on North Koreas chemical arsenal]

It was the first public confirmation of the existence of such machines in North Korea, and some U.S. and Asian experts saw their presence as deeply ominous.

"It is hard to avoid the conclusion that the institute is intended to produce military-size batches of anthrax," Melissa Hanham, a North Korea specialist at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, Calif., wrote in a blog post after the video was shown. "Regardless of whether the equipment is being used to produce anthrax today, it could be in the near future."

U.S. analysts now believe the timing of the visit was deliberate: The previous week, on May 28, the Pentagon had publicly acknowledged that live samples of U.S.-made anthrax bacteria had been accidentally shipped to a South Korean military base because of a lab mix-up. North Korea lodged a formal complaint with the United Nations on June 4, calling the incident proof of American biological warfare schemes against its citizens.

Kims trip to the biotechnology institute came just two days later, and was clearly intended to send a message, Hanham said in an interview.

Responding by showing their own capability could be taken as a threat, she said.

Some weapons experts were skeptical, noting the absence of biohazard suits and protective gear typically found in laboratories that work with deadly pathogens. But since the release of the images, subsequent examinations have poked holes in the official story about the factorys purpose. For one thing, some of the machines shown in the video were not visibly connected to any pipes, vents or ductwork. Experts also have questioned why North Korea would buy expensive industrial equipment at black-market rates, just to make a pesticide that can be purchased legally, at vastly cheaper rates, from China.

"The real takeaway is that [North Korea] had the dual-use equipment necessary for bioweapons production," said Andrew C. Weber, a former assistant secretary of defense for nuclear, chemical and biological defense programs. "What the photos show is a modern bio-production capability."

Waiting for orders

That North Korea possesses the basic components for biological weapons is all but settled doctrine within U.S. and Asian military and intelligence establishments, and has been for years.

Although overshadowed by Pyongyang's nuclear and chemical weapons, the threat of biological attack from the North is regarded as sufficiently serious that the Pentagon routinely vaccinates all Korea-bound troops for exposure to anthrax and smallpox.

Its a presumption that they have it and will use it, said a retired military officer who oversaw troops on the peninsula. Weve had to spend a lot of time figuring out how to deal with some of the WMD.

But determining North Koreas precise capabilities  and the regimes intentions for using such weapons  has been among the toughest intelligence challenges for U.S. analysts. Official assessments by U.S. and South Korean intelligence agencies have generally concluded that Pyongyang has experimented with a handful of bacterial strains, including the microbes that cause anthrax, cholera and plague. U.S. analysts also have believed since at least the mid-1990s that North Korea possesses the smallpox virus, a conclusion based in part on the discovery of antibodies in the bloodstreams of North Korean soldiers who escaped to the South in the 1980s and 1990s.

[Amazing video shows North Korean soldiers flight across border]

That assessment, while controversial, is buttressed by senior North Korean government and military defectors as well as foreign governments with special insight into the regimes military secrets. In 1993, the head of the Russian intelligence agencys foreign branch revealed in a report that North Korea was performing applied military-biological research on four pathogens, including microbes that cause anthrax and smallpox.

But more recently, questions about North Koreas capability have taken on a new urgency, as military planners prepare for the possibility that tensions with Pyongyang could lead to war. While U.S. and South Korean aircraft would seek to knock out suspected chemical and biological facilities from the air, the newest plans include a presumption that infantry divisions would have to face an array of chemical and biological hazards on the battlefield  hazards that may be invisible to fast-moving ground troops, current and former U.S. officials say.

But germs as military weapons also have distinct disadvantages, as they are difficult to control and can take hours or days to kill or disable. A consensus view among military planners is that Kim is choosing to hold his bioweapons card in reserve for now, while his scientists build up a capacity to manufacture large quantities of pathogens quickly. Now that the North is equipped with state-of-the-art factories and teams of trained specialists, that shift could conceivably happen in weeks or even days, the senior official said.

The capabilities  the science and technology  all of that now exists, the official said. Kim has chosen not to deploy at this time. But ultimately it comes down to a political decision.

Unlocking DNA secrets

In the waning years of the Cold War, Soviet weapons scientists labored in secret to build new super-germs more dangerous than those found in nature. With mixed success, using techniques still novel in the 1980s, they spliced together bits of DNA to increase virulence  so that microbes would kill more quickly  or to introduce stealthy features that would make them harder to detect.

There is no known evidence that Pyongyang is working to engineer designer bugs, U.S. analysts say. But there are signs that North Korea is attempting to catapult itself into the 21st-century worlds of genetic research and biomedical science.

In 2015, as North Korea's new microbe-producing factory was coming online, North Korean scientists were teaming up with Chinese counterparts on a research project to identify previously unknown bacterial species discovered in the glacial ice in Svalbard, the Norway-owned island chain far north of the Arctic Circle. In a rare instance in which North Koreans took the lead on a peer-reviewed scientific paper, the scientists described using DNA sequencing techniques to isolate the novel strains. The North Korean role in the project was first cited in an October report by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University.

[New images show extensive network on North Korean re-education camps]

The project was the most dramatic example of what private researchers describe as a surge of interest by North Koreans in genetic engineering and other biotech disciplines. Earlier this year, the Welsh artificial intelligence firm Amplyfi conducted a search of the deep Web  the parts of the Internet invisible to the public  for evidence of North Korean interest in biodefense topics. The companys DataVoyant search tool produced hundreds of thousands of hits and showed a spike in interest in such terms as gene expression and nucleic acid sequence, beginning two years ago.

A preliminary analysis suggested a pattern of behavior that U.S. and Asian officials have independently confirmed: a broad North Korean effort to obtain outside expertise from private companies, academic institutions and even nonprofits, company officials said. North Korea is believed to have used technical designs from a British agricultural nonprofit in building its microbe-producing Pyongyang Biotechnical Institute, and it has sought to enroll promising microbiology students in top research universities across Europe and Asia. In recent years, the North Koreans also have sought to sell medical services to the developing world, in one instance building and staffing an entire hospital in Zambia.

Every continent is represented, Amplyfi co-founder Chris Ganje said in a phone interview from the companys headquarters in Cardiff, Wales. He said the search turned up worrying indicators of unintended support, adding: It is obvious that the international community and larger institutions need to be cautious in providing seemingly benign academic scientific education and training to North Korea.

A harder challenge is separating legitimate efforts to improve North Koreas medical infrastructure with more sinister attempts to a create new varieties of killing machines, officials and experts acknowledge. Joseph DeTrani, a retired CIA veteran who oversaw intelligence collection for North Korea in the 2000s, noted that ambiguity has been a built-in feature of North Korean weapons programs for decades.

They talk openly about their nuclear deterrent, but with chemical and biological weapons, its different, DeTrani said. Theyve always played it close to the vest. For them, its a real option. But they want to preserve the possibility of deniability.

This post has been updated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin exhibited his growing diplomatic clout with a lightning tour through the Middle East on Monday, surprising Russian troops with his first visit to a Russian air base in Syria before skipping across the region to discuss bilateral ties in Cairo and Ankara.

Along the way, he announced a withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, presided over the signing of a $21 billion plan to build a nuclear power plant in Egypt, and called President Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel counterproductive and destabilizing, a criticism he leveled without mentioning Trump by name.

The decision could provoke conflict, he said during a news conference following a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi.

Putin, who declared last week that he would run for a fourth term as president, has largely staked his legacy on Russias revival as the dominant military power in its region and a counterweight to the West in the Middle East. His tour to shore up bilateral ties comes at a time when U.S. policy in the Middle East is in flux, amid Trumps decision on Jerusalem and apparent support for the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia, as well as growing questions about the future role and mission of the U.S. military in Syria.

The trip began with a surprise visit to Russias Khmeimim air base in Syria, where Putin announced an imminent drawdown of Russian forces in the wake of his declaration of victory in Moscows intervention in the Syrian war. Russian warplanes secretly flew to Syria in late 2015. It was Putins first known visit to Syria.

At the air base, Putin ordered his defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, to begin the withdrawal of Russian troop contingents to their permanent bases.

But he left open the door to a continued Russian presence in Syria, saying that Russias air base at Khmeimim and naval base at Tartus would keep operating. He promised further strikes if terrorists raise their head again  an apparent reference to forces in Syrias long civil war that sought to topple the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

We will deliver such strikes on them that they have not seen yet, he told military personnel at the air base in remarks carried by Russian news services.

Russias military intervention in Syria bolstered Assads government and gave Syrian forces a critical edge against rebel factions backed by the West and its Middle Eastern allies. Iran, another key supporter of Assad, provided military advisers and other aid.

[A Putin-Assad embrace launches Russias new peace bid for Syria]

U.S. defense officials cast doubt Monday on Putins announcement of a troop withdrawal. Similar pronouncements in the past  including one in March 2016 and another in January  dont often correspond with actual troop reductions, said Col. Rob Manning, a Defense Department spokesman.

The speech to the troops also had the whiff of a reelection campaign at times.

"You are victorious, and you are going home to your families, parents, wives, children and friends," Putin told pilots at the air base. "The fatherland is waiting for you, my friends. Have a safe trip home. I am grateful for your service."

The deployment of troops to Syria marked Moscows first major overseas military campaign since the invasion of Afghanistan in late 1979 under the Soviet Union. In July, Russia extended its lease of the Khmeimim air base for 49 years, giving Moscow a military foothold in the region for generations.

Putin met at the air base with Assad, whose regime appeared close to defeat in the summer of 2015 before the Russian intervention. At the time, it appeared that Assad would be forced to step down.

I have come, as I promised, Putin told him. While hailing the fall of the Islamic State, Putin also noted the rebuke to Western plans in the region. Syria has been preserved as a sovereign independent state, he said.

Putin has been eager to declare the intervention a victory, and his March 2016 drawdown announcement came as Syrian troops backed by Russian air power and special forces made a final push to recapture the ancient Roman city of Palmyra.

Western leaders were skeptical that Russia would pull back its troops, and Russian forces later played a key role in the race by pro-government forces to retake territory ahead of the Islamic State's eventual collapse.

The intervention has showcased much of Russia's military might: new warplanes, helicopters and warships, as well as cruise missiles fired from the Caspian Sea. It has come at the cost of more than 40 Russian soldiers killed, according to official statistics. The deaths of a similar number of military contractors have been reported by Russian journalists.

In Cairo, Putin met with Sissi and discussed the conflicts in Syria and Libya, a possible resumption of direct air travel after a 2015 terrorist attack aboard a Russian charter jet, and Trump's decision on Jerusalem. The contract signed during a meeting between Putin and the Egyptian president calls for the construction and a supply of nuclear fuel for Egypt's Dabaa power plant, scheduled to begin operating in 2026. Russia has also signed agreements to build nuclear plants in Turkey and Jordan. Russia finished construction on Iran's Bushehr nuclear power station  a project begun by a German firm under the shah  and opened it in 2011.

Putin arrived in Ankara, Turkey, on Monday evening for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The leaders discussed developments in Syria and elsewhere in the region as well as relations between their countries, Turkish officials said.

Alex Horton in Washington contributed to this report.

Read more:

The Syrian war is far from over. But the endgame is already playing out.

Trump administration pushes back against narrative of Assad win in Syria war

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
A portrait of The Duke of Edinburgh set in the Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle has been released to mark his retirement from public engagements.

Prince Philip announced in May that he would be stepping down from public engagements and carried out his final duty at Buckingham Palace in August.

The portrait, by Australian born artist Ralph Heimans, has been produced for display at the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle in Denmark.

His Royal Highness was born a Prince of Denmark and his ancestry spans both the British and Danish Royal Families.

In the portrait, The Duke of Edinburgh is depicted wearing the sash of the Order of the Elephant - Denmark's highest-ranking honour.

Windsor Castle holds special significance in regard to Prince Philips ancestry. At the end of the Grand Corridor is the Tapestry Room where His Royal Highness' mother, Princess Alice, and maternal grandmother, Princess Victoria were born.

Their Royal Highnesses both also appear in the painting that hangs on the right side of the Grand Corridor, in the company of Queen Victoria.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipegs real estate market has seen a record-setting year in 2017, with 44 $1-million-plus, single-family homes sold, according to data provided by Century 21 Canada.

Thats up from 32 the previous year, and just 16 in 2015.

With three weeks left in the calendar year, real estate agents say that figure could still rise.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Alison Diacos, Century 21 Bachman & Associates real estate agent, with a home that she recently sold which is one of 44 $1-million-plus home sales in the city in 2017, and one of three in which Diacos has been involved.

When you look at it, Winnipeg is a great city right now, said Alison Diacos, a real estate agent with Century 21 Bachman & Associates.

So, its not a surprise that were selling high-end housing. Market-wise, were affordable, and theres selection.

That doesnt just associate itself with the average house price  it associates with all prices of homes.

A two-year veteran of the real estate business, Diacos has been involved in three of the 44 sales of $1-million-plus homes this year.

Going back two decades to 1997, only four $1-million-plus homes were sold in Winnipeg. The 44 sold this year represent a 1,000 per cent increase.

Over that same time period, the average price for a home in Winnipeg has more than tripled.

Despite the rise in real-estate prices, Winnipeg remains an attractive destination for people looking to purchase a home, since the city avoids the boom-and-bust cycle associated with the more volatile markets of places such as Vancouver and Toronto.

What that means is someone making a large investment into property doesnt have to worry their home will see a significant drop in value from one year to the next.

Winnipeg has demonstrated stability over the 31 years Ive been in the business. Its been very stable. Boom-and-bust does not happen in Winnipeg, said Roger Burns, one of the owners of Century 21 Bachman & Associates.

This is one of the safest places in Canada to make a sizeable investment in your future. Our economy is as bulletproof as you can hope for.

That stability not only translates into Winnipeggers buying high-end homes, such as the 44 $1-million-plus sold so far this year, but also proves an attractive option for people out of province looking for safe investments and bang for their buck.

According to Burns, his office does a lot of business with people relocating to Winnipeg from across the country.

The equity they might have earned in Toronto, Calgary or Vancouver, suddenly they can not only own a really nice home, but also a cottage, and lead a more stress free life, while making the same salary they could elsewhere in Canada, he said.

They are astounded to discover the quality of life in Winnipeg is so high  the richness of the home life, the community, the recreation, the property.

In addition, a Century 21 Canada study indicated that Winnipeg is the most lucrative large city in the country for first-time home buyers.

When it comes to expensiveness, Winnipeg ranks behind Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto and Calgary.

In terms of the clients Diacos deals with, she said she sees a large variety of people looking to make purchases in the city.

Young people are moving back here. When you cant afford to have the lifestyle you want in other parts of the country, you look to Winnipeg and think, We can do it all here, she said.

But my clients are also people who are tied into our community.

They have great confidence and affection for Winnipeg, so why shouldnt they spend their money here?

Its a great place to raise kids. Its a great place to excel professionally. Market wise were affordable. Theres selection.

The record-setting year for the sale of high-end homes is reflected in the ever-growing million-dollar club at Century 21 Bachman & Associates  which recognizes all brokers whove sold a home worth at least $1 million.

In 1996, owner and broker Gary Bachman sold their first $1-million home.

It would be seven years before someone else would match that feat.

Today, they have more than 32 brokers in the million dollar club.

And according to Burns, that number will undoubtedly continue to rise next year.

Weve consistently had a lot of activity, and market share in the $1-million-plus homes. Our activity has gone up quite a bit and theres a great deal of concentration and positioning in that market place, he said.

With these types of homes across Winnipeg, weve seen the interest.

The number of showings at homes of this nature has been building and building over the years. So we expect this trend to continue.

Know of any newsworthy development in the local office, retail, industrial or multi-family-residential sectors? Let us know at fpbusiness@freepress.mb.ca

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you talk to Gordon Kowalchuk about volunteering with Operation Red Nose, expect to hear him use one phrase repeatedly: Its fun.

Some people might have a perception that the people who use Operation Red Nose are fall-down drunk, Kowalchuk says. The vast majority, however, are people who have been out celebrating, have had just a bit too much to drink and know its probably not safe for them to drive.

People are happy, the 56-year-old says. We share a lot of laughs, and typically, when we get the people home, they are very grateful. They shake our hands or ask us, Can I give you a hug? Thats special.

Kowalchuk began volunteering with the holiday season road-safety program, which sees volunteers help drivers who feel they may be impaired get themselves and their cars home safely, more than a decade ago.

At the time, an injury had sidelined Kowalchuk from his work as an RCMP officer.

I thought if I cant work, I can give back to the community by doing something on a volunteer basis, he says.

The La Salle resident is one of 600 people who will volunteer with Red Nose in Winnipeg this season.

The program, which is free to use, began operating on Nov. 24 and will continue each weekend until New Years Eve.

Prior to his retirement, Kowalchuk worked in traffic services with the RCMPs Headingley detachment. As a result, he knows the impact that impaired driving can have.

Most people dont look at the possibility that their night could end up being a worst-case scenario where the unspeakable could happen to them. Because I have been a police officer, I have a different outlook on things.

The service that Operation Red Nose provides also hits close to home for Kowalchuk because when he was a teenager, a good friend of his whom he refers to as D was killed in a car accident.

Thats the story I tell people about why I go to Red Nose: its because of D and because of my past career, he says. We have the potential to be impacting hundreds of peoples lives.

Volunteers such as Kowalchuk are the lifeblood of Operation Red Nose, says Randy Clark, one of the two men co-ordinating the program in Winnipeg this year.

Without the volunteers, we wouldnt be able to hit the road, he says.

Red Nose is still looking for volunteers. Clark encourages anyone who is interested to visit rednosewpg.ca and fill out an application form.

Clark and his team are looking forward to getting as many volunteers involved as possible so that they can help as many clients as possible.

Our only wish is that people will think about giving up one night in the year to (volunteer and) make that happen, he says.

He adds that after people volunteer with Red Nose their first night, they tend to get addicted and return to work more shifts.

Thats been the case for Kowalchuk, who says the gratitude that clients express keeps him coming back year after year.

Its great fun, and something that I really enjoy, he says.

If you know a special volunteer, please contact aaron.epp@gmail.com.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  Manitoba will push the federal government to transfer all of the sin taxes collected from recreational marijuana into provincial coffers, the Free Press has learned.

This is a federal policy, with a federal timeline, with provincial obligations and responsibilities, provincial Finance Minister Cameron Friesen said.

On Sunday evening, federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau hosted his colleagues from the provinces and territories for a working dinner before a lengthy meeting today examining everything from pension reform to equalization payments.

Its the looming July 2018 deadline for legalizing recreational marijuana  and an anticipated $1 billion in nationwide tax revenue  that is gaining the most attention.

In November, Ottawa proposed an excise tax (more commonly known as a sin tax) of 50 cents per gram for the federal government, plus up to 50 cents for provinces. That would be in addition to the 13 per cent charged for GST and PST. For example, an $8 gram of cannabis would cost between $9.54 and $10.04 in Manitoba after all taxes are factored in.

A month prior, at a closed-door meeting with premiers, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had hinted at splitting the excise tax between Ottawa and the provinces.

That idea blindsided Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister. I dont think anyone thought they were serious about it, he said hours after the Oct. 3 meeting.

On Sunday, Morneau said the federal Liberals had some flexibility on how excise tax revenues would be split.

Speaking on behalf of the provinces, Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa called the proposed equal split a non-starter, but said most provinces had not presented a specific offer.

Friesen said Manitoba wants 100 per cent of tax revenues going to provincial coffers to account for roadside testing and public-awareness campaigns.

We hope theres a strong desire on all of our partners to stand together (and) speak with one voice, he said.

We have to stand together as provinces.

Morneau is pushing for a two-year agreement that could be revisited after more data are collected, Friesen said. There will be costs, and no guarantees that revenues will cover them.

For ministers such as B.C.s Carole James, its unclear why Ottawa should keep any revenue from marijuana sales.

Before we even get to talking about sharing, we want to hear about what responsibilities the federal governments taking on to justify taking any of the percentage, James said.

Certainly, from our perspective the formula put out by the federal government is a no-go. Thats very clear.

Sousa wants Morneau to explain how the Trudeau government plans to earn its share.

I want to know what the feds are going to put in  what theyre going to pay for, Sousa said in an interview.

I want us to have unity around Canada on this issue and I definitely want to see more because were bearing more of the costs.

The added expenses likely to land with the provinces are expected to include public-awareness campaigns, beefed-up policing, busier court systems and increased road safety efforts.

Friesen said Colorado is still tabulating whether that states January 2014 legalization has helped the economy. Data suggest a boost in both tourism and motor-vehicle accidents, and researchers say theyre not sure how much either are linked to marijuana.

Friesen said Manitoba is reluctantly preparing for the July legalization for cannabis. We believe the whole process is rushed; there is no backing down from the timeline.

Sousa said most provinces are committed to the Canada Day deadline. We have a tremendous amount of illicit activity already occurring, he said, adding that cannabis-industry players are pushing the envelope, anticipating legalization.

Morneau hinted that cities might get some cash from the sin tax. He said hed spoken with big-city mayors about marijuana taxes, including on Saturday with Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman, who has fretted over an uptick in costs for police and paramedics.

Liberal MP Bill Blair, who is helping steer the governments Cannabis Act, said that all three levels of government have significant responsibilities and thus would need tax revenue, but he also said the feds need cash for regulation and research.

Friesen seemed lukewarm towards Ottawa reaching out to municipalities. Clearly, those conversations are best had at the provincial level.

He also admitted that Manitoba hasnt figured out whether it supports applying a sin tax to medicinal marijuana. Ottawa said on Nov. 10 that GST, PST and the sin tax should be the same for medicinal marijuana, to avoid trafficking as well as people giving false medical information to score a cheaper deal.

Every jurisdiction is trying to wrap its mind around the costs, said Friesen, adding the province has received a large amount of correspondence of letters about the issue. Medicinal marijuana users currently pay both PST and GST on their purchases.

Also on the table Sunday and Monday will be the three-year review of the Canada Pension Plan and the federal governments proposed tweaks to the formula behind equalization payments.

Equalization is designed to help poorer provincial governments provide public services that are reasonably comparable to those in other provinces.

On Sunday, Ottawa released the 2018-19 equalization payments for the federations so-called have-not provinces. The same six will receive cash through the $18.9-billion federal program: Quebec, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Ontario.

At $11.7 billion, Quebec will once again receive by far the biggest payment from Ottawa. It will be an increase of nearly $700 million compared to this year.

Ontario, which has seen its economy improve in recent years, will receive $960 million next year  down nearly $500 million from this year.

The have provinces, which wont receive any funds through the program, will once again be B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The formula is also based on a three-year moving average of economic growth, so a provinces have- or have-not status can lag economy-altering events.

 with files from The Canadian Press

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dozens of transit activists braved blustery weather outside city hall today to oppose a 25 cent bus fare hike, one day before councillors will vote on the 2018 Winnipeg budget.

A coalition claiming to represent more than 100 organizations, including anti-poverty activists and students, chanted no service cuts and no fare increase while holding signs with slogans such as I vote transit.

Many of us, like myself, a low-income Manitoban, cant afford a 25 cent fare increase, said Harry Wolbert, an anti-poverty and transit activist who attended the rally.

People rally in support of Winnipeg Transit outside City Hall on Monday. (Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press)

The mayors Executive Policy Committee voted to amend the budget last week to keep all transit routes running in response to bus-rider backlash. They also committed to studying a low-income bus pass, but left the 25-cent fare hike in the budget.

Weve won half the battle, Wolbert said.

Wolbert, the chair of the Winnipeg Transit Riders Association, said people with disabilities, those on fixed-incomes, newcomers, seniors and the poor will be hit hardest by the new transit fare, which will increase to $2.95 for adults.

He added fare evasion will increase because people wont be able to afford to pay.

If I were Mayor Bowman, Id seriously reconsider, he said.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jordan Peterson is a legend in his own lunchtime, a man whose legacy will be remembered for days. I say this not to be unjust to the University of Toronto academic, but to try to restore some sense of balance to what has become a quite absurd situation.

For those who dont know about Peterson  in other words, the vast majority of the worlds population  he is a self-proclaimed free speech advocate who is very concerned about using new forms of pronouns so as to accommodate some members of the transgender community. This has now become a greater campaign against what he sees as campus censorship and, as a result, he has attracted donations and support.

The plot thickened when a young teaching assistant named Lindsay Shepherd at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont., showed her class a few minutes of a television show featuring a Peterson debate. Offence was caused, she was reprimanded to the point of crying, but she taped the exchange with her three superiors and made it public.

The media coverage was extensive. After all, here was a young, middle-class white woman seemingly standing up for free speech against left-wing bullies. In other words, for most journalists, a junior martyr who looks like one of us.

Its dreadful that Shepherd was moved to tears and there are clearly genuine issues of free speech on university campuses. But are things really as dark and dire as so many journalists claim? I originally left university back in 1981, but have been at the University of Toronto for almost two years and frequently give guest lectures elsewhere. The death of free speech has been  so to speak  greatly exaggerated.

In fact, some of the examples given to illustrate this cult of censorship are extremely misleading. Anti-abortion groups, for example, claim that they are not allowed to speak out publicly. Theres an element of accuracy in this, but its also true that many of them insist on displaying huge pictures of bloody fetuses, accuse women who decide to terminate their pregnancies of being murderers and compare abortion to the Holocaust. In other words, sometimes freedom of speech dribbles over into irresponsible and deeply offensive propaganda.

When I was studying for my bachelors degree in England in the late 1970s, the great debate was around giving supporters of South African apartheid a platform on campus. Its fascinating how so many of the arguments we hear now from ostensible libertarians sound so similar to those made 40 years ago for allowing systemic racism a voice.

There are other factors at work, as well. Change can be frightening, particularly for those who have enjoyed virtually unchallenged privilege for so long. In all of the current debates, I hear very few minority voices complaining about the new state of affairs, but lots of white, straight, well-connected columnists bemoaning their condition.

Then there is sheer courtesy, often described pejoratively as political correctness. Yes, of course, there have been excesses  even risible ones  but we are surely better off without the use of so much of the abusive language that once infected issues of race, sexuality and religion. The right to insult has been drastically limited and thank goodness for it.

Free speech is noble, but it has context. Those with wealth and prestige have more access to it through various financial, sociological and political realities. Rather like the free market, speech is seldom as mechanical and linear as wed like to think. There are those who own newspapers and those who read them; those on one side of the power equation and those on the other.

Those who condemned Lindsay Shepherd have been eviscerated in the media and have subsequently apologized  and the young woman in question has become a rising star among those who are convinced that were all going to free-speech hell in a Marxist handbasket. But nothing has really changed.

The delicate balance involving freedom of speech, cultural sensitivity and the new empowerment will continue to evolve, and people of good will from all points of view will continue to do and try their best. Its so easy to speak in tabloid absolutes, so challenging to think and dig a little deeper. But its the latter that defines us as concerned participants rather than mere voyeurs.

And that opinion is entirely free.

Author and broadcaster Michael Corens latest book is Epiphany: A Christians Change of Heart and Mind over Same-Sex Marriage.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/12/2017 (1802 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A recent Ekos poll suggests the majority of Canadians (69 per cent) favour a ban on firearms in urban areas. Aside from the logistics of how that might work for, say, hunters who live in cities but hunt in outlying areas, one question worth considering is: what harm would such a ban reduce?

The non-stop barrage of news about gun-related injuries and deaths in the United States can make Canada seem relatively safe. According to Statistics Canada, 2015 was the second consecutive year that the number of gun-involved homicides rose: The rate of firearm-related homicides in 2015 increased by 14 per cent to 0.50 per 100,000 population (compared to 0.44 in 2014), and was the highest reported rate since 2010 (0.51).

Furthermore, statistics show that handguns were used in 57 per cent of firearm-related homicides in 2015, making them the most frequently used type of firearm, but also that that percentage is down from 2014, when handguns accounted for 67 per cent of such incidents.

Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press files Most Canadians would support an urban gun ban, a recent Ekos poll suggests.

Comparing Canada to the U.S. in terms of gun casualties may make Canada look good. According to information compiled by the BBC, drawing from the FBI, the U.K. Home Office Homicide Index, Statistics Canada and Crime Statistics Australia, gun-related killings as a percentage of all homicides were 64 per cent in the United States (2016), but only 30.5 per cent in Canada (2015).

However, the same data show the percentages of gun-related killings for Australia were 13 per cent (2013-14) and England and Wales were just 4.5 per cent (2015-16). Clearly, we could be doing more in Canada. But is an urban gun ban a solution?

Part of the problem lies in public perception. While Statistics Canada cites an uptick in gang violence as a factor in firearms-related casualties, thats only part of it. A significant factor in gun deaths is the use of firearms in suicides. (After hanging, guns are the most-used method for men attempting suicide.)

According to Justice Department figures, roughly 80 per cent of firearm-related deaths in Canada are a result of suicide. Furthermore, in contrast with the United States, where the firearm used in a suicide is usually a handgun, in Canada, the data show long guns to be the weapon of choice.

What, then, would an urban gun ban do to stem such fatalities? Reducing the availability of firearms would likely decrease their use in suicide attempts, but that isnt the only factor in reducing the risk of suicide. Improved mental-health care and community support would also help, especially as Canadas population ages; according to Statistics Canada, persons aged 40 to 59 have the highest rates of suicide.

Canada could adopt further restrictions on firearms, as Australia and Japan have. But in considering the role guns play in Canadian life  as a tool for hunters, ranchers and sport shooters  as well as the potential risks of illegal firearms, we should also consider how best to tackle the potential danger guns pose to all Canadians.

It might be that a majority of Canadians living in metropolitan areas would barely notice they were no longer permitted to use guns in the city, but thats not the point. Gun fatalities are not merely an urban problem  they are a societal one. A solution that looks only at a legislative remedy, without including a safety and health-centred approach, is incomplete.
Tens of thousands of Chinese rural migrant workers are being forcibly evicted by authorities in Beijing as part of the local governments campaign against so-called over-population. With some given as little as 15 minutes warning, the most exploited workers in China are being expelled from the city in droves with their homes demolished behind them.

To forestall resistance, water and electricity have been cut off from entire migrant neighbourhoods. The timing of the evictions is particularly callous; the onset of winter has seen recorded night-time temperatures plummet below freezing point.

Wang Yongxian, a top official of Beijings Fengtai district, urged police to act hard, mercilessly, and quickly. Footage has been leaked online of police breaking down doors for those failing to comply, and arresting them for risking public safety.

The heavy-handed moves come in the wake of a chemical fire that broke out in a two-storey apartment building in Beijings southern Daxing district on November 18. Thirty-four fire engines with 14 fire-fighting teams took three hours to extinguish the fire.

The blaze claimed the lives of 19 people including 8 children, 17 of whom were migrants. Eight others were also injured. According to Xinhua News, the fire had been started by faulty refrigeration in the basement of the building, with the only emergency exit blocked by flammable materials. Eighteen suspects had been detained.

House fires are common in the slum districts of Beijing. For Daxing district, this was the third serious fire this year. Many buildings in migrant areas in China are of poor construction and difficult for fire engines to access.

Beijing rents are skyrocketing with the average rental prices hovering around 1.2 times the average incomeone of the least affordable renting markets in the world. This forces migrants into cramped, unsafe conditions that amount to death-traps. The apartment building in Daxing housed 400 workers.

It is not uncommon for living quarters to be placed adjacent to their respective factories and restaurants, which entail further safety hazards.

Authorities are seizing upon the fire as a matter of public safety to rid the city of illegal structures and businesses through fraction dispersal measures over an area of 40 million square miles.

Communist Party Chief of Beijing, Cai Qi announced: The lessons of the fire are extremely gravethe city must be on high alert. We must take actions and protect peoples lives and safeguard the safety and stability of the capital.

The governments understated aim is to advance long-established plans for urban rectification to beautify areas of the capital and reduce its population.

In 2016, government publications revealed an economic and social development plan to cap its population at 23 million by 2020 and reduce the number of its low-end populationthe bureaucratic term for its migrant population of 8 million. Downtown districts in 2018 were to be reduced by 15 percent compared to 2014, which equates to a relocation of roughly 1.9 million people.

We are emptying the cages to change the birds, Tan Xuxiang, director of Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, told the Peoples Daily in July. He detailed a strategy of phasing out underperforming markets and services to stimulate growth in favour of industries such as technology and finance. Eleven square miles have already been demolished in the first half of this year.

Authorities have found it difficult to convince migrant workers to move elsewhere since it unveiled its plans. The sheer lack of employment opportunities in the countryside, not to mention the absence of available housing and services such as health and education, mean the bulk of migrants prefer to stay.

According to a recent study by the Health and Human Rights Journal, rural-urban workers (another term for Chinese migrants) reportedly struggle with high levels of mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, hostility, social isolation and insomnia. Suicide rates are three times the national average, according to the World Health Organization.

There are reportedly over 282 million migrant workers in China, a third of the labour force, who constitute an industrial reserve army to suppress wages and conditions. With the slowing of the Chinese economy, these workers are now deemed disposable by the regime and a hindrance to Beijings further development as a financial hub.

The city of Beijing has swollen from 10.1 million people in 2000 to 21.7 million in 2016. A key role in its expansion has been the super-exploitation of cheap labour in services and the construction industry, particularly for the infrastructure for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

In the lead-up to the Olympics, some 90 percent of the construction industry was composed of migrant workers from the countryside, who were denied proper wages, access to medical and social services, and insurance for dangerous conditions.

Many migrant construction workers reportedly felt like cattle or slaves because of the strenuous conditions and long hours. Some were roused in the middle of the night to work. One government survey revealed that on average they were working 10 hours a day, 27 days a month. Six deaths were reported during in the Olympic Games construction.

In China, the hukou system, a form of household registration used since the 1950s, is used to block access by migrant workers to essential social services in the cities such as housing, healthcare and education. Many involved in the Olympic construction were unable to file complaints against their employers simply because they originated from rural areas.

Prior to the start of the Olympics, when the completion of all construction was assured, over a million workers were evicted to present a clean and harmonious image of the city. One irate worker, Li Ming, recently spoke to an SBS news reporter, In 2008 you welcomed us at the railway station and treated us like gods, in order to construct the city. Now how do you treat us?

With the move to gentrify Beijing, many services, such as retail and logistics, that rely on cheap labour will be impacted. Evicted workers will face longer commutes than before, should they manage to rebuild their lives. It is an indictment of the Chinese capitalist system, hell-bent on profit, and an embittering process that will lead workers into mass struggles.
Labour MP Ian Austin introduced a sanctions (Human Rights Abuse and Corruption) bill in parliament Wednesday. It was tabled as a private members bill, which is a mechanism for backbench MPs to gain a first reading of any proposed legislation.

The bill is trailed as a means of giving the British home secretary powers to impose sanctions against those found guilty of corruption and human rights abuses in general. More properly, it is part of the US-led campaign of anti-Russian hysteria, aimed at legitimising an escalation of preparations for war against Moscow.

Austins bill mirrors the US Magnitsky Act, passed under the Obama administration in 2012 with overwhelming bipartisan support. This enabled the US government to impose financial and visa sanctions against Russians accused of involvement in the arrest, prosecution and detention of Sergei Magnitsky, an accountant for Hermitage Capital Management, who died in a Russian jail in 2009.

Earlier this year, the UK passed a Magnitsky amendment to the Criminal Finances Bill, enabling the government to freeze the UK assets of those deemed to have violated human rights. However, Austin complains that the British government has thus far not utilised these powers. The right-wing Labour MP is part of a cross-party effort--currently by a minority within parliament--to build pressure for a far more aggressive stance against Moscow.

Presenting his bill, Austin praised Conservative MP Dominic Raab for introducing the amendment to the Criminal Finance Bill, but said it was necessary to give the government powers to sanction individuals found guilty of corruption and human rights abuse with visa bans, asset freezes and public placement on a list of banned foreign criminals.

Although the bill cannot concern a specific case, Austin made sure it was peppered with references to Magnitsky and denunciations of Moscow. In an anti-communist diatribe, he accused Russian President Vladimir Putin--one of the chief protagonists of capitalist restoration in the Soviet Union--of representing the continuity of the Soviet era.

Claiming that Magnitskys murderers are being protected by Russias thuggish president, he argued, It is easy to boast about our countrys commitment to its values--democracy, freedom, fairness and respect for the rule of law--but they must stand for something, and that is why we cannot ignore appalling crimes like the murder of Sergei Magnitsky.

It is impossible to know the truth or otherwise of the various charges and counter-charges surrounding Magnitskys death. Clearly, he was denied his basic rights at the hands of the Russian criminal justice system, being held without trial for almost a year and having urgent medical care withheld when he became sick. Sadly, such brutal treatment is by no means unique to Russia, but it is widespread in Russian prisons, as well as those in the US.

It is also the case that Putin is the representative of an oligarchy that has enriched itself from the plunder of Soviet assets. But so too is William F. Browder, the London-based multi-millionaire hedge fund founder who is leading the campaign for anti-Russian sanctions, using Magnitskys death as the pretext.

Browder was a key financial player and ally of Putin and the Russian oligarchy from 1995 to the late 2000s. But they fell out over Browders investments in Gazprom when he was accused of attempting to illegally purchase shares, leading to the closure of his Russian operation.

Browder says that Magnitsky was jailed on trumped-up charges and murdered because he uncovered a giant multimillion-dollar tax fraud involving Russian government officials.

Opponents accuse Browder of being involved in the fraud uncovered by Magnitsky and of being linked to the accountants death. Putin has even accused Browder of being a serial killer for his alleged involvement in the mysterious deaths of three other men, also connected to the fraud.

In this fall-out among thieves, one fundamental principle must be observed: The task of dealing with Putin and the gangsters in the Kremlin belongs to the Russian working class, not the US and British bourgeoisie, who are, if anything, even more criminal and venal than their Moscow counterparts.

When Austin invokes human rights, he does so on behalf of a ruling elite that concocted false evidence against Iraq over supposed weapons of mass destruction. This was part of a conspiracy with the US to launch an illegal war that destroyed the country and initiated a series of pre-emptive interventions across the region.

The numbers present at the bills reading were small, but Austin was most enthused at the fact that it drew cross-party backing, including Green MP Caroline Lucas and several Tories. Yvette Cooper and Dame Margaret Hodge were present from Labour. They, like Austin, are leading critics of party leader Jeremy Corbyn for supposedly being soft on Russia.

In the House of Lords, Labours Baroness Helena Kennedy QC is piloting a similar measure to that proposed by Austin, titled the Cancellation of UK Visas for Gross Human Rights Abuses Bill 2017.

In November, Austin and Kennedy helped organise a forum in parliament involving the Henry Jackson Society to discuss a Magnitsky Justice campaign. The Henry Jackson Society is a right-wing British-American think tank closely associated with the Iraq war. It is represented by the likes of Richard Perle, former US assistant secretary of defence, and William Kristol, founding editor of the neo-conservative Weekly Standard and co-founder of the notorious pro-war think tank Project for a New American Century.

The political character of this campaign is underscored by its supporters internationally.

In December 2016, Estonia passed a Magnitsky law involving travel bans against Russian officials. It is leading the drive for an extension of such bans across Europe. This small Eastern European country is now in the front line of the US and NATO military encirclement of Russia, hosting NATO combat troops. In September 2014, then-US President Barack Obama gave Estonias right-wing government carte blanche to launch a provocation against Moscow and receive NATO and US military assistance, assuring people in Estonia: their security is our security.

Estonias parliament has praised Estonian members of Hitlers Waffen-SS as freedom fighters against the Soviet Union, and August 28--the day the Waffen-SS recruited members of the Estonian Defence League--is celebrated each year as a national holiday.

Estonia currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union. It is in this capacity that an alliance of Members of the European Parliament, led by former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, has called on Estonia to use its position to act and finally adopt EU-wide sanctions, visa bans and asset freezes against Russia, using Magnitsky's death as justification.

In November, Lithuania, another key player in the military build-up against Russia in the Baltics, unanimously passed its own version of the Magnitsky Act, which will become active in January.

One month before, Canada, which is also playing a leading role in the NATO build-up in Europe, adopted its version of the Magnitsky Act with all-party support. The Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (Bill S-226) enables the government to freeze Canadian assets of foreign officials and prevent them from entering Canada.
The Mexican Senate is set to approve a new law that would mark a qualitative step in the militarization of Mexican society. The law would put the military in charge of internal security and give the armed forces the authority to conduct massive spying operations under the guise of fighting against organized crime. The Interior Security Law was passed by the Chamber of Deputies on November 30, will soon be voted on by the Senate, and is expected to be signed by President Enrique Pena Nieto in the coming months.

The Interior Security Law (Ley de Seguridad Interior) would authorize the president to deploy the Armed Forces in cases of grave danger to the collective integrity of people and/or the functionality of institutions, or even in situations that could potentially become threats to internal security. Any such operation would supposedly last up to one year. However, the bill specifies that the president can, without any congressional or judicial approval, extend this period if he or she considers that a threat is still present. Under current conditions of deep social and political crisis, the law opens the door to establishing what would amount to a military dictatorship. Small but substantial protests have taken place throughout the country against the law.

The phrase internal security is purposely vague and could encompass activities ranging from natural disasters to strikes and protests. While the law claims that the military will not be used against social or electoral activities, the law specifies that these must be peaceful, thereby opening the door for isolated acts of violence to be used as an excuse to crack down on entire groups or organizations. The laws are expansions of earlier state laws used to justify the military suppression of various strikes and protests that have broken out since 2006, including the Ley Atenco which was passed in the aftermath of a police rampage against protesting flower vendors in San Salvador Atenco in the State of Mexico.

The armed forces will also be authorized to use any form of data collection to carry out intelligence activities. The laws broad language has been widely interpreted as a way for the military to force service providers to establish encryption back-doors and hand over their users personal information. Earlier this year, the government was found to have hacked the phones of journalists and political opponents. Now, the ruling elite are expanding its scope to spy on an increasingly defiant working class.

The Interior Security Law would provide a legal framework for the Armed Forces to carry out operations for the war on drugs, given that the military has been carrying out such tasks informally for over 11 years.

As the country has become increasingly militarized, levels of violence have recently hit record highs. When the war on drugs began in 2006, over 6,500 members of the military were deployed nationwide. Since then, over 750,000 members of the armed forces have been given police powers across the country. Levels of violence are now worse than they were a decade ago, with 24,000 people killed in 2017 alone. This represents a higher figure than the number killed in the war-torn countries of Afghanistan and Iraq this year.

The root cause of this crackdown lies in the need for the ruling class to defend its wealth by force. However, the timing of its introduction also coincides with preparations for next years presidential elections. Dominant sections of the ruling elite do not want the current leader in pollsAndres Manuel Lopez Obrador of the left National Regeneration Movement (Morena)as the next Mexican president.

Pena Nieto has single-digit approval levels under conditions in which over half of the population lives in poverty and two thirds of the countrys income is held by the top ten percent of the population. The likely presidential candidate for the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Jose Antonio Meade Kuribrena, is a former finance minister who would accelerate the austerity and privatization policies he helped implement during the Pena Nieto administration.

Last summer, the countrys largest gubernatorial election, in the State of Mexico, was marked by signs of fraud as the PRIs candidate narrowly defeated Morenas candidate. In case of a comparable situation during the presidential elections, the ruling elite wish to use the Interior Security Law to crack down on the inevitable social unrest that would follow.

Lopez Obrador, however, is peddling a right-wing program that represents no real threat to the status quo. He combines populist claims of reducing the salaries of government employees and fighting corruption with promises not to raise taxes or increase social spending. He has described his platform as one of austerity to balance the fiscal budget. He recently pledged not to raise taxes on corporations in a video message aimed at appealing to the Mexican and US business elite.

Lopez Obrador has opposed the Interior Security Law by offering an alternative way of centralizing the military. His proposal, known as Single Command, would combine municipal police departments into a national guard. It was laid out in the Constitution some time ago that there could be a national guard and that all agencies, both police and military, could be integrated so that everyone could face the grave problem of insecurity in a coordinated manner, said Lopez Obrador.

He advocates further integrating the military brass into executive decision-making by holding daily briefings with senior military officials and the president. Lopez Obrador has also suggested granting amnesty to members of organized crime as a way of reducing violence.

Morenas program will not make any significant improvements in the lives of the Mexican masses. Lopez Obrador opposes a class analysis of Mexican society and is looking to scapegoat government employees for the poverty facing millions. Single Command is simply a cosmetic change that would not prevent the Armed Forces from violently cracking down on social opposition.

As the World Socialist Web Site has noted, he offers a middle-class program that would leave capitalist social relations intact, and is primarily aimed at blocking the growth of social opposition, which has flared up in Mexico in the form of growing demonstrations against the Ayotzinapa massacre (2014), the Oaxaca massacre of striking teachers (2016), and the Gasolinazo tax hike (2017).

No section of the Mexican political establishment opposes the militarization of Mexican society and the preparations for the possibility of open military rule. When Arturo Alvarez, a legislator from the Ecologist Green Party of Mexico, was asked to respond to claims the Internal Security Law is unconstitutional, he said: Blablablabla.
As you probably have heard, RSV is hitting early and hitting hard this year. Here at Winona Health, my fellow caregivers in Pediatrics and Family Medicine and I are fielding many questions from concerned parents and child care providers. We are always happy to be your resource!
In a move as twisted as it is cruel, state governments in Nebraska and Nevada are planning to execute death row inmates by opioid overdose. Through the use of fentanyl, a powerful synthetic painkiller 50 times more potent than morphine that has been linked to a substantial number of drug overdoses throughout the US, government officials will find a tried-and-tested killer already available on the market.

Working-class communities have been flooded with lethal drugs, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calculating that as many as 52,000 died from overdoses in 2015, a substantial proportion of them from fentanyl. Now the same drug is to be employed to kill predominantly working-class prisoners on Death Row, with the state government taking on the role of the drug dealers.

The lethal protocol is to be tried out on Scott Dozier, 47, of Nevada. Dozier was convicted of killing a man in 2002 in a drug deal gone sour and mutilating his corpse. In Nebraska, Jose Sandoval, 38, convicted of shooting and killing five people in 2004, will be the other human guinea pig. Doziers execution could be carried out as early as January, according to some reports.

Both men are to be given a combination of the sedative diazepam (Valium) and fentanyl in order to stop their breath. In the case of Dozier, the state of Nevada is attempting to include a dose of cisatracurium, a muscle relaxant used in surgical procedures to induce paralysis. They would be the first humans to die at the hand of the new drug protocol.

Opponents of the death penalty and legal rights advocates have sought to intervene on behalf of the prisoners, noting that the potential for a miscalculation of the dosing could lead to the inmate suffering excruciating pain as painkillers failed to take effect.

Theres no medical or scientific basis for any of it, said Joel Zivot, a professor of anesthesiology and surgery from Emory University to the Washington Post. Its just a series of attempts: obtain certain drugs, try them out on prisoners, and see if and how they die.

The rush toward the use of opioid drugs in executions comes as states have encountered increased opposition to the death penalty. According to a 2016 Pew Research survey, support for the death penalty within the population is at its lowest point in over 40 years. Popular revulsion to the barbaric procedure has forced drug manufacturers to refuse to sell the necessary chemicals to state governments.

This has occurred as states hold record-low numbers of inmates slated for execution. Nevada has not executed a prisoner since 2006 ,and Nebraska has not done so since 1997.

Were in a new era  States have now gone through all the drugs closest to the original ones for lethal injection, Fordham University law professor Deborah Denno told the Post, stating that the more [states] experiment, the more theyre forced to use new drugs that we know less about in terms of how they might work in an execution.

Opposition to the death penalty has been driven in no small part by a series of botched state executions using similar experimental concoctions that have resulted in prisoners gasping for air and writhing in agony as the drugs take effect. This has forced states to turn to unregulated compounding facilities to obtain their drugs as well as shielding the sources for their lethal chemicals from public eyes.

A significant factor in the state turn to opioids is the latters widespread availability, which the US government, in collusion with pharmaceutical giants, has ensured. We simply ordered it through our pharmaceutical distributor, just like every other medication we purchase, and it was delivered ... Nothing out of the ordinary at all, stated Brooke Keast of the Nevada Department of Corrections of the drugs purchase.

In addition to seeking out fentanyl, states have also turned to older, more barbaric forms of execution, including the re-introduction of the firing squad and the electric chair. The states of Florida, Ohio and Oklahoma are seeking to legalize the use of nitrogen gas, to be dispensed in gas chambers, in disposing of their states undesirables. This is being done despite, or perhaps because of, the latters connection to fascistic use in the past.

The author also recommends:

The opioid epidemic in the US: A national health emergency

[18 July 2017]

US Supreme Court upholds excruciating executions

[30 June 2015]
In the thirteen days since North Korea tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching large portions of North America, the United States has further escalated its war threats.

 On Thursday, US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned that the United States might not send athletes to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea, because it could not guarantee their safety in the event of a war.

 Last Sunday, National Security advisor H.R. McMaster warned that the threat of war between the United States and North Korea is increasing every day.

 That same day, South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham warned that the United States is getting close to a military conflict with North Korea, and urged the military to remove the families of US soldiers from South Korea.

These developments have been met with alarmed warnings from within the US foreign policy establishment as well as international bodies.

 On Friday, the Washington Post published a chilling hypothetical narrative by Jeffrey Lewis, a scholar at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, entitled, This is how nuclear war with North Korea would unfold. Lewis spelled out in hair-raising detail a scenario in which nearly 2 million Americans, South Koreans and Japanese had died in the completely avoidable nuclear war of 2019.

 On Saturday, the New York Times warned that the Trump administrations rhetoric on North Korea increasingly resembles that of the Bush administration in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq. The newspaper added, Outside experts are increasingly concluding that the Trump administrations threats may not be empty and that officials are seriously contemplating attacking North Korea and its nuclear weapons and missile arsenal.

 That same day, UN envoy Jeffrey Feltman issued a statement declaring that, after discussion with North Korean leaders, both the UN and North Korea had concluded that the current situation was the most tense and dangerous peace and security issue in the world today, warning, Time is of the essence.

 On Sunday, at a ceremony to award the Nobel Peace Prize to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, representatives of the group warned that mutual destruction between the United States and North Korea is only one impulsive tantrum away.

 On Sunday, conservative columnist George Will strongly hinted that a US attack against North Korea would place the country in violation of international law, noting that crimes against peace formed the basis of the Nuremberg tribunal of Nazi war crimes. Will concluded, The first two counts in the indictments at the 1946 Nuremberg trials concerned waging aggressive war.

Such statements underscore the profound unease and concern with which large sections of the US and international foreign policy establishment view a potential war with North Korea. As opposed to the successive wars waged against Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria, the United States has no international supporters in a potential war against North Korea. It is operating increasingly outside of the framework of international law, with flagrant indifference to the mandates of the United Nations and the consensus of its erstwhile allies.

The administrations critics within the US political establishment fear that a war against North Korea would be an unmitigated disaster for the United States in every conceivable scenario, involving the deaths, at a minimum, of hundreds of thousands of civilians on both sides of the North Korean border. Such a war would shatter whatever remains of Washingtons standing on the international arena, rendering it a pariah state.

The increasingly bellicose stance toward North Korea, which threatens to engulf it in a war far more disastrous than even the invasion of Iraq, has been a leading driver of speculation over the possibility of a White House palace coup.

In an article published in the current issue of Foreign Affairs, Scott D. Sagan warns that averting a potentially disastrous war with North Korea may present a substantial impetus for removing Trump from office by sections of the military.

Sagan notes that, in some ways, the US standoff with North Korea is even more dangerous than the Cuban Missile crisis, when strong civilian leaders countered the U.S. militarys dangerously hawkish instincts. But now, it is the senior political leadership in the United States that has made reckless threats, and it has fallen to Secretary of Defense James Mattis (a former general) and senior military officers to serve as the voices of prudence.

He adds, If senior military leaders believe at any time that Trump is impaired, they have a duty to contact Mattis, who should then call for an emergency cabinet meeting to determine whether Trump is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office and thus whether to invoke the 25th Amendment.

While no one should underestimate the danger of such a military coup, the idea that the US military leadership would somehow serve to check the Trump administrations drive to war in the Pacific is wishful thinking. Defense Secretary Mad Dog Mattis has threatened genocide against North Korea, warning that a war could lead to the destruction of its people. National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster has likewise stated that the United States is prepared to launch a preventive, that is, unprovoked, war against North Korea.

As the United States faces an unprecedented acceleration of the breakdown of its postwar hegemony, the possibility exists that it may go to war simply to make good on the Trump administrations threats.

Meanwhile, the mounting talk of removing Trump from office through impeachment, forced resignation or the invocation of the 25th Amendment increases the pressure on the administration to seek through war a solution to the domestic political crisis gripping the United States.

All of this underscores the immense danger posed by the US nuclear standoff. While there exist factional differences within the US ruling elite over the advisability of a war with North Korea, there is no antiwar faction within the ruling elite. The policy demanded by those factions opposing Trumpan escalation of the conflict with Russiaposes its own danger of an escalation into all-out world war.

Far from warning of the mounting danger of war, the Democratic Party has spent the last two weeks intensifying its campaign over the Trump administrations alleged collusion with Russia. It is simultaneously working to corrupt public consciousness with its witch hunt against sexual misconduct in Hollywood and on Capitol Hill, aimed at rallying an upper-middle-class constituency for its conflict with the Trump administration.

The only social force capable of averting a catastrophic third world war is the international working class. This social force must be mobilized, on the basis of a socialist program, into a mass international antiwar movement, aimed at putting an end to war and the capitalist system that creates it.
Washington and Moscow have traded fresh charges of provocative actions by each others warplanes in the skies over Syrias Euphrates River valley, even as their supposed common enemy, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, appears to have been routed on both sides of the Iraqi-Syrian border.

The Pentagons statements directly hinted at the prospect of rising tensions in Syria spilling over into a direct military confrontation between the worlds two largest nuclear powers, with incalculable consequences.

Its become increasingly tough for our pilots to discern whether Russian pilots are deliberately testing or baiting us into reacting, or if these are just honest mistakes, Lt. Col. Damien Pickart, spokesman for the US air command based in Qatar told the New York Times. The greatest concern is that we could shoot down a Russian aircraft because its actions are seen as a threat to our air or ground forces.

The Times article published Saturday was written as a brief for the US military intervention in Syria and a more aggressive American confrontation with Russia for dominance in the Middle East. The Pentagon recently acknowledged that over 2,000 US troops are presently deployed inside Syriamore than four times the number previously admittedand indicated that there is no intention of withdrawing them after their ostensible mission of defeating ISIS is completed.

The Times parroted Pentagon allegations of a Russian SU-24 fighter jet having nearly collided with two US A-10 close air support warplanes east of the Euphrates River, and of other Russian aircraft flying directly over the US proxy ground forces and their American special forces advisers for over 30 minutes, actions which US officials told the newspaper had escalated tensions and the risk of a shootdown.

Quoting the same Pentagon officials, the Times reported that Russian warplanes were violating as many as a half a dozen times a day a deal supposedly reached between Washington and Moscow to keep their aircraft on opposite sides of the Euphrates.

Theres a risk there, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigan, the commander of the US air war in Iraq and Syria, told the newspaper. Their desire is to set this up for the end state for Syria. Weve got to be clear-eyed. The Russians are here to support the Syrian government.

Unstated by the general or the Times is that Washington has intervened in Syria with the diametrically opposed objective of continuing the drive for regime change that it began in 2011 by fomenting a sectarian-based insurgency relying on Sunni Islamist militias funded and armed by the CIA, Turkey Saudi Arabia and the other Sunni Gulf oil sheikdoms. With the defeat of these Al Qaeda-linked elements, US imperialism has backed a new proxy ground force, the Syrian Democratic Forces, which is wholly dominated by the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia. This in turn has heightened tensions in the region, particularly with Turkey, which regards the YPG as an extension of the Turkish Kurdish PKK, against which Ankara has waged a bloody counterinsurgency campaign for decades.

While forces loyal to the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russian airpower and aided by Iran, the Lebanese Hezbollah movement and other Shia militias, have succeeded in restoring its control over most of the country, Washington is determined to carve out its own zone of influence in order to continue military operations aimed at countering Russian and Iranian regional influence and pursuing its original aim of regime change.

Regional tensions have been further stoked by the recent announcement of an agreement between Moscow and the Egyptian regime of Gen. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to allow Russia to base warplanes in Egypt, long a client state of US imperialism.

Following the publication of the Times article, the Russian military issued a sharp response that included its own charges of US warplanes threatening its aircraft in the same area of eastern Syria. A spokesman for the Russian armed forces accused the US intervening to obstruct Russian airstrikes against ISIS positions.

Specifically, for example, on November 23, a pair of Russian Su-25 attack aircraft were on a mission to destroy a terrorist stronghold when a US F-22 appeared in the sky, Russian military spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov told the media. It started to fire off flares and deployed its air brakes as it simulated a dog fight. It was not until a super-maneuverable Su-35S fighter jet appeared that the American withdrew.

The Russian general mocked the Pentagons pretension that it had control over designated airspace in Syria, noting that the American forces were operating in the country illegally, without either United Nations authorization or the permission of the Syrian government. He urged the US military to concentrate on the elimination of terrorists in Iraq rather than provoke air incidents [in Syria].

The Russian Defense Ministry charged that US operations in Syria focused on impeding [activities of] Syrian government troops, and that their major result had been that of destroying Raqqa along with the civilians.

In the midst of the charges and counter-charges between Washington and Moscow over military operations in Syria, the former official spokesman for the SDF, Talal Silo, who defected to Turkey late last month, told the Reuters news agency that the US had approved the evacuation of thousands of ISIS fighters from the besieged city Raqqa in October. He said that some 4,000 people were bused out of the city, all but about 500 of them ISIS fighters.

Silos account confirmed an earlier report by the BBC, which quoted sources who participated in this exodus as stating that the convoy transporting the ISIS members, along with large quantities of arms and ammunition, was some four miles long, including 50 trucks, 13 buses and 100 ISIS vehicles.

Silo told the news agency that the claim by the Pentagon and its proxy forces that a fierce battle was taking place inside Raqqa was all theater, designed to keep journalists away from the city during the evacuation.

He said that Washingtons support for the evacuation was driven by its determination to quickly end the Raqqa siege and redeploy the Kurdish militia and its US special operations advisers to Deir Ezzor province, the center of Syrias oil and gas reserves as well as the countrys border with Iraq. The US aim was to cut off the border and thereby disrupt Iranian influence by blocking its land access to Syria.

In a separate interview with the Turkish media, Silo said that according to the US plan, the [ISIS] terrorists would go to Al-Bukamal [near the Iraqi border] and prevent the regimes advance.

The former SDF spokesman said that Raqqa was not the first time the US and its proxies had facilitated the escape of ISIS forces, but rather the third. In the capture of Manbij in northern Aleppo province in 2016, he said, 2,000 ISIS members were evacuated. The SDF, the U.S. and Manbij Military Council provided security for Daesh [ISIS] members and allowed them to go towards Jarablus. This was the first agreement, he said.

Subsequently, during the siege of Al Tabqah, on the Euphrates River, the US and its proxy force negotiated the evacuation of 500 ISIS fighters. In both cases, the Islamists were allowed to leave with their weapons and ammunition.

The testimony of Silo, who collaborated closely with top US officials and military commanders in Syria, is another damning exposure of the war on terrorism. ISIS, itself a product of Washingtons intervention in the Middle East, has served as another instrument of American military aggression aimed at asserting US imperialist dominance over the oil-rich region.
HARPERS FERRY, Iowa  Jon Stravers is easy to find.

For one thing, the man lives in a stoplight-free town in the northeastern-most county of Iowa, where everybody, for the most part, knows everybody.

It helps, too, that the longtime ornithologist and musician has secured celebrity status across the glacier-spared region of the upper Midwest known as the Driftless Area, which includes parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois.

Folks in these parts call him Hawk or Hawkman.

During the spring, summer and early fall, Stravers does not stray far from the Mississippi River where he made a name for himself, and has lived for the past 40 years.

My theory on everything is, Alright, lets go to the river, and well figure it out, he said.

While his research on red-shouldered hawks and cerulean warblers has garnered a lot of attention, others may know him through his music.

Emblazoned on both his 17-foot-long flat-bottom boat and his acoustic guitar is an image of a raptor, inspired by the sacred Native American symbol of a thunderbird and designed by Stravers late son, Jon-Jon.

It represents the deep connection their family has to nature.

Hikers and bird watchers may have come across Stravers public interpretation of the image in the summer of 2017 at Yellow River State Forest near his home in Allamakee County.

The stone formation, which has been removed, served as a memorial for Jon-Jon, who died 10 years ago.

Hooked on hawks

As a young man, Stravers served as a radio operator in the U.S. Navy and needed an outlet when he returned home to Pella, Iowa, from the Vietnam War.

I was dysfunctional when I came back, he said.

Following a short stint as a printing press operator, the son of a hardware store owner and a schoolteacher found peace in the outdoors.

When an opportunity surfaced to work alongside researchers conducting a raptor migration study in the mid-1970s, Stravers jumped on it and never let go.

Once I got up here, and once I tasted that, I said, OK, this is what Im going to do, he said. Ive been up here pretty much since then.

That first job led to his work with red-shouldered hawks, a species, he said, no one else in the area was studying at the time.

The animals, which nest in the forests along the river valley, consumed Stravers, who has spent the majority of his career chasing them and deciphering their communications.

When I get into these woods, I have to account for every sound, he said. It may sound weird, but after 38, 39 years, when I hear a red-shoulder, I know what theyre saying, and in most cases, I know whos saying it.

Globally Important research

About 11 years ago, Stravers began listening and watching for cerulean warblers, a small, sky-blue songbird the National Audubon Society considers a possibly threatened or endangered species.

Using what he learned from chasing raptors, Stravers discovered unexpected hordes of the birds near remote bluffs and ravines in his territory.

Everybody had them declining and rare, but I had them all over the place, Stravers said. And they kept coming back.

The birds, he found, live more than half the year in the rainforests of South America and migrate every spring to his neck of the woods, where they nest from early May to late August.

His research, which involves nonstop hand-scribbled note taking and thousands of audio recordings, led to the National Audubon Societys designation of Iowas first Globally Important Bird Area.

The near-135,000-acre area includes 35,000-plus acres of protected land, encompassing Yellow River State Forest; parts of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge; Effigy Mounds National Monument; Pikes Peak State Park; and the Bloody Run and Sny Magill North Cedar Creek state wildlife management areas.

Numerous agencies that manage Stravers research grounds have funded his work over the years, including the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Park Service and the National Audubon Society.

But Stravers, who winters with family in Florida, is not in it for the money. The job, he said, has allowed him to avoid living a normal life.

I dont do that well in the rest of the world, Stravers said, sitting behind the wheel of his boat.

A portion of the proceeds from his music business also funds his conservation work.

On Friday nights in the summer, Stravers performs on the Maiden Voyage, an eco-tourism boat captained by his friend and ambassador for life on the river, Robert Vavra.

Thanks to Hawk, I know about ceruleans, said Vavra, a fellow Harpers Ferry resident. This guy knows his stuff.

Like father, like son

In the middle of the night on Sept. 2, 2007, Stravers received a heartbreaking phone call from the Colorado State Patrol, one still crushing to revisit in his mind.

Authorities told the divorced father of two that a suspected intoxicated driver of a pickup crashed head-on into Jon-Jons car, killing the 33-year-old and his 3-year-old son, Jonah.

Jon-Jon, who then lived in Boise, Idaho, was driving to visit his dad in Iowa when the tragedy occurred.

At a young age, Jon-Jon developed a keen interest in his dads work and launched his own career as a hawk researcher at age 19.

He cut his own path, but he definitely knew where he started from, Stravers said. He grew up doing this.

In the mid-1990s, the father-son duo began making music together under the name, Big Blue Sky. Inspired by the wild places they explored together, their sound features influences of several musical genres  folk, bluegrass, blues and reggae.

Since Jon-Jons death, Stravers has teamed up with dozens of musicians to carry on the musical and educational mission of Big Blue Sky.

I dont feel disconnected to my son in the spiritual realm, he said. Yeah, in the physical realm we cant do concerts anymore, dammit, but he shows up in spiritual ways.

Approaching the former site of his stonework in the Paint Creek Unit of Yellow River State Forest, Stravers turned on one of his sons original songs.

Jon-Jons voice soon quieted the car:

You are part of who I am, and I embrace all that I am  This is where the healing starts. Theres music pouring through my blood, breathing life into these bones. Music calls us home.

Unique attraction

As a form of therapy, a grieving Stravers began gathering stones during a rough patch about two years ago.

Piece by piece, he and his helpers transported the rocks to a ridge heavily populated with red-shouldered hawks and cerulean warblers called Cedar Point Overlook.

The creation consisted of 1,000-plus stones laid in the shape of a raptor, along with an interpretive sign that provided context for visitors.

After the work began, the DNR, which manages the 8,500-acre forest, signed off on the effort before later ordering for the removal of the stones.

Bruce Blair, the area forester for the agency, estimates that thousands of people saw it.

The artful installation stretched about 25 feet from wing tip to wing tip and 15 feet from head to tail.

Stravers daughter, Lisa, helped her father position the temporary fixture early on so that the west wing tip aligned with the setting sun on the vernal and autumnal equinoxes.

Stravers, who plans to reconstruct the formation at another location in northeast Iowa, predicts some people enjoyed the addition, while others may have walked right past it without even noticing it.

I did it for me, he said during a visit to the site in August 2017. I come up here and get centered.

After fidgeting with the stones for a while, Stravers pulled out a wooden flute Jon-Jon crafted and walked to the edge of the overlook. He sat down on a log and began to play.
Refresh for updates Seems half of Hollywood is reaching out to Keaton Jones  meaning the other half just hasnt yet seen the bullied Tennessee boys heartbreaking Facebook video.

You got a pal in the Hulk, tweeted Mark Ruffalo, while Chris Evans has just invited Keaton to next years Los Angeles premiere of Avengers: Infinity War.

If you havent been near a computer screen today, Keaton is the middle schooler whose tearful question  Just out of curiosity, why do they bully?  just might become a rallying cry of the anti-bullying movement.

On Friday, the boys mother, Kimberly Jones, posted the video on her Facebook page, shortly after picking up Keaton from school because her son was too afraid and upset to go to lunch. The Knoxville, Tennessee, boy describes having milk poured on him and being called ugly for the head scars left from a tumor operation.

Just out of curiosity, why do they bully?, Keaton asks. Whats the point of it? Why do you find joy in taking innocent people and finding a way to be mean to em? Its not okay. Its not okay! People that are different dont need to be criticized about it. Its not their fault. The boy also says, They make fun of my nose. They call me ugly. They say I have no friends.

In a message accompanying the video, Kimberly Jones wrote, My kids are by no stretch perfect, and at home, hes as all boy as they come, but by all accounts hes good at school. Talk to your kids. Ive even had friends of mine tell me kids were only nice to him to get him to mess with people. We all know how it feels to want to belong, but only a select few know how it really feels not to belong anywhere.

Within 24 hours the post had been viewed more than 10 million times and is closing in on 20 million, a roster of viewers that includes Hollywood actors and stars of hip hop, country music, athletes and Beltway pundits.

Story continues

Stay strong, Keaton, tweeted Chris Evans. Dont let them make you turn cold. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year?

Little buddy, wrote Ruffalo, I was bullied when I was a kid. You are right #ItGetsBetter! You are my own personal super hero. Protect Yo Heart. You got a pal in the Hulk.

Tweeted Mark Hamill, Theyre just jealous because youre so smart & handsome.

Add me to your long list of friends Keaton, tweeted Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Hey KeatonI just wanted to say I think you are amazingI would love for you to be my date to the Pitch Perfect 3 premiere on Tuesday, Hailee Steinfeld said in a video posted on Twitter.

Others reaching out include Patrick Adams (Suits), Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Kevin Jonas, Cardi B and, well, take a look for a sample of a roster thats growing by the minute:

#KeatonJones, your curiosity and kindness will overcome this moment and bring you many better days to come. #StandWithKeaton https://t.co/8t4ojKLs72  Ryan Seacrest (@RyanSeacrest) December 10, 2017

Stay strong, Keaton. Dont let them make you turn cold. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year? https://t.co/s1QwCQ3toi  Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) December 10, 2017

Little buddy, I was bullied when I was a kid. You are right #ItGetsBetter! You are my own personal super hero. Protect Yo Heart. You got a pal in the Hulk. https://t.co/fRTAENcmV4  Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) December 10, 2017

Keaton-Don't waste time wondering why a bully would be so mean-They're sad people who think hurting others will make them feel better because they really don't like themselves-They're just jealous because you're so smart & handsome Your friend-mh https://t.co/SUMw3OoCTm  @HamillHimself (@HamillHimself) December 10, 2017

We hear you #KeatonJones. I was bullied constantly growing up. And could never have put into words what you have. It does get better. And it gets better because of who are and what you know and how you share it with all of us. Thank you for your courage. https://t.co/P4cCQtkAnB  Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) December 9, 2017

@Lakyn_Jones Keaton, this is so accurate. Why do people do this? I think your sooo cool Keaton! I wanna be your friend ( but srsly) ur freakin awesome  Millie Bobby Brown (@milliebbrown) December 9, 2017

Hey #KeatonJones, YOU are my HERO! Keaton, BULLIES are COWARDS! YOURE AMAZING. Thank you for this "Why do they bully?" MESSAGE https://t.co/8QW4XEkeUb PLS WATCH & RT with #standwithkeaton  Greg Grunberg (@greggrunberg) December 10, 2017

.@lakyn_jones Hey Keaton, bullies are the ones with the problems NOT you. Many are bullied at home and pass it on. Cowards always need an audience. Be strong! Ill come walk the hall and eat lunch with you anytime. #IstandwithKeaton #Keatonstrong #KeatonJones  Dr. Phil (@DrPhil) December 10, 2017

. I need Keaton Jones to appear on Chrisley Knows best , this Kid can change the world and I wanna help him do it .. #keatonbecomesachrisley lets make this happen .. everyone use the hashtag .  Todd Chrisley (@toddchrisley) December 10, 2017

Dear Keaton Jones, hopefully you see this. Your an amazing soul my man, never let ANYONE tell you otherwise! Keep your head up & chest out. Your a solider, always remember that.  DeAndre Washington (@dwa5hington) December 10, 2017

RT I cant imagine how busy Keaton Jones & his family are but Id love to say hello, thank you, Im proud of you & me & @SeanUnfiltered want to send to The Cotton Bowl. @Lakyn_Jones @The_UnSilent_ #StandWithKeaton  Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) December 10, 2017

Hey @Lakyn_Jones  #KeatonJoness mom. My name is NickStevenson. Im an actor. Im inviting U2come see me n my fellow actors @zachtheatre in #TheCuriousIncidentend of Jan-March in Austin. I will organize u and #superKeaton, airfare n accommodation. #Nomorebullying #plzsayyes!  TheRealNickStevenson (@nickstevenson11) December 10, 2017

This is heartbreaking. But the response of support for him is a beautiful thing. Add me to your long list of friends Keaton. https://t.co/NKasvdo00u  Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) December 10, 2017

Tuesday, Feb.6, 7pm, the Vols come to Lexington. Id love for you to be my guest at @Rupp_Arena if you and the family have any interest in making the trip. Stay strong buddy! Thank you, Keaton, for being an inspiration of the strength for us all.  Tod Lanter (@tod_lanterIII) December 10, 2017

Keaton- hang in there. Keep studying and never lose sight of your dreams. I was bullied and called fat. It gets better. Your bullies have been hurt somehow and that is why they need to hurt. They will fade away. Adventure is out there. #Keatonjones https://t.co/r5pENrI9f3  Ed Asner (@TheOnlyEdAsner) December 10, 2017

You are amazing #KeatonJones. It will get better .You are not alone . And yes, IT IS NOT RIGHT. Hang in there . https://t.co/BOTsPKnypo  Donna Murphy (@DMurphyOfficial) December 10, 2017

Stay strong #KeatonJones.. you are an amazingly brave soul  thank you for sharing. It will get better. Those that bully are insecure and karma always comes around. https://t.co/zekqOhxZKx  Lenny Jacobson (@Lennyjacobson) December 9, 2017

Hey #KeatonJones..you have so many friends & supporters out here..& we have your back, dear one! You are fearfully & wonderfully made..& His works are WONDERFUL, we know that for sure. And You. Are. Too! Keep standing uptheres God & all your new friends standing behind you . https://t.co/VWi88OE1Y3  Heather Headley (@heatherheadley) December 10, 2017

Keaton jones you are a hero. This extremely raw and real moment has brought hope and truth to so many people. Be you and be forever fearless. Never give up. You are loved!  kevin jonas (@kevinjonas) December 10, 2017

Hey @Lakyn_Jones, I'm producing a film next summer in TN. Would love to have you and Keaton come spend a day on set with me! #StandWithKeaton https://t.co/7fQzeNFHYX  chase crawford (@chsecrwfrd) December 10, 2017

Im so Sad and angry like Im OD hot Please teach your kids not to be bullies .Teach them how to be tough but not too pick on others  iamcardib (@iamcardib) December 10, 2017

Keaton, I'm sorry those kids are being so mean. Unless people like that change they will end up having unhappy lives. I think you're cool!  Patricia Arquette (@PattyArquette) December 9, 2017

Oh sweet boy. We see you. You are not alone. https://t.co/splq8LEMFR  Idina Menzel (@idinamenzel) December 10, 2017

I love him To Keaton Jones you are a totally amazing person with a great future ahead of you! Dont let ANY unhappy person bring you down!! I support u- lets END BULLYING!!!! Sending to you !!!  Carnie Wilson (@CarnieWilson) December 10, 2017

Hi @Lakyn_Jones, could you pass this message along to Keaton? pic.twitter.com/3l8P4fKAqW  Hailee Steinfeld (@HaileeSteinfeld) December 10, 2017

Instagram Photo

I love this boy and Ive never met him. You are brave and beautiful just as you are, dont ever let others define who you are. Bullies are insecure and ignorant. Words create emotional poison, dont listen to them so that poison doesnt ever get to your pure heart pic.twitter.com/SjntR2Pksk  Eva Longoria Baston (@EvaLongoria) December 10, 2017

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Before Mario Batali was himself accused of inappropriate conduct in the workplace, he sounded off on the issue  saying theres no room for harassment in the restaurant industry.

The celebrity chef and author had addressed the recent sexual harassment scandals in Hollywood during a media preview last month for Eataly L.A., the new Los Angeles outpost of his Italian marketplace chain.

Batali, who has since stepped down as co-host on ABCs The Chew as well as his own businesses, stressed that its as much about awareness as it is about training, and noted that his company provides twice-a-year sexual harassment training for its employees.

Youd be surprised at how few people recognize the tell-tale signs [of harassment], Batali said. You dont want to be drowned by P.C. [political correctness] but you cant have people be deterred from a workplace, like in hospitality, because they were frightened, or intimidated, or disgusted by something that was in the kitchen.

The website Eater reported Monday that four women have accused him of groping and other inappropriate behavior. In a statement, Batali apologized to the people I have mistreated and hurt.

Back at the press preview last month, Batali said the recent developments signal a changing of the guard, not just in the film and TV industries, but in the restaurant industry as well.

The dinosaurs are going to slowly die off, and the quicker it happens the better it is, he said, but its a tricky time, and we got to be careful, they have to be very careful how they do it. The best way is to just make sure there is no tolerance for any bullst in any workplace that youre associated with. Zero.

In light of the recent allegations, Food Network has also put on hold plans to relaunch Molto Mario, the series that made Batali a TV star.

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Kirk Douglas 10 Most Memorable Movies for His 101st Birthday (Photos)

The acting legend Kirk Douglas (and father of Michael Douglas) crosses the century mark on December 9, 2016. Here are his 10 most memorable roles:

Champion (1949)

Kirk Douglas earned his first Oscar nomination for playing the dogged boxer Midge Kelly in a black-and-white drama written by Carl Forman (High Noon).

Ace in the Hole (1950)

In one of Billy Wilders most cynical dramas, Douglas plays a ruthless journalist who exploits a mining disaster  even sabotaging rescue efforts at one point  to prolong the media furor.

The Bad and the Beautiful (1951)

He earned his second Oscar nomination playing another cad  this time a power-obsessed Hollywood producer said to be modeled on David O. Selznick.

Lust for Life (1956)

In a departure from his cynical big-screen roles, Douglas brought real sympathy to his portrayal of tortured artist Vincent Van Gogh in Vincente Minnellis biopic  and the actor earned his third Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)

Douglas plays outlaw Doc Holliday to Burt Lancasters lawman Wyatt Earp in John Sturges classic Western about the famed shootout in Tombstone, Arizona.

Paths to Glory (1957)

Again playing against type in Stanley Kubricks antiwar movie, Douglas brims with decency as a French colonel in World War I who fights against an unfair court martial of his men.

Spartacus (1960)

Douglas hit a career high as a rebellious roman slave in this historical drama whose onscreen revolt had a real-life parallel. The actor also produced the blockbuster film and his very public hiring of screenwriter Dalton Trumbo helped to break Hollywoods blacklist of Communists.

Lonely Are the Brave (1962)

Douglas counted this Dalton Trumbo-penned Western as his personal favorite, and he gave a memorable performance as a New Mexico cowboy who was more of a drifter than a guy rooted in the land.

Seven Days in May (1964)

In John Frankenheimers political thriller, Douglas plays a longtime military officer who begins to suspect that his nuke-obsessed general boss (Burt Lancaster) may be plotting to overthrow the president.

The Man From Snowy River (1982)

Douglas plays twin brothers in George Millers coming-of-age drama about a ranch hand in 1880s Australia: a one-legged gold prospector and a wealthy cattle rancher.
They make fun of my nose. They call me ugly. They say I have no friends, Keaton told his mother in a car with tears in his eyes. He added that things even get physical at lunch, when bullies put milk on me and put ham down my clothes, throw bread on me.

Just out of curiosity, why do they bully? Whats the point of it? he asked. Why do you find joy in taking innocent people and finding a way to be mean to them? Its not okay.

Keaton said he also feels for others who suffer through similar situations.

I dont like that they do it to me. And I, for sure, dont like that they do it to other people, cause its not okay! he told his mother. People that are different dont need to be criticized about it. Its not their fault.

My kids are by no stretch perfect, & at home, hes as all boy as they come, but by all accounts hes good at school, wrote Kimberly.Talk to your kids. Ive even had friends of mine tell me theyre kids were only nice to him to get him to mess with people. We all know how it feels to want to belong, but only a select few know how it really feels not to belong anywhere.

Keatons message went viral, catching the attention of several celebrities who wanted to reach out and offer their support.

Keaton, this is so accurate, wrote Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown on Twitter. Why do people do this? I think your sooo cool Keaton! I wanna be your friend ( but srsly) ur freakin awesome.

Oscar-winner Patricia Arquette added, Keaton, Im sorry those kids are being so mean. Unless people like that change they will end up having unhappy lives. I think youre cool!

Keaton, this is so accurate. Why do people do this? I think your sooo cool Keaton! I wanna be your friend ( but srsly) ur freakin awesome ?? https://t.co/LD7Q762bL9  Millie Bobby Brown (@milliebbrown) December 9, 2017

Keaton, I'm sorry those kids are being so mean. Unless people like that change they will end up having unhappy lives. I think you're cool!  Patricia Arquette (@PattyArquette) December 9, 2017

We hear you #KeatonJones. I was bullied constantly growing up. And could never have put into words what you have. It does get better. And it gets better because of who are and what you know and how you share it with all of us. Thank you for your courage. https://t.co/P4cCQtkAnB  Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) December 9, 2017

I would love to come meet this guy and provide bodyguard services!!!Connect me as well!!!! Bullies suck!! I wont stand for it! https://t.co/8IAdTC7Smm  Paige VanZant (@PaigeVanzantUFC) December 10, 2017

Hey, @Lakyn_Jones .. bring your brother Keaton by the bus before my show in Knoxville, TN next month if ya want.. would love to say hello and tell him #IStandWithKeaton  Cole Swindell (@coleswindell) December 10, 2017

Im your friend, Keaton Jones. Youre a more intelligent and more compassionate human being than any of the people bullying you. Im inspired by you and things will get better because you are speaking out. Love and strength to you, dude!

?????? https://t.co/AivEEX2iM6  Will Poulter (@PoulterWill) December 10, 2017

Say lil Man U gotta friend in me for life hit me on dm so we can chop it up love is the only way to beat hate ????????????? A post shared by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg) on Dec 10, 2017 at 7:50am PST

Meet Keaton Jones a very smart little boy who is being bullied at school. This video is heartbreaking!! I want to bring Keaton to Vegas and hang out at UFC Headquarters. If anyone knows how i can reach the family please let me know. Thank u everyone pic.twitter.com/BR8c4ldDFc  Dana White (@danawhite) December 10, 2017

#Repost @danawhite ??? Meet Keaton Jones a very smart little boy who is being bullied at school. This video is heartbreaking!! I want to bring Keaton to Vegas and hang out at UFC Headquarters. If anyone knows how i can reach the family please let me know. Thank u everyone A post shared by Ricky (@ricky_martin) on Dec 10, 2017 at 9:02am PST

Keaton- hang in there. Keep studying and never lose sight of your dreams. I was bullied and called fat. It gets better. Your bullies have been hurt somehow and that is why they need to hurt. They will fade away. Adventure is out there. #Keatonjones https://t.co/r5pENrI9f3  Ed Asner (@TheOnlyEdAsner) December 10, 2017

@DonteStallworth @Lakyn_Jones hopefully my video and the tweets that Keaton have been getting brings awareness to bullying and how serious it is in our school system pic.twitter.com/1Dujv3RxA5  Delanie walker (@delaniewalker82) December 9, 2017

@Lakyn_Jones Hello, Keaton (via your sister)! You may have heard of my parents, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (#MLK) and #CorettaScottKing. I try to honor them and their legacies. Im so sorry about the pain youre experiencing because of bullying. You matter. I love you.  Be A King (@BerniceKing) December 9, 2017

Keaton Jones. You sweet soul. You sweet, beautiful soul. You are perfect just as you are. Inspiring and brave. Courageous.?? Loved beyond measure. https://t.co/M7XHyxyKQL  Jaimie Alexander (@JaimieAlexander) December 10, 2017

Cardi B also stood up for Keaton, writing on Instagram, Who ever goes to this boy school, If you pick on him you not even a bully YOU A STRAIGHT UP P A PUNK A B-, she wrote. Like how you pick on somebody who cant defend them self ? THATS NOT GANGSTA !

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UFC President Dana White also took notice, saying that he wanted to bring Keaton to Las Vegas to hang out at UFC headquarters. The message was reposted on Instagram by Ricky Martin.

Many other athletes, actors, and well-known figures, including Martin Luther King Jr.s daughter Bernice, also sent messages of support on social media.

Friends, overwhelmed is the understatement of the world right now, Keatons mother, Kimberly, wrote on Facebook Saturday afternoon. Im humbled by the voice my boy has been given, but hes still just a little boy & hes a little boy who desperately wants acceptance, that I have to try to find a way to navigate him through the difference in true acceptance & attention.

I know God has His hand in this, & I trust that the right things will happen in the right time.
UPDATE, Sunday 9:06 am The Washington Post will not fire reporter Dave Weigel for the crowd-size photo he tweeted, despite the some Oval Office huffing and puffing. A WaPo press statement released last night reads: Dave Weigel relied on an inaccurate image in tweeting about President Trumps rally in Pensacola. When others pointed out the mistake to Weigel, he quickly deleted the tweet. And when he was later addressed by the president on Twitter, he promptly apologized for it.

Trump wasnt satisfied with Weigels apology over the soon-viral rafter tweet, and said yesterday the reporter should be fired. The president claimed Weigel knew the Pensacola venue was packed when the reporter tweeted a photo of a sparse crowd, a claim not supported by Weigels explanation. (See the tweets below)

Previous, 3:03 pm A Washington Post reporter  and much of the internet  was skeptical of Donald Trumps packed to the rafters crowd size boast from Florida last night, but the president might get the last laugh this time around. Not to mention more grist for his Fake News mill.

WaPo reporter Dave Weigel has apologized to Trump, via twitter, for retweeting a much-shared photo of a much-empty Pensacola Bay Center. Trump appeared at the venue Friday to urge Alabama voters to get out and vote for Senatorial candidate (and alleged minor-molester) Roy Moore.

After the rally, Trump tweeted a Thank You Pensacola! message, noting that the arena was packed to the rafters.

In a replay of his inauguration crowd-size debacle, a photo of a not-packed arena hit the internet. The photo, though, apparently was taken earlier in the evening, before Trumps speech.

Just after 5 pm ET today, Trump tweeted, @DaveWeigel @WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo!

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Weigel deleted the photo and apologized (Sure thing, he tweeted to Trump. I apologize) before pointing out that the bad tweet on his personal account was not a story for Washington Post. Trump has not acknowledged his own error.

But wait. Was the empty-venue photo really taken hours before Trump arrived, as the president said? As Weigel (and others) have pointed out, the image seems to show Trump at the venue at the time (lower right hand corner of the photo). That image, too, has been making the internet rounds, ensuring that Raftergate might continue to distract some from Trumps endorsement of alleged mall troll Moore for at least a little bit longer.

Here are the tweets, from the beginning:

GREAT EVENING last night in Pensacola, Florida. Arena was packed to the rafters, the crowd was loud, loving and really smart. They definitely get whats going on. Thank you Pensacola!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

.@DaveWeigel @WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo! pic.twitter.com/XAblFGh1ob  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

Sure thing: I apologize. I deleted the photo after @dmartosko told me I'd gotten it wrong. Was confused by the image of you walking in the bottom right corner. https://t.co/fQY7GMNSaD  Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 9, 2017

It was a bad tweet on my personal account, not a story for Washington Post. I deleted it after like 20 minutes. Very fair to call me out. Everything I say on Twitter is a joke, except what I say about @swin24. https://t.co/tI7SQnpoN9  Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 9, 2017

.@daveweigel of the Washington Post just admitted that his picture was a FAKE (fraud?) showing an almost empty arena last night for my speech in Pensacola when, in fact, he knew the arena was packed (as shown also on T.V.). FAKE NEWS, he should be fired.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

Weigel, clearly making the best of a high-profile situation, used his newfound spotlight for some product plugging second only to Donald Trump Jr.s earlier tweet today shilling for Trump Store stocking stuffers. This tweet from Weigel sat atop the reporters Twitter page tonight:

Your occasional reminder to buy many copies of my book: https://t.co/wlWPxLVUiH  Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 10, 2017

Some other folks have also weighed in:

Indeed @DaveWeigel is a very fair, very good reporter, and very wry. A not often applicable term. https://t.co/KbuHf62YmE  Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) December 9, 2017

He made a mistake, retracted & apologized. Just because you never admit your mistakes & lies doesnt mean theyre not happening. https://t.co/WCK70xAqz3  Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) December 9, 2017

By including Dave Weigels @ handle, the presidents statement is inviting followers to gang up on a reporter https://t.co/3C5jKDvFP5  Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) December 9, 2017

So by that logic YOU should be fired too!  Perez (@ThePerezHilton) December 10, 2017

What a sad, puny man the president is  John Legend (@johnlegend) December 9, 2017

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What is a pipe bomb? What to know about the Port Authority bombers weapon

Another terrorist attack has occurred. At 7:30 a.m. on December 11th, a pipe bomb exploded in a passageway beneath Times Square.

Thankfully, no one was killed in the attempted attack. Four people were injured when the bomb exploded, according to the Fire Department of New York. Among those injured was the suspect, 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.

The blast occurred near the Port Authority bus terminal, which serves more than 65 million people annually.

Police commissioner James ONeill told CNN that Ullah wore a low-tech explosive device attached to his body. NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said that the device was inspired by a pipe bomb and that Ullah had attached it to his body using zip ties and velcro. He said that the FBI and bomb technicians are studying the bomb to find out more. A pipe bomb is a kind of homemade bomb made from pipe.

But the bomb didnt function as it was supposed to, according to CNN. Ullah told police he assembled the bomb at his workplace, which is unknown.

Ullah is being treated for burns and cuts on his hands and body, New York City Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro told CNN. The three victims are being treated at local hospitals for headaches and ringing ears.

UPDATE: One person is in custody, according to two NYPD sources, after what appears to be some type of pipe bomb explosion in New York City https://t.co/J76MRZqlvq pic.twitter.com/Jy1KE7fu51  CNN (@CNN) December 11, 2017

The Port Authority Bus Terminal closed temporarily, but it reopened shortly after 10 a.m. according to the New York Police Departments Twitter account. Several Subway lines were out of service as well, but Subway service is expected to resume the evening of December 11th, according to The New York Times.

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The @PANYNJ Port Authority Bus Terminal (@PABusTerminal) has reopened. For the latest updates on delays and schedules there, follow them and check https://t.co/WgpwsNwfxq  NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

In a news conference, Mayor Bill de Blasio referred to the explosion as an attempted act of terrorism. Former NYPD commissioner Bill Bratton told MSNBC that Ullah detonated the bomb in the name of ISIS, but he worked alone and had no prior contact with the terrorist organization.

Ullahs apparent extremist ideology and his intent to hurt people in a crowded place defines this attack as terrorism. Were thankful that nobody was killed in the explosion, but this attack is still alarming. To everyone in New York: stay safe.
A new report reveals that newly engaged Prince Harry has quit smoking for fiancee Meghan Markle.

"Harry has promised no smoking at all at home. Its not nice for Meghan as a non-smoker. So theres no more hanging out of the window for a quick puff. Harry has quit for Meghan," explained a friend to the Daily Mail.



Although smoking is banned from royal residences, including Harry and Meghan's future home at Nottingham Cottage in Kensington Palace, the 33-year-old prince has been known to smoke cigarettes after a few drinks. He reportedly took up the habit while a student at Eton.

RELATED: Adorable photos of the royal

Harry spoke about his days as a student to a Cape Town Youth Center back in 2015, "I didn't enjoy school at all. I would like to have come to a place like this. When I was at school I wanted to be the bad boy. When he got older, the prince frequently made headlines for his partying lifestyle and could "easily get through a packet of Marlborough Lights a day."

However, Meghan is an avid proponent of healthy eating and exercise. "Running has always been my form of moving meditation," the actress once said. Since announcing their engagement, both Meghan and Harry have been spotted around various London gyms in preparation for their upcoming May nuptials.

Related: Meghan's best photos
NEW YORK  Four women who have accused President Donald Trump of sexual harassment and assault are demanding that Congress investigate their claims.

Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey and Rachel Crooks on Monday morning told NBC News Megyn Kelly about their alleged experiences with Trump. Lisa Boyne, a fourth accuser, joined them for a news conference later that day.

Leeds, Holvey and Crooks reflected on what it was like to watch Trump get elected after they had accused him of sexual harassment and assault.

It was heartbreaking last year when we all  were private citizens  for us to put ourselves out there to try to show America who this man is and especially how he views women and for them to say, Meh, we dont care, Holvey said. It hurt.

A White House spokesperson responded to the three womens accusations in a statement to Kelly.

These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last years campaign, and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory, the statement read. The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them.

Crooks called the statement laughable.

Leeds told HuffPost she isnt optimistic that sexual misconduct allegations against Trump will prompt his resignation, despite the #MeToo reckoning affecting Hollywood and some political circles.

Unless Congress gets the courage to act as a body and hold him accountable, then nothing is going to happen, she said Monday.

He really seems to be Teflon because its not just the sexual aggression issues, she added. Hes not a good businessman, hes a lousy administrator... This year has been a disaster  except when he describes it. Hes just so out of touch with reality.

WATCH: "If there are other women out there, what do you want them to know?" - Megyn asks Trump accusers Jessica Leeds, Samantha Holvey & Rachel Cooks on #MegynTODAY pic.twitter.com/YPt1CxieUA  Megyn Kelly TODAY (@MegynTODAY) December 11, 2017

At the news conference, all four women urged Congress to open an investigation into the sexual harassment and assault allegations against the president. Nineteen women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

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Leeds addressed the recent wave of sexual misconduct allegations against powerful men, including film producer Harvey Weinstein, Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore and Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.).

It became apparent that in some areas, the accusations of sexual aggression were being taken seriously and people were being held accountable  except for our president, she said. Were at the position now where in some areas of our society, people are being held accountable for unwanted behavior, but we are not holding our president accountable for what he is and who he is.

Crooks pointed to the recent investigation into Frankens alleged inappropriate behavior as an example.

If they were willing to investigate Sen. Franken, I think its only fair that they do the same for Trump, she said. We shouldnt let politicians get away with this.

This isnt a partisan issue, Holvey said, adding that she finds Trumps recent endorsement of Moore absolutely disgusting.

Three of Donald Trumps sexual misconduct accusers holding presser now w/ @bravenewfilms pic.twitter.com/dVWo542R53  Hayley Miller (@hayleymiller01) December 11, 2017

Leeds said that she, Holvey and Crooks do not welcome the attention theyve gotten since coming forward.

None of us are comfortable with this, she said. If we had been comfortable being a star, we would have done something else with our lives, but this is important.

Boyne, who alleges that Trump looked up models skirts in the mid-1990s, joined the news conference by speakerphone. She described her experience with Trump and later became emotional talking about the leaked 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he bragged about grabbing women by the pussy.

This isnt how we should teach our boys to talk... Its horrendous, Boyne said. [We should] demand that Donald Trump step down like Al Franken. Because what hes acknowledged, what hes made appropriate culturally, is a thousand times worse than anything Al Franken has done.

Holvey told HuffPost after the news conference that she believes Trump hasnt been held accountable because sexual aggression has become an accepted part of his personality.

Unfortunately, I feel like its part of his bravado, his brash personality, and so people are like, Oh, thats just how he is, Holvey said. And thats not acceptable... This is not even 16 individual instances  this is a lifetime of him and how he treats women.

She said her interaction with Trump led her to abandon her dream of becoming Miss USA.

I didnt want him to be my boss, Holvey said. I was simply a piece of meat to him.

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Samantha Holvey describes Trump entering her dressing room during a Miss USA competition in 2006: I was simply a piece of meat to him. pic.twitter.com/aLDiRGZ8YF  Hayley Miller (@hayleymiller01) December 11, 2017

Leeds first spoke to The New York Times last year, alleging that Trump groped her on an airplane more than 30 years ago.

He was like an octopus, she said. His hands were everywhere.

In the same article, Crooks said Trump forcibly kissed her when they met in 2005. Holvey accused Trump of personally inspecting her and the other 2006 Miss USA candidates during a contest event that year.

He would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe like we were just meat, we were just sexual objects, that we were not people, she told CNN in 2016. You know when a gross guy at the bar is checking you out? Its that feeling.

Mondays news conference was hosted by Brave New Films, a documentary production company that in November released a three-minute video called 16 Women and Donald Trump. The video shares the stories of the women who have come forward with their experiences of Trump allegedly assaulting or harassing them.

The president and his administration have denied these claims repeatedly. On Tuesday, Trump tweeted that women he didnt know were making false accusations.

Despite thousands of hours wasted and many millions of dollars spent, the Democrats have been unable to show any collusion with Russia - so now they are moving on to the false accusations and fabricated stories of women who I dont know and/or have never met. FAKE NEWS!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 12, 2017

Four of Trumps accusers issued a statement Tuesday morning following his tweet that labeled their allegations as fake news. The statement was made by Crooks, Boyne, Holvey and Melinda McGillivray, who alleges that Trump groped her while she was attending a concert at Mar-a-Lago in 2003.

President Trump took to Twitter this morning to attack us. He dismissed the well-documented and factual claims of sexual misconduct made against him by at least 16 women, including ourselves, as fake news, the statement reads.

These outright  and false  denials from President Trump are straight out of the Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby playbook, the statement continues. It is exactly what we have come to expect from a man who has repeatedly demonstrated his disregard and disdain for women, and the truth.

The four women added that the best way for Americans to know the truth would be for Congress to open an investigation into the claims.

The post-Weinstein era of accountability, and the rise of the #MeToo movement, give us hope that our society is changing for the better, the statement reads. President Trump has thus far avoided accountability for his long-running sexual misconduct. That changes now.

Trump initially acknowledged that he could be heard on the 2005 Access Hollywood tape and characterized the comments as locker room talk. More recently, he has reportedly suggested that the voice on the tape isnt his  even though, to be clear, it is.

U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said Sunday that the women accusing Trump deserve to be heard.

This article has been updated with allegations from Boyne, additional comments from Leeds and Holvey, details from the news conference, and comment from Trump, as well as details from the four accusers statement on Tuesday.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Ryland Ward, 5, survived the shooting last month in Texas, but lost his stepmother and two sisters. (Photo: GoFundMe)

Ryland Ward, 5 years old, who lost his stepmother and sisters in the Nov. 5 church attack in Sutherland Springs, Texas, wants just one thing for the holidays this year: Christmas cards.

Ward, who was shot five times, remains in recovery at a Texas hospital and is expected to remain there for another six to eight weeks. He still has no idea that his stepmother and sisters were killed. His other sister, Rianna, survived the shooting.

They still havent told him yet that his mom and sisters are dead, but Im sure hes kind of getting some kind of idea, because hes 5, and they dont come to visit him, Wards grandmother told KSAT.

Christmas cards for Ryland have already begun pouring into his hospital room. They include well-wishes from other children and even photos of their pets. Wards family is asking that a $1 donation be included with each card to save up to buy Ryland a go-kart.

Cards can be sent to the following address:

Ryland Ward

P.O. Box 174

Sutherland Springs, Texas, 78161

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help with Rylands hospital bills.

Mental as well as physical wounds linger after the shooting, the worst in Texas history, after they unfolded back in November.

On the morning of Nov. 5, 26-year-old Devin Patrick Kelley walked towards the First Baptist Church wearing black tactical gear and carrying a semi-automatic rifle. He began firing even before walking through the door and once inside, methodically executed the parishioners, leaving 26 dead and another 20 wounded.

Kelley was shot twice after exiting the church by former NRA firearms instructor Stephen Willeford. Willeford, armed with an AR-15 style rifle, had been in the area and responded to the sounds of gunfire.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle

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Algiers (AFP) - Up to 6,000 Africans who fought for the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria could return home, the African Union's top security official warned Sunday, calling on countries to prepare for the threat.

Smail Chergui, the AU's commissioner for peace and security, said African nations would need to work closely with each other and share intelligence to counter returning militants.

"There are reports of 6,000 African fighters among the 30,000 foreign elements who joined this terrorist group in the Middle East," Chergui told a meeting in Algiers, according to the Algeria Press Service news agency.

"The return of these elements to Africa poses a serious threat to our national security and stability and requires specific treatment and intense cooperation between African countries," he said.

Tens of thousands of foreign fighters joined the Sunni extremist group after it seized vast swathes of Iraq and Syria and declared a caliphate in 2014.

But the group has suffered a host of losses to both its territory and military capabilities in the last year.

Backed by a US-led coalition, Iraqi forces gradually retook control of all territory lost to the jihadists, declaring on Saturday that the country was now liberated from its control.

In Syria, the group faces western-backed Syrian rebels, jihadist rivals and government forces that are supported by Russia and Iran.

But the losses have sparked fears that IS's remaining foreign fighters may now relocate, bringing their extremist ideology and violence with them.
Seventy-four percent of parents help pay for their adult childrens living expenses, according to a new CreditCards.com and BankRate survey.

The cellphone bill is the most common expense parents help pay, and other top expenses they assist with include transportation (e.g. car repairs, gas), rent and utilities.

In total, 52% of parents said they helped their children pay down their student loan debt. Respondents aged 55 and over were significantly more likely than those aged 35-54 to help their adult children with debt payments.

Meanwhile, only 16% of respondents said they helped an adult child pay a credit card bill.

Grown adults are still dependent on their parents

CreditCards.com senior industry analyst Matt Schulz says parents who feel compelled to assist their children can face some negative repercussions. While their generosity comes from a good place, it may not be wise.

In helping their kids, parents can get themselves into some trouble. The vast majority of Americans are going to struggle with retirement savings. That money isnt going into your retirement accounts in the future. Its important that parents dont do so blindly without understanding what the potential ramifications are for their own futures, he told Yahoo Finance.

The truth is not all parents are good role models with their finances. The truth is a lot of parents have great intentions but arent necessarily equipped to give the best advice, he added.

Market research firm YouGov interviewed 1,092 adults with children 18 and over to do the survey. The company did not break down the respondents by how old their children are. Its safe to surmise that those 22+ would receive substantially less help from their parents, after graduating college and receiving some sort of income.

Then, of course, there are those parents who cut their children a check every month or perhaps once a year. In these instances, they might not be helping their adult children out of necessity  instead, they may be subsidizing their kids luxury wardrobes or fancy dinners.

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As fresh college grads flock to expensive cities for high-skilled jobs, they struggle to cover their day-to-day expenses with meager entry level salaries. Nearly half of folks in their early 20s get help from their parents to pay for rent, according to surveys cited earlier this year by The New York Times.

Melody Hahm is a senior writer at Yahoo Finance, covering entrepreneurship, technology and real estate. Follow her on Twitter @melodyhahm.

Read more:
A new Wisconsin law is a major expansion from a pact enacted in 2000 that allowed nurses licensed in one state to care for patients in another, according to a La Crosse nurse who submitted testimony supporting the legislation.

It is a significant advance to have as many nurses as possible available, especially in emergencies, said Beth Smith-Houskamp, administrative chief operating officer and chief nursing officer at La Crosse-based Gundersen Health System.

The original interstate nurse licensure agreement, which Wisconsin joined in 2000, reduced regulations for nurses so their licenses in one state allowed them to practice in other states that belonged to the pact.

But significantly fewer states participated in that agreement, compared with more than 25 in the new one, Smith-Houskamp said in an interview Monday.

Gov. Scott Walker signed the legislation, Senate Bill 417 to enroll the state in the Enhanced Nurse License Compact, Monday at Southwest Health in Platteville.

Authors included State Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, and state Reps. Nancy VanderMeer, R-Tomah, and Travis Tranel, R-Cuba City, with bipartisan co-sponsorship from 97 other legislators.

The nurses across our state are such a huge part of our communities in so many ways, and to be able offer legislation that has such a positive impact for them and their profession is tremendously rewarding, VanderMeer said.

The law also will help increase access to health care in rural communities, so this particular bill will have a vast impact for a large number of individuals, she said.

The new law, which will take effect on Jan. 19, includes Iowa but not Minnesota because the Gopher State has not opted to join the agreement.

As a result, nurses at Gundersen, Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare and other medical facilities in Wisconsin can treat patients in Iowa, and vice versa, but not Minnesota, said Smith-Houskamp, who submitted her written testimony on Oct. 17 on behalf of Gundersen and its more than 1,600 nurses.

Instead of requiring a Wisconsin nurse who wanted to cross over to Iowa to obtain licensing in the Hawkeye State, the Wisconsin license would be recognized, she said. Licensing normally takes anywhere from three to eight weeks and costs $86, a fee that is expected to rise in January, she said.

Appreciation for the law also came from Mayo Clinic Health System.

Licensing across state borders gives flexibility to nurses and health care organizations to meet the needs of their patients while keeping high-quality health care in local communities, said Jason Fratzke, chief nursing officer of Mayo Clinic Health System Southwest Wisconsin.

In addition to direct care, the law facilitates other nursing services, such as virtual care through telemedicine, as well as situations in which a nurse in one state might be providing advice to a patient in another jurisdiction, Smith-Houskamp said.

Although there are times when day-to-day license fluidity comes in handy, such as for a 19-county system like Gundersens, the expansion would be especially helpful in emergencies, Smith-Houskamp said.

She cited the need for nurses to provide medical care in Houston, Texas, and other Southern cities after Hurricane Harvey raked the Gulf Coast in August.

The Wisconsin Health Association also lauded the legislation, noting its potential to affect 112,000 nurses statewide.

This is one of the most quickly adopted laws Wisconsin has had, Smith-Houskamp said. Were thankful that the legislative process moved so quickly to help patients, nurses and our institutions.

Physicians experienced a similar breakthrough in April, when the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact took effect  after five years of lobbying, negotiations and rules drafting among health systems and states.

Also referred to as license portability, that pact allows doctors who have navigated the time-consuming and costly process of obtaining a license in one state to get one in another state through the compact without having to repeat the same drill.

Unlike the nurse agreement, though, the doctor pact also applies to physicians with Minnesota licenses.

That law also had strong support from Gundersen and Mayo-Franciscan because of their multi-state operations.
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Monday it had extended the deadline for President Jacob Zuma to submit arguments on why he should not be prosecuted for corruption. "They must submit their representation on the 31st of January," said NPA spokesman Luvuyo Mfaku. The 783 charges against Zuma relate to a 30 billion rand ($2.20 billion) government arms deal arranged in the late 1990s. They were filed but then dropped by the NPA shortly before he ran for the presidency. ($1 = 13.6572 rand) (Reporting by Tanisha Heiberg; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
This photo from a 2011 drivers license shows Akayed Ullah, the suspect in the explosion near New York's Times Square: New York Department of Motor Vehicles via AP

Authorities have released the first image of the suspect in the explosion at New York City's Port Authority terminal.

Police named 27-year-old Akayed Ullah of Brooklyn, New York as the suspect. He is accused of setting off an improvised explosive device in the crowded Port Authority terminal during rush hour on Monday morning. Three people suffered minor injuries from the explosion. Mr Ullah sustained severe burns to his abdomen and hands.

Mr Ullah is originally from Bangladesh, and came to the US with his parents and siblings in 2011. Sources briefed on the investigation told the Associated Press that he arrived on a preferential visa for those with family in the US. He later obtained a green card and became a permanent US resident, according to CBS.

The suspect had no criminal history in Bangladesh, where he last visited in September, the country's police chief told Reuters. In New York, he held a for-hire vehicle drivers licence from 2012 to 2015, according to CNN. The license lapsed in March 2015, and Mr Ullah did not renew it.

The owner of the building where Mr Ullah and his family live told CNN the suspect was not particularly friendly. He added that other tenants had complained of fighting and yelling coming from the apartment over the last two days.

Speaking to investigators from his hospital bed, Mr Ullah said Isis inspired him to carry out his attack, according to the Associated Press. He claimed not to have had any direct contact with the terror group.

New York Police Commissioner James O'Neill said the suspect detonated an "improvised, low-tech explosive device" that was strapped to his body with velcro and zip ties. Officials say he assembled the device, similar to a pipe bomb, in his apartment.

The explosion occurred in an underground walkway connecting trains at 42nd St and 8th Avenue. The area is a major hub for commuters and a popular spot for tourists. Attractions such as the Rockefeller Christmas tree and holiday store displays draw crowds of visitors to the area in the winter months.

Story continues

Authorities evacuated the terminal after the explosion, which occurred around 7:20 am. Trains were briefly rerouted away from the area during the police investigation. Full service resumed three hours later.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo urged the city's resident's to continue with their days as usual.

Were not going to allow them to disrupt us," he said. "That is exactly what they want, and that is exactly what theyre not going to get."
The Daily Beast

MIKHAIL METZELNearly nine months into Russias war against Ukraine, it seems some of Vladimir Putins strongmen are laying the groundwork to abandon ship.A human rights group that works closely with Russian inmates and investigates abuses by the security services has reportedly received a flood of calls from members of those same security services desperately trying to flee.Gulagu.net, founded by Vladimir Osechkin, reports that the final straw appears to have been the brutal sledgehammer-executi
Samantha Holvey, who said last year that Donald Trump personally inspected her before the Miss USA pageant a decade earlier, said it was heartbreaking when the business mogul was elected President of the United States despite facing several allegations of sexual harassment.

But now, she says: The environments different. Lets try again.

Holvey appeared Monday morning on Megyn Kelly Today with Jessica Leeds and Rachel Crooks, two other Trump accusers who are hoping a sea change in the national discussion around sexual misconduct will help their stories find a more receptive audience than last year. Leeds said that Trump groped her and kissed her without her consent on an airplane in the 1970s, while Crooks said that Trump kissed her on the mouth in 2005 while she was an employee at Trump Tower. At least 19 women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

For us to put ourselves out there to try to show America who this man is and especially how he views women and for them to say Eh, we dont care, it hurt. Trump accuser Samantha Holvey on @MegynTODAY pic.twitter.com/BIWZCYlQzA  TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 11, 2017

Trump has repeatedly denied all allegations. The White House told Megyn Kelly Today in a statement: These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last years campaign, and the American people voiced their judgement by delivering a decisive victory. The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them.

White House spokesperson responds to @MegynTODAY show featuring three women who have accused President Trump of sexual misconduct: The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes pic.twitter.com/6uYLSXXYdz  Monica Alba (@albamonica) December 11, 2017

Leeds said that when she realized Trump would actually run for president in 2015, she began telling everyone about what she says he did to her. Leeds, who told Kelly that shes a Democrat, said she didnt think she had the power to derail his campaign.

I wanted people to know what kind of person Trump really is  what a pervert he is, she said. I think his core supporters do know  but hes their dog, and theyre going to stick with their dog.

Since allegations against Harvey Weinstein broke in October, several other prominent men, including politicians, have faced accusations of sexual harassment and misconduct. Some, like Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken and Arizona Republican Rep. Trent Franks, have lost their jobs.

Read more: The Silence Breakers of the #MeToo Movement Are the 2017 TIME Person of the Year

Some women accusing Trump have said its frustrating that Trump hasnt faced any consequences his alleged behavior.

For us to put ourselves out there to try to show America who this man is and especially how he views women and for them to say Meh, we dont care, Holvey told Kelly. It hurt.

Now the women accusing Trump want to put their allegations back in the spotlight. On Monday, several women who accused Trump will call on Congress to investigate their allegations. Some Democratic lawmakers have called on Trump to resign. And Nikki Haley, Trumps Ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that the women accusing Trump deserve to be heard.

Lets try round two, Holvey said.
Mother Jones magazine and the progressive organization Americans for Tax Fairness have taken a look at the more lavish of the House and Senate measures to cut taxes for the richest people in America  a mammoth break on estate taxes. Whats the maximum extra dollars the 15 richest people in America could pocket? The equivalent of the entire GDP of Denmark.

The House plan would completely eliminate all estate taxes by 2024, ending a nearly 100-year-old levy. Until then, the House measure would double the amount of the current exemption, which now allows heirs to inherit tax free an individual estate up to $5.5 million, and an estate worth $11 million left by a married couple. The Senate goes along with doubling the exemption, but not repealing the tax.

How much would repealing the estate tax be worth to, say, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos? His heirs extra take would be $32.6 billion dollars, Bill Gates heirs would save an extra $35.6 billion, and conservative campaign contributors David and Charles Koch would each leave an additional $19.4 billion tax free, according to the calculations. Warren Buffetts heirs would pocket an additional $31.2 billion and Mark Zuckerberg would leave behind an extra $28.4 tax free, according to the analysis.

Check out the rest of the Mother Jones chart here.

Another family that would make out like bandits would be President Donald Trumps crew. Though Trump has insisted the tax package isnt good for him or his family, thats not the case. With the estate tax repeal alone, his children would stand to inherit an additional $1.24 billion tax free, according to the calculations.

The estimates are ballpark figures for all, based on certain assumptions, including that each persons entire estate is taxable (and not already sheltered) and that all of it would be passed on to heirs.

Some of those on the richest list have said they wont leave all their wealth for the next generation. Buffett, Zuckerberg, Gates, Larry Ellison and Michael Bloomberg have all signed The Giving Pledge, vowing to donate more than half of their wealth to philanthropy or charities.

Story continues

The Senate and House still must reconcile various differences in their tax overhaul plans, including on the estate tax.

Also on HuffPost

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
There's no fervor like a mothers love.

That's especially true when that mom, Amber Hennlich, is so tenacious that she would move mountains  even the North Pole  so her 7-year-old son could see Santa one more time before the belief bubble bursts (possibly).

Not just any Santa  or a substitute Santa, or a mall Santa, or an uncle dressed like Santa  but the real Santa, with none other than Mrs. Claus at his elbow, in La Crosse. They are the Clauses whom Hennlich and her son, Aluxton, had come to know and love during his first five Christmas seasons.

The Allen, Texas, woman was so desperate to find the real Claus couple that she posted a plea for help with the search on a Reddit message board in Dallas.

Lo and behold, after dozens of people offered tips, as well as voicing their own frustrations that they couldnt find that special Santa, either, a librarian happened upon a link to a Nov. 30 La Crosse Tribune story revealing that the real Santas workshop is at Downtown Mainstreet Inc.

I freaked out, Hennlich said.

She put a finger to the side of her nose and sprang to the computer to book an airline sleigh ride to La Crosses snows. Upon learning the trip would cost a thousand a pop, she loosened the reins to find a better option.

The flights of less than $100 to Minneapolis on Saturday were ideal, because the 940-mile flight would leave just a hop, skip and a jump of a road trip to see Santa and the Mrs.  aka Dan and Bonnie Felten of La Crosse.

Its worth it just to make it special for him, she said. We have a very good life, and she revels in brightening others lives.

Hennlichs boyfriend, Kevin Somers, who was working in Washington, D.C., that day, said he knew something was afoot when she called him during the workday. They normally dont call each other at work unless its an emergency.

When she asked him, with emotion fluttering in her voice, whether he was interested in a trip to the North Pole this weekend, he knew she already had bought the tickets, he said with a laugh in Santas waiting room at DMI.

I didnt cry, son insists

Santa and Mrs. Claus were as surprised that Hennlich would go to so much trouble to see them as Aluxton had been when she sprung the North Pole idea on him.

Aluxton shed a few tears, she said.

I didnt cry! Aluxton insisted as he colored an image of Carly the Elf (aka Carly Felten), who helps children pass the time when the line is long.

They were tears of joy, Mom interjected to salvage his pride him as they warmed themselves from a 20-degree outside temperature that seemed like the North Pole to the Texas lad.

The temperature was 60 when they left Dallas, and Hennlich acknowledged that theyre not used to the chill that enveloped them in La Crosse.

There was an ice storm in Dallas three-four years ago, she said, laughing as she added, It shut down the city for three or four days.

The Grand Reunion was a sight to behold after Mrs. Claus worked her soothing magic to help Aluxton shed his initial shyness.

Aluxton, whose two favorite subjects in school are art and music, especially enjoyed the activity in which he and the Clauses used brushes with magic colorless paint to coat a rocking horse toy. Santa explained that he still has to work on toys while in La Crosse, because he never knows whether the elves at the alternative North Pole are keeping up the pace before Christmas Eve.

Mrs. Claus then instructed Aluxton to put the toy into a special green bag, while he and Santa waved a snow-topped wand above it and repeated a magical Christmas chant.

When Aluxton retrieved the horse from the bag  voila!  the magic paint had colorized the toy, and a grin spread across his face.

Everything is magical for the Claus/Feltens, who were visibly honored and touched that the trio had traveled so far for the reunion.

They are great people

And Hennlich was beside herself with joy, saying, Its clear, they are great people. Every year, they were absolutely perfect at The Parks at Arlington Mall.

Other Santas sometimes seemed like they didnt care, she said. But they (the Clauses/Feltens) always showed so much consideration.

That atmosphere disappeared like St. Nick up a chimney when the mall changed its center attraction to a Shrek theme, with a Santa almost as an afterthought.

The problem was, Santa explained, that Shrek elbowed Mrs. Claus out of the scene like a broken toy tossed into the trash.

I dont work without her, he said, so he put the mall on the naughty list and moved elsewhere.

I was furious, Hennlich said of the Shrek takeover and its costly admission. It was so much commercialization.

That season, nobody seemed to know where Clauses/Feltens were, although I called every mall in Texas, she said.

Finally, she located them at the Hulen Mall in Fort Worth, so they made the 1-trek to get away from Shrek.

Hennlich wasnt the only one who made the trip to Fort Worth, Santa said, adding that was a great comfort to him and the missus.

The loving mom was at a loss again last year, when she couldnt find the real McCoys, and I had to convince my son that the assistant Santa would deliver his message at still another mall.

Nobody in the Lone Star State knew the couple had built a workshop in the Doerflinger building in La Crosse, where they have a condo because its more convenient to the North Pole, the fishing is good and the scenery is outstanding.

After the reunion Saturday, Santa carefully put Aluxtons list of his three top wishes for Christmas  a parakeet, Legos and Hot Wheels  into the bag where he is putting all the youngsters lists for the elves to fill.

Mrs. Claus and Hennlich used the same description of the odds-defying meeting: a Christmas miracle.

The three Texans also were able to take in other sights in La Crosse, marveling at Rotary Lights, which they viewed from their rental car during the circular drive and during a stroll through Riverside Park afterward.

Hennlich, a regional sales manager for a building marketing company, said she especially enjoyed seeing the preserved buildings and ornate houses in neighborhoods they toured.

Santa gave Aluxton a special piece of memorabilia before he headed back to Texas via the Twin Cities: a bell from one of his reindeer harnesses.

Hes a little shy now, Hennlich said of her son, but this will be a memory for the rest of his life.
A North Dakota woman has pleaded guilty in the murder of her pregnant neighbor as part of a plot to steal her baby.

Brooke Crews, 38, who has been dubbed womb raider in the media, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and murder and lying to law enforcement officers in the death of her neighbor, 22-year-old Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind.

From where I stand, she accepted responsibility today, Crews attorney, Steven Mottinger, told INFORUM News.

He added that a guilty plea goes a long way in terms of us being able to argue for something less than life without parole."

Crews and her boyfriend, William Hoehn, 32, had both previously pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and kidnapping in Greywind's death, but has now reportedly changed her plea.

Police have not given out specific details about how Greywind, who was eight months pregnant, was killed, but noted that she died of homicidal violence.

Greywind disappeared on Aug. 19 after visiting the apartment of Crews and Hoehn.

Greywind reportedly lived with her parents in the same six-unit building in north Fargo as the couple.

Her parents said she went upstairs to help Crews with a sewing project, and they became alarmed when she didn't return promptly, the Star Tribune reported.

She was reported missing and days later, police obtained a search warrant for Crews and Hoehns apartment, where they found a newborn baby inside.

DNA testing confirmed that the baby was the child of Greywind and her longtime boyfriend, Ashton Matheny, reports said.

Greywinds body was found by kayakers eight days later in the Red River, wrapped in plastic and duct tape, police said.

Police said Crews initially claimed Greywind gave up her newborn daughter, later named Haisley Jo, but eventually admitted taking advantage of the woman to get the child.

Hoehn reportedly told police that he came home on Aug. 19 to find Crews cleaning up blood in their bathroom, Fox News reported.

Story continues

Hoehn said Crews presented him with an infant girl and said, "This is our baby. This is our family."

Hoehn told police he took garbage bags containing bloody shoes and his bloody towels and disposed of them, according to the court documents obtained by the station.

Police Chief Dave Todd called Greywinds death a "cruel and vicious act of depravity," reports said.

Crews is expected to be sentenced on Jan 16, according to reports. Hoehns trial is set to begin in March.

Baby Haisley Jo is now reportedly living with her biological father.

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Rogerio da Silva was caught in an operation involving 3,000 troops and police but residents of Rocinha, the favela he sought to control, remain on edge

Rogerio da Silva was wanted for homicide, extortion and drug trafficking, and a $15,000 reward had been offered for his arrest. Photograph: Fabio Teixeira/AP

The high-profile arrest this week of Rio drug lord Rogerio da Silva  known as Rogerio 157  was not celebrated in Rocinha, the favela he once fought to dominate.

Triumphant police officers posed with Da Silva for selfies after he was caught in an operation involving 3,000 troops and police. But in Rocinha the mood was of uncertainty, not celebration.

Many expressed concern that more violence would rock a community that has barely known peace since being taken over by security forces in 2011 in a pacification programme which has since fallen apart.

Everyone is apprehensive, said a small business owner, one of a number of residents who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal. Everybody is waiting for something and nobody knows what will come.

Da Silva  who was found hiding under a duvet on Wednesday morning  was wanted for homicide, extortion and drug trafficking, and a $15,000 reward had been offered for his arrest. Police say that he was responsible for a gang war that exploded in the favela earlier this year when he broke ranks with his former boss.

With an official population of 69,000  and some estimates more than double that Rocinha is Brazils biggest favela, a warren of steep alleys and winding streets sprawling across a hillside near more prosperous beachside neighbourhoods such as Leblon.

The day after Da Silvas arrest, shops and market stalls were open. Motorbike taxis beeped incessantly and people thronging the streets ignored heavily armed police. But tension swirled below the surface. And one business owner said takings had halved since strife broke out in September.

With this whole war, business dropped off, he said. Across the street, a police officer took a selfie.

The violence continued here even on the night of Da Silvas arrest. Two men were shot during a shootout with police and later died in hospital. Police said they found a guns, ammunition and 34kg of marijuana with them. A third man died in the early hours of Thursday morning. Shots were fired at police on Friday morning who later said they arrested one of the criminals with a radio transmitter.

Story continues

Rogerio 157 was named after the penal code for the street robberies he carried out before becoming a lieutenant to Antonio Bonfim Lopes, aka Nem, a charismatic drug lord from the Amigos dos Amigos (ADA, or Friends of Friends) gang whose life was detailed in Misha Glennys best-seller Nemesis.

Nem was jailed in 2011 after Brazilian military took over the favela as part of a pre-Olympic policy to install police bases in communities controlled by armed drug gangs.

Two years later, a local man, Amarildo de Souza, disappeared after being arrested and taken to Rocinhas police base. He was never seen again. Last year 12 officers, including the bases then commander, were handed jail sentences for torturing and killing De Souza.

Pacification in Rocinha never recovered its credibility. Sergio Cabral, one of its main architects when state governor, has since been jailed for running a graft network that pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars.

You dont do pacification just with police. The government promised to invest in social programmes, infrastructure, health, education, culture, but none of this went forward, a Rocinha health worker said. We live in a corrupt state.

Rogerio da Silva fell out with Nem, who local media blamed for orchestrating an attempt to invade the favela in September. Troops briefly surrounded the community, but the gunfights continued, and in October a Spanish tourist was shot dead by police.

Police said da Silva joined a rival Rio gang called the Red Command (CV, or Comando Vermelho). His replacement is said to be from the same gang but also previously belonged to ADA.

WhatsApp messages circulating Rocinha say the ADA has teamed up with another Rio gang, the Third Pure Command (TCP, or Terceiro Comando Puro), to recapture its lucrative drug market. Armed men still lurk in Rocinha alleyways where drugs are openly sold.

Meanwhile, residents mourned Sueliton Duarte, a motorbike taxi driver who was one of the three men killed after Rogerio 157s arrest. On Friday morning, fellow drivers joined hands and applauded a man residents called an innocent civilian killed in the crossfire.

People believe that the outcome of this story will be tragic, the health worker said. Rocinha today is split between two criminal gangs. They wont live together for long. Somebody will have to come out on top.
Baghdad (AFP) - Iraq may have announced a final victory over the Islamic State group in the country, but Baghdad's triumph remains fragile and the root causes for the jihadists' rise have not been tackled.

It has taken a long and devastating campaign to wipe IS from the map after the jihadists threatened Iraq's very existence by seizing roughly one third of its territory in 2014.

Troops backed up by the air power of a US-led coalition have waged some of the fiercest urban warfare seen anywhere in decades to oust the jihadists from a string of cities and towns across the country.

But while Baghdad may be basking in its battlefield success for now, relying on military might will not be enough in the longer term.

"Everything remains to be done to dry out the earth on which IS flourished," said Karim Bitar, a regional expert at the Paris-based Institute for International and Strategic Affairs.

"The jihadists have been deprived of oxygen and defeated militarily but the womb from which they emerged remains fertile."

Now the fighting is finished, the list of demands facing Iraq's authorities is daunting -- and includes many key challenges that Baghdad has failed to address for years.

"It involves first of all consolidating the power of the central authorities while pursuing inclusive policies that do not marginalise any community," Bitar said.

"Then it is necessary to tackle reconstruction, economic and social problems, stem corruption and ensure the equitable distribution of oil incomes."

All of this comes with Iraq on its knees after the brutal years of IS rule in the territory it controlled and the harrowing battle to defeat the jihadists.

A donor meeting for the country is set to be held in Kuwait in February and estimates put the reconstruction bill facing Iraq at some $100 billion (85 billion euros).

- Sunni grievance -

Iraq expert Mohammad Ould Mohamedou, a professor at Geneva's Graduate Institute, cautioned that even the victory on the battlefield might not be as definitive as its seems.

Story continues

The Sunni Muslim jihadists have melted into the desert and maintained their capacity to launch brutal attacks across the country -- reverting to their roots as insurgent fighters.

"The question of IS is not going to disappear. The military aspect is far from over, and in this type of conflict, hostilities remain for a long time at a level that requires a substantial commitment," Ould Mohamedou said.

Key to preventing a resurgence by the jihadists will be dealing with the profound sectarian grievances among Iraq's Sunni community on which IS fed.

Sidelined in the wake of the 2003 US ouster of Saddam Hussein and targeted by the Shiite-dominated authorities, Sunnis provided fertile ground for the jihadists.

But the harshness of IS rule ended up turning many Sunnis against them and now the group's fighters are gone the government needs to seize the opportunity to bring the community onboard.

"The work of reconstruction, in this case, is as much social as in terms of infrastructure," said Ould Mohamedou.

Even if Iraq's government is serious about tackling the sectarian divide, the regional tug-of-war between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia could make it all the more difficult.

The two Middle East titans are locked in a power struggle that stretches from Lebanon through Yemen and Syria, and now Iraq could start figuring more prominently in the tussle.

"The Iranians and the Iraqi Shiite community remain in a position of strength, with control of the main levers of state," said Bitar.

"But the Saudis could become more active in the coming months as they seek to stem and repel Iranian influence on a regional scale."

- Disarming the militias -

As all attention has focused on wiping out IS, experts and Iraq's Western backers warn that another major threat may have emerged from within the very fight to defeat the group.

That is the rise and legitimisation of the array of militia groups who clubbed together under the banner of the Hashed al-Shaabi, Popular Mobilisation force, to play a key role in defeating IS.

While to some the militia fighters are heroes who came to Iraq's aid in its hour of need, others fear they are an unruly and unaccountable force.

Nominally under the command of the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, the Hashed are dominated by Iranian-backed groups accused of being proxies for Tehran.

They have fought on the front line against Is but been accused of a raft of abuses, often revenge attacks directed against Sunnis.

How the central government now goes about dealing with the 60,000 to 140,000 fighters estimated to have joined the Hashed, and whether Baghdad can really bring them to heel, is a major issue.

"The biggest security challenge is internal, because many of the myriad of Hashed groups are turning into local mafias, setting up illegal checkpoints, toll roads, and the like, to support themselves financially," said Kirk Sowell, an expert who publishes Inside Iraqi Politics.

"In this sense, IS is more relevant to the rest of the world, but for Iraqis, a local armed gang which needs money is far more dangerous."
They are happy just to be nominated  as we know  but these stars stand out for having especially cute reactions to the news that they were nominated for Golden Globes on Monday.

Liev Schreiber has taken his sons to awards shows, but he joked that his Hurricane Harvey rescue dog Woody will be his date this year.

Time to get my last lucky charm fitted for a tux! #thankyou #goldenglobes #woodysfirstglobes @goldenglobes @raydonovan @lievschreiber A post shared by Liev Schreiber (@lievschreiber) on Dec 11, 2017 at 6:17am PST

Nicole Kidman is nominated for Big Little Lies and Top of the Lake: China Girl also received a nod. The double good news made her husband, Keith Urban, especially proud.

Hey baby- CONGRATULATIONS on all the GLOBES love this morn!!!!!!

Incredibly proud of you, the work, and

all the BLL and TOTL team.

THE STARS ALIGNED!!! xxxxxx  KU #GoldenGlobes  Keith Urban (@KeithUrban) December 11, 2017

Kyra Sedgwick was also proud of her man  Kevin Bacon, whose acting in I Love Dick was recognized  and he appreciated it.

Thanks my love https://t.co/lMwUz8Tvgq  Kevin Bacon (@kevinbacon) December 11, 2017

Mollys Games Jessica Chastain and Aaron Sorkin, who were both nominated celebrated together with big hugs.

We just heard the incredible news!!! Thank you #HFPA for your support of @mollysgamemovie We couldnt be happier. Who ever thought #AaronSorkin could jump up and down? @goldenglobes A post shared by Jessica Chastain (@jessicachastain) on Dec 11, 2017 at 6:18am PST

Black-ishs Anthony Anderson screamed on Good Morning America.

NEVER a dull moment in Times Square when @blackishabc star @anthonyanderson's here!  pic.twitter.com/JZRe3ZLI8d  Good Morning America (@GMA) December 11, 2017

And Sterling K. Brown celebrated with his sons  but just for a moment. He had to then drive them to school.

Story continues

Good news today from the #HFPA Thank you so much for this #goldenglobes nomination! Couldn't be more honored! Now I gotta get these kids to school.  A post shared by Sterling Brown (@sterlingkbrown) on Dec 11, 2017 at 7:55am PST





Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:
Despite the (well-founded) protests of JPMorgan, Citigroup and other Wall Street brokers, bitcoin futures are set to go live Sunday evening at 6:00 p.m. EST on the Cboe Futures Exchange (CFE). Next Sunday, December 17, the CME Group (CME) is expected to launch its own bitcoin futures.

Currently, bitcoins are mainly traded on one of the many cash exchanges that exist around the world  even the largest of which has been subject to outages. Though bitcoin derivatives already exist (LedgerX just launched in October), bitcoin futures are expected to eventually bring the liquidity and stability demanded by large institutional traders and small retail traders alike.

What happens to the price of bitcoin once bitcoin futures begin trading?

First, the price of bitcoin futures will affect the prices on the cash bitcoin exchanges, and vice versa. Speculators will arbitrage the different prices, buying on one and selling on another, pocketing the difference. This isnt very easy to do when bitcoin is moving fast and exchanges are crashing left and right. Well likely see one or more bitcoin flash crashes. But over time, the prices will roughly be in line.

And as bitcoin exchanges mature, become more reliable and robust  with the futures contracts become more liquid  this arbing will bring all the bitcoin prices much closer in line with each other. That will take time. (Theres also a non-zero chance that the whole thing comes crashing down, but that probability is pretty low.)

Mock Bitcoins are displayed in Berlin in this January 7, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Pawel Kopczynski

Critics may argue theres a bit of tail wagging the dog here, with the futures market influencing the cash market prices. But its not uncommon for derivative markets (which include futures markets) to become bigger than the underlying commodity or asset. (This is the case for gold, crude oil and nearly all currencies.) The total value of all bitcoins (or its market cap) is about $250 billion, which is chump change for Wall Street. Its easy to envision bitcoin derivatives becoming greater than the underlying cash market some day (the number of bitcoins theoretically being limited to 21 million).

Story continues

Will bitcoin shorts crash the price of bitcoin?

Futures contracts allow traders to bet on a market moving in either direction by going long or going short. Aside from a few small bitcoin derivative markets, theres currently not an easy way to short bitcoin. One question is: If it becomes easy to bet on bitcoins price decline, does that increase the chances of a bitcoin selloff, or even a crash? Or, might we see the opposite, where pent up money on the sidelines finally enters the bitcoin futures market and bids up the price of bitcoin?

The answers arent so simple. Unlike the stock market, futures markets are a zero-sum game. For every long there is a short. For every winner, theres a loser. Every dollar of one traders profit is a dollar lost by another trader. If someone wants to bet big that bitcoin is going down  say, by shorting 1,000 bitcoin contracts  there needs to be one or more traders willing to take the opposite side. That liquidity may not be there from Day One. As the futures market grows, large institutional money will increasingly influence the price of bitcoin. If bitcoin derivatives become larger than the underlying cash market for bitcoin, Wall Streets opinion will have an outsized effect on bitcoin prices. That might be bullish or bearish.

Whats the next step after bitcoin futures?

Bitcoin futures are only the start. The Holy Grail for bitcoin bulls is a U.S. bitcoin ETF listed on a major exchange, which would truly bring the cryptocurrency to the masses. For better or for worse, having bitcoin exposure in a 401(k) isnt that far off. The Winklevoss brothers (who are partly behind the new CFEs Cboe Bitcoin Futures) have tried unsuccessfully for years to register a bitcoin ETF with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SECs main objection has been the lack of a transparent pricing mechanism  that the bitcoin market is too easily subject to manipulation.

Venture Capitalists and Bitcoin investors (L-R) Barry Silbert, Jeremy Liew, Fred Wilson, Cameron Winklevoss and Tyler Winklevoss are sworn in before speaking at a New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) virtual currency hearing in the Manhattan borough of New York January 28, 2014. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

Each of the two new bitcoin futures contracts will be priced (or settled) on proprietary indexes that are themselves based on the cash market for bitcoin (see below for further details). If these indexes prove robust enough for futures trading and settlement, the thinking is that the SEC will eventually allow them to price a bitcoin ETF. Thats at least a year away though, according to most industry insiders.

Where are bitcoin futures traded?

The futures market, not unlike the stock market, is organized around exchanges. Clearing brokers are members of the exchange, and customers trade through their brokers. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the National Futures Association regulate the futures markets.

The CFE and the CME are two different exchanges. The CME is the worlds largest futures exchange, and over the years has acquired many competing exchanges, including the CBOT, the NYMEX and the COMEX.

The CFE is the futures arm of the Chicago Board of Options Exchange, which is the largest stock options exchange in the U.S. The CFE is small  so small that, besides the new bitcoin futures, it only offers a few futures contracts, all of which are based on volatility indexes, such as the VIX fear index. Its perhaps fitting that the CFE is the first out of the gate with futures contracts for bitcoin  a market that just capped the most chaotic and volatile week in trading of any market in recent memory.

Who will be trading bitcoin futures?

Not the customers of many large brokers, which are standing aside to see what happens before they let their customers trade bitcoin futures. Futures brokers as a whole, as represented by the Futures Industry Association, have been quite critical of bitcoin futures, particularly the rushed manner in which theyre being brought to market.

The FIA, which represents brokers from Chicago to New York to Hong Kong, penned an open letter to the U.S. futures watchdog Thursday morning, urging further study and testing before bitcoin futures go live. The futures clearing exchanges, like the CFE and the CME, are set up such that the brokers are ultimately on the hook for customer losses if they cant pay. Several brokers, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citigroup, will not allow their customers to trade bitcoin futures just yet, according to Fox Business. Others are reserving the privilege of trading for select clients. All of this calls into question just how much liquidity will be available.

Nevertheless, some brokers are embracing bitcoin futures. TradeStation has set up a Cryptocurrency Knowledge Center, and has published a side-by-side comparison of the contract specifications for the CFEs Cboe Bitcoin Futures and the CMEs Bitcoin Futures.

The bottom line is that, at least initially, trading might be dominated by smaller retail traders, resulting in less liquidity. Veteran trader and author John Netto isnt concerned, and he says hell be trading bitcoin when they open Sunday night. Netto says, Im not in a [cash] bitcoin position or looking to move serious size to where liquidity could be an issue.

What happens when the futures contracts expire?

This is perhaps the biggest area of concern for traders, exchanges and regulators.

Both the CFE and CME bitcoin futures contracts will be cash settled. That means you wont get delivered a bitcoin if youre long, and you wont have to deliver a bitcoin to the exchange if youre short. This avoids a potentially huge problem for the exchanges, which would have to warehouse bitcoins with Fort Knox-like security if they werent cash settled. Most traders wont hold until expiration and will either roll their position into the next month, or simply close it out prior to expiration.

However, the exact price at which the futures contracts are settled is an area ripe for manipulation and fraud because the contracts are ultimately based on whats happening on the cash bitcoin exchanges. Both futures exchanges are taking great pains to ensure a smooth settlement process, with contingency plans if there are market disruptions. Everyone will be closely watching what happens on the expiration dates, the first of which is Wednesday, January 17.

How are bitcoin futures priced?

Bitcoins trade on over 100 exchanges worldwide, and prices between exchanges can vary widely  especially when the markets are moving fast. Thats a principal concern for regulators, brokers and traders alike because the price at which futures contracts are settled when they expire are based on those exchange prices.

In a separate process, each day, the futures exchanges assign their futures contracts a final closing settlement price for that day. Unlike the monthly settlement, the daily settlement is not directly based on the underlying spot bitcoin exchanges. Its a weighted average of the trades made on the respective futures exchanges in the final minute of trading each day. That final minute ends at 4:15 p.m. EST for Cboe Bitcoin Futures and at 4:00 p.m. EST for CME Bitcoin Futures.

The final settlement price to be determined when bitcoin contracts expire each month is much more complicated because it needs to be tied to the cash (spot) market. Figuring out that price can mean the difference between millions of dollars for bitcoin traders.

The CFE and CME are going about this price discovery process differently. The CFE settlement price for Cboe Bitcoin Futures is the official auction price for bitcoin in U.S. dollars at 4:00 p.m. EST on the Gemini Exchange, which is owned by the Winklevoss brothers. If theres a trading disruption, a contingency plan will go into effect, which is spelled out in detail on the CFEs Cboe Bitcoin Futures specification page. The CFE publishes the current futures contract prices as well as the Gemini Exchange bitcoin price with a 10 minute delay on its website here.

CME Bitcoin Futures will be based on the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRR), which aggregates bitcoin trading activity across major bitcoin spot exchanges between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. GMT (10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. EST). These prices, as well as the futures contract specifications can be found on the CMEs website here.

How much money do you need to trade bitcoin futures?

Brokers are playing it very safe when it comes to bitcoin futures, which will have significantly less leverage than any other futures contract. This limits the potential for trading losses that customers cant pay (a brokers worst nightmare). The short answer is youll need to put up about half the money of the current bitcoin price to control one contract. Some brokers are requiring more.

To enter a position (either long or short) in any futures contract, the exchange and broker require an amount of money called initial margin. To hold a contract from then on, a lower amount called maintenance margin is required.

Typically, margin requirements are only a fraction of the full value of the contract, which creates substantial leverage. For instance, each eMini S&P 500 futures contract requires initial margin of $4,950, while the contract is worth $132,700 (based on Fridays closing price). In this case, the margin is only about 3.7%, which means the contract has leverage of 27 times, or 2,700%. Some brokers have reduced day trading margin requirements, which can increase leverage to over 10,000%. (This is why many traders lose their shirts in the futures markets).

The S&P 500 trading pit is pictured from overhead at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in Chicago, Illinois in this late 1980s handout photo. REUTERS/CME Group

For Cboe Bitcoin Futures, the CFE requires initial margin of 44% of the prior days settlement price, and 40% for maintenance margin. But many brokers are demanding more, which is their right since theyre potentially on the hook for customer losses. TradeStation is requiring 66% initial margin (maintenance margin is 60%), which delivers leverage of only 150%.

This relatively low leverage is a good thing. If it proves to be too little or too much, the exchanges and brokers can increase or decrease margin requirements at any time, as they see fit.

What are the fees to trade bitcoin futures?

In addition to margin, traders must have money in their accounts to pay fees to both the exchange and their broker. The CFE is waiving transaction fees for its Cboe Bitcoin Futures for the month of December. After that, customers will pay $0.50 per side. Entering a position and closing a position are each considered a side, so a customer trading 10 Cboe Bitcoin Futures contracts (after December) will pay $5.00 per side, or $10 total to the exchange. Sometimes prices are quoted in whats called a round turn, which is double the per side rate because it includes both sides  the entry and the exit of the position.

The customers broker also charges a fee, which can range from $0.25 to $3.00 per side ($0.50 to $6.00 per round turn), depending on the type of futures contract and how much volume the customer trades.

How do bitcoin futures exchanges deal with extreme volatility (i.e., circuit breakers and trading halts)?

Both the CFE and CME will employ circuit breakers and trading halts, which engage automatically when the price of bitcoin on the exchange has moved a given amount. Unlike most futures contracts, there is no maximum daily limit that price can move for CFE Bitcoin Futures.

Each exchange has its own circuit breaker thresholds and procedures. On its bitcoin futures page, the CME links to this page for price limit guides, but there is no bitcoin contract listed. (Presumably, it will be updated as we get closer to the December 17 launch date).

For the CFEs Cboe Bitcoin Futures, there will be a 2 minute trading halt if the price of moves 10% above or below the prior days settlement. After trading commences following such a halt, there will be a further 5 minute halt if the price trades 20% above or below the prior days settlement. The CFE retains the absolute right to change these procedures at its discretion. Accordingly, the 2 or 5 minute halts could be extended (or even shortened) if the exchange thought it necessary to protect market integrity. Full details may be found here.

Anyone who follows bitcoin knows these huge swings are common. Since May 1, the 10% circuit breakers would have been triggered 35 times (18 times on upward price movement, 17 times on downward price movement). On September 15, the 10% circuit breakers would have been triggered in both directions. Over the same period, the 20% circuit breakers would have been triggered 4 times (3 times on upward price movement, 1 time on downward price movement).

Bitcoin futures  the nitty gritty details

The CFEs Cboe Bitcoin Futures will trade under the base symbol, XBT. Similar to crude oil futures, there will be one XBT futures contract for each month of the year. The front month contract will initially be January, which will be traded under the ticker XBTF18. The F represents January and the 18 stands for the contract year, 2018. February and March contracts will also be traded under the tickers, XBTG18 and XBTH18, respectively.

Each month, the XBT futures contract will expire two business days prior to the third Friday of the month at 3:45 p.m. EST. The January contract expires January 17, 2018. Bitcoin traders will be closely watching to guage how smoothly the final settlement is priced, which is based on the underlying spot bitcoin exchanges.

Each Cboe Bitcoin Futures contract represents one bitcoin. Each point equals $1, and the minimum price movement is $10. Traders are limited to owning or controlling 5,000 contracts (either long or short), and this limit drops to 1,000 contracts 5 days prior to the final settlement date of an expiring contract.

CME Bitcoin Futures will represent 5 bitcoins. Each point will be worth $5, and the minimum price movement will be $25. Termination of trading for an expiring contract will occur on the final Friday of the contract month at 4:00 p.m. London time (11:00 a.m. EST).

What happens if theres another bitcoin fork?

Wow. You got this far, so were really gonna get into the weeds. According to the the fine print here:

FORKING: A hard fork in a blockchain is a permanent divergence from the previous version of a blockchain, and nodes running previous versions will no longer be accepted by the newest version. This essentially creates a fork in the blockchain, one path which follows the new, upgraded blockchain, and one path which continues along the old path. Generally, after a short period of time, those on the old chain will realize that their version of the blockchain is outdated or irrelevant and quickly upgrade to the latest version. In the simplest terms and as it relates to Bitcoin futures, a hard fork is similar to a spinoff into a new instrument. CME is developing a hard fork policy for capturing cash market exposures in response to viable forks. The policy may involve cash adjustments to position holders or listing additional related futures that are also issued to position holders. CFE is developing a hard fork policy for capturing cash market exposures in response to viable forks. The CFE policy is not finalized.

Thats it. Nothing more to see here.
On Sept. 10, 1770, the skies above China, Korea and Japan turned an eerie red, and for eight more nights these glowing red auroras lingered.

For nearly three centuries, this mysterious event was lost to history.

Now, researchers poring through palace diaries and other historical documents from East Asia have rediscovered the bizarre phenomenon, and have proposed a likely cause: A giant magnetic storm that rivaled the most powerful one on record, the so-called Carrington Event of 1859. (Geomagnetic storms occur when solar eruptions hit Earth's magnetosphere, the shell of electrically charged particles trapped by Earth's magnetic field.)

If a similarly massive magnetic storm hit Earth now, it could wreak havoc on power grids around the planet, researchers said. [The Sun's Wrath: The Worst Solar Storms in History]

Mysterious event rediscovered

To rediscover this cryptic event, Hisashi Hayakawa, a historian and astronomer at Osaka University in Japan, and his colleagues investigated historical records from China, Korea and Japan from the 18th century, looking for mentions of auroras. (Auroras, the radiant displays of colors in the sky known as the northern or southern lights, result from solar particles striking Earth's magnetosphere. They are usually most visible near the planet's magnetic poles, but when they occur at lower latitudes, far from Earth's poles, they can reveal evidence of geomagnetic storm activity.)

These types of "historical documents can let us trace back solar activity for millennia," Hayakawa told Live Science. For instance, records of auroras can be found in Babylonian astronomical diaries from 567 B.C., he said.

The team also examined sunspot drawings from the same period by amateur German astronomer Johann Caspar Staudacher, as well as records from Capt. James Cook's missions on the HMS Endeavour.

After studying 111 historical documents, the scientists found evidence of red auroras seen throughout East Asia from Sept. 10 to 19, 1770. These long-lasting auroras were noticed at low latitudes, suggesting a powerful geomagnetic storm caused them.

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The researchers also found these auroras were documented farther south by crew members aboard the HMS Endeavour near Timor Island in Southeast Asia. These findings are among the earliest known records of simultaneous auroral observations in both hemispheres.

"Considering this event was so large, it would be reasonable to find more events not only in East Asia but also in other low-latitude areas," Hayakawa said. As a result, the team is extending its archival surveys to areas as distant as the Middle East, Hayakawa added.

The team also scoured historical records for drawings of sunspots, which often co-occur with geomagnetic storms. These drawings suggested that sunspots during the 1770 event were twice as large in area as those seen during the Carrington Event, suggesting they were at least comparable in strength. During the notorious Carrington Event, electrical currents in the atmosphere zapped telegraph wires and caused paper from the devices to catch fire.

The research suggested the 1770 event affected at least as much of the globe as the Carrington Event. Moreover, the 1770 event's auroras were seen across nine nights, while the Carrington Event's were seen on just four nights.

"The events in 1770 lasted much longer," Hayakawa said.

As a result, scientists may need to rethink how frequently such powerful storms occur, the researchers said.

"Now we know the Carrington event was not a special one," study co-author Hiroaki Isobe, a solar physician at Kyoto University in Japan, told Live Science. "Such event occurs from time to time, roughly about once in 100 years."

Potentially catastrophic event

Given how dependent on electricity the world has become since the Carrington Event, if a similarly powerful geomagnetic storm were to hit now, unprecedented damage would result.

For instance, in 1989, a geomagnetic storm blacked out Quebec in 90 seconds, leaving 6 million customers in the dark for 9 hours, damaging transformers as far away as New Jersey, and nearly taking down U.S. power grids from the Eastern Seaboard to the Pacific Northwest. However, the Quebec event may have packed just one-tenth the power of the Carrington Event, prior work suggested.

A 2013 study from Lloyd's of London estimated a $2.6 trillion cost for North America if a Carrington-level storm happened now, and predicted "a Carrington-level, extreme geomagnetic storm is almost inevitable in the future."

"We believe we need to expect even more economic and social impacts for this kind of extreme and long-lasting magnetic storm," Hayakawa said.

The researchers are now looking for other historical examples of powerful magnetic storms. "We have already found another 1770-class event," Hayakawa said.

The scientists detailed their findings online Nov. 29 in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
The internet is locked into a fierce debate over a cancer researcher who was kicked off a Spirit Airlines flight for breastfeeding her toddler.

On Friday, Mei Rui, a cancer researcher and concert pianist, was aboard a Spirit Airlines flight from her hometown of Houston to Newark, N.J. The trip was in relation to a clinical cancer study in New York, according to the Washington Post, and Ruis elderly parents were along for the ride.

When the plane was delayed due to icy conditions, Rui began breastfeeding her son, in an attempt to calm him. Every parent with a young child can [imagine], you dont want to be that parent on the plane, Rui told the Post. It would be very embarrassing. I was just trying to avoid that.

A Houston pianist and clinical researcher kicked off @SpiritAirlines flight Friday morning.. she was on her way to conduct cancer research in NYC. Wants answers from airline. Live @iah at 10 #KHOU11 pic.twitter.com/mDPQmC5AOC  Marcelino Benito (@MarcelinoKHOU) December 10, 2017

Initially, Rui was able to nurse in peace; however, a flight attendant soon informed the mom that her son would have to be buckled into his own seat.

I asked for just a couple more minutes to finish because if he woke up at that point he would have made a lot of noise, Rui told the paper. I said, I promise Ill finish before you close the planes door.

According to Rui, the attendant headed to the front of the plane and Rui stopped breastfeeding, securing her son in his own seat. But when he started crying, Rui says she was asked to leave the plane.

Its not like I was resistant  I put him in the seat, she said. If they had shown a little compassion, it wouldnt have happened. They didnt have to let it escalate.

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Rui started recording the interaction on her cellphone as she and her family began packing up to leave. When they deplaned, a group of police officers was waiting for them.

Youre not getting on the aircraft, says the officer in the video obtained by Houston news station KHOU.

So the reason we got kicked off is because [my son] was crying for 20 minutes strapped in his seat? asks Rui, while her son cries in the background. I just want to know why we were kicked off the plane?

Because you were not compliant, he answered.

Could you tell me which part of the instruction we were not compliant with? says Rui. I think we deserve to know that.

According to the Post, Rui then said, If this happened to your family to which the officer replied, It wouldnt happen to my family, I can assure you.

Rui also said her family had to wait one hour to retrieve their luggage and once home, her father collapsed, due to possible heart problems.

Social media was locked in an impasse over whether the mother was in the right.

Spirit Airlines, you were wrong. This is shameful treatment of peaceful passengers.  Breast-feeding Houston mom says she was kicked off Spirit Airlines flight https://t.co/jIKguAPEeU  Julie Goodale (@JulieGoodale) December 11, 2017

So I'm all for mothers breastfeeding when & where needed, but just wonder why she wouldn't have a bottle of pumped breast milk with her in anticipation of this happening? https://t.co/CdYp8j9LOa  Nancy Staack (@nancystaack) December 11, 2017

I don't understand why people make such a big deal about breastfeeding. It's a natural thing. Grow up  Evania Salgado (@ninja2blossom) December 11, 2017

{An airline is not going to hold up an airplane full of people so you can finish breastfeeding your child, concert pianist/cancer researcher or not. Do it later.}

"Mother and 2-year-old kicked off Spirit Airlines flight "https://t.co/e9sA3XCGZ0  Robert Jones (@robertjones3575) December 11, 2017

Your abusive treatment of the breastfeeding mom is disgraceful! Shame on you!!! I'll never fly with @SpiritAirlines because of this.  Taina (@LaBoricua31o) December 11, 2017

There is no war on breastfeeding here. Every passenger should do their part to help the plane take off on time. This was an already delayed flight.  Kerri (@oh_keppi) December 11, 2017

It was humiliating to be chased off a plane in front of hundreds of people, Rui told KHOU. We had never been through anything close to this.

A representative from Spirit Airlines sent the following statement to Yahoo Lifestyle:

To be clear, no one was removed for breastfeeding. The passenger failed to comply with crew instructions by not being safely buckled and secured for takeoff after being asked repeatedly to do so. As for the door, the reports from the crew indicate the door was closed at the time of the incident.

The statement continues: We were forced to remove a passenger from flight 712 after they refused to comply with crew instructions several times while the doors were closed during taxi and safety briefing. To ensure the safety of our guests and crew, FAA regulations and airline policies require all passengers stay seated and buckled during takeoff and landing. We reviewed multiple accounts from the crew and other guests sitting nearby and we apologize for any inconvenience caused by this issue. As a courtesy, weve issued a full refund to the customer in question.

Theres been a ton of backlash against airlines for reportedly not allowing mothers to breastfeed. In 2014, Delta apologized to a mother from California for telling her to nurse with a cover, insisting the mom was given misinformation about her rights. In 2015, a Canadian mom says a United Airlines crew member tossed a blanket at her husband, telling him to help her out. And this year, two Frontier Airlines flight attendants claimed their employer wouldnt let them use a breast pump while working, resulting in them filing a sex discrimination complaint with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

However, flying is not always such a nightmare for breastfeeding moms. In February 2016, a mother who had to pump milk for her triplets wrote an open letter to Delta, thanking the company for seating her in first class for more space and privacy, plus snacks. I am incredibly grateful for the lengths these individuals took to make my role as momma much easier and impressed by the advocacy this company has provided for breastfeeding and pumping, she wrote on the post with 60,000 likes.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

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King penguins make their way through an obstacle course of elephant seals on South Georgia - WARNING: Use of this copyright image is subject to the terms of use of BBC Pictures' Digital Picture

Britain must designate its overseas territories as bluebelt to help protect wildlife and prevent plastic pollution entering the oceans, campaigners have said.

Following the final episode of Blue Planet II which showed the devastating impact of humans on the worlds seas, the Great British Oceans coalition called on the government to safeguard its remote marine zones, which are home to some of the worlds most endangered species.

Already 133 MPs have backed the campaign to create 1.5 million square miles of protected bluebelt around seven British overseas territories which contain the breeding grounds for a quarter of the worlds penguins, and one third of the worlds albatrosses.

The proposed zone would cover Ascension Island, South Georgia, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha and the South Sandwich Islands, in the south Atlantic, as well as the British Antarctic Territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory and Pitcairn Islands in the southern Pacific. It would be the worlds biggest network of ocean sanctuaries.

Plastic pollution in the oceans, as shown on Blue Planet II Credit: BBC

In last nights Blue Planet II, viewers saw the regurgitated stomach contents of a South Georgian albatros which had probably been fed plastic bags by its mother. Another bird had died after a plastic toothpick had penetrated its stomach.

Each year more than 300 million tons of plastic are produced globally, and 10 per cent will end up in the sea. It is estimated that there is now a 1:2 ratio of plastic to plankton and, left unchecked, plastic will outweigh fish by 2050.

A separate campaign, which also launches today, led by the Marine Conservation Society, Surfers Against Sewage, the High Seas Alliance and the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, is calling for at least 30 per cent of global ocean to be designated as marine sanctuaries.

Love penguins & turtles & sharks & coral & wonderful marine life in general? Contact your MP easily via our website & ask them to #BackTheBlueBelt & protect 4million km2 of ocean https://t.co/0dt0giYeSnpic.twitter.com/mPDlKeRhfM  Great British Oceans (@GBOceans) November 24, 2017

Sandy Luk of the Marine Conservation Society said: We have found a growing tide of plastic pollution on UK shores, and must act now to stem that tide.

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The UK's influence on the waters of all of the world's ocean is immense, and we call on UK governments to show leadership at this crucial moment to protect some of the natural jewels of our fragile blue planet.

Huge amounts of plastic waste enter the oceans each year Credit: BBC

Designating areas bluebelt or Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), would restrict human activity such as tourism, oil and gas mining, the use of sonar, ship transit and fishing.

Willie Mackenzie, of Greenpeace said Blue Planet II has reminded us all of the wonder and awesomeness of the worlds marine life all over again, from diving the depths of the icy Antarctic to showing us an inventive octopus wearing a shell-suit.

We now have a fantastic opportunity to create a lasting legacy for our shared blue planet. Thats why were calling on our governments to step up, suit up, and be the champions our global ocean so desperately needs.

The campaign #BackTheBlueBelt has been launched by a coalition including the Blue Marine Foundation, Greenpeace, the Marine Conservation Society, The Pew Trusts, RSPB and Zoological Society of London, and is backed by naturalist Chris Packham, Stephen Fry, Cara Delevingne and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
During the weekend, a Tennessee woman took to Facebook with her son Keaton Jones' emotional video about the relentless bullying he experiences in school that went viral almost instantly.

But now people online are questioning whether or not the mother, Kimberly Jones, deserves the massive outpour of sympathy she and her son received after controversial photos and words re-surfaced from her Facebook profile, TMZ reported.

On Monday, activist Tariq Nasheed tweeted a screenshot that allegedly came from Kimberly Jones' Facebook page, showing photos of family members waving the Confederate flag.

That viral video of #KeatonJones talking about being bullied is heartbreaking, and I feel sympathetic towards that child.

But his mom, Kimberly on the other hand, is a suspected racist who makes very problematic posts bullying Black protesters #TheIronypic.twitter.com/NUhidunP8z  Tariq Nasheed  (@tariqnasheed) December 11, 2017

SEE ALSO: Tennessee boy's heart-wrenching video about bullying rallies massive support

Twitter

Nasheed also claimed to have found a post Jones allegedly published back in August in which she wrote: "Dear butt hurt Americans, If you aren't bleeding, no bones are sticking out & you can breathe, STOP crying! For the love, some folks clearly never picked a switch, And before y'all start talking to me about metaphorical, emotional, financial or historical blood and brokenness, Don't. Join a group."

Though it is unclear what Jones was alluding to, TMZ suggested that she appeared to be telling "people to stop whining about slavery and racism" and noted that the post was published just weeks after the violent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

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Twitter

The original video of Keaton, which reportedly amassed over 21 million views on Facebook since its upload on Friday, was no longer accessible as of Monday morning, suggesting Jones' Facebook page has been shut down.

Though Nasheed's photos have yet to be corroborated, the images he gathered have been enough to spark backlash from social media users who are using the visuals as evidence to target Jones.

"I think I just lost all faith in humanity. Unless Kimberly Jones goes to prison," one user tweeted, while another wrote: "Kimberly Jones played y'all, just like Trump played them Republicans."

Others accused Jones of trying to cash in on her son's pain after a GoFundMe campaign was launched for Keaton and has since raised nearly $60,000.

The GoFundMe page was created on behalf of Jones by Joseph Lam, who wrote that he was simply "touched" by the viral video of her son and launched the campaign to "help with [Keaton's] future."

Click through more reactions below:


Ruined in this fire were the buildings first-floor businesses consisting of a newsstand, a shoe store, a musical instrument store, a piano store, a jewelry store and a funeral parlor. Also destroyed were second floor offices and the former opera hall on the third floor, which was being used as an armory by the local national guard. The armory contained gunpowder and shells that exploded during the fire, causing a terrific blast, according to old newspaper accounts. The site of this building is now occupied by a parking area, Howes Diamond Jewelers and the Great Wall Chinese Restaurant.
The Thomas fire, one of five destructive blazes currently burning in California, now ranks as the fifth largest wildfire on record in the state.

As of Sunday evening, burned more than 230,000 acres, an area larger than New York City. It also destroyed more than 600 structures in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties since sparking last Monday. The fires containment, which dropped from 15 to 10 percent according to authorities, continues to threaten more than 15,000 structures.

The blaze grew by more than 50,000 acres throughout the day Sunday, forcing new evacuations for tens of thousands of people in the Mission Canyon area. It also impacted power lines, leaving at least 85,000 Santa Barbara residents without power on Sunday.

#ThomasFire - FFs knock down flames as they advance on a home atop Shepherd Mesa Road in Carpinteria at 6 am Sunday morning. pic.twitter.com/3M9rO7cYCd  SBCFireInfo (@EliasonMike) December 10, 2017

So far, officials have confirmed one death associated with the fire. The National Weather Service warned Sunday of poor air quality in the region and encouraged people to stay inside and avoid strenuous activity if possible.

Its possible the Thomas fire will move up in the rankings in the coming days, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection  also known as Cal Fire  said Sunday.

On Cal Fires list of the states 20 largest fires, which uses records dating back to 1932, the Thomas fire is the only blaze to occur in December, with nearly every other record fire burning during the hot, summer months. But with years of record-high temperatures and devastating drought leaving the states forests tinder-dry, fires have become a threat all year long.

Fire fighters attack the Thomas fires north flank with backfires as they continue to fight a massive wildfire north of Los Angeles, near Ojai, on Dec. 9, 2017. (Photo: Gene Blevins / Reuters)

Its December, and its amazing to be able to say we arent out of fire season, Cal Fire Director Ken Pimlott said at a new conference on Saturday. And this is the challenge that we face in California and certainly here in Southern California, that it is a year-round challenge that we are all in.

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Thats the new reality for California, Gov. Jerry Brown also said Saturday, calling the state a very wonderful place, but a place thats getting hotter as global temperatures rise.

Flames spread in a valley from a Santa Ana wind-driven brush fire called the Thomas fire near Ventura, California, on Dec. 5, 2017. (Photo: Gene Blevins / Reuters)

And we know from the changing in the climate that its going to exacerbate everything else, Brown said, echoing climate scientists warnings that Californias highly variable climate will only become more vulnerable to wildfires and other natural disasters.

The number of large fires burning across Southern California speaks to that concern. As of Sunday, Cal Fire said, the five major ongoing blazes had burned 200,000 acres, forced 98,000 evacuations, damaged or destroyed 834 structures and threatened around 25,000 in total.

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Thick smoke billows along Foothill Boulevard as the Creek Fire burns heavy brush in Los Angeles' Sylmar neighborhood on Dec. 5, 2017.

A structure burns on Dec. 5 in Los Angeles' Shadow Hills neighborhood.

Wearing his Christmas garb, Justin Ekback stands in front of one of the multi-million dollar homes destroyed in Ventura County by a wildfire on Dec. 5.

A firefighter gets into position to battle the Creek wildfire as a house is engulfed in flames in Shadow Hills.

Local residents react as numerous homes burn on a hillside in Ventura County.

Amanda Leon and her husband, Johnny Leon, watch as firefighters fight to save homes in Ventura County.

Carolyn Potter tries to save her house from the flames as she throws dirt on her fence in Ventura County's Casita Springs community.

Emergency crews block a roadway as flames spread in Ventura County.

Kayla Jackson, 15, cradles one-day old puppies as she rescues them from a friend's house in the Little Mountain area of San Bernardino County.

The Creek wildfire burns into the night in the Shadow Hills neighborhood.

Horses are led from danger in Shadow Hills.

A structure is fully engulfed by flames in Shadow Hills.

Cars drive around Lake Casitas in Venture County as the Thomas wildfire crests in the surrounding mountains.

A house burns along the path of the Thomas wildfire in Casita Springs.

A real estate sign was barely touched by a fire that burned a home to the ground in Ventura County.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Firefighters light backfire while trying to keep a wildfire from jumping a road near Ventura, California: AP Photo/Noah Berger

Advancing flames pushed more Californians out of their homes as a massive wildfire continued to advance across a swathe of states southern portion.

As of Sunday morning, the Thomas Fire had blackened some 173,000 acres across Santa Barbara County and Ventura County, incinerating more than 750 structures and endangering another 15,000. Firefighters had only contained about 15 per cent of the sprawling inferno.

Residents of the towns of Carpinteria and Montecito were told to evacuate, and people in the wider area threatened by the fires were urged to remain vigilant and prepare to flee.

Now is the time to gather your family members, pets, irreplaceable and necessary items including prescriptions and documents in case you are ordered to evacuate. If you are ordered to evacuate, leave immediately, an alert from the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Office said. If at any point you feel threatened, dont wait for a mandatory order.

Complicating peoples ability to get information about the fires, power and internet outages were widespread.

Power company Southern California Edison estimated that the Thomas Fire had deprived nearly 90,000 customers of power.

Strong winds have helped push fires through dry brush and impeded firefighting efforts. The National Weather Service predicted that strong Santa Ana winds would continue blowing through Monday, gusting up to 45 miles per hour.

A combination of gusty winds and low relative humidity can contribute to extreme fire behaviour, the service warned.

While the Thomas Fire was the most dire threat, it was one of six different fires that burned across hundreds of miles and multiple metropolitan areas in California. Hundreds of thousands of people have been pushed from their homes in the week since the blazes ignited, though some began to return as firefighters made progress against Los Angeles area conflagrations.

Threats from the three fires that had menaced Los Angeles and Los Angeles County had been largely neutralised. Two fires that burned across the countys northern end were at 90 per cent containment after having destroyed some 130 structures, including at least 60 homes, and a blaze that consumed hundreds of acres around an affluent Los Angeles enclave was 75 per cent contained.

Another fire in San Diego County was more than half contained, having scorched around 4,100 acres and destroyed 182 structures. An update from Cal Fire said firefighters had expanded containment lines as they took advantage of more favourable weather conditions, with high winds staying away from the epicenter of the fight.
Firefighters knock down flames as they advance on homes atop Shepherd Mesa Road in Carpinteria, CA - REUTERS

A massive California wildfire that has already destroyed nearly 800 structures scorched another 56,000 acres on Sunday, making it the fifth largest such blaze in recorded state history, as it ran toward picturesque coastal cities.

But fire officials said as darkness fell that with the hot, dry Santa Ana winds not as fierce as expected, crews had been successful in building some fire lines between the flames and the towns of Montecito and Carpinteria.

"This is a menacing fire, certainly, but we have a lot of people working very diligently to bring it under control," Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown told an evening press conference.

Still, some 5,000 residents remained under evacuation orders in the two communities, near Santa Barbara and about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of Los Angeles. Some 15,000 homes were considered threatened.

The Thomas Fire, the worst of six major blazes in Southern California in the last week and already the fifth largest in the state since 1932, has blackened 230,000 acres (570,000 hectares), more than the area of New York City. It has destroyed 790 houses, outbuildings and other structures and left 90,000 homes and businesses without power.

The combination of Santa Ana winds and rugged terrain in the mountains that run through Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have hampered firefighting efforts, and officials said the Thomas Fire was only 10 percent contained on Sunday evening, down from 15 percent earlier in the day.

The Thomas Fire rages in Ventura County, as seen from Summerland in Santa Barbara County, The blaze started on Monday evening and spread rapidly overnight to envelop at least 45,000 acres Credit: Alamy

But wind gusts recorded at 35-40 miles per hour were less than those predicted by forecasters, giving crews a chance to slow the flames' progress down slopes above the endangered communities.

The fires burning across Southern California have forced the evacuation of more 200,000 people and destroyed some 1,000 structures.

Among them are residents of Montecito, one of the state's wealthiest enclave and home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey.

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California wildfires cause thousands to flee, in pictures

Emmy Leikin, an Emmy-winning songwriter who was ordered to evacuate her Montecito home at 9 a.m. on Sunday, said she fled with only her cell phone, medication, eyeglasses and a few apples.

Leikin, 74, said she doesn't know the condition of her home and belongings but "none of that means anything when it is your safety."

Fires worst in a decade

The fires that began last Monday night collectively amounted to one of the worst conflagrations across Southern California in the last decade.

They have, however, been far less deadly than the blazes in Northern California's wine country in October that killed over 40.

The Thomas fire is only 15 percent contained, now threatening the city of Santa Barbara and the nearby coastal town of Carpinteria Credit: AFP

In the last week, only one death has been reported, a 70-year-old woman who died Wednesday in a car accident as she attempted to flee the flames in Ventura County. Scores of horses have died, including at least 46 at a thoroughbred training facility in San Diego county.

Residents and firefighters alike have been alarmed by the speed with which the fires spread, reaching into the heart of cities like Ventura.

At the Ventura County Fairgrounds, evacuees slept in makeshift beds while rescued horses were sheltered in stables. Peggy Scissons, 78, arrived at the shelter with her dog last Wednesday, after residents of her mobile home park were forced to leave. She has not yet found out whether her home is standing.

"I don't know what's gonna happen next or whether I'll be able to go home," she said. "It would be one thing if I were 40 or 50, but I'm 78. What the heck do I do?"

James Brown, 57, who retired from Washington State's forestry service and has lived in Ventura for a year, was forced to leave his house along with his wife last week because both have breathing problems.

"We knew a fire was coming, but we didn't know it would be this bad," said Brown, who is in a wheelchair.

Some of the other fires, in San Diego and Los Angeles counties, have been largely controlled by the thousands of firefighters on the ground this week.

Both the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County were 90 percent contained by Sunday morning, officials said, while the Skirball Fire in Los Angeles' posh Bel Air neighborhood was 75 percent contained.

North of San Diego, the 4,100-acre (1,660 hectare) Lilac Fire was 75 percent contained by Sunday and most evacuation orders had been lifted.
((Corrects paragraph 10 of Dec. 10 story to Molly-Ann Leikin from Emmy Leiken. The error first occurred in Update 4)) By Phoenix Tso SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (Reuters) - A massive California wildfire that has already destroyed nearly 800 structures scorched another 56,000 acres on Sunday, making it the fifth largest such blaze in recorded state history, as it ran toward picturesque coastal cities.But fire officials said as darkness fell that with the hot, dry Santa Ana winds not as fierce as expected, crews had been successful in building some fire lines between the flames and the towns of Montecito and Carpinteria. "This is a menacing fire, certainly, but we have a lot of people working very diligently to bring it under control," Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown told an evening press conference. Still, some 5,000 residents remained under evacuation orders in the two communities, near Santa Barbara and about 100 miles (160 km) northwest of Los Angeles. Some 15,000 homes were considered threatened. The Thomas Fire, the worst of six major blazes in Southern California in the last week and already the fifth largest in the state since 1932, has blackened 230,000 acres (570,000 hectares), more than the area of New York City. It has destroyed 790 houses, outbuildings and other structures and left 90,000 homes and businesses without power. The combination of Santa Ana winds and rugged terrain in the mountains that run through Santa Barbara and Ventura counties have hampered firefighting efforts, and officials said the Thomas Fire was only 10 percent contained on Sunday evening, down from 15 percent earlier in the day. But wind gusts recorded at 35-40 miles per hour were less than those predicted by forecasters, giving crews a chance to slow the flames' progress down slopes above the endangered communities. The fires burning across Southern California have forced the evacuation of more 200,000 people and destroyed some 1,000 structures. Among them are residents of Montecito, one of the state's wealthiest enclave and home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey. Molly-Ann Leikin, an Emmy-winning songwriter who was ordered to evacuate her Montecito home at 9 a.m. on Sunday, said she fled with only her cell phone, medication, eyeglasses and a few apples. Leikin, 74, said she doesn't know the condition of her home and belongings but "none of that means anything when it is your safety." WORST IN A DECADE The fires that began last Monday night collectively amounted to one of the worst conflagrations across Southern California in the last decade. They have, however, been far less deadly than the blazes in Northern California's wine country in October that killed over 40. In the last week, only one death has been reported, a 70-year-old woman who died Wednesday in a car accident as she attempted to flee the flames in Ventura County. Scores of horses have died, including at least 46 at a thoroughbred training facility in San Diego county. Residents and firefighters alike have been alarmed by the speed with which the fires spread, reaching into the heart of cities like Ventura. At the Ventura County Fairgrounds, evacuees slept in makeshift beds while rescued horses were sheltered in stables. Peggy Scissons, 78, arrived at the shelter with her dog last Wednesday, after residents of her mobile home park were forced to leave. She has not yet found out whether her home is standing. "I don't know what's gonna happen next or whether I'll be able to go home," she said. "It would be one thing if I were 40 or 50, but I'm 78. What the heck do I do?" James Brown, 57, who retired from Washington State's forestry service and has lived in Ventura for a year, was forced to leave his house along with his wife last week because both have breathing problems. "We knew a fire was coming, but we didn't know it would be this bad," said Brown, who is in a wheelchair. Some of the other fires, in San Diego and Los Angeles counties, have been largely controlled by the thousands of firefighters on the ground this week. Both the Creek and Rye fires in Los Angeles County were 90 percent contained by Sunday morning, officials said, while the Skirball Fire in Los Angeles' posh Bel Air neighborhood was 75 percent contained. North of San Diego, the 4,100-acre (1,660 hectare) Lilac Fire was 75 percent contained by Sunday and most evacuation orders had been lifted. (Reporting by Phoenix Tso; Additional reporting by Mike Blake in San Diego and Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles; Writing by Joseph Ax and Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Scott Malone and Mary Milliken)
Los Angeles (AFP) - Thousands of firefighters were battling one of the most destructive wildfires in California's history Monday as it crept relentlessly up the Pacific coast and forced new evacuations.

As a wildfire near Los Angeles was brought under control, fire crews were being redeployed to battle the Thomas Fire northwest of America's second-largest city.

Fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters were assisting nearly 6,400 firefighters trying to keep the Thomas Fire away from beachfront towns south of the historic city of Santa Barbara, the California Fire Department (Cal Fire) said.

"Gusty northeast winds will cause the fire to threaten areas of the city of Santa Barbara," which has a population of 91,000, Cal Fire said.

Eric Boldt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Los Angeles, said he did not see any immediate respite to the dry, windy conditions that are fueling the blaze.

"The conditions are very critical," Boldt said. "Given that we don't see any precipitation for the next two weeks at minimum, it could become the largest fire in the state's history."

The Thomas Fire has burned 230,500 acres (93,300 hectares) since it erupted a week ago, Cal Fire said, making it the fifth-largest fire in the state's history. It was only 15 percent contained as of early afternoon Monday.

The blaze spread over the weekend in the mostly uninhabited Los Padres National Forest, and was threatening the coastal towns of Montecito, Summerland and Carpinteria.

Mandatory evacuation orders were lifted for the inland cities of Ojai and Santa Paula in Ventura County, which has been the hardest hit by the Thomas Fire.

Comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres was among those preparing to flee her beachfront home.

"Our house is under threat of being burned," DeGeneres said on Twitter. "We just had to evacuate our pets.

"I'm praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters."

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"Praying for my town," actor Rob Lowe, a Santa Barbara County resident, wrote on Twitter. Fires closing in. Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now."

- 'New normal' -

May Osher, a 66-year-old retired schoolteacher in Carpinteria, told the Los Angeles Times she had put photo albums and pet supplies in her car and was ready to evacuate if told to do so.

"I'm staying until it's time to go," Osher told the newspaper.

Cal Fire said 800 buildings have been destroyed by the fire, which is being fueled by tinder dry brush and strong and unpredictable Santa Ana winds.

Despite the intensity of the fires stretching from north of Los Angeles down to San Diego, authorities have reported only one fatality -- a 70-year-old woman who died in a car crash while fleeing a blaze.

California Governor Jerry Brown has warned that climate change meant the state was becoming increasingly vulnerable and wildfires were becoming the "new normal."

"The fire season used to be a few months in the summer," Brown said. "Now it's almost year-long."

Brown has been one of the most vocal critics of President Donald Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the Paris accord on global warming, and he renewed his attacks on the administration over its attitude toward climate change.

"Nature is not a political game. Nature is the ground on which we stand, it's the air which we breathe," he said.

"The truth of the case is that there's too much carbon being emitted, that heat-trapping gasses are building up, the planet is warming and all hell is breaking loose."

This has been California's deadliest year ever for wildfires. More than 40 people died in October when fires swept through the state's wine-producing counties north of San Francisco.

Trump has issued a state of emergency for California, authorizing the release of federal funds.

The White House said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue briefed the president and Vice President Mike Pence on the response to the wildfires and prevention efforts.
3RD UPDATE, 12:39 PM: The Los Angeles Fire Department said this morning that the Skirball Fire that destroyed homes in Bel-Air last week was caused by an illegal cooking fire. LAFD investigators have determined the fire was caused by an illegal cooking fire at an encampment in a brush area adjacent to where Sepulveda Boulevard crosses under the San Diego (405) Freeway, officials said. At the time of the LAFDs arrival there were no individuals present at the area of origin and there have been no arrests made in connection to this fire.

The Skirball Fire burned more than 400 acres, destroyed six homes and damaged 12 others.

Meanwhile, Apple has pledged $1M for Southern California wildfire relief as the Thomas Fire continues to burn in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and others scorch parts of Los Angeles and San Diego counties. The company also had pledged $1M in relief for the devastating fires in Northern California two months ago.

The Thomas Fire continues to be the most dangerous of the four still burning in Southern California. It has spread to 234,200 acres as of this morning and is 20% contained, according to Cal Fire, which noted that severe fire weather will continue to promote significant growth further into Santa Barbara County, threatening the communities of Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Montecito and Summerland. Nearly 50 more homes were destroyed by the Thomas Fire since Monday morning.

Here is the latest map of evacuations as of 7 AM. The redlined area is the fire perimeter, and the blue lines represent evacuation areas:

As of 6 AM, the Creek Fire near Sylmar was 98% contained, per Cal Fire, and the Skirball Fire that hit Bel-Air and environs was at 85% containment. The Lilac Fire in eastern San Diego County is 92% contained.

2ND UPDATE, December 11: The mandatory evacuation area for people in the path of the Thomas Fire north of Los Angeles continues to expand as the wildfire spreads into Santa Barbara County The fire is threatening Montecito, the tony enclave of Montecito, where many celebrities have homes; the city of Carpenteria; the beach town of Summerland; and surrounding areas. See evacuation details as of 7 AM PT and a map below.

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The massive fire grew by more than 50,000 acres Sunday to become the fifth-largest in California history, and extreme fire behavior will continue to hamper control efforts. About 6,400 fire personnel are battling the fire, which has blackened more than 230,500 acres and is just 15% contained, with no full containment date yet projected. At least 644 houses have been destroyed and 167 damaged, with an additional 18,000 structures threatened. Rather miraculously, no one has been injured  a testiment to the orderly evacuations that have take place since the Thomas Fire erupted a week ago.

Gusty Santa Ana winds will continue to push fire to the west, Cal Fire said today, while very low fuel moistures, high temperatures and single-digit relative humidities will support fire growth on the west and north sides.

Officials said today that the evacuation order in the City of Ventura ranges north of Foothill Road from Kimball Road and west to Poli Street; north of Poli Street from Hall Canyon and west to Cedar Street; the entire community of Casitas Springs; north of Highway 150 heading to Highway 33; and south of Los Padres National Forest. In Ojai and and the east Ojai Valley, the order stretches from SR 150 east of Dennison Park to Koenigstein Road, south of Reeves Road Ojai. Heres the latest map of the evacuation area from Cal Fire:

UPDATED, 5:44 PM PST Dec. 10: As the Thomas Fire spreads in Carpinteria and Montecito, the city of Santa Barbara has ordered an evacuation in the area from Mission Canyon Rd. to Hot Springs Rd. and SR 192 to East Camino Cielo.

There has been an evacuation warning for the area from SR 192 at SR 154, North on SR 154 to E. Camino Cielo, East to Mission Canyon Rd. and SR 192 North to E. Camino Cielo.

The mandatory evacuation of City of Venturas City Hall at 501 and 505 Poli St. and the streets located directly around City Hall including Poli Alley Way and Poli St. has lifted. Also lifted is the mandatory evacuation for the Poinsettia Pavilion at 3451 Foothill Rd.

Firefighters have been fending off the blaze, which has engulfed nearly 200,000 acres today alone and has grown 25,000 acres during the day.

Santa Barbara County has posted a detailed map of mandatory evacuations zones on their Twitter account (seen below).

Earlier today, Rob Lowe tweeted, Praying for my town as he evacuated as the fires closed in. Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, also tweeted earlier that her house was in danger, has been posting updates on her Twitter account. Most recently, she expressed her gratitude for the community and the firefighters.

Everyone in the Montecito area is checking up on each other and helping to get people and animals to safety, said DeGeneres. Im proud to be a part of this community. Im sending lots of love and gratitude to the fire department and sheriffs. Thank you all. #ThomasFire

Praying for my town. Fires closing in. Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now.  Rob Lowe (@RobLowe) December 10, 2017

Everyone in the Montecito area is checking up on each other and helping to get people and animals to safety. Im proud to be a part of this community. Im sending lots of love and gratitude to the fire department and sheriffs. Thank you all. #ThomasFire  Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) December 10, 2017

#Thomasfire Interactive map link is independent of the website.

Zoom in or type in a specific address to see a detailed view using this Google Maps link: https://t.co/0lFTYuoPA9.  Santa Barbara County (@countyofsb) December 11, 2017

EARLIER: The celebrity haven beach town of Carpinteria, CA and nearby Montecito are under seige by the renewed vigor of the Thomas Fire, one of six blazes burning in Southern California.

At mid-day, the 170,000-acre Thomas Fire caused evacuation orders for portions of Carpinteria and Montecito, with others nearby cautioned to be prepared to leave if things escalate. Montecito is home to such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey, Drew Barrymore, Jeff Bridges, Ellen DeGeneres, Rob Lowe, Malcolm McDowell, Al Gore, Megyn Price, Eric Schmidt, Jane Seymor and Patrick Stewart. Carpinteria notes such residents as Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis, and directors George Lucas and Joel Schumacher.

Our house is under threat of being burned. We just had to evacuate our pets. Im praying for everyone in our community and thankful to all the incredible firefighters. The live stream is on https://t.co/FTcKVvHO16  Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) December 10, 2017

The areas low humidity backed by gusting Santa Ana winds pushed the fire overnight from Ventura County into Santa Barbara County. The winds have escalated fires throughout the state, gusting up to 35 mph, according to fire officials.

Carpinteria is in the most danger. The current fire is burning in very dry vegetation, according to Steve Swindle, spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department. The area is estimated not to have burned in nearly 100 years.

Teams of firefighters are being deployed throughout Carpinteria to head off any flames that cross existing fire lines. Some 85,000 customers in the area are currently without power.

The Thomas Fire is currently the most problematic of the six wildfires burning in Southern California. Officials reported progress on containing the others. The Thomas Fire is about 15 percent contained as of mid-day Sunday.

In Los Angeles County, firefighters continued to battle fires in Sylmar, Santa Clarita and Bel-Air. The Skirball fire near celebrity haven Bel-Air was 75% contained.

Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.

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Actors, athletes, musicians and other big name celebrities are using Twitter to rally behind a Tennessee student after an emotional video showed the boy crying about being bullied.

Keaton Jones, a young boy from Knoxville, became an internet sensation after his mother shared a video of his heartbreaking story on Facebook. Keaton was sitting in the car with his mom because he was afraid to go to lunch, and described how the other kids were bullying him.

They make fun of my nose. They call me ugly. They say I have no friends, Keaton told his mother as he started to cry.

Keaton began his video by asking why people bully other kids, but ended with a message to other kids who have been bullied, to give them some hope. The video has been viewed more than 18 million times on his mothers Facebook page.

I dont like that they do it to me. And I, for sure, dont like that they do it to other people, cause its not okay! Keaton told his mother. People that are different dont need to be criticized about it. Its not their fault.

Kimberly Jones, Keatons mother, wrote in her post that her son was a good kid and encouraged parents to talk to her children about bullying. Jones did not immediately respond to HuffPosts request for comment.

The viral video caught the attention of some big names, who wanted to send love and support for Keaton. Actors Chris Evans, Millie Bobby Brown and Patricia Arquette are just a few of the celebrities who have reached out on Twitter to give Keaton some hope.

Stay strong, Keaton. Dont let them make you turn cold, Evans tweeted Sunday. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year?

Keaton has received tons of invitations like Evans since the video has been out, including being invited as Hailee Steinfields date to the Pitch Perfect 3 premiere. Tennessee Titans tight-end Delanie Walker invited Keaton and his family to a New Years Eve game against Jacksonville.

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Stay strong, Keaton. Dont let them make you turn cold. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year? https://t.co/s1QwCQ3toi  Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) December 10, 2017

Keaton, this is so accurate. Why do people do this? I think your sooo cool Keaton! I wanna be your friend ( but srsly) ur freakin awesome  https://t.co/LD7Q762bL9  Millie Bobby Brown (@milliebbrown) December 9, 2017

Hi @Lakyn_Jones, could you pass this message along to Keaton?  pic.twitter.com/3l8P4fKAqW  Hailee Steinfeld (@HaileeSteinfeld) December 10, 2017

We hear you #KeatonJones. I was bullied constantly growing up. And could never have put into words what you have. It does get better. And it gets better because of who are and what you know and how you share it with all of us. Thank you for your courage. https://t.co/P4cCQtkAnB  Patrick J Adams (@halfadams) December 9, 2017

Keaton, I'm sorry those kids are being so mean. Unless people like that change they will end up having unhappy lives. I think you're cool!  Patricia Arquette (@PattyArquette) December 9, 2017

@DonteStallworth @Lakyn_Jones hopefully my video and the tweets that Keaton have been getting brings awareness to bullying and how serious it is in our school system pic.twitter.com/1Dujv3RxA5  Delanie walker (@delaniewalker82) December 9, 2017

. I need Keaton Jones to appear on Chrisley Knows best , this Kid can change the world and I wanna help him do it .. #keatonbecomesachrisley lets make this happen .. everyone use the hashtag .  Todd Chrisley (@toddchrisley) December 10, 2017

If someone can get to me the name of the school, the principal, school board members i will gladly make the calls myself and fix this. Also if anyone knows Keaton and his parents, i will gladly fly them to NYC to be my guest & visit Fox News. https://t.co/uFyp2r2Yn7  Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) December 10, 2017

@Lakyn_Jones Hello, Keaton (via your sister)! You may have heard of my parents, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (#MLK) and #CorettaScottKing. I try to honor them and their legacies. Im so sorry about the pain youre experiencing because of bullying. You matter. I love you.  Be A King (@BerniceKing) December 9, 2017

Keaton you are a handsome young man who is made in the image God. The kids that bully you are very insecure about themselves. And its a shame that the parents of those kids wont be accountable for their kids actions. Keaton Jones Im here for you buddy. Be Strong young man  ANTONIO CROMARTIE (@CRO31) December 10, 2017

@Lakyn_Jones For Keaton: You have friends in us here in Colorado. Youre always welcome at Coors Field and if you ever make it to Denver, please be our guest at a game. Keep your head up and always be yourself, dont let those bullies win!  Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) December 10, 2017

UPDATE  Dec. 11: The principal of the Horace Maynard Middle School responded to concerns about bullying at the school on Monday. Principal Greg Clay told the Knoxville News Sentinel that action was taken by the school after the incident occurred, and the school is planning an anti-bullying assembly to address the issue.

Were having a good school year, Clay said. Im sorry its like this. We all sympathize with Keaton and were doing everything we can to make sure it never happens again. Everybody saw the video and it was horrible. We dont want anyone to feel like that. Keatons a good kid. Well take care of him.

Facebook and Twitter users also have raised questions about the familys political views and intentions in sharing the video.

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DO: Tell Them They Are Not Alone

Bullying can be an incredibly isolating experience, and many victims feel that they are alonethat something about them, specifically, has brought this on. Explain to your child that bullying is something that can happen to anyone: boys, girls, preschoolers, high schoolers, kids at large schools and kids at small schools. This means there is a large group of people impacted by bullying, and if we all work together, we can certainly make a difference.

DON'T: Suggest They "Just Ignore It"

A common reaction to bullying is encouraging the victim to ignore the bully. "They just want a reaction," people say, and if you deny them the reaction, they'll go away. That's not always the case. Sometimes, when the bully realizes they are being ignored, they can feel a sense of power over their victim that can actually make the situation worse.

DO: Check In Regularly

Asking your child basic questions about their day and their experience at school can help you catch a problem sooner. Ask how a specific class was, or who they sat with at lunch. Ask who is trying out for the team, or who is going to local fair that weekend. These harmless questions tell your child that you care, but they can also help you detect changes in your child's situation that may indicate a bullying problem.

DON'T: Suggest Your Child Stand Up To The Bully

While helping your child prepare a speech or enrolling them in self-defense courses might seem like an empowering solution, you're sending the message to your child that this problem is theirs, and that they have to handle it alone. Instead, discuss what some solutions might be and involve your child in the decision making process.

DO: Set Boundaries Online

The National Crime Prevention Council reports that 20 to 43 percent of middle and high school school students have reported being victims of cyber bullying. Encourage your child to protect themselves by following these two guidelines: 1. Never say or do anything online that you wouldn't say or do in person. 2. Never share any information that you wouldn't tell a stranger.

DON'T: Express Disbelief

While we'd like to think we know everything about our children and their friends, don't express disbelief if they say someone has done something that shocks you. Your child needs to know that they can trust you. Asking them to provide evidence or saying that someone "would never do that" can come across as you taking the side of someone other than your child. Instead, be as supportive as possible and listen to their side.

DO: Encourage Them To Speak Up

A recent study of children ages 9 to 12, showed that 56 percent said that they usually either say or do something to try to stop bullying or tell someone who can help (Brown, Birch, & Kancherla, 2005). Make sure your child knows who he or she can talk to if they have something they want to share, whether that is you, a school counselor, a teacher or a coach.

DO: Discourage Password Sharing

Explain the importance of keeping online passwords private, even from close friends. Your child may be thinking that sharing a password with a close friend is harmless and convenient, but explain that anyone with their password could impersonate them online and embarrass them. If they insist that the friend would never do that, remind them that the friend could share their password, either intentionally or unintentionally, and someone else would have that same power.

DON'T: Take Matters Entirely Into Your Own Hands

While your first reaction may be to protect your child by calling the parent of the bully or confront the child yourself, this is not always a good solution. Not only is this this rarely effective, it may even prove fodder for additional bullying. Your child wants to feel empowered and involved in the solution, so discuss options with him or her and work together to decide on a plan of action.

DO: Be Patient

Your child may be embarrassed or afraid to talk about what is happening to them. This is normal. Rather than pressuring your child into speaking before they are ready, just make it clear that you are willing to listen and be a source of support for them. Once they feel comfortable, they will know that they can open up to you and seek your advice. Better yet, if you've had this conversation preemptively, before a problem arises, your child will know right away that you can be their partner in finding a solution.

DO: Find Resources Online

Green Giant's Raise A Giant site includes a page that lets you read letters other parents have written to empower their children. You can write your own letter and explore their other resources, including videos and sharable infographics. PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center site also has a page with resources like informational handouts, fact sheets, educational toolkits, and the "We Will Generation." You can also browse the video page to see if some of their video resources would be helpful for you or for your child. Green Giant's Raise A Giant site includes a page that lets you write a letter to empower your child, but you can also read the letters other parents have written to inspire your talks with your child.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Charlie Sheen is suing the National Enquirer over a Nov. 8 story alleging the actor raped then-child star Corey Haim in the 1980s.

The suit, filed Friday in Los Angeles, called the story an egregious, hurtful, and disgusting campaign of defamations, according to court documents obtained by Variety. Sheen, 52, is seeking unspecified damages.

The Enquirer claimed in its report that Sheen, then about 19, sexually assaulted 13-year-old Haim on the set of the 1986 film Lucas. The tabloid quotes Haims friend Dominick Brascia as saying Haim and Sheen smoked pot and had  anal sex.

Sheen categorically denies these allegations, a rep for the actor said shortly after the storys publication. Brascia is named as one of the suits defendants, as is Dylan Howard, chief content officer of American Media Inc., the Enquirers parent company.

Howard, the suit alleges, is on an active vendetta against Sheen.

With calculated malice, the National Enquirer has concluded that it can make money by running false and salacious stories claiming that Mr. Sheen is a sexual molester that preys on young pubescent boys, the suit claims.

Howard also has been the target of sexual misconduct allegations.

American Media told Variety in a statement that it was look[ing] forward to litigating against Sheen.

[We] cant wait to expose his depravities in a court of law, the company said.

Haim died in 2010 at the age of 38. His mother said in a recent interview that she did not believe Sheen had raped her son. She told Dr. Oz that Haim had been sexually abused as a teenager, but that Brascia had been the culprit.

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By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Top United Nations officials warned the Security Council on Monday that its sanctions on North Korea over the country's nuclear and missile programs may be harming the delivery of humanitarian aid to the impoverished, isolated Asian state. The 15-member Security Council held its fourth annual meeting on human rights abuses in North Korea, despite objections by China, who said it was not the right forum and warned the move could further escalate tensions in the region. U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said U.N. agencies and aid groups were "literally a life-line" for some 13 million vulnerable North Koreans, "but sanctions may be adversely affecting this essential help." Zeid and deputy U.N. political affairs chief Miroslav Jenca said aid groups were facing difficulties accessing international banking channels, transporting goods into the North Korea, and rising fuel prices hindering delivery of aid. In an Oct. 27 letter to the council sanctions committee on North Korea, seen by Reuters, the top U.N. official in Pyongyang, Tapan Mishra, also said there were customs problems. "Crucial relief items, including medical equipment and drugs, have been held up for months despite being equipped with the required paperwork affirming that they are not on the list of sanctioned items," Mishra wrote. Zeid asked the Security Council on Monday to assess the impact of the sanctions on human rights and take action "to minimize their adverse humanitarian consequences." In a statement on Friday, the council sanctions committee reiterated that the nine sanctions resolutions adopted since 2006 "are not intended to have adverse humanitarian consequences for the civilian population" of North Korea. 'COUNTERPRODUCTIVE' North Korea has repeatedly rejected accusations of rights abuses and blames sanctions for the humanitarian situation. The North Korean U.N. mission condemned Monday's meeting "as a desperate act of the hostile forces which lose the political and military confrontation with the DPRK (North Korea) that has openly risen to the position of nuclear weapon state." Japan's U.N. Ambassador Koro Bessho told reporters on Monday: "The humanitarian situation and human rights situation in North Korea is very dire and that's because of the authorities." For the fourth time, China unsuccessfully tried to stop the public meeting by calling a procedural vote. A minimum of nine votes are needed to win such a vote and China, Russia, the United States, Britain and France cannot wield their vetoes. Ten members voted in favor of the meeting, China, Russia and Bolivia voted against, and Egypt and Ethiopia abstained. "Council members and relevant parties should engage themselves with finding ways to ease tensions on the Peninsula. They should avoid mutual provocation and words or actions that might further escalate the situation," China's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Wu Haitao told the council. He said the discussion of human rights in North Korea was counterproductive. "The systematic human rights violations and abuses of the North Korean government are more than the cause of its people's suffering. They are a means to a single end: Keeping the Kim Jong Un regime in power," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told the council. The Security Council is due to hold a ministerial meeting on North Korea's nuclear and missiles programs on Friday. (Additional reporting by James Pearson in Seoul; Editing by Susan Thomas and James Dalgleish)
By Ben Blanchard and Jess Macy Yu BEIJING/TAIPEI (Reuters) - A threat by a senior Chinese diplomat to invade Taiwan the instant any U.S. warship visits the self-ruled island has sparked a war of words, with Taipei accusing Beijing of failing to understand what democracy means. China considers Taiwan to be a wayward province and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. The United States has no formal ties with Taiwan but is bound by law to help it defend itself and is its main source of arms. Beijing regularly calls Taiwan the most sensitive and important issue between it and the United States. In September, the U.S. Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act for the 2018 fiscal year, which authorises mutual visits by navy vessels between Taiwan and the United States. At a Chinese embassy event in Washington on Friday, diplomat Li Kexin said he had told U.S. officials that China would activate its Anti-Secession Law, which allows it to use force on Taiwan if deemed necessary to prevent the island from seceding, if the United States sent navy ships to Taiwan. "The day that a U.S. Navy vessel arrives in Kaohsiung is the day that our People's Liberation Army unifies Taiwan with military force," Chinese media at the weekend quoted Li as saying, referring to Taiwan's main port. Taiwan's Foreign Ministry said late on Saturday that, while Chinese officials seemed to want to try and win over hearts and minds in Taiwan, they also had been repeatedly using threats that hurt the feelings of Taiwan's people. "These methods show a lack of knowledge about the real meaning of the democratic system and how a democratic society works," the ministry said. China suspects Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who leads the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, wants to declare the island's formal independence. Tsai says she wants to maintain peace with China but will defend Taiwan's security. Relations between China and Taiwan were becoming even more complex and severe, Zhang Zhijun, head of China's policy-making Taiwan Affairs Office, told a visiting delegation of the New Party, a small pro-China Taiwan opposition party on Monday. Taiwan independence forces are trying to root out Chinese culture in Taiwan and are the gravest threat to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, the official Xinhua news agency cited Zhang as saying. China will never back down over Taiwan, influential Chinese tabloid the Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, said earlier on Monday. "Li's words have sent a warning to Taiwan and drew a clear red line," it said in an editorial. "If Taiwan attempts to hold an independence referendum or other activities in pursuit of de jure 'Taiwan independence', the PLA will undoubtedly take action." China would continue to maintain the principle of peaceful unification, foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Monday. "At the same time, we will resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity," he told reporters. (Additional reporting by Michael Martina in BEIJING; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Clarence Fernandez)
The key to surviving personal loss can be found in dedication to helping others, former Vice President Joe Biden told an appreciative crowd in Madison on Sunday.

Biden appeared at two events in the Orpheum Theater as part of a national tour promoting his book, Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose. Biden wrote about what it was like to care for his son Beau Biden, and then mourn his death, while remaining in the public eye as vice president.

Biden also discussed his thoughts about running for president in 2020, and his well-publicized bromance with former President Barack Obama.

Bidens words caught in his throat more than once as he recounted his sons illness. Beau Biden, an Iraq War veteran and former attorney general of the state of Delaware, died of a brain tumor in 2015 at the age of 46.

The former vice president also displayed the folksy, gabby style that has been his trademark. At an afternoon session moderated by Teen Vogue editor-in-chief Elaine Welteroth, a large crowd responded with applause, cheering and laughter.

Biden joked about his close bond with Obama.

He was the one who did the friendship bracelet first, Biden said.

When Obama first asked him to be his running mate for the 2008 campaign, Biden hesitated. He wasnt thrilled about the idea of being vice president.

He said he changed his mind after his mother asked how he could call himself a civil rights advocate if he refused a candidate who needed his help carrying key states to become the first black president.

Agreement on major policy issues between the president and vice president led to trust and friendship, Biden said.

Biden said he would probably decide in about a year whether to run for president in 2020. He said his unwillingness to decide sooner is rooted in realism about how much the political landscape can change in the space of a year.

Im not playing games, Biden said. Its just too early for me to make that decision.

Before his son was diagnosed, Biden had assembled the framework of a campaign organization for the 2016 election, and polls showed him beating any of the Republican candidates. But Biden didnt think he could go through with it after his son was found to have little time to live.

At his sons urging, Biden said, he seriously considered running, because it could have provided himself and his family a clear sense of purpose that might sustain them through their grief.

But there came a day when he was greeting well-wishers at Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado. A former member of his sons military unit appeared in the crowd and began telling him how much he respected the younger Bidens leadership.

It was like someone hit me with a baseball bat, Biden said.

Setting up a foundation to champion causes that were important to his son, such as fighting crimes against children and women, has helped the family cope, Biden said.

After the loss of a loved one, dedication to a purpose bigger than you grows in importance, he said.

When you are giving, it helps you, Biden said.
BEIJING (Reuters) - Australian media reports on Chinese interference in Australia are racist and paranoid, China's top newspaper said on Monday, stepping up a war of words over concerns in Australia about Chinese influence in the country. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said last week he took reports very seriously that China's Communist Party had sought to interfere in his country. Turnbull said that foreign powers were making "unprecedented and increasingly sophisticated attempts to influence the political process" in Australia and the world. He cited "disturbing reports about Chinese influence". The Chinese government has already protested the remarks, and on Monday the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily stepped up the attacks. The reports in Australian media have been full of imagination, making baseless attacks on the Chinese government and have maliciously slandered Chinese students and people living in Australia, the paper said in a commentary. "This type of hysterical paranoia had racist undertones, and is a stain on Australia's image as a multicultural society," the People's Daily said. The commentary was published under the pen name "Zhong Sheng," meaning "Voice of China," which is often used to give the paper's view on foreign policy issues. China's soft power has come under renewed focus last week after a politician from Australia's opposition Labor party was demoted from government having been found to have warned a prominent Chinese business leader and Communist Party member that his phone was being tapped by intelligence authorities. In June, Fairfax Media and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported on a concerted campaign by China to "infiltrate" Australian politics to promote Chinese interests. Turnbull has vowed to ban foreign political donations to curb external influence in domestic politics. The People's Daily said that China had no intention of interfering in Australian politics or using financial contributions to curry influence. China is Australia's largest trading partner. The two countries have no historical enmity or conflicts over each others' basic interests and can absolutely forge good relations, it added. China "urges the Australian government and media to cast aside political prejudice and bigotry and stick to the principle of using the facts in handling issues of relations with China", the paper wrote. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Michael Perry)
US President Donald Trump reportedly spends up to eight hours of his day in front of television.

According to the New York Times, he begins his daily White House routine at 5:30am with the television in his master bedroom.

The newspaper interviewed 60 advisers, friends, and members of Congress to get a picture of the day-to-day life of the President.

Usual morning shows include "Fox & Freinds," the programme and network are known to be more friendly to the President's agenda.

But, he also tunes into CNN, an outlet he has routinely referred to as "fake news," and MSNBC's "Morning Joe" programme "because, friends suspect, it fires him up for the day."

Mr Trump has had several public rows with co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, who were once friends of the former real estate magnate.

"Energized, infuriated  often a gumbo of both," Mr Trump then takes to Twitter because "the ammunition for his Twitter war is television," the newspaper reported.

Through the course of his day, he spends at least four - but often up to eight - hours a day watching news channels. Sometimes he will leave them on mute, but he uses it as a way to keep track of what the media is saying about him, his presidency, and the investigation into alleged collusion between his campaign team and Russian officials during the 2016 US election.

Aboard Air Force One during his recent Asia tour, Mr Trump responded to fact-checking questions regarding his television watching habits by saying: "I do not watch much television...I know they like to say  people that dont know me  they like to say I watch television. People with fake sources  you know, fake reporters, fake sources. But I dont get to watch much television, primarily because of documents. Im reading documents a lot.

Sources say the President, nearing the end of his first year in office, still views himself more as a "maligned outsider engaged in a struggle to be taken seriously" rather than the leader of the free world.

Story continues

He told aides after his historic election victory that ever day of his time in office should be seen as a television show during which he "vanquishes rivals."

Senator Lindsey Graham felt that mentality is a problem. He said: "theres a difference between running for the office and being president. Youve got to find that sweet spot between being a fighter and being president.

"His approach got him to the White House, Mr. Trump reasons, so it must be the right one," the New York Times reported.

Yet, Mr Trump's job approval rating is at a historically low 32 per cent even while he dominates media coverage.

John Kelly, White House chief of staff and a retired Marine General, has attempted to "quietly and respectfully, to reduce the amount of free time the president has for fiery tweets by accelerating the start of his workday."

Mr Kelly has also tried to reign in the chaos of a White House full of staff that have never worked in the federal government before. He limits the President's meetings and exposure to a myriad of opinions from advisers.

Mr Trump, "who enjoyed complete control over his business empire, has made significant concessions after trying to micromanage his first months in office," according to the newspaper.

However, sources say the rule in the White House is that no one touches the remote control except for Mr Trump and technical staff.

If he misses a news report, he has a "Super TiVo" system that records hours of news footage for him to view at a later time.

Still, the President - despite daily briefings and access to government resources - tends to only believe information if it comes from his small "bubble" of trusted advisers, sources said.

Aides told the newspaper they "bemoan his tenuous grasp of facts, jack-rabbit attention span and propensity for conspiracy theories."

After a day of meetings and phone calls, often to associates Mr Kelly has gotten rid of for riling the President up like Sebastian Gorka or Steve Bannon, Mr Trump watches the evening news programmes of Sean Hannity, Jennine Pirro, and Laura Ingraham on Fox News and sometimes "hate watches" CNN only to restart the process again the next day.
Heartbreaking footage of a starving polar bear desperately searching for food on iceless land highlights the real face of climate change, conservationists say.

Photojournalist Paul Nicklen said his team were moved to tears as they captured the struggling animals battle to stay alive on Canadas Baffin Island last summer.

The soul-crushing scene, captured by marine conservationists SeaLegacy, shows the emaciated bear searching an abandoned Inuit camp for sustenance.

My entire SeaLegacy team was pushing through their tears and emotions while documenting this dying polar bear, explained Mr Nicklen.

Its a soul-crushing scene that still haunts me, but I know we need to share both the beautiful and the heartbreaking if we are going to break down the walls of apathy. This is what starvation looks like. The muscles atrophy. No energy. Its a slow, painful death.

Polar bears are listed as vulnerable due to a loss of sea ice habitat from climate changeCredit: AP

When scientists say polar bears will be extinct in the next 100 years, I think of the global population of 25,000 bears dying in this manner. There is no band aid solution. There was no saving this individual bear. People think that we can put platforms in the ocean or we can feed the odd starving bear.

The simple truth is this - if the Earth continues to warm, we will lose bears and entire polar ecosystems. This large male bear was not old, and he certainly died within hours or days of this moment. But there are solutions. We must reduce our carbon footprint, eat the right food, stop cutting down our forests, and begin putting the Earth-our home-first.

His colleague Cristina Mittermeier said it was one of the hardest shoots we have ever had to do.

Through tears, we were able to capture this footage with the hope of awakening people to the realities of a climate change future, she said.

Polar bears are the poster child for climate change Credit: AP

SeaLegacy said though it couldnt say with 100 per cent certainty what had caused the bear to starve to death, the group added: We do know that he didnt have any visible wounds and that he was not an old bear.

Story continues

Many of you have asked whether we could have saved this individual bear, but the hard truth is that he was on his last legs and his muscles had atrophied beyond repair. It would also have been illegal to feed him, to approach him, or to do anything to ease his pain.

The group warned an increasing number of polar bears are likely to die in this way as a result of our warming climate.

As global temperatures rise, the amount of multi-year sea ice in the Arctic shrinks. Polar bears depend on that ice to travel large distances and to hunt for their food. Without sea ice this will become a common scene across the Arctic, they said.

The World Wildlife Fund says polar bears are vulnerable due to a loss of sea ice habitat from climate change.

A study published last year by University of Washington researchers found that polar bears across the Arctic are facing a shorter sea ice season, a surface they depend on for hunting, travelling and breeding.

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(Photo: etorres69 via Getty Images)

Eggnog is pretty much synonymous with Christmas. What other time of year do we drink something thats basically custard spiked with booze?

Whether you love it or hate it, chances are you dont actually have any idea whats in eggnog. The kind you buy in a carton is pretty mysterious  just read the ingredients, and youll see its often filled with high fructose corn syrup and thickeners such as guar gum and carrageenan. YUM.

But what exactly is in the real, true, honest-to-goodness, homemade eggnog? Are there even eggs in there? And if so, are they raw or cooked? What else is even in there?

Were settling this once and for all, breaking down whats really in most traditional eggnog recipes. Its not as terrifying as you might think, unless youre counting calories. Or cholesterol. Or fat.

Whatever, its the holidays. Everything in moderation!

Egg Yolks

Every recipe uses a different number of egg yolks, but they are always present -- usually around four yolks per quart of finished eggnog. And yes, they are often left raw, just whisked in with the other ingredients and refrigerated. Here's a very scientific explanation for why there's very little risk of getting salmonella.

Sugar

While George Washington's original recipe calls for 12 tablespoons (3/4 cup), every recipe is a little different, depending on how sweet you want your final product to be.

Whole Milk

Whole milk is the foundation of eggnog, so use the good stuff.

Heavy Cream

Egg yolks and milk not rich enough for you? Never fear, eggnog contains heavy cream as well. There are usually two parts whole milk to one part heavy cream.

Bourbon/Rum/Cognac

Choice of spirit (or whether you use it at all) usually depends on personal taste, but most eggnog recipes call for a brown spirit of some kind. Our very scientific taste test revealed that the best-tasting combination is cognac and rum, but

George Washington's recipe featured rye whiskey, Jamaican rum and sherry, and Martha Stewart prefers using bourbon, cognac and dark rum.

Nutmeg

Some recipes also call for cinnamon, vanilla or other spices, but nutmeg is compulsory, and it's best when freshly grated.

Whipped Egg Whites (Sometimes)

Most recipes include this as an optional ingredient because people get so stressed about the fact that they're technically raw. Adding whipped egg whites to your eggnog lightens it up a bit, stretches it a little further and also makes use of the whites you separated from the yolks.

Related Coverage

Vegan Eggnog Does Indeed Exist. Here's The Recipe.

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Eggnog Taste Test: The Best Liquors For Spiking Your Holiday Drink

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
Juliet Huddy, the former Fox News anchor - Patrick McMullan

A former Fox News presenter has claimed that Donald Trump once attempted to kiss her on the lips around the time he married his third wife Melania.

Juliet Huddy said Mr Trump made the move in a lift after the pair had lunch in Trump Tower in either 2005 or 2006. Mr Trump married Melania in January 2005.

The TV host also claimed that Mr Trump made a joke about the incident later when appearing on her show, saying: I tried hitting on her but she blew me off.

Ms Huddy insisted she was neither threatened nor offended by the behaviour at the time but said she felt a little shocked.

The alleged incident has similarities with the claims of other women who claimed Mr Trump made unwanted advances towards them. He has denied the allegations.

Donald Trump, the US president Credit: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

It comes with US politicians facing a slew of allegations about their sexual conduct in the wake of revelations about Harvey Weinstein, the shamed Holywood mogul.

Al Franken, the Democratic senator once tipped for a presidential bid, stood down this week after assault claims while John Conyers, a long-serving congressman, has also resigned.

Roy Moore, the Republican candidate in Alabama for the US senate, has refused to quit despite multiple claims of sexual encounters with teenage girls - which he denies took place.

Ms Huddy recalled the incident with Mr Trump on a podcast called Mornin!!! With Bill Schulz.

She said: He took me for lunch at Trump Tower, just us two. He said goodbye to me in an elevator while his security guy was there, rather than kiss me on the cheek he leaned in to kiss me on the lips. I wasnt offended, I was kind of like, Oh my god."

Juliet Huddy in September 2008 Credit: Charles Eshelman/FilmMagic

Ms Huddy added: I was surprised that he went for the lips. But I didnt feel threatened he took me out to lunch to talk about maybe me doing something with The Apprentice. He used to watch Fox & Friends, the show I was hosting on the weekend. Whatever, everything was fine. It was a weird moment. He never tried anything after that, and I was never alone with him.

Story continues

She said that Mr Trump joked about the attempted later when he appeared on her show. Trump was a guest and he came on stage, Ms Huddy said.

He said, to the audience and producers, not on camera, I tried hitting on her but she blew me off. He was laughing.

Ms Huddy has since tweeted that the incident, first revealed in the New York Posts Page Six column, did take place but played down its significance.

Re: @PageSix story: Yes, it's true. And though I'm offended by his comments on 'other matters' - as I said on @77WABCradio & @BillSchulz's show yesterday - I was neither threatened nor offended in elevator. End of story. Now, plz let me get back to @TheCrownNetflix.  Juliet Huddy (@JulietHuddyTV) December 9, 2017

Julie Roginsky, a former Fox News contributor, also backed up the claim.

For all those who are doubting @JulietHuddyTVs story, please stop. She told me this story many years ago, well before Trump was running for anything. She has absolutely no agenda other than the truth here.  Julie Roginsky (@julieroginsky) December 9, 2017

The White House has been approached for comment.
The political will to protect the Dreamers is as strong as ever, activists say, but fears remain that hyperpartisanship will stall the fight for a clean Dream Act

Supporters of the Dreamers rally on the Senate steps in Washington on 6 December 2017. Photograph: Yuri Gripas/Reuters

Osmar Abad Cruz likes to say his mom is the original Dreamer. In the early 1990s, she crossed the border from Mexico into the US to give her children a chance at a better life.

Nearly 25 years later, Abad Cruz, now 29, is living the life his mother wanted him to have. He graduated from college, works as a human resources director at a nonprofit and hopes to attend law school next year. This was possible in large part thanks to an Obama-era program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or Daca, which shielded nearly 800,000 young immigrants brought to the US as children from the threat of deportation.

Those children  many of whom are now adults  have become known as Dreamers.

It was life-changing, said Abad Cruz, who still lives and works in San Diego, where he grew up.

Dreamers are young immigrants who would qualify for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (Daca) program, enacted under Barack Obama in 2012. Most people in the program entered the US as children and have lived in the US for years undocumented. Daca gave them temporary protection from deportation and work permits. Daca was only available to people younger than 31 on 15 June 2012, who arrived in the US before turning 16 and lived there continuously since June 2007. Most Dreamers are from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and the largest numbers live in California, Texas, Florida and New York. Donald Trump cancelled the program in September but has also said repeatedly he wants Congress to develop a program to help the population.

Abad Cruzs future now hangs in the balance. In September, Trump announced that he was canceling the Daca program and gave Congress until March 2018 to find a legislative solution. Should lawmakers fail to come up with a replacement, Dreamers would find themselves exposed to deportation.

Story continues

Democrats and some Republican lawmakers believe the next two weeks offer the best and perhaps only chance to enact legislation that would grant these young immigrants legal status. In return, congressional Republican leaders and the Trump administration want increased border security, tighter controls on immigration or both.

Abad Cruz is one of the many immigrants who worry that a bipartisan compromise might carry too high a personal cost: legal status at the expense of an increased risk of deportation for their undocumented friends and relatives who do not qualify for relief.

The concern is particularly acute for Dreamers whose families live along the US-Mexico border, where additional federal agents would likely be dispatched.

Activists are furiously lobbying Congress to pass a clean Dream Act, a bill first introduced in 2001 that would offer a pathway to citizenship for young immigrants brought to the US illegally as children. They are pressuring Democrats to reject any legislative proposals that would boost border enforcement, a demand that has become a sticking point in the fragile negotiations over the fate of the Dreamers.

I cannot accept a ticket to the American Dream at the expense of my mom being deported, Abad Cruz said.

She cleaned offices for a living so we didnt have to. She pushed us to become somebody. How can I turn my back on her and support something that has draconian immigration policies that will harm my community, my family?

We are not political pawns: the fight for a clean Dream Act

In the next two weeks, Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, must pass a bill to keep the government running and they cannot do it alone. Democrats have demanded that the measure include protections for Dreamers as the price for supporting a spending bill.

Republican leaders Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan do not want to tie the issues together and argue that there is no urgency to address it before the March deadline. They argue that the plight of the Dreamers is a consequence of decades of bad immigration policy and a porous border.

I cannot accept a ticket to the American Dream at the expense of my mom being deported Osmar Abad Cruz, Dreamer

Yet several Democrats have vowed to withhold their support if the measure does not include relief for the young immigrants, setting the stage for a potential government shutdown over the fate of Dreamers.

We will not leave here without a Daca fix, Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, pledged last week. Senator James Lankford, a Republican supporting a compromise immigration plan, replied wryly: Washington is a beautiful place at Christmastime.

This myth that other groups of immigrants have to suffer in exchange for one group of immigrants is a non-starter for us, said Adrian Reyna, director of membership for United We Dream and a Daca recipient. We are not political pawns. You cannot use our lives to advance your political agenda.

Yet Donald Trump fueled his presidential campaign with inflammatory rhetoric on immigration. As president, he faces pressure to deliver on his pledges to build a wall along the US southern border and deport immigrants living in the country illegally.

A border patrol vehicle on a recently constructed section of the US-Mexico border fence in California. Photograph: David McNew/Getty Images

Though Trump has publicly expressed sympathy for Dreamers, his administration has repeatedly said a resolution is possible only in tandem with increased funding for border protection.

Christian Ramirez, the director of the Southern Borders Communities Coalition, said such demands for more enforcement do not match the reality along the southwest border with Mexico, where illegal border crossing have dropped to the lowest level in 46 years.

Our goal is to have a conversation about border issues that isnt politically charged and that isnt about impossible ideas like building a wall from sea to shining sea, said Ramirez, who spent last week on Capitol Hill meeting with lawmakers. We dont want to base policy on rhetoric. We want policy based on metrics and data.

Time is running out: 122 Dreamers lose their protections daily

The demand to pass a clean Dream Act has divided those who support relief for the young immigrants.

Dont make it my way or the highway or itll be the highway, said Daniel Garza, the executive director of the Libre Initiative, a Hispanic outreach organization funded by the conservative Koch brothers.

The political will to protect the Dreamers is a strong as its ever been, especially among Republicans, Garza said, but he worries that the tactics liberal activists are using to draw attention to the issue is counterproductive.



Were in a period of intense partisanship, he said. The goal should be to make this a simple and pain-free as possible  not to make unreasonable demands that wont move the ball forward.

UnitedWeDream activists rally in New York City, calling for the passage of a Clean Dream Act. Photograph: Lopez/Zuma Wire/Rex/Shutterstock

In Washington, nearly 200 supporters were arrested last week, including two members of congress, during sit-ins on the steps of the Capitol and protests outside of congressional offices.

Around the country, their efforts were augmented by a coalition of business leaders, celebrities and religious organizations.

Polls show that Americans strongly support protections for Dreamers. Recently a number of Republican lawmakers joined Democrats in calling for a solution by the end of the year  but time is running out.

The goal should be to make this simple and pain-free  not to make unreasonable demands that wont move the ball forward Daniel Garza, Libre Initiative

As many as 22,000 recipients did not successfully apply for a renewal of their Daca status.



This means that with each passing day, according to the left-leaning Center for American Progress, roughly 122 Daca recipients lose their protections, including the authorization to work legally in the US.

Frank Sharry, the executive director of the immigrant advocacy group Americas Voice, expects that the final legislative proposal to protect Dreamers will inevitable include concessions to Republicans.

Republicans can claim that they were able to fund immigration enforcement, because thats what happens in a bill that provides resources for the rest of the fiscal year, Sharry said. Both can claim credit for passing the Dream Act and everybody can celebrate.

But for some Dreamers, especially those whose families live along the border, victory would be bittersweet.

At the end of the day, Abad Cruz said, Id rather continue to fight than accept a benefit that would be unfair to my family.
Flu season is underway in the United States, and a new report shows that flu activity is already higher than typical for this time of year.

During the week that ended Nov. 25 (the most recent period for which data is available), three Southern states  Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina  reported high levels of flu activity; one state (Georgia) reported moderate flu activity, and the rest reported either low or minimal flu activity, according to the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At this same time last year, no states were reporting high levels of flu activity.

The new CDC report, published Dec. 7, also said that during the week of Thanksgiving, the percentage of people visiting the doctor for flu-like illness was 2.3 percent, which is slightly above the "national baseline" for flu visits  the threshold for what's typically seen in the off-season  which is 2.2 percent. At this time last year, the percentage of people visiting the doctor for flu-like illness was only 1.9 percent.

"Influenza activity in the United States  has been increasing since early November," the researchers wrote in their report. "It is difficult to predict when influenza activity will peak for the current season; however, influenza activity will increase in the coming weeks," the researchers said. [6 Flu Vaccine Myths]

Some health officials have already warned that this flu season could be a bad one, based on reports from the Southern Hemisphere, where the flu season recently ended for the year.

The flu viruses in circulation change each season, and the predominant strain this year is H3N2, according to the new CDC report. Flu seasons in which H3N2 predominates tend to have higher overall flu hospitalization and death rates, according to the CDC.

Indeed, so far this flu season, there have been five reported flu deaths among U.S. children, compared with no deaths among children at this time last year. (The CDC specifically tracks flu deaths in children, but not adults.)

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What's more, the rate of flu hospitalizations from Oct. 1 to Nov. 25 this year was 2 hospitalizations per 100,000 people. The rate was highest among adults ages 65 and older, in which there were about 7 hospitalizations per 100,000 people. At this time last year, the rate of flu hospitalizations was just 1.3 hospitalizations per 100,000 people.

There's another factor that may affect the severity of flu season: whether the flu strains included in the yearly flu shot match the ones circulating in the public. So far this year, the circulating flu strains do appear to match the flu strains that were selected for the vaccine, according to the CDC report.

However, in order to make the flu vaccine, manufacturers typically use chicken eggs to "grow" the flu virus strains. During this process, the flu strains may acquire genetic changes that make the strains slightly different from those in circulation. This appears to have happened with the H3N2 component of this year's flu vaccine, the report said, and the changes may lower the effectiveness of the vaccine. (However, there is a "cell-based" vaccine available this year in which the H3N2 component was grown in cell culture.)

Health officials still recommend a yearly flu vaccine for everyone ages 6 months and older, because it's still the best way to prevent flu.

"Even with influenza vaccine effectiveness in the range of 30 percent to 60 percent, influenza vaccination prevents millions of infections and medical visits and tens of thousands of influenza-associated hospitalizations." Last year's flu shot was 39 percent effective at preventing flu; estimates for the effectiveness of the 2017-2018 flu vaccine will be available later this season.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
During a Sunday segment sounding the alarm about the rise of fake news in the mainstream media, Fox News anchor Leland Vittert twice claimed that The Washington Post had fired a reporter over a misleading tweet that sparked the ire of President Donald Trump.

In reality, the Post did no such thing.

Vitterts comments came during an on-air discussion with conservative radio host Jeff Katz about a handful of recent errors in reporting on the Trump administration.

I think its inexcusable, Vittert said after Katz claimed many newsrooms were acting on behalf of the so-called resistance movement with little regard for the facts. You talk about this, and at least for one reporter it turned out to be inexcusable, he doesnt have a job anymore, and thats from The Washington Post.

He apologized, and he now has since left, he said again later in the segment.

Vittert was referring to Post reporter Dave Weigel, who retweeted a widely shared photo of a sparsely filled Florida venue where Trump was scheduled to speak on Friday. Packed to the rafters, Weigel wrote with the image, quoting Trumps own description of the rally.

Trump, who often fixates on the sizes of his crowds at speaking engagements, went after Weigel over the tweet and said the photo showed the venue hours before he arrived  though that detail has been the subject of debate. Trump tweeted that the Post should issue an apology and a retraction  despite the photo appearing only on Weigels personal Twitter account  and called for his firing.

The Post has not done so. It issued a statement standing by Weigels integrity as a reporter, noting that he promptly apologized to Trump and deleted the tweet.

Vittert released an on-air correction and apology for the error after it was brought to his attention.

Also on HuffPost

Anchor Asks Why A Muslim Would Write About Christianity

"You're a Muslim, so why did you write a book about the founder of Christianity?" Fox's Lauren Green asked scholar and author Reza Aslan during a 2013 interview.



Face, meet palm.

'Obama's Hip-Hop BBQ Didn't Create Jobs'

Greg Gutfeld Has Thoughts On Fossil Fuel

"Isn't fossil fuels the ultimate renewable energy? It's renewed once. It used to be a dinosaur. Now it's fuel. How is that not renewable?"

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
By Ingrid Melander

PARIS (Reuters) - In his first seven months in office, President Emmanuel Macron has faced little opposition. But on Sunday, the once-dominant Republicans, now the biggest opposition party in parliament, elected a new leader they hope will recover their voice.

The conservatives' ambitious new chief, 42-year old Laurent Wauquiez, is a hard-hitting critic of the 39-year-old centrist president, whom he dismisses as out of touch with rural France, weak on security and too much in favour of closer European integration.

Wauquiez wants the party to pull its weight after months when internal divisions and the shock from failing to make the run-off in this year's presidential election held them back.

"Tonight, the Right is back!" he told supporters.

"France needs the Right because the president of the Republic (Macron) is passive against crime ... and not firm enough against radical Islam," said Wauquiez, who wants to relaunch the Republicans by taking them further to the right.

He won an overwhelming mandate with three quarters of the near 100,000 votes cast by party members on Sunday.

Wauquiez bills himself as the champion of small-town, rural France - a France, he says, with which Macron has no connection as he pursues a "start-up nation".

While there are few policy parallels between the two men, Wauquiez and Macron actually have some traits in common. Both are younger than French political leaders usually are and are graduates from the country's top elite schools who promise to shake up the political establishment.

Inside Macron's camp, some ministers have cautioned against underestimating the threat of Wauquiez.

"We need to be wary because he is very gifted, very strong and there's nothing he won't do. He will establish a violent fight," Gerald Darmanin, Macron's budget minister and former member of the Republicans, told the newspaper Le Monde.

But Wauquiez's main challenge may well come from within.

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He inherits a party divided in its response both to Macron's poaching of party stalwarts and economic policy that encroaches on its turf.

Moderate veterans, ill at ease with his wooing of far-right National Front voters, have warned they could leave the party if he does not water down his hardline views.

And opinion polls show he is not popular with voters overall. Both far-left 'France Unbowed' leader Jean-Luc Melenchon and far-right National Front chief Marine Le Pen have so far been viewed as stronger opponents to Macron, polls have shown.

"Now the hard part begins," said Jean-Daniel Levy, head of Harris Interactive pollsters.

Wauquiez has time to turn the party around.

French voters will next go to the polls only in 2019, for the European parliament election. The next presidential and parliamentary elections will be in 2022.

(Additional reporting by Simon Carraud; Editing by Peter Graff)
(Photo: Ted Soqui via Getty Images)

CLEARWATER, Fla.  It was a weekday afternoon here in early December, and a gaggle of kids outside of Clearwater Academy International were playing with a ball, their laughter and shouts filling the air. The school is just a few blocks away from the spiritual headquarters for the Church of Scientology, and church volunteers appeared to be preparing for an event.

Garrett Cantrell, who is not a Scientologist, recalled his time at the school as he sat near Clearwaters harbor, surrounded by Scientologist retreat centers. The school was small and private, exactly what Cantrell was seeking in a high school after moving to Florida from New York in 2008.

He and his family, as they toured the school, had asked about its religious affiliations before he enrolled, specifically wanting to make sure it wasnt associated with Scientology. An employee told them, no. But a few months into the school year, Cantrell decided the answer was not so clear cut.

Clearwater Academy International is one of dozens of schools and tutoring centers in the U.S. that use learning materials based on the ideas of L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of the church of Scientology. Five of these schools and tutoring centers, including Clearwater Academy, receive public funding through voucher or tax credit scholarship programs, HuffPost has found.

While Cantrell said he was never asked to participate in Scientologist events, he realized that most of his classmates were deeply involved in the church  participating in events like an off-campus party for Hubbards birthday.

After a few months at the school, Cantrell decided he wanted out and he spent the rest of the year slacking off. School leaders eventually asked him to leave  for which Cantrell was grateful.

I dont feel like I learned anything there other than that basically Scientology was obviously not something that I wanted to do, said Cantrell, now 25 years old.

Clearwater Academy is a private institution, which means that in general, the school can teach what it likes with little oversight. But the learning materials it uses raise questions about its links to the Church of Scientology, in light of the school receiving more than $500,000 in taxpayer money for student scholarships between 2012-2016.

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HuffPost has been investigating the schools that receive such money for students, which comes via state-level voucher or tax credit programs.

Over the course of our investigation, we created a database of over 7,000 schools in the country that participate in these programs and researched what each was teaching. Our first story, published earlier this month, broke down how many religious schools were receiving such funds and dove deep into the curriculums often used in evangelical Christian schools.

But we also came across Clearwater Academy and the four other schools and tutoring centers that use curriculum by Applied Scholastics, a non-profit that says it is non-religious but is dedicated to spreading educational methods developed by Hubbard.

Garrett Cantrell, a former student of Clearwater Academy International in Florida, said he quickly came to doubt the school's claim that it had no link to the Church of Scientology. (Photo: Chris McGonigal/HuffPost)

An overwhelming proportion of private schools that participate in state-run, so-called school choice programs that help students afford them - like vouchers and tax credits  are religious, and say so upfront. But the schools that use Applied Scholastics claim to be totally secular.

As Applied Scholastics schools continue to receive millions of dollars in taxpayer funds and are therefore more accountable to the public than typical private schools, their claims of secularity deserve heightened scrutiny.

Our investigation comes at a time when President Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos, his secretary of education, have made it a priority to expand voucher and tax credit programs like the ones in Florida.

Karin Pouw, a spokeswoman for the Church of Scientology, told HuffPost in an email that while the church and its members have proudly supported Applied Scholastics in numerous ways through the years ... Applied Scholastics is not part of the Church of Scientology or any other religious organization.

The executive director for Clearwater Academy told HuffPost that it successfully serves children from a diverse array of backgrounds.

We are non-religious and non-political. Our students and faculty are very diverse  Christian, Muslim, Scientologists, and more  Asian, White, Black and from various countries. We respect the religious beliefs of everyone in our school and our policy is therefore to never promote religion in our school, Jim Zwers wrote in an email.

Four of five Applied Scholastics institutions that receive public funds are in Florida and have received more than $3 million in taxpayer-funded scholarships between 2012-2016, according to data provided by the Florida Department of Education. Aside from Clearwater Academy, they are the Washburn Academy, the Community Learning Center Academy, and the Hollywood Education Literacy Project.

It is unclear how much money another school, Applied Scholastics Academy Las Vegas, has received through its participation in Nevadas tax credit program  a representative for the program did not respond to requests for comment.

Concerning the institutions that use Applied Scholastics, Pouw wrote that the Church of Scientology has no relationship with these schools.

Clearwater Academy bills itself as secular, despite using educational methods developed by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of the Church of Scientology. (Photo: Chris McGonigal/HuffPost)

Voucher programs provide scholarships for students to go to private schools based on criteria like income. Tax credit programs give tax credits to individuals and corporations who donate to scholarship granting nonprofits. These nonprofits then provide scholarships to students for private schools.

The Florida Department of Educations directory of schools that participate in its voucher and tax credit programs list the four institutions that use curriculum associated with Hubbard as non-religious.

Before enrolling at Clearwater, Cantrell had spent time in public and Catholic schools, where the academics were tough, but traditional. At the Clearwater school, he was asked to behave in ways he found bizarre, he said.

Cantrell said if he yawned, it wasnt just considered an involuntary reflex  it meant he was having difficulty grasping the material, and teachers would prod him to see if this reaction might be the result of a misunderstood word.

If Cantrell didnt understand a concept, he was expected to create clay models of the idea at hand to help him comprehend it. Much of the learning was self-directed, he said, where classroom teachers played a small role in guiding students.

The "about the author" page in the Learning How To Learn book from Applied Scholastics International. (Photo: Damon Scheleur/HuffPost)

On its website, Clearwater Academy says that as part of the Applied Scholastics network, it teaches students using Study Technology, which was developed by author and humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard. The concepts in Study Technology were developed by Mr. Hubbard when he discovered the primary barriers to a students comprehension. Scientology.org, the churchs website, promotes the work of Applied Scholastics.

HuffPost reached out to Applied Scholastics for comment and they did not respond by press time.

HuffPost received several Study Technology books to confirm Cantrells claims. Yawning is explained as a potential reaction to encountering a misunderstood word. According to the book, not understanding what a word means can act as a major impediment for learners. So if Cantrell yawned, teachers would have him look up words in the dictionary. Study Technology refers to the misunderstood word as one of the three major barriers to study, which make it difficult for students to learn.

Making clay demonstrations out of concepts and ideas is also one of Hubbards recommendations in Study Technology. These clay demonstrations are supposed to help students understand what they are learning through visual representation.

The Study Technology books HuffPost received are filled with simple cartoons explaining Hubbards unique take on education.

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From the Applied Scholastics book, Learning How To Learn. (Photo: Damon Scheleur/HuffPost)

Some of the concepts in Study Technology are similar to those introduced in Scientology doctrine  including the use of clay demonstrations. Indeed, when asked about the overlap in ideas, Pouw said that Mr. Hubbard originally researched Study Technology to help him teach Scientology to his students and it continues to be used in that context today.

Study Technology also offers controversial ideas about learning disabilities. According to the Applied Scholastics website, learning disabilities may be the result of a student encountering repeated barriers to study. Notably, famed scientologist Tom Cruise has said that Study Technology helped him overcome dyslexia and learn how to read.

It is well established among educators, though, that learning disabilities are something with which a child is born or has developed.

The four schools in Florida that use Study Technology take advantage of the states voucher program specifically for students with disabilities.

Zwers told HuffPost that students receiving scholarships via the state are given academic assessments when they arrive, and an individualized academic program is then arranged.

Clearwater Academy works hard to provide a lot of the one-on-one attention that these students need, wrote Zwers, who provided an example of a student who came to the school with a learning disability and is now studying engineering in college.

On the other hand, HuffPost spoke to three ex-scientologists who attended schools that use Study Technology, as well as other ex-scientologists familiar with the curriculum. They all said these schools walk a murky line between secular and Scientologist.

One former student, who requested to go by the pseudonym Danielle M. because her parents are still in the church, is 25 years old and attended Clearwater Academy for several years. When Danielle was young, she was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. But due to the churchs view on learning difficulties, she said she never received treatment.

My parents and the school basically said, Nope. You dont have that. Thats not real, she said.

Because of her experience, Danielle finds it especially disturbing that schools like Clearwater are receiving thousands of dollars in taxpayer money specifically to help students with disabilities.

Theyre not gonna accommodate for them, she said.

Zwers denies that this would be the case.

We provide one-on-one help whenever our students need it no matter if they have been labeled ADHD or have other educational difficulties, Zwers wrote. We do not interfere with any medical advice or treatment that a student may be on. If the doctor says take this or that medication that is between the student, parent and physician.

Leah Farrow, 38, an ex-scientologist who now lives in Alabama and works as a tattoo artist, said the link between the church and school was not always obvious. She moved to Clearwater with her family when she was 10 years old and spent time attending a school that later merged with other institutions to become Clearwater Academy International.

They use methods that are ingrained in Scientology, but they dont necessarily teach Scientology, Farrow said. I can see the loophole that theyre using. I do think its pretty disingenuous.

She said at her school, Scientologists would encourage students to volunteer at the church through a program called Sea Organization. SeaOrg is comprised of the churchs most dedicated members, according to Scientology.org.

Zwers said that he does not know of any SeaOrg members coming on campus to recruit, noting that Farrow was a student at a different school many years ago.

But much of the terminology used at her school was uniquely scientologist, Farrow added.

I really dont know how someone whos not a Scientologist could go there. It would be like going to a school that only speaks Spanish, she said.

An Applied Scholastics book, Study Skills For Life. (Photo: Damon Scheleur/HuffPost)

David Touretzky, a professor in the computer science department of Carnegie Mellon University, is highly critical of Study Technology and scientology in general.

At Carnegie Mellon, Touretzky specializes in computational neuroscience. He takes issue with some of the broad claims Scientology and Study Technology make about the way the mind works, and said much of it is unsupported by evidence.

Its basically pseudo science, he said.

But J. Gordon Melton, a professor of American religious history at Baylor University, says literacy centers associated with Hubbard can do good work.

I can tell people who go through these programs have not been proselytized in the process and been genuinely helped, Melton said.

In Florida, over $2 million in voucher and tax credit money has gone to one such center  the Hollywood Education Literacy Project  over the past several years.

As far as the other schools that use Hubbards learning methods, as best as I can figure out, they run them pretty straight, Melton said.

There is little objective research on the effectiveness of these methods. But on at least three occasions, Applied Scholastics materials have been approved for use in public schools. According to news reports, the materials have been used in Arizona, Colorado and Florida public schools.

Charles Haynes, the director of the Religious Freedom Center, reviewed some of these materials for the California Board of Education about 10 years ago. He said public schools would not violate the U.S. Constitution by using them in the classroom.

What I found as an educator and as a First Amendment expert, the fact that the materials were derived from the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard does not in and of itself make them religious, Haynes said.

Garrett Cantrell, meanwhile, is disturbed by the idea that the school he went to receives public funding via private school choice programs.

He said he feels fortunate that he only stayed at Clearwater Academy for a short time. While he said that everyone was kind to him, and the other kids seemed smart, he feels like he wasted a year of his academic life.

Look, they have every right to be there, and have their setup like that, but [the school shouldnt] mislead people like that. They looked at [his grandmother] straight in the face and lied to her and my grandfather. Had they said, Yes, [were scientologist], we would have gone a different route. We wouldnt have gone there.

This is the second story in a HuffPost investigation on the policies and curriculum of schools that participate in private school choice programs. The first story, dealing with textbooks that push a deeply flawed curriculum, is here. The third story, looking at schools that discriminate against LGBTQ students, is here.

CORRECTION: The data set on which this story is based has been updated, as it originally overcounted the number of schools participating in private school choice in Florida, and therefore overcounted the total number of schools we analyzed. Those changes do not meaningfully affect the reporting in this story. Please see the note on the first article in this series for the more exact figures.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Iraqi forces are in control of the entire country, the military said - AFP

Iraqs war against the Islamic State (Isil) is over and the jihadist group has been no longer controls any territory inside the country, Iraqs prime minister declared on Saturday.

Haider al-Abadi said Isil forces had been driven from their final pockets of control and that the Iraqi state was now fully in control of the countrys border with Syria.

"Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh [Isil]," Mr Abadi told a conference in Baghdad.

"Our enemy wanted to kill our civilisation, but we have won through our unity and our determination. We have triumphed in little time.

His announcement marked the end of four years of formal combat operations after Isil swept into western Iraq from Syria in early 2014. Within months they had seized control of much of northern Iraq, including the city of Mosul, and threatened to march assault Iraqi Kurdistan.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory

US forces began airstrikes against Isil in August 2014 and after years of grinding warfare, Iraqs military announced they had succeeded in completely clearing the country.

"All Iraqi lands are liberated from terrorist Daesh gangs and our forces completely control the international Iraqi-Syrian border," said Lieutenant General Abdul-Amir Rasheed Yar Allah.

The Coalition congratulate the people of Iraq on their significant victory against #Daesh. We stand by them as they set the conditions for a secure and prosperous #futureiraqpic.twitter.com/pJlGImT1Yu  The Global Coalition (@coalition) December 9, 2017

Prime Minister Theresa May congratulated Mr Abadi on successfully forcing Isil from most of the country, but warned the extremist group is "not yet defeated".

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The US-led military coalition against Isil tweeted its congratulations shortly after Mr Abadis speech. The Coalition congratulates the people of Iraq on their significant victory against Daesh. We stand by them as they set the conditions for a secure and prosperous future Iraq.

Despite its battlefield defeat, Isil is likely to continue to inflict painful attacks against Iraqi military forces and civilians.

Baghdad and other cities have been plagued by suicide bombings carried out by Isil cells even though its ground forces were nowhere nearby.

With the military fight against Isil finished in Iraq, the US is focusing on how to try to confront Iranian influence in the country.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - The head of an Iran-backed Iraqi Shi'ite militia has visited Lebanon's border with Israel accompanied by Hezbollah fighters, a video released on Saturday showed, in a show of Iranian influence that Lebanon's prime minister called illegal. Qais al-Khazali, leader of the Iraqi paramilitary group Asaib Ahl al-Haq, declared his readiness "to stand together with the Lebanese people and the Palestinian cause", in the video footage widely circulating on social media. His appearance at the frontier is likely to be seen in the Middle East as an example of Tehran demonstrating its reach, and could add to tension in Lebanon, caught in a regional tussle between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri issued a statement saying the border visit by a paramilitary in uniform violated Lebanese law. He had instructed security chiefs to "prevent any person from carrying out activities of a military nature on the country's territory and to prevent any illegal actions", and barred Khazali from entering the country, it said. Lebanon is still recovering from a crisis triggered a month ago, when Hariri announced his resignation while visiting Saudi Arabia, accusing Iran and Hezbollah of meddling in regional conflicts in violation of Lebanon's policy of non-intervention. Hariri returned to Lebanon two weeks later and withdrew his resignation last week, while his government restated its non-intervention policy. Hezbollah, a heavily armed Shi'ite group that fights openly in Syria as an ally of Iran, serves in the power-sharing government with Hariri, a Sunni Muslim politician with deep business and political ties to Saudi Arabia. A commander in an alliance between Hezbollah, Iran and Russia, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said al-Khazali was accompanied by officers from Asaib Ahl al-Haq and visited the entire border with "occupied Palestine". The commander did not say when the visit took place. In the video, an unidentified commander, presumably from Hezbollah, gestures toward military outposts in northern Israel and explains to Khazali that they were hit by Hezbollah missiles in previous confrontations between the group and Israel. "We are now on the border separating southern Lebanon with occupied Palestine with our brothers in Hezbollah, and announce our full preparedness to stand united...against the Israeli occupier," Khazali says in the video. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in June that any future war waged by Israel against Syria or Lebanon could draw in fighters from countries including Iran and Iraq. Iran's Revolutionary Guards, who established Hezbollah in Lebanon in 1982, have mobilized Shi'ite militias from around the region in recent years. They have fought Islamic State in Iraq and helped President Bashar al-Assad in the war in Syria. (Reporting by Laila Bassam; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Peter Graff)
Jerusalem (AFP) - A Palestinian stabbed and seriously wounded an Israeli security guard in Jerusalem on Sunday in what police described as a "terrorist" attack amid unrest over the White House's Jerusalem declaration.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the guard being treated was in serious condition, while the assailant had been arrested following the attack at the Jerusalem central bus station.

In a post on Twitter, Rosenfeld described it as a "terrorist attack".

Medics said they evacuated a 25-year-old male to hospital with "stab wounds to his upper body", with the suspected assailant suffering a head wound, his condition unclear.

The assailant was identified by police as a 24-year-old Palestinian from the occupied West Bank.

The attack comes as new protests flared in the Middle East and elsewhere over US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital on Wednesday.

Two Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were killed in clashes on Friday and another two from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Palestinian enclave.

On Sunday, clashes broke out in Al-Arroub refugee camp in the south of the occupied West Bank, leaving one Palestinian wounded from rubber bullets, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Palestinian health officials say more than 1,100 people were wounded in Gaza, east Jerusalem and the West Bank from tear gas, rubber bullets, live fire and other means from Thursday to Saturday.
Tokyo (AFP) - Japan will hold a drill with the United States and South Korea this week to practise jointly detecting airborne missiles, officials said Sunday amid rising security threats from North Korea.

The announcement of the joint exercise, a sixth such drill since 2016, comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a ballistic missile which dropped into the sea inside Japan's exclusive economic zone in late November.

The drill will be held in waters near Japan on Monday and Tuesday, Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said as he visited a garrison in northern Japan.

It is aimed at "practising tracking an object and sharing information on it among the three countries," said a defence official who declined to be named.

"It will translate into a measure against ballistic missiles," the official said.

Tensions over the North's weapons programmes have soared this year, with Pyongyang carrying out its sixth nuclear test as well as a series of missile launches in defiance of multiple sets of UN sanctions.

The US State Department's special representative for North Korea policy will travel to Japan and Thailand this week for talks on efforts to build pressure against Pyongyang after its latest ballistic missile test.

"The United States looks forward to continuing its partnership with both these nations so that the DPRK will return to credible talks on denuclearisation," the department said in a statement.

A senior UN envoy warned Saturday there was a grave risk that a miscalculation could trigger conflict with North Korea as he urged Pyongyang to keep communication channels open after a rare visit to the seclusive state.

Jeffrey Feltman's trip to the North -- the first by such a high-ranking UN diplomat since 2010 -- also came after the United States and South Korea launched their biggest-ever joint air exercise.

North Korea reiterated its view that these manoeuvres were a provocation, accusing the drills of "revealing its intention to mount a surprise nuclear pre-emptive strike against the DPRK".
After a doctor prescribed a pain patch for a woman with arthritis, the patient started slurring her words. She put patches on her skin everywhere she hurt, her family discovered, not just in one place.

For a patient with epilepsy, a doctor changed a prescription from one, 1,000-milligram tablet twice a day to two 500-milligram tablets twice a day.

The patient kept taking one tablet twice a day, and subsequently had a seizure.

Drug labels can be confusing, especially for people who are elderly or not fully literate. Wisconsin Health Literacy is working with pharmacies to introduce new labels based on national guidelines that emphasize key information, clear instructions and readability.

Our goal is to improve the labels so theyre easier to understand and people are able to more effectively use their medications, said Steve Sparks, director of Wisconsin Health Literacy, part of Madison-based Wisconsin Literacy.

In a survey by the nonprofit this year of more than 700 patients, 88 percent said they have found drug labels difficult to understand. Nearly 23 percent said they have taken prescriptions incorrectly because of confusing labels.

Some of the patients joined health care providers in submitting stories like those involving the arthritis and epilepsy patients. Another anecdote: An elderly woman inadvertently took her husbands heart medicine because it was an oval white pill, just like her diabetes drug prescribed by the same doctor.

Medication mistakes can result in emergency room visits, hospital stays and even death, Sparks said. The more prescriptions people take, the more opportunity for error.

Through a pilot program started last year, Wisconsin Health Literacy has been introducing new labels at more than 60 pharmacies at UW Health, Hayat Pharmacy, Hometown Pharmacy, Forward Pharmacy and Fitchburg Family Pharmacy.

On old labels, the pharmacys name, address and phone number often were on top, followed by a prescription number or the doctors name.

The new labels, based on standards from U.S. Pharmacopoeia, emphasize the patients name, the drug name (brand and generic) and its strength. Large, bold print is suggested, in a familiar font  such as Roman or Arial.

Explicit instructions, using numerals and no abbreviations, are stressed. Instead of, Take two tabs twice daily, the new labels say, Take 2 tablets in the morning and 2 tablets in the evening.

Now, Wisconsin Health Literacy plans to expand the program to more pharmacies around the state, in part by compiling an implementation guide. The larger rollout is supported by a $446,000 grant awarded last month from the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

The same fund contributed $256,000 earlier, and the UW School of Medicine and Public Healths Wisconsin Partnership Program has given $50,000.

Switching to the new labels required some effort, but the process has gone well, said Ryan Bender, a pharmacist at Hometown Pharmacy in Rio.

The Rio location was one of the first of Hometown Pharmacys more than 40 stores to start using the new labels, in June.

The labels, larger than those previously used, and with more white space, seem to be well received by customers, Bender said.

Nobody has said, How come you changed your labels; I liked the old ones better, he said. Everyone kind of understood intuitively this was a change for the better.
A man suspected of setting off an improvised explosive device near New York Citys Port Authority Bus Terminal and Times Square on Monday has been identified by authorities as Akayed Ullah.

Four people sustained non-life-threatening injuries in the incident, which authorities are describing as an attempted terrorist attack.

Heres what we know about the suspect Akayed Ullah, who has been taken into custody.

The suspect lives in Brooklyn

Ullah, 27, lives in Brooklyn and might be of Bangladeshi descent, according to the Associated Press, which cited anonymous law enforcement officials.

Ullah used an improvised low-tech explosive devise attached to his body, law enforcement officers said at a press conference on Monday. They said Ullah intentionally detonated the device around 7:20 a.m. Monday.

The suspect has been taken into custody

Ullah was taken into custody Monday morning and transported to Bellevue Hospital, where he is being treated for burns to his hands and abdomen and lacerations on his body. The New York City Fire Department has said all injuries are non-life-threatening.

Update: A total of 4 injuries reported at the scene of an explosion at Port Authority. All injuries are non-life-threatening  FDNY (@FDNY) December 11, 2017

It appears the suspect acted alone

At this point in time, all we know of is one individual who, thank God, was unsuccessful in his aims. There are also no credible and specific threats against New York City at this time, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a press conference Monday morning.

Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that Ullah was inspired by ISIS but did not have direct contact with the group.
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) 

The Latest on President Donald Trump's visit to Mississippi for the opening of museums dedicated to the state's history and its role in the civil rights movement (all times local):

11:20 p.m.

Mississippi is the last state with a flag that includes the Confederate emblem.

And on Saturday, about 25 people, black and white, stood silently during the opening ceremony for two museums in Mississippi with Confederate battle flag stickers covering their mouths.

The flag protest was led by a local actress who said having the Confederate emblem on the flag is "insulting to the people they claim they're honoring" in the civil rights museum.

President Donald Trump spoke to a select audience at the museums but left before the public ceremony.

1:45 p.m.

During the opening ceremony for two museums in Mississippi, about 25 people, black and white, stood silently with Confederate battle flag stickers covering their mouths.

They were protesting that the emblem is still part of the Mississippi state flag.

President Donald Trump visited Saturday for the opening of the museums, dedicated to the state's history and its role in the civil rights movement, and spoke to a select audience. He left before the public ceremony.

The flag protest was led by Mississippi actress Aunjanue Ellis, who said having the Confederate emblem on the flag is "insulting to the people they claim they're honoring" in the civil rights museum.

Mississippi is the last state with a flag that includes the Confederate emblem. A bid to change the flag was defeated in a 2001 referendum.

---

12:00 p.m.

In paying tribute to civil rights activists in Mississippi, President Donald Trump says "we strive to be worthy of their sacrifice" and "pray for inspiration from their example."

He was speaking at the opening of two museums in Jackson, an event boycotted by some black leaders, including civil rights leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba also stayed away from Saturday's ceremonies, citing Trump's "pompous disregard" for the values embodied by the civil rights movement.

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Trump did not address the controversy in his remarks to assembled guests, but spoke of paying "solemn tribute to our heroes of the past" and dedicating ourselves to "building a future of freedom, equality, justice and peace."

Trump left before the public opening of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the adjacent Museum of Mississippi History.

___

11:30 a.m.

President Donald Trump has paid tribute to Mississippi's role in the civil rights movement at the opening of two new museums in Jackson, the capital.

Some black leaders  including civil rights leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis  are boycotting Saturday's event, saying Trump has sown racial division instead of racial harmony.

In his remarks to assembled guests, Trump said: "The civil rights museum records the oppression, cruelty and injustice inflicted on the African-American community, the fight to bring down Jim Crow and end segregation, to gain the right to vote and to achieve the sacred birthright of equality."

He said: "And it's big stuff. That's big stuff."

Trump left before the public opening of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the adjacent Museum of Mississippi History.

___

11:05 a.m.

About 50 protesters greeted President Donald Trump at the opening of museums in Jackson, Mississippi, dedicated to the state's history and its role in the civil rights movement.

Some black leaders  including civil rights leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis  are boycotting the event, saying Trump has sown racial division instead of racial harmony.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, the only statewide elected official who's a Democrat, declined an invitation to go inside the museums to meet Trump. Hood instead mingled with the public at the ceremony outside.

The national president of the NAACP and the mayor of Jackson also are not attending Saturday's opening. They said they can't share a stage with Trump in Mississippi because of his "pompous disregard" for the values embodied by the civil rights movement.

___

10:50 a.m.

President Donald Trump has arrived in Mississippi to help open a museum dedicated to the state's role in the civil rights movement.

Some black leaders  including civil rights leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis  are boycotting the event, saying Trump has sown racial division instead of racial harmony.

Lewis had been expected to be one of the main speakers, along with Myrlie Evers, the widow of assassinated Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers.

Medgar Evers' brother, Charles, who endorsed Trump, was among those who greeted him at the airport in Jackson on Saturday.

Trump plans to tour the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and make brief remarks to assembled guests, but will leave before the public opening of this museum and an adjacent museum on Mississippi history.
Beirut (AFP) - Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannons on Sunday at demonstrators near the US embassy as they protested Washington's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

An AFP correspondent in Awkar on the outskirts of the capital Beirut said several hundred pro-Palestinian demonstrators had gathered near the US embassy, located in the area.

They were blocked from reaching the complex by a metal gate sealing the road leading to the embassy, and security forces fired tear gas and water cannons to repel demonstrators who tried to open the gate by force.

An AFP photographer was lightly wounded in the chest when a member of the Lebanese security forces fired a rubber bullet at him.

He was among several people hurt in the violence, during which protesters also hurled rocks at the Lebanese forces blocking the way to the US embassy.

The police detained some demonstrators but it was not clear how many.

Protestors waving Palestinian and Lebanese flags, and sporting black-and-white checked keffiyeh scarves, chanted slogans against President Donald Trump, who on Wednesday recognised Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

A group of demonstrators set alight an effigy of the US president, whose decision has upended decades of American diplomacy and an international consensus to leave the status of Jerusalem to be resolved in negotiations.

"We're here to tell Trump his decision is meaningless. Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine," said Sylvia Ammoud, wearing the trademark keffiyeh headdress tied around her neck as a scarf.

"It isn't just a city, it's the struggle in which we grew up to build the Palestinian cause," she said.

"We, the people, today want to rise up and get our message across on this issue, because it's an issue that concerns our dignity and our history," said another protester, who gave his name as Khaled.

The demonstrators included members of Palestinian parties, as well as Lebanese Islamists and leftists.

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The head of Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, has called for a mass demonstration against Trump's decision on Monday in the group's stronghold in the southern Beirut suburbs.

"I am calling on men, women, young and old, the southern suburbs, Beirut and all those who wish to join in from across Lebanon," Nasrallah said, also inviting residents of Lebanon's 12 Palestinian refugee camps.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees live in Lebanon, including those who fled or were expelled from their homes after Israel's founding, as well as their descendants.

Israel occupied southern Lebanon for 22 years before withdrawing in 2000, but the two countries remain technically at war.

In 2006, Israel fought a devastating war against Hezbollah in Lebanon that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 120 Israelis, most of them soldiers.
One Illinois mom retired her familys Elf on the Shelf with a hilarious letter.

The elf is supposed to act as Santa Claus eyes and ears and is designed to be hidden in creative spots each day.

Christy Heins, however, took to Facebook to say shed grown tired of the work to hide the elf each day and came up with a funny way to end her having to do so - elf retirement.

I know that some people truly enjoy setting up elaborate scenes with their elf, but for me, cleaning up after 3 children and a dog is enough, Heins explained in her post. I forgot to move him more times than I can even count, and I cut it close a few times trying to sneakily move him after the kids were already awake.

So, yeah. This is happening!! George Elf has been our elf on the shelf for the past three years, but after a short... Posted by Christy Heins on Sunday, December 3, 2017

On Dec. 3, Heins posted to Facebook to showcase a letter she wrote to her two young daughters letting them know that their elf, George, was retiring

The note was printed on a From the Desk of Santa Claus letterhead, and was Heins way of keeping the Christmas magic alive for her kids.

The letter included Georges wish to be a real toy in their house that didnt have to go back and forth to the North Pole to report to Santa.

A few years ago, I had a great idea and wanted to try using scout elves to help me decide who is on the Nice List and who is on the Naughty List each year. George Elf and all the other scout elves have been a big help! Some scout elves LOVE their jobs and want to keep flying back and forth each night. But just like people, each elf is different. George Elf wanted more than anything to be played with like a real toy, the letter read.

Heins said she has nothing against the tradition but having the elf as a regular toy was easier for the family.

I hope Ive found a way (kind of a cheater way) to sort of keep it going, but take a little pressure off at the same time. I hope the girls will be as excited as I am! Heins wrote.

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By Tom Polansek

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Monsanto Co (MON.N) will give cash back to U.S. farmers who buy a weed killer that has been linked to widespread crop damage, offering an incentive to apply its product even as regulators in several U.S. states weigh restrictions on its use.

The incentive to use XtendiMax with VaporGrip, a herbicide based on a chemical known as dicamba, could refund farmers over half the sticker price of the product in 2018 if they spray it on soybeans Monsanto engineered to resist the weed killer, according to company data.

The United States faced an agricultural crisis this year caused by new formulations of dicamba-based herbicides, which farmers and weed experts say harmed crops because they evaporated and drifted away from where they were sprayed.

Monsanto says XtendiMax is safe when properly applied. The company is banking on the chemical and soybean seeds engineered to resist it, called Xtend, to dominate soybean production in the United States, the worlds second-largest exporter.

BASF SE (BASFn.DE) and DowDuPont (DWDP.N) also sell versions of dicamba-based herbicides.

Monsanto's cash-back offer comes as federal and state regulators are requiring training for farmers who plan to spray dicamba in 2018 and limiting when it can be used. Weed specialists say the restrictions make the chemical more costly and inconvenient to apply, but Monsanto's incentive could help convince farmers to use it anyway.

"We believe cash-back incentives for using XtendiMax with VaporGrip Technology better enable growers to use a management system that represents the next level of weed control," said Ryan Rubischko, Monsanto product manager.

XtendiMax costs about $11 per acre to buy, and Monsanto is offering an extra $6 per acre in cash back to farmers when they apply it on Xtend soybeans, rather than using another seed-and-chemical combination to control weeds.

The rebate means farmers can receive up to $11.50 per acre in cash back next year when they use XtendiMax along with other approved chemicals, such as one called Intact that aims to prevent drift and costs $2.40 per acre, according to Monsanto.

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The company, which launched a program offering incentives to use multiple herbicides in 2010, competes against rivals including Bayer AG (BAYGn.DE) to sell genetically modified soybean seeds and chemicals to farmers.

Bayer is selling its LibertyLink soybean brand, a main rival to Xtend, to BASF as part of a deal to acquire Monsanto for $63.5 billion.

Monsanto also faces increasing government oversight.

On Monday, Missouri said it would ban sprayings of XtendiMax and DowDuPont's product, called FeXapan, in 10 counties after June 1, 2018, and statewide after July 15, 2018. Last month, the state imposed the same restrictions on BASF's dicamba herbicide, Engenia.

North Dakota said it planned to prohibit the use of dicamba herbicides after June 30, 2018, and when temperatures top 85 degrees Fahrenheit in a bid to prevent the chemical from drifting away from where it is sprayed.

Arkansas is close to prohibiting dicamba sprayings after April 15, 2018, the tightest limits yet, while Minnesota is also considering restrictions.

The states are taking action after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency mandated special training for dicamba users for 2018 and required farmers to keep records proving they were complying with label instructions.

"Utilizing the technology, the cost will go up because of these changes," said Andrew Thostenson, a pesticide specialist for North Dakota State University.

U.S. farmers planted 90 million acres of soybeans this year, and about 4 percent showed signs of damage linked to dicamba, according to University of Missouri data. Despite that, Monsanto predicts farmers will double plantings of Xtend soybeans to about 40 million acres next year.

Farmers said its cash-back offer was designed to increase sales.

"I think they're just trying to buy more acres," Dan Henebry, an Illinois farmer who plans to grow Xtend soybeans next year, said about Monsanto.

(Reporting by Tom Polansek; Editing by Andrew Hay and Tom Brown)
Old alliances between North Korea and several African nations forged at the height of the Cold War will not be swept away easily.

While threats from the United States and UN sanctions have forced many governments on the continent to keep their distance from Pyongyang, the links are not yet confined to the past.

For watchers of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un's regime, the country's presence on the African continent is unmissable and the hermit nation continues to benefit from discrete but vital relations.

Statues and Stalinist-style palaces of questionable aesthetic value made by North Korean artists have sprung up in many cities including Dakar, Windhoek, Maputo, Harare and Kinshasa.

But cooperation between the regime and African governments goes much further than construction projects.

Experts estimate that economic ties between Africa and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) are worth around $200 million (85 million euros) annually.

Minerals and fishing top the league table of exports, closely followed by North Korea's most controversial output -- arms.

Despite sanctions levied by the UN in 2006 in response to its nuclear weapons programme, North Korea's military cooperation with its allies on the continent is strong.

- Military hardware -

"A number of countries appear to maintain close relationships with the DPRK," said Graham Neville, an analyst at the London-based international affairs think-tank Chatham House.

"More than half of the countries in Africa -- around 30 -- engage in some form of trade with the DPRK."

Arms sales, which are strictly prohibited by the terms of the sanctions, have drawn the ire of the international community.

UN experts have accused 11 African countries of seeking closer military ties with Kim Jong-Un's regime in a report published in September.

According to the document, North Korea has agreed to supply light weapons to Eritrea and Democratic Republic of Congo, surface-to-air missiles to Mozambique, modern missiles or radar systems to Tanzania and to train security forces in Angola and Uganda.

Story continues

The authors probed two North Korean companies active in Namibia -- Mansudae Overseas Project and Komid -- which constructed the new headquarters of Windhoek's spy agency, as well as a munitions factory.

Pyongang's largesse should come as no surprise. Since Africa's wars of liberation, North Korea has sought to befriend Marxist regimes on the continent.

"During the Cold War, North Korea gained a reputation for providing useful training for African militaries," said Samuel Ramani, an Oxford University specialist on the world's most reclusive nation.

In the most notorious case, Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe called in North Korea to train the infamous Fifth Brigade, which is accused of killing around 20,000 minority Ndebeles in the 1980s.

Kim Jong-Un's provocative run of missile tests and nuclear experiments have finally persuaded some of Pyongyang's African backers to step back.

Sudan has cut ties with the DPRK, while Uganda expelled North Korean military advisers and pledged to enforce the latest round of sanctions.

Tanzanian foreign minister Augustine Mahiga said recently that the country "had scaled down diplomatic relations to the minimum."

- 'Lack of a colonial past' -

Namibia has also vowed to scrap all of the contracts it signed with companies tied to Pyongyang.

"Even their nationals are sent back home. It's over," minister for the presidency Frans Kapofi told AFP.

And as many as 150 North Korean guest workers were recently asked to leave Angola, with officials insisting their contracts had expired.

"It doesn't mean we sever our ties with North Korea. It's an ally that has historically been with our country," said foreign minister Manuel Augusto.

A spokeswoman for Mozambique's government vowed to "work with the committee of (UN) experts set up to better understand any issues".

But in their recent report, the UN's experts found that it had "not yet provided a substantive response to this panel inquiry".

Mozambique is not alone, despite the mounting pressure from the United States, the European Union, Japan and South Korea.

China's reticence to definitively turn its back on its long-time ally appears to have sent conflicting signals to Africa's governments.

"China's unwillingness to implement UN sanctions provides a measure of protection for African countries," said Ramani, the Oxford academic.

North Korea is clearly a long way from losing all its major African allies.

"The DPRK's lack of a colonial past and their willingness to stand up to 'Western oppressors' is undoubtedly admired by some African governments," said Neville, the Chatham House analyst.

"Doing business with the DPRK could be attractive to some African countries because economic engagement is not conditional on governance and accountability reforms.

"This is especially true in terms of armaments and military equipment," he added.

pa-burs-gw/bgs/ecl/jta
Birmingham (United States) (AFP) - The US Senate race wrenching Alabama and testing the Republican Party's character neared its tumultuous conclusion Monday, with President Donald Trump urging loyalists to elect Roy Moore despite accusations he molested minors decades ago.

Voters in this traditionally conservative southern state will take to the polls Tuesday to pick their newest senator, to replace Jeff Sessions who was named US attorney general earlier this year.

"I need Alabama to go vote for Roy Moore," Trump said in a robocall to voters that began Sunday, declaring the candidate would help stop illegal immigration, rebuild a stronger military and protect pro-life values.

"But if Alabama elects liberal Democrat Doug Jones, all of our progress will be stopped full."

Until recently it had been unimaginable for a Republican to lose statewide election in Alabama, which Trump carried handily and which has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1992.

But Moore is unlike just about any Republican. Polls show he no longer enjoys the commanding advantage he held before the Washington Post published the first of multiple accusations by women who claim Moore sexually molested or pursued them when they were in their teens and he was a state attorney in his thirties.

Moore, now 70, denies all the allegations.

"I never molested anyone," Moore declared in a local interview published Sunday. "I don't know why they're saying it, but it's not true."

Moore has twice been elected chief justice of Alabama's Supreme Court, and twice dismissed from the post, first in 2003 for refusing an order to remove a statue of the Ten Commandments from the court house.

In 2016, he defied the US Supreme Court by refusing to apply its decision legalizing same-sex marriage.

Some in the Republican establishment have sought to distance themselves from Moore, and as a signal of the lack of enthusiasm, pro-Moore campaign signs outside residents' homes are seldom seen.

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But with Republicans clinging to a razor thin majority in the US Senate, Trump -- after weeks of stalling -- has given Moore his political blessing.

It's a pragmatic alliance between the president's economic populism and Moore's religious activism.

- Divided Republicans -

Stephen Bannon, the former White House strategist who proclaimed himself the guardian of the Trump revolution, will be appearing alongside Moore at a final rally Monday night.

For the Republican majority in Washington, the election is a loser in every way. Should Moore prevail, party leaders fear being soiled by association. Should he lose, their thin Senate majority of 52 out of 100 seats will shrink to 51, allowing Trump virtually no room for maneuver against hostile Democrats.

Across Alabama, which has not received this much political attention in decades, the Moore case dominates all conversation. The man is a political and social lightning rod.

"He is the type of figure that thrives on having conflict, that thrives on staking out his position, almost like a crusader type," Andrew Yeager, a WBHM local radio host, told AFP.

"The way you see the allegations depends a lot on what you think of Roy Moore."

Jones, the Democrat in the race, is a 63-year-old former federal prosecutor known for having convicted two Ku Klux Klan members for bombing a black church in Birmingham, killing four African-American girls.

He has increased his campaign events in the hopes of mobilizing his Democratic base which is largely black.

"I've been involved in politics for over 50 years, and I've seen it turn from Democrat to Republican" in Alabama, Jefferson County Democratic Party chairman Richard Mauk said.

"I never realized that we would have a chance like this."

Mauk, a lawyer, insists he knows many Republican professionals who will cross party lines and vote for Jones.

"But they are very, very quiet" about it, he muses, perhaps a recognition that Jones favors abortion rights, a position that goes against conservative dogma.

The Republican dilemma will lead some, like senior Alabama Senator Richard Shelby, to stop short of directly aiding Doug Jones.

Shelby, who voted early, said he wrote in the name of a third candidate on the ballot, as the law allows.

"I couldn't vote for Roy Moore," he told CNN. "But I wrote in a distinguished Republican name."
A family photo of jailed British mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her husband Richard Ratcliffe and their daughter Gabriella - PA

A British mother jailed in Iran hailed the light at the end of the tunnel on Sunday when a fresh trial was postponed after Boris Johnson met with the countrys president.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a charity worker who is serving a five-year sentence for allegedly plotting to topple the Iranian government, said she could see some light today after news of the postponement reached her.

She had been scheduled to face additional charges of spreading anti-government propaganda in court on Sunday. But a senior court official told Irans Fars news agency that no hearing would be held.

I ... declare that no court session has been held for Ms Nazanin Zaghari today, Moussa Qazanfarabadi, the Head of Tehrans Revolutionary Court said, the agency reported.

Following the news, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe released a statement of her own, saying: The court, the imprisonment emerged all of a sudden out of the blue, so I hope it can disappear out of the blue also  if there is enough will."

The mother-of-one described a feeling of cautious optimism after previous attempts to free her had failed.

This time, again it feels close, but I am not planning it, not setting a date for myself, she added.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffes husband said the 38-year old from Hampstead learned of the postponement only when she was not summoned into court  something he described as the first ripple of freedom.

She was not summoned as expected, and then she knew when she wasnt taken into court,  Richard Ratcliffe told The Telegraph. She is immensely relieved this morning. Like a weight has been lifted off.

Mr Johnson left Iran on Sunday morning after what the Foreign Office called forthright but worthwhile talks with Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president, over regional tensions, the Iranian nuclear deal, and bilateral issues including the fate of jailed British-Iranian dual nationals. He was expected to press for Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffes release on humanitarian grounds.

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Both spoke forthrightly about the obstacles in the relationship and agreed on the need to make progress in all areas, said a spokesman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson arrives for a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Tehran, Iran Credit: Ebrahim Noroozi /AP

The meeting with Mr Rouhani ended a two-day visit in which Mr Johnson also met Mohammad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, and Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Irans Atomic Energy Organisation. He also met with Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffes family on Saturday evening.

Mr Johnsons visit to Tehran, only the third by a British foreign secretary since 2003, follows a small thaw in relations since sanctions against Iran were lifted following a deal to restrict the countrys nuclear programme in 2016.

Iran has also expressed frustration that British banks have been reluctant to do business with Iran despite the lifting of sanctions when the nuclear agreement was signed in 2016.

Many UK banks fear exposure to additional US sanctions that remain in place. The impasse left the Iranian embassy in London unable to open a bank account for some months.

Other issues include repaying a 40-year old debt that Iran is seeking from the UK for an unfulfilled arms deal. The sum, around 400 million, dates back to before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, when the Shah of Iran paid for but never received tanks from the UK.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe timeline

However, the discussions have been overshadowed by British concerns about the fate of a number of dual citizens jailed in Iran. The most high profile is Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was arrested in March 2016 as she and her then-one-year-old daughter were about to board a flight back to the UK following a family visit.

In September 2016 she was sentenced to five years in Tehrans Evin prison for allegedly plotting against the Iranian government. Her husband and her employer, the Thompson Reuters Foundation, maintain that the charges against her are baseless.

Last month she was informed she could face fresh charges of spreading propaganda against the regime, which supporters said could add 16 years to her sentence. However, Mr Qazanfarabadi on Sunday denied that charges had been raised against her or that her sentence might be extended as a result.
Rome (AFP) - Sicily on Monday welcomed nearly 900 migrants rescued in Mediterranean waters off the coast of Libya in the past few days, with many expressing relief at having escaped the "Libyan hell".

More than 330 migrants rescued by Italian coast guard and other European vessels have already disembarked at Sicilian ports, Italian media reported.

Another hundred were en route to the western city of Trapani on Monday while 450, including a woman about to give birth, are due to arrive in Augusta by evening aboard the Aquarius, a boat operated by charity group SOS Mediterranee along with Doctors Without Borders.

"Testimonies gathered Sunday aboard the Aquarius reflect the extreme gravity of the situation in Libya for migrants and refugees, who lacking a safer alternative, risk their lives at sea to escape what they call the Libyan hell," said Francis Vallat, the SOS Mediterranee president in France.

"Today, the absolute priority is to rescue at sea those who continue to flee and to accompany them to a safe place where they will be protected and where their basic human rights will be respected".

Libya has long been a major transit hub for migrants trying to reach Europe.

More than 3,000 have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean in rickety boats, according to the International Organization for Migration. Others have fallen prey to serious abuse at the hands of traffickers and others.

Recent shocking footage by US news channel CNN appeared to show migrants being sold as slaves near Tripoli, sparking global outrage and promises from the African Union it would repatriate 20,000 distressed migrants in the next six weeks.

"I would rather die than return to prison," a 25-year-old from Cameroon said, according to SOS Mediterranean.

"In the cell they hit us, they tied our feet and hands, feet up, head down. Europeans would come visit, and the guards would tell us not to talk."

Nicola Stalla, relief coordinator for SOS Mediterranee, said weather conditions are also a concern for migrants, but what "they fear more than anything is be intercepted and sent back to the hell they came from in Libya".

The number of migrants and refugees who have arrived in Europe this year -- nearly 164,000 -- is less than half of last year's total of 348,000.

The flow has been stemmed by controversial deals between the EU, Turkey and Libya.
(WASHINGTON)  The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said Sunday that women who accuse someone of sexual misconduct deserve to be heard, even if it involves President Donald Trump.

I know that he was elected, but women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them, Nikki Haley said on CBS Face the Nation.

Trump, a Republican, won the White House last year despite the election season release of a 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he described grabbing womens private parts, followed by accusations by several women of aggressive sexual misconduct. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has since reiterated the White Houses position that the women who accused Trump of sexual harassment are lying.

On Sunday, Haley, who was the first female governor of South Carolina, praised the courage of women who have raised complaints of harassment in various industries, including government and Hollywood, saying they will bring a conscience to the situation.

Women who accuse anyone should be heard. They should be heard and they should be dealt with, and I think we heard them prior to the election, said Haley, a Republican. I think any woman who has felt violated or felt mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up.

Asked whether Trumps election settled the issue, Haley said it was for the people to decide.

The wave of allegations have brought down powerful figures, including the resignations last week of Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., and Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz.
In his Alabama appearance for Roy Moore, Steve Bannon turned in an intellectually and morally putrid performance even by his standards.

There is a partisan case for voting for Moore, which is simply that Republicans cant afford to lose a Senate seat and Moores failings must be ignored or rationalized away for the larger good of the party.

This is not an elevated line of reasoning and not obviously correct on its own terms. With Democrats throwing John Conyers and Al Franken overboard, Senate Republicans would be welcoming into their ranks a potent symbol of sexual malfeasance to be used against them.

Its a better argument, though, than the tawdry justifications offered up by Bannon.

He seems to misunderstand the nature of the deplorables he seeks to lead. Deplorable is supposed to be an unfair, disparaging term for people who believe reasonable but politically incorrect things. It shouldnt be a license for conduct that is truly deplorable.

As Democrats at long last begin to dump Bill Clinton, Bannon wants to adopt the ethics of the party of Clinton. In Alabama, he used that phrase redolent of the 1990s, the politics of personal destruction. Who is doing the destroying? Why the globalists, of course.

Its not clear why they would be so fixated on defeating Moore that theyd work behind the scenes to get a bunch of women who dont know each other to lie about him. Its a lot of effort to defeat a man who is arguing he should be elected to provide another vote for corporate tax cuts.

Bannon referred to a conspiracy against Donald Trump in how the Access Hollywood tape was brought to light, somewhat jocularly. But his mindset is deeply conspiratorial. Because there are so many forces arrayed against you  the globalists, the establishment, the media  you are freed of any moral responsibility or standards.

In fact, the mere mention of honor or integrity is a terrible provocation. Bannon launched a scurrilous attack on Mitt Romney because the former Republican presidential nominee used those terms in opposing Moore. Bannon shot back, in a truly perverse riff, that Moore has more honor in his pinkie than the entire Romney clan; per Bannon, Moore served in Vietnam and Romney didnt, and none of Romneys sons joined the military.

Obviously, if going to Vietnam and having kids who served in the military is the sole measure of honor, Trump fails the test, and John McCain passes it. This doesnt stop Bannon from considering Trump a hero and McCain a disgrace. But its not worth trying too hard to unpack Bannons spiel.

There is a huge element of play-acting here. Bannon waited to see which way the wind was blowing in Alabama. If Moore were still running consistently behind Democrat Doug Jones, Bannon wouldnt be holding a campaign rally for him and challenging Romney to come down to Alabama to prove his manhood.

The urgency to get the party to back Moore-type candidates isnt immediately apparent. If the point is just to hold Republican Senate seats, safer, more conventional Republicans are better suited to the task. If the point is just to support the Trump agenda, safer, more conventional candidates are as reliable, and perhaps more reliable than the likes of Moore, who opposed the Graham-Cassidy health care bill.

Part of the point has to be to elect candidates who have no standards for the sake of it. Bannon may be thinking ahead to a time when the Trump sex allegations become a live issue again or when a true scandal emerges from the Robert Mueller investigation. In this scenario, will there be anyone more naturally inclined to be dismissive of the accusers or other evidence than Judge Roy Moore?

Bannon may also believe that a GOP with a highly attuned ethical sense cant truly be the party of the working class. In which case, who is the one who has contempt for the rubes?
Alongside bottles of vodka, whisky and rum, marijuana will soon be stocked on the shelves of liquor stores in Nova Scotia, Canada.

The provincial government announced last week that the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), the provinces sole alcohol distributor, would be responsible for selling recreational marijuana in the province once Canada legalizes weed  a move expected in 2018.

Nova Scotias Minister of Justice Mark Furey said NSLC, a Crown corporation, would be selling pot in an as-yet unknown number of physical outlets and also online. The provinces current marijuana dispensaries will be rendered illegal, he added.

The NSLC has the experience and expertise to distribute and sell restricted products like alcohol and now cannabis in a socially responsible way, Furey told reporters on Thursday, according to the CBC. We believe the NSLC is best positioned to sell cannabis, keeping it out of the hands of young people and making it legally available in a safe, regulated way.

Nova Scotia sets legal age for cannabis use at 19, plans to sell through NSLC and online https://t.co/aKeJlpkgbT #NSPOLI  Jean Laroche (@larochecbc) December 7, 2017

Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government has left it up to Canadas 10 provinces to create their own policies and regulations governing the public consumption of legal weed.

In Nova Scotia, consumers will be allowed to have up to 30 grams of marijuana for personal consumption and to grow up to four plants per household. The legal age limit in the province for marijuana use will be 19.

Other Canadian provinces are reportedly mulling the option of selling weed in liquor stores. Proponents say that doing so could help restrict the sale of marijuana to people who are of legal age.

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The method has its critics, however, with opponents arguing that specialty stores will be able to offer better selection and expertise.

Some have also questioned whether having alcohol and marijuana so close together could increase the amount of each that people will buy.

Does it increase or decrease cannabis consumption and alcohol consumption to have the two together? asked Mark Haden, a public policy professor at the University of British Columbia School. He told Newsweek that it remained a debate with no evidence.

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We thought we loved Danielle Moss's gorgeous 1 bedroom Chicago apartment before and then The Everygirl co-founder sent us her home tour all gussied up for the holidays. DONE. Combining her modern and elegant black + white pied-a-terre with an abundance of garland, classic boxwood wreaths and a sparkling tree is a sure fire combo. Take the full tour captured by Emilia Jane below.

Kitchen and Breakfast Nook

dining table, custom top with vintage base | dining chair, West Elm | lighting, Rejuvenation | bench cushion, Loom Decor | window shade, Loom decor pillows, Susan Conor and RH | cutting board, Food 52 | silver tray, Elsie Green | dishes, West Elm | flatware, West Elm | napkins, Williams Sonoma | cake mold, Williams Sonoma | white pitcher, Target | gold measuring spoons, Williams Sonoma | gold bell, Target | art, Minted | gold tray, West Elm | hot chocolate, Williams Sonoma | peppermint snow, Williams Sonoma | marshmallows, Williams Sonoma | house mug topper, Williams Sonoma | black pitcher, Target

Living Room

sofas, Interior Define x The Everygirl Caitlin sofa (in narwahl velvet) | curtains, West Elm | pillows, Susan Connor, RH, Serena & Lily pom throw, Nordstrom | rug, Annie Selkes Dash and Albert | coffee Table, RH | chair and ottoman, Rove Concepts | side table, West Elm (old) | holiday candle, Nest | brass cheers object, West Elm | coasters, West Elm | lamps, vintage | smoke photograph, CB2 | media console, CB2 | art above bar, Artfully Walls | bar cart, Vintage | hurricane vases, Crate & Barrel | twinkle lights, CB2 | snow globe, similar | magnifying glass, similar feather tray, similar | santa ornament, Pottery Barn | tree skirt, similar | pom garland, Rejuvenation | ball ornaments, CB2 | dog bed, similar

Entryway

chandelier, Lamps Plus | frames, West Elm | cabinet, vintage | mirror, Anthropologie | art, Artfully Walls | bust, Vintage | rug, South Loop Loft | ribbon, Target | silver ball garland, CB2 | stockings, Williams-Sonoma

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Bedroom

bed, Restoration Hardware | pillows, Rejuvenation | nightstands, Kathy Kuo | lamps, Lulu & Georgia | bedding, Rejuvenation | basket, Serena and Lily | dresser, Meg Made | mirror, Candelabra | marble tray, Jayson Home | glass shadow box, West Elm | art, Josh Young Designs | curtain hardware, Rejuvenation | curtains, West Elm | light fixture, France and Son

Step inside my 1 bedroom Chicago condo for the holidays  all done really simply with lots of greenery and some twinkle lights. I love Christmas but have had so much going on with work and our wedding (which was in Paris 2 months ago)! I know how busy everyone is and how overwhelming decorating can be, so I wanted to do something others could actually recreate. I moved in just over a year ago and renovated the kitchen and bath with my now husband so this is our first Christmas together in our home as a married couple.

Photography: Emilia Jane Photography | Styling: Danielle Moss
Washington (AFP) - The Pentagon on Monday voiced skepticism about Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement that he had ordered the partial withdrawal of troops from Syria.

Putin visited the war-torn nation Monday and said a "significant part" of the Russian troop contingent in Syria is heading home after their mission had been largely completed.

But Pentagon spokesman Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway said such declarations were not necessarily reflected by action.

"Russian comments about removal of their forces do not often correspond with actual troop reductions, and do not affect US priorities in Syria," he said.

A US official told AFP that Putin was likely to carry out a "token withdrawal" of some aircraft, then follow up by demanding the United States pulls its forces out of Syria.

The US military last week said it would stay in Syria, where it is fighting the Islamic State group, as long as necessary to ensure the jihadists don't return.

The "coalition will continue to operate in Syria in support of local forces on the ground to complete the military defeat of ISIS and stabilize liberated territory, in turn allowing for displaced Syrians and refugees to return," Rankine-Galloway said.

Syria's conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests, but quickly spiraled into a bitter and complex civil war, with IS just one element.

The open-ended US commitment in Syria is likely to rile Russia, which since late 2015 has conducted a separate military campaign to prop up the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

The size of the Russian deployment in Syria is not known, but independent Russian military expert Pavel Felgenhauer has told AFP that up to 10,000 troops and private contractors could have taken part in the conflict.

The Pentagon later announced that the two principal US-backed forces that have been fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria met at the border between the two countries.

When it first began its push for a "caliphate", IS had almost unimpeded flow across the desert border, but Iraq is now strengthening its border posts to make sure remaining IS fighters can't move between countries.

The Syrian Democratic Forces and Iraqi Security Forces met at the border "in order to reaffirm their commitment to ensure that ISIS does not take root again," said another Pentagon spokesman, Colonel Rob Manning.
In a recent video shoot for Love magazine, Emily Ratajkowski slathered herself in spaghetti. That same week, Vogue Italia released photos from its Celebration Issue featuring Bella Hadid and Lily Aldridge holding up chickens and posing with big feasts.

Its lauded as editorial and chic, and people commented, This is fabulous! and My kind of dinner date!

In other words, people see the food featured alongside the thin models as simply props in a photo shoot, and perhaps something different and real. But what would happen if curvy or plus-size women modeled in the same ways? Would readers call them sexy and salivate at the thought of dining in their presence? History, and curvy women, say definitely not.

Plus-size model and mental health advocate Callie Thorpe not only sees the huge double standard, but has lived it. Just a photo of her breakfast once prompted someone to tell her, You shouldnt eat that. This is why you are unhealthy.

When slim women share images of themselves eating doughnuts and pizza, people think its fine (which by the way  there is no issue with women eating food in photos), she says. If a plus-size woman/fat woman were to do this, they would be accused of being unhealthy, greedy, gluttonous, and wasteful.

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Find joy in the little things, like getting whipped cream on your nose drinking really delicious hot chocolate  A post shared by Callie Thorpe (@calliethorpe) on Dec 5, 2017 at 10:16am PST

Not to mention, when a thinner woman posts a photo with or eating food, her health is rarely ever questioned, despite body size being an unreliable indicator of health.

Of course, women, thin or curvy, are shamed for other things when posing with food or not  Piers Morgan called Ratajkowski stupid and slut-shamed her for her sexy spaghetti shoot. But there is an inherent aversion to plus-size women with food, period.

The wait is over!#LOVEADVENT2017 is OUT! Link in bio @thelovemagazine @kegrand @sallylyndley @philpoynter A post shared by Emily Ratajkowski (@emrata) on Dec 3, 2017 at 6:32am PST

Anna Shillinglaw, a former model and founder of MiLK Management (an agency that promotes diversity, representing the top curve and plus-size models and influencers) would know.

There are still double standards when it comes to women and food in the media, and if a plus-size model slathered themselves in food in a sexy or provocative way, the reaction would absolutely be different, which is wrong, she tells Yahoo Lifestyle.

And when bigger women do pose with food, its often to fight back.

In 2016, Aerie Reals role model Iskra Lawrence posted an Instagram photo of herself in a huge pile of chips. The media went wild, calling her photo a clapback, which it was. But the hyped reaction proved the point that curvy women posing with food cant be just accepted. It cant stand on its own as just a photo of a girl with some chips  it has to serve a greater purpose.

The most ironic thing is, some of the shoots echo one of the earlier plus-size women-with-food defiers, French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld. She published an editorial of then-plus-size model Crystal Renn gorging on all kinds of dishes for the magazines shoot Festin, which translates to Banquet, seven years before their sister mags latest Celebration issue came out.

This whole fashion and food thing in new Vogue Italia is perhaps very much inspired by something Roitfeld did a few years ago. pic.twitter.com/wiDjzgoYYc  O.O. (@ndakogboya) December 5, 2017

So why does our society equate sexuality to food  and why cant it just let women of any size pose with whatever they want, food included? Amanda M. Czerniawski, PhD and author of Fashioning Fat: Inside Plus-Size Modeling, says food and thin bodies actually have a natural connection.

Food can have a very sensual quality, she says. Were more likely to accept that kind of imagery, [because] we have this obsession with trying to understand what they do with their bodies.

She says the problem people have with bigger bodies being able to express themselves with food similarly comes down to peoples own conditioned insecurities.

We have this perception that larger bodies are undisciplined and lazy, she explains. [Coupled with] obesity and fear of obesity  the news will show larger bodies  and the juxtaposition of larger bodies and fast food corroborates the anxiety and fear over that. When we see larger models and food, it intensities that anxiety.

There is hope though. Both Shillinglaw and Czerniawski have seen positive changes over the years. For instance, thin models were more accepted in less clothing when plus-size women werent. Czerniawski says now, theyve rejected the notion they have to cover their bodies, and the same is slowly happening with food. Until then, its about accepting that a model or woman, no matter her body size, has the right to pose with whatever she pleases, even if its a loads of chips or spaghetti.

[Food is] an intimate thing. But when you have a whole class of people who are stigmatized because of eating, its highly problematic, says Czerniawski. Maybe we should have models of all shapes and sizes eating together.

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Photo credit: Ralph Heimans/Buckingham Palace/PA Wire via Getty Images

From Country Living UK

Prince Philip's ancestry is being honoured in a new portrait released by Buckingham Palace on Monday.

Painted by Australian artist Ralph Heimans, the Duke of Edinburgh is shown in the Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle wearing the sash of the Order of the Elephant - Denmark's highest-ranking honour.

It highlights the duke's close links to the Nordic country. He was born a Prince of Denmark, as well of Greece, and his grandfather, George I of Greece, was a Danish prince born in Copenhagen. The duke's great grandfather Christian IX was king of Denmark from 1863 to 1906.

A new portrait of His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, painted in the year of his retirement from public engagements, has been released today. pic.twitter.com/HX733sCarR - The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) December 11, 2017

Heimans, who painted an official portrait of the Queen to mark her Diamond Jubilee in 2012, said of his work: "I feel very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to paint Prince Philip and hope the portrait does justice to his unique character," The Telegraph reports.

"Aesthetically, the natural light and heritage backdrop of the Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle provided a compelling mood. I hope people enjoy the work as much as I enjoyed producing it."

At the end of the Grand Corridor is the Tapestry Room where the duke's mother, Princess Alice, and maternal grandmother, Princess Victoria were born.

The painting will go on display at a retrospective exhibition of Heimans' art at the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle in Denmark next year. It's also expected to be shown in the UK during 2018.

The portrait has been unveiled four months after the Palace confirmed that the 96-year-old royal is stepping down from royal public duties.

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The decision was said to be "fully supported" by the Queen and after 70 years of royal service, many described the move as "well-deserved."

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U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore, left, and his Democratic opponent, Doug Jones. (Photos: Brynn Anderson/AP, Vasha Hunt/AL.com via AP)

On Monday morning, Emerson released its latest poll in the Alabama Senate special election, showing Republican Roy Moore ahead by 9 percentage points. Thats disappointing news if youre supporting Democrat Doug Jones, but you could take comfort in a Fox News poll also released Monday morning, this one projecting Jones to win by 10. Those polls are just the latest reason Tuesdays special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions is as difficult a race to predict as you will ever see. In the deep red state that hasnt had a competitive statewide contest in years, the polling apparatus are rusty. Election day is a Tuesday in December, two weeks before Christmas, so there are no precedents for projecting turnout. The race pits a former judge who has been accused of pedophilia against a former U.S. attorney who prosecuted members of the Ku Klux Klan, with a thin margin in the Senate potentially getting thinner if the Democrat can pull off a victory that would have seemed unthinkable a few months ago. Below are just a few of the factors that could tilt the results.

The basics

In 2016 Donald Trump won the state with 62 percent of the vote to Hillary Clintons 34 percent, a slight improvement for the GOP from 2008 and 2012 when Barack Obama lost 60-38 in consecutive elections. While Sessions ran unopposed in 2014 and won 97 percent of the vote, he took 63 and 58 percent of the vote in his 2008 and 2002 races. Sen. Richard Shelby, whos represented the state for three decades, hasnt won below 63 percent of a vote in a general election since initially winning the seat in 1986. (Shelby won his first two terms as a conservative Democrat, but switched affiliation to the GOP in 1994.)

Moore himself has been on the statewide ballot before. In 2000 he won the race to become chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court by 9 percentage points. (He was elected again in 2012 but was removed from the bench both times.) He twice ran for governor but failed to emerge from the Republican primary both times, earning 33 percent to the GOP incumbents 66 percent in 2006 and finishing fourth with 19 percent in 2010. Moore won the Republican primary runoff against Luther Strange, Sessionss appointed successor, with 54 percent.

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Prior to winning the Senate Democratic primary with 66.1 percent of the vote, Jones had not run for elected office.

The scandal

On Nov. 9, the Washington Post published a story in which a number of women said they either dated or were approached by Moore as teenagers when he was in his early 30s and serving as an assistant district attorney. Over the following days, more accusers stepped forward, with former colleagues saying Moores affinity for young girls was well-known and that a local mall had allegedly banned him due to his reputation for bothering the teenage girls there. On Friday one of the accusers admitted she had added the location and date to a yearbook inscription she claimed to be Moores, which was incorrectly reported by some outlets as an admission she had forged the entire thing. Some of Moores supporters have said that Democratic billionaire George Soros is behind all of the allegations, although there is no evidence to support that claim.

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) holds up pictures of women whove accused U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore of sexual misconduct, while questioning U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions during a House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on Capitol Hill on Nov. 14. (Photo: Aaron P. Bernstein/Reuters)

Moore  who is known for saying that Muslims shouldnt be seated in Congress and that homosexuality should be illegal  said in September that America was great when there was slavery because our country had a direction.

The GOP candidate seems to be counting on voters to have minimal interest in the issues, as he refuses to discuss them with either his opponent or media outlets. Moore has refused to debate Jones, citing his opponents position on transgender rights. Hes also denied interview requests, including one from WHNT-TV in Huntsville in which he was offered an advance look at all the questions focused specifically on policy. Campaign spokespeople have made the rounds on cable news, but the results have not been ideal. Moore has also mostly disappeared from the campaign trail, with limited events compared to Joness packed schedule.

The allegations have also cost Moore the endorsement of Shelby, the dean of Alabamas congressional delegation. Appearing on CNN Sunday, the six-term senator said, Id rather see the Republican win, but I hope that Republican would be a write-in. I couldnt vote for Roy Moore. I didnt vote for Roy Moore.

The state of Alabama deserves better, Shelby said.

The underdog

Jones made his reputation as a U.S. attorney, including the high-profile and successful prosecution of two Klan members decades after the notorious 1963 Birmingham church bombing that killed four girls. Hes been a successful fundraiser, outgaining Moore by a considerable amount and blanketing the airwaves early with ads. Jones is likely as good a candidate as the Democrats could have nominated, but his pro-abortion-rights position has likely capped his support among Alabamas large white evangelical population.

The polls

Considering Alabama hasnt had a competitive statewide race since 2002, it is tough to trust the polling, particularly when its difficult to guess what kind of electorate will turn out in a special election. SurveyMonkey published a poll last week explaining that depending on which likely voter modeling youd like to implement, you could coax a result that was anything from Jones favored by 9 points to Moore favored by 10.

Moore was averaging a 6-point lead in the weeks leading up to the first accusations, with the race tightening in their immediate aftermath. There was a period in late November when Jones became the favorite, but nearly every one of the latest polls show Moore in the lead. However, as FiveThirtyEight pointed out last week, Senate polls are generally unreliable. Of the 2,075 Senate polls in the FiveThirtyEight database taken within 21 days of an election, the average error has been 5.1 percentage points, meaning that nearly all of the recent polls could be wrong in either direction.

Sen. Cory Booker raises the arm of Doug Jones while speaking at Joness campaign headquarters in Birmingham, Ala., on Dec. 10. (Photo: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)

The Alabama secretary of state told NBC News that he expects turnout to be at least 25 percent after a large uptick in absentee ballot requests. Another factor in turnout is that Alabama is considered one of the toughest states in the country in which to vote. It was a suit brought by an Alabama county that led to the Supreme Court decision that has handicapped enforcement of the Voting Rights Act. Jones has been courting the black vote. African-Americans make up 26 percent of the states population, and he will likely need a turnout of at least 27 percent among them to compete. He campaigned over the weekend with high-profile black Democrats including Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick. Jones has also had the support of Rep. Terri Sewell, an African-American who is the only Alabama Democrat in Congress. Rep. John Lewis, the civil rights icon and congressman from Georgia, endorsed Jones in August.

The Trump effect

The White House held off on endorsing Moore in the aftermath of the allegations, but after the former judge refused to drop out, Trump threw his support behind him in late November. (Trump has been accused by over a dozen women of sexual misconduct, but the official White House position is they are all lying.) While Trump hasnt officially campaigned for Moore, he held a rally Friday night in Pensacola, Fla., which is near the Alabama border and shares a media market with the southern parts of the state. During his address, the president said, Get out and vote for Roy Moore, which comes in addition to a series of tweets attacking Jones and supporting the Republican candidate.

President Trump speaks on Friday at a campaign-style rally in Pensacola, Fla. The White House has said the rally is a campaign event for Trump, but the location near the Alabama border and with television markets in the state stoked speculation that the rally was a backdoor way for the president to give Moores campaign a boost without actually setting foot in the state. (Photo: Susan Walsh/AP)

The president remains popular in the Yellowhammer State, with polling September showing his approval-disapproval margin at +23. While this is down from the +36 rating he enjoyed in January, Alabamas 59.1 percent approval rating in that poll was third-highest in the nation, behind only Wyoming and West Virginia. But Trump was a strong endorser of Strange in the primary  although he attempted to scrub the internet of his positive tweets after Moore won  and Moore still won comfortably.

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Protesters clashed with police outside the US embassy in Lebanon on Sunday amid an on-going fall-out from Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Demonstrations outside the embassy in Beirut grew violent with some protesters throwing stones and burning US and Israeli flags as Lebanese security forces fired tear gas and water cannon.

Lebanons Shiite group Hezbollah has reacted strongly to the US decision on Israel, backing calls for a new Palestinian uprising against Israel.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah also called for a protest against the decision in the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut on Monday.

It followed comments from a high-ranking Israeli politician who said that Arabs who violently protested President Trump's decision are "not part of us" and called for a boycott of their businesses.

Protesters are seen near the U.S. embassy in Awkar, in Beirut Credit: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

The statements by defence minister Avigdor Lieberman, made Sunday morning on Israel's Army Radio, are part of an ongoing wave of reverberations following Mr Trumps contentious Wednesday announcement.

Mr Lieberman today called on Jewish Israelis to no longer visit the Arab villages of Wadi Ara and to cease buying any products sold there.

A group of demonstrators gather near the police barricades to enter US embassy in Beirut Credit: Furkan Guldemir/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Mr Lieberman's comments may serve to deepen the divide between Israels Jewish and Arab communities at a time when the few strands holding them and the two-state solution together have never been more fragile.

Israels prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu took a similarly offensive tack on Sunday, saying he was ready to stand up to any European critics on the matter of Jerusalem.

Protesters are sprayed with water near the U.S. embassy in Awkar east of Beirut Credit: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

Departing for a diplomatic mission to Paris, which vocally protested Mr Trumps declaration, Mr Netanyahu said he "will present Israel's truth without fear and with head held high".

In a separate development, a military spokesman said Sunday that Israels military has destroyed a Hamas tunnel burrowed from Gaza hundreds of yards into Israel.

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It is the second Gaza tunnel destroyed in six weeks by the Israeli military and comes amid seething tensions over Donald Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Jerusalem - Israel

The tunnel began in Khan Younis in the central Gaza strip and snaked underground across the border into Israel, said Lt Col. Jonathan Conricus, a spokesman for the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).

He said that no Palestinians had been killed in the destruction of the tunnel, as far as the IDF was aware. At least 12 Palestinian militants from both Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group were killed when the last tunnel was destroyed in October.

Lt Col Conricus said the tunnel destruction was not part of the same situation as the unrest that followed that followed Mr Trumps announcement and the two were separate events.

About | The two-state solution

The discovery of the tunnel was made possible by a new system which was significantly enhancing Israels ability to detect tunnels from the Gaza strip, he said.

Im cautious of saying that were over the threat but this is a significant step forward improving security against terror tunnels emanating from Gaza, he said.

Israel has invested heavily in technologies to detect the underground tunnels but has kept its systems secret.

He said the IDF does not seek to escalate the situation with Hamas. Two Hamas fighters were killed by an Israeli airstrike on Saturday launched in response to rockets fired from Gaza. Two other Palestinian men were shot dead during clashes in Gaza on Friday.

We are defending Israeli sovereignty and will continue to do so, Lt Col Conricus said.

He said the tunnel was very substantial and communications systems, air vents, electricity and reinforced concrete.
In retirement Doug Staller found a new job in a completely different field.

After working at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge for the past seven years, Staller found himself as the executive director of Tomahs Neighbor for Neighbor Food Pantry in February.

He was just looking for something to do part-time in retirement, Staller said, and someone mentioned an opening at the food pantry.

Staller said it sounded like a good match and something he would enjoy doing.

It wasnt a 40 hours a week job ... it had some grant writing and things like that, keeping the building up and running ... and I enjoy working with people, he said. I applied and was fortunate enough to be selected for the job.

A native of Reading, Pennsylvania, Staller graduated from Tulpehocken High School in 1976 and attended the University of Wyoming, where he majored in biology.

Following college graduation, Staller began working for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, which moved him, wife Marge and their son across the country to places such as Texas, the Dakotas, Hawaii, Oregon and more.

In 2010 Staller took the position as manager of the NNWR after he and his family made the nine-day drive from Alaska to the Tomah area.

Staller has now worked at Neighbor for Neighbor for almost a year. He said his time at the pantry has gone quickly. He said its an enjoyable and rewarding job.

Its fun, he said. Its not a high-stress job, which is kind of what I was looking for in retirement. I work, but I still have a couple days a week to go fishing and stuff like that.

The people he works with make it enjoyable, he said.

I like the people I work with, theyre the best, he said. Theyre good people to work with. They work hard and are very focused, and I work for a good board of directors. I learned a long time ago that who you work for is probably one of the most important things about a job. Working for good folks is pretty important, and Im having fun.

In the 10 months Staller has been at the pantry, its the generosity of the community that has most caught his attention.

Im continually impressed with how generous of a community this is  people with their resources and their time, he said. People come, and we have a great group of volunteers here who are very faithful in supporting us, and we have businesses supporting us.

Staller hopes to help the pantry make an impact on the local level and across the region.

We can have a local impact, but we can have a ripple effect, too, he said. We have a lot of potential with the amount of food that goes through this place to affect people in a lot of different areas. ... So lets just go out to other pantries and continue to send excess food that were not distributing to our clients to other pantries, where it can be used and make more contacts with more pantries. We have a group of five or six that were working with now; we probably could support a couple more there.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan waves as he exits a mosque following Friday prayers in the city of Komotini, Greece on 8 December 2017: REUTERS

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called the US a "partner in bloodshed" over President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel .

"With their decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed," Mr Erdogan said at an event in Ankara on Monday.

"The statement by President Trump does not bind us, nor does it bind Jerusalem."

Mr Trump declared that the US would break with decades of established foreign policy and international law last week by recognising Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and relocating its embassy there from Tel Aviv.

While welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, many other world leaders, including US allies such as Turkey, have expressed concern that the controversial move could spark renewed violence in the region and wider Muslim world.

Protests have been held across the globe and four Palestinians killed in violent clashes with Israeli security forces in the West Bank and Gaza.

Israel annexed east Jerusalem in 1967 in a move that has never been recognised internationally. Both Israeli and the Palestinians claim it as their capital.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Friday it would still be up to the Israelis and Palestinians to hammer out all other issues surrounding the city in future talks.

A meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) later this week should prove a "turning point" in the crisis, Mr Erdogan added.

The firebrand Turkish leader has been critical of both the US and Israel since last week's announcement.

During a rally in the Turkish city of Sivas on Sunday he called Israel a "child-murderer state".

"We will not abandon [Jerusalem] to an occupier state," he added.

Mr Netanyahu responded that he would not be lectured on morality by a man who "bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran go around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people".

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The Israeli leader is currently in Brussels for talks with EU foreign leaders. He is urging EU member states to follow the US' lead in recognising Jerusalem as Israeli.

On his arrival on Monday he told reporters that Mr Trump's move made peace in the Middle East possible "because recognising reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace".

Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to arrive in Turkey later on Monday for talks on cooperation and the increasing tensions in the Middle East.

He met with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo - another key US ally - earlier in the day.
President Donald Trump is now actively campaigning for Roy Moore, the U.S. Senate candidate from Alabama who stands accused of multiple instances of sexual misconduct, some involving teenagers.

Politico reports that first daughter Ivanka Trumps public criticism of Moore is one of the factors that pushed the president toward going all in.

The publication also notes the bevy of White House aides and advisers, as well as the initial Moore opposition voiced by key Republicans, further fueled Trumps decision to give the candidate his full support.

While anti-Moore sentiments from many White House staffers and GOP politicians have ranged from nonexistent to irresolute, Ivanka Trumps rebuke of the candidate was quite forceful.

Theres a special place in hell for people who prey on children, she told the Associated Press. Ive yet to see a valid explanation and I have no reason to doubt the victims accounts.

President Trump has, according to Politico, privately questioned the veracity of Moores accusers, questioning why they waited until now to come forward.

In public, Trump has made his push for the candidate one largely based on simple Senate math and a need for Republicans to preserve their slim majority.

He used that reasoning in a December 8 push for Moore.

LAST thing the Make America Great Again Agenda needs is a Liberal Democrat in Senate where we have so little margin for victory already, the president tweeted. The Pelosi/Schumer Puppet Jones would vote against us 100% of the time. Hes bad on Crime, Life, Border, Vets, Guns & Military. VOTE ROY MOORE!
Taxpayer funds to the tune of $220,000 were used to settle a lawsuit charging Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) with sexual harassment, Roll Call has reported.

Hastings was accused of touching, making unwanted sexual advances and threatening the job of a female staffer on a congressional international human rights commission he chaired, according to documents obtained by Roll Call.

Hastings called the accusations against him ludicrous and told Roll Call that he had no knowledge of the 2014 settlement with staffer Winsome Packer, which he said was handled by the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment. Funds were paid out by the Treasury Department.

Hastings told Roll Call he was outraged that the money was needlessly paid to Ms. Packer.

Its the second reported instance of taxpayer money being being used to settle a sexual harassment claim against a congressman. Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) used $84,000 in taxpayer money to settle a sexual harassment claim brought by his former spokeswoman in 2014, The New York Times reported. The funds reportedly came from an Office of Compliance account.

House Administration Committee Chairman Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) told GOP lawmakers that there was only a single case of those particular funds being used to settle a sex harassment suit. The House Committee on Ethics voted Thursday to investigate Farenthold over the payout.

Its not clear why Hastings settlement was not included in a record of such payouts over the last five years released in November by the Office of Compliance. The Farenthold payment was included. Its possible that funds from another taxpayer source were used in the Hastings case.

Rep. Mia Love (R-Utah) has called for Farenthold to resign. I dont think he thinks hes done anything wrong, Love told CNN on Thursday. But the fact is, someone was paid off. Its taxpayer dollars that [were] used. This is about people taking responsibility for what they do and changing the culture in Washington.

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Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) also said in a statement that Farenthold should step aside and reimburse the taxpayer money. On Friday, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) also called for Farentholds resignation.

Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) have resigned in the wake of sexual harassment accustions. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) also announced he will be resigning in the coming weeks.

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
The Republicans are already pivoting from tax cuts to the debt, claiming that the next task is to rein in spending. The left should say: not so fast



This is a bill that passed over and against the opposition of some powerful lobbies, including powerful Republican lobbies . Photograph: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Taxes are the thunder of world history, wrote Joseph Schumpeter. The spirit of a people  is written in its fiscal history.



Last Saturday, Republicans in the US Senate joined their comrades in the House to write a new chapter in Americas fiscal history.

Or did they?



1. This bill is a Republican dream come true



Critics of the tax cuts  on the left and the right  see it as a break with the conservative past, a sign that todays Republican party has been captured by mad dogs and rubes.

But look at these names all signing a group letter in favor of the Republican tax cuts: Robert Barro, Michael Boskin, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Glenn Hubbard, Lawrence Lindsey, George Schultz, and others. Its a whos who of the Nixon, Reagan, Bush and Bush administrations  larded and laced with Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, and Stanford.

One of the Republicans most notorious cuts  reducing or eliminating inheritance taxes on the rich  elicited this defense from Republican senator Charles Grassley of Iowa:

I think not having the estate tax recognizes the people that are investing, as opposed to those that are just spending every darn penny they have, whether its on booze or women or movies.

It sounds crude, just the sort of impolitic thing todays rabid Republican  as opposed to yesterdays genteel conservative  would say.

Till you remember that it was libertarian guru Ludwig von Mises (that von was there for a reason) who told Ayn Rand, inspiration to Paul Ryan and other conservatives:

You have the courage to tell the masses what no politician told them: you are inferior and all the improvements in your conditions which you simply take for granted you owe to the effort of men who are better than you.

2. Powerful lobbies werent able to stop it



If theres a silver lining in the Republican victory on taxes, its this: this is a bill that passed over and against the opposition of some powerful lobbies.

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As Matt Yglesias writes, the working assumption of the healthcare bill Barack Obama and the Democrats passed in 2010 was that you couldnt get legislation through Congress without the buy-in of major lobbies.



Maybe thats no longer the case?

3. It puts deficit hawks in a tough spot



For the last 40 years, Republicans  and their Democratic enablers  have managed to stop government spending by screaming debt, deficit, and debt. But as David Dayen points out, the tax bill may have taken that weapon away from them.



The bill combines $6tn in tax cuts, mostly to the rich, and $4.5tn in tax increases. Hence, the overall cut of $1.5tn. The cuts are deeply unpopular. When the left starts pushing for good things like single-payer or free college, itll have a great argument for how to pay for them: undo most of the Republican tax cuts.

Conversely, some of the Republican tax increases  reducing deductions on home mortgages, for example  are good. Most of those deductions go to the upper middle class. For a long time, they were considered politically untouchable. But the Republicans have shown theyre not. And theres no reason to undo them. Thats more revenue for social spending.

4. It poses a risk  and an opportunity  for Democrats



As incoherent as the Republican party is, when it comes to taxes, theyre a party, willing to use their smaller grip on power (relative to Obama and the Democrats in 2010) to pursue their maximalist plans. Im not convinced its not going to blow up in their face. Even so, there may be a lesson here for how a party can get things done.

A big risk for the left is if it responds to these cuts by screaming about the debt. If Democrats do that, were finished.

If the left says, instead, reverse the cuts, keep some of the increases, and use that money for health care, free college, public transportation, and jobs, weve got a new politics, one that breaks with the austerity that Democrats from Carter to Obama have peddled.

The Republicans are already pivoting from tax cuts to the debt, claiming that the next task is to rein in spending. The task of the left is to say: not so fast. The Republicans have shown us the money is there. It should be spent, not on the debt but on pressing social needs.
Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age has apologized for kicking a photographer and sending her to the hospital on Saturday night.

Thanks to joshhommeI now get to spend my night in the ER, Chelsea Lauren, a photographer for Shutterstock who was covering the bands performance in the L.A. area, wrote on Twitter. Seriously, WHO DOES THAT?!?

Lauren also wrote on Instagram that she was suffering from a bruised eyebrow, sore neck and nausea.

I was where I was allowed to be, I was not breaking any rules. I was simply trying to do my job, she wrote.

Lauren was covering the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas concert in Inglewood and told Variety she was pretty excited when Homme walked toward her as she had never photographed his band before.

The next thing I knowhis foot connects with my camera and my camera connects with my face, really hard, she said, adding:

He looked straight at me, swung his leg back pretty hard and full-blown kicked me in the face. He continued performing. I was startled, I kind of stopped looking at him. I just got down and was holding my face because it hurt so badly.

Lauren went to the press room, then returned to the area in front of the stage to continue photographing the event before seeking treatment for her injuries. She told Variety she was planning to file a police report.

Homme initially released a written statement saying he was in a state of being lost in performance, kicking equipment on stage and didnt notice he had hit the photographer. However, Hommes sincere apology was roundly panned on social media. Chef Anthony Bourdain, who is friends with Homme, wrote:

Waking up in Bhutan to the Josh Homme@QOTSAshit and still in the WTF!!!??!! Phase. Senseless. And a weak ass apology.  Anthony Bourdain (@Bourdain)December 11, 2017

Homme released a video statement late Sunday apologizing again:

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Id just like to apologize to Chelsea Lauren. I dont have any excuse or reason to justify what I did. I was a total dick, and Im truly sorry, and I hope youre okay. I made a lot of mistakes in my life and last night was definitely one of them and I apologize for that to you. I want to be a good man but I think last night I definitely failed that.

Homme apologized to his family, the rest of the band and his friends as well, and said he will have to figure out some stuff.

Lauren received support on social media from other musicians as well as fans of the band.

Thank you to the#QOTSAfanbase for being a solid group of people overall and standing up for what's right regardless of your fandom. It is not falling on deaf ears and I really appreciate every message.  Seriously, thank you.  Chelsea Lauren (@ChelseaLaurenLA)December 10, 2017

Lauren also wrote on Instagram that before Homme took the stage, she actually tried to help prevent a possible injury to the band.

The irony is someone had thrown an ice cube on to the very slick catwalk before the QOTSA set, she wrote. I was afraid that one of the band members might slip and hurt themselves so, when the lights went dark, I used my arm to wipe down the runway so nobody would hurt themselves.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Moore has denied the allegations against him: AP Photo/Brynn Anderson

With less than 24 hours until the special senate election between Roy Moore and Doug Jones, voices are being raised in support of and opposition to the Republican candidate who has been accused by multiple women of sexual assault when they were teenagers.

It is an election that has divided the Republican Party, has seen the political comeback of Barack Obama and has shone a national spotlight on the views and attitudes of people towards women who accuse men of abusing them and towards their alleged perpetrators.

Polls show the Republican leading by single digits, but experts and pollsters appear to have reached a consensus: that the results of a special election two weeks before Christmas are anyone's guess.

Why does the White House support Roy Moore?

After weeks of dithering about whether the White House should officially endorse Roy Moore for the Senate following allegations of child molestation, Donald Trump travelled to a rally within 20 miles of the Alabama border and called on crowds to vote for the Republican.

The Presidents rallying cry in Pensacola, Florida  So get out and vote for Roy Moore  marked an end to the analysis of vague comments from the likes of Kellyanne Conway and Mitch McConnell, who argued that Mr Moores opponent was weak on crime and immigration.

Ivanka Trump said there was a special place in hell for people who abused children, but as the race to the Senate between Mr Moore and his opponent Doug Jones appeared increasingly tight, all caution was thrown to the wind. Mr Moore has received full financial backing from the Republican National Convention.

High-profile support has refuelled Mr Moores campaign. With the media & Washington elite doing everything they can to stop us, we need all hands on deck! tweeted Mr Moore, adding that Mr Trump was the best supporter.

Here's where Alabama stands with days to go: pic.twitter.com/FgBSQYN9pY  FiveThirtyEight (@FiveThirtyEight) December 10, 2017

Former President Barack Obama most recently called for voters to reject the Republican, without explicitly mentioning his name.

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This one's serious, he said in a pre-recorded message to target black voters. You can't sit it out.

What is at stake in the election?

If Doug Jones wins, it would be the first time the state has sent a Democratic senator to Washington DC in almost two decades. A Democrat victory would also stretch the already thin majority of Republicans in the state and make it more difficult for the Conservatives to push through legislation.

If Moore wins, it will highlight the success of gradual gerrymandering on the part of the Republican Party and the unwavering loyalty of the Republican National Convention and its base  whatever the cost.

Who is Roy Moore?

The former Alabama Supreme Court judge and district attorney in Etowah County has built up strong support from his conservative base over decades.

He is a Christian, and much of his policy appeared to be rooted in his faith, including establishing a Ten Commandments monument at the Alabama courthouse. He has also opposed measures which would advance gay rights. In 2002, he denied a mother custody of her children because she was dating another woman  while the father of the children was allegedly abusing them. He declared being gay was an inherent evil and makes for an unfit parent.

Before the allegations became national news, he had little profile in the US. Most recently it was revealed he advocated scrapping constitutional amendments after the Tenth Amendment to eliminate many problems in the structuring of the US government.

What are the allegations against him?

The Washington Post recounted allegations from a woman who said Mr Moore asked her for her phone number when she was 14 years old, and took her a few days later to his house in the woods several times, during which he allegedly groped her. There were three other on-the-record allegations against Mr Moore  the women said they were teenagers when he pursued them in his 30s.

After the story ran, another five women came forward. There are now eight on-the-record allegations.

Mr Moore has denied the allegations, saying that he has never engaged in sexual misconduct.

As a father of a daughter and a grandfather of five granddaughters, I condemn the actions of any man who engages in sexual misconduct not just against minors but against any woman, he said.

What happened in the Republican primary?

Mr Moore won the primary against Senator Luther Strange, who had backing from the President. Mr Moore had the support of the Presidents former chief strategist, Steve Bannon.

During a rally in September, Mr Moore was asked by a black member of the audience when he last thought America was great. Mr Moore replied: I think it was great at the time when families were united  even though we had slavery  they cared for one another. Our families were strong, our country had a direction.

Do all Republicans support Mr Moore?

No. Many Republican senators and commentators have called Mr Moores accusers credible and some have even discussed expelling Mr Moore should he win.

Republican Senator Richard Shelby told CNN: I couldnt vote for Roy Moore. I didnt vote for Roy Moore, adding his state deserves better.

Arizona Republican Jeff Flake wrote a check to Doug Jones, and Nebraska RNC committeewoman Joyce Simmons resigned over the committee's support for Mr Moore.

Amy Siskind, founder of The New Agenda, tweeted: As bad as the paedophilia allegations are against Roy Moore, can we also not lose sight of his slavery comments, his views on Jews and gays. That this man can be a viable candidate for senate, AND have the backing not only of Trump but the RNC, is a stain on our great country.

After Mr Trumps support failed to get Luther Strange through the primary, it remains to be seen how influential his backing of Mr Moore will be.
VIROQUA  Winnifred I. Stigen, 90, of Viroqua died Friday, Dec. 8, 2017.

She was born Jan. 19, 1927, in Westby, the only child of Oscar and Ruby (Lee) Stigen. Winnie graduated from Viroqua High School in 1945. She worked as a nurses aide at La Crosse Lutheran Hospital before attending school in Minneapolis. She first completed a laboratory technician course and then went on to graduate as a registered nurse from Northwestern Hospital in 1953. Winnie worked at Vernon Memorial Hospital for 32 years, retiring in 1986. She moved to Maplewood Terrace Assisted Living, before moving to Bethel Home in 2009. Winnie was proud of her Norwegian heritage.

Winnie is survived by her Bethel Home family and many friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents and several aunts and uncles.

Funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 12, at the Vosseteig-Larson Funeral Home, 123 W. Decker, Hwy. 56, in Viroqua. Pastor Yvonne Marshall will officiate with burial to follow in the Coon Prairie Cemetery. Friends may call from noon till the time of service at 1 p.m.

In lieu of plants or flowers, memorials may be given to the Bethel Home or Good Shepherd Lutheran Church.

Online Condolences may be offered at www.VossFH.com.
Photo: Getty Images

Some California sanitation workers are being heralded as heroes, after recovering a bag full of jewelry worth $10,000 that was mistakenly thrown away.

The trouble started on the morning of Nov. 27, in the shipping department of jewelry maker Holly Yashi in Northern California. An employee, Jim Gridley, saw a large black contractor bag in a corner of the shipping department. Mistaking it for trash, he threw it in the companys dumpster.

Only later did he realize the bag was full of merchandise meant to be shipped out on Christmas order; the shipping staff had run out of mailbags, and so had used the sturdy contractor bag instead. But it wasnt only Gridley who had made a mistake. The bag, which was originally supposed to have shipped out, was left behind after being mistaken for garbage.

We kinda went into panic mode, operations manager Bob Pabst told the Mad River Union newspaper. The company immediately called the Humboldt Waste Management Authority, and the hunt for the bag was on.

We have a pretty good idea where material would be in the compactor, said HWMA Executive Director Jill Gillespie Duffy. Then its a matter of wading into that muck  everything that people throw away.

Thankfully, the bag hadnt yet reached its destination, a landfill, and the HWMA was able to figure out which truck it was on. Once the truck reached a transfer station, its contents were dumped, and sanitation workers began sifting through it.

Miraculously, it only took five minutes for workers to identify the Holly Yashi bag. They did a fantastic job, Pabst said. Their turnaround was just phenomenal. It was an hour and a half from the time we made the call to when they had it in their hand.

This was an enormous relief to the store staff, as all its jewelry is made by hand. If the bag hadnt been recovered, they would have had to replace every order in time for the holidays.

HWMA workers are no strangers to hunting down mistakenly discarded items. Duffy can recall looking for keys to a brand-new car. We found them, Duffy said. We cant do this for all things, but with some notice, we will work really hard to try and find these things.

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Orthodox Jews from the Temple Mount Institute dressed like cohanim (priests) pray during the reenactment of the Passover sacrifice ceremony in Jerusalem in 2014. (Photo: Abir Sultan/Epa/REX/Shutterstock)

Anyone happen to know where I can get hold of 13 young bullocks, two rams and 14 yearling lambs without blemish?

Im asking in order to prepare for the construction of the Third Temple in Jerusalem, as prophesied in the Bible, a precondition for the end times and the Rapture and the Second Coming, all set in motion by a proclamation from Donald Trump.

A lot has been written in the past week about the geopolitical implications of Trumps announcement that the United States, departing from most of the rest of the world, would recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital and begin the process of relocating its embassy there. Most of the Israeli political establishment  from the far-right parties to the center left  greeted it enthusiastically; the Palestinians, who want Jerusalem, or some of it, for the capital of their own future state, were angry, warning it could spark another uprising, or intifada. But few were as excited by the news as Trumps own evangelical supporters in America, who greeted the announcement, I think one can say, rapturously.

Now, I dont know about you, but when I heard about Jerusalem, where the King of Kings  where our soon-coming king  is coming back to Jerusalem, it is because President Trump declared Jerusalem to be capital of Israel. That was a Florida state senator named Doug Broxson, introducing Trump at a rally in Pensacola, Fla., Friday night, cheered by a large crowd of believers eager to get on with the thousand-year reign of Jesus they were promised in Sunday school.

And who doubts that this is within Trumps power? Not Trump himself, who had boasted a few days earlier that under his administration, Christmas is back, bigger and better than ever before. Most Christians, I imagine, think that it would be pretty hard to improve on the first one, but Trump has never been one to refrain from blowing his own trumpet.

In the days after Trumps announcement, Diana Butler Bass, a historian and authority on evangelical Christianity in America, sent out a series of tweets that laid out in simple terms what all this means to the tens of millions of his most ardent followers:

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Of all the possible theological dog-whistles to his evangelical base, this is the biggest. Trump is reminding them that he is carrying out Gods will to these Last Days.  Diana Butler Bass (@dianabutlerbass) December 6, 2017

Theyve been waiting for this, praying for this. They want war in the Middle East. The Battle of Armageddon, at which time Jesus Christ will return to the Earth and vanquish all Gods enemies.  Diana Butler Bass (@dianabutlerbass) December 6, 2017

They believe that Donald Trump is Gods instrument to move us closer to the Rapture, the Judgment, and the End. Because to them, thats actually the beginning  the beginning of their reward and heavenly bliss.  Diana Butler Bass (@dianabutlerbass) December 6, 2017

The thing to bear in mind, Bass told me, is that this is not regarded by evangelicals as a metaphor or a distant prophecy subject to revision or reinterpretation: It is a literal prediction of what must happen, as real and reliable as a forecast that says it will snow in Duluth. Only the exact date is in question, but it is not far off.

Admittedly, it has been not far off many times before.

This is all conveniently, if somewhat cryptically, discussed in the Book of Revelation, or in more palatable form in the Left Behind series of apocalyptic novels. There are some minor theological quibbles about the exact sequence in which all this will play out, but the prevailing theory, according to Bass, holds that rebuilding the temple that was destroyed by the Romans in the year A.D. 70 is a precondition for it to occur. And because America, to Christian evangelicals, stands in a special relationship to Israel  and therefore to God  establishing an American Embassy in Jerusalem is an important first step.

Temple of Solomon (Photo: Historical Picture Archive/Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

There are a few details to be worked out, of course. One is exactly where to locate the temple, which must be on the site of the original Temple of Solomon, dating from around the 10th century B.C. Inconveniently, the predominant view is that this is exactly where the Dome of the Rock, one of the holiest of Muslim shrines, now stands. The area, known as the Temple Mount, is so sensitive that Israel prohibits Jews and other non-Muslims from praying there; just by setting foot there in 2000 the hard-line Israeli politician Ariel Sharon touched off an escalating series of riots, the second intifada, that went on for years.

And although the Old Testament goes into mind-numbing detail about the specifications of the temple and its furnishings, it gives the dimensions in cubits, the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, a somewhat ambiguous unit of measure for a project that must be built precisely to Gods own blueprint. And there are some ultra-Orthodox Jews who believe that the whole enterprise has to be put off until the arrival of the Messiah, which would make moving the American Embassy theologically pointless. Nevertheless, there is a growing, if still small, movement in Israel that believes its time to move ahead on the temple project now, and Trumps announcement was a shot in the arm to them too.

The prophets words of prophecy are coming forth from the Bible and becoming facts right before our eyes, said the American-born rabbi Yehuda Glick, a member of Israels Parliament from the ruling Likud party who is active in the movement to restore the temple. An organization called the Temple Institute is meticulously reconstructing ritual artifacts for use there and has a project underway to breed a perfect red calf, to be killed and burned and its ashes mixed with pure spring water to perform a ritual purification that is a necessary precondition to occupying the temple.

And then what? Well, here there is a polite divergence between the Jewish Third Temple movement and its allies among evangelical Christians. To Jews, rebuilding the temple is a sacred commandment and an end in itself, allowing the resumption of biblical forms of worship that have been on hold for nearly 2,000 years. Jews will resume animal sacrifice under the direction of the cohanim  a priestly caste among Jews, to which I just so happen to belong. Cohanim are directly descended along the male line (no females need apply) from the original high priest, Aaron, the brother of Moses, or, as I think of him, Uncle Moses. A Cohanim Training Academy has been established to school the prospective priests in the correct ritual. Its a bloody job, but someone has to do it, because God wants it that way.

An Orthodox Jew from the Temple Mount Institute wearing the garb of cohan (priest) spills the blood of a lamb slaughtered on the altar during the reenactment of the Passover sacrifice ceremony in Jerusalem in 2014. (Photo: Abir Sultan/Epa/REX/Shutterstock)

But if evangelical Christians are correct, history will take a very different course, as Bass explains: The Antichrist will arise to desecrate the rebuilt temple, which will cause the Jews to finally realize that Jesus was the real Messiah, triggering a mass conversion. There will be seven years of tribulation, the Ten Plagues times 10,000, the worst thing that the Jews have ever gone through. (When I explained this to my husband, he said, Worse than the Holocaust? And I said, Yes! Worse than that! Bass says.) And at the end of those seven years, there will be Armageddon, and in the middle of that battle, Jesus will return with all of the righteous from heaven and defeat the forces of evil and institute the millennial kingdom, the thousand-year reign of Christ. Thats probably not quite what Rabbi Glick has in mind to happen, but for now they are working together to get the process underway.

And it was all set in motion by Donald Trump. In the current climate in Washington, with talk of impeachment swirling, it is fashionable among progressives to say that the stakes have never been higher. They have no idea how high. As Bass put it in a tweet: Regular Christians  Orthodox, Catholic, mainline  can raise a fit about how [Trumps] action will undermine world peace. But that doesnt matter. Because peace in this world doesnt matter.

_____

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Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - At least six soldiers died in two separate Boko Haram ambushes in northeast Nigeria, military and civilian militia sources said on Monday.

Four troops were killed and 12 injured on Sunday when their convoy was attacked near Damboa, 90 kilometres (56 miles) from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

Two soldiers were killed in the same area on Saturday, the sources told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to talk to the media.

A military officer in Maiduguri said Sunday's ambush happened when troops were on patrol between the villages of Nyeneri and Falawani.

"The terrorists came in huge numbers and attacked the convoy using IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and gun trucks," he added.

A member of the civilian self-defence force gave a similar account and death toll, and said the jihadists made off with weapons before reinforcements arrived.

He added: "Two soldiers died on Saturday when the six vehicles they travelling in came under heavy attack from Boko Haram near Bulaburin (village)," said the militia source.

The attacks came days after the military replaced the officer leading troops fighting Boko Haram following a surge in attacks, including against military outposts.

The army maintains the redeployment of Major-General Ibrahim Attahiru was routine, and the officer himself said suggestions he was sacked are "far from the truth".

He said in his farewell speech to troops on Monday that his move was "a normal exercise" and his redeployment to army headquarters in Abuja was a "call to higher responsibility".

Meanwhile, hundreds of people displaced by the violence deserted a makeshift camp in Birimari village, in the Nganzai district of Borno, some 80 km north of Maiduguri.

Troops had been sent to the village, which is the birthplace of Borno state governor Kashim Shettima, two years ago but soldiers were withdrawn last week, locals said.

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One of the displaced, Idrissa Karim, fled with others to Gajiram, the district headquarters, as fears spread of a possible attack.

A bus driver who plies the route from the garrison town of Monguno to Maiduguri, which passes through Birimari and Gajiram, confirmed the displaced people had moved on.

"The IDPs (internally displaced persons) were packing their tents and few belongings from the camp at Birimari and heading to Gajiram for fear of Boko Haram attack after soldiers left the village," the driver said.

As well as leaving at least 20,000 dead, the eight-year conflict has forced millions from their homes. IDPs remain vulnerable because of a lack of security in camps and elsewhere.
Forced-redirect ads are not only a nuisance, they can also harm your computer, smartphone or bank account.

Of all the advertising-inflicted annoyances on the web, the forced redirect ad most deserves to be shot into the sun.

As youre reading a page an ad bumps your content aside with an obviously fraudulent pitch  maybe a phony claim that your computer has been hit with a virus, maybe a fictitious offer of a free gift card  and takes over your browsers address bar.

Clicking or tapping the back button doesnt get you away from the pestilential ad, because it already sent your browser through a loop of page reloads. Your only recourse is closing the entire tab  or, if this happened as you read something shared on a social networks mobile app, quitting the entire program. Whats more, these ads can lead you to download malware or trap you in a financial scam.

These are the bottom of the bottom, said Jason Kint, CEO of Digital Content Next, an online-publishing group that has been campaigning against fraudulent and deceptive ads.

And while everybody hates the way these ads attack our ability to read the things we want online, they persist with cockroach-like tenacity. For that, you can blame a malfunctioning ad market and software defenses that have yet to catch up.

But theyll soon get some help.

Business model of a nuisance

Forced-redirect ads reach you in the same way those Around the web ads show up at the bottom of sites you visit. Automated exchanges match up advertisers with available spots on pages in real time.

Such programmatic ad networks are supposed to let advertisers meet potential customersas determined by tracking your activity on web pagesat the lowest possible cost and with minimal human involvement. When it works, these networks put ads in front of you that match your interests.

But con artists have been exploiting these automated systems for years, and especially malevolent ones can exploit JavaScript coding to take over a page in your browser by forcing a redirect to another page.

Third-party ad networks with lots of dynamic bidding [] require constant attention from publishers to keep out scam ads that run arbitrary JavaScript, explained Ryan Singel, CEO of Contextly, a developer of web-publishing tools. Youd think the ad networks would do this filtering but they dont do a thorough job.

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Another example of a popular style of forced-redirect ads.

Thats because ad networks can still make money off of these obnoxious ads.

Exploiting programmatic ads and web coding like this lets a crook get one of the usual scams that much closer to a target. The bad guys use them to do attribution fraud, phishing scams, exploit kits and a variety of more edge type of attacks, said Louis-David Mangin, CEO of the ad-security firm Confiant.

Fighting back at multiple levels

The traditional approach of reporting sketchy content to a sites owner  see, for instance, the 46 pages of posts flagging Disruptive Ads on the popular travel site FlyerTalk, or the frustration publishers voice on Reddits AdOps subreddit  doesnt work well when there are so many scammers who can cloak their identities so easily.

One answer is smarter screening of programmatic ads to catch the con jobs. Confiant, for example, offers an ad-industry equivalent of malware protection; Mangin said his companys system can catch and stop a hostile ad before it can finish loading in a browser.

FlyerTalks parent firm Internet Brands, meanwhile, is now evaluating services from the ad-monitoring firms The Media Trust and GeoEdge, said spokesman Joe Ewaskiw.

Digital Context Next, for its part, launched its own ad marketplace, TrustX, at the end of September to give publishers an alternative to networks that regularly serve up junk or worse.

The single biggest company in online ads, Google (GOOG, GOOGL), is trying to attack the problem in two places.

Its Accelerated Mobile Pages system for speedy reading on phones and tablets now features a locked-down ad format that bans the scripting trickery forced-redirect ads deploy. And its Chrome browser will block that same behavior automatically when its release 64 ships towards the end of January.

Other browser vendors have yet to build in the same defenses.

Google has staked out a much stronger position on this issue than the other browsers, said Confiants Mangin. They are not just the largest browser, but the largest mobile OS, the largest ad exchange and the largest ad server, so it makes sense that they be the first to move.

Google competitors like Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT) and Mozilla would be wise to follow its lead. And web publishers would be wise to remember that these arent the only kind of bad ads they need to fix, from fraudulent ads (projected to be a $16.4 billion problem this year) to the clickbait that treats you like an idiot.

Warned Contextlys Singel: The online ad ecosystem is rife with fraud, and publishers ought to worry much more than they do about the damage these kinds of ads and other low-rent ad units do to their reputations with readers.

More from Rob:

Email Rob at rob@robpegoraro.com; follow him on Twitter at @robpegoraro.
In a surprise move, the Supreme Court on Friday afternoon expanded its review of challenges to the decades-old practice of drawing election boundaries to benefit the candidates of the party in power. It did so by taking on a claim by seven Maryland voters that their state legislature deliberately fashioned a congressional district that long had been a Republican stronghold into one that elects a Democrat instead.

The Justices already are deep in deliberations over a Wisconsin case that also involves the practice of party gerrymandering, but involves seats in the state legislature rather than in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Fridays order gave no explanation of why the Justices added the Maryland case, Benisek v. Lamone, to the docket for a decision in the current term. Already under review is the Wisconsin case, Gill v. Whitford, which the Justices have been studying in private since holding a public hearing on it on October 3.

The Court apparently is not yet ready to release a decision in the Wisconsin case, and that was one factor that made it a surprise that they were willing to move into the Maryland case now. It is quite common, when the Court already is reviewing a case raising an issue to hold other cases raising the same or a similar issue until after the initial one has been decided.

Although there are some key differences between the Maryland and Wisconsin cases, other than the fact that they involve elections at different legislative levels, they are close enough in scope that most observers expected that the Maryland case would have to await the outcome of the case ahead of it in timing, from Wisconsin. That expectation rose when the Justices, in September, refused to move up the schedule on the Maryland case so that it would be reviewed along with the Wisconsin case, which the Justices had agreed last June to review.

Instead of holding the Maryland case, though, the Justices agreed on Friday to accept it at the first opportunity, under current procedures, to do so.

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Although the order accepting the case did not give a reason for that, one possible explanation is that the Justices may have looked at it in comparison to the Wisconsin case and decided that the ruling they are preparing would not necessarily fit the Maryland case, too.

Perhaps they see a key difference in the fact that the Wisconsin case involves a challenge to the statewide election maps that were drawn up for the entire lower house of the legislature, while the Maryland case is a test of the lines drawn for a single district for a member of the U.S. House.

In fact, one of the issues before the Court in the Wisconsin case is an argument by the state that voters living and voting in only one district have no legal right to level a statewide challenge, because they supposedly can show no harm to themselves outside their own district. The Justices will have to decide that a statewide challenge is permissible, before they would move on to rule on whether the partisan makeup of the districting in Wisconsin was valid under the Constitution.

The Maryland case involves only the Sixth House District. For 20 years, it had regularly elected a Republican to that seat. But, in 2011, the state legislature drew lines that caused a shift of more than 90,000 voters areas in or out of the district, with twice as many Republicans moved out as Democrats that were moved in. The challengers  seven Republican voters who had lived in the old Sixth District  told lower courts that they had gathered strong evidence that state Democratic leaders drew the new lines with the specific aim of turning the Sixth into a Democratic district. Indeed, it has since elected a Democrat, Rep. John Delaney, in the 2012, 2014 and 2016 elections.

Another difference between the two cases that the Justices may have noticed, looking at them side by side to decide what to do with the Maryland case, is that each challenge to partisan gerrymandering relies upon a different constitutional theory.

The Wisconsin claim is that a partisan gerrymander harms the minority party by deviating statewide from partisan symmetry  that is, drawing lines that create districts that are out of balance with each other, with the majority party getting a statewide advantage over the minority party. It involves a rather complex mathematical formula based on packing minor party voters into fewer districts, or cracking districts dominated by minor party voters to spread them into majority party districts.

As the Maryland case developed, it has relied upon a simpler theory: when those drafting new legislative districts intentionally place voters in districts depending upon what party they have supported in the past, with the result that the disfavored partys followers have their votes diluted. The federal courts are very familiar with vote dilution claims, after years of dealing with efforts to reduce the election influence of voters of minority races. The dilution theory, when applied to a partisan gerrymander claim, seeks to show that voters have been retaliated against because of their political views, said to be a violation of the First Amendment.

For decades, the Supreme Court has been unwilling to rule on the constitutionality of partisan gerrymandering, because the Justices have not found a workable theory for judging when there has been too much partisanship  especially since drawing new district maps every ten years is always infused with politics and partisan aspirations.

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who has held an influential vote in this field of the law, has indicated in the past that he might find favor with an argument based upon the First Amendment rights of voters to express themselves in the way they vote.

The Maryland case probably will not come up for a hearing before the Justices earlier than next March. The Justices have the option of holding off on deciding the Wisconsin case until after that, but also the option of going ahead to decide it on its own, and then examine the Maryland case as a potential sequel.

In both cases, the Court took on the case while leaving open the question  to be discussed by lawyers when a hearing was held  whether the Justices have jurisdiction to hear it. Thats because each case reached the Justices from special three-judge trial courts, with any appeal going directly to the Supreme Court  if jurisdictionally proper.

In each case, there are jurisdictional arguments by the states involved that the Court lacks the authority to reach a decision in each.

When the Maryland case was last before a three-judge federal trial court in Baltimore, the judges split 2-to-1 in finding that the GOP voters had not made a case that they were harmed by the 2011 map for the Sixth District  a decision made before a full trial, since that court decided to put further proceedings on hold until the Supreme Court had provided new guidance in deciding the Wisconsin case. However, that did not bar the GOP voters from taking their case on to the Justices, gaining Fridays vote to hear it.

Legendary journalist Lyle Denniston has written for us as a contributor since June 2011 and has covered the Supreme Court since 1958. His work also appears on lyldenlawnews.com.
A terror-related explosion at New York Citys Port Authority Bus Terminal near Times Square injured at least four people and sent streams of commuters running for their lives during rush hour Monday morning, authorities and witnesses said.

A 27-year-old male suspect, identified by authorities as Akayed Ullah, intentionally detonated an explosive device that was attached to his body about 7:20 a.m. at an underground walkway near the Times Square shuttle, according to NYPD Commissioner James ONeill.

The suspect, who is in custody, was seriously injured in the blast and sustained burns and lacerations to his hands and abdomen, authorities said. He was allegedly wearing an improvised low-technology explosive device, but its unclear if he detonated it himself.

This was an attempted terrorist attack, Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference Monday. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

The police commissioner also called the attack a terror-related incident.

Three bystanders were injured in the explosion, according to the New York City Fire Department, though none of the injuries are severe. Officials said they had ringing in their ears and headaches and were taken to hospitals.

The suspect has made statements about the explosion, but authorities did not say what the comments were.

There is no other immediate threat, according to the mayor. This is the most resilient place on Earth, he said. Weve proved it time and time again. The terrorists will not win.

After the blast, hordes of people ran down Eighth Avenue, south of Port Authority, according to Freddy Oquendo, a 34-year-old lifelong New Yorker. Some were crying and others were calling their loved ones.

It was pretty scary, Oquendo said. I just thought, not another situation again. I hope this stops happening.

All subways that typically stop at the Port Authority are bypassing the station. Authorities temporarily closed the Port Authority Bus Terminal, a major transportation hub for New York City residents and visitors near Times Square, but it has since been reopened. More than a dozen train lines have been rerouted or suspended.

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President Donald Trump has been briefed on the situation, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

.@POTUS has been briefed on the explosion in New York City  Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 11, 2017

With additional reporting by Lucinda Shen and Jennifer Calfas
A Tennessee boy's emotional video about the relentless bullying he experiences in school is stirring support across the country.

Keaton Jones burst into tears Friday after describing the painful ordeal to his mother, Kimberly Jones, in a video posted to Facebook later that day.

"They make fun of my nose, they call me ugly," Keaton is seen telling his mother. "I have no friends."

Meet Keaton Jones a very smart little boy who is being bullied at school. This video is heartbreaking!! I want to bring Keaton to Vegas and hang out at UFC Headquarters. If anyone knows how i can reach the family please let me know. Thank u everyone pic.twitter.com/BR8c4ldDFc  danawhite (@danawhite) December 10, 2017

Keaton described lunchtime at his school in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he said bullying turns from verbal to physical. His mother said he asked her to pick him up from school because he was afraid to eat with his classmates.

"They pour milk on me and put ham down my clothes, throw bread at me," Keaton said.

Still, Keaton ended the video with a message of advice and hope to victims of bullying.

"If you're being made fun of, don't let it bother you," Jones said. "Stay strong I guess. It's hard. It will probably get better one day."

The powerful video quickly went viral, garnering over 21 million views over the weekend, according to CBS News.

Keaton's message also caught the attention of several big names in Hollywood with actors like Chris Evans, Millie Bobby Brown and Lebron James reaching out to Keaton on Twitter to give the young boy hope.

Stay strong, Keaton. Dont let them make you turn cold, Evans tweeted Sunday. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year?

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Stay strong, Keaton. Dont let them make you turn cold. I promise it gets better. While those punks at your school are deciding what kind of people they want to be in this world, how would you and your mom like to come to the Avengers premiere in LA next year? https://t.co/s1QwCQ3toi  Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) December 10, 2017

And Keaton has received dozens of similar invitations, including an invite extended from Titans tight-end Delanie Walker invited Keaton to a New Years Eve game against Jacksonville.

See celebrities respond to Keaton Jones


Israelis take part in a demonstration under the name

Thousands of Israelis protested in Tel Aviv on Saturday for the second consecutive week against government corruption and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is under criminal investigation over allegations of abuse of office.

Police estimated the number of demonstrators at about 10,000 and they followed last Saturday's demonstration, which was by far the largest of the recent weekly anti-corruption protests when an estimated 20,000 people participated.

The protests have been sparked by corruption allegations against Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing. The four-term leader is suspected of involvement in two cases.

The first involves receiving gifts from wealthy businessmen and the second involves negotiating a deal with a newspaper owner for better coverage in return for curbs on a rival daily.

Israelis take part in a demonstration under the name "March of Shame" to protest against government corruption and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Credit: Jack Guez/AFP

If charged, he would come under heavy pressure to resign or could call an election to test whether he still had a mandate to govern.

Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party said in a Facebook post that the protest was a left-wing demonstration. It called on all Israelis to back their prime minister as he defends Israel against international criticism following U.S. President Donald Trump's acceptance of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

"Instead of uniting with all the people behind Jerusalem and showing the world a unified front, the left cannot contain itself and it prefers to create division," part of the statement said.

Over weeks of demonstrations, protesters have identified themselves as supporting both left- and right-wing parties. On Saturday they held banners reading: "Neither left, nor right (we demand) integrity," "We are fed up with corrupt (politicians)" and "Sweep the corrupt away."
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KIEV (Reuters) - Several thousand people marched through central Kiev on Sunday to protest against the detention of Ukrainian opposition figure Mikheil Saakashvili and call for the impeachment of President Petro Poroshenko. Saakashvili, president of his native Georgia for nine years until 2013, moved to Ukraine after a popular uprising there and served under Poroshenko as a regional governor from 2015-2016, before falling out with the Ukrainian leader. He was detained in Kiev on Friday, following a dramatic standoff earlier in the week where he clambered on a roof to avoid law enforcement and was freed from a police van by his supporters. He accuses the Ukrainian authorities of widespread corruption. Prosecutors accuse him of assisting a criminal organization, charges he says were trumped up to undermine his political campaign against Poroshenko. A large number of police in riot gear guarded Sunday's rally, which was peaceful in contrast with protests last week that resulted in clashes between Saakashvili's supporters and law enforcement. "A lot of people are looking for the changes. It is more difficult when Mikheil is not with us," his wife, Sandra Roelofs, said in a speech at the rally. "We remember his words: 'When they catch me, you continue despite anything, because Ukraine wants changes, Ukraine has to become a better country'," she said. Protesters shouted 'Shame' and 'Impeachment' as they marched to Maidan square, the scene of the 2013-14 pro-European protests that ousted a Moscow-backed president and installed a new leadership that promised to eliminate entrenched corruption. A few snowballs were thrown at the windows of a branch of Roshen, the confectionary business owned by Poroshenko, who was a wealthy chocolatier before he went into politics. Saakashvili has launched a hunger strike to protest against his detention, which will last until a court rules on whether to release him under house arrest. The saga has attracted international attention to Ukraine at a time when the authorities face a chorus of criticism from reformers and foreign donors over perceived backtracking on reforms and attacks on anti-corruption institutions. While Saakashvili has a core base of supporters, he enjoys limited support across Ukraine. Only 1.7 percent of voters would support his party, the Movement of New Forces, in elections, according to an October survey by the Kiev-based Razumkov Centre think-tank. (Reporting by Sergei Karazy; Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Peter Graff)
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Three people were arrested early on Sunday after an attempted arson attack at a synagogue in the Swedish city of Gothenburg, prosecutors said. There were no reports of injuries and the fire did not reach the synagogue or an adjacent meeting house where Jewish youths had gathered when the attack took place late on Saturday, Swedish media reported. Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said in a statement he was outraged by the attack. "There is no place for anti-Semitism in Swedish society," he said in the statement, which also referred to a demonstration in the city of Malmo on Friday, at which Lofven said participants had incited violence against Jews. Swedish newspapers reported that around 200 people had attended Friday's demonstration at which some participants chanted anti-Jewish slogans, two days after the United States recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The World Jewish Congress, which represents Jewish communities in 100 countries, also condemned the attack on the Swedish synagogue. The Swedish Security Service said it was helping the police in the investigation and was also trying to prevent new attacks. (Reporting by Olof Swahnberg; Editing by Peter Graff)
OTTAWA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to meet Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau next week for talks on how to address the crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons program, an Ottawa source said on Monday. Canada and the United States are due to co-host a meeting of foreign ministers in Vancouver in January to discuss North Korea. North Korea has fired missiles over Japan as it pursues nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles in defiance of U.N. sanctions. Last week it said U.S. and South Korean military drills meant the outbreak of war was "an established fact". During a day trip to Ottawa on Dec. 19 Tillerson will also meet Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, said the source, who requested anonymity because the meetings have not yet been formally announced. A Canadian government source confirmed that Tillerson and Trudeau plan to meet but declined to give a precise date, saying scheduling issues still had to be worked out. The U.S. embassy in Ottawa declined to comment. Freeland said last month that the Vancouver talks would show the unity of the international community in applying pressure on Pyongyang. (Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Andrew Hay and Jeffrey Benkoe)
Washington (AFP) - The White House on Monday rejected calls for a congressional investigation of claims Donald Trump sexually harassed women, saying the American people had spoken on the matter by electing him president.

Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand called on Trump to resign, meanwhile, echoing a demand made the previous day by two other Senate Democrats, while a group of 54 Congresswomen backed Trump's accusers in calling for a probe.

Three women who claim they were sexually harassed by Trump before he ran for president urged Congress on Monday to investigate his behavior and allegations of misconduct.

The three, who first came forward during last year's presidential race with their claims of harassment, said they were speaking up again because of the current climate.

In recent months, countless women have broken their silence about abuse suffered at the hands of powerful men in the worlds of entertainment, the media, business and politics, in the wake of the bombshell allegations that felled movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

"The environment's different," said Samantha Holvey, who claims Trump came backstage when she and other contestants in the 2006 Miss USA pageant were dressing.

"Let's try again," Holvey said, in explaining her decision to repeat her allegations.

Rachel Crooks, who says Trump forcibly kissed her on the mouth after she introduced herself to him at Trump Tower in 2005, urged lawmakers to "put aside their party affiliations and investigate Mr. Trump's history of sexual misconduct."

Crooks voiced hope "that we will hold Mr Trump to the same standard of Harvey Weinstein and the other men who were held accountable for their reprehensible behavior."

Jessica Leeds, who says she was groped and forcibly kissed by Trump on a commercial flight decades ago, said the president has not been held accountable for "what he is and who he is."

The White House swiftly dismissed the claims as "false."

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"The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them," a White House statement said.

- 'A decisive election' -

Addressing reporters, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president "has addressed these accusations directly and denied all of these allegations.

"This took place long before he was elected to be president and the people of this country had a decisive election, supported President Trump," Sanders said. "We feel like these allegations have been answered through that process."

Gillibrand, a Democratic senator from New York, told CNN that Trump should "immediately resign."

"President Trump has committed assault according to these women," she said. "And those are very credible allegations.

"I think he should immediately resign and if he doesn't we should have the investigation," Gillibrand said.

Democratic senators Cory Booker of New Jersey and Jeff Merkley of Oregon also called over the weekend for Trump to step down.

Democratic Senator Ron Wyden backed the call for a congressional investigation -- which appeared unlikely to occur given the Republican control of both houses of Congress.

"These women are right," the senator from Oregon said in a tweet. "If @realDonaldTrump won't resign, Congress must investigate allegations by many, many women that he sexually assaulted and harassed them. No one is above the law."

Later Monday, Democratic Congresswoman Lois Frankel said she was leading a contingent of women representatives from the lower chamber in demanding a probe.

"Americans deserve to learn the truth about the Commander in Chief, which is why I'm leading @HouseDemWomen in calling for an investigation in Congress of the sexual misconduct allegations against @realDonaldTrump," she tweeted, linking to a CNN report that a group of 54 women were involved in the effort.

Three US lawmakers announced their resignations from Congress last week over sexual harassment allegations, including Democratic Senator Al Franken of Minnesota.

In announcing his resignation, Franken took aim at Trump.

"I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact I am leaving while a man who bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office," he said.

A total of 16 women have come forward with claims of misconduct by Trump, who boasted in a tape that surfaced during the campaign that he could kiss and grope women with impunity, because of his celebrity.

In an apparent divergence from the White House line, Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that any women claiming to be victims of sexual harassment -- including those implicating Trump -- "should be heard."
President Trump speaks during his visit to the Civil Rights Museum in Jackson, Miss., Dec. 9, 2017. (Photo: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

President Trump lashed out at recent news reports that he watches up to eight hours of television every day  claiming that its another false story.

On Monday morning, Trump accused the New York Times of lying about his television habits and claimed that he seldom, if ever watches CNN or MSNBC.

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day  Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2017

CNN contributors were discussing the contents of the Times report, which was published on Saturday, just half an hour before Trumps tweet. This suggests that Trump may have been claiming he does not watch CNN in response to what he just watched on CNN.

The Times reported that Trump starts every day around 5:30 a.m. by watching television in the White House master bedroom. He watches CNN for news, Morning Joe on left-leaning MSNBC to get fired up and Fox & Friends on Fox News for comfort and ideas, according to the Times. For the evening and night, Trump reportedly tunes in to Fox News primetime programs hosted by Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham and Jeanine Pirro, and hate-watches CNNs Don Lemon.

When asked about Trump insulting Lemon, a CNN spokesperson told Yahoo News via email, In a world where bullies torment kids on social media to devastating effect on a regular basis with insults and name calling, it is sad to see our president engaging in the very same behavior himself. Leaders should lead by example.

Trumps tweet attacking the Times came as police were responding to an attempted terrorist attack in his hometown, New York City. Authorities said a man set off an improvised low-tech explosive device under the Port Authority Bus Terminal, a major transportation hub for the New York metropolitan area. According to New Yorks fire department, three people (other than the suspect) were injured but their wounds did not appear to be life-threatening.

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This is not the first time Trump claimed that reporting on his television consumption was far off. He claimed in July that he does not have much time to watch TV. But anyone familiar with Trumps Twitter feed would know that it often seems to be inspired by television coverage. He often disparages critical coverage of his administration and praises reports he likes.

A month ago, during his five-nation tour of Asia, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he does not watch much television because hes busy reading documents.

And believe it or not, even when Im in Washington or New York, I do not watch much television, Trump said. I know they like to say that. People that dont know me, they like to say I watch television  people with fake sources. You know, fake reporters, fake sources.

Read more from Yahoo News:
President Donald Trump is receiving backlash for attacking the "failing" New York Times shortly after being briefed on an attempted terror attack in New York City Monday.

The president reportedly received word of the pipe bomb explosion in an underground subway passage spanning from Times Square to the Port Authority Bus Terminal less than an hour after the 7:20 a.m. incident.

".@POTUS has been briefed on the explosion in New York City," White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced on Twitter at 8:13 a.m.

.@POTUS has been briefed on the explosion in New York City  Kayleigh McEnany (@PressSec) December 11, 2017

Roughly an hour later, the president took to Twitter to accuse the Times of falsely reporting that he watches 4-8 hours of television a day.

SEE ALSO: Trump blasts 'failing' NYT report of him watching 4 to 8 hours of TV a day

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the "dumbest man on television!" Bad Reporting, he tweeted.

Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the dumbest man on television! Bad Reporting.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2017

The president's message prompted a strong reaction from many on Twitter who criticized Trump for targeting the publication in the wake of the attempted attack.

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"Think about this: there was a terror attack in NYC this morning. Trumps home. And he tweets about Don Lemon before the terror attack. This is not a well man," one person tweeted, while another wrote: "A major explosion in NYC and Trump is griping about the NYT and Don Lemon? What a deplorable human being.... Yes, deplorable."

See more reactions to Trump's tweet below:


ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish warplanes hit Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets in northern Iraq on Monday and killed 29 of the group's militants, Turkey's armed forces said. The PKK fighters were believed to be preparing an attack on Turkish border posts from the Hakurk and Metina regions of northern Iraq, the army said in a written statement. Several caves and shelters used by the militants were destroyed in the air strikes, it said. The PKK, which has been waging an insurgency in southeast Turkey since the 1980s, is designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict. (Reporting by Tulay Karadeniz; Writing by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by)
DUBAI (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson flew to Tehran on Saturday to seek the release of a jailed British-Iranian aid worker.

The Foreign Office said Johnson spoke "frankly" with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif about "consular cases of dual nationals" such as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who Britain says was visiting family on holiday when she was jailed by Iran for attempting to overthrow the government.

The case has taken on domestic political importance in Britain, especially since Johnson said last month that Zaghari-Ratcliffe trained journalists, which her employer denies. Johnson later apologised. Opponents have called for him to resign if his comments lead to her serving longer in prison.

Johnson is also expected to meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday to discuss bilateral and regional issues, a Foreign Office official said, during just the third visit by a British foreign minister to Iran in the last 14 years.

Talks with Zarif were "constructive", Johnson's office said, despite differences between the two countries.

"They both spoke frankly about the obstacles in the relationship, including the Foreign Secretary's concerns about the consular cases of British-Iranian dual nationals," a British Foreign Office spokeswoman said in a statement.

The two-day visit takes place against a complex backdrop of historical, regional and bilateral tensions.

Johnson stressed Britain's support for Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers in the meeting, the spokeswoman said.

International sanctions against Iran have only recently been lifted as part of the multilateral nuclear deal to curb Tehran's disputed uranium enrichment programme.

That deal is under threat after U.S. President Donald Trump decided to decertify Iran's compliance with its terms. Johnson told Zarif he believed the deal should be fully implemented.

Johnson also met Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and parliament speaker Ali Larijani during the first day of his two-day visit, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported.

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The Foreign Office statement did not mention Zaghari-Ratcliffe by name, although Johnson has vowed to leave "no stone unturned" in Britain's efforts to free her.

A project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, she was sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted by an Iranian court of plotting to overthrow the clerical establishment. She denies the charges.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe is not the only dual national being held in Iran, but has become the most high-profile case.

The Thomson Reuters Foundation is a charity organisation that is independent of Thomson Reuters and operates independently of Reuters News. It says Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been on holiday and had not been teaching journalism in Iran.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been told she will appear in court on Dec. 10, her husband Richard has said.

The visit is a test of Johnson's ability to navigate a political landscape littered with potential pitfalls. Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution turned it into a pariah state for most of the West and many Middle Eastern neighbours.

Britain has voiced its continued support for the nuclear deal but is one of a number of Western powers voicing concerns about Tehran's "destabilising" influence in the region.

(Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Gareth Jones and Peter Graff)
By Pavel Polityuk KIEV (Reuters) - The author of an article that U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller believes Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort ghost-wrote in violation of a gag order said on Saturday he had sought input on the op-ed before publishing to avoid errors. On Friday, Mueller unveiled evidence against Manafort to convince a judge that he wrote the article to improve his public image. Manafort is facing charges as part of an investigation into accusations of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election and possible collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign. The op-ed was published on Thursday in the English-language Kyiv Post under the byline of Oleg Voloshyn, a former spokesman for Ukraine's foreign affairs ministry. In a telephone call with Reuters, Voloshyn said he wrote the article, but before publishing had shown it to Konstantin Kilimnik, a Ukrainian whom Mueller alluded to in a filing earlier this week as having ties to Russian intelligence. Voloshyn said he had decided to write the article to correct misrepresentations of Manafort in the media without prejudicing the U.S. trial and had consulted Kilimnik, who is close to Manafort, to make sure the text was accurate. "I didn't want to write any stupid things in it that would worsen his (Manafort's) already difficult position," Voloshyn said. "I sent the text to Kilimnik and it was Kilimnik's idea to send it to Paul (Manafort) for a look." "He (Kilimnik) sent it back to me with some comments and suggestions. Whether these were his comments and suggestions or Paul's suggestions is not a question I can answer," he said. Voloshyn said allegations of Kilimnik's ties to Russia were groundless and that Kilimnik, whom Reuters has not been able to reach, did not want to talk to news media. Voloshyn said he was prepared to testify that he had no direct contact with Manafort in the run-up to the publication of the article, which praised Manafort's work promoting European Union-Ukraine relations and said he lobbied for pro-Western values, not Russian interests. "In September or in the summer, when he started having problems, I sent him a letter of support. He did not respond," Voloshyn said. On Monday, Mueller's team had said in a court filing that they had been assured by Manafort's counsel that they had taken steps to prevent the article from being published. Voloshyn told Reuters that he was not contacted by Manafort's lawyers in an attempt to stop him from publishing it. "Who could forbid me?" he said. "What right does Mueller have to forbid me to do something?" Manafort's attorney has acknowledged that his client helped edit Voloshyn's article but denies he violated the gag order, saying an article published in a Ukrainian newspaper would not substantially prejudice the case in the United States. The charges against Manafort include conspiracy to launder money and failing to register as a foreign agent working on behalf of former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's government, who was ousted in 2014. All parties were ordered by the judge on Nov. 8 not to discuss the case in public or with the media in a way that could substantially prejudice a fair trial. Earlier this week, Mueller's team discovered the draft op-ed was in the works and ordered Manafort's lawyers to shut it down. (Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Clelia Oziel and Jonathan Oatis)
Seoul (AFP) - The US, South Korea and Japan carried out joint exercises Monday to track missiles from North Korea, as China warned that such manoeuvres fuel tensions following nuclear-armed Pyongyang's longest-range test launch to date.

The trilateral drill comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared it had achieved nuclear statehood, escalating global alarm over its weapons push.

The two-day exercise -- the sixth since June last year -- kicked off in waters near the Korean peninsula and Japan, Seoul's defence ministry said.

"During the drill, Aegis warships from each country will simulate detecting and tracking down potential ballistic missiles from the North and sharing information," it said in a statement.

Two US ships are taking part, with one each from the two Asian countries.

Both South Korea and Japan have security alliances with the US, although their own relationship is marred by disputes over history and territory.

Washington and Seoul staged their biggest-ever joint air drill last week in a show of force against the North, which is subject to multiple sets of UN sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

The coalition has urged others to take a tougher stance against Pyongyang but has so far found lukewarm reactions from the North's main backers Beijing and Moscow.

China criticised the latest drills, which come as President Xi Jinping prepares to host South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-In this week for a summit aimed at soothing ties strained by the US deployment of an anti-missile system in the South.

"The situation is in a vicious cycle of provocation and confrontation. This is not conducive to regional peace and stability," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular news briefing.

"If such a vicious cycle continues and leads to a very bad result, it serves no party's interest," Lu said, echoing recent remarks by Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

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Russia's top general Valery Gerasimov met Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera in Tokyo and reiterated that Moscow wanted to resolve the crisis via diplomacy.

"We believe that this issue should only be resolved through political and diplomatic means," Gerasimov was quoted as saying by the Russian defence ministry.

Exercises around North Korea "destabilise the situation", Gerasimov said, according to a Japanese defence ministry official.

Onodera, however, stressed Japan's position: "North Korea's nuclear and missile development are significant threats against the international community. I want us to cooperate over this problem."

China and Russia have called for a halt to such US-led drills in return for North Korean suspending its nuclear programme.

- Super-large heavy warhead -

Tension flared anew in the flashpoint peninsula after the November 29 launch of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which the North claimed could deliver a "super-large heavy warhead" anywhere on the US mainland.

Many analysts suggest that the rocket is capable of reaching the US mainland but voiced scepticism that Pyongyang has mastered the advanced technology needed to allow the rocket to survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.

Last month's launch was the first test of any kind since September 15, and quashed hopes that the North may have held back in order to open the door to a negotiated solution to the nuclear standoff.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has traded threats of war and personal insults with US President Donald Trump, heightening fears of another conflict on the peninsula once devastated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

The South imposed new unilateral sanctions on its neighbour on Monday.

Pyongyang regularly condemns joint exercises by the US and its neighbours as preparations for war.

jhw-hih-as-lth/amz
Washington (AFP) - President Nicolas Maduro is pushing Venezuela deeper into "dictatorship" by declaring that opposition parties will be barred from next year's presidential election, the US State Department charged Monday.

Maduro made the statement after opposition parties boycotted mayoral elections held Sunday on the grounds voting would not be transparent. Maduro is running for re-election in 2018.

"Maduro's attempt to ban opposition parties from presidential elections is yet another extreme measure to close the democratic space in Venezuela & consolidate power in his authoritarian dictatorship," department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said on Twitter.

"We stand with the Venezuelan people as they seek to restore their democracy," she added.

Maduro said his party won more than 300 of Venezuela's 355 mayoral races in Sunday's voting.

Six months after a wave of deadly protests demanding his resignation, Maduro appears to have reasserted control over the oil-rich but crisis-wracked country.

The United States has stepped up criticism of Maduro since summer and imposed several rounds of sanctions against his leftist government.
Vladimir Putin (2 L) with Bashar al-Assad (2 R) at Hmeymim base in Syria - Anadolu

Vladimir Putin has said Russia will withdraw the bulk of its forces from Syria following the "successful intervention" in the conflict there.

The announcement comes after the defence ministry said last week that Russia had completely liberated Syria from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), despite reports that the terrorist group still controls some remote territory there.

Speaking to soldiers at Russia's Khmeimim airbase during his first trip to Syria, where he was welcomed by Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, Mr Putin said he was ordering the defence minister and head of the general staff to begin withdrawing Russian forces to their home bases.

In two-and-a-half years, Russia's military along with the Syrian army have defeated the most battle-worthy gang of international terrorists, Mr Putin said. In connection with this, I've made the decision that a significant part of the Russian military contingent located in the Syrian Arab Republic will return home to Russia.

Moscow will continue to operate the Khmeimim airbase as well as its naval base in Tartus and will crush any further terrorist activities in Syria, he said.

If the terrorists raise their head again, we will hit them with such strikes as they have never seen, Mr Putin said. We will never forget the casualties and losses that we suffered in the fight with terrorism here in Syria as well as at home in Russia.

Vladimir Putin with Bashar al-Assad during his visit at Hmeymim base Credit: Kremlin Press Office / Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The president told his troops they were returning with victory to their homeland and loved ones.

Mr Putin's triumphant visit to Syria comes days after he said he would run for re-election in March, a vote that is expected to keep him in power until 2024, nearly as long as Joseph Stalin. He is expected to make Russia's more aggressive foreign policy and defiance of the West a centerpiece of his campaign.

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Assad welcomes Putin

The leaders embrace on the tarmac

Mr Putin also met with president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt on Monday and was traveling on to Turkey to speak with president Recep Tayyip Erdogan as part of a strengthening of ties and the two countries.

During the sit-down, Mr al-Sisi called for the Syria de-escalation zones established by Iran, Russia and Turkey to be expanded. Mr Putin said Russia was ready to resume flights to Egypt, which were suspended after the bombing of a Russian airliner on Halloween 2015.

Russia has also been drafting an agreement to deploy warplanes to Egypt, further increasing its presence in the Middle East.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian and Turkish leaders would discuss a political solution to the Syrian war. Mr Putin has met Mr Erdogan, who he once denounced as a backstabber after Turkey shot down a Russian plane in 2015, four times in the past two months.

Vladimir Putin, left, and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, arrive for their talks in Cairo Credit: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

Russia's casualties have been mounting in Syria as its ground presence grew from advisers and military contractors to include special forces this fall, although the exact number of deaths remains secret.

In September, Russia's top military adviser was killed by a mortar strike, and two Russians who were reportedly working for a Russian private contractor were captured by Isil and executed in September.

Read more | Escape from Isil

Mr Putin announced an air campaign in September 2015 to support his ally, an intervention that has turned the tide of the war and positioned Russia as one of the most influential voices in talks to deterine Syria's future. Russia, Turkey and Iran have been holding rival negotiations to the Western-backed talks in Geneva.

Al-Assad visited Sochi last month, hugging his Russian counterpart and thanking him for Russia's efforts to save our country. Mr Putin returned the gesture and hugged al-Assad when he disembarked his presidential plane in Syria on Monday.
WASHINGTON  White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders lashed out at reporters on Monday in response to multiple high-profile corrections to news stories this month, falsely claiming that journalistic outlets do not regularly take responsibility for mistakes and intentionally publish inaccurate information.

Meanwhile President Donald Trump and White House officials  including Sanders  frequently put out dubious claims or fail to correct themselves when proven false.

Sanders referred to recent corrections from CNN and ABC as supposed evidence of reporters purposefully misleading the American people.

When journalists make honest mistakes, they should own up to them, she said at the White House press briefing. A lot of times you dont. Theres a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposefully misleading the American people, something that happens regularly.

You cant say that its an honest mistake, when you are purposely putting out information that you know to be false, she continued, saying that there should be a certain level of responsibility in that process.

But CNN corrected its story about the Trump campaigns access to documents hacked by Wikileaks. And ABC News suspended veteran investigative reporter Brian Ross for his erroneous report about contacts by the Trump campaign with Russian officials, apologizing that it had not been fully vetted through our editorial standards process.

Over the weekend, Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel deleted and apologized for an inaccurate tweet about the crowd size at Trumps Friday night rally in Florida.

Trump, in response, called on the Post to fire Weigel.

.@daveweigel of the Washington Post just admitted that his picture was a FAKE (fraud?) showing an almost empty arena last night for my speech in Pensacola when, in fact, he knew the arena was packed (as shown also on T.V.). FAKE NEWS, he should be fired.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

While frequently attacking and lecturing reporters about accuracy and fairness  and using his favorite moniker fake news for stories critical of him  Trump and White House officials have a tenuous relationship with the truth.

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Last month, Trump promoted several Islamophobic videos from a British far-right activist with a history of disseminating false information. Responding to questions about the veracity of the videos, Sanders told reporters that was not the issue because the threat posed by Islamic extremists is real.

At a June White House press briefing, Sanders instructed reporters to watch a sting video from Project Veritas, the organization run by the right-wing provocateur James OKeefe, known for deceptively editing his materials.

Whether its accurate or not I dont know, she said, before urging everybody in this room, and frankly, everybody across the country to take a look at it.

Trump has an extensive history of stoking conspiracy theories without evidence, from claiming that millions of people voted illegally in last years election, to asserting that thousands and thousands of Muslims in New Jersey cheered the Sept. 11 attacks, to questioning the authenticity of his predecessor Barack Obamas birth certificate, among many, many others.

In July, The New York Times published an account of nearly every outright lie Trump had told since his Jan. 20 inauguration. The list was lengthy.

Also on HuffPost

False. Indeed, the pope said of Donald Trump earlier this year, "This man is not Christian."

Big league false.

This Facebook post is actually a link to the very article that disproves it. Eagle-eyed readers will notice the description itself even says it's "fake." False.

This is false.

Still waiting for this sex tape. Not holding our breath.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Women who accused Trump of sexually inappropriate behavior say lawmakers should extend same scrutiny to the president that they did to Al Franken

A group of women who have accused Donald Trump of sexually inappropriate behavior on Monday demanded that Congress open an investigation.

The women, Samantha Holvey, Rachel Crooks and Jessica Leeds, first came forward during the 2016 presidential election. Crooks and Leeds have accused Trump of unwanted kissing and groping. Holvey says Trump barged into a Miss USA dressing room while he was a part owner of the beauty pageant.



More than a dozen women have accused Trump of sexual assault and several more have accused him of sexually inappropriate behavior. Trump has denied all such claims and the White House has said all women making allegations against the president are lying.



Holvey, Crooks and Leeds are sharing their stories again in the hope that under the banner of the #MeToo movement, they will have a greater impact.



Jessica Leeds

Ivana Trump

Jill Harth

Kristen Anderson

Lisa Boyne

Cathy Heller

Temple Taggart

Mariah Billado

Karena Virginia

Bridget Sullivan

Tasha Dixon

Melinda McGillivray

Jennifer Murphy

Rachel Crooks

Natasha Stoynoff

Ninni Laaksonen

Jessica Drake

Samantha Holvey

Summer Zervos

Cassandra Searles

Read the full details of the 20 accusations here

Lets try round two, Holvey said on Monday, appearing on NBCs Today show with Megyn Kelly. The environments different, lets try again.

Hours later, at a press conference at the Lexington Hotel in New York, Holvey said lawmakers should extend the same scrutiny to Trump they did to Al Franken, the Minnesota senator who faced an ethics investigation before he resigned his seat over claims of groping and unwanted kissing.

I think its only fair that [Trump] be investigated as well, Holvey said.

The investigation by Congress is probably the only thing we can ask for, said Crooks.

One prominent Democrat, the New York senator Kirsten Gillibrand, called on Trump to step down.



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President Trump should resign, Gillibrand said on CNN. These allegations are credible, they are numerous. Ive heard these womens testimony, and many of them are heartbreaking

Gillibrand, whose call for Franken to resign set that process in motion, said if Trump refused to immediately resign, Congress should investigate and hold him accountable.



Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, was asked at the press briefing on Monday afternoon about the accusers decision to come forward again. The allegations dated from long before [Trump] was elected president, Sanders said, adding: The people of this country, in a decisive election, supported President Trump.

Trump actually won the presidency in the electoral college, thanks to razor-thin margins in battleground states. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by nearly three million ballots.

The president has addressed these accusations directly and denied all of these allegations, Sanders added.

The press secretary was unable to provide any specific evidence to discredit the allegations, relying instead on Trumps denials and expressing a desire to move onto other topics.

The president has first-hand knowledge on what he did or didnt do, she said.

Crooks, Holvey and Leeds  who claims Trump jumped on her and began to paw her while the two were seated next to each other on a plane  are the first accusers to publicly renew their claims amid a new, national reckoning with sexual assault and harassment.



Another woman who did not make an allegation before the election has recently come forward: Juliet Huddy, a former Fox News host who claims Trump attempted to kiss her in the Trump Tower elevator after a business lunch.

Now I have matured, I think I would say, Woah, no, but at the time I was younger and I was a little shocked, Huddy told compoundmedia.com. I thought maybe he didnt mean to do it, but I was kind of making excuses.

On Sunday, Nikki Haley, Trumps ambassador to the United Nations, told CBS Trumps accusers should be heard.

I know that he was elected, she said. But, you know, women should always feel comfortable coming forward. And we should all be willing to listen to them.

Asked on Monday if she agreed with Haleys comments, Sanders again responded by pointing to the outcome of the election: The American people knew this and voted for him.

Sanders also declined to say if defending her boss against allegations of sexual misconduct had been difficult. Im here to speak on behalf of the president, she said.

Accusations of sexual assault and harassment have jeopardized the careers of many lawmakers. Two members of the House of Representatives, Republican Trent Franks and long-serving Democrat John Conyers, have resigned or retired. A third, the Republican Blake Farenthold, has acknowledged he has faced several sexual harassment claims.

In Alabama, Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore faces claims he molested a 14-year-old girl and pursued relationships with teenagers while he was in his 30s. Should he win Tuesdays election, party leaders will face the choice of whether or not to seat him.

As Trumps accusers were appearing on the Today show, the White House provided a statement to NBC.



These false claims, totally disputed in most cases by eyewitness accounts, were addressed at length during last years campaign and the American people voiced their judgment by delivering a decisive victory, the statement read.

The timing and absurdity of these false claims speaks volumes and the publicity tour that has begun only further confirms the political motives behind them.

Contrary to the statement, many of Trumps accusers have not been publicly contradicted by eyewitnesses and many have been corroborated by eyewitnesses and other contemporary evidence.

Im just hoping it continues forward and it grows, said Leeds of the #MeToo movement. I am hoping this will produce enough pressure on Congress to address it more than just for their own members, but address it in the presidency.

None of us want this attention, she added. None of us are comfortable with it.

Watching Trump win in spite of their allegations was heartbreaking, Holvey said on NBC.

Were private citizens, she said. And for us to put ourselves out there to try and show America who this man is and especially how he views women  for them to say, Meh, we dont care, it hurt.


Photo: megshops.com

The entire country is bearing witness to the Knockin Em Down Tour.

While its not an actual concert tour, the frequency of the famous men accused of sexual harassment very much resembles one, and thanks to the womens retailer, Meg, theres merch for it.

Originally from Canada, Meghan Kinney started her New York business in 1994, as a clothing shop made by and for women. Her teams latest design: a T-shirt and sweater featuring a list of many of the famous men accused of sexual assault alongside the date on which the allegations against them became public. The front reads, Another one bites the dust.

Kinney gives credit to her co-worker Alicia Riguzzi for the design. She says the team had been brainstorming plans for another line of items celebrating woman power, due to come out in January, when Riguzzi thought of the idea. Matt Lauer was fired the day before, and the team was particularly disappointed in the allegations against Louis C.K.

Every week, it was somebody, [and] when you think about dates, you think Oh, its like a concert. My production manager and design assistant [said], You know what I want to make, I want to make this band T-shirt, Kinney tells Yahoo Lifestyle. I turned to her and said, That is genius.

And so, last Wednesday, Meg launched the Knockin Em Down Tour merch. Names on the back of the shirt include Fox News Bill OReilly, former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, actor Kevin Spacey, comedian Louis C.K., Democratic Sen. Al Franken, news host Charlie Rose, journalist Matt Lauer, and others. President Trump is featured as the last stop on the tour, with a to-be-announced or TBA tour date, because women have come forward to accuse him of sexual misconduct, but he has yet to suffer any consequences from the allegations.

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The sweaters and shirts cost $59 and $49 each, respectively, and $10 of each sale will go to the New York Alliance Against Sexual Assault & Womens Support Network of York Region, Ontario.

Kinneys shop has long been a supporter of women. Not only is the brand run by women, the team made clothing for the Womens March earlier this year. Kinney says the current items represent the companys statement on the current state of affairs and the hypocrisy on the part of the president.

Its time were setting a standard for the workplace, she adds. I feel lucky that I am a woman who runs her own business, in a group of fantastic women.

So far, Meg has sold around 100 of the 180 items created, and counting. Although no more of this version will be made after it sells out, given the current feedback, Kinney foresees creating an updated version. She and her team could not resist.

[The idea] just screamed Do it, she says.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.




It's death by a thousand nibbles.

Pando, the world's largest living organism  and possibly its oldest  is being destroyed by the voracious appetite of mule deer.

Also known as the trembling giant, Pando is a colony of quaking aspen that spans 106 acres (43 hectares) of south-central Utah. Because of an explosion of deer in the area, new sprouts from Pando are eaten before they have a chance to mature, and the venerable organism is at risk of dying out altogether.

"The system is not replacing itself; it's highly out of balance," said Paul Rogers, an ecologist at Utah State University and the director of the Western Aspen Alliance. [See Photos of Earth's Oldest Living Things]

A forest of one tree

To the casual observer, Pando looks like an ordinary forest. But each tree shares a common root system and is a genetically identical clone of its forest pals. It's essentially a forest of one tree, Rogers said.

"What you all think of as trees are actually one living and connected being," Rogers told Live Science. "Being in this grove or this forest to me is pretty magical."

Though Pando has often been called the oldest living organism on Earth (with some estimates claiming the stand is upward of 80,000 years old), dating techniques for the colony are so imprecise that no one can say for sure how old the grove is, Rogers said.

A closer look reveals that the majestic superorganism is in trouble. In short, Pando is aging fast.

"If we had a community of 50,000 people and every one of them was over 80 years of age, we wouldn't have a very sustainable community," Rogers said. "That is exactly what we're looking at with the Pando clone."

The reason is that mule deer, and occasionally cattle, are devouring the babies of the community before they have an opportunity to grow to maturity. The problem has been going on for decades, Rogers said.

"It's clear that nearly every sprout that comes up  they're technically called suckers  is eaten almost immediately as it comes out of the ground," Rogers said.

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Meanwhile, the older stems are almost all between 110 and 130 years old, which is about the typical life span of individual quaking aspen stems, Rogers said. The forest floor is covered with dead trees, and no new life is coming in to replace it, he said.

Complicated problem

Mule deer and other herbivores became such a problem for Pando in recent decades in part because of humans.

"Humans have eliminated predators," Rogers said.

Without wolves prowling the area, for instance, deer populations not only explode, but the deer that do frequent an area become more brazen. Instead of moving on quickly, they linger and munch on the nutrient-rich sprouts to their hearts' content.

"It's akin to a salad bar or a candy store. It's very, very desirable to these herbivores," Rogers said.

What's more, because state wildlife agencies fund themselves in part by issuing hunting licenses, they have some incentive to keep the deer populations high, so hunters don't go home empty-handed, Rogers said. Finally, there are cabins near Pando, and one campground is located within the grove itself, Rogers said. Because hunting near human dwellings is prohibited, the deer tend to hang out in this area because they know they'll be safe from hunters, he added.

Cattle that come in from higher ground for a few weeks a year also pose problems, because they may trample or eat the shoots during those periods, Rogers said. [Quaking Aspen: Trees of the Mountain West]

Possible solutions

Pando is dying, but Rogers, along with others at the Western Aspen Alliance, an organization that works to promote healthy aspen ecosystems, are looking for ways to save the trembling giant. Cattle come through the area a few weeks a year, so persuading ranchers to take a slightly different route for those few weeks could help, he said.

In a study published in February in the journal Ecosphere, Rogers and his colleagues showed that fencing-in growing suckers had some success in preventing deer from eating them, as long as the suckers were actively protected until they were above "browsing" height of about 6 feet (2 meters). (Above this height, most mule deer aren't tall enough to easily eat these sprouts.)

However, deer sometimes manage to get through these fences, so the fencing strategy may need to be re-evaluated at some point, Rogers said.

Another possible solution is to hire trained professionals to cull (read: shoot) deer, Rogers said. Letting amateur hunters loose near human-occupied areas like campgrounds or cabins isn't safe, but professional sharpshooters are trained to do so safely.

It's possible, too, that culling just a few animals could have an outsize impact. Aspen have chemical defenses that leave a bad taste in animals' mouths, so the deer that are munching on Pando are likely just a handful of animals that have acquired adaptations that allow them to tolerate the taste, Rogers said.

"It's really actually not a big number that are chronically feeding on that area," Rogers said.

Rogers is working with several different agencies and interest groups to find ways to save Pando that everyone can live with.

"I'm optimistic," Rogers said.

Originally published on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
Thousands of protestors gathered outside the U.S. embassy in Jakarta, Indonesias capital, this weekend in the latest demonstrations against President Donald Trumps decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Led by the Islamist opposition Prosperous Justice Party, or PKS, around 6,000 protesters convened in front of the embassy in Jakarta, a police spokesperson told the Straits Times. The turnout marks a dramatic uptick from an earlier rally held on Friday.

The protestors, many of whom were dressed in jubah, or Islamic robes, carried Palestinian flags and signs that read, Say no to Trump and Save al-Aqsa, reports Anadolu Agency, referring to the mosque located in the Old City of Jerusalem.

PKS said in a statement that Trumps decision to recognize the contested capital as belonging solely to Israel was a form of humiliation and provocation against Muslims all over the world, the Associated Press reports.

On Sunday, a separate protest organized by activists from Masyarakat Relawan Indonesia, or the Indonesia Volunteer Society, gathered at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout, not far from the embassy, according to the Straits Times.

Indonesian President Joko Jokowi Widodo  the leader of the worlds largest Muslim nation  last week delivered a televised rebuke of Trumps plan to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Not only has Trump upended seven decades of U.S. foreign policy, but he may also shake up security in the Middle East and the world, Jokowi said in his speech, according to a transcript published by the Jakarta Globe.

Indonesia strongly condemns the United States formal recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Jokowi said in his address. We ask President Trump to reconsider the decision.

Protests have spread across Muslim-majority countries united in solidarity with Palestine, which views East Jerusalem as its rightful capital. Clashes have erupted in Israel, Palestine and Lebanon, while Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Iran have all joined in condemnation.

Washingtons decision drew unanimous dissent from every non-U.S. member of the U.N. Security Council on Friday.
DUBAI (Reuters) - Yemen's Houthi group has buried the body of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sanaa, allowing only a handful of relatives to attend, sources from his General People's Congress (GPC) party said on Sunday. Saleh, 75, was killed by the Iran-aligned Houthis on Monday, after he had called for a "new page" in ties with a Saudi-led coalition that his supporters together with the Houthis had fought for nearly three years. A GPC source, who has asked not to be identified, said the Houthis allowed less than 10 people from Saleh's relatives to attend the night-time burial in the capital Sanaa, but gave no details on the exact location. GPC Secretary-General Aref al-Zouka, who was killed with Saleh, was buried on Saturday in his native al-Saeed district of Shabwa province in southern Yemen after the Houthis handed over his body to tribal leaders, media and GPC officials said. Relatives said on Thursday that Saleh's family had refused conditions demanded by the Houthis for handing over the body. Some said they wanted to bury the body in the courtyard of a mosque he had built near the presidential compound in southern Sanaa. Saleh ruled Yemen for 33 years before being forced to step down in 2012 in a Gulf-brokered transition plan following months of Arab Spring protests demanding democracy. He remained in politics as the head of the GPC, Yemen's largest political party, and in 2015 he joined forces with the Iran-aligned Houthis after they captured the capital Sanaa in a move that precipitated Saudi-led military intervention on the side of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. (Writing by Sami Aboudi; editing by Jason Neely)
A man with a home-made pipe bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion in a New York subway station during morning rush hour, in what the city's mayor called an "attempted terrorist attack".

The suspect - identified as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah - was one of four people injured by the blast and has been detained. The pipe bomb ignited, but did not fully explode, leaving Ullah with lacerations and burns on his hands and abdomen and three victims being treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Police are now searching a number of addresses in Brooklyn connected to Ullah as they try and pin down a motive for the attack.

The blast occurred at about 7.20am (12.20pm GMT) in a passageway connecting subway lines near 42nd Street and 8th Avenue close to Times Square. The noise of the blast filled parts of the nearby Port Authority Bus Terminal, which was evacuated along with a number of subway lines.

When we hear of an attack in the subways, its incredibly unsettling, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters. And lets also be clear, this was an attempted terrorist attack. Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

Please allow the liveblog to load...

The suspect Ullah is said to have made statements after the explosion that led officials to believe he could have been inspired by overseas terror groups, most likely Isis. However, when asked about these at a news conference the New York Police Commissioner James O'Neill declined to go into detail, saying they were a focus of the investigation. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ullah arrived to the US from Bangladesh about seven years ago and had been licensed to drive a for-hire taxi cab between 2012 and 2015, according to law enforcement officials and NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission.

He is said to be speaking with investigators from his hospital bed, police said.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has told CNN that the suspect in the attack was disgruntled and went to the internet to try and get information about how to make a home-made bomb.

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The governor earlier told a news conference: The first news this morning was obviously very frightening and disturbing... When you hear about a bomb in the subway station, it is in many ways one of our worst nightmares. The reality turns out to be better than the initial expectation and fear.

Mr Cuomo said that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.

Let's go back to work, he added. We're not going to allow them to disrupt us.
A bomb has exploded on a Manhattan subway platform leaving four people injured in a suspected-Isil-inspired attack.

The suspected bomber is Akayed Ullah, a 27-year-old Bangladeshi national who is thought to have lived in the US for seven years.

Ullah, who lived in Brooklyn, was armed with a five-inch metal pipe bomb and battery pack as he walked through a midtown Manhattan transit hub, sources told the New York Post.

Local TV image reported to be Akayed UllahCredit: CBS/Universal News And Sport

The device prematurely exploded which meant it only partially detonated in the right side of the suspect's jacket.

Ullah, who is thought to have been seriously injured in the attack, told officials he made the explosive device at the electrical company where he works, according to the New York Post.

CCTV Port Authority image reported to be of Akayed UllahCredit: NY Port Authority/Universal News And Sport

The blast happened on Monday morning in an underpass at the Port Authority Bus Terminal near Times Square - the nation's most crowded bus station.

Ullah had burns and lacerations to his hands and abdomen, police said.

New York Mayor Bill De Blasio has described the incident as a "suspected terror attack".
The Hospital for Special Surgery, New York-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine expressed their sadness about the news: Facebook

A top US surgeon is said to have been found dead with a knife in his torso in his New York flat on Sunday in a suspected suicide.

Dr Dean Lorich, 54, worked as Bonos Orthopaedic trauma surgeon after the U2 frontman fell off his bike in 2014 and required extensive reconstructive surgery. The musician broke his arm in six places and suffered a broken eye socket.

Dr Lorich, the father of three daughters, was the associate director of the Orthopedic Trauma Service at the Hospital for Special Surgery and a professor at Weill Cornell Medical College.

A New York Police Department official told ABC News his death was being investigated as an apparent suicide. They said the investigation was ongoing and no arrests had been made.

Authorities have not found a suicide note.

The official said initial investigations had not found any indications of forced entry at his apartment in Park Avenue in Manhattan.

NYPD said police who were answering to an emergency call of an assault in a Park Avenue apartment at 1.05pm on Sunday found Dr Lorich unconscious and unresponsive with a knife in his torso.

During an interview with Rolling Stone magazine back in 2014, Dr Lorich discussed treating Bono, saying: He was taken emergently to the operating room ... where the elbow was washed out and debrided.

A nerve trapped in the break was moved and the bone was repaired with three metal plates and 18 screws.

The Hospital for Special Surgery, New York-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine expressed their sadness about the news via a statement on Sunday evening.

"Dr Lorich was a distinguished orthopaedic trauma surgeon and teacher serving at Hospital for Special Surgery, New York-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine. We mourn this tragic development and extend our deepest sympathies to Dr Lorich's family, friends and patients," they said.

For confidential support on mental health call the Samaritans on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or attend a local Samaritans branch
Authorities investigating an attempted terror attack in New York have said the would-be suicide bomber detonated a homemade bomb attached to his body.

The suspect, identified as 27-year-old, Akayed Ullah, was taken to hospital with wounds from the blast and three people nearby were injured.

What happened?

Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York, described the rush-hour blast as an attempted terror attack, adding: Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals.

Officials said the explosion was reported at 7.20am (12.20pm GMT) in a below-ground walkway connecting subway lines near Times Square.

Emergency services found Ullah at the scene with burns and lacerations to his hands and abdomen.

Police believe Ullah detonated the device himself but could not confirm whether the crowded walkway itself was the target, or whether the suspect may have been travelling towards somewhere else.

He was arrested and taken to hospital for treatment in the custody of police. Three people standing nearby at the time of the blast presented themselves to two nearby hospitals with minor injuries including ringing in the ears and headaches.

Several New York subway lines were evacuated and parts of the network temporarily shut down, before being gradually reopened.

What was the device?

The Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, described the device as effectively low-tech, adding: Anyone can go on the internet and download garbage and vile-ness on how to put together an amateur level explosive device and that is the reality that we live in.

John Miller, deputy commissioner of the NYPD, told a press conference the device was based on a pipe bomb.

It was affixed to his person with a combination of Velcro and zip ties. Bomb technicians processing crime scene, he told a press conference, adding that experts were analysing the device to confirm what explosive it contained and how it was constructed.

Pipe bombs are a type of improvised device that see a sealed section of pipe filled with explosive material, aiming to increase the power of an explosion because of increased pressure and shrapnel.

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It is unusual for a single pipe bomb, which are normally concealed or used as part of larger devices, to be attached to a person.

Suicide vests can be made from several pipe bombs or another combination of explosives packed with ball bearings or shrapnel.

(AFP/Getty Images)

Who is responsible?

No terrorist group immediately issued a claim of responsibility and officials have not confirmed any links or sympathies by the bomber.

Mr De Blasio said only Ullah was believed to be involved and there were no further known threats to New York, adding: At this point in time all we know is one individual who was unsuccessful in his aims.

Mr ONeill said that officers were investigating whether the bomber shouted anything before detonating his device.

When asked if he was connected to Isis, he replied: He did make statements but were not going to talk about that right now.

Is Isis involved?

The terrorist group did not immediately claim responsibility for the bombing but statements have been issued hours or even days after incidents in the past.

Isis does not always link itself to attack that are unsuccessful or where the suspect has been arrested.

A recent anomaly was the Parsons Green attack, which saw a homemade bomb partially explode on the London Underground.

A teenage Iraqi refugee was arrested on suspicion of attempting the attack, which saw several people injured by a device concealed inside a Lidl bag and detonated during the morning rush-hour in September.

Isis has been intensifying its calls for supporters to carry out terror attacks around the world as it becomes harder for jihadis to travel to its dwindling territories in Iraq and Syria.

The group has issued several rounds of detailed guidance on carrying out massacres using cars, lorries, knives and bombs.

A signature of Isis bombings has been the powerful and volatile explosive TATP, which was used in attacks including Paris and Brussels, but was not immediately evident in New York.

Al-Qaeda has also issued bomb-making instructions to supporters, with one notorious article on making a pipe bomb issued in an English-language propaganda magazine being that has been tied to atrocities including the Boston bombing.

Isis claimed responsibility for another failed bomb attack in Parsons Green, London, in September (PA)

Have there been other terror attacks in New York recently?

Isis claimed responsibility for a terror attack that left eight people dead in Manhattan on 31 October.

Investigators confirmed Sayfullo Saipov was inspired by the groups propaganda to launch a rampage using a truck, after he allegedly declared his intentions to officials and asked to hang an Isis flag in his hospital room.

The NYPD said he had followed Isis instructions almost to a T but no formal links to the group had been uncovered.

In September 2016, three pressure cooker bombs exploded in New York and New Jersey as part of a coordinated plot by an Islamist inspired by both al-Qaeda and Isis.

Ahmad Khan Rahimi is alleged to have planted several other bombs that did not detonate.

A blood-soaked journal found on the suspect after he was shot and detained by police contained references to Isis late spokesman, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, and a speech calling on supporters to attack the kuffar [disbelievers] in their backyard.

The journal also expressed admiration for brother Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-Yemeni al-Qaeda recruiter killed in a US drone strike in 2011.

It read: I looked for guidance and Alhumdulilah [praise God], guidance came Sheikh Anwar [al-Awlaki], Brother Adnani/Dawla [Isis].

Mr Miller said that around 26 terror plots have been foiled in New York since al-Qaedas 9/11 attacks, including the 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt, which was linked to the Pakistani Taliban.

He added: We have prevented a significant number of attacks but this is a fact of life whether youre in New York or London, or Paris. The question is can it happen here? And the answer is it can happen anywhere.

A note in Mr Saipov's reportedly says he was acting for Isis (Getty)

Are transport networks being targeted?

The bombing is the latest incident to target transport networks, which have been a recurring location of terror attacks around the world.

Trains and underground networks have been the site of atrocities by groups including Isis, al-Qaeda, other Islamists, the IRA, neo-fascists and Sikh militants.

Among the deadliest attack of its kind is the 2006 Mumbai train bombings, which saw seven blasts in 11 minutes kill more than 200 people on the Indian citys suburban railway.

The Madrid train bombings in 2004 killed 192 victims in 10 near-simultaneous explosions in the morning rush hour, while the 2008 Mumbai attackers also included a railway station among targets.

Bombs were detonated on both the London Underground and a bus in the 2005 London bombings, which killed 52 victims, and were followed two weeks later by four more attempted attacks on public transport.

Experts have ranked transport networks and interchanges among other soft targets that will continue to be used by terrorists searching for densely crowded sites with low security.


In the spring of 1949, when I arrived in Israel, I encountered a lively country, shining with the light of social optimism. Man and his rights, it was written almost everywhere, are the state's top priority. He was called "the new Jew." I objected to that term, I greatly disagreed with the opinions of political leaders at the time, but I respected their modest lifestyle.

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In the 21st century, in a state that has raised the banner of democratic values and shared responsibility, the coalition chairman declares the Petah Tikva protest unconstitutional and anti-democratic. The police obey and act accordingly.

Like in dark regimes, the police set up roadblocks and caught key activists on their way to the protest, as if they were criminals seeking to harm their state. In the disabled people's protest , in which they bitterly cried out for a dignified human existence, they were fined by the police and blocked with spikes, as if their physical restrictions werent enough. When the government attacked the media, who are merely doing their job, it was as if the police had received a command from above to violate freedom of press and the publics right to know.

Anti-corruption protest in Tel Aviv, Saturday evening (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

The worldview that sees the meaning of democracy in the tyranny of the majority is gaining in strength, although that majority is actually marginal and fragile. However, democracy is first and foremost a shield and wall for an ideological, ethnic, religious and androcentric minority.

All over the world, we Jews are obsessed with this interpretation of democracy. We cry out, rightfully, when we suffer as members of a religious minority. In Israel, we seem to have forsaken a decent interpretation of democracy.

Israels Arab population has been severely harmed by discrimination in different areas and by eccentric and discriminating legislation initiatives. Instead of encouraging a tendency for welcomed cooperation between the different parts of the population and opening our arms to a minority that makes up about one-quarter of the states population, we are encircling it with a racist wall of suspicion, alienation and exclusion.

Last week, we were exposed to a dramatic discovery: The situation of Israels poor improved this year. Given that the paupers standard of living is measured according to the economic situation of the middle class, and given the fact that business moguls and huge corporations have nearly crushed that class, we were informed that the paupers fate had relatively improved

Which means that in our slums today hunger no longer bites, the cold no longer freezes, diseases no longer kill. Whoever says otherwise will suffer the same fate as Breaking the Silence : Denial and ostracism. In other words, when a person has no shoes and he complains about being barefoot, he is risking being charged with defamation of the state we longed for 2,000 years.

In our slums today hunger no longer bites, the cold no longer freezes, diseases no longer kill (Photo: Eran Granot)

Its so sad that the longed-for state has deteriorated to become the poorest state among OECD countries. Israeli society is not a lazy society; 60 percent of poor families are working families. In the longed-for state, the poverty rate of children in Israel is among the highest in developed countries. The pay gaps between men and women are really outrageous. The capital and peripheries of the longed-for state are groaning under poverty. A considerable gap has been discovered between life expectancy in the center of the country and in the periphery. Unfortunately, the state has turned its back on the welfare policy and has allotted the poor a short life span.

We live in an era in which the state shirks its responsibility for social solidarity, alarming poverty rates, robbing the public coffers, exploitation of citizens by private corporations, an erosion in the values of democracy, lashing out at the Supreme Court, clipping the wings of humane organizations by imposing bans, inciting against them and imposing sanctions on them, firing employees whose political views dont match the majoritys views, as well as inciting and terrorizing the governments critics.

I admit that, as an author, I fear the schemes being devised against the freedom of intellectual work in the country. Intellectuals, even the boldest ones among them, are not made of the same stuff that creates adventurers blessed with iron-clad nerves. An artist isnt supposed to create in a climate of a boycott, ostracism and threats.

One day, the next generations will ask why our days were spiritually dry. None of the commissars will stand up to address this heavy accusation. Intimidation, threats to cut budgets, attacks on artists who refuse to toe the lineall this could paralyze the spiritual work, which is the air that every culture breathes, and the air the Jewish people have breathed throughout the generations, all over the world.
DUBAI - A Bahraini civil society group has defended sending a delegation to Israel as a gesture of tolerance and coexistence, state news agency BNA has reported, after news of the visit sparked wide anger on social media.

The visit by 24 delegates from the group called 'This is Bahrain' has prompted a hashtag #Bahrain_resists_normalization, in which twitter users declaring their opposition to what some called an "act of treason" against Palestinians and Bahrainis.

In a statement carried by state news agency BNA late on Sunday, the group said the visit was a private initiative to "Israel and occupied Jerusalem" comprising Bahrainis and expatriates of various faiths.

"The initiative by 'This is Bahrain' is based on the principle of tolerance and coexistence, an approach embraced by the Kingdom of Bahrain and a feature of its society, and aims to visit Islamic, Christian, Jewish and other holy sites across the world," the group said.
IDF forces arrested Hader Adnan, a senior member of the Islamic Jihad, overnight Sunday at his home near Jenin in the northern West Bank.

Adnan is famous for his long hunger strike to protest his administrative detention.
The taxi driver who was praised for helping subdue a terrorist attacking a security guard outside the Jerusalem central bus station was actually hindering efforts by the security shift manager to neutralize the attacker, security footage of the incident has shown.

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Yosef Ben Amo, a retired policeman, said himself he had initially mistaken the incident to be a brawl, trying to pull the security shift manager away from the terrorist, who just moments earlier stabbed and seriously wounded 46-year-old security guard Asher Elmaliach.

Security footage of attack

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The security shift manager knocked the terrorist to the ground and punched him repeatedly, which led Ben Amo to believe he was witnessing a mere scuffle.

Consequently, the security shift manager had to fight off Ben Amo while he was trying to subdue the terrorist. This went on until police officers arrived at the scene and intervened, helping neutralize the terrorist.

Ben Amo trying to pull security shift manager away from terrorist

"I was afraid for the security guard's life," the shift manager said, referring to Elmaliach. "I attacked (the terrorist) because I was worried there would be other innocent casualties."

Michel Ben-Baruch, the manager of the Jerusalem branch of the Mikud security company, said the shift manager "did not lose his cool and immediately started running after the terrorist. He caught up with him and put him down. He implemented everything he learned and was taught during the training he received."

Ben Amo received a certificate of honor from Jerusalem District Police Commander Yoram Halevi and from the citys Mayor Nir Barkat.

I saw a security guard running after someone. I didn't realize in the beginning that it was a terrorist. He jumped on him and I tried to separate them, he recalled on Sunday evening. At a certain point he told me that it was a terrorist and he had stabbed a guard. I bent over the terrorist, punched him below his belt and my finger was injured a little.

Yosef Ben Amo (Photo: Yoav Dudkevitch)

Meanwhile, Asher Elmaliach, the security guard who stopped the terrorist from entering the central bus station with his body, remains in serious but stable condition.

He suffered stab wounds to his heart and had to undergo emergency surgery upon arriving at the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. His life remains at risk.

Elmaliach's six brothers arrived at the hospital shortly after the attack. They asked the public to pray for him.

"It's a shock, there was a lot of crying when we entered the (hospital) room," said Helly Ben-Harush, Elmaliach's ex-wife.

She and their son Ofek learned of what happened from friends who recognized Elmaliach in videos of the attack in the media and online.

"He's a charming man, rare, very attached to his son and me. We stayed friends despite the divorce, we're still a family," she told Ynet.

Elmaliach's son, Ofek, said, "I know he did it to stop a more serious attack. I guess the terrorist seemed suspicious to begin with, and he wanted to enter the central bus station to carry out a mass attack. My father decided to risk himself to save others."
JAKARTA - Hardline Muslim groups in Indonesia burned photos of US President Donald Trump, as well as US and Israeli flags, on Monday during a protest against Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Hundreds attended the protest outside the US embassy in Jakarta, which was barricaded by barbed wire and dozens of police officers.

"Let us witness the destruction of Israel's hegemony," one protest leader shouted into a megaphone as protesters burned an Israeli flag. "We will support Palestine with our blood."

Many protesters waved Palestinian flags and carried banners supporting "intifada," or an uprising against Israel, and rally leaders also shouted anti-Semitic slogans.

The protest was led by the Islamic Defenders Front, an aggressive vigilante group that calls for sharia, or Islamic religious law, to be imposed in Indonesia, a secular country.
BRUSSELS - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visiting the European Union, praised US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as his country's capital on Monday and said he expected Europeans to follow suit.

Ahead of a meeting with EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Netanyahu said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by European governments, would contribute to peace in the Middle East. He called on the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state and to accept that Jerusalem was its capital.

Moments earlier, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told reporters as she greeted Netanyahu on the first visit to the EU by an Israeli premier in 22 years, that the bloc would continue to recognize the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visiting the European Union, praised US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital on Monday and said he expected Europeans to follow suit.

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Ahead of an informal breakfast with EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Netanyahu said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by European governments, would contribute to peace in the Middle East.

"It makes peace possible because recognizing reality is the substance of peace, the foundation of peace," Netanyahu told reporters as he was greeting by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini before a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

"There is now an effort an effort to bring forward a new peace proposal by the American administration. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should see what is presented and see if we can advance this peace."

Netanyahu said Trump's move, condemned by the Palestinians and by European governments, should be emulated by them.

"It's time that the Palestinians recognize the Jewish state and also recognize the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem," he said.

Netanyahu visits EU headquarters in Brussels (:  | :  )

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"I believe that, even though we don't have an agreement yet, this is what will happen in the future. I believe that all, or most, of the European countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem, recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and engage robustly with us for security, prosperity and peace."

The Israeli leader stressed his country's partnership with Europe, saying its intelligence cooperation had helped prevent militant attacks while its security role in the Middle East had curbed Islamic State's expansion in the region.

He also highlighted Israel's economic contribution in new technologies. Mogherini said the EU and Israel were "friends and partners."

A demonstration condemning Netanyahu's visit is planned for later in the morning in Brussels.

Czech FM: US embassy move 'can't help us'

Even Israel's closest European allies such as the Czech Republic warned Trump's decision was bad for peace efforts, while France insisted Jerusalem's status could only be agreed in a final deal between Israelis and Palestinians.

Asked by reporters about Trump's decision to switch the US Embassy to Jerusalem, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said: "I'm afraid it can't help us."

Last week, the Czech foreign ministry said it would begin considering moving the Czech Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which many in Israel saw as an endorsement of Trump's move.

But Prague later said it accepted Israel's sovereignty only over West Jerusalem.

After a breakfast meeting between Netanyahu and EU foreign ministers, Sweden's top diplomat said no European at the closed-door meeting had voiced support for Trump's decision, and no country was likely to follow the United States in announcing plans to move its embassy.

"I have a hard time seeing that any other country would do that and I don't think any other EU country will do it," Margot Wallstrom told reporters.

EU foreign ministers reiterated the EU position that the lands Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day Warincluding the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Golan Heightsare not part of the internationally recognized borders of Israel.

"I'm convinced that it is impossible to ease tension with a unilateral solution," Zaoralek said as he and his counterparts arrived for a breakfast with Netanyahu. "We are talking about an Israeli state but at the same time we have to speak about a Palestinian state."

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian urged Washington to come forward with peace plans that are being drawn up by Jason Greenblatt, Trump's Middle East envoy, and Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner.

"They've announced to us some kind of American initiative. We've been waiting for several months. If it's not the case, then perhaps the European Union should take the initiative, but it's too early to say," Le Drian said.

"Everyone knows that the resolution of the Middle East crisis goes through negotiations and the recognition of two states," he said.

"(Jerusalem) could be the capital of Israel and a future Palestinian state but that has to be negotiated between the two parties," said Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders.

Reynders said that, as the biggest aid donor to the Palestinians and a major partner of Israel, the EU has "a particular role to play" in the dispute.

The EU believes it has a duty to make its voice heard as the Palestinians' biggest aid donor and Israel's biggest trade partner, even if EU governments have varying degrees of sympathy towards Israel and the Palestinians.

Some in Israel see the European Union as being too pro-Palestinian because it insists products made in Israeli settlements must be clearly labelled in Europe.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, welcoming Netanyahu on the first visit to the EU by an Israeli premier in 22 years, said the bloc would continue to recognize the "international consensus" on Jerusalem.

She repeated the Union's commitment to a two-state solution and that it was in Israel's interest to find a sustainable solution to its conflict with the Palestinians. The EU, she said, would step up its peace efforts and would hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas next month.

She also condemned attacks on Israel and on Jews elsewhere in the world, including in Europe. Trump's plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which the secretary-general of the United Nations said could damage peace efforts, has prompted sometimes violent protests.

Netanyahu to face pressure from EU

The EU foreign ministers are expected to urge Netanyahu to "resume meaningful negotiations," according to Mogherini.

The meeting comes after French President Emmanuel Macron met Netanyahu in Paris on Sunday and called on him to freeze settlement building and to re-engage with Palestinians following widespread protests over the US move.

Last week's decision by the Trump administration upended decades of US diplomacy and broke with international consensus.

Speaking alongside Netanyahu on Sunday, Macron again condemned the decision as "contrary to international law and dangerous for the peace process."

"I urged the prime minister to show courage in his dealings with the Palestinians to get us out of the current dead end," Macron said after talks in Paris with the Israeli leader.

Netanyahu meets with Macron in Paris (Photo: AFP)

"Peace does not depend on the United States alone... it depends on the capacity of the two Israeli and Palestinian leaders to do so," the French leader said.

Netanyahu has praised Trump's decision as "historic" and he explained Sunday that Jerusalem "has always been our capital and it has never been the capital of any other people."

"It has been the capital of Israel for 3,000 years, it has been the capital of the Jewish state for 70 years. We respect your history and your choices and we know that as friends you respect ours. I think this is also central for peace," he said.

"The sooner the Palestinians come to grips with this reality, the sooner we'll move toward peace."

Before leaving Israel, Netanyahu had taken aim at what he called Europe's "hypocrisy," for condemning Trump's statement, but not "the rockets fired at Israel or the terrible incitement against it."

Pointedly, Macron began his pre-prepared remarks with a clear condemnation "with the greatest of clarity of all forms of attacks in the last hours and days against Israel."

Despite the obvious differences between the 39-year-old French leader and the Israeli premier, there were also attempts to show they had developed a good early working relationship and held common views.

"Does this mean Emmanuel Macron and me agree on everything? No, not all of it, but we're working it," Netanyahu said at one point, joking later: "The lunch in the Elysee is superb, the conversation is superb too."

The two countries are keen to reset ties after often difficult exchanges under ex-president Francois Hollande.

EU not unified

Most EU members, including the bloc's biggest countries, have expressed alarm over the Trump administration's policy shift.

Mogherini has warned the decision on Jerusalem "has the potential to send us backwards to even darker times than the ones we're already living in."

Speaking to reporters in Brussels on Friday, she repeated Europe's stance that "the only realistic solution" for peace was two statesIsrael and Palestinewith Jerusalem as the capital of both and the borders returned to their status before the 1967 Six-Day War.

"It is in Israel's security interest to find a lasting solution to this decades-long conflict," she added.

But the 28-member block is not unified on the issueHungary, Greece, Lithuania and the Czech Republic in particular favor warmer ties with Israel.

Last week Hungary broke ranks to block a joint statement from the EU that was critical of Washington's Jerusalem shift.

Trump's announcement on Wednesday has been followed by days of protests and clashes in the Palestinian territories.

Four Palestinians were killed either in clashes or from Israeli air strikes in retaliation for rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.

Tens of thousands have also protested in Muslim and Arab countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia.

Further protests were held in Lebanon, Indonesia, Egypt and the Palestinian territories on Sunday.

Macron was also asked if France would attempt to launch another peace initiative to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict following failed efforts in the past.

"There's a desire by the Americans to mediate which remains and I don't want to condemn it ab initio (from the beginning)," he said. "We need to wait for the next few weeks, the next months to see what will be proposed.

"And I think we have to wait to see whether the interested parties accept it or not."
Both Jews and Israeli Arabs slammed Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman's calls Sunday to boycott the residents of Wadi Ara and his assertion they were not part of the State of Israel.

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Lieberman's comments came in the wake of the violent rioting in Wadi Ara on Saturday, during which rioters threw stones at police cars and buses in the wake of US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Lieberman and Saturday's riot in Wadi Ara (Photo: Gil Nechushtan, AFP)

"Lieberman started his life as a racist, so let him continue his racist politics. We'll ignore him, but we have to stress there is coexistence in Wadi Ara," said Ar'ara resident Melhem Melhem. "Neither Lieberman nor a thousand like him can hurt this coexistence. I hope his term doesn't long for too long. He's causing harm both to the state and its citizens."

Melhem went on to say that "Jews and Arabs will continue living and working alongside each other. This is our shared fate. No one gives any credence to his comments. The sane people in this country won't take his comments seriously."

Melhem Melhem (Photo: Shamir Elbaz)

Taufiq Hassan, who owns a bakery in Ar'ara, echoed Melhem's remarks. "I opened my business in the Wadi Ara area, a lot of Jews come to me. I also live among the Wadi Ara populationAr'ara, Kafr Qara, Umm al-Fahmand they're all incredible people who are looking for a good and quiet life. Everyone treats guests excellent."

Raja Samer, another resident of the area, added, "Lieberman's comments won't hurt anything. People here love living together. We don't need to pay any mind to a party leader who tries to spoil the relations between the two peoples. It's not a good sign."

"It is detrimental to the coexistence that has been going on in the region for more than 40 years," said Husam Abbas, one of the owners of the Al-Babor restaurant in Umm al-Fahm. "His statements are appropriate for a punk and not for the defense minister. I do not believe a statement by him will succeed in influencing our customers, it will only influence the extreme right. Everyone was a guest here, from Ariel Sharon to Netanyahu when he was still in the opposition."

Taufiq Hassan (Photo: Shamir Elbaz)

And it wasn't just the Israeli Arabs who came out against the defense minister's comments.

"I don't want to boycott the people I see as my friends," said Katzir resident Ricardo Kleinman. "Those who made the mess should pay for it, but not all of Wadi Ara. Especially as I'm welcomed with open arms in Kafr Qara."

Meni, also a resident of Katzir, shared Kleinman's feelings. "Israeli Arabs don't care what city is the capital. This isn't a matter of sanctity, so it shouldn't bother anyone. Yesterday, there was rioting so I tried not to leave the home, but today it's quiet and I came to Kafr Qara to do my shopping," Meni said.

Fellow Katzir resident Yaakov Haziza added, "There's no reason to pay any mind to Lieberman's comments. Each nation and group should develop resistance to inflammatory comments. I live in Wadi Ara, and Lieberman doesn't interest me at all, and neither does Trump. I suggest those who throw stones to also pay it no mind."

Yaakov Haziza (Photo: Shamir Elbaz)

At the Aroma Espresso Bar at the Kfar Kara junction, several Jewish residents of the area sat and defended the importance of coexistence. "The moment my neighbor is having a bad time, I will have a bad time," said Hezi, a resident of Katzir.

"They are citizens of the state and they have all the rights as such. I also have clients from the sector and there is no chance that I will change my habits towards them because of Lieberman's statement."

Uri Arieli of Sha'ar HaAmakim also expressed his anger: "The new generation of Israeli Arabs is in favor of rapprochement with the state. Only a small minority was responsible for what happened (on Saturday)."

Saturday's protest, which devolved into a riot

But despite their optimism, a tour along the Wadi Ara route revealed yesterday the tense atmosphere, characterized by the absence of a Jewish presence in the businesses belonging to residents of the Wadi.

In the morning, Ahmed Mahagna, the owner of a bakery in Wadi Ara, was optimistic and said with a smile: "Just wait; Jews come here every five minutes to buy our baked goods."

But after more than half an hour that no Jewish customer had entered the bakery, he changed his tone and realized that apparently they would not arrive today.

Sabrin Ahmed Mahajna, who works with him, stood behind the orphaned donuts who had remained on the tray since Sunday and waited for the Jewish customers who usually snatch them with delight.

Sabrin Ahmed Mahajna (Photo: Elad Gershgoren)

"If both leftists and rightists are attacking methen apparently I am right," Lieberman responded Sunday to criticism against him.

"I have never seen anyone in Wadi Ara with an Israeli flag. That's why they have to understand that they are not wanted here," he said, adding that Wadi Ara residents should prove they are part of Israel by publically condemning Saturday's protests.

Yedioth photographer meets with Arab leaders after 'near lynch'

Gil Nechushtan, a photographer for Yedioth Ahronoth, was fired up when meeting with public figures from the villages near Wadi Ara.

Nechushtan, who was nearly lynched in the violent protest and was still riled up over the chilling incident, opened the conversation with an angry accusation: "You could have helped and stop the riots in a matter of minutes."

When Nechushtan arrived to cover the demonstration on Saturday evening, dozens of masked men attacked him and wrecked his motorcycle.

Nechushtan's bike ditched as angry mob tears through the street (Photo: Gil Nechushtan)

"Throughout my years as a photographer I have been caught in countless demonstrations, but none of them prepared me for what happened on Shabbat in the heart of the State of Israel," he wrote after the event.

L to R: Abdel Latif, Nechushtan, Dr. Afu Agbaria and Kamel Agbaria (Photo: Elad Gershgoren)

Four influential figures from the city of Umm al-Fahm arrived at the meeting: Faisal Mahajna, the brother of the acting mayor and a well-known public activist, Kamel Agbaria, former head of the Clalit Medical Clinic in Umm al-Fahm, Dr. Afu Agbaria, a former Hadash MK and current surgeon, and Abdia Abdel Latif, one of the city's veteran mall owners and owner of a chain of furniture stores.

The four listened intently to the photographer describe the difficult experience he had undergone.

"It is important for us to convey a message that the residents of the Wadi are in favor of coexistence. I therefore organized a quiet demonstration on the entrance to the city," said Mahajna.

Abdel Latif said that during the event he was busy at work and therefore did not hear what was happening.

"What happened to Gil is unpleasant, and we strongly condemn it," he said.

Nechushtan's bike, after the incident (Photo: Gil Nechushtan)

"The Arab population is law-abiding," Dr. Agbaria decisively stated. "When there are demonstrations in Amona or by the ultra-Orthodox, the attitude is different. The government is hostile to us even though we are talking about a handful of people. You mustn't slander us all because of a few dozen youths."

He then told Nechushtan that the media is vital to maintaining democracy and therefore it is important that it continue to operate in the region.

They summed up the meeting by condemning the violence, but did not express an apology for the incident and repeated their anger over Trump's declaration and Lieberman's calls for a boycott.

"I expect the leaders of the Arab public to find the rioters and ensure that they are punished," Nechushtan said at the end of the meeting. "I have been on good terms with the sector for years and hope that this is the last time that a media person falls victim to such violence. I expect that the meeting will contribute to mutual understanding and the prevention of violence in the future."
The security guard who apprehended a terrorist carrying out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem recounted the incident on Monday, saying, "I heard the blow, I started running, and I just jumped him."

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Police were on high alert in Jerusalem on Monday, with heavy security placed on the central bus station in the capital after Sunday's attack, in which security guard Asher Elmaliach was seriously wounded. Three Arabs were detained and not allowed into the station.

"Without thinking twice, I just ran. I just wanted to catch this person, and for him to not hurt any more people around," said the guard, a shift manager for the Mikud security company.

The guard who netralized the terrorist (Photo: Ofer Meir)

"We didn't know if he had another knife, we didn't know anything. I simply attacked. I did everything I was trained to do, everything we were taught," the guard continued.

He said he did not witness the stabbing itself, but did not hesitate when he realized what had happened.

"When I heard in my earpiece that a security guard had been stabbed, I jumped (the terrorist) and flattened him on the floor."

Taxi driver and retired policeman Yosef Ben Amo received a certificate of honor from Jerusalem District Police Commander Yoram Halevi and from the citys Mayor Nir Barkat for his aid in apprehending the terrorist, but security footage from the incident shows he actually hindered efforts by the guard to neutralize the attacker.

Security footage shows guard neutralizing terrorist

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Ben Amo said he had initially mistaken the incident to be a brawl, trying to pull the security shift manager away from the terrorist.

The terror attack came in the wake of US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a declaration that garnered condemnation from around the world and led to widespread rioting in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem over the weekend.

"We received intelligence about an intention to carry out an attack inside the station," a police intelligence official said. "We passed the information on to Ben-Avraham, the station's head of security, who instructed the security guards to be more vigilant in light of the alerts."

The Mikud security company increased security on Sunday in and around the central bus station in addition to the Border Police troops deployed to the station on a regular basis. Despite the increased security, the terrorist was able to seriously wound security guard Asher Elmaliach.
CAIRO - At least eight Egyptian protesters were detained and accused of "association with a terrorist organization" after joining a small protest in Cairo over the Trump administration's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, according to a top Egyptian rights lawyer.

The protesters were arrested on Saturday in front of the Egyptian Press Syndicate in downtown Cairo after rallying against President Donald Trump's move, Khaled Ali said.

Ali said those detained, including a female activist, are accused of links to the Muslim Brotherhood group, Egypt's onetime largest Islamist group which was outlawed after the ouster of the Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013.

It wasn't immediately possible to reach the prosecutors on Monday for a comment.
The police arrested on Sunday Herzliya resident Thomas Joseph Gross, 63, who is accused of murdering his mother, Ina Gross, in Florida in 2012, the State Attorney's Office said. The United States has filed a request for his extradition.

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Gross, who was visiting his mother, allegedly drugged her and stabbed her to death in her car outside her Lakewood Ranch home on January 8, 2012, the night before his planned return to Israel.

The next morning he called 911, saying he had found her body, and tried to portray the scene as a suicide or robbery gone wrong.

Thomas Joseph Gross at court (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

The extradition process commenced after Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked instructed the State Attorney to bring Gross before the district court to declare him fit for deportation to the US.

Yarkon District Police worked together with Interpol to arrest Gross, a father of three, whose remand was extended by eight days on Monday.

Ina Gross, the victim

Gross's sister, Ellen Gerth, is convinced he killed his mother in order to hide the money he received from the aged widow.

"Its incredibly saddening to me that the person who brutally took my mothers life is able to wake up every morning to the sunrise and go to bed every night to the setting sun. He doesnt deserve to be breathing air outside of a prison," she told the Herald Tribune in January.

Thomas Joseph Gross at court (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

Regarding the judicial process and the extradition request, Gerth said: "Many people have thought nothing is going to happen, that Tom will not be served justice. The process is long. It has been challenging. It is hugely detailed. There are many players involved  local, state, federal, international  but thats how the process works. I am convinced, given the body of evidence, that Tom will receive his punishment for what hes done to my beautiful mom."

Gerth, who described her mother as her best friend, urged her brother to end the ongoing family agony. "My advice to him would be for him to acknowledge that his charade is over and that he will be preventing his family from enduring further humiliation if he were to simply turn himself in with the understanding that he knows precisely what he did to our mother," she told the Tribune.

Home of Gross's mother

According to the Daily Mail, a forensics investigation of Gross's vehicle revealed remnants of his mother's vomit induced by the intake of strong sleeping pills.

The attorney for Thomas Gross, Eyal Besserglick, told Ynet: "After an investigation, my client was released without restrictions by the US authorities. His passport was returned, and he was told he is not a suspect. He traveled to the United States for an event for his father, and (Thomas Gross) was the one who tried to resuscitate his mother. He was the one who called the police, and he underwent a polygraph that confirmed his version of the events.

"Even though he has an attorney in the United States, he was never told he was wanted for investigation. The center of his life, his wife and kids, is in Israel. We will fight his unjustified extradition," said Besserglick , who claimed that Gross's sister is trying to sue him for inheritance money. "He never fled."
ISTANBUL - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that the United States had become a partner in bloodshed with its decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

"With their decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed," Erdogan said at an event in Ankara. "The statement by President Trump does not bind us, nor does it bind Jerusalem."
MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered "a significant part" of Russian forces in Syria to start withdrawing, saying that after a two year military campaign, Moscow and Damascus had achieved their mission of destroying Islamic State.

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Putin made the announcement during a surprise visit to Russia's Hmeymim air base in Syria's Latakia Province where he held talks with Syrian President Bashar Assad and addressed Russian military servicemen.

This was Putin's first trip to Syria, as well as the first visit by a foreign head of state to war-ravaged Syria since its bloodletting started nearly seven years ago.

Putin lands in Syria

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Russia first launched air strikes in Syria in September 2015 in its biggest Middle East intervention in decades, turning the tide of the conflict in Assad's favor while dramatically increasing Moscow's own influence in the Middle East.

Russian officials say troops in Syria were there mainly to fight "terrorists" including militants of the Islamic State group and al-Qaida affiliates, but they also heavily targeted other rebel factions opposed to Assad, allowing his troops to claw back significant territory over the past two years.

Putin has hosted Assad twice in the past six years, including a surprise November 21 visit that Assad undertook to the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Russian television stations showed Putin walking off the plane at the air base, embracing and shaking hands with Assad. The two then visited a military operations room at the base.

The Hemeimeem base, located in a region that is the heartland of Assad's Alawite minority, has served as the main foothold for the Russian military campaign in Syria.

"Here in Syria, far away from our borders, you helped the Syrian people to preserve their state and fend off attacks by terrorists," Putin said, facing the troops lined up on the tarmac. "You have dealt a devastating blow to those who blatantly threatened our country. We will never forget about the victims who fell in the fight against terror both here and in Russia."

Syrian state television quoted Assad as thanking Putin for Russia's help, saying the blood of Moscow's "martyrs" had been mixed with the blood of the Syrian army.

Putin and Assad meet in Sochi (file photo)

Russia's campaign, which has been extensively covered on state TV, has not caught the imagination of most Russians. But nor has it stirred unease of the kind the Soviet Union faced with its calamitous 1980s intervention in Afghanistan.

The use of private military contractors, something which has been documented by Reuters but denied by the defense ministry, has allowed Moscow to keep the public casualty toll fairly low.

Russia's "mission completed" moment in Syria may help Putin increase the turnout at the March presidential election by appealing to the patriotism of voters.

Though polls show he will easily win, they also show that some Russians are increasingly apathetic about politics, and Putin's supporters are keen to get him re-elected on a big turnout, which in their eyes confers legitimacy.

"The task of fighting armed bandits here in Syria, a task that it was essential to solve with the help of extensive use of armed force, has for the most part, been solved and solved spectacularly," Putin said, in remarks broadcast on Russian television.

Wearing a dark suit and speaking in front of a row of servicemen holding Russian flags, Putin said his military had proved its might, that Moscow had succeeded in keeping Syria intact as a "sovereign independent state" and that the conditions had been created for a political solution.

Putin is keen to organize a special event in Russiathe Syrian Congress on National Dialoguethat Moscow hopes will bring together the Syrian government and opposition and try to hammer out a new constitution.

"I congratulate you!" Putin told Russian servicemen gathered at the base.

Putin and Assad meet in Sochi (file photo)

"A significant part of the Russian military contingent in the Syrian Arab Republic is returning home, to Russia. The Motherland is waiting for you."

Putin made clear however that while Russia might be drawing down much of its forces, its military presence in Syria was a permanent one and that it would retain enough firepower to destroy any Islamic State comeback.

"If the terrorists again raise their heads, we will deal such blows to them they have never seen," he said.

Russia will keep its Hmeymim air base in Syria's Latakia Province and its naval facility in the Syrian Mediterranean port of Tartous "on a permanent basis," said Putin. Both bases are protected by sophisticated air defense missile systems.

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the Russian military commander in Syria, reported to Putin that the military will pull out 23 warplanes, two helicopter gunships, special forces units, military police and field engineers.

Surovikin said that the remaining forces will be sufficient to "successfully fulfill the tasks" to stabilize the situation in Syria. He wouldn't say how many troops and weapons would stay behind.

Syria has allowed Russia to use Hemeimeem air base indefinitely without cost. Moscow also has signed a deal with Syria to use the Tartus base for 49 years, which could be extended if both parties agree.

The Russian military plans to modernize the air base and expand its runways to allow it to host more warplanes. It also intends to expand the Tartus facility significantly to make it a full-scale naval base capable of hosting warships, including cruiser-sized vessels.

After seeing troops march to the tunes of military marches, Putin drove up to the Russian warplanes parked on the runway and talked to the pilots, who said they will flew back home later in the day.

Separately, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin and Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan would discuss a possible political resolution to Syria's more than six-year-old war when they met later on Monday in Ankara, as well as preparations for the work of the Syrian Congress on National Dialogue.
CAIRO - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday intensified efforts to rally Middle Eastern countries against US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, setting up talks with Arab leaders beginning in Cairo.

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Abbas will meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, which has been a key broker in past peace talks with Israel and between fighting Palestinian factions, before heading for Istanbul to give a speech, his office said.

Arab states condemned US President Donald Trump's Jerusalem decision last week, and vowed to press international bodies to take action against it, without announcing any concrete measures. The Arab League held an emergency meeting on the issue in Cairo on Monday.

Palestinian President Abbas (Photo: Reuters)

"Daring Palestinian and Arab decisions are required in the coming stage, which is very important," Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah told Palestinian official news agency WAFA.

World powers have warned the US move will impede peace efforts in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict as anger spreads across the region.

Abbas will not meet Mike Pence during the US Vice President's visit to the region later this month, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said on Saturday.

Egypt's top Muslim and Christian religious leaders also said they would not meet Pence.

Abbas is expected to make a statement after his meeting with Sisi, the Palestinian embassy in Cairo said, without giving details.

Egypt, along with Jordan a key US ally in the region which has helped broker past peace deals and has good relations with Israel, has said the Jerusalem move undermines efforts to end the conflict.

It has also brokered reconciliation deals between Abbas's Fatah party and Gaza-based Islamist group Hamas, which called for a new uprising against Israel last week.

The planned handover of control of Gaza to the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority under the latest deal hit another delay on Sunday over "obstacles," a Hamas spokesman said, without elaborating.
BEIRUT - US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital will hasten the country's destruction, Iran's defense minister said Monday.

"(Trump's) step will hasten the destruction of the Zionist regime and will double the unity of Muslims," said Brig. Gen. Amir Hatami, according to state media.

The army's chief of staff, General Mohammad Baqeri, said Trump's "foolish move" could be seen as the beginning of a new intifada, or Palestinian uprising.
ANKARA - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday the United States' decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital had made Washington complicit in violence.

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His comments on the US move have strained fragile relations between Turkey and Israel, which only restored ties last year following a six-year diplomatic rift. Erdogan, a frequent critic of Israel , has said the decision by US President Donald Trump will spark violence in the region.

"The ones who made Jerusalem a dungeon for Muslims and members of other religions will never be able to clean the blood from their hands," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara.

Turkish President Erdogan (Photo: AFP)

"With their decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the United States has become a partner in this bloodshed," he said, adding he did not consider Trump's decision binding.

Trump's decision last week overturned longstanding US policy on Jerusalem, a city holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians. The status of Jerusalem has been one of the biggest obstacles to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians for generations.

Over the weekend Erdogan referred to Israel as a "terror state" and an "invader state," prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to fire back

"I'm not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villages in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, helps Iran go around international sanctions and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people," Netanyahu said at a news conference.

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group has fought a decades-old insurgency with the Turkish state in which more than 40,000 people have been killed. The conflict flared up after the collapse of a ceasefire in 2015.

Last year Israel and Turkey restored ties following a six-year rupture that occurred after Israeli marines stormed an aid ship in 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, killing 10 Turkish activists on board.

The normalization of ties between both countries has been driven in part by the prospect of lucrative Mediterranean gas deals as well as by mutual concerns about regional security.

Iran: Trump decision to hasten Israel's destruction

Meanwhile, Iran's Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Amir Hatami said Monday Trump's decision will hasten Israel's destruction.

"(Trump's) step will hasten the destruction of the Zionist regime and will double the unity of Muslims," Hatami said, according to state media.

The army's chief of staff, General Mohammad Baqeri, said Trump's "foolish move" could be seen as the beginning of a new intifada, or Palestinian uprising.

Leaders of Iran, where opposition to Israel and support for the Palestinian cause has been central to foreign policy since the 1979 Islamic revolution, have denounced last week's announcement, including a plan to move the US embassy to the city.

Iran has long supported a number of anti-Israeli militant groups, including the military wing of Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which the deputy commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, Brigadier General Hossein Salami, said was "stronger than the Zionist regime."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday stepped up efforts to rally Middle Eastern countries against US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which EU foreign ministers meanwhile declined to support.
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday said her conservative party unanimously condemned anti-Semitic acts such as burning of Israeli flags and said the government should use all instruments at its disposal to combat such incidents.

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"We condemn all kinds of anti-Semitism and xenophobia, and no disagreements, not even over the status of Jerusalem, justify such actions," Merkel told journalists after a meeting of the leadership of her Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Police reported the burning of Israeli flags and use of anti-Semitic slogans at protest rallies in Berlin and other cities over the weekend over US President Donald Trump's decision last week to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

Protestors burn flag (Photo: EPA)

Trump's declision reversed decades of US policy and caused consternation across the Arab world and among Western allies. It has ignited "Day of Rage" street protests in the Palestinian territories and beyond.

On Friday hundreds of people had gathered outside the US embassy in Berlin for "Day of Rage" protests. Police said they had detained 10 people during that protest and brought criminal charges against 12 people, including for burning Israeli flags.

Additional "isolated" incidents have been reported in Munich and other German cities.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert repeated Berlin's criticism of Trump's decision but said that did not justify anti-Semitic acts, adding that Germany had a historic responsibility to stand by Israel and all Jews everywhere.

Anti-Semitism remains a very sensitive issue in Germany more than 70 years after the end of the Nazi-era Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed. Germany regards itself as one of Israel's closest allies.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (Photo: EPA)

"One must be ashamed when such open hatred of Jews is on display on the streets of German cities," Seibert told a regular government news conference.

"Our laws on freedom of expression and assembly guarantee everyone a right to peaceful protest, but this right is no free pass for anti-Semitic atrocities, for incitement and violence," he said, calling for continual efforts to combat such incidents.

A Justice Ministry spokesman said authorities would prosecute those responsible for the flag-burning incidents.

Seibert also criticized comments made by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who referred to Israel over the weekend as a "terror state."

"Basically, we see it as completely wrong, unacceptable and inappropriate to describe Israel in such a manner," Seibert said.

Other top German officials, including the foreign, justice and interior ministers, have condemned anti-Semitic acts and the burning of Israeli flags in interviews and on Twitter.

A German foreign ministry spokesman said on Monday the country's ambassador to Kuwait had met Kuwaiti officials on November 28 to discuss a separate issue that has raised concerns among Jewish groups about anti-Semitism.
Most Israelis dont know Dalia Bassa, but on the Palestinian street she is known as Malak or "angel" in Arabic. Her cell phone number is passed down by word of mouth and she gets calls at all hours of the day. The angel picks up even at 3 am.

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Bassa, 66, is the Civil Administrations health coordinator at the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT). Her official job is to sit comfortably in her office and coordinate between the Palestinian and Israeli health ministries. She wasnt supposed to save the lives of hundreds of Palestinian children, visit them in hospitals and take them on trips, and she was definitely not supposed to turn them into the children she never had.

Bassa at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center with Dr. Abu Zahira, baby Moussa and his father Dirar (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

Bassas career began 47 years ago at the Military Governorate's offices in east Jerusalem. Over the years, she combined her work with Arabic studies and received an associate degree in health systems administration and human resources. She has been working as health coordinator for the past 19 years.

After the Oslo Agreement in 1994, she says, we prepared all the files and information and handed over the responsibility for health issues to the Palestinian Authority (PA). I was then appointed deputy coordinator, and about three years later I was promoted to coordinator.

At first, things went well. There was a time when we used to sit together with the PA representatives and help them develop the Palestinian health system. Over time, terror attacks and other events led to crises, and the coordination was nearly cut off. In 2002, after Operation Defensive Shield, everything was breached, and Palestinian residents who had no one to turn to began approaching me directly.

The first appeals arrived at her office in the Civil Administration near Beit El. I got a call from security, asking if I had invited anyone for a meeting. I said I hadnt and went downstairs to see what it was all about, she recalls.

Standing in front of me was a father with a child in his arms. He explained that the child was two years old, although he looked only a few months old, and pointed at his sons sick feet. I quickly took his details and went up to the office. I sat there and began racking my brains, asking myself what could I do to help. I had to find a suitable hospital that would agree to care for the child, as well as funding sources.

Bassa found a solution for both problems, and the infant underwent successful surgery.

Go dig a grave for your child

After she helped one person, the next ones came along, some arriving at the office and others reaching her by phone. Today, Bassa has two cell phonesa regular Israeli one, and one which can receive calls from anywhere in the Palestinian Authority. She carries both devices with her wherever she goes, allowing her to immediately handle any case in which a Palestinian's life is in danger and he cannot be saved at a PA hospital.

Thats how she helped save the life of Saja Hamamra of the village of Husan, near Bethlehem. Saja was in very serious condition, says her uncle, Imad al-Batha. At the age of 15, her kidneys stopped functioning, and she started undergoing dialysis treatments three times a week. We looked for someone to help us and couldnt find anyone, until we heard about Dalia.

I got her phone number and told her about Saja. She came to meet her several times at the Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem and followed up on her medical condition. It was a huge surprise for us. Suddenly, someone wants to help us, calms us down and promises us that everything will be okay.

Bassa with Saja, her mother and her uncle. 'I love you. I'm alive thanks to you' (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

When Sajas situation deteriorated, Bassa made the arrangements to transfer her to the Hadassah and Shaare Zedek hospitals in Jerusalem for different tests.

Following kidney failure, her liver was affected too, she explains. It was determined that she would need a liver transplant followed by a kidney transplant. The Civil Administration managed to raise funds for the transplant, and we searched for a donor. Sajas father was found fit to donate a liver lobe. I coordinated the transplantation with the Beilinson Medical Center and the Health Ministrys National Transplant Center, and we saved Sajas life. Look what a sweet girl she is today.

Saja is already 26 years old and is studying health administration at a university in Bethlehem. If I hadnt met you, I wouldnt be alive today, she says to Bassa in Arabic and hugs her. I love you. Thanks to you, Im here, alive and happy, without any pain, without dialysis. Thank you, Dalia.

As soon as 12-year-old Lujan al-Hayat sees Bassa, they become inseparable. Bassa caresses and hugs her, and Lujan clings to her.

Lujan had her first stem cell transplantation at the age of three, after being diagnosed with leukemia. Bassa met her for the first time a year later, at a trip to the safari for Palestinian kids who were treated in Israel. We organize four trips throughout the year, together with different associations, she says.

Shes a sweet girl, Lujan. I kept in touch with the family, and several months after the trip they told me the chemotherapy and the transplantation had failed. The doctor who treated her made it clear to me that she was on the verge of death.

I understood we had to look for another donor, not a member of her family this time. I turned to Ezer Mizion (an Israeli health support organization). They found in their registry a woman soldier in compulsory service who would make a suitable donor. The soldier agreed to donate, we raised the money, and the transplantation was performed successfully. Seven years have passed, and look how beautiful Lujan is. Shes the best.

I remember three trips with Dalia, Lujan says, to Mount Hermon, to the safari and to Jaffa. We saw a show and then went bowling and I won.

Lujan is like a child of mine, Bassa adds. As far as Im concerned, theyre all my children. I have something in my heart for them. When I meet them, I get excited. As the years go by, I try to follow up on the childrens condition and find opportunities to meet them. Have you seen how happy Lujan is?

Bassa with Muhammad. 'He has to undergo a skin grafting every few months, but he's alive, dancing, happy' (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

Muhammad Daadoua will never regain his good looks. Several months ago, the three-year-old boy fell into a boiling pot of grape syrup and was severely burned. The PA referred him to a hospital in Nablus, very far from his home in Beit Jala.

His transfer wasnt coordinated with me, Bassa says. He was rushed in an ambulance from Beit Jala to the checkpoint, and the soldier saw how serious his condition was and let him cross immediately. His father called me from the hospital in Nablus on Friday afternoon and begged me to help. He said the doctor there had said to him: Go dig a grave for the child. He wont live.

What did you do?

I checked with Hadassah and they agreed to take him in, and I spoke to the PA and they agreed to fund his hospitalization, but then I couldnt find a way to transfer him from Nablus to Ein Kerem. The Red Crescent and Magen David Adom (MDA) didnt want to take responsibility for transferring a child in such serious condition. No one wanted to be accused of killing a Palestinian child.

MDA asked the army to look into the possibility of a helicopter evacuation. The army agreed, but asked who would fund it. When its not an emergency evacuation from the ground, the army demands a reimbursement. Were talking about some tens of thousands of shekels. After the PA refused to pay, I didnt know what to do. But theres no problem that cant be solved. I know how to get angry when I have to.

Bassa turned to the divisions doctor, who agreed to drive Muhammad. He transferred him in a military ambulance to the Hizma Checkpoint, where an MDA ambulance was waiting for him. We were on the phone with the Hadassah doctor the entire time, receiving live instructions. It was Friday evening. At the hospital, doctors fought for his life. The burns covered nearly his entire body. Today, Muhammad is already home. He has to undergo skin grafting every few months, but hes alive. Dancing. Happy.

Unfazed by criticism

There are many others like Saja, Lujan and Muhammad. According to the Health Care Coordinator Office at the Civil Administration, about 5,000 Palestinians receive life-saving treatment at Israeli hospitals every year. Some 1,000 of them are children. The average number of medical entry permits granted to Palestinians is 100,000 a year (its the number of permits, not the number of patients, as each patient can receive several permits according to his or her condition). Since every patient is entitled to an escort, an additional 100,000 permits are granted to escorts.

As the person in charge of this system, Bassa is subject to criticism from both sides of the political spectrum. She is accused by the Right of flooding Israeli hospitals with Palestinians, and attacked by the Left for being part of the occupation system and the permit regime.

Bassa, however, is unfazed by the criticism. Despite her humanitarian efforts and devotion to the patients, her professional goal is actually to make the permit system unnecessary and bring about a situation in which even complicated and serious medical cases would be treated within the PA territories.

How can that be done? By improving the Palestinian health system. For that purpose, Bassa is fostering a new generation of Palestinian doctors and helping with the establishment and training of local hospitals. Moussa al-Horoubs story is a good example of how this is happening on the ground.

With Palestinian children on a trip to Mount Hermon (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

We meet Moussa, a three-month-old infant from Hebron, at the Hadassah Ein Karem Medical Center. He arrives for a checkup with Dr. Ibrahim Abu Zahira, a physician from Hebron who works as an intern at Hadassah. Moussa smiles serenely as he undergoes an echocardiogram. The small scar on his chest is the only evidence of the life-threatening situation he was in just three months ago, when he was born. Every time I nursed him, he would turn blue, says his mother, Iman.

Moussa arrived at my clinic in Hebron about two months ago, Dr. Abu Zahira recounts. I examined him and barely felt a pulse. When I performed an echocardiogram, I noticed a birth defect. I understood he had to be operated on immediately. I called Prof. Azaria Rein, who is my professional father and has been training and helping me here at Hadassah. After he confirmed my diagnosis, I called Dalia. It was late in the evening. I already know she can be reached in the middle of the night, and that shell pick up the phone as if its 10 oclock in the morning.

Bassa quickly arranged for Moussa to be transferred to Hadassah. Dalia called us immediately, says Dirar, Moussas father. She obtained all the permits and organized the childs transpiration. Everything went rapidly and smoothly. It was amazing. She also came to visit Moussa immediately after the operation.

Only 15 hours had passed from the moment Moussas defect was diagnosed until he was operated on by Dr. Abu Zahira. Its all thanks to your swift, accurate diagnosis, Bassa praises the young physician.

Moussas surgery cost about NIS 80,000 (roughly $22,700). After the PA turned down Bassas request to fund the operation, the Hearts for Peace foundation entered the fray.

We established the foundation in 2005, says Prof. Rein, head of the Department of Pediatric Cardiology at Hadassah. The initial goal was to fund heart surgery for Palestinian kids. We found funding sources primarily in France. We negotiated with the Hadassah management, which agreed to fund half of the operations cost. So far, we have operated on 720 Palestinian children.

The Heart for Peace foundation has another goal, Prof. Rein says, which is to share knowledge with Palestinian teams, so that they can be independent.

We got three young doctors who wanted to work with us as interns. While training at Hadassah, they opened their own clinics, and the plan is that in the future theyll be able to perform operations in the territories as well. The foundation helped Dr. Abu Zahira, for example, open a clinic in Hebron as well as purchase portable equipment. He turned into a sort of emergency center in Hebron, while working at Hadassah five days a week. The most serious cases he diagnoses in Hebron are brought here with Dalias help.

A total of 174 Palestinian doctors are being trained at Israeli hospitals these days, 92 of them at Hadassah Ein Karem. The young physicians, who receive a temporary permit to work in Israel, are also part of the solution for the serious shortage of doctors in Israel. They are incorporated into the hospitals medical staff, and they attend to Jews as well of course. Upon completing their training and after gaining experience, they go to work at Palestinian hospitals.

Dr. Wissam al-Jamal of Hebron is a gynecologist specializing in gynecologic oncology at Hadassah. Everything I have achieved is thanks to Dalia, he says. Thanks to my training, I was selected to be a hospital director in Equatorial Guinea in Africa. Dalia is the Palestinian Authoritys gain. She is a life saver. You see her smiling now, but she doesnt sleep at night. She listens to everyone. She has given her life to Palestinians. She is an angel.

Are you planning on working at a Palestinian hospital in the future?

Certainly, thats the goal. Palestinian and Jewish medicine cannot be separated. The people cannot be separated. I believe salvation will come from medicine. Peace will begin here, because diseases dont distinguish between religions and between languages. We doctors treat every person regardless of skin color. Each person is a person. The Israeli and Palestinian doctors, and essentially every doctor in the world, try to talk in a number of languages to create a shared language. I have a doctors certificate just like anyone else, I am treated equally and I give the best possible treatment to every person, whether Jewish or Arab.

As a doctor in an intensive care unit, have you treated people wounded in terror attacks?

Of course I have. Our job is to treat any person. In case of a terror attack, we treat the wounded without identifying who carried out the attack and who was hurt in it. They reach us without a name and without an ID. We run after every patient, according to their condition.

Bassa talks to Dr. Tamer Abu Jreis about an upcoming vocational in-service training, which he helped organize. We have a very important course in emergency medicine, he explains. The participants include 15 Palestinian doctors, 15 Israeli doctors and two doctors from Jordan. We wanted to bring doctors from Syria as well, but were unsuccessful.

The Istishari Hospital in Ramallah (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

This in-service training is one of 1,500 short trainings, conferences and seminars organized annually by the Health Care Coordinator Office at the Civil Administration. Bassa is the engine here too.

I first met Dalia more than a decade ago, when I was head of the Civil Administration, says Major-General Yoav (Poli) Mordechai, Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. I saw her help the Palestinian Authority build a high-quality health system, starting by coordinating the transfer of advanced medical equipment to the Palestinian hospitals to coordinating trainings for Palestinian doctors in Israel and in the world. Her dedicated activity indicates that regardless of diplomatic and political disputes, there are areas where tight cooperation is created based on personal relations and faith in humane values.

At the private Istishari Hospital in Ramallah, workers talk about doctors who did internships at Israeli hospitals. Dr. Arij al-Katib, a pathologist, is one of them. She greets Bassa with a hug, clearly excited. Bassa escorted her during her internship at Hadassah and was very proud of al-Katib for completing her training with honors.

If there were one more Dalia, just one more Dalia, there would be peace by now, the young doctor laughs. Go tell that to the guys at the Norwegian parliament, I say to her. Maybe theyll listen to you and give her a Nobel Prize.
Activists burned US and Israeli flags in front of the American embassy in Jakarta on Monday in a fourth day of protests in Indonesia against President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

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Several hundred protesters from an Islamic youth group rallied outside the embassy, burning flags and images of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu.

Protesters in Jakarta (Photo: EPA)

Wearing white robes, the protesters unfurled banners reading "US Embassy, Get Out from Al-Quds" and "We are with the Palestinians." Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem, the historic Middle East city that is a holy site for Jews, Christians and Muslims.

A weekend protest at the embassy attracted several thousand people and similar protests have been held in other cities around Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Protests against Trump (Photo: AFP)

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has strongly condemned Trump's move, which he described as a violation of UN resolutions.

Indonesia does not have diplomatic ties with Israel and has long been a strong supporter of Palestinian aspirations for statehood.

Trump's announcement Wednesday overturned decades of US policy, and a longstanding international consensus, that the fate of Jerusalem be decided as a part of a peace deal between Israel and Palestine.

Israeli and Palestinian claims to the city's eastern sector form the core of their conflict, and Trump's announcement was seen as siding with the Israelis.
Tens of thousands of people have turned out for a Hezbollah rally in southern Beirut called to protest US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

The rally on Monday, one of several large demonstrations recently held across the Middle East to protest the move, was called by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah who called on his allies to put in place a united strategy to confront Israel.

The protesters marched through the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, waving flags and chanting in support of the Palestinians, who claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

The rally came a day after a violent protest outside the US Embassy in Beirut, where security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at rowdy protesters who pelted them with stones. The protesters were hundreds of meters (yards) from the embassy.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Monday of Iran's entrenchment in Syria, as his official visit to Paris and Brussels was winding down.

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"If Iran makes good on its threat, it will do so by utilizing 80,000 Shiite fighters, which will cause religious wars to erupt again," Netanyahu said in a press briefing before returning to Israel.

PM Netanyahu (L) and EU chief diplomat Mogherini (Photo: AP)

Earlier Monday Netanyahu convened with the European Union's chief diplomat Federica Mogherini, after which he proceeded to attend an informal breakfast with 28 of the EU's foreign ministers, which the Lithuanian foreign minister organized without Mogherini's knowledge.

"I stressed we have to find a new discourse on the region," Netanyahu explained to the ministers before chiding them to "stop pampering the Palestinians."

"I think the Palestinians need a reality check. You have to stop cutting them slack. That's the only way to move forward towards peace," the prime minister opined.

Netanyahu also denied to the ministers the allegation settlements were at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying, "They consider the real settlements to be in Jaffa. Trump merely told them the truth."

When the ministers asked him if Israel was willing to undertake certain actions to improve Palestinians' lives, Netanyahu replied, "I told them we already were: on matters relating to water, work permits andin the futurecreating a train line transporting good from Haifa to the Arab world through the bridges over the Jordan and a linkup to Jenin."

In his meeting with Mogherini, Netanyahu said it was time for most of the European Union's member countries to follow in the Unites States' footsteps and recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The American president's recognition of Jerusalem did not hinder peace efforts, Netanyahu said, but allowed them to move forward. "Trump put the facts squarely on the table, and recognizing reality is the substance of peace.

"It's time that the Palestinians recognize the Jewish state and also recognize the fact that it has a capital. It's called Jerusalem.

"It has been the capital of Israel for 3,000 years, since it was founded by King David. We've never lost our bond to it, and yet this bond is being denied in United Nations forums and in laughable UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) decisions seeking to deny history and historical truth.

PM Netanyahu's press conference with Mogherini (:  | :  )

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"Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish state for 70 years. Peace is predicated on reality and or recognizing reality. I think the fact Jerusalem is Israel's capital is completely obvious to any of you who have visited Israel," the prime minister said.

"Europe and Israel are partner significantly on three major areas: security, prosperity and peace. On security, Israeli intelligence has prevented dozens of terrorist attack, many of them on European soil, and I think the lives of many people were saved thanks to that cooperation, so well-known to the security services of many European governments," Netanyahu added at the joint press conference.

Prior to Netanyahu's remarks, Mogherini said the EU will continue respecting international consensus on Jerusalem and made it clear she nevertheless denounced any attacks in Europe against Israel or Jews.

The EU's foreign minister also noted she gave her full support to King of Jordan Abdullah II 's peace initiative. "The only realistic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is predicated on the two-state solution with Jerusalem as a shared capital," Mogherini elucidated.
A rocket launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip Monday evening detonated in open land within the Eshkol Regional Council on the Gaza perimeter. No physical or material damage was caused. The IDF confirmed it retaliated to the rocket launch using armored and air forces targeting Hamas posts near the border fence in southern Gaza.

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It was cleared for publication Sunday the IDF had exploded a Hamas terror tunnel reaching hundreds of meters into Israeli territory.

In response, Hamas threatened that "the enemy must be afraid and know it will pay a price for breaking the rules of engagement with the Gaza resistance. The coming days will prove the enormity of the enemy's mistake and miscalculation as to the resistance's willpower."

The rocket that landed in Sderot Friday

three rockets being launched from Gaza Friday evening, one of which was intercepted and two exploding within Sderot 's city limits. Two people were treated for anxiety and nearby cars were damaged.

The IDF attacked in northern Gaza twice in retaliation over the weekend with air force jets bombing Hamas weapons manufacturing sites and ammunitions caches.

Ruins in Hamas's Gaza complex following IDF retaliatory attack

Several communities on Gaza's perimeter began to instruct their citizensof their own volition but with IDF coordinationto remain near shelters following mounting tensions.

An announcement released by the Sdot Negev Regional Council to its denizens read, "Due to alarms sounding within the council's limits, as a precaution we ask (residents) to remain near shelters or shielded places."
Two Molotov cocktails were thrown at a building in a Jewish cemetery located in Malmo, Sweden. No one was hurt and the structure was not significantly damaged.

A local police spokesman told AFP the incident was being investigated as an arson attempt and that the motive was as yet unclear.

The Malmo Jewish community said the incident was "very grave."
East Jerusalem Arab residents threw rocks, burned tires and fired fireworks at police and Border Police forces in the city's Abu Tor neighborhood.

Security forces retaliated by deploying crowd control measures.

A suspect was arrested during the riot, who was also lightly to moderately hurt when he foot was caught in a fireworks bundle.
Swedish police on Monday said they are probing an attempted arson against a Jewish chapel after a similar attack against a synagogue, which came in the wake of the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

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Two burning objects had been thrown at chapel, located at a Jewish cemetery, in Sweden's third largest city of Malmo, the Jewish assembly said in a statement on Monday.

The scene of the incident (photo: AP)

Malmo police spokesman Lars Forstell told AFP that the incident is being investigated "as an attempted arson" and that the motive is unclear.

No serious damage has been done to the building and no one was hurt.

But the Jewish assembly in Malmo said it sees the incident as "extremely serious".

"We strongly emphasize that we can never accept being subjected to threats and attacks," it said in the statement.

Swedish police have tightened security near Jewish sites across the nation following a fire attack on a synagogue in the second largest city of Gothenburg on late Saturday.

The synagogue did not catch fire and no one was hurt. Police have detained three men on suspicion of attempted arson.

US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital drew international condemnations and sparked angry protests in the Middle East.

Around 200 protesters gathered in Malmo on Friday, threatening and calling on violence against Jews, according to the Swedish daily Sydsvenskan.
The Willamette Valley Ag Expo is set for Tuesday through Thursday, Nov. 15 through 17, at the Linn County Expo Center, 3700 Knox Butte Road E. in Albany.
It is often asserted that the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 proved that HWA was right and he really did see the future.

This of course is nonsense. Herbert W. Armstrong said that Christ would return within twenty years in his book Mystery of the Ages. (PCG has since deleted those words so someone in there knows HWA spoke nonsense.) How convenient for them to forget this.

Also Herbert W. Armstrong never said the Soviet Union would collapse. He thought it would survive intact until a few years after Christ's return. It shows how biased some many in the COGs are that they never seem to notice this. This inconvenient truth is just tossed into the memory hole.

It is true that HWA said that some Eastern European states would break away from Moscow's orbit and join the European Empire he said would arise at any moment. But he never talked of the Soviet Union collapsing. He did not teach that. Also he portrayed the rise of the European Empire to be far quicker then what has actually happened. In Mystery of the Ages Christ was supposed to return by 2005 at the most.

So assertions that the fall of the Berlin Wall somehow prove that HWA was right is just complete nonsense spread by people who, for whatever reason, are still in denial that HWA was a false prophet who merely talked out of his own "human reasoning".
Mauritius may be perceived as the island of sugar cane and beaches, but since independence in 1968, this African country has focused its attention on innovation and development to create an investor friendly environment.

Over the past 49 years Mauritius has experienced a sustainable transformation, moving from a mono-crop agricultural base to a well-diversified economy. Today Mauritius is acknowledged as an innovation-driven economy, says Ken Poonoosamy, managing director of the Board of Investment.

Mauritius, is sub-Saharan Africas top-ranked economy and has achieved various rankings on international indices, the transformation has been noticed globally with Mauritius winning international accolades including being ranked first in Africa in the World Bank Doing Business in 2017, for the eighth year in succession, and topping the Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance.

Tax breaks

South Africa is seeing the benefit as a key trading partner. The country already accounts for some 14% of foreign direct investment, 7% of imports, 8% of exports and 8% of tourist arrivals into the island, To date there are over 300 South African investors in Mauritius and almost 2,000 South African citizens are working on island. The community is well served with more than 24 weekly flights between the two countries.

The governments strategy emphasises the development of the new economic pillars with high growth potential; Developing smart cities, growing the ocean economy, bunkering and transhipment, value-added manufacturing, healthcare and life sciences, seaport development and improved freeport services, high-precision engineering, professional services and the digital economy.

Income tax, corporate tax and VAT at a harmonised rate of 15%, dividends are tax free, the country doesnt charge capital gains tax, the foreign tax credit is 80%, it offers tax free dividends, has duty-free & VAT-free facilities for goods and equipment imported in freeport zones and offers tax holidays over eight years under its smart cities scheme. We also offer an eight-year tax holiday for bio-farming projects, and a 10-year exemption from income tax on all income, inclusive of income from external sources, under the Mauritian diaspora theme, says Poonoosamy.

Stable environment

He adds that political stability, transparency and the rule of law constitute the main stay of the country. Parliamentary democracy inspired by the Westminsterian model with free and fair elections held every five years is among its cardinal strengths.

What many investors dont yet know is the ease in which business can be done in our country, says Poonoosamy. A company can be registered within two hours, and land bought in two days.

We would like the world to know that there is an African country that offers a sound investment proposition, and Mauritius is it, he says.
Used in falconry since the Middle Ages, goshawks have a telltale white stripe over their eyes that gives them an especially fierce countenance. Goshawks inhabit dense forests on six continents, taking advantage of cover to ambush prey from small animals to other birds. Their short wings and long, rudder-like tails make them supremely adapted to maneuvering through the tree canopy.



They rely on surprise, Karpanty said. They live in dense, older forest. They sit and wait and then go into a quick dive after prey. They can tuck their wings to get through narrow gaps in the forest.



Goshawks are at the top of the food chain wherever they are found. Having good numbers of apex predators is a sign of a healthy or intact ecosystem.



Karpanty donned rappelling gear to climb 40 feet into abandoned nests after nesting season to see what Hensts goshawks were eating. They used a slingshot to fire a fishing line over a sturdy branch to rig the climbing ropes.



I practiced climbing a lot at gyms. I was young, childless at the time and fearless! Karpanty said. My guides were really good with the slingshot.



Not surprisingly, she found the skeletal remains of several kinds of small lemur at the bottom of the nests.

The conventional method of tracking birds by using radio telemetry was impractical in the rugged terrain, she said.



We radio-tagged some birds but were unsuccessful in tracking them, Karpanty said. You have to do everything by foot so wed lose the birds all the time. From our radio-transmitter data alone, we couldnt know the extent of their range.




TWIN FALLS  The City Council plans to share the results of state funding and name upcoming issues for Idaho legislators to consider during the 2018 legislative session.

The Council has a special meeting Monday where it may bring up topics such as road funding and stormwater management, City Manager Travis Rothweiler said. Reps. Lance Clow, Maxine Bell and Stephen Hartgen, plus Sen. Lee Heider, have confirmed they will attend the meeting. Five other legislators have also been invited.

The meeting will give the Council a chance to update legislators on what the city has done this year. The Council may get a preview of some of the things that could come up at the session next year.

This year, it sounds like a legislative session thats really in the process of being defined, Rothweiler said. It is our opportunity to engage with the legislators on local urban issues.

The city will likely share what it has done with additional road funding and grants its received in past sessions. Rothweiler also suspects usual issues such as court funding, grocery tax repeal and revenue-sharing formulas may come up.

In the past, the city has also advocated for the ability to have a local options tax.

I would like for our citizens to have the opportunity to vote on it, Rothweiler said.

The meeting begins at 3:30 p.m. Monday. The public will probably not have the chance to provide input, but members of the delegation may make themselves available before or after the discussion.

The regular City Council meeting follows, beginning at 5 p.m. At the meeting, the Council will:

Recognize the achievements of firefighter Jesse Killinger in completing this years Twin Falls Drivers Academy.

Consider a request to re-appoint Steve Kolar to the Airport Advisory Board.

Consider accepting an airport grant offer from Idaho Transportation Departments division of aeronautics. The $25,000 grant would be used for a replacement airport pickup truck.

Hear an update on the Joslin Field  Magic Valley Regional Airports five-year capital improvement plan.

Receive a project update on the Urban Renewal Agencys Main Avenue redevelopment.

Consider approving the Nov. 7 election canvas results.

Have a public hearing on a proposed zoning title amendment that would add agritourism as a permitted use in in some areas of town.
TWIN FALLS  A decade after opening its doors, Xavier Charter School is running out of space.

Now, a school committee is considering how to accommodate growth in student numbers and add more classrooms.

The current building  which houses 708 kindergarten through 12th graders  is overcrowded. Theres a huge waiting list of 287 children. There isnt enough classroom space and the building wasnt designed to accommodate specialty programs such as art and band.

Were very much packed into this space, said Brian Loosli, a lead teacher at Xavier and chairman of the building committee.

Xavier, a free public charter school in Twin Falls, opened in 2007. Its known for its rigorous academics and high test scores. It uses a classical model of education and emphasizes music, theater, dance and visual arts.

Xavier is waiting on its five-member committee  which includes school employees and a former board member  to come back with building recommendations. And its seeking to hire either a part or full-time fundraising development director by January or February to lead a capital campaign for the project.

Unlike traditional public school districts, Idaho charter schools arent allowed to bring ballot measures to voters to help pay for operating or building expenses.

Xaviers building committee is thinking about school facility needs for the next 20 years. To address the most immediate issues, its considering an expansion of its existing building  most likely, into the south lawn off the high school wing.

It could include more general education classrooms, as well as specialized spaces for art, band and science classes.

Its very early in the process of planning for a building expansion, Loosli said. The building committee formed in the spring and has met three or four times.

There isnt a timeline in place for when a recommendation could come to the school board or when construction would begin, Loosli said. Its a years-long process.

There arent any blueprints for a building project, either. The building committee has been in touch with a couple of architectural firms, but the school doesnt have a contract with a firm yet.

Once a recommendation comes to the school board, it will likely be to contract with an architect to get blueprints drawn, Loosli said. That would give us something to kind of focus on with the capital campaign were trying to put together.

In the meantime, Xaviers school board will decide in February whether to add four more portable classrooms to campus, school administrator Gary Moon said.

Earlier this year, Xavier bought 2.5 acres of undeveloped land north of its campus. But it doesnt have any plans to use it yet.

Were holding that, Moon said, since construction activity is continuing to boom in northwest Twin Falls. We wanted to have that option.

Buying land and planning for the future is a huge step for Xavier. In its early years, the school faced frequent administrative turnover and major financial problems.

In 2012, the school received a notice of defect from the Idaho Public Charter School Commission for failure to demonstrate financial soundness. The school nearly closed after struggling with high rent costs.

But things turned around. The school reached an agreement in February 2013 with its landlord, cutting rent payments nearly in half, and keeping the doors open. And in April 2015, the schools board finalized a deal to buy its building for $6.5 million.

Now, school officials want to make sure theres enough space for students for years to come.
Weight loss support

TOPS Club (Take Off Pounds Sensibly), a nonprofit weight-loss support group, will meet weekly at several locations.

The Twin Falls chapter will meet at 4:30 p.m. Monday at the Twin Falls Senior Center, 530 Shoshone St. W., 208-734-2641 or 208-734-5300.

Other local chapters will meet at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday at 2025 S. Highway 81 in Malta, 208-645-2438; 9:15 a.m. Thursday at the Jerome Public Library, 100 First Ave. E., 208-324-6693; 9:30 a.m. Thursday at 410 E. Third St. in Rupert, 208-436-6037 or 208-679-3518; and at 5:30 p.m. Friday at 1800 J St. in Heyburn, 208-678-8706 or 208-678-2622.

Breastfeeding

Free Breastfeeding 101 class, 7 p.m. Monday in Oak Room 4 on the lower level of St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Center, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

The class is for new mothers and breastfeeding mothers wanting to review their skills. Babies and your support person are welcome.

Free; pre-registration is required, 208-814-0402.

Yoga

Morning Bliss Yoga, 9 a.m. Tuesday and Saturday at the Magic Valley YMCA, 1751 Elizabeth Blvd., Twin Falls. Stretch and strengthen your muscles through yoga.

Free to the community. Information: ymcatf.com or 208-733-4384.

Childbirth

St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Centers prepared childbirth classes, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays, Dec. 12 through Jan 9, in Oak Rooms 2-4 on the lower level of St. Lukes, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

Topics: Wellness during pregnancy; labor and delivery process with relaxation and breathing techniques; caesarean birth; postpartum care for mother and newborn; infant CPR; car seat and home safety; and a tour of the maternal and child units. Bring a labor-support person if possible.

Cost is $25 for a five-week session. Pre-registration is required: 208-814-0402.

Alzheimers support

Magic Valley Caregiver Support Group, presented by Alzheimers Association, Greater Idaho Chapter, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Bridgeview Estates, 1828 Bridgeview Blvd., Twin Falls. The group meets on the second Tuesday every month.

Information: facilitator Yolanda Martinez, 208-404-6720.

Ostomy support

Ostomy Support Group, 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday in the Pine Room on the lower level of St. Lukes, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

The meeting is for ostomy patients and their families.

Free; 208-308-6153.

Yoga

Prenatal Yoga classes, 6:45 to 7:45 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday at Center for Physical Rehabilitation, 754 N. College Road, Suite D, Twin Falls.

All levels are welcome to join and exercise safely. Sami Ashenbrener, doctor of physical therapy at Center for Physical Rehabilitation, is also a certified yoga instructor with specialized training in prenatal yoga.

Equipment is available, or bring your own equipment if desired. First class is free.

Parkinsons support

The Magic Valley Parkinsons Support Group will meet at noon Wednesday at the Mountain View Barn in Jerome for a Christmas Social with music by the Steve and Kathleen Smith family of Wendell. All are welcome to attend; call 208-358-5807 to reserve a seat.

A regular meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 10 at the Jerome Public Library. Those with Parkinsons and their spouses and caregivers are invited to learn ways of coping with the illness, have discussion with others who are afflicted and receive suggestions and help for an easier life. The group meets monthly on the second Wednesday.

CPR, infant safety

Infant safety and cardiopulmonary resuscitation class, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday in Oak Rooms 2-4 on the lower level of St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Center, 801 Pole Line Road W., Twin Falls.

New parents, grandparents and caregivers learn CPR and what to do if an infant chokes. The class isnt a certification course.

Free; no registration required. 208-814-0402.

Nutrition

Jerome Recreation District offers Improving your Health nutrition class, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at 2032 S. Lincoln in Jerome.

The class includes a discussion about nonfood factors that affect blood sugar; a 10-minute exercise class with Amy Worthington focusing on exercise for those over 60; and a demonstration on how to modify home recipes for improved health with taste testing.

Free; all ages welcome. Spanish will be offered. Information: 208-324-3389.

CPR

St. Lukes Magic Valley Education Department is offering a Heartsaver CPR and AED class, 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday at the Learning Center, 840 Meadows Suite 2, Twin Falls.

The course provides training for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and using an automated external defibrillator.

Cost is $50. Pre-registration is required: 208-814-9050.

Anxiety support

Anxiety Support Group, 6 p.m. every Thursday at Magic Valley Fellowship Hall, 801 Second Ave. N., Twin Falls.

Support for those who experience anxiety, panic attacks or depression. Learn about the signs, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and coping skills.

Information: Cathy Shaddy, 208-410-2768.

Grief support

Griefshare meeting, 6:30 p.m. Thursdays at Lighthouse Church, 960 Eastland Drive, Twin Falls.

Anyone who has lost a loved one or friend is welcome to attend any session. A separate class for teens will begin at the same time. Enter through the east doors at the rear of the main building.

Information: 208-737-4667.

Recovery support

Safe Harbor will hold Recovery group meetings at 7 p.m. Thursdays at 213 Fifth Ave. W. in Twin Falls. A donation meal begins at 6 p.m.

Information: 208-735-8787.

Blood drives

The American Red Cross has scheduled blood drives this month in Buhl, Jerome and Twin Falls.

Blood donation opportunities are available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday at the Church of Immaculate Conception, 1629 Poplar St., Buhl; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 27 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 50 E. 100 S., Jerome.

In Twin Falls, blood drives will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 26 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 667 Harrison St.; noon to 6 p.m. Dec. 27 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 847 Eastland Drive N.; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 29 at the Twin Falls South Stake Center, 541 Orchard Drive; and 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Dec. 29 at Amazing Grace Fellowship, 1061 Eastland Drive.

Eligible donors of all blood types are needed. A blood donor card or drivers license or two other forms of identification are required.

To schedule an appointment to donate, use the free blood donor app, visit redcrossblood.org or call 800-733-2767. Donors can use RapidPass online to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire.

Seniors wellness

The Twin Falls Senior Center will hold a presentation for senior citizens at 12:15 p.m. Dec. 18 at 530 Shoshone St. W.

Connie Campbell of Syringa Place will talk about depression in the elderly.

Free; 208-734-5084.
Cebu Pacific asked the Civil Aeronautics Board for flights entitlements from Manila to Melbourne, as the low-cost carrier plans to mount flights to the Australian city by the middle of 2018.

Cebu Pacific vice president of corporate communications JR Mantaring said the airline requested the Philippine air panel to hold air talks with the government of Australia.

Manataring said the airline requested for 872 seats between Manila and Melbourne.

I think our request is still pending with the CAB, Mantaring said.

The Philippine air panel and its counterpart in Australia raised seat entitlements between the two countries to 9,300 seats from 6,300 seats per week in 2015.

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Cebu Pacific currently operates between Manila and Sydney, while Philippine Airlines flies to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Darwin.

Cebu Pacific increased flight frequency between Manila and Sydney from five times weekly to daily operations beginning Dec. 1, 2017 to Jan. 31, 2018. The airline also offers the most number of seats between Manila and Sydney.

Data from the Department of Tourism showed that Australian tourists visiting the Philippines reached 166,993 in the first eight months of the year.

Cebu Pacific earlier reported a net income of P4.38 billion in the first nine months, down by 38.3 percent from P7.09 billion in the same period last year.

The airline generated revenues of P50.33 billion, up 7.8 percent from P46.69 billion last year.

Its passenger revenues increased to P36.93 billon from P35.36 billion, on higher passenger volume during the period.

Cargo revenues also grew 29 percent to P3.29 billion from P2.55 billion last year.

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La imagen del nino musico que llora fue catalogada como una de las fotografias mas emotivas de la historia moderna. Esta foto fue tomada de un nino brasilero de 12 anos (Diego Frazzo Turkato), tocando el violin en el funeral de su maestro, la pieza musical favorita del fallecido, que lo salvo del ambiente de pobreza y crimen en el que vivia. En esta imagen, la humanidad habla con la voz mas fuerte del mundo: "Cultiva el amor y la bondad en un nino y acumularas amor y bondad. Y solo entonces construiras una gran civilizacion, una gran nacion". Fotografo: Marcos Tristao
Palestinian forces guarding the al Aqsa mosque in Eastern Jerusalem have denied access to the site to a Bahraini official delegation, which visited Israel amid wide spread condemnations from Arab and Muslim countries and the rest of the world following US President last week controversial recognition of the disputed city as capital of Israel.

The interfaith delegation made of 24 Shias and Sunnis reportedly arrived in Israel for a four-day peace tour.

The delegation from a group called This is Bahrain is sent by the Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa in a move to normalize and strengthen ties with Israel, according to press reports. The two countries do not have any diplomatic ties and the Gulf country officially condemned Trumps unilateral decision.

Bahrain has for some time sought to normalize ties with Israel. King Hamad in September reportedly suggested normalization of ties with Israel saying he grew tired of Arab boycott of the Jewish state.

The country in 2016 was the only Gulf country to mourn publically the death of former Israeli President Shimon Peres.
Jordanian lawmakers have overwhelmingly demanded review of the 1994 Wadi Araba peace treaty with Israel in show of support to Palestinians and in protest to President Trumps move declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel and his plans to transfer the US embassy to the Holy city.

President Trump last week unilaterally declared Israels sovereignty over Jerusalem, as its capital, despite special international agreement that only Palestinians and Israelis, through negotiations, could determine the status of the city.

Trumps decision sparked worldwide condemnations and protests across the Muslim world, including in Jordan, which is the second Arab country after Egypt to recognize Israel.

Lawmakers on Sunday, reports say, tasked the legal committee to study all agreements signed with Israel and record violations by Tel Aviv from the time of the peace treaty to make an appropriate decision.

Another group of 14 members of parliament (MPs) signed a memo for the kingdom to ignite procedures to scrap the peace accord.

The moves followed several protests across the country. The Jordanian nation is largely made of descendants of Palestinian refugees and King Abdullahs tribe is custodian of Muslim holy sites in Arab East Jerusalem occupied by Israel.

Palestinians hope to make the eastern part of the city the capital of their future state. The Jordanian monarch warned Trump against the unilateral decision saying it would tilt the region towards violence.

In a similar move, Tunisian lawmakers also largely signed a petition to pass proposed legislation curbing efforts to normalize ties with Israel.

If passed, the law would impose fines and jail sentences on anyone or any businesses dealing with Israel in any form, The New Arab reports.

The proposed legislation has been in discussion since 2015.

The North African country also joined the chorus of condemnations of Trumps decision. Tunisia has not established diplomatic ties with Israel.
A study of nearly 3,000 women with early stage breast cancer indicates a recent, significant decline in the use of chemotherapy despite the lack of any change in national treatment recommendations or guidelines, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of Michigan.

The findings reflect a growing acknowledgement by oncologists and patients that for some women, the harms of chemotherapy may outweigh its potential benefits. The study also revealed that physicians are more likely to turn to tumor genomic testing when a patient expresses a treatment preference that doesnt match her physicians recommendations.

For patients with early stage breast cancer, weve seen a significant decline in chemotherapy use over the last few years without a real change in evidence, said Allison Kurian, MD, associate professor of medicine and of health research and policy at Stanford. This likely reflects a change in the culture of how physicians are practicing, and a move toward using tumor biology to guide treatment choices rather than solely relying on clinical measures.

Kurian is the lead author of the study, which was published online Dec. 11 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Steven Katz, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and of health management and policy at the University of Michigan, is the senior author.

Our study shows how breast cancer is a model for how doctors have driven advances in personalized medicine into the exam room to reduce overtreatment, said Katz.

Surveying women, oncologists

The researchers surveyed 5,080 women treated for early stage breast cancer between 2013 and 2015 in Georgia and Los Angeles. Among them, 2,926 had stage-1 or -2 breast cancers that were positive for estrogen receptor expression and negative for human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 expression. (Receptor expression status is often used to guide treatment recommendations for women with breast cancer.)
Morocco, as a car manufacturing platform, has been strengthened by a new comer, the Chinese world leader in electric car making, BYD group.

Following suit to French automakers Renault and Peugeot, BYD group decided to establish an electric car factory near Tangier, a decision that falls in line with the strong resolve of King Mohammed VI to revitalize and modernize the Kingdoms infrastructures and diversify its partnerships with major world players.

As a sign of the interest the Monarch grants to his countrys industrialization strategy, he received Saturday at the Royal Palace in Casablanca the CEO of BYD, the Chinese billionaire Wang Chuanfu.

The Monarch later on chaired the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding related to the establishment of the electric car factory. The MoU also provides for the construction of three other factories for the manufacturing of electric batteries; electric buses and trucks; and electric trains.

This new project confirms Moroccos standing as a competitive platform for car production, where leading operators in high-tech sectors, such as composite materials, lighting, and connectivity, are already established, said Moroccan Minister of Industry, Moulay Hafid Elalamy on the sidelines of the ceremony.

The project will contribute to the implementation of the Kings enlightened vision for the development of relations between China and African countries, he added.

CEO of the Chinese group, Wang Chuanfu, who described relations between China and Morocco as excellent, expressed his groups satisfaction to cooperate with Morocco on this project, and to share its experience in several countries in recent years in the development of electric vehicles.

Cooperation between BYD and Morocco sets a model for other countries who seek to develop innovative energy solutions, Chuanfu said.

We want to benefit from Moroccos geographical location, as a gateway to Europe and to the African market, he said.

The 400 business executives from across Africa and China who attended last November in Marrakesh the China-Africa Investment Forum, underscored that Morocco, thanks to its advanced infrastructure, close ties with African economies and its advanced ports and free zones, offers a platform for Chinese businesses willing to expand in Africa.

Besides, with the 55 Free Trade Agreements it concluded notably with the EU and the US, Morocco offers a gateway to Chinese companies willing to relocate, the Forum underlined at the end of its works.

This precursor project of BYD (Build Your Dreams), which introduces new specializations in the Kingdom, resolutely inscribes Morocco in the world dynamics seeking to develop new forms of transport, combining efficiency and respect for the environment.

Through this strategic partnership, Morocco pools efforts with a pioneering player in renewable energies and electric cars manufacturing, part of its endeavors to be a major player in sustainable development on the regional level, thanks to a voluntarist green energies strategy, spearheaded by King Mohammed VI.

Actually, Morocco plans to increase the share of renewable energies in the Moroccan energy mix by 2030 to 52%.

All BYDs production sites will be located near Tangier, in the future industrial city dubbed Cite Mohammed VI Tangier Techto be carried out by the Chinese group Haite.

The site productions will cover a 50 hectare- surface area and will generate 2,500 direct jobs.
Image copyright SANTA BARBARA COUNTY FD Image caption The Thomas fire has the potential to be one of the worst in California's history

Fresh evacuations have been ordered after the largest of the wildfires raging in southern California burned out of control on Sunday.

Fanned by winds, the resurgent Thomas fire now threatens the coastal city of Santa Barbara and nearby Carpinteria.

Firefighters earlier reported progress in containing the blaze, said to have devastated an area the size of Chicago.

But while other fires hitting the state are largely controlled, the Thomas fire is just 15% contained.

Image copyright NASA/EPA Image caption Satellite imagery shows the vast Thomas Fire, north of Los Angeles, which has spread as far as the Pacific coast

"The winds are kind of squirrely right now," Santa Barbara county fire spokesman Mike Eliason was quoted by the Associated Press as saying.

"Some places the smoke is going straight up in the air, and others it's blowing sideways. Depends on what canyon we're in."





Evacuation orders were issued overnight for parts of Carpinteria close to Los Padres National Forest, about 100 miles (160km) northwest of Los Angeles.

Forecasters said wind speeds were expected to increase throughout the day, before dying down again overnight.

The local fire department tweeted pictures of a wall of flames advancing on homes on the outskirts of Carpinteria early on Sunday morning.

Meanwhile, actor Rob Lowe, who lives in Santa Barbara, a city of close to 100,000 people, tweeted that he was praying for his town as fires closed in.

"Firefighters making brave stands. Could go either way. Packing to evacuate now," Lowe added.

California has spent the past seven days battling wildfires. Six large blazes, and other smaller ones, erupted on Monday night in southern California.





Fanned by high winds, they swept through tens of thousands of acres in a matter of hours, driven by extreme weather, including low humidity and parched ground.

The authorities issued a purple alert - the highest level warning - amid what it called "extremely critical fire weather", while US President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency.





Media caption Large parts of southern California have been affected

On Saturday, California Governor Jerry Brown described the situation as "the new normal" and predicted vast fires, fuelled by climate change, "could happen every year or every few years".

The current fires have forced the evacuation of some 200,000 people across the state, and seen more than 800 structures destroyed.

Several firefighters have been injured, but only one person has died - a 70-year-old woman who was found dead in her car on an evacuation route.

There are also fears the blaze will seriously hit California's multi-million dollar agricultural industry.









Ashley's Grandmother, Stella and Aunt, Caron both live in this area and I have been in touch with them both and they have had the evacuation notice...to date so far their homes are safe but much depends on those winds.....wish them well!



Yashi Kochi!!!
@NewsbySmiley

Six Miami firefighters who lost their jobs after a black colleague found lewd images drawn on his family photos and a noose in his fire station dorm room are fighting to be reinstated.

Captain William W. Bryson, Lt. Alejandro Sese, and firefighters Kevin Meizoso, David Rivera, Justin Rumbaugh and Harold Santana have filed grievances contesting their terminations, according to Miamis firefighter union, which will decide Tuesday whether to support their claims.

The men were fired last month after firefighter veteran Robert S. Webster returned to his room at fire station 12 on Sept. 10 and found that someone had taken his family photos, removed the pictures, drawn penis images on the photos and then returned them to their frames. Someone also draped a noose over his belongings.

Click here to read more.

Photo: Fired Miami firefighters, from left top: William Bryson, Kevin Meizoso, and David Rivera; from bottom left: Justin Rumbaugh, Harold Santana, Alejandro Sese, were fired over an incident in which someone hung a noose over a black lieutenants family photos inside a fire station. City of Miami
A fifth grade girl, age 10, is in need of gym shoes size 4 (youth). If you can help, you are asked to make a donation of any amount up to $40 to My Student in Need and we will buy a gift card so the teacher can take him shopping for new shoes. Russell No. 2673.

Many MCPS students who are currently experiencing homelessness are in need of toiletries including but not limited to shampoo, conditioner, body wash, laundry detergent, deodorant and toilet paper. If you can help, you are asked to make a donation of any amount up to $200 to My Student in Need and we will buy a gift card so the District Families in Transition Liaison can go shopping to ensure all of our schools have supplies on hand for these students. Meadow Hill No. 2674.
Planning has begun for what promises to be the biggest airplane fly-in Missoula has ever seen.

Six staff members from the Maryland-based Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) were in town last week to lay the groundwork for the regional event set for next June 15-16.

Chris Eads, director of outreach and events for AOPA, said 300 to 500 aircraft typically show up for the fly-ins, which should draw anywhere from 4,000 to 8,000 people to Missoula International Airport.

AOPA is the largest general aviation association in the world and stages four regional fly-ins each year. The others in 2018 will be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in September; Carbondale, Illinois, in early October, and Gulf Shores, Alabama, in late October. Eads said its the first time the association has chosen a Montana destination.

Were excited to be hosting a regional fly-in, said Cris Jensen, airport director. I think its a great opportunity for the general aviation community to come and explore Montana and specifically Missoula. And its a great opportunity for our community to get engaged in general aviation.

Jensen said the airport will shut down the shorter of two runways and a couple of taxiways for plane parking, and will have overflow parking contingencies as well.

Thatd be the best-case scenario, to have to use all of it, Jensen said.

Commercial flights wont be disrupted, he added. AOPA and local organizers are coordinating with the airlines and TSA to make sure things go smoothly.

This is, I think, the 21st or 22nd one that theyve put on, and theyve got it down to an exact science. Its going to be very well-organized, said Gary Matson, a pilot whos on the local organizing committee.

Missoula has hosted a few smaller fly-ins, but theyve been more specific to aircraft type, Beech Bonanza or something like that, Jensen said. Nothing like this.

Eads said on any given weekend, especially during good weather, there are hundreds of fly-ins across the nation.

Ours tend to be on the larger scale, he said. They fly in from really a pretty broad region. Youll see folks coming from as far as 500 or 600 miles away.

The two-day event will be filled with exhibits, workshops, seminars with world-class presenters, as well as products and services to enhance the flying experience. A Barnstormers Party ends the weekend. Some pilots will stake out camps on the grass beneath the wings of their planes or in a designated camping area at the airport.

Matson said organizers met Wednesday with Glacier Country Montana to plan a fly-out on Sunday to an attractive destination.

Most of those flying in will stay in local hotels and dine at eateries, Eads said. Contractors will tap local resources for tents, catering, porta-potties and the like.

Our research indicates theres roughly $680,000 of direct impact to the community, he said.

While the fly-in offers a chance to meet and connect with other pilots and enthusiasts, the impact on those without planes is appreciable too. Drive-ins will outnumber the fly-ins, Matson said.

Its a free event, open to the public, so we encourage any folks interested in aviation whod like to get an up-close look at the aircraft to come, Eads said. Its very much the common mans aviation. Recreational aviation is really more accessible to the average person than most folks realize. As a hobby and an interest, its no more expensive than having a nice Harley Davidson motorcycle or a sailing boat.

Its a competitive process to secure an AOPA regional fly-in, and Missoulas successful bid has a special benefit to Matson.

We hear from these people who are planning the event what a beautiful place this is and how many really cool things there are here to see, Matson said. One of the things it does for us is it helps us appreciate what we have  a really excellent airport, the Museum of Mountain Flying, Neptune Aviation, two (fixed-base operators), the Forest Service and smokejumpers ... There really are some nice things at the airport of interest.

The regional fly-in comes in the same year that Missoula takes a turn hosting the Montana Aviation Conference. The 34th annual conference is set for March 1-3 at the Holiday Inn Downtown.
Are you looking for ways to help people (and animals!) in need this holiday season? We have gathered information on charities here in the Mis
Four police officers are being hailed as heroes for subduing the suspect in Monday's explosion at a New York City transit hub before the situation worsened.

The Port Authority Police Benevolent Association identified the officers as Sean Gallagher, Drew M. Preston, John "Jack" F. Collins and Anthony Manfredini.

"Today, four courageous Port Authority police officers risked their lives confronting an armed terrorist to protect others from harm," PAPBA President Paul Nunziato said in a statement. "I am so thankful there was no loss of life and I could not be prouder of our Port Authority police officers, their actions and dedication to their sworn duty."

Officials say 27-year-old Akayed Ullah set off a pipe bomb strapped to his chest Monday morning in an underground walkway connecting subway stations at the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Ullah and five others were injured in the blast, which triggered panic in the busy commuter hub during rush hour.

As smoke and debris filled the passageway, the officers rushed toward the scene and came upon the suspect, Nunziato said.

Collins arrested Ullah at gunpoint with the help of the other officers, CNN affiliate WABC reported. Collins was working his regular assignment on the lookout for child trafficking in Port Authority.

Port Authority Chairman Kevin O'Toole praised the four officers for putting an end to the incident before it got worse.

"Thanks to the quick response of these brave Port Authority Police officers, the suspect was apprehended, there were no serious injuries and the PABT was secured without further incident," O'Toole said, according to WABC. "Our officers responded immediately and put themselves in harm's way to protect the public."

CNN's Lauren DelValle contributed to this report.
Registering your car will be a little more costly starting Jan. 1 when a new 3-percent administrative fee kicks in, and those with fancy motor homes or other high-priced vehicles will pay a lot more because of Montanas new Ferrari tax.

Theres no need to fret on the latter category unless those vehicles are valued at $150,000 or more, but county officials want everyone to know about the upcoming fee increases.

The higher fees are already reflected on registration renewal forms being sent out this month, said Butte-Silver Bow Treasurer Lori Baker-Patrick.

Montana lawmakers raised the fees this past session in hopes of raising about $25 million over the next two years to provide funding for the Division of Motor Vehicles and Highway Patrol without relying so heavily on state gasoline taxes.

They increased the gasoline tax, too, to generate more revenue for road and highway work. This past July 1, the tax went up 4.5 cents per gallon of gas and 1.5 cents per gallon of diesel.

Lawmakers were considering higher gas-tax increases but decided to get some new revenue from motor vehicle fees.

On Jan. 1, a 3-percent administrative cost will be applied to all portions of registration fees except the county option fee.

As an example, the owner of a car valued at around $7,800 pays about $39 to the county. The state registration fee on that car is $107. If it has a specialty plate, that costs $20 to renew. And some owners voluntarily put $6 toward state parks.

Those fees  minus the county fee  total $133. A 3-percent fee on that is $3.99. Thats on the low side of what most folks will pay because of the added fee.

A portion of the state costs is a flat fee depending on the age of the vehicle. A new car or pickup, for example, includes a flat fee of $217.

Cara Barnes, motor vehicle supervisor in the county treasurers office, did some calculations based on median levels.

A 3-percent increase on new cars one to four years old will be $8.24 based on median levels. It will cost an average of $4.71 for years five through 10 and $2.57 on cars or pickups 11 years or older.

Registrations also include a fee for the Highway Patrol, which has gone from $5 to $10. There is a charge for temporary registration permits on new vehicles, too, which went from $3 to $19.50 in July.

An annual Ferrari tax or luxury tax takes effect Jan. 1. It tacks on an additional $825 on registrations for vehicles valued at $150,000 or more that are 10 years old or less. Those with motor homes less than 11 years old and valued at $300,000 or more will pay an additional $800.
Its not quite a get-out-of-jail-free card, but it helps.

Since 2015, Yellowstone County has spent roughly $300,000 helping low-income defendants pay for their pretrial monitoring costs.

And those payments, combined with a tool the rest of the state will soon use, have helped save the county between $2.1 million and $2.5 million by trimming the jail roster.

The subsidy program helps felony defendants pay for GPS, drug and alcohol monitoring  court ordered requirements for many people released pending trial. While the subsidy program is fairly unusual for Montana, Gallatin County also subsidizes monitoring costs through its Pretrial Services department.

The program was created after judges, jail staff, county officials and others decided to take action on jail crowding. The subsidy is run in tandem with a pretrial risk assessment, a tool that tells judges which defendants are good candidates for release. The program began as a pilot project and has since been expanded and made permanent.

Defendants deemed low risk for failing to appear in court or re-offending are candidates for release. But for many, the cost of monitoring  which is required for all felony DUI, sexual or violent charges  is prohibitive.

And in the criminal justice system, I think its pretty obvious that theres an issue of indigency and poverty, said Justice of the Peace David Carter, who helped start the program.

So the county pays up to $9 a day to subsidize the costs for 35 people a day. For comparison, direct costs for feeding and clothing a jail inmate are $27 to $31 per day, which does not include overhead costs. (That amounts to $97 per person, per day.)

The subsidy often leaves just $1 a day for defendants to pay, depending on which company and monitoring product are used. Theres a wait list for the subsidy program  anywhere from six to 10 names long.

To Lisa Ereth, who coordinates the program, the need for financial assistance is clear.

Thats kind of the standard situation, is people are unemployed or disabled, Ereth said. If they didnt have the subsidy, they wouldnt get out.

In January, all counties will take a step in this direction, if they havent already. A law passed this spring requires state courts to use a pretrial risk assessment on felony defendants in order to identify good candidates for release and divert people from overcrowded jails. Yellowstone County has been using its version of the tool, along with the subsidy, since 2015.
No, it wasn't aliens, meteor showers or Rudolph leading Santa's sleigh.

The theories abounded Saturday night as dozens of residents in the Billings area took to social media to speculate on an unusual procession of blinking red lights seen to the east around 8 p.m., then traveling silently across the sky before veering off to the southeast.

The bizarre nighttime display was actually a high-altitude gaggle of C-17 military planes from Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Seattle, en route to a joint military exercise, according to an Air Force spokesman.

The transcontinental "Coyote Freedom 401" mission was also the largest such training exercise that has taken place to date, Capt. Ryan DeCamp, a spokesman for the 18th Air Force Wing at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, said Monday.

The exercise is a capstone training event for students at the U.S. Air Force Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, he said, and on Saturday night and Sunday morning included 37 C-17s along with 21 C-130 military transport planes.

"We do these, but not at this size, in terms of the total amount of aircraft, so that's really what made this unique," DeCamp said.

Elsewhere, the training event also included fighter jets, tankers, drones and other resources "to better prepare our students for contested degraded environments," Nellis spokeswoman Susan Garcia added in an email Monday.

In active combat situations, these types of missions are used to clear the air space before heavier transport aircraft arrive to drop paratroopers into the area, DeCamp explained.

"Really, the whole mission is a combination of fighter aircraft, paratrooper aircraft and the Army, simulating something you might see us do in Iraq or Afghanistan," he said.

The string of aircraft visible from Billings on Saturday eventually met up with other planes from a total of 13 bases across the country, flying to destinations in North and South Carolina before the return flight.

On Facebook, the Laurel Ambulance Service appeared to be one of the first to officially deflate the UFO theories Saturday night.
POLSON  A good book can take readers to worlds they never knew existed.

Sometimes, it can even change a life.

That very thing happened a few years ago in Polson when the entire elementary and middle school student body took up the challenge to read author Gary Paulsens memoirs of raising sled dogs and eventually racing them in the grueling, 1,180-mile Iditarod Sled Dog Race. He captured the experience in his book Woodsong," which recounted in part his experience.

As they read about his adventures and let their imaginations run wild, the classes adopted an Iditarod musher and tracked their progress as they competed in the actual race.

By the time it was over, Charmayne Morrison had decided that sled dogs were going to be part of her future.

If everything goes as planned, the 17-year-old will travel to Alaska this winter with her own team to take part in the 150-mile Junior Iditarod in hopes that it will eventually lead to her own opportunity to experience the iconic race.

Ive been dreaming about that for a long time, Morrison said as she stood surrounded by dogs in the barnyard of her parents quarter horse ranch just west of Polson.

The sounds of barking dogs filled the air as she watched one of her 20 Alaskan huskies jump straight up, almost to the top of the 7-foot-tall kennel. The dogs outside the kennel stayed close to her side. A few steps in either direction were two sleds  one wooden that she built herself and another that she uses for training and racing.

For as long as she can remember, animals have been a part of Morrisons life.

Animals werent a new thing for me, Morrison said. I grew up around animals so its probably not all that surprising that this would have been something that caught my interest. I really was hooked right from the start.

Her first dog was a retired musher that had experience running the Iditarod. From there, she started a breeding program thats sort of taken over portions of her parents ranch.

At first, I dont think they were really sure why I wanted to do this, Morrison said. My family likes to rodeo and go to horse shows. This was certainly different from that You know, having 20 dogs is a lot to ask of anyone.

Over time, Morrison said shes commandeered the familys freezer to store dog food. There are often puppies in the barn. And what used to be the hay yard is now a kennel.

Morrison isnt a typical teen.

Her focus on the future has put her in a position to take enough classes to graduate early. She worked two jobs in the summer and part time during the school year to pay for the care of her dog pack.

They are my responsibility, she said. I cover the costs.

In order to qualify for the Junior Iditarod, she plans to run in the Eagle Cap Extreme in Oregon and the Junior Race to the Sky in Montana.

To help pay for the costs, Morrison held a spaghetti dinner fundraiser in Polson and has a GoFundMe site at www.gofundme.com/morrison-racing-kenneljr-iditarod

Polson Middle School teacher Amy Williams has no doubt that shell figure out a way to make it happen.

Williams had moved to Polson from Alaska when the elementary school district decided to share Paulsens book across grade levels and track individual Iditarod mushers. Morrisons interest was evident from the start.

During her time in Alaska, Williams had become acquainted with people serious about racing dogs. She knew that to do it right, a person couldnt go halfway.

I told her it was a lifestyle, not a hobby, Williams remembered. She told me she was ready for it. Charmayne is a self-driven young woman who doesnt shy away from doing something challenging.

When Morrison participated in Montanas Junior Race to the Sky last winter, a busload of her biggest supporters from Polson schools was there to cheer her on.

I think everyone was so excited about that, Williams said. I told all the kids to pay close attention to all the sounds and sights that they would be surrounded by. Those dogs are supercharged at the starting line.

Morrison got a little confused out on the course and learned that she needed to perfect her map-reading skills, but that event just made her focus on this winters goal become even clearer.

I love that feeling when youre out on the trail and its just you and the dogs, she said. You get to see some amazing country, but that connection between you and your dogs is what I like the most. To get to experience that is a dream come true.
CORRECTED VERSION:

POLSON  Its been a little more than 10 years since Cupcake died in his arms.

Filip Panusz didnt know it at the time, but his dogs tragic death was going to help him save hundreds more just like Cupcake.

When Panusz first saw the border collie hed come to call Cupcake, the dog was skin and bones, huddled in a corner behind the rest of the pack at the Deer Lodge Humane Society shelter. Abandoned, the dog had spent weeks poking around the outskirts of town during a particularly blustery cold snap.

Panusz and his wife adopted Cupcake and nursed him back to health.

On another brisk day four months later, Panusz took both his dogs for a walk along Rock Creek near Missoula.

About a quarter mile from the trailhead, he heard a loud snap followed by a gurgling, strangling kind of noise. He ran to edge of the creek and found Cupcake with a Conibear traps steel jaws wrapped around the dogs neck. He jumped into the icy creek and began to struggle to get the traps jaws to release with one hand while trying to keep his dog afloat with the other.

Panusz felt the life drain from this dog he thought he had rescued.

When something like that happens, it stays with you your entire life, he said. For me, Ive come to this sense of understanding that it was meant to be.

***

Sharing the couch with a dog named Honey, the Mission Valley Animal Shelters director said he found the best way to heal was to find a way to give something back.

Ive found a way to channel that energy back in a positive way, Panusz said. Rather than being upset, Ive found a way to do something good with that energy.

Panusz took over the reins at Lake Countys only animal shelter last spring. Before that, he spent time working in Missoula for the Humane Society of Western Montana and Missoula Animal Control.

I have really discovered that this is my passion, he said.

That passion will be put to good use at a time of reorganization and expansion at the shelter north of Polson.

From its humble beginnings as a temporary outdoor shelter on Polsons First Street in 1991, the shelter has moved into a permanent structure out of town on county land and developed a following of a dedicated core of concerned citizens.

Sharon Hawke remembers its beginning.

None of us at the start had any experience running a shelter, Hawke said. We had to prove it ourselves and to the community that this could work.

If they had to do over again, Hawke said they probably wouldnt have opened the outdoor facility in the dead of winter.

We had to bring water in milk cartons, she said. Ive often joked that only a bunch of people who didnt know what they were doing would try to operate an outdoor shelter in winter.

But somehow they succeeded.

After moving out of town in 1994, the shelter was expanded in 2000 and 2010. From the very beginning, the money has come from donations, fundraisers and now the Seconds 2 Go thrift store in Polson.

We do not borrow money for anything, Hawke said. We have a lot of fundraisers and grant writing. The community has always been very supportive of what were trying to accomplish.

This past year, help has come from even farther away.

After a mother and daughter volunteered at the shelter the summer before last, they took what they learned back to their home in Bozeman and shared with it a local Girl Scout troop. Through bake sales and other fundraisers, the girls from Bozeman raised $4,000.

Even more important, that connection led Mark Giacoletto of Butte to step forward and help the shelter organize this past summers Puppy Party Fundraiser that would provide nearly $40,000 to help the shelter complete a new renovation that includes an addition for puppies and their mothers.

It was by far the largest fundraiser that weve ever had, Hawke said. We owe a lot to Mark Giacoletto. He was able to obtain unbelievable items for us to auction. He wanted to be able help the shelter.

As a result of that effort and $7,500 Partnership with Native Americans Grant, the shelter will make a number of improvements, including moving the intake and quarantine rooms to the back of the building to ensure that disease is kept at bay.

Once the remodeling is completed, people interested in adopting a dog or cat will have a room set aside for them to meet their prospective pet. There will be some additional kennels so the shelter can accommodate more animals. And there will be a new cleaning system that will do away with the smell of bleach thats hard on the lungs of anything alive.

As things are now, the shelter sometimes is forced to turn animals away when there isnt any room.

Panusz will be happy to have the additional space. On this day, he has temporary cages set up in every single room.

"We do what we can to accommodate as many animals as possible," he said.

The shelter has also hired a new manager, who will allow Panusz to do more outreach for both funding and education.

Ive known for a long time the directors position was really a job for two people, Hawke said. Now that weve made the change, Filip can work more on funding and development while the shelter manager, Steve Reynolds, can focus on operations. When you have one person doing the job of two, you burn them out. Its not sustainable. Im glad we moved forward with that.

The shelter does not receive any financial support from any government sources.

As the only shelter in the county, we are pretty much overwhelmed a lot of the time, Hawke said.

Theres always a need for volunteers at the shelter and the thrift store.

I have so many people tell me that they couldnt work at the shelter because it would break their heart to see the animals that come in there, she said. I think they would find the animals that are there are very happy. They all have a chance to get outside and exercise. There are a lot of other ways people can help, though, and they would find out thats actually very rewarding.

Hawke has served on the board since 1991 after moving to the area from Denver.

I never intended to get this involved, she said. But one thing led to another  I always tell people to find their passion in life. Obviously, this was my passion, but I just didnt know it at the time. I think others might learn the same thing about themselves if they would be willing to just give it a try.

An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of Filip Panusz.
There was a time when Montanans were incredibly proud of the people we sent to Congress. Mike Mansfield was a legendary U.S. senator, respected by Republicans and Democrats for his abilities and even-handedness with parliamentary procedures. Mansfield became the Senates longest-serving majority leader before retiring in 1977 and garnering the nations highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Lee Metcalf served in the Senate with Mansfield and died a year after Mansfield retired, but not before he bequeathed future generations the legacy of the 1978 Wilderness Study Act that protected just over a million acres of Montanas lands with wilderness qualities for the future.

Comes now Montanas junior Sen. Steve Daines who, late last week, announced that he was introducing legislation to dissolve Metcalfs wilderness study areas and open them up to motorized wreckreation, mining, logging and resource exploitation. In an Orwellian turn of language, Daines titled his bill the Protect Public Use of Public Lands Act." Given that it releases nearly half a million acres of the already protected wilderness study areas to exploitation, nothing could be further from the truth.

Then again, Daines appears to have some problem with telling the truth, like much of Washington, D.C., these days. The first sentence in his press release, for instance, is a lie. Daines states: As a fifth-generation Montanan The truth, however, is that Daines was born in Van Nuys, California  not Montana. One certainly doesnt need to be born in Montana to live here and love this state  but why try and fake your heritage? It could be that Daines simply doesnt understand what heritage means  or what it means to destroy the heritage left by those who came before.

The areas from which Daines legislation removes existing statutory protection are the wilderness heritage bequeathed to Montanans and the nation by Lee Metcalf. Take the 151,000 acres of the West Pioneers, for instance. This beautiful mountain range was ravaged by off-road vehicle riders for years, blatantly defying the U.S. Forest Services legal mandate to protect its wilderness quality characteristics. Documentation shows that when one steep, illegally cut trail became too eroded and rocky to ride, they simply moved over a few feet and cut, then eroded, another illegal trail.

Likewise, Daines wants to remove existing protections for 94,000 acres of the Sapphire Mountains WSA, 81,000 acres from the Middle Fork Judith WSA, and 32,500 acres of the Bitterroots Blue Joint WSA and 91,000 acres of the Big Snowies.

One doesnt need a crystal ball to see the future if Daines is successful; just look at the list of the bills supporters. Theres the Montana Mining Association and the Treasure State Resource Association, both of which hope to gain public access to the dwindling resources owned by all Americans. The Montana Snowmobile Association, Citizens for Balanced Use and the Montana Vehicle Trail Riders Association all want to bring their noisy and destructive wreckreation to these formerly protected lands. While these local organizations support Daines bill, the rest of the American public gets no input whatsoever.

This is our state and national heritage, Senator Daines, and it is unique in this last best place. Montanans have long and harsh experience with resource extraction  and we remember and honor those, such as Lee Metcalf, who protected our lands and waters for future generations. Then theres Daines the Destroyer, who betrays that legacy in his rush to plunder every last acre for every last resource under the phony rubric of public access. Gone are the days when Montanans could be proud of those they send to Congress.
Sometime in late January, 24,000 Montana children will lose health insurance if the U.S Senate does not vote to reauthorize the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

By mid-December, the Montana Department of Health and Human Services will be forced to send a warning letter to participating CHIP families with the information their child/children will lose the Montana version of CHIP, Healthy Montana Kids insurance coverage, unless the Senate votes to reauthorize the program before the congressional Christmas break.

CHIP is a low-cost insurance plan, available to families whose income matches the formula of the federal poverty levels, that provides basic health care  dental care, inoculations, physician office visits, well-child checkup, hospital in-patient and out-patient services, emergency visits, hearing and vision screening, prescription drugs, behavior health and transportation services to children and ob-gyn services to pregnant women.

In 2008, the Montana Healthy Kids Initiative was passed by a citizens vote with 69 percent approval to establish the childrens insurance plan in Montana. With the passage of the HELP Act in 2015, Montana joined other state in participating in expanded Medicaid and a greater funding share for Healthy Montana Kids shifted to the federal government.

Ironically, both Montana senators have agreed CHIP should be reauthorized and believe there is bipartisan support, yet the Senate has failed to schedule a vote on the bill even though the U.S House passed the bill reauthorizing the program months ago.

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines stated, The Childrens Health Insurance Program provides important coverage to tens of thousands of Montana children, and consensus exists in Congress to reauthorize the program. U.S. Sen. Jon Tester introduced legislation to reauthorize the program in November.

Gov. Steve Bullock has spoken about the success of the Montana Healthy Kids program. It is well known that healthy children experience greater success in school. Good vision and hearing ability increase the opportunity to learn. A sick child not only suffers but contributes to an unhealthy environment for other children in the classroom.

So what is the holdup? When will the Senate vote on reauthorization? Eleven states have already run out of funds for the program. Fortunately, Montana has the resources to run the program into January, but without a Senate vote to reauthorize, Montana will face closing the successful program that provides basic health care for children.

Contact Senators Daines and Tester to urge a vote on the program.
MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo.  Five bighorn sheep in Yellowstone National Park may be frightening visitors with their freakishly scabbed lips blamed on an outbreak of sore mouth disease, but wildlife biologists aren't too worried.

"It is widespread, so in that context it is common," said Bob Garrott, an MSU ecology professor who is studying bighorn sheep. "It tends not to kill animals."

"We find it fairly commonly," said Jennifer Ramsey, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wildlife veterinarian. "Usually it's a few animals with mild lesions."

She said the virus also shows up in blood taken from bighorns because FWP is performing baseline monitoring of some sheep herds.

"Generally the first time they get infected it's more severe," Ramsey said.

Virus

Also known as contagious ecthyma, the outbreak is caused by the parapoxvirus. It is transmittable to humans who have direct contact with infected sheep, so the National Park Service is reminding people not to approach or touch any wildlife.

Sore mouth disease is common in farmed sheep and goats, where farmers can vaccinate against the illness. In the wild, the virus is found in Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep from Alaska to California, according to the Park Service.

"I think we've had it before," Garrott said. "In Wyoming in the Absarokas on the east side of the (Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem) I've seen it."

Typically spread from ewes to lambs, the disease can manifest itself as scabby sores around the mouth and face, according to a park press release. Lesions disappear in two to four weeks and animals typically heal without scarring. Generally, affected animals recover, but deaths can occur in severe outbreaks, especially with young animals who cannot feed. The virus has the greatest effect on lambs that refuse to nurse because of sore mouths.

The bad news is that the virus seems capable of surviving in the wild for quite some time, Ramsey said. Scabs that fall off can infect animals 10 to 12 years later.

Contained

So far, only breeding age rams in the park's herd of 150 animals have been observed with lesions, the Park Service said. This is likely a result of frequent contact with each other and possibly infected ewes during the breeding season.

The disease is difficult to control in bighorn sheep. In most situations control efforts are not warranted since the disease is typically self-limiting as animals build up protective antibodies.

"Nobody knows much about it, why it crops up and disappears," Garrott said.

If feeding is too painful for rams, Garrott said the sheep should be able to weather the outbreak by relying on fat reserves, provided the outbreak doesn't keep them from feeding for too long.

Park biologists will continue to monitor the infected animals.

Natives

Bighorn sheep are native to the area and were once a key food source for native Shoshone Indians who derived their name from the species: the Sheep Eaters. The natives built traps in the rock cliffs around Yellowstone to capture the animals.

More recently, one of the area's herds suffered through an outbreak of pneumonia, which is typically transferred to the animals through contact with domestic sheep. The pneumonia can be fatal to bighorns and can become endemic, reinfecting the animals over and over again.

"Those herds are doing pretty well," said FWP wildlife biologist Karen Loveless. "One has low recruitment, so we're keeping that hunting district closed. But there's been no respiratory disease this year."

Ramsey said pneumonia has shown up sporadically in the Yellowstone bighorn sheep. All together there are about 320 bighorns that winter in the lower elevations of the Gardiner Basin.
Every fall you can count on someone in the state finding a rare bird  or a bird that lives in Montana but has been found in an area that it is not normally seen.

So it was this fall.

Tom Bowler of Butte sent me a picture of a chickadee that he had in his yard that seemed different from the others. He identified it, but the species was so out of range that he wasnt sure of his identification. He sent me a photograph, which is included with this article. Tom had every right to wonder if his ID was correct. The chickadee he saw had never been recorded in the Butte area, a boreal chickadee.

There are seven species of chickadees in North America and four species in Montana. The most familiar is the common black-capped chickadee, seen on many backyard feeders.

In communities such as Butte, Anaconda, and Deer Lodge, you will get an occasional mountain chickadee as well. As the name implies, mountain chickadees are a species of higher-elevation mountains but can be found west of the Continental Divide in higher valleys, though less common than black-capped. Mountain chickadees can be distinguished from black-capped by their "black cap" being incomplete with a white line between the top of the head and the black eye line.

The third species in Montana is the chestnut-backed chickadee, which prefers Pacific Coast habitats. In Montana, they are restricted to coastal habitats, wet forest with mature Douglas fir and cedar. That restricts chestnut-backed chickadees to an area north of Missoula to Glacier Park and west to the Idaho line. A few have been seen in the Bitterroot Valley in wet coniferous habitats.

The final Montana species is the boreal chickadee. As the name suggests, they are a common resident of boreal sub-tundra forest in Canada and Alaska. In Montana, they are restricted to a few areas of Glacier Park in suitable habitat.

The Montana Natural Heritage Program has 247 records for the boreal and 1,036 for the chestnut-backed chickadee. In comparison, there have been 10,639 black-capped observations and 17,059 for the mountain chickadee.

The chestnut-backed chickadee has a chestnut back and flanks, a black cap and throat, and a white cheek patch. The boreal has a distinctly brown cap, black throat, brownish flanks, and a white cheek patch.

So why would a boreal chickadee be found in Butte? It is a puzzle, because they are a rather sedentary, habitat-specific species of extreme northwest Montana. Typical guesses are that it got caught up in a group of black-capped and mountain chickadees and followed them south, or a storm blew it south.

Neither answer is very likely, so the questions goes unanswered.

I like to say, Birds dont read the same books we do, so they do things theyre not supposed to!

So the next time you see a flock of chickadees, dont assume they are all black-capped or mountain. Look through the group for that rare one  like a boreal chickadee in Butte, Montana.
The Montana Democratic Party failed to identify the issues and candidates that benefited from its spending of about $375,000 on the 2016 general election, the state's top election watchdog found.

Commissioner of Political Practices Jeff Mangan also found that the party failed to include Supreme Court candidate Dirk Sandefur on a list of candidates it was supporting.

He referred the case to the Lewis and Clark County attorney for potential prosecution, but his Dec. 5 finding said such cases are usually settled with a civil fine.

Party spokesman Roy Loewenstein said it filed the appropriate information with the commissioner in October, but limitations of the online system "meant that material was not accepted. We have updated the filings in question and in the future we will be filing additional information to correct this deficiency in the reporting system."

The campaign reporting system has fields for the vendor's name, the purpose of the spending, the candidate or issue involved and the amount of money spent. The Democratic Party included both the purpose and the candidate/issue in the same field, which was limited to 100 characters. It left the candidate/issue field blank.

The party responded that the reporting failures were "not the fault of the reporter, but of the system," the finding said.

However, the party "has, in other committee finance reports, utilized all the available fields, including the candidate/issue field," Mangan wrote, noting they had also filed an addendum in cases where character limitations affected responses.

Jake Eaton of Billings, a former executive director of the Montana Republican Party, filed the complaint in July. He also suggested that the party and Sandefur's campaign coordinated expenditures because both had the same deputy treasurer. The opinion found the deputy treasurer had only accounting duties with the campaigns.

The Democrats filed complaints in September and December of 2016 arguing that the Republican Party's campaign committee did not adequately say how it used $25,600 in party funds in the 2016 election. The commissioner's office agreed that reporting it spent the money on "consulting" was not specific enough.
KALISPELL  Horseflies and mule deer might be playing a part in the demise of moose in the Big Hole Valley.

But, right now, no one knows for sure if they are really to blame.

Wolves and bears could be behind the low numbers of moose calves that dont live to see their first birthday.

Once again, theres not enough solid evidence to show that theyre truly the culprit.

Theres nothing simple in the solitary life of a moose.

Thats a fact a pair of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists are learning as they follow three different populations of moose as a part of the states first-ever study focused on population dynamics of the largest member of the deer family.

The 10-year study is nearing its halfway point.

So far, the information the researchers have gleaned raises as many questions as it offers answers.

They are a tough animal to monitor, said FWPs lead moose biologist Nick DeCesare. They are really widespread and always found in low density. They often live in places that are hard to see from the air.

While moose populations north of the border have been doing just fine, the species adapted for cold winters and summers filled with sunlight has been struggling on the southern edges of its habitat.

In Minnesota, biologists have seen one population totally disappear in the 1980s and '90s and another struggling to survive now from an onslaught of parasites, disease and predators.

Concern over the Montanas moose population has its own long history.

Over the past couple of decades, state biologists focused on different regions across the state where moose live have noticed that they dont see as many of the massive animals as they once did. As a result, in the last 10 years, moose hunting permits have dropped by about half.

Because moose dont live in herds or migrate annually to winter or summering grounds, their populations are hard to estimate. DeCesare said the last estimate was made in 2006 when biologists whose areas included habitat used by moose were asked to make their best guess on their numbers.

They came up with a number of about 5,000, but that comes with all kinds of caveats, he said.

No one knows for sure why moose populations are struggling in some places and why they appear to be doing OK in others.

In an effort to shed some light on some of those mysteries, DeCesare and FWP research technician Jesse Newby have been following three separate moose populations as part of the 10-year study funded by the annual auction of a moose permit that's matched by federal Pittman-Robertson Act dollars.

The study includes capturing and collaring adult female moose with both VHF and GPS devices.

The goal is to have 30 collared moose in each of the three separate population segments located in the Cabinet-Fisher ranges, the Big Hole Valley and on the Rocky Mountain Front.

In the first five years, those collared animals have provided a glimpse in just how different the challenges are for moose across the state.

In the Cabinet-Fisher range in northwest Montana, the populations of the long-lived animal appear to be holding steady despite the fact that calves struggle to survive in the heavily wooded area. In the Big Hole, the calves are doing fine, but the adults are dying at higher rates than the other two places.

The Rocky Mountain Front was the only location where the population seems to be increasing slightly with both calves and adults faring relatively well.

We are seeing three different stories playing out, DeCesare said.

And inside of each one of those stories are even more interesting twists as the researchers have seen individual moose take off on long treks from the Rocky Mountain Front or make the fatal decision of trying the scale the Cabinet Mountains in the middle of winter.

Moose have a very individual way of using the landscape, Newby told FWPs Region One Citizen Advisory Committee earlier this week. They all have their own strategies. Sometimes those strategies dont work for them.

That individuality adds another layer to the challenge of understanding them.

A handful of places in Montana have seen annual efforts to survey moose from the air. Newby said overall that information shows a decline in populations in some areas. Even with that, there is enough variance in the samples that makes it hard to develop a solid trend.

In the long term, its going to take more than a couple of researchers to keep an eye on moose in the state

Hunters and others who spend a lot of time in the woods may be called on to help.

Coming up with a cost-effective way to gather more information Montanas moose population is one focus of the study.

The researchers are looking at the potential of using information gathered from hunters during the annual telephone surveys to gain some additional insight on where moose are being seen. In the past, hunters have also provided similar information at game check stations.

By the time we get to the end of the study, we would like to have a toolbox developed that would let us effectively monitor the moose population, Newby said.

That might include retooling some of the surveys from the air, but its going to be boots on the ground that probably will make the most difference.

Hunters have generally been eager to help, Newby said. We get a lot of information from moose hunters.  We are assessing right now how its all going to work. Once were done that, we will need to make a push out there to ensure that people will give us a heads-up when they see a moose and provide us with information like when and where.

When it comes to finding the cause of mortality for both calves in the Cabinets and adults in the Big Hole, both researchers acknowledge that its not going to be easy.

DeCesare said they had considered capturing moose calves and putting on devices that could track their movements. After learning about the deaths and abandonment that occurred in other places when researchers attempted that strategy, they decided against it.

We didnt want to take that chance, he said.

Discovering whats killing adult moose in the Big Hole hasnt been simple either.

An arterial worm called Elaeophora schneideri is a suspect. The worm is carried by mule deer and passed on through horseflies. Its been found in large numbers in moose found dead in the Big Hole.

Isolating that one parasite as the cause of mortality is a challenge, Newby said.

When a moose was found dead in a ranchers pasture, the researcher thought maybe they finally had what they needed to determine a cause. The fresh carcass was hurriedly winched onto a trailer and rushed to a lab where 50 of the arterial worms were extracted.

When we got the report back, we discovered the moose was suffering from a multiple of bacterial issues, Newby said. There were a lot of things going on with that moose. Finding the smoking gun is a problem in even the most ideal conditions.
In the next week or so, Washington regulators will rule on a major utility rate case affecting 1.6 million customers in their state and coal-fired plants in Colstrip.

Colstrip supplies 20 percent of the power distributed by Puget Sound Energy, which owns 50 percent of Colstrip Units 1 and 2 and about 25 percent of Units 3 and 4. Together, the four units and the coal mine that fuels them provide most of the jobs and nearly 80 percent of the tax base for the town of 2,300 Montanans.

Two points in this case before the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission directly affect Colstrip. A settlement agreement signed in September by PSE, Montana Attorney General Tim Fox, the Sierra Club, National Resource Defense Council, Northwest Energy Coalition, Renewable Northwest and Natural Resources Defense Council proposes that:

-- PSE will pay $10 million to help the community of Colstrip transition with the closure of Units 1 and 2 by the middle of 2022. Details of how that money will be paid have not been set, but PSE has said it should include worker retraining.

-- PSE will accelerate payoff of its share of debt on Units 3 and 4, so it is completely paid off in 2027. This would require an increase in PSE customers rates. Units 3 and 4 wouldnt necessarily close in 2027.

The WUTC is deciding whether to accept the proposed settlement. All parties signed it, except for the Washington state consumer advocate.

Talen, the company that owns the other 50 percent of Units 1 and 2, isnt a regulated utility; it markets power to utilities and other customers. Talen hasnt agreed to payments to assist the Colstrip community, but it will be legally responsible for a share of the cleanup costs that are still being calculated by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

As a net energy exporter, Montana is largely at the mercy of distant markets and forces beyond our control. Montana law and leaders must hold energy producers accountable for the impacts they incur in our state.

Colstrip 1 and 2 will require decades of cleanup with costs running over $100 million, according to Steve Secrist, PSE senior vice president and general counsel. Secrist, who helped negotiate the proposed rate case settlement, said the cleanup will create nearly 100 jobs, approximately as many as would be lost at the plants with the closure.

The need for people to help with remediation is such that no people will be out of work with the step down from 1 and 2, Secrist said on a recent visit to Montana.

State Sen. Duane Ankney, R-Colstrip, is skeptical. There will be loss of jobs, he told The Gazette, noting that coal miners will no longer be mining to supply the two closed units.

Secrist said remediation will create family wage jobs. We want to get solutions, retrain employees, certify them to give certainty to families that they will have work for the next 20 years, Secrist said.

If they assimilate the plant workers, what about the miners? Colstrip Mayor John Williams asked when The Gazette called for his opinion on the proposed $10 million transition fund. I dont know how the $10 million will come, if and when that occurs.

We suggest that PSE representatives meet with the Colstrip city council to discuss the impending shutdown and how that $10 million fund should work.

Regardless of the WUTC decision, Units 1 and 2 are scheduled to close by July 2022, under a court-ordered clean air settlement. Out-of-state customers for the plants power are demanding cleaner energy sources, which also are less expensive.

Change is coming to Colstrip. Coal-fired plants will still produce power for years to come, perhaps many years. The community deserves help in developing new industries.

Last spring, Ankney sponsored Senate Bill 338 that would have held PSE and Talen responsible for transition costs such as loss of local residential and commercial real estate value, outstanding government bond debt that was issued with the expectation of repayment with plant tax revenues and money for transitioning and retraining workers. The Gazette editorialized in support of SB338, which sailed through the Senate, but was killed in House energy committee where lobbyist argued the bill was bad for business. In March, a Gazette opinion said that legislation would be an important start on helping Colstrip.

Now the PSE rate case settlement is an important step in keeping a community that has always depended on coal viable in a changing energy market.

-- The Billings Gazette
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 []
Lake Berryessa Community Forum Dec. 13

Napa County and the Bureau of Reclamation will hold the next meeting of the Lake Berryessa Community Forum at 5:30, Wednesday, Dec. 13, at the Lake Berryessa Senior Center, 4380 Spanish Flat Loop Road.

Forum meetings are designed to create another way to provide community input on recreational opportunities and services at Lake Berryessa.

Napa County issued a Request for Information and Interest (http://bit.ly/2xiadwq) in order to solicit potential concessionaires for five developable sites at Lake Berryessa  Putah Canyon, Monticello Shores, Berryessa Point, Spanish Flat, and Steele Canyon. The deadline to submit is Jan. 31, 2018.

Lake Berryessa is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the state with 165 miles of shoreline and 20,700 surface acres.

Fire recovery: Free workshops Dec. 12, 13

The Napa County Resource Conservation District (Napa RCD) is hosting two free workshops for land owners and managers who seek guidance related to erosion, trees, and other natural resource concerns because of recent fire impacts.

The Dec. 12 workshop is from 6:30-8 p.m. at the Calistoga Community Center, 1307 Washington St., in Calistoga. The Dec. 13 workshop is 6:30-8 p.m., in the library building at Napa Valley College, 2277 Napa-Vallejo Highway. For more information, contact Frances@NapaRCD.org. Attendees can sign up for one-on-one assistance during the workshop.

Topics include:

Fire-adapted ecosystems

Potential resource concerns in post-fire landscapes  erosion, trees, flooding

Things to observe, do, or not do when getting ready for winter

Things to observe, do, or not do next year and in the future

What to do/whom to contact if you observe problems this winter

Napa RCD and NRCS services

County participates on FBI Wildfire Disaster Fraud Task Force

Because of the recent wildfires in Northern California, the FBI has established an ad hoc Wildfire Disaster Fraud Task Force to address fraud related to the relief and recovery efforts after the wildfires. Napa County District Attorneys Office and Napa County Sheriffs Office are part of this effort. If you believe you have been a victim of disaster-related fraud, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud at 866-720-5721 or disaster@leo.gov.

Napa County Suicide Prevention Council meeting

The Napa County Health and Human Services Agency, Mental Health Division, is partnering with Aldea Inc. Courage Village to establish A Napa County Suicide Prevention Council. Suicide and the isolation often associated with mental illness, quietly bring loss and suffering to our community. The Council will guide efforts to reduce stigma related to suicide and mental illness through information dissemination and training.

If you want to learn more and/or participate in the Napa County Suicide Prevention Council, the next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 9, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 2751 A Napa Valley Corporate Drive. For more information about the Council, contact Bill Carter, Napa County Mental Health Director at 707-299-2102 or bill.carter@countyofnapa.org.

Get involved  committee and commission openings

Here are some great opportunities to get involved in your community. Napa County has openings for committees and commissions. To find out more visit: http://www.countyofnapa.org/ceo/committeesandcommissions/

Come work with us!

Is your career ready for its next challenge? Bring your expertise to our Napa County team. Find open positions and apply here: http://www.countyofnapa.org/jobs/

Engage with us

Follow our social media accounts on Facebook (Napa County, California  Government) and on Twitter (@countyofnapa). Visit us online at countyofnapa.org to locate county services and programs, contact departments, search for records and documents, and find events and agendas, and much more.

Sign up for emergency alerts

Get safety and community messages straight to your mobile phone by joining Nixle, Napa Countys emergency mass communications system. Text your ZIP code to 888777 to receive local updates during storms, wildfires, and other emergencies.
A confrontation Saturday morning between two men ended with the arrest of one of the men on a felony threat allegation, according to Napa Police.

At 9:21 a.m., officers were called to a disturbance in the 400 block of Even Street, according to Sgt. Heath Morrison. Paul Price Gaytan, 29, had followed another man to that man's girlfriend's house and asked his help in selling a skateboard. When the man refused, Gaytan, became angry, raised the skateboard in a threatening manner and threatened to kill the other man, Morrison said.
Twice each year, once in January and again in May, Gov. Jerry Brown warns Californians that the economic prosperity their state has enjoyed in recent years wont last forever.

Brown attaches his admonishments to the budgets he proposes to the Legislature  the initial one in January and a revised version four months later.

Browns latest, issued last May, cited uncertainty about turmoil in the national government, urged legislators to plan for and save for tougher budget times ahead, and added:

By the time the budget is enacted in June, the economy will have finished its eighth year of expansion  only two years shorter than the longest recovery since World War II. A recession at some point is inevitable.

Its certain that Brown will renew his warning next month. Implicitly, he may hope that the inevitable recession he envisions will occur once his final term as governor ends in January, 2019, because it would, his own financial advisers believe, have a devastating effect on the state budget.

A new report from the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), however, hints that the downturn may have already started.

The BEA releases state-by-state economic data each quarter, and its reports for the first and second quarters of 2017 are not good news for California.

Last year was a very good one for the states economy. The 3.3 percent gain in economic output in 2016 was more than double that of the nation as a whole and one of the highest of any state.

However, California stumbled during the first half of 2017. Californias increase was an anemic six tenths of one percent in the first quarter compared to the same period of 2016, and 2.1 percent in the second quarter, well below the national rate and ranking 35th in the nation.

The report revealed that almost every one of Californias major sectors fell behind national trends in the second quarter, with the most conspicuous laggard being manufacturing.

The only big California sector showing robust health was information, reflecting the unfortunate truism that the Silicon Valley-centered technology industry continues to prop up an otherwise lackluster overall economy.

It may be only a hiccup in Californias $2.6 trillion economy, the fifth or sixth largest in the world were it a nation. But maybe not.

Were the oft-predicted recession to finally hit, the most obvious effect would be on the state budget. It is highly dependent on income taxes paid by a handful of high-income Californians, particularly on their investment gains and particularly in the tech-heavy Bay area.

The last recession a decade ago revealed just how that dependency backfires in recession.

The state is even more dependent now, thanks to voter-approved increases in marginal tax rates, so a new recession would have even harsher fiscal effects.

However, the impact would not be confined to the budget. We could see unemployment, which has been at record-low levels recently, skyrocket as it did a decade ago with collateral impacts on housing, retail sales and virtually every other economic activity.

We would also see a new debate over whether Californias high taxes, high labor and housing costs and high levels of regulation have, as critics allege, made the state less attractive to job-creating investment and more vulnerable to recession.

Will it happen? Yes. A recession is inevitable as Brown warns. What we dont know is when and whether it would seriously impact the high-tech industry. It is so vital to Californias overall economic health that were it to falter, an otherwise mild recession could be devastating.
The Republican Party is getting very nervous about Robert Mueller's investigation into the Trump campaign's potential collusion with Russia and possible crimes associated with it, as well they should.

So they seem to have arrived at a strategy: launch an all-out PR assault on the entire investigation, utilizing every available megaphone at their disposal.

You might ask, how is that going to help? Mueller has all the authority and resources he needs, and he isn't going to be intimidated by a bunch of bloviating congressmen or a hundred shouting segments on Fox News. President Donald Trump could fire him, but that won't be easy, and could precipitate a real constitutional crisis.

Yet even if Trump doesn't fire Mueller, the strategy could still achieve another critical goal, which is to shape public opinion. Republicans would love to stop Mueller, but short of that they're trying to immunize the public - or half of it, anyway - against him.

It's coming from Republican members of Congress, who are taking every available opportunity to rail against Mueller and the FBI. Most especially, it's coming from the conservative media, nowhere more than on Fox News. As Brian Stelter observes, Fox has practically become all-Mueller, all the time:

"The repetition is really something to behold - not just by hosts but by guests who back up the anti-Mueller arguments. 'There needs to be an investigation of the investigation,' Mike Huckabee, father of White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, said on 'Fox & Friends' on Monday.

"The next night, on Fox Business, fervently pro-Trump host Lou Dobbs tried to outdo his colleagues. He said Strzok, Mueller and former FBI director James Comey 'should be the subjects of criminal investigations and held fully accountable for crimes against a sitting president and the voters who supported him.'

"Dobbs added, 'Just one man's opinion.'

"Later that evening, Hannity's opinion was that Mueller is the 'head of the snake.' He called the special counsel a 'disgrace to the American justice system' and asserted that the country is 'now on the brink of becoming a banana republic.' "

The president watches many of these programs obsessively, and according to news reports regularly calls Sean Hannity after his show to consult on the day's events. So there's no question that his own sense of grievance and oppression will be fed by what he watches every day, which could make it far more likely that he moves to fire Mueller. And as this blog has pointed out, it appears these media figures are actively trying to goad Trump into doing that.

But even if he doesn't, the strategy can still have a critical impact on the ultimate outcome of the Russia scandal.

The Republican approach has its roots in an insight that Mitch McConnell brought to the GOP's strategy in opposing Barack Obama. On major legislation like the Affordable Care Act, McConnell worked hard to make sure not a single Republican joined with Democrats, as much to create a public impression about the enterprise as to actually defeat it. As McConnell explained to the New York Times in 2010:

" 'It was absolutely critical that everybody be together because if the proponents of the bill were able to say it was bipartisan, it tended to convey to the public that this is OK, they must have figured it out,' Mr. McConnell said about the health legislation in an interview, suggesting that even minimal Republican support could sway the public.' "

As long as both parties were opposed to one another, it just looked like partisan bickering to voters who had only the barest understanding of the legislation.

There's a similar logic at work today. The public isn't going to follow all the twists and turns of the Russia scandal and know the entire cast of characters; I'd be surprised if 20 percent of Americans could tell you who Michael Flynn is, let alone George Papadopoulos or Sergei Kislyak. But if they can be convinced that the whole thing is just partisan, then they don't have to know. Republicans will follow their natural inclination to line up behind their party, insulating Trump and his administration from any kind of accountability.

How do you create that impression? You argue not just that it's a witch hunt but that it's a partisan witch hunt, done for no purpose other than partisan advantage. So what if the FBI is full of Republicans, or if Mueller himself is a Republican of unimpeachable law-enforcement credentials, or if his team of investigators and prosecutors includes both Republicans and Democrats? If you can find, say, an agent working on the case who criticized Trump in a private text message, and was removed lest the investigation be tainted in any way, that's all the hook you need to shout that the whole thing is a Democratic operation.

Want more? Here's a bit of the intro to Sean Hannity's show Wednesday night:

"Also tonight, we have new big breaking information about the Special Counsel, Robert Mueller's partisan, extremely biased, hyper-partisan attack team. We will going to name names tonight and explain exactly who these Trump hating investigators really are and why this entire witch-hunt needs to be shut down and shut down immediately. What is beyond clear tonight is that Robert Mueller has assembled the most partisan Special Counsel in history."

A "partisan, extremely biased, hyper-partisan attack team"! Jeez, I don't know, that sounds pretty partisan.

Unless and until Trump fires Mueller, none of this will have any immediate practical effect on the probe. Mueller is doing his work, gathering information and handing down indictments. Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh can't stop him. They can't keep him from sending some Trump associates to prison. But what they can do is affect what happens when he's done.

Once Mueller issues his final report, the country and its representatives in Congress will have to decide what to do about it. If all Republicans have been convinced that nothing Mueller uncovers need be considered seriously or even believed, then it could well get Trump off the hook. Republicans in Congress won't feel pressure to follow up with further investigations, let alone impeach the president. And while it will still be a huge scandal, it won't be the kind of bipartisan scandal that can bring down a president.

Until 2020, that is.